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Bumrah and Yadav are big returnees, and Jaiswal and Dube are the fresh faces. But will India get different results this time?

Sidharth Monga31-May-20243:26

How relevant is IPL form for the T20 World Cup?

On the surface, India go into this T20 World Cup looking jaded. They are trying more or less what they have been trying over the previous few World Cups but are looking for different results. There is a good chance their batting line-up might end up looking indistinguishable from the one last time around (in 2022), which gave them too few to defend in the semi-final against England. Or against South Africa for that matter.Five out of the top seven that played England could be the same, with Ravindra Jadeja, who had missed that tournament because of an injury but is available this time, not exactly different to Axar Patel either.It might appear that the intervening one-and-a-half years have not been spent well. Yet, there have been subtle changes in the structure and the approach that make India strong contenders to make it to the last four. Given that the team leadership – selectors, coach and captain – was brought together only seven months back when the board seemed to suddenly realise how close the World Cup was, it is perhaps the best that could be asked of them.Related

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There are, of course, two big additions to the squad this time: Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep Yadav, who do what nobody else in the world does with their efficiency, adding heft to whatever totals India might be putting on the board. Then there is a small matter of Virat Kohli playing the best T20 cricket of his career, taking what might have seemed to him an almost existential leap from wanting to bat long, which works in every other format for him, to wanting to create impact and trusting those after him in T20s.The real new introductions, though, are two left-hand batters in Shivam Dube and Yashasvi Jaiswal, who had the leadership as excited as those watching. Technically, Sanju Samson is an addition too, but he plays more like the other India batters.It is Dube and Jaiswal who give India’s batting the freshness it has craved. This is probably where India have to make their toughest choice: only one of them can be accommodated in the XI. Rohit Sharma is the captain, Kohli is in the form of his life, Suryakumar Yadav should not be touched even if he scores seven ducks in a row in the league matches, they need a wicketkeeper, and they need two allrounders. That’s six slots taken.There are only two scenarios in which both Dube and Jaiswal can play. In the first, the team management counts on Jadeja and Dube for four overs plus some back-up for a struggling mainline bowler. In the second, they play Jadeja at No. 8, and ask for a combined eight overs from Jadeja, Hardik Pandya and Dube. But neither of them is a leap the team might be prepared to take.Given both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli struggle against left-arm spin, fitting Shivam Dube in might be problematic•Getty ImagesIt is not too much of a guess that India want Dube more than they do Jaiswal. Dube is the real X-factor, the spin-disruptor and the left-hand batter that they need in the middle order. In the just-concluded IPL 2024, Dube displayed an even better version of the batter he was in 2023, handling the short ball well, which made it tough for the bowlers to shut him down. He might be given the same freedom which Chennai Super Kings gave him.But the one problem with this is that it leaves an open invitation for sides to bowl left-arm spin with the new ball. Rohit and Kohli will have to be the openers should Dube play ahead of Jaiswal.But Rohit and Kohli struggle to dictate terms to left-arm spinners. Kohli has made a big improvement against this genre of bowling, but it is still his least-favoured match-up: a strike rate of 131 against left-arm spin this IPL as against 155 overall. Rohit might try to hit out – and he did try to hit out in the IPL – but in the IPL, his average and strike rate against left-arm spin were considerably lower than his overall numbers.So what India can hope for is that Rohit puts an even lower price on his wicket than he has been doing, either taking down the new ball or perish trying. It is a wicket they will be prepared to lose in pursuit of quick starts; in the worst case, Suryakumar enters and breaks the match-ups.This may not be perfect, but the most workable and practical solution is this top seven: Kohli, Rohit, Suryakumar, Samson/Rishabh Pant, Dube, Pandya, Jadeja/Axar. This can be stretched further if they play both the left-arm spinners and sacrifice a more attacking bowler.Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sanju Samson are among two new faces in India’s squad from 2022•BCCIThere is one alternative, though, that is not as far left-field as it sounds at first. If this doesn’t work out – especially if Dube’s form is not great – there is one unexplored aspect of the batting of two ODI greats that could be explored: either of Rohit or Kohli as a middle-order batter. The top order plays fearlessly, and one of them is there to play a game more suited to their styles should there be a collapse.That is not all, though: both of them are devastating hitters at the death. There is a credible school of thought that it is not necessary for them to have batted 16 overs to be that dangerous at the death. That might not be as important as it has previously been thought to be. It can make India’s top order less predictable and less prone to being tied up by spin.And should such a leap be taken, Rohit is the likelier candidate for it because Kohli has already hit form as an opening batter. Rohit has the touch, the power and the awareness to hit any kind of bowling at the death. Of the 750 balls Rohit has faced at the death in all T20 cricket, only 50 have come since 2019. Twenty-nine of those 50 have come this year, and brought 79 runs without a dismissal.Admittedly, not the ideal Plan A given the structure of this squad, but closer to B than C.

