Former Team India cricketer Sanjay Bangar has opened up on world number one T20I batsman Abhishek Sharma's attacking mindset, highlighting his high backlift, which provides the Indian opener an excellent reach to the ball. He also labelled the left-hander's quality of hitting sixes over covers as "special ability". "First of all, it's his attacking mindset. If there's a delivery outside the off stump, he hits it very hard. One very important aspect of his batting is his high backlift. He holds the bat above the handle, which gives him excellent reach. Because of the swing he generates, he can hit big sixes, especially over the covers. Hitting sixes over the covers is a special ability. He doesn't try to hit from below, which gives him an incredible range," said Bangar. The former cricketer then shed light on Hardik Pandya's playing style, stating that the right-hander plays with a wide base, which in turn helps him to generate power. "Going deep inside the crease is Hardik Pandya's speciality. Even when he goes that deep, his weight remains on the front foot, which is a very good thing. As a batter, we always encourage waiting for the ball. He plays with a very wide base, which allows him to generate a lot of power. He can play front-foot shots, back-foot shots, baseball-style hits, full shots and the upper cut. He opens up both sides of the ground, which is a special ability," said Bangar. He further stated that Pandya allows the ball to swing, and the "Men in Blue" have benefited immensely from his abilities with the ball as well. "He bowls at around 132-133 kmph with a fuller length, where close to 54% of his deliveries are pitched up, and he gets wickets from there. He allows the ball to swing, and when required, he goes for the yorker as well. The Indian team has benefited immensely from his ability," said the 53-year-old former cricketer. IND vs SA 4th T20I: Venue The Suryakumar Yadav-led Team India will lock horns against South Africa in the fourth T20I match at the Ekana Cricket Stadium B Ground in Lucknow on Wednesday. Currently, the hosts are leading the five-match T20I series 2-1 against the Proteas. The visitors will be eager to secure a win in the fourth clash in order to keep the series alive. (With ANI Inputs)
17 December,2025 06:08 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentPunjab Kings (PBKS) concluded the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 auction after acquiring the services of four players, completing their 25-man squad for the upcoming edition of the cash-rich league. During the auction, the side bought two uncapped and two capped players, while Australia's pacer Ben Dwarshuis emerged as the team's most expensive buy, according to a release. The Punjab-based franchise opened its account after winning the bid for Cooper Connolly. He is a batting all-rounder who plays for Australia and was bought for Rs 3 crore. Connolly has the potential to provide stability in the middle order and is also handy with the ball. Speaking about him, skipper Shreyas Iyer revealed that there was no plan to go for Connolly, however, considering the overall situation, the management thought that he was the perfect fit for a specific position. "Honestly, he wasn't there in our mind at the start, but as we brainstormed and narrowed down our options, we realised he fit the position perfectly," he said. "He has a great temperament and the ability to finish games. Those characteristics matter a lot in IPL. However, we didn't think we would get him for 3, we actually predicted his price would be much higher," added Shreyas Iyer. The team's highest bid of the auction followed shortly after, as Ben Dwarshuis was signed for Rs 4.4 crore. The left-arm pacer and handy lower-order striker adds significant depth to the bowling attack while providing a lethal power-hitting option at the death. The Kings entered the auction with a purse of Rs 11.5 crore, exhausting Rs 8 crore and acquiring two overseas and two Indian players. The upcoming edition of the league is set to kick off from March 26 to May 31. It remains to be seen if defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru's home base gets a game after a deadly stampede halted all big-ticket cricket at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. As per established norms, the Chinnaswamy should host the tournament opener, given that the home side, RCB, won the IPL 2025 title, but that is unlikely to be clear till the time the BCCI comes out with the full-scale schedule. The venue was witness to chaos and a stampede, which left 11 dead, after the Bengaluru-based franchise's trophy celebrations drew lakhs on the streets. (With Inputs from Agencies)
