All posts by n8rngtd.top

Michael Holding 'doesn't know anything that's going on' – Jofra Archer on England's racism stance

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Fast bowler welcomes clampdown on online abuse but says more needs to be done

George Dobell14-Sep-20201:48

Holding: Sportspersons have the platform to make a difference

Jofra Archer has claimed Michael Holding “doesn’t know anything that is going on behind the scenes” after he criticised England and Australia for failing to take a knee during their limited-overs series.Holding, the former West Indies fast bowler, has been a vocal advocate of the Black Lives Matter movement in recent months. As well as providing impassioned testimony of his experiences on Sky and with ESPNcricinfo, he welcomed the decision of the England, West Indies and Ireland teams to register their respect for the movement by taking a knee ahead of their Test and ODI fixtures earlier this season.But he described the failure of Pakistan, Australia and England to do so ahead of their recent matches as “lame” and suggested individual players could unilaterally make the gesture if they wanted to “send a signal” to show they “accept things need to change”.But Archer, England’s Barbados-born fast bowler, has insisted nobody involved within the England set-up has “forgotten” about the movement and claimed progress is being made “in the background”.”I’m pretty sure Michael Holding doesn’t know anything that is going on behind the scenes,” Archer said. “I don’t think he has spoken to [ECB chief executive] Tom Harrison.”I’ve spoken to Tom and we have stuff running in the background. We’ve not forgotten. No-one here has forgotten about Black Lives Matter.Jofra Archer, back in the light blue of England’s ODI team•Getty Images

“I think that is a bit harsh for him to say that. I think it is a bit harsh for Mikey to not do some research before criticising.”The “background” measures referred to by Archer include the ECB setting up an Inclusion and Diversity taskforce, a commitment to increasing the representation of non-white individuals in leadership roles, a game-wide anti-discrimination charter and a bursary scheme for young black coaches, with a focus on “leadership, education and opportunity”. There will also be a further drive to reintroduce cricket in primary schools, with a focus on ethnically diverse areas.But Holding, responding to Archer’s comments, told ESPNcricinfo there should be no conflict between taking action in the background and continuing to make a gesture in public.”Taking a knee does not prevent other action from taking place,” Holding said. “Those who take a knee are not substituting the gesture for other positive action.ALSO READ: Holding on Black Lives Matter – England excuses are ‘lame’“Nobody should have a problem with it. It is a worldwide recognition of calling attention to racial prejudice and injustice.”Meanwhile, Archer welcomed the crackdown by social media companies upon those making racial abuse online. But he did suggest legislation “might have to go a bit further” given that he continues to receive abuse on a regular basis.”I think a lot of stuff is being put into place now,” he said. “People can be prosecuted a bit easier, but I think it might have to go a bit further because some people still aren’t worried about what can happen to them.”I had one the other day; the guy blamed it on being drunk. My mum would always say ‘you can’t think for people’. As long as there is social media and the person doesn’t have to confront you it will still go on.”I feel the love from fans, too. But there’s still a small percentage, you know? I may be doing well but I saw one lady comment on my [gold] chains. Chains have nothing to do with cricket. If she knew me she would know I’ve worn chains from the time I was 14 or 15 years old. You can’t make everyone happy, but the majority of people in England are happy and that makes me happy.”All we can do is try to act accordingly, report it and do what’s best. At the end of the day I think I’m strong enough to deal with it, but what happens when they start targeting someone who isn’t as mentally strong and it starts affecting them? We’ve got to try and stamp it out as much as possible now.”

