Category: Sports

Pakistani batter Saim Ayub has been listed by the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) as one of its ‘Emerging Cricketers’ of 2024.

While Saim has been nominated for the 515 runs he has scored in nine ODI matches with an average of 64.37, Sri Lanka’s Kamindu Mendis, West Indies’ Shamar Joseph and England’s Gus Atkinson have also been added to the list.

Here’s all you need to know about these emerging players’ performance:

Saim Ayub (Pakistan)
515 runs in 9 ODIs | Average: 64.37

Saim emerged as Pakistan’s dynamic new opener in 2024, delivering outstanding performances in ODIs. He made his mark during Pakistan’s historic away series wins against Australia, Zimbabwe and South Africa.

In South Africa, Ayub smashed two centuries in three matches, earning the ‘Player of the Series’ honour in a 3-0 sweep — the Proteas’ first-ever whitewash at home. He also starred in Pakistan’s first ODI series win in Australia in 22 years.

Ayub contributed with the ball as well, taking five wickets at an economy of 4.63.

In Paarl, Ayub was instrumental in Pakistan’s series-clinching win against South Africa. After dismissing Aiden Markram, he anchored a tricky chase of 240 with a composed 109 off 119 balls, sharing a crucial partnership with Salman Agha (82). His knock included 10 fours and three sixes.

Kamindu Mendis (Sri Lanka)
1451 runs in 32 matches | Average: 50.03

Kamindu Mendis became a key player for Sri Lanka in 2024, matching Sir Don Bradman’s record by reaching 1,000 Test runs in just 13 innings. He scored 1049 runs in nine Tests at an incredible average of 74.92, including five centuries and three fifties.

He also led Sri Lanka’s scoring on England tour with 267 runs in three Tests, helping secure their first Test win in England in 10 years.

His career-best 182 came during a 2-0 home series win against New Zealand, a crucial result for Sri Lanka’s ICC World Test Championship hopes. His marathon innings, featuring 16 fours and four sixes, earned him ‘Player of the Match’ honours.

Gus Atkinson (England)
52 wickets in 11 matches | Average: 22.15

Gus Atkinson burst onto the Test scene in James Anderson’s farewell match, taking 52 wickets in 11 games this year. He shone at home with 34 wickets in three Tests and played a key role in England’s historic series win in New Zealand, claiming 12 dismissals in three matches.

Atkinson also impressed everyone with the bat, smashing a 101-ball century against Sri Lanka at Lord’s.

During his Test debut at Lord’s, Atkinson claimed 7/45 in the first innings and 12/106 overall — the fourth-best figures by a debutant in men’s Tests — earning ‘Player of the Match’ as England triumphed by an innings and 114 runs.

Shamar Joseph (West Indies)
29 wickets in 8 Tests | Average: 26.75

Shamar Joseph made an instant impact in his debut Test series in Australia, helping West Indies secure their first win there since 1997. He took 13 wickets in two matches, including two five-wicket hauls.

Joseph continued his impressive form at home, taking 12 wickets in the series against Bangladesh and South Africa, solidifying his place as a key bowler for the Windies.

Joseph’s heroics at the Gabba were unforgettable. After being hit while batting, he returned with the pink ball to deliver a match-winning 7/68. His efforts secured an eight-run victory, making West Indies only the second team to beat Australia at the Gabba since 1989. He was also named ‘Player of the Series’.

The third day’s play of the first Test between Pakistan and South Africa has been delayed as rain lashes the Centurion.

The pitch and scoreboard have been covered. It rained heavily last night, and light rain is continuing.

Pakistan will resume its second innings with three wickets for 88 runs on its quest for two runs to end South Africa’s first-innings lead.

Pakistan scored 211 runs in its first innings, in response to which the South African team was bowled out for 301 runs.

In the Centurion Test, South Africa was bowled out for 301 in the first innings, and Pakistan were 88 for three at the end of the second day’s play.

On the second day of the Centurion Test, South Africa resumed their first innings at 82 for 3. Captain Temba Bavuma and Aiden Markram added 70 runs for the fourth wicket, with Bavuma out for 31.

For the fifth wicket, Markram and Bedingham shared a 42-run partnership. Bedingham scored 30 runs, Vereni and Marco Jensen scored two each, and Rabada scored 13 runs.

In the last wicket partnership, Bosh and Pietersen added 47 runs, with Corbin Bosh batting well and scoring 81 runs.

South Africa was bowled out for 301 and took a 90-run lead over Pakistan in the first innings.

