International
India have a great chance to earn valuable WTC points in Pink Ball Test
India will be looking for some valuable World Test Championship (WTC) points when they begin their campaign in the Pink Ball Test against Sri Lanka at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium here later on Saturday.
India, who are currently fifth on the WTC 2021/23 table with five wins, three losses, two draws and a no result in 11 Test outings in the current cycle are fifth on the basis of percentage points earned so far going into the second Test, a day-nighter. The Rohit Sharma-led Test side has 54.16 percentage points and are not far behind South Africa, who have 60 percentage points.
Australia, following their massive Ashes victories, are leading the table with 77.77 percentage points, followed by Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
For a team that’s undergoing transition, India made a massive statement of intent under the new Test captain Rohit Sharma with a dominating victory by an innings and 222 runs in the first Test in Mohali. While it consolidated India’s fifth position in the WTC standings, they will be looking to move further up with a win in Bengaluru.
Ravindra Jadeja was the star of the show with an unbeaten 175 in the first innings, which was followed by nine wickets in the next two innings. The all-round brilliance helped the southpaw scale to the top of the ICC Test Rankings for all-rounders.
India have made one change to the squad with Axar Patel replacing Kuldeep Yadav. Patel, who last played against New Zealand in November, has recovered from shin injury as well as COVID-19 and could slot right into the playing XI in place of Jayant Yadav.
Sri Lanka will be looking to bounce back after a crushing defeat in the first Test. The bowlers looked hapless when asked to bowl first and the batters too looked off-colour, with only two half-centuries in the whole match.
The two positives for Sri Lanka were the Pathum Nissanka and Niroshan Dickwella, who scored half-centuries. Skipper Dimuth Karunaratne will have to lead from the front with the bat, especially after an injury has ruled Nissanka out of the second Test, and hope the other pieces fall in place if they are to break their Test hoodoo in India.
The Test will be Suranga Lakmal’s final game for Sri Lanka and the Islanders will be hoping to give the veteran bowler a farewell to remember.
In the previous Test at Mohali, Jadeja’s 175 not out and half centuries from Rishabh Pant (96) and Ravichandran Ashwin (61), helped the hosts post a massive 574/8 before declaring. In reply, Sri Lanka were bowled out for just 174, with Jadeja leading the way with a five-for.
Asked to follow on, the tourists could manage only four better from their first innings total, thanks to Niroshan Dickwella’s unbeaten 51. For the hosts, Jadeja and Ashwin picked up four wickets, with the latter going past Kapil Dev to become India’s second-highest wicket-taker in Test cricket.
In the end, the spin twins proved to be too hot to handle for the visitors as India walloped Sri Lanka by an innings and 222 runs.
“It all depends on the individual. Pink Ball looks different, the speed at which it comes to you on the field and the amount it moves or spins is also different. Also timings for the day-night Test are also different, so the ball might not do so much in the first session but might start to do more under the light. We have played the Pink Ball Tests on all different surfaces, so there are no set parameters for it,” said India vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah ahead of the Pink Ball Test.
International
CT 2025: India to take on Pakistan on Feb 23, likely to play in Colombo or Dubai: Sources
New Delhi, Dec 19: The much-awaited clash between arch-rivals India and Pakistan in the Champions Trophy 2025 will be played on February 23 with Colombo and Dubai front-runners to play host for India’s matches in the tournament being played in hybrid format. The development comes after the ICC Board said that “India and Pakistan matches hosted by either country at ICC Events during the 2024-2027 rights cycle will be played at a neutral venue.”
“India will take on Pakistan at a neutral venue on February 23, 2025. ICC looking at Colombo and Dubai to host their matches.”
The Champions Trophy is scheduled to be played in February and March 2025. Meanwhile, ICC said the schedule for the marquee tournament will be confirmed in the coming days.
Pakistan are the defending champions of the tournament, having defeated India by 180 runs in the final at The Oval in 2017. Both teams last played against each other in the T20 World Cup in New York earlier this year which India won by six runs and went on to claim their second silverware in the format.
Due to the strained political relations between the two neighbouring countries, India and Pakistan only play each other in international events including World Cups and Asia Cup. The last bilateral series between India and Pakistan was held in 2012-13 when the latter toured India for the five-match white-ball series.
International
It’s OFFICIAL! All India vs Pakistan Matches At ICC Events To Be Played At Neutral Venue Till 2027
India and Pakistan matches hosted by either country at ICC Events during the 2024-2027 rights cycle will be played at a neutral venue, the ICC Board confirmed on Thursday, 19 December. The schedule for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 is set to be confirmed soon, with Pakistan aiming to defend the title they won in 2017.
The eight-team event will feature Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, and South Africa, alongside hosts Pakistan.
This will apply to the upcoming ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 (hosted by Pakistan), set to be played in February and March 2025, as well as the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 (hosted by India) and the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 (hosted by India and Sri Lanka).
It was also announced that the PCB has been awarded hosting rights of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in 2028, where neutral venue arrangements will also apply. Cricket Australia is set to host one of the senior ICC women’s events during the period 2029 to 2031.
International
‘Our dream is getting fulfilled’: Coach Sumit Bhatia elated to see Kho Kho going global
New Delhi, Dec 16: Coach Sumit Bhatia is all pumped up for the first edition of the Kho Kho World Cup scheduled to take place from January 13-19, 2025. Bhatia, who holds a distinct record of being the only head coach to have won the Asian Championship twice, believes that this historical step is an indication of the realisation of the dream to take the sport to the international level and help it gain global recognition.
Having been honoured with the best coach award by the Delhi government, Bhatia has been a part of various Indian teams’ success, including the 2016 and 2023 Asian Kho Kho Championship victories, and has trained players like Nasreen Shaikh and Sarika Sudhakar Kale. Both of them have been Arjuna Awardees.
Nasreen, who is also a part of the World Cup camp, is the only player who has played in two Asian Championships and won the gold. The coach-student duo is now gearing up for the global event.
Sharing how the journey of Kho Kho World Cup’s inception, the coach said, “We organised an international camp here before COVID happened, in 2020. Coaches and players from 16 countries came here and we gave them training. Now they will be coming here for the World Cup but this campaign started in that camp”.
He further said, “Around 30-35 countries were willing to play the tournament but we picked the best 20 teams for both men and women. Some countries have single teams while some have double teams but a total of 24 countries will be participating in the tournament. It was our dream to take Kho Kho to the international level and now we can see that our dream is getting fulfilled.”
He also lauded the launch of the Ultimate Kho Kho League and shared how the franchise-based model has helped the players and coaches gain recognition, while also bringing forward grassroot talent.
“When the Ultimate Kho Kho league started, I also joined Telegu Yodhas as their head coach and we also played the final. Players have gotten exposure through the league and it’s not just financial. Earlier we used to hesitate while admitting being a Kho Kho coach but today our players introduce us as their coach,” said Bhatia.
He added, “The league got so much coverage that wherever we go, the players are approached for autographs. So the platform of the league started a new world for both coaches and players and now not just India but the entire world knows us. Earlier we used to tell people about our game but now they know what is Kho Kho and Ultimate Kho Kho league and are also waiting for the third season.”
Bhatia also discussed the impact of sports science on Kho Kho and lauded the newly introduced technology and said, “We have benefitted a lot from it. Sometimes we don’t understand why a player is not performing well. But with the introduction of sports science, we now know about the details of the problem.
“For example, a player might be facing issues with his left leg while sitting and so, it gives us an opportunity to work on that weakness… Sports science has helped us in identifying the accuracy and weakness of a player. So it’s very beneficial for us.”
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