Geopak News

Sri Lanka skipper Dasun Shanaka has made sure that he keeps his side on top against Bangladesh in the ongoing second game of the Asia Cup 2023 . The Island nation have asserted their authority in the game and have made sure that they maintain their dominance.   Bangladesh’s decision to bat first has backfired as Dasun Shanaka’s team has managed to pile up continuous pressure on the opposition. After Sri Lanka picked three quick wickets, Towhid Hridoy and Najmul Hossain Shanto were trying to build up the innings.   But Sri Lanka skipper Dasun Shanaka took the onus to himself and broke the partnership between the two. The all-rounder bowled a full back off the hand delivery to which batter Towhid Hridoy tried to advance. The ball struck him on the pads and the bowling team went up for appeal.   The umpire, however, didn’t seem interested and gave not out. But skipper Dasun Shanaka was keen to get the batter. He immediately went for DRS and to his fortune, the ball trac...

Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are currently locking horns with each other in the second game of the Asia Cup 2023 . The visitors have come under pressure as they have lost quick wickets, including the wicket of skipper Shakib Al Hasan.   Opting to bat first, Bangladesh lost the first two wickets for just 25 runs. It was expected that new skipper Shakib Al Hasan would step up and bail his team out of trouble. But that didn’t happen as he too perished early and couldn’t add much to the scorers.   Shakib Al Hasan fell to the short ball by Matheesha Pathirana. The Sri Lanka pacer bowled a bouncer that was slanting across and the Bangladesh skipper tried to cut the ball. He was hurried by the ball as there wasn’t enough room to play the shot he attempted.   Before Shakib Al Hasan played the shot the ball caught the glove and it lobbed behind. Sri Lanka keeper Kusal Mendis dived to the left and grabbed a stunner with his left hand. It didn’t seem like the clean catch but the ba...

Jos Buttler led England to an impressive win over New Zealand in the first T20I on Wednesday (August 30). But more than leading the team to the win, the England skipper has been garnering attention for submitting a review that many are calling one of the worst reviews of all time. In what remained a one-sided contest for the majority of the game, England inflicted a heavy seven-wicket defeat on the Black Caps to take the lead in the three-match series. Asked to bat first, New Zealand made a positive start as opener Finn Allen smashed Luke Wood for three consecutive sixes in the very first over. However, the visitors could not build on the momentum and eventually finished on a modest 139 for 9 in the allotted 20 overs. Glenn Phillips was the top scorer for New Zealand, scoring 41 off 38 balls. For England, Luke Wood and Brydon Carse picked up three wickets apiece. In reply, England chased down the total in just 14 overs and lost three wickets. Dawid Malan top-scored for the hosts,...

The Babar Azam-led Pakistan National Cricket Team crushed the Nepal National Cricket Team in the Asia Cup 2023 opening clash by a massive margin of 238 runs at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, August 30. With the victory in the match, Pakistan achieved their third-highest margin of win in ODIs and their biggest win at home in the 50-over format in terms of runs. Overall, this was the second biggest margin of the win by runs in the Asia Cup, only behind India’s victory of 256 runs over Hong Kong in the 2008 edition of the tournament. Babar Azam was the chief architect behind Pakistan posting a mammoth total of 342/6 and with the ball, all the bowlers did a great job to restrict Nepal to 104 runs. Speaking during the post-match presentation ceremony, Babar Azam, who won the Player of the Match award, said that he and Rizwan supported each other very well and steadied the ship when Pakistan were in trouble while batting first. Notably, the star batters added 86 runs together...

The first game of the Asia Cup 2023 is currently taking place between Pakistan and Nepal in Multan. The hosts have struggled to keep things in control and have lost wickets at regular intervals. Mohammad Rizwan, however, will be cursing himself for the way he was out.   After Pakistan lost both Fakhar Zaman and Imam-ul-Haq inside the powerplay, skipper Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan bailed the team out of trouble and played really well. The duo stitched an 86-run partnership and it looked like they would take the game away.   Mohammad Rizwan in particular looked in great touch and played some great shots. But he made a schoolboy error and ended up getting run out. The keeper-batter played the ball towards the cover region and called for a quick single. Dipendra Singh, who was stationed there, picked the ball quickly and effected the direct hit at the non-striker’s end.   Mohammad Rizwan didn’t ground his bat as he focused on the ball coming towards him. The keeper-ba...

