There’s something deeply ironic about modern T20 cricket: never before has form been so visible, yet never has it felt so negotiable. On Thursday night in Centurion, Ottneil Baartman produced a spell that should have set phones buzzing inside Cricket South Africa’s selection rooms 5 for 16, including a hat-trick, dismantling Pretoria Capitals and cementing […]
There’s something deeply ironic about modern T20 cricket: never before has form been so visible, yet never has it felt so negotiable. On Thursday night in Centurion, Ottneil Baartman produced a spell that should have set phones buzzing inside Cricket South Africa’s selection rooms 5 for 16, including a hat-trick, dismantling Pretoria Capitals and cementing […]
There is a very particular, almost crushing pressure that characterizes the Under-19 World Cup. What was once simply an opportunity to develop and test one’s skills is now the global marketplace for cricket talent. With the launch of the 2026 edition scheduled for January 15 on the beautiful grounds of Zimbabwe and Namibia, a changing […]
Cricket has always loved its grey areas, but Bangladesh’s T20 World Cup dilemma has landed the ICC in a shade darker than Duckworth–Lewis ambiguity. With less than a month to go before the February 7–March 8 tournament, two senior ICC officials are flying into Dhaka not for ceremonial handshakes, but for what feels like crisis […]
Once upon a time, touring teams arrived in India with two certainties: oppressive heat and inevitable spin suffocation. The middle overs were India’s private hunting ground, a place where matches quietly tilted, wickets fell in clusters, and visiting batters learned humility. The second ODI against New Zealand in Rajkot wasn’t just a bad day […]
There were the rain delays; there were the poor pitches, and then there was a Twenty-20 tournament brought to a grinding halt by a vacant locker room. Instead of being a “festival of floodlights and sixes” as envisioned for the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), it turned into a ghostly display in Mirpur: fans in attendance, […]
There is an odd contrast about the ICC U-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup: It resembles a youth competition, it seems as though it is a developmental program, but it acts as a global tryout for eventual superstars. The World Cup has again shown us that many times, the revolution in cricket occurs prior to when […]
There was once a time that Ravindra Jadeja seemed like a “cheat code” for India in ODI cricket, squeeze runs in the middle order, get a run-a-ball 35, and slowly but surely break down a chase with precision. However, that version of Jadeja seems to be from another era and is now a highlight reel. […]
Cricket has a knack for revealing those old habits that you think have long gone. Despite having as much modern batting depth as India does and a massive amount of one-day white-ball success, India still suffers from a rather archaic weakness: a selective memory when it comes to facing spin. Just look at the numbers […]
India’s Under-19 teams are usually introduced with a familiar cast list: prodigiously gifted batters, wristy stroke-makers, and the odd seam-bowling allrounder who does a bit of everything. Genuine fast bowlers? Those arrive later, supposedly after the gym, the grind, and a few Ranji seasons. Deepesh Devendran doesn’t seem interested in waiting. At just 18 […]
Kohli took over the No 1 spot on the ICC ODI rankings with 785 rating points as of Jan. 14, which represents a return to a position he hadn’t held since 2021. It’s also somewhat of an irony given that Kohli was at least outside the Top 5 ODI Batsmen going into the 2025 Champions […]