17 December,2025 04:30 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentVeteran Usman Khawaja has missed selection to Australia’s team for the third Ashes test against England with Travis Head kept at the top of the batting lineup with Jake Weatherald. Just two days away from his 39th birthday, Khawaja was a notable omission Tuesday from Australia’s XI for the test beginning Wednesday at the Adelaide Oval. Australia leads the five-test series 2-0 and can retain the Ashes with a win or draw in Adelaide. England named its team Monday. Captain Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon will return to the bowling attack at the expense of Brendan Doggett and Michael Neser, while the top seven is unchanged.That means Josh Inglis will remain in the side at No. 7, while Khawaja was not included after missing the Brisbane test with back spasms. Khawaja had enjoyed a great resurgences since his recall to the test team in 2022, starring at the top of the order. He averaged 58.7 in his first two years back, but has now passed 50 just twice in his past 27 test innings. 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
17 December,2025 09:28 AM IST | Adelaide | AFPSticking to the basics and drawing from a larger talent pool, fighting for limited spots in the team has led to South Africa’s resurgence across formats in the past couple years, according to pacer Anrich Nortje. Buoyed by historic achievements, including their World Test Championship title and a maiden appearance in the T20 World Cup final last year, the Proteas have re-established themselves as one of world cricket’s leading forces. In the tour of India, they defeated the hosts 2-0 in the Test series, their first win in the country in 25 years. “The team’s been doing unbelievably well. The way they’ve locked up, there’s some fresh faces, there’s some old faces, guys have been on the fringes for a while, getting to play more cricket, more consistently,” Nortje said on the eve of the fourth T20I against India here on Tuesday. The fast bowler attributed South Africa’s white-ball success to clearly defined roles and internal competition. “I can only speak for the white ball team, but on the outside it just looks like the guys are doing really well, getting along very well, and everyone knows their role in the team, and that’s very important,” Nortje said. “There’s a lot of competition, which creates opportunity and also creates a little bit of pressure for guys in the team, which is good, which is what you want.” 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
17 December,2025 09:26 AM IST | Lucknow | PTIMumbai boy Abhigyan Kundu, 17, hammered an unbeaten 209 off just 125 balls (17x4, 9x6) to help India outclass Malaysia by 315 runs in the U-19 Asia Cup in Dubai on Tuesday, becoming the first Indian to score a double century in Youth ODIs. Kundu’s father Abhishek called it the “proudest moment for the family” while his childhood coach Chetan Jadhav said he’s not surprised at all by his ward’s double ton. “This is the proudest moment for me and my family. I am extremely happy. We had been waiting for such a performance for a long time. In fact, till yesterday we were not sure if Abhigyan would play today because they [Indian team] are already in a good position. So, we felt they [team management] may try out different options, giving chances to some of the other players,” Kundu Sr told mid-day on Tuesday. Abhigyan’s father Abhishek (left) and coach Chetan Jadhav Kundu scored an unbeaten 32 off 17 balls against UAE in the opening game followed by a 32-ball 22 versus Pakistan. “Against UAE previously, he was batting well before he was dismissed off a very good ball. He realised he could’ve done more and was keen to do well here. Abhigyan has been working very hard with his coach [Jadhav]. Fingers crossed. Hope to see more such knocks from him,” added dad Abhishek. The India U-19 team lost openers Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (26-ball 50) and skipper Ayush Mhatre (14) by the fifth over with the scoreboard read 47-2 before No. 5 Kundu and No. 4 Vedant Trivedi (90) shared a 209-run stand as they went on to post a massive 408-7 in the allotted 50 overs. In reply, Malaysia were bowled out for just 93, thanks to pacer Deepesh Devendran’s 5-22. Coach Jadhav, who has been guiding Abhigyan since he was five, said his ward had predicted this big score. “We spoke yesterday [Monday] and Abhigyan said, ‘sir, I will score a double hundred tomorrow’, and he did. He’s a very positive and fearless cricketer,” he said.
