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Rahane blitz helps Chennai floor Mumbai in IPL

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Ajinkya Rahane hit the fastest fifty of the IPL season in 19 balls as Chennai Super Kings hammered Mumbai Indians by seven wickets on Saturday.

In another show of destructive batting, England's Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal powered Rajasthan Royals to the top of the table with a 57-run demolition of Delhi Capitals.

David Warner's Delhi slumped to their third loss of the season despite the captain top-scoring with 65 and becoming the first overseas player to go past 6,000 IPL runs.

But Rahane stood out as the day's best performer with his 27-ball 61 on debut for Chennai, guiding them to their target of 158 with 11 balls to spare at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium, AFP reported.

"Me and Jinks (Ajinkya) spoke at the start of the season and I told him to play to his strengths, use your ability to manipulate the fields," said CSK captain M.S. Dhoni.

"I told him to go and enjoy, don't take stress and we'll back you."

Coming in after the fall of Devon Conway for a duck, Rahane tore into the Mumbai attack, which was without Jofra Archer after the England pace bowler was rested due to discomfort in his elbow.

Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma said Archer, who returned to the team in the previous match after missing last season, not playing was "just a precaution".

Rohit said the five-time champions need to be more "brave" in their upcoming matches.

Chennai's England stars Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali missed out due to injuries and South Africans Dwaine Pretorius and Sisanda Magala made the team.

Ravindra Jadeja made an impression with his left-arm spin as he took the key wickets of Ishan Kishan (32), Cameron Green, out for 12 after an excellent caught and bowled, and Tilak Varma (22) to keep Mumbai to 157-8.

Jadeja, who was named man of the match, was ably supported by New Zealand left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner, who returned figures of 2-28.

Tim David's late cameo of 31 boosted Mumbai's total but was still not enough to challenge the Chennai batting.

Rahane, who was signed by Chennai for his base price of $61,094 in the December auction, smashed seven fours and three sixes.

Opener Ruturaj Gaikwad made an unbeaten 40 to move to the top of the batting charts with 189 runs this season as he jumped over Buttler (152) and Warner (158).

First match of the day

In the first match of the day in Guwahati, last year's runners-up Rajasthan posted 199-4 after an attacking 98-run opening stand between the left-handed Jaiswal (60) and Buttler (79).

Jaiswal struck five boundaries in the first over and Buttler soon took charge and, despite a middle-order stutter, took on the bowlers before Shimron Hetmyer hit an unbeaten 39.

New Zealand's left-arm quick Trent Boult led the bowling charge with a double-wicket maiden to help restrict Delhi to 142-9 as Rajasthan bounced back from their previous loss.

"We are a long way off right now," Delhi coach Ricky Ponting said.

"I can't put my finger on why? We need to do a bit more soul searching as a group. We have to think about the players we are putting on the ground because what we have done so far hasn't worked."

Rajasthan, who won the first edition of the IPL in 2008 under late Australian great Shane Warne, have won two of their three matches.

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Afghanistan to tour Zimbabwe for all-format series 

The Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) said the tour will take place from December 9 to January 6

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AfghanAtalan will tour Zimbabwe next month for an all-format series that will feature two Test matches, three ODIs and three T20Is. 

According to the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) the tour will take place from December 9 to January 6. 

First up will be a three-match T20I series to be played on December 9, 11 and 12 at the Harare Sports Club.

This will be followed by a three-match ODI series on December 15, 17, and 19 at the same venue. 

The tour will conclude with a two-match Test series in Bulawayo, with the first Test scheduled from December 26 to 30 and the second from January 2 to 6.

Mirwais Ashraf, Chairman of the Afghanistan Cricket Board, said in a statement that “this year (2024) has been quite productive for us both domestically and internationally, and we’ve had good achievements. 

“We are committed to striving hard and adding more bilateral cricket to our calendar in the next year and bringing more glory to our nation,” he said.

“The all-format tour to Zimbabwe is a significant event for us. We have a rich history with Zimbabwe, and playing there has always been challenging, but it’s a challenge I believe the AfghanAtalan can face confidently,” he added.

Zimbabwe Cricket’s Chairman Tavengwa Mukuhlani said December 26 and January 1 “Test matches are iconic cricket fixtures that we are delighted to be adding to our calendar this festive season and we are looking forward to celebrating in style one of the finest traditions in the sport’s long history.

“Before the Test series, scheduled for Bulawayo, we will start off with some T20I and ODI action in Harare to complete a full tour, a clear demonstration of our commitment to improve our game across all formats.

“Matches between Zimbabwe and Afghanistan are always intense and exciting affairs and we have no doubt the players will once again serve up some great entertainment befitting such a historic tour.”

The AfghanAtalan squad will arrive in Zimbabwe on December 6, where they will have two practice sessions before the first T20I match on December 9.

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Bangladesh announce squad for ODI series against Afghanistan, Shanto to continue as captain

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The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) on Friday announced its squad for the upcoming ODI series against Afghanistan. Najmul Hossain Shanto, who had expressed his desire to quit captaincy following the South Africa Tests, has been named the captain for the series.

The announcement follows the discussion between Shanto and BCB president Faruque Ahmed on Thursday evening, as Shanto had informed the board of his reluctance to continue as Bangladesh's all-format captain.

Bangladesh are without Shakib Al Hasan, who Faruque said voluntarily pulled out of reckoning for this ODI series. Litton Das is also missing due to fever which kept him out of the Chattogram Test against South Africa.

Pacer Nahid Rana is the only uncapped player in the squad, which sees the return of opener Zakir Hasan and left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed. 

Zakir has featured in only one ODI, while Nasum's last 50-over game came in the ODI World Cup in India last year. 

Anamul Haque, Taijul Islam and Hasan Mahmud have not found places in the squad with Mahmud missing due to a shoulder injury. Wicketkeeper batter Litton Das also misses out due to fever. 

The ODI series will kick start on November 6, followed by the second and third games on November 9 and 11. All the matches will take place at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.

Bangladesh's ODI squad for Afghanistan:

Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan, Zakir Hasan, Nazmul Hossain Shanto (capt), Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah Riyad, Towhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali, Mehidy Hassan Miraz, Rishad Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam, Nahid Rana

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Rashid Khan retained by Gujrat Titans ahead of IPL 2025 auction

“No T20 team would be complete without a world-class spinner, and we are fortunate to have one of the very best in Rashid Khan,” Gujrat Titans said in a news release.

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Afghan cricket star Rashid Khan has been retained by the Indian Premier League side Gujrat Titans ahead of the auction.

Khan has been retained for 180 million Indian rupees (approx. $2.14 million).

“No T20 team would be complete without a world-class spinner, and we are fortunate to have one of the very best in Rashid Khan,” Gujrat Titans said in a news release.

“Rashid started weaving his magic right from the outset in our first season, where he returned with 19 wickets. He upped the ante in 2023 with 27 wickets, which includes a spectacular hat-trick against Kolkata Knight Riders. Rashid also became the first player to cross 50 wickets for our franchise during the 2024 season,” according to the news release.

“Also not to forget, he underlines his value as an all-rounder with remarkable contributions as a batter - let it be those last ball finishes against SRH in 2022 or PBKS in 2024, or the unforgettable night in 2023 at Wankhede where he smashed his highest T20 score,” it added.

Rashid Khan was picked by Gujrat Titans before the auction in 2022, when the franchise had just entered the IPL. He got 150 million Indian rupees ($1.78 million) then.

Other players retained by Gujrat Titans are Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Shahrukh Khan and Rahul Tewatia.

IPL auction will take place in November or December.

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