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Suryakumar Yadav (Photo Source: Twitter) Indian team started the year by a big change in management with Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid leading the much-changed teams across formats. In terms of trophies, the Men in Blue struggled to make a big impact as they failed to qualify for the finals of the 2022 Asia Cup and the T20 World Cup 2022. Compared to white-ball cricket, India's performance in red-ball was impressive, as they are in strong position to qualify for the World Test Championship (WTC) Final. But despite team's below expectation outings, fans witnessed some individual brilliances throughout the year. The biggest positive from year 2022 was Virat Kohli breaking his century drought after 1021 days. The former captain smashed his first-ever T20I hundred during the 2022 Asia Cup clash against Afghanistan and ended his ODI campaign with a century against Bangladesh. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) revealed India's best performers in all three fo

Aakash Chopra (Photo Source: Instagram/Aakash Chopra) The calendar year 2022 was filled with T20I cricket. It (2022) finally saw the end of Sri Lanka’s long-running drought in major tournaments and also witnessed England winning the T20 World Cup for the second time in history. When it comes to individual performances, former India skipper Virat Kohli wreaked havoc with his batting along with Suryakumar Yadav while players like Sikandar Raza, Wanindu Hasaranga and Devon Conway played some phenomenal cricket to light up the season. Having said that, former India opener Aakash Chopra who followed the season, picked his top five T20I batters of the year. Going by the stats and his own analysis, the cricketer-turned-commentator, ranked the top five batters in the following order - Suryakumar Yadav (India), Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan), Virat Kohli (India), Sikandar Raza (Zimbabwe) and Devon Conway (New Zealand).  During his analysis, Chopra hailed Virat Kohli for his dynamic transfor

Lance Morris. (Photo Source: Twitter/@cricketcomau) Australia battered South Africa in the second Test at the MCG to claim a memorable series victory, and with the series already in the bag, the home side are looking to unleash young speedster, Lance Morris, against the Proteas at the SCG. The youngster was included in the Australian squad as a cover for veteran pacer Mithcell Starc ahead of the three-match series. Lance Morris' call-up to the national team was no fluke, as he has been in scintillating form in the domestic circuit, rattling opposition batters with his electric pace. With injuries to Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc in the second Test, Morris is likely to make his big bow in the upcoming series finale at the SCG. The 24-year-old, quite expectedly, was excited at the prospect of making his debut for the national side in Sydney. “It’s honestly a whirlwind. It’s kind of hard to wrap my head around and there’s a little bit of nervous energy, but I guess that mean

Rashid khan. (Photo Source: Twitter) Bowling superstar Rashid Khan will be targeting a special milestone when Adelaide Strikers clash against Melbourne Stars on New Year's eve at the Adelaide Oval. The mercurial Afghan is just three wickets away from becoming the first overseas player in the league to reach the landmark of 100 wickets.  Rashid Khan has been one of the standout performers in the Big Bash League since making his debut for the Adelaide Strikers in 2017. The 24-year-old has a strong connection with the home fans, who love the cricketer to bits. Khan is hoping to make New Year's Eve an even more special occasion for the Adelaide crowd by scalping his 100th wicket in their presence. "If I get those three wickets … that will be more than a dream for me. In my mind, in the last three to four games, that if I take wickets, get to 97, 98, 99, something like that just to make sure it's New Year's Eve game I take that (100th) wicket. We always get a goo

Ramiz Raja. (Photo Source: ARIF ALI/AFP via Getty Images) Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja made some scathing remarks as he said that his former teammates Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis would have been banned by him for match-fixing allegations during their playing days.  The 60-year-old opened up on the Pakistan legends and believes that they shouldn’t have been brought back into the set-up after Justice Qayyum’s report on match-fixing. The name of Akram and Younis was written multiple times on the report but no major action was taken. The 56-year-old Akram was fined and was removed from captaincy as he continued to play for the national team while Waqar was in the Pakistan set-up for a longer time. “I think no one should have had the chance of coming back to Pakistan cricket. If Wasim Akram’s name is in there, and he was censored for not cooperating, right? It was a borderline case. If I was the decision maker at the time, I would’ve banned them forever,” R