Left-arm spinner, who returned to the England fold earlier this year, gave it “one more shot”, and earned a World Cup ticket for the UAE

Valkerie Baynes04-Oct-2024When Linsey Smith received the call to say she would be heading to another World Cup six years after her last appearance at the tournament, the emotion washed over her. After wondering whether, at the age of 29, the opportunity had passed her by, she had her second chance.”I was just over the moon to be honest – a little bit emotional,” Smith told ESPNcricinfo from England’s pre-tournament training camp in Loughborough last month. “Six years ago was when I got the first call, so it’s been a tough road. But I’m just so happy that I get the chance to represent England at a World Cup again.”Smith fell out of England’s reckoning during the summer of 2019. During her five years in the wilderness, self-doubt abounded, along with thoughts of giving up the sport, and financial struggles, as she came to terms with losing her rookie contract with England, and tried to juggle coaching and playing domestic cricket.Related

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“It was pretty tough,” Smith said. “You obviously doubt yourself, and I guess when I was in it, I put a lot of pressure on myself to be a certain way and play a certain way, and it just ate me up, really. I felt like I almost didn’t deserve to be in an England shirt with how I was playing. So coming out of it was tough.”You never want to give something away that you’ve wanted to do since you were a kid, really, but I was in a pretty dark place and I wasn’t enjoying my cricket. There were mornings of games where I’d wake up, check the weather and see, ‘Oh, it’s not raining today, damn it, I’ve got to go and force myself to get out on that pitch’, which is awful to say now.”What kept Smith going was her pure love of the game, so that’s where she went.”I sat down and thought, ‘Is this what I want to be doing anymore?’ The kid in me – all I ever wanted to do was play cricket for England – was finding it really tough,” she said. “So I thought I either give it up now or just try and go back to what made me start cricket in the first place, which was playing with my mates, and having fun and being competitive. So I just came out of that thought.”I’ll just try again here, start from fresh, not put too much pressure on myself and see how it goes. I’ve always loved playing cricket, and I was terrible in school. So I couldn’t go and find an office job. So I thought I’ll just give it one more shot and just try and enjoy myself, [and] not take it too serious. And that’s worked for me quite nicely.”So when Smith was called up to England’s squad for their tour of New Zealand at the start of this year, it marked a fresh start.”I feel in such a better place than what I was when I played for England before,” she said. “So I guess that burning desire was always there, but I’d think: ‘Are they going to go for someone who’s 29 now? Who are they going to look at – someone younger?’ So you always dream that it would happen, but you [are] never quite sure if it really will.”My mindset has completely flipped in terms of what it was six years ago to now. It’s just about having fun, being really clear on what my role is, and doing what I do well, [and] not trying to play like someone else or be someone else. Just getting those competitive juices flowing and backing myself that what I’ve done for the last five years is good enough.”During this year’s Charlotte Edwards Cup T20 domestic competition, Linsey Smith took 13 wickets at 14.76•Getty ImagesSmith joins part of a four-pronged spin attack that also includes fellow left-armer Sophie Ecclestone, legspinner Sarah Glenn, and offspinner Charlie Dean. It’s a formidable trio, but Smith brings something different again. Her strength is her relentlessness in the powerplay, along with a low, skiddy trajectory delivered from her diminutive five-feet-two-inch frame which batters find difficult to get under.”I’m not your traditional spinner that’s going to get dip and turn and nice flight, but that’s not something I’m trying to be,” Smith said. “Just being at peace with what I do and how I bowl. Actually, 29 is really not that old. I feel like I’m in my prime. I feel like I’ve grown a lot mentally more than anything. Being really clear on what my role is and how to take on those challenges of playing for England, I feel in a much better head space to do that.”Jon Lewis, England Women’s head coach, has been impressed by what he has seen of the new version of his old spinner, who he is backing to thrive in conditions in the UAE, despite initially viewing her as a key option for Bangladesh, where the World Cup was originally going to be staged.In Sharjah, where England play their first match of this World Cup on Saturday against Bangladesh, the pitch has revealed itself to be low and slow with good turn on offer. In the first two matches of the tournament there on Thursday, both low-scoring affairs, Bangladesh beat Scotland, and Pakistan’s spinners defended 116 in a 31-run victory over Sri Lanka.”I think the opportunity has reinvigorated her ambition, and she has really loved it,” Lewis said. “When you get someone in an environment they really love and they think, ‘Okay, I really like this, this is good fun, and I feel valued and I feel important’, then funnily enough, they improve.”So Linsey was a selection back in January, [or] February, definitely, with the World Cup in mind in Bangladesh. Her style in those conditions, I think, can be incredibly effective, and similarly in the UAE, I think she could be a really effective bowling force.”

“We’ve got to find a way to potentially get her into the team, but also at the same time, she’d be a really good back-up… We’ve got three really effective spinners, but Linsey in particular could be a really effective opening bowler”England head coach Jon Lewis on Linsey Smith

During this year’s Charlotte Edwards Cup, a T20 domestic competition, Smith took 13 wickets at an average of 14.76, and an economy rate of 4.92, with best figures of 3 for 9. Fitting her into the England attack isn’t necessarily easy, given the quality of their spin stocks, but having been unafraid to play three spinners during the home summer, Lewis sees a place for Smith, particularly in the powerplay.”Linsey has shown in the course of probably quite a long period of time now how effective she is in the powerplay,” he said. “If we look at her numbers in the powerplay in particular, they are outstanding – up there with the best in the world.”So we’ve got to find a way to potentially get her into the team, but also at the same time, she’d be a really good back-up. We’re more than likely going to play three [spinners] – we’ve shown our hand a little bit over the summer. We’ve got three really effective spinners, but Linsey in particular could be a really effective opening bowler.”

