All posts by h716a5.icu

Keifer Phill, the 2014 NY PSAL Wingate Award winner, has been named in the USA U-17 squad that will take part in the ICC Americas High Performance Match Play Camp in Bermuda

Peter Della Penna25-Jul-2014Keifer Phill, the 2014 NY PSAL (New York Public Schools Athletic League) Wingate Award winner as the most outstanding senior in the only high school cricket league in America, has been named as part of a 14-player USA U-17 squad that will take part in the ICC Americas High Performance Match Play Camp from August 18-23 in Bermuda. Canada will also travel to Bermuda to participate in a double-round-robin triangular series of 50-over matches.Phill was the youngest player in USA’s U-19 squad, which finished runner-up to Canada at the 2013 ICC Americas U-19 championship. He was selected as a seam bowler for the tour and did not see action during the 50-over series but has developed his all-round skills over the past year and produced a century for his PSAL side, High School for Construction.The U-17 team going to Bermuda also includes former USA U-15 representatives Sagar Patel and Mihir Athavale. Both players toured with USA’s junior team to Winnipeg, Canada in 2011 where they captured the ICC Americas U-15 regional championship.The other notable name in the team is Mohak Buch, who won the Best Batsman award last month at the USA Cricket Association U-15 National Championship in Cupertino, California. Buch scored 167 runs, including a century in the tournament final, for the title-winning North West Region team. He is the younger brother of former USA U-19 player Arsh Buch and the son of Hemant Buch, USACA’s head of youth tournaments.The squad will depart for Bermuda on August 17. USACA has not announced a coaching staff or management for the touring side. The six-day event is a key chance for players to get experience and preparation for next year’s ICC Americas U-19 qualifier with the winner representing the Americas region at the 2016 ICC U-19 World Cup in Bangladesh.USA U-17 squad: Mihir Athavale, Vivek Barbhaiya (wk), Novendra Boodhoo, Mohak Buch, Kusal Ganji, Gaurav Patankar, Arjun Patel, Jash Patel, Sagar Patel, Shehan Perara, Chetram Persaud, Keifer Phill, Nahusha Rao, Gauranshu Sharma.

Monty Panesar recorded his third five-wicket haul of the season as Essex manoeuvred themselves into a winning position against Glamorgan on the second day at Swansea.

Press Association16-Aug-2014
ScorecardMonty Panesar, seen here for the MCC earlier this season, took his third five-wicket haul of the season•Getty ImagesMonty Panesar recorded his third five-wicket haul of the season as Essex manoeuvred themselves into a winning position against Glamorgan on the second day at Swansea.Panesar took 5 for 50 to help bowl out Glamorgan for only 161 in reply to Essex’s first innings of 286. Only Jim Allenby offered any resistance as Essex put themselves in a useful position, although they struggled to 131 for 5 in their second innings. But Essex went into the third day holding an overall lead of 256.After Glamorgan had resumed day two on 27 for 1, Graham Napier sparked a dramatic start to the morning taking three wickets in the space of 12 balls. The seam bowler reduced Glamorgan to 36 for 4 within the opening three overs.With the opening ball of the day he had Jacques Rudolph caught at first slip by Jessie Ryder. And with the fifth and sixth balls of his second over Napier broke through the defences of nightwatchman Andrew Salter and trapped Chris Cooke leg before.Napier was to take no further part of the day’s play, leaving the field with the calf strain, but Glamorgan’s fortunes failed to improve, as Panesar, who had bowled unchanged from the Mumbles Road End since the start of play, trapped Murray Goodwin leg before attempting to cut.And 25 minutes before lunch Panesar struck again to claim his third wicket of the innings with Mark Wallace going to a bat and pad catch to Ryder at backward short leg. It left the home side 104 for 6.On the stroke of lunch Panesar had a fourth wicket when Graham Wagg was caught at slip by Tom Westley. It left Panesar with figures of 4 for 26 from 20.1 overs as Glamorgan reached the interval at 110 for 7 with only Allenby’s 32 showing any resistance.Five overs after lunch Panesar completed his five-wicket haul having James Harris caught at slip by Westley. Allenby completed his half-century from 121 balls with five fours and a six.But Glamorgan’s innings was wrapped up in the space of two balls from Ryder who had Cosker caught at first slip attempting to cut and then he bowled last man Michael Hogan.In reply Essex, holding a 125-run lead, lost Nick Browne in the fourth over caught at gulley off Hogan. Hogan struck twice more, first to have Ravi Bopara leg before – his 50th wicket of the season, and that was followed by Westley pulling straight to Goodwin at deep backward square.After tea Hogan was replaced by Allenby, who had taken five wickets in the first innings. And it was the all-ounder who broke through again to have James Foster caught behind following a parry from Cooke at second slip. The wickets kept coming with Hogan having Ryder caught at second slip by Rudolph, who then dropped Greg Smith first ball. At 82 for 5 Essex had an overall lead of 207. And they survived until the close without any further scares.

Steve Mangongo said there would continue to be changes to the Zimbabwe XI as they seek a winning formula but denied that Steven Trenchard was in line for selection

Liam Brickhill28-Aug-2014Zimbabwe is a surreal, sometimes positively Kafkaesque place to visit. One might see a stretched Hummer or a shiny new Lexus wobbling over pot-holed, unlit roads or eat exorbitantly priced sushi several thousand kilometres from the ocean. You’re about as likely to see a tabloid headline about a goblin or a mermaid as you are about a political or sex scandal, and you can pay for your groceries using US dollars, South African Rands, British pounds, Chinese Yuan, Australian dollars, or some combination of the above (not to mention, for some transactions, Botswana Pula, Japanese Yen and Indian Rupees). But there’s no Zimbabwean national currency.If you’re a cricketer, you might find yourself fined US$1000 and dropped from the side for lightheartedly sharing a video that’s freely available on YouTube with team-mates. Here, apparently, this is all just supposed to make sense. It’s normal.On Wednesday, it emerged that seamer Tinashe Panyangara had been fined and expelled from the national squad for sharing a video of Mitchell Johnson’s bowling. When asked if anyone in the squad had been watching videos of Dale Steyn ahead of Zimbabwe’s game against South Africa, senior batsman Hamilton Masakadza bowed his head shyly and dissolved into a fit of giggles. His coach, Steve Mangongo, offered a deadpan: “Yes, we have. We always do analysis.” Okay then.While they floundered against Australia in the opening match of the tri-series, Mangongo insisted that his team is “ready to go” against the South Africa side that cruised past the Australians on Wednesday, adding that they are “very comfortable” and “not worried about the opposition”. That’s fighting talk, but the results suggest that Zimbabwe have some serious catching up to do if they are going to make a fist of Friday’s match. The players have certainly put plenty of blood, sweat and tears into their preparation, and trained solidly from 8.45am to 12.30pm the day before the game.Yet more than intensive training, it seems what Zimbabwe really need is some stability. A disciplinarian approach is fine, so long as it comes with clear support structures and some continuity. It’s not clear whether that is the case here, and the gist seems to be that if players don’t perform to the standard prescribed to them, they can expect to be dropped. Never mind that Zimbabwe are ranked 10th in the world and their opponents are nestled at the opposite end of the table, with vastly more extensive national sporting, coaching and support structures to help them.Zimbabwe have used six different opening combinations in their last eight one-day internationals, cycled through seven different seamers and four spinners. There’s not a lot of stability there, and it’s been made clear that everyone – even senior players such as Brendan Taylor – is playing for their place in the XI every time they take the field.”We look at all possible means available, and all possible available personnel to work with until we get it right,” Mangongo said. “It’s simple and straightforward. So that’s why there has been shifting, and chopping and changing: because they are not doing their job. Until they do their job, we’ll continue.”Reports in the media have suggested that despite three half-centuries (including a 93 and an 84) in the five matches leading up to the third ODI against South Africa, Masakadza was close to losing his place in the side after a failure with the bat in the second match.Seemingly resigned to the status quo, he said: “Obviously you don’t really know what happens behind the scenes, and you can’t believe everything that you read about, but the fact of the matter remains: in any professional sport, if you’re not doing your bit and you’re not doing your job and not performing then you obviously can’t feel safe about your place. That’s just the bottom line. You get out there and you do your job, and that’s the only way you know you’ll be safe.”With precious little stability and little peace either on the field or off it, where do Zimbabwe’s cricketers turn for inspiration? For Masakadza, it comes from the pride he feels in representing his country – as weird, wonderful and frustrating a place as it can be. “For me, at the end of the day, once you do get picked and you cross the rope, it ceases to exist whether you’re giving 100% for your coach or for your team-mates,” he said. “The biggest thing is that you’re playing, and you’re out there playing for your country. That’s the biggest thing, and everything else comes second. You’re out there to represent your nation and that’s it.”While Zimbabwe has battled shortages of all sorts of commodities – such as sugar, salt, fuel, cash and electricity – over the years, there’s one thing it always has plenty of: rumours. The one doing the rounds on Thursday morning was that Steven Trenchard, the Johannesburg-born Mid West Rhinos batsman, had been called up to join the national squad.Trenchard, 31, played club cricket for Wimbledon in the Surrey Championship Premier Division before joining the Matabeleland Tuskers franchise in the 2010-11 season. After moving away from cricket for a while, he reappeared on the domestic circuit earlier this year on Mid West Rhinos’ books, and despite middling form at provincial level he holds a good reputation in National League club cricket – though whether or not this warrants a national call-up is up for debate.When asked about the rumour, Mangongo explained that Trenchard is “being looked at, just like any other Zimbabwean player”. Is he part of the squad from which the team will be picked to play Australia? “No he’s not. There’s many rumours which fly in this part of the world.” Outside, Trenchard walked from the field with the rest of the squad, dressed in the team’s practice kit. Just another normal day in Zimbabwe.

