Australia pace bowler Andrew Tye left his franchise Rajasthan Royals (RR) for ‘personal reasons’…reports Asian Lite News
Several Australian cricketers are looking to leave the Indian Premier League (IPL) due to fears that they will be locked of their country following rising Covid-19 cases in India.
Australia pace bowler Andrew Tye left his franchise Rajasthan Royals (RR) for ‘personal reasons’, it came to light on Sunday, after fellow RR player England’s Liam Livingstone had left a few days back citing ‘bubble fatigue’.
The Sydney Morning Herald (SMH) on Monday reported that many Australian players are ‘nervous about securing safe passage back home after the [Scott] Morrison government (Australian government) reduced the number of incoming passengers allowed from India’.
India is enduring a tough phase in the pandemic, with around 3.5 lakh daily Covid-19 cases and inadequate medical facilities. Sunday saw 3.54 lakh new cases with over 2800 deaths.
“Several sources close to the situation said on Sunday that multiple Australian players in India were seeking to leave the tournament early amid India’s skyrocketing coronavirus cases and recent travel restrictions imposed on people returning to Australia from India,” said the report in SMH.
The report quoted Kolkata Knight Riders mentor David Hussey, a former Aussie batsman, as saying, “Everyone’s sort of a bit nervous about whether they can get back into Australia. I dare say there’ll be a few other Australians (besides Tye) a bit nervous about getting back into Australia.
“Everyone’s pretty nervous about what’s going on over here, but they’re also pragmatic,” Hussey added.
Williamson anchored the chase after that point but hardly found anyone at the other end capable of standing up to the challenge of facing the DC bowlers on the sluggish Chepauk pitch….reports Asian Lite News
Kane Williamson’s unbeaten 66 off 51 balls went in vain as Delhi Capitals (DC) beat SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the first Super Over of the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL) at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium on Sunday.
Prithvi Shaw (53), Steve Smith (34) and captain Rishabh Pant (37) led DC to 159/4. SRH’s chase got off to a shaky start with captain David Warner (6) being run out in the fourth over and opener Jonny Bairstow (38) falling in the sixth.
Williamson anchored the chase after that point but hardly found anyone at the other end capable of standing up to the challenge of facing the DC bowlers on the sluggish Chepauk pitch.
However, Jagadeesha Suchith managed to smash 14 runs off six balls and, alongwith Williamson, took SRH to 159/7 and forced the game into a Super Over.
Sunriser’s Vijay Shankar (L) and Manish Pandey during the match against Rajasthan Royals
SRH, who sent in captain David Warner and Kane Williamson, managed to take just seven runs in their Super Over which was bowled by Axar Patel. One run was deducted from SRH’s tally due to captain Warner not putting his bat completely over the crease for the last run.
Captain Rishabh Pant and Shikhar Dhawan walked out for the run chase while spinner Rashid Khan bowled for SRH. The batsmen took two runs off the first two balls before Pant hit a four off the third. The next ball, however, went for a dot after which the batsmen stole two runs off the last two balls to take DC over the line.
Meanwhile, SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain David Warner said that the decision to drop Manish Pandey for Sunday’s Indian Premier League (IPL) match against Delhi Capitals (DC) was a harsh one made by the “selectors”.
SRH opted to play 23-year-old Virat Singh ahead of Pandey on Sunday, who ended up falling to Avesh Khan for four runs. SRH eventually managed to reach 159/7 thanks to Kane Williamson’s unbeaten 66, thus tying the scores and taking the game into Super Over, which DC ended up winning. “It depends on the selectors, it was a harsh call as per my opinion (On leaving out Manish Pandey). But at the end of the day it is a decision that they took and you cannot discredit Virat, he’s a very good player. On this surface, you don’t get too much time out there and it is very difficult. They bowled well in the middle and made it challenging for us,” said Warner.
Samson, who made a century in the first match of the season, lost steam in the next three games as his over-aggression resulted in tame dismissals…reports Asian Lite News
After getting criticised for throwing his wicket away by former batsmen like Sunil Gavaskar and Kevin Pietersen, Rajasthan Royals (RR) skipper Sanju Samson buckled down to play a captain’s knock and lead his team to a six-wicket win on a difficult wicket on Saturday against Kolkata Knight Riders.
