There is "absolute clarity" between MS Dhoni and the BCCI regarding his future according to the board president Sourav Ganguly.

India's premier wicketkeeper-batsman has been on sabbatical ever since the end of the World Cup and although the general public can only speculate about what is going to happen, the administration appears to have more information. It's just that they aren't sharing it right now.

"No, no, there is clarity, but certain things cannot be said on public platform," Ganguly told PTI. "There is absolute clarity on MS Dhoni and you'll find out in time.

"There's transparency between the board, MS and the selectors. When you deal with such champions - MS Dhoni is an unbelievable athlete for India - certain things have to be kept within the closed doors. It's very transparent and everybody knows where they stand."

Dhoni hasn't played any competitive cricket since India's World Cup semi-final loss to New Zealand at Old Trafford in July. He opted out of the West Indies tour that followed the World Cup, in order to spend a fortnight with the Indian territorial army, and since then has not featured in the squads for the home series against South Africa and Bangladesh and the upcoming one against West Indies. He hasn't played domestic cricket in this period either.

In response to India head coach Ravi Shastri's comment that IPL 2020 will give a clear picture on Dhoni's future, Ganguly said, "We will see what happens, there's enough time. Of course it will get clear (within three months)."

On Wednesday, Dhoni himself had added to the speculation on his future with an intriguing comment: when he was asked the question by a reporter, Dhoni simply said, "January tak mat poocho (don't ask until January)." He, however, did not elaborate on what was meant to happen in January.

The selectors, meanwhile, have kept faith in Rishabh Pant as the limited-overs keeper in this time, with Sanju Samson picked as his back-up for the last two T20I series. In October, chairman MSK Prasad had said the selectors were "moving on" from Dhoni.

Jess Duffin continued to carry the Melbourne Renegades on her shoulders as they pushed for a place in the semi-finals with a superbly-paced chase against the Melbourne Stars to win by six wickets with a ball to spare. Duffin struck 76 off 57 balls after coming in at 2 for 11 in the second over, initially steadying the innings with Tammy Beaumont before adding 81 in 10 overs with Courtney Webb (30). Georgia Wareham then played a vital cameo in a tense finish with eight need off the last over. The Stars had fallen away after a tremendous opening stand of 118 in 13 overs between Elyse Villani (45) and Lizelle Lee (70). That pair departed in the space of three deliveries and the Stars could only add 44 in the remainder of the innings, 20 of those coming off the last over.

Kevin Roberts, the Cricket Australia chief executive, has revealed that the governing body has declined offers to sign on a betting partner for the men's and women's Big Bash Leagues on the basis that the format is pitched primarily at children and families, amid discussion around their high-profile partnership with Bet365.

In the wake of staunch criticism from the noted anti-gambling advocate Tim Costello, who Roberts commissioned to speak with state and territory CEOs last year, CA's ranking executive stated that the governing body was not about to expand on its commercial relationships with betting companies, and would in time review whether other sponsorship categories could take up the slack currently occupied by Best365, believed to be worth comfortably more than A$10 million a year.

"I really respect Tim's views. I think there's two very separate points here. The integrity of the game it's all about keeping the game clean, and on the other hand, very separately, we have a commercial arrangement in the sports betting space in Australia," Roberts told SEN Radio. "I would note we're very conservative in that space though, so as an example I was approached recently about adding a sports betting partner to the BBL and that's something we won't do because it's fun, family entertainment.

"We are conservative in that nature, we have an existing commercial arrangement in some other forms of the game and we need to honour that at this point in time, but in terms of our future commercial strategy, we're going to be reflecting on the sponsorship categories and the markets where we want to do more, where we want to maintain our position, and in some cases where we want to do less.

"So at this point I'd note they're very separate issues, one is about keeping the game clean, and the other is that we have a conservative commercial arrangement right now and we're not adding commercial partnerships to the sports betting space and the BBL will remain clean of that."

Asked about whether CA could cover the revenue brought in by batting sponsorship via other means, Roberts said the governing body was always looking at which areas it wished to explore more thoroughly or move away from. "I think it depends on the context, the time," he said. "The reality is we've got an existing commercial arrangement, so whether we need that or don't need that, there's an existing arrangement in place and we have an obligation to honour that.

"So I don't want to jump the gun, it's something that the worst thing we could do is react prematurely. We've got to work through this calmly and determine how we want the commercial space to look for cricket going forward."

Bet365's advertising with CA includes the boundary rope at all international matches, plus boundary signage whether the fixed versions at some grounds like the Gabba, or the digital signage used at Adelaide Oval, where the betting company's branding is beamed from every available area apart from the space occupied by the Test series naming rights sponsor, Domain, at either end of the ground. Roberts contended that a removal of this advertising would make little difference to the amount of betting advertising viewed on television and digital broadcasts.

"The reality is if we didn't have a sports betting partner, the presence of sports betting agencies on the broadcast would hardly look different to the fan to what it does now," he said. "That boundary rope is one element of the mix, but you've only got to sit back and watch cricket on TV at home to see that there's significant exposure of sports betting agencies, and very hard, in fact impossible I'd suggest, to sit at home and determine which of those are associated with sponsorship or otherwise."

As for the Emily Smith anti-corruption case, Roberts said he was initially of the mind that a more lenient sentence than a three-month ban should be considered, until he learned more about the circumstances. "I must say when I first heard of the incident, the question I asked myself was given the lack of intent here I wonder how far we could reduce the standard sanction," he said.

"From that first question I asked myself, given the lack of intent how much can we reduce the standard sanction, then learning a lot of the detail around it informed me. And respectfully a lot of the people commenting on this don't have the full context or information. The education is very strong in this space, within minutes of that post being made, other female players were responding to it, saying 'you can't post that, people could bet on what you put up'. That's what another player posted, others were saying 'you need to take that down'.

"Unfortunately it was up for an hour and a half and other players had identified after a few minutes what was out there and saying 'take it down'. There's details like that, there's also the fact Emily and the ACA if they felt the proposed sanction from CA was heavy handed, there was the opportunity to take it to an independent tribunal. If there was genuine belief on the part of the ACA that a reduced sanction would come about from a tribunal, I'm sure they would've asked for transcripts of the interviews, witness statements and all the things you'd want to get a hold of."

CLEVELAND -- Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 11 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter and the Milwaukee Bucks held off the Cleveland Cavaliers 119-110 on Friday night for their 10th consecutive victory.

Cleveland trailed 74-52 early in the third quarter, but hit 10 3-pointers in the period and cut the lead into single figures. The Cavaliers continued to rally and Kevin Love's layup made it 113-110 with 2 minutes, 20 seconds left -- Cleveland's final points of the game.

Khris Middleton's jumper and two free throws by George Hill put the game away, but Antetokounmpo was once again the difference-maker. The reigning MVP scored in a variety of ways with the game on the line, including a 3-pointer, a floating jumper, a tip-in and a dunk off an offensive rebound.

Cleveland got back in it with Antetokounmpo taking a rest in the third quarter. The Cavaliers had 42 points, their highest-scoring quarter of the season.

Antetokounmpo grabbed 12 rebounds and has had double-doubles in every game this season for Milwaukee, at 16-3 the top team in the Eastern Conference. The Bucks hadn't won 10 in a row since the 1985-86 season.

Hill scored 18 points and Middleton, playing for the second time since missing seven games with a bruised left thigh, had 12.

Cleveland has dropped nine of 10. Rookie Darius Garland scored 21 points, including five 3-pointers, and Cedi Osman had 20. Tristan Thompson had 11 points and 13 rebounds, including the 5,000th of his career in the first half.

Love, who is playing despite dealing with a sore back, had 16 points and 8 rebounds in 31 minutes.

Antetokounmpo was 14-of-26 from the field and took charge after Milwaukee won the opening tip. He cut to the basket, took a bounce pass from Eric Bledsoe, dunked with his right hand over Love and completed the three-point play at the foul line.

