IND vs SL | First T20I between India & Sri Lanka to be played without spectators

The first T20I between India and Sri Lanka scheduled to take place in Lucknow on Thursday will be played without spectators in view of Covid-19 protocol, as per a report in The Times of India.

The Indian team will arrive at the venue on Monday while the Lankan Lions will reach on Tuesday. Cricketer Akshdeep Nath admitted that precautions are necessary in these times.

“If we want matches to continue, we will have to take precautions,” he said.

The home side will be led by Rohit Sharma while Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant have been rested from the T20Is against Sri Lanka. Team India is coming into the series on the back of a whitewash 3-0 win against West Indies at home.

Sri Lanka who announced the squad on Monday suffered a defeat in the recently-concluded T20I series against Australia. They were thumped 1-4 in a five-match tie.

India’s T20I Squad:

Rohit Sharma (Captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Surya Kumar Yadav, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Deepak Hooda, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Jasprit Bumrah (vice-captain), Avesh Khan

Sri Lanka's T20I Squad:

Dasun Shanaka (C), Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka (VC), Dinesh Chandimal, Danushka Gunathilaka, Kamil Mishara, Janith Liyanage, Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Lahiru Kumara, Binura Fernando, Shiran Fernando, Maheesh Theekshana, Jeffrey Vandersay, Praveen Jayawickrama, Ashian Daniel (subjected to Ministerial approval)

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Former cricketers slam journalist for misbehaving with Wriddhiman Saha

India wicket-keeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha has got support from the cricket fraternity after he posted a screenshot of a chat where a journalist had misbehaved with him for not giving an interview. "After all of my contributions to Indian cricket..this is what I face from a so called “Respected” journalist! This is where the journalism has gone," Saha had tweeted without revealing the name of the journalist. Now former players including Virender Sehwag, RP Singh, Harbhajan Singh and former head coach Ravi Shastri have come in Saha's support. "Wridhi you just name the person so that the cricket community knows who operates like this. Else even the good ones will be put under suspicion.. What kind of journalism is this ? @BCCI @Wriddhipops @JayShah @SGanguly99 @ThakurArunS players should be protected," Harbhajan tweeted. "Shocking a player being threatened by a journo. Blatant position abuse. Something that's happening too frequently with #TeamIndia. Time for the BCCI PREZ to dive in. Find out who the person is in the interest of every cricketer. This is serious coming from ultimate team man WS," Shastri wrote in a tweet. Saha was earlier dropped from the squad for the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka.

Australia expected to tour Pakistan without a specialist spin coach

A Cricket Australia (CA) spokesperson meanwhile has said to Cricbuzz that they've been in talks with former New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori to take up the role on an interim basis. But with only a few days left for the team to depart for the historic tour, it seems uncertain that a deal can be cracked in time.

Sri Lanka announce squad for T20I series against India

Sri Lanka have announced the squad for the T20Is against India. The side would be led by Dasun Shanaka while Charith Asalanka will be his deputy. Three players, Avishka Fernando, Nuwan Thushara, and Ramesh Mendis who were on the tour of Australia will return to Sri Lanka due to injuries. While Sri Lanka will be coming into this series after suffering a thumping defeat against Australia. The Lankan Lions lost the five-match series 1-4 away from home India on the other hand, etched a clean sweep win against West Indies at home. The first T20I of the three-match series will be held in Lucknow on February 24, 2022. SQUAD: Dasun Shanaka (C), Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka (VC), Dinesh Chandimal, Danushka Gunathilaka, Kamil Mishara, Janith Liyanage, Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Lahiru Kumara, Binura Fernando, Shiran Fernando, Maheesh Theekshana, Jeffrey Vandersay, Praveen Jayawickrama, Ashian Daniel (Subjected to Ministerial approval)

IND vs WI | 3rd T20I : Team India complete white-wash against West Indies in T20I series

Team India extended their rich run of form under Rohit Sharma with a whitewash in the T20I series against West Indies on Sunday, following a 3-nil win in the ODI series. The hosts asserted their dominance over the Caribbean side throughout the entirety of this tour, Asked to bat first, India went in with a new opening pair of Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan. Skipper Rohit Sharma demoted himself down the order in the bid to provide youngsters with a fair chance in their favourable position. Ruturaj fell cheaply for 4 runs, while Ishan's sluggish innings ended at the score of 34. Shreyas Iyer adopted an attacking style of play and seemed in control of the proceedings. However, he threw away his wicket to keep up with the scoring rate and played a handy 25-run cameo. Rohit, who was not batting on his preferred slot, looked out of sorts throughout his innings, which eventually ended on 7 runs. India suddenly found themselves reeling at 93/4 with Suryakumar Yadav and Venkatesh Iyer still batting. Their partnership changed the course of the game as the two cricketers started owning the opposition's bowlers. Shots at all parts of the ground, 360° batting was the highlight of the death overs as India finished their quota of 20 overs, scoring 184 runs. Suryakumar scored 65 off just 31 deliveries and Venkatesh smashed 35 runs in 19 balls. As West Indies came out to bat, their openers just like the whole series left their team under pressure. Kyle Mayers and Shai Hope could not do much as the 'Men in Maroon' lost two wickets for 26 runs, courtesy of Deepak Chahar's early burst. In-form Nicholas Pooran and Rovman Powell tried to repair the damage through aggressive strokeplay. Powell did nail a few hits but got out at the score of 25. West Indies could not recover from their thereon as Harshal Patel, Shardul Thakur and Venkatesh Iyer claimed wickets at regular intervals in the middle overs. Romario Shepherd's firepower in the last few overs of the innings did create an artificial excitement but it was a little too late as the visitors fell shy of the target by 18 runs. With the win, India won 21 out of the 25 T20I games under the leadership of Rohit Sharma. This is also India's ninth consecutive win in T20Is, which is a record. Brief Scores: India - 184/5 in 20 overs, Suryakumar Yadav 65(31), Iyer 35*(19), Chase 1/23; beat West Indies - 167/9 in 20 overs, Pooran 61(47), Thakur 2/32, Chahar 2/15; by 10 runs.