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Nair, Malewar and bowlers lead Vidarbha to third Ranji Trophy title

Playing their first final, Kerala were left with several moments to look back on




Vidarbha 379 (Malewar 153, Nair 86, Nidheesh 3-61) and 375 for 9 dec (Nair 135, Malewar 73, Sarwate 4-96) drew with Kerala 342 (Baby 98, Sarwate 79, Nalkande 3-52)

Vidarbha put the ghosts of 2023-24 to bed in the most emphatic manner possible - snatching a thrilling battle for the first-innings lead in style - and then grinding Kerala down for nearly five sessions in the second innings to be crowned Ranji Trophy champions for the third time. It made it all the more special that they achieved this feat in front of nearly 3000 home fans who had trooped into the VCA Stadium in Nagpur on a Sunday afternoon, and saw Akshay Wadkar's team lift the trophy.

A heartbroken Kerala squad were left to rue what could've been. Would things have been different had Sachin Baby middled his slog sweep on 98 with a lead within touching distance? What if Akshay Chandran had taken second-innings centurion Karun Nair's catch early on day four? What if DRS had not reprieved half-centurion Danish Malewar after Vidarbha had lost two early wickets?

There were several such moments Kerala could look back on. All told, they would be richer with the experience of playing in their first final. That their coach Amay Khurasiya walked all the way to the center and took a fistful of a crumbly top surface of the Jamtha deck for posterity told you how much it meant to him.

The final day's play began with some hope for Kerala. Even when Nair fell after having added just three runs to his overnight score of 132, it was a long shot for Kerala to try and gun down a score Vidarbha would set them. The dream, however far-fetched, was still alive when local boy Aditya Sarwate spun one past Nair. There was turn, variable bounce, and plenty of bite off the pitch, especially with a new cherry Kerala had.

Then Harsh Dubey was out lbw playing across the line to a full delivery from Eden Apple Tom. Two wickets inside the first 45 minutes of play had Kerala excited. Maybe the Gods were conspiring to make this another thriller? How could a team that got here on the back of leads by one run and two runs fizzle away so easily? Maybe there was another twist.

This feeling got even more stronger when Wadkar was bowled by one that scooted low. Sarwate, who had celebrated many special moments with Wadkar by his side in the Vidarbha dressing room, celebrated wildly now at having dismissed him. Sarwate had three wickets suddenly, and all of Kerala's prayers behind him.

This was when Akshay Karnewar, an ambidextrous spinner, who hadn't had much of a role with his primary skills in the game, made an invaluable 30, which took plenty of time out from the game. As it veered towards lunch and beyond, Kerala's hopes dimmed, and it was effectively shut out by Darshan Nalkande, who muscled a half-century at which point both teams decided they had had enough.

At 2.20pm, with tea looming, the stumps were drawn on an exhilarating season as Vidarbha were officially crowned champions. Having got to the semi-final on the back of the joint-most wins - alongside Mumbai - by a team in a season, they finished it off in typically khadoos style. It was a stonewalling effort led by Nair, whose fourth hundred of the season - and ninth overall, across formats led the way. There was also a half-century from the industrious Malewar, their 21-year-old batting hope.

They had more than made up for the first-innings lapse, when Nair was run-out after a mix-up with Malewar. That moment had the potential to be game-changing. For Vidarbha, it wasn't. Because theirs was an effort beyond just Nair's or Malewar's.

It was Yash Rathod's too, as he finished the season with the most runs. Or Dubey's, who took the Ranji record for most wickets in a season. Or Parth Rekhade, whose triple-wicket burst in the semi-final derailed Mumbai, or Dhruv Shorey, who, like Nair, gelled into a new setting with ease. Or Wadkar, a battle-hardened veteran who held the team together through last year's defeat to finally stand atop the winner's podium with the trophy in hand.