Antetokounmpo's dunk came just 13 seconds into the game. Love, who came over to help after Antetokounmpo evaded his defender, leaped to block the attempt but was whistled for the foul.

Love missed games Saturday and Monday, and was limited to 24 minutes Wednesday.

TIP-INS

Bucks: The record for most consecutive double-doubles to start an NBA season is 34, set by Bill Walton in 1977. ... Hill (sore back) returned after missing two games.

Cavaliers: Cleveland hit 17 of 34 3-pointers. ... Larry Nance Jr. had 18 points. ... Cleveland had 15 turnovers after committing 25 Wednesday.

COMEBACK KID

Middleton has come off the bench in both games since returning from the injury. Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said he will rejoin the starting lineup soon. "It's going to be very short term, him not starting," Budenholzer said.

UP NEXT

Bucks: Host Charlotte on Saturday night.

Cavaliers: Host Detroit on Tuesday night.

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Carmelo Anthony had 23 points and 11 rebounds and the Portland Trail Blazers downed Chicago 107-103 on Friday night for their second victory over the Bulls this week.

Damian Lillard added 28 points for the Blazers, who have won three straight after four consecutive losses. Hassan Whiteside had 8 points, 15 rebounds and a franchise-record 10 blocks for Portland.

The Blazers led by as many as 12 points in the third quarter, but the Bulls pulled within 85-84 in the final period. CJ McCollum stalled the rally with a 3-pointer for Portland.

Anthony's 3 made it 91-84 with 7 minutes, 28 seconds left and he held up three fingers for the cheering Moda Center crowd as the Bulls called a timeout.

Lauri Markkanen's 3 closed the gap for Chicago to 93-92. Lillard answered with his own 3 to again hold off the Bulls. After Zach LaVine's corner 3 with 31.7 seconds left narrowed it to 105-103, Whiteside tipped in Lillard's shot to clinch the win.

LaVine finished with 28 for the slumping Bulls, who have lost seven of their past nine games.

The Blazers have been boosted by the recent signing of Anthony, who scored 25 points in Portland's 117-94 victory over the Bulls in Chicago on Monday.

The Blazers acquired Anthony to shore up the frontcourt and help the team overcome a slow start after going to the Western Conference finals last season. The deal was official Nov. 19.

Between the two games against the Bulls, the Blazers defeated Oklahoma City 136-119 on Wednesday night.

The Bulls fell to the injury-addled Golden State Warriors 104-90 on Wednesday at the new Chase Center to open a three-game road trip.

Tomas Satoransky was a game-time decision for the Bulls with a left toe bruise, but started. Ryan Arcidiacono, who has been slowed by a right elbow strain, also played.

Coby White's layup put the Bulls up 28-22 near the end of the first quarter but neither team was able to reach a double-digit margin in the first half. Lillard's layup gave Portland a 49-43 lead late in the opening half and the Blazers went into the break ahead 53-47.

LaVine led all scorers with 18 points at the half, but four of the Blazers' starters were in double figures, including Anthony.

Whiteside had collected seven blocks by early in the third quarter, but he also picked up four personal fouls.

The Bulls pulled with 57-56 on Satoransky's 3-pointer, but Lillard came back with a 3 for Portland. The Blazers went up 72-60 midway through the third quarter on McCollum's 3-pointer as they appeared to pull away.

But White's 3-pointer narrowed the gap to 79-76 and the Bulls rallied to within three points heading into the fourth quarter.

TIP-INS

Bulls: The Bulls made 14 of 38 3-point attempts. ... Chicago went into the game with 187 steals this season, most in the league. ... It was the second of a three-game West Coast road swing that ends in Sacramento on Sunday. ... The Bulls celebrated Thanksgiving and visited Nike while in Portland.

Trail Blazers: Anthony's son Kiyan was at the game. ... Whiteside had four blocks in the first quarter alone. ... Portland has won seven straight against the Bulls. ... Anthony moved into 10th place in the NBA for 20-point games with 755.

UP NEXT

The Bulls wrap up the road trip in Sacramento on Monday night.

The Trail Blazers visit the LA Clippers on Tuesday, the first of a back-to-back. They'll return home to play the Kings on Wednesday.

---

More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports

INDIANAPOLIS -- When the Indiana Pacers finally asserted themselves after a sluggish half, the Atlanta Hawks’ Trae Young continually made shots to remind nothing would be easy.

Young tied a career high with 49 points, but the host Pacers overcame an 11-point halftime deficit as well as being pushed an extra five minutes for a 105-104 overtime triumph over the Hawks on Friday night.

T.J. Warren hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:13 remaining for the Pacers, and Jeremy Lamb had 20 points and sparked a quick start in overtime with a 20-foot jumper and an assist on a Myles Turner 3-pointer.

“It was just a little adversity,” Turner said. “I feel like we faced it well.”

But back came the Hawks, trying to avoid a ninth consecutive loss, as Young scored eight of his team’s 10 points in overtime, including a pair of 3-pointers.

“I guess it was good individually,” Young said, “but people who know me know I don’t care at all. If we don’t win, none of that matters. I didn’t do enough.”

Young’s 49 points tied for the fourth-highest, single-game total in Bankers Life Fieldhouse history. He finished 16 of 28 from the floor, hitting 8 of 15 on 3-pointers.

“The head of the snake, Trae Young, he was great tonight,” Lamb said. “He was great, but we were able to get enough stops.”

Warren’s only 3-pointer broke a 99-all tie. He finished with 16 points.

“We just kept grinding and finally got the lead late,” Pacers coach Nate McMillan said. “They found a way to get this game.”

After two quarters, McMillan was scratching his head with the Pacers trailing 54-43.

“I was thinking it was too much turkey,” he said. “We looked asleep in the first half.”

Turner, who along with Domantas Sabonis scored 17 points, sensed his team would respond based on how they’ve played recently.

“These past couple of games, we’ve started to come together a lot more,” he said. “We came back and responded well.”

Warren and Malcomb Brogdon had 16. Brogdon had a chance to win the game in regulation but his last-second bank shot was long.

The Hawks’ DeAndre’ Bembry and Alex Len added 15 points apiece off the bench.

Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce wishes his team had the balance of the Pacers. Aside from Young, the rest of the Hawks shot just 35.6 percent (23 of 63).

“We needed every bit of (Young’s), whatever number, 49, 48, whatever he ended up with, we needed every bit of that,” Pierce said. “However, we’ve got to balance that. We were playing him heavy minutes.”

TIP-INS

Hawks: Forward Jabari Parker is averaging 17.8 points on 51.8%t shooting, one of just four NBA players to average 17 points with 20 3-pointers on 50%tshooting. ... Young became the franchise’s second-youngest player, at 21 years and 69 days, to reach 2,000 career points on Wednesday.

Pacers: Brogdon is shooting a league-leading 96% at the line. ... The next five games are on the road, where Indiana is 3-4.

MOVE OVER, MOE

McMillan tied Doug Moe for 24th on the NBA’s list with 628 victories. McMillan, whose overall record is 628-566, recently passed Larry Bird (147) and Bob “Slick” Leonard (142) for fourth in career franchise victories now at 150.

UP NEXT

Hawks: At Houston on Saturday night.

Pacers: At Philadelphia on Saturday night.

---

More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP-Sports

PHOENIX -- Luka Doncic was in total control, getting into the lane when he wanted, getting the shots he wanted and getting the ball to teammates in places where they could do some damage.

Because of that, the Dallas Mavericks got the result they wanted with an 120-113 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Friday night.

Doncic tied a career high with 42 points, Tim Hardaway Jr. added 26 and the Mavericks bounced back from a disappointing loss to the Los Angeles Clippers three days earlier.

"Great players have a short memory for tough games," Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said about Doncic's big night. "They move forward. They're always thinking ahead and about the next challenge. He was spectacular tonight from start to finish."

The second-year guard just missed a triple-double with 11 assists and nine rebounds. Hardaway shot 6 of 9 from 3-point range to help offset a quiet night from Kristaps Porzingis, who finished with two points.

