Tim Southee puts his WTC final playing shirt on auction

Edgbaston to host ENG- PAK ODI with 80 percent crowd as a part of research study

The Edgbaston Cricket ground will be 80 per cent filled when hosts England lock horns against Pakistan in the third and final ODI of the upcoming bilateral three matches ODI series. It will be a part of the UK government’s Events Research Programme. The allowance means the ground at Edgbaston will able to accommodate as many as 19,000 spectators including people under the age of 16. They will be allowed inside the stadium bowl and h0spitality lounges without maintaining any social distancing which is part of the research study. A spectator above 11 years old will need to produce a COVID negative report or proof of two vaccinations atleast a fortnight before the game if they want to enter the stadium. Earlier this month, Edgbaston was allowed to host the Test match between England and New Zealand with 70 per cent accommodation. In total, as many as 60,000 spectators watched the game over a course of four days. "It's fantastic for sport in the West Midlands that so many cricket fans will be able to enjoy another blockbuster fixture in England versus Pakistan at Edgbaston," said Chief Executive of Warwickshire cricket Stuart Cain. "The recent Test match gave us a fantastic opportunity to build a new model for large scale sporting events and I'm pleased to see elements of this first trial being carried forward for the Pakistan match. "Technology played a big part in this and we will again focus on using this as a way of creating a safe environment whilst enhancing Edgbaston's reputation as one of the best atmospheres in world cricket," Cain concluded.

We deserve to play more Test matches: Tim Southee

New Zealand speedster Tim Southee who played an integral part in New Zealand’s World Test Championship win said that the side has been very consistent over a period of time and deserves to play more Test matches. The Black Caps mostly plays two-match Test series and have only played four three-matches series out of their last 18 outings in 5 years. "I guess one of our strengths as a side is that we sort of just concentrate on what's put in front of us, and what we try and achieve as a group, (but) I guess playing more Test cricket as a whole would be nice," Southee was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. "We don't play that many three-match series, so I guess just being able to play more Test matches and hopefully more three-match series rather than two-match series,” he added. New Zealand was one of the most consistent teams in the two year WTC cycle despite not winning a single series outside home. However, they managed to thrash India, West Indies and Pakistan at home to scrape past through to the final. In the inaugural final, New Zealand helped by the English conditions went onto demolish India by 8 wickets to become the first World Test champions. Southee said that playing three-match Test series is more challenging and gives more opportunity to the players to test themselves in the ultimate format. "But yeah, I think it's tough with future tours (programme) already being in place up to now, but just being able to perform at this level for a number of years and being a consistent side, I guess we have that right to play more Test cricket," Southee said. "As players, Test cricket is the pinnacle of the game, and you always want to play more. It's something that we haven't played a lot of, three-match-series, so to be able to test yourself over three matches rather than just two matches….. "...it's obviously a lot more taxing, it's a tougher battle to get yourself up and go again over three matches, but that's the beauty of it, and it's part and parcel of it, It's tough cricket, and you want to play as much as you possibly can,” the fast bowler added. Taking inspiration from the likes of Ross Taylor and James Anderson, the pacer said that he will look to prolong his career as much as possible. Ross Taylor has been one of the greatest servants for New Zealand and is currently 38 years old. On the other hand, James Anderson is already the most successful fast bowler in Tests and is still going strong at 38. It’s an unbelievable achievement for someone like Anderson to keep producing the goods, especially as a pacer even in this ripe age. "I feel as fit as I ever have, so I'd love to play this game for as long as I possibly can," Southee said. "Seeing guys like James Anderson, at 38, still being able to do what he's doing gives everyone hope, Ross Taylor at 37 still being able to perform at this level. "I think it comes down to the individual standards that you set yourself, and you're able to hold those high standards that it takes to play at this level, then I guess age is only a number. I hope there's a lot of life left in me,” the speedster concluded.

