Superstar Indian cricketer Virat Kohli yesterday flopped in his first domestic cricket match in more than a decade to the dismay of thousands who turned out to see him play.
International stars were ordered by India’s cricket board to return to domestic matches in a bid to lift their form following a soul-searching 3-1 series defeat in Australia.
Kohli, 36, and other team titans have made regular appearances in the lucrative Indian Premier League, but this week marked his return to the Ranji Trophy — the nation’s premier red-ball tournament — after a 12-year absence.
Photo: AFP
He strode in to bat for hosts Delhi on the second day of their match against Railways to roars and chants of his name from the stands.
After a circumspect start and a few play-and-misses on the off-side, Kohli drove fast bowler Himanshu Sangwan for a rasping straight drive to bring the crowd to its feet.
However, the joy was short-lived as the next ball went straight through his defense and the off-stump went cartwheeling with him on 6.
Dejected fans began making their way to the exit even as Kohli was walking back to the pavilion, and the stadium numbers soon dwindled from thousands to less than a few hundred.
India skipper Rohit Sharma had also faltered on his return to Ranji cricket last week when he scored just 3 off 19 balls for Mumbai.
Rohit and fellow opener Yashasvi Jaiswal opted out of this week’s match.
Both Kohli and Rohit have faced severe scrutiny over their batting struggles in Australia, with questions raised about their future in Test cricket.
Kohli scored an unbeaten century in the first Test match, but his other eight innings in the series produced just 90 runs in total.
Rohit, 37, who missed the only India win of the series in the first Test because of the birth of his second child, managed 31 runs in three matches.
India’s next Test assignment will be a tour to England for five matches starting in June.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Team Taiwan avoided missing the World Baseball Classic (WBC) for the first time by defeating Spain 6-3 in a do-or-die game in Taipei last night. After narrowly escaping a mercy-rule loss to Spain in the WBC Qualifiers opener on Friday last week, the home team — winner of last year's WBSC Premier12 title three months ago — got their revenge against the 2023 European champions at Taipei Dome. "It felt quite different from when we won the Premier12," Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) said after the game, recalling the ups and downs the team has experienced over the past few days. Unlike in
LONG TIME COMING: With the addition of Marcus Smart, the Washington Wizards finally held a team to under 100 points, the last team this season to do so The Detroit Pistons on Monday won their seventh straight game in the NBA with in-form Cade Cunningham making 32 points and grabbing nine rebounds in a 106-97 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. The Pistons, who are in the playoff position, moved to 32-26, their best record at this stage of a season for 17 years. It was an all-round effort from Detroit with Tobias Harris adding 20 points and Jalen Duren making 19 rebounds along with his 12 points. It was a tight contest until Detroit pulled away late in the third quarter to tie their longest winning streak since the 2014-2015
RSS