T20 World Cup | AFG vs SCO: Win will bring a lot of smiles back home, says Afghanistan captain Nabi

T20 World Cup | ICC punishes Lahiru Kumara, Liton Das for ugly exchange on the field

The International Cricket Council has reprimanded Sri Lanka’s Lahiru Kumara and Bangladesh’s Liton Das after their fiery exchange during their game on October 24 in Sharjah. Kumara has been docked 25 per cent of his match fees while Liton was fined 15 per cent of his salary. Both the players were handed one demerit points each. The duo caught in an ugly confrontation after Liton was dismissed caught off Kumar’s bowling having played a sluggish run a ball innings of 16 runs. The ICC reached a conclusion that Kumara was wrong for "actions and words which provoked an aggressive reaction from the batter" that led to the Bangladesh opener reacting "aggressively and in a manner which was contrary to the spirit of cricket". Bangladesh posted a big total on the board against Sri Lanka riding high on half-centuries by Mohammad Naim and Mushfiqur Rahim, who smashed the bowlers all around the park on the way to 37-ball 57. However, their bowling could not defend the total of 171 runs at the Sharjah cricket ground. Sri Lanka chased down the target with five wickets in their hands and seven balls remaining on the back of a swashbucling 49-ball 80 by Charith Asalanka and Bhanuka Rajapaksa’s 31-ball 53.

T20 World Cup | IND vs PAK: Mohammad Rizwan produces shots he visualised before game

Team India were taken aback by the flawless batting of the Pakistan opening pair of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam and, but the former who was more aggressive of the duo had visualised every bit of it before the big game. He started off Pakistan’s chase of 152 runs with a crisp shot through mid-on and mid-wicket and followed it up with a half pull off front foot for six. He took 10 runs off Bhuvneshwar Kumar and he had visualised playing all the shots he played in the first over before the game in a video produced by the International Cricket Council. Rizwan remained unbeaten on a 55-ball 79 and led an embarrassing defeat for India in the company of Babar Azam, who remained undefeated at a 52-ball 68. Before their brilliance with the bat, India were handed a harsh reality check by the impressive Pakistan bowling attack led by Shaheen Shah Afridi who uprooted both Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul in his first two overs. It was always an uphill task for the men in blue and only Virat Kohli managed to score a fifty as India could manage only 151 runs on the board. Rizwan has been a revelation for Pakistan in the format after earning a promotion to bat at the top with the skipper and his numbers with the bat has been staggering.

Ashes 2021-22 | Ben Stokes comes back into England squad

In a massive development, all-rounder Ben Stokes has been added to England squad for the upcoming Ashes tour of Australia scheduled later this year. He was on an indefinite break following finger injury and subsequent complicated rounds of surgery and to regain mental well being. Stokes said that he is returning having “sorted” his finger and is looking forwards to teaming up with his mates on the big tour of Australia where they have not won since 2010-11. “I had a break to prioritise my mental wellbeing and I got my finger sorted,” said Stokes. I am looking forward to seeing my mates and being on the field with them. I’m ready for Australia.” Stokes’ return will boost England’s chance of challenging the Australian side in their backyard as they boast an unassailable record at home in the Ashes series. Stokes also missed the last edition of the Ashes series which England lost by a big margin of 0-4. The Urn as they call it lies with the Australian team as they had retained it after drawing the last Ashes series played in England in 2019. Ben Stokes made his Test debut in the second Test of the 2013-14 Ashes series in Adelaide and earned big names for himself on the back of a century in the third Test in Perth.

Explained | Everything about the Indian Premier League franchise's bidding process

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is all in readiness to start the bidding process of two new franchises that will set the stage for a 10-team Indian Premier League tournament. Here, we are going to divulge all the details related to the princess of the addition of two teams. What is the base price of each new franchise? The BCCI has fixed the base price of each franchise at Rs 2,000 crore. No bidding party can value new franchises at price below Rs 2,000 crore. What is BCCI’s expectation of the final bidding price? The BCCI has got the idea that there is huge interest among business groups in owning IPL franchises and hence they are executing franchises to be bought at prices between Rs 7,000-Rs 10,000 crores each. Who can bid for the franchises? As per the BCCI’s bidding document, a consortium of a maximum of three companies that has an annual turnover of at least Rs 2,500 crore can bid for the teams. For individual companies, an annual turnover of Rs 3,000 core is the minimum financial criteria to bid for the teams. Can overseas companies bid for the teams? Yes, they can. Provided they have running operations in the country. How many companies or individuals have bought the tender document? As per a PTI report, there have been as many as 22 buyers of the tender document worth Rs 10 lakh. What is the price of the bidding document? The price of the bidding document has been fixed at Rs 10 crore. What are the prominent names looking to buy new IPL teams? There are India business heavyweights such as the Adani Group, the RP Sanjiv Goenka, Kotak group, Torrent Pharma, Aurobindo Pharma, Jindal Group vying for IPL franchise ownership. Are the owners of Manchester United seriously interested in buying an IPL franchise? Yes, the Glazer family that owns the venerable football club, has picked the bidding document through a private equity firm—Lancer Capital. What are the probable cities to get an IPL team from next year? The list of cities that are in the fray to have an IPL side includes Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Indore, Guwahati, Pune, Dharamsala, Cuttack with the capital of Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh are firm favourites among them.