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Steven Peter Devereux Smith (born 2 June 1989) is an Australian international cricketer, former captain of the Australian national team in all three formats of the game and the vice-captain of the Australia Test team. He is regarded by many as the best Test batsmen of his generation and one of the greatest Test batsmen of all time, having scored over 10,000 Test runs. Smith was a member of the Australian teams that won the 2015 and 2023 Cricket World Cup, the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup, and the vice-captain in 2023 ICC World Test Championship.

Although he was initially selected for Australia as a leg-spinning all-rounder in 2010, Smith was always earmarked as a batting prospect following successful batting campaigns in domestic cricket early in his career. Smith now plays primarily as a batsman who bowls occasionally. After playing five Test matches from 2010 to 2011 as a bowling all-rounder, he was recalled to the Australian Test team in 2013 as a batsman and took over the captaincy from Michael Clarke in late 2015, after which he predominantly batted at number 3 or 4 across all formats.

Awards he has won include the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy (ICC Cricketer of the Year) in 2015; ICC Test Player of the Year in 2015 and 2017; ICC Men's Test Player of the Decade for 2011–2020; the Allan Border Medal for the best player in Australian Cricket in 2015, 2018, 2021 and 2023; Australian Test Player of the Year in 2015 and 2018, and Australian One Day International Player of the Year in 2015 and 2021. He was named by Wisden as one of their Cricketers of the Year in the 2016 Wisden Almanack. In December 2017, he reached a Test batting rating of 947, the second-highest of all time, only behind Don Bradman's 961.

In March 2018, Smith as Australian captain was widely criticised for the ball tampering in the third Test against South Africa that Cameron Bancroft performed and David Warner planned, during which he stood down from the team captaincy and was replaced by Tim Paine. Following an investigation by Cricket Australia, Smith was banned from all international and domestic cricket in Australia for one year, and from consideration for any leadership role for an additional year.

In November 2021, Smith returned to an official Australian leadership role, as Test vice-captain starting in the 2021–22 Ashes series. In December 2021, Smith returned to Test captaincy duties when Pat Cummins was unavailable due to COVID-19 for the 2nd Test. He has since captained in 6 Tests for 5 wins and a draw, including Australia's only Test victory in India since 2017 when he was captain. In March 2023, Smith returned to ODI captaincy duties, he went on to captain another 13 ODIs, winning the 2022–23 ODI series vs India, the 2023–24 ODI series vs West Indies and the 2024 ODI series v England and captaining Australia in the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy. He retired from ODI cricket on the 5th March 2025, leading Australia in his last ODI as captain. Since 2021, he has been Australia's vice-captain in Tests.

[08/03, 10:32] SIVASUBRAMANIAN SIVASURIY: Steve Smith made his international cricket debut in a Twenty20 International match playing as a leg spinner against Pakistan at Melbourne in February 2010. The same month, he made his One Day International debut against the West Indies also at Melbourne, playing in the fifth match of the series.

In the 2010 ICC World Twenty20 competition held in the West Indies, Australia finished runners up to England. Smith took 11 wickets in seven matches at an average of 14.81 to finish as the equal-second-highest wicket-taker of the tournament.

Smith made his Test debut at Lord's in July 2010, playing both Tests against Pakistan in the 2010 Test series played in England. He was selected mainly for his bowling, and batted down the order, although his bowling was not required in the first innings. In the second innings, he took 3 wickets for 51 as Australia won by 150 runs. In the second Test he was called to bowl only ten overs and took no wickets, although he played an impressive role with the bat in the second innings. Batting with the tail, he scored 77 including nine fours and two sixes off successive balls, helping Australia to set a competitive target after having been bowled out for 88 in the first innings.

Smith's fielding attracted attention during the 2009–10 season with some spectacular catches in the outfield.

In the 2010–11 Australian summer, Smith played three Tests in the 2010–11 Ashes series, this time playing more as a batsman, taking the number six spot in the order. His performances were solid during the series, getting a number of starts and scoring two half centuries. Following the 2010–11 Ashes, Smith did not play another Test for two years, his next Test series coming against India in March 2013.

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Glenn Dominic Phillips (born 6 December 1996) is a South African-born cricketer who plays for the New Zealand national cricket team. Domestically he plays for Otago, having previously played for Auckland. He made his international debut for New Zealand in February 2017.

An all-rounder who can also keep wickets, Phillips is regarded as a physically fit cricketer who is an excellent fielder. Described as a "compact, muscular hitter, known for playing outrageous shots", he has played for a number of Twenty20 sides around the world.

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Kane Stuart Williamson (born 8 August 1990) is a New Zealand international cricketer and a former captain of the New Zealand national team. On 27 February 2023, Williamson became the all-time leading run-scorer for New Zealand in Test cricket. A right-handed batsman and an occasional off spin bowler, he is widely regarded as one of the world's best contemporary batsman and the greatest New Zealand captain and batsman of all time. He captained New Zealand to victory in the 2021 ICC World Test Championship final and to the finals of the 2019 Cricket World Cup and 2021 T20 World Cup. He was also a part of the New Zealand squad to finish as runners-up at the 2015 Cricket World Cup.

Williamson made his first-class cricket debut in December 2007.  He made his U-19 debut against the touring Indian U-19 team the same year and was named captain of the New Zealand U-19 team for the 2008 U-19 Cricket World Cup. He made his international debut in 2010. Williamson has represented New Zealand at the 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023 editions of the Cricket World Cup and 2012, 2014, 2016, 2021, 2022 and 2024 editions of the ICC World Twenty20. He made his full-time captaincy debut for New Zealand in the 2016 ICC World Twenty20 in India. He captained New Zealand at the 2019 Cricket World Cup, leading the team to the final and winning the Player of the Tournament award in the process. On 31 December 2020, he reached a Test batting rating of 890, surpassing Steve Smith and Joe Root as the number one ranked Test batsmen in the world. He was nominated for the Sir Garfield Sobers Award for ICC Male Cricketer of the Decade, and the award for Test cricketer of the decade. Ian Chappell and Martin Crowe have ranked Williamson among the top four or five Test cricket batsmen, along with Joe Root, Steve Smith, Virat Kohli of the current era.

Williamson was the only New Zealander to be named in the ICC Test Team of the Decade (2011–2024). The late former New Zealand cricketer, Martin Crowe, noted that, "we're seeing the dawn of probably our greatest ever batsman" in Williamson. In June 2021, he captained New Zealand to win the inaugural ICC World Test Championship, the first ICC trophy the team won since winning the 2000 ICC KnockOut Trophy. In November 2021, he led New Zealand to the final of the ICC T20 World Cup. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of the modern era.

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Varun Chakravarthy Vinod (born 29 August 1991) is an Indian international cricketer who plays for Tamil Nadu in domestic cricket and Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as a leg spin bowler. He made his T20I international debut in July 2021 and became the second oldest player after Farookh Engineer to debut in ODI in February 2025 for the Indian cricket team.

Early life

Varun Chakravarthy Vinod was born on 29 August 1991 in Bidar, Karnataka. His father Vinod Chakravarthy, an ITS officer for BSNL, is half-Tamil and half-Malayali, while his mother Malini is a Kannadiga. He was brought up in Adyar, Chennai.

He did his schooling in Chennai, at Kendriya Vidyalaya CLRI and then St. Patrick's Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School, where he played cricket as a wicket-keeper but quit the sport to focus on academics. He obtained a bachelor's degree in architecture from SRM University. At age 25, he gave up his job as an architect to pursue cricket professionally. Starting out as a pace bowler, a knee injury in early 2017 kept him out of action for six months, after which he turned to spin bowling.

Career

He made his List A debut for Tamil Nadu in the 2018–19 Vijay Hazare Trophy on 20 September 2018. He was the leading wicket-taker for Tamil Nadu in the 2018–19 Vijay Hazare Trophy, with twenty-two dismissals in nine matches.  He made his first-class debut for Tamil Nadu in the 2018–19 Ranji Trophy on 12 November 2018.

