Cricket

Sri Lanka tour of Australia 2022

In mere two-three days the wicketkeeper-batter Wridhhiman Saha has become a talk of the town. Few days back in an interview, Saha revealed the private conversation between him and BCCI president Sourav Ganguly which allegedly assured him that he would continue to be in the Test team after scoring 61 in the first Test against New Zealand last year.&nbsp;Sourav Ganguly's brother and CAB (Cricket Association of Bengal) secretary Snehashish Ganguly has come up and denounced Saha for unnecessarily publicizing the conversation.“This is my personal opinion, but what was communicated to him (Saha) by the chief selector/BCCI was private. He probably shouldn’t have gone public with that. Also, he could have played the Ranji Trophy. He cited personal reasons for pulling out and we have to respect that. The door is always open for him, whenever he wants to join the squad,” Snehashish said.&nbsp;Earlier, right after his snub from India's Test squad for Sri Lanka home series, Saha revealed that Sourav had congratulated him after scoring a half-century against New Zealand at Kanpur, despite an injury, which led to KS Bharat keeping wickets and impressing the BCCI selectors enough to choose him over Saha.&nbsp;"Talking about the same, Wriddhiman Saha told The Sunday Express: “After scoring 61 against New Zealand at Kanpur, Dadi (Ganguly) congratulated me over WhatsApp and mentioned, ‘As long as I’m here (helming the BCCI), you would be in the team’. Such a message from the BCCI president really boosted my confidence. What I’m struggling to understand is that how things have changed so fast."Saha, along with veteran pacer Ishant Sharma, and batters Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane were axed from the 18-member Indian squad for the two-Test series in March at home against Sri Lanka.While Pujara and Rahane were axed due to their poor form, Saha and Ishant were reportedly told by selectors and Indian team management that they were moving towards having youngsters in the team, given that they were no longer first-choice players in the XI and hence will not be considered henceforth for the Indian team.&nbsp;BCCI's selection committee's chairman Chetan Sharma, while addressing a virtual press conference announced India's Test squad for Sri Lanka series and implied that the board is now thinking about youngsters.&nbsp;"Look, age isn't something we give a lot of credence. On what grounds Wriddhi has been dropped, we can't tell you. But there comes a time when you start thinking about youngsters when you don't play for long. Also I don't know why Saha is not playing Ranji Trophy. That's not my jurisdiction and that's what state unit must look into," Chetan had said.&nbsp;Saha had further revealed in an interview, "Ten-twelve days later, I got a call from Chetan Sharma [chairman of selectors]. He asked me if I was playing Ranji Trophy. I said I hadn't decided yet. Then he went on to tell me what Rahul bhai had said. So I asked him if this decision was for just this series or for the upcoming series against Australia and England too. Then he paused for a couple of seconds and said, "From now on, you will not be considered."

sri-lanka-tour-of-australia-11-feb-2022

CAB secretary and Sourav Ganguly's brother Snehashish lambasts Saha for publicizing private chat with BCCI president

Sri Lankan opener Pathum Nissanka was warned and reprimanded for using audible obscenity during a T20I match where Australia got the better of Danus Shanaka-led side in a thrilling super over. Sri Lanka was also fined 20 per cent of their match fee for maintaining a slow over-rate in the match.&nbsp;Sri Lankan batter Nissanka was given a warning and one demerit point has been added to his disciplinary record after he was found to have breached Article 2.3 of the ICC code, which relates to "use of an audible obscenity during an International Match".The incident occurred when Nissanka missed a ball while batting and reacted by using inappropriate language which was clearly audible on the stump microphone and on the field of play.&nbsp;Captain Dasun Shanaka and Pathum Nissanka both pleaded guilty to their respective offences and accepted the proposed sanctions, so there was no need for a formal hearing.&nbsp;Umpires Donovan Koch, Rod Tucker, Shawn Craig, and Gerard Abood levelled the charge.Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand, a fine of 50 per cent of a player's match fee, and one or two demerit points.&nbsp;Australia registered a thrilling win in the Super Over after being tied with Sri Lanka at the end of the stipulated 20 overs each for both sides in the second T20I of the five-match series at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).&nbsp;Nissanka had slammed a 53-ball 73 but couldn't stop Australia from notching up a win via super over in the match.&nbsp;Earlier, Australia posted 164 for 6 and were cruising to victory until powerful hitting by Nissanka and captain Dasun Shanaka (34 from 19 balls) kept the touring side in the game and they finished level on 164 for 8. In the tie-breaking Super Over, Australia's Marcus Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell easily chased down the five-run target set by Sri Lanka to put their side 2-0 up in the five-match series.&nbsp;Josh Hazlewood was the pick of Australia's bowlers, taking 3/22 in addition to his miserly Super Over, capping a brilliant weekend for the 31-year-old after he was picked by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in IPL 2022 mega auction for Rs. 7.75 crores.

