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Brad Hodge has played his last first-class game after a knee injury ruled him out of what was intended to be his finale against New South Wales in Newcastle starting on Friday

Cricinfo staff16-Dec-2009Brad Hodge has played his last first-class game after a knee injury ruled him out of what was intended to be his finale against New South Wales in Newcastle starting on Friday. Hodge struggled with knee soreness after aggravating an existing problem during Tuesday’s FR Cup match against South Australia.He announced his impending retirement from first-class cricket last month after family commitments won out over the desire to add to his six Test caps. Hodge leaves the first-class arena with 17,084 runs at 48.81 from 223 appearances, with 51 centuries and a top score of 302 not out.However, Hodge is keen to play on for Victoria in Twenty20 and one-day cricket and he has not given up hope of making the Australia squad for the ICC World Twenty20 in the West Indies next year. The Bushrangers will reassess Hodge’s fitness next week before the one-day against New South Wales in Sydney.Victoria have also lost Darren Pattinson to a calf strain, while his brother James Pattinson is having his workload managed and will miss Friday’s Sheffield Shield match. Jon Holland, Steven Gilmour and the uncapped left-arm fast bowler Will Sheridan have been included in a 12-man squad.New South Wales will again be captained by Moises Henriques, who at 22 last week became the fourth-youngest skipper in the state’s history. The legspinning allrounder Steven Smith will rejoin the side after a quick trip to Perth to act as cover for Nathan Hauritz in Australia’s Test squad.Victoria squad Chris Rogers, Nick Jewell, Lloyd Mash, David Hussey, Cameron White (capt), Andrew McDonald, Matthew Wade (wk), John Hastings, Jon Holland, Bryce McGain, Steven Gilmour, Will Sheridan.New South Wales squad Phillip Hughes, Phil Jaques, Usman Khawaja, Moises Henriques (capt), David Warner, Ben Rohrer, Daniel Smith (wk), Steven Smith, Grant Lambert, Stephen O’Keefe, Aaron Bird, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc.

Kent’s irritation at missing out on promotion went some way to explaining the defiance of their skipper Sam Northeast

ECB Reporters Network23-Sep-2016
ScorecardSam Northeast signed off the season with another hundred•Getty Images

Kent’s irritation at missing out on promotion went some way to explaining the defiance of their skipper Sam Northeast who, on the final day of the Specsavers Championship campaign, elected to notch his fifth first-class ton of the summer rather than conspiring in any sort of last-day contrivance with Division Two champions Essex.The top two sides in the second tier finally shook hands on a draw at 4.20pm, by which time Kent had reached 288 for 5 declared for an overall lead in the match of 437.Gordon Hollins, the ECB’s chief operating officer, presented Essex with their trophy and winners’ cheque soon after, leaving Kent contemplating another season in the lower ranks and to mull over the opening match of the 2016 campaign at New Road, where not a ball was bowled over the four days.

Masters bows out in familiar surroundings

Essex seamer David Masters signed off on his 16-year first-class career with one final maiden on the ground where it all began for him as a Kent rookie.
“The lads said I must bowl the last over of the game which I guess was fitting, but it was a really nice gesture.
“I hadn’t expected Kent to line up in a guard of honour when I went out to bat either, it was a bit of a shock if I’m honest, but it was a lovely touch all the same.
“As farewell games go it doesn’t really get any better than that. On my old ground and with my dad and family all here watching. Added to which I’ve now won both the one-day trophies as well as the Championship Division Two title.
“I’m feeling complete as a cricketer, content with what I’ve achieved and proud of what Essex have done during my time with the club.
“Of course, I thank Essex for giving me so many opportunities and Kent and Leicestershire for giving me such a good start. I’ll never have enough thanks for Alan Ealham at Kent who took a punt on me and was the first to say ‘this boy’s got something’. I hope I’ve repaid his faith.”

