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India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan in Asian Games 2026 (PC: BCCI Women, ACC, ICC) The semi-finals of women’s cricket at the Asian Games are scheduled for September 20, and it is an exact repeat of the semi-finals that took place in the recent Women’s Asia Cup in Dubai. At Korogi Sports Park, Sri Lanka will first take on Pakistan, followed by India facing Bangladesh. India vs Bangladesh The Women in Blue arrived at this event after winning the recent Asia Cup, their eighth time overall, and registered a convincing eight-wicket win over hosts Japan in the quarter-final. While chasing a target of just 58, India tried different options, sending G Kamalini to open the innings and Bharti Fulmali at No. 3. However, neither made a significant impact. Against Bangladesh, India are expected to return to their conventional approach in every department. The only question will be who bats at No. 3 if Pratika Rawal does not return to the playing XI. Will it be skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, k...

Devajit Saikia (Image: Assam Cricket Association) The BCCI has doubled down on its assertion of bringing the Asia Cup trophies — men’s and women’s — to India in the future. India are the reigning champions in both men’s and women’s categories. “(The) Asia Cup trophies, we hope it will come one day,” BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia told reporters after the cricket board’s 95th Annual General Meeting on Friday. “I will not give you a timeline, but I can assure you that both the trophies will come and land up in this office (headquarters) of the BCCI.” Last Sunday, after winning the women’s Asia Cup in Dubai, Harmanpreet Kaur and her teammates followed the Indian men’s team and refused to accept the trophy. It came along expected lines. The BCCI had informed the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) in advance that if the Asian body’s president Mohsin Naqvi attended the presentation ceremony and India won the title, the team wouldn’t accept the trophy from him. Apart from helming the ACC, Naqvi is...

PC- Left: ICT instagram account, Right: Sri Lankan Cricket instagram account In the women’s cricket quarter-final of the Asian Games, Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat first, setting up a strong total before restricting Malaysia to 74/7. With the win, Sri Lanka booked their place in the semi-final, where they will face Pakistan. Sri Lanka posted 158/4, led by Chamari Athapaththu’s 63 off 37 balls. She rebuilt the innings after an early run-out and added 23 with Hasini Perera. Kavisha Dilhari’s 42 off 25 provided the late acceleration as Sri Lanka scored 58 in the final six overs. Malaysia’s chase struggled from the start, slipping to 25/3 by the sixth over. Winifred Duraisingam (28 off 47) and Mahirah Izzati Ismail (24 off 42) tried to rebuild, but the scoring rate remained low. Sri Lanka kept taking wickets at the death, restricting Malaysia to 74/7 in 20 overs. In the second quarterfinal of the day, India faced Japan and sealed a dominant victory by 8 wickets. Winning th...

  Rohit Sharma (PC: BCCI) Rohit Sharma has been picked for the West Indies series, which begins on 27 September. After everything that happened in England, and with many writing his epitaph after Cardiff, his selection – normally routine – had become a subject of considerable media interest. Now that it is done and dusted, let me say something we don’t wish to see in the next few days: please, let’s not start saying the West Indies series will be Rohit’s last. This has been going on for close to a year and is becoming increasingly boring and predictable. It cannot continue to be a constant talking point ahead of every series, because it helps neither Rohit nor Indian cricket. That Rohit would be selected was always a given. Lord’s had cemented the deal, and there was never an iota of doubt that Rohit wants to play on. Having put in the amount of effort he has, he wants to prove a point and score runs for India. Only if he fails consistently over a sustained period can the sele...

Ahilya Chandel for Japan and with Smriti Mandhana (PC: Ahilya Insta) Ahilya Chandel, the 23-year-old all-rounder from the Japan Women’s cricket team, first caught the attention of Indian fans when she served as a net bowler for Delhi Capitals (DC) during their 2025 WPL campaign. Now, she is set to be part of a historic occasion as hosts Japan take on India Women in the quarter-final of the Asian Games at Karogi Sports Park, Nisshin, on September 18.  Ahilya has been a consistent performer for Japan. She is currently their highest wicket-taker in WT20Is, with 41 wickets in 48 innings. With the bat, she occupies the No. 4 spot and has scored 407 runs in 43 innings.  Ahead of facing the Women in Blue on home soil, Ahilya spoke exclusively to RevSportz about Japan’s excitement at facing India, her eagerness to meet Smriti Mandhana, the possible pitch conditions, how the game could impact the growth of women’s cricket in Japan and much more.  She made no secret of her exci...

