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Mandhana Masterclass, Rohit Sharma Injury And BBL Thriller – December 22 Cricket Highlights

Aakash Saini

Smriti Mandhana and Rohit Sharma [Source: @BCCIWomen/x, AP]Smriti Mandhana and Rohit Sharma [Source: @BCCIWomen/x, AP]

Smriti Mandhana unleashed yet another batting masterclass against West Indies, this time in the series-opening first ODI. Australian Test discard Nathan McSweeney made a statement-and-a-half by pulling off a soaring last-ball victory for the Brisbane Heat in a BBL 2024-25 game. Additionally, Indian captain Rohit Sharma seems to have sustained an injury scare ahead of the all-important MCG Test.

Capping an eventful day in the world of cricket, here we take a look at five of the biggest news that emerged out of Sunday, December 22.

Mandhana, Renuka Engulf WI To Take India 1-0 Up

Attacking Indian opener Smriti Mandhana notched up her fifth successive international fifty-plus score through her 91-run knock against West Indies in the first ODI match in Vadodara. Debutant Pratika Rawal and number three Harleen Deol also chipped in with cunning 40s at the top, before captain Harmanpreet Kaur, wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh and Jemimah Rodrigues turbo-charged the Indian innings to 314-9 from 50 overs.

In response, the visiting West Indies team had its entire top-order blown away by Renuka Singh Thakur. The Indian seamer picked up five wickets in the innings, including that of Hayley Matthews for a duck to claim career-best ODI figures of 5-29. Spinners Priya Mishra and Deepti Sharma mopped up the West Indies tail for 103 as Team India claimed a huge 208-run win to go 1-0 up in the three-match series.

McSweeney, Renshaw Wins It For Brisbane Heat

Defending champions Brisbane Heat registered their second successive win of the BBL 2024-25 season, this time upstaging Adelaide Strikers at The Gabba. Batting first, Jamie Overton blazed his way to an unbeaten 45* from just 24 balls to take Strikers to a competitive 174-6 from 20 overs. For the Heat, fast bowlers Will Prestwidge (2-16), Paul Walter (1-26), Tom Whitney (1-27) and Xavier Bartlett (1-40) kept hampering Strikers’ run-scoring charge until Overton’s slog-overs blitz.

Chasing 175, attacking half-centuries from Matt Renshaw (54 off 27) and from Australian Test discard Nathan McSweeney (78* off 49) helped Brisbane Heat pull off a remarkable last-ball thriller by three wickets.

England Announce Squads For India Tour, CT 2025

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have announced their entire men’s squad for England’s upcoming tour of India and the 2025 Champions Trophy. The English cricket team is slated to play five T20Is and three ODI matches in India as part of their final dress rehearsal before the main event in Pakistan.

Jos Buttler will continue to lead England on both tours, while Test skipper Ben Stokes was ruled out of action considering the all-rounder sustained a hamstring injury during his team’s Test series in New Zealand. England’s tour of India will kick-off on January 22 and will conclude on February 12, i.e., merely a week prior to the launch of the eight-team competition.

Rohit Sharma Suffers Injury Scare Before MCG Test

Indian captain Rohit Sharma injured his left knee during a practice session in Melbourne ahead of the all-important fourth Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 Test match against Australia. In a viral video circulating on social media, the legendary opening batter was spotted removing his gears and sitting down after visibly hurting his left knee. The physio tendered the cricketer and even brought out the ice pack.

While the extent of the blow on his left knee was not determined at the time, Indian fast bowler Akash Deep explained that the injury is not a concerning one for the captain. The fourth Test match between India and Australia will be a ‘Boxing Day’ affair at the Melbourne Cricket Ground between December 26 and 30.

Dubai To Be India’s Neutral Venue For Champions Trophy 2025

Dubai has been selected as the neutral venue for the Indian cricket team at the 2025 Champions Trophy. Team India’s participation for the eight-team event has been a subject of much controversy for a major part of the past 12 months.

Amidst BCCI’s reluctance in sending the Indian team to Pakistan over security concerns, and PCB’s adamant stance in being the sole hosts of the tournament, the latter eventually caved in by agreeing to a hybrid model. Back in mid-2023, the Indian team also similarly toured Sri Lanka for the 2023 Asia Cup even though Pakistan was the designated host of the competition. The 2025 ICC Champions Trophy is scheduled to played in February and March next year.