Australia 311 for 6 (Smith 68*, Cummins 8*, Labuschagne 72, Bumrah 3-75) vs India Sam Konstas, the 19-year-old making his Test debut, lit up the MCG with an audacious display of strokeplay against Jasprit Bumrah which in the process riled Virat Kohli on a compelling Boxing Day at the MCG. The world’s best fast bowler still had a significant say with three wickets although it was Australia who edged the…
India’s senior batter Virat Kohli and Australia’s latest debutant Sam Konstas had a mid-pitch altercation in the first session of the ongoing MCG Test. The incident occurred after the 10th over of the morning when Kohli and Konstas bumped shoulders while moving across the pitch once the over ended. Both players immediately looked back for a heated exchange of words before Konstas’ opening partner Usman Khawaja came in between, although…
Big Picture: Bulawayo’s first Boxing Day Test in 28 years The final week of the year is like a roman feast for the Test cricket fan, and Boxing Day this year promises mouth-watering contests in Melbourne and Centurion, but look this way too, will you? Bulawayo is set to host Zimbabwe’s first Boxing Day Test in 28 years too, and with unpredictable Afghanistan on the other side, a real tussle…
Pakistan will go into the Boxing Day Test against South Africa at Centurion without a specialist spinner, with seam-bowling allrounder Aamer Jamal accompanied by Naseem Shah, Mohammad Abbas and Khurram Shahzad in the bowling attack. Abdullah Shafique, meanwhile, has paid the price for his all-format loss of form that culminated in three successive ducks during the ODI series, with Kamran Ghulam keeping his place. Babar Azam, who was dropped for…
Jasprit Bumrah has attained the joint-highest rating points ever for an Indian bowler on the rankings chart after his 9 for 94 in the third Test against Australia in Brisbane. The Indian spearhead, who already heads the rankings list for bowlers, further consolidated his position at the top by adding 14 points to his tally taking it to 904 rating points, 48 clear of second-placed Kagiso Rabada (856). The only…
Big picture – Can Pakistan bring ODI momentum into Test series? There’s one other Boxing Day Test, but this one is big too. If South Africa win at SuperSport Park, they will guarantee a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final. If Pakistan win, they will keep outside hopes (so outside that they also require an over-rate penalty for South Africa) of getting to Lord’s alive, but more pressingly…
Australia captain Pat Cummins has encouraged Sam Konstas to embrace the naivety of youth during his Test debut against India on Boxing Day in front of what could be more than 90,000 spectators on a sweltering Melbourne day. Cummins was speaking from first-hand experience having made his debut as an 18-year-old against South Africa in 2011, where he became Australia’s second youngest men’s Test player, with just three first-class matches…
Big Picture: Border-Gavaskar Trophy on the line This is big. If India win at the MCG, they retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. If Australia win, they remain on track for a first series win over India in a decade. A defeat for the home side would trigger significant questions while if India lose, their World Test Championship (WTC) fate is out of their hands, although retaining the series trophy would remain…
Dubai has been confirmed as the venue for all matches of the Champions Trophy 2025 involving India, including one of the semi-finals and possibly the final, too, if India get there. The schedule, officially released by the ICC on Tuesday, specifies that “semi-final 1 will involve India if they qualify” and will be played in Dubai, and, similarly, “semi-final 2 will involve Pakistan if they qualify”. Also, Lahore has been…
Toss India chose to bat vs West Indies India won the toss and elected to set a target again as they look to seal the three-match ODI series against West Indies in Vadodara at the first opportunity. They went in with the same XI that posted a record 211-run win two nights ago. This means Pratika Rawal has another opportunity to impress the team management at the top of the…