ENG vs IND | Lord's Test: Crowd throws champagne corks at KL Rahul

ENG vs IND | Lord's Test: Joe Root hits back-to-back hundred to lead England's charge

Joe Root continued on his brilliant form and scored his 22nd Test century on the third day of the first Test against India at Lord’s. He has been the go-to man for England in batting and has not been disappointed yet in the series so far. It was his fourth hundred at the Home of Cricket and England could have a sigh of relief in reply to India’s 364 on the back of his century. He scored 10 boundaries on his way to the three-figure mark. He had come out to bat after the departure of Haseeb Hameed on the second afternoon of the Test and stitched valuable partnerships with Rory Burns and Jonny Bairstow to bring England back in the game. He has been in top-notch form in the series and the current year. In the three innings so far against India, Root has two hundreds and one fifty against a very strong Indian bowling attack. In the year 2021, Root has piled on double centuries and centuries to steer England out of many troubles across the world. The Lord’s hundred against India is his fifth hundred of the year.

Depth around Australia cricket is not where it needs to be so there's some work to do: Ponting

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting has questioned the side’s depth after it suffered a thumping 4-1 defeat against Bangladesh in the five-match T20I series away from home. "The lack of knowhow and skill in those conditions brought us undone again," Ponting told Tim Paine on the Test captain's SEN radio show. “It's been the achilles heel for Australian cricket for as long as I can remember - more so in Test cricket, but we've always found a way to be very competitive in Sri Lanka and India in white-ball cricket. Just goes to show the depth around Australia cricket is not where it needs to be so there's some work to do there,” he added. Australia have been struggling in the T20I format for quite some time and the team has suffered defeats in the last five series that they have played in the shorter format of the game. Though, the visitors were without the services of the key players during the Bangladesh and West Indies tour. The likes of David Warner, Glenn Maxwell and other prominent names had opted out of the tours, former skipper Steve Smith missed the fixtures as he was recovering from an elbow injury. Regular skipper Aaron Finch had to miss the Bangladesh series after sustaining a knee injury.

Sourav Ganguly's brother Snehasish admitted to hospital

Former India captain and present BCCI President Sourav Ganguly’s brother Snehasish was hospitalised on Saturday. He had a stomach infection according to sources. “He has a stomach infection and his COVID infection has turned negative,” hospital sources told PTI. Snehashish who is currently CAB’s secretary at the moment had undergone angioplasty earlier this year. Another source close to the CAB secretary said that he was feeling unwell on Friday. "He started feeling uncomfortable on Friday evening and keeping in mind the fact that he had an angioplasty done a while back, it was felt best to get him admitted to the hospital and keep him under observation. Around 1 am he was taken to the Woodlands hospital as he also had a fever. He is doing fine now and there is nothing to worry about," the source said while talking to ANI. Snehasish has played cricket at the domestic level and represented Bengal in 59 first-class matches where scored 2534. He was also capped 18 times in List A matches and scored 275 runs for the side. Ganguly is presently in England with his wife but is keeping a track of the situation. The former left-handed batsman had also undergone angioplasty at Woodlands Hospital earlier this year.

IPL 2021 | ECB, Cricket Australia confirm players' availability, claim franchise CEOs

The Cricket Australia (CA) and England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have officially informed the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) that the Australian and England players will be available for the remaining fixtures of the Indian Premier League (IPL) which will now be played in the UAE in September-October. The IPL COO Hemang Amin further informed the franchises about the development. “We have got a call from the IPL office and have been informed that the boards have no objection to their players' participation. It is now up to the players," Kasi Viswanathan of Chennai Super Kings told Cricbuzz. The likes of Moeen Ali, Sam Curran and Jason Behrendorff are a part of the CSK setup in the cash-rich league. ”Our Australian and English players (Jason Behrendorff, Sam Curran, Moeen Ali) are available," the CEO of the franchise added. The Punjab franchise has the Australian players, Riley Meredith, Moises Henriques and Jhye Richardson and a couple of England players, Chris Jordan and Dawid Malan in the ranks. Punjab Kings CEO also confirmed that the players have been granted the clearance to participate in the competition. “We've been told of the clearance. Now the team manager will contact the players individually," Punjab Kings CEO said. Apart from this, Australia opener David Warner has confirmed his availability to play for the SRH which also comprises England's Jonny Bairstow and Jason Roy while former Australian skipper Steve Smith and all-rounder Marcus Stoinis will also feature in the remainder of the IPL for Delhi Capitals. The IPL 2021 was suspended on May 4, 2021 after a Covid-19 outbreak within the franchises.