India Cricket News
Sanju Samson and Jasprit Bumrah starred as an irresistible India crushed New Zealand to retain the T20 World Cup
3rd over: India 27-0 (Samson 14, Abhishek 12) Matt Henry is replaced by Jacob Duffy after only one over. The gamble doesn’t pay off, with Duffy’s first over costing 15.
Abhishek larruped two fours over the top before hitting another big shot just short of Phillips at deep square leg. Samson finished the over with an imperious drive over mid-off for four.
Continue reading...Jacob Bethell’s excellence was still not enough to carry England over the line as India set up a final showdown with New Zealand
England’s first task is to stop Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson getting off to a flyer. As Finn Allen showed yesterday, an opener can win a semi-final all by himself.
Will Jacks belts out God Save The King like a peroxide version of a Chelsea pensioner. As soon as it finishes, Harry Brook pops a piece of chewing gum into his mouth. The young chaperones look on with mild curiosity from under their yellow bucket hats.
Continue reading...Sharma and Pandya speed India towards 72-run win
Proteas’ Markram leads nine-wicket win over West Indies
A rampant India piled up a record total and handed Zimbabwe a 72-run shellacking in a Super 8s contest to revive their Twenty20 World Cup title defence. Sent in, the hosts blasted 256 for four, the tournament’s highest score this year, after Abhishek Sharma and Hardik Pandya struck blistering half-centuries.
It rained 17 sixes and as many fours at Chennai’s MA Chidambaram Stadium as India’s top order feasted on a modest Zimbabwean attack made even blunter by their sloppy catching.
Continue reading...Government gives approval to compete in tournament
Pakistan will not play India in Colombo on 15 February
Pakistan will boycott their Twenty20 World Cup match against India on 15 February, the Pakistan government said on Sunday while approving the team’s participation in the tournament.
“The government … grants approval to the Pakistan cricket team to participate in the World T20, however, the Pakistan cricket team shall not take the field in the match against India,” the post on the government’s X account said.
Continue reading...Our selection panel’s votes have been counted to reveal the best men’s Test side from the last 12 months
Sharpen your pencils and swallow your marmalade on toast before you read on, everyone, it’s time for the Guardian’s annual men’s Test XI of the year (here’s the women’s team from last week). This year’s 13-person selection panel included Ali Martin, Vic Marks, Tim de Lisle, Adam Collins, Rob Smyth, Jonathan Liew, Tanya Aldred, Taha Hashim, Daniel Gallan, Emma John, Simon Burnton and James Wallace. Everyone taking part picked and submitted their own XI in the days after Australia’s victory in the third Ashes Test at Adelaide (statistics are from 1 January 2025 up to and including this match). When the votes were added up, Earth’s combined side to play Mars looked like this:
Travis Head: 759 runs at an average of 42. Votes (out of 13): 10
The E and the D in the end of England’s Ashes chances. The series took an early turn when Head volunteered to open the batting in the fourth innings of the first Test, and turned in the sort of innings England’s batters only spoke about playing. They had 205 runs to defend, which (easy to forget this bit) everyone reckoned ought to be enough on a tricky pitch but ended up looking pitifully inadequate. Ben Stokes flapped, and England’s fragile attack, which had bowled so well in the first innings of that same match, were smashed. The damage was so bad that some of them were still looking for their lines and lengths in Adelaide three weeks later, when Head scored the century that killed their last faint chance of winning the Ashes.
2nd Test: SA, 489 & 260-5d, bt India, 201 & 140, by 408 runs
Spinner takes 6-37; Markram takes nine catches in Test
South Africa completed a memorable 2-0 series sweep against India after the off-spinner Simon Harmer claimed six for 37 to bowl the Proteas to a 408-run victory in the second Test in Guwahati.
Chasing an improbable 549 to win, India were all out for 140 in the second session on the final day, with only Ravindra Jadeja (54) offering some resistance with the bat. Aiden Markram took a record nine catches in the match for the world Test champions, who won the opening Test in Kolkata inside three days.
Continue reading...5th T20i: India, 52-0 (4.5), wash out. India win series 2-1
Storm scuppers final match to ruin Australia hopes
India have won the T20 international series against Australia 2-1 after the fifth and final match was washed out at the Gabba. The sold-out crowd will receive a full refund as the fixture did not reach the stipulated cut-off of six overs.
