Tag: cricket news

24Mar By source belowNo Comments

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CSK vs MI: Super Kings return to familiar ploy as trio of tweakers take down Mumbai

Chennai Super Kings’ plan to fall back on the spin formula works as Noor Ahmad’s 4/18 chokes Mumbai Indians on way to 4-wicket winWith Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra and Rahul Tripathi in the squad, Chennai had a decision to make regarding their openers. With Tripathi mostly batting at No.3 in the past, it looked Rachin and Ruturaj Gaikwad would be the opening pair. But coming out for the chase of 156, Chennai sprung a surprise, as Tripathi walked out with Rachin – the pair were the preferred choice in the practice matches with Gaikwad dropped to No 3. It was a bold call, for the right-hander is known to get off the blocks slowly. Coming out in the second over after Tripathi’s dismissal, it was Gaikwad who took the limelight with his crisp shots as Rachin struggled with his timing. Sto...

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22Mar By source belowNo Comments

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Saliva or not, IPL will remain ‘six fest’ if ground realities don’t change

It is that time of the year when bowlers have second thoughts about their career choice. If IPL can give false confidence to batsmen about their abilities, it can also shatter the conviction of bowlers, get them social media abuse and give lifelong trauma. This season the BCCI has allowed bowlers, cricket’s marginalized lot, to use saliva to shine the ball and in case of heavy dew in the second innings provide them a dry old ball. Thanks but no thanks, that’s too little, too late. This can’t be the antidote to cure the bat-ball imbalance in white-ball cricket. Last season, IPL saw an unprecedented 1260 sixes hit by batsmen with varying skill sets. There was one every 13 balls. The season before that, pacer Yash Dayal, on a lifeless Ahmedabad track, was hit for five sixes in an over by Rink...

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21Mar By source belowNo Comments

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KKR fans kickstart IPL season with ‘bewafa sonam’ banter over Phil Salt in rival jersey

‘Hey Phil, how are things on the other side?’ went the Twitter post accompanying a short practice clip of a ball from the Kolkata Knight Riders being flung towards where Royal Challengers Bengaluru were practicing. It was picked specifically by Phil Salt, a former Knight and now RCB muscle, and he used his bat to send it soaring back to the opposite side where KKR trained. The 10-second clip, as Venkatesh Iyer, still a Knight, had no pretensions to absolute cinema, and was in fact not even reeled to any background music. With ambient training day sound, and no real attempt at making it dramatic, it wasn’t gunning for anything much. Except it has set the tone for the season’s theme where former regulars are viewed by fanbases as players who have moved on to the other side. Plenty of ‘Sonam ...

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18Mar By source belowNo Comments

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New Zealand beat Pakistan by 5 wickets to take a 2-0 lead in T20I series

Tim Seifert blasted 45 from 22 balls and Finn Allen hit 38 from 16 as New Zealand cruised to a five-wicket win over Pakistan on Tuesday in a rain-shortened second Twenty20 cricket international.Captain Salman Ali Agha made 46 as Pakistan reached 135-9 in a match reduced to 15 overs per innings after a delay for wet outfield. Shaheen Shan Afridi then bowled a maiden to start New Zealand’s innings. But Seifert and Allen hit seven of the next 12 balls for sixes as New Zealand launched an assault which helped them clinch the match and a 2-0 series lead with 11 balls remaining. Story continues below this ad Seifert and Allen hit five sixes apiece as New Zealand sped towards its target. After the scoreless opening over Allen cleared the boundary on the first, third and sixth bal...

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17Mar By source belowNo Comments

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‘You look at guys like Jasprit Bumrah… Those guys are like gold’: Dale Steyn counts IND bowler as all-in-all package in world cricket

Dale Steyn will not return as Sunrisers Hyderabad’s coaching role in this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL), but the South African former pacer will be keeping an eye on the pacers in this year’s edition of the T20 league. The former pacer, who took 97 wickets in 95 matched in his IPL career and 67 wickets in 47 T20Is apart from having a stellar ODI and Test career, believes that bowlers like Indian and Mumbai Indians pacer Jasprit Bumrah and KG Rabada are the ‘all-in-all package’ in T20 cricket. “The game has changed a lot, honestly, with T20 cricket. And what I mean by that is the way batters approach the game these days. So when I’m looking for bowlers, especially in the (T20) leagues where I do a little bit of coaching, I’m looking for the guys that have got the ability to take wicke...

