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Hindustan Times
3 hours ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
Sai Sudharsan: Inconsolable after being dropped from U19 team due to poor physical shape, to India Test debut
Jersey no.66. India's Test cap number 317. These belong to Sai Sudharsan now. The young Tamil Nadu cricketer could not stop his ear-to-ear grin a few minutes before the toss of the India vs England first Test at Headingley in Leeds on Friday. It started when Cheteshwar Pujara was asked to hand over the cap to him. Surely Sudharsan would have known at least a day before. But it's an unmatchable feeling when it finally happens. Captain Shubman Gill, vice-captain Rishabh Pant, and pacer Mohammed Siraj took turns to congratulate Sudharsan and hug him. Pant, being Pant, decided to pull the youngster's cheek - he is now the big brother, of course. A few minutes later, captain Shubman Gill confirmed Sudharsan would bat at No.3. The position belonged to Rahul Dravid, Cheteshwar Pujara and briefly to Gill. Big players, those. But Sudharsan's smile narrated a different story: the one bereft of worries, the one built on hard work, perseverance and belief, which had taken a huge hit not too long ago when he was a teenager. Sudharsan was inconsolable after being dropped from the Tamil Nadu U19 team in December 2019. The reason? Poor physical shape. He himself knew that. He started working on his fitness with his mother, Usha Bharadwaj, a former volleyball player for Tamil Nadu who specialises in strength and conditioning. Father R Bharadwaj, who was a track and field athlete for India, also helped his son get fitter and stronger. "During the [pandemic] period, we started training together," Sudharsan's mother told ESPNCricinfo. "I took care of his strength and conditioning, while my husband took care of Sai Sudharsan's running and ground training. We wanted to make sure he had strength and endurance - the foundation for fitness. If you have both, you can push to play any sport. Flexibility is also important. "Because of Covid, all of us had to be indoors, and fitness became a family activity for us. Sai Sudharsan got addicted to it, and I also showed him videos of Virat Kohli, which motivated him and encouraged to become fitter and stronger. His brother also chucked a lot of balls to him at the nets. He used to do push-ups and then challenge Sai Sudharsan to do it." Sudharsan went from strength to strength. His body got better, he got fitter and his batting showed great potential. A great player of spin-bowling from a young age, Sudharsan worked on his game against the fast bowlers. His career took a defining turn when he was picked up by the new IPL franchise, Gujarat Titans, in 2022. He was a consistent scorer in domestic cricket, but the international standards training he got at GT helped him mature as a cricketer. A strike rate of 127.9 in five matches in his debut season was a bit of an issue. And just like his fitness and shortcomings against genuine pace, Sudharsan started working on it. He added the ramp shot to his arsenal and the results started to show from the next season. His strike rate improved and so did his run-scoring. Sudharsan scored 527 runs in 2024. Months before that, his dream of representing India came true when he made his ODI debut against South Africa. But the ultimate goal remained playing Test cricket. "It's everybody's dream to play (Test cricket) for the country," he had told Hindustan Times during the this year's IPL. "You get a very good platform like IPL to showcase our talent and if we do well, we obviously play for the country, we get an opportunity to represent our country. But I feel the most important thing right now is look at what the team needs, look at what the situation needs at that point in time and that point in game. 'If I do that really well and try and be so consistent in that and make my team win whenever possible, I think the other things will become a by-product of that,' he said. He walked the talk. Sudharsan won the Orange Cap after scoring the most runs in IPL 2025. His 759 runs in 15 matches came at a strike rate of 156/17 - his best season by far.
India Today
4 hours ago
- Sport
- India Today
ENG vs IND Live Score, 1st Test Day 1: Sai Sudharsan makes his debut, toss in 10 minutes
B Sai Sudharsan gets the Test cap from Cheteshwar Pujara. It's a huge moment for the young left-hander from Tamil Nadu. He is thrilled to bits. He is the man of the moment in the Team India huddle. His Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill will also be his maiden Test captain. According to ESPNCricinfo, Sai Sudharsan is set to make his Test debut today in Leeds. He will bat at No. 3. Meanwhile, Karun Nair is set to return to the XI for the first time in over eight years. He is expected to bat at No. 6. Abhimanyu Easwaran, the India A captain, has to wait longer for his chances. Who will join Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj in the fast-bowling group? Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna or Akaash Deep? Rishabh Pant is on his third full tour of England, where he made his Test debut in 2018 and struck a stunning 114 in just his third match. He followed it up with a blistering 146 at Edgbaston in 2022, both coming in vain as India lost those matches. Now with Kohli and Rohit retired from Tests, Pant steps up as vice-captain under new skipper Shubman Gill, finally cementing his place as a senior batter in the side. For new captain Shubman Gill and his young side, there is no gentle handover. It is a trial by fire. And it begins at Leeds where India haven't played much since their famous win in 2002. Shubman Gill's appointment as Test captain did raise eyebrows. At 25, and still finding his feet in red-ball cricket, his elevation marks a bold and telling shift in approach from the selectors and team management. A white-ball star, Gill has now been handed the reins in the toughest format, with the hope that responsibility will sharpen his edge rather than weigh him down. It's not without precedent. Back in 2014, a 26-year-old Virat Kohli took over a team in transition after MS Dhoni's sudden retirement midway through the Australia series. Kohli rose to the occasion and went on to carve his name among the greats of Indian Test cricket. Can Gill do the same? Why not. Ajinkya Rahane in a Q/A segment in his YouTube channel was asked on his playing XI for the Indian team in the first Test. Interestingly he decided against the experienced and in-form Karun Nair and opted to bring in Dhruv Jurel in his place. Ajinkya Rahane's Probable XI for the Headingley Test: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Dhruv Jurel, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh Several former cricketers believe it's time India backed experience over promise and handed Easwaran a long-awaited opportunity. Among them is former India batter Mohammed Kaif, who voiced his support on X stating that Easwaran's consistent run in first-class cricket deserves recognition at the highest level. At just 25, Gill will be tasked with not just leading a transitional squad, but also holding the batting order together. Having struggled in SENA countries so far, his form in England will be under intense scrutiny, especially after he confirmed he'll bat at No. 4, with Rishabh Pant coming in at No. 5. Now appointed as the vice-captain, Rishabh Pant will not be the free-willed dynamic batter that we have always seen. Now he will be burdened with responsibilities and will have to deal with the pressure of being the senior man in the Test team. Will Pant continue his usual playing style or will we see a change in his approach to Test cricket? Something that will be interesting to see. It will certainly be a full-circle moment for Karun Nair if he does get the nod to start. Interestingly, he was part of the squad in the 2018 tour and did not get a chance to play. Since then he never got called up as well and it will be poetic if he makes his return in England where he was last with the national team. "You know, getting that first session under the belt was a relief. I'm grateful to get that opportunity. Life has come full circle because I went out of the team in England, and now I'm coming back into the team in England, so it's been a while, and I'm trying to embrace that," Karun Nair mentioned in an interview with the BCCI. Under the tutelage of Brendon McCullum, the England cricket team have tried to play a very non-traditional form of Test cricket. Ultra-aggressive with the bat, the team has declared their innings on Day 1 on occasions. This has led to Test matches being fast moving. Especially on flat tracks, teams that have not been able to match the tempo, have been routed. Ask Pakistan in 2022, who were blown out of the water in their own home (0-3) by this English team. On pitches where other teams had to toil, score 500 runs over 2 days, and then wait patiently for the other team to collapse, England simply said 'No, too much work. I rather blast 500 in 3 sessions and freak the opposition out till they hand me the match themselves'. The tactic has worked on several occasions, and failed miserably in others. It goes without saying that McCullum has been able to identify a crop of players who are suited to his style of playing. One of the key differentiators among the current crop of England batters against the rest of the world is how many balls do they leave (shoulder arms) at the start of their innings. (What's Bazball? Kingshuk Kusari explains) The batting maestro has shared his thoughts. He has given a solid piece of advice to the young Indian batting group. "In England you always keep three things in mind when you play. First, the overhead conditions. Second, the air quality and third the pitch condition. Each one of these factors influences how you should play. There will be phases of play when you will find it very difficult to play shots. So you need to be careful and identify such phases," Tendulkar told RevSportz. Tendulkar said that once the sun comes out, the batters can score a lot of runs. 'It is not a defensive act to leave balls. Rather, it is also a show of intent to be able to correctly leave balls and play for the right time. And then when the sun is out it is a beautiful track to bat on where the batters can score a lot of runs,' said Tendulkar. Former spinner Ravichandran Ashwin's wife, Prithi Narayanan, shared an emotional note on Instagram. Reflecting on Ashwin's retirement, she admitted to having "many mixed feelings" and said she now has to "find a way to love" Test cricket differently. Ashwin retired after the Brisbane Test last year, followed by Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in May 2025, leaving India with an inexperienced squad for the tough five-match series in England. Her Instagram story read: "Test match day for India and I woke up with many many mixed feelings :) have to find a way to love it and unlearn the only way I knew to." Well, there was a healthy tinge of green on the pitch on the eve of the Test match. You expect some amount of trimming. But, the opening day is going to be a good battle between bat and ball. The pitch is expected to offer some assistance to the fast bowlers. A lot depends on the overhead conditions. But, this has been a bowl first venue. Teams winning the toss have tended to opt to bowl here. In the last six Tests at the venue, teams bowling first have gone on to win the Test matches. 254 for 7, 296 for 3, 362 for 9, 322 for 5 have been the last four successful fourth innings chases at this venue since 2017. Good news, folks! The weather in Leeds is good for cricket. There was forecast of rain, but the dark clouds have stayed away from Headingley so far. It's going to be an interruption-free day today. But, with the English weather, you can never be sure. Here's BBC's weather forecast for Friday, June 20 in Leeds. Don't check the top right row. There's prediction of showers on the 2nd, third, fourth and fifth day. India and England have played 136 Tests against each other. India have won 35 of them, lost 51 while 50 of them have ended in a draw. In England, India have played 67 Tests and won only nine of them. Two of those wins came in their last tour under Virat Kohli's captaincy. At Headingley, India have playd seven Tests, won two and lost four. Chris Woakes returns to the England XI for the first Test against India, replacing Sam Cook after recovering from an ankle injury. Brydon Carse comes in for the injured Gus Atkinson. Woakes slots in at No. 8, strengthening England's all-round options and allowing Jamie Smith to play as a specialist wicketkeeper at No. 7. Vice-captain Ollie Pope is preferred over youngster Jacob Bethell at No. 3. Despite a poor average of 22.05 in Tests against India and Australia, Pope retains his spot after a recent 171 against Zimbabwe. England XI for first Test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue and Shoaib Bashir. A young Indian side under a new captain will be determined to script a compelling tale over the next 45 days as a transitioning India squares off against an equally volatile England in a five-Test series for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, beginning in Leeds on Friday. History offers little comfort to visitors. Only three Indian teams — Ajit Wadekar's class of 1971, Kapil Dev's men in 1986, and Rahul Dravid's spirited side in 2007 — have managed to conquer England in their own backyard over the last nine decades. Nor does the absence of Virat Kohli, India's most committed Test cricketer of the past decade, help matters. His retirement leaves a noticeable void in the batting line-up, which now appears a touch lighter on experience. For 25-year-old Shubman Gill, the newly appointed Test skipper, this series will be nothing short of a baptism by fire. England, under Brendon McCullum's fearless approach and Ben Stokes' aggressive leadership, have rewritten the grammar of Test batting — a challenge Gill must be prepared for. His elevation as India's 37th Test captain was as much about potential as it was about vision. While his credentials as a batter and leader in red-ball cricket are still evolving, the 'Prince' now finds himself at the centre of a high-stakes narrative — with a full plate and much to prove. India's newly appointed Test captain, Shubman Gill, will begin his leadership tenure with a challenging five-Test series in England, starting with the opening match in Leeds on Friday. Leading the side in testing English conditions will be no easy task, and Gill will need to show patience and composure to succeed on this demanding tour. This will be the first assignment for the Shubman Gill-led side following the Test retirements of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin. India will be without their batting talisman Kohli, former captain Rohit, and senior off-spinner Ashwin - all of whom have called time on their red-ball careers. Interestingly, Leeds has experienced unusually warm weather this June. If such conditions persist and the surfaces remain dry, India might consider fielding two specialist spinners in the playing XI. It's the big day that we had been waiting for. It's the start of a new era in Indian Test cricket as Shubman Gill leads a young team in the post Big Three era. It's not going to be easy for India, who are entering the Lion's Den. England are nearly unbeatable at Leeds and the Bazballing Ben Stokes's side have overpowered opposition teams with their batting might. Can India sprnig a surprise at Headingley?
NDTV
6 hours ago
- Sport
- NDTV
Sachin Tendulkar Makes Bold Prediction For India-England Test Series: "3-1 To..."
