BY SACNILK

Mumbai, June 22 - The final of the World Test Championship between India and Australia has been a massive hit on television as it delivered the all-time highest viewership for a Test match on Star Sports, according to the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC). ## As per BARC (via Adgully.com), 124 million viewers tuned in to watch the live broadcast of ICC WTC Final 2023, the highest ever reach garnered for any test match and 32% higher than the previous ICC WTC Final 2021 between India and New Zealand. ## Not only that, but Star Sports has also clocked an impressive 14.4 billion minutes of watch time for live broadcast, surpassing the billion minutes garnered for the previous edition of ICC WTC Final and any other test match in history.## A Star Sports Spokesperson said, "We are proud to achieve yet another milestone for Cricket viewership with the ICC World Test Championship Final. The overwhelming response from fans is a testament to our relentless efforts to enhance accessibility to Cricket and foster a deeper passion for the game.## "Star Sports' exceptional marketing campaigns, unparalleled coverage standards, and ground-breaking programming exemplify our unwavering mission to serve sports fans across the country. This record reaffirms our conviction in the growth potential of sports and marquee sporting properties on TV".## This historic viewership on Star Sports comes not long after setting new television viewership records for Indian Premiere League (IPL) 2023. As per BARC data shared by the official broadcaster Disney Star, IPL 2023 recorded 496 million (49.6 crores) viewership till the play-off stage on Star Sports, breaking the previous record set during IPL 2020.## Meanwhile, Australia emerged as the winner of the ICC WTC 2023, becoming the only country in the world to win the ICC tournament in all the formats. ## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, June 2 - The 16th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has turned out to be a massive blockbuster on television. The recently concluded cricket mega event set a new viewership record on Star Sports chennals. ## As per the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) data shared by the official broadcaster Disney Star, IPL 2023 recorded 496 million (49.6 crores) viewership till the play-off stage on Star Sports, breaking the previous record set during IPL 2020. ## The 496 million viewers spent a total of 40.9 billion minutes in order to watch the tournament on TV and this doesn't include the final match between Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans.## According to the numbers provided by the network (via Outlook India), the Qualifier 2 match between Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans recorded a peak concurrency of 61 million (6.1 crores), making it the most viewed IPL playoff match ever. ## Previously, the highest concurrency (5.6 crores) for the current edition was recorded during the Chennai Super Kings vs Gujarat Titans match. The playoff matches recorded a 44% jump compared to the last season. ## Sanjog Gupta, Head of Sports at Disney Star, said, "We are overjoyed that friends, families & communities have come together to enjoy IPL on Disney Star and want to thank all fans for their overwhelming support".## MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings emerged the winner of this highly successful tournament, beating Hardik Pandya-led Gujarat Titans in the final. ## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, November 18 - A documentary web series on India's maiden T20 World Cup triumph in 2007 is in development. The series, not titled yet, will feature 15 Indian cricketers along with an A-lister actor. ## The series will be directed by Anand Kumar, whose last directorial was a short film titled "Ek Balti Paani". It will be produced by the UK-based producer Gaurav Bahirvani under the banner One One Six Network while "The Kashmir Files" writer Saurabh M Pandey is on board to cover the untold journey of the Indian cricket team in 2007. ## The shoot of the series is underway and more than 60% shoot is already completed. The series is on track to release in 2023 in multiple languages. The platform is not revealed yet.## Talking about the 2007 T20I World Cup, it was the first ICC World Cup in the T20 format. India, under the leadership of Mahendra Singh Dhoni, lifted the trophy, beating arch-rivals Pakistan in the final to become the champion of the inaugural T20 WC edition.## WEB SERIES ON 2007 T20 CRICKET WORLD CUP… A multi-language documentary web series on 2007 T20 Cricket World Cup - not titled yet - is officially announced… Featuring 15 #Indian cricketers, it is set to release in 2023… Over two-thirds of the shoot is complete. pic.twitter.com/DnF6F2JI5Y— taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) November 18, 2022 ## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, 12 Sep 2022: Today, BCCI announced India's squad for the upcoming T20 world cup 2022 which will take place from 16th October 2022 in Australia. Rohit Sharma is the captain of this Indian team. ## List of All 15 Indian Players for ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2022 ## ROHIT SHARMA (C) ## KL RAHUL (VC) ## VIRAT KOHLI ## SURYAKUMAR YADAV ## DEEPAK HOODA ## RISHABH PANT (WK) ## DINESH KARTHIK (WK) ## HARDIK PANDYA ## RAVICHANDRAN ASHWIN ## YUZVENDRA CHAHAL ## AXAR PATEL ## JASPRIT BUMRAH ## BHUVNESHWAR KUMAR ## HARSHAL PATEL ## ARSHDEEP SINGH ## STANDBY PLAYERS ## MOHD. SHAMI, SHREYAS IYER, RAVI BISHNOI, DEEPAK CHAHAR ## Stay tuned.

