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1st Test: Pant, Vihari fifties power India to a formidable 357/6 against Sri Lanka

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Half-centuries hit in contrasting styles by Rishabh Pant (96 off 97 balls) and Hanuma Vihari (58 off 128 balls) powered India to a formidable 357/6 against Sri Lanka on day one of the opening Test at the IS Bindra PCA Stadium on Friday.

It was a day where all the Indian batters got starts after Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to bat first, but could not translate into big scores, except Pant and Vihari. Sri Lanka stopped Virat Kohli from reaching a fifty in his landmark 100th Test but couldn’t stop Vihari and Pant from making a big impact with the bat.

Their bowling attack, which had three seamers and one specialist spinner, was in complete contrast to the three spinners and two pacers picked by India on a pitch that had grass all over except the full-length area.

India were quick in racing to 62/1 at the end of the first hour in a totally dominant show by the opening pair of Rohit Sharma and Mayank Agarwal. The duo made the most of the wayward line and length from Sri Lanka bowlers, who struggled with keeping the run-flow and no-balls in check.

But Sharma fell while trying to pull off Lahiru Kumara to fine leg, falling yet again while trying to unfurl his favourite shot after doing so twice in the over. Vihari, coming in at number three for the first time in Tests, began well with delightful shots on both sides of the wicket.

Vihari continued to grow comfortable at number three while seeing Agarwal prod forward and be beaten on the inner edge off Lasith Embuldeniya. Kohli entered the crease with loud cheers and didn’t disappoint fans as he presented full face of the bat for a glorious straight drive off Vishwa Fernando.

Post-lunch, Vihari gently drove a full toss from Embuldeniya down the ground. He and Kohli slammed boundaries and looked at ease to bring up the fifty of the partnership for the third wicket. Vihari reached his fifty in 93 balls with a single through fine leg. Kohli, with his 38th run, brought up his 8000th run in Test cricket with a neat single through point. It made Kohli the second player after Australia’s Ricky Ponting to reach 8000 runs in the 100th Test.

The 90-run partnership between Vihari and Kohli came to an end as Embuldeniya got the latter out for 45. The left-arm spinner got a fuller ball to turn just a little bit past Kohli’s outer edge, trying to defend on back-foot, to hit the top of off-stump. Three overs later, Vihari aimed to drive away from the body but chopped onto his stumps off Fernando.

Losing two wickets in quick succession pushed India on the back-foot. But Pant, promoted to five in order to counter Embuldeniya, walloped the left-arm spinner over long-on and added a 53-run partnership with Shreyas Iyer to take India out of a tricky situation. Sri Lanka’s troubles increased when Kumara walked off the field without completing his over.

But part-time off-spinner Dhananjaya de Silva separated the duo by getting one to spin back in from round the wicket and beat Iyer’s inside edge to trap him plumb lbw in front of stumps.

Pant then got support from Ravindra Jadeja, who stole boundaries off de Silva and Embuldeniya. The left-hander was unafraid to play the waiting game while showing signs of aggression to get boundaries in order to reach his fifty in 73 balls.

From there, Pant shifted gears in blazing fashion, dancing down the pitch and lofting twice over long-on and deep mid-wicket for back-to-back sixes. Pant then cut Embuldeniya twice through cover and point to take 22 runs off the over.

De Silva also came under attack from Pant, who he’ved him over the bowler’s head for four followed by a loft down the ground for six. Pant further took de Silva to cleaners with successive fours through deep mid-wicket and down the ground.

Sri Lanka got a much-needed breakthrough soon after taking the second new ball as Pant fell short of his century by just four runs. Pant, who made 46 in his last 22 balls, tried to defend on the backfoot with no footwork off Suranga Lakmal but the ball went through the gate to clip the off-stump bail. Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin slammed five fours to maintain India’s comfortable hold on day one. At stumps, Jadeja was batting on 45 and Ashwin on 10.

Brief scores: India 357/6 in 85 overs (Rishabh Pant 96, Hanuma Vihari 58; Lasith Embuldeniya 2/107, Dhananjaya de Silva 1/47) against Sri Lanka

International

Champions Trophy: Pakistan’s dismal show likely to be discussed in cabinet and parliament

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Islamabad, Feb 27: The Pakistan cricket team’s depressing, dismal, and cheerless performance in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, resulting in its early exit from the tournament, has not only broken the hearts of home fans but also knocked on the doors of the country’s Prime Minister.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, has personally taken notice of the team’s early departure and the below-par performance and is likely to take up the issues related to the cricket team in the cabinet and the parliament. Pakistan’s final Group A fixture against Bangladesh was washed out in Rawalpindi due to rain on Thursday, which meant that they ended their campaign without a win. With only one point, thanks to a washout, Pakistan will finish at the bottom of the group.

Prime Minister’s aide on Political and Public Affairs, Rana Sanaullah, has said that PM Shehbaz will also take up the matter at the parliament. “The Prime Minister will personally take notice, and we will also ask him to raise these cricket-related issues in the cabinet as well as in the parliament,” said Rana Sanaullah.

