Author: Tahir

Bangladesh have left Litton Das out of their squad for the Champions Trophy. The high-profile axing follows a string of low scores from the wicketkeeper-batter in ODIs: he has not made a half-century in his last 13 innings, and has been dismissed six times for single-digit scores in his last seven innings.Shakib Al Hasan has also missed out on selection. This was along expected lines, with the allrounder having been suspended from bowling in top-flight cricket due to an illegal action; he recently failed a second independent assessment of his action. Shakib’s exclusion from the Champions Trophy squad likely marks…

Cricket Australia contracted fast bowler Jhye Richardson will undergo shoulder surgery this week which will end his summer, despite Perth Scorchers still being in contention to play finals, with the aim of being fully fit for the 2025-26 Ashes series.Richardson, 28, has already had two surgeries on his right bowling shoulder since initially dislocating it while fielding in an ODI in March of 2019. His last shoulder surgery was in 2020 but he has had multiple dislocations since, including while celebrating a wicket on his Sheffield Shield return in November.Richardson did get through that match, which was his first first-class…

Toss India opt to bat vs IrelandSmriti Mandhana, the stand-in captain, won the toss as India elected to bat first in the second ODI against Ireland in Rajkot. India went in with the same XI that won the series opener by six wickets on Friday.This means the young pace attack of Saima Thakor, Sayali Satghare and Titas Sadhu will have another chance to impress, with Renuka Singh rested. Pratika Rawal and Tejal Hasabnis are two other batters who will be keenly watched following an exciting initiation into the format.Ireland made changes with Una-Raymond Hoey and Aimee Maguire making way for…

Ireland Women left-arm spinner Aimee Maguire has been reported for a suspect bowling action following the first ODI against India in Rajkot, where she picked up 3 for 57 from eight overs.As per the ICC regulations, Maguire needs to get her action tested at an ICC-accredited testing centre within 14 days of being reported. She can continue bowling until the results of the test are known.Maguire, 18, made her international debut in 2023. So far, she has played 11 ODIs and nine T20Is, taking 25 wickets in all with a best of 5 for 19 against England in a one-dayer…

Shakib Al Hasan has failed a test of his bowling action for the second time after being suspended from bowling in top-flight domestic and international cricket. This latest independent re-assessment of his action took place at the Sri Ramachandra Centre for Sports Science in Chennai last month.Shakib’s suspension will remain in place, as a result. “Consequently, the player’s existing suspension from bowling in international cricket following the initial independent assessment at the testing centre of Loughborough University in the UK, also remains in place,” the BCB said in a statement on Saturday. “A successful reassessment is required for the bowling…

Sears, who was a traveling reserve for the T20 World Cup last year, has recently played his first game since April having returned in the Super Smash following injury and is in line for his ODI debut having played one Test and 17 T20Is. O’Rourke has impressed across formats early in his international career, but has been especially eye-catching in Tests.Smith, meanwhile, will bring lower-order power with the bat and bustling seam bowling.The same squad will take part in the ODI tri-series in Pakistan ahead of the Champions Trophy, which will also feature South Africa, although Jacob Duffy has been…

Afghanistan 157 and 291 for 7 (Rahmat 139, Ismat 64*, Muzarabani 4-71) lead Zimbabwe 243 by 205 runsAfghanistan dragged themselves to a position of advantage on an attritional third day, with Rahmat Shah’s gritty century, his third in Test cricket, headlining their much improved batting display from their first innings.On the second day where 13 wickets fell, Afghanistan conceded an 86-run first-innings lead to Zimbabwe and lost three wickets before wiping out even half the deficit.But on Saturday, Rahmat, with help from Shahidullah and debutant Ismat Aslam, stretched Afghanistan’s lead beyond 200 with three wickets still remaining, before rain forced…

Toss Australia chose to bowl first vs EnglandAustralia have won the toss and chosen to bowl first in the opening match of the Women’s Ashes, the first ODI at North Sydney Oval.Kate Cross, England’s experienced seam campaigner, has been left out of the side as she continues her recovery from a back injury. Instead, England have plumped for the pace of Lauren Filer, who struggled with her delivery stride on a slippery surface during the washed-out warm-up game against the Governor General’s XI on Thursday.She makes up the seam bowling contingent for this match alongside Lauren Bell and allrounder Nat…

India 141 for 6 (Pant 61, Boland 4-42) and 185 lead Australia 181 (Webster 57, Smith 33, Prasidh 3-42, Siraj 3-51) by 145 runsDuring the lunch break on the second day, Rohit Sharma cleared the air, saying that he had sat out of the Sydney Test and that he wasn’t retiring from Test cricket yet. Soon after the break, Jasprit Bumrah, who had taken over from Rohit as captain, left the SCG for scans. Australia had lost half their side around that time, with the game – and the series – dangling on a razor’s edge. Despite the absence of…

Perth Scorchers import Finn Allen says it was fair for fans to doubt him following four consecutive failures, and he hopes he’s now won them back over.Allen’s fireworks against Thunder set the 46,471 Optus Stadium crowd alight, with one fan even holding up a sign saying “sorry I doubted you”. The 25-year-old could see the funny side.”I scored 10 runs in four games. I probably should have been doubted,” Allen said. “It’s nice, a few less people hate me [now]. T20 is pretty fickle. You’ve got to laugh, otherwise you’ll cry.”It is what it is, you know. People are going…