Cricket Overloaded

Jadeja(45) and Iyer(74) proved to be too much for Sri Lanka in the end. © AFP The Picture For the first time in the last couple of games, India looked in a spot of bother, as Sri Lanka mitigated a slow start by later pouncing on the Indian bowlers and plundering as much as 112 runs in the last 10 . Pathum Nissanka's 75 of 53 balls and Dasun Shanaka's 47 of just 19 balls took them to a score of 183 which looked above par and considering there was movement off the pitch as well. Nissanka after being less than a run a ball in the early part of his innings after some initial struggles tore into the Indian bowlers finding the gaps at will while Dasun Shanaka came in the fag end of the innings and thumped the Indian's at the death, with Harshal Patel in particular going for 23 runs in his final over to go with the 52 runs he conceded in the entire match while picking a solitary wicket. After the break Sri Lanka started well with Chameera and Kumara getting the ball to talk with t

  Rohit Sharma will hope for another complete performance from his side. © AFP The Picture Nothing seems to have changed with India not just winning yet another game with ease but bossing it along the way as well. It started with a maverick innings from their southpaw Ishan Kishan who until then looked out of touch but after crunching a cover drive of the seventh ball he faced, things looked a lot different and suddenly we got to see the Ishan we are accustomed to seeing in the IPL. He and Shreyas Iyer got their respective half centuries and ensured that India reached 199 which was in the end too much for the visitors as the hosts won by a mammoth 62 runs margin. Apart from Charith Asalanka who scored a fifty and put up a fight along with some hitting in the end by Karunaratne and Chameera, none of the Sri Lankan batsmen looked comfortable at the wicket and as a result, they were never in the game. India dropped a handful of catches, with Asalanka dropped twice and they will want to co

  India will look to give the worldcup hopefuls a longer rope. © Getty The Picture Games are coming thick and fast as India are set to play another series against the Lankans within a period of 7 months, but this time on their own shores. India is coming off a successful series after they blanked the West Indies in both formats and by bossing the crunch situations that could have swung the games onto either side. The duo of Rohit and Dravid have had a very successful stint together until now and couldn't have asked for a better start. Sri Lanka on the other hand are coming off a 4-1 series defeat against the Australians. Their batsmen have failed to kick off and complement the good job done by their bowlers. Perhaps similar conditions are their need of the hour. They have brilliant players in Asalanka, Chameera and Chamika Karunaratne, who are capable to swing games in their favour when they get going and the addition of Mahesh Theekshana has bolstered their spin department and he

West Indies will hope to end this tour on a high. © BCCI The Picture Rohit wanted India to be more clinical with the bat and that's what his boys gave him on Friday. It was just not about the score or the performance which would have delighted the captain but the personnel who delivered them. Virat Kohli looked in sublime form as he notched up his half century even as Rohit and Kishan struggled. Once he was dismissed, Rishabh Pant who stroked his 3rd half century and Venkatesh Iyer put the finishing touches as India recorded 186. With that performance Venkatesh Iyer has put his hat in the ring as someone who can be looked as a long term finisher for the team. For West Indies, Roston Chase was the pick of the bowlers picking 3 wickets for 25 runs with Rohit, Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav being his victims. In reply, the West Indian openers struggled with the bat and once both of them were dismissed, Rovman Powell and Nicholas Pooran forged a hundred run partnership with both of them ge

The visitors will have to be wary of Ravi Bishnoi yet again. © BCCI The Picture India made a mockery of the target of 158 set by the West Indies and except for a brief period during the chase, the Indians were in complete control of the entire match right from the toss. The hosts bowled well with their spinners tying the Windies batsmen in knots. Ravi Bishnoi on debut had figures of 17-2 of which 16 of his balls were dots. The visitors weren't able to deal with his wrong un's with his pace playing a major factor in his success. The duo of Chahal and Bishnoi ensured that the opposition weren't allowed to dominate even with the batting firepower they boasted of. Only Nicholas Pooran managed to stick around and his half century ensured the Windies had a score to defend. The Indian pacers were also decent as they picked wickets in their final overs. Rohit got off to an electrifying start as he scored 40 of 19 balls as India managed 58 runs in the powerplay. Ishan Kishan struggl

India will want to carry their winning momentum into this series. © BCCI The Picture After a lopsided one day series and a very queer auction, we head into the shortest format. West Indies will believe that this is the format that suits them the best especially after they defeated a slightly weakened English side 3-2 during their last assignment. The highlight of that West Indian effort was that apart from their power hitting, they rotated the strike effectively, a departure from their old self. Add to that, they also have dynamic players which ensure that they have a plethora of bowling options and a seemingly never-ending batting line-up. So then in every sense, it's only logical that Windies are favourites. But wait that isn't true. For starters they are facing a Indian side at home, a team which has made its shores a fortress. Then they whitewashed New Zealand in a T20 series, right after the worldcup. Apart from that there is the performance of the visitors in the precedin

