The global governing body of the sport has decided to go with a Hybrid model for the 2025 edition of the Champions Trophy, with India going to play their matches at a neutral venue in Dubai.

“It’s unfortunate that things have worked out that way for sure. But there’s no doubt that what everyone loves seeing — the India-Pakistan games. Whenever they come together, whether it’s an ICC event, it is a really special time because we’ve got a sense of what’s on the line,” Watson told the media.

“It’s unfortunate that India aren’t travelling to Pakistan for this Champions Trophy. But, unfortunately, that’s just the way it is right now,” he added.

The Champions Trophy 2025 is going to begin in February and India’s matches will be played in Dubai. If India manages to qualify for semi-final and final, both the matches will be also held in Dubai, otherwise, the matches will be held in Pakistan itself.

India’s schedule for Champions Trophy 2025:
India vs Bangladesh: February 20 in Dubai
India vs Pakistan: February 23 in Dubai
India vs New Zealand: March 2 in Dubai
Semi-final (if qualified): March 4 in Dubai
Final (if qualified): March 9 in Dubai

The post Shane Watson calls it “Unfortunate” as India declined travelling to Pakistan for Champions Trophy appeared first on Cricket Country.

Also watch: Ben Stokes journey of 100 Test matches

Whether you’re a die-hard fan or new to the sport, this discussion will inspire nostalgia and appreciation for the greats of cricket. Share your thoughts and tell us who holds a special place in your heart as your favorite cricketer of all time!

The post Who’s your all-time favorite Cricketer? appeared first on Cricket Country.

Australia coach and selector Andrew McDonald first mentioned the prospect of Green as a possible replacement for Warner back in November, though he suggested that the order could be reshuffled with Marnus Labuschagne moving up to open and Green slotting into the middle order.

However, Usman Khawaja, who has become one of the most successful Test openers in history after beginning his career in various middle-order positions, has suggested that Labuschagne should stay at No. 3, while Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh have both stated that they would prefer to stay where they are, raising the possibility of Green opening the batting.

“There’s no question in my mind he can [open]. Australia needs to get Cameron Green into the team and the opportunity that you’ve got right now is for him to open. They’ll just have to manage his bowling, for sure, like with my bowling when I was opening the batting. But he absolutely has got the skill, the run-scoring ability and the understanding to be able to make the most of being an opening batter for sure. It might take him a game or two just to be able to work out exactly what his game plan is. But he’s definitely got the game and the mentality to make the most of it,” Watson told ESPNcricinfo.

Last week, both McDonald and captain Pat Cummins acknowledged that all alternatives are on the table, including selecting one of the best three Sheffield Shield openers in Cameron Bancroft, Marcus Harris, and Matt Renshaw. Both, however, stated that they are not opposed to selecting someone without first-class opening experience for the job provided he is among the top six hitters.

Watson did not feel that prior experience opening the batting in first-class cricket was required for the role because he had barely ever opened before doing so at Test level, despite his success opening the batting in ODI cricket. Watson noted former opening pair Simon Katich and Khawaja as examples of middle-order players who have adapted to the job. They are two of just five Australian openers in Test history to have averaged more than 50 runs per inning while totalling more than 2000 runs.

“If you’re scoring runs even slightly lower down the order, you’re facing new balls at times whether you come in early or facing a second new ball, so you’re very well equipped to be able to deal with a brand new ball opening the batting. We have seen it a number of times. Uzzy and Simon Katich are great examples,” Watson said.

“It just comes down to what the game plan is and then having the right mindset to be able to capitalise on the technical skills that you do have. I certainly didn’t serve an apprenticeship in Shield cricket opening the batting but it suited me down to the ground when I got the opportunity to do it Test cricket, just with my technique but also with my mindset that was created because of it,” he added.

The post “No question in my mind he can”: Shane Watson backs Cameron Green to open for Australia in Test Cricket appeared first on Cricket Country.

