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KSCA is looking at alternative venues, including its own facility in Alur as well as the Wadeyar Ground in Mysuru

Shashank Kishore01-Aug-2025The Bengaluru police is yet to give clearance to the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) to host the Maharaja T20, the state’s franchise-based T20 competition, at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. The tournament is scheduled from August 11 to 27.The non-clearance by police is primarily due to the ongoing investigation into the June 4 stampede around the Chinnaswamy premises during RCB’s IPL victory celebrations. An independent state police crime branch investigation into the incident, which resulted in 11 deaths and over 50 injuries, is ongoing.Anticipating potential hurdles, the KSCA had announced on July 11 that the Maharaja T20 would be played behind closed doors. The association is now looking at alternative venues, including its own facility in Alur on the outskirts of Bengaluru, as well as the Wadeyar Ground in Mysuru. While Alur has excellent drainage and infrastructure, the absence of floodlights and spectator seating is an issue, especially for broadcasters and franchises.Related

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• Karnataka government holds RCB accountable for stampede

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• Probe deems Chinnaswamy 'unsafe' for large events

As things stand, Alur is set to host the group matches of the six-day women’s competition – the Maharani T20 – from August 4. The KSCA was considering the idea of hosting the women’s final at the Chinnaswamy, but that seems unlikely with police approvals yet to come.While the KSCA grapples with the possibility of a late venue switch, the franchises have voiced frustration and concern about the financial losses they now face. They have already made hotel bookings for players and staff on the understanding that the entire tournament would be held in central Bengaluru (Chinnaswamy).The issue puts the KSCA in a tough spot. Bengaluru is also the venue for the opening game of the women’s ODI World Cup, as well as one semi-final and possibly the final. India play Sri Lanka in the tournament opener on September 30. The Chinnaswamy is also set to host two warm-up games ahead of the competition.Last week, a one-man committee appointed by the Karnataka government to investigate the stampede deemed the Chinnaswamy “unsafe” for large-scale events. The commission “strongly recommended” that large-scale events be relocated to venues that are “better suited” to handle significant crowds.India’s domestic season-opening Duleep Trophy will be played entirely at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. The board had earlier considered hosting the final at the Chinnaswamy, but those plans were cancelled owing to preparations at the venue for the women’s World Cup.

Fifties to Grace Scrivens, Cordelia Griffith and Jodi Grewcock drive seven-wicket victory

ECB Reporters Network14-Sep-2024Half-centuries from captain Grace Scrivens, Cordelia Griffith and Jodi Grewcock steered Sunrisers to a maiden Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy final appearance as they chased 233 to beat 2022 champions Northern Diamonds by seven wickets in a one-sided semi-final at Headingley.Sunrisers will meet South East Stars in next Saturday’s final at Leicester.Sunrisers held firm in a contest which swung back and forth, with opener Scrivens posting 56 off 73 balls, Griffith 68 off 89 off and Grewcock 63 not out off 68. The latter two posted season’s-best scores as victory was sealed in the 44th over.Diamonds, aiming for a fourth 50-over final in the five-year regional era, posted 232 for 8 thanks to opener Emma Marlow’s measured 63 added to 49 from Sterre Kalis and a late 32 not out from 15 balls for Phoebe Turner.Six of the seven bowlers employed by Scrivens, including herself, struck before she confidently laid the platform for a chase all but finished off by a 134-partnership for the third wicket between Griffith and Grewcock. It was their region’s highest of the season.Having elected to bat, the Diamonds innings was built around a solid start and a blistering end.Marlow shared in two early partnerships of substance – 48 for the first wicket with Lauren Winfield-Hill and 42 for the third with Kalis, who was run out at the end of the penultimate over.When Marlow fell, caught and bowled by new ball seamer Kate Coppack as the score fell to 119 for 3 after 29 overs, Sunrisers put the squeeze on impressively.Coppack was excellent in conceding only 29 runs from her 10 overs, while leg-spinner Grewcock also struck once and was nearly as miserly as she conceded 26 in eight overs.Coppack’s new-ball partner Eva Gray struck twice with her lively seamers, getting Erin Burns caught at mid-off and Abi Glen caught at short third as the score fell to 185 for 7 in the 47th over.Led by Phoebe Turner, Diamonds then counter-attacked as she crashed five boundaries in her cameo, including four of them off Gray as the 49th over cost 20.Key seamer Sophie Munro only bowling two early overs, including the wicket of Rebecca Duckworth caught behind, before leaving the field injured hurt Sunrisers on a sunny Headingley day. But they cruised with the bat.Sunrisers have now won eight RHF Trophy matches this season. In the first four seasons of regional cricket, which started in 2020, they only won six combined.Scrivens shared an opening partnership of 70 in 14 overs with Jo Gardner, which included the former hoisting the off-spin of Australian all-rounder Burns for six over wide long-on.After Gardner had been trapped lbw by Beth Langston for 19, Scrivens reached her fifty off 66 balls – her fourth added to a century in this campaign.Her haul of 514 runs is the second best in the competition.However, the left-hander was trapped lbw by Katie Levick’s leg-spin not long afterwards, leaving Sunrisers 91 for two in the 19th over.From there, Griffith took on the senior role to steer the chase, with one late cut for four off Levick particularly memorable. She also clubbed a Rachel Slater full toss over square-leg for six.By the time she reached her fifty off 64 balls, Sunrisers were all but over the winning line at 181 for two in the 36th over.Grewcock rubber-stamped things with a 54-ball fifty, effectively ending the Diamonds existence given their players will now head to pastures new following the domestic restructure ahead of 2025.Levick trapped Griffith lbw, but it was nothing more than consolatory as Sunrisers get one last dance.

