Babar Azam flops, Suryakumar record and Cummins out – January 31 Cricket highlights

Babar Azam and Suryakumar Yadav [Source: @Saabir_Saabu01/x]

Babar Azam once again failed to go big for Pakistan as his T20I form continues to dwindle in a T20 World Cup season. Suryakumar Yadav notched up a huge T20I record through his batting blitz against New Zealand. In other news, legendary Australian fast bowler Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the 2026 T20 World Cup.

Capping an eventful day in the world of cricket, here we take a look at five of the biggest cricketing news that emerged out of Saturday, January 31.

Babar Azam flops again vs Australia as poor show continues

Babar Azam was dismissed for just two off five balls against Australia in the second T20I of their three-match series in Lahore. For the second time in succession, the legendary Pakistan batter was trapped plumb in front of stumps by ace Australian spinner Adam Zampa.

Babar Azam also had a BBL season to forget for the Sydney Sixers earlier this month and in late-December. Throughout the tournament, the cricketer aggregated just 202 runs in 11 innings at a dismal average of 22.44 and a below par strike rate of 103.06.

David Miller declared fit for T20 World Cup 2026 for South Africa

Senior South Africa batter David Miller has been declared fit to play the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka next month. The cricketer suffered a groin injury earlier this month while playing an SA20 2025-26 match for Paarl Royals. He subsequently underwent a fitness test this week and has now been medically cleared by CSA for the tournament.

David Miller is expected to join the South Africa squad on Sunday, February 1 shortly before taking flight for India for the showpiece event.

Dwarshuis in, Pat Cummins out of Australia squad for T20 World Cup

Australia’s Test and ODI captain Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the national squad for the upcoming 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. The legendary fast bowler is yet to recover from his back injury, and he is now being replaced by Ben Dwarshuis in the 15-player Australian group.

Ben Dwarshuis recently impressed one-and-all in the BBL 2025-26 season. Playing 12 matches for the Sydney Sixers, the speedster picked up 16 wickets in 11 innings at a splendid bowling average of 18.81. He also picked up match-winning figures of 3-26 against Hurricanes in the Challenger match of the tournament.

Suryakumar Yadav creates history after batting blitz vs New Zealand

India captain Suryakumar Yadav hammered down 63 runs off 30 balls with four fours and six huge sixes against New Zealand in the fifth T20I of their five-match series. Batting at number four in Thiruvananthapuram, the cricketer shared a huge partnership with Ishan Kishan as India mounted 271-5 in 20 overs.

Suryakumar Yadav’s innings also helped him complete 3,000 runs in T20I cricket, doing so in just 98 innings. He became the fastest cricketer in the world to reach the landmark figure, in terms of number of balls faced. Suryakumar Yadav reached 3,000 runs in just 1,822 balls, i.e., 125 deliveries lesser than second-placed Muhammad Waseem.

Harry Brook rejects PSL 2026, declines Qalandars offer

England white-ball captain Harry Brook has confirmed his unavailability for the upcoming PSL 2026 season. As reported by Samaa TV, the cricketer was approached by the Lahore Qalandars franchise for a direct signing. Brook, however, did not mention any reason behind his exclusion from the tournament.

The 26-year-old English batter last played PSL cricket back during its 2021-22 edition, also for the Lahore Qalandars franchise. He scored 264 runs in eight innings of the season at an astonishing batting average of 52.80.