Stafanie Taylor. (Photo Source: ICC) Veteran all-rounder Stafanie Taylor  is all set to make her return to the West Indies team after being named in the 16-member squad on Friday for the forthcoming T20I series in South Africa. The tri-series will see the host nation taking on the West Indies and India. The tri-series will be of utter importance as it will be a dress rehearsal for the sides ahead of the all-important T20 World Cup that starts on February 10.  Taylor, who’s making her return to international cricket, suffered an injury while batting in an ODI against New Zealand in September. The ever-dependable cricketer, thus, missed out on the home series against England. After a humiliating series defeat at the hands of the visitors, the team management made some changes and also called up middle-order batter Britney Cooper for the upcoming series. “Our batting in the most recent series was less than par against a very good England bowling attack. We believe that with the ret

Rishabh Pant's Accident. (Photo Source: Twitter/Abhishek Tripathi) Prayers flooded in for Indian wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant after he was hospitalised following a car accident on Friday morning. The 25-year-old escaped with severe injuries and remains in stable condition. However, as per reports, following the accident some miscreants looted him and eloped from the scene instead of helping him.  The cricketer's speeding car apparently hit a pile of soil near Hammadpur, close to Roorkee's Narsan border, spinning out of control and colliding with the barricade. According to eyewitnesses, the car was engulfed in flames immediately after the mishap. Pant was unable to get out of the car due to injuries and eventually managed to escape the vehicle after breaking the window.  According to reports, a few men approached the spot of the accident and took advantage of the cricketer's injuries by looting cash from one of his bags and eloping the scene. Pant contacted t

Australia vs South Africa. (Photo Source: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images) The Australian team has added Ashton Agar and Matthew Renshaw to the 14-man squad for the third and final Test match of the series against the Proteas. The hosts completed a dominating series victory after battering their opponents at the MCG, however, they lost two of their key players in Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc to finger injuries.  The National selectors added Renshaw and Agar in hopes of bolstering their injury-hit squad ahead of the Sydney Test against the visitors. Both Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc were ruled out for the series finale after injuring their fingers in the second Test. Renshaw has represented Australia in 11 Tests and has fond memories of playing at the SCG, as his only Test century to date came at that venue.  "Matthew is included as a versatile batting option who is in good form, including an unbeaten century in the recent PM's XI tour match against the West Indies.

Cricket Australia. (Photo Source: Quinn Rooney/Getty Images) Hosts Australia thrashed South Africa by an innings and 182 runs on Day 4 thereby taking a 2-0 lead in the three-match Test series at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Putting the visitors to bat first after winning the toss, the Proteas were bundled out for mere 189 runs in their first innings as star all-rounder Cameron Green relished scalping a fifer (5/27). In response, the Aussies took command of their innings as opener David Warner scored one of his finest knocks in the Boxing Day Test. The southpaw amassed a double ton (200 runs from 255 balls) which included 16 boundaries and two maximums. Adding to this, Alex Carey’s century (111 runs) and Steve Smith’s 85 runs propelled the side to score a massive 575 runs before declaring the innings for the loss of eight wickets. What followed was a combined dominating performance coming from the Australian bowling unit as the visitors just could not measure up to

Cameron Green. (Photo Source: Flashscore Cricket Commentators/Twitter) Cameron Green showed nerves of steel as he not only batted with a fractured finger but also scored a gritty half-century on Day 3 of the recently concluded Boxing Day Test match at the iconic Melbourne Cricket MCG. However, the extent of the injury is so serious it will sideline Green from the third and final Test match that is scheduled to be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground next week. Giving more details on the agonizing injury, Green went on to say that he already sensed something wrong immediately after being struck by an Anrich Nortje bouncer. At the same time, the youngster also admitted how he tried to be brave despite being in deep discomfort. I reckon my finger is out of place here: Cameron Green “You try to not show the pain straight away. I marked my guard again and walked a couple of steps, and I was like ‘I reckon my finger is out of place here’,” said Green while speaking to cricket.com.au.

