Cricket

CAPE TOWN - An already depleted South Africa squad has been dealt a further blow after newly-appointed captain Temba Bavuma was ruled out of their four-match home Twenty20 International series against Pakistan with a hamstring strain. Bavuma was injured while batting in the One-Day International series decider that was won by the tourists in Pretoria on Wednesday. The opening T20 match is in Johannesburg on Saturday. South Africa are already without five of their leading players, including batsmen Quinton de Kock and David

MUMBAI: India cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar said on Thursday (Apr 8) that he has been released from hospital a week after he was admitted when he contracted COVID-19, but he will remain in isolation at home. Tendulkar, who turns 48 later this month, was previously quarantining at home after testing positive following mild symptoms. "I have just come home from the hospital and will remain isolated while continuing to rest and recuperate. I would like to thank everyone for all the good wishes

The richest franchise tournament in world cricket is back on Friday as the Indian Premier League kicks off its 14th edition. Global cricketing superstars - including India icon Virat Kohli and England all-rounder Ben Stokes - will be on show in the Twenty20 tournament, with ball-by-ball radio commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live sports extra and online. The 2021 IPL returns to India after last year's competition took place in the United Arab Emirates because of Covid-19. This year, for at least the

Rishabh Pant was appointed captain of Delhi Capitals for IPL 2021 after Shreyas Iyer was ruled out of the upcoming season due to an injury. Iyer had injured his shoulder while fielding during the India vs England ODI series. Pant has a huge task ahead of him of replicating last year's success where Delhi Capitals reached the IPL final but lost to Mumbai Indians. Pant, though, is in the form of his life, playing a starring role for India in the Test series

Australia's Sean Abbott will join Surrey for their T20 Blast campaign and three County Championship matches. The 29-year-old all-rounder will replace Kemar Roach as Surrey's second overseas player when the West Indies seamer returns to the Caribbean in May. Abbott has played two one-day and seven Twenty20 internationals for Australia, and won the 2020 and 2021 Big Bash titles with Sydney Sixers. He could make his Surrey debut against Gloucestershire on 27 May. Abbott, who has also helped New South Wales reach the

Former England women’s international Sarah Taylor said on Tuesday she is excited about playing cricket again after joining Welsh Fire for the inaugural season of The Hundred. The 31-year-old, one of the best wicketkeepers of all time, was part of the England sides that won the Twenty20 and 50-overs World Cups in 2009. She made 226 appearances for England, including 10 tests, 126 one-day and 90 T20 games, before retiring from international cricket in 2019 after a battle with anxiety. Her last domestic

Fakhar Zaman's sensational innings of 193 from 155 balls came in vain as South Africa held on in a thriller to take their three-match ODI series with Pakistan to a decider. Pakistan seemed out of contention as they slipped to 120-5 in the 25th over of their chase of 342 - only for opener Fakhar to turn the game on its head with a superb fifth ODI ton and the highest score at Johannesburg. The left-hander brought up three figures from a fairly

The BCCI is bullish about holding the 10 IPL games in Mumbai between April 10-25 despite an enormous spike in Covid-19 cases in the city, saying creating a bio-bubble at an alternative venue would not be feasible at a short notice. Delhi Capitals’ Axar Patel, 10 members of the ground staff at Wankhede stadium and six event managers, deployed by the BCCI, have added to the growing list of positive cases in the Indian Premier League (IPL), starting April 9. Hyderabad and Indore

Megan Schutt and Alyssa Healy have powered Australia to a world-record 22nd straight ODI win, crushing New Zealand by six wickets and setting a new benchmark for dominance of the sport. In Mount Maunganui on Sunday, Meg Lanning’s side eclipsed the 21-match winning streak of Ricky Ponting’s 2003 World Cup winners to become the holders of the longest winning streak in any format of international cricket. Schutt’s 4-32 kept New Zealand to a below-par 212 from 48.5 overs at the Bay Oval before

With seven days to go for the high-octane Indian Premier League clash between Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Capitals at the Wankhede Stadium, groundstaff have tested positive for coronavirus at the stadium.

CENTURION, South Africa: A century by Babar Azam set up a three-wicket, last-ball win for Pakistan in the first one-day international against South Africa at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Friday (Apr 2). The Pakistan captain hit a stroke-filled 103 off 104 balls but his dismissal started a collapse in which fast bowler Anrich Nortje took four wickets in four overs. Rassie van der Dussen hit 123 not out, his maiden international century. But South Africa's total of 273 for six did not

LONDON: The England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) will look at the possibility of using COVID-19 passports to allow fans to return to stadiums for the upcoming domestic season, the governing body's managing director of county cricket Neil Snowball said. The new County Championship season will begin on ApR 8 with games initially being played without spectators. May 17 has been pencilled in as the date when the largest outdoor seated venues can allow up to 10,000 people or a quarter of capacity,

The Expo 2020 Dubai will be the principal sponsor of the IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals for the upcoming 14th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Taking place from October 1 2021 to March 31, 2022, Expo 2020 will welcome more than 190 nations and millions of people from across the globe to Dubai for 182 visually striking, intellectually enlightening and emotionally inspiring days. Visitors will experience a dynamic and diverse programme, including innovation, culture, art, food, music and sport from every corner

Indian batsman Shreyas Iyer has been ruled out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) season after injuring his left shoulder during India’s one-day international series with England, his franchise the Delhi Capitals announced on Tuesday. Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant will captain the side in Iyer’s absence, the Capitals added. Iyer sustained the injury while diving to stop a shot by England opener Jonny Bairstow and India’s cricket board BCCI said he had partially dislocated his shoulder. “Shreyas Iyer has been ruled out of the

Former Indian cricketer and legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar has tested positive for COVID-19. Taking to social media, the Little Master informed that all other members at his home have returned a negative COVID result. "I have been testing myself and taking all the recommended precautions to ensure Covid is kept at bay. However, I've tested positive today following mild symptoms," Tendulkar said in a statement on Twitter. "All others at home have tested negative. I've quarantined myself at home and am following all

Yusuf Pathan, former India all-rounder, took to Twitter on Saturday to reveal that he has tested positive for coronavirus. Earlier in the day, legendary Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar had tested COVID-19 positive. Yusuf was part of the India Legends squad, captained by Tendulkar, during the recently-concluded Road Safety World Series T20 tournament. Yusuf said he has mild symptoms and is currently quarantining at home while taking all the precautions and medication.  "I've tested positive for COVID-19 today with mild symptoms. Post the confirmation, I have quarantined

Injured England speedster Jofra Archer, who has already been ruled out of the Indian Premier League, will undergo a surgery on his right hand on Monday. Archer played in two Test matches and five T20 Internationals against India before returning home a few days ago after the completion of the shortest format. He had four wickets in two Tests and seven more across five T20Is. “England fast bowler Jofra Archer will undergo a procedure to his right hand following a scan and subsequent Consultant review

New Zealand fast bowler Kyle Jamieson has been fined 15% of his match fee for “showing dissent at an umpire’s decision” during Tuesday’s One Day International against Bangladesh in Christchurch, the governing International Cricket Council said. Jamieson had reacted angrily after the TV umpire ruled his return catch from Tamim Iqbal had not been taken cleanly. He admitted the offence and accepted the sanction, the ICC said in a statement. The 26-year-old also had one demerit point added to his disciplinary record. It

England skipper Eoin Morgan has been ruled out of the final two one-day internationals against India in Pune after splitting the webbing between his thumb and index finger in Tuesday’s opener, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said on Thursday. Jos Buttler will be captain from Friday’s second match, while batsman Liam Livingstone is set to make his ODI debut. Wicketkeeper batsman Sam Billings, who has a bruised collar bone, will be sidelined on Friday, with a decision on his fitness for

PUNE, India: Debutant Prasidh Krishna and fellow seamer Shardul Thakur combined to derail England's chase and bowl India to a 66-run victory in the one-day series opener in Pune on Tuesday (Mar 23). Shikhar Dhawan made 98 but it was the blistering unbroken century-plus partnership between KL Rahul and debutant Krunal Pandya which helped India to a strong 317-5. Jonny Bairstow led England's robust reply with an incendiary 94 before the wheels came off their chase and the tourists folded for 251 in