Legendary India batter Sachin Tendulkar predicted a 3-1 win for the Shubman Gill -led side in the upcoming Test series against England. It will be a huge series for India who will be without the services of star batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma after they both retired from the format. As a result, a new-look batting unit is expected to feature in the first Test match starting Friday under the leadership of Gill. Sachin seemed confident about the Indian cricket team's chances in the Test series and the legendary batter had a huge prediction. "I have settled for 3-1 to India," Sachin told ESPN Cricinfo. Sachin feels that right-arm seamer Jasprit Bumrah will be the strike bowler for the visitors in the upcoming England tour for the five-match series. A new era beckons for India in the Test format as the modern-day giants gear up for their first assignment without the prized batting bigwigs Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Shubman Gill, India's youngest Test captain, has taken the baton from Rohit to guide the nation to success and challenge for the World Test Championship mace. During India's training session in Beckenham, Kent's second home venue, Bumrah displayed his unparalleled mastery in the art of pace bowling. With the ball in his hand, Bumrah showed signs of breaking the notion of requiring assistance from the surface to wreak havoc. Speaking on Jasprit Bumrah's importance on the England tour, Sachin Tendulkar told the media, "I think the bowling attack, a lot will depend on Bumrah and how the other guys support him. Bumrah, without any doubt, is going to be our strike bowler. Along with that, how the rest of the guys that I have experienced, Prasidh has been in good form. Arshdeep Singh, Shardul Thakur, and Nitesh Reddy would be the supporting bowlers. Harshit Rana, I might be missing out a few names, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav. I feel the attack is a balanced attack. I am hopeful that we will do something nice." Bumrah's utilisation will remain limited throughout the five Tests in England. During the announcement of India's squad for the upcoming Test tour of England, chief selector Ajit Agarkar confirmed Bumrah was advised not to contest in consecutive Tests as part of his workload management. The precaution around Bumrah's usage stems from a stress reaction in the back during the fifth Test against Australia in Sydney in January. He missed India's victory campaign in the Champions Trophy and returned to action for the Mumbai Indians in the recently concluded IPL. Before leaving for England, head coach Gautam Gambhir revealed that they have yet to take a call on which Tests India will field Bumrah in the playing XI.
Hindustan Times
13 hours ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
'If I'm the captain, I would tell Rishabh Pant...': Sachin Tendulkar sounds alarm over India star's 'risky' batting
Team India will kick off its new World Test Championship cycle on Friday as it takes on Ben Stokes' England in the first Test of the five-match series in England. The series is significant not just in terms of the WTC cycle, but also because it begins India's transitional era in the longest format. With two stalwarts of Indian cricket, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, retiring from the format, the series will see a relatively younger Indian team aiming to make its mark in Test cricket. While Shubman Gill leads the side for the first time, Rishabh Pant, the wicketkeeper-batter, will be his deputy. Pant will continue to bat at No. 5 in the Test side, but with added leadership duties, the spotlight on his temperament and approach has only intensified. The dynamic wicketkeeper-batter, long known for his fearless strokeplay, now faces growing calls for maturity, especially in light of the criticism he copped during India's 2024/25 tour of Australia. Pant's tendency to throw his wicket away drew sharp reactions from both fans and former cricketers, with many questioning his decision-making under pressure. Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar has now stressed the need for Pant to evolve; while Tendulkar did encourage Pant to back his instincts, he stressed the southpaw must bat with greater responsibility if he is to fulfil his potential in the longest format. "He [Pant] should back his instincts most of the time," Tendulkar said. 'But there'll be situations where he'll have to curb his game in the interests of the team,' he added, as quoted by ESPNCricinfo. 'I know that whatever he does the rest of the time will also be in the interest of the team, but the approach might have to be different. He has to have that flexibility in his mind. If there are times when you're looking to save the game, then he may have to adapt that defensive approach, for let's say an hour or 45 minutes or sometimes two hours, where he'll have to just take those risky shots out of the game and not be as aggressive. He could be positive, but the shot selection will come into play.' Tendulkar also explained how he would handle Rishabh Pant if he were the Indian captain. He stated that he would allow the wicketkeeper-batter a free hand in his aggressive approach, but if India needed to save the match, he would want Pant to play responsibly. "Nine out of ten times, if I'm the captain, I'll say, 'Just go out and play your game, why worry about anything.' If you're looking to save the game, that is when the approach changes a bit, but otherwise I would tell him that you go out and be yourself and do what you feel is in the best interest of the team," said Tendulkar.
News18
20 hours ago
- Sport
- News18
'3-1 In Favour Of...': Sachin Tendulkar Makes Bold India-England Series Prediction
Legendary Indian batter and former captain Sachin Tendulkar has backed Shubman Gill-led Team India to get the better of England with a scoreline of 3-1 in the upcoming five-match series. India will face England in five Tests in the coming days. The series opener is scheduled to take place at Headingley in Leeds from June 20 to 24, and the next four matches will be played in Birmingham, Lord's, Manchester, and The Oval. Tendulkar, who is India's leading run getter in Test cricket and was also a member of the Rahul Dravid-led side that last won the Test series on English soil back in 2007, was asked about his prediction for the series by ESPN Cricinfo on Thursday (June 19), and he replied by saying, 'I have settled for 3-1 to India."
