Month: August 2023

IMAGE: BCCI president Roger Binny along with vice-president Rajeev Shukla will travel to Pakistan on an invitation from the PCB for the Asia Cup. Photograph: BCCI
Board of Control for Cricket in India president Roger Binny said while he is travelling to Pakistan for the Asia Cup, he will also be interacting with the Pakistan Cricket Board on behalf of BCCI.
Asia Cup 2023 kicks off in Multan on Thursday, with hosts Pakistan taking on Nepal in the tournament opener.
Binny along with BCCI vice-president Rajeev Shukla will travel to Pakistan on an invitation from the PCB to the members of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and the member boards for the Asia Cup.
“My last Pakistan visit was in 2006, when was there people of Pakistan very interested in Indian cricket and cinema. I am going to interact with the Pakistan Cricket Board on behalf of BCCI,” BCCI chief Binny told ANI.
The Indian team won’t be travelling to Pakistan, with all their matches scheduled to be held in Sri Lanka. They will play their opening match against Pakistan on Saturday in Kandy and against Nepal at the same venue two days later, while their Super 4 matches will be held in Colombo.
When asked if Pakistan is safe for India to play cricket, Binny replied: “Many teams are playing Test cricket over there. England, Sri Lanka and Australia teams have been there. Right now the biggest thing is happening the India versus Pakistan match.”
The former India pacer said that fitness is the biggest challenge for Indian cricket currently. He revealed that they are trying to cut down the schedule to give players enough time to manage all three formats.
“That is a very important area which we are working on. One person cannot play all the formats. Fitness is the biggest challenge in the country nowadays. You have to manage everything manage your fitness and play. So you can play for a long period of time. Now we trying to cut down the schedule for the players to play all three formats,” said the BCCI chief.

Coco Gauss arguing with the chair umpire during the US Open match on Monday.
American teenager Coco Gauff battled into the second round of the US Open by defeating German veteran Laura Siegemund. But more than the smashes and Ms Gauff’s efforts, the match is being talked about online because of her arguments with the chair umpire about Ms Siegemund’s prolonged preparations before receiving her serve. Ms Gauff’s dissatisfaction reached its peak during the third set when she finally confronted the chair umpire. The teenager demanded violations to be imposed on the German player for the multiple time violations.
“I don’t care what she’s doing on her serve but on my serve she has to be ready,” Ms Gauff yelled at the umpire. “She’s never ready.”
I have no idea what she’s talking about but I’m on her side pic.twitter.com/QF85n9pahb
chris evans (@notcapnamerica) August 29, 2023
After an answer from the chair umpire Veljovic, Ms Gauff said, “No, you’re calling the score after the point is over, it’s not like we’re playing long points. You’re calling the score like six seconds after the point is over!”
“She can’t go back every single point. And everybody in this crowd knows I’ve been quiet this whole match…That first set, it was like every point. I didn’t say nothing, but now it’s ridiculous. I don’t care what she’s putting on her serves, on my serves she has to be ready,” the player further said
The crowd roared in approval as Ms Gauff returned to her post behind the baseline.
Promoted
The American finally won the match 3-6, 6-2, 6-4 after a 2 hour 50 min tussle on the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
Ms Gauff will now face Mirra Andreeva in the second round.

