The Afro-Asia Cup was a unique cricket tournament that first took place in 2005. It was created as a collaborative effort between the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and the African Cricket Association (ACA), designed to showcase the talent from both continents. This competition featured an “Africa XI” composed of players from African nations and an “Asia XI” comprising top cricketers from Asia. The tournament aimed to promote the game in Africa and strengthen cricketing ties between the two regions.

Nations that contributed players to Africa XI

The Africa XI team in the Afro-Asia Cup was comprised of players from African cricket-playing nations, primarily focusing on South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya. South Africa, as the most dominant cricketing nation in the continent, contributed a majority of the players, including experienced all-rounders, batters, and bowlers. Zimbabwe also played a key role, providing players who brought skill and experience, particularly in the spin and middle-order batting departments. Kenya, while a developing cricket nation?, contributed several players known for their energy and fielding. These three nations formed the backbone of the Africa XI, representing the best talent available from the African continent.

Nations that contributed players to Asia XI

Asia XI brought together players from cricketing powerhouses such as India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. India, with its vast talent pool, contributed world-class batters, all-rounders, and fast bowlers, leading the ?charge for the Asia XI team. Pakistan, known for producing formidable fast bowlers and aggressive batters, added strength to both the batting and bowling departments.

Sri Lanka, with its rich cricketing tradition, provided players with exceptional spin bowling and reliable middle-order options. Bangladesh, an emerging force in international cricket, also contributed key players, particularly in the all-rounder and spin bowling roles. Together, these nations brought together a formidable ?Asia XI that matched the best in the world.

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1. First edition of Afro-Asia Cup (2005) in South Africa

The inaugural edition of the Afro-Asia Cup took place in August 2005, and the matches were hosted in South Africa. This first-of-its-kind event saw an Africa XI take on an Asia XI ??in a three-match One Day International (ODI) series. The primary venues for the matches were the SuperSport Park in Centurion and Kingsmead in Durban. The tournament was organized with the purpose of raising funds for African cricket development and enhancing the cricketing ties between the two continents

Match results of the first edition (2005)

The first Afro-Asia Cup in 2005 featured three One Da?y Internationals (ODIs), played between Africa XI and Asia XI, w??ith the Asia XI dominating the series.

1. 1st ODI �?Centurion:
   Asia XI won by 2 wickets.
   Africa XI batted first and posted a total of 198 in 48.5 overs. Shaun Pollock top-scored for the African team with 45 runs, but the Asian bowlers, led by Abdul Razzaq, restricted them well. In response, Asia XI chased the target in 48.4 overs, led by a crucial 73 from Rahul Dravid. Despite some middle-order stumbles, Asia XI secured a close victory.
2. 2nd ODI �?Durban:
   Asia XI won by 17 runs.
   Batting first, Asia XI scored 267/9 in 50 overs, with Shahid Afridi playing an explosive innings of 55 off just 27 balls. Africa XI, in response, was restricted to 250/8 in their 50 overs, despite a strong 82 from Steve Tikolo. Venkatesh Prasad’s disciplined bowling helped Asia XI win and seal the series.
3. 3rd ODI �?Durban:
   Asia XI won by 18 runs.
   Asia XI put up 241/9 in their 50 overs, with key contributions from Mohammad Kaif (52) and Dravid (54). Africa XI, despite a brilliant 85 from Steve Tikolo, fell short and was bowled out for 223, with Asia XI clinching the match and completing the 3-0 series win.

2. Second edition of Afro-Asia Cup (2007) in India

Following the success of the 2005 edition, the second Afro-Asia Cup was held in 20??07, this time in India. The tournament took place in June, and all three ODIs were held at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. The concept remained the same, with the Asia XI pitted against the Africa XI, but this time the event attracted even more attention due to the presence of big-name players from both sides.

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Asian pitches have always been a challenge for the SENA countries as they are not used to the conditions of the largest continent. The tracks in Asia tend to provide more assistance to spinners rather than fast bowlers, and as a re??sult, visiting nations find it quite difficult to play on these kinds of pitches. However, there are still some bowlers from outside the mainland that have performed exceptionally well in these conditions for their nation.

Nathan Lyon recently scripted history in the third Test of the Bor???der Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2023 as he created a new record of most wickets by a visiting bowler in A??sia. On day 1 of the Indore Test, he picked an eleven-wicket match haul to achieve the feat.

On that note, let’s have a look at the top five visiting players with the most wickets on Asian soil:

1) Nathan Lyon

The veteran Aussie spinner has so far represented his nation in 118 Test matches picking up 479 wickets in the longest format. Lyon’s record in Asia is also very impressive, as his best bowling figures came in Asia against India in the third test of the BGT 2023.

• Matches in Asia: 27 | Wickets: 137 | Average: 30.38 | 5-fers: 11 | Best: 8/50

2) Shane Warne

Legendary Shane Warne is sec?ond on the list in t?erms of most wickets on Asian soil. He appeared in 145 matches for Australia and has 708 wickets to his name in the red-ball format.

• Matches in Asia: 25 | Wickets: 127 | Average: 26.81 | 5-fers: 11 | Best: 7/94

3) Daniel Vettori

The New Zealand all-rounder has bagged 362 Test wickets in 113 matches and has been quite an effective spinner in Asian conditions as well. Daniel Vettori is the most-capped Kiwi Test cricketer.

• Matches in Asia: 21 | Wickets: 98 | Average: 28.86 | 5-fers: 8 | Best: 6/28

4) Dale Steyn

Dale Steyn is one ?of the few fast bowlers to perform well on the Asian wicket. He played 93 Test matches for Sou??th Africa and grabbed 439 scalps in the longest format.

• Matches in Asia: 22 | Wickets: 92 | Average: 24.11 | 5-fers: 5 | Best: 7/51

5) James Anderson

England’s premier pacer, James Anderson, is only the second active player to feature in the list. So far, he has struck 685 dismissals in 179 Test matches and has a decent record in the world’s largest continent.

• Matches in Asia: 28 | Wickets: 82 | Average: 26.78 | 5-fers: 2 | Best: 6/40

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Disney Star has bagged the rights to broadcast all men’s and women’s international cricket played in Australia into India and other territories across Asia, announced by Cricket Australia (CA) on Sunday.

“We are delighted to announce a new association with Disney Star to broadcast Australian cricket throughout India and other territories across Asia,” tweeted Cricket Australia.

We are delighted to announce a new association with Disney Star to broadcast Australian cricket throughout India and other territories across Asia! pic.twitter.com/LcdklSrU3T

— Cricket Australia (@CricketAus) July 24, 2022

The seven-year deal, which begins in 2023-24, will see Disney Star televise all international matches as well as the Men’s and Women’s Big Bash League fixtures.

Disney Star, which is owned by The Walt Disney Company, will take over from Sony Pictures Network India (S??PNI), who are the current rights holders of Australian cricket.

“We are delighted to announce this new association with Disney Star from season 2023/24 onwards. Disney Star is synonymous with the game in India, and we look forward to working with them to showcase the outstanding cricket played in Australia every summer,” said CA CEO Nick Hockley in a statement.

“The magnitude of this association is a testament to the enduring rivalry and respect that exists between Australian and Indian teams, the excitement and popularity of WBBL and BBL, and the high regard of Australian cricket in India and global markets more broadly. There was significant interest in our rights, and we are very grateful to our current rights-holder Sony for their partnership which will continue throughout this season,” he added.

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Ishant Sharma added yet another feather to his cap on Sunday as he broke Kapil Dev’s record to grab first place in the list of Indian pacers with the most Test wickets outside Asia.

On Day 3 of the second Test against West Indies at Sabina Park, Ishant dismissed Jahmar Hamilton in the 47th over of West Indies’ first innings to overtake the legendary Kapil Dev.

#StatAttack | With Jahmar Hamilton's wicket, Ishant Sharma went past the great Kapil Dev to top the list of Indian fast-bowlers with the most number of Test wickets outside Asia. 🙌🏻#WIvIND #ThisIsNewDelhi #DelhiCapitals

— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) September 1, 2019

Ishant now has 156 scalps outside Asia in Test cricket. He was just one wicket away from surpassing Kapil before this Test match. Incidentally, both Ishant and Kapil took the sam?e number of Tests (45) to reach their landmarks.

Here are the top 3 Indian pacers with most Test wickets outside Asia (matches in parentheses):

Ishant Sharma (45) – 156* wickets
Kapil Dev (45) – 155 wickets
Zaheer Khan (38) – 147 wickets

But before the record with the ball, Ishant starred with the bat for India as he sco?red his maiden Test half-century (57) and helped the tea??m reach 416 in their first innings.

Before this, Ishant’s highest Test score was 31 not out, which he scored against Sri Lanka in the 2010 Galle Test.

Ishant Sharma scores his maiden Test fifty in his 92nd Test.
This is his 2nd fifty in First-Class cricket (made his FC debut for Delhi in 2006 with Virat Kohli)
His highest FC score of 66 came at No. 9 for Sussex v Leicestershire in April 2018#WIvIND

— Sarang Bhalerao (@bhaleraosarang) August 31, 2019

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West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, who has retired from all forms of international cricket, has launched his new song ‘Asia’, which is based on Asia’s star cricketers.

DJ Bravo has covered all the top Asian cricketers of the modern era, like Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Shahid Afridi, Shakib Al Hasan and Rashid Khan in the ‘Asia’ song.

Well @DJBravo47, this is definitely an improvement on the ‘Champion�?song, especially since you’ve included me in the lineup 😜. Wishing you all the very best with this new number, & I hope it gets just as popular! pic.twitter.com/VvK0RzsW8J

— Shahid Afridi (@SAfridiOfficial) February 7, 2019

Besides his cricketing heroics, Bravo’s other skill, singing, has made waves worldwide in the recent past.

His ‘Champion’ song was a smash hit and was engraved in the minds of every person who heard it.

Bravo will be back in the subcontinent next month for the 12th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). He was retained by defending champions Chennai Super Kings and will play under Dhoni.

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Ind?ian captain Virat Kohli has been on a record-breaking spree on home turf in the ODI series against Windies.

After becoming the fastest to reach 10,000 ODI runs in the second game in Vizag, Kohli manage?d to tumble another world reco?rd in the third game in Pune.

Playing against West Indies ??for the third time in the five-match series, on Saturday, Kohli broke another Sachin Tendulkar record as he became the fastest batsman to reach 6000 ODI runs in Asia.

With a boundary down the leg side to the third-man fence off Jason Holder, gave Kohli the chance to breach the landmark. He achieved the mark in his 117th ODI innings as compared to Sachin’s 142 innings and is also the 12th player to score 6,000-plus runs in the 50-over format in Asia.

Fastest to 6000 ODI runs in Asia:

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