shikhar dhawan: Shikhar Dhawan to lead India in ODIs against South Africa: BCCI sources

Sources in the Board of Control for Cricket in India told ANI that batsman Shikhar Dhawan will lead India in the upcoming ODI series against South Africa at home.

Sources said the captaincy will be handed over to Dhawan as the players going for the T20 World Cup may be rested.

The eighth edition of the ICC T20 World Cup is scheduled to be held in Australia from 16 October to 13 November this year.

Also, VVS Laxman is likely to accompany the team as a coach in the absence of head coach Rahul Dravid, he said.

India will play three T20 Internationals and ODIs against South Africa from 28 September.

The first T20I will be held on 28 September in Thiruvananthapuram. The second T20I will be played on Gandhi Jayanti on October 2, 2022 in Guwahati to mark the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, followed by the final T20I in Indore on October 4.

The action will then shift to Lucknow on October 6 where the ODI series will be underway, where Shikhar Dhawan will lead the team. Ranchi and Delhi will host the second and third ODIs on 9 and 11 October respectively.

Originally published at Pen 18

US Open 2022 Final: Carlos Alcaraz beats Casper Ruud to win maiden grand slam title

Originally published at Pen 18

Iga Swiatek defeats Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur to clinch US Open crown

World number one Inga Swietake clinched her second Grand Slam title of the year with a straight-sets victory over Tunisia’s Ons Jabur in the final of the US Open on Saturday.

Polish star Sweetek won a spirited second-set fight 6-2, 7-6 (7/5) against fifth-seeded Jabur at Arthur Ashe Stadium in 1 hour and 52 minutes.

The victory made the 21-year-old the first woman since 2016 to win two Grand Slams in a season, following Swietec’s win at the French Open in June.

Sweetek’s 10th career title also extended his remarkable record in tournament finals.

They have now won their last 10 finals without losing a set.

Sweetek fell to court in relief after a win that earned her $2.6 million in prize money.

“I’m really glad it’s not in cash,” she quipped as she was given her winner’s check for a tournament she entered with low expectations.

“Of course this tournament was really challenging because it’s New York – it’s so loud, it’s so crazy,” said Sweetek who was also the 2020 French Open champion.

“So many temptations in town, so many people who are so inspiring — it’s really mind blowing to me and I’m so proud that I can handle it mentally.”

But the defeat was another excruciating near-miss for Jabeur, who is bidding to become the first woman in Africa to win a Grand Slam.

The 28-year-old from Tunis also lost in the Wimbledon final in July.

“I really tried but Iga didn’t make it easy for me,” Jabur said. “He deserves to win today. I don’t like him very much today but never mind.

“I will keep working hard and soon we will get that title.”

– Jabeur Fightback – Jabeur impressed on the way to the final, dropping only one set and tying together a string of sure performances.

But she was in trouble from the start against Clinical Swietec, which was moving quickly with the smooth work of its serve and signature forehand.

In contrast, Jabeur looked irritable and fell out of love in his first serve game.

Sweetek easily took a 3-0 lead and the first set took only eight minutes.

Jabeur threatened a revival when she held on and then broke to close the gap 3-2.

But the fifth seed was let down again by her unstable service game, a problem during Saturday’s final, and Sweetek returned for a 4-2 lead.

Jabeur broke again as she served to be in the set and Sweetek took the first set.

Sweetek threatened to run away with the second set after breaking Jabeur and leading 3–0.

Yet Jabeur showed great determination to break Sweetek to reduce the deficit to 3-2.

Once again Jabur was unable to count the service break and Sweetek broke again for a 4–2 lead.

This time, however, Jabeur dug deeper to get back into the competition, aided by a piece of luck when a Sweetek return cut a net cord to secure the service break.

Jaboor leveled the score at 4-4 and suddenly the pace changed.

The next three games went with a serve and Jabur was dropped to serve in order to remain in the match. He put up a match-point fight at 5-6 and 30-40 before catching up for 6-6.

Jabeur took a 4-2 lead in the tie-break to take a 5-4 lead, but it was Sweetek who showed more restraint, converting his second match point when Jabeur made a long comeback.

Originally published at Pen 18

pakistan: Asia Cup Final: Sri Lanka’s Cup of glory as Pakistan get vanquished

Sri Lanka, a country that has been picking up pieces after the death of democracy while facing massive financial turmoil, found 11 worthy heroes on the cricket pitch as Dasun Shanaka’s undefeated swarm clinched their sixth Asia Cup title here on Sunday. Defeated Pakistan by 23 runs.