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16Mar By source belowNo Comments

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‘I will find my process, rhythm as soon as I can’: Karun Nair hopes to carry forward domestic form into IPL for Delhi Capitals

After a fantastic domestic domestic season where he helped Vidarbha win the Ranji Trophy, batter Karun Nair said that he wants to replicate that success and help Delhi Capitals win the Indian Premier League, which is set to start in less than a week. “I am really happy to back at the Delhi Capitals, I am excited to join the side and to play with everyone. I will treat the game as important as the last one. I didn’t change much at all, I just trusted the process and kept it going throughout the tournament and that’s what was planned for this season,” Nair said during an interaction with media. “I will find my process, my rhythm as soon as I can and I will like to start well early and will try to get better as the tournament goes on. The only thing that I have done is playing according to th...

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14Mar By source belowNo Comments

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Ricky Ponting credits Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya for India’s Champions Trophy triumph

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has lauded India’s all-rounders trio of Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Hardik Patel for their “outstanding” performance throughout the 2025 Champions Trophy, which was eventually won by the Rohit Sharma-led team. “Their all-rounders right through the tournament were outstanding,” Ponting said on the latest edition of The ICC Review. “(Ravindra) Jadeja, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, were all outstanding. I said at the start of the tournament I thought India would be really hard to beat because of their overall balance and because of that mix of youth and experience, and once again, in a final, the captain stands up and gets the job done for his team.” Story continues below this ad India’s Ravindra Jadeja hits the winning run against N...

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12Mar By source belowNo Comments

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‘Happy to see him realise his potential’: Dilip Vengsarkar lauds Shreyas Iyer after Champions Trophy triumph

After a roller-coaster year when he won the IPL and was dropped from the BCCI central contracts at the same time, Indian middle order batter Shreyas Iyer played a vital role in the team’s triumphant Champions Trophy campaign. Former India selector Dilip Vengsarkar was all praises for the current Punjab Kings’ captain, saying he has realised his potential. “Iyer did very well but I am not happy the way he got out in the final. He should have continued till the very end and finished the game. But happy to see him realise his potential. KL too played a few important innings at number six but still not convinced Axar Patel batting ahead of him at five. The left-hand right-hand combination could be the only reason,” Vengsarkar said. Iyer also finished second in the batting charts of the Champio...

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12Mar By source belowNo Comments

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WPL 2025: Smriti Mandhana’s RCB spoil Mumbai Indians’ party, Delhi Capitals’ top spot confirmed

Delhi Capitals played their last league match on March 7 in Lucknow, and they will next be in action on Saturday in the final as their top spot was finally confirmed on Tuesday. They had to wait till the last over of the league phase to have confirmation for their place on top of the standings as Mumbai Indians fell short in the run-chase against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Brabourne Stadium. Meg Lanning’s DC have now made it to the final for the third straight season but will come in cold to the title clash because of the skewed schedule. In contrast, MI – should they reach the final – will play four matches in six days. First up, they take on Gujarat Giants in the Eliminator on Thursday. The story of the night in Mumbai was RCB’s batting unit firing collectively as they reached 1...

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10Mar By source belowNo Comments

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Champions Trophy: Virat Kohli headlines six Indians in ICC’s ‘Team of the Tournament’

The talismanic Virat Kohli was the biggest name among six Indian players picked in the 12-member ‘Team of the Tournament’ for the Champions Trophy.India beat New Zealand by four wickets in the final here on Sunday to win the tournament for the third time after 2002 (joint winners) and 2013. India have been runners-up twice in 2000 and 2017. Besides Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul, mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy and pacer Mohammed Shami featured in the playing XI, while all-rounder Axar Patel was named the 12th man. Story continues below this ad The Black Caps have four members of their squad making the team, including Player of the Tournament Rachin Ravindra, with Mitchell Santner being named captain. The much-awaited Champions Trophy Team of the Tou...

