Nottinghamshire Outlaws put themselves back on course for the quarter-finals with a second Vitality Blast win inside 24 hours as Lancashire Lightning, strongly fancied at the start of the season, suffered a fourth straight defeat, the home side winning by five wickets with seven balls to spare at Trent Bridge.Off-spinner Matt Carter, who had conceded 57 in four wicketless overs against Birmingham Bears on Saturday evening, albeit in an Outlaws victory, bounced back with 3 for 26 as Lightning were bowled out for 145.There were two wickets each for Calvin Harrison, Jack Brooks and Shaheen Shah Afridi, skipper Liam Livingstone top-scoring for the visitors with 34 from 30 balls.Joe Clarke led the Outlaws response with 42 from 24 balls, Tom Moores seeing them home with an unbeaten 26 from 18 after Livingstone and Jack Blatherwick had taken two wickets each.”We needed to get these two results,” Carter said. “Turning it around has all been a matter of self-belief, I think. Everyone has it and it definitely showed in the performance today. I had a bit of a shocker myself yesterday. You don’t change your plans, but I did think a bit about the quality of the batting we were up against today. At at the end of the day you just set out to bowl your best ball and hope that it works.”Lightning had opted to bat first on what looked like a good track as The Blaze beat Sunrisers earlier, yet the balance in the opening powerplay was with the Outlaws as the top three names on the Lancashire card fell in overs four, five and six.Carter picked off two of them, Phil Salt driving him into the hands of extra cover and Steven Croft bowled sweeping. In between, Afridi snuffed out the threat posed by Jos Buttler, brilliantly yorked for 23 from 16 balls, as Lightning emerged with 49 for three from six.Lightning still had hitting power at the crease but was the 10th over before it was unleashed, Outlaws skipper Steven Mullaney taking some punishment as a boundary from Livingstone was followed by two towering sixes down the ground by Daryl Mitchell, who had been the architect of a home win when these sides met at Old Trafford eight days ago. Lightning were 83 for three from 10.But just as Buttler had departed at the moment he seemed to be moving up through the gears, so too did Mitchell, who sliced Samit Patel to the tall figure of Carter at backward point, an easy catch the Outlaws bowler celebrated with his third wicket in the next over as Tom Hartley swung horribly across the line.Again, Lightning lost momentum, going three overs without a boundary, and no sooner had Livingstone remedied that by driving Harrison’s leg spin through the covers to move to 34 from 29 balls than he was out, holing out to Alex Hales at long-off, immediately followed back to the dugout by Luke Wood, also caught at long-off, as Harrison took two in two.Lightning were now in a downwards spiral and the end came quickly. Brooks – recalled after illness ruled out Jake Ball following a successful return from injury on Saturday – picked up a couple of 39th birthday wickets as Colin de Grandhomme reached for a wide ball and was caught behind and Blatherwick, making his Lancashire Blast debut on his 25th birthday, scooped tamely to short third man, either side of a second wicket for Afridi as George Bell swung and missed.The Outlaws were firmly in control of the chase at 62 for one from their batting powerplay, the strike and scoring having been dominated by Clarke, who hammered six fours and two sixes in his 24-ball 42 before sending a top-edge high into the sky that Blatherwick, waving away other interested fielders, caught off his own bowling.Blatherwick, who began his career at Trent Bridge, struck again in his next over when Hales, playing despite a side strain incurred on Saturday night, spooned one straight to mid-off and though Outlaws needed below a run a ball to win, two of their three top batters were back in the hut, followed by the third as Colin Munro miscued Livingstone to short extra cover as the home side reached the halfway point at 82 for three.The Lancashire bowlers made it difficult for the Outlaws to regain their early momentum and a fourth wicket was lost when Samit Patel missed one from left-arm spinner Hartley. Moores eased the pressure with a couple of boundaries off Mitchell and 29 off the last 30 balls looked straightforward enough, even after Matt Montgomery picked out deep midwicket during a mean over by Livingstone.Lightning gave little away but after a rare poor delivery from Livingstone was lofted down the ground for six by Mullaney, three boundaries in five balls by Moores off Wood finished the job with seven balls to spare.