Samson, who made a century in the first match of the season, lost steam in the next three games as his over-aggression resulted in tame dismissals. His failure reflected in his team’s fortunes as they struggled to conjure up wins.
However, his unbeaten 41-ball 42 helped RR reach the 134-run target with ease on Saturday.
“Situation of the match demands the way I play. That’s what I’ve learnt from previous years. Even if you bat and score a quick fifty you feel bad if the team doesn’t win,” said Samson after the match that lifted his team to sixth in the points table.
Teammate David Miller, who made an unbeaten 23-ball 24 and shared an unbeaten 34-run partnership for fifth wicket with Samson praised his skipper.
Saturday’s loss is the fourth loss in five matches for KKR this season and it has put them at the bottom of the points table…reports Asian Lite News
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Eoin Morgan criticised his batsmen for not showing intent after his team lost to Rajasthan Royals (RR) by six wickets in an Indian Premier League match on Saturday.
Saturday’s loss is the fourth loss in five matches for KKR this season and it has put them at the bottom of the points table.
“The batting let us down. We lacked a lot of intent throughout the whole innings. We were behind the game right from the start. Didn’t put the bowlers under enough pressure,” said Morgan who himself is struggling for runs and was run out without facing a ball on Saturday.
“We were probably 40 runs short which is a lot in a T20 game. The wicket today wasn’t as good as it has been here at the Wankhede. That was a challenge in itself. Every time we tried taking an attacking option, we lost a wicket. It left us a lot to do at the back-end, which we didn’t obviously do,” he added and admitted that RR adapted to the pitch much better.
He said he wants KKR batsmen to play freely and with a clear mind.
“Clearer the mind, the easier it is. We want guys to play free-flowing cricket. It wasn’t there today unfortunately.”
KKR head coach Brendon McCullum too said that his team’s batsmen lacked intent.
“They have to play with more intent with the bat at the start,” said McCullum.
The win, secured with seven balls to spare, put RR in sixth place in the points table while KKR were pushed to the bottom….reports Asian Lite News
Chris Morris’s four-wicket haul and a composed innings from skipper Sanju Samson (42 not out off 41 balls) helped Rajasthan Royals (RR) seal a six-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in an Indian Premier League match here on Saturday.
The win, secured with seven balls to spare, put RR in sixth place in the points table while KKR were pushed to the bottom.
Morris’s haul, in which he picked power-hitters Andre Russell, Pat Cummins and Dinesh Karthik, helped RR restrict KKR to 133/9 in 20 overs.
RR then chased it with the help of an unbeaten 34-run partnership for fifth wicket between Samson and David Miller (24 off 23 balls).
Though RR opener Jos Buttler failed again, Yashasvi Jaiswal, who came in for Manan Vohra, and Shivam Dube chipped in with identical scores of 22.
Russell, Cummins and Karthik had played explosive innings in the last match against Chennai Super Kings to take their side to 202 from 31/5. But on Saturday, they just couldn’t get going. All three of them were caught while trying to hit the South African over the boundary.
Morris, who was bought for Rs 16.25 crore ahead of this season by RR to become the most expensive player in IPL history, returned with figures of four for 23 in four overs. He was ably supported by left-arm pace bowler Mustafizur Rahman, who took one for 22.
Saurashtra pace bowling duo Jaydev Unadkat and Chetan Sakariya who opened the bowling were also impressive with the senior pro taking 1/25 and the junior 1/31 as KKR could never find their bearings.
Only Rahul Tripathi (36 off 26 balls) and Dinesh Karthik (25 off 24 balls) put up some decent batting performances to help their side get to their eventual total.
Morris’s bowling at the death hurt KKR the most.
At 117/5 and 15 balls to go, KKR had a chance to get to 150 with hard-hitters Russell, Karthik and Cummins still there.
But Morris got rid of Russell and Karthik in one over, his third, and then returned to remove Cummins in the last over.
