Author: Shamik Chakrabarty

Rishabh Pant is ruled out of the three-match ODI series against New Zealand that starts here in Vadodara on Sunday. There’s no official confirmation from the Indian team or the BCCI yet, as they prefer to wait. But according to sources, wicketkeeper-batsman has sustained a muscle tear and will be out. Pant was hit just below the ribs while taking throwdowns at the nets during India’s optional practice session at the BCA Stadium on Saturday. Before that, he looked to be in great touch, striking the ball well. RevSportz was the first to report the incident, along with the picture.…

On the face of it, the three-match ODI series against New Zealand that starts here in Vadodara on Sunday doesn’t have much relevance. T20 cricket is the flavour of the month with a World Cup around the corner and the next 50-over showpiece is almost two years away. It’s not that the teams are taking the series lightly. Professional athletes don’t do that. Even during India’s optional training session on the match eve, Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul and Mohammed Siraj were present. Pant played an audacious reverse-pull at the nets before being…

Shamik Chakrabarty, Vadodara Shubman Gill carries himself impeccably at press conferences. It was his first presser after the T20 World Cup snub. Fresh faced as ever, the 26-year-old oozed class. “I respect the selectors’ decision to give me the position here,” said India’s ODI skipper ahead of the three-match series against New Zealand that starts here in Vadodara on Sunday. “I am wishing the T20 team all the very best and I really hope that they win the World Cup for us. I believe that I am right where I am in my life. I think that no one can…

Shamik Chakrabarty, Vadodara In the absence of “valid security reasons” the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is struggling to convince the International Cricket Council (ICC) that a relocation of Bangladesh’s matches at the upcoming T20 World Cup is necessary, RevSportz understands. There’s a feeling that the BCB’s letter to the ICC, asking that the Bangladesh’s matches be moved out of India due to “security reasons”, in the wake of seamer Mustafizur Rahman’s removal from the IPL was knee-jerk and didn’t follow the due process. “To demand relocation, you have to provide valid security reasons,” a source in the know told RevSportz.…

Around this time last year, after the disaster Down Under, almost everyone was howling for the heads of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Resetting the dressing-room culture became fashionable. Rohit and Kohli’s red-ball form was undeniably unpleasant on the eye and eventually they hung up their Test boots. It felt like Indian cricket was ready to move on from the two superstars. Shubman Gill, the ‘prince’, had his coronation before the England tour last summer. What a difference a few months can make! India went to Australia for a three-match ODI series in October with Rohit stripped of his captaincy…

As the story goes, the trees surrounding the Moti Bagh ground here in Vadodara are still pockmarked by the hits from Yusuf Pathan as he used to hammer sixes for fun against the hapless bowlers in local matches. Cacophonous protests from the monkeys that made those trees their home used to be the only voices of discontent. Locals who regularly turned up to watch Yusuf bat knew the player was special. Yusuf would end up being a World Cup winner. Moti Bagh, a picturesque venue boasting a superb outfield, was where cricket, local matches and sometimes Ranji Trophy fixtures, used…

Despite the Bangladesh government’s hardline stance, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) will keep the communication channels open with the ICC as regards Bangladesh’s matches at the upcoming T20 World Cup. It is learnt that the BCB will send another letter (latest, it has been sent) to the ICC, detailing the cricket board’s position and requesting the game’s governing body to consider the situation. “We don’t know what will happen. It’s very difficult to predict at this moment. The BCB is in the process of sending another letter to the ICC. Things need to be finalised quickly, for we…

Has life changed for Harmanpreet Kaur after winning the World Cup? The Indian women’s team captain is good at keeping her emotions in check, except on special occasions, when she breaks into perfect Bhangra steps. On Wednesday, as Mumbai Indians addressed the media ahead of the upcoming Women’s Premier League, which begins on Friday, their skipper was matter-of-fact as ever. “I have become busier,” Harmanpreet said, revelling in her monosyllabic reply. The immediate challenge will be defending the WPL title. “Whenever I go on the field, I tell my team that I want to win the trophy. This new…

Shamik Chakrabarty, Mumbai After going on the warpath, the Bangladesh Cricket Board appears to be on a conciliatory path. This follows the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) response to the BCB’s letter that demanded Bangladesh’s matches in the upcoming T20 World Cup to be moved out from India due to “security” reasons. The BCB issued a press release, on Wednesday, on the heels of their online meeting with the ICC. “The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has received response from the International Cricket Council (ICC) regarding the Board’s expressed concerns over the safety and security of the Bangladesh National Cricket Team in…

Mumbai’s Vijay Hazare Trophy clash against Himachal Pradesh in Jaipur on Tuesday had no shortage of stardust. With Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube and Sarfaraz Khan in action, domestic cricket feels vibrant again, aided by the BCCI’s directive mandating the participation of international players. All eyes, however, were on Shreyas, who returned to competitive cricket after recovering from an internal injury sustained in Australia last October. Leading Mumbai, he top-scored with a fluent 82 off 53 balls. Dense fog delayed the start at the Jaipuria Vidyalaya Ground, eventually reducing the contest to 33 overs per side. Asked…