South Africa were surprised by the pace of the Newlands pitch on the first day of the New Year’s Test but both stand-in captain Dean Elgar and batting consultant Ashwell Prince stopped short of out-and-out criticism of the surface. “It (The pitch) generally plays a little bit slower and as a batter you can adjust
Dean Elgar was dismissed twice on the first day, in his last Test match. After opting to bat, he was bowled by Mohammed Siraj off an inside edge for 4 in the first innings, where South Africa folded in 23.2 overs. Siraj’s new-ball spell of 9-3-15-6 skittled South Africa for 55 – the lowest total
Matt Henry and Lockie Ferguson have made successful recoveries from their respective injuries, while Kane Williamson and Devon Conway also return after periods of rest as New Zealand named a full-strength squad for the five-match T20I series against Pakistan at home. Allrounder Rachin Ravindra was rested after being on the road since August last year.
David Warner has made a plea on social media for the backpack containing his baggy green cap to be returned after it went missing on the journey from Melbourne to Sydney ahead of his final Test. Warner will make his final Test appearance at the SCG this week and is desperate to have his cap
Wasim claimed the decision “had nothing to do with the management” and was “solely [Shaheen’s] decision”, warning players more broadly they had to decide “if you want to be a great of the game or do you want to be a millionaire” when it came to deciding which format to prioritise. “Straight after this there
Dean Elgar likened the emotions of a Test series victory to winning a World Cup, while recognising that he has never played in one of the latter. “I only play the game to win,” Elgar said on the eve of his final Test. “I don’t care about stats. I care about wins. I care about
Pakistan won the toss and opted to bat against Australia Retiring Australia opener David Warner will be made to wait after Pakistan captain Shan Masood won the toss and elected to bat in the third Test at the SCG. Masood had no hesitation to bat in sunny conditions, with turn expected on the dry surface
David Warner in action for Australian cricket team© AFP Australia vs Pakistan 3rd Test Day 1 Live Score Updates: David Warner will be looking to bid farewell to his red-ball career with a victory as Australia take on Pakistan in the third Test match in Sydney on Wednesday. Australia opted for an unchanged side while
Pakistan vice-captain Shaheen Shah Afridi has been rested for the third and final Test against Australia at the SCG to manage his workload. Saim Ayub will make his Test debut in place of opener Imam-ul-Haq, who struggled in the second Test at the MCG despite scoring a half-century in Perth. The decision that has been
Big picture: Bruised India out to salvage series This South Africa Test tour was billed as the final frontier for India, and it continues to be unbreachable. Despite rain interruptions and South Africa losing their designated captain Temba Bavuma to injury, India lost the Boxing Day Test inside three days to crash to an innings
Ravindra Jadeja is fit and available for selection, giving India more batting depth and options when it comes to bowling combinations. He is also the only left-hand batter outside opener Yashasvi Jaiswal. Jadeja had missed the first Test with spasms in the upper back on the morning of the match. While confirming Jadeja’s return to
Maxwell, the first player to reach 100 games for Stars, won the toss and everything flowed for him from there. He managed the bowlers superbly, claimed 1 for 8 from his three overs, and took two catches. Maxwell then combined with opening batter Thomas Rogers, who top-scored with 42 not out, to close out the
Big picture: Series gone, but Pakistan have WTC points to play for It’s David Warner week at the SCG, but there might be a competitive Test match in store in Sydney if the pitch and the weather play ball. Pakistan gave Australia a true scare in Melbourne and save for a handful of unforced errors
Pat Cummins doesn’t believe the decline in the popularity of Test cricket is “as dramatic as it sometimes gets spoken about”, but admits he does get worried about the future of the five-day game at times. His team-mate Usman Khawaja pointed to the lack of pay parity across the cricket world and said international cricket
Michael Clarke has said that David Warner‘s talents, and ability to do things other players couldn’t, helped him avoid having his central contract ripped up earlier in his career when he had brushes with authority. Clarke was Warner’s first captain in Test cricket when he made his debut in 2011 and went on to play
