Sports

Warner expects a ‘batters’ battle’ in India-Australia Tests

Published

2 years ago

2022/12/31

David Warner has admitted that the “greatest challenge” of winning the upcoming Test series in India, starting February, would be a “batters’ battle” and put the onus on the Australian batting group to find methods to deal with the conditions there. Fresh from the dramatic double century in his 100th Test, the veteran opener already seems to be setting his sights on the four-Test tour, saying that it is “extra motivation” for him to continue in this format.

“We know what we’re going to prepare for, they’re going to be turning wickets. It’s different with the venues, Nagpur and Delhi quite dry, then Dharamsala that time of the year, we’ve played there, and we probably should have won that Test, we lost that ourselves.

“There’s going to be times when it’s going to be challenging over there, but it’s about how our batters can build and bat big like we did in Pakistan. I think with the ball, we’re going to do a fantastic job, we’ve got a world-class spinner in Nathan Lyon and we’re going to have to potentially think about playing two spinners,” said Warner following Australia’s massive series win against South Africa in Melbourne.

“Obviously in Sri Lanka we had good methods and we saw in that first Test in Galle, everyone was playing reverse sweeps and sweeps, everyone had a method and they stuck to it,” he added.

Asked if this would be Australia’s best chance to win that elusive Test series in India, Warner said, “Shall I start the headlines now, before we go over there? I did remember somebody talking about two-day Test the other week. It’s going to be interesting.”

Warner also admitted to being in as “happy a place” as he has been in a “long time” with his cricket and in life following his incredible performance in his milestone Test. Having quashed a lot of the skepticism over how long he could continue as a Test cricketer, the 36-year-old revealed that he still had the “hunger and motivation” to keep doing it.

“I wish you’d start talking about my age, I don’t feel 36. As I said before, I’m running faster than a lot of these youngsters in here so when they catch up to me then I might think about pulling the pin. The extra motivation for me is winning in India, and completely winning a series in England. I’ve been told by the coach and the selectors they would like me to be there. Obviously there was a lot of stuff before this series going on in my mind,” he said.

“Was there doubts? Yeah of course there were doubts in my mind but for me it was about just going out there and still knowing I’ve got that hunger and determination because every time I rock up at training, I’ve got it. And people keep telling me ‘you’ll know when it’s time’, and I haven’t really felt that at all yet. I’m still enjoying it, I still know what energy I can bring to the team. I think once I start losing that spark and energy around training and taking the mickey out of people and playing some jokes here and there, and pranks, I think that’s when I’ll probably know it’s time,” he added.

Warner didn’t hold back when asked about how much of an impact the drama surrounding his leadership ban had had on his preparation for the Test summer.

“It takes its toll immensely. And I’ve got all that happening in the background, and I get a message a night before a Test, these are things you don’t want in the back of your mind. And day two, waking up and a lawyer texts about something that has to be spoken about. These are things that you don’t want on your mind when you’re going to training or go to the game,” he revealed.

“So, for me it was just about trying to get in the right frame of mind, and I just couldn’t because it was difficult. And then when you’re out in the middle, you’re trying to be as positive as you can. And I was hitting them as well as I thought I could, but I was just getting no luck. You make your own luck in this game, the game owes you nothing and fortunately enough in this game it paid off, which I’m really happy about,” Warner further added.

He also insisted that it was all behind him now and that he had his eyes set on the road ahead, with no more distractions. “Yep, hundred per cent. That’s all parked now, I don’t have to worry about that, I’m not even thinking about it. The focus is now towards Sydney, and getting myself right for BBL.”

Warner had spoken before the MCG Test about wanting to go back to his former aggressive self. He kept his word too, showing a lot of intensity with his running between the wickets but also looking to take the game to the South Africans both in terms of his mind-set and a slight change in his technique. And he felt that he’d be sticking to this approach going forward for the rest of his Test career.

“You go back to last year against England, I thought the Gabba was probably one of the best innings I’ve played for a long time – I left patiently, I couldn’t drive anything on that wicket. The poor curator’s had tough times the last two years, but for us it’s about adapting to what’s in front of us. I was just thinking to myself ‘so be it, if I’m gonna go down swinging I may as well go down playing a cover drive and nick off rather than defending and getting caught at third slip,” he said.

“It’s one of those things I’ve always had in the back of my mind, just go out there and play that way. I think I’ve allowed myself to go a bit defensive instead of looking to score because of the wickets. If you look at the way Travis Head has come out and played his natural game, he managed to do that last year against England in Hobart, and he’s done it continuously through this summer as well.

“It’s about just having that comfort of backing yourself and I always do that but I felt a sense of responsibility to actually adapt to the wicket and conditions that were in front of me. But now it’s just going back to looking to score then my defence will take care of itself,” he said.

(Cricbuzz)

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IPL 2025: Sensational Priyansh Arya condemns Chennai Super Kings to another loss

Published

2 hours ago

2025/04/9

Priyan

A sensational maiden IPL ton from Priyansh Arya condemned Chennai Super Kings to their fourth successive loss in IPL 2025. Under severe pressure in run chases, CSK finally managed to breach the 200-run mark but it still wasn’t good enough as Arya’s stunning 39-ball ton in just his fourth appearance, coupled with another sloppy fielding display let the visitors down.

Where was the game won?

Quite strangely, it was the PowerPlay once again even though CSK had a fruitful opening stand. They didn’t lose a wicket as well in the PowerPlay but it still proved to be the point of difference as Punjab Kings went berserk in their first six overs. Despite losing three wickets, Priyansh Arya made all the noise in this phase as he raced to a stunning half-century to power his team to 75 for 3.

Punjab Kings

Powerplay – A flying start for the hosts
Phase score – 75/3 [RR: 12.50, 4s/6s: 5/6]

Only for the fourth time in the history of IPL, a game began with a six as Priyansh Arya upper cut Khaleel Ahmed off the very first ball over the ropes. That was a sign of things to come as the PowerPlay turned out to be very eventful. There were wickets, there were runs and in the end it was the home side that finished the phase on top despite having three batters back in the pavilion already. Prabhsimran Singh inside-edged one onto his stumps and then Shreyas Iyer and Marcus Stoinis were sent packing by Khaleel Ahmed. But at the other end, Arya went absolutely berserk taking on every single bowler. Veteran R Ashwin was welcomed with a four and got picked apart for 21 runs as Arya brought up a stunning 19-ball fifty.

Middle overs – The Priyansh Arya show
Phase score – 89/3 [RR: 9.88, 4s/6s: 4/7]

Despite that poor start, Ashwin came back with a bang as he picked two crucial wickets in a single over to turn the tide. Nehal Wadhera skied one and was caught by Dhoni and in the same over, Glenn Maxwell hit one hard straight back to the bowler to fall for 1. At that point, PBKS’s chances appeared bleak with half the side back in the pavilion for just 83. However, after a couple of overs they were at it again. They continued to adopt a positive approach and it paid off as Arya and Shashank Singh went on a six-hitting spree. Ashwin’s final over saw him concede 20 runs, and Matheesha Pathirana was then carted around for a hat-trick of sixes as Arya brought up a sensational century. PBKS managed to score 43 runs off 12 balls in that period which once again put them on the box seat. Arya, who had a slice of luck enroute his century, was finally dismissed when he hit Noor Ahmad straight to long on.

Death overs – Shashank, Jansen blunt CSK
Phase score – 55/0 [RR: 11, 4s/6s: 2/3]

Despite Arya’s heroics, CSK could have still kept Punjab Kings below 200 considering they were a wicket away from bowling at the tail. However, Shashank and Marco Jansen kept the away side at bay at the death. Ruturaj Gaikwad’s decision to not bowl Noor for his fourth over proved to be costly as well. With Pathirana also having an off-day, CSK ended up conceding a few boundaries at the death with Shashank getting to his fifty.