A pair of four-day matches will be take place in Mackay and at the MCG, potentially involving players pushing for a Test berth

ESPNcricinfo staff28-May-2024A two-match Australia A vs India A four-day series will precede the Border-Gavaskar Trophy later this year to give players on the fringes of both sides a chance to press their claims.The two matches will take place at Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay from October 31-November 3 followed by the MCG from November 7 to 10.The entire Indian squad – comprising both the main tour party and the A team – will then have an internal warm-up fixture at the WACA between November 15 and 17 ahead of the opening Test at Optus Stadium in Perth which begins on November 22.India have a run of five home Tests prior to heading to Australia with two matches against Bangladesh and three against New Zealand on the FTP from late September to early November.From Australia’s perspective, the two A matches will overlap with the ODIs and T20Is against Pakistan so the selectors may need to decide whether there are any players involved in the white-ball teams who could potentially feature for the A side. They will also likely clash with Sheffield Shield fixtures.The T20Is against Pakistan are unlikely to feature any of Australia’s Test players given their proximity to the India series.Although the indications have been that Steven Smith will remain as an opener, the structure of Australia’s batting order could still be a debate ahead of the India series. The A matches could be a chance for the likes of Cameron Bancroft, Marcus Harris and Matt Renshaw to push their claims.Last season Pakistan faced the Prime Minister’s XI, which was effectively an Australia A team, in Canberra ahead of the Test series.On their previous tour of Australia in 2020-21, there were also two warm-up matches against Australia A prior to the Test series. India won that series 2-1.The India women’s team are also touring Australia for three ODIs in early December which will be played around the second men’s Test in Adelaide.

“One extra batter is the reason why I am playing with a 200-plus strike rate in the powerplay”

ESPNcricinfo staff18-May-2024Virat Kohli has admitted that he is not in favour of the Impact Player rule, as it is “disrupting the balance” of the game. The Royal Challengers Bengaluru batter said he was concerned that there is no longer an “equal battle between bat and ball” as bowlers now expect to get hit for a boundary every single delivery, and batters such as himself are forced to score at a high rate right from the powerplay.Kohli is the latest player to speak out against Impact Players, echoing the sentiments of his India captain Rohit Sharma, who had said last month that he was “not a fan” of the rule.”I agree with him [Rohit]; I say it how it is. If you see in this IPL, okay, entertainment is [on] one side, but the bowlers are feeling like what they should do [to restrict the batters],” Kohli told Jio Cinema. “I have never experienced anything like it where bowlers think they will concede a four or a six every ball. This is a very high-level of cricket, and in my opinion, it shouldn’t be that dominant [in one aspect]. There is a beauty in having an equal battle between bat and ball.”Not every team has a [Jasprit] Bumrah or a Rashid Khan or a mystery bowler. So what will you do? I am telling you, one extra batter is the reason why I am playing with a 200-plus strike rate in the powerplay. I know there is a batsman coming in at No. 8 as well.”As a batsman, I can say this rule is good, but the match should be exciting. Only fours and sixes are not exciting in cricket. Exciting is that you can defend 160 as well. So I think a bit of balance has been tipped over.”Related

