All posts by n8rngtd.top

Postponement of second WI vs Aus ODI has domino effect on Pakistan series

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jul-2021Complications due to Covid-19 has cut an entire T20I out of Pakistan’s tour of the West Indies. Set to begin a day later than originally scheduled (July 28), also due to the pandemic, the series will now feature only four T20Is, instead of the previously planned five.

The new schedule for WI vs Pakistan

July 28: 1st T20I, Bridgetown

July 31: 2nd T20I, Providence

August 1: 3rd T20I, Providence

August 3: 4th T20I, Providence

August 12: 1st Test, Kingston

August 20: 2nd Test, Kingston

This is the result of one of the non-playing staff in the West Indies set-up testing positive for the virus two days ago. It forced one of their ODIs against Australia to be postponed and that in turn has had a domino effect on the Pakistan series, prompting the PCB and the CWI to strike off one of the T20Is that was part of the original tour calendar.Ricky Skerritt, the Cricket West Indies president, said: “Together with the PCB, CWI have examined various scenarios, and we jointly agreed that the best solution in the present circumstances is to cancel the first T20I and play a four-match T20I series starting on Wednesday and keep the rest of the tour schedule unchanged.”Both Pakistan and West Indies, who are the defending champions, are on the final legs of their preparation for the T20 World Cup to be held in the UAE from October 17.

Misbah-ul-Haq said that Pakistan could not cope with England’s mastery or reverse swing on the final day at Edgbaston

George Dobell07-Aug-2016Misbah-ul-Haq has admitted his batsmen did not have “any clue” how to handle the reverse swing generated by the England bowlers on the final day at Edgbaston.Pakistan lost four wickets for one run in mid-afternoon as England’s seamers transformed conditions that Misbah described as “easy” before lunch to those which they “could not handle”.It lead Misbah to suggest, with tongue in cheek, that Pakistan might have to think about sending their young bowlers to England to learn how to master the art of reverse swinging the ball; an irony considering it was Pakistan bowlers who perfected the art and England, for many years, were tortured by it.”Until lunch it was easy,” Misbah said. “But after lunch they got it reversing and we were not having any clue. We were trying to cope with it, but we could not handle it.”Anderson and Broad are used to these conditions. They are really experienced. Full credit to England for the way they fought back after we had a lead of more than 100.”I think we’ll just have to send someone to learn from England now how they’re reversing this ball. We could not do it even on the fourth day. I think they are really doing it well.”While Alastair Cook rated the victory as one of his most pleasing as England captain, he dismissed the possibility that England could reach No. 1 in the Test rankings over the next few weeks as “an irrelevance.”It is possible that, if England win the final Test and India do not win against West Indies, that England could reach the top spot. But Cook feels his side are still a couple of years from their peak and seems to regard the landmark as something of a distraction at present.”If we become number one there, that’s fantastic,” Cook said. “But it will be a bit of an irrelevance, because this side has still got much further to go.”If we do win at The Oval, I wouldn’t say we are anywhere near our potential. I thought that might come in a couple of years’ time.”Cook was especially pleased by the nature of the win bearing in mind that nobody in his side scored a century or claimed a five-wicket haul. Instead it was an impressive team performance with all five of his frontline bowlers claiming two wickets in the second innings – including Steven Finn, who bowled with hostility and claimed his first wickets of the series – while all seven batsmen contributed decent scores. England were not reliant on one or two outstanding individuals.”Everyone will be in the dressing-room feeling proud to be part of the team and feeling like they contributed,” Cook said. “That doesn’t always happen.”In an absolutely ideal world, I thought there were hundreds left out there. But everyone responded, and I think this side might have just toughened up a little bit. It was hard in the second innings. We weren’t scoring any runs, but everyone dug in.”But Cook refuted Misbah’s suggestion that the reverse swing was lavish and instead suggested it was his bowlers’ skill that magnified the small amount of assistance they gained.”We bowled brilliantly,” he said. “It reverse-swung a little bit. I don’t think it did it massively. It just did enough and if it does a bit either way, Jimmy and Stuart are very good.”Misbah could at least take some consolation in the emergence of Sami Aslam. The 20-year-old responded to his surprise call-up – this was his first first-class game of the year – by scoring 152 runs in the match and looking a player with the technique and temperament to enjoy a long career at this level.But he admitted the balance of the Pakistan side – with just four bowlers carrying a heavy burden – was putting them at a disadvantage and highlighted England’s all-rounders as a key difference between the sides”Sami looks a compact player and has shown great temperament,” Misbah said. “I am happy that he did well against such type of bowling: experienced bowlers in their own conditions. The way he handled the pressure was good to see. It’s good to find this sort of opener for Pakistan.”But having just four bowlers is a problem. We used to have Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik who could bowl, but here we don’t have that option now.”England have Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes. Here Yasir Shah carries a tremendous load and this is a problem for us.”

