Category: Cricket

Karachi, Pakistan – In an exciting cricket match, South African player Ryan Rickleton scored his first-ever century in One Day Internationals (ODIs), helping his team reach 315 runs after 50 overs against Afghanistan at the National Stadium in Karachi on Friday.

The South African captain, Temba Bavuma, won the toss and decided to bowl first. Opening batsmen Ryan Rickleton and Tony De Zorzi began the innings, but their partnership ended with Zorzi getting out for just 11 runs in the sixth over, bowled by Mohammad Nabi. Bavuma then joined Rickleton at the crease.

The South African team quickly reached 50 runs in the 11th over, and by the 15th over, Rickleton scored his second fifty, showing strong batting skills. The team passed the 100-run mark in the 20th over, and Bavuma scored his own fifty in the 25th over. Unfortunately, Bavuma was out after scoring 58 runs off 76 balls, including five boundaries, also thanks to Nabi.

Next, Rassie van der Dussen came in to bat. In the 35th over, Rickleton proudly celebrated his maiden century but was run out the very next over, finishing with 103 runs. After Rickleton, Aiden Markram joined van der Dussen on the field.

By the 42nd over, van der Dussen completed his half-century before getting out off Noor Ahmed’s bowling. The South African team crossed 250 runs shortly after with David Miller and Markram batting well. Miller was out in the 48th over thanks to a fantastic catch by Rahmat Shah.

Markram finished his own fifty in the 49th over, helping the South African team cross 300 runs before the innings wrapped up at 315 runs for 6 wickets in their 50 overs.

For Afghanistan, Mohammad Nabi was the standout bowler, taking 2 wickets for 51 runs in 10 overs. Fazalhaq Farooqi, Azmatullah Omarzai, and Noor Ahmed each took 1 wicket.

Score Summary: South Africa 315/6 in 50 overs vs Afghanistan.

Former Indian cricket captain Anil Kumble believes that Virat Kohli should relax more instead of feeling pressure to score runs. In the recent ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 match against Bangladesh, Kohli only scored 22 runs before being dismissed by spinner Rishad Hossain. Since the 2023 ODI World Cup, he has struggled with his form, scoring just 137 runs in six matches.

Kumble noticed that Kohli was trying very hard to perform well and believes it’s making things tougher for him. He said, “When players have been successful for a long time, they feel the urge to keep performing well, and that can lead to extra pressure.”

In Kohli’s last six innings, he has been out mostly to spin bowlers, particularly left-arm spinners. Kumble suggested that Kohli should look at Rohit Sharma, who scored 41 runs rapidly in the same match, as an example. Kumble pointed out that Rohit plays with freedom because he knows his teammates are also doing well.

Kumble advised Kohli to focus on enjoying the game rather than worrying about the score. He emphasized that Kohli is a strong player against spin but has fallen into the habit of trying too hard to score runs. Instead, Kohli should focus on playing naturally by rotating the strike and building his innings gradually.

Pakistani cricket star Babar Azam is facing heavy criticism after his slow performance in the opening match of the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 against New Zealand. Babar scored 64 runs off 90 balls, but his slow batting with a strike rate of just 71.11 didn’t help Pakistan chase down New Zealand’s total of 321 runs, leading to a 60-run defeat in Karachi.

Fans and cricket experts are disappointed, including former Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin. He expressed concern about Babar’s lack of “intent” or aggression while batting, especially when other players like Salman Ali Agha and Khushdil Shah were hitting the ball hard. During the first 10 overs, Pakistan struggled with just 22 runs for 2 wickets, putting themselves under pressure from the start.

Ashwin, who praised Babar’s talent, said it was hard to watch him play so defensively. He pointed out that Babar didn’t use the right shots to score runs and seemed to play it safe rather than taking risks. Ashwin noted that even a player like Fakhar Zaman, who was injured, was ready to take more risks than Babar.

Babar’s slow start and poor shot selection have left Pakistan in a tough spot in the tournament. They now must win their next match against India to keep their chances alive. Fakhar Zaman has been ruled out of the tournament, and Imam-ul-Haq is his replacement.

Ashwin summarized Babar’s performance by saying, “It was bad play.” He believes that with only three matches in this tournament, Babar needs to be more aggressive and take chances to help his team.

Babar Azam’s slow innings in Pakistan’s Champions Trophy 2025 opener against New Zealand has brought him a lot of criticism. He scored 64 runs off 90 balls, but Pakistan lost the match by 60 runs while chasing a target of 321 runs. Many experts noticed that Babar seemed to play without much effort during the game.

