Tag: cricket

Cricket Olympics

Cricket’s Inclusion In 2028 Olympics Will Take It To Newer Geographies: Nita

By LokMarg

International Olympic Committee (IOC) member Nita Ambani said that the inclusion of cricket in the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics Games was a welcome addition as the sports discipline had the potential to attract a lot of new interest and opportunities for the Olympic movement across newer geographies.

Soon after cricket was officially confirmed as an Olympic sport at the ongoing 141st International Olympic Committee (IOC) Session being held in Mumbai, Nita Ambani said, “As an IOC member, a proud Indian, and an ardent cricket fan, I am delighted that IOC members have voted to include Cricket as an Olympic Sport in the LA Summer Olympics 2028!”

Cricket has only featured in one previous edition of the Olympics in 1900 when only two teams took part.

“Cricket is one of the most loved sports globally, and the second most watched. For 1.4 billion Indians, cricket is not just a sport, it’s a religion!” Nita Ambani said. Nita Ambani is the first Indian woman to become an IOC member

The IOC session is being held in India for only the 2nd time in history, returning to the country after 40 years.

“I’m delighted that this historic resolution was passed at the one hundred and forty-first IOC Session taking place right here in our country in Mumbai,” Nita Ambani added.

Nita Ambani hoped that the sport’s appeal around the globe would increase significantly with this announcement. “The inclusion of cricket in the Olympics will create deeper engagement for the Olympic Movement in newer geographies. And at the same time, provides a boost to cricket’s growing international popularity.”

“I thank and congratulate the IOC and the LA Organizing Committee for their support of this landmark decision. It’s truly a day of great joy and jubilation!” she concluded.

Meanwhile, apart from cricket, the 2028 Olympics event will also include sports like baseball/softball, lacrosse, squash and flag football. The proposal from the Organising Committee of the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 to include these games in the programme was accepted at the ongoing 141st IOC session being held in Mumbai, just two IOC members opposed the proposal and one abstained from voting.

Cricket made its sole appearance at the 1900 Paris Olympics in which Great Britain defeated France in the final. But it is played in Commonwealth Games and Asian Games as well. (ANI)

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Virat Kohli Anushka Sharma

Virat-Anushka Walk Hand-In-Hand Post India Vs Pak Match

By LokMarg

Indian cricket Virat Kohli and actor Anushka Sharma, popularly known as ‘Virushka’ are among the most loved celebrity couples.

They are each other’s greatest cheerleaders too and Anushka is frequently seen cheering for her hubby Virat during his cricket matches.

On Saturday, the actor arrived in Ahmedabad to support her husband for the much-awaited match between arch-rivals India and Pakistan.

Post India’s win against Pakistan in the ICC World Cup 2023 match a fan shared a video on X in which the couple was seen walking hand-in-hand at the team hotel engaging with other cricketers’ family members, including captain Rohit Sharma’s wife Ritika Sajdeh.

They were seen surrounded by hotel staff and other players.

In another viral video, Virat is seen on the ground after the match, interacting with Anushka as she sits in the stands. Although Anushka is not seen in the video, the cricketer is seen smiling at her and making a driving gesture.

Coming to the match, India skipper Rohit Sharma’s flowing form dismantled Pakistan’s famed bowling attack as the ‘Men in Blue’ put up a dominating performance with bat and ball in the marquee World Cup clash here to register a comprehensive seven-wicket victory.

Pakistan posted a total of 191 in the first innings which was comfortably chased down by the Indian team following Rohit Sharma’s powerful 86 and Shreyas Iyer’s classic 53*. (ANI)

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World Cup

India Outshine Pakistan In World Cup Cricket Match In Ahmedabad

By LokMarg

India skipper Rohit Sharma’s flowing form dismantled Pakistan’s famed bowling attack as the Men in Blue put up a dominating performance with bat and ball in the marquee World Cup clash here to register a comprehensive seven-wicket victory.

The Indian batters looked well poised from the beginning to chase the Pakistan total of 191 as Babbar Azam-led men suffered a collapse, losing the last eight wickets for 36 runs. India won the toss and put Pakistan to bat.

Shubman Gill, who made his first appearance in the ODI World Cup, scored some scintillating hits before losing his wicket. He struck three consecutive fours off Hasan Ali in the second over of the Indian innings.

