Sports
I never thought he left us: Shah Rukh on Gambhir’s return to KKR in 2024

New Delhi, March 7: Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) team owner and Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan revealed that he never thought Gautam Gambhir ever left them before his return to the franchise as mentor ahead of the last edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Gambhir’s return did wonders for the franchise as they lifted their third title after a gap of 10 years. Shreyas Iyer-led side defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad in the final to emerge champions.
“I never thought Gautam Gambhir left us. There has always been a lovely relationship with Gautam over the years. There are a few players with whom friendships remain strong, and Gautam Gambhir is one of them. For him, it was a big homecoming,” Shah Rukh said on JioHotstar’s ‘Power Play’.
However, Gambhir’s stay at KKR was only limited to the 2024 season, as he was named India head coach in July last year after the departure of Rahul Dravid.
Former KKR batter Robin Uthappa said Gambhir’s departure from the franchise in 2017 left a void, which reflected in the team’s performance.
“When Gautam was no longer with KKR, it felt like—where are the pieces going to settle? Since his exit, there was a slight loss of direction. I think, at one point, panic set in. From the outside, you could sense that things weren’t as smooth as they seemed. You always expect KKR to perform at a high level, and when the performances didn’t match the team’s aura, it became evident that something had to change.
“As soon as I heard that Gautam Gambhir was coming back, I remember tweeting that the best thing to happen to KKR since Gautam Gambhir leaving, was Gautam Gambhir coming back!”
Former India batter Ajay Jadeja added, “The relationship between KKR and Sourav Ganguly, whether with the fans or within the team, wasn’t yielding great results. So, in 2011, a major overhaul was planned. I think the biggest shift that year was that, before 2011, KKR was seen as Sourav Ganguly’s team. But from that point, it became Shah Rukh Khan’s team—with Gautam Gambhir leading them.”
Ahead of the start of the IPL 2025 season, KKR have named veteran India batter Ajinkya Rahane as their new skipper and all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer as vice captain.
Rahane’s previous IPL captaincy stints were with Rajasthan Royals, which led them to IPL 2018 playoffs, and the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiant. Once KKR got Rahane in, it was nearly certain that he would captain them, though names of Iyer, the franchise’s costliest buy in the mega auction with Rs 23.75 crore, and Rinku Singh as potential leaders were doing the rounds.
Rahane had captained Mumbai to winning the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in the recent domestic cricket season, where he was also the competition’s highest run-getter with 469 runs in nine matches, including five half-centuries and was adjudged as Player of the Tournament.
Sports
PCB postpones men’s domestic tournaments with immediate effect amid India-Pak tensions

Lahore, May 10: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Saturday announced the immediate postponement of all men’s domestic tournaments in the country owing to escalating cross-border tensions with India.
“The Pakistan Cricket Board confirms that the ongoing President’s Trophy Grade-II, Regional Intra-District Challenge Cup, Inter-District U19 One-Day tournament have been postponed with immediate effect due to prevailing security condition in the country.”
“The tournaments will resume from the same stage later and a revised schedule will be shared closer to the resumption,” said the PCB in its official statement on Saturday.
Previously on Friday, after the BCCI paused IPL 2025 for a week due to growing tensions between the two nations on the border areas, the PCB had announced it has postponed the ongoing edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) for an indefinite period, citing the advice given by Pakistan Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif.
The tournament’s postponement news came hours after PCB claimed it was going to host the remaining eight matches of the tournament in the UAE, though the organisation didn’t specify the dates or venues of those rescheduled matches.
PSL’s future had come under great uncertainty after a drone had crashed at a food street near the Rawalpindi International Cricket Stadium, which resulted in Thursday’s match between Peshawar Zalmi and Karachi Kings being postponed indefinitely.
Two weeks after 26 people were gunned down by terrorists in Pahalgam – a popular tourist destination in Jammu & Kashmir, India launched ‘Operation Sindoor’ to target terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir from where terrorist attacks against India have been planned and directed.
Pakistan continued its aerial attacks, comprising drones and missiles, on Indian border cities as well as across other military stations in Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat on Friday. But all of them were successfully foiled by India’s defence systems.
Sports
IPL 2025 suspended indefinitely, BCCI cites national interest

