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“The only way these Associate Nations are going to get better is by playing against the Full Member nations more often”

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Mar-2022After a gap 25 years, New Zealand will face Netherlands in an ODI and eight years after last competing against them in international cricket, when the two teams clash in a one-off T20I and three ODIs in New Zealand, starting March 25.The visitors are placed at the bottom of the ODI World Cup Super League table, but New Zealand’s Martin Guptill doesn’t want to “take them lightly” since a few of the Netherlands players have had the experience of playing in New Zealand in the past and are aware of the conditions.Related

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“Geez, it was quite a while ago,” Guptill said of the last meeting with the Netherlands. “I think it was years ago that we last played against the Netherlands. The last time we played in the [2014] T20 World Cup, it was a close game. We know a few guys from their side. [Logan] van Beek played for Wellington [Firebirds], Max O’Dowd played for Otago [Volts] and Fred Klaasen as well, he played club cricket here last year, and I was able to face a bit of them in the nets during the Super Smash last summer.”We can’t take them lightly. They have been here now, played a couple of warm-up games and are well acclimatised here. So, once we get a couple of training sessions under the belt, we will be able to get out and [we are] raring to go.”New Zealand are second from bottom in the table, but they have played only three ODIs so far in the Super League, and have won all three. Given the team’s limited experience with ODIs following the 2019 World Cup – they have played a total of seven matches in the two-year period, where they won six and lost one – Guptill sees the home series as an opportunity to build to the 2023 World Cup.”It’s going to be funny because we have played like seven ODIs since the 2019 World Cup,” he said. “It’s definitely three years. So, there’s been a little bit of a lack of ODI cricket but once we get to the first one, we will be ready to go and reacquaint ourselves with the one-day format and keep going.”Guptill also feels that it’s a “massive” opportunity for the Netherlands to get a full tour against the No.1 ODI team. The likes of the Netherlands usually play against Full Members only in the World Cups as bilateral series outside of it are limited. However, the Super League guarantees 24 ODIs against eight Full Members, with half the fixtures at home and half away.”The only way these Associate Nations are going to get better is by playing against the Full Member nations more often,” Guptill said. “This is the start for the Netherlands and hopefully, they can continue on. You know, we get to play them during the winter and looking forward to both the series.”The hosts will be missing 12 players, including their regular captain Kane Williamson, who will be taking part in the IPL, which will commence on March 23. However, the spotlight will be on Ross Taylor with the series set to be his international swansong after he retired from Test cricket last December. Guptill, who has played with Taylor for more than a decade, is hopeful of finishing the tour on a high.”It’s going to be pretty sad for us, it’s an emotional day. Hopefully, we can send him off with a good series and good night celebrating that.”

Four of the six provincial teams will have new coaches for the 2021-22 domestic season

Umar Farooq20-Aug-2021In a major shake-up in Pakistan’s domestic cricket, the PCB has juggled four head coaches ahead of the 2021-22 season. Abdul Razzaq, whose Khyber Pakhtunkhwa side won trophies in all three formats last season, will now coach Central Punjab.In turn, Shahid Anwar will move from Central Punjab to Southern Punjab, and Abdur Rehman from Southern Punjab – where he spent two seasons – to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The former WAPDA batter Rafatullah Mohmand will be Rehman’s assistant.Ijaz Ahmed Jnr, who was sacked last season despite winning the 2019-20 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy with Central Punjab, will now take over at Northern, who had been without a head coach since Mohammad Wasim became the men’s national team’s chief selector.Basit Ali and Faisal Iqbal are the only two head coaches who will remain with their old teams, Sindh and Balochistan respectively, for the new season.There has been a drastic tweak of coaching appointments in the Second XI circuit as well.The change is meant to aid the development of Pakistani coaches, allowing them to work in diverse environments and conditions, though the flip side could be that the rotation might have an adverse impact on player development. Razzaq, for example, will not be able to build on the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa squad that won three trophies last season, and will instead have to start afresh with an entirely new set of players.”This will not only help us in boosting our pool of Pakistan coaching candidates, but also develop strong self-reliant players by learning from multiple coaches who are ready to take on different challenges from the early stages of their careers,” said Grant Bradburn, the PCB’s head of high-performance coaching. “In Pakistan, we get very few opportunities for our coaches to experience different assignments and learning opportunities. Particularly, in Covid-19 times, it has been difficult to provide outside learning experiences for our leading coaches.”Therefore, we are openly creating a variety of challenges for our coaches to grow. This gives the background to some of the changes and rotations you will see we have made this season. All of our domestic coaches and city coaches are supported and challenged with two clear tasks – put your team into contention to win, and develop players. Our job is also to challenge and develop our coaches and we do this in a number of ways: 360-degree reviews, individual coach profile, coach learning groups, in-season workshops, coaching courses, one-on-one mentoring, and international camp/tour assignments.”Grant Bradburn, the PCB’s head of high-performance coaching, says the shake-up will enable coaches to ‘experience different assignments and learning opportunities’•Peter Della Penna