Chennai Super Kings

Powerplay – Finally, a productive opening stand
Phase score – 59/0 [RR: 9.83, 4s/6s: 10/0]

Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra put an end to CSK’s opening woes this season with a fruitful partnership in the PowerPlay. They kickstarted the run chase with a boundary each in the first over and repeated the feat in Arshdeep Singh’s next over as well. Rachin then took on Yash Thakur for a hat-trick of boundaries to give CSK some momentum. In the process, the duo put on more than 50 for the opening wicket to lay down the foundation.

Middle overs – Under-fire duo keep CSK’s faint hopes alive
Phase score – 86/2 [RR: 9.55, 4s/6s: 5/4]

Just when CSK thought they could capitalise on that start, things turned sour real quick as Rachin got stumped off Maxwell in the very first over after the PowerPlay. To make matters worse, Gaikwad failed to contribute once again in a big chase and that put CSK under a lot of pressure. Already under fire for not delivering in the tournament, Shivam Dube had a massive job in hand alongside Conway. Dube made a good start to his innings and he got himself going with a flat six off Lockie Ferguson. Conway, who received a couple of reprieves, hit a much-needed six off Stoinis to release some pressure before a big over from Jansen dragged CSK back into the contest heading into the slog overs.

Death overs – CSK fall short……again!!
Phase score – 56/3 [RR: 11.2, 4s/6s: 1/4]

PBKS needed just two good overs to turn the tide completely in their favour. And they got it from their experienced duo of Arshdeep and Ferguson. Following a tight over from the left-arm pacer, Ferguson bowled a very good knuckle ball to castle Dube as the equation came down to a very tough 68 off 24. Yuzvendra Chahal was finally brought into the attack for his first over and he too delivered to drag his team closer to the win. MS Dhoni then kept CSK’s faint hopes alive with a couple of sixes off Ferguson before smashing Arshdeep for a four and a six, as the equation came down to 28 off 6. Yash Thakur, tasked with bowling the final over, got the big wicket of Dhoni with a full toss down leg that the veteran hit straight to short fine-leg. CSK needed someone to pull off a Rinku Singh at that point, which just didn’t happen.

Brief scores:
Punjab Kings 219/6 in 20 overs (Priyansh Arya 103, Shashank Singh 52*, Marco Jansen 34*; Khaleel Ahmed 2/45, Mukesh Choudhary 1-21, Ravichandran Ashwin 2-48, Noor Ahmad 1-32) beat Chennai Super Kings 201/5 in 20 overs (Devon Conway 69, Shivam Dube 42, Rachin Ravindra 36, MS Dhoni 27; Yash Thakur 1-39, Glenn Maxwell 1-11, Lockie Ferguson 2/40) by 18 runs

What’s next for the two teams?

With pressure mounting, CSK are now in need of a quick turnaround as they return home to face Kolkata Knight Riders on Friday. A day later, Punjab Kings will take on another team that’s under pressure – Sunrisers Hyderabad – in an away fixture.

[Cricbuzz]

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IPL 2025: Marsh, Pooran outgun Kolkata Knight Riders in high-scoring thriller

Published

5 hours ago

2025/04/9

Priyan

Venkatesh Iyer and Ajinkya Rahane added 71 off 40 balls for the third wicket [Cricinfo]

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) smashed their second-highest total in the IPL, and conceded 90 in the powerplay during the chase, before inducing a collapse of 5 for 23 to beat Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Eden Gardens.

Mitchell Marsh’s fourth fifty of IPL 2025, and Nicholas Pooran’s 36-ball 87, took LSG to 238. KKR’s top order fired too, with Ajinkya Rahane top-scoring with 61 off 35 balls. He shared handy partnerships with Venkatesh Iyer and Sunil Narine but could not take the hosts home.

