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Rohit Sharma could replace Virat Kohli as India's white-ball captain after T20 World Cup: Report

Indian cricket is on the verge of a massive change in approach if a TOI report that claims the current Indian captain Virat Kohli is set to step down after the upcoming T20 World Cup and Rohit Sharma will take up the responsibility of leading the team in both the white-ball formats is to be believed.

The report has quoted several teams and BCCI sources that seem to suggest that Kohli has set his eyes on the longest format and taking the team to far greater heights than achieved until now. They also suggest that Kohli has realised the responsibility of leading the India side across all three formats have started to take a toll on his batting and hence he will relinquish his leadership role in the shorter formats of the game.

“Virat himself will make the announcement. He is of the view that he needs to concentrate on his batting and go back to becoming what he’s always been — the best batsman in the world,” TOI quoted a BCCI source as saying.

The report also suggests that Kohli and Rohit are on the “same page” on the issue of change in leadership and they agree it will be a “win-win “ situation for the men in blue.

“We realise spin-masters will be at work, giving their own twists to these developments. That’s the reason BCCI is planning this well in advance. In the end, Virat and Rohit are on the same page,” the sources added.

If these suggestions of change hold ground come November, it will be another shot at the concept of “split-captaincy” by the Indian team management after a not so long and successful experiment with MS Dhoni and Kohli himself.

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CPL 2021 | SKNP vs TKR: Trinbago take top spot after 4-wicket win over Patriots

Trinbago Knight Riders ended the league stage of the CPL 2021 on a positive note after beating St Kitts and Nevis Patriots by 4 wickets as they chased down a target of 148 runs in 19 overs to move to the top spot in the points table. TKR, Patriots and Guyana Amazon Warriors have the same number of points and wins under their belt but the Knight Riders are sitting at the helm as they have a better net run-rate. The Warriors follow Trinbago at number two while Patriots and Saint Lucia Kings are at number three and four respectively. TJR started the chase in a steady manner as Lendl Simmons and Denesh Ramdin put 32 runs on the board for the first wicket before Simmons departed for 20 off 17, courtesy a blinder from Fabian Allen. Ramdin was then joined by Colin Munro in the middle but it took the Patriots just 20 runs to two wickets and reduce Trinbago to 52/3. Captain Kieron Pollard who walked in at number five took the onus on himself and struck a fine half-century and provided the resistance to the side. The right-handed eventually departed for a 22-ball 51 when the team scorecard read 115. Later, Isuru Udana held the fort from one end and anchored the side to a win after remaining unbeaten at 25 off 16. Udana’s knock included three maximums. Fawad Ahmed was the pick of the bowlers for the Patriots as he returned with figures of 2/16 in 4 overs. Earlier, SKNP managed to put 147/7 in 20 overs as Joshua Da Silva notched up a half-century while Bravo chipped in with a brisk 25 off 13 during the course. Ali Khan scalped three wickets for Trinbago in the innings. SKNP captain Dwayne Bravo admitted that they needed more runs on the board to defend. “I must say it was a good cricket game, we batted first, we wanted to defend totals, obviously 149 wasn't enough against that batting line-up, happy though that we took it to the 19th over,” he said after the match. TKR will now play Saint Lucia Kings in the first semi-final on Tuesday in St Kitts while Patriots will take on Guyana on Wednesday at the same venue.

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CPL 2021 | GAW s JT: Romario Shepherd's all-round performance shows exit gate to Tallawahs

Guyana Amazon Warriors ended Jamaica Tallawahs’ campaign in this CPL 2021 after beating them by 14 runs (DLS Method) in a rain-curtailed match. Batting first, the Warriors didn’t have a great start to the innings as they lost wickets at regular intervals and were soon left tottering at 75/7 when Romario Shepherd and Motie joined hands and steadied the ship for the side. Shepherd chipped in with an unbeaten 31-ball 72 which included six sixes to anchor the side to a total of 142/7 in 18 overs. Imad Wasim was the pick of the bowlers for Jamaica after he returned with figures of 3/15 in his allotted 4 overs while Chris Green and Andre Russell picked up a couple of wickets apiece. Later, the Tallawahs never really got into the groove and witnessed a batting collapse to get bowled out for 128 in 17.1 overs. The Jamaican side were reduced to 89/9 before Green struck a quick-fire 31 off 20 but his efforts weren’t enough to take the team over the line. Shepherd and Odean Smith picked up three wickets each for Guyana while Imran Tahir had two scalps to his name. Jamaica skipper Powell admitted that the batting collapse and the failure of the middle-order was a major reason for their defeat in this clash. “I think we got a good start with the ball, we talk about getting right in the first 5-6 overs and I think we did that and at the back-end we kind of strayed a little from our plans. Just a little bit of hope there (last wicket partnership), but the middle-order didn't stand up and if the middle-order don't do well it's always gonna be difficult. Lots of positives for us,” he said after the match.

