Ashwin becomes first former Indian cricketer to join MLC
Ravichandran Ashwin joined San Francisco Unicorns for the upcoming fourth season of Major League Cricket. Ashwin, who retired from international cricket in December 2024 became the first former India cricketer to participate in the tournament. Ashwin retired from the IPL as well at the end of 2025 season and this would be his first stint with a T20 league outside the IPL.
Ashwin had earlier signed up to play the 2025-26 BBL for Sydney Thunder but was ruled out following a knee injury. Ashwin said, “The fact that there is so much interest from the kids and from a lot of people who have come and settled in America and showing so much interest towards the game, I just wanted to come and experience what it is going to look like when we turn up for the MLC”
Whenever I come back to play, it’s 120%: Kohli
Virat Kohli’s return to IPL lit up the Chinnaswamy Stadium after his blistering performance against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the first match of the IPL 2026 on Saturday. Kohli, who was in great form during the ODI series against New Zealand in January, smashed five fours and five sixes to amass unbeaten 69 runs off 38 balls and win the match for RCB.
Speaking of the same after the match, Kohli said, “Well, you know, the kind of scheduling that we’ve had over the last 15 years, and the amount of cricket I’ve played, for me, there was always a risk of getting burnt out rather than being undercooked.” He added, “So these breaks helped me immensely. I stay fresh, I stay excited. Whenever I come back to play, it’s 120%. I’m not coming back, you know, underprepared.
Ben Stokes out of action until May
Ben Stokes, England’s Test captain, is set to be unavailable for the first month of the county season following an undergoing surgery on a broken cheekbone last month. The incident happened in early February during a net session when Stokes was struck in the face by a Durham academy player. Although Stokes was originally part of the season opener between Durham and Kent, Ryan Campbell spoke about his unavailability in the initial stage of the county.
Campbell informed that Stokes was unlikely to play before their fifth match against Worcestershire on May 8. “[The incident] could have been horrific,” Campbell said at Durham’s pre-season media day. “So, so much worse than what you think. A couple of centimetres a different way it hits him in the eye and it could have been different. The ball was hit so hard. We are just lucky he got away with it.”