On a day where all bowlers travelled, LSG stuck with five bowlers. Shardul Thakur and Akash Deep went for many wides and conceded over fifty in their four-over spells, but they also got key wickets that derailed the chase.

The hosts were 162 for 2 in the 13th over, and needed another 77 runs off 43 balls. But KKR’s middle-order batters kept taking chances and holing out to fielders. Ramandeep Singh hit a slot ball off Ravi Bishnoi to Aiden Markram at long-off, Angkrish Raghuvanshi miscued a reverse sweep off Avesh Khan to the wicketkeeper, and Venkatesh, who was the set batter, mis-hit a full ball off Akash Deep to long-on.

Despite big-hitting finisher Andre Russell falling cheaply to a full toss from Thakur, Rinku Singh who finished with a 15-ball 38*, kept the chase alive. But LSG’s plan of shuffling the bowlers and giving spinners two overs at the death paid off as they sealed a four-run win.

The chase started with Akash Deep struggling to find his line. He bowled three wides down leg, the first of which went to the boundary. The second would have too, had Rishabh Pant not run and dived to the left. Narine and Quinton de Kock whacked two slot balls for sixes. Narine edged two slower balls off Thakur as KKR blazed to 31 for 0 in two overs.

A jaffa from Akash Deep beat de Kock’s defence but tempted Pant into an unsuccessful review. Akash Deep, though, made amends next ball by reviewing an lbw that landed just in line with the stumps and beat de Kock’s slog across the line. Thakur, at the other end, went for the wide-line ploy and delivered three wides. Narine clubbed the other two for a six and a four over cover.

Rahane got a lucky edge behind point but helped himself to a flick for his first two fours. Pant kept Akash Deep on for his third over, but Rahane brought out Test-quality boundaries, including a square drive to a length ball. KKR’s captain then got hold of Avesh, this time with flicked sixes over the leg side, to take KKR to 90 for 1 at the end of the powerplay.

Digyesh Rathi, the in-form legspinner, was brought in right after the powerplay and he struck right away, landing one wide and getting it to turn away further for Narine to toe a big hit to long-off.

Venkatesh and Rahane kept the tempo up with a 71-run third-wicket stand off 40 balls. Rathi did find the edge off Venkatesh’s back-foot square drive but the ball deflected sharply and went off the flap of Pant’s gloves for four.

An innovative paddle from Rahane brought up a 26-ball fifty. Venkatesh whacked two boundaries off Rathi, which brought pace back into the attack. Thakur’s ploy to bowl wide again led to five consecutive extras to start the 13th over, but the over ended with Rahane chipping to cover, and the collapse to follow.

Earlier, Marsh and Markram put on 99, the highest opening partnership in this season so far. They added 59 off the first six overs: 46 of those came in three overs from one end, and 13 from the other. The duo took on Spencer Johnson for three fours and two sixes, most of them through the leg side, which had the shorter boundary.

Varun Chakravarthy, brought on in the fifth over, went for just five runs. He got turn and bounce, and when Markram premeditated a sweep by going across, he nearly got bowled. But Harshit Rana couldn’t follow up as the openers smacked him for two sixes. Markram cut over deep third, and Marsh picked the slower one and slapped it down the ground.

Narine came on right as the field spread but Marsh didn’t let him settle. He first slog-swept a length ball at the stumps, and then rocked back to pull a slightly short ball behind square leg. Three relatively quiet overs from the spinners went for 23 runs, and LSG were 95 for 0 at the halfway mark.

Harshit was cut on return when he went short and wide, but came back with an offcutter that beat Markram’s attempted flick, and hit the middle and off stumps. Marsh finished the over by cutting another short-and-wide ball to bring up a 36-ball fifty. His attack against pace continued against Vaibhav Arora with a six and a four over the leg side.

Pooran got going with a couple of cuts against Johnson and came into his own against the spinners. Varun went wide first up but Pooran reached out and drove it over cover for six. When Narine came on next over, Pooran nailed a slog sweep and a lofted hit down the ground that ensured Narine didn’t get a fourth over.

