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‘Disappointing’ – Sangakkara on Sam Curran turning out for Surrey with IPL still on

Published

42 mins ago

2026/05/31

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Sam Curran has returned to competitive cricket at the men's Vitality Blast [Cricinfo]

Sam Curran missed IPL 2026 for Rajasthan Royals (RR) with a groin injury, and Kumar Sangakkara found it “disappointing” when the allrounder turned out for Surrey in the men’s Vitality Blast on May 22 to mark his return to action.

As far as Sangakkara was concerned, England-contracted Curran had a “season-ending injury”, even though the player himself had said at the time of his withdrawal from the IPL – the news became public on March 19 – that he would return “whenever it feels right”.

“We were told that Sam Curran had a season-ending injury, but I think I saw him playing for Surrey for two games or three games now. So that was disappointing,” Sangakkara, RR’s head coach, said at a press conference after RR exited the IPL in Qualifier 2 on Friday. “We would have loved to have had him here playing for us.”

Since Curran, who had been acquired by RR as part of a trade with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) with Ravindra Jadeja in exchange for Sanju Samson, had communicated his inability to play to RR in advance, Dasun Shanaka was brought in as a replacement on March 23, which led to its own set of problems, as Shanaka had to withdraw from his deal with Lahore Qalandars in PSL 2026 to join RR and was banned from the tournament for a year as a result.

Curran, playing as a batter only and scheduled to not bowl in Surrey’s first six Blast fixtures, has played three games so far and is their top run-scorer at this stage with 141 runs from three innings. When he opted out of the IPL, he had said that he had managed the groin problem throughout the T20 World Cup earlier this year. “It’s an injury that I’ve kind of been battling with a little bit,” Curran was quoted as saying in British media. “It has gradually got fractionally worse. I went for a couple of scans and it showed reasonable damage, so I had to make the tough decision. It was hindering me quite a bit.”

The question has come up from time to time when overseas players have chosen not to honour their IPL commitments, and in September 2024, the BCCI announced a two year ban on players who pulled out after being picked at IPL auctions.

“Yeah, I think a proper tight policy around that is always a requirement. The BCCI has a strict policy on that,” Sangakkara said. “Injuries, every person goes through injuries, and if it’s a serious injury, a season ending injury, of course we understand.”

Sangakkara, however, seemed to indicate that injured or not, he would have liked Curran to be around the RR set-up in what would have been his first season with the team.

“We’ve also had players like Adam Milne, Shimron Hetmyer, quite a few who came here and not had much of a game; Lhuan-dre Pretorius is another one, Kwena Maphaka is another one. They’ve been here, they’ve done the hard yards, they’ve practiced, they’ve carried water for the team, and they’ve really worked as hard as anyone else to support the team in this journey,” Sangakkara said.

“It’s really up to that individual player to decide whether they want to come or not, but I think the BCCI policy around it is very strict now, and that’s the way it should continue. It should be very strict to make sure that contractual obligations are met properly and genuinely, and I think every side in the IPL will benefit from that.”

[Cricinfo]

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PSG beat Arsenal to win back-to-back Champions League titles after shootout

Published

1 hour ago

2026/05/31

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Marquinhos of Paris Saint-Germain lifts the UEFA Champions League trophy after victory in the final [Aljazeera]

Paris Saint-Germain held their nerve in a cagey Champions League ⁠final to retain the title by beating Arsenal 4-3 on penalties as Saturday’s nail-biting showdown ended 1-1 after extra time, cementing the French side’s status among Europe’s modern greats.

Arsenal defender Gabriel blasted his spot kick over Matvey Safonov’s crossbar at the Puskas Arena in Budapest, his miss confirming PSG as the first club to retain the trophy since Real Madrid completed their ⁠three-year reign from 2016 to 2018.

Long dismissed as glamorous underachievers despite vast resources, the Ligue 1 champions have now forged a dynasty under Luis Enrique, marrying attacking brilliance with resilience to establish themselves as the dominant force in European football.

“It’s stronger than last year because we knew before the match just how difficult it would be to play against Arsenal,” said Enrique, whose side had ⁠thrashed Inter Milan 5-0 a year ago to claim Europe’s elite trophy for the first time.

“As a club and a city, it’s incredible to win, and I think we deserved it over the course of the season. The final was a real battle,” added the Spanish coach.

