Cricket News Daily Wrap January 29: India Women Clinch U-19 T20 World Cup Trophy; India Level Series In Lucknow

Do join us when we return tomorrow. That’s all we have in the daily news blog for today.  Good night and TC.

India captain Hardik Pandya has slammed the pitch curators after yet another low-scoring thriller. Just like the first match in Ranchi, the second T20I in Lucknow turned out to be a spin-friendly wicket where the batter constantly struggled to put bat on ball. Batting first New Zealand were restricted to 99/8 in the allotted 20 overs, and in chase, India struggled as well to reach the target of 100 before Suryakumar Yadav hit the winning runs in the last over.

Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya held their nerve as India beat New Zealand by 6 wickets to level the three-match series in Lucknow. The Blackcaps pushed India to the brink and the game went to the final over; at one stage the equation was 4 needed off 3 balls. That was when SKY launched the bowler over mid off to hit the winning runs.

Chasing just 100, New Zealand made a match out of it. Just like India, the spinners used the turn on offer to full advantage. While SKY (26 off 31 balls) was the lead architect of India’s win, Hardik Pandya (15 off 20) played the second fiddle. Both shared a 31-run stand to help India win after being reduced to 70/4.

India on Sunday won their maiden ICC title in women’s cricket as a bunch of sprightly and talented teenagers lifted the inaugural U-19 World Cup with an emphatic seven-wicket victory over England.

The Shafali Verma-led India U-19 squad managed to do what their seniors could not do by clearing the final hurdle in a global event.

Meanwhile, the senior women’s team was watching the action live on a giant screen. Some of them enjoyed the moment when the winning run was hit by their junior counterparts. As Shafali Varma and his girls made their way into the middle, the seniors too started to jump in joy as can be seen in this video.

India beat England by seven wickets to lift the Under-19 Women’s T20 World Cup at Potchefstroom. The Shafali Verma-led India U-19 squad managed to do what their seniors could not do by clearing the final hurdle in a global event.

Meanwhile, Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra, who had met the team earlier and gave them a prep talk, was there to see the team lift the trophy. He was caught in camera giving a thumbs-up gesture to Varma and his girls as they ran across to the middle after this historic win.

Newcomer Harry Brook and captain Jos Buttler led England to an imposing total of 342 for seven in the second one-day international against South Africa in Bloemfontein on Sunday.

Brook made 80 off 75 balls and Buttler hit an unbeaten 94 off 82 deliveries.

Team India’s young brigade scripted history on Sunday by winning the inaugural Women’s U-19 T20 World Cup title. Shafali Verma and Co. produced a dominating show in the summit clash against England women’s team to lift the prestigious trophy. It was a one-sided affair where India bundled out England for just 68 after Shafali opted to bowl first. The Women in Blue didn’t find much difficulty chasing the target as they won the match by seven wickets with 6 overs to spare.

BCCI secretary Jay Shah was elated with India’s historic triumph as he announced the Rs 5 crore prize money for Women’s U19 cricket team and support staff. (Read Full Story)

Batters Soumya Tiwari and Gongadi Trisha shared a 46-run stand for the third wicket to lead India to a seven-wicket victory over England to win the inaugural edition of U19 Women’s T20 World Cup at the JB Marks Oval in Potchefstroom on Sunday.

After a superb bowling performance coupled with some outstanding fielding helped India bowl out England for just 68, Soumya (24 not out) and Trisha (24) stitched a vital partnership to give India their first-ever World Cup title in women’s cricket. The historic moment comes in the country where India first made it to the final of a World Cup 18 years ago, during the 2005 ODI World Cup.

New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner won the toss and elected to bat first against India in the 2nd T20I match at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow. The visitors outclassed Hardik Pandya and Co. in the series opener with all-round performances as India failed to read the pitch right in Ranchi. (Read Full Story)

Legendary Australia captain Ian Chappell feels that India will miss the services of Rishabh Pant in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The four-match Test series between India and Australia is going to be crucial for the hosts to cement a place in the World Test Championship final. However, the Asian giants will be without their star wicketkeeper batter Pant who was recently involved in a horrific car accident and is recovering from the injuries he sustained. (Read Full Story Here)

Misbah-ul-Haq feels that there should not be any comparison between Virat Kohli and Babar Azam as the former has played much more amount of cricket than the current Pakistan captain. Kohli is often regarded as the best batsman in modern-day cricket while the emergence of Babar in recent years has forced fans to draw comparisons between the two batting maestros. (Read Full Story Here)

South Africa won the toss and decided to bowl in the second one-day international against England at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein on Sunday.

“It’s a morning game so the wicket might be a bit on the sticky side, there might be a little bit in it for the seamers,” said South Africa captain Temba Bavuma.

(Get Live Updates)

“To be very honest, the Indian team have a lot to think about because you are neither starting well nor finishing well,” said the former India opener.

(Full Story)

Afghanistan will tour UAE for a three-match T20I series beginning February 16, which will be an annual affair as per an agreement between both the boards.

The T20I series is being played in accordance with the mutual cooperation agreement that was signed in November between Afghanistan and the Emirates Cricket Boards.

READ HERE

India’s match against South Africa ahead of their Women’s T20I Tri-series summit clash was abandoned following heavy showers.

Having already sealed their berth in Thursday’s final, this match was a dress rehearsal for both the teams.

But with India four for no loss two overs into the game the match had to be stopped because of rain and could not resume again.

READ FULL MATCH REPORT

Today India and England face-off in the ICC U-19 Women’s World Cup final be held in the JB Marks Oval at Potchefstroom!

READ PREVIEW

Pandya has proved himself as a great leader in the past one year. Leading Gujarat Titans to their maiden IPL title in the debut season itself was a statement that India has found a potential captain in the all-rounder. He then successfully captained the team on overseas assignments when the big guns were either rested or playing Test cricket. Last month, he led a young team to a 2-1 series win against Sri Lanka and now, looking to defeat the Kiwis at home.

After the conclusion of the Ranchi face-off, which India lost by 21 runs, veteran Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik heaped massive praise on the all-rounder, stating that if there is someone after Virat Kohli who is eager to take tough assignments as a challenge then it’s Hardik Pandya. READ FULL STORY HERE