Ranji Trophy Live, round seven
ESPNcricinfo staff15-Nov-2015
ESPNcricinfo staff15-Nov-2015
Six department teams and two regional teams – Lahore Blues and Karachi Whites – qualified for the Quaid-E-Azam trophy Super eight round starting on December 14
ESPNcricinfo staff12-Dec-2015Six department teams and two regional teams – Lahore Blues and Karachi Whites – qualified for the Quaid-E-Azam trophy Super eight round starting on December 14.Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited topped Group A, while Port Qasim Authority (PQA), Islamabad, Hyderabad and Peshawar region, despite not having lost a single match in the season, have been relegated. National Bank of Pakistan lead the progression from group B.
Teams qualified: Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited, National Bank of Pakistan, Water and Power Department Authority, National Bank of Pakistan, United Bank Limited, Khan Research Laboratory and Sui Southern Gas Cooperation, Lahore White and Lahore Blues.
Teams that failed to make the cut: Peshawar, Port Qasim Authority, Islamabad, Hyderabad, Habib Bank Limited, Rawalpindi, Lahore Whites, Federally Administered Tribal Areas
Port Qasim have managed only one win in seven matches. Not only have they failed to qualify, but they are now relegated from grade one to grade two. If the QEA format remains intact, they will have to finish top in grade two tournaments and then have to qualify for the Trophy.This despite having international players like Khurram Manzoor, Khalid Latif, Shahzaib Hasan, Mohammad Sami, Mohammad Talha and former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif as coach.Port Qasim’s fate was sealed when they could only manage a draw in their final game against Sui Southern Gas Corporation in Islamabad. They finished sixth with 11 points – the poorest record among the eight department teams – and is the only one that has been demoted.Hyderabad, a regional side from Sindh, were demoted from Quaid-e-Azam Trophy after they finished at the bottom of Group B. They ended up winless after seven games, and lost five of them. Lahore Whites were also winless, but avoided relegation by losing one less game than Hyderabad.Federally Administered Tribal Areas may have finished bottom, if not for their first-ever win in first-class cricket, over Karachi Blues. FATA will not make it to the Super eight, but will continue playing grade one cricket.
A 57-ball 62 from the opener Heino Kuhn helped Titans to a four-wicket victory against Dolphins in Benoni.
ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jan-2016
ScorecardFile photo: Heino Kuhn (left) scored 129 and 62•BCCI
A 57-ball 62 from the opener Heino Kuhn helped Titans to a four-wicket victory against Dolphins in Benoni. Set a fourth-innings chase of 173, Kuhn’s blast laid a strong platform for Titans, who also rode on a handy 38 from Qaasim Adams to secure the win inside 34 overs.Titans win, though, was mainly set up by Kuhn’s performance in the first-innings, as he and Theunis de Bruyn both scored centuries, powering the team to 440 and collecting a vital innings lead. Kuhn struck 16 fours and a six during his 129, while de Bruyn’s 123 featured 19 fours. This was despite a five-for from Keshav Maharaj, and a 4 for 101 from Craig Alexander.Earlier, Dolphins, having been inserted, managed 357 in their first innings on the back of fifties from Imraan Khan, Khaya Zondo and Daryn Smit. Imraan got among the runs again in the second innings, stroking a patient 107, but received little by way of support from his team-mates, as Dolphins folded for 255.
While Sri Lanka’s pacers looked helpless on a dry wicket in Ranchi, they seem to be the only hope Sri Lanka have to seal the series. India, on the other hand, will be mighty pleased with the comprehensive win in Ranchi, and will hope to stretch their form
The preview by Andrew Fidel Fernando13-Feb-2016
Sunday, February 14, 2016
Start time 1930 local (1400 GMT)Dushmantha Chameera’s tight bowling performance was one of the few bright spots in Sri Lanka’s loss in Ranchi•BCCI
Sri Lanka, with their raw-but-aggressive seam attack, prospered on a greentop, but on the dry Ranchi surface, the visitors were never in the game. Seam and pace appear to be Sri Lanka’s surest route to rattling the hosts again, but it’s unlikely they will encounter a helpful pitch in Visakhapatnam. If another dry track is prepared, Sri Lanka are in danger of being blown away by India’s top order cannons, and picked off by India’s spin.More worrying than a potential series loss for the visitors, will be their problems at the top of the order. Sri Lanka are days away from naming their World T20 squad, but are yet to locate a replacement for Kusal Perera. Danushka Gunathilaka has not quite made the best of his chances. Niroshan Dickwella has played only one T20 international, and was dismissed cheaply in it.With Shikhar Dhawan striking his first T20 half-century on Friday, India’s T20 puzzle is falling into place. Hardik Pandya’s pinch-hitting promotion also went off well, while Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane all seemed in good touch. Yuvraj Singh appears to be the only doubt at present, but he has also had limited opportunities with the bat.On the bowling front, R Ashwin seems to be spinning himself into ominous home form, as Ashish Nehra continues to settle into his new-ball role. MS Dhoni has options with this XI. He tried seven different bowlers on Friday, allowing him to reserve more overs from the frontline bowlers for the back end of the innings.
