Month: November 2023

Jaiswal, Kishan help India thrash Australia to go 2-0 up

Nov 30, 2023, 03:04PM ISTSource: etimes.inA social media post by a prominent sports journalist has sparked rumours of betrayal and discord between Anushka Sharma’s cricketer-husband Virat Kohli and his longtime friend and manager, Bunty Sajdeh. Taking to his X account, formerly known as Twitter, a sports journalist, K Shriniwas Rao, penned a post about how a top player was betrayed by his manager. The note read, ‘What was once seen as a strong bond of friendship is now turning out to be a horrible case of betrayal.’ The post further stated, ‘I’m told a leading celebrity manager, who managed a top cricketer and enjoyed the benefits of that player’s global popularity, is being called out for misleading that very player, breaking trust, deliberately messing up with the finances and causing immense mental strain.’ The journalist also mentioned, ‘It is apparently so bad right now that the player and his well-wishers are calling everyone to stay alert and find out more details about how badly they’ve been misled and what all they’ve lost in the bargain.’ Soon this post went viral on social media, leaving netizens to wonder if this is what went wrong with the former Indian captain, Virat Kohli, and his manager, Bunty Sajdeh. Reacting to the post, one said, ‘So Bunty, the brother of Rohit Sharma’s wife, betrayed Virat Kohli??????’, another wrote, ‘Bunty should be sent to jail.’ Notably, after being together for almost a decade, Kohli recently announced parting ways with his manager, Bunty Sajdeh. Reports suggest that the star cricketer is planning to open his own sports management agency. For more news and updates, stay tuned to ETimes.

Gaikwad and Maxwell: two brilliant centuries, two vastly contrasting methods

Arsenal ran riot against RC Lens at the Emirates, scoring a whopping five first-half goals. A late Jorginho penalty secured a 6-0 win, ensuring that the Gunners will finish top of Group B.
For the first time this season, Mikel Arteta had his desired front five, with Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli leading the line and Martin Odegaard and Kai Havertz pulling the strings from midfield.
Within the first 45 minutes, each and every one of those five players had scored a goal. Havertz tapped in from close range thanks to a Jesus header before the Brazilian scored himself with a great fake shot before a tidy finish.
Saka was lucky when a Martinelli shot was parried by the keeper right into his path. Martinelli was involved again afterwards, finishing a fine solo run with a bending, far corner effort. Odegaard then finished off Arsenal’s best half this season with a bullet volley from a Takehiro Tomiyasu cross.
It was an idyllic Champions League night for the Emirates faithful, with RC Lens unlucky to be met with such lethal finishers. In all honesty, they did not perform badly, Arsenal were just firing on all cylinders.
As voted for by you…
Kai Havertz is our POTM from last night’s win over RC Lens! pic.twitter.com/ZPzNUqOhDx
Arsenal (@Arsenal) November 30, 2023
There was a wide variety of great performances to choose from. Extremely uncharacteristically, William Saliba was a bit poor, getting spun twice in the first half (full credit to Elye Wahi who looks a real player) and losing possession sloppily.
Let’s go through the 4 best performers from Arsenal’s most emphatic performance of the season.
Tomiyasu has been one of Arsenal’s best players in the last ten or so Arsenal games. Always solid defensively, he is offering more and more going forward, and he managed two assists against Lens.
The first came after a clearance that fell to Gabriel Martinelli, who then went and did his thing. If Tomiyasu meant to pass that to the Brazilian, it is one of the best assists I’ve ever seen but I don’t think he did.
He definitely meant the second one, chipping in a ball from the by-line after a fantastic overlap for Odegaard to smack in.
Tomi keeps going from strength to strength anywhere in the defence. He is a Swiss army knife, willing to slot in anywhere and he reassures me massively. He was subbed off at half-time, presumably to rest him for the upcoming Premier League game.
Gabriel Jesus and Champions League nights. Some things are just meant to be.
Arsenal’s goal avalanche kicked off thanks to Gabriel Jesus winning a header deep into the RC Lens box. He is so smart with how he behaves on a football pitch, and without that intervention, it may have been a very different story.
His goal showed his composure and intelligence beautifully. It looked certain the striker was going to shoot, but instead he shifted the ball to his preferred right foot and slotted it coolly in the bottom corner.
As usual, he was dropping deep to get the ball, causing havoc with his dribbling and generally contributing to every dimension of Arsenal. He is such a pleasure to watch and if he can start finishing like that regularly, then there is no limit to what he can achieve.
Fresh off the high of getting the winner against Brentford, this felt like a game that Kai Havertz needed to perform in to push on for the future. Thankfully, he did, coming up with Arsenal’s first goal and demonstrating a delectable amount of swagger.
Now, the first goal was admittedly from about four yards out, but it is his instinct and movement that puts him into such a position. While the Lens defenders are static, Havertz senses that the ball might end up in his path and is then rewarded for it.
In general, though, I thought Havertz performed really well. He put in three tackles and almost scored earlier with a great header that went inches wide.
He then performed some skill moves a couple of times that show his confidence is higher than some rival fans may think. A thriving Kai Havertz can only be a good thing for Arsenal, so long may his form continue.
Of course, Arsenal’s starboy was a large part for Arsenal’s success too.
A jinxing run led to the Gabriel Jesus goal and Saka showed his passing capabilities against the French opposition. He found Tomiyasu on the overlap whenever he ventured forward and he attracted two RC Lens players every time he had the ball it seemed.
A goal and an assist now brings his tally to three goals and four assists in five games. The Hale End graduate has taken no time at all to get used to the biggest stage in Europe and leads the competition in assists.
To think that Saka isn’t having the best start of the season!
All in all, that was one of the most enjoyable Arsenal games I have watched in a long time. We are now through to the round of 16 and there aren’t many teams who will scare the Gunners in the draw.

