The IPL match between the Lucknow Super Giants and Punjab Kings witnessed some extraordinary fielding efforts.
India captain Rohit Sharma moved up two places to third in the latest ICC ODI batter rankings following his stellar performance in the Champions Trophy final, while teammate Shubman Gill held on to the top spot.
Jofra Archer, after disappointing outings in the first two matches, bowled with great pace and accuracy and put the opposition on the back foot right from the word go.
In an interview to PTI ahead of the IPL play-offs, Ponting covered all areas that got the franchise much-needed success. Excerpts from the interaction.
Gujarat Titans will aim to tighten their grip on the top spot and move closer to securing a play-off berth when they take on a faltering Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League match in Jaipur on Monday.
New Zealand batter Glenn Phillips played down any talks of India getting an advantage by playing all their Champions Trophy matches in Dubai.
Gill hit a purple patch in the three-match series against England, scoring 87 (in Nagpur), 60 (in Cuttack), and 112 (in Ahmedabad) as he was adjudged the 'Player of the Series' in the hosts' 3-0 clean sweep.
Delhi Capitals will be desperate to arrest their slump and stay in contention for a play-off berth when they take on high-flying Punjab Kings in a crucial IPL match in Dharamsala on Thursday.
Young spin-bowling all-rounder Cooper Connolly will replace injured Matthew Short in the Australian squad for the knock-out stages of the ongoing Champions Trophy.
Gujarat Titans will look to bounce back from the carnage that wonder boy Vaibhav Suryavanshi inflicted on them when they face a stuttering Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL match in Ahmedabad on Friday.
Australia's historic pedigree in cricket's biggest tournaments will count for nothing when they run into an Afghanistan side that is fast cementing its place in the game's top table in the Champions Trophy match in Lahore on Friday.
New Zealand called up two local left-arm wrist spinners to bowl to left-handers Tom Latham and Michael Bracewell at their nets in Dubai on Saturday.
Thrown into the spotlight in just his second ODI, Varun Chakaravarthy made the opportunity count in spectacular fashion.
Josh Inglis slammed a brilliant century as Australia completed the highest chase in an ICC men's tournament against England in Lahore on Saturday.
Along with his ability to adapt, the high release point makes Hazlewood a tricky customer to deal with on any kind of surface, as it allows him to find that disconcerting extra bounce.
IMAGES from the Champions Trophy final played between India and New Zealand in Dubai on Sunday.
In the bowling rankings, Keshav Maharaj and Matt Henry have broken into the top five
Head coach Ricky Ponting hailed Punjab Kings' incredible spirit and resilience after they pulled off a sensational 16-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders.
New Zealand and South Africa, both laden with world-class talent but often falling short in ICC tournaments, will face off in a tightly contested Champions Trophy semifinal.
The Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals will hope their struggling bowling units can find their form on an Ahmedabad pitch that has produced high scores in the last four matches.
The tournament was decorated with several impactful players and 12 of them have made it to the ICC Champions Trophy Team of the Tournament.
Virat Kohli is the seventh Indian player to achieve the feat after Sachin Tendulkar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Rahul Dravid, Mohammed Azharuddin, Sourav Ganguly and Yuvraj Singh.
England skipper Jos Buttler expressed delight in Ben Duckett's record-breaking knock even as he hailed Australia for chasing down a massive total of 352 runs in the ICC Champions Trophy Group B match in Lahore on Saturday.
Shreyas Iyer had led KKR to their first IPL title in a decade last year. However, on Saturday, he returns as captain of a rejuvenated Punjab Kings chasing a play-off spot.
Successful in keeping opponents and vitriol at bay so far, India will have to rise above traditional bugbear New Zealand and a rigmarole of emotions surrounding stalwarts Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to reclaim the Champions Trophy after 12 years in Dubai on Sunday.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru have very little time to pick up the pieces after a debilitating loss as they eye a much-improved display from their batting unit in a return Indian Premier League match against in-form Punjab Kings in Mullanpur, Punjab, on Sunday.
He also got clobbered along the way but was always in contention for wickets and weaved his magic particularly at the backend of the innings.
The Capitals sit pretty at the top with 10 points from six games, while the Titans trail close behind with eight from as many outings.
Michael Bracewell, who was one of the main performers for New Zealand in the Champions Trophy, will lead the side in the absence of Mitchell Santner.
Punjab Kings produced a disciplined bowling performance to outsmart Chennai Super Kings and return to winning ways at Mullanpur, Chandigarh, on Tuesday, April 8 2025.
Reigning champions Kolkata Knight Riders will hope that their strife-ridden batting unit will tighten its act against in-form table-toppers Gujarat Titans in the IPL match in Kolkata on Monday.
New Zealand all-rounder Glenn Phillips praised Virat Kohli's legacy in cricket, calling his 300th ODI a 'big feat' in the modern era.
Maxwell is expected to play against Mumbai Indians on April 9.
IMAGES from the Champions Trophy second Semi-final between New Zealand and South Africa played at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore on Wednesday
SRH's ultra-aggressive approach with the bat has backfired spectacularly as they have suffered four defeats in a row -- leaving them languishing at the bottom of the points table.
'We were 20 or 25 under to what we were looking for.'
India's spinners were the key architects of the bowling performance. Varun Chakravarthy (2/45) and Kuldeep Yadav (2/40) were the standout performers, while Jadeja (1/30) and Axar Patel (0/29 in 8 overs) kept the pressure on with their economical spells.
Their pre-tournament decision to fill the squad with five spinners drew a lot of flak from all corners, but it is now proving to be a masterstroke on the slow pitches in Dubai.
Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis has been left supremely impressed by the quality of youngsters in the Punjab Kings squad as well as the Indian T20 set up on the sidlelines of the IPL.
'We're just starting to scratch the surface. So let's keep working hard together as a family, as one. And we're going to get better every day.'