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9Mar By source belowNo Comments

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‘Whether it’s Ronaldo, Messi or Djokovic…’: What Ravi Shastri said about Virat Kohli ahead of Champions Trophy final

Former India coach Ravi Shastri hailed Virat Kohli’s energy ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy final against New Zealand, saying that the Indian batsman had the kind of energy that was comparable to some of the top sportspeople in the world. Kohli has 217 runs in this ICC Champions Trophy but Shastri said that it was also his energy on the ground while fielding and his demeanour that was very sport friendly. “You know people (like to) watch sport when they watch a sportsman with energy,” Shastri said to the ICC Review. “Whether his name is (Cristiano) Ronaldo or it’s (Lionel) Messi or whether it’s a (Novak) Djokovic or whether it’s (Rafael) Nadal, that energy that they bring in – there’s a certain kind of charisma and it rubs off on other people. They want to watch this guy play.” Stor...

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9Mar By source belowNo Comments

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WPL 2025: Richa Ghosh, Sneh Rana shine but it’s the hope that kills as RCB’s playoff bid ends

Batting on 61 off 29, in the middle of the 16th over, Richa Ghosh took count of the fielding changes, then took a couple of deep breaths, calming herself down. Next ball, as Chinelle Henry strayed down the leg side, Ghosh just casually flicked the ball, and deposited it over the fence. RCB’s hopes of staying alive depended on her capable shoulders carrying the load of a mega run-chase. Next over, however, when Deepti Sharma bowled one in her arc, her eyes lit up and she went for another big heave over midwicket. But, this time, Henry was waiting. In a tournament where their catching was forgettable for the most part, the West Indies allrounder grabbed the ball cleanly and fell on her back, arms spread across in joy – and relief. Even though Sneh Rana smashed the first five balls she faced ...

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8Mar By source belowNo Comments

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Will Young on Champions Trophy final vs India: ‘It is cool to be trying to achieve the same thing 25 years late’

New Zealand opener Will Young said the Mitchell Santner-led team is eager to repeat what Stephen Fleming’s side has achieved 25-years-ago. In 2000, New Zealand had defeated India by four wickets to win their first ICC title. “There were some iconic names in that squad and those are the ones plenty of guys in this squad looked up to back in the day,” Will Young told ICC. “It is cool to be trying to achieve the same thing 25 years later. Story continues below this ad “I was eight years old at the time and just starting to fall in love with the game. “I am well aware of New Zealand’s exploits in that tournament and it was fantastic to see them win. “I’m thinking back to before we boarded the plane to come over here, we had an unveiling of the Champions Trophy squad. Scott S...

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5Mar By source belowNo Comments

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ICC Champions Trophy: Why India should be wary of New Zealand in the final

In Sunday’s ICC Champions Trophy final, India will face New Zealand, a side that will give them a stiff challenge. Having already played India at the venue last Sunday, New Zealand know what to expect in terms of conditions, which South Africa wouldn’t have had, if they had made it. The Indian Express takes a look at the reasons that make New Zealand a strong side to overcome in the final. Spin in the tale If there is any team in the Champions Trophy that could match or come close to India in terms of spin bowling resources, it is the Kiwis. Led by left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner, they have three other spin bowling options in Michael Bracewell, Glenn Phillips and Rachin Ravindra. So in terms of variety in the spin department, they have their bases covered. In their group match, India cam...

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5Mar By source belowNo Comments

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‘Not buying into it’: Steve Smith dismisses theory that India had edge because of playing all games in Dubai

Did the Indian cricket team have an unfair advantage at the ongoing Champions Trophy? The are after all the only team to play all their games at the same venue in Dubai while the rest of the countries had to play theirs at multiple venues in Pakistan besides a game in Dubai against India? Australian stand-in skipper Steve Smith does not think so, disagreeing with some pundits and players who have voiced their concerns about the hybrid model. After Smith’s team lost to India by four wickets in the semi-finals on Tuesday at the Dubai International Stadium, the stand-in skipper conceded that they had been “outplayed” by a superior team. “I’m not buying into it (India’s familiarity with pitch and condition). India obviously played some really good cricket here. The surface kind of suits their...