Shan Masood’s first assignment as Pakistan Test captain is not an easy challenge by any stretch of the imagination. Masood, succeeding Babar Azam as skipper, will lead Pakistan in a three-match Test series in Australia starting December 14 and the stakes couldn’t be any higher. Pakistan have been whitewashed in each of their five previous Test series in Australia, and hence, seem feel that by putting Masood at the helm, the PCB is trying to make him the scapegoat amid the entire World Cup fiasco.
Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood speaks during a press conference(AFP)
However, Masood’s career has witnessed a pretty impressive revival. Last year, he returned to Pakistan’s Test set-up after a gap of one year, followed by a comeback to the ODI fold after 4 years only a few months ago. With Masood’s stock on the rise, he is looking forward to the challenge; However, when a reporter inquired whether he was being labelled the ‘sacrificial lamb,’ the 34-year-old promptly denied such characterization.
“We see it as an opportunity. When you haven’t done something before in your history, then you are given an opportunity to go out there and try to change it. So that’s what we’re trying to do, to get a positive result for Pakistan and in this World Test Championship,” Masood said in his first official press conference as Test captain.
“And as far as being qurbaani ka bakra (sacrificial lamb) is concerned, the captaincy, playing as a player in the side, these are all temporary things at the end of the day. As long as you are in that place, or seat, you should relish the opportunity, enjoy it and try and take responsibility, and give your best ability to the team.”
Masood may not be a pro when it comes to captaincy but has a reasonable amount of experience at the role, having led Multan Sultans in the PSL, Derbyshire in the T20 Blast and Yorkshire in the County Championship just last season. But his real leadership acumen will be tested against the reigning Test and ODI champions, who are a different beast on their soil.
“I’m fortunate that I’ve had such opportunities along the way in my career. I’ve said before that when I became captain of Multan Sultans under Andy Flower, that was a big turning point in my career as a person and player,” he said.
“I look back and reflect on that whenever I go through ups and downs as an experience that has helped me as a cricketer. Then at Derbyshire and then the Yorkshire project which was quite a challenging one because of the stuff that was happening there. So, to take that captaincy along, off the field and on the field the issues gave me some experience and hopefully I can use that for Pakistan.”

Suryakumar Yadav’s Team India will hope to bounce back in the five-match series after a Glenn Maxwell mayhem powered Australia to a stunning win in the 3rd T20I at Guwahati on Tuesday. While Big Show Maxwell smashed a match-winning century, Indian opener Ruturaj Gaikwad played a stellar knock to extend his scoring run in the bilateral series between the World Cup 2023 finalists.
Zaheer Khan lauded the India star ahead of the 4th T20I against Australia(Reuters-PTI)
Recording a diamond duck in the series opener, youngster Gaikwad sparked a turnaround with a gritty half-century in the 2nd T20I against Australia. The India opener then followed it up with a historic century as Gaikwad became the first Indian to slam a ton against Australia in the shortest format. Gaikwad enjoyed fruitful partnerships with skipper Suryakumar (39) and Tilak Varma (31*) in the high-scoring 3rd T20I against the visitors.
ALSO READ: Can Rohit lead India in T20Is after Hardik’s return? Suryakumar emerges as leading candidate for SA series – Report
The leading run-getter in the T20I series, batter Gaikwad is followed by skipper Suryakumar on the batting charts. Leading Team India for the first time, Suryakumar has smashed 138 runs in the first three games of the T20I series. Talking about the five-match series between India and Australia on Cricbuzz, former India pacer Zaheer Khan handed out AB de Villiers’ 360-degree tag to skipper Suryakumar. One of the most impactful batters in T20I cricket, Suryakumar has drawn comparisons with the South African batting icon for his 360-degree batting style.
Suryakumar certainly the most deserving candidate
“He (Suryakumar) is certainly the most deserving of the lot right now, from whatever are seeing of players going around right now. He has tried to replicate that, isn’t it? You have seen those sixes over point and those shots to third man, those ramp shots, and those shots to the fine leg area. All those kind of aspects, he is certainly the most deserving candidate when it comes to AB de Villiers’ 360-degree tag,” Zaheer said.
How Suryakumar has performed as captain
Making his captaincy debut after the 2023 World Cup, Surya played a brilliant knock of 80 off 42 balls in the 1st T20I against Australia at Visakhapatnam. The India skipper had a forgetful outing with the willow in the 2nd T20I as he was dismissed for 19 off 10 balls at Thiruvananthapuram. The in-form batter will lead India’s batting charge in the 4th T20I against the Men from Down Under on Friday.

BCCI ends speculations, retains Rahul Dravid as India’s head coach alongside support staff

It was a historic moment for Uganda cricket team as they qualified for the T20 World Cup 2024 set to be held in the West Indies and the United States of America. Uganda booked their spot in the competition with a nine-wicket victory over Rwanda on Thursday and what followed was a spirited celebration from the team members and staff. In a video going viral on social media, the team members were seen dancing as a group and then posing for pictures. It will be joining Namibia as the second side to enter the main tournament from the Africa Qualifier. In the regional final of the Africa Qualifier, Uganda ensured a top-two finish with the victory over Rwanda, their fifth in six matches.
Welcome to #T20WorldCup2024, Uganda pic.twitter.com/2XX1HzVsQx
KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) November 30, 2023
Batting first, Rwanda were all out for 65 in 18.5 overs. In reply, Uganda completed the formality in 8.1 overs while losing just one wicket.
Uganda will become the fifth African nation to play in the T20 World Cup.
On the other hand, Africa Qualifier favourite Zimbabwe failed to secure a berth. Zimbabwe are currently placed third in the regional final with six points, having won three of their five games.
Celebrations just got started!T20 World Cup-bound Uganda once again took the famous nursery school rhyme to the global audience.
Ekibobo kili mu nyumba led by coach @OgwangOyuku – Indeed the boys got the big basket in the house.#CricketCranesInColour#Twaake@PlasconUgandapic.twitter.com/V9ySSE4PKs
Uganda Cricket Association (@CricketUganda) November 30, 2023
After the results of the Africa Qualifier, the slots for the 20 participating teams have been filled.
The main tournament is set to take place between June 4-30 next year. The top two sides from each group make it to the Super 8 stage, followed by the semi-finals and the final.
The qualified teams for the 2024 T20 World Cup:USA, West Indies, Australia, England, India, Netherlands, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Ireland, Scotland, Papua New Guinea, Canada, Nepal, Oman, Namibia and Uganda.
(With PTI inputs)