Afghanistan create history, Extension for coach Shastri? and more - Cricket News Today, 18th March 2019

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Afghanistan made history as they registered their first ever Test win. Playing just their second Test, Afghanistan won by 7 wickets as they largely dominated the Test match and Ireland slumped to a second straight loss. With the end of this Test match, the season for Test cricket has come to a close. The IPL preparations seem to be on in full swing. The Australian ODI team is in the UAE preparing for their five-match ODI series against Pakistan. Meanwhile, South Africa will be looking to round off their season with a T20I series win.

There have also been questions regarding the security during the World Cup, especially after the attack in Christchurch. However, ICC CEO has maintained that security of the players will be top priority.

Here are all the top news that made headlines in the cricketing world today.

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Afghanistan create history as they register their first-ever Test win

It was about a decade ago that Afghanistan played their first ODI game (in 2009) and in such a short period, their rise has been one of the most remarkable journeys of international cricket. Less than a year after making their Test debut, Afghanistan have gone onto register their maiden Test victory. They became the joint-second fastest team to get a Test win among all the Test playing nations.

Needing 118 more runs to win on the fourth day, Ihsanullah Janat and Rahmat Shah wiped out most of the deficit as Afghanistan coasted home with a seven-wicket win. Rahmat Shah was awarded the player of the match for his twin fifties in the game. “It is a historic day for Afghanistan, for Afghanistan people, for our team, for our cricket board,” an ecstatic skipper Asghar Afghan said after the win.

Ravi Shastri might get an extension till November 2020: Reports

Ravi Shastri and the other support staff might get an extension until November 2020. Their contracts terminate at the end of the World Cup later this year. The Committee of Administrators (CoA) and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) CEO Rahul Johri are scheduled to meet today (18th March).

The meeting is slated to take place in Mumbai and the CoA have put down a list of issues related to Indian cricket. However, the main discussion will be around the contracts of the head coach and all the other support staff.

Under Ravi Shastri, India have done well over the last couple of years. Hence, he and his team could get an extension until the end of the T20 World Cup in 2020. Apart from Shastri, the staff mainly includes batting coach Sanjay Bangar, bowling coach Bharat Arun and fielding coach R Sridhar. Most of the coaching staff also enjoy the backing of the captain and the team. Hence, the extension seems likely.

ICC not worried with World Cup security, despite the attack in Christchurch

The terror attack in Christchurch which involved live shooting and left the Bangladesh players in shock as they narrowly escaped the incident has had a major impact over the last few days. Concerns over global security have increased.

However, ICC chief executive David Richardson isn’t really concerned as he revealed that the security agencies in the UK will ensure top safety and leave no stone unturned. “don't think security is anything new, obviously something happening in New Zealand probably took a lot of people by surprise and it emphasised the need not to be complacent, especially going into the World Cup,” Dave Richardson was quoted saying on the sidelines of the PSL final Karachi.

He also admitted that the perception that Pakistan is a dangerous place is changing and the trust in security has increased tremendously. 43 foreign players toured Pakistan for the back end of the PSL season.

It is like a second homecoming for me: Dhawan on return to Delhi

Shikhar Dhawan is back in his home town and will turn out to play for his home franchise this season, Delhi Capitals. Before the auctions, they had traded Dhawan with Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and let go of three players - Vijay Shankar, Abhishek Sharma and Shahbaz Nadeem.

Dhawan was a consistent performer for SRH and formed a potent opening duo alongside David Warner. However, the Indian left-handed opener is excited to be back to his home franchise. He joined the Delhi Capitals side recently and termed it as his ‘second home-coming’.

“It is like a second homecoming for me, and I am very excited to be a part of the Delhi Capitals for the IPL season. It is a very happy feeling for me to have come back to my home city of Delhi after spending 10 seasons away in the IPL,” Dhawan was quoted saying.