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, August 27 - Team India's star batter Virat Kohli will be making his comeback in the match against Pakistan after taking a break. Virat has endured a bit of a rough patch of late and was rested for the tours of the West Indies and Zimbabwe. ## Ahead of his return to cricket in the Asia Cup 2022, the former Indian captain spoke candidly about his recent struggles and how they took a toll on him mentally. Virat admitted that he was battling mental issues and was faking to be strong. ## "For the first time in 10 years, I didn't touch my bat for a month", said Kohli while speaking to Star Sports. "When I sat down and thought about it I was like, 'wow, I haven't touched a bat for like 30 days'. I haven't ever done that in my life. I came to the realization that I was trying to fake my intensity a bit recently. I was convincing myself that no, you had the intensity. But your body is telling you to stop. Your mind is telling me to take a break and step back". ## "I understand what Ravi Bhai (Ravi Shastri) has mentioned (about taking a break). He's mentioned about the workloads as well, the volume of cricket, and how I played 40 or 50% more in the last 10 years than everybody else. It's very easy to ignore all these things. I'm looked at as a guy who has been mentally very strong and I am. But everyone has a limit and you need to recognize that limit, otherwise, things can get unhealthy for you", he added. ## Virat will be playing his 100th T20I when India will start its campaign in the Asia Cup against Pakistan on Sunday (August 28). He has been India's premier batter over the most part of his career but things were not going his way for the last couple of years and was struggling to convert his start into the big scores. ## "I have always been a guy who follows his heart from day one. I never wanted or tried to be someone else, which in this recent phase I have been. I have tried to keep up with the demands and the expectations, not really felt my inner being completely, which this phase allowed me to do. I was experiencing that I'm not excited to train, I wasn't excited to practice, and that really disturbed me because this is not who I am, and I literally needed to step away from that environment". ## The star India batter added that the month-long break helped him rejuvenate and rediscover his love for training. "When you are involved in such an environment, you are unable to see anything. When you remove yourself from there, then you realize what was happening to you. And this has been an amazing break. I never had this long a break and the first thing I realise was that I woke up in the morning and was excited to go to the gym". ## The 33-year-old expressed that he was kind of the person who would go to any level to make his team but that not happening in recent times.## "That was not happening naturally. I was having to push myself. I didn't know it... I had become this ideal kind of sportsperson to look up to. I get so grateful for the fact that so many people get inspired because of me, but you can't stop being a human being because of that. I understand why people love you and support you, it's because you were yourself always, and even in these moments, I'm not shy to admit that I was feeling mentally down and this is a very normal thing to feel", he said. ## "I'm a human at the end of the day and that should be a thing or a space for people to say, 'If he can experience this, relax it's normal to feel this way'. It's not abnormal, talk about it and discuss it with people. No one will think you are weak".## "You will get help from people you never imagined, but we don't speak because we are hesitant. We don't want to be looked at as mentally weak. Trust me, faking to be strong is far worse than that. I'm not feeling any shame that I was feeling mentally weak", he concluded. ## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