His stint with Quetta Gladiators will mark his return to Pakistan as in February 2022, Tait took up the role of Pakistan’s men’s national team bowling coach. A year later former South Africa pacer Morne Morkel replaced him. He will be looking to use his previous experience to get the best out of the players.

“I’d like to thank Nadeem Omar (Quetta Gladiators owner) who trusted me with the bowling group, including Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, and Mohammad Amir. Some great talent there to work with alongside the great Shane Watson,” Tait said in an official statement.

During his time with the Pakistan team, Tait was quite vocal in his criticism of Pakistan’s pace bowlers struggling to maintain high workloads.

In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, he had stated that there was “no way – no way – express pace bowlers can currently play all three formats consistently.”

In the same interview, he praised pacer Muhammad Hasnain who will once again fall under his wing, while also pointing out his recuperating ankle injury.

“Hasnain has got the ability to bowl proper rapid, but there’s no doubt [there’s an air of vulnerability to him]. My input with Hasnain is purely about just using his athleticism. Getting that grunt as a fast bowler and being angry. Just running in fast and feeling good,” Tait said at that time.

The announcement continues to reflect on Gladiators making an overhaul of the coaching staff. They will be keen to change their disappointing past performances which saw them miss the playoffs for four successive seasons.

During the initial phase of the PSL, Gladiators were the most consistent franchise, in the first four seasons they reached the final three times, and also lifted the title in 2019.

Season 9 of the PSL will kick off on February 8 and will be played till March 24.

The post Shaun Tait appointed as the bowling coach of Quetta Gladiators for PSL 2024. appeared first on Cricket Country.

Ahead of this edition’s IPL, head coach Ricky Pointing had said this would be Shaw’s breakthrough season. However, the prodigiously talented opener has failed miserably and was dropped after playing six games adding to Delhi’s batting woes.

“One of most disappointing parts for DC this season was Prithvi Shaw. He’s one of the most beautiful batters to watch and take down the best bowling with the skills that he’s got,” Watson told reporters on the eve of DC’s match against Chennai Super Kings on Saturday.

“And knowing that we gave him a big stretch to find his feet. We also knew he has been a little bit inconsistent as well in the past few years.” Delhi’s inconsistent batting unit afforded the 23-year-old another chance and Shaw made a stunning comeback with his maiden fifty of the season against Punjab Kings earlier this week.

“But missing out on a few games he really centralised and focussed him on what direction he wants to go. Because he’s so incredibly skilled with the bat in hand he needs to bring every part of the game together.

“He should be dominating international cricket. But sometime it takes people some time to navigate how they can do that consistently. He certainly had an extra bit of fire in his belly the other day.”.

The Kotla pitch doesn’t suit our batting attack, Watson feels that the pitch at the Arun Jaitley Stadium doesn’t suit the Capitals batting line up.

“The pitches here in Delhi haven’t been great. They are probably great if you have a different type of set up to the team… if you have a lot of Indian top order batters. But that’s not the make up of our team.” After posting their first 200 plus score of the season in Dharamsala earlier this week, skipper David Warner had said that the Delhi batters are struggling to figure out the best total at the slow and inconsistent pitches at home.

“As we saw when we are able to play in good, traditional cricket wicket, true surface, ball doesn’t really turn a lot but is going through nicely we saw what can happen with our overseas players, Prithvi that’s our strength,” Watson said.

“But we come here to Delhi unfortunately with the amount of cricket being played on this wicket block, it’s very dry and doesn’t have much grass, which exposes the set up of our batting at the moment. Hopefully, the conditions will be a bit more suitable for our team.”.

Consistent leadership helps CSK bounce back after failures having been a part of the CSK set up for a few years, Watson feels the consistent leadership and calmness helps the four-time champions bounce back from failures.

“What stood out for me was the consistent leadership, with MS Dhoni and Stephen Fleming and just the calmness they have through out the franchise.

“CSK don’t chop and change their team too much. They have a very settled team without making too many changes, they really understand what their roles are, that’s something at DC we need to get better at, to provide the calm within the team, the franchise.” This season Delhi has struggled with its Indian batting line up. The inconsistency has led to think-tank to shuffle around with the playing XI through out the season.