Continuing his excellent season, he picked up a hat-trick to reduce Meghalaya to 2 for 6 in a must-win game for Mumbai

Vishal Dikshit30-Jan-2025Shardul Thakur has a tendency to surprise you. With his batting, his bowling, and sometimes even with his words. Ask Ian Bishop, who asked Thakur on live broadcast before a 2023 World Cup game how he bowled the wobble-seam delivery. Thakur answer was, “I don’t know. I just hold it like this [seam-up] and bowl. [I] don’t do much, whatever happens happens.”In the last week or so, his all-round performances have surprised everyone yet again. Despite all the limelight on bigger stars returning to domestic cricket, Thakur has overshadowed them with both bat and ball.The most recent of those came on a hazy Thursday morning in Mumbai. In a must-win game against Meghalaya to make the knockouts of the Ranji Trophy, the pre-match talk was centred around Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer skipping this round for Mumbai. The attention had shifted to Delhi, where a last-minute plan was hatched to broadcast Virat Kohli’s comeback to domestic cricket.Related

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Around 9am, it emerged Delhi would bowl first and the thousands who had turned up at the Arun Jaitley Stadium would have to wait to watch their hero bat. Meanwhile, in one suburb of Mumbai, the home team made six changes to their XI and Thakur took the new ball with no cameras and fans in the vicinity.That he struck in the first over was not really a surprise. The real deal came in his second over, when bowling from over the wicket, he swung the ball into left-hand batter B Anirudh to hit off stump. Next ball he pitched fuller and drew an edge from right-hand batter Sumit Kumar and Shams Mulani pouched the catch at third slip.On one hand, there was a deafening cacophony in Delhi after seeing Kohli just on the field. On the other, Thakur ran in to bowl the hat-trick ball amid the honking of peak-hour traffic around the Sharad Pawar Academy in the concrete jungle of the Bandra-Kurla Complex.Next in was Meghalaya’s No. 4 Jaskirat Sachdeva, another left-hand batter, and Thakur sent down another inswinger to beat the inside edge and hit the stumps. His hat-trick had reduced the visitors to 2 for 6 and Meghalaya were now in danger of breaking Hyderabad’s unwanted record of the lowest team score (21) in the Ranji Trophy.

Balchander Anirudh
Sumit Kumar
Jaskirat Singh Sachdeva

Shardul Thakur is on fire

He's picked up a hat-trick to help Mumbai bowl out Meghalaya for 86 #RanjiTrophy | @imShard | @MumbaiCricAssoc | @IDFCFIRSTBank

Scorecard https://t.co/9ApJe0CgxG pic.twitter.com/B9azjgx1JB

— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) January 30, 2025

But Thakur’s feat came at a time that robbed him of the immediate recognition it deserved. Not only was this game not being shown live but also Thakur had hardly finished his spell when there was a commotion beyond the cover boundary. Thakur’s head turned as well to see what the fuss was about. Fans were hanging over the fence and reaching out with their phone cameras. A few of them were screaming. A group of people emerged in the nets with a kit bag, a big umbrella, and a few chairs, and it turned out Rohit had arrived to train ahead of the ODI series against England.It was not for the first time this month that Thakur had done the hard work while the spotlight was elsewhere. It had started against Jammu and Kashmir in the previous round when Rohit and Jaiswal had returned to the domestic circuit. Mumbai had collapsed to 47 for 7 in the first innings and 101 for 7 in the second, before Thakur rescued the team with a half-century and a century, respectively.Stationed at long-off towards the end of his spell of 7-2-19-4, Thakur whistled a couple of times to catch Rohit’s attention. When Rohit finally responded, Thakur pointed to the scorching sun to imply that it was too hot by then, and Rohit should have come earlier. It’s not that Rohit didn’t know this, but Thakur thought he would tell his friend the information he has gathered from all the training sessions and matches he has been playing in Mumbai this domestic season, toiling away and not held back by the lack of an IPL contract and no India comeback on the horizon.Thakur does not know what is next for him after the Ranji Trophy, but that may not stop him from surprising you.

