Prithvi Shaw to join Maharashtra; ‘happy to play alongside Ruturaj Gaikwad
Former international batsman Prithvi Shaw, who left Mumbai after a nightmarish phase, has motored across the expressway to join Maharashtra at its Pune base for the upcoming Ranji season. In a bid to rejuvenate his career and start a new innings by joining Maharashtra, Shaw expressed gratitude to the MCA for giving him the opportunity. The Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) simultaneously called it a strategic shift, seen as a significant development in Indian domestic cricket, strengthening the Maharashtra team further. Having represented India across three formats, Tests, ODIs, and T20Is, Shaw also turned out for Delhi Lady in the IPL. Despite his aggressive batting and match-winning capabilities, Shaw had seen a steady diminishing of runs and will look to roar back into form, which held plenty of promise when he returned as captain of the ICC Under-19 World Cup in 2018. However, persistent technical glitches in his batting and fitness concerns have caused Shaw to plateau in performance. Shaw will look to bulge his 13 first-class centuries count and add to the amassed mountain of 4500 runs so far in his career. The MCA press release quoted Shaw as saying, “At this stage of my career, I believe joining the Maharashtra team will help me grow further as a cricketer. I am deeply grateful to the Mumbai Cricket Association for the opportunities and support I have received over the years. The Maharashtra Cricket Association has made remarkable efforts in recent years to enhance cricketing infrastructure across the state. Initiatives like the Maharashtra Premier League, Women’s MPL, Corporate Shield, and D.B. Deodhar Tournament are testament to their vision. I’m confident that being part of such a progressive setup will positively impact my journey as a cricketer.”
Durand Cup: EB start campaign on 23rd July, MBSG on 31st July, and MDSP on 28th July
The 16-time winner, East Bengal will start their campaign in the forthcoming Durand Cup against South United FC on 23rd July at the Salt Lake Stadium. East Bengal have been grouped with South United FC, Namdhari FC, and the Air Force. The red-and-gold brigade will play their next two matches in the group on 6th August and 10th August, respectively. However, Mohun Bagan Super Giants, the 17-time winner in the Durand Cup, will play their opener in the tournament on 31st July against Mohammedan Sporting at the Salt Lake Stadium, changing their primary decision of withdrawing from the tournament. MBSG will play their two other group league matches against Border Security Force and against Diamond Harbor FC on 9th August. Drawn in Group B with Mohammedan Sporting, Diamond Harbor FC, and Border Security Force, all its group-stage matches will be held in Kolkata at Salt Lake Stadium and Kishore Bharati Krirangan. Mohamedan Sports have been scheduled to start their campaign in the Durand Cup on 28th July against Diamond Harbor FC on 28th July. The black-and-white briade won the title twice so far, once in 1940 and then in 2013.
Ben Stokes calls Edgbaston pitch ‘sub-continent’ surface!
After a match that witnessed a record 1692 runs being scored on arguably one of the flattest pitches served out in the country in the 21st century, England captain Ben Stokes said the Edgbaston strip ended up suiting India more, progressively displaying “sub-continent” traits before their 336-run defeat on day five in Birmingham on Sunday. England’s Bazballers were eventually exposed, not just by the sheer weight of runs India amassed – the 1014 runs in two innings being the highest-ever recorded by the side in 591 Tests. The glaring gulf between the pace attacks of both teams meant India had enough quality in their attack to pick up all 20 wickets, becoming only the second team in Test history, after Australia (in 1938 and 1969), to register 1000 runs and pick up all 20 wickets in a match. Led by Akash Deep’s 10-wicket match haul and Mohammed Siraj’s first-innings six-for, India seamers picked up 17 wickets to England pacer’s eight in the match. When quizzed on the Test Match Special, if England wanted to continue playing on such flat-bed surfaces, Stokes countered that the conditions ended up mirroring pitches in India, which suited the visitors. “To be honest, it’s probably ended up being more of a subcontinent pitch as it got deeper and deeper into the game. There was certainly a little bit in it to start with, and I think we exposed that very well early on,” said Stokes. “Then just as it sort of got deeper and deeper, it just became a real tough slug for us and obviously with the Indian attack and the conditions that they’re used to, they were sort of used to and knew sort of how to expose those conditions just sort of a little bit better than us and that can happen sometimes. But yeah, it’s nothing to be too disheartened about. We can take being out-skilled, and we’ve certainly been out-skilled this week,” said Stokes. England head coach Brendon McCullum, meanwhile, rued the team’s decision to bowl first.