Abhishek Sharma sent the New Zealand bowlers on a leather hunt with a scintillating 84 as India beat New Zealand by 48 runs in the first T20I here on Wednesday. Abhishek’s 35-ball knock helped India put up an imposing 238-7. Rinku Singh en route his unbeaten 44 off 20 balls In reply, New Zealand managed 190-7 in the allotted 20 overs. Glenn Phillips top-scored for New Zealand with 78 off 40 balls, while Mark Chapman contributed 39 off 24 balls. Mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy (2-37) and all-rounder Shivam Dube (2-28) claimed two wickets each for India. NZ’s Glenn Phillips celebrates his 50 in Nagpur. Pic/AFP Earlier, the world’s top-ranked T20I batter Abhishek showed no mercy, making the Black Caps’s fielders look like mere bystanders with eight towering sixes and five fours. Abhishek’s carefree hitting also helped his skipper Suryakumar Yadav (32 off 22 balls) get some runs although he was far from his best. But the young opener’s attack at all costs gave his skipper a chance to play himself in during a 99-run stand off 47 balls for the third wicket. Towards the end, Rinku Singh (44 not out off 20 balls) got to play an innings of substance after a long time with India ending their 20 overs in fantastic fashion. For someone who nowadays can hardly put a foot wrong, it took Abhishek exactly five deliveries to set his eye in against Jacob Duffy (2-27 in four overs) before the first of his eight maximums came out of the closet. It was a lofted six into the sight screen. 238-7No. of runs scored by India on Wednesday, their highest-ever T20I total against New Zealand EightNo. of fifties for Abhishek Sharma in T20Is in 25 balls or fewer — becomes the first player to do so, surpassing Phil Salt, Suryakumar, and Evin Lewis, all tied at seven EightNo. of sixes by Abhishek on Wednesday, the most by an Indian in a T20I innings against NZ 9007No. of runs scored by Suryakumar Yadav in T20s, only the fourth Indian to cross the 9000-plus mark after Virat Kohli (13,543), Rohit Sharma (12,248), and Shikhar Dhawan (9797) 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
22 January,2026 09:29 AM IST | Nagpur | AgenciesRiding on centuries from Anuj Chaudhary and Anup Yadav, Dnyandeep Seva Mandal (Nerul) seized control against Swami Vivekanand International School (SVIS) in the ongoing Dream Sports Mumbai School Sports Association (MSSA) inter-school three-day Giles Shield final at Brabourne Stadium at Churchgate on Wednesday. On Day Two, Dynandeep resumed their innings on an overnight 17-0 in 13 overs. A massive fifth-wicket partnership then tilted the contest firmly in their favour. Dnyandeep went on to post a formidable total of 330-5 in their first innings quota of 80 overs. Anup Yadav anchored the innings with an unbeaten 126 off 123 balls (19x4, 4x6) while Anuj Chaudhary provided some solid support, scoring 102 off 110 balls (7x4)The pair stitched together a decisive 199-run partnership for the fifth wicket while consuming 192 balls, a stand that effectively blunted SVIS’s bowling attack. Support from openers Atharv Kale, who contributed a steady 50 off 126 balls, and Neil Naik’s useful 38 off 95 deliveries ensured the scoring rate remained healthy without the batters taking any unnecessary risks. Left-arm spinner Dalvat Kawali was the pick of the SVIS bowlers with figures of 3-81. In reply, SVIS, who began their second innings trailing by 54 runs, found themselves under early pressure with wickets falling at regular intervals. At stumps on Day 2, SVIS were 58-5 after 17 overs. Atul Chaudhary delivered a tidy spell of 2-28 from nine overs, while Pranav Raje bowled a long and economical spell of 8 overs, returning figures of 2-30 for the Nerul outfit.
22 January,2026 09:25 AM IST | Mumbai | Rufus VedanayagamSteve Waugh has dabbled in business ventures in the two decades since calling time on his international career, but owning a franchise in the European T20 Premier League is a “challenge” the former Australia captain has embraced, with a larger mission of expanding cricket across the continent. The inaugural ETPL marks a significant step for the game in a region long considered underdeveloped in cricketing terms. “To me, Europe is the last frontier of cricket, and that’s why I’m involved. “It’s a new frontier for cricket in Europe — taking the global game there to expand it and find new cricketers. For me, being part of a franchise like the Amsterdam Flames is really exciting,” Waugh told PTI. 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
22 January,2026 09:09 AM IST | Nagpur | PTIMumbai will resume their Ranji Trophy campaign against India pacer Mohammed Siraj-led Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Thursday. After three wins from five matches, Mumbai are on top of Elite Group ‘D’ with 24 points. Left-arm spin bowling all-rounder Shams Mulani, who is Mumbai’s leading wicket-taker with 28 scalps so far, insists the team must concentrate on each session at a time to get the better of the Hyderabad side. “I’m very excited because I love red-ball cricket. I love that grind and that patient battle. We need to focus on each session. And if we win most of the sessions, we will win the game,” Mulani told mid-day over the phone from Hyderabad on Wednesday. When asked how he viewed the team’s battle against Siraj, Mulani replied: “It’s quite normal because we play against India players in different formats. So, it’s just another challenge for us to play against a quality bowler. Obviously, performing well against India’s top bowler will boost our confidence and we need that confidence going forward in the league and probably in the knockouts as well.” Mumbai suffered a nine-wicket defeat to the same Hyderabad team in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in Pune last month with Siraj claiming 3-17. However, Mulani reckoned that defeat won’t matter here. “This is a different format. T20 is unpredictable; anybody can beat anybody. But our focus is on ourselves. We have been playing some good cricket so far and must continue that,” Mulani said. Mumbai will be missing the services of experienced players ex-captain Ajinkya Rahane (who has made himself unavailable), Shardul Thakur and off-spinner Tanush Kotian (both injured).