London, August 25 - Team India's star Test batter Cheteshwar Pujara is having an excellent time in England where he has been the performer in the County Championship 2022 and Royal London One-Day Cup 2022 so far. ## Pujara is captaining the Sussex side which will play the Semi-Final match of Royal London tournament on August 30, in-between, Pujara got some time off to interact with his fans on Twitter. During a fun Twitter session yesterday (August 24), the number 3 batter of the Indian Test side took questions from his fans about his recent success and other stuff. ## Since Pujara is playing only Test cricket as far as the international matches are concerned, the biggest tournament for him is the ICC World Test Championship. One of the fans asked him what are his goals in his remaining career. ## The question read, "What are your goals for the rest of your career?", To which, Pujara gave a measured answer while also revealing his dream goal. "I like being in present and don't set too many goals for the future but winning the WTC title is one", he replied.## I like being in present and don't set too many goals for the future but winning the WTC title is one https://t.co/bOe2VsfkUX— Cheteshwar Pujara (@cheteshwar1) August 24, 2022 ## Meanwhile, talking about Pujara's performance in Country season 2022, he is currently the second highest run-getter with 1094 runs in 13 innings in Division Two. He has the highest average of 109.40 and is the only batter with a 100+ average this season. Apart from that, he has also scored 5 hundred. ## On the other hand, in the Royal London Cup 2022, Pujara is again the second-best batter with 614 runs in 8 matches at 102.33 average, again highest, and the strike rate of 116.29, which is unlike Pujara. On top of that, he has also scored 3 hundred, playing a massive role in helping Sussex to reach Semi-Final. ## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, August 25 - Former India skipper and one of the greatest of all time, Virat Kohli is all charged up for the Asia Cup 2022, starting on August 27. The star Indian batter has been going through a rough phase where he hasn't been able to score big runs. ## Virat hasn't scored a hundred in international cricket for nearly 3 years, which has been the topic of discussion. However, Virat doesn't believe he is out of form and that is something he has worked on over the last month or so. During the interaction on the Star Sports show 'Game Plan', Virat said that he isn't having any particular technical problem like the one he has during the England tour in 2014. ## "I know where my game stands and you cannot run this far in your international career without having the ability to counter situations and counter situations and counter conditions and counter different kinds of bowling. So, this for me, is an easier phase to process, but I don't want to put this phase behind me", he said. ## It is a fact that in Virat's dismissal over the last couple of years, there wasn't any pattern like it was during the England tour in 2014 when he was pocking at deliveries on the off-stump channel and was getting out to keeper and slip cordon frequently. Not having a pattern in dismissal indicates that he is not having technical issues. ## As he gets ready for the Asia Cup, Kohli knows that he will have to fight these ups and downs which are part and parcel of an elite sportsman's life. "I know there are ups and downs, and when I come out of this phase, I know how consistent I can be. My experiences are sacred to me", Virat added. ## India will begin its campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan on August 28 in the second match of Asia Cup 2022, to be played in the UAE. Participating in the tournament as the hot favorite to win it, India will also be looking to find its top 15 players for the T20I world cup, which will start later this year in Australia. ## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, August 24 - Recently, Virat Kohli has been the target of critics due to his average performance, and was also in danger of being dropped from the T20 team. Talking about this, former Indian team coach Ravi Shastri said that Virat Kohli's 50 in the very first match of the Asia Cup will shut everyone's mouth. One innings is enough for him to get back in form.## In an interview with Star Sports, Ravi Shastri replied about Virat Kohli's place in the T20 team that there is no fitter cricketer than him, he is a machine. And if he recovers his mind, then one innings is enough for him to get back in form.## "It is not rocket science. Mental fatigue can creep into the best in the world. This downtime was not just needed for his body but to reflect. He will come back with a much calmer mind. He gets 50 in the first game, the mouth will be shut, Public memory is very short and works both ways", Ravi Shastri said.## He further said, "There is no cricketer fitter than him. People keep saying one innings can make a difference but with a player like Kohli, it makes a massive difference. His hunger and passion remain undiminished. He would have learned from this phase let me tell you that".## On the question of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma batting aggressively in the Asia Cup, Ravi Shastri said, "Why not? They are very experienced players, they have played enough IPL and T20s and it should not be tough for them to adjust. With Rishabh, Hardik, Jadeja there is enough depth in the middle and lower order to get the innings back on track if the top order falls cheaply".## Let us tell you that Virat Kohli will play against Pakistan at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on the 28th, a month after the England tour. He was recently rested from the West Indies and Zimbabwe series. After India's early exit in the T20 World Cup last time, this time the country's eyes will be on the team's top players in the continental tournament.## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, August 23 - Team India has got a setback before the Asia Cup starting on August 27. The head coach of the Indian cricket team, Rahul Dravid, has tested covid-19 positive. ## According to the reports, before leaving for UAE for the tournament, Dravid had got a Covid test done, the report of which has come positive. It is being claimed in the report that Rahul Dravid may be out of the opening matches of the Asia Cup. However, no official statement has come from BCCI in this regard.## Team India is going to leave for the UAE for the Asia Cup on Tuesday. In this situation, VVS Laxman, who was the coach of Team India in the ODI against Zimbabwe recently played, can be sent as the coach of Team India in the Asia Cup. Earlier, VVS Laxman had also been the coach of Team India in the Ireland T20 match. VVS Laxman is currently the head of the National Cricket Academy.## Let us tell you that India's first match in the Asia Cup is with Pakistan on August 28. Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel are also not participating in the Asia Cup due to injuries in the Indian team. Team India has performed well in recent matches with interim coach VVS Laxman. India, which has won the tournament 7 times before and is the favorite to win Aisa Cup 2022. ## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

