England pacer Mark Wood reckons that his side, boasting one of the devastating pace attacks in the cricket world, can be upbeat about their chances in the upcoming pink-ball Test against India, scheduled to be played in Ahmedabad from February 24, given the ball moves around.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The four-Test series is firmly locked at 1-1 after the end of the first two Tests. The final two Tests of the series will be played at the new 110,000-capacity Sardar Patel Stadium in Ahmedabad.&nbsp;Wood is hopeful of a seamer-friendly pitch.&nbsp;&nbsp;

"As soon as the ball moves, we know how good our seam bowlers can be. We've got good depth there, good skills and two of the best-ever (James Anderson and Stuart Broad).&nbsp;

"Hopefully, if the ball does move and it is seamer-friendly we can be very confident going into the game," Wood said during a virtual interaction on Friday.&nbsp;

Wood joined the England squad, along with Jonny Bairstow, ahead of the third Test. While spinners have dominated the first two Test matches, pacers are expected to pick the majority of wickets in the day-night Test in Ahmedabad.&nbsp;&nbsp;

"We've been bowling with them in the nets - they have swung quite a bit and they've lasted longer which was interesting to see," said Wood.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/tempo-drivers-son-chetan-sakariya-mourns-brothers-loss-after-landing-inr-120-crore-ipl-deal-364891" hreflang="en">Tempo driver's son Chetan Sakariya mourns brother's loss after landing INR 1.20 crore IPL deal</a>

"With the ball, as soon as it moves, every one of the bowlers from the past couple of months is dying to get it in their hand. I'm not the only one who's trying to get hold of it.&nbsp;

"The wickets in the nets have been a bit green and had good pace and carry too. I don't know if that's anything to go by or whether it's a bit of a trick."&nbsp;

Recently, Wood pulled his name out of the IPL 2021 auction due to family reasons. However, the English paceman called it "very difficult decision" but the one he is comfortable with.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

"Obviously there have been some big names going for big money and it's great for them. It's life-changing money which is why it was such a difficult decision for me," he said.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/felt-like-the-loneliest-guy-virat-kohli-opens-up-on-battle-with-depression-364757" hreflang="en">'Felt like the loneliest guy': Virat Kohli opens up on battle with depression</a>

"First and foremost, it was for my family. I'm going to spend six weeks here in India and it would have been another eight weeks on top of that. The second reason, of course, is being ready for England.&nbsp;

"I don't want my body to fail me or be a bit bruised mentally or physically for the back end of the year when it's the World Cup and Ashes, or in the summer when it's a big series against India at home.&nbsp;

"Although it's life-changing money and an opportunity, I'm comfortable with my decision and I hope it serves me well in the long term."&nbsp;

&nbsp;

England pacer Mark Wood reckons that his side, boasting one of the devastating pace attacks in the cricket world, can be upbeat about their chances in the upcoming pink-ball Test against India, scheduled to be played in Ahmedabad from February 24, given the ball moves around.

England pacer Mark Wood reckons that his side, boasting one of the devastating pace attacks in the cricket world, can be upbeat about their chances in the upcoming pink-ball Test against India, scheduled to be played in Ahmedabad from February 24, given the ball moves around. The four-Test series is firmly locked at 1-1 after the end of the first two Tests. The final two Tests of the series will be played at the new 110,000-capacity Sardar Patel Stadium in Ahmedabad. Wood is hopeful of a seamer-friendly pitch. "As soon as the ball moves, we know how good our seam bowlers can be. We've got good depth there, good skills and two of the best-ever (James Anderson and Stuart Broad). "Hopefully, if the ball does move and it is seamer-friendly we can be very confident going into the game," Wood said during a virtual interaction on Friday. Wood joined the England squad, along with Jonny Bairstow, ahead of the third Test. While spinners have dominated the first two Test matches, pacers are expected to pick the majority of wickets in the day-night Test in Ahmedabad. "We've been bowling with them in the nets - they have swung quite a bit and they've lasted longer which was interesting to see," said Wood. ALSO READ: Tempo driver's son Chetan Sakariya mourns brother's loss after landing INR 1.20 crore IPL deal "With the ball, as soon as it moves, every one of the bowlers from the past couple of months is dying to get it in their hand. I'm not the only one who's trying to get hold of it. "The wickets in the nets have been a bit green and had good pace and carry too. I don't know if that's anything to go by or whether it's a bit of a trick." Recently, Wood pulled his name out of the IPL 2021 auction due to family reasons. However, the English paceman called it "very difficult decision" but the one he is comfortable with. "Obviously there have been some big names going for big money and it's great for them. It's life-changing money which is why it was such a difficult decision for me," he said. ALSO READ: 'Felt like the loneliest guy': Virat Kohli opens up on battle with depression "First and foremost, it was for my family. I'm going to spend six weeks here in India and it would have been another eight weeks on top of that. The second reason, of course, is being ready for England. "I don't want my body to fail me or be a bit bruised mentally or physically for the back end of the year when it's the World Cup and Ashes, or in the summer when it's a big series against India at home. "Although it's life-changing money and an opportunity, I'm comfortable with my decision and I hope it serves me well in the long term."

IND vs ENG 3rd Test: England's Mark Wood upbeat about solid outing if ball moves around in Ahmedabad

Rajasthan Royals wrapped up the signing of left-arm pacer Chetan Sakariya for a whopping INR 1.20 crore during the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction. While Chetan Sakariya admits&nbsp;his life will change after the auction, he has an empty space in his heart after losing his younger brother last month.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Chetan's younger brother had committed suicide in January. While RR's latest recruit said the absence of his younger brother still haunts him, he said his brother would have been&nbsp;happier&nbsp;than him after being guaranteed a part of IPL 2021 for Rajasthan Royals.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“My younger brother committed suicide in January. I wasn’t at&nbsp;home,&nbsp;I was playing Syed Mushtaq Ali at that time. I didn’t know he had passed away until I returned home. Even then, my family didn’t share the news with me. I used to ask them about Rahul’s whereabouts and they would tell me 'he has gone out’.&nbsp;Sometimes,&nbsp;they would say he had ventured out to buy groceries. This absence is a big void for me. Had he been here today he would have been&nbsp;more happy&nbsp;than me,”&nbsp;Chetan Sakariya, the 28-year-old left-arm pacer from&nbsp;Saurashtra, told the Indian Express.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/from-ms-dhoni-yuvraj-singh-to-chris-morris-most-expensive-buys-in-every-ipl-auctions-364071" hreflang="en">From MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh to Chris Morris: Most expensive buys in every IPL auctions</a>

Chetan's father Kanjibhai was driving a tempo to keep up with daily life until two years ago. However, his father&nbsp;never wanted him to play cricket until his uncle came in between.&nbsp;&nbsp;

“I never wanted him to work, I told him, I will take care of my family. People are asking me, what I will do with so much money, I said, let the money come first. I always wanted to shift to Rajkot,&nbsp;somehow,&nbsp;I didn’t have decent money to buy a good house. Now, the first thing I will do is buy a house in a good locality,” he said.&nbsp;

Sakariya was with Royal Challengers Bangalore as a net bowler in IPL 2020. While RCB went hard for the left-arm pacer, it was Rajasthan Royals who signed him up after an intense bidding battle.&nbsp;&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/zaheer-khan-mahela-jayawardene-open-up-on-mumbai-indians-signing-arjun-tendulkar-364740" hreflang="en">Zaheer Khan, Mahela Jayawardene open up on Mumbai Indians signing Arjun Tendulkar</a>

“I was hoping that this time I will be there because when I went as a net bowler for RCB during IPL in UAE, RCB coach Mike Hesson and Simon Katich had told me that I have ticked all boxes to be part of any IPL team. RCB did try for me but getting picked for any team makes me happy,” Sakariya said.&nbsp;

Sakariya was vital to&nbsp;Saurasthra's&nbsp;maiden Ranji Trophy triumph last year when they defeated Bengal in the summit clash. After playing 15 First-Class and 16 T20 matches, Sakariya will now&nbsp;look to impress the cricketing world in IPL 2021.&nbsp;

Rajasthan Royals wrapped up the signing of left-arm pacer Chetan Sakariya for a whopping INR 1.20 crore during the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction.

Rajasthan Royals wrapped up the signing of left-arm pacer Chetan Sakariya for a whopping INR 1.20 crore during the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction. While Chetan Sakariya admits his life will change after the auction, he has an empty space in his heart after losing his younger brother last month. Chetan's younger brother had committed suicide in January. While RR's latest recruit said the absence of his younger brother still haunts him, he said his brother would have been happier than him after being guaranteed a part of IPL 2021 for Rajasthan Royals. “My younger brother committed suicide in January. I wasn’t at home, I was playing Syed Mushtaq Ali at that time. I didn’t know he had passed away until I returned home. Even then, my family didn’t share the news with me. I used to ask them about Rahul’s whereabouts and they would tell me 'he has gone out’. Sometimes, they would say he had ventured out to buy groceries. This absence is a big void for me. Had he been here today he would have been more happy than me,” Chetan Sakariya, the 28-year-old left-arm pacer from Saurashtra, told the Indian Express. ALSO READ: From MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh to Chris Morris: Most expensive buys in every IPL auctions Chetan's father Kanjibhai was driving a tempo to keep up with daily life until two years ago. However, his father never wanted him to play cricket until his uncle came in between. “I never wanted him to work, I told him, I will take care of my family. People are asking me, what I will do with so much money, I said, let the money come first. I always wanted to shift to Rajkot, somehow, I didn’t have decent money to buy a good house. Now, the first thing I will do is buy a house in a good locality,” he said. Sakariya was with Royal Challengers Bangalore as a net bowler in IPL 2020. While RCB went hard for the left-arm pacer, it was Rajasthan Royals who signed him up after an intense bidding battle. ALSO READ: Zaheer Khan, Mahela Jayawardene open up on Mumbai Indians signing Arjun Tendulkar “I was hoping that this time I will be there because when I went as a net bowler for RCB during IPL in UAE, RCB coach Mike Hesson and Simon Katich had told me that I have ticked all boxes to be part of any IPL team. RCB did try for me but getting picked for any team makes me happy,” Sakariya said. Sakariya was vital to Saurasthra's maiden Ranji Trophy triumph last year when they defeated Bengal in the summit clash. After playing 15 First-Class and 16 T20 matches, Sakariya will now look to impress the cricketing world in IPL 2021.

Tempo driver's son Chetan Sakariya mourns brother's loss after landing INR 1.20 crore IPL deal

Naomi Osaka says nobody remembers a loser -- and she doesn't plan to be one when she tries to win a fourth Grand Slam crown against Jennifer Brady in the Australian Open final on Saturday.&nbsp;&nbsp;

A second trophy at Melbourne Park would mean the 23-year-old from Japan has won half of the majors she's contested since her&nbsp;first at the US Open final in 2018 -- an infamous match forever remembered for Serena Williams's implosion.

Osaka's demolition of Williams in the semi-final on Thursday ended the 39-year-old's latest attempt to win an elusive record-equalling 24th Slam title and reinforced the belief that a new generation is taking over from the American.

Osaka is at the forefront of the young wave and credits a new-found mental maturity for being able to battle through matches under the highest pressure.

And she had a warning for the 22nd-seeded American Brady ahead of the final.

"I have this mentality that people don't remember the runners-up," she said.

"I think I fight the hardest in the finals. I think that's where you sort of set yourself apart."

Osaka is hot favourite against Brady, who is making her Grand Slam final debut after being forced into a hard 14-day quarantine ahead of the Australian Open, where she was confined to her hotel room and unable to train. &nbsp;

The pair first clashed as juniors in Florida seven years ago when Brady won.&nbsp;

Osaka has won both their matches since with their rivalry hitting new heights in the second of those, last year's epic US Open semi-final.

Eventual champion Osaka prevailed 7-6 (7/1), 3-6, 6-3 in a nerve-jangling encounter, dubbed by some as the best match of the truncated 2020 season.&nbsp;&nbsp;

"Was probably (in the) top two matches I've played in my life," Osaka said of the classic at Flushing Meadows.&nbsp;

"I think the matches I remember the most when I'm having a very hard time.&nbsp;I think about that match a lot."&nbsp;

<h2>- 'She hits it huge' -</h2>

Third seed Osaka believes she had sharpened her game since then, which will be crucial to blunt the strong-serving American.&nbsp;

"I play a little bit different now," said Osaka,&nbsp;who is riding an unbeaten 20-match winning streak stretching 12 months.&nbsp;

"I think my returns are better.&nbsp;I can't fully base everything on that match, but definitely it's something to reference."

Brady, 25, has not faced a higher-ranked player in her run to the final, helped by the exits of world number one Ashleigh Barty and defending champion Sofia Kenin on her side of the draw.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Having not lost a set until surviving a three-set thriller to Karolina Muchova in the semis, Brady knows she's in for a fight against a player she long believed was destined for stardom.&nbsp;&nbsp;

"We grew up playing junior local tournaments in Florida," she said.&nbsp;

"I remember playing her, I was, like, 'Wow, she hits the ball huge. She's going to be good. She's got something special'."&nbsp;

Brady, who "didn't really like" tennis a youngster but rekindled her love for the sport at college, has revelled in self-belief since her breakthrough in New York, but admitted the cauldron of a Slam final will be a new experience.&nbsp; &nbsp;

"I don't know how I'm going to feel on Saturday," she said.&nbsp;&nbsp;

"There are going to be moments, games, points where I'm going to be thinking ... 'Wow, this could be my first Grand Slam title'."&nbsp;&nbsp;

Osaka is more experienced on the highest stage despite being two years younger and has changed her attitude to big-match occasions.

"I used to weigh my entire existence on if I won or lost a tennis match," she said. "That's just not how I feel any more."&nbsp;

Osaka, who has never lost a Slam match after getting past the fourth round, is aiming to become the first woman's player since Monica Seles to win her first four Grand Slam finals.

Naomi Osaka says nobody remembers a loser -- and she doesn't plan to be one when she tries to win a fourth Grand Slam crown against Jennifer Brady in the Australian Open final on Saturday.

Naomi Osaka says nobody remembers a loser -- and she doesn't plan to be one when she tries to win a fourth Grand Slam crown against Jennifer Brady in the Australian Open final on Saturday. A second trophy at Melbourne Park would mean the 23-year-old from Japan has won half of the majors she's contested since her first at the US Open final in 2018 -- an infamous match forever remembered for Serena Williams's implosion. Osaka's demolition of Williams in the semi-final on Thursday ended the 39-year-old's latest attempt to win an elusive record-equalling 24th Slam title and reinforced the belief that a new generation is taking over from the American. Osaka is at the forefront of the young wave and credits a new-found mental maturity for being able to battle through matches under the highest pressure. And she had a warning for the 22nd-seeded American Brady ahead of the final. "I have this mentality that people don't remember the runners-up," she said. "I think I fight the hardest in the finals. I think that's where you sort of set yourself apart." Osaka is hot favourite against Brady, who is making her Grand Slam final debut after being forced into a hard 14-day quarantine ahead of the Australian Open, where she was confined to her hotel room and unable to train. The pair first clashed as juniors in Florida seven years ago when Brady won. Osaka has won both their matches since with their rivalry hitting new heights in the second of those, last year's epic US Open semi-final. Eventual champion Osaka prevailed 7-6 (7/1), 3-6, 6-3 in a nerve-jangling encounter, dubbed by some as the best match of the truncated 2020 season. "Was probably (in the) top two matches I've played in my life," Osaka said of the classic at Flushing Meadows. "I think the matches I remember the most when I'm having a very hard time. I think about that match a lot." - 'She hits it huge' - Third seed Osaka believes she had sharpened her game since then, which will be crucial to blunt the strong-serving American. "I play a little bit different now," said Osaka, who is riding an unbeaten 20-match winning streak stretching 12 months. "I think my returns are better. I can't fully base everything on that match, but definitely it's something to reference." Brady, 25, has not faced a higher-ranked player in her run to the final, helped by the exits of world number one Ashleigh Barty and defending champion Sofia Kenin on her side of the draw. Having not lost a set until surviving a three-set thriller to Karolina Muchova in the semis, Brady knows she's in for a fight against a player she long believed was destined for stardom. "We grew up playing junior local tournaments in Florida," she said. "I remember playing her, I was, like, 'Wow, she hits the ball huge. She's going to be good. She's got something special'." Brady, who "didn't really like" tennis a youngster but rekindled her love for the sport at college, has revelled in self-belief since her breakthrough in New York, but admitted the cauldron of a Slam final will be a new experience. "I don't know how I'm going to feel on Saturday," she said. "There are going to be moments, games, points where I'm going to be thinking ... 'Wow, this could be my first Grand Slam title'." Osaka is more experienced on the highest stage despite being two years younger and has changed her attitude to big-match occasions. "I used to weigh my entire existence on if I won or lost a tennis match," she said. "That's just not how I feel any more." Osaka, who has never lost a Slam match after getting past the fourth round, is aiming to become the first woman's player since Monica Seles to win her first four Grand Slam finals.

'I fight hardest in finals' - Osaka's Australian Open warning to Brady

Russia's Daniil Medvedev insisted the pressure was all on Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open final after he breezed past Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets in the semis on Friday.

Medvedev, now into his second Grand Slam decider on the back of a 20-match winning streak, said the world number one has "more things to lose" on Sunday.

Djokovic, with 17 major titles, has won all eight of his Australian Open finals and is looking to close the gap on the record of 20 Slam trophies held by Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.

"I like that I don't have a lot of pressure because he never lost in eight times that he was here in the final," said the 25-year-old world number four.

"So it's him who has all the pressure, getting to Roger and Rafa in the Grand Slams (list).

"So I just hope that I'm going to get out there, show my best tennis. As we see I can beat some big names if I play good.

"For sure he has more experience, but more things to lose."

Medvedev, a 6-4, 6-2, 7-5 winner against Tsitsipas, has now beaten 12 top-10 players and lifted three trophies during his winning run.

He said the lessons learned in his debut Slam final, when he came from two sets down to give Nadal a huge scare at the 2019 US Open, would help him on Sunday.

"It's experience, it was my first Grand Slam final against one of the greatest. On Sunday I'm going to come against one of the other greatest," he said.

"I played against Rafa in this crazy US Open match. It's an experience that maybe, if we're going to have some crazy match, can turn some things for me and not against me."

Russia's Daniil Medvedev insisted the pressure was all on Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open final after he breezed past Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets in the semis on Friday.

Russia's Daniil Medvedev insisted the pressure was all on Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open final after he breezed past Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets in the semis on Friday. Medvedev, now into his second Grand Slam decider on the back of a 20-match winning streak, said the world number one has "more things to lose" on Sunday. Djokovic, with 17 major titles, has won all eight of his Australian Open finals and is looking to close the gap on the record of 20 Slam trophies held by Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. "I like that I don't have a lot of pressure because he never lost in eight times that he was here in the final," said the 25-year-old world number four. "So it's him who has all the pressure, getting to Roger and Rafa in the Grand Slams (list). "So I just hope that I'm going to get out there, show my best tennis. As we see I can beat some big names if I play good. "For sure he has more experience, but more things to lose." Medvedev, a 6-4, 6-2, 7-5 winner against Tsitsipas, has now beaten 12 top-10 players and lifted three trophies during his winning run. He said the lessons learned in his debut Slam final, when he came from two sets down to give Nadal a huge scare at the 2019 US Open, would help him on Sunday. "It's experience, it was my first Grand Slam final against one of the greatest. On Sunday I'm going to come against one of the other greatest," he said. "I played against Rafa in this crazy US Open match. It's an experience that maybe, if we're going to have some crazy match, can turn some things for me and not against me."

Pressure on Djokovic in Australian Open final, says Medvedev

Cricket South Africa has lodged an official dispute with the International Cricket Council over Australia’s decision to withdraw from a scheduled tour of South Africa.

CSA interim board chairman Stavros Nicolaou told a press conference on Friday that the board was "extremely disappointed" over what he described as a unilateral decision by Cricket Australia.

Nicolaou said CSA had worked for many months to satisfy Australian concerns over Covid-19 and it came as a shock to receive a letter from the Australians on February 2 citing an "unacceptable risk" because of Covid.&nbsp;

The decision came just 22 days before the tour was due to start.

CSA's complaint to the ICC is understood to seek World Test championship points for the series on the grounds that it cannot be re-scheduled before April 30, the deadline for championship matches, as well as financial compensation.

"We don't know what the prospects of success are because there are provisions in the rules that relate to Covid for postponements to take place," said Nicolaou.&nbsp;

"But that's not the main issue. One needs to assess what these cancellations and postponements mean to the smaller nations or the poorer nations with less resources. I think there is a recalibration that needs to take place in cricket."

Nicolaou said the reasons advanced by Australia were not convincing.&nbsp;

They had claimed that South Africa was experiencing a peak of Covid infections with a more virulent strain of the virus and that there were concerns that Australian players might be stranded in South Africa should there be infections in their camp.

"This really confused us because the day we received the letter South Africa was on a very significant downward trajectory of the pandemic."&nbsp;

He said infections had declined from a peak of 22,000 a day to a current average of between one and two thousand a day.

"We also don't agree that there is a more virulent strain. We know there is a more contagious strain but it is not more virulent."

Nicolaou said CSA had secured assurances from the government that would enable anyone from Australia who contracted the virus to be able to fly home. Arrangements had also been made with private hospitals to accommodate any of the tourists if they should fall ill.

"It is a unilateral decision," said Nicolaou.&nbsp;

"Our preference would be to pick up the phone, set up a call and go through the various details."

<h2>- New board -</h2>

Nicolaou provided an update on the interim board's progress towards setting up a new board, with a majority of independent directors, following the resignation of the previous board last year.

He said a special general meeting would be held next month to approve recommendations for a new structure and he expected that CSA's annual general meeting, which was postponed from last October, would be held between April 10 and 17 to appoint a new board.

Former CSA and ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat, a member of the interim board, said CSA’s "internal challenges" had been damaging to the organisation’s reputation and international standing.

"It is no surprise that we were not able to focus and establish ourselves at the ICC and from my experience that allows an imbalance in the world of cricket."

Lorgat said there had been a resurgence in the dominance of the so-called Big Three of world cricket – India, England and Australia.&nbsp;

"We have seen a lot of fixtures between those countries to the detriment of the others. Cricket South Africa truly needs to get its house in order to play a meaningful role around the table at the ICC."

Cricket South Africa has lodged an official dispute with the International Cricket Council over Australia’s decision to withdraw from a scheduled tour of South Africa.

Cricket South Africa has lodged an official dispute with the International Cricket Council over Australia’s decision to withdraw from a scheduled tour of South Africa. CSA interim board chairman Stavros Nicolaou told a press conference on Friday that the board was "extremely disappointed" over what he described as a unilateral decision by Cricket Australia. Nicolaou said CSA had worked for many months to satisfy Australian concerns over Covid-19 and it came as a shock to receive a letter from the Australians on February 2 citing an "unacceptable risk" because of Covid. The decision came just 22 days before the tour was due to start. CSA's complaint to the ICC is understood to seek World Test championship points for the series on the grounds that it cannot be re-scheduled before April 30, the deadline for championship matches, as well as financial compensation. "We don't know what the prospects of success are because there are provisions in the rules that relate to Covid for postponements to take place," said Nicolaou. "But that's not the main issue. One needs to assess what these cancellations and postponements mean to the smaller nations or the poorer nations with less resources. I think there is a recalibration that needs to take place in cricket." Nicolaou said the reasons advanced by Australia were not convincing. They had claimed that South Africa was experiencing a peak of Covid infections with a more virulent strain of the virus and that there were concerns that Australian players might be stranded in South Africa should there be infections in their camp. "This really confused us because the day we received the letter South Africa was on a very significant downward trajectory of the pandemic." He said infections had declined from a peak of 22,000 a day to a current average of between one and two thousand a day. "We also don't agree that there is a more virulent strain. We know there is a more contagious strain but it is not more virulent." Nicolaou said CSA had secured assurances from the government that would enable anyone from Australia who contracted the virus to be able to fly home. Arrangements had also been made with private hospitals to accommodate any of the tourists if they should fall ill. "It is a unilateral decision," said Nicolaou. "Our preference would be to pick up the phone, set up a call and go through the various details." - New board - Nicolaou provided an update on the interim board's progress towards setting up a new board, with a majority of independent directors, following the resignation of the previous board last year. He said a special general meeting would be held next month to approve recommendations for a new structure and he expected that CSA's annual general meeting, which was postponed from last October, would be held between April 10 and 17 to appoint a new board. Former CSA and ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat, a member of the interim board, said CSA’s "internal challenges" had been damaging to the organisation’s reputation and international standing. "It is no surprise that we were not able to focus and establish ourselves at the ICC and from my experience that allows an imbalance in the world of cricket." Lorgat said there had been a resurgence in the dominance of the so-called Big Three of world cricket – India, England and Australia. "We have seen a lot of fixtures between those countries to the detriment of the others. Cricket South Africa truly needs to get its house in order to play a meaningful role around the table at the ICC."

