BRISBANE: Shubman Gill’s India squad will take confidence out of a rain-marred 2-1 series win over Australia ahead of the Twenty20 Cricket World Cup it is co-hosting with Sri Lanka early next year.
India raced to 52 without loss in 4.5 overs in Game 5 before lightning forced players and officials off the field at the Gabba on Saturday night.
The rain set in soon after, and the match was called off more than two hours later without a further ball being bowled.
Shubman Gill plundered the bowling, stroking six boundaries as he scored 29 off 16 deliveries. Abhishek Sharma had two reprieves and was 23 off 13, including a flat-batted six over mid-wicket.
It was the second washout of the series, after Game 1 in Canberra was abandoned after 9.4 overs on Oct. 29.
India took a 2-1 series lead with a 48-run victory Thursday on the Gold Coast, where Washington Sundar took three wickets in five deliveries to snuff out Australia’s run chase.
Both teams were using the series as a chance to try combinations and rehearse ahead of the T20 World Cup, now they turn attention from the shortest to the longest format in international cricket.
Australia’s next assignment is the first Ashes test against England in Perth starting Nov. 21. India is hosting South Africa in a two-test series starting Nov. 14.
Two uncharacteristic dropped catches had Australia under pressure after skipper Mitch Marsh won the toss and sent India in to bat on Saturday.
Glenn Maxwell put down a regulation chance in the first over despite getting two hands to it at mid-off when Abhishek miscued a Ben Dwarshuis delivery.
Gill hit the next ball for a boundary down the ground.
Dwarshuis conceded four boundaries in his next over — the third of the innings — with Gill finding the rope down the ground and on both sides of the wicket.
Abhishek had a second reprieve on 13 when he misjudged a faster ball from Nathan Ellis in the fourth over and Dwarshuis dropped a catch at fine leg.
Abhishek cleared the boundary for the first time in the series with a big, heaved six to finish the fourth over.
After the series-opening match was washed out, Australia won the second game before India rallied with a five-wicket win in Game 3.
The Australians won the preceding ODI series 2-1 after taking the first two games.
India clinches 2-1 T20 series victory over Australia after another washout
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India clinches 2-1 T20 series victory over Australia after another washout
- India raced to 52 without loss in 4.5 overs in Game 5 before lightning forced players and officials off the field at the Gabba on Saturday night
- The rain set in soon after, and the match was called off more than two hours later without a further ball being bowled
Colombia’s Rodriguez signs for Minnesota on short-term deal
- Rodriguez will occupy an international squad spot pending a medical and receipt of his visa.
- “We’re excited to add his creativity and football intelligence to our group,” El-Ahmad said
MINNESOTA: Colombia captain James Rodriguez signed for Minnesota United on Friday, marking his seventh club since leaving Real Madrid in 2020 as the former World Cup Golden Boot winner continues his globe-trotting career.
The Major League Soccer club announced that the 34-year-old midfielder has signed a guaranteed contract through June 2026, with a club option to extend until December 2026.
Rodriguez will occupy an international squad spot pending a medical and receipt of his visa.
“James is a player whose quality, vision, and experience at the highest levels of the game are unquestioned. We’re excited to add his creativity and football intelligence to our group,” the club’s sporting director Khaled El-Ahmad said in a statement.
“At the same time, this move is about collective strength — not about putting everything on one individual.”
Rodriguez, who won the Golden Boot at the 2014 World Cup in a breakthrough tournament that earned him a move to Real Madrid, has become something of a footballing nomad in recent years.
Since the 2019-20 campaign, the playmaker has plied his trade across continents for Everton, Al-Rayyan, Olympiacos, Sao Paulo, Rayo Vallecano and Leon before landing in Minnesota.
“I’m very happy for this new chapter in my life. I hope to be at my best so I can bring joy to this city and to all of the people who are putting their faith in me,” Rodriguez said.
“I’m looking forward to meeting all of the passionate Minnesota fans because I’m also a passionate player who wants to give everything on the field and always wants to win.”
Rodriguez will get his first chance to impress when the new MLS season kicks off on February 21, with Minnesota taking on Austin.