The coaches for all six associations have been appointed by the high-performance unit, ranging from youth (U-13 to U-19) to the senior level. The National T20 Cup set to begin on September 25, kicking off a 266-match domestic season.This is the third season in a row with the same domestic structure, which was put in place by the Ehsan Mani-led board that dismantled the earlier mix of departmental and regional cricket and adopted a provincial-team model at the insistence of Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is the PCB’s patron. The new model is solely controlled and regulated by the PCB even though each of the six associations has an independent board.The change in domestic structure sparked a country-wide outrage with the new system costing several players, especially those employed by departmental teams, their livelihoods. Eventually, the PCB created jobs for the veteran cricketers at the association level, inviting them to take up positions in various fields such as coaching, administration and umpiring. The new appointment saw dozens of retired players making their way into the coaching profession. Notable names from the circuit, including Shoaib Khan, Humayun Farhat, Aamir Sajjad, Aizaz Cheema, Saeed Bin Nasir, Mansoor Amjad have been given roles in various team managements as assistant coaches. Other than the national setup, the PCB has also appointed coaches for the 93 city cricket associations.”Our primary objective is to develop coaches who are capable of providing the support for our players and teams to be the best in the world,” said Bradburn. “Ideally, we would prefer our national coaches of the future to come from a strong pool of Pakistan coaches who have proven coach performance at the highest level. Together we have set some ambitious goals over the next five years to be in the top three in all formats. We are working hard with our coaches and players to clarify that pathway, what is needed in every aspect of achieving those ambitions.”

Karun Nair’s unbeaten fifty underpins Northants hopes after Hassan Azad falls for 48

Vithushan Ehantharajah19-Sep-2023Even with an 18-point lead at the top of Division One and facing bottom-of-the-table Northamptonshire at home, Surrey arrived into this penultimate match of the season wary of complacency. At the Kia Oval, in weather confirming summer was really over, it was Tom Lawes, one of their own, who stepped up to maintain standards.Northamptonshire closed on 171 for the loss of 6, Lawes’ nagging, surprisingly brisk seamers responsible for half of them. A simple equation is two wins give Surrey the title, which is all they care about. The fine print for the rest of us is that victory with three bonus points puts the onus on second-place Essex to win to keep the County Championship alive. Across a bitty 63.4 overs, when the usually reliable senior figures were a little off with the ball, Lawes’ 3 for 47 has not only helped bag two of those bonus points but moved the game along with rain set to play its unwelcome part for the rest of the week.Rory Burns won his first toss in five, inserting the visitors in as grim conditions as possible without being bad enough to prevent play from starting on time. The skies were overcast enough to require the floodlights at full beam at 10:30am. And the sharp winds that persisted throughout the day were fierce enough for the flags sitting atop the Micky Stewart Pavilion to be brought down.At another time, Burns would have needed to reinforce his hairband before heading out onto the field. Alas, the flowing 14-inch locks are no more, shorn for a good cause to make a natural wig for The Little Princess Trust, a charity which provides real hair wigs, free of charge, to children and young people who have lost their own hair through cancer treatment or to other conditions.Related

