Sports Highlights

SPO-CRI-BURNS-PUCOVSKI Burns cleared for second Test, Pucovski ruled out Melbourne, Dec 20 PTI Hit on the elbow during the pink-ball series opener, Australias Joe Burns was on Sunday cleared to play the second Test against India, but young Will Pucovski was ruled out as he continues to recover from concussion.

The following are the top/expected stories at 1700 hours: EXPECTED STORIES: *Report of ISL match between Hyderabad FC and Mumbai City FC at Vasco. *Report of ISL match between Kerala Blasters and SC East Bengal at Bambolim. STORIES ON THE WIRE: SPO-CRI-IND-COMBINATIONS Gill, Rahul and Pant get ready for Boxing Day; Saha and Shaw set to be benched By Kushan Sarkar New Delhi, Dec 20 (PTI) Veteran wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha and young opener Prithvi Shaw are unlikely to be picked for the remaining Tests in Australia as India look to ring in wholesale changes after the batting debacle in Adelaide.

SPO-CRI-CA-TESTS-LD SWAPSCG remains our preference, says Hockley after reports that CA mulling swapping 3rd and 4th Tests Adelaide, Dec 20 (PTI) Cricket Australia on Sunday said the SCG remains its preferred venue for the third Test against India after reports emerged that the governing body is contemplating swapping the last two games of the four-Test series due to growing COVID-19 cases in Sydney. SPO-CRI-ICC-RANKING Kohli closes gap with top-ranked Smith Dubai, Dec 20 (PTI) India may have suffered an embarrassing defeat in the series-opener against Australia but its skipper Virat Kohli fractionally closed the gap with top-ranked Test batsman Steve Smith, following his 74-run knock in the first innings in Adelaide.

SPO-CRI-CUMMINS Cummins wants sporting MCG pitch for Boxing day Test Adelaide, Dec 20 (PTI) One of the architects of India's humiliating loss in the pink-ball series opener, Australian pacer Pat Cummins acknowledged the help offered by the lively track here and wants a similar ''sporting'' pitch for the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne. SPO-CRI-PONTING Serious wounds opened up, good chance for Australia to go for clean sweep: Ponting Melbourne, Dec 20 (PTI) The humiliation in Adelaide has opened up ''serious wounds'' for India and Australia now have a ''good chance'' of inflicting on the visitors a whitewash in the four-Test series, reckons former captain Ricky Ponting.

SPO-BOX-WC-IND Simranjeet, Manish strike gold; India end Cologne WC campaign with 9 medals New Delhi, Dec 20 (PTI) Indian women boxers Simranjeet Kaur (60kg) and Manish (57kg) notched up gold medals with contrasting final wins in the Cologne World Cup in Germany. SPO-CRI-BABAR Injured Babar Azam could miss first Test against New Zealand Karachi, Dec 20 (PTI) Recovering from a thumb injury, Pakistan captain Babar Azam could miss the opening Test against New Zealand at Mount Maunganui beginning December 26.

SPO-CRI-AMIR Amir blames team management for decision to retire at 28 Karachi, Dec 20 (PTI) Pacer Mohammad Amir has held the Pakistan team management responsible for his decision to quit international cricket at 28 and slammed coach Misbah-ul-Haq and bowling coach Waqar Younis for ''spoiling'' his image. SPO-TENNIS-TATA Tata Open to be rescheduled, organisers in talks with ATP for new dates Pune, Dec 20 (PTI) The rescheduling of next year's Australian Open due to the COVID-19 pandemic has forced the organisers of the Tata Open Maharashtra to look for fresh dates in the second half of the calender.

SPO-CRI-PAK-IND India's stunning batting collapse shocks Pakistan's former stars Karachi, Dec 20 (PTI) Pakistan's former stars, including Javed Miandad and Shoaib Akhtar, have reacted with shock following arch-rivals India's inexplicable batting collapse in the first Test against Australia in Adelaide. SPO-CRI-BURNS-PUCOVSKI Burns cleared for second Test, Pucovski ruled out Melbourne, Dec 20 (PTI) Hit on the elbow during the pink-ball series opener, Australia's Joe Burns was on Sunday cleared to play the second Test against India, but young Will Pucovski was ruled out as he continues to recover from concussion. SPO-MINISTRY-KHELO Sports Ministry approves inclusion of four indigenous games New Delhi, Dec 20 (PTI) The Sports Ministry has approved the inclusion of four indigenous sports, including Gatka and Kalaripayattu, in the Khelo India Youth Games 2021, scheduled to take place in Haryana.