IPL 2020: No relaxation likely in quarantine rules for English and Australian players

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Some of the players from these two countries will arrive in the UAE after playing a limited-overs bilateral series

Nagraj Gollapudi13-Aug-20200:53

‘Learn the guitar’ – Brett Lee’s tip on how to maintain biosecure bubble during IPL

Key players from England and Australia including Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Steven Smith, David Warner and Pat Cummins could be in danger of missing their teams’ respective first matches in the IPL, with the BCCI unlikely to relax the mandatory seven-day quarantine period, which involves team members clearing three tests before they can start training.England are scheduled to host a limited-overs series against Australia comprising three T20Is and three ODIs. The series will end by September 16, which is four days before the IPL takes off in the UAE.A total of 29 players from England and Australia are part of the eight IPL squads, some of whom, like the Australian pair of Cummins and Glenn Maxwell, were signed at the 2020 IPL auction for record sums of money.Other players who are likely to be part of the series, and could be among the first picks in the IPL, will be Australia white-ball captain Aaron Finch, his England counterpart Eoin Morgan, Jonny Bairstow, Moeen Ali and Marcus Stoinis.A total of 29 Australian and English players are set to feature in IPL 2020•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Keeping in mind the severity of the Covid-19 pandemic, the IPL has laid down strict guidelines in its draft standard operating procedures (SOPs), which were shared with the teams recently. The SOPs include a rigorous testing process that mandates multiple tests within the first week upon landing in the UAE.Once the squads land in the UAE, all members will undergo a test at the airport before heading to the team hotel. From this point, the IPL testing protocol will kick in.As per the protocol, every squad will undergo a mandatory seven-day quarantine in the team hotel. During this week every squad member will be tested three times – on days 1, 3 and 6. Once all three results come back negative, the squad can start training. After that, all squad members will be tested on the fifth day of every week throughout the tournament.Although franchises have agreed with the SOPs, it is understood that several asked the IPL if the week-long quarantine could be relaxed for the group of players that will feature in the England-Australia series. In a call with the IPL, franchises reasoned that, considering the players would be exiting one bubble to enter another in IPL while likely traveling on a charter flight, the testing and quarantine process for this group should be different in order for them to be ready to play matches quickly.The franchises have said that as long as this group fulfills the rules laid out by the UAE government, they should be allowed to play in the tournament straightway. Currently, anyone travelling into the UAE needs to carry a negative result from a test carried out in the previous 96 hours. They would then need to undergo another test at the airport.However, ESPNcricinfo understands the IPL has remained stoic in its stance as it prepares a final set of SOPs which also need to be approved by the UAE government.Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler are among the high-profile English players in the IPL•PTI

Strict quarantine protocols also in place for CPL 2020
Similar questions have been raised by franchises in the 2020 Caribbean Premier League, which will be played in Trinidad & Tobago from August 18.Some of the West Indies players who had participated in a Test series in England, where they had been in a biosecure bubble, questioned why it was necessary for them to undergo the 14-day CPL-mandated quarantine in their hotel room.In a letter to franchises last week, Dr Akshay Mansingh, the CPL’s chief medical officer, explained why moving between bubbles was not enough and how any person coming into the country was a “potential threat”.”For those of you coming from the English tour, I just want to point out the difference between the two bubbles,” Mansingh said in an e-mail sent on August 8. “When we went to England, we were coming from countries with few cases of Covid-19 into a country where it was rampant. As a result, all that was done was to keep us safe from what was happening outside, and hence people were allowed to move in clusters and meet in rooms etc.”In Trinidad there remain relatively low number of cases and they see anyone coming in from outside as a potential threat. Hence the bubble here is to keep their citizens safe from people coming from outside; even if you are corning from a country with low numbers of Covid-19 cases. Irrespective of where you are coming from (including Trinidadian citizens coming from overseas) the law of the land is that all have to quarantine for two weeks, either in a Government facility or in designated hotels. They have not restricted movements of their citizens as they have not had large community spread.”The IPL testing process and quarantine protocol would also apply to the players and coaching staff travelling to the UAE from the CPL, which is scheduled to end on November 10. Prominent West Indian players in the CPL who are first picks for IPL teams include Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo. There is also a healthy set of coaching and support staff including Brendon McCullum, who will make his debut as an IPL head coach at Kolkata Knight Riders, and Andy Flower, who is the assistant coach with Kings XI Punjab.

Pattinson's action evolving – McDermott

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Craig McDermott has moved to clarify assumptions about James Pattinson’s action, including the contention that Pattinson abandoned two years of adjustments to claim five wickets in the Hobart Test

Daniel Brettig16-Dec-2015James Pattinson’s mentor Craig McDermott has moved to clarify assumptions about his pupil’s bowling action, including the contention that the 25-year-old abandoned two years of adjustments in order to claim five wickets in the second innings of the Hobart Test against the West Indies.While Pattinson did struggle for rhythm in the first innings and found himself delivering the ball from an arm position that reduced his chances of gaining any movement through the air or off the wicket, McDermott said there was still plenty of evidence of the adjustments they had made together during his 5 for 27 on the third and final day.Changes to Pattinson’s action had been devised to ease pressure on his back, which has been the subject of multiple stress fractures over his five years around the Australian team, and were as much about foot position as arm and wrist. McDermott noted that Pattinson’s back foot is now much more side on at the point of delivery and thus in sync with his waist, back and shoulders. The adjustments to his arm path made for a much more rhythmic performance on day three.”In a transition from an old action to a new action, sometimes in competition your body will want to go back a little bit to the way it was,” McDermott told ESPNcricinfo. “That happened in the second innings a little bit, but it was more about Patto jumping in a straight line through the crease and going towards the target with his body and getting his arm path down a little bit below the perpendicular and his wrist behind the ball all the time.”The bottom half is still different. Sometimes his back foot gets a bit more front on down the wicket, but generally he’s travelling pretty well. We tried to get his back foot as far towards 90 degrees as we possibly could to start with, knowing that when you get back into competition mode it’s always going to creep back the other way. He’s anywhere between 30 and 45 degrees at any one stage so it’s not too bad.”Pattinson had stated that he hoped to find a middle ground between his old ways and new ones, with the added benefit of now having an older, more mature body to cope. However, McDermott counselled that given a history of multiple stress injuries, Pattinson needed to be aware of the risks inherent in his former methods – the pair will continue their work together when McDermott travels to Melbourne ahead of the rest of the team on Monday.”Every bowler is different, but Patto’s had a number of stress fractures and even at the age of 25 he’s probably had more than someone like Mitchell Starc who’s had one,” McDermott said. “He’s got to be careful, old stress fractures sometimes don’t heal 100%, a bit like with Pat Cummins at the moment, after about a month his were still not healing that well, so he’s put in a brace just to make sure that does restrict his movement.”Patto’s still got to be careful even at his age, just because of the amount of stress fractures he has had in the past that he may not get a new one but you can always open an old one, which may not have healed as strong as some of the other bone matter has. I don’t think it’s right to compare Patto’s body with Mitchell Johnson’s body or with Mitchell Starc’s body, everybody’s differently made up.”Nevertheless, McDermott agreed that once a player is in the Test team, the last thing they should be doing is thinking too intricately about their bowling action. For this reason, he kept his advice simple and to the point between innings, much as the captain Steven Smith also did.”There were a couple of things I spoke to Patto about the night after the first innings,” McDermott said. “One was ‘don’t think too much about it, just really bowl the ball’, and the other thing was ‘try to get your arm path down a little bit, because if it’s up too high it is very hard to get your wrist behind the ball’. They were the only two things I spoke to him about the night before.”His first wicket in the second innings if you look at the slo-mo, it’s very good as far as the seam position and all of that sort of stuff goes. There’s still some variation in that with him, but everything’s coming along pretty well. There’s still a lot of room for improvement, as we’ve discussed since then. But some wickets will give him confidence.”In the absence of Starc, who underwent his ankle surgery on Tuesday night, McDermott said that Pattinson and Nathan Coulter-Nile were both well equipped to be Australia’s impact bowlers over the next four Tests against the West Indies and New Zealand, with Josh Hazlewood and Peter Siddle providing the steady counterpoint.”I think Patto’s one of those and Nathan Coulter-Nile’s got the ability to do that as well,” he said. “Josh is really starting to hone his skills with his lengths, Sidds does what Sidds does, nothing changing there. Certainly leading into the next two Test matches and New Zealand, those guys stand us in pretty good stead.”

Roy Torrens, former Ireland player and team manager, dies aged 72

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Torrens played 30 times for his country and was team manager during Ireland’s 2007 World Cup run

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Jan-2021Roy Torrens, the former Ireland player and team manager, has died aged 72. Torrens played 30 times for his country between 1966 and 1984, and was team manager during Ireland’s famous run to the Super Eights stage of the 2007 World Cup.A brisk medium-pace bowler who took 77 wickets in Ireland green at an average of 25.66, Torrens’ best performance came against Scotland in 1974, when he claimed figures of 7 for 40. He was also good enough with the bat to thrash 177 in an hour in a club game.After retiring, he served as a selector and president of the Irish Cricket Union (the forerunner to Cricket Ireland), before becoming Ireland men’s manager in 2004.”I am greatly saddened to learn of the loss of our great friend, Roy Torrens,” Ross McCollum, chair of Cricket Ireland, said. “Roy was a truly remarkable character, an immense presence in Irish cricket, and a truly great friend – not just personally, but to many people within and outside the cricket family.

“He was a player, a team manager, a president and – most importantly – an inspiration to all he met.”It goes without saying, but we will miss him greatly and our hearts go out to Joan, the family and his friends at this time.”During Torrens’ time as manager, a position he held until 2012, Ireland developed the most-successful side in their history. As well as overcoming Pakistan and Bangladesh at the 2007 World Cup, they qualified for World T20s in 2009, 2010 and 2012, while famously beating England at the 2011 World Cup.In 2009, Torren was awarded an OBE for his services to cricket.

Rumana Ahmed, Panna Ghosh back for T20 World Cup

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Bangladesh name familiar-looking squad for T20 cricket’s showpiece event in Australia

Mohammad Isam30-Jan-2020Rumana Ahmed and Panna Ghosh have been included in the Bangladesh squad for the Women’s T20 World Cup, which begins on February 21 in Australia. The experienced duo replaces Rabeya Khan and Suraiya Azmin, who were part of the side for the India tour earlier this month.Rumana, the legspin-bowling allrounder, has recovered from a knee injury, which kept her out of action for several months last year including the T20 World Cup qualifiers. Panna, who has taken 31 wickets in 37 T20Is, is a seam bowler.The rest of the squad bears a familiar look. Salma Khatun leads the side that includes seamer Jahanara Alam, who played in the Women’s T20 Challenge in India last year, and Nigar Sultana, who has made 309 runs at 44.14 in the last 12 months.Bangladesh will reach Brisbane on February 3, after which they will play three tour matches on February 7, 10 and 12 at the Gold Coast District Cricket Club ground. Their official warm-up matches are against Thailand (February 16) and Pakistan (February 20), before their tournament opener against India on February 24.Squad: Salma Khatun (capt), Rumana Ahmed, Jahanara Alam, Shamima Sultana, Murshida Khatun, Ayesha Rahman, Nigar Sultana, Sanjida Islam, Khadija Tul Kubra, Panna Ghosh, Fargana Haque, Nahida Akhtar, Fahima Khatun, Ritu Moni, Sobhana Mostary

Muneeba Ali seizes rarest of days as first Pakistan woman to score T20I century

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Team-mates told her “go for the hundred because you don’t get opportunities like this very often”