Australia played Scott Boland ahead of him at Edgbaston, but there’s a chance he could feature at Lord’s

Andrew McGlashan26-Jun-2023

It’s a sign that a tour is running smoothly when there are very few unknowns about selection for the next match. As with last week, the only question for Australia to answer is around the final make-up of their pace attack with Mitchell Starc waiting in the wings should a change be made at Lord’s.The likeliest route would appear to be that Starc replaces Scott Boland whose treatment by England at Edgbaston was termed a “surprise” by coach Andrew McDonald. However, two days out from the second Test the pitch was reasonably green and, should it remain that way, such a surface could keep Boland in the frame. There is promise of more pace and bounce at Lord’s than what was seen in Birmingham, which wouldn’t disappoint either side.The other scenario that may play out is based on whether the selectors are confident in playing Josh Hazlewood in back-to-back Tests early into his latest comeback. His workload was reasonably light at Edgbaston where he sent down 25 overs and there has been a good gap (of eight days) between matches.Related

Cummins and Australia will stay true to their approach

Decline in runs from Australia's tail cause for concern ahead of the Ashes

Hazlewood looking to play 'at least three' Ashes Tests

Will Australia bring in Starc for Boland at Lord's?

There is a reasonable chance that Starc could know his fate by the end of Monday, but either way, it is not a new situation for him when it comes to Ashes tours of England having played just once in 2019.”I’m used to it now coming to England. It’s a squad mentality, much the same as last time,” Starc said. “Been around long enough, been dropped enough. Probably dropped the most in this squad. Not something new to me, won’t be the last time, either. It’s never fun, everyone wants to play.”Starc was part of the Australia side for the World Test Championship final against India earlier this month before missing the cut at Edgbaston, although McDonald acknowledged that with hindsight he could have had a role to play on what was a docile surface.Starc claimed four wickets in the WTC final, including a brute of a lifter to have Virat Kohli caught at slip, but later conceded he had not been able at his best.”I came into that game feeling pretty good, but then my rhythm wasn’t quite there,” Starc said. “It’s been a good couple of weeks of work to get back into that rhythm. We were all better for the run after that Test final at The Oval and I certainly feel less clunky than I did throughout the game.”Hopefully, that results in some good stuff if and when I play. It’s all in good order, it’s just about getting some time in the middle when the time comes.”A look at the green Lord’s pitch a couple of days before the Test•Getty Images

Starc’s Test experience at Lord’s amounts to one game in 2015, when he claimed two wickets in a big Australia win, but he was outstanding at the ground during the 2019 World Cup where he bagged nine scalps in two matches against England and New Zealand.Unlike some visiting bowlers, he has not found the slope that runs across the playing area to be a problem. “It’s probably more visual than anything, I didn’t find it too much of an adjustment because it’s got a slope,” he said.One other element that could come into play, should Starc make the cut for Lord’s, is whether he will take the new ball. In the second innings of the WTC final he was used behind Boland and Pat Cummins. It was only the 13th time in his career that he had not been among the first pair, the previous of which came in his lone appearance in the 2019 Ashes at Old Trafford.”There’s been a few discussions from a few of the guys playing county cricket and the way the Dukes ball is reacting this season, potentially the fact that you get eight to 15 overs into an innings and the ball actually starts to swing then, not when it’s brand new,” Starc said. “There was very little swing at Edgbaston for anyone because of the dryness of the wicket.”

The foundation for the hosts’ 546-run win was laid by twin centuries from Najmul Hossain Shanto

