Author: WebDesk

Former Australia captain Michael Clarke has voiced his disagreement with the inclusion of Jhye Richardson, saying Brendan Doggett deserved to play in the ongoing fourth Ashes Test in Melbourne. On Thursday, Australia named their playing XII, which included Richardson, Doggett and Michael Neser. Of the three, Richardson and Neser were selected, leaving Doggett out. Doggett has played two Tests and taken four wickets, with best figures of 3/51. Even with Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood sidelined, Doggett was overlooked by the selectors, a decision that left Clarke unhappy. “Our bowling stocks are so strong, and one of the great things…

Former chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar has questioned the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee for dropping Yashasvi Jaiswal from the World Cup squad. When India won the T20 World Cup in 2024, Jaiswal was part of the squad as a reserve batter. However, he has been overlooked since then. Jaiswal last played T20Is in Sri Lanka in July 2024. His last five T20I scores read 93, 12, 40, 30 and 10, all as an opener. Before the squad announcement, Jaiswal played three matches for Mumbai in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The southpaw scored 145 runs in three innings, which included a…

Former England captain Michael Atherton reckons that the decision to drop an “insecure” Ollie Pope was the right call, while highlighting how things have started to fall apart during Brendon McCullum’s time as head coach. Once a vital cog in the team, Pope was stripped of his vice-captaincy duties before the start of the Ashes. Despite being inconsistent throughout his career, he was backed by the team in the number three position. However, he failed to deliver, scoring only 125 runs in the first three Ashes Tests. His average in the series — 20.83 — is the second-lowest for any…

Australian stand-in skipper Steven Smith has opted to play a full-pronged pace attack in the fourth Ashes Test in Melbourne, starting on December 26. The hosts opted to play four front-line seamers, which led to Nathan Lyon being left out for the second Test in Brisbane. For the upcoming Boxing Day Test, Michael Neser and Jhye Richardson have been named in the probable XII. There is likely to be a toss-up between the two, as Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland and Brendan Doggett are expected to retain their spots. In the three Tests so far, the fast bowlers have dominated the…

Jharkhand State Cricket Association (JSCA) secretary Shahbaz Nadeem has revealed how MS Dhoni played a key behind-the-scenes role in helping Jharkhand win the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy for the first time in their history. The Ishan Kishan-led Jharkhand team won 10 of the 11 matches they played in the tournament. This was Jharkhand’s first Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title and their second limited-overs title after lifting the Vijay Hazare Trophy in the 2010–11 season. Before the start of the season, Ratan Kumar was appointed head coach, while Sunny Gupta was named bowling coach. According to Nadeem, Dhoni is…

England captain Ben Stokes has come to the defence of Ben Duckett, who is facing scrutiny after a viral video showed him appearing drunk while speaking to a local in Australia during the team’s mini-break to Noosa between the second and third Ashes Tests. Stokes and his team were in Noosa on a four-day break to refresh themselves after losing the first two Tests. Hours after ECB managing director Rob Key confirmed that there would be an investigation into the trip, the video went viral on X and subsequently across other social media platforms. The ECB is carrying out an…

In a major blow to England, Jofra Archer has been ruled out of the remainder of the Ashes due to a side strain, the England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed on Wednesday while announcing the playing XI for the fourth Test, which will be played in Melbourne from December 26. Gus Atkinson, who missed the Adelaide Test, has come into the side in place of Archer. This is the second injury setback for England after Mark Wood was ruled out following the second Test. After a limited workload in the second innings of the Adelaide Test, Archer was sent for…

Australia pacer Mitchell Starc has urged the ICC to appoint a single provider across all international matches in order to avoid the inconsistencies in decision-making that have been evident during the ongoing Ashes series. Twice during the third Ashes Test at the Adelaide Oval, Real Time Snicko (RTS) came under scrutiny for malfunctioning. While the third Test was in progress, Starc did not hold back in expressing his frustration and criticising the technology. “I’m sure it’s frustrating for everyone, viewers, officials and broadcasters, no doubt,” Starc said. “One thing I will say, and I’m only speaking for myself here, the…

Kane Williamson will miss the white-ball tour of India due to prior SA20 commitments, as New Zealand announced their squads for the three-match ODI and five-match T20I series. Uncapped Jayden Lennox has earned his maiden international call-up. Speaking about the selection, head coach Rob Walter said the left-arm spinner has the potential to be a consistent performer at international level. With Mitchell Santner available only for the five-match T20I series, Lennox has been included as the sole left-arm spin-bowling option. “Jayden has been an identified player of interest for some time and has some good New Zealand A experience under…

Steve Smith is set to lead Australia for the remainder of the Ashes, with Pat Cummins ruled out to manage his back injury. Cricket Australia (CA) announced the squad for the fourth Test, which will be played in Melbourne. Todd Murphy and Jhye Richardson have been called up as replacements for Nathan Lyon and Cummins. Cummins made his much-awaited comeback in the Adelaide Test, which proved to be the series decider as Australia took an unassailable 3–0 lead in the five-match series. After the match, the Australian captain addressed the media and hinted that he would not be available for…