Firdose Moonda15-Feb-2023Muneeba Ali knows that cricketers don’t get days like the one she had against Ireland very often. Only one of them will become the first woman from their country to score a T20I hundred. When more centurions come, they will join an elite club.It’s only once every couple of years that a cricketer can say they’ve scored a century at a World Cup. Before today, across seven editions of the Women’s T20 World Cup, there were five centurions: Deandra Dottin, Meg Lanning, Harmanpreet Kaur, Heather Knight and Lizelle Lee.Muneeba is the first woman from Pakistan to score a T20I hundred and the sixth to achieve the feat at a World Cup, and she did it all without even a T20I fifty to her name. Her previous best in the format was 43.”I enjoyed that,” she said afterwards. “We don’t get these chances in international cricket regularly so I cherish this moment.”And so she should.In what became a stirring riposte to being beaten 2-1 at home to this same Ireland team, Pakistan piled on the second-highest score of the tournament so far and then dismissed Ireland for under 100. The victory was set up by Muneeba, who started gently when she flicked the second ball she faced fine for Pakistan’s first four and steered the fourth past deep third and then brought out a power game that left Ireland out of answers.She pulled Leah Paul behind square, swatted Arlene Kelly down the ground and swept Cara Murray through short fine leg. But she had to survive being dropped on 47, when she heaved Paul to long-on, where Louise Little charged in and then had to pull out of the catch to avoid clashing into mid-on, to bring out her favourite shot: the drive through extra cover. There were four of them, including the hit that saw her reach her century, and it was the result of a mis-field, one of several from an Ireland outfit that had a tough day out but could still admire Muneeba’s effort. “It was difficult to be on the other end but as a spectacle it was outstanding,” Arlene Kelly said.Kelly blamed a bowling performance that saw Ireland spray the ball “two sides of the wicket,” and “string together a couple of dot balls and then give a loosener,” for how heavily they conceded but also acknowledged that Muneeba’s approach put them under pressure. Like many batters at this tournament – England, Australia and India’s line-ups for example – Pakistan “want to take a fearless approach,” Muneeba said, and approach their batting proactively rather than reactively.That reflected in the way Muneeba paced her innings. She knew from about the 12th over, after she’d reached fifty, that a hundred was there for the taking. By the 15th over, she was on 70 and her hundred came in the 19th over, with her second fifty scored in only 26 balls. “There were enough overs and I had enough runs and my team-mates were telling me to go for the hundred because you don’t get opportunities like this very often,” she said.She took on Laura Delany and Kelly, both medium-pacers – evidence that she “enjoys playing pace and is still learning against spin,” but she said she will continue to “work on my boundary options.” Crucially, Muneeba wants to concentrate on batting through the innings and giving Pakistan the ability to end innings on a high note.”There are always some overs which are more productive than others but what is important is how you finish an innings and that is something we could do well today,” she said. “In the first few overs we took our time to settle and that’s how it normally should be. Today was my day and I built a good innings.”Not long after that innings ended, Muneeba had to come out and keep wicket in Pakistan’s defence. Asked if she found it difficult to concentrate on that task after the highs of her hundred, she smiled and replied in the negative. “That wasn’t hard because I got good runs so I was enjoying my time in the middle. I wanted us to win.”And after they did, it all sunk in: days like these don’t come very often at all. “I realised only after the match that I had done something special.”

Rameez's 13 keep Rawalpindi on top

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

A round-up of the third day’s action from the fifth round of matches from the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy

Cricinfo staff05-Nov-2009

Group A

Pakistan Customs stitched up a comfortable win, their first of the season, over Lahore Shalimar at Muridke. They began the third day with a lead of 181 and could only add a single run to that this morning, but by keeping Lahore Shalimar to 244 they allowed themselves an easy chase. Mohammad Iftikhar, the right-arm medium-pacer, struck twice early and then down the order to apply the pressure and the only batsman to reply was Sohail Idrees. Idrees batted 158 deliveries for an unbeaten 104, which contributed 59% of the total. However, it could ultimately only help set a target of 63, which was knocked off in 7.3 overs despite the loss of the openers.Zarai Tarqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) dominated the first half of the day, thanks to Kashif Daud’s six wickets, but a batting collapse handed the momentum right back to Habib Bank Limited(HBL) at the Marghzar Cricket Ground. From an overnight lead of 122, ZTBL added a further 117 to their score as Daud ran down the order for a career-best 6 for 72. The captain Hasan Raza’s 33 and an unbeaten 36 from Mohammad Aslam at No. 9 could yet prove to be crucial given the situation at stumps. Set a target of 240, ZTBL slipped to 91 for 5 with Sarmad Anwar taking three wickets.In Rawalpindi, Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) finished a fine day’s work needing another 70 runs to win with eight wickets in hand. That this was the result was down to their work in the field, when they dismissed Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) for 180 after their own innings came down for 293. No major partnerships were allowed to flourish as four of the five bowlers used restricted KRL. There was just one half-century, from Ali Khan, and despite losing two before stumps, including the opener Naeemuddin for a first-ball duck, SNGPL are in prime position to achieve their fourth win in a row.Sui Southern Gas Corporation (SSGC) didn’t buckle under a weight of runs – not yet, at least – and held out for another day against National Bank of Pakistan in Faisalabad. From an overnight 274 for 2, NBP declared at 441 for 5 with Rashid Riaz (63*), Mansoor Amjad (45) and Qaiser Abbas (38) piling on the misery for SSGC. Trailing by 259, SSGC replied with a steady second innings to ensure NBP will have to work a little harder on the final day. There were no substantial contributions but SSGC reached 143 for 6, leaving NBP four wickets to take for their third win of the season.An interesting tussle between Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) and Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) at the Gaddafi Stadium ended with the latter chasing 262 with ten wickets. PIA began the third day with a lead of 55 and extended it to 279 thanks to key roles at the top and down the order. Rafatullah Mohmand (48) and Adil Nisar (61) added 106 for the opening wicket but suffered a wobble after they and Jahangir Mirza (52) fell. However, the last five wickets rallied to add 129 and that set PIA a tough target. In the 2.3 overs left in the day they knocked off 17 of those.

Group B

Young fast bowler Mohammad Rameez capped an outstanding match by adding a career-best 8 for 27 to five in the first innings, helping table-toppers Rawalpindi beat Peshawar by 75 runs at the National Ground. Rameez was unstoppable with the new ball and utterly flummoxed Peshawar for a paltry 77. It was a stunning turnaround from Rawalpindi who, after being forced to follow on after making just 81, were carried to 334 thanks to Usman Saeed (79) and Zahid Mansoor (81). The pair rallied the top order confidently and a couple key hands down the order helped set Peshawar a target of 153. They didn’t even get near, with
Rameez slicing them apart amazingly. Rawalpindi have won four from four.A tidy outing in the field set up a nine-wicket win for Sialkot over Quetta at the Jinnah Stadium. Kamran Younis carried from an overnight 147 to 182 and the wicketkeeper Ahmed Butt made 94 to help the score to 354 even as Arun Lal took four more to finish with 7 for 87 against a lack of support. Then Quetta folded for 156 in 39 overs to Sialkot’s seam attack, and a target of 16 was easily achieved.Faisalabad, despite making 309, were forced to follow on by Islamabad at the Diamond Club Ground. The pressure of trying to get near Islamabad’s first innings of 485 told as no big stands were formed; the 84 for the second wicket was the best Faisalabad managed. Imran Ali battled with 73 from the top but received little support and Faisalabad needed 52 from Mohammad Salman and an unbeaten 39 from Zulqarnain at No.10 prop up the scorecard. Shehzad Azam (4 for 121) and Nasrullah Khan (3 for 96) shared seven wickets. Following-on, Faisalabad were 0 for no loss at the close.Chasing 316, Multan finished day three on 99 for 3 against Karachi Blues at the National Stadium. Multan only added nine to their first-innings total in the morning, after which Rizwan Haider and Zulfiqar Babar ran through Karachi Blues to dismiss them for 167. The duo struck all down the order and didn’t allow the opposition to dominate; there were no half-centuries while Shahzaib Hasan (42), Asad Shafiq (32) and Tanvir Ahmed (33) were cut off after they got starts. Shahzaid finished with 5 for 74 and Babar 4 for 43. Multan lost a couple wickets early on but were steadied by the No. 3 Rameez Alam’s unbeaten 58.Lahore Ravi replied well to Hyderabad’s 377, thanks to the opener and captain Kashif Siddiq’s 121 at the Lahore City Cricket Association Ground. Siddiq, who resumed on 70, saw his side slipped from 114 for 2 to 149 for 6 but found assistance from the lower order. Waqas Ahmed (33), Mohammad Irshad (65)and Adbul Ghaffar (27*) were superb in getting the score up to 348. In their second innings Hyderabad finished the day on 61 for 3, a lead of 90.