Piyush Chawla said KKR enjoyed an advantage because they were playing all four of their Group A games in Hyderabad, where the pitch was “already on the slower side”

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Sep-2014Gambhir targets new trophy

“The way Russell batted, the way Ryan batted was unbelievable. I need to mention Sunil Narine; he is a special guy. Giving nine runs in four overs always controls the game for us. This is one tournament we haven’t won. Guys are pretty motivated to go out there and turn it around for us.”

“I was just positive coming from the CPL and was backing myself all the time. I’m a bit used to getting the team over the line, well done to Tendo [Ten Doeschate] as well. We just kept rotating it, he told me to stay positive. When you work hard in training, it becomes natural [hitting big]. It was a very good wicket, it didn’t matter who the bowler was. I backed myself against Ashwin and Jadeja to hit them over the line.”

Kolkata Knight Riders legspinner Piyush Chawla has said his team enjoyed an advantage because they were playing all four of their Champions League Group A games in Hyderabad, where the pitch was “already on the slower side”. Knight Riders began their campaign with a come-from-behind victory against Chennai Super Kings on Wednesday.”In a short tournament like this, it is a good advantage if you’re playing all your league games at one venue,” Chawla told clt20.com after the three-wicket victory. “It gives you the chance to get used to the conditions and the wicket and enables you to plan your strategies in a better way. It also saves you from the hectic traveling.”The pitch is already on the slower side. But if you hang in there, you can also score runs on it. As a spinner it is important to vary your pace and mix it up nicely.”Chasing 158, Knight Riders were 51 for 5 in nine overs before a brace of half-centuries from overseas allrounders Ryan ten Doeschate and Andre Russell secured victory with six balls to spare. The Knight Riders spinners were instrumental in restricting Super Kings to 157 for 4 – Chawla, Yusuf Pathan and Sunil Narine took all the wickets.Chawla said bowling with Narine, who had figures of 4-0-9-1, gave him opportunities to take wickets. He dismissed Dwayne Smith and Faf du Plessis to slow Super Kings down. “Bowling with him [Narine] does help at times, like it did today,” Chawla said. “He bowled four overs and gave away only nine runs. That took the pressure off me at the other end. However, sometimes, it also works the other way. Batsmen will often look to play Sunil out and that means I would be their hitting target. It does give you a better chance to pick wickets but also increases your chances of being clobbered.”Chawla said he had not had much of a break between the IPL and the CLT20, despite not having international commitments during that period. “Fifteen days after the IPL, I was back playing matches non-stop and then we had a camp in South Africa. It was a camp organised by KKR where we underwent some tough physical activities like park runs and mountain biking. It was very good for our fitness and the result is showing with the weight I have lost.”Knight Riders’ second group game is against Lahore Lions on September 21.

