New Zealand is all set to lock horns with Pakistan in the Super 8 clash of the T20 World Cup 2026. The match is scheduled to be played on February 21 at the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo. Ahead of the clash, New Zealand middle-order batsman Mark Chapman said that, along with Usman Tariq, each of Pakistan’s spinners poses a different threat. "Obviously, Usman Tariq has a pretty unique action with the way that he stops at the crease, so I mean that's something to factor in. But for us, Pakistan have a number of really good spinners, so each of them poses their own threat," he said. He then expressed his team's readiness by saying that they have played a decent number of games against the "Green Shirts" in the past few years. "So, Pakistan is one of the teams that we've played probably the most frequently over the last few years. So, we're well aware of what they're going to bring. It's just about making sure we're really clear in the way that we want to play as a team," said Chapman. New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner missed out on the previous clash against Canada due to sickness. Speaking on his health, the 31-year-old cricketer said that the skipper would likely make his appearance against Pakistan. "Mitch Santner, he looks pretty sprightly, so I think he's pretty excited to get back to the park. Barring any last minute sickness, I think he'll be there. Obviously, Lockie (Ferguson on parental leave) has left us. I think he's currently on the way back, and I think he's landing potentially soon. So we'll just see how he pulls up from the flight," he said. Having qualified for the "Super 8" stage of the ongoing global showpiece, the "Black Caps" have been placed in Group 2 along with teams England, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. After concluding with the Pakistan clash, they will face Sri Lanka on February 25 at the R Premadasa International Cricket Stadium in Colombo. The clash against England is scheduled to be played on February 27 at the same venue. New Zealand's squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 James Neesham, Devon Conway (WK), Cole McConchie, Daryl Mitchell, Ish Sodhi, Jacob Duffy, Mitchell Santner (C), Mark Chapman, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson, Kyle Jamieson, Tim Seifert (WK), Glenn Phillips, Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Ben Sears. (With PTI Inputs)
20 February,2026 05:56 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentAustralia's burly all-rounder Marcus Stoinis heaped praise on legendary Team India cricketer Yuvraj Singh by saying he sees him more as a mentor. Stoinis then said that Yuvraj helped him during the Indian Premier League (IPL) and said that he has respect towards the former cricketer. "I played with Yuvraj Singh in the IPL. Although I was playing with him, I describe him more as a mentor. I was quite young, and he was obviously very experienced," he said. "Super talented, elegant, powerful. Not the typical power that maybe is on highlight around the world today. It was a more relaxed, rhythmical power. Very nice guy, very helpful. I mean, to a young overseas player coming to the IPL, he was very good to me. Nothing but absolute respect," added Stoinis. Australia has already been eliminated from the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026. They will play their last group stage match against Oman, before the global showpiece proceeds to the "Super 8" stage. The Aussies started their campaign strongly with a commanding win over Ireland by 67 runs in the 14th match of the tournament at R Premdasa Stadium. However, in the next match, Australia suffered a shocking defeat at the hands of Zimbabwe at the same stadium where they were unable to chase 170 and got bowled out for 146. The Aussies suffered yet another loss, as they went down against Sri Lanka, losing the match by eight wickets as Sri Lanka chased a target of 182 runs in just 18 overs. With the defeat against Sri Lanka, their chances of qualifying were no longer in their hands as they depended on Ireland to win their match against Zimbabwe. The match got washed out, with Zimbabwe and Ireland getting one point each, eliminating Australia from the tournament. The clash against Oman is scheduled to be played on Friday at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy. Australia's squad for the T20 World Cup 2026 Steve Smith, Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh (C), Adam Zampa, Travis Head, Ben Dwarshuis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Matt Renshaw, Josh Inglis (WK), Xavier Bartlett, Cameron Green, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Cooper Connolly. (With ANI Inputs)