For Pakistan, Khurram Shahzad and Naseem Shah took three wickets each, while Amir Jamal dismissed two players.

When Pakistan started the second innings, Saim Ayub and Shan Masood were dismissed for 28 runs each, and Kamran Ghulam also left the field after scoring four runs.

When the second day’s play ended, Pakistan had scored 88 runs for the loss of 3 wickets, needing two more runs to end South Africa’s first-innings lead.

Babar Azam was unbeaten on 16, and Saud Shakeel was not out on eight runs.

Day 1 of the game:

On the first day of the game, South Africa won the toss and decided to bowl first, in response to which Pakistan was all out for 211 runs.

Kamran Ghulam was the standout batsman for Pakistan in the first innings, facing 71 balls and scoring 54 runs with the help of 8 fours and 1 six.

Pakistan lost the first wicket for 36 runs when captain Shan Masood had scored 17 runs, after which young batsman Saim Ayub was dismissed for 14 runs for a total score of 40.

Former national team captain Babar Azam was dismissed for only four runs, but he completed his 4000 runs in the Test match. The Pakistan team had to suffer its fourth loss for a total score of 56 when Saud Shakeel scored 14 runs.

After him, Kamran Ghulam was dismissed for a total score of 137, then Muhammad Rizwan was dismissed for 27 runs for a total score of 142, Bush bowled Amir Jamal for a total score of 189 after scoring 28 runs, and then the very next over, the Pakistan team had to suffer a loss in the form of Salman Ali Agha who could score 18 runs.

After Salman Ali Agha, Naseem Shah was dismissed without scoring a run, and then Khurram Shahzad returned to Pauline for 11 runs on a total score of 211; Mohammad Abbas was not out with 10 runs.

For South Africa, Dean Pietersen took five wickets, while Karan Bosh took four wickets and Marco Johnson took one wicket.

The Pakistan team took three wickets in 22 overs by the end of the first innings, with Khurram Shahzad taking two and Mohammad Abbas taking one wicket.

Former Indian batting great Sunil Gavaskar reacted angrily after Rishabh Pant was dismissed during the Boxing Day Test against Australia on Saturday.

Rishabh played a shot towards the deep third man, where two fielders were appointed, resulting in Nathan Lyon catching the ball easily. 

Sunil Gavaskar then eepeatedly called Rishabh Pant “stupid”. 

He said, “Stupid, stupid, stupid. You’ve got two fielders there, and you still go for that. You should have understood the situation. This shot was stupid; you should not go to the Indian team’s dressing room but to someone else’s dressing room.”

Pant was dismissed for 28 runs in the first innings of the fourth Test match being played against Australia.

Pakistani fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi has reached Dhaka on Saturday to participate in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL).

The star pacer will represent Fortune Barisal in the BPL, along with Faheem Ashraf, Jahandad Khan and Muhammad Ali.

Defending champions Fortune Barisal have named the 24-year-old Pakistani cricketer as part of their squad. The tournament will start on December 30 and continue till February 7, but fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi will be able to participate in only a few matches.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has given him a No Objection Certificate (NOC) till January 15, 2025.

Shaheen was rested in the Test series against South Africa.

Shaheen Afridi excluded from Test squad over disobedience: Reports

Disobedience towards selectors has cost Shaheen Afridi dearly, as media reports claim that the pacer was not included in the Test squad against South Africa after he refused to play four-day matches.

According to Express, Shaheen was not given a chance in the Test series against South Africa despite his excellent form. He played an important role in the team’s success by taking seven wickets in the ODI series.

Reports state that a selector called Shaheen and asked him to play a four-day match which he couldn’t due to unknown reasons. He was then removed from the Test squad. Babar Azam also received similar instructions, which he did not follow, but he joined the team. National cricketers are not happy with the behaviour of one particular selector. He retired some time ago. 

Shaheen still wants to play red-ball cricket and was disappointed at not being selected for the South Africa tour squad. Even before returning after the ODIs, he had offered the team management that he. ould stay for Test matches, but no one bothered to stop him, reports claims.

During the Centurion Test against South Africa, the Pakistani team was seemingly missing a left-arm fast bowler, and left-arm pacer Mir Hamza was also not included among the four selected pacers.

Interestingly, Shaheen was not selected for the Test squad in the name of workload management and was allowed to participate in the Bangladesh Premier League. He will represent Fortune Brishall in the event starting on December 30. He has been given a No Objection Letter (NOC) until January 15. He will participate in five matches.

