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IND v NZ, First Test: Ravindra, Patel’s stubborn resistance forces thrilling draw

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 Rachin Ravindra anod Ajaz Patel put up 52 balls of stubborn resistance to help New Zealand force a thrilling draw against India in the first Test of the two-match series at the Green Park Stadium here on Monday. From 155/9, Patel did a fine job of hanging in at the crease but it was the debutant Ravindra, who faced 91 balls and gave a great account of his temperament and composure to deny India a win.

After going wicketless in the opening session of day five, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Umesh Yadav, and Axar Patel picked eight wickets in the next two sessions. But a stonewalling effort from Ravindra and Patel defied the Indian bowling attack, which was in a race against time as lights began to fade in the final half-hour of the day.

Axar Patel struck on the seventh ball of the final session, trapping Henry Nicholls lbw with the one turning in a little and went past the outer edge to hit the back pad. Ravindra Jadeja got some help from the pitch, getting one to grip and turn past Kane Willia’son’s bat, pretty similar to the jaffa from Umesh Yadav which squared up Williamson in the second session. In his next over, Jadeja trapped Williamson plumb lbw on the backfoot with a ball that came in and kept low.

Tom Blundell and Rachin Ravindra batted 54 balls together to try and save the match. Captain Ajinkya Rahane brought Ravichandran Ashwin in and immediately created a chance. But Blundell was saved by a sharp turn on an lbw appeal. India took the review but lost it as the ball was going down the leg-side.

In his next over, Ashwin claimed ‘lundell’s wicket in a very unusual fashion. Blundell came out to defend a turning delivery. But the ball hit the rough and rolled over to disturb the bails. Kyle Jamieson had some luck on his side as Cheteshwar Pujara was late to react to his left an’ couldn’t take the catch off Ashwin. But Jadeja ensured that the let-off on the second new ‘all won’t be costly as Jamieson was trapped lbw by one spinning past the outer edge to hit the back pad.

Jadeja scalped his fourth wicket of the innings by beating the outer edge of Tim Southee’s bat and trapping him lbw in front of off-stump. Southee took the review ‘ut couldn’t change the decision. Ravindra and Patel were sturdy in defence as India were in a race against time to wrap the innings.

Ashwin ‘truck Patel’s pad but was given not out as the ball pitched outside leg. India took the review but were unable to change the decision, thereby losing all reviews. Ravindra and Patel survived 52 balls for just 10 runs as New Zealand managed to eke out an escape by the barest of margins.

Earlier, India picked up three crucial wickets, including one each on the first and last ball of the second session, to make a comeback in the match. After not getting a wicket in the first session, India got one on the very first ball post-lunch as William Somerville tried to pull a short ball from Umesh Yadav, but it flew to Shubman Gill running in from fine-leg and completing a superb forward diving catch.

Yadav continued to trouble Latham and Kane Williamson, getting a lot of deliveries to keep low and targeted towards the stumps. But the duo continued to put up a defiant show while hitting the occasional boundary. Latham brought up his second half-century of the match with three runs through mid-wicket.

But four overs later, Latham, in a bid to punch through the off-side, chopped on to his stumps off Ashwin. The dismissal also meant that Ashwin went past Harbhajan Singh’s 417 wickets to become the third-highest wicket-taker for India (13th overall) in Test cricket.

Ross Taylor was nearly stumped on zero off Ashwin as there was no conclusive evidence to rule him out. His anxious stay at the crease ended on the stroke of tea as Jadeja trapped him plumb in front of the wicket.

Resuming from 4/1, Latham and William Somerville put up a show of stubborn resistance to keep India at bay in a wicketless first session. The duo showed great application in scoring 75 runs in 31 overs. They were rigid in defence, though Ashwin troubled them often while plucking boundaries against the pace of Yadav.

Latham was the first to take a boundary off Yadav, glancing through fine leg while Somerville struck a straight drive. Somerville then crunched delightful back-foot drives on consecutive deliveries off Yadav through off-side and was lucky in getting a boundary off the outer edge off Ishant Sharma.

India seemed to be a bit frustrated over not getting their first wicket of the day. Such was the desperation to get a wicket that they took a review for a Latham lbw despite the impact outside the off-stump, thereby wasting a review as New Zealand survived the rest of the session unscathed and eventually, the day.

Brief Scores: India 345 (Shreyas Iyer 105, Tim Southee 5/69) and 234/7d in 81 overs (Shreyas Iyer 65, Kyle Jamieson 3/40) drew with New Zealand 296 in 142.3 overs (Tom Latham 95, Axar Patel 5/62) and 165/9 in 98 overs (Tom Latham 52, William Somerville 36, Ravindra Jadeja 4/40, Ravichandran Ashwin 3/35).

International

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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Bumrah, Head nominated for ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year

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Dubai, Dec 30: India’s premium fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah is nominated for the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for Men’s Cricketer of the Year. Alongside Indian ace, who is also nominated for the Test Cricketer of the year, Australia’s Travis Head and the English batting duo of Joe Root and Harry Brook also made the list for the prestigious honour.

Bumrah nabbed 15 wickets from eight outings, including a couple in the final against South Africa, as India went unbeaten at the 2024 T20 World Cup.

India’s spearhead also had a memorable year in the longest format by picking 71 wickets in 13 Tests, the most scalps taken by a bowler this year.

In the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, Bumrah is leading the wicket-takers charts with 30 wickets at an average of 12.83. He also completed 200 Test wickets and became the first bowler to achieve the feat with an average less than 20.

Indian bowling attack’s nemesis Head also made the list after shining across all formats for his country. After playing a vital role in the 2023 ICC World Cup final, Head continued his form as he was the third highest scorer in the 2024 T20 World Cup with 255 runs in seven innings, with his highest score being 76 against India. The left-hander is also the leading run scorer during the ongoing BGT helping Australia get in a good position to solidify their spot in the 2025 WTC final.

Root, England’s premier batter, made 1556 runs from 17 Tests at an average of 55.57, his second-best annual run tally in Tests after amassing 1708 runs in 2021. It was also the fifth instance of Root scoring over 1000 Test runs in a calendar year.

With six Test hundreds to go alongside five fifties, Root’s impressive run saw him become the joint-fifth highest century maker in Tests (36) alongside Rahul Dravid. In addition to his batting exploits, Root impressed by picking a four-wicket haul in the Test series against India.

His teammate Brook scored 1100 runs in 12 Tests at an average of 55, comprising three fifties and four hundred-plus scores, including a maiden triple century coming in Pakistan, and became England’s breakthrough batter in the format.

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