Mohammad Isam17-Jun-2023Bangladesh 382 (Shanto 146, Mahmudul 76, Masood 5-79) and 425 for 4 dec (Shanto 124, Mominul 121*, Zahir 2-112) beat Afghanistan 146 (Zazai 36, Ebadot 4-47, Taijul 2-7) and 115 (Rahmat 30, Taskin 4-37, Shoriful 3-28) by 546 runsBangladesh beat Afghanistan by 546 runs in the one-off Test in Dhaka, thus achieving their highest victory margin in Tests, and the third highest in the format’s history. The visitors’ last man Zahir Khan took a blow to the elbow and retired hurt during an extended morning session on the fourth day, thus leaving the hosts with only nine second-innings wickets to take to complete the win.Some drama also took place just before that, as Bangladesh neared victory. Zahir was given out caught behind off the ball of the 33rd over, with Taskin Ahmed taking off to celebrate what he thought was his first five-for in Tests, only for the batter to overturn the decision on review, as replays showed the ball had missed the bat by an inch.The delivery immediately after, Taskin bowled Zahir, only for the ball to be deemed as an above-waist full toss, and thus a no-ball. Then three legal balls after that, Taskin crashed one into Zahir’s elbow, thus rendering him unable to bat. After a few minutes of discussion and medical attention, Zahir walked off. That confirmed a massive win for Bangladesh.Bangladesh’s fast bowlers combined to take 14 wickets in the match, the most for them in a Test. The hosts entered the fourth day requiring eight wickets to seal the win, which they duly did inside 22 overs although eventually they had to take one wicket lesser. It started in the third over of the day when Nasir Jamal could do little against a beautiful delivery from Ebadot Hossain: the ball pitched outside off and straightened just enough to tickle the batter’s outside edge.Next over, Rahmat Shah survived when he was given out caught in the slips off a snorter from Shoriful Islam, before the TV umpire determined that the ball had come off his armguard. But Shoriful didn’t have to wait too long for his first wicket of the morning: three overs later – the 19th of the innings – Afsar Zazai edged him to Mehidy Hasan Miraz at gully.Najmul Hossain Shanto cracked two centuries in Dhaka•AFP/Getty ImagesAs a result of that wicket, in came debutant Bahir Shah, who was brought in as concussion substitute for captain Hashmatullah Shahidi. But Shoriful ended the 21st over by having him caught at third slip, where Taijul Islam took a good, low catch. That meant Afghanistan were 78 for 5, which soon became 91 for 6 when Taskin had Rahmat Shah caught behind for 30 four overs later. Taskin’s third wicket came soon after, when he bowled Karim Janat for 18.That meant all of the seven wickets to fall had gone to Bangladesh’s fast bowlers, after which one finally went to a spinner. Brought into the attack to start the 32nd over, Mehidy struck third ball when he had Amir Hamza caught at short leg, where the ball landed after coming off his glove and helmet in an attempted pull shot. And next over, Taskin had Yamin Ahmadzai caught at mid-off to get his fourth.But Afghanistan’s troubles had begun on the third evening itself, when Shoriful had trapped Ibrahim Zadran lbw first ball, thus becoming the second Bangladesh bowler after Mashrafe Mortaza to start an innings with a wicket. Next over, Abdul Malik chased an away swinger from Taskin, only to be caught behind for 5.Come the sixth over, Taskin struck Shahidi on the head with a bouncer. Shahidi, who had ducked at the ball after seemingly taking his eyes off, fell flat on the pitch, before walking off retired hurt. Effectively, Afghanistan were three down, before Bahir would take Shahidi’s place.But much before those problems for Afghanistan, twin centuries from Najmul Hossain Shanto – and one from Mominul Haque in the second innings – had already laid the foundation for Bangladesh’s triumph. They declared their second innings on 425 after obtaining a 236-run first-innings lead, thus setting Afghanistan an improbable 662. That eventually turned out to be more than enough for a commanding win.

Barcelona have confirmed that the Joan Gamper Trophy clash against Como will not be played at Camp Nou with their return to the stadium delayed again.

• Joan Gamper Trophy clash vs Como confirmed
• Venue has been changed from Camp Nou
• Match won't be accessible to a huge section of fans

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  After the fuss regarding playing the Joan Gamper Trophy at the resurrected Camp Nou, Barca have confirmed that the game against Como, which is managed by their former player Cesc Fabregas, will be played on August 10 at the Estadi Johan Cruyff, a stadium which can accommodate 6,000 people and plays home to their women's team.

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  After two years at Estadi de Montjuic, Barca were confident of returning to Camp Nou with the Joan Gamper Trophy clash. They received the Activities and Construction license two weeks back and were waiting for the First Occupancy license last week; however, they were not issued the latter. If the City Council had opted to allow the First Occupancy license, the Como game would have been played at the Camp Nou, of course, with a reduced capacity of up to 60,000 fans. The club considered shifting the game to Montjuic, but the stadium will host a concert on August 9, a day before the clash, making it almost impossible to be prepared on time. Hence, the Catalans had to take this game to Estadi Johan Cruyff, where only 6,000 fans will be able to enjoy Fabregas taking on his former side. Moreover, their return to the home ground might be delayed until January.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Como will become the ninth Italian outfit to participate in this competition, with Sampdoria, AC Milan, Inter, Juventus, Napoli, Parma, Roma and Brescia being the previous contestants.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR BARCELONA AND COMO?