Indian sports journalist Vikrant Gupta has said that, “It is time for captain Rohit Sharma to go”, adding to a chorus of speculation on the star player’s career. 

“If he does not announce his retirement, it will be a surprise for me,” Gupta said on the digital platform Sports Tak. The Indian journalist discussed Rohit Sharma’s retirement from captaincy at a time when the team’s performance was under discussion on the second day of the Boxing Day Test on Friday.

Vikrant said, “There is not a single player in India who has told the chief selector that I have had enough. If Rohit Sharma had intended to retire, he would not have opened the innings. When the runs are not coming, the  captain’s respect in the dressing room starts to decrease. No one in cricket remains a captain for life.”

The journalist pointed out that there has been a system of captains coming and going in Indian cricket. “A new captain will come, and social media will have influence on this matter. Rohit is a very good person, he does not have a bad or rude attitude on the field, but the matter is about the Indian team here.”

When the Indian captain came into the field as an opening batsman in the first innings, Pat Cummins dismissed him on an individual score of just 3.

Rohit Sharma scored 3, 6, 10 and 3, respectively, in five innings during the series against Australia, scoring only 22 runs in total.

Rohit Sharma will step down as captain: Sunil Gavaskar

Former Indian cricket team captain Sunil Gavaskar has predicted that Rohit Sharma will step down as captain if he does not perform well in the upcoming Test matches.

“If Rohit Sharma flops in Melbourne and Sydney, he will resign and will not wait for the selectors’ decision. He will definitely play the last two Test matches, but if Rohit Sharma does not score runs in the last two matches, I think he will step down as captain,” Gavaskar predicted. 

He speculated that Rohit will not become a burden on the team. “He is a cricketer who cares a lot about the team.”

Rohit Sharma has scored only 152 runs in the last 13 Test innings at an average of 11.83, for which he is facing a lot of criticism.

Sharma is currently under criticism due to his recent form and leadership decisions, particularly following India’s losses against New Zealand and Australia.

Indian cricketing star Virat Kohli on Friday confronted fans after they booed him off the field following his wicket on Day 2 of the Boxing Day Test against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

As per the details, Kohli was sent back to the pavilion after being dismissed for 36 runs. A viral video showed a group of Australian fans booing as the star batsman made his way to the dressing room, prompting him to come back and confront them.

However, security officials were seen intervening and calming him down before the situation could escalate.

It may be noted that Kohli has been under scrutiny from local media since after arriving in Melbourne. Some outlets have labelled him a “clown” after his altercation with Australian debutant Sam Konstas on Day 1 of the Test.

On Day 2, Kohli and Yashasvi Jaiswal put up a strong 102-run partnership for the third wicket, giving India hope after Australia posted a massive 474, led by Steve Smith’s impressive 140. Jaiswal displayed a mix of caution and aggression, while Kohli looked steady and watchful at the crease, raising expectations of a solid finish to the day.

However, a dramatic collapse unfolded later in the day after Jaiswal was run out for 82 in a poor mix-up. Kohli followed soon after as Scott Boland claimed his wicket, after which nightwatchman Akash Deep also returned to the pavilion. This took India from 151/2 to 159/5 in a matter of moments, handing the momentum back to Australia.

At stumps, India stood at 164/5 in 46 overs, trailing by 310 runs. Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja remained unbeaten on six and four, respectively. India now faces the daunting task of scoring 111 more runs on Saturday to avoid follow-on and recover from the late-hour collapse.

Disobedience towards selectors has cost Shaheen Afridi dearly, as media reports claim that the pacer was not included in the Test squad against South Africa after he refused to play four-day matches.

According to Express, Shaheen was not given a chance in the Test series against South Africa despite his excellent form. He played an important role in the team’s success by taking seven wickets in the ODI series.

Reports state that a selector called Shaheen and asked him to play a four-day match which he couldn’t due to unknown reasons. He was then removed from the Test squad. Babar Azam also received similar instructions, which he did not follow, but he joined the team. National cricketers are not happy with the behaviour of one particular selector. He retired some time ago. 

Shaheen still wants to play red-ball cricket and was disappointed at not being selected for the South Africa tour squad. Even before returning after the ODIs, he had offered the team management that he. ould stay for Test matches, but no one bothered to stop him, reports claims.

During the Centurion Test against South Africa, the Pakistani team was seemingly missing a left-arm fast bowler, and left-arm pacer Mir Hamza was also not included among the four selected pacers.

