Venkatesh Prasad rued India's defeat in the World Test Championship (WTC) and World Cup finals.
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Reacting to a user's query regarding the comparison between franchise cricket and Test cricket, the former India pacer came out with a blunt reply.
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Sachin Tendulkar made his debut in 1989 at the age of 16 and retired in 2013 as one of the best batters in the history of cricket.
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India suffered an embarrassing innings and 32-run loss to South Africa in the first Test in Centurion.
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The year 2023 has finally come to an end, and it was one of the most action packed year for sports.
As we get ready to ring in the new year, we look back at some of the top moments of sporting excellence as well as moments that defined the sporting landscape in the world.
So we have moments that we’re historic, like a World Cup win. Moments that were controversial, like a kiss without consent. Biggest comeback wins that left our jaws drop in awe. Moments only superhumans could achieve. And much more.
Here are First Sports’ picks for top sporting moments in 2023:
Luis Rubiales kiss controversy
A neat finish from Olga Carmona in the 28th minute was all it took for Spain to thwart England in the FIFA Women’s World Cup final in Sydney on 20 August.
England, who had only recently been crowned European champions, would miss out on the global title yet again while Spain would be crowned champions for the first time ever following their 1-0 victory.
What should have been a defining moment for the Spanish women’s football team however, was ruined by one man — RFEF president Luis Rubiales.
Spain were enjoying their World Cup win and were were dancing with their coach. And then the football federation chief Rubiales decided to join in on the festivities.
But instead of celebrating the win, he forcefully kissed Jenni Hermoso on the lips during the presentation ceremony, taking away the spotlight away from the women’s team performance.
There was a massive outrage across the world, and Rubiales’ scandalous act was met with protests back home in Spain. Rubiales was eventually sacked and then banned from football for 3 years.
Hermoso had to lay low for a while and was almost sidelined from the national team’s call-up. It was this moment that put the highlight on creating a safe space for women athletes.
Jannik Sinner stuns Novak Djokovic
World number one and 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic was all set to win the Davis Cup for his country Serbia. He had been carrying on with his good form after winning the ATP Masters, and was a firm favourite heading into the match that mattered the most.
Except there was an Italian who would end up playing spoilsport in Jannik Sinner, with the 22-year-old sinner pulling off a shock victory over Djokovic in the singles match and later winning the doubles encounter as well.
Sinner’s heroics would help Italy win their first Davis Cup since 1976. And he instantly became a hero in back home.
Sinner will now be back in the court against Djokovic in January next year, and the two could meet in the Australian Open, where the latter will be eyeing a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam.
Mitchell Starc becomes costliest player in IPL history
The IPL Auction that took place earlier this month witnessed some record breaking buys, with Australia pacer Mitchell starc became the costliest player in the history of the world’s richest T20 league.
Welcome back, record-breaker! pic.twitter.com/KwSZui8GBj
— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) December 19, 2023
Two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) would end up shelling a whopping Rs 24.75 crore to secure the services of Starc, who ended up breaking the all-time record that Australia teammate Pat Cummins had set earlier in the same auction after joining Sunrisers Hyderabad for Rs 20.5 crore.
Rinku Singh smashes five consecutive sixes
Speaking of KKR, who can forget middle-order batter Rinku Singh smashing five consecutive sixes off Gujarat Titans pacer Yash Dayal at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium in this year’s Indian Premier League.
Read | ‘Rinku Singh! Remember the name!’, Netizens in awe after KKR’s thrilling win
Rinku was on crease in the final over and KKR needed 28 runs to win from five deliveries. GT skipper Hardik Pandya decided to hand Dayal the ball to stop Rinku in the final over.
But what we saw was an onslaught of sixes, with the left handed batter smashed the ball out of the ground one after the other, carving out one of the most stunning cameos in IPL history.
LeBron James breaks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record
The Los Angeles Lakers were trailing behind the Oklahoma City Thunder and the ball was with LeBron James, who shot a fade-away to score 2 points, a shot that would end up becoming historic.
It was at that moment that LeBron broke Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s record and became the highest scorer in NBA history. And what a moment it turned out to be because Abdul-Jabbar was present on the sidelines, and immediately went up to LeBron to congratulate him.
The Laker was given a standing ovation, for breaking a record that stood for almost four decades.
LeBron now has over 39-thousand points and has no plans on slowing down anytime soon, reiterating the legend that he is turning out to be.
Parul Chaudhary wins Asian Games 5000m gold
There’s one comeback story that can’t be slept on, and that’s Indian distance runner Parul Chaudhary winning the 5,000-metre race at this year’s Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.
Chaudhary was in second place when the bell for the final lap was rung, and she was
trailing Japan’s Hironaka Ririka and was almost going stride-to-stride with her.
There was a point when the Japanese runner created a sizeable lead over Chaudhary, entering the final 100-metre stretch with a lead. It was at that moment that Chaudhary did the unthinkable, sprinting like her life depended on it.
Nearing the finish line, Chaudhary gave in a sudden burst that no one saw coming, nugding past the Japanese runner in what was a sight that gave goosebumps to everyone watching.
Parul’s adrenaline push won her and India the gold in the 5-thousand metre race, adding to what would eventually be India’s highest haul of medals at the continental event (107).
If there’s inspiration you need to enter the new year, take it from Parul Chaudhary!
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NZ vs BAN 3rd T20I Live: Bangladesh aim to win the series while New Zealand eye a 1-1 finish.
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Michael Vaughan called the Indian cricket team "one of the most underachieving sports teams in the world" following their heavy loss in the first Test match against South Africa.
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Haris Rauf withdrew from the series before the team was announced, citing a desire to control his workload and safeguard his body.
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Shubman Gill could only score 2 runs from 12 balls in the first innings of the Centurion Test against South Africa.
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Australia vs Pakistan 2nd Test Day 4 Live Updates: Resuming at 187/6 on Friday, Australia will aim to extend their lead over Pakistan in the ongoing second Test.
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Dean Elgar displayed his understated brilliance with a counter-offensive hundred that not only neutralised KL Rahul's superlative ton but also put South Africa in complete command on the second day of the opening Test
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Australia vs Pakistan 2nd Test Day 3 Live: Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon put Australia in the driving seat of the second Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Wednesday
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South Africa speedster Kagiso Rabada was back with a bang for the first time since the ICC World Cup, headlining the opening day of the first Test against India in Centurion with a haul of 5/44.
Rabada not only completed his 14th five-for in Test cricket, he also breached the 500-wicket mark in international cricket in the process. Among his five wickets on Tuesday were India skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
Read | How will Rabada surpass Steyn with so few Tests for Proteas, asks Ntini
It was the delivery that got Kohli caught-behind on 38 that was among the standout moments of Day 1 — in which the visiting team reached 208/8 before heavy rain forced stumps to be declared earlier than usual.
