Skipper Yuvan Sharma produced a brilliant spell of spin bowling as defending champions Anjuman-I-Islam Allana English School (Fort) seized control against Al-Barkaat Malik Muhammad English School (Kurla) on Day One of the 129th Dream Sports Mumbai School Sports Association (MSSA) inter-school Harris Shield final at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday. Leg-spinner Yuvan (5-38) led from the front with a brilliant five-wicket haul as Al-Barkaat were bundled out for 135 in 40.5 overs. He received strong support from offie Aarav Yadav (4-32). Al Barkaat’s resistance on the first day of the three-day final, came primarily through Arhaan Patel, who scored 61 (12x4). Anjuman’s Laxmanprasad Vishwakarma en-route his unbeaten fifty In reply, Anjuman-I-Islam began their innings with intent, as Laxmanprasad Vishwakarma struck a fluent half-century (52 not out) laced with seven boundaries. He was well supported by Aarav, who scored a valuable 46 not out (5x4, 1x6). The Fort outfit ended the day at 109-1.
24 December,2025 10:37 AM IST | Mumbai | Rufus VedanayagamStar India all-rounder Deepti Sharma, 28, on Tuesday rose to the top of the ICC women’s T20I bowling rankings for the first time in her career. Deepti’s haul of 1-20 in the opening T20I of their home series against Sri Lanka in Vizag was enough for the off-spinner to pip Australia pacer Annabel Sutherland by one point to sit on top with 737 points. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
24 December,2025 10:10 AM IST | Dubai | PTIAustralia skipper Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon were on Tuesday ruled out of the final two Ashes Tests against England with the former also in doubt for the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, which begins in February. Cummins “won’t play any part in the rest of the series,” coach Andrew McDonald told cricket.com.au. He returned from a lower back injury to lead Australia to victory in Adelaide, taking six wickets in the match. “We’ve now won the series, [so] to position him for further risk is not something we want to do,” added McDonald. In a separate interview with ESPN, McDonald further went on to state that Cummins’s participation in the T20 World Cup was by no means a certainty. “Looking forward to the World Cup, whether he will be there or not, I can’t really say. It’s quite grey at the moment,” said McDonald. Replacing Cummins and Lyon in the squad for the Melboure Test are pacer Jhye Richardson and off-spinner Todd Murphy. Australia’s squad for fourth TestS Smith (c), S Boland, A Carey, B Doggett, C Green, T Head, J Inglis, U Khawaja, M Labuschagne, T Murphy, M Neser, J Richardson, M Starc, J Weatherald, B Webster This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
24 December,2025 10:07 AM IST | Melbourne | AgenciesEngland managing director Rob Key pledged on Tuesday to investigate whether players’s drinking on a mid-Ashes beach break went too far, after reports said it had been like a “stag-do.” The England team headed to Queensland tourist playground Noosa after heavily losing the first two Tests in Perth and Brisbane. They spent several days on the sand and around restaurants and bars, followed by TV crews, photographers and reporters before travelling to Adelaide where they lost the third Test and the Ashes. Rob Key Britain’s Daily Telegraph reported that ‘after drowning their sorrows after the Brisbane Test, it is no exaggeration to say some, certainly not all, players drank for five or six days.’ It added that players ‘did nothing outrageous in Noosa,’ bAustralia, England, Australia vs England, Aus vs Eng, Aus vs Eng live, Ashes, Ashes series, Ashes Test, Test cricket, Cricket News, Latest Cricket News, Cricket latest news, Cricket News Today, Cricket match news, Sports News, Latest Sports News, Live Sports Updates, latest sports update, sports news headlines, Sports News, Trendingut there was concern over the level of drinking, with England’s professionalism already under question after their limited preparations. “If there’s things where people are saying that our players went out and drank excessively, then of course we’ll be looking into that,” Key told English media in Melbourne ahead of the Boxing Day Test. “Drinking excessive amounts of alcohol for an international cricket team is not something that I’d expect to see at any stage. It would be a fault not to look into what happened there. [But] from everything that I’ve heard so far, they actually were pretty well behaved,” added Key, who did not travel with the team to Noosa. He admitted that he did not mind players having the occasional drink, but “if it goes past that, then that’s an issue as far as I’m concerned. I have no issue with the Noosa trip if it was to get away and just throw your phone away, down tools, go on the beach, all of that stuff. If it goes into where they’re drinking lots and it’s a stag-do, all of that type of stuff, that’s completely unacceptable,” he added. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
24 December,2025 10:00 AM IST | Melbourne | AFPDelhi Capitals on Tuesday appointed India batter Jemimah Rodrigues as captain for the 2026 Women’s Premier League. The 25-year-old played a key role in India’s ICC Women’s World Cup triumph, scoring an unbeaten 127 in a record chase of 339 against Australia in the semi-final. “It is an absolute honour to be named captain, and I am deeply grateful to the owners and support staff for placing their faith in me,” Rodrigues said in a release. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
24 December,2025 09:54 AM IST | New Delhi | PTIAccusing the Indian players of provocative behaviour during the Under-19 Asia Cup final, Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has said that he intends to “formally inform” the ICC about it. Pakistan beat India by 191 runs in the final of the continental tournament in Dubai on Sunday. Players from both sides were seen engaged in verbal altercations during the game and the two teams also did not shake hands before and after the match. “Indian players kept provoking Pakistani players during the Under-19 APCBsia Cup final. Pakistan will formally inform the ICC about the incident. Politics and sports should always be kept separate,” Naqvi said at a reception hosted by PM Shehbaz Sharif. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
24 December,2025 09:50 AM IST | Karachi | PTIOne of the most successful coaches in domestic cricket, current Madhya Pradesh head coach Chandrakant Pandit and former national selector and ex-India pacer Salil Ankola have welcomed the BCCI’s move to make at least a couple of Vijay Hazare Trophy matches mandatory for Team India’s senior cricketers. With the domestic 50-over tournament starting today, India stalwarts Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav and batting sensation Abhishek Sharma will be seen in action across different venues. Kohli will be playing for the Rishabh Pant-led Delhi against Andhra at Bengaluru, while Rohit and India’s T20I captain Suryakumar will bat for Shardul Thakur’s Mumbai team against Sikkim at Jaipur. India’s Test and ODI captain Gill and Abhishek will represent Punjab against the Ruturaj Gaikwad-led Maharashtra in Jaipur. “It’s a good move that all international players, including India’s stalwarts, are available and keen to play this Vijay Hazare tournament. Naturally, the value of this tournament is very high now. Also, it will give a lot of motivation to all the other players. The sheer presence of players like Virat, Rohit and Shubman will motivate others to give their best as they try and compete. At the same time, these matches will give the international stars some good preparation. For example, someone like Shubman has been failing to score runs at the top level in the recent past, but if he scores here, it will be a good confidence-booster for him,” Pandit told mid-day over the phone from Ahmedabad, where his team will take on Rajasthan on Wednesday. Pandit reckoned these are good times for domestic cricket: “These players are setting a good example for this and the upcoming generation by playing in this tournament. One should never forget where you started playing the game, and by playing this tournament the international players are showing that they haven’t forgotten their roots. This is a good sign for Indian domestic cricket and hopefully, it will continue in future.” Former India pacer Ankola, who was a national selector recently, recalled how his generation of players, including batting icon Sachin Tendulkar, were always eager to play in Mumbai’s local circuit. “In our days, everybody used to play. Right from Sachin to Sanjay [Manjrekar] to Ravi [Shastri]. I remember Sachin never missed Sungrace Mafatlal’s matches. Playing in the nets is one thing and actually playing a match is totally different. To get into the groove, you need match practice. Performance also matters. When you bowl to any player and when you bowl to someone like Rohit or Virat, it’s totally different. It’s a different ball game altogether when the legends of the game are playing,” Ankola concluded. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever.
