Even their worst detractors would not have possibly predicted Australia would be in this position. Tomorrow they play an insignificant match against Oman, when everything else is settled and T20WC would move to next phase. After a nightmarish week, having been soundly beaten by Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka, Australia's T20 World Cup dreams are over in the blink of an eye. For the first time since 2009, Australia have been knocked out at the group stage but, instead of flying home, they have the ignominy of having to front up against Oman in a match with very little meaning.
Some interesting
Tidbits of Cricket thanks to a Cricket Q on FB by Mr. R Balasundaram that led to more searches on
Cricket and finding something quite interesting ! (for me)
Unlikely
that we would have followed up the career of Sam Smith, who was British No.1
female Tennis star in 90s – she retired and took up broadcasting as
Career. She worked for BBC Sport in
Summer Olympics providing commentary not only on Tennis but also on Badminton
and Table Tennis.
Today’s
Cric Q of Bala read :
1) X
was an international rugby player for country A
2) Y
was a tennis star who for a brief period was ranked No.1 in country B
3) X
and Y met in country B and married
4) One
of their sons, Z chose cricket over rugby and tennis and played in the ongoing
ICC World Cup for country A.
Identify Z.
Knowing
Bala, my searches first zeroed on recent matches, possible Rugby Nations .. and
the like.
In their most
recent cricket encounter, India defeated the Netherlands by 17 runs on February
18, 2026, in Ahmedabad. India posted a total of 193/6, powered by Shivam
Dube’s soaring sixers in his knock of 66
off 31 balls. The Netherlands fought back and were closer but lost eventually
finishing 176/7.
The answer is a player from Nederlands - Zach Lion-Cachet, who hit a quickfire 26 in 16 balls. Born in Dec 2003, Zach has a diverse skill set and lineage. From Oxford, England, he quickly became a key figure in the Dutch national team, particularly noted for his performances under pressure. His father, Marc Lion-Cachet, was an international rugby player who represented the Netherlands. His mother, Sam Smith, was a professional tennis star who reached a career-high ranking of British No. 1 in the late 1990s. His parents met in the United Kingdom where his father played rugby and his mother competed in tennis. Although Zach was part of the Southampton FC football academy until age 16, he ultimately chose to pursue cricket over his parents' sports.
Samantha Smith who was the British ladies' No. 1 from 1996 to 1999 now commentates on the game, predominantly for the BBC, ITV, Sky Sports, BT Sport, Eurosport & more, for 17 consecutive years
Lion-Cachet
follows a long tradition of "double internationals" or elite
multi-sport athletes in cricket:
• Ellyse Perry (Australia): The only player
to have played in both a Cricket World Cup and a FIFA Women's World Cup
(scoring for Australia in the 2011 football tournament).
• Jeff Wilson (New Zealand): Known as
"Goldie," he won 60 caps for the All Blacks in rugby and played 6
ODIs for New Zealand in cricket.
• Suzie Bates (New Zealand): A legendary
cricketer who also represented New Zealand in basketball at the 2008 Beijing
Olympics.
• Jonty Rhodes (South Africa): Famous for
his fielding, he was also an international-level hockey player selected for the
1992 Olympic squad.
• Yuzvendra Chahal (India): The only player
to represent India in both international cricket and World Youth Chess
Championships.
• Rudie van Vuuren (Namibia): Achieved the
rare feat of playing in both the Cricket World Cup and the Rugby World Cup in
the same year (2003).
Then there is the legendary Triplicanite [many of us would have seen him in marriages and in Temple] Morapakkam Josyam Gopalan, (MJ Gopalan), an iconic personality, India's most famous "Double International" representing the country in both cricket and hockey. His career is defined by a legendary "what if" moment in 1936, when he had to choose between two major international tours happening simultaneously. When he was a virtual certainty for the Indian hockey team for the 1936 Berlin Olympics, he chose Cricket went on to tour England but was not picked up for a single test. Ironically, the hockey team, led by Dhyan Chand, went on to win the Olympic Gold Medal.
On November 4,
1934, he earned the distinction of bowling the first-ever delivery in the
history of the Ranji Trophy, playing for Madras against Mysore. He
played his only Test match against England in 1934 at Calcutta. He was a
stalwart of Madras (now Tamil Nadu) cricket, taking 194 first-class wickets and
scoring nearly 3,000 runs. A world-class
centre-half, he toured New Zealand and Australia with the Indian hockey team in
1935, playing in 39 of the 48 matches.
Once regularly held annual first class match between Tamil Nadu and
Ceylon (Sri lanka) was named after him as : M.J. Gopalan Trophy.
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