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NZ vs SA: Jansen’s Four and Markram’s Fury Flatten Kiwis

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Markram in action for SA. (PC: X/ProteasMenCSA) An Aiden Markram special and brilliant bowling from Marco Jansen helped South Africa hammer New Zealand and register an emphatic seven-wicket win at Narendra Modi Stadium. On a good batting surface, Jansen’s four-wicket haul restricted New Zealand to 175, a total that was chased down inside 18 overs, thanks to an unbeaten, 44-ball 86 from Markram. It was Markram’s night in Ahmedabad. He began with two drives in the opening over. A lofted one over cover off Lockie Ferguson’s first ball was a sign of the form he was in. Even though wickets kept falling at regular intervals, Markram never took his foot off the pedal. He reached fifty in 19 deliveries, breaking Quinton de Kock’s record for the fastest 50 in T20 World Cups for South Africa. De Kock had got there in 21 balls against England in Mumbai in 2016. Markram inflicted punishment on New Zealand’s premier bowlers — Matt Henry, Ferguson and, in particular, Jacob Duffy. New Zealand tr...
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Zimbabwe bring in Curran for injured Taylor

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Curran roped in as Taylor’s replacement. (PC: Zimbabwe Cricket) Zimbabwe have suffered a major blow as Brendan Taylor has been ruled out of the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup due to a hamstring injury. Ben Curran has been drafted into the squad as a replacement by Zimbabwe Cricket following approval from the Event Technical Committee of the ICC. The 40-year-old Taylor sustained a right hamstring injury during the first match against Oman, in which he scored 31 and took three catches. During his time at the crease, Taylor felt discomfort while running and was subsequently ruled out. “Curran was named as a replacement when Taylor was ruled out after sustaining a right hamstring injury during the match against Oman on 9 February,” the ICC said in a statement. “The Event Technical Committee of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 has approved Ben Curran as a replacement for Brendan Taylor in the Zimbabwe squad. Curran was named as a replacement when Taylor was ruled out after sustaining...
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Colombo Advantage Pakistan’s Best Chance of Reviving India Rivalry

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  India and Pakistan are scheduled to play on 15 February in Colombo. (PC: ACC) During the 2025 Champions Trophy, much was said about India having an unfair advantage by way of playing all their matches in Dubai because of the agreed hybrid model. It is now the same for Pakistan in Colombo. Pakistan have been here for two weeks and have become accustomed to the conditions. They have played at the SSC and trained at the Premadasa. Even last night, Pakistan trained between 6 and 9 pm in what was a strong practice session. India, on the other hand, arrived last night after 9 pm and will train this evening. All India will get is one intense training session before the game on Sunday. In every sense, then, it is Pakistan who have the advantage. They are effectively the home team here rather than India, and it is their game to lose given their prior knowledge of the conditions. This is Pakistan’s best chance of causing an upset. If they fail here, there is every reason to believe Su...
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USA vs NED: USA Script History with Massive 93 Run Victory Over Netherlands

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Team_USA (PC: ICC/X) USA registered a commanding 93-run victory over Netherlands in the 21st match of the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. This is the highest victory margin (in terms of runs) by an Associate nation in a T20 World Cup. Netherlands won the toss and elected to field first. Saiteja Mukkamalla anchored the innings brilliantly, building a crucial 55-run partnership off 37 balls with Monank Patel. He then added 54 runs off 35 balls alongside Shubham Ranjane. These two partnerships were instrumental in guiding USA to 196/6 in their 20 overs. Mukkamalla was outstanding, scoring 79 off 51 balls, including five fours and four sixes, at a strike rate of 154.90. Ranjane remained unbeaten on 48 from 24 deliveries, striking three fours and two sixes at a strike rate of 200. Bas de Leede was the standout bowler for Netherlands, claiming three wickets. In reply, none of the Dutch batters offered any significant resistance, as USA took wick...
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Is India ready for the Colombo challenge?

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  Team India. Image :Revsportz India secured an emphatic, record-breaking and reassuring 93-run win over Namibia. The nerves that were raw in the first game against USA seemed to have settled down in their second fixture of the tournament. India have 10 consecutive wins in the T20 World Cup now and they are making the tournament look like it is theirs to lose. But even though India secured two out of two, the batting performance warrants a closer examination. As always, the most important part of the match was the power play. India hammered 86 runs in the first six overs thanks to Ishan Kishan’s exploits, who went on to score 61 off 24 balls and set the tempo for the game. Ever since his comeback in the T20I squad, his clarity of intent against spin and pace has been impressive. It is high-risk cricket, but at the same, unlike his partner, Abhishek Sharma, it is calculated. However, the middle phase once again told a more nuanced story. Bernard Scholtz and Gerhard Erasmus slo...
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Cricket, Politics and the Winds of Change in South Asia

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    BCB President Aminul Islam Bulbul and Bangladesh Cricket Team. Images :X I read a news item yesterday on my way to Colombo that BCB President Aminul Islam Bulbul will be travelling to the Sri Lankan capital to try to mend fences with the BCCI senior management and watch the India–Pakistan encounter. Why am I not surprised? In fact, this was expected. With the geopolitics of South Asia taking a turn following the Bangladesh elections, and the country set to have a newly elected government by later today, change is inevitable. Bulbul, from day one, was not in favour of the hard line and was forced to toe the line of the political establishment in power. Almost all Bangladeshi media are aware of this. They know the players had very little say in the matter and that it was a political decision imposed on them not to tour India for the World Cup. Bulbul had to maintain the stance or risk being removed. Now, things are different. The elections, despite the violence, are o...
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Varun Chakaravarthy Drops Big Hint on Abhishek Sharma’s Comeback Before Pakistan Clash

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Abhishek Sharma in action. (PC: Debasis Sen) India spinner Varun Chakaravarthy shared a positive update regarding Abhishek Sharma, saying that he will play the next match of the T20 World Cup, which is scheduled against Pakistan in Colombo on 15 February. Abhishek missed the second game against Namibia, which India won by a record margin of 93 runs. The left-handed batter was left out as he is recovering from a stomach-related illness. Although he did not play the game, Abhishek was seen on the field before the match and later in the dugout. “I think he will play the next match; I don’t know for sure. As far as I have spoken to him, he looks good and did some practice today as well. He said that he’s on the way,” Chakaravarthy said in the post-match interaction with the media. Earlier in the day, Suryakumar Yadav, at the toss, cast doubt over his availability for the game against Pakistan. The India captain said: “Abhishek is still not fine. He will miss a game or two. I don’t re...
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