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T20 World Cup | SA vs SL: Fuelled by de Kock’s re-entry, Proteas look to outclass Lankan lions

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After being in the limelight for reasons other than cricket, even after a quality win against defending champions, South Africa would now look to put the matter past them and go for yet another win to keep their hopes of making it to the semi-finals alive. 

On the other hand, Sri Lanka, who were looking really good with their spin options in Sharjah and Abu Dhabi, realised that it ain’t easy as it seems after coming to Dubai. The Australians showed that Maheesh Theekshana could very well be tacked and so could be Wanindu Hasaranaga and the pace pairing of Lahiru Kumara and Dushmantha Chameera. 

The batting of Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa and now even Kusal Perera is something to be proud of for Sri Lanka, but as a unit, their batting hasn’t been able to get going which might cause problems against a strong bowling unit of the Proteas. 

Sharjah: A big factor

The fact that the game is in Sharjah, where Sri Lanka defeated Bangladesh and Netherlands in their last two games, make it a bit favourable for the Lankan Lions. On the other hand, South Africa haven’t had any experience whatsoever of the sluggish wicket of Sharjah and hence it will be interesting to see how the South African batters, who like the ball coming on to the bat fair against Sri Lankan bowlers. 

Markram, de Kock key for South Africa

Whether they are batting first or batting second, the fact that Aiden Markram has been in great form would mean that he would be key to South Africa’s batting in the game against Sri Lanka, especially facing the spin of Hasaranga and Theekshana. 

Quinton de Kock, who would be making it to the XI as it seems after having apologised and conveyed to the fans and the team that he is all for taking a knee against racism, would be key to South Africa’s entire campaign now. 

Being a top-order batter with skipper Temba Bavuma not firing as much as is expected, the responsibility lies on talented de Kock to give his team a start that could keep the others like Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller at the back free to attack in the death overs. 

Sri Lanka need to stick together

It was a tough game no doubt against Australia. But who made it tough? Kusal Perera dropping catches behind the stumps, misfields on the boundary, hitting wrong lengths at the start of the game by the SL pacers. These were the things that built pressure and these are the things that can be corrected. They are not skills that won’t come overnight, these are basics that can be and should be corrected. 

As far as skills are concerned, Dhananajaya de Silva needs to be given a chance in place of Avishka Fernando to bat at number four. Along with that, skipper Dasun Shanaka needs to take his batting seriously and also need to bowl in the middle which he is supposed to do to make the variety of the bowling great. Sharjah is small in size and his big hits could now come in handy. 

These are the things that Sri Lanka could correct and the biggest thing among them is they need to stick together as a team and put in their heart and soul into the efforts so that even a loss doesn’t feel devastating. 

South Africa vs Sri Lanka: Match Details

Match Number - 25

Date and Time: October 29, 2021, 03:30 pm IST, 02:00 pm Local, 10:00 am GMT

Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah

Broadcast and Livestream: Star Sports and Hotstar

Pitch Report

The pitch at Sharjah has once again come back to its usual best and chasing anything above 150 is getting difficult as was seen in the last game where Bangladesh failed to chase 143. The pitch would be slow and sluggish and the shine on the wicket wouldn’t mean that it would be a bouncing wicket. It’s just a facade to varnish the wear and tear within. 

Weather Forecast

The temperature at the stadium will fall from 35-degree Celsius at 02:00 pm to 31-degree Celsius by 06:00 pm and similarly, the humidity will increase from 29% to 45% meaning that the wicket would be dry and help spinners. 

Team News

South Africa

The South African side would be bringing back de Kock and hence Reeza Hendricks would have to go out. Apart from that, there would be no more change in the playing XI. 

Probable XI

Temba Bavuma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Reeza Hendricks, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi

Sri Lanka

As far as Sri Lanka are concerned, Dhananjaya de Silva might be playing his first game because Fernando has now failed in five matches straight and hence the guy that should be getting the chance instead of him is de Silva, who over the years has shown that he is capable of playing at number four and would also give crucial 1-2 overs in the middle with his more than useful off-spin. 

