IND vs WI | 3rd ODI: Pacers rip through West Indies batting unit to push visitors on back foot

PSL 2022 | Islamabad United vs Quetta Gladiators | Match 18 Preview, Predictions, Fantasy XI

Islamabad United have sitting pretty at the 2nd spot in the points table after having registered three wins in five matches.

AUS vs SL | 1st T20I: Zampa, Hazlewood give Australia positive start

Australia defeated Sri Lanka by 20 runs (D/L method) after restricting them to 122/8 in 19 overs while chasing 143 in Sydney. The visitors never really looked in control after Adam Zampa and Josh Hazlewood ripped apart the Sri Lankan batting order. The two bowlers shared a total of 7 wickets among themselves. The visiting team suffered an early blow and lost wickets at regular intevrals during the course of the innings to get reduced to 90/7 before eventually losing the game. Dinesh Chandimal tried to chip in with a few runs as he remained unbeaten at 25 off 16 but couldn't take his team over the line. Hazlewood returned with figures of 4/12 in 4 overs while Zampa picked up three wickets for 18 runs in 4 overs. Earlier, Australia started off the batting in a decent manner as they were 80/2 but Inglis' departure in 11th wicket was follwed by a few more wickets as the hosts were 107/5 at one stage. It was then Stoinis who took the onus on himself and made a valuable contribution to help his team put 149/9 in 20 overs. He scored 30 off 17. Binura Fernando was the pick of the bowlers for Sri Lanka as he picked up two wickets for 12 runs in 4 overs.

KL Rahul, Axar Patel ruled out of T20I series against West Indies

India limited-overs vice captain KL Rahul and all-rounder Axar Patel have been ruled out of the T20I series against West Indies. "Vice-captain KL Rahul and all-rounder Axar Patel have been ruled out of the upcoming three-match T20I series against the West Indies to be played in Kolkata from 16th February, 2022," a BCCI statement read. "Rahul sustained an upper left hamstring strain during fielding in the 2nd ODI on 9th February 2022 while Axar has resumed the final stage of his rehabilitation after recently recovering from Covid-19. They will now head to the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru for further management of their injury," the statement added. India’s T20I squad: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Surya Kumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Ravi Bishnoi, Yuzvendra Chahal, Washington Sundar, Mohd. Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Deepak Hooda.

Ricky Ponting highlights similarities between Rishabh Pant with Adam Gilchrist

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting drew a similarity between two aggressive left-handed batters, namely, Rishabh Pant and legendary wicketkeeper-batsman Adam Gilchrist. Ever since Pant burst onto the international stage, his comparison with Gilchrist often emerged as fans and pundits started associating the wicket-keepers for their wide similarities. Interestingly, both Pant and Gilchrist are famous for their aggressive strokeplay, taking bowlers to the cleaners right from the word go. However, the youngster is still far away from reaching extraordinary standards set by Gilchrist and still has a lot of work to do on bettering his wicket-keeping skills. Having seen Pant from close quarters as his coach at Delhi Capitals (DC), Ponting did not hold himself back from comparing the 24-year-old southpaw with his former teammate. However, he mentioned that both the cricketers are quite different in their personalities. "Yeah, [they are] a little bit the same. I know Rishabh's really burst onto the scene, but let's just let him play his 50-60 Test matches first before we start making comparisons to one of the all-time great wicket-keeper batters," Ponting was quoted as saying on ‘The ICC Review’. "But if you think about their personalities, Rishabh Pant is a lot more outward, a lot louder, a lot noisier and ultra-competitive. Gilly was ultra-competitive as well, but a lot quieter and reserved, until he got his bat in his hand and then he became exactly the same as Rishabh,” he added. Sharing an anecdote, Ponting further stated how Gilchrist had his own method of batting. Ponting revealed how the former Aussie gloveman did exactly the opposite of what he suggested. "You couldn't try and tell him [Gilchrist] how to play. I remember having a conversation with him late in a Test match at the SCG against Pakistan. He and I were batting, so we must have been four or five down, maybe just three overs left in the day, of which Danish Kaneria had to bowl two of them - and he was bowling around the wicket to Gilly into the big footmarks with a long-on and deep mid-wicket," the two-time world cup-winning captain said. "So I went down to him and said, ‘Look, let’s just get through tonight, we have a beautiful batting day tomorrow, this wicket’s going to be good. There’s a new ball around the corner, so just get through,” the DC coach continued. Adding further, the cricketer-turned-commentator and coach highlighted how Gilchrist managed to survive the day not by defending but with his swashbuckling shots. "Next ball, he ran down the wicket, it landed in the footmark and he hit it over Long-On’s head for six, and I thought, ‘Well, it doesn’t matter. It’s no good me talking to him because he is not listening’. But he got through the night, I don’t know how he did, but he got through those few overs and went in and cashed in the next day," the Aussie mentioned. Ponting reiterated Pant's similarity with Gilchrist when it comes to his approach while batting. "Rishabh will be exactly the same. If you look at Rishabh - I am not sure how many Test hundreds he's got - but he has a few 90s in there. And he's actually got out trying to bring up his hundred with a six. That's the good and the bad, right?" Ponting concluded.