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  Punjab Kings’ captain KL Rahul applauded his team after they registered a win over five-time champions Mumbai Indians by nine wickets at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai on Friday. After electing to bowl first, Punjab bowlers restricted Mumbai Indians within 131/6 despite having a powerful batting line-up. Rahul then led from the front with a stunning performance, remaining unbeaten on 60 off 52 balls as well. The win also helped them to register their second win of the tournament after facing three consecutive losses. “We don’t wanna get too ahead of ourselves, we’re slowly coming together as a team,” said KL Rahul during the post-match presentation. He went on to praise the new players who have stepped up. PBKS added the young leggie Ravi Bishnoi and he returned with 2/21 from his four overs. Mohammad Shami too picked up two wickets in his four overs whereas Deepak Hooda and Arshdeep took one wicket apiece. “We add new names every year and we’ve to be patient. Hooda ...

  After scoring his maiden IPL hundred, Royal Challengers Bangalore’s young batsman Devdutt Padikkal said that he was keen to contribute for his team's win after he missed the first game of the ongoing league due to COVID-19. Padikkal had tested positive by the virus before the start of the IPL season but he returned in the second game against SunRisers Hyderabad. And, on Thursday evening, he scored an unbeaten 101 to help RCB register a registering 10-wicket win over Rajasthan Royals at the Wankhede Stadium. "It's been special. I could only wait my turn. When I was down with COVID, all I was thinking of ways to come here and play the first match here. I couldn't do that but was keen to contribute to the team's win," Padikkal said at the post-match presentation. "The ball was coming on really well and we got a good start. When you get into a partnership like that, it helps as runs come from both ends." While chasing 178, Devdutt Padikkal and the...

  Payers who have been taking part in IPL are the "lucky" ones as they get to play the cash-rich Twenty20 tournament despite having a COVID-19 emergency ravages India, England all-rounder Chris Woakes said AFP recently. However, four players have tested positive and a few, including England's Liam Livingstone, have left the IPL bio-bubble because of the coronavirus, which is affecting more than 300,000 people a day in the country. While games are taking place in empty stadiums away from the crisis, hospitals are running short of oxygen, beds and proper medicines as well. Meanwhile, the Indian Premier League has been taking place across six cities and Woakes, who plays for the Delhi Capitals , said that he has been trying to stay positive in the bio-secure 'bubble' for the league. "It's a shame with the situation at the moment with the people all around the world having to deal with Covid, which isn't ideal," the 32-year-old said in a recen...

  Batting legend, Brian Lara has said that Abdul Samad – the hard-hitting batsman of the Sunrisers Hyderabad can be one of the stars of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League ( IPL ). Talking to Star Sports, Lara said that he believed the 19-year old from Jammu and Kashmir have the ability to emerge as one of the best players of the tournament this year. Samad smashed 19 off 8 deliveries including two sixes against the Kolkata Knight Riders in Chennai but failed to do well in other ganes in the competition. He is known for his six-hitting abilities in the lower order and has a strike rate of 113 in first-class cricket where he scored at 128.45 in List-A cricket and 146.45 in T20 cricket as well. He smacked 63 off just 38 deliveries while playing for Jammu and Kashmir against the Services in the Vijay Hazare Trophy earlier this year. Lara again stated that Samad was one of the players to watch out for in the IPL 2021 . “Young Abdul Samad. I know he has had just two inni...

  Former India captain and batting great Sunil Gavaskar has said that it was good to see MS Dhoni batting up in the order at No. 4 for Chennai Super Kings. Notably, Dhoni did that in their win over Kolkata Knight Riders in Mumbai recently. Gavaskar again said that Dhoni can only do better with this form if he continues to bat up as it will give him a lot of game time with the bat in the middle in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League. Dhoni went into IPL 2021 with no game under his belt as he has already retired from international cricket and he looked rusty in the first few knocks too. After getting out for 0 in their 2nd match of the season, Dhoni took 17 balls to score 18 during their win against Punjab Kings as well. Howveer, Dhoni decided to promote himself to No. 4 against KKR after CSK got off to a fine start with Ruturaj Gaikwad and Faf du Plessis adding 115 for the opening wicket. Dhoni hit a Prasidh Krishna delivery into the mid-wicket stands which brough...

  Batting legend Brian Lara has stated that he was looking forward to seeing a team that could give a challenge to the five-time IPL title winner Mumbai Indians in the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League ( IPL ) this year. Notably, Mumbai Indians are also the two-time defending champions as well and they also have the highest win percentage in terms of games too in the history of the league. They beat the Delhi Capitals in the final of the IPL 2020 in the UAE and beat the three-time IPL title winner Chennai Super Kings in a thrilling final in Hyderabad in 2019 as well. While talking to Star Sports, the batting legend has said that he wanted to see a team who would give Mumbai Indians a tough fight this season. He applauded the Rohit-Sharma led-side and stated that it would not be an easy task to overcome the most successful franchise in the history of the IPL. “I am looking forward to a team to challenge Mumbai Indians. Mumbai Indians are of course a great little outfit ...

  After smashing a blistering 92 off 49 to help Delhi Capitals register a convincing win over Punjab Kings in an IPL 2021 match at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai, veteran left-handed batsman Shikhar Dhawan has said that his improved strike rate in T20s was a result of a willingness to improve and change with the current trend. Dhawan’s superb knock helped Delhi Capitals do light work in their way of 196 runs target, which they chased in 18.2 overs as well. Dhawan said that it was a conscious effort from his side to improve his strike rate as he had to face criticisms for it earlier. “It was a conscious effort from my side and I started taking more risks. I’m not afraid of changes,” he said at the post match presentation. “I’m always open towards changes and I make sure I give it a good try in the nets and then in the games. I’m not scared of getting out as well. I’ve worked on the leg-side shots, coming in the crease, using the pace of the bowler.” “Depends who’s bowling and...

  After a six-wicket defeat to Delhi Capitals, Punjab Kings captain KL Rahul has said that their bowlers struggled with the wet ball in the second innings at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai as Delhi Capitals reached the 196-run target with ease. “I’m not saying that because I’m on the losing side. Bowlers try to bowl with the wet ball, but it’s always difficult to do that. I asked the umpires to change the ball a couple of times, but the rule book doesn’t allow that,” Rahul said at the post match presentation. Rahul, himself scored well and wished his birthday was better as he turned 29 on that day. “Victory on birthday would have been sweet, so it’s slightly disappointing. But we have a lot of games, so hopefully we come back stronger and win few games. Right now it looks 10-15 runs short, but I think 190-odd looked good. Me and Mayank thought 180-190 would have been great on this wicket. Shikhar batted well, so congratulations to the Delhi Capitals batsmen. When we come to W...

  Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) star player AB de Villiers has recently said that the lack of home advantage for every team in the IPL 2021 will balance out the competition amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Moreover, this season of the IPL has been taking place in only six venues across India. Unlike every other season, this season will not have the home-away situation and all the matches will be played at neutral venues as well. Like, RCB will play all their matches outside Bangalore. Meanwhile, the playoffs will take place in Ahmedabad, which makes sure that no team gets any sort of home advantage at any stage of the tournament as well. In a recent interview, AB de Villiers opened up on this factor and how it balances the odds for the teams as well. “I think it balances out the tournament. It is the same for every team, no one has home games and it really puts emphasis on adapting to different conditions. Every game you play, conditions will be different. The wicket...

  Mumbai Indians didn’t have a good start in the 14th edition of the Indian premier League ( IPL ). However, Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma said that if bowlers are executing their plan well then it makes it easy for the captain. His comments came after they beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by 13 runs at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. However, Rohit gave the credit to his team’s bowling unit, which led by the youngster Rahul Chahar (3/19) and Trent Boult (3/28), for the win as well. “It was a great effort from the bowling unit. We knew it was not going to be easy and when you have a pitch like that and the bowlers are executing the plans, it makes it easy for the captain to maneuver the field and keep having those options of your bowling changes,” the captain said at the post-match presentation. Sunrisers Hyderabad managed to restrict Mumbai Indians to 150/5, courtesy Vijay Shankar (2/19) put up a stunning show, but they were bowled out for 137 in 19.4 overs to lose the...

  Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) made four changes in their playing eleven for the match against Mumbai Indians (MI) but that didn’t help them to win as well. After that, David Warner opened up about their poor batting performance after they lost their third consecutive game in this year’s Indian Premier League ( IPL ). David Warner and Jonny Bairstow had given a platform with a quickfire 67-run opening partnership. But after their dismissal, middle-order failed miserably and they eventually lost too. Manish Pandey, Virat Singh and Abhishek Sharma threw their wickets away as well. “I don’t know how to take that. Obviously disappointing. Two of us were set but it proves that if you don’t bat deep, you can’t win. If you get a partnership and if there is one person at the end, you can chase it down,” said a disappointed Warner after the match. “These scores are very chase-able, it’s just poor batting. The guys need to play smart cricket in the middle. The bowlers have been fantastic.” ...