Litton das and Ravi Ashwin. (Photo Source: Twitter) India's veteran offie Ravichandran Ashwin has opened up on the amount of respect he has for Bangladesh’s modern-day batting sensation Litton Das. The duo was indulged in a face-off on the field during the recently-concluded two-match Test series where India went on register a 2-0 clean sweep. Ashwin also went on to add that during the course of the Test tour he had personally praised Litton’s extraordinary batting abilities and even boosted his morale by saying that he has the to be in the leagues of batting megastars Virat Kohli, Kane Williamson, Steve Smith, and Joe Root. I saw his style of play and thought here is a pathbreaker to take Bangladesh cricket forward: Ravichandran Ashwin "I told Litton Das that I saw him during his Test debut. I saw his style of play and thought here is a pathbreaker to take Bangladesh cricket forward. I told him ‘I have a small disappointment. I thought you will reach the level of Vir

Venkatesh Prasad and Chethan Sharma. (Photo Source: Twitter) The Board of  Control for Cricket in India ( BCCI ) are all in readiness to proceed with the next course of action after many applicants have expressed their interest in the men’s selectors positions. The cricket board had sacked the previous selection committee headed by former pacer Chetan Sharma and invited fresh applications to fill the vacant slot. Even the former members of the core committee -- Chetan Sharma and Harvinder Singh -- have re-applied to be a part of the new selection committee which is reportedly set to be formed in January 2023. The list of new applicants for the selectors’ post include some of the well-known cricketers including Maninder Singh, Shiv Sunder Das and the wicketkeeping duo of Nayan Mongia and Ajay Ratra. The deadline for the interested candidates to file their nominations was November 28. BCCI sacked Chetan Sharma-led selection committee after T20 World Cup 2022 The BCCI had sacked t

Suryakumar Yadav (Photo Source: Twitter/BCCI) World No.1 Suryakumar Yadav opened up on being ascendent as India's T20 vice-captain for the home series against Sri Lanka. In a first, the prolific batter's consistency was paid off when the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday announced the T20I squad and ODI squad. While there were quite a few notable changes in the squads, one of the highlights was the promotion of flamboyant right-hander.  Yadav, incidentally, was the second highest run-scorer for India at the T20 World Cup 2022 only behind former captain Virat Kohli. He believes that his promotion as vice-captain was a reward for his consistent performances.  "It (vice-captaincy) was not expected. I can only say it's kind of a reward to me for the way I (have) played this year. It feels good and I'm really looking forward to it. I came to know from my dad who is always active on social media. He forwarded me the list and also sent me a sh

R Ashwin (Photo Source: BCCI) Ravichandran Ashwin and Shreyas Iyer have made significant gains in the Men’s Test Player Rankings after helping India win the second match of their ICC World Test Championship (WTC) series against Bangladesh in Mirpur. Ashwin has moved up one slot and is joint-fourth among bowlers along with Jasprit Bumrah after finishing with six wickets in the match. He has also inched up three places to 84th among batters following a crucial knock of 42 not out in the second innings that enabled a three-wicket victory and won India crucial WTC points. Ashwin, who has been the No. 1 bowler and all-rounder in the past, has also earned seven rating points in the all-rounders’ rankings, which are led by his compatriot Ravindra Jadeja. Jadeja is currently on 369 rating points while Ashwin is on 343. Iyer, who partnered in an unbroken 71-run partnership with Ashwin that steered the team to victory, has attained a career-best 16th position. Iyer’s scores of 87 and 29

Russell Domingo. (Photo Source: Twitter) Bangladesh head coach Russell Domingo on Wednesday resigned from his position with immediate effect. His decision was inevitable after Bangladesh faced a 0-2 Test drubbing at home against India which added to pressure that he was facing from the board. The South African cricket coach did not complete his tenure which ran till 2023 World Cup.  Domingo moved to South Africa for a Christmas break immediately after the hosts lacklustre perfomance in the recently concluded Test series. However, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) cricket operations chairman Jalal Yunus, hinted that the national team is already looking for a replacement.  "We need a coach who has an impact and influence on the team," Yunus told reporters after the Dhaka Test. "You will soon see some changes. We are trying. We want a very strong team that can play quality and highly competitive teams. We went close to beating India but it is tough to beat this team. W

Rishabh Pant (Photo Source: Hannah Peters/Getty Images) Stumper-batter Rishabh Pant’s form in white-ball cricket has been a bit concerning as of late. In 25 T20I matches he played this year, Pant managed to score 364 runs at a strike rate of 132.84. When it comes to ODIs, the southpaw has failed to impress in the last couple of series against New Zealand and Bangladesh. Hence, there were questions and speculations about him getting dropped from the playing XI against Sri Lanka. However, to everyone’s surprise, the 25-year-old will be missing the entire white-ball series. As per reports,  Pant has suffered an injury on his knee and has been carrying that for quite some time now. The cricketer will now be reporting to NCA and will spend at least 15 days in the academy. The cricketer is expected to join NCA on January 3, 2023, and is likely to return in the series against New Zealand. Dhawan axed, KL Rahul removed as vice-captain of ODI squad Rishabh Pant’s absence isn’t the only

Ashleigh Gardner (Photo Source: Nathan Stirk/Getty Images) Australia all-rounder Ashleigh Gardner has grabbed the No.1 position for all-rounders in the ICC Women’s T20I Player Rankings after a match-winning performance in the final T20I of the five-match series against India that her team won 4-1. Gardner, who was named Player of the Match after her effort of 66 not out off 32 balls and a haul of two for 20, has topped the all-rounders’ list for the first time after moving up three spots. She has overtaken West Indies captain Hayley Matthews, India’s Deepti Sharma and New Zealand captain Sophie Devine, who was at the top through the past year. Gardner, who finished the series with 115 runs and seven wickets, is also up two places to a career-best seventh position among batters and progressed three places to a career-best 14th among bowlers in the latest weekly update that also considers performances in the last match of the West Indies-England series. Deepti Sharma’s 34-ball 53

India. (Photo Source: Twitter/BCCI) It was Ravichandran Ashwin and Shreyas Iyer’s rescue job that helped team India clinch the series 2-0 from the jaws of defeat against Bangladesh in the second Test in Mirpur. Former India selector Saba Karim warned the side as he insisted on gearing up for the challenges ahead of them next year. Team India is in contention for a spot in the summit clash of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2021-23 cycle. Saba Karim stated that the narrow win to Bangladesh was a ‘wake-up call’ for the side and must be ready for the forthcoming red-ball series against Australia. “It’s a wake-up call for Team India. It’s crucial to address the issues in this Test match. We’ll play Test matches against Australia. We are only talking about qualifying for the World Test Championship, but we also need to win the WTC. Don’t repeat the mistakes,” said Karim as quoted by India Today. “Team India batters are unable to pick the spinners' length. We are tentative

David Warner. (Photo Source: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images) Dynamic Australian opener David Warner finally succeeded in ending his three-year Test century drought as he breached the three-figure mark in the ongoing second game against South Africa at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground on Tuesday, December 27. Warner, who is also making his 100th Test appearance has notched up his 25th ton in the format and made the occasion even more special by getting past 8000 runs in the longest format of the sport. Apart from these milestones, the southpaw has also succeeded in achieving yet another unique feat.  David Warner has now equaled Sachin Tendulkar’s all-time record with a well-deserved century in his 100th Test appearance.  David Warner achieves a new high post MCG Test ton When Warner finally ended his agonizing Test century drought in Melbourne, he also ended up registering his 45th international century and is currently tied with Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar. Even Sachin h

Gujarat Titans logo. (Photo Source: Gujarat Titans) Defending champions Gujarat Titans might not have made the headlines by signing any of the big-money names in the IPL 2023 auction , but they were the most successful team in terms of acquiring their targets. The IPL 2022 champions signed seven players in the recently concluded auction, landing all the players they bid for, registering a 100% success rate in front of the hammer.  Hardik Pandya's Gujarat Titans completed a fairytale finish to their inaugural season earlier this year after defeating Rajasthan Royals to lift their maiden IPL title. The newly introduced franchise headed to the IPL 2023 auction with a sizeable purse of 19.25 crores. However, instead of tangling in bidding wars for some of the most coveted players ahead of next year's IPL, the think tank of the defending champions stuck to smart purchases. They signed all the seven players they bid for with 4.45 crores still remaining in their kitty, while the

