All posts by n8rngtd.top

Nearly a year after retirement, AB de Villiers said his staggered schedule has worked out well

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Apr-2019AB de Villiers’ decision to quit international cricket has made him sharper, the batsman said after putting in a Man-of-the-Match performance during Royal Challengers Bangalore’s first win of the season. De Villiers made an unbeaten 59 against Kings XI Punjab, his third fifty in seven games this season. Although that is a decent ratio, de Villiers has failed to get past 20 in four games, a return that has put strain on a Royal Challengers batting order that still depends majorly on his and Virat Kohli’s performances.De Villiers admitted that he had got himself out a couple of times without converting, but said that hadn’t bogged him down.”I’ve got too much respect for the game to be upset about that,” de Villiers said at the post-match presentation in Mohali. “Obviously I want to be there at the end every time, winning games for the team. I’ve hit the ball well, I’ve got in many times, and I just haven’t gotten far on a few occasions. But as I said, I’ve got too much respect for the game of cricket to get ahead of myself and get too hard on myself. You’re always just one knock away of from being in that confidence zone and hopefully I’ll maintain this kind of form throughout the tournament now.”Since his retirement in May 2018, de Villiers has played in four T20 tournaments – the Mzansi Super League, the Bangladesh Premier League, the Pakistan Super League, and the IPL. These appearances add up to 28 innings, eight of which have featured single-digit scores. Before this IPL season, he had made only four 50-plus scores during this period.De Villiers suggested that these up-and-down performances were not a consequence of his reduced playing time at the top level and that, if anything, the break has energised him.”That’s [being sharp’s] exactly the reason why I decided not to play international cricket, it’s to be as sharp as I can in other forms of the game around the world. I can’t keep playing 10-11 months a year and keep being sharp after 15 years of international cricket. This kind of tournament, I’m playing every now and then, every 2-3 months. [It] really keeps me energetic. I get to work with university guys back home. With some of the local guys and local youngsters, which really gives me the energy and really motivates me to be better for some of the youngsters back home and be an example for them,” he said.International cricket or not, de Villiers was gushing in his approval of Royal Challengers signing his former team-mate Dale Steyn. With the near-impossible task of keeping a perfect win record from here on to stay in contention for the playoffs, de Villiers said Steyn’s presence would boost the team.”I think it was a fantastic move to get Dale involved,” he said. “We all know what he’s capable of. One thing is for sure, you’ll get 200 percent from him. He’ll give his absolute best every single time he bowls for the team and it’s just going to be great to have a guy of that caliber and another great human being in our team.”Yes, we know what we have to do now – we have to win a lot of games of cricket, but the next step is Mumbai, at the Wankhede staium. We love playing cricket there. We’ll have to do our basics and bowl it up like we did today and hopefully more success is around the corner.”

Durham pulled off a comfortable DLS chase after restricting Warwickshire in the field

ECB Reporters Network26-Apr-2019Durham returned to winning ways in the Royal London Cup with a comfortable seven-wicket Duckworth-Lewis-Stern victory over Warwickshire at Edgbaston.A solid all-round display saw Durham bounce back from their North Group defeat at Worcester two days earlier. They restricted Warwickshire to 244 for 8 with tidy bowling, led by Ben Raine and Liam Trevaskis, supported by excellent fielding.Tim Ambrose, Chris Woakes and Sam Hain made half-centuries but the scoring-rate was slowed for too long by the need to shore up the innings after the loss of early wickets. The home side’s total looked under-par and even more so when, after an hour’s rain delay, the DLS equation left Durham requiring 211 in 36 overs.Alex Lees, Graham Clark and Gareth Harte eased Durham to victory with 14 balls to spare to ensure they remain right in the heart of the qualification race.Warwickshire, meanwhile, without a win after four games, desperately need victory in the derby against Worcestershire at New Road on Sunday. Added to their problems is yet another injury concern as Ambrose did not keep wicket after suffering some hip discomfort between innings.Put in, the home side received a perky start from Ed Pollock who collected 22 in fours and sixes but was then smartly caught by Scott Steel, running round the midwicket boundary, off Brydon Carse. Steel then showed safe hands again, at deep extra cover, to remove Dom Sibley off Trevaskis.Ambrose and Hain added 69 in 15 overs before the latter was bowled behind his legs by Gareth Harte. That was the first of three wickets in 23 balls as Will Rhodes chipped Carse to midwicket and Liam Banks lifted Raine to long off to leave the Bears 142 for 5.Woakes injected some momentum with a 43-ball half-century but Durham fielded tigerishly, turning a number of apparent boundary hits into ones or twos. They also caught like cats, with Harte pouching Ambrose at midwicket, Steel pouncing like a panther for a third time when Alex Thomson skied Carse, and Clark making no mistake when Woakes lifted Matty Potts to long-on.The DLS calculation left Warwickshire badly needing early wickets but they took only one, when Steel was brilliantly caught at cover by a diving Sibley off Olly Hannon-Dalby.Clark and Lees were little troubled in a stand of 93 in 14 overs, the former reaching his second List A half-century, from 47 balls, in the grand manner with a six hoisted into the Hollies Stand off George Panayi. He then pulled a Thomson long-hop to midwicket and Woakes swiftly had Cameron Bancroft caught by sub keeper Alex Mellor but Lees skilfully shepherded his side to victory in an unbroken partnership of 79 with Harte.