ENG vs NZ Chester-le-Street Weather Report Live Today And Pitch Report- 1st T20I, 2023 . The ENG vs NZ 1st T20I will be played in Chester-le-Street on August 30. The match starts at 10.30 pm IST which is 6 pm local time. England and New Zealand play four T20Is and four ODIs between August 30-September 15.  England has named their preliminary squad for the tournament. Jos Buttler is the skipper of England in ODIs and will also lead the team in the tournament. Ben Stokes has recalled his ODI retirement and will play for England in the World Cup. Buttler is leading the team in both series however, Stokes is not a part of the T20I side. Josh Tongue is out of the series due to a last-minute injury and Chris Jordan has replaced him in the side.  Tim Southee will lead the T20I side while Tom Latham will lead the Kiwi ODI side in this ENG vs NZ series. Regular skipper Kane Williamson who injured his right knee in the IPL earlier this year has not made any of the squads. The managem...

Durban is all set to host the AUS vs SA 1st T20I on August 30. The match starts at 9.30 pm IST which is 6 pm local time. All three matches will be played in Durban. Both teams play a five-match ODI series after the three-match T20I series. Australia will be led by Mitchell Starc. Australian ODI and Test skipper Pat Cummins is ruled out of the series with a wrist injury. He is eying to make a comeback in the ODI series against India later next month. Mitchell Marsh has been named as Australia’s new T20I captain after Aaron Finch’s retirement. Mitchell Starc and Steve Smith are also ruled out of the entire series due to injury. Smith is recovering from a tendon injury to his left wrist. Starc, meanwhile, is suffering from groin soreness. Marnus Labuschagne has been added to the ODI squad as Smith’s replacement. In the T20Is, Ashton Turner has replaced Smith. Mitchell Starc has been replaced by Spencer Johnson, who is already part of the T20I squad. He will replace him in the ODIs. So...

Indian pacer Ishant Sharma made a bold statement, stating that it MS Dhoni was the one who groomed all the fast bowlers in the team. He added that the keeper-batter handed a complete package to his successor Virat Kohli. Ishant Sharma mentioned that when he along with other pacers were playing under MS Dhoni , the team was in transition. But when Virat Kohli was handed the baton of the Test team, they were an established unit. The lanky pacer also hailed Virat Kohli as a leader, stating that the right-hander identified everyone’s traits and gave a clear role to every pacer. Ishant Sharma also revealed that Kohli used to give freedom to the bowlers and told them they could go for runs as long as they took wickets with a new ball. Speaking on JioCinema (as quoted by PTI), he elaborated: “When Virat was captain, bowling was complete. When we were playing under Mahi bhai, we were in a transition phase. At that time, Shami and Umesh were new, and only I was there. Everyone else would ro...

Indian Cricket Team players are currently undergoing a camp in Bengaluru ahead of the Asia Cup 2023. Premier pacer Jasprit Bumrah, who captained the team in Ireland, has joined the main team and has been bowling in full flow in the training sessions, which in turn is a good sign for the team.   The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) gave glimpses of the Indian team during the camp. The young and the senior players were putting in the hard yards and were leaving no stone unturned to get themselves in the groove for the tournament.   But Jasprit Bumrah caught the attention of many with his bowling in the nets. The pacer was seen bowling with full flow at the Indian batters in particular Shubman Gill. The fast bowler was out for 11 months due to injury and made a comeback in the three-match T20I series against Ireland.   Apart from Jasprit Bumrah bowling with full flow in the nets, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and Kuldeep Yadav were seen bowling in a flow. ...

MS Dhoni is one of the biggest crowd-pullers in India. It’s fair to say that he has received the same stature as great Sachin Tendulkar in India. The crowd across the world is absolutely crazy about him and when they see him they go berserk and all they do is chant “Dhoni Dhoni”.   MS Dhoni’s contribution to Indian cricket has been the main reason why he has earned a lot of respect from the people of India. Not only on the field, but he’s also a kind-hearted person as well and his love for his fans and the way he treats them is something special.   Recently, a video has gone viral on the internet in which MS Dhoni can be seen making a heartwarming gesture towards a fan. A female fan came to the keeper-batter and touched his feet. The Chennai Super Kings, however, can be seen gesturing not to touch his feet and offered a handshake. He then posed for a picture with her as well.   Here’s the video:   A fan touched MS Dhoni's feet upon meeting her idol. An icon –...

England’s white-ball captain Jos Buttler opened up about the breaking AB de Villiers’ record of the fastest century in the ODIs. He said that he would do his best to surpass that but it looked like a impossible task.   Former South African cricketer AB de Villiers created history in 2015 when he set the new record of smashing the fastest ton in ODI cricket. The Proteas cricketer surpassed Corey Anderson’s 36-ball hundred record and achieved the feat in just 30 balls. It came against West Indies and he ended with the knock of 149 off 44 deliveries.   Almost 8 years have passed since then and the record of AB de Villiers is still intact. There have been few batters who are favourites to shatter that record and one among them is Jos Buttler. The keeper-batter is one of the greatest cricketers to have represented England in cricket and has many records to his name as well.   Jos Buttler’s ability to hit the ball cleanly and play aggressively right from the ball 1 s...