24 December,2025 09:45 AM IST | Mumbai | Subodh MayureBengaluru Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh on Tuesday said that permission has been denied to hold the Vijay Hazare Trophy match at the city’s Chinnaswamy Stadium on December 24, a day after a government appointed committee inspected the facility in light of the June 4 stampede that killed 11 persons during the RCB’s IPL victory celebrations. Matches were stopped at the Chinnaswamy Stadium after a stampede outside it during RCB’s IPL victory celebration. However, the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) had sought permission to hold the Vijay Hazare match without spectators. Key matches todayMumbai vs Sikkim (Jaipur)Andhra vs Delhi (Bengaluru)Maharashtra vs Punjab (Jaipur)Jharkhand vs Karnataka (Ahmedabad)Puducherry vs Tamil Nadu (Ahmedabad) This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
24 December,2025 09:38 AM IST | Bengaluru | PTIThe charismatic presence of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma alongside a host of top India cricketers lends unprecedented gravitas to the Vijay Hazare One-Day Trophy beginning on Wednesday, giving all of them a chance to prove a point amid a renewed focus on domestic grind. The velvety tapestry of superstars also features Rishabh Pant, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Abhishek Sharma among others but none attracts as much attention as Kohli and Rohit. Their appearance has a direct link to the BCCI’s decision of making at least two Vijay Hazare Trophy matches mandatory for India cricketers. But in case of Kohli, who is playing in this tournament after 15 years, and Rohit, it is a sharp reminder that they are no longer immune to the evolving power equations within Indian cricket. Rohit to play first two games Rohit has made it clear that he will play the first two matches of Mumbai against Sikkim and Uttarakhand in Jaipur on December 24 and 26. Kohli, who has been training with former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar in Mumbai, has not yet decided as to which two or three matches he will play for Delhi. Punjab’s Shubman Gill (left) & Arshdeep Singh Delhi will open their Elite Group D campaign against Andhra in Bengaluru at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE), following which they will face Gujarat. An underwhelming outing in the Vijay Hazare Trophy will not have a say in their selection for the ODIs against New Zealand next month, but Kohli and Rohit would know that the space around them is shrinking. Gill, Pant in focus Pant, a Test certainty, will be eager to bring himself back in contention for white ball formats selection. The wicketkeeper batter has not represented the country in either ODIs or T20Is since August 2024. Gill, on the other hand, will be picking himself up after the selectors’ call to overlook him for the upcoming T20 World Cup. The right-hander will be aiming to vent some of that frustration while turning out for Punjab. For Gill, it will be a good warm-up ahead of next month’s three-match ODI series against New Zealand. Search for young bowlers Another pertinent point could be the interest of selectors in young bowlers in this edition of the tournament, particularly on the pacers.Since Mohammed Siraj came through the Ranji Trophy circuit a few years back, no young talent has been able to produce compelling outings to break into the established Indian pace order. Even the support line — consisting of Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana and Akash Deep — has not been consistent enough. In that context, Gurjapneet Singh (Tamil Nadu), Gurnoor Brar (Punjab), Yudhvir Singh (J&K), Anuj Thakral (Haryana) and Sakib Hussain (Bihar) etc will evoke keen interest from the selectors. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
24 December,2025 09:32 AM IST | Bengaluru | PTIIn the second women's T20I match against Sri Lanka, Team India emerged victorious by seven wickets at the ACA–VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam. Having needed to chase a target of 129 runs, the "Women in Blue" chased it by losing three wickets in 11.5 overs. With this, the hosts have continued to lead the series 2-0. During the run chase, Team India lost the wicket of its premier batswoman, Smriti Mandhana, on 14 runs. Her innings ended in 11 balls, which also included a boundary and a maximum. Fellow opening batswoman, Shafali Verma, smashed an unbeaten 69 runs off just 34 deliveries. Her knock was laced with 11 boundaries and a