Nissanka warned for using audible obscenity during 2nd T20I as Australia down Sri Lanka in super over thriller

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the revised schedule for the upcoming India's home series against Sri Lanka and soon the squads for T20I and Test matches is expected to be announced. A source in the know of things told Sports Tak that selection committee and Board secretary will soon meet and decide the teams for upcoming series along with the announcement of Test captain.&nbsp;&nbsp;As of now Board has not issued notice for the meeting yet but in a day or two notice will be issued by secretary and most likely they will meet next week. Some of the selectors at Ranji Trophy they will be giving important feedback from there before deciding Test squad. Some changes (3-4) are likely to happen in the Test team as some new faces could be seen.When asked weather both the teams will be announced same day, the source said, "As of now it's on the same day but you never know if selectors want to wait for Test squad, it's up to them.&nbsp;After the resignation of Virat Kohli, apart from Rohit Sharma, other options for Test captaincy like KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant also got wind of the name. But, after the failure of KL Rahul in South Africa, Rohit Sharma could be the first choice of selectors and coaches.&nbsp;As per the changed schedule, Sri Lanka will first play the T20I series comprising three matches followed by a two-match Test series, which will be a part of the ICC World Test Championship, 2021-23. Lucknow's Atal Bihari Vajpayee Stadium will host the first T20I on February 24 while the remaining 2 T20Is will be played in Dharmsala on February 26 and 27.&nbsp;Meanwhile, the first Test will now be held in Mohali from March 4 to March 8 while the second Test will be played from March 12 to 16 in Bengaluru.&nbsp;Initially, Sri Lanka were set to begin their tour of India with the 2-Test series in Mohali on February 25 and then travel to Mohali for the 2nd Test from March 5. However, with Sri Lanka playing T20Is in Australia, the visitors will be able to do a bubble-to-bubble transfer of their T20i team members. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) had reportedly requested the BCCI to change the schedule and precede the Tests with T20Is.&nbsp;Meanwhile, Virat Kohli is expected to feature in his 100th Test in Mohali. The former captain was set to complete the landmark during India's tour of South Africa in January but he missed a Test in the 3-match series due to a back injury. This will be the first India vs Sri Lanka limited-overs series since July of 2021. India had toured Sri Lanka last year to play three T20Is and T20Is. In Rahul Dravid's first assignment as India's head coach, Team India wrapped up the ODI series 2-1, while the home team sealed the T20Is against a Covid-hit depleted India.&nbsp;India vs Sri Lanka revised schedule:1st T20I: 24th February, Lucknow2nd T20I: 26th February, Dharamsala3rd T20I: 27th February, Dharamsala1st Test: March 4-8, Mohali2nd Test (D/N): March 12-16, Bengaluru

IND vs SL: Selectors likely to announce India's Test captain and team for SL series next week

