England opener Zak Crawley lauded Indian batters for their attacking brand of cricket during the second Test against Bangladesh at Kanpur, which saw the world's number one ranked side force out a result out of an almost unwinnable game. India recently completed their 2-0 series win against Bangladesh at home. In the Kanpur Test, Team India missed two days of action due to rain and wet outfield after Bangladesh ended the first day at 107/3 in the first innings. When Bangladesh started day four with the same score, the match looked heading towards a draw with two days left and only the first innings being played. But Bangladesh was first skittled out for 233 and then India got some quickfire runs, posting 285/9 and taking two Bangladesh wickets at the end of day four. On the next day, India bundled out Bangladesh for 146 and were leading by 94 runs. They got a target of 95 runs and chased it down easily. Speaking ahead of his side's first Test against Pakistan at Multan, Crawley was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo, "That is what people want to watch. That is what we have been talking about for two years now. They are world-class players, some of my favourite players to watch bat - maybe not when we are playing against them - but it is awesome." Also Read: Gwalior sees deployment of 2,500 cops for Ind-Ban T20 match amid protests Notably, since mid-to-late 2022, England have also gained popularity within Test cricket circles for their 'Bazball' approach to the game under skipper Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum, which is about playing fearless, positive and attacking cricket without any worry of results. Notably, Crawley has been a crucial part of this England side under McCullum. Since the appointment of McCullum as coach in May 2022, Crawley has scored 1,621 runs in 26 Tests at an average of 35.23, with a strike rate of over 76 and two centuries and 10 fifties in 48 innings. His best score is 189. England is at the fourth place in ICC World Test Championship standings with eight wins, seven losses and a draw after series wins against West Indies and Sri Lanka. Pakistan are eighth in the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 standings after their series loss to Bangladesh at home. The Shan Masood-led side are under pressure heading into the first Test against England, with their last win in a home Test dating back to February 2021. Pakistan have not won a home Test match in their last 10 attempts, which includes a 3-0 series loss to England in 2022. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 07:12 AM IST | Multan (Pakistan) | ANIA distraught Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur conceded that her team didn't play its best cricket during the 58-run thrashing at the hands of New Zealand in their Women's T20 World Cup opener but remains confident that her players are capable of much better performances. India were bowled out for 102 in 19 overs in their pursuit of 161 with not a single player reaching an individual score of 20. "We didn't play our best cricket. Going forward we know every game is important," Kaur said at post-match presentation ceremony. She didn't agree that 161 was a difficult target on a slowish track. "We have chased many times 160-170, we were expecting that on the board. While batting, we knew someone had to bat through but we kept losing wickets." India play Pakistan on Sunday and Kaur feels that her team will come up trumps against arch rivals. "We know this group is capable of better, this wasn't the start we were expecting but we have to go from here." On the bowling front, Kaur felt that her team didn't cash in on chances. Also Read: Kerr's controversial non-run-out decision stirs heated debate in cricket circles "We created chances but we were not able to avail those chances. They played better cricket than us, no doubt about that. Fielding we made some mistakes so that is a learning for us going forward," she said possibly referring to Renuka Thakur's sloppy outfield effort and wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh's bungle in the Powerplay. Opposition skipper Sophie Devine, awarded 'Player of the Match' for her unbeaten 57 off 36 balls, expressed her amazement at being able to dominate a team like India in such a fashion, especially after New Zealand's recent string of defeats heading to the the tournament. "I'm really proud of this group. People have been speaking about our recent results, coming out against a world-class side like India, to produce that performance I'm overwhelmed. We've been targeting this game for a long time," Devine said. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 07:09 AM IST | Dubai | PTIComing into the Women’s T20 World Cup, New Zealand had lost 10 T20Is in a row. But when it mattered the most, they rose to be top-class in all departments to hammer a listless India by 58 runs in a Group A match of the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup at the Dubai International Stadium here on Friday. After Suzie Bates and Georgia Plimmer gave New Zealand a brilliant start through a 67-run partnership for the opening wicket, captain Sophie Devine applied strong finishing touches by hitting seven boundaries – mixed with sheer power and good placement in her unbeaten 36-ball 57 at a strike-rate of 158.33 – as they posted 160/4 on a sticky pitch. Chasing 161, which would have been India’s most successful chase in the tournament’s history, Harmanpreet Kaur's team never got going and fell like nine pins to be bowled out for 102 in 19 overs. No batter went past 15 in an insipid performance as Rosemary Mair took 4-19, while Lea Tahuhu picked 3-15 and Eden Carson broke the game open by getting the Indian openers inside the first four overs. The big margin of defeat serves as a serious blow to India's hopes of reaching the semifinals. India suffered an early setback in the chase as Shafali Verma went for a flick off Eden, but got a leading edge to give the spinner an easy return catch. Smriti Mandhana was next to fall in the fourth over – dancing down the pitch to go big, but holed out to long-off to become Eden’s second wicket. Also Read: Kerr's controversial non-run-out decision stirs heated debate in cricket circles Rosemary Mair found some good swing and was rewarded for it when her sharp inswinger trapped India’s new number three batter Harmanpreet Kaur lbw for 15. With New Zealand keeping things tight, Jemimah Rodrigues fell in a bid to break the shackles – chipping to mid-on off an outside off delivery from Lea Tahuhu. India’s slide continued when Richa tried to close her bat-face early, but got a leading edge and was caught by mid-off on a slower ball from Lea. From there, the result was a foregone conclusion, as the rest of the batters fell without doing much to reduce the margin of defeat in a comprehensive hammering for India, as the White Ferns shined bright at the Ring of Fire in Dubai’s cool evening. Previously, New Zealand’s opening pair of Suzie and Georgia were positive in their approach - walking down the pitch and piercing gaps to find boundaries and partly helped by India’s misfields. While Suzie took two fours off Pooja Vastrakar, Georgia smacked a four and six off Deepti Sharma. Georgia took two boundaries off Arundhati Reddy in the final over of Power-play, while Suzie survived on 18 when Richa Ghosh couldn’t hold on to the top edge off her bat, as New Zealand ended the Power-play at 55/0. The superb 67-run opening stand ended when Suzie didn’t time her slog off Arundhati and found deep mid-wicket. One brought two for India as Georgia came down the pitch to loft Asha Sobhana, but holed out to long-on. Sophie began her superb knock by hitting consecutive fours off Asha’s short deliveries, even as Amelia Kerr wasn’t in her usual groove. On the last ball of the 14th over, Amelia got a reprieve when her run-out at the striker’s end was deemed a dead ball by on-field umpires, with Harmanpreet, Smriti Mandhana and Amol Muzumdar having lengthy discussions with them and the fourth umpire. Replays showed Amelia was run out while attempting a second run, just after the umpire returned Deepti her cap at the non-striker's end. But in the next over, Amelia went for a cut off Renuka Singh Thakur and picked out a diving extra cover. Sophie continued to find boundaries with ease – a straight drive and cut of Renuka got her back-to-back fours, followed by going deep in the crease to pull Shreyanka for another boundary. Brooke Halliday was inventive in getting a brace of fours via reverse sweep and sweep before giving a catch to extra cover off Renuka. Sophie gave New Zealand a strong finish with a pull off Deepti for four, followed by getting her fifty with a carve over mid-off against Shreyanka fetching her another boundary. India was forced to have only three fielders outside the 25-yard circle due to an over-rate penalty in the last over also worked in New Zealand’s favour as 21 runs came off the last two overs, which was enough for them to be too good for India. Brief scores:New Zealand 160/4 in 20 overs (Sophie Devine 57 not out, Georgia Plimmer 34; Renuka Singh Thakur 2-27) beat India 102 all out in 19 overs (Harmanpreet Kaur 15; Rosemary Mair 4-19, Lea Tahuhu 3-15) by 58 runs This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 07:08 AM IST | Dubai | IANSEngland captain Ben Stokes is still a doubtful starter for the side’s first Test against Pakistan, starting on October 7 in Multan. Stokes is recovering from a hamstring injury sustained during The Hundred and missed England’s 2-1 series victory over Sri Lanka, with Ollie Pope leading the team in his absence. Also Read: It's nice to have all three teams with same messaging and philosophies: Ben Stokes “I think he’s got to do a few more tests, but he’s been doing some running and stuff. He seems to be doing well, recovering well from his injury, [but] we don’t know just yet. We feel ready, whatever team comes out it will be a nice balance either way. We’ve got a really deep squad with plenty of options with the ball and with the bat as well,” said opener Zak Crawley. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 07:02 AM IST | New Delhi | IANSRetired IPS officer Sharad Kumar, who headed anti-terror organisation NIA for four years, has been appointed as the new chief of the BCCI’s Anti-Corruption Unit, bringing extensive experience to the role. Also Read: BCCI introduces match fee of Rs 7.50 lakh per player in IPL Hailing from Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh, the appointment of 68-year-old Kumar was done on October 1. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 07:01 AM IST | New Delhi | PTIIt took the Indian team many intense sessions on the ground and off it to transform into a world-class fielding unit. But, at the MPCA stadium here on Friday, its much-admired fielding coach T Dilip’s focus was not on intensity but on “rhythm and flow”. The Indian team is preparing for the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh, beginning here on Sunday. In a video uploaded by the BCCI, Dilip can be heard saying, “Get your feet where you are throwing. As simple as that. I’m not looking at intensity, but rhythm and flow is something we have to achieve today. And once we break into that, we’ll move and take 15 catches.” Also Read: Gwalior sees deployment of 2,500 cops for Ind-Ban T20 match amid protests The Indian players honed their throwing skills and outfield catching under the watchful eyes of Dilip, head coach Gautam Gambhir and his deputy Ryan ten Doeschate. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 07:00 AM IST | Gwalior | PTIBangladesh skipper Najmul Hossain Shanto on Friday promised that his new-look team will play aggressive brand of cricket in the upcoming T20I series against India, saying that the Test series defeat is now behind them. India whitewashed Bangladesh 2-0 in the Test series, winning the Kanpur game in mere six sessions. The T20I series will begin here on Sunday at the brand new Shrimant Madhavrao Scindia Cricket Stadium. “We are looking to win this series, to be very honest. We want to play aggressive cricket. If you look at our last World Cup, we had a very good opportunity to play in the semi-finals, but we couldn’t do that. But, it’s a new team. So, I hope all the players will play some good cricket here,” Shanto told reporters. Also Read: Gwalior sees deployment of 2,500 cops for Ind-Ban T20 match amid protests The skipper said he won’t think about his team’s struggle in the Test series. “We all know we didn’t play our best cricket [in Tests]. So, we are not thinking about what we have done before. Going forward, it’s a very important series for us and we all know in T20 it’s a totally different ball game. That particular day, those who are playing well, will win the match.” Both India and Bangladesh will have new-look teams taking the field with senior players making way for the youngsters. India will have an entirely new squad, led by Suryakumar Yadav, while Bangladesh will have only five players in their T20 squad who were also part of the Test squad. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 06:57 AM IST | Gwalior | PTIYoung batter Phoebe Litchfield, who sat out for both warm-up matches with groin soreness, is expected to be fit for Australia’s Women’s T20 World Cup opener against Sri Lanka at Sharjah on Saturday. The 21-year-old Litchfield trained with her teammates on Thursday and is on track to be available for selection, according to cricket.com.au. “It’s been tough missing the practice games, but I’m feeling good now. I’m excited to get back on the field and contribute to the team,” Litchfield said. The slow and spinning Sharjah track has already posed problems for teams earlier in the tournament. Alana King, the leg-spinner, could be in line for a recall to provide more spin options, especially given the conditions. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 06:55 AM IST | New Delhi | IANSPakistan staged a determined fightback to beat Sri Lanka by 31 runs in their opening game of the Women’s T20 World Cup campaign here on Thursday. Left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal claimed three wickets with Nashra Sandhu, Omaima Sohail and Fatima Sana all taking two each for Pakistan as Asia Cup champions Sri Lanka fell comfortably short of their target of 117. “We won the toss and we wanted a lot of runs but we didn’t get. But we still achieved the target in the game,” said Sana. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 06:54 AM IST | Sharjah | AFPSouth Africa proved to be too strong for West Indies as they romped to a 10-wicket win to begin their campaign in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup on a rousing note here on Friday. Asked to bat first, West Indies were restricted to 118-6, but the total would have been far less than that, had it not been for Stafanie Taylor’s unbeaten 41-ball 44.For South Africa, left-arm spinner Nonkululeko Mlaba returned career-best figures of 4-29, while Marizanne Kapp ended with 2-14. In reply, South Africa completed the task with 13 balls to spare. Skipper Laura Wolvaardt (59 off 55 balls) and Tazmin Brits (57 off 52 balls), who had earlier in the day pulled off an excellent catch at cover point, got the job done easily for last edition’s runners-up. Earlier, South Africa bowlers maintained a tight line and length to force the West Indians into back foot, and the day’s first breakthrough came about when Marizanne Kapp had Hayley Matthews (10 off 11 balls) caught behind. Brief scoresWI 118-6 in 20 overs (S Taylor 44*; N Mlaba 4-29, M Kapp 2-14) lost to SA 119-0 in 17.5 overs (L Wolvaardt 59*, T Brits 57*) by 10 wickets This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
05 October,2024 06:52 AM IST | Dubai | PTIThere was no shortage of tough cricket at the Dubai Stadium on Friday when India took on a determined New Zealand in a Group A match of the T20 World Cup. There was an incident rarely seen on a cricket field. A batter was run out by miles while going for the second run and was walking off the ground when she was ruled not out. All hell broke loose as Indian players vehemently protested the umpire’s decision. Spectators left confused The media as well as spectators were flummoxed initially, wondering what had happened, after all. As it transpired, on the last ball of the 14th over bowled by Deepti Sharma, the Kiwi pair of Amelia Kerr and Sophie Devine took off for a second run and Indian captain Harmanpreet Kaur who had the ball in her hand, threw it to ‘keeper Richa Ghosh who promptly broke the wickets, with Kerr well out of the crease. It was ruled not out as the umpire at the bowler’s end had called “over” after the Kiwi pair had completed the single. But seeing Harmanpreet holding on to the ball they took off for the second run. Sophie Devine during her 57 not out yesterday As Kerr was walking off, the fourth umpire ran onto the field and stopped Kerr in her tracks. India, understandably, were unhappy that she was allowed to continue her innings. There were prolonged discussions first on the ground and then outside the boundary where head coach Amol Muzumdar was seen arguing with the fourth umpire. Captain Harmanpreet joined in. But the on-field umpires and the fourth umpire stuck to their assessment that “over” was called the moment the Kiwi duo had completed the run and thus the ball had become “dead.” Even the square-leg umpire was tying her shoelaces at that time. But the irony of the unsavoury incident was that it did not cost India any runs, because in the following over, Kerr was caught off the bowling of Renuka Thakur for 13. Also Read: 'Can sense each other's feelings by our facial expressions': Shafali on Mandhana This incident overshadowed a superb unbeaten knock of 57 by White Ferns captain Sophie Devine and an excellent opening partnership of 67 by Suzie Bates (27 in 24) and Georgia Plimmer (34 off 23 with three fours and a six). The impressive Kiwis ran up a healthy total of 160-4 in their 20 overs. At the time of going to press, the Indians were struggling at 88-7 in 15 overs, with their top three guns Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma and Harmanpreet back in the hut, leaving the other batters to face the music. Devine shines After opting to bat, the Kiwi openers set the tone for the innings. When the opening duo departed within the space of three balls, it seemed the Indian bowlers had pulled things back, but Devine with Kerr and Brooke Halliday ensured that the Kiwis posted a formidable 160-4 in their 20 overs. In the opening two matches in Sharjah on Thursday none of the teams had crossed the 120-mark. Thus, it was heartening to see the New Zealand girls pile up runs at eight an over, giving India a challenging task in their opening game of the tournament. Also Read: Gwalior sees deployment of 2,500 cops for Ind-Ban T20 match amid protests On the bowling front, India’s most experienced bowler Deepti Sharma had an off day, as she was taken to the cleaners by the Kiwi batters. She went for 16 apiece in her first and fourth overs and ended up giving away 45 in four without any reward. Luckily, leg-spinner Asha Sobhana found her rhythm and provided the breakthrough when the Kiwi openers were flying high. She accounted for Pilmmer. And then, in the following over, Arundhati Reddy sent back Bates. Renuka Thakur also at the death picked up two wickets, when it seemed the Kiwis would touch the 175-run mark.
05 October,2024 06:52 AM IST | Dubai | Santosh SuriADVERTISEMENT
