Duleep Trophy | 'We will chase this target easily...': West Zone's Mu…

[popcorn number="111" desc="No. of runs put on by Musheer Khan and Ruturaj Gaikwad for the fourth wicket" class="Default"]

Till one-drop Musheer Khan (96, 8x4, 2x6) and No. 5 Ruturaj Gaikwad (66, 7x4) were at the crease, West Zone looked comfortable during their 287-run second-innings chase against North Zone in the Duleep Trophy quarter-final at Bengaluru on Tuesday. However, Musheer’s dismissal, followed by two more quick wickets has left West Zone on 220-7 at the end of Day Three, needing another 67 runs for victory on the final day. afnews.co.za

However, Musheer, who missed his fifth first-class century by just four runs, is confident that No. 6 Urvil Patel (17 not out) and the remaining batters — Tanush Kotian, Shardul Thakur and Tushar Deshpande — will get the job done.

“I have a lot of faith in Urvil; he’s a gutsy player. I have a lot of confidence in Tanush, Shardul bhai and Tushar bhai as well. I trust them. I’m sure even if one of them clicks tomorrow [Wednesday], we will chase this target easily,” Musheer told mid-day over the phone from Bengaluru on Tuesday.

Musheer, who has scored four centuries in 17 first-class matches, felt he should have finished the job himself though. “I was enjoying my innings without keeping any milestone in mind. I just thought that if I can help my team win this one, we would’ve gained a lot of confidence for the upcoming season. If we win, this will be among my best innings so far,” Musheer added.

The first-ever auction of the Women’s Andhra Premier League (WAPL) 2026 took place in Vijayawada on August 25. With the tournament moving to the franchise model for the first time, a total of 191 players were registered for the inaugural auction. Of them, 76 players were sold as the four teams, Godavari Golden Eagles, Vizag Fire Birds, Rayalaseema Xen Stars and Amaravati E Champions, built their squads for the upcoming season.

Henrietta Flavia Pereira, the all-rounder, attracted the highest bid of INR 4.30 lakh, with Godavari Golden Eagles snapping her up. K Anjali Sarvani also made headlines after Vizag Fire Birds bought her for INR 3.60 lakh. All eyes were on Team India spinner N Shree Charani, whom Rayalaseema Xen Stars bought for INR 1.10 lakh. However, her participation remains in doubt as the WAPL schedule (September 15-26) clashes with the upcoming Asian Games (September 17-22), where Charani will be representing the country.

Along with several significant dignitaries, the former Team India women’s skipper, mentor and consultant for Women’s Cricket Operations at the Andhra Cricket Association (ACA), and brand ambassador of the WAPL, Mithali Raj, graced the occasion with her presence.

Talking about the inaugural auction, she said: “Respected Chairman Sir, Kalyan, ACA members and officials who are present here on this momentous occasion, franchise owners and the members, media. It’s such a big occasion for all of us in Andhra to have the Women’s Andhra Premier League in the franchise model. It’s a huge investment from the ACA and from all the franchise owners.”

“Thank you very much for coming forward to invest in women’s cricket, to put a value to the sport. A lot of girls put in hard work, and this is just another step in the state association and the state environment.”

She was also asked by one of the members of the Vizag Fire Birds team management about how she has sustained herself throughout her career, handled success and continued to do so with grace.

The former Team India skipper has been one of the pioneers of women’s cricket in India and continues to do her best to help the sport grow in every possible capacity.

In reply to that, she said: “As cricketers, we’re always putting in the hard yards because we want to play for India. That’s our goal. And when you represent so many people as an ambassador of India, you cannot be anywhere less than 100% every time.”

“Post-retirement, it’s a different journey. You finish, you stop as an active player. You’re a former cricketer. But all the experience that I was able to accumulate over the years, I wanted somewhere to be invested because those experiences are trial and error. And different generations, different administration, different boards. So when I got an opportunity to be part of ACA, I took it up because I felt that experience, I can trickle down to the players in this state.”

“And one of my first earlier experiences and most humble experiences interacting with Under-16 girls, that was my first assignment I took up. I said, I’ll leave the senior players. I’ll go down to literally the grassroots level. And I had a very different experience of even learning. It’s very new. Because even you play elite level for so many years, there’s always some experiences you are never up to playing international level.”

“So you again come down to the basic level that we all started playing from. And I think that has changed my perception about how women’s cricket was, how women’s cricket is and where we can take it forward. And I’ve enjoyed being part of the administration because a lot of people ask me, why not coaching? When you spend so many years playing cricket, you don’t want to talk about your own, what it has been.”

“None of the players like it, especially the current generation of players. But I think there are not many coaches. I just felt that I could add more value in my capacity as administration. And I’m happy to see a day where we’re again a part of an occasion where we are giving more opportunities, setting a better platform for Andhra players, Andhra women players. There’s so many girls who still dream, may not have the resources. All the franchise owners and you all will perhaps set up resources in the interiors of Andhra to identify potentials.”