His BBL coach Greg Shipperd believes the allrounder could fill one of the troublesome middle-order spots

Andrew McGlashan10-Jun-2021Dan Christian’s “unique skillset” and wealth of experience make him an ideal candidate for Australia’s T20 World Cup squad following his surprise national recall according to his BBL coach at the Sydney Sixers, Greg Shipperd.Thirty-eight-year-old Christian, who last played for Australia in 2017, was one of six players added to the large preliminary squad ahead of the tours of the West Indies and Bangladesh with the expectation that a number of those involved in the IPL will make themselves unavailable for the trip.”It’s a unique format of the game and he’s got a unique skillset as a strong finisher through the middle and at the back-end with the bat, he’s got the capability to bowl a couple of intelligent, player-specific overs right across the three phases with the ball,” Shipperd said on the day he signed a two-year extension as the Sixers coach which takes him to the end of the 2023-24 season.”He’s a super fieldsman but there’s also a wealth of cricketing strategy and knowledge that resides in his brain and he’s a real giver in any team he’s involved with. If you’re going into a specific tournament, they’ve got a couple of World Cups coming up, he’s a strong choice. He’s in form, he’s fit and strong, he’s got a lot of positives going for him. I hope he gets game time and performs really well and gets an opportunity to play in the World Cup.”Related

• Australia's World Cup conundrum: the search for a T20 finisher

• Steve O'Keefe and Dan Christian savour extra special BBL triumph

• Christian has unfinished IPL business

• Christian called up to Australia's preliminary white-ball squad

Christian, these days a freelancing T20 specialist, was also at the IPL before it was suspended but headed to England to take up his deal with Nottinghamshire for the T20 Blast which he has now withdrawn from to undertake a two-week quarantine back in Australia ahead of leaving for the West Indies.He has previously spoken of not giving up hope of adding to his 16 T20I caps despite the lengthy time since his last selection having enjoyed an impressive 2020-21 BBL season for the title-winning Sixers after moving from the Melbourne Renegades who he also helped to the title in 2018-19.If he makes it into the final XI on the upcoming tours it would be in one of the middle-order positions that has proved troublesome for Australia to fill as they try to balance their T20I side.In last season’s BBL he made 272 runs at 34.00 with a strike rate of 182.55 which included a 16-ball 50 against the Adelaide Strikers and an unbeaten 61 off 38 balls to guide a chase against Brisbane Heat. Though he was less prolific in the first part of the PSL and IPL before each was suspended, Shipperd lauded the clarity he can bring to tough game situations, going as far as to say it “blows my mind” that he can often do it while on the player microphone.Dan Christian’s T20 titles•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“It is indeed a very specialist role and it’s about calmness and clarity in the moment. And being fearless,” he said. “He’s at the stage of his career where he’s using his experience wisely and he’s not playing for the next year or next major contract, he plays with this fearless but experienced mindset that allows him to take the best option.”It’s rare for a player to be mic-ed up as he often is in those phases and be taking the commentators and viewers through what he’s thinking and doing. As a coach that blows my mind so just shows the poise he has and he’s using his experience well.”Shipperd picked out Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Marsh, Daniel Sams and Sean Abbott – the latter facing a significant recovery period after a hamstring injury playing for Surrey – as other candidates for the Australia middle order but the depth of Christian’s CV holds him in good stead.”A lot of other players haven’t been in those moments and dealt with that pressure, made the call, succeeded and failed,” he said. “He balances those yo-yos that this form of the game throws at you particularly well. He presents as such a valuable player for a tournament. I would be pushing and promoting him competing strongly for one of those positions.”Australia’s large preliminary squad, which currently numbers 29, will be trimmed to around 19 before the team leaves at the end of June. The West Indies tour includes five ODIs and three ODIs followed by five more T20Is in Bangladesh although dates for those matches are yet to be confirmed.In terms of their final build-up to the T20 World Cup in October – which is expected to be moved from India to the UAE – there will then be the question of whether players will be able to return to the IPL which is due to resume in mid-September in the UAE.

