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April 7
MS Dhoni gets felicitated for 2011 World Cup winning six
MS Dhoni visited the spot where his World Cup-winning six landed at the Wankhede 12 years ago. On April 2, 2011, the former India captain sealed the World Cup with a towering six over mid-wicket off Sri Lanka's Nuwan Kulasekara which had landed in the MCA pavilion, a narrow stand beside the Vithal Divecha Stand at the Wankhede. "I just saw the ball sail over, I can't remember where it had landed," Dhoni said after a brief function where he was felicitated by the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA).
The association identified the area where they think the ball had landed and said it would build a memorial. "It will be a historic moment for everyone. The memorial will inspire all future generations of cricketers to try and chase their dream. MCA has dedicated a permanent place for MS Dhoni and it will remind everyone of the excellence he has reached to become world hero as India captain," Ajinkya Naik, MCA secretary said.
April 4
Scheduling changes galore for NZ tour of Pakistan
Rawalpindi, originally scheduled to host the 3rd, 4th and 5th ODIs, will now host the 4th and 5th T20Is instead of Karachi and Lahore respectively, and the first two ODIs in place of Lahore. The first ODI is postponed from 26th April to 27th April, and the second is preponed from 30th April to 29th April. Furthermore, the last three ODIs that Rawalpindi was originally scheduled to host, will now be hosted by Karachi.
April 3
A big blow for Bangladesh ahead of Ireland Test
Bangladesh pace bowler Taskin Ahmed has been ruled out of the only Test against Ireland with a side strain injury. A BCB official confirmed the development to Cricbuzz and revealed that he was carrying the injury from the T20Is.
National Team physio Bayjedul Islam Khan later said: "Taskin underwent an MRI today which confirmed that he has a left side strain (grade 2). Such injuries take about four weeks to recover from. This unfortunately means that he will not be available for the Test against Ireland."
Uncapped paceman Rejaur Rahman Raja has been added to the squad as Taskin's replacement.
Stirling added to Test squad for Sri Lanka tour
Ireland have added Paul Stirling to their Test squad for their upcoming tour of Sri Lanka later this month. However, the opening batter will be available only for the second and final match of the series.
Stirling's inclusion comes as a result of some unexpected developments in Ireland's cricketing schedule. He was part of the ODI squad that was supposed to travel to Sri Lanka but the 50-over series was shelved to accommodate an extra Test match. Subsequently, Bangladesh's T20I trip to Ireland also got cancelled, it presented Stirling with an opportunity to redeem his Test fortunes.