Tag: australia

BRISBANE: India claimed a 2-1 win in the five-match T20I series against Australia after the final match was abandoned due to rain after just 4.5 overs here on Saturday.

After losing the toss and being sent in to bat, India’s openers Abhishek Sharma (23) and Shubman Gill (29) took the score to 52 for no loss before a thunderstorm forced the players from the field.

The torrential rain continued unabated, drenching the field in relentless sheets of water.

After much deliberation, the umpires finally made the tough call that no further play was possible, as the downpour rendered the pitch an unplayable quagmire.

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It was the second match of the series to be ruined by rain, following a washout in Canberra on October 29.

On Thursday, India defeated Australia by 48 runs to take a 2-1 lead in the series after posting 167-8 while batting first.

Shubman Gill played a crucial role with a solid contribution of 46 runs, while Abhishek Sharma and Shivam Dube added useful scores of 28 and 22 runs, respectively.

India’s bowlers then took centre stage, bundling Australia out for 119, with off-spinner Washington Sundar taking 3-3 in just eight balls to finish off the match.

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Pakistani fast bowler Mohammad Irfan Jr has been suspended for five matches after being found guilty of ball tampering during a Victoria Premier Cricket fixture in Australia.

According to Australian media reports, match officials accused Irfan of deliberately altering the condition of the ball during a recent match.

Following an inquiry, a disciplinary tribunal upheld the umpires’ charge, confirming the sanction against the 6’6” right-arm pacer.

Irfan Jr, who relocated to Australia a few years ago, currently represents local clubs in domestic competitions.

Before moving abroad, he featured regularly in Pakistan’s domestic circuit and played for multiple franchises in the Pakistan Super League (PSL).

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The pacer made headlines in 2020 when he announced his decision to quit cricket in Pakistan at the age of 25, after being overlooked for Southern Punjab’s First XI selection.

Despite having participated in three PSL seasons for as many teams, Irfan was offered only a Second XI spot, a move that prompted his departure.

In his domestic career, Irfan Jr has taken 43 wickets in 35 T20 matches at an average of 22.04, along with 80 wickets in 22 first-class games at 23.65. In List A cricket, he has 38 wickets in 28 matches.

Known for his unorthodox bowling action and kabaddi-style wicket celebrations, Irfan was once considered one of Pakistan’s most promising emerging fast bowlers.

After leaving Pakistan, Irfan signed a long-term deal with the Western Suburbs District Cricket Club (WSDCC) in Sydney, intending to continue his cricketing journey in Australia.

READ: Shaheen Afridi eyes strong comeback in series decider

India took a 2-1 lead in their T20 series against Australia with a 48-run demolition of the home side on Queensland’s Gold Coast on Thursday.

After losing the toss and being sent in to bat, India reached 167-8 thanks to a well-made 46 from Shubman Gill and useful contributions from Abhishek Sharma (28) and Shivam Dube (22).

India’s bowlers then took centre stage, bundling Australia out for 119, with off-spinner Washington Sundar taking 3-3 in just eight balls to finish off the match.

India would have gone into the innings break hoping for a bigger score than 167, but the total proved too much for the Australians, who started brightly but fell away alarmingly after reaching 67-1 in the ninth over.

The visitors will now head to Brisbane on Sunday, hoping to clinch the five-match series after the opening game in Canberra was washed out.

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India had looked like reaching an imposing score when openers Abhishek and Gill took on the Australian attack in the early overs.

The pair put on 56 off just 6.4 overs with little trouble before Abhishek, who had smashed a huge six off leg-spinner Adam Zampa two balls earlier, tried a second time only to be caught by Tim David on the long-on boundary.

Dube joined Gill and continued to score freely against Zampa, but he found the pace bowling harder to handle and was bowled by Nathan Ellis to leave India 88-2.

Ellis claimed his second when he bowled Gill with India 121-3.

Any chance of a really big score disappeared four runs later when Yadav was caught on the boundary for 20, and the rest of the batting fell away.

Australian openers Marsh (30) and Matthew Short (25) made a bright start, but India’s bowlers kept chipping away, snaring wickets at key moments to take control.

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Australia’s middle-order mainstay Travis Head has opted out of the final two T20Is against India, choosing instead to fine-tune his red-ball form ahead of the upcoming Ashes series by turning out for South Australia in the Sheffield Shield.