Talking about the dismissal after the day’s play, Rabada said that the Indian batting star got one that swung away late and took the outside edge.
“It swung away late,” Rabada’s smile said all about the delivery which deviated and took the outside edge of Kohli’s bat even as the Indian tried to play for inswing.
“For some reason, most of the times he played and missed, he covered the channel. With him, you always need to be on. I was glad that I could get that fainty (faint edge),” Rabada said.
There are days when the process that one follows gives immaculate results. Rabada had one this day.
“(Such) days happen in cricket. This was my day. Pretty happy with the way I bowled. India have quite a bit of experience and if anyone told us that it will be 208 for 8, we would have taken that before the game,” said Proteas pace spearhead.
Read | Kohli doesn’t need a lot of practice at this stage of his career: Rathour
He also praised KL Rahul’s attritional batting.
“His (stroke-making) options were good, he defended well, always someone stands out and he was that batter today,” he added.
The Proteas pacers bowled 65 deliveries on the leg-stump channel with a leg slip in place during the first session.
“The two left-armers were in attack and were swinging the ball in. It seemed like a tactic after lunch. It was Temba (Bavuma), who had a gut feel about how to get wicket and did feel logical to keep leg slip.
“We almost got Virat at square leg. After lunch, it was again a gut feel thing, after lunch, we changed tactics,” Rabada added.
With inputs from PTI
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India batting coach Vikram Rathour dismissed suggestions Virat Kohli needed more practice heading into the first Test against South Africa, which got underway in Centurion on Tuesday.
Kohli, who patiently fought his way to 38 before falling prey to an outstanding delivery from Kagiso Rabada (5/44) on Day 1, hit the nets just once before the first Test — on Christmas Eve. The Indian batting icon had skipped the three-day intra-squad practice game at Pretoria’s Tuks Oval and had earlier sought permission to travel to the United Kingdom for personal reasons.
Former India batter Rathour, however, felt that Kohli did not need much practice at this stage of his career, especially after the kind of career that he has had so far.
“The stage of his career Virat (Kohli) is, I don’t think he needs a lot of practice,” Rathour said after the end of opening day’s play of the first Test against South Africa at SuperSport Park on Tuesday.
“He bats a lot and trains a lot. So, if he practiced a few days less, doesn’t matter much. We saw, how well he was playing. It didn’t seem he was away from red-ball cricket for six months. It’s a good sign,” the former India opener said.
Kohli had been dropped on 4 by Tony de Zorzi off Nandre Burger’s bowling early the innings, at a time when the visitors were off to a disastrous start by losing their top three batters with just 24 runs on the board.
Kohli would go on to add another 34 runs and stitch a 68-run stand for the fourth wicket with Shreyas Iyer, who too was dropped on 4, before nicking a full delivery from Rabada that nipped away slightly after pitching along off, enough to tickle the outside edge and land in Kyle Verreyne’s wicket-keeping gloves.
The visitors, who are aiming to conquer the ‘Final Frontier’ — beat South Africa in a Test series in South Africa for the first time ever — reached 208/8 before heavy rain and poor light forced the day to come to a premature end.
And a key reason why they were able to cross 200 with two wickets in hand despite suffering another batting collapse was mainly due to wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul’s gritty 70 not out in 105 deliveries.
When asked about his fighting knock on a tough Centurion wicket, Rathour was all praise for the 31-year-old and described him as India’s “man of crisis”.
“Rahul is turning out to be man of crisis for us. Every time, there are tough situations, he is the guy who handles it well for us. Nothing special, he was clear with his game plans, defended the right balls, attacked the right ones,” Rathour added.
As for the SuperSport Park wicket, which appears far from easy to bat on judging by the events of Day 1, the Jalandhar native felt it was “always going to be challenging” a place for batters, especially taking weather into account.
“It was always going to be challenging. The weather was an issue. The wicket was under cover for a day or more than that. It was always going to be challenging as batting group. We would have loved to have couple of more wickets in hand. But we have done reasonably well,” he defended.
“Post lunch, Rabada bowled an exceptional spell. We have to try and add as many runs as possible but as we have seen historically, this wicket deteriorates,” he reasoned.
Read | How will Rabada surpass Steyn with so few Tests for Proteas, asks Ntini
Rathour also acknowledged the Proteas’ use of a tactic that had worked in their favour the last time the Indians toured the ‘Rainbow Nation’ in 2021-22, during which the Kohli-led visitors ended up losing the three-match series despite winning the opening game in Centurion.
“Not very often but in last series also there were 5-6 dismissals down leg side. At lunch, they bowled 65 balls down leg, if they bowled outside off, whether they would have got same success, that’s debatable,” Rathour said.
“Because of tennis ball like spongy bounce, it was a difficult delivery to control as you saw how (Shubman) Gill got out. I feel they used it as a tactic,” he added.
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Melbourne: Veteran Australian opener David Warner has picked Marcus Harris as his replacement at the top of the order after he quits the longest format of the sport.
Warner had already said that the ongoing three-Test series against Pakistan will be his last in the format.
While there have been talks about his ideal replacement in red-ball cricket, Warner vouched for the 31-year-old Harris, who he feels has been around for a long time and that the selectors need to show faith in him.
“It’s a tough one. It’s obviously up to the selectors. But from my position, I feel like the person who’s worked their backside off and has been there for a while in the background,” Warner was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo on Tuesday.
“I think Harry’s been that person. He’s toured, he’s going to have that chance. He scored a hundred the other day (for Victoria XI vs the Pakistanis).
“He missed out in a couple of other games, but he’s always been that person who was next in line. If the selectors show faith in him, then I’m sure he’ll come out and play the way he does,” he said.
“It’s not too dissimilar to me. If he sees it in his areas, he goes for it, plays his shots, and I think he would fit well.”
Since making his debut in 2018, Harris has played only 14 Tests, accumulating 607 runs at an average of 25.29, including three half-centuries.
I’d be going for a traditional opener: Michael Hussey
Former Australia batter Michael Hussey prefers someone who has dominated in the Sheffield Shield and been around the Australian Test team for a considerable period should replace Warner.
“Opening is one of the toughest jobs in the game. So, for me personally, if I was selecting, I’d be going for a traditional, proper opener,” he said.
“Someone who has done it for a long period of time. Because if you haven’t done it much in your First-Class career, it’s going to be very difficult to come up the order.
“I like whoever’s dominating the level below, who’s been dominating in Sheffield Shield cricket over a period of time, and to be fair, they all have at various stages. So, it’s a tough job for the selectors.
Hussey refrained from taking any name as Warner’s ideal replacement, but ruled out Mitchell Marsh, who has been tipped as one of the possible candidates.
“I’m not saying you can’t do it, and maybe someone could evolve into doing that role. But, I think it would be difficult for a player like Mitch Marsh or someone,” he said.