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has rescheduled India's home series against Sri Lanka which will now commence from February 24 where three T20Is and two Test matches will be played amongst them. The second Test match (Day-Night) will be played in Bengaluru from March 12 to March 16 and Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) is gearing up to host the match with all excitement.&nbsp;Twenty-six years later, the long-lasting stadium is being readied for one more slice of historical past – its maiden Day-Night Test match. The second Test between India and Sri Lanka was on Tuesday (February 15) confirmed as a pink-ball contest by the BCCI. With Covid-19 restrictions in place, the Karnataka State Cricket Association is hoping the state of affairs will enhance and maximum spectators will likely be allowed to witness the landmark contest.&nbsp;KSCA's secretary Santosh Menon while talking to Sports Tak said, "We all are very excited about this match as this is the third time when pink ball Test is happening in our country and we all are well prepared for this historic match being played at M Chinnaswamy stadium. We would like to make it a memorable experience for the players as well as fans. We will approach the state government to discuss crowd capacity. Hopefully the Covid-19 cases will recede and normalcy will return."&nbsp;"We view this match as an opportunity to give back to society and would like to have CSR activities during the match for government school students, jawans and children in orphanages. We have new light towers installed here so that this is going to be a smooth functioning," he added.&nbsp;This would be the third ever D/N Test within the nation after Kolkata hosted the primary in 2019 towards Bangladesh adopted by Ahmedabad in February 2021 (towards England).&nbsp;Meanwhile, the first Test will be held in Mohali from March 4 to March 8.Initially, Sri Lanka were set to begin their tour of India with the 2-Test series in Mohali on February 25 and then travel to Mohali for the 2nd Test from March 5. However, with Sri Lanka playing T20Is in Australia, the visitors will be able to do a bubble-to-bubble transfer of their T20i team members. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) had reportedly requested the BCCI to change the schedule and precede the Tests with T20Is.&nbsp;India vs Sri Lanka revised schedule:1st T20I: 24th February, Lucknow2nd T20I: 26th February, Dharamsala3rd T20I: 27th February, Dharamsala1st Test: March 4-8, Mohali2nd Test (D/N): March 12-16, Bengaluru

Karnataka State Cricket Association hopes to have maximum crowds for India-SL Day/Night Test in Bengaluru

India's star opener KL Rahul and former skipper Virat Kohli continued to occupy fourth and tenth spot respectively in the updated ICC men's T20 batting rankings as no Indian could find place in top 10 of the bowlers and the all-rounders' list.&nbsp;Rahul garnered 729 points as teammate Virat has only 657 points to remain static in their rankings. Pakistan's captain Babar Azam sits atop with 805 points followed by teammate Mohammed Rizwan (798 points) and South Africa's Aiden Markaram with 796 points.The recent run of form from Australia pacer Josh Hazelwood has been rewarded as he rose to a career-high second place in the bowling rankings..&nbsp;The right-armer jumps four spots on the latest rankings, ahead of Adil Rashid, Rashid Khan and teammate Adam Zampa and is only behind South Africa's Tabraiz Shamsi at the top of the charts.The unlucky bowler is Wanindu Hasaranga, who drops from first to third after sitting out Sri Lanka's six-wicket loss to Australia on Tuesday night after testing positive for COVID-19.&nbsp;Australia captain Aaron Finch drops one spot to seventh in the batting rankings, with New Zealand batter Devon Conway rising one spot to sixth.&nbsp;On the other hand, in the all-rounders' list, Afghanistan's Mohammad Nabi ruled the chart with 265 points followed by Shakib Al Hasan (230 points) and England's Moeen Ali (205 points).Meanwhile, there was little movement on the latest ODI rankings, with Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma holding on to their second and third place, respectively.&nbsp;Pakistan skipper Babar Azam continued to hold on to the top spot. The Indian pair of Shreyas Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav have made strides up the table. Yadav scored 64 in the second ODI against the West Indies whilst Iyer made an 80 in the third to help the home side complete a 3-0 series win.&nbsp;Their teammate Rishabh Pant added a half-century in the third match to move to a career best of 469 points at the 71st place.Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah also remained static on seventh while fellow fast bowler Prasidh Krishna, who was the leading wicket-taker across both sides with nine wickets at just 7.55, gained 50 places from 94th to 44th in the ODI bowlers list.&nbsp;West Indies' Alzarri Joseph took two wickets in each of the three matches to earn himself a place in the top 20 bowler’s list.New Zealand's Trent Boult remains the top ranked ODI bowler, while Bangladesh star Shakib Al Hasan is the highest rated all-rounder.&nbsp;As far as Test rankings in batting are concerned, Marnus Labuschagne continued his supremacy with 935 points followed by Joe Root and Kane Williamson in second and third rank. India's captain Rohit Sharma is placed at sixth spot right ahead of predecessor Virat who is at seventh spot.