The Asia Cup is coming around and this means that cricket fans would be treated to the spectacle of India vs Pakistan match. The two arch-rivals will clash in the first of possibly three matches in a tournament that both sides would be counting on as they prepare for the 2023 ODI World Cup. With the T20 World Cup happening in 2021 and 2022 and the Asia Cup taking place last year as well, this fixture has occurred quite a few times in the last three years despite the two teams not playing any bilateral cricket series with each other for nearly a decade now.
A number of Pakistan players, including Babar Azam, have little experience of facing India in an ODI match(AFP)
Notably though, this will be the first ODI match between the two teams since June 16, 2019, when India beat Pakistan by 89 runs in the 2019 World Cup. A lot has changed for Pakistan since then, starting with their captaincy changing hands from Sarfaraz Ahmed at the time to Babar Azam. The latter is credited with making Pakistan a far more steady force to reckon with, particularly in ICC tournaments, and has led them to the top of the ODI rankings. Let’s take a look at five players to look out for before the big match.
1. Babar Azam (103 matches, 5202 runs; Average: 58.44, 18 centuries, 28 half centuries)
First up comes the captain and talisman. Babar has established himself as among the greatest of his generation. And yet, he might come into this match feeling that he has a point to prove. Babar has played India on five times, the last of which was the match in 2019. In those games, he has scored just 158 runs at an average of 31.60 with no half centuries, let alone centuries. In the five games he has played with India, he has managed scores of 8, 46, 47 and 9. It has to be noted that all of the matches that Babar played against India came at a time when he was yet to become the senior pro recognised as being among the most consistent batters in the world. Babar has been part of some of the most extraordinary fixtures in the recent history of this rivalry. He was part of the side that stunned India in the final of the 2017 Champions Trophy and played a leading role in their demolition of India in the 2021 T20 World Cup. As captain he was also heavily involved in the series of memorable matches that the two sides played in 2022.
2. Shaheen Afridi (39 matches, 76 wickets; Average: 23.34)
Shaheen Afridi was almost like a bolt from the blue for most Indian fans, if not the batters themselves, during the 2021 T20 World Cup. If there were those India thinking that the team at the time were lucky that they don’t have to face Mohammad Amir like what was the case in the 2017 final, Afridi came in to remind them that Pakistan’s production line of fast bowlers who can make you shiver never ends. Afridi came in and sent back Rohit Sharma in just the fourth ball of the match and then KL Rahul off the very first ball of his next over. He then got Virat Kohli out just as the then-India captain was looking to shift gears, having survived until the last two overs. Interestingly, though, most of India’s memories of Afridi would be down to that one match as he has hardly played in this fixture in his five-year-old international career. Indeed, Afridi has played just one ODI against India and that came in the 2018 Asia Cup. No Pakistan player had got a wicket in that game with Rohit and Shikhar Dhawan’s centuries leading India to a dominant victory. He had sat out the Asia Cup last time due to injury, which had also cast a shadow on his performance in the 2022 T20 World Cup in which he faced India for just the third time in his career. Afridi might be keen on providing a reminder of what he is all about now that he is back to full fitness.
3. Naseem Shah (10 matches, 25 wickets; Average: 16.12)
It would come as no surprise that the young paceman is yet to face India in ODI cricket. Naseem however played India three times last year with rather ordinary results for a player of his calibre. He got the big wickets of KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav in his first match against India in the Asia Cup last year. Naseem then got one wicket each in the second Asia Cup fixture and the T20 World Cup match, both of which were among the most thrilling encounters ever played in the T20 format between the two sides. In the clash at the packed out MCG, Naseem had an impressive outing. He conceded just 23 runs in his four overs and took the wicket of Rahul with his fifth ball of the game. Naseem has played only 10 ODIs in his nascent limited overs career and has two five-wicket hauls to his name, one of which came against New Zealand in Rawalpindi.
4. Haris Rauf (24 matches, 44 wickets; Average: 26.56)
With an ability to bowl at a blinding pace and skills to keep the runs in check, Haris Rauf has become integral to Pakistan’s cause in limited overs cricket. His Test debut went awry late last year as he picked an injury having bowled 13 overs but he has returned to full fitness as against New Zealand and most recently by taking five wickets as Pakistan skittled Afghanistan out for 59 last week. Rauf is yet to play an ODI against India. However, he did play all four T20I matches that the two sides played against each other over the course of 2021 and 2022. He has taken four wickets and averaged just 33.50, thus proving to be a dangerous customer to score off. How difficult it is to score against him was on full display in the humdinger that was played between the two sides at the MCG in the 2022 T20 World Cup. Rauf had conceded just 24 runs in 3.4 overs before Virat Kohli hit him for two stunning sixes and the turn the match on its head.
5. Fakhar Zaman (73 matches, 3207 runs; Average: 47.16, 10 centuries, 15 half centuries)
Zaman scored 114 off 106 balls to help Pakistan to a total of 338/4 batting first. India then crumbled in the face of the big total and Pakistan, who had received a 124-runs hiding at the hands of their neighbours in the same tournament earlier, won the match by seven wickets. He has played just four matches against India and in those, Fakhar has scored 207 runs at an average of 51.75. His recent form in the format has been good. Fakhar scored three consecutive centuries against New Zealand when Pakistan hosted them in April this year. After that, he had managed scores of 19, 14, 33, 2, 30 and 27. It is pretty safe to say that for India, the wicket of Fakhar will be a prized one and how soon they can get him out might go a long way in determining the result of the match.