Things got even more heated when an Indian TV host called Babar ‘Bobzy’ during a discussion about his performance. While this nickname is used by some of Babar’s fans in Pakistan, former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag looked confused and asked, “Who is Bobzy?” This moment caught attention, and it seemed like the anchor was making fun of Babar’s popularity among his supporters.

The clip got a lot of shares online, with fans unhappy about what they thought was a mean joke at their star player’s expense.

Aside from that, Babar’s struggle to score well is a big topic right now. He has not made a big score since his last ODI century against Nepal in August 2023. The pressure is on him to perform better, especially since Pakistan needs to win their next two matches in the tournament, including a vital one against India.

On the other hand, India started their Champions Trophy campaign with a strong six-wicket win over Bangladesh. Pakistan’s match against India is coming up on February 23 in Dubai, and all eyes will be on Babar to see if he can improve his game.

Rohit Sharma tried hard to forget his dropped catch during a recent match. He hit the ground with his hands, apologized to bowler Axar Patel, and was really upset for at least two overs. The commentators even teased him, wondering if there should be a fine for how hard he was scolding himself. But why was he so upset about a drop catch? Because it was a special moment—Axar was on the verge of getting his very first hat-trick in cricket.

Only four Indian bowlers have achieved a hat-trick in One Day Internationals (ODIs). And there was only one previous hat-trick in ICC Champions Trophy history, done by Jerome Taylor from the West Indies in 2006. So, a hat-trick is very rare!

Axar had worked hard to set it up. He outsmarted Bangladeshi batter Jaker Ali, getting him to edge the ball. Rohit put two slips in place, hoping to catch it. But he mistimed his dive and the ball fell to the ground. Legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar, who was commentating at the time, remarked that a dropped catch while going for a hat-trick would be remembered for a long time.

Rohit was clearly frustrated with himself. He shook his head so much that viewers started to feel dizzy! He scolded himself saying, “He’s giving gaalis (swear words) to himself,” noted Gavaskar.

What made matters worse for India was that if Rohit had caught the ball, Bangladesh would have been 35/6. Instead, Jaker Ali and Towhid Hridoy built a huge 154-run partnership, turning the game around for Bangladesh and helping them set a strong score.

India’s fielding also got sloppy as the game went on. While Virat Kohli made some great catches early on, after Rohit’s drop, things went downhill. Hardik Pandya missed a catch off Kuldeep Yadav’s bowling, giving Hridoy another chance. And later, Ravindra Jadeja fooled Jaker Ali, but KL Rahul couldn’t catch the ball, missing a stumping chance. There were also too many boundaries given away late in the game, allowing Bangladesh to finish with a decent total.

Big news for Pakistan’s cricket team: they will not have their star player, Fakhar Zaman, for the important match against India. Fakhar hurt his knee while playing against New Zealand in their first match on Thursday. He tried to keep playing but looked really uncomfortable, especially during his batting. He scored only 24 runs off 41 balls and had to get help before he got out.

After the game, Mohammad Rizwan, the captain, said he didn’t know how serious Fakhar’s injury was but confirmed he was in pain. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had earlier said they were watching his muscle sprain closely. However, it now seems that Fakhar’s injury is serious, which means he not only misses the game against India but might also not be ready to play against Bangladesh next week. A reliable source has told Hindustan Times that Fakhar is “almost ruled out” of the tournament.

This news is a relief for the Indian team because Fakhar was the one who scored a century in the 2017 Champions Trophy final and helped Pakistan win against India. He scored 114 runs, leading Pakistan to a big score that India couldn’t match.

To make things worse for Pakistan, they are also missing another player, Saim Ayub, from the tournament. There were concerns about Haris Rauf’s fitness too, but he showed up ready to play against New Zealand.

Pakistan was excited to host the ICC tournament for the first time in almost 30 years, but the start wasn’t great. In the first match against New Zealand at the National Stadium in Karachi, opener Fakhar Zaman got hurt right away.

Just two balls into the game, New Zealand’s Will Young hit the ball to the outfield. Fakhar rushed to stop it and dived, but he landed awkwardly and seemed to hurt either his knee or back. He looked really hurt and had to leave the field for treatment. Kamran Ghulam took his place as the substitute fielder.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said Fakhar had a “muscular sprain” and is being checked to see how serious it is. He has had injuries before, including knee surgery and hamstring problems, which kept him sidelined in the past.

“It’s a real shame if Fakhar is hurt, especially since he’s a key player for Pakistan in ODIs,” commented Ramiz Raja during the game. Ian Smith added, “It’s very unlucky for him. Fakhar has been in great form. If he can’t play later, it will be a big loss for the team.”