Whirlwind knocks from Buttler, Woakes keep England alive till the end before they fall short

Ankur Dhawan25-May-2019Something about England seems to inspire Steven Smith into producing his absolute best. The warm-up at Southampton, where he was greeted with hostility from a sizable crowd, was no different.He brought up his fourth fifty-plus score since returning from his year-long ban, converting this one into a hundred, which formed the backbone of Australia’s 297 for nine. England may have fancied chasing it down, but on a two-paced surface, it proved just out of reach despite stand-in captain Jos Buttler’s brilliance.England were down to only 11 fit players at the start, instead of the permitted 15. In a space of three balls in the seventh over, injury scares took a pandemic turn with Mark Wood jogging off having halted in his run-up, and his substitute Jofra Archer went off two balls later as he lost his footing while sliding at the deep midwicket boundary.Later, left-arm spinner Liam Dawson split the skin on the finger of his right hand and was out of batting contention. Substitutes, including assistant coach Paul Collingwood who turns 43 in a day, came in and went off through the revolving door. Wood also went for a precautionary scan, which James Vince confirmed “wasn’t too serious.”Australia were unperturbed by the chaos as David Warner and Shaun Marsh batted steadily, adding 63 after the early loss of captain Aaron Finch. Then Warner holed out off a short one from Liam Plunkett to mark Smith’s arrival.Steven Smith acknowledges his century•Getty Images

Smith batted fluently without ever looking in a hurry, placing good balls into empty pockets and dealing with the bad ones more severely. He had support through the innings, without a major contribution from anyone. Marsh departed for 30 and Usman Khawaja made 31 before being stumped off a wide one from Dawson as he revealed his intention too early.Had this been an ODI, Australia may have been irked by the starts squandered but in a warm-up it worked just fine that everyone had a hit. Marcus Stoinis was another one who got in and couldn’t go on, run-out as Smith called him for what should have been an easy second had the allrounder not been ball-watching. That brought in Alex Carey and through him Australia found late impetus.He struck a 14-ball 30 before being brilliantly caught by a diving Tom Curran. At the other end Smith opened up with a six over extra cover and one over the keeper’s head, bringing up his hundred with a nudge to square leg in between.The Australia innings ended amid controversy and confusion as Smith was given out caught and bowled off what seemed like a bump ball. Curiously, he was willing to walk off till he saw the replay and felt differently. The third umpire, however, thought the evidence was conclusive to rule Smith out.England began their chase nervously but luck was on their side. Jason Roy was struck on the helmet, dropped at slip by Smith and nearly dragged one on. Those moments of uncertainty seemed to stir him into action as he suddenly discovered the middle of his bat, but the surface was already showing signs of variable bounce as some reared up from a length and some scooted through to the keeper from similar areas.Wickets came soon after as Jonny Bairstow spliced Jason Behrendorff to mid-on and Roy jabbed at one that held in the surface and bounced higher than he expected to be caught at short cover. Ben Stokes struggled for timing during the course of his stay, which was curtailed by Nathan Lyon, as he threw one wide seeing Stokes advance and had him stumped.That brought Buttler to the crease and with him out there, nothing seemed impossible. He looked in imperious form from the get-go, dismissing any theories about the need to get one’s eye in. But even at that stage he seemed to be batting within himself. That became apparent when he tore into Nathan Coulter-Nile, smoking three fours and two sixes off an over.A walloping like that would have forced Finch’s hand in an ODI but here he could afford to persist with the pacer and was rewarded next over as he induced an error from Buttler off a well disguised knuckle ball.The onslaught brought parity to the contest despite the fall of James Vince for 64 which left England needing 101 off 97 with five wickets in hand. Chris Woakes, playing purely as a batsman enhanced his reputation with a composed 44-ball 40 that kept England in the hunt, but his run-out in search of a quick single that would have brought him back on strike in the 48th over left England with too much to do.

India’s chief selector also explains that Rishabh Pant and Mayank Agarwal were picked as World Cup replacements on team management’s requests