  After a narrow loss by three wickets against Rajasthan Royals on Thursday, April 18, Delhi Capitals ’ (DC) head coach Ricky Ponting was seen giving a speech and boosted his team’s morale. In a video shared by the Delhi Capitals’ official Twitter account, Ponting was seen praising the cricketers for showing a tough fight and dragging the match until the last few overs as well. “What we talk about around this group is never being beaten, right, and keeping ourselves in the contest and we did that magnificently tonight,” he said.”In fact, up until about the 16th over mark, I thought we had them, and that says a lot about us as a group. No matter how badly we play, until they hit the winning run, we are never out of the game.” Delhi Capitals had set a 148-run target for Rajasthan Royals, but could not restrict the opponent as they managed to put up 150 for 7. Meanwhile, Chris Woakes’ did a great job as Ricky Ponting praised his performance as he gave away 22 runs and took two wic...

  Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bangalore will face each other in the 22nd match of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League. IPL 2021 Match 22nd will be a clash between the two very successful teams of this season of IPL.  DC vs. RCB Current form Delhi Capitals is at 2nd position of the IPL 2021 points table after winning the thrilling super over match against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Delhi Capitals have played five games, out of which they have won 4 games with a net run rate (+0.334). The only match Delhi Capitals lost against was against Rajasthan Royals.     On the other hand, Royal Challengers Bangalore is at 3rd position of the IPL 2021 points table after losing their 5th game against Chennai Super Kings. Royal Challengers Bangalore has played five games, out of which they have won 4 games with a net run rate (+0.096). The only match RCB lost was against CSK in the 19th match of the IPL 2021.    Team News:  RCB: Ski...

  Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni shared his thought on how to use Decision Review System (DRS) that might be useful for those who are struggling to use it well like the current Indian team as well. Dhoni, who has been known for his sure shot call with DRS, did not take a review against Punjab Kings batsman Shahrukh Khan after he was hit on the pads by a Deepak Chahar on the very first ball he had faced. The umpire gave him not out and it seemed from the replays that Dhoni took a right decision. “I thought that [lbw call] was high. So told him (Chahar) ‘no we are not reviewing’. I have always felt DRS are there to take the howlers away and not just to take a chance. You only take a chance if it’s the last over of the game or it’s someone very important,” said Dhoni after the match while he was explaining about his mindset regarding DRS. Dhoni, however, praised the pacer Deepak Chahar for his brilliant show with the ball that saw the pacer take four early wickets to dam...

  AB de Villiers, the former South Africa captain, has said that he wants to don the national jersey again almost three years after he retired from the highest level. The 37-year-old last played for the Proteas in the Johannesburg Test against Australia in March-April 2018 and then in the very next month, he decided to hang his boots at the age of 34 as well. However, the veteran recently said that he would love to return to the national team. And, for this, he would be having a chat with the South Africa head coach, Mark Boucher. Meanwhile, he has a lot of cricket left as AB de Villiers has been showing his caliber in the ongoing 2021 Indian Premier League ( IPL ) as well. “It will be fantastic to play for South Africa again, I will be speaking with Boucher late end of IPL – last year, he asked me whether I am interested and I said ‘absolutely’,” De Villiers told in the post-match press conference. In the recent match on Sunday, AB de Villiers became the Player of the Match ...

  After the two-time defending champions Mumbai Indians successfully defended yet another moderate total at the MA Chidambaram stadium in Chennai, captain Rohit Sharma said that 150 was a good score and also credited his bowlers. MI put up 150 before bundling SRH out for 137 in 19.2 overs to win another game this season. However, the captain, asked for improvement from his batsmen in the middle overs which has been troubling the team since beginning in this season. “It was a great effort from the bowling unit. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy. On that pitch, when you’re bowling well, it’s not easy. I thought it was a good score on that pitch,” he said at the post match presentation. He continued: “You saw from both the teams, trying to capitalise on the powerplay. Having said that, I think we can bat better in the middle overs. All these guys have played a lot of cricket on pitches like these. So, there are areas to work on. At the same time, don’t want to take credit fro...

  Royal Challengers Bangalore started with a win by defeating the defending champions Mumbai Indians in a nail-biting clash in the first game of the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League ( IPL ) on Friday. Harshal Patel laid the foundation for the victory with his maiden fifer as he dismantled the Mumbai Indians batting line-up in Chennai. Harshal Patel picked up five wickets and conceded just 27 runs from his quota of four overs. His spell helped RCB restrict Mumbai Indians within 159 for 9 from their allotted 20 overs. While chasing 160 for the win, RCB won on the back of AB de Villiers' quick-fire knock of 48. After the win, RCB captain Virat Kohli praised Harshal Patel and said that he will be his RCB's "designated death bowler" in the tournament. "Harshal is relishing the role. He is going to be our designated death bowler. Very confident about what he wants to bring to the table and as a captain you want someone with that clarity. In T20 cricket tha...