LPL 2021 | Qualifier 2: Fernando dismantles Dambulla Giants, takes Jaffna Kings to final

Watch: US captain Monank Patel upbeat about historic series against Ireland

The United States will be hosting its first bilateral series against a Test-playing nation when it takes on Ireland in the first T20I on December 22 at the Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill. It is not the first time that a team from the United States is taking in a Test-playing nation as the USA played against Australia and New Zealand in the 2004 ICC Champions Trophy. However, the excitement level of its newly appointed skipper Monank Patel is very high for the upcoming series. Speaking to BBC, Patel said, “It’s definitely the biggest home series we have ever had. It’s a great opportunity for us to play against a Test nation. It’s actually a huge moment for us considering that the series is going to be broadcast all around the world.” With the biggest series taking place at home, it also opens up opportunities for a deeper look into US’ domestic cricketing structure. Speaking on that Patel, who has so far played 39 List A matches, 19 of which are ODIs, said that things are changing for the better at home. “We just had our national championship held back in November, so the domestic structure is getting better here. Now a lot of young players have a chance and stage to showcase their talents,” said the 28-year-old India born.

USA vs Ireland | 1st T20I | Match Preview, Predictions, Fantasy XI

Ireland's tour to the USA, consisting of two T20Is and three ODIs will mark a historic event in cricketing history. The 1st T20I between the two nations will see the USA hosting an international cricket match for the first time. Even before the action has begun, both sides have experienced disappointment. As a string of Covid-19 positive cases emerged within both the camps, there is now a need for a change in strategy. The results came out positive during the pre-series testing, meaning the players would go through a ten-day isolation period. Aiming to bolster their cricketing structure, the USA has made moves in the right direction in the recent past. Firstly, introducing a T20 league of their own - Major League Cricket, USA has offered opportunities to those who had the potential but did not enjoy much success, playing in their homeland. Now, they will be up against a Test-playing nation, which will further strengthen their chances of climbing up the ladder in international cricket. On the other hand, Ireland led by Andrew Balbirnie is not going through a good phase. Failing to make it to the Super 12 in T20 World Cup 2021, they will be itching to step back on the field. However, their confidence would be dented due to the recent situation of Covid-19 cases within the camp. Few of their players, mainly Harry Tector, Gareth Delany, Barry McCarthy and George Dockrell were tested positive. Josh Little, who was playing in the Lanka Premier League, has been recalled to join the squad. Match Details - USA vs Ireland, 1st T20I Date: 23rd December, 2021 Time: 12:30 AM IST Venue: Central Broward Regional Park Stadium Turf Ground, Lauderhill, Florida Live Streaming: FanCode app and website Pitch Report Central Broward Regional Park Stadium Turf Ground will host a T20I after nearly two years. In a total of nine T20Is played at the venue, teams batting 1st have won on seven occasions. This shows us about the sluggishness of the pitch as the match progresses. Average score while batting 1st is 161. Squads USA Monank Patel (c/wk), Marty Kain, Ali Khan, Ritwik Behera, Yasir Mohammed, Ali Sheikh, Ryan Scott, Xavier Marshall, Saurabh Netravalkar, Nisarg Patel, Gajanand Singh, Jessy Singh, Steven Taylor, Vatsal Vaghela, Sushant Modani. Ireland Andrew Balbirnie (c), Paul Stirling, Mark Adair, Curtis Campher, Shane Getkate, Josh Little, William McClintock, Neil Rock (wk), Simi Singh, Paul Stirling, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Ben White, Craig Young. Probable Playing XIs Ireland Paul Stirling, Andrew Balbirnie (c), Shane Getkate, Lorcan Tucker, Curtis Campher, Simi Singh, Neil Rock (wk), Mark Adair, Craig Young, Ben White, Josh Little USA Steven Taylor, Monank Patel (c/wk), Gajanand Singh, Marty Kain, Ritwik Behera, Ryan Scott, Nisarg Patel, Saurabh Netravalkar, Ali Khan, Sushant Modani, Jessy Singh CE Fantasy XI Paul Stirling, Curtis Campher, Ritwik Behera, Monank Patel, Simi Singh, Mark Adair, Ryan Scott, Ali Khan, Craig Young, Josh Little, Nisarg Patel

Vijay Hazare Trophy | Silambarasan, Jagadeesan carry TN to semis; Prashant Chopra pushes HP past UP