Australia Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has praised Usman Khawaja‘s courage in fighting to show solidarity with victims of warfare during the Test series with Pakistan. Since the days before last month’s series opener, Khawaja has been lobbying to voice his support for those affected by ongoing conflict in the Middle East, first by writing “all
Former Australia opening batter Justin Langer will start his the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 following his appointment as head coach of the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). Langer will replace Andy Flower who has joined Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) as head coach for the upcoming season. Under Flower, LSG reached the playoffs in back-to-back seasons
There is cautious hope in the Pakistan camp that legspinner Abrar Ahmed may be fit in time for the third Test in Sydney. Abrar, who was ruled out of the first two Test matches with a right leg injury, bowled for a significant period in the nets during Pakistan’s training session on Monday without obvious
Craig Ervine has returned to lead Zimbabwe in the three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka, but veteran allrounder Sean Williams will miss the tour that also includes three T20Is. Williams picked up a side injury in the second T20I in Harare last month. Ervine, who had missed the home series against Ireland due to a
David Warner has revealed he was prepared to walk away from Test cricket after the second match of last year’s Ashes series at Lord’s if he had not scored runs. At the beginning of the England tour, ahead of the World Test Championship final against India, Warner had laid out his ambition to retire in
David Warner has announced his retirement from ODI cricket alongside the end of his Test career although kept the door ajar to play the 2025 Champions Trophy if Australia felt they needed him. “I’m definitely retiring from one-day cricket as well,” he said at the SCG on Monday. “That was something that I had said
Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has highlighted the lack of planning while bowling to the South African batters in the first Test in Centurion last week. The Proteas defeated India by an innings and 32 runs in the first Test at the SuperSport Park, taking a 1-0 lead in the two-match series. Barring Jasprit Bumrah,
0.2, Renuka to Litchfieldlooks like a dropped catch! Yup, Amanjot there. Short extra cover dives to her left, and palms the ball wide of mid-off, as Litchfield gets off the mark. The length of this ball was fuller, and the line wider too, as she drove with a flat bat 4.6, Renuka to Litchfield dropped by Mandhana at
Is the Bangladesh dressing room a better place without some of the senior – even iconic – players around? At the end of what he called a “successful tour” of New Zealand, Chandika Hathurusinghe, the coach, stopped short of saying that, but did say that “the environment in the dressing room is much better”. Bangladesh
Gill endured back-to-back failures in Centurion in the first Test against South Africa. He was caught down leg when he looked to glance a wide delivery from Nandre Burger that reared up on a spicy opening-day pitch in the first innings, and got knocked over by Marco Jansen when he tried to play across the
Cameron Bancroft insists a specialist opener would be best placed to take over from the retiring David Warner, believing experience at the top is crucial in the difficult role. Australia have named an unchanged 13-man squad for this week’s third Test against Pakistan at the SCG, but crunch time is coming in the quest to
Toss New Zealand opt to bowl vs Bangladesh With the aim of levelling the T20I series, New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner chose to chase in Mount Maunganui with rain a possibility in the afternoon. Bangladesh, who could win their maiden T20I series in New Zealand if results go their way, added a left-arm spinner into
Uncapped opening batter Neil Brand has been named South Africa’s captain for their two-Test tour to New Zealand, which starts on February 4 and clashes with the SA20. South Africa will travel with a makeshift squad, which features only three players that are part of the ongoing series against India: Keegan Petersen, David Bedingham and
India allrounder Shardul Thakur suffered a blow on his shoulder on Saturday in Centurion, while batting at the nets. How serious the hit was is yet to be ascertained, and scans will be carried out if required. As of now, there’s no confirmation that scans are needed – while Thakur seemed in considerable discomfort when
D-day looms for Australia’s selectors. David Warner‘s retirement is fast approaching. Their first Test match of the post-Warner era begins on January 17 and there is no first-class cricket between now and then to shape decision-making about who should open alongside Usman Khawaja. The debate has bubbled away for some time and it’s complicated. Warner