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Given the climes, and prolific new-ball duo of Kemar Roach and Dan Worrall going up against a batting line-up that has only managed four bonus points all season, this was surely going one way. And yet 13 overs in, neither had caused Hassan Azad or Emilio Gay any discomfort, barring a delivery from Worrall that leapt off a length and clocked Azad on the jaw of his grille.At 29 for no loss, both left-handed openers would have been satisfied with their early work. But Surrey are not where they are because of the work of just two bowlers. Enter Jordan Clark, who needed just four deliveries to move to the top of the club’s wicket-taking charts with a 47th dismissal of the season as Gay flicked down the leg side to Ben Foakes.Azad, however, trucked on, typically barnacle-like in approach. He has long been about accumulation through survival, but that throwback approach has been found wanting this season, as per the average of 16.15 from 14 innings heading into this match. Nevertheless, on a day like today, stickability was the name of the game and, together with Karun Nair – one of two Indian batters in this match after Sai Sudharsan was handed a debut in place of Jamie Smith away on England duty – compiled a 55-run stand from 24.2 overs.There was a whiff of general sadness when Azad fell, short-arming Worrall behind with an apologetic pull, wary of the man lurking around the corner at leg gully. Not for the first time this season, the short-ball did for him, two shy of a second half-century of the season.Nair, meanwhile, was able to bring up his own in 108 deliveries, and will recommence his innings on Tuesday thanks largely to a life given to him by Jamie Overton when on 11, off the bowling of Worrall. That is likely to be more stop-start than day one, which featured just one shower stopping play for two hours from 1:30pm.Nevertheless, a relatively frustrating day for Surrey carried cheer beyond the wickets. Overton pulled up five deliveries into his second over with what looked like a twinge to his left groin. In the immediacy, their depth covered for the loss as he walked off and Burns brought himself on to send the final delivery down the leg side. Lawes plugged the gap from the Vauxhall End, eventually prising out Luke Procter with a length delivery that lifted and left the visiting skipper.By then, Overton had returned to the field, taking a regulation catch at second slip. And just to reiterate his bloody-mindedness, he was back bowling by the 57th over, rapping Saif Zaib on the hand before nicking him off two deliveries later with a full ball that arched away late.It was the second of three dismissals in 25 deliveries, sandwiched between Lawes removing Keogh – another catch for Overton – and yorking Lewis McManus. Overton should have had a third when Justin Broad fended some extra bounce behind, which Foakes could only tip over the bar.At 5:22pm, bad light stopped play and no doubt Surrey were rueing what looked set to be a procession of the remaining Northants wickets to make up for the early, Zaib-led resistance as they walked off. Remarkably, the clouds had parted enough to allow through what remained of the sun to give us a 5:38pm restart, with an optimistic 12 overs remaining.Six minutes later, back came the clouds and off went the players. The only play of note was a ninth boundary to Nair, driven through extra cover, to take him to a second half-century for Northants.

Given the amount of rain that has fallen on Durban’s Kingsmead ground in the past week, Andrew Strauss would be forgiven for wishing that the heavens remain open for another day, so that his team can cement their 2-1 series lead

