PSL (File photo/Agencies)

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced that the Pakistan Super League (PSL) will shift to a player auction system from its 11th season, moving away from the draft format that has been used since the league began in 2016. The change follows a model similar to the Indian Premier League (IPL).The total purse for each PSL franchise has also been raised to USD 1.6 million from USD 1.3 million for the player auction.

PSL chief executive Salman Naseer said the changes ahead of the league’s 11th edition are aimed at strengthening the tournament.“The PSL will now transition from a draft to players auction system which should increase transparency and enhance the competitive balance of teams in the league,” Naseer said, as quoted by news agency PTI.He added that the new system would also offer players better earning opportunities.Under the revised rules, franchises will be allowed to retain a maximum of four players, with only one retention permitted in each category. Earlier, teams could retain up to eight players, along with a mentor and a brand ambassador, and use a right-to-match option to keep a ninth player during the draft.The PCB has removed the provisions for hiring mentors, brand ambassadors and the right-to-match option.Naseer said the two new teams, Hyderabad and Sialkot, will be allowed to pick four players each from the available pool before the auction.Each franchise will also be permitted one direct signing of an overseas player who did not take part in PSL 10.The 11th season of the PSL is scheduled to begin on March 26, with Faisalabad included as a venue.

RCB marched into the WPL 2026 playoffs with their fifth straight win in this year’s competition on Monday, January 19. Gautami Naik’s 73 and a disciplined bowling performance helped Bengaluru complete the double over the Giants, who were never really in the chase to begin with.

With the win, RCB made it six win on the trot in the WPL, the longest streak in the history of the competition. For Gujarat, it was their third loss on the trot as the batters failed early on. Apart from Ashleigh Gardner, who scored 54 runs, none of the other GG batters could find momentum in the first match in Vadodara, which was supposedly their home ground. However, the support was RCB was there and they were in full voice as it was Sayali Satghare who provided the early strikes for RCB. Coming in as a replacement for the fan favourite Ellyse Perry, Satghare came into her own during the win against Delhi Capitals last time around, securing a double-strike in the very first over she bowled.

That trend continued in the match on Monday as he first cleaned up Beth Mooney and then a few balls later, dismissed the dangerous Sophie Devine to leave Gujarat reeling at four for two in two overs while chasing 179.

The next over saw the ever-consistent Lauren Bell add another wicket to her season’s tally. Anushka Sharma, who missed the last few games, looked to be comfortable in the middle and hit a couple of elegant boundaries as the task was to steady the ship alongside Gardner.

But the powerplay score of 29 for the loss of three wickets wasn’t just enough in the context of the run chase, meaning that acceleration was needed. Anushka perished in her efforts to push the run-rate as Nadine de Klerk also joined the party.

GG masters of their own downfall

What started as a season with a lot of hope and two straight wins has quickly unfolded for the Giants. It was surprising to see that with the required run-rate being high they decided to send in Kashvee Gautam instead of Bharti Fulmali.

The 31-year-old has been hitting with a strike-rate of more than 178 in her last five matches and Kashvee had managed just 36 runs in three innings she has come out to bat with a strike-rate of 112.5. And the all-rounder failed to make an impact and was dismissed for four off eight balls.

Georgia Wareham’s stay was also brief as the writing was already on the wall for the Giants. Gardner got to her fifty with a couple of big hits, but that was the only bit of excitement that the Gujarat fans would have during their side’s batting performance.

While Kanwer attempted to play some innovative shots, it wasn’t enough as RCB sealed the win and moved into the play-offs. For Gujarat, they will need to head to the drawing board and regroup as they face an upbeat UP Warriorz side next in the league on January 22.

RCB find new stars in flawless season

Before the season started, RCB were given a big jolt in the form of Perry’s withdrawal. In 25 matches, the all-rounder had scored 972 runs and picked up 14 wickets, playing a big role in RCB’s only title win in 2024.

So, Bengaluru needed new stars to come up. Lauren Bell and Grace Harris have been sensational, but they needed some of the Indian talents to come up. And on Monday, the situation presented itself for RCB.

Being put in to bat, RCB lost Grace Harris and Georgia Voll in the first two overs of the match with Smriti Mandhana needing a partner to steady the ship. Gautami walked in when RCB needed a special knock and that is what she delivered.

Having missed out on her chance in the reverse fixture, the 27-year-old looked determined to make the most of her chance and assist her skipper to save the innings.

Mandhana and Gautami added 60 runs off 45 balls and it was the latter who was the aggressor in the stand. Mandhana was playing the anchor role as Gautami flexed her muscles with a few big shots. She started with a boundary and then a six off Renuka as the innings was up and running.

Despite Mandhana falling with the score at 69 for three, Gautami showed full confidence in her hitting and raced to her fifty in 42 balls. She made GG for dropping her soon after her landmark by putting up a 69-run stand with Richa Ghosh, who scored 27 runs.

“I think when I walked out to the middle, the wicket was not that easy to bat on. It was slightly on the slower side and the ball was holding up. So, the plan was to take the innings deep. I was backing my strength. I kept rotating strikes with singles and doubles which pleased me the most,” said Gautami after her knock.

By the time Naik departed for 73 off 55 balls, RCB were 142 for five and set for a big finish. They got it with Radha’s 17 off 8 and Shreyanka’s 8 off 2 balls. With the ball, Satghare picked up figures of three for 21 and has given the management a good headache by the time Arundhati Reddy comes in.

For now, RCB can rest their feet up till Saturday, January 24, when they face Delhi Capitals.

WPL 2026 | WPL Points Table | WPL 2026 Schedule | Live Score

– Ends

Indore: Not too long ago, when Virat Kohli was searching for runs, advice began pouring in from all kinds of places. On air, Sunil Gavaskar brushed aside one such suggestion with bluntness. The idea that Kohli should alter his backlift and instead, angle it towards third man, was “nonsense”, he said.

Kohli had built his legend batting straight, trusting the full face of the bat, and certainly, his technique needed no late-career reinvention. And now with almost every outing in ODIs, he is showing why he was right to stick to his guns.

The 37-year-old right-hander’s 124 off 108 balls in the third ODI against New Zealand came in a losing cause, but it carried the unmistakable stamp of clarity. The bat still came down straight. The wrists were still magical. This Kohli was different yet distinctly similar to the original.

What had definitely shifted was the urgency with which he stepped into the contest. Since the South Africa series, Kohli has quietly recalibrated his early-innings template. In his first 10 balls, he has struck at 104, finding a boundary every six deliveries. In the months following the World Cup and before that tour, those same first 10 balls came at a strike rate of just 60.71, with a boundary every 11 balls.

By the time the New Zealand series arrived, Kohli had already reclaimed his space, his most dominant format. He finished the South Africa series as its leading run-scorer and followed it with a composed 93 in the opening ODI against New Zealand. So when India walked out for the decider on Sunday, the spotlight settled on him almost by habit.

Kyle Jamieson tested him early with a short ball outside off. Kohli rocked back and pulled it over deep mid-wicket for six. Shubman Gill, who had looked equally fluent had taken Jamieson on in the first over, soon fell to a delivery that came back in, brushing pad before knocking his off stump.

Kohli’s response was assured. No pause, no reinvention. Against Zakary Foulkes in the very next over, he leaned into a drive, the straight bat pushing the ball past mid-off.

Jamieson returned full and straight but Kohli shuffled across and whipped him through mid-wicket.

During his partnership with Harshit Rana, that energy became infectious. Kohli scampered twos, launched sixes, pegged Rana on and soaked in the “Kohli, Kohli” chants that reverberated at the Holkar Stadium as New Zealand briefly lost their grip. For that brief window, it didn’t seem like the events preceding it had happened at all. You’d think India was in the driver’s seat. That’s the effect Kohli tends to have on its fandom.

When Jamieson’s spell ended, India needed 68 from seven overs. The asking rate had dipped under 10. Two more fours off Clarke dragged it down to 46 off 28. For a moment, the chase felt real. It looked possible.