17 December,2025 09:22 AM IST | Mumbai | Subodh MayureIt was a dream-come-true moment for differently-abled cricketers as they stepped onto the iconic Wankhede turf for the first time in the maiden Physically Disabled T20 Cricket Series match on Tuesday. India Senior team opener Jammu & Kashmir-based Wasim Iqbal, who played a crucial role in India’s triumph in the Physical Disability T20 World Series at Worcestershire in 2019, enjoyed his batting, smashing a 24-ball 66 (4x4, 7x6) to help his team beat India ‘A’ by 83 runs. Shiva Shankara (41) and Vikrant Keni (23) played supporting roles as the team posted 170-9 in their allotted 20 overs. In reply, India ‘A’ were bundled out for a mere 87 in 16.5 overs. Left-arm spinner Ganesh Pisal claimed 4-25 for the Indian Senior team. “Till today, most of us had only watched IPL or international matches at the famous Wankhede Stadium on TV. I’ve been waiting for a few years to get a chance to play at this beautiful ground, and today, this feels great. I must thank MCA [Mumbai Cricket Association] and DCCI [Differently Abled Cricket Council of India] for providing us this platform,” Iqbal, who was named Player of the match award, told mid-day on Tuesday. Bhayandar-based spinner Pisal, whose right hand has had no sensation since birth, insists disability is not a hindrance. “If our mindset is strong, we can overcome any struggle. All of us disabled cricketers enjoy playing this game. I watched Rohit Sharma make his Test debut [vs West Indies at Kolkata] in 2013. I got inspired and motivated by his attacking style of batting and started taking cricket seriously since. My aim is to play for India,” said Pisal.
17 December,2025 09:02 AM IST | Mumbai | Subodh MayureAnjuman-I-Islam Allana English School’s (Fort) bowling unit ripped through Dnyandeep Seva Mandal High School’s (Nerul) batting line-up, dismissing them for 174 in 53.3 overs in the Dream Sports Mumbai School Sports Association (MSSA) inter-school Harris Shield semi-final at MIG cricket club, Bandra, on Tuesday. On Day One of the three day tie, the damage was done by the trio of Mohammad Shaikh (3-47), Yuvan Sharma (2-31), and Salman Khan (2-27). For Dnyandeep, Virat Yadav scored 44 off 66 balls and received support from Lavish Singh (33 off 88 balls). Anjuman-I-Islam ended the day at 134-3. In the other semi-final, General Education Academy were 195 all out vs Al-Barkaat MMI English School who ended the day at 0-1.
17 December,2025 08:56 AM IST | Mumbai | Rufus VedanayagamAjinkya Rahane’s unbeaten 72 and Sarfaraz Khan’s brutal 22-ball 73 powered Mumbai to a three-wicket victory over Rajasthan in their Super League Group B match of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, here on Tuesday. Chasing 217, Mumbai never took the foot off the pedal and despite losing wickets in a heap they remained on track for another commanding win, overhauling the target with 11 balls to spare. 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
17 December,2025 08:54 AM IST | Pune | PTIYoung all-rounder Prashant Veer’s father Ramendra Tripathi, a village-level school teacher in Amethi, has a small, but important message for his son, who smashed the record for uncapped players, fetching R14.20 crore from Chennai Super Kings at the IPL auction in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. “We always knew Prashant was hugely talented, but not in our wildest dreams did we expect R14.2 crores. But though we are very happy, I have told Prashant to remain humble and not be swayed by this sudden windfall and popularity, and focus solely on furthering his career,” Ramendra told mid-day. “I have told Prashant to continue his cricket journey sincerely like he has been doing from the time he was attracted to the sport at the age of five. At this stage in his career, more than the money, we want him to go on and play for the county at the highest level. Our generations have served the country; my father was a government employee, I am a government teacher and now I want Prashant to serve the nation as a cricketer,” added Ramendra. Prashant Veer’s father Ramendra Tripathi In UP’s cricketing circles, Prashant, 20, is known as Ravindra Jadeja 2.0, being a talented left-arm spinner and an equally efficient southpaw batter. He has been performing very well for UP over the last couple of years, so much so that during recent domestic cricket tournaments he had to shuttle between Kolkata (Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy matches) and Mumbai (U-23 match) on alternate days. Besides, he has been doing well in the UPT20 league too and was among the top players in the wishlist of almost all the talent scouts, who were watching these domestic games. Clearly, the CSK management are keen to groom Veer as a successor to Jadeja after the latter was traded for Sanju Samson to Rajasthan Royals. Talking to mid-day from Amethi, Prashant’s cousin Aman Veer Tripathi said, “Prashant was always keen on cricket, but as there were no proper facilities in Amethi, his childhood coach Ghalib Ansari told him to attend the trials at the government hostel in Mainpuri, where he did well. Five years ago, since his grandfather was posted in Saharanpur as a Development Officer in LIC, he asked him to join the SBBA Cricket Academy in Saharanpur, where Prashant trained under Rajiv Goyal. Prashant has progressed gradually thereafter.”