• Ball-by-ball – Ferguson and Dayal deny Dhoni and Jadeja in dramatic finish

• Rohit on Impact Player rule: 'I'm not a big fan'

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• 'You have to evolve' – Shastri, Ashwin back Impact Player rule

Other than Rohit, Delhi Capitals coach Ricky Ponting, Axar Patel and Mukesh Kumar also recently voiced their displeasure about the Impact Player rule. On the other side of the fence, Rajasthan Royals allrounder R Ashwin and former India coach Ravi Shastri backed the rule, suggesting that players have to evolve with the times. Last week, BCCI secretary Jay Shah had said that the rule was being used “like a test case”.”We will consult with the players, franchises, [and] broadcasters, [and take a call]. This is not permanent, [but] I am not saying that it will go,” Shah had said.The 2024 edition of the T20 World Cup will be Virat Kohli’s sixth•Getty Images

Kohli ‘hungry as ever’ ahead of T20 World Cup

The T20 World Cup begins just five days after the IPL final on May 26, and Kohli is looking forward to the tournament with renewed “hunger”. Kohli, who will be turning 36 later this year, will be playing his sixth T20 World Cup since his first in 2012, having also played in four ODI World Cups since 2011. Kohli said that the “energy” at a competition like a World Cup always helps him get “pulled in”.”I can say I am hungry as ever. If I don’t have the hunger, you will not see me in the tournament,” he said. “If I don’t have that mindset, I cannot play… Once the team atmosphere builds up, it’s a beautiful journey. We had one in the last [ODI] World Cup [as well]. We really enjoyed the World Cup.”Unfortunately, we could not finish it off, but we had a really enjoyable time as a team. People loved watching us as well, and I am sure that we will have a really good tournament this time as well.”While referring to the ODI World Cup last year, where India fell short in the final against Australia in Ahmedabad, Kohli said there was no regret at having lost the match. Instead, he recalled the only two instances when he “had a heartbreak”, both of which happened to be in the year 2016.”One was the [T20] World Cup. I was in a space where I was feeling no matter what, I could do it,” Kohli said, looking back at India’s defeat to West Indies in the semi-final in Mumbai. “But those no-balls and this and that, that took me a long time to get over. The next day I was literally drained and couldn’t get out of my room. It was very hard on me.”And then when we lost the IPL final here [in Bengaluru]. It felt like that was written in the stars – from the position we were in and then reached the final. We were chasing 200-odd [209], and in nine overs, we were 100-something without loss. When AB [de Villiers] got out, we needed 68 [actually, 71] off 42 balls with eight wickets in hand. If you look at it, you feel like how did you lose that game?”Virat Kohli on MS Dhoni: “He finished so many games. He was the only one who knew what he was doing”•Associated Press

‘I have learnt by failing again and again’

