Month: January 2024

India are trailing 0-1 in the series going into Vizag ©AFP
“… you need to be prepared for that by practising it [the sweep shot]. If you add more shots to your game, it’s always beneficial. We played traditionally. The strength of our guys is going straight when it comes to using our feet. We can keep doing that, and of course, if we can add more shots and score through the square of the wicket, that’s always an addition.”
Less than 20 minutes after batting coach Vikram Rathour uttered the above in his answer on the dilemma of embracing the sweep – a shot that helped fire England into the series lead in Hyderabad, it became fairly obvious which way India intended to go. Kuldeep Yadav was first out to bat in the outdoor nets of the Visakhapatnam stadium and after feeling a customary couple of deliveries on his bat, he went down on his knees and hit a sweep shot. Two balls later, he switched directions and played the reverse sweep.
Those early moments from Kuldeep was a precursor for what was to come in an intense and purposeful net session two days out from the second Test, where the consensus unsurprisingly is that spin will play a big part. Hark back to that fourth innings in Hyderabad where India were out-tacticed by the very in-out fields they use to stifle their opposition in these conditions.
Ben Stokes offered run scoring options square of the wicket on either side, but to access those areas, India’s batters had to go against the conventional wisdom of playing spin in front of the wicket. The forward defense is laden with risk on turners as batters can tend to push at deliveries with hard hands, bringing slips and close-in catchers into play.
In the DRS era, there is also the obvious threat of being given out LBW to the deliveries despite being caught on the front foot. Perhaps it was the pressure of a run chase or the stark improvement in the lengths hit by Tom Hartley, or both, India’s batters largely chose the conservative option of defending until they were picked off by the inevitable misbehaving ball.
“There’s a difference between playing with intent and playing attacking cricket. I want them to play with intent. If there is the opportunity to score some runs, they should take it,” Rathour said in the press conference on Wednesday.
The diktat seemed to have resonated with many in the camp for India’s batters were unwilling to die wondering, even in a practice setting. Captain Rohit Sharma, who briefly broke the rut with a string of reverse sweeps in Hyderabad, led the way again. An Axar Patel delivery that spun past his bat and hit the off-stump proved to be the wake up call he needed to sweep the spinners off their lengths.
It was Shubman Gill’s three-part session, however, that offered the most emphatic validation of what India perceived to be the need of the hour. Last year, during the Border-Gavaskar series, Gill would often indulge in exercises with Rahul Dravid that involved getting the front pad out of the way and defending with bat in front of the pad to mitigate the risks of the LBW. But over time, Gill ended up defending spinners well in front of his body and as a result, found himself pushing at deliveries with hard hands.
In Vizag, the No.3s of the past and the present, combined to search for an alternative, attacking solution. Dravid bowled gentle off-spinners at Gill, who started sweeping, either side of the wicket. The pair exchanged little notes which seemed to involve sweeping on the line of the delivery.
If the guard is aligned to know the position of the off-stump, any ball outside the eye line will rule out the risk of the LBW and thus could be eligible for sweep. Of course this doesn’t address the issue of the length of the ball as the shorter-than-sweeping lengths can catch the top-edge and the fuller ones, the bottom edge. Dravid also appeared to be impressing upon his young batter the importance of a strong base provided by the back leg as well as the correct bat swing – from high to low.
After the session with the coach, Gill practiced the lessons against a pair of net bowlers, both of whom bowled left-arm orthodox spin and then moved to the final net where Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar operated in tandem. Gill played Axar better than he did Ashwin, although there was one sweep off the left-arm spinner in which his bat swing went from low to high. The bowler reckoned it was a catch at deep square-leg and Gill responded with a ‘high-to-low’ sweep to the immediate next ball.
Against Ashwin who turned the ball into him, Gill kept the sweeps locked up, opting largely for the charge and loft. However, like with his first innings dismissal in Hyderabad, Gill found himself beaten several times by the dip the master offspinner was able to generate to trap the batter in no-man’s land. The challenge for the batter then seemed to be to let the hands takeover and go through with the stroke as opposed to choosing a neither here nor there option.
Understandably, the sweeps weren’t prescribed as one miracle pill for all ailments and there were those like Shreyas Iyer who stuck to the time-tested method of dealing with spin, chiefly by charging down the pitch or getting right back into the crease to cut or pull.
A first look at Patidar, Sarfaraz
India’s practice session was marked by full attendance from the playing squad. Among batters who were put through the ringer were Rajat Patidar and Sarfaraz Khan, both in line for a Test debut. To the first ball he faced, from left-arm spinner Saurabh Kumar, Patidar pulled out a sweep. Four of the first six balls he faced resulted in either a sweep or a reverse sweep response. The other two deliveries were sent down by Mohammed Siraj.
Besides the timing on his sweeps, Patidar also showcased good defence, playing in front of his pads but under his eyes and thereby ensuring he wasn’t pushing at deliveries. He moved on to a lengthy session facing Ashwin in one of the far nets and was still batting when Sarfaraz got his call-up to the nets, ending his lengthy and animated chat with captain Rohit. Sarfaraz was more selective in his use of the sweep, choosing instead to play Kuldeep Yadav off the backfoot and with the spin on to the legside. The sweeps, when they did arrive, were hit with tremendous power.
Choosing between the two to replace KL Rahul would be a tough choice, Rathour conceded in his press conference. There is a possibility both play if India are concerned about the inexperience in the batting and feel a fifth bowler is but an unwanted luxury. Both of them, as well as the rest of the batters in the line-up had offered promise of righting the wrongs of Hyderabad. But this was a relatively friendlier environment in the lap of the Eastern Ghats. On Friday, the sweep stakes will be much higher.