“It makes things a lot easier if the team is performing more consistently as well. They have the playing group to bounce back as well with the experience they normally have. In DC, we have a younger group that we are trying to help grow.” The former Australian all-rounder said for a team to succeed in the IPL, it is important that the sides’ Indian players do well.

“You need the foreign players’ experience but the team that does consistently the best is the one with high performance Indian players because there are 7 or 8 of them and have an impact on the season.

“Rishabh (Pant) was a huge hole we are trying to fill this year. But there has been a lot of progress and development this year to set them up for the next few seasons.”

The post “Incredibly talented” Prithvi Shaw Should Be Dominating International Cricket But Has Been Disappointing For DC This Season: Shane Watson appeared first on Cricket Country.

The 20-year-old star batter who made his debut in 2022 is already probable to play for the Indian team. Varma has played 9 matches this year and smashed 274 runs with an average of 45.67. In total, he slammed 21 fours and 18 sixes. On the other hand, MI’s all-rounder Arjun Tendulkar made his IPL debut this year and took one wicket during his first match.

But when asked to choose one player who will be the next great star in the IPL, former Australian all-rounder Shane Watson ignored the Mumbai Indians duo and chose a 23-year-old Australian all-rounder as the next big player of IPL 2023.

Delhi Capitals assistant coach, Watson declared that MI star Cameron Green is going to be the next big name in the IPL. Speaking about Green on Jio Cinema’s show, Watson said, “I am going to say Cameron Green. He’s the best on the scene already, but I think he’s going to be mind-blowing in the future.”

Cameron Green IPL Journey So Far

Australian all-rounder Green who was signed by Mumbai Indians for 17.50 crore played 13 matches this season and score 281 runs at an average of 40.14 and a strike rate of 146.35. In total he took 6 wickets in 13 innings.

Watson was later asked, who is the GOAT of IPL?

With a cheeky smile on his face he named former Indian captain MS Dhoni. Shane was himself part of Chennai Super Kings (2018- 2020) and played under Dhoni’s captaincy.

The post AUS Legend Shane Watson Picks ‘Next Big Name In IPL’ And He’s Neither Arjun Tendulkar Nor Tilak Varma appeared first on Cricket Country.

Here are some players who refurbished their careers under the leadership of ‘Captain Cool’.

Ashish Nehra

The left-arm pacer wandered through many franchises before playing for MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings in 2015. He performed remarkably, picking up 22 wickets in the season at an average of 20.40 and an astonishing economy rate of 7.24. Nehra, a member of 2011 World Cup-winning Indian team, is currently the head coach of defending IPL champions Gujarat Titans. He is the only Indian coach to win an IPL trophy.

Ambati Rayudu

An exceptional batter, Rayudu had a controversial international cricket career. His temperament made things worse for him until he found his spot in the CSK line-up, which flowered the best out of him. The 37-year-old batter made 602 runs in the 2018 IPL season and has been an integral part of CSK’s batting order since then.

Shivam Dube

Considered one of the most promising Indian all-rounders, Dube had two customary seasons With Virat Kohli-led RCB (2019 and 2020). After that, he went on to represent Rajasthan Royals for a single season. The southpaw was bought by CSK in 2022 and Dhoni transformed him into a phenomenal middle-order batter who constantly pushes the team’s run rate with his aggressive batting style.

Shane Watson

After Rajasthan Royals got banned in 2015, Shane Watson moved to Royal Challengers Bangalore, but he could only embark on a spark once he joined CSK in 2018. He scored 555 runs that season and was instrumental in CSK’s title-winning campaign. He continued to perform wonders for his team in the other seasons as well.

Ajinkya Rahane

Once the skipper of Rajasthan Royals, Rahane was roped by CSK in the IPL 2023 mini-auction. Although unable to produce much in some of the previous IPL seasons, Rahane is running riot in the ongoing season with his blasting batting approach and classy cricketing shots. The latter has scored 129 runs in three matches with an average of 43.00 and a colossal strike rate of 195.45.

