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Dubai, Sep 3 (IANS) Former Pakistan spinner Danish Kaneria feels T20 is "anybody's" game and Pakistan can beat India on Sunday when the two sides meet for the second time in the ongoing Asia Cup 2022.

Pakistan registered a 155-run win against Hong Kong on Friday. The Green Army had posted 193/2 in 20 overs and folded Hong Kong for just 38 runs.

As a result, Pakistan will now meet India on Sunday for the Super Four round match.

"The win against Hong Kong was an important one for Pakistan for the Sunday match. The Sunday match is 50-50, it's anybody's game, Pakistan can beat India on that day," said Danish Kaneria on live streaming organised by the Koo app.

The former Pakistan spinner also highlighted how there are too many players in the Indian team who can make it into the playing XI and this adds a good headache for the side.

"Team India is confused at the moment, they are with two wicketkeepers and are in a dilemma of playing either Rishabh Pant or Dinesh Karthik. Deepak Hooda who had performed well is out of the team and there is a bowling concern for India too, especially Avesh Khan who leaks too many runs," said Kaneria.

"T20 is anybody's game, and on the given day if you have a good playing XI you can win," he added.

However, Kaneris was vary of the fact that India has good finishers which Pakistan is right now craving for. The former cricketer feels to compensate for the lower order, Pakistan openers need to score big.

"Babar Azam has been performing well but in a major tournament he is not been able to live up to the mark and that is a worrying sign. We cannot rely on Pakistan's middle order, Babar and Rizwan have to score. Pakistan need big runs from Babar Azam," said Kaneria.

"India has finisher like Hardik Pandya and Dinesh Karthik but Pakistan doesn't have anyone with a capability of scoring big in the lower order," he added.

The Super Four round of the Asia Cup 2022 will begin on Saturday with Sri Lanka and Afghanistan facing off each other at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

--IANS

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New Delhi, Sep 3 (IANS) Former India Skipper and BCCI President Sourav Ganguly on Saturday expressed his inability to actively participate as a cricketer for the Legends League Cricket (LLC) Benefit Match to be held on September 16 at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata.

Ganguly, who cited professional commitments, including his work as an administrator to not participate in LLC season two, will be watching the match between Indian Maharajas and Eoin Morgan-led World XI at the stadium.

In a letter addressed to the League, Ganguly wished his cricketing colleagues all the best for the benefit match as well as for the subsequent season two of the LLC. "I would like to convey my best wishes for your Legends League initiative. It's a wonderful idea of bringing retired cricketers back on the cricket field and engaging with fans across generations. I am thankful to you for offering me an opportunity to play in the one-off Legends League game at the Eden Gardens stadium in Kolkata on September 16, 2022."

"However, due to my professional commitments and continuous work with cricket administration, I will not be able to take part in this game. I am sure the fans are eagerly looking forward to this league and there will be large crowds at the stadium. The league is bringing together the stalwarts of the game and I am sure there will be exciting cricket on display. I will be there at the Eden Gardens Stadium watching the match."

Through this benefit match, the league is aiming to celebrate the 75th Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav and the entire proceeds of the match will be donated to Kapil Dev's Khushii Foundation; for supporting girl child and their education.

"We respect Sourav's decision and Legends League Cricket is here to celebrate the greatness of these cricketing greats in the best possible manner. And we are glad that Sourav even if he is not playing, will be an intrinsic part of this benefit match with his presence to cheer the Legends when they take the field for the cause on September 16, 2022," said Raman Raheja, CEO and Co-Founder, Legends League Cricket.

Cricketing greats from 10 nations will be part of this special benefit match between India Maharajas and World Giants to raise funds for the noble cause. The September 16 match will be followed by matches in Lucknow, New Delhi, Cuttack and Jodhpur. The Play-offs and finals venues are yet to be decided.

--IANS

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By Niharika Raina
Dubai, Sep 3 (IANS) Exactly a week ago, there was a lot of hype around India and Pakistan meeting each other in Dubai in the Group stages of the Asia Cup 2022. It was also one of those rare occasions where the pre-match hype of an India-Pakistan match matched with the on-field play.



The Group A match was an absorbing affair between the two teams, which went into the final over before Hardik Pandya, after his spell of 3/25, took India home in a tense chase of 148 with a six over long-on. Many fans had manifested another India-Pakistan meeting to happen in the Super Four stage, and the cricketing gods made it come true.

Saturday will see Afghanistan play against Sri Lanka in first Super Four match at Sharjah. But there is another India-Pakistan showdown at Dubai on Sunday which the fans from both countries and around the world will be keenly keeping an eye on.

Amidst the scorching heat in the UAE, the atmosphere in the Dubai International Stadium will go a couple of notches high when the greatest rivalry in the world of cricket resumes yet again on Sunday.

From an Indian perspective, they will be pleased to see how Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Suryakumar Yadav, along with a returning Virat Kohli, have stepped up to lead the side to victory in matches against Pakistan and Hong Kong. But there are still some areas of concern for India ahead of Sunday's big game against Pakistan.

KL Rahul has been completely out of sorts since his return after a lengthy injury layoff. He got out for a first-ball duck against Pakistan and in the match against Hong Kong, he was struggling to time the ball, resulting in a painstaking 36 off 39 balls. India would also want for captain Rohit Sharma to get a big score after indifferent outings in two matches, which deviated from the side's ultra-attacking batting approach.

In the bowling attack, there will be question marks over Avesh Khan's inconsistency. Against Pakistan, he had figures of 1/19 in his two overs. But against Hong Kong, he was erratic while conceding 53 runs in his four overs.

Moreover, with no Ravindra Jadeja for the remainder of the tournament, whose promotion to number four against Pakistan worked well, India have a selection query to address. They need to see whether they will still retain Rishabh Pant in the playing eleven for his left-handedness or get either of Deepak Hooda or Axar Patel, a like-for-like replacement of Jadeja, in the playing eleven.

Pakistan, on the other side, cruised into Super Four stage with a 155-run thrashing of Hong Kong. Their pacers and spinners got wickets while Mohammad Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman got fifties before Khushdil Shah applied finishing touches. But their concerns still remain about the top-order.

There's no doubt about Rizwan, Zaman and captain Babar Azam achieving a major chunk of success while chasing. But batting first is not their strongest suit, especially when the top three use a lot of deliveries, which leaves little time for someone like a Khushdil, Iftikhar Ahmed and Asif Ali to apply the finishing touches.

Asia Cup 2022 is now at a stage where no team is lightweight or can be underestimated. One loss and chances of getting into the finale on September 11 will be in trouble. India and Pakistan are well aware that even one false move in Super Four can jeopardise their well-laid plans for the finale.

As the tournament moves into the last four phase, excitement levels will be at a high when India and Pakistan take the field on Sunday. One would hope that this time as well, the hype matches the on-field action, once again, like it happened seven days ago.

Squads

India: Rohit Sharma (captain), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan.

Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Hasan Ali, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Hasnain, Shahnawaz Dahani and Usman Qadir.


--IANS

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New York, Sep 3 (IANS) 23-time Grand Slam singles winner Serena Williams bowed out after the third round loss at the US Open on Friday as she was honoured by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) as one of "the greatest champions in the history of sports".

"The WTA today celebrates the extraordinary Serena Williams, who retires from professional tennis having secured her place among the greatest champions in the history of sports".

Williams thanked fans and family for support in an emotional post-match interview after she lost to Ajla Tomljanovic on Friday, reports Xinhua. "It's been the most incredible ride and journey I've ever been on in my life," she said.

"Thank you daddy, I know you're watching. Thanks mum. I want to thank everyone who's here, who has been on my side for so many years, literally decades. I wouldn't be Serena if there wasn't Venus, so thank you Venus. She's the only reason Serena Williams ever existed."

Turning 41 later this month, the record Grand Slam title holder in Open Era has 73 tournament wins, including 23 singles, 14 doubles and two mixed doubles Grand Slam titles as well as four Olympic gold medals representing the United States.

During her 27-year career after professional debut in Quebec City in 1995, she topped the world singles rankings for 319 weeks, including 186 consecutive weeks. She finished as WTA Year-End world No.1 for five times and became the oldest world No.1 at the age of 35 years and 230 days in May 2017.

"Congratulations to Serena on her historic career in tennis," said Steve Simon, WTA Chairman and CEO. "She will be greatly missed by the WTA family, but her legacy will inspire generations to come for what she has stood for and accomplished both on and off the court. We wish her every success and happiness as she embarks upon the next chapter of her life."

--IANS

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Townsville, Sep 3 (IANS) Zimbabwe head coach Dave Houghton has said the unflattering performance of his slow bowlers had forced him to have a stern chat with them ahead of the third and final One-day International (ODI) against Australia here, adding that he was happy to see they had lived up to his expectations.

Following two big losses, Zimbabwe spinners, especially Ryan Burl, turned things around in the third game, demolishing the hosts for a paltry 141 and then overhauling the target for the loss of seven wickets with 11 overs to spare for a historic win.

This was Zimbabwe's maiden ODI win against Australia in Australia and was built mainly around spinner Burl's amazing figures of 5/10 in three overs.

Burl, a part-time leg-spinner, was the sixth bowler Zimbabwe skipper Regis Chakabva used in Australia's innings of 141. The 28-year-old Burl was named 'Player of the Match' for his exploits.

Before he turned the match on its head on Saturday, Burl had taken just nine wickets from his 31 ODIs, according to cricket.com.au. He had taken three wickets in the opening game of the three-match series here but had conceded 60 at runs at an average of 8.5 rpo.

"I had a chat with our spinners today because I wasn't happy with the way we'd bowled in the first two games," Houghton was quoted as saying post-match on Saturday.

"I didn't want our spinners to be bits and pieces' cricketers. I want them to bowl like spinners, which means you have to be on the spot from ball one.

"And I thought both Sean (Williams) and 'Burly' (Burl) did that today," added Houghton.

Burl said the pitch offered a lot of assistance to him in the third ODI.

"I was bowling quite a lot into the wind (so) it came out a bit slower," Burl told Foxtel. "I found today there was quite a bit of drift, which helped, and also a bit of turn, which helped a lot. I wouldn't have believed it, but here we are."

--IANS

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Dubai, Sep 3 (IANS) Star batter KL Rahul might have not scored big runs in the ongoing Asia Cup but former India cricketer Aakash Chopra feels the opener's knock will be a key for India's chances of winning the match against Pakistan on Sunday.

India and Pakistan will meet for the second time on Sunday in the ongoing Asia Cup in the Super Four stage. India defeated Pakistan on August 28 when the two sides met for their respective opening game in the Asia Cup.

Opening batter KL Rahul who is coming after an injury has not been able to live up to expectations. In the match against Pakistan, he scored a golden duck and played a sluggish knock against Hong Kong.

However, Aakash Chopra hopes Rahul will have a good game and the batter will play important role in taking India over the line against Pakistan on Sunday.

"People tend to confuse Rahul's IPL numbers with his numbers for Team India. While playing for India, his strike-rate is really high. And I feel that Rahul's knock will be key to India's chances for the game against Pakistan on Sunday. Hope he has a good game. Fingers crossed," said Aakash Chopra exclusively on homegrown social media, Koo app.

Meanwhile, the All-India Senior Selection Committee has named Axar Patel as the replacement for Ravindra Jadeja in the ongoing Asia Cup.

Jadeja has sustained a right knee injury and is ruled out of the tournament. He is currently under the supervision of the BCCI medical team.

His replacement, Axar Patel was earlier named as one of the standbys in the squad and will join the team in Dubai.

India's squad for Asia Cup: Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan.

--IANS

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New York, Sep 2 (IANS) Ons Jabeur, the fifth seed, ended her first week in the US Open with a three sets victory against American Shelby Rogers to reach the pre-quarterfinals for the third consecutive time here on Friday.

The victory pushed Jabeur's record against Americans to 11-1 this season and put her into the fourth round of the US Open for the first time in her career.

The Tunisian is the first player from her country to do well in the Grand Slams.

It was a disappointing loss for Rogers, who for the past two years has dethroned several top seeds here in Flushing Meadows, including last year's victory over No. 1 Ash Barty.

On Friday, the American put together a solid two sets of tennis that had the No. 5 seed scrambling across every inch of the court, and on a few occasions even had her diving onto the court to try to stay in the point.

But when Rogers blinked and served a double fault at 6-4, 4-4, Jabeur took the opportunity and never looked back, taking seven of the last 10 games to seal the win.

Veronika Kudermetova produced a quality performance on Day 5 at the 2022 US Open, fitting her status as the No. 18 seed as she dispatched No. 91 Dalma Galfi, 6-2, 6-0, in a 47-minute serving masterclass in the Grandstand.

The 25-year-old Kudermetova forced open the first set of the baseline contest, overcoming three consecutive aces by the Hungarian one year her junior to lead 3-2. Kudermetova was particularly dominant on first serves, delivering 78% in the first set before improving to an astonishing 100% in the second set. In her first two matches, Kudermetova won all 20 service games-helped by 14 aces-in straight-set dismissals of Donna Vekic and Maryna Zanevska, respectively.

Kudermetova, who is into the fourth round of the US Open for the first time in her career, is currently enjoying an all-time high No. 18 ranking. In 2021, she won a career-record 33 matches, including a final-round appearance at Abu Dhabi (losing to Aryna Sabalenka) before securing her maiden WTA Tour singles crown at Charleston.

--IANS

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Sharjah, Sep 2 (IANS) Spin twins, leg-spinner Shadab Khan and left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz shared seven wickets between themselves as Pakistan thrashed Hong Kong by 155 runs in the final Group A match of Asia Cup 2022 at Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Friday.

After sparkling knocks from Mohammad Rizwan (78 not out), Fakhar Zaman (53) and Khushdil Shah (35 not out) carried Pakistan to a daunting 193/2, Hong Kong were blown away by pacers and spinners to be bundled out for 38, giving the Babar Azam-led side their biggest-ever win by runs in T20Is.

The win also means that Pakistan qualify for the Super Four stage from Group A while Hong Kong crashed out of the competition. It also sets up another India-Pakistan showdown in the Super Four match in Dubai on Sunday, exactly a week after meeting in the first Group A match of the tournament.

Nizakat Khan began well by crunching a drive square of the wicket off Shahnawaz Dahani. But Naseem Shah took him out in the next over, chipping straight to cover. Four balls later, Shah castled Babar Hayat for a four-ball duck. More trouble followed for Hong Kong as Dahani bounced out Yasim Murtaza and mid-on ran forward to complete a low catch.

From there, Shadab and Nawaz took over to totally dismantle Hong Kong's challenge with the bat. Shadab bamboozled with his googly, taking out Aizaz Khan and Haroon Arshad. Nawaz, on the other hand, took out Kinchit Shah, Scott McKechnie and Zeeshan Ali.

Post drinks break, Shadab's wrong'un castled Ayush Shukla and then trapped Mohammad Ghazanfar lbw to complete a resounding thrashing of Hong Kong at the hands of Pakistan.

Brief scores: Pakistan 193/2 in 20 overs (Mohammad Rizwan 78 not out, Fakhar Zaman 53; Ehsan Khan 2-28) against Hong Kong 38 all out in 10.4 overs (Nizakat Khan 8, Shadab Khan 4-8, Mohammad Nawaz 3-5) by 155 runs

--IANS

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Pune, Sep 2 (IANS) Giant-killer Abhinav Mangalam was shown the door as seeds continued to fall in the quarterfinals of the India Junior International Grand Prix 2022, and played in memory of the Late Sushant Chipalkatti, here on Friday.

Local stars Tara Shah and Darshan Pujari gave Maharashtra some reason to cheer winning their respective matches.

On a two-session-two-round day, Abhinav, who turned heads in the morning by knocking out world No.9 Prince Dahal of Nepal in Round 2 bowed in the last-16 round. Pitted against No. 11 Tushar Suveer, Abhinav lost tamely 21-11, 21-14.

Overall six seeds made their exit -- four in the last-32 round and two in the pre-quarterfinals respectively.

Amidst all the drama two players that stood out were Pune lass and No. 7 Tara Shah who downed No. 12 Anyapat Phichitpreechasak (Thailand) 21-17, 21-14 in a 34-minute battle to enter the quarterfinals of the women's singles. Earlier, she put out Stuti Agarwal in three games.

In the men's singles, Darshan Pujari won the battle of unseeded players against Remus Ng (Singapore) 21-9, 21-16 to make the last 8. In fact, on a day when many players struggled, Darshan won both his matches in a straight game which includes beating Samarveer 21-8, 22-20.

Interestingly, qualifiers made a strong impact with as many as three (two men and one woman) making it to the quarterfinal round. Dhruv Negi beat fell qualifier Rushendra Thirupathi 21-16, 21-18 and Pranay Shettigar beat another qualifier Anishraj Rajkumar 21-11, 20-22, 21-7 in the men's section, while Tanvi Sharma put out Rujula Ramu 21-16, 21-10.

RESULTS (All Indians unless mentioned otherwise)

Men's Singles (Pre-quarters): 11-Tushar Suveer bt Q-Abhinav Manglam 21-11, 21-14; Q-Dhruv Negi bt Q-Rushendra Thirupathi 21-16, 21-18; Darshan Pujari bt Remus Ng (Singapore) 21-9, 21-16; Q-Pranay Shettigar bt Q-Anishraj Rajkumar 21-11, 20-22, 21-7; 7-Muhammad Halim As Sidiq (Indonesia) bt Neer Nehwal 21-17, 25-23; 4-Lakshay Sharma bt Abhishek Santhoshkumar 21-15, 21-17; 8-Ayush Shetty bt 10-Wongsup Wongsup-In (Thailand) 21-18, 21-17; 2-Pranav Rao Gandham bt Q-Rounak Chouhan 21-17, 21-17


Women's Singles (Pre-quarters): 1-Anupama Upadhyaya bt Neysa Cariappa 21-14, 19-21, 21-17; 15-Sreshta Reddy Kannareddy bt Akansha Matte 23-21, 12-21, 21-16; 9-Sarunrak Vitidsarn (Thailand) bt 4-Isharani Baruah 21-17, 21-15; Navya Kanderi bt Radhika Sharma 21-17, 21-16; Q-Tanvi Sharma bt Q-Rujula Ramu 21-16, 21-10; 3-Unnati Hooda bt Naishaa Kaur Bhatoye 21-10, 16-21, 21-11; 7-Tara Shah bt 12-Anyapat Phichitpreechasak (Thailand) 21-17, 21-14; Shriyanshi Valishetty bt Q-Chitwan Khatri 20-22, 21-16, 21-11.

--IANS

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St. John's (Antigua), Sep 2 (IANS) West Indies' vice-captain Anisa Mohammed on Friday has decided to take a break from international cricket for a period of six months. Cricket West Indies (CWI) said the veteran off-spinner requested to take a break from the game with immediate effect, after a hectic year of cricket both home and away.

"Cricket has given me all that I have, and I still love it as much as the first day I started playing, therefore this decision was not an easy one for me, especially with the T20 World Cup five months away. However, I must listen to my body and my mind that I need to take time away from the game at this time."

"This is not a permanent goodbye but rather a see you soon. I wish the team all the best in all their forthcoming series, and I know Hayley will fulfil her role as captain, as I've seen her mature and grow as a person and cricketer," said Anisa in an official statement by the CWI.

Anisa's decision to take time away from international cricket comes with the full support of CWI. "Anisa has been a true stalwart of West Indies Women's cricket for over a decade. We at CWI wish her well and will provide any support she may require during this period away from international cricket and look forward to welcoming her back in March," said Jimmy Adams, CWI's Director of Cricket.

Anisa made her international debut for the West Indies at the age of 13 during the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup Qualifiers in Holland in 2003. Over the years, she established herself as the premier spin bowler for the West Indies, going on to become the first cricketer, male or female, to take 100 T20I wickets and ultimately became the leading wicket-taker in the format with 125 scalps in 117 matches, averaging 17.64. In 141 ODIs, she has picked 180 wickets at an average of 20.75.

She was last seen in action at the 2022 ICC Women's ODI World Cup earlier this year in New Zealand, where West Indies reached the semi-finals. Due to her break, she is well in line to miss the Women's T20 World Cup in South Africa next year as well as the upcoming white-ball series against New Zealand at home.

--IANS

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