Indian head coach Rahul Dravid was all praise for Ollie Pope after the England batter engineered an unlikely win for Ben Stokes and Co. in the first Test against Team India on Sunday. Impressed with Pope’s counterattack and reverse sweeps against the world-class bowling attack of Rohit Sharma’s Team India, head coach Dravid openly admitted that the Englishman played the game-changing knock for the visitors at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
Rahul Dravid’s special praise for England star has recieved AB de Villiers’ attention before the 2nd Test. (ANI-PTI)
After smashing a brilliant century on Day 3 of the 1st Test, Pope extended his run and scripted history with the willow against India. The Englishman played an impressive knock of 196 to help the visitors post a gigantic 2nd innings total of 436 in 121 overs. Showering praise on Pope, Indian head coach Dravid said that he wanted to shake his hand after the match.
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“I certainly haven’t seen it being done that consistently. I think the sweep is something that we’ve seen people employ in the past. But to be able to play a reverse sweep that consistently and that successfully for that long, you know, hats off and credit to him. I just want to shake his hand and say, incredibly well done, it was an exceptional innings,” Dravid told reporters in Hyderabad.
Taking cognisance of Dravid’s recent remarks, legendary South African cricketer AB de Villiers also lauded Pope for his memorable knock against India. “The man of the moment, the legend himself, Ollie Pope. No one saw this coming. Unbelievable scenes when Rahul Dravid comes out and recognizes something special. It is very true what he says,” De Villiers said on his YouTube channel.
Pope played the match-winning knock of 196 off 278 balls in the 1st Test against England. The England batter surpassed Pakistan icon Saeed Anwar in an elite list. Anwar smashed 188* against India at Kolkata in 1999. Only Andy Flower (232*), Brendon McCullum (225), and Garfield Sobers (198) have scored more than the England batter in the 2nd innings (as a visiting batter) against India.
“I watched almost every single ball and it was just incredible how this guy worked the ball around on a very difficult track against the best spinners in the world. It doesn’t get any harder than that. He was just calm and composed,” De Villiers added.

Nepal v Bangladesh in Bloemfontein
Live scorecard
Toss: Nepal won the toss and elected to bat
Result: Bangladesh beat Nepal by five wickets
Bangladesh dominated the proceedings after being asked to bowl. Nepal showed potential but couldn’t match up to the Tigers.
The Rhinos found the going tough against an adept Bangladesh bowling attack. The pacers struck thrice in the first Powerplay before the spinners kept the Nepal batters guessing in the middle overs. Regular wickets kept the scoring rate in check.
Mohammad Borson and Sheikh Jibon accounted for seven wickets between them to ensure that Bangladesh needed 170 to win.
Jishan Alam’s attacking fifty led Bangladesh’s effort to gain a substantial net run-rate advantage by finishing the chase early. However, off-spinner Subash Bhandari’s triple strike slowed the Tigers down after the Powerplay.
Ariful Islam’s attacking fifty led Bangladesh past the target. Subash managed two more wickets to his name to finish with a five-wicket haul. Borson was the Player of the Match for his 4/19.

Rajat Patidar is in line to make his Test debut against England at the ACA-VDCA Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Friday. Patidar, who was brought into the squad after Virat Kohli pulled out from the first two Tests, was seen practising both the conventional and reverse sweeps during India’s nets session on Thursday. The talented right-hander, who made his ODI debut in South Africa last year, was always slightly ahead of Sarfaraz Khan, the other contender in the race to grab a spot in India’s middle-order for the second Test. Although both the uncapped cricketers sweat it out during the optional training session, it was Patidar who seemed to be going through an intense drill to combat the England spinners.
Rajat Patidar(PTI)
News agency PTI reported that the Madhya Pradesh right-hander and Shubman Gill spent a lot of time practising the sweep shot. Gill has been short of runs and his defensive ploy in the first Test came under the scanner.
The sweep and reverse sweep were the most prominent scoring shots of Ollie Pope during his 196-run match-changing knock in the first Test.
Patidar, a naturally attacking middle-order batter is no stranger to the concentration sweep but the reverse sweep is something that he is trying to add to his armoury to tackle the likes of Jack Leach, Tom Hartley, Joe Root, and Rehan Ahmed.
Patidar scored two centuries against England Lions in his last three innings for India A. His 150 in the four-day match against Ahmedabad was crucial in helping him jump the queue.
All the batters were not sweeping every ball but it was a lot more than what they practised in the Hyderabad nets.
Sarfaraz also had a hit in the nets. Both he and Patidar also got catching practice in the slips.
The sweep doesn’t come naturally to the home team batters and coach Vikram Rathour said that they should play to their strengths.
“It is not something you can try. You need to practice it. If you have more shots it is beneficial. We play in a traditional way. Our strength is going straight and using our feet. We need to do that well and and if we can play some shots, that is always a good addition,” he said.
England’s batting mainstay Joe Root set up as a left-hander before turning for the reverse sweep in the team’s session in the morning.
Jack Leach, who is nursing an injury on his left keen, did not train on Wednesday and looks a doubtful starter, bringing uncapped Shoaib Bashir into the equation.