The outcome left Arsenal midfielder Declan Rice devastated but proud as his side finished their European campaign without losing a match, aside from the shootout defeat in the final.

“It’s gutting. It’s devastating to lose a Champions League final on penalties,” he said. “But we try to take a lot of perspective from how far we’ve come as a group.

“An incredible season. ‌Given it absolutely everything up until this point. We took the game to penalties. It’s a lottery.”

Eleven days after celebrating their first Premier League title in 22 years, Arsenal looked set for a maiden triumph on Europe’s biggest stage after Kai Havertz’s sixth-minute opener and a first hour spent smothering PSG’s vaunted attack.

However, the final in the Hungarian capital became chaotic, once PSG’s Ousmane Dembele equalised with a penalty in the 65th minute, the pace turning frantic before exhaustion took the match to a shootout.

Under Enrique, PSG have won the six shootouts they have contested, with the 56-year-old winning 12 of the 13 one-off club finals as coach.

After brushing aside Premier League opposition on their way to the final by eliminating Chelsea and Liverpool, PSG were facing a much sterner test against an Arsenal team playing their second Champions League final after losing to Barcelona in 2006.

Mikel Arteta’s side took the ⁠lead when Marquinhos’ clearance bounced off Arsenal’s Leandro Trossard into the path of Havertz, who raced into the box and fired into the roof of ⁠the net.

He is the fourth player to score in two different European Cup or Champions League finals with two different clubs.

It was the nightmare scenario for PSG – trailing so early against the best defence in the competition.

Arsenal lived up to their reputation as the best team without the ball and looked perfectly content with the script, doubling up on Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and suffocating the usual danger posed by the Georgian magician on the left flank.

PSG’s Fabian Ruiz was ⁠unable to impose his usual rhythm in midfield and, despite monopolising possession for long spells, the French side struggled to carve out clear-cut chances.

By half-time, PSG had attacked 32 times, Arsenal three.

Arsenal, however, were flirting with the boundaries with their challenges and Cristhian Mosquera brought down Kvaratskhelia in ⁠the area, with Dembele converting the penalty to equalise with his eighth goal in the competition.

The momentum had shifted.

Jurrien ⁠Timber and Viktor Gyokeres replaced Mosquera and Martin Odegaard. Arsenal had a more attacking mindset but were exposed to PSG’s counter attacks and at the end of one of them, Kvaratskhelia sped into the box, only for his left-footed effort to crash onto the outside of David Raya’s post.

After controlling the tempo in the first half, Arsenal played into PSG’s hands as the pace increased significantly, giving too much space to Kvaratskhelia or Bradley Barcola, who replaced the Georgian winger with ‌seven minutes remaining.

In the 89th minute, PSG came close to giving the final an abrupt end as Vitinha’s shot grazed the top of the net. Barcola also shot over the bar after a counter attack, with what would have been the last kick of the game.

With both teams having run out of steam, extra time was a cautious affair and when referee Daniel Siebert blew his ‌whistle, ‌Arsenal had only managed one shot on target.

Arsenal’s Eberechi Eze missed his penalty before Raya saved Nuno Mendes’ attempt. Gabriel had to score to keep the Gunners’ hopes alive but, facing PSG’s end, he fired over.

The French side were left to celebrate being European champions once again, with extra-time substitute Lucas Beraldo’s goal in the shootout proving to be the winner.

[Aljazeera]

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Home comfort vs championship pedigree as Gujarat Titans and Royal Challengers Bengaluru collide in IPL 2026 final

Published

2 hours ago

2026/05/31

Priyan

Gujarat Titans (GT) will be thrilled to play the IPL final at their home ground in Ahmedabad. Just that they will not be able to get there till deep into the night on Saturday. Thunderstorms in Chandigarh delayed the team from flying out, meaning they wouldn’t even have spent 24 hours in the place where they’ll have to find a way to win an IPL title.

Speaking of which, once upon a time – and for a very long time – IPL finals used to be held at the home venue of the previous year’s champions. So Royal Challengers (RCB) could have been the ones looking forward to a bit of home advantage. But something, somewhere went wrong. And now it is GT who go in with that ace up their sleeve.