[BangaloreaN]

Rohit, Rahul, spinners lead India to third Champions Trophy title

India had just too much quality and depth to end their second straight ICC tournament unbeaten



India 254 for 6 (Rohit 76, Iyer 48, Rahul 34*, Bracewell 2-28, Santner 2-46) beat New Zealand 251 for 7 (Mitchell 63, Bracewell 53, Phillips 34, Kuldeep 2-40, Varun 2-45) by four wickets

New Zealand defended with all their might against heavy favourites India. But, in the end, India had just too much quality and depth for them, and ended their second straight ICC tournament unbeaten. They now hold two of the four ICC trophies, having lost in the final of the other two. In the last three ICC tournaments alone, India have won 22 of their 23 completed matches.

On a tired pitch, run-scoring followed a similar pattern to earlier games. Having won a crucial toss - India have lost their last 15 ODI tosses - New Zealand raced away to 69 for 1 in the powerplay, but the high-quality spin from India dragged them back. On a pitch offering them the least turn of all matches in Dubai this tournament, the four India spinners bowled 38 overs between them to concede just 144 runs and take five wickets. Again, as New Zealand got pace on ball at the death, Michael Bracewell scored 53 off 40 to give himself and his bowling colleagues a target.


India made a similarly breezy start of 64 for 0 in the powerplay, but New Zealand kept clawing their way back despite a 105-run opening stand between Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. Lacking the mystery of Varun Chakravarthy or the rare left-arm wristspin art of Kuldeep Yadav, New Zealand capitalised on the increased turn - average of 2 degrees in the first innings, 3.4 in the second - and tested India thoroughly. Their spinners bowled 35 overs for 152 runs and five wickets.

Every batter other than Virat Kohli got a start - scores ranged between Rohit's 76 and Hardik Pandya's run-a-ball 18 - but none of them completed the job. Their incredible depth, though, prevailed as KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja saw them through with one over to spare and four wickets in hand.

It was a final to rescue the tournament that has been short on close contests. India came in with much more ammunition for the conditions than New Zealand, but the toss proved to be a bit of an equaliser. Rachin Ravindra, leading run-getter of the tournament, batted like a dream against the new ball, the best conditions all day long. He scored 37 off 29 in a start that stunned the crowd, helped along by two spilled chances.

Under the pump, India went to their likeliest wicket-takers as opposed to the usual formula of bowling Axar Patel with the new ball. Varun beat Will Young with drift on a legbreak, but the natural variation provided the telling blow to trap him lbw. Kuldeep, just five wickets so far, announced himself on the final with two of the biggest wickets: Ravindra to a wrong'un first ball, and Kane Williamson beaten in the air with big dip and offering a return catch.


Three wickets had fallen to reduce New Zealand to 75 for 3, and it was now up to Tom Latham and Daryl Mitchell to keep wickets in hand for the final push. Mitchell struggled to score fluidly, which meant Latham - a stalwart in the middle overs of ODI cricket - had to take a risk. And when you take a risk against the metronomic Jadeja - 10-0-30-1 - you better not miss because he will get you lbw.

For the second time in this tournament, India bowled just spin through the middle overs. It was a slow track but offered minimal turn. It is a testament to the quality and the accuracy of India's spinners that New Zealand were choked through the period. It took them 21 overs to double their ten-over score of 69. Varun came back to get Glenn Phillips in the 38th over, again pushing back their charge.

Bracewell brought back memories of how fluidly Ravindra batted as India went back to pace on ball at the back end. Mitchell, who followed Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill into scoring his slowest fifty, now tried an assault but a slower ball from Mohammed Shami got the better of him. Bracewell, though, hit three fours and two sixes to give New Zealand what only looked like respectability at that time.

Even that respectability looked dodgy the way Rohit started the chase. Some sensational hitting off the fast bowlers - including Nathan Smith, the replacement for Matt Henry, the leading wicket-taker of the tournament who injured his shoulder - pushed Santner's hand. He brought himself on in the ninth over, but the best he and Ravindra could manage was a few relatively quiet overs.


