Known for his swashbuckling batting style, wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant says the one thing that scares him is the anger of India skipper Virat Kohli.
"I am not scared of anyone but Virat bhaiya ke gusse se dar lagta hai (I'm scared of Virat Kohli's anger)," Pant said in a video posted by his IPL team, Delhi Capitals in their official website.
"But if you are doing everything correctly, then should why he (Kohli) get angry.
"But if you make a mistake and someone gets angry with you, it's good because you only learn from your mistakes," he added.
Pant has played some dashing knocks in all three formats of the game and is set to replace Mahendra Singh Dhoni once he retires.
However, his wicket keeping skills have sometimes left skipper Kohli disappointed.
Recently, Kohli was left fuming when Pant conceded a single while attempting a Dhoni-like stumping during the fourth ODI against Australia.
Pakistan fans exploring options to watch IPL after government bans its telecast
Pakistani cricket fans are exploring options on social media to watch the Indian Premier League (IPL) matches after the government banned the telecast of the Twenty20 league in the country.
In a tit-for-tat response to an Indian company withdrawing its production team midway through the Pakistan Super League (PSL) matches in UAE last month, the Pakistan government stopped IPL telecast.
Even though Pakistani players have not been invited to play in the IPL since 2008, the IPL has been widely watched in the country every year either on a Private Pakistani sports channel or on Indian channels.
But since diplomatic relations between Pakistan and India deteriorated after the Pulwama incident on February 14, the Pakistan government has banned the airing of Indian content on television and also screening of Indian films in cinema halls.
Pakistani cable operators and other companies, in line with government directives, have also blocked all Indian sports channels in the country.
"I don't know if the government has done the right thing by doing what India did during the PSL. They tried to damage our tournament and mix cricket with politics,” a former Test player who declined to be named said.
Pakistani minister for information and broadcasting, Fawad Ahmed Chaudhry recently announced that the IPL would not be shown in Pakistan.
"During the PSL, the way the Indian companies and the government treated Pakistan cricket, after that, we can't tolerate that IPL is shown in Pakistan," Fawad Ahmed Chaudhry told a Pakistan news channel.
Vaughan predicts orange and purple cap winners
Former England cricketer, Michael Vaughan has given his predictions on which player will be the leading run-scorer and leading wicket-taker in the 12th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The 44-year old predicted that Rishabh Pant will bag the orange cap and Kuldeep Yadav will earn the purple cap this season.
Vaughan tweeted his prediction: "#NoBrainer ... @RishabPant777 leading scorer ... @imkuldeep18 leading Wicket taker ... @RCBTweets to win it !!!!!"
His prediction about Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) winning this edition of IPL may come as a shocker to many, as RCB has never won an IPL title before even after having a strong squad. But the English player has shown his confidence that Virat Kohli-led side will win their maiden IPL title.
Blow for Mumbai Indians as Adam Milne pulls out
Mumbai Indians have lost another overseas fast bowler as New Zealand's Adam Milne pulled out of the 12th edition of the IPL due to a swollen heel.
This comes as a major blow in quick succession for the Mumbai-based franchise after Lasith Malinga opted to skip the first six matches of the IPL to fulfill the condition set by Sri Lanka Cricket to play in the domestic 50-overs competition in order to qualify for World Cup selection, ESPNcricinfo reported.
Mumbai are keen on signing West Indies' Alzarri Joseph as a replacement. Moreover, as per IPL rules, the amount a franchise can pay the replacement player cannot exceed that paid to the original player. So any player that replaces Milne cannot be paid over 75 lakhs.
Mumbai, with New Zealand's Mitchell McClenaghan and Ben Cutting of Australia as its two overseas fast bowlers, will meet Delhi Capitals in their opening fixture at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday.
