The white-ball season finally began as Team India hosted Engalnd for the first T20 international at the iconic Eden Gardens on Wednesday. Much of a surprise to many, Mohammed Shami didn’t feature for India, whose selection was much anticipated. Regardless, India didn’t miss Shami as the Men in Blue ran riot, with Abhishek Sharma hammering a blazing fifty. Varun Chakravarthy won the Player of the Match award for his spin mastery. India’s captain Suryakumar Yadav meanwhile scored his first duck as skipper. Meanwhile, will India sport the ICC Champions Trophy jersey with Pakistan written on it? Catch all this and more as we go through the top eye-catching headlines from January 22, Wednesday.
Is Mohammed Shami injured?
Mohammad Shami was touted to feature in the first IND vs ENG. However, Suryakumar Yadav revealed at the toss that Shami will start on the bench. This led many to believe if Shami was selected despite not getting fully fit. While this may be a precautionary measure by Team India, it was a surprising decision nonetheless. As we all know, Shami last played for India as many as 430 days ago. Read more here: 430 and continuing! Mohammed Shami not named in IND vs ENG playing XI for 1st T20I
Worry for Suryakumar Yadav?
Suryakumar Yadav was once the best T20I batter in the world. While his X-factor is still on top, Suryakumar’s scores have dwindled down ever since he has become Team India’s permanent T20I skipper. From a period of 2022 to 2023, Suryakumar hammered 1897 runs. This tally means he scored almost 73 percent of his career runs in that period. But now, since Suryakumar has become India’s permanent captain, he has made just 230 runs at a mere average of 23.00 and at a SR of 165.46. Read More: Is T20I captaincy harming Suryakumar Yadav the batter? Stats show poor record for SKY!
India to have “Pakistan” on ICC Champions Trophy jersey?
After reports emerged that India won’t have an ICC Champions Trophy logo, featuring Pakistan name on it, the BCCI has clarified that it won’t be the case. New BCCI secretary has confirmed that India will follow the ICC guidelines, meaning that Team India will sport a jersey with Pakistan’s name on it. Read More: BCCI loses to PCB? Team India’s ICC Champions Trophy jersey to sport “Pakistan”
Rohit Sharma not to play more Ranji matches?
Apparently, Rohit Sharma’s first-class match against Jammu and Kashmir could be his last Ranji Trophy match. This is due to the fact that Mumbai skipper Ajinkya Rahane recently revealed that Rohit might just play the Ranji Trophy game against J&K that starts on January 23. After this, Mumbai have another Ranji Trophy game against Meghalaya that Rohit might not play. Hence, one could imagine that this might be his last Ranji Trophy game. On the contrary, Kohli won’t play the January 23rd game but might turn up for the January 30 clash for Delhi. Read more here: Unlike Kohli, Rohit “unsure” about playing Ranji game on Jan 30, reveals Rahane
Arshdeep Singh the best T20I bowler!
In less than 30 months since his T20I debut, Arshdeep Singh has become India’s highest wicket-taker in the format, surpassing Yuzvendra Chahal. He’s approaching 100 T20I wickets, which would make him the first Indian to reach this milestone. His powerplay bowling has been exceptional, with 42 wickets since 2022. In the ongoing England series, he dismissed Phil Salt in the first over – his seventh first-ball wicket. With an impressive average of 1.5 wickets per innings across 61 innings, he’s outperforming even Jasprit Bumrah (1.29). Read here: Arshdeep Singh becomes India’s most successful T20I bowler ever
India decimate England
In a dominant display at Eden Gardens, India crushed England in the first T20I. The hosts bowled brilliantly, with Varun Chakravarthy (3/23) and Arshdeep Singh (2/17) restricting England to just 132, despite Jos Buttler’s fighting 68. India’s chase was a breeze, thanks to Abhishek Sharma’s explosive 79 off 34 balls. While Suryakumar Yadav fell for a duck, Sanju Samson (26) provided good support before Tilak Verma and Hardik Pandya finished things off in the 13th over. India takes a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. Read more here: Abhishek Sharma’s fireworks & Varun Chakravarthy’s spin humble England