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The 24-year-old has been out of action since August last year due to a knee ligament injury © AFP
Prithvi Shaw is set to make his comeback. The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) has included him in their Ranji squad.
The decision comes after he received clearance from the National Cricket Academy (NCA), which deemed him fit for competitive cricket. Consequently, Shaw has been added to the squad led by Ajinkya Rahane, and they will face Bengal at the Eden Gardens starting from February 2.
Shaw, aged 24, has been sidelined since August of the previous year due to a knee ligament injury.
On January 20, Cricbuzz reported about the delay in return to action by Shaw as the NCA wanted to subject him to higher volume of workload to test his preparedness.
The NCA had informed the MCA, stating, “Prithvi Shaw is progressing well in his batting and fielding drills. He will undergo higher volumes of acceleration, change of direction, and agility drills over the next 3 weeks to develop the required robustness for his injured knee ligament before making a return to sports.”
On Wednesday, the NCA granted him clearance to participate in the Ranji Trophy. With Shaw’s inclusion, Mumbai will have a 17-member traveling squad.
Mumbai currently lead the Elite Group B Ranji points table with 20 points from four games, boasting three wins and one loss.
Mumbai squad: Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Shivam Dube, Prithvi Shaw, Jay Bista, Bhupen Lalwani, Amogh Bhatkal. Suved Parkar, Prasad Pawar (WK), Hardik Tamore (WK), Suryansh Shedge, Tanush Kotian, Atharva Ankolekar, Aditya Dhumal, Mohit Awasthi, Dhaval Kulkarni, Roystan Dias and Sylvester Dsouza.
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The next Barcelona match is upon us! The Blaugrana return to La Liga action with a home game against Osasuna at the Montjuïc Olympic Stadium, and Xavi Hernández has called up the following 20 players for Wednesdays clash:
Goalkeepers: 13. Iñaki Peña, 26. Ander Astralaga, 31. Diego Kochen
Defenders: 2. João Cancelo, 4. Ronald Araujo, 15. Andreas Christensen, 23. Jules Kounde, 33. Pau Cubarsí, 39. Héctor Fort
Midfielders: 8. Pedri, 16. Fermín López, 18. Oriol Romeu, 21. Frenkie de Jong, 22. Ilkay Gündogan, 30. Marc Casadó, 35. Unai Hernández
Forwards: 7. Ferran Torres, 9. Robert Lewandowski, 19. Vitor Roque, 27. Lamine Yamal
The injuries simply wont stop at Barça this season, and another name has been added to the list of absences as João Félix is expected to miss a number of weeks with an ankle injury. He joins Sergi Roberto (Achilles), Raphinha (hamstring), Marcos Alonso (back), Alejandro Balde (hamstring) and Gavi (knee) on the treatment table, while Marc-André ter Stegen (back) has returned to training but isnt cleared just yet. There is some good news, however, as Iñigo Martínez is back in the squad after missing the last three weeks with a hamstring injury.
Predicted starting XI (4-2-3-1):
Peña; Kounde, Araujo, Christensen, Cancelo; Pedri, De Jong; Yamal, Gündogan, Ferran; Lewandowski
The match kicks off at 7pm CET/WAT (Barcelona & Nigeria), 6pm GMT (UK), 1pm ET, 10am PT (USA), 11.30pm IST (India), and you can join us to follow and comment all the action.
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Real Madrid target Alphonso Davies talked to Kicker and shared some thoughts about his current club Bayern Munich when asked about his future.
I feel very comfortable here, I am playing for an amazing team, one of the best teams in European football. I stay focused and I give my all for this team and for our fans, said the Canadian left-back.
Davies contract expires in 2025 and hes become Real Madrids biggest priority for the 2024 transfer window, given that Bayern would have to accept an affordable offer if they want to avoid losing him as a free agent a year later.
However, Bayern are offering Davies a contract extension with a significant salary raise, one which Real Madrid are not willing to meet. That means that Davies will have to choose between staying in Germany with a better contract or joining Real Madrid by giving up some money in the process.