A year on from his dream debut, he has had to again start from the bottom in what has been a frustrating summer

Vithushan Ehantharajah31-Jul-2025

Gus Atkinson appeals for a wicket on the opening day•Getty Images

Last week was a reminder to Gus Atkinson that the game of cricket does not love you.The 27-year-old had been working behind the scenes to return from a hamstring injury picked up during the first Test of the summer, against Zimbabwe. Now, ahead of the fourth Test at Emirates Old Trafford, England’s player of 2024, who seduced the format for 55 wickets, a century and a hat-trick, looked primed to come into the XI. A welcome addition of extra thrust and oomph. And above all else, fresh legs.England, though, decided to ignore Atkinson. Uncertainty over his robustness, having not played since Trent Bridge, meant featuring alongside the likes of Jofra Archer, Brydon Carse and skipper Ben Stokes – all missing the fifth Test – was too much of a risk. Worse still for Atkinson, Surrey thought so too.Related

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Usually, a player unselected from an international squad would slot into their county side, especially if they average 22.30 with the ball. But Surrey, a day before facing Yorkshire, needed their own guarantees, that each member of their attack could put in a shift given the Kookaburra ball was in play. Jamie Overton, playing his second game of the season and first in a month, was deemed risk enough.So, Atkinson had to make do with a go in the second XI. It was his second game since injury. The first was a Saturday game during the Lord’s Test for his club, Spencer, when he was ignored the first time having been recalled. At least then he was in the ones.It was a humbling experience but one that the seamer, by all accounts, had taken in his stride after some understandable dismay. Atkinson keeps his emotions in check, comfortably the most inscrutable of England’s cricketers. Bottom of the list of players you would want to play poker against (Harry Brook top, if you were wondering).But there was proper, unmistakable joy throughout Thursday. Atkinson’s 2 for 31 from 19 overs was a threat laced with the kind of unerring accuracy that, remarkably, left him with just a single boundary against his name.Second years, like second albums, are always difficult. But it would still be quite something if Atkinson’s 2025 was even half as statistically impressive as his 2024.2:37

‘England would be a little disappointed with the score’

That debut against West Indies at Lord’s, 7 for 45 and 5 for 61 – 12 for 106, the fourth best bowling figures by a men’s player on debut – was the best intro since Mick Jagger (watching on at the Kia Oval on Thursday) and his pals knocked out . Doing so in James Anderson’s retirement Test felt particularly prescient. Grand closing, grand opening, and now involved at the sharp end of a series bearing Anderson’s name.So it proved, at least for the next six months. He returned to Lord’s against Sri Lanka to put himself on the batting honours board, and then, in Wellington, became the 15th England player to take a Test hat-trick. With 52 wickets by the end of that tour of New Zealand, he became only the second Test cricketer to register 50 dismissals in their debut year.There were signs of issues to deal with within those first 11 appearances. That schedule meant he played 16 first-class games in a calendar year, having never featured in more than five (2022 and 2023). Naturally, he struggled to maintain his high 80s pace, which made his high release point and snap gather-cum-delivery that much more potent. Nothing summed the drop-off better than the fact his average speed on debut (85.89mph) was higher than his fastest delivery in last year’s final appearance in Hamilton (84.0mph).There was a similar drop-off across Thursday, despite the hours of rain delays that broke up England’s 64 overs in the field. Atkinson’s four spells saw his average speeds reduce steadily: 85.6mph (six overs), 84.8mph (six), 84.0mph (five), 82.0mph (two).Atkinson has had a stop-start summer•Getty ImagesA nod, perhaps, to the need for more game time to build up his endurance. His nimbleness was clear for all to see when he followed-through to run out Shubman Gill. A bonus for England given the India captain’s prolific run on this tour.The lbw dismissal of Yashasvi Jaiswal – 85mph – was his first in more than two months after dismissing Zimbabwe’s Brian Bennett. Dhruv Jurel was undone by an 84mph full-of-a-length ball that surprised him with lift, right after surviving an lbw dismissal on review that scuttled in from a scrambled seam that has been fruitful for Atkinson at this level.While happy to return, and get back on the board, Atkinson was not overly pleased. “Being hyper critical, I could have maybe bowled at the stumps a bit more,” he said, matter-of-factly.The good news is those dismissals, and 17 of his overs, came from his lesser preferred Pavilion End, where he averages 31.6 here for Surrey since the start of 2022. The bad news is his two overs from his Vauxhall End (22.6) came about because of a shoulder injury sustained by Chris Woakes. He had domain over that end, having chosen it to open proceedings.1:48

What will be a good score for India?

It is Woakes, ultimately, that Atkinson was going to replace, particularly in Australia later this year. That was initially as a new-ball bowler with more pace, before his batting came on to the point where he and, say, Carse could go some way to replacing Woakes’ batting at eight. Now, Atkinson will have to carry more of the burden with Woakes unlikely to take any further part in this match, certainly as a bowler.The worse news, however, is that on the day when England welcomed Atkinson back with the best seaming conditions of the series, they fluffed their lines.His excellence was unable to make-up for Josh Tongue, who was wayward even with his worldies. Nor Overton, whose lack of feel for the appropriate lengths was what you would expect from someone with just two first-class wickets since September 2023 (as many County Championship matches he has played for Surrey since then).Atkinson might be fresh and hungry for more. But he will now have to step up as the leader of the attack. Just over a year from his debut, he will have to grow up quick and help orchestrate a crucial win in this series decider.

