Hyderabad proud of Mohammed Siraj’s brilliant India debut

Sixers vs Stars: Captain Daniel Hughes shines as Sixers win last ball thriller

Daniel Hughes probably played the innings of his lifetime, ably supported by luck as Sydney Sixers beat the arch-rivals Melbourne Stars in what was a repeat of last year’s big bash league finals. Hughes, coming in at number four played the captain’s knock as he scored 96 off 51 balls with the help of seven sixes and six boundaries. He nearly took the team, which was chasing a total of 194 and required 20 from the last over, on a somewhat two-paced track, home, before getting out with four runs still required with two balls remaining. Maxwell then darted in a yorker to number 10 Steve O’Keefe, which hit him on the legs and deflected past the wicketkeeper Ben Dunk for a four to the third man boundary. Liam Hatcher and the brilliant 19th over The match was well and truly in the grasp of Melbourne by the end of the 16th over when the Sixers required 52 runs off the last four and a new man in Carlos Brathwaite was in with Hughes having lost the early shine and wasn’t able to connect the shots too well. However, a nine over off Zahir Khan, followed by a 20 run over off Zampa meant that Sixers were within touching distance of getting to the win, with a well and truly set Brathwaittte sizing up an inexperienced Hatcher in the nineteenth over with 23 required from two. However, it was Hatcher who was on top of the game as he pulled out a rabbit from the hat to bowl one of the best 19th overs in the BBL so far under pressure, giving away just three runs and picking two crucial wickets of Brathwaite and Ben Dwarshus. However, that could not be of any good as Nathan Coulter Nile’s injury meant that Maxwell, the skipper took it upon himself to defend 20 off teh last over. Critics will point out that he could have gone for the all-rounder Hilton Cartwright or the more established bowler Zahir Khan who had one over left, but in the end, a decision was made and was backed by Maxwell, although it didn’t go in his favour. Misfields proved too costly for the Stars The stars were not at their usual best as their ground fielding was probably the worst today, missing four boundaries, which could have been easily curtailed to single or a double. Initially, it was Nicholas Pooran, Nick Larkin as a substitute with the mistakes, in the finals, over going for a catch, hatcher conceded a costly boundary as well. In hindsight, it proved a lot problematic for the visitors. The Big Show of Pooran and Maxwell Earlier in the day, Stars had started their innings on a really slow note, losing opener Andre Fletcher in the first over itself. The innings was slow that even after the end of teh 8th over, the Maxwell led side were at 49-4. But it was only after this that the team’s fortunes took a 360-degree turn with the skipper and Pooran combining to give the spectators a splendid sight to witness with the ball flying all across the Carrara Oval in Brisbane. Their 125 run stand in just 58 balls meant that Stars got to a total of 193-5, which never looked possible. Pooran got out at the end of the 18th over having scored 65 off 26 balls with the help of two fours and eight sixes at a strike rate of 250. Maxwell, on the other hand, remained not out on 71 of 47 balls, but could only score 10 in the last over, a bit of disappointment after the fireworks ahead of it.

India walk redemption path after Adelaide debacle; Batsmen not looking too far ahead

