Yashasvi Jaiswal got another half-century, helping India to a 2-0 series sweep over Bangladesh, claiming a seven-wicket win in what had looked like it would be an unlikely victory in a rain-affected second test.
After setting a new first-innings run-rate record on day four, having lost two days to rain, India followed it up with another strong performance on Tuesday.
Bangladesh started the day on 26-2, but with India's bowlers in fine form, they struggled to really get going, even with Shadman Islam bringing up a half-century.
Ravindra Jadeja (3-34) and Jasprit Bumrah (3-17) stunted any momentum as Bangladesh suffered a collapse of 7 for 55 and were bowled out for 146.
That left India with a target of 95, which they cruised to in just over an hour, despite losing three wickets in the chase.
Jaiswal set them on their way with a 45-ball 51, but it was Rishabh Pant (4) who hit the winning runs to get India over the line.
Data Debrief: Clean sweep
While day five did not quite hit the record-breaking heights of day four for India, it was still a success as they earned an 18th consecutive Test series win at home.
The 312 balls India batted for in this Test is just the second-fewest they have faced to win a Test match, behind the 281 against South Africa in Cape Town earlier this year.
Ravichandran Ashwin, who finished the series with 114 runs and 11 wickets and was named Player of the Series, has now received the award 11 times in men's Tests, the joint-most by anyone in the format alongside Muttiah Muralitharan.
Ashwin has won more Player of the Series awards than Player of the Match awards (10) in Tests.
Players hail landmark prize money boost ahead of ICC Women’s T20 World Cup
West Indies captain Hayley Matthews and all-rounder Deandra Dottin are among players from across the globe that have welcomed the ICC’s landmark decision to offer equal prize money between men’s and women’s competitions.
Matthews, Dottin, and others hailed the move by the sport’s governing body, which came ahead of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, scheduled to get underway in the United Arab Emirates on Thursday.
The tournament winners will receive US$2.34 million after the final on October 20, with the runners-up receiving US$1.17 million as part of a total prize pot of just over US$7.95 million.
That represents an increase of 225% from last year’s edition and makes cricket the only major team sport to have equal prize money for its men’s and women’s World Cup events.
The significant moment in cricket history has been met with acclaim from players ahead of the start of competition on Thursday, with Bangladesh set to take on Scotland at Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
“It puts a lot of respect on the game. As women and as professional cricketers, we go out there and work super hard every day, just as hard as the men do,” Matthews said ahead of their opening match on Friday.
“We are all on the world stage the same way so to get equal prize money is a huge thing. Hopefully we can see more stuff like that being done and going across the board all the way,” she added.
West Indies, who won the tournament in 2016, welcomed back Deandra Dottin into the international fold after two years away, and the legendary all-rounder was pleased to see the ICC lead the way on tournament prize money.
“It is really good to see. Change is good, it just goes to show that women’s cricket is getting taken seriously, which is a great thing. This shows we are going forward in the right direction, and we are being more respected in that area,” Dottin noted.
Bangladesh seamer Jahanara Alam is among those hoping to be in action in the opener, and the 31-year-old believes the move to equal prize money will have a long-lasting impact on the sport.
"This is inspiring for us. I believe this will be motivating and inspiring for the next generation. It is good for us as we will get financial support,” Alam reasoned.
“Parents in Bangladesh who don't want to let their daughters take up sports and only want them to study for a job or business will be inspired by this and will be motivated to send their daughters to play cricket,” she opined.
Bangladesh’s captain, Nigar Sultana, believes the move represents the broader positive changes happening within women’s cricket.
"Money is always motivating. This is a good thing, and in women's cricket, we are seeing that a lot of changes are made. That is happening in Bangladesh as well. For the whole team, it looks like if we can do well, we can achieve good things in life. So from that point of view, it really makes us happy,” Sultana stated.
The tournament will see 10 teams vying for supremacy. Australia are defending champions, having won a year ago in South Africa.
South Africa were runners-up last year and begin their campaign against West Indies in Dubai on Friday.
Rohit: India willing to risk low score to force result against Bangladesh
Rohit Sharma says India were willing to be bowled out for a low score in the first innings to avoid defeat in their 2-0 series sweep over Bangladesh.
The second Test was severely hampered by rain, with days two and three lost due to the weather, but the hosts eventually prevailed in a seven-wicket victory.
However, in their return to action on day four, India first dismissed Bangladesh for 233 before setting a record first-innings run rate for any men’s Test, declaring on 285-9, to put themselves in the driving seat on the final day.
In a dominant performance, they bowled the tourists out for 146, before reaching their target of 95 in just over an hour, claiming their 18th consecutive home Test series win.
And they certainly started fast on Monday. They scored at a rate of 8.2 runs per over through their 34.4 overs before declaring, the fastest-ever rate recorded by any team in the first innings of a men's Test.
In the first innings, Rohit got off to a flying start, hitting 23 off 11 balls, including successive sixes off the first two, but Yashasvi Jaiswal was the star, scoring half-centuries in both innings, and the captain said they decided the reward would be worth the risk.