Cricinfo staff03-Dec-2009Given the amount of rain that has fallen on Durban’s Kingsmead ground in the past week, Andrew Strauss would be forgiven for wishing that the heavens remain open for another day, so that his team can cement their 2-1 series lead, and emerge victorious for the first time ever in an ODI series in South Africa. But such is the journey that Strauss and his charges have been on in recent months, such an anticlimactic conclusion would be far from fitting. The team has been accused of many things of late, but being boring is not one of them.For Strauss himself, the Durban contest marks a notable milestone. Weather permitting, it will be his 100th ODI cap, and seeing as he had been jettisoned from the set-up after the 2007 World Cup, and spent a full two years thinking he’d never play in that format again, it is an achievement of some note. “To come back in and be part of this side and feel like we’re going somewhere is quite motivating,” he told reporters at Kingsmead. “I’m really enjoying my one-day cricket.”Enjoyment has been central to England’s mini-revival. Back in September, when a listless and Ashes-sated squad were battered 6-1 in their home series against Australia, it didn’t seem possible to inject any urgency into their performances. But then came a relocation to South Africa for the Champions Trophy, and suddenly the results began to stack up – albeit with the odd hefty set-back, as inflicted by the Aussies once again in the semi-final of that tournament, and by South Africa in their record-breaking run-fest at Newlands last week.But Strauss’s England teams are becoming accustomed to fighting back from adversity – witness their spirited response to being bowled out for 51 in Jamaica in February, or the way they claimed the Ashes despite being routed in two-and-a-half days in the penultimate Test at Headingley in August. According to the captain, such bouncebackability requires a culture of honesty within the squad, and an absence of ego.”Players have probably opened their eyes to the fact we have a long way to go and we’ve all got to be prepared for hard work if we’re going to get somewhere,” said Strauss. “We want an environment where we all push each other very hard – and in order to do that, we need to be honest with each other first and foremost. The environment we’re trying to create is one everyone has kind of accepted.”South Africa’s captain, Graeme Smith, is not noted for his chumminess with his English opposite numbers – having sparred with Nasser Hussain, Michael Vaughan and Kevin Pietersen in recent times – but even he could not find much of a bone to pick with Strauss, despite the lingering issue of his refused runner during the Champions Trophy.”Andrew is an intelligent guy, with a lot of common sense,” said Strauss. “He’s provided a lot of stability for England and has gone about it the way we have expected. We’ve managed to keep a little hold on him in terms of his batting – he still hasn’t scored a fifty against South Africa in one-day cricket, but he’s the guy we expected him to be.”But, as Smith went on to point out, it doubtless helps England’s rebuilding efforts that the go-to men of recent times – most notably Andrew Flintoff and Pietersen – have been out of the limelight, which has allowed new stars such as Eoin Morgan and Jonathan Trott to find their feet without being overshadowed. “We don’t want three or four senior players running the show,” said Strauss. “We want everyone feeling comfortable enough to contribute, and also that it’s expected of them to contribute.”In the sport we play, there are always going to be people who are bigger characters than others or have bigger egos,” he added.”But a good environment is able to take that into account and still let people express themselves and get the best out of themselves.”One of those players with a larger-than-average ego is Pietersen, who has struggled to reassert himself since returning to the squad following his Achilles injury, and produced a particularly frenetic six-ball performance at Port Elizabeth on Sunday. And true to form, Smith cranked up the psychological pressure by reminding him of the reasons why he is not the most universally popular cricketer on this tour.”He’s obviously got a history through things that he’s done and said, and people are still getting over those emotions,” said Smith. “The crowds have been quite vocal again towards him. Ultimately, I think it’s just his job to get on with it and deal with that. It happens round the world these days.”

SL’s batting line-up could be bolstered after new squad members were added

Hemant Brar25-Feb-20220:53

Jaffer: We might see Samson or Hooda at No. 3

Big picture

With both India and Sri Lanka missing many of their first-choice players, it was going to be a battle of bench strengths. Few countries enjoy the depth India have and that was evident during the first T20I in Lucknow. The 62-run win margin, huge in itself, looks even more crushing when you glance at India’s bowling card. Their four frontline bowlers – Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshal Patel and Yuzvendra Chahal – didn’t complete their quotas as India tried Venkatesh Iyer and Deepak Hooda for three overs each.After their early exit at the last T20 World Cup, India have taken a few steps in the right direction, especially with their top three batters showing more intent. With Venkatesh stepping up with both bat and ball and Ravindra Jadeja making a comeback, they seem to have a sixth bowling option covered as well.However, their fielding, especially catching, is one area that still needs work. The three catches dropped on Thursday could have proved costly on another day. If their goal is to be the best fielding side at the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia, as Rohit Sharma said after the match, they will look to improve on those metrics.After their first T20I loss, Sri Lanka were dealt another blow on Friday: Mystery spinner Maheesh Theekshana and batter Kusal Mendis have been ruled out of the T20I series with their hamstring injuries.In the absence of Theekshana (and Wanindu Hasaranga), it will once again be down to Jeffrey Vandersay and Praveen Jayawickrama to shoulder the responsibility in the spin department. The pace attack looks relatively experienced and settled but for Sri Lanka to beat India at home, not only their bowlers but also their batters need to come good. Sri Lanka know that, and therefore have added Niroshan Dickwella and Dhananjaya de Silva to the T20I squad with the two injuries.

