SA vs IND | 1st Test, Day 3: Lungi Ngidi picks up six-wicket haul to jolt India

Continuing his dream run of form with the ball against India in Centurion, Lungi Ngidi picked up a five-wicket haul on the third day of the first Test between South Africa and India at SuperSport Park.

He took with the big wicket of Rishabh Pant to reach the five-wicket haul landmark after taking four massive wickets of Ajinkya Rahane, Virat Kohli, Cheteshwwar Pujara and Mayank Agarwal.

He was criticised for not bowling full length on the first day but delivered enough balls in proper areas to be the only wicket-taker for the Proteas on the first day.

Notably, he made his Test debut at the same venue in the second Test of the last series between the sides in 2017-18 and had picked a five-wicket haul in the second innings to win the hosts the game and series.

India were in a dominant position on the first day of the Test before the persistent rain washed the entire day’s play on the second day of the Test.

South Africa came roaring back in the game in the first hour of the third day with consecutive wickets of centurion KL Rahul, Rahane, Ravichandran Ashwin and Pant. Kagiso Rabada was on the top of his game and bounced out Rahul and also dismissed Ashwin to help Proteas come back in the game.

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Indian ODI team selection for South Africa postponed: Report

The selection for India’s One Day International squad to South Africa has been delayed over Rohit Sharma’s fitness concerns suggests a report published at Firstpost. Quoting a source in the Board of Control for Cricket in India Firstpost stated that the selection was supposed to take place after the Vijay Hazare Trophy finals, but has been delayed to at least 30-31st December. The Chetan Sharma-led panel is apparently waiting for the news on Sharma’s fitness. The source further added that Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja will be unavailable for the tour. “It has been learnt that Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel are unavailable for selection. About Rohit, a call will be taken closer to the selection date,” Firstpost quoted the source.

The Ashes | 3rd Test: We're gutted & bitterly disappointed, says Joe Root

England’s dismal show in the on-going Ashes series has continued and this time the Joe Root-side suffered a thumping defeat by an innings and 14 runs where they bundled out for 68 in the second innings. Root has admitted that the dressing room is “gutted” and disappointed after the show in Melbourne. "Everyone in that dressing room is gutted," Root said. "We're bitterly disappointed to find ourselves in this position. You turn up today and you walk out with Ben Stokes and you feel like anything's possible. It's bitterly disappointing to be 3-0 down but there are still two Test matches to go. We have to try and make sure we come away from this tour with a couple of wins." But Root also put his weight behind the players and said that the best 18 players are on the tour. "I'd say that the best 18 players from the county game are definitely on this tour," he pointed out. "There are some very talented players within this squad and we have to find ways of upskilling ourselves and each other, and managing pressure points within the game better.” Australia have taken an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series. Scott Boland rattled the English batting unit and scalped a six-for while Mitchell Starc bagged a three-wicket haul during the course. For England, it was only Root and Ben Stokes who went past the double-figure mark.

Super Smash 2021-21 | Match Review: Wellington bat Otago out of the game

Wellington Firebirds chased the target with four balls to spare and won the match by five wickets. Michael Rippon was the standout performer for the Volts as he took two wickets in his four overs along with a maiden to go with it

Kapil’s Natraj shot came very naturally to Ranveer: Balwinder Singh Sandhu

The Bollywood film ’83’ based on India’s World Cup-winning triumph in 1983 has been doing wonders on the big screen. This was the first time when the Indian team lifted the World Cup under the captaincy of Kapil Dev. Kapil’s role has been played by actor Ranveer Singh who has been making the headlines for the same. Balwinder Singh Sandhu who was a part of the side is also the film’s associate director and has played an important role in the making. “Kapdo me kitna mitti hona chahiye, yeh bhi maine decide kiya tha. Mujhe bohot creative satisfaction mila,” (“The extent of mud stains on the clothing was also decided by me. It gave me a lot of creative satisfaction,”) he said according to Sportskeeda. Kapil’s 175* against Zimbabwe remains one of the most important knocks in the Indian cricket history but unfortunately that wasn’t televised as according to reports the BBC which was the host broadcaster for the 1983 World Cup was on strike. It is also said that the BCC had a crunch as far as the crew is concerned as there were four matches going on at the time and the broadcaster were covering England vs Pakistan and West Indies vs Australia. Coming back to that match and the film, Sandhu rated the former India captain’s knock as the greatest in World Cup history and also revealed that Kapil’s “Natraj shot” came very naturally to Ranveer. “To judge the greatness of that innings, you have to understand the context. We went into the reverse fixture against Zimbabwe having lost the previous two matches very badly. So, it was a do-or-die match for us,” he said. “Kapil’s 175* was the tournament-defining innings. It’s undoubtedly the greatest innings in World Cup history,” he added. “In the movie, we tried to recreate the shots. Ranveer [Singh] has done a great job. He worked very hard, but never looked tired. At the same time, he was a good listener. He grasped whatever instructions I gave him and was highly motivated to emulate all the shots correctly. In fact, Kapil’s Natraj shot came very naturally to Ranveer! I told him to stick to his natural ability because Kapil’s pull shot came naturally to him,” Sandhu further said.