Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy LIVE Streaming: Delhi take on Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy 2024/25, in a game that sees the domestic cricket return of two India stalwarts, in the form of Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja. Pant returns to the Ranji circuit after a seven-year absence, but won’t captain Delhi, choosing to play under soon-to-be Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) teammate Ayush Badoni. Jadeja last played Ranji Trophy in January 2023, and will turn out for Saurashtra, under the captaincy of veteran pacer Jaydev Unadkat. Delhi sit fourth in the Elite Group D table, while Saurashtra are sixth.

Here are the LIVE Streaming details for Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy LIVE Telecast: Check Where and How to Watch

When will the Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy match take place?

The Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy match will take place on Thursday, January 23 (IST).

Where will the Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy match be held?

The Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy match will be held at the Niranjan Shah Stadium, Rajkot.

What time will the Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy match start?

The Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy match will start at 9:30 AM IST. The toss will take place at 9:00 AM IST.

Which TV channels will show the live telecast of the Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy match?

The Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy match will not be televised live in India.

Where to follow the live streaming of the Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy match?

The Saurashtra vs Delhi, Ranji Trophy match will be not be live streamed in India.

(All details are as per information provided by the broadcaster)

India captain Rohit Sharma‘s hunger for playing Test cricket might be there but it isn’t being seen in his actions. The skipper produced one of his most woeful performances on an away tour as India succumbed to a 1-3 defeat against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Rohit’s below-par performances with the bat saw him even being benched for the final match in Sydney. While the 37-year-old has maintained that he intends to continue playing Test cricket, former India cricketer Sanjay Bangar wants the commitment to be reflected in his actions.

Rohit has been advised by many, including India coach Gautam Gambhir, to play Ranji Trophy, though there’s no confirmation on the same by him. Bangar, in a chat on Star Sports, reminded Rohit that even the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane – sidelined from India’s Test team – have shown hunger for red-ball cricket by consistently playing the Ranji Trophy.

“When you are 37 years old, every failure hurts because a cricketer is a very proud person. When he sees the kind of performances he’s had in the past but can’t replicate them, and when young players are performing well, these factors weigh heavily on his mind. This might have influenced his decision. He needs to determine whether he still has the hunger to play Test cricket. If he does, that hunger must reflect in his actions,” Bangar said.

“There’s been a lot of talk about playing domestic cricket. Players like Pujara and Rahane, who are on par with Rohit Sharma in stature, have been dropped in the past but have shown their hunger by playing in domestic cricket. Even today, they are sweating it out on domestic grounds, which is a big drop from the intensity of international cricket. Rohit has expressed his desire to continue playing for India and has said,” I am not going anywhere; I still want to play.’ If he follows through and performs in domestic cricket, no one can stop him. But that form and hunger must be evident,” he added.

Bangar also criticised the Indian team management for being reactive and not proactive in the selection of players.

“Nitish Reddy’s unexpected performance put the team in a dilemma. The combination of Nitish Reddy with Washington Sundar or Ravindra Jadeja created confusion. When there is an in-form player, it’s hard to drop him. The team management seemed to react as the series progressed rather than being proactive. On those pitches, decisions should have been made based on the immediate requirements. A more proactive approach could have resulted in better team combinations,” he asserted.

File image of Cheteshwar Pujara.© AFP

Team India in action.© AFP

Veteran cricketer Cheteshwar Pujara reflected on India’s bowling weakness at the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) series and said that they have to take 20 wickets, reported Star Sports. The series is currently tied at 1-1 after India secured a draw in the third Test in Brisbane. The Boxing Day Test will kick off on December 26 at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground. Jasprit Bumrah is the only India pacer who has shined in the ongoing BGT series. Bumrah is currently the highest wicket-taker in the series with 21 wickets at an average of 10.90. He has two fifers and one four-wicket haul in this series after the conclusion of the first three matches.

Speaking exclusively to Star Sports, Pujara said that the Indian bowling attack is looking a little weak at the ongoing BGT series.

“My biggest question and the reason for a little bit of concern is that the Indian bowling is looking a little weak. Batting is a little better, like the top five didn’t do well, but the middle order and lower middle order, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitesh, and even tail enders, Bumrah and Akash Deep contributed with the bat,” Pujara was quoted in a release from Star Sports as saying.

He added that the three seamers are very good but not getting enough support from the other two bowlers.

“Now, there is a weakness in the bowling, so what will you feed the team? That is the biggest question, because you can’t drop Nitish, you can’t drop Jadeja, so what will be the team combination? Ashwin has taken retirement, so two spinners, I don’t think they will play in Melbourne. So, how will you strengthen the bowling? Because the three seamers are very good, but their supporting role, fourth and fifth seamer, Nitish Kumar is the fourth seamer and Ravindra Jadeja is the fifth bowler,” he added.