KL Rahul remains 4th, Kohli holds on to 10th in T20 rankings; Iyer, Suryakumar, Pant make stride in ODI chart

Hours before third T20I match against Australia on Tuesday (February 15), Wanindu Hasaranga tested positive for Covid-19. He was found positive during a routine Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) conducted on the match day while he is currently placed in isolation.&nbsp;With Sri Lanka down 0-2 in the series, Kusal Mendis is expected to be available for selection for the Manuka Oval match after serving his seven-day isolation period, which started when he tested positive to RAT and PCR tests on February 7. Jeffrey Vandersay will be another option for Sri Lanka as Hasaranga's replacement.&nbsp;"Wanindu Hasaranga has tested positive for Covid-19. The player was found to be positive during a routine Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) conducted this morning (15th February). Hasaranga is currently undergoing Covid-19 protocols and is placed in isolation," SLC tweeted.&nbsp;Fernando remains in isolation after he was found Covid positive on Saturday, the morning after the series opener in Sydney.There are no indications yet that the virus has spread further – all players are submitting to daily tests – but the latest case is nonetheless a concern.&nbsp;Sri Lanka also recorded two cases before leaving for Australia; Nuwan Thushara, the slinging paceman likened to Lasith Malinga who made his international debut on Sunday, and team trainer Dilshan Fonseka.&nbsp;The crafty Hasaranga is the world's top-ranked international T20 bowler and has been Sri Lanka's leading wicket-taker in the series so far, snaring five victims at 14.20 with an economy rate of 8.87.&nbsp;Hasaranga was the pick of Sri Lanka bowlers with 3/38 in the series opener where Australia won the match by 20 runs (DLS method). Batting first, the hosts posted 149/9&nbsp;with opener Ben McDermott making 53 off 41 before Marcus Stoinis providing the late flourish with 30 off 17. However, Sri Lanka managed 122/8 in 19 overs and were way below the&nbsp;DLS par score. The second contest though turned out to be a thrilling affair where Australia had the last laugh in the&nbsp;Super Over.&nbsp;In the recently concluded Indian Premier League's (IPL) mega auction, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) spent big bucks to rope in Hasaranga for Rs 10.75 crore.&nbsp;Sri Lanka's updated T20 squad: Avishka Fernando, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Dasun Shanaka (Captain), Danushka Gunathilaka, Janith Liyanage, Charith Asalanka, Ramesh Mendis, Dinesh Chandimal, Kamil Mishara, Chamika Karunaratne, Lahiru Kumara, Nuwan Thushara, Dushmantha Chameera, Binura Fernando, Maheesh Theekshana, Jeffrey Vandersay, Praveen Jayawickrama, Shiran Fernando.

Lankan star player Hasaranga catches virus hours before 3rd T20I against Australia

