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2017 Women’s WC drastically changed things for women cricket in India: Punam Raut

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3 years ago

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The 2017 ICC Women’s World Cup held in England changed things drastically for women’s cricket in India, says veteran batter Punam Raut, who played a crucial knock of 85 runs in the final match of that tournament.

Chasing the target of 229 runs in the final, India were going strong but collapsed from 191/3 to be bowled out for 219, losing the match by just nine runs. Though India lost that dramatic final, things changed for the women’s cricket in the country after that.

“We did very well in the 2017 World Cup in England and from there on, things changed drastically for women’s cricket in India. Our matches started getting broadcasted and had good media coverage and even parents became more accepting about girls playing cricket,” Raut told IANS in an exclusive interview.

“Earlier, parents used to complain but now they motivate girls to play cricket and even many ask me about the different levels of women’s cricket and the whole process of getting selected. As a whole, society has changed, more women’s matches are being played and new exciting talents are coming through,” she added.

After playing international cricket for around a decade, Punam believes that women’s sport in India has changed a lot compared to the time she started.

“A lot of things have improved for good. When I started playing, there was no regular broadcast of our matches, and people used to know only one or two female cricketers but now fans follow most of the Indian women’s cricket matches and are aware of others as well,” she said.

“Now we have a decent domestic structure and a fair amount of international matches are played in a season. Though the number of matches we play is less compared to men, it is better than what it was. Young players are getting exposure on ‘A’ team’s tours and by playing in foreign leagues as well,” she added.

There has been a growing chorus for organising a full-fledged women IPL and the experienced campaigner also feels that a five or six-team league is the need of the hour.

“Yes, I am very optimistic about the Women’s IPL. The league will help the Indian women’s cricket team in getting fearless and readymade players as we now see with the men’s team. Youngsters will get the chance to rub shoulders with legends of the game from different countries and it will help them in honing their skills,” the batter said.

“It will also serve as a platform for players, who have been dropped from the Indian team, to prove themselves and make a comeback,” she added.

The 32-year old also dismissed the ‘lack of talent’ arguments, saying that there is no dearth of talent in the Indian women’s cricket set-up.

“I have played a lot of domestic cricket and can say that we have loads of talented players. A lot of these matches haven’t been, and are not televised so it is believed that there is a lack of talent. There are many active and even former cricketers who go through the grinds of domestic cricket and regularly do well for their respective teams,” said Raut.

“However, people know only 15 players who feature the Indian squad and their performance in the domestic circuit goes unnoticed. A women’s IPL will also help them get their due recognition. So, I firmly believe that we have enough talent in the country to start a five or six-team IPL,” she added.

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National

Suryakumar Yadav Watches India Beat Afghanistan In 3rd T20I From Hospital Bed After Groin Surgery In Germany

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8 months ago

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January 18, 2024

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India batter Suryakumar Yadav may not be a part of the recent T20I series winning squad against Afghanistan but he made sure to catch up on all the matches even from his hospital bed in Germany.

Surya underwent a successful groin surgery on Wednesday after which he watched India win the 3rd T20I in Bengaluru.

The No.1-ranked T20I batter went under the knife for a sports hernia, a condition for which KL Rahul was also operated upon, co-incidentally in Germany last year.”Surgery done. I want to thank everyone for their concerns and well wishes for my health, and I am happy to tell you all that I will be back very soon,” Surya said in a post on his social media accounts after the surgery.The 33-year-old batsman has been inactive since suffering a left ankle injury while fielding in the third T20I against South Africa at Johannesburg last month, shortly after achieving a century in 56 balls.

Subsequently, he was seen walking with a moonboot, indicating the severity of the injury. Numerous reports have also suggested that Suryakumar underwent surgery on the injured ankle.

Following this, he underwent rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru before traveling to Germany for a groin operation.

It remains uncertain whether Suryakumar will recover in time for the start of IPL 2024, scheduled to commence possibly from the third week of March.In the IPL, Suryakumar has been a key player for the five-time champions Mumbai Indians. His availability will be crucial for the Indian team as they prepare for the 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup, scheduled from June 1 to 29 in the USA and the West Indies.

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National

IPL 2024 Auction: Mitchell Starc Becomes Most Expensive Player In History, Bought By KKR For ₹24.75 Crore

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9 months ago

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December 19, 2023

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Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc broke the all-time record for the most expensive player in the history of the Indian Premier League after he was bought for a whopping ₹24.75 Crore by Kolkata Knight Riders at the auction in Dubai.

Starc broke the record for the highest bid in IPL auction history just minutes after his Australia captain Pat Cummins was sold for ₹20.50 crore to Sunrisers Hyderabad.

The left-arm pacer drew the maximum eyeballs when his name came up in the auction. The 33-year-old has not played in the IPL since 2015 after making his debut for Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2014.

KKR justify Starc’s price tag

“The entire salary cap for franchises when IPL started in 2008 was ₹20 crore. Things have changed.

“But our view is, when the auction is over all the 10 teams are going to walk out of the auction having spent ₹100 crores. And each team decides to slice it differently.”So what you have paid to somebody, up or down, is a matter of perspective. Ultimately we are all spending the same amount of money,” KKR CEO Venky Mysore justified the amount paid for Starc.

Notable Acquisitions in the IPL 2024 Auction

In addition to the significant acquisition of Pat Cummins, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) secured the services of Travis Head, the hero of the World Cup final, for a substantial sum of Rs 6.80 crore.

Harshal Patel, previously with Royal Challengers Bangalore, emerged as a sought-after player, fetching a lucrative deal from Punjab Kings, who invested Rs 11.75 crore in the out-of-favor Indian pacer.

Daryl Mitchell, following his impressive performance in the ODI World Cup, enjoyed a substantial payday as Chennai Super Kings splurged Rs 14 crore to secure the services of the New Zealand batter.

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National

IPL 2024 Auction: CSK Eyeing Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav & Jasprit Bumrah; Ready To Trade 2 Pacers To MI

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9 months ago

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December 19, 2023

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Renowned performance analyst Prasanna Agoram has dropped a massive hint ahead of the IPL 2024 auction set to take place on December 19th (Tuesday) in Dubai.

With Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin hosting Prasanna on his YouTube channel, the latter has hinted that two pacers from the Chennai Super Kings could be traded for a star batter or pacer from the Mumbai Indians.

According to reports, the star batters from the Mumbai Indians could either be Suryakumar Yadav or Rohit Sharma and the pacer might be Jasprit Bumrah. E

Either of their trades would be a massive coup, given their influential roles in Mumbai Indians’ dominance in tournament history since the 2013 edition.

CSK eyeing top MI stars ahead of IPL 2024

Since Rohit took charge of the Mumbai Indians’ captaincy from Ricky Ponting in 2013, he has turned the tables completely, leading them to five titles, the last of which came in 2020.

Suryakumar Yadav has amassed over 400 runs in the last 4 out of 6 seasons, while Bumrah started his career with the Mumbai Indians, picking up 145 wickets in 120 matches at 23.31 apiece.

Surya has also led the Indian T20I team in the absence of Rohit Sharma on the last two international assignments against Australia and South Africa therefore, he could also be looked at as a future leader of the CSK franchise after Dhoni retires from the league.Bumrah meanwhile, has been the backbone of the MI squad and the leader of its pace attack over the last few years. CSK are on the lookout for a top Indian bowler who could head their pace unit in IPL 2024.

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