In December 2018, he was bought by the Kings XI Punjab in the player auction for the 2019 Indian Premier League (IPL) at the price of 8.4 crores. He made his Twenty20 debut for the team on 27 March 2019. His first over went for 25 runs, the highest number of runs conceded by a bowler on debut in the IPL. He was released by the Kings XI Punjab ahead of the 2020 IPL auction. In the 2020 IPL auction, he was bought by the Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of the 2020 Indian Premier League. On 24 October 2020, he took his first five-wicket haul in the IPL, with figures of 5 wickets for 20 runs, against the Delhi Capitals in Abu Dhabi. He was Kolkata Knight Riders' highest wicket-taker in the 2021 IPL tournament.

In October 2020, he was named in India's Twenty20 International (T20I) squad for their series against Australia. However, on 9 November 2020, Chakravarthy was ruled out of the squad after suffering an injury. ] In February 2021, he was named in India's T20I squad for their series against England.

In June 2021, he was named in India's One Day International (ODI) and T20I squads for their series against Sri Lanka. He made his T20I debut on 25 July 2021, for India against Sri Lanka, taking the wicket of Dasun Shanaka. In September 2021, Chakravarthy was named in India's squad for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.

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 Shreyas Santosh Iyer (born 6 December 1994) is an Indian international cricketer who plays for the India as a right-handed middle-order batter. He also plays for Mumbai in domestic cricket and the Punjab Kings and also captains it in the Indian Premier League (IPL).Iyer scored a century in his debut Test match and a half-century in the second innings against New Zealand in November 2021, thus becoming the first Indian player to achieve the milestone.  He played for the India Under-19s at the 2014 Under-19 Cricket World Cup. He was part of the Indian team at the 2023 Cricket World Cup, and scored a century against New Zealand in the semi-finals. He was a member of the Indian squad that won the 2023 Asia Cup. Iyer captained the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL from 2022 to 2024, and won his first IPL title as captain in 2024.

He made headlines when the then Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) bought him at the 2015 IPL auction for ₹2.6 crore (about US$416,000). He made 439 runs that season and won the IPL Emerging Player of the Year award. Over the next six seasons, he became a mainstay of the side and its captain, making over 400 runs in four different seasons. He later broke the record for most expensive player in the IPL after the Punjab Kings bought him for ₹26.75 crore. That record was broken in the same auction when the Lucknow Super Giants bought Rishabh Pant for ₹27 crore.

[02/03, 19:54] SIVASUBRAMANIAN SIVASURIY: International career

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In March 2017, Iyer was included in India's Test squad as a replacement for Virat Kohli before the fourth Test against Australia. He served as a substitute fielder in the fourth test and successfully ran out Steve O'Keefe for 8.

In October 2017, Iyer was named in India's Twenty20 International (T20I) squad for their series against New Zealand. He made his T20I debut for India against New Zealand on 1 November 2017, but he did not bat.

In November 2017, Iyer was named in India's One Day International (ODI) squad for their series against Sri Lanka. He made his ODI debut for India against Sri Lanka on 10 December 2017. He scored 88 from 70 balls in the 2nd ODI against Sri Lanka at Mohali.

On 18 December 2019, in the second ODI against the West Indies, Iyer scored 31 runs in one over, the most scored by a batsman for India in a single over in ODIs.

On 24 January 2020, in the first T20I against New Zealand, Iyer scored an unbeaten 58 off 29 balls and was declared the Man of the Match.

On 26 January 2020, in the second T20I against New Zealand, he scored 44 off 33 balls. On 5 February 2020, in the first ODI against New Zealand, Iyer scored 103 off 107 balls, his maiden century in ODI cricket.

In September 2021, Iyer was named as one of three reserve players in India's squad for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup.[58] In November 2021, he was named in India's Test squad for their series against New Zealand. He made his Test debut on 25 November 2021, for India against New Zealand.

On 25 November 2021, Iyer got his Test cap from the former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar and scored a maiden century playing against the New Zealand team. He became the 16th Indian player to score a century in the debut test match and become the first Indian player to score a century and a half century in 2 innings of debut test match.