Head will feature in the Shield clash against Tasmania in Hobart next week, marking his first first-class appearance since Australia’s tour of the West Indies in July.

The move, largely driven by the left-hander himself, comes as he looks to regain rhythm in the longest format following a lean patch in white-ball cricket, where he’s managed a top score of just 31 in eight innings since his explosive 142 against South Africa in August.

A pillar of Australia’s Test setup, Head is expected to resume his No. 5 role, known for its counter-attacking spark in pressure situations.

Sources within Cricket Australia (CA) indicated that the decision was mutually supported, allowing Head to focus on red-ball preparation in match conditions rather than nets.

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The upcoming Sheffield Shield round now promises to be a star-studded one, with several Test regulars returning to their state sides ahead of squad selection for the England series.

Josh Hazlewood, who left the T20I squad after the second game in Melbourne, will link up with Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon for New South Wales against Victoria.

Sean Abbott will also join them after the Hobart T20I, while Steven Smith, fresh off a classy 118 against Queensland, is confirmed for his second Shield appearance this season.

Meanwhile, Victoria are set to field Scott Boland after a short rest, and Cameron Green will represent Western Australia against Queensland, expected to resume bowling for the first time since the season opener.

Marnus Labuschagne is also likely to feature, seeking valuable time in the middle before his Test return, while Matt Renshaw continues to press for an opening berth.

For Tasmania, all-rounder Beau Webster and pacer Brendan Doggett will take the field alongside Alex Carey and Head, adding further international experience to the contest.

READ: India release Kuldeep Yadav from squad ahead of remaining Australia T20Is

India’s left-arm wrist spinner, Kuldeep Yadav, has been released from the T20I squad for the remaining two matches against Australia by the team management.

The decision was made as the team management shifted focus to red-ball preparations ahead of the upcoming Test series against South Africa.

Kuldeep will now join the India A squad for the second unofficial Test against South Africa A, scheduled to begin on November 6 at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.

The move is part of India’s build-up for their two-Test series against the reigning World Test Championship holders, South Africa.

The first Test will be played at Eden Gardens in Kolkata from November 14, followed by the second in Guwahati starting November 22.

Kuldeep Yadav, who did not feature in India’s series-levelling T20I win in Hobart, last played a Test in October 2024 against New Zealand.

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His opportunities in the longest format have been limited, though he impressed earlier this year with 12 wickets, including a five-for, during the two-Test series against the West Indies.

The spinner’s inclusion in the India A setup underlines the selectors’ intent to fine-tune red-ball specialists ahead of the marquee South Africa series.

Meanwhile, Rishabh Pant, continuing his comeback from a foot injury sustained in England, will once again lead India A. Pant struck a composed 90 in the second innings of the first four-day match, which India won by three wickets.

Other senior names in the India A squad include KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel, and Devdutt Padikkal, with Sai Sudharsan serving as vice-captain.

India A Squad for 2nd Four-Day Match: Rishabh Pant (c & wk), KL Rahul, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Sai Sudharsan (vc), Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Khaleel Ahmed, Gurnoor Brar, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, and Kuldeep Yadav.

India Squad for 4th & 5th T20Is vs Australia: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, and Harshit Rana.

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HOBART: All-rounder Washington Sundar truly arrived for India with a match-winning 49* from just 23, stepping up when they needed it most here at Bellerive Oval in the second T20I against Australia.

India chased down the stiff 187-run target in 18.3 overs on the loss of five wickets with nine balls to spare. With this win, the Men in Blue levelled the five-match series 1-1.

The star of the night was Washington Sundar, who arrived when India were 111-4 in 11.1 overs. The left-hander forged two crucial stands, first with Tilak Verma off 34 runs and then 43 from just 25 balls with Jitesh Sharma, which took his side over the line.

Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill started strong with 33 on the board in 3.3 overs. Sharma got going with six in the over, followed by four, six, and four in the second over.

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However, Ellis got better off him in the third over with a bouncer. The left-hander perished after making a brisk 25 from just 16 balls, striking two fours and two sixes.