Vishal Dikshit in Mumbai21-Jul-2019The 3D sequels aren’t over yet. Among the clarifications India’s chief selector MSK Prasad made on Sunday were a couple related to World Cup selections. Prasad stressed the decision to leave out Ambati Rayudu did not have any bias. He also explained why Rishabh Pant and Mayank Agarwal had been picked as replacements for the injured Shikhar Dhawan and Vijay Shankar respectively, and admitted the choices may have seemed “confusing” to people.The Rayudu riddle
The World Cup final hangover may be wearing off but Indian cricket’s obsession with a discarded No. 4 is not. When India’s World Cup squad was announced in April, Rayudu had been left out in favour of Vijay Shankar, with Prasad saying the latter brought “three dimensions” to the side. A day after the announcement, Rayudu in a not-so-cryptic tweet said: “Just ordered a new set of 3d glasses to watch the World Cup.” It was followed by a winking and a smiling emoji. On Sunday, while announcing India’s squads for the West Indies tour, Prasad said he had “really enjoyed” that tweet. “Frankly speaking, it was a lovely tweet, I really enjoyed it. Seriously. It was a very timely one, very sarcastic. it was fantastic one. I don’t know how it struck him.”He also addressed the “emotional” side of Rayudu’s decision to retire from all forms of cricket earlier this month.
Although he had been marked as India’s No. 4 by Virat Kohli last year, the selectors didn’t pick him to go to England even after Vijay Shankar was injured and the team needed replacements. Prasad insisted there was no bias in that decision, and added that his committee had backed Rayudu previously.”First of all, how much emotions have gone through anybody, the same emotions also have gone through the selection committee,” Prasad said on Sunday. “When we pick any player and he does well, we feel so happy for him. Similarly, when someone, out of emotions, goes out in this way, selection committee members also feel for it.”But, having said that, with regard to the decision that was taken, it was devoid of any bias or any favouritism. From the beginning, I have been telling why we have picked Vijay Shankar, why we have picked Rishabh Pant or Mayank Agarwal. Somewhere, it is definitely related to Rayudu’s case also. There’s no second thought, there’s nothing against that.”I will give you a small example on Rayudu. When Rayudu was picked on the basis of the 2017-18 T20 performance, we picked him in the one-day side, there was a lot of criticism but we had some thoughts about him. Subsequently, when he failed a fitness test, this selection committee backed him and we put him through a fitness programme for a month, and we ensured that he comes back fit and comes into the side. Once he came into the side we backed him, but due to certain permutations and combinations of the side, we couldn’t pick him. That doesn’t make this selection committee or me, in person, biased.”I hope you will understand that there was a certain programme that was set to see that Rayudu should come into the side. There’s nothing that we did against any particular person. So how much Rayudu is emotional, we are also emotional. We as ex-cricketers also feel for him. That’s it, that’s what I can say.”Getty Images

Picking Pant for Dhawan, Agarwal for Vijay Shankar
When an inexperienced middle-order batsman replaced an injured opener, and then an uncapped opener took an injured allrounder’s place in India’s World Cup squad, it “baffled” several fans and experts, including Sunil Gavaskar. After the side’s semi-final loss to New Zealand, Gavaskar said a batsman like Rayudu should have been in the squad, since he was among the standbys, and could have handled the crisis of being 24 for 4 in a semi-final better.”It is not the selection committee’s decision. It is the team management which has been asking these things,” Gavaskar had said. “We are not saying you are wrong but at the moment what we are seeing didn’t work out, so we need to know.”Prasad addressed these issues on Sunday, clarifying that Pant and Agarwal had been picked on requests made by the team management.”When Shikhar Dhawan got injured, we had a third opener in KL Rahul. At that juncture, after those two-three matches, we didn’t have a left-hander at the top,” Prasad explained. “Since KL Rahul was going to open, the team management requested for a left-hander and we had no choice other than Pant. We were very clear about that. We know what he is capable of. That’s the reason why we had to bring in a left-hander, which actually confused many people thinking why a middle-order batsman has been picked for an opener.”When Vijay Shankar was injured, again a middle-order player was injured, and an opener was brought in. In a game against England, when KL Rahul was trying for a catch, he had a big fall on the boundary line and he didn’t field for the rest of the innings. There was a medical emergency at that stage whether he will be continuing or not. There was so much of a worry factor. At that juncture, a written communication was given to us that we need a back-up opener.”We looked at some of the openers. Some were not in form, the others were injured. That is why we went for Mayank Agarwal. So that is very clear, no confusion on this. I’m sure by the end of the day all these speculations will be clear.”

He does things that are in essence truly remarkable, but does them with such banality that in the end they are barely remarked upon

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Galle16-Aug-2019If New Zealand are the team that do great things that barely get noticed in the wider cricket world, BJ Watling is the New Zealand of New Zealand. Pull up to a cricket ground when he is in action and watch him closely. Take in his every movement, observe every run he scores, note the difficult takes and the fine catches, drink in his cuts and pulls, revel in Watling, breathe Watling in.Then go home and describe Watling to a friend.He was vital to the team’s cause, and…. oh yeah, he contributed to key moments. But beyond that, be honest, you can’t really remember much. I mean, were you even really watching him? Or were you too busy seething at a Ross Taylor dismissal? Or salivating over a Trent Boult spell? No one would really blame you. Least of all Watling himself. This is his calling in life – to do things that are in essence truly remarkable, but to do them with such utter banality that in the end they are barely remarked upon. You sense he wouldn’t have it any other way.In Galle, on day three, he struck one of those quintessential Watling innings, making 63 not out. Quintessential because, as is often the case, this good Watling innings came with his team in deep trouble, effectively 64 for 4. Quintessential, also, because although the scorecard says he hit five fours, you can barely bring them to mind. Was one of them off a sweep? Come to think of it, does he even play a sweep? A batting style so bland, so nondescript, if it ever committed a crime, you wouldn’t pull it out of a police lineup.And what he does for this New Zealand side, one packed with more great players than you suspect a New Zealand side ever has been, has routinely been the difference between victory and defeat. Specialising in crises is the making of many great players. It is inherently a magnetic and heroic endeavour. When Watling does it though – and man does he do it often – it’s like he is doing no more exceptional a thing than walking down the road to buy groceries. The Galle pitch is treacherous. It has made a fool of all-time greats. Watling negotiated it, no fuss, no chances given, no look-at me shots. Just smart, scrappy batting, and concentrated stubbornness.Ninety-nine innings into his Test career, Watling has six hundreds and 17 half-centuries, but where he really excels is at putting up partnerships. He has been part of two record sixth-wicket stands, with Brendon McCullum, and Kane Williamson, but because he played second fiddle in both, no one really remembers him being in them. When he does lead a partnership, it is generally one of those vital stands with a tailender, and as such do not send any meaningful records tumbling, so no one remembers those for long either. But then what if they had never happened? Where would New Zealand be in this game without the 54-run seventh-wicket stand with Tim Southee? When he bats with the lower order, even normally aggressive tailenders suddenly become workmanlike.Sri Lanka wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella is often accused of playing flashy and insubstantial innings, and is basically the opposite of Watling in every way. In this Test, as if even being in the same ground as Watling is enough, Dickwella produced a jaw-droppingly responsible innings (by his standards at least) and put up his own big partnership with No. 9 Suranga Lakmal.All of this is to say nothing of Watling’s keeping, which of course, as with everything, is sublimely proficient, and deeply unsexy. He doesn’t kick up his heels on the diving takes, doesn’t over-celebrate the great stumpings. His appeals are earnest but not pleading. Precise footwork, soft hands, good anticipation – this, instead, is where Watling makes his honest living. He has twice taken nine catches in a match, which is outstanding, but still two catches short of being a record. He has 2.05 dismissals per innings across his career, which again is super, but puts him at only fourth on the all-time list (for keepers with more than 200 career dismissals), behind Adam Gilchrist and Brad Haddin and a certain gloveman from Pakistan. How strange is the space Watling inhabits, that he is both statistically the greatest purveyor of his craft his nation has produced, and yet has slightly worse numbers than Kamran Akmal.If the defining quality of this New Zealand team is to be better at what they do than most imagine they are, no one embodies those virtues better than their wicketkeeper-batsman. In an alternate universe, New Zealand were bundled out for 120, and Sri Lanka have already won this Test. This universe is no sexier for Watling’s presence in it. But it definitely is better.

Sri Lanka’s new captain preserved his perfect record after taking over as Sri Lanka won their third consecutive Test under his leadership to go 1-0 up in the two-match series

The Report by Varun Shetty18-Aug-2019
Dimuth Karunaratne played a big part in preserving his perfect record as Test captain as Sri Lanka brought up their third consecutive win since he took over, brushing New Zealand aside with a six-wicket win on the fifth day and picking up the full 60 points in their first World Test Championship match. In the process, Karunaratne also brought up his first century in 23 innings and his ninth overall as the hosts bested the previous record chase in Galle – 99 – by some distance.Karunaratne came out just as positively as he had in the last session of the fourth day, adopting a simple strategy of working the spinners square on either side, off both front and back foot. In scoring 122, Karunaratne hit only six fours and a six, which belied his overall approach to prioritise a brisk scoring rate. To that end, he stepped out early in the day for a delightful flick off Ajaz Patel for a boundary, and then launched the left-arm spinner over the midwicket boundary four overs later to bring up the 150 stand for the opening wicket with Lahiru Thirimanne.Between those two shots, though, were glimpses of the occasionally turbulent theme of his innings. Karunaratne had survived a stumping chance, and at least two legitimate catching chances on the fourth day. Shortly after that flick off Patel, he got a thick outside edge on the cut – a shot that he couldn’t quite control all innings long – that snuck through for a four, and was then dropped by Tom Latham at short leg. It was Latham’s third drop of the innings in that position.That set the tone early in the day, and with every over of nudging and manipulating the field for singles, New Zealand’s resolve was visibly diminishing. Any hope came through Sri Lanka’s misadventures.Thirimanne, ever under scrutiny as a Test player, batted with composure and control throughout the innings in one of Sri Lanka’s most prolific fourth-innings opening stands of all time. If he showed any shakiness during the innings, it was when he swept, and that was the shot that led to his dismissal, Will Somerville getting his man on the review. The opening stand was worth 161.In keeping with the pattern of his short career, Kusal Mendis managed to fit in both exquisite strokeplay and a frustrating surrender in an innings of six balls. With a solid platform laid and the opponents on the mat, his plan seemed to be to attack relentlessly, and this resulted in two pristine shots off Somerville – down the track quickly, using the spin to lift one over midwicket and the other over the long-on boundary. But the daring was short-lived when he swept Patel to midwicket next over, offering New Zealand some optimism with 94 runs to still get.But the arrival of Angelo Mathews brought the calm it always has, and the veteran settled immediately into the role Thirimanne played for Karunaratne. New Zealand were switching bowlers fast, with Kane Williamson even trying himself for the first time in the Test, but the 44-run stand between the senior-most batsmen put Sri Lanka on the doorstep of victory.Karunaratne did eventually nick behind trying to chop outside off stump, in a rare Tim Southee over. But coming in next was Kusal Perera, the architect of Sri Lanka’s miracle chase against South Africa earlier this year. He had no issues slashing deliveries off that line – or dragging them to the leg side – and came out with what looked like the sole intention to finish the chase before lunch.With his boundaries, he forced a four-over extension with 22 runs to get, but fell shortly after for 19-ball 23. Mathews and Dhananjaya de Silva didn’t manage to get the runs in that period, but with only six runs to get, the umpires deemed it fit to give Sri Lanka another extension and the chase was sealed with a Mathews flick to fine, seven balls later.

