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Rishabh Pant played well in second innings; no need to jump here and there, advises Madan Lal

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Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant must spend more time in the middle and not just look to hit every ball, “jumping here and there”, feels former Indian cricketer Madan Lal.

“Yesterday he (Pant) applied himself very well in the second innings. In the first three Tests, he didn’t play well. He is an exciting player and very valuable too… needs to spend some time in the middle. No point in jumping here and there and gifting wicket,” Madan Lal told IANS.

The left-handed batsman from Delhi smashed 50 off 106 to bring up his first half-century of the series. However, no sooner he smashed his fifty, he was outplayed by Moeen Ali in the successive delivery.

“Getting out to some brilliant delivery is fine but gifting a wicket is not good. I liked the way he played yesterday. This is how you play Test cricket or say any format. He must keep this momentum going,” said the former cricketer.

The fourth Test between India and England hangs in the balance after an intriguing day’s play at The Oval on Sunday. The hosts reached 77 for no loss and needed another 291 runs on the final day after Haseeb Hameed and Rory Burns fought back for England.

If chased down, it will be England’s highest successful Test chase ever. And according to Madan Lal, the match is currently sixty per cent in favour of India. “England need to do something special to chase down this total. But they have started really well and if they manage to go on till lunch on Day 5 without losing any wicket then there will be trouble (for India). The wicket is fine and I would look to take quick wickets.

“Chasing 271 on the final day is not an easy thing, but everything is possible in cricket. Currently, I would say the match is 60-40 in favour of India. 60 per cent India and 40 per cent England,” the former Indian cricketer said.

In the 141 years Test cricket has been played in England, only twice has a team managed to chase down a target greater than 350 to win. “India know how important it is to win this Test because in the final encounter, it will be really difficult to bounce back,” he said.

Madan Lal further showered praise on Rohit Sharma from his brilliant knock. India’s opening batsman finally crossed the hurdle and brought up his first Test century outside India, eight years after his debut in Test matches for India.

Rohit has been one of the consistent Indian batters throughout this series with two fifties before Saturday. “He (Rohit) is of a different class. He adapted to the situation very well. His knock, when India needed it the most, would be remembered for long. Letting him open the innings also boosted his confidence and helped him,” Madan Lal concluded.

National

PV Sindhu Exits In Pre-Quarters Of Japan Masters, India’s Campaign Ends

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India’s campaign came to a premature end as double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu crashed out in the pre-quarterfinals of the Kumamoto Masters Japan Super 500 badminton tournament here on Thursday.

World no. 20 Sindhu was the lone Indian in contention after the exits of Lakshya Sen and women’s doubles pair of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand.

Sindhu squandered a game lead to lose 21-17 16-21 17-21 against Canada’s Michelle Li, ranked 23rd in the world, in a women’s singles match that lasted one hour and 15 minutes.

It was neck and neck between the two shuttlers in the first game before Sindhu took a marginal 11-8 lead and from there on kept her nose just ahead to take early advantage.

Trailing, Li came out attacking in the second game and raced to a 8-3 lead before Sindhu clawed back as the scoreline read 16-16 at one time.

But Li then upped her game and pocketed five straight points to draw parity in the contest.

The decider witnessed a close battle between the two shuttlers till 17 points when Li forced the pace, pocketing four straight points to wrap up the match. The Canadian was also helped by Sindhu’s unforced errors.

Li will play Siouth Korea’s Yu Jin Sim in the quarterfinals.

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

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

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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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