BCCI and ECB pay tribute to ENG-IND greats Ahead of the upcoming India tour of England, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced that the series would be contested under a single name – The Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.  Previously, Test series between the Three Lions and the Men in Blue were contested under two separate banners: The Pataudi Trophy for matches played in England and the Anthony de Mello Trophy for games in India.  The previous trophies were tributes to Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, former Indian national team captain, and Anthony de Mello, one of the founding figures of the BCCI. Keep an eye on our cricket predictions for updated news ahead of the upcoming series.  The newly named trophy now pays homage to legendary batter Sachin Tendulkar and English paceman James Anderson,  two players who are considered among the best of the modern game for their respective nations. Still widely regarded as the greatest batsman to ever step to the crease, Tendulkar remains the only cricketer to have played 200 Test matches. Before retiring in 2013, he had scored 15,921 Test runs, including 51 centuries.  Anderson, meanwhile, featured in 188 Test matches for England before hanging up his boots in 2024. Known for his fierce pace and wicked swing, Anderson was the first fast bowler to take 700 Test wickets for England.  Upon learning of the Pataudi trophy’s renaming, Anderson expressed his gratitude in a media interview, while also revealing his admiration for the « Little Master. » He said: “I still can’t quite believe it. Sachin is someone I looked up to when I was growing up, though I don’t want to do him a disservice with his age. I remember watching him, an absolute legend of the game, and I played against him a lot as well. So, to have this trophy is a huge honour for me, and I couldn’t be more proud.” The Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy was supposed to have been unveiled during the World Test Championship Final between South Africa and Australia last week, but was postponed due to the Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad.  Check out our sports predictions Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy rebranding receives mixed responses While the majority of the cricketing world was in favour of the previously known Pataudi trophy being rebranded to the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, some were not of the same belief, including former India legend Sunil Gavaskar. Gavaskar suggested that the renaming of the trophy awarded to the winner of the IND-ENG Test Series showed a lack of sensitivity towards Pataudi and the contributions he made to Indian cricket. He said:  “The recent news that the ECB is going to retire the Pataudi Trophy, given to the winners of the Test series between England and India in England, is disturbing indeed. This is the first time one has heard of a trophy named after individual players being retired, though the decision is entirely the ECB’s, and the BCCI may well have been informed.” The legendary Gavaskar ...

Kerala braced for La Albiceleste’s arrival later this year While Lionel Messi is currently hard at work with Inter-Miami at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, the little maestro is now expected to visit India with the Argentine national team once the MLS season ends later this year. Last year, it was announced that La Albiceleste would visit the state of Kerala for a friendly match, but reports of a breakdown in terms between parties had caused the tour to be placed on hold and at risk of being called off altogether.  However, Indian football fans have been given renewed hope of seeing the 8-time Ballon d’Or winner in the flesh, with Kerala sports minister V Abdurahiman confirming that the World Cup winner will visit the state during the October-November international window. It is understood that the cause for the delay was due to late payments to the Argentine national team, but Abdurahiman reaffirmed that: « The sponsor has now paid the amount. There are no remaining obstacles. As per the FIFA  window, October-November is the ideal period for such international friendlies. So that timeframe is likely for us as well. » As of now, the exact schedule for Argentina’s tour to India has yet to be confirmed, as La Albiceleste are also expected to travel to China, Qatar, and Africa within the next 12 months. The Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram is slated to host the friendly matches.  Check out our football predictions Inter Miami stumble in FIFA Club World Cup opener While Inter Miami were in great shape in the MLS across the first half of the US top-flight season, The Herons stumbled out of the blocks at the Club World Cup on Sunday when they were held to a goalless draw by African powerhouse Al Ahly in their tournament opener.  The Egyptian Premier League champions went toe-to-toe with their American counterparts and now lead the Group A standings following an opening-round stalemate between Porto and Palmeiras, who round out the group.  Against the Red Devils, Messi was denied a storybook stoppage-time game-winner when Mohamed El Shenawi pulled off a stunning save, tipping the Argentine superstar’s 20-yard curler onto the crossbar.    Messi and co will return to action on Thursday, June 19, at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Georgia, where they will face Porto in their second match of the group. Check out our Inter Miami vs Porto prediction​​​​​​.

Chawla calls time from all forms of cricket Following the retirement of stalwarts Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from Test matches for India last month, another legendary Indian cricketer, Piyush Chawla, has called time on his international career, though he will no longer participate in any form of the game.  The leg-spinner made his debut at 15 and went on to represent India U19 before breaking into the national team in 2005-06. He played an integral role in helping the Men in Blue claim two World Cup titles in the 20-over and 50-over formats.  The 36-year-old announced his decision on social media last week, writing:  “After more than two decades on the field, the time has come to bid adieu to the beautiful game. From representing India at the highest level to being part of the victorious 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 ODI World Cup squads, every moment in this incredible journey has been nothing short of a blessing.” In addition to his contributions to the Indian national team, Chawla has enjoyed a sensational Indian Premier League career, which included stints with the Punjab Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings, and most famously the Mumbai Indians.  During his 192 IPL matches, he claimed 192 scalps, which places him third in the all-time highest wicket-takers list in IPL history. In his post, Chawla also credited his father for serving as his greatest support structure and mentoring him on how to handle the pressure that comes with representing India at the highest level of world cricket.  Check out our cricket predictions  Chawla’s incredible career stats over the last two decades Chawla quickly made a name for himself in the first-class arena, where he featured in 137 matches for Uttar Pradesh and picked up an astonishing 446 wickets.  However, it was in the IPL where the spinner really came into his own. He represented KKR in their 2014 title-winning campaign, where he struck the winning runs for Gautam Gambhir’s side against the Punjab Kings. He also notched up 2/44 in his four-over allotment. On the international scene, Chawla represented the Men in Blue in 25 ODI matches between 2007 and 2011, taking 32 wickets, including best bowling figures of 4/23 and an economy rate of 5.10.   Despite his incredible IPL record, the 36-year-old only featured in seven T20Is for the national team and took four wickets, while only playing three test matches for India between 2006 and 2012, during which he snagged seven wickets, including a best of 4/69.   In the wake of Chawla’s retirement announcement, several of his former teammates responded warmly to his decision, including former Indian wicket-keeper Parthiv Patel, who wrote Congratulations on a wonderful career… See you on the other side, bro.’’ More cricket news

Boniface hints at calling time on Nigeria national team career   Nigeria fans were left perplexed last Friday when Victor Boniface, who is known for his comedic nature, posted on social media that he would be retiring from the Super Eagles following the team’s 1-1 draw against Russia at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow. The 24-year-old Bayer Leverkusen striker recorded only a single shot on target against Sbornaya and was hooked at the hour mark by Super Eagles head coach Eric Chelle, replacing him with Genk attacker Tolu Arokodare. Don’t forget you can keep up to the minute with all this summer’s international matches with our football livescore tool.  Within 10 minutes of entering the fray, Arokodare got on the scoresheet for Nigeria, erasing a first-half own goal by West Bromwich Albion defender Oluwasemilogo Ajayi. With that result, Nigeria has only won one of their last four matches across all competitions in regulation time.  Moments after the match against Russia ended, Boniface released a social media post, suggesting that he is calling time on his Super Eagles career at the age of just 24. The post read: ‘’Proud to play for my country, and a dream for me also. Really enjoyed every moment – the good and the bad. Thanks a lot. Thank you all. I don hang boot.’’ However, amid the controversy that ensued among Nigerian football fans, Boniface deleted the social media post and clarified that it was never meant to be taken seriously, a message that was later confirmed by the NFF.  Since debuting for the Super Eagles in 2023, the Bayern Leverkusen striker has only featured 13 times for the Nigerian national team, but has yet to open his account, registering only a single assist, which is significantly below his output in the Bundesliga, where he as racked up 32 goals and 12 assists in just 61 appearances.  Check out our football predictions Boniface Bundesliga future in doubt?  Despite his impressive tally for the 2023-24 Bundesliga champions, Boniface has endured several injury setbacks over the last couple of years. Last season, he featured in just 19 league matches and scored eight goals, having not played for the team from mid-November 2024 to the start of February 2025 due to a hamstring injury.  Given his injury record, there has been increased speculation during the offseason that Die Werkself may be considering parting ways with the Nigerian striker for the upcoming campaign, with interest being shown by several clubs, including in the Premier League and Saudi Arabia. Among the English teams who have been linked with a move for the 24-year-old are Arsenal, Newcastle United and Chelsea, though the latter are believed to have dropped their interest following the acquisition of Liam Delap from Ipswich Town, who were relegated from the top flight to the Championship last season.  Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr tabled a bid understood to have been in the region of £51 – £59m in January for Boniface. However, due to him being sidelined during that period through injury, the PIF-owned ...

BFI-ACG Partnership to take Indian basketball to new level While the focus of basketball lovers from across the globe is firmly locked on the ongoing NBA Finals between the Oklahoma City Thunder and Indiana Pacers at present, a major development is happening in India, which could change the landscape of the sport in the country forever.  Basketball is not as widely followed as cricket in India, but it is certainly not a new sport to the country. It was introduced to the nation way back in 1930 by missionaries, and that led to the formation of the Basketball Federation of India (BFI) in 1950.  The formation of the BFI was seen as the first major step toward promoting the sport in the country, and allowed the Indian national team to participate in their first international tournament a year later at the 1951 Asian Games, followed by the FIBA Asia Championship.  Fast forward another 75 years, and the BFI are now set to take the sport to the next level in India, joining forces with ACG Sports Private Limited in launching the first-ever professional basketball league for men and women in both the 5×5 and 3×3 formats.  The league was designed with the goal of providing Indian basketballers with a pathway to pursue their passion on a pro level, by creating a league system that will allow the sport to enter mainstream media and attract players to it from across the globe.  Some of the plans intended for the league include the development of India’s first fully residential high-performance basketball centre, which will feature international coaches who will groom and mentor up-and-coming talent both on and off the court.  In the near future, a League Council will take over the league operations and set up scouting camps and player development initiatives, while their long-term ambition is to foster an inclusive and commercially viable basketball ecosystem in India.  Check out our basketball predictions How India’s basketball players have performed on the global stage While India has participated in global basketball competitions over the years, they have struggled to find the same sort of success as they have in other sports, such as cricket, badminton and athletics.  Team India has earned medals at the South Asian Games, FIBA Asia Cup and the Lusofonia Games, but their lack of infrastructure and proper youth development have been a stumbling block in the nation being able to compete with the best in the world.  These issues have become clearly evident in the last 10 to 15 years, with the Indian national basketball team dropping from 50th in the World in 2010 to 82nd last year, which translates to a 64% dip in the ranking in less than two decades.  The newly formed league is expected to tackle these issues head-on, with the League Council expected to start overseeing standards and operations in the coming months. Detailed announcements of schedules, participation guidelines, venues and operational protocols will follow in a phased rollout.  More basketball news

Key date and venue changes for India’s home matches  Once Team India returns from their tour of England, their next two home assignments come in the form of the West Indies and South Africa, with Tests, one-day internationals and T20 internationals all on the calendar before the end of 2025.  The Men in Blue will face the West Indians for the first time on October 2 in their first IDFC First Bank Test match, which will go ahead as originally planned, but the second match has been moved to the Arun Jaitley Stadium, having originally been slated to take place in Kolkata.  South Africa’s A Team will arrive in India in late October for two multi-day matches and three ODIs starting on October 30. The two Tests will proceed as initially scheduled at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru, while the ODI games have been moved from the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium to the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot.  All of India’s matches this summer will be covered in our expert cricket predictions, so be sure to make your necessary diary adjustments to ensure you do not miss out on the latest key stats and news.  Finally, owing to the ongoing renovations to the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, the India Women’s IDFC First Bank ODI Series against Australia Women has been shifted as well, with the first two games to be played at the New PCA Stadium and the final match to be staged at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.  Revised schedule and venue for India’s home season Here is an overview of India’s summer schedule following confirmation of the changes announced by the BCCI last week: India vs. West Indies Test Series  1st Test – October 2 – 6 – Narendra Modi Stadium (Ahmedabad) 2nd Test – October 10 – 14 – Arun Jaitley Stadium (New Delhi) India vs South Africa A Test & ODI Series 1st Test – October 30 – November 2 – BCCI COE (Bengaluru) 2nd Test – November 6 – 9 – BCCI COE (Bengaluru) 1st ODI – November 13 – Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium (Rajkot) 2nd ODI – November 16 – Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium (Rajkot) 3rd ODI – November 19 – Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium (Rajkot) India Women vs. Australia Women ODI Series 1st ODI – 14 September – New PCA Stadium (Chandigarh) 2nd ODI – 17 September – New PCA Stadium (Chandigarh) 3rd ODI – 20 September – Arun Jaitley Stadium (New Delhi) More cricket news