The 2023 edition of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) is currently taking place. The ongoing 9th game between Saint Lucia Kings and Trinbago Knight Riders saw a scary moment as West Indies batter Johnson Charles faced a nasty blow on the head but thankfully it didn’t hurt him much. It was during the 12th over of the first innings when Johnson Charles tried to scoop a delivery from Dwayne Bravo. The pacer bowled a low full toss delivery and the batter tried to be cheeky. But he didn’t connect it properly.   The ball after contacting the bat lobbed up and went on to hit his head. The helmet came off immediately and was about to fall on the stumps but Johnson Charles showed great awareness and kicked it with his right foot. That helped him save his wicket and thankfully he seemed fine as well.   Watch – Johnson Charles Escapes Horrible Injury A scary moment in CPL…!!! Thankfully Johnson Charles is fine. pic.twitter.com/uHmdxP0Y3q — Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) August 26, 20...

In what has been the latest development as per the reports in PTI, it is learned that the deadlock between the PCB and the players of the team is yet to be resolved. With Asia Cup 2023 around the corner, the reports have suggested that there are a number of issues to be solved.   Recently Shaheen Afridi was not given the NOC by the PCB to play in the International League T20. Following that the pacer didn’t agree to sign the new central contract and it created havoc. A source close to PCB has revealed that the fast bowler has expressed his desire to play as a freelancer.   “Shaheen got so frustrated at the board’s refusal to issue him a NOC that he made it clear it would be best if he didn’t sign any contract with the board and played as a freelancer,” a source said, as quoted by PTI.   Shaheen Afridi acquired a whopping amount of USD 400,000 contract for two or three years and an additional USD 150,000 for the league by marketing his NFTs online. After this saga, t...

Pakistan skipper Babar Azam will be leading his side in the Asia Cup 2023. The tournament is being played in the hybrid model with Pakistan being the official hosts. Four out of the 13 matches will be played in Pakistan. Rest nine matches including the final will be played in Sri Lanka. Pakistan will begin their campaign against Nepal in Multan on August 30. They next face India on September 2. Heading into this tournament Pakistan are number two in the ICC ODI rankings while India are placed second.  Pakistan and India have beaten each other twice in the last two years. Pakistan won the T20 World Cup 2021 match followed by the Asia Cup 2022 Super 4 match. India beat their arch-rivals once in the Asia Cup league stage and then in the T20 World Cup 2022 in Melbourne.  Read More: PAK vs AFG Live Streaming Channel 3rd ODI- Where To Watch Pakistan vs Afghanistan Live? 2023 Speaking to Star Sports, Babar Azam opened up on the India-Pakistan rivalry. He said how it is the most...

Memory might not be the strongest attribute of Pakistan skipper Babar Azam as he made a hilarious blunder just before the ongoing third ODI against Afghanistan in Colombo. The incident took place during the toss. The Pakistan captain won the toss and elected to bat first in the third and final match of the three-ODI series. During the toss, he was asked about any changes in the playing eleven and Babar Azam ended up making a hilarious mistake. He announced that Pakistan have made four changes to their playing eleven. The Men in Green included Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Wasim Jr., Mohammad Nawaz, and Faheem Ashraf in their playing eleven. The players who made way in the playing eleven were Usama Mir, Iftikhar Ahmed, Naseem Shah, and Haris Rauf. Talking about the mistake, Babar Azam surprised everyone by saying that Saud Shakeel would make his debut in the game. While Saud Shakeel is still new to ODI cricket, the ongoing game is definitely not his first. What makes the blunder even mor...

Former India opener Aakash Chopra criticized Fakhar Zaman and said that he could be the weak link for Pakistan in the upcoming ODI World Cup 2023 in India. Babar Azam-led Pakistan are currently in Sri Lanka, taking on Afghanistan in a three-match ODI series where the 33-year-old Pakistani opener, Fakhar Zaman, has displayed a poor performance and has failed with the bat. While speaking on his official YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra heaped praise on Imam-ul-Haq and Babar Azam for their outstanding stats in the 50-over cricket format. Chopra said that the Pakistani skipper is brilliant in ODIs. “Imam-ul-Haq – 61 matches, 2871 runs at an average of 52. His average jumps to 56 in Asia. Three of his nine centuries have come in Asia. Imam-ul-Haq is a good player. Babar Azam comes after them. He is brilliant in this format. More than 5000 runs in 102 matches. His average becomes nearly 64 in Asia and is 58.4 otherwise,” Aakash Chopra said. His average actually falls in Asia: Aakash Chop...