  This will be the first-ever meeting between Barca and Como in their respective 125 and 118-year history.

Earlier in the day, India’s bowling attack roared back to bowl out England for 319 despite Ben Duckett’s 153

Sidharth Monga17-Feb-2024″Even when it was 200 for 2, guys were pretty relaxed. You know, in a session, there is four or five that could come your way.”R Ashwin, the man who said those words, might have pulled out of the Test overnight for personal reasons, but the Indian attack was good enough to vindicate him with eight wickets in a session and a half as India roared back from the shock of a sensational Ben Duckett hundred on day two. Kuldeep Yadav softened England up with an excellent spell that virtually ran through the first session, and Mohammed Siraj capitalised on it in the second session as India took the last eight wickets for just 95 runs.With a first-innings lead of 126 secured, India’s batters finally got down to scoring the runs that should be scored off an inexperienced and inaccurate attack. Riding on a sparkling century from Yashasvi Jaiswal, India ended the day with a lead of 322, which is 84 more than what they still had in the bank at the start of the day. That is probably why Ashwin was confident of a comeback on a pitch that was likely to only get worse for batting.Related

Crafty Kuldeep undoes Bazball in 12-over spell for the ages

Ashwin withdraws from Rajkot Test because of family emergency

Duckett defends Root dismissal: Reverse-scoop to slip the same as nicking off

Five of the 12 wickets on the first two days had fallen in the first hour. It was pertinent that India cash in on that movement from the moisture early in the morning. In Ashwin’s absence, they began with Jasprit Bumrah and Kuldeep. Immediately, it was apparent there was a little more available than had been in the second half of day two, which is when Duckett had led England to 207 for 2 in 35 overs.Bazball gives, but Bazball takes as well. Joe Root, more overs under his belt than runs in this series, tried the reverse scoop in Bumrah’s third over of the day, but ended up hitting it to second slip for a sharp catch for Jaiswal. To be fair to Root, until then he had scored 64 with that shot in just 23 balls for one dismissal. What followed is a true test of the dressing room’s disregard for results, the biggest building block of Bazball.Kuldeep Yadav sent back Ben Duckett for 153•Getty ImagesIn the early exchanges, Duckett had reminded India of the problem they had. Kuldeep had a deep square leg for the sweep, and a deep cover for the reverse sweep, but he swept from in front of the stumps and deliberately in front of square. And when India sent another man back, he picked an easy single.Kuldeep’s response was to go wider and look for more overspin. That kept Duckett quiet, and then drew an edge on the reverse sweep, his first boundary off an edge. Eventually, after reaching 150, he ended up hitting a short, wide ball straight to cover. It just stopped a touch and turned more than expected. Everything was coming together for India: the pitch was misbehaving just that little bit more, a traditionally high-risk shot had gone straight to hand, and Kuldeep was bowling beautifully.Kuldeep was in great rhythm, giving the ball proper rip, creating deception both in the air and off the surface. Before he got Duckett in what might look on the surface a soft manner, he had beaten Jonny Bairstow in the air, and then ripped the ball in to trap him for his eighth duck against India, the most by any batter.Kuldeep bowled through the session bar one over for day-three figures of 12-1-35-2. It might be just two wickets, but it set the foundation for India conceding just 83 in 26 overs in the session. Finally India had some control over the free-scoring England batters.Post lunch, Ben Stokes tried to take a few risks, and for once they didn’t all come off. Ravindra Jadeja, bowling around the wicket to the left-hand batter, an angle that has raised a few eyebrows in the series, got him on the slog sweep thanks to that angle. The ball didn’t turn, and Stokes holed out. Something similar happened with Tom Hartley, who charged him but was beaten by the lack of turn and stumped to give Dhruv Jurel his first Test victim.Joe Root handed a catch to second slip off a reverse scoop•Associated PressAt the other end, Siraj charged in, reversed the ball, and ran through the lower order. Ben Foakes got one that stopped in the surface, and then pinged all the way to mid-on for a catch. Rehan Ahmed got a superb yorker that he even cue-ended, but couldn’t save his off stump. Full, reversing, off-stump-seeking Siraj was too good for James Anderson. For once, India had ended an innings in just 85 false responses, a bit of luck they were due after the hard work in the first four innings of the series.For the fifth time in the series, the young batting group was presented with an opportunity to bat England out of a match. India’s innings began right at the mid-point of the middle day of the middle Test of the series; by the end of the day it seemed the series had turned a corner. Finally it looked like a four-man attack whose one spinner debuted this series. Their best spinner has been Root, who got them their first wicket: Rohit Sharma lbw to a ball too full.Jaiswal and Shubman Gill then began slowly, absorbed the best England had to offer, and got to 75 for 1 in 26 overs. Jaiswal looked at ease, Gill seemed to have started back and across to try to cover the off stump better. In the 27th over, floodgates opened. On 35 off 73 at this moment, Jaiswal flicked a switch, hooked Anderson, then pulled him dismissively in front of square, and then lofted Hartley for two sixes down the ground. Suddenly he was 61 off 81.Then Jaiswal biffed Ahmed down the ground before sweeping Root for his 18th six in just seven Tests. The cherry on the top was his two reverse-swept boundaries in three balls off Ahmed, played the way England have been playing: switch the stance but not the grip. This is just after head coach Rahul Dravid might have sent him a quiet instruction to be ruthless. He brought up his third Test hundred with a cut in front of square off Mark Wood, bowling with a square field for the short ball.Almost a silent partner, Gill reminded everyone he was around when he pulled Mark Wood for a six to bring up his fifty off 98 balls. He scored just 57 in the 155-run stand, which came to a pause with back pain forcing Jaiswal to retire hurt, probably a precaution keeping next week’s Test in Ranchi in mind.