All the transfer and pre-season buzz from the Indian domestic season

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Aug-2019PunjabFast bowler Barinder Sran has finalised his transfer to Chandigarh after being left out of his home state Punjab’s Vijay Hazare Trophy squad. He obtained a no-objection certificate from Punjab on Thursday, saying he was not informed by the Punjab selectors why he was left out, and that he did not want to “waste the entire season” by not playing.”They didn’t even give me a valid reason [for dropping me],” Sran told the . “At least I deserved to know the reason why I was dropped. The selectors stopped taking my phone calls. I had no other option. I can’t waste my entire season. So, I decided to make a move and have no regrets.”The 26-year old, who has played six ODIs and two T20Is for India, made his debut for Punjab in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy in 2011. “I want to play for India again, but for that, I need to play. I am being let down by the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA). But it is a thing of the past. I am fit now and it’s time to look ahead.”In the Vijay Hazare Trophy last year, he bagged three wickets in as many games for Punjab despite going wicketless in two of them. He played in two Ranji Trophy before that, finishing with two wickets across three innings, and in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy that followed, he got just three wickets in five matches, going wicketless in four of those games.This season, Punjab, led by Mandeep Singh, also have Shubman Gill in the squad. Being named in the India Test squad that will be taking on South Africa from October 2, Gill is unlikely to play more than three matches in the 50-over Vijay Hazare Trophy.Punjab are placed in Group B, alongside eight other teams, and will play their first match against Himachal Pradesh on September 25.Squad: Mandeep Singh (Captain), Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Shubman Gill, Anmolpreet Singh, Prabhsimran Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Siddharth Kaul, Sandeep Sharma, Mayank Markande, Karan Kaila, Arshdeep Singh, Baltej Singh, Akul Pandove, Anmol Malhotra, Abhijeet GargDelhiRishabh Pant and Navdeep Saini have been named in the 16-member Delhi squad, led by Dhruv Shorey, for the first four games of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, starting on September 24. Shikhar Dhawan has opted out of the squad for now due to personal reasons, according to .Pant is a part of the Indian team that will be assembling in Visakhapatnam for the opening Test against South Africa on October 2.
“Pant is expected to play at least first two to three games for Delhi as he will then report for the national team. Rishabh himself said that he wanted to play,” Delhi senior team’s chairman of selectors Atul Wassan told .”Shikhar needs to go back to Australia to attend to some family matters. He has said that he will join the squad at a later date.”
Former India Under-19 India captain Anuj Rawat has been named Pant’s back-up in the squad. Delhi will be starting their campaign against Vidarbha on the opening day of the tournament.Squad: Dhruv Shorey (captain), Nitish Rana, Rishabh Pant, Himmat Singh, Hiten Dalal, Kunal Chandela, Lalit Yadav, Pawan Negi, Navdeep Saini, Subodh Bhati, Kulwant Khejrolia, Manan Sharma, Kunwar Bhiduri, Vikas Tokas, Tejas Baroka, Anuj Rawat.Mumbai Left-arm spinner Atharva Ankolekar, who played a key role in India’s Under-19 Asia Cup win, has been named in the 17-member Mumbai squad, led by Shreyas Iyer, for the upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy. Sarfaraz Khan, who was on a one-year cooling off period following his return to Mumbai last year after three seasons with Uttar Pradesh, has also been named in the squad.Ankolekar took a match-winning five-for on Saturday against Bangladesh U-19s in a low-scoring thriller and helped India defend their Asia Cup title. Ankolekar’s team-mate Yashasvi Jaiswal, who made his Mumbai debut in Ranji Trophy last year, has also been named in this squad.Ajinkya Rahane, who captained the team last year, will not be available this year due to international commitments. Prithvi Shaw, who is currently serving his suspension for a doping violation, also misses out.Defending champions Mumbai are in Group A and will be playing all their matches in Bengaluru.Squad: Shreyas Iyer (captain), Surya Kumar Yadav (vice captain), Jay Bista, Aditya Tare , Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube, Shubham Ranjane, Eknath Kerkar, Dhawal Kulkarni, Tushar Deshpande, Shams Mulani, Atharva Ankolekar, Shardul Thakur, Siddhesh Lad, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Kruthik Hanagawadi, Shashank AttardeVidarbhaWasim Jaffer has been appointed Vidarbha’s interim captain for this season’s Vijay Hazare Trophy after Faiz Fazal sustained a hand injury. It is understood that Fazal is likely to return during the course of the tournament and also retain his captaincy.The 15-member squad also includes India fast bowler Umesh Yadav.Fazal, one of Vidarbha’s batting mainstays in their consecutive Ranji Trophy wins in 2017-18 and 2018-19, suffered the injury while representing India Green in the recently-concluded Duleep Trophy.”Faiz is still undergoing treatment for the injury,” VCA president Anand Jaiswal told . “We are still looking into it. Once he is cleared, he will join the side. As of today, since he hasn’t recovered, we have announced Wasim as the captain. But the injury is a minor one, not very serious.”Vidarbha are in Elite Group B of the Vijay Hazare Trophy draw, alongside Delhi, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Odisha, Baroda, Maharashtra and Himachal Pradesh, and will begin their campaign against Delhi on September 24.Vidarbha Squad: Wasim Jaffer (captain), R. Sanjay, Atharva Taide, Ganesh Satish, Rushabh Rathod, Apoorva Wankhede, Jitesh Sharma (wicketkeeper), Akshay Wadkar (wicketkeeper), Akshay Wakhare, Akshay Karnewar, Aditya Sarvate, Umesh Yadav, Yash Thakur, Darshan Nalkande, Shrikant Wagh.Tamil NaduOpening batsman C Hari Nishanth and left-arm spinner M Siddharth have been named in Tamil Nadu’s Vijay Hazare Trophy squad, which will be led by Dinesh Karthik. While R Ashwin, who was named in the probables squad, has been ruled out due to international commitments, M Vijay, who is currently playing in the county championships for Somerset, will join the team after the first two matches.Allrounder Vijay Shankar, who is recovering from a finger injury, has been included in the 16-member squad but a call on his selection will only be taken before the side’s opening game against Rajasthan on September 24. M Shahrukh Khan has been named M Vijay’s replacement for the first two matches.Hari Nishanth made his T20 debut for Tamil Nadu in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy earlier this year, and has represented the Dindigul Dragons in the Tamil Nadu Premier League. He finished among the top run scorers in the tournament this year with 322 runs in 10 matches. Siddharth played for champions Chennai Super Gillies this season, where he picked five wickets in eight games.Squad: Dinesh Karthik (capt), Vijay Shankar (vice-capt), Abhinav Mukund, M Vijay, Baba Aparajith, M Ashwin, Washington Sundar, R Sai Kishore, N Jagadeesan, T Natarajan, K Vignesh, M Mohammed, M Siddharth, Abhishek Tanwar, C Hari Nishaanth, J Kousik. Reserve: M Shahrukh KhanArunachal PradeshFormer India pace bowler Sanjeev Sharma has been appointed coach of the Arunachal Pradesh team for the upcoming domestic season. Sanjeev had been coach of the Sikkim team last season and has coached Delhi in the past.According to , the Arunachal Pradesh Cricket Association had initially decided to give an extension to Gursharan Singh, who coached them last season. However, Gursharan was recently named coach of Uttarakhand.”We apprised the BCCI about the issue and sought its help in getting a replacement. There is not much time in hand and we are glad to welcome Sharma on board,” ACA secretary, Kabak Geda, told .Arunachal will be hoping to improve on their performance from the debut season. They were winless in the Ranji Trophy, won two games in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and one in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament.Under Sanjeev’s tenure, Sikkim went winless in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy but performed better in the Ranji Trophy, securing four wins in eight matches in the plate group.Uttar Pradesh
Former India spinner Sunil Joshi has been appointed coach of the Uttar Pradesh Ranji Trophy team for one year, according to . He is set to join the training camp on September 20 before the Vijay Hazare Trophy, which is scheduled to begin on September 24Joshi, who served as Bangladesh’s spin-bowling coach till the World Cup, had applied for the position of India’s bowling coach but was not shortlisted.”We have appointed Sunil Joshi as coach of our team for one year. He will join the camp before the Vijay Hazare Trophy,” Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association secretary Yudhvir Singh told .Former Karnataka fast bowler Mansur Ali Khan had coached the side last season. UP won their maiden, and only, Ranji Trophy title in 2005-06 and have been runners-up five times. They made the quarter-finals last season where they were beaten by Saurashtra.UttarakhandGursharan Singh has been named the coach of Uttarakhand for the upcoming domestic season, replacing KP Bhaskar, who has returned to take charge of the Delhi team.Gursharan, 56, who turned out for Delhi and Punjab in domestic cricket and played one Test and one ODI in 1990, is a prominent coach in Delhi, and has been involved with various state teams since 2007, when he coached Punjab. He has since worked with Assam and, more recently, Arunachal Pradesh.”I am excited to take my new job,” he was quoted as saying by the . “I know Uttarakhand has a lot of young talent and the team did well last year under Bhaskar’s guidance. The team has a wonderful captain in Unmukt [Chand, who shifted this year]. He has a good cricket brain and I am looking forward to work with him.”Last season, their maiden one in the domestic circuit, Uttarakhand topped the Plate Group of the Ranji Trophy, but then lost by an innings and 115 runs to Vidarbha, the eventual champions, in the quarter-finals. They had some decent results in the Vijay Hazare (one-day) Trophy and Syed Mushtaq Ali (T20) Trophy too. In the 50-over tournament, they came second in the Plate Group with seven wins and a loss, while in the T20s, they had four wins in seven matches.Delhi
The Delhi and Districts Cricket Association has re-signed former Delhi batsman KP Bhaskar as head coach of the senior team for the 2019-20 season. Bhaskar, a veteran of 95 first-class matches, helmed debutants Uttarakhand to the Ranji Trophy quarter-finals last season. Rajkumar Sharma, meanwhile, has been named the bowling coach. Sharma, an offspinning allrounder, played nine first-class matches for Delhi but is famously remembered for being Virat Kohli’s childhood coach.Bhaskar had left Delhi in controversial circumstances in 2018 after then captain Gautam Gambhir criticised him for “creating an atmosphere of uncertainty” in the dressing room. Incidentally, it was a season where they finished runners-up to Vidarbha in the Ranji Trophy.With just one win in eight games, Delhi finished bottom of Group B in 2018-19 Ranji Trophy under Mithun Mahnas. They, however, finished runners-up to Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, the 50-overs competition. Atul Wassan, the former India bowler, has been named the selection committee chief of the senior team.ALSO READ: ‘Exceptional work ethic’ sets new Bengal captain Easwaran apartMumbai
Earlier in the week, after months of speculation, Mumbai named Vinayak Samant, the former wicketkeeper, as head coach under controversial circumstances after Sulakshan Kulkarni alleged he wasn’t given a fair contract. Under the initial agreement, the Mumbai Cricket Association was to pay Kulkarni a fee of INR 24 lakh for the season. This was later whittled to INR 14 lakh, which Kulkarni rejected.Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu have appointed former allrounder D Vasu as their head coach, with former captain R Prasanna as his assistant. Dinesh Karthik, meanwhile, has been appointed captain for the upcoming 50-over Vijay Hazare Trophy.Vasu replaced Hrishikesh Kanitkar, the former India allrounder who has moved on to a coaching role at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. Vasu scored 3001 runs and picked up 240 wickets during the course of his 15-year first-class career.ALSO READ: New Kerala captain Robin Uthappa wants to give players ‘more security’Puducherry
Former Karnataka captain R Vinay Kumar has ended his 15-year career with his home state and will instead turn out for Puducherry in a player-cum-mentor role in the 2019-20 season. Vinay will link up with his old friend J Arunkumar at Puducherry.Vinay and Arunkumar formed Karnataka’s leadership group when they won successive Ranji titles in 2013-14 and 2014-15. They also led Karnataka to the Vijay Hazare and Irani titles, establishing the side as a domestic powerhouse.Having reportedly turned down an offer from his home state Tamil Nadu and moved from Kerala, wicketkeeper-batsman Arun Karthik will join Vinay at Puducherry.Former India Under-19 captain Unmukt Chand has parted ways with Delhi after making his first-class debut for them in November 2010. Chand has now signed with Uttarakhand and will captain them in the upcoming domestic season. Meanwhile, offspin-bowling allrounder Malolan Rangarajan, who helped Uttarakhand to the knockouts in the previous season, is set to move back to his home state Tamil Nadu.Assam
Former India wicketkeeper-batsman Ajay Ratra has been appointed Assam’s coach for the 2019-20 domestic season. Ratra has had coaching stints with Punjab, Assam Under-19s and NCA in the past.Ratra, who made his international debut in 2002, played six Tests and 12 ODIs for India. His maiden Test century against West Indies in Trinidad – an unbeaten 115 – made him the fifth-youngest Indian player and the youngest wicketkeeper to score a Test hundred. He played 99 first-class matches, scoring 4029 runs at an average of 30.29, which included eight hundreds and a double-century.Other movements
Allrounder Stuart Binny and wicketkeeper-batsman CM Gautam, who were part of Karnataka’s core along with Vinay when they secured the double-treble, have also opted to move out of their home state this season. Binny will join his former Karnataka team-mate Rongsen Jonathan at Nagaland, while Gautam has switched to Goa.Among prominent coaches, Sairaj Bahutule has ended his stint with Bengal, and will coach Gujarat, while Sanath Kumar moved from Meghalaya to Baroda.

Chamari Atapattu made her fifth ODI hundred but it wasn’t enough to challenge Australia

The Report by Andrew McGlashan09-Oct-2019Alyssa Healy continued her prolific run-scoring form by plundering a 71-ball hundred on her way to an unbeaten 76-ball 112 as Australia surged to a record-breaking 18th ODI victory in a row with a nine-wicket hammering of Sri Lanka.Chamari Atapattu’s 103, her fifth ODI hundred and her second century of the tour following her T20I ton in Sydney, anchored Sri Lanka’s effort but the next-best score was 24 and they could still only post 8 for 195, which proved way short of giving Australia a challenge. A 3-0 series result was nothing less than expected, but Australia’s ruthlessness was impressive.Healy and Rachael Haynes, who backed up her maiden ODI century with 63 to take her tally to 237 runs in the series, cruised towards the target – although both were dropped in the same over off Achini Kulasuriya – before Haynes was out sweeping with 37 runs needed.Healy raced off the blocks in the chase and Australia’s fifty came up in the sixth over. She should have been dismissed on 68 but the chance was spilled at deep midwicket and Haynes was then given a life on 39, but even if held it’s unlikely the result would have differed.Healy’s third ODI hundred, which have all come in the last two years during which time she has averaged 57.15, came with captain Meg Lanning alongside her and a match-winning six was a fitting way for Australia to set their new record, surpassing the 17 wins in a row they managed between 1997 and 1999 under the captaincy of Belinda Clark.For the first time in the series, Sri Lanka were able to set a target and there was a promising foundation at 1 for 68 before Harshitha Madavi was smartly run out by Healy’s direct hit as she ran around from behind the stumps after a badly misjudged single. They slumped to 5 for 87 as Georgia Wareham struck twice, but Atapattu held firm.She added 49 with Ama Kanchana and 47 with Oshadi Ranasinghe, bringing up an impressive hundred off 120 deliveries, to put a seal on a tour where she has been head and shoulders above the rest of Sri Lanka’s batting.

