Star India player Hardik Pandya

Dubai: Star India player Hardik Pandya on Wednesday re-claimed the top spot in the T20I all-rounders’ list while rising star and teammate Tilak Varma made a massive jump of 69 rungs to occupy the third place among batters in the latest ICC men’s player rankings.

Pandya overtook England dasher Liam Livingstone and Nepal dynamo Dipendra Singh Airee at the top of the T20I all-rounder charts on the back of some strong form during India’s recent series in South Africa, with the 31-year-old producing some eye-catching efforts with both bat and ball.

His innings of 39 not out in the second game of the four-match series helped balance India’s innings, while his spell of 1/8 from three overs during the decisive fourth contest ensured his side claim an impressive 3-1 series triumph.

It is the second time Pandya has held the No.1 ranking for T20I all-rounders, with the consistent India performer first rising to the top at the end of this year’s ICC men’s T20 World Cup.

Pandya wasn’t the only India player to make giant strides in the latest rankings update, with Player of the Series and rising player Varma shooting up the batting charts a whopping 69 places following his two centuries and 280 runs for the series against the Proteas.

The rise sees Varma improve to third place overall behind No.1-ranked T20I batter Travis Head and England’s Phil Salt and means he is now the highest-rated batter from India, with skipper Suryakumar Yadav dropping one spot to fourth behind him.

Teammate Sanju Samson — who also managed two centuries during the series with South Africa — climbs 17 spots to 22nd on the same list for T20I batters.

Australian duo Adam Zampa and Nathan Ellis are among the biggest movers on the updated rankings for T20I bowlers, with India seamer Arshdeep Singh gaining three places to move to ninth and a new career-high rating following his efforts against South Africa.

Perth: KL Rahul allayed concerns surrounding his fitness with an extended net session here on Sunday, indicating his readiness to open in the first Test against Australia as skipper Rohit Sharma will join the team only in Adelaide after spending time with his new-born baby.

Pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah will lead the team in Rohit’s absence.

Rahul had left the field for medical attention on Friday after sustaining a blow on his elbow by pacer Prasidh Krishna while batting in an intra-squad practice match at the WACA ground.

The first of the five Tests in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy will begin at the Optus Stadium from November 22, while the second Test at Adelaide starts from December 6.

In all likelihood, the team management will pair Rahul with Yashasvi Jaiswal, and the 32-year-old’s recovery has come as a massive relief after Shubman Gill was ruled out of the first Test with a fractured thumb.

Rahul batted without any major discomfort for a considerable time and participated in all the drills during the three-hour net session on this day.

“I had got a bad hit on Day 1 of the game. I am feeling good today, getting ready for the first game. Happy that I could come here early and get used to the conditions,” Rahul said in a video shared by BCCI on X.

“Yeah, I got a lot of time to prepare for this series and I am excited and looking forward to it,” he added.

In fact, head coach Gautam Gambhir too had indicated a promotion up the order for Rahul during the pre-departure press meet in Mumbai in the event of Rohit missing the opening Test.

Team Physio Kamlesh Jain said Rahul has responded well to the treatment.

“The key for us was to ensure that there is no fracture there. It’s 48 hours since the impact and he has responded well to treatments. He should be ready to go,” said Jain in the video.

Yogesh Parmar, the support physio, said the treatment was based on “controlling the pain.”

“I took him for X-ray and scan and based upon the report I was more confident that he should be fine.

“It was a matter of controlling the pain and giving him some confidence. From a medical point of view, he is absolutely fine,” said Parmar.

The Indian team, meanwhile, finished its block of training at the WACA ground and the visitors will now move to the Optus Stadium for match drills from Tuesday, after a scheduled rest day on Monday.

Devdutt, 3 pacers to stay back in Australia

Meanwhile, the Indian team management has decided to keep top-order batter Devdutt Padikkal in Australia as a batting back-up along with three seamers from the India A squad.

Devdutt was part of the India A squad that played two four-day matches against their Australian counterparts recently.

The left-hander, who was recently named in Karnataka’s squad for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, had lukewarm outings during the ‘A’ tour, making 36, 88, 26, 1.

