Latest news with #Border-GavaskarTrophy2024-25
India Today
6 days ago
- Sport
- India Today
Too early to judge Sam Konstas' Test career: Australia coach Andrew McDonald
Australia coach Andrew McDonald said it is too early to judge Sam Konstas' Test career on the back of four Tests but admitted that there is a great chance for the domestic performers. Konstas, who made his debut during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 series against India, impressed everyone with his bold batting style. However, during the ongoing Test series agains West Indies, the returns haven't been great for the 19-year-old. advertisementKonstas has scored just 33 runs in four innings, with his highest score being 25, and has an average of 8.25. The opener received the backing of captain Pat Cummins after the second Test and now head coach McDonald has come to the defence of the youngster. Speaking to the reporters, as quoted by the Sydney Morning Herald, the Aussie coach said that Konstas is still finding his feet in the current environment. "Four games in, eight innings, it's probably early for anyone to judge, really," McDonald said of Konstas' early Test career. "I think the challenges in Test cricket aren't necessarily always your skill level or your technique. It's dealing with the moments, the pressure, all the other things that externally come with that as well. He's a player finding his feet in the environment." McDonald pointed to the 25 that Konstas scored in the first innings of the second Test and felt that it was a small step for the 19-year-old and he had structured his innings well in his first 20-odd balls and showed positive intent. "[It was] a small step forward in the last game with that first innings. I thought the way he structured up his first 20-odd balls, he had the positive intent, he was moving a lot better compared to the game before where it looked like he was stuck in the middle and didn't know whether to play a shot and it was either ultra-aggressive or ultra-defensive," said McDonald. 'We're watching domestic performers closely'McDonald also conceded that there is an opportunity for the domestic stars to push their case for the upcoming Ashes series at home with the early games in the Sheffield Shield and the Australia A games. "There's great opportunity in domestic cricket at the start of the season, and there always is leading into any Test series," McDonald said. "We saw with the Border-Gavaskar Trophy last year, there was opportunity for players to put their hand up there. There's also Australia A [against Sri Lanka A] in the Top End [Darwin] at the moment, so we're watching that closelyso it's really about the opportunity that and foremost, we concentrate on what's right here, right now. Everyone will be speculating around who can come in, what possibilities are, but we're confident the players that we've got here can do the job."The third Test between the West Indies and Australia is scheduled to begin on July 13. - EndsMust Watch
News18
6 days ago
- Sport
- News18
'He Always Wanted To Earn Name By Playing Good Cricket': Akash Deep's Sister
Last Updated: In an exclusive conversation with CNN-News18, India cricketer Akash Deep's sister recalls the fast bowler's journey to stardom. Fast bowler Akash Deep, who took a 10-wicket haul and guided India to a record 336-run win over England at Edgbaston, grew up dreaming of earning fame by playing cricket at the top level. 'Akash Deep always wanted to earn name and fame for himself by playing good cricket. He was inspired by India's triumph at the ICC World T20 in 2007," the cricketer's sister Akhand Jyoti Singh, who is currently undergoing treatment for cancer, told CNN-News18. With India trailing 0-1 in the ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, Akash stepped up in pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah's absence to help India draw parity in the five-match series. He took four wickets in England's first innings and followed that with a career-best bowling figures of 6/99 to help India secure their first ever Test victory at Edgbaston. Hailing from Bihar, Akash Deep's father, a schoolteacher, wanted him to focus on studies. He then moved to Durgapur, a town in West Bengal, to pursue his cricketing ambitions. With his dream taking wings, tragedy struck with Akash losing his father to a stroke and older brother to an illness in the space of two months. The right-arm fast bowler had to give up his cricket dream as he returned home to support the family. 'I hope he continues to improve (his performances) and keep doing well for the country," said Akash's mother who encouraged him to pursue his dream of playing cricket at a professional level. 'My blessings are with him. I am very happy today. I told him to keep performing and continue taking 10 wickets." Akash made his India Test debut during the home series against England in February 2024 and made an instant impact with a breathtaking opening spell during which he removed Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope and Zak Crawley. His was also part of India's squad for the Bangladesh Test series at home later that year which they won 2-0. His impressive performances and potential meant the Indian selectors picked him in the squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 and the ongoing England Test series. Earlier this year, Akash suffered a back injury that put him on the sidelines for a significant period. He made his comeback midway through IPL 2025 for the Lucknow Super Giants. 'He (Akash) did have a back injury, but it wasn't that bad. He underwent an MRI and then started his rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy. He has a lot of belief in himself, worked hard and was able to make a quick recovery," Akash's brother-in-law Nitish told CNN-News18.