Form guide

India WWWWW (last five completed T20Is, most recent first)
Sri Lanka LWLLLRelated

• Rohit admits managing workload will be key

• Kishan, Shreyas fifties muscle India to win

• Theekshana, Mendis ruled out of T20s

In the spotlight

In the last few years, Bhuvneshwar Kumar has struggled with his form and fitness, but every now and then he shows what peak Bhuvneshwar brings to the table, with his ability to swing the new ball and deliver yorkers and slower ones at the death. Last year, when England posted 188 for 8 in their unsuccessful chase of 225, Bhuvneshwar had figures of 4-0-15-2. Last week, his four-run 19th over against West Indies all but sealed the game for India. On Thursday, he dented Sri Lanka’s chase with 2 for 9 from two overs. India would like to see more of that from him before the World Cup comes around.Bhuvnewshwar Kumar rocked Sri Lanka with two early blows•BCCI

Charith Asalanka was among the top five run scorers at the 2021 T20 World Cup. He had a difficult time in Australia earlier this month, where he managed just 64 runs in five innings (average 12.80, strike rate 114.28), but showed encouraging signs during his unbeaten 53 off 47 balls on Thursday. In fact, he was the only Sri Lanka batter to show any fight.

Team news

Ruturaj Gaikwad was ruled out of the first T20I after he complained of pain in his right wrist, which is affecting his batting. If he remains unavailable, India could go in with an unchanged XI.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Ishan Kishan (wk), 3 Shreyas Iyer, 4 Sanju Samson, 5 Deepak Hooda, 6 Venkatesh Iyer, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Harshal Patel, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 11 Yuzvendra ChahalTo infuse some experience into the batting line-up, Sri Lanka could replace Kamil Mishara with Danushka Gunathilaka, while Dinesh Chandimal could make way for Dickwella.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Danushka Gunathilaka, 2 Pathum Nissanka, 3 Charith Asalanka, 4 Janith Liyanage, 5 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 6 Dasun Shanaka (capt), 7 Chamika Karunaratne, 8 Dushmantha Chameera, 9 Jeffrey Vandersay, 10 Praveen Jayawickrama, 11 Lahiru Kumara

Pitch and conditions

The last time India were to play an international match in scenic Dharamsala, rain didn’t allow even a coin toss. The same thing had happened during their last scheduled T20I here. And rain could play spoilsport on Saturday as well. Given the last T20I in Dharamsala was played back in 2016, it’s difficult to say how the pitch will behave.

Stats and trivia

• Since losing to New Zealand at the T20 World Cup, India have won ten T20Is on the trot. The record for the most successive T20I wins is held jointly by Afghanistan and Romania with 12 wins.
• Sri Lanka have won three and lost 12 of the 16 T20Is they have played in India. Their win-loss ratio of 0.250 is their joint-worst in any country.
• Chahal’s 67 T20I wickets are now the most for India. He overtook Bumrah, who has 66 scalps.

Quotes

“We have been very predictable in the games against big teams, thinking much about keeping our wickets in hand and slogging in the second half of the innings. But right now it’s very simple. All of us are so talented, we have got shots in our pockets and the captain and the coach believe in us. So we have to just go there and play our game. If the ball is there then we need to go for it rather than just taking a single.”