ESPNcricinfo looks back at previous tours that were abandoned

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Oct-2014West Indies in England 1939
The outbreak of the Second World War saw the last seven matches of the tour cancelled. The tourists boarded the from Greenock to sail back to the Caribbean shortly before the War of the Atlantic began.England in Pakistan 1968-69
Political upheaval saw the East Pakistan leg of the tour – where the second Test was scheduled for Dacca – initially cancelled but the Pakistan cricket board persuaded England to stay. The tour got as far as the third Test in Karachi before rioters stormed the ground on the third morning and England were on the first flight home.India in Pakistan 1984-85
The assassination of Indira Gandhi saw India brought home for 13 days of national mourning; the final three matches were cancelled.
New Zealand in Sri Lanka 1986-87
The tour was touch and go to begin with but New Zealand were persuaded to travel. However, during the first game of the tour, an explosion in Colombo killed 100 people and New Zealand quickly departed.New Zealand in Pakistan 2002
A bomb blast outside the team’s hotel shortly before the start of the second Test in Karachi saw the tour immediately abandoned. It remains the last time New Zealand toured Pakistan.Sri Lanka in New Zealand 2004-05
The Boxing Day tsunami initially saw the tour only suspended for five days of mourning but the Sri Lankans soon wanted to return homeSouth Africa in Sri Lanka 2006
Two Tests were played on the tour but a bomb exploded outside the tourists’ hotel before the start of the one-day series and the matches were subsequently called offSri Lanka in Pakistan 2008-09
Terrorists opened fire on the Sri Lankan team bus en route to the second Test in Lahore, injuring six members of the tour party. The tourists were whisked home and international cricket in Pakistan was suspended.West Indies in Sri Lanka 2010-11
Persistent wet weather saw the five match one-day series abandoned after three rubbers and rescheduled.

The big names in South Zone batting vying for a national berth didn’t fire, but B Aparajith stepped up to power South into the semi-finals

The Report by Devashish Fuloria29-Nov-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
File pic: B Aparajith made his second List A hundred as South Zone cruised past Central•ESPNcricinfo LtdAparajith hails Karun’s advice

B Aparajith has credited Karun Nair for instructing him to calm down and “play normal, good cricket”, after the pair’s 134-run stand set up South Zone’s 116-run victory.
“When Karun came in, he guided me well,” he said. “He told me that not getting runs for one or two overs is not a problem so long as we stay on the wicket and play normal good cricket. The runs will take care of themselves.”
“He is a player who once he gets set, he will get runs easily and he can easily clear the field. So the first 20 -25 balls he was just batting it out. After that, the pace of flow of runs changed and we started getting runs.”
“I want to become a player who can play all the formats. It is a challenge for a cricketer to play all three formats. You need to adapt to each and every format and do it quickly. It’s a challenge for a cricketer and I am trying to work on it.”