The post Ambati Rayudu To Shivam Dube: Five Players Whose Career Got Reframed Under Mahendra Singh Dhoni appeared first on Cricket Country.

Warner has hit three half-centuries in four games for Delhi, amassing 209 runs at an average of 52.25. But those runs have come at a sluggish strike rate of 114.83 and Warner is yet to hit a six in the competition, having struggled to accelerate the scoring rate for Delhi.

On Tuesday, Warner was seen punching his bat in frustration after making a 43-ball half-century in Delhi’s six-wicket loss to Mumbai Indians, their fourth defeat in as many matches this season.

“The other night (on Tuesday against Mumbai Indians), Dave definitely had a lot more fearless mindset with the way he was batting. He was taking the game on, yes, he missed a few balls that in the past he would have hit for four or six. He’s mis-hit a couple of balls, but that’s all part of Dave just working through the technical side of his game.”

“That’s also part of my role as well, as a coach. Because I know Dave so well from batting with him and playing with him, there are one or two little things that I know he’ll get right over the next couple of days and I’ll be blown away if he doesn’t. yes, he’s been scoring runs, but from a scoring perspective, if he doesn’t set the IPL alight from now on, knowing that he’s so close.”

“He’s batting very nicely. He’s just mis-hitting some balls that he’d normally hit for four or six. Once you do that, once you start really finding the middle of your bat, then your scoring rate just goes through the roof,” elaborated Watson on ‘The Grade Cricketer’ podcast.

During the tournament, Warner also became the fastest player to reach 6,000 runs in his IPL career and Watson also revealed that the opener is trying to find his way out of the dilemma of taking a risk when wickets are falling from the other end.

“His strike rate across his career in the IPL is nearly 140. He’s been a great player in the IPL for a long period. That (taking risk or not) has always been a challenging inner battle as it goes against a lot of the things that you’re taught as a kid growing up. You lose a wicket, you’ve got to establish a partnership – even in T20 cricket – for five or six balls.”

“But then, if you do that and you keep losing wickets after five or six balls before you know it, you’re three overs down and you’ve just been rotating ones to try and build a partnership. Dave was just working through that himself in the first few games,” he added.

With Delhi at the bottom of the points table after four consecutive losses, Saturday’s match against Royal Challengers Bangalore at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium holds the key for them to make a turnaround in their campaign. Watson said all-rounder Mitchell Marsh will be available for the match after missing the last two games due to his wedding back home in Perth.

“It’s never perfect when you lose your first four games. But that is the beauty of having someone with the skill of Ricky Ponting as a coach, and just his understanding of people. That’s the beauty of being a coach, to be able to help the guys where they need it, whether its skill-wise or mentally.”

“At the Delhi Capitals, we have to turn it around. Mitch Marsh is back after his wedding and will be raring to go. These are the times when you really see the true colours of people and coaches when things aren’t going well. It’s a true sign of character: how you can work through the little things that are not going how we want them to, to turn them around and be more consistent,” he concluded.

The post IPL 2023: Will Be Blown Away If David Warner Doesn’t Set IPL Alight From Now On, Says Shane Watson appeared first on Cricket Country.

He picked Proteas batter Rilee Rossouw as the X-factor for the Delhi-based franchise. The South African batter can play a crucial role in the absence of the Indian stalwart batter, Rishabh Pant. He was in tremendous form in the recently-concluded Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2023 and scored 400-plus runs in 11 matches and played a crucial part in Multan Sultan’s road to the final.

“Well, one, in particular, is Rilee Rossouw, he’s someone you know, I’ve played with him in the Pakistan Super League for Quetta Gladiators,” said Watson while speaking with Star Sports.

“And to see how he has come back into international cricket and he’s a world-class hitter of the ball. He can take down any bowler at any stage, in any conditions. So if he gets on a roll, he can just take the game away from the opposition,” Watson added.

Watson spoke about DC’s strengths ahead of their opening match against KL Rahul’s Lucknow Super Giants on April 1 and said “Well, there’s a lot of very talented players, I think, yeah, David Warner for me is just at the top of the order.”

