'Too early' says BCCI on English counties' offer for IPL 2021; outlines World T20 as top priority

The treasurer of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Arun Singh Dhumal has said that it is too early to discuss an offer from English counties to host the remainder of the IPL 2021 in England in the month of September this year.

Instead, he said, the BCCI is focused on ensuring perfect preparation to host another marquee event in the form of ICC World T20 scheduled to be played in the country later this year.

"We will explore all the options and see when it's feasible to play those matches and take a call at the right time. Their offer has not been discussed yet. It's too early. Right now, our immediate plan is to finalise the preparation for the Twenty20 World Cup in India later this year," Reuters quoted Arun Singh Dhumal as saying.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka too has thrown their hat in the ring with a proposal to host the unfinished portion of the tournament postponed ‘indefinitely’ in the wake of rising Covid-19 cases in biosecure bubbles of various franchises.

Yes, we can certainly provide a window to host the IPL in the month of September. We hear the UAE is their one option but Sri Lanka can not be ignored for all reasons. We are planning to host the Lanka Premier League (LPL) in July-August and the grounds and other infrastructure will be ready for the IPL in September", the chief of the managing committee of the SLC, Prof. Arjuna de Silva, told Deccan Chronicle from Colombo.

Notably, an early estimate by the BCCI suggests that it will incur a loss of a whopping Rs 2500 crore if the IPL 2021 does complete and hence the board will be eager to find alternative venues for its most financially rewarding tournament.

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End of great Hardik Pandya project in Test cricket?

The squad for the World Test Championship final was more or less on expected lines barring few outlandish issues that have not been addressed for so long by the national selection committee. Out of all, the flip flops over the selection of Hardik Pandya is the most pertinent one. Once touted as the man who would revolutionise Indian cricket like Kapil Dev, Pandya has not found a place in the 20-man squad for the World Test Championship final. After playing in the limited-overs fixtures in the Australia series, Pandya had to head back home given he was not part of the Test squad. Virat Kohli and team management at that point in time had stated that they will ease Pandya into his full stature, given he had not bowled a single ball in the Indian Premier League preceding in tour Down Under. When he was added to the Indian Test team for the home series against England earlier this year, there were hopes of his return in the longest format. However, all those hopes are set to be shattered as BCCI is all but certain not to consider Pandya for Test cricket, and it is evident with him not finding a place in the Test squad for the WTC final and England tour. A BCCI official has said that the experiment to prepare him with 'workload management' has failed badly and hence he will not be considered for the longest format. “Hardik Pandya is still not in a position to bowl. The experiment of selectors to keep him during England Tests and prepare him with bowling workload has failed miserably. He will henceforth not be considered for Test cricket,” a BCCI source told PTI. There’s also a case of judicious utilisation of Pandya’s talent and hence selection committee is not ready to risk him in Test cricket in the year of an ICC World T20. A TOI report has suggested that BCCI is not considering Pandya for the Test format as they are giving him time off to give rest to both the troubling aspects of his body—back and shoulder in order to be in perfect shape come the ICC World T20 later this year. “Even Hardik Pandya realizes that he is vulnerable if he pushes himself with the ball. He is now focusing a lot more on his batting. The team management understands that with the T20 World Cup coming later in the year, it’s better to give him more time off so that he could be in the best shape for the marquee event. He will be used sparingly depending on the match situation,” TOI quoted a BCCI source as saying. Notably, Pandya has not played the longest format since the fourth Test on India’s last tour of England in 2018 due to recurrent injury concerns. His back was troubling him and he went under the knife to get over it. However, as he recovered from a troubling back, his shoulders started to open up his position in Test cricket.

PAK vs ZIM: Azhar, Abid notch up tons before Muzarabani rattles Pakistan middle-order

Pakistan managed to put 268/4 on Day 1 of the second Test in Harare. Batting first after winning the toss, the visitors lost Imran Butt for 2 but Abid Ali and Azhar Ali played cautiously and stitched a 236-run stand to get the side back on track. While Abid remained unbeaten at 118, Azhar departed for 126 off Blessing Muzarabani. The right-arm bowler then picked up a couple of more wickets that included the scalps of captain Babar Azam and in-form batsman Fawad Alam in quick succession to reduce Pakistan to 264/4. Muzarabani eventually returned with figures of 3/41 in 19 overs while Richard Ngarava picked up a wicket as well before the stumps were called. Earlier, in the day Tabish Khan made his Test debut for Pakistan at the age of 36. Known for his consistency, Tabish has scalped 598 First-Class wickets so far. "I cannot express my happiness in words for my Test debut. Every kid who starts playing cricket in Pakistan has a dream of representing the country, especially in Test format and it's been a long journey for me but I have achieved my dream today," Tabish said earlier in a video released by PCB. "I will try my level best to meet everyone's expectations and give my 110% for the crest on my chest." Pakistan lead the two-match series 1-0 after they thumped Zimbabwe by an innings and 116 runs in the first fixture. They had also won the three-match T20I series 2-1.

Twiteratti surprised with Bhuvneshwar Kumar's omission from England bound squad

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selection panel picked the Indian squad for the ICC World Test Championship final and the five-match Test series against England and surprisingly the name of Bhuvneshwar Kumar was missing from both the squads. If swing is an art, he is a master at that. However injuries have halted his career especially in the last few years and with several other bowlers emerging in the set-up, Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s chances in the longest format has been few and far between. The right-arm quick was part of the Sunrisers Hyderabad squad in the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League. However his appearances were limited after suffering a hamstring injury against the Chennai Super Kings. Scans further revealed that he would be ruled out of the rest of the tournament. Kumar’s only trip to England as a Test player was back in 2014 when he had a brilliant time with the ball bagging 19 wickets in the five-match series. India was defeated 1-3 but Bhuvneshwar Kumar was a shining light for the visitors with his exceptional bowling through the series. However, injuries didn’t allow him to book a place for the subsequent tour in 2018. With conditions in England suited to his style of bowling, it was a bit surprising that his name was not there in the squad and Twiteratti vented their anguish at the selectors choice. Here are some of the reactions

PCB considering UAE as venue to host remainder of PSL 2021

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) might hold that the remaining of the Pakistan Super League matches will be played in UAE. The board has in fact said that it has started the discussions with the Emirates Cricket Board regarding the same. "We had an interactive and productive meeting in which we considered a number of factors. While the UAE has emerged as a preferred venue, a number of challenges remain, which will be worked through over the coming days. We remain committed to doing everything possible to complete the HBL PSL 6," PCB CEO Wasim Khan was quoted as saying via a media release. The PSL 2021 had been postponed earlier after there was a rise in the COVID-19 cases within the teams. It was later decided that the tournament will be resuming next month while the final will be played on June 20. It was further decided that all the matches would be played in Karachi itself but the surge in the COVID-19 cases in the city has forced the PCB to hold the remainder of the league outside the country. The UAE had previously hosted the PSL while the IPL 2020 also took place in the country. Pakistan team is further slated to travel to UK on June 23 for a six-match ODI series scheduled to begin on July 8. "PCB will liaise with the ECB in relation to finalising playing and training facilities, hotel bookings, ground transportation and visitors' visas," the release stated. "PCB will carry out a detailed financial and risk assessment as well as cost analysis before reporting back to the franchises, who will then review before a decision on the event venue is confirmed"