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CPL 2021 | BR vs SLK: Barbados Royals etch consolation win in a run feast in St Kitts

Barbados Royals etched a consolation win against Saint Lucia Kings to conclude their tournament on a positive note on Sunday. On a batsmen’s day out, the Royals rode on some fine piece of stroke-play from Kyle Mayers and Glenn Phillips to chase down a target of 191 runs in 18.5 overs. The Royals had a decent start to the chase after Mayers and Johnson Charles put 37 runs on the board for the first wicket in 5.1 overs but a couple of quick wickets pushed them on the backfoot. But what unleashed next was simply a masterclass from Mayers and Phillipes as the two provided the much-needed resistance to the side and made sure that there were no further fall of wickets. The two batsmen played in a cautious manner initially and then took on the Kings’ bowling attack to hammer them all around the park. Mayers remained unbeaten at 81 off 62 that included six maximums and five fours while Phillips notched up a 39-ball 80* where he smashed a total of 9 sixes during the course. Both the batters dominated the Kings’ bowling unit thoroughly and took the team over the line. Roston Chase was the only Saint Lucia bowler to scalp a wicket in the innings. Earlier, the Saint Lucia side posted 190/6 in 20 overs after Chase scored a fifty while Cornwall struck a 26-ball 40. Mayers returned with a three-for and Oshane Thomas picked up a couple of wickets for Barbados. Barbados Royals skipper Jason Holder hailed Mayers and Phillips for their batting after the match. “Credit to Kyle and Glenn, outstanding partnership. It was a really good wicket. On this wicket, you aren't quite sure what a good total is. Lots of positives. Everybody had different spirits. It's been a good campaign for few individuals but not good collectively,” he said.

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SL vs SA | 2nd T20I: Bowlers, Quinton de Kock seal series for South Africa

South Africa took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka after clinching a thumping 9-wicket win in the second clash in Colombo. Chasing a target of 104 runs in 20 overs, the visitors went over the line in the 15th over, courtesy an unbeaten 48-ball 58 from Quinton de Kock. The Proteas started off the chase in a brilliant manner after openers De Kock and Reeza Hendricks put 62 on the board for the first wicket before Hendricks departed for 18 off 19. De Kock was then joined by Aiden Markram and the two batsmen took the side home. Markram scored 21* off 19 during the course. For Sri Lanka, Wanindu Hasaranga was the only bowler to pick up a wicket as he returned with figures of 1/22 in 4 overs. Earlier in the day, the South African bowlers, especially Tabraiz Shamsi and Markram ripped through the Sri Lankan batting line up as the visitors bowled them out for 103 in 18.1 overs. The home side had a dismal start to the proceedings as they lost Dinesh Chandimal early for 5 off 8. Opener Kusal Perera was then joined by Rajapasaka and the two put 28 runs for the second wicket before Rajapasaka was also dismissed by Markram for 20. The Sri Lankan team kept losing wickets at regular intervals and one left tottering at 86/6 to eventually get bundled out. Perera tried to hold the fort from one end but he continuously ran out of partners at the other side. Both Markram and Shamsi scalped three wickets apiece while Fortuin had a couple of dismissals to his name. Nortje and Keshav Maharaj were also among wickets as they picked up one wicket each during the course. South Africa captain Maharaj later lauded the team for the efforts after the win. “All credit to my team. They made my life easier. We had simple plans and it all paid off. It is important that we keep building on the positives. We could bowl better in the powerplay and with our batting,” he said. Sri Lanka skipper Shanaka admitted that there were a few runs short and pointed that the batsmen need to “concentrate more”. “We were targeting 140-150. We knew it would turn and wouldn't be easy in the later parts of the game. I think the batsmen need to concentrate more in the game. We had a good start and we weren't able to capitalize,” he said. The two sides will now face each other in the third and final T20I on Tuesday at the same venue.