PC- RevSportz After Abhishek Sharma’s blazing 30-ball hundred in the third T20I against Afghanistan at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi, Gautam Gambhir, India’s coach, said the bigger positive was the impact created rather than the milestone itself. “Look, I’ll tell you one thing. I just want to say one thing: it’s not about the hundred that he scored today,” he said at the post-match press conference. “I can sit here and keep talking about his hundred, but it’s just the impact. “The only thing that we talk about in that dressing room is how much impact can we create with the bat and how much impact can we create with the ball. And that has been our ideology, that has been our philosophy for the last two, two and a half years. “T20 cricket is not about runs or wickets, it’s about how much impact you can create. And for both Sanju [Samson] and Abhishek, I think you can easily sit here and say one got a 50 and the other one got a 100. But for me, I think the biggest positive was...

Mohammad Rizwan in press conference (Photo: RevSportz) Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan has challenged the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) after being summoned for questioning following Pakistan’s disappointing Test tour of England. Rizwan appeared at the NCCIA office in Lahore last week along with Imam-ul-Haq. Both players were questioned and were also given detailed questionnaires on their travel, financial history, personal details and cricket careers. While Imam have submitted his answers by the September 15 deadline, Rizwan questioned the basis of the investigation. He also raised concerns about the NCCIA’s jurisdiction and the lack of any specific allegation against him. Rizwan has now taken the matter to the Lahore High Court, challenging the agency’s decision to summon him for questioning. The decision comes after Pakistan suffered a 3-0 Test series defeat in England. Rizwan and Imam were among the seven players removed from the squad after th...

Shikhar Mohan. PC – TNCA   With East Zone’s score reading 133 for 2 in the Duleep Trophy final, the left-hand batter from Jharkhand, Shikhar Mohan, cracked a punch that exemplified his promise. The downswing was straight, and at the nth moment, he closed the bat face ever so slightly as the ball rocketed away wide of long-on. Another salient feature of his innings was how he dismantled Tripurana Vijay’s spin threat with lofts down the ground.   The macro picture was that of a batter who strode out to the middle with a confident gait and composed a fluent knock of 85. Just delve deeper into his fledgling career, and you will unearth a few anecdotes to gauge his self-belief, which was on display in the sweltering heat of Chennai.   For a moment, let’s revisit a Cooch Behar Trophy game, where Mohan showed resilience to overcome poor form and pain.   “In the Cooch Behar Trophy, in three matches I didn’t score runs,” he s...

PC: X (Mithun Manhas) A week before India and Japan meet each other on the ground for the inaugural Suzuki Cup T20I on September 22, BCCI president Mithun Manhas and the Indian men’s cricket team met Japanese Ambassador to India, Ono Keiichi in New Delhi. This meeting celebrated the sporting partnership between the two nations with the one-off T20I set to be played at the Sano International Cricket Ground in Tochigi. The fixture will create cricketing history as it will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between the two countries, and officially mark the launch of ‘Sports 75’ – an initiative aimed to boost sports cooperation. While sharing the photographs on X, Manhas described the occasion as an important milestone for the game’s global journey, as he wrote: “It was a pleasure to meet His Excellency Mr. Ono Keiichi, Ambassador of Japan to India, along with Team India in Delhi today. This is a special moment as cricket reaches a new audience ...