Probable XI

Kusal Perera (wk), Pathum Nissanka, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dasun Shanaka (c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Maheesh Theekshana, Lahiru Kumara

CE XI Fantasy team

Wicketkeepers Kusal Perera, Quinton de Kock

Batters Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram

All-rounders Wanindu Hasaranga, Dwaine Pretorius

Bowlers Maheesh Theekshana, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi

Vice-Captain Charith Asalanka

Captain Aiden Markram

Discover more

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IPL | List of players most likely to be retained by franchises before mega auction

Although the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League concluded just two weeks back, the sense of anticipation for the next edition of the tournament has already been developing thick and fast. What is adding fuel to the fire for the interest and excitement about the next edition are the additions of two new franchises and a mega auction that will take place later this year, which has the potential to change the complete or substantial look of almost all franchises. As per various media reports, the IPL governing council has allowed franchisees to retain a maximum of four players that can be in two combinations such as either three Indian players and one overseas player or two players each from India and two foreign countries. It’s unlikely that there will be the option of Right to Match card option in the auction this year and the franchisees will have to contend with four retentions and needless to say they will have to make some tough choices considering they have to pick a core for the near future. Here, we’ll list out the probable players who are most likely to be retained by their current side before the mega auction. Chennai Super Kings Defending champions the Chennai Super Kings have their tasks cut out in deciding who they want to retain for the next few editions and a lot of their permutations and combinations will depend on what their talisman MS Dhoni decides to do with his IPL career. He did not reveal his plans and gave a mixed reply on whether he will be back for the next edition and there’s no prize guessing who will their first retention if Dhoni wishes to play one more season. Probable retentions If MS Dhoni wishes to play, the other three retentions could be Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ravindra Jadeja, Deepak Chahar. They will have a tough time giving up the likes of Moeen Ali, Faf du Plessis, and Sam Curran but such is the nature of the league. The Super Kings have always focussed on maintaining the Indian core and hence it is highly plausible that all their retention could be Indian players. Mumbai Indians The most successful IPL franchises too have many headaches to deal with while deciding the only four players who are to be retained before the main auction. There is more than certainty on the position of Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah, and they have as many as four terrific players to choose from for the other two spots. The quartet of Suryakumar Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya and Ishan Kishan, who have played a significant role in making the Mumbai Indians a side they have become now and retaining or releasing anyone of them would be a tough call for the Mumbai side. Probable retentions Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Kieron Pollard, Ishan Kishan Punjab Kings For the Punjab Kings, the pair of KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal have been an indomitable force at the top of the order, but they have not been able to produce success for the side in terms of reaching the second stage of the tournament. Hence, it’s unlikely that they will retain Rahul and they can go as far as retaining only two players and one of them could well be Mayank Agarwal. None of their bowlers, except Ravi Bishnoi and Arshdeep Singh, have been able to produce repetitive match-winning performances and hence the duo can find themselves in the same franchise in the next edition. Probable retentions Mayank Agarwal, Arshdeep Singh, Ravi Bishnoi Royal Challengers Bangalore The case of retentions would have been complicated for the Royal Challengers after their long-standing skipper Virat Kohli announced giving up captaincy starting the next edition. However, he maintained that his home will remain to be RCB till he plays in the tournament and hence the onus is on the franchise to either give him the opportunity or not allow him respectful exit from the tournament. Their big-ticket purchase Glenn Maxwell turned out to be the trump card with the bat in this edition and hence he could be a compelling choice for retention. They also found a bowling version of consistency in Harshal Patel and they could go for him as the only bowler to be retained. Probable retentions Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Glenn Maxwell, Harshal Patel Delhi Capitals Rishabh Pant led the Delhi Capitals to the qualifier stage of the tournament this edition and that should mark the end of Shreyas Iyer in the Capitals dugout. The Capitals should not find it tough to select their four players to be retained and there are some obvious names who must not be risked releasing in the auction. They could choose to retain the India duo of Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer, two players who are touted to be the future of Indian cricket. Despite Shikhar Dhawan being the most prolific batter in the side, he might be let go given the constraints around his age. Barring those two, Delhi would surely like to keep the services of Anrich Nortje and Kagiso Rabada, who have bowled exceptionally well in tandem and are just 26 and 27 years old respectively. Probable retentions Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje Rajasthan Royals The Royals could not break the streak of inconsistent performances and missed the playoff bus for one more season in the 14th edition and the management should be looking to constitute a side around Sanju Samson. They have had a core of brilliant England cricketers but their on and off presence with the side in the tournament has not helped the side on a consistent basis and hence it’s highly likely that the Royals would not retain anyone except Sanju Samson. Sunrisers Hyderabad The Sunrisers Hyderabad found themselves in turmoil in the last edition and first they changed their captain from David Warner to Kane Williamson. However, results did not follow and it would be interesting to see how much the Sunrisers management values Williamson’s role. If they don’t retain him, there could well be just two retentions from their side and those two could be a batsman and a champion bowler of the format. The option of a young and dynamic batsman in Abdul Samad would be a compelling choice but it’s unlikely they would retain him. Probable retentions Jonny Bairstow, Rashid Khan Kolkata Knight Riders The Kolkata Knight Riders ran a spirited marathon to the final of the 14 edition of the tournament under the leadership of Eoin Morgan, but his horrible form with the bat is unlikely to fetch him retention from the Knight Riders. They have been helped immensely by Andre Russell and their CEO Venky Mysore had all but confirmed he will be a “Knight Riders” till he plays the league and hence he should be on the retention list unless something untoward happens between now and the mega auction. The Knight Riders would also be compelled to retain both Venkatesh Iyer, who was the find of the tournament earlier this month and Shubman Gill but it’s unlikely both of them will get the nod. They would also be keen to retain Lockie Ferguson, who has been an asset for them and has provided a rapid pace bowling option in the absence or alongside Pat Cummins. Probable retentions Andre Russell, Lockie Ferguson, Shubman Gill

