Virat Kohli announces resignation from India's T20 captaincy after upcoming T20 World Cup

Liam Livingstone targets play-off spot for Rajasthan, cites IPL as perfect preparation for World T20

England bating sensation Liam Livingstone has echoed the sentiments shared by members of other international teams such as Australia and South Africa that there is nothing better than playing in the Indian Premier League in order to prepare for the upcoming T20 World Cup. He said that the experience of playing on the same pitches and at the same venues in the IPL where the T20 World Cup has been scheduled to be played will help players earn a significant understanding of the conditions. "There is no better preparation than playing matches on the pitches on which you will be playing World T20 and I guess that's the nice part of it. We have a lot of our guys coming on to play competitive cricket leading up to the World Cup and there will be 10 of us who will be here. Livingstone signed up to play for the Rajasthan Royals before the first part of the 14th edition of the IPL. However, he walked out of the tournament without featuring even in one game citing” bubble fatigue” at the time when there was a wide wave of Covid-19 spiralling out of control across the country. Now, after returning to the Royals camp, Livingstone felt “refreshed” having spent some time with the family. He said that being in Dubai will also help him to be more refreshed as players will be allowed to do more outdoor stuff than they were allowed in Mumbai during the first half of the tournament. "Last time was very different as we were stuck in a hotel room in Mumbai and I was already five to six months away from home during the winters. This is different as I have spent a lot of time over at home during the last few months and it was nice to get refreshed," he explained. “I feel a lot more fresher than what I did last time. Also, in Dubai, we have got a little more outdoor space and guess we can do a little bit more getting out than what we could have done in the middle of Mumbai. So last time, I made the right decision and so I do feel a lot more fresher this time." Livingstone’s withdrawal came at the worse time for the Royals as they were already reeling in the absence of Jofra Archer, who did not travel to India and Ben Stokes, who was ruled out of the tournament after sustaining a fracture in his finger. The duo will be missing in action from the second part of the tournament as well but Livingstone said that the Royals have a “good core” of overseas players along with a pool of talented young Indian players to fill that gap. He set his eyes in sight of a play-off spot for his franchise led by India’s Sanju Samson. "We have got a very good core of overseas players. Whatever be the make of the team, I still believe that we have got real quality to go through and there is young home (India) talent, which gives squad a nice look. Hopefully, I can perform for Royals and take the team to the play-offs,” Livingstone said. The Royals will restart their IPL 2021 campaign with a contest against the Punjab Kings on September 21 in Dubai and the men in pink will hope Livingstone’s ease of hitting sixes will propel them into a significantly better position from where they find themselves now with just three wins out of seven matches played in the first part of the tournament.

1st ODI Preview: Excited Pakistan face under-strength yet formidable New Zealand's challenge at home

A lot of change has occurred in the world and world of cricket since the time New Zealand played their last game on Pakistan soil in 2003. But now, as they have set foot in Pakistan and will come up against them in the first ODI of the series, it would be some sort of watershed moment for Pakistan, as a cricketing nation. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has had some tumultuous time convincing cricket boards across the world to tour Pakistan after the terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team and hence the tour by New Zealand—first by a contemporary big team in the world will be a defining moment for them. “Finally, the day has arrived,” were the words of Pakistan captain Babar Azam while explaining the magnitude of the excitement of hosting New Zealand. Although the sides have excluded the series from ICC Qualifier for the 2023 World Cup, the “excitement” is palpable in both the camps as there are various context to to the series with a big T20 World Cup to follow in the next month. However, Pakistan would not be honest with themselves if they will not recognise that the Blackcaps are not at their full strength with many players missing the series due to the Indian Premier League, which they thought could provide equal preparation for the T20 World Cup. New Zealand have struggled in conditions that were heavily stacked in the favour of spinners in Bangladesh right before the series and Babar Azam and his men would be banking on the spinners to do the job well to win the eight-match long ODI and T20I series. New Zealand, on the other hand, fought well and limited the loss to a margin of 2-3 and improvement in batting and emergence of consistent and quality spinners will also give them promise in the series. Pakistan vs New Zealand: Match Details Match- 1 Venue: Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi Date and time: September 17, 2021, 3:00 PM IST, 2:30 PM PST Pitch Report The pitches at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium are known to be flat and aiding stroke makers. The two Kookaburra balls will also come in handy for the batsmen if they see off the first few overs of the game. In the ODI series against Zimbabwe last year, batsmen made merry with the bat and piled on runs as bowlers struggled and the trend is likely to continue. However, there will be significantly better bowling will be on display from either side and hence batsmen’s impact could be limited. Team News Pakistan The hosts have already announced their 12-man squad for the first ODI and included the likes of Iftikhar Ahmed, leg-spinner Usman Qadir in the team. The trio of Shaheen-shah-Afridi, Hasan Ali and Haris Rauf will head the pace bowling department while the onus of spin bowling will fall on the shoulders of leg spinners Shadab Khan and the newcomer Usman Qadir. The batting department looks solid with Imam-ul-Haq at the top of the order with Fakhar Zaman who was in terrific touch earlier in the year against South Africa and Zimbabwe. Skipper Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan will give stability to the batting order while Iftikhar Ahmed, who is returning to the side for the first time since last year, will five flourish to the batting order. Probable XI Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hassan Ali, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Saud Shakil, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Qadir, Zahid Mahmood. New Zealand New Zealand were handed another blow to their batting department as Tom Blundell was ruled out of the series after suffering an injury. The responsibility of the top order is likely to continue in the young hands of Rachin Ravindra, Fin Allen, and Will Yung while the experienced duo of the skipper Latham and Henry Nicholls will provide stability to the batting order from the number five and six positions. The emergence of new spin twins in Cole McConchie and Ajaz Patel, who ruled the show in Bangladesh will continue to search their domination against a better batting order led by Babar Azam in Pakistan. There should be a toss-up between Ben Sears and Hamish Bennett for the third pacer in the side as Scott Kuggeleijn and Jacob Duffy are all but certain to be the two pacers. Probable XI Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Will Young, Tom Latham (C & WK), Henry Nicholls, Daryl Mitchell, Cole McConchie, Scott Kuggeleijn, Ajaz Patel, Ben Sears/Hamish Bennett, Jacob Duffy

Pakistan excited to win 'special' series as Blackcaps come home to play after 18 years

New Zealand are all set to play their first game in Pakistan after a long gap of 18 years and the hosts are “very excited” ahead of the ODI series against the Blackcaps scheduled to start on September 17 in Rawalpindi. Pakistan captain Babar Azam has said that the hosts are a well-balanced side that will try to take full advantage of their home conditions to win the series against New Zealand that are without Kane Williamson and Ross Taylor. “Finally, the day has arrived and our entire camp is very excited to play New Zealand at home. We have practiced hard for this series and I am sure we will take full advantage of our home conditions,” said Babar Azam. “We have a balanced squad and I remain optimistic about our chances in what promises to be an exciting series. I am sure fans at the stadium and millions watching us on screens will enjoy these matches. There was no lack of spirit in New Zealand camp as well as the stand-in skipper in the absence of Williamson, Tom Latham said that the visitors too have “desired fire-power” in their camp to win the series. He also reposed faith on the batsmen and bowlers to put their hands up and guide the Blackcaps to a series win on Pakistan soil. The fact that the New Zealand side are touring the country after a long time was not lost on Latham and he recognised the “special” occasion for the home team. He also rated the Pakistan side very highly and said that they are boasting talented white-ball players. “We know it is special for Pakistan to have cricket in their country and we are excited to be here. Pakistan are a quality side and they have some talented white-ball players in their line-up,” says New Zealand skipper Tom Latham told reporters. Latham would be eager to win the series in Pakistan to redeem his team and himself after losing a five-match long T20 series against Bangladesh just before touring Pakistan. On the other hand, Pakistan would like to maintain their winning momentum after a rain-curtailed series on the tour of West Indies.

India's tour of New Zealand postponed to 2022

Scheduled India’s tour of New Zealand at the end of the year as per the ICC’s Future Tour Programme (FTP) has been postponed for next year, Stuff.co.nz reported. Virat Kohli’s men were to take on the Blackcaps in a three-match long ODI series but New Zealand Cricket has confirmed that they will tour the country next year after the conclusion of the T20 World Cup in Australia. The move has been taken by the NZC as New Zealand are also scheduled to travel to India for a Test and T20 series before heading home. NZC said that the players who will be travelling to India would not be able to return home before the first week of December and as per the 14 days of managed isolation and quarantine (MIQ) set by the government, they won’t be able to take the field before Christmas. New Zealand already have a cramped schedule with as many as three teams such as South Africa, Netherlands and Bangladesh are slated to tour the country in the next summer. India last toured New Zealand for a full series in early 2022 before the Covid-19 pandemic gripped the world. The Virat Kohli-led side were swept 0-2 in the Test series, defeated 1-2 in the ODI series while the men in blue swept the T20I series 5-0.