Stats highlights from the fourth day of the World Test Championship final at Lord’s

Sampath Bandarupalli14-Jun-20251:53

Dale Steyn: ‘We saw the biggest of the biggest come through’

9722 Days between South Africa’s two ICC titles – the Champions Trophy in 1998 and the World Test Championship (WTC) in 2025.282 The target South Africa chased to win the WTC final against Australia was their fifth-highest chase in Test cricket. Four of those five wins have been against Australia.It is also the second-highest chase at Lord’s.8 Consecutive wins for South Africa in Test cricket, a streak that began in the West Indies last year. It is their second-longest winning streak in the format, behind the nine successive wins in 2002-03. Their eight-match streak is also the longest winning run in the WTC; India and New Zealand had won seven in a row during the first WTC cycle.Related

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138 South Africa’s first-innings total in the WTC final at Lord’s – their lowest first-innings total in an away Test win. Only three times have they won a Test after scoring fewer in their first innings.3 Number of teams to win a men’s Test in England by scoring the highest total of the match in the fourth innings, before South Africa in the WTC final. West Indies won by scoring 344 at Lord’s in 1984 and 226 at The Oval in 1988, while England made 362 against Australia at Headingley in 2019.9 Test wins and a draw for Temba Bavuma in ten matches as South Africa captain. Only England’s Percy Chapman (9) had as many wins as Bavuma in his first ten Tests as captain.136 Aiden Markram’s score in the fourth innings of the WTC final after bagging a duck in South Africa’s first innings. Only the West Indian Roy Fredericks had a higher fourth-innings score – 138 against England at Lord’s in 1984 – after making a first-innings duck.3 Hundreds for Markram in the fourth innings in Tests. Only Graeme Smith (4) has more fourth-innings tons for South Africa.74 First-innings lead South Africa conceded at Lord’s. The previous time they won a Test after conceding a lead of more than 50 was in 2011, when they beat Australia in Cape Town.

All-time great innings comes after batter’s self-doubts following mid-tournament axing

Sruthi Ravindranath30-Oct-20254:31

Rodrigues: I wanted to be there till the end

Some of sport’s greatest tales are about comebacks. The kind that linger in memory, where moments of silence suddenly erupt into thunderous cheers. That’s what fans live for: those fleeting instants when hope turns noise into belief.At the DY Patil Stadium, Jemimah Rodrigues was on 82 when she slog-swept Alana King and got only a top-edge. The ball spiralled high toward midwicket, with King and Alyssa Healy converging under it. For a few seconds, the 35,000-strong crowd fell utterly silent.Rodrigues had been batting like a dream until then. It had been a game of nerves. India still needed 131 from 102 balls, but Rodrigues looked composed, piercing gaps and running hard between the wickets despite the suffocating humidity. Every run drew cheers, even well-timed dots found appreciation.Then came that silence. It was a familiar sight for India fans: a set batter dismissed mid-chase, momentum slipping away. They had felt that when Smriti Mandhana had fallen in the chase against England in the league-stage match at this World Cup.And then, the roar. Rodrigues had been dropped by Healy. Her face barely flickered, but the stands exploded for the reprieve.Moments later, silence again.Rodrigues was struck in front by King, and Australia confidently reviewed the not-out call. Thousands of eyes fixed on the big screen. Two reds, one green, ball passing over the stumps. The roar returned.From that point, Rodrigues’s mind was clear: capitalise. But the conditions were brutal. With humidity over 75%, she was hours into her innings and revealed later she felt drained.Jemimah Rodrigues and Amanjot Kaur embrace in the middle at the moment of victory•ICC/Getty ImagesYet this wasn’t just about one night. It was about the weeks, the months, the years that had led her here. This was the kind of story sport loves: a redemption arc written through grit.It began with heartbreak. A lean run of form had led to her being dropped for the 2022 World Cup. She clawed her way back, and by 25, had become one of India’s senior batters. But at this World Cup, things turned again. Two ducks. Two 30s. Then came another blow when she was dropped for the England game. It was, as head coach Amol Muzumdar put it, “one of the toughest decisions” to leave out, not just a senior batter, but also one of the team’s best fielders.Off the field, Rodrigues was struggling. Anxiety crept in. She spoke of “feeling numb”, of days when she cried a lot. The omission only deepened her doubts.”To be honest, when I was dropped and when I came in to this World Cup, I wanted to come out there, not prove a point, but do things so my team wins,” she said. “I kept reminding myself that, because it’s very easy to get into that mindset, and that mindset never has helped me. But I think today, today not just today, but from the last few games, all I thought about was, because I didn’t start off well, things just kept getting, worse and worse.”But sport, cruel as it can be, also offers another chance. Rodrigues returned to the XI against New Zealand, promoted to No. 3. The response was emphatic: 76 off 55 to guide India home. But that was just the beginning.Then came Thursday. Another promotion to No. 3, this time against the unbeaten defending champions, Australia. This wasn’t just any chase – it was a world-record one, in front of a home crowd. The kind of stage that tests every nerve.Harmanpreet Kaur, her captain and partner for much of the chase, had done this before. Her 171 not out against Australia in the 2017 semi-final had changed women’s cricket in India forever.Rodrigues’ innings completed the highest chase in W-ODI history•Getty ImagesMandhana’s early dismissal had silenced Navi Mumbai. Amanjot Kaur was listed at No. 3 on the team sheet, but Rodrigues instead walked out. She’d only known of her promotion five minutes earlier.For the first 11 balls, she played herself in. Then came a four, and the tension eased slightly. Questions loomed: would India go too deep again, as against England? Could they do it without Mandhana, their best batter in the tournament so far?Rodrigues knew they could. She believed India could chase 300-plus, and she batted like it.The turning point came with a cheeky, audacious scoop off Kim Garth in the eighth over. India had watched Phoebe Litchfield play such shots earlier, now Rodrigues answered back. Between deliveries, she talked to her partners, and to herself. “I was praying, I was talking to God,” she would later reveal.The classic Rodrigues shots began to flow: the loft over short third off Ash Gardner, the late cut past backward point, the flick through midwicket, those crackling sweeps of all kinds. India’s momentum was rising but so was the pressure.Related

