All posts tagged: WhiteBall

The grip problem that is unravelling his white-ball game

The grip problem that is unravelling his white-ball game

Published by Webster

Two months ago, Rishabh Pant was sweating it out in Chennai’s pre-season IPL heat. There was reason to be concerned. His stocks in India’s white-ball setup were at an all-time low — he was nowhere near the T20 World Cup-winning squad, and his last ODI appearance was in August 2024. No longer India’s first-choice wicket-keeper in white-ball cricket, Pant arrived looking lighter, sharper. Interacting with Yuvraj Singh in Mumbai before the season, he stressed the finer points — bat swing, shape retention, clarity of shots. The intent was to force his way back in. Two months on, in Chennai on Sunday, Pant was frozen by a Jamie Overton delivery that rushed him in the crease. The Lucknow Super Giants skipper was bowled for 15, dropping the momentum built by Josh Inglis’s 33-ball 87. A cluster of wickets followed. LSG settled at 203 and fell short. After eight defeats, Pant has also run out of excuses to explain his team’s rut. The Overton dismissal exposed a weakness now extending to his defensive game — long considered …

The innings that proved he belongs in India’s white-ball plans

The innings that proved he belongs in India’s white-ball plans

Published by Webster

It was the shot that liberated Royal Challengers Bengaluru. When Rajat Patidar strode to the middle in the eleventh over, none of their batsmen — including Phil Salt who had just been dismissed — were in complete command. The heavy outfield was holding up the ball. The hard lengths CSK had hit were creating doubt. The run-rate spiked to 10 one moment and dropped to 8 the next. Nobody seemed to know what a par score was. When Patidar left at the end of the innings, RCB had scored 157 off 56 deliveries — mind-boggling carnage, with Devdutt Padikkal’s and Tim David’s knocks sandwiched in between. He started it. After taking a single off the first ball he faced, Patidar fronted up to Noor Ahmad. Spin against Patidar is not a favourable match-up. He strikes at 170.30 against tweakers. Has hit more sixes off spin — 46 — than boundaries — 22. In the middle overs he goes at 174.23 against slow bowling, 44 of those 46 sixes coming in that phase. Not even Shreyas …

Legendary Australian pacer praises Virat Kohli’s white-ball form amid IPL 2026

Legendary Australian pacer praises Virat Kohli’s white-ball form amid IPL 2026

Published by Webster

3 min readApr 3, 2026 05:04 PM IST Legendary Australian pacer Glenn McGrath has heaped praise on Virat Kohli, praising him for his recent white-ball form and how he has remained consistent in coloured clothing, when his career seemed like sliding away. The 37-year-old began his IPL 2026 campaign by scoring an unbeaten 69 not out to help Royal Challengers Bengaluru chase down Sunrisers Hyderabad’s target of 201 runs in the season opener. “Virat Kohli, you think he is starting to get a little bit long in the tooth, but his white-ball form of late has been absolutely incredible. 69 again not out, got Royal Challengers home, chasing 201,” McGrath said on “The Fast Bowling Cartel” podcast. The 56-year-old also noted how teams have been opting to chase after winning the toss in the IPL so far, and added how the par scores have risen exponentially since the time he played in the league. “It has been a funny start to the IPL. The one thing I have noticed is that every team that has …

Adelaide 2022: The loss that changed India’s white-ball cricket | Cricket News

Adelaide 2022: The loss that changed India’s white-ball cricket | Cricket News

Published by Webster

4 min readMar 5, 2026 01:36 PM IST Sometimes, it takes a loss to cause a revolution. For India’s white-ball cricket, it took a chastening defeat to turn things over. On November 10, 2022, they got a 10-wicket thrashing from England at the Adelaide Oval in the T20 World Cup semi-final. It was then that the alarm bells began ringing for their approach in white-ball cricket. India batted first and scored 168/6 in their 20 overs. They got a boost from Hardik Pandya’s late attack of 63 runs off 33 balls. They had struggled to gain momentum in their innings in the first half and scored slowly in the middle overs before Pandya’s late attack gave them a respectable score. England’s opening pair had a different approach when they came to bat. Jos Buttler and Alex Hales attacked from the very beginning and didn’t allow India to settle in. They scored 170 runs for the opening wicket and completed the chase in just 16 overs. India’s bowlers had been left without answers. Crucially, the game …

How Rishabh Pant spent an hour tonking the ball after Delhi’s Vijay Hazare Trophy match ended, working towards white-ball consistency

How Rishabh Pant spent an hour tonking the ball after Delhi’s Vijay Hazare Trophy match ended, working towards white-ball consistency