Kohli has batted at a strike rate of 155.16 so far this season, his highest across any IPL he has played in. His previous best was 152.03 in 2016, when he had come close to breaching the 1000-run mark in a single edition.Earlier this season, Kohli had even brushed off the strike-rate debate, and hit back at those speaking “from a box”. Kohli felt he didn’t need to “tell anyone what sort of player I am, or what my ability is”.”I never asked anyone how to win games for your team. I have learnt it myself – by being in that situation, by failing again and again,” he said. “You can win the odd game for your team, but if you are doing it again and again, it’s not by chance.”Kohli gave the example of MS Dhoni, who is regarded as among the best finishers in limited-overs cricket. He said that while Dhoni was often criticised for taking a game deep, he still came out successful.”I always say that watching it from the outside and living that moment yourself are two very different things,” Kohli said. “People used to often say about Mahi that why he takes it to the 20th over or the 50th over. But he finished so many games. He was the only one who knew what he was doing. No one else knew but he knew, and [he] won the games. For me, that is muscle memory. He knew that if he could take it to the last over, he would see it through.”My mindset was different. I would always say, ‘Mahi , let’s finish it in the 19th, or the 49th’. If he is batting with me, then it’s different; but if he is batting alone, then there is no chance [of him finishing it off early]. He take it till the end, and the opposition would be like he would finish it with one six.”So I never felt that I should go and tell someone that don’t say all this. I know what I can do on the ground. I don’t need any approval, or assurance, that I played so well.”Ahead of RCB’s final group game, against Chennai Super Kings at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, Kohli looked forward to playing against Dhoni yet again, unsure if it would be the last time they would face off in the IPL.”It’s going to be a great game. Me and him playing again together – maybe for the last time, you never know,” Kohli said. “That’s a special thing. We have had some great memories, [and] great partnerships together playing for India. So that’s always a great occasion when people see us together playing on the field.”

DC, Giants and MI are in the race to make it to the final directly

Sampath Bandarupalli07-Mar-2025Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) title defence started with a record 202-run chase against Gujarat Giants followed by a comfortable eight-wicket win against Delhi Capitals (DC). But losing all four matches at their home ground in Bengaluru has left them on the brink of crashing out in the league stage.RCB, who have only four points after six matches, can reach a maximum of eight points by winning their last two games against UP Warriorz and Mumbai Indians (MI). Giants and MI are already placed on eight points, while DC are out of RCB’s reach with ten. Despite being well behind, RCB’s fate is still in their own hands. So far, DC have sealed a place in playoffs while UP Warriorz are out of the race.

Must-win scenario for RCB

RCB’s chances in the WPL 2025 playoffs will end as early as Saturday if they go down against Warriorz. But if they win on Saturday, they will closely follow the game between MI and Giants to know whose net run rate (NRR) they must go past to qualify for the playoffs. Giants currently have a better NRR than MI, and an added advantage for RCB is that their last match will be against MI only.Related

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• The rise and roar of Kashvee Gautam

• Mooney confident Gujarat Giants can challenge for WPL playoffs

• RCB in must-win territory against out-of-contention Warriorz

RCB are nearly 60 runs behind MI’s NRR but will need to beat them by only 20 runs if they can win against UPW by ten runs and MI lose to Giants by the same margin. However, going past Giants will be more challenging for RCB – their collective margin of wins against UPW and MI needs to be around 62 runs if Giants lose to MI by only ten runs.

Are Delhi Capitals through to the final?

DC ended their league phase as the table-toppers with five wins, but their direct qualification to the final for the third straight season will have to wait as both MI and Giants can move ahead of them. MI can finish on the top if they win both matches, while Giants can go past DC if they can beat MI by a decent margin.Giants must win by 17 runs or 12 balls (for a first-innings total of 180) against MI to go ahead of DC’s NRR. On the other hand, MI are about 30 runs behind DC, which means if they lose one of their two matches by ten runs, they should have won the other by around 40 runs.

The pair debate some key BBL talking points following the end of a successful season for the competition

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Feb-2025Former Australia captain Aaron Finch would like a full player auction to be brought into the BBL while Glenn Maxwell believes the power surge should be removed as it doesn’t replicate international playing conditions.Currently, overseas players are selected through the draft – with clubs now able to pre-sign one name before that event – while a trade window, that is currently open, has been introduced for the first time this season, but Finch has said the majority of domestic players should also be included in a process more aligned with how the IPL operates.Related

