Cricket world

Steve_Smith (X/ICC) Australia batter Steve Smith is the newest addition to the list of players using black anti-glare strips below their eyes. This was made famous by West Indies great Shivnarine Chanderpaul. Smith tried the anti-glare strips when Australia had a floodlit training session before their pink-ball second Test against England in the Ashes series, which begins on Thursday at the Gabba. Smith said during Australia’s last day-night Test against West Indies: “The pink ball in general is just a completely different game. Personally, I find it quite tricky just picking the ball up at certain times of the day and things like that, and the way it behaves is completely different to a red one. I think people like the spectacle. But as a player, particularly as a batter, it’s very challenging. The game can so quickly, and things change really quickly, which you probably don’t get so much with a red ball. But yeah, people like watching it, I suppose, so I guess it’s here to stay.”...

Virat_Kohli (PC:X) India legend Sunil Gavaskar believes that veteran India player Virat Kohli is the ‘greatest’ batsman in the one-day format of the game. Speaking on JioHotstar, Gavaskar said that even the modern-generation players accept the greatness of Kohli. “It’s not just me. Those who have played with him and against him all agree that he is the greatest in the one-day format.” Kohli scored his 52nd hundred in ODI cricket against South Africa in Ranchi and became the first male cricketer in the world to reach that many hundreds in any format of the game. The Delhi-born cricketer played a brilliant knock of 135 off 120 balls, including 11 fours and seven sixes at a strike rate of 112.50, and stitched a partnership of 136 runs off 109 balls with Rohit Sharma to lay the foundation for a big score. Pointing towards Ricky Ponting’s comments on Kohli, Gavaskar said: “It is rare—very rare—to get praise from an Australian. So if an Australian says he’s the best, then there’s no a...

Virat Kohli in Ranchi. Image: Revsportz. Subhayan Chakraborty in Ranchi Virat Kohli lit up Ranchi on Sunday with a scintillating 135 that earned him Player of the Match honours and powered India to a 17-run victory in the first ODI against South Africa. The 37-year-old’s knock laid the foundation for India’s imposing total of 349, which proved too steep for the visitors despite a valiant chase. With a media report suggesting that a player recently retired from Tests might be open to rethink his decision, speculations were rife whether it was Kohli. However, the batting maestro was quick to shut down the rumours while also hinting towards his future participation in domestic cricket. The innings, coming on the back of Kohli’s continued excellence in 50-over cricket, inevitably reignited chatter about his Test retirement U-turn. Earlier this year, Kohli stunned the cricketing world by announcing his retirement from the longest format after 123 Tests, finishing agonisingly short of ...

Ro-Ko (PC: BCCI) Gautam Gambhir and Ajit Agarkar, India’s head coach and the chairman of the senior men’s selection committee, might not have the last word on the ODI future of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, it is learnt. It would be about how the two titans of Indian cricket are planning their future, with an eye on the 2027 World Cup. According to a source in the know, the BCCI would like to hear from them, as a meeting is planned towards the end, or after the white-ball series against South Africa that starts on Sunday. Gambhir and Agarkar are expected to be part of that meeting, but ultimately, it would be the BCCI’s call, as the 2027 World Cup is high on the cricket board’s agenda. Rohit and Kohli are still performing in the only format they play now. The former returned from the three ODIs in Australia as the Player of the Series on the back of a half-century and an unbeaten hundred. Kohli, too, made 74 not out off 81 balls in the final ODI in Sydney after back-to-back ducks i...

Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma (Image: Debasis Sen) India will be without regular captain Shubman Gill and vice-captain Shreyas Iyer for the upcoming three-match ODI series against South Africa, which begins on Sunday. The team is eager to put the recent 0-2 Test series drubbing behind them. In their absence, KL Rahul will lead the side and will rely on the vast experience of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja to guide the squad toward a strong comeback. Although the 50-over format is no longer India’s top priority, with the next ODI World Cup still two years away, interest in bilateral ODIs has surged again – largely because Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli continue to feature. Uncertainty over the duo’s long-term future in the format has only added to the buzz, and their involvement has revived a format that had started to lose its appeal. Both looked noticeably sharper in the nets in Ranchi than they did during the Australia tour, and their unbeaten century...