When Indian pacers were extracting the good amount of help from the first-day pitch at the MCG, experts on air were constantly arguing if India did not start on a disadvantageous note by not batting first, and that ‘it was a good toss to lose.’ In the hindsight, it might have been true as well as India got time away from the filed with the bat in hand after the debacle on the third day morning in Adelaide, and instead got the opportunity to put the pressure on Australian bowling line up. A lot of speculations were made about the captaincy style of Ajinkya Rahane, who for the first time in his career, is set to lead the side for three consecutive matches. It was believed that Rahane was not risk-averse and that when presented with a situation of a dilemma on whether to take the aggressive or defensive route out of a problem, he has the habit of taking the bull by its horns. He was showing the heart for a fight against an Australian side who was jumping in joy by dismissing them to their lowest score in Tests in the last match, by playing five bowlers-- a move that showed he was willing to move on from the Adelaide collapse which Virat Kohli had labelled as the ‘worst collapse ever seen.’ But, the real test was waiting for Rahane the captain while on the filed on the first day. Jasprit Bumrah got India off to a brilliant start while Umesh Yadav too did not bowl badly in his initials spell. Surprisingly in a move, that sent many experts into a frenzy, Rahane brought Ashwin when the ball was relatively new, instead of debutant Mohammed Siraj. The decision looked out of place, but for Rahane, it did not lack vision. Ashwin heard the clarion call and dismissed Mathew Wade and the big fish Steve Smith to vindicate his captain’s move. Rahane proved he could see what others were missing in that plot and that it was not purely an instinctive decision but a rational one looking at the moisture present on the pitch. “When we were bowling in the morning there was some moisture on the wicket, so you saw Ashwin and Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja) got some spin. Because we wanted to make the most of the moisture, we were trying to use them, he (Ashwin) was getting good bounce,” Jasprit Bumrah said in the virtual press conference after the end of first day’s play. While the pitch was offering a fair bit of assistance for the bowlers and the real challenge was in and around off stump for the batsmen, Indians were able to scalp out to big bulls of the Australian batting line up-- Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith. Smith was brilliantly lured by Ashwin by a delivery that was pitched on the off stump while Labuschagne too was lured by delivery on the straighter line by Siraj. The wicket of Labuschange could be attributed to a false shot by the batsman, but Bumrah refuted to accept that the wicket was not a result of the plan B that the team adopted after batting got better in the middle session. “There were constant discussions going on between bowlers and the captain. The wicket changed after the first session. It got better to bat on in the second session and moisture went away. We were just trying to communicate what kind of lines we wanted to bowl so that we can set the field accordingly. When there was less help, we tried to change the line accordingly,” Bumrah added on why India had fielder in the leg slip/gully position where Labuschagne was caught by debutant Shubman Gill handing another debutant Mohammed Siraj his maiden Test wicket. Siraj got Labuschagne at the start of his second spell and was bowling well for a bowler playing his first match and for the most part of the first day, he outbowled the senior pacer in the group-- Umesh Yadav. He was incisive and bowled with good control. The over he set up Cameron Green showed he belonged to the level of Test cricket and his excellent first day on the filed was not lost on his senior and most important member of the bowling line up. “He has worked really hard and come up the ranks. He was eager to bowl in the first session itself. There wasn’t a lot happening after lunch and he (Siraj) bowled with a lot of control,” Bumrah said. “Suddenly he started getting some movement and wanted to make the best of it. Playing his first Test match, he bowled really well and had the confidence of using all his skills. It’s a heartening sign for us and hopefully, he will continue doing that,” Bumrah spoke highly of Siraj. After dismissing the home side on 195, India had to bat a total of eight overs towards the end of the play, and the opener Mayank Agarwal and the debutant Gill had their task cut out against the likes of Cummins and Starc with the new ball. Unfortunately for India, Agarwal could not handle te fiery first over off Starc and was found late on a ball that moved back towards stumps from the stump line. Ironically, India finished the day on 36-- a score that would haunt them till the time the team reach another historic low, but the story was quite different this time around as India have their nose ahead in the game with Gill looking composed and not batting under pressure by the looks of it and Pujara looking to hold one end. The batting line up would be under some pressure to avoid another Adelaide like debacle with the bat, after being in such a leading position in the game, but Bumrah said that the team would not be mentally constrained for the failures they had in the first Test. He reaffirmed the stance that Virat Kohli had taken after the loss in Adelaide, but said that the team is not looking too far ahead but they will not lag in confidence while facing the pace trio of Cummins, Starc and Hazlewood on the day two of the Boxing Day Test. “We don’t want to be conservative in our mindset and be positive. Control the controllables. Not being reckless but playing with confidence will be the motive going forward. We are trying to focus on things that are in our hands. The focus will be on the first session tomorrow,” Bumrah stated. The batting unit should put the failure behind them and remind themselves that if they can play sessions by sessions and as per their potential, they can leave the hosts way behind in the game on the second day itself, but a collapse of any sort can bring the hosts back in the game, and for that, they will have to be watchful as well.