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“I’d like to see an auction come in,” Finch told the Powerplay on ESPN’s . “Each team potentially has the ability to retain maybe four of their players and then you say everybody else in the country, you’re into an auction. I think that that would create a great spectacle.”We see it in the IPL, it’s brilliant, creates evenness across the board I think. What it does give you as well is it gives you what the players are worth. So at times, depending on what your team needs, you might have to overpay for someone. But if it’s an auction, that’s generally what the price of a player is.”Maxwell, though, was uncertain about the idea, raising concern about clubs losing an identity with established names. “You’ve still got to have a way to keep your homegrown players in your home state, [to] still have that relevance,” he said.The BBL continues to be challenged on retaining overseas players with a number leaving in early January for either the SA20 or ILT20.Meanwhile, when asked what he would change about the tournament, Maxwell argued that while he could see the appeal of the power surge – the two overs of fielding restrictions that can be taken by the batting side after the 10th over – he felt it skewed the skills that were required away from how the rest of T20 is played. It echoed the views of Stars team-mate Marcus Stoinis who made similar comments ahead of the BBL season.”I’d get rid of the power surge,” Maxwell said. “I think unless the power surge was introduced in international cricket, I think it’s sort of probably lost its relevance. As a player, I think it probably misrepresents middle-order batting.”When you get picked for your country, you don’t have that luxury of having those two overs in the back ten to boost your strike rate, boost your score. It’s lost on the art of middle order batting to be able to find your way through those last ten overs. I know it’s great for broadcasters. I know it’s great for fans. But until it’s made an international rule, I don’t think we should have it.”Finch acknowledged he had held a similar view when he was a player, but having now retired from the game saw the value the power surge brings.”I think that it provides entertainment right through an innings,” he said. “It keeps games alive. Like if a team needs 15 and over, with a power surge up your sleeve, there’s still half a chance.”

There has been some tension about availability of fringe Australia players for the tournament

Alex Malcolm18-Dec-2023Lance Morris has been released from the Australia Test squad to play in the BBL following the first Test against Pakistan in Perth with the group being cut to 13 for the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne.There was excitement around Morris potentially making his Test debut in Perth but with Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood all returning from the ODI World Cup in excellent shape, and Scott Boland being held in reserve, Morris will be sent back to the BBL to be available for Perth Scorchers’ clash with Hobart Hurricanes on December 20 at Optus Stadium.Boland remains unavailable for Melbourne Stars as he remains on standby as the first bowling reserve for the second Test.”Lance has been released for the Melbourne match but will stay prepared for Test cricket as he remains firmly in our plans for the summer, should an opportunity arise,” national selector George Bailey said.There has been some push and pull behind the scenes between Cricket Australia and the BBL clubs over availability of fringe Australia players. Brisbane Heat were very frustrated by losing four players to the Prime Minister’s XI team for the first two matches of the season to the point where Michael Neser was released from the PM’s XI to play in the Heat’s BBL opener against Stars.Melbourne Renegades coach David Saker expressed surprise at Boland’s being ruled out of the BBL opener for the Stars.Cameron Green does not have a BBL contract and will remain with the squad as 12th man with incumbent allrounder Mitchell Marsh maintaining his place for the opening Test against Pakistan where he was named Player of the Match.Meanwhile, Victoria have named three Test players in Marcus Harris, Peter Handscomb and Will Pucovski to play in a two-day tour match against Pakistan at the Junction Oval in Melbourne in the lead-up to the second Test. The Victoria XI will be comprised of players who do not have BBL deals, including those three.Australia squad for Melbourne Test David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood, Cameron Green, Scott Boland

