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The Hindu
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
Domestic cricket stalwart Abdul Ismail passes away at the age of 79
Abdul Ismail, a domestic cricket stalwart who earned the title of 'Sultan of Swing' due to his exploits for Mumbai (then Bombay), passed away due to a cardiac arrest in Mumbai on Friday. He was 79. In a First-Class career spanning a decade since 1969, Ismail was the leader of Mumbai's pace pack in the 1970s. He scalped 244 wickets at an average of 18.08 in 75 First-Class appearances. Besides being a member of multiple Duleep Trophy triumphs for West Zone, Ismail was a key architect of Mumbai's five Ranji titles. According to the veterans, Ismail is one of the leading names of cricketers who remained unfortunate to have missed out on an India cap. Along with Karsan Ghavri and Eknath Solkar, Ismail formed the famed Mumbai pace triumvirate that complimented Padmakar Shivalkar's left-arm spin in the 1970s. In January, he was felicitated by the Mumbai Cricket Association to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Wankhede Stadium. Ismail featured in the first game at the Wankhede. Ismail made his debut in the Irani Cup, where he also made his final First-Class appearance. Following his retirement, he was involved in coaching and also served as a Mumbai selector across age groups and the Ranji Trophy. Related Topics Abdul Ismail
The Hindu
6 days ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
Former Mumbai pacer Abdul Ismail passes away
Abdul Ismail, a domestic cricket stalwart who earned the title of 'Sultan of Swing' due to his exploits for Mumbai (then Bombay), passed away due to a cardiac arrest in Mumbai on Friday. He was 79. In a First Class career spanning a decade since 1969, Ismail was the leader of Mumbai's pace pack in the 1970s. He scalped 244 wickets at an average of 18.08 in 75 First Class appearances. Besides being a member of multiple Duleep Trophy triumphs for West Zone, Ismail was a key architect of Mumbai's five Ranji titles. According to old-timers, Ismail is one of the leading names of cricketers who remained unfortunate to have missed out on an India cap. Along with Karsan Ghavri and Eknath Solkar, Ismail formed the famed Mumbai pace triumvirate that complimented Padmakar Shivalkar's left-arm spin in the 1970s. In January, he was felicitated by the Mumbai Cricket Association to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Wankhede Stadium. Ismail featured in the first game at the Wankhede. Incidentally, Ismail – son of a taxi driver who went on to force batters into false drives – made his debut and the final First Class appearance in the Irani Cup. Following his retirement, besides being involved in coaching, he also served as a Mumbai selector across age-groups and the Ranji Trophy.
News18
26-05-2025
- Sport
- News18
'He Has To Establish As Batter': Anil Kumble Sceptical About 'Skipper' Shubman Gill
Last Updated: Anil Kumble has urged Shubman Gill to prove himself as a strong overseas batter after being named India's Test skipper against England. Former India cricketer Anil Kumble has said that while he thought that ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah should have been the initial choice for captaincy against England, now that Shubman Gill has been named the skipper, the youngster has to ensure that he establishes himself as a potent overseas batter. Kumble feels that Gill has a big task ahead of himself because he has yet to cement himself as a batter in India's Test side overseas. Kumble was hoping Bumrah would succeed Rohit Sharma as India's Test skipper. The ace pacer was India's vice-captain for the Test series in Australia and even led in Perth and Sydney, the two matches where Rohit was unavailable. 'It's going to be a massive challenge. Initially, I thought Jasprit Bumrah would have been the automatic choice, but they must have a reason there. They would have probably spoken to him and maybe Jasprit is now looking at taking a break between matches," Kumble said while speaking on ESPNCricinfo. advetisement 'Now that the selectors have taken a call on Shubman, they'll have to stick with him for a while. Because he needs that kind of leeway as well. First, he has to establish himself as a batter because even in Australia, he didn't play all the matches," Kumble added. Gill has led Punjab in one Ranji Trophy match, losing to Karnataka earlier this year, but has led in four more first-class matches, three Duleep Trophy games and India A in 2019. 'As a captain, he has certainly shown signs. Of course, it's a very different format. He has a calm head. He's done all the right things for GT in the last couple of seasons as a captain," Kumble said. 'So as a player, it hasn't really affected him, at least in the white-ball formats. And to expect that to happen in Tests as well, there won't be any issues with his batting just because he is captain," Kumble added. Gill's first assignment as Test skipper will be when India take on England in the first of the five-match series on June 20 in Leeds. Watch CNN-News18 here. Stay updated with all the latest news on IPL 2025, including the schedule, Points Table, IPL Orange Cap, and IPL Purple Cap. Get latest Cricket news, live score and match results on News18. Download the News18 App to stay updated! First Published: May 26, 2025, 14:09 IST
Hindustan Times
26-05-2025
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
Anil Kumble to Ajit Agarkar – Gill first needs to establish as a batter: 'He didn't even play all 5 Tests in Australia'
Anil Kumble has expressed certain apprehensions about Shubman Gill's appointment as India's Test captain. He feels the youngster has a big task ahead of himself because he has yet to cement himself as a batter in India's Test team overseas. Gill has played all 32 Tests for India, and while he may be the second-youngest captain after Sachin Tendulkar to be named India's Test captain, the 25-year-old is the least experienced. Kumble's take is crystal clear. He was hoping Jasprit Bumrah would succeed Rohit Sharma as India's Test captain. More so because, for the longest time, that was supposed to be the case. Bumrah was India's vice-captain for the Test series in Australia and even led in Perth and Sydney, the two games where Rohit was unavailable. But a back injury threw a spanner in the works for India's pacer spearhead. Hence, keeping the future of Indian cricket in mind, the BCCI and its selectors gave Gill the responsibility, hoping he would be the solution to all problems. Kumble, however, just has one concern, which is Gill's batting away from home. In 13 Tests, Gill has scored just 649 runs at an average of 29.50, including one century against Bangladesh. In an indirect message to the chairman of selectors and his former India teammate Ajit Agarkar, Kumble reckons Gill needs to pay attention to his batting before people start expecting out of his captaincy. "It's going to be a massive challenge. Initially, I thought Jasprit Bumrah would have been the automatic choice, but they must have a reason there. They would have probably spoken to him, and maybe Jasprit is now looking at taking a break between matches. He felt that it was better not to be the captain. But the ideal choice would have been Jasprit. Now that the selectors have taken a call on Shubman, they'll have to stick with him for a while. Because he needs that kind of leeway as well. First, he has to establish as a batter because even in Australia, he didn't play all matches," the former India spinner said on ESPNCricinfo. Also Read: 'You can't be scoring 80, 100 in 1st, 2nd Tests and then finish with 30 average'; KL Rahul urged to step up in England It's wrong to say that Gill has limited captaincy experience. Besides leading the Gujarat Titans for two seasons – they finished 8th last year and are table-toppers this time around. Gill has captained Punjab in one Ranji Trophy game, losing to Karnataka earlier this year, but has captained four more First-Class games – three Duleep Trophy matches and India A in 2019. Gill has captained India in just one series prior, leading the team to a 4-1 win against Zimbabwe. However, none of it matches the pressure that comes with captaining the Indian senior men's Test team, believes Kumble, especially now that three of their biggest stalwarts, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravichandran Ashwin, have retired. "As a captain, he has certainly shown signs. Of course, it's a very different format. He has a calm head. He's done all the right things for GT in the last couple of seasons as a captain. So as a player, it hasn't really affected him at least in the white-ball formats. And to expect that to happen in Test matches as well – there won't be any issues with his batting just because he is captain… it's going to be a different team without the big boys Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, and Ashwin as well. The Indian team is going to look very different," metioned Kumble.
Hindustan Times
25-05-2025
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
White-ball star Arshdeep will be ready for England challenge: coach
Chandigarh: Announcing India's Test squad for England on Saturday, chief selector Ajit Agarkar said the focus was on the 'big transition' that lies ahead. Besides the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, the upcoming five-Test series will also miss Mohammed Shami with the team management having to manage Jasprit Bumrah's workload. Among the pacers new skipper Shubman Gill can call upon will be Arshdeep Singh, the left-arm bowler who has rapidly built his reputation in white-ball formats. Although Arshdeep has established himself as a T20 match-winner, the trust factor will be there as the two go back a long way in Punjab cricket and were in India's 2018 U-19 World Cup winning squad. The 26-year-old, whose ability to move the ball could be crucial in English conditions, he also trained since 2023 with the red-ball to upgrade himself in Test cricket. Arshdeep played only five matches in the 2024-25 domestic season, three in the Duleep Trophy and two in Ranji Trophy, but playing in the County Championship for Kent in 2023 gave him useful experience of the lengths to bowl to cash in on his ability to swing the ball. Arshdeep's long-time coach Jaswant Rai, a former first-class cricketer, believes his ward will be ready for the challenge if called upon. 'His selection has come at the right time, he should be making his Test debut in England. He has worked hard in the last one year playing red-ball cricket. His stint with Kent has helped him gain confidence with the red-ball. He got to play only a few first-class matches for Punjab last season as he was busy playing for India in white-ball cricket,' he said. Since his India debut in July 2022, in T20Is, Arshdeep has impressed with the new-ball and become effective in the death overs as well in white-ball cricket for the country and IPL. He chose to go to England two years back to build his red-ball experience in seaming conditions. He played five matches for Kent in Division 1 of the County Championship. 'During his Kent stint, he bowled a lot of long spells there and got to know how effective the length ball can be. He realised that if he bowled at a good length for longer spells, it will not be easy for a batter to score runs. Earlier, he relied more on the yorker,' said Rai. He hoped Shubman being familiar with Arshdeep's talent will help the pace bowler. Arshdeep rose into prominence as a bowler after being bought by Punjab Kings ahead of the 2019 IPL. Since then he has become the spearhead of the side, which has qualified for the playoffs this season. Rai pointed out that sharing the dressing room with Bumrah has had a great impact on Arshdeep and said how winning the T20 World Cup in the West Indies last year on largely slow pitches has helped boost the bowler's confidence. 'There is no question that Bumrah has had an impact as a fast bowler for India in the last decade. I have had long chats with Arshdeep on how Bumrah's presence in the dressing room and as a bowling partner sort of helped him pick and learn things as an international cricketer. Bumrah has had a great impact on Arshdeep's growth as a cricketer. Also, being part of the India T20 World Cup winning squad has done wonders for his confidence. The sense of pride he felt being part of the India team made him more resilient in his approach.' 'See Arshdeep is a character on the cricket field. He likes to express himself and take his chances with the ball. I have seen him mature as a bowler and study the opposition batters well in advance. Adaptability and patience are his strengths. He adapts tremendously well to the conditions and match situations. He is calm and patient to get his targeted dismissals,' said Rai, who had also scouted the bowler for PBKS.