South Africa complains to ICC over cancelled Australian cricket tour

ATK Mohun Bagan are set to lock horns with SC East Bengal in what will be the Kolkata Derby clash in the Indian Super League (ISL) on Friday. While ATK Mohun Bagan are sitting atop the ISL points table, arch-rivals SC East Bengal lie at the ninth spot.&nbsp;&nbsp;

While both ATK Mohun Bagan and SC East Bengal have played courageous football in the ISL season so far, both the team have had contrasting results which reflects firmly in the ISL points table. SC East Bengal will be eyeing to take revenge for their defeat the last time they faced ATK Mohun Bagan in November 2020. With Kolkata Derby one of the biggest&nbsp;spectacles&nbsp;in not only Indian football but also world football, fans can't miss the action.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/felt-like-the-loneliest-guy-virat-kohli-opens-up-on-battle-with-depression-364757" hreflang="en">'Felt like the loneliest guy': Virat Kohli opens up on battle with depression</a>

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<h2>Here's all you need to know about ATK Mohun Bagan vs SC East Bengal, Kolkata Derby in ISL:</h2>

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{d3e3ed04-9827-45e5-a508-b07d31aff4b7}{229}" paraid="1109475081" >When is ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal, Kolkata Derby in the Indian Super League (ISL)?&nbsp;&nbsp;</h2>

ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal, Kolkata Derby will be played on Friday, February 19.&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{d3e3ed04-9827-45e5-a508-b07d31aff4b7}{241}" paraid="406146461" >When will the Kolkata Derby between ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal start in the Indian Super League (ISL)?&nbsp;</h2>

ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal, Kolkata Derby will start at 7:30 PM IST.&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{d3e3ed04-9827-45e5-a508-b07d31aff4b7}{253}" paraid="39050685" >Which stadium will host the Kolkata Derby between&nbsp;ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal in the Indian Super League being played?&nbsp;</h2>

The&nbsp;Kolkata Derby&nbsp;between ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal will be played at the&nbsp;Fatorda&nbsp;Stadium.&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{e456b033-5f95-490f-89c0-6ca9dca44a88}{10}" paraid="1309118352" >Which channel will&nbsp;telecast&nbsp;ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal, Kolkata Derby&nbsp;in the Indian Super League?&nbsp;</h2>

The match between ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal will broadcast on Star Sports 1 and Star Sports 1 HD.&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{e456b033-5f95-490f-89c0-6ca9dca44a88}{22}" paraid="962979306" >Where can I watch the live streaming match between ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal?&nbsp;</h2>

The live streaming match of ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal will be available on&nbsp;Hotstar&nbsp;and Jio TV.&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{511fc407-0c97-41fc-985f-9d066f329812}{187}" paraid="1655698637" >What are the predicted playing XIs of ATK Mohun Bagan and SC East Bengal?&nbsp;</h2>

Predicted XIs&nbsp;

ATK Mohun Bagan: Arindam Bhattacharya, Subhasish Bose, Sandesh Jhingan, Pritam Kotal, Tiri, Carl McHugh, Lenny Rodrigues, Manvir Singh, David Williams, Marcelinho, Roy Krishna&nbsp;

SC East Bengal: Subrata Paul, Danny Fox, Raju Gaikwad, Sarthak&nbsp;Golui, Narayan Das, Jacques Maghoma, Ankit Mukherjee, Matti Steinmann, Anthony Pilkington, Sourav Das, Bright Enobakhare&nbsp;

ATK Mohun Bagan are set to lock horns with SC East Bengal in what will be the Kolkata Derby clash in the Indian Super League (ISL) on Friday. While ATK Mohun Bagan are sitting atop the ISL points table, arch-rivals SC East Bengal lie at the ninth spot.

ATK Mohun Bagan are set to lock horns with SC East Bengal in what will be the Kolkata Derby clash in the Indian Super League (ISL) on Friday. While ATK Mohun Bagan are sitting atop the ISL points table, arch-rivals SC East Bengal lie at the ninth spot. While both ATK Mohun Bagan and SC East Bengal have played courageous football in the ISL season so far, both the team have had contrasting results which reflects firmly in the ISL points table. SC East Bengal will be eyeing to take revenge for their defeat the last time they faced ATK Mohun Bagan in November 2020. With Kolkata Derby one of the biggest spectacles in not only Indian football but also world football, fans can't miss the action. ALSO READ: 'Felt like the loneliest guy': Virat Kohli opens up on battle with depression 𝐇𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲. 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞. 𝐏𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧. 🔥 It's time for the #KolkataDerby! #ATKMBSCEB #HeroISL #LetsFootball pic.twitter.com/iJBySTPDFO — Indian Super League (@IndSuperLeague) February 19, 2021 × Here's all you need to know about ATK Mohun Bagan vs SC East Bengal, Kolkata Derby in ISL: When is ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal, Kolkata Derby in the Indian Super League (ISL)? ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal, Kolkata Derby will be played on Friday, February 19. When will the Kolkata Derby between ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal start in the Indian Super League (ISL)? ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal, Kolkata Derby will start at 7:30 PM IST. Which stadium will host the Kolkata Derby between ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal in the Indian Super League being played? The Kolkata Derby between ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal will be played at the Fatorda Stadium. Which channel will telecast ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal, Kolkata Derby in the Indian Super League? The match between ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal will broadcast on Star Sports 1 and Star Sports 1 HD. Where can I watch the live streaming match between ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal? The live streaming match of ATK Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal will be available on Hotstar and Jio TV. What are the predicted playing XIs of ATK Mohun Bagan and SC East Bengal? Predicted XIs ATK Mohun Bagan: Arindam Bhattacharya, Subhasish Bose, Sandesh Jhingan, Pritam Kotal, Tiri, Carl McHugh, Lenny Rodrigues, Manvir Singh, David Williams, Marcelinho, Roy Krishna SC East Bengal: Subrata Paul, Danny Fox, Raju Gaikwad, Sarthak Golui, Narayan Das, Jacques Maghoma, Ankit Mukherjee, Matti Steinmann, Anthony Pilkington, Sourav Das, Bright Enobakhare

ATK Mohun Bagan vs SC East Bengal, Live Streaming, ISL: When and where to watch ATKMB vs SCEB, Kolkata Derby?

Daniil Medvedev on Friday defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-2, 7-5 to book a spot in the final of the Australian Open 2021, where the 25-year-old will face world number one Novak Djokovic. Medvedev has been in terrific form and capped it off with his 20th consecutive match, and 11th against top 10 player, as he defeated Tsitsipas. The final of the Australian Open 2021 will be Medvedev's second Grand Slam final with his maiden summit appearance coming at the 2019 US Open.

Medvedev, fourth-seeded, continued to hammer serves until it was broken in the third set as Greek fans roared back to life following Tsitsipas's 5-4 lead. However, the Russian stunned the crowd with a decisive break in the 11th game before sealing the match as he&nbsp;rushed forward on match point to whack a booming forehand into the corner.

To finally get over the line he must on Sunday beat top seed Djokovic, who has won all eight finals he has played at Melbourne Park.

"It definitely wasn't easy,"&nbsp;said Medvedev, only the third Russian after Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Marat Safin to reach the Australian Open final.

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/points-confidence-prize-money-karatsev-fairy-tale-has-happy-ending-364620" hreflang="en">Points, confidence, prize money: Karatsev fairy-tale has happy ending</a>

"I got a little bit scared and tight (in the third set) because it's a semi-final of a Slam... but happy I was able to turn my game on, especially in some tight moments on my serve."

Medvedev took charge of long rallies as Tsitsipas fought hard for every point. He was broken again after a seven-minute marathon game when the Russian smashed a sizzling forehand down the line for a 2-1 second-set advantage.

For the first time in the match, Medvedev was under pressure but held his nerve with a glorious passing shot giving him another break for 6-5 before he calmly served out to win. &nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/peerless-djokovic-ends-karatsev-dream-to-reach-australian-open-final-364530" hreflang="en">Peerless Djokovic ends Karatsev dream to reach Australian Open final</a>

(With AFP inputs)

Daniil Medvedev on Friday defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-2, 7-5 to book a spot in the final of the Australian Open 2021, where the 25-year-old will face world number one Novak Djokovic.

Daniil Medvedev on Friday defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-2, 7-5 to book a spot in the final of the Australian Open 2021, where the 25-year-old will face world number one Novak Djokovic. Medvedev has been in terrific form and capped it off with his 20th consecutive match, and 11th against top 10 player, as he defeated Tsitsipas. The final of the Australian Open 2021 will be Medvedev's second Grand Slam final with his maiden summit appearance coming at the 2019 US Open. Medvedev, fourth-seeded, continued to hammer serves until it was broken in the third set as Greek fans roared back to life following Tsitsipas's 5-4 lead. However, the Russian stunned the crowd with a decisive break in the 11th game before sealing the match as he rushed forward on match point to whack a booming forehand into the corner. To finally get over the line he must on Sunday beat top seed Djokovic, who has won all eight finals he has played at Melbourne Park. "It definitely wasn't easy," said Medvedev, only the third Russian after Yevgeny Kafelnikov and Marat Safin to reach the Australian Open final. ALSO READ: Points, confidence, prize money: Karatsev fairy-tale has happy ending "I got a little bit scared and tight (in the third set) because it's a semi-final of a Slam... but happy I was able to turn my game on, especially in some tight moments on my serve." Medvedev took charge of long rallies as Tsitsipas fought hard for every point. He was broken again after a seven-minute marathon game when the Russian smashed a sizzling forehand down the line for a 2-1 second-set advantage. For the first time in the match, Medvedev was under pressure but held his nerve with a glorious passing shot giving him another break for 6-5 before he calmly served out to win. ALSO READ: Peerless Djokovic ends Karatsev dream to reach Australian Open final (With AFP inputs)

Daniil Medvedev beats Stefanos Tsitsipas to book Australian Open final spot against Novak Djokovic

Manchester City on Friday denied reports of a massive&nbsp;£430million contract offer to&nbsp;Barcelona talisman&nbsp;Lionel Messi.&nbsp;There have been speculations surrounding Messi's future at the&nbsp;Nou&nbsp;Camp since the summer transfer window of 2020 but the&nbsp;rumours&nbsp;have grown since Barca's crushing 4-1 defeat against Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of the round of 16 encounter.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Messi, 33, asked Barcelona to allow him to leave the club but stayed put after it was revealed that both Messi and Barca will have to battle it out in the court. However, with mediocre performances on the pitch, under new head coach Ronald Koeman,&nbsp;Messi could end his long stay at Barcelona.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Manchester City, among other clubs like Paris Saint-Germain, have been strongly linked to Messi. But the English club has now denied reports of any contact with the Argentine maestro, be it in last summer or&nbsp;now.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/guardiola-inspires-man-city-masterclass-liverpool-face-everton-test-364716" hreflang="en">Guardiola inspires Man City masterclass, Liverpool face Everton test</a>

According to media reports, Man&nbsp;City offered the 33-year-old&nbsp;with&nbsp;a five-year deal worth £600m last summer but have now presented the Barca captain with a new package of £430m.&nbsp;

A Manchester City spokesperson has denied those reports, insisting that there have been no offers made.&nbsp;

Notably, Messi is Barcelona's highest-earner on a mammoth&nbsp;£500,000 a week (£26m a year)&nbsp;but took a wage cut in November with the Spanish giants battling financial crisis.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/one-of-the-best-in-the-world-haaland-stars-as-dortmund-beat-sevilla-364473" hreflang="en">'One of the best in the world' - Haaland stars as Dortmund beat Sevilla</a>

Messi looked frustrated as PSG hammered Barcelona 4-1 in the first leg of their round of 16 UEFA Champions League encounter on Tuesday. Kylian Mbappe scored a hat-trick and showed the glimpse of present and future.&nbsp;

Barcelona also&nbsp;trail&nbsp;in the LaLiga title race with the Spanish giants currently nine points behind league leaders Atletico Madrid. They were earlier defeated 2-0 in the first-leg of Copa del Rey semi-final by Sevilla.&nbsp;

Manchester City on Friday denied reports of a massive £430million contract offer to Barcelona talisman Lionel Messi. There have been speculations surrounding Messi's future at the Nou Camp since the summer transfer window of 2020 but the rumours have grown since Barca's crushing 4-1 defeat against Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of the round of 16 encounter.

Manchester City on Friday denied reports of a massive £430million contract offer to Barcelona talisman Lionel Messi. There have been speculations surrounding Messi's future at the Nou Camp since the summer transfer window of 2020 but the rumours have grown since Barca's crushing 4-1 defeat against Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of the round of 16 encounter. Messi, 33, asked Barcelona to allow him to leave the club but stayed put after it was revealed that both Messi and Barca will have to battle it out in the court. However, with mediocre performances on the pitch, under new head coach Ronald Koeman, Messi could end his long stay at Barcelona. Manchester City, among other clubs like Paris Saint-Germain, have been strongly linked to Messi. But the English club has now denied reports of any contact with the Argentine maestro, be it in last summer or now. ALSO READ: Guardiola inspires Man City masterclass, Liverpool face Everton test According to media reports, Man City offered the 33-year-old with a five-year deal worth £600m last summer but have now presented the Barca captain with a new package of £430m. A Manchester City spokesperson has denied those reports, insisting that there have been no offers made. Notably, Messi is Barcelona's highest-earner on a mammoth £500,000 a week (£26m a year) but took a wage cut in November with the Spanish giants battling financial crisis. ALSO READ: 'One of the best in the world' - Haaland stars as Dortmund beat Sevilla Messi looked frustrated as PSG hammered Barcelona 4-1 in the first leg of their round of 16 UEFA Champions League encounter on Tuesday. Kylian Mbappe scored a hat-trick and showed the glimpse of present and future. Barcelona also trail in the LaLiga title race with the Spanish giants currently nine points behind league leaders Atletico Madrid. They were earlier defeated 2-0 in the first-leg of Copa del Rey semi-final by Sevilla.

Lionel Messi to sign for Manchester City? English club responds

Virat Kohli, who is regarded as one of the best batsmen to have ever played cricket, has opened up about his battle with depression during India's tour of England, where the swashbuckling batsman went through the worst form of his life.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The Indian skipper has revealed how he felt he was the "loneliest&nbsp;guy in the world" as he&nbsp;narrated&nbsp;his struggle during India's tour of England in 2014, where he averaged a mere 13.50 in 10 innings – his lowest in a series with more than three&nbsp;Tests.&nbsp;&nbsp;

When asked&nbsp;by former England first-class cricketer and a renowned commentator Nicholas on his 'Not Just Cricket' podcast, whether he had suffered from depression during India's tour of England in 2014, Kohli answered "Yes, I did".&nbsp;&nbsp;

Kohli had returned with scores of&nbsp;1, 8, 25, 0, 39, 28, 0,7, 6 and 20 in five Tests, averaging 13.50 in his 10 innings.&nbsp;&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/zaheer-khan-mahela-jayawardene-open-up-on-mumbai-indians-signing-arjun-tendulkar-364740" hreflang="en">Zaheer Khan, Mahela Jayawardene open up on Mumbai Indians signing Arjun Tendulkar</a>

"...it's not a great feeling to wake up knowing that you won't be able to score runs and I think all batsmen have felt that at some stage that you are not in control of anything at all," he recalled.&nbsp;

However, showing his class, Kohli roared back to form in India's next immediate assignment – a tour of Australia – where he hammered 692 runs in the Test series.&nbsp;

"You just don't understand how to get over it. That was a phase when I literally couldn't do anything to overturn things...I felt like I was the loneliest guy in the world," he said of the England tour.&nbsp;&nbsp;

"Personally, for me, that was a revelation that you could feel that lonely even though you a part of a big group. I won't say I didn't have people who I could speak to but not having a professional to speak to who could understand what I am going through completely, I think is a huge factor.&nbsp;&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/ipl-auction-2021-complete-players-list-of-all-eight-squads-364617" hreflang="en">IPL Auction 2021: Complete players list of all eight squads</a>

"I think I would like to see it change,” Kohli responded as he said that mental health issues should be an important topic in everyone's life.&nbsp;

"Someone whom you can go to at any stage, have a conversation around and say 'Listen this is what I am feeling, I am finding it hard to even go to sleep, I feel like I don't want to wake up in the morning. I have no confidence in myself, what do I do?'&nbsp;

"Lot of people suffer with that feeling for longer periods of time, it carries on for months, it carries on for a whole cricket season, people are not able to get out of it," Kohli said.&nbsp;

"I strongly feel the need for professional help there to be very honest," he added.&nbsp;

(With PTI inputs)&nbsp;

Virat Kohli, who is regarded as one of the best batsmen to have ever played cricket, has opened up about his battle with depression during India's tour of England, where the swashbuckling batsman went through the worst form of his life.

Virat Kohli, who is regarded as one of the best batsmen to have ever played cricket, has opened up about his battle with depression during India's tour of England, where the swashbuckling batsman went through the worst form of his life. The Indian skipper has revealed how he felt he was the "loneliest guy in the world" as he narrated his struggle during India's tour of England in 2014, where he averaged a mere 13.50 in 10 innings – his lowest in a series with more than three Tests. When asked by former England first-class cricketer and a renowned commentator Nicholas on his 'Not Just Cricket' podcast, whether he had suffered from depression during India's tour of England in 2014, Kohli answered "Yes, I did". Kohli had returned with scores of 1, 8, 25, 0, 39, 28, 0,7, 6 and 20 in five Tests, averaging 13.50 in his 10 innings. ALSO READ: Zaheer Khan, Mahela Jayawardene open up on Mumbai Indians signing Arjun Tendulkar "...it's not a great feeling to wake up knowing that you won't be able to score runs and I think all batsmen have felt that at some stage that you are not in control of anything at all," he recalled. However, showing his class, Kohli roared back to form in India's next immediate assignment – a tour of Australia – where he hammered 692 runs in the Test series. "You just don't understand how to get over it. That was a phase when I literally couldn't do anything to overturn things...I felt like I was the loneliest guy in the world," he said of the England tour. "Personally, for me, that was a revelation that you could feel that lonely even though you a part of a big group. I won't say I didn't have people who I could speak to but not having a professional to speak to who could understand what I am going through completely, I think is a huge factor. ALSO READ: IPL Auction 2021: Complete players list of all eight squads "I think I would like to see it change,” Kohli responded as he said that mental health issues should be an important topic in everyone's life. "Someone whom you can go to at any stage, have a conversation around and say 'Listen this is what I am feeling, I am finding it hard to even go to sleep, I feel like I don't want to wake up in the morning. I have no confidence in myself, what do I do?' "Lot of people suffer with that feeling for longer periods of time, it carries on for months, it carries on for a whole cricket season, people are not able to get out of it," Kohli said. "I strongly feel the need for professional help there to be very honest," he added. (With PTI inputs)

'Felt like the loneliest guy': Virat Kohli opens up on battle with depression

The last name at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction was of young all-rounder Arjun Tendulkar, son of legendary&nbsp;Sachin&nbsp;Tendulkar. As the name of the 21-year-old popped up, Mumbai Indians held their paddle up to sign the youngster for&nbsp;the base price of INR 20 lakh.&nbsp;Mumbai Indians’ Zaheer Khan and Mahela&nbsp;Jayawardene&nbsp;expressed their opinion on the young Arjun Tendulkar after the southpaw was roped in by MI for IPL 2021.&nbsp;

While social media came up with all sorts of theories, many missed the fact that Arjun has been part of the Mumbai Indians set-up for a couple of years as a support bowler and recently made the cut in the Mumbai state team for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where he made two appearances.&nbsp;

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"I would like to thank the coaches, owners and the support staff for showing faith in me." 🙌💙 
 
Arjun Tendulkar shares his thoughts on joining MI 👇<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OneFamily?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OneFamily</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MumbaiIndians?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MumbaiIndians</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPLAuction?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPLAuction</a> <a href="https://t.co/fEbF6Q1yUF">pic.twitter.com/fEbF6Q1yUF</a>
— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) <a href="https://twitter.com/mipaltan/status/1362444650653511686?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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"I have spent lots of time with him in the nets, trying to teach&nbsp;him a few tricks of the trade. He is a&nbsp;hard-working&nbsp;kid and he is keen on learning. That's the exciting part. The added pressure of the name&nbsp;Sachin&nbsp;Tendulkar is always going to be there with him, something he will have to live by. But the environment&nbsp;we have around the team is certainly going to help him become a better cricketer with the likes of Shane Bond and Mahela around. I wish him the best,” Zaheer Khan told a press conference following the IPL 2021 auction.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/from-ms-dhoni-yuvraj-singh-to-chris-morris-most-expensive-buys-in-every-ipl-auctions-364071" hreflang="en">From MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh to Chris Morris: Most expensive buys in every IPL auctions</a>

"We are looking at things under a very simple&nbsp;lense. He is just a youngster coming into the side. But he has to prove himself, has to show the coaching staff and the think tank of the team that he has got the goods to belong there.&nbsp;So&nbsp;what he does at the highest level in&nbsp;his hands,"&nbsp;Zaheer added.&nbsp;

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"It's very important that his process and his progression happens as any other young cricketer." 
 
Akash Ambani shares his thoughts on signing Arjun Tendulkar 🎙️<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OneFamily?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OneFamily</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MumbaiIndians?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MumbaiIndians</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPLAuction?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPLAuction</a> <a href="https://t.co/qUy5lqDcKz">pic.twitter.com/qUy5lqDcKz</a>
— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) <a href="https://twitter.com/mipaltan/status/1362463020408922115?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Whereas former Sri Lanka captain and MI head coach Mahela&nbsp;Jayawardene&nbsp;said that Arjun has great potential and the franchise wanted to invest in that.&nbsp;Jayawardene&nbsp;further said that it would be exciting for&nbsp;Sachin&nbsp;Tendulkar to see his son in the Mumbai Indians jersey.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/ipl-auction-2021-complete-players-list-of-all-eight-squads-364617" hreflang="en">IPL Auction 2021: Complete players list of all eight squads</a>

MI head coach Mahela&nbsp;Jayawardene&nbsp;said that the MI management saw potential in Arjun - who had been bowling to the MI batsmen in the nets and was rewarded for his hard work. Mahela went on to add that it would be a proud moment for&nbsp;Sachin&nbsp;to see Arjun wearing MI jersey.&nbsp;

"He has worked hard for a couple of years now, coming to the nets and bowling to the guys, he especially worked very hard in UAE with us. Not only Arjun, but we also picked Yudhvir as well who was one of our bowlers who came to the nets.&nbsp;Whenever we see guys are working hard, we try and invest in that. It's great to have Arjun and it would exciting times for&nbsp;Sachin&nbsp;as well to see Arjun wearing the Mumbai T-shirt and be a part of the squad," said Mahela.&nbsp;

The last name at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction was of young all-rounder Arjun Tendulkar, son of legendary Sachin Tendulkar. As the name of the 21-year-old popped up, Mumbai Indians held their paddle up to sign the youngster for the base price of INR 20 lakh.

The last name at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction was of young all-rounder Arjun Tendulkar, son of legendary Sachin Tendulkar. As the name of the 21-year-old popped up, Mumbai Indians held their paddle up to sign the youngster for the base price of INR 20 lakh. Mumbai Indians’ Zaheer Khan and Mahela Jayawardene expressed their opinion on the young Arjun Tendulkar after the southpaw was roped in by MI for IPL 2021. While social media came up with all sorts of theories, many missed the fact that Arjun has been part of the Mumbai Indians set-up for a couple of years as a support bowler and recently made the cut in the Mumbai state team for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where he made two appearances. "I would like to thank the coaches, owners and the support staff for showing faith in me." 🙌💙 Arjun Tendulkar shares his thoughts on joining MI 👇#OneFamily #MumbaiIndians #IPLAuction pic.twitter.com/fEbF6Q1yUF — Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) February 18, 2021 × "I have spent lots of time with him in the nets, trying to teach him a few tricks of the trade. He is a hard-working kid and he is keen on learning. That's the exciting part. The added pressure of the name Sachin Tendulkar is always going to be there with him, something he will have to live by. But the environment we have around the team is certainly going to help him become a better cricketer with the likes of Shane Bond and Mahela around. I wish him the best,” Zaheer Khan told a press conference following the IPL 2021 auction. ALSO READ: From MS Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh to Chris Morris: Most expensive buys in every IPL auctions "We are looking at things under a very simple lense. He is just a youngster coming into the side. But he has to prove himself, has to show the coaching staff and the think tank of the team that he has got the goods to belong there. So what he does at the highest level in his hands," Zaheer added. "It's very important that his process and his progression happens as any other young cricketer." Akash Ambani shares his thoughts on signing Arjun Tendulkar 🎙️#OneFamily #MumbaiIndians #IPLAuction pic.twitter.com/qUy5lqDcKz — Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) February 18, 2021 × Whereas former Sri Lanka captain and MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene said that Arjun has great potential and the franchise wanted to invest in that. Jayawardene further said that it would be exciting for Sachin Tendulkar to see his son in the Mumbai Indians jersey. ALSO READ: IPL Auction 2021: Complete players list of all eight squads MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene said that the MI management saw potential in Arjun - who had been bowling to the MI batsmen in the nets and was rewarded for his hard work. Mahela went on to add that it would be a proud moment for Sachin to see Arjun wearing MI jersey. "He has worked hard for a couple of years now, coming to the nets and bowling to the guys, he especially worked very hard in UAE with us. Not only Arjun, but we also picked Yudhvir as well who was one of our bowlers who came to the nets. Whenever we see guys are working hard, we try and invest in that. It's great to have Arjun and it would exciting times for Sachin as well to see Arjun wearing the Mumbai T-shirt and be a part of the squad," said Mahela.

Zaheer Khan, Mahela Jayawardene open up on Mumbai Indians signing Arjun Tendulkar

England's Sam Curran will no longer rejoin the squad in India for the fourth Test as originally planned, the England and Wales Cricket Board said Thursday, citing potential health fears associated with the trip.

Curran was rested following last month's tour of Sri Lanka as part of England's ongoing rotation policy, with a view to bringing the 22-year-old left-arm seamer back for the final Test in India and the subsequent limited-overs section of the visit.&nbsp;

But it has since become apparent that a journey from Britain to Ahmedabad would involve more than one commercial flight, increasing the prospects of Curran's exposure to the coronavirus.

As a result, team management have decided the best course of action is for Curran to join England's white-ball players for their already-organised private charter flight on February 26.

An ECB statement said: "Originally it was planned the Surrey all-rounder would fly to Ahmedabad in time to be available for the fourth Test in the city, starting on 4 March.

"However, in the midst of the ongoing pandemic, making secure arrangements for such a journey proved too great a logistical challenge."

Chris Woakes will leave the squad as planned after the third Test, a vacancy Curran had been expected to fill.

England, however, still have plenty of pace-bowling options in James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Jofra Archer, Ben Stokes and Olly Stone, with Ollie Robinson in reserve.

The four-Test series is level at 1-1 after India's 317-run win at Chennai on Tuesday.

The final two matches will both be played in Ahmedabad, with the third Test scheduled to start on February 24.

