Author: Bharath Ramaraj

The opening day of the Ashes at The Gabba in Brisbane in 1994: Michael Slater cracked the first ball, bowled by Phil DeFreitas, to the boundary hoardings. Nearly three decades later, on a good pitch for batting at Edgbaston, Zak Crawley smashed the first ball bowled by Pat Cummins through the covers for four in the opening Test of the 2023 Ashes. Those old memories didn’t just gush forth, but the stroke also signalled England’s intent to continue with their Bazball approach. Australia, though, picked up wickets at regular intervals to claw their way back into the game. At the fag…

Around 141 years ago, a mock obituary by Reginald Shirley Brooks inspired the birth of a Test series that has been played for centuries now – the Ashes. Barring the period between 2005 to 2013, Australia might have held a clear upper hand in Ashes contests in the last three decades and a bit, but there is aura and rich history attached to Australia-England Tests. And just to add a bit of spice to it, Ashes 2023 will be played in the backdrop of Brendon McCullum-Ben Stokes’ ‘Bazball’ approach taking the cricketing world by storm. Can the England batting…

Cricket is a unique sport. When two sides lock horns – home and away – it becomes evident that different climes do play a major role in deciding the outcome of the game. Even among a subset grouped together, a few differences can be seen in relation to conditions on display. The current Indian cricket team has been putting up a good show across frontiers. But if you peel away the edges of the black box, you would see that India still have an issue or two to tackle when they travel to South Africa, New Zealand and England. So what…

After a rather ordinary final session on day four, Australia bowled with discipline, skill and some snarl as India crashed to a 209-run defeat in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at The Oval. As soon as Mohammed Siraj reverse-swept Nathan Lyon to Scott Boland at backward point, it sparked jubilation in the Australian camp. All the players got together in a huddle to celebrate the moment. As the day commenced, India perhaps had a semblance of hope of mounting a challenge. However, Boland showcased his trademark seam-bowling skills to break the back of the Indian batting unit. He tested Virat Kohli…

Iga Swiatek, the No.1 ranked tennis player, won the French Open for the third time in the last four years. The 22-year-old Polish player defeated the unseeded Karolina Muchova from Czech Republic in a gruelling three-setter. At 22, Swiatek is the second-youngest woman to defend the French Open crown after Monica Seles. The final scoreline read: 6-2, 5-7, 6-4. After winning the match, Siwatek sank to her knees. She also went up to her box to say thank you to her team members. It was followed by the legendary tennis player, Chris Evert, presenting the coveted Suzanne Lenglen Cup trophy to…

In what turned out to be a pulsating final session, Virat Kohli (44 not out) and Ajinkya Rahane shared an unbeaten association of 71 in just 118 balls to give India a semblance of hope of posting a memorable win against Australia in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at The Oval. At close of play on day four, India were 164 for 3, still needing another 280 runs to pull off an improbable world-record chase. India had commenced the evening session with Rohit Sharma and Cheteshwar Pujara at the crease. The duo essayed some eye-catching flicks and cuts to…

Alex Carey (41*) shared crucial stands of 43 and 34 with Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc to help Australia extend their dominance over India in the World Test Championship final at The Oval. At lunch on the fourth day, they were 201 for 6, ahead by 374. On a sunny morning, the Indian players walked out to the middle with a purposeful gait, and an eye on taking early wickets. Although Mohammed Shami continued to beat the bat in England by hitting a good length, Umesh Yadav, his pace colleague, bowled a tad fuller to force Marnus Labuschagne to edge…

Barring the first session, Australia once again had the better of the proceedings as they ended the third day of the World Test Championship (WTC) final against India on 123 for 4, an overall lead of 296. Marnus Labuschagne was unconquered on a patient 41, with Cameron Green having held him stave off a late surge from the Indian bowlers. Most of the action took place in the opening session, when Ajinkya Rahane (89) and Shardul Thakur (51) shared an association of 109 for the seventh wicket to give India a semblance of hope of making a comeback. After KS…

After a rather frustrating morning session, Australia hit back by mopping up India’s lower order, and then extended their lead to 196 by tea on day three of the World Test Championship (WTC) final at The Oval. At 260 for 6, India had a small window of opportunity to claw their way back into the game. However, Australia shut the door quickly, with Pat Cummins dismissing Ajinkya Rahane for 89. Cameron Green also played a vital role in that dismissal by pouching a one-handed stunner at gully. Cummins then cleaned up Umesh Yadav for just five. At that moment, with…

Ajinkya Rahane (89 not out off 122 balls) and Shardul Thakur (36 not out off 83 balls) lifted India’s sagging spirits with an unbeaten stand of 108 for the seventh wicket in the World Test Championship final against Australia at The Oval. India went into lunch on 260-6, still behind by 209 runs. Just a couple of hours earlier, everything seemed to be going Australia’s way. In the first over of the day itself, Scott Boland had sneaked through KS Bharat’s defence with his trademark nip-backer to shatter the timber. Bharat might have not showcased the best of defence, but…