Cricket News, 26 December: Australia, India dominate Boxing Day Tests, more

Rahul put India on top in Centurion

K.L. Rahul’s unbeaten 122 – his seventh Test hundred – helped India reach 272/3 at stumps on Day 1 of the first Test match against South Africa, in Centurion.

Rahul and Mayank Agarwal added 117 for the opening wicket after Virat Kohli won the toss and opted to bat. Lungi Ngidi then dismissed Agarwal (60) and Cheteshwar Pujara with successive balls in the 41st over to give South Africa some hope, but Rahul added 82 with Kohli (35) and an unbeaten 73 with Ajinkya Rahane (40*) to help India finish the day on a high note.

Himachal Pradesh beat Tamil Nadu, win maiden Vijay Hazare title

Riding on Shubham Arora's unbeaten 131-ball 136, Himachal Pradesh beat Tamil Nadu by 11 runs via VJD Method in the final of the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021/22 to win their maiden title at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.

Batting first, Tamil Nadu posted 314 in 49.4 overs, courtesy Dinesh Karthik’s 103-ball 116. Baba Indrajith (80 in 71 balls), Shahrukh Khan (42 in 21), and Vijay Shankar (22 in 16) also chipped in with handy contributions.

In reply, Himachal Pradesh were 299/4 in 47.3 overs when bad light stopped play. They needed 16 from 15 balls at this stage, but no further play was possible, ad they were declared winners via VJD method. Amit Kumar (74) and Rishi Dhawan (42*) provided Arora with support.

Australia in command again in Melbourne

A superb bowling performance from Australia, led by Pat Cummins, helped Australia bundle out England for 185 on Day 1 of the third Ashes Test match at the MCG. At stumps, Australia then reached 61/1, trailing by 124 runs in the first innings.

Joe Root top-scored in England’s total with 50. Australia, however, lost David Warner to James Anderson in the second last over of the day. Marcus Harris (20*) and Nathan Lyon were in the middle at the close of play.

Sreesanth set to make Ranji Trophy return

S. Sreesanth was included in Kerala’s 24-member preliminary squad for the upcoming Ranji Trophy season. He is set to make a return to First-class cricket after a gap of nearly nine years. He last played a First-class match in 2013, for Rest of India in the Irani Cup against Mumbai.

After serving a seven-year suspension for his alleged involvement in the 2013 IPL spot-fixing scam, Sreesanth was elated after getting a place in the preliminary squad for Kerala.

Kerala are pooled in Elite Group B, along with Bengal, Vidarbha, Rajasthan, Haryana, and Tripura.