KKR is home away from home: Sunil Narine

Coach Gary Stead expects 'sustained period of rest' for Kane Williamson to heal elbow injury

New Zealand lost their skipper Kane Williamson for the second and final Test of the series owing to a long standing elbow injury that has consistently bothered the Kiwi captain. Head coach Gary Stead said that playing him in Mumbai was never an option despite his eagerness to lead the team and play the final match against India. “Ultimately the injury is still not right and while he got through the Kanpur Test, it was clear playing in the second Test wasn’t an option. We all know how much he loves playing and leading this team, particularly in Test cricket, so it’s a very difficult decision to sit out,” Stead said. Williamson has suffered from a longstanding elbow injury that has troubled him over the last couple of years and has forced him away from many games and Stead said that increased load of batting has aggravated the injury. Stead laid down a plan of “sustained period of rest” for Williamson where he will go through rounds of strengthening and the batting load will be elevated gradually to allow the elbow to heal properly. “It’s been a really tough time for Kane having to deal with such a persistent injury,” Stead said. “While we’ve been able to manage the injury through the year and the T20 World Cup, the shift to Test cricket and the increased batting loading has re-aggravated his elbow." “It’s been a challenging year for Kane trying to manage his elbow and it’s important we now formulate a good plan with him to ensure the injury does not continue to plague him. He will likely require a sustained period of rest followed by rehabilitation, strengthening and gradual batting loading.”

Deccan, Delhi, Abu Dhabi & Bangla fight it out in the playoffs of T1O League 2021

The fifth season of the UAE T10 league is entering its business end and the fortunes of four teams such as the Deccan Gladiators, the Delhi Bulls, the Team Abu Dhabi, the Bangla Tigers are at stake. The playoff will kick off from today, December o3 with the first qualifier between the Deccan Gladiators and the Delhi Bulls. The winner of this contest will earn a direct entry into the final of the tournament while the loser will not go out of the race and instead will get another shot to make way to the final. However, the next contest of eliminator between the Team Abu Dhabi and the Bangla Tigers will not have similar consequences and the loser of the game will be knocked out of the tournament. On the other hand, the winner will have to fight one more round of battle with the loser of the first qualifier in order to make an entry to the final. The final of the tournament will be played on December 04 in Abu Dhabi. Afghanistan’s Rahmanullah Gurbaz has been sensational with the bat for the Delhi Bulls and the side will expect him to maintain his batting form in the final rounds of the tournament. He is the leading run-scorer of the tournament with 310 runs and has smashed numerous swashbuckling innings to help the Bulls come so far ahead in the tournament. He has hit 28 sixes and is second on the list of batsmen with the most number of sixes in the tournament after Liam Livingstone, who tops the chart with 29 six. On the other side of the fence, the Deccan Gladiators will be relying on their talisman Wanindu Hasaranga to keep his purple patch in white-ball cricket going. He has been superb in the tournament and has not been able to be read by batsmen in the recent past. He achieved a staggering bowling spell where he took as many as five wickets for just eight runs in the season where he has taken 18 wickets in total.

IND vs NZ | 2nd Test: Rahane, Jadeja, Ishant ruled out, Kiwis lose Williamson as rain delays start

India have suffered a big blow as the trio of Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane have been ruled out of the second Test of the series against New Zealand, the host broadcaster Star Sports said on its pre-match show. The injury to Rahane would come in handy for the team management as now they don’t have to deal with the selection conundrum of who will be replaced for Virat Kohli. Ishant Sharma was looking short of rhythm and India’s bowling coach Paras Mhambrey conceded that he would take two Tests to regain his bowling rhythm. However, this latest injury setback will further delay his return to the best rhythm and it’s not a good sign for India going ahead towards the tour of South Africa. Out of the three, India would miss Jadeja the most as his improved batting in the last few years along with ever so accurate bowling on pitches supportive of spinners have been the base of their dominance at home. There is a spell of bad news from the visitors’ camp as well with former New Zealand player and now a commentator with Star Sports in Mumbai suggested flaring up of Kane Williamson’s elbow injury. If indeed it turns out to be true, the Blackcaps will be without their best batsman and captain in what seems to be a series decider at Wankhede Stadium. Due to persistent rain in the city, the toss has been delayed in the second Test and it’s highly unlikely that there will be any play in the first session of the game.

Second Test between India & New Zealand to have women scorers

The second Test between India and New Zealand in Mumbai will witness a rare sight as there will be two women scorers, Kshama Sane and Sushma Sawant during the match. “Perhaps for the first time it is happening that two women scorers are there for a Test match, a senior Mumbai Cricket Association scorer told PTI. Kshama who is from suburban Nahur cleared the BCCI Women’s special batch scoring exam in 2010 and has also played U15 cricket for Mumbai during the 1990s. “On my personal front, I’m the only child of my parents. My mother was the one who was keen on getting me into cricket from a young age of 11 years,” she said. “I used to go for practice at Mrs Surekha Bhandare’s coaching club from age 11 to 15. My mother worked for the Maharashtra government and father is a musician, who plays drums,” Kshama told PTI over phone. Sushma, who hails from suburban Chembur, passed the BCCI women’s special scoring course in 2010. She then began to work with the Women’s World Cup in 2013. “I enjoy cricket and I am excited for it and for the first time I am doing a Test match. Women have a lot of scope in scoring, “an elated Sushma told PTI. India and New Zealand are facing each other in a two-match Test series. The first clash in Kanpur ended in a draw while the second is slated to begin on Friday.