New Delhi, May 9: Amid the escalating military conflict between India and Pakistan, the BCCI has decided to suspend the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season indefinitely in an emergency meeting on Friday, sources told Media.
After Thursday’s IPL 2025 match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals was called off after 10.1 overs of play at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala following the air and drone strikes from Pakistan which resulted in blackouts in Jammu, Pathankot and Udhampur, all of which are in close proximity to Dharamshala, the future of the tournament looked uncertain and BCCI convened emergency meeting to decide the way forward.
“IPL to be suspended, BCCI will issue detailed information anytime soon, the BCCI sources told Media on Friday. “Yes, the meeting just got over. After discussing with all the concerned authorities, this decision was made. Further details will be shared by the BCCI, ” it added.
“BCCI wants to stand with the nation at this time and thus suspends IPL 2025 with immediate effect. It’s indefinite at the moment (on a window to resume IPL 2025 in future). It will only happen if there will be time later in the year. But for now nothing,” said IPL sources to Media.
Following the abandonment of the Dharamshala match, several Australian players involved in the league reportedly expressed anxiety over their safety.
A special train has been arranged to evacuate both Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals players and support staff members, match officials, commentators, broadcast crew members and other key personnel associated with IPL 2025 to get them to a safe place.
After India launched precision strikes targeting nine high-value terror camps across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (Pok), in response to the horrific terrorist attack in Pahalgam that claimed 26 lives, Pakistan attempted to engage in number of military targets in Northern and Western India on May 7-8.
India on Thursday morning targeted the Air Defence Radars and systems at several locations in Pakistan, during which the one at Lahore has been neutralised.
Later, Pakistan launched aerial attacks on Jammu as well as several military stations near the western border, but those were successfully foiled by India’s air defence systems.
National
High alert sounded in Rajasthan border districts, leaves of govt employees cancelled

Jaipur, May 8: A high alert has been issued in districts near the Rajasthan border following India’s airstrikes on nine terror bases in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. As a precautionary measure, all flight operations at Kishangarh and Jodhpur airports have been suspended until May 10.
Rajasthan shares a 1,037-km border with Pakistan, which has been sealed with the Border Security Force personnel maintaining high vigilance. The Indian Air Force is also on high alert.
All government and private schools, along with anganwadi centres in the border districts of Barmer, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Bikaner, and Sri Ganganagar have been declared closed until further notice.
The government employees in these areas have had their leaves cancelled and were instructed to remain at their headquarters.
The state authorities have called for heightened surveillance on social media platforms and reinforced security at sensitive locations.
Hospitals have been directed to maintain an adequate blood supply and life-saving medicines, while fire services remain on high alert to handle any emergencies.
The Home Department has instructed all District Collectors, especially those in border districts — Ganganagar, Bikaner, Phalodi, Jaisalmer, and Barmer — to maintain close coordination with the army and central agencies.
Key instructions issued include ensuring hospitals are equipped with life-saving medicines and sufficient blood supplies, identifying and preparing safe zones with backup power (generators) for emergencies, acting swiftly against any provocative content or misinformation on social media, monitoring food supplies, discouraging hoarding, and ensuring availability of essentials.
Fuel pumps have been asked to stock adequate quantities of petrol and diesel.
Directions to prepare evacuation plans for border villages in case of escalations and compiling a list of vulnerable locations, and strengthening security at these sites have also been issued.
In Jodhpur, District Collector Gaurav Agrawal announced late at night holidays for all government, private schools, colleges, anganwadi and coaching institutes. Also, exams to be held on May 8th have been postponed.
Barmer District Collector Tina Dabi has announced holidays for all government and private schools, anganwadis, and madrassas from May 8 in response to any emergency situation.
In Jaisalmer, District Collector Pratap Singh Nathawat has issued closure orders for all educational institutions. Additionally, a 4-hour blackout was imposed in Jaisalmer from 12 midnight to 4 a.m. on Thursday to enhance operational security.
Sri Ganganagar and Bikaner District Collectors Dr. Manju (Sri Ganganagar) and Namrata Vrishni (Bikaner) have announced school closures until further notice, citing heightened tensions along the border.
These precautionary steps have been taken as India prepares for potential retaliation from Pakistan following Operation Sindoor.
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