Roelof van der Merwe has left Somerset by mutual consent after agreeing an early exit from his contract, bringing a long association with the county to an end. Van der Merwe first played for Somerset in 2011 as an overseas player, then returned as a local in 2016 after switching national allegiance from South Africa … Read more
Virat Kohli cut through the tension in a yet another crucial chase to confirm India’s spot in the final of the 2025 Champions Trophy. His 84 off 98 in Dubai helped them chase down 265 against ODI World Cup holders, Australia, on a tricky pitch. “This game is all about pressure, especially big games like … Read more
India 267 for 6 (Kohli 84, Iyer 45, Rahul 42*, Ellis 2-49, Zampa 2-60) beat Australia 264 (Smith 73, Carey 61, Shami 3-48, Jadeja 2-40, Varun 2-49) by five wickets Dubai will host the final of the Champions Trophy, and India will be in it, after proving their edge over a weakened Australia side in … Read more
Salman Ali Agha has promised to deliver a brand of “fearless cricket” as he becomes the fourth different T20I captain for Pakistan since January 2024. Agha replaced Mohammad Rizwan as T20I captain for the upcoming white-ball tour to New Zealand, the latest in a revolving door of captains that has seen Shaheen Shah Afridi and … Read more
Big picture: Run fest awaits SA, NZ Here we are again. South Africa and New Zealand, arguably the two best sides to have never won a World Cup, meet in a knockout match. Both have had their hands on this trophy all the way back when it was called the ICC Knockout and possibly meant … Read more
2.1 Shami to Connolly: wide outside off, Connolly drives over the top of it…142kph 2.2 Shami to Connolly: plays and misses again! Connolly looking to drive, beaten on the inside edge this time as it angles back 2.3 Shami to Connolly: 1 wide 140kph, short and wide, Connolly slashes and misses with a square cut … Read more
Pakistan have shuffled the deck chairs once more in an attempt to find the right T20 combination, dropping captain Mohammad Rizwan as well as Babar Azam for the five-match series in New Zealand. In the first squad announced since Pakistan’s ignominious exit from a home Champions Trophy, there are several changes, including the return of … Read more
ESPNcricinfo, in collaboration with NEXA, is thrilled to introduce ESPNcricinfo CricCaster Powered by NEXA – a first-of-its-kind fan-driven initiative that gives cricket lovers the chance to be part of ESPNcricinfo’s T20 Time Out. This isn’t just a contest; it’s your ticket to cricketing stardom! How to participate? Cricket fans are invited to showcase their raw … Read more
George Linde, the left-arm spin bowling allrounder, will join the South African squad as a traveling reserve as cover for Aiden Markram at the Champions Trophy. Markram injured his right hamstring in the field against England and spent the rest of the match on the sidelines. He will undergo a fitness test at training on … Read more
Cameron Green is unlikely to play any Sheffield Shield cricket before his County Championship stint with Gloucestershire as he continues to recover from back surgery. Speaking at the Australian Cricket Awards last month Green had flagged that his recovery was on track to have him available for Western Australia’s final Shield match against Victoria on … Read more
The important thing is that the golf has been played. Australia had arrived in Dubai not knowing whether they would be staying in Dubai, or heading to Lahore for the second semi-final in the Champions Trophy. Players on the Australia team, however, had taken every chance they could to get a round in. … Read more
Nazmul Abedeen Fahim, the BCB director, has given his endorsement for Phil Simmons to continue in his role as Bangladesh head coach, beyond the Champions Trophy. Fahim said the board will sit for official talks with Simmons soon, and hope to get him into the role on a long-term basis. Simmons’ extension was one … Read more
South Africa have taken an 18-hour stopover in Dubai between matches in Pakistan in their stride and used the opportunity to “get out and walk and have some nice steak” between the end of the Champions Trophy group stage and their semi-final against New Zealand on Wednesday. They are one of two teams, … Read more
Padmakar Shivalkar, the champion left-arm spinner who is counted among the greatest Indian cricketers to never play for India, has died at the age of 84. He died in Mumbai on Monday and is survived by his wife, son and daughter. Shivalkar is often twinned with the Haryana left-arm spinner Rajinder Goel – the … Read more
It did not take Jos Buttler long to recognise that his position as England’s white-ball captain was untenable. He spoke like a man who knew his time was up after their defeat to Afghanistan in Lahore on Wednesday, and within 24 hours had told Brendon McCullum that it was game over. Saturday’s thrashing by … Read more
