Bangladesh cut down one Test from Zimbabwe tour

Mohammad Amir’s first stint in CPL, Shoaib Malik reuinted with Guyana Amazon Warriors

Pakistan’s Mohammad Amir who had earlier taken an indefinite break from international cricket has joined the Caribbean premier League outfit Barbados Tridents for the league’s upcoming season. This would be the speedsters maiden entry into one of the world’s most popular T20 leagues. Shoaib Malik, who had an impressive season with the Guyana Amazon Warriors in 2019, taking them to the final with an 11 match unbeaten streak has reunited with the team after a break of one season. The 38-year-old has played 417 T20 matches and won 12 trophies in the format, scoring 10424 runs and picking 152 wickets. Amir, who has so far taken 220 wickets in 190 T20s, at an economy of just over seven is one of the most sought after bowlers in white-ball cricket for his abilities to swing the ball. He is also known for landing perfect yorkers in death. Along with Haider Ali, Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez, Amir would be the fourth Pakistani playing in the league. The Tridents have retained nine players including their skipper Jason Holder. Among other players are two spinners in Hayden Walsh Junior and Joshua Bishop. Johnson Charles, Shai Hope and Kyle Mayers are the batsmen retained by the franchise while Raymon Riefer, Nayeem Young are the two fast bowlers in the den. Justin Greaves, a batting all-rounder is the ninth player on the retainer list. CPL 2021 will be played in its entirety at Warner Park in St. Kitts and Nevis from August 28 to September 19. The Player’s draft for this season would be held on May 28 and streamed Live on Facebook across the globe.

BCCI to potentially sacrifice international fixtures for resumption of IPL 2021

The IPL 2021 that was earlier suspended due to the rise in Covid-19 cases within the teams is likely to resume on September 19 or 20 with the final tentatively taking place on October 9 or 10. The fixtures will include 10 double-headers which will be played in the span of three weeks. Earlier, CSK’s bowling coach L.Balaji and batting coach Mike Hussey, DC’s Amit Mishra, KKR’s Sandeep Warrior and Varun Chakravarthy and SRH’s Wriddhiman Saha had tested positive for the disease due to which the tournament had to be put on a halt. The resumption of the tournament on these dates will mean that India will either have to cancel or postpone a couple of series and this would include a bilateral tie against South Africa that was scheduled to take place in September and the two-match Test series against New Zealand at home. “The series can't be held and in any case there can't be any better preparation for the T20 World Cup than playing a high intensity tournament like IPL. Since the T20 World Cup will start within a week or 10 days after completion of the IPL, the SA series can only be held at a later date,” a source close to BCCI said. 'There is a chance that India might play extra games when they tour South Africa early next year,' the source added. The dates for the New Zealand Tests might be altered depending upon the conclusion of the World T20.

KKR's Tim Seifert breaks down while talking about Covid-19

Kolkata Knight Riders’ Tim Seifert who had tested positive for Covid-19 broke down during a chat with New Zealand Herald. The Kiwi wicket-keeper batsman narrated how he felt after testing positive for the disease. “I got pulled aside and told I’d tested positive and my heart sank straight away when everyone left. I was the only overseas player basically still left in India out of the whole tournament. That’s when things got a little bit real,” an emotional Seifert told the ‘New Zealand Herald’. “I got pulled aside and told I’d tested positive and my heart sank straight away when everyone left. I was the only overseas player basically still left in India out of the whole tournament. That’s when things got a little bit real,” an emotional Seifert told the ‘New Zealand Herald’. Earlier, the IPL 2021 was suspended on May 4 with immediate effect after there were positive cases of Covid-19 found within the teams. SRH’s Wriddhiman Saha, DC’s Amit Mishra, KKR’s Sandeep Warrior and Varun Chakravarthy, and CSK’s bowling coach L.Balaji and batting coach Mike Hussey had tested positive for the disease. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had earlier said that the cash-rich league has only been put to a halt and not cancelled. In the recent developments, the BCCI is likely to hold the remainder of the IPL in the UAE between September 19-October 10 as per Sports Today’s Boria Majumdar.

Remainder of IPL 2021 in UAE from September 19 to October 10: Reports

The remainder of the Indian Premier League would be played in the United Arab Emirates in the September-October window with the first match starting on September 19, Sports Today has reported. A 21-day window has been drawn up by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the remainder of the 31 games to be played to complete the 14th edition of the season which got curtailed earlier in May due to the covid-19 pandemic. If reports are to be believed, the tournament is set to end with the final on October 10, right ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup. "The BCCI has spoken to all the stakeholders and the likely start could be between September 18th to 20th. Since September 18 is a Saturday and 19 a Sunday, it is more likely that you would want to re-start it on a weekend date," a BCCI official was quoted as saying to PTI on conditions of anonymity. The reports further suggest that the dates of India’s England tour will not be changed and BCCI did not make any such request to the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). Team India’s England tour which begins with WTC Final on June 18 and then the subsequent five-match Test series vs the hosts starting August 4, will end on September 14 as decided. However, on September 15th, Indian players will travel to Dubai instead of coming home. This would be a bubble to bubble transfer and the players will remain in a three-day quarantine in their team hotels. 'The Indian team and the English players who will be available will fly in the same charter flight from Manchester to Dubai," said the BCCI source. Another speculation suggested in the report is that the Caribbean Premier League which is supposed to end on September 19 would be expedited to end at least three to four days early so that IPL bound West Indies and international players are relieved. Trinbago Knight Riders a CPL franchise, owned by the owners of IPL’s Kolkata Knight Riders is supposed to play a key role in the considerations. "West Indies players will also fly in after completing the Caribbean Premier League engagements. There will be three-day quarantine for players arriving from the UK and the Caribbean,' the source added. For the 31 matches to be played, there would be 10 doubleheader days and seven matches would be played on single match days. The Four playoffs would then be played to end the tournament. The IPL franchises have been appraised by the BCCI and IPL Governing Council. 'We have been told by the BCCI to be ready for the tournament. We have been given a September 15 to 20 window,' a team official said. The league was postponed on May 4 after a lot of cases of covid-19 emerged in the Bio-bubble.