20 February,2026 04:42 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentEngland captain Jos Buttler has dismissed suggestions that he should curb his natural game to overcome his lean patch in the ongoing T20 World Cup, insisting he will not bat merely to occupy the crease at the expense of the team’s needs. Buttler, widely regarded as England’s finest white-ball batter, is enduring a difficult run of form, having failed to register a half-century in his last 14 international innings across ODIs and T20Is with a highest score of 39. "T20 is one of those games that asks you to keep making plays. There are times when you’ve maybe been out of form in a Test match with the batting coach, who might say ‘just rein it in for a bit and try to bat for an hour and it will come back to you’. So by hook or by crook, bat for an hour. But in T20s, you’ve got to keep playing the scoreboard; if you’re chasing 10 in an over you’ve got to play accordingly. "I saw Nasser say, ‘just bat for 15 overs,' and I would love to just bat for 15 overs but I don’t want to bat for 15 overs just for myself and ignore the game. You’ve got to still play the game," Buttler said on the ‘For the Love of Cricket’ podcast. Buttler managed to score just 26 and 21 against Nepal and the West Indies in Mumbai and then two scores of three in Kolkata against Scotland and Italy in the T20 World Cup group games as England moved into the Super 8 stage. "A bit frustrating so far, the game just keeps challenging you, no matter what stage of your career you’re at, there’s always something challenging you. I’ve been through lots of patches of poor form over 15 years in all different formats; it’s always the same things you come back to at the end, which is stand still, watch the ball and trust yourself," he added. The former captain also said that he will not change his batting order and face the challenge by himself. “The only person who can score my runs is myself. I’m not going to score them by hiding away or sending anyone else out; I’ve got to put my own shirt on, mark the middle, and off we go again. It always comes back at some point, so looking forward to the next opportunity.” Buttler also showered his love for Mumbai, where England played their first two World Cup matches. "Mumbai, I think, is a city I really enjoy. There are some really good restaurants to get out to. There's lots going on. It's obviously busy and hectic, but that's all part of the fun of India," he said. England's star was also impressed with the performance of the associate nations in the World Cup. "The associate sides have played brilliantly. I'm sure they all feel like they've got nothing to lose. They're looking for that giant-killing kind of performance, and sides have come really close." England have qualified for the Super 8 stage, where they will play all their matches in Sri Lanka. The two-time champions will start their Super8s round by taking out co-hosts Sri Lanka at the Pallekele International Stadium on Sunday. 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.
20 February,2026 02:48 PM IST | Mumbai | IANSOman captain Jatinder Singh expressed enthusiasm ahead of the team's last group-stage match against Australia in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026, at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on Friday. Jatinder Singh said, "It is the best time to crush" the lacklustre Australian team. Australia, the 2021 T20 World Cup champions and one of the favourites ahead of the ongoing World Cup, have only managed one win in their campaign so far and have failed to advance to the Super 8 stage. After winning their campaign opener against Ireland, Australia faced consecutive losses against Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka. While Zimbabwe defeated the Aussies by 23 runs, co-hosts Sri Lanka beat the Mitchell Marsh-led side by eight wickets. Oman, who have also been eliminated from the World Cup, are yet to win a game in the marquee tournament. Oman captain Jatinder Singh said his team is eager to seize the opportunity against a struggling Australian side, emphasising that T20 cricket is all about momentum and key moments, and playing them well can make a big difference on the day. "It is an opportunity. And our boys are looking forward to it. Because T20, it's a game of momentum and the moments. If you, I think, play those moments right, you can do anything on that particular day. So Australia is not doing well at the moment," as quoted by ICC's website. Jatinder Singh said that despite being out of the tournament, Oman's team remains positive and is eager to make an impact in their final game against Australia. "Even they are also out of the tournament. So the mood in the camp is that the boys are really positive because we tried to play better cricket, but unfortunately, things were not in our favour. But I believe boys are looking forward to the next game against Australia and make a mark," he added. Australia have won just one match from three appearances at the T20 World Cup and is already out of contention to reach the Super Eights. 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.
20 February,2026 02:22 PM IST | Pallekele [Sri Lanka] | ANIA record opening stand between Georgia Voll and Beth Mooney paved the way for Australia to level a three-match T20I series with a 19-run victory against India in the second match here on Thursday. Voll and Mooney added 128 runs for the first wicket to register Australia's highest opening stand against India in T20Is, with the hosts posting 163 for 5. India, despite making a sparkling start to the chase, crumbled in the end to finish at 144 for nine. Ashleigh Gardner claimed 3/22, while Kim Garth, Annabel Sutherland and Australia captain Sophie Molineux took two wickets each. The series-deciding third T20I will be played at the Adelaide Oval on Saturday. India were 65/1 in the ninth over when their slide began as the visitors lost six wickets for seven runs towards the end. India were off the blocks quickly as Shafali Verma's early fireworks was followed by Smriti Mandhana opening up. The two Indian openers put on 54 in the powerplay to put the team on track of the chase. But Molineux applied the brakes when she pinned Shafali leg-before for a 23-ball 29 (5 fours) and Gardner got