And as much as the old rules do not apply to this RCB – not when their batting line-up dovetails so wonderfully, and their new-ball bowlers have been so devastating – there is some small precedent to consider. They lost to GT in Ahmedabad in the league stage, bowled out for 155. They’ve won only three of their seven away or neutral games in IPL 2026. All of that can be tossed into the wayside if any of their match-winners come off. Five of them did – the entire top five – in Dharamsala just a few days ago to put up the highest score ever seen in the playoffs. From going 18 years without a title, RCB could win two back-to-back. For the last eight straight IPLs, the team winning Qualifier 1 has gone on to become champion.

GT’s campaign has been built on the hard work of Kagiso Rabada and Mohammed Siraj; in particular the unstinting way they attack oppositions in the powerplay. Both quicks have been encouraged to go pace-on. Both quicks have been remarkable at assessing the vulnerabilities of specific batters. Both quicks have the potential to break the game early. GT have a strike rate of 16 this season, the best of all the teams (at an economy of 9.49) and it gets better when they play at home – 13.5 (economy of 8.72). They’ve converted a fourth playoff appearance in five years into a third final in five years. A second title in five years is well within reach.

Three of Tim David’s last five innings have ended in single-digit scores and a strike rate under 100. You wouldn’t qualify that as a slump though, given his innings against Punjab Kings during the same sequence. He was 2 off two at the start of the 17th over and finished 28 off 12. David just needs to connect one ball to send several out of the ground.

Jason Holder has been an impeccable addition to the GT line-up, his bowling enabling them to frontload their Test-quality fast bowlers and retain flexible use of Rashid Khan. On top of that, Holder himself has picked up 17 wickets at an economy rate of just 7.54. The extra bounce that he generates, even on Indian pitches, has been telling.

RCB will likely bring Phil Salt back in if he’s ready to go but even if not, Venkatesh Iyer has filled in very nicely.

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (probable): Virat Kohli, Venkatesh Iyer/Phil Salt, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (capt), Krunal Pandya, Tim David, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Salam, Jacob Duffy/Suyash Sharma

GT have had the middle-order question thrown at them over and over and it will be done one last time. In Qualifier 1, when Shubman Gill and B Sai Sudharsan failed, they lost. Badly.

Gujarat Titans (probable): Shubman Gill (capt), B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Washington Sundar, Nishant Sindhu, Jason Holder, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, R Sai Kishore, Kagiso Rabada, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj

[Cricinfo]

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Minhas’ record-breaking debut sets up handsome Pakistan victory

Published

2 hours ago

2026/05/31

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Arafat Minhas found plenty of success on debut [Cricinfo]

Arafat Minhas made his ODI debut memorable by picking up five wickets – the first Pakistan bowler to do so in his maiden appearance in the format. His sensational 5 for 32 from ten overs orchestrated his side’s comprehensive five-wicket win over Australia in the first ODI at Rawalpindi.

The 21-year-old left-arm fingerspinner used his variations with great guile on a pitch that offered plenty of purchase to the spinners to bundle Australia for 200. Their run chase brought another youngster Ghazi Ghori , a wicketkeeper-batter, in the limelight as he stitched a sturdy 127-run stand with Babar Azam.

Despite sweltering conditions, Pakistan captain Shaheen Shah Afridi had been encouraged to bowl first because of the dryness in the pitch. Pakistan, to make the most of it, played four spinners and just the two quicks and that they wrapped up the visitors’ innings with 35 balls to spare for a meagre total suggested that all went according to plan.

Australia were dealt a blow before the toss as the experienced Adam Zampa was ruled out because of neck spasms and had to be replaced by Tanveer Sangha, who went on to bowl very tidily. A good total would have put Pakistan’s batting capabilities to the test as three of their top four – Sahibzada Farhan, Maaz Sadaqat and Ghori – came in with just a handful of matches between them, having debuted in the format in just the last series in Bangladesh.

Australia started steadily with their makeshift opening pair of Matthew Short and Alex Carey finding boundaries in the first half of the opening powerplay. While Carey took his time to settle, Short crunched Haris Rauf for two consecutive fours through the off side in the second over. Soon Carey smoked Afridi for fours, but his stay at the crease was cut short in the seventh over as Abrar Ahmed had him caught at slip with a flighted delivery in what was his first over.

Afridi introduced Minhas from the other end and the pair bowled in tandem until the 16th over. It took a while for Minhas to nail his line and length, but once he found the rhythm he tore through Australia’s batting. It all came crashing down for them in his fourth over as he pushed the ball with the arm with great deception to have Josh Inglis and Marnus Labuschagne trapped in front.

