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County Championship 2022 | Highway robbery as Middlesex steal the win right under Sussex's nose

Middlesex pulled off a run heist on the final day by chasing down an improbable 370 runs in the fourth innings. Sam Robson’s scintillating 149 laid the foundation and instilled hope in the visitors’ camp. Other middle-order batters ably supported Robson. However, Sussex’s bowlers found no answers to the awe-inspiring aggression.

 

Middlesex did not look back after losing opener Mark Stoneman for just 1. Skipper Peter Handscomb joined Robson in the middle, and the runs started flowing easily. 

 

The duo stitched a mammoth 209-run partnership, which ended when Ollie Robinson trapped Handscomb in front of the stumps for 79. Though the skipper played with a strike rate of about 56, Robson compensated by finding boundaries at regular intervals.

 

Robson further added 61 runs for the third wicket with Max Holden. The former struck sixteen fours and a six during his stay in the middle. 

 

Robinson sent him back to the pavilion on 149 to claim his seventh wicket. He looked like the only bowler who could trouble Middlesex’s batters on a flat pitch.

 

With the score reading 271/3 and 99 more to get, Holden and Martin Andersson set their eyes on the target. They scored freely without any inhibition and found boundaries at will. The duo steered their side to a seven-wicket victory with less than three overs left.

 

Holden hit ten fours in his 76-ball 80*, while Andersson’s 44* came off only 39 deliveries. 

 

Earlier, Sussex declared after adding 99 runs to the overnight score. Pujara resumed on 125 and reached the 150-mark soon. The Indian veteran finished unbeaten on 170– a knock studded with twenty-two fours and three sixes. Tom Clark scored a vital 77, and his dismissal ushered in the declaration.

 

Brief scores

 

Sussex 1st Innings: 392/10

 

Tom Alsop 113, Alaistair Orr 99;

Shaheen Afridi 97/3, Martin Andersson 88/3.

 

Middlesex 1st innings: 358/10 

 

Luke Hollman 82, John Simpson 71, Max Holden 58;

Ollie Robinson 66/5

 

Sussex 2nd innings: 335/4 (declared)

 

Cheteshwar Pujara 170*, Tom Clark 77;

Shaheen Afridi 43/1


Middlesex 2nd innings: 370/3 


Sam Robson 149, Max Holden 80*, Peter Handscomb 79;

Ollie Robinson 51/2


Middlesex won by seven wickets


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IPL 2022 | MI vs KKR | Match 56 Preview, Prediction, Probable XI, CREX XI