Gilchrist backs Paine as Australia's Test captain and keeper

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Gilchrist rated Paine as being “on par with anyone in the world as gloveman”

Srinath Sripath07-Nov-2019Adam Gilchrist believes Tim Paine is still the best available wicketkeeper and captain for Australia’s Test team.Paine’s batting form in the Ashes – one fifty from ten innings at an average of 20 – has led to concerns about whether he merits selection in Australia’s first-choice Test XI, with Alex Carey waiting in the wings. Gilchrist’s comments echoed those of Cricket Australia chief Kevin Roberts, who unequivocally backed Paine to “continue leading from the front the way he has done so far”.Speaking at an event in Mumbai, Gilchrist rated Paine as being “on par with anyone in the world as gloveman”, and said he has done a “wonderful job [as captain]” since he took over from Steven Smith after the events in Newlands.”[If you look at] what he took on, when he took it on, he in partnership with [coach] Justin [Langer] and all the players have done a remarkable job over the past 12 months to just get a nice, stable balance back. I can’t see any rush to push him out, as long as he’s still performing, like we all had to, to stay in the team. Like every other player, he’s got a hold of his spot in the team as being selected as the best available option for that player type. I think he’s doing a wonderful job [as captain].”Gilchrist, who works as a Fox Cricket commentator, is also a notable mentor for Carey, who recently spoke to ESPNcricinfo about their relationship: “I’m fortunate enough to have a good relationship with him now and I guess through the Big Bash it probably started with him as a commentator and myself getting into the Strikers team. It developed from that. The funny thing with Gilly and I, we don’t really talk a lot about cricket when we catch up, which I think is a good thing as well. We have a great relationship away from the game, talking about footy, talking about family, rather than the skill sets on the field.”Australia have had an unbeaten start to their home summer, winning all four of their T20Is so far, as they build up to the first-ever T20 World Cup on Australian soil, the only global tournament the men’s side haven’t won yet. Gilchrist is backing them to “start as one of the favourite teams” playing at home, “even though 12 months is a long time [and things can change]”. Asked to stick his neck out and predict a winner, he named “the usual suspects like India, England, Australia and New Zealand”, the same four sides from this year’s 50-over World Cup to make it to the semi-finals.”I think Australia are really well placed seeing how they’ve started the summer. They love the conditions, they play well in the bigger grounds. We’ve got everyone available now and probably for the first time, Australia are looking to pick their best XI regularly [for bilaterals] rather than just for the World Cups. They’re probably still working out whether they should play two spin bowlers or one spinner with a batting allrounder like Mitch Marsh or [Marcus] Stoinis.”Ashton Agar is doing a really good job, and if you look at all the successful bowlers in T20 around the world, they’re all spinners. Nine out of the top ten I think are spinners”. Australia have one of their own spinners, Adam Zampa, among the top ten, and Gilchrist is optimistic of their chances given “they’ve got a really well balanced squad” and “have time to work out” their ideal combination for the World Cup”.