Earlier in their innings, KKR kept losing wickets at regular intervals and found scoring tough. They were reduced to 61/4 just after 10 overs.
Sadiq Khan has promised, if re-elected on May 6, he will build on five years of innovation to confirm London’s status as the “undisputed sporting capital of the world.”
Sadiq Khan has vowed to work hand-in-hand with cricketing authorities to make the Indian Premier League (IPL) the latest global sports league to stage matches in London.
The Labour candidate for Mayor has promised to ‘keep banging the drum’ for investment in the capital including through international sport, as he pursues his vision for a better, more prosperous London after the pandemic.
“During his first term as London Mayor, Sadiq successfully brought Major League Baseball to the capital for the first time and extended London’s relationship with the NFL, helping to secure a ten-year commitment for the league to play regular season matches at the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium,” a press release said.
Following its establishment in 2008, the IPL has achieved stratospheric global growth and is now commonly considered to be one the largest sports leagues in the world. Bringing matches to London would allow the capital to build on the legacy of the three global competitions in recent years that have seen both major cricket grounds in London (Lord’s and The Kia Oval) sold out months in advance.
London mayor Sadiq Khan and deputy mayor for business, Rajesh Agrawal at Shree Swaminarayan Mandir Kingsbury. (Photo: Mayor of London)
Sadiq is an avid fan of cricket and had a trial for Surrey County Cricket Club as a teenager. He is also passionate about the power of all sports to bring people together which is why, throughout his first term as Mayor, he consistently invested in grassroots and community-based initiatives under the banner of ‘Sport Unites’.
Building on the success of the 2012 Olympic Games secured by Labour Mayor Ken Livingstone and Sadiq’s wider ‘Sport for All of Us’ strategy, under Sadiq, London has become the sporting capital of the world attracting major events including the ICC Cricket World Cups for both men and women, the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, the European Championships in men’s and women’s football and global competitions in diving and skateboarding.
London also hosts the annual Wimbledon Championships, world title boxing matches including the seminal bout between Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko and is currently home to six Premier League football clubs, four Women’s Super League teams, two Rugby Union premiership clubs and two first-class cricket clubs.
Mayor Sadiq Khan speaks to NHS staff at the new vaccine hub at Shree Swaminarayan Mandir Kingsbury. (Photo: Mayor of London)
Speaking at a visit to watch young cricketers training at Kingstonian CC, Sadiq Khan said: “This is part of my plan to build a better London after the pandemic.
“I know Londoners are hungry to see more of the likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant and, with two of the world’s greatest cricket grounds in Lord’s and The Kia Oval, London is ideally placed to host IPL matches.
“The absence of live crowds at elite competitions has been hard for many sport-loving Londoners but I know we can build a better, more open and prosperous city after the pandemic and see our capital confirmed as the undisputed sporting capital of the world.
“I will never stop banging the drum for investment in our city and bringing the Indian Premier League to London would not only guarantee a home crowd for every country but boost tourism and generate much-needed revenue to help get our capital back on its feet.”
Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp ruled out himself from replacing Joachim Loew as the coach of Germany’s national team.
Klopp was touted as one of the favourites to succeed Loew after the latter announced he would step down following the 2021 European Championship. However, speaking ahead of Liverpool’s Champions League return leg to RB Leipzig, which would be played on Wednesday in Hungary, when asked about the possibility of leaving Anfield to return to Germany, Klopp replied, “No.”
“I have three years left at Liverpool, that’s a simple statement, a simple situation. You sign a contract and you normally try to stick to that contract. I had a contract in Mainz where I stuck with them even though there was interest from other Bundesliga teams offering more money,” he said on Tuesday, Xinhua news reports.
“Someone else will do the job and I am pretty sure with the amount of really good German managers at the moment, the German FA will find a good solution,” said Klopp, who praised Loew — the man who led Germany to triumph in the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
“Joachim Loew did an incredible job for so many years. I understand that he wants to have this highlight at the European Championship, try to squeeze everything out that he can in this tournament, and then somebody else will do the job,” said Klopp.