India.com
25-06-2025
- Sport
- India.com
Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne Out: Pat Cummins Picks ‘THESE' 2 Star Players As Replacement For Australia's Playing XI For First Test Against West Indies
photoDetails english 2922085 Updated:Jun 25, 2025, 05:10 PM IST Usman Khawaja 1 / 11 Usman Khawaja will continue to open for Australia in the Test; he was the top scorer for Australia in the WTC Cycle 2023-25. He failed in both innings of the WTC final of 2025 against South Africa. Sam Konstas 2 / 11 Sam Konstas has replaced Marnus Labuschagne, whose form was a bit of a question for the selectors, and now Konstas will open with Khawaja, who impressed everyone with his batting against India in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Cameron Green 3 / 11 Cameron Green will bat at his position, the number 3 spot. He needs to overcome his weakness, which troubled him in the finals of the WTC 2025. Josh Inglis 4 / 11 Josh Inglis replaces Steve Smith, who injured his thumb finger in during fielding in the second innings of the WTC 2025. Josh Inglish returns to the squad and will aim to create an impact. Travis Head 5 / 11 Travis Head will continue to bat No. 5. He was seen struggling with the pace attack in the finals of WTC 2025, although he is one of the finest; he still needs to figure out his weakness. Beau Webster 6 / 11 Beau Webster was the key player in the finals, though he didn't create much impact, but his fifty secured his position in the team. Alex Carey (WK) 7 / 11 Alex Carey will continue to wicket-keeping for Australia and has shown good class in the lower order, stabilizing the innings of Australia. Pat Cummins (C) 8 / 11 Pat Cummins, the captain of Australia, has been consistent with his performances and leads the pace attack with his teammates. Mitchell Starc 9 / 11 Mitchell Starc is one of the dependable bowlers of Australia who always shows up when the team needs him. He also scored a half-century with the bat in the first innings of WTC 2025. Josh Hazlewood 10 / 11 Josh Hazlewood is Australia's trustworthy bowler as his height helps him produce extra pace and swing with the new ball. Nathan Lyon 11 / 11 Nathan Lyon is the only spinner Australia trusts, and with over 583 wickets, he continues to perform for his team.
India Today
23-06-2025
- Sport
- India Today
ENG vs IND: Rishabh Pant berates himself after playing rash shots on Day 4 in Leeds
India wicketkeeper batter Rishabh Pant was seen scolding himself in after playing rash shots on Day 4 of the first Test against England at Headingley, Leeds. Pant walked in to bat early on Day 4 as captain Shubman Gill was dismissed in just the second over of the day against Brydon arriving at the crease, Pant began his innings in the usual fashion as he danced down the track against Chris Woakes on just the second delivery and got an outside edge which flew over slips for a boundary. The southpaw went on to survive two more close chances as a top edge flew towards fine leg boundary for a four and an inside edge on his pads, made him survive an lbw vs IND 1st Test Day 4 Updates Amid all this, the star batter was seen scolding himself as the stump caught him saying, 'Tu aisa kyu kar raha hai, iski kya zarurat hai (Why are you doing this? It's not needed)'DK translates what Rishabh Pant was saying! Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) June 23, 2025Rishabh Pant goes tumbling England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 23, 2025Pant has been criticised in the past for his irresponsible strokeplay at times, as legendary India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar called his shot-making 'stupid' during the third Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. The Indian team management has backed the swashbuckling batter to play in his own manner, given the amount of success he's achieved in the longest just 44 matches, Pant is already touted as the greatest wicketkeeper-batter to play for India, having scored seven centuries so far — the most by an Indian keeper. The 27-year-old has registered hundreds in England, Australia and South Africa, which is unprecedented in the history of Indian cricket by any Pant has found immense success with his method, which has given him the cushion to fail at times. In the first innings in the ongoing Leeds Test, he scored 134 (178) with the help of 12 fours and six sixes.
India Today
22-06-2025
- Sport
- India Today
Bumrah and the rest: Karthik fumes as India continue to repeat mistakes of the past
Former India cricketer Dinesh Karthik was left fuming after Day 2 of the first Test match between India and England. On Saturday, the Indian fast bowling unit failed to control the English batting line-up as the hosts romped to 209 for the loss of 3 wickets in just 49 overs. Fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah picked up all three wickets on June 21, as the rest of the pacers failed to turn speaking on Cricbuzz, said that there was a huge void between Bumrah and the rest of the Indian fast bowlers, which was hurting the prospects of the team. Out of the 49 overs bowled, Bumrah took 13 of them, just one behind Mohammed Siraj's 14. The other two pacers, Prasidh Krishna and Shardul Thakur, bowled 10 and 3 overs vs IND 1st Test Day 2 Highlights Unhappy about the use of Bumrah, Karthik said that India have got a habit of bringing the Indian speedster into the attack whenever they needed a wicket."There was too much of a void between (Bumrah) and the rest," Karthik told Cricbuzz after Saturday's play.'And you could see England also had it on the back of their minds that, 'If we play this spell, we'd have a good chance.' That's going to put pressure on the skipper because every time he's under pressure, he's going to go to Bumrah now. [But, at the same time,] he (Bumrah) has got a body that he has to take care of," he a day where there are hardly 60 overs (49) bowled, Bumrah has already bowled 13. Every time you need a wicket, it has to be Bumrah. And he always does it for you, so you get into that habit. Others need to find a way to definitely push the captain and say, 'I am ready, give me the ball, this is my plan, I want to do this'," Karthik WORKLOAD CONCERNSThere is merit in Karthik's argument on Jasprit Bumrah. The fast bowler overbowled himself in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 as well. In that series, Bumrah played all the matches and had to walk away midway through the final Test due to a back fast bowler has already clarified that he would be playing 3 Test matches in India to take care of his body in the long run. India would need to be careful about the use of the fast bowler, given there are several high-profile competitions lined up in the near only Karthik, but former India head coach Ravi Shastri was also concerned about the fast bowler's workload after Day 2 of the 1st Test match."The concern is Bumrah and what his workload will be as the series progresses, because he is the one man who is expected to pick wickets every spell he bowls," Shastri said at the end of Day 2's play. "I just hope someone at the other end puts their hands up."Must Watch