England's Sam Curran will no longer rejoin the squad in India for the fourth Test as originally planned, the England and Wales Cricket Board said Thursday, citing potential health fears associated with the trip.

England's Sam Curran will no longer rejoin the squad in India for the fourth Test as originally planned, the England and Wales Cricket Board said Thursday, citing potential health fears associated with the trip. Curran was rested following last month's tour of Sri Lanka as part of England's ongoing rotation policy, with a view to bringing the 22-year-old left-arm seamer back for the final Test in India and the subsequent limited-overs section of the visit. But it has since become apparent that a journey from Britain to Ahmedabad would involve more than one commercial flight, increasing the prospects of Curran's exposure to the coronavirus. As a result, team management have decided the best course of action is for Curran to join England's white-ball players for their already-organised private charter flight on February 26. An ECB statement said: "Originally it was planned the Surrey all-rounder would fly to Ahmedabad in time to be available for the fourth Test in the city, starting on 4 March. "However, in the midst of the ongoing pandemic, making secure arrangements for such a journey proved too great a logistical challenge." Chris Woakes will leave the squad as planned after the third Test, a vacancy Curran had been expected to fill. England, however, still have plenty of pace-bowling options in James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Jofra Archer, Ben Stokes and Olly Stone, with Ollie Robinson in reserve. The four-Test series is level at 1-1 after India's 317-run win at Chennai on Tuesday. The final two matches will both be played in Ahmedabad, with the third Test scheduled to start on February 24.

England's Sam Curran out of fourth Test in India over virus concerns

Bruno Fernandes scored twice as Manchester United romped to a 4-0 victory over Real Sociedad in their Europa League last-32 first leg on Thursday, while Gareth Bale impressed for Tottenham in a 4-1 thrashing of Austrian side Wolfsberg.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's United are all but into the last 16, with four 'away' goals to take into the return game in a week's time, after the first leg was played in Turin due to coronavirus travel restrictions.

"We know 4-0 is a good result but we have to be aware of what they can do," Fernandes told BT Sport. "My target is to score the most goals I can, that is my position. The only target is to win trophies."

The Premier League outfit grabbed the lead in the 27th minute when Fernandes pounced on a defensive mix-up to slot in from Marcus Rashford's clipped pass.

Solskjaer's men doubled their advantage 12 minutes into the second period as Fernandes stroked home his 21st goal of the season.

The effort was initially ruled out for offside before the linesman's decision was overruled by VAR.

United continued to play at a pace Sociedad could not deal with and Rashford finally got his goal in the 65th minute following a blistering counter-attack started by goalkeeper Dean Henderson.

The tie was surely put to bed in the final minute of normal time as Daniel James raced clear and fired into the bottom corner.

<h2>- Bale strikes -</h2>

Bale's agent Jonathan Barnett had said on Wednesday the Wales winger was "towards the end of his career", after Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho had questioned the player's Instagram post suggesting he was in good health despite being unavailable for Spurs' FA Cup defeat at Everton last week.

But Bale notched his first Tottenham assist since April 2013 to tee up Son Heung-min for the opening goal in Budapest against Wolfsberg, before drilling in the second before the half-hour mark.

A wonderful individual strike from Lucas Moura extended Spurs' first-half lead, and although Michael Liendl pulled one back for the Austrians with a second-half penalty, the English club have one foot in the next round after Carlos Vinicius' 88th-minute goal.

"I have a really close relationship with him (Bale)," said Son. "I'm very happy he's getting game time and scored a goal and got an assist. I really enjoy playing with him."

Mourinho has never lost a knockout tie in the competition, which he won with Porto in 2003 and Man United in 2017.

<h2>- Milan, Arsenal held -</h2>

AC Milan, who have not reached the quarter-finals of any European competition since the 2011-12 Champions League, had to settle for a 2-2 draw at Red Star Belgrade.

Milan, who face Inter in a top-of-the-table Serie A derby on Sunday, were pegged back as Milan Pavkov netted a dramatic 93rd-minute leveller for Red Star, who played the closing stages with 10 men.

Arsenal youngster Bukayo Saka continued his excellent season as his sixth goal of the campaign cancelled out Pizzi's penalty in a 1-1 draw against Benfica at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome.

"I feel like I'm improving every game. I'm trying to impress, trying to learn," said Saka. "I just want to keep progressing."

Ligue 1 leaders Lille conceded twice in the final three minutes to lose 2-1 at home to Ajax.&nbsp;

Timothy Weah, son of former Ballon d'Or winner George, put the French team ahead with 18 minutes to play, but Dusan Tadic's penalty and a goal from teenager Brian Brobbey put the Dutch champions on top after the first leg.

"It's good that I scored but I'm not happy because we didn't win," Weah told RMC Sport.

Leicester, sitting third in the Premier League, were held to a goalless draw at Slavia Prague, but there was plenty of excitement elsewhere.

Bayer Leverkusen fought back from three goals down only to lose 4-3 to Young Boys in Bern, while Olympiakos beat PSV Eindhoven 4-2 in Piraeus.

Borna Barisic netted two penalties, including the winning goal in the last minute, as Steven Gerrard's Rangers snatched a thrilling 4-3 victory at Royal Antwerp.

Molde came back from 3-1 down to draw with Hoffenheim, while Edin Dzeko's early goal helped Roma to a 2-0 win at 10-man Braga and Napoli lost 2-0 to Granada.

Bruno Fernandes scored twice as Manchester United romped to a 4-0 victory over Real Sociedad in their Europa League last-32 first leg on Thursday, while Gareth Bale impressed for Tottenham in a 4-1 thrashing of Austrian side Wolfsberg.

Bruno Fernandes scored twice as Manchester United romped to a 4-0 victory over Real Sociedad in their Europa League last-32 first leg on Thursday, while Gareth Bale impressed for Tottenham in a 4-1 thrashing of Austrian side Wolfsberg. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's United are all but into the last 16, with four 'away' goals to take into the return game in a week's time, after the first leg was played in Turin due to coronavirus travel restrictions. "We know 4-0 is a good result but we have to be aware of what they can do," Fernandes told BT Sport. "My target is to score the most goals I can, that is my position. The only target is to win trophies." The Premier League outfit grabbed the lead in the 27th minute when Fernandes pounced on a defensive mix-up to slot in from Marcus Rashford's clipped pass. Solskjaer's men doubled their advantage 12 minutes into the second period as Fernandes stroked home his 21st goal of the season. The effort was initially ruled out for offside before the linesman's decision was overruled by VAR. United continued to play at a pace Sociedad could not deal with and Rashford finally got his goal in the 65th minute following a blistering counter-attack started by goalkeeper Dean Henderson. The tie was surely put to bed in the final minute of normal time as Daniel James raced clear and fired into the bottom corner. - Bale strikes - Bale's agent Jonathan Barnett had said on Wednesday the Wales winger was "towards the end of his career", after Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho had questioned the player's Instagram post suggesting he was in good health despite being unavailable for Spurs' FA Cup defeat at Everton last week. But Bale notched his first Tottenham assist since April 2013 to tee up Son Heung-min for the opening goal in Budapest against Wolfsberg, before drilling in the second before the half-hour mark. A wonderful individual strike from Lucas Moura extended Spurs' first-half lead, and although Michael Liendl pulled one back for the Austrians with a second-half penalty, the English club have one foot in the next round after Carlos Vinicius' 88th-minute goal. "I have a really close relationship with him (Bale)," said Son. "I'm very happy he's getting game time and scored a goal and got an assist. I really enjoy playing with him." Mourinho has never lost a knockout tie in the competition, which he won with Porto in 2003 and Man United in 2017. - Milan, Arsenal held - AC Milan, who have not reached the quarter-finals of any European competition since the 2011-12 Champions League, had to settle for a 2-2 draw at Red Star Belgrade. Milan, who face Inter in a top-of-the-table Serie A derby on Sunday, were pegged back as Milan Pavkov netted a dramatic 93rd-minute leveller for Red Star, who played the closing stages with 10 men. Arsenal youngster Bukayo Saka continued his excellent season as his sixth goal of the campaign cancelled out Pizzi's penalty in a 1-1 draw against Benfica at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. "I feel like I'm improving every game. I'm trying to impress, trying to learn," said Saka. "I just want to keep progressing." Ligue 1 leaders Lille conceded twice in the final three minutes to lose 2-1 at home to Ajax. Timothy Weah, son of former Ballon d'Or winner George, put the French team ahead with 18 minutes to play, but Dusan Tadic's penalty and a goal from teenager Brian Brobbey put the Dutch champions on top after the first leg. "It's good that I scored but I'm not happy because we didn't win," Weah told RMC Sport. Leicester, sitting third in the Premier League, were held to a goalless draw at Slavia Prague, but there was plenty of excitement elsewhere. Bayer Leverkusen fought back from three goals down only to lose 4-3 to Young Boys in Bern, while Olympiakos beat PSV Eindhoven 4-2 in Piraeus. Borna Barisic netted two penalties, including the winning goal in the last minute, as Steven Gerrard's Rangers snatched a thrilling 4-3 victory at Royal Antwerp. Molde came back from 3-1 down to draw with Hoffenheim, while Edin Dzeko's early goal helped Roma to a 2-0 win at 10-man Braga and Napoli lost 2-0 to Granada.

Fernandes double helps Man United thrash Sociedad, Bale stars for Spurs

As Manchester City power towards the Premier League title, the question is not whether Arsenal can stall the leaders, but is this Pep Guardiola's finest achievement in his Etihad reign?

Liverpool were expected to push City all the way but the champions have stumbled so badly that their only concern going into the Merseyside derby against Everton is getting back into the top four.

Chelsea, in action at Southampton, hold that lucrative fourth Champions League berth thanks to an impressive unbeaten start to Thomas Tuchel's reign.

<h2>Guardiola's masterpiece</h2>

When the final whistle blew on Manchester City's 17th successive victory in all competitions, Pep Guardiola was one step closer to the most impressive feat of his five years in the Premier League.&nbsp;

City's composed 3-1 dismissal of Everton at Goodison Park on Wednesday left them 10 points clear of second-placed Manchester United with 14 games left.

They are the first English top-flight side to begin a calendar year with 10 successive league wins.&nbsp;

Guardiola has already won two Premier League titles, three League Cups and the FA Cup with City.&nbsp;

But finding a way to navigate through City's poor start to the season while also dealing with the loss of all-time leading scorer Sergio Aguero for most of the campaign and a significant Covid-19 outbreak in the camp burnishes his legacy.

Guardiola's astute tactical tweaks have been key to the revival, but he knows the dangers of resting on his laurels during a hectic programme.

"Winning 10 straight games at the start of the calendar year is nice but next is Arsenal," he said. "It's better you don't see the schedule, otherwise you get depressed. But at the same time, it's a beautiful challenge."

<h2>Liverpool revenge mission</h2>

As Virgil van Dijk lay in agony on the Goodison Park turf, Liverpool's season began a painful decline that still haunts them five months later.

Van Dijk has not played since suffering knee damage after an ugly challenge from Everton keeper Jordan Pickford during that 2-2 draw in October.

The absence of the imperious Dutch centre-back has been the most obvious reason for Liverpool's unexpected collapse as they lost their long unbeaten home league record and fell out of the title race.

Ravaged by injuries and suffering from burnout after their first title in 30 years, Liverpool and their manager Jurgen Klopp look so overwrought that rumours circulated after last weekend's loss at Leicester that the German was ready to resign.

Klopp brushed that off and Liverpool took a small step on the road to recovery when they won 2-0 against Leipzig in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Tuesday.

Saturday's Merseyside derby at Anfield will pose an intriguing test of sixth-placed Liverpool's mettle.

Will the chance to avenge that season-defining meeting earlier this season re-light their fire or can Everton deal another blow to their rivals' top-four hopes?

After three successive league defeats, a cautious Klopp said: "We are not children anymore, so we don't think everything is fine because we won one game. It is much more important that we played good football again."

<h2>Tuchel impresses</h2>

Thomas Tuchel is enjoying a blissful honeymoon period as Chelsea's manager prepares to take his team to misfiring Southampton looking for a sixth consecutive victory.

Every manager who marries his fortunes to Chelsea's demanding owner Roman Abramovich eventually gets divorce papers, but for now Tuchel is defying his reputation as a combative personality capable of starting a fight in an empty room.

The former Paris Saint-Germain boss, who replaced Frank Lampard in January, has won over his new players by offering a clean slate to some who had been exiled by his predecessor, while impressing others with astute game-plans and rigorous training methods.

The results have been immediate, with Chelsea back up to fourth after going unbeaten in Tuchel's six matches in all competitions.

Fixtures (all times GMT):

Friday

Wolves v Leeds (2000)

Saturday

Southampton v Chelsea (1230), Burnley v West Brom (1500), Liverpool v Everton (1730), Fulham v Sheffield United (2000)

Sunday

West Ham v Tottenham (1200), Aston Villa v Leicester (1400), Arsenal v Man City (1630), &nbsp;Manchester United v Newcastle (1900)

Monday

Brighton v Crystal Palace (2000)

As Manchester City power towards the Premier League title, the question is not whether Arsenal can stall the leaders, but is this Pep Guardiola's finest achievement in his Etihad reign?

As Manchester City power towards the Premier League title, the question is not whether Arsenal can stall the leaders, but is this Pep Guardiola's finest achievement in his Etihad reign? Liverpool were expected to push City all the way but the champions have stumbled so badly that their only concern going into the Merseyside derby against Everton is getting back into the top four. Chelsea, in action at Southampton, hold that lucrative fourth Champions League berth thanks to an impressive unbeaten start to Thomas Tuchel's reign. Guardiola's masterpiece When the final whistle blew on Manchester City's 17th successive victory in all competitions, Pep Guardiola was one step closer to the most impressive feat of his five years in the Premier League. City's composed 3-1 dismissal of Everton at Goodison Park on Wednesday left them 10 points clear of second-placed Manchester United with 14 games left. They are the first English top-flight side to begin a calendar year with 10 successive league wins. Guardiola has already won two Premier League titles, three League Cups and the FA Cup with City. But finding a way to navigate through City's poor start to the season while also dealing with the loss of all-time leading scorer Sergio Aguero for most of the campaign and a significant Covid-19 outbreak in the camp burnishes his legacy. Guardiola's astute tactical tweaks have been key to the revival, but he knows the dangers of resting on his laurels during a hectic programme. "Winning 10 straight games at the start of the calendar year is nice but next is Arsenal," he said. "It's better you don't see the schedule, otherwise you get depressed. But at the same time, it's a beautiful challenge." Liverpool revenge mission As Virgil van Dijk lay in agony on the Goodison Park turf, Liverpool's season began a painful decline that still haunts them five months later. Van Dijk has not played since suffering knee damage after an ugly challenge from Everton keeper Jordan Pickford during that 2-2 draw in October. The absence of the imperious Dutch centre-back has been the most obvious reason for Liverpool's unexpected collapse as they lost their long unbeaten home league record and fell out of the title race. Ravaged by injuries and suffering from burnout after their first title in 30 years, Liverpool and their manager Jurgen Klopp look so overwrought that rumours circulated after last weekend's loss at Leicester that the German was ready to resign. Klopp brushed that off and Liverpool took a small step on the road to recovery when they won 2-0 against Leipzig in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Tuesday. Saturday's Merseyside derby at Anfield will pose an intriguing test of sixth-placed Liverpool's mettle. Will the chance to avenge that season-defining meeting earlier this season re-light their fire or can Everton deal another blow to their rivals' top-four hopes? After three successive league defeats, a cautious Klopp said: "We are not children anymore, so we don't think everything is fine because we won one game. It is much more important that we played good football again." Tuchel impresses Thomas Tuchel is enjoying a blissful honeymoon period as Chelsea's manager prepares to take his team to misfiring Southampton looking for a sixth consecutive victory. Every manager who marries his fortunes to Chelsea's demanding owner Roman Abramovich eventually gets divorce papers, but for now Tuchel is defying his reputation as a combative personality capable of starting a fight in an empty room. The former Paris Saint-Germain boss, who replaced Frank Lampard in January, has won over his new players by offering a clean slate to some who had been exiled by his predecessor, while impressing others with astute game-plans and rigorous training methods. The results have been immediate, with Chelsea back up to fourth after going unbeaten in Tuchel's six matches in all competitions. Fixtures (all times GMT): Friday Wolves v Leeds (2000) Saturday Southampton v Chelsea (1230), Burnley v West Brom (1500), Liverpool v Everton (1730), Fulham v Sheffield United (2000) Sunday West Ham v Tottenham (1200), Aston Villa v Leicester (1400), Arsenal v Man City (1630), Manchester United v Newcastle (1900) Monday Brighton v Crystal Palace (2000)

Guardiola inspires Man City masterclass, Liverpool face Everton test

Second seeded Elise Mertens and Aryna Sabalenka swept past Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova to clinch their maiden Australian Open doubles crown on Friday.

The Belgian-Belarusian combination proved too strong for the third-seeded Czech pair, winning 6-2, 6-3 on Rod Laver Arena after sealing the match on their fourth championship point.&nbsp;

"It's been a tough couple of weeks so thank you to everyone involved. Glad to have fans back," said Mertens.

It was their second Grand Slam success as a team after the 2019 US Open and sixth title overall as they both bounced back from fourth-round defeats in singles at Melbourne Park.

They pair made their debut together at the 2019 Australian Open and have since established themselves as one the tour's top teams, along with two-time Grand Slam winners Krejcikova and Siniakova.

Second seeded Elise Mertens and Aryna Sabalenka swept past Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova to clinch their maiden Australian Open doubles crown on Friday.

Second seeded Elise Mertens and Aryna Sabalenka swept past Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova to clinch their maiden Australian Open doubles crown on Friday. The Belgian-Belarusian combination proved too strong for the third-seeded Czech pair, winning 6-2, 6-3 on Rod Laver Arena after sealing the match on their fourth championship point. "It's been a tough couple of weeks so thank you to everyone involved. Glad to have fans back," said Mertens. It was their second Grand Slam success as a team after the 2019 US Open and sixth title overall as they both bounced back from fourth-round defeats in singles at Melbourne Park. They pair made their debut together at the 2019 Australian Open and have since established themselves as one the tour's top teams, along with two-time Grand Slam winners Krejcikova and Siniakova.

Mertens-Sabalenka win Australian Open women's doubles title

Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev said he now felt he could play anyone after his sensational Australian Open run was finally halted by top-ranked Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals on Thursday.

After knocking out three seeds on his Grand Slam debut, it took eight-time champion Djokovic to stop Karatsev and prevent him from creating more history by reaching the final.

The 27-year-old, who had never before qualified for a Grand Slam, will soar from 114 to 42 in the rankings and collects Au$850,000 ($658,000) in prize money, more than doubling his career earnings.

"That I can play with everyone," he said, when asked what he had learned from the Melbourne tournament.

"To be there and to compete with everyone. I think it'll help me a lot during my career... It gives me more experience, more confidence."

Thursday's defeat ended a tennis fairy-tale, after Karatsev became the first man in the Open era to reach a Grand Slam semi on debut.

He was also the lowest-ranked player to reach a major semi-final since Goran Ivanisevic, then the world number 125, at Wimbledon in 2001.

His charmed campaign included wins over eighth seed Diego Schwartzmann, 20th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime and injury-hit 18th seed Grigor Dimitrov.&nbsp;

Djokovic, however, was a different matter.

"There is a huge level, the difference is really big," said the Vladikavkaz native.

"He doesn't give you free points. On my serve it's like every point you have to take, you have to play the rally.

"On my service games there's always rallies, rallies. He served well all the match. Yeah, you're under pressure."

Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev said he now felt he could play anyone after his sensational Australian Open run was finally halted by top-ranked Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals on Thursday.

Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev said he now felt he could play anyone after his sensational Australian Open run was finally halted by top-ranked Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals on Thursday. After knocking out three seeds on his Grand Slam debut, it took eight-time champion Djokovic to stop Karatsev and prevent him from creating more history by reaching the final. The 27-year-old, who had never before qualified for a Grand Slam, will soar from 114 to 42 in the rankings and collects Au$850,000 ($658,000) in prize money, more than doubling his career earnings. "That I can play with everyone," he said, when asked what he had learned from the Melbourne tournament. "To be there and to compete with everyone. I think it'll help me a lot during my career... It gives me more experience, more confidence." Thursday's defeat ended a tennis fairy-tale, after Karatsev became the first man in the Open era to reach a Grand Slam semi on debut. He was also the lowest-ranked player to reach a major semi-final since Goran Ivanisevic, then the world number 125, at Wimbledon in 2001. His charmed campaign included wins over eighth seed Diego Schwartzmann, 20th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime and injury-hit 18th seed Grigor Dimitrov. Djokovic, however, was a different matter. "There is a huge level, the difference is really big," said the Vladikavkaz native. "He doesn't give you free points. On my serve it's like every point you have to take, you have to play the rally. "On my service games there's always rallies, rallies. He served well all the match. Yeah, you're under pressure."

Points, confidence, prize money: Karatsev fairy-tale has happy ending

Stefanos Tsitsipas once riled Daniil Medvedev by calling him "boring", but he now considers the in-form Russian "smart" ahead of their Australian Open semi-final on Friday.

The pair two men first met on court at Miami in 2018 and have played six times, with Medvedev leading their series with five wins.

But the popular Greek Tsitsipas, who came back from two sets down to shock 20-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals, won their last encounter at the ATP Tour Finals in 2019.

Defending champion and world number one Novak Djokovic or Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev awaits whoever wins the night match in Sunday's decider.

A war of words erupted between Tsitsipas and Medvedev after their 2019 clash in Shanghai, when the Greek lashed out at the Russian's "boring" style of play, with his big serve and relentless baseline rallies.

Their frosty relationship has persisted, but Tsitsipas no longer considers him dull, with the 24-year-old on a 19-match win streak dating back to November.

"Medvedev is going to be a difficult task. He's in very good shape, playing good tennis, playing accurate, playing simple," said Tsitsipas.

"Might have said in the past that he plays boring, but I don't really think he plays boring.&nbsp;

"He just plays extremely smart and outplays you. He's somebody I really need to be careful with and just take my chances and press. That would be very important."

<h2>- 'Amazing player' -</h2>

The 22-year-old Tsitsipas was two sets down and seemed to be heading for defeat against Nadal before launching an astonishing comeback to go through 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4, 7-5 in four hours and five minutes.&nbsp;

It was just the second time Nadal had lost when two sets up in a Grand Slam and only the third time in his entire long career.

"Stefanos is an amazing player, big serve, great volley," said Medvedev, who beat fellow Russian Andrey Rublev over three sets in his quarter-final.&nbsp;

"Tough to play. I think he's improving physically because maybe two years ago could say, yeah, out of five sets it's maybe not bad to play him. I don't think it's the case right now."

Despite the gruelling clash with Nadal and less time to prepare than Medvedev, Tsitsipas -- who had benefited from a fourth-round walkover against Matteo Berrettini -- insisted he didn't feel "completely exhausted".

"I got the opportunity to play longer, feel the court, understand the environment that I'm in. So that could probably be seen as something positive," he said.

"I think with experience I have realised how to preserve my energy and when I really have to put in the hard work in the match."

Both men head into the semi-final bidding for a maiden Grand Slam title.

Tsitsipas has never gone beyond a semi-final before, falling to Nadal in the last four at the 2019 Australian Open and to Djokovic at Roland Garros last year.

He has his sights set on becoming the youngest Grand Slam champion since Djokovic won the title at Melbourne Park in 2008 and the first Greek, man or woman, to lift a major trophy.

Medvedev will be playing his first semi in Melbourne as he continues to knock on the door of Grand Slam success, having reached the 2019 US Open final, where he was pipped in five sets by Nadal, and the last four in New York in 2020.

Stefanos Tsitsipas once riled Daniil Medvedev by calling him "boring", but he now considers the in-form Russian "smart" ahead of their Australian Open semi-final on Friday.

Stefanos Tsitsipas once riled Daniil Medvedev by calling him "boring", but he now considers the in-form Russian "smart" ahead of their Australian Open semi-final on Friday. The pair two men first met on court at Miami in 2018 and have played six times, with Medvedev leading their series with five wins. But the popular Greek Tsitsipas, who came back from two sets down to shock 20-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals, won their last encounter at the ATP Tour Finals in 2019. Defending champion and world number one Novak Djokovic or Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev awaits whoever wins the night match in Sunday's decider. A war of words erupted between Tsitsipas and Medvedev after their 2019 clash in Shanghai, when the Greek lashed out at the Russian's "boring" style of play, with his big serve and relentless baseline rallies. Their frosty relationship has persisted, but Tsitsipas no longer considers him dull, with the 24-year-old on a 19-match win streak dating back to November. "Medvedev is going to be a difficult task. He's in very good shape, playing good tennis, playing accurate, playing simple," said Tsitsipas. "Might have said in the past that he plays boring, but I don't really think he plays boring. "He just plays extremely smart and outplays you. He's somebody I really need to be careful with and just take my chances and press. That would be very important." - 'Amazing player' - The 22-year-old Tsitsipas was two sets down and seemed to be heading for defeat against Nadal before launching an astonishing comeback to go through 3-6, 2-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4, 7-5 in four hours and five minutes. It was just the second time Nadal had lost when two sets up in a Grand Slam and only the third time in his entire long career. "Stefanos is an amazing player, big serve, great volley," said Medvedev, who beat fellow Russian Andrey Rublev over three sets in his quarter-final. "Tough to play. I think he's improving physically because maybe two years ago could say, yeah, out of five sets it's maybe not bad to play him. I don't think it's the case right now." Despite the gruelling clash with Nadal and less time to prepare than Medvedev, Tsitsipas -- who had benefited from a fourth-round walkover against Matteo Berrettini -- insisted he didn't feel "completely exhausted". "I got the opportunity to play longer, feel the court, understand the environment that I'm in. So that could probably be seen as something positive," he said. "I think with experience I have realised how to preserve my energy and when I really have to put in the hard work in the match." Both men head into the semi-final bidding for a maiden Grand Slam title. Tsitsipas has never gone beyond a semi-final before, falling to Nadal in the last four at the 2019 Australian Open and to Djokovic at Roland Garros last year. He has his sights set on becoming the youngest Grand Slam champion since Djokovic won the title at Melbourne Park in 2008 and the first Greek, man or woman, to lift a major trophy. Medvedev will be playing his first semi in Melbourne as he continues to knock on the door of Grand Slam success, having reached the 2019 US Open final, where he was pipped in five sets by Nadal, and the last four in New York in 2020.