The outcome of the Worcestershire match and Kent’s subsequent appeal still raises the blood pressure of supporters down in the Garden of England, and Northeast, as well as the county’s chairman, George Kennedy, have been reluctant to let the matter drop.Ahead of the final round, Kennedy said: “That Kent only received five points from that abandonment, when as the away team we were entirely blameless, still rankles with me. It can be argued it denied us the chance to play for 19 more points.”So, after Kent’s failure to make Essex follow on on the fourth and final morning, the top two sides had only bragging rights and averages to play for on the last day of the summer. And, having seen his side lose four early wickets in the quest for quick runs, Northeast took the pragmatic approach and let his bat do the talking.Starting their second innings within 15 minutes of the final day’s start, Kent – who banked a first innings lead of 149 – lost Daniel Bell-Drummond to the fifth ball of the innings. Playing across a David Masters off-cutter, the right-hander went leg before without scoring.With two boundaries quickly to his name, Joe Denly’s positivity got the better of him when he charged down the track to Matt Dixon only to drive into the hands of Nick Browne at extra cover to make it 13 for 2.Sean Dickson also perished when attempting the extravagant, leaning into a drive to a Will Rhodes length ball the South African right-hander edged to Varun Chopra at slip.The hosts lost first innings top-scorer Darren Stevens in the mid-session when he nicked a leg-glance against Masters to the keeper to depart for 18.Northeast and Will Gidman flourished either side of tea, adding an unbroken 185 for the sixth wicket with Northeast reaching three figures just before the interval from 119 balls and with 15 fours.In the final session Gidman, the on-loan all-rounder from Nottinghamshire, posted his fifth fifty in five starts for Kent, leaving Northeast to make hay against some part-time bowling to add an unbeaten 178 to his season’s previous three-figure scores of 191, 190, 189, and 166* and finish the summer with over 2,000 runs in all formats.Fittingly, Masters, the Essex stalwart who started his career with Kent, sent down the final over – it was a maiden.Essex had started the day on 289 for 9 and needing three to save the follow-on, a target they achieved within nine deliveries when Dixon’s airy drive at Matt Coles flew off a thick inside edge to long leg for the required runs.Dixon heaved at the next delivery to spoon a catch to Mitch Claydon at mid-on to end the innings with Essex on 292 all out.Without collusion between the skippers, the game duly petered out into a stalemate. Kent banked 13 points and Essex 10.

BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur has taken exception to the ICC’s assessment of the Nagpur pitch for the third Test between India and South Africa as “poor” and said the debate over the quality of pitches in the ongoing Test series between India and South Afr

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Dec-2015BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur has taken exception to the ICC’s assessment of the Nagpur pitch for the third Test between India and South Africa as “poor” and said the debate over the quality of pitches in the ongoing Test series between India and South Africa is “overhyped”. He has also expressed reservations over the views of Shashank Manohar, the BCCI president and ICC chairman, that India cannot dominate the world body by virtue of its financial clout.

Have written to MEA for permissions to play Pakistan – Thakur

Anurag Thakur was non-committal on the resumption of bilateral cricket ties between India and Pakistan and said the matter was out of the BCCI’s hands, and that India’s Ministry of External Affairs would have to issue clearances.
“We play Pakistan in World Cup events. We played them in the 2015 World Cup, we’ll play them next year in the Asia Cup,” Thakur said. “We’ll play them in March in the T20 World Cup. So when you play them in multi-national tournaments, what stops you from playing them in a bilateral series?
“Mr Shashank Manohar met the PCB chairman in Dubai and both of them decided to play in Sri Lanka. For permissions and political clearances, we have written to the Ministry of External Affairs to give us the sanction. It is their call, whenever they take it.”
Thakur’s views now are markedly different to those in August when he had all but ruled out resumption of bilateral cricketing activity between the two countries.
Thakur, who is also a member of parliament from the ruling party, the BJP, said it was a tough decision for the government to make.
“When it comes to Pakistan, it’s not that easy to take calls,” he said. “Five years ago, social media didn’t play a role. Today you see a lot of reactions on social media, but you can’t go only by social media, you have to look at the interests of the nation,” he said. “I think diplomatic relations are also very important — whether you want to remain at loggerheads or you want to sit across the table and discuss things. We have been discussing cricket, trade, terrorism, PoK and Kashmir with Pakistan.”

Speaking at the earlier in the week, Thakur reiterated the observations of India team director Ravi Shastri and Test captain Virat Kohli that there were no problems with the pitches produced for the Tests against South Africa.”I think the debate on the quality of pitches is overhyped. When a match gets over in two days – maybe in some other part of the world, like Australia in three days – nobody raises that question,” Thakur said. “But when we see a lot of drawn matches, like in the last few years, we say nobody will come and watch Test cricket.”I have a question to ask about the Nagpur match. Ask any ex-cricketer, how many players from the two teams played a bad shot? Was there uneven bounce? No. Was there more turn than expected? Yes, maybe.”What is the criterion for a good pitch and bad pitch? Was the bounce uneven, were there injuries? The ICC has sent us a letter and we will soon reply to that. But I think there is nothing wrong if a Test match finishes on the fourth day or the third day. You should also look at the batting standards. Remember how [Rahul] Dravid, [VVS] Laxman played on these kinds of tracks?”Thakur maintained there was nothing wrong in exploiting home advantage and said the preparation of turning tracks wasn’t a worrying trend.”Nobody questioned the T20 and the ODI games. What about the pitches when South Africa won?” Thakur asked. “But when India won two Test matches, you start raising questions.”In many parts of the world such as Australia and South Africa, you will see much more bounce. In England, you will see more seam and swing. So how do you compare that? In India and Pakistan, you may see more turning tracks. That is the nature of our pitches, which we call home advantage.”Thakur also clarified that Manohar’s views on the ICC’s restructuring were personal. Manohar recently said the revamp was tantamount to bullying, and that he didn’t agree with the revenue-sharing formula that guaranteed India a significant chunk of the revenue. While his thoughts were endorsed by a section of the board’s members, there has also been considerable resistance. Thakur said there was nothing wrong in India receiving a larger slice of the financial pie.”The [BCCI] president said this in his personal capacity. He made it very clear that it was his personal opinion,” he said. “The Indian subcontinent contributes close to 70% of the ICC’s revenues. To take 21% of that is not much. That was the position with Australia and England earlier, and no one objected to it then. If this happens to India today, we shouldn’t object to it.”You have to understand that India plays a very, very important role in world cricket. It’s only India which has a stadium in virtually every state. The money we have been generating in the last so many years has been spent on the ground.”Thakur also said the larger interest of BCCI’s units would have to be looked into before arriving at a decision on Manohar’s proposals, which have already received support from boards like Cricket South Africa and Sri Lanka Cricket. The BCCI, however, will be keen to not ruffle the feathers of its own units. Senior administrator and Saurashtra Cricket Association president Niranjan Shah, who is known to be close to Manohar, had advocated a “middle path”, which would strike a balance between extending a helping hand to financially weaker boards and securing the monetary rewards the BCCI deserved.”We have to look at the overall picture and individual opinions could be different,” Thakur said. “I may disagree, but the final call has to be taken by the BCCI because it is not only in the interest of one association, it is in the interest of 30 units of the BCCI.”