Harare, August 23 - In the third and final ODI match of India vs Zimbabwe played in Harare, India won by 13 runs and snatched the series by 3-0. In the final match of the ODI series, India's bowlers put down the team's fears by stopping Sikandar Raza's run chase. Sikandar Raza was just about to get the water off Shubman Gill's maiden ODI century, where he was dismissed by Shardul Thakur and India managed to win the fight by 13 runs.## While India had already won the series by winning two matches, Shubman Gill saw the last match as an opportunity. Shubman Gill scored his maiden ODI century by scoring 130 runs in 97 balls studded with 15 fours and 1 six. Team India captain KL Rahul won the toss and decided to bat first. Shikhar Dhawan landed in Harare to open with KL Rahul. But KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan were dismissed for 30 and 40 respectively.## Shubman Gill, who became the highest run scorer of the match, took charge. Gill's maiden ODI century and his partner Ishan Kishan's scintillating half-century in 61 balls set Zimbabwe a target of 290 runs. The hosts' bowler Brad Evans took 5 wickets for just 54 runs.## Takudzwanashe Kaitano and Innocent Kaia, who came to open for Zimbabwe, disappointed the hosts and left for the pavilion after scoring 13 and 6 runs respectively. Zimbabwe's opening players may have been dismissed but Sikandar Raza's stormy century kept India's fears alive. Brad Evans, who excelled in both bowling and batting, partnered with Sikandar Raza for 104 runs. He scored 28 runs in 36 balls. Sikandar Raza scored 115 runs in 95 balls with 9 fours and 3 sixes.## Raza's escape from Kuldeep Yadav's stumping appeal for 23 off 31 balls managed to work the initial pressure from Zimbabwe. After which Sikandar Raza increased the acceleration of runs by hitting a six and a four in the very next over of Deepak Chahar. After Raza completed his 50 easily, in the last 10 overs, the team needed 95 runs to win, while some no balls were also done by Team India, due to which Team India started to slow down. Now the pressure started shifting from the host team to the visiting team.## Although Zimbabwe managed to take the match to the last over, Sikandar Raza's dismissal off Shardul Thakur led to the hosts' defeat. Team India won the series by winning the last match of the ODI series. Shubman Gill became the man of the match by scoring 130 runs and also won the man of the series title with 245 runs in all three matches.## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

Colombo, August 22 - While the Asia Cup is set to begin later this week, Sri Lanka has been dealt a blow with the injury of one of their pacers. Sri Lankan fast bowler Dushmantha Chamira has been rested due to injury. Now for the much-awaited Asia Cup tournament 2022, starting from August 27, Sri Lanka will have to find an alternative instead of the pacer.## Sri Lankan fielding coach Anton Roux has informed about Dushmanta Chameera's injury on Instagram. In view of this, Chameera is sure to be out of the Asia Cup. The Sri Lankan fielding coach praised Dushmanta Chameera for her kindness and professional approach. Along with this, he indicated that the pacer will return in the World Cup to be held in October. Apart from this, Pakistan fast bowler Shaheen Afridi is also suffering from a knee injury due to which he has been ruled out of the upcoming Asia Cup.## Sri Lankan fielding coach Anton Roux wrote in his Instagram post, "One of the kindest people I've met, and also extremely professional in his approach to his game. So gutted for him about his injury which rules him out of the Asia Cup, but im sure Dushy will bounce back stronger for the World Cup in Australia come October. Injuries are part of professional sport and sometimes the road to recovery can be a lonely process. Thats why it's important to support injured players as best as possible during this phase. See you soon Dushy".## Despite an ankle injury, Dushmantha Chameera was included in Sri Lanka's 18-man squad list for the Asia Cup that was released on Saturday. But it is certain that he will be given maximum time to recover from the injury and he will not play in the Asia Cup.## Dushmantha Chameera's injury will now put more pressure on the other pacers of the team. While Sri Lanka's available fast bowlers are Asitha Fernando, Dilshan Madushanka, Matheesha Pathirana, and Pramod Madushan who have not played a single T20 International match so far.## Now all-rounders Chamika Karunaratne and Dasun Shanaka in the Sri Lankan Asia Cup squad will have the extra burden of winning the Asia Cup trophy. All-rounder Dasun Shanaka has led the team to a historic victory in the recently played One-Day series against Australia and the team will expect him to do the same in the Asia Cup. Sri Lanka's journey in the Asia Cup 2022 is going to start with the first match against Afghanistan on 27 August.## Stay tuned...

BY SACNILK

Mumbai, June 7 - India's former cricket captain, Virat Kohli maybe is not in great touch on the cricket field but his popularity hasn't dropped an inch as he continues to be the most followed Indian personality on social media. ## One of the highest-paid sports personalities in the world, Virat Kohli has achieved a huge milestone on the social media platform Instagram by reaching 200 million followers. On Tuesday (June 7), ICC's first Cricketer of the Decade hit 200 million followers on the photo-sharing platform and becomes the only 17th in the world to achieve the feat. ## Among the most followed personalities on Instagram, Virat Kohli is currently at number 17 and is the only cricketer in the top 100. Virat is also the most followed Asian personality on the platform while the second most followed Asian is Priyanka Chopra with 79 million followers on Insta. ## Talking about Virat, his social media popularity has witnessed an unprecedented rise in the last two years during which his Instagram followers increased by over 100 million. He is arguably one of the most influencing sportspersons in the world. ## Portugal's football player Cristiano Ronaldo is the most followed person on Insta with over 447 million followers. He is at number 2 after Instagram's own handle which has over 510 million followers. Kylie Jenner is at number 3 with over 342 million followers. ## Stay tuned...