Shubman was out on Shaheen Shah Afridi’s bowling and the hope his wicket may have generated among Pakistan fans was short-lived.

Virat Kohli joined Rohit, who was smooth in his power hitting. Kohli also came up with some strong blows before he was caught off the bowling of Hasan Ali during the powerplay.

Rohit and Shreyas took charge and strode along even as Pakistan bowlers tried hard to get a breakthrough.

The sea of Indian fans, many of them dressed in blue, cheered and waved as Indian batsmen struck in the match played at the Narendra Modi Stadium here.

Rohit fell short of his well-deserved century by 14 runs. Shaheen claimed his second wicket of the night with Rohit walked back to the pavilion with a score of 86.

In his well-paced innings, Rohit crossed the milestone of 300 ODI sixes which have come in 254 matches. With 351 sixes in 308 games, former Pakistan cricketer Shahid Afridi leads the tally, while West Indies legend Chris Gayle hammered 331 maximums in 301 encounters.

After Rohit’s departure, Shreyas 53* and KL 19* guided India to a comprehensive 7-wicket victory to make it 8-0 in the World Cup between the two arch-rivals.

Earlier in the innings, Indian bowlers shattered Pakistan’s batting lineup as Bumrah, Siraj, Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja bagged two wickets each.

Pakistan were all out for 191 runs in 42.5 overs. Captain Babar Azam scored the highest for Pakistan with 50 (58 balls) while Mohammad Rizwan scored 49.

Pakistan openers Abdullah Shafique and Imam-ul-Haq started in a positive fashion. While playing cautiously against the disciplined Jasprit Bumrah, the duo took their chances against some loose deliveries from Mohammed Siraj.

Rohit, however, persisted with his pacers, and the move bore fruit as ‘Miya Magic’ Siraj struck in the eighth over and got one to jag in, trapping Abdullah Shafique’s leg before.

Imam and captain Babar Azam tried to ensure that Pakistan went ahead at a healthy scoring rate.

Babar got off to a fine start pretty quickly, hitting three fours off Hardik Pandya in his first 10 balls. Just when Pakistan was closing into a run rate close to six, Imam went for an expansive drive and ended up edging a Pandya delivery to wicket-keeper KL Rahul.

Ravindra Jadeja provided India with a chance for another wicket, however, Mohammad Rizwan reviewed and survived the call after it turned out that the ball was straying down the leg side.

hit the pads of Mohammad Rizwan, and the umpire raised his finger. However, Rizwan reviewed and survived the call after it turned out that the ball was straying down the leg side. Rizwan then joined forces with Babar to keep Pakistan close to five at the 20-over mark.

Over the following few overs, India’s spinners consistently controlled the game, with Kuldeep Yadav in particular displaying excellent control. When the Pakistani duo scored 13 runs against Siraj in the 28th over, they were freed from their chains. Babar’s magnificent four through the point against India helped him to his ODI half-century.

But in the 30th over, Siraj beat Babar’s outside edge and his delivery slammed into his off-stump.

India’s star spinner Kuldeep then gave Pakistan two big blows as he removed Saud Shakeel for 6 and Iftikhar Ahmed (4) in the 33rd over.

In the 34th over, Jasprit Bumrah completely bamboozled Rizwan with a beauty and removed the Pakistan batter. Rizwan failed to get to his first ODI fifty against India and went back to Pavellion just one run shy away from fifty.

Bumrah castled another wicket in quick succession as he sent Shadab Khan packing after scoring just 2 runs.

Hardik delivered a superb ball to dismiss Mohammad Nawaz for 4 in the 40th over while in the next over Ravindra Jadeja sent Hasan Ali packing for 12, leaving Pakistan tottering at 187/9.

Jadeja then dismissed Pakistan’s last batter Haris Rauf, bundling out arch-rival for 191 in 42.5 overs.

Brief score: Pakistan 191 (Babar Azam 50, Mohammad Rizwan 49; Jasprit Bumrah 2-19) vs India 192/3 (Rohit Sharma 86, Shreyas Iyer 53*; Shaheen Afridi 2-36). (ANI)

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Gautam Gambhir

Gambhir Offers Prayers At Tirupati For Team India’s World Cup Performance

By LokMarg

Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir on Thursday offered prayers at Lord Balaji Temple in Andhra Pradesh’s Tirumala and expressed hope that with the prayers of the 140 crore Indians, Men in Blue will emerge as the victorious team in the upcoming ICC ODI World Cup.