South African offspinner is leading wicket-taker across last five years of first-class cricket in England

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Dec-2021Simon Harmer has signed a long-term contract extension with Essex, committing himself to the club until the end of the 2026 season.Harmer, the South African offspinner, joined Essex in 2017 as a Kolpak registration and has been their main overseas player since that legal loophole closed after the UK’s departure from the European Union.He has taken 308 first-class wickets for Essex since he signed, the most in England over the last five years and 48 more than his nearest rival, his team-mate Jamie Porter. He has also contributed in limited-overs cricket, notably in the T20 Blast in 2019 when he was player of the match in Essex’s semi-final and final victories.Related

• Ten Doeschate becomes Kent batting coach in first full-time coaching role

• Cook commits until 2023 season after Essex contract extension

• Olivier makes himself available for South Africa again

• Critchley joins Essex after transfer from Derbyshire

• Taking stock: where does traditional finger-spin fit into T20?

Essex failed to qualify for the six-team Division One of the County Championship last year but have strengthened over the winter with the signing of Matt Critchley from Derbyshire as a replacement for the retiring Ryan ten Doeschate, and a number of senior players – including Alastair Cook, Adam Wheater and Paul Walter – have signed contract extensions in recent weeks.”The club gave me an opportunity in 2017 for which I will always be grateful,” Harmer said. “The progress this team has made under Anthony McGrath is a major factor to signing. I’m determined to continue developing my game across all formats and look forward to contributing to further success, both on and off the field, over the next five years.”McGrath, the club’s head coach, described Harmer as “an important leader” and said that his signing represented “a real signal of intent.””Harmy has been an important part of our success in recent years and I’m delighted he’s committed his long-term future to Essex,” McGrath said. “The talent we have within this team is incredible and his match-winning skills will be instrumental for our plans to achieve further success in the future.”

“It is all about what the team wants from me – and then go and contribute. And I am pretty much confident about that”

Sidharth Monga12-Feb-20212:37

Ajinkya Rahane: ‘I don’t need to worry about what happened in first Test’

Ajinkya Rahane is a man of few words. He keeps his assertions for on the field. On the eve of the second Test against England, though, he hit back at those questioning his batting, asking them to check his record. Rahane scored a resounding hundred in Melbourne, adjudged as the innings of the year by ESPNcricinfo, but either side of that knock have been 13 innings without reaching 50. More of a concern with Rahane is that his numbers are better away than at home, where he averages 37.75.”We are playing at home after two years,” Rahane pointed out. “We played last home series against South Africa. If you take that record out, you will find something over there. It is all about the team. It is not about any individual. My focus is completely on how I can contribute for my team. If you check out the last 10-15 Test matches about my individual performances, you will see some runs over there. I don’t need to worry about what is happening and what happened in the first Test match. It is all about what the team wants from me in this Test match. And then go and contribute. And I am pretty much confident about that.”Related

• ESPNcricinfo Awards 2020 Test batting winner: Cappy takes charge

• Rahane: 'Virat will always be the captain of the Test team'

