Dilip Vengsarkar criticizes the pitch at the Sydney Cricket Ground for being excessively seamer-friendly during the final Test of the BGT. He urges the ICC to take control of Test match pitches to ensure good quality cricket for fans, highlighting how pitches can heavily influence match outcomes.
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The ICC Champions Trophy returns in 2025, with high hopes from the Indian cricket team. Irfan Pathan praises the team’s settled squad and promising young players. The event, starting February 19, will be played in India and Dubai. India and Pakistan are set to clash on February 23. The final is scheduled for March 9.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced a full ticket refund policy for two abandoned Champions Trophy matches in Rawalpindi. Matches on February 25 and February 27 were canceled due to rain. Eligible ticket holders can claim refunds at select TCS outlets between March 10-14. Hospitality ticket holders are excluded from refunds.
Zimbabwe pulled off a thrilling last-ball victory against Afghanistan in the first T20I, chasing down 145 with four wickets to spare. Tashinga Musekiwa's heroics in the final over sealed the win. Brian Bennett (49) and Dion Myers (32) laid the foundation with a 75-run partnership, while Karim Janat's unbeaten 54 for Afghanistan went in vain.
Indian captain Rohit Sharma has been dropped from the playing XI for the Sydney Test against Australia due to poor form. Jasprit Bumrah will lead, aiming to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The team is expected to sees changes with KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal opening, and potential debut for pacer Prasidh Krishna.
Sujan Mukherjee, the pitch curator of Eden Gardens, clarified that no Kolkata Knight Riders official requested specific pitch requirements for their match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Mukherjee emphasised he maintains good relations with KKR and prepared the pitch following BCCI guidelines. Despite initial criticism, he maintains that he never denied any request from the team.
Sunrisers Eastern Cape face MI Cape Town in the SA20 Season 3 opener at St George’s Park, with a sold-out crowd expected. Key players include Ottneil Baartman, Marco Jansen, Aiden Markram, and Tristan Stubbs for the Sunrisers, while MI Cape Town's squad features Trent Boult, Kagiso Rabada, and Reeza Hendricks. The match promises high energy and entertainment.
Kolkata Knight Riders face Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the 2025 IPL opener at Eden Gardens. RCB's solid batting and new captain Rajat Patidar's leadership face the challenge of KKR's strong core and spin strength with Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine. Virat Kohli remains RCB's X-factor.
Shubman Gill's unbeaten 101 guided India to an easy six-wicket win over Bangladesh in their Champions Trophy opener. Gill described the knock as one of his most satisfying and acknowledged the importance of staying till the end to secure the victory.
During the second Test in Adelaide, a floodlight malfunction twice interrupted play. Nathan Lyon clarified he inadvertently caused the outage while requesting lights for net practice. Australia ultimately won that match, leveling the series 1-1. Rain washed out the first day of the third Test.
Josh Inglis scored 102 off 94 balls on his Test debut against Sri Lanka, achieving the second-fastest century on debut in cricket history. Usman Khawaja and Steve Smith also reached milestones with scores of 232 and 141, respectively. Inglis continued a Western Australian trend of debut centuries in Test cricket, following Adam Voges, Shaun Marsh, and Marcus North.