Powerful strokes from Samiullah Shenwari and Najibullah Zadran in the last five overs of Afghanistan’s innings and accurate bowling from Sharafuddin Ashraf led them to a convincing 32-run win against Netherlands on the opening day of the World T20 Qualifi

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Jul-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball-detailsNajibullah Zadran struck four sixes during his 11-ball 33•ICC/Donald MacLeod

Powerful strokes from Samiullah Shenwari and Najibullah Zadran in the last five overs of Afghanistan’s innings and accurate bowling from Sharafuddin Ashraf led them to a convincing 32-run win against Netherlands on the opening day of the World T20 Qualifier. Afghanistan recovered from early jitters to score 162 for 7 before bowling Netherlands out for 130 in the last over on a slow pitch in Edinburgh.Put in to bat, Afghanistan lost Mohammad Shahzad and Asghar Stanikzai to Mudassar Bukhari who targeted the stumps with some nipping seam movement. Once Nawroz Mangal also fell in the seventh over for 29 off 23, Shenwari and Mohammad Nabi rebuilt with a stand of 57 for the fourth wicket, nearly taking them to 100. Nabi counterattacked with sixes off left-arm spinners Roelof van der Merwe and Pieter Seelaar, before falling for 33 in the 16th over. Najibullah started with a first-ball six and clobbered van der Merwe for 22 in the 18th over, to give his side a sudden shot in the arm. They lost three wickets in the last over but also collected 68 runs in the last five overs.Netherlands started well by scoring 51 for 1 in the Powerplay overs as Ben Cooper struck three well-timed sixes. Sharafuddin pulled things in Afghanistan’s favour when Cooper holed out on his second ball to long-off for an easy catch, and Netherlands failed to put on substantial partnerships after the second-wicket stand of 49 between Michael Swart and Cooper. Swart was run out in the next over and Sharafuddin had Peter Borren stumped three overs later. Van der Merwe holed out five balls later and once they were 95 for 5 with a required run rate of nearly 11, things went only downhill for them.They lost their last five wickets for 24 runs as the pressure kept rising and Dawlat Zadran finished with 3 for 17 from 3.4 overs, while Sharafuddin took 3 for 27.

Ashton Agar looks set to play his first competitive game since a shoulder injury sidelined him for four months

Deivarayan Muthu in Chennai28-Jul-2015Ashton Agar had a stellar start to his international career when he struck 98, the Test record for a No. 11 on debut in the 2013 Ashes. But he has yet to impress in his primary role, as a left-arm spinner and a shoulder injury has not helped. After being sidelined for four months from March to July, he is ready to get back to cricket and hopes to play the second unofficial Test against India A on Wednesday.”It’s been about 15 weeks [since the shoulder surgery],” Agar said. “The strength is improving, the range is improving. It has improved enough to allow me to play in this game. I won’t be diving in the field, but everything else is okay.”Agar got a surprise call-up for the fourth Test against India at the SCG, but he did not get to play. His last competitive game was the Sheffield Final in March. Playing for Western Australia, he took four wickets and scored a 44 not out in the first innings. He stressed that his ultimate goal was to have a long career with Australia, rather than making sporadic appearances.”That’s the ultimate goal, to play for Australia. You want to have a career for Australia, not just a few games here and there.” he said.”It means a lot, playing Ashes cricket, it’s enormous. The boys are really enjoying it now, the series one-all. There is a huge amount of pride if you’re playing for your country and in the Ashes its hiked up even more.”Agar also added that the Australians would relish the challenge of playing against Virat Kohli, who had requested the BCCI to let him play in Chennai so as to gain match practice ahead of the Sri Lanka tour.”It will be a good challenge for everyone to play against a player like Virat Kohli. I think everyone is excited about the opportunity and everyone is going to want to have his wicket.”Agar has been to India before, with the senior side in 2013 and was not worried about playing on slow pitches. He said that a chat with Gautam Gambhir in Perth had helped understand and adapt to how batsman tackle spinners.”I learnt the pace that I need to bowl on these wickets, I learnt how the batters like to play, how their use their feet and maybe got a bit shorter and then sit back and cut the ball or pull the ball,” Agar said.”So they pick up the lengths quickly, so I have to adjust very quickly to the way they are playing me. I have learnt what sort of fields I need to set from the first ball. I have spoken to Gautam Gambhir. He was with Justin [Langer] in Western Australia just before I came in from Perth for two weeks. It was a great experience. He played against me in a game. So, he could give some feedback and that was quite valuable coming here.”

