Category: Sports

Rajkot, India: Before the third T20I match between India and England, Axar Patel, the vice-captain of the Indian cricket team, tried something new—he made a Vlog! On Monday, Axar recorded the team’s journey from Chennai airport to their hotel in Rajkot, where the exciting match will take place.

In the Vlog, Axar chatted with his teammates and coaches. He spoke with bowling coach Morne Morkel, fellow all-rounders Hardik Pandya and Ramandeep Singh, as well as leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi. He also had conversations with young players like Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, and Dhruv Jurel. At the end of the video, the team received a warm welcome from the hotel staff when they arrived.

Axar Patel, a left-arm spinner, is doing great in this T20I series. He is currently the second-highest wicket-taker with four wickets in just two matches, averaging 13.50. The third T20I match will be held on Tuesday at Niranjan Shah Stadium in Rajkot, starting at 7 PM IST.

Team Squads:
– India: Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Mohammed Shami, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel, Harshit Rana.
– England: Ben Duckett, Philip Salt, Jos Buttler, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Overton, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Saqib Mahmood, Gus Atkinson, Jamie Smith, Rehan Ahmed.

Right now, one of the biggest mysteries in Indian cricket isn’t just about Rohit Sharma’s future or Virat Kohli’s form – it’s why Mohammed Shami isn’t playing in matches. Surprisingly, he has missed the first two T20 games, and this has got fans wondering if he’s unfit or not part of the plan. But here’s the good news: Shami is completely healthy and eager to play!

The Indian team management is being smart. With Jasprit Bumrah’s future uncertain, they want to save Shami for upcoming ODI matches. Everyone is impressed with how well he has recovered and is fit now. The team feels that it’s wise not to overuse him in T20 matches right now, especially since the focus is on the longer format of the game.

Shami has even lost 2kgs and is bowling at his best! However, he’s not needed much in T20s. So, it looks like he won’t be playing in the third T20 International, especially since India won the first two matches. It’s likely that coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Suryakumar Yadav won’t change the team too much.

Shami hasn’t played for India in over a year since the World Cup final due to a serious ankle injury. He needed surgery, and his recovery took longer than expected. Fans got frustrated as they waited for updates on his health. Eventually, Shami was named in India’s squad for the upcoming T20s and ODIs, which is great news!

Shami has been fantastic in past World Cups, so having him fit is crucial as the team prepares for another big tournament.

The Indian cricket team, led by Rohit Sharma, will play a practice match in Dubai before the Champions Trophy starts on February 19. They are set to face Bangladesh in their first official match on February 20 at the Dubai International Stadium.

To prepare for this big tournament, the Indian team wants to get used to the weather and conditions in Dubai by playing a warm-up game. There is a report from Dainik Jagran suggesting that they might play against Bangladesh, but it’s also possible they could face the United Arab Emirates (UAE) instead. The exact date of the warm-up match hasn’t been confirmed yet.

An ICC official mentioned that since all of India’s matches will be held in Dubai, they’re working on scheduling this practice game to help the team get ready.

Although Pakistan is hosting the Champions Trophy, India cannot travel there due to ongoing political issues, so all their matches will take place in Dubai. Bangladesh is in the same group as India and will kick off its tournament against another team. It’s likely that both teams will be in Dubai, which raises the chances of them meeting in the warm-up match.

If India and Bangladesh can’t agree, then the UAE is ready to host the practice game. Even though the UAE team isn’t part of the Champions Trophy, they can still play against India.

In addition to this practice game, India is preparing for the Champions Trophy by playing a series of matches at home against England. This includes a five-match T20 series. The full-strength Champions Trophy squad will be present for the ODI series against England, starting on February 6, minus injured player Jasprit Bumrah.

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has stated that young opener Saim Ayub is unlikely to play in the ICC Champions Trophy due to an ankle injury. Saim hurt his ankle during the second Test against South Africa earlier this month in Cape Town. Naqvi said he is closely following Saim’s recovery, which is currently happening in London.