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5Mar By source belowNo Comments

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ICC Champions Trophy: Amidst speculation about his future, Virat Kohli shows what makes him a chase-master in ODIs

Where would India be without Virat Kohli in this ICC Champions Trophy? As they got one step closer to becoming the most successful team in the tournament’s history, for the second time in this edition, Kohli mastered a chase.Unlike the game against Pakistan where he remained unbeaten on 100, there was no century to show against Australia in Tuesday’s semi-final. But his 84 was an innings that sent a strong reminder to the world that Kohli isn’t going anywhere for now. If anything, with such knocks under pressure in the most challenging of conditions, he seems to be indicating a second wind in his career. Truth be told, Kohli looked all over the place in the first game against Bangladesh, who were able to pin him to the crease. After that knock, he trained for extra hours at the nets, facin...

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4Mar By source belowNo Comments

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It’s been a different Varun Chakravarthy since he has come back to international cricket: Suryakumar Yadav

India’s T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav on Tuesday said mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy has been a different player since his comeback to international cricket, for he has become mentally tougher and plays with a smile on his face.Chakravarthy returned excellent figures of 5/42 in India’s convincing victory over New Zealand in Dubai on Sunday, which helped the team to top their group on way to the semifinals of the tournament. “The way he left in 2021 and the way he has come back, there are two different Varun Chakravarthys,” Suryakumar, the brand ambassador of Moha, told the media here at an event. Story continues below this ad “He has become a little tough mentally, yet he is smiling a lot and taking everything in his stride irrespective of what happens on the field whi...

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3Mar By source belowNo Comments

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Champions Trophy: How Shreyas Iyer, Rohit Sharma are the faces of India’s risk management

As pitches in Dubai seem to be getting slower with each outing, all eyes are on the Indian spinners. However, for India to go the distance a lot is riding on the batting unit, which so far has adapted exceptionally to the sort of tracks that have been their biggest undoing in recent times. With a century each to Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli, they have two in-form batsmen in the top three to go with Rohit Sharma to provide rapid starts. In the middle overs where they need to be flexible with their approach against spinners, they have a solid middle-order which includes an enforcer in Shreyas Iyer and two busy players in Axar Patel and KL Rahul before the finishing job is handed over to Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja. This is as good a top 8 as a team could get in these conditions where b...

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3Mar By source belowNo Comments

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Champions Trophy: Pressure will be on both teams, says Rohit Sharma ahead of India’s semifinal clash vs Australia

India skipper Rohit Sharma on Monday said that they are going to approach the semifinal match against Australia just like they did in the last three matches in the Champions Trophy, dismissing that there’s any added pressure. India have a pretty dismal record against the Australians when it comes to ICC knockout encounters with the Men in Blue last defeating the Aussies in the 2011 World Cup quarterfinals. “Look, they are a great opposition to play against. All we had to do is what we have been thinking about the last three games and we have to approach that game in a similar fashion. We understand the opposition and how they play and stuff like that,” Rohit said in the pre-match press conference. “We will expect some nervy times as well in the middle. But that is how the game is being pla...

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3Mar By source belowNo Comments

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From T20 World Cup to ICC Champions Trophy – Varun Chakravarthy’s career comes full circle at the same venue

In November 2021, after a wicketless outing against Scotland in The T20 World Cup here, Varun Chakaravarthy walked away never to be seen in India colours, till October 2024.As he took the field at the venue again on Sunday, he felt nervous. He may have cemented his spot in India’s T20 side on the back of strong showings in the IPL, but in ODIs there have been a lot of doubts – whether he would be able to retain the same mystery, will he be able to bowl impactful spells when batsmen have time to see him off. Through the course of the evening, Varun will go about answering every single one of those questions and also vindicate his inclusion in the squad that came at the expense of a batting talent like Yashasvi Jaiswal. When India’s think tank assembled in January to pick the provisional ...

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2Mar By source belowNo Comments

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IND vs NZ Rollercoaster: Varun slides into direct contention, Phillips takes a stunner & Rohit’s pull needs a rethink

Has Varun Chakravarthy powered himself to earning a spot In the semifinal and maybe beyond? Ravi Shastri roared: “What he’s done is that he has put his hand up now for a spot in the semifinal in the playing XI, because the pitches will be the same, he has been outstanding tonight. Well more headaches for the think-tank and selectors.” With his figures of 5/42, Varun has almost definitely sealed his spot to take on the Aussies in Dubai on Tuesday.Earlier though amidst his flipper and top spinner variations, while aiming at the stumps, there was a tiny slice of luck. And he had Michael Gough to thank. When the English umpire gives a decision on field, rarely has it been overturned in recent times. But he made a rare mistake on Sunday in Dubai when he gave Michael Bracewell out LBW against Va...