After a spirited performance in the second T20I where the game’s winner was decided in the super over, Sri Lanka lost the third T20I in a comprehensive manner where they never looked in control. Aaron Finch-led Australia won the third T20I by six wickets with 19 balls to spare and took an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-T20I series.&nbsp;&nbsp;Richardson hurts Sri Lanka earlyFinch won the toss and elected to field first. Sri Lanka lost early wickets again as they were reduced to 40/4 in the eighth over. First-change bowler Kane Richardson got the first breakthrough in form of Danushka Gunathilaka. In the same over, he got rid of Charith Asalanka as well. Kusal Mendis’ unnatural T20I innings of 11-ball 4 came to an end with Ashton Agar taking his wicket in the seventh over. In the next over, Glenn Maxwell got rid of half-centurion of previous game. Opener Pathum Nissanka struggled in the middle and scored 16 runs off 21 deliveries.&nbsp;&nbsp;Dull finishWicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Chandimal and skipper Dasun Shanaka did some damage control in the middle overs but it was not enough to put a fighting total on the board. Richardson got rid of Chandimal in the 17th over and finished with the bowling figures of 21/3 in his quota of four overs. Shanaka remained unbeaten for 38-ball 39 to help his side post 121/6. Agar put on an economical display as he conceded just 14 runs in his four overs including one wicket.&nbsp;&nbsp;CSK's new recruit shinesChasing a mediocre total, Australia lost their first wicket of the first delivery of the run chase. Spinner Maheesh Theekshana who was recently roped in by Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for Rs 70 lakh in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 mega auction, got rid of opener Ben McDermott. Surprisingly, Agar opened the batting with McDermott. The plan did not work as he departed for a run-a-ball 13 to Theekshana in the fifth over of the run chase.&nbsp;&nbsp;No-pressure run chaseExperienced campaigners Finch and Maxwell took charge of the innings with 50-run partnership for the third wicket. Maxwell contributed with a 26-ball 39 where his usual unorthodox shots were on display. The hard-hitter hit three fours and two sixes in his cameo. Finch could not build on a good start and lost his wicket after scoring 35 runs off 36 deliveries. In the end, Josh inglis and Marcus Stoinis ensured that Australia get over the line with more than three overs left in the innings.&nbsp;&nbsp;Disappointed captain“No positives today. Poor start from our boys and we were 20-30 runs short. I think we should bat well in the first 6 overs and not throw our wickets away,” a disappointed Shanaka said in the post-match press conference.&nbsp;Uncontrollable circumstancesEarlier, Sri Lanka lost the services of their star all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga just hours before the clash, as he tested positive for Covid-19.

Hasaranga's absence hurts Sri Lanka as Australia crush them with 6-wicket win in 3rd T20I to win series

Kusal Mendis' gritty 69 rallied Sri Lanka to edge Australia by five wickets in the fifth T20I match on Sunday (February 20). With this Lanka managed to avoid a series whitewash and also put a halt to Australia's unbeaten run in 2022. However Sri Lanka lost the five-match T20 series 1-4.&nbsp;Mendis, while opening, smashed five fours and a six off 58 balls to help his side overhaul a target of 155 with one ball to spare at the MCG in Melbourne.Needing nine off the last over, captain Dasun Shanaka (35 off 31) delivered the decisive blow as he pulled Kane Richardson for six off the quick’s third ball.Left-arm all-rounder Daniel Sams was given the ball with Sri Lanka needing just one run from the final two deliveries.&nbsp;Chamika Kaunaratne only needed one, as he slogged the ball into the vacant space beyond the in-field. Some fine work by World Cup hero Matthew Wade had seen Australia set a “competitive score” after Aaron Finch won the toss and elected to bat. Wade, who saw Australia into last year’s World Cup final with some breathtaking batting against Pakistan in the semi-final, smashed an unbeaten 43 from 27.His excellent innings saw Australia finish at 6-154 in the fifth and final T20 international, as the home side attempted to complete a series whitewash.But Australia’s score always looked 10 short of par.&nbsp;Australia lost the game in the power play, where they slumped to 2-12 off 4.5 overs.&nbsp;Finch has now failed to register a half-century in 13 T20 internationals, while he has not reached double figures in seven of those games.His latest failure, an 11-ball eight where he was well caught at mid-on after failing to deal with a slower ball from Dushmantha Chameera.Fellow opener Ben McDermott’s “disappointing run of outs” continued too, as the right-hander lost his shape and got a thick outside edge as he attempted to hit over cow-corner and was out for a 13-ball 3.&nbsp;After a brief recovery, Josh Inglis was forced to go after the ball glanced his glove before being clocked on the helmet after being beaten by pace from an excellent bouncer by Chameera and was forced to go for 23. Midway through their innings, Australia were 58/3 after 10 overs.&nbsp;And when Glenn Maxwell (29) top-edged a cut shot and was caught at third man, Australia were in all sorts at 82/5. Cameos from Marcus Stoinis (17 off 10) and Daniel Sams (18 off 15) helped Australia recover, with Agar four not out. Sri Lanka got off to a flying start thanks to Mendis and Charith Asalanka (20 off 9), but two run outs left the visitors 71/4 and looked like signalling the end of their fight. But Shanaka and Mendis had other ideas, combining for an 83-run partnership.

AUS vs SL 5th T20I: Kusal Mendis cracks unbeaten 69 in thrilling SL win to avoid Australia whitewash

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