Sophie Ecclestone in action against RCB in WPL (PC: BCCI/WPL) The eagerly awaited WPL 2026 Auction had its share of thrills and spills. Here at RevSportz, we list out the top five auction buys in terms of value for money. Sophie Ecclestone – The UP Warriorz would be pleased to pick up Ecclestone for 85 lakhs. The left-arm spinner remains one of the best limited-overs bowlers in the cricketing landscape. She has 36 wickets in the WPL at an average of 18.38. Ecclestone has a very repeatable action, which contributes to her excellent control, and her height allows her to generate natural flight.  She gave a glimpse of her class and quality in the humdinger against RCB in the 2025 season. In that game, she not only bowled a superb Super Over but also showcased her hitting prowess against Renuka Singh, thwacking the pacer to all corners during the UP Warriorz’s innings. Grace Harris – The batting all-rounder’s services were secured by Royal Challengers Bengaluru for 75 lakh. Sh...

Healy (PC: X) Australian captain Alyssa Healy went unsold at the Women’s Premier League 2026 mega-auction, held in New Delhi on Thursday, November 27. Healy entered the auction as one of the most prominent names, but not a single franchise showed interest in her. The wicketkeeper-batter was the first player presented in the marquee set. Usually, the first set is dominated by heavy bidding, but, surprisingly, no franchise raised the paddle when her name was announced. Healy is currently playing in the Women’s Big Bash League for the Sydney Sixers. Her current form is not particularly strong, as she has scored only 65 runs in four innings at an average of 16.25. She missed the previous WPL season because of a foot injury sustained during the T20 World Cup in the UAE. Healy’s past record in the WPL is respectable, with 428 runs to her name in 17 matches at a strike rate of 130.48 and an average of 26.75. She also captained UP Warriorz in the first two seasons of the WPL. The dynam...

  Gautam_Gambhir (PC:X) Indian cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar believes that it is unfair to blame head coach Gautam Gambhir for the home series losses against South Africa and New Zealand. And the coach did not get the amount of credit that he deserved when India won limited overs tournaments.  Speaking to India Today, Gavaskar added that it is the responsibility of the players to perform and the coach can only guide. “He’s a coach. The coach can prepare a team. But it’s out there in the middle that the players have to deliver. Now, to those who are asking, you know, for him to be held accountable, my question, counter-question is: what did you do when India won the Champions Trophy under him? What did you do when India won the Asia Cup under him?” he said. South Africa crushed India by a massive margin of 408 runs in the last Test of the two-match series to clean-sweep 2-0. It’s the second Test series loss for India at home, within a span of one year, as New Zealand de...

By Ashok Namboodiri From a broadcast standpoint, the WPL mega auction scheduled for today delivers what modern sports television increasingly seeks, high-intent viewing, spike-driven engagement and narrative density without the cost architecture of live gameplay. This is decision-making television. Tension without wickets. Drama without deliveries. This is not just a TRP exercise; it is strategic brand investment aimed at the highly engaged sports fan and is viewed by brands as a property that offers positive rub-off in more ways than one. In the RevSportz view, this auction is not merely a squad-building exercise. It is less about who goes where and more about what the WPL now represents in the hierarchy of Indian sport economics. Because unlike IPL auctions that operate within an already mature ecosystem, the WPL auction is still defining the grammar of its valuation model. Every raised paddle is a declaration of faith, from franchises, broadcasters and brands, in a league that ...

Shubman_Gill (PC:X) South Africa defeated India by a huge margin of 408 runs in the final Test of the two-match series in Guwahati, completing a 2–0 sweep. After the defeat, India’s captain Shubman Gill, who could not play in the second match due to a neck injury, reacted to the series loss. “Calm seas don’t teach you how to steer; it’s the storm that forges steady hands. We’ll continue to believe in each other, fight for each other, and move forward — rising stronger,” Gill wrote on X (formerly Twitter). India lost the first Test by 30 runs after failing to chase 124 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. Gill’s neck issue began while he was batting at Eden Gardens in the first innings. The right-handed batter left the field and did not take part in the rest of the match, and was subsequently ruled out of the second Test. The team management is now waiting for his recovery ahead of the T20I series against South Africa, although a BCCI source said: “Gill has been given an injection to alle...

                                                                                                  (PC- Debasis Sen) For broadcasters, Test cricket is not merely a sporting product. It is a sentiment-driven economic engine where narrative, national pride and momentum directly influence revenue. Which is why India’s recent Test struggles, capped by a damaging 0-3 whitewash against New Zealand and the looming prospect of a similar outcome against South Africa, represent far more than a cricketing crisis. They constitute a strategic and financial shock to the broadcast ecosystem, especially for rights holders like JioStar and, to a lesser degree, Sony. Contrary to the comforting folklore that “close matches always drive revenue”, the Indian marke...

Pathum_Nissanka (PC:X/ Sri Lanka Cricket) Sri Lanka crushed Zimbabwe by nine wickets with 22 balls to spare in the fifth T20I of the tri-series in Rawalpindi courtesy of Pathum Nissanka’s brilliance with the bat. Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to bat first at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. They had a poor start losing two wickets within the third over. However, Brian Bennett’s two partnerships of 36 runs with Brendan Taylor and Sikandar Raza stabilized Zimbabwe’s innings. Ryan Burl’s unbeaten 37 off 26 balls lower down the order was instrumental in taking Zimbabwe to a score of 146/5 in 20 overs. Captain Sikandar Raza contributed 37 runs while Bennett scored 34 runs. For Sri Lanka, Maheesh Theekshana and Wanindu Hasaranga took two wickets each.  In reply, Sri Lanka had a blazing start as their openers Nissanka and Kamil Mishara added 59 off 34 balls. Mishara got caught by Wellington Masakadza off Brad Evans after scoring 12. Whereas Nissanka kept on playing his shots and ...

Shanta Rangaswamy and Venkatesh Prasad. RevSportz. Venkatesh Prasad could take over as the next president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association unopposed, in the aftermath of KN Shanth Kumar’s nomination papers being rejected during scrutiny. The highly anticipated election is scheduled to be held on December 7. Shanth Kumar, who belongs to ‘Team Brijesh’, is currently a director of The Printers (Mysore) Private Limited and the president of the DH and PV Sports Club. Shanth Kumar is said to have defaulted on the club’s annual subscription for a period of four years, which in turn goes against the KSCA’s bylaws. A couple of other nomination papers belonging to Dr Srikanth Rai and Mruthyunjaya were also made invalid on the grounds of defaulting on dues and the absence of an affidavit. Both belong to Prasad’s ‘Team Gamechangers’. Incidentally, in a press meet, Prasad had come down heavily on ‘Team Brijesh’: “By saving so much money, you have neglected the sport which has given...

Gavaskar (PC: X) Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar has raised his voice in the ongoing pitch debate by calling out unfair criticism of subcontinental wickets compared with those in SENA nations (South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia). His remarks came after two Tests — one in Perth and another in Kolkata — ended early, but only the Eden Gardens pitch in Kolkata faced heavy backlash. Gavaskar pointed out the hypocritical nature of some former cricketers and experts after the first Ashes Test in Perth finished inside the first two days. “The Perth Test match has ended in less than two days, with 32 wickets having fallen, including 19 on the first day, but as yet there’s not a word of criticism about the pitch there,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for Mid-Day. “Last year too, 17 wickets fell on Day One at Perth between India and Australia, and I can’t recall a critical word about the pitch, which had more grass on it than usual.” Gavaskar further explained his point, s...