Nathan Lyon who came in for criticism from Australia coach Darren Lehmann and captain Steven Smith has admitted that Australia have been outplayed in all areas by Sri Lanka in the ongoing Test series

Daniel Brettig07-Aug-2016Over the past few days, the only player singled out for criticism from Australia’s coach Darren Lehmann and captain Steven Smith has been Nathan Lyon, the touring side’s No. 1 spinner. If this seems harsh that’s because it probably is – Lyon’s nine wickets place him second behind Mitchell Starc among Australian bowlers; his 29 runs means he’s made only five fewer than Joe Burns and six fewer than Peter Nevill.But the reason for the criticism stems from the fact that Lyon’s returns are paltry next to those of Rangana Herath, Dilruwan Perera and Lakshan Sandakan, the Sri Lankan spin trio who have made fools of a highly paid and seemingly well-prepared Australian batting line-up. The struggles of the batsmen have left Lyon and the rest of the bowlers with precious little scoreboard pressure on their side. Lyon, though, did not fall into excuses or the shifting of blame.”We’ve been outplayed in all areas,” Lyon said in Galle. “I’m not going to stand here and make excuses or blame anyone. We’ve been outplayed and you’ve got to give credit where credit’s due. They’ve totally outplayed us. Yeah it’d be great to bowl with some runs on the board but that’s up to Nos. 1 down to 11 to get those runs.”Lyon spoke of four issues that have contributed to Australian struggles. First he admitted that he and his slow-bowling partner Jon Holland have failed to challenge Sri Lanka’s batsmen down the line of the stumps frequently enough. This angle of attack has been responsible for the majority of Australian dismissals, but precious few among the hosts.”As spinners, we need to keep hitting the stumps,” Lyon said. “If you look at their spinners, that’s what they do really well, they ask questions off the stumps. If I’m being honest enough, I don’t think Duck [Holland] and myself probably did that to the best of our ability in the last Test match. You’ve got to give credit where credit’s due. Sri Lanka plays spin really well.”They know the conditions really well over here and they played really well and put us under pressure. We’ve got to combat that, come the third Test. It’s just about Duck and I finding a way how to best go about it in these conditions. We’re both open to change I guess. It’s different bowling in different conditions over here. It’s a learning curve. If we can keep learning over here and improving, that’s a big tick for us.”Secondly, Lyon acknowledged that the subcontinent method of spin, cutting under the ball on a flatter trajectory, rather than working the fingers up over the top of it in search of over-spin and bounce, was something he and Holland were yet to fully master. Lyon has an outstanding record in Australia where many an Asian spin bowler has struggled, but the reverse is true here.”I daresay there’s an argument for that,” he said. “As a spinner, you need to have all different variations. I’m comfortable going over the top of the ball and also around it. A lot of their spinners go around it and you get that natural variation with the ball going straight on. We’ve put it into play but unfortunately it hasn’t come off for us Australian spinners. If we can keep improving, keep learning from our mistakes in the first two Test matches then we’re going the right way.”I have been bowling with a fair few variations where a lot of people aren’t going to pick up on that. That is a subtle variation in my wrist. So, I think I can probably go a little bit more and experiment a little bit more – I am going down to training today to experiment more of how far my wrist can go underneath it, just to see how the ball reacts. I do believe that we have been doing that but, as I said, they have been playing quite well over here.”Thirdly, Lyon spoke about the use of the sweep as a weapon against his off spin. Lyon is himself a prolific user of the sweep shot, something tried by precious few of the touring batsmen. That and the reverse sweep were both glimpsed more often in the second innings in Galle, amid a rash of experimentation that indicated players racking their brains for better solutions.”I only sweep because I don’t trust my defence, and that’s my only scoring shot,” Lyon said modestly. “But you see the good players of spin, not only here with Sri Lanka, but you look at Younis Khan, Virat Kohli and these guys, they sweep well and they do that to try and out you off your lengths.”As a spinner, you need to be patient enough and be willing to be swept – it means you are hitting the right areas, so that’s the way I am looking at it. If I can keep putting it there, then hopefully, if I can get a couple of defensive shots out of them, I am in the game with the bat-pads and the slips.”Lastly, the issue of economy was confronted, as perhaps the most pressing problem that Lehmann and Smith have laid at Lyon’s door. A strike rate of a wicket every 44.6 balls is excellent for any spin bowler, but the leaking of 4.14 runs per over has lessened Lyon’s threat in a low-scoring series to date. Greater pressure needs to be brought to bear, as he acknowledged.”It’s a challenge for all our bowlers. We don’t like going at four an over, one of our goals is to bowl in partnerships and I don’t think we’ve done that well enough,” Lyon said. “Mitchell Starc was outstanding last game, Josh Hazlewood was brilliant bowling out there as well, but if we can bowl well in partnerships, try to tie down one end, we know they’re going to play some shots.”It’s that type of cricket, they like to hit the boundaries, so if we can try to cut that down then we bring about more patience and more opportunities around the bat.”

