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SKY and Hardik (PC: MI) The Mumbai Indians squad travelled to Raipur on Wednesday. Two big stars were conspicuous by their absence — Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav. The former missed MI’s previous match against Lucknow Super Giants and Surya was the stand-in captain. At the post-match press conference, Ryan Rickelton was asked about Hardik’s injury and he said that the skipper had back spasms. The opener expressed his ignorance over Hardik’s possible return date. As regards the all-rounder, there’s no update on his fitness yet and a question mark remains over his participation in the next game against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Raipur on May 10 as well. As for Surya, he wasn’t among the first batch of players to travel for the away fixture due to personal reasons. Under Surya, MI returned to winning ways, beating LSG by six wickets with eight balls to spare. The way they wrested the initiative during the second half of LSG’s innings, followed by a 143-run opening ...

Test Twenty (PC: Test Twenty/X) A week ago, it was announced that cricket’s newest format, Test Twenty, will feature mixed-gender games in its very first season. For me, this is a hugely welcome development for two reasons. First, it is trying to practise what it preaches. Men and women – or rather boys and girls – playing together from the very first season is a statement. Second, it helps build on the momentum the women’s game currently has in India. What I would like to see the organisers do is tap into the education domain in India and beyond. The biggest problem in Indian sport is the disconnect between sport and academia. This is the reality at the very top. The sports and education ministries do not engage with each other, and right down to schools, sport remains largely disconnected from education. There is a major opportunity here. There are hundreds of co-educational schools in India, and therein lies an opportunity for Test Twenty. Let me give an example to illustrate the...

BCCI has moved the final from Bengaluru to Ahmedabad. (PC: BCCI) The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Wednesday announced the venues for the Indian Premier League 2026 playoffs. Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium will host the final. Qualifier 1 will be played in Dharamsala, while both Qualifier 2 and the Eliminator will take place in New Chandigarh. As per tradition, the final is played at the home ground of the defending champions. Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the trophy last year, which is why Bengaluru’s M. Chinnaswamy Stadium was expected to host the grand final. However, IPL stakeholders officially cited “operational and logistical considerations” for shifting the playoffs across multiple venues. Multiple reports also suggest that the recent controversy involving complimentary IPL tickets for Karnataka MLAs played a role behind the scenes. With the final now set for Ahmedabad, the Narendra Modi Stadium will host the title clash for the fourth time in the pas...

Kuldeep is struggling to find his mojo with the ball. (PC: BCCI) Delhi Capitals (DC) captain Axar Patel took a subtle dig at Kuldeep Yadav after his poor showing with the ball this season against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on May 5. The Capitals failed to defend a target of 156 on a pitch that offered assistance to the bowlers, especially the spinners. Axar, Mitchell Starc and Lungi Ngidi were economical, but Kuldeep and T Natarajan leaked runs. On a pitch where Noor Ahmad emerged as CSK’s best bowler, Kuldeep was expected to weave his spin web, but that did not happen. He bowled too many loose deliveries, which made the run chase easy for CSK. Kuldeep conceded 34 runs in his three overs without taking a wicket. After the match, Axar was not even asked about Kuldeep, but he underlined concerns around his form in a light-hearted manner. “But I feel in bowling, I missed my partner Kuldeep,” Axar told broadcasters. Axar was honest in his admission...

Sanju Samson last evening for CSK. Image: IPL/BCCI Understanding belief or lack of it is akin to landing up in the world of the unknown. Sanju Samson’s transformation in a matter of a few months acts as a microcosm for it. At the start of the year, before the final ODI between India and New Zealand in Trivandrum, the wicketkeeper-batter was at the centre of attraction. After all, he was the hometown boy. As Samson went about practising his skills before the game, hundreds of reporters looked to zoom their lenses on him. For a player who was out of form, Samson was hitting the ball well too. Watching from a distance, yours truly thought – Perhaps, tomorrow, Samson might just return to form. That tomorrow, though, had a different reality to narrative – A tentative batter who was bereft of belief.  However, at the start of May 2026, the same batter appears to be at the peak of his prowess. For the first time in his IPL career, he looks all but set to end the seaso...

Sanju Samson (PC: IPL/BCCI) Chennai Super Kings (CSK) opener Sanju Samson played a match-winning unbeaten 87-run knock to guide his side to a dominant eight-wicket win over Delhi Capitals (DC) in their IPL 2026 clash on May 5 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. During the post-match presentation, Player of the Match Samson spoke about his calm approach. “I have been working a bit on my initial movement and it has been coming off,” Samson said. “I’ve been doing it for the last few years and it’s tactical as well depending on the bowlers and how you want to approach them … to be very honest I am always like this (calm) but you are seeing me more in the middle now so you feel I am calm, even outside I am calm.” Samson led the chase with a stunning unbeaten 87 off 52 balls. He found the gaps and kept the scoreboard moving. His knock was laced with seven boundaries and six maximums at a strike rate of 167.30. He further added, “Looking at what we were chasing, how the wicket w...