International
IPL 2022: Hadn’t anticipated that wicket would play so well, says Shreyas Iyer
When broadcaster Simon Doull had asked Shreyas Iyer after the match about assessing the bowling performance of his team, he uttered the word ‘clueless’ about his team’s inability to stop Prithvi Shaw from putting an opening partnership of 93 runs with David Warner in 8.3 overs.
“I had said clueless as they got a really good start after the first over. We hadn’t anticipated that the wicket would play so well. The surface was very hard but if you see, Prithvi Shaw is a batter who can change the power-play. When he plays good shots on good balls, then I don’t know as a captain on what kind of a field could be set. That’s why I said it that way,” explained Iyer in a post-match virtual press conference.
Shaw had teared into Kolkata’s bowling attack by punching Umesh Yadav through extra cover for four from the first ball of the innings. The right-hander took a liking for Yadav, hitting him for three more boundaries despite being hit on helmet. Shaw then hammered a pull over deep mid-wicket off Pat Cummins to bring up Delhi’s fifty in just four overs.
Iyer introduced spinners Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine in power-play. But they weren’t able to stop Warner and Shaw as boundaries continued to flow.
“It was definitely based on the start they got. Prithvi is someone who doesn’t go really big at the spinners as I have played with him before. Since he got a really good start, I wanted to restrict the momentum that he had created at the start. I felt that Varun and Sunil both are really experienced bowlers. So, I really thought we could restrict him at that point of time and give us a really good hold.”
Out of options, Iyer brought in Andre Russell and Venkatesh Iyer. But Shaw slammed Venkatesh for a four and six on both sides of the wicket to reach his fifty in 27 balls. Though Chakravarthy ended Shaw’s stay at 51 when he castled him through the gate with a googly, Delhi’s task to set the base for the 44-run win was already done.
Kolkata did pull back things by taking four wickets as Delhi were 176/5 in 18 overs, Shardul Thakur and Axar Patel dished out a finishing onslaught to take 39 runs off the last two overs to carry Delhi to 215/5. With Umesh leaking 23 runs and Cummins going for 16 in the 19th and 20th overs respectively, it reiterated that Kolkata’s death bowling has been their Achilles Heel in IPL 2022.
“It’s not a concern (death bowling); it’s definitely something we need to work as a team. Even when we practise, we need to see to it that we execute the yorkers rightly and bowl according to the plans that we have before the match,” stated Iyer.
“We’ve got an amazing bunch of bowling team; we’ve got amazing coaches as well. So it’s just that we back our strengths and see to it that we don’t think negatively at that point of time. Yes, we have been really okay in the previous games as well, at the death. But it’s something we can work on and come back really strong.”
In a massive chase of 216, Kolkata needed Delhi-like starts and contributions from all batters. But that didn’t happen as Ajinkya Rahane and Venkatesh Iyer fell in power-play. Iyer himself made 54 off 33 balls and had support from Nitish Rana’s 20-ball 30. But once the duo got out in successive overs, it was all over for Kolkata.
On his part, Iyer refused to indulge in blame-game but admitted that batters not converting starts into huge scores is an area of progress. “I am absolutely not worried about the starts we are getting. But when you are chasing 215, you need to get off to a really good start. You can’t think twice about what the bowlers are going to bowl. Because you have to have that attacking mindset right from ball one, and one mistake can get you out as a batsman. So I wouldn’t blame anyone in this particular chase.”
“But yes, we have this history in the last few games that we didn’t get a really good start. That is also something we need to work on. This is just the early stage of the tournament, so once when we start practising more and executing stuff really well on the field, I think things will be really taken care of pretty well.”
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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