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A five-wicket haul by Sulieman Benn restricted Jamaica to 266 for 8 after a strong start by the hosts on the opening day of the Regional Four-Day final at Sabina Park

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Apr-2012
ScorecardA five-wicket haul by Sulieman Benn restricted Jamaica to 266 for 8 after a strong start by the hosts on the opening day of the Regional Four-Day final at Sabina Park.Jamaica got off to a sound start after opting to bat, with their openers adding 46. The second-wicket pair of Brenton Parchment and Donovan Pagon strengthened that position by adding 108. Benn broke the stand when he had Parchment caught for 58. The second session witnessed a collapse of five wickets for 41 runs. Pagon fell to Benn for 71, and the left-arm spinner found support from the seamer Carlos Brathwaite, who chipped in with three wickets.The captain Tamar Lambert and Danza Hyatt too fell cheaply to the pair. Nikita Miller and Sheldon Cotterrell were at the crease with an unbeaten stand of 27 at stumps.

ESPNcricinfo previews the first quarter-final between Pakistan and West Indies in Mirpur

The Preview by Andrew Miller22-Mar-2011

Match Facts

March 23, Mirpur

Start time 1430 hours (0830 GMT)The end of the line for the Rawalpindi Express? Shoaib Akhtar’s international career could finish in Mirpur on Wednesday•Associated Press

The Big Picture

The last time West Indies were in Dhaka, they couldn’t have been in more of a rush to get away – in every sense. First there was their on-field performance, as clinical as anything ever witnessed in a World Cup encounter, as a potentially awkward tussle with Bangladesh was done and dusted in barely 30 overs of one-sided action.Then, however, came the darker aspect of the day’s events. As the West Indies team bus pulled out of the Shere Bangla stadium, it was pelted with rocks by an irate section of the Bangladeshi support – in the mistaken belief, it was later reported, that their own defeated countrymen were on board. Chris Gayle’s alarmed tweet buzzed around the world in minutes, and though the team was later garlanded with flowers by an apologetic supporters’ group, the lack of amusement was tangible. “Is it ok for me to say thank god I left bangladesh???!!!” added Sulieman Benn once the team had departed for India.But now they are back, amid drum-tight security, and while the venue may not be to their liking, the opportunity could hardly be more alluring. Of all the teams in a tricky Group B, arguably no-one had a smoother on-field run to the quarter-finals than West Indies. Unlike England, whose struggles against the lesser teams turned every one of their subsequent games into nailbiters, the Windies took the polar opposite approach. They won the games in which they were favourites with such ease – with only the Irish coming close to giving them a scare in a 44-run defeat – that back-to-back defeats against England and India couldn’t rattle their rock-solid Net Run Rate.As a consequence they may start as underdogs in the knock-outs, but West Indies have landed the opponents that most suit their hot-and-cold style. Pakistan surpassed expectations to finish top of Group A, and in doing so they bookended the single most remarkable statistic in World Cup history – Australia’s 34-match unbeaten run that began in the wake of a Moin Khan-inspired 10-run defeat at Headingley in 1999, and came to an end at the hands of Umar Akmal in Colombo on Saturday. But as their remarkable defeat against the apparent weaklings of New Zealand demonstrated, there’s never any point in predicting predictability from Pakistan.The other three quarter-finals involve clear favourites, and it would be a shock if any of India, South Africa and Sri Lanka failed to advance to the semis. This one, however, is anyone’s game. On form, Pakistan should shade it, and a potential semi-final date with India in Mohali will ensure their resolve is at its sharpest. But as West Indies showed on their last trip to Mirpur, when they get on a roll they have players who can prove unstoppable.

Form guide

(completed matches, most recent first)
Pakistan WWLWW

West Indies LLWWW

Watch out for…

In their Chennai defeat against England, West Indies threw punch after punch to leave their opponents weak at the knees, but they lacked the subtlety in between whiles to make their position count. Nevertheless, the star of their show was undoubtedly the 22-year-old Andre Russell, whose performance with bat and ball could and should have been the decisive factor. His energetic seamers claimed career-best figures of 4 for 49, and he followed that up with a rough-diamond 49 from 46 balls. In a contest that could be decided by individual brilliance, he has two strings with which to make his bow.Pakistan have long cultivated a reputation as mercurial performers, but scarcely a match goes by these days without a command performance from Umar Gul. He’s picked off 13 wickets in his six outings in this World Cup, including nine in the past three games, in which time he has been promoted to new-ball status as well. His effortless variations provide a threat at any stage of an innings, but never more so than at the death when his pinpoint yorkers can prove unhittable. With Chris Gayle at the top of West Indies’ order, and Kieron Pollard lurking at the bottom, his ten overs could prove instrumental in deciding the course of the match.

Team news

Chris Gayle and Kemar Roach are expected to slot straight back into the team after missing the India fixture, in place of Kirk Edwards and Ravi Rampaul, who will count himself unlucky to miss out after picking up figures of 5 for 51 in that match. There could also be a recall for the veteran Shiv Chanderpaul, who was dropped after a tally of 70 runs in four matches at the start of the tournament, but whose experience in such a crunch fixture could be invaluable. Ramnaresh Sarwan is the likeliest man to miss out, although Devon Thomas could conceivably hand the keeping duties to Darren Bravo.West Indies (possible) 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Devon Smith, 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 5 Kieron Pollard, 6 Darren Sammy (capt.), 7 Devon Thomas (wk), 8 Andre Russell, 9 Sulieman Benn, 10 Kemar Roach, 11 Devendra Bishoo.Chanderpaul’s return would mean four left-handers in West Indies’ top five, and so the offspin of Saeed Ajmal is being seriously considered in place of the effective but unassuming left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman. Shoaib Akhtar, with his retirement imminent, will hope to earn a recall in place of Wahab Riaz, who was expensive against Australia, but the variation offered by his left-arm line is not an asset that Shahid Afridi would wish to dispense with in a hurry.Pakistan (possible) 1 Kamran Akmal (wk), 2 Mohammad Hafeez, 3 Asad Shafiq, 4 Younis Khan, 5 Misbah-ul-Haq, 6 Umar Akmal, 7 Shahid Afridi (capt), 8 Abdul Razzaq, 9 Saeed Ajmal, 10 Umar Gul, 11 Wahab Riaz.

Darren Sammy reckons the Dhaka wicket looks like “a cricket pitch”, which is just as well really. Still, Bangladesh managed to make it look like a minefield on West Indies’ last visit to the venue, as Sammy, Roach and Benn routed their opponents for 58 in 18.5 overs. There is some grass on the surface, but it ought to be full of runs, as Virender Sehwag demonstrated during his 175 in the opening match of the tournament. The weather is set to be humid, with some prospect of dew in the second innings.

Stats and trivia

• West Indies have won 64 of their 114 ODIs against Pakistan, but just two of the past 13 completed matches, dating back to January 2005.
• Shahid Afridi’s highest score in four World Cup campaigns is 37 against Zimbabwe in June 1999. However, he has claimed 17 of his 24 wickets in the current tournament.
• West Indies are bidding to reach their fifth World Cup semi-final, and their first since 1996. Pakistan reached the semis in five of the first seven tournaments, but haven’t got that far since losing the final in 1999.
• For a full statistical preview, click here

Quotes

“This is a ground where we executed our plans perfectly so it’s good to be back here. We feel loved by the people and we are ready for tomorrow.”
“It was a great win. We really worked hard before this tournament and I don’t think in my 14-year career we’ve ever worked as hard. Definitely, the expectation is greater now. We are feeling more confident.”

Shahid Afridi reflects on the achievement of beating Australia in Colombo

Andrew Gale made his first century as Yorkshire captain to transform his side’s fortunes on the second day of the County Championship encounter with Somerset at Headingley

16-Apr-2010
ScorecardAndrew Gale made his first century as Yorkshire captain to transform his side’s fortunes on the second day of the County Championship encounter with Somerset at Headingley.Yorkshire were in a difficult situation when the fall of their fifth wicket at 142 left them still trailing by 130 on the first innings but the arrears were then cleared in a sparkling 149 stand between the left-handed Gale and all-rounder Tim Bresnan. The pair had moved the score on to 291 when Gale was out for 101 from 157 balls with 16 fours, Bresnan departing soon afterwards for 61 as Yorkshire closed on 320 for 7, a lead of 48.The weather was much brighter when Yorkshire resumed in the morning on 17 for 1 and Joe Sayers and Anthony McGrath could make only slow progress against a keen pace attack, although McGrath still managed to punish the occasional loose delivery.The former captain appeared to have settled in well but, having reached 21, he
was lbw to one from Charl Willoughby which kept a shade low. Sayers continued to bat patiently and Jacques Rudolph was also becalmed before he opened his account with a cut for four off Willoughby from the 21st delivery he had received.It continued to be a tough battle for supremacy and Sayers managed to go to his
50 off the final ball before lunch when Yorkshire were 106 for two, but he departed lbw to Damien Wright soon after the interval without addition to his score, his 51 coming off 119 balls with seven fours.Rudolph, having progressed smoothly to 33, then played too casually outside off
stump at Alfonso Thomas and was caught by wicketkeeper Craig Kieswetter. Gale’s first three scoring shots were all boundaries and Jonny Bairstow helped himself to two consecutive fours off Wright before playing round a ball from Peter Trego to become the fourth lbw dismissal of the innings – and the ninth out of 15 wickets to fall so far in the match.There was an escape for Gale on 23 when Willoughby saw him dropped at cover by Trego but it was a rare mistake by the captain and the sixth-wicket pair really began to flourish with the arrival of the second new ball, which came with the
score on 231 for 5 from 80 overs.Bresnan reached his 50 with his seventh boundary, a powerful off-drive at Thomas’ expense, but it was Gale who dominated the scoring with two fours in an over off Thomas and three off Willoughby to give his side the lead, 47 runs having gushed from the first seven overs with the new ball.A scampered single brought Gale the seventh first-class century of his career to loud acclaim from his team-mates but, just one run later, he flung back his head in despair as he smacked a long hop from Zander de Bruyn straight to Wright at cover.The 300-mark brought Yorkshire a third batting bonus point but at 304 Bresnan was lbw attempting to force Wright. He had used up 155 balls for his 61 with eight fours, leaving Adil Rashid and Ajmal Shahzad to bat out the remainder of the day.

The CEO, Salman Khan, had been charged with theft and fraud earlier this month by Calgary Police in relation to an earlier stint in cricket administration

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Mar-2025Cricket Canada CEO Salman Khan, who was appointed in January this year, has dismissed as “completely false” the reports of his alleged arrest and subsequent release on bail on charges of theft and fraud.Khan, along with one other individual, had been charged earlier this month with theft and fraud by the Calgary Police in relation to his earlier role as president of the Calgary and District Cricket League between 2014 and 2016. It is understood that the case was initially a civil suit, but now criminal charges have been laid.Posting on the Facebook page of Alberta Cricket Association, Khan said: “I see many fake and self-created posts circulating around, and I want to set the record straight. First of all, these are all fake. I have never been arrested, detained, or on any bail. These claims are completely false, and those spreading these rumors will have to answer for it.”Here’s the truth: A police complaint was filed against me more than 7 years ago. A police investigator approached me and said he wanted to hear my side of the story and see the evidence I have to defend myself. He told me that if I didn’t provide my side, he would proceed with charges. I told him I would visit after Ramadan, but he didn’t want to wait and decided to post charges without even hearing my side or my evidence.”Khan said nothing had been proven against him in seven years, and he would keep fighting the case. “Let me make this clear: They have nothing to prove against me – in 7 years they were not able to prove anything in the civil case, and certainly not in any criminal case. I have over 21 transcripts, with the complainant even admitting that everything was false.”I am not worried at all. I’m ready to fight just like I’ve been doing for the past 8 years.”