Pakistan is the defending champion after beating India in the last final in 2017. Meanwhile, India is playing its matches in the UAE because of travel restrictions from their government.

New Zealand comes into this tournament confident after winning the tri-nation series against Pakistan and South Africa just last week. Even though they’ve lost two main fast bowlers to injury, their other players, especially their spinners, are performing well.

New Zealand missed one of their batters, Rachin Ravindra, for this game as he’s still recovering from an injury to his forehead. On the other hand, Pakistan’s fast bowler Haris Rauf, who missed the last two games due to a side strain, has passed his fitness test and is back in the team instead of allrounder Faheem Ashraf.

As India approaches the 2025 Champions Trophy, one big question is who will support Mohammed Shami in fast bowling now that Jasprit Bumrah can’t play due to injury. Harshit Rana has been added to the squad as Bumrah’s replacement, but Australian cricket legend Ricky Ponting believes that Arshdeep Singh should take that important spot in the team.

Ponting highlighted that Arshdeep’s left-arm bowling makes him special. “I would choose Arshdeep to replace Bumrah. He has been fantastic in T20 cricket. His skills are similar to Bumrah’s, especially when bowling with the new ball and during the last overs, which are really important,” Ponting said.

While he praised Harshit Rana’s talent, Ponting thinks that Arshdeep is better at bowling in those crucial final moments of the game. “Having a left-armer who can swing the new ball is really important, especially in big tournaments when there are lots of right-handed batsmen,” he added.

With Bumrah out, pressure is now on Shami to step up. Bumrah’s absence is seen as a big loss for India, as he’s been a key player in the bowling lineup for years. However, ex-India pacer Lakshmipathy Balaji believes Shami can fill this gap. “Shami outperformed Bumrah in the 2019 and 2023 World Cups. While Bumrah is a top bowler, Shami has a lot of experience. Before Bumrah came, Shami was the main bowler for India,” Balaji said.

The concern for India is that Shami hasn’t been in great form in recent matches since returning from a long injury break.

Indian cricketer Shardul Thakur has signed a seven-match deal to play for Essex in the County Championship starting in April and May 2025. The 33-year-old all-rounder is eager to impress and hopes to make a return to the Test team.

Later this year, India will play five Test matches in England. If Shardul performs well, he could earn a spot on the team. Recently, he was not included in India’s squad for the Test series against Australia, and the coach is focusing on younger players like Nitish Kumar Reddy instead.

Shardul has played 83 matches for India across all formats and has taken 129 wickets, with 31 of those coming from 11 Test matches. He started his international career in August 2017 with an ODI against Sri Lanka, followed by his Test debut against the West Indies in September 2018.

In first-class cricket, Shardul has taken 296 wickets with an average of 27.45 and scored over 2,000 runs, including two centuries and 15 half-centuries.

Recently, he had an incredible performance in a Ranji Trophy game against Meghalaya, scoring 84 runs in just 42 balls and taking a hat-trick, finishing with great figures of 8/91. Just before that, he scored 51 and 119 in a match against Jammu and Kashmir, partnering for a key 184-run stand for the eighth wicket.

Shardul Excited About Joining Essex
“I am excited to join Essex this summer. It brings new challenges and opportunities to show my skills,” Shardul said in a statement.

Chris Silverwood, Essex’s Director of Cricket, expressed his happiness about Shardul joining the team. “We’re thrilled to sign Shardul. We needed a quality bowler who can bat well, and he fits perfectly. We can’t wait to see him play in the County Championship,” he said.

On Monday, Mohsin Naqvi, the chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), made a big decision regarding the upcoming cricket match between India and Pakistan. He had the chance to sit in a special VIP Hospitality Box with 30 seats at the Dubai International Stadium, which could have brought in about 400,000 dirhams (around 94 lakh rupees).

Instead of keeping the tickets for himself and his family, Naqvi chose to sell those VIP seats and watch the game with the fans. He wanted to feel the excitement of the crowd and see how they support the Pakistan team during the match. He has already told the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the Emirates Cricket Board about his choice.

The money earned from the ticket sales will be used to improve cricket stadiums in Karachi, Lahore, and Pindi.

The big match is set for February 23, and fans are eagerly awaiting this showdown, especially since Pakistan has won three out of five times they’ve faced India in the Champions Trophy before. Pakistan is the defending champion and will play their first match of the 2025 Champions Trophy against New Zealand a few days earlier.