Harmanpreet Kaur tests negative for COVID-19

The conversation is still very open: Mark Boucher on AB de Villiers' international return

RCB batsman Ab de Villiers showed some form during the opening match of the IPL 2021 between Bangalore and Mumbai Indians where he played a match-winning knock. Struggling at 106/5 while chasing 160, ABD took charge of the situation in his hands and scored 48 off just 27. RCB eventually won the match by 2 wickets. There have been talks about the right-handed batsman’s return to the South African setup for the upcoming World T20 scheduled to take place in India later this year. Now coach Mark Boucher in an online press conference has talked about the progress of having ABD back in the side. "I chatted to him before he went over to the [Indian Premier League]. The conversation is still very open. AB being the person he is, he wanted to perform very well at the IPL to prove to himself and everyone else that he's still a key figure in world cricket and can dominate at that level. I said to him, 'You go do your thing and I'll give you a shout towards the end of the IPL and see where you are,” Boucher said. AB last played a T20I match for South Africa against Bangladesh in 2017 while hung his boots from the international cricket in 2018. "After 114 Tests, 228 ODIs, 78 T20Is. It is time for others to take over,” he the said.

IPL 2021: Yudhvir Charak recalls the moment when he was picked in the auction

Defending champions of IPL Mumbai Indians have always banked on their young players besides having a core group of Indian and international superstars. Over the years their scouting process has been quite exceptional which have helped them nourish some young names which have benefited Indian cricket in the long run. In the February Auctions, Mumbai Indians picked some young which included the 23-year-old bowling all-rounder Yudhvir Singh Charak. Hailing from Jammu and Kashmir, Yudhvir Charak plies his trade for Hyderabad in the domestic circuit. During a recent video posted by the Mumbai Indians on their official Twitter handle, Yudhvir Charak speaks about how life has changed after the IPL Auctions. He recalled the fact that all his family members saw the auction together and he knew his name would only come towards the latter half. When the Director of Cricket Operations of MI, Zaheer Khan bid for him, tears started rolling down his cheek as it was a huge moment for the youngster to get the opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the greats of the game. “I was watching the auction for a while. I knew if my name would come up it would come last, if not then so be it. I was sitting with all my family members watching…. And then when my name came up and when Zak sir raised the paddle tears started flowing down my eyes. I cannot express how unbelievable that feeling was. Playing for MI is a big deal for me and for my state as well. Lots of hope and aspirations are on my shoulders that I play matches and do well. Take our state Jammu and Kashmir to new heights” Charak said during the video interview. Meanwhile, team manager Rahul Sanghvi stated that MI are known to pick uncapped players in the auctions and it was no different this time around. Both Yudhvir Charak and Arjun Tendulkar was part of MI’s support bowlers in the previous IPL in UAE and for them to get an opportunity in the main team is indeed a big moment. Sanghvi further explained that the coaches felt that both Yudhvir and Arjun Tendulkar were ready to take the roles which they were thinking at and hence they picked both of them in the auction. Speaking on the same Charak said, “Last year also I was with the team. Then I was a support bowler and I got an opportunity to learn so much which eventually helped me in the improvement of my game in the next domestic season. So I am very happy that this time I am picked in the main team. Meanwhile, Director of Cricket Operations, Zaheer Khan also reiterated the fact that MI followed their tradition in picking Yudhvir Charak in the auctions. He further explained that Mumbai Indians has been a breeding ground for any young cricketers who have been part of the franchise and it should be no different with Charak. He wished them luck and also encouraged them to enjoy the atmosphere of the IPL. Speaking about his opportunity at the highest level, Yudhvir Charak expressed his excitement and said that this is just the start of his cricketing career at the highest level. “This is the start of my career, I mean at the high level. There are several great players in this team from whom I can learn a lot from. Coaches are really good here. Most of all I want to do well for my team. They have picked me for a reason so I want to perform the best for my team be it batting, bowling or fielding. So I want to perform to the best of my capabilities and learn from this team as much as possible because this is the best team in the IPL, they have been 5-time champions and so there will be a lot to learn from this experience,” Charak added.

Hanuma Vihari endures horrible duck on county debut after one-handed catch in field

Indian batsman Hanuma Vihari, who has gone to play county cricket this seasons to finetune his technique, was given the first set of warning on what the series against England could offer. He was given the number three slot ot bat by the Warwickshire county club in the game against Nottinghamshire being played in Nottingham. His chance to bat cam pretty quickly in the second over itself when Robert Yates was edged behind off the bowling of Zak Chappell. He struggled against the accuracy of both Chappell and Stuart Broad— whom he would face a lot of time during the five-match Test series against England later in September. He spent 40 minutes at the crease but could not open his account and Broad sent him back with a fuller delivery that shaped away and took his edge to Haseeb Hameed in the second slip. Before his dismissal for o, the first day in County cricket was not too bad for Vihari. He took a splendid one-handed catch diving backwards to dismiss Nottinghamshire skipper Steven Mullaney off the bowling of Will Rhodes. Warwickshire dismissed Nottinghamshire for 273 runs on the first day of their second game this season and in reply, the Warcks are 81/3 on the second day.

Ben Stokes out of action for up to 12 weeks with index finger fracture, to undergo surgery

Ben Stokes has been ruled out of action for a period up to 12 weeks after a repeat X-ray and CT scan done on April 15 revealed a fracture of his left index finger. Following the confirmation of fracture, Stokes who is in India for the 14th edition of IPL will head back to England and will undergo surgery on April 19. Notably, Stokes had injured his hand while attempting to catch off mishit from the bat of the Punjab Kings batsman Chris Gayle. He was ruled out of the tournament the next day but the extent of his injury was not clear. “England all-rounder Ben Stokes will be out for up to 12 weeks after a repeat X-ray and CT scan on Thursday revealed that he has a fracture of his left index finger. Stokes, who is currently in India with Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League, will fly home tomorrow. He will have surgery in Leeds on Monday,” the ECB said. Stokes’ injury has come as a killer blow to the Rajasthan Royals who are already without Jofra SArcher for the first half of the IPL 2021. The finger injury and subsequent surgery will also put him out of the Test series against New Zealand which he could have missed anyway if his IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals would have made it to the final rounds of the tournament.