In the first over after the drinks break, Phillips produced his third unbelievable catch of the tournament, leaping high at extra cover and plucking a one-hander to send Gill back. With his first ball, Bracewell trapped Kohli lbw for one. Now the easy runs stopped. Rohit slowed down, looking like he was setting himself up for an old-fashioned Rohit knock. Then, though, after a spell of eight overs for 19 runs and two wickets, he charged at Ravindra, looking to hit his fourth six of the night, missed, and was stumped.

Iyer, two half-centuries to his name already, and Axar then repaired the damage with a 61-run partnership from 122 for 3. Iyer was the edgier of the two. Young caught him at the deep midwicket fence but touched the boundary skirting, Jamieson dropped him as he tried two consecutive sixes off Phillips, the sixth dropped catch between the two teams.

When Iyer fell in the 39th over, caught off Santner at short fine leg, India needed 67 off 68. The asking rate only hovered around a run a ball - the biggest difference between the balls and runs was four with six overs left. Confident in their depth, India kept taking the odd risk and kept hitting sixes. When pace finally came back on, the calm Rahul took India ahead. Jamieson provided one final stumbling block with Hardik's wicket off a nasty bouncer in the 48th over, but India still had Jadeja in the bank.

[BangaloreaN]

WPL 2025 final: Mumbai Indians claim second title as Delhi Capitals despair

Delhi lose third straight final as Mumbai wins by eight runs.


Mumbai Indians' players celebrate with the winning trophy at the end of the Women's Premier League (WPL) Twenty20 final

The Mumbai Indians have claimed their second Women’s Premier League (WPL) title with an eight-run win against the Delhi Capitals, who have seen their third straight defeat in the final.
Delhi, ever present in the three finals of the fledgling competition, would have felt very much in the game after reducing Mumbai to 149-7 at Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai in the first innings on Saturday.
Captain and India international Harmanpreet Kaur’s 66 held together Mumbai’s hopes of keeping at bay the side they overcame in 2023’s inaugural final.
It was a miserly bowling performance from Delhi, led by South African Marizanne Kapp’s 2-11.
Despite a series of cameos in the chase, including a powerful late-innings blast from Kapp, it was Mumbai’s masterful control – led by 3-30 from England’s Nat Sciver-Brunt – that smothered Delhi’s hopes.
Having won the toss, Delhi were instantly vindicated in their decision to field first when West Indies opener Hayley Matthews was bowled for three by Kapp.
The right-armed seamer opened and bowled straight through her four overs as she also removed Mumbai’s other opener, Yastika Bhatia, in her third over.
Sciver-Brunt and Kaur began the fight for the 2023 champions with a partnership of 89, brought up in 10 overs, for the third wicket.
The former would have thought she was in for more runs when powerfully sweeping Shree Charani while on 30. However, the sweetly timed stroke perfectly picked out Minnu Mani at square.


Mumbai Indians captain Harmanpreet Kaur plays a shot during the WPL Twenty20 final

Kaur’s 66, the top score of the final, held the innings together thereafter, but she was desperate for someone to stay with her. The next biggest partnership of the innings was the unbeaten eighth-wicket stand of 17.

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Saudi Arabia plans secret global T20 cricket league with $500 million investment



Saudi Arabia is secretly planning a new global T20 cricket league, which could mark one of the most significant changes in sports for decades. According to a report in the Sydney Morning Herald, the T20 league has been in development for over a year and is a brainchild of former New South Wales and Victoria all-rounder Neil Maxwell, manager of current Australian captain Pat Cummins.

Saudi Arabia’s SRJ Sports Investments would be main financer of the unnamed T20 league with an backing of $US500 million, according to the sources reported by the newspaper. The report also states that the discussions are already underway with the International Cricket Council (ICC), chaired by former BCCI secretary Jay Shah.
The birth of the new global T20 league would add up to Saudi Arabia's fast-growing sports portfolio which already includes LIV Golf, a Formula 1 race and 2034 FIFA World Cup hosting rights among many. Notably, Neil Maxwell had served as board members of the Australian Cricketers’ Association and Cricket NSW.