Injuries to second and third goalkeepers could lead to Bengaluru FC not releasing Gurpreet Singh Sandhu for next months Asian Games, officials at the club and All India Football Federation (AIFF) told HT on Tuesday. The officials requested anonymity to protect relationships within the club and the federation.
India goalkeeper Gurpreet Singh Sandhu during the SAFF Championship semifinal match against Lebanon(Twitter/GurpreetGK)
Sandhu, 31, is one of the three over-24 players whose names were added to ensure, according to AIFF president Kalyan Chaubey, that India have its strongest representation at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. Sunil Chhetri and Sandesh Jhingan are the other players in the 22-member list for the Asian Games who are over 24 years old.
India play the hosts on September 19, Bangladesh on September 21 and Myanmar three days later. The top two from each of the six groups and four best third teams will qualify for the round of 16.
Bengaluru FC goalkeepers Amrit Gope and Vikram Lakhbir Singh are injured and unlikely to be available in September, said an official at the club. Lara Sharma, another keeper, has been loaned to Kerala Blasters. We are struggling to even conduct training sessions, said the official.
The 10th season of the Indian Super League (ISL) could start in the third week of September, said an official at Football Sports Development Limited (FSDL), which runs the league, on Tuesday. AIFF has written to FSDL requesting it to ensure all top players are available when the league starts, said the federation official mentioned above.
But should ISL start during Asian Games, clubs are not obliged to release players as it is not during a FIFA window (designated slots for only international matches one of them being from September 4-12 during which India will play the Kings Cup where clubs cannot hold back players). Back-channel talks between AIFF and Bengaluru FC have been on for the past three days to find a way out.
Confirming this, AIFF secretary-general Shaji Prabhakaran said on Tuesday he is hopeful that Sandhu, one of Asias best goalkeepers, would be available for Asian Games. At the same time, we cant ignore Bengalurus injury problems. Six players, the most, in India head coach Igor Stimacs squad for the Games are from Bengaluru FC.
The possibility of Sandhu being absent will not be Stimacs only problem. The Games squad has seven players from Indian clubs involved in Asian competitions in September 18 and 19 ruling them out for the opening match.
Vikram Pratap Singh, Akash Mishra and Apuiah (Lalengmawia Ralte) could be involved with Mumbai City when they host Irans FC Nassaji Mazandaran in Pune on September 18 in the Asian Champions League. Mohun Bagan Super Giants Anwar Ali and Ashish Rai and Odisha FCs Narender Gahlot and Aniket Jadhav may face each other in the AFC Cup on September 19. That could leave Roshan Singh as the only regular full back available against China.
Prabhakaran said efforts would be made to fly the players to Hangzhou on September 20.
He also said AIFF would point out to Asian Football Confederation, the continents apex body, the need to relook at some rules at the Asian Games. Such as the absence of flexibility in registering more players since like the Olympics, football at Asian Games stretches beyond the usual eight-nine days FIFA allots in its windows. Only for continental championships of FIFA confederates is there a month-long window. Football in Hangzhou will run from September 19 to October 7.
When the draw was made in July, it was expected India would progress to next round, a first since 2010. Not doing so would still be an upset but it could be tougher now given the lack of preparation and the absence of key players, at least for one game.
After Kings Cup games on September 7 and 10, India will stay in Chiang Mai, Thailand, before checking into the Games village on September 16.