Victoria bank on Sam Harper to bail them out as a second straight defeat looms

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Nov-2019Test aspirant Will Pucovski made his second low score of the match for Victoria as Tasmania cornered the visitors on another day bowling day in Hobart.While Matthew Wade was able to reach 69, the highest score of the match so far, to enable Tasmania to scrounge a first innings lead of 99, the Victorians were again in early trouble when they batted a second time.Travis Dean was caught behind and Pucovski lbw to Gabe Bell before the innings was eight overs old, and though Marcus Harris and the captain Peter Handscomb combined for a steadying stand, they were parted with the visitors only 20 runs in credit.Without anyone going on to a major score, and Nic Maddinson’s recent run of success ending when he was caught behind for 22 off the persevering Jackson Bird, the Victorians were left to limp to stumps 63 runs ahead with only four wickets in hand.The wicketkeeper Sam Harper must marshall the tail effectively to give them any hope of avoiding a second outright defeat in succession.

New Zealand captain says it’s tough to process losing the World Cup in such a fashion after scores were tied at end of each innings and in the Super Overs

Melinda Farrell at Lord's15-Jul-2019Kane Williamson admitted it was “tough to swallow” the fact that the boundary countback eventually decided the World Cup winners. England and New Zealand were equal on runs after both the regulation part of the match and the Super Overs that followed, but England had scored a hit of 26 boundaries to New Zealand’s 17, including the Super Overs.When asked if the system was a fair way to decide a World Cup final, Williamson was typically gracious while admitting the situation was completely unexpected.”I suppose you never thought you would have to ask that question and I never thought I would have to answer it,” Williamson said with a wry smile. “Yeah, while the emotions are raw, it is pretty hard to swallow when two teams have worked really, really hard to get to this moment in time and when sort of two attempts to separate them with a winner and a loser it still doesn’t perhaps sort of shine with one side coming through, you know. It is what it is, really. The rules are there at the start.Watch on Hotstar – The Super Over (India only)“No one probably thought they would have to sort of resort to some of that stuff. But yeah, very tough to swallow. A great game of cricket and all you guys probably enjoyed it.”The rules are there I guess, aren’t they, and certainly something you don’t consider going into the match that maybe if we could have an extra boundary and then tied two attempts at winning it we will get across the line and they didn’t think that either. I don’t even know what the boundary count was but we were slightly behind. Yeah, very, very tough to… yeah, there you go.”Eoin Morgan said England considered the possibility of it coming into force during their chase but were also mindful of the rule before the match.”When we took the field,” Morgan said, when asked at which stage he knew that boundaries would decide the match in the case of a tied Super Over. “I asked what would happen because we sat in a meeting pre-tournament and then when it got close to the chase we started refreshing our minds whether it was going to be a Super Over or not and then communication from [fourth umpire] Aleem Dar up to the changing room before we batted and then reaffirmed when we went out to field.”

Nepal were dismissed for 230 before rain reduced India’s chase to 23 overs in Pallekele

Deivarayan Muthu04-Sep-20231:57

Uthappa: Rohit can afford to take time to get set in ODIs

Two days after the Pakistan-India game was washed out in Pallekele on Saturday, a similar rain threat hung over India’s first meeting against Nepal in international cricket at the same venue. But the rain wasn’t as persistent on Monday and relented by 9.30pm to cut India’s target to 145 in 23 overs. Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill then sparkled with an unbroken 147-run opening partnership to crash Nepal’s party and put India in the Super Fours round. Pakistan have already qualified for the next stage from this group.Nepal’s fans, though, had plenty to cheer about in the afternoon, especially when Aasif Sheikh made a solid half-century. Aasif’s innings was bookended by some fluid strokeplay from Kushal Bhurtel in the powerplay and Sompal Kami’s muscular blows in the slog overs. When Aasif reached his half-century off 88 balls in the 28th over, he had the Nepali fans grooving in the stands. The Nepali beats that played at the ground added to the revelry, with Rohit Paudel’s team eventually posting a fairly competitive total of 230 on a two-paced pitch.It was short-lived, though, for Nepal as Rohit launched an opening salvo after a lengthy rain break. He scooped, slog-swept, and reverse-swept his way to a 39-ball half-century. Gill, who had belted Kami for three fours in an over before the rain break, largely rode in Rohit’s slipstream upon resumption. By the time Gill got to his own fifty, India were just 29 away from victory. Rohit and Gill finished it off with 17 balls and all ten wickets to spare.Related

