IPL 2021 | MI vs KKR: Gambhir regrets not playing Suryakumar at number three during his captaincy

Watch | KKR coach Brendon McCullum turns professor, imparts cricket lessons on Pool table

The Kolkata Knight Riders got off to a great start in the second leg of the Indian Premier League as they defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore by nine wickets in their very first match in UAE and are now aiming to get into the top four on the points table as they face Mumbai Indians in an all-important clash on Thursday Night in Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi. To prepare his players for the match, coach Brendon McCullum chose a pool game to give important cricketing lessons to the squad. McCullum made the pool table a battleground and chose the two best pool players from the squad in West Indian Sunil Narine and his Kiwi compatriot Lockie Ferguson for the demonstration. Throughout the pool game, the 39-year-old former New Zealand skipper made his players understand as tow how they don’t have to give up the game no matter how worse the situation might get, neither do they have to relax, no matter how ahead of the game they might get. It ain’t finish till it is was the mantra that McCullum imparted through this pool table experiment. If Knight Riders manage to win their September 23rd match against the Mumbai Indians, they would get to eight points from nine games and give their chances of qualification a great boost, which at one time during the India leg of the competition seemed too bleak.

IPL 2021 | MI vs KKR: We need to comeback strong & tick those small boxes, says Rohit Sharma

Mumbai Indians will be up against Kolkata Knight Riders on Thursday in Abu Dhabi. While MI had a disappointing start to the proceedings in the second half of the IPL 2021 after they suffered a defeat against CSK by 20 runs, KKR are coming into this game on the back of a scintillating 9-wicket win over RCB. In a video posted by Mumbai Indians on social media, captain Rohit Sharma discussed the game. “I honestly don’t believe in past records because T20 is a format which depends on what happens on that particular day. You have to do your best on that particular day,” Rohit said. The right-handed batsman also put his weight behind KKR and said that they are a pretty good opposition who play good cricket. “They are a good opposition and play good cricket as a team. They would be riding high on confidence especially after the last win. So, it’s not going to be a cakewalk for us,” he added. Mumbai Indians have won 22 clashes against KKR while the Knight Riders have tasted success only 6 times. Talking about the same, Sharma admitted that they do have a good record against KKR but also added that it’s important for the side to play good cricket on the match day. “I know we have a pretty handy record against them but it’s important that we turn up really well on that particular day,” Sharma pointed. The MI skipper lavished praise on Adam Milne and said that he is in good form especially after having a good run in the tournament in the UK recently. “Adam Milne is coming from a very good tournament in the UK. He is a good bowler and bowls really fast,” the opener said. MI started off the second leg in a dismal manner and Rohit did admit that the side needs to comeback in a very strong manner. “We need to comeback strong and tick those small boxes,” he said. Mumbai Indians are presently sitting at the fourth spot in the points table with four wins and as many defeats in the 8 matches that they have played.

AUS W vs IND W | 2nd ODI: With problems aplenty, Mithali Raj’s side take field with series on line

India W0men got the worst ever hammering in recent years in the first game of the three-match series against Australia Women that started in Mackay Queensland on September 21. A nine-wicket loss even after scoring 225 given an indication of where the Indian team is bowling wise as well as batting wise. Major players like Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharm and Sneh Rana failed with the bat even as debutant Yastika Bhatia and skipper Mithali Raj tried to get stretch the innings till as much as possible. Bowling was a disaster, to say the least. However, the Indian team, if it wants to remain alive in the three-match series, and also to brighten its prospects of winning the entire tour (based on points won for each match in three series combined), this is a ‘do or die’ game. First of all, not playing Jemimah Rodrigues, who was in the form of her life during The Hundred Women’s is highly illogical. Pooja Vastrakar wasn’t in the best of the forms and India could do with two pacers only as it needs to strengthen its batting and that’s how Rodrigues comes into the picture. As far as the Aussie women are concerned, there is not a single aspect of a game that they need to improve and hence they wouldn’t really be changing anything. Australia Women vs India Women: Details Match Number- 02nd ODI Date and Time: September 24, 2021, 10:40 am IST, 15:10 pm Local, 05:10 am GMT Venue: Ray Mitchell Oval, Harrup Park, Mackay Broadcast and Live Stream in India: Sony Sports Network and Sony LIV Pitch Report As far as the first game was concerned, the pitch at Mackay was fast and bouncy and with a strip of light grass left on it, it did give a hard time for the team batting first. The same could be expected in this game as well. Weather Forecast and Toss According to the Australian Government Bureau of Meteorology, the weather at Mackay will remain partly cloudy throughout the day. Light easterly winds blowing at 15 to 25 km/h would support the swing bowlers in the noon, but as time passes, it would slow down. A skipper winning the toss should undoubtedly choose to bowl first. Probable XI Australia Women Rachael Haynes, Alyssa Healy (wk), Meg Lanning (c), Ellyse Perry, Beth Mooney, Ashleigh Gardner, Sophie Molineux, Georgia Wareham, Darcie Brown, Hannah Darlington, Tahlia McGrath India Women Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Mithali Raj (c), Yastika Bhatia, Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Richa Ghosh (wk), Jhulan Goswami, Meghna Singh, Poonam Yadav Dream XI Team Wicketkeepers Alyssa Healy Batters Rachael Haynes, Meg Lanning, Mithali Raj, Shafali Verma All-rounders Deepti Sharma, Ellyse Perry Bowlers Poonam Yadav, Darcie Brown, Meghna Singh, Hannah Darlington Vice-Captain Mithali Raj Captain Meg Lanning

'No special deals' for families of England cricketers on Ashes tour: Australia PM

Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison has said that there will be "no special deals" for the families of the English cricketers during the Ashes Down Under. Morrison's counterpart from the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson, had asked for the families of England cricketers to accompany them on the tour for Ashes. "I would love to see the Ashes go ahead, as I shared with Boris last night," Morrison said. “But there's no special deals there, because what we're looking to have is vaccinated people being able to travel,” he added. "I raised it and he said he was going to do his best for the families. He merely undertook to come back and see if he could find a solution,” Johnson told reporters. “He totally got the point that for cricketers it is very tough to ask people to be away from their families over Christmas. He merely undertook to come back and see if he could find a solution.” The Ashes series is slated to begin on December 8 in Brisbane while the second and third Test will be played in Adelaide and Melbourne respectively. The teams will then move to Sydney for the fourth encounter, while the fifth and final match will be held in Perth. The Covid-19 restrictions would be eased once 80% of adults are vaccinated and Morrison had added that the figure will be reaching 50% this week. The statement comes after long deliberations of the request from the English side to have their families by their side during the holiday season that coincides with the Australian tour. The English team over the past year has been in bio-bubbles for their home tour of Pakistan and then for their tour of Sri Lanka and India when they visited the subcontinent. The English team has been very vocal about the pressure these bubbles put on the individual players and how detrimental it is for mental health.