Interestingly, Shaheen was not selected for the Test squad in the name of workload management and was allowed to participate in the Bangladesh Premier League. He will represent Fortune Brishall in the event starting on December 30. He has been given a No Objection Letter (NOC) until January 15. He will participate in five matches.

Australian media has lashed out at Indian batsman Virat Kohli, calling him ‘Clown Kohli’ after the star batsman got into an altercation with teenaged Australian opener Sam Konstas on Thursday on the first day of the Boxing Day Test.

A video shot during a break in the covers shows Virat intentionally crashing into Sam’s shoulder on the side of the pitch. Kohli then turned around and started challenging the young batter.

Later, Virat was fined 20 per cent of his match fee. 

Despite getting punished by ICC, an Australian newspaper called Virat  ‘Clown Kohli’ on its front page, complete with the batting maestro depicted in a photo with a clown nose. The word coward was also used for him. 

Former Indian cricketer Ravi Shastri bashed Australian media on Star Sports, saying: “This is expected in their home country. I wish our country would support our players more strongly in such situations. I’m not surprised by this behaviour, especially since Australia hasn’t won here in 14–15 years. The last time they won a Test at the MCG was back in 2011. So, when they get a chance to go wild, they take it.”

“I’ve been to Australia many times. There, it’s like the whole country stands behind their team—not just the fans but also the media. I’m not surprised because I sense their desperation. If Australia were already leading the series 3–0 or 2–0, the tone of the headlines might have been different,” Shastri added.

The second day of the Boxing Day Test is going on in MCG, where Australia was bowled out, scoring 474 runs in the first innings. India is currently playing at 111/2.

Star batsman Babar Azam has become the first Pakistani player to score 4,000 runs in all three formats of cricket.

As per the details, although Babar was sent back to the pavilion after scoring only 4 runs against South Africa in the first Test Thursday, he completed a total of 4,000 runs in Test cricket.

Earlier, he has played 128 T20 matches and scored a total of 4,223 runs. In ODIs, he has scored a whopping 5,957 runs since his debut in 2015.

A year after his ODI debut, Babar was given T20I and Test caps. He led Pakistan for many years, but his performance as a captain came into question after the team’s poor performance at the 2023 World Cup. Babar resigned from captaincy of all three formats in November 2023 after Pakistan’s exit from the World Cup.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) then appointed Shaheen Afridi as the T20 skipper whereas Shan Masood was handed reins of Pakistan’s Test squad. 

In March this year, Babar was once again made captain of Pakistan’s white ball teams. Under his leadership, Pakistan played 43 ODIs, winning 26 and losing 15. Apart from this, Pakistan won 48 and lost 29 T20 International matches.

On October 2, 2024, he resigned as white-ball captain once again. Currently, Muhammad Rizwan is leading Greenshirts in ODI and T20Is.

The fourth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia commenced today, December 26, at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Australia won the toss and elected to bat first. At the end of Day One, Australia posted a total of 311 runs for the loss of 6 wickets.

The day’s play was highlighted by significant contributions from Australian batsmen Sam Konstas and Usman Khawaja, both scoring fifties.  India’s bowling attack was led by Jasprit Bumrah, who spearheaded a fightback, claiming crucial wickets to keep the visitors competitive. 

This Test holds substantial importance as the series is currently tied at 1-1, with both teams vying for a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) 2025 final.  The match is scheduled to continue over the next four days, concluding on December 30, 2024.

Social media bashes Virat Kohli for sledging teenaged player

Indian batting maestro Virat Kohli has become social media’s target for getting into a fight on Thursday with 19-year-old Australian opener Sam Konstas, who was making his Test debut during the 4th Test of Border Gavaskar Trophy.

Australia won the toss and elected to bat first, with Sam Konstas playing brilliant shots against ace Indian bowler Jasprit Bumrah.

A video shot during a break in the over shows Virat intentionally crashing into  Sam’s shoulder on the side of the pitch. Kohli then turned around and started challenging the young batter.

First, Usman Khawaja tried to end the matter with a smile and placing a hand on Kohli’s shoulder. Match officials intervened and cooled the matter down. 

Despite Kohli’s attempt at bullying the young debutant, Sam played confidently and scored a half-century off 52 balls.

Later, Sam Constas scored 60 runs off 65 balls before being bowled out lbw off Ravindra Jadeja.

Virat’s behaviour was largely met with disapproval, leading to severe criticism on social media. 

Today is the first day of the fourth Boxing Day Test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy between Australia and India at the MCG.