"We had to think a lot [about] how the game can keep moving forward once we lost two-and-a-half days," Rohit said.
"When we came on day four, we thought, okay, let's try and get them out as quickly as possible and then see with the bat what we can do.
"Once they had got 230-odd, we said it was not about the runs we got, but it was about the overs we wanted to bowl at them. It meant we had to try and up the run-rate, and score as many as possible because the pitch did not have much for the bowlers.
"To make a game out of that pitch was a super effort from the bowlers, and then for the batters to buy into that thought of going and getting the runs as quickly as possible," Rohit said.
"It was a risk we were willing to take because when you're trying to bat like that, it is very easy that you can get bundled out for a low score as well.
"But we were ready with that factor as well, that even if we get all out for 100-150, we wanted to give ourselves a chance to be in the game and try and get a result."
CPL Playoff Preview: Who will emerge as 2024 champions?
After 30 matches in the preliminary phase, we have finally come to the portion of the 2024 Caribbean Premier League where a champion will be crowned…the playoffs.
The four-match spectacle, all to take place at the Providence Stadium in Guyana, is set to bowl off with the eliminator on Tuesday evening between the Trinbago Knight Riders and the Barbados Royals.
The loser of that encounter will unfortunately see their 2024 CPL campaign come to an end while the winner will advance to the second qualifier to face the loser of Wednesday’s Qualifier 1 between hosts, defending champions and league-phase table toppers, the Guyana Amazon Warriors and the St. Lucia Kings.
That game will take place on Friday and the winner will face the winner of Qualifier 1 in the final on Sunday.
The Kings are the only team in these playoffs yet to lift a CPL title, finishing as runners up in consecutive years in 2020 and 2021.
The Knight Riders will be looking to add to their record four titles, with the last one coming in 2020.
The Royals are two-time champions, with their wins coming in 2014 and 2019 when they were named the ‘Tridents.’
The Amazon Warriors won their first title last year after being beaten finalists five times from 2013-2019.
With all that in mind, let’s take a closer look at some of the key players for each franchise heading into the business end of the tournament.
Guyana Amazon Warriors
Shimron Hetmyer
The 27-year-old left-hander has had an excellent season with the bat for the defending champions. The former West Indies U-19 World Cup-winning captain scored 353 runs in 10 innings at an average of 39.22 and a phenomenal strike rate of 186.77.
He hit four fifties including a highest score of 91 against the St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots on September 3. Against the Kings, Hetmyer hit 58 in their second-to-last game of the league phase and will hope that form carries over to Wednesday’s game.
Gudakesh Motie and Imran Tahir
On those spin-friendly pitches in Guyana, the Amazon Warriors will need their spin twins Gudakesh Motie and Imran Tahir to shine with the ball. They’ve both been in excellent form this season with 31 wickets between them.
Motie’s 16 wickets have come at an average of 14.37 while Tahir’s 15 have come at 16.37.
St. Lucia Kings
Johnson Charles
The no nonsense right-hander has always had a reputation of being a hit or miss type of batsman. This season, he’s been doing more of the former. He scored the third most runs this season with 366 in 10 innings at an average of 40.66 and a strike rate of 152.50. He’s had scores of 19 and 12 against the Amazon Warriors this season and will be hoping to make a significant contribution against them on Wednesday.
Noor Ahmad
Still only 19-year-old, Afghanistan’s Noor Ahmad was the pick of the bowlers this season with a tournament-leading 18 wickets in 10 matches at an average of just 13.16. In his two outings against the Amazon Warriors, he recorded figures of 3-22 and 2-26 and should get a lot of assistance from the pitch in Guyana on Wednesday.
Trinbago Knight Riders
Nicholas Pooran
2024 has been a phenomenal year in T20 cricket for Nicholas Pooran. He recently broke Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan’s record for most T20 run scored in a calendar year and followed that up with a brilliant 101 in his team’s final league phase game against the Amazon Warriors on Sunday.
In total, Pooran finished with 413 runs in 10 innings at an average of 45.88 and a strike rate of 174.26. In his two games against Tuesday opponents the Royals this season, he recorded scores of 35 and 27.
Waqar Salamkheil
The second Afghan left-arm wrist spinner on this list, Salamkheil has been the Knight Riders’ strike bowler this season with Sunil Narine missing the final four games of the league phase. The 22-year-old took 15 wickets in 10 games at an average of 21.73 with his best figures of 3-13 coming against the Royals in Bridgetown on September 12.
Barbados Royals
Quinton de Kock
One of the premier T20 batsmen in the world over the last few years, the South African has shown his class all season for the Royals. His 434 runs in 10 innings at an average of 54.25 put him at the top of the list for most runs. The Royals have been heavily reliant on de Kock’s production this season as he is the only Royals batsman in the top 15. He also had the highest individual score this season, 115 against the Amazon Warriors in Bridgetown on September 13.
Maheesh Theekshana
In his first CPL season, the Sri Lankan mystery spinner has been the best performing bowler for the Royals. He played all 10 games, taking 15 wickets at an impressive economy of just 5.87 and an average of 15.26.
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