New Delhi, Dec 3: Skipper Virat Kohli scored his sixth double hundred as India reached 500 for 5 at lunch on the second day of the third cricket Test against Sri Lanka at Feroz Shah Kotla ground, here today.
Kohli (225) was at the crease at the break with Rohit Sharma (65) being dismissed by Lakshan Sandakan at the stroke of lunch. Brief Scores: India 1st innings: 500-5 in 117.5 overs. (V Kohli 225 batting, M Vijay 155; Lakshan Sandakan 3/148).
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will not end its partnership with Chinese companies. Vivo, the Chinese smartphone maker, is the main sponsor of the new IPL season as well. Apart from Vivo, PayTM and Dream 11 will also be at the helm of the 13th edition of the IPL. The IPL governing council meeting on Sunday decided to retain the old sponsors.
As soon as the IPL GC announced the decision of retaining the sponsors, a huge number of fans took to Twitter to slam the board for the same. #BoycottIPL started trending as the users urged others to boycott the tournament for the Chinese connection.
Earlier, the demand for exclusion of Chinese companies from the IPL was strong in the wake of the India-China border dispute. But the BCCI cannot abruptly end its collaboration with them. Because of the signed contract itself. And in this age of declining economy, it is difficult to find new sponsors quickly.
The current BCCI contract with Vivo is for five years. Vivo has invested Rs 2,199 crore to become the main sponsor of the IPL. The contract was signed in 2017. However, the BCCI’s move is paving the way for new discussions as calls are mounting across the country to boycott Chinese companies.
The BCCI announced other important decisions besides retaining sponsors. The IPL will be held from September 19 to November 10. The Indian government has given permission to the BCCI to hold the IPL in the UAE. With this, all obstacles in the way of organizing the tournament were removed.
The IPL matches will be played at 7.30 pm Indian time (6 pm UAE time). Most matches are about one match a day. There are a total of ten ‘double headers’ (two matches a day) in the tournament. Franchisees are allowed to appoint as many replacements as they want in the new season in view of the new health situation. At the same time, the maximum number of players a franchise can accommodate is 24. The BCCI is also planning to host a women’s IPL tournament.
London, Apr 6: As the coronavirus brings the international sports calendar to a grinding halt, news agency Sport looks at three long-standing habits which could change forever once competition resumes.
Saliva to take shine off swing bowling
It's been a tried and trusted friend to fast bowlers throughout the history of cricket. But the days of applying saliva to one side of the ball to encourage swing could be over in the aftermath of Covid19.
"As a bowler I think it would be pretty tough going if we couldn't shine the ball in a Test match," said Australia quick Pat Cummins.
"If it's at that stage and we're that worried about the spread, I'm not sure we'd be playing sport."
Towels in tennis - no touching
Tennis players throwing towels, dripping with sweat and blood and probably a tear or two, at ball boys and girls, has often left fans sympathising for the youngsters.
Moves by officials to tackle the issue took on greater urgency in March when the coronavirus was taking a global grip.
Behind closed doors in Miki, ball boys and girls on duty at the Davis Cup tie between Japan and Ecuador wore gloves.
Baskets, meanwhile, were made available for players to deposit their towels.
Back in 2018, the ATP introduced towel racks at some events on a trial basis, but not everyone was overjoyed.
"I think having the towel whenever you need it, it's very helpful. It's one thing less that you have to think about," said Greece's Stefanos Tsitsipas when he was playing at the NextGen Finals in Milan.
"I think it's the job of the ball kids to provide towels and balls for the players."
Let's not shake on it
Pre-match handshakes were abandoned in top football leagues just before the sports shutdown.
Premier League leaders Liverpool also banned the use of mascots while Southampton warned against players signing autographs and stopped them posing for selfies.
Away from football, the NBA urged players to opt for the fist bump rather than the long-standing high-five.
"I ain't high-fiving nobody for the rest of my life after this," NBA superstar LeBron James told the "Road Trippin' Podcast".
"No more high-fiving. After this corona shit? Wait 'til you see me and my teammates’ handshakes after this shit."
Basketball stars were also told not to take items such as balls or teams shirts to autograph.
US women's football star Megan Rapinoe says edicts to ban handshakes or even high-fives may be counter-productive anyway.
"We're going to be sweating all over each other all game, so it sort of defeats the purpose of not doing a handshake," she said.
Melbourne, May 24: Former Australia captain Mark Taylor does not foresee the T20 World Cup scheduled in October-November going ahead and wants the ICC to take a decision during its Board meeting this week.
Taylor also feels that if IPL takes place during the window the T20 World Cup was to be held, the Australian players are likely to be cleared by their Board to take part in the cash-rich league in India.
The ICC Board meets on May 28 to discuss a host of issues related to COVID-19 pandemic, including a revamped schedule and the fate of the men's T20 World Cup in Australia.
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"My feeling is the World T20 won't go ahead in Australia in October as planned. Is it going to be viable to have a world tournament in October or November? The answer to that is probably no," Taylor, also a former Cricket Australia (CA) director, was quoted as saying by 'Nine Network'.
"It would probably be good (if a decision is made this week). Because then everyone can start planning and we can stop sitting here and saying 'well ifs, buts or maybes'."
CA chief executive Kevin Roberts has said that a call on the fate of the T20 World Cup, scheduled to be held from October 18 to November 15, may potentially not come until August.
Read: Coronavirus India update: State-wise total number of confirmed cases, deaths
But players and administrators around the world are keen for some certainty and many have predicted that the 16-team event will soon be postponed.
There are reports that the BCCI is eyeing the October window for the IPL though officially it maintained, that it will not consider new dates of the cash-rich league until the T20 World Cup's fate is decided.
Taylor said the CA wants to keep BCCI happy so the Australia players are likely to be cleared for the IPL if it happens in October.
Pat Cummins, who was bought for a record amount of Rs 15.50 crore in last year's IPL auction, is among the Australians keen to take part in this year's competition.
"The Cricket Australia board will want to keep India happy. So they may want to let the players go to India if the IPL goes ahead," Taylor said.
"Because they want India to come here this summer and play, which will be our biggest summer in terms of dollars. That's the sort of discussion going on. No doubt."
Virat Kohli's team is scheduled to arrive in Australia for a Test tour starting November, which will go along way in addressing CA's financial woes triggered by teh COVID-19 pandemic.
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