The India selectors were in attendance at the Wankhede stadium keeping a watchful gaze on some of the fringe players in the Deodhar Trophy opener between South Zone and Central Zone. It’s the last domestic one-day tournament. Batsmen such as Robin Uthappa, Manish Pandey and Sanju Samson were all dismissed for single-digit scores, while seamer Ishwar Pandey and chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav were taken for runs. But Tamil Nadu’s B Aparajith smashed his second List A century to set up the foundation of South’s crushing win against a depleted Central.Aparajith was confident from the outset but blossomed once spin was introduced. He stepped out second ball against Piyush Chawla and drove it all along the ground to the wide long-off boundary. Not that the bowlers were testing him. Both Chawla and Kuldeep delivered a fair share of short deliveries and Aparajith feasted on them, often using the pull shot to ping the midwicket boundary. But he was equally adept at using his feet the moment he saw any flight, which meant he was never tied down in his innings.He reached his half-century in 50 balls in the 28th over by which time the innings had been injected with some momentum due to an aggressive Karun Nair at the other end. South had been slow after losing their top three to the seamers: Uthappa caught behind off a rising delivery from Pankaj Singh, Mayank Agarwal edging to slip off Ishwar Pandey and Manish playing all around a big inswinger from Anureet Singh to be bowled. Nair played the swinging ball from Anureet carefully at the start of the innings but then opened up once the two spinners came into operation.Nair’s first boundary came off a sweep off Kuldeep, he followed it up with consecutive pull shots against Chawla in the next over, then reverse-swept and pulled Kuldeep for boundaries in the next over to move into the 30s. In between, the fifty of the partnership had been raised. Chawla soon switched Kuldeep with offspinner Jalaj Saxena, but continued leaking runs and ended up with 61 runs from his seven overs.As Nair’s pace increased, Aparajith fed his partner the strike. Nair reached his half-century off 40 deliveries and the two brought up the century stand in 15 overs. Nair looked set for a century but he fell for 74, swatting a short ball from Pankaj to deep midwicket. The 124-run partnership laid a strong platform for a tall total. Aparajith continued to push on with carefully placed chips and drives and brought up his century off 98 balls. He celebrated the landmark with a casual hit over extra cover off Ishwar that went all the way.Wickets tumbled towards the end, three of them falling to Pankaj in the last over of the innings to give the bowler a five-for, but Aparajith’s innings had already lifted the total to a challenging level.Central’s batting appeared thin in comparison to South’s – no Naman Ojha, no Robin Bist, no Mahesh Rawat – and it didn’t help that they lost their first wicket with only a run on the board. Vinay Kumar caught Jalaj Saxena napping outside the crease and ran him out brilliantly. Saxena had played a defensive shot and the ball had spun back behind the stumps. But Vinay sprinted past the batsman and kicked the ball back with his heel to hit the stumps. Saxena was taken by surprise and his bat was in the air. Jitesh Sharma, batting with an unusual Shiv Chanderpaul-like stance, edged Vinay to second slip and Ashok Menaria was trapped lbw four balls later as Central were alreadyin trouble at 4 for 3.Central’s batsmen prodded and pushed around during the innings, never really threatening South’s total. Arjit Gupta smashed his way around to a quick half-century – his 66 included five sixes and five fours – in the dying stages of the chase but the damage had been done at the top. Vinay Kumar returned with the spell of 6-2-8-3. It was South’sfirst win against Central after five consecutive losses in the Deodhar Trophy.South advanced to the semi-final on Monday against West Zone.

The lawyer representing Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard and Darren Sammy has called the move by the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) to drop the trio from the ODI squad for the South Africa tour an attempt to push the trio into “cricket’s political wildernes

Nagraj Gollapudi23-Dec-2014The lawyer representing Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard and Darren Sammy has called the move by the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) to drop the trio from the ODI squad for the South Africa tour an attempt to push the trio into “cricket’s political wilderness”.  Ralph Thorne, appointed the players’ counsel to negotiate the contracts dispute that lead to West Indies pulling out of the India tour in October, has also blamed WICB for victimising the three players who he now feared could miss out on playing in the World Cup.”I consider the dismissal of Dwayne Bravo from the captaincy of the West Indies ODI team and the dropping of Bravo, Sammy and Pollard from the ODI team to South Africa as a design to graduate them into cricket’s political wilderness,” Thorne told ESPNcricinfo.Calling the inclusion of Bravo, Pollard and Sammy in the Twenty20 leg of the South Africa series as a “consolation prize”, Thorne said it was a deliberate move by the WICB to push aside his clients from participating in the World Cup. Teams are required to submit a list of their final 15 players by January 7. “Their retention in the Twenty20 team is not merely a consolation prize, but that inclusion, joined with their exclusion from the ODI team, is a gentle form of ruthlessness that disqualifies them from the most meaningful opportunity to compete for a place in the World Cup squad.”Thorne also called the move to omit the trio from South Africa ODIs but including them in the list of 30 World Cup probables as inconsistent. “Last week, however, the WICB included the three players in a 30-man squad to prepare for the World Cup. Yet, they have not been included in the ODI squad for the tour to South Africa. Are we to conclude that, by this blatant inconsistency, the left hand and the right hand of West Indies selection policy is so woefully uncoordinated?”

Last week, however, the WICB included the three players in a 30-man squad to prepare for the World Cup. Yet, they have not been included in the ODI squad for the tour to South Africa. Are we to conclude that, by this blatant inconsistency, the left hand and the right hand of West Indies selection policy is so woefully uncoordinated?Ralph Thorne

Last week, the three-man task force set up by the board to investigate the dispute concluded in its three-page report that all three parties – WICB, West Indies Players Association and the players – were equally to be blamed for the crisis which lead to Bravo leading the players revolt in India. The BCCI had slapped a $42 million penalty on the WICB for cancelling the tour.The players’ biggest concern has been the new memorandum of understanding and combined business agreement signed between the WICB and WIPA in September. In various letters written to the WIPA president Wavell Hinds and WICB president Dave Cameron, Bravo, acting as the players’ representative, had stated that signing the new contract would amount to them accepting a drastic cut in their annual payments. As an interim solution the players recommended switching back to the previous MoU.The task force, comprising Michael Gordon, Wes Hall and Richard Cheltenham, in its report said there were “very real questions” as to even whether the MoU signed in September was a contract or not. Simultaneously, the task force came down heavily on the senior players who it said had failed to set an example to the juniors.Thorne said he would challenge the task force report. “The Task Force submitted a three-page report that apportioned the majority blame for the failed tour on the “senior players”. I have challenged the validity of the process of the Task Force and of the report. The Chairman of the Task Force told me in writing that the Task Force has no powers of coercion nor sanction in relation to any player. I will now reasonably conclude that in spite of the Chairman’s assurances, the WICB has exploited portions of the report to dismiss Bravo and to demote Bravo, Sammy and Pollard to the Twenty20 team exclusively.”Thorne also pointed out that the WICB had “promised” that the players would not be victimised and would issue a public statement to honour their word but “to this day failed to issue that statement.” That meeting between WICB, WIPA and the players, Thorne said, had been attended by two Caribbean Prime Ministers (Ralph Gonsalves of St. Vincent and Keith Mitchell of Grenada). “The three players have suffered an insidious victimisation,” Thorne said.Thorne said he had spoken to Bravo, Pollard and Sammy over the weekend and “advised” them “to continue to represent their country with pride and with the best performances in spite of this adversity.”Thorne said he would see explanations from both WICB and WIPA as a means for “reconciliation” while pointing out he would not be pressing for any legal proceeding as of now. Instead he would approach the ICC to resolve the dispute. “This is an awkward time to contemplate legal proceedings so I also propose to appeal to the ICC as to the conduct of the WICB in relation to its players of such high standing in the game.”

Dav Whatmore is expected to be appointed as Zimbabwe’s coach ahead of the 2015 World Cup, replacing Stephen Mangongo who was sacked from the position earlier in December after a five-month tenure

Firdose Moonda28-Dec-2014Dav Whatmore is set to be unveiled as Zimbabwe’s coach ahead of the 2015 World Cup, replacing Stephen Mangongo who was sacked from the position earlier in December after a five-month tenure, ESPNcricinfo understands.The support staff will also include a new batting coach, who is yet to be named, and Douglas Hondo as bowling coach, with an extension to Whatmore’s deal due to be negotiated after the World Cup.The new coach’s primary task will be to ensure Zimbabwe have a better tournament than they did in 2011, where they only managed to beat the Associates in their group and lost heavily against the other Full Members. Whatmore will have little over a month to prepare Zimbabwe ahead of the showpiece event in Australia and New Zealand, and he will be doing so at a Dubai-based academy as well as in their home country. Zimbabwe will also play four 50-over games with Canada as part of their World Cup preparations.Whatmore has previously been in charge of Asian sides Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Under Whatmore, Sri Lanka won the 1996 World Cup and Pakistan claimed the 2012 Asia Cup. During the 2007 World Cup, Whatmore led Bangladesh to victories over India and South Africa, helping the team reach the Super Eights.Brendan Taylor welcomed Whatmore’s appointment and said that he would be a “great addition” to the Zimbabwe set-up. “Welcome to @dfwhatmore! A great addition to Zimbabwe cricket. Certainly myself and the players are looking forward to working with him,” Taylor tweeted.Since 2000, Zimbabwe have lurched from one crisis to another – most notably a six-year self-imposed exile from the longest format. After their Test comeback in 2011, they have enjoyed limited success including wins over Bangladesh and Pakistan, and an ODI victory over Australia, but they have continued to struggle away from home.Zimbabwe were blanked 8-0 on their recent tour of Bangladesh, in which they lost all three Tests and all five ODIs – a result that led to Mangongo’s sacking. They have only been on two other tours in the last three years, to New Zealand and West Indies, and lost every match in all formats on both those visits. Their domestic game, meanwhile, has been marred by strikes over non-payment of salaries, and the financial situation still remains unstable.It is also expected that former Zimbabwe captain Alistair Campbell will rejoin ZC, after resigning as chairman of selectors in 2011. He is likely to return as the board’s managing director of cricket, essentially an overseeing role. Givemore Makoni will retain his position as convener of selectors over a panel which will include the coach, Hondo, the captain Elton Chigumbura, and Babu Memon, a long-serving administrator and former team manager.

Craig McMillan joined Brendon McCullum in brushing off Thursday’s string of run-outs as a freak occurrence, and backed a misfiring NZ top order to click, ahead of the third ODI at Eden Park

Andrew Fidel Fernando16-Jan-2015New Zealand batting coach Craig McMillan joined Brendon McCullum in brushing off Thursday’s string of run-outs as a freak occurrence, and backed a misfiring top order to click, ahead of the third ODI at Eden Park. Opener McCullum is the series top-scorer so far, with 168 runs, but in both matches he has been poorly supported by the other top-order batsmen.In Hamilton, McCullum had contributed 117 runs of the team’s 158 runs by the 30th over. Five batsmen made 10 or fewer in that innings, and Ross Taylor’s 34 swallowed up 69 deliveries. In Christchurch, McCullum hit 51, but the team still slipped to 101 for 5 before Corey Anderson led a resurgence. The batting problems seem to have begun with opener Martin Guptill, who has scores of 0 and 10 so far, but McMillan said the team was certain Guptill would soon be making more substantial contributions.”It’s only been two games and the alarm bells aren’t ringing within the squad,” McMillan said. “We know Guptill is a quality performer with the record to back that up. In Hamilton he tried to hit one over the top, and just didn’t quite get the elevation he was looking for. We’re confident that the guys we’ve got can do the job. But there’s no doubt that we need to see a little more from some of them, and hopefully that starts tomorrow.”Guptill’s low international scores have come despite significant domestic form in the approach to the series. In his last four innings in New Zealand’s Ford Trophy, Guptill has scores of 111, 55 and 108, in addition to the fifty he hit against Pakistan in the fourth ODI played in the UAE.”I don’t think it’s a confidence issue,” McMillan said. “His international track record is very good and he has come off some good performances for the Auckland Aces. Whenever you come from domestic cricket into international cricket, there is a lift in intensity.”Everything rises in terms of the gameplay, and a whole lot of things change. It does take a couple of games to adapt to that. Maybe a couple of players are finding that. Certainly, some of the guys are a little bit short of the runs that they’ll be after, but I’m sure on a good, hard, fast, bouncy pitch tomorrow, they’ll come good.”Kane Williamson is unlikely to be fit for the match, while Grant Elliott may also be ruled out because of an illness in the family. McMillan said New Zealand had resisted the temptation to look ahead at the World Cup, and were instead keenly focused on winning the ongoing series. If Elliott in unavailable, Daniel Vettori is likely to bat at no. 5 again, as he did in Hamilton.”We’ve got injuries to deal with, but we’re putting the best team that we can, onto the field. Dan is batting at a needed position at the moment. He’s batted at no. 5 before, and he’s batted higher in the order. He’s scored a lot of international runs, and he was put there to do a job that we know he can do. Depending on how the squad pulls up tomorrow, he may do that job again.”