Match Preview: Distraught Heat face in-form Hurricanes in must-win game

Brisbane Heat have lost all their matches so far in the 10th edition of the Big Bash League (BBL). The situation is likely to get tougher as they now will face the team which is sitting pretty close to the top of the standings currently - Hobart Hurricanes. What would make the match even tougher for the Brisbane side is the challenge of getting over the hearbreak they suffered in their last match - against Adelaide Strikers - where, after a splendid comeback from a hopeless situation, they ended up losing by just two runs. But that ins't all! Heat suffered another major setback in the lead up to the last game when their captain Chriss Lynn ended up hurting his hamstring. He had to miss that match and isn't likely to come back any time soon. The clash of these two teams - at the opposing ends of the points table - promises to be an exciting contest, despite the big discrepancy in their performances so far. Heat Looking to Get Off the Mark Brisbane Heat is lying at the bottom of the table as of now. If they have to keep their chances of qualifying for the playoffs alive, they have to start winning. However, as of now, they have several issues to sort out. Their batting is not firing and their best player in this department - captian Chris Lynn - is out as well. New captain Jimmy Peirson played an astonishing innings in the last match but he would need support from the top order. Nobody except Lynn and Peirson has got a good score under their belt this season. This has to change if Heat want to move up the ladder. Interestingly, Brisbane's bowling is looking good. Xavier Bartlett and Jack Wildermuth have both bowled reasonably well. Mark Steketee also hasn't been bad. Mujeeb-Ur-Rahman, who shone with the bat in the last game, is their trump card and could make the difference with the ball. Hurricanes Seek Perfection Despite being very close to the top of the table, Hobart Hurricanes have room for improvement. To begin with, their bowling is looking over-reliant on James Faulkner and Scott Boland. In fact, Boland has also discovered his form in the last two games. Nathan Ellis, who made a big impression last year hasn't shone in this season, so far, while Riley Meredith is also yet to have a good, decent set of figures under his belt in the current edition. South Africa's former international Johan Botha is in the squad but whether he plays or not depends on the conditions. However, with there not being much contribution from Ellis or Meredith, he might be picked ahead of them. West Indian Keemo Paul hasn't had a good start to the season. But having invested in him, the team is likely to persist with the pacer. The batting department gets a huge boost with the arrival of Dawid Malan - the best batsman in world T20I cricket presently, according to the rankings. With Colin Ingram, D'Arcy Short, and Ben McDermott already in good form, Malan's entry would make the batting even more strengthened. Hurricanes vs Heat: Match Details Venue: Gabba, Brisbane Date and Time: December 27, 1:45 PM IST, 7:15 PM Local, 8:15 AM GMT Broadcasters: Sony Sports Network, Sony LIV Pitch Report Brisbane is traditionally a venue providing assistance to pacers. However, in its first match of the season, both Danny Briggs and Rashid Khan looked deadly. This may suggest that either the surface is dry or slow. Johan Botha may be brought into the team by Hurricanes. Weather and Toss The skies are expected to be clear but with the occassional cloud making its way across. The temperatures would be around 22 degrees, making the evening comfortable for players. Toss would not be that important and won't be affected by weather. Probable XIs Brisbane Heat: Sam Heazlett, Max Bryant, Simon Milenko, Dan Lawrence, Jimmy Peirson (C and Wk), Tom Cooper, Jack Wildermuth, Mark Steketee, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Xavier Bartlett, Ben Laughlin Hobart Hurricanes: D'Arcy Short, Will Jacks, Ben McDermott (Wk), Dawid Malan, Peter Handscomb (C), Colin Ingram, Tim David, James Faulkner, Johan Botha, Keemo Paul, Scott Boland