Gambhir reached Tirumala in the wee hours of Thursday with his family and temple authorities offered him “srivari prasadam.”

The former opener said India stands a decent chance of taking home the trophy at the 2023 Cricket World Cup. He also believes that with the prayers of 140 crore Indians, Men in Blue would win the World Cup.

“All of us wish India the very best. I am sure with 140 crore Indians praying for the team, they will definitely do a very good job and India has a very good chance of winning the World Cup,” Gambhir told media after his visit to 

The 41-year-old is currently the mentor of the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).

India will begin their ODI World Cup campaign against Australia on October 8 at Chennai. The 15-member squad will be led by Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya acting as his deputy.

The eagerly-awaited contest between India and Pakistan will be held in Ahmedabad on October 14. 

Meanwhile, the World Cup will commence on October 5 when 2019 finalists England and New Zealand clash at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, with the event culminating in the final at the same venue on November 19. (ANI)

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Shreyas Iyer

Shreyas Thanks Believers After Match-Winning Knock Against Australia

By LokMarg

India middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer thanked everyone “who stood by him” following a match-winning century against Australia in the second ODI. 

India outplayed Australia with both bat and ball to clinch the three-match ODI series 2-0 after winning the second match by 99 runs. The target or Australia was revised through Duckworth-Lew–Lewis–Stern (DLS) method at the Holkar Cricket Stadium on Sunday as rain interrupted the match. 

Iyer thanked all his supporters and believers for standing by him when he was facing an injury and while he was initially struggling to score big on his return from injury. 

“For everyone who stood by me,” Iyer said in a post. 

Shreyas had made his return during the Asia Cup after battling injury woes since December last year. Shreyas played some ODI and Test cricket early this year but the recurrence of his injury ruled him out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final.

He played the Asia Cup campaign opener against Pakistan but could score just 14 runs. Following that, he did not feature in the tournament due to a back spasm. The form of KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan also raised questions about his spot in the team despite him being there in the ICC Cricket World Cup squad. 

On his return to cricket against Australia in the first ODI, he could score just three and was run out. In the second ODI, Iyer stormed into form and proved his utility in the middle order with his third ODI century, which saw him showcase strike rotation and attacking intent against spin and pace alike. 

Coming to the match, India were put to bat first by Australia. A 200-run partnership for the second wicket between Shubman Gill (104 in 97 balls, six fours and four sixes) and Shreyas Iyer (105 in 90 balls, 11 fours and three sixes) laid a solid foundation.  Later, half-centuries from skipper KL Rahul (52 in 38 balls, with three fours and three sixes) and Suryakumar Yadav (72* in 37 balls with six fours and six sixes) and a cameo from Ishan Kishan (31 in 18 balls with two fours and two sixes) pushed India to 399/5 in 50 overs.

Cameron Green took two wickets for Australia but gave away 103 runs. Josh Hazlewood, Sean Abbott and Adam Zampa took a wicket each.

Chasing 400 for victory, Australia were reduced to 9/2 and rain interrupted the action. The target was later revised to 317 in 33 overs.

An 80-run stand between David Warner (53 in 39 balls, seven fours and a six) and Marnus Labuschagne (27) stabilised the innings a bit. But after this, wickets kept falling and the Aussies sunk to 140/8.

A 77-run explosive partnership between Abbott (54 in 36 balls with four boundaries and five sixes) and Josh Hazlewood (23) entertained the audience, but the Aussies were bundled out for 217 in 28.2 overs, losing by 99 runs.

Ravichandran Ashwin was the pick of the bowlers for India with 3/41, with his spin partner Ravindra Jadeja getting 3/42. Prasidh Krishna got two wickets while Mohammed Shami got one.

India have won the series 2-0 with one match to go.

Shreyas Iyer was given the ‘Player of the Match’ award for his century. (ANI)

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India ODI

India Replaces Pakistan As Top ODI Team In ICC Ranking

By LokMarg

India climbed to No.1 in the Men’s ODI Team Rankings after registering a win against Australia by five wickets in Mohali on Friday. With the win, India also accomplished a rare feat by becoming the top team in all three formats. 

