The star fast bowler of the Indian side, Mohammed Shami, went through a poor 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), as he kept struggling with several injuries under the leadership of Pat Cummins. Getting roped in for INR 10 crore in the mega auction, Shami featured in nine games to pick up six wickets at an average of 56.16.

Shami is uncertain about his future for the IPL in the Orange Army as the franchise could look to refuse the bowling services of the veteran, who has not been picked since the end of the Asia Cup for the national side during the Test series in England, and was omitted from the 15-member squad of the Asia Cup 2025.

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“I’m ready to play for any team that raises the paddle for me (at the auction). There is nothing in my hands. It is IPL, the festival of cricket, and it is entertainment for people. Whoever lifts the paddle for you, go along with them.” The Bengal pacer expressed on News24.

Mohammed Shami drops bombshell on IPL 2026 future for SRH

The best season for the pacer in IPL history came in 2023 when Shami, playing for the Gujarat Titans, picked up 28 wickets in 17 innings at an average of under 19 and an average of 18.3 with an economy rate of eight. He now has a total of 133 scalps in 119 IPL innings at 28.18 with an economy rate of under nine.

In his entire IPL career, Shami has represented five IPL franchises. In IPL 2013, he debuted for the Kolkata Knight Riders before featuring for Delhi Capitals till 2018, where he wasn’t a regular in the side. He featured in three seasons for Punjab and bagged 58 wickets in 42 games for the side.

In the upcoming edition of the event, a few franchises will look for a veteran Indian pacer, and Mohammed Shami could be among the top five choices of those franchises. Lucknow Super Giants may get a huge sum of money with them having no update on their young sensational Mayank Yadav, as they are likely to release Akash Deep, who they roped in for INR 8 crore.

Former South African opener Sarel Johannes Erwee has praised England’s young pacer Sonny Baker, urging his inclusion in the squad for The Ashes 2025. Erwee, who retired from all formats earlier this year, took to X (formerly Twitter) to share his thoughts, stating that Baker’s skillset would be highly effective in Australian conditions. The five-match Test series between England and Australia begins on November 21, 2025, and Erwee believes Baker’s pace and style could make a notable impact. He also mentioned that if Baker doesn’t make the Test squad, he would still be an exciting prospect to watch in the SA20 League, adding fuel to the growing buzz around the 22-year-old.

Sonny Baker first made headlines when he was selected for England’s Under-19 squad in 2021. Although injury ruled him out of the World Cup the following year, his ability to generate sharp inswing was highly regarded. Baker is among the rare bowlers to have earned an England development contract before debuting in the County Championship. He showcased his potential in Australia, taking three wickets in 18 overs in a one-off Test for the England Lions. Since moving from Hampshire to Somerset last year, Baker impressed further, claiming his maiden five-wicket haul in just his second County Championship match against reigning champions Surrey.

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“Huuuuuge shout this, I know, BUT I’d put Sonny Baker on that plane to Aus for the Ashes—Bowls rockets and shapes it nicely. Yes, he’s inexperienced, but it looks like he has that X factor! If not… maybe SA20 then. Adrian Birrell coaches him at Hampshire, so how about Sunrisers?” Erwee wrote on his X handle. 

Sonny Baker has been phenomenal in The Hundred's so far

Baker, who missed the last season due to injury, took 2-26 in the side’s campaign opener. His performances in the ongoing edition prove why the Englishman is being highly rated. Notably, the uncapped pacer was retained by the Originals despite missing the entire last season. According to BBC Sport, Baker has the second-highest average speed in this year’s Hundred at 85.6 mph. He was included in the playing XI at the expense of 43-year-old James Anderson. Representing Manchester Originals, he produced an inspiring spell against London Spirit on Monday, August 11. The right-arm pacer conceded just four runs in his first 10 balls against international batting stalwarts like David Warner and Kane Williamson.

He then dismissed Australian all-rounder Ashton Turner to finish the spell, conceding only 21 runs off 20 deliveries. He was the most economical among all bowlers in the match. His spell paved the way for the Originals’ emphatic 10-run win over the Spirits despite Warner’s brisk 71-run knock. After the win, the Originals skipper Phil Salt couldn’t resist comparing the 22-year-old uncapped player with the legendary James Anderson. 

Sunrisers Hyderabad CEO Kavya Maran has been named as one of the 14 members of the Telangana Sports Policy board. The new panel has been formed as part of the state's broader strategy to promote sporting development. Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy officially launched the policy during the inaugural Telangana Sports Conclave held in Hyderabad.

The Sports Policy of Telangana is designed to promote sports activities, upgrade the sports infrastructure, and provide help to sportsmen from the grassroots level up to the international level. A significant element of the policy includes the creation of a Board of Governors to supervise the Telangana Sports Development Fund. The fund will be directed toward helping athletes excel at national and international events, including the Olympics.

