Cricket now

A frustrating stalemate in Colombo has dealt a severe blow to India’s World Test Championship (WTC) 2027 campaign, sending their qualification probability tumbling. The dropped points have tightened the noose around the two-time finalists, leaving Shubman Gill’s side staring down an almost improbable mountain to climb. Following the draw, India suffered a sharp drop in their qualification likelihood, plummeting down the pecking order behind South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. To reach the projected qualification cutoff at the end of the league stage, the calculation is unforgiving… India must win 6 of their remaining 7 Test matches. With only seven fixtures left on their calendar, there is virtually zero margin for error. A single defeat or two drawn encounters will officially extinguish their hopes. India’s remaining schedule leaves no room for slip-ups across two high-stakes series: Two Tests in New Zealand (Away): Playing the Black Caps in their own backy...

  Pakistan Cricket Board (PC: X) As per a report, the Pakistan Cricket Board had issued a formal complaint to Sky Sports in relation to the channel putting out an interview with Kasim Khan and Sulaiman Isa Khan, the sons of former Pakistan captain and Prime Minister Imran Khan, during the lunch break of the ongoing Lord’s Test against England. According to Cricinfo, the Pakistan board had even mulled over whether to allow their players to take the field or not after the lunch break. The broadcaster is believed to have postponed the interview by a bit after PCB communicated to them that their players may not take the field as a mark of protest. However, the 18-minute interview conducted by Michael Atherton at Lord’s writers’ room, went through. And by the time the interview had reached its completion, Pakistan’s cricketers were about to take the field. Incidentally, the former Pakistan captain has been held in solitary confinement for three years and is believe...

PC: Cricinfo The next generation of two Indian cricketing greats will be in the spotlight as Aaryavir Sehwag and Anvay Dravid have been selected in India’s Under-19 squad for the upcoming three-match one-day series against Australia Under-19. The BCCI announced the squad on Thursday, 27th August. The matches are scheduled to be played in Rajkot on the 18th, 21st and 23rd September. Aaryavir, the son of former Indian opener Virender Sehwag, has earned his maiden India Under-19 call-up. He has been playing in the ongoing Delhi Premier League with West Delhi Lions. Meanwhile, Anvay, the younger son of former India captain and head coach Rahul Dravid, has retained his place in the Under-19 one-day squad as the wicketkeeper-batter. He was also a part of India’s recent tour of Sri Lanka and impressed everyone during the youth ODIs. They will be captained by Lakshya Raichandani, with Yashbardhan Chauhan taking over the duties of being the vice-captain. The duo will feature only...

(PC: Debasis Sen) Keshara Nuwantha’s average in first-class cricket is 12.00. In Sri Lanka’s second innings, he has so far batted for 172 minutes and faced 149  balls to be unbeaten on 46. This is on top of his 74-ball (18) first-innings resolve. Sonal Dinusha, resplendent in another half-century, has proved to be India’s nemesis in this series. With a tally of 342 runs (and counting), including two hundreds, at an average of 114.00, he is a strong contender to be Player of the Series. Sri Lanka have unearthed a serious Test player. Together Dinusha and Nuwantha so far have added 111 runs for the seventh wicket and are at the crease for 172 minutes to keep India at bay on the final day of the series. The hosts went to lunch on 329/6 , leading by 116 runs. There’s a forecast of rain in the afternoon. It’s still a little premature to say the pair has saved the game. But if Sri Lanka can eventually eke out a draw here, following on, they will have a claim on...

  Image :Debasis Sen Vaibhav Tripathi, Colombo There was a guy who used to change the course of the game from behind the wickets. Generally, whenever this phrase is used, on most occasions, it has been in relation to MS Dhoni. The legendary wicket-keeper-batter is regarded as having one of the best cricketing brains. In his decorated career, so many times he has changed the course of the game with his decision-making or by passing on the tips on to the bowlers. On day 4 of the second Test, Dhoni’s apprentice, Pant proved to be the catalyst in the process of getting the wicket of Pasindu Sooriyabandara who batted really well for his 92. Sri Lanka adopted an aggressive blueprint to unsettle India’s spinners, and Sooriyabandara led the charge with intent. From the moment he walked in, his footwork reflected a clear urgency to keep the scoreboard moving. Unlike his first-innings 80, the right-hander was far more proactive against spin early on, repeatedly stepping out of his crease...

Ajit Agarkar (PC: X) Will chief selector Ajit Agarkar’s term be extended beyond September? There’s no discussion yet between him and the BCCI in this regard, it is learnt. With the cricket board’s AGM scheduled on September 18, it would be interesting to see if the two parties sit across the table in the coming days. Agarkar is in Sri Lanka at the moment for the ongoing Test series. After returning home, he is expected to turn up for the Duleep Trophy semi-finals, to be played at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bangalore from August 30. The final is at Chepauk from September 6. “Nobody has approached Agarkar yet (as regards extension), and he hasn’t approached anyone,” said a source in the know. “Let’s see how it pans out in the coming days.” The current chairman of the selectors assumed office in July 2023. So, by the rule book, he can continue until June 2027. Then again, Agarkar was said to be given a three-year contract, as he was brought i...