Steve Smith has branded India favourites to win the T20 World Cup after Virat Kohli’s side outclassed Australia in a warmup match on Wednesday. Smith scored a half-century to help Australia post a competitive 152 for five in the tuneup in Dubai but India’s batsmen mowed down the total with 13 balls to spare to […]
Unlike Group A which was supposed to be the tougher of the two groups in the first round, things are far more complex in Group B after Scotland’s win over Bangladesh on Sunday. The three teams – Scotland, Oman, and Bangladesh – are separated by just a margin of 0.113 in terms of NRR and the three […]
DUBAI: Riding on fine knocks from captain Babar Azam and Fakhar Zaman, Pakistan’s preparations for the eagerly-awaited T20 World Cup opener against old rivals India started with a crushing seven-wicket defeat of West Indies in their first warm-up fixture here on Monday. After restricting the reigning champions to a modest 130-7 at the ICC Academy […]
When Shoaib Malik takes the field for Pakistan in the Twenty20 World Cup, the 39-year-old all-rounder could be forgiven for feeling his age. When Malik made his international debut in 1999, current teammates such as pace spearheads Shaheen Shah Afridi and Mohammad Wasim Junior, and batsman Haider Ali were not even born. Vice-captain Shadab Khan […]
MUSCAT: It’s a far cry from Lord’s, the MCG and Eden Gardens, but the modest Al Amerat Ground, 15km to the south-east of the Omani capital of Muscat, will on Sunday briefly become the beating heart of international cricket as the Twenty20 World Cup gets underway. “How often does an Associate nation get to host […]
DUBAI: New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson on Thursday said he will be back to full fitness after dealing with a hamstring and elbow injury ahead of the T20 World Cup. Williamson missed the final league match of the IPL for Sunrisers Hyderabad with a hamstring niggle before joining his national side for T20’s showpiece event […]
Shahid Afridi, the box office trailblazer of white-ball cricket, believes that “unpredictable” Pakistan can summon the spirit of 2009 and win a second T20 World Cup. Afridi was man of the match in a nail-biting seven-run semi-final win over South Africa in the tournament 12 years ago where he made 51. He then starred again […]
LAHORE: Longstanding issues between the Pakistan Cricket Board and the six franchises of the HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) have been resolved, according to a press statement issued by the PCB on Monday. “The longstanding matters between the PCB and the franchises were causing distraction and affecting the reputation of the brand. I am delighted […]
LONDON: England were able to name their strongest available squad for the Ashes tour to Australia on Sunday as their stars committed to the trip after coronavirus (Covid-19) quarantine fears. The Ashes tour had been the subject of tense negotiations after England’s players and their families expressed concerns over tough Covid quarantine restrictions in Australia. […]
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Friday announced an altered squad for this month’s Men’s T20 World Cup 2021, with former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed replacing the young Azam Khan. The national selectors made three changes to the team announced last month “after taking into consideration player performances and form”, the PCB said in a statement. In the […]