The three pacers are: Mukesh Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed and Navdeep Saini, who were all part of the India A squad.

Saini had also played at Sydney and Brisbane Tests during the last tour Down Under, till date his only two matches in the traditional format.

“It is more to do with the familiarity with the Australian conditions as they have played here recently,” a source close to the development told PTI.

“Devdutt was highly impressive while facing Jasprit Bumrah at nets, and the management took that also into consideration,” the source added.

The 24-year-old had made his Test debut against England earlier this year at Dharamsala and made a 65 while batting at No. 4

Rajgir (Bihar) Defending champions India stormed into the semifinals of the Women’s Asian Champions Trophy with an unbeaten record, defeating Japan 3-0 here on Sunday.

Continuing her stellar form, star striker Deepika netted a quickfire brace from penalty corners in the final quarter to seal the victory, following vice-captain Navneet Kaur’s opener in the 37th minute.

With this win, India topped the league stage with maximum 15 points from five matches, ahead of Olympic silver medallists China (12 points).

India will take on fourth-placed Japan in the semifinal on Tuesday, while China will play third-placed Malaysia in the other last-four game.

Deepika, the tournament’s leading scorer, now boasts 10 goals, including four field goals, five penalty corners, and one penalty stroke, underscoring her dominance.

In the day’s other matches, Malaysia beat Thailand 2-0, while China defeated South Korea by an identical margin.

The Indians secured their first scoring chance in the form of back-to-back penalty corners in the eighth minute but Deepika’s flick from the second effort was brilliantly saved by Japanese goalkeeper Yu Kudo.

India earned another penalty corner in the 13th minute but yet again wasted the chance.

The Indians continued to dominate and secured their fourth penalty corner in the 25th minute but once again Kudo rose to the occasion and made three brilliant saves to deny the hosts.

A minute after the change of ends, Kudo again came to Japan’s rescue to deny Deepika.

India eventually broke the deadlock in the 37th minute through Navneet’s brilliant reverse hit to the second post.

Deepika’s brilliance

The Indians continued their domination and earned three back-to-back penalty corrners in the 47th minute and star dragflicker Deepika finally found the back of the net with a powerful low dragflick to open her account.

A minute later, the Indians secured another set piece and this time too Deepika struck again with a powerful flick into the top right corner, effectively sealing the match.

Credit must also go to the Indian defence, led brilliantly by Udita and Sushila Chanu, as they didn’t let the Japanese take a single shot at the Indian goal.

Skipper Salima Tete, Neha and Sharmila Devi too were brilliant in the midfield, creating numerous chances for the forwardline with their runs and neat dribbling skills.

Gqeberha: Leg-spinner Varun Chakaravarthy’s career-best 5 for 17 went in vain as India suffered a three-wicket loss to South Africa in the second T20I here on Sunday.

The 33-year-old’s stunning performance helped India reduce SA to 66 for 6 while chasing 125 but Tristan Stubbs (47) and Gerald Coetzee (19) took the hosts home in 19 overs, ending India’s 11-match winning streak.

Earlier, India struggled with the bat, posting just 124 for six after being put in to bat. They lost three quick wickets, falling to 15/3 within four overs.

Axar Patel (27) steadied the innings, partnering with Tilak Varma (20) and Hardik Pandya (39). Despite the top-order failure, Pandya’s late flourish ensured India set a more competitive total.

Brief Score:

India: 124 for six in 20 overs (Hardik Pandya 39 not out, Axar Patel 27; Andile Simelane 1/20, Aiden Markram 1/4, Nqabayomzi Peter 1/20).

South Africa: 128 for 7 in 19 overs (Tristan Stubbs 47 not out, Gerald Coetzee 19 not out; Varun Chakaravarthy 5/17).

Gautam Gambhir

Mumbai : India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir on Monday put up a stout defence of under-pressure skipper Rohit Sharma and star batter Virat Kohli, saying they are still “incredibly hungry” to perform and will bounce back in Australia.