It is pertinent to note that Pakistan is hosting the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Special arrangements have been made to glorify the event, with Rawalpindi, Lahore, and Karachi cricket stadiums renovated to increase audience capacity and further enhance the facilities. However, the team’s fans were left dejected after Pakistan lost both its matches and was knocked out of the tournament when their final league match with Bangladesh was rained off.

While anger persists among cricket fans, questions are being raised over the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), its chief Mohsin Naqvi, and the selection committee, which selected the squad. Aqib Javed, head coach of Pakistan, has tried to justify the team selection, stating that all players were selected on the basis of their recent performances.

On the other hand, internal issues within the PCB are also being linked with the team’s bad performance as many believe that the cricket board’s decision-making regarding playing eleven, the team, and the players has prompted foreign coaches like Jason Gillespie to part ways.

Rana Sanaullah said that he will also call on PM Sharif to address the ongoing issues within the PCB, emphasising that the cricket sport as a whole is in bad shape. “The sport at college and district levels is in a bad position, and the amount that has been spent on a professional level should be revealed before the public”, said Rana Sanaullah.

Rana Sanaullah also raised concerns over amounts being paid to mentors, who he highlighted admitted that they were unaware of their responsibilities and were being remunerated for doing nothing. “You will be surprised after hearing about the perks and privileges of other officer-bearers. You will be confused whether they are officials of a Pakistani institution or those belonging to a developed nation”, he said.

It would not be wrong to say that Pakistan’s performance on home grounds has certainly left fans heartbroken. In major ICC events, Pakistan’s performance in the past years has also not been mentionable.

In 2023, Pakistan only won four out of nine matches during the ODI World Cup in India and ended in fifth position on the points table. Pakistan also made an early exit from last year’s T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA after losing to India and the USA in the preliminary stage.

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Champions Trophy 2025: Pakistan’s Cricket Stadiums Far From Ready, Tournament Could Be Moved To Dubai, Claims Report

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Problems seem to be mounting for the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) as they face a race against time to handover a proper stadium to the International Cricket Council (ICC) before the Champions Trophy gets underway. According to The Times Of India report, the construction and upgradation work is still underway at the National Stadium in Karachi, Gadaffi Stadium in Lahore and the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium

A source following the developments said,”It is a very disappointing picture. All three stadiums are far from ready and it’s not renovation or refurbishment, but proper construction which is underway. There is so much work left with seats, floodlights, facilities and even the outfield and playing surfaces,”

The report further states there is not much time left for the venues to be handed over and it’s not a surprise that there are discussions about moving the entire tournament to the UAE. 

The PCB has to hand over the tournament venues to ICC by February 12, however, the stadium work which was scheduled to be finished by December 31, is yet to be completed.

A team of from the ICC will leave for Pakistan towards the end of the week to do a status check and informal contingency discussions are underway in Dubai corridors.

What is the Current stadium of Champions Trophy venues?

Lahore and Karachi are the two centres where heavy construction work is underway and their multi-storied enclosures, which will have dressing rooms and hospitality boxes, are yet to enter the finishing stages. In addition to the new enclosures, there is fencing work, placement of floodlights and seats which is far from the finish line.

The source added, “The weather is not ideal for construction and finishing work to happen at a rapid pace. At Gadaffi, even the plaster work isn’t completed yet. And most of the time is taken by finishing work because we are talking about dressing rooms etc. They just can’t be random rooms/enclosures for an ICC event. ICC has a checklist which needs to be met. National Stadium has decided to not completely finish the new enclosure because there is no time,”

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AFC Asian Cup 2027 to take place in Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar from Jan 7 to Feb 5

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Kuala Lumpur, Jan 7: The AFC Asian Cup 2027 will take place from January 7 to February 5 across three cities – Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar – in Saudi Arabia, the AFC announced on Tuesday.

A total of five stadiums in Riyadh will host the tournament’s matches; the King Fahd Sports City Stadium, the King Saud University Stadium, Imam Mohammed Ibn Saud University Stadium, Kingdom Arena and the Al Shabab Stadium.

Two stadiums have been confirmed for Jeddah – King Abdullah Sports City and Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Sports City Stadium – with a new state-of-the-art venue to be built in Al Khobar, completing the world-class infrastructure set to provide the backdrop for Asia’s top 24 national teams.

Saudi Arabia was announced as the host nation for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup in 2023. This will be the first time Suadi Arabia will host the tournament.

“Confirming the dates and selecting the stadiums for the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027™ is a strategic milestone in our journey to host the tournament. This announcement goes beyond simply identifying locations and schedules; it reflects the ongoing high-level collaboration between us and the AFC as we work towards delivering an exceptional tournament that fulfills the aspirations of the entire Asian continent,” Saudi Arabian Football Federation chief Yasser Al Misehal.

Eighteen teams have already sealed their places at the AFC Asian Cup 2027. The remaining berths will be decided via the Qualifiers Final Round, which is scheduled to commence from March 2025 and features six groups of four teams – confirmed at last month’s draw – with the winners of each group making up the final cast.

India, aiming for its fifth appearance at the AFC Asian Cup, has been placed in Group C alongside Singapore, Hong Kong, and Bangladesh. The team will look to replicate or surpass its 2019 performance, where it showcased significant progress on the continental stage.

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