Daily Round Up | Jan 9: Australia turn tables on Day 3

Rishabh Pant injury update: No major injury concerns

India wicket-keeper batsman Rishabh Pant was taken for scans after the third day of the third Test between India and Australia in Sydney. Pant had got hit on his left elbow. There is a relief for both Team India and Rishabh Pant that the scans don’t show any major issues. The left-handed batsman is in some pain is being treated but he will be able to bat on Day 5. Earlier, the Indian team had a double injury scare after Pant and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja were taken for scans. Jadeja had got hit on his left thumb. The Indian team has been plagued with injury concerns on the tour. Earlier, Mohammed Shami, Umesh and KL Rahul were also ruled out after sustaining respective injuries. India were later bundled out for 244 in reply to Australia’s 338. Cheteshwar Pujara went on to score a half-century while Jadeja remained unbeaten at 28. Pant scored 36 during the course of the first innings. The pacers did the job for Australia as they peppered the Indian batsmen with some short deliveries and scalped seven of the 10 wickets that went down in the innings. Pat Cummins was the pick of the bowlers after he returned with a four-for. Australia ended Day 3 at 103/2, leading India by 197 runs with Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne still at the crease. Smith was back in form in the first innings after notching up his 27th Test ton and 8th against India while Labuschagne missed out on a hundred by just 9 runs to get out for 91.

Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy: The nursery that provides T20 stars to Indian cricket

Come 10th of January and with the start of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy the Indian domestic cricket would be once again up and running after a long covid-19 hiatus. 38 teams representing various Indian regions would battle it out for the prestigious T20 crown in matches that would be held as far-flung as Chennai and Kolkata. In total six cities will host the group stages of the tournament before the bandwagon moves to the largest Indian stadium Motera for the knockout games. It is not for nothing that this tournament was chosen for starting the curtailed domestic season. In a short span of just 12 seasons since its inauguration in 2006-07 (it wasn’t played in the 2007/08 and 2008/09 seasons) the shortest format tourney has carved a niche for itself. Stars like Krunal Pandya, Ishan Kishan, and Suryakumar Yadav, who stole the show at this year’s IPL will be showcasing their skills at this tournament. However, all eyes would be fixed on S. Sreesanth, the Indian fast bowler who is making a comeback in competitive cricket after seven long years. Why is it called Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy? As it has been a tradition in Indian cricket of naming trophies after the greats, this was also renamed after being started as an Inter-State zonal tournament where teams first competed with teams of their zone and then the zonal winners and runners up would be divided into two group and the group winners would compete with each other in the finals. The tournament was halted for two years with the launch of the Indian Premier League as the premium domestic T20 tournament. However, in 2009, the Board of Control for Cricket in India decided to bring the trophy back and renamed it after one of the most stylish and aggressive Indian batsmen Syed Mushtaq Ali, who represented the country in 11 Test only, mainly due to the fact that when he was in his prime, precious years were lost to World War-2. Starting his career in 1936, he played the last game in 1952. In the domestic circuit though, the legend played more than 200 games and scored more than 13,000 runs, and picked 162 wickets. The changing nature of the tournament After being repackaged in 2009, the tournament has seen a fair bit of tweaking in its format. Initially started as an inter-state zonal series, with two stages of the competition, the zonal group stage and the final group stage, it was changed into two different stages of Zonal group stage and Knockouts in the year 2009. This continued till the 2011-12 season. With the start of the 2012-13 season, the knockout system was replaced with the Super League stage where the zonal winners and runners-up were redrawn into two groups and the winners of each group then competed in a final. Even this format couldn’t sustain its viability and the apex cricketing body in India decided to change the format once again in 2015-16 seasons and instead of making teams compete on a zonal basis, they were drawn into four groups. The two teams from those four groups were then again re-drawn into two further groups with this stage being called the Super League stage. As if its structure hasn’t already been twisted enough, the BCCI came with a totally different plan in the very next season where after the zonal stage competition ended, combined zonal teams played in the Super