• Nepal show they are worthy of more opportunities at this level

• Rain could force Asia Cup matches out of Colombo

• Jasprit Bumrah to miss Asia Cup game vs Nepal

• Sri Lanka look to seal Super Fours spot vs Afghanistan

India weren’t as dominant in the early exchanges. Shreyas Iyer, Virat Kohli and wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan dropped three catches in the first five overs, allowing Nepal’s batters to ease in.Nepal’s batters were more comfortable against pace, driving languidly in the ‘V’ and also ramping audaciously in the ‘V’ behind the wicket. Bhurtel, who was reprieved twice, punished India with his attacking intent and enterprise. He played arguably the shot of the day when he hooked Mohammed Siraj over square leg and out of the ground. Siraj kept digging the ball into the deck and kept leaking runs.Allrounder Shardul Thakur provided India the opening breakthrough in the last over of the powerplay, but he was also lacklustre during his short shift of four overs.1:11

Jaffer: India ‘need to pull their socks up’ in the Super Fours

Aasif displayed stickability, something Nepal’s batters lacked on their Asia Cup debut against Pakistan in Multan. Siraj then returned to the attack with the old ball to dismiss Aasif for 58 off 97 balls.The left-arm spinners Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav worked in tandem to help India seize control. Jadeja proved difficult to get away with his turn – and lack thereof – claiming figures of 3 for 40 in his ten overs. It wasn’t until Jadeja’s eighth over that Nepal scored a boundary off him. Kuldeep wasn’t among the wickets on Monday, but he was almost as thrifty as Jadeja with his stock ball and wrong’un on a helpful surface.Dipendra Singh Airee and Kami then showed that they could also cut it against India’s superstars. Kami, in particular, lined up the short balls from Siraj and Hardik Pandya during his 48 off 56 balls while Airee contributed 29 off 25 balls.Playing his first ODI since March, and only playing because of Bumrah’s unavailability on Monday, Mohammed Shami combined with Siraj to bowl Nepal out for 230 in 48.2 overs.Gill’s calm and the Rohit storm then blew Nepal’s attack away in a truncated chase.

The Pakistan head coach also praises Faheem Ashraf, saying the allrounder has taken his finishing skills to “another level”

Danyal Rasool16-Aug-2023Pakistan head coach Grant Bradburn has said that Pakistan have bought into the new-look attacking style they adopted against Sri Lanka in the Test series, promising the ODIs would see more of the same being implemented. He also said the players called up to training camps in Lahore and Karachi over the past week had been geared to implement the attacking skills they have demonstrated in the nets in match situations across the series against Afghanistan and the Asia Cup.”We’re not training to show skills in the nets,” Bradburn said. “We are looking to use those skills in the game. And it’s not a request from coaches to players. It’s a necessity for them to be in the team because that’s the way the game is moving forward globally. We want to play winning cricket. We have to demand that from our players. The game is moving forward all the time. And we want to be leaders of the game.”While the wasn’t officially mentioned, the PCB leaned in hard on branding Pakistan’s more belligerent new approach that way throughout the successful tour of Sri Lanka. Bradburn was keen to insist it was a philosophy the side would adopt across formats, and that Pakistan’s selection for the upcoming series had been driven by the approach rather than the other way around.Related

