Sports Bulletin

Special Report DUBAI:-The stage is ready for the championship match of ICC T20 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2021 at Dubai International Stadium, Dubai on Sunday night. AUSTRALIA (Playing XIs): 1. Aaron Finch (C) 2. David Warner 3. Mitchell Marsh 4. Glenn Maxwell 5. Steve Smith 6. Marcus Stoinis 7. Matthew Wade (WK) 8. Pat Cummins 9. Mitchell Starc 10. Adam Zampa 11. Josh Hazlewood NEW ZEALAND (Playing XIs): 1. Daryl Mitchell 2. Martin Guptill 3. Kane Williamson (C) 4. Glenn Phillips 5. Tim Seifert (WK) 6. Jimmy Neesham 7. Mitchell Santner 8. Adam Milne 9. Tim Southee 10. Ish Sodhi 11. Trent Boult Match Officials: Match Referee: Ranjan Madugalle On-field umpires: Marais Erasmus and Richard Kettleborough TV umpire: Nitin Menon Fourth umpire: Kumar Dharmasena Australia Squad: Aaron Finch (C), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins (VC), Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa New Zealand Squad: Kane Williamson (c) – Todd Astle – Trent Boult – Mark Chapman – Devon Conway – Lockie Ferguson – Martin Guptill – Kyle Jamieson – Daryl Mitchell – Jimmy Neesham – Glenn Phillips – Mitchell Santner – Tim Seifert (wk) – Ish Sodhi – Tim Southee – Adam Milne* (injury cover)  

To Shaun,   I remember when I first learned about my induction into the ICC Hall of Fame. I was in Canterbury, and I remember opening it, slowly reading through and getting that unbelievable sensation of what a privilege it was. It is not something we dream of when we start our careers but for me, it comes from a deep desire to be the best you can every single day. The fact that you, Shaun, will join myself, Barry Richards, Jacques Kallis, Aubrey Faulkner and of course your uncle Graeme, in being inducted is an enormously proud moment for all of us in South African cricket. Having you there, and deservedly so, makes all those sacrifices and operations, the sore feet and sore body worth it.  I still remember the first time I came across you. Malcolm Marshall was playing for Natal and in 1994 and we played against them in a day-night final. I remember Malcolm was bowling from one end and this young tear-away with red hair was bowling from the other. From then your position in Proteas cricket would ignite. Of course, the Pollock name is huge in South Africa. It meant that even as a young man, you had so much pressure on your shoulders to succeed. You had to finish the mission and follow in the footsteps of Graeme and your father Peter with the whole country watching intently. You did that and more and I know that they and the rest of your family will be so stoked that you are being added to this list of cricket’s greats. You’ll forgive me for saying that you were quiet when you first came into the South African team in 1995, but that did not last long. We soon got to see the real Shaun Pollock, a great leader but also a prankster. I haven’t forgotten the time you and a certain Lance Klusener left a dead fish in the aircon vent of our hotel room in Sri Lanka that went undiscovered, but certainly not unremarked upon, for three days. We got our own back on you, thankfully, but needless to say those tours with you were never boring. What I admire a lot about you is the way you were able to adapt your game. When you first came into the Proteas side, you were this fast bowler who could terrorise batters, but despite injuries later in your career, you always managed to be effective, even if you didn’t quite have the pace you once had, and that’s a remarkable quality. You were our Glenn McGrath, the sort of bowler who could lock down an end and let the rest of us run free at the other. I think that is why we complemented each other so well as an opening bowling partnership. We could throw you the ball and say ‘See you tonight’. You would pile up the dots at one end and then I would have licence to express myself. Where my style was to combine control with pace, you did so with swing, getting so close to the stumps that batters would have to play almost every ball. It took incredible stamina and concentration because you gave them nowhere to hide. I think we were never better than when the West Indies came to South Africa in 1998/9. Between us we took 52 wickets in a 5-0 series victory. There was also the tour to India in 2000 when we won 2-0 and the two of us, along with the rest of the pace attack and Nicky Boje just seemed to click. You took over the captaincy soon after. After the Hansie Cronje affair, there was no question that you were going to be the man to step into the breach. I think we knew from the start that you would end up