the key wicket of Jemimah Rodrigues (4). India's run-rate slowed down with the two consecutive wickets and a third followed soon when Mandhana was caught sharply down the leg by Mooney off Garth. With India struggling at 71 for three, skipper Harmanpreet Kaur (30) and Richa Ghosh (19) joined forces and did well to add 55 runs for the fourth wicket. However, the asking rate kept moving up which in turn forced the Indians to take unwanted risks. Harmanpreet was caught by her counterpart Molineux off Garth on the penultimate ball of the 17th over at extra cover, and three balls later, Ghosh was stumped off Gardner. India's hopes suffered another big blow when Gardner had Deepti Sharma (0) caught by Sutherland in the 18th over, with India slipping to 128 for six. Earlier, Voll (88) and Mooney (46) recorded the best-ever opening partnership for Australia of 128 runs against India as the hosts posted 163 for five. Arundhati Reddy, who saw a catch being dropped off her final ball in the innings off Ashleigh Gardner (10 not out), once again delivered the goods dismissing both the Australian openers to return 4-0-30-2. Voll and Mooney bettered the first-wicket stand in women's T20Is for Australia against India, which was of 115 runs set by the pair of Alyssa Healy and Mooney in March 2020 at Melbourne. With the right-handed Voll taking charge of the scoring from the word go, the senior pro Mooney played a perfect second fiddle but missed her milestone by a narrow margin. Voll made the most of some wayward bowling from Indians to strike 11 fours and one six, scoring 88 off only 57 balls. She picked gaps with precision and displayed an array of strokes on either side of the wickets to get her runs. Mooney was caught at mid-on by Shafali Verma off Arundhati on the penultimate ball of the 15th over. The left-handed opening batter struck four fours during her 39-ball knock for 46 runs. Brief Scores: Australia Women 163 for 5 in 20 overs (Georgia Voll 88, Beth Mooney 46; Arundhati Reddy 2/30) beat India Women 144/9 Harmanpreet Kaur 36; Ashleigh Gardner 3/22) by 19 runs. 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
20 February,2026 10:03 AM IST | Canberra | PTIAjit Agarkar (5 ducks) During the 1999-2000 Test series in Australia, Agarkar registered a rare ‘pair’ in two consecutive matches, apart from another golden duck (a first-ball dismissal), recording five consecutive dismissals for zero. Four of these were golden ducks. The Mumbai fast-bowling all-rounder was nicknamed ‘Bombay duck’ after his seven consecutive ducks against Australia in Tests (across two series) at Wankhede. India went on to lose the three-match series Down Under 0-3. Pankaj Roy (4 ducks) India opener Pankaj Roy faced a rare slump in form early in his career during the 1952 tour of England. He was dismissed for four consecutive ducks in the Test series, including a pair as he struggled against the pace of Fred Trueman in seaming English conditions. Trueman dismissed Roy on three of those occasions as England won the four-match series 3-0. Ramakant Desai (4 ducks) Fast bowler Ramakant Desai, nicknamed Tiny, for his five-feet-four frame, registered four consecutive ducks in Tests in 1959 and 1960 against England and Australia respectively. He got the first duck in the second innings of the fifth Test against England (India lost the series 0-5), followed by three (two in the first Test and one in the fourth) against Australia (India lost the series 1-2). Jasprit Bumrah (4 ducks) Jasprit Bumrah, one of the world’s premier fast bowlers known for unsettling batters with his yorkers, endured four consecutive ducks across two Test series, in Australia and England last year. His first duck came in the second innings of the fifth Test against Australia (India lost the series 1-3). His next three ducks came against England (in both innings of the first Test and one in the first innings of the third Test) as the series ended 2-2.
20 February,2026 09:55 AM IST | Mumbai | Rohan KoliFormer India opener Shikhar Dhawan surprised fans on Thursday with pictures of his Sangeet ceremony with partner Sophie Shine on Instagram. Dhawan, 40, shared a couple of photos featuring the pair decked up in sparkling attire — Dhawan is seen wearing a white Indo-western suit, while Sophie is sporting a shimmering golden lehenga. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Shikhar Dhawan (@shikhardofficial) Dhawan accompanied the post, which received over two lakh ‘likes,’ with the caption: “Sangeet night. Almost the Dhawans,” hinting at their impending marriage. The pair got engaged in early January after they had made their relationship public in June 2025. Sophie, an Irishwoman, is one of the vice presidents at the Northern Trust Corporation in Abu Dhabi. She also serves as the chief operating officer of Dhawan’s sports education initiative, Da One Sports, focussing on grassroot-level training.
20 February,2026 09:51 AM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentIndia's star all-rounder Hardik Pandya posted a short and sweet message to girlfriend Mahieka Sharma, wishing her a happy birthday on Thursday. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Hardik Pandya (@hardikpandya93) “Happy Birthday my princess. Thank you for coming in this world 25 years ago. You are the most amazing person I know. I love you,” read the caption on the 32-year-old’s Instagram story, which also featured a picture of the couple sharing a loving embrace while in swimming pool overlooking the sea in Sri Lanka.