Babar Azam (Photo Source: Twitter) Pakistan captain Babar Azam on Monday, December 26 surpassed former England Test skipper Joe Root to become the leading run-scorer in Tests in 2022. Notably, Root, who amassed 1098 runs from 15 matches at an average of 45.75 in 2022, now stands behind Azam, who became the top run-getter during a meticulous innings on Day 1 of Pakistan’s opening Test against New Zealand at the National Stadium in Karachi . The 28-year-old will also finish 2022 as the leading run-scorer in international cricket. Despite Pakistan not being able to win any of the major trophies, the skipper led by example. He was in tremendous form and was consistent enough to achieve such a prestigious milestone. Interestingly, Babar is the only cricketer to have scored more than 2000 runs in international cricket in this calendar year. Premier Bangladesh batter Litton Das is second in the list after scoring 1921 runs in 2022.  PAK vs NZ: Babar Azam stabilizes Pakistan innings aft

Vivrant Sharma. (Photo Source: Twitter) The overseas all-rounder trio of Sam Curran, Ben Stokes, and Cameron Green grabbed the headlines after their big-money moves in the IPL 2023 auction. However, Sunrisers Hyderabad splashed the cash on another young talent from Jammu and Kashmir. A young Vivrant Sharma, who was signed for 2.6 crores by SRH, shed light on his interaction with former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan during a Ranji Trophy camp. It is another rags-to-riches story for young Jammu and Kashmir cricketer Vivrant Sharma who was acquired for ten times his base price of 20 lakhs. The top-order batter came into the limelight after a prolific season with the bat in his side's run through to the quarter-final of the Vijay Hazare Trophy in 2022. The southpaw endured several hardships during his early career, including the demise of his father in 2020, which saw his elder brother drop his cricketing career. He shared a story involving former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan,

Pakistan’s head coach Mickey Arthur. (Photo by GLYN KIRK/AFP/Getty Images) Former South African cricketer Mickey Arthur, who also coached the Pakistani side between 2016-2019, is reportedly set to return to the coaching unit of the Babar Azam -led side. He has accepted the offer kept forward by newly appointed Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Najam Sethi and is likely to take up the role soon. The former Proteas cricketer was contacted by Sethi, the head of the PCB's 14-member management committee, regarding his position in the new system. Arthur is reportedly set to join the squad prior to the eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League. Notably, Pakistan lifted the Champions Trophy in 2017 under Arthur’s mentorship. The current PCB management is restructuring the organization and has fired the selection committee, which was directed by Mohammad Wasim. While former cricketer Shahid Afridi has been appointed as interim chief selector, reports by Pakistan’s Geo TV also r

Shane Warne. (Photo Source: Clive Mason/Getty Images) The Australia men's Test Player of the Year award was renamed in honour of spin wizard Shane Warne, Cricket Australia (CA) and the Australian Cricketers' Association (ACA) made a joint announcement on Monday. The top men's Test award is handed out every year at the CA's Awards ceremony alongside the Allan Border medal and the Belinda Clark medal for the women's game. CA chief executive Nick Hockley confirmed to pay the tribute in honour of the legend spinner by renaming the award. "As one of Australia's all-time greats, it is fitting we acknowledge Shane's extraordinary contribution to Test cricket by naming this award in his honour in perpetuity," said Hockley. "Shane was a proud advocate of Test cricket and you only have to look around at all the fans who came out to the MCG in their floppy hats and zinc on Boxing Day to realise what a profound impact he had on the game."  T