Raghupathy Silambarasan and Narayan Jagadeesan played an impressive part in Tamil Nadu’s trouncing of arch-rivals Karanatak in the quarterfinals of the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021-22. This is now the second time in the same year that Karnataka have been defeated in a knockout of a tournament at the hands of Tamil Nadu. Prior to this meeting, Shahrukh Khan’s brilliant last ball six help the Southernmost state of India beat its coffee hub in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021-22 Final held at Delhi. In this game too, Shahrukh did play a major role, but roles more poignant than him came in the bags of fast bowler Ragupathy Silambarasan, who is playing his first List A seasons and experienced batter Jagadeesan. Silambarasan was the main reason behind Karantak timidly surrendering in their chase as they were bowled out for 203 in only 39 overs. The 29-year-old Silambarasan took four wickets as none of the Karnataka batters was able to get past even the fifty run mark. Along with him, Washington Sundar also picked three wickets. Earlier in the day, after losing the toss and being asked to bat first at the KL Saini Stadium in Jaipur, the Tamil Nadu team was boosted by a brilliant century from Jagadeesan. He made several partnerships along with Dinesh Karthik, R Sai Kishore and Baba Indrajith. However, the run rate was relatively slow until Shahrukh arrived at the crease. It was courtesy of a flamboyant knock from the destructive hitter Shahrukh that Tamil Nadu managed to score 64 runs in the last four overs. He remained unbeaten at 79 off just 39 balls. Himachal into semis for the first time since 2015-16 It was also a historic day for Himachal Pradesh as it marched to only its second semi-final in the history of the Vijay Hazare Trophy. The Rishi Dhawan led team defeated last season’s finalists Uttar Pradesh by five wickets at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium in Jaipur in another quarterfinal. Batting first, Uttar Pradesh could only manage to get to 206 in their 50 overs as they were too late to recover from early blows where they had t struggle badly at 39-4. The heroes from the quarterfinals, Rinku Singh and Akshdeep Nath were once again together, but miracles don’t happen daily and as a result, Akshdeep wasn’t able to convert his start. At 103-5, UP were staring down the barrel before Bhuvaneshwar Kumar partnered Rinku for a 75 run partnership. But just as he started to free himself, even Rinku was nabbed by Pankaj Jaswal and thus UP could reach only 207. Bhuvi made 46 off 52 balls before getting out on the last ball of the innings. Himachal started cautiously and riding on brilliant 99 from Prashant Chopra, chased down the total in the 46th over itself. It was however unfortunate that Chopra couldn't get a century for the effort he put in. There are two more quarterfinals remaining which would be played on December 22 at the two venues in Jaipur between Services and Kerala and Saurashtra and Vidarbha respectively.

BBL 11 | Sean Abbott’s record-breaking show helps Sixers clinch close encounter with Strikers

Rashid Khan with his magnificent last over of the four-over spell almost brought Adelaide Strikers back into the game and also put them in an advantageous position. He removed the two most dangerous men in the Sydney Sixers batting lineup skipper Mises Henriques and Dan Christian in consecutive deliveries at a time when the team in pink and black was cruising towards victory, needing only 33 from four overs with seven wickets in hand. With the pressure of first stopping the hattrick and then getting his team to victory alongside Jordan Silk, Sean Abbott walked on to the pitch. He not only defended the hattrick but managed to get three runs in the next three balls. In the 19th over, when Sixers needed 19 off 12, Abbott first of all hit five of the first two balls and even as Silk got out on the third ball, the all-rounder at the other end was determined to get to a victory. The 29-year-old hit two fours on the last three balls of the 19th over bowled by George Garton and brought the winning equation down to run a ball. However, he was not needed in the last over as Hayden Kerr hit a double and a six in the first two balls itself off the Peter Siddle over to finish the game and get a well-deserved win in his team’s favour. Abbott remained unbeaten on 19 off 10 balls. The chase by the Sixers was considerably slow as they could get to only 44 in the seventh over and also lost a crucial wicket of James Vince. Soon Josh Philippe and Daniel Hughes also got out to leave Sixers reeling at 63-3. It was then that Henriques and Silk got together for an important 52 runs partnership which most importantly came of just 39 balls. Earlier in the evening, after winning the toss and deciding to bat first at the Sydney Cricket Ground, the Strikers didn’t get the desired start as they lost both their openers with only 25 runs on the board. It was then that Jonny Wells and Matt Renshaw got into a partnership and added 59 runs in just 39 balls for the third wicket. However, that was the only partnership of significance even as Thomas Kelly tried his best to develop partnerships with almost every batter. In the end, thanks to Kelly’s 41 off 34 balls, Strikers managed to get 147-8 in their 20 overs. For the Sixers, Abbott and Christian picked three wickets each. In this process, the New South Wales player also took over Brisbane Heat and BBL legend Ben Laughlin as the leading wicket-taker in the history of the league. Abbott now has 112 wickets in only 83 games. Laughlin took 11 in 93 matches.