KS Bharat heads back home after Wriddhiman Saha recovers from Covid-19

ENG vs NZ | Devon Conway scores incredible double ton on Test debut, powers Blackcaps to big score

Debutant Devon Conway continued his impressive innings on the second day of the first Test at Lord’s and reached a marvellous double hundred with a six over square leg off Mark Wood. He became only the second New Zealand batsman to score a double ton on Test debut. Conway hit 21 fours and one six to reach the milestone and powered New Zealand to a formidable score in the first innings of the Test match. He was supported well by the 11th man with the bat, Neil Wagner who played some fantastic shots to propel Blackcaps from the other end. In the end, Conway got himself run out while trying to steal a double. For England, Ollie Robinson and Mark Wood were the picks of the bowling attack while Stuart Broad went wicketless and James Anderson picked up two wickets that included possibly the biggest wicket among New Zealand batsmen in the game.

PSL 6: Abu Dhabi leg full schedule out; Lahore Qalandars to face Islamabad United in the opener

The Pakistan Cricket Board, after finalising the dates of the Abu Dhabi leg of the sixth edition of the Pakistan Super League, rolled out the schedule for the reaming 20 matches. In the opening encounter on June 9, last year’s finalists Lahore Qalandars will take on two-time champions Islamabad United in a 9.30 pm IST (9 pm PST) affair at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. There are five doubleheaders in the league stage while the Playoffs would see the Qualifier and first Eliminator being played on the same day, June 21. The second eliminator will be played on the very next day on June 22 while the final would take place on June 24. While the rest of the teams play two 9 pm games each, Multan Sultans and Peshwar Zalmi would play only each at the league stage. Having got the clearance and crossed all hurdles, the PCB was finally able to announce the dates on June 3, having pushed the start from June 5 to June 7 and now finally to June 9. Originally the postponed league was to be played in Karachi from June 1 onwards, but was shifted on the insistence of the franchise owners.

IPL 2021 | Australia white-ball skipper Aaron Finch hints at players' availability

Australian limited overs captain Aaron Finch has said that Cricket Australia will decide the availability of national players in the remainder of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League on a ‘case-by-case basis.’ “I would imagine it would be conducted on a case-by-case basis by Cricket Australia,” Finch said on whether Australian superstars such as Pat Cummins and Glenn Maxwell will be available for the IPL likely to be scheduled in September this year. When asked if players were looking to take a bit of a rest from international cricket, the right hander rejected the idea but said that given the size of the squad in the post covid era, player rotations could be a viable option. “I don’t think the players themselves like resting from international cricket. But definitely, with the increased squad sizes due to Covid bubbles, there are a lot of players on tours, so we will need to look at options to ensure these players are playing games." Finch said. The 14th edition of the IPL was postponed indefinitely in the aftermath of the outbreak of COVID-19 in various franchises. Australian players, in particular, had to wait for significantly longer before they were allowed to get back in the country and their homes.

PSL 6: Andre Russell feels bubble life has taken a toll; grateful to be still playing

West Indian T20 superstar who would soon be turning out for Quetta Gladiators in Pakistan Super League’s sixth edition, feels that bubble life is taking a toll on him. The Jamaican has been jumping bio-bubbles while travelling ever since cricket started post-pandemic. "I think it's taking a toll on myself," Russell said in an interview to Geo TV from his hotel quarantine in UAE. "I can't talk for any other player, or coaches or anyone that goes through this whole quarantine stuff. But it's definitely taken a toll on me mentally because from bubble to bubble, in a room locked in, you can't go out for a walk, you can't go certain places, you can't socialise, it's different,” added the 33-year-old. Having represented the Kolkata Knight Riders in the recently postponed Indian Premier League 2021, the Jamaican is back for PSL and would go back to play international cricket for his team in July and August before playing the Caribbean Premier League. Russell would then once again return for the IPL’s UAE leg in September. Several players across the world have pulled out of tournaments citing bubble fatigue, but Russell on the other hand says that he is rather grateful. "But at the end of the day, I'm not being ungrateful, I'm grateful that we're still playing, we're still doing our job. So it's tough for us. But even though we prepared for it, it still takes a toll," Russell said. One of the most travelled T20 players and in the elite list of all-rounders with 6000 runs and three hundred T20 wickets, the right-hander is not new to the heat of UAE. Yet he is worried about playing this time because the situation is different. "I have played in hot conditions before. But I was in competition, playing games, having proper net sessions and back and forth, getting used to the condition and fully acclimatised," he said. "However, in this case, it's going to be a bit different where we are in quarantine and then we just gonna get out and have a few practice sessions and then go straight into the games,” added Russell who has previously represented Islamabad United and Multan Sultans in the competition. Even after such difficulties, the Caribbean spirit of entertaining people is still intact in Russels as he concluded saying, “We are professionals, so we have to condition our minds to deal with the heat and the weather." The PSL’s Abu Dhabi league scheduled to be played in Sheikh Zayed Stadium begins on June 9.