WI vs SA | 3rd T20I: Similar woes, similar struggles & a battle to move ahead

It took South Africa just one game to get back in the groove against the West Indies. The Proteas defeated the Caribbean side on Sunday after their bowlers rubbed off the mistakes that they had made in the first match. The five-match T20I series between the two sides is now levelled at 1-1 with the third encounter scheduled to take place on Tuesday in Grenada. The South African pacers were on a roll during the second T20I as they ripped apart the West Indies middle-order while chasing 167 in 20 overs. It was Fabian Allen’s brisk 12-ball 34 that gave them some resistance before the hosts were eventually restricted to 150/9 in the allotted 20 overs. The hosts began the T20I series on a positive note with a comprehensive 8-wicket win over the South African side but soon lost the momentum. The way the middle-order failed in the second encounter for the home side is something the team management needs to take note of. But with players like Chris Gayle, captain Kieron Pollard, Nicholas Pooran and Andre Russell, the batting shouldn’t be much of a worry for West Indies for now. All the batsmen have the ability to rip apart any bowling attack on their day. On the other hand, South Africa are looking in fine touch and don’t really need much of a tweak. Match Details Date – Sunday, June 27, 2021 Time – 11:30 PM IST Venue – National Cricket Stadium, St George's, Grenada Stream on Fancode Pitch Report The tracks haven’t really had much on offer for the batsmen and the spinners might have an advantage in the third encounter too. The introduction of the spinners in the middle-overs can help the bowling team restrict the batsmen to score runs quickly and create a fair bit of pressure on them. So, if you win the toss, bat first and try to put a decent total on the board. Team News West Indies: The hosts had a good start to the proceedings in the first match but the middle-order collapse handed them a defeat. But the kind of experienced customers they have in the side, getting back in the groove won’t be a difficult task for the home side. The bowlers though have done a decent job so far and would be looking to continue with that. They haven’t let the South African middle-order to score runs, so, it would be interesting to see how the batsmen rejig the strategy. South Africa: South Africa are probably on the same page as West Indies. The top-order is looking in fine nick while the bowlers were exceptional in the last clash. It is only the middle-order that has struggled. Batsmen like David Miller and Klaasen should take the onus of scoring runs at a quick pace. Other than this, the team management doesn’t really need to be concerned about anything much. Probable XI West Indies: Evin Lewis, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Kieron Pollard (c), Andre Russell, Jason Holder, Dwayne Bravo, Fabian Allen, Obed McCoy, Kevin Sinclair South Africa: Reeza Hendricks, Quinton de Kock (wk), Temba Bavuma (c), Rassie van der Dussen, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, George Linde, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lungi Ngidi Fantasy XI Chris Gayle (C), Nicholas Pooran, Quinton De Kock, Evin Lewis, Kieron Pollard (VC), Rassie Van Der-dussen, Reeza Hendricks, Fabian Allen, Andre Russell, Tabraiz Shamsi, Kagiso Rabada

India land in Sri Lanka, BCCI shares pictures

The Indian contingent which has been selected for the limited-overs tour of Sri Lanka has landed in Sri Lanka BCCI confirmed via their Twitter handle. The Men in Blue will fight it out in a three-match T20I series and as many ODIs against the islanders. The team will be led by Shikhar Dhawan while Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be his deputy. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) decided to send a second-string side for the tour with the rest spending their time in England outside the bio-bubble before they join back for the five-match Test series against England. The limited-overs squad looks a strong one despite the absence of some of the stalwarts including Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah. BCCI shared pictures of the members of the Indian team and wrote, “Touchdown Sri Lanka”. India have performed quite consistently in bilateral series across formats but when it comes to ICC tournaments it has been eluding them for the last 8 years. With a big set of players available for the T20 World Cup later this year, India will surely look to find some solutions for the middle order woes which troubled them even in the 2019 World Cup. Rahul Dravid who has been named the head coach for the tour stated that there are only one or two spots up for grabs in the T20 World Cup squad. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka who will host India has been under enormous pressure in the recent past losing series after series and their performance have not even been a shadow of themselves. Quite recently the Sri Lankan fans launched a campaign on Facebook insisting people to unfollow the cricketers if they cannot perform for the country. Three players namely Danushka Gunathilaka, Niroshan Dickwella and Kusal Mendis was suspended earlier today for the remainder of the England tour after breaching bio-bubble protocols.