We are going to look at the major cricket news that came out today. The first update is related to the new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. The 2025-2027 Test cycle is set to begin today. The new Test cycle will kick off with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka facing off today. India’s matches will start from the 20th of this month.
India will play 18 Test matches. They have home series against Australia, West Indies, and South Africa, and away series against England, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka. Australia will play the most matches, with 22 Tests, followed by England with 21 Tests. The next update is about two rule changes in cricket. The concussion substitute rule, introduced in 2019, has been exploited by teams due to loopholes.
India, in particular, has misused this rule the most. The rule allows a like-for-like replacement if a player suffers a concussion due to a ball hitting their head. However, during the 2020 India-Australia series, Yuzvendra Chahal was brought in as a concussion substitute for Ravindra Jadeja, and in the recent India-England series, Harshit Rana replaced Shivam Dube, both of which faced significant criticism. This is because neither was a like-for-like replacement. Moreover, Chahal and Harshit took three wickets each in those matches, playing a crucial role in India’s victories.
To prevent such misuse, teams will now have to name five substitute players before every match, including a batter, wicketkeeper, spinner, fast bowler, and all-rounder. If a player is injured, a substitute from the same category must be chosen. Another rule change is related to boundary fielding. Acrobatic fielding, known as “bunny hopping,” has become common in cricket. A catch taken by Michael Neser in the 2023 BBL was highly controversial. As per the new rule, the ball can only be touched once from outside the boundary. The second touch must be made from inside the field; otherwise, it will be counted as a boundary.
The final update is related to the IPL. Initially, the news of Sanju Samson leaving Rajasthan Royals seemed like a rumor, but it now appears to have some truth. Sanju’s sports agent has liked a social media post about him leaving Rajasthan. It is said that two teams in need of a wicketkeeper have contacted Sanju. One of them is definitely CSK, and the rumor is that the second team is Kolkata. Reports suggest Rajasthan is considering Jaiswal as a captaincy option moving forward. We will have to wait until the next release list to know the truth about this.
