Picture Credit: X

Picture Credit: X

The Men in Blue will take Afghanistan in the final T20I of the three-match series at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. However, the Rohit Sharma-led Team India have already clinched the series, winning the first two games by six wickets each, they will aim a series whitewash as they take on the Afghans for the final T20I ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024. Other than this, the Men in Green are also touring New Zealand for a five-match T20I series, which they trail 0-2.  

Here in this article, we’ll look at all the big news that took place on Tuesday, January 16, but before that, let's check the matches scheduled for the day.

Today’s match preview:

SA20 2024: Paarl Royals vs Joburg Super Kings

David Miller-led Paarl Royals will take on Faf du Plessis' Joburg Super Kings in the 9th match of the SA20 2024. The match is scheduled to take place at the Boland Park in Paarl at 9:00 p.m. IST. While the Royals enter this fixture on the back of a win over Pretoria Capitals, the Joburg super Kings are yet to taste their maiden victory of this season. Speaking of the standings, while the Miller-led side are currently placed second, the Faf's Super Kings are fifth with two losses and one no result. 

BBL 2023-24: Sydney Thunder vs Melbourne Renegades

The 40th match of the BBL 2023-24 is scheduled to take place between Sydney Thunder and the Melbourne Renegades at the Sydney Showground Stadium on Wednesday, January 17 at 1:45 p.m. IST. However, both teams stand eliminated from the 2023-24 edition of the tournament, they will lock horns in the last league match. 

India vs Afghanistan 3rd T20I

India will host Afghanistan for the final fixture of the series on January 17 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. While the Indians will aim for a whitewash, the visitors would wish for a comeback and secure a consolation win to end the tour on a triumph note.  While the Afghans have been impressive in patches, they haven’t been good enough to go past the home favourites. It will be exciting to see what the third and final clash of the series has in store for the cricket fans. 

Also Read:

Major cricket events that happened on January 16

Sydney Sixers finish league stage at second place after win over Perth Scorchers 

Moises Henriques-led Sydney Sixers beat Aaron Hardie's Perth Scorchers in the 39th match of the BBL 2023-24 on Tuesday by three wickets. The Scorchers opted to bat first after winning the toss and posted 197/4 on the board, courtesy Laurie Evans' 34-ball 72. Hughes played a pivotal role with a 43-ball 74 and his partnerships with Vince and Philippe set the platform for the run-chase. But skipper's unbeaten 47 helped the Sixers to chase the total with ease with three wickets in hand. With the second-place finish, the Sixers will now face Brisbane Heat in the Qualifier while the scorchers will host Adelaide Strikers for the knockout clash.

SA20 2024: Sunrisers Eastern Cape register their maiden win; beat MI Cape Town by 4 runs

MI Cape Town got off to a flying start in the chase as the openers added another 100+ stand. They were cruising when Rickelton and Rassie were in the middle but once that partnership was broken, there was a mini collapse of 4 for 16. Pollard and Curran got the chase back on track, but the pendulum shifted in the 19th over. 15 was needed off the final over and Esterhuizen struck the first ball for six, but Baartman executed his plans and gave his side their first victory of the season.

Also Read: I was a bit shocked: Shikhar Dhawan on Asian Games snub

Virat Kohli to attend Ram Mandir 'Pran Pratishtha': Reports

Virat Kohli is set to travel for the Ram Temple Consecration in Ayodhya. Kohli along with his wife, Anushka Sharma received the invitation for the Ram Mandir ceremony.  Hence, Kohli has taken permission from BCCI to attend the Consecration event in Ayodhya, as per Cricbuzz. So Kohli will take a day off from India's camp ahead Test series against England.

ICC imposes 2-year ban on Nasir Hossain for corruption charges

The International Cricket Council (ICC) imposed a two-year ban on Bangladesh all-rounder Nasir Hossain from all forms of cricket. The ICC took action after the Bangla cricketer accepted charges of breaching the ICC Anti-Corruption Code. Nasir was charged by the ICC in September 2023 and he admitted three charges, after which he received ban along with a six-month suspension. He last played an ODI for Bangladesh in 2018.

WATCH: Rishabh Pant jokes around with Virat Kohli during India's practice

Rishabh Pant was spotted at Team India's practice session ahead of the third T20I against Afghanistan in Bengaluru. The Delhi native has been recovering at the National Cricket Academy in Karnataka's capital since his horrific car accident. Coming back to the training session at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Pant was spotted joking around with India's number three Virat Kohli.

Koi farak nahi padta: Md Shami on Hardik Pandya’s exit from GT

There has been news around Hardik Pandya's infamous departure to Mumbai Indians. Off late, star Indian pacer Mohammed Shami grabbed the limelight for his comments made on Hardik's departure. "Kisiko kisi ke jana se koi farak nahi padta (no one cares about anyone (Hardik Pandya) leaving the franchise). Hardik wanted to leave and he left," Shami said.

Shreyas Iyer breaks silence on snub from Team India for AFG T20Is

Middle-order batter, Shreyas Iyer finally broke silence on his snub for the Indian side for the ongoing Afghanistan series. Speaking on the sidelines of Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy match, Iyer said, “See, right now I’m being in the game in the present. I came, I executed, so I am happy with what I’m doing. Something that is not in my control, I can’t be focusing on that.”

Asked Nehra for a job at GT but he declined: Yuvraj Singh

Former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh on Monday made some shocking claims around his former teammate. While speaking of taking up coaching roles with an IPL franchise, Singh revealed that he had asked Ashish Nehra for a job, but the latter denied it upfront. “I asked Mr Ashish Nehra (Gujarat Titans) for a job, but he declined it," he said.

New Zealand beat Pakistan by 45 runs in third T20I; clinch series

Collective effort from New Zealand with the ball as all five bowlers finish amongst the wickets in the third T20I, helping them seal the five-match T20I series 3-0 with two more games to go. Finn Allen smoked out the Pakistani bowlers within the first powerplay to pretty much settle the match, equaling the record for most innings in a T20I innings.