Latest news with #Bazballers
Time of India
27-05-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Can Kuldeep Yadav be India's trump card in England?
Kuldeep Yadav (PTI Photo) New Delhi: Kuldeep Yadav is 30, and it is quite unbelievable that he has only played 13 Tests for India. That too, after his five-wicket haul in Sydney in 2019 – long before he added extra yard to his pace, tightened his lengths, tweaked his bowling action, and became more rounded – the then Team India coach Ravi Shastri endorsed him as 'India's lead spinner in overseas Tests. ' A few years later, a loss of form and a career-threatening knee surgery put him at a crossroads, leading to him becoming the fifth-choice tweaker after R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Washington Sundar. Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! Last time he was in England, in 2018, he had a forgettable experience on a green top at Lord's. He bagged a pair with the bat and conceded 44 runs in the nine overs he bowled. "Kuldeep ab same bowler nahi raha (He is not the same bowler anymore)," Kuldeep Yadav's childhood coach Kapil Pandey told India Test squad for England tour: Shubman Gill to lead, Rishabh Pant his deputy "This is also not the same England team. We have seen how they fared last time when they faced Kuldeep. They were unable to pick him," said Pandey, reflecting on his ward's 19 wickets in four Test matches on a "true wicket" against England in 2024. Kuldeep's moment to shine Ajit Agarkar , India's chief selector, on Sunday made it clear that fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah is unlikely to play all five Tests on the tour of England, which starts on June 20 at Headingley. Mohammed Shami has also been deemed not fit to sustain the rigours of five-day Tests. And with R Ashwin now retired, India will be banking on Kuldeep Yadav to be that X-factor against England's "Bazballers". But he will have his own challenges. "Spin bowling with the Duke ball is an art. It is my personal opinion that only Shane Warne had mastered that art. Kuldeep will have to find his rhythm with the Duke ball," said Pandey. "In India, he goes for wickets. But overseas, where the conditions are more seaming-friendly, he will have to attack to take wickets but at the same time will have to contain the run flow as well," said Pandey. Without a doubt, there is a tectonic shift in Kuldeep's attitude as well. Last year, during a podcast with Ashwin, Kuldeep had made his ambition clear. 'You remember, Ash bhai, after the Hyderabad Test (against England) you told me if I was to play as the lead spinner, I must bowl 15 overs and not give away more than 25-30 runs in a spell. Earlier, I used to think about getting four wickets and it didn't matter how many runs I conceded. ' India Test squad vs England: Ajit Agarkar full press conference Ashwin has publicly advocated for Kuldeep's inclusion in India's playing XI for all five Tests in England, highlighting his potential to be a valuable asset in overseas conditions. On his Hindi YouTube channel "Ash Ki Baat," Ashwin had said: "India should not go into this series without Kuldeep Yadav. That is my strong opinion -- unless and until it is an absolute green bed." Kapil agrees with Ashwin, but at the same time, citing Shane Warne's example, he said Kuldeep can generate more from the greener surface. Poll Do you believe Kuldeep Yadav can become India's lead spinner in the upcoming Test series against England? Yes, definitely No, I don't think so Maybe, it depends on his performance I'm not sure "Australia always played Shane Warne on absolute green-top surfaces. I am not saying Kuldeep is Shane Warne, but the greener the surface, the better chance for him to take wickets. This England side has a mentality to attack from ball one. They sometimes do the wild hoicking as well, and on a surface where there is more bounce and now with Kuldeep having added pace, he can trouble the England batters," said a confident Pandey. Shubman Gill story: From a remote village near the border to India's Test captain With the five-match Test series in England set to be a big challenge for an inexperienced Indian team under a new captain, Kuldeep will have to step up. According to Kapil, Kuldeep is oozing with confidence, and most importantly, he is carrying the advice of his idol Warne, who, ahead of the Sydney Test in 2019, had told him, 'I don't care however you bowl, just have a smile on your face.' "If he can do even 50 percent of what legendary Shane Warne has done in England, India will win the series," stated Pandey. Get IPL 2025 match schedules , squads , points table , and live scores for CSK , MI , RCB , KKR , SRH , LSG , DC , GT , PBKS , and RR . Check the latest IPL Orange Cap and Purple Cap standings.
Indian Express
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
8 Test hundreds vs 8 countries: England's Ollie Pope sets world record with century against Zimbabwe
England No. 3 Ollie Pope set a new world record after the Bazballers had a field day on the first morning of the cricket summer at home against Zimbabwe on Thursday. Batting first on Day 1 of the four-day Test at Trent Bridge, Nottingham, England piled on a massive 498 for three in 88 overs with the top-3 of the Ben Stokes-led side all gathering centuries. While opener Ben Duckett slammed a century in as many balls on his home ground, a struggling Zak Crawley got some runs under his belt with relatively slower 124 off 171 balls. But it was England's No. 3 Pope who set the headlines after his senior batting partner Joe Root nudged past 13,000 Test runs. Pope waltzed to his eighth Test century in 109 balls and set multiple records as he crossed the three-figure mark. Despite his middling Test average, Pope recorded his seventh hundred at No.3, putting him level with Jonathan Trott among English batters in the spot. Only legends Wally Hammond, Ken Barrington and David Gower have racked up more Test centuries for England at No. 3. More curiously, Pope's eight centuries have all come up against different oppositions. The 27-year-old extended his own world record to become the first batter to record his first eight Test hundreds against different countries. Pope became the 30th Test batter to record centuries at least against eight different countries and could even equal the record should he hit a century in the Ashes later this year.
