Page 21 - Asia Cup

India was clear about No 4 and No 5 batters 18 months ago: Rahul Dravid

India had locked their number four and number five slot for the ODI World Cup almost 18 months ago but injuries to three batters in quick succession threw a spanner in their works, coach Rahul Dravid said on Tuesday. Dravid said that injuries to the likes of Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant forced the team management to try out other players in the middle-order in recent times, and it was not experimenting just for the sake of it. "The No 4 and 5 spots are discussed a lot and gives the impression that we didn't have clarity that who is going to be there. I could have told you 18-19 months ago who the three candidates for the two spots were. "It was always between Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant. There was not doubt," Dravid said at India's pre-departure presser ahead of the Asia Cup. "It's unfortunate that all three had injuries in the space of two months. What are the odds of that happening. All three guys pushing for those two spots, had serious injuries, had to go

Playing high-risk game in ODIs is my individual choice: Rohit Sharma

Rohit Sharma traded caution with aggression to add a different dimension to his batting and the Indian skipper is happy with the results even if it means not getting those daddy hundreds. At the end of the 2019 World Cup, Rohit had scored 27 hundreds but in the last four years he could add only three more centuries to his tally. The captain largely believes that this is because of the high-risk game he has adopted. "I wanted to take more risks, which is why my numbers are slightly different now," Rohit told PTI during an exclusive interview. "My (ODI) strike-rate (during this period) has increased but the average has dipped a bit. This is exactly what our batting coach (Vikram Rathour) was telling me, You have scored big runs because of the way you batted all these years and in the last few years, it (big runs) has not happened because you are taking risk," the skipper added. Rohit is the only player to have scored three double hundreds -- 209 (vs Australia, 2013), 264 (vs Sri Lank

Asia Cup 2023: KL Rahul to miss India vs Pakistan game - Rahul Dravid

Team India coach Rahul Dravid said at a press conference here that KL is progressing well from the niggle he picked after recovering from his injury and will be under NCA supervision till September 4

Asia Cup: Shaheen vs Indian openers to Babar vs Kuldeep, top player battles

Will Indian openers survive Shaheen Afridi's opening spell or whether Kuldeep Yadav spins the web around Babar Azam once again? Here are the top battles to watch out for in Asia Cup 2023

Asia Cup 2023: Top five wicket-takers in the history of the tournament

It would be hard to guess that no Indian bowler features in the list of top-five wicket-takers in the history of the Asia Cup. Harder would be to believe that there is no Pakistani pacer on the list

Asia Cup: Surya determined to crack ODI code in most challenging format

He may have flopped in his audition at No 4 slot in India's ODI batting line-up but the explosive Suryakumar Yadav says he is determined to "crack the code" of making runs in the game's "most challenging" format. The world No 1 T20 batter and a vital cog for Mumbai Indians in the IPL, Suryakumar found it tough to provide India solidity in ODIs in their build-up to the World Cup, failing to record a single half-century in 20 matches between February 2022 and August 2023. In his last assignment in the Caribbean, Suryakumar was pushed down to No 6 and with the preferred No 4 choice Shreyas Iyer returning to the national team for the Asia Cup, it is possible that 'Sky' would have to stick to his new role. The right-handed batter is a part of the 18-member squad for the Asia Cup and looks set to make the World Cup team too, but he knows he has to turn the tide in his favour. "I feel the role which will be given to me, I will try to maintain that role, and if it's a changed role I will t

Tilak Varma to Gulshan Jha: Top 5 youngsters to watch out in Asia Cup 2023

This Asia Cup will see many youngsters face the test of international cricket in a multi-lateral ODI format, having shone in their bilateral and league matches so far. But few are primed to shine

Asia Cup: Shadab Khan reacts to Ajit Agrakar's comment 'Virat will handle'

Shadab Khan said that whether or not Virat Kohli will handle all Pakistan bowlers, will be decided on match day in the Asia Cup 2023

Asia Cup: Important to be in present says Shreyas Iyer on injury recovery

Pain, often excruciating, was Shreyas Iyer's constant companion as he dealt with a back injury, and when it refused to subside even after undergoing surgery, he "panicked" thinking that his career could be on the line. Prior to the surgery, Iyer was suffering, so much so that he "wasn't even able to "express myself properly" about what he was going through. However, the 28-year-old stylish batter eventually recovered and returned to the Indian team for the upcoming Asia Cup. Now that he is back, he is taking it one step at a time. Recalling the days of his struggles because of the injury, Iyer told the BCCI: "To be precise, I had this nerve compression, basically a slip disc, which was compressing the nerve, and the pain was going all the way down to the bottom of my tiny toe. And, it was horrendous then. "I was in excruciating pain. I wasn't able to express myself properly about what I'm going through. "But yeah, this was the feeling that I was having then and it was hard to ...

Asia Cup will test bowlers' readiness for 50-overs cricket: Wasim Akram

Pakistan bowling great Wasim Akram on Sunday said the upcoming Asia Cup will test readiness of subcontinental bowlers for 50-overs cricket ahead of the ODI World Cup, but refused to pick any favourites for the tournament. The Asia Cup begins on Wednesday with Pakistan taking on Nepal in the tournament-opener in Multan, but all eyes are fixed on the mega clash between arch-rivals India and Pakistan in Kandy on September 2. "Be it India or Pakistan or Sri Lanka, we will find out if the bowlers are able to deliver 10 overs or not, now-a-days they are all used to bowling four-overs (per game)," Akram told reporters here during a tournament sponsor's event. The competition will revert to 50-overs format in this edition after being organised in T20 version last year, and Akram welcomed the change. "This is a good idea by ACC to have a 50-over Asia Cup because right after it we have the World Cup," he said. Akram said all teams will be challenged on the parameters of fitness and game ...

Asia Cup 2023: Karim Janat returns after six years to Afghanistan ODI squad

All-rounder Karim Janat on Sunday returned to Afghanistan's ODI squad after a gap of six years and the selectors also included seasoned left-handed batter Najibullah Zadran in the 17-member squad for the upcoming Asia Cup. Hashmatullah Shahidi, a solid left-handed batter and who is known for anchoring the innings, will lead the team in the tournament will be played from August 30 to September 17 in Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Mohammad Saleem Safi and Abdul Rahman, two fast bowlers, who were part of Afghanistan's recent home ODI series against Pakistan, have retained their spots in the squad, but Fareed Ahmad and Wafadar Momand have been left out. Azmatullah Omarzai, a seam-bowling all-rounder, has been ruled out of the competition due to a side strain. Gulbadin Naib and Janat have been added to the team to serve as backup all-rounders. Sharafuddin Ashraf, a left-arm spin bowling all-rounder, has also been included as a reserve spinner. Zadran, who missed the recently-concluded Pakista

Asia Cup 2023: Top five run scorers for India in tournament's history

The top five Indian batters in the list include heavyweights of the game like Sachin Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni. But the last two names are of Delhi boys which might surprise people

Asia Cup 2023, India vs Pakistan: Top five battles in tournament's history

India-Pakistan rivalries have been fierce and the Asia Cup is no stranger to it. From Harbhajan Singh-Shoaib Akhtar's fight to Virat Kohli's heroics, it contains everything in it

Asia Cup 2023: Top five wicket-takers for India in the tournament's history

For India players like Irfan Pathan and Ravindra Jadeja feature in the list of top five wicket-takers. But the list might be surprising for cricket fans with its other three names

Ahead of Asia Cup, Pakistan go top of ODI rankings, beat Australia

Following their 3-0 ODI series sweep over Afghanistan on Saturday, Pakistan sealed the top spot in the ODI rankings

Asia Cup: Deadlock over PCB's new contracts, players want more freedom

The deadlock between the Pakistan Cricket Board and the national team players over the signing of new central contracts is yet to be resolved ahead of the all-important Asia Cup in Pakistan and Sri Lanka. A well-informed insider in the board on Saturday confirmed that there were still a number of issues to be sorted out and at one stage senior pacer, Shaheen Shah Afridi had refused to sign the new central contract after the PCB denied him an NOC for the Emirates T20 International League. Shaheen got so frustrated at the board's refusal to issue him an NOC that he made it clear it would be best if he didn't sign any contract with the board and played as a freelancer, the insider said. The board then averted a similar situation with some other players by agreeing to issue NOCs for the Emirates League to be held in January-February. Shaheen has secured an USD 400,000 contract for two or three years and an additional USD 150,000 for the league by marketing his NFTs online. The insider

Asia Cup: BCCI Prez Roger Binny and VP Rajiv Shukla to travel to Pakistan

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had sent an invite to BCCI as a key member of the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) to attend the opening ceremony and as well as the opening match of the tournament

Asia Cup 2023 full schedule, match timing, venues, live streaming in India

Asia Cup 2023 will be played in a 50-over format. Pakistan will host 4 matches, one in Multan and the other three in Lahore and Sri Lanka will host 9 matches

ODI World Cup: India's 18-member squad for Asia Cup to undergo fitness test

India's 18-member squad for the Asia Cup will undergo extensive fitness and medical tests when Men In Blue will be in Alur for a camp ahead of the continental event.

Asia Cup 2023: Top five run-getters in the history of the tournament

From India, none among Dhoni, Sehwag or Virat feature in the list of the top five run-getters in the history of the Asia Cup. Then who leads the chart? It's not Sachin by the way