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This IPL Star Deserved Place In India’s T20 World Cup Squad, Sunil Gavaskar’s Blunt Verdict

admin — Fri, 03 May 2024 06:25:22 +0000

A glimpse at India’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad is enough to assert that pace bowling is the team’s biggest weak link. Barring Jasprit Bumrah, India do not have an in-form pacer for the showpiece event while Hardik Pandya performances in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 wouldn’t give fans much confidence either. While there were a number of top players who couldn’t find a place in the team, the legendary Sunil Gavaskar feels T Natarajan was one star who should’ve been picked.

In a chat with India Today, Gavaskar lauded the Natarajan’s performances in the IPL and said that he could’ve been in the team.

“I was thinking more like T Natarajan, the left-arm pacer bowler. He has been bowling extremely well. So, I thought maybe he could have been in the team. But that’s okay. I think the seam bowlers that they have got, they all have experience. So no problem with that,” he said.

While Natarajan’s absence was a shock to many, Hardik Pandya’s retention as vice-captain of the 15-member squad also left a few baffled. The MI captain has scored 197 runs and taken just four wickets in 10 games with his team languishing in ninth spot.

“There’s a big difference playing in the IPL and playing for your country. Playing for your country brings out something different in every player and Hardik Pandya will be a different player,” said Gavaskar on Sports Today.

“He’s had to face a lot of issues in this particular tournament (IPL), he’s handled it quite well. When he goes overseas and has to play for India, I think he will be in a completely different frame of mind.

“And that’s going to be a much more positive frame of mind than maybe what we have seen here in this tournament. So, Hardik Pandya will make a contribution with both bat and ball in this tournament,” added Gavaskar.

Pandya was booed in the initial few IPL matches after he took over the Mumbai Indians captaincy from Rohit Sharma, who has guided the franchise to five titles.

Gavaskar also felt, this Indian side has the capability to bring back the World Cup.

“They are title contenders, without a question. At the international level, sometimes you need a bit of luck and if this Indian team has just that little bit of luck, then I’m very confident that after 2007 (triumph), the T20 World Cup will come back to India.” The former India skipper felt all the players would be perfectly conditioned going into the mega event given that they would have played a lot of cricket in the IPL.

“They’ll go with good rhythm (following the IPL); the bowlers would have bowled a fair bit of overs, the batters will have enough time out in the middle, some of them would have scored 80s, 90s 100s.

“So, clearly, this team will go with that little break… a week break (between the conclusion of IPL and start of the World Cup). With that little break, they will be a little bit refreshed, but at the same time not rusty.” The IPL ends on May 26 while India play their first World Cup match against Ireland in New York on June 5.

With PTI inputs

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KL Rahul Out, 2 Big Names Sent To Reserves: Surprises In India’s T20 World Cup Squad

admin — Tue, 30 Apr 2024 11:15:34 +0000

File photo of KL Rahul© AFP

The India squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024 is here and the 15-member squad was filled with surprise exclusions. KL Rahul was the biggest name to miss out completely as the selectors went for Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant as the specialist wicket-keeper options. In the recent past, Rahul was considered as an option that provides a lot of flexibility to the side as he can open the batting, play as a wicket-keeper and slot in the middle-order too. However, the selectors have opted for two specialist wicket-keepers with Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube potentially playing as the middle-order batting options who can also work as explosive finishers if the situation demands.

Meanwhile, Shubman Gill and Rinku Singh were also not included in the 15-member list. While both cricketers did find a place in the reserves list, it means that they will only make the squad in case of an injury or a change in strategy. Gill has been a top performer for the Indian cricket team in the past one year across formats while Rinku was hailed as the finisher that India longed for due to his sensational form in IPL 2023. However, the emergence of new talents and a shift in team dynamics led to both cricketers missing out on their spot in the squad with the selectors opting for more specialised options.

Both Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan were completely ignored by the selectors after the duo were not awarded central contracts by BCCI. Both cricketers have also not set the stage on fire in the ongoing IPL 2024 and their reluctance to play domestic cricket in the past also did not help their cause.

Coming to the spin department, Kuldeep Yadav was always the preferred option but the return of Yuzvendra Chahal meant that there was no place for the youngster Ravi Bishnoi.

Among the pacers, Jasprit Bumrah was the only name that everyone was sure about and the inclusion of Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh closed the door on other prospects. T Natarajan and Sandeep Sharma were the names that were being discussed but the duo did not even find a place in the reverses. Avesh Khan and Khaleel Ahmed were included in the 5-member reserve squad.

