Week Ahead, March 11-17: Tim Southee And Co, Badminton Stars In Action - Full Sports Schedule

The second week of March has been a delightful one for Indian cricket fans. Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill scored centuries while Kuldeep Yadav and Ravichandran Ashwin bagged fifers as India trounced England by an innings and 64 runs in the fifth and final Test to wrap up the series 4-1 at Dharamsala. (More Sports News)

The week is set to begin with yet another Test drawing closer to a conclusion. Australia hammered New Zealand by 172 runs in the first Test of the two-match series. They will be keen to seal the series, either by winning the ongoing second Test, or saving the match.

However, it doesn't look all that easy for the Aussies. With three days of play done and dusted, they now require 202 more runs with just six wickets in hand. Ending day three at 77/4. As the fourth day is set to begin on Monday, that is, March 11, the Kiwis will certainly fancy their chances of picking up the remaining six wickets and leveling the series 1-1. That said, check out the key sports events scheduled in the coming seven days.

Cricket

The second and final Test of the series between New Zealand and Australia is in its final stages with Day 4 to begin on Monday (March 11). It will be interesting to see if the Aussies can get the remaining runs with just six wickets in hand, or bat two days out to save the game. New Zealand will see a golden opportunity to wrap up the game on Day 4 itself and level the series.

After winning the first ODI and the second one being washed out, the series between Afghanistan and Ireland in Sharjah comes down to the decider, with the third and final ODI scheduled for Tuesday (March 12). The two teams will also play the first two T20Is of the three-match series on Friday (March 15) and Sunday (March 17) respectively.

Sri Lanka beat Bangladesh in the T20I series. However, the action isn't done yet and moves on with the two teams set to play three ODIs, with the first two to be played on Wednesday (March 13) and Friday (March 15). Home team Bangladesh will eye revenge after suffering defeat in the T20I series.

Looking at India's domestic cricket, Mumbai and Vidarbha are competing in the Ranji Trophy final in Mumbai, with the game scheduled to be played from Sunday to Thursday. (Day 2 begins Monday). In franchise cricket, the last week of the Women's Premier League (WPL) kick starts Monday, with the final three league matches to be played before the playoffs. Similarly, the final three league matches of the PSL are set to commence from Monday with the knock-outs taking place thereafter.

Football

The return leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 will see four key matches this week - Arsenal vs Porto and Barcelona vs Napoli on Wednesday (late Tuesday night), Dortmund vs PSV and Atletico Madrid vs Inter on Thursday (late Wednesday night).

The English Premier League 2023-24 will see Chelsea and Newcastle United in action on Tuesday with Bournemouth, Luton Town, Burnley, Brentford, Nottm Forest, Fulham, Tottenham, West Ham, and Aston Villa in action throughout the week.

Meanwhile, Real Betis, Villareal, Almeria, Sevilla, Real Sociedad, Mallorca, Granada, Celta Vigo, Athletic Club, Valencia, and Real Madrid will all be in La Liga action while Dortmund, Bayern among others will be in Bundesliga action as well. In India, Punjab FC, Goa, Mumbai City, Northeast United, Kerala Blasters, Mohun Bagan, and Bengaluru FC will be in action throughout the week in the Indian Super League.

Other Sports

The All England Open badminton tournament is slated to take place from March 12 to 17. The likes of HS Prannoy, Priyanshu Rajawat, Kidambi Srikanth, Lakshya Sen, PV Sindhu, and Aakarshi Kashyap will represent India in the singles categories while the famous duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand Pullela will be in the doubles categories.

In tennis, India's world number 1-ranked men's doubles player Rohan Bopanna and his Aussie partner Matthew Ebden are set to take part in the men's doubles of the Indian Wells Open tournament.