Naqvi emphasized that they will not rush Saim back to play because he is an important player for the team’s future. “I’m in daily contact with his doctors. The plaster on his ankle will come off soon,” Naqvi explained. “However, it will take time for him to heal completely, and we won’t put his career at risk just for the Champions Trophy. We want him fully fit, no matter how long it takes.”

Pakistan has not yet announced its squad for the Champions Trophy, which will take place in Pakistan and Dubai starting February 19. The selectors are waiting to see if Saim will be ready. Before his injury, Saim was in excellent form, having scored two centuries in South Africa and was named in the ICC’s ODI Team of the Year.

In light of Saim’s injury, discarded opener Fakhar Zaman, who helped Pakistan win the last Champions Trophy in 2017 with a century against India, is set to replace him. Shan Masood and Imam ul Haq are also being considered to fill in for Abdullah Shafique.

England is having a tough time playing against spin bowlers in the T20 series against India. In the second match on Saturday, six England batters were out to spinners. Varun Chakaravarthy took two wickets and made it hard for the English team, while Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, and Abhishek Sharma also got important wickets.

In the first game, England struggled and only scored 132 runs. In the second match, led by Jos Buttler, they tried to play more aggressively. They scored 165 runs but couldn’t build good partnerships as Indian spinners kept getting them out.

Kevin Pietersen, a former England captain, believes that England’s aggressive playing style, called ‘Bazball,’ won’t work well against strong spin bowlers in India. He shared on social media, “Bazball doesn’t work consistently against high-quality spin! Playing spin in these conditions requires skill.”

After losing the first game, Harry Brook, an England batter, said facing spin in T20 is very tough. He admitted, “I usually get out trying to hit the ball too hard. I might need to be a bit careful.” Brook noted that Kolkata’s smog made it even harder, but he still struggled against Chakaravarthy in clearer conditions in Chennai.

In the second T20, India won by two wickets thanks to Tilak Varma, who scored an impressive 72 runs. He helped India recover after losing some early wickets, leading them to finish at 166 runs for 8 wickets, putting them ahead 2-0 in the five-match series.

Chennai, India – England’s captain Jos Buttler has made history by becoming the highest run-scorer against India in T20 Internationals. He achieved this amazing milestone during the second T20I match of the India-England series held at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Buttler passed the record set by Nicholas Pooran from the West Indies.

Even though England lost the first match in Kolkata by eight wickets, they were eager to win in Chennai. Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav won the toss and chose to field first, sending England into bat. The English team started off poorly when Phil Salt got out in the first over, bringing Buttler to the pitch.

Buttler quickly got to work, scoring 45 runs from 30 balls before getting out to Axar Patel. He had scored a half-century in the first game, showing that he was in great form. England ended their innings with a total of 165 runs for 6 wickets, but it wasn’t enough as Tilak Varma helped India win with an unbeaten fifty.

During his innings, Buttler crossed the impressive 600-run mark against India in T20Is, being the first player ever to do so. He now has 611 runs, surpassing Pooran’s 592 runs, but took four more matches to reach this total. Buttler joins other greats like Glenn Maxwell, David Miller, and Aaron Finch who have scored over 500 T20I runs against India. He also becomes the 13th player in T20I history to score more than 600 runs against a single team.

Only Virat Kohli and Babar Azam have scored over 700 runs against one opponent. Even though England lost and fell behind 2-0 in the series, Buttler was proud of the aggressive approach his team took during the match.

Tilak Varma showed amazing calmness when it mattered most, scoring an unbeaten 72 runs to help India win a thrilling match against England by two wickets in Chennai. The 21-year-old left-handed batsman played a smart innings of 55 balls, hitting four fours and five big sixes.

India needed to chase down 166 runs but lost quick wickets, putting pressure on the team. However, Varma’s steady batting kept the hopes alive. Despite a tough spell from England’s Brydon Carse, who took three wickets for just 29 runs, Varma continued to find ways to score runs.