The 21-year-old Afghanistan National Cricket Team wicketkeeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz has broken a massive record of the legendary India National Cricket Team wicketkeeper-batter MS Dhoni against Pakistan with his sensational batting show in the second ODI of the three-match series at the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium, Sooriyawewa, Hambantota on Thursday, August 24. After their horrible batting performance in the first ODI where they were bowled out for 59, Afghanistan made a stunning comeback and posted 300/5 on the board on the back of Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran’s exceptional batting performances. The young wicketkeeper-batter Gurbaz scored sensational 151 runs off 151 balls, with 14 fours and 3 sixes, and built an incredible 227-run partnership with Ibrahim Zadran. This was Afghanistan’s second-highest partnership for any wicket. Also, the 300 runs total was their highest total against Pakistan. Rahmanullah Gurbaz Breaks MS Dhoni’s Record As Gu...

The 21-year-old Afghanistan National Cricket Team wicketkeeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz took perfect revenge from the 29-year-old Pakistan National Cricket Team express pacer Haris Rauf and smashed him for four consecutive boundaries in the second ODI of the three-match series. Pakistan had hammered Afghanistan in the first ODI by 142 runs as Haris Rauf single-handedly dismantled the Afghan batting unit and bundled them out for 59 to help the Men In Green take a 1-0 lead in the series. Rauf was unplayable with his staggering lines and lengths and he bagged 5 wickets for 18 runs to win the Player of the Match award. En route to his match-winning performance, the express pacer had cleaned up Gurbaz for 18 runs in the 14th over. Meanwhile, Afghanistan made a solid comeback in the second ODI after their batting horror show in the first game and posted 300/5 on the board. The chief architect behind this was the wicketkeeper-batter Gurbaz, who played a stupendous knock. Rahmanullah Gu...

Veteran Indian pacer Umesh Yadav has been signed up by Essex for its final three matches of the LV= Insurance County Championship 2023. Umesh has played 57 Test matches, 75 One-Day Internationals, and nine T20Is. He last played for India in the WTC 2023 final against Australia. Umesh is out of India’s white-ball picture for the last four to five years. He now plays Test match cricket and in the IPL for Kolkata Knight Riders. The pacer has picked up 288 international wickets so far. He will be eligible for selection in home matches against Middlesex and Hampshire, as well as the end-of-season trip to Northamptonshire. The Indian pacer shared his thoughts on being signed up by Essex. Read More: ICC World Cup 2023: Sourav Ganguly To Look After Eden Gardens’ Preparations Ahead Of WC, Says “Eden’s Work Is Going Well” Really Pleased To Join Essex: Umesh Yadav “I am really pleased to join Essex and make what I hope will be some valuable contributions to the team’s success this year. I e...

PAK vs AFG Today Match Prediction 2nd ODI- Who Will Win Today’s ODI Match? 2023 . The PAK vs AFG second ODI will be played on Thursday, August 24. The match starts at 3 pm IST in Hambantota. Afghanistan after being bowled out for just 59 in the first ODI will be raring to make a comeback.  Afghanistan’s losing streak against Pakistan continued after being bowled out for 59 in the first ODI. Their bowlers bowled out Pakistan for just 201 but their batters failed to take up the charge in the chase.  Harid Raus took his maiden fifer as the potent Pakistan pace attack gave a glimpse of their ability just ahead of the Asia Cup. Their potent bowling lineup sets them apart from the rest of the Asian teams who bank on their batters to do the job in Asian conditions.  Pakistan’s comeback against Afghanistan with the ball despite being bowled out for a below-par score speaks volumes about the depth in their bowling attack especially in the seam department. The trio of Shaheen, ...

India as a nation achieved a historic feat as Chandrayaan-3 successfully landed on the moon. The event took place around 6:00 PM on Wednesday (3rd August) and it kept the whole nation on its toes till Vikram the lander landed on the moon.   Not only the people in India but Jasprit Bumrah-led Indian team, who are currently in Ireland for the T20I series, were also keenly following the landing of Chandrayaan 3 on the moon. The team will play the third and final game of the series today in Dublin.   The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) posted a video on their Twitter account in which players can be seen closely following the landing on the moon. The young players along with the captain were monitoring the development in their dugout on the sidelines of boundary ropes of the field. In the clip, all the members of the team also can be seen cheering as Chandrayaan 3 lands on the Moon   Here’s the video:   🎥 Witnessing History from Dublin! 🙌 The moment...