• Faheem in Pakistan squads for Asia Cup and Afghanistan ODIs

• Bradburn confirmed as Pakistan men's head coach for next two years

• Thrill, thrill Pakistan

“In some ways, the selection has been difficult, but in our minds, the selection is being very easy,” he said. “And what I mean by that is we are very clear around our starting XI, we are very clear around our batting approach, the way we want to approach the game. We are very clear around how we want to attack the game, particularly in the middle overs. Pakistan hasn’t been successful in the middle overs as well as we should be. We are working hard on developing some skills to really attack that middle-overs period with some hostility, not only with the bat but with the ball and with our field placings as well. We want to take wickets through that period.”Among the more contentious selection calls was the return of Faheem Ashraf to the ODI side. Faheem has not played an ODI in over two years and had fallen out of favour across all three formats. While there has been little notable form to make a return inevitable – especially with the bat – Bradburn singled out Faheem’s allrounder credentials, saying a dearth of fast bowling allrounders made him an attractive prospect.”I believe that there is no one better at hitting pace bowling at the death than Faheem Ashraf. We really want to develop all around us. There is a lack of pace-bowling allrounders in the country and we have worked hard during the camps and our selections to reflect the fact that we want to promote pace-bowling allrounders. We want to really give opportunities to guys who are dynamic in both forms with the ball, with the bat and in the field.”Whether we go with a batting allrounder or we take the best bowler, that’s still to be decided and that’s a decision that Mickey [Arthur], myself and Inzi [Inzamam-ul-Haq] will be involved with alongside Babar as well. But it’s good to have him coming back into the one-day mode. We have really taken note of the way Faheem has been able to finish games with the bat, particularly in PSL. You would have seen him going to another level in the last year or so and he is really now starting to use his skills to finish games at the back end with the bat.”On the subject of Arthur and Pakistan’s somewhat unusual coaching arrangement due to his limited availability, Bradburn insisted the two were on the same page. Arthur is the director of Pakistan men’s cricket team, appointed after the PCB failed to reach an agreement with him to take up the head coach’s job. That elevated Bradburn into the position, which means Pakistan’s backroom staff suddenly looks very similar to the one they had during the 2019 World Cup, with Arthur, Bradburn and Inzamam all a part of the setup.”Mickey and I are very aligned. We communicate daily and he is very much in tune with where everyone is at. He is very much part of the new direction that we are wanting to take this team. So we are really looking forward to him joining us on the 23rd of August. He will be with us through to the end of the India game in Kandy. And then again, Mickey will be joining us straightaway after the English domestic season and joining us at the World Cup for its entirety and right through the Australian series and New Zealand series as well. We are really looking forward to having Mickey on board, but for me, he is on board every day anyway.”

The captain hit a century before the keeper hit out on day one of South Africa’s warm-up against a Cricket Australia XI

AAP09-Dec-2022
South Africa captain Dean Elgar made a trademark century but it was the form of wicketkeeper Kyle Verreynne that will most please the tourists on day one of the four-day clash with a Cricket Australia XI.Left-hander Elgar is South Africa’s best and most experienced batter and he reinforced those credentials at Allan Border Field.Verreynne, batting at No. 6, made an unbeaten counterattacking 76 off 86 balls with his vicious pulls and cut shots a highlight.Middle-order batter Temba Bavuma won’t bat in the first innings due to an elbow complaint but Elgar said he hoped he would in the second innings.”It was nice to get a good knock,” Elgar said of his own innings. “Personally I have been in good form back home as well and I’d like to think I think I am match fit and match ready which is a nice thing coming into a really important series. It was nice to see some other batters put their hands up as well.”South Africa’s batting had a fragility about it on the recent Test tour of England. Their pace attack is world class but it will be scoring runs for the bowlers to defend that will be the key against Australia in the three-Test series which begins on December 17 at the Gabba.Sarel Erwee (25), Rassie van der Dussen (27) and Khaya Zonda (18) all made starts but it was Verreynne who showed the aggression and confidence that will be vital against Australia’s pace attack.He made his maiden Test century against New Zealand in Christchurch earlier this year and looks a player of class.Left-arm orthodox spinner Matthew Kuhnemann was the pick of the bowlers and did not get discouraged when the batters went after him. He made his ODI debut for Australia this year and enjoyed bowling on his home track.Elgar was strong on the leg side and played one glorious swivel pull shot for four off Jordan Buckingham to stamp his class. His driving on the off side was also of the highest quality.He went to tea unbeaten on 99 and brought up his century with the first ball after the break before being bowled by Chris Tremain.Verreynne and Keshav Maharaj (34) then added 89 at better than a run-a-ball for the sixth wicket.