“I know there’s been talk about him going up the order — I think he’s probably more suited, much like Travis Head, to be in the middle order. I think that’d be the best for the balance of the Australian team.”
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Here is what we think could be India's playing XI for 1st Test against South Africa:
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Australia vs Pakistan 2nd Test Day 1 Live: Australia will aim for a series-clinching victory as they take on Pakistan in the second Test
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Melbourne: Australian captain Pat Cummins on Monday came in support of his teammate Usman Khawaja, saying the opener’s attempt to bring to the fore the humanitarian crisis in Gaza was “not offensive”.
Cricket’s global governing body ICC has rejected Khawaja’s application to have a sticker showing a black dove holding an olive branch on his bat and shoes during the Boxing Day Test against Pakistan.
Cummins said he finds no difference between Khawaja displaying a dove logo on his shoe and bat to raise awareness of humanitarian issues and teammate Marnus Labuschagne displaying an eagle on his bat which signifies a personal religious message.
“We really support Uzzy. He’s standing up for what he believes and I think he’s done it really respectfully,” Cummins told reporters on the eve of the second Test at the MCG.
“As I said last week, ‘All lives are equal’, I don’t think that’s very offensive and I’d say the same about the dove.”
Backing his 37-year-old colleague who was born in Pakistan capital Islamabad, Cummins added, “That’s Uzzy. I think he can really hold his head high with the way he’s gone about it.
“But obviously there’s rules in place and I believe the ICC have said they’re not going to approve that. They make up the rules and you’ve got to accept it.”
Notably, the ICC reprimanded Khawaja for wearing a black armband during Australia’s 360-run win over Pakistan in Perth, the action coming after he was barred from wearing boots with the messages “Freedom is a human right” and “All lives are equal” in the colours of the Palestinian flag during the match at the Optus Stadium.
Labuschagne displays the symbol of an eagle on the back of his bats which represents a verse from the bible and has long been allowed to have the sticker on his bat in international cricket.
Last week, Khawaja spoke about the impact that the Israel-Hamas conflict had on him.
“When I’m looking at my Instagram and seeing innocent kids, videos of them dying, passing away, that’s what hit me the hardest,” he said.
“I don’t have any agendas other than trying to shine a light on what I feel really passionately, really strongly about.”
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Gautam Gambhir doesn't think both R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja will get the nod in the Indian team for the first Test vs South Africa.
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Another year has flown by in the blink of an eye and it’s that time when we reflect on the highs and the lows of 2023 while eagerly anticipating what’s in store for us in 2024.
As far as Indian cricket goes, it was quite the dominant year for the men’s team where they were streets ahead of their rivals, especially in the ODI format where they had an outstanding win-loss ratio of 2.800.
Yet they ended the year without a single ICC trophy, losing the final of the World Test Championship as well as the World Cup, both against Australia, to extend a decade-long run without a major title in global events. They did however, win the Asia Cup for a record-extending eighth time after thrashing Sri Lanka in the final by 10 wickets.
Rewind 2023: India dominates all formats, only to miss out on ICC trophies yet again
The women’s team too failed to win a major title this year, bowing out of the T20 World Cup in South Africa with a semi-final defeat against eventual champions Australia. They did, however, end the year on a high by defeating both England and Australia in one-off Tests by lopsided margins of 347 runs and 8 wickets, all within a space of 10 days.
With the year nearly coming to an end, we take a look at what’s in store as far as India’s cricketing schedule in 2024 is concerned (including only what’s been confirmed so far):
Men:
India tour of South Africa (3 T20Is, 3 ODIs, 2 Tests; 10 December-7 January)
2nd Test: Cape Town (3-7 January)
Afghanistan tour of India (3 T20Is; 11-17 January)
1st T20I: Mohali, 11 January
2nd T20I: Indore, 14 January
3rd T20I: Bengaluru, 17 January
England tour of India (5 Tests; 25 January-11 March)
1st Test: Hyderabad (25-29 January)
2nd Test: Visakhapatnam (2-6 February)
3rd Test: Rajkot (15-19 February)
4th Test: Ranchi (23-27 February)
5th Test: Dharamsala (7-11 March)
T20 World Cup in West Indies/USA (4-30 June)
Schedule yet to be announced
Women:
Australia tour of India (1 Test, 3 ODIs, 3 T20Is; 21 December-9 January)
3rd ODI: Mumbai (2 January)
1st T20I: Navi Mumbai (5 January)
2nd T20I: Navi Mumbai (7 January)
3rd T20I: Navi Mumbai (9 January)
T20 World Cup in Bangladesh (September-October)
Schedule yet to be announced
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With the limited-overs fixture done and dusted, it’s time for Team India to shift their focus to the big task at hand — conquering the ‘Final Frontier’.
India have won a Test series in each Full Member nation since making their debut in 1932 save one — South Africa. The Indians had toured the ‘Rainbow Nation’ for the first time in 1992-93 under Mohammad Azharuddin’s leadership, and since then the best result they could manage in that country in the five-day format was a 1-1 draw in the 2010-11 tour.
The difficulty of beating the Proteas in their own backyard can be gauged from the fact that it took the Indians 14 years to win a Test on South African soil, with Rahul Dravid’s mean finally ending the winless run with a 123-run victory in Johannesburg during the 2006-07 tour.
Even Virat Kohli, India’s most successful Test captain of all time, couldn’t snap the jinx while leading the Indian team in the tours of 2017-18 and 2021-22, in which the visitors ended up losing 1-2 on both occasions.
#TeamIndia members are here at the SuperSport Park, as they gear up for the 1st Test against South Africa.#SAvIND pic.twitter.com/NEKEpSqL7s
— BCCI (@BCCI) December 24, 2023
India arrived in South Africa two years ago as the heavy favourites, and were on the verge of lifting the curse after beating Dean Elgar’s men convincingly in the first Test in Centurion by 113 runs, only for the Proteas to bounce back with consecutive seven-wicket wins.
That series proved to be Kohli’s final assignment in charge across formats, and this time it’s Rohit Sharma who’s been tasked with the responsibility of achieving the feat that has eluded the Indians for more than three decades now.
Lack of quality practice could hurt Rohit and Co
What could, however, cost the Indian team in the upcoming series is the fact that they will be returning to the Test arena for the first time in nearly half a year, and without much practice.
The last time the Indian team played red-ball cricket was in the Caribbean back in July, where young opener Yashasvi Jaiswal and pacer Mukesh Kumar got their international careers off to superb starts, with the former slamming 171 on debut in Roseau. Since then, the Indian team focus, as well as those of the other Test-playing nations, shifted to the white-ball formats with special focus on ODIs to prepare for the World Cup in India.
With the ODI World Cup behind them, the focus then moved to the 20-over game with next year’s T20 World Cup in mind and the Men in Blue would go on to beat Australia 4-1 in a five-match series at home. That would be followed by three T20Is and as many ODIs against the Proteas in the ongoing tour. India would bounce back to level the T20I series 1-1 before winning the ODI leg 2-1.
