BBL 10: Adelaide Strikers etch win in a close encounter vs Sydney Thunder

Had taken two injections and sedatives before batting: Rishabh Pant

India rode on some fine batting performances from youngsters Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill to win the fourth and final Test against Australia in Brisbane by 3 wickets. Pant remained unbeaten at 89 while taking India home in the course of chasing 328 at Gabba. "Even when I got out for 97 on the last day in Sydney, I thought I could have won the match had I batted longer. It didn’t matter that I had to take two injections and sedatives before batting. I was in a zone and didn’t want to throw away opportunities. So I ensured I was there at the end in Brisbane," Pant was quoted as saying by Times of India. India were handed a target of 328 in the second innings by the hosts. Gill scored career-best 91 while Cheteshwa Pujara played more than 200 balls for his 56. Apart from them, Washington Sundar also played a crucial knock of 22 runs off 29 deliveries. Pant finished the Test series as the highest run-getter for Team India with 274 runs from 3 matches. India defended the Border-Gavaskar trophy after completing a 2-1 win in the series with the victory in Brisbane. The visiting team had faced a lot of injury concerns during the tour. Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, KL Rahul, Hanuma Vihari and Ravindra Jadeja had been ruled out of the series while R Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah missed out the final Test after not being completely fit.

Used to be scared of bouncers in my early days: Shubman Gill

India batsman Shubman Gill has impressed everyone with his batting performances in Australia. The right-handed batsman who made his Test debut for India in Australia played three matches and scored 259 runs at a healthy average of 51.8. In a recent video released by the Kolkata Knight Riders, Gill talks about how he tackled his fears against short deliveries. “I was pretty scared of the bouncers and had a fear that it would hit me on my body. To counter these kind of deliveries, I used to play the pull short with a straight bat and also developed new stroke. I used to get away from the line of the short ball and used to cut it. So these were a couple of shots that I used to practice,” he said. “There was an incident that helped me overcome my fear against the bouncers. I was up against a fast bowler who was known for his pace. I didn’t really encounter any problems in facing him and even struck 2-3 boundaries off his bowling. So, this created a self-belief in me and took away that fear I had,” he added. Hee has represented KKR in 41 IPL matches and has notched up 939 runs including 7 half-centuries. Gill was an internal part of the U19 Indian team that lifted the 2018 World Cup under Prithvi Shaw’s captaincy. Gill who was Shaw’s deputy in the tournament amassed 372 runs at an average of 124.

Rahul sir asked us not to watch our IPL auctions: Shubman Gill

India and KKR batsman Shubman Gill stamped his authority with the bat during the tour in Australia. The right-handed batsman who hails from Punjab was bought by the Kolkata Knight Riders franchise during the IPL 2018 auctions for a sum of ₹1.8 crore and has been with the side since then. Gill in a video released by the KKR talks about the auctions and his pick by the IPL team. “We were in New Zealand for the U19 World Cup at that point of time and had a match against Pakistan the next day. It was 9 or 10pm at night and I was with Nagarkoti and Abhishek at the point of time. I had no idea that the auctions for my pick was going on. It ended before I could watch it,” Gill said. “The next day which was the match day, we had Nagarkoti into the auctions but Rahul sir (Dravid) told us that no one will watch the auctions till the match is over,” he added. Talking further about his experience, Gill said, “I have had some good experience so far. I have been getting a lot of attention from the coaches.” India won the U19 World Cup in 2018 under the captaincy of Prithvi Shaw. Gill who was Shaw’s deputy in the tournament amassed 372 runs at an average of 124. He even scored a ton against Pakistan in the semi-final of the tournament. He has played three Tests and as many ODIs for India so far. The right-handed batsman has scored 259 runs so far in the longer format. Apart from this, he has represented KKR in 41 IPL matches and has notched up 939 runs including 7 half-centuries.