It was a victory that was not just about cricket but went beyond that which had deep historical and political significance.

It was one for posterity as Sri Lanka were the first to push themselves to 170 for 6 from the dungeon thanks to Bhanuka Rajapaksa’s 45-ball 71.

If that wasn’t enough, Pakistan, who were cruising for 93 for 2, were eventually defeated by pacer Pramod Madushan (4/34 in 4 overs) and leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga (3/27 in four overs). He was dismissed for 147 runs. ) ensured that a few thousand Sri Lankan fans cheered 20,000 odd Pakistani fans.

Hasranga’s 17th over, which acted as Pakistan’s death, saw three wickets falling quickly.

It was Rajapaksa, who laid the foundation, Madushan, who built the structure and Hasaranga, who finalized.

Sri Lanka don’t have prime dons like the ‘Men in Blue’ but have a team of good cricketers who have understood how to win crunch matches from the dead.

Right-arm fast medium Madushan, who dismissed Babar Azam (5) and Fakhar Zaman (0), gave Sri Lanka the lead while chasing the target.

While Babar was guilty of flicking a wide long hop down the leg side straight into the hands of a short fine leg fielder, Fakhar pulled an angular delivery back over the stumps.

Rizwan (55 off 49 balls) played the sheet anchor, hitting odd boundaries as usual as Iftikhar Ahmed (32 off 31 balls) started hitting after 10 overs, but Madushan struck for his second spell. Coming back and dismissed him in the deep.

If there was a difference between the sides, it was fielding. While Pakistan was poor in terms of dropping catches, Sri Lanka took some smart catches and were excellent at deep mid-wicket boundaries.

At one point, the spectators were even disappointed with Rizwan’s pushy game, which is good for totals in the 150 range, but not for the 170 plus one. Finally when the pressure went above the critical limit, Hasranga caught him in the deep.

It was good for Babar to win the toss as the Pakistan pacers got off to a bang before Rajapaksa’s brilliance ensured a challenging score for the islanders.

Rajapaksa’s deliberate attack on death saw 50 runs in the last 4 overs.

Young Naseem Shah (1/4 in 4 overs) and uber cool Haris Rauf (3/29 in 4 overs) bowled very fast and bowled with incendiary pace off the track as they struck the backbone of Lanka’s batting within the powerplay. had broken Before Rajapaksa scored one of his finest half-centuries considering the condition of his team.

Rajapaksa and Wanindu Hasaranga (36 off 21 balls) added 58 quick runs after Sri Lanka scored 58 for 5.

There was another 54-run stand with Chamika Karunaratne as Sri Lanka crossed the 160-run mark.

Shah, the 19-year-old pacer, bowled one of the deadliest off-cutters in the tournament as it pitched backwards at length but moved quickly, no one to bring up his bat to Kusal Mendis (0). Time not given Below

While Dhananjaya de Silva (28 off 21 balls) hit some picturesque cover drives, there was no support from the other end.

However Rajapaksa brought the Sri Lankan total respect with his all-round strokeplay. He hit six fours and three sixes and Naseem’s maximum flick was a treat for the eyes. Equally good was Naseem’s ramp flick, scoring four runs before cover point from six overs to take Lanka to 170.

When Shadab bowled a googly or Iftikhar hit the off-break, Rajapaksa played some clever late cuts as Babar was getting a bit restless.

Originally published at Pen 18

View: Olympic and Diamond League champion Neeraj Chopra wants more

It’s not easy to do what Neeraj Chopra does: to consistently win medals at the international level and still maintain an appetite for improvement and greater success.

In cricket, Virat Kohli has Rohit Sharma and many others. PV Sindhu has a men’s team in badminton, who are no less than achievers. But in athletics, Chopra is at the top. Becoming a polestar is not easy, but he has driven himself with utmost maturity and presided over a revolution, winning medals in every event he has participated in. What works or has worked for Chopra? How does he keep himself rooted in spite of all the accolades around him? How is he dealing with the position of India’s new sports superstar? How important was it to him to prove that Tokyo was not an aberration, that he is at this level of elite competitors?

“I don’t play any competition to be an Olympic champion. I always play as Neeraj, just another athlete. All I do is give my 100 percent and prepare as much as I can,” said Chopra when asked how he prepares himself mentally. “Pressure to say hi. Will be there too. But the important thing is that the game is now gaining attention in India. People are following every single contest. They are learning more about spearfishing and more and more people will be playing the game now. ,

2022, it could be argued, was significantly more difficult for him than 2021. In Tokyo, he was a contender, for more medals than gold. India would have been happy if it made the podium and some people expected to sleep.