Kevin De Bruyne’s first outing in a Napoli shirt ended in unexpected disappointment as the Serie A giants fell to a 2-0 loss against third-tier side Arezzo in pre-season. Despite the shock result, the Belgian star struck a positive tone on social media, calling the match 'some good minutes' as Gli Azzurri prepare to defend their Scudetto title in the 2025/26 season.

Kevin De Bruyne starts in shock loss to ArezzoBelgian substituted at half-time in debut appearanceMidfielder posts positive message after pre-season defeatFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

De Bruyne made his debut for Napoli in a friendly clash against Serie C outfit Arezzo. The former Manchester City star started the match but was taken off at half-time as Napoli fell to a 2-0 defeat. Late goals in each half helped Arezzo secure a memorable result over their Serie A champions.

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While the surprise loss has raised eyebrows, it’s important to remember that this was just a warm-up game for Napoli, and that is exactly what De Bruyne said in his positive message on Instagram. The Belgian is still regaining fitness after a couple of injury-hit seasons at Manchester City. Gli Azzurri's focus will now shift to building chemistry and momentum ahead of the new campaign.

WHAT DE BRUYNE SAID

Following the match, De Bruyne shared a brief but optimistic message on Instagram. “Very happy to make my debut today. Some good minutes for the legs. Let’s keep on working,” he wrote.

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Getty Images SportWHAT NEXT FOR NAPOLI?

The Serie A champions will look to bounce back in their upcoming friendlies against Serie B side US Catanzaro and Ligue 1's Brest, as Antonio Conte continues to shape his squad. De Bruyne is expected to feature more prominently in the coming weeks. With time and fitness, the Belgian playmaker will aim to become a key figure in Napoli’s title defence this season.