“ACA will do their job as association. But if you all can join your hands, we can perhaps have a stronger ecosystem to develop players because women’s cricket is a product which is only going to rise, which is going to go higher. So you all are part of history. In fact, this is the first franchise model, is the first auction. So congratulations to all of you to be part of history in Andhra.”

Top 10 sold players in the auction

Henrietta Flavia Pereira (All-rounder) – INR 4.30 lakh, Godavari Golden Eagles

K Anjali Sarvani (All-rounder) – INR 3.60 lakh, Vizag Fire Birds

Ayesha Singh (All-rounder) – INR 2.40 lakh, Vizag Fire Birds

Vemulapati Setu Sai (All-rounder) – INR 2.10 lakh, Rayalaseema Xen Stars

Neeragattu Anusha (Batter) – INR 2.10 lakh, Amaravati E Champions

Ellutla Padmaja (All-rounder) – INR 2.00 lakh, Rayalaseema Xen Stars

Kandregula Devika (All-rounder) – INR 2.00 lakh, Amaravati E Champions

Katragadda Deeksha (Wicketkeeper) – INR 1.90 lakh, Amaravati E Champions

K Pushpitha Gowda (All-rounder) – INR 1.60 lakh, Godavari Golden Eagles

Veera Vidya Sree (Wicketkeeper) – INR 1.50 lakh, Vizag Fire Birds

Squads

Amaravati E Champions (18 players)

Neeragattu Anusha (Batter, INR 2.10 lakh), Kandregula Devika (All-rounder, INR 2.00 lakh), Katragadda Deeksha (Wicketkeeper, INR 1.90 lakh), Shabnam Md Shakil (All-rounder, INR 1.30 lakh), Tarini Joshi (All-rounder, INR 1.20 lakh), Parasa Ranga Lakshmi (Batter, INR 1.00 lakh), Katta Mahanthi Sree (Batter, INR 0.85 lakh), K Hamsa (All-rounder, INR 0.60 lakh), Ankam Vishnu Priya (Bowler, INR 0.60 lakh), K Hema Sai Ramya (All-rounder, INR 0.55 lakh), Karri Sai Poojitha (All-rounder, INR 0.50 lakh), Nakka Sana (Bowler, INR 0.45 lakh), Oruganti Sahithi Sri (Batter, INR 0.40 lakh), Bogiyaa Sai Deepthy (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), Boddupalli Tanishqa (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), Thalluri Mallika (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), M Sahasra Reddy (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), M Ruksar Tabasum (Bowler, INR 0.30 lakh)

Godavari Golden Eagles (18 players)

Henrietta Flavia Pereira (All-rounder, INR 4.30 lakh), K Pushpitha Gowda (All-rounder, INR 1.60 lakh), Vadde Akshaya (All-rounder, INR 1.40 lakh), Gundupalli Vidhusha (Batter, INR 1.10 lakh), Peka Vinny Suzan (All-rounder, INR 1.10 lakh), Korukonda Harika (All-rounder, INR 0.70 lakh), Bathula Harshitha (Wicketkeeper, INR 0.50 lakh), Shristi Sekhar (All-rounder, INR 0.50 lakh), M Mahalakshmi Manoja (Wicketkeeper, INR 0.50 lakh), Chintapalli Meher Lahari (All-rounder, INR 0.50 lakh), Sadi Aditi Meghna Reddy (Batter, INR 0.40 lakh), Bhaggam Anjana (All-rounder, INR 0.35 lakh), T Niveditha (Bowler, INR 0.35 lakh), Kinthada Vaishnavi (Batter, INR 0.30 lakh), P Vanajakshi (Bowler, INR 0.30 lakh), Sangani Durga Bhavani (Bowler, INR 0.30 lakh), Gamidi Ragha Chowdary (Batter, INR 0.30 lakh), Pasagadugula Vaishnavi (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh)

Rayalaseema Xen Stars (20 players)

Vemulapati Setu Sai (All-rounder, INR 2.10 lakh), Ellutla Padmaja (All-rounder, INR 2.00 lakh), M Greeshma Saini Reddy (Batter, INR 1.20 lakh), Nallapu Reddy Sree Charani (All-rounder, INR 1.10 lakh), Kokkilagadda Dhatri (All-rounder, INR 1.00 lakh), K Vasavi Akhila Pavani (All-rounder, INR 1.00 lakh), Bandy Reddy Malli Anusha (All-rounder, INR 0.90 lakh), Sajla Sai Lakshmi (All-rounder, INR 0.80 lakh), Avula Chinna Sireesha (All-rounder, INR 0.65 lakh), Malakonda Poojitha (All-rounder, INR 0.60 lakh), Kolathur Subhashri (Batter, INR 0.50 lakh), Y Hema Roshini (Wicketkeeper, INR 0.50 lakh), Garapati Likitha (All-rounder, INR 0.50 lakh), J Meghana Sri (Bowler, INR 0.35 lakh), G Muni Neethisha (Batter, INR 0.30 lakh), Allugunti Hansi Reddy (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), A Shanmukha Priya (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), G Varsha (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), K Harshitha Gowda (Wicketkeeper, INR 0.30 lakh), Dara Chaitra (Bowler, INR 0.30 lakh)

