Sports

Former Indian Cricketer Abid Ali Has Died

Published

11 months ago

March 13, 2025

Former Indian all-rounder Syed Abid Ali, who played in 29 Test matches and 5 ODIs, has sadly passed away at the age of 83.

Hailing from Hyderabad, Ali made his international debut in December 1967 in Adelaide, achieving his best bowling figures of 6/55 in the first innings. During the same tour, he showcased his batting skills with scores of 78 and 81 in Sydney. His Test career spanned until 1974, during which he amassed 47 wickets and a total of 1,018 runs.

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Abid Ali achieved the rare distinction of opening both the batting and bowling for India in seven Test matches — twice in New Zealand (1968), three times against the same country in India (1969), and twice more in the West Indies (1971).

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Expressing his sorrow over Ali’s passing, cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar stated, “This is very sad news; he was a lion-hearted cricketer who always put the team first. Despite being an all-rounder in the middle order, he readily opened the batting when called upon. His outstanding catches in the leg side added an extra edge to our formidable spin quartet.”

“He holds the unique record of taking a wicket with the first delivery of a Test match on two occasions. He excelled in the tip and run tactic, which proved beneficial during my debut Test match, leading to overthrows that eased the pressure. Abid was a true gentleman with exceptional manners and spoke with great authority. My heartfelt condolences go out to his family,” Gavaskar added.

Although he played only five ODIs, three of those matches were during the inaugural men’s ODI World Cup. In his final 50-over match, he scored 70 runs off 98 balls against New Zealand. Across his first-class career, Abid took 397 wickets and scored 8,732 runs in 212 matches, with a highest score of 173 not out.

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Sports

T20 World Cup | Pakistan Edge Past Netherlands in a Close Contest

Published

9 hours ago

February 7, 2026

Namma Kudla

Colombo: The T20 World Cup began today with an exciting match between Pakistan and the Netherlands. Pakistan secured a narrow three-wicket victory despite a strong bowling performance. However, the top-order batters failed to deliver. With this win, Pakistan made a positive start to the 10th edition of the tournament.

After losing the toss, the Netherlands batted first at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground in Colombo. The team was bowled out for 147 runs in 19.5 overs. Pakistan chased the modest target and scored 148 runs for the loss of seven wickets in 19.3 overs.

Pakistan started aggressively, but the Netherlands slowed their progress. Pakistan lost four wickets for 98 runs. Soon, they were in trouble at 114 for seven. Faheem Ashraf played a crucial role at the end and guided the team to victory.

For Pakistan, Sahibzada Farhan scored 47 runs, while Saim Ayub added 24 runs. Faheem Ashraf contributed an important 29 runs. The rest of the batters failed to score big. Star batter Babar Azam disappointed fans by scoring only 15 runs off 18 balls.

Earlier, Netherlands captain Scott Edwards scored 37 runs. Bas de Leede made 30 runs, Colin Ackermann added 20, and Michael Levitt scored 24 runs. The remaining batters were dismissed for low scores.

Sports

India Clinch Record Sixth Under-19 World Cup Title

Published

13 hours ago

February 7, 2026

Namma Kudla

Sports: India defeated England by 100 runs to win the ICC Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026 final at the Harare Sports Club. The victory marked India’s sixth title, making them the most successful team in the tournament’s history.

India batted first and posted a massive total of 411 for 9 in 50 overs. The innings was powered by 14-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who smashed a record-breaking 175 runs off just 80 balls. His knock included 15 fours and 15 sixes and became the highest individual score ever in an Under-19 World Cup final.

Suryavanshi also shared a crucial 142-run partnership with captain Ayush Mhatre, who scored 53 runs. Their strong batting display helped India set a daunting target of 412 for England.

England tried to fight back in the chase, with Caleb Falconer scoring 115 and Ben Dawkins adding 66. However, the team was eventually bowled out for 311, handing India a comfortable victory.

Suryavanshi was named Player of the Match and Player of the Tournament for his historic performance. The triumph once again highlighted India’s dominance in youth cricket on the global stage.

Sports

Storm in the First Over: RCB Create New WPL Record

Published

3 weeks ago

January 17, 2026

Namma Kudla

Royal Challengers Bengaluru created history in the Women’s Premier League by scoring the highest number of runs in the first over of a match. RCB scored a massive 23 runs in the opening over, setting a new WPL record.

This historic moment took place during the match against Gujarat Giants at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. Gujarat Giants bowler Renuka Singh Thakur conceded 23 runs in the first over, making it the most expensive opening over in WPL history.

Renuka began the over with a wide delivery. The ball went past the wicketkeeper and crossed the boundary, resulting in five runs. RCB batter Grace Harris then took charge of the over. She smashed four consecutive boundaries, putting the Gujarat Giants under pressure.

During the over, Renuka Singh bowled two more wides, adding extra runs to the total. On the final delivery of the over, Grace Harris struck another boundary. This completed a dramatic and record-breaking first over for RCB.

With this, Renuka Singh Thakur recorded the most expensive first over ever bowled in the Women’s Premier League. The previous record was held by Tanuja Kanwar. She had conceded 21 runs in the first over while playing for Gujarat Giants against Mumbai Indians in the 2023 season.

In the same match, Royal Challengers Bengaluru batted first and put up a strong total. RCB scored 182 runs for the loss of seven wickets in 20 overs. The team showed aggressive batting throughout the innings.

Gujarat Giants chased the target but failed to keep up with the required run rate. They were bowled out for 150 runs in 18.5 overs. As a result, Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the match by 32 runs.

This victory strengthened RCB’s position in the tournament and added a historic achievement to the Women’s Premier League records.