Danish Kaneria raps Arjuna Ranatunga for 'second-string' India remark, points Sri Lanka's decline

India vs England Test series to be played with capacity crowd at grounds

The five-match Test series between India and England scheduled to begin on August 4 in Nottingham will be played in front of a packed crowd. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson had announced the lifting of restrictions related to Covid-19. The final of the World Test Championship between India and New Zealand in Southampton was played in front of a limited crowd. While the first match takes place in Nottingham, the sides will then move to London to play the second encounter which begins on August 12. The third (starting from August 25) and fourth Test (slated to begin on September 2) will be held at Headingley and Kennington Oval respectively while the final match will be played in Manchester which commences on September 10. The Indian team is likely to play a couple of tour games ahead of the series. The England and Wales Cricket Board had agreed to BCCI’s request of having one or two warm-up matches before the series begins. India’s squad: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (Captain), Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), R. Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohd. Shami, Md. Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, KL Rahul (subject to fitness clearance), Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper; subject to fitness clearance). Standby players: Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan, Arzan Nagwaswalla

Shakib looks hungry to play Test cricket: Bangladesh coach Russell Domingo

Shakib Al Hasan, who is returning to Test cricket for the first time since January this year, seemed to have impressed coach Russell Domingo who praised the player’s hunger to play in the longest format of the game. “Shakib looks hungry to play Test cricket again. And this is the thing with the big players, their desire and attitude when they play Test cricket is an asset,” Domingo said in a video uploaded by BCB’s official Twitter handle. “He balances the side. He bast in the top six and is a frontline bowler and that’s what any international team is looking at. He has brought in really good energy and it’s really nice to have him back,” the coach added about the all-rounder. Domingo, who has spent a lot of time in Zimbabwe with the South Africa A side feels that the Bangladesh team must be patient to be able to create chances at Harare. “Patience is very important while playing in Harare. I have been here a few times and the scoring rate is not going to be very high It’s going to be a patient game, whether you are batting or bowling, you got to maintain pressure for a long time,” he said. The 46-year-old, whose contract was renewed by the BCB till the upcoming T20- World Cup, also warned his team to not let chances go begging as they come very hard in Test cricket and especially on this Harare wicket. “It’s not going to be like you can run through the batting lineup or score 350 runs in a day. Now we know that we have our work cut out for the next few days. Chances do not come around very often on these surfaces and when they do come, we have to make sure that we hold on to them,” Domingo said. It has been seven years since a Bangladeshi fast bowler took a five-wicket haul in Test cricket, the last one being Robiul Islam, who took a five-wicket haul on the 2013 tour of Zimbabwe. He went on to become Player of the Series for his 15 wickets in the two matches. But ever since then, it has been a hard toil for Bangladeshi pacers. Domingo however believes that the days are not far when a fast bowler would win a game for Bangladesh once again in Test cricket. “The fast bowlers have been working hard with Otis [Gibson] and they never shy away from putting in the hard yard. The success has bit really shown though they have been putting in a lot of effort. But I am sure we are not far away when one of the fast bowlers would win us a Test in tough conditions,” the coach said. Bangladesh plays a solitary Test starting July 7 on their tour of Zimbabwe where they will play three ODIs and three T20Is as well.

I haven’t yet retired from T20Is: Lasith Malinga rubbishes claims of mentoring LPL side

Sri Lanka speedster Lasith Malinga has rubbished claims of being in touch with any franchise of the Lankan Premier League for a mentorship role, saying that he hasn’t even retired from T20I cricket. The Mumbai Indians legend took to Twitter to quash all rumours. “A false statement has been circulating saying that I’ll be joining the upcoming LPL series as a mentor. No discussion has been made with any official authorities as of now, since I haven’t yet retired from national T20 cricket,” Malinga tweeted through his official handle. A veteran of 294 T20s, 84 of which are international games for his nation, the 37-year-old has also been a T20 World Cup-winning skipper when Sri Lanka won the 2014 T20 World Cup beating India in Bangladesh. However, over the past few years, he hasn’t been in the touch that he used to and in fact, hasn’t played any competitive game ever since the last of the two T20Is against West Indies at Pallekelle on March 6 in 2020. Earlier this year, the Galle born had announced his retirement from franchise cricket after quitting Mumbai Indians as a player. The second edition of the LPL is slated to start on July 30. However, not much detail has been revealed about the tournament as of now.

Different kind of mazaa: Prithvi Shaw relishes opportunity to reunite with U-19 coach Rahul Dravid

India’s opening batter Prithvi Shaw is excited to be reunited with his U-19 coach Rahul Dravid, who is now on national duty as coach of the Indian white-ball side which is touring Sri Lanka. The Delhi Capitals opener feels that talking with and playing under the guidance of the Indian legend is a different kind of mazaa (enjoyment) in itself. “There is a different kind of mazaa (enjoyment) playing under Rahul sir. He was our India under-19 coach. The way he speaks, the way he shares his coaching experience, is just amazing,” Prithvi was quoted as saying to Indian Express in an interview. “Whenever he talks about the game, it shows how much experience he brings to the table. He knows everything about cricket. The way he speaks on conditions and how to use them is just out of this world,” added the 21-year-old who won a U-19 World Cup as a captain under Dravid’ guidance in 2018. Looking to share dressing room space with Dravid, Prithvi, who has so far played five Tests and three ODIs for India, is looking for an opportunity to cement his place in the Indian set-up as well. “On this tour, I just have to grab the opportunity. I was desperate to get back into the Indian team. I have always kept the team above me. Be it India, Ranji Trophy team, club or my school team. I want to give my best,” said Prithvi.