South Africa captain AB de Villiers thought the 20-run victory over New Zealand in the first ODI could have been even more convincing

Firdose Moonda20-Aug-2015Margins are not always as tight as they seem and the 20-run difference between South Africa and New Zealand in the first ODI is deceiving. It makes the result look a lot closer than it really was – New Zealand were out of the chase in the 30th over of their reply when a double-strike from Vernon Philander took out their two best hopes of winning the game and even the 71-run partnership between James Neesham and Colin Munro did not ever really seem as though it would get them over the line. But AB de Villiers thought the victory could have been even more convincing.”The kind of intensity and the Protea fire that we always talk about was lacking tonight,” he said afterwards. “If we had that kind of energy tonight, it would have been a walkover and it wasn’t. New Zealand were in the game and if you let quality sides in the game, they tend to win.”South Africa’s spark shone brightly through their innings, where Hashim Amla anchored an effort that resulted in an above-par total on an early season pitch, and carried over onto the field. Dale Steyn created three chances in his first over, one with his first ball, but two of them were put down. “That sums up the way we were sort of lackadaisical in the field today,” de Villiers said.Kane Williamson and AB de Villiers praised Imran Tahir for holding the game during the middle overs of the New Zealand chase•AFP

Several other dropped catches followed, most of them from balls that were skied, got lost in the lights and fell into vacant spaces, making the usually slick South African fielding effort appear more comical than clinical. De Villiers, who previously said he would never blame a team-mate for dropping a catch as long as he tried, hoped the execution would come with time as his team goes through its transition.”I was a little but disappointed with our energy in the field as a unit, together. That probably comes with time. There were a couple new faces that need to get used to the way I captain and the way we operate as a team.”The newest of those was David Wiese, who made his debut on his home ground but did not seem as familiar with it as he should have been. Wiese started off bowling too full and was taken out of the attack after conceding 29 from his first three overs, but then returned with a selection of slower balls, which worked well. “David started slowly, it took him a while to get going,” de Villiers admitted.Almost as new is Kagiso Rabada, who debuted in this format in Bangladesh and is already establishing himself as a regular. Rabada was more economical than Steyn, was tasked with bowling at the death and seemed to enjoy the responsibility. “KG bowled well in spells. That potential and talent is definitely there; it just needs a little bit of experience. That’s our responsibility to get that through to him,” de Villiers said.Young players generally bring more energy to a side so South Africa being sapped of it could have come down to the the leaking of Steyn’s bowling plan after it was slipped under the wrong hotel room door the night before the game. Philander revealed it was the team’s analyst, Prasanna Agoram, who “made the mistake,” and said the strategy is not the be-all and end-all on the day.”We play against these guys so much that you go with your instinct. Generally it’s top of off with the odd bouncer, like Jacques Kallis used to say,” Philander said, revealing yet another South African tactic.Kane Williamson also brushed off the information and said New Zealand “didn’t make too much of it,” when they saw it. “It’s always in the moment when you are out there that’s the challenge when you bat. Everyone has got plans. A good area to most batsmen is similar, especially if the ball is doing a little bit and brings in most modes of dismissals.”The person who showed that the most was Imran Tahir, whose plans were not made public, but who controlled large swathes of the middle overs in the match and ensured New Zealand stayed in but never got ahead. “We were right in it all the way but we were never able to get in front of the game. The South African side bowled very well with the new ball and the class of Tahir in the middle was shown today,” Williamson said.De Villiers agreed: “Immi is a master of that. He knows how to turn the momentum around, how to speed things up to slow things down.” And he also knows how to inject energy into a team, should de Villiers feel like they need a little extra.