In the tense final moments, India needed 20 runs from the last 18 balls and then 13 runs from the last 12. Varma remained calm and built a key partnership with Ravi Bishnoi, who contributed nine runs, including two important boundaries. Together, they managed to get India across the finish line with four balls to spare, with Varma hitting the final boundary to seal the win.

Tilak received praise from many, including former Pakistan player Basit Ali. He shared that Indian cricket legend Mohammad Azharuddin once mentioned Tilak as a player to watch when he was still starting out in the IPL.

Tilak said he was ready to stay until the end of the game. He communicated with coach Gautam Gambhir, who advised him to be flexible with his playing style depending on what the team needed. “Whatever happens, I will be staying till the end, and I wanted to finish the game,” Tilak said confidently.

New Delhi: Shashank Singh, a batter for Punjab Kings, is working hard to get even better after an impressive IPL season. To shake things up this year, he plans to use the reverse sweep shot more often on slower pitches and avoid making silly mistakes so his team can win more games. Last season, even though Punjab Kings didn’t do great, Shashank stood out as he scored 354 runs with a strike rate of 164.65, impressing his good friend, India captain Suryakumar Yadav.

Shashank, who started playing professional cricket at 27 after moving from Mumbai to Chhattisgarh, is looking forward to reuniting with friends like Shreyas Iyer and Shadul Thakur in Punjab Kings. He and Prabhsimran Singh were the only players kept by the team before the big auction.

In a talk with us during the team’s practice in Chandigarh, Shashank shared that he’s preparing for his third IPL season. “I’ve been meeting with coaches and teammates since last season. We have a solid team,” he said. He admits that he needs to learn to play better on the unique Chandigarh pitch because they struggled at home last year.

With opponents becoming more familiar with his style, Shashank is focusing on fine-tuning his batting skills. “I’m learning to reverse sweep, which will help me on slow pitches. I’ve practiced over 1,000 balls,” he added. He also emphasizes the importance of making smarter decisions during the game, noting that it’s not always wise to take big risks, especially against top bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah.

Shashank hopes to perform well this season to catch the eye of national selectors, but his main focus is on helping his team win. “If the team needs me to bat slowly or quickly, I’m ready for both,” he mentioned. He recalls valuable advice from MS Dhoni, who told him that winning a few games for the team makes you one of the best players.

Shashank is excited to work with his old friend Shreyas and coach Ricky Ponting, who he considers one of the best. “I’ve prepared questions for Ricky Sir, and I can’t wait to learn from him,” said Shashank, eager for the new season.

Dubai, UAE – Namibia’s cricket captain, Gerhard Erasmus, has been honored as the ICC Men’s Associate Cricketer of the Year for 2024. This award recognizes his outstanding performances for his country over the past year.

Throughout the year, Erasmus showed great skill in One Day Internationals (ODIs) and T20 Internationals (T20Is). He scored eight half-centuries and was a key player in Namibia’s middle order. The 29-year-old also proved to be a strong bowler, taking important wickets, starting the year with a memorable five-wicket haul against Nepal.

Erasmus stood out during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, where he scored a brilliant half-century against Scotland. He also played a crucial role in his team’s only victory against Oman by shining in the super over. Even when facing tough competition from teams like Australia, Erasmus performed well, scoring 36 runs in a challenging match.

In 2024, Erasmus recorded nearly equal scores in both formats of the game. In ODIs, he made 364 runs with an average of 33.09 and took 18 wickets. In T20Is, he scored 363 runs with an average of 33.00 and took 18 wickets too.

One of his best performances was against Scotland during the T20 World Cup, where he scored a quick 52 runs and took two wickets, though his team ultimately lost the match. Erasmus has proven himself to be a fantastic player for Namibia, and his achievements in 2024 have made him a deserving winner of this award.