Kraigg Brathwaite, meanwhile, called for West Indies to be given more Test cricket

Andrew McGlashan28-Jan-2024The pain of a first home defeat as Test captain for Pat Cummins was still raw, but he was able to appreciate the bigger picture of what had unfolded on a dramatic fourth day at the Gabba, while his opposite number Kraigg Brathwaite reiterated his call for West Indies to be given more Test cricket.When Josh Hazlewood’s off stump was extracted by Shamar Joseph, it gave West Indies their first victory in Australia since 1997, when Cummins was just four years old. The visitors had arrived shorn of experience, the majority of their caps split between just two players, but conjured one of the biggest upsets of all time by taking Australia’s last eight wickets for 96 runs – seven of them by Shamar.”Yeah, you can [see the significance],” Cummins said. “Which isn’t necessarily helpful because you are still hurting after a loss. They outplayed us, they played brilliantly. I know a lot of the talk coming into this was there were some debutants and some names who hadn’t traveled over here before, but once you put out an international XI, you know it’s going to be tough.Related

• No runs for fun: Bowlers are now holding sway in Australia

• Shamar takes seven to bowl WI to magical win

• Cummins: Shamar was right up for it and we weren't good enough

• A fairy-tale day in the life of Shamar Joseph

“They’ve been fantastic, they created a couple of new superstars that we didn’t know about before the series and as a cricket fan, as a Test-match cricket fan, there’s a part of me that was happy to watch.”Brathwaite, meanwhile, believed that West Indies’ bid to rebuild as a Test team was not helped by the long gaps between series.”I do believe we should be playing more Test cricket more consistently,” Brathwaite said. “Our next Test is July 10, which is a long while away. I believe we have the talent and have shown the world we can win Test matches, but we need to play more.”However, he also acknowledged that while a famous victory should be savoured, the players must maintain the focus that has helped them compete on this tour. “That’s how we keep pushing ourselves,” he said. “When you play Test cricket you are playing against the best in the world. The key for us is to never slack off and have heart. Obviously this team has a lot of heart. My theme to the guys is you did well, but this is just one Test win, we have a number of Tests remaining this year, so this same attitude we had, it has to continue.”The result, reminiscent of the seven-run loss to New Zealand in Hobart in 2011, which ended with very similar scenes to the Gabba with David Warner carrying his bat while this time it was Steven Smith, capped a home summer where, until now, Australia had found a way to score enough runs without being dominant except for the first Test against Pakistan in Perth.’I believe we have the talent and have shown the world we can win Test matches, but we need to play more’ – Kraigg Brathwaite•Getty Images

Data shows that batting has become tougher overall in Australia in recent seasons, and the earlier performances of Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head are given added weight because of that, but at the Gabba, Smith was left with a little bit too much to do, even though he threatened to win the game late on when he scooped Alzarri Joseph for six.”There’s been times when batters have got us out of trouble and times when bowlers have got us out of trouble,” Cummins said of the relative lack of big top-order runs. “That’s probably been the story of this team over the last few years. Even in the Pakistan series, there were so many little moments where it took a bowler or a batter to stand up and [we] found a way to win, unfortunately that wasn’t the case with this one. These wickets have been tougher to score runs on than perhaps in the past. [But] ideally, those kinds of totals, we are chasing down.”On Smith, who was elevated to open at the start of the series, Cummins added: “Other than two dismissals, they are the only two balls he hasn’t looked like he’s middled. He’s class, has been class for 15 years. Thought he was brilliant the way he managed the innings then through the different kind of passages and almost single-handedly dragged us over the line.”Cummins also defended his decision to declare nine down and still 22 behind in the first innings to give the bowlers a crack at West Indies’ batters under lights on the second evening. “You never get to look at the other option, do you?” he said. “We created two chances that night and felt like at night was still the best chance to create a couple of wickets. Felt like that played out pretty well.”

Match details

Punjab Kings (PBKS) vs Delhi Capitals (DC)
Mullanpur, 3.30pm IST (1030 GMT)

Big picture – Rishabh Pant is back

The first afternoon match of IPL 2024 will be dominated by just one storyline in the lead up: the return of Rishabh Pant, who survived a car crash in December 2022. He had three ligament reconstructions in his right knee, told his surgeon he would recover six months sooner than expected, walked on crutches, accelerating his rehab, and is now hours away from walking out as Delhi Capitals’ captain on Saturday.Related

• Rishabh Pant is back – celebrating life, loving cricket

• 'Jittery, nervous, excited' – Pant ahead of his comeback

• Inside the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Stadium, Punjab's new open-air venue in Mullanpur

• Punjab Kings lack a strong Indian batting core

• Pant's return is huge, but so are Capitals' concerns

The question is whether he can find his match fitness quickly. While Pant played several practice matches at the BCCI’s National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru before getting the clearance to play the IPL, coming back from what he has is never easy. Can he play with the fearlessness that has defined his career? Saturday will not provide all the answers, but it could set the tone for a remarkable comeback.As for Punjab Kings, it is their first match at their new home base in Mullanpur. Kings’ previous home ground was the IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali, where they won just one of their five games in IPL 2023. Overall, Capitals have won 15 of the 32 matches they have played against Kings, but in the last two years, they have won five of six.