Big picture: Australia have denied India before “[T]here’s nothing more satisfying than hearing a big crowd go silent.” Pat Cummins won’t be in Dubai on Tuesday, but the words he spoke on November 18, 2023, will be. The players may not themselves be thinking about them, but viewers around the world quite … Read more
Toss UP Warriorz chose to bowl vs Gujarat Giants The coin fell in Deepti Sharma’s favour on Lucknow’s WPL debut and UP Warriorz had little hesitation in bowling first against Gujarat Giants. This is the first time the Ekana Stadium is hosting a game in this competition. It is the official home of the … Read more
Playing only his second ODI, Varun took 5 for 42 in ten overs against New Zealand as India defended their total of 249 by 44 runs. He had not played the first two group games against Bangladesh and Pakistan, but replaced Harshit Rana for the third one. “He [Varun] just showed what he is … Read more
Zak Foulkes, the 22-year-old New Zealand fast bowler, has joined Durham for their T20 Blast campaign. Foulkes has made eight international white-ball appearances to date, having made his debut in April 2024. As a tall right-arm seamer, who hits the deck hard, seven of those have come in T20Is, in which he has … Read more
Sophie Luff has been named as Somerset Women’s first professional captain, for the inaugural season of the new Women’s County competition. Luff, 31, played for Somerset’s age groups before making her debut for the senior women’s team in 2009. She has featured in 74 List A matches for the club, scoring 2330 runs at … Read more
Of the four teams remaining in the Champions Trophy 2025, Australia have travelled to three of the tournament’s four venues, while New Zealand have travelled to all four. South Africa, even though they did not play in Dubai, have been to Dubai to potentially prepare for a semi-final against India that never materialised and are … Read more
James Anderson wants to play in the Hundred this summer and has registered his name for next week’s draft, ESPNcricinfo has learned. Anderson has not played professionally since his final Test appearance against West Indies last July and has been working for England as a consultant coach this winter, including at the Champions Trophy. But … Read more
Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have named Ajinkya Rahane as their captain for IPL 2025. Venkatesh Iyer has been named vice-captain. Rahane was bought by the team at his base price of INR 1.5 crore at the IPL mega auction in November last year. Iyer, after not being retained by KKR, was bought back … Read more
Varun Chakravarthy, who replaced Harshit Rana for India’s final group game in the Champions Trophy, put in a performance that will leave the team management with a difficult decision come the semi-final against Australia. Playing just his second ODI, Varun returned figures of 5 for 42 to help India notch a 44-run win against New … Read more
“Sir, basically the ball goes inside, outside and goes straight. So, you can keep it that way but there are minute changes that you can do with that also.” Right at the end of a press conference a journalist understandably asks Varun Chakravarthy how many variations he has. The man ain’t having it. You can … Read more
Thirty youngsters, part of the state under-14s and under-16s, had been flown into Nagpur by the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) in anticipation of Sachin Baby’s team creating history by winning their maiden Ranji Trophy title. While they didn’t see their illustrious seniors win Indian domestic cricket’s biggest prize, some of them clicked pictures with the … Read more
Cooper Connolly has been called into Australia’s Champions Trophy squad after Matt Short was ruled out through injury as they prepare for what could be a trial by spin in their semi-final against India. Short picked up a quad injury against Afghanistan and would not have had time to recover for the knockout matches. Connolly, … Read more
India 249 for 9 (Iyer 79, Axar 42, Henry 5-42) beat New Zealand 205 (Williamson 81, Varun 5-42) by 44 runs India spun a web around New Zealand to defend 249 for their sixth straight win against what has been a bogey team for them in recent times. They added Varun Chakravarthy to the three … Read more
Due to tangled scheduling, both Australia and South Africa had already flown to Dubai, with an ICC official saying the decision had been taken to allow the side that plays the semi-final in Dubai (Australia in this case) on March 4 the maximum time to prepare for that contest. However, it means South Africa find … Read more
Who’s playing UP Warriorz vs Gujarat GiantsEkana Stadium, Lucknow, 7.30pm IST What to expect: Little room for error UP Warriorz and Gujarat Giants enter a crucial phase of the tournament with little room for error as the playoffs race heats up. Warriorz are set to play their first home game across seasons with Lucknow hosting … Read more