India: WLWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Sri Lanka: LWLLL
Dhoni had so many overs from his part-time bowlers on Friday, that he was able to use Jasprit Bumrah as a death-overs yorker specialist. It was a job Bumrah performed admirably. He gave away 13 runs in his first over – the 16th of the innings – but varied his deliveries better in the second over, to claim two wickets and concede only one run. As sharp in the field as he is at the bowling crease, Bumrah is among those adding dynamism and versatility to the India XI.Quick and hostile in Pune, versatile in Ranchi, Dushmantha Chameera is beginning to blossom at the top level. There are areas to improve on. Maybe he could use the seam a little better than he is at the moment, and the yorkers aren’t exactly consistent either, but those are minor contentions. Chameera will probably play through the entire T20 season coming up, because Sri Lanka have few other choices, but they should also be wary of overusing him. There are big mid-year Tests on the horizon. They need Chameera fit for those.
With almost everyone having contributed in some way to the victory, India will be tempted to keep the same XI.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Ajinkya Rahane, 4 Suresh Raina, 5 MS Dhoni (capt.)(wk), 6 Yuvraj Singh, 7 Hardik Pandya, 8 Ravindra Jadeja, 9 R Ashwin, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 11 Ashish NehraWith Gunathilaka unable to show his T20 wares so far, Niroshan Dickwella may be given another chance at the top of the order. Team management will also think about giving Jeffrey Vandersay a match ahead of Seekkuge Prasanna.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Niroshan Dickwella, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Dinesh Chandimal (capt.)(wk), 4 Chamara Kapugedera, 5 Dasun Shanaka 6 Milinda Siriwardana, 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Sachithra Senanayake, 9 Dushmantha Chameera, 10 Jeffrey Vandersay, 11 Kasun Rajitha
Going by the scores in the four one-dayers that have been played in Visakhapatnam, the pitch makes for moderately high-scoring games. The weather is expected to remain good for the game’s duration, with temperatures dropping to the low 20 degrees Celsius range.
At the recent ICC board meeting in the UAE, chairman Shashank Manohar discussed the possibility of giving 6% of India’s 22% share of ICC revenues back to the world body, according to BCB president Nazmul Hassan
Mohammad Isam and Nagraj Gollapudi06-Feb-2016At the recent ICC Board meeting in Dubai, chairman Shashank Manohar discussed the possibility of giving 6% of India’s 22% share of ICC revenues back to the world body, according to BCB president Nazmul Hassan. The BCB president made the statement while speaking to TV reporters in Bangladesh on Saturday but did not respond to calls from ESPNcricinfo for comments. Manohar, too, could not be reached.According to Hassan, and two other directors of Full Member boards who attended the meetings which finished on Thursday in Dubai, Manohar told the ICC Board that he would speak to the BCCI about giving 6% of the revenue earned by the Indian board to other Full Members outside the Big 3 group.”Mr Shashank Manohar has said he wants to give away a percentage from India’s behalf. He said he will speak to his board and if he gets approval, he said he will give around 6% of the money,” Hassan told reporters in Bangladesh. “Shashank Manohar is a logical man. He thought that if India gives away 6%, it would help those countries below them. But first he has to get this approved by the board.”About a month after he became the BCCI president and, by extension, the ICC chairman, Manohar made a statement in a personal capacity, disagreeing with the constitutional revamp carried out in 2014 in controversial circumstances which allowed the BCCI, the ECB and Cricket Australia more authority and a greater share of profits in the ICC.”I do not agree with the Big 3 countries bullying the ICC,” Manohar said upon returning from Dubai after his first visit to the ICC headquarters in Dubai in November. “Because it is nice to say that India (BCCI) will get 22% of the total revenue of the ICC but you cannot make the poor poorer and the rich richer, only because you have the clout. The ICC runs cricket throughout the world.”After the Board meeting on Thursday, the ICC stated in a media release that Manohar would head a five-member steering committee that would review the 2014 restructure of the ICC carried out by the trio of Srinivasan, then ECB chairman Giles Clarke and former CA chairman Wally Edwards in 2014.”We need to revisit the Big 3 decisions. And stop calling it Big 3 from now onwards. He [Manohar] was very, very particular about that. Every member has equal rights,” a Full Member director, who was present at the ICC Board meeting, said.According to this official, Clarke, who is now the ECB president, remained quiet throughout the board meeting. Cricket Australian chairman David Peever, though, is understood to be on board with Manohar’s idea to roll back the revamp.The steering committee will have on board chiefs of the BCCI, the ECB and CA, and Manohar has asked all 10 Full Members to give their own comments on the issues they had with the resolutions passed in 2014. The committee will present its first report at the next round of ICC board meetings, scheduled to be held from April 16.”There is a genuine appetite to revisit the financial model to better share the ICC funds,” said a senior official of second Full Member country.
