Author: Mishaal Mubarak

Pakistan have announced their squads for the white-ball tour against West Indies, starting August 1. Both sides will play three T20Is and as many ODIs across two venues. Pakistan have decided to stick with Mohammad Rizwan as the ODI captain for the series, with several main players including Babar Azam, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Naseem Shah. All the mentioned players, barring Shaheen, last played for the side in the New Zealand tour following the Champions Trophy. Only Shaheen from these players has made it to the T20I squad. Opening batter Fakhar Zaman is part of the squad, which will be…

It sounds too unrealistic to be true, but Australia have never defeated West Indies in a T20I series at their home. However, this could change in St. Kitts, as the visitors are already 2-0 up in the series, and another win will secure the series in their favour. Sabina Park didn’t have many good memories in store for the Windies. It can be argued that the venue has a soft spot for teams batting second, which, incidentally, in both games were Australia. But that doesn’t change the fact that the hosts have largely been dismal in their play. In the…

South Africa have announced their squads for the white-ball tours of Australia next month. The series will see Aiden Markaram and Temba Bavuma return to lead the T20I and ODI sides, respectively, after staying away from the side for their respective reasons. Markaram last captained in a T20I in November last year against India, after which he sat out the recent series against Zimbabwe and Pakistan. Bavuma, on the other hand, didn’t miss any ODI games for South Africa, but he returns from the hamstring injury he picked up during the World Test Championship (WTC) Final at Lord’s. Along with…

Bangladesh have clinched their first series win against Pakistan since 2015, and if you count the series where more than one game was played, this is the first time they have done so. There was a combined mix of things that made it possible. Of course, Dhaka’s pitch took the visitors by surprise, and before they could get their heads around it, they were already 2-0 down. But saying it was the only reason Bangladesh wrote history would be unfair. On a surface that PDA-ed its love for bowlers, Bangladesh’s middle-order batters, Mahedi Hasan and Jaker Ali, kept their calm…

Bangladesh have never won a T20I series with more than one game against Pakistan. But that was true only till Tuesday, when the hosts wrapped up the series in their favour, with one game to spare. This means the last T20I is of virtually no importance, that is, unless Bangladesh go on to shake a few more record books with a clean sweep. In which case, things will become even glummer for Pakistan. This isn’t an isolated predicament for Pakistan. Neither are the pitches fully behind their dismal way of playing. The format lately hasn’t been too kind to them.…

Max60, a ten-over competition in the Cayman Islands, has been forced into disarray after several reports of non-payment of dues prompted players to stage strikes against the organizers. The tournament had gained traction in its second season this year after attracting big names like David Warner, Shakib Al Hasan, Alex Hales, and Carlos Brathwaite. However, the strikes forced the abrupt cancellation of as many as five games on Tuesday. According to reports, players refused to take the field, demanding payment of the dues contractually due 30 days before the start of the tournament. However, the owners cancelled the games and…

Where does the series go from here? England are 2-1 up, but India aren’t settling on staying behind. The Lord’s Test could have gone either way, but the fact of the matter is it landed in England’s kitty. Manchester can either see the hosts ending the series in their favour by going 3-1, or the visitors resisting to continue nurturing the excitement that has carried the series so far. Five-Test series usually develop their own pop culture, which is an externality to the main drama. That culture gets wilder when both teams are toe-to-toe with each other. From on-field kerfuffles…

Whatever Pakistan were hoping to find at the Shere Bangla Cricket Stadium, it certainly wasn’t getting bundled out for 110 and then following it up with a dismal bowling and fielding display. They were jolted awake by Bangladesh’s strong performance, which, rightly so, earned the home team their first bilateral win in the format against Pakistan since 2015. Only one victory stands between Bangladesh and finally downing the Goliath. In a T20I series with at leats two games, Bangladesh have always been on the wrong side. But now that they are on a mission to fix everything broken, they might…

Pakistan and Mirpur haven’t been a happy pairing in T20Is. Of the ten lowest aggregates in Bangladesh–Pakistan T20Is, six have come at this venue alone. Sunday’s 222 is now fourth on the list. And while Bangladesh batters looked pretty much at ease gunning down the meagre total, Pakistan’s coach Mike Hesson thinks the surface didn’t offer a fair contest for anyone. “I think (the pitch) is not ideal for anybody,” Hesson said. “Teams are trying to prepare for the Asia Cup or the (T20) World Cup. It is not acceptable.” That the surface gave virtually no benefit to the batters…

If you are thinking of going by the results of the Test series to judge West Indies’ ability to dominate in T20Is, you’re taking the wrong path. Australia learned it the hard way on their last tour here in 2021. It took a 4-1 chastening to remind them that the format is somewhat tailor-made for a side like the Windies. But for how long that can be said for them is up for debate, especially now, when the cohort of players that led them in their golden period is slowly dispersing away from the game. Andre Russell is the latest…