Andy Gorvin, Ben Kellaway share seven wickets to knock Yorkshire out

ECB Reporters Network14-Aug-2024Glamorgan safely booked a home semi-final slot on Sunday in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup as they made it six wins out of eight to top Group B with a 62-run victory over the Yorkshire Vikings at Sophia Gardens.The champions in 2021, Glamorgan had already booked a play-off spot before the final round of games but now avoid having to play a quarter-final game on Friday.A solid 66 from former Yorkshire player Billy Root against his brother Joe’s county was the centre piece in the Welsh side’s total of 230 for 9 in a game reduced to 47 overs a side after early rain. His 56-run partnership with Timm van der Gugten for the ninth wicket proved crucial in hauling the home side past the 200 run mark.The Yorkshire spin attack of Dom Bess and Dan Moriarty tied down the Glamorgan batters with a spell of 20 overs between them that cost only 94 runs. Moriarty ended up with 3 for 47 from his 10 overs.Van der Gugten ended on an unbeaten 34, which included a six and three fours, and then gave Glamorgan the perfect start with a wicket with the first ball of the Yorkshire reply, trapping Harry Duke lbw. He ended with 2 for 32 from his 10 overs to complete a good all-round day.Yorkshire then lurched to 11 for 3 in seven overs as Noah Kelly and William Luxton were both clean bowled. Skipper Jonny Tattersall provided some much needed stability with his 51, enjoying profitable stands of 46 with Yash Vagadia and 59 with Matt Revis as the Vikings improved to 116 for 5.Then a burst of three wickets in 12 balls by Andy Gorvin in the 27th and 29th overs saw Revis (28), Tattersall (51) and George Hill (2) all depart to turn the game even more in favour of the Welsh county.With the required rate rising to more than six per over, Bess hit out before he was caught by Dan Douthwaite for an enterprising 22. That gave spinner Ben Kellaway his second wicket – one with his left arm and the next with his right.At 152 for 8 the Vikings were still 78 short of their total and needing to score at more than seven an over. Kellaway and Gorvin mopped up the tail as Yorkshire were all out for 168.Tattersall won the toss and had no hesitation in asking Glamorgan to bat on an overcast morning. The start was delayed to 11.30am due to light rain and the match reduced to 47 overs.Will Smale and Asa Tribe got off to a flying start for the home side with Smale taking 10 off Dom Leech’s first over. Tribe then sent Ben Cliff’s first ball crashing to the boundary at the other end.But Cliff got his revenge in the sixth over when he removed both openers with his first and last balls. Smale was caught at mid-on trying to hit him over the top for 16 and then Tribe was trapped lbw for 9.That made it 28 for 2 and in his next over Cliff captured the dangerous Sam Northeast for 7 as he was brilliantly caught one handed at slip by George Hill. That made it 40 for 3 and put the Group B table-toppers under considerable pressure.Skipper Kiran Carlson and Colin Ingram brought up the 50 in the last over of the first powerplay with two off-side boundaries from Ingram. Hill struck in the next over to remove Ingram, caught behind by Tattersall for 18.The partnership between Carlson and Ingram was worth 44 and his departure left Glamorgan on 84 for 4. Carlson was trapped lbw on 31 by Leech just after the 100 came up.

He will join India’s squad ahead of the second Test in Adelaide

Nagraj Gollapudi17-Nov-20246:58

‘You could see Nitish Kumar Reddy making his Test debut’

Rohit Sharma will not be available to lead India in first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which starts on November 22 at the Optus Stadium in Perth. ESPNcricinfo has learned that Rohit, who stayed back home for the birth of his second child, will join the India squad ahead of the second Test, which is a day-night match starting on December 6 in Adelaide.While Rohit had communicated to the BCCI and national selectors in advance that he could miss the Perth Test, he had kept open the option of last-minute travel based on when the child was born. Rohit and his wife Ritika welcomed their second child on Friday, a week ahead of the first Test, prompting the possibility of his travelling to Perth. However, he told the BCCI he will be available to play the two-day, pink-ball warm-up game against the Australian Prime Minister’s XI from November 30 before the day-night Test in Adelaide.Related

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• India's likely XI: Rahul set to open, Padikkal No. 3, and Jurel in the middle order

• Can Jaiswal counter fire with fire in Australia?