Max O’Dowd showed the patience required to get the job done in the chase, even as Nepal’s bowlers applied significant pressure of their own

Ashish Pant04-Jun-20245:43

Moody: The depth of Netherlands’ seam-bowling challenged Nepal

Tim Pringle and Logan van Beek’s three-wicket hauls backed up by Max O’Dowd’s patient half-century got Netherlands over the line in a nervy chase in their opening game of the T20 World Cup 2024, against a spirited Nepal in Dallas.It was a rude welcome for Nepal in their first T20 World Cup in a decade, with the Netherlands bowlers putting up a fine show and bowling them out for a mere 106 in 19.2 overs. But Nepal weren’t done yet. They squeezed the Netherlands batters in the middle overs and took the chase into the 19th over. O’Dowd, however, held his own with an unbeaten 54. He rode his luck and made sure to take his side over the line by six wickets and eight balls to spare.Early-morning rain and overcast conditions delayed the toss by 30 minutes and Netherlands captain Scott Edwards had no hesitations in bowling after winning the toss. The bowlers backed up their captain’s decision with Pringle, van Beek, Paul van Meekeren and Bas de Leede all getting among the wickets.In reply, Nepal put up a fight but dropped a couple of crucial chances at key intervals.

Dallas turns blue and red, but Orange holds sway

The Grand Prairie Stadium can seat 7000 but the vocal Nepal fans made it feel a lot bigger, flocking in nice and early getting behind their team. But the overcast conditions assisted the Netherlands seamers and they got their first wicket through left-arm spinner Pringle, whose decision to keep giving the ball flight paid off as Aasif Sheikh’s thick outside edge found short third in the second over. Pacer van Beek then struck with his first ball, angling a length ball sharply back into Kushal Bhurtel and catching him plumb in front.Nepal’s players appreciated the lively support they got in Dallas•ICC/Getty Images

Fast bowler Vivian Kingma also found big movement as the Nepal batters found putting bat to ball an arduous task. In the first six overs, Nepal played and missed 17 of the 36 balls (47.22%), which is the highest for any team in a men’s T20I (for which ESPNcricinfo has ball-by-ball data available). They hit five fours but could only manage three singles and a two in the first six overs, as Nepal managed only 29 runs in the powerplay for the loss of two wickets.

A stranglehold in the middle and at the death

Rohit Paudel, the youngest captain at a T20 World Cup at 21, kept his composure but lost partners at a steady rate. He pumped Kingma for a four over covers in the seventh over, but Pringle came back in his second over to remove Anil Sah, his attempted sweep only going as far as deep backward square leg. Kushal Malla hammered van Meekeren for a four over mid-off but fell three balls later trying a repeat of that shot, deceived by the slower offcutter and spooning the ball straight up.Bas de Leede then got rid of Dipendra Singh Airee caught at slip as Nepal slipped to 53 for 5 after 11 overs. Paudel was busy during his 35 off 37 but ultimately perished giving Pringle his third wicket. Karan KC and Gulsan Jha added 22 off 17 balls for the eighth wicket – the second-highest stand of the innings – to push the score past 100. Van Beek ended the innings with a two-in-two.Rohit Paudel was resilient but fell right before the death overs started•AFP/Getty Images

Nepal apply the choke

Early wickets was the need of the hour, and Nepal managed that with Sompal Kami getting rid of Michael Levitt with his second ball, caught by the cover fielder. Both Kami and Karan kept the bowling tight conceding only four runs in the first 15 balls. Vikramjit Singh broke the shackles with two back-to-back fours but run-scoring remained slow. Nepal bowled 19 dot balls in the powerplay as Netherlands reached 36 for 1 after the first six.It was going to get tougher for Netherlands in the middle overs, with the spinners coming into the equation. Airee conceded just a single in his first over after the powerplay, before taking out Vikramjit with a length ball that beat the batter’s attempted slog sweep and caught him in front. An over earlier Vikramjit was dropped at deep backward square leg by Kami, but he couldn’t cash in.O’Dowd and Sybrand Engelbrecht tried to steady to ship in a 28-run stand before a run out brought about the latter’s end. O’Dowd struck a straight drive back at Kami, who expertly deflected the ball back onto the non-striker’s stumps and caught Engelbrecht short. Nepal conceded just 48 runs in the middle overs (6 to 15) making Netherlands fight for every run.Max O’Dowd took Netherlands home with an unbeaten 54•AFP/Getty Images

Composed O’Dowd steers Netherlands home

When Edwards fell cheaply, it felt Netherlands’ chase could go astray, but O’Dowd brought all his experience into play. He curbed his natural aggressive instincts and made sure he kept his end secure even when Netherlands went 40 balls without a boundary between the 12th and 18th overs. O’Dowd had a huge slice of luck when Paudel spilled a straightforward chance in the 18th over at long-off. He was on 40 at the time and Netherlands still needed 18 off 17, but the dropped chance seemed to ease his nerves. In the penultimate over, with Netherlands requiring 13 off 12, he smashed Abinash Bohara for a four and six to reach his 13th T20I fifty. De Leede then finished the chase with a four through covers, triggering a sigh of relief in the Netherlands camp and securing two crucial points.

The India tour, WTC final and the Ashes in England lie ahead for Pat Cummins’ side

Andrew McGlashan27-Jan-2023Usman Khawaja believes this Australia men’s Test team will be remembered as a great side if they can sweep the three major challenges ahead of them in the next six months.The squad flies to India next week for the first of a trio of overseas assignments that will shape where the team sits in the history of the game. Australia have not won in India since 2004-05 and that will be followed by a likely World Test Championship final in early June before the Ashes, where they will not only look to retain the urn as they did in 2019 but win the series in England for the first time since 2001.Khawaja, who had a prolific 2022 following a last-minute recall and began this year with a career-best 195 not out at the SCG, shapes as a key figure in an experienced batting line-up where the likely top five all average over 45.Related

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“100%, definitely,” Khawaja said when asked if the side would be worthy of the great tag should they collect the three trophies on offer. “But win, lose or draw, we’ve played some amazing cricket. We are the world No. 1 team at the moment, have been for last year, we’ve got some terrific players in this team. [We’ve got] one of the best Test cricket batsmen I’ve seen, Steve Smith, and got some amazing bowlers, too.”Personally, it’s probably the best team I’ve been a part of because even when I came into the side we were sort of in transition. We had some great players, [and] some new players in between, so it’s just really nice to be in a team where everyone trusts each other and looking forward to what will happen over the next six months.”Jason Gillespie, who was part of the side than won in India in 2004 after having seen the 2001 series slip away, added his voice to what victory in India would mean for the team.”Let’s be honest, for this group of Australian players, this could be a career-defining tour,” he said. “All us cricket tragics and fans should be pretty excited about this group of players, I know I’m excited as a cricket fan to see what this group of players can achieve in India.”

Usman Khawaja prepares for first Test in India

Khawaja was part of the squads for the 2013 and 2017 tours of India but has yet to play a Test in the country. He was one of four players suspended for a Test on the 2013 trip for what became known as homeworkgate, when they did not return an assignment ordered by coach Mickey Arthur.This time, Khawaja returns as a more complete player of spin and much more comfortable in a relaxed set-up. He has had an eye on the India tour over the last few months and has tailored some of his preparation during the home summer.”We’ve always got one eye on future tours, no matter what,” he said. “We do take it one tour at a time but you have to have one eye on the tour, especially if you are going from here to India with very different conditions.”Even the way I’ve been practicing, I’ve been practicing for these [home] games here but when I feel I’ve ticked that off I go and do stuff I feel I need to for next two months. I know there’s a lot of other guys who are similar, just comes from maturity. A lot of us are pretty old now, we’ve been around for a while now, with that maturity we understand you need to have one eye ahead.”Some of the 18-player squad will head into a camp in Sydney while others, including Khawaja, will continue with their BBL sides during the first phase of the finals series. The squad heads to India early next week where they will initially be based in Bengaluru before heading to Nagpur for the first Test, which begins on February 9.

The two left handers are in the running to bat No. 5 against England

AAP26-Nov-2021Usman Khawaja will have no issues if he’s overlooked for his mate Travis Head in the first Ashes Test.Khawaja and Head are bidding for the vacant No. 5 batting berth in Australia’s team for the first Test against England starting on December 8. The state captains squared off in a Sheffield Shield match in Adelaide in their last first-class audition before the Ashes.Queensland’s Khawaja scored 4 and South Australian skipper Head 8 in their first innings. Head then scored a second-innings 101 before Khawaja slammed a 52 not out from just 36 balls to secure the Bulls an eight-wicket win.Khawaja shunned the billing of the Shield fixture as a shootout between the members of Australia’s 15-man squad for the first Ashes Test.”I’m going to be 100 percent honest with you, it’s not even on my mind right now,” Khawaja said. “I’m honestly just trying to win games for Queensland and whatever will be, will be.”Heady deserves it as much as I do. I’m really good mates with him. I have got no issues with whatever happens.”Khawaja and Head have both scored two Shield tons this season, with the former also posting two half-centuries and Head scoring one. The 34-year-old Khawaja, whose last Test was in August 2019, said his mind was at ease when, in the past, he would have been anxious about possible Test selection.”I wasn’t always mellow,” he said. “This is experience…I have just come to realise after a long time of a lot of work with myself and my mind and just learning about myself, it [being anxious] just doesn’t help.”The best time I play is when I am relaxed. And, to be honest I have got a lot of things in life that I am very grateful for and those are the things now that I focus on.”Because I know within the cricket bubble how much it can get you and that is how I used to be – it has taken years and years of practice to not be that way.”

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.”

Australian helps bowl Middlesex out for 200 as Lancashire secure seven-wicket victory

Paul Edwards at Lord's14-Apr-2019
It would, of course, have been the height of metropolitan arrogance on Thursday morning to have dubbed this game a top-of-the-table contest; it would also have been plain wrong.Four days ago only six of the ten counties in Division Two had played a minute of competitive cricket. But it would have been perfectly fair to see it as a match between sides whose seasons will be viewed as failures if they do not win promotion. That consideration gave the contest heft and it helped one understand the satisfaction of Lancashire’s players as they sat on the Lord’s balcony on Sunday afternoon after completing their comfortable seven-wicket victory.Lancastrian happiness was both general and particular. It extended most noticeably to Haseeb Hameed and Rob Jones, whose centuries did much to make the win possible and who were batting when it was completed. Yet the greatest elation this chilly, golden evening was probably felt by Glenn Maxwell, whose career-best 5 for 40 had helped bowl Middlesex out for 200 on a wearing but by no means impossible pitch. And while Maxwell’s figures made him the first Australian since Ted McDonald in 1924 to take five wickets on his Lancashire debut, they also had a vastly more immediate significance. This is both a World Cup year and an Ashes summer.Now Maxwell insists he is not playing county cricket merely to acclimatize for the World Cup or give himself a chance of appearing in the Ashes. His 50-over cricket is in good order already and he may well not play any more first-class matches until September. No, Maxwell is here partly because he enjoys the county game, and should his commitments with Australia end in July, he wants to play for Lancashire in the Blast and then maybe fit in some more red-ball cricket. To judge by the subtlety of his off-spin and the skill with which he used the Lord’s slope against Middlesex’s left-handers, supporters at Old Trafford should hope he gets his wish.Glenn Maxwell of Lancashire claimed a career-best 5-40 against Middlesex at Lord’s•Getty Images

Indeed, so dominant was Maxwell after lunch – he took his five wickets in twelve overs from the Nursery End – that it was important to recall the patience Lancashire’s attack had shown before enjoying any success at all on the final morning. For more than 22 overs Sam Robson and nightwatchman James Harris batted without risk against seamers who rarely looked threatening.The first hour of play was as eventful as a hermit’s housewarming. Robson reached his fifty, there was an lbw appeal and Jimmy Anderson made one lift from just short of a length to Harris. Foreign tourists taking the Lord’s tour – just £25 to you, sir – might have thought they were observing some convoluted religious ceremony. In a way, they were.Then just before 12.30 Josh Bohannon was brought on at the Pavilion End and appeared to make an immediate breakthrough when Harris was caught down the leg side. Billy Taylor’s call of no ball stifled that triumph but four overs later the same batsman’s back-foot slash edged another catch to Brooke Guest and Lancashire had their first success. Three balls later they had another when Anderson, having bowled a couple of inswingers to Robson, moved one away late and the opener nicked another catch to the ‘keeper.”Bang, bang,” fielders shout encouragingly to each other when batsmen seem in the ascendancy. These are not quite empty words. The cricket before lunch had shown how quickly a match can change and we were given another example five overs after the resumption. Bowling from the Nursery End, as he did throughout his 16.5 over spell, Maxwell inveigled Max Holden into a wild drive, which only edged a catch to Keaton Jennings at slip and then immediately persuaded Eoin Morgan to come half-forward to one which did not turn and trapped him leg before. (The Twirlers’ Co-operative Alliance will label it an arm-ball)Middlesex were now six down and safety was slipping away from them. Dawid Malan and John Simpson defended for over an hour and took their side into the lead but without ever suggesting permanence. So it proved. Straight after reaching his fifty with a cut to backward point Malan came forward and the ball kissed his bat on the way to Guest. Three overs later Toby Roland-Jones lost his off stump to Anderson and the coup de grâce was left to Maxwell, who bowled Simpson and had Tim Murtagh lbw in the space of three balls.Lancashire’s batsmen took 15 overs to knock off the required 39 runs and their innings was out of keeping with the ruthlessness they had displayed over the previous four days. Jennings was caught at long leg when hooking Murtagh before Guest and Maxwell rather surrendered their wickets to Robson, allowing this most occasional of spinners to double his first-class tally. No matter, perhaps. Hameed was 13 not out at the close and has now scored only 35 fewer championship runs by mid-April this year than he managed in the whole of last season. The next few months must suddenly seem so inviting to him. But he is not by himself in that.

In Sylhet, North Zone and East Zone played out a low-scoring draw with only Mominul Haque hitting triple digits in the match

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jan-2018Tushar Imran passed 10,000 first-class runs while Abdur Razzak took his 500th first-class wicket as South Zone drew with Central Zone in a high-scoring fixture in Savar.After being sent in to bat, South Zone racked up 448 on the back of wicketkeeper-batsman Nurul Hasan’s 133 off 129 balls. Opener Shahriar Nafees, Imran, and Al-Amin hit fifties to help swell the total. Seamer Abu Hider and Ebadot Hossain picked up three wickets each for Central Zone.Central Zone then mounted a strong reply with five of their top seven passing fifties. Though none moved to a hundred, it was enough to secure a 57-run first-innings lead. Razzak was the pick of the bowlers for Central Zone, finishing with 4 for 152 in 52.4 overs.In their second innings, South Zone scored 120 for 3 before the match ended in a draw.In Sylhet, North Zone and East Zone played out a low-scoring draw with Mominul Haque the only one to hit triple digits in the match. The East Zone captain hit 107 off 147 balls around a middle-order wobble in a chase of 261. Alok Kapali then played out an hour for eight runs to ensure a draw.Mominul, though, had bagged a duck in East Zone’s first innings after Abu Jayed’s 5 for 71 dismissed North Zone for 187 in 49.5 overs. Yasir Ali (45) and Mehedi Hasan Rana (46*) were the only East Zone batsmen to pass 30. No. 11 Khaled Ahmed also pitched in with 26 to hand his side a 24-run lead. North Zone then produced a better batting performance in their second innings, making 284 on the back of Farhad Hossain’s 85 to set East Zone 261.