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New Indian Express
10 hours ago
- Sport
- New Indian Express
Australia Women ODIs in Chennai: TNCA to take a call on relaying field
NEW CHANDIGARH: The BCCI announced the home season schedule for India women and A tours and the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, is named as the venue for the white-ball series against Australia women. The BCCI release said that the three-match ODI series, which would be in the lead up to the Women's World Cup in India, will be played in Chennai from September 14-20. However, the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association were planning to begin the relaying of the entire outfield at the historic venue from June. With this announcement from the BCCI, it is understood that the TNCA will make a decision in the coming days on whether to continue with their plans or postpone it. Earlier, the TNCA had decided to begin the process of relaying the entire outfield in June, as it takes four to five months to complete. The current outfield hasn't been completely relaid in more than a decade. So the original plan was to finish the process by the end of this year and get the stadium ready for the Men's T20 World Cup – to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka – in February 2026. With the BCCI allotting the three women's ODIs to Chennai, TNCA is expected to take a decision on whether to go ahead with their original plans or postpone the work until after the men's T20 World Cup in the coming days. Apart from the women's ODIs, the BCCI has also announced two A-series for men. Australia A team will tour India to play two multi-day tournaments in Lucknow from September 19-26 followed by three one-dayers in Kanpur from September 30-October 5. Later, the South Africa A team will tour for a similiar series. The two multi-day games will be played in BCCI CoE, Bengaluru (from October 30 till November 9) and the three one-dayers will be played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium (from November 13-19).
Daily Maverick
15 hours ago
- Sport
- Daily Maverick
‘Experienced' Marizanne Kapp's welcome return to boost stuttering Proteas Women
The Proteas Women will be boosted by the inclusion of star all-rounder Marizanne Kapp when they face the West Indies. The Proteas Women had a dire 50-over tri-series tour of Sri Lanka at the start of the month – winning only one of their four matches – but now have star all-rounder Marizanne Kapp back in the squad hoping to make a change. The Proteas will tackle West Indies in Barbados throughout June in a six-match white-ball tour, hoping for an improved performance. The last time South Africa won back-to-back cricket matches was in the T20 World Cup in October 2024 – with only two sporadic victories since. From that point, they had a seven-match, all-format tour against England in which they only won one match and then more recently their singular victory against Sri Lanka in a tri-series that included India. Head coach Mandla Mashimbyi came on board halfway through the series against England and arguably the team's most important player, Kapp, was rested for the ODI tour in Sri Lanka. With the Cricket World Cup in India starting in September, the excuses are beginning to dry up. 'Sometimes things have to go wrong for you to get them right,' Mashimbyi said about his ambitions for success at the Cricket World Cup. Kapp's addition to the side will help ensure things go right more often. 'You can never underestimate the value of an experienced player in your squad,' Mashimbyi said of Kapp's return to the national fold 'Based on the plans that were had for Marizanne, in terms of her fitness block and to make sure by the time we get to the World Cup she'll be where she needs to be – that was most important for us at this time.' Besides experience, 35-year-old Kapp adds quality swing bowling with the new ball as well as runs in the middle order – areas in which the team struggled in Colombo, Sri Lanka. 'Having her back in the squad is something I'm looking forward to seeing,' Mashimbyi added. 'Seeing how she operates within the team environment and also the experience that she brings.' Possible wildcard In place of Kapp as well as the ill Anneke Bosch, youngsters Karabo Meso, Seshnie Naidu and Miané Smit were given a run. 'One of the main things we're trying to do as well is create depth within the squad, knowing that anybody coming into the squad can impact the team positively,' Mashimbyi said. Meso and Smit are with the team again for the tour of West Indies, while Naidu has been dropped. Bosch has also not recovered in time for the tour. While Mashimbyi has not been afraid to turn to youth in his short time as coach thus far, he has also not ruled out calling on South Africa's eighth-most-experienced player in the 50-over format. Former captain Dané van Niekerk made a u-turn on her international retirement in 2024 and was aiming to make a return to the international stage at the World Cup in September. That looks unlikely at this stage but not out of the realm of possibility, according to Mashimbyi. 'We are not in a position to say that she can make it or not,' he said. 'Anything can happen. In terms of her being in the plans, I've had a chat with her in February about the things that we require for her to put her name back into the hat. 'I'm going to have to have a follow-up chat with her regarding what she thinks going forward. 'In terms of that, she was not in the plans initially, but you can never count anybody out. When the opportunity presents itself and she's the one that's available to make the team, or she's fit enough, or she's where she needs to be… we can't control that.' Youngster Smit and Suné Luus are currently the two top-order batters who bowl spin in the squad. Neither has made the position completely her own, however. Smit is only two matches into her international career and Luus hasn't scored a half-century in the format since September 2023. 'These tours are not casting [any names] in stone,' Mashimbyi said. 'It's to create depth and to see what other players can do. 'I'll never count a player out. Everybody in domestic cricket, who has done well, is still eligible to play in the upcoming World Cups.' Van Niekerk has a batting average of 36.25 and a bowling average of 19.14, with 138 scalps with her legbreaks, in international cricket. She was in solid form for Western Province Women as well in the past season, scoring a 64-ball century against South Western Districts Women in a T20 clash, which was her second-last match of the season. DM
Indian Express
16 hours ago
- Sport
- Indian Express
When Harbhajan Singh's daughter asked Kohli why he retired from Tests: ‘Virat's heart also sank…'
Virat Kohli's Test retirement was met with tributes and, in some cases, a sense of disbelief. The latter seemed to be the case for Kohli's longtime former India teammate Harbhajan Singh. 'Why Retired?' was his first post on X after Kohli's announcement on May 12 before he wrote a longer post in tribute to the latter's career. Harbhajan has now revealed that his daughter also asked Kohli why he took the step leading to a rather emotional response from the former India captain. 'I tweeted and asked why, Virat why? Why did you retire from Test cricket? Even my daughter asked me, 'Papa, why did Virat retire?' She even texted Virat asking, 'This is Hinaya, Virat, why did you retire?' Virat's heart also sank. He smiled and replied, 'Beta, it's time,'' Harbhajan told Instant Bollywood. Kohli retired as India's fourth-highest run scorer in Test cricket, having scored 9230 runs at an average of 46.85 in 123 matches. He scored 30 centuries and 31 half-centuries. His annual average never dipped below 55 in the four years between 2016 and 2019. Additionally his calendar year average at the end of 2016 and 2017 were both above 75. 'As I step away from this format, it's not easy — but it feels right. I've given it everything I had, and it's given me back so much more than I could've hoped for,' said Kohli in a statement that he put up on his Instagram handle. 'I'm walking away with a heart full of gratitude — for the game, for the people I shared the field with, and for every single person who made me feel seen along the way. I'll always look back at my Test career with a smile. #269, signing off,' he said. Kohli will now be playing only ODIs for India, having retired from T20Is after winning the 2024 T20 World Cup. Before that, though, his focus will solely be on trying to win a first Indian Premier League title with Royal Challengers Bengaluru. The side face the Punjab Kings in Qualifier 1 on Thursday, having finished second in the league table. Kohli himself has been in incredible form, sitting fifth on the Orange Cap table going into the playoffs with 602 runs in 13 matches at a strike rate of 147.91 and average of 60.20 and scoring eight half-centuries.
India Today
17 hours ago
- Sport
- India Today
BCCI announces schedule for India Women's home ODI series vs Australia
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the schedule for India Women's three-match ODI series against Australia. The matches will be held on September 14, 17, and 20 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. This series is part of both teams' preparations for the Women's ODI World Cup later this returns to hosting a Women's ODI for the first time since March 2007, when India, New Zealand, England, and Australia competed in a quadrangular series. More recently, the venue hosted a three-match T20I series and a one-off Test between India and South Africa last have had a strong year so far in the 50-over format. After defeating Ireland at home in January, the Women in Blue went on to win the tri-series in Sri Lanka, beating the hosts in the final. Pratika Rawal has been a standout performer, becoming the fastest woman to reach 500 ODI runs. India have also introduced several new faces to their ODI setup. All-rounder Kashvee Gautam, left-arm spinners Sree Charani and Shuchi Upadhyay, and fast bowler Kranti Goud made their debuts during the Sri Lanka tri-series. Since the T20 World Cup held last year in the UAE, eight other players - including Tejal Hasabnis and Titas Sadhu - have also earned their ODI up, Harmanpreet Kaur's team will tour England in June and July, playing five T20Is followed by three ODIs. Shafali Verma returns to the national side after being selected for the T20I squad, while Sneh Rana is back in T20Is for the first time in two years, following her Player of the Series performance in Sri the schedule for India Women's home ODI series against Australiaadvertisement1st ODI, September 14 - India vs Australia - Chennai (1:30 PM IST)2nd ODI, September 17 - India vs Australia - Chennai (1:30 PM IST)3rd ODI, September 20 - India vs Australia - Chennai (1:30 PM IST)
Indian Express
19 hours ago
- Sport
- Indian Express
What is Virat Kohli's Playoffs batting record ahead of PBKS vs RCB IPL 2025 Qualifier 1 match?
Virat Kohli will undoubtedly be the point of focus when Royal Challengers Bengaluru step out to bat against the Punjab Kings in the IPL 2025 Qualifier 1 match at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, Chandigarh on Thursday. The 36-year-old Kohli has been part of heartbreaks aplenty in RCB colours over the years and was a part of three IPL finals with the franchise, losing on all three accounts. Since the IPL Playoffs system was introduced, Kohli and RCB have played in two finals in 2011 and 2016, reaching the finals in both editions after winning the Qualifier 1 matches. However, Kohli and RCB have held a mixed record in the Playoffs stages of the IPL over the years. Despite announcing his retirement from T20I cricket last year after winning the T20 World Cup in the Americas, Kohli has been in supreme touch this IPL 2025 season. The former India captain has consistently been in the top five for the Orange Cap race and aggregates 602 runs in 13 matches, averaging 60.20 at a 147.91 strike rate. This is the fifth edition where the league's highest-ever run-scorer has notched up at least 600 runs, following the 2013 and 2016 seasons behind successive editions in 2023 and 2024. Kohli has racked up eight fifties this season, his best haul for any IPL edition since debut in 2008, the fifty-plus scores count was only bettered during his record-breaking season in 2016, with four centuries and seven half-centuries. Kohli has been on a superb run away from home too, notching up a fifty in every designated away game in 2025. However, RCB's star batter has not been at his belligerent best in the Playoffs stage over the years. In 15 previous IPL Playoffs appearances, Kohli has only scored 341 runs. Kohli averages 26.23 in these games and has a lowly 121.78 strike-rate while posting a fifty in two innings. Virat Kohli batting record in IPL Playoffs matches
