Author: Mishaal Mubarak

So far the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has been something like a tennis match. After the first game when India got the better of the hosts, things looked to be going in the visitors’ favor. But that was soon upturned when Australia bested the second game, and this dominance lasted until the very day the Gabba Test ended in a draw. Now once again, India seem to be in a better position. For one, they have plenty to gain, unlike Australia. If they win the Boxing Day Test, they will not only bolster their chances of reaching the World Test Championship (WTC)…

England Test captain, Ben Stokes, has been ruled out of all forms of cricket for the next three months after his hamstring injury resurfaced. Stokes was seen leaving the ground after the second ball of his thirteenth over in the third innings. It was moments after he delivered a bouncer to Rachin Ravindra when he was seen limping off the field, with visible pain on his face, clutching his left thigh. As expected, it was soon confirmed that the fast-bowling all-rounder would not return to the field and was due to undergo scans to assess the full extent of his…

Barring a handful of changes, a similar Sri Lanka like the one that earlier faced the Kiwis at home, have flown to New Zealand for a white ball tour. The Islanders will play three T20Is and an equal number of ODIs, making it the second time they will bilaterally face the Black Caps within a year.  Sri Lanka squad for T20I series in New Zealand Dunith Wellalage is the only player from the team that faced New Zealand in November, to be missing out on the away tour. The reason behind this decision is probably because the rookie spinner’s skillset…

New Zealand and Sri Lanka will play a white-ball series with three T20I games, followed by as many ODI matches between December 28 and January 11 at the former’s home grounds. To bolster the side’s power-hitting finesse, uncapped Bevon Jacobs has been called up for the T20I squad. Jacobs was selected by Mumbai Indians in the recent IPL draft after his brilliant outings in Super Smash earlier this year. He scored at an average of 33.5 striking at something north of 185 during the domestic competition.  After catching the eye of Mumbai Indians and doing what he did in the…

Indian pacer, Mohammad Shami, will not be in the mix to be selected for the remaining two Border-Gavaskar Test matches, set to be played in Melbourne and Sydney respectively. A BCCI media release confirmed the news after a minor swelling developed in the right-arm pacer’s knee. The media release came nearly a week after the Indian captain, Rohit Sharma, asked for an update about the pacer during a post-match conference. Although Sharma said India would not take a chance unless they were ‘not 100%, but 200% sure’ about his fitness, there was some hope that Shami might get a game. …

A tentative Champions Trophy 2025 schedule has been released after months of delays that were caused by the impasse between Pakistan and India. Last week it was decided that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) would host the tournament in a hybrid model where all of India’s matches will be played at a neutral venue. The UAE was confirmed as the neutral venue after the PCB chair, Mohsin Naqvi, met the UAE minister Sheikh Nahyan Al Mubarak.  “The PCB has picked the UAE as a neutral venue for the Champions Trophy,” a PCB spokesperson confirmed.  All of the games involving India,…

If Pakistan were Superman, Johannesburg would have been their kryptonite. If Pakistan were Achilles, Jo’burg would be their heels. For those who still don’t get it, Johannesburg is one of Pakistan’s biggest weaknesses. Don’t take my word for it. That’s what the stats say. For any team that has played a minimum of four ODI games at this venue, the men in green have won the lowest number of games. In fact, out of all the stadiums Pakistan have played the 50-over format at, they have the lowest win-to-loss ratio here (min. two ODI games).  Cap it all off with…

Australia have decided to drop Nathan McSweeney from the squad for the Melbourne and Sydney Tests after his lackluster batting display against India in the first three games. McSweeney, who was selected in the hope of finding a long-term replacement for David Warner, was able to accumulate only 72 runs in six innings, struggling visibly against the Indian pacers. In his stead, the 19-year-old opener, Sam Konstas, has been added to the squad for the remaining two matches of the series.  But this makes one wonder if Australia are making panic decisions. After all, McSweeney only got to play three…

After a prolonged impasse, a solution has finally been reached regarding where the Champions Trophy will be held. The tournament will be played in Pakistan, except for the matches involving India, which will be staged at a neutral venue to be announced in due course. The same will be followed for the tournaments in India, where Pakistan’s matches will be arranged at a second venue. The hosting rights will remain with the originally designated hosts. The decision came after multiple ICC board members’ meetings, and during each of them, Pakistan stuck to their stance of only accepting the hybrid model…

With two-in-two wins, Bangladesh have the series in their pockets. Doing so, they not only outperformed their opponent, West Indies but also did better than how they did previously. Before this series, Bangladesh last defeated Bangladesh in 2018. Two matches in they have a series win next to their name. From what it looks like, they are far from finished. They will be eager to come back for the hosts in the last game too.  There is another interesting aspect to their wins. In both games, Bangladesh were asked to bat first by the Windies. This is ironic because so…