Tsitsipas says in-form Medvedev no longer 'boring'

As many as 130 players, out of 298,&nbsp;went under the hammer&nbsp;in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction, which was held in Chennai on Thursday. While South African all-rounder Chris Morris shattered the record of being the most expensive player in an IPL auction, the likes of&nbsp;Jhye&nbsp;Richardson,&nbsp;Glenn Maxwell, Kyle Jamieson&nbsp;Krishnappa&nbsp;Gowtham&nbsp;lit the stage up as franchises got involved in intense bidding wars in a bid to bolster their&nbsp;squads ahead of IPL 2021.&nbsp;&nbsp;

After the end of mini-auction for IPL 2021, let us take a look at the&nbsp;full&nbsp;list of&nbsp;sold and unsold players:&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/ipl-auction-2021-complete-players-list-of-all-eight-squads-364617" hreflang="en">IPL Auction 2021: Franchise wise complete players list of all eight squads</a>

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/shahrukh-khan-and-arjun-tendulkar-all-that-turned-ipl-auction-into-a-memefest-364608" hreflang="en">Shahrukh Khan and Arjun Tendulkar: All that turned IPL auction into a memefest</a>

<h2>Here is the full list of players at IPL Auction 2021:</h2>

<ul>
	<li>Karun Nair - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹50 lakh</li>
	<li>Alex Hales - Unsold</li>
	<li>Jason Roy - Unsold</li>
	<li>Steve Smith - Delhi Capitals - ₹2.2 Crore</li>
	<li>Evin Lewis - Unsold</li>
	<li>Aaron Finch - Unsold</li>
	<li>Hanuma Vihari - Unsold</li>
	<li>Glenn Maxwell - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹14.25 crore</li>
	<li>Kedar Jadhav - Sunrisers Hyderabad - ₹2 crore</li>
	<li>Shakib Al Hasan - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹3.2 Crore</li>
	<li>Moeen Ali - Chennai Super Kings - ₹7 crore</li>
	<li>Shivam Dube - Rajasthan Royals - ₹4.4 crore</li>
	<li>Chris Morris - Rajasthan Royals - ₹16.25 crore</li>
	<li>Dawid Malan - Punjab Kings - ₹1.5 crore</li>
	<li>Glenn Phillips - Unsold</li>
	<li>Alex Carey - Unsold</li>
	<li>Sam Billings - Delhi Capitals - ₹2 crore</li>
	<li>Kusal Perera - Unsold</li>
	<li>Adam Milne - Mumbai Indians - ₹3.2 crore</li>
	<li>Mustafizur Rahman - Rajasthan Royals - ₹1 crore</li>
	<li>Jhye Richardson - Punjab Kings - ₹14 crore</li>
	<li>Nathan Coulter-Nile - Mumbai Indians - ₹5 crore</li>
	<li>Sheldon Cotrell - Unsold</li>
	<li>Umesh Yadav - Delhi Capitals - ₹1 crore</li>
	<li>Adil Rashid - Unsold</li>
	<li>Rahul Sharma - Unsold</li>
	<li>Mujeeb Ur Rahman - Sunrisers Hyderabad - ₹1.5 crore</li>
	<li>Harbhajan Singh - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹2 crore</li>
	<li>Ish Sodhi - Unsold</li>
	<li>Piyush Chawla - Mumbai Indians - ₹2.4 crore</li>
	<li>Qais Ahmad - Unsold</li>
	<li>Himanshu Rana - Unsold</li>
	<li>C Hari Nishaanth - Unsold</li>
	<li>Sachin Baby - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Rahul Gahlaut - Unsold</li>
	<li>Rajat Patidar - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Himmat Singh - Unsold</li>
	<li>Vishnu Solanki - Unsold</li>
	<li>Atit Sheth - Unsold</li>
	<li>Ripal Patel - Delhi Capitals - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Shahrukh Khan - Punjab Kings - ₹5.25 crore</li>
	<li>Ayush Badoni - Unsold</li>
	<li>Venkatesh Iyer - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Vivek Singh - Unsold</li>
	<li>K Gowtham - Chennai Super Kings - ₹9.25 crore</li>
	<li>Vishnu Vinod - Delhi Capitals - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Sheldon Jackson - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Kedar Devdhar - Unsold</li>
	<li>Mohammed Azharuddeen - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Avi Barot - Unsold</li>
	<li>Mujtaba Yousuf - Unsold</li>
	<li>&nbsp;Ankit Rajpoot - Unsold</li>
	<li>Lukman Meriwala - Delhi Capitals - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Chetan Sakariya - Rajasthan Royals - ₹1.2 crore</li>
	<li>Kuldeep Sen - Unsold</li>
	<li>Riley Meredith - Punjab Kings - ₹8 crore</li>
	<li>Tushar Deshpande - Unsold</li>
	<li>M Siddharth - Delhi Capitals - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Karanveer Singh - Unsold</li>
	<li>Jagadeesha Suchith - Sunrisers Hyderabad - ₹30 lakh</li>
	<li>KC Cariappa - Rajasthan Royals - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Sandeep Lamichhane - Unsold</li>
	<li>Midhun Sudhesan - Unsold</li>
	<li>Tejas Baroka - Unsold</li>
	<li>Rovman Powell - Unsold</li>
	<li>Shaun Marsh - Unsold</li>
	<li>Corey Anderson - Unsold</li>
	<li>Devon Conway - Unsold</li>
	<li>Darren Bravo - Unsold</li>
	<li>Rassie van der Dussen - Unsold</li>
	<li>Cheteshwar Pujara - Chennai Super Kings - ₹50 lakh</li>
	<li>Martin Guptill - Unsold</li>
	<li>Pawan Negi - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹50 lakh</li>
	<li>Kyle Jamieson - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹15 crore</li>
	<li>Ben Cutting - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹75 lakh</li>
	<li>Tom Curran - Delhi Capitals - ₹5.25 crore</li>
	<li>Gurkeerat Singh - Unsold</li>
	<li>Marnus Labuschagne - Unsold</li>
	<li>Moises Henriques - Punjab Kings - ₹4.2 crore</li>
	<li>Varun Aaron - Unsold</li>
	<li>Oshane Thomas - Unsold</li>
	<li>Mohit Sharma - Unsold</li>
	<li>Billy Stanlake - Unsold</li>
	<li>Mitchell McClenaghan - Unsold</li>
	<li>Jason Behrendorff - Unsold</li>
	<li>Naveen Ul Haq - Unsold</li>
	<li>Karan Sharma - Unsold</li>
	<li>Utkarsh Singh - Punjab Kings - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>KL Shrijith - Unsold</li>
	<li>Jalaj Saxena - Punjab Kings - ₹30 lakh</li>
	<li>Vaibhav Arora - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Ben Dwarshuis - Unsold</li>
	<li>G Periyasamy - Unsold</li>
	<li>Fabian Allen - Punjab Kings - ₹75 lakh</li>
	<li>Daniel Christian - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹4.8 crore</li>
	<li>Liam Livingstone - Rajasthan Royals - ₹75 lakh</li>
	<li>Thisara Perera - Unsold</li>
	<li>Ben McDermott - Unsold</li>
	<li>Matthew Wade - Unsold</li>
	<li>Sean Abbott - Unsold</li>
	<li>Siddhesh Lad - Unsold</li>
	<li>Tejinder Dhillon - Unsold</li>
	<li>Prerak Mankad - Unsold</li>
	<li>Suyash Prabhudessai - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>KS Bharat - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Josh Inglis - Unsold</li>
	<li>M Harisankar Reddy - Chennai Super Kings - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Simarjeet Singh - Unsold</li>
	<li>Kuldip Yadav - Rajasthan Royals - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Scott Kuggeleijn - Unsold</li>
	<li>James Neesham - Mumbai Indians - ₹50 lakh</li>
	<li>Wayne Parnell - Unsold</li>
	<li>Reece Topley - Unsold</li>
	<li>Chris Green - Unsold</li>
	<li>Isuru Udana - Unsold</li>
	<li>George Linde - Unsold</li>
	<li>Chaitanya Bishnoi - Unsold</li>
	<li>Yudhvir Charak - Mumbai Indians - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Ajay Dev Goud - Unsold</li>
	<li>K Bhagath Varma - Chennai Super Kings - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Jack Wildermuth - Unsold</li>
	<li>Harsh Tyagi - Unsold</li>
	<li>Gerald Coetzee - Unsold</li>
	<li>Tim David - Unsold</li>
	<li>Marco Jansen - Mumbai Indians - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Pratyush Singh - Unsold</li>
	<li>Saurabh Kumar - Punjab Kings - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>C Hari Nishanth - Chennai Super Kings - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Akash Singh - Rajasthan Royals - ₹20 lakh</li>
	<li>Arjun Tendulkar - Mumbai Indians - ₹20 lakh</li>
</ul>

As many as 130 players, out of 298, went under the hammer in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction, which was held in Chennai on Thursday. While South African all-rounder Chris Morris shattered the record of being the most expensive player in an IPL auction, the likes of Jhye Richardson, Glenn Maxwell, Kyle Jamieson Krishnappa Gowtham lit the stage up as franchises got involved in intense bidding wars in a bid to bolster their squads ahead of IPL 2021.

As many as 130 players, out of 298, went under the hammer in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction, which was held in Chennai on Thursday. While South African all-rounder Chris Morris shattered the record of being the most expensive player in an IPL auction, the likes of Jhye Richardson, Glenn Maxwell, Kyle Jamieson Krishnappa Gowtham lit the stage up as franchises got involved in intense bidding wars in a bid to bolster their squads ahead of IPL 2021. After the end of mini-auction for IPL 2021, let us take a look at the full list of sold and unsold players: ALSO READ: IPL Auction 2021: Franchise wise complete players list of all eight squads ALSO READ: Shahrukh Khan and Arjun Tendulkar: All that turned IPL auction into a memefest Here is the full list of players at IPL Auction 2021: Karun Nair - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹50 lakh Alex Hales - Unsold Jason Roy - Unsold Steve Smith - Delhi Capitals - ₹2.2 Crore Evin Lewis - Unsold Aaron Finch - Unsold Hanuma Vihari - Unsold Glenn Maxwell - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹14.25 crore Kedar Jadhav - Sunrisers Hyderabad - ₹2 crore Shakib Al Hasan - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹3.2 Crore Moeen Ali - Chennai Super Kings - ₹7 crore Shivam Dube - Rajasthan Royals - ₹4.4 crore Chris Morris - Rajasthan Royals - ₹16.25 crore Dawid Malan - Punjab Kings - ₹1.5 crore Glenn Phillips - Unsold Alex Carey - Unsold Sam Billings - Delhi Capitals - ₹2 crore Kusal Perera - Unsold Adam Milne - Mumbai Indians - ₹3.2 crore Mustafizur Rahman - Rajasthan Royals - ₹1 crore Jhye Richardson - Punjab Kings - ₹14 crore Nathan Coulter-Nile - Mumbai Indians - ₹5 crore Sheldon Cotrell - Unsold Umesh Yadav - Delhi Capitals - ₹1 crore Adil Rashid - Unsold Rahul Sharma - Unsold Mujeeb Ur Rahman - Sunrisers Hyderabad - ₹1.5 crore Harbhajan Singh - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹2 crore Ish Sodhi - Unsold Piyush Chawla - Mumbai Indians - ₹2.4 crore Qais Ahmad - Unsold Himanshu Rana - Unsold C Hari Nishaanth - Unsold Sachin Baby - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹20 lakh Rahul Gahlaut - Unsold Rajat Patidar - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹20 lakh Himmat Singh - Unsold Vishnu Solanki - Unsold Atit Sheth - Unsold Ripal Patel - Delhi Capitals - ₹20 lakh Shahrukh Khan - Punjab Kings - ₹5.25 crore Ayush Badoni - Unsold Venkatesh Iyer - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹20 lakh Vivek Singh - Unsold K Gowtham - Chennai Super Kings - ₹9.25 crore Vishnu Vinod - Delhi Capitals - ₹20 lakh Sheldon Jackson - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹20 lakh Kedar Devdhar - Unsold Mohammed Azharuddeen - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹20 lakh Avi Barot - Unsold Mujtaba Yousuf - Unsold Ankit Rajpoot - Unsold Lukman Meriwala - Delhi Capitals - ₹20 lakh Chetan Sakariya - Rajasthan Royals - ₹1.2 crore Kuldeep Sen - Unsold Riley Meredith - Punjab Kings - ₹8 crore Tushar Deshpande - Unsold M Siddharth - Delhi Capitals - ₹20 lakh Karanveer Singh - Unsold Jagadeesha Suchith - Sunrisers Hyderabad - ₹30 lakh KC Cariappa - Rajasthan Royals - ₹20 lakh Sandeep Lamichhane - Unsold Midhun Sudhesan - Unsold Tejas Baroka - Unsold Rovman Powell - Unsold Shaun Marsh - Unsold Corey Anderson - Unsold Devon Conway - Unsold Darren Bravo - Unsold Rassie van der Dussen - Unsold Cheteshwar Pujara - Chennai Super Kings - ₹50 lakh Martin Guptill - Unsold Pawan Negi - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹50 lakh Kyle Jamieson - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹15 crore Ben Cutting - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹75 lakh Tom Curran - Delhi Capitals - ₹5.25 crore Gurkeerat Singh - Unsold Marnus Labuschagne - Unsold Moises Henriques - Punjab Kings - ₹4.2 crore Varun Aaron - Unsold Oshane Thomas - Unsold Mohit Sharma - Unsold Billy Stanlake - Unsold Mitchell McClenaghan - Unsold Jason Behrendorff - Unsold Naveen Ul Haq - Unsold Karan Sharma - Unsold Utkarsh Singh - Punjab Kings - ₹20 lakh KL Shrijith - Unsold Jalaj Saxena - Punjab Kings - ₹30 lakh Vaibhav Arora - Kolkata Knight Riders - ₹20 lakh Ben Dwarshuis - Unsold G Periyasamy - Unsold Fabian Allen - Punjab Kings - ₹75 lakh Daniel Christian - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹4.8 crore Liam Livingstone - Rajasthan Royals - ₹75 lakh Thisara Perera - Unsold Ben McDermott - Unsold Matthew Wade - Unsold Sean Abbott - Unsold Siddhesh Lad - Unsold Tejinder Dhillon - Unsold Prerak Mankad - Unsold Suyash Prabhudessai - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹20 lakh KS Bharat - Royal Challengers Bangalore - ₹20 lakh Josh Inglis - Unsold M Harisankar Reddy - Chennai Super Kings - ₹20 lakh Simarjeet Singh - Unsold Kuldip Yadav - Rajasthan Royals - ₹20 lakh Scott Kuggeleijn - Unsold James Neesham - Mumbai Indians - ₹50 lakh Wayne Parnell - Unsold Reece Topley - Unsold Chris Green - Unsold Isuru Udana - Unsold George Linde - Unsold Chaitanya Bishnoi - Unsold Yudhvir Charak - Mumbai Indians - ₹20 lakh Ajay Dev Goud - Unsold K Bhagath Varma - Chennai Super Kings - ₹20 lakh Jack Wildermuth - Unsold Harsh Tyagi - Unsold Gerald Coetzee - Unsold Tim David - Unsold Marco Jansen - Mumbai Indians - ₹20 lakh Pratyush Singh - Unsold Saurabh Kumar - Punjab Kings - ₹20 lakh C Hari Nishanth - Chennai Super Kings - ₹20 lakh Akash Singh - Rajasthan Royals - ₹20 lakh Arjun Tendulkar - Mumbai Indians - ₹20 lakh

IPL 2021 Auction: Complete list of sold and unsold players

In what could be described as an exhilarating day, the auction for Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 was held in Chennai on Thursday as all eight franchises bought players in a bid to strengthen their&nbsp;respective&nbsp;teams for the upcoming IPL 2021.&nbsp;

While records were shattered on some of the biggest names in the cricketing world, some of the&nbsp;lesser-known&nbsp;names&nbsp;saw their lives changed after being bought by franchises in IPL 2021 auction.&nbsp;The likes of Chris Morris, the most expensive signing in IPL history, Kyle Jamieson,&nbsp;Jhye&nbsp;Richardson were roped in for hefty price while all-rounder Krishnappa Gowtham became the most expensive uncapped player. The likes of Shahrukh Khan, Mohammed&nbsp;Azharuddeen, Jalaj Saxena, Sheldon Jackson among others were rewarded for their great performances during the IPL 2021 auction.&nbsp;&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{4bf913da-3def-4620-8b55-f2520e6a1b44}{190}" paraid="2059793526" >Here's the complete updated squad list of all eight IPL 2021 teams:&nbsp;</h2>

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/shahrukh-khan-and-arjun-tendulkar-all-that-turned-ipl-auction-into-a-memefest-364608" hreflang="en">Shahrukh Khan and Arjun Tendulkar: All that turned IPL auction into a memefest</a>

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/ipl-2021-auction-complete-list-of-sold-and-unsold-players-364604" hreflang="en">IPL 2021 Auction: Complete list of sold and unsold players</a>

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{ef5b2bca-660d-4bbc-9114-a724c63befb0}{20}" paraid="239540240" >CHENNAI SUPER KINGS&nbsp;</h2>

Faf&nbsp;du Plessis, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, N. Jagadeesan (wk), Robin Uthappa, MS Dhoni (c&amp;wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran, Dwayne Bravo, Karn Sharma, R. Sai Kishore, Mitchell Santner, Imran Tahir, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Lungi Ngidi, Josh&nbsp;Hazlewood, KM Asif, Moeen Ali, K Gowtham, Cheteshwar Pujara, M Harisankar Reddy, K. Bhagath Varma, C Hari Nishanth&nbsp;

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New entrants into the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SuperFam?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SuperFam</a>! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WhistlePodu?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WhistlePodu</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Yellove?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Yellove</a> 🦁💛 <a href="https://t.co/sSLqD0jESp">pic.twitter.com/sSLqD0jESp</a>
— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) <a href="https://twitter.com/ChennaiIPL/status/1362426543973130241?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<h2>MUMBAI INDIANS&nbsp;</h2>

Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Chris Lynn, Saurabh Tiwary,&nbsp;Anmolpreet&nbsp;Singh, Aditya Tare (wk), Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Rahul Chahar, Jayant Yadav, Anukul Roy, Jasprit&nbsp;Bumrah, Trent Boult, Dhawal Kulkarni, Mohsin Khan, Adam Milne, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Piyush Chawla, James Neesham, Yudhvir Charak, Marco Jansen, Arjun Tendulkar&nbsp;

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Total players bought: 7⃣ 
Overseas slots filled: 4⃣ 
Total money spent today: 1⃣1⃣.7⃣0⃣ CR<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OneFamily?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OneFamily</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/MumbaiIndians?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#MumbaiIndians</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPLAuction?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPLAuction</a> <a href="https://t.co/Iu5ylotFOS">pic.twitter.com/Iu5ylotFOS</a>
— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) <a href="https://twitter.com/mipaltan/status/1362420324608868356?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<h2>ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE&nbsp;</h2>

Virat Kohli (c), Devdutt&nbsp;Padikkal, Josh Philippe (wk), AB de Villiers (wk), Pavan Deshpande, Washington Sundar, Daniel&nbsp;Sams,&nbsp;Yuzvendra&nbsp;Chahal, Adam Zampa, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohammed Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Kane Richardson, Harshal Patel, Glenn Maxwell,&nbsp;Sachin&nbsp;Baby, Rajat Patidar, Mohammed&nbsp;Azharuddeen, Kyle Jamieson, Daniel Christian, Suyash Prabhudessai, K.S. Bharat&nbsp;

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And that's that! 
 
Leave us with your best gifs to describe how you're feeling about our <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ClassOf2021?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ClassOf2021</a>, 12th Man Army! 
 
We'll begin...<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PlayBold?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PlayBold</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreChallengers?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreChallengers</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPLAuction?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPLAuction</a> <a href="https://t.co/B1SP7wnRYc">pic.twitter.com/B1SP7wnRYc</a>
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) <a href="https://twitter.com/RCBTweets/status/1362413058115657730?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<h2>DELHI CAPITALS&nbsp;</h2>

Shreyas Iyer (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (wk),&nbsp;Shimron&nbsp;Hetmyer, Marcus&nbsp;Stoinis, Chris&nbsp;Woakes, R Ashwin,&nbsp;Axar&nbsp;Patel, Amit Mishra, Lalit Yadav, Pravin Dubey, Kagiso&nbsp;Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Ishant Sharma, Avesh Khan, Steve Smith, Umesh Yadav, Ripal Patel, Vishnu Vinod, Lukman&nbsp;Meriwala, M Siddarth, Tom Curran, Sam Billings&nbsp;

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Very happy with how things panned out for us <a href="https://twitter.com/DelhiCapitals?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@delhicapitals</a> tonight, rounded out our squad strongly in all areas. Can't wait to get the group together and underway.
— Ricky Ponting AO (@RickyPonting) <a href="https://twitter.com/RickyPonting/status/1362411888945029126?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<h2>SUNRISERS HYDERABAD&nbsp;</h2>

David Warner (c), Kane Williamson, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Manish Pandey,&nbsp;Sreevats&nbsp;Goswami (wk), Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Priyam Garg, Vijay Shankar, Abhishek Sharma, Abdul Samad, Virat Singh, Mitchell Marsh, Jason Holder, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Shahbaz Nadeem, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T. Natarajan, Sandeep Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed, Siddarth Kaul, Basil Thampi, Jagadeesha&nbsp;Suchith, Kedar Jadhav, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman&nbsp;

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<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WelcomeToSRH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WelcomeToSRH</a> Jagadeesha Suchith, <a href="https://twitter.com/JadhavKedar?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JadhavKedar</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/Mujeeb_R88?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Mujeeb_R88</a>! 🧡<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPLAuction?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPLAuction</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OrangeArmy?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OrangeArmy</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPL2021?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPL2021</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SRH?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SRH</a> <a href="https://t.co/jqE8evn072">pic.twitter.com/jqE8evn072</a>
— SunRisers Hyderabad (@SunRisers) <a href="https://twitter.com/SunRisers/status/1362417793593794565?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<h2>PUNJAB KINGS&nbsp;</h2>

KL Rahul (c&amp;wk), Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Mandeep Singh,&nbsp;Prabsimran&nbsp;Singh, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda, Murugan Ashwin, Ravi Bishnoi, Harpreet Brar, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ishan Porel, Darshan&nbsp;Nalkande, Chris Jordan, Dawid Malan,&nbsp;Jhye&nbsp;Richardson, Shahrukh Khan, Riley Meredith, Moises Henriques, Jalaj Saxena, Utkarsh Singh, Fabian&nbsp;Allen,&nbsp;Saurabh Kumar&nbsp;

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5 ✈️ 
4 🇮🇳 
 
A good day at the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPLAuction2021?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPLAuction2021</a> for us! 😁<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/SaddaPunjab?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#SaddaPunjab</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PunjabKings?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PunjabKings</a> <a href="https://t.co/AUQ4ZpBO7B">pic.twitter.com/AUQ4ZpBO7B</a>
— Punjab Kings (@PunjabKingsIPL) <a href="https://twitter.com/PunjabKingsIPL/status/1362431331905376257?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<h2>KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS&nbsp;</h2>

Shubman Gill, Nitish Rana, Tim Seifert (wk), Rahul Tripathi, Rinku Singh, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Eoin Morgan (c), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Varun CV, Kuldeep Yadav, Pat Cummins, Lockie Ferguson, Kamlesh&nbsp;Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi, Sandeep Warrier, Prasidh Krishna, Shakib Al Hasan, Sheldon Jackson, Vaibhav Arora, Karun Nair, Harbhajan Singh, Ben Cutting, Venkatesh Iyer, Pawan Negi

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Welcome to the knighthood <a href="https://twitter.com/harbhajan_singh?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@harbhajan_singh</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/ShelJackson27?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ShelJackson27</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/Cuttsy31?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Cuttsy31</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/Sah75official?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Sah75official</a>, Vaibhav Arora, <a href="https://twitter.com/karun126?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@karun126</a>, Venkatesh Iyer &amp; Pawan Negi. 
 
Looking forward to play together in <a href="https://twitter.com/KKRiders?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KKRiders</a> 💪🏻<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPL2021?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPL2021</a>
— DK (@DineshKarthik) <a href="https://twitter.com/DineshKarthik/status/1362420578334822401?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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<h2>RAJASTHAN ROYALS&nbsp;</h2>

Sanju Samson (c&amp;wk), Jos Buttler (wk), Ben Stokes, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Manan Vohra, Anuj Rawat, Riyan Parag, David Miller, Rahul&nbsp;Tewatia, Mahipal&nbsp;Lomror, Shreyas Gopal, Mayank&nbsp;Markande, Jofra Archer, Andrew Tye, Jaydev Unadkat, Kartik Tyagi, Shivam Dube, Chris Morris,&nbsp;Mustafizur&nbsp;Rahman, Chetan Sakariya, KC Cariappa, Liam Livingstone, Kuldip Yadav, Akash Singh&nbsp;

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Most expensive video you'll see on the internet today..😉 <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HallaBol?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HallaBol</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/RoyalsFamily?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#RoyalsFamily</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPLAuction?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPLAuction</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPLAuction2021?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPLAuction2021</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/Tipo_Morris?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Tipo_Morris</a> <a href="https://t.co/ZG8nMoEfKH">pic.twitter.com/ZG8nMoEfKH</a>
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) <a href="https://twitter.com/rajasthanroyals/status/1362418297493327879?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

In what could be described as an exhilarating day, the auction for Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 was held in Chennai on Thursday as all eight franchises bought players in a bid to strengthen their respective teams for the upcoming IPL 2021.

