CPL 2021: Faf du Plessis takes over St. Lucia Zouks’ captaincy from Daren Sammy

Who is Smit Patel: Indian U-19 World Cup winner set to take part in Caribbean Premier League

Former Indian U-19 World Cup winner, Smit Patel is set to play in the Caribbean Premier League 2021 scheduled to be hosted from August 28 in St Kitts and Nevis of the tropical islands. The 28-year-old right-handed batsman-keeper shocked the Indian cricketing circles when his name was included in the Barbados Tridents squad. Having shot to fame in 2012 when he forged a match-winning partnership with skipper Unmukt Chand to lead India to a U-19 World Cup triumph, Patel has not been able to establish himself in the Indian domestic scene in recent years. His inclusion in the Tridents squad means that Patel will be the second Indian cricketer to play in the Caribbean Premier League after Pravin Tambe, who played in the franchise tournament in 2020. Claim to fame Starting off their 2012 U-19 World Cup campaign with a defeat against West Indies, the young brigade bounced back strongly and managed to win all their remaining matches to lift the title. After restricting Australia to a moderate total of 225, the Indian junior team seemed to be under the pump getting reduced to 97/4 in the 25th over. However, it was an astonishing fightback from skipper Unmukt Chand and Smit Patel which helped India claw their way back into the game and win the final with six wickets remaining. While Unmukt Chand played the attacking role to perfection and scored a hundred, Smit Patel played the perfect foil for Chand as he rotated the strike along perfectly and found the boundaries in crucial junctures of the game. Patel remained unbeaten on 62 of 84 deliveries which included four boundaries and shared an unbeaten 130 runs stand with his skipper. Is he eligible to play in the CPL? While Patel hasn’t announced his retirement from India cricket, his entry in CPL effectively means he has called it quits from any forms of cricket in India. The Board of Control for Cricket in India rules state that an Indian player cannot take part in any overseas leagues until he retires from the Indian cricketing circuit (domestic and international) and IPL. Pravin Tambe was the first Indian to play in the CPL plying his trade for the Trinbago Knight Riders. Tambe was picked in the 2020 IPL by the Kolkata Knight Riders but was removed from the final list after it was learnt that he had already played in the Abu Dhabi T10 League. He played the Caribbean Premier League after retiring from the Indian circuit. Domestic career and recent form Following his claim to fame in U-19 Cricket, Patel soon made his first-class debut for Gujarat in November 2012. After missing out in the first innings, he made his presence felt with a fluent 60 against Madhya Pradesh. He then subsequently moved to Goa before finishing his domestic career with Baroda. Patel played for Baroda in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy earlier this year. He scored a classy 73 in his last Vijay Hazare clash against his former team Gujarat. However, he wasn’t in the best of touch in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Patel has so far played 55 first-class matches, 43 List A and 28 T20 matches. Plans for future It’s never easy for someone in India to realise their dream of playing cricket. At the age of 28 years, Smit Patel has moved to the USA in order to realise his dream of playing international cricket. When his name sprung up in the CPL drafts list it became clear that he has retired from Indian cricket. However, what made heads turns was his registration as a Major League Cricket player. This effectively means that he has permanently shifted to the United States of America. He has already played a few practice matches of the Major Cricket League and is hoping to reinvent his career there.

With key Australia & England series in focus, Shakib unlikely to get NOC for CPL 2021

Bangladesh superstar Shakib Al Hasan who signed up for the 2021 edition of the Caribbean Premier League with his former side Jamaica Tallawahs, might not be able to play for them as key series for the national side might be prioritised by the Bangladesh Cricket Board. As of now, no decision has been taken regarding the NOC, but it seems that the 34-year-old might have to forget about the franchise-based tournament which begins on August 28. BCB cricket operation chairman Akram Khan informed about the plans. "We have not taken any decision about it (NOC for CPL). When the time comes we can make a decision in this regard," he was quoted as saying to Cricbuzz. Khan further said, "We certainly want to play against them with our full strength squad,” suggesting that Shakib might not be given the NOC in favour of a stronger national side. The left-handed batsman struggled a lot during the recent three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka, scoring only 19 runs including a duck. "Of course, my expectations weren't fulfilled during the series. But I have to ensure that these things won't happen next and it's very important," Shakib told reporters ahead of the start of the Dhaka Premier League in which he would turn up for Mohammedan Sporting Club.

PSL 2021: South African players join bio-bubble

The South African players who are going to be a part of the PSL 2021 scheduled to take place in Abu Dhabi have entered the bio-bubble. The aggressive left-handed batsman David Miller posted an Instagram story featuring Faf Du Plessis, Rilee Rossouw and Cameon Delport. The PSL was earlier put to a halt after there was a rise in Covid-19 cases within the franchises. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) later decided to host the event between June 1 to June 20 including the final but had to shift it to the UAE after there a request was made by the franchises for the same citing the surge in Covid-19 cases in the country. Miller will be a part of Peshawar Zalmi, Faf du Plessis, Cameron Delport will don the Quetta Gladiators jersey while Rilee Rossouw will play for Multan Sultans in the PSL 2021 after the tournament is resumed. The dates of the tournament are yet to be announced. While the overseas players have joined the bio-bubble, as many 25 cricketers including former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed were earlier denied visa by the United Arba Emirates. According to a Geo news report, apart from Sarfaraz, Mohammad Hasnain, Multan Sultans’ Imran Khan, PCB Media Department Officer Emad Hameed, Multan Sultan’s player and Shahid Afridi’s replacement in the side Asif Afridi, Umar Amin, Muhammad Musa, Zaid Alam, Zeeshan Ashraf, Abrar Ahmed, Imran Randhawa, Mohammad Haris, and Aamir Khan are in the list.

There needs to be a proper balance between bat and ball - Sanjay Manjrekar bashes modern rules

Sanjay Manjrekar is someone who doesnt mind mincing his words and yet again he has come hard against the modern-day rules and regulations of cricket which has been highly tilted in favour of batsmen. In a recent column for the Hindustan Times, Manjrekar has questioned the balance between bat and ball which has been constantly in favour of batsmen, especially in the modern generation. The invention of helmet as mentioned by Manjrekar has allowed the modern-day batsmen to play a fearless brand of cricket and employ 360-degree shots. Manjrekar felt that a batsman from the yester years wouldn’t have dared to play those shots against express pace without having helmets. “Would a batter go down on one knee against a big fast bowler, his face perfectly in line with a ball coming at 90 mph, to play a Dilscoop if he wasn’t wearing a helmet? When we gave batters helmets, we should have felt obligated to give something significant back to the bowlers too,” Manjrekar wrote in his column. The evolution of cricket bats has also done wonders to even top edges going over the fence quite consistently. The broadness of the bats have meant that the batsmen always have an upper hand against the bowlers especially in the white-ball formats. Manjrekar is not in favour of the easy sixes which the tail-enders often tend to get in the death overs through top edges despite not getting the middle of the bat. With so much in line, Manjrekar feels that bowlers need to be rewarded more in order to ensure a balance between bat and ball. “For the game to stay absorbing and meaningful, especially to the discerning viewer, one must keep ensuring that there is a proper balance between bat and ball and it all makes sense in the end,” Manjrekar said. “It pains me, especially in T20 cricket, to see the bowler being penalised 6 runs when he has bowled a superb short ball, bouncing at a legitimate height which a No.11 batter has slogged with eyes closed. The ball flies off the edge over the keeper, crashing into the sight-screen,” Manjrekar added. Referring to baseball where a batter only gets points when he nails the ball out of the park or from the middle of the bat. No points are awarded if het gets an edge. However, in cricket, batsmen are rewarded despite the bowler actually winning the battle by deceiving him. “In baseball, the batter gets no reward if the ball flies off his club behind him because he has not made a good enough connection. Baseball rewards success while cricket rewards failure; no wonder the batter in cricket has a sheepish smile every time this happens,” Manjrekar quipped.