Despite Head’s century New South Wales ended the second day on top at Adelaide Oval

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Nov-2019South Australia 7 for 222 (Head 109) trail New South Wales 289 (Solway 133*, Nevill 53, Sayers 8-64)With the decision looming on Australia’s Test batting line-up, Travis Head made a timely century against a strong New South Wales attack to shore up South Australia’s first innings at Adelaide Oval although the visitors ended the second day with the advantage.Head, who was left out of the final Ashes Test when Australia rebalanced their side with Mitchell Marsh, had made an unconvincing start to the first-class season with a scratchy half-century on a flat pitch at Junction Oval before scores of 0 and 12 against Queensland.However, he was named in the Australia A side to face Pakistan in Perth later this month in what is billed as a showdown for probably two batting spots with Head vying for a middle-order role. He will now enter that game with confidence having brought up his 11th first-class hundred from 200 deliveries with a boundary off Australia team-mate Josh Hazlewood, but he could not reach the close as Hazlewood hit back during an impressive spell with the second new ball.There was less from the rest of the batting order than he would have liked. Trent Copeland struck early to trap Jake Weatherald lbw although the batsman indicated he got an inside edge and Callum Ferguson edged to gully. Copeland struck again when a Henry Hunt got into a tangle against a short ball to leave South Australia 3 for 68.Tom Cooper helped Head added 73 for the fourth wicket only to send a top edge to fine leg where Hazlewood took a well-judged catch. Another 50-run partnership followed before Nathan Lyon earned reward for a probing spell by having Harry Nielsen caught at slip, the batsman happy to take the word of Copeland that the ball had carried.When Tom Andrews was caught behind off Moises Henriques shortly before the second new ball New South Wales were firmly on top and the removal of Head left them sensing a handy lead.The day had started with New South Wales seven down in their first innings and Chadd Sayers claimed two of the remaining wickets to finish with a career-best 8 for 64. Debutant Daniel Solway, who marked the opening day with a century, finished unbeaten on 133.

Heino Kuhn’s 58 in vain as Rocks overtake Giants to confirm top spot

The Report by Firdose Moonda08-Dec-2019The Paarl Rocks secured a home final in this year’s edition of the Mzansi Super League by defending 168 against the Nelson Mandela Bay Giants at Boland Park. The win puts the Rocks on 27 points, the same number as the Giants, but they qualify automatically for the final by virtue of their head-to-head record against the Giants. The Rocks beat the Giants in both pool matches defending similar totals.The Rocks scored 166 for 7 and beat the Giants by 31 runs in Port Elizabeth 10 days ago. It was tighter today, as the Rocks scored 168 for 5 and won by 12 runs today.Team news and a good change Ferisco Adams was brought into the Rocks XI because Hardus Viljoen was unavailable for this match and had early success when he bowled Matthew Breetzke with his first ball. But Adams’ immediate impact paled in comparison to Viljoen’s reason for not playing which his captain Faf du Plessis revealed a little too much about.Adams also defended 23 runs off the final over, after his first three balls went for nine runs including a massive six from Marco Marais. The Giants’ middle-order man has impressed with his death hitting in this competition and almost took the game away from the Rocks despite being struck on the arm twice by his batting partner Heino Kuhn, who was trying to get the ball past the non-striker in a bid to push for victory. Adams had a memorable finish to the game, taking two wickets in two balls to dismiss Marais and Kuhn in successive balls and seal the Rocks’ spot in the final.Bjorn’s Fortune Bjorn Fortuin lived up to his last name with a run-out that may be called fortunate to dismiss Giants’ captain Jon-Jon Smuts, who is also their second-highest run-scorer in the tournament. Smuts was at the non-strikers’ end when Kuhn his the ball back to Fortuin. Smuts had ventured a few feet out of his crease, anticipating a run, but Fortuin reacted quickly to get down, and deflect the ball onto the stumps. Smuts saw him and tried to get back but Fortuin was a fraction quicker and Smuts was short of his ground. The Giants were 62 for 3 at that stage and needed to score at 9.6 runs an over to win, something Fortuin played his part in preventing. He finished with 0 for 19 in his four overs, and conceded no boundaries in a stellar effort to strangle the Giants.Shamsi’s stoke of luck Fortuin’s built pressure and Tabraiz Shamsi cashed in with a crucial, and lucky breakthrough, the over after Fortuin’s spell ended. Ryan ten Doeschate played across the line to a Shamsi delivery that struck him on the back pad and was given out. Shamsi took off in celebration sans any shoe-phone or magic tricks while ten Doeschate looked on in disbelief. Replays showed the ball was missing leg stump by some distance but with no DRS in operation, ten Doeschate had no recourse and the Rocks had a key wicket.Delport digs in With a home final on the cards, Cameron Delport and Henry Davids got their team off to a strong start with 51 runs in the first five overs. Delport led the charge scoring 35 runs off the 20 balls he faced, including eight fours. Three of them came in successive balls off Chris Morris, all in the ‘V’ down the ground. Delport hit one more boundary before he was caught off a top edge but his innings put him into the top five run-scorers in the competition. He has 246 runs at 27.33 so far, behind AB de Villiers, Reeza Hendricks, Ben Dunk and Janneman Malan.Better than SteynAfter a match-winning 2 for 22 against the Cape Town Blitz on Friday night, Imran Tahir put on another authoritative performance which took to the top of the wicket-charts for the tournament. His two wickets came in two balls. First, he uprooted James Vince’s off stump and then deceived Sibonelo Makhanya with a googly that Makhanya chipped straight back to a short mid-on, put in place specifically for that dismissal. Tahir now has 16 wickets, one more than Dale Steyn, and also the best economy rate of any bowler who has bowled more than six overs at this competition. Tahir has conceded at less than six runs an over – 5.68 – in the 38 overs he has bowled in his 10 group games.