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The Ashes: England keen to ruin Australia’s perfect pink-ball record

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England might not have beaten Australia in a pink-ball Test, but the Joe Root-led side will have to overcome its disappointment of losing the first Test by nine wickets and make a fresh start when the second Ashes Test begins at the Adelaide Oval on Thursday (December 16).

Australia have a perfect record in day-night Tests, winning all eight they have played so far, while the tourists, by contrast, have won one and lost three of the four day-nighters they have played so far. To add to the uphill task for Root is the fact that England have not won a Test in Australia since 2010/11, losing 10 of their past 11 games in the format Down Under.

Still, the side will go into the match with plenty of optimism as senior pros James Anderson and Stuart Broad, who have taken over 1100 Test wickets among themselves, are fit and expected to return for the clash. Not to forget that both Root and Dawid Malan were in good nick in The Gabba Gabba Test, notching fine half-centuries, while Haseeb Hameed and Ollie Pope each produced encouraging innings.

Of course, Australia will go into the match on a high but injury to key pace bowler Josh Hazlewood, would have dampened their spirits. With the ball, every member of their attack performed in Brisbane, and with the bat there was plenty to be happy about right from batting stalwart David Warner’s 94 to Travis Head’s fine ton.

If the hosts maintain similar standards at the Adelaide Oval, they will be hard to beat.

England’s Ashes campaign got off to the roughest of starts at The Gabba, slumping to a nine-wicket loss inside four days. Root’s decision to bat first on a green wicket under cloudy skies was a bold one that came back to bite the tourists immediately as Mitchell Starc bowled Rory Burns around his legs first ball.

Before lunch on day one they were four down and coming back from there was always going to be difficult. With Pat Cummins taking five wickets on his captaincy debut, England were bowled out before the end of the day for 147.

Australia piled on 425 runs in reply, with Warner cashing in on some early fortune to make 94, before Head (152) belted a century in a session to all but take England out of the match.

Root’s team actually looked set to make it a contest from there, sitting in the healthy position of 223/2 at one point in their second innings with eyes on setting Australia a significant target. Unfortunately for the tourists, after Malan (82) and Root’s (89) 162-run stand was ended, there was little resistance. Nathan Lyon’s long wait for Test wicket No.400 came to an end and for good measure he took another three before the end of the innings, leaving Australia needing just 20 runs to win.

Things didn’t go so well for England in their last day-night Test against Australia either. In 2017 when they met at Adelaide Oval in a pink ball affair, England went down by 120 runs.

Australia captain Pat Cummins has confirmed that Jhye Richardson will come in place of the injured Hazlewood, who has been ruled out with a side strain. Richardson has been a force in Australia’s domestic cricket picking up 23 wickets at 13.43 this summer.

Cummins also backed Warner to play through the pain barrier after he suffered bruised ribs in the first Test during his innings of 94.

Despite it being the batting that misfired in the first Test, England’s main dilemma is the make-up of their attack. Chris Woakes, Mark Wood and Ollie Robinson were impressive at The Gabba but with Anderson and Broad both tipped to return for the second Test, one of them will have to make way.

Besides Jack Leach bleeding runs (1/102) in the first Test has added to England’s headache and it remains to be seen if the tourists keep the faith in their main spinner.

Australia XI: David Warner, Marcus Harris, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wk), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Jhye Richardson, Nathan Lyon.

Possible England XI: Haseeb Hameed, Rory Burns, Dawid Malan, Joe Root (c), Ben Stokes, Ollie Pope, Jos Buttler, Chris Woakes/Ollie Robinson, Mark Wood, Stuart Broad, James Anderson.

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Champions Trophy: Pakistan’s dismal show likely to be discussed in cabinet and parliament

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Islamabad, Feb 27: The Pakistan cricket team’s depressing, dismal, and cheerless performance in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, resulting in its early exit from the tournament, has not only broken the hearts of home fans but also knocked on the doors of the country’s Prime Minister.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, has personally taken notice of the team’s early departure and the below-par performance and is likely to take up the issues related to the cricket team in the cabinet and the parliament. Pakistan’s final Group A fixture against Bangladesh was washed out in Rawalpindi due to rain on Thursday, which meant that they ended their campaign without a win. With only one point, thanks to a washout, Pakistan will finish at the bottom of the group.

Prime Minister’s aide on Political and Public Affairs, Rana Sanaullah, has said that PM Shehbaz will also take up the matter at the parliament. “The Prime Minister will personally take notice, and we will also ask him to raise these cricket-related issues in the cabinet as well as in the parliament,” said Rana Sanaullah.

It is pertinent to note that Pakistan is hosting the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Special arrangements have been made to glorify the event, with Rawalpindi, Lahore, and Karachi cricket stadiums renovated to increase audience capacity and further enhance the facilities. However, the team’s fans were left dejected after Pakistan lost both its matches and was knocked out of the tournament when their final league match with Bangladesh was rained off.

While anger persists among cricket fans, questions are being raised over the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), its chief Mohsin Naqvi, and the selection committee, which selected the squad. Aqib Javed, head coach of Pakistan, has tried to justify the team selection, stating that all players were selected on the basis of their recent performances.

On the other hand, internal issues within the PCB are also being linked with the team’s bad performance as many believe that the cricket board’s decision-making regarding playing eleven, the team, and the players has prompted foreign coaches like Jason Gillespie to part ways.

Rana Sanaullah said that he will also call on PM Sharif to address the ongoing issues within the PCB, emphasising that the cricket sport as a whole is in bad shape. “The sport at college and district levels is in a bad position, and the amount that has been spent on a professional level should be revealed before the public”, said Rana Sanaullah.

Rana Sanaullah also raised concerns over amounts being paid to mentors, who he highlighted admitted that they were unaware of their responsibilities and were being remunerated for doing nothing. “You will be surprised after hearing about the perks and privileges of other officer-bearers. You will be confused whether they are officials of a Pakistani institution or those belonging to a developed nation”, he said.

It would not be wrong to say that Pakistan’s performance on home grounds has certainly left fans heartbroken. In major ICC events, Pakistan’s performance in the past years has also not been mentionable.

In 2023, Pakistan only won four out of nine matches during the ODI World Cup in India and ended in fifth position on the points table. Pakistan also made an early exit from last year’s T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA after losing to India and the USA in the preliminary stage.

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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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