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will need to work on all three departments and make a quick turnaround when they take on the already eliminated side Mumbai Indians (MI) in the 56th encounter of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022, scheduled to be played on Monday (May 09) at Dr DY Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai. KKR, who are standing on the brink of elimination, were handed a humiliating 75-run defeat at the hands of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in their recent fixture. They stumbled in all three departments of the game, but their batting was a massive letdown as they were bundled out for just 101 runs while chasing 177. Kolkata Knight Riders - who are having a chaotic season - have made the most number of changes in the ongoing season of the IPL, and that tells you the behind-curation story of the two-time champions. The opening duo of Aaron Finch and Baba Indrajith hasn't worked for the Shreyas Iyer-led KKR, and they might bring Ajinkya Rahane to the top again. With just four wins in 11 games, the Knight Riders are placed at the 8th spot on the points table and do not have much time to reanalyze their plans and strategies. They will need to win all their remaining games by a considerable margin to keep their slight hopes of playoff qualifications alive. One more loss from here on would be curtains for them, with the top four teams already having 12 points or more in their kitty. Meanwhile, the five-time champions, who were expected to be a force to reckon with after signing half a dozen youngsters in a mega auction ahead of the tournament, have failed to simulate their success this year. Instead, they became the first team of the season to face an early elimination after eight straight defeats. Though they got their trackback to winning ways, it was too late for them. Their previous win came against the league leaders Gujarat Titans (GT), where Daniel Sams defended nine off the final over to help Mumbai win by five runs. They would look to sustain their winning momentum and get as many wins in their kitty to end their tournament campaign on a higher note. Match Details: Match: Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Match 56 Venue: Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai Date & Time: 9th May at 7:30 PM IST & Local Time Live Streaming: Star Sports Network and Disney+Hotstar Pitch Report The surface at Dr DY Patil Stadium is an excellent one for batting, and batters will look to utilize the power playfully with a quick outfield. We saw a high scoring affair last night at the same venue and can expect the same for this game as well. The quick bowlers will get some help in the early hours of the match and spinners will come into the picture as the game progresses. One can expect a score between 170-200 here, with both captains opting to chase after winning the toss. Pitch Stats [Last 5 Matches] Matches Played: 5 Matches Won Batting First: 2 Matches Won Bowling First: 3 Average 1st Inning Score: 159 Average 2nd Inning Score: 153 Injury Update/Players' Availability Mumbai Indians: They are expected to go with an unchanged playing eleven. Kolkata Knight Riders: Umesh Yadav, who missed the previous encounter due to injury, might make a comeback against MI. Key Matchups Rohit vs Southee: 75/4 at 115 SR Rohit vs Umesh: 46/3 at 128 SR Rohit vs Narine: 75/3 at 103 SR Rohit vs Mavi: 18/2 at 120 SR Ishan vs Umesh: 3/1 at 43 SR Suryakumar vs Umesh: 23/2 at 177 SR Suryakumar vs Russell: 29/2 at 181 SR Suryakumar vs Southee: 15/1 at 150 SR Shreyas vs Daniel Sams: 1/1 at 50 SR Shreyas vs Pollard: 12/1 at 133 SR Aaron Finch vs Meredith: 35/2 at 120 SR Head-To-Head Matches Played: 30 KKR Won: 08 MI Won: 22 Squads Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (C), Ishan Kishan (WK), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Tim David, Kieron Pollard, Daniel Sams, Hrithik Shokeen, Kumar Kartikeya, Riley Meredith, Jasprit Bumrah, Murugan Ashwin, Jaydev Unadkat, Fabian Allen, Basil Thampi, Anmolpreet Singh, Dewald Brevis, Rahul Buddhi, Tristan Stubbs, Arjun Tendulkar, Aryan Juyal, Mayank Markande, Ramandeep Singh, Sanjay Yadav. Kolkata Knight Riders: Shreyas Iyer (C), Baba Indrajith (WK), Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Anukul Roy, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Umesh Yadav, Tim Southee, Shivam Mavi, Pat Cummins, Sam Billings, Venkatesh Iyer, Varun Chakravarthy, Ajinkya Rahane, Mohammad Nabi, Sheldon Jackson, Chamika Karunaratne, Pratham Singh, Abhijeet Tomar, Aman Hakim Khan, Ashok Sharma, Ramesh Kumar, Harshit Rana. Probable Playing XI Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma (C), Ishan Kishan (WK), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Tim David, Kieron Pollard, Daniel Sams, Murugan Ashwin, Kumar Kartikeya, Jasprit Bumrah, Riley Meredith. Kolkata Knight Riders: Aaron Finch, Baba Indrajith (WK), Shreyas Iyer (C), Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Anukul Roy, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Tim Southee, Shivam Mavi, Harshit Rana/Umesh Yadav. CREX XI Suggestion Wicket-Keeper: Ishan Kishan Batters: Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Tim David, Tilak Varma All-Rounders: Andre Russell, Daniel Sams Bowlers: Umesh Yadav, Shivam Mavi, Riley Meredith Captain: Shreyas Iyer Vice-Captain: Andre Russell

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County Championship 2022 | Rampant Pujara registers 4th 100+ score for Sussex

India's champion Test batter Cheteshwar Pujara is making it extremely hard for the national selectors for the upcoming Test match against England with his rich vein of form for Sussex in the ongoing season of County Championship. Pujara, on Saturday, peeled off his 4th three-figure score in as many fixtures during the 2nd innings of the Division II match between Sussex and Middlesex. The Saurashtra batsman looked at his imperious best against the Shaheen Shah Afridi-led Middlesex attack as he painted the Hove Cricket with sumptuous and, at times, authoritative stroke play. The 33-year-old won the mini Indo-Pak rivalry against Shaheen Afridi with some scintillating strokes against the Pakistani cricketer, including an upper-cut for a six and a disdainful backfoot punch. Pujara stroked 22 fours and three sixes during his unbeaten knock of 170 runs, which came off just 197 deliveries. However, his innings eventually came to a halt after Sussex decided to declare. His 170 was on the back of three 100+ scores that Pujara has accumulated this season. The right-handed batsman started the season with an unbeaten 201 against Derbyshire and followed it up with 109 and 203 against Worcestershire and Durham, respectively. Pujara, a 95-Test veteran, was dropped from the red-ball set-up following a prolonged lean patch after India's series defeat in South Africa. While he made valuable contributions in Test victories in Australia and England, consistent failures in the 1st innings and lack of 100s since January 2019 hurt the Saurashtra cricketer. As a result, Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane were finally shown the door by the selectors after the defeat in South Africa. Now that Pujara is back among runs, it will be interesting if the national selectors return to the Test veteran for the all-important final Test against England. Hanuma Vihari has waited for long enough and deserves to get an extended opportunity at the No.3 spot, but given the glut of runs Pujara is churning out, he is making it impossible for the selectors to overlook him. India, who are currently leading by 2-1 in the Pataudi Trophy, will play the decider at Edgbaston between July 01-05. The Test was supposed to take place at Old Trafford last September but was eventually postponed due to a Covid outbreak in the Indian camp.