being the captain one day. You got on with everyone and were just one of the nice guys. Of course, you could get a little hairy when things did not go your way, but that is the same for all of us. It truly was a privilege to be able to share the new ball with you Test cricket. To take 421 Test wickets is incredible, and who could forget the magic with the bat as well. We were spoilt having you, Jacques Kallis and Lance Klusener in the same team as our revered all-rounders. I want to thank you as a bowling partner, a friend and a Protea cricketer. Thank you for all the memories I got to share with you, the great times we had, and the battles. I think you brought the best out of me, and I hope I brought the best out of you. We don’t see each other often enough but I just want to wish you well. You have been a wonderful servant to South African cricket which was lucky to have another Pollock. You have done your family proud. Welcome to the ICC Hall of Fame, Polly. Allan

Lahore(Sports Reporter):-Southern Punjab pocketed 16 crucial points with a thumping 10-wicket win over Northern at Multan Cricket Stadium on the final day of round four of Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2021-22. With the win, Southern Punjab are now positioned at the top of the points table. Northern, batting for the second time in the match, had a 56-run deficit with only four wickets in hand when the final day’s play began and Southern Punjab bowlers rolled them out for 231. Across the innings, Imran Rafiq took four wickets and Mohammad Abbas and Zia-ul-Haq bagged three wickets each. The only resistance Southern Punjab faced on Saturday was from Mubasir Khan, who made 50 off 97. Southern Punjab needed only one run to win, which was scored by Ali Usman. The total points Southern Punjab bagged from this match are 25 with nine points for batting and bowling. At Faisalabad’s Iqbal Stadium, Nabi Gul and Khalid Usman struck centuries, while Raza-ul-Hasan took five for 160 as the match between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan ended in a draw. Nabi Gul was on 88 at the start of day and he made 101 off 198, while Khalid struck an unbeaten 110 off 148. Down the order, Asif Afridi made an electric 62 off 35 as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa made 557 all out in 139.1 overs. Adil Amin, unbeaten on 37 yesterday, made 83. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa also bagged five batting points for breaching the 400-run mark in 100 overs. Balochistan were 58 for none in 23 overs when stumps were drawn. Both teams got five points each for securing draw. Scores in brief: Toss Uncontested – Southern Punjab choose to field against Northern at Multan Cricket Stadium Northern 163 all out, 56.1 overs (Nasir Nawaz 58, Umar Amin 29, Umar Waheed 21; Ali Usman 3-39, Mohammad Abbas 2-32, Zia-ul-Haq 2-32, Mohammad Ilyas 2-41) and 231 all out, 79.4 overs (Faizan Riaz 51, Mubasir Khan 50, Muhammad Huraira 43; Ali Usman 4-50, Mohammad Abbas 3-36, Zia-ul-Haq 3-61) Southern Punjab 394 all out, 97.4 overs (Yousuf Babar 138, Azam Khan 70, Ali Usman 37, Imran Rafiq 34, Tayyab Tahir 22; Aamir Jamal 5-111, Musa Khan 3-99) and 1-0, 5 overs (Ali Usman 1 not out) Match points – Northern 3, Southern Punjab 25 Balochistan elect to bat against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa after winning the toss at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad Balochistan 463-5, 137.5 overs (Imam-ul-Haq 202 not out, Imran Butt 140, Haris Sohail 79; Asif Afridi 2-139) and 58-0, 23 overs (Abdul Wahid Bangalzai 32 not out, Imran Butt 19 not out) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 557 all out, 139.1 overs (Khalid Usman 110 not out, Nabi Gul 101, Sahibzada Farhan 75, Musadiq Ahmed 70, Adil Amin 83, Asif Afridi 62; Raza ul Hasan 5-160, Najeebullah Khan 2-108) Match points – Balochistan 10, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 12