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India’s 15-Member Squad For T20 World Cup Based On IPL 2024 Performances

admin — Sun, 28 Apr 2024 15:23:25 +0000

Openers: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Abhishek Sharma, Rohit Sharma

Ruturaj has assumed the position of CSK skipper with complete ease and with 349 runs from 8 matches, the right-hander is looking in supreme form. He has already scored a century in the tournament this year and his strike rate of 142.44 shows that he is capable of accelerating at the right time.

India skipper Rohit Sharma has also shown flashes of good form and with 311 runs in 9 matches, his aggressive approach has turned into an asset for his side. The third option is clearly Abhishek Sharma – the left-hander who has set IPL 2024 on fire with his explosive batting.

With 288 runs in 8 matches with a strike rate of 218, Abhishek basically picks himself in the squad and his knack of hitting boundaries almost every 3 balls makes him the perfect pick alongside Rohit and Ruturaj.

Batters: Virat Kohli, Riyan Parag, Shivam Dube

There can be no India squad without Virat Kohli and although the chatter over strike rate has dominated headlines, it cannot be ignored that he is the highest run-scorer in IPL 2024. Along with Kohli, the two batters who have impressed massively are Rajasthan Royals’ Riyan Parag and Chennai Super Kings’ Shivam Dube. Both are explosive middle-order choices for the Indian cricket team and if the situation arises, both Dube and Parag are capable of providing some valuable overs of spin for the team.

Wicket-keepers: Sanju Samson, KL Rahul

The wicket-keeping position is one that was heavily contested but KL Rahul and Sanju Samson are just ahead of other major contenders like Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik. Rahul has scored 378 runs in 9 matches and his presence in the side offers a lot of flexibility as he can be used as an opener, a wicket-keeper batter or even a specialist middle-order batter. On the other hand, Sanju has looked in sublime form and the RR skipper has slammed 385 runs with four half-centuries in 9 matches.

All-rounders: Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel

Axar Patel has been quite effective for Delhi Capitals but due to the lackluster form of the side, his contributions have flown slightly under the radar. With the ball, he picked up 7 wickets at an economy rate of 7.36 and also scored 134 runs at a strike rate of 135.35. A similar situation has happened with Ravindra Jadeja who has batted at No. 4 on several occasions and provided several crucial breakthroughs.

Bowlers: Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Sandeep Sharma, T Natarajan

Chahal and Kuldeep have taken 25 wickets between them and the ‘Kul-Cha’ partnership is looking like the best specialist spin duo for India in T20 World Cup. In the pace department, there can be no debates on Jasprit Bumrah as the pacer is the leading wicket-taker in IPL 2024 right now with 14 scalps.

Sandeep Sharma has been a revelation with 8 wickets and an impressive economy rate while Sunrisers Hyderabad’s T Natarajan can be the perfect left-arm pace option. With 12 wickets from 6 matches, he has impressed with his performances and his economy rate of 8.70 can be a major asset.

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DC vs SRH, IPL 2024: Travis Head, T Natarajan Star In SunRisers Hyderabad’s Big Win Over Delhi Capitals

admin — Sat, 20 Apr 2024 17:54:54 +0000

Rishabh Pant’s emotional homecoming didn’t pan out into a dream script as Sunrisers Hyderabad adhered to their season’s template by out-batting Delhi Capitals in a 67-run win in an IPL match to consolidate their position in the league table on Saturday. It was Travis Head’s 32-ball-89 and his carnage in unison with Abhishek Sharma (46 off 12 balls) that ensured another match-winning total of 266 for 7 for SRH in their 20 overs. A record Powerplay score of 125/0 gave SRH the base and at one point, the first-ever 300-plus total in IPL looked a distinct possibility.

In reply, Jake-Fraser McGurk’s equally aggressive and attractive 18-ball-65 raised visions of an improbable win as he added 84 runs for the third wicket along with Abhishek Porel (42 off 22 balls) in just five overs.

Once Fraser-McGurk was gone, DC went off the boil and they were all-out for 199 in 19.1 overs.

T Natarajan’s superb use of slower bouncers and figures of 4 for 19 went a long way to ensure that SRH are now second behind Rajasthan Royals (12 points) in the points table with 10 points.

Pant, himself, wasn’t in his element as he could hardly get his timing right en route a painstaking 44 off 35 balls which did more harm than good to DC’s cause.

When DC started the chase, Prithvi Shaw (16 off 5 balls) hit an out of rhythm Washington Sundar for four boundaries before a soft dismissal to set the tone for McGurk to tee off in an unbelievable fashion.

With minimal footwork, stable base and no pre-determined positioning while executing his shots, the rookie Aussie, who has been a last minute replacement, hit a 15-ball-50 but that wasn’t enough in the end as the home team slowly but surely slipped out of qualification zone.

Earlier, on a shirtfront of a track, Pant’s decision to bowl first could be debated for the longest time to come as an IPL record Powerplay score of 125 set the tone for a big total.

The Capitals were hit by a tornado named Head and cyclone called Abhishek, who added 131 in little over six overs, raising visions of IPL’s first-ever 300-run total as Head, followed up his hundred in the last match against RCB, with a scintillating 89.

He had Abhishek matching his tempo with a 46 with both the openers helping themselves to half a dozen sixes.

Khaleel Ahmed, the left-arm seamer, whose career has been dogged by inconsistency, helped Sunrisers in getting a ‘Head start’ as the short balls were summarily dispatched over deep mid-wicket for sixes with 19 coming off the first over.

On a track, where it required them to pitch it on a fuller length, Delhi pacers bowled short as Head and Abhishek would just stand deep in their crease and make merry.

More so his decision to give the second over to Lalit Yadav, whose off-breaks in Delhi cricket circuit is jokingly referred as “right-arm nothing” was even more contentious.

Head and Abhishek both sent all the bowlers on a leather-hunt. The normally brave Kuldeep Yadav (4/55 in 4 overs), started by giving the ball air but Abhishek carted him into the Kotla stands repeatedly, forcing him to adopt a flatter trajectory.

It paid dividends as he dismissed Abhishek, Aiden Markram and Head in successive overs while Axar Patel (1/29 in 4 overs) stood tall amid ruins with the best economy rate.

His dismissal of Heinrich Klaasen (15) also ensured that 30,000 viewers at the Kotla didn’t get to witness a 300-plus total.

Kuldeep had the highest number of dot balls (8) among Delhi bowlers but he also conceded the maximum numbers of ‘maximums’ –7, a rare contrasting double by a bowler in the same match.

Towards the later half, Shahbaz Ahmed (59 not out off 29 balls) also got a fifty but his innings was paled in comparison to the heavy artillery fired by Head and Abhishek upfront.

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“You Have To Be Unpredictable As A Bowler”: SRH Pacer Jaydev Unadkat

admin — Sat, 06 Apr 2024 05:50:29 +0000

Following his side’s 6-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) pacer Jaydev Unadkat said that bowlers have to be “unpredictable” in terms of their lines and pace. Unadkat picked up one wicket and gave away 29 runs at an economy rate of 7.20 during his four-over spell against CSK on Friday. The 32-year-old pacer dismissed CSK’s Ajinkya Rahane for 35 runs in the 15th over of the match in Hyderabad.

At the post-match press conference, Unadkat said that slow balls were sticking into the pitch at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium and added that it was about adapting to the conditions.

“I think from what we have seen so far both the wickets where the slow balls were sticking into the pitch and It’s about adapting to the conditions. I think the conditions were suitable for those sorts of deliveries… as a bowler, you have got to be unpredictable in terms of lines and pace,” Unadkat said.

Recapping the match, SRH won the toss and opted to bowl first. Rachin Ravindra (12) and skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad (26 in 21 balls, with three fours and a six) got out early, reducing CSK to 54/2 in 7.1 overs.

Then knocks from Shivam Dube (45 in 24 balls, with two fours and four boundaries), Ravindra Jadeja (31 in 23 balls, with fours boundaries) and Ajinkya Rahane (35 in 30 balls, with two fours and six) took CSK to 165/5 in their 20 overs.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1/28), T Natarajan (1/39), skipper Cummins (1/29) and Jaydev Unadkat (1/29) were among the wickets for SRH.

In the run-chase, Travis Head (31 in 24 balls, with three fours and a six) and Abhishek Sharma (37 in 12 balls, with three fours and four sixes) started off really well, taking SRH to 106 in 9.4 overs. Aiden Markram scored a brilliant half-century (50 in 36 balls, with four boundaries and a six). Heinrich Klaasen (10*) and Nitish Reddy (11*) took SRH to a six-wicket win.

Moeen Ali (2/23) was the pick of the bowlers for CSK. Deepak Chahar and Maheesh Theekshana got a wicket too.