Phil Simmons’ future as West Indies coach hangs in balance after the disciplinary hearing against him was deferred to next week

Nagraj Gollapudi04-Oct-2015Phil Simmons’ future as West Indies coach hangs in the balance after the disciplinary hearing against him was deferred to next week. ESPNcricinfo understands that Simmons had been asked to present himself on Saturday in front of a human resources panel from the West Indies Cricket Board. On September 30, the WICB had indicated that Simmons’s future would be sorted in a week.Surprised at the lack of notice period given to him, Simmons’ lawyers responded to the WICB, saying Simmons could not make himself available without an advance alert and requested the hearing be rescheduled to next week. It is learned that the WICB agreed, but no date has been set yet.Simmons was suspended on September 28 by the WICB, two days after his outburst on external factors affecting the selection of the ODI squad for the Sri Lanka series. Subsequently, Michael Muirhead, the WICB CEO, clarified that Simmons had not been fired but he would need to face a HR panel to explain the breaches in confidentiality and for bringing the WICB into disrepute.It is understood that although Simmons did issue an apology for putting the WICB in a difficult position, he never retracted or apologised for what he said. People close to Simmons have revealed he made it clear that his outbursts were not intentional and that is what he apologised for.At the end of the preparatory camp for the Sri Lanka tour, held in Barbados, Simmons, unprompted, revealed that he was disappointed at not getting the best one-day squad and blamed “interference from outside” as the main reason. Simmons has never revealed any name(s), but his concerns were received with gasps across the Caribbean with the chairman of CARICOM’s sub-committee on cricket governance, Keith Mitchell, calling them “highly disturbing.”

Mahela Jayawardene, the former Sri Lanka batsman, will play for Central Districts in the upcoming Georgie Pie Super Smash, New Zealand’s domestic Twenty20 competition

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Oct-2015Mahela Jayawardene, the former Sri Lanka batsman, will play for Central Districts in the upcoming Georgie Pie Super Smash, New Zealand’s domestic Twenty20 competition.Jayawardene, who retired from international cricket after the World Cup in March, has recently played domestic T20s for Sussex in England and Jamaica Tallawahs in the West Indies.While the tournament starts from November 5, Jayawardene will play his first match for Central Districts on November 19, against Wellington in Nelson.”Mahela’s incredible talent and vast experience will add enormous value to our already talented but still youthful team of players in the back half of the Super Smash,” Heinrich Malan, the Central Districts coach, said.The league stage of the tournament runs till December 6 with the final on December 13.

The PCB has asked Misbah-ul-Haq to keep retirement plans on hold and play on through Pakistan’s tours of England and Australia next year

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Oct-2015The PCB has asked Misbah-ul-Haq to keep retirement plans on hold and play on through Pakistan’s tours of England and Australia next year. Pakistan are scheduled to tour England for four Tests in 2016, and then to Australia for three Tests in the 2016-17 season. Misbah will be 42 next year.”We have told him to delay his retirement for a year if he is thinking on those lines,” Shaharyar Khan, the PCB chairman, told mediapersons in Lahore. “We feel his presence as captain and senior player will be invaluable to the team for the Test tours to England and Australia next year.”Misbah confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that Shaharyar had spoken to him. Earlier this month, he had hinted that the series against England in the UAE – which Pakistan currently lead 1-0 with one Test left to play – might be his last, particularly since the proposed series against India in December looked unlikely to go ahead.”I have been considering so many factors as it’s a very hard decision, in fact one of the toughest ones to take,” Misbah had said. “So in the next one-and-half months I will be analysing myself as to how far I can go. I will see how much I can contribute in for the team, I will see if my passion remains the same or I start losing interest in the game. Sometimes it’s not about fitness, it’s about how much interest you have in the game and I don’t want to be a liability. So whatever the decision you will know soon.”Misbah, 41, is Pakistan’s most successful Test captain, with 19 wins. He is retired from the shorter formats, but has shown no signs of waning form or fitness in the five-day game. He averages 56.75 in his 41 Tests as captain, all of which have come since his 36th birthday, and has made scores of 3, 51, 102 and 87 in his four innings so far in the series against England.

