Rohit Sharma explains 'impact' player Virat Kohi's role in the side

They pinned me down: Azeem Rafiq tells harrowing incident of being forced to drink wine by clubmates

Azeem Rafiq, the former Yorkshire cricketer who was called on November 16 by the Select Parliament committee to investigate his claims of institutional racism at Yorkshire County Cricket Club, said that he was forced to drink red win eat the age of 15 even when he didn’t want to. And that it was one of the many incidents where he didn’t raise his voice and tried to fit in with others because he wanted to play cricket. "My first incident of drinking, I was 15, I got pinned down at my local cricket club and had red wine poured down my throat. The player played for Yorkshire and Hampshire. I felt like I had to drink to fit in. I regret that massively, but it has no bearing on the things I was called,” said Rafiq in his statement to the cross-party committee set up on the request of the Departement of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. Clearing his stance, the 30-year-old further added, "I have been clear from the offset that I wasn't perfect. There were things I did that I felt I had to do to fit in, and I am not proud of them.” In the entire hearing, Rafiq revealed how racism is ingrained in the entire system and though he faced it at Yorkshire, he thought that it would be present all throughout the county structure. Rafiq, who quit cricket for good two years ago, just at the age of 28 said that he ‘just wanted to live my dream and my family's dream’ but racism ruined it all.

IND vs NZ | 1st T20I: With induction of new coach, captain, India aim at positive start in Jaipur

Indian cricket saw some restructuring especially in the T20 format in the past few weeks. Former India skipper Rahul Dravid was handed the full-time job of the head coach for the side while Rohit Sharma replaced Virat Kohli as the captain. While Dravid took over the reins from Ravi Shastri whose tenure ended with the conclusion of the T20 World Cup, Rohit on the other side took over the captaincy baton after Kohli had made the announcement to step down from the post after the global event. Now, Dravid and Rohit both have a job at their hands straight away as India will be hosting New Zealand for a three-match T20I series beginning on Wednesday in Jaipur. The Men in Blue had a disappointing run in the recently concluded T20 World Cup after they bowed out of the tournament in the group stage itself. Moreover, the Virat Kohli-led side lost to Pakistan and New Zealand in their group fixtures. New Zealand on the other hand, made it to the final of the tournament but lost to Australia eventually. The first match of the series will be played at Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur. Match Details Match – India vs New Zealand – 1st T20I Venue – Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur Time – 07:00 PM IST, 01:30 PM GMT Where to watch live – Star Sports Network Pitch Report The pitch in Jaipur is expected to help the batters throughout the game, so a high scoring encounter might be on the cards. Both the sides have some brutal strikers of the cricket ball and can be lethal on the given day. Nevertheless, if you win the toss, opt to bowl. Team News India: Rahul Dravid will begin his duties as India’s head coach with this series against New Zealand while Rohit Sharma will play his first fixture after being appointed as the side’s T20I skipper. Virat Kohli has been rested from the series. New Zealand: New Zealand’s regular skipper Kane Williamson will miss the T20I series in order to prepare for the upcoming two-match Test series against India. Tim Southee will lead the side in his absence. "With the opening game of the T20 series on Wednesday evening, followed by games on Friday and Sunday night - the decision was made for Williamson to join the Test specialist group already training in Jaipur as they focus on red-ball preparation," stated a media release. Probable XI India: Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ravi Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Avesh Khan New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Daryl Mitchell, Tim Seifert, Glenn Phillips (WK), Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner, James Neesham, Tim Southee (C), Lockie Ferguson, Ish Sodhi, Trent Boult Fantasy XI Rishabh Pant, Rohit Sharma (C), Suryakumar Yadav, Martin Guptill, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Mitchell Santner, Daryl Mitchell, R Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Trent Boult (VC)