Daily Mail
02-05-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Why pace-obsessed England have called on 80mph bowler Sam Cook in legacy-defining year for Bazball
The selection of Sam Cook in a 13-man squad for the Trent Bridge Test against Zimbabwe starting on May 22 is belated recognition that a bowler of his kind still has a role to play for England's Bazballers. While Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad were opening the attack, and Chris Woakes was backing them up, there was no room for an 80mph seamer whose chief weapons are accuracy and lateral movement. But Anderson and Broad have retired, and Woakes is injured, leaving Cook, 27, with a chance to show he can carve out a Test career — including in Australia this winter. Amid talk that England's Ashes assault will revolve around the pace of Mark Wood, Jofra Archer, Brydon Carse, Gus Atkinson and even Josh Tongue, head coach Brendon McCullum's initial view was that Cook was too slow to force his way in. But the management have grown more open to making an exception for a bowler so skilful that his 318 first-class wickets — 302 of them for Essex — have come at under 20 apiece. And if it is a track record with the Kookaburra — the ball used in Australia — that England are looking for, Cook ticks that box, too. Last summer, he took 10 for 73 against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge during one of the rounds when the county game was experimenting with the ball. Then, for England Lions over the winter, he returned figures of 8–3–15–4 and 26–10–47–4 in successive games against a Cricket Australia XI. The recent Border-Gavaskar Trophy between Australia and India seemed to confirm the theory that the new double-lacquered Kookaburra is staying harder for longer, keeping seamers — even those below 90mph — in the game. 'We made no bones about the fact that we were looking to add some pace into the attack,' said men's selector Luke Wright. 'But that didn't mean we didn't want a complementary attack. 'He performed well out in Australia, and the thing I like about Cook is he's not just a swing bowler — he swings and seams the ball, and is actually a bigger lad than some people realise. He's known for his accuracy, but speak to any top-order batter in county cricket and he's the one everyone fears the most. 'Every time there's a different challenge and you think things are going to be stacked against him, he manages to perform and take wickets. Yes, he's had to be patient, but there have been some fine bowlers ahead of him as well.' Almost as intriguing will be the return of Tongue, who looked a serious prospect while taking 10 wickets in two Lord's Tests against Ireland and Australia in 2023, only for injury to cost him the whole of 2024. Now, he is back among the wickets for Nottinghamshire, and against Zimbabwe will be the fastest bowler on either side. Meanwhile, Wright insisted captain Ben Stokes will be fit to bowl, though by the time the Test begins he will not have played any first-class cricket since injuring his hamstring against New Zealand at Hamilton in December. Quite how many overs will be required at Trent Bridge from off-spinner Shoaib Bashir, whose three games on loan at Glamorgan brought only two wickets at 152 each, remains to be seen. Predictably, England have stuck with opener Zak Crawley, whose latest outing in a difficult season for Kent produced six runs before he was lbw to Middlesex seamer Dane Paterson. Essex's Jordan Cox returns after missing out on a Test debut in New Zealand because of a broken thumb, but looks like the spare batsman in the squad.
Indian Express
29-04-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
Ashwin reveals his reason for announcing his retirement during the Australia tour
R Ashwin who received the Padma Shri award on Monday, has revealed that he wanted to retire from international cricket after the conclusion of the Chennai Test against Bangladesh where he scored a century and picked up a six-wicket haul. The all-rounder had send shock waves announcing his retirement in the middle of the Australia tour as he returned mid-way through the series before featuring in the ongoing IPL for Chennai Super Kings. Ashwin had previously revealed that retirement thoughts were playing un his mind twice, once during the home series against Australia in 2023 and then a year later when India humbled the Bazballers. Speaking on the franchise's podcast show Mike Testing 123 with former Australian and CSK batsman Mike Hussey, who is currently the batting coach at the franchise, Ashwin spoke his decision to retire. 'To be very honest, I wanted to do it after my 100th Test. And then I thought, Ok, let me give it a go in the home season. Because, I mean, you're playing well and you're getting wickets, you're making runs. So I thought it does make sense to play a bit. I was having a lot of fun, but the whole hard yards that I had to put through to put myself on the park again, physically and mentally, one of the most important things for me that was pulling me down was the family time,' Ashwin said. Ashwin then went on to reveal that how he wanted to carry on in the home season before the script went downhill in Australia. He also spoke about the emotional aspect, particularly after he warmed the bench during the first Test at Perth where Washington Sundar was preferred over him. 'I thought I'll probably close off (with) the Chennai Test here. I ended up getting a six-wicket haul and a hundred. So it's very tough to quit when you're doing very well. So, I went on with the series and we lost against New Zealand. So one after the other, it was just building up. And then I thought, okay, let me go to Australia. Let me see how this goes. Because the last time I was in Australia, I had a great, great tour. And when I didn't start in Perth, it was like, okay, this whole circle keeps going again. People add very little value to what you're going through emotionally. They don't really consider that because your emotions are yours and it doesn't matter to anybody else. So I had been contemplating that and then I thought, okay, maybe it is time.