Head coach says stats suggest “seam is the way forward” at Centurion

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Dec-2019England are contemplating whether to field an all-seam attack for the second Test running, according to the head coach, Chris Silverwood. The tourists’ build-up for the Boxing Day Test at Centurion has been disrupted by illness in the camp, with frontline spinner Jack Leach one of the players affected, and Silverwood said the stats suggest “seam is the way forward” at SuperSport Park.In their previous outing, on last month’s tour of New Zealand, England picked four seamers and Ben Stokes at Hamilton, but only succeeded in taking 12 wickets in a rain-affected draw.England’s selection discussions this time around will be coloured by the fact that Stuart Broad and Jofra Archer missed both warm-up games with sickness, while James Anderson is in line to play his first Test since August, after suffering a calf injury that ruled him out of the Ashes. Chris Woakes, Sam Curran and Craig Overton are the other quicks in the party, along with Mark Wood, who is working his way back to fitness and won’t be available until the third Test.ALSO READ: England’s bug-struck trio play no part in warm-up“Yeah, I think it is,” Silverwood said in response to whether it was possible England could play an all-seam attack. “Obviously in Hamilton we looked at all the stats, who took wickets at the ground, and it showed that spin didn’t really play much part in the games, or certainly have much effect on the games.”We look at the stats for this ground, it’s the same thing, you’re looking at wickets taken by seam, wickets taken by spin and the averages that go along with them, it suggests that seam is the way forward, and the thing that has most effect on the game here, so we’re certainly looking at that.”Leach played in Mount Maunganui at the start of the New Zealand series, taking 2 for 153 as England went down by an innings, but was then hospitalised by a bout of gastroenteritis in Hamilton before falling unwell on the team’s arrival in South Africa. Uncapped legspinner Matt Parkinson was the back-up slow bowler originally selected in the party and England have also called up Leach’s Somerset team-mate Dom Bess as cover.”We’ve got some good resources in the spin department, Leachy is coming back to fitness now, we’ve got Dominic Bess here as well, Parky who bowled nicely in Benoni. So we’ve got the resources but we’re looking at it for what it is, what has most effect in this game. We’re not definitely going down the road of all seam, but it’s something we’ve got to discuss over the next few days.Jofra Archer and Stuart Broad were both fit to train•Getty Images

“It’s not rocket science, every team has these stats. You look at what’s effective on that ground and then you look at what you’ve got in your arsenal and try to put out the best side you can.”Broad and Archer both delivered five-over spells at training in Centurion on Monday, as well as batting in the nets, as they looked to prove their match fitness for the first Test. Silverwood echoed Joe Root’s view that England will be relying on “trust” when it comes to their capability of getting through a full five days, although he admitted there “maybe a little bit more caution” over Archer, who is just six Tests into his career.”I think they’re exactly where we’d hope they would be really, if they continue with another couple of good days training, all being well they’ll be able to throw their hats in the ring for selection for the first Test,” he said.Asked if it might be considered a gamble to go into the Test with Broad, Archer and Anderson in the same XI, Silverwood replied: “I don’t think so, as long as from the medical point of view they feel good.”Anderson was the pick of the England bowlers in their three-day game in Benoni that finished on Sunday, claiming tidy figures of 3 for 41 as South Africa A made kept Root’s men in the field for 93.2 overs. With the bat, England saw Joe Denly and Ollie Pope score centuries, and Silverwood was pleased with the application that underpinned a total of 456 for 7 declared.”I thought both teams came away with something positive, I know we certainly did,” he said. “If you look at it from a first-innings runs point of view, we’re continuing to build those methods and create good habits there. From a bowling perspective we got over in the legs of Jimmy and the rest of the bowlers, and they all started finding their rhythm, which was great.”

