It was nothing less than a Diwali bonus for the Bengal Ranji team as former India skipper Sourav Ganguly announced his availability for the entire Ranji season even as the selectors picked a 16-member side for their first two Super League matches, beginning November 3.
'My instinct answers yes, I want to make a comeback in ODI cricket'
A host of former Indian players, including Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid, are in favour of the country taking part in the ICC Champions Trophy to be held in the United Kingdom next month.
In a first among domestic teams in India, Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) will be conducting mandatory eye tests for its senior and under-23 teams once training camps resumes post coronavirus. This was decided during discussion between the CAB administration and Bengal coaching unit, which felt that often the eyesight gets affected after the cricketers come back from a long lay-off.
Former internationals Rohan Gavaskar, Deep Dasgupta and Hemang Badani are among 101 cricketers who have severed links with the rebel Indian Cricket League and applied to the Board of Control for Cricket in India to return to the fold under the amnesty scheme that ended May 31. Seventy-nine current and 11 former Test cricketers -- including ex-captain Ajit Wadekar and off-spin legend Erapalli Prasanna -- have taken advantage of the amnesty scheme.
Opener Hamish Marshall's unbeaten 76 and Upul Chandana's four-wicket haul enabled Royal Bengal Tigers score an eight-wicket victory over Lahore Badshahs in the Indian Cricket League T20 encounter at the Lal Bahadur Shastri stadium in Hyderabad on Sunday night. Chasing a target of 140, Marshall played a fine innings from the beginning and went on to score 76 runs, including two sixes and nine boundaries off 53 balls.
Yadav said he shares a special bond with fellow spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, whose advise he values both on and off field.
Royal Bengal Tigers on Tuesday roared against Chennai Superstars by winning the 30th match with a margin of nine wickets in the ICL 20s Indian Championship in Panchkula.
Bengal were 199 for five in reply to Maharashtra's 215 in the Ranji Trophy match.
The ICL is expeceted to lay the cards on the table by revealing the names of the players on Monday.
Deep Dasgupta and Rohan Gavaskar slammed whirlwind half-centuries to guide Royal Bengal Tigers to an eight-wicket victory over Dhaka Warriors in the ICL 20s Championship at the Tau Devi Lal stadium on Saturday night.
Norma Godinho challenges sporting know-it-alls.
Kartik, a former left-arm tweaker who played eight Tests and 37 ODIs for India, lamented the absence of quality spinners in the country, which according to him is a stark contrast from the past.
'It is systematic chaos, it is organised chaos.'
Electing to bat the Kolkata Tigers managed to put on 279 in their 50 overs.
Bengal posted a strong 465 for four on the second day of the Ranji Trophy Elite Group B match against Rajasthan.
A top CAB source told PTI that Deep Dasgupta would replace Ganguly as Bengal skipper.
A captain's knock of 124 by Deep Dasgupta helped Bengal post a mammoth 405 for seven against Gujarat.
Deep Dasgupta will lead Bengal for the Moin-ud-Dowla Gold Cup in Hyderabad.
Ganguly informed CAB Joint Secretary Saradindu Pal of his decision and got it Okayed
The breakdown in communication between national selectors, led by chairman Chetan Sharma, and the team management comprising skipper Virat Kohli over Bengal opener Abhimanyu Easwaran's contentious selection, is not the first such instance in Indian cricket.
Rohan Gavaskar scored an unbeaten 79 as East Zone scored a one-wicket last ball victory South Zone in the Deodhar Trophy.
Warner using bat 'sensor' to counter opposition threat
The Bengal captain will have to miss his team's first two East Zone one-day league games.
Required to score 186 for an outright victory in the Ranji Trophy match, Bengal were home just after lunch on the last day.
The former India captain took three wickets and contributed 43 runs as Bengal were 113 runs ahead of Punjab.
Sourav Ganguly will lead a 14-member Bengal team in the Ranji Trophy opener against Punjab.
Ganguly, who is expected to join the West Bengal team midway, has not yet reached the coal township.
Gujarat are still 335 runs behind Bengal's first innings score of 462.
The Deodhar Trophy is scheduled to begin at various centres of the Central Zone later this month.
The slender 14-run first innings lead in the final against Bengal sufficed for Uttar Pradesh to claim their maiden Ranji Trophy crown.
Becomes third Test cricketer from Jharkhand
The BCCI will be organising a six-week camp for its top cricketers some time next month and speculation has started on whether former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni will be part of it. While the BCCI is waiting for a safe time and venue for the camp after third week of July. In case it's not possible, players will probably go in for their respective IPL camps later during the year.
Mohammad Shami also revealed that skipper Virat Kohli leaves it on his pacers to decide which one of them gets to bowl with the new ball.
The opener scored 151 runs as Karnataka piled up 411 runs against Bengal.
Harbhajan Singh, on Sunday, slammed the International Cricket Council for letting off Australian opener Cameron Bancroft with only a fine of 75 per cent of his match fee and not a ban, despite his role in the ball tampering scandal in the third Test against South Africa in Cape Town.
Mental health issues of sports-persons is now a serious topic and recently Australia coach Justin Langer advocated the need to keep a tab on the younger lot as to how they are coping up with trying times.
Cricketer-turned-commentator Deep Dasgupta refused to call the IPL bubble porous but did admit to having anxieties of his own once cases began to rise in Delhi.
One more factor that could go in Agarwal's favour is Shikhar Dhawan's prolonged bad patch and the need to have another back-up option, apart from K L Rahul, ready.
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