By the previously set standards in Women's Premier League, at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, the crowd was sparse on Saturday night for the clash . Nonetheless, in the absence of the home team to support, they were willing to cheer on any moment of action on the field - sixes, wickets, dropped catches or heated altercations. And there were plenty of those coming their way. For a contest that wouldn't count as the most thrilling played out this season - in fact not even among the most dramatic that the Capitals have been a part of - it still had several subplots unfolding, if not ebbs and flows, through the course of the game. '120 isn't going to win us the game' Jon Lewis, the head coach of UP Warriorz, has coached multiple teams in multiple countries over multiple formats, but victory has eluded him for nearly four and a half months. He probably understood better than most others what's not going to win his team a game. Thus, when Chinelle Henry walked out to bat at 89 for 6 in the 14th over, the coach had given clear instructions: attack. Glimpses of Henry's hard-hitting abilities were evident from the get-go when she had powered along to an unbeaten 15-ball 33 against the same opposition three evenings ago in Vadodara. With her team in dire straits, Lewis was fair to expect a repeat of that performance, a role for which she was held back as low as No. 8 in the batting order. To his surprise, she exceeded even those expectations, scoring faster and hitting longer, blowing the wind out of DC's sails. Having never previously scored a half-century in elite-level cricket (internationals and franchise leagues), Henry smoked 8 sixes en route to her 23-ball knock of 62, putting on not only her best performance but also arguably one of the most destructive innings in WPL history. A few tournament records tumbled through the course of her innings. The joint fastest fifty. Most sixes in an innings. The joint second most expensive over. Shikha Pandey bore most of the brunt, being at the receiving end of a 24-run over. Henry's knock flipped the momentum, took UPW to a respectable total and eventually that knock proved to be the difference between the two teams as UPW registered their maiden win of the season. It feels like UP Warriorz's campaign is finally picking up pace. But for as fine as Henry's innings was on Saturday, and for as strong and dangerous that potentially makes UPW for the rest of the tournament, it nicely covered over the cracks that already exist, and neatly wrapped and ribboned a bigger concern. The answer lay in the last ball of the fifth over, when Deepti Sharma signalled towards her gloves to the umpire. The UP Warriorz captain wanted the umpire to take note of the fact that the ball which had swung down the legside was gloved by her en route its way to the boundary fence. It was the first run she had scored in her 10-ball stay at the crease till then. Kiran Navgire's early blitz in the previous two games had hidden the fact that the rest of the top order batters were unable to take advantage of the powerplay. When even she struggled to get the big hits going on Saturday, it exposed the limitation of UP Warriorz batting concerns at the top. That Deepti managed to pick that boundary was also because the ball had swung way down the legside without any fielding protection to cover those tickles. In the powerplay, they managed to score only 38 runs, of which 14 had come through extras. Moreover, the pacers had strayed in their lines several times even as conditions were conducive for them, and a dropped catch by Minnu Mani had offered Navgire a lifeline on 7. In the absence of Alyssa Healy and the curious omission of Chamari Athapaththu, UPW are the only team in the competition that doesn't have an overseas player opening for them, let alone have any of them bat in the top-three like UPW. Quite curiously this season, they have held back their power-hitters for the latter stages of the innings. That their middle order, which includes Tahlia McGrath and Grace Harris, hasn't been able to fire has only worsened their woes. Despite the big total and the comfortable win, the batting concerns minus Henry still persist for them. NdJZ00ZBdo Shafali Verma was dropped twice. On 0 and 20. But such below-par have been UPW's standards over the last two seasons, that it was in fact one of their better days in the field. Some sharp chances were taken and the usual fumbles didn't follow. In fact, they outfielded their opponents on the day, the same opposition that had rolled past the finish line in a tense chase courtesy UPW's fielding lapses in the last couple of overs of the contest. Jonathan Batty, Capitals' head coach, wants to believe that his team prides itself on the fielding standards they set for themselves, but on Saturday they were far off the mark. Worryingly, it was some of their better fielders - Marizanne Kapp and Minnu Mani - who made the majority of the mess-ups. Given the struggle of the rest of the batters, Minnu's dropped catches didn't prove too costly for the side. However, Kapp, who had earlier misjudged her diving effort to save a boundary, put down a straightforward chance at deep midwicket to offer a life to Henry on 13. The West Indian went on to add 49 runs in the next 17 deliveries she faced, and changed the momentum of the contest. Saima Thakor may had quite a busy day on the field, with either the ball chasing her or the other way around. Yet, on a day when pacers had a big role to play, with conditions allowing troubling the batters with the moving ball, Saima didn't get to bowl a single delivery. No explanation was offered as to why the option of using one of India's top pacers wasn't exercised, but Kranti Goud made sure her absence wasn't felt. Even as Goud had served as a net bowler with UPW earlier, her ability came to skipper Deepti Sharma's notice during the domestic match between Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. The way she got to seam the ball around impressed her, and the note was shared with the UPW team management ahead of the auction. What impressed Deepti then was on show against Delhi Capitals. Kranti made a mark by dismissing both the batters of the most dangerous opening pair in WPL - Meg Lanning and Shafali Verma - in the powerplay; the former's dismissal being the more impressive one with Lanning getting beaten and cleaned up. That wasn't it. She returned for another spell and broke the back of DC's optimistic charge towards the chase by ending the stay of Jess Jonassen and Jemimah Rodrigues, the most impressive of their batters, in the 15th over. Even as Henry would've been the key architect of UPW's victory, Goud's returns of 4 for 25 are unlikely to go unnoticed, much like the skill and accuracy she put on display. Over the last three years, even as results haven't gone their way as often as they would've liked, UP Warriorz has been the standout franchise in pushing Indian domestic cricketers to the deep end more often than any other team. They've relied heavily on them to come good, and time and again seen the lesser-established talents steal the show amidst the galaxy of stars. Just like Saima did last season and just like Henry did in the first innings, Goud has announced her arrival in the big league For the past few years, Shweta Sehrawat has been among the most promising young batters in Indian cricket. However, despite several chances, she hasn't quite made a mark for herself in the big league of WPL. Against DC, she promised to show that she had levelled up, and got going by thumping Arundhati Reddy down the ground for a six. Two balls later, a streaky boundary followed which clearly didn't leave the senior pacer too impressed. She managed to cut short Sehrawat's innings in that over itself with an incoming delivery that cleaned her up, but she wasn't done with a celebration. Unprovoked, she charged at the young batter and aggressively offered her a send-off. The cause for the abrupt burst of anger towards a significantly younger player remains unknown. Nonetheless, almost in comical karmic fashion, a few hours later, Seharawat found her opportunity to pay back. When it was Reddy's turn to bat, she slashed her first ball straight into Sehrawat's hands at point and the youngster returned favours while celebrating the dismissal with a mouthful of words thrown at Reddy. Whether it was a heat-of-the-moment aggression or this rivalry has some history is anybody's guess. Either way, for entertainment or otherwise, unfiltered emotional expressions in live sports are always welcome. When plans are not panning out the way they should, Deepti Sharma relies on the golden arm of Grace Harris, one that according to her proves handy in breaking settled partnerships. But on Saturday, she lobbed the ball to the offspinner to bowl the fairly low-stakes last over of the innings. With 34 to get and three wickets in hand, realistically, the contest had slipped out of Capitals' control. If there was any hope, it was crushed in the first ball of the over itself with Niki Prasad's hard slog only reaching the hands of the deep mid wicket fielder. With mere formalities to complete and some Net Run Rate to gain thereafter, Grace floated the next delivery outside off and Reddy drove it to the point fielder. The burst of anger by Sehrawat at the batter may have distracted the attention from the fact that Harris was on a hat-trick, but the wait for that celebration too didn't last long either. The next delivery, No 11 Minnu Mani hit one back at the bowler, who fumbled at first but held on to the catch to become only the third bowler in WPL history to bag a hat-trick. And with that, sealed UPW's maiden win of the season.