  West Indies will hope for more contributions from their top order batsmen. © AFP  The Picture Nothing much had changed in the second ODI, with the West Indian lower order salvaging the team yet again. Their top order batsmen have been in terrible form for some time now and that continued in the last game as well. Their bowlers were good having restricted the hosts to 237. The hosts got there courtesy a half century by Suryakumar Yadav and an eventful 49 by KL Rahul who was unlucky to miss his half century due to a run out. The Windies batsmen though were something different altogether. Even after getting to a decent start at 32-0, fell prey to some hostile and quality bowling from Prasidh Krishna whose short stuff was too hot for them to handle. Their top order for the nth time collapsed again and it was up to Akeal Hosein, Fabian Allen and Odean Smith to do the heavy lifting yet again and it was too much for them too in the end as the Windies fell short by 44 runs.  Albeit they lost

KL Rahul is set to return for the second ODI. © AFP The Picture We have got to bat our full 50 overs, were the words echoed by the West Indian captain Keiron Pollard as for the 7th time in as many games on the trot, the visitors have failed to bat their full quota. On a two paced wicket which was slow and taking turn, the Carribean batsmen struggled against the flight and guile of the Indian spinners and the pace and bounce of the Indian seamers alike. Mohammad Siraj started their downfall with the wicket of the enterprising Shai Hope after been struck for 2 successive boundaries in the over. Sundar who was making a comeback bowled good lengths and showed he wasn't a one trick pony, drying up the runs and picking up wickets from his quota of overs. Chahal once again showed why he is still revered as the best Indian leg spinner going around picking 4 wickets and nearly a hat-trick, with the wicket of the burly Pollard being the standout, who failed to pick the wrongun going  for an

  India will want to better their uninspiring record in this format. © AFP  The Picture A  massive feat is set to be achieved come Sunday, as India play their 1000th ODI, becoming the first team to reach that landmark. Their record of late hasn't been great and their lacklustre performance in the one dayers in South Africa where they were whitewashed, has taken the sheen of a team that has rather been a juggernaut in all the formats of the game. The last series has brought into focus a lot of issues plaguing the hosts and they will have to set things right soon as a Worldcup is fast approaching. They will take on the West Indies and have already have copped a blow with three of their players (Dhawan, Gaikwad and Shreyas) testing covid positive. In their anguish of not being able to pick wickets in the middle overs, they have reunited KulCha one each of Kuldeep and Chahal, their most prolific pair since the conclusion of the 2017 champions trophy. They have also called up Deepak Hoo

India's character would be tested in this game. ©AFP The Picture After a wonderful start to their tour claiming their first test victory in Centurion in the first test at the end of last year, the rest of the tour has been a nightmare for them and India are yet to win even a single game in the new year across formats. India batted first and managed to score 287 courtesy a counter attacking 85 by Rishabh Pant but that wasn't a problem for the Proteas as they strolled to the target with 11 balls and 7 wickets to spare. Janneman Malan and Quinton DeKock's fifties helped South Africa in chasing down the target without much fuss. India thus have a lot of questions to be answered. Starting with, What's wrong with KL Rahul the swashbuckling player of yesteryear? He is playing just like he played as the captain of PBKS and that seems to be costing the team even after the start provided by Dhawan and the impetus by Pant. How have the Indian spinners failed after getting tracks l

India's middle order will need to get some runs. © AFP   The Picture It is quite rare that you see the Indian team so battered and bruised after just the first encounter. India were literally taken to the cleaners by the duo of Temba Bavuma and Rassie Van der Dussen who scored twin centuries to guide the hosts to a par total of  296 which proved a little out of reach for a young Indian middle order. Kohli, Dhawan and Shardul hit half centuries but India still fell short by 31 runs in the end. The Protean spinners had a huge impact on a pitch that was slow and taking turn and their Indian counterparts looked lacklustre and paled away in comparison. India's middle order is also a cause of concern, with KL Rahul the middle order fulcrum since 2019 worldcup shifting up the order, the young middle order is finding it difficult to score runs under pressure. India won't look to do wholesome changes and under Rahul Dravid will look to give the boys a fair shot at nailing their plac

All eyes will be on the new skipper Kl Rahul. © BCCI The Picture After a riveting test series where the home team came up trumps, both teams will face off in a three match ODI series. The series is bland and almost a dead rubber considering that it doesn't count as part of the Worldcup Super League, thus relegating it to a few second-tier matchups. This series though helps both teams try out various combinations and aids in the needed course correction considering the next worldcup is in 20 months time. This series will also be filled with other sub plots, with Kohli playing his first series as only a player after having relinquished the test captaincy after the loss in the third test and how he plays just as a batsman will be viewed under a fine microscope. KL Rahul's leadership will also be looked at, as India search for a captain in the longest format of the game after the resignation of their greatest captain in the format. Questions will be asked on the commitment of Quint

Both teams will be pumped up going into the decider. © AFP The Picture Fortresses have been annihilated and records rewritten. What has transpired in the first two games in this series has left everyone stunned and wanting more. If India breached Centurion, where they finally won at South Africa's fortress for the very first time, it was South Africa at the Wanderers who came back and crushed India, winning their first match ever against the visitors at the venue in the process. India went in that game without their regular skipper Kohli and opting to bat only managed to muster a meagre score of 202. They managed that much courtesy a half century from their stand in skipper Kl Rahul who is having an excellent tour and a counter attacking 46 from Ashwin. For the Proteas, the seamers were stellar with the ball with Marco Jansen being the pick of them with 4 wickets. South Africa in reply made 229 courtesy half centuries from an ever impressive Keegan Petersen and a consistent Temba B