He further added that the visitors need to bag 20 wickets in a game to win the match.

“If you add both of them together, the bowling is not that good. We will have to think about that, because if you want to win a test match, then you have to take 20 wickets, and the ability to take 20 wickets is not that good, the supporting role of the other bowlers is not good, so we will have to improve that as soon as possible, and how that will be, I don’t know, but that is a big question,” he further added.

India Squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wicket-keeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar.

Australia Squad: Pat Cummins (C), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Travis Head (VC), Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Steve Smith (VC), Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster.

The Indian team in Australia lacks a bowling attack that is good enough to take 20 wickets in a Test, Cheteshwar Pujara said on Monday and called it the side’s biggest concerns heading into the last two matches of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The five-match series is currently levelled at 1-1 with everything to play for in the Tests in Melbourne and Sydney. The visitors have been relying heavily on pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah to get them wickets and while he has been a great success with both the red and pink ball, the peerless fast bowler has not received enough support from the other end, something that has plagued India besides their top-order batting woes.

“My biggest question and the reason for a little bit of concern is that the Indian bowling is looking a little weak,” Pujara told Star Sports.

“Batting is a little better, like the top five didn’t do well, but the middle order and lower middle order, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish (Reddy), and even tailenders, Bumrah and Akash Deep contributed with the bat.

“Now, there is a weakness in the bowling, so what will you feed the team? That is the biggest question, because you can’t drop Nitish, you can’t drop Jadeja, so what will be the team combination?”

Pujara felt that Nitish Reddy and Ravindra Jadeja are not able to do the job of being the side’s fourth and fifth bowler.

“Ashwin has taken retirement, so two spinners, I don’t think they will play in Melbourne. So, how will you strengthen the bowling? Because the three seamers are very good, but their supporting role, fourth and fifth seamer, Nitesh Kumar is the fourth seamer and Ravindra Jadeja is the fifth bowler. If you add both of them together, the bowling is not that good.

“We will have to think about that, because if you want to win a Test match, then you have to take 20 wickets, and the ability to take 20 wickets is not that good, the supporting role of the other bowlers is not good, so we will have to improve that as soon as possible, and how that will be, I don’t know, but that is a big question.”

With the exception of opener KL Rahul, the top-order batting has also been a big letdown so far in the series, and Pujara said it has got to do a lot with their inability to see off Mitchell Starc’s initial spells with the new ball.

“He has been the best bowler for them in this series. And the way Mitchell Starc has played in the last 1-1.5 years, he has brought a lot of improvement. And he has a lot of ability.

“If I talk about my personal experience, when he used to play in the last series in 2018 or 2021, I used to feel that if he plays against me, I will get runs.

“And now, it feels like he will take wickets. So what is the difference? The difference is that his line length, his accuracy has increased a lot. He is bowling very less loose deliveries. He is playing on the stump. Every ball is hitting on the good length spot. He is getting swing.” Starc has so far taken 14 wickets in the series, the most by an Australian bowler and only behind Bumrah across two teams.

Pujara observed, “The change he has brought in his game has made him a different player. And he is looking more dangerous than Cummins and Hazlewood. So we will have to take care of his game, especially from the new games.

“In the first five overs, his first spell, he has taken the most wickets there. So if there is a good batting in the first five overs, bring him for the second or third spell. Because he gets tired. So the batting of the top order so far, our top order has never played in the third or fourth spell.

“The ones who have played are the lower middle order and the tail enders. And there we saw that when Bumrah and Akash were batting, when Mitchell Starc was bowling, he was not that effective. So they will have to play their new game well.”

Veteran batter Cheteshwar Pujara showered praise on seamer Mitchell Starc and said that the 34-year-old has been the “best bowler” for Australia in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) series, reported Star Sports. The series is currently tied at 1-1 after India secured a draw in the third Test in Brisbane. The Boxing Day Test will kick off on December 26 at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground. Starc made his Test debut in 2011 against New Zealand. Following that, the 34-year-old has took part 92 Test matches and 176 innings, picking up 372 wickets at an economy rate of 3.42.

The Aussies pacer has great numbers against India, he picked up 62 wickets after playing 21 Test matches against them.

In the ongoing BGT series, Starc has bagged 14 wickets at an everage of 22.86. He is currently the second highest wicket-taker in the series after Bumrah.

Speaking exclusively to Star Sports, Pujara said that Starc has improved in the last 1.5 years.

“He has been the best bowler for them in this series. And the way Mitchell Starc has played in the last 1-1.5 years, he has brought a lot of improvement. And he has a lot of ability. If I talk about my personal experience, when he used to play in the last series in 2018 or 2021, I used to feel that if he plays against me, I will get runs. And now, when he is playing in this series, it feels like he will take wickets,” Pujara was quoted in a release from Star Sports as saying.

