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Mumbai, Jan 30 (IANS) India seamer Shardul Thakur claimed a hat-trick for Mumbai against Meghalaya in a must-win Ranji Trophy match here at the Sharad Pawar Cricket Academy on Thursday.

Opening the bowling for Mumbai after the side chose to bowl first against Meghalaya, Thakur dismissed Anirudh B, Sumit Kumar, and Jaskirat in the third over before dismissing Nishant Chakraborty on the fourth ball of the innings.

He became the second bowler to take a hat-trick in the 2024/25 Ranji Trophy season after Himachal Pradesh’s Rishi Dhawan against Pondicherry.

Moreover, the 33-year-old became the fifth bowler from Mumbai to take a hat-trick in the Ranji Trophy history.

Other four bowlers are Jehangir Behramji Khot (Bombay) vs Baroda in 1943/44, Umesh Narayan Kulkarni (Bombay) vs Gujarat in 1963/64, Abdul Moosabhoy Ismail (Bombay) vs Saurashtra in 1973/74 and Royston Harold Dias (Mumbai) vs Bihar in 2023/24 season.

In seven matches thus far this season, Thakur has registered 20 wickets and 297 runs with a century and two fifties.Besides Thakur’s 4-14, Mohit Avasthi took two wickets as Mumbai reduced Meghalaya to 29-6 in 12 overs.

Placed third in Group A, Mumbai will require to win the ongoing match by an innings or 10 wickets to secure the bonus point. That will tie them with J&K (29 points) with Baroda placed second at (27 points).

Mumbai will be hoping that either J&K or Baroda doesn’t earn more than one point from their final-round match in Vadodara.

–IANS

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New Delhi, May 26 (IANS) Former Sunrisers Hyderabad head coach Tom Moody believes a number of Gujarat Titans’ bowlers losing form at the wrong time in the IPL 2025 season is concerning, adding that the side hasn’t been able to stitch effective bowling partnerships.

At the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday afternoon, GT lost by 83 runs to bottom-placed Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Barring Prasidh Krishna taking 2-22 in his four overs, the rest of the bowlers recorded their respective economy rates in double digits.

“It is a concern that a number of their bowlers are losing form at the wrong time. Coming into the finals, one area of your game you want to be absolutely confident with is your bowling attack and everyone not looking over their shoulder but looking to take the responsibility themselves.”

“And I look at their attack and really there’s only one bowler that’s bowling well and the rest are trying to find form. And that’s probably being a little bit harsh on Sai Kishore because I think he’s been quite consistent, but it’s nearly like his bowling has been swept away along with many other bowlers purely because they haven’t been able to build the most important thing, and that’s those partnerships with the ball,” said Moody on ESPNcricinfo.

To solve GT’s bowling issues, Moddy thinks the Shubman Gill-led side should look to open the bowling with left-arm spinner Sai Kishore. “I just wonder, just sowing a seed for moving forward, whether they need to actually rearrange their bowling attack.”

“Maybe do something out of the box, like open with Sai Kishore, you know, have an over or two of them. He’s well-equipped to be able to do that, and it just gives them that little bit of a point of difference as a bowling unit.”

Moody signed off by saying it is not the time for GT to press a panic button in their IPL 2025 campaign. “Players need to have that sort of free mind and not sort of worrying about the consequences of what’s happened in the past or what may happen if we fall down that same track as what we did in our last two games.”

“So, again, it’s preserving confidence, preserving the culture that you’ve built within that playing group. So you’re celebrating that and you’re trying to keep everyone upbeat and positive, because at the end of the day, there’s a lot of tired bodies, there’s a lot of mental fatigue there as well. So you need to be mindful of all those things to make sure that everyone’s feeling really positive about what’s ahead of them.”

“For all the teams, at this time, it’s not the time to press that panic button. It’s the time to reflect on what are we really doing well and focusing on those areas and highlighting them and celebrating those areas and just quietly going about trying to patch up a couple of gaps without it being sort of seen in a public domain.”

“Whether it be through the press or whether it be in the dressing room in front of the whole squad – ‘we must be improving here and here and these are the gaps we’re missing out on’, you know, just quietly going around on a one-to-one basis and reassuring players but also just reminding them of a couple of areas that just might need a little bit of sharpening,” he concluded.

–IANS

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Vadodara, Dec 24 (IANS) Harleen Deol’s maiden ODI hundred helped India secure a 115 run victory over West Indies in the second ODI and seal the series with third and last match scheduled at Kotambi Stadium on Friday.

The thrilling match featured two outstanding centuries, one from Harleen Deol and the other from West Indies’ captain Hayley Matthews, in a high-scoring contest.

Electing to bat first, India racked up a formidable 358/5, equaling their joint-highest ODI total. The foundation of the innings was laid by Smriti Mandhana and debutant Pratika Rawal, who shared their second consecutive century stand as openers. Rawal, looking composed and confident after her nervous debut, played an aggressive knock to reach her maiden ODI fifty before falling for 76.

Mandhana, meanwhile, continued her stellar form, reaching her 29th ODI fifty and becoming the highest run-scorer in women’s ODIs this year.

Mandhana’s innings ended in an unfortunate run-out following a mix-up with Rawal. However, instead of showing frustration, the Indian vice-captain offered Rawal a reassuring pat, underscoring the team’s camaraderie.

Harleen Deol then took center stage, crafting a maiden international hundred from the No. 3 position. Having battled a serious knee injury just months ago, Deol repaid the faith of the team management with a sublime knock.

Dropped on 20 by Deandra Dottin, she capitalised on the lifeline to reach her century off 98 balls. Deol’s innings was the backbone of India’s middle-order charge, supported by Jemimah Rodrigues’ blistering 34-ball fifty in a 116-run partnership that came at a strike rate of over 163.

India’s acceleration in the final 20 overs yielded 184 runs, significantly improving upon the 160 they managed in the first ODI. Contributions from Rodrigues and Richa Ghosh ensured a strong finish, setting West Indies a monumental target of 359.

Facing a daunting task, the West Indies began cautiously. The opening overs highlighted their defensive approach, with three maidens bowled in the first seven overs. Renuka Singh, who had dismantled their top order in the first ODI, was once again exceptional, keeping the batters under constant pressure.

Hayley Matthews, however, stood out with a magnificent century, her seventh in ODIs. Matthews attacked India’s spinners with precision, particularly legspinner Priya Mishra, whom she read expertly. Her innings of 109 off 99 balls showcased her full repertoire of strokes, but she found little support from the rest of the batting lineup.

Shemaine Campbelle provided some resistance with a gritty 38, adding 112 runs with Matthews for the fifth wicket. Despite Matthews’ heroics, the West Indies fell well short of the target, eventually folding for 286 in 48.4 overs.

Priya Mishra was the pick of the bowlers as she claimed three wickets, giving away 49 runs. Rawal, Titas Sadhu and Deepti Sharma took two wickets each. Renuka Singh delivered disciplined spells upfront and claimed key wicket of Deandra Dottin with a superb in-swinger that shattered the stumps epitomised her skill.

Brief Score: India-W: 358/5 ( Harleen Deol (115), Pratika Rawal (76); Afy Fletcher 38/1) defeated West Indies-W: 243/10 (Hayley Matthews (106); Priya Mishra 49/3) by 115 runs.

–IANS

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