Asghar Stanikzai, the Afghanistan captain, has joined the chorus of Associate voices calling for more opportunities to play against Full Members
ESPNcricinfo staff16-Mar-2016Asghar Stanikzai, the Afghanistan captain, has joined the chorus of Associate voices calling for more opportunities to play against Full Members. Speaking to the media on the eve of his team’s World T20 clash with Sri Lanka, Stanikzai said the level of talent in Afghanistan was evident from their remarkable climb up the cricketing ladder over the last decade, and said the gap between Full Members and Associates would only narrow from more regular competiton.”You can’t make big comparisons between Afghanistan and other Associates,” Stanikzai said. “Many other Associates have been playing for the last 30 to 40 years, participating in World Cups and other events. But if you see Afghanistan’s history at the elite level, we have only been playing for the last 6-7 years.”In that time we have achieved what other nations couldn’t do in 30-40 years. It shows how much talent Afghanistan have to play at the elite level. Definitely we need more games against the Full Members, it can increase our experience in the game.”Pointing to Afghanistan’s recent ODI and T20 series wins over Zimbabwe, both home and away, Stanikzai said his side had what it took to beat a Full Member side.”If we play against other Associate countries, we will get experience from each other, but if you play with a Full Member, like we did against Zimbabwe in ODIs and T20s, you learn how to beat them. We now have that experience. As long as we play more games against Full Members, the distance between Associates and Full Members will reduce.”Looking ahead to the game against Sri Lanka, Stanikzai was confident Afghanistan had the quality to pull off a win.”We have some game-changers, and we have not qualified for the Super 10s just to participate. We are ready to challenge some big teams.”Looking back to Afghanistan’s impressive display against Sri Lanka in the 2015 World Cup, where a century from Mahela Jayawardene prevented a potential upset, Stanikzai said the absence of the now retired Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara raised Afghanistan’s hopes.”We came close against Sri Lanka in the 2015 World Cup but their experienced batsmen, particularly Mahela Jayawardene, played outstandingly to beat us. This time most of their players are new; this time we have a good chance to beat them.”
Paul Horton’s first Championship hundred for Leicestershire tightened their grip midway through their second division match against Sussex at Hove
ECB Reporters Network02-May-2016
ScorecardPaul Horton struck his first hundred since his switch from Lancashire [file picture]•PA Photos
Paul Horton’s first century since joining Leicestershire helped cement his side’s strong position on a rain-affected second day of their Specsavers County Championship match against Sussex at Hove.The former Lancashire opener made 100 as Leicestershire reached 300 for 4 replying to Sussex’s 163 in the 43.2 overs possible because of rain and bad light.But with a lead of 133 and wickets in hand, Leicestershire are still in a strong position to win their second game of the season thanks to the foundations laid by Horton and his captain, Mark Cosgrove, who put on 114 for the third wicket in 32 overs.It was Horton’s 22nd first-class hundred, which he reached with a cut off Danny Briggs that brought him his 14th four, and came after he passed 50 in three of his four previous Championship innings for his new county.However, the 33-year-old, who joined Leicestershire last winter, lasted two more balls before he was caught behind down the leg side off George Garton, sent on his way after a consultation between umpires Ian Gould and Nigel Llong. His runs came off 174 balls and he batted for just over four hours.Even with floodlights on from the start, which was delayed until 2.10pm because of morning drizzle, batting conditions weren’t ideal although there was little in the pitch to assist Sussex’s seamers.Sussex captain Ben Brown brought left-arm spinner Danny Briggs into the attack in the 54th over but it was leg-spinner Luke Wells, who bowled six overs either side of tea, who offered more threat and an appeal for a catch at the wicket off Mark Pettini when the ball turned out of the rough was turned down.Garton was the pick of the Sussex attack in two lively spells down the slope. Despite being plagued by no-ball problems – he was called for over-stepping seven times – the 19-year-old left-armer worked up a decent pace, swung the ball both ways and was rewarded with a second wicket after tea.Having just been on-driven for four by Cