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Attentions are beginning to turn to the Test summer with the key quick saved the long return journey west

Daniel Brettig06-Nov-2019Australia’s spearhead Pat Cummins will be spared the long haul trip to Perth and back to rest his body ahead of the Test series against Pakistan, which has been confirmed as the starting point for Andrew McDonald as the national coach Justin Langer’s senior assistant.The decision to rest Cummins may well open the way for Sean Abbott to play his first international in more than five years, as Australia look for a victory at Perth Stadium on Friday evening to close out an unbeaten six matches against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, where so far only Sydney rain and arcane playing conditions have prevented a clean sweep.A shift of Australian thinking from T20 back to the looming Test match assignments against Pakistan (two Tests in Brisbane and Adelaide) and New Zealand (three Tests in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney) have been underlined by the news that McDonald is now clear to commence his role alongside Langer for the Gabba Test later this month, after concluding his duties with Victoria and the Melbourne Renegades.Lengthy negotiations among multiple parties have been required to allow McDonald the freedom to take up the national team role while also upholding pre-existing contracts to coach the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL and Birmingham in The Hundred, the first such instance of CA allowing a national team assistant coach to wear more than one hat. It was also confirmed on Wednesday that Victoria assistant coach Lachlan Stevens will move into an acting head coach role for the remainder of the Sheffield Shield and Marsh Cup following McDonald’s departure.

Test spots remain undecided

Australia coach Justin Langer has said the next round of Sheffield Shield and the Australia A game against Pakistan will play a key role in shaping the final decisions over the Test squad.
Travis Head’s century in the recent round of matches has helped his cause as he aims for a recall and he will line-up alongside Usman Khawaja, Will Pucovski and Nic Maddinson.
“I’m hoping someone starts banging really hard on the door,” Langer said. “Travis played well. I thought the way Matthew Wade played was excellent in winning the game for Tasmania. Cameron Green, can we slide him in the top four. He’s got a very bright future. I watched him bat yesterday – I know how well he can bowl, he’s a good young kid.
“I keep maintaining there is so much talent in Australian cricket we’ve just got make sure we get the combinations right and make sure we get the people that are ready to go for this Test series.”

As Langer’s senior assistant, McDonald will fill the role left by David Saker at the start of the year when he resigned after the home Tests against India and Sri Lanka, also meaning he is likely to take primary responsibility for helming tactical discussions among Australia’s bowlers.Graeme Hick remains as the team’s batting coach and Sridharan Sriram as a spin bowling and batting assistant, while the head of national teams Ben Oliver is eager to ensure a good degree of fluidity for other specialist roles to be taken on a short-term basis, as seen with the use of Ricky Ponting and Adam Griffith (World Cup), Steve Waugh and Troy Cooley (Ashes) and Michael Hussey and Ryan Harris (T20I series) alongside Langer this year.A comfortable victory over Pakistan in Canberra on Tuesday evening, underpinned by Steven Smith’s deft innings to smooth over the loss of early wickets in the chase, has further demonstrated how Australia are developing role clarity for their T20 team. Smith took complete control of the pursuit, providing a reminder that in the brief phase in which he has previously played in the Australia T20I side as a specialist batsman rather than a speculative wrist spin bowler, he showed an aptitude for being the “clean up man” if early wickets fell.Across nine matches in 2015-16, Smith returned 263 runs at 32.87 and a strike rate of 135.56, before bowing out of T20I duty to provide brief periods of rest between his many Test match and ODI commitments. “If you look at my batting record in T20 internationals, it’s not crash hot,” Smith said. “I guess you have to bear in mind … early in my career I was batting No. 8 or 9, coming in and slogging, facing half a dozen balls tops. It’s never easy so it’s going to affect your record at some point.”I don’t doubt my ability. I know the tempos of the game … and I’ve played a lot of cricket now. I may not be as strong as some of the other guys but I use placement and timing. The white ball usually flies off the bat particularly when it’s brand new. If you’re timing the ball well you get value for your shots most places.”If you’re chasing you weigh up the situation and what you need and what you need to go at, which bowlers you want to target and just work out the maths in your head and that’s chasing. Batting first you have to sum up conditions and how the wicket is playing, what you think a good score is and who is in the opposition, all those sorts of things. I’ve played a lot of cricket now, I’m pretty experienced and my role in this team is to fix it if the top don’t come off.”