Ten BBL players who could turn out to be best buys in IPL mini-auction

With Indian Premier League sides announcing their retained players’ list, the market of speculations is high as to which team would go for which players in the mini IPL which is scheduled to take place in February this year. One league which has literally provided cricketers in bulk for the IPL has been the Australian Big Bash League. Be it last season’s products like Josh Philippe, Daniel Sams, or the great Aussie limited-overs stars of today, David Warner and Aaron Finch, all of them have had a good time in the IPL which has helped them get to where they are today. Keeping with the same practice, this year’s BBL, which is the 10th edition of the tournament, has also given some wonderful stars who could turn out to be great buys for the IPL teams. Jhye Richardson The Perth bowling all-rounder is in the form of his life in this BBL picking up 25 wickets in 13 innings in BBL 2020-21. Among these 25 wickets are his two four-wicket hauls as well. Jhye went unsold in the last two IPL auctions that he was part of, but this time around his bid for a place is strongest as he showed that he is no mug with the bat either. With his ability to make quick runs in the late overs, he could be a real asset for the teams going forward. In his year’s BBL, he has played two such innings, one against the Hurricanes, when the team had reduced to 108/6, he hit precious 36 runs to get the team up to 180 alongside Josh Inglis. In total, he is the perfect package for a team like Kings XI Punjab who have released Jimmy Neesham and are looking for a bowling all-rounder. But RCB’s coach Simon Katich’s eye would also be on him as he is a product of Western Australia, which was Katich’s home as well. Ben McDermott A genuine big hitter, Hurricanes’ Ben McDermott has shown to the world how dangerous he could be when on song as he has won matches single-handedly for his team. In 10 innings of BBL 2020-21 so far, McDermott, 26, hs hit 297 runs with an average of 44 and a strike rate that goes beyond 150 when he finds his feet on the crease. McDermott can keep and open the innings too, hence can be one of the great options for teams looking for such adoption and one such team is the Chennai Super Kings which released its opening options in Shane Watson and Murali Vijay, all at once. Alex Carey Another wicketkeeper-batsman, this time from Adelaide though is in the fray to attract a big sum from the auction after being released by the Delhi Capitals during the retention process. Carey has 381 runs in the 12 innings that he has played in BBL 2020-21. The biggest achievement of his has been the hundred that he hit in a must-win game for his team against the heat. Since has not been tried in India, teams can take a shot at him in the auction without any doubt. Riley Meredith If pure pace and accuracy were to be defined, nothing gets better than Riley Meredith of the Hurricanes. He clocks in the 140s regularly and touches the 150 mark more often than anyone else does. His economy in the BBL 10 is 7.48 and although he has only taken 12 wickets in 11 games that he has played so far, the fear that he generates in the yes of the batsmen, just with his sheer pace is something to marvel at. Teams like Kings XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings, who are looking for out and out fast bowlers might be interested in him, even for that matter, RCB and Mumbai can go for him as well. Mumbai mainly because they now don’t have a back up for Trent Boult after Lasith Malinga left. Dawid Malan This 33-year-old South Africa born England player has gained the most in the T20 arena and him not being in the IPL’s 2020 edition was a big surprise. Now, the World Number one T20 batsmen has his eyes set on the biggest T20 league in the Wolrd and franchises too would have set their eyes on him. Although he hasn’t really had a big BBL, with just 220 runs in 8 innings at an average of 27 and a strike rate well below the expectations from him- 116. But the few innings that he has shone in, he showcased the range of shots that he has to offer. The World Number one T20 batsman is therefore a hot property and it wouldn’t be a surprise if he turns out to be the biggest buy-in this edition. Tanveer Sangha The teenager from Thunder has impressed one and all with his leg-spinning abilities this season. Getting big wickets is the most dangerous nack that he has developed. With 20 wickets in 12 innings at a brilliant average of 16.05 and an economy rate of less than eight (7.92), he is one of those players who could turn out to be lethal on Indian pitches, especially with his deceiving wrong-uns which he has used brilliantly so far. He is just 19 and has a lot to achieve, the franchises like CSK and Mumbai who invest in the talent can take him just for the fact that he could be useful in the future as a leg spinner has always been in the IPL. Mujeeb-Ur-Rahman The Afghan youngster is not new to the IPL scenes although success has eluded him so far. This time around he is coming on the back of a successful BBL and has done well even in the Caribbean Premier League this season. While in BBL, he picked up 14 wickets from 8 innings at an astonishing average of 13.42 and a brilliant economy of 6.26. In CPL, he picked up 16 wickets in 11 games and his average was 13.56 while the economy went even below six. With just 17 wickets from 18 IPL games he hasn’t really had the success he would like, but with a few good games and the mojo back with him, he can do wonders for whichever team that he plays. Alex Hales This England star has been in and out of IPL many times. But with the form that he is in as seen during the BBL 2020-21, he is sure to get another crack at the jack called IPL. He might not be one of the expensive buys in this year’s auction but can be an effective one on the base price as he can hit a long ball on flat tracks and looks like a perfect replacement for Aaron Finch for the RCB. The 32-year-old has 462 runs in 12 innings in the BBL10 with an average of 38.59 and a damaging strike rate of more than 165. He has hit a scintillating hundred in one of the toughest games of the season the ‘Sydney Smash’ and has two fifties to boast of as well. Wes Agar If a team wants a bowler who can ball heavy balls, great bouncers, and yorkers at will, the team has to look for nothing beyond the gigantic Wes Agar from the Adelaide Strikers. Agar has 21 wickets in 12 games with 4/27 as his best and with an average of 17.14 and an economy of below eight. What is fascinating about him is his pace. He bowls real quick and effort balls generally fetch him a wicket. In the limited opportunities that he got in the previous BBL, even then he was among wickets, and thus he could be a real cheat deal at the base price for teams looking for heavy fast bowlers. RCB, KXIP, and CSK can have shot at him. Mark Steketee Another fast bowler in the reckoning is Mark Steketee of the Brisbane Heat. Steketee, 27 has got loads of experience behind his back apart from a good BBL form with 22 wickets from 12 games. In 49 T20s that he has played so far, he has picked up 64 wickets in them clearly giving signs that he is a wicket-taking bowler. With two fifties in the first class, he has the ability to handle the willow as well. Thus he is one of those who could be given their first shot at the world’s biggest stage of T20 cricket.