Lahore(Sports Reporter):-Sindh’s Ahsan Ali on Saturday became the ninth batter to record a Quaid-e-Azam Trophy triple century when he made 303 not out off 385 against Central Punjab on the final day of the pink ball affair at the Gaddafi Stadium. The match between the two sides ended in a draw. The opening batter started the day at 284 and after he crossed the 300-run mark, Asad Shafiq declared the innings at 616 for five. The other batters to have scored 300 or more in the tournament are Hanif Mohammad (499 for Karachi against Bahawalpur in 1958/59), Aftab Baloch (428 for Sindh against in 1973/74), Naved Latif (394 for Sargodha against Gujranwala in 2000/01), Imran Farhat (308 for Lahore Ravi against Peshawar in 2012/13), Rafatullah Mohmand (302* for WAPDA against SSGC in 2009/10), Shoaib Khan (300* for Peshawar against Quetta in 2003/04), Bazid Khan (300* for Rawalpindi against Hyderabad in 2004/05) and Hamza Ghanchi (300* for Karachi Whites against National Bank of Pakistan in Karachi 2016/17) Central Punjab had made 185 for four in 53 overs with Ahmed Shehzad top-scoring with 53 and Abid Ali following up his 122 with 45 not out when stumps were drawn. Three of the five Central Punjab wickets were taken by left-arm orthodox Mohammad Asghar. Scores in brief: Central Punjab 387-9, 129.3 overs (Abid Ali 122, Mohammad Saad 88, Ahmed Shehzad 78, Junaid Ali 35, Zafar Gohar 24; Mohammad Asghar 4-143, Mir Hamza 3-65) and 185-4, 53 overs (Ahmed Shehzad 53, Abid Ali 45 not out, Saad Naseem 30; Mohammad Asghar 3-80) Sindh 616-5, 134 overs (Ahsan Ali 303 not out, Ammad Alam 157, Khurram Manzoor 51, Mohammad Hassan 37 not out, Saad Khan 31, Asad Shafiq 21; Zafar Gohar 3-153) Match points – Central Punjab 7, Sindh 10

DUBAI,UEA(Aamir Ali Janjua)Aaron Finch says the aftermath of Australia’s heavy defeat to England helped propel his side into the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 final, where they face New Zealand. Finch’s side were soundly beaten by the ICC Cricket World Cup (50-over) champions in their third Group 1 game, going down by eight wickets. Their campaign hinged on the five-day period that followed, allowing them to recover physically and redouble their tactical focus. “We were disappointed after that game, obviously,” said Finch. “We had a couple of days off to regroup after a gruelling couple of weeks of the tournament when we had to go through quarantine and really hard training. “It gave us the chance to freshen up mentally and physically. We talked about staying committed to being aggressive. “We felt we were a bit timid against England and got outplayed in the powerplay, particularly with the way that Chris Woakes bowled. “It was just about staying really aggressive. In this format, when you’re up against top opposition, you don’t get many opportunities to get into the game and you have to find every small edge. “We just reiterated that, as a team, that’s the way we wanted to go about the tournament.” Since then, Australia overran Bangladesh and West Indies by eight wickets before a stunning five-wicket semi-final triumph over Pakistan, coming up on the rails to reach the final. It is the second time an Australian men’s team have reached the T20 World Cup final, reaching that stage for the first time in 2010 when they went down to England. Australia’s results in the shortest form of the game have been patchy in recent years - they last won a bilateral series in February 2020 and lost five in a row coming into the tournament. “Everyone had written us off but we had a lot of confidence within in the way we were preparing and our strategy was coming together,” said Finch. “We haven’t defied expectations, we came here with a clear plan to win the tournament and we’ve still got the squad to do that.” Similarly, it feels like New Zealand are pegged as dark horses every time they enter an ICC major event. That doesn’t stack up with their record - they reached the finals of the last two Cricket World Cups, the semi-finals of the 2016 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and won the inaugural ICC World Test Championship. They proved their big-game mettle in the semi-finals with a five-wicket win over England. Captain Kane Williamson said: “The side has been operating well as a collective and playing for each other. “We saw a pretty exciting semi-final, both semi-finals actually were somewhat similar. You see moments in games that are match-defining and games that can take quite a sharp turn when you have some key performances. “That’s why the tournament has been exciting, you looked across the board and saw match-winners throughout and that every team could beat anyone on their day. “We’ve tried to learn and grow throughout and we have another opportunity to do that.” New Zealand lost fast bowler Lockie Ferguson to injury before the tournament and now will be without batter Devin Conway for the final. Conway suffered a hand injury after punching his bat after being dismissed in the semi-final. “The loss of Devin is a big one, he’s been a big part of all formats for us,” said Williamson.“ It’s a disappointing and freak thing to happen.” “For us, it’s keeping our focus on the task and all of our players are focused on the opportunity, to go out and adjust to a different venue and opposition tomorrow.”

LAHORE(Sports Reporter)Sindh’s Saim Ayub struck century, while Balochistan’s Aftab Ahmed took six wickets on day two of their tenth round fixture of the Cricket Associations Championship at Saeed Ajmal Academy in Faisalabad. Resuming their first innings on 18 for no loss, Sindh were bowled out for 486 in the 82nd over. Left-handed opening batter Saim scored 98-ball 101, laced with 12 fours and two sixes. He was supported by his opening partner Usman Khan (95, 159b, 10 fours, three sixes) as both added 178 runs for the opening wicket. Syed Faraz Ali coming to bat at number three scored 90 off 94 balls, laced with eight fours and four sixes. Rameez Aziz batting at number six returned undefeated after making a quick-fire 40-ball 52. For Balochistan, leg-spinner Aftab grabbed six for 101 in 19.4 overs. Tariq Jameel bagged two for 94. At LCCA Ground in Lahore, Southern Punjab managed to score 387 for eight in 83 overs after resuming their first innings on 361 for four in 77 overs against Central Punjab. In reply, Central Punjab were 285 for seven in 67 overs when stumps were drawn. Central Punjab’s Imran Dogar scored 103 off 145, hitting 14 fours, while his opener partner Abdul Sammad scored 62 off 95, hitting nine fours and one six. The pair knitted 137 runs for the first wicket. Southern Punjab’s Mohammad Irfan with his left-arm spin bagged five for 89. Ziad Khan scored an unbeaten 131 to help Northern take a 60-run first innings lead over Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with six wickets in hand at the Rana Naved Cricket Academy in Sheikhupura. Resuming their first innings on three, Northern were 333 for four when stumps were drawn on the second day. Ziad struck 15 fours and two sixes during his 292 minutes at the crease. He was equally supported by opening batter Zaid who scored 120-ball 82, laced with 13 fours. Jamal Anwar batting at number six remained unbeaten on 57 off 81 balls. For Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Aitzaz Habib and Farhan Khan picked two wickets apiece. Scores in Brief: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa v Northern – Rana Naved Cricket Academy, Sheikhupura Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 273 all out, 70 overs (Mehran Ibrahim 125 not out, Mohammad Bilal 52, Mohammad Mohsin Khan 37; Kashif Ali 5-40, Mehran Mumtaz 5-87) Northern 333-4, 79 overs (Ziad Khan 131 not out, Zaid Alam 82, Jamal Anwar 57 not out; Aitzaz Habib 2-62, Farhan Khan 2-82) Central Punjab v Southern Punjab – LCCA Ground, Lahore Southern Punjab 387-8, 83 overs (Maqbool Ahmed 124, Mukhtar Ahmed 117, Moinuddin 63; Kamran Afzal 3-155, Mohammad Waheed 2-50, Sohaibullah 2-63) Central Punjab 285-7, 67 overs (Imran Dogar 103, Abdul Sammad 62; Mohammad Irfan 5-89) Balochistan v Sindh – Saeed Ajmal Academy, Faisalabad Balochistan 285-9, 83 overs (Azeem Ghumman 93, Fahad Iqbal 50; Arish Ali Khan 3-80, Ashiq Ali 3-86, Danish Aziz 2-57) Sindh 486 all out, 81.5 overs (Saim Ayub 101, Usman Khan 95, Syed Faraz Ali 90, Rameez Aziz 52 not out, Saifullah Bangash 43; Aftab Ahmed 6-101, Tariq Jameel 2-94)

Abdullah Asjad RAWALPINDI (November 13, 2021):-It will be all Khyber Pakhtunkhwa when the National Under-19 Cup final takes place between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Blues and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Whites at the Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi on Sunday. Both teams topped their Pools in the 12-team tournament, as the winning team will receive PKR1million while the runner-up will bag PKR500,000. The players will have the incentive to bring out their best performances as the tournament’s top performers – best player, best batter, best bowler and best wicketkeeper – will receive PKR50,000 each. The player of the final will be awarded PKR20,000. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Whites topped Pool A with four wins from five outings in the tournament. Central Punjab U19 Whites also finished with eight points in the group, but on better net run-rate Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Whites qualified for the final. In Pool B, three teams Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Blues, Sindh U19 Blues and Central Punjab U19 Blues finished with eight points each from five matches, but again on better net run-rate, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Blues qualified for the final. Players to watch out for in the final: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Whites - Afaq Khan: The 18-year old Afaq has featured in five matches scoring 273 at 54.60. The left-handed batter has scored one century and one half-century in the tournament and currently is second on the list behind Central Punjab U19 Whites’ batter Azan Awais who has scored 313 runs from five matches. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Blues - Maaz Sadaqat: Maaz is a good all-round player available to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Blues. The 17-year old left-handed batter has scored 245 runs from five matches at 49, with one century and one half-century. He with his left-arm spin has taken eight wickets from five matches at 8. His best figures in the match was four for 25. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Blues – Salahuddin: In the bowling charts, Salahuddin with his left-arm spin is second on the chart. In five matches, he has taken 12 wickets with four for 15 his best figures in the match. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa U19 Whites – Khalid Shah: Khalid Shah has 12 scalps to his name from five matches in the tournament. The right-arm fast bowler has taken one five-wicket haul, with five for 21 his best figures in the match.

Sports Desk ISLAMABAD (November 13, 2021):-Ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 Final, Janette Brittin, Mahela Jayawardena and Shaun Pollock were announced as the newest inductees into the prestigious ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. These legends will be formally inducted by fellow ICC Hall of Famer, Sir Clive Lloyd at the much-anticipated final between New Zealand and Australia on Sunday 14 November before the game gets underway at the Dubai International Stadium. The ICC Cricket Hall of Fame recognises the achievements of the legends of the game from cricket’s long and illustrious history. 106 players have been inducted since its launch in 2009, with Brittin, Jayawardena and Pollock as the latest inductees celebrated. Today’s inductees played in 284 Tests, 814 ODIs and 67 T20 Internationals between them. Janet Brittin was a mainstay of the England Test team for 19 years, helping to pave the way for women’s cricket between 1979 and 1998. Mahela Jayawardena retired as one of Sri Lanka’s greatest ever players, a key member of the team that won the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in 2014 and reached four other major ICC finals. Whilst South Africa’s Shaun Pollock was one of the finest bowling all-rounders the game has ever seen and was the first player to achieve the 3,000 run and 300 wicket doubles in both Test and ODI cricket. ICC Acting CEO Geoff Allardice said: “The ICC Hall of Fame is our way of honouring and celebrating the greats of our game. Only the very best players are recognized for their contribution to cricket in this way. I would like to congratulate Mahela and Shaun on their induction into this illustrious group and it is a wonderful way to commemorate Janette’s life and career.” Reacting to the news of Brittin’s induction, Angela Bainbridge, friend of Janette Brittin said: “I would like to extend my thanks to the ICC for the incredible honour they have bestowed on Jan by inaugurating her into the Hall of Fame. I along with Jan’s parents Maggie and Kevin are incredibly proud of her and her achievements and this award recognises both the player and the person that she was. You could not wish to meet a more humble or talented player and she always gave 100% whether she played for club, county, or country.” “Jan truly was a wonderful player and a fantastic role model for those that followed her. She would have loved to play in the professional forum that the girls enjoy today and would be proud of how they have all moved the game forward. It is sad that Jan is not able to collect this trophy herself, but her memory will live on.” Mahela Jayawardena commented: “I am thrilled to have been inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame. It’s a very special honour to follow in the footsteps of legends Sanga and Murali from Sri Lanka and so many other great cricketers of the past. “I am very grateful for the recognition and would like to enjoy and share the moment with all those that have helped me on my journey, including my family, friends, coaches, team-mates and, most importantly, Sri Lanka cricket fans who passionately supported and inspired me during my career.” Shaun Pollock said: “I would like to thank the ICC for this recognition of my career. It’s an amazing honour to be included in the Hall of Fame alongside the very illustrious company that has already been inducted. It’s a real cherry on the top or maybe even a book end of what has been a thoroughly enjoyable cricketing experience and I’d like to thank my teammates who played such a massive part along the journey.” Some career highlights of the latest inductees: Janette Brittin One of England’s most-successful batters with a Test career spanning 19 years Made her Test debut against West Indies in 1979, aged 19 Scored maiden ODI century against an International XI in New Zealand in 1982 Top-scored with 46 not out in the 1988 World Cup final, a defeat to Australia at the MCG Won World Cup in 1992, top-scoring again and taking the winning catch In 27 Test matches, she averaged 49.61 for her record 1935 runs and scored five hundreds In 63 ODIs, scored 2121 runs with an average of 42.42  ODI career included five centuries and a highest score of 138 not out in 1982 After her playing days, Brittin taught at Danes Hill school in Oxshott, Surrey She kept up her associations with cricket and in particular with Surrey, where she coached younger players She was awarded an MBE in 1999 but died in 2017 at the age of just 58. Mahela Jayawardena Made his Sri Lankan Test debut in 1997 Scored 66 Test debut runs towards Sri Lanka’s record total of 952-6 against India Scored 11,814 Test runs at average of 50.05 In 448 ODIs, he scored 12,650 runs at 33,37 Scored 1493 runs in 55 T20Is Along with Kumar Sangakkara, scored world record partnership of 624 v South Africa in 2006 He was a key member of the team that won the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in 2014 Played a part in Sri Lanka reaching four other major ICC finals He became the first Sri Lankan to score 10,000 Test runs His 374 against South Africa at Colombo in 2006 is a Sri Lankan record As coach, he has led the Mumbai Indians to three IPL titles. Shaun Pollock The first player to achieve the 3,000 run / 300 wickets double in both Test and ODI cricket Remains South Africa’s leading wicket-taker in all international cricket Took 5-32 against England at Cape Town in his first Test series and followed up with the double of 66 not out and 4-34 in his first ODI In 108 Tests, scored 3,781 runs at an average of 32.31, and took 421 wickets Played in 303 ODIs, scoring 3,519 runs at 26.45 and took 393 wickets Scored 86 runs in 12 T20Is, taking 15 wickets. Spent more than five years as the top ranked ODI bowler in the ICC’s rankings As captain, led South Africa to their first Test series victory in the Caribbean  

BIPIN DANI Earlier this week (Wednesday) the owners and the management of Shree Thaker Bhojanalay at Kalbadevi Road in South Mumbai were not surprised when a table for Gujarati Thali was booked by Sachin Tendulkar's wife Anjali, but yes, they were "pleasantly surprised" to see Little Master on their guest list. "It was because Anjali, being born in a Gujarati family, has been a regular visitor at our restaurant. She dines here frequently and sometimes with her friends, parents or our chief minister's wife but when we saw Sachin also here this time, our joy knew no bounds", says Hemraj Purohit, the manager of the restaurant. The occasion was Anjali Tendulkar's 54th birthday (yes, she is 7 years elder to our Little Master)". The family had decided to celebrate the birthday at Shree Thaker Bhojanalaya, the restaurant famous for Gujju food served in Gujarati Thalis. The restaurant, which is over 75 years old, is located in the most crowded area of the city. The restaurant has a tradition of saying "padharo jamva" (welcome to dine) in Gujarati / Marwadi style to each visitor. "To avoid rush, the family with about 20 people came at around 11.45 and dined and left within 45 minutes. They had brought the cake with them and a special section was provided to them for their privacy". Anjali's parents and friends were there. Daughter Sara was there. Son Arjun was not there. Anjali Tendulkar was born to a well known Gujarati family in India. Her father Anand Mehta (well-known bridge player) is an Indian while her mother Annabel (NGO worker) belongs to a British country. So that’s why her family has a taste of modernism. This beautiful woman Anjali, a pediatrician (not doing practice) married to a well known cricketer Sachin Tendulkar in 1995. "They all tasted all the items served to them and enjoyed the food", the manager adds. "Had a ??? (very good) Gujarati thali at Shree Thaker Bhojnalaya to celebrate Anjali’s birthday. Her Gujju genes are strong but our jeans’ buttons were weak after this meal! ????", Sachin Tendulkar later said on social media.

SPECIAL REPORT: While the spotlight was on India, Pakistan, England and Australia throughout the tournament there was a little voice inside my head saying: ‘hang on don’t forget about New Zealand’. They are the current World Test champions, played in the last 50-over World Cup final and their white-ball cricket has been exceptional over the past couple of years. They are street smart and organised and have an inspirational leader in Kane Williamson. Batting first, England would’ve felt the pressure to put a good score on the board with teams in this tournament preferring to chase. New Zealand have a very strong bowling attack and had the perfect start, breaking the new opening partnership of Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler. In a high-pressure game, 160 is a good score and thanks to Moeen Ali, Dawid Malan and a late cameo from Liam Livingstone they reached a total they would’ve felt was defendable in a finals match. Chasing in a semifinal, you want your big guns to fire but when the Black Caps lost Martin Guptill and Kane Williamson, the hopes of a nation were on the shoulders of World Cup newcomers Daryl Mitchell and Devon Conway. On the big stage, this was their opportunity to make a name for themselves in white-ball cricket, and they knew exactly the game they needed to play, blocking out the noise and playing every ball on its merit. That’s the important thing about T20, if one solid partnership can take the game as deep as possible and you have big hitters at the back end, anything is possible. New Zealand won’t mind who they are playing in the final. They’ve already overcome a huge hurdle and got one over England which shows they can handle the heat when it's on them. In a final, it's about doing the basics as well as possible. That, group is really focused on the fundamentals, but also have the ability to flick the switch to fifth gear and blow teams out of the water. Their focus will be on getting themselves ready and controlling what they can control. Whoever they come up against, they'll be ready for them.