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League structure and number of teams

According to the report, the new T20 league will have eight teams. The league is being modelled on tennis Grand Slams, with the matches to be played on four different locations during the year. The Grand Slams in tennis are being played four times a year - Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open.

Taking the gruelling cricket calendar into consideration, the league would be played during open windows, thus ensuring no clashes with existing international matches and domestic T20 leagues like Indian Premier League and Australia's Big Bash League.
As far as the teams are concerned, there will be new franchise teams, probably one from different countries, including one from Australia. The league will feature both men's and women's competitions with the final to be held in Saudi Arabia.
Why a new global T20 league?

One of the major reasons for a new global T20 League is to address the growing issues about cricket's future, most prominently to save Test cricket as a sustainable format apart from the big three of India, England and Australia, and also build an alternative revenue source beyond the existing funding model. Under the existing model, member countries do receive finances from the ICC distributions and broadcasters but it is heavily inclined towards superpower India.
Australia and England fall behind India while the smaller countries struggle for financial viability. However, it will be interesting to see whether Jay Shah approves the Saudi Arabia-sponsored T20 league.

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India Masters become champions of inaugural International Masters League with win over West Indies



India Masters won the International Masters League T20 2025 title. They chased down 149 without much of an issue to clinch the title in the maiden edition. Ambati Rayudu starred with the bat.


India Masters have become the champions of the first season of the International Masters League T20 after making light work of West Indies in the final on Sunday, March 16.
The Sachin Tendulkar-led Indian team chased down a middling total of 149 after facing a few jitters in the final at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, Raipur. Ambati Rayudu starred with the bat in the chase as he made 74 from 50 balls to help India win the tournament.

West Indies Master had won the toss and had opted to bat first. India Masters kept striking, however, Dwanye Smith held one end up and kept the scoreboard ticking. He made 45 from 35 balls as he was looking dangerous, however, the Indian spinners struck to pull the Windies back.
Lendl Simmons was looking threatening too. He cruised his way to 57 from 41 balls and was set to take the Windies to a stronger total, however, some mingy death over bowling from the Indian players saw the total being under 150.


India began the chase well. While Sachin Tendulkar was playing second fiddle, Ambati Rayudu took the game on. He slammed 74 from 50 balls, while Sachin made 25 from 18. His knock ensured India were always much ahead of West Indies. Stuart Binny and Yuvraj Singh also had some quality time spent as they took the Indian team home without much of an issue with six wickets in hand and 17 balls to go.
"We are gonna bat first. Over the last few days, we have seen little or no dew. I don't think the ball is going to be affected much. Runs on the board are very important to put pressure on the chasing team. Whenever India play, the crowd comes out. We want to put on a really great show tonight. My guys are totally up to it. We had a few niggles ahead of the final, but everyone has shown up. We are fielding the same team," Brian Lara had said at the toss.
"It's a good track, it does not matter (the toss). We need to do the job right whenever we bat or bowl. We look to restrict them for as less as possible. We are going with the same team today. We have not made any change," Sachin said at the toss.

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Never Too Late: This 62-Year-Old Just Made His International Cricket Debut


Andrew Brownlee, a player for the Falkland Islands International Cricket Team, has become the oldest male cricketer to make his international debut at the age of 62 years and 147 days. He achieved this feat in a match against Costa Rica on March 10, far exceeding the typical retirement age of most cricketers.

Brownlee’s debut at 62 is unprecedented.
Brownlee represented the Falkland Islands in a three-match series against Costa Rica on March 10, 11, and 12. Despite his experience, he only managed to score 6 runs and went wicketless in his two bowling appearances.
The series marked the Falkland Islands’ debut in international cricket, making them the 106th team to do so. Notably, the team features several veteran players, with three over the age of 56 and all but two members of the playing XI over 40.