Left-arm spinner was released by Lancashire in 2018

Matt Roller11-Aug-2020Simon Kerrigan, the left-arm spinner who played one Test for England in 2013, has signed a two-year contract at Northamptonshire, nearly three years since his last professional appearance.Kerrigan, 31, was released by Lancashire at the end of the 2018 season after going a full year without making a first-team appearance, after which he put his playing career on hold to focus on coaching during a struggle for form.Regrettably, he is best known for struggling badly on his Test debut against Australia at The Oval, in which he conceded 53 runs from his eight overs in the match. He was not immediately discarded by England, travelling to Sri Lanka with the Lions in the 2013-14 winter and winning a recall to the squad during the India series the following summer.But his County Championship form tailed off somewhat: having taken 57 wickets at 20.89 in 2013, he averaged 35.36, 32.21 and 37.88 in the next three summers, before falling out of the first team in 2017. He joined Northants on loan for four games at the end of that season, but played club cricket for Fulwood and Broughton primarily as a specialist batsman in 2018 after putting his Lancashire career on hold.In 2019, he returned to bowling with a bang, taking 62 wickets at 8.48 apiece in the Northern Premier League to top the wicket-taking charts, and has trained regularly with Northants, travelling to Singapore with them on their pre-season tour. He has now signed a two-year deal with the club, which runs until the end of the 2022 season.”I’m delighted to have signed,” Kerrigan said. “I’ve worked hard over the winter and went on the pre-season tour to Singapore with the club, and felt in a good place pre-Covid to push for a contract. I’m really happy that the club have put their faith in me and offered me a contract for next year.”It’s an exciting time for the club with Sads [John Sadler] and Lids [Chris Liddle] coming in on the coaching staff along with being in Div 1 next year. I hope I can contribute a few five-fors to the cause and be part of some successful campaigns for Northamptonshire.”David Ripley, Northants’ head coach, said: “Since Graeme White retired from that side of the game we’ve been short of red-ball spin… so it’s great to have [Rob] Keogh and Kerrigan as a pair of red-ball spinners for Division One.””Simon and I have kept in touch pretty much since he came on loan in 2017 and he’s bowled regularly with the squad too. I think where he is now is a really exciting place: he’s a bit more content in himself and his bowling is in a great place technically.”I’m really excited: I’m pleased for him because he’s a cracking lad, a bit of a cricket badger and I’m really pleased we’ve given him and opportunity and I’ve just got that feeling it’s going to be a good story.”

Bangladesh could try some players ahead of the more challenging white-ball assignments in New Zealand in March

Mohammad Isam24-Jan-2021

Big picture

For teams like Bangladesh and West Indies, dead rubbers are no longer meaningless. The ODI Super League has made it certain that every game is now worth points, aimed towards direct World Cup qualification, or teams have to take the tortuous qualifiers route. Bangladesh cannot take the foot off the gas against a West Indies side that has hardly put forth a meaningful contest in the ODI series so far, particularly with bigger challenges lying ahead this year.The home side has a number of options in their bench that they could test ahead of the more challenging white-ball assignments in New Zealand in March. Taskin Ahmed, Shoriful Islam and allrounder Mohammad Saifuddin could get a run, since they are likely to be part of that squad as well, and are unlikely to play the Tests against West Indies next month.Mohammad Mithun and Afif Hossain are capable options in the middle order, although that area is jam-packed in the current XI. Mahedi Hasan could be another interesting choice for quick runs lower down the order, or bowling in the powerplay. Taijul Islam is the other left-arm spinner in the squad, but he is slightly lower in the pecking order.
Tamim hinted that they could look at squad rotation after the second ODI while BCB president Nazmul Hassan believed it can be avoided so that they go into the game with their best possible side. It is a delicate balance but so far from what the visitors have displayed, it would be hard to fault Bangladesh if they are willing to experiment.West Indies were bowled out for 148 in the last game, which was just 26 more than what they got in the first ODI. The top and middle order collapsed against Bangladesh’s accurate pace and spin combination. Against pace they have looked steady but as soon as spin has been introduced, they have looked all at sea.Phil Simmons added opener Kjorn Ottley to the line-up in the second game, leaving out fast bowler Chemar Holder, but it still didn’t do the trick. The batsmen crumbled against no-frills spin bowling on a pitch that wasn’t exactly a minefield. Only Rovman Powell has looked like scoring runs freely, albeit later in the innings, but his position seems like a waste down the order. If West Indies are to usher in these newcomers with a little more confidence, some runs on the board would certainly be helpful before they walk to the crease.The bowling has been somewhat impressive but that could also be due to Bangladesh’s own return to international cricket after ten months. Newcomer Akeal Hosein has looked confident in giving the ball a rip, but captain Jason Mohammed is stymied by lack of spin option, having to bowl himself a lot more.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)
Bangladesh WWWWW
West Indies LLLLL

In the spotlight

There’s going to be more focus on Najmul Hossain Shanto after he got out for two low scores, particularly because some quarters believe Shakib Al Hasan should bat at No. 3, where Shanto is currently batting.For West Indies to get a bigger score, perhaps the team management could give Rovman Powell a slight promotion in the batting order, so that he doesn’t get stuck again with their long tail. So far, Powell has looked like their most accomplished batsman.

Team news

Bangladesh have a large squad to choose from, but if the BCB president Nazmul Hassan’s words are anything to go by (and those are usually very important for the selectors and team management), Bangladesh wouldn’t like to tinker too much with their winning combination.Bangladesh (possible) 1 Tamim Iqbal (capt), 2 Liton Das, 3 Najmul Hossain Shanto, 4 Shakib Al Hasan, 5 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Soumya Sarkar, 8 Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 9 Rubel Hossain, 10 Hasan Mahmud, 11 Mustafizur RahmanWest Indies have only Keon Harding and Jahmar Hamilton to try from their ODI squad, after Ottley became the seventh debutant of the series, in the last game.West Indies (possible) 1 Kjorn Ottley, 2 Sunil Ambris, 3 Joshua Da Silva (wk), 4 Andre McCarthy, 5 Jason Mohammed (capt), 6 Kyle Mayers, 7 Rovman Powell, 8 Nkrumah Bonner, 9 Raymon Reifer, 10 Alzarri Joseph, 11 Akeal Hosein

Pitch and conditions

The Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium pitch is usually flat, and the evening dew makes batting under lights even easier. Eight out of the last ten teams batting second under lights have won matches at this ground. The weather is likely to be pleasant.

Stats and trivia

• Shakib Al Hasan is four wickets short of becoming Bangladesh’s highest wicket-taker in ODIs, which is currently Mashrafe Mortaza with 269 wickets
• West Indies currently average only 13.50 with the bat this series, which is their lowest in any bilateral ODI series
• Tamim Iqbal is three runs short of becoming the first batsman to score 500 runs at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium

Quotes

“We came here for 30 points but we still have chance to get ten points in this competition. We have got from 122 to 148, but we need to get into the 230-250, so that we can be competitive. Give the bowlers something to bowl at, and show mettle in that aspect. But definitely ten points would be the ultimate.”

Ryan Burl’s counterattacking fifty and a screamer in the deep went in vain as his team couldn’t close the game out even after having Bangladesh at 60 for 6

The Report by Liam Brickhill13-Sep-2019On a dramatic evening in Dhaka, Bangladesh overpowered a spirited Zimbabwe to win a see-sawing opening match of the tri-series by three wickets. With little to separate the two teams, it was an 82-run seventh-wicket stand between Afif Hossain and Mosaddek Hossain that made the difference, setting up Bangladesh’s chase.Afternoon rain meant the start of the game was delayed by around two hours and reduced to 18 overs a side, but once play began the action was relentless. Taijul Islam became the very first Bangladesh bowler to strike with his first ball on T20I debut and Zimbabwe’s middle order crumpled before Ryan Burl and Tinotenda Mutombodzi patched up the innings, Burl launching a blistering attack on Shakib Al Hasan to register his maiden T20I fifty.Zimbabwe had been 63 for 5 before their stand, and Bangladesh slipped to an even more perilous 60 for 6 before Afif and Mosaddek launched their game-changing counter attack. Afif charged to a maiden fifty of his own, and Bangladesh got over the line with two balls to spare.Taijul’s perfect startTaijul clearly enjoys playing against Zimbabwe at this ground. In just the third Test of his career, he took what remains a career-best 8 for 39 against them in October 2014. Two months later, he made his ODI debut at this ground, against the same opponents, and became the first bowler ever to take a hat-trick on debut. So there was always going to be a good chance that he would make an impact once again when Shakib tossed him the ball to bowl the second over of the innings.Taijul didn’t disappoint, drawing an injudicious heave from Brendan Taylor with his very first delivery. The ball skewed off the top edge and looped up to be easily pouched by Mahmudullah at short third man.Some trademark biffing from Hamilton Masakadza helped Zimbabwe to overcome the early loss of Taylor, with sweeps orthodox, reverse, paddled and slogged to reap boundaries on both sides of the wicket. The fifty came up in the seventh over, but then came a mini-collapse
as four wickets fell in the space of four overs. Mustafizur Rahman struck in his first over, Mohammad Saifuddin his second, and Mosaddek nipped Sean Williams out with his first ball. When Timycen Maruma was needlessly run out, Zimbabwe were in serious strife at 63 for 5.The Ryan and Tino showBefore today, Burl and Mutombodzi had played a combined 13 T20Is between them, and neither will have registered as threats on Bangladesh’s radar. Neither looked like turning the innings around as they groped and poked their way through probing overs from spin and seam alike in the middle of the innings. With four overs to go and time swiftly running out, Burl finally found his range, crunching Mustafizur over wide long-on and then paddling him to fine leg.Then came an onslaught the likes of which Shakib had never before experienced as Burl took on the world’s leading limited-overs allrounder – and won. Favouring the leg side, Burl unfurled an array of attacking strokes as 30 runs flowed from the over, the most Shakib has ever conceded in this format. Burl raised his maiden T20I fifty and Mutombodzi joined the party in the next over, crunching a meaty blow over cow corner. Together they had successfully repaired Zimbabwe’s innings with an 81-run stand: a Zimbabwean record in this format.Bangladesh’s top order collapseAfter Williams’ left-arm spin opened the chase, Masakadza brought on the quicks, put himself at slip, and kept himself there even as both Kyle Jarvis and Tendai Chatara over-stepped and gave away Free Hits in their first overs. Masakadza, nevertheless, kept his faith in his quicks, even as Bangladesh cruised to 26 for 0. Then came a collapse that put Zimbabwe’s wobble earlier in the evening in the shade, as four wickets fell in the space of 10 deliveries, with Jarvis and Chatara picking up two apiece.The Afif and Mosaddek showWhen Burl put himself back into the action by taking a blinder of a catch in the deep to get rid of Sabbir Rahman, Bangladesh were six down in the 10th over and increasingly rudderless. Enter Afif, just 19 years old, barely over five feet tall and possessed of a rake thin frame that belied wrists of steel and an unflinching temperament.Afif slapped the very first ball he faced from Madziva, who had his tail up after an early strike, straight back over the bowler’s head and continued in much the same vein. Williams was immediately dispatched for 15 runs off his second over, and Mosaddek followed Afif’s lead by swiping a brace of sixes off Burl’s legspin. A run rate that had been creeping up towards 10 was brought back close to a run a ball by two extraordinarily deft boundaries – ramped over short third man, and then scooped over short fine leg – off Jarvis.As the match slipped out of Zimbabwe’s grasp, sloppiness crept into their fielding effort, and Afif brought up a 24-ball fifty thanks to a fluffed run-out chance by Chatara. With three needed from the last five deliveries, Masakadza held onto a stinger in the covers to finally see the back of Afif, but Saifuddin walked in and tonked the second ball he faced cleanly to midwicket to bring a breathless match to an end, much to the enjoyment of the fans who had packed the stands despite the early rain.