Dew had a major role in Australia being able to surpass England in a massive chase, admitted Josh Inglis, as the 2023 World Cup champions got their Champions Trophy campaign off to a winning start, getting over the line rather comfortably in a high-scoring match at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. Ben Duckett's 165 set a new record for the in Champions Trophy history. England, batting first, posted a formidable 351/8 - the highest total in the tournament at the time. However, Australia had the last laugh, pulling off the highest chase in an ICC ODI tournament, despite minimal contributions from Travis Head and Steve Smith. Their triumph was built on a collective effort, spearheaded by Inglis, with valuable knocks from Matthew Short, Marnus Labuschagne, Alex Carey and Glenn Maxwell. "I think 350 is a big total in any one-day game. But we sort of knew, we trained here at night for the last couple of days and it got really dewy around 7.30 - 8 o'clock. So, we sort of knew that was in our favour during the run chase and if we could take it deep enough it would be tough for the bowlers at the back end. It made life easier for us, the wicket skidded on beautifully and it really helped our run chase," said Inglis at the post-match press conference. Australia found themselves in trouble at 21/2 before Short (63) and Labuschagne (47) steadied the innings with a crucial 95-run stand, setting the platform for the chase. England fought back by dismissing both set batters, reducing Australia to 136/4. However, Inglis, in partnership with Carey, reignited the pursuit with a game-changing 146-run stand off 116 balls. Their efforts turned the equation from 216 needed off 166 deliveries to just 70 off 50, significantly easing Australia's path to victory. Inglis was 79 off 65 at that stage and he raced to three-figures off only 77, making it the joint fastest hundred in the Champions Trophy along with Virender Sehwag. Maxwell applied the finishing touches with an explosive 32* off 15 as Australia got the job done in 47.3 overs. "I think firstly the partnership between Shorty and Marnus was really important. They sort of set the platform there, got us off to a good start. We were in and around the run rate to start off with, so that was a big help. And then, yeah, me and Carey, we didn't really say too much out there. Carey is pretty quiet when he's batting, so I think we were going pretty well," said Inglis. "So, I just tried to not look at the scoreboard too much, look at the run rate, just keep batting the way we were going. And we knew if we could get close enough with Maxi still to come that we've just seen what Maxi can do and everyone's seen it for a while now. So, to get close enough for him to be able to explode like that at the back end was probably in the back of our thoughts," he added. Was this the best innings that he played? "It's really special," replied Inglis. "Maybe under the circumstances, I think in an ICC event, obviously, you want to have an impact and you want to help your team win a game so yeah. I think maybe, I think I'll reflect on that in the future." Jos Buttler acknowledged Inglis and his teammates for orchestrating "a fantastic chase" that took the game away from his side, despite England posting "a really good score." He admitted that the dew factor made batting slightly easier in the second innings but credited Australia for successfully pulling off the challenging run chase. "Ben Duckett played an absolutely outstanding innings. I'm really pleased for him but credit to Australia. That was a fantastic chase and Josh Inglis played brilliant innings to see them home," said Buttler. "I thought we had a really good score, The way the wicket played there in the daytime, a little bit of indifferent bounce or the ball wasn't quite coming on so well. But there was always a little bit maybe on if the dew came in and how much it came in. So, it did start to skid on a bit more in the second half. But that being said, they were going to have to play really well to score 350, but they managed to." Buttler, meanwhile, was lavish in his praise of Duckett. "I'm sure there won't be too many times he scores 160 and end up on the losing side. I think he's played fantastically well. I think he's been in great form for England across all the formats for the last few years and also getting his chance at the top of the order in the ODIs is I think his game is just perfectly suited to scoring big runs and asked before the tournament I said I think he could be you know the first Englishman to score a double hundred in ODI cricket. "And I think an innings like today just really should really prove to him how consistent he can be and how big a run he can score in this format. Obviously it's a big year for English cricket and he's going to be at the forefront of it. So, to start as he has done here and looking ahead I'm sure England fans will be excited to watch him back for the rest of the year." The loss against Australia was England's fifth in a row in ODI cricket but the England captain wasn't too concerned about it. "I think the longer it goes on, hopefully the closer you get to winning and the optimism and the belief is very much there in the team. Sometimes you put in a really good performance but the opposition are desperate to win and can play well too. So, I think we have to be proud of the way we played today and the way we performed, but give credit to the opposition for just being a little bit better and getting over the line."