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• India make history as Rodrigues and Harmanpreet end Australia's reign

• Rodrigues: Felt like a dream after a month of anxiety

With 150 needed off 20 overs, Harmanpreet shifted gears, unleashing a series of boundaries. Rodrigues applauded, raising her thumb after sharp runs, willing her captain on. When Harmanpreet fell for 89, cramped and spent, the silence, and a familiar dread returned: was another collapse coming?Not this time. Rodrigues, calm and steady, guided her partners.”I was telling Harry [Harmanpreet] that we both have to finish it and we can’t leave it for the end, just because we are set and we know we can take it through,” she said. “And when that happened [Harmanpreet was dismissed], it was like a blessing in disguise for me because I was kind of losing my focus because of my tiredness. But when Harry got out, I think that added more responsibility to me that, ‘Okay, I need to be here. Okay, she is out, I will score for her’. And I think that again got me in the right zone. Then I started just sensibly playing.”When her century came, off 117 balls, there was no wild celebration, just a quiet fist bump and a hug from Richa Ghosh. The job wasn’t done. The asking rate still hovered above a run a ball.Ghosh struck some heavy blows before falling for 26, and the stadium hushed again. But Rodrigues ensured the silence didn’t last. A four off Sophie Molineux, then two more off Annabel Sutherland. The equation was down to single digits and Amanjot Kaur finished it with two boundaries in the 49th over.Harmanpreet Kaur’s 171 not out in the 2017 semi-final was proof of what could be achieved against Australia•Getty ImagesRodrigues dropped to her knees, tears streaming, her team-mates hovering around her. The near 100-overs she spent on the field in punishing conditions was well worth it. There would be more tears later, during the presentation and at the press conference. But they told a story larger than any chase – the story of redemption.”I know how important this match is, and I wanted to be there to finish it off, so all I did was, you know, just kept telling [myself] to just stand here, amazing things can happen towards you, you never know what can happen towards the end of the match,” she said.”When I reached my fifty, when I reached my hundred, I didn’t celebrate, because, at that moment I looked at our hotel right here, and I said [to myself] tomorrow morning, what would make me happier? Would it be a fifty? Would it be a hundred? No, it would be India winning. And I want to wake up with that feeling, I want to sleep with that smile, that we are playing the finals, and I’m waking up to get ready for the finals.”In recent memory, few comebacks in sport have glowed quite like this. Perhaps Femke Bol’s redemption after her fall in the 4x400m mixed relay at the 2023 World Championships, returning with an astonishing effort to win Olympic Gold for Netherlands a year later, or a 35-year old Rafael Nadal’s impossible rally in the 2022 Australian Open final from two sets down against Daniil Medvedev.Rodrigues belongs among the great comeback stories, rising from self-doubt and tough times to lead her team past a side that almost never loses. In the end, at the DY Patil Stadium, she made sure all the silences turned to roars.

Marco Silva could reportedly be sacked by Fulham as the club are considering a change due to their poor start to the season and slow contract negotiations. A dismal 2-0 defeat at Everton last weekend has deepened the gloom at Craven Cottage. Goals from Idrissa Gueye and Michael Keane condemned Fulham to another frustrating loss with the manager looking bereft of answers.

• From dream to disarray at Fulham

  According to , Fulham’s hierarchy are seriously considering showing the door to Silva amid growing fears of a relegation fight and a contract standoff that shows no sign of resolution. Eleven games into the Premier League season, and Fulham’s top scorer is not one of their players but 'own goals'. Harry Wilson and Ryan Sessegnon have each chipped in with two goals but they have scored three with help from the opposition. Their away form is also grim having collected just one point on the road this season, when a late equaliser from Rodrigo Muniz against Brighton helped them eke out a draw. All three of their wins have come at Craven Cottage, and even those have relied on fortunate own goals.

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  Contract chaos with Silva

  Behind the scenes, tensions have been simmering for months. Silva, who has a £15 million ($20m) release clause, has so far refused to sign a new contract, leaving Fulham in a precarious position. The Portuguese coach’s current deal expires next summer, meaning he could walk away as a free agent. According to , Fulham’s board, led by vice-chairman Tony Khan, have been desperate to tie Silva down to fresh terms since July. But negotiations have stalled, with the manager reportedly frustrated by the club’s lack of ambition in the transfer market. Fulham’s only major signing last summer was Kevin, a Brazilian winger from Shakhtar Donetsk, who was brought onboard for around £34.6m ($45.5m). For a side trying to build on mid-table stability, it wasn’t simply enough.

