Author: Soorya G

The treatment of senior Indian batsman Shikhar Dhawan has caused quite the stir among fans and experts alike, after the veteran was stripped of the captaincy of the Indian side for the Zimbabwe series following KL Rahul’s return to the squad. Dhawan was given the reins of the side beforehand in the West Indies series while KL Rahul was recovering from injury and illness. Dhawan’s leadership during the series was impressive, as per the opinion of numerous experts. However, immediately following Rahul’s return, the BCCI decided that he would be leading the side, with Dhawan demoted to the vice-captain’s position. Several fans…

A clinical performance from the senior pros launched the Birmingham Phoenix campaign in fine style, while the Welsh Fire side looked all at sea in the fourth game of the women’s The Hundred season. Sophie Devine and Ellyse Perry put in performances that have now become almost expected of them on a regular basis to propel the Phoenix to victory. Devine’s side posted the second-highest total in women’s Hundred history to blow the Welsh Fire out of the way, picking up a convincing 19-run victory. She put in a valuable all-round performance while Aussie veteran Ellyse Perry also scored a wonderful half-century to put her side…

Mumbai Indians’ star batsman and the most expensive player in the 2022 Indian Premier League auctions has seemingly fallen out of favour with the Indian side, getting overlooked for the Aisa Cup, which is set to begin in just about a fortnight. Kishan seemed to take the news to heart as he posted a cryptic piece of poetry on social media, referring to his axe from the side. Along with Kishan, veteran fast bowler Mohammed Shami was also dropped from the side, even as players whom most consider outside the realm of selection for the upcoming T20 World Cup, such as Deepak Chahar,…

Bangladesh snapped out of their losing streak as they brushed aside a hapless Zimbabwe side to save face as they avoided a 3-0 humbling against a resurgent Zimbabwe. Anamul Haque and Afif Hossain played fine knocks to prop Bangladesh up to a score of 256. Zimbabwe, without skipper Regis Chakabva, who would have expected their batting line-up to pull off the chase after the events of the previous games, failed miserably, ultimately losing by a massive margin of 105 runs, but nevertheless walked away with the series win. Sikandar Raza, who has been in imperious form in recent weeks, was unable to…

The final of the historic inaugural Commonwealth Games cricket tournament was the centre of a huge controversy after Australian all-rounder Tahlia McGrath was shockingly involved in the encounter against India despite testing positive for the coronavirus. The situation revealed itself when McGrath was seen sitting away from her teammates in the dugout before coming into bat, leaving viewers puzzled. It was later revealed that the 26-year-old had indeed tested positive for the virus but was cleared to play nevertheless. Controversy erupted after official sources confirmed that McGrath was given permission to take part in the final despite her indisposition, as…

Zimbabwe continued their excellent form with yet another win over Bangladesh, staging an unbelievable comeback to chase down a competitive total of 291, gaining an unassailable lead in the three-match ODI series. Sikandar Raza was the star of the show once again, scoring another century while also picking up three wickets with ball in hand. Zimbabwean skipper Regis Chakabva also got a quickfire century. The series win comes as a morale boost both for the players and the fans, after the nation’s exile from international cricket following some governance conflicts meant that they could not enter the qualifying tournament for last year’s ICC T20…

There has been a lot of chatter about the impending demise of One-Day International cricket recently, with a lot of notable names being opposed to the original format of white-ball cricket. Allrounder Moeen Ali has become the latest to jump on the anti-ODI bandwagon – after Joe Root and Ben Stokes, among others – calling it ‘boring’ and suggesting that the format is very close to reaching obsolescence.  While puritans consider this a worrying sign and a huge red flag for cricket, there are those who feel that the current schedule of world cricket makes the format a drag and,…

The Proteas continued their good run of form in the run up to the all-important T20 World Cup with another series win in England. They gained a dominant victory against an Ireland squad at the Gloucestershire Stadium in Bristol on August 5. T20 veteran Wayne Parnell made a strong case for himself with a mighty impressive five-wicket haul which derailed the Ireland chase, giving his side a comfortable 44-run win. It was a rather disappointing game for the Irish batsmen, barring stalwart batsman Paul Stirling and the in-form Harry Tector. Medium pacer Barry McCarthy did chip in with an entertaining cameo, but it was a case of…

The sixth matchday of the inaugural edition of cricket in the coveted Commonwealth Games tournament was nothing short of a lopsided display of dominance, as England and South Africa, both flexed their muscles ahead of the business end of the tournament. While the game between South Africa and Sri Lanka was an inconsequential dead rubber, England’s drubbing of New Zealand, while a major confidence booster for the former, will perhaps have severely dented the morale of the Kiwis ahead of their semi-final encounter against the mighty Aussies. For Sri Lanka, the verdict of the tournament will be a sharp indication…

The novel England Cricket Board venture The Hundred witnessed a thrilling entertainer on just the second matchday, as the London Spirit held their nerve to pull off a three-run victory against the Sam Billings-led Oval Invincibles. Both teams played their opening game of the season, and it would be safe to assume that while both teams would be more or less delighted with their respective batting performances, the bowling displays of either side would be cause for concern. Billings won the toss against his former skipper Eoin Morgan at the Kensington Oval, and opted to bowl first against a rather star-studded London…