The SCG and Sydney Showground had been due to host eight BBL matches later in January

Daniel Brettig05-Jan-2021Border closures and logistical complications related to Sydney’s Covid-19 outbreak are set to compel Cricket Australia to move a bracket of BBL games out of New South Wales, in a further hurdle for the governing body amid all the issues surrounding the SCG and Gabba Tests.Though the Sydney Test is set to get underway on Thursday with Australia and India playing out the remainder of the series under far stricter bubble conditions than they had previously needed to comply with – in order to satisfy the requirements of the Queensland government to allow the SCG match to preceded the final Test of the series in Brisbane – the BBL’s patchwork of fixtures are another matter.Eight matches are currently scheduled to be played in Sydney from January 13 onwards, four each at the SCG and the Sydney Showgrounds in the western suburbs. However, with indications that borders to NSW are set to remain closed until at least the end of January, CA looks increasingly likely to shift at least some if not all of these matches into a state with borders open to Victoria – South Australia and Adelaide Oval looking the most likely option.Related

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Sydney Thunder, Sydney Sixers, Perth Scorchers, Hobart Hurricanes, Adelaide Strikers and Brisbane Heat are the clubs presently slated to be travelling through Sydney to play in the scheduled matches. Adelaide’s presence in the BBL was set to conclude with a fixture between Adelaide Strikers and Melbourne Stars on January 11, two days before the first of the Sydney games.A shift to Adelaide would mean that the Thunder, Sixers, Scorchers Hurricanes and Heat would be able to smoothly transit from their current camps in Queensland, Tasmania and Western Australia into SA from January 13 onwards, given open borders currently open between all those states and SA.Another complication for CA is that fact that any games in Sydney would need to be played, and teams accommodated, under the same sort of strict and costly quarantine conditions as those currently required for the Test teams, where an entire hotel is booked out and security staff hired to monitor it.CA is also monitoring circumstances around the selection of Melbourne fixtures meant to round out the regular competition in late January, although these games are believed to be less likely to move than those currently set down for Sydney. CA has always reserved the right to shift fixtures during the BBL in the event of further border and Covid-19 issues, and is also yet to announce where the five finals matches – scheduled to be played between January 29 and February 6 – will be hosted.In a further scheduling change forced by border restrictions, the opening seven matches of the Women’s National Cricket League – which had been due to be played between January 15 and 19 – have been delayed until late February and early March in a bid to enable a full tournament to be played.New South Wales had been due to travel to Adelaide and Canberra for their opening two matches.The WNCL season will now begin on January 25 with South Australia hosting Tasmania at Karen Rolton Oval. The final remains scheduled for March 27 although further changes could be required depending on the various state borders.

Barbadian fast bowler has UK passport and impressed on trial with 2nd XI

George Dobell15-Jun-2021Warwickshire look set to pull off something of a coup in signing Che Simmons, a young fast bowler who has been dubbed the “new Jofra Archer”.Simmons, a 17-year-old seamer, was born and raised in Barbados. But he also holds a UK passport through his father and, having been recommended to Warwickshire’s director of sport, Paul Farbrace, by fellow Barbadian Ottis Gibson, was invited to play a few games for Warwickshire’s 2nd XI as a trialist.Having made an excellent impression, Simmons is expected to be offered a deal which might well include some type of scholarship in order that he can complete his education in the UK. He currently attends Combermere School, which has a rich history of producing top players. As well has current West Indies Test captain, Kraigg Brathwaite, Wes Hall, Clyde Walcott, Frank Worrall and Chris Jordan also attended the school. So did the singer, Rihanna.A fast bowler with a beautiful smooth run-up and action, Simmons has represented Barbados Under-15s and came to prominence by claiming all 10 wickets in an innings while playing for the Franklyn Stephenson Academy. He finished with the remarkable figures of 10 for 16 from 5.3 overs. Only two of the runs he conceded came off the bat.While good news for Warwickshire and, potentially, England, it might be seen as another setback for cricket in the Caribbean. While Archer and Jordan are the most high-profile cricketers to have opted for England ahead of Barbados in recent years, Warwickshire have another young Barbadian in Jacob Bethell on their staff. Some at Warwickshire believe Bethell, a left-arm spinner and batter, is the best young player the club has had since the emergence of Ian Bell.

The left-arm will miss the final two matches of the T20 series due to a family illness

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Dec-2020Mitchell Starc has been withdrawn from Australia’s T20 squad on compassionate grounds due to a family illness and will miss the final two matches of the series.It has not been confirmed when Starc will rejoin the squad. The Test group is due to link up in Adelaide next week ahead of the opening match of the series on December 17.”There is nothing in the world more important than family and in this case Mitch is no exception,” head coach Justin Langer said. “We will give Mitch all the time he needs and welcome him back into the squad with open arms whenever he feels the time is right for him and his family.”Starc missed the third ODI with soreness but returned for the opening T20I in Canberra and impressed with the new ball.Starc’s absence could open the door for AJ Tye or the uncapped Daniel Sams to come into Australia’s XI for the second T20I on Sunday.Australia’s resources for the T20 series have been stretched due to injuries and absences. David Warner, Ashton Agar, Marcus Stoinis and Mitchell Marsh have all been missing while Pat Cummins was rested for the series. Captain Aaron Finch is also doubtful for the second match having picked up an injury in Canberra.

Also planned are discussions surrounding the Future Tours Programme, a new revenue distribution model and governance review

Osman Samiuddin and Tristan Lavalette17-Mar-2023Afghanistan, the continuing complexities of India-Pakistan and a new revenue distribution model will all be on the agenda at what is shaping up to be a portentous ICC board meeting this weekend in Dubai.The quarterly meeting, the first of this year, began on Thursday with the women’s cricket committee and the men’s committee on Friday. But all eyes will fall on the Chief Executives’ Committee (CEC) meeting on Saturday, before the ICC Board and Finance & Commercial Affairs (F&CA) committee meet over Sunday and Monday.It is in and around the sidelines of those meetings that the most pressing topics will be discussed:

Afghanistan’s membership

The ICC’s working group on Afghanistan will present an update to the ICC board on the situation in Afghanistan since the Taliban took power in the country in August 2021. Imran Khwaja, the ICC’s deputy chair and head of the working group, has met with officials from the ACB and Taliban in Doha twice since November. They’ve been provided assurances that the government has not interfered in cricket affairs, but also acknowledge that any women’s cricket while the Taliban are in power is near impossible.Consequently, the working group will argue that the issue of women’s cricket is beyond the control of the ACB and so the board should not be punished. Full membership at the ICC requires the member to have a functioning women’s team but that status is unlikely to be under threat. There is, however, a growing resolve among members to act, or at least for a clear policy statement to be made.Even the ICC management is desperate to act, not least since some Afghan women cricketers reached out to them. There has been informal talk of funding a women’s team outside of Afghanistan and without implicit ACB approval. But the working group will make the board aware that such options could prove counterproductive, even dangerous, for those on the ground in the country. It is a tightrope, in not wanting to punish Afghanistan while also wanting some progress with the women’s game.Related

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A new revenue distribution model

The F&CA will begin discussions on a new model to divvy up the ICC’s broadcast money (and commercial earnings) over the next rights cycle. It is not going to be a simple discussion – it wasn’t for the current cycle, where the rights were sold in 2014 for eight years as one bundle to one broadcaster, for approximately USD 2.1 billion.This time round, the ICC is selling rights separately in different regional markets, as well as unbundling them into different packages – one for TV only, one for digital only, one for both, over four and eight years – and men’s and women’s events treated separately. That has already brought a much greater value than the last cycle, even accounting for there being more events. Last August, Disney Star* secured the rights to broadcast ICC events in India for four years from 2024 to 2027. That deal is said to be worth just north of USD 3 billion. The ICC has also recently sold rights in the UK market to Sky Sports for eight years, in a deal worth around USD 260 million. On Friday, the ICC announced the US rights going to Willow, leaving the subcontinent rights (excluding India) to go.So, much more money, but also more challenges in distributing it. The F&CA is headed by the BCCI secretary Jay Shah and given that the India market now has a tangible separate value, it will only strengthen the longstanding BCCI belief that they should receive a lion’s share of it. Smaller members are also wanting enhanced shares, especially as they ended up with less than the expected amounts from the last cycle after ICC projections fell slightly short.The battles over the financial model last time round were epic, not least because of the tumult caused by the Big Three takeover and then eventual rollback. The BCCI, ultimately, wasn’t happy with its share. The global calendar is more fractured and complicated now, only adding to the difficulties in navigating this. The discussions will start this weekend but the expectation is to not expect a new model anytime soon.

India-Pakistan

The BCCI says India will not travel to Pakistan to play in the Asia Cup in September. The PCB says if they don’t, then Pakistan might not travel to India for the World Cup in October-November. This has been the status quo between the two members for a while now.”We have complex issues on hand but for me when I go to the ACC (Asian Cricket Council) and ICC meetings I have kept all options open for us and we have to take a clear position now,” said the PCB head Najam Sethi at a press conference earlier this week. That is in line with the PCB belief that the Asia Cup and ICC events are linked: if India refuse to play in Pakistan for the Asia Cup, what is the guarantee they visit for the ICC’s Champions Trophy in 2025?That is the question the PCB will be raising this weekend, though it will do so with the wriggle room that ultimately a decision on whether Pakistan travels to India for a World Cup will be made by the Pakistan government. There were reports in Pakistan earlier this week that the government had refused PCB permission to send a team to India. But state officials indicated to ESPNcricinfo that not only had no such decision had been made but that it was far too early for them to be making it.Holder: ‘Apart from the big three, every team is barely playing any Test cricket’•AFP/Getty Images

The Future-Tours Programme

A working group looking into current and future FTP bilateral planning arrangements will be ratified at the meeting.The group is led by Zimbabwe head Tavengwa Mukuhlani and includes the ECB’s Martin Darlow and New Zealand Cricket’s Martin Snedden and are expected to meet formally for the first time. The group is open for Full Members to address concerns heightened amid international cricket’s shrinking calendar as T20 leagues sprout worldwide.Given the concerns about the dearth of Test matches expressed expressed recently, the group is likely to hear those concerns sooner rather than later. “The way world cricket is going now, apart from the big three, every team is barely playing any Test cricket,” Jason Holder said after their recently concluded Test series in South Africa. He was echoing comments made by Angelo Mathews, playing a two-Test series in New Zealand, as well as the MCC.

Governance Review

Discussions over ICC constitutional reforms have been ongoing for years in what has been a thorny subject.It seemed to gain momentum during meetings last year with informal discussions over several proposals, including a single tier of ICC membership and a push for more independents to sit on the governing body’s board.Currently Indra Nooyi, chair Greg Barclay and ICC CEO Geoff Allardice are the only independent directors on the 18-person board. But board directors have been unable to get on the same page and no such proposal was tabled last year. Discussions are set to resume in Dubai.

Gavaskar to Raj: “Body language is very important – look at Virat Kohli, he stares at opposition and the rest of the team does that”

PTI24-Apr-2021India Women’s ODI captain Mithali Raj wants the 2022 50-over World Cup in New Zealand to be her “swansong”, bringing the curtain down on a career spanning over two decades.”It’s been 21 years of international cricket and I know 2022 is my swansong, the World Cup,” Raj said during a virtual book launch on Saturday. “The last year was equal to the 20 years of my international cricket.”I know we are in difficult times but it takes a lot out of me to keep working on my fitness. I am not getting any younger and I know the importance of fitness. It is important to be in a good emotional and mental set-up, knowing that there will be very few tours before the World Cup.”Related

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India Women are set to play at least two bilateral series – away in England and Australia – before the World Cup.”Every tour (from now on) is important for me as a batter to know how I am going to get the team to regroup and build a side for the World Cup,” Raj said. “Yeah, I am optimistic, looking at the manner in which the girls have been working with whatever facilities they have in these times and the enthusiasm they have been showing for an upcoming series.”Raj admitted that fast bowling was one area the team needed to improve, especially because mainstay Jhulan Goswami has also hit the final lap of her career. “We definitely need to look at a few players and prepare them for New Zealand,” Raj said.Sunil Gavaskar, a co-panelist at the discussion, felt that Raj and her players could take a leaf out of Virat Kohli’s playbook of looking at an opponent’s eyes and giving it back without getting intimidated.”I was with my wife at the Lord’s watching the 2017 Women’s ODI World Cup final. What I saw was that, English girls came hard at your lower order and intimidated them with their attitude,” Gavaskar said. “I would want our girls to glare back at the opposition instead of looking down. I feel body language is a very important aspect. Look at Virat Kohli, he stares at opposition and the rest of the team does that.”