The only bit of red-ball practice that the Indians are have got however, is an intra-squad match at the Tuks Oval in Pretoria, where top-order batter Shubman Gill helped himself to a hundred. That is the only bit of warm-up that Rohit and Co are going to get before taking on Temba Bavuma’s men in the first Test that takes place at Centurion’s SuperSport Park starting Tuesday.
Read: Rahul ‘very confident’ about keeping wickets in Tests, says coach Dravid
Will that be enough for Team India, though? They are, after all, going to face a team that they’ve never beaten away from home in a bilateral Test series. And for more than two-and-a-half-decades, India had not even won an ODI series — bilateral or triangular — on South African soil, ending the jinx in 2018 with a 5-1 victory.
South Africa, thus, is established as one of the tougher places to tour for the Indian team, which in a way extends to the other subcontinental teams as well; Sri Lanka being a noteworthy exception after their stunning 2-0 sweep of the Proteas in early 2019.
One could bring up the argument that the South Africans themselves will be playing Test cricket for the first time since March, and have played a grand total of three Tests this year — the New Year’s Test in Sydney in their tour of Australia and the two Tests against West Indies at home.
The Proteas, however, have grown up playing cricket in these conditions and the fast and bouncy pitches, unlike the subcontinental pitches that generally tend to favour the spinners, are something that they are far more used than most of the other teams in the world. They don’t quite need to adjust themselves to the conditions the way the Indians need to even if they have been far from their best in whites for a long time now.
IND vs SA | Rain threat over first Test, track to aid seamers, reveals curator
And before someone brings up the other argument of India having played as many as six limited-overs games against South Africa before the Test series, let’s not forget that a majority of the Test squad has not played a match since the World Cup final. It’s another argument altogether that white-ball experience doesn’t entirely count as practice for a Test match.
Cramped calendar taking a toll?
Tour games against domestic teams or specially-curated sides such as the Prime Minister’s XI thus are of great help for visiting teams looking to prepare for a specific format, especially Tests. However, with the cricketing calendar getting increasingly cramped with each passing year, the inclusion of practice matches has become virtually impossible for a majority of the boards.
It’s not just India in the ongoing tour of South Africa who will be skipping practice games; Australia did not play any either during their tours of India and England, and a number of former cricketers questioned the absence of such fixtures from their tour itineraries.
“The no tour game before the first Test in India. I hope I’m proven wrong but I think that is going to be significant. Batting in those conditions in one-day cricket and T20 cricket is one thing, batting in Indian conditions in Test cricket it is a completely different game,” former Australia captain Michael Clarke was quoted as saying on the Big Sports Breakfast show on Sky Sports Radio.
Cramped as the calendar might be, India needs to remember the fact that it’s up to them to ensure they leave no stone unturned in their quest to achieve the one feat that has eluded them all these years. Which means that the Indians should ideally have been able to find space for a tour game or two even if it came at the cost of the ODI series, which serves little purpose right after the World Cup other than handing debuts to fringe players.
India the stronger team on paper
On paper, however, Indian side that will be locking horns with the Proteas in the upcoming Test series certainly appears to be among the strongest it has fielded in recent memory. Additionally, the South African team has been having a mixed run in Tests even if they had been in resurgent form in the limited-overs formats in the recent months. Since their victory over India at home in the 2021-22 season, South Africa’s only series wins in Tests have come against the relatively unfancied Bangladesh and West Indies.
It is time for the Test series and Captain Rohit Sharma is READY! 💪🏾🙌🏽#TeamIndia | @ImRo45 | #SAvIND pic.twitter.com/EYwvGjuKGw
— BCCI (@BCCI) December 24, 2023
India have had a largely positive run in Tests in 2023, from the highs of beating Australia 2-1 in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and West Indies 1-0 in the Caribbean to the low that was their defeat in the World Test Championship final against the Aussies in June.
Read | What Rohit Sharma-led India’s XI for Centurion Test is likely to be
Additionally, it was this very team that had a rampant run in the ICC World Cup, where they won 10 matches in a row before losing a second world final against Pat Cummins’ Aussies this year, and although one can’t really compare ODIs and Tests, it certainly is indicative of the players being in good nick.
Practice matches or not, what fans of the Indian cricket team can expect Rohit and Co with utmost certainty is a a proper fight to the Proteas in Centurion as well as in Cape Town. The lack of practice games might be a disadvantage, but Rohit’s men certainly have the talent and determination in their ranks to leave the picturesque Newlands on the first weekend of the 2024 with the glittering trophy in their hands.
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With the T20Is and ODIs done, it’s time for the Indian team to shift its focus to the Test format with the big series against South Africa set to begin in a little more than 24 hours from now.
The Men in Blue, led by Suryakumar Yadav, managed to hold the Aiden Markram-led Proteas to a 1-1 draw in the T20I leg of the tour. India pulled off a dominant 106-run victory to level the series in Johannesburg after a five-wicket defeat in Gqeberha, with the tour opener in Durban getting rained off.
It was a similar story in the ODI leg of the tour, where the Indian team led this time by KL Rahul won in Jo’burg and lost in Gqeberha, before winning the series decider in Paarl.
With the white-ball fixtures done and dusted, it’s time for the Indian team to shift its focus to the big task at hand — beating South Africa in a Test series in South Africa for the first time ever, which many in the cricketing fraternity describe as the ‘Final Frontier’ for Indian cricket.
It is time for the Test series and Captain Rohit Sharma is READY! 💪🏾🙌🏽#TeamIndia | @ImRo45 | #SAvIND pic.twitter.com/EYwvGjuKGw
— BCCI (@BCCI) December 24, 2023
The upcoming Test series with witness the return of several seniors with skipper Rohit Sharma, batting star Virat Kohli and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who has been named vice-captain for the series, returning to action for the first time since the World Cup final.
Read | Virat Kohli links up with squad in SA after pre-approved London trip
Pacer Mohammed Siraj will also be making a comeback after the six-wicket defeat against Australia on 19 November, and will be expected to share the brand new Kookaburra with Bumrah at the start of the innings.
As for the spin department, off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin joins the squad which also has left-arm finger spinner Ravindra Jadeja — who had featured in the T20I series earlier in the tour. Head coach Rahul Dravid, however, had on Sunday hinted at the team playing just one frontline spinner, meaning it either of the two veterans will be picked.
IND vs SA | Rain threat over first Test, track to aid seamers, reveals curator
Dravid also added that KL Rahul will be keeping the wickets in the Tests, especially after Ishan Kishan’s withdrawal from the Test series to take a ‘mental health’ break.
Ahead of the opening Test at Centurion’s SuperSport Park, we take a look at what India’s playing XI could be:
India likely XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ravindra Jadeja/Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Mukesh Kumar, Mohammed Siraj.
India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Prasidh Krishna, KS Bharat (wk), Abhimanyu Easwaran.
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Ahead of the first India vs South Africa Test in Centurion, Ravichandran introduced a special person in a video vlog on Saturday
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Indian Premier League was started in 2008 and since then it has been a huge success.
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Virat Kohli has joined his Indian teammates in South Africa after a pre-approved trip to London. There had been reports that said he had returned home due to “a family emergency”. However, it appears that was never the case.
The star batter had travelled to London after going through a couple of training sessions in South Africa, says a report by Cricket Next. Quoting a BCCI official, the journey to the United Kingdom was approved by the Indian cricket board (BCCI) and the team management were well aware of the plans.
“Virat Kohli wasn’t going to play that game. The team management was aware about his plan and schedule, and it isn’t something which happened overnight or due to family emergency. Look at the player in question, it’s Virat Kohli. He is very well planned when it comes to these things and his London trip was communicated and planned well in advance,” said a senior BCCI official as per the report.
With Kohli travelling to London, he missed the two-day inter-squad practice game in Pretoria from 20-22 December. However, he is already in the Rainbow Nation for the first Test which is scheduled to take place at SuperSport Park in Centurion.
Kohli had missed both of India’s white-ball series, the ODIs and T20Is, before joining the team on 15 December. He trained with the squad for three days before the journey to London on 19 December.
The Rohit Sharma-captained India will take the field without Mohammed Shami, Ishan Kishan and Ruturaj Gaikwad who have all been ruled out with injuries. Shami didn’t get the clearance from the BCCI medical team while Kishan requested for a break and Gaikwad sustained a finger injury in the second ODI. As a result, KS Bharat and Abhimanyu Easwaran have been named as replacements in the squad.
India Test squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Prasidh Krishna, KS Bharat (wk), Abhimanyu Easwaran.
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Suryakumar Yadav is all set to miss the upcoming three-match T20I series against Afghanistan starting January 11 due to an ankle injury.
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Sanju Samson was in the form of his life on Thursday when he scored his maiden international century during the third and final ODI against South Africa in Paarl. It was a redemption act of sorts for the Kerala batter who has been in and out of the team ever since making his international debut in a T20I against Zimbabwe in 2015.
Even in ODIs, Samson has had limited opportunities. Since making his ODI debut in 2021 against Sri Lanka, Samson has played just 16 ODIs and scored 512 runs at an average of 56.67.
Member of Parliament, Shashi Tharoor, who is a big fan of Samson has seen him from close quarters as a teenager and said that he always thought Samson would become the next MS Dhoni.
“Sanju was only 15 at the time and I said this 15-year-old would become the next MS Dhoni. I know this next someone is unfair to a player because everyone as an individual and unique and so on but he is capable of playing amazing shots everywhere and he is someone who has oodles of talent,” Shashi Tharoor told Rupha Ramani during an exclusive interview on the First Sports show.
“Long story short, I really thought he would be the next Dhoni when there was the unexpected emergency of the magnificent Rishabh Pant, and now Ishan Kishan is also in the mix,” he added.
Shashi Tharoor went onto note Sanju Samson’s average of over 50 in ODIs and said it was nit a small matter. “Long story short, I really thought he would be the next Dhoni when there was the unexpected emergency of the magnificent Rishabh Pant, and now Ishan Kishan is also in the mix,” Shashi Tharoor added.
Tharoor went onto call Samson an “amazing cricketer”.
“He’s just an amazing, amazing cricketer, and he has been somewhat unlucky that he has so little to show for it in terms of appearances in India colours in a career that started in Zimbabwe in 2015 and yet here we are eight-and half years later, he has played 20 odd T20Is and 16 ODIs.
“Most of his batting has been number six, one or two matches at number seven. You don’t get to score hundreds at that level. Normally, he bats at number one, two or three, and now in ODIs you give him a chance at number three and he scores a century,” added Tharoor.
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Mohammed Shami's absence will certainly leave a gaping hole in India's planning against the Proteas, according to former South African pacer Fanie de Villiers.
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Live Updates of Today Match between South Africa vs India from Boland Park, Paarl. Check commentary and full scoreboard of the match.
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Live Updates of Today Match between South Africa vs India from Boland Park, Paarl. Check commentary and full scoreboard of the match.
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India have won four of the last five face-offs against South Africa and will go into this clash as the favourites.
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Jharkhand's uncapped wicketkeeper-batter Kumar Kushagra was bought by Delhi Capitals for Rs 7.20 crore in the IPL 2024 auction in Dubai.
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England’s Sam Curran became the most expensive overseas player in IPL after he was bought for Rs 18.50 crore by Punjab Kings during the 2023 auction.
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The teams will go into the 2024 IPL auction on December 19 with a maximum of 77 slots to be filled.
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The roster for the IPL 2024 auction features 333 cricketers scheduled to go under the gavel in Dubai on Tuesday.
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If two or more franchises end their funds with a tied final bid for a player, a tie-breaker bid will be invoked. Know about the rule here -
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A little over 24 hours is all that remains for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 player auction to get underway at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai. Given that the auction will be taking place after some extraordinary performances in the recently-concluded ICC World Cup among other events, this year’s auction could very well breach the 20-crore mark for the first time in the history of the cash-rich league. And also perhaps due to inflation.
IPL 2024 Auction: Everything you need to know
The likelihood of that record-breaking bid are far greater when it comes to the players who are placed in the Rs 1 crore category or above. The IPL Governing Council has already released the full list of 333 players who are set to go under the hammer on Tuesday for the 77 available slots across 10 franchises.
IPL 2024 Auction: Player list, remaining slots and purse of all 10 franchises
As many as 49 players have a base price of Rs 1 crore or more — 23 in the Rs 2 crore bracket, including three Indians, 13 in the Rs 1.5 crore and as many with a base price of Rs 1 crore.
Here’s the full list of players with a base price of Rs 1 crore and above:
Harry Brook (Rs 2 crore/England)
Travis Head (Rs 2 crore/Australia)
Rilee Rossouw (Rs 2 crore/South Africa)
Steve Smith (Rs 2 crore/Australia)
Gerald Coetzee (Rs 2 crore/South Africa)
Pat Cummins (Rs 2 crore/Australia)
Harshal Patel (Rs 2 crore/India)
Shardul Thakur (Rs 2 crore/India)
Chris Woakes (Rs 2 crore/England)
Josh Inglis (Rs 2 crore/Australia)
Lockie Ferguson (Rs 2 crore/New Zealand)
Josh Hazlewood (Rs 2 crore/Australia)
Mitchell Starc (Rs 2 crore/Australia)
Umesh Yadav (Rs 2 crore/India)
Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Rs 2 crore/Afghanistan)
Adil Rashid (Rs 2 crore/England)
Rassie van der Dussen (Rs 2 crore/South Africa)
James Vince (Rs 2 crore/England)
Sean Abbott (Rs 2 crore/Australia)
Jamie Overton (Rs 2 crore/England)
David Willey (Rs 2 crore/England)
Ben Duckett (Rs 2 crore/England)
Mustafizur Rahman (Rs 2 crore/Bangladesh)
Wanindu Hasaranga (Rs 1.5 crore/Sri Lanka)
Philip Salt (Rs 1.5 crore/England)
Colin Munro (Rs 1.5 crore/New Zealand)
Sherfane Rutherford (Rs 1.5 crore/West Indies)
Tom Curran (Rs 1.5 crore/England)
Jason Holder (Rs 1.5 crore/West Indies)
Mohammad Nabi (Rs 1.5 crore/Afghanistan)
James Neesham (Rs 1.5 crore/New Zealand)
Daniel Sams (Rs 1.5 crore/Australia)
Chris Jordan (Rs 1.5 crore/England)
Tymal Mills (Rs 1.5 crore/England)
Jhye Richardson (Rs 1.5 crore/Australia)
Tim Southee (Rs 1.5 crore/New Zealand)
Rovman Powell (Rs 1 crore/West Indies)
Daryl Mitchell (Rs 1 crore/New Zealand)
Alzarri Joseph (Rs 1 crore/West Indies)
Ashton Turner (Rs 1 crore/Australia)
Michael Bracewell (Rs 1 crore/New Zealand)
Dwaine Pretorious (Rs 1 crore/South Africa)
Sam Billings (Rs 1 crore/England)
Gus Atkinson (Rs 1 crore/England)
Kyle Jamieson (Rs 1 crore/New Zealand)
Riley Meredith (Rs 1 crore/Australia)
Adam Milne (Rs 1 crore/New Zealand)
Wayne Parnell (Rs 1 crore/South Africa)
David Wiese (Rs 1 crore/Namibia)
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They say cricket is a religion in India. For some, it’s more than just a myth or a fact, especially when there is an iconic moment or two during a game. And when those iconic (or even non-iconic to an extent) moments take place, some of those become targets of being trolls or memes.
The advent of social media applications like Instagram, Facebook and ‘X’ have led to a wider circulation of “memes”, so much so that even cricketers at times join in during the discussions sometimes.
With 2023 almost coming to an end, let’s now take a look at some viral memes and moments that have taken the internet by storm this year:
Virat Kohli carrying drinks
During an Asia Cup 2023 match between India and Bangladesh in Colombo, Virat Kohli, who was rested for the game, was seen rushing out to the field with drinks while making a few funny gestures. That one Kohli moment would go onto become viral and become a meme content soon after.
Virat be like – Aaj me pure maze lutunga #ViratKohli #INDvBAN pic.twitter.com/OBkn9x39Mc
— Abhay (@abhayysrivastav) September 15, 2023
Dharamsala fog during World Cup
It’s nothing extraordinary when rain or bad light halts play during a cricket match, but an ODI World Cup match between India and New Zealand had to be stopped briefly due to fog.
As a result of this, social media were flooded with “Fogg chal raha hain” memes.
Hamare yaha to fogg chal raha hai..
Got real pic.twitter.com/7nULiGjJUS— Ashhad Khan (@ashhadkhan442) October 22, 2023
If I see one more "Fogg chal raha hai" tweet: pic.twitter.com/e00Xw0wHSU
— Manya (@CSKian716) October 22, 2023
Another “meme” moment was during IPL 2023, when Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir were involved in an infamous spat when Royal Challengers Bangalore took on Lucknow Super Giants in Lucknow. Uttar Pradesh police were quick to send out a clear message, urging the public to refrain from arguing but not calling them, in a witty response to the meme.
बहस से परहेज़ करें, हमें कॉल करने में नहीं।
किसी भी आपात स्थिति में 112 डायल करें। #DialUP112 pic.twitter.com/5R8Zuqdlt6— UP POLICE (@Uppolice) May 2, 2023
There were several memes that broke the internet during India’s World Cup clash against Sri Lanka as well. Sri Lanka were bundled out for just 55 runs, failing to chase down a target of 358.
The coach told the Sri Lankan batsmen to keep an eye on the ball, and then watch what the Sri Lankan batsmen did. #CWC2023#CricketWorldCup2023 #INDvsSL #siraj pic.twitter.com/kEuTmkPOqe
— (@Kamran_Nisar007) November 2, 2023
The coach told the Sri Lankan batsmen to keep an eye on the ball, and then watch what the Sri Lankan batsmen did. #CWC2023#CricketWorldCup2023 #INDvsSL #siraj pic.twitter.com/kEuTmkPOqe
— (@Kamran_Nisar007) November 2, 2023
The tension was real ahead of India’s ODI World Cup final against Australia, and social media was flooded with memes before the match, with many of them praying for the best possible outcome.
Indians tonight pic.twitter.com/1NLo3C1FS7
— Sagar (@sagarcasm) November 18, 2023
Revenge time for that 2003 kid pic.twitter.com/elcqfjfaNV
— Pakchikpak Raja Babu (@HaramiParindey) November 18, 2023
That was not it as far as the World Cup is concerned. “Jarvo 69”, who goes by his real name Daniel Jarvis, had intruded the ground during India’s World Cup match against Australia in Chennai.
That was a perfect occasion for “memers” to do their thing.
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Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) endured a forgettable Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 campaign, finishing at the very bottom of the 10-team points table with just eight points from 14 matches. Between 2016 and 2020, SRH were one of the most formidable sides in the IPL, even having won their maiden title in 2016. They managed to make the playoffs in each of the editions during this time period, but have been far from their best in the last three seasons of the IPL.
Ahead of the IPL player auction 2024, SRH have retained as many as 19 players, meaning they still have to fill six slots (three overseas) with a remaining purse of Rs 34 crore.
While they have retained a large part of their core group including Aiden Markram, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Heinrich Klaasen, Mayank Agarwal, T Natarajan and Washington Sundar, SRH still have their task cut out, having let go of the likes of Harry Brook, Kartik Tyagi and Adil Rashid.
Let’s now take a look at SRH’s current squad, remaining pursed and available slots:
SRH retained players: Aiden Markram Abdul Samad, Rahul Tripathi, Glenn Phillips, Heinrich Klaasen, Mayank Agarwal, Anmolpreet Singh, Upendra Yadav, Nitish Reddy, Shahbaz Ahmed (Traded from RCB), Abhishek Sharma, Marco Jansen, Washington Sundar, Sanvir Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mayank Markande, Umran Malik, T Natarajan, Fazahaq Farooqi
SRH released players: Harry Brook, Samarth Vyas, Kartik Tyagi, Vivrant Sharma, Akeal Hosein, Adil Rashid
Purse left: Rs 34 crore
Slots left: 6 (3 overseas players)
SRH Auction Strategy
A wrist spinner would be on top of SRH’s priority list at the IPL 2024 auction in Dubai. They let go of Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan ahead of the IPL 2022 player auction, and things haven’t been the same for SRH ever since. Ahead of the upcoming auction, SRH have released England’s Adil Rashid and West Indian Akeal Hosein after both got limited opportunities. This would mean that SRH have a void to fill as far as their search for a frontline wrist spinner is concerned.
