BREAKING | KL Rahul diagnosed with acute appendicitis, would go under the knife soon

IPL 2021 | RR vs SRH: Jos Buttler posts highest individual score by an Englishman in IPL history

Jos Buttler brought up his maiden hundred in his IPL career and broke the chain of low scores in the ongoing edition of the tournament. He brought up his hundred in 56 balls with 10 fours and five sixes. He was not in a great vein of form coming into the contest against the Surisers Hyderabad and struggled to get going at the start. He was missing finding the gaps and also lacked fluency till the halfway stage of his innings. At the end of the 11th over, he was batting on a 33-ball 35 and it appeared that the Royals will struggle once again in absence of a big score from Buttler but the right-hander turned things around quickly. He smashed Sandeep Sharma for 17 runs in the 13th over and never looked back since that stage. He was extremely severe against the off-spinner Mohammad Nabi and put him over the fence for two fours and two sixes in the 15th over to approach his first hundred. His heroics with the bat after the first 30 balls ensured the Royals are in with the chance of posting a big score on the board against the Sunrisers in Delhi. The Royals need to win this contest to resurrect their journey in the 14th edition of the IPL.

Ipl 2021: Shikhar Dhawan confident of DC victory against Punjab

Delhi Capitals highest run-scorer this season, opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan believes that the team is moving in the right direction as it is not overly dependent upon any particular individual. “We have won five out of seven so we are in a great position and the good thing is that the entire team is performing,” he said in a video uploaded by the Delhi Capitals on their official Twitter account. “Be it batting or bowling, the team isn’t dependent on a single individual. There is always someone or the other taking responsibility on match day and that has made the team really strong,” added the 35-year-old. Talking about the team’s next assignment against Punjab in the Northern Derby at the Narendra Modi Stadium tonight, Dhawan, who has so far scored 311 runs in seven innings so far, believes that the Delhi team can overpower the Punjabis. “No opposition is a weak opposition in the IPL. So we have to make sure that every time we go on the field, we give our best and implement our plans,” said Dhawan before adding that Punjab are a good side and playing well. “We must respect that, but we are going to win another game I think,” said the southpaw.

IPL 2021 | Tom Moody cites team combination behind 'hard call' of sacking David Warner

The director of cricket operations at the Sunrisers Hyderabad, Tom Moody has said that the franchise had to take a tough call where someone big but underperforming had to make way for change in the team in wake of repetitive poor performances in the 14th edition of the IPL. Moody said that Warner is very disappointed at missing out from the leadership position and then from the playing XI, but that would have been the case for any other player, and that the Australian has come to terms with the reasoning behind his ow exclusion from the team. “We had to make the hard call, somebody has to miss out and unfortunately it’s him. He’s shocked and disappointed. Anyone would be disappointed. He has come to terms with the logic behind what we want to achieve from a franchise’s perspective. He has rallied around the team and more importantly, the team has rallied around him,” Moody said to the host broadcaster Star Sports before the game against the Rajasthan Royals. There are words surrounding a possible fallout between Warner and the think tank after the former made public his disapproval of Manish Pandey’s exclusion from the team. But, Moody said that the team is not going back to what led to the move of sacking Warner having made significant changes in the last 24-48 hours. Notably, David Warner has been an IPL legend for the Sunrisers and he led the side to the IPL championship in the 2016 edition.

Delhi Capitals appoint Saba Karim as Head of Talent Search

Delhi Capitals have appointed former India wicket-keeper Saba Karim as Head of talent search. The franchise made the announcement on Sunday. “JSW and GMR co-owned Delhi Capitals on Sunday announced former India wicketkeeper-batsman Syed Saba Karim as the franchise's Head of Talent Search,” said a release from the Capitals. Saba Karim credited the players to make a IPL a successful tournament in these testing times. “Firstly, I would like to commend the incredible courage shown by the players during this year's IPL," said Karim. "It's not easy for anyone to stay away from their loved ones at this very difficult time. Yet they have stuck around, and continued playing the tournament, for which they deserve plenty of credit." Talking about his new role in the DC side, Saba said that he was pretty excited to begin with his new role. "I am very excited to begin my role as Talent Scout for the Delhi Capitals. The IPL has, over the years, unearthed so much talent, and continues to produce world class action. Delhi Capitals is an exciting team to work with, and I am looking forward to help them grow further." Saba has also been the national selector earlier. He has represented the country in 1 Test and 34 ODIs. DC have had some good show so far in the IPL 2021 and they will now take on Punjab Kings in Ahmedabad on Sunday.