Ange Postecoglou defended his team selection after suffering his first defeat as Tottenham boss after Fulham won 5-3 on penalties following a 1-1 draw in the League Cup second round on Tuesday. Postecoglou had masterminded an encouraging start to his first season in charge of Tottenham, with successive Premier League wins against Manchester United and Bournemouth following a draw against Brentford. But the former Celtic boss paid the price for making nine changes to his starting line-up at Craven Cottage.
Postecoglou handed a full debut to Manor Solomon, while Giovani Lo Celso and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg started despite speculation over their futures.
Fulham boss Marco Silva made six changes himself, but it was Tottenham’s understudies who struggled.
Micky van de Ven’s 19th-minute own goal gave Fulham the lead as the defender turned Tom Cairney’s cross past keeper Fraser Forster.
Tottenham took advantage of a curious incident that left Fulham down to 10 men to equalise in the 56th minute.
A problem with Kenny Tete’s boot meant the Fulham defender had to sprint down the tunnel to find a replacement in the dressing room.
Moments later, Ivan Perisic whipped in a cross from the position Tete would have been defending and Richarlison headed home from an acute angle.
But Tottenham were unable to find a winner and in the shoot-out Davinson Sanchez’s effort was saved by Marek Rodak before Tete, now with boots on both feet, fired the decisive kick.
Currently enduring a trophy drought that stretches back to 2008, Tottenham already have one less competition in which to end that barren run this term.
Postecoglou had introduced stars James Maddison and Son Heung-min in the second half, but defended his decision to select his fringe players.
“How am I going to find out about my players? It doesn’t mean the cup, or any game, isn’t a priority for us,” the Australian said.
“We are very much at the discovery stage and we need to give the players the opportunity.
“We are going to need these guys if we get disruptions along the way with injuries.”
– ‘Absolutely incredible’ –
Fourth-tier Salford, co-owned by former Manchester United stars David Beckham, Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes, beat Leeds 9-8 on penalties after a 1-1 draw with the Championship club.
“Absolutely incredible. I would have never imagined this game to go so far, never mind to go to penalties and to win. Such a big night for all these Salford fans,” Neville said.
Hoping for a reunion with his old club in the third round, Neville added: “Us lads as owners, we love Man United and we love this club as well.
“To have the opportunity to play them is the special night that we want.”
Luton beat fourth-tier Gillingham 3-2 at Kenilworth Road to win for the first time this season.
After losing to Brighton and Chelsea in their first two Premier League games, Jacob Brown, Alfie Doughty and Cauley Woodrow scored for Luton, who are playing in the top-flight for the first time in 31 years.
Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola earned his first win in English football as Ryan Christie’s last-gasp goal clinched a 3-2 victory at second-tier Swansea.
The Spaniard had overseen a draw with West Ham and defeats by Tottenham and Liverpool in his first three league games.
Brentford needed a 3-0 penalty shoot-out victory to advance after a 1-1 draw at fourth-tier Newport.
Crystal Palace survived a scare as they fought back from two goals down to win 4-2 at second-tier Plymouth thanks to Jean-Philippe Mateta’s hat-trick.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

The extended sessions of batting practice, being part of match simulations, the intense wicketkeeping drills – all gave hopes that BCCI selector Ajit Agarkar’s revelation from a week back would turn out to be wrong and that KL Rahul would battle out from the fresh injury blow, incurred just days before his Asia Cup selection, and make himself available to be part of India’s XI for the continental tournament. The belief was such, courtesy of the footages shown by Star Sports from India’s training camp in Alur, that the discussion on a Plan B for became inconsequential. But Agarkar was right. After the conclusion of the camp on Tuesday, India head coach Rahul Dravid reiterated what the chairman of selectors had said a week back in New Delhi. Rahul, despite showing improvements, was ruled out of the group-stage matches in Asia Cup as a “precautionary” measure with the ODI World Cup a month away.
KL Rahul will be missing the first two matches in Asia Cup 2023
Rahul, who was initially out with a hamstring injury incurred during IPL 2023, will not be travelling with the Indian team to Sri Lanka on Wednesday and will head to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru where he will work with the physios in a bid to become “fully fit” for the Super Four stage of Asia Cup. The wicketkeeper-batter will also undergo a fitness test on September 4 before a call is taken on his Sri Lanka travel.
Although Dravid confessed that he is “not too worried about it”, Rahul’s absence opens up a host of questions and selection headaches pertaining to India’s playing XI for the Asia Cup. India do have a like-for-like replacement in Ishan Kishan which supposedly should not raise a concern, but the questions pertains to his batting position in the line-up and subsequently what the rest of the batting order would look like.
With India just three days away from figuring out their XI for the opener against arch-rivals Pakistan at the Pallekele International Stadium, we look at the possible scenarios with Rahul out…

1. If Ishan Kishan opens…: Gill could bat at No. 3, where he played only four times in his ODI career and scored 130 against Zimbabwe in a match last year. Kohli could then take the No. 4 spot, which the likes of Ravi Shastri and AB de Villiers had recently suggested, implying that Shreyas Iyer will either miss out to make way for a potent No. 5 option in Suryakumar Yadav or bat at that position himself, where he has played nine times, scoring three half-centuries. The other possibility is if Iyer and Kohli remain as No. 3 and 4 respectively while Gill makes way for Suryakumar at No. 5.
2. If Ishan Kishan bats at No. 3…: He has done it four times in his career so far with two fifties. This would mean, Kohli at No. 4 and Iyer at No. 5.
3. If Ishan Kishan bats at No. 4…: He has batted at that position as many times as he has opened for India, but with an average of only 21, scoring 106 runs with one half-century. This would imply Kohli will retain his usual spot while Iyer could bat one down the order.
4. What about Sanju Samson?:The toughest question is whether India would risk playing Ishan Kishan at No. 5, where he has never batted so far, or will they make use of Samson, who has been picked as a travelling reserve keeping Rahul’s niggle in mind. Samson has batted nine times outside the top 4 with an average of 52 at No. 5 and 90 at No. 6 , scoring a fifty each.