17 December,2025 08:52 AM IST | Lucknow | Santosh SuriWill India’s struggling dhurandhars (stalwarts) Suryakumar Yadav and Shubman Gill get back their mojo in the fourth T20I against South Africa at the Ekana Stadium here on Wednesday? The Indian captain and his deputy have not played a big knock in a long time, and questions are being raised about their continued presence in the team. With the duo under immense pressure, the home side, leading 2-1, would be keen to clinch the issue here in Lucknow rather than leave it to the last match in Ahmedabad on Friday. Shivam Dube After arriving in the city on Monday evening, the entire team went to the local mall to watch the blockbuster Dhurandhar. Hopefully, Suryakumar and Gill can take inspiration from the movie, where an Indian soldier (Ranveer Singh) takes on the might of Pakistan’s gangs, and try to end their lean run with the bat. Both of them have been showing good touch, but somehow a big score has eluded them. The form of the two is crucial for the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka in February and March. With top guns Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli having bid goodbye to T20 cricket, the onus of spearheading the batting is on Suryakumar and Gill. Thus, it’s imperative for them to hit peak form to induce confidence in the team. The good thing is that the way they have been starting their innings gives the impression that they could fire anytime. Talking to the media on the match eve, all-rounder Shivam Dube discounted the notion that Gill and Yadav were not good enough in the format. “Not getting runs in a few matches does not mean you’re not up to it. Both are class players and have done so well in recent times. The talent and ability the two have are immense, and we, in the team, believe they are indispensable and they will be back at their best sooner than later,” said Dube. 9.66Suryakumar Yadav’s average in first three games against SA 111.53Suryakumar Yadav’s strike rate in first three games against SA 10.66Shubman Gill’s average in the first three T20Is against SA 103.22Shubman Gill’s strike rate in the first three T20Is against SA
17 December,2025 08:42 AM IST | Lucknow | Santosh SuriStar all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer, who used to represent Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), will play for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in IPL 2026. The Bengaluru-based franchise has acquired his services for Rs 7 crore. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka's slinger Matheesha Pathirana is set to play for KKR. They have bought him for Rs 18 crore. New Zealand's Finn Allen and England's Ben Duckett will feature in the tournament for KKR and Delhi Capitals (DC), respectively, as they have been sold for Rs 2 crore each. Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) have acquired the services of Sri Lanka's star spinner, Wanindu Hasaranga, for Rs 2 crore. Quinton de Kock will return to the Mumbai Indians (MI) for Rs 1 crore. Also, Jacob Duffy will represent Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in IPL 2026. Spinner Ravi Bishnoi will represent the Rajasthan Royals (RR). Deepak Hooda, KS Bharat, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Jonny Bairstow, and Jamie Smith have failed to find any buyers. Indian pacers Akash Deep and Shivam Mavi also didn't get any bidders. Prithvi Shaw's name came with a base price of Rs 75 lakh. However, despite the low price tag, the bidding room stayed silent as the right-handed batsman went unsold in the auction. This is the second consecutive time that Shaw failed to find any bidders. Earlier, Delhi Capitals (DC) released him ahead of the 2025 edition and had previously acquired his services for Rs 6 crore. Along with him, Team India's explosive batsman, Sarfaraz Khan, also remains unsold. Australia's Jake Fraser-McGurk and Devon Conway are other unsold players for the upcoming edition. On the other hand, David Miller emerged as the first player to be sold at the IPL 2026 auction. The Delhi-based franchise has acquired his services for Rs 2 crore. Australia's star all-rounder, Cameron Green, who was a hot topic before the auction, has walked away with a hefty price ahead of the upcoming edition. Green will represent KKR, as he has been sold for a whopping Rs 25.20 crore. With this, he also became the third most expensive player in the history of the cash-rich league. The Australian, who previously turned up for Mumbai Indians (MI) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), has so far played 29 matches in the IPL to aggregate 707 runs and take 16 wickets. The 26-year-old all-rounder also surpassed compatriot Mitchell Starc (Rs 24.75 crore) to become the most expensive overseas buy at an IPL auction. (With Inputs from Agencies)
16 December,2025 04:46 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentADVERTISEMENT
