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One-wicket win leaves Leicestershire floored after Budinger fifty

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay06-Jul-2025Notts Outlaws kept alive an outside chance of qualifying for the quarter-finals of the Vitality Blast as they chased down a target of 189 to beat North Group rivals Leicestershire Foxes, winning by one wicket with just a ball to spare in a breathtaking finish at Trent Bridge.The only one-wicket victory in the county’s T20 history was achieved when last man Farhan Ahmed squirted the penultimate ball into the offside off Logan van Beek (three for 25) and, running back for second run, scrambled home as Foxes wicketkeeper Ben Cox fumbled his take from the boundary fielder’s throw.It capped a superb fightback by the Outlaws, who had looked out of contention at 100 for four in the 11th over, despite skipper Joe Clarke’s 50 from 24 balls.The chase was reignited by Daniel Sams smashing 33 off just 12 balls and Tom Moores 42 off 30 only for three quick wickets to tip the pendulum back towards the visitors, before 17-year-old Farhan had the last word in a thrilling finale.Former Nottinghamshire batter Sol Budinger made his second fifty in as many games and Rishi Patel his first of the season, the two sharing a 114-run opening stand as the Foxes made 188 for two, Pakistan Test star Shan Masood chipping in with an unbeaten 40.A profitable and wicketless powerplay justified Leicestershire’s decision to bat on a slow pitch. After a tentative start, Patel and Budinger gained momentum rapidly to put 61 on the board in the first six overs.Budinger and Patel took turns to clear the boundary with nicely timed pick-ups as their partnership moved into three figures in the 11th over, Budinger completing his third fifty of the campaign from 38 balls, Patel reaching the milestone from 32.Outlaws finally hit back by removing both in consecutive overs – Patel stumped after going down the pitch to Calvin Harrison and Budinger undone by a slow and low delivery from Sams.Masood and Rehan Ahmed (30 not out) added 72 from 39 balls to set a challenging total.The Outlaws’ chase began badly, Lyndon James bowled first ball by Van Beek, but Clarke looked in ominous form as he creamed sixes off Josh Hull and Sam Wood – twice – in going to fifty off just 23 balls only to be bowled making room to cut spinner Liam Trevaskis without addition as Notts ended their batting powerplay at 62 for two.Moises Henriques, making only his fourth appearance after suffering back problems, fell for six and the Outlaws were well behind the required rate at 77 for three after a maiden over from Foxes skipper Louis Kimber closed out the first half of the innings.Jack Haynes tried to reignite the chase but fell for 30 from 25 after a fine catch by Van Beek at deep midwicket, giving occasional off-spinner Rishi Patel a maiden T20 wicket from only his fifth ball in the format.But just as the Foxes were eyeing up a “double” over their near-neighbours, Sams turned the game with a stunning knock, including back-to-back slog-swept sixes off Kimber, and although the innings ended tamely with a swing-and-miss off the same bowler, the target was down to just 34 off 24 balls, from which Matt Montgomery trimmed 13 from seven balls before Moores hit Van Beek for six and four, then finding a fielder.After Harrison fell for two, the last over arrived with five required. As Patterson-White was caught at deep cover with two needed, one wicket remaining and two balls left, any result was possible, but Farhan kept his nerve when it mattered most.

There was no place for Rahmat Shah and Ikram Alikhil, with Afghanistan including Mohammad Ishaq and Wafadar Momand

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Feb-2024Afghanistan will continue to miss the services of their T20I captain Rashid Khan as he recovers from back surgery and has thus not been included in the 16-member squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka.Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who, as per a release by the ACB, had sustained “a sprain in his right phalanx (hand)” before the start of the ODI series against Sri Lanka, is also ruled out. Fast bowler Mohammad Saleem, who has failed to recover from a hamstring injury, is missing too.Afghanistan made four changes to the squad that faced India in a T20I series last month. While Mujeeb and Saleem are out injured, Afghanistan have dropped wicketkeeper-batter Ikram Alikhil and top-order batter Rahmat Shah.Related

• Rashid Khan withdraws from PSL as he continues rehab

• Binura comes in for injured Chameera for Afghanistan T20Is

Mohammad Ishaq, the wicketkeeper-batter who was also named in the squad for the one-off Test against Sri Lanka, has received a call-up to the T20I side. In addition, fast bowler Wafadar Momand has been recalled in place of Saleem.Mujeeb played two T20Is against India, and then turned out for Gulf Giants in the ILT20 before flying to Sri Lanka for the ODI series, where he suffered the injury. Saleem, on the other hand, played the third T20I against India and the lone Test against Sri Lanka but was ruled out of the ODI squad due to a hamstring injury.Rashid, meanwhile, has not played competitive cricket since the ODI World Cup in November. He withdrew from the BBL this season, after which he underwent back surgery and was subsequently ruled out of SA20 as well.More recently, Rashid also pulled out of the upcoming PSL as he continues his rehab. Rashid was originally part of the series against India but was ruled out even before the T20Is began, though he did travel with the team throughout.In Rashid’s absence, Ibrahim Zadran will continue leading the T20I side, like he had against both India and UAE. He will have Gurbaz at the top of the order, with the likes of Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Hazratullah Zazai and Azmatullah Omarzai to follow. Fazalhaq Farooqi will lead the fast-bowling attack, which also has Naveen-ul-Haq, Fareed Ahmad and Momand. Noor Ahmad and Qais Ahmad, alongside Sharafuddin Ashraf, will form a young spin-bowling unit.Afghanistan have not had a great time in Sri Lanka so far. They lost the only Test by ten wickets, and are currently 0-2 down in the three-match ODI series. The T20I series gets underway on February 17, with the second and third games slotted for February 19 and 21, respectively. All matches will be played in Dambulla.Afghanistan squad: Ibrahim Zadran (capt), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Mohammad Ishaq (wk), Hazratullah Zazai, Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai, Karim Janat, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Fareed Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Noor Ahmad, Wafadar Momand and Qais Ahmad

Limited play enhances Middlesex’s hopes against promotion rival

Paul Edwards13-Sep-2022
The floodlights were on at the start of play today but only meteorologists would have called the morning autumnal. Although leaves on trees close to traffic lights or busy junctions have been exhausted to crisp death, most of the others remain green in the suburbs this September. It was shirt-sleeve order in MCC’s pavilion yesterday and London retains the lingering sense of summer that Clarissa Dalloway recognised nearly a century ago: “The King and Queen were at the palace. And everywhere, though it was still so early, there was a beating, a stirring of galloping ponies, tapping of cricket bats; Lord’s, Ascot, Ranelagh and all the rest of it; wrapped in the soft mesh of the grey-blue morning air…”By noon, though, we were taking an early luncheon and the light rain may have come as a relief to Glamorgan who had neither taken a wicket nor looked like doing so. The obstacles blocking their path towards bowling bonus points and parity in the game were all too predictable. Mark Stoneman and John Simpson had scored 1501 first-class runs this season before this match began and their 134-run stand for the fifth wicket earned Middlesex a first-innings lead whose final size has yet to be determined. And after that early lunch, the umpires also opted for an early tea when bad light and then rain returned just before four o’clock.So it was Stoneman’s day and certainly the first session had reminded us how well-organised a player he is and how many productive strokes he possesses without having recourse to his muscly thumps to leg or his iron-wristed cuts past point. By contrast, there was something damagingly soporific about the opener’s batting this morning; he didn’t destroy David Lloyd’s attack or smack boundaries to all parts. He merely went about his professional business so efficiently that by at lunchtime he was on 96 and Middlesex’s deficit was 30.This pattern changed a little in the afternoon session, although Stoneman would insist that he was simply responding to the balls he’d received. Soon after reaching his third century of the season he took three fours in an over off James Harris: a squeeze past the slips, a pull and a cut. Simpson took up the theme with a couple of boundaries off Michael Hogan before reaching his own fifty off 109 balls. Then two overs later, Stoneman was gone for 128 when fishing limply at a ball outside off stump from Ajaz Patel.Nevertheless, as he stomped off unhappily – another good sign – one was reminded that he might be one of the ex-England openers in the county game with a chance of returning to the Test team. There is, of course, so much competition that one wouldn’t be astonished to hear that the group hold self-help meetings in which they share their experiences and their woes: “My name is Haseeb and I opened for England.”As it stands, Rory Burns, Ben Duckett, Haseeb Hameed, Keaton Jennings, Adam Lyth, Jason Roy, Sam Robson and Dom Sibley are all playing county cricket and each of them probably nurtures hopes of receiving that call from Brendon McCullum. So long is the list that Chris Dent is entitled to wonder who he’s upset. There have been summers in which he would have let no-one down.After much umming and ahing and standing about, we got back on at 4.45 with a fond hope – it was more statistical calculation really – that we would play another 25 overs. It turned out to be as realistic as an NHS target. Simpson and Higgins tucked into some loose stuff from the spinners before Lloyd took the new ball and the rain returned just after five. Before long, the umpires had given the day up as a bad job.Not for Simpson, of course. His fidgets have become mannerisms and they are barely separable from his cover-drives, his firm persuasions through midwicket or his extraordinary value to Middlesex’s cricket for a dozen summers. He is unbeaten on 72 and he will resume his 60-run partnership with Higgins, secure in the plain assurance that his team is winning a game that should go far towards deciding the second promotion place.They are not winning by much, though, and not irrecoverably, but a lead of 72 and five wickets to fall still suggests a match-shaping advantage. And suddenly one was beguiled by the simple prospect of watching 104 overs tomorrow; 624 tiny segments of action that should make up a full day’s cricket. That is an end-of-season reflection, of course; every defensive prod, every smart stop is suddenly precious. Maybe it is autumn, after all.

Sanju Samson’s side will need to find a recipe for success. And soon

Alagappan Muthu21-Apr-2021

Big picture

AB de Villiers is in form. Glenn Maxwell is thriving. A hard-hitting team somehow found a way to adapt to the slowest pitch in the IPL.When Chennai provided even the slightest hint of a batting track, Royal Challengers Bangalore racked up 29 boundaries against a pretty decent bowling team.Imagine the damage they can do at a place like Wankhede. An unbeaten start to the tournament with their key players clicking. All they need now is a Virat Kohli masterclass.Rajasthan Royals are just as dangerous with the bat. They’ve threatened to chase down 222. But they’ve also crumbled from 87 for 2 to 95 for 7. Sanju Samson, their captain, had a wry smile on his face when he spoke about this nature of theirs at the presentation in the last match. He’ll need to find a fix for this, fast.

Team news

While he did not play any part in the Royals’ games so far, one of their batting options, Liam Livingstone, has left the IPL with bubble fatigue.Finn Allen is a big hitter. Wankhede is a tiny ground. It’s a match made in T20 heaven and on a podcast with commentator Ian Smith, Royal Challengers coach Mike Hesson suggested they might take advantage of that. Allen hit 71 off 29 the last time he played a cricket match.

Likely XIs

Royal Challengers Bangalore: 1 Virat Kohli (capt), 2 Finn Allen, 3 Devdutt Padikkal, 4 Glenn Maxwell, 5 AB de Villiers (wk), 6 Kyle Jamieson, 7 Washington Sundar, 8 Shahbaz Ahmed, 9 Harshal Patel, 10 Mohammed Siraj, 11 Yuzvendra ChahalRajasthan Royals: 1 Jos Buttler, 2 Yashasvi Jaiswal/Manan Vohra, 3 Sanju Samson (capt & wk), 4 Shivam Dube/Shreyas Gopal, 5 David Miller, 6 Riyan Parag, 7 Rahul Tewatia, 8 Chris Morris, 9 Jaydev Unadkat, 10 Chetan Sakariya, 11 Mustafizur Rahman13:15

जिंदगी की जद्दोजहद से सोना बनकर निकले साकरिया

Strategy punt

• Shreyas Gopal has dismissed de Villiers four times, and Kohli three times in T20 cricket. Royals might find that head-to-head is worth exploring again.
• Yuzvendra Chahal has dismissed Samson five times in T20 cricket. He has also dismissed David Miller three times in five innings in the IPL. The Royal Challengers already use their ace legspinner as a middle overs wicket-taker. Based on those head-to-heads, wickets are likely to be on offer.

Stats that matter

• Even though he has had to deal with Chennai slow, spinning conditions, de Villiers has been IPL 2021’s most destructive death-overs (16-20) batter. He has made 75 runs off 30 balls at a strike-rate of 250. Thanks to him, Royal Challengers have maintained a run-rate of 11.75 in this phase of the game
• Royals, meanwhile, have one of the worst performing death bowling attacks this season, leaking 12 runs per over. This match-up is not going to go well.
• Royal Challengers bought Maxwell to attack spin and to give them power through the middle overs (6-16). So far, it’s worked a treat. He is the only player in this IPL to have scored more than 100 runs against spinners, he hasn’t been dismissed by them. He has also made 125 runs in 87 balls in the middle overs (6-16) this IPL. Only Shikhar Dhawan (145 off 93) has done better.
• Chetan Sakariya has used his left-arm angle very shrewdly against right-hand batters. Of his six wickets this season, five have been right-handers. There are three huge ones in the Royal Challengers line-up that Royals will want him to take out.

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.”

Bangladesh were bowled out for 46, the lowest total in a Women’s World T20 game

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Nov-2018by 60 runs
A spell-binding display of fast bowling from Deandra Dottin rescued West Indies after their batting faltered in unfriendly conditions for strokeplay in Guyana. She finished with the third-best figures ever recorded in women’s T20Is – 3.4-0-5-5 – as Bangladesh crumbled to 46 all out chasing a mere 107.It was pace that caused all the problems. Pace on a pitch that discouraged it. But Dottin didn’t care. She was the fourth bowler used, in the ninth over of the game, and made her threat quite plain. A bouncer fetched her first wicket – caught and bowled. An inswinger veering into the stumps brought her more success. A new batsman walked out without a helmet and a short ball coming for her throat made her reassess. Quickly.Bangladesh were unprepared for such fury. Their feet wouldn’t move. Their bats didn’t work. And their presence barely mattered. Dottin only saw the wickets behind Fargana Hoque, Nigar Sultana, Rumana Ahmed, Lata Mondal and Salma Khatun. She broke them four times in 22 deliveries to pick up the best haul by a West Indian in women’s T20Is.It makes sense to have the hosts play in the prime-time spot on a triple-header day, and to keep the early one for India games considering the time zones. But that meant they had to deal with a pitch that was very slow and low. Bangladesh had prepared for that, packing their XI with spinners, with Rumana’s legbreaks particularly hard to get away. The 27-year old who learnt part of her craft from Australia’s Stuart MacGill finished with 2 for 16, using the crease well and putting so much work on the ball that it drifted, dipped and turned too.Her job was made a touch easier thanks to Jahanara Alam. The former captain took two wickets in the third over of the game to set West Indies back. Hayley Matthews – the player of the match in the final of the 2016 edition – was caught superbly by Lata Mondal at mid-off. Dottin fell the very next ball, victim of another fine fielding effort, at point by Fahima Khatun. West Indies had lost a hefty chunk of their fire power with more than three-fourths of the innings left.The energy Bangladesh showed while fielding and the confidence they had while bowling, dissipated as soon as they returned to the dressing room. Jahanara, who picked up three wickets, including a ridiculous return catch, where she over-ran the ball, but stuck her left hand behind her only for it to stick, spoke rather nervously during the mid-game interview. “We’ll try,” she said.On the other hand, West Indies began their night dancing. They had to get serious, double-time, when their top order vanished, leaving the captain Stafanie Taylor to not only hold things together but also cobble up a meaningful total. She made 29 off 44 balls, her natural attacking intent curbed by the conditions and the lack of support. Eventually, she found help from wicketkeeper Kycia Knight, who managed 32 from 24, even as her team-mates yelled and cheered at the boundary edge. The coach Hendy Springer, meanwhile, was seen performing a literal face palm after his team slipped to 50 for 5.Those last few runs – 28 came in the final three overs – had geed West Indies up. They walked out for the second innings after a much more solemn huddle but were back to higher spirits in no time. Shakera Selman picked up a wicket with her sixth delivery. Then she made the ball ghost Jahanara for several torturous minutes before putting her out of her misery – the outswinger that kept beating her bat finally pinging off it only to be caught at mid-off. The crowd, by this time, had sensed a fightback was on. And if they didn’t, the insanely cool secret handshake that Selman and Matthews exchanged right there on the pitch left room for little doubt. The defending champions had found a foothold and they weren’t letting go.

A battle between the two teams used to be uneven before 2015, but Bangladesh have realised it is not an impossible task to beat South Africa at home

Mohammad Isam27-Sep-20171:27

Moonda: Batting selection dilemma for SA

Big Picture

Aiden Markram’s Test debut, Ottis Gibson’s first match as South Africa coach, Bangladesh’s first Test in South Africa in nine years and the first at Senwes Park since 2002. All of these milestones will fade quickly on Thursday when arguably the best team in home conditions take on talented yet unpredictable visitors.Markram and Gibson are at the start of a busy home season. Gibson, of course, will look to renew his understanding of South Africa cricket, having played for Border, Gauteng and Griqualand West when he used to be a more-than-capable medium-pacer. He has the reliable Faf du Plessis at his side, who has his hands full as captain and one of the batting mainstays.Du Plessis will have to handle a bowling attack that has two high-class performers – Morne Morkel and Kagiso Rabada – but also a number of youngsters and newcomers who have to be given confidence. He also has a chance to define his captaincy and set the tone for the home season, either by bolstering the batting with the selection of Theunis de Bruyn or selecting pace-bowling allrounder Andile Phehlukwayo.Some may feel that Bangladesh are the ideal visitors to try new strategies against, but they are far from pushovers. Mentally, this team is different from the ones that traveled to South Africa in 2002 and 2008. Where previous Bangladesh teams wanted to avoid heavy defeats, the current set of players are thinking of ways to beat their opponents. Bangladesh know how different that mental switch can be.The task at hand for seniors Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah and coach Chandika Hathurusingha is immense. Bangladesh are without their lynchpin Shakib Al Hasan who was granted rest by the Bangladesh board earlier this month, which means two players have to replace him.Luckily for Bangladesh, their younger players, like Sabbir Rahman and Mustafizur Rahman, are hungry performers. There is also competition for the second opener’s slot: Soumya Sarkar and Imrul Kayes will be aware that Liton Das is breathing down their neck, so a slip-up in South Africa could be critical for their future.A battle between the two teams used to be uneven until the 2015 ODI series but since then, Bangladesh have realised that beating South Africa, even in their home conditions, is not an impossible task.

Form guide

Bangladesh LWWLL (completed matches, most recent first)South Africa LLWLD

In the spotlight

Of the five pace bowlers in the Bangladesh squad, Mustafizur Rahman is the only automatic choice in the XI. The mystery around him has worn off but even on home pitches, that serve the spinners heavily, his short bursts have become crucial. He will enjoy conditions in South Africa if he can be accurate.Dean Elgar needs another 85 runs to topple Cheteshwar Pujara as the leading run-getter in Tests in 2017. A good start from the experienced opener would immediately put Bangladesh’s young pace attack on the back foot.

Team news

With Shakib rested, Bangladesh will have to pick four specialist bowlers. Taskin Ahmed’s extra pace and Subashis Roy’s relatively accurate seam-bowling could be preferred ahead of Shafiul Islam and Rubel Hossain. Soumya Sarkar’s shoulder niggle means he is not certain to play – a decision on his inclusion will be taken on the morning of the game.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Soumya Sarkar, 3 Imrul Kayes, 4 Mominul Haque, 5 Mahmudullah, 6 Mushfiqur Rahim (capt & wk), 7 Sabbir Rahman, 8 Mehidy Hasan, 9 Taskin Ahmed, 10 Subashis Roy, 11 Mustafizur Rahman.South Africa’s choice is between an extra batsman in Theunis de Bruyn or a seam-bowling option in Andile Phehlukwayo. Aiden Markram will make his international debut, replacing Heino Kuhn. Despite being passed fit, Wayne Parnell is unlikely to play.South Africa (probable): 1 Dean Elgar, 2 Aiden Markram, 3 Hashim Amla, 4 Temba Bavuma, 5 Faf du Plessis (capt), 6 Quinton de Kock (wk), 7 Theunis de Bruyn/ Andile Phehlukwayo, 8 Keshav Maharaj, 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Morne Morkel, 11 Duanne Olivier

Pitch and conditions

The pitch looks a bit dry but the home side are hoping for good carry off the track, something Bangladesh are also expecting. While there is a forecast for rain on the last two days of the Test, the weather should mostly be dry.

Stats and trivia

• This is only the second Test to be held at Senwes Park after it hosted the South Africa-Bangladesh game in 2002.
• Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim and Imrul Kayes are the only Bangladesh players in the current squad to have played a Test in South Africa, having toured in 2008.

Quotes

“The last two years, their cricket has really improved. They are as tough as any team to play in their own conditions so their standard is on the up. This will be a real opportunity for them to show they can perform outside of their own country.”
“We have brought five fast bowlers and three of them will play in the first Test. I think they know all too well that if they don’t perform, there are others to take their place so that should be motivation enough.”

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.”

South Africa had been frustrated by the wet weather in Dhaka, more so because their side is still in transition and they need more game time to figure out their best XI

Firdose Moonda27-Jul-2015Dale Steyn has played street soccer and been taken out for supper by Shakib al Hasan. Quinton de Kock and Kagiso Rabada have been watching horror movies and Hashim Amla has entertained some of his younger crop – Simon Harmer, Dean Elgar and Dane Vilas. But none of that has left South Africa any happier with their lot in Bangladesh.”It’s very frustrating for us at the moment, especially after Chittagong, it looks like the rain followed us here or it’s been here as well,” Elgar said at what was supposed to be a team training session in Dhaka.Wet weather meant the South African practice had to be moved indoors, which extended their cabin fever to a fourth day after two from the first Test were washed out as well. With more rain forecast for the week, it’s little wonder Elgar could not find a silver lining.”It looks like we are never going to play cricket again here,” he said.If the second Test scheduled for Thursday struggles to get underway, South Africa will only have played eight out of a possible 15 days of international cricket on their five-week tour of Bangladesh. And they will leave with a lot of unfinished business.Apart from a series victory, which South Africa will be going after with some gusto should play take place, they will also want to establish which players to take to India – their next, and perhaps most important, Test assignment this year. There, South Africa will not want to be a team in transition, as they are now in Bangladesh. But without sufficient match time in Mirpur, they may not have another choice.South Africa will be heartened by Harmer’s claim for the specialist spinner’s role but may still want to turn to Dane Piedt, or Aaron Phangiso, or Eddie Leie. They will be satisfied in the way Temba Bavuma stepped up but may not know where they can fit him, especially when AB de Villiers returns. They will also be impressed with Stiaan van Zyl’s first attempt in the opening role but may have wanted to see more of him.At least on that last count, they can rely on Elgar’s assessment: “Stiaan is very new to the opening berth and I see where I can assist and help him. He is a very talented player,” Elgar said. “There’s no added pressure irrespective of the guys who have retired – Graeme Smith and Alviro Petersen. What they have done was awesome but it’s time for myself and Stiaan to put our hands up and make the position ours.”With regards to South Africa’s prospects in the Mirpur Test, Elgar said a big first innings total may be the only way to beat the weather. “In the subcontinent, the first innings seems to be quite important for both teams and batting once is an ideal but we understand there’s a lot of hard work that goes into doing that,” he said. “It takes a lot of pressure off the side and then you can just go out and express yourselves with the ball.”Elgar admitted South Africa did not “execute well,” enough to do that in Chittagong, but said if they improve on that it could create the canvas for the bowlers to colour. “Our bowlers are experienced enough to get 20 wickets in these conditions. We definitely have the best bowlers around at the moment,” he said.Unless the rain stops, all of that will just be talk; something South Africa generally prefer not to do when it comes to cricket. They also prefer to disconnect from the daily drag of the game, as Steyn did when went out to play football with no cricket possible.”It’s very important to switch off from the game totally so when you have your time off you try and not think about cricket too much,” Elgar said. “When it’s practice and game time, you switch back on. You can’t be playing the game in your head the whole time. It’s quite exhausting when you are always thinking about the game.”And so far on this wet old tour, South Africa are becoming experts in exactly the opposite.

Ricky Ponting has always been a tough cricketer. But his emotional side, for once, came to the surface when he spoke after his final Test for Australia

Brydon Coverdale at the WACA03-Dec-2012For a moment, Ricky Ponting was a kid again. As he sat in the WACA gym and spoke one last time as a Test cricketer, the emotion finally got the better of him. Ponting, perhaps the toughest competitor of his cricketing generation, fought back tears as he thanked his family for all of their sacrifices. His wife Rianna was there with his daughters Emmy and Matisse. His parents, Graeme and Lorraine, were there too. It was a rare glimpse of the human side of one of sport’s hardest men.To understand Ponting, you have to understand his roots. Australia’s most prolific run scorer was raised in working-class northern Tasmania and when he was nine or ten, he used to ride his BMX all around Launceston and the surrounding areas to watch the Mowbray Cricket Club play. He would sit in the change-rooms, rummage through the players’ bags when they were on the field and try on their gloves, hold their bats. He helped run the scoreboard at the NTCA ground when Tasmania played there, for a few dollars a day.At 11, Ponting was playing third-grade cricket with his father; when he became a first-class player, he financed new club-rooms with his first sponsorship payment. He learnt the value of the baggy green when his uncle Greg Campbell, Lorraine’s brother and also a Mowbray player, played Test cricket briefly in the late 1980s. Ponting now lives in Sydney but has never changed clubs; if he was to play a club match again it would be for Mowbray.Ponting walked off the WACA on Monday afternoon having equalled Steve Waugh’s record of 168 Test appearances. Nobody has been part of more victories than Ponting. He has played 560 international matches in 15 countries around the world, or 24 if the individual nations that make up the West Indies are taken into consideration. As Ponting sat back and for the first time reflected on his 17-year international career, he became emotional when he considered where it all started.”I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the opportunities I was given by them at an early age,” Ponting said of his parents. A cough, as he held back the tears. “It’s getting a bit harder”. Sniff. “The Mowbray Cricket Club, if they see me up here like this at the moment they’ll be all over me. That’s the place I learnt the game and the person I am was moulded from my background and my upbringing. What you’ve seen over 17 years is a result of my early days at the Mowbray Cricket Club. Thanks to the boys back there.”Tough as they make them in Mowbray, there wouldn’t have been a dry eye there either. Ponting still keeps a close eye on his club’s scores. In fact, he keeps a close eye on everything related to the world of cricket. The kid who sat in the change-rooms and listened to the first-grade players tell stories about the match they’d just played still exists. That’s what will make retirement so difficult for Ponting. Cricket has been his life.It is no surprise that he will play on for Tasmania this season, like a junkie being weaned off slowly. From Perth, he will fly to Tasmania to start training for the Hobart Hurricanes. The Big Bash League starts later this week and Ponting will be part of it. Always renowned as a realist, the dreamer in Ponting came through when he considered watching Australia’s next Test, against Sri Lanka in Hobart, and joked about warming up with the Test players and earning a late call-up.”You ask the boys in the dressing room, they reckon I don’t miss a ball that’s bowled anywhere around the world,” he said. “Of course I’ll keep an eye on it because I’ll miss not being out there. I’ll be interested to see who comes in and slots into the No.4 spot and I’ll be interested to see what the bowling attack looks like for Hobart.”The way it works out I’ll probably be down there anyway. I’ve got some training to do for the Hurricanes, leading up to that game, so I’ll probably be in Hobart just before that. Who knows, I might even be around for the first day of the game. If I am, I might even join in the warm-up with the boys and see if there’s just one more chance!”There’s that kid in the change-rooms again. Pick me! Let me play!But for all of his cricket passion, Ponting knew the time was right to walk away from the international game. His scores over the past few weeks have confirmed it. Not that he had given up hope of ending with a match-winning hundred.”I had a bit more of a fairytale ending in my own eyes than what’s happened this week,” Ponting said. Just then, the pipes in the WACA gym began to squeal, almost drowning out his voice. “Still things are going badly for me here as well! It’s been one of those weeks.”Apart from when discussing his family, Ponting was relaxed in retirement. He joked about the standing ovation he had received, and the one given to his nightwatchman Nathan Lyon on the first day. He thanked the media for promoting the game and held no grudges about the criticism levelled on him in recent times. He finished with a brief thought about his legacy.”Hopefully my impact and input on Australian cricket has left something behind. Thank you.”