According to ICC, India (116 rating points) displaced their arch-rivals Pakistan (115) at the top of the rankings after the win in the first ODI. Australia remain third with 111 points.

As a result of the win, India now reigns supreme across all formats as the No.1 team, having already occupied the top spot in Tests and T20Is.

India cruised to a five-wicket victory over Australia in the first ODI to achieve the feat. Mohammed Shami’s five-wicket haul was the highlight of their bowling innings after stand-in skipper KL Rahul opted to field first.

In reply, Shubman Gill and Ruturaj Gaikwad scored a fifty each and stitched a 142-run opening stand. Despite losing a few quick wickets, the fifties from Rahul and Surykumar Yadav held the fort and guided the hosts to victory.

It has been a scramble at the top of the ODI Team Rankings lately with India, Pakistan and Australia all in contention for the top spot during the recently-concluded Asia Cup and Australia’s ODI series against South Africa.

Pakistan held on to their No.1 spot despite not making it to the Asia Cup Final. Both India and Australia had opportunities to reach the ODI summit during the Asia Cup and the South Africa series but lost games when it mattered.

As a result of the defeat, Australia no longer stands a chance to be the No.1 team heading into the World Cup. However, Pakistan could still go to the top if Australia win the remaining two matches.

India remain in the box seat now, with a series win guaranteeing them the top spot heading into the marquee event at home.

India’s dominance now extends across all formats with them already occupying the No.1 spot in Tests and T20Is. This is only the second time in men’s cricketing history that a side has achieved the No.1 ranking across the formats. Prior to this, only South Africa had achieved the feat back in August 2012.

In the longer format, India have displayed remarkable consistency as a result of which they made their second consecutive World Test Championship Final in June, though they failed to conquer the final frontier again. Their recent record in bilateral series is almost spotless, with the series loss against South Africa in 2021-22 being the only blemish.

In T20Is, India reached the semi-final of the T20 World Cup in 2022. Their run in bilateral T20I series has been all the more impressive, having lost just one series out of 14 since the 2021 edition of the T20 World Cup. (ANI)

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Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli Turns Water Boy For Team India

By LokMarg

India’s talisman batter Virat Kohli has been a source of entertainment in cricket and never fails to make people laugh with his varied antics on the pitch, even when he is not in playing XI, he never misses an opportunity to crack a wisecrack.

Kohli has been rested from the team India in a dead rubber match against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup Super Four clash. Other than this India many changes in their playing XI. Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya Mohammed Siraj, and Kuldeep Yadav have been given a rest.

While, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, and Prasidh Krishna have been included in the playing XI.

After Anamul Haque was dismissed, Kohli went to the pitch carrying water for his teammates, and his sprinting technique had the crowd in splits. With early breakthroughs, Mohammed Shami and Shardul Thakur gave India an amazing start to the game. 

Talking about the match, India won the toss and opted to field against Bangladesh in their last Super Four stage match of the Asia Cup. (ANI)

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Kohli Runs In ODIs

Kohli Breaks Sachin’s Record, Becomes Fastest Player To Reach 13,000 Runs In ODIs

By LokMarg

India’s batting talisman Virat Kohli on Monday created a record by becoming the fastest to reach 13,000 runs in the ODI format.

Kohli achieved the milestone during the Asia Cup Super 4 clash against arch-rival Pakistan at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Monday.

He broke a long-standing Sachin Tendulkar record during a brilliant ODI knock against Pakistan.

Kohli is the fifth player to reach the landmark in men’s ODIs.

Apart from Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, Sanath Jayasuriya and Mahela Jayawardene are the other cricketers to reach the milestone.

Tendulkar took 321 innings to get to the mark and Kohli has reached the milestone in 267 innings. Ponting (341) and Sangakkara (363) also took over 300 innings while Jayasuriya reached the mark in 416 innings.

Kohli is also the only batter among the five to average over 50. With 47 ODI hundreds, Kohli is also just two away from equalling Tendulkar’s record tally of ODI tons. (ANI) 

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Shoaib Akhtar about team india

I Don’t Feel Indian Team Is Settled: Shoaib

By LokMarg

Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar feels that India has struggled to pick their final eleven for the past two years which has left the team unsettled. 

India’s efforts to pick up a balanced middle-order has posed a major challenge for the team due to injuries, availability of player and many other reasons.  