The two were removed in the space of three balls in the 14th over. While Labuschagne was undone by the flatter trajectory of the ball – he was late bringing his bat down to negotiate a fuller delivery on the back foot – Inglis missed with a reverse sweep. The ball of the match, however, was in Minhas’ next over: a ripping delivery that pitched back of a length on middle and leg struck the top of Cameron Green’s off stump to leave Australia 68 for 4.

A 55-run partnership between Short and Matt Renshaw arrested the collapse and both went on to score half-centuries. While they steadied the innings by milking the spinners around the dial and picking up the odd boundary, they were allowed an opportunity to get back into the match as Afridi removed the spin duo from the attack.

Shadab Khan, who was playing his first ODI since the 2023 World Cup, was smashed for a boundary on the first ball as he gave away 12 runs in the over. He never found his rhythm and proved to be the most expensive in the innings with none for 54 from eight overs. He had also gone wicketless in his last three matches, all during that World Cup in India.

With Australia gaining momentum, Afridi returned to Minhas and the move worked as he beat Short with pace and turn. Minhas dragged his length back and put a few extra yards into his delivery as Short charged at him, providing enough time for Ghori to dislodge the bails. Later, a sharp legbreak from Abrar from around the wicket smashed into Renshaw’s off stump as Australia’s hopes of setting a challenging total started to fade.

Pakistan used all four spinners, the last being Salman Agha, who bowled five overs, but none of the others got the ball to turn as sharply as Minhas did. He was brought back for his final two overs at the start of the third powerplay and completed his five-wicket haul with another stinging delivery that turned sharply after pitching on middle stump to bowl Nathan Ellis. This was also the first time that he had taken five wickets in a List A match.

Matt Kuhnemann had faced 15 balls in his ODI career before this match. His 40-ball vigil annoyed Pakistan, who peppered him with short balls. He stitched partnerships of 34 and 20 with Renshaw and Ellis as he made 24. He was the last man to fall. Afridi and Rauf wrapped things up with a wicket each.

Australia were quick to introduce spin, as early as the fourth over, and they tasted success right away as Sadaqat holed out at deep midwicket off Kuhnemann. The wicket belonged to Short as much as it did to Kuhnemann, as he did well to take a clean catch along the boundary. Short was in action again, this time at long-off, when Farhan failed to connect cleanly with Sangha’s tossed-up delivery.

The ball seemed to be following Short and there was a chance later in the innings off Kuhnemann’s bowling when Babar mistimed a drive to short cover. With the ball dying on him, Short tried to pluck it diving low to his right but third umpire Richard Kettleborough ruled it had touched the ground. Babar was on 28 off 48 at that time and he went on to score 69 off 94.

Being the only experienced batter in the top four, Babar had to display his prowess in these tough batting conditions with the pitch continuing to deteriorate and offering more turn and uneven bounce to the bowlers. He had sliced Ellis for a boundary earlier in the innings, but later traded his attacking instincts for more composure. Ghori, who made his maiden half-century only in his second ODI, supported him. His 65 off 92 was also his highest List A score.

Babar and Ghori had the luxury of playing dots in the absence of scoreboard pressure and they seemed content with rotating the strike. The pair picked up boundaries occasionally. They shifted gears towards the end of their partnership as Ghori launched Ellis down the ground for boundaries and Babar smashed the first six of the match off Renshaw before hitting a glorious inside-out drive off Labuschagne. Inglis, Australia’s captain, was encouraged by the turn in the pitch to introduce the part-time spin of Short, Renshaw and Labuschagne, but it did not do much to derail the partnership.

As soon as he reached his 38th half-century in the format, Babar mistimed a loft down the ground but he was put down by Kuhnemann. He eventually fell to Ellis’ slower ball, a delivery which kept low. Ellis accounted for Ghori in his next over and Labuschagne removed Agha as he missed an audacious slog sweep with six runs needed.

But Pakistan strolled to the finish line with 45 balls to spare and they were, fittingly, taken over the line with a gigantic six down the ground by Minhas, who made 18 not out off 17.

Scores:
Pakistan 202 for 5 in 42.3 overs (Babar Azam 69, GaziGhori 65; Nathan Ellis 2-45) beat Australia 200 in 44.1 overs (Matt Renshaw 61, Matthew Short 55, Arafat Minhas 5-32, Abrar Ahmed 2-44) by five wickets

[Cricinfo]