Bumrah beheads the Kings’ top order
How CSK upskill their bowlers, IPL ticket prices, Lara remembers his 375, & KL Rahul wanted to be a RCB lifer.
Bumrah beheads the Kings’ top order
MI win despite Ashutosh’s heroics, how CSK upskill their bowlers, & the club v/s country debate caused by the Fizz.
The Mumbai Indians beat the Punjab Kings by 9 runs, led by Jasprit Bumrah in the powerplay overs. I gotta brag, because I nailed that prediction at halftime!
Cricket.com’s Shubh Aggarwal has the best reports from the match. First, he wrote about Ashutosh Sharma’s growing reputation as a finisher without peer for PBKS. Then he wrote about how Hardik Pandya’s batting woes are dragging down MI.
Indian Express’ Lalith Kalidas writes that Virat Kohli should open for India - because his middle over strike rates are in the tank for RCB this year.
Hindustan Times’ Rasesh Mandani reports on how CSK do such a good job upskilling their bowlers during the IPL season by focussing on training aggressive bowling rather than just minimising damage.
CSK’s Mustafizur Rahman is being recalled for Bangladesh’s T20 series against Zimbabwe. Former Bangla captain Khaled Sujon defended the re-call, alternate Bangla pacer Shoriful Islam said he lost out on an IPL place because he wasn’t allowed to play the entire tournament, and ESPNcricinfo’s Deivarayan Muthu & Mohammad Isam analyse the club versus country debate.
CSK have replaced injured Kiwi batter Devon Conway with English pacer Richard Gleeson. He is presumably a pre-emptive replacement for Rahman, since Conway got injured before the tournament began.
Economic Times’ Javed Farooqui reports that Disney & Jio are struggling to recoup their outlay on the IPL media rights despite ever growing audience numbers. [Paywall]. If you want a more detailed look into the situation, consider checking out my piece on Jio’s ad problems from Sunday.
There was a really interesting report yesterday on the IPL’s ticket prices…
…I thought I’d recreate it for you guys, in case you missed the article. CSK’s ticket prices in particular are instructive. They’ve kept even the box seats relatively affordable, ensuring that hardcore fans pack in to Chepauk. The less said about RCB, the better.
By the way, I’ve set up a Twitter and Instagram account under @BestCricStories where I post all these graphs & images, and would appreciate the support if you like them!
The battle for Women’s teams
The grumpy county losers, SA’s milestone centurion, & Lara and Atherton reflect on that 375-run innings.
Essex are focussed on “future proofing” their stadium and club after being awarded a Tier-1 Women’s team, while ECB chief executive Richard Gould says that Yorkshire missing out on a team is not punishment for their past, and that there were bound to be many disappointed suitors with just 8 spots available.
Meanwhile, another disappointed suitor, Lancashire, have urged the ECB to spend more time on Women’s cricket as the Charlotte Edwards Cup is set to kick off without a title sponsor.
Cricbuzz’s Telford Vice writes about an underrated positive from South Africa Women’s loss to Sri Lanka yesterday - pacer Ayabonga Khaka becomes the first black woman to get to 100 Proteas caps, and 34th player of any gender.
Glenn Maxwell joins the growing Aussie contingent at the MLC’s Washington Freedom under Ricky Ponting. They’ve already signed Steve Smith & Travis Head.
The Times’ Mike Atherton talks to Brian Lara as they reminisce about the day Lara scored 375 to break the Test record against Atherton’s England. [Paywall]
Chinnaswamy will always been KL’s home
KL wanted to be a RCB lifer, ENG’s T20 WC plans, & the globe-trotting Cambodia coach.
Ravichandran Ashwin talks to KL Rahul about the latter’s IPL career, his hopes to have become an RCB legend as a local player, and taking inspiration from Kohli & MSD to become a star in another city instead.
Sky Sports’ Michael Atherton & Nasser Hussain talk to ECB Director Rob Key about the County Championship season, and England’s prep for the T20 World Cup.
talkSPORT’s Neil Manthorp & Steve Harmison talk to Worcestershire chief executive Ashley Giles about the growing flooding problem at their stadium, former England international Alan Richardson’s impact at the club, and how the newly promoted team plans to stay in Division One this season.
Red Inker’s Jarrod Kimber talks to Cambodian Women’s coach Nilma Dole-Williams about her globe-trotting career from Sri Lanka to Peru. [Apple Podcasts]
Editor’s Note
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