The policy has roped in several big names from Indian sports and business. World Cup-winning cricket captain Kapil Dev, Olympic gold medalist shooter Abhinav Bindra, ace badminton coach Pullela Gopichand, former Indian football captain Bhaichung Bhutia, and business tycoon Sanjiv Goenka are some of the leading members of this committee of high-powered personalities.

Kavya Maran's Rise in Sports Administration

Kavya Maran, the daughter of Sun Group Chairman Kalanithi Maran, is one of the youngest people on the policy board. She is a regular presence in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and has been seen in the stands passionately cheering on the Sunrisers Hyderabad. This inclusion in the policy board is of major significance for the involvement of younger and impactful voices in Indian sports development.

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Kavya comes from a politically and economically influential family, and she has a strong legacy. It is known that her grandfather Murasoli Maran was a senior DMK leader and her uncle Dayanidhi Maran has been in the Lok Sabha several times and also held Union Cabinet positions. Her appointment as one of the most influential women in the Indian sports business highlights her increasing involvement and contribution in the field.

It has been the biggest surprise of the recent times in the Indian cricket that Mohammed Shami, despite being fit for the three weeks of Champions Trophy and later in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 for the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), didn’t feature in any of the Test matches for the national side during their trips to Australia and England in seven months.

The Blue Brigade struggled with their pace bowling attack, led by Jasprit Bumrah, who couldn’t play more than three games of the series. That was where, even after Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, and Mohammed Siraj did well with the ball, the national side under a young captain, Shubman Gill, struggled for experience in the eleven.

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Recently, the Sunrisers have posted a video of the Bengal pacer practicing in the nets with the ball. He was seen to do some stretching and running, besides bowling to a batter in the nets. The veteran looked fluent with the ball as he ran hard to create difficulties for the batters.

Watch: Mohammed Shami starts preparation before Duleep Trophy 2025

It was a poor season with the ball for Shami in the IPL 2025, where he picked just six wickets in nine innings at an average of 56.16 and a strike rate of 30 with an economy rate of more than 11. In 122 Test innings, the right-arm pacer has picked up 229 wickets at an average of 27.71 and a strike rate of 50.2, with his last game coming during the WTC 2023 final against Australia at the Kennington Oval.

The hustle and grind continue behind the scenes 💪🏻

📸: @MdShami11

Mohammad Shami | #PlayWithFire pic.twitter.com/TasXolYE8l

— SunRisers Hyderabad (@SunRisers) August 2, 2025

After being neglected for the national commitment, Shami has been picked in the East Zone squad for the Duleep Trophy 2025-26. Along with him, Bengal’s Abhimanyu Easwaran and Akash Deep were also part of the squad. Shami’s last first-class game was for the Bengal side during the Ranji Trophy in November last year.

Duleep Trophy will give him a great chance to get ready for the upcoming home Test season against the West Indies and South Africa, while the national side will also make a trip to Australia for a white-ball series. With the T20 World Cup awaiting, his role will be crucial, along with fitness.

It was the first week of February this year when the news came out that a third Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise had bought stakes in the ongoing Hundred sale. The Sun Group, owners of the Sunrisers Hyderabad, made the highest bid to buy a stake in the Northern Superchargers, whose host county is Yorkshire. They have agreed to get 100% of the side, both of ECB’s 49% and Yorkshire’s 51%.

On July 30, the Yorkshire Cricket Club confirmed the news of the operational control taking place from October 01, 2025. The deal sees a significant move when the club will get a financial influx, alongside getting a new, renowned strategic partner.

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‘This is a significant moment for everyone involved with Yorkshire Cricket and the Sun Group. The Sunrisers are going to be a great partner for the Club. It was clear from the first time we met them that they care about cricket and Yorkshire, and there are some very exciting times ahead of us. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at the Sun Group for their support in getting us to this stage and look forward to welcoming them to the Yorkshire Cricket family.’ Sanjay Patel, the CEO of the club, expressed in a statement.

Sun Group completes 100% stake of Northern Superchargers in The Hundred

‘The deal puts the Club in a strong financial position, which has been far from the case for many years here, and we can start looking towards a very bright future. The priority is clearing our debts. We will then be looking at how we can invest the surplus funds to not only safeguard the future, but enable us to flourish.’ He added.

Along with the IPL, where the franchise became the champions of the 2016 season and ended up one step short of the same title-winning campaign in 2024, losing the final to the Kolkata Knight Riders. Their SA20 franchise became the champions of the first two editions of the event in South Africa.