• Injured Gill to miss first Test in Perth with fractured thumb

• Boost for India as KL Rahul returns to bat in Sunday training

Vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah is set to lead India in Perth in Rohit’s absence. Bumrah has led India in one Test previously, the fifth Test of their two-part 2021-22 tour of England at Edgbaston, when Rohit had tested positive for Covid-19.India are now set to begin the Test series without two members of their first-choice top three, with No. 3 Shubman Gill also set to miss the Perth Test with a fractured thumb. KL Rahul and the uncapped Abhimanyu Easwaran were the two main candidates to open alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal in Rohit’s absence, but there is now a chance that both will feature in the XI.Rahul had briefly come under an injury cloud himself, having gone off the field after taking a blow to the elbow while batting against Prasidh Krishna during the first day of the Indians’ intra-squad practice match at the WACA. Those fears were assuaged on Sunday morning, though, when Rahul returned to the crease and batted for about an hour.Apart from Abhimanyu and Rahul, India will have another top-order candidate in Devdutt Padikkal, who was part of India A’s shadow tour of Australia and has stayed back with the Test squad. Padikkal has played one Test for India, against England in Dharamsala earlier this year.With four days remaining for the first Test, the Indian think tank led by head coach Gautam Gambhir has been challenged on several fronts. This is India’s first overseas Test series under Gambhir and his coaching staff comprising Morne Morkel, Abhishek Nayar and Ryan ten Doeschate, and it follows an unprecedented 3-0 defeat to New Zealand, India’s first ever whitewash in a home series of three or more Tests.In the absence of Rohit and Gill, India may look to add to their batting depth by playing one of their two seam-bowling allrounders at No. 8. Both Nitish Kumar Reddy, a batting allrounder from Andhra, and Harshit Rana, a hit-the-deck bowling allrounder for Delhi, are yet to make their Test debuts.After training at the WACA over this week, India will shift to the Optus Stadium from Tuesday.

Ashton Agar returned remarkable figures of 2 for 6, while Zak Crawley led the chase for the winners with a 56-ball 58

AAP08-Jan-2024Ricky Ponting has lashed the Sydney Showground pitch after Sydney Thunder’s low-scoring loss to Perth Scorchers on Monday, calling it “substandard” and wondering if Thunder should abandon the stadium for Canberra.Scorchers returned to the BBL’s top two with the seven-wicket win, chasing down Thunder’s 137 for 8 with five balls to spare. The result left Thunder needing results to fall in their favour to reach the finals, sitting in seventh place on the ladder with three games to play.But the major talking point remained the pitch, after Ashton Agar took 2 for 6 from four overs and Cooper Connolly 3 for 25 from his four. Thunder spinner Tanveer Sangha also went for just 14 from his four overs, and Chris Green got 1 for 22 from 3.1.Data from the Seven network showed an average spin of 3.9 degrees in Scorchers’ bowling innings, well in excess of the 2.2-degree average across the BBL.”We shouldn’t be seeing balls react like that in the BBL,” Ponting said in commentary. “That’s unplayable, you can’t hit that.”We shouldn’t be seeing balls react like that in the BBL. As far as I am concerned, this is substandard as far as BBL wickets are concerned.”Scorchers wicketkeeper Sam Whiteman also remarked that it “looked like Chennai”, with Agar’s figures the second-most economical in BBL history.The pitch has become a problem for Cricket Australia, given that the league is viewed as a gateway to the sport for youngsters. In one of the most populated and culturally-diverse regions of Australia, the run rate of 7.76 at the venue throughout the competition’s history is lower than at any other major BBL stadium.Only one score of over 160 has been made in the past two seasons, with spin and off-pace deliveries generally dominating. So slow did things move in the Thunder innings that they scored only 19 runs in a six-over period late in the innings in front of a crowd of 8672.Ponting went on to question if Thunder should move to Canberra permanently given the state of the Showground pitch, with the club already playing two games a season at Manuka Oval.Ashton Agar returned the second-most economical figures in the history of the BBL•Getty Images

“The Sydney Thunder have been a struggling team for the last few years,” Ponting said. “And how are you going to attract young players from around the team or overseas, if they’re going to be batting on a wicket like that?”The Thunder for years have talked about how much they love playing in Canberra, maybe that’s a solution. They have some good young players in this squad, but they might not have them forever if the wicket continues to be this way.”Agar, however, defended the groundstaff after play. “I don’t envy the groundsman, with conditions that were dished up. It poured down rain all day,” he said. “Obviously the Big Bash is an entertaining game, and you want to see high scores and balls flying over the fence. But there’s a lot to be learned from games like that. Things to be learned for guys who go overseas.”Alex Hales played a lone hand with the bat for Thunder, whacking three sixes over the leg side in his 72 from 55 balls. But he was also close to being the villain for Thunder, with three men run out at the other end while he batted.In reply, Zak Crawley hit 58 from 56 balls to help steer Scorchers home in the last over.