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  Debasis Sen, Kolkata Amid growing support for former Pakistan World Cup-winning captain, Imran Khan, several prominent Pakistani cricketers who played alongside or under him, have opted to remain silent in order to avoid being drawn into a political controversy. Revsportz tried reaching out to a couple of former Pakistan captains, now settled in the UK, for their comments on the growing support for Imran. A former cricketer, who led the Pakistan senior team in the past, on conditions of anonymity said, “I would not like myself to be dragged into this controversy by saying anything on Imran.” He added, “Anything that I say about Imran will not be taken well back home so it is better to stay away from making any comment,” said the veteran cricketer who is based in London. Another former Pakistani great based in Birmingham also remained tight-lipped on the matter. Imran played a large part of his formative cricket under his captaincy. But considering the current situation, the...

Mumbai Cricket Association Logo. PC: MCA In a landmark decision for Indian domestic cricket, the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) has officially approved its player contract system for the 2026-27 season and has established equal pay parity for both men and women. Under this initiative, players will receive annual contracts to provide robust financial security to domestic talents who do not hold central BCCI contracts. These contracts aim to protect players against seasonal income fluctuations and injury layoffs. This rollout extends contracts to 22 total players – comprising 14 men and 8 women, who are split equally across identical salary tiers. Under this pay equity model are Grade A players who have been retained for Rs.12 lakhs, Grade B players for Rs.8 lakhs and Grade C players for Rs. 6 lakhs – regardless of the gender. PC: MCA Notable names making this inaugural list are Siddhesh Lad and Shams Mulani in Grade A, alongside women’s senior standouts Humaira Ka...

Gurnoor is all set for Duleep Trophy 2026. (PC: X) North Zone have added Gurnoor Brar to their Duleep Trophy semi-final squad for their match against South Zone, beginning on Sunday at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru. On Friday, Gurnoor reached Bengaluru from Colombo along with Devdutt Padikkal, Prasidh Krishna, Sarfaraz Khan and Saransh Jain. He linked up with the North Zone squad after India’s Test series against Sri Lanka, which ended in a 1-0 series win on Thursday. The tall pacer did not play a single Test, as Prasidh was preferred over him by the think tank, but he is most likely to feature in the semi-final. Despite not having made his debut yet, Gurnoor remains firmly in the selectors’ plans, which is why he is all set to play in the Duleep Trophy. Saransh Jain, who made his debut in the second Test against Sri Lanka, will be available for selection for Central Zone in their game against East Zone, starting at the CoE on August 30. This aligns with the selector...

PC- X An interesting episode of Midwicket Stories, presented by Nishant Dayal and Jaya Prasad, brought together two legends of a generation that defined cricket in its own way — Sunil Gavaskar and Sir Vivian Richards. The two icons, representing India and the West Indies, shared a candid conversation filled with laughter, playful banter and memories from a time when they often found themselves on opposite sides of the field. One of the most fascinating stories came from Gavaskar, who recalled an incident while fielding at forward short leg in New Zealand. With the Indian captain, Bishan Singh Bedi, temporarily off the field, Gavaskar, then the vice-captain, had to take charge. “Bishan Singh Bedi was a captain who was off the field for some time,” he said. “I was the vice-captain. So I was leading the side and Prasanna was bowling. And I looked for somebody to come in, you know, stand at forward short leg. And everybody had their backs to me. Within a couple of deliveries, I was tak...

Sri Lanka-W vs UAE-W, Women’s Asia Cup 2026 (PC: Chamari Athapaththu, Esha Oza Insta) Defending champions Sri Lanka are set to take on the home side, United Arab Emirates (UAE), on August 29 in a Group B clash of the ongoing Women’s Asia Cup at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Both teams have enjoyed a good run of form in this format so far this year, with Sri Lanka winning 10 of their 14 games, while UAE have managed six wins from seven. However, the two teams have met only twice in WT20Is, with Sri Lanka emerging victorious on both occasions. At the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Sri Lanka have played only one WT20I so far, which they lost against India during the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup. UAE, meanwhile, will look to make the most of their home conditions and stun the defending champions. There is an interesting similarity between the two teams: both have inspirational all-rounders leading from the front. For Sri Lanka, it is Chamari Athapaththu, while Esha ...

India Women (PC: BCCI Women) Women’s Asia Cup has always been a tournament where Team India have dominated. Out of the nine editions so far, the Women in Blue have won seven times, making them the most successful team, while finishing as runners-up on the other two occasions. Hence, once again, in Dubai, Harmanpreet Kaur and Co. will be expected to showcase their dominance and add another Asia Cup title to their trophy cabinet. Captain: Harmanpreet Kaur Head coach: Amol Muzumdar Squad Harmanpreet Kaur (c), Smriti Mandhana (vc), Shafali Verma, Bharti Fulmali, Deepti Sharma, Richa Ghosh (wk), G Kamalini (wk), Arundhati Reddy, Prema Rawat, Radha Yadav, Sree Charani, Renuka Thakur, Nandni Sharma, Kranti Gaud, Pratika Rawal Key Players Smriti Mandhana, N Sree Charani, Harmanpreet Kaur, Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma. Fixtures India vs Thailand — August 30, Dubai India vs Hong Kong, China — September 3, Dubai India vs Pakistan — September 5, Dubai Shafali Verma for India Women (P...