Pakistan and West Indies each having been shorn of their most effective bowler, they have also been stripped of confidence in the lead-up to the tournament

The Preview by Brydon Coverdale20-Feb-2015Match factsFebruary 21, 2015
Start time 11.00am local (2200 GMT, previous day)Big pictureThis could have been the battle of the mystery spinners. The ICC’s rankings list Saeed Ajmal as the No.1 one-day international bowler in the world, and Sunil Narine as No.2. But last year, the ICC cracked down on suspect bowling actions and neither Ajmal nor Narine is part of this World Cup. Pakistan and West Indies each having been shorn of their most effective bowler, they have also been stripped of confidence in the lead-up to the tournament.Take a look at the form guide below: there are more Ls than in a Welsh crossword puzzle. Pakistan have lost 11 of their past 13 ODIs and West Indies seven of their past eight. Before the World Cup began, most observers would have nominated either West Indies or Pakistan as the top-eight side most in danger of missing the quarter-finals. One game in, not much has changed: Pakistan were thrashed by India in Adelaide and West Indies lost to an Associate nation, Ireland, in Nelson.That has left Pakistan on the bottom of the Pool B table and West Indies second from the bottom. It is early, there is plenty of time remaining to ensure progression, but the situation is precarious for both sides. So, Saturday’s match in Christchurch takes on extra significance. The losing team will find themselves even further down in the deep, dark trench that is the bottom of Pool B, with fewer and fewer chances to get their heads back above water.Form guide(last five matches, most recent first)
Pakistan LLLLL
West Indies LLWLLIn the spotlightYounis Khan’s skill and experience is a valuable asset for Pakistan, but it seemed a strange move to shift him against India to open the batting for just the third time in his 262-match ODI career. His 103 against New Zealand in the UAE in December stands as a Burj Khalifa compared to his low-rise one-day scores in the past two years. “Who doesn’t go through a lean batting form, but using Younis as an opening batsman is an injustice to such a talented batsman,” Javed Miandad said this week. “The top four batting spots are specialists’ slots and those who are in form should raise their hands for it. If Younis has to be slotted in the playing XI, then he should come down the order when the ball gets a bit old.”One of the most inexperienced captains in the tournament, Jason Holder has the challenge not only of leading a team full of older men but also ensuring his own form is up to scratch. Since taking over the ODI captaincy, he has taken only eight wickets at 41.37 from six games, while going at 6.49 an over. “It’s not a burden on me,” Holder said of the leadership. “I’m enjoying it at the moment, just trying to do my best for the team.”Team newsGuessing at Pakistan’s XI and correct batting order is as hard as solving a puzzle with no letters showing. Younis is suddenly an opener, but will he stay there? Will they stick with Umar Akmal as wicketkeeper or get Sarfraz Ahmed back in? Will they persist with a spin-heavy attack after it failed against India? “You can’t say after one game,” Misbah said. “We are not panicking. We’re just looking into all these matters very closely.”Pakistan (possible) 1 Ahmed Shehzad, 2 Younis Khan, 3 Haris Sohail, 4 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), 5 Sohaib Maqsood, 6 Umar Akmal (wk), 7 Shahid Afridi, 8 Wahab Riaz, 9 Yasir Shah, 10 Sohail Khan, 11 Mohammad Irfan.West Indies were without spinner Sulieman Benn in the first game after he succumbed to back soreness, and allrounder Darren Sammy has also been battling a stiff back since the loss to Ireland. However, the captain Jason Holder indicated both men would likely be available. “We’ve gotten Benn to a stage where we think he’s going to be a lot better off than in the first game against Ireland,” Holder said. “Tomorrow we should have a full complement to choose from.”West Indies (possible) 1 Dwayne Smith, 2 Chris Gayle, 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 6 Lendl Simmons, 7 Darren Sammy, 8 Jason Holder (capt), 9 Kemar Roach, 10 Jerome Taylor, 11 Sulieman Benn.Pitch and conditionsHagley Oval proved good for batting in the first innings of the tournament opener last Saturday, when New Zealand made 331 against Sri Lanka. The forecast for Christchurch this Saturday is for a fine day and a top of 25C.Stats and trivia Shahid Afridi is 30 runs away from 8000 in ODIs. He would be the 27th man to pass that milestone, and comfortably the slowest in terms of innings taken Kemar Roach is two wickets away from 100 in ODIs Since the previous World Cup, these teams have met in 11 ODIs for six Pakistan wins, four West Indies victories, and one tieQuotes”If we want to do well in this World Cup this is an important game, and both teams need to win.”
“We can’t let our defeats get us down. We lost the game against Ireland and it was a pretty tough loss, but if we get ourselves down it’s hard to pick ourselves back up.”