An astonishing 20 wickets tumbled on a frenetic opening day of the fourth Ashes Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday, leaving the Boxing Day clash delicately poised and the record crowd on the edge of their seats.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Under heavy cloud cover and on a lively green surface, England skipper Ben Stokes made the most of a crucial toss, inserting Australia and unleashing his pace attack. In front of a staggering 94,199 spectators — the largest cricket crowd ever recorded at the MCG — Australia were skittled for 152 before roaring back to bowl England out for just 110 in an action-packed day dominated by fast bowlers.

Josh Tongue was England’s standout performer with the ball, returning superb figures of 5 for 45 as Australia collapsed despite brief resistance. But any advantage England gained was swiftly erased by their own dramatic batting implosion, slipping to 16 for 4 and never truly recovering.Mitchell Starc and Michael Neser struck early blows, with England opener Ben Duckett enduring another miserable moment in a difficult week, falling for two after lobbing a simple catch to mid-on. Neser then removed Jacob Bethell, recalled in place of Ollie Pope, before Starc and Neser combined to rip through the top order. Zak Crawley and Joe Root departed in quick succession, plunging England into freefall.Harry Brook counter-attacked with a breezy 41, striking sixes to momentarily halt the collapse alongside Stokes, but Scott Boland turned the screws yet again at his favourite venue. The 36-year-old, who famously took 6 for 7 at the MCG in 2021, produced another devastating spell, dismissing Brook lbw before removing Jamie Smith and Will Jacks in the space of 10 deliveries.

Neser capped off England’s misery by dismissing Stokes for 16, finishing with 4 for 45 as the tourists folded cheaply. Australia were left to safely negotiate a single over before stumps, with nightwatchman Boland and Travis Head taking the hosts to 4 without loss, a slender but valuable 46-run lead.Earlier, England’s bowlers had set the tone after lunch, with Tongue and Gus Atkinson exploiting movement to dismantle Australia’s top order. Travis Head’s brisk cameo ended early, while Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith fell cheaply, the latter bowled by Tongue. Usman Khawaja fought back with a fluent 29, but edges and soft dismissals kept Australia on the back foot.With the Ashes already retained by Australia following dominant wins in Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide, England arrived in Melbourne desperate for pride.

Vijay Hazare Trophy Live Score: The debate around Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s ODI future gathered pace after BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar’s remarks in October 2025, when India’s squad for the Australia series was unveiled. While both senior batters were included, their uncertainty about playing the 2027 ODI World Cup sparked discussion. With T20Is and Tests already behind them, questions emerged about how they would stay motivated and maintain match fitness amid long breaks.

Those doubts appeared justified during the Australia series, which followed seven months without international cricket and nearly four months without professional cricket. Kohli struggled in the opening two ODIs, Rohit looked tentative, and visible rust led to speculation over whether time was catching up with them. However, the third ODI altered perceptions. Even though India had already lost the series, the sight of Rohit and Kohli batting together again brought reassurance and familiarity.

The momentum carried into the South Africa series, where Kohli looked close to his best, showcasing crisp footwork and timing, while Rohit regained fluency and ended with a fifty. Around the same period, attention shifted to domestic cricket following a new rule requiring centrally contracted players to feature domestically. The spotlight fell squarely on the two veterans, and both responded by turning out in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

On December 24, they delivered emphatic statements of intent. Kohli scored 131 off 101 balls on his return after 15 years, becoming the fastest to 16,000 List A runs, while Rohit smashed 155 off 94. More than the centuries, their willingness to commit to domestic cricket highlighted enduring passion, focus and relevance, reaffirming their place as a formidable force in India’s one-day setup.

At just 14, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s cricketing journey has taken an extraordinary turn — from rewriting domestic records to being honoured on India’s biggest civilian stage for children. The Bihar batting prodigy is not part of his state’s Vijay Hazare Trophy fixture on Friday, not due to injury or loss of form, but because he is in New Delhi to receive the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar, India’s highest civilian award for youngsters.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Sooryavanshi arrived in the capital on Wednesday and is set to be conferred the prestigious honour at a ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan, where President Droupadi Murmu will felicitate the awardees. The occasion will be followed by an interaction with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a rare and inspiring moment for a teenager still at the start of his cricketing life.

The award explains his absence from Bihar’s ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy campaign. According to his childhood coach Manish Ojha, Sooryavanshi had to report early in the morning for the ceremony, making him unavailable for Friday’s match and the remainder of the tournament. While missing competitive games is never easy for a young athlete, the national recognition represents a milestone few sportspersons experience so early in their careers.Sooryavanshi’s selection for the Bal Puraskar comes on the back of a jaw-dropping performance that stunned the domestic circuit. In Bihar’s opening Vijay Hazare Trophy match against Arunachal Pradesh, the left-hander smashed 190 off just 84 balls, laced with 16 fours and 15 sixes. He reached his century in only 36 balls, becoming the youngest centurion in List A cricket, and powered Bihar to a world-record 574/6 in 50 overs.

The Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar is awarded annually to children aged 5–18 for exceptional achievements across fields such as sports, bravery, innovation, science and social service. For Sooryavanshi, it recognises not just one innings, but a body of promise that has marked him out as a rare talent.Following the ceremony, the teenager is expected to join the India Under-19 squad, with preparations underway for the upcoming U-19 World Cup in Zimbabwe starting January 15.

England surged through Australia on day one of the fourth Ashes Test, skittling the hosts for 152 as they seized early control at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Captain Ben Stokes won a crucial toss on a green pitch, and his pace trio attacked from the outset as overcast skies hung over a packed crowd.Openers Travis Head and Jake Weatherald fell cheaply for 12 and 10, while Marnus Labuschagne scraped to 6 as Gus Atkinson and Josh Tongue found ample movement. Steve Smith looked to steady the innings but was dismissed for 9 when Tongue found his middle stump. England’s fans, the famous “Barmy Army,” celebrated as the hosts faltered.

Post-lunch, Usman Khawaja (29), Alex Carey (20) and Cameron Green (17) offered brief resistance before fading. Neser led Australia’s scoring with 35, but Tongue’s residual menace yielded five wickets for 45 runs.Australia had already secured the series after comfortable wins in Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide, leaving England hoping to salvage pride in Melbourne. The tourists, criticized for their limited Ashes preparations, watched the urn slip away in 11 days amid controversy over off-field behavior during a mid-series beach break.Missing the injured Jofra Archer, England brought back Atkinson, who opened the bowling. An aggressive Head struck back-to-back boundaries off a wayward Brydon Carse, yet he fell for 22, middle-order chopping on to Atkinson’s next over. Weatherald also didn’t last long, feathering one to Jamie Smith off Tongue’s first ball, and Labuschagne edged to slip where Joe Root accepted the catch.Smith and Khawaja briefly steadied, but Tongue struck again, removing the Australia captain and shifting momentum England’s way. The sun appeared as the innings resumed after lunch, and Khawaja lofted a sumptuous boundary off Atkinson, only to fall next ball on a marginal edge to Smith; Carey then flicked Stokes to Zak Crawley at leg gully.Green’s return to form was brief as he crunched successive fours off Tongue, while Neser’s counterpunch in his fourth Test but first red-ball appearance came with three consecutive boundaries off the same bowler. Alas, disaster struck once more: Green was run out for 17 attempting a risky single, and Stokes held a high catch at mid-off as Starc hoisted Carse before Tongue dismissed Neser and Boland, ending Australia’s innings.

MUM vs UT Live Score: Context, Contrast, and the Bigger Picture

While Rohit owned Jaipur, the Vijay Hazare Trophy delivered plenty elsewhere too.

Virat Kohli starred for Delhi with a commanding 131, becoming the fastest to 16,000 List A runs, while Punjab piled on 347 against Maharashtra thanks to Naman Dhir’s 97.

Yet none of that quite matched the theatre in Jaipur.

Sikkim’s Ashish Thapa fought with a 79, but the contest was never really one. This was a day that underlined why Indian cricket still thrives on its stars — why a weekday can feel like a festival, why stadiums fill on promise alone.

Rohit Sharma didn’t just win a match; he reminded everyone why crowds still come for the man, not just the game.

NEW DELHI: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi created history with a stunning performance in the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Wednesday. Playing for Bihar in their first Plate Group match of the 2025–26 season, the 14-year-old opener produced one of the most remarkable innings ever seen in domestic cricket.Sooryavanshi smashed 190 runs from just 84 balls against Arunachal Pradesh. He opened the batting for the Sakibul Gani-led Bihar side and completely dominated the bowlers from the start. During his explosive knock, he hit 16 fours and 15 sixes, showing confidence and power well beyond his age.With this innings, Sooryavanshi achieved a unique world record. He became the first men’s cricketer in history to score centuries in both List A and T20 cricket before turning 15. The youngster from Samastipur has already made headlines earlier by becoming the youngest player to score a century in the IPL and T20 cricket.On Wednesday, he added another milestone to his growing list of achievements. At 14 years and 272 days, Sooryavanshi became the youngest batter to score a century in men’s List A cricket. He broke a long-standing record held by Pakistan’s Zahoor Elahi, who was 15 years and 209 days old when he scored an unbeaten 103 in 1986.Sooryavanshi reached his century in just 36 balls against Arunachal Pradesh. At that moment, it was the second-fastest List A hundred by an Indian batter. However, by the end of the day, his effort slipped to fourth place after Sakibul Gani and Ishan Kishan scored even faster centuries in 32 and 33 balls respectively.The young batter was not done even after reaching his hundred. He raced to 150 runs in just 59 balls, breaking another major record. This effort helped him surpass AB de Villiers’ record for the fastest 150 in List A cricket. De Villiers had taken 64 balls to reach the mark during the 2015 ODI World Cup match between South Africa and West Indies.Sooryavanshi’s knock played a huge role in Bihar posting a massive total, which later became a world record score of 574 in List A cricket. His fearless approach and record-breaking innings have once again underlined why he is seen as one of the brightest young talents in Indian cricket.

NEW DELHI: No sportsperson has been recommended for the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award for 2025, marking the first time in a decade that the nation’s highest sporting honour has not been conferred. The selection panel that met in the Capital on Wednesday picked 24 names for the Arjuna award but decided not to grant the Khel Ratna to anyone, TOI has reliably learnt.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!The recommendations will be sent to sports minister Mansukh Mandaviya for his final assent.Names of compound archer Jyothi Surekha Vennam and women’s World Cup-winning cricketers Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana were debated by committee members but were ultimately not considered for the Khel Ratna for varied reasons. This is only the third occasion since the award was instituted in 1991-92 that no athlete has been chosen for the Khel Ratna, the other instances being in 2008 and 2014. Known as the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna until Aug, 2021, the award carries a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh, a medallion and a citation.

In a first, yogasana athlete Aarti Pal was recommended for the Arjuna award, five years after the sport was formally recognised by the ministry. Among others recommended award were chess prodigy Divya Deshmukh, the first Indian woman to win the FIDE women’s World Cup earlier this year; decathlete Tejaswin Shankar, who won silver at the Asian Games in 2023; and the women’s badminton pairing of Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand.Meanwhile, it was learnt that Jyothi was again overlooked as compound archery was not part of the Olympics until the Paris Games last year. Compound archery has been added to Los Angeles 2028. The 29-year-old world champion and Asia No 1 archer has been logging the highest points among Khel Ratna applicants for the past three years.Similarly, the names of Harmanpreet Kaur, women’s cricket captain and her deputy, Smriti Mandhana were discussed at length but were left out of the recommendations as there is no specific points system to assess cricketers’ performance. “In such a case, the committee relies on the recommendations made by the Indian cricket board (BCCI). There were no nominations of either men’s or women’s cricketers by the president or secretary general of the BCCI,” a source said. Pacer Mohammed Shami was the last cricketer to receive the honour in 2023.Arjuna award recommendations:

Tristan Stubbs, Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, Rashid Khan, Faf du Plessis and Aiden Markram will lead the lines when the SA20 fourth season gets underway on Friday (December 26). In the absence of the traditional Boxing Day Test and a home Test series, Cricket South Africa (CSA) will hope that the SA20’s timing, coming within a fortnight of the T20 World Cup, will help put the necessary finishing touches.Of the six names mentioned above, and those who assembled in a hotel in Cape Town this past week, only one will be holding the captaincy duties for the first time. With Markram moving to Durban’s Super Giants for R14 million, it created a leadership hole within two-time SA20 champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape (SEC).

Up stepped 25-year-old Tristan Stubbs. The local boy, born in Gqeberha, will carry the hopes of the Orange Army. The idea of going ‘local’ is evident considering the SEC have more experienced heads such as Jonny Bairstow and Quinton de Kock in the squad.“We’ve had three pretty successful seasons under Aiden. So the Sunrisers, as a team, has a mandate to enjoy the month, play as hard as you can, and it’ll be pretty much like that. We’ll play hard on the field, compete for everything, but we’re just going to enjoy it,” said Stubbs on JioStar Press Room ahead of ahead of SA20 Season 4.The local contingent and flavour gets even stronger with Matthew Breetzke, Anrich Nortje, Lutho Sipamla and Marco Jansen hoping to make it three titles in four years for the Eastern Cape faithful.

“One challenge I have for the local boys is: let’s really make sure we show the overseas boys what South Africa is all about,” Stubbs said in an Instagram video shared by the franchise. “Make sure we play as hard as we can on the field, but off the field, we show what our country has to offer.”He reiterated that challenge to the players once again within a few days of the competition.“We’ve got a lot of local boys who are brought up in PE (Port Elizabeth), live in PE. And I can’t explain to people what playing at St. George’s (Park) means when you’re a local boy. And that’s going to hopefully feed through the team and just motivate everyone to do what we’ve done in the first three years and hopefully just match that sort of intensity on the field,” he stated.The new SEC skipper has much to prove in the upcoming edition – not just as a captain but as a batter at the top of the order. With 301 runs, he was their leading run-scorer in the second season and seventh-highest overall. For the Proteas, he scored two Test centuries, his first ODI ton and was their second-highest scorer in T20Is.2025 has been the complete opposite. For the SEC he scored 232 runs, third most for the franchise and 14th overall. For South Africa he scored only 259 runs from six Test matches, produced 100 runs less than the previous year in ODIs and his average in T20Is dropped from 35.91 to 21.71.

One reason for these lower returns could be attributed to his constant shuffling in the batting order from anywhere between No. 3 and No. 6. He would, however, take heart from recent performances in Pakistan and India. He saw highs of 76 against Pakistan in Rawalpindi and 94 against India in Guwahati. These positive returns, albeit in the longest format, are a good omen for Stubbs and the national team with everyone keeping one eye on the T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, starting February 7. South Africa will play their first match less than two weeks after the SA20 final (January 25).“It’s great that we’ll be playing T20 cricket literally up until days before the World Cup starting. But I don’t think you want to be putting too much energy into your SA20 teams and asking guys to worry about the World Cup. That’s pretty much just after it,” said South Africa T20I captain Aiden Markram, who will steer the DSG ship in the upcoming season.“It’s two completely separate events and I think it’s important that the players treat it that way. It’s an exciting month. It’s a fun month in South Africa and it’s a month that the guys must really enjoy on and off the field.”“And when we get to the World Cup, guys would have had a lot of T20 games under their belt. So hopefully there’s some good confidence and good form that we can take forward and take care of the World Cup when we get to Indian shores,” he added.

Kagiso Rabada, who is part of defending champions MI Cape Town, echoed some of the thoughts shared by Markram.“It’s a fantastic opportunity to get games under your belt and get used to the flow of T20 cricket. We haven’t really played much T20 cricket this year. So yeah, it’s going to be a great tournament,” said the seamer who missed the recent India series due to a rib injury.“I think the teams this season have balanced out really well. In the previous three seasons, the management and the people who are responsible for picking the teams have figured out what it takes to do well in South Africa with the varying conditions around the country.“So, those are the challenges, playing well in the different regions of the country. And as a bowler, how you need to adjust with that. The batters are looking strong and it’s really exciting. So, it’s going to be fantastic prep, I guess, if chosen for the World Cup,” added Rabada.QUICK FACTS

Durban’s Super GiantsHome: Kingsmead, DurbanLast season: SixthCaptain: Aiden MarkramSquad: Marques Ackerman, Noor Ahmad, David Bedingham, Eathan Bosch, Jos Buttler, Gerald Coetzee, Devon Conway, Tony de Zorzi, Daryn Dupavillon, Dayyaan Galiem, Evan Jones, Heinrich Klaasen, Kwena Maphaka, Aiden Markram (capt), Sunil Narine, Andile Simelane, Gysbert Wege, David Wiese, Kane WilliamsonJoburg Super KingsHome: Wanderers, JohannesburgLast season: Lost EliminatorCaptain: Faf du PlessisSquad: Jarren Bacher, Nandre Burger, Matthew de Villiers, Faf du Plessis (capt), Donovan Ferreira, Dian Forrester, Richard Gleeson, Akeal Hosein, Rivaldo Moonsamy, Wiaan Mulder, Shubham Ranjane, Rilee Rossouw, Janco Smit, Steve Stolk, Prenelan Subrayen, Imran Tahir, Neil Timmers, Reece Topley, Jorich van Schalkwyk, James Vince, Daniel WorrallMI Cape TownHome: Newlands, Cape TownLast season: CHAMPIONSCaptain: Rashid KhanSquad: Squad: Corbin Bosch, Trent Boult, Reeza Hendricks, Karim Janat, Thomas Kaber, Rashid Khan (capt), Dan Lategan, George Linde, Tristan Luus, Tom Moores, Dane Piedt, Nicholas Pooran, Dwaine Pretorius, Ryan Rickelton, Kagiso Rabada, Jason Smith, Jacques Snyman, Rassie van der Dussen, Tiaan van VuurenPaarl RoyalsHome: Boland Park, PaarlLast season: Lost in Qualifier 2Captain: David MillerSquad: Ottneil Baartman, JJ Basson, Bjorn Fortuin, Vishen Halambage, Rubin Hermann, Dan Lawrence, Keagan Lion-Cachet, Eshan Malinga, David Miller (capt), Nqobani Mokoena, Gudakesh Motie, Nqaba Peter, Delano Potgieter, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Sikandar Raza, Thomas Rew, Asa Tribe, Mujeeb Ur-Rahman, Kyle Verreynne, Hardus ViljoenPretoria CapitalsHome: SuperSport Park, CenturionLast season: FifthCaptain: Keshav MaharajSquad: Dewald Brevis, Roston Chase, Jordan Cox, Junaid Dawood, Keith Dudgeon, Connor Esterhuizen, Shai Hope, Wihan Lubbe, Keshav Maharaj (capt), Sibonelo Makhanya, Lungi Ngidi, Bryce Parsons, Gideon Peters, Meeka-eel Prince, Andre Russell, Sherfane Rutherford, Will Smeed, Daniel Smith, Lizaad Williams, Codie YusufSunrisers Eastern CapeHome: St George’s Park, GqeberhaLast season: Runners-upCaptain: Tristan StubbsSquad: Jonny Bairstow, Matthew Breetzke, James Coles, Quinton de Kock, AM Ghazanfar, Lewis Gregory, Jordan Hermann, Marco Jansen, CJ King, JP King, Patrick Kruger, Adam Milne, Senuran Muthusamy, Anrich Nortje, Tharindu Ratnayake, Lutho Sipamla, Tristan Stubbs (capt), Beyers Swanepoel, Mitchell van Buuren, Chris Wood.Catch all the action from SA20 Season 4, December 26 2025 – January 25 2026, LIVE on JioHotstar and Star Sports Network.