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Having Dinesh Karthik play in SA20 season three is very exciting, says Graeme Smith

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Graeme Smith, League Commissioner, SA20, said having former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik play in the third season of the tournament is a very exciting prospect.

Karthik is all set to become the first Indian player to play in SA20 when he will represent Paarl Royals in the third season of the competition, starting on January 9, 2025.

“We’ve said from the start we want to be a highly competitive league. We have seen our South African group of players get stronger every year. We’ve got some world-class players and we want to grow that. But the opportunity to bring the international talent of the likes of Dinesh Kartik to play in our tournament is something we’re very excited about.”

“You can see Ben Stokes, Kane Williamson, Jonny Bairstow, Devon Conway, Rashid Khan and many more coming just shows the standard of the league, and the best cricketers wanting to be a part of it. I think Dinesh is a global superstar. So for him to see in our crowds and fan base, (and for others) to be able to see him live is something that I’m sure they’re going to be very excited about,” said Smith, the former South Africa captain, in an exclusive conversation with IANS.

Since its inception, SA20 has quickly found an engaged fan base, with many stadiums reporting sell-out fixtures. Smith remarked that the impact of SA20 has been enormous in growing a dedicated group of cricket fans in South Africa.

“Firstly being able to attract the six IPL franchises to here really brings a huge amount of experience and expertise to cricket in the country. We’ve been able to have world-class entertainment and then really competitive cricket.”

“On top of that to see last year, close to 3,80,000 fans coming through our gates for the season is unheard of. So, to see cricket getting stronger in the country, to see the fan base growing and seeing our cricketers get stronger, the two SA20s have played an integral part in all of that.”

“So, this year we want to obviously go from strength to strength. Our eyeballs in terms of viewership is strong. Our digital numbers are strong. For us, we’re very excited for season three. We think the cricket is going to be brilliant, and if we can get the fans back and excited and loving summer in South Africa, then that’s something we’d love to do.”

An interesting aspect of the SA20 season play-offs is it being played at three venues. St. George’s Park in Gqeberha will host Qualifier 1, while Centurion will stage both the Eliminator and Qualifier 2, followed by the Wanderers hosting the title clash on February 8.

“Look, every year we try and figure out to try and give opportunities to different stadiums as well in the knockout phases. This year we’re going to three venues for our knockouts. First one in Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha) and then in Pretoria and the Wanderers. From our perspective, season one was a huge success there and it being sold out meant the atmosphere was amazing.”

“It is our largest capacity venue in South Africa and at the Bullring, it’s just a wonderful atmosphere. So, this year we decided to go with the three venues that worked in terms of the scheduling and structure. Every year we’ll assess and see where we can also open up opportunities for other stadiums,” stated Smith.

He signed off by saying SA20 will retain its usual January-February window to cash on the cricketing summer in South Africa. “For us, we are in an integral part of the summer calendar in South Africa. So again, I think India here in November, Sri Lanka and Pakistan are touring. So we will start directly after the New Year’s Test match again on January 9. This may shift slightly here and there every year. But we will be pretty much in this window every year.”

BGT 2024

Rohit’s knee injury not serious, says pacer Akash Deep

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India pace bowler Akash Deep played down concerns over skipper Rohit Sharma’s knee injury in the build-up to the fourth Test against Australia this week after the batsman was hit during a practice session on Sunday.

Rohit, who missed the opening Test to spend time with his newborn son and has been struggling for form since returning to the team, looked in discomfort after being struck on his left knee in the nets at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

The 37-year-old continued batting but later received care from a physiotherapist and had an ice pack strapped to his leg, which he rested on a chair.

“Such injuries are quite common when you play cricket and it doesn’t make much of a difference,” Akash told reporters, adding that the practice wicket had been challenging.

“I think this was a wicket for white-ball cricket, so the ball kept a bit low and it was a bit difficult to bat on. But such blows happen and it’s not a concern.”

India battled hard to earn a draw in the rain-interrupted third Test in Brisbane to leave the five-match series locked at 1-1 ahead of the Boxing Day clash.

The tourists won the first Test in Perth by 295 runs before crashing to a 10-wicket defeat in Adelaide.

“It’s 50-50 right now. In the last match, even though we were behind, we built some confidence. This Test match will be very important for both teams,” Akash said.

“Our mindset as fast bowlers is that we can get some quick wickets with the new ball and cause problems for them. We have seen in the three matches that we can create chances with the new ball.

“After 30 overs, however, you have to wait for the batsmen to make mistakes.”

On Saturday, KL Rahul was hit on his hand while batting at the nets at the MCG and was promptly attended to by the visiting team’s physio. India’s opener was hit on his right hand and seen in some discomfort. 

There was no clarity on the extent of injury and the team management did not issued any statement on why he had sought medical attention.

In a video that surfaced on social media, Rahul was seen holding the right hand while receiving treatment.

The opener was also hit on the arm during match simulation on November 17, but was fit to play the opening Test in Perth, five days later.

Rahul has been the team’s in-form batter in the ongoing tour, scoring 235 runs from six innings at an impressive average of 47.

The elegant right-hander has so far struck two half-centuries and is set to open the batting alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal in the fourth Test.

Overall, he is the second highest scorer in the marquee series behind Australia’s swashbuckling middle-order batter Travis Head, who has already smashed two hundreds.

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BGT 2024

Melbourne Test: Injury scare for KL Rahul

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India opener KL Rahul got hit on his hand while batting at the nets in Melbourne on Saturday and was promptly attended to by the visiting team’s physio ahead of the fourth Test against Australia.

Rahul was hit on his right hand and was seen in some discomfort at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which will host the Boxing Day Test from December 26 with the five-match series levelled at 1-1.

There is no clarity on the extent of injury and the team management has also not issued any statement on why he had sought medical attention.

In a video that surfaced on social media, Rahul was seen holding the right hand while receiving treatment.

The opener was also hit on the arm during match simulation on November 17, but was fit to play the opening Test in Perth, five days later.

Rahul has been the team’s in-form batter in the ongoing tour, scoring 235 runs from six innings at an impressive average of 47.

The elegant right-hander has so far struck two half-centuries and is set to open the batting alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal in the fourth Test.

Overall, he is the second highest scorer in the marquee series behind Australia’s swashbuckling middle-order batter Travis Head, who has already smashed two hundreds.

Battling through multiple rain interruptions, Rahul held firm with a vital knock of 84 in India’s first innings of the third Test in Adelaide, the innings going a long way in helping India to save the match.

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IPL 2025: Punjab Kings Star Shreyas can’t wait to work again with Ponting

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Punjab Kings’ costliest acquisition Shreyas Iyer is “super excited” about being a part of the franchise and is hopeful of delivering results from the very first match.

It has been a remarkable year for Punjab Kings’ latest acquisition. At the start of the year, Shreyas Iyer was part of the Mumbai team that won the Ranji Trophy for the 42nd time. He then led Kolkata Knight Riders to their third Indian Premier League title. He was also a member of the Irani Cup-winning Mumbai team.

Under his leadership, Mumbai won the 2024-25 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT), their second SMAT title, last week.

“Surreal feeling after winning Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. A lot of hard work took place behind the scenes. The boys were tremendous with their performance. Now we are done with this part,” Iyer said in a video uploaded on Punjab Kings’ official social media handles.

Now, the Mumbai cricketer is laser-focused on a significant task: winning a maiden IPL trophy for the Punjab Kings. Iyer, who was signed on by the Kings at the Auctions last month for Rs 26.75 crore, expressed his excitement about joining the franchise.

“Super excited to be part of Punjab Kings. I cannot wait to join the Punjab Kings family. It’s been a great year for me to win four trophies. My main goal is to win the IPL trophy for Punjab,” Iyer said.

The 30-year-old, who has previously played under the guidance of former Australia World Cup-winning Captain Ricky Ponting in the IPL, said he is looking forward to brainstorming alongside one of the cricketing legends once again. Earlier this year, the Kings announced Ponting as the new Head Coach for the franchise.

“I can understand what the feelings must be among the fans. With Ricky coming in, we have shared a great camaraderie from the past. We would be putting our thinking caps on and brainstorming on many aspects. Hopefully, we will deliver from the match one,” Iyer signed off.

Shreyas worked alongside Ponting for three seasons when he was the captain of Delhi Capitals while the former Aussie captain was the Head Coach.

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