Amid soaring excitement and anticipation, the ODI World Cup 2023 is poised to be a remarkable cricketing event, captivating enthusiasts worldwide. Ticket sales for the tournament, which officially commenced on August 25, witnessed an unprecedented rush that briefly overwhelmed the official booking platforms.
The enthusiasm, particularly for the initial non-Indian matches, surpassed expectations, resulting in a surge of online visitors, causing momentary disruptions to the ticketing systems. The official partner, Yuletprem, was unexpectedly faced with a challenge as they worked to rectify the situation swiftly.
In an innovative move, the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) collaborated with Mastercard, reserving a portion of the ODI World Cup tickets for India matches to be accessible to Mastercard holders starting August 29. However, the designated ticketing partner, BookMyShow, encountered a few hurdles, prompting a wave of disappointment among fans who eagerly anticipated snagging their seats via the platform.
What a scam!! Such a pathetic ticket booking system for ICC Cricket World Cup. Can’t even book any ticket for any match of team India. We fans deserve better,” one fan posted on X (formerly Twitter).
Finally managed to get to the next page of world cup tickets after waiting for 1 and half hour and….. there were no tickets available. The one which one was available was not getting added to card,” wrote one user.
I will be shocked if anyone got a ticket,” came from another.

According to the official broadcaster of Asia Cup 2023, here is the list of commentators for the tournament.
English: Ravi Shastri, Wasim Akram, Gautam Gambhir, Waqar Younis, Andy Flower, Marvan Atapattu, Matthew Hayden, Aamer Sohail, Dominic Cork, Deep Dasgupta, Bazid Khan, Sanjay Manjrekar, Shamim Chowdhury & Roshan Abeysinghe.
Hindi: Gautam Gambhir, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan Pathan, Sanjay Bangar, Mohammad Kaif, Aditya Tare, Rajat Bhatia, Raman Bhanot, Jatin Sapru & P Sehrawat.

South Africa (SA) and Australia (AUS) are all set to face each other in a multi-format white-ball series that is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, August 30. Both sides will begin the series with three T20I matches, with the first T20I being held at the Kingsmead Stadium Cricket Ground in Durban, South Africa.
Australia will be coming into the series after a long-lasting Test season, where they triumphed in the World Test Championship final and drew the Ashes 2023. The white-ball series should be a breath of fresh air for the Aussies. On the other hand, South Africa will come into the series on the back of a two-match T20I series win against the Netherlands, and the hosts will look to keep up their momentum.
SA vs AUS Match Details:
Match: South Africa vs Australia, 1st T20I Match
Venue:  Kingsmead Stadium Cricket Ground, Durban
Date & Time: Wednesday, August 29, 09:30 PM IST
Live Streaming Details: FanCode
SA vs AUS Pitch Report:
The surface at Kingsmead Stadium Cricket Ground is preferred by the batters. However, in the early stages of the game, bowlers could prove to be a threat. The batters will look to steadily build their innings and post a big total on the board. Opting to bowl first after winning the toss could be a wise decision at this venue.
SA vs AUS Head-to-Head:
Played – 22 , SA – 8, AUS – 14
SA vs AUS Probable Playing XI
South Africa (SA):
T Stubbs, RR Hendricks, AK Markram (C), HE van der Dussen, DA Miller, Q de Kock (wk), H Klaasen, T Shamsi, KA Maharaj, K Rabada, A Nortje
Australia (AUS):
Tim David, TM Head, MP Stoinis, MW Short, MR Marsh (C), Sean Abbott, JP Inglis (wk), MS Wade, JP Behrendorff, A Zampa, Nathan Ellis
Probable Best Performers:
Probable Best Batter-
Mitchell Marsh (Australia):
Australian skipper Mitchell Marsh could be the best batter in the sides upcoming T20I match against South Africa. Marsh has been in terrific form recently, and he will be keen on keeping it up in the first T20I. With 190 runs in his last eight matches, Marsh could be a key player.
Probable Best Bowler-
Lungi Ngidi (South Africa):
Star South African pacer Lungi Ngidi could be expected to be the best bowler in the forthcoming T20I against Australia. It is worth noting that Lgidi has been one of the best players for South Africa, and with 11 wickets in seven matches, Ngidi could be the ace up the Proteas sleeve.
Today’s Match Prediction: Australia to win the match
Disclaimer: The prediction is based on the understanding, analysis, and instinct of the author. While making your prediction, consider the points mentioned, and make your own decision.