Author: Mishaal Mubarak

Jamie Smith may not have looked forward to his role as England’s ODI opener against West Indies doubling up as a rehearsal for the high-octane red-ball series against India, but that is exactly what it was. With England’s focus shifting to their first assignment for the new World Test Championship cycle, which is also against a gargantuan Indian side, white-ball cricket exposure has offered them benefits, so says Smith. “There’s an opportunity there to go and play, and experience opening when the ball is still swinging and nipping around against quality bowlers,” he said after England wrapped up a 3-0…

Kagiso Rabada is gearing up for a comeback to South Africa’s red-ball side after completing his one-month ban for recreational drug use. Almost two weeks out from the World Test Championship (WTC) Final, he is fully aware of everything that lies ahead of him, both on field and off field. During his Indian Premier League (IPL) stint with Gujarat Titans (GT), he had to leave India and return home for ‘personal reasons’, which were not made public until the news about his consuming the banned substance came out. Speaking for the first time since the ban, Rabada acknowledged the need…

Punjab Kings (PBKS) ended the group stages in second place, and their win over Mumbai Indians (MI), on top of their clinical run throughout the season, helped them lock the spot to get two cracks at the final. They have run through their first chance, and for the final chance, they meet MI again. One downside about the Qualifier 1 for PBKS was that it was played at the venue which was their home for some part of the tournament. Home venues this season have not exactly been very kind to teams on average, and similar was the case with…

Aminul Islam, Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) newly appointed president, has shown intent to use his brief tenure as the chief to its full advantage for cricket’s growth in the country. Elected by the Board Directors on Friday in a meeting in Dhaka, Aminul is looking to apply experience drawn from decades of cricket administration across the globe. Bangladesh’s former captain was, until now, working as an ICC Development Manager in Melbourne and made a return to the country after his predecessor, Faruque Ahmed, was ousted by Bangladesh’s sports ministry a day earlier. It is understood that Aminul has taken leave…

Rohit Sharma has played plenty of roles, skipper, senior player, saviour. But this IPL, he has mostly been seen assuming the backstage, only entering the deck to fix some minor things here and there. He has only done so four times this season, but dare I say they were of any lesser importance. Each of his fifties came in a winning cause, the most significant of those, up till now, was his innings in the Eliminator against the, who feel like, eternally high-flying Gujarat Titans (GT). Mumbai Indians have scored 200-plus runs 17 times in first innings in the IPL…

Jasprit Bumrah is one for running the hard yards. His idea of a perfect place for bowling is a country with weather that can’t decide and a ball that won’t behave. India’s red-ball series against England is his next assignment in whites. He had to pull out of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in the final Test with a back spasm and is practically itching to step out with a freshly picked cherry in his hand. A suspicion in his voice as he spoke to Michael Clarke on the Beyond23 YouTube channel signalled his eagerness. “Playing in England is always a different…

Pakistan finally seem to be finding some substance in their continuous chatter of revolutionizing their approach. Against Bangladesh, they were able to put together a brilliant performance with both bat and ball to soar away with the victory, taking a 1-0 lead in the series. But more than anything, Pakistan would love some consistency, something that’s remained sorely elusive in whatever glory they have found lately. They look to have started off on the right foot, but how long that remains the case is a question both exhilarating and terrifying for them. Being cross with fate, they have seen many…

Mumbai Indians (MI) got off to winning ways after losing four of their first five games. That naturally brought myriads of criticism, especially after their terrible run last season. A six-game winning streak shot them back among the big guys, and despite losing two of their last three games, they made their case strong enough not to move from the fourth spot. While that assured them of a playoff position, they will not get another shot to try their luck. It’s funny how the same scenario exists for Gujarat Titans (GT), who have journeyed from travelling in first class, certain…

There was a particular effortlessness in the way Suyash Sharma talked about his brilliance in Mullanpur, and perhaps that was just what made him so effective and lethal against Punjab Kings (PBKS). Three overs, three wickets, and seventeen runs. His simplicity made it seem like just another day at the office. Except this was hardly that. This was an Indian Premier League (IPL) Qualifier, and Suyash ravaged through Punjab’s middle order and set their woes in stone for the night. “The coaches have told me just one thing: I have to hit the stumps, it doesn’t matter whether I bowl…

Harry Brook isn’t a fan of looking back at the horrors of the past. Especially not after the sort of brilliance England displayed at Edgbaston. A 238-run victory to kick off a new era under the leadership of their new captain was a refreshing deviation from a past that had not been very kind to them. Two World Cup defenses going awry and four back-to-back ODI series defeats had left the English in largely unfamiliar territory. On Thursday, however, they finally found their way out of it. Although the visiting side may have been a tad too uncompetitive in the…