Gambhir also dismissed theories that he is under pressure after India’s 0-3 whitewash at home against New Zealand.

“There are incredible people in the dressing room who have done a great job,” Gambhir said during the pre-departure press conference.

“I am not feeling the heat. It’s an honour and privilege to coach the Indian team.”

The first Test starts in Perth on November 22.

When asked if he feels pressure like Duncan Fletcher’s time when team was in transition, he replied: “I am not thinking about transition but the five Test matches. Transition or no transition, if that has to happen, will happen but I see some incredibly tough characters in that dressing room who are hungry to do well.”

The coach informed that Jasprit Bumrah, as the designated vice-captain, will lead the side if in the series-opening Perth Test if Rohit Sharma is unavailable for personal reasons.

Mumbai: India’s former cricketers fell into stunned silence in the immediate aftermath of the unmitigated disaster against New Zealand here on Sunday. But once they have gathered their thoughts, they pulled no punches while reviewing the team’s debacle.

The likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Harbhajan Singh called for “introspection”, urged the team management to stop “needless experimentation” in the Test format and start playing on better pitches.

India faced a humiliating 0-3 whitewash at home for the first time ever after suffering a 25-run defeat in the third Test against a New Zealand side that arrived here on the back of a 0-2 loss to Sri Lanka.

“Losing 3-0 at home is a tough pill to swallow, and it calls for introspection. Was it lack of preparation, was it poor shot selection, or was it lack of match practice?” Tendulkar posted on X.

Set a target of 147 on a crumbling Wankhede pitch, India lasted just 29.1 overs to be bowled out for 121, making it the lowest target to be successfully defended against them at home.

Rishabh Pant (64), who struck fifties in both the innings, was the only batter to show some fight, while Shubman Gill (90) was the top-scorer in India’s first innings.

“@ShubmanGill showed resilience in the first innings, and @RishabhPant17 was brilliant in both innings — his footwork made a challenging surface look like a different one altogether. He was simply superb,” Tendulkar noted.

Terming it a terrible show by Rohit Sharma’s team, former India opener Sehwag wrote on Instagram: “While as supporters it’s imperative to support the team but this has been a terrible performance from our team.

“The skill to play spin certainly needs an upgrade and certain experimentations are good for the shorter format but in Test cricket doing some needless experimentations just for the sake of it was indeed poor.

“Congratulations to Tom Latham and his @blackcapsnz boys on doing what is a dream for every visiting team and no other could conquer in this way.”

The crushing blow not only toppled India from the top of the World Test Championship standings but also exposed severe cracks in their batting against spin as New Zealand tweakers grabbed 37 out of 57 Indian wickets.

Left-arm spinner Mitchell Santer with 13 wickets was the wrecker-in-chief in the second Test in Pune, and in his absence in Mumbai following a side strain, Ajaz Patel led the charge with an extraordinary 11-wicket match haul.

Former India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh said on these kind of pitches “anyone can get anyone out” and teams don’t need legends like Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne, or Saqlain Mushtaq to take wickets.

“Turning pitches becoming ur own enemy #INDvsNZTEST Congratulations NZ you outplayed us. Been saying from many years. Team India needs to play on better pitches. These turning pitches making every batsman look very ordinary,” Harbhajan wrote on X.

“Earlier generations batsmen never played on these kind of tracks. These tracks are prepared for 2/3 day Test matches. You don’t need Murli, Warne or Saqi on these pitches to get the teams out. Anyone can get anyone out.”

Former all-rounder Irfan Pathan highlighted the lack of red-ball cricket for the senior India batters as one of the reasons for the debacle.

“This is embarrassing display by team India at home. Lot to ponder over by the decision makers. Well done New Zealand on such a terrific performance.

“Had a solid conversation with @iamyusufpathan bhai yesterday. He made a valid point about domestic cricket – we’re either playing on grassy pitches or flat tracks, but rarely on turning surfaces anymore. Plus, top players aren’t playing domestic cricket. This could hurt us in the long run.”

Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar added, “And with that we come to the end of a long phase of rank turners in India.”

Reactions also came from overseas with former England captain Michael Vaughan saying the Indian batters now struggle like most teams against spin.

“To win in India is incredible but to deliver a clean sweep is remarkable… has to be the greatest ever Test series victory. India now have a group of batters that struggle like most teams against spin…,” Vaughan wrote.

Former West Indies pacer Ian Bishop posted: “Amazing from New Zealand. A population of less than 6 million. No Kane Williamson. They have conquered an unenviable task, and both men’s and women’s teams have had an historic and proud few weeks.”

The win was doubly special for New Zealand who had landed on Indian shores after suffering a 0-2 whitewash in Sri Lanka.

“A once in a lifetime kind of win for New Zealand! From being whitewashed in Sri Lanka to whitewashing India, just WOW. What a turnaround by the Kiwis! A historic moment in New Zealand cricket history!” former Sri Lankan pacer Lasith Malinga wrote.

Former New Zealand left-arm pacer Mitchell McClenaghan wrote: “Arguably @BLACKCAPS best win of all time. Unbelievable.”

“Great series win for New Zealand, incredible performance! India will go to Australia with a massive point to prove!” pointed out former coach Mickey Arthur.

India conceded their top place in the World Test Championship standings to Australia following a crushing 0-3 Test series defeat against New Zealand and now they need to win at least four games in their five-match series Down Under to stay in the race for the final.

India lost to New Zealand by 25 runs in the third and final Test in Mumbai, resulting in a 0-3 whitewash, their first in a home Test series since South Africa’s 2-0 win in 1999-2000.

It was India’s fifth loss in the ongoing WTC cycle, causing a significant drop in their points percentage (PCT), which fell from 62.82 to 58.33.

Australia regained the top spot with a PCT of 62.50.

India are now scheduled to fly down under to play Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which has gained more significance now as both teams will be vying for the top two spots.

To secure a place in the final, India must achieve a 4-0 victory over the Australians, which will boost their percentage to 65.79.

Even a 2-3 loss could leave a slim chance for second place, provided New Zealand draw with England and South Africa split their series.

For defending champions Australia to qualify for a successive time, a 3-2 victory over India will keep them ahead in the race, even if they falter against Sri Lanka later on.

However, to avoid relying on external outcomes, they will need to secure five wins out of their seven remaining matches.

New Zealand’s historic series sweep in India has also bolstered their WTC final aspirations.

They have climbed to the fourth spot with a PCT of 54.55, while Sri Lanka occupy third place with a PCT of 55.56.

With three home Tests against England remaining, New Zealand can keep their hopes alive winning all three, potentially pushing their percentage to 64.29.

But a single loss could drop them back into the pack, depending on other results. Buoyed by their recent resurgence, third-placed Sri Lanka are also in contention.

With four crucial Tests remaining against South Africa and Australia, they can clinch a spot in the final with four victories, pushing their percentage to 69.23%.

South Africa, currently fifth with a PCT of 54.17, also remain in contention for a top-two finish and a place in the next year’s one-off Test at Lord’s.

With four Tests left against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, South Africa’s path is clear: win all four to secure a strong 69.44% finish — which can be surpassed only if Australia secure best possible finish (76.32%).

WFI President Sanjay Singh

New Delhi: The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) on Wednesday withdrew the Indian team from the World Championship, conveying to world governing body, UWW, that the sports ministry is interfering with its autonomy.

The senior World Championship in 12 non-Olympic categories is scheduled to be held in Tirana, Albania from October 28.

The WFI had recently announced selection trials for the U23 and World Championship, which was challenged as contempt of court by the protesting wrestlers who questioned the legality of the selection by the suspended federation.

WFI withdrew the selection trials notice and the court, on October 4, decided not to proceed with the contempt petition.

“Satyawart Kadian, the husband of Sakshi Malik, approached the court recently saying that the WFI should be charged with contempt of court. We won’t be able to send the Indian team for the World Championship now, we have conveyed this to the UWW,” a WFI source told PTI.

“This is all happening because of the ministry’s suspension. There are no grounds to keep the suspension. If the ministry lifts the suspension, all these issues won’t crop up. It’s just pathetic that wrestlers have to suffer because of a few wrestlers and the ministry is not lifting the suspension,” the source added.

The WFI was suspended by the Sports Ministry on December 24 soon after the polls were conducted to elect the new office-bearers.

“Unfortunately, the MYAS (ministry) continues to interfere in the autonomy of the WFI. The MYAS has ordered on 24th December 2023 to the WFI to cease and desist from discharging the day to day administration of WFI and had directed the Indian Olympic Association (NOC of India) to make an Ad-Hoc Committee for governance of WFI,” WFI President Sanjay Singh wrote in his letter to UWW President Nenad Lalovic.

The Indian Olympic Association (IOA), though, had disbanded the ad-hoc panel managing the Federation in March this year after UWW lifted the ban on WFI in February.

WFI put on record support from the PT Usha-led Indian Olympic Association (IOA).

“Though the IOA through its President Ms. PT Usha had supported the WFI in the case, it is the MYAS that is the problem creator because of their letter of 24th December 2023 which is being used as a tool to interfere in the administration of the WFI by the wrestlers.”

The WFI began to function but wrestlers Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik, and her husband Satyawart filed a plea before the court for appointing an administrator to manage the sports body.

In an interim order, the court said that the IOA’s decision to dissolve the ad-hoc committee was incompatible with the sports ministry’s suspension order.

It said that until the suspension order was recalled, it was necessary for the ad-hoc committee to manage the federation’s affairs. The IOA, though, told the court that it cannot re-constitute the panel.

The WFI has now asked UWW to invoke article 6.3 of UWW Regulations

and take appropriate action and also use Thursday’s communication as a complaint to the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

Article 6.3 of the UWW Constitution states that, “Affiliated and Associated Members shall govern and administer their activities independently. They

shall preserve their autonomy without influence by any political, religious or economic pressures.”

“Governments and other public authorities shall only be entitled to verify the use of their financial grants by the National Federations.”

In the Olympic year, World Championships are held in four categories in each of the three styles — men’s freestyle, women and greco-roman — instead of all 10.

Indian teams:

Men’s freestyle: Udit (61kg), Manish Goswami (70kg), Parvinder Singh (79kg), Sandeep Mann (92kg).

Greco-Roman: Sanjeev (55kg), Chetan (63kg), Ankit Gulia (72kg), Rohit Dahiya (82kg).

Women: Kirti (55kg), Mansi (59kg), Manisha (65kg), Bipasha (72kg).

Al Amerat (Oman): Opener Abhishek Sharma struck a scintillating half-century after an excellent performance by the bowlers as a dominant India defeated UAE by seven wickets to enter the semifinals of the Emerging Teams Asia Cup here on Monday.

This was the Indian team’s second win in as many matches in the tournament, having beaten traditional rivals Pakistan by seven runs in the opener.

Abhishek smashed 58 in 24 balls before Ayush Badoni completed the formality of chasing down a target of 108 with a six and four. India won with as many as 55 balls still left to be bowled.

While Abhishek hit five fours and four sixes in his blazing knock, skipper Tilak Varma missed out on a big one after making 21 in 18 balls.

Opting to bat first, UAE were bowled out for 107 in 16.5 overs.

The decision backfired as UAE lost both openers — Mayank Kumar (10) and Aryansh Sharma (1) — inside the first two overs.

Seamer Rasikh Salam dismissed three batters in his opening over, reducing UAE to 40 for 5 inside the power play.

Salam was adjudged the Player of the Match for returning excellent figures of 3/15 with the ball. There were also a couple of strikes from Ramandeep Singh (2/7) as India bundled out UAE with more than three overs remaining in their innings.

UAE skipper Basil Hameed (22 off 12 balls) and Rahul Chopra (50 off 50 balls) steadied the ship with a 41-run partnership before Abhishek broke the partnership, getting the former caught off his own bowling.

That UAE managed to cross 100 was largely due to Chopra’s effort.

India are currently on top of Group B with four points, and take on hosts Oman in their final group game on Wednesday.