ESPNcricinfo previews the first ODI between Pakistan and England in Abu Dhabi

The Preview by Alan Gardner10-Nov-2015

Match facts

November 11, 2015
Start time 3pm local (1100 GMT)

Big Picture

You have to zoom out a long way to get the wide angle on this series. England’s newly professed love for one-day internationals is focused on winning more than just hearts when the Champions Trophy and World Cup roll around on home soil in 2017 and 2019. Pakistan narrowly avoided being squeezed out by Bangladesh at the Champions Trophy cut-off six weeks ago (West Indies were the team to miss out) and they are also at the start of a new cycle under the captaincy of Azhar Ali.His tenure began with a first ever bilateral series loss against Bangladesh but Pakistan have since pulled out of their tailspin by beating Zimbabwe at home – amid emotions as heightened as the security – and away, as well as winning in Sri Lanka for the first time since 2006. New faces such as Mohammad Rizwan and Bilal Asif have made good impressions (and the latter has also had his action cleared), while the return of Younis Khan, so impressive against England in the Test series, gives Pakistan a wealth of experience to call upon.Younis has not played since the World Cup but should win his 265th ODI cap, alongside Mohammad Hafeez (169 ODI appearances) and Shoaib Malik (227) in Pakistan’s middle order. The only England player who comes close to those totals is the captain, Eoin Morgan, who has played 151 (of which 23 were for Ireland); Jos Buttler – who made his debut against Pakistan in the UAE three-and-a-half years ago – is next on the list with 61.In some senses, though, this young England team have already gone to places their predecessors never did. England’s first total of more than 400 was achieved during the summer, against New Zealand at Edgbaston, and their highest successful chase a few games later. Although a 3-2 defeat against Australia followed, Morgan will be intent upon consolidating the gains made, even if performances in this series are unlikely to have much of a bearing on the next two global 50-over tournaments (for reference, see England’s 4-0 win in the UAE in 2012).There are, of course, the rankings to bind all this together and, despite their improvements, sixth-placed England are actually being steadily reeled in by Bangladesh, in No. 7. Pakistan, a place below at No. 8, can’t catch either yet but a win would help ease them away from West Indies in the race for an automatic spot at the 2019 World Cup.Jos Buttler has been passed fit after a finger injury suffered in England’s warm-up win over Hong Kong•Getty Images

Form guide

Pakistan: WLWLW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
England: LWWLL

In the spotlight

He has only scored one ODI hundred since 2008 and admits he is looking for the right moment to retire but that is all the more reason to marvel at Younis Khan‘s latest comeback. Younis criticised the decision to leave him out after the World Cup, though he clearly does not have the ambition of making it to England in 2019, and has said since his recall that he wants to “leave on my own terms and conditions”. The evidence of the Test series, when he became Pakistan’s record run-scorer, suggests that he is in good shape to take control of his destiny.Morgan’s health has been a source of concern since he suffered concussion in his previous appearance but, when it comes to the more prosaic business of playing form, Jos Buttler is the focus of attention. Rested midway through the ODI series against Australia, then dropped for the final Test against Pakistan, Buttler has endured the most difficult spell of his international career to date. It is less than six months since he scored a 66-ball ODI hundred against New Zealand (marginally slower than his England record) and the hope is a return to limited-overs colours will free him up.

Team news

The recall for Younis might force Rizwan out of the XI, despite a solid start to his international career, with Pakistan’s main issue being how best to balance the side. Asif looks the prime candidate to support Yasir Shah in the spin department but Malik, fresh from Test retirement and career-best figures with the ball, filled that role in the warm-up against Nepal, allowing an for an extra batsman in Babar Azam. Azhar missed the final ODI of the tour of Zimbabwe with the toe injury that kept him out of the first two Tests against England but will resume at the top of the order.Pakistan (probable): 1 Azhar Ali (capt), 2 Ahmed Shehzad, 3 Mohammad Hafeez, 4 Younis Khan, 5 Shoaib Malik, 6 Bilal Asif/Mohammad Rizwan/Babar Azam, 7 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 8 Anwar Ali, 9 Wahab Riaz, 10 Yasir Shah, 11 Mohammad IrfanMorgan is set to play his first competitive match since being hit on the head by Mitchell Starc back in September. Buttler has been passed fit after suffering a finger injury in England’s warm-up win over Hong Kong and will retake the gloves from Jonny Bairstow, while the absence of Ben Stokes – who hurt his collarbone during the third Test but would have sat out this series anyway – means James Taylor should stay in the XI despite Joe Root’s return after he was rested against Australia. Liam Plunkett and Chris Jordan are the other pace-bowling options in the squad.England (probable): 1 Jason Roy, 2 Alex Hales, 3 Joe Root, 4 Eoin Morgan (capt), 5 James Taylor, 6 Jos Buttler (wk), 7 Moeen Ali, 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Adil Rashid, 10 David Willey, 11 Reece Topley

Pitch and conditions

Both sides will be hoping for a livelier surface than that on which the Test took place, and last year New Zealand made scores of 299 for 5 and 275 for 4 batting first in Abu Dhabi – though fielding restrictions have been changed again since then. An afternoon start should mean cooler temperatures and the challenge of chasing under lights.

Stats and trivia

• England have won seven of nine ODIs against Pakistan in the UAE
• Of the 15 players who took part in England’s series whitewash in 2012, only Morgan and Buttler remain (though Steven Finn would have been involved but for injury)
• Shoaib Malik needs 10 runs to become the ninth Pakistani to score 6000 in ODIs

Quotes

“We’ll try to dominate with the bat, especially the spinners who haven’t bowled much in the subcontinent and UAE conditions.”
“White-ball cricket is something he prides himself on. In the last four years, he’s been outstanding and has shown glimpses of world-class ability.”

Sri Lanka were cost the wicket of Udara Jayasundera after third umpire Richard Kettleborough wrongfully adjudged him out due to an optical illusion in the DRS replays he saw

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Hamilton20-Dec-2015Sri Lanka bowling coach Champaka Ramanayake said the DRS system had “a lot of errors”, in the wake of what seemed to be an incorrect DRS call which cost Sri Lanka a wicket.Third umpire Richard Kettleborough had overturned Paul Reiffel’s not-out decision on a caught-behind call on batsman Udara Jayasundera in the 23rd over of Sri Lanka’s second innings. There appeared to be no conclusive evidence that the batsman had gloved the ball on snicko or hotspot, but Kettleborough may have instead relied on a seeming deviation from the glove. This deviation, seen from a rear camera angle, was later shown to be an optical illusion.”What I saw on the TV – it looked like not out,” Ramanayake said. “I can’t talk about the umpiring. We haven’t spoken to anyone. Whatever the decision is made we have to take it. We have to have a real serious think about this DRS system. There are a lot of errors.”The short ball from Doug Bracewell did not leave a distinctive hotspot mark. Snicko showed no conclusive spike either.The rear angle initially showed a significant deviation, but importantly, the glove did not appear to move when the ball seemed to brush it. Kettleborough had not seen a split-screen before making his decision. The broadcaster later put up a side-angle view of the dismissal, simultaneous with that rear angle, which seemed to show that the deviation seen on the rear angle came well before the ball had reached the glove.
In any case, both umpire Reiffel and batsman Jayasundera appeared unhappy with the eventual outcome.New Zealand bowler Neil Wagner, who had only seen the original review on the big screen at the ground, acknowledged that there was little evidence on hotspot or snicko. However, he thought the correct decision had been arrived at, due to the seeming deviation seen in that rear-angle shot.