Lightning in the vicinity of the ground initially forced the players off after India made the most of shocking fielding by Australia to race to 0-52 in the opening 4.5 overs. A storm then rolled in, accompanied by steady rain, to ensure there was no further play.
Continue reading...Hosts fail to capitalise on good start chasing 168
Last nine wickets go for 52 in Gold Coast
India’s spinners trapped Australia in a web of despair to secure a 48-run win in the T20 international on the Gold Coast to take a 2-1 series lead.
India made 8-167 after being asked to bat on Thursday and Australia were tracking nicely at 1-67, but spinners Axar Patel (2-20) and Varun Chakravarthy (1-26) sent the required run rate skyrocketing as the pressure built on the hosts.
Continue reading...Hosts miss frontline bowlers as Sundar steers tourists to win
India have levelled the Twenty20 series against Australia, sharing the blows with the bat for a five-wicket win with nine balls to spare in Hobart.
The hosts posted 186-6 on Sunday night on the back of an explosive 74 from 38 balls from Tim David batting at No 4 and a Marcus Stoinis half-century.
Continue reading...All-rounder helps hosts into 1-0 series lead in Melbourne
MCG holds minute’s silence for teenager Ben Austin
A lethal spell from Josh Hazlewood has propelled Australia to an emphatic four-wicket Twenty20 win over India in front of 82,438 fans at the MCG.
After the opening game of the five-match series in Canberra was washed out on Wednesday night, Australia went 1-0 up with a commanding performance.
Continue reading...Vice-captain fell awkwardly while taking a catch against Australia
Iyer to remain in Sydney hospital ‘to evaluate his day-to-day progress’
India batter Shreyas Iyer suffered a lacerated spleen and was admitted to hospital in Sydney after falling awkwardly while taking catch in the third one-day international against Australia, the country’s cricket board (BCCI) says.
Iyer was injured on Saturday while taking a catch to dismiss Alex Carey, the 30-year-old clutching his side and grimacing in pain after tumbling to the SCG turf.
Continue reading...Kohli (74*): ‘We’ve played some of our best cricket here’
Rohit Sharma hit a century and Virat Kohli 74 to drive India to a nine-wicket win in the third one-day international in what will almost certainly be the pair’s final appearances in Australia in their country’s colours.
Australia secured series honours with victories in the first two matches in Perth and Adelaide but India’s bowlers skittled the home side for 236 and the two former captains got the tourists over the line with a partnership of 168 runs.
Continue reading...Victory hands hosts unassailable 2-0 series lead
Connolly’s unbeaten 61 steers Australia to target of 265
Novice batsmen Cooper Connolly, Matt Short and Mitch Owen have produced career-best ODI knocks to steer Australia to a tense two-wicket win against India.
Australia claimed a series victory after the win at Adelaide Oval on Thursday gave them a 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
Continue reading...Marsh hits unbeaten 46 as Virat Kohli is out for a duck
Mitchell Marsh hit an unbeaten 46 off 52 balls while Virat Kohli was out for an eight-ball duck as Australia crushed India by seven wickets to spare in a rain-affected ODI series opener in Perth.
Four rain delays totalling three hours and 40 minutes caused havoc as India stuttered to nine for 136 off a reduced 26 overs at Optus Stadium. Under the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method, Australia required just 131 for victory from their 26 overs, with Marsh and Josh Philippe (37 runs off 29 balls) ensuring the hosts made light work of it.
Continue reading...If the two captains fail to shake hands at the Women’s Cricket World Cup it will deliver another blow to ping-pong diplomacy
It is mere years that women in the subcontinent have been taken seriously as cricketers. For generations, they faced scorn, disapproval, ostracism – even the threat of violence – to pursue their passion. Now India is hosting a World Cup in which the prize fund is $13.8m (£10.3m) and the home nation’s players will become national treasures if they secure their first tournament victory.
It would, then, be a travesty if this weekend’s talk focused on their male counterparts. And yet, when India face Pakistan on Sunday, comparison is unavoidable. And not because the home side are highly favoured to triumph, but because they are not expected to shake hands with their opposition. Handshakegate, if we must call it that, will have a fourth instalment.
Continue reading...