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28Feb By source belowNo Comments

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WPL: With majestic bowling and fielding display, Meg Lanning’s Delhi Capitals put together perfect game

There was a nice embrace between Meg Lanning and Shabnim Ismail at the end of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) match in Bengaluru. When Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals met earlier in the season, in the battle of retired international superstars it was the South African pacer who looked sharper and dismissed the DC captain with a peach. But on Friday, Lanning stamped her class, taking down Ismail with an array of boundaries, including a stunning on-drive, as DC went on to beat MI in a one-sided contest to go top of the table. “I’ve played a lot against her and she’s a great competitor I love coming up against her. So yeah, it was nice to get a couple away today,” Lanning said after the match. It was just one of the many things that went her way. The ‘win-toss-win-match’ trend continued a...

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28Feb By source belowNo Comments

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Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott: ‘Every game we go into, I expect us to win’

From losing by 275 runs after allowing them to score 417/6 in a 2015 World Cup game 10 years ago, to having the potential to evict Australia out of the Champions Trophy, Afghanistan has come a long way. This makes Australia-Afghanistan a big-ticket clash, eagerly anticipated despite the rain threat. Afghanistan’s South African British coach Jonathan Trott said the many-time ICC champions were in no position to take the Afghans lightly. Story continues below this ad “It’s all on the line,” Trott told media this week. “Since I’ve been coach we’ve played against Australia three times and we’ve been in the game each of those games, so we should take a lot of confidence from that. “I think certainly what happened in the T20 World Cup, and I say this to the players as well, tha...

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27Feb By source belowNo Comments

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IPL 2025: Kevin Pietersen named Delhi Capitals mentor

Former England captain Kevin Pietersen was named the Delhi Capitals mentor for the IPL 2025 season on Thursday. The 44-year-old Pietersen will be seen in a coaching assignment for the first time in the IPL since last featuring as a player in the league in 2016. “It’s an exciting opportunity to step into this new role as a mentor for the Capitals,” Pietersen said in a DC press release. “And I’m really looking forward to joining the squad, working closely with the boys, and doing everything I can to help us win that ultimate prize.” Pietersen played for three IPL teams across five seasons from 2009, including Delhi (then Daredevils). He also led in 17 matches in the IPL. After leading Royal Challengers Bengaluru briefly in IPL 2009, Pietersen captained Daredevils in 2014 when they finished a...

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27Feb By source belowNo Comments

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Champions Trophy: Rohit Sharma might be rested for New Zealand game

So far, it has been a smooth campaign for India at the Champions Trophy, but ahead of their last group match against New Zealand, they are sweating over the availability of skipper Rohit Sharma. During their match on Sunday, in the early part of Pakistan’s innings, Rohit was seen struggling with his hamstring after a long chase to the boundary. Later on, he even walked off the field for a brief while with Shubman Gill taking charge. But Rohit came back and marshalled his troops before opening the batting with Gill in India’s successful chase. Story continues below this ad However, as India trained on Wednesday after a two-day break, Rohit was the lone frontline batsman not to get into the nets. Instead, he stayed indoors and later on, was seen working with the strength and...

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25Feb By source belowNo Comments

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Champions Trophy controversy: Why ‘advantage India’ criticism from Pat Cummins and Michael Atherton about Dubai pitches is valid

These are still early days of the Champions Trophy, but the prefix ‘neutral venue’ before Dubai for India’s matches is already inviting chuckles. In a tournament hosted by Pakistan, it is India — thanks to the conditions in Dubai — which is feeling more at home, with teams in Group B already sweating at the prospect of playing their semi-finals here on March 4. It’s somewhat akin to suddenly land up in Chennai to play on carefully-curated sluggish tracks that abet Chennai Super Kings. What’s more, here India don’t have any ‘away’ game. With the match between Australia and South Africa washed out at Rawalpindi on Tuesday, the Group B is now wide open with Wednesday’s fixture between England and Afghanistan at Lahore being a knockout clash. Once that happens, the calculators would be out of ...

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