22 January,2026 09:07 AM IST | Mumbai | Subodh MayureThe ICC on Wednesday rejected the request from the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) to shift its team’s T20 World Cup fixtures to Sri Lanka, saying the matches will proceed as scheduled since there was no credible threat to the safety of Bangladesh players, officials or fans at any of the tournament venues in India. The decision was taken at an ICC Board meeting held via video conference, which was convened to discuss the situation after the BCB raised concerns and sought a change in venues. “The ICC Board noted that relocating matches under the present circumstances could jeopardise the sanctity of ICC events and undermine the organisation’s neutrality as a global governing body,” the ICC said in a statement. According to the ICC, the Board reviewed multiple security assessments, including independent evaluations, all of which concluded that there was no credible threat to Bangladesh players. ICC sources told PTI that out of 16 members, 14 voted against BCB’s relocation request. The ICC has given BCB one more day to reflect and take a final position. 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
22 January,2026 09:02 AM IST | Dubai | PTIMumbai Indians skipper Harmanpreet Kaur admitted that her side were 20 runs short after slumping to their third straight defeat as Delhi Capitals thrashed them by seven wickets here. Kaur pointed to continued Powerplay execution issues with both bat and ball as a key factor in their defeat. “Yeah, I think we were about 20 runs short with the bat. Even in the Powerplay, we weren’t able to execute properly — both with bat and ball, and that’s been a concern for us throughout this tournament. We really need to push ourselves more in that phase of the game,” said Kaur. “The Powerplay has been tricky for us, especially because we’ve had to keep changing our opening combinations due to injuries. At the start of the tournament, a few players weren’t available, and now Kamalini’s injury has forced another change. That has affected our stability at the top, but it’s not an excuse, whoever goes out to open has to take responsibility and bat positively for the team.” 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
22 January,2026 09:00 AM IST | Vadodara | IANSIndian superstar Virat Kohli was on Wednesday displaced from the top spot by New Zealand swashbuckler Daryl Mitchell in the latest ICC ODI rankings for batters following the latter’s stupendous run of form in the just-concluded series. New Zealand won the series 2-1. Mitchell scored two hundreds during the rubber. 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
22 January,2026 08:56 AM IST | Dubai | PTIIn the first T20I match against New Zealand, Team India emerged victorious by 48 runs at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur. Having put to chase a target of 239 runs, the "Black Caps" managed to score 190 runs for the loss of seven wickets in 20 overs. Opening the innings, Devon Conway departed on a two-ball duck. Fellow opening batsman Tim Robinson scored 21 runs in 15 balls, with the help of two boundaries and a maximum. Rachin Ravindra was dismissed on one run in five balls. Glenn Phillips accumulated 78 runs off just 40 deliveries, which was laced with four boundaries and six maximums. Mark Chapman garnered 39 runs after facing 24 balls, including four boundaries and two maximums. Daryl Mitchell smashed 28 runs in 18 balls, including four boundaries. Kristian Clarke was dismissed for zero on the very first ball of his innings. Skipper Mitchell Santner and Kyle Jamieson stayed unbeaten. Facing 13 balls, Santner scored 20 runs, including two boundaries, whereas Jamieson scored one run off two balls. Team India's Varun Chakaravarthy and Shivam Dube bagged two wickets each. Arshdeep Singh, Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel registered one wicket each to their names. Earlier, having put to bat first, Team India's wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson scored 10 runs in seven balls, including two boundaries. Fellow opening batsman Abhishek Sharma played a fiery knock of 84 runs off just 35 deliveries. His knock was laced with five boundaries and eight maximums. Ishan Kishan registered eight runs in five balls, with the help of two boundaries. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav accumulated 32 runs in 22 balls, including four boundaries and a maximum. Later, Hardik Pandya garnered 25 runs off just 16 deliveries, with the help of three boundaries and a maximum. Rinku Singh gave the finishing touches to Team India's innings. Having faced just 20 balls, he smashed an unbeaten 44 runs, with the help of four boundaries and three maximums. With this, the "Men in Blue" posted a total of 238 runs for the loss of seven wickets in 20 overs. Jacob Duffy and Kyle Jamieson returned with two wickets each. Having completed their quotas of four overs each, Duffy conceded 27 runs, and Jamieson leaked 54 runs. Kristian Clarke, Ish Sodhi, and skipper Mitchell Santner picked up one wicket each.