“He’s going to continue to have a point to prove and everyone’s going to be like riding off the back of him. He’s always scored so many runs in the IPL. And to be an opening batter, and set the platform like he does is going to be very important.

“I think Mitchell Marsh is going to have another really big season for him. He’s got incredible skill with the bat alone and how he’s batting and takes the game on is going to play a really big part.

“And then we’ve got some youngsters with the ball, fast bowlers, (Kamlesh) Nagarkoti and Chetan Sakariya. And then we’ve got our spinners as well, like Axar and Kuldeep Yadav. Those two guys, to be able to have world-class spinners bowling especially through the middle, to be able to try and get wickets and also keep the runs down, that’s so critically important,” added the former Aussie alrounder.

The post He Can Just Take The Game Away From Opposition: Shane Watson Reveals Delhi Capitals’ Trump Card Ahead Of IPL 2023 appeared first on Cricket Country.

Warner, who will be leading the franchise in the absence of Rishabh Pant, has been one of the biggest spectacles in the league, scoring 5881 IPL runs in his career which started in 2009 with the Delhi franchise. He is the 3rd highest-run scorer in the history of the tournament.

“Well, there’s a lot of very talented players, I think, yeah, David Warner for me is just at the top of the order. He’s going to continue to have a point to prove and everyone’s going to be like riding off the back of him. He’s always scored so many runs in the IPL. And to be an opening batter, and set the platform as he does is going to be very important,” Watson told Star Sports.

Watson further said Mitchell March will also play a really huge part for the Delhi-based franchise with the current form with a bat, “I think Mitchell Marsh, this is going to be another really big season for him. He’s got incredible skills with the bat alone and how he’s batting and takes the game on is going to play a really big part.”

“And then we’ve got some youngsters with the ball, fast bowlers, we’ve got Nagarkoti and Chetan Sakariya. And then we’ve got our spinners as well, like Axar and Kuldeep Yadav. Those two guys, to be able to have world-class spinners bowling especially through the middle, to be able to try and get wickets and also keep the runs down, that’s so critically important,” Watson added.

The former cricketer also spoke about who will be the trump card for the Capitals will be and said: “Well, one, in particular, is Rilee Rossouw, he’s someone you know, I’ve played with him in the Pakistan Super League for Quetta Gladiators. And to see how he has come back into international cricket and he’s a world-class hitter of the ball. He can take down any bowler at any stage, in any conditions. So if he gets on a roll, he can just take the game away from the opposition.”

Watson further spoke on the home advantage that Delhi Capitals have this season, he said “For sure, Delhi’s normally, conventionally a lower, turning sort of wicket and we’ve got the bowlers to exploit that with our spinners alone. With Axarand also Kuldeep Yadav, but also with the batters that we’ve got, can really make the most of those conditions. It’s a smaller ground as well. So, but in any IPL, you do have to make your home ground a fortress.”

Speaking on the biggest challenge for the Delhi Capitals squad, Watson added that the capitals have a skilled squad but not having Pant be a part of the tournament this season will be a huge miss for the Delhi-based franchise.

“The biggest challenge for Delhi is just to be able to consistently put good performances together. You know, the Delhi Capitals have got a really, really skilful squad, and we do again this year. Obviously, Rishabh Pant not being a part of, not playing this tournament is going to be a huge, huge miss,” said Watson.

“Delhi’s normally, conventionally a lower, turning sort of wicket and we’ve got the bowlers to exploit that with our spinners alone. With Axar and also Kuldeep Yadav, but also with the batters that we’ve got, can really make the most of those conditions. It’s a smaller ground as well. So, but in any IPL, you do have to make your home ground a fortress,” Watson said on the home advantage that Delhi Capitals have this season.

DC will start their IPL 2023 campaign against Lucknow Super Giants on April 1 at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.

The post David Warner Will Have A Point To Prove In The 2023 IPL: Shane Watson appeared first on Cricket Country.