Rob Key has conceded that Jofra Archer‘s decision to play in the IPL next year will put him “a couple of months behind” schedule in his attempted Test comeback. However, the league’s new rules left the ECB’s management feeling unable to deny him the opportunity to earn two seasons’ wages. Archer has not played a Test since February 2021 due to back and elbow issues, but has been injury-free in…
A likely breakthrough has emerged in the impasse over the 2025 Champions Trophy: the ICC and the PCB are believed to have reached an in-principle agreement to adopt the hybrid model for global tournaments being hosted in Pakistan or India until 2027. Such an arrangement would allow the two to play their games at ICC tournaments being hosted by the other at a neutral venue. Though the agreement has been…
Toss Pakistan won the toss and chose to bat first against Zimbabwe Pakistan have won the toss in Bulawayo and elected to bat first. Having sealed the series, they have made four changes to their side: Sahibzada Farhan, Qasim Akram, Arafat Minhas and Mohammad Hasnain come into the side. Saim Ayub, Irfan Khan, Haseebullah Khan and Haris Rauf are rested. Zimbabwe make just one change, with fast bowler Trevor Gwandu…
Alastair Cook, England’s former Test captain, believes Jacob Bethell’s temperament can make up for his lack of red-ball experience, after he came through a challenging maiden Test in Christchurch with his reputation enhanced. Bethell was thrust in at No.3 for the first Test against New Zealand, after a hand injury prevented Jordan Cox from making his own Test debut, with Ollie Pope moving down to No. 6 as a makeshift…
Joe Burns has been announced as Italy’s new captain. The former Australia batter had shifted his allegiances to Italy in May this year. Burns, who was born in Brisbane, had qualified for Italy through his mother’s heritage and made his debut for them in June. “I am honoured to take on this role and represent Italy on the international stage,” Burns said in a statement. “For me, it is a…
Pat Cummins expects to see a more proactive Marnus Labuschagne at the crease in Adelaide as Australia’s No. 3 searches for a revival of fortunes, but it appears less likely he will be used extensively as a medium-pace bowler despite question marks over how many overs Mitchell Marsh has in him. Labuschagne has come in for significant scrutiny after his first innings in Perth where he made 2 off 52…
Toss: South Africa opt to bat vs Sri Lanka Both Temba Bavuma and Dhananjaya de Silva got what they wanted after South Africa decided to bat first at a dry, windy St George’s Park. Sri Lanka would have put the hosts in if de Silva had called correctly, eyeing the significant grass on the pitch as their best chance to burrow into South Africa’s batting line-up. This was the first…
“He’ll be opening the batting; I’ll bat somewhere in the middle.” That was Rohit Sharma‘s short answer to the big question for India ahead of the pink-ball Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test in Adelaide, starting on Friday. That means Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul will open, as they did with so much success in the first Test in Perth. Whether Rohit will bat at No. 3 or, more likely, No. 5, remains…
This was also Abhishek’s fourth century in the tournament, making him No. 1 on that list, ahead of Unmukt Chand, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer, who have three each. Opening the batting in Punjab’s chase of Meghalaya’s 142 for 7 in Rajkot, Abhishek finished with 106 not out off 29 balls. Punjab got to their target in just 9.3 overs thanks mainly to Abhishek’s swashbuckling innings. The win…
Baroda broke the record for the highest total in T20 cricket when they smashed 349 for 5 against Sikkim in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in Indore on Thursday. They surpassed Zimbabwe’s 344 for 4 against Gambia in Nairobi in October. In all, Baroda hit 37 sixes in their innings, shattering another T20 record. Zimbabwe were the holders of the record for most sixes (27) in an innings – also…