Five years after completing a very successful career as an international cricketer for South Africa, he has a chance to nurture young talent and bring them to the big stage having signed on as Zimbabwe’s bowling coach

Firdose Moonda24-Jan-2016Five years after completing a very successful career as an international cricketer for South Africa, Makhaya Ntini has a chance to nurture young talent and bring them to the big stage, having signed on as Zimbabwe’s bowling coach. His two-year run will begin with an important first step – the World T20 in India in March.Since his retirement in 2011, Ntini has been active on the South African cricket scene as a commentator. He has long wanted to open a cricket academy in the Eastern Cape, a hotbed of black African talent, but has struggled for funding. While he continues efforts towards that, Ntini hopes he can also put his expertise – the benefit of 101 Tests, 173 ODIs and 10 T20Is – to good use for Zimbabwe.”I’m looking forward to working with my neighbouring country. I think there is a lot of talent there that we need to find and nurture. This is also about following my dreams of coaching and bringing guys through,” he told ESPNcricinfo.The top eight teams have direct entry into the main draw of the World T20, but Zimbabwe, who are ranked 14th, will have to go through a qualifying round. They have been grouped with Scotland, Afghanistan and Hong Kong and will play one match with each team. Only if they finish on top will they move on to the main tournament.”The most important thing is that the team qualifies for the main draw,” Ntini said.Since the end of the last World T20, Zimbabwe have played 17 matches and won only four of them. They go into this year’s edition having leveled a four-match series with Bangladesh, but will be wary of Afghanistan, to whom they have lost back-to-back series.

A round-up of the Momentum One Day Cup games played on January 29, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jan-2016Half-centuries from Andrew Puttick, JP Duminy and Jason Smith gave Cape Cobras the platform for a 68-run win over Dolphins in Cape Town. Cobras, who chose to bat, got off to a good start courtesy Puttick and Stiaan van Zyl (35), who added 116 for the first wicket. Ayavuya Myoli picked up three quick wickets thereafter, and Cobras were 125 for 6 when Puttick was dismissed for a 95-ball 79 (10×4, 1×6). Duminy then resurrected the innings with a 62-ball 68 (4×4, 2×6), putting on 45 with Justin Ontong (20) for the fourth wicket and then 91 with Smith for the sixth. Smith finished unbeaten on a run-a-ball 50 (3×4, 1×6), as Cobras closed on 265 for 7.Dolphins slipped to 31 for 3 in 11 overs, and their chase never really recovered. There were no substantial contributions barring David Miller’s 42 and Ryan McLaren’s 52, as they were bowled out for 197 inside the 45th over. To go with his performance with the bat, Duminy also picked up two wickets with his offspin.A splendid all-round effort from Chris Morris helped Titans complete a comfortable 55-run win against Knights in Benoni. He first blitzed a 16-ball 45, an innings that featured two fours and five sixes, to lift Titans past the 300 mark and then returned figures of 3 for 30 to help bowl Knights out for 246.After being inserted to bat, Quinton de Kock (22) and Henry Davids (65) added an opening stand of 45. However, it was Faf du Plessis’ 72 that anchored the middle overs, steadily building the score in the process. Albie Morkel provided the impetus towards the end with a brisk 40, before Morris struck four consecutive sixes in the final over to lift Titans to 301. Malusi Siboto and Shadley van Schalkwyk picked up two wickets apiece.In the chase, Knights were reduced to 36 for 3 before Rilee Rossouw (62) and Pete van Biljon (32) forged a 87-run stand to keep them in the hunt. However, another clump of wickets fell, which effectively killed the game. Knights were ultimately bowled out in the 47th over, with Morkel and Tabraiz Shamsi contributing with two scalps each.Stephen Cook struck his second century of the tournament to lift Lions to a thrilling four-run win against Warriors in Johannesburg. Chasing 257, Warriors were cruising and required 12 to win off the last two overs before the set-man Christiaan Jonker was dismissed. The penultimate over, bowled by Carmi le Roux, went for just two. Colin Ingram and Jonker compiled fifties to keep Warriors on course in the chase, but Lions regularly chipped away at the wickets.Earlier, it was Cook’s ton that anchored the Lions innings. He formed stands of 69 and 74 with Alviro Petersen (37) and Nicky can den Bergh (45), but momentum was lost with a host of wickets towards the end. Sisanda Magala picked up his third List A five-for to help derail the Lions charge.