Meanwhile, Gill, who is yet to impress on the tour, departed after scoring just 15 from 12 balls. As a result, India were 61-2 in 5.3 overs. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav, meanwhile, was looking good but was dismissed in the seventh over, which lifted Australia.

He made 24 from just 11, with the help of two sixes and a four.

Australia continued to chip away with wickets at regular intervals, but Washington’s brisk batting took the game away from them. He hit four sixes and three fours in his knock. Abhishek Sharma, who replaced Sanju Samson in the side, made 22* from 13, striking three fours.

For Australia, Nathan Ellis remained the pick of the bowlers, scalping three wickets in his quota of four overs.

Earlier, after being put into bat, Australia racked up 186-6 in their 20 overs, courtesy of Tim David’s explosive 38-ball 74, which included five sixes and eight fours.

He rescued Australia from a precarious position of 14-2 in 2.3 overs and hit a brisk fifty. Like David, Marcus Stoinis also rose to the occasion and hit 64 from 39 balls, which provided the home side a strong finish.

For India, Arshdeep Singh gave 35 and picked three critical wickets in four overs, while Varun Chakravarthy bowled well for his two wickets.

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SYDNEY: India’s ODI vice-captain Shreyas Iyer was discharged from the Sydney hospital on Saturday following a spleen laceration he sustained during the third ODI against Australia on October 25.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) confirmed on Saturday that Iyer is now “stable and recovering well” after undergoing a minor procedure to stop internal bleeding.

He will remain in Sydney for further medical evaluation before returning to India once cleared fit to travel.

“The injury was promptly identified, and the bleeding was immediately arrested following a minor procedure,” BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said in a statement.

“He has undergone appropriate medical management for the same. The BCCI medical team, along with specialists in Sydney and India, are pleased with his recovery, and he has been discharged from the hospital today.”

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The 30-year-old was treated by Dr Koroush Haghighi and his team in Sydney, with assistance from Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala in India.

Iyer’s injury occurred when he completed a diving catch to dismiss Alex Carey during the Sydney ODI.

He was seen clutching his rib cage and signaling for medical attention before being taken off the field.

Subsequent scans revealed internal bleeding caused by a spleen laceration, leading to his ICU admission for observation.

India went on to win the final ODI by nine wickets but lost the three-match series 2–1. The visitors trail 1–0 in the T20I series currently underway in Australia.

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MELBOURNE: Josh Hazlewood took three wickets, and captain Mitchell Marsh scored a quick 46, leading Australia to a commanding victory over India in the second T20I on Friday at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

Set to chase a modest total of 146, Australia successfully reached the target in 13.2 overs to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.

Marsh and Travis Head set up the victory with a quick-fire opening stand of 51 runs from 28 balls.

However, Varun Chakravarthy provided the breakthrough with the wicket of Head, who struck 28 off 15 with the help of three fours and one six.

Marsh continued his onslaught and took his team’s total to 87 inside eight overs before Kuldeep Yadav ended his entertaining knock. The Australian captain departed after scoring a 26-ball 46, which featured four sixes and two boundaries.

Tim David joined Josh Inglis at the crease but could not contribute much, falling to Chakravarthy in the next over. Inglis soon returned to the pavilion after scoring a run-a-ball 20, dismissed by Yadav.

Mitchell Owen scored 14 runs, bringing Australia within striking distance of victory with only two runs remaining.

However, Jasprit Bumrah struck on back-to-back deliveries, removing Owen and the new batter, Matthew Short, who scored 0.

After the setback, Marcus Stoinis scored the winning runs, steering Australia to a five-wicket victory.

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Earlier, India were booked for just 125 runs in 18.4 overs, despite a remarkable innings from Abhishek Sharma, who scored 68 runs off 37 balls.

The Indian team faced early setbacks, with Shubman Gill falling to Hazlewood for just 5 runs in the third over. This was followed by Sanju Samson’s dismissal for 2 runs by Ellis in the next over.

Hazlewood struck again, taking the wickets of Suryakumar Yadav for 1 and Tilak Varma for a duck, reducing India to 32 for 4 in just 4.5 overs.

A mix-up on the field led to Axar Patel being run out in the eighth over, leaving India in a precarious position.

Sharma, who was fighting a lone war, found a reliable partner in Harshit Rana (35), and they added 56 runs for the sixth wicket.