League instead of the zonal winners. The winner and runner-up in this tournament were now decided on the basis of points, instead of a final being played to determine the winner. As expected, this did not last post the season and the old format of teams first competing on a zonal basis and then participating in two groups in a Super League was reinstated for the 2017-18 tournament. Though previously it was the BCCI that was adventurous with the structure of the tournament, this time around the Supreme Court and Lodha Committee decided to play the ball. With the court asking the board to make sure that each state and union territory was represented in the domestic competitions of the BCCI, a total of 37 teams participated in the 2018-19 season of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The teams, instead of being divided into zones were divided into five groups with three groups having seven teams and two groups having eight teams. At the Super League stage, the top two teams from each group were divided into two groups and the winners then competed in the final. In the 2019-20 season, the same format continued with one change that after the Super League stage, instead of selecting the top two teams, the top four teams were selected and two semi-finals decided which two teams would finally compete for the trophy. Now in 2021, a totally new format, akin to any previous one has been introduced with the introduction of Plate groups on the ground of Ranji Trophy. With 38 teams divided into five Elite and one Plate groups, the top team from each group along with two best second-placed teams from the Elite groups will qualify for the knockout stage. At the knockout stage, the teams would compete with each other in the quarterfinals and semifinals before qualifying for the summit clash. The nursery of future stars Right from the 2009-10 season, the Mushtaq Ali Trophy has given something or the other to the IPL to give to the world. In the inaugural edition after the revamp, it gave the likes of Paul Valthaty and Shikhar Dhawan who made merry in the 2011 season of the IPL. In the following season Manoj Tiwary the leading run-scorer of the season made a good fortune in his stint with the Indian team his only hundred came the same year against West Indies in Chennai. Another find of the tournament was Mohammed Shami, who too played for the winning team Bengal that season in 2011. Usually held before the IPL, it became a consistent scouting procedure for the tournament from the 2012 edition onwards. Mayank Agarwal and Siddarth Kaul found their way into the IPL from th\e 2012 edition while Hardik Pandya found his way into the Mumbai set up from the 2013 edition, although he really blossomed into a player post the 2014 season. In the 2014 season, two Punjab players shone in both Mushtaq Ali as well as IPL and they were Sandeep Sharma and Manan Vohra. From Harpreet Singh to Aditya Tare to Jaidev Undakat and Ankit Rajpoot, you name the player in the current crop of the Indian setup or the IPL and he would have without a doubt done exceedingly well in the Mushtaq Ali before excelling at IPL or international level. The latest being Devdutt Padikkal and T. Natarajan. Most successful sides of the tournament The best part of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy so far has been the uncertainty of winners. In the past 12 seasons, one can't pick out a particular team that has reigned supreme at the championship. Although with Karnataka’s rise in the last two seasons, it might become an incredible force in the history of the tournament. In total, three teams i.e. Karnataka, Baroda, and Gujarat have been able to win the trophy twice while Tamil Nadu, Bengal, Delhi, Maharashtra, and Uttar Pradesh have one it once each. In one season, which was played between the zones, more on the lines of Duleep Trophy or Deodhar Trophy, the championship was won by East Zone. In terms of playing the finals, Punjab has made it to the most number of finals. In total, the North Indian state has reached four finals but hasn’t been able to win any. While Tamil Nadu won the inaugural edition in 2006-07, defeating Punjab in the finals, Maharashtra defeated Hyderabad in 2009-10 finals. Bengal then won the 2010-11 season defeating Madhya Pradesh, it was the same season where Madhya Pradesh star Harpreet Singh even shone with Deccan Chargers in the IPL. Post that Punjab qualified for two finals, beating Baroda in 2011-12 and Gujarat in 2012-13. The two Gujarat sides also shared the next two trophies when Baroda defeated Uttar Pradesh in 2013-14 and Gujarat defeated Punjab once again in 2014-15. Uttar Pradesh won their inaugural title in the 2015-16 season exacting their revenge of the 2013-14 season by defeating Baroda in the finals. While the 2016-17 season was a zonal affair, the capital Delhi won the 2017-18 thrilling season by defeating Rajasthan in a lame encounter in the final. The next two seasons have been won by Karnataka which will be looking to make a hat trick this season.

Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj face racial abuse in Sydney; team reports to match officials

Two Indian players-- Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah have faced racial abuse from the members of the crowd that was present at the Sydney Cricket Ground during the third day’s play in the third Test between Australia and India, a Cricbuzz reported. Responding to the issue, the Indian team management led by the captain Ajinkya Rahane, and other senior players reported the case to the match officials including the match referee David Boon, umpires Paul Wilson, and Paul Rieffel, the report added. The reporting by the team management to match officials was followed by a discussion between the security officials of the team India with the security officials present at the ground and of the International Cricket Council. Australia are way ahead in the third Test at the SCG, leading by 197 runs, with the unbeaten pair of Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne at the crease, and six more wickets in their hands. Earlier in the day, India were bowled out for 244 runs in reply to Australia’s first innings total of 338 runs. No other batsman other than Cheteshwar Pujara and Shubman Gill could score significant runs as India are looking ahead at a far bigger target to chase down that they would have liked at the start of the third day.

IPL 2021 Auctions: A look at purse balance of franchises

The IPL 2021 is likely to take place on February 11. The franchises are expected to release a lot of players while they are set to reveal the list of retained players on January 20. But first here we take a look at how much money each franchise side has in its purse. Chennai Super Kings The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) led by MS Dhoni has Rs 15 lakh for now in their purse. CSK’s purse balance though is expected to go up as they are likely to release a lot of players. Squad: MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja, M Vijay, Narayan Jagadeesan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, KM Asif, Josh Hazlewood, Kedar Jadhav, Harbhajan Singh, Karn Sharma, Piyush Chawla, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Imran Tahir , Deepak Chahar, Faf du Plessis, Shardul Thakur, Mitchell Santner, Dwayne Bravo, Lungi Ngidi, Sam Curran, Monu Kumar, Shane Watson, Sai Kishore Mumbai Indians Mumbai Indians who won the 2020 IPL edition have a purse balance of Rs 1.95 crore. The franchise is more or less sorted. MI have lifted the trophy five times, most by any team. CSK have won it thrice while Kolkata Knight Riders have been crowned champions twice. Squad: Rohit Sharma, Sherfane Rutherford, Suryakumar Yadav, Anmolpreet Singh, Chris Lynn, Saurabh Tiwary, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jasprit Bumrah, Mitchell McClenaghan, Rahul Chahar, Trent Boult, Mohsin Khan, Prince Balwant Rai Singh, Digvijay Deshmukh, Hardik Pandya, Jayant Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Anukul Roy, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Ishan Kishan, Quinton de Kock, Aditya Tare. Royal Challengers Bangalore Virat Kohl-led Royal Challengers Bangalore who are still in pursuit of their first title win have a purse balance of Rs 6.4 crore. Squad: Virat Kohli, Moeen Ali, Yuzvendra Chahal, AB de Villiers, Parthiv Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Pawan Negi, Umesh Yadav, Gurkeerat Mann, Devdutt Padikkal, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Navdeep Saini, Aaron Finch, Chris Morris, Joshua Philippe, Kane Richardson, Pavan Deshpande, Dale Steyn, Shahbaz Ahamad, Isuru Udana Kolkata Knight Riders The two-time winners Kolkata Knight Riders have a purse balance of Rs 8.5 crore. KKR appointed Eoin Morgan as the news captain of the side earlier. Squad: Andre Russell, Dinesh Karthik, Harry Gurney, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Nitish Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Rinku Singh, Sandeep Warrier, Shivam Mavi, Shubman Gill, Siddhesh Lad, Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Eoin Morgan, Varun Chakravarthy, Tom Banton, Rahul Tripathi, Chris Green, M Siddharth, Praveen Tambe, Nikhil Naik Delhi Capitals The 2020 finalist Delhi Capitals had a decent run in the last season and would seek to get their hands on the trophy for the first time in 2021 edition. DC who is led by Shreyas iyer has Rs 9 crore in their purse. Squad: Shreyas Iyer, Prithvi Shaw, Ajinkya Rahane, Shikhar Dhawan, Daniel Sams, Ishant Sharma, Amit Mishra, Avesh Khan, Sandeep Lamichhane, Kagiso Rabada, Keemo Paul, Mohit Sharma, Lalit Yadav, Axar Patel, Harshal Patel, R Ashwin, Marcus Stoinis, Anrich Nortje, Rishabh Pant, Alex Carey, Shimron Hetmyer, Tushar Deshpande Kings XI Punjab Kings XI Punjab have might have some big names in their ranks but haven’t been much impressive in the IPL. They presently have Rs 16.5 crore as their purse balance. Squad: KL Rahul (c), Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Karun Nair, Sarfaraz Khan, Mandeep Singh, Sheldon Cottrell, Ishan Porel, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Arshdeep Singh, Hardus Viljoen, M Ashwin, J Suchith, Harpreet Brar, Darshan Nalkande, Glenn Maxwell, James Neesham, Chris Jordan, Krishnappa Gowtham, Deepak Hooda, Tajinder Singh Dhillon, Nicholas Pooran, Prabhsimran Singh Sunrisers Hyderabad Sunrisers Hyderabad who were crowned champions in 2016 have Rs 10.1 Crore in their purse. Captain David Warner has said that Kane Williamson is not leaving the team for now. Squad: Kane Williamson, David Warner, Manish Pandey, Virat Singh, Priyam Garg, Abdul Samad, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Sandeep Sharma, Siddharth Kaul, Billy Stanlake, T Natarajan, Abhishek Sharma, Shahbaz Nadeem, Jason Holder, Fabian Allen, Vijay Shankar, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Sanjay Yadav, Jonny Bairstow, Wriddhiman Saha, Shreevats Goswami, Bavanaka Sandeep, Basil Thampi Rajasthan Royals The inaugural edition’s champions Rajasthan Royals have 14.75 Crore. Squad: Mahipal Lomror, Manan Vohra, Riyan Parag, Steve Smith, Robin Uthappa, David Miller, Ankit Rajpoot, Mayank Markande, Jofra Archer, Shreyas Gopal, Varun Aaron, Jaydev Unadkat, Kartik Tyagi, Akash Singh, Oshane Thomas, Andrew Tye, Ben Stokes, Rahul Tewatia, Shashank Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Anirudha Joshi, Tom Curran, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson, Anuj Rawat