• 'My job is to take a back seat and help Kohli' – Rahane

• Kohli: Don't jump the gun on India, or Rahane

The South Africa series that Rahane spoke about took place in October 2019. He scored a century and a fifty, averaging 72. In the series against Bangladesh that followed, he scored 86 and 51 in the two innings he got to play. In the most recent home Test, though, Rahane managed scores of 1 and 0.From being propped up as a full-time captaincy candidate to having his place questioned in the space of just one Test is some ride. Sanjay Manjrekar’s tweet summed it up: “My issue with Rahane the captain is Rahane the batsman. After that 100 in Melbourne his scores are – 27*, 22, 4, 37, 24, 1 and 0. After a 100, class players carry their form & carry the burden of players out of form.”However, Rahane enjoys full confidence from the full-time captain, Virat Kohli. “Ajinkya, I have said this many a times in the past as well, along with Pujara, he is our most important Test batsman and he will continue to be as we believe in his abilities and he is an impact player,” Kohli said after the first Test. “If you are talking about MCG Test, he stood up and scored a hundred when the team wanted it most. You can look at number of innings and what happens from thereon, the reality is we won the series in Australia.”Here it is just one innings, and today you can put that innings aside but in the first innings he wanted to score a boundary and it was a brilliant catch by Joe [Root] that got rid of him. If that goes for a boundary and he scores runs, then we are not having this conversation, so there are absolutely no issues and everyone is playing really well. We just need to be focused a lot more and understand that Test victories are earned in any condition whether you are playing at home or away from home. Nothing is given in Test cricket, and we need to work together as a team and put in a lot of pressure on the opposition.”If Rahane is to get the criticism off his back in Chennai in the coming week, he will have to do in conditions more difficult than in the first Test. He himself said the pitch would turn much more. “[The pitch] looks completely different, I am sure it will turn from day one,” Rahane said. “We will have to wait and see how it behaves in the first session and take it from there. We have to forget what happened in the first Test and focus on this. Play good cricket. And we know these conditions really well. We have to put our best forward tomorrow and play as a team.”In the Bangalore Test that India beat Australia in, from a similar 1-0 deficit back in 2016-17, Rahane led the turnaround in partnership with Pujara. In that innings, Rahane unsettled Nathan Lyon with the sweep, a shot that England employed to good effect against India. Rahane was asked if that is a shot India are looking at.”It depends on what they bowl,” Rahane said. “What lines and lengths they bowl. Accordingly we play those shots. England came up with their plans of playing sweeps and reverse sweeps. It is not necessary that we are going to play similar shots. It is about what they bowl and how we actually attack their lines and lengths and play our game.”

“It was always going to be useful to give our bowlers more time to get Zimbabwe bowled out”

Mohammad Isam10-Jul-2021Najmul Hossain Shanto has said that Bangladesh went for quick runs on the fourth day to give his team’s bowlers ample time to bowl Zimbabwe out in the fourth innings. Shanto and Shadman Islam both struck unbeaten centuries to raise Bangladesh’s lead to 476 runs, before Brendan Taylor’s counterattacking 92 took the hosts to 140 for 3 at stumps.Shanto said that while Bangladesh were still on course for victory, the Harare pitch did not have too many demons for the batters.”It was always going to be useful to give our bowlers more time to get them bowled out,” Shanto said. “That’s why we needed to score quick runs, and it went according to plan. I think we are in a good position. But we have a lot of work to do. The wicket is still quite good. Our bowlers and fielders have their work cut out. We hope to take early wickets, which will make things easy for us.”Shanto’s 117 included six sixes, a new record in Zimbabwe, as he went after the part-time spinners Roy Kaia and Milton Shumba. He added 196 runs with Islam, Bangladesh’s highest second-wicket stand against Zimbabwe.This was Shanto’s second century in three Tests although there have been some low scores in between. “I try to stay in the present, not think about what happened in the last four innings. I can have a bad day, but I always try to score runs.”Shanto said that he and Islam were guiding each other throughout the partnership.”The positive side was that we spoke to each other about what to do and when to do it. We were not thinking about scoring hundreds. We were responding to the match situation, but we finished on two good scores,” he said.Islam dedicated his maiden Test century to his parents. Islam’s father has been working in BCB’s development programme for two decades, specialising in scouting young talent. Both Islam and Shanto have come through this system, although Islam is a late bloomer.”I wanted to play ball-by-ball but I ended up getting a century. I am happy about my achievement. This century came because of my team-mates and coaches. I’d like to dedicate it to my parents,” he said.Islam also said that he felt bad that Saif Hassan, who made 43, missed out on a big score.”Saif was unfortunate to get out in that way. He was batting well today, and we were doing well together. Shanto came and told me that we should continue in the same way. But things changed after lunch, when we decided to up the scoring rate.”