In the 2022 bilateral T20I series against Sri Lanka, Iyer broke Virat Kohli's record of most runs scored by an Indian batsman in a 3-match T20I bilateral series, scoring a total of 204 runs with three consecutive unbeaten half-centuries.

In March 2022, Iyer was named man of the match after scoring two crucial fifties on a tough turning track in the second Test match against Sri Lanka. In recognition of Iyer's good form, he was named as the ICC player of the month for February 2022.  On 9 October 2022, during the 2nd of 3 ODI matches against South Africa, he achieved his 2nd ODI century scoring 113 off 111 balls, and remained unbeaten. However, Shreyas Iyer was not picked in the India squad for the T20 World Cup 2022. During the 2nd T20I against New Zealand in Bay Oval Shreyas was out by hit wicket. He was the 4th Indian player to be out in hit wicket. Shreyas Iyer hit 80 runs for just 76 balls in 1st ODI against New Zealand in Eden Park.

In January 2023, after Sri Lanka series Iyer was out from the New Zealand series due to back pain. Shreyas returned in the Border–Gavaskar Trophy. He was able to play in 2nd Test. During the 4th test at Ahmedabad after Australia finished 1st innings by 480, while India started the batting but Shreyas did not come for the batting. He complained about back pain once again and was taken for the scans. Shreyas Iyer was dropped from the series due to back pain. He went to England for back surgery in April. Shreyas Iyer wasn't available for the ICC Test championship Final against Australia in Kennington Oval. He was recovering in NCA for his return. As a result of his hard work, Iyer was named in Asia Cup 2023.

During the 2nd ODI against Australia in Indore, Iyer scored 105 runs in just 90 balls, marking a strong comeback ahead of the World Cup. India won the match with Iyer winning the Man of the Match Award for his performance

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Joseph Charles Buttler MBE (born 8 September 1990) is an English cricketer who is the captain of the England cricket team in limited-overs cricket, and previously played for the England Test team. In domestic cricket he represents Lancashire, having previously played for Somerset, and has played in multiple Twenty20 leagues, including for Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals and now for Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League. Widely regarded as England cricket team's greatest ever batter in limited-overs cricket, Buttler is known for his highly innovative and aggressive batting style. He was part of the England team that won the 2019 Cricket World Cup. Under his captaincy, England won the 2022 ICC T20 World Cup.

Buttler made his T20I debut in 2011, his ODI debut in 2012, and his Test debut in 2014. He was the vice-captain and a crucial member of the England team that won the 2019 Cricket World Cup, and made the run out during the Super Over which sealed victory in the final. He was appointed captain of England's limited-overs teams in June 2022.  He captained England to victory at the 2022 T20 World Cup, top-scoring for England at the tournament.

Buttler plays as a right-handed wicket-keeper-batsman. He is England's second-most-capped T20I player behind Eoin Morgan. Along with Adil Rashid, he holds the world record for highest seventh-wicket stand in ODIs: 177 against New Zealand during their 2015 tour of England. He is England's highest run-scorer in T20Is,  and is one of only five Englishmen to score a T20I century. As a wicket-keeper, he holds the England record for most dismissals in both ODI and T20I formats.

Football Icon, CHRISTIANO RONALDO

Football Icon, CHRISTIANO RONALDO was born on this day in 1985 (February 5, 1985)

*Cristiano Ronaldo* dos Santos Aveiro GOIH ComM is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward for and captains both the Saudi Pro League club Al Nassr and the Portugal national team. 

Born: 5 February 1985 (age 40 years), Hospital Dr. Nélio Mendonça, Funchal, Portugal

Current teams: Al-Nassr FC (#7 / Forward), Portugal national football team (#7 / Forward)

Dates joined: 2023 (Al-Nassr FC), 2021 (Manchester United F.C.) · See more

Children: Angel dos Santos Aveiro

Height: 1.87 m

Salary: 20 crores EUR (2024)

Full name: Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro

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