The team’s plan for their main threat is from out of the box: an article that suggested Kohli is susceptible to deliveries pitched on a full length and seaming into him

Melinda Farrell in Adelaide03-Dec-20182:31

How can Australia tackle the Kohli threat?

Australia are exploring a data-driven, high-risk, high-reward tactic to negate Virat Kohli in the upcoming four-Test series that begins in Adelaide on Thursday.The India captain’s peerless form heading into the series and the challenge of breaking through his formidable defence makes him the most valuable scalp in the visiting side and data produced by Cricviz may have unearthed the most likely method for capturing his wicket.A recent article by Cricviz writer Ben Jones, which analysed Kohli’s batting, caught the eye of some members of the Australian camp, including Justin Langer. The head coach distributed the article among his players before they arrived in Adelaide and ESPNcricinfo understands it has been discussed in a team meeting to establish bowling plans to each Indian batsman.Teams and coaching staff typically use a range of analytics resources and video along with personal experiences and observations to formulate their plans and, while Australia’s final plans for Kohli will ultimately be decided over the next few days – and adapted as the Test and series unfolds – the fact that such an article has even been thrown into the mix shows they are willing to search far and wide while considering ideas from outside the established brains trust.The basic premise of the theory put forward by Jones is that Kohli is most vulnerable to fuller deliveries that deviate in towards the right-hander off the seam. In the eight Tests Kohli has played away from home this year, in South Africa and England, he has been dismissed significantly more often when bowlers have pitched the ball up. Cricviz figures show Kohli averages 46.28 against full deliveries compared to 66.33 against good length balls and 69.33 when facing short-pitched bowling.Virat Kohli strikes a pose during a photo session before the Test series against Australia•Getty Images

The caveat to the approach of bowling full – and it is a significant one – is that it leaves Australia’s bowlers open to the risk of leaking runs; Kohli is brutal in punishing balls that stray a fraction onto his pads.A theory is, of course, only as good as its execution and if Australia do adopt this tactic to the India captain it may be a question of the bowlers holding their collective nerve, particularly if he starts scoring freely. Speaking in Adelaide, Josh Hazlewood acknowledged there was a balancing act in containing Kohli while trying to remove him.”It’s a good point,” said Hazlewood. “He’s one of those guys who can score pretty freely, a number of the guys can in this Indian side, but sometimes those risks bring the most rewards as well. It’s just about weighing that up and assessing how long we stay at each plan for. We
might stay at it for 20 balls or 80 balls, depending on how we feel, and it’s about adapting once we’re on the field.”Kohli’s wicket also falls more often to deliveries that deviate more due to seam rather than swing. This factor could play to the strengths of Australia’s fast bowlers using the Kookaburra ball more than it did to England’s bowlers, who tend to exploit the more swing-friendly elements of the Dukes ball.Kohli has often countered the threat of the moving ball by batting outside his crease, even against those as quick as Mitchell Starc. In the 2014-15 series, when he made 692 runs in eight innings, including four centuries, ESPNcricinfo data logged him facing 142 deliveries that were of a full length. He was dismissed only twice.Bounce is a key factor in Australia as well, although former Australia players Ian Chappell and Jason Gillespie have warned the current set not to overdo the short-ball tactic.So, if Australia’s seamers do find success using full-length in-nippers to arguably the world’s most dangerous Test batsmen, it could go some way to swinging (or seaming) the series in their favour.

Officials expect the three-member panel, which finished proceedings on Wednesday, to deliver a verdict with an impact that goes beyond cricket

Nagraj Gollapudi and Osman Samiuddin04-Oct-2018The ICC panel hearing a dispute between the PCB and BCCI could potentially deliver a “landmark” judgment with reverberations for all intersections between sports and politics.A three-person dispute panel, set up to arbitrate the PCB’s claims for monetary compensation for two bilateral tours the BCCI didn’t honour, finished proceedings in Dubai on Wednesday.There is no indication when the panel, headed by Michael Beloff QC and including legal heavyweights Jan Paulsson and Dr Annabelle Bennett, will return a verdict though it is not unusual in such cases for it to take anywhere between four and six weeks.Lawyers from both sides presented their cases over three days that began in what was described as a “tense” and “formal” atmosphere and which remained “intense” throughout. A couple of officials likened it to the tension of an India-Pakistan limited-overs encounter.The dispute centers around an agreement the two boards signed in 2014 to play six series over eight years between 2015 and 2023. That agreement was the price the BCCI paid for the PCB’s approval of the Big Three governance changes; those changes were first voted in before being reversed.The PCB is claiming compensation of USD 63 million for two series it was supposed to host in November 2014 and December 2015 as per the agreement, but which eventually did not take place.The primary reason for the BCCI’s refusal to tour is political. Ties between the two countries have been strained since the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and BCCI officials have made it clear that the decision to tour ultimately hinges on the Indian Prime Minister’s office.To that end, the appearance of the most high-profile witness at the arbitration, Salman Khurshid, India’s foreign minister at the time the agreement was signed.Officials and witnesses are under strict instructions to not talk publicly about the proceedings but Khurshid explained to the panel that it was “beyond the control” of cricket boards to organise a bilateral series in the troublesome prism of India-Pakistan relations.”I gave my expert evidence to the ICC panel and explained how the Indian government reacts to situations where security of people are under threat,” Khurshid told the . “Fortunately, when I was minister we didn’t have to deal with such (crisis) issues but irrespective of governments, I could express how one would react to fulfilling obligations that’s beyond the control of cricket boards.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The BCCI also argued that the agreement was a letter of intent that would only become a binding agreement once government permission had been granted. The PCB’s counter was that under English law it suffices as an agreement.Khurshid was one of five witnesses the BCCI called up. Among the others were Sanjay Patel, the board secretary and signatory to the agreement, Sundar Raman, a key figure in the ICC revamp, and Ratnakar Shetty, the BCCI administrative head who was a conduit between the board and government.Also appearing was Shashank Manohar, the ICC chairman who was BCCI president in 2015 when one of the series was scheduled (Manohar, in fact, had shown an inclination to play the series subject to government approval). His appearance as a BCCI witness while ICC chairman raised eyebrows – the PCB was unhappy with his role as a mediator in one of the good-faith meetings the boards had before this panel was set up. Conspicuous by their absence, however, were N Srinivasan, the BCCI president at the time of the agreement, and the then secretary Anurag Thakur. None of the witnesses were current BCCI officials.The PCB, in contrast, called upon just Najam Sethi, their board chairman at the time, and Subhan Ahmed, the chief operating officer. At least to PCB eyes that witness count is illustrative of the two approaches to the case: the PCB simplifying and focusing on what it believes matters most – the agreement letter – and the BCCI going beyond that and into the circumstances in which it was created and under which it could operate.Only two outcomes are now possible – that the PCB wins its claim or it doesn’t. The panel cannot force the lost series to be rescheduled. But as much as the money, both boards – and the ICC – will be relieved to receive some long overdue clarity on cricket’s most compelling but presently moribund rivalry.The pair are not going to meet in Test cricket’s new showpiece event, the two-year Test Championship starting next year. They are not scheduled to meet in the following two-year cycle either, or in the concurrent ODI league. That confines the rivalry to ICC limited-overs events and other multilateral tournaments such as the Asia Cup for the foreseeable future.Written closing arguments now have to be submitted to the panel within a week, into which new arguments could be introduced based on the evidence presented over the last three days.Officials expect the decision to have an impact beyond cricket. The issues at play – of government involvement, of the sport being used as a tool for diplomacy but also being held hostage to politics – resonates in several other sports. Any decision here – reached by a heavyweight panel with accomplished legal minds – could be used hereon as a precedent in other sports where geopolitics cannot help but get entangled.