  Ishan Kishan and Ms Dhoni, PC: Ishan Kishan on Instagram   East Zone’s 2026 Duleep Trophy triumph put several Jharkhand cricketers into the spotlight. Led by Ishan Kishan, East Zone ended a 13-year wait for the title, with Kishan producing a massive 270 in the final and Kumar Kushagra compiling a century. Shikhar Mohan, meanwhile, also made an impression during the tournament, scoring 85 and picking up wickets.   The performances once again highlighted the depth of talent coming through Jharkhand cricket. But behind the performances is a question that naturally comes up whenever Jharkhand’s young cricketers are discussed: what kind of influence does MS Dhoni continue to have on them? Long after he stepped down as India captain, Dhoni still walks into the Jharkhand State Cricket Association’s academy in Ranchi like any other member, except everyone around him knows who he is. What they’ll tell you, almost in unison, is that he never lets them fe...

  Image :BCCI Srishti Bhattacharya, New Delhi Sanju Samson has seen both sides of the noise that comes with playing for India. When he scores, the celebrations are loud. When a few innings do not go his way, the questions around his place in the team quickly follow. On Tuesday, against Afghanistan, Samson had the perfect response. After scoring only 10 runs in the first T20I, he walked out to open again in the second game and produced a blistering 57 off just 22 balls. He brought up his half-century in only 20 deliveries, helping India race through the chase and seal the three-match series 2-0. It was the kind of innings that reminded everyone why Samson remains such a dangerous T20 batter. But more than that, it came at a time when he was once again trying to find his way back after a difficult period. To understand why this knock mattered, it is important to go back to the start of the year. At the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, Samson was not part of India’s playing XI at...

  Harmanpreet Kaur. Image: BCCI Women The Indian women have won the Asia Cup and, as my readers read this, are about to land in Nagoya for the Asian Games. There is no doubt India will start as overwhelming favourites for gold, with the same opponents present in Nagoya. But despite the Asia Cup win, questions remain, and many of them surround the batting form of skipper Harmanpreet Kaur. For years, Harmanpreet has been the mainstay of the middle order. One expects her to play the big shots, control the middle overs, add to the scoring rate and set things up for finishers like Richa Ghosh. But over the last few months, apart from the one-off innings against Australia at Lord’s on 28 June, which was brilliant, Harman has struggled for momentum with the bat. In the Asia Cup, there was not a single occasion when she actually looked good. In the final, her decision to come up the order was the correct one. After a fantastic start, the stage was set for her to dominate. But then came...

Samson (PC: RevSportz) Sanju Samson reflected on his communication with head coach Gautam Gambhir, the team’s decision to back Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in England and Zimbabwe, and the challenge of dealing with outside noise after India’s seven-wicket win over Afghanistan in the second T20I in New Delhi on Tuesday. “Running the Indian team is not an easy task,” Samson told reporters after the end of the second T20I. “You see a 15-year-old boy who has come after scoring 700-800 runs. My tournament was before that. After that, he performed so well and he had to come in some way or another. I did not perform in two or three games, he was in form and we wanted to win games in that series. It was very understandable from a leadership point of view.” Samson said his own experience as an IPL captain helped him understand the difficult decisions faced by the leadership group. “I have been in this situation myself. I have also taken many tough calls as a captain in an IPL franchise, ...

Laura Wolvaardt scoring her 4th WT20I century (PC: Zimbabwe Cricket) Records galore for South Africa Women skipper Laura Wolvaardt as she smashed her fourth WT20I century in Bulawayo on Tuesday. Her unbeaten 126-run knock hit the headlines as the Proteas Women eventually sealed the ongoing five-match WT20I series against Zimbabwe with an 80-run win in the third match. 7% Batting first, the visitors smashed 200/1 in 20 overs, courtesy of an unbeaten 173-run partnership between Wolvaardt and wicketkeeper-batter Karabo Meso (unbeaten 50 off 51, her maiden WT20I fifty). However, it was all about the Proteas Women skipper, who was having a rough time in this format heading into this clash. In the previous eight innings, she had managed only 150 runs. Finally, she responded with 16 fours and four sixes in her innings, striking at 203.22 and leading from the front. However, courtesy of this knock, several records were achieved by Wolvaardt, as follows: Highest individual score for a Prot...