Team news – Will Pant keep wickets?

While Jonny Bairstow, who missed IPL 2023 because of an injury, has returned to strengthen Kings’ top order, the absence of a power-hitter in the lower order – apart from Jitesh Sharma – was a weak point for them last year. They can plug the hole by playing either Shashank Singh or Ashutosh Sharma, who are both aggressive batters with a penchant for hitting sixes.Based on the training session on match eve, Pant will play as wicketkeeper. There is a toss-up likely between Jake Fraser-McGurk and Tristan Stubbs, who showed his prowess as a finisher in the SA20. Jhye Richardson is with the squad but recovering from a side strain, which Capitals co-owner Parth Jindal had said might rule him out of the initial few games. Capitals will also be without Anrich Nortje, who is still in South Africa.9:21

Which teams make it to the playoffs?

Toss and Impact Player strategy

Punjab Kings: Kings are likely to utilise the same Impact Player combination as last year by benching Prabhsimran Singh when they bowl and having one of their bowlers sit out while batting.Probable XII: 1 Shikhar Dhawan (capt), 2 Jonny Bairstow, , 4 Liam Livingstone, 5 Jitesh Sharma (wk), 6 Ashutosh Sharma/Shashank Singh, 7 Sam Curran, 8 Rahul Chahar, 9 Harpreet Brar, 10 Kagiso Rabada, 11 Harshal Patel, Delhi Capitals: Khaleel Ahmed will start if Capitals bowl first, while Ricky Bhui, who could bolster the lower order, could come in when they batProbable XII: 1 David Warner, 2 Prithvi Shaw, 3 Mitchell Marsh, 4 Rishabh Pant (capt, wk), 5 Jake Fraser-McGurk/Tristan Stubbs, 6 Abishek Porel, , 8 Axar Patel, 9 Lalit Yadav, 10 Kuldeep Yadav, 11 Ishant Sharma,

Stats that matter

• Arshdeep Singh’s economy of 8.48 at the death in the last two IPL seasons is third-best for any bowler who bowled at least 100 balls in that phase
• Since the start of 2020, Axar Patel (6.90) is the third-most economical bowler after Rashid Khan (6.74) and Sunil Narine (6.85), in the IPL
• Across all T20s, Ishant Sharma has dismissed Shikhar Dhawan three times in 31 balls while giving away only 36 runs. Dhawan has a strike rate of 88.5 against Khaleel Ahmed (23 runs in 26 balls, one dismissal)
• David Warner has taken Harshal Patel for 86 runs in 45 balls without being dismissed even once. Warner has a great record against Rahul Chahar as well: 65 runs in 40 balls, no dismissal

Pitch and conditions

In the 2023-24 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Mullanpur ranked fourth on the list of venues with highest overall scoring rates at 8.51 (with a cut-off of five matches). It will be the 36th venue in the IPL and the straight boundaries are roughly 81 yards long, but it is the long square boundaries – around 74 yards – which could play a key factor, given the two-bouncer rule that will be in play in this IPL. The central pitch is likely to have good bounce, though it could be two-paced. The afternoon temperatures will hover in the early 30 degrees (Celsius).

Quotes

“The bowlers have complained a lot over the years that everything is in the batters’ favour, so they’ve got something in their favour now. It’ll be interesting to see how it goes.”
“Jittery, nervous, excited – all of it, but at the same time, just happy, being able to come back to professional cricket. I’m just looking forward to playing my first game tomorrow.”

The Titans spinners combined for 7 for 68 to restrict Kings to a modest score

Andrew Fidel Fernando21-Apr-20241:48

Rapid Fire: Noor’s wizardry, Jitesh’s woes, Sudharsan’s strike rate

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Is Gill’s captaincy affecting his batting form?

