International
IPL 2022: Samson, Prasidh, Chahal lead Rajasthan to 61-run win over Hyderabad
Dominating knocks by skipper Sanju Samson, Devdutt Padikkal and Shimron Hetmyer, followed by clinical bowling by Yuzvendra Chahal (3/22), Prasidh Krishna (2/16) led Rajasthan Royals to a thumping 61-run victory against Sunrisers Hyderabad in an IPL 2022 match, here on Tuesday.
Riding on brilliant attacking knocks by skipper Sanju Samson (55 off 27), Devdutt Padikkal (41 off 29) and a late cameo by Shimron Hetmyer (32 off 13), Rajasthan Royals posted 210/6 in 20 overs. Apart from the trio of Samson, Padikkal and Hetmyer, Jos Buttler (35 off 28) and Yashasvi Jaiswal (20 off 16) also made valuable contributions with the bat.
Chasing a huge total, SRH got off to the worst possible start as Prasidh Krishna rattled the top-order. In his very first over, the pacer dismissed Kane Williamson for 2 as Devdutt Padikkal at first slip took a great catch. Prasidh continued to bowl back-of-a-length deliveries and in the corridor of uncertainty and was soon rewarded with the wicket of Rahul Tripathi as he edged it to Samson.
Nicholas Pooran, who struggled against the moving ball, then was trapped in front by Trent Boult as SRH slid to 9 for 3. From that precarious position, there was little hope left for SRH to chart a comeback. The wickets of Abhishek Sharma (9) and Abdul Samad (4) also didn’t help Hyderabad’s chase.
Lower down the order, Aiden Markram (57 off 41) and Romario Shepherd (24 off 18) made useful contributions while Washington Sundar (40 off 14) went on a hitting spree in the last two overs against Boult and Riyan Parag. But, it wasn’t enough as Hyderabad were restricted to 149-7 in 20 overs. Yuzvendra Chahal (3/22), Prasidh Krishna (2/16) and Trent Boult (2/23) were the wicket-takers for Rajasthan.
Earlier, invited to bat first, openers Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal gave Rajasthan a flying start. Both Buttler and Jaiswal played cautiously against Bhuvneshwar Kumar but the England cricketer targeted Umran Malik and hit him for a couple of boundaries and sixes, taking 21 runs off his over.
Washington Sundar, who came to bowl the next over, also conceded 18 runs as both Buttler and Jaiswal hit a six each, taking Rajasthan over the 50-run mark in the 5th over. Rajasthan were also helped by some poor bowling by the SRH bowlers, who sent down four no-balls in the first five overs.
T Natarajan came to bowl the final powerplay over and gave only eight runs as Rajasthan scored 58 runs in the first six overs. However, the very first ball after the powerplay brought a wicket for Hyderabad as Jaiswal was dismissed by Romario Shepherd for 20.
SRH skipper Kane Williamson introduced left-arm spinner, Abhishek Sharma, into the attack but he couldn’t make much of an impact and instead gave 15 runs in his over. It was Umran Malik, who gave Hyderabad their next breakthrough by getting rid of the dangerous Buttler on 35. Thereafter, skipper Sanju Samson and Devdutt Padikkal kept the scoreboard ticking for Rajasthan.
Washington Sundar, who had an expensive first over, continued to suffer as Samson whacked the spinner for a six and a four and helped Rajasthan cross the 100-run mark in the 11 over. On the other hand, Padikkal joined the action and hit T Natarajan for six and a four.
Both Padikkal and Samson were having a great time in the middle and dealing with boundaries. Their quick 73 runs stand for the third wicket was finally broken when Padikkal was cleaned up by Malik on 41, leaving Royals at 148-3 after 15 overs. The wicket didn’t affect Samson that much as he continued his aggressive batting and brought his fifty in just 25 deliveries. However, the Rajasthan skipper couldn’t continue his innings longer after that and was dismissed by Bhuvneshwar for 55.
Despite losing the two key wickets of Padikkal and Samson, the run rate didn’t drop for the Royals as new batters — Shimron Hetmyer and Riyan Parag combined to trouble SRH bowlers. Hetmyer especially was the more aggressive between the two and he hit Bhuvneshwar for 15 runs and helped Rajasthan breach the 200-run mark in the 19th over itself. On the other hand, Parag also gave him the much-needed support from the other end.
Hetmyer, who played a late cameo of 32 in just 13 deliveries, was cleaned up by Natarajan in the last over but he had already done the damage. In the end, Parag (12 off 9) and Nathan Coulter-Nile (1) remained not out as Rajasthan Royals posted 210/6 in 20 overs.
Umran Malik (2/39) and T Natarajan (2/43) were the top wicket-takers for Hyderabad.
Brief scores: Rajasthan Royals 210/6 in 20 overs (Sanju Samson 55, Devdutt Padikkal 41; Umran Malik 2/39) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 149/7 in 20 overs(Aiden Markram 57, Washington Sundar 40; Yuzvendra Chahal 3/22) by 61 runs.
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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