N Shree Charani (PC: BCCI Women) India left-arm spinner Shree Charani has moved closer to the all-time record for the highest rating points achieved by a women’s T20I bowler after an impressive performance in the Women’s Asia Cup. Charani climbed to a career-best 804 rating points in the latest ICC Women’s T20I Rankings after taking four wickets for 20 runs in the final against Sri Lanka on Sunday. She is now just two points behind the record of 806 points, achieved by Australia’s Megan Schutt in 2018. Charani’s rise also means she now holds the highest rating points ever achieved by an Indian player in the women’s T20I rankings. She has surpassed Mithali Raj’s previous Indian record of 780 points, set in the batting rankings in 2011. Deepti Sharma also made a significant jump after finishing the Asia Cup as the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 14 wickets. She has risen four places to second in the bowling rankings. Shafali Verma was another major gainer. The opener moved fr...

Nannapat Khoncharoenkai for Thailand (PC: ACC) When Thailand were bundled out for just 65 runs against India in the recent Women’s Asia Cup, one performance still caught everyone’s attention – a gritty 41 off 48 balls from 26-year-old wicketkeeper-batter Nannapat Khoncharoenkai. Thailand Women’s Cricket Team are now preparing for the upcoming Asian Games in Japan after a tough outing in the recently concluded Asia Cup in Dubai. Placed in Group A, they began their campaign with a six-run win over Hong Kong, China, followed by crushing defeats against India and Pakistan. However, their bowlers were quite impressive – first defending 120 against Hong Kong, China, then, at one stage, reducing India to 137/9 and also restricting Pakistan to 119/9. But it was their batting unit that failed to turn up, especially when they were bundled out for just 65 against India, followed by managing only 84/8 against Pakistan. Still, Khoncharoenkai showed courage and once again demonstrated why she is...

  Image :RevSportz Srishti Bhattacharya, New Delhi India will look to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match T20I series when they face Afghanistan in the second game at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Tuesday. India made a dominant start to the series, chasing down 157 in just 13.4 overs in the opening T20I. Abhishek Sharma smashed 82 off 32 balls, while Arshdeep Singh starred with three wickets. For Afghanistan, Azmatullah Omarzai and Mohammad Nabi made important contributions, but their efforts were not enough. Afghanistan will now be looking to bounce back and level the series, with their experienced players expected to play a key role. India, meanwhile, will aim to maintain their dominance and seal the series with another win. They will be forced into at least one change, with Varun Chakaravarthy’s injury likely to give Ravi Bishnoi another opportunity. India have won all nine completed men’s T20Is between the two sides and will look to extend th...

India began their three-match T20I series against Afghanistan with a commanding seven-wicket victory, chasing down 157 for the loss of just three wickets in a mere 13.4 overs. Despite the early loss of the returning Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan immediately shifted the momentum. The duo added 121 runs for the second wicket, with Abhishek bringing up his half-century in just 22 balls. Their 100-run partnership came off only 43 deliveries as India raced to 130/1 after 10 overs. Abhishek eventually departed after a sensational 82 off 32 balls, caught by Rashid Khan off Mohammed Nabi’s bowling. Ishan Kishan followed for 42 off 33, falling just short of his half-century. Those wickets merely delayed the inevitable as India romped home with 38 balls to spare. On a cloudy day, Pitch No. 6 was used for the opening T20I. Before the toss, India captain Shreyas Iyer presented Afghanistan captain Ibrahim Zadran with a jersey carrying the signatures of the Indian players as a ...

Srishti Bhattacharya, New Delhi India and Afghanistan will begin their three-match T20I series at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi on Sunday. Shreyas Iyer will lead India, with Tilak Varma as his deputy, while Ibrahim Zadran will captain Afghanistan. India have won all eight completed men’s T20Is between the two sides and will look to continue that dominant record. Earlier this year, Afghanistan toured India for a full series, with India dominating the contest. India won the one-off Test by an innings and 300 runs in New Chandigarh before completing a 3-0 clean sweep in the ODIs. Afghanistan, however, now have a strong mix of experience and attacking players, with Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Sediqullah Atal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan expected to play important roles. India also have plenty of firepower, with Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi capable of providing an aggressive start, while Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Tilak Varma and Shivam Dube add depth...