Latest news with #Border-GavaskarTrophy
News18
6 hours ago
- Sport
- News18
Kevin Pietersen Lauds Karun Nair, KL Rahul Ahead Of England Tour: 'He Got 100...'
Last Updated: Kevin Pietersen has praised Karun Nair and KL Rahul for their dedication to Test cricket after a long T20 league. Former England cricketer and Delhi Capitals mentor Kevin Pietersen lauded his boys Karun Nair and KL Rahul, praising their commitment towards playing the longest format soon after a gruelling two-month-long T20 league, ahead of a big Test series against his native England. Nair vindicated the selectors' call to include him in the main team as he smacked a double hundred in the ongoing first unofficial Test between India A and England Lions in Canterbury. Karun made 204 off 281 deliveries (26×4 1×6) as India A continued their strong march after resuming from the overnight 409/3. Karun was involved in an 181-run partnership for the third wicket with Sarfaraz Khan and a 195-run stand with Dhruv Jurel. As per reports, Rahul has requested that BCCI fly him to Northamptonshire next week so that he can play the second match between India A and England Lions. 'Karun got a 100 yesterday, and KL has asked BCCI to travel early to the UK to get extra practice in before Tests – 2 gems! ????," Pietersen tweeted on Saturday afternoon. advetisement According to a report in The Times of India, Rahul will leave for Northamptonshire on June 2 after being granted permission by the BCCI. Rahul decided to play the second India A match against the England Lions after rain had spoiled his preparation in Mumbai. With the weather clearing only by June 5 and the rest of the Indian team set to travel on June 6, Rahul decided to leave earlier. Rahul had played for India A before the start of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia as well. He was one of India's best batters in that series, which they lost 1-3. India will be captained by Shubman Gill against England, while Rishabh Pant will serve as his deputy. Meanwhile, India A were finally bowled out for a whopping 557 in the second session of Day 2, with Josh Hull and Zaman Akhter picking three wickets apiece. Karun, who resumed from overnight 186, brought up his 200 off 272 deliveries with a boundary over covers off pacer Eddie Jack. First Published: May 31, 2025, 18:50 IST
Hindustan Times
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
‘Karun Nair gets 100, KL Rahul requests BCCI to…': Gambhir handed ‘two gems' verdict ahead of England series
Former England captain Kevin Pietersen, who mentored Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, is mighty impressed with Karun Nair and KL Rahul ahead of the upcoming five-match Test series against England. Pietersen, who worked with both these batters at close quarters in the T20 competition, lauded the way both are preparing for the upcoming series, beginning June 20. Karun Nair vindicated the selectors' call to include him in the main squad as he hit a century in the ongoing first unofficial Test between India A and England Lions in Canterbury. The right-handed batter, 33, made full use of some below-par bowling on a green surface, which offered some initial assistance for the pacers. Karun remained unbeaten on 186 on Day 1 of the first unofficial Test as he made a strong case for his inclusion in the playing XI for the first match of the five-Test series against England in Headingley. The right-hander was involved in an 181-run stand for the third wicket with Sarfaraz Khan. The latter missed out on a well-deserved century, but Karun piled the misery, and he found support in Dhruv Jurel. According to reports, KL Rahul has also requested that the BCCI fly him to the UK next week so that he can play the second Test between India A and England Lions. Also Read: Karun Nair makes dream start to England tour with century for India A Pietersen labelled Nair and Rahul as 'two gems' of Indian cricket as he appreciated their efforts to prepare for the England tour. 'Karun gets a 100 yesterday, and KL has asked BCCI to travel early to the UK to get extra practice in before Tests - 2 gems,' Pietersen wrote on X (formerly Twitter). According to a report in the Times of India, KL Rahul will leave for the UK on Monday after being granted permission by the BCCI. Rahul was originally slated to leave alongside the rest of the Indian team on June 6. However, he decided to play the second India A Test against the England Lions after rain spoilt his preparation in Mumbai. KL Rahul had also played for India A before the start of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia. The opening batter will now be required to shoulder the responsibility of the batting order after the Test retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Rahul was one of India's best batters in the series against Australia, which India lost 1-3. India will be led by Shubman Gill against England while Rishabh Pant will serve as his deputy. India squad: Shubman Gill (C), Rishabh Pant, Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav.
Mint
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Mint
Jasprit Bumrah opens up on retirement plans ahead of England Tests: ‘Whenever it ends, i want to…'
Indian cricket fraternity was left in awe earlier this month when two of the country's biggest stalwarts, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, announced their retirement from Test cricket. The retirements of these two players, coupled with Ravichandran Ashwin's shocking announcement during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, have broken the hearts of many Indian cricket fans. While Jasprit Bumrah isn't planning to announce his retirement anytime soon, the pacer has spoken about his career plans and his goals for the future. Speaking to former Australian captain Michael Clarke during the Beyond23 Cricket Podcast, Bumrah said, "This is a sport that I fell in love with. I went to Australia this time, and a lot of youngsters came up to me and tried to copy my [bowling] action. Which is surreal because I used to do that. So yeah, this journey will not always go on, but whenever it ends, I want to give it back to the sport. Because whatever I have and whatever I have learnt in life is through this sport. Thankful to the journey that I have had," "It is tough for any individual to keep playing everything for so long. I have been doing it for a while. But eventually, you have to understand where your body is going and what the important tournaments are, so you have to be a little selective and smart about how you use your body. Obviously, as a cricketer, I would never want to leave anything and always keep on going," Bumrah added. The 31-year-old is widely regarded as one of the greatest Indian bowlers of all time, with comparisons often being drawn between him and the greatest players in world cricket. What makes Bumrah's bowling special is that he isn't limited to one format; he has proven his ability in all formats of the game, including T20Is, ODIs and Test cricket. Having joined the IPL midway through the season, Bumrah has still managed to take 18 wickets and has had a significant impact on the Mumbai Indians' victories.