Published by Webster

Soon after Delhi wrapped up a convincing win over Andhra in the Vijay Hazare Trophy opening round, their captain Rishabh Pant walked to the centre wicket to have an open net session. While all eyes have been on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, Pant knows how important this tournament is for his white-ball career, where he is currently caught in the middle of nowhere. A back-up to KL Rahul in ODIs, he will have to watch the T20 World Cup from afar, with Ishan Kishan taking the second wicketkeeper slot. At roughly around 4.30 PM on Wednesday, Pant took guard at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence and what followed for the next hour or more was the left-hander indulging in some excellent ball-striking. Even though the rest of his teammates were enjoying a moment with Kohli in the dressing room, Pant was tonking sixes in the middle. With one of Delhi’s coaching staff hurling the white-ball with a side-arm and off-spinner Hrithik Shokeen bowling, he would try pacing his game. One moment, he would give …

Tamil Nadu relieves M Senthilnathan and reinstates M Venkataramana as white-ball coach as split-coaching debuts in domestic cricket | Cricket News

Tamil Nadu relieves M Senthilnathan and reinstates M Venkataramana as white-ball coach as split-coaching debuts in domestic cricket | Cricket News

Published by Webster

Winless so far in the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season, Tamil Nadu has decided to relieve M Senthilnathan from his duties as head coach for the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 and the Vijay Hazare Trophy tournaments, adopting a split -coaching model instead. Former spinner M Venkataramana will coach the state side in the white-ball competitions. He was in charge of the senior state side till the 2022/23 season. Senthilnathan, named as head coach ahead of the season, will now be in charge of the team in the Ranji Trophy alone. TNCA secretary U Bhagwandas Rao announced the decision on Tuesday evening. “The Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association, in its meeting, has appointed N Venkataramana as the head coach for the Tamil Nadu Senior State Team for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (T20) and the Vijay Hazare Trophy (One Day) tournaments for the ongoing 2025–26 season. The Committee has further decided that M Senthilnathan will continue in his role as the Head Coach for the Ranji Trophy matches of the 2025–26 …

Mike Hesson Named as Pakistan’s White-Ball Coach

Mike Hesson Named as Pakistan’s White-Ball Coach

Published by Webster

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced Mike Hesson’s appointment as the white-ball coach of the men’s team, replacing Gary Kirsten, who left last year. Mike Hesson is currently the head coach of Islamabad United in the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) and will take over the role on May 26, 2025. Pakistan have been searching for a suitable candidate to take charge of the Men’s white-ball team. Mike Hesson’s appointment comes after Gary Kirsten and Jason Gillespie left Pakistan Cricket in recent times. After Kirsten stepped down as Pakistan’s white ball coach, Gillespie was named as the all-format coach. However, it did not work out as the Pakistan Board intervened in his responsibility he stepped down from the role. “Hesson comes in to fill the post after evaluation of numerous applications received against the vacancy, which fell vacant after Pakistan men’s team tour to New Zealand in April,” PCB said in a statement. Pakistan Cricket Team (image: X) “I am pleased to announce the appointment of former New Zealand cricketer and renowned coach Mike Hesson as …

Aqib Javed Appointed As Director of High-Performance Of Pakistan’s White-Ball Team

Aqib Javed Appointed As Director of High-Performance Of Pakistan’s White-Ball Team

Published by Webster

Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru director of cricket Mike Hesson has been announced as Pakistan’s white-ball head coach and Aqib Javed, who held the position on an interim basis, has been appointed as the Director of High-Performance on Tuesday. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) released a statement to confirm Hesson’s appointment. It read, “Hesson comes in to fill the post after evaluation of numerous applications received against the vacancy, which fell vacant after the Pakistan men’s team tour to New Zealand in April.” Hesson is currently the head coach of Islamabad United, the defending champions of the Pakistan Super League. The 50-year-old replaced Aqib, who held the position for five months on an interim basis after Gary Kirsten left just six months into his stint. “I am pleased to announce the appointment of former New Zealand cricketer and renowned coach Mike Hesson as the white-ball head coach of the Pakistan men’s team,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi said in the statement. “Mike brings with him a wealth of international experience and a proven track record …

“Fabulous Test Batter But…”: Ex-India Star Questions Rishabh Pant’s White-Ball Performance

“Fabulous Test Batter But…”: Ex-India Star Questions Rishabh Pant’s White-Ball Performance

Published by Webster

Rishabh Pant in action© BCCI The ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) had to be suspended due to increasing tensions between India and Pakistan. After the Match No.58 between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals was abruptly called-off in Dharamsala, the BCCI issued a statement regarding the suspension of IPL by one week. Before the suspension, the teams were fighting for a position in the playoffs and the battle becoming more intense with every passing game. Lucknow Super Giants, who claimed only five wins after 11 games, are one of those sides who are all but out of the playoffs race. Commenting on LSG’s situation, former India coach Sanjay Bangar slammed their skipper Rishabh Pant and stated that he is yet to find rhythm in white-ball cricket. Pant was bought by LSG at a record price of Rs 27 crore but miserably failed to live up to the expectations. After 11 matches, Pant scored only 128 runs. “We have to recognise that he’s still yet to totally understand the white-ball game – …