21 January,2026 11:12 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentIn the first T20I match against Team India, New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner won the toss and elected to bowl first at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur. Recently, the "Black Caps" registered a 2-1 triumph against the "Men in Blue" in the three-match ODI series. The visitors will look to continue their momentum in the shortest format series as well. Kristian Clarke is set to make his T20I debut for New Zealand, whereas Michael Bracewell will miss out on the clash due to a calf niggle. After winning the toss, Santner said that he feels that the wicket in Nagpur will be suitable for high scores. He also sees the series as a good challenge before the arrival of the T20 World Cup. "We'll bowl first, wicket looks good for high scores. Guys did something special last week, tough to win in India. Five tough games ahead of the T20 World Cup, good challenge. Everyone's been playing cricket, whether ODIs or franchise games. Kristian Clarke makes his debut. We've got 3 spinners. Bracewell's got a calf niggle, we'll see how it goes," he said. Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav said that even his side was looking to bowl, but also stated that batting first will help them find the right combinations for T20 World Cup 2026. He informed that Team India will miss the services of Shreyas Iyer and Harshit Rana in the clash due to injuries. "Happy to bat first, though we were also looking to bowl. Dew's been a factor here the past few days. Batting first will help us fine-tune for World Cup scenarios. Nice atmosphere in the change room. Only two shuffles due to injuries, missing Shreyas and Harshit. Looking to put runs on board," said the 35-year-old cricketer. IND vs NZ 1st T20I: Confirmed Playing XI India: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav (C), Rinku Singh, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakavarthy, Jasprit Bumrah. New Zealand: Tim Robinson, Devon Conway (WK), Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner (C), Kristian Clarke, Kyle Jamieson, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy.
21 January,2026 09:16 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentAhead of the T20 World Cup 2026, cricketer Rohit Sharma said that watching the global showpiece from the sidelines for the first time will be a strange experience. Team India's two stalwarts, Virat Kohli and Rohit, are currently active in only one format, the One-Day Internationals (ODIs). "We were talking about this at home, that it will be strange watching it from home, especially the T20 World Cup. From the time it started until now, I have been part of every World Cup, so it will feel different," he said on JioHotstar show. "When you miss a World Cup, the reality really sinks in. That's when you realise you're not going to be part of it. However, I will be somewhere in the stadium. It won't be the same, but it will be a different experience," he added. Speaking on his captaincy decisions back then, the cricketer stated that tough calls need to be taken. "There have been many such instances of taking hard calls before World Cups. You will not be able to please everyone, but it is important for the individual to know why a decision is taken," he explained. He also revealed why Deepak Hooda was preferred over Shreyas Iyer by Team India's management during the T20 World Cup 2022. "We felt we needed someone who could give us a little more with the ball. That's why we went with Deepak Hooda, who was in good form at the time. Shreyas would have felt bad, Deepak would have been happy - that's how it works," revealed Rohit. The "Men in Blue" will begin their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign against the United States of America on February 7 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Before the global showpiece, Team India will engage in the five-match T20I series against New Zealand. The first match between the teams is scheduled to be played on Wednesday at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur IND vs NZ T20Is: Full squads India: Sanju Samson(w), Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Ishan Kishan, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh. New Zealand: Tim Robinson, Devon Conway(w), Rachin Ravindra, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner(c), Kyle Jamieson, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Bevon Jacobs, Kristian Clarke, Zakary Foulkes. (With PTI Inputs)
21 January,2026 09:16 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentAhead of February's T20 World Cup 2026, former cricketer Varun Aaron spoke about Team India skipper Suryakumar Yadav's rough patch in the shortest format of the game. Speaking on 'Game Plan', JioStar expert Varun noted that the skipper has lost most of his wickets in the power play. He also feels that the right-handed batsman is trying to play his lap shot early in the matches. "I think he is trying to play his lap shot too early. He is trying to take the ball from outside the off-stump and go to the on side too early. If you have a look at his dismissals through the last one year, I think, in India, his record has not been good because the wickets were a lot slower in India," said the former pacer. "A lot of the bowlers used a lot of pace-off balls. Amongst the eight times he has got out in the powerplay, four of them were to pace-off balls, and that's something which has plagued Surya through his career," he added. Aaron also feels that Suryakumar should come to bat at number four, the same way he does for the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). "The debate is number three or four. I personally prefer him batting at number four, what he does for the Mumbai Indians. The one common factor in all these deliveries (where he has scored runs) is that he is actually playing the ball where it is supposed to be played," he signed off. The "Men in Blue" under the captaincy of Suryakumar Yadav will lock horns against New Zealand for the five-match T20I series. The first match between the teams is scheduled to be played on Wednesday at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur IND vs NZ T20Is: Full squads India: Sanju Samson(w), Abhishek Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Ishan Kishan, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh. New Zealand: Tim Robinson, Devon Conway(w), Rachin Ravindra, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner(c), Kyle Jamieson, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy, Matt Henry, Bevon Jacobs, Kristian Clarke, Zakary Foulkes. (With ANI Inputs)
21 January,2026 09:15 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentADVERTISEMENT
