A third division club cricketer from Australia scalped six wickets in six balls to help his side win a local match. Gareth Morgan, captain of Mudgeeraba Nerang & Districts Cricket Club, claimed a sextuple-wicket maiden in a dramatic four-run win over Surfers Paradise CC in a 40-over match in the Gold Coast's Premier League Division 3 competition here on Saturday. Surfers Paradise were chasing 178 and were 174 for 4. They needed just 4 runs in the last over to win the game. But Morgan turned the match on its head as he got a wicket from each of his six deliveries to bowl out Surfers Paradise for 174. Five batsmen were out for golden ducks.
The first four batters were all caught, while the final two were bowled. Morgan ended with a brilliant figures of 7/16 off seven overs. He had earlier taken the wicket of Surfers Paradise opener Jake Garland before the magical over. Morgan had also top-scored for Mudgeeraba with a rapid 39.
The most wickets taken in an over of professional cricket is five, claimed by New Zealand's Neil Wagner for Otago against Wellington in 2011. Bangladesh's Al-Amin Hossain for the UCB-BCB XI against Abhani Limited in 2013 and India's Abhimanyu Mithun for Karnataka against Haryana in 2019 also achieved the same feat.
If anyone has followed cricket casually over the last decade, they're likely familiar with four key names: former Indian captain Virat Kohli, batting genius Steve Smith, English great Joe Root, and New Zealand's all-time leading run-scorer Kane Williamson.
They together are known as the 'Fab Four' in the modern era of cricket.
Each of them has set new benchmarks for performance, continually pushing one another to enhance their skills. These four batsmen have not only dominated the world of cricket but have also met the expectations of their respective nations.
In this article, we will examine the statistics of the Fab Four across all formats.
Fav Four in cricket: How many runs & centuries have they scored in International Cricket?
Virat Kohli has been the most prolific all-format batter among the fav-four. Kohli, till now in his 550 international games, has scored 27,599 runs with an outstanding average of 52.27. His record of 82 international centuries is only second to Sachin Tendulkar's 100 international centuries.
Joe Root comes in second among them with 20,724 runs so far for England across formats. However, undoubtedly, he has been the best test batter of his generation with 12972 test runs, which sets him as the highest test run scorer for England. Root has also scored 53 international hundreds, of which 36 came in tests only.
Kane Williamson, New Zealand's highest runscorer in international cricket, comes at number three in terms of international runs among the fav four. The former Kiwi leader has scored 19,086 runs so far in his career at an average of 48.56. Kane is now only two short of reaching 50 international hundreds.
Aussie great Steven Smith comes at four with 17,165 runs at an average of 47.81. A late bloomer with the bat, Smith has been outstanding for Australia in tests and ODIs. Along with Root, Smith has also been one of the greatest test batters of this generation.
Here is a comparison of international stats of the fav four.
Ranji Trophy was founded as the 'Cricket Championship of India' at a meeting of the Board of Control for Cricket in India in July 1934. The first Ranji Trophy fixtures took place in the 1934-35 season.
Mumbai are the most successful state in Ranji's history, winning 42 titles, including 15 consecutive trophies between 1958 and 1973. Here is the Ranji Trophy winners list since the inaugural season.
Mumbai - The most successful team in the Ranji Trophy
Mumbai with the 2023-24 Ranji Trophy. Image | PTI
Mumbai are the most successful first-class team in Indian domestic cricket across different competitions. They have won the Ranji Trophy title a total of 42 times and also won the inaugural season of this prestigious tournament.
Mumbai won seven out of the first 20 seasons and then between the 1950s and 1970s, they won 20 out of 22 titles in the Ranji Trophy. Mumbai's latest title came in the 2023-24 season.
Karanataka players after winning their second consecutive Ranji Trophy title in 2014-15 season. Image | PTI
After Mumbai, Karnataka have won the most Ranji Trophies (8) followed by Delhi (7), Baroda (5), and Madhya Pradesh (5). Karnataka have been part of the tournament since the inaugural season. They had to wait until the 1973-74 edition to lift their maiden title. Their latest win came in the 2014-15 edition.
Delhi won their maiden Ranji title in 1978-79 and their most recent win came in the 2007-08 edition while Baroda made their first-class debut in 1937 and won their maiden title in 1942-43.
Madhya Pradesh have also won five titles after their debut in the 1941 season. They won their first Ranji title in 1945-46, defeating Baroda in the finals.
Afghanistan vs Australia Champions Trophy 2025 LIVE Updates, Scores, News and free commentary: Australia qualify for semis after match gets abandoned
Stay updated with the Afghanistan vs Australia Champions Trophy 2025 match as this match is set to decide who will qualify for the semis of the tournament from Group B.
Hello and welcome to another LIVE coverage of Champions Trophy 2025 on Sportz Point.
Today, we will cover probably the most important match of the group stage this season. This is Koushik Biswas and Payal Debnath with the Afghanistan vs Australia Champions Trophy 2025 match from the web desk.
Last time when these two teams met, we saw one of the greatest ODI knocks from Glenn Maxwell in the ICC World Cup 2023. This is a must-win match for Afghanistan. If they lose, they will fail to qualify for the semis.
So, sit back and relax as we bring you the stats, LIVE updates, images and free commentary of the match for you. Enjoy the coverage.
LIVE Updates
Feb 28, 2025, 4:14 PM
Australia qualify for the semis
Match abandoned! A shame for the fans in Lahore, but the rain claims another fixture in this Champions Trophy. A point each means Australia are through to the semi-finals! They move to four points while Afghanistan, now on three, need to wait until tomorrow to see if they have snuck through.
Feb 28, 2025, 2:21 PM
Meantime news from the England camp
Feb 28, 2025, 2:03 PM
The rain halts the game
The rain halts the game. Australia are 109/1 after 12.5 overs.
Steve Smith comes to the crease and hits two back-to-back boundaries as they reach 50 in five overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 1:30 PM
Short goes for 20!
After another dropped catch, finally Afghanistan holds on to a catch.
Gulbadin Naib takes a good catch running back at mid-on and Azmatullah Omarzai gets the big wicket of Short!
Australia 44/1
Feb 28, 2025, 1:24 PM
Rashid Khan drops Head!
Massive point of the match. Rashid Khan at mid-on drops Travis Head on 6.
Head tried to go over the circle against Fazalhaq Farooqi and could not get the connection.
Feb 28, 2025, 1:22 PM
Terrific start for Australia | 30/0
Solid, fast start for Australia with the bat. Travis Head and Matthew Short have given Australia the start they were looking for.
Australia 30/0 after 3.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:35 PM
AFG 273 all out after 50 overs
Noor got a top edge on that and given out.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:34 PM
Australia takes review
swings and misses outside off, but steals a bye. Noor to face the final ball. He misses the pull, caught behind appeal, and another bye taken.
Australia takes the review to check whether there was any bat on it.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:32 PM
Azmatullah departs
Caught at deep cover and Azmatullah brilliant knock finally comes to an end.
Fazalhaq Farooqi the last man in.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:30 PM
One-bounce four
Thundered down the ground by Azmatullah for a one-bounce four. Smashed to deep midwicket and Azmatullah prefers not to run again.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:29 PM
Dwarshuis to bowl the final over
Dot ball to start with as Azmatullah doesn’t want to take the single.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:28 PM
AFG 268/8 after 49 overs
A couple of dot balls to follow - a slower one and then a yorker from Ellis.
SIX! Slow and shortish outside off, and Azmatullah throws his hands at it and clears wide long-off for another maximum.
A single to end the over and Azmatullah will keep strike.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:26 PM
Six from Azmatullah's bat
Ellis bowls out. Noor takes a single first ball. SIX! Azmatullah takes this from outside off-stump and launches the ball over deep midwicket for a colossal six.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:21 PM
Fifty up for Azmatullah
Fifty up for Azmatullah, off just 54 balls, and this has been an excellent knock so far.
A wide and a single to end the over, and six runs from the 48th.
AFG 254/8 after 48 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:18 PM
250 comes for AFG
Dwarshuis starts off with a wide outside off-stump. 250 up for Afghanistan with a single off the second ball of the over.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:16 PM
AFG 248/8 after 47 overs
Single first ball for Noor. SIX! Shot! An incredible hit down the ground by Azmatullah.
It was a length ball on middle stump and thumped for a straight six. That was 103 metres! Launched over extra cover next ball by Azmatullah, and the ball falls safely in the deep for a couple more.
A couple of slower deliveries in a row and Azmatullah can’t put them away, resulting in two crucial dot balls. A single at deep midwicket for Azmatullah to end the over.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:13 PM
AFG 238/8 after 46 overs
Noor Ahmad is the next man in.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:08 PM
Rashid Khan departs
Carved behind point by Rashid to the boundary first ball as Dwarshuis continues. And Rashid is gone next ball.
Short again, Rashid looked to heave this down the ground but he gets a top edge on it and Maxwell settles under this skier at long-on.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:06 PM
AFG 230/7 after 45 overs
Pulled away to deep midwicket by Azmatullah and brilliant stop in the deep by Maxwell to keep it down to a couple.
Short, Rashid steps out to flat-bat this on the off-side but the ball runs away to the third-man boundary off the toe end of the bat.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:03 PM
Ellis returns
A couple of dot balls to start the over.
Feb 28, 2025, 12:00 PM
Dwarshuis with the ball
Four runs off the first three balls. Misfield at point and a couple more for Rashid off the fourth ball of the over.
He looks to guide this angled delivery to third man with soft hands, but misses.
Beaten outside off again off the last ball.
AFG 223/7 after 44 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:58 AM
AFG 217/7 after 43 overs
A couple of twos for Rashid, who first steps out to clear the infield on the off-side and then sweeps one to deep square-leg.
Twelve runs from the over and Afghanistan won’t mind that.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:56 AM
Massive maximum for Azmatullah
Massive maximum for Azmatullah. He backs away outside leg-stump and slog sweeps this over midwicket for half a dozen.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:55 AM
AFG 205/7 after 42 overs
Ellis continues. Excellent stuff from Ellis, as just four singles come from the over.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:50 AM
200 comes for AFG
Zampa comes back. 200 up for Afghanistan in 40.3 overs as Azmatullah takes a single.
Rashid off the mark with a single through square-leg as he flicks the ball off the back foot.
AFG 201/7 after 41 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:46 AM
Gulbadin departs
Gulbadin is gone.
He was looking to clear the leg-side boundary, but ended up skying this very high in the air and Inglis does well to settle under it.
AFG 199/7 after 40 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:46 AM
Ellis continues
Short ball, pulled by Naib, and Short throws himself at midwicket to hold on to what would have been a stunning catch, but the ball just slips out of his grip.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:41 AM
AFG 197/6 after 39 overs
Azmatullah slashes hard outside off as Johnson angles the ball away, and the batter gets a thick outside edge to deep third for a single.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:40 AM
Johnson comes again
Over the wicket to Naib. FOUR! Short, good bouncer, but Naib gets a top edge on the pull and the ball runs away to the boundary behind the keeper.
That seems to have gone off the helmet, so given four leg-byes.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:36 AM
Loud appeal for caught behind
Ellis with the ball. Loud appeal for caught behind but the umpire doesn’t move.
Smith reviews and there is daylight between bat and ball as Azmatullah can’t connect.
Guided behind point by Azmatullah for a couple to end the over.
AFG 190/6 after 38 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:31 AM
AFG 186/6 after 37 overs
That was a short ball down leg-side, which the keeper couldn’t collect cleanly. He throws the ball at the stumps, however, and Johnson shows good presence of mind to back up and break the stumps.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:29 AM
Mohammad Nabi run out
Johnson again. Full outside off and driven through extra-cover by Azmatullah for a couple. OUT! Nabi is caught outside his crease the striker’s end and that’s an unfortunate dismissal.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:20 AM
Hashmatullah departs
Zampa is back. A lot of width outside off and cut away for a single by Azmatullah to deep cover. OUT! Hashmatullah is gone.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:18 AM
AFG 175/4 after 35 overs
Short into his seventh over. SIX! Azmatullah decides to get a move on.
He goes for the slog-sweep and clears midwicket with ease.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:16 AM
Johnson continues.
Just three singles and leg-bye from the over. Hashmatullah drags his score to 19 off 46 balls by the end of the over.
AFG 166/4 after 34 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:08 AM
Azmatullah Omarzai comes to bat
Azmatullah Omarzai is the next man in. He is off the mark with a single at deep fine.
AFG 161/4 after 32 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:03 AM
Atal departs
Johnson comes back replacing Zampa. The bowling change makes the difference as he takes Atal's wicket.
Driven straight to the cover fielder by Atal, and Smith holds on to a low catch.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:01 AM
Short replaces Ellis
Just three runs from the over.
Pressure building on Hashmat, while Atal nears a brilliant ton.
AFG 159/3 after 31 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 11:00 AM
Run out chance
Hashmat is sent back from halfway down the pitch by Atal after the captain chops the ball to mid-off.
There is some disagreement between the batters but the captain survives. A couple at deep cover for Hashmat to end the over.
AFG 156/3 after 30 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:57 AM
150 comes for AFG
Hammered over long-on by Atal for a maximum as Zampa continues.
That’s 150 up in 29.1 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:56 AM
Loud appeal for lbw
Ellis is convinced it is gone, but not given by the umpire and Smith won’t review either.
A single to end the over as Atal keeps strike.
AFG 145/3 after 29 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:54 AM
50 runs partnership for AFG
Ellis comes around the wicket. Banged in short and swatted away by Hashmatullah to deep point for a single.
A bit of width and driven square of the wicket by Atal for a boundary.
That’s 50 runs for the partnership off 64 balls.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:52 AM
Ellis continues
Two dots in a row for Hashmatullah and the pressure is building on the skipper now. 11 runs off 33 balls for him.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:51 AM
AFG 138/3 after 28 overs
A single for Hashmatulla at cover, where Short misfields but doesn’t allow a second.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:50 AM
Atal hit six
Zampa is greeted back into the attack with a maximum by Atal.
He steps out, doesn’t really middle it but the ball still just sails over the boundary at long-off.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:48 AM
Nathan Ellis comes back
Keeps hitting the deck hard, and just two singles from the over.
AFG 131/3 after 27 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:45 AM
Short continues
Just three singles from the over.
AFG 129/3 after 26 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:40 AM
Atal continues to find boundaries
Atal continues to find boundaries. Pulls the ball straight to midwicket for four.
10 runs came in that over.
AFG 126/3 after 25 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:33 AM
Atal gets to his half-century
Atal comes down the track and goes over long on. That’s fifty for him as well.
Shahidi too comes down the track and gets an inside edge past keeper for a lucky four.
AFG 113/3 after 23 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:30 AM
100 comes for Afghanistan
Feb 28, 2025, 10:25 AM
Matthew Short into the attack
Just a single came in that over.
AFG 94/3 after 20 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:21 AM
Hashmatullah Shahidi at the crease
Six runs off the over.
AFG 93/3 after 19 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:20 AM
Rahmat departs
Maxwell comes into the attack and takes Rahmat's wicket.
Outside edge straight to keeper. Sharp catch.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:18 AM
AFG 87/2 after 18 overs
A full toss by Zampa and Atal hits it over mid off for four.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:17 AM
Atal trying to hit boundary
Atal has been working the ball around the ground but the boundaries have dried up.
An interesting phase of play this after the introduction of spinners.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:10 AM
Spinners controlling the scoring rate
Spinners have once again controlled the scoring rate ever since they have come into the attack. Four runs in the last 12 balls.
AFG 75/2 after 16 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:06 AM
Maiden over from Maxwell
AFG 71/2 after 15 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:05 AM
Rahmat Shah comes at four
Rahmat Shah is off the mark with a single.
AFG 71/2 after 14 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:02 AM
Zadran departs
Adam Zampa takes Zadran's wicket.
Wide ball outside off, Zadran chases it but cuts it straight to backward point. He falls for 22.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:00 AM
Glenn Maxwell into the attack
Maxwell is getting the ball turn. Seven runs have come in the last 12 balls.
AFG 70/1 after 13 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 10:00 AM
AFG 68/1 after 12 overs
Just five runs from the over
Feb 28, 2025, 9:53 AM
Singles are coming regularly
Afghanistan’s scoring rate has been pretty good and the singles are coming regularly as well.
AFG 63/1 after 11 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:50 AM
Johnson continues
On the pads and Atal tucks it away towards fine leg for four.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:47 AM
End of powerplay
AFG 54/1 after first powerplay of the game.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:44 AM
Nathan Ellis into the attack
Change in bowling, Nathan Ellis into the attack. Starts with a down the leg wide. Lose delivery, half-tracker outside off and Zadran punishes it towards cover for four.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:43 AM
AFG 48/1 after 9 overs
Seven runs came in that over.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:41 AM
Another four from Atal's bat
Atal continues to look for boundaries. Four! On the pads and Atal tickles it away fine.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:38 AM
AFG 41/1 after 8 overs
Now Atal drives past point and gets two runs more.
Eight runs from the over.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:35 AM
Zadran gets his first boundary
Now Zadran gets his first boundary as he drives towards cover point, opening the face of the bat.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:33 AM
Three more runs
Another push to the cover region and Atal gets three more runs.
Nine runs from the over.
AFG 33/1 after 7 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:32 AM
Atal finally gets boundary
Atal connects the ball well and drives the ball through the cover for four! A very good looking shot.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:30 AM
Atal trying really hard to counter-attack
Atal has been trying really hard to counter-attack but the swing has made it difficult for him to score.
He gets an outside edge but falls just short of the first slip!
AFG 24/1 after 6 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:25 AM
AFG 23/1 after 5
It has been a bit tough for the batters but the extras have helped the Afghans get some runs on the board.
Despite plays and misses, they are now 23/1 after 5 overs.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:16 AM
It is swinging MILES
Unpredictable from Spencer Johnson.
In his second over, he first nipped one back in which missed the stumps by inches and went for four byes.
Then, he sent one down the leg side for another four byes. The next ball he was right on the money and missed the edge of Sediq narrowly.
Afghanistan 18/1 after 3.
Feb 28, 2025, 9:06 AM
Gurbaz goes for duck | AFG 3/1
Spencer Johnson with an inswinging yorker gets Rahmanullah Gurbaz on duck.
It was a bit like Mitchell Starc and he was able to go under the bat of Gurbaz.
The ball had hit Gurbaz's toe and went on to hit the stumps.
Afghanistan 3/1
Feb 28, 2025, 8:47 AM
Australia Playing XI
Matthew Short, Travis Head, Steven Smith (c), Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis, Alex Carey (wk), Glenn Maxwell, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson.
Feb 28, 2025, 8:47 AM
Afghanistan Playing XI
Matthew Short, Travis Head, Steven Smith (c), Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis, Alex Carey (wk), Glenn Maxwell, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Spencer Johnson.
Feb 28, 2025, 8:47 AM
Toss Update | Afghanistan wins the toss, elects to bat
Both captains are in the middle - Hashmatullah Shahidi and Steve Smith.
Afghanistan wins the toss and elects to bat.
Feb 28, 2025, 8:05 AM
Form Guide | Afghanistan
Afghanistan Recent Matches Overview
February 26, 2025 – 8th Match, Group B vs England: Afghanistan won by 8 runs
February 21, 2025 – 3rd Match, Group B vs South Africa: South Africa won by 107 runs
December 21, 2024 – 3rd ODI vs Zimbabwe: Afghanistan won by 8 wickets (with 139 balls remaining)
December 19, 2024 – 2nd ODI vs Zimbabwe: Afghanistan won by 232 runs
December 17, 2024 – 1st ODI vs Zimbabwe: No result
Afghanistan has won 3 of its last 5 matches, including a crucial victory against England.
Feb 28, 2025, 8:03 AM
Form Guide | Australia
Australia Recent Matches Overview
February 25, 2025 – 7th Match, Group B vs South Africa: Match abandoned without a ball bowled
February 22, 2025 – 4th Match, Group B vs England: Australia won by 5 wickets (with 15 balls remaining)
February 14, 2025 – 2nd ODI vs Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka won by 174 runs
February 12, 2025 – 1st ODI vs Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka won by 49 runs
November 10, 2024 – 3rd ODI vs Pakistan: Pakistan won by 8 wickets (with 139 balls remaining)
Australia has won only 1 of its last 5 matches, with losses to Sri Lanka and Pakistan.
Feb 28, 2025, 8:00 AM
Afghanistan vs Australia: Head-to-head stats
Afghanistan have never beaten Australia in ODI format. In the four matches they have played against each other in the format, Australia have won all of them.
Feb 28, 2025, 7:58 AM
How to watch the match?
Fans from India can watch the Afghanistan vs Australia match LIVE on Star Sports TV Channel and also on Jio Hotstar Channel with a paid subscription.
Here is how the scenarios are currently in Group B.
Ryan RIckleton's maiden ODI ton helped SA beat Afghanistan. Image | Associated Press
We can check from the points table that South Africa are leading the Group B now with 3 points and a positive net run rate of 2.140. Meantime, Australia are following them with the same amount of points but a lesser NRR of 0.475.
On the other hand, Afghanistan are third with 2 points and a negative NRR of -0.990 with England getting knocked out of the tournament already.
Australia vs Afghanistan - 28 February 2025 - Lahore
England vs South Africa - 1st March 2025 - Karachi
How can Afghanistan qualify for semis of Champions Trophy 2025?
As per the current situation, here are the below things that can happen.
If Australia and South Africa win
If both Australia and South Africa win against their opponents, they will qualify with five points each. That means, for Afghanistan to stay in the competition, they will have to beat Australia by any means.
If Australia and England win
If Australia win against Afghanistan and England win against South Africa, Aussies will reach the semis with five points while South Africa will qualify as the second best from Group B.
If Afghanistan and South Africa win
If the Afghans beat Australia, and South Africa also beat England, then South Affrica will qualify as the group topper with five points and Afghanistan with four points will also qualify as the second best.
If Afghanistan and England win
This is the most ideal situation for Afghanistan. If they can beat Australia and the England beat South Africa, Afghanistan will qualify as the group topper and the second position between Australia and South Africa will be decided on NRR.
South Africa are ahead in NRR at the points and this means for them to not qualify England will have to win with a big margin.
If Afghanistan vs Australia is washed out
That is where everything gets complicated. If Afghanistan vs Australia gets washed out due to rain, Australia with four points will qualify.
Then if South Africa gets beaten by England, both South Africa and Afghanistan will finish with three points. But, with the NRR advantage the Porteas have, they will likely to qualify from Group B. However, if South Africa win, they will qualify as the group topper with five points.
How Technology is Revolutionizing Cricket and Football Training
Modern technologies have often significantly impacted sports, especially benefitting two of the most popular sports, Cricket and Football. Sportz Point explores how technology revolutionized cricket and football training.
Technology is quickly changing how players train in football and cricket, transforming conventional practices for these games and it is redefining human performance.
The role of technology in these two popular sports is visible, from relying on sensors which monitor all activity; to virtual reality simulations that aid decision-making,
In recent years, technology has become smaller, more robust, and versatile, and thus new opportunities, especially in sports, have emerged. At the moment, updates are provided through smartphones, wearable functionality is used to avoid injury, GPS is used to track movement, and players are outfitted with sensors that send real-time information to a coach's device.
This article addresses the state-of-the-art equipment and approaches that are changing the paradigm of training, player development, and the game itself.
How Technology is Changing Cricket and Football Training
1. Wearable Technology
Whoop, a wearable fitness device worn by athletes. (Image Credit | The Indian Express)
Trainers can invoke sensors wired to the body or some portion of "smart clothing" for measurement and monitoring in real-time. The real-time displays can be used to help the trainer determine what every sportsperson should push more. During training practice, trainers can use real-time measures to inform when to stretch, rest, or make training more challenging.
Laser and GPS are both being used more and more in different aspects of sports preparation. Instead of looking only at times and splits, coaches can measure athletes' exact position, distance, velocity, and acceleration, to better analyze their areas of improvement.
2. Video Analysis Tools
(Image Credit | SkySports)
Modern-day football is becoming faster and more tactical. Athletes have to acquire both their athleticism and tactical awareness to enhance their decision-making process in the course of play. Video analysis is used for both individual and team tactical development.
In football, video analysis usually consists of a careful analysis and examination of game matches, practice, and player activity, to assess player performance, tactics, and strategies. Advanced technologies such as wearable tracking units and video analysis techniques are used in the process of achieving these things to capture and analyze critical elements of data, e.g., player location, combinations of teams, and player movements.
Video analysis can be used by coaches, analysts, and players to obtain a more complete picture of what goes on around the ball by giving a graphical representation of the game happening around them.
Video analysis can help a group of individuals to recognize the points of improvement, e.g., to enhance the winning approach and cope with different match situations effectively as the tool between the raw performance data and useful insights.
3. Virtual Reality (VR) Training
(Image Credit | The Telegraph)
Virtual Reality (VR) applications have been of considerable interest in many high-performance and entertainment applications over the past few years with advances in technology, increased availability, and the mobility of VR systems.
More precisely, by embedding environmental constraints within an interactive virtual space, VR can also be used to train in motor, mental, and cognitive skills, strategy, and tactics.
VR offers promising novel solutions to many professional high-pressure, high-skill environments, especially for the training, and learning of difficult skills in otherwise expensive and/or hazardous settings. When properly used, VR provides complete control over the training environment, including cues and challenges, along with safe and reproducible training tasks.
Because of this, it is designated as a promising instrument, which could help increase athletes' performance.
4. Biomechanical Analysis
(Image Credit | jpmer.com)
The scientific study of biomechanics focuses on the physics and mechanics of how organisms move. In its general sense, it may include anything from knowing how a dancer entirely moves the whole body to the microscopic muscle cell-level response and observing the posture of an active horse.
Biomechanics is a narrower area in sports, which can offer helpful input to sportsmen, trainers, and sports medicine professionals who can help to enhance performance and decrease the chance of injury.
All of these biomechanical tests, including poor kinematics, rotational forces in specific joints, muscle imbalances, fatigue monitoring, and the quality of the movement being rehabilitated, may be detected.
5. Data Analytics
(Image Credit | Mad About Sports)
Data analytics has optimized athletes' performance by identifying previously unknown factors and related events. Those actions include, for example, leg motion, dive angle, rotational speed, and fluid motion.
Trainers can help players to successfully use this type of sophisticated movement tracking. If it is on the order of milliseconds, it can be the deciding factor for a race win or loss.
6. Recovery Technology
(Image Credit | DigitalDefynd)
A significant reduction in injury levels and faster detection times demonstrates how technology greatly benefits sports training. Performance monitoring, movement processing, and improving communication are not only advantages but also contribute to making less susceptible environments.
Trainers and coaches can use training management software to monitor the specific training-based elements related to, for example, energy, nutrition, and sleep, that constitute the training process. Individualization of practices by trainers or coaches to optimize results helps prevent fatigue and self-inflicted injuries.
Besides the unavoidable external factors, injury-free sports may eventually be realized as a future scenario.
7. Communication and Collaboration Tools
(Image credit | Faster Capital)
Training communication has been enhanced by tools such as YouTube. YouTube contains millions of minutes of exercise and entertainment that are available to, and easily shared by anyone.
Physicists, especially in the area of sport and motor control, need to put much more emphasis on teaching sport and motor control with play debates or footage from films for their continuing education.1 Athletes and coaches can load and view the required films during sports practice or leisure time.
Other communication technologies have further been developed, namely My Fitness Pal, computer or mobile-phone journals on food and exercise, and personal digital health. My Fitness Pal enables trainers to monitor athletes' everyday diets, and players would be responsible for their training.