Keshav Maharaj's progress stalls as South Africa settle for pace prowess

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Success in familiar conditions is all very well, but World Test Championship hopes may rest on spin attack

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Durban14-Feb-2019South Africa are ranked No. 2 in Tests, have the most fearsome phalanx of quicks on the planet, a serviceable top order, and are, in general, an outstanding fielding side. Despite a regular loss of wickets late on day two at Kingsmead, they have imposed themselves on Sri Lanka, and have achieved a strong position in the match.This is roughly how this Test was supposed to go, so no real surprises, right? Except maybe a minor one. South Africa’s dominance has been achieved without significant bowling intervention from left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj. On his home ground – the most spin-friendly Test venue in the country – Maharaj’s bowling has largely been irrelevant in the first innings. Compare this to the last time Kingsmead hosted a game. Maharaj bowled 33.4 first-innings overs, and took 5 for 123.It’s no big deal in the context of South Africa’s home summer, because it was performing quicks that have kept Maharaj out of the Test XI for two matches against Pakistan, and performing quicks who trussed Sri Lanka up for 191 between them and effectively made Maharaj surplus to requirements.But that is only in the context of the home summer, in which South Africa have been desperate to remind everyone just how good they are, following that 2-0 away thrashing in Sri Lanka.There is, perhaps, also an unsaid undertone of retribution in this particular series. “Yah, you can beat us in your dustbowls, but check us back in our own patch. We’ll show you what we’re really all about over there.” In fact, while South Africa had been in Sri Lanka last year, Faf du Plessis had spoken of reciprocating Sri Lanka’s “streetsmart” tactics, when South Asian teams next toured them.So instead of a regular Kingsmead surface – the kind on which Maharaj might have been needed for more than three overs in the first innings – what South Africa had requested was pace, bounce, and if possible, movement. What they got was a surface on which even Sri Lanka’s vastly under-strength seam attack could dismiss them for 235. A track on which 19 wickets have fallen to fast bowling on the first two days, with reverse swing never having to come into the reckoning.This, into an important year for South Africa, on the Test front. They have a three-Test series in India coming up in October, where Maharaj will clearly be required. Have South Africa done enough to develop their promising young spinner, given they have requested uniformly fast-and-bouncy tracks over the last few months? Probably not.That India series will also be South Africa’s first taste of the World Test Championship – a four-year league that rewards away victories. Though it may be a surprise to some, Maharaj has actually been South Africa’s best bowler away from home since 2016 (against the top nine teams), sporting an average of 26.3. It is not just in Asia that he stands to be a force – the more he plays, the better chance there is he will trouble batsmen in England and Australia as well.If there was a need for a cautionary tale – a reminder that of the danger that lays in ordering uniform tracks – South Africa need only look at their present opposition. Sri Lanka have largely refused to field more than one frontline seam bowler at home since roughly mid-2016, because they believed rank turners to be their surest route to victory. That strategy has not been altogether unfruitful. In 2016 they whitewashed Australia – a team they almost never beat – and then last year, they of course pummelled South Africa as well.But look at them now. They are in the middle of a sequence of terrible away series, having lost three of four Tests on the road. Overall their team is in more disarray than ever. Made-to-order pitches are great for short-term results, but it has also prevented Sri Lanka from developing the promising young quicks in their own ranks. Kasun Rajitha and Lahiru Kumara had starred in a Test win in Barbados in June last year, then didn’t play a Test again until December, when the next away tour came around. Unsurprisingly, they were both rusty in those New Zealand Tests, and had added no new skills to their bowling during the layoff.If this sounds like nitpicking, that is because it probably is. South Africa are an excellent team. They will almost certainly be among the contenders for that World Test Championship crown. But they are, presently, in the grip of some serious pace worship – a philosophy that is not without its rewards. But in the long term, giving their spinner as much Test exposure as possible, may prove more rewarding.

Live blog – Ranji Trophy, 2nd round

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Follow ESPNcricinfo’s live blog of the second round of the Ranji Trophy

Saurabh Somani12-Nov-2018

Game
Register
Service
Bonus