The partnership was broken when Bartlett dismissed Rana, and later took the wicket of Shivam Dube for just 4 runs. Marcus Stoinis then removed Kuldeep Yadav, who did not score.

Sharma’s valiant innings came to an end soon after, and Bumrah was run out without scoring, bringing India’s innings to a close.

Hazlewood finished with outstanding bowling figures of 3 wickets for 13 runs in 4 overs, while Bartlett and Ellis each took 2 wickets.

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MELBOURNE: Players from Australia and India wore black armbands and held a minute’s silence ahead of the second T20I, as tributes poured in on Friday for the teenager Ben Austin, whose death touched the cricket world.

Austin, 17, died on Thursday after being hit in the neck before a local Twenty20 game in Melbourne while in the nets facing a ball-throwing device.

He was wearing a helmet, but reportedly not a stem guard, which protects the neck.

It revived memories of Test star Phillip Hughes, who was killed in 2014 when hit in the neck by a ball during a domestic Sheffield Shield game.

On Friday, the Victoria and Tasmania teams put their bats out as a symbol of respect, wore black armbands and held a minute’s silence as Austin’s image was beamed on a big screen before resuming their domestic match in Melbourne.

There were similar scenes in Perth, where Western Australia were playing South Australia.

In Mumbai, both India and Australia wore black armbands during their women’s one-day World Cup semi-final on Thursday.

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“Thanks to the Indian team for joining us in wearing black armbands to pay tribute to Ben Austin, a young man from Melbourne who tragically lost his life playing the game we all love,” the Australian side said.

“Sending love to Ben’s friends, family and cricket mates.”

Flowers and cricket bats were placed at the Ferntree Gully Cricket Club, where the accident occurred on Tuesday.

“It makes you so proud to realise how connected the cricket community is and how much we look after each other,” Cricket Victoria chief Nick Cummins told Australian media.

“It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to put yourself in the Austin family’s position.”

Austin’s death resonated globally, with England’s Barmy Army linking to a GoFundMe page set up to help the family.

“Rest in peace, Ben Austin, never forgotten,” said the official supporters group, who are set to descend on Australia in force this month for the Ashes Test series.

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A 17-year-old Australian cricketer, Ben Austin, lost his life after being hit on the neck by a ball during a training session in Melbourne on Tuesday.

Following the incident at Ferntree Gully in Melbourne’s outer east, where he was practising facing balls thrown by a sidearm,  Austin was taken to the hospital in critical condition. He was placed on life support, but died on Thursday morning.

The 17-year-old was wearing a helmet; however, it was without a stem guard.

After a devastating incident, his father, Jacer Austin, expressed sorrow in a statement.

“We are utterly devastated by the passing of our beautiful Ben, who died earlier on Thursday morning,” he said.

“For Tracey and I, Ben was an adored son, deeply loved brother to Cooper and Zach and a shining light in the lives of our family and friends.”

“This tragedy has taken Ben from us, but we find some comfort that he was doing something he did for so many summers – going down to the nets with mates to play cricket. He loved cricket and it was one of the joys of his life,” he explained.

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“We would also like to support his team-mate who was bowling in the nets – this accident has impacted two young men and our thoughts are with he and his family as well.”

Meanwhile, Cricket Australia (CA) and Cricket Victoria have expressed grief over the incident and provided assistance to the family.

“The tragic circumstances of Ben and Ferntree Gully are…going to be felt across the country,” CA chair Mike Baird told reporters.

“Cricket is a sport that brings people together, communities together. It’s also one that feels very deeply an incident such as we’ve seen.

“[It’s] hard to put words on it. What we want to say is that we are doing everything we can to support the family, the club, and all those impacted by this tragic news. Clearly, there are things that we have to learn from this, but right now, we are concerned about the family and trying to support them in every way,” he said.

For the unversed, 11 years ago, Australia’s emerging cricketer Phil Hughes death due to a similar incident caused shockwaves across the cricketing world.

Phil, who was 25, was struck on the neck by a Sean Abbott bouncer during a Sheffield Shield match in Sydney and died two days later due to a rare brain bleed.

Phil Hughes passing caused the sport to look at safety gear differently, leading to the creation of the stem guard, an extra safety-padded extension that protects the back of the head and neck.

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