India Gazette
a day ago
- Sport
- India Gazette
Ponting predicts Australia's WTC final playing XI; Labuschagne at top, no place for Konstas
New Delhi [India], May 30 (ANI): Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting picked his Baggy Greens playing XI for their upcoming World Test Championship final fixture against South Africa at the iconic Lord's, scheduled to kick off on June 11. Australia, which announced a star-studded 15-player squad earlier this month, is coming into the WTC final hot on the heels of an imposing 3-1 triumph over India in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Even though Australia's squad appears to be settled, there are still underlying questions that they need to address when selecting their playing XI. With runs dried up from Marnus Labuschagne's bat and Cameron Green's return to prolific form, Ponting weighed in on Australia's potential lineup and believes Labuschagne will be pushed up in the batting order alongside Usman Khawaja, leaving no room for young Sam Konstas. Green will follow the top-order and then Steve Smith at number four, while Travis Head, Beau Webster and Alex Carey will comprise the middle order. 'I have just got a bit of a feeling that Marnus Labuschagne might be pushed up the order to open the batting with Khawaja. I think Green will bat at three, and Steve Smith will be at four. Then it's Travis Head five, Beau Webster six, Carey at seven, Cummins eight, Starc nine and Lyon 10,' Ponting said in the ICC Review. While skipper Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc straightaway slot into Ponting's XI, he believes Australia will be in a conundrum regarding the selection of Josh Hazlewood and Scott Boland. For Ponting, the last spot will come down to Hazlewood's fitness. If the 34-year-old Hazlewood is fit, he will return to the team. 'And the one that everyone talks about the last couple of years is the whole Hazlewood (versus) Boland one. It's a really tough selection every time because every time Boland plays, he just does so well. But unfortunately, if Hazlewood is fit, I think Hazlewood comes straight back into the team,' he added. Ponting elaborated that the biggest dilemma for the selectors will be Labuschagne. The 30-year-old has lost his mojo and is in a hunt for his rich vein of form. Since the end of 2022, Labuschagne boasts just a solitary century and hasn't made much of an impression in two matches for County Championship side Glamorgan. Despite the speculations, the ICC Hall of Famer believes Australia will stick with Labuschange, citing the route the selectors took with David Warner in the last WTC final and said, 'I actually think that that will go with Labuschagne. Looking back to the last World Test Championship Final there was some talk about David Warner and whether he should hold his spot going into that.' 'And there was a bit of talk around the team about wanting to get through that period or that phase or, if you like, with the same group of players and give them the chance to, to be able to play off in that one-off final. Labuschagne has been through this cycle with the team, albeit batting at No.3, and I think they will want to get through the cycle with the same players, so I think Labuschagne will get the nod. Whether I agree with it or not, it's a different will be revealed in the next couple of weeks,' he added. Ricky Ponting's predicted Australia XI for the World Test Championship Final: Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Cameron Green, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Beau Webster, Alex Carey (wk), Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood. (ANI)
Mint
a day ago
- Sport
- Mint
Back with a bang! Karun Nair returns to national set up with century for India 'A' against England Lions
Karun Nair celebrated his return to the Indian Test team after a gap of eight years as he notched up a century for India 'A' against England Lions in Canterbury on Friday. In the first of three warm up games ahead of India's Test series against England, the stylish right-handed batsman hit 14 fours as he brought up his century in 155 balls. This is a big statement from the right handed batsman, who is looking to grab one of the top order positions left vacant by the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Put in to bat first, India 'A' opened the innings with Yashasvi Jaiswal (24 of 55) and captain Abhimanyu Easwaran (8 of 17). Nair came out to bat at Number 3, in the sixth over, after the captain was dismissed and he stitched a huge partnership with Sarfaraz Khan, who batted at Number 4. The duo put on 181 runs for the third wicket before Khan was out for 92 (119), short of a well-deserved century. The 27-year-old Mumbai batsman played at an innocuous delivery, which was going down leg side, as his bottom edge made contact with the ball. He was brilliantly caught by England Lions captain and wicketkeeper James Rew low to his left. With the Indian Premier League still going on with many of the Test team's top order contenders still on duty for their franchises, Nair has just bumped himself up the queue regarding securing a spot in the Indian starting lineup in the England tour with this century. Ever since the Indian squad for the 5-Test tour of England was announced, there has been a lot of chatter regarding which batters will play across the top order. Veteran batsman Cheteshwar Pujara had his say, during a recent interview to a broadcaster, on this topic and stated, "The openers who batted in Australia in the BGT (Border-Gavaskar Trophy) series — KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal — should continue. Now talking about No. 3, at this stage we don't know whether Shubman Gill will bat there or drop to No. 4. "Someone like Karun, who has done well in domestic cricket, I think the ideal position for Karun would be No. 4. If Shubman bats at No. 3, then Karun Nair comes in at No. 4," he said. While the likes of Jaiswal, KL Rahul, and new skipper Shubman Gill will most likely occupy three of the top four positions, Nair will have to fend off Easwaran and Gujarat Titans' star Sai Sudharsan for the remaining spot in the top four. A century in the first warm up game will only help Nair's case for a starting spot in the team.