In the 1000th IPL game, Mumbai Indians become the first team in the tournament history to chase down a 200-plus total at the Wankhede

Alagappan Muthu30-Apr-2023An IPL game to commemorate the past produced a glimpse of the future instead as Yashasvi Jaiswal hit the most amazing hundred for Rajasthan Royals against his hometown franchise Mumbai Indians. And for 35.4 overs it looked like he would end up on the winning side.But a quirk of T20 cricket is that it can often be decided by the guy who doesn’t spend a lot of time in the middle. Tim David faced only 14 balls but that was still enough to change the course of history. A 200-plus total was chased down for the first time in the IPL at the Wankhede Stadium, and the Australian was at the centre of it all, muscling three back-to-back sixes off three back-to-back full tosses from Jason Holder in the final over.You gotta give it to the IPL. It knows how to throw a 1000th birthday party.

Jaisw-all the way

Over 999 matches, this tournament has become part of daily life in India. The main man from its 1000th might well assume similar status as his career blossoms. Twenty-one-year-old Jaiswal defied a slow pitch to amass 124 off 62 balls with 16 fours and eight sixes. Royals’ next best contribution was 18 off 19.His century became the top score by an uncapped Indian batter in the IPL and the one with the second-highest percentage (90.32) of runs in boundaries in all men’s T20. It was incredible and here’s a list of reasons why.Yashasvi Jaiswal smashed 124 off 62 balls•BCCI

The range and quality of his shots. He launched a Jofra Archer short ball clean out of the Wankhede. He reverse-swept Piyush Chawla for a six over point. He scooped Riley Meredith over fine leg. He got to his fifty with a cover drive. And his hundred with a pull shot in front of square all along the ground.Then there was the fact that all of them were cleanly hit on a surface that messed everyone else up. Rohit Sharma, perhaps the poster boy for timing in Indian cricket, was so badly deceived by a knuckle ball that 90% of his body was nowhere near the line of it. This pitch – and Sandeep Sharma – essentially duped him into ushering one onto his stumps.And finally, most of Jaiswal’s carnage happened at a time his team was in danger of losing the advantage. Royals were 72 for 0 in their first seven overs. Then they lost 3 for 31 in four overs. It was becoming painfully clear that the set batter had to both last the entire innings and also take care of the acceleration. That’s a lot of responsibility. Especially given he was facing a once-in-a-generation bowler in Archer.But Jaiswal barely batted an eyelid. He scored 72 of the 109 runs Royals scored in the last nine overs. That’s a two-thirds split.

SKY high

R Ashwin came into this game having bowled 192 balls in this IPL. And he had only given away seven sixes. Suryakumar Yadav launched him for one the moment he walked out to bat. That’s how good he is. He finds a way to render really good bowlers into really average ones.Suryakumar Yadav started aggressively•BCCI

But as awesome as his shots sometimes are – in one over he scooped Jason Holder over the keeper for six and next ball, an attempted yorker from around the wicket, he whipped it straight-bat through midwicket – the thing that is really striking about Suryakumar is how much belief he has and how he is never shaken.Not so long ago, he bagged three first-ball ducks on the trot, and yet he keeps playing the way he has always played. Epic high-risk cricket. And he had Wankhede believing. He had a crowd that roared for Sachin, that roared for Rohit, that roared for Bumrah, that roared for Malinga, roaring for him.And suddenly Royals were worried.

A turning point

Sandeep was ignored by all ten teams at the auction. Royals only got him in when one of their first-choice quicks, Prasidh Krishna, was ruled out with injury.In his second match of the season, he became that rare bowler who can tell his grandkids that he bested MS Dhoni in the final over of a chase. In his seventh match, he took an absolute screamer to dismiss Suryakumar on 55 off 29.Sandeep Sharma was mobbed after a stunning catch to dismiss Suryakumar Yadav•BCCI

Sandeep had to run back 19 metres from short fine leg. All the while looking up over his left shoulder. Even then, the ball seemed to be beating him. He had to dive, propel himself off the ground, and reach out with both hands. It was fingertip stuff. Mumbai needed 61 off 26.

David finishes it off

It was the 18th over. He was just 11 off 6. The asking rate was up in the nosebleeds, at 16.6. And yet David batted as if he was the one on top; like the scoreboard was telling a lie.He hit Boult for a four to close out the 18th over. He welcomed Sandeep in the 19th with a six. Panic-stricken, the bowler conceded a wide and then missed his wide yorker, only by mere inches, but it was still enough for one of the most powerful players in the world to get under the ball and find the boundary.The equation was now down to 17 off the last over and it was to be bowled by someone who is just not suited to the task. Holder is a new-ball weapon. He doesn’t have a good enough yorker to do the job at the death. And to make matters worse, the dew had come in, making it hard to properly grip the ball.Everything was set up for the grandstand finish and David provided it. A man who makes his name by snatching victory from the jaws of defeat went 6, 6, 6 prompting 27,000 people to go into delirium.

Joe Denly and Adil Rashid shared seven wickets as England closed out victory in their final white-ball encounter of the tour

The Report by Andrew Fidel Fernando in Colombo27-Oct-20181:39

Social Story: Denly’s back!

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsJason Roy – dropped three times – thwacked 69 off 36, Moeen Ali smote 27 off 11 while the lower-middle order rallied, and England lurched in fits and starts to 187 for 8, which would prove 30 too many for Sri Lanka.The target was imposing enough by itself, with only one greater total having been successfully chased at Khettarama. But when Joe Denly, playing in his first England international in almost nine years, removed both Sri Lanka openers with his virtually non-turning legspin, Sri Lanka’s pursuit was seriously imperilled. England’s other legspinner – the main one – Adil Rashid then claimed three wickets through the middle overs to essentially seal victory for his team.Between them, Rashid and Denly accounted for Sri Lanka’s top five, and had them well behind the asking rate. Sri Lanka captain Thisara Perera slammed his way to 57 off 31 balls for the remainder of the innings, but his team had lost too much ground to make even that innings meaningful. The hosts limped, eventually, to 157 all out by the end of 20 overs, Denly claiming career-best figures of 4 for 19.England, and Roy in particular, made their intentions felt in the very first over. Running down the pitch to Lasith Malinga, Roy thumped him over long-off for six second ball, before glancing the fourth ball to the fine leg boundary for four. Sri Lanka tried to target Roy with the left-arm spin of Amila Aponso, perhaps working off the theory that he was susceptible to that form of bowling early in his innings. It didn’t work – Roy thrashed two fours off Aponso’s first two balls.The spinner would have more luck at the other end, in his second over, however, dismissing Roy’s opening partner Jos Buttler, and Alex Hales in the space of four balls. That prompted a brief respite from Roy’s onslaught – a period of about four overs when he did not hit a boundary. The big hits would resume soon enough, though.The ninth over, bowled by Lakshan Sandakan, was the most eventful over of the innings, and perhaps the definitive one of the game. Batting at the time on 34 off 25 balls, Roy top edged the second ball, and sent a miscued slog-sweep high to deep midwicket. But the substitute fielder, Sadeera Samarawickrama, spilled the straightforward chance, after which Roy nailed a slog-sweep into the western stand. Fourth ball, another top edge, this one to Dasun Shanaka at long-off. That was also grassed. Last ball, Sandakan should have had Ben Stokes lbw as well, only for the umpire to deny him, and his team-mates to refuse the review.Adil Rashid made important inroads•Getty Images

Roy, who was dropped again in the next over, clobbered 34 runs off 11 balls after his first reprieve. Stokes made 24 off his next 21. Between these two innings and that of Moeen, who struck three sixes and a four off his first 10 balls despite having arrived in the 12th over with four wickets already down, England were powered to their daunting total.Denly, who produced a useful 20 off 17 with the bat as well, might not have been the kind of bowler that worried Sri Lanka before this match, but he nevertheless was the first to push them off course, before Rashid truly toppled them later on. He slipped a ball under Kusal Mendis’ ambitious slog-sweep with the last ball of his first over – Kusal making a return to single-figure limited-overs scores, after hitting a half-century in the last ODI. Niroshan Dickwella, who is perhaps the form batsman of this top order, was out in almost identical fashion in Denly’s next over.Dinesh Chandimal and Dhananjaya de Silva threatened to rebuild – even if Sri Lanka were already struggling in terms of run rate – but Rashid’s arrival at the bowling crease the moment the Powerplay ended, swung the match decisively for England. He had Chandimal caught attempting a reverse-slog in his first over, then dismissed Kamindu Mendis and de Silva in the space of three deliveries in his third, conceding only 11 runs – no boundaries – right through his four-over spell.Aside from Thisara’s late fifty, debutant Kamindu’s all-round performance might have been the only real positive for the hosts. Not only did he deliver both left-arm orthodox and right-arm offbreaks for the first time in an international match since 1996 (Sri Lanka’s Hashan Tillakaratne had been the last to do it), his batting was also full of promise. In 14 balls at the crease, he struck three fours and a six, before eventually holing out attempting a slog-sweep. For now, his batting appears his foremost cricketing talent, even if the uniqueness of his bowling will command more headlines.

South Africa eight down at the close and trailing by 54 runs as England battle with the ball

The Report by Matt Roller04-Jan-2020The narrative surrounding England’s first two World Test Championship series has been dominated by the Smiths: Steven ground them into the dirt with his runs in the Ashes, and Graeme’s appointment as director of cricket appears to have sparked new life into South Africa.And as Dean Elgar piled on the runs with Rassie van der Dussen – who had begun to seem almost invincible, such was his ability to survive despite offering regular chances – Joe Root could have been forgiven thinking that, as far as his side was concerned, this joke wasn’t funny anymore.But the thorn was soon out of his side, as South Africa went nowhere fast. Perhaps weighed down by the pressure of prolonged dry spells from England’s change bowlers, Elgar, Quinton de Kock and van der Dussen all gave their wickets away in the day’s final hour to squander their side’s advantage, before James Anderson struck twice with the new ball to leave South Africa eight down at the close.Instead, still trailing by 54 runs and facing the prospect of batting last on a wicket that has proved more helpful to seamers than many had predicted, South Africa face a tough ask to get what they want this time.England’s attempts during the morning to frustrate South Africa with a significant last-wicket partnership lasted only 17 balls, as Anderson steered a back-of-a-length ball to van der Dussen at slip to give Kagiso Rabada his third wicket, leaving Ollie Pope on a battling, unbeaten 61.While they were profligate with the new ball at Centurion, Stuart Broad and Anderson started impressively at Newlands. Pieter Malan’s maiden Test innings was a stern challenge of his technique, and it ended quickly: after Elgar had edged the final ball of Anderson’s fourth over just short of Root at slip, Malan was drawn into fending a length ball to the same man in the same position, this time offering a simple chance.Broad struck again in his next over, dismissing Zubayr Hamza for the third time this series thanks to a superb diving catch by Ben Stokes at second slip, and when Faf du Plessis jabbed a length ball from Anderson into the cordon it left South Africa in trouble at 40 for 3.Dom Bess, the Somerset offspinner, nearly had a wicket with his first ball in an overseas Test, as he drew Elgar into a lofted drive that only narrowly evaded the grasp of the diving Pope at short extra cover, and Anderson looked to have trapped van der Dussen lbw early on in his innings, but he was saved on review thanks to a thick inside edge.But as Elgar and van der Dussen began to frustrate England, the tourists proved to be their own worst enemies. Van der Dussen gloved a brutal delivery behind only to be saved by the revelation that Broad had overstepped. In fact, Broad and Stokes overstepped 12 times between them in the afternoon session despite the scorecard recording a very different story.Van der Dussen had yet another life on 43, with Stokes dropping a tough chance at second slip to his right, and their pair soon had the highest partnership of the series and a hundred stand as Elgar nudged, pulled and tickled his way towards a third Newlands century.But as the runs began to dry up, Elgar suffered a brain-fade. On 88, he decided to aim a fullish ball outside the off stump from Bess into the stands, and instead only succeeded in mowing it straight in the air; Root, running back from mid-off, took the catch, and England had an important breakthrough.Much as the wicket came as a surprise given Elgar had grown in confidence and control through his innings, England had worked steadily and with real focus to remove him, like a tick from a cat’s ear. The 10.4 overs after the tea interval had cost only 16 runs, and the visiting attack had been parsimonious throughout, with the seamers operating from the Wynberg End while Bess tied things down from the other; as the brakes were put on, South Africa struggled to rein their attacking instincts in.De Kock was keen to go from the outset, but after a couple of boundaries skied an offcutter from Sam Curran up and into the safe hands of Anderson at mid-off, and when van der Dussen gave Stokes another chance at second slip while trying to run the same bowler down to third man, England had mirrored South Africa in taking two wickets just before the new ball was due.Anderson then struck with the new ball, getting Dwaine Pretorius to edge twice to Stokes at second slip. First, he put down a catch for the second time in the day, low down in front of him, but three balls later gobbled up a much harder chance to leave the hosts seven down and claim his fourth catch of the innings. And when the ball spooned up to Dom Sibley in the slips off Keshav Maharaj’s pad via the inside edge, England’s ascendancy was confirmed.

If he can do this for five to ten years, he will find himself in the golden books of cricketers, de Villiers says

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Nov-20224:21

Suryakumar: I don’t try powerful shots, I just play the field

Over the past few months, Suryakumar Yadav has drawn comparisons with AB de Villiers for his 360-degree game. De Villiers himself has now approved of those comparisons and said Suryakumar will be “in the golden books of cricket players” if he continues to be consistent.”Yes, they are [right in comparing Suryakumar with me]. The only thing he will have to concentrate on is his consistency,” de Villiers told PTI. “He will have to do this for five to ten years and then he will find himself in the golden books of cricket players.”Any player that gets into form… I think of quite a few guys who really start playing at the peak of their powers, that makes me very excited. Each sportsman for that matter, it’s beautiful to watch when they are really free and having fun out there. Great to watch Surya play the way he is playing now.”Suryakumar is currently the No.1 T20I batter in the ICC rankings. In the ongoing T20 World Cup, he has risen above the conditions on what is his first tour of Australia to become one of the most impactful batters, according to ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats. During his 61 off 25 balls against Zimbabwe at the MCG, he repeatedly shuffled against left-arm seamer Richard Ngarava to scoop or sweep him behind square leg from wide of off stump.A 360-degree conversation•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

After Suryakumar’s innings, which lifted India to 186 for 5, former India captain Sunil Gavaskar called him the “new Mr 360-degree”.”There was that one shot that he hit for a six just to the left of the wicketkeeper,” Gavaskar told . “Then he went a little squarer in the final overs, for example, taking advantage of the angle that the bowler was trying to aim at. Then also played the lofted extra-cover drive, he has got every shot in the book. There was a straight drive as well.”Speaking to after the Zimbabwe game, Suryakumar, though, downplayed the comparison with de Villiers. “I feel there is only one 360-degree player in the world [AB de Villiers],” he said. “I just try to play the way I can.”I try to stay as still as possible so that I can hit the ball to the areas I want to. I bat the same way in the nets, but there I put more pressure on myself so that I have less pressure in the match.”Suryakumar said that he doesn’t try to muscle the ball and instead looks to use the crease and manipulate the field.”When I am batting, my plan is very clear,” he said. “I just check what the field is, and I don’t try to play powerful shots. I just try to play the field, play good shots and find a boundary. If I time it well and it goes for a six, that’s good for the team. But I just try to play the field and only play the shots I have. I don’t try to do anything different.Related

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“I keep guessing what is going on in the bowler’s mind, if he has already bowled one bouncer in the over, what the field is like. Some of the shots are obviously predetermined but for certain shots, I try to keep my body still, [especially] if I want to time the ball well and hit a big six. So that’s the improvisation I try, that I stay still, but otherwise I try to move as much as possible in the crease to upset the bowler’s line and length.”Before the start of the T20 World Cup, former Australia captain Ricky Ponting, speaking on the , had also likened Suryakumar’s range of hitting to de Villiers’.”Surya scores 360 degrees around the ground, a bit like an AB de Villiers did when he was in his actual prime,” Ponting had said. “The lap shots, the late cuts, you know, the ramps over the keeper’s head. He can hit down the ground.”He hits really well over the leg side, flicks to deep backward square particularly well, and he’s a good player of fast bowling and is a good player of spin bowling.”