Shreyas Iyer and Ravi Ashwin. (Photo Source: Twitter/BCCI) Former India captain, world-cup winner, and a legend of the game- Sunil Gavaskar, was all praises for Shreyas Iyer and Ravichandran Ashwin, who took India to a brilliant victory on Sunday, December 25, over Bangladesh in the second Test in Dhaka. Gavaskar praised Iyer and Ashwin for maintaining composure and taking advantage of scoring chances as they put on a 71-run unbroken stand to help India defeat Bangladesh by three wickets and advance to the World Test Championship final. Under stand-in skipper KL Rahul’s leadership, India won the first game comfortably by 188 wickets and looked for a 2-0 whitewash. Though they were able to achieve it, the path towards victory had multiple obstacles. Bangladesh spinners dominated the final innings as the Indian batters struggled, until Shreyas Iyer and Ravichandran Ashwin teamed up. Gavaskar spared special appreciation for Ashwin, calling him a terrific cricketer who deserves more

Najam Sethi. (Photo Source: Twitter) The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) management committee has taken the initiative of improving the environment of their office premises and as per reports, the national cricket board has already recommended to start an education program for the employees. The report further adds that the initiative has been taken in the wake of four serious incidents in the last few years, with one of them being an incident related to the harassment of a female board official by a Pakistan Junior League (PJL) player. However, according to Cricket Pakistan, the female official was forced to withdraw her complaint when the matter was casually taken by the accused player’s team coach and the board officials. PCB looking to address employee issues at the workplace Apart from this, there have been a few instances of the PCB employees allegedly being found guilty of organisational misconduct in the past. Last year, a former PCB commercial director was accused of wor

India. (Photo Source: Twitter/BCCI) Sunil Gavaskar has expressed disappointment over India 's slip catching in second Test against Bangladesh at the Shere Bangla Stadium in Mirpur. On Day 3, Litton Das, who top-scored for the hosts in the second innings with 73, was dropped twice in the slips by Virat Kohli, although both were tough chances. The first drop by Kohli was off left-arm spinner Axar Patel while the second one was off senior off-spinner R Ashwin. Meanwhile, Gavaskar also explained the areas where the Indian team is erring at when it comes to slip fielding. They stand too upright with hands on knees: Sunil Gavskar “They stand too upright with hands on knees. It's surprising that their coach is Rahul Dravid, who is probably the only Indian with more than 200 catches and a great catcher,” said Gavaskar on air. It was because of such fielding lapses that Bangladesh eventually ended up posting 231 to set India a target of 145 on a seemingly turning track. The visi

Ravi Ashwin and Shakib Al Hasan. (Photo Source: Twitter) Ravichandran Ashwin and Shreyas Iyer pulled off an amazing win for India on Day 4 of the second Test match against Bangladesh on Sunday (December 25). After resuming at 45/4 on Day 4, India lost three wickets in quick succession but Ashwin and Shreyas put together an unbeaten 71-run partnership for the eighth wicket to guide India to a three-wicket and a 2-0 series win. After shattering India's top order by bagging three wickets during the last session on Day 3, Mehidy Hasan Miraz took two more wickets in the form of Axar Patel and Rishabh Pant in the first session on Day 4 to put Bangladesh on course for their first-ever Test win against India. But Ashwin and Iyer's unbroken 71-run partnership proved enough for India to avoid an embarrassing loss. Ashwin scored 42* off 62 balls with the help of four fours and a six to win the Player of the Match award while Shreyas contributed 29* off 46 balls. Shreyas Iyer makes

Axar Patel. (Photo Source: MUNIR UZ ZAMAN/AFP via Getty Images) India completed a resounding series victory against Bangladesh after a thrilling second Test match in Dhaka. The hosts were in all sorts of trouble after conceding a considerable lead in the first innings following heroics from India's Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer. The second innings followed the same template as the Bangladeshi top order failed to thwart the Indian bowlers on a tricky surface at the Shere Bangla National Stadium. However, Bangladesh were given a new lease of life after white-ball skipper Litton Das' counter-attacking 73, coupled with handy contributions from Nurul Hasan and Taskin Ahmed. They ended up setting India a tricky target of 145 runs on a surface that was getting increasingly difficult for the batters. The task became even more difficult after Mehidy Hasan Miraz ran through the Indian top order in the last session of the third day to hand Bangladesh the initiative ahead of the fou