Russell got Marsh with a wide slower ball that was cut to deep point, but Pooran continued his onslaught. He brought up a 21-ball fifty with a six behind square, and two in front in the next over off Harshit. Russell had no place to hide against Pooran in the 18th over. The short balls were pulled, while a missed yorker was bashed down the ground. In the end, three fours and two sixes were hit, as the 24-run over was the most expensive of the innings.

Harshit went into the pitch with pace variations, and Arora bowled yorkers in the last two overs, where only three fours were hit despite Pooran batting through to the end.

Brief scores:
Lucknow Super Giants 238 for 3 in 20 overs (Nicholas Pooran 87*, Mitchell Marsh 81, Aiden Markram 47, Harshit Rana 2-51, Andre Rusell 1-32) beat Kolkata Knight Riders 234 for 7 in 20 overs (Ajinkya Rahane 61, Venkatesh Iyer 45, Rinku Singh 38*, Quinton de Kock 15, Sunil Narine 30, Harshit Rana 10*; Akash Deep 2-55, Shardul Thakur 2-52, Avesh Khan 1-45, Digvesh Rathi 1-33, Ravi Bishnoi 1-47) by four runs

[Cricinfo]

Sports

Gurukula cruise to innings win

Published

6 hours ago

2025/04/9

Sahan Weerasooriya

Gurukula College team sealed a comfortable innings and 83 runs victory against Dharmaloka at the annual big match.

35th Battle of Kelaniya

Skipper Thathsara Eshan, left-arm spinner Poorna Kalhara and paceman Tharusha Kodikara produced outstanding performaces as Gurukula beat arch rivals Dharmaloka, Kelaniya by an innings and 83 runs at the 35th Battle of Kelaniya big match at P. Sara Oval on Monday.

Forced to follow on after being bowled out for 85 runs Dharmaloka performed better in the second essay but the left-arm spin of Poorna Kalhara was too hot to handle as they were bowled out for 120 runs.

The big match was played as a three-day encounter for the first time but Gurukula sealed an innings win with a day to spare as Kalhara completed a match bag of 11 wickets.

Bowling the bulk of overs in the second innings Kalhara returned impressive figures 25-10-38-7 to seal a comfortable victory. He made his presence felt in the batting department as well making a vavaluable half century. His efforts earned him the Man of the Match and the Best Bowler awards.

In the first innings, Kalhara was joined by paceman Tharusha Kodikara to rattle Dharmaloka for 85 runs. Kodikara ripped through the lineup with a five wicket haul.

Skipper Eshan top scored with 103 runs for Gurukula to post 288 runs. His century included 14 fours. He was adjuded the Best Batsman.

Poorna Kalhara (L) / Thathsara Eshan (R)

Dharmaloka skipper and wicketkeeper Hashen Shyamal was given the Best Fielder award.

It was the fourth victory of the big match series for Gurukula. Dharmaloka are yet to taste vitory in the big match. Gurukula are coached by Rasitha Dinesh Tharanga, under whose guidance the team reached semi-finals of the Under 19 Division I Tier ‘A’ limited overs cricket tournament this season.

Scores

Gurukula

288 all out in 75.2 overs (Poorna Kalhara 57, Denura Dimansith 28, Thathsara Eshan 103, Janith Mihiranga 24, Tharusha Kodikara 26; Thishan Nipun 2/59, Sithum Ramod 2/64, Sathidu Praboda 5/100)

Dharmaloka

85 all out in 35.5 overs (Kaveen Deneth 17, Hashen Shyamal 25; Tharusha Kodikara 5/39, Poorna Kalhara 4/18) and 120 all out in 56 overs (Omal Vihanga 34, Themira Mikasana 25; Poorna Kalhara 7/38, Ohas Sadew 2/38)

by Reemus Fernando