He added that the Aussie pacer has increased his line length and accuracy while bowling.

“So what is the difference? The difference is that his line length, his accuracy has increased a lot. He is bowling very less loose deliveries. He is playing on the stump. Every ball is hitting on the good length spot. He is getting swing. So the change he has brought in his game has made him a different player. And he is looking more dangerous than Cummins and Hazlewood,” he added.

The veteran cricketer further added that Starc gets tired in the later half of the inning which helps the lower batting order to score runs.

“So we will have to take care of his game, especially from the new games. In the first 5 overs, his first spell, he has taken the most wickets there. So if there is a good batting in the first 5 overs, bring him for the 2nd or 3rd spell. Because he gets tired. So the batting of the top order so far, our top order has never played in the 3rd or 4th spell. The ones who have played are the lower middle order and the tail enders. And there we saw that when Bumrah and Akash were batting, when Mitchell Starc was bowling, he was not that effective. So they will have to play their new game well,” he concluded.

Earlier last week, Australia made a couple of changes to its squad, addressing the absence of Josh Hazlewood and concerns in the top order. The hosts have added Beau Webster, Jhye Richardson, and Sam Konstas have been added to the squad before the fourth Test match of the series.

After a mild side strain in the Perth Test which ruled him out of the second Adelaide Test, Hazlewood did return for the third match in Brisbane but faced a calf strain during the warm-up on the fourth day. He bowled one over and left the field for scans which confirmed the serious extent of his injury, ruling him out of the series.

In the first Test at Perth, Hazlewood had taken five wickets, including a four-wicket haul in the first innings. Scott Boland will likely take Hazlewood’s spot in Australia’s playing eleven for the fourth Test, held at the MCG, starting from December 26 onwards.

India Squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wicket-keeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar.

Australia Squad: Pat Cummins (C), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Travis Head (VC), Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Steve Smith (VC), Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster.

Representative image.© AFP

Indian cricket team skipper Rohit Sharma© AFP

After a thrilling encounter at the Gabba in the Brisbane Test against Australia, Team India skipper Rohit Sharma said that there is still chance for players like Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane to make their comeback for the national team in the longest format of the game. The third Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia has ended in a draw after weather continued to make it difficult to push for a result on Wednesday in Brisbane.

Rohit was asked about the Indian cricket team without the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane and Ravichandran Ashwin. It is here that Rohit had a slip of tongue.

“No, no, absolutely [I will miss them around]. Look, he has so much experience, he has won so many matches for India. So, if you want to look to your left or right and these guys are not there. By the way, Ajinkya Rahane hasn’t retired, aap mere ko marwaoge yar [you guys will get me in trouble],” Rohit said in the post-match press conference.

Further, the right-hand batter said that the doors are still open for Cheteswar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane to make a comeback in Tests.

“I am saying as if all three have retired [chuckles]. Pujara too hasn’t announced his retirement. You took the names of all of them together, that’s why I was saying. They are not here right now. But I don’t know, they can still come back, the door is open for them,” the 37-year-old added.

The funnyman Sharma in press conference

pic.twitter.com/2ybRBU4tfs

— (@rushiii_12) December 18, 2024

Pujara and Rahane were the backbone of Indian middle-order batting from the early 2010s to the early 2020s. Pujara represented India in 103 Tests, scoring 7,195 runs at an average of 43.60, with 19 centuries and 35 fifties in 176 innings. His best score is 206*. Pujara has also played five ODIs for India.

Rahane has also played 85 Tests for India, scoring 5,077 runs at an average of 38.46, with 12 centuries and 26 fifties in 144 innings. His best score is 188.

However, since India’s historic win over Australia at The Gabba in Brisbane in January 2021, their statistics have taken a huge nosedive. Since that iconic victory, which also helped India gain an inspirational series win in Australia, Pujara has represented India in 22 Tests further, scoring just 1,084 runs at an underwhelming average of 29.29, with just a century and seven fifties to show in 40 innings.

Rahane has also been disappointing since that famous win in Australia. In his later 16 Tests, he scored just 606 runs at a poor average of 22.44, with just four half-centuries in 27 innings. But Rahane had a great IPL 2023 with CSK, scoring 326 runs in 11 innings at an average of 32.60 and a massive strike rate of 172.48. He also scored two explosive half-centuries. Another IPL season like this could help Rahane stick around slightly longer than Pujara, who last played an IPL match back in 2014.

Pujara has an incredible first-class record. In 258 matches, he has scored 19,812 runs at an average of 52.00, with 61 centuries and 77 half-centuries in 426 innings. His best score is 352.