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Steve Smith Ton, Deepti Sharma Heroics And BBL Thriller – December 27 Cricket Highlights

Aakash Saini∙ Updated: Dec 28 2024, 5:01 AM

Steve Smith and Indian women's team [Source: AP, @BCCIWomen/x]Steve Smith and Indian women's team [Source: AP, @BCCIWomen/x]

The Australian team strengthened its grip over the visiting Indians on Day 2 of the MCG Test after Steve Smith’s batting masterclass. In India, a Harmanpreet Kaur-led and a Deepti Sharma-inspired Indian team completed a 3-0 ODI routing of the West Indies, while in South Africa, debutant Corbin Bosch frustrated the Pakistani bowling attack with a raging 81*.

Capping an eventful day in the world of cricket, here we take a look at five of the biggest news that emerged out of Friday, December 27.

Steve Smith Century, Cummins Special Pummel India On Day 2

Overnight Australian batter Steve Smith notched up his 34th century during his 112-run partnership with captain Pat Cummins (49 off 63) on Day 2 of the MCG Test against India. Smith’s knock was eventually curtailed by Akash Deep under bizarre circumstances, before Jasprit Bumrah picked up his fourth wicket of the innings to envelope Australia for 474 in 122.4 overs.

In response, Team India lost captain Rohit Sharma and number three KL Rahul early in the innings to Australian skipper Pat Cummins. Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal and struggling giant Virat Kohli consolidated India’s faltering start with a steady 102-run partnership for the third wicket, where the former scored an aggressive 82 from 118 balls. Jaiswal’s mix-up with Kohli late in the day opened the floodgates for Australia, with Scott Boland snapping two more wickets as India crashed from 153-2 to 164-5 by stumps.

Corbin Bosch Frustrates Pakistan With 81* On Day 2

Aiden Markram made 89 to take South Africa marginally ahead of Pakistan’s 211 on Day 2. A spirited fightback from Naseem Shah (3-92) earlier in the day kept Pakistan in the hunt until number nine batter and Proteas fast bowler Corbin Bosch frustrated the visitors with a valiant 81* from 93 balls. Bosch’s fighting effort on debut extended South Africa’s lead to 90 runs by the conclusion of their first innings, with Aamer Jamal and Saim Ayub mopping up the Proteas tail at 301.

In the final session of the day, Pakistan lost opener Saim Ayub to an absolute peach from Kagiso Rabada before Marco Jansen snapped two big wickets at the brink of stumps. The visitors eventually reached 88-3 by the end of Day 2 to find themselves just a couple of runs away from the hosts.

Hobart Hurricanes Prevail In High-Scoring BBL Cracker

Hobart Hurricanes overcame Adelaide Strikers challenge at the Adelaide Oval in match number 13 of the BBL 2024-25 season. Ben McDermott at number four smeared 68* runs from just 34 balls, before Tim David’s hard-hitting dexterity fetched him a fiery 14-ball 33 to blaze the Hurricanes to 214-5 from 20 overs. Among all Strikers bowlers, English paceman Jamie Overton conceded just 27 runs from his four overs with the added bonus of two middle-order wickets.

Chasing 215, the Strikers got to 203-6 to fall just 11 runs short of their target. Captain Matthew Short initially led the aggressive assault at the top with an attacking 29-ball 52 alongside an equally belligerent D'Arcy Short (41 off 22) until some crucial strikes from Billy Stanlake (1-41) and Chris Jordan (2-36) took the wheels out of Strikers’ rampaging pursuit.

Brian Bennett Joins Zimbabwe’s Batting Mayhem In Record Day Out

Zimbabwe captain Craig Ervine and middle-order batter Brian Bennett unleashed identical centuries to compound Afghanistan’s misery on Day 2 after Sean Williams’ career-best score of 154. Centuries from the trio extended Zimbabwe’s total to a monumental 586 in 135.2 overs, their highest ever in Test cricket. For Afghanistan, young spinner AM Ghazanfar toiled away for more than 30 overs to fetch three wickets while Naveed Zadran, Zahir Khan and Zia-ur-Rehman picked up two wickets each.

Left to survive the final session of the day, Afghanistan lost both openers to reach 95-2 by stumps, with Rahmat Shah approaching his half-century at 49* and captain Hashmatullah Shahidi (16* off 24) settling himself at the crease.

Deepti Sharma’s All-Round Exhibition Sets Up 3-0 Win For India

Team India completed a 3-0 routing of the visiting West Indies women’s team at Vadodara’s Kotambi Stadium in the final ODI of the series. Indian spin wizard Deepti Sharma skittled out the visitors for just 162 upfront by sealing astonishing figures of 6-31 from her 10 overs. New ball operator Renuka Singh Thakur snapped four of her own, including that of both West Indies openers to finish with figures of 4-29.

In response, the ‘Women in Blue’ lost early wickets in their easy pursuit to slip to 73-4 at one stage of the chase. Jemimah Rodrigues at number five steadied the Indian innings with a defiant 29 while all-rounder Deepti Sharma cracked an unbeaten 39* off 48 to steer her team past the finish line in just 28.2 overs. Richa Ghosh also found time to smear three sixes in her 11-ball 23* towards the closing stages of the game.