Since Rahul Dravid assumed the position of India’s men’s team head coach, experimentation has been a regular occurrence for the team hoping to find a set-up that works effectively in the batting and bowling department.

Ishan Kishan who is prominently recognised as an opener is now featuring in the middle order. Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya come out to bat according to the situation of India’s innings. The Indian pace trio has also undergone many changes over the past two years. 

The veteran speedster feels that the change in positions has left numerous questions than giving away answers.

“I don’t know why I have this feeling that India could not pick its final eleven for the past two years? I don’t feel the team is settled because now you all have injuries, three or four people have been replaced and your squad seems unsettled. It’s a strange thing for me that the squad doesn’t seem settled. We still don’t know who are the four main batsmen and who will bat at No.5, will Virat bat at No. 3 or 4?,” Shoaib Akhtar said during a virtual press conference organised by Star Sports.

He also went on to express his dissatisfaction over Yuzvendra Chahal and Arshdeep Singh’s absence from the Indian team. 

The former pacer reflected on how India needs to strengthen their bowling department rather than focusing on adding depth to their batting line-up.

“How they have not selected Chahal is beyond me. And again, I think Arshdeep needed to be in the squad because under pressure, when you are playing against someone like Pakistan, then you need that left-handed seamer. But the problem with the Indian team is that when they get out for 150 or 200, it’s not the batsmen but the bowlers who will have to perform. How long will you stretch your batting line-up? If the first five batsmen couldn’t do anything, then what will the No. 7 or No. 8 do? So, I literally believe that you’re playing with one bowler less,” Shoaib said.

The Rawalpindi Express also talked about the Hardik-Nehra duo that has been slowly building in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the past two years. 

The player-management duo’s hunger to strive for success has been quite evident since they combined together for the IPL franchise Gujarat Titans.  

“Hardik Pandya again, he turns out to be an asset for India. If we look at his all-round performance, then you feel as a captain, along with Ashish Nehra, he has taken his IPL side to such heights. He took his team to a final and won it and then reached the finals again next year. I think the combination of these two – Ashish Nehra and Pandya as a captain – can take India to new heights,” Shoaib added. (ANI)

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India Cricket WC 2023

India Announces 15-Member Squad For Cricket WC 2023

By LokMarg

Indian captain Rohit Sharma and BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar announced the 15-member squad for the ICC men’s Cricket World Cup on Tuesday here in Kandy. 

The squad is almost the same as the Asia Cup squad, Tilak Varma and Prasidh Krishna are excluded from the side. 

India is going with four seamers Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Shami, and Mohammed Siraj while three spinners Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav. 

Rahul injured his thigh earlier in the year at the IPL, though has been training at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, and will likely join his India teammates during the latter stages of the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka. With Rahul in the squad, Sanju Samson has missed out, as well as Tilak Varma and Prasidh Krishna as other omissions.

Captain Rohit Sharma leads the batting group, with Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav all named, as well as Ishan Kishan who provides another keeping option. All-rounders Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Shardul Thakur have also been named in an emphasis on batting options.

After showing no signs of injury upon his return, Jasprit Bumrah spearheads the bowling group, with Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj likely the first-choice pace group. Kuldeep Yadav is the side’s leading spin option.

The World Cup commences on Thursday, October 5 when 2019 finalists England and New Zealand clash at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, with the event culminating in the final at the same venue on Sunday, 19 November. India will start its campaign with a match against Australia in Chennai on October 8.

Ten teams will feature in this biggest Cricket World Cup ever, to be played across 10 venues from October 5 to November 19, with the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad hosting the tournament opener and the final. The event will feature 48 matches to be played across 46 days.

The venues other than Ahmedabad and Chennai are Bengaluru, Delhi, Dharamsala, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai and Pune. While Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram will join Hyderabad in hosting the practice games.

Eight teams have qualified for the 46-day event through the Cricket World Cup Super League while the final two spots were decided by the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier taking place in Zimbabwe. Sri Lanka and the Netherlands grabbed the two final spots in the tournament.

The top four teams will qualify for the semifinals, to be played in Mumbai on November 15 and in Kolkata on November 16. The final will be on November 19 in Ahmedabad. The semi-finals and the final will have reserve days.

Indian squad for World Cup: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj. (ANI) 

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