The teams entered the final quarter tied at 89. The Mavericks went on an 8-0 run midway through the fourth to take a 104-97 lead and never trailed again.

Doncic was coming off a subpar outing Tuesday night in a loss to the Clippers, where he shot 4 of 14 from the field and missed all eight 3-point attempts. The 20-year-old was superb in Phoenix, making 12 of 24 shots from the field and 15 of 18 free throws.

He said he didn't get too low after the Clippers loss and was no more motivated than normal on Friday, even if his performance suggested he had a little extra fire.

"It's just one game -- we lost one game," Doncic said. "We shouldn't be worried about that. You go to the next game and pretend like nothing happened. I'm anxious to go out there every night. I'm excited about every game. That's me."

Phoenix has lost six of its last seven games. Kelly Oubre Jr. led the Suns with 22 points and 10 rebounds, and Ricky Rubio added 21 points and nine assists.

"We didn't play our game the last quarter," Rubio said. "I think we got focused on the wrong things, things we can't control."

Doncic had 14 points, six rebounds and six assists in the first quarter as the Mavericks edged to a 53-50 halftime lead. Oubre had 13 for the Suns.

EMOTIONAL SUNS

Friday's game was entertaining and a little emotional, with a handful of moments where Suns and Mavericks players had to be separated.

Phoenix coach Monty Williams said his team struggled with composure.

"Both teams were pretty emotional tonight," Williams said. "But I just felt like it affected us more."

HARDAWAY'S BIG NIGHT

Carlisle recently moved Hardaway into the starting lineup and the 6-foot-5 guard has responded with a string of big games. Over the past two weeks, he's had 16 points against Cleveland, 31 against Houston and now 26 against the Suns.

"It's seizing the opportunity and being prepared," Hardaway said.

A FREE THROW ADVENTURE

Suns forward Frank Kaminsky inadvertently contributed to a rally with two of the worst free throws of his professional career.

Kaminsky -- a respectable 76% career free throw shooter -- had a stunning air ball on his first of two free throws during the third quarter. He overcompensated on the second, pounding it off the backboard and rim before getting his own offensive rebound.

The extra possession led to a huge dunk by Devin Booker to put the Suns up 69-63.

TIP-INS

Mavericks: Porzingis and Phoenix's Aron Baynes both received technical fouls in the second quarter when they got into an argument coming off the court during a timeout. ... Doncic averaged a 30-point triple-double in November, becoming just the third NBA to accomplish that feat in a calendar month, joining Oscar Robertson (five times) and Russell Westbrook (twice). ... The Mavericks improved to 12-6 for their best start since the 2010-11 season when they won an NBA title. ... Porzingis missed all eight shots he took from the field, including six 3-pointers.

Suns: Baynes returned to the lineup after a five-game absence because of a right hip flexor sprain. He finished with 17 points and seven rebounds in 25 minutes. ... Phoenix fell to 8-10.

UP NEXT

Mavericks: At Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.

Suns: At Charlotte on Monday night.

TOKYO -- The Hanshin Tigers of Japan's Central League are set to acquire major league free agent Justin Bour.

Per the Kyodo News agency, Tigers general manager Osamu Tanimoto said this week the team has reached a basic agreement with the 31-year-old Bour, who played first base for the Los Angeles Angels last season.

Hanshin officials were not available for comment on Saturday.

Bour has a career .253 batting average with 92 home runs, 303 RBIs and 433 hits over six seasons in Major League Baseball. He started his career with the Miami Marlins in 2014 and had a brief stint with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2018 before joining the Angels for the 2019 season.

Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Duncan Keith left Friday's 5-2 loss to the visiting Colorado Avalanche with a groin injury midway through the second period after logging 9 minutes, 30 seconds of ice time.

Chicago coach Jeremy Colliton said Keith wouldn't travel to Denver for Saturday's rematch with the Avalanche, but Colliton didn't know the severity of the injury to the 36-year-old who's likely to become a Hall of Famer.

"Hopefully he'll be back soon,'' captain Jonathan Toews said. "Not used to being out there without a guy like him."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.