20 February,2026 09:50 AM IST | Mumbai | A CorrespondentAnjuman-I-Islam Allana English High School (Fort) clinched the Mumbai School Sports Association (MSSA) JBCN Super Cup U-16 inter-school cricket title, by securing a five-wicket win over Rest of Schools (RoS) in the final at Brabourne Stadium (Churchgate) on Thursday. After electing to field, Harris Shield champs Anjuman bowled out RoS for 188 in 37.1 overs, thanks to Yuvan Sharma (5-16) and Vedant Kadu (4-43). Shourya Patil top scored for RoS with a 57-ball 67. Anjuman’s chase of 189 was set up by opener Laxmanprasad Vishwakarma, who scored a 58-ball 66. Virat Yadav was the pick of the bowlers for RoS picking 3-42, but could not stop Anjuman from coasting to victory in 33.2 overs.
20 February,2026 08:27 AM IST | Mumbai | Rufus VedanayagamFormer champions Australia are set to conduct a "forensic review" of their disappointing T20 World Cup campaign after the injury-ravaged team crashed out in the group stage of the ongoing event being co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. The 2021 champions exited after losing to Sri Lanka and minnows Zimbabwe. They still have one match remaining against Oman in Pallekele on Friday, but that would be inconsequential. Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka have progressed to the Super Eights as Australia failed to get past the group stage for the first time since 2009. Selector Tony Dodemaide said a full review of the performance would be done once the players are back home. "It's really disappointing the way the tournament has rolled out," Dodemaide was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au. "But we will need some time, and take some time, once we finish our last commitment - it's important that we finish strongly on Friday against Oman - then we'll get back and analyse it fully." The team was without its front-line pace attack after injuries forced Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood to skip the tournament, while Mitchell Starc announced his international retirement from the format. The team then lost captain Mitchell Marsh, also to injury, during the tournament, disturbing its balance to a great extent. An in-form Steve Smith was not picked and could only come in as cover once Hazlewood was declared ruled out just hours before their loss to Zimbabwe. Australia are the co-hosts of the 2028 T20 World Cup along with New Zealand. "We want to win every World Cup, no matter where it is. Clearly, the next one is at home. We'd love to do well at home. We've got a commitment within 48 hours or so against Oman and we want to finish off really well," Dodemaide said. "We will do the requisite planning to look at 2028; we've got 2027 50-over World Cup in the meantime. All these things will be mapped out when we get time and space, and we can cut out the emotion of it and look at it more forensically." 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
20 February,2026 08:22 AM IST | Melbourne | PTIThere was a time when the temptation to consider Shivam Dube as the poor man’s Hardik Pandya, no disrespect intended, was overwhelming. Not anymore. The Mumbaikar has grown into a genuine all-rounder in his own right, not a watered-down Pandya 2.0, but Shivam Dube 1.0, strong and mighty and powerful but also mature, self-confident and supremely game-aware. In a T20 World Cup where opponents with nothing to lose have made use of tacky, batter-challenging conditions to great effect, the 32-year-old has established himself as one for a crisis. A first-ball duck at his beloved Wankhede against United States in India’s opening game meant the worst out of the way at the first time of asking. Since then, Dube has been in his elements; 23 off 16 against Namibia and 27 off 17 in the grudge outing against Pakistan set him up nicely for the final Group A clash against the Netherlands, where Dube walked into another tricky situation and sealed the deal with a stunning career-best 66 that resurrected a stuttering innings. Dangerous prospect The Ahmedabad knock illustrated how far Dube has come on as a T20 batter; he is no longer just a slayer of spin but a more versatile, rounded and dangerous performer adept at playing the situation and who has shunned panic because he has immense faith in his formidable strength. India were 69-3 after nine overs when Dube walked out. He took his time getting used to the pace (or lack of it) of the pitch and the plans of the Dutch bowlers. Infuriating to many but sticking to a plan he had hatched in his head, he even patted down several of his first 11 deliveries, which yielded a mere six runs. But before one could say ‘What do you think you are doing?’, Dube switched gears, slamming 44 in his next 14 deliveries as he registered his maiden World Cup half-century. More strokes in arsenal Dube is an acknowledged destroyer of spin with his booming drives over the straight field, but he has now added the pull to the short ball and a blistering cover-drive to balls in his half against the faster bowlers to his repertoire. And because he has worked hard on his fitness, he is able to bowl quicker and with greater accuracy for longer periods. If he isn’t already there yet, he is well on his way to jostling for MVP status within the Indian setup. 178.46Shivam Dube’s strike-rate in the ongoing T20 World Cup — the second highest by an Indian (minimum 10 balls) after Ishan Kishan’s 202.29 66No. of runs scored by Dube on Wednesday — the highest individual score by an Indian batter at No. 5 or lower in T20 World Cups OneDube is the only Indian to score over 60 runs and take two wickets in a T20 World Cup match
20 February,2026 08:21 AM IST | Ahmedabad | R KaushikADVERTISEMENT
