Author: Sandip Pawar

T20 World Cup is all set to get underway in the UAE after it was moved from India due to Covid-19 situation. Experts and fans have started to weigh in with their opinions on the mega event. Sana Mir, the former Pakistan women’s captain, has backed her country’s men to bring the trophy home. Mir understands that the T20 format is volatile and unpredictable but considering the conditions where the WC is being held, she believes Pakistan are main favourites. “With the conditions in mind, it is hard to look past Pakistan. They know UAE so well of course and…

MS Dhoni strengthened his legacy even further by adding the fourth Premier League title in his cabinet on Friday night. CSK hammered KKR by 27 runs in the final on the back of a complete team performance. Faf du Plessis was the main man for CSK, batting through with his outstanding 86 off 59, while Robin Uthappa and Moeen Ali played crucial cameos to take the team to 192/3 on the big day. All the CSK bowlers were amongst the wickets – inspired by Shardul Thakur’s 3/38 – as they restricted KKR to 165/9. Eoin Morgan won the toss and was elected to field first. CSK’s in-form…

The Indian Premier League is set to welcome two new franchises from the 2022 edition. The BCCI is yet finalise on the playing conditions for the 10-team tournament. Former India cricketer turned commentator Aakash Chopra has come out with his own suggestions that can be implemented in the biggest T20 league to make it even better. Speaking on his official YouTube channel, Chopra suggested five tweaks in the IPL format. He asked to bring the bonus point rule in the tournament. He argued that the current system, which has net run-rate as the deciding factor, is complicated for the normal…

Opening batter Beth Mooney has reached the top of the ICC rankings for batters in women’s T20 internationals. The Australian displaced the Indian opener Shafali Verma, who slipped down to second spot with 28 rating points difference between the two. The left-hander was the leading run-scorer in the recently concluded three-match T20I series between Australia and India as she had scored 95 runs in the series at an average 47.5 while striking at 120.25.  https://twitter.com/ICC/status/1447838018946150400 Mooney scored 36 off 39 in the second T20I while chasing 119 and followed it up with an outstanding 61 off 43 in the third…

KKR have set the finals date with CSK after coming triumphant in Wednesday’s Qualifier 2 of the Indian Premier League 2021, where they defeated Delhi Capitals by three wickets and one ball to spare at Sharjah.  Venkatesh Iyer was the star for KKR with his magnificent fifty on a treacherous track as they huffed and puffed their way to 136-run target. Earlier, the Kolkata bowlers did an outstanding job to restrict DC to 135/5 in 20 overs, with none of the bowlers conceding at over 7 rpo. Eoin Morgan won the important toss and decided to bowl first. The Capitals openers got…

Virat Kohli explained that he made a decision to step down from captaincy to manage the workload while his teammate AB de Villiers defended the Indian international stating the relaxed version will bring the best out of him. Royal Challengers Bangalore bowed out of the Indian Premier League 2021 on Monday, October 11 when they lost the eliminator against Kolkata Knight Riders. The match marked the end of Kohli’s 11-year-long stint as the captain of the Bangalore franchise. Earlier, Virat had also announced his decision to relinquish the Indian captaincy in the T20 format after the conclusion of the T20 World Cup. …

Ireland batter Amy Hunter shattered records in the fourth ODI between Ireland Women and Zimbabwe Women at Harare as she became the youngest player to score a century in international cricket. The 16-year-old scored an unbeaten 121 as the visitors gained a victory against Zimbabwe by 85 runs.  Playing her fourth ODI match, Hunter scored the magnificent knock in 127 balls. In the process, she also broke the record of the highest score by an Ireland Women’s player, surpassing Karen Young’s 120. Hunter had a poor start to her career, scoring only seven runs in the first three ODIs. Her outstanding century…

With Chennai Super Kings awaiting the second Indian Premier League finalists in Dubai, KKR and DC will battle it out for this spot at Sharjah on Wednesday. Delhi Capitals, who are eyeing their second consecutive IPL final appearance, faced a heartbreaking loss in Qualifier 1. Fortunately for them, they have another shot at the final due to finishing in the top two. In the first qualifier, DC had posted 172/5 on the board on the back of fifties from Prithvi Shaw, Rishabh Pant and fine late hitting from Shimron Hetmyer. Defending the total, they had done a good job to get the equation to 35…

Australia rounded off the multi-format series against India with another victory as they bagged the series with 9 points to 5. Meg Lanning’s women defeated India by 14 runs in the third T20 international at the Metricon Stadium on October 11. Tahlia McGrath was once again the star for the hosts with her unbeaten 44 off 31, helping Australia reach a competitive total of 149/5. In the bowling department, Nicola Carey claimed two wickets while Ashleigh Gardner, Georgia Wareham and Annabel Sutherland picked one each to restrict India Women 14 short of the target.  https://twitter.com/ESPNcricinfo/status/1447171221624291329 As it happened, the flip of the coin landed in India’s favour as…

The fourteenth edition of the Indian Premier League has reached its culmination phase. Delhi Capitals, Chennai Super Kings, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kolkata Knight Riders will be the four teams fighting for the title in the playoffs. On October 11, Virat Kohli’s men will take on Eoin Morgan’s Knight Riders at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.  RCB have had an outstanding campaign in the IPL 2021 right from the outset, winning nine games to secure third place with 18 points. They missed out on the top two finishes due to their negative net run-rate of -0.140 compared to CSK’s +0.445. The Royal…