SRH will also have to boost their batting lineup. Releasing England’s Harry Brook, who was worth Rs 13.25 crore may not have been an easy call for the Orange Army. Having said that, the former champions are in fact lacking batting firepower ever since the release of fan favourite David Warner.
Players SRH can target
Wanindu Hasaranga
Having been released by RCB ahead of the auction, Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga could be in huge demand in Dubai.
A bidding ware between franchises could be expected for the wrist spinner, and having said that, Hasaranga could be the perfect answer as far as finding a replacement for Rashid Khan is concerned. His presence would also balance out SRH’s bowling attack altogether.
Rachin Ravindra
Rachin Ravindra could be another player in huge demand but given his stocks have risen following a stupendous ODI World Cup with New Zealand, where he scored 578 runs, it will be hard for SRH to look past Rachin at the auction. Especially since they are looking for an explosive batter following the release of Harry Brook.
Travis Head
Should they not manage to get hold of Rachin Ravindra, Australia’s World Cup winner Travis Head will be another equally good option.
He doesn’t need any introduction, especially after his heroics in the World Cup final against India. Head is a proven match-winner and honestly, SRH have lacked that kind of a cricketer in the past few seasons.
Gerald Coetzee
While SRH do have a formidable-looking pace trio of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan and Umran Malik, they could still go for a quality overseas pacer at the auction. Both Bhuvneshwar and Natarajan have been prone to injuries in the recent few seasons, whereas with just five wickets from eight games, Umran Malik had a rather below-par IPL 2023 season. With SRH having enough in their purse, it should not be surprising if they go for a talented pacer like South Africa’s Gerald Coetzee, who picked 20 wickets at the ODI World Cup.
Mujeeb Ur Rahman
Mujeeb Ur Rahman could be another worthy investment for SRH in their search for a spinner. A seasoned spinner known for his variations, Mujeeb can deceive the opposition batters at will and change the complexion of the game into his team’s favour. It won’t be easy for SRH to get Mujeeb and having said that, a bidding war could be very well expected for the 22-year-old.
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Virat Kohli was not named in the white-ball series against South Africa but he is a part of the squad for the two Test matches.
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Australia vs Pakistan 1st Test, Day 4 Live: Usman Khawaja (34 not out) and Steve Smith (43 not out) will aim to extend Australia's lead to a massive one on Sunday.
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Suryakumar Yadav hit a dazzling century as India levelled their series against South Africa with a crushing 106-run win.
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Navi Mumbai: Deepti Sharma’s stunning all-round show, a fifty and a fifer, provided India Women a perfect launching pad to record their maiden home victory in the traditional format over England after the second day of their one-off Test in Navi Mumbai on Friday.
After a patient 113-ball 67 in India’s first-innings total of 428, Deepti destroyed England line-up with a sensational 5.3-4-7-5 spell helping the hosts take a massive 292-run lead. The visitors were bundled out for 136 in their first essay despite Nat Sciver-Brunt’s composed 59.
India did not enforce the follow-on and reached 186 for six in their second dig at stumps, for an overall lead of 478.
Deepti was at the heart of India’s effort when they grabbed six England wickets for a mere 10 runs, that saw them tumbling spectacularly from 108 for 3.
As the game progressed, the DY Patil Stadium pitch offered turn and variable bounce for spinners, leaving the batters in a quandary. The day also saw 19 wickets falling from either side and 15 of them were grabbed by spinners.
Deepti, of course, was the star of the day, tormenting the English batters with her bag of tricks.
The 26-year-old off-spinner began her destruction job getting rid of Danny Wyatt (19), who began with a string of fours.
It was a classical off-spinner’s dismissal as the English batter was caught at short leg for a bat-pad dismissal, and that also sparked a shocking collapse.
Deepti soon had Amy Jones (12) caught by Shafali Verma with the ball ricocheting off short-leg Smriti Mandhana’s helmet, while Sophie Ecclestone was tad unlucky when a delivery from the Indian kept low to crash onto her wickets.
Kate Cross became Deepti’s fourth victim through a feeble return catch while Lauren Filer did not have any answer for her guile.
Maiden 5⃣-wicket haul in Tests ✅
Time to hear about it from the performer herself in this quick chat from DY Patil Stadium 👏 👏#TeamIndia | #INDvENG | @Deepti_Sharma06 | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/XeIdkCCfbQ
— BCCI Women (@BCCIWomen) December 15, 2023
The Indians were also proactive in the field with constant chirping around England batters and close-in catchers were placed in unorthodox positions to keep them rooted deep into the crease.
Before Deepti came into picture, pacers Renuka Singh and Pooja Vastrakar kept England in check.
Renuka produced a terrific incoming delivery for India’s first breakthrough, sneaking one through the gate to clean up Sophia Dunkley (11).
In fact, incoming deliveries remained Renuka’s go-to weapon throughout the first spell.
Vastrakar was driven for a four by Heather Knight (11) but the right-arm seamer corrected her length to move one back into the England captain, pinning her in front of the wickets.
Sciver-Brunt resurrected England’s faltering reply to some extent with a counter-attacking knock, notching up her fourth Test fifty.
Sciver-Brunt imposed herself on Indian spinners and seamers alike, unleashing powerful hits to strike 10 fours in her 59 off 70 balls before Sneh Rana castled her.
Rana surprised Sciver-Brunt with one that turned in sharply from outside the off-stump.
India’s progress in their second innings was not smooth either as off-spinner Charlie Dean (4/68) and left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone (2/76) joined forces to trouble the Indian batters on occasions but despite that India already had moved so far ahead in the game.
Mandhana (26) and Shafali (33) added 61 runs for the first wicket while Jemimah Rodrigues made 27.
Harmanpreet Kaur (44 not out) kept England at bay with an unbeaten 53-run stand with Pooja Vastrakar (17 not out) for the seventh wicket.
India also had to rejig their batting order since debutant and first-innings star Shubha Satheesh remained unavailable to bat owing to a finger injury.
Earlier, after the first day’s play saw batters making merry, English spinners came to party through Ecclestone (3/67) as her quick strikes did not allow India build big after they resumed from 410 for seven.
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Perth: Australian spin king Nathan Lyon moved to within three wickets of joining the elite 500 club Friday as Pakistan dug deep to stay in touch on day two of the opening Test in Perth.
The visitors were 132-2 at stumps, trailing by 355, with a dogged Imam-ul-Haq not out 38 and nightwatchman Khurram Shahzad on seven after they lost skipper Shan Masood late in the day.
But it was a slow grind after Aamer Jamal took 6-111 on debut to help dismiss the hosts for 487 in their first innings.
Mitchell Marsh starred with 90 after David Warner’s defiant 164 on day one.
“Probably would have liked to have a couple (more) wickets, but we’re happy with the score we got,” Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey said.
“We need to come back tomorrow and hit the right areas once again. We probably missed our lengths a bit, will have a chat tonight and come up better tomorrow.”
Abdullah Shafique was the first to fall in reply, getting a big inside edge from Lyon to Warner at leg slip after battling to 42.
It was the veteran Lyon’s 497th Test wicket as he closes in on 500 to join a group of just seven other players.
Haq was stoic at the other end, weathering a fiery bowling blitz from Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins on a pitch that still had some zip.
It took him 85 deliveries before his first boundary, guiding one fine off his hip.
An aggressive Masood made 30 before his stay ended 10 minutes before close, caught behind by Carey off Starc on review.
Masood had earlier taken a nasty blow to the back when he turned to avoid a Haq drive but was able to continue after treatment.
Breakthrough
The visitors kept in the hunt for a first Test win in Australia since 1995 by dismissing the hosts early in the second session, after the home side went to lunch at 476-7.
Marsh was bowled by paceman Shahzad for 90 on the first ball back and the tail collapsed with impressive speedster Jamal in the thick of the action.
“Quite satisfied the way the bowlers were able to fight back,” said Pakistan bowling coach Umar Gul.
“I’m quite confident and quite happy with the performances, the way they brought us back from the first session on the first day.”
Australia had resumed on 346-5 after dominating the opening day, with Warner hitting 164 to silence his critics.
Marsh began on 16 and Carey 15, with Pakistan desperate for an early breakthrough.
But the tourists struggled to make an impact on another scorching day, with some pedestrian bowling before Jamal was introduced.
6️⃣ wickets for Aamir Jamal! Sixth-best bowling figures by a 🇵🇰 player on Test debut 👏
Australia are all out for 487 in their first innings 🏏#AUSvPAK pic.twitter.com/KQSTrfivpt
— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) December 15, 2023
Hometown hero Marsh, Australia’s T20 captain, smacked consecutive boundaries off the first over he faced from Shahzad to set the tone.
Preferred to Cameron Green as the team’s all-rounder, Marsh brought up a 66-ball 50 — his fifth in 36 Tests — with a classy pull to the ropes and looked destined to reach three figures.
But Shahzad shattered his hopes after lunch, knocking over his stumps as he attempted a big drive.
Jamal then quickly removed Cummins and Lyon, both caught by Agha Salman.
He earlier trapped wicketkeeper-batsman Carey, who is eager to make runs to cement his Test spot after losing his place in Australia’s one-day team to Josh Inglis.
Carey survived a big lbw call from Shaheen Shah Afridi on the second ball of the day but had no answer to a lightning-quick Jamal delivery that rattled his off stump.
He departed for 34, ending a dangerous 90-run partnership with Marsh.
Starc also fell victim to Jamal, getting an edge to another pacy ball that removed the bails.
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Captain Suryakumar Yadav led from the front as India defeated South Africa by 106 runs in the third and final T20I in Johannesburg on Thursday to level the series 1-1 and finish with the spoils shared. Suryakumar Yadav led with a 55-ball century to guide India to 201/7 after the Men in Blue were invited to bat first. SKY forged a 112-run stand with Yashasvi Jaiswal for the fourth wicket to set the platform for a huge Indian total.
In reply, birthday boy Kuldeep Yadav collected a five-fer as South Africa were bundled out for 95 in 13.5 overs. Kuldeep finished with figures of 5/17 in 2.5 overs.
IND vs SA 3rd T20I: As it happened
But for that India need to profusely thank Suryakumar. The 33-year-old exploited the opportunity to bat on a bone-dry surface making his fourth T20I century, joining team-mate Rohit Sharma and Australian Glenn Maxwell as batters with that many three-figure scores in the shortest format.
The partnership between SKY and Jaiswal also allowed India to wriggle out of a bit of a tight space after losing Shubman Gill (8) and Tilak Varma (0) off successive balls in the third over to left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj. India were 29 for 2 at that point.
But the Suryakumar-Jaiswal stand was not all about flaunting a gun. They made a rather sturdy beginning, adding 33 runs in the final four overs of the Power Play and then another 25 runs in the overs between seven and 10.
But once the 10th over mark passed, the pair, especially Suryakumar, shifted into overdrive as 114 runs came cascading in the back-10.
Suryakumar, who gave all the space to his junior partner in the early part of the partnership, soon took over the role of chief aggressor.
He took those 360′ shots out of the shelf to punish the SA bowlers who did not have much variety to tame Suryakumar on a benign pitch.
Pacer Andile Phehlukwayo bore the brunt of Suryakumar’s awesome skill sets in this format.
The Indian skipper hammered Phehlukwayo for 22 runs in the 13th over through a sequence of 6, 4, 6, 6, an over in which he also brought up his fifty along with that last maximum.
Jaiswal too had his own little moments like a magical pull off pacer Lizaad Williams that gave him six runs over mid-wicket.
But the left-hander’s effort to clear long-off off left-arm wrist spinner Tabraiz Shamsi ended in the hands of Reeza Hendricks.
However, there was no stopping Suryakumar, who continued to cart the Proteas bowlers around using nimble feet and those highly-manipulative wrists.
The 33-year-old soon fetched a well-deserved hundred in a surprisingly sedate manner — with a two off Williams — off 55 balls.
He could not last till the end giving a catch to Matthew Breetzke at the edge of the ropes off Williams.
But by then, he had done enough to take India to a competitive total.
The Indians needed to come up with a better effort with the ball than they did in the second match, and they did precisely that.
The Johannesburg deck that changed the character drastically under the light too helped their cause. In the second half, the pitch offered some assistance to spinners in the form of turn, which Jadeja and Kuldeep used gleefully.
Birthday boy Kuldeep’s delivery that came from outside of the off-stump to rattle the stumps of Dononvan Ferreira was quite exceptional, and also exposed SA batters’ weakness against high-quality spin.
But in reality, South Africa’s chase never really took off. Pacer Mohammed Siraj set the perfect platform for India’s defence, bowling a maiden in the first over, and they never let the Proteas off the hook from that point.
Once captain Aiden Markram and big-hitting Heinrich Klaasen were dismissed inside the first seven overs to reduce SA to 42 for four, their fate was sealed.
The rest of the line-up did not have the ability to read Kuldeep either off the hand or off the pitch as they crumbled like a whole-meal cookie.
The only jarring point for India was the absence of Suryakumar who had to walk out of the field in the third over of SA innings with a hurt ankle while trying to stop a shot from Reeza Hendricks.
Jadeja stood in for Suryakumar for the rest of the SA innings.
With inputs from PTI
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