  Speaking in August, Silva didn’t hide his disappointment. "It’s not an ideal scenario," he admitted. "Did I expect more? Of course. But the market is the market."

• A familiar fall from grace

  This is uncomfortably familiar territory for Silva. His Premier League journey, from Hull to Watford to Everton, has followed a recurring pattern. There is always a bright start followed by dips in form and eventual dismissal. At Everton in 2019, he was shown the door with the club sitting 18th and history may be repeating itself in west London. Yet to his credit, Silva’s Fulham reign began in glorious fashion. After being appointed in July 2021, he guided the club to the Championship title. During the course of that campaign, they scored an astonishing 106 goals. Fulham’s return to the Premier League was smooth and they comfortably stayed up, even flirting with European qualification. But now, the magic appears to have faded. The intensity and the pressing that once defined them have given way to fractured and disjointed play. 

  What makes the situation even more awkward is that Fulham owner Shahid Khan recently went on record to declare Silva a vital part of the club’s long-term vision.

  "He’s been great," he told . "I really like him, not only as a person, (but) as a football manager, head coach. Definitely, I think he’s in our long-term plans."

  Silva admitted was frustrated following another poor performance at the weekend: "It was a disappointing result for us, but more than the result, it was a very disappointing performance. We got what we deserved from the game, definitely. We played 20 minutes in all the game, I think. We lost the game through the physicality, we could not handle at all the physicality of Everton side."

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  Critical period looms for Silva and Fulham

  Fulham’s upcoming fixtures could determine Silva’s fate. After the international break, they host Sunderland, one of the Premier League’s surprise packages this season, who are now fourth in the Premier League standings. Then comes a brutal double-header against Tottenham and Manchester City.

After a decade defined by his absence, Pakistan’s future star batter may finally be here

Danyal Rasool15-Oct-2024Kamran Ghulam’s career doesn’t make sense. Not because, until today, he averaged 50 over a decade of first-class cricket without ever having played a Test at a time Pakistan have been looking for Test batters. No, there was something else, especially if you looked at his ESPNcricinfo profile.Ghulam was a ghost international cricketer. He had played one match for Pakistan, an ODI against New Zealand, without having batted or bowled. Hit the scorecard link, and it gets weirder. He doesn’t feature in Pakistan’s line-up at all.Earlier that day, Haris Sohail was hit on the head by a 150kph Lockie Ferguson bouncer, battling on until he was dismissed. He wouldn’t take the field in the second innings, and though Pakistan could just as easily have called for a replacement fielder, they made a concussion substitute. Ghulam was given his first international cap; perhaps Pakistan felt he’d bowl. He didn’t.Related

• Kamran Ghulam: I had been waiting for my chance. That's all I thought about

• PCB issues Fakhar Zaman show-cause notice after post in support of Babar Azam

• Ghulam's debut century carries Pakistan as England stay in touch

• 'We had a clear plan' – Azhar Mahmood puts his spin on Multan pitch

• What is the highest total for a team losing by an innings in a Test?

In some perverse way, that serving as the entirety of one of Pakistan’s most prolific young batters was an apt metaphor for the state of Pakistan’s domestic structure. A reminder you didn’t need to be standing on thin ice to slip through the cracks. This was a player fully integrated into Pakistan’s cricketing network, patchy as it was, but only hovered around the outskirts of the national team. He is by no means an exception. Of the dozen players who have scored more Quaid-e-Azam trophy runs than him since he made his debut, five of them have never played a Test match; another has only played one. It feels jarring to note he celebrated his 29th birthday earlier this week, so long has he been viewed as a future batting star.Like the Lochness Monster or Big Foot, Ghulam was ubiquitous, and yet nowhere to been seen. His name showed up in media releases, and he was topping Quaid-e-Azam trophy charts. He’d been selected for this or that A tour, and was in a Pakistan squad here or there. This summer, he was playing in the Huddersfield league – as you do when you’re a rising batting star. That the club he played for was called Hoylandswaine didn’t exactly help any claims of Ghulam’s verisimilitude. That phantom appearance against New Zealand was the holy grail of Ghulam sightings, but could we really be sure?Kamran Ghulam struck an early six in his innings•Getty ImagesHaving spent so long lurking in the shadowy underworld of cricketers Pakistan has disused to the point of atrophy, Ghulam suddenly has been pinned into place and had a flashlight burn into his retinas over the weekend. Pakistan dropped Babar Azam, prematurely according to some, contentiously according to all; it was a move even the Pakistan head coach did not call for. It sent Babar’s fandom into meltdown, and even those who had criticised his recent form felt the decision to leave him out after one Test was borne of panic rather than logic. Some of the stray ire was directed Ghulam’s way, as if his entire career had built up to nicking a spot off Babar at number four. A snow leopard dragged into a desert circus wouldn’t have felt more out of place.Pakistan had prepared the same pitch used for the first Test for this one, playing just one fast bowler on what they hoped would be a batting minefield, and ten overs in, that wish was being fulfilled. Jack Leach and Shoaib Bashir were already into the attack, Abdullah Shafique and Shan Masood already back in the hut. The ball stayed low, and spun unpredictably. If ever a debutant batter, one stepping into Babar’s shoes, was being set up to fail, it was here.Ben Stokes, who had moved a fielder into the short leg position Masood had obligingly chipped one to, spent his time setting the field. A second slip was brought in, and a performance was made out of bringing a silly mid-off to accompany short leg. But Ghulam had waited more than a decade for this moment, and patience came naturally to him. A snatched single got him off the mark, but he what followed was all steel.He was batting alongside Saim Ayub, another player under pressure. The duo understood the precarity of their position, and that wanton attack would only be a speciously positive approach: one that potentially brought some quick runs, but certainly offered England quick wickets. And so, on a strip that barely matched the quality of those he buttered his bread on in domestic cricket, Ghulam dug on.