Until he went for the lofted off-drive that Daryl Mitchell gobbled up at long off. The miracle wasn’t to be. He looked disappointed but not distraught. Usually angry at himself, harsher than any of his critics, he takes the blame upon himself. But this time, he looked detached yet assured.

He has chased down totals, fallen short, carried teams, and watched others finish the job. Perhaps what stands out now is the calm, a player no longer burdened by expectation, only engaged with the moment.

At 37, playing only the ODI format, this feels like a Kohli unburdened from tomorrow. Current social media trends about 2026 being the new 2016 carry more truth than nostalgia. The hunger is familiar, but it comes with.a calmer, sharper version of himself.

His hundred did not change the result. But it did something else – it offered a template.

As others on the wrong side of 35 search for ways to extend their stay, Kohli’s innings delivered a quiet message – trust what brought you here. The questions around Kohli were answered long before he reached three figures. For many others, his innings only made them louder.

Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

The Times of India in Melbourne: At the end of the three-hour 20-minute exchange, Stan Wawrinka spread out his arms and soaked in the love from a packed KIA Arena. Playing his final Australian Open, the 40-year-old arrived in Melbourne Park with a wing and a prayer. He had managed only five Tour-level wins last season, none at a Grand Slam, and had crashed to four straight United Cup losses earlier this month.Wawrinka needed this win, more as balm than bonus.

The crowd sensed it too, lifting their 2014 champion at every turn. Buoyed by that support, the Swiss secured his first victory here in five years, rallying past Serbia’s Laslo Djere 5-7, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (4) to extend his stay here. Next up for the Swiss, who won the French Open in 2015 and the US Open in 2016, is the 21-year-old French qualifier Arthur Gea, who knocked out the Czech 17^th seed Jiri Lehecka 7-5, 7-6 (1), 7-5.On a warm day at Melbourne, with courtside temperatures topping 31 degrees, testing the reserve of the field, younger, and in-form players like the seventh seed Felix Auger-Aliassime struggled with cramps, eventually retiring against Portugal’s Nuno Borges when trailing 6-3, 4-6, 4-6.Wawrinka, playing his 20^th Aus Open, and 75^th start overall at the majors, was quick to thank the crowd.“The only reason I come back is because of the love you give me, it was amazing today,” an emotional Wawrinka said. “It is my last year. The passion is still intact. I am not young anymore, so I have to be careful. I am so happy I won and have a chance to play one more match here. I am trying to enjoy but I’m also a competitor, so I’m always going to fight and hopefully I will play another good match.”Wawrinka, who had 33 winners in the match, showed glimpses of his celebrated power play. His brutal play, especially the single-handed backhand, a sight at full flight, earned him the nickname ‘Stanimal.’ During his peak years, he repeatedly raised his level against the very best, overpowering opponents with raw force and fearlessness.“I wish it would feel the same, the same power and everything,” he said with a smile, “I don’t try to feel the same as 10 years ago. I’ve always been honest with myself, knowing where I am, what’s my ability, what I can do, what I can still achieve, the way I can still play. I try to use that on court every match.” “I know I’m not as good as I was before. I know I’m not physical and tennis-wise as I was before. That’s normal. I’m getting old. But I’m still happy with what I’m doing, always trying to push my own limit, always trying to be better.” The 40-year-old, now ranked 139 in the world, who came into the tournament on a wildcard, put on a strong serving performance, winning 18 or 21 service games. “Serving in general has been quite good, especially when I find my rhythm. I’ve been working more on my serve, especially to get more free points. I’m happy it helps me in matches like today,” he said.Wawrinka decided to call time on his career in the winter of 2025.“I wanted to keep going, I’m still happy playing,” he said. “At the end of last year, it was quite clear that next year (2026) should be my last year. It was not at all a hard decision. I’m super happy with this decision. I didn’t want to not know when I would stop, suddenly get injured or things like that or lose the level of the game.”There’ll be at least one more dance from Wawrinka at Melbourne Park.