In what could be described as an exhilarating day, the auction for Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 was held in Chennai on Thursday as all eight franchises bought players in a bid to strengthen their respective teams for the upcoming IPL 2021. While records were shattered on some of the biggest names in the cricketing world, some of the lesser-known names saw their lives changed after being bought by franchises in IPL 2021 auction. The likes of Chris Morris, the most expensive signing in IPL history, Kyle Jamieson, Jhye Richardson were roped in for hefty price while all-rounder Krishnappa Gowtham became the most expensive uncapped player. The likes of Shahrukh Khan, Mohammed Azharuddeen, Jalaj Saxena, Sheldon Jackson among others were rewarded for their great performances during the IPL 2021 auction. Here's the complete updated squad list of all eight IPL 2021 teams: ALSO READ: Shahrukh Khan and Arjun Tendulkar: All that turned IPL auction into a memefest ALSO READ: IPL 2021 Auction: Complete list of sold and unsold players CHENNAI SUPER KINGS Faf du Plessis, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, N. Jagadeesan (wk), Robin Uthappa, MS Dhoni (c&wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran, Dwayne Bravo, Karn Sharma, R. Sai Kishore, Mitchell Santner, Imran Tahir, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Lungi Ngidi, Josh Hazlewood, KM Asif, Moeen Ali, K Gowtham, Cheteshwar Pujara, M Harisankar Reddy, K. Bhagath Varma, C Hari Nishanth New entrants into the #SuperFam! #WhistlePodu #Yellove 🦁💛 pic.twitter.com/sSLqD0jESp — Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) February 18, 2021 × MUMBAI INDIANS Rohit Sharma (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Chris Lynn, Saurabh Tiwary, Anmolpreet Singh, Aditya Tare (wk), Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Rahul Chahar, Jayant Yadav, Anukul Roy, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, Dhawal Kulkarni, Mohsin Khan, Adam Milne, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Piyush Chawla, James Neesham, Yudhvir Charak, Marco Jansen, Arjun Tendulkar Total players bought: 7⃣ Overseas slots filled: 4⃣ Total money spent today: 1⃣1⃣.7⃣0⃣ CR#OneFamily #MumbaiIndians #IPLAuction pic.twitter.com/Iu5ylotFOS — Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) February 18, 2021 × ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE Virat Kohli (c), Devdutt Padikkal, Josh Philippe (wk), AB de Villiers (wk), Pavan Deshpande, Washington Sundar, Daniel Sams, Yuzvendra Chahal, Adam Zampa, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohammed Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Kane Richardson, Harshal Patel, Glenn Maxwell, Sachin Baby, Rajat Patidar, Mohammed Azharuddeen, Kyle Jamieson, Daniel Christian, Suyash Prabhudessai, K.S. Bharat And that's that! Leave us with your best gifs to describe how you're feeling about our #ClassOf2021, 12th Man Army! We'll begin...#PlayBold #WeAreChallengers #IPLAuction pic.twitter.com/B1SP7wnRYc — Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) February 18, 2021 × DELHI CAPITALS Shreyas Iyer (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Marcus Stoinis, Chris Woakes, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Amit Mishra, Lalit Yadav, Pravin Dubey, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Ishant Sharma, Avesh Khan, Steve Smith, Umesh Yadav, Ripal Patel, Vishnu Vinod, Lukman Meriwala, M Siddarth, Tom Curran, Sam Billings Very happy with how things panned out for us @delhicapitals tonight, rounded out our squad strongly in all areas. Can't wait to get the group together and underway. — Ricky Ponting AO (@RickyPonting) February 18, 2021 × SUNRISERS HYDERABAD David Warner (c), Kane Williamson, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Manish Pandey, Sreevats Goswami (wk), Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Priyam Garg, Vijay Shankar, Abhishek Sharma, Abdul Samad, Virat Singh, Mitchell Marsh, Jason Holder, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Shahbaz Nadeem, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T. Natarajan, Sandeep Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed, Siddarth Kaul, Basil Thampi, Jagadeesha Suchith, Kedar Jadhav, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman #WelcomeToSRH Jagadeesha Suchith, @JadhavKedar and @Mujeeb_R88! 🧡#IPLAuction #OrangeArmy #IPL2021 #SRH pic.twitter.com/jqE8evn072 — SunRisers Hyderabad (@SunRisers) February 18, 2021 × PUNJAB KINGS KL Rahul (c&wk), Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Mandeep Singh, Prabsimran Singh, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda, Murugan Ashwin, Ravi Bishnoi, Harpreet Brar, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, Ishan Porel, Darshan Nalkande, Chris Jordan, Dawid Malan, Jhye Richardson, Shahrukh Khan, Riley Meredith, Moises Henriques, Jalaj Saxena, Utkarsh Singh, Fabian Allen, Saurabh Kumar 5 ✈️ 4 🇮🇳 A good day at the #IPLAuction2021 for us! 😁#SaddaPunjab #PunjabKings pic.twitter.com/AUQ4ZpBO7B — Punjab Kings (@PunjabKingsIPL) February 18, 2021 × KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS Shubman Gill, Nitish Rana, Tim Seifert (wk), Rahul Tripathi, Rinku Singh, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Eoin Morgan (c), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Varun CV, Kuldeep Yadav, Pat Cummins, Lockie Ferguson, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi, Sandeep Warrier, Prasidh Krishna, Shakib Al Hasan, Sheldon Jackson, Vaibhav Arora, Karun Nair, Harbhajan Singh, Ben Cutting, Venkatesh Iyer, Pawan Negi Welcome to the knighthood @harbhajan_singh, @ShelJackson27, @Cuttsy31, @Sah75official, Vaibhav Arora, @karun126, Venkatesh Iyer & Pawan Negi. Looking forward to play together in @KKRiders 💪🏻#IPL2021 — DK (@DineshKarthik) February 18, 2021 × RAJASTHAN ROYALS Sanju Samson (c&wk), Jos Buttler (wk), Ben Stokes, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Manan Vohra, Anuj Rawat, Riyan Parag, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Mahipal Lomror, Shreyas Gopal, Mayank Markande, Jofra Archer, Andrew Tye, Jaydev Unadkat, Kartik Tyagi, Shivam Dube, Chris Morris, Mustafizur Rahman, Chetan Sakariya, KC Cariappa, Liam Livingstone, Kuldip Yadav, Akash Singh Most expensive video you'll see on the internet today..😉 #HallaBol | #RoyalsFamily | #IPLAuction | #IPLAuction2021 | @Tipo_Morris pic.twitter.com/ZG8nMoEfKH — Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) February 18, 2021 ×

IPL Auction 2021: Complete players list of all eight squads

IPL 2021 Auction Highlights: The likes of Chris Morris, Jhye Richardson, Krishnappa Gowtham went for whopping amounts. Here's how the IPL 2021 Auction panned out!

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{fa47ec30-0a50-4c9a-802b-8336a1baa830}{26}" paraid="1801703399" >IPL 2021 mini-auction: Highlights</h2>

- Arjun Tendulkar sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 20 lakh

- Akash Singh sold to RR for INR 20 lakh

- Pawan Negi to KKR for INR 50 lakh&nbsp;

- Venkatesh Iyer sold to KKR for INR 20 lakh

- Hanuma Vihari - Unsold

- Jason Beherendorff - Unsold&nbsp;

- Pawan Negi - Unsold

- Ben Cutting sold to KKR for INR 75 lakh

- C Hari Nishaant sold to CSK for INR 20 lakh

- Harbhajan Singh sold to KKR for INR 2 crore!

- Sam Billings sold to Delhi Capitals for INR 2 crore

- Kedar Jadhav sold to Sunrisers Hyderabad for INR 2 crore

- Karun Nair sold to KKR for INR 50 lakh

- Saurabh Kumar sold to Punjab Kings for INR 20 lakh

- Marco Jansen sold to MI for INR 20 lakh

-&nbsp;Tim David - Unsold

- Yudhvir Charak goes to Mumbai Indians for INR 20 lakh

- George Linde - Unsold

- Isuru Udana - Unsold

- Chris Green goes to Kolkata Knight Riders for INR 30 lakh

- Reece Topley - Unsold

- Wayne Parnell - Unsold

- James Neesham sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 50 lakh

- Scott Kuggeleijn - Unsold

- Kuldip Yadav sold to Rajasthan Royals for INR 20 lakh

- Simrajeet Singh - Unsold

- M Harisankar Reddy sold to CSK for INR 20 lakh

- KS Bharat to RCB for INR 20 lakh

- Suyash Prabhudessai sold to RCB for INR 20 lakh

- Prerak Mankad - Unsold

- Tajinder Dhillon - Unsold

- Siddhesh Lad - Unsold

- Matthew Wade - Unsold

- Thisara Perera - Unsold

- Liam Livingstone to Rajasthan Royals for INR 75 lakh

- Dan Christian to RCB for INR 4.80 crore!

- Fabian Allen to Punjab Kings for INR 75 lakh

- G Periyasamy - Unsold

- Ben Dwarshuis - Unsold

- Vaibhav Arora to KKR for INR 20 lakh

- Utkarsh Singh to Punjab Kings for INR 20 lakh

- Jalaj Saxena goes to Punjab Kings for INR 20 lakh

- Naveen ul Haq - Unsold

- Jason Beherendorf - Unsold&nbsp;

- Mitchell McLenaghan - Unsold

- Billy Stanlake - Unsold&nbsp;

- Oshane Thomas - Unsold

- Varun Aaron - Unsold&nbsp;

- Moises Henriques sold to Punjab Kings for INR 4.20 crore

- Marnus Labuschagne - Unsold

- Gurkeerat Singh Mann - Unsold

- Tom Curran goes to Delhi Capitals for INR 5.25 crore

- Ben Cutting - Unsold&nbsp;

- Kyle Jamieson sold to Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 15 crore

-&nbsp;Midhun Sudhesan - Unsold&nbsp;

- Cheteshwar Pujara to Chennai Super Kings for INR 50 lakh

- Rassie van der Dussen - Unsold

- Darren Bravo - Unsold

- Devon Conway - Unsold

- Corey Anderson - Unsold&nbsp;

- Shaun Marsh - Unsold

- Rovman Powell - Unsold

- Tejas Baroka - Unsold

- Midhun Sudhesan - Unsold

- Sandeep Lamichhane - Unsold&nbsp;

-&nbsp;J Suchith moves to Sunrisers Hyderabad&nbsp;for INR 30 lakh

- Karanveer Singh - Unsold

- M Siddharth sold to Delhi Capitals for INR 20 lakh

- Tushar Deshpande - Unsold

- Riley Meredith sold to Punjab Kings for INR 8 crore!

- Kuldeep Sen - Unsold

- Chetan Sakariya sold to Rajasthan Royals for INR 1.20 crore

- Lukman Meriwala goes to Delhi Capitals for INR 20 lakh

- Ankit Rajpoot - Unsold&nbsp;

- Mujtaba Yousuf - Unsold&nbsp;

- Avi Barot - Unsold&nbsp;

- Mohammed Azharuddeen goes to RCB for INR 20 lakh

- Kedar Devdhar - Unsold&nbsp;

- Sheldon Jackson goes to Kolkata Knight Riders for INR 20 lakh

- Vishnu Vinod goes to Delhi Capitals for INR 20 lakh

- Vivek Singh - Unsold

- Krishnappa Gowtham sold Chennai Super Kings for INR 9.25 crore

- Ayush Badoni - Unsold

- Shahrukh Khan sold Punjab Kings for INR 5.25 crore!

- Ripal Patel sold to Delhi Capitals for INR 20 lakh

- Atit Sheth - Unsold

- Vishnu Solanki - Unsold

- Himmat Singh - Unsold

- Rajat Patidar sold for INR 20 lakh to RCB

- Rahul Gahlaut - Unsold

- Sachin Baby sold to RCB for INR 20 lakh!

- C Hari Nishant - Unsold

- Himanshu Rana - Unsold&nbsp;

- Qais Ahmad - Unsold

- Piyush Chawla sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 2.40 crore

- Ish Sodhi - Unsold&nbsp;

- Harbhajan Singh - Unsold&nbsp;

- Mujeeb Ur Rahman - Unsold

- Rahul Sharma - Unsold

- Adil Rashid - Unsold

- Umesh Yadav sold to Delhi Capitals for INR 1 crore!

- Sheldon Cottrell - Unsold

- Nathan Coulter-Nile sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 5 crore

- Jhye Richardson sold to Punjab Kings&nbsp;for INR 14 crore

- Mustafizur Rahman sold to Rajasthan Royals for INR 1 crore!

- Adam Milne sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 3.20 crore

- Kusal Perrera - Unsold

- Sam Billings - Unsold&nbsp;

- Alex Carey - Unsold&nbsp;

- Glenn Phillips - Unsold

-&nbsp;Every team uses their players differently and we expect Maxwell to contribute in all departments on the field: Mike Hesson on buying Glenn Maxwell.

-&nbsp;Moeen is a good buy according to me. He always contributes with both bat and ball and we are happy with the buy: L Balaji on CSK buying Moeen Ali

- David Malan sold to Punjab Kings for INR 1.50 crore

- Chris Morris goes to Rajasthan Royals for INR 16.25 crore. He is now the most expensive IPL player ever!

- Shivam Dube sold to Rajasthan Royals for INR 4.40 crore

- Moeen Ali sold to Chennai Super Kings for INR 7 crore!

- Shakib Al Hasan sold to Kolkata Knight Riders for INR 3.20 crore

- Kedar Jadhav - Unsold

- Glenn Maxwell sold to Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 14.25&nbsp;crore

- Hanuma Vihari - Unsold

- Aaron Finch - Unsold

- Evin Lewis - Unsold

- Steve Smith sold&nbsp;to Delhi Capitals for INR 2.2 crore

- Jason Roy - Unsold

- Alex Hales - Unsold

- Karun Nair - Unsold

- IPL 2021 Auction: Remaining purse, no. of players, available slots and more.

<table border="4" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="336pt">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td colspan="7" height="20" width="448">IPL 2021/ Squad Size/Salary Cap/Available Slots</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="78">Franchise</td>
			<td>No of Players</td>
			<td width="64">No of Overseas Players</td>
			<td width="64">Total&nbsp; money spent (Rs.)</td>
			<td width="64">Salary cap available (Rs.)</td>
			<td>Available Slots</td>
			<td>Overseas Slots</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">CSK</td>
			<td>19</td>
			<td>7</td>
			<td>65.1</td>
			<td>19.9</td>
			<td>6</td>
			<td>1</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">DC</td>
			<td>17</td>
			<td>5</td>
			<td>71.6</td>
			<td>13.4</td>
			<td>8</td>
			<td>3</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">KXIP</td>
			<td>16</td>
			<td>3</td>
			<td>31.8</td>
			<td>53.2</td>
			<td>9</td>
			<td>5</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">KKR</td>
			<td>17</td>
			<td>6</td>
			<td>74.25</td>
			<td>10.75</td>
			<td>8</td>
			<td>2</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">MI</td>
			<td>18</td>
			<td>4</td>
			<td>69.65</td>
			<td>15.35</td>
			<td>7</td>
			<td>4</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">RR</td>
			<td>16</td>
			<td>5</td>
			<td>47.15</td>
			<td>37.85</td>
			<td>9</td>
			<td>3</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">RCB</td>
			<td>14</td>
			<td>5</td>
			<td>49.6</td>
			<td>35.4</td>
			<td>11</td>
			<td>3</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">SRH</td>
			<td>22</td>
			<td>7</td>
			<td>74.25</td>
			<td>10.75</td>
			<td>3</td>
			<td>1</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

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-&nbsp;England players in IPL 2021 Auction: Jason Roy, Alex Hales, Mark Wood, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley, Nayan Doshi, Sam Billings, Ben Duckett, Moeen Ali, Dawid Malan, Tom Curran, David Willey, Lewis Gregory, Liam Livingston, Ravi Bopara, George Garton

- Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting shares his thoughts ahead of IPL 2021 auction:&nbsp;

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Looking forward to the IPL auction tonight with <a href="https://twitter.com/DelhiCapitals?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@delhicapitals</a> and filling out our squad for the season. Hope moneybags <a href="https://twitter.com/Bazmccullum?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@bazmccullum</a> doesn't outbid me again though.
— Ricky Ponting AO (@RickyPonting) <a href="https://twitter.com/RickyPonting/status/1362325150163607555?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 18, 2021</a></blockquote>
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- CSK CEO Kasi Vishwanathan has already confirmed that head coach Stephen Fleming and skipper MS Dhoni will not attend the IPL 2021 mini-auction but the duo will join virtually.

- England pacer Mark Wood has pulled out of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction. Wood is currently involved with the England Test squad for the ongoing Test series against India.

- Check out the list of all 292 players listed for IPL 2021 auction:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/ipl-2021-auction-full-list-of-292-players-set-to-go-under-hammer-364384" hreflang="en">IPL 2021 Auction: Full list of 292 players set to go under hammer</a>

IPL 2021 Auction Highlights: The likes of Chris Morris, Jhye Richardson, Krishnappa Gowtham went for whopping amounts. Here's how the IPL 2021 Auction panned out!

IPL 2021 Auction Highlights: The likes of Chris Morris, Jhye Richardson, Krishnappa Gowtham went for whopping amounts. Here's how the IPL 2021 Auction panned out! IPL 2021 mini-auction: Highlights - Arjun Tendulkar sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 20 lakh - Akash Singh sold to RR for INR 20 lakh - Pawan Negi to KKR for INR 50 lakh - Venkatesh Iyer sold to KKR for INR 20 lakh - Hanuma Vihari - Unsold - Jason Beherendorff - Unsold - Pawan Negi - Unsold - Ben Cutting sold to KKR for INR 75 lakh - C Hari Nishaant sold to CSK for INR 20 lakh - Harbhajan Singh sold to KKR for INR 2 crore! - Sam Billings sold to Delhi Capitals for INR 2 crore - Kedar Jadhav sold to Sunrisers Hyderabad for INR 2 crore - Karun Nair sold to KKR for INR 50 lakh - Saurabh Kumar sold to Punjab Kings for INR 20 lakh - Marco Jansen sold to MI for INR 20 lakh - Tim David - Unsold - Yudhvir Charak goes to Mumbai Indians for INR 20 lakh - George Linde - Unsold - Isuru Udana - Unsold - Chris Green goes to Kolkata Knight Riders for INR 30 lakh - Reece Topley - Unsold - Wayne Parnell - Unsold - James Neesham sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 50 lakh - Scott Kuggeleijn - Unsold - Kuldip Yadav sold to Rajasthan Royals for INR 20 lakh - Simrajeet Singh - Unsold - M Harisankar Reddy sold to CSK for INR 20 lakh - KS Bharat to RCB for INR 20 lakh - Suyash Prabhudessai sold to RCB for INR 20 lakh - Prerak Mankad - Unsold - Tajinder Dhillon - Unsold - Siddhesh Lad - Unsold - Matthew Wade - Unsold - Thisara Perera - Unsold - Liam Livingstone to Rajasthan Royals for INR 75 lakh - Dan Christian to RCB for INR 4.80 crore! - Fabian Allen to Punjab Kings for INR 75 lakh - G Periyasamy - Unsold - Ben Dwarshuis - Unsold - Vaibhav Arora to KKR for INR 20 lakh - Utkarsh Singh to Punjab Kings for INR 20 lakh - Jalaj Saxena goes to Punjab Kings for INR 20 lakh - Naveen ul Haq - Unsold - Jason Beherendorf - Unsold - Mitchell McLenaghan - Unsold - Billy Stanlake - Unsold - Oshane Thomas - Unsold - Varun Aaron - Unsold - Moises Henriques sold to Punjab Kings for INR 4.20 crore - Marnus Labuschagne - Unsold - Gurkeerat Singh Mann - Unsold - Tom Curran goes to Delhi Capitals for INR 5.25 crore - Ben Cutting - Unsold - Kyle Jamieson sold to Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 15 crore - Midhun Sudhesan - Unsold - Cheteshwar Pujara to Chennai Super Kings for INR 50 lakh - Rassie van der Dussen - Unsold - Darren Bravo - Unsold - Devon Conway - Unsold - Corey Anderson - Unsold - Shaun Marsh - Unsold - Rovman Powell - Unsold - Tejas Baroka - Unsold - Midhun Sudhesan - Unsold - Sandeep Lamichhane - Unsold - J Suchith moves to Sunrisers Hyderabad for INR 30 lakh - Karanveer Singh - Unsold - M Siddharth sold to Delhi Capitals for INR 20 lakh - Tushar Deshpande - Unsold - Riley Meredith sold to Punjab Kings for INR 8 crore! - Kuldeep Sen - Unsold - Chetan Sakariya sold to Rajasthan Royals for INR 1.20 crore - Lukman Meriwala goes to Delhi Capitals for INR 20 lakh - Ankit Rajpoot - Unsold - Mujtaba Yousuf - Unsold - Avi Barot - Unsold - Mohammed Azharuddeen goes to RCB for INR 20 lakh - Kedar Devdhar - Unsold - Sheldon Jackson goes to Kolkata Knight Riders for INR 20 lakh - Vishnu Vinod goes to Delhi Capitals for INR 20 lakh - Vivek Singh - Unsold - Krishnappa Gowtham sold Chennai Super Kings for INR 9.25 crore - Ayush Badoni - Unsold - Shahrukh Khan sold Punjab Kings for INR 5.25 crore! - Ripal Patel sold to Delhi Capitals for INR 20 lakh - Atit Sheth - Unsold - Vishnu Solanki - Unsold - Himmat Singh - Unsold - Rajat Patidar sold for INR 20 lakh to RCB - Rahul Gahlaut - Unsold - Sachin Baby sold to RCB for INR 20 lakh! - C Hari Nishant - Unsold - Himanshu Rana - Unsold - Qais Ahmad - Unsold - Piyush Chawla sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 2.40 crore - Ish Sodhi - Unsold - Harbhajan Singh - Unsold - Mujeeb Ur Rahman - Unsold - Rahul Sharma - Unsold - Adil Rashid - Unsold - Umesh Yadav sold to Delhi Capitals for INR 1 crore! - Sheldon Cottrell - Unsold - Nathan Coulter-Nile sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 5 crore - Jhye Richardson sold to Punjab Kings for INR 14 crore - Mustafizur Rahman sold to Rajasthan Royals for INR 1 crore! - Adam Milne sold to Mumbai Indians for INR 3.20 crore - Kusal Perrera - Unsold - Sam Billings - Unsold - Alex Carey - Unsold - Glenn Phillips - Unsold - Every team uses their players differently and we expect Maxwell to contribute in all departments on the field: Mike Hesson on buying Glenn Maxwell. - Moeen is a good buy according to me. He always contributes with both bat and ball and we are happy with the buy: L Balaji on CSK buying Moeen Ali - David Malan sold to Punjab Kings for INR 1.50 crore - Chris Morris goes to Rajasthan Royals for INR 16.25 crore. He is now the most expensive IPL player ever! - Shivam Dube sold to Rajasthan Royals for INR 4.40 crore - Moeen Ali sold to Chennai Super Kings for INR 7 crore! - Shakib Al Hasan sold to Kolkata Knight Riders for INR 3.20 crore - Kedar Jadhav - Unsold - Glenn Maxwell sold to Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 14.25 crore - Hanuma Vihari - Unsold - Aaron Finch - Unsold - Evin Lewis - Unsold - Steve Smith sold to Delhi Capitals for INR 2.2 crore - Jason Roy - Unsold - Alex Hales - Unsold - Karun Nair - Unsold - IPL 2021 Auction: Remaining purse, no. of players, available slots and more. IPL 2021/ Squad Size/Salary Cap/Available Slots Franchise No of Players No of Overseas Players Total money spent (Rs.) Salary cap available (Rs.) Available Slots Overseas Slots CSK 19 7 65.1 19.9 6 1 DC 17 5 71.6 13.4 8 3 KXIP 16 3 31.8 53.2 9 5 KKR 17 6 74.25 10.75 8 2 MI 18 4 69.65 15.35 7 4 RR 16 5 47.15 37.85 9 3 RCB 14 5 49.6 35.4 11 3 SRH 22 7 74.25 10.75 3 1 - England players in IPL 2021 Auction: Jason Roy, Alex Hales, Mark Wood, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley, Nayan Doshi, Sam Billings, Ben Duckett, Moeen Ali, Dawid Malan, Tom Curran, David Willey, Lewis Gregory, Liam Livingston, Ravi Bopara, George Garton - Delhi Capitals head coach Ricky Ponting shares his thoughts ahead of IPL 2021 auction: Looking forward to the IPL auction tonight with @delhicapitals and filling out our squad for the season. Hope moneybags @bazmccullum doesn't outbid me again though. — Ricky Ponting AO (@RickyPonting) February 18, 2021 × - CSK CEO Kasi Vishwanathan has already confirmed that head coach Stephen Fleming and skipper MS Dhoni will not attend the IPL 2021 mini-auction but the duo will join virtually. - England pacer Mark Wood has pulled out of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction. Wood is currently involved with the England Test squad for the ongoing Test series against India. - Check out the list of all 292 players listed for IPL 2021 auction: IPL 2021 Auction: Full list of 292 players set to go under hammer

IPL 2021 Auction, Highlights: From Chris Morris to Glenn Maxwell - all the details from mini-auction

The Indian Premier League (IPL) mini-auction is set to take place on Thursday in Chennai and the franchises will go toe to toe for the all-rounders as they are the hottest property of T20 cricket.&nbsp;

It is that time of the year when 292 cricketers from around the world will go under the hammer at the IPL auction.&nbsp;

Apart from the big names in the fray, there are two domestic uncapped players with famous names are catching people's attention this year.&nbsp;

The young wicket-keeper batsman from Kerala,&nbsp;Mohammed Azharuddeen (base price Rs 20 lakh)&nbsp;scored a scintillating century against Mumbai in the Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He scored 214 runs from just five matches playing for Kerala.