BBL 10 | Thunder vs Renegades: Sydney's power-packed performances blow off Melbourne

The Sydney Thunder made light work of the batting lineup of the Melbourne Renegades and handed a massive defeat by 129 runs in the 14th match of the Big Bash League. The Thunders were in supreme form in Canberra and put out complete team performances in all the departments of the game, and left the Renegades toothless in chase of a big score. For the Thunder, the stars of the show were leg spinner Tanveer Sangha, who took four wickets for only 14 runs in his 3.2 over bowling efforts and Oliver Davies who blasted 48 runs off 23 balls to keep the momentum going for the Thunder. The Renegades were given a steep target of 209 runs to chase, and the experienced opener Shaun Marsh and Aaron Finch could not get going against the opening bowling pair of Adam Milne and Daniel Sams. But, the opening big wicket of Shaun Warsh was scalped by Nathan McAndrew, who is keeping his stocks shining with every game. The next man in, Sam Harper started to get the Renegades back into the game as the duo took 13 runs off Adam Milne in the first five balls of Milne, but the Kiwi got the better of Harper on the last ball to clog back the momentum. After the end of the powerplay, Callum Fergusson introduced Tanveer Sangha and he was at the short cover to catch one of the best batsmen in the Renegades batting line up—Aaron Finch when he tried to power one shortish delivery of Sangha through the off side. Next set of batsmen Beau Webster and Rilee Rossouw tried to take the game into the Thunder camp, but it wasn’t the Renegades' night at the Manuka Oval as Sangha accounted for Webster in his next over. The problem got deeper when Chris Green got Rossouw caught slog sweeping in pursuit of a higher required run rate. The jolts were too much to handle for the Renegades and when Sangha came back to dismiss Mohammad Nabi and Green accounted for Imad Wasim, the night was set to be longer for the Renegades, who now have lost three of their four matches in the campaign this year. The men in red and black could sustain only 12.2 overs while the Thunder plundered 209 runs and it emphasized the kind of routing the team suffered in both the departments and it might have left Renegades skipper Aaron Finch booking back on his decision to field first. The Thunder were off to a splendid start as the opening pair of Alex Hales and Usman Khwaja took full toll of the listless bowling from the new ball bowlers of the Renegades. Khwaja was particularly severe on Peter Hatzoglou and took him for 6 runs to provide a rollick platform for the Thunder. Finch tried to slow down the pace of the game by introducing Imad Wasim but Hales was up to the task and sent the left-arm spinner for long journeys over the fence. By the end of the powerplay, the Thunder were already at 50/0 and both Hales and Khwaja were looking in devastating form. By the time Khwaja was sent back to the pavilion courtesy a screamer by Zak Evans at the end of the sixth over, the Thunder were already at a dictating position of 71/1. Hales quickly followed Khwaja to the dugout but the next man in, Oliver Davies was looking in menacing form and treated all Renegades bowlers with disdain. He smashed four sixes off Mohammad Nabi and when Finch brought Will Sutherland to check his hitting, he too was greeted with a big hit over the midwicket fence. However, the right armer got the better of Davies on the third ball of his third over with a searing yorker. On the other end, Callum Ferguson struggled to get going and could only score at a strike rate of 100 runs per balls, but Daile Sams and Nathan McAndrew made sure that the Thunder finished strongly with the bat. Kane Richardson tried to bring momentum in Renegades' favour as three wickets fell in the 19th over, but McAndrew came hard at Zak Evans to slog him for three sixes to lead the Thunder past 200-mark which ultimately proved too steep for the Renegades to reach. On the back of this one-sided win, the Thunder has surged to the top of the points table with three wins out of four games while the Renegades have been relegated to the bottom half of the points table.