After Tokyo, things fell apart dramatically. On the one hand, the people did not have enough for him, and on the other, they wanted him to win every competition he played. He was the guy next door and elite athletes all rolled into one. For the 24-year-old, it couldn’t have been easier.

His biggest challenge was finding balance and this is where Chopra stood out. He fulfilled the obligations of being Neeraj Chopra for weeks and months and then managed to switch-off completely. While there were occasional posts on social media, his team, which is vital to success in elite sport, made sure he could focus on training alone. Losing weight close to 14 kg was not easy. Stronger, fitter and smarter, Neeraj 2.0 was ready for battle.

2008 Beijing Olympic gold medalist Abhinav Bindra has often spoken about how difficult it was to deal with the post-Beijing excitement. He had done it all at 26 and there was nothing left for him to try, he argued. However, depression was never a problem for Neeraj.

“If you look at Usain Bolt or Carl Lewis or athletes in their league, it’s about repeating success,” Chopra said. “You can’t be satisfied with an Olympic gold medal. If you can win in Paris and then maybe in Los Angeles, you can call yourself great and that’s what inspires me. I want to do more for my country.”

It was not easy to miss the 2022 Commonwealth Games (CWG) in Birmingham, but he made the tough decision with the long-term well being in mind. Commonwealth Games medals would have fetched him some more crores, but now money was no problem for him.

Yes, he hasn’t thrown 90 meters yet. It has become a kind of obsession towards him by his own confession. But going into the new season isn’t a bad thing. He knows he is not there yet, despite having won everything to win. He still wants a world championship gold and could be a second in the 2024 Olympics. And one thing is certain with Neeraj. There will never be any shortage in effort. Whether trying to master English to deal with the global media or getting ready to compete, he will always do his best to give himself the best chance.

Originally published at Pen 18

ganguly: Virat Kohli is more skillful than me: Sourav Ganguly

Back in form with a scintillating century in the Asia Cup, Virat Kohli earned praise from BCCI president Sourav Ganguly, who said the star Indian batsman is “more skilled” than him as a player.

Both played an aggressive brand of cricket as captains, but Ganguly said Kohli was ahead of them in terms of skill.

Ganguly said about Kohli in ‘Ranveer Show’, “I don’t think (captain) should be compared… Comparison should be in terms of skill as a player. I think he is more skilled than me. ” ‘ on Youtube.

Returning after a month-long break, Kohli recently registered his first international century in 1020 days as he smashed an unbeaten 61-ball 122 during India’s final Super 4 clash against Afghanistan in Dubai on Thursday. Played innings.

Praising Kohli, Ganguly added: “We played in different generations, and we played a lot of cricket. I played in my generation, and he will continue to play, maybe play more games than me.

“Currently, I have played more than what he has but he will go beyond that. He is tremendous.”

“Cricket has gotten a little more hectic, hectic. COVID has made it even harder for the last two seasons because of the quarantine and whatever was going on. But the rewards are good.”

Asked if he gave any advice to Kohli while battling for form, Ganguly said: “I don’t get to see him. Poor people travel a lot.”

“Everyone has been under media scrutiny. Names just keep changing over time. I won’t know half of it because I haven’t read that much. I’d enter a hotel and the first thing I’d say at the reception is, ‘Boss’ ‘Don’t put the newspaper under my door in the morning’.

“But now, obviously, it’s too much; social media is on your computer and phone. But I think cricketers find a way to shut it down,” Ganguly said.

Kohli reached the elusive three-figure mark after almost three years, albeit in the “least expected” format.

His 71st international century put him in the list of most centuries along with the great Ricky Ponting. Sachin Tendulkar is way ahead with 100 tons.

During his playing days, Ganguly also went through many ups and downs, especially after his performance with the then Indian coach Greg Chappell.

Ganguly said that cricketers should take failures positively.

“I didn’t go through any trauma. I just had good days and bad days. I had less pressure, a little more pressure and a lot more pressure… I don’t consider it as trauma.

“Young people should also look at it that way. I can say it now because I am a little more experienced. But the youth should see it as an opportunity and move on.”

On today’s fast-paced game, Ganguly said: “The game is different. It’s quicker, shorter, more sixes, more fours, and not too many deliveries left outside the off-stump. The game has changed.”

Originally published at Pen 18

US Open 2022: World No. 1 Iga Swiatek takes on Ons Jabeur in women's singles title

Originally published at Pen 18