‘We’re excited to have acquired the Northern Superchargers and to begin this new chapter in close collaboration with Yorkshire County Cricket Club. Yorkshire’s proud cricketing heritage, its passionate fan base, and the iconic Headingley Stadium make this a truly special opportunity. We are committed to building upon that legacy.’ Kavya Maran, the head of Sports, Sun TV Network Limited, shed light.

The left-handed opening batter of the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Abhishek Sharma, has earned the top spot in the T20I batters’ rankings, as he replaced his IPL opening partner, Travis Head, with a rating of 829, nearly 15 more than the left-handed batter, who lost his position for the first time in more than a year. 

Abhishek Sharma burst into the international scene last year when he smashed a superb T20I century against Zimbabwe. However, he continued to struggle for consistency in the format before showing recent efforts against South Africa and England. The 24-year-old overtakes Head to become the third Indian player to hold the No. 1 spot in T20I after Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav.

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Head was at the top place after he went past Sky during last year’s Men’s T20 World Cup, but his decision to sit out of the five-match T20I series against the West Indies in the Caribbean has seen him lose the position to Sharma. Suryakumar held the top rank while Kohli was the first Indian player to hold the spot during the period between 2014 and 2017.

India show dominance with number one ranks in various departments

India is now the number one-ranked side in the ODIs and T20Is, while their Test batter, Shubman Gill, remains the number one 50-over ranked batter. Abhishek, who has smashed 535 T20I runs in 16 innings at a strike rate of 193.84, joins Jasprit Bumrah, who is the number one-ranked Test bowler.

Number 1 ODI team - India
Number 1 T20I team - India
Number 1 ODI batter - Gill
Number 1 T20I batter - Abhishek
Number 1 Test bowler - Bumrah
Number 1 Test all-rounder - Jadeja
Number 1 T20I all-rounder - Hardik

THE DOMINANCE OF TEAM INDIA 🇮🇳💥 pic.twitter.com/jtoESTvD6B

— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) July 30, 2025

Ravindra Jadeja and Hardik Pandya are also the number one-ranked all-rounders in the Test and T20I formats. Josh Inglis, who celebrated two half-centuries in the Caribbean T20Is, has moved six places up to the ninth rank among T20I batters. Cameron Green climbs up a whopping 64 spots to go to 24th after his 205 runs across five matches and the Player of the Series heroics.

The pace bowling all-rounder for India and the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) has broken the silence on the current reports of him looking to part ways with the franchise. For the last seven days, there had been several speculations on whether the youngster would leave the franchise ahead of the 2026 edition.

Reddy, on July 27, has taken the route to the social media platforms to clear the air on how some things would require clarity. The India star tore apart the rumours that stated that he would always stand by the franchise, and there would have been no truth to such words, flying around in the news outlets.

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‘I tend to stay away from the noise, but some things deserve clarity. My connection with SRH is built on trust, respect, and years of shared passion. I’ll always stand by this team.’ Nitish Kumar Reddy penned down on his X handle (formerly known as Twitter).

Nitish Kumar Reddy breaks silence on reports of leaving SRH ahead of IPL 2026

Reddy didn’t even have an average performance during the previous season of the tournament. In the 13 encounters, the right-handed batter smashed 182 runs at an average of 22.7 and a strike rate of under 120. He retained the management for a price of INR 6 crore, which shows the trust they have in the youngster. A report, earlier, claimed that Reddy wasn’t happy with the SRH set-up and was planning to leave the franchise.

I tend to stay away from the noise, but some things deserve clarity. My connection with SRH is built on trust, respect, and years of shared passion.
I’ll always stand by this team. 🧡

— Nitish Kumar Reddy (@NKReddy07) July 27, 2025

After the end of the IPL 2024, Reddy flew to Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25, where he celebrated his very first century of the longest format at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Boxing Day. Those performances pushed him to make it into the squad for the five-match red-ball series in England.

However, things didn’t go as planned. He featured in the first two games at Lord’s and Edgbaston, besides scoring 45 runs and picking three wickets. Reddy was preferred over Shardul in those two games before a ligament damage injury, which he picked up in the gym, ruled him out of the series.

Even though the focus of the Indian fans is on the ongoing five-match Test series between England and India, half an eye is on the ongoing trade news for the upcoming 2026 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), as some of the franchises have already started to make their preparations for the trades of the next edition.

The reports have claimed that the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) is expected to release the premier Indian pacer, Mohammed Shami, before the IPL 2026. The Indian pacer, who is currently out of the national red-ball squad, didn’t enjoy a great season recently with the ball. He ended up with just six wickets in nine innings at an average of 56.16 and an economy rate of 11.23 with a strike rate of 30.

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It has been reported that the Mumbai Indians (MI) are keeping their cards ready to get the Bengal pacer on their side. That will make it an incredible bowling line-up in the pace department, including Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, and Trent Boult. If Hyderabad releases him ahead of the next auction, actions will be taken from the Mumbai table.

IPL 2025 Trade News: KKR likely to end association with veteran coaches

A few days ago, reports claimed that the KKR side is eager to trade Shami, which is now unlikely to happen. They are, however, looking to trade a batter for the next edition. However, there could be replacements in the coaching management. It’s likely that both the head coach, Chandrakant Pandit, and the bowling coach, Dwayne Bravo, are expected to end their relationship with the franchise.

A rumour of Shami to KKR is trending which is absolutely rubbish. There is no interest, no talks at all. SRH will release him ahead of the auction, MI is the only team who is interested, but they'll fancy their chances in auction as well. KKR is still in for a batter for trade. https://t.co/IW9IMSSfbU

— RCBXTRA (@RCBXTRAOFFICIAL) July 17, 2025

 The inside news has broken out that the owners felt the squad was capable of bigger things in the last season, but the coaching management took a few ugly decisions, for which a few big calls are expected to be made.

Kolkata, under the captaincy of Ajinkya Rahane, finished in the eighth position in the points table. They earned five victories in 14 group-stage encounters at a net run rate of -0.30. In the first six games of the season, they got one victory in three games before the campaign was destroyed in the middle of the season. A few close encounters could have gone their way to get themselves close to the top four.

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) has been inconsistent in their bowling coach’s role since Dale Steyn parted ways before the 2025 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. That led them to hire the former New Zealand all-rounder, James Franklin, for the last edition, where their work didn’t go as planned. Steyn’s decision came after he got the work for the Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the SA20.

Franklin, who played for the Mumbai Indians in 2011 and 2012, didn’t earn much success in the franchise, where he linked up with the former Kiwi captain and the current Australian head coach, Daniel Vettori, who was also appointed the head coach of the Orange Army. The decision to change James has perhaps come on the back of the last edition’s unsuccessful campaign.

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The news from the camp, as they revealed on social media, is that the former Indian and the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) fast bowler, Varun Aaron, has shaken hands with the 2016 champions. The 35-year-old was also part of the Kolkata Knight Riders, Delhi Capitals, and the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL.

Virat Kohli’s former teammate joins SRH as the new bowling coach

It wasn’t a great and successful national career for the right-arm pacer, who picked up only 18 wickets in 14 Test innings at an average of over 52 and a strike rate of nearly 66, thanks to the best figures of 3/97 in an innings. In the 50-over format, Aaron has bagged 11 wickets in nine innings at an average of over 38 with the best figures of 3/24 in an innings. He was always known for his expressive pace to hurry the batters at the crease and create immense pressure on them.

A fiery addition to our coaching staff! Welcome Varun Aaron as our new bowling coach 🔥🧡#PlayWithFire pic.twitter.com/qeg1bWntC5

— SunRisers Hyderabad (@SunRisers) July 14, 2025

The Jharkhand-born finished his FC career with 173 wickets at an average of nearly 33. For the shortest format, Aaron has 93 wickets in as many innings at an average of almost 30 and an economy rate of 8.53. In 50 innings of the IPL for five various sides, the pacer picked up 44 wickets at an economy rate of below nine.

Aaron will join the camp from the next season, where he will get the chance to work with Pat Cummins, Mohammed Shami, Harshal Patel, and others. It wasn’t a positive show from the side after they ended up as the runners-up in 2024, and development will be very important.

Wiaan Mulder Leads South Africa’s Comeback After Early Trouble

South Africa is off to a strong start on Day 1 of the second Test against Zimbabwe. After winning the first match by a huge margin, they were in a bit of trouble early in this game but have recovered well thanks to captain Wiaan Mulder.

Zimbabwe chose to bowl first and had South Africa struggling at 24 for 2, with Tony de Zorzi getting out for 10 and Lesego Senokwane for 3. But Mulder played a great innings, scoring an unbeaten century and holding the innings together. He reached his hundred in 116 balls and even broke a big record, beating Herbie Taylor’s 1913 mark for the highest score by a South African captain in a first Test innings.

By the time of writing, South Africa is 205 for 2 in 47.4 overs. Mulder is still batting, with David Bedingham giving solid support on 81 not out. South Africa will look to keep building on this strong position as the match continues.

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Top Scores by South African Captains in Their First Test as Captain

• 110 Runs – Wiaan Mulder vs Zimbabwe, Bulawayo, 2025

• 109 Runs – Herbie Taylor vs England, Durban, 1913

• 104 Runs – Jackie McGlew vs England, Manchester, 1955

• 59 Runs – Kepler Wessels vs West Indies, Bridgetown, 1992

• 57 Runs – Ali Bacher vs Australia, Cape Town, 1970