The Kerala Cricket Association has decided to let off Sanju Samson with a warning for his alleged misconduct during a Ranji Trophy match

PTI13-Jan-2017The Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) has let off Sanju Samson with a warning for his alleged misconduct during a Ranji Trophy match, with a rider that his father Viswanadh will not be allowed to “interfere with his son’s cricketing activities.”Sanju had left the team dressing room in the middle of a Ranji Trophy match earlier this season and then refused to apologise. Things turned from bad to worse after his father Viswanadh allegedly abused former KCA secretary TC Matthew.Subsequently KCA dropped him from the team on disciplinary grounds. The matter was placed before an enquiry committee and the report was submitted to central council, which let off Samson with a stern warning after both father and son tendered an unconditional apology.”We had a central committee meeting on Sunday. Sanju is an emerging star and youngsters in Kerala follow him,” the association’s new secretary, Jayesh, told . “We told him in no uncertain terms that his behaviour was unacceptable. He has tendered an apology. Also we have told him that his father should not be seen during training sessions.”He [father] used to accompany him for training and would be near the ground. We don’t want him to interfere in Sanju’s cricketing activities. A pushy parent sets a bad example and also it creates problems for other team members.”

Punjab Kings never recovered after being 26 for 5 in the seventh over

Saurabh Somani16-Apr-20213:01

How does Chahar make the ball talk more than the others?

After four successive matches that swung wildly at the death for come-from-behind-wins, the Chennai Super Kings eased to a straightforward victory against the Punjab Kings, to notch their first points of IPL 2021.A bowling masterclass led by Deepak Chahar dismantled the Kings top order, and there was no magic recovery this time. Chahar took out four of the Kings’ top five, while the other man – KL Rahul – was run out. For a team structure heavily dependent on the top order to make the bulk of the runs, being 26 for 5 meant the end of the Kings’ hopes in this game.Chahar bowled a spectacular first spell, with MS Dhoni continuing to bowl him beyond the powerplay for all four overs in one stretch and he ended with 4 for 13, bowling an incredible 18 dot balls. It was left to Shahrukh Khan to show a glimpse of his muscular hitting capacity, with 47 off 36 from No. 6 to drag the team into three figures. The 106 for 8 they ended up with was still the lowest total for any team that has batted out its 20 overs at the Wankhede Stadium in the IPL.The Super Kings had a good opportunity to beef up their net run rate. Moeen Ali, who scored 46 off 31, did exactly that, and although a two-in-two burst from Mohammed Shami then slowed the charge, the Super Kings still eased to victory in the 16th over for the loss of just four wickets.Chahar strikes, Jadeja prowls
In the very first over, Chahar got one to curl past Mayank Agarwal’s bat to knock out the off stump. Pitched on a length and curving away wickedly, it left Agarwal squared up, and would have probably accounted for most batters. He also got Chris Gayle two balls later but Ruturaj Gaikwad shelled a straightforward chance at backward point.Two overs later, Rahul took off for a quick single from the non-striker’s end when the ball had rolled off Gayle’s pad to short cover, but he misjudged Jadeja’s panther-like quickness in the field. Swooping down on the ball and rifling a direct hit in one smooth motion, Jadeja caught Rahul short even though the batter had taken a decent start.Chahar was not to be denied Gayle’s wicket either, and a knuckle ball did the No. 3 in, chipping a drive because he played it early. It was again towards cover and Jadeja was in the thick of it again, diving to his right to hold a good catch. For good measure, Chahar added Deepak Hooda’s wicket in his final over, an awayswinger being lobbed tamely to mid-off. His final over ended up a wicket maiden, and with seven overs bowled, the Kings were going at less than four an over with all of their main batters back in the hut at 26 for 5.Shahrukh strikes at Wankhede
He had walked into the middle in just the fifth over, and as the last recognised batter remaining, Khan could afford to just play and not bother about the scoreboard. If the Kings were going to get anything defendable, it was all on him, so he could pace his innings his own way. With Chahar bowled out, batting became a mite easier too, and Khan muscled the ball to the fence whenever he was given width. He fell in the final over, missing out on a maiden IPL fifty, but he had ensured the team wouldn’t be bowled out and would cross 100.Moeen leads the way in the chase
The Super Kings stuck to their opening combination of Gaikwad with Faf du Plessis, who both were circumspect against some sharp new-ball bowling. With the target so low though, it didn’t matter even though Gaikwad fell in the powerplay. Ali’s association with du Plessis yielded 66 runs in 7.3 overs for the second wicket, and there was no way the Super Kings were losing after that. Ali had begun to find the boundary with trademark fluency right from when he walked in, in the sixth over, while du Plessis was content to hold his end up. Ali fell before he could get to his fifty, flat-batting M Ashwin to deep midwicket. There was a minor moment of drama when Shami got both Suresh Raina and Ambati Rayudu off successive balls, but victory was only a formality by then.