Vizag Fire Birds (18 players)

K Anjali Sarvani (All-rounder, INR 3.60 lakh), Ayesha Singh (All-rounder, INR 2.40 lakh), Veera Vidya Sree (Wicketkeeper, INR 1.50 lakh), Palnati Rishika Krishnan (All-rounder, INR 1.20 lakh), Pendyala Saray Koru (All-rounder, INR 0.85 lakh), Vurukuti Pushpa Latha (All-rounder, INR 0.70 lakh), M Husini Choudhary (All-rounder, INR 0.70 lakh), Saranya Gadwal (All-rounder, INR 0.60 lakh), BVLSRS Sai Thanmayi (All-rounder, INR 0.50 lakh), Mayassar Anjum (All-rounder, INR 0.50 lakh), Palla Yuhasini (Batter, INR 0.35 lakh), B Madhura Sanjana Priya (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), Koppula Divya Sree (Wicketkeeper, INR 0.30 lakh), Dasari Vishwasree (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), Naksh Sammantha (Batter, INR 0.30 lakh), M Niyathi Raj (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), K Yashaswini Mani Valli (All-rounder, INR 0.30 lakh), KYM Vishnu Vardhini (Wicketkeeper, INR 0.30 lakh)

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Ramiz Raja's comments came after 21 former international captains wrote to Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, renewing their appeal for proper medical treatment and better conditions for Imran. The group includes Indian cricket legends Sunil Gavaskar, Kapil Dev and Dilip Vengsarkar. The appeal followed concerns that a recent medical examination did not fully meet the directions issued by Pakistan's Supreme Court.

India vs Sri Lanka 2026 2nd Test: Sri Lanka all-rounder Sonal Dinusha continued his golden form with the bat against India in the two-match Test series. Dinusha completed his second hundred in successive Tests against Team India and equaled a world record on Day 4 of the 2nd Test at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) ground in Colombo on Wednesday.

The 25-year-old left-handed batter completed his second Test ton off 146 balls with three sixes and 8 fours, bringing up his century with a boundary off pacer Prasidh Krishna. The home team need to reach the 304-run mark to avoid following-on in the second Test and Dinusha’s century went a long way towards achieving this feat.

Dinusha became only the 8th batter ever to score two hundreds in his first two Tests against India. Other batters to achieve this feat are former West Indies batter Everton Weekes (1948), West Indies legendary all-rounder Gary Sobers (1958), former Pakistan batter Zaheer Abbas (1978), former Sri Lanka captain Duleep Mendis (1982), former England batter Robin Smith (1990), former South Africa opener Gary Kirsten (1996) and former New Zealand all-rounder Jesse Ryder (2009).

Sonal Dinusha continues his sensational run with another century against India #WTC27

: https://t.co/8NP3Qr1pnQ pic.twitter.com/Vvxz6vTJaO

— ICC (@ICC) August 26, 2026

The Sri Lanka batter was dismissed soon after completing his second hundred. Indian debutant Saransh Jain completed his second wicket, forcing Dinusha to edge to KL Rahul in the slips as the Lankan southpaw was dismissed for 103 off 162 balls with 8 fours and 3 sixes.

The home team innings came to a close at 290 in 89.4 overs in the first session of Day 4, still 14 runs short of the follow-on mark. Indian skipper Shubman Gill decided to enforce the follow-on on Wednesday. Saransh Jain had earlier dismissed No. 10 Lankan batter Lahiru Kumara for 12 to claim his maiden Test wicket soon after Dinusha completed his century.

Dinusha also became the 7th Sri Lanka batter to hit centuries in successive Tests vs India. Former Sri Lanka batter Aravinda de Silva scored 3 successive hundred in 1997, former Sri Lanka wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara also had three from 2009 to 2010. Former Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya (1997), Mahela Jayawardene (2001), Tharanga Paranavitana (2010) and Angelo Matthews (2015) also scored centuries in back-to-back Test vs India.

The Sri Lanka all-rounder had become the first batter from his country to score successive hundreds from no. 6 or lower in the batting order. Dinusha had scored a century batting at No. 6 position in the Galle Test and his ton in Colombo came at No. 7 position.