Abhishek’s explosive knock earned him the ‘Player of the Match’ award.

SRH has climbed to the fifth spot with two wins and two losses in four games, giving them four points. With the same win-loss ratio, CSK is at the third spot with four points due to a better run rate.

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Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Mumbai Indians, IPL 2024: Match Preview, Fantasy Picks, Pitch And Weather Reports

admin — Wed, 27 Mar 2024 07:37:31 +0000

Sunrisers Hyderabad will be up against Mumbai Indians in Match 8 of the IPL 2024 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad on Wednesday. Sunrisers Hyderabad have played one match in the series and they are currently ranked seventh on the points table. In comparison, Mumbai Indians have also played one match in the series and they are currently ranked eighth on the points table. Both teams last played against each other in IPL 2023, where Mayank Agarwal scored the highest fantasy points for SRH with 117 match fantasy points while Cameron Green topped the fantasy points leaderboard for MI with 150 match fantasy points.

In the last match played by SRH against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the ongoing season, KKR beat SRH by four runs. The top fantasy player for Hyderabad was Klaasen who scored 97 fantasy points.

In MI’s last match in this series against Gujarat Titans (GT), GT beat MI by six runs. The top fantasy player for Mumbai was Jasprit Bumrah who scored 98 fantasy points.

Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad Pitch Report and Weather Conditions

The pitch at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad is a balanced pitch. The average first-innings score at this venue in the last 20 matches is 166 runs. The pitch at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad, is balanced, with decent assistance for both batters and bowlers. The team winning the toss may decide to bat or bowl depending on the ground conditions.

Weather Report for Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad
The temperature will hover around 32 degrees C and humidity is expected to be around 24%. Winds at a speed of 4.26 m/s are expected.

Pace or Spin?

The venue is suited for both pacers and spinners alike.

Head-to-Head

In the 21 matches played between these two teams, the batters of both teams have earned the most fantasy points for their respective teams so far.

In their last five head-to-head encounters, Mumbai Indians have dominated four times while Sunrisers Hyderabad triumphed on one occasion.

Fantasy Prediction: Top Captain and Vice-Captain Picks

Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah is a right-arm, fast bowler. He spearheads the bowling attack for Mumbai Indians. In his last five IPL matches, Bumrah has taken 13 wickets. In his last match of the current season, Bumrah showcased his brilliance with a spell of 3/14. In the last five IPL matches against this opposition, the right-arm pacer has accounted for eight wickets.

Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma, popularly known as Hitman, is a right-handed, opening batter. In his last five IPL matches, the former skipper of Mumbai Indians has struck 155 runs at an average of 31. In the last IPL game of the current season, Rohit made 43 runs in 29 balls at a powerful strike rate of 148.27. Rohit has a good record against SRH as he has amassed 182 runs in the last five head-to-head games.

T Natarajan

Representing Sunrisers Hyderabad, T Natarajan is a left-arm medium pacer. In his last five IPL matches, Natarajan has picked up five wickets. In the last IPL match versus KKR, Natarajan accounted for three scalps at an economy of eight in his quota of four overs. In his four matches against MI, Natarajan has been successful with just one wicket of Rohit Sharma.

Heinrich Klaasen

The wicket-keeper batter, Heinrich Klaasen is an important player in Hyderabad’s batting line-up. In his last five IPL appearances, Klaasen has made a mammoth 296 runs at an average of 59.2, which includes two fifties and a century. In his last game against Kolkatta Knight Riders, the South African national was the highest run-getter from his team with a 29-ball 63-run knock. However, in his last two matches against Mumbai Indians, Klaasen has managed only 54 runs.

Gerald Coetzee

Another player from South Africa, although donning the Mumbai Indians’ jersey, Gerald Coetzee is a right-arm fast bowler. The 23-year-old made his IPL debut in the last match against Gujarat Titans of the current season. In his allotted four overs, Coetzee scalped the wickets of Azmatullah Omarzai and Rahul Tewatia at a low economy rate of 6.75.

SRH vs MI Fantasy Team Today

Wicket-Keepers: Heinrich Klaasen and Ishan Kishan

Batters: Dewald Brevis, Mayank Agarwal and Rohit Sharma

All-Rounders: Tilak Verma, Hardik Pandya, Marco Jansen and Washington Sundar

Bowlers: Jasprit Bumrah, Gerald Coetzee, T Natarajan and Umran Malik

Captain: Jasprit Bumrah

Vice-Captain: Rohit Sharma

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