Tewatia finishes againIt’s not like Titans were in serious trouble, but they needed someone to come in and play the match-winning batting innings nonetheless. And Rahul Tewatia was the guy once more. At one stage, Titans needed 38 runs off the last four overs, with five wickets in hand. A couple of wickets for Kings right then would have changed the match completely.But Tewatia hit two fours off Brar’s over to bring the required rate back in hand, and restore Titans’ grip on the match. Then he hit three fours – two clubbed down the ground, and one tickled through fine leg – off Kagiso Rabada’s 18th over, in which Shahrukh Khan also hit a six. They reaped 20 runs there, and essentially made the game safe, bringing the requirement to five off 12 balls.Kings shine in spurtsSome Kings players shone, but too briefly to make a defining impact on the game. The first of these was Prabhsimran Singh, who smoked three sixes and three fours in the 35 off 21 balls that raised the Kings innings off the ground. He was out before the powerplay ended though.When they were defending their poor score, Livingstone took 2 for 19 from his four overs, and Harshal Patel and Sam Curran backed him up – Harshal taking three wickets and Curran one. But Kings had lost too much ground already with the bat.

Sam Curran stood in as Punjab Kings captain in Dhawan’s absence against Rajasthan Royals

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Apr-2024Shikhar Dhawan has a shoulder injury, Punjab Kings coach Sanjay Bangar has confirmed, and could be out of action for a week, possibly, or even more. If it’s a week, Dhawan, the designated captain of the team, could miss two IPL 2024 matches, against Mumbai Indians (April 18) and against Gujarat Titans (April 21), both at home in Mullanpur.Speaking a press conference after Kings’ last-over defeat in a low-scoring game against Rajasthan Royals in Mullanpur, Bangar first said Dhawan could be out for “at least a couple of days”, and that it could be “at least seven-ten days”.”He’s having a shoulder injury, so he is likely to be out for at least a couple of days, I would say,” Bangar said. “Having an experienced opener, somebody like Shikhar, who has experience of playing on such wickets, becomes extremely crucial [for the team].”We have to wait and see how he responds to the treatment. At the moment, it seems that he could be out of action for at least seven-ten days.”In Dhawan’s absence, Sam Curran walked out for the toss for Kings, which led to some amount of confusion, since Jitesh Sharma had attended the captains’ conference in Chennai prior to the start of the season.”No, no, he [Jitesh] wasn’t the designated vice-captain,” Bangar clarified when asked the question. “The impression could have been because he attended the captains’ seminar, or meeting, at the start of the IPL. But the thought was always that… because Sam has led the team in the previous year as well; he was late to arrive from UK and he wanted to have a few [training] sessions, that’s the reason we couldn’t send him to Chennai. Hence Jitesh was sent, because the directive was that a player has to attend.”It wasn’t the case that Jitesh was the stand-in captain. We were very clear in our mind that if at all there had to be an opening, Sam Curran will be taking over and do the job as the captain.”Dhawan hasn’t had a spectacular time of it with the bat in IPL 2024, but is Kings’ highest run-getter at this stage with 152 runs from five innings, scoring at an average of 30.40 and a strike rate of 125.61. In fact, Kings’ struggles with the bat at the top of the innings have contributed in a major way to their lack of wins – they have four losses from six games so far and are down at eighth place on the table.Jonny Bairstow, Dhawan’s opening partner, has had a rough time too, scoring just 96 runs in six innings, while Prabhsimran Singh (119 runs in six innings) and Jitesh (106 runs in six innings) have struggled for consistency and impact also.On Saturday, with Dhawan out, Kings tried Atharva Taide at the top. He scored 15 runs in 12 balls as Kings put up 38 for 1 in the powerplay on their way to a total of 147 for 8.”Certainly is a cause for concern that the top order is not making enough runs for us,” Bangar said. “They are trying hard – I am not saying that they are not applying themselves – but it’s just not coming. Low-scoring games, especially at Mullanpur, the way the wicket is… that also has a factor. Because if you see, some of the scores have been pretty low.”All the three games that we have played here, in the first six overs, with the new ball, the wicket tends to just jag a little bit, and uneven bounce as well. So maybe that is also a contributing factor because, not only us, the visiting teams and their top order are facing issues.”