Indian captain Mohamed Amaan made a spectacular knock against Japan. He played an unbeaten game of 122 runs. He became the first-ever Indian batter to smash a century against Japan in Under-19 Asia Cup, and in international cricket as well.

Ayush Mahatre, another batter from Indian side, scored half-century in this match as well.

As the team was asked to bat, Indian captain Amaan played a massive knock of 122 runs, smashing 7 fours in 118 balls. Hardik Raj on the other hand, also smashed 35 runs in 12 balls, including 2 sixes.

Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Ayush Mahatre, KP Karthikeya, and Andre Siddharth were some of the players who had an important role in the team’s inning.

The post Indian Captain creates History, Scores Unbeaten Century against Japan in Asia Cup U-19 Tournament appeared first on Cricket Country.

It was a special match for Khaleel as he got to open the bowling for India, which was one of his many dreams. 

“Mahi bhai is not my friend, not my elder brother, he is my guru. Since my childhood I wanted to become the bowler who took the first over from India since I had watched Zaheer Khan growing up. In the Asia Cup, Mahi bhai, asked me to bowl the first over. I ran so hard, away from the huddle thinking that if I give it time he might change his mind,” Khaleel said in a video posted on Aakash Chopra’s YouTube channel.

Khaleel further shared an anecdote behind his viral photo with Dhoni. In the photo, the former India captain can be seen giving him flowers. 

“We were in New Zealand, Mahi bhai’s fans had given him flowers, he passed it onto me and some fans took a photo, it was quite memorable for me,” Khaleel said.

The post “Not my friend…”: Khaleel Ahmed on his connection with MS Dhoni appeared first on Cricket Country.

Meanwhile, the impressive seven wickets taken by Renuka Singh in the tournament lifted her four places within the bowlers. Deepti Sharma remains to shine, as she holds the third spot in the bowling rankings.

Along with Smriti and Renuka, Radha Yadav also had an impressive performance in the Asia Cup as she claimed six wickets, earning her a jump of seven spots. She jumped to the 13th position in the ICC T20I bowlers’ rankings. On the batting side, Australia’s Beth Mooney and Tahlia McGrath kept their top-two spots, followed by West Indies’ Hayley Matthews in third place. The sixth position was secured by Laura Wolvaardt from South Africa.

“Inspirational Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu also reached new heights as she moved up three places to sixth on the same list to bring up a career-best rating following her Player of the Tournament heroics at the Asia Cup that included a whopping 304 runs at an average north of 100,” the ICC said on its website.

The post ICC T20 Rankings: Smriti Mandhana and Renuka Thakur’s Big Leap in Standings appeared first on Cricket Country.

The information on venues for future Asia Cups is as per the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) releasing Invitation for Expressions of Interest (IEOI) document, which invites interested parties to submit their IEOI for ACC Sponsorship Rights for the period from 2024 to 2027.

India previously hosted a Men’s Asia Cup in 1990/91, where they emerged as champions at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. The document also says that both future editions of Men’s Asia Cup will comprise of 13 games per edition.

The Women’s T20 Asia Cup will be played in 2026. Though the venue hasn’t been named, it will comprise of 15 matches in total.

The post India to host 2025 Men’s T20 Asia Cup, 2027 edition to be hosted by Bangladesh appeared first on Cricket Country.

After winning the toss and choosing to bat first, India pacer Renuka Singh helped the Women in Blue in getting early wickets as she bowled 4 overs back-to-back and finished with amazing figures of 3/10 in her quota of 4 overs.

Then, left-arm spinner Radha Yadav also bowled brilliantly and finished her spell with great figures of 3/14.

The other bowlers also bowled quite well and didn’t let the Bangladesh batters get many runs. This amazing bowling effort saw India restrict Bangladesh to a modest total of 80/8 after 20 overs.

Then, Indian opening pair of Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana came out to bat with the Women in Blue only needing 81 runs to qualify for the Asia Cup final.

Mandhana and Shafali’s knocks were filled with trademark shots around the ground as India motored to 46 for no loss in the Power Play.

Shafali, who was dropped on 21 off Rabeya Khan, played those powerful heaves across the line to find the fence.

Mandhana, at the other end, unfurled those exquisite drives on the off-side, such as the one the left-hander played through the covers against pacer Marufa Akter.

Mandhana also displayed her power while pulling pacer Jahanara Alam for a six over deep square leg. The left-armed batsman’s unbeaten knock of 55 helped India reach a victory that was a long-forgone conclusion.

Renuka was awarded with the player of the match award for her amazing bowling spell.

Brief scores: Bangladesh 80 for 8 in 20 overs (Nigar Sultana 32; Renuka Singh Thakur 3/10, Radha Yadav 3/14) lost to by 10 wickets to India 83 for no loss in 11 overs (Smriti Mandhana 55 not out, Shafali Verma 26 not out.)

The post India Advances to Final: Wins Semi-Final Clash Against Bangladesh in Women’s Asia Cup appeared first on Cricket Country.

World Cup Runners-Up:

• 2005 Women’s Cricket World Cup: Reached the finals but lost to Australia.
• 2017 Women’s Cricket World Cup: Reached the finals but lost to England in a closely contested match.

T20 World Cup Runners-Up:

• 2020 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup: Reached the finals but lost to Australia.

Asia Cup Champions:

• Women’s Asia Cup: Won the tournament multiple times (2004, 2005–06, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2016, and 2018).

Bilateral Series Wins:

• The Indian women’s team has achieved numerous bilateral series victories against top teams like England, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, both at home and away.

ICC Rankings:

• Consistently ranked among the top teams in both ODI and T20 formats.

Individual Achievements:

• Mithali Raj: The highest run-scorer in women’s international cricket and the first woman to complete 20 years in international cricket.
• Jhulan Goswami: The highest wicket-taker in Women’s One Day Internationals (ODIs).
• Smriti Mandhana: ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year (2018).

Historic Test Wins:

• Notable Test victories, including their historic win against England in Wormsley in 2014 and Australia in 2021.

Commonwealth Games:

• 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games: Silver medalists, showcasing their skills on an international multi-sport stage.

The Indian women’s cricket team continues to grow in strength and popularity, inspiring a new generation of cricketers.

The post From Asia Cup to Commonwealth Glory: Indian Women’s Cricket Shines appeared first on Cricket Country.

After India was reduced to 52 for 3, they were in serious trouble. However, Kaur (66 off 47 balls) formed two vital partnerships, adding 14 runs off of 39 balls with Jemimah Rodrigues and 64 runs off of 45 balls with Richa Ghosh, to put India in a dominant position.

UAE could only muster 123 for 7 in response.

“It is a great feeling. When Jemi and I were batting, we spoke that we had to run hard rather than just going for risky shots. Our focus was on getting 7-8 runs per over,” Kaur said after the match.

“When Richa came, I just told her to keep watching the ball and see how wicket is playing. She batted beautifully. My role was just to stay on the pitch and keep rotating strike. Whenever loose balls come, convert them to the boundary.”

India achieved their first-ever 200+ total in T20 cricket thanks to Ghosh’s 29-ball knock, even though Kaur performed the role of the anchor to perfection.

“Credit to Richa. Because of her we reached the target … today also we lost early wickets but we kept ourselves ready.”

After scoring a 29-ball, undefeated 64, Richa Ghosh—who was named the game’s MVP—praised Kaur for putting her in the middle of the field and stated she simply trusted herself to take advantage of the situation.

“Whenever I am playing with Harry [Harmanpreet] di, she tells me how the ball is coming on and how to play the shots. Whenever I get the opportunity, I want to back myself,” she said.

“The first four from a cover drive was my favourite.”

UAE skipper Esha Rohit Oza said it was a learning experience for her team.

“It was a great experience, lots of learnings. How to build an innings, that is something we saw first hand, and how to finish games. This is what we need to work on.

When we played against a team that size, we were never satisfied. We must confirm that we require ten wickets, not just three. Against a superior team, we performed better. We intend to apply the lessons learned in this game to our next one.”

The post Harmanpreet Kaur’s Strategy: Rotating Strike for Team’s Benefit appeared first on Cricket Country.

Protecting the winners India easily defeated Pakistan by seven wickets on Saturday, demonstrating their dominance, and it will take a massive miracle for the UAE to halt Harmanpreet Kaur’s team.

A victory over the Emirates will move India to four points, which will also have a favorable impact on their Net Run Rate (NRR). Currently, they have two points and a +2.29 NRR.

It wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest that India will focus more on itself than on its opponents during their encounter against the UAE.

The management would have been ecstatic with Deepti Sharma, Renuka Singh, and Pooja Vastrakar’s efforts, even though Pooja was a little pricey, during their stellar performances against Pakistan.

They will be hoping that Radha Yadav, a left-arm spinner who just made a comeback to the Indian team during the home series against South Africa, can also be added to the list of players who take wickets on Sunday.

“It was a good spell and there was some assistance from the weather as well. Of course, I could execute all the plans that I have been working on at nets,” said Renuka in the post-match press meet.

Finally, with 35 balls remaining, the Indian hitters hunted down a non-challenging target with ruthlessness.

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With 85 runs in just 9.3 overs with to openers Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana, the team got off to a fast start; the loss of three wickets from that position was a small aberration.

India would therefore expect the middle-order hitters to put up a similar effort in the next games, beginning with the UAE.

India has a fantastic opportunity to be ready for the T20 World Cup, which will take place in Bangladesh later this year, thanks to the Asia Cup.

According to Renuka, India is using this event as a practice run for the main event at the ICC.

“The Asia Cup is important for us because after this we don’t have many matches (ahead of T20 WC) and we will have to rely on practice.

“So, this is a learning experience for us, and the conditions (in Bangladesh) could be similar. So, this is a good chance for us to get ready for the World Cup,” she said.

Nevertheless, despite losing by six wickets on Friday, India would be well to keep their attention on the current task at hand. The UAE may produce some exciting moments.

Pakistan will try to turn things around with a victory over a challenging Nepal in the second match of the day.

Teams (from):

INDIA: Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Smriti Mandhana, Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh (wk), Uma Chetry (wk), Pooja Vastrakar, Deepti Sharma, Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh, D Hemalatha, Asha Sobhana, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil, Sajana Sajeevan.

UAE: Esha Rohit Oza (C), Kavisha Kumari Egodage, Rithika Rajith, Samaira Dharnidharka, Lavanya Keny, Emily Thomas, Heena Harish Hotchandani, Mehak Thakur, Indhuja Nandakumar, Rinitha Rajith, Khushi Mohan Sharma, Rishitha Rajith, Suraksha Kotte, Theertha Satish, Vaishnave Mahesh.

Match starts at 2 PM IST.

The post India Targets UAE Victory to Secure Women’s Asia Cup Semifinal Spot appeared first on Cricket Country.

After being asked to bowl, India dismissed Pakistan for a below-par 108 and chased down the score with up to 35 balls left.

Opening pair Shafali Verma (40) and Smriti Mandhana (45) of India were at their best as they toyed with the Pakistani onslaught right away, needing 109.

“Our bowlers and openers did the job. The first game is always a pressure game that sets the tone. Our entire unit played really well. When we were bowling, we were talking about early breakthroughs. With the bat, credit goes to Smriti and Shafali. We want to keep playing fearless cricket,” Harmanpreet said at the post-match presentation ceremony.

Nida Dar, the captain of Pakistan, claimed that her team’s performance in the two powerplays was what decided the outcome.

“The difference was the powerplays, we lost both. The bowlers did well towards the end, though. We are confident of bouncing back,” she said.

Proven Indian spinner Deepti Sharma (3/20), who was named player of the match, expressed her happiness at having helped the team win.

“I am feeling really good as I could deliver as per the plan. I had the belief. As a unit, we are doing well for the last few months. The camps we have had helped a lot.

“I worked on my bowling after the South Africa series, so that helped. Nida Dar is a good batter, so her wicket was important,” she said.

The post Fearless Cricket Key to Victory, Says Harmanpreet appeared first on Cricket Country.

Harmanpreet Kaur, who is renowned for her assertive leadership, will try to lead India to an unprecedented seventh championship. Harmanpreet spoke candidly about India’s goals during the pre-tournament news conference, referring to it as a “very important” event.

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Harmanpreet was available for questions during the pre-tournament press conference. She also had a brilliant response ready for a reporter who inquired about whether or not people were becoming disinterested in women’s cricket. When India recently visited Bangladesh in April or May, a reporter made the observation that “less journalists appeared on the press conferences, what is your opinion?”

With a forthright reply, “Well, that’s none of my business, you guys have to come and cover us,” Harmanpreet instantly silenced the reporter.

There is controversy about Harmanpreet’s past with the Bangladesh cricket squad. In 2023, during an ODI match in Dhaka. She expressed her dissatisfaction with the umpiring throughout the match by hitting the stumps with her bat after being dismissed and by calling the umpiring “pathetic” during the post-match presentation. Harmanpreet is said to have yelled to invite the umpires along as both teams posed for a picture, implying that they were supporting Bangladesh. She was punished and even suspended for two matches in addition to receiving three demerit points for disobedience. She has now gained controversy in Bangladeshi media, and many people chose to ignore her when India visited the nation.

The post Fiery Response: Harmanpreet Kaur Stands Up for Women’s Cricket appeared first on Cricket Country.