Incoming captain Rohit Sharma promises India's 'own template' in T20 cricket

A lot of the blame for India’s failure at the T20 World Cup was levied on their “template” of playing the shortest format of the game and their inability to find the perfect balance in the playing XI. Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri have made ways for Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma to take over the reins and turn things around in the T20 cricket for India and Rohit has conceded the men in blue have to get their “template” right while playing T20 cricket. He said players will have to accept failures that come with playing the fearless brand of cricket and that will be an important aspect of their performance in the format. He also said that India don’t have to emulate the templates of other sides but they will make their own way and decide what is best for them to produce results. He also chose to overlook India’s disastrous performance in the T20 World Cup and said that in general, the team have done well in the format regardless of not winning ICC tournaments. “We just need to set the template right, and we have time to do that. India have been good in T20Is but we just haven't won an ICC tournament... I'm not saying we should follow some other team's template, we should set our own template,” Rohit said at the first press conference as India’s full-time captain in T20Is. “I think it's an important aspect of the format, where players have that confidence to take their chances. Sometimes you need to play fearlessly but you may not be successful each time. So we will certainly keep an eye on that aspect.” Rohit also underlined the importance of having a bowling all-rounder to add depth in the side—an aspect of the game they have struggled with in the past, more so after the injury to Hardik Pandya. Although Pandya is more a batsman than a bowler as an all-rounder, the comfort of two to three overs he used to give his captain when he was fit could have meant a lot in India deciding a playing XI in the T20 games. India have brought in Venkatesh Iyer, who is believed to provide them with a like-to-like offering as Hardik Pandya, but Rohit did not pinpoint any player who needs to be developed for a larger role. “I understand the importance of a bowling all-rounder, but we have to groom everyone. We have to focus on being effective as a team, have to keep an eye on everyone. We will see whatever is required to be a successful team in this format,” he said. India and New Zealand are set to play a three-match long T20I series starting tomorrow in Jaipur. India have announced a new leadership group starting this series and a lot of what they are trying to do with their “template” should be visible from the first game against the Blackcaps in Jaipur.

SMAT 2021: Karnataka, Vidarbha, Kerala register quarter-final spots

Vidarbha, Kerala and Karnataka marched ahead in the quarter final stage of the on-going Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021. While Vidarbha defeated Maharashtra by 7 wickets, Kerala thumped Himachal Pradesh by 8 wickets and Karnataka clinched a two-wicket win against Saurashtra in a close encounter. Maharashtra vs Vidarbha Batting first, Maharashtra lost an early wicket after Naushad Shaikh was trapped in front of the stumps by Yash Thakur for a golden duck. But opener Yash Nahar and Rahul Tripathi steadied the ship for the side and stitched a stand of 64 runs for the second wicket. Maharashtra then lost Nahar for a 25-ball 29 which certainly broke the shackles and the side lost wickets at regular intervals to score 157/8 in 20 overs despite Tripathi’s 66 off 45. For Vidarbha, Thakur scalped a three-fer for 17 runs in 4 overs. Later, Vidarbha too had a dismal beginning to the chase as they lost Siddhesh Wath on the third delivery of the innings but a fine piece of batting from Atharva Taide and Akshay Wadkar got them back in the game. The two batsmen put 96 runs for the second wicket and also notched up individual fifties during the course. Later, a late surge from Jitesh Sharma anchored the side to a win by 7 wickets with more than two overs to spare. Jitesh struck an unbeaten 28 off 7 deliveries. Himachal Pradesh vs Kerala Kerala rode on some brilliant batting display from Mohammed Azharuddeen and Sanju Samson to chase down a target of 146 runs by 8 wickets in the last over. While Azharuddeen struck 60 off 57 balls, Samson chipped in with a quick-fire and unbeaten 39-ball 52 to see the side home. Earlier, in the day, Himachal Pradesh didn’t really get into the groove and lost wickets in regular succession to get restricted to 145/6 in 20 overs. Opener Raghav Dhawan though scored 65 off 52. Karnataka vs Saurashtra Karnataka had a few hiccups against Saurashtra while chasing a target of 146 but it was brilliance from Abhinav Manohar with the bat who held his nerves and struck an unbeaten 70 off 49 deliveries to take his side over the line. Karnataka batsmen never really got into the groove and kept losing wickets regularly before but Manohar held the fort at one end to help his side clinch a win by 2 wickets on the penultimate delivery. For Saurashtra skipper Jaydev Unadkat returned with figures of 4/22 in his 4 overs. Earlier, Saurashtra managed to put 145/7 in 20 overs, courtesy a half-century from Sheldon Jackson. The quarter-final fixtures will now be played on Thursday.