Mumbai, April 15 (IANS) With former captain Rohit Sharma doubtful for the match against Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 on Thursday, middle-order batter Naman Dhir has put up his hand to bat up the order if asked by the team management.Dhir, predominantly a finisher who bats lower down the order, has moved up to bat on a few occasions last season when the Mumbai Indians made it to the playoffs, where they lost to Punjab Kings in Qualifier 2.With Rohit Sharma suffering an inj…
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Mumbai, April 15 (IANS) Familiarity with playing conditions and players breeds confidence, especially for a player going through a lean patch with the bat. Punjab Kings’ middle-order batter Nehal Wadhera is hoping that his return to the Wankhede Stadium for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 clash with the Mumbai Indians on Thursday will help him regain form and produce a big knock.Wadhera, who has scored 3, 10, and 14 runs in the three matches in which PBKS have batted this season, has played…
New Delhi, April 15 (IANS) Gujarat Titans left-arm spin bowling all-rounder Manav Suthar has called Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan as the ‘best T20 bowler in the world’, adding that learning from him in the IPL has been one of the most defining experiences in his playing career. “It has been a hundred percent great learning experience to be honest. He is the best T20 bowler in the world and just completed 1000 wickets in the format. There is no better legend than him in T20 cricket. By …
New Delhi, April 15 (IANS) Former India leg-spinner Piyush Chawla has lauded Ruturaj Gaikwad’s tactical acumen in their 32-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2026, lauding the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) skipper’s ‘smart’ bowling rotations and usage of Khaleel Ahmed and Anshul Kamboj for dismantling openers Finn Allen and Sunil Narine. Gaikwad’s decision to withhold spinner Akeal Hosein during the powerplay to counter KKR’s strategy of using Sunil Narine as an aggressor paid off…
Chennai, April 15 (IANS) Chennai Super Kings left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed has credited a tactical blueprint for his dismissal of Sunil Narine during the side’s 32-run over Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), revealing that creating ‘doubt’ in the mind of the KKR opener was central to their execution of plans of removing him cheaply. With KKR sending Narine to open with a quest to get a few big runs in the power-play, CSK backed their pacers to get the better of him. After a couple of boundaries a…
Chennai, April 14 (IANS) Ajinkya Rahane admitted that a lack of momentum with the bat continues to hurt Kolkata Knight Riders, even as he praised the bowling unit for keeping the contest alive in their clash against Chennai Super Kings, which they lost by 32 runs at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday.Reflecting on the performance, Rahane pointed out that KKR’s bowlers had done well to recover after a tough start in the Power-play.“No real momentum with the bat. Absolutely. I thought that …
New Delhi, April 14 (IANS) Graeme Smith, the former South Africa captain, thinks that the growth of franchise cricket has significantly changed the global cricket scene. He notes that the Indian Premier League remains the standard for other leagues around the world.Now serving as the SA20 commissioner, Smith has observed the sport’s development firsthand, from the classic challenges of Test cricket to the booming commercial industry and worldwide popularity of T20 franchise leagues.Smith reflect…
Chennai, April 14 (IANS) Players from Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings honoured former India cricketer C. D. Gopinath by wearing black armbands during their Indian Premier League (IPL) match at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday. This gesture expressed respect after Gopinath’s passing last week at the age of 96.Gopinath was the oldest Test cricketer in the country and the second-oldest in the world, after Neil Harvey. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) also paid t…
New Delhi, April 14 (IANS) Rising Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer Sakib Hussain has captured attention not just for his impressive IPL debut, but for a journey defined by hardship, perseverance, and sacrifice, a story that resurfaced after an old video from his stint with Kolkata Knight Riders went viral.Coming from a modest background in Bihar’s Gopalganj district, Sakib’s early days in cricket were shaped by financial constraints, with even basic equipment out of reach. “Shoes are very expensi…
New Delhi, April 14 (IANS) Praful Hinge had no clue he was carrying a stress fracture. It was only in March 2023, after being selected for a stint at the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai, that physio Naveen Babu PK broke the news to him – a severe L4 fracture on the left side of his lumbar spine.Six to eight months of rehab followed, and for Hinge, a young fast bowler from Nagpur, it felt like staring at the end of the road. Fast forward to nearly three years later, and Hinge was steaming in at th…