“Like the Lochness Monster or Big Foot, Ghulam was ubiquitous, and yet nowhere to been seen. His name showed up in media releases, and he was topping Quaid-e-Azam trophy charts”

The conditions were old-school subcontinental, and so Ghulam played old-school subcontinental cricket. According to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-tracking records, he defended or left along 138 of his 224 deliveries. But this was no blockathon; Ghulam’s concentration levels never wavered, picking length early to sweep or reverse, each of which he did four times. When Bashir tossed one up late in the day, he hit him into the sightscreen. When Brydon Carse overpitched, it didn’t matter it was the first delivery with the second new ball, Ghulam leaned into the straight drive and picked up another four.Observers who have watched him play on the domestic setup will tell you this is simply how Ghulam plays, the runs a mere byproduct of solid technique and judicious shot selection. Ghulam might bat how the game demands it to, but appears oddly disconnected from the stage his individual innings is placed at. It was illustrated in the way he got to his century, smearing Joe Root into the onside for four; they were the only runs he scored off a slog sweep all innings, and one of just two times in 224 balls he attempted that shot. The opportunity was simply there.And, at long last, it feels that opportunity is finally here for him. After a decade defined by his absence, Ghulam is present in every sense of the word. Pakistan’s future star batter may finally be here, and Kamran Ghulam’s career may at last begin to make sense.

City Connect uniforms hit the baseball diamond beginning the 2021 season, allowing MLB teams a chance to flash some creativity and honor their homes with unique logos and differing color schemes.

In the midst of the '25 season, 28 teams have their own edition, which are mostly worn during Friday home games. Only the New York Yankees and Athletics are without a City Connect uniform. Maybe that will change for the A's when—or if?—they leave their temporary home of West Sacramento for Las Vegas. Don't bet on anyone ever messing with the Yankee pinstripes, though.

The other 28 MLB teams, however, don their own flare through a unique City Connect uniform. Some make sense upon first glance and others, well, you have to look a bit closer. This season, eight teams debuted a second City Connect design—an opportunity to take a new approach and give fans what they really want (cue the new Red Sox Green Monster-inspired jerseys).

Here's each City Connect uniform you could see on the field this season, ranked from worst to best:

28. Texas Rangers

Glamorgan captain is back at Canterbury after eight-year absence, comprising stints at Hampshire and Glamorgan

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Aug-2025Glamorgan captain Sam Northeast is heading back to his native Kent – the club where he spent the first 11 seasons of his career – after agreeing a new two-year deal.Northeast, 35, was out of contract having spent four prolific years at Glamorgan, during which time he posted a club-record 410 not out against Leicestershire in 2022, then followed up with a further 335 not out against Middlesex in 2024, the highest first-class score ever made at Lord’s.Last season, he also played the crucial innings at Trent Bridge as Glamorgan won the Metro Bank One-Day Cup for the second time in four seasons, and with 780 runs at 48.75 in the County Championship, he has guided the club to the brink of promotion from the second division.Though he is understood to have held talks with Glamorgan about an extension to his contract, a desire to be near his young family – who have remained in Kent throughout his stint – is believed to have been the clincher in his new deal.Northeast made his debut for Kent in 2007 after graduating from the club’s Academy, and went on to make over 300 appearances for the county over ten seasons, scoring over 13,500 runs in all-formats including 24 centuries.He was appointed Club Captain in 2015 and led the team on 134 occasions across formats, averaging 44.79 with the bat in that period. He left for Hampshire in somewhat acrimonious circumstances in February 2018, but is now heading home after an eight-year hiatus.”I’m delighted to be returning home to Kent next season,” Northeast said. “I believe I still have a great deal to contribute across all formats, and while I’ve enjoyed my time away, I know that coming back to Canterbury is the right decision at this stage of my career.”As someone who grew up in the county, Kent has always been close to my heart. I always knew I would return to my boyhood Club, and I’m proud to once again wear the White Horse.”The Club is in an exciting place, with a clear focus on the future, and I hope that my experience can help support and develop the next generation of Kent-produced talent.”Kent’s Director of Cricket, Simon Cook, said: “Sam was our top target when it became apparent that he was available and he will add top-order talent and experience.”We’re delighted that he has chosen to return to Kent next season, and our young batters in both the first-team and Talent Pathway will draw from his vast experience.”I’m sure his return home will be greatly received by our Members and supporters.”