maximum. Jemimah Rodrigues accumulated 26 runs in 15 balls, with the help of four boundaries and a maximum. Skipper Harmanpreet Kaur returned to the pavilion on 10 runs in 12 balls. Richa Ghosh stayed unbeaten on one run in one ball. Malki Madara, Kawya Kavindi, and Kavisha Dilhari registered one wicket each to their names. Bowling three overs, Kavindi conceded 32 runs, whereas Dilhari was smashed for 15 runs in two overs. Madara leaked 22 runs in 2.5 overs. Inoka Ranaweera, Shashini Gimhani, and skipper Chamari Athapaththu went wicketless in the second women's T20I match against Team India. Bowling two overs, Ranaweera leaked 31 runs. Athapaththu and Gimhani bowled one over each and were smashed for 17 and 12 runs, respectively. Earlier, having put to bat first, Sri Lankan skipper Athapaththu played a knock of 31 runs off 24 deliveries. Her knock was laced with three boundaries and two maximums. Later, Hasini Perera and Harshitha Samarawickrama stitched a partnership. Facing 28 balls, Hasini scored 22 runs, with the help of three boundaries. Harshitha then went on to score 33 runs. Her 32-ball knock included four boundaries. Thanks to their contributions, the Lankans posted 128 runs for the loss of nine wickets. Team India's Vaishnavi Sharma and Nallapureddy Charani bagged two wickets each. Completing her quota of four overs, Vaishnavi conceded 32 runs, whereas Charani was smashed for 23 runs in four overs. Kranti Gaud and Sneh Rana also registered one wicket each to their names. Bowling three overs, Gaud gave away 21 runs, and Sneh leaked 11 runs in her spell of four overs.
23 December,2025 10:04 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentFormer Team India cricketer Amit Mishra feels that stalwarts Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma should be included in the squad for the ODI World Cup 2027. He said that there are no players who can handle pressure better than them, and the duo will also be the correct choice to teach the youngsters about the same. "They should be in the team. They have performed well for so many years. Wins and runs could go up and down a bit through the bilateral series cycle, but in big tournaments, you will need these big players. They know how to handle pressure; they can apply pressure to other teams as well. Nobody can handle pressure as well as they can, and nobody is better suited to teach the same to youngsters," he said while speaking to ANI. Till the time the 2027 edition of the global showpiece arrives, Rohit will already be in his 40s, and Virat will be in his late 30s. The marquee tournament will be co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia. Speaking further, the former cricketer said that the presence of these two bigwigs will put pressure on the opposition teams, considering that Virat and Rohit can change things easily. "They will explain and guide youngsters and the captain about various things. They will make other players play. Even if they do not perform, their presence in the team during the tournament would be impactful. But I would say this: one should not be a senior just because of their name; they should also perform. I am not saying they will score centuries in every match, but the impact should continue to be consistent. When such players are in the team, there is always pressure on the other team, as they will know that these two can change things easily," said Mishra. Amit Mishra's opinion on Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma's participation in domestic leagues When asked if the two stalwarts should participate in the domestic tournaments, Mishra said it is important for the duo to keep up with their fitness, following which they should feature in the domestic leagues. "The more you play, the better your body is and the more mentally stronger you are. If there are four matches in the league stages, they can play two and take a rest. If there are three, they can play and then rest. But they must play since they just play one format. Even when I was not playing regularly, I was told to play one or two domestic matches. It is important that your rhythm does not get spoiled and that your body is in the right condition. You will also get the right amount of match practice," said the 43-year-old cricketer. Virat and Rohit will notably feature in the domestic 50-over competition, Vijay Hazare Trophy, for Mumbai and Delhi, respectively. The tournament will kick off on Wednesday.
23 December,2025 09:26 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentADVERTISEMENT