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Yorkshire takes no action on Azeem Rafiq racial abuse issue, devastated cricketer wants ECB to step up

The Yorkshire County Cricket Club in a shocking statement said that no current employee or player could be held responsible for seven counts of racial abuse met to its former captain Azeem Rafiq. This statement comes after the club apologised to Rafiq in August this year, confirming that the player was indeed subjected to inappropriate behaviour. But not holding anyone responsible for the crime is one thing that most of the people and the player himself are unable to digest. In its official statement, the Yorkshire administration mentioned that it has sent the full copy of the report to England and Wales Cricket Board to support in board’s independent enquiry into the matter. It further said that after the independent committee, which comprised of seven members and investigated the matter for a year after Rafiq raised the issue in early 2020, the club also carried out its own investigation. “The Club has also carried out their own internal investigation following the findings in the Report after which they are able to report that they have come to the conclusion that there is no conduct or action taken by any of its employees, players or Executives that warrants disciplinary action,” it said. “None of this diminishes the importance of the findings or that fact that there is much the Club can learn from the Report. It was important for Azeem to raise the issues and without him doing so we would not have the Panel’s recommendations which are an important part of the Clubs continuing journey,” the statement further added. Naturally, Rafiq was shaken by such a baseless and out of the blue announcement by the club to not hold anyone responsible for a crime that they admitted was committed. In a series of Tweets, the former county cricketer and England U-19 captain let his anger out. "Wow, just when you think this club couldn't get more embarrassing, you find a way," Rafiq tweeted. "Still awaiting the FULL report. Thanks for mentioning the people that have provided your PROTECTION & give green light to RACISM. Interesting timing again,” he said n another tweet, trying to implicate the fact that half the enquiry committee members were Asian and still they couldn’t find anybody guilty of the racism that they themselves admitted happened. Rafeeq’s spokesman said that it was time that Yorkshire board members did at least something good and resigned voluntarily for the crimes they have committed. "It is inconceivable that there are no current employees who should not have been disciplined for their conduct. Yorkshire's failures continue to mount up and it is time that board members - for once - do the decent thing and resign,” said the spokesperson. The ECB acknowledged that they have received the full report from Yorkshire and are going to investigate the matter thoroughly. "This is a matter with many serious allegations at its heart and the ECB’s regulatory team will now consider the Report as part of its investigation. We anticipate that it will take time for the regulatory process to reach its conclusion, but it is imperative that this is completed thoroughly and with fairness to all involved,” the board said.