Tamil Nadu's batting allrounder, Masood Shahrukh Khan&nbsp;(base price Rs 20 lakh), lit the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament with his brilliant performance that helped Tamil Nadu lift the title. A clean-hitting batsman, who can also bowl off-spinners. His 19-ball unbeaten 40 took his side to the quarterfinal of the tournament. The proven match-winner is indeed a young talent on which franchises will put their money.&nbsp;

A total of 164 Indian players, 125 overseas players, and 3 players from associate nations will be up for grabs in the mini-auction.

(With inputs from agencies)

The Indian Premier League (IPL) mini-auction is set to take place on Thursday in Chennai and the franchises will go toe to toe for the all-rounders as they are the hottest property of T20 cricket.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) mini-auction is set to take place on Thursday in Chennai and the franchises will go toe to toe for the all-rounders as they are the hottest property of T20 cricket. It is that time of the year when 292 cricketers from around the world will go under the hammer at the IPL auction. Apart from the big names in the fray, there are two domestic uncapped players with famous names are catching people's attention this year. The young wicket-keeper batsman from Kerala, Mohammed Azharuddeen (base price Rs 20 lakh) scored a scintillating century against Mumbai in the Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He scored 214 runs from just five matches playing for Kerala. Tamil Nadu's batting allrounder, Masood Shahrukh Khan (base price Rs 20 lakh), lit the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament with his brilliant performance that helped Tamil Nadu lift the title. A clean-hitting batsman, who can also bowl off-spinners. His 19-ball unbeaten 40 took his side to the quarterfinal of the tournament. The proven match-winner is indeed a young talent on which franchises will put their money. A total of 164 Indian players, 125 overseas players, and 3 players from associate nations will be up for grabs in the mini-auction. (With inputs from agencies)

Azhar and Shahrukh can make it big in IPL auction 2021

World number one Novak Djokovic ended the dream run of Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev in the Australian Open semi-finals Thursday to maintain his bid for a record-extending ninth title.&nbsp;

The 33-year-old Serb, showing no ill-effects from an abdomen injury sustained in the third round, overwhelmed the 114th-ranked Karatsev 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 to reach his 28th Grand Slam final.

"This is the best I've felt in the entire tournament," said Djokovic, who hit 30 winners and 17 aces.

"I could swing through the ball. No pain. The best match so far."

Djokovic, 34, remains on course for his 18th Grand Slam trophy, nipping at the heels of rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, who are on 20.

In his way will be either fourth seed Daniil Medvedev or Nadal's conqueror Stefanos Tsitispas, the fifth seed, a clash Djokovic said he was eagerly anticipating.

"I'm going to take the popcorn and enjoy it," he said. "I absolutely have zero preference.

"I thought Stefanos did incredibly well to hang in there because Rafa was playing amazing," added Djokovic.

"Medvedev is the guy. He is playing at the highest level the last three months."

Djokovic, who hasn't been practising between matches because of his injury, said he hoped to train before the final.

"Probably more likely (to train) on Saturday," he said. "Recovery is priority right now. I'm feeling the ball well and playing well." &nbsp;

<h2>- Butterfly battle -</h2>

Moving sharper than he has since he was injured while playing Taylor Fritz, Djokovic lifted his intensity in his best performance of the tournament.

Karatsev, however, wasn't disgraced after becoming the first man in the Open era to reach a semi-final on his Grand Slam debut, and just the second qualifier to do so at the Australian Open after Bob Giltinan in 1977.&nbsp;&nbsp;

His magical run included wins over eighth seed Diego Schwartzmann, 20th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime and 18th seed Grigor Dimitrov, but came up short against the ultimate test.&nbsp;

A wary Djokovic had predicted Karatsev would come out aggressively and he proved right with the underdog undaunted in a free-wheeling approach.&nbsp;

Aside from being briefly menaced by a butterfly as he prepared to serve, Djokovic wasn't rattled and his defensive mastery suffocated Karatsev in the eighth game.

He subsequently clinched the first set with an ace and then put the foot down to break to love.

Karatsev wouldn't go away, almost wiping away Djokovic's advantage before the eight-time champion held serve in a see-sawing 10th game and celebrated with gusto.

Despite some service struggles, Djokovic continued was not to be denied to record his first straight-sets victory since an opening-round romp against Jeremy Chardy.

Journeyman Karatsev, who spent a chunk of his youth in Israel, Germany and Spain, and had failed on nine previous occasions to qualify for a Grand Slam tournament, is set to rocket to 42 on the ATP rankings.

World number one Novak Djokovic ended the dream run of Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev in the Australian Open semi-finals Thursday to maintain his bid for a record-extending ninth title.

World number one Novak Djokovic ended the dream run of Russian qualifier Aslan Karatsev in the Australian Open semi-finals Thursday to maintain his bid for a record-extending ninth title. The 33-year-old Serb, showing no ill-effects from an abdomen injury sustained in the third round, overwhelmed the 114th-ranked Karatsev 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 to reach his 28th Grand Slam final. "This is the best I've felt in the entire tournament," said Djokovic, who hit 30 winners and 17 aces. "I could swing through the ball. No pain. The best match so far." Djokovic, 34, remains on course for his 18th Grand Slam trophy, nipping at the heels of rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, who are on 20. In his way will be either fourth seed Daniil Medvedev or Nadal's conqueror Stefanos Tsitispas, the fifth seed, a clash Djokovic said he was eagerly anticipating. "I'm going to take the popcorn and enjoy it," he said. "I absolutely have zero preference. "I thought Stefanos did incredibly well to hang in there because Rafa was playing amazing," added Djokovic. "Medvedev is the guy. He is playing at the highest level the last three months." Djokovic, who hasn't been practising between matches because of his injury, said he hoped to train before the final. "Probably more likely (to train) on Saturday," he said. "Recovery is priority right now. I'm feeling the ball well and playing well." - Butterfly battle - Moving sharper than he has since he was injured while playing Taylor Fritz, Djokovic lifted his intensity in his best performance of the tournament. Karatsev, however, wasn't disgraced after becoming the first man in the Open era to reach a semi-final on his Grand Slam debut, and just the second qualifier to do so at the Australian Open after Bob Giltinan in 1977. His magical run included wins over eighth seed Diego Schwartzmann, 20th seed Felix Auger-Aliassime and 18th seed Grigor Dimitrov, but came up short against the ultimate test. A wary Djokovic had predicted Karatsev would come out aggressively and he proved right with the underdog undaunted in a free-wheeling approach. Aside from being briefly menaced by a butterfly as he prepared to serve, Djokovic wasn't rattled and his defensive mastery suffocated Karatsev in the eighth game. He subsequently clinched the first set with an ace and then put the foot down to break to love. Karatsev wouldn't go away, almost wiping away Djokovic's advantage before the eight-time champion held serve in a see-sawing 10th game and celebrated with gusto. Despite some service struggles, Djokovic continued was not to be denied to record his first straight-sets victory since an opening-round romp against Jeremy Chardy. Journeyman Karatsev, who spent a chunk of his youth in Israel, Germany and Spain, and had failed on nine previous occasions to qualify for a Grand Slam tournament, is set to rocket to 42 on the ATP rankings.

Peerless Djokovic ends Karatsev dream to reach Australian Open final

South Africa all-rounder Chris Morris on Thursday became the most expensive player bought for the Indian Premier League when Rajasthan Royals paid $2.25 million for him.

The fee smashed the record $2.2 million paid for Yuvraj Singh by Delhi Daredevils in 2015.

South Africa all-rounder Chris Morris on Thursday became the most expensive player bought for the Indian Premier League when Rajasthan Royals paid $2.25 million for him.

South Africa all-rounder Chris Morris on Thursday became the most expensive player bought for the Indian Premier League when Rajasthan Royals paid $2.25 million for him. The fee smashed the record $2.2 million paid for Yuvraj Singh by Delhi Daredevils in 2015.

South Africa's Morris smashes IPL auction record with $2.25m fee

A total of 292 players are set to go under the hammer at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction, to be held on Thursday (February 18) in Chennai. While all the eight franchises will look to bolster their respective squads, players can expect a good payday.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Among all the eight franchises ahead of IPL 2021 auction, Kings XI Punjab – now Punjab Kings – have the highest purse remaining at a massive INR 53.20 crore, closely followed by Rajasthan Royals, who have INR 37.85 crore&nbsp;at their helm. Fans can expect both Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals to spend heavy and sign some big-name players.&nbsp;

Ahead of the IPL 2021 auction, let us take a look at the remaining purse of all the eight franchises and number of slots they need to fill. Here's all you need to know about IPL 2021 auction.

<table border="4" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="336pt">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td colspan="7" height="20" width="448">IPL 2021/ Squad Size/Salary Cap/Available Slots</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="78">Franchise</td>
			<td>No of Players</td>
			<td width="64">No of Overseas Players</td>
			<td width="64">Total&nbsp; money spent (Rs.)</td>
			<td width="64">Salary cap available (Rs.)</td>
			<td>Available Slots</td>
			<td>Overseas Slots</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">CSK</td>
			<td>19</td>
			<td>7</td>
			<td>65.1</td>
			<td>19.9</td>
			<td>6</td>
			<td>1</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">DC</td>
			<td>17</td>
			<td>5</td>
			<td>71.6</td>
			<td>13.4</td>
			<td>8</td>
			<td>3</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">KXIP</td>
			<td>16</td>
			<td>3</td>
			<td>31.8</td>
			<td>53.2</td>
			<td>9</td>
			<td>5</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">KKR</td>
			<td>17</td>
			<td>6</td>
			<td>74.25</td>
			<td>10.75</td>
			<td>8</td>
			<td>2</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">MI</td>
			<td>18</td>
			<td>4</td>
			<td>69.65</td>
			<td>15.35</td>
			<td>7</td>
			<td>4</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">RR</td>
			<td>16</td>
			<td>5</td>
			<td>47.15</td>
			<td>37.85</td>
			<td>9</td>
			<td>3</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">RCB</td>
			<td>14</td>
			<td>5</td>
			<td>49.6</td>
			<td>35.4</td>
			<td>11</td>
			<td>3</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td height="20">SRH</td>
			<td>22</td>
			<td>7</td>
			<td>74.25</td>
			<td>10.75</td>
			<td>3</td>
			<td>1</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

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📸📸 Snapshots from the 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣1️⃣ VIVO IPL Player Auction Briefing here in Chennai. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IPLAuction?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IPLAuction</a> <a href="https://t.co/U41oDD2bfp">pic.twitter.com/U41oDD2bfp</a>
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<h2>1) Mumbai Indians&nbsp;</h2>

Available slots: 7&nbsp;

Overseas slots: 4&nbsp;

Remaining purse: Rs 15.35 crore&nbsp;

Retained players: Rohit Sharma, Aditya Tare,&nbsp;Anmolpreet&nbsp;Singh, Anukul Roy, Dhawal Kulkarni, Hardik Pandya, Ishan Kishan, Jasprit&nbsp;Bumrah, Jayant Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Quinton de Kock, Rahul Chahar, Suryakumar Yadav, Trent Boult, Chris Lynn, Saurabh Tiwary, Mohsin Khan&nbsp;

Released players: Prince Balwant Rai, Digvijay Deshmukh, Lasith Malinga, Nathan Coulter-Nile, James Pattinson,&nbsp;Sherfane&nbsp;Rutherford, Mitchell&nbsp;McCleneghan&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/from-ms-dhoni-to-yuvraj-singh-costliest-picks-in-every-ipl-auctions-364071" hreflang="en">From MS Dhoni to Yuvraj Singh: Costliest picks in every IPL auctions</a>

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{bf21ac71-a6bc-466e-a162-d41a525b2374}{14}" paraid="675925591" >2) Chennai Super Kings&nbsp;&nbsp;</h2>

Available slots: 6&nbsp;

Overseas slots: 1&nbsp;

Remaining purse: Rs 19.90 crore&nbsp;

Retained players: MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, KM Asif, Deepak Chahar, Dwayne Bravo,&nbsp;Faf&nbsp;du Plessis, Imran Tahir, N Jagadeesan, Karn Sharma, Lungi Ngidi, Mitchell Santner, Ravindra Jadeja, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shardul Thakur, Sam Curran, Josh&nbsp;Hazlewood, R Sai Kishore, Robin Uthappa (traded)&nbsp;

Released players: Kedar Jadhav, Murali Vijay, Harbhajan Singh, Piyush Chawla, Monu Singh, Shane Watson&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/from-malan-to-smith-five-overseas-players-to-lookout-for-in-ipl-2021-auction-363192" hreflang="en">From Malan to Smith: Five overseas players to lookout for in IPL 2021 auction</a>

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{bf21ac71-a6bc-466e-a162-d41a525b2374}{122}" paraid="197945189" >3) Kolkata Knight Riders&nbsp;</h2>

Available slots: 8&nbsp;

Overseas slots: 2&nbsp;

Remaining purse: Rs 10.75 crore&nbsp;

Retained players: Eoin Morgan, Andre Russell, Dinesh Karthik, Kamlesh&nbsp;Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Nitish Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Rinku Singh, Sandeep Warrier, Shivam Mavi, Shubman Gill, Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Rahul Tripathi, Varun Chakravarthy, Tim Seifert&nbsp;

Released players: Chris Green, Harry Gurney, M Siddharth, Nikhil Naik, Siddhesh Lad, Tom Banton&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{bf21ac71-a6bc-466e-a162-d41a525b2374}{230}" paraid="578989930" >4) Royal Challengers Bangalore&nbsp;&nbsp;</h2>

Available slots: 11&nbsp;

Overseas slots: 3&nbsp;

Remaining purse: Rs 35.40 crore&nbsp;

Retained players: Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Devdutt&nbsp;Padikkal, Md. Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Washington Sundar,&nbsp;Yuzvendra&nbsp;Chahal, Joshua Phillipe, Pavan Deshpande, Shahbaz Ahmed, Adam Zampa, Kane Richardson,&nbsp;Daniel&nbsp;Sams (traded), Harshal Patel (traded).

Released players: Chris Morris, Shivam Dube, Aaron Finch, Umesh Yadav, Dale Steyn, Moeen Ali, Parthiv Patel, Pawan Negi,&nbsp;Isuru&nbsp;Udana, Gurkeerat Mann&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{d4fbed22-5c68-4cc1-8b14-93bcb1c73370}{83}" paraid="124434173" >5) Kings XI Punjab&nbsp;&nbsp;</h2>

Available slots: 9&nbsp;

Overseas slots: 5&nbsp;

Remaining purse: Rs 53.20 crore&nbsp;

Retained players: KL Rahul, Arshdeep Singh, Chris Gayle, Darshan&nbsp;Nalkande, Harpreet Brar, Mandeep Singh, Mayank Agarwal, Mohd. Shami, M Ashwin, Nicholas Pooran, Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda, Ishan Porel, Ravi Bishnoi, Chris Jordan,&nbsp;Prabhsimran&nbsp;Singh&nbsp;

Released players: Glenn Maxwell, Sheldon Cottrell, Mujeeb Zadran,&nbsp;Hardus&nbsp;Viljoen, James Neesham, Krishnappa Gowtham, Karun Nair, Jagadeesha&nbsp;Suchith, Tejinder Singh Dhillon&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{d4fbed22-5c68-4cc1-8b14-93bcb1c73370}{191}" paraid="2137865764" >6) Delhi Capitals&nbsp;&nbsp;</h2>

Available slots: 8&nbsp;

Overseas slots: 3&nbsp;

Remaining purse: Rs 13.4 crore&nbsp;

Retained players: Shreyas Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane, Amit Mishra, Avesh Khan,&nbsp;Axar&nbsp;Patel, Ishant Sharma, Kagiso&nbsp;Rabada, Prithvi Shaw, R Ashwin, Rishabh Pant, Shikhar Dhawan,&nbsp;Shimron&nbsp;Hetmyer, Marcus&nbsp;Stoinis, Lalit Yadav, Anrich Nortje, Pravin Dubey, Chris&nbsp;Woakes

Released players: Alex Carey, Keemo Paul, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Lamichhane, Mohit Sharma, Jason Roy&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/ipl-2021-mohammed-kaif-reveals-delhi-capitals-strategy-ahead-of-mini-auction-364354" hreflang="en">IPL 2021: Mohammed Kaif reveals Delhi Capitals' strategy ahead of mini-auction</a>

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{009a2904-5c3a-4741-86a3-9e986d089084}{44}" paraid="951538923" >7) Rajasthan Royals&nbsp;&nbsp;</h2>

Available slots: 9&nbsp;

Overseas slots: 3&nbsp;

Remaining purse: Rs 37.85 crore&nbsp;

Retained players: Sanju Samson, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Mahipal&nbsp;Lomror, Manan Vohra, Mayank&nbsp;Markande, Rahul&nbsp;Tewatia, Riyan Parag, Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Anuj Rawat, Kartik Tyagi, David Miller, Andrew Tye&nbsp;

Released players: Steve Smith, Akash Singh, Anirudha Joshi, Ankit Rajpoot, Oshane Thomas, Shashank Singh, Tom Curran, Varun Aaron&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{009a2904-5c3a-4741-86a3-9e986d089084}{152}" paraid="2123861351" >8) Sunrisers Hyderabad&nbsp;</h2>

Available slots: 3&nbsp;

Overseas slots: 1&nbsp;

Remaining purse: Rs 10.75 crore&nbsp;&nbsp;

Retained players: David Warner, Abhishek Sharma, Basil Thampi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jonny Bairstow, Kane Williamson, Manish Pandey, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Sandeep Sharma, Shahbaz Nadeem,&nbsp;Shreevats&nbsp;Goswami, Siddarth Kaul, Khaleel Ahmed, T Natarajan, Vijay Shankar, Wriddhiman Saha, Virat Singh, Priyam Garg, Mitchell Marsh, Jason Holder, Abdul Samad&nbsp;

Released players: Billy&nbsp;Stanlake, Sandeep&nbsp;Bavanaka, Fabian Allen, Sanjay Yadav, Prithviraj&nbsp;Yarra&nbsp;

A total of 292 players are set to go under the hammer at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction, to be held on Thursday (February 18) in Chennai. While all the eight franchises will look to bolster their respective squads, players can expect a good payday.

A total of 292 players are set to go under the hammer at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction, to be held on Thursday (February 18) in Chennai. While all the eight franchises will look to bolster their respective squads, players can expect a good payday. Among all the eight franchises ahead of IPL 2021 auction, Kings XI Punjab – now Punjab Kings – have the highest purse remaining at a massive INR 53.20 crore, closely followed by Rajasthan Royals, who have INR 37.85 crore at their helm. Fans can expect both Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals to spend heavy and sign some big-name players. Ahead of the IPL 2021 auction, let us take a look at the remaining purse of all the eight franchises and number of slots they need to fill. Here's all you need to know about IPL 2021 auction. IPL 2021/ Squad Size/Salary Cap/Available Slots Franchise No of Players No of Overseas Players Total money spent (Rs.) Salary cap available (Rs.) Available Slots Overseas Slots CSK 19 7 65.1 19.9 6 1 DC 17 5 71.6 13.4 8 3 KXIP 16 3 31.8 53.2 9 5 KKR 17 6 74.25 10.75 8 2 MI 18 4 69.65 15.35 7 4 RR 16 5 47.15 37.85 9 3 RCB 14 5 49.6 35.4 11 3 SRH 22 7 74.25 10.75 3 1 📸📸 Snapshots from the 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣1️⃣ VIVO IPL Player Auction Briefing here in Chennai. #IPLAuction pic.twitter.com/U41oDD2bfp — IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) February 17, 2021 × 1) Mumbai Indians Available slots: 7 Overseas slots: 4 Remaining purse: Rs 15.35 crore Retained players: Rohit Sharma, Aditya Tare, Anmolpreet Singh, Anukul Roy, Dhawal Kulkarni, Hardik Pandya, Ishan Kishan, Jasprit Bumrah, Jayant Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Krunal Pandya, Quinton de Kock, Rahul Chahar, Suryakumar Yadav, Trent Boult, Chris Lynn, Saurabh Tiwary, Mohsin Khan Released players: Prince Balwant Rai, Digvijay Deshmukh, Lasith Malinga, Nathan Coulter-Nile, James Pattinson, Sherfane Rutherford, Mitchell McCleneghan ALSO READ: From MS Dhoni to Yuvraj Singh: Costliest picks in every IPL auctions 2) Chennai Super Kings Available slots: 6 Overseas slots: 1 Remaining purse: Rs 19.90 crore Retained players: MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu, KM Asif, Deepak Chahar, Dwayne Bravo, Faf du Plessis, Imran Tahir, N Jagadeesan, Karn Sharma, Lungi Ngidi, Mitchell Santner, Ravindra Jadeja, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shardul Thakur, Sam Curran, Josh Hazlewood, R Sai Kishore, Robin Uthappa (traded) Released players: Kedar Jadhav, Murali Vijay, Harbhajan Singh, Piyush Chawla, Monu Singh, Shane Watson ALSO READ: From Malan to Smith: Five overseas players to lookout for in IPL 2021 auction 3) Kolkata Knight Riders Available slots: 8 Overseas slots: 2 Remaining purse: Rs 10.75 crore Retained players: Eoin Morgan, Andre Russell, Dinesh Karthik, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Kuldeep Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Nitish Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Rinku Singh, Sandeep Warrier, Shivam Mavi, Shubman Gill, Sunil Narine, Pat Cummins, Rahul Tripathi, Varun Chakravarthy, Tim Seifert Released players: Chris Green, Harry Gurney, M Siddharth, Nikhil Naik, Siddhesh Lad, Tom Banton 4) Royal Challengers Bangalore Available slots: 11 Overseas slots: 3 Remaining purse: Rs 35.40 crore Retained players: Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Devdutt Padikkal, Md. Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Joshua Phillipe, Pavan Deshpande, Shahbaz Ahmed, Adam Zampa, Kane Richardson, Daniel Sams (traded), Harshal Patel (traded). Released players: Chris Morris, Shivam Dube, Aaron Finch, Umesh Yadav, Dale Steyn, Moeen Ali, Parthiv Patel, Pawan Negi, Isuru Udana, Gurkeerat Mann 5) Kings XI Punjab Available slots: 9 Overseas slots: 5 Remaining purse: Rs 53.20 crore Retained players: KL Rahul, Arshdeep Singh, Chris Gayle, Darshan Nalkande, Harpreet Brar, Mandeep Singh, Mayank Agarwal, Mohd. Shami, M Ashwin, Nicholas Pooran, Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda, Ishan Porel, Ravi Bishnoi, Chris Jordan, Prabhsimran Singh Released players: Glenn Maxwell, Sheldon Cottrell, Mujeeb Zadran, Hardus Viljoen, James Neesham, Krishnappa Gowtham, Karun Nair, Jagadeesha Suchith, Tejinder Singh Dhillon 6) Delhi Capitals Available slots: 8 Overseas slots: 3 Remaining purse: Rs 13.4 crore Retained players: Shreyas Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane, Amit Mishra, Avesh Khan, Axar Patel, Ishant Sharma, Kagiso Rabada, Prithvi Shaw, R Ashwin, Rishabh Pant, Shikhar Dhawan, Shimron Hetmyer, Marcus Stoinis, Lalit Yadav, Anrich Nortje, Pravin Dubey, Chris Woakes Released players: Alex Carey, Keemo Paul, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Lamichhane, Mohit Sharma, Jason Roy ALSO READ: IPL 2021: Mohammed Kaif reveals Delhi Capitals' strategy ahead of mini-auction 7) Rajasthan Royals Available slots: 9 Overseas slots: 3 Remaining purse: Rs 37.85 crore Retained players: Sanju Samson, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Mahipal Lomror, Manan Vohra, Mayank Markande, Rahul Tewatia, Riyan Parag, Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Anuj Rawat, Kartik Tyagi, David Miller, Andrew Tye Released players: Steve Smith, Akash Singh, Anirudha Joshi, Ankit Rajpoot, Oshane Thomas, Shashank Singh, Tom Curran, Varun Aaron 8) Sunrisers Hyderabad Available slots: 3 Overseas slots: 1 Remaining purse: Rs 10.75 crore Retained players: David Warner, Abhishek Sharma, Basil Thampi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jonny Bairstow, Kane Williamson, Manish Pandey, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Sandeep Sharma, Shahbaz Nadeem, Shreevats Goswami, Siddarth Kaul, Khaleel Ahmed, T Natarajan, Vijay Shankar, Wriddhiman Saha, Virat Singh, Priyam Garg, Mitchell Marsh, Jason Holder, Abdul Samad Released players: Billy Stanlake, Sandeep Bavanaka, Fabian Allen, Sanjay Yadav, Prithviraj Yarra

IPL 2021 mini-auction: Remaining slots, available balance, retained and released players - All you need to know!