UP Warriorz picked their first points of WPL 2025 with a 33-run win over Delhi Capitals, and became the first team to win a game defending a score this season. Chinelle Henry scored a blistering 62 off 23 balls and equaled the joint-fastest 50 in the history of the competition off just 18 balls while Grace Harris picked up a hattrick to close out the game. Harris and Kranti Goud picked up four-wicket hauls in a comprehensive victory for UPW. UPW got off to a brisk start with a swiveled pull for four by Vrinda Dinesh before Marizanne Kapp sent one down her legs for five wides. Half-centurion from the previous game - Kiran Navgire, took the charge immediately to Shikha Pandey with a smash over mid-on. In an evening of missed chances on the field for the Capitals, Minnu Mani spilled the first chance on offer as she dropped Navgire on 7. Vrinda's poor run in the WPL continued, as she nicked behind to the mitts of Sarah Bryce. Deepti Sharma took 10 balls to get off the mark with a very fine pull to the fence. Navgire survived another chance as a heave towards deep-backward square leg fell in no-man's land. But Navgire's lucky reprieves were short-lived as Niki Prasad held on to a skier, off the first ball from Arundhati Reddy. The Capitals piled the pressure on UPW with a string of quiet overs but to their dismay, Mani dropped Tahlia McGrath, her second drop of the evening. However, Jonassen began a string of tight overs where UPW lost four wickets in the space of five overs. UPW tumbled from 61 for 2 to 89 for 6. Deepti was the first to go with a slog-sweep to Prasad. Shweta Sehrawat hammered a four and a six before she was cleaned up by Reddy. Kapp cleaned up Grace Harris before Chetry edged behind to Bryce. It brought Henry to the crease who powered Reddy for two sixes to take UPW past 100 in the 15th over. The West Indian was dropped on 13 by Kapp and made the Capitals atone for it in the harshest way possible. Henry and Sophie Ecclestone smashed 24 runs off Pandey in the 17th over before the former took apart Reddy for three sixes, punishing slot deliveries over the ropes, and brought up her fifty in the process. She fell on the last ball of the innings, holing out to the deep mid-wicket fielder. The UPW didn't help themselves at the start in the field either as Shafali Varma was dropped on 0 by Saima Thakor. The batter scored two streaky boundaries to third-man before she was once again dropped at point. Young Goud cleaned up skipper Meg Lanning from the other end for 5 but more fielding mishaps followed, as Chetry's struggles in the field continued with another missed stumping chance while Rodrigues was dropped by Deepti. UPW finally held onto one after Varma slashed it to cover-point. Rodrigues chipped Deepti over the in-field on the offside for a brace of fours as the Capitals attempted to wrestle back momentum. Rodrigues took on Henry for a six over the bowler's head before she was dropped at point, after playing a lofted cut. But Henry picked up the struggling Kapp as her pull went to the hands of Ecclestone. Wickets started to fall for the Capitals regularly despite Rodrigues finding the boundary consistently, taking her past 50. Sutherland chipped to covers while Jonassen was caught by Goud off her own bowling. Rodrigues fell in the same over as Goud picked up a four-fer. Nikki Prasad hit 19 runs off Henry to give the Capitals a chance, but Harris picked a hat-trick to bowl them out and complete the win. : UP Warriorz 177/9 in 20 overs (Chinelle Henry 62, Tahlia McGrath 24; Jess Jonassen 4-31) beat Delhi Capitals 144 in 19.3 overs (Jemimah Rodrigues 56, Shafali Varma 24; Grace Harris 4-15, Kranti Goud 4-25) by 33 runs

- The target of 352 chased down by Australia is the highest ever in an ICC ODI tournament surpassing Pakistan's chase of 345 against Sri Lanka in Hyderabad in the 2023 World Cup. The previous highest in a Champions Trophy encounter was Sri Lanka's 322 against India at the Oval in 2017. b4eZYNLw3lv - Targets chased by Australia higher than the one they hunted down today. They chased down 359 against India at Mohali in 2019. This happens to be the highest successful chase against England bettering India's pursuit of 351 in Pune in 2017 by one run. It is the second highest chase in Pakistan soil, one run behind Pakistan's chase of 353 against South Africa in Karachi a couple of weeks ago. by Australia is the highest team total in Champions Trophy surpassing England's score of 351/8 earlier in the day. The previous highest score in the tournament was New Zealand's 347/4 against USA at the Oval in the 2004 edition. lEwLQZJxdzl by Ben Duckett is the highest individual score in Champions Trophy history going past Nathan Astle's unbeaten 145 against USA at the Oval in 2004 and 145 by Andy Flower against India at Colombo RPS in 2002. It happens to be the fifth highest individual score for England and fourth highest by any batter in Pakistan in ODIs. kolQk94BOn3 - Duckett became only the second batter to register a 150+ score in a losing cause in ICC ODI events after Scotland's Kyle Coetzer, who made 156 against Bangladesh in Nelson in World Cup 2015. The previous highest in a defeat in Champions Trophy was 145 by Andy Flower against India at Colombo RPS in 2002. balls by Josh Inglis to reach his maiden ODI century makes it the joint fastest in Champions Trophy alongside Virender Sehwag who made a 77-ball hundred against England at Colombo RPS in 2002. It is also the fastest for Australia against England in ODIs surpassing Adam Gilchrist's 81-ball century at the Oval in 2005. - Inglis became the fourth Australian batter to register centuries across the three formats after Shane Watson, Glenn Maxwell, and David Warner. - The fifth wicket stand of 146 between Inglis and Alex Carey is the second highest partnership for any wicket for Australia in Champions Trophy after the unbeaten 252-run second wicket stand between Watson and Ricky Ponting in the semifinal of the 2009 edition against England in Centurion. - The last time Australia won a game in Champions Trophy when they beat New Zealand in Centurion to successfully defend their title. They went winless in both 2013 and 2017 editions in England losing three while three others ended in no results. sixes hit the match is the joint highest in a Champions Trophy contest equalling 16 in the tournament opener between Pakistan and New Zealand in Karachi. The previous most hit was 15 in the finals of the 2017 edition between Pakistan and India at the Oval in 2017. - The combined aggregate of 707 runs in the match is the joint second highest in an ODI on Pakistan soil. The highest remains 709 between Pakistan (375/3) and Zimbabwe (334/5) in Lahore in 2015 while the Pakistan-South Africa contest two weeks ago in the tri-series in Karachi also produced 707 runs.

Shubman Gill underscored the importance of rotating strike through the middle overs [11-40] on the pitches of Dubai at the Champions Trophy 2025. The Dubai International Stadium recently hosted the ILT20 tournament and the expectation is that the tired surfaces are likely to play slow and offer turn, as the one used for India's opener against Bangladesh did, and thereby necessitate better application from the batters. "In the last match, the dew didn't come that much. So definitely, when the dew doesn't come under lights, it is not easy to bat on slow wickets," Gill said on the eve of the Pakistan clash. "It's not easy to rotate the strike. I think, whatever matches we play here, the key will be that whichever team rotates well in the middle overs - between the 11th to the 40th over, has a better chance of winning." India got off to a strong start to their chase of 228 against Bangladesh courtesy a flying start from Rohit Sharma but suffered a mid-innings wobble and needed Gill to temper his approach and shepherd the team over the line with a slow, yet masterful century. The 25-year-old Indian vice-captain spoke about the importance of finding the right batting tempo. "The ideal approach on any wicket is first to assess the conditions and see how the wicket is playing," Gill said. "As a batsman your skill is renowned by knowing how well you can assess any situation or condition that you are playing in and that's what we try to do as batsmen. "Definitely we want to play aggressive and positive cricket but that also depends on - the score would be different on every wicket that we play. A 300 on this wicket or 280 on this wicket would be a very good score for us, or if the wicket plays any differently we might get 350 or 360 runs. We don't have any particular target set in our mind. We usually go out there, see how the wicket is and then try to get 15-20 runs more than what the par score we think that is on that wicket." It was in this context of the conditions as well as the snappy and high-stakes nature of the Champions Trophy that Gill termed his century against Bangladesh 'the most satisfying' of his career. "The Champions Trophy format is like this, margin of error is generally very less, if there's a single bad match - then there's a lot of pressure on you, then all the matches become do and die, must win games. "In the middle overs - for about 8 to 10 overs that we faced some pressure as a batting group, but it's very important that in such a phase you save your wickets, and not take more risks because the target was not that high. If we were chasing 270-280, we would have played a little differently. Even if the wickets had fallen, we would have had to take chances. But because the target was not that high on that wicket. The 8-10 overs in the middle, we tried to rotate the strike as much as possible and take less risk. "In such situations, when a 40-50 run partnership is made, then there is more pressure on the bowling team. Because they have to take wickets. Then they try harder and boundaries come," he added. Gill also highlighted the importance of risk assessment in the 50-over format, where batters often feel rushed despite actually having more time than they realise. "The format of 50 overs is such that we feel that we have less time and we have to take on the game. But when a batsman gets out, he realizes that he actually had a lot of time. We don't get to play as many matches in this format as much as we play T20 and Test matches. So, I think it's very important that whatever decision you are taking, you take it with a very balanced mind. And you should definitely check the scoreboard once, if you are trying to take any extra risk. But generally, as a batsman, it is our instinct to follow a tempo and keep playing at that tempo." Speaking about his own stellar form - which includes back-to-back centuries and four consecutive 50+ scores - Gill explained that he only needed a slight mental reset after an underwhelming Test series in Australia. "As such, in Australia, I think, I don't think there was any flaw in the batting. But definitely, sometimes there is a mental aspect," he said. "We focus a lot on batting and think that if we are not getting runs, then there will be some fault in batting. But it is not necessary that there is always something wrong in batting. It is possible that there is a shortcoming in something else. So, I didn't do any work on anything special, but I knew that white ball one day is coming up and then T20. So, I am practicing the normal things that I do at home generally."

The common refrain among teams ahead of Sunday's expected high-voltage clash between India and Pakistan in the Champions Trophy is, "It's just another game." Players from both sides have sought to downplay the pressure factor that typically accompanies a match between these traditional rivals. "It doesn't change anything for us, honestly. We play every match to win the match and this is no different for us. And that is how we are going to prepare for this one as well," India vice-captain Shubman Gill said on the eve of the game. "There is no extra pressure; we are relaxed. We will treat it as just another match," Haris Rauf remarked on the contest. It is unlikely the players are entirely honest about their mindset and mental approach, particularly the Pakistan players. With their survival on the line, Pakistan's players are feeling the pressure from all sides. Their bowling and batting floundered in the tournament opener against New Zealand, leaving the Mohammad Rizwan side teetering on the cliff. The bowlers were way off the mark and the batters struggled to accelerate. During their net sessions at the ICC Academy on Friday night, the bowlers focused on swinging the ball in, something that was invisible in their performance against New Zealand. The batters, on the other hand, were consistently attempting big shots and aiming to clear the boundary - something they had struggled to do in their previous match. A sense of urgency was evident within the Indian ranks as well. Virat Kohli, short on runs of late, alarmingly sparking concerns over his batting technique, arrived at the academy an hour before his teammates. Accompanied by a pair of throwdown specialists - one left-handed and the other right-handed - with batting coach Sitanshu Kotak in tow, Kohli batted for an extra hour, noticeably determined to regain his former flourish, sparkle and confidence. Most importantly the trademark Kohli swagger and confidence that would be so inherent in his cover drives have been missing of late. He is not leaving anything to chance to regain the touch. Going by numbers and recent form, India should be the clear favorites, having won five of the six encounters against the traditionals rivals since the 2017 Champions Trophy final. Overall, Pakistan lead the head-to-head record 73-57, but in the past decade - especially since the 2015 World Cup - India have lost only one match, the 2017 Champions Trophy final, while winning seven with one no result. The form and record clearly indicate India as the favorites, but Sunil Gavaskar, speaking on a television show Friday, said that while he believes Rohit Sharma's men are strong favorites, it would be impudent to discount the fact that a single game-changing moment from either side could shift the balance. Who will that game-changer be? : February 23, 13:00 Local, 14:30 IST : Dubai International Cricket Stadium : The weather forecast is bright and sunny and with little chance of dew coming in, the team winning the toss may choose to bat first. Rishabh Pant is down with viral fever but that is unlikely to impact the playing XI of the Indian side. Rohit Sharma is expected to go with the same team that did the duty against Bangladesh on the ground on Thursday. It means Harshit Rana will continue to be preferred to left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh with Mohammed Shami leading the bowling attack. : Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami and Harshit Rana. The conditions are expected to favour the slow bowlers but Pakistan coach Aqib Javed refused to change tactics and go with more spinners in the XI. He insisted that pace bowling is his team's strength and his side will go with three frontline pacers - Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf. : Imam-ul-Haq, Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (c & wk), Salman Agha, Tayyab Tahir, Khushdil Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed - Each of Pakistan's two wins against India in the recent past in ICC tournaments have come on the back of Pakistan seamers denting India in the Powerplay (Mohd Amir in CT 2017 final & Shaheen Afridi in T20 WC 2021). - India have won 10 out of 13 ICC ODI matches against Pakistan but the rivals enjoy a slight a 3-2 W-L record against India in Champions Trophy making it the only ICC tournament where they have a positive W-L record against India. - Gill currently has 2688 runs after 51 innings - the most by a player at that point. His average of 62.51 is the highest for any player while only Imam-ul-Haq (9) has scored more hundreds at the same point in his career. "I don't believe that over-hype or under-hype is a thing. India-Pakistan has a long history. It's an exciting contest when both these teams play. Everyone enjoys watching it. If so many people are happy to watch the match, then who are we to say that it is underhyped or overhyped? We go there to play cricket. Our effort is to play for the team I am playing for, to represent my country, and to win with all my heart." - Shubman Gill, on the rivalry between the sides. "What pressure? Because every game is different. And India-Pakistan match, even if it is after ten matches, after winning ten matches or after losing six matches, it cannot change the beauty of India - Pakistan match." - Aaqib Javed, on the same topic of rivalry between the teams.

The Champions Trophy 2025, now completing its first week, has been peppered with a few botch-ups, leaving the organisers embarrassed. Before the start of the fourth league fixture on Saturday, the Indian national anthem was played, even as hosts Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had raised concerns about the absence of the country's name in the watermark during the broadcast of the India-Bangladesh game. In an embarrassing incident for the organizers, the Indian national anthem was played before the start of the league match between England and Australia at Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. The Indian anthem was heard for a few seconds, followed by "God Save the King/Queen," the anthem of England, and before the Australian anthem could be played. The organisers, both the ICC and the PCB, say the unintended error was by the event-management agency having the contract but the gaffe allowed social media to feast on this. Meanwhile, the PCB and the ICC were at loggerheads over the absence of 'Pakistan' in the watermark in the graphic during the broadcast of Thursday's India-Bangladesh game. The ICC is believed to have admitted the error and promised the PCB to correct. As seen in the accompanying images, in all the games, except India's, the logo carried three-line branding on the top left of the live feed. When pointed out about 'Pakistan' missing during broadcast of India's match, the ICC apparently said it felt the logo was too wordy and the three-line branding was too lengthy and hence it resorted to using a shorter one. It, however, agreed to use the three-line graphic in all remaining matches. It is understood that a teething technical trouble was resolved from the next match. Apparently, some time is needed to correct the system and creatives to settle down. "It is not a tournament logo, but a logo-inspired watermark," said an official in the know. Sunset+Vine is the producer of the ICC feed.

Aaqib Javed insisted that Pakistan will bank on the tried and tested pace attack rather than falling back on spin options. "We have like a specialist three, I would say one of the best pace bowling options in today's game with Shaheen (Afridi), Naseem (Shah), and Haris (Rauf)," said the Pakistan coach. His observations come in light of the spin-heavy attack that Rohit Sharma's India have for the Champions Trophy. "It reminds me of the 90s," Aaqib said. "I have heard lots of options and discussions going on. Other teams have too many spinners and we have lesser spin options. The teams play their game on their own strength. When you play against India it's a special feeling and I think they will bring something very special tomorrow." Aaqib was alluding to the three-pronged attack he was part of in the 90s when the Pakistan attack, consisting of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, that would create havoc in the rival camps. In a particular ODI game against India, he had claimed a hat-trick and went on claim seven wickets in Sharjah. Those were the days of Pakistan's dominance in world cricket, against India in particular. He continued on the subject of his team's pace-centric attack. "As far as you are saying that India has a plan to play 3-4 spinners. That is their plan. We have to play our cricket on our own strength. Our team will not see any major changes. We have selected a team based on our beliefs. We will back this team. Our fast-bowling options are the best. These are the match winners. It's not necessary to follow the same strategy as the other teams. And these are match-winners, so it is not necessary that the other team should do the same." The Pakistan team has only one specialist spinner, Abrar Ahmed. Salman Ali Agha and Khushdil Shah are part-time spin options. The Pakistan coach also disagreed that India will have an advantage having played a game at the Dubai stadium already. "Not at all," he responded to the question. "Because if you look at all the Pakistani players, they've been playing leagues here. The PSL was played here. So, there is nothing really in the conditions. I don't think there is any advantage and disadvantage." He also addressed the ubiquitous pressure factor in an India-Pakistan game and felt that without pressure the rivalry would lose sheen. "See, what is pressure? To do well? And or if it doesn't go well, what will happen? These are the thoughts before and after the match. Right now, we are all guessing what will happen in this match. This is the beauty of it, what will happen. Nobody knows anything. So, in the same way, taking pressure is the job of the players. If you remove this pressure, what's left in a Pakistan-India game? Passion and pressure is what are needed to show a player his performance." He stressed on the point that the pressure will remain in every India-Pakistan game even after one team wins continuously 10 games. "What pressure? Because every game is different. And an India-Pakistan match, even if it is after 10 matches, after winning 10 matches or after losing six matches, it cannot change the beauty of an India-Pakistan match." He disagreed with the perception that ODIs should be played with a Twenty20 mindset and contended that 50-over cricket has become the most demanding of the three formats requiring the highest levels of fitness. "You don't have to start playing T20 style in one day matches," he remarked. "The 50-over cricket has become more challenging. After 35-40 overs, the game has to be improved, you have to improve your fitness level. If you focus on T20 matches the entire year - you don't go over the 30 overs. Even after 20 overs, you have to stay for 30 overs more. "So, I think fitness is the biggest challenge. There is Test cricket, you play for two hours, then you have lunch break, then two hours and then tea break. In this (ODIs), you have to be on the ground for three and half hours and sometimes more. You have to be focused. It's a fast game. I think fitness is the key."

Josh Inglis took the honours on a historic day in the Champions Trophy as his 77-ball ton - the joint-fastest in the tournament's history - eclipsed Ben Duckett's epic 165 - the highest-ever individual score in the tournament. Duckett's effort and Joe Root's 68 pushed England to 351/8 which Australia chased down in the 48th over following Inglis's unbeaten century and his 146-run stand with Carey. This is Australia's first win in the Champions Trophy since the 2009 edition. England came into the tournament on the back of woeful ODI form but made quick amends by showing appreciable batting gumption through the middle-overs - their biggest pain point recently. Duckett curbed his natural instincts to blaze away, and combined with the more assured Joe Root to stitch a big stand and set England up for a 300-plus total. But their bowlers couldn't consolidate that performance as dew made its presence felt, like Steve Smith had predicted at the toss. Jofra Archer, who found the most swing in the PowerPlay in this tournament, saw the back of Travis Head early in chase. The left-hander looked to drive a full ball that moved away late. Head's bat turned in his hand and the ball looped back up in Archer's direction who completed a catch in his follow-through. At the other end, Mark Wood bowled a fiery spell of four overs where only two of the 24 deliveries were fired in at under 150kmph. He took out Steve Smith in the midst of this effort, getting him to nick to Ben Duckett at slip. Yet, Australia finished the PowerPlay on course in their tall chase at 76/2 with Marnus Labuschagne giving the team a quick recovery alongside Matthew Short. The pair looked to navigate their way through further against spin from both ends in Adil Rashid and Liam Livingstone, but slipped up in the former's fifth over. The runs dried up a touch against spin and Labuschagne fell trying to go after Rashid, hitting a full, tossed up ball to Jos Buttler at cover. Short, who got to his fifty during the course of his stand with Labuschagne, suffered a soft dismissal as he hit one straight back to Livingstone. Rashid got a break from one end but Buttler continued to try to smother Australia with spin as Joe Root came on. Josh Inglis and Alex Carey however, took the spinners on to keep Australia's scoring rate hovering at six-an-over. They started to take risks against Livingstone and went after Brydon Carse while Archer left the field with some discomfort. The partnership swelled quickly and runs came off Wood too, who did not bring his early fire to his second spell. Inglis got his fifty and Carey was on course for his when Buttler brought back Rashid. The leggie, who'd conceded just one four in his first six overs, bowled a seventh with five singles in the 34th. Archer soon returned, fit and ready to bowl, but his attempted variations like the knuckle ball didn't come off because of dew and Inglis dispatched him for a couple of boundaries. The conditions gave the fifth-wicket pair the ammunation to close down the gap between the asking rate and the scoring rate. Their 100-run stand came off just 79 deliveries. Carey then got to his fifty in the 38th over, when Archer dropped a sitter in the deep to compound England's woes. Carse came back to break the stand, but that led to Glenn Maxwell's arrival in the 42nd over with 70 to get. The fireworks first came from the other end as Inglis smashed his way to his 77-ball century. Maxwell also swung his bat around for a 15-ball 32* to complete the victory with five wickets and 15 balls to spare. England 351/8 in 50 overs (Ben Duckett 165, Joe Root 68; Ben Dwarshuis 3-66) lost to Australia 356/5 in 47.3 overs (Josh Inglis 120*, Alex Carey 69, Matthew Short 63; Adil Rashid 1-47) by 5 wickets

Sunday could well be a moment of truth for the Pakistan team and Babar Azam. The match against India at Dubai International Cricket Stadium (DICS) will test the team's general character, particularly Babar's. After waiting for three decades to host a global competition, the country is now potentially staring at the prospect of premature elimination. A loss on Sunday could lead to dangerous mud-slinging, with much of the blame likely directed at Babar, the country's star cricketer. "There is a possibility that the campaign could end even before the team completes its league engagements. It would be like the Champions Trophy starting on February 19 and ending on February 23," Rashid Latif lamented while speaking to Cricbuzz. He emphasized the importance of Sunday's contest from Pakistan's point of view. "Everyone knows how important the India-Pakistan fixture is for both countries. Whether or not you reach the final or play in the semifinal, winning this game is crucial. There is no other option. For Pakistan, it is a do-or-die situation." Kamran Akmal was even more harsh on the team stating that they did not deserve to be playing in the Champions Trophy. "There's a series going on between Zimbabwe and Ireland. Go there and play, and only if we win against them should we deserve to be in the Champions Trophy. This is the current state of our cricket. Our standard has fallen drastically over the past 6-7 years," the former Pakistan wicketkeeper, remarked in a television channel. The loss to New Zealand has caused a ballyhoo back home in Pakistan, with questions being raised about Azam's technique, ability, and strike rate. Chasing 321, Pakistan were 22 for 2 by the end of the first 10 PowerPlay overs, with Babar on 12. He went on to score 64 off 90 deliveries, posting a poor strike rate of 71 after reaching his half-century off 81 balls in the 31st over. Latif thinks the India game is crucial for the survival of Pakistan cricket going forward. "In the larger context of cricket in the country, a win on Sunday is crucial for the survival of the sport in Pakistan. The cricket board is in a difficult position, and somehow, this match must be won, regardless of the team's overall abilities. If individual brilliance is what it takes to secure a victory, so be it. This factor must be considered because Pakistan cannot afford to lose this match under any circumstances," he opined. Not too long ago, Babar Azam was considered King Babar. Suddenly, the halo around him seems to have disappeared. Even Wasim Akram has started cracking jokes about his batting and strike rate. "I was only joking that batting should revolve around him, and he has taken it seriously," Akram told a popular television program, citing an analogy about a husband wishing before his wife he were dead, and the wish becoming a reality. "There is so much investment in Babar Azam. He was a very good player. But where is he? The country needs him. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has invested a lot in Babar. He was given a free hand as a captain for four and five years. You have played 52 dot balls. In the first 13 overs, Pakistan played 60 dot balls. You lost the game there only," Ahmed Shehzad, a fierce critic of Babar, said on a local Pakistani channel. "As a senior player, Babar and Rizwan added 14 runs in 38 balls while chasing 321. This is schoolboy stuff. You know that ball was turning and it was a double-paced wicket. So scoring with a new ball was easy and your chance to put pressure on New Zealand. Babar didn't show any intent," the 33-year-old Shehzad, who played in 13 Tests, 81ODIs and 59 T20Is, said. "For the past two to three years, he has not performed. In T20s, his game lagged behind. In 59 Tests he has played, Babar has only one Player of the Match award. The then-coach Mickey Arthur did all in his power to establish him in the Test side." Latif agreed to the criticism and provided a saner perspective on the Babar situation. "Sadly, Babar has become predictable now. When you're under pressure, you need to find a way to wriggle out of the situation, but he's been unable to maneuver his way through," the former captain said. "Everyone knows that he'll push and prod, gliding his way through by taking a single here and a couple there. Perhaps it's becoming difficult for him. There's no proper mentor or batting coach in the dressing room to guide him. If you've visited South Africa, Zimbabwe, or Australia and still haven't had a mentor to work with you and provide guidance, it's concerning. "Babar needs to find a way out of the situation himself. He has to evolve. This is an important game - the world will be glued to it. Everyone will be watching who performs. I believe this will be a make-or-break game for Babar. If he delivers, he will be a star again, and his cricketing life will extend. If not, he will lose out. The blame will inevitably fall on Babar. While the responsibility should be shared by everyone, the entire blame will be placed on Babar Azam, and he will be thoroughly scrutinized." At their first session upon arriving in Dubai at the ICC Academy, the Pakistan players showed a lot of intent and gave the impression that they were relaxed ahead of the big match. Their body language appeared positive, and during the three-hour net session, there was a strong sense of purpose. Pacer Harris Rauf gave an impression that the Pakistan team is unperturbed by the form and strength of the Indian team, and refused to comment on Shubman Gill's form, stating that they would decide on the strategy after assessing the pitch. Whether the positivity surrounding the team, which Rauf spoke of, is genuine is anyone's guess. Still, the entire team seemed to understand that this is a pressure game and their moment of truth.

Ben Duckett became the sixth centurion of the Champions Trophy 2025 with the highest score in the tournament history (165), setting England up against Australia at the Gaddafi stadium in Lahore. England showed better middle-overs batting smarts than they'd done in the lead-up to the tournament in India as Duckett and Joe Root added 158 runs from the sixth to the 31st over that paved the way for their eventual total of 351/8. Steve Smith put his opposition in, in anticipation of dew later in the evening. Phil Salt took four balls to size up left-arm quick Spencer Johnson before driving through mid-off for the first four and following it up with a straight six. Ben Dwarshuis, the other left-arm quick, arrived from the other end and sent Salt packing in just the second over. The dismissal however, was to the credit of a flying Alex Carey at mid-on. Salt flicked a full delivery in the air and Carey took a couple of steps to his right and dived with an outstretched right hand to complete a sensational take. England's new No.3 Jamie Smith made a promising start but lasted only 13 balls for his 15 before he too hit one to Carey at mid-on off Dwarshuis. Root and Duckett then settled in on fairly comfortable batting conditions to patiently build England's essay as Glenn Maxwell and Adam Zampa operated from the two ends. Root soon got to his first 50-plus score in 11 innings against Australia in ODIs but couldn't proceed to turn that into a century. Duckett meanwhile curbed a bit of natural instinct to attack throughout and did well playing straight against the spinners. The duo brought up the 150-run stand for the third wicket in the 30th over before Zampa trapped Root leg before in the 31st over. Root exited for a 78-ball 68. Harry Brook and Liam Livingstone were both snuffed out by spin after brief stays while Duckett carried on. He went on to surpass the highest individual score in Champions Trophy history, before getting out LBW to Marnus Labuschagne in the 48th over. Labuschagne picked another wicket but also conceded 15 off the final over as England took their total just past 350. : England 351/8 in 50 overs (Ben Duckett 165, Joe Root 68; Ben Dwarshuis 3-66, Marnus Labuschagne 2-44, Adam Zampa 2-64) vs Australia

With their tournament hopes now in a spot of bother, Bangladesh are hopeful of senior batter Mahmudullah's availability ahead of the do-or-die match against New Zealand. The Asian side need to win this game, scheduled at Rawalpindi on February 24, to have a realistic chance of making the semifinal. Mahmudullah, who scored four fifties in his last four ODIs, suffered a calf muscle pull while training ahead of the India clash, causing a dent in Bangladesh's squad composition for the match. His absence was felt as team rapidly slipped to 35/5 in the opening hour of the contest before Towhid Hridoy's ton and Jaker Ali's fifty rescued the side through their record-breaking partnership. That, however, wasn't enough as India went onto win the game by six wickets in the 48th over. Bangladesh did well to stretch the game deep with the ball on a slow pitch despite having an under-par total on the board. However, given the short format of the Champions Trophy, they are now virtually in must-win territory. Meanwhile, New Zealand are riding high on confidence after handing Pakistan a 60-run defeat in the tournament opener in Karachi on February 19. The Blacks Caps are also fresh off their win in the tri-series in Pakistan where they won all the games, including two wins over the hosts. In such a scenario, Bangladesh know that the task at hand is enormous and they'll do well to have a player of Mahmudullah's experience for the clash. "We are hopeful regarding his (Mahmudullah) availability (for remaining part of the tournament). He is recovering well but a final decision in this regard can only be taken after the last practice session ahead of our game against New Zealand in Rawalpindi ," team manager Rabeed Imam confirmed to Cricbuzz on Saturday. "We had a scan after he sustained the injury and there was no tear found. It's a good sign and whenever he feels comfortable he will be ok to play I guess as there is no tear," he said. The official said that Towhid Hridoy, who cramped while making his maiden ODI century, is fine and maintained that there is no issue with him as far as his fitness is concerned. Bangladesh have arrived in Pakistan and are slated to have their first practice session today (February 22). It will be keenly followed by the team management as far as Mahmudullah's recovery is concerned. Should Mahmudullah be available for selection, the team management could be in a pickle regarding whom to leave out. Either Jaker or Hridoy were expected to make way for the veteran but with both of them scoring in the opening game, it seems like someone from the top three or Mushfiqur Rahim might have to warm the bench.

Bowlers, look away now. Or at least be happy if you're not playing in the Champions Trophy, which has already delivered a run glut of record proportions. Ryan Rickelton's 103 in Karachi on Friday, when South Africa totalled 315/6 and dismissed Afghanistan for 208, was the fifth century scored in the tournament. That's more hundreds in the first three games than have ever been hammered in any edition of the Champions Trophy, or indeed in the first three matches in any edition of the men's World Cup. What about the conditions made them so good for batting? "You say that but we bowled them out for 200," Rickelton told a press conference. "Pakistan is renowned for good pitches, and when the dew sets in the ball skids on quite nicely as well. I guess the fundamentals are it might be batter friendly, but you still have to execute. "Every ground is going to range and be a little bit different, but if it is in favour of batting and the ball skids on nicely, I'm quite happy with that." Rassie van der Dussen told a television interviewer between innings that Friday's pitch - which was unusually well-grassed for the subcontinent and cracked - reminded him of a "day-three pitch at the Wanderers". The surface gave Temba Bavuma something to think about, as he said after the match: "We got the rub of the green at the toss, and took the brave decision to bat first not really knowing what the pitch would do. It looked different to some of the games we've had in Pakistan; closer to what we get back home." Rickelton's feat followed Shubman Gill's unbeaten 101 for India and Bangladesh's Towhid Hridoy's 100 in Dubai on Thursday. That came after Will Young's 107 and Tom Latham's 118 not out for New Zealand against Pakistan in the tournament opener in Karachi on Wednesday. Also on Friday, Rahmat Shah looked on course to join the club until Kagiso Rabada had him caught behind for 90 to end the match. "Anytime you get bowled out for just over 200 chasing 300, you're going to ask the middle order [what happened]," Jonathan Trott, the Afghans' head coach, told a press conference. "Especially when one player gets 90 batting at No. 4, you look around and [say] if somebody had batted with them and been able to build a partnership, we could have got ourselves close to the target. That's the most disappointing thing. One person showed us exactly how it could be done. If there had been a few guys who'd had a similar day to him..." Few will be surprised by all those runs. The alarm was sounded before a ball had been delivered in the competition: the Champions Trophy would be hard on anyone who doesn't bat for a living. Going into the tournament, nowhere in the world since international cricket returned to Pakistan in September 2019 had batters averaged more in ODIs than the 34.91 they had achieved in that country. Bowlers had averaged more there - 38.85 - than anywhere else. Nowhere, also, had teams compiled totals of 300 or more as frequently as they had in Pakistan: 16 times in 27 ODIs. The pattern has persisted, with Dubai coming to Pakistan's party for good measure. Three centuries have been scored in the first three matches of a World Cup or Champions Trophy four times, and we've seen four tons twice. It might be assumed that the T20 revolution and its reinvention of batting has powered that trend, but only half of those six instances have come after the inaugural IPL in 2008. There were three centuries in the first three games in the 1992, 2011 and 2015 World Cups, and in the 2002 Champions Trophy. Four in three were seen in the 2003 World Cup and the 2017 Champions Trophy. Conditions varied significantly: those 18 matches were played in New Zealand, Australia, Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Zimbabwe and England. Pakistan's addition to the list is no surprise, given the country's flat pitches, fast outfields and cozy boundaries. But the United Arab Emirates is 12th in the batting average charts and 20th in terms of runs per over, which only adds to what Gill and Hridoy accomplished on Thursday. Even so, as Rickelton said, the runs don't score themselves. And today's good performance will mean nothing tomorrow. Young understood that, telling a press conference on Wednesday: "You try not to think too much about what's happened in cricket. The next game is the most important one, and if you've got the opportunity to play you want to make the most of it." Hashmatullah Shahidi, too, got it after Friday's loss: "Whatever we did wrong, we will forget about it and put it in the bin." But they will know, like everyone else, that there are runs, and hundreds waiting to be scored, on Pakistan pitches.

The 2025 edition of Women's Premier League arrived at the loud and buzzing Chinnaswamy stadium with a where Harmanpreet Kaur conspired with Nat Sciver-Brunt and Amanjot Kaur to defy an Ellyse Perry special and clip RCB's wings. After Sciver-Brunt's whirlwind effort at the top, the MI captain scored her sixth WPL half-century to set her team up in chase. Amanjot then saw her side through in a final-over finish. Smriti Mandhana made up for the loss at the toss by unfurling early boundaries in the PowerPlay, starting with two off Shabnim Ismail in the opening over. She launched a slower one from Sciver-Brunt down the ground for a six before taking on Ismail for two more fours in the following over. Ismail continued to bowl back of a length to the left-hander who top-edged one to Yastika Bhatia behind. Perry started off with a whip over mid-wicket on the first ball and just didn't relent, even as wickets tumbled at the other end. Danielle Wyatt-Hodge, Raghvi Bist and Kanika Ahuja were taken out by Sciver-Brunt, Hayley Matthews and Sanskriti Gupta to reduce RCB to 57/4 in the eighth over, but out came Richa Ghosh to steady the ship. She and Perry added 50 off 38 deliveries. RCB had another mini-wobble heading to the death overs as Ghosh and Wareham fell in quick succession, but Perry kept the boundaries coming. By the time she fell on the penultimate delivery of the innings, she had hit 11 four and two sixes. She now has 273 runs against MI at a strike rate of 127.6 and average of 68.25. As many as 45 runs were scored in the last four overs as RCB finished on 167/7. Kim Garth then rocked MI's boat sideways in the second over of the chase by trapping Bhatia leg before. Sciver-Brunt walked out swinging for the fences, taking a toll on the wicket-taker in successive overs. Hayley Matthews struck a couple of boundaries off Georgia Wareham to join in on the fun. In the final over of the PowerPlay, Sciver-Brunt hit three more fours while Matthews struck one before getting trapped lbw off Ekta Bisht. Despite the two wickets, MI were on track in the chase with 66/2 - their highest PowerPlay total in WPL history. Garth pulled things back with a wily off-cutter that Sciver-Brunt did not see coming and got bowled to walk back for a 21-ball 42. MI lost Amelia Kerr soon after, bringing together the two Kaurs. MI kept pace with the asking rate while these two built the essay all the way until the 18th over. Harmanpreet matched Perry for impact as the equation was down to a gettable 24 off 18 balls. Wareham then came on to try and trigger another twist in the game by dismissing Harmanpreet and Sajeevan Sajana off successive balls. Mandhana had to turn to off-spinner Kanika Ahuja in the penultimate over with the front three of Renuka Singh, Garth and Wareham done with their respective four overs. Amanjot gave Ahuja the charge to hit a six over long-on - her first-ever in the tournament. She finished the over with another such shot over the same region, to leave her side needing 6 off the last 6 balls. Bisht dragged that down to 2 off 2 to put pressure on the two batters but the 16-year-old G Kamalini hit a four through covers to complete a fabulous chase. Royal Challengers Bengaluru 167/7 in 20 overs (Ellyse Perry 81, Richa Ghosh 28; Amanjot Kaur 3-22) lost to Mumbai Indians 170/6 in 19.5 overs (Harmanpreet Kaur 50, Nat Sciver-Brunt 42, Amanjot Kaur 34*; Georgia Wareham 3-21) by 4 wickets

" [if you stick around, we'll win easily]," were Harmanpreet Kaur's parting words to Amanjot Kaur when Georgia Wareham broke the crucial 62-run stand in the 18th over. S Sajana, who last time made an entry at the M Chinnaswamy so spectacular it earned her an India cap, was LBW the very next ball. Only two singles came off the rest of the over, leaving Mumbai Indians with 22 to get off the last 12 against hosts Royal Challengers Bengaluru and its vociferous crowd. The Mumbai Indians skipper, just about settling into her seat in the dugout, was at this point probably trying to shun some unsettling flashbacks. Twice at the business end of WPL 2024 in Delhi against RCB, MI's batting floundered after Harmanpreet's dismissal. Second of those games was the Eliminator, losing which brought curtains on the title defence of the inaugural champions. Surely this wasn't happening again. Little did Harmanpreet know those few words of affirmation would flick a switch. " [Yes, I'll do it for you], replied Amanjot as the captain made her exit after setting up the chase for MI with yet another brisk half-century. Amanjot was only batting on 20 off 22 deliveries then, playing the ideal second fiddle to her skipper. But she knew all she had to do was see out the remaining four balls of Wareham - RCB's best bowler on the night. From there on, it was one over left of experienced yet expensive-on-the-night left-arm spinner Ekta Bisht and another one from the under-utilised offie, Kanika Ahuja. A tactical misjudgement, perhaps, from RCB played into MI and Amanjot's hands. Smriti Mandhana threw the ball to Ahuja, and Amanjot's eyes lit up. Not only was it a "positive match-up" of an offspinner, it was also the offspinner she knew inside-out having played nearly all their domestic cricket together for Punjab. With the Harmanpreet-Amanjot pair in the middle, it wasn't without reason that Mandhana had held back Ahuja until the 15th over in the first place. But it also meant most of RCB's frontline options were bowled out by the time, in their attempt to prise out key wickets in the middle-overs phase after the PowerPlay went awry. Ahuja floated the first one outside off, and Amanjot was quick to react as she shimmied down the track to get close to the pitch of the delivery and lofted it cleanly over a leaping Wareham at long-on. Six off the first ball transferred the pressure back on to the bowler. Amanjot found herself back on strike for the last ball of the over only to face an exactly similar delivery and she sent it sailing over long-on once more. MI's requirement was now down to a run-a-ball in the final over, and Amanjot's job was all but done. Game, set, match. "I didn't want to drag it to the 20th over because, sometimes, under pressure [of the final over] you're unable to execute even the best of your shots," Amanjot said after MI's penultimate-ball victory by 4 wickets. "I wanted to finish it off in the 19th over itself or at least bring it down to run-a-ball [if left to the final over] because I didn't want the new batter [G Kamilini] to be taking that pressure. "I knew how and where Kanika bowls, because I've played with her so much. And it played out to the T. God's plan, really. I knew we needed either four boundaries or two sixes. And with Kanika's bowling, I knew what areas I could target that would be risk-free zones to secure those runs. I didn't want to leave it for the other batter then." Kkrwq4objAV It wasn't all Harmanpreet's encouragement though, Amanjot was also making amends and following up on a personal resolution. MI's over-dependence on its star-studded top-five had resurfaced in the Vadodara leg as well. The defeat to Delhi Capitals in their tournament opener stung hard. Amanjot was third dismissed in a dramatic collapse of 7 for 35 that left MI with an under-par score, and eventually cost them two points albeit in a final-ball thriller. Mumbai's lower-order woes this year have been further accentuated by the injury-forced withdrawal of star allrounder Pooja Vastrakar. For Amanjot, this was a chance to step up and repay the management's faith for the retention following an underwhelming WPL 2024. "Even before the WPL started, I'd told my coach [Nagesh sir] and my trainer [Tanuja] that I'm going to finish matches for my team. I don't want to leave it to others. I sort of did that in the first game [of WPL 2025] and we ended up on the wrong side of the result. That's when I decided it's on me to finish games from here on. "Between the Challengers and the WPL camp there was some time off, but because of the winter season in Chandigarh at the time, the wickets used to be wet all the time. Kiran [More, MI Women's General Manager] sir used to keep calling me even when I was at the NCA, to ask if I needed something, so I rang him up to ask I could start camp early. He called us to Baroda. I knew there would be more responsibility on me because Pooja wouldn't be there. I knew it would come down to me [to finish games] and I just had to do it myself." This perspective was gained during an eight-month long injury layoff, amidst which being on MI's retention list was like the proverbial light at the end of a tunnel. Amanjot was laid low by a stress fracture of the back that required surgery, and a ligament tear in the hand following the last edition of WPL. She made her competitive comeback only in January for the one-day Challenger Trophy, having spent the better part of the T20 World Cup year at the NCA, rehabbing. "No regrets, I'm very blessed and grateful that I went through that phase as well. It was such a crucial time for me. You do feel bad [being sidelined in a World Cup year]. It's never easy, to be honest. But it's on you how to take it. When the injury was diagnosed, I bugged my coach and trainer for about a week or two constantly asking 'why me'. I'm not a junk-food person, I never miss my fitness routine - so I couldn't fathom getting this injury, I never expected it. "But, while at the NCA I consumed a lot of cricket. There was Riyan Parag here, Khaleel Ahmed, Suryakumar [Yadav] bhaiya was also here. So what if I wasn't allowed to play, I learnt so much watching, talking, observing their cricket. How they practice, what they talk about cricket, how they play their cricket, what they talk post-match - that was a learning experience. Whatever could help my cricket, I was up for it." In Bengaluru, Amanjot put all those eight months worth of learnings to practice to ease one of MI's biggest worry lines. In some VIP stands of the M Chinnaswamy stadium, the Indian selectors took note of the match-winning cameo of 37* under pressure, and a 3-22 earlier to boot. In Panchkula and Mumbai, respectively, Nagesh and Tanuja shed happy tears. She may have missed out on a T20 World Cup, but with an ODI home World Cup looming and no timeline set yet on Vastrakar's return, there wouldn't have been a better time for Amanjot to fly back onto the selectors' radar. The injury-ridden 2024 was a minor bump in the journey, and she's is set on dwelling on it too much. "Hum banne hi udne ke liye hain. Thehraav ayega, but hum udna nahin bhoolenge [I'm born to fly. There'll be setbacks, but it can't clip my wings]."