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction is all set to be held on Thursday (February 18)&nbsp;in Chennai. With as many as 292 players set to go under the hammer, franchises are expected to bolster their squad in a bid to boost their chances of winning the coveted IPL trophy.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Among all the eight franchises ahead of IPL 2021 auction,&nbsp;Punjab Kings have the highest purse available at INR 53.20 crore, followed by Rajasthan Royals, who have INR 37.85 crore.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Fans can expect both Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals to spend heavy and sign some big-name players.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/from-ms-dhoni-to-yuvraj-singh-costliest-picks-in-every-ipl-auctions-364071" hreflang="en">From MS Dhoni to Yuvraj Singh: Costliest picks in every IPL auctions</a>

Ahead of the IPL 2021 auction, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly reflected back on the success of IPL 2020, which was held in the UAE amid the COVID-19 pandemic.&nbsp;

"It`s a small auction but I think a lot of teams will have a lot of work to do. It was unbelievable the way it went in the UAE amid all the Covid scare in the months of October and November," Ganguly told Star Sports.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/from-malan-to-smith-five-overseas-players-to-lookout-for-in-ipl-2021-auction-363192" hreflang="en">From Malan to Smith: Five overseas players to lookout for in IPL 2021 auction</a> 
&nbsp; 
"It got amazing ratings, the best in the last 13 years. This year it is going to be big as well. We`ll see if we can get crowds back into the IPL. That`s a decision we will have to take shortly," he said.&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{1677e56f-8abd-4e85-840e-f836052127f6}{36}" paraid="528024278" >When will the IPL 2021 auction take place?&nbsp;</h2>

The auction for IPL 2021 will take place in Chennai on February 18.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/ipl-2021-auction-full-list-of-292-players-set-to-go-under-hammer-364384" hreflang="en">IPL 2021 Auction: Full list of 292 players set to go under hammer</a>

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{686602c0-efcf-4336-bc0d-63fbd7fbbef7}{227}" paraid="1364479027" >How can I watch the IPL 2021 auction?&nbsp;</h2>

The auction for IPL 2021 will be telecast live on the Star Sports Network from 3 pm IST.&nbsp;

<h2 lang="EN-US" paraeid="{5724bd26-0ccb-492b-8249-0f5d4ce8b2d5}{8}" paraid="462547556" >How can I watch live-streaming of&nbsp;IPL 2021 auction live?&nbsp;</h2>

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/ipl-2021-mini-auction-remaining-slots-available-balance-retained-and-released-players-all-you-need-to-know-364374" hreflang="en">IPL 2021 mini-auction: Remaining slots, available balance, retained and released players - All you need to know!</a>

The auction for IPL 2021 can be live-streamed&nbsp;on Hotstar from 3 pm IST.&nbsp;

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction is all set to be held on Thursday (February 18) in Chennai. With as many as 292 players set to go under the hammer, franchises are expected to bolster their squad in a bid to boost their chances of winning the coveted IPL trophy.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 auction is all set to be held on Thursday (February 18) in Chennai. With as many as 292 players set to go under the hammer, franchises are expected to bolster their squad in a bid to boost their chances of winning the coveted IPL trophy. Among all the eight franchises ahead of IPL 2021 auction, Punjab Kings have the highest purse available at INR 53.20 crore, followed by Rajasthan Royals, who have INR 37.85 crore. Fans can expect both Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals to spend heavy and sign some big-name players. ALSO READ: From MS Dhoni to Yuvraj Singh: Costliest picks in every IPL auctions Ahead of the IPL 2021 auction, BCCI president Sourav Ganguly reflected back on the success of IPL 2020, which was held in the UAE amid the COVID-19 pandemic. "It`s a small auction but I think a lot of teams will have a lot of work to do. It was unbelievable the way it went in the UAE amid all the Covid scare in the months of October and November," Ganguly told Star Sports. ALSO READ: From Malan to Smith: Five overseas players to lookout for in IPL 2021 auction "It got amazing ratings, the best in the last 13 years. This year it is going to be big as well. We`ll see if we can get crowds back into the IPL. That`s a decision we will have to take shortly," he said. When will the IPL 2021 auction take place? The auction for IPL 2021 will take place in Chennai on February 18. ALSO READ: IPL 2021 Auction: Full list of 292 players set to go under hammer How can I watch the IPL 2021 auction? The auction for IPL 2021 will be telecast live on the Star Sports Network from 3 pm IST. How can I watch live-streaming of IPL 2021 auction live? ALSO READ: IPL 2021 mini-auction: Remaining slots, available balance, retained and released players - All you need to know! The auction for IPL 2021 can be live-streamed on Hotstar from 3 pm IST.

IPL 2021 Auction, Live streaming: When and where to watch Indian Premier League mini-auction

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 players auction is all set to be held on Thursday (February 18) in Chennai. As many as 292 players will go under the hammer&nbsp;with&nbsp;all eight IPL franchises&nbsp;looking to strengthen their squad ahead of the IPL 2021 season.&nbsp;&nbsp;

While big-name players like Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell,&nbsp;Jhye&nbsp;Richardson, Alex Hales, Moeen Ali among many others are available to be roped in by franchise during IPL 2021 auction, domestic players&nbsp;like Shahrukh Khan, Mohammed&nbsp;Azharuddeen&nbsp;are also expected to have a big day at IPL 2021 auction.&nbsp;&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/ipl-2021-mini-auction-remaining-slots-available-balance-retained-and-released-players-all-you-need-to-know-364374" hreflang="en">IPL 2021 mini-auction: Remaining slots, available balance, retained and released players - All you need to know!</a>

Ahead of the IPL 2021 mini-auction, let us take a look at the list of all 292 players available.&nbsp;

ALSO READ:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/from-ms-dhoni-to-yuvraj-singh-costliest-picks-in-every-ipl-auctions-364071" hreflang="en">From MS Dhoni to Yuvraj Singh: Costliest picks in every IPL auctions</a>

<ul>
	<li>Aaron Finch</li>
	<li>Alex Hales</li>
	<li>Evin Lewis</li>
	<li>Karun Nair</li>
	<li>Jason Roy</li>
	<li>Steve Smith</li>
	<li>Hanuma Vihari</li>
	<li>Shakib Al Hasan</li>
	<li>Moeen Ali</li>
	<li>Shivam Dube</li>
	<li>Kedar Jadhav</li>
	<li>Dawid Malan</li>
	<li>Glenn Maxwell</li>
	<li>Chris Morris</li>
	<li>Sam Billings</li>
	<li>Alex Carey</li>
	<li>Kusal Perera</li>
	<li>Glenn Phillips</li>
	<li>Sheldon Cottrell</li>
	<li>Nathan Coulter‐Nile</li>
	<li>Adam Milne</li>
	<li>Mustafizur Rahman</li>
	<li>Jhye Richardson</li>
	<li>Mark Wood (OPTED OUT)</li>
	<li>Umesh Yadav</li>
	<li>Qais Ahmad</li>
	<li>Piyush Chawla</li>
	<li>Mujeeb Ur Rahman&nbsp;</li>
	<li>Adil Rashid</li>
	<li>Rahul Sharma</li>
	<li>Harbhajan Singh</li>
	<li>Ish Sodhi</li>
	<li>Sachin Baby</li>
	<li>Rahul Gahlaut</li>
	<li>C.Hari Nishaanth</li>
	<li>Rajat Patidar</li>
	<li>Himanshu Rana</li>
	<li>Himmat Singh</li>
	<li>Vishnu Solanki</li>
	<li>Ayush Badoni</li>
	<li>K Gowtham</li>
	<li>Venkatesh Iyer</li>
	<li>Shahrukh Khan</li>
	<li>Ripal Patel</li>
	<li>Atit Sheth</li>
	<li>Vivek Singh</li>
	<li>Mohammed Azharuddeen</li>
	<li>Avi Barot</li>
	<li>Kedar Devdhar</li>
	<li>Sheldon Jackson</li>
	<li>Vishnu Vinod</li>
	<li>Tushar Deshpande</li>
	<li>Riley Meredith</li>
	<li>Lukman Hussain Meriwala</li>
	<li>Ankit Singh Rajpoot</li>
	<li>Chetan Sakariya</li>
	<li>KuldeepSen</li>
	<li>Mujtaba Yousuf</li>
	<li>Tejas Baroka</li>
	<li>K.C Cariappa</li>
	<li>Sandeep Lamichhane</li>
	<li>M Siddharth</li>
	<li>Karanveer Singh</li>
	<li>Jagadeesha Suchith</li>
	<li>Midhun Sudhesan</li>
	<li>Corey Anderson</li>
	<li>Darren Bravo</li>
	<li>Devon Conway</li>
	<li>Martin Guptill</li>
	<li>Shaun Marsh</li>
	<li>Rovman Powell</li>
	<li>Cheteshwar Pujara</li>
	<li>Rassie Van Der Dussen</li>
	<li>Tom Curran</li>
	<li>Ben Cutting</li>
	<li>Moises Henriques</li>
	<li>Kyle Jamieson</li>
	<li>Marnus Labuschagne</li>
	<li>Pawan Negi</li>
	<li>Gurkeerat Singh</li>
	<li>Mitchell McClenaghan</li>
	<li>Varun Aaron</li>
	<li>Jason Behrendorff</li>
	<li>Mohit Sharma</li>
	<li>Billy Stanlake</li>
	<li>Oshane Thomas</li>
	<li>Finn Allen</li>
	<li>Harpreet Bhatia</li>
	<li>Shivam Chauhan</li>
	<li>Naushad Shaikh</li>
	<li>Pratham Singh</li>
	<li>Apoorv Wankhade</li>
	<li>Atharva Ankolekar</li>
	<li>Prayas Barman</li>
	<li>Jalaj Saxena</li>
	<li>Karan Sharma</li>
	<li>Utkarsh Singh</li>
	<li>R Sonu Yadav</li>
	<li>Dhruv Jurel</li>
	<li>Arun Karthick</li>
	<li>Nikhil Naik</li>
	<li>Smit Patel</li>
	<li>K.L Shrijith</li>
	<li>Wesley Agar</li>
	<li>Vaibhav Arora</li>
	<li>Akash Deep</li>
	<li>Ben Dwarshuis</li>
	<li>Ali Khan</li>
	<li>Kulwant Khejroliya</li>
	<li>Arzan Nagwaswalla</li>
	<li>G Periyasamy</li>
	<li>Akash Singh</li>
	<li>Prithviraj Yarra</li>
	<li>Noor Ahmad Lakanwal</li>
	<li>Karthik Meiyappan</li>
	<li>Prince Balwant Rai</li>
	<li>Pardeep Sahu</li>
	<li>Sagar Udeshi</li>
	<li>Kushaal Wadhwani</li>
	<li>Akshay Wakhare</li>
	<li>Fabian Allen</li>
	<li>Daniel Christian</li>
	<li>Colin De Grandhomme</li>
	<li>Liam Livingstone</li>
	<li>Thisara Perera</li>
	<li>Mohammad Shaifuddin</li>
	<li>David Willey</li>
	<li>Matthew Wade</li>
	<li>Ben Duckett</li>
	<li>Sean Abbott</li>
	<li>Matt Henry</li>
	<li>Chemar Holder</li>
	<li>Alzarri Joseph</li>
	<li>Obed Mccoy</li>
	<li>Liam Plunkett</li>
	<li>Tim Southee</li>
	<li>Rajesh Bishnoi</li>
	<li>Abhimanyu Easwaran</li>
	<li>Rohan Kadam</li>
	<li>Amandeep Khare</li>
	<li>Siddhesh Lad</li>
	<li>Mohammed Taha</li>
	<li>Khrievitso Kense</li>
	<li>Prerak Mankad</li>
	<li>Shams Mulani</li>
	<li>Ansh Patel</li>
	<li>Suyash Prabhudessai</li>
	<li>Parth Sahani</li>
	<li>Ankit Sharma</li>
	<li>Dhruv Shorey</li>
	<li>K.S Bharat</li>
	<li>Josh Inglis</li>
	<li>Aryan Juyal</li>
	<li>Sadiq Kirmani</li>
	<li>Rohit Sharma</li>
	<li>Sandeep Kumar Tomar</li>
	<li>Stephen Cheepurupalli</li>
	<li>Aniket Choudhary</li>
	<li>Mukesh Choudhary</li>
	<li>Nathan Ellis</li>
	<li>Sayan Ghosh</li>
	<li>Ronit More</li>
	<li>M Nidheesh</li>
	<li>M Harisankar Reddy</li>
	<li>Simarjeet Singh</li>
	<li>Kuldip Yadav</li>
	<li>Zeeshan Ansari</li>
	<li>Jon Russ Jaggesar</li>
	<li>Kevin Koththigoda</li>
	<li>Tanveer Sangha</li>
	<li>Maheesh Theekshan</li>
	<li>Vijayakanth Viyaskanth</li>
	<li>Lewis Gregory</li>
	<li>Wanindu Hasaranga</li>
	<li>Karim Janat</li>
	<li>Scott Kuggeleijn</li>
	<li>James Neesham</li>
	<li>Wayne Parnell</li>
	<li>Keemo Paul</li>
	<li>Dushmanta Chameera</li>
	<li>Fidel Edwards</li>
	<li>Beuran Hendricks</li>
	<li>Abhimanyu Mithun</li>
	<li>Reece Topley</li>
	<li>Saahil Jain</li>
	<li>Subhranshu Senapati</li>
	<li>Ravi Thakur</li>
	<li>Jake Weatherald</li>
	<li>Shubham Agrawal</li>
	<li>Rajjakuddin Ahmed</li>
	<li>Baba Aparajith</li>
	<li>George Garton</li>
	<li>Chris Green</li>
	<li>Kartik Kakade</li>
	<li>Shoaib Khan</li>
	<li>Dhruv Patel</li>
	<li>Latest Kumar Patel</li>
	<li>Arjun Tendulkar</li>
	<li>Varun Choudhary</li>
	<li>Prathamesh Dake</li>
	<li>Baltej Dhanda</li>
	<li>Brendan Doggett</li>
	<li>Saurabh Dubey</li>
	<li>Fazalhaq Farooqi</li>
	<li>Matt Kelly</li>
	<li>Chama Milind</li>
	<li>Jayden Seales</li>
	<li>Mark Steketee</li>
	<li>Tanveer Ul Haq</li>
	<li>Carlos Brathwaite</li>
	<li>Rishi Dhawan</li>
	<li>Mohammad Mahmud Ullah</li>
	<li>Andile Phehlukwayo</li>
	<li>Sherfane Rutherford</li>
	<li>Dasun Shanaka</li>
	<li>Isuru Udana</li>
	<li>Jacob Duffy</li>
	<li>Daryn Dupavillon</li>
	<li>Shannon Gabriel</li>
	<li>Morne Morkel</li>
	<li>Joel Paris</li>
	<li>Blair Tickner</li>
	<li>Subodh Bhati</li>
	<li>Jay Bista</li>
	<li>Aamir Gani</li>
	<li>Karanveer Kaushal</li>
	<li>Anustup Majumdar</li>
	<li>Dikshanshu Negi</li>
	<li>Kshitiz Sharma</li>
	<li>Shubham Singh</li>
	<li>Shashank Singh</li>
	<li>Milind Tandon</li>
	<li>Ravi Bopara</li>
	<li>George Linde</li>
	<li>Kyle Mayers</li>
	<li>Daryl Mitchell</li>
	<li>Colin Munro</li>
	<li>Dwaine Pretorius</li>
	<li>Romario Shepherd</li>
	<li>Sandeep Bavanaka</li>
	<li>Chaitanya Bishnoi</li>
	<li>Arun Chaprana</li>
	<li>Yudhvir Charak</li>
	<li>Ajay Dev Goud</li>
	<li>Umran Malik</li>
	<li>Ravi Teja Telukupalli</li>
	<li>Tanay Thyagarajan</li>
	<li>N.Tilak Varma</li>
	<li>K.Bhagath Varma</li>
	<li>Stuart Binny</li>
	<li>Hilton Cartwright</li>
	<li>James Faulkner</li>
	<li>Akeal Hosein</li>
	<li>Parvez Rasool</li>
	<li>David Wiese</li>
	<li>Jack Wildermuth</li>
	<li>Arshdeep Brar</li>
	<li>Digvijay Deshmukh</li>
	<li>Aakarshit Gomel</li>
	<li>Anirudha Joshi</li>
	<li>Azim Kazi</li>
	<li>Rahul Singh</li>
	<li>Ajay T</li>
	<li>Harsh Tyagi</li>
	<li>Nachiket Bhute</li>
	<li>Josh Clarkson</li>
	<li>Gerald Coetzee</li>
	<li>Tim David</li>
	<li>Deeparaj Gaonkar</li>
	<li>Aaron Hardie</li>
	<li>Marco Jansen</li>
	<li>Nathan McAndrew</li>
	<li>M Mohammed</li>
	<li>Govinda Poddar</li>
	<li>Pratyush Singh</li>
	<li>Jacques Snyman</li>
</ul>

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 players auction is all set to be held on Thursday (February 18) in Chennai. As many as 292 players will go under the hammer with all eight IPL franchises looking to strengthen their squad ahead of the IPL 2021 season.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 players auction is all set to be held on Thursday (February 18) in Chennai. As many as 292 players will go under the hammer with all eight IPL franchises looking to strengthen their squad ahead of the IPL 2021 season. While big-name players like Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Alex Hales, Moeen Ali among many others are available to be roped in by franchise during IPL 2021 auction, domestic players like Shahrukh Khan, Mohammed Azharuddeen are also expected to have a big day at IPL 2021 auction. ALSO READ: IPL 2021 mini-auction: Remaining slots, available balance, retained and released players - All you need to know! Ahead of the IPL 2021 mini-auction, let us take a look at the list of all 292 players available. ALSO READ: From MS Dhoni to Yuvraj Singh: Costliest picks in every IPL auctions Aaron Finch Alex Hales Evin Lewis Karun Nair Jason Roy Steve Smith Hanuma Vihari Shakib Al Hasan Moeen Ali Shivam Dube Kedar Jadhav Dawid Malan Glenn Maxwell Chris Morris Sam Billings Alex Carey Kusal Perera Glenn Phillips Sheldon Cottrell Nathan Coulter‐Nile Adam Milne Mustafizur Rahman Jhye Richardson Mark Wood (OPTED OUT) Umesh Yadav Qais Ahmad Piyush Chawla Mujeeb Ur Rahman Adil Rashid Rahul Sharma Harbhajan Singh Ish Sodhi Sachin Baby Rahul Gahlaut C.Hari Nishaanth Rajat Patidar Himanshu Rana Himmat Singh Vishnu Solanki Ayush Badoni K Gowtham Venkatesh Iyer Shahrukh Khan Ripal Patel Atit Sheth Vivek Singh Mohammed Azharuddeen Avi Barot Kedar Devdhar Sheldon Jackson Vishnu Vinod Tushar Deshpande Riley Meredith Lukman Hussain Meriwala Ankit Singh Rajpoot Chetan Sakariya KuldeepSen Mujtaba Yousuf Tejas Baroka K.C Cariappa Sandeep Lamichhane M Siddharth Karanveer Singh Jagadeesha Suchith Midhun Sudhesan Corey Anderson Darren Bravo Devon Conway Martin Guptill Shaun Marsh Rovman Powell Cheteshwar Pujara Rassie Van Der Dussen Tom Curran Ben Cutting Moises Henriques Kyle Jamieson Marnus Labuschagne Pawan Negi Gurkeerat Singh Mitchell McClenaghan Varun Aaron Jason Behrendorff Mohit Sharma Billy Stanlake Oshane Thomas Finn Allen Harpreet Bhatia Shivam Chauhan Naushad Shaikh Pratham Singh Apoorv Wankhade Atharva Ankolekar Prayas Barman Jalaj Saxena Karan Sharma Utkarsh Singh R Sonu Yadav Dhruv Jurel Arun Karthick Nikhil Naik Smit Patel K.L Shrijith Wesley Agar Vaibhav Arora Akash Deep Ben Dwarshuis Ali Khan Kulwant Khejroliya Arzan Nagwaswalla G Periyasamy Akash Singh Prithviraj Yarra Noor Ahmad Lakanwal Karthik Meiyappan Prince Balwant Rai Pardeep Sahu Sagar Udeshi Kushaal Wadhwani Akshay Wakhare Fabian Allen Daniel Christian Colin De Grandhomme Liam Livingstone Thisara Perera Mohammad Shaifuddin David Willey Matthew Wade Ben Duckett Sean Abbott Matt Henry Chemar Holder Alzarri Joseph Obed Mccoy Liam Plunkett Tim Southee Rajesh Bishnoi Abhimanyu Easwaran Rohan Kadam Amandeep Khare Siddhesh Lad Mohammed Taha Khrievitso Kense Prerak Mankad Shams Mulani Ansh Patel Suyash Prabhudessai Parth Sahani Ankit Sharma Dhruv Shorey K.S Bharat Josh Inglis Aryan Juyal Sadiq Kirmani Rohit Sharma Sandeep Kumar Tomar Stephen Cheepurupalli Aniket Choudhary Mukesh Choudhary Nathan Ellis Sayan Ghosh Ronit More M Nidheesh M Harisankar Reddy Simarjeet Singh Kuldip Yadav Zeeshan Ansari Jon Russ Jaggesar Kevin Koththigoda Tanveer Sangha Maheesh Theekshan Vijayakanth Viyaskanth Lewis Gregory Wanindu Hasaranga Karim Janat Scott Kuggeleijn James Neesham Wayne Parnell Keemo Paul Dushmanta Chameera Fidel Edwards Beuran Hendricks Abhimanyu Mithun Reece Topley Saahil Jain Subhranshu Senapati Ravi Thakur Jake Weatherald Shubham Agrawal Rajjakuddin Ahmed Baba Aparajith George Garton Chris Green Kartik Kakade Shoaib Khan Dhruv Patel Latest Kumar Patel Arjun Tendulkar Varun Choudhary Prathamesh Dake Baltej Dhanda Brendan Doggett Saurabh Dubey Fazalhaq Farooqi Matt Kelly Chama Milind Jayden Seales Mark Steketee Tanveer Ul Haq Carlos Brathwaite Rishi Dhawan Mohammad Mahmud Ullah Andile Phehlukwayo Sherfane Rutherford Dasun Shanaka Isuru Udana Jacob Duffy Daryn Dupavillon Shannon Gabriel Morne Morkel Joel Paris Blair Tickner Subodh Bhati Jay Bista Aamir Gani Karanveer Kaushal Anustup Majumdar Dikshanshu Negi Kshitiz Sharma Shubham Singh Shashank Singh Milind Tandon Ravi Bopara George Linde Kyle Mayers Daryl Mitchell Colin Munro Dwaine Pretorius Romario Shepherd Sandeep Bavanaka Chaitanya Bishnoi Arun Chaprana Yudhvir Charak Ajay Dev Goud Umran Malik Ravi Teja Telukupalli Tanay Thyagarajan N.Tilak Varma K.Bhagath Varma Stuart Binny Hilton Cartwright James Faulkner Akeal Hosein Parvez Rasool David Wiese Jack Wildermuth Arshdeep Brar Digvijay Deshmukh Aakarshit Gomel Anirudha Joshi Azim Kazi Rahul Singh Ajay T Harsh Tyagi Nachiket Bhute Josh Clarkson Gerald Coetzee Tim David Deeparaj Gaonkar Aaron Hardie Marco Jansen Nathan McAndrew M Mohammed Govinda Poddar Pratyush Singh Jacques Snyman

IPL 2021 Auction: Full list of 292 players set to go under hammer

Cristiano Ronaldo's first game for Juventus in his native Portugal ended in 2-1 defeat as FC Porto out-played the Italians for much of Wednesday's Champions League last-16, first leg tie.

Such was Juve's lacklustre performance that coach Andrea Pirlo claimed his team handed victory to their hosts on "a silver platter".

Iranian striker Mehdi Taremi put Porto ahead after just a minute at Estadio do Dragao following a Rodrigo Bentancur error.

And Mali striker Moussa Marega added a second straight after the break.

But Federico Chiesa pulled a goal back with eight minutes to go to keep Juventus afloat with the second leg in Turin on March 9.

"The approach was wrong from the first minute," said Pirlo.&nbsp;

"When you concede a goal like this it's normal that fear sets in, you lack a bit of certainty.&nbsp;

"Porto are good at closing down and after that goal it was much more difficult. We served them the match they wanted on a silver platter.

"Fortunately we scored an important goal through Chiesa and now we will focus on the return leg."

It was a below-par performance by Juventus,chasing their third Champions League title and first in 25 years.

Record Champions League goal scorer Ronaldo, 36, drew a blank against a side captained by his Portuguese international teammate Pepe, as the visitors struggled to recover from their early blunder.

"We studied Juventus well," said defender Pepe who won three Champions League titles with Ronaldo at Real Madrid.&nbsp;

"We knew that we had to press hard to keep Juventus from playing.&nbsp;In these type of games it's difficult to concede goals at home, but we played a great game."

It was a shocking start for Juventus, with Wojciech Szczesny sending the ball out to Bentancur, who passed back to the Polish goalkeeper despite Taremi being just on front of goal.

The Iranian quickly pounced to prod past Szczesny for his first Champions League goal.

Porto pressed forward with Juventus almost conceding a second on 23 minutes as Szczesny cleared straight to Sergio Oliveira whose shot was deflected away from goal.

To add to Andrea Pirlo's woes captain Giorgio Chiellini limped off 10 minutes later with defender Merih Demiral coming off the bench.

Pirlo had juggled Juve's defence with Leonardo Bonucci out injured with Alex Sandro returning, playing alongside veteran Chiellini, Matthijs de Ligt and Danilo.

Juve had to wait until four minutes before the break for their first shot on goal with an Adrien Rabiot overhead kick cleared by Porto 'keeper Agustin Marchesin, but the offside flag had already been raised.

The Italians suffered another terrible start to the second half with Marega picking up a Wilson Manafa cross to finish low past&nbsp;Szczęsny.

Ronaldo had to wait until five minutes after the break to have a shot on goal. Weston McKennie nodded the ball into the path of the Portuguese star, whose weak effort was blocked.

However, Chiesa pulled Juventus back into the tie following a Rabiot run down the right with a pull back for the Italian to finish off into the corner of the net.

"The goal will give us strength for the second leg, and it will certainly be another game," said Chiesa.&nbsp;

It was the first goal conceded by Porto in the competition at home this season for the former two-time winners.

Ronaldo had penalty appeals waved away after going down under a Sanusi Zaidu challenge late as the hosts held on for their first win over Juventus in five meetings.

Cristiano Ronaldo's first game for Juventus in his native Portugal ended in 2-1 defeat as FC Porto out-played the Italians for much of Wednesday's Champions League last-16, first leg tie.

Cristiano Ronaldo's first game for Juventus in his native Portugal ended in 2-1 defeat as FC Porto out-played the Italians for much of Wednesday's Champions League last-16, first leg tie. Such was Juve's lacklustre performance that coach Andrea Pirlo claimed his team handed victory to their hosts on "a silver platter". Iranian striker Mehdi Taremi put Porto ahead after just a minute at Estadio do Dragao following a Rodrigo Bentancur error. And Mali striker Moussa Marega added a second straight after the break. But Federico Chiesa pulled a goal back with eight minutes to go to keep Juventus afloat with the second leg in Turin on March 9. "The approach was wrong from the first minute," said Pirlo. "When you concede a goal like this it's normal that fear sets in, you lack a bit of certainty. "Porto are good at closing down and after that goal it was much more difficult. We served them the match they wanted on a silver platter. "Fortunately we scored an important goal through Chiesa and now we will focus on the return leg." It was a below-par performance by Juventus,chasing their third Champions League title and first in 25 years. Record Champions League goal scorer Ronaldo, 36, drew a blank against a side captained by his Portuguese international teammate Pepe, as the visitors struggled to recover from their early blunder. "We studied Juventus well," said defender Pepe who won three Champions League titles with Ronaldo at Real Madrid. "We knew that we had to press hard to keep Juventus from playing. In these type of games it's difficult to concede goals at home, but we played a great game." It was a shocking start for Juventus, with Wojciech Szczesny sending the ball out to Bentancur, who passed back to the Polish goalkeeper despite Taremi being just on front of goal. The Iranian quickly pounced to prod past Szczesny for his first Champions League goal. Porto pressed forward with Juventus almost conceding a second on 23 minutes as Szczesny cleared straight to Sergio Oliveira whose shot was deflected away from goal. To add to Andrea Pirlo's woes captain Giorgio Chiellini limped off 10 minutes later with defender Merih Demiral coming off the bench. Pirlo had juggled Juve's defence with Leonardo Bonucci out injured with Alex Sandro returning, playing alongside veteran Chiellini, Matthijs de Ligt and Danilo. Juve had to wait until four minutes before the break for their first shot on goal with an Adrien Rabiot overhead kick cleared by Porto 'keeper Agustin Marchesin, but the offside flag had already been raised. The Italians suffered another terrible start to the second half with Marega picking up a Wilson Manafa cross to finish low past Szczęsny. Ronaldo had to wait until five minutes after the break to have a shot on goal. Weston McKennie nodded the ball into the path of the Portuguese star, whose weak effort was blocked. However, Chiesa pulled Juventus back into the tie following a Rabiot run down the right with a pull back for the Italian to finish off into the corner of the net. "The goal will give us strength for the second leg, and it will certainly be another game," said Chiesa. It was the first goal conceded by Porto in the competition at home this season for the former two-time winners. Ronaldo had penalty appeals waved away after going down under a Sanusi Zaidu challenge late as the hosts held on for their first win over Juventus in five meetings.

Pirlo says lacklustre Juventus handed Porto victory 'on silver platter'

Erling Braut Haaland produced another deadly display of finishing with a first-half brace as Borussia Dortmund came from behind to beat Sevilla 3-2 in Spain in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday.

Suso's deflected strike gave last season's Europa League winners an early lead behind closed doors at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan stadium, but Mahmoud Dahoud soon equalised before Haaland took over.

The Norway phenomenon put Dortmund in front in the 27th minute and then scored again two minutes before half-time, the goals taking him to 25 in 24 appearances this season in all competitions.

Still aged just 20, he has scored 18 times in just 13 Champions League appearances since the start of last season.

Substitute Luuk de Jong's late reply gave Sevilla cause for hope heading into the return leg on March 9, but Dortmund remain favourites to progress to the quarter-finals.

"We didn't deserve to lose, but in the end they had one of the best players in the world up front and he made the difference in three situations which could have been avoided," said Sevilla coach Julen Lopetegui.

Haaland, who also set up Dahoud's equaliser, produced a performance, in the first half at least, which showcased his remarkable strength, hold-up play and pace as well as his brilliant finishing.

<h2>- Nine-game winning run ended -</h2>

It was too much for a Sevilla side who had come into this tie with high hopes, having only been beaten by La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid, away, in their previous 19 outings.

Lopetegui's team had won their previous nine matches on the bounce and had kept seven straight clean sheets before the arrival of Dortmund and Haaland.

"This was one of our best performances of the season," Dortmund coach Edin Terzic, who replaced the sacked Lucien Favre after the group phase, told Sky.

"We are pleased with the result and proud to have beaten such a team."

Sevilla have won the Europa League or its predecessor, the UEFA Cup, an incredible six times since 2005, but only once have they got past the last 16 of the Champions League, when they beat Manchester United in 2018 before losing to Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals.

The quality of Haaland was the difference here as Dortmund, having sunk to sixth in the Bundesliga on a poor run of form, came to life on their return to the Champions League.

"We had a good plan. Edin has been good and I've been talking a lot with him. He said today would be my game and that I would get my chances and I did, so it was an important win," Haaland told DAZN.

Yet the game had started well for Sevilla, with Suso opening the scoring in the seventh minute, his shot deflecting in off Mats Hummels.

Dortmund drew level in the 19th minute as Haaland showed terrific strength to hold the ball up on the right before coming infield and feeding Dahoud, who worked his way into position to fire a superb shot high into net from just outside the area.

It was the first goal Sevilla had conceded in more than 12 hours of football.

Eight minutes later they conceded again.

Haaland dropped deep, collecting possession near the halfway line, and then turned and charged towards goal, playing a pass to Jadon Sancho on the edge of the box and then continuing on to place the return ball past goalkeeper Yassine Bounou.

He struck again two minutes before half-time, slotting home first-time after Marco Reus had stolen the ball from the feet of Alejandro 'Papu' Gomez before bearing down on goal.

However, Sevilla dominated the second half as Dortmund sat back, and the hosts got a potentially crucial second goal six minutes from the end.

Oscar Rodriguez's high, hanging free-kick was turned into the net by De Jong, giving them something to cling to.

Erling Braut Haaland produced another deadly display of finishing with a first-half brace as Borussia Dortmund came from behind to beat Sevilla 3-2 in Spain in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday.

Erling Braut Haaland produced another deadly display of finishing with a first-half brace as Borussia Dortmund came from behind to beat Sevilla 3-2 in Spain in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday. Suso's deflected strike gave last season's Europa League winners an early lead behind closed doors at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan stadium, but Mahmoud Dahoud soon equalised before Haaland took over. The Norway phenomenon put Dortmund in front in the 27th minute and then scored again two minutes before half-time, the goals taking him to 25 in 24 appearances this season in all competitions. Still aged just 20, he has scored 18 times in just 13 Champions League appearances since the start of last season. Substitute Luuk de Jong's late reply gave Sevilla cause for hope heading into the return leg on March 9, but Dortmund remain favourites to progress to the quarter-finals. "We didn't deserve to lose, but in the end they had one of the best players in the world up front and he made the difference in three situations which could have been avoided," said Sevilla coach Julen Lopetegui. Haaland, who also set up Dahoud's equaliser, produced a performance, in the first half at least, which showcased his remarkable strength, hold-up play and pace as well as his brilliant finishing. - Nine-game winning run ended - It was too much for a Sevilla side who had come into this tie with high hopes, having only been beaten by La Liga leaders Atletico Madrid, away, in their previous 19 outings. Lopetegui's team had won their previous nine matches on the bounce and had kept seven straight clean sheets before the arrival of Dortmund and Haaland. "This was one of our best performances of the season," Dortmund coach Edin Terzic, who replaced the sacked Lucien Favre after the group phase, told Sky. "We are pleased with the result and proud to have beaten such a team." Sevilla have won the Europa League or its predecessor, the UEFA Cup, an incredible six times since 2005, but only once have they got past the last 16 of the Champions League, when they beat Manchester United in 2018 before losing to Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals. The quality of Haaland was the difference here as Dortmund, having sunk to sixth in the Bundesliga on a poor run of form, came to life on their return to the Champions League. "We had a good plan. Edin has been good and I've been talking a lot with him. He said today would be my game and that I would get my chances and I did, so it was an important win," Haaland told DAZN. Yet the game had started well for Sevilla, with Suso opening the scoring in the seventh minute, his shot deflecting in off Mats Hummels. Dortmund drew level in the 19th minute as Haaland showed terrific strength to hold the ball up on the right before coming infield and feeding Dahoud, who worked his way into position to fire a superb shot high into net from just outside the area. It was the first goal Sevilla had conceded in more than 12 hours of football. Eight minutes later they conceded again. Haaland dropped deep, collecting possession near the halfway line, and then turned and charged towards goal, playing a pass to Jadon Sancho on the edge of the box and then continuing on to place the return ball past goalkeeper Yassine Bounou. He struck again two minutes before half-time, slotting home first-time after Marco Reus had stolen the ball from the feet of Alejandro 'Papu' Gomez before bearing down on goal. However, Sevilla dominated the second half as Dortmund sat back, and the hosts got a potentially crucial second goal six minutes from the end. Oscar Rodriguez's high, hanging free-kick was turned into the net by De Jong, giving them something to cling to.

'One of the best in the world' - Haaland stars as Dortmund beat Sevilla

Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti said he expects Manchester City to cruise to the Premier League title after Pep Guardiola's men opened up a 10-point lead at the top of the table with a 3-1 win at Goodison Park on Wednesday.

Riyad Mahrez scored the pick of the goals in between Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva's strikes as City extended their English top-flight record winning run to 17 games.

"It is really difficult to say another name in this moment," said Ancelotti when asked if his side had just been beaten by the champions.

"They are in a good form, they have belief and they are strong. We tried to be physical but it is difficult against Rodrigo, (Ruben) Dias and (Aymeric) Laporte."

Richarlison's first-half equaliser was little consolation for seventh-placed Everton, who have now won just one of their last six league games to fall five points behind in the battle for a top-four finish.

"We don't need to have regrets tonight," added Ancelotti as he looked forward to Saturday's Merseyside derby against Liverpool.

"It's a fantastic opportunity. We know how important this game is for our supporters."

This fixture was rearranged from late December due to a coronavirus outbreak affecting multiple players at City that threatened to derail their title challenge.

Guardiola's side were eighth in the table at the time, but have not dropped a point in their 10 league games since to streak clear of the chasing pack.

The visitors were without the in-form Ilkay Gundogan due to a groin injury, while Kevin De Bruyne was fit to return from a hamstring problem but only for a late cameo appearance off the bench.

Sergio Aguero was also among the substitutes, but Gabriel Jesus has failed to make the most of his chance to shine in the absence of the Argentine for most of the season and the Brazilian had another off night in front of goal as he blazed over an early chance.

When the deadlock was broken there was a hint of fortune to it as Foden's shot deflected off Seamus Coleman to leave the helpless Jordan Pickford wrong-footed.

Ancelotti's men had shown no attacking intent until conceding, but were immediately rewarded for pushing forward after falling behind as Lucas Digne's shot came back off the post and ricocheted in off Richarlison.

A moment of the highest quality saw City restore their lead just after the hour mark.

Silva's cushioned pass teed up Mahrez on the edge of the box and his sumptuous curling effort clipped the inside of the far post on its way into the net.

"We have the quality up front but always it comes through the passes," said Guardiola. "We need a little bit more patient, the second goal is an example of that. In the end we have to try and get the players up front in a better position."

The roles were reversed for the visitors' third 13 minutes from time as Mahrez and Jesus picked out Silva on the edge of the box and his shot had too much power for Pickford..

At the other end of the table, Fulham missed the opportunity to close to within four points of survival as Burnley came back from a goal down to salvage a 1-1 draw.

Both sides struck early in the second-half of a largely uneventful game as Ashley Barnes cancelled out Ola Aina's opener for Fulham.

A point for Fulham takes Newcastle's advantage over the bottom three to six points, while Burnley remain eight points clear of the drop zone and edge up to 15th.

Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti said he expects Manchester City to cruise to the Premier League title after Pep Guardiola's men opened up a 10-point lead at the top of the table with a 3-1 win at Goodison Park on Wednesday.

Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti said he expects Manchester City to cruise to the Premier League title after Pep Guardiola's men opened up a 10-point lead at the top of the table with a 3-1 win at Goodison Park on Wednesday. Riyad Mahrez scored the pick of the goals in between Phil Foden and Bernardo Silva's strikes as City extended their English top-flight record winning run to 17 games. "It is really difficult to say another name in this moment," said Ancelotti when asked if his side had just been beaten by the champions. "They are in a good form, they have belief and they are strong. We tried to be physical but it is difficult against Rodrigo, (Ruben) Dias and (Aymeric) Laporte." Richarlison's first-half equaliser was little consolation for seventh-placed Everton, who have now won just one of their last six league games to fall five points behind in the battle for a top-four finish. "We don't need to have regrets tonight," added Ancelotti as he looked forward to Saturday's Merseyside derby against Liverpool. "It's a fantastic opportunity. We know how important this game is for our supporters." This fixture was rearranged from late December due to a coronavirus outbreak affecting multiple players at City that threatened to derail their title challenge. Guardiola's side were eighth in the table at the time, but have not dropped a point in their 10 league games since to streak clear of the chasing pack. The visitors were without the in-form Ilkay Gundogan due to a groin injury, while Kevin De Bruyne was fit to return from a hamstring problem but only for a late cameo appearance off the bench. Sergio Aguero was also among the substitutes, but Gabriel Jesus has failed to make the most of his chance to shine in the absence of the Argentine for most of the season and the Brazilian had another off night in front of goal as he blazed over an early chance. When the deadlock was broken there was a hint of fortune to it as Foden's shot deflected off Seamus Coleman to leave the helpless Jordan Pickford wrong-footed. Ancelotti's men had shown no attacking intent until conceding, but were immediately rewarded for pushing forward after falling behind as Lucas Digne's shot came back off the post and ricocheted in off Richarlison. A moment of the highest quality saw City restore their lead just after the hour mark. Silva's cushioned pass teed up Mahrez on the edge of the box and his sumptuous curling effort clipped the inside of the far post on its way into the net. "We have the quality up front but always it comes through the passes," said Guardiola. "We need a little bit more patient, the second goal is an example of that. In the end we have to try and get the players up front in a better position." The roles were reversed for the visitors' third 13 minutes from time as Mahrez and Jesus picked out Silva on the edge of the box and his shot had too much power for Pickford.. At the other end of the table, Fulham missed the opportunity to close to within four points of survival as Burnley came back from a goal down to salvage a 1-1 draw. Both sides struck early in the second-half of a largely uneventful game as Ashley Barnes cancelled out Ola Aina's opener for Fulham. A point for Fulham takes Newcastle's advantage over the bottom three to six points, while Burnley remain eight points clear of the drop zone and edge up to 15th.

Man City beat Everton to march 10 points clear

Serena Williams broke down in tears and cut short her post-match press conference after another failed bid to equal Margaret Court's record Grand Slam haul, calling her defeat to Naomi Osaka "a big error day".

The veteran American's quest to reach a ninth Australian Open final and match Court's 24 major singles titles ended in a 6-3, 6-4 semi-final mauling by the Japanese third seed.

Williams, 39, broke early for a 2-0 lead before Osaka reeled off five straight games to leave her shellshocked.

"The difference today was errors. I made so many errors," said the 23-time Grand Slam champion.

"Honestly, it was opportunities where I could have won. I could have been up 5-0. It was a big error day for me."

Pressed on what caused her to make so many mistakes, tears began to flow as she told reporters: "I don't know. I'm done," before walking out.

In a clash of power games clashed, it was Osaka who had the edge, hitting 20 winners to Williams's 12, while also committing three fewer unforced errors on 21.

Williams said she had been hitting well all tournament and had no explanation for the loss other than "too many mistakes there, easy mistakes".

Osaka's victory left Williams still stranded on 23 Grand Slam crowns, one short of Court's tally, with her last major title coming in Melbourne four years ago when she was pregnant.

Williams has lost four Slam finals since and as she walked off court put her hand over her heart, almost as if saying farewell.

Asked about it afterwards, she suggested the gesture was more about acknowledging the crowd, who were allowed back into Rod Laver Arena after a five-day snap lockdown and gave the American a rousing send-off.

"I don't know. If I ever say farewell, I wouldn't tell anyone," she said.

Serena Williams broke down in tears and cut short her post-match press conference after another failed bid to equal Margaret Court's record Grand Slam haul, calling her defeat to Naomi Osaka "a big error day".

Serena Williams broke down in tears and cut short her post-match press conference after another failed bid to equal Margaret Court's record Grand Slam haul, calling her defeat to Naomi Osaka "a big error day". The veteran American's quest to reach a ninth Australian Open final and match Court's 24 major singles titles ended in a 6-3, 6-4 semi-final mauling by the Japanese third seed. Williams, 39, broke early for a 2-0 lead before Osaka reeled off five straight games to leave her shellshocked. "The difference today was errors. I made so many errors," said the 23-time Grand Slam champion. "Honestly, it was opportunities where I could have won. I could have been up 5-0. It was a big error day for me." Pressed on what caused her to make so many mistakes, tears began to flow as she told reporters: "I don't know. I'm done," before walking out. In a clash of power games clashed, it was Osaka who had the edge, hitting 20 winners to Williams's 12, while also committing three fewer unforced errors on 21. Williams said she had been hitting well all tournament and had no explanation for the loss other than "too many mistakes there, easy mistakes". Osaka's victory left Williams still stranded on 23 Grand Slam crowns, one short of Court's tally, with her last major title coming in Melbourne four years ago when she was pregnant. Williams has lost four Slam finals since and as she walked off court put her hand over her heart, almost as if saying farewell. Asked about it afterwards, she suggested the gesture was more about acknowledging the crowd, who were allowed back into Rod Laver Arena after a five-day snap lockdown and gave the American a rousing send-off. "I don't know. If I ever say farewell, I wouldn't tell anyone," she said.

'I'm done': Williams walks out in tears after semi-final defeat

Naomi Osaka emphatically ended Serena Williams's latest bid for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam crown with a straight-sets demolition in the Australian Open semi-finals Thursday.

The Japanese third seed swept past the American veteran 6-3, 6-4 on Rod Laver Arena in front of thousands of fans allowed back in after Melbourne lifted a snap five-day lockdown.

She will face either American Jennifer Brady or Czech Karolina Muchova on Saturday for a fourth Slam title after her success at Flushing Meadows in 2018 and last year, and Melbourne in 2019.

The victory left Williams, who won her last major in Melbourne in 2017, stranded on 23 Grand Slam titles as she strives to match Margaret Court's all-time record.

Since winning while pregnant in Australia four years ago, Williams has lost four Slam finals, including one to Osaka in a controversial and heated 2018 US Open decider which left both women in tears.

"I hit a lot of unforced errors in the first few games, I was just really nervous and scared," said Osaka, who reeled off five games in a row in the opening set after going 2-0 down.

"But then I sort of eased my way into it and the biggest thing for me was having fun."

"For me, it's always an honour to play her and I didn't want to go out (of the tournament) really bad, so I just tried my best," she added.

<h2>- Big-match experience -</h2>

While Osaka held a 2-1 head-to-head advantage going into the blockbuster clash, 39-year-old Williams had a huge edge on big-match experience.

Ahead of the showdown, she had won all eight of her previous semi-finals at Melbourne Park stretching back 18 years to when she beat Kim Clijsters on her way to her first title in Australia.

Her first ever Grand Slam semi, against Lindsay Davenport at 1999 US Open, was played when Osaka was just one.

But the 23-year-old boasted a 100 percent win record in Slams when she got past the fourth round, and she kept it intact Thursday.

Williams worked hard on her fitness during the off-season and quickly asserted herself, breaking Osaka straight away with the Japanese sensation having issues with the sun and ball toss.

She consolidated by holding serve, with Osaka guilty of five unforced errors in the opening two games.

Osaka said before the match she still felt intimidated seeing Williams on the other side of the net, but her early nerves soon settled.

She saved a break point in the next game and got off the mark with an ace, then broke back to level the scores at 2-2 when Williams sent a forehand long.

Now well and truly in her groove, with her forehand doing most of the damage, Osaka won five games in a row, and the set, to leave Williams stunned.

She broke again on Williams's opening serve of the second set, with the American screaming: "Make a shot, make a shot!"

With the crowd roaring her on, Williams stayed in touch and Osaka's eighth double fault gave her the American a break back.

But it was a short-lived reprieve with Osaka breaking again and calmly serving out for victory.

Naomi Osaka emphatically ended Serena Williams's latest bid for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam crown with a straight-sets demolition in the Australian Open semi-finals Thursday.

Naomi Osaka emphatically ended Serena Williams's latest bid for a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam crown with a straight-sets demolition in the Australian Open semi-finals Thursday. The Japanese third seed swept past the American veteran 6-3, 6-4 on Rod Laver Arena in front of thousands of fans allowed back in after Melbourne lifted a snap five-day lockdown. She will face either American Jennifer Brady or Czech Karolina Muchova on Saturday for a fourth Slam title after her success at Flushing Meadows in 2018 and last year, and Melbourne in 2019. The victory left Williams, who won her last major in Melbourne in 2017, stranded on 23 Grand Slam titles as she strives to match Margaret Court's all-time record. Since winning while pregnant in Australia four years ago, Williams has lost four Slam finals, including one to Osaka in a controversial and heated 2018 US Open decider which left both women in tears. "I hit a lot of unforced errors in the first few games, I was just really nervous and scared," said Osaka, who reeled off five games in a row in the opening set after going 2-0 down. "But then I sort of eased my way into it and the biggest thing for me was having fun." "For me, it's always an honour to play her and I didn't want to go out (of the tournament) really bad, so I just tried my best," she added. - Big-match experience - While Osaka held a 2-1 head-to-head advantage going into the blockbuster clash, 39-year-old Williams had a huge edge on big-match experience. Ahead of the showdown, she had won all eight of her previous semi-finals at Melbourne Park stretching back 18 years to when she beat Kim Clijsters on her way to her first title in Australia. Her first ever Grand Slam semi, against Lindsay Davenport at 1999 US Open, was played when Osaka was just one. But the 23-year-old boasted a 100 percent win record in Slams when she got past the fourth round, and she kept it intact Thursday. Williams worked hard on her fitness during the off-season and quickly asserted herself, breaking Osaka straight away with the Japanese sensation having issues with the sun and ball toss. She consolidated by holding serve, with Osaka guilty of five unforced errors in the opening two games. Osaka said before the match she still felt intimidated seeing Williams on the other side of the net, but her early nerves soon settled. She saved a break point in the next game and got off the mark with an ace, then broke back to level the scores at 2-2 when Williams sent a forehand long. Now well and truly in her groove, with her forehand doing most of the damage, Osaka won five games in a row, and the set, to leave Williams stunned. She broke again on Williams's opening serve of the second set, with the American screaming: "Make a shot, make a shot!" With the crowd roaring her on, Williams stayed in touch and Osaka's eighth double fault gave her the American a break back. But it was a short-lived reprieve with Osaka breaking again and calmly serving out for victory.

Osaka shatters Williams record bid to make Australian Open final

Gareth Bale is not playing regularly at Tottenham because he is coming towards the end of his medal-strewn career, his agent Jonathan Barnett said on Wednesday.

When the Wales international rejoined Spurs on loan from Real Madrid in September, the emotional homecoming was hailed as a perfect fit for the player and the club where he rose to global stardom.

Jose Mourinho's team have been involved in 22 Premier League matches following Bale's return to the north London club but the 31-year-old has started just two of those.

Mourinho last week questioned Bale's Instagram post which suggested he was in good health despite being unavailable to feature in his side's FA Cup defeat at Everton.

Asked why Bale was not playing regularly in his second spell at Spurs, Barnett, speaking at the Financial Times' Business of Football Summit, said: "He's towards the end of his career. Really, you have to ask Mourinho that."

Barnett defended Bale's record in the game -- the Welshman has won two La Liga titles and four Champions Leagues at Real Madrid.

"When they say, 'What's happened to him?' -- he's won more trophies abroad than any British player in history," the agent said.

"He's done very well financially, and he has enough money for the rest of his life. He has a very good lifestyle, so that is what has happened to him."

Bale came through the ranks at Southampton and joined Spurs as a 17-year-old in 2007 before sealing a big-money move to the Bernabeu six years later.

Addressing his initial transfer to Spurs, Barnett, who has overseen the Welshman's career, said: "With Gareth, we always knew where he wanted to be.

"We knew he had the talent so when clubs came in, the first thing we did was look at the clubs that were there and the ones to progress his career.

"We chose Tottenham for clear reasons, the path to the first team and good coaching.

"We turned down two offers for more money at the time but we spoke with him, his parents and they listened to us and he ended up at Real Madrid."

Gareth Bale is not playing regularly at Tottenham because he is coming towards the end of his medal-strewn career, his agent Jonathan Barnett said on Wednesday. When the Wales international rejoined Spurs on loan from Real Madrid in September, the emotional homecoming was hailed as a perfect fit for the player and the club where he rose to global stardom.

Gareth Bale is not playing regularly at Tottenham because he is coming towards the end of his medal-strewn career, his agent Jonathan Barnett said on Wednesday. When the Wales international rejoined Spurs on loan from Real Madrid in September, the emotional homecoming was hailed as a perfect fit for the player and the club where he rose to global stardom. Jose Mourinho's team have been involved in 22 Premier League matches following Bale's return to the north London club but the 31-year-old has started just two of those. Mourinho last week questioned Bale's Instagram post which suggested he was in good health despite being unavailable to feature in his side's FA Cup defeat at Everton. Asked why Bale was not playing regularly in his second spell at Spurs, Barnett, speaking at the Financial Times' Business of Football Summit, said: "He's towards the end of his career. Really, you have to ask Mourinho that." Barnett defended Bale's record in the game -- the Welshman has won two La Liga titles and four Champions Leagues at Real Madrid. "When they say, 'What's happened to him?' -- he's won more trophies abroad than any British player in history," the agent said. "He's done very well financially, and he has enough money for the rest of his life. He has a very good lifestyle, so that is what has happened to him." Bale came through the ranks at Southampton and joined Spurs as a 17-year-old in 2007 before sealing a big-money move to the Bernabeu six years later. Addressing his initial transfer to Spurs, Barnett, who has overseen the Welshman's career, said: "With Gareth, we always knew where he wanted to be. "We knew he had the talent so when clubs came in, the first thing we did was look at the clubs that were there and the ones to progress his career. "We chose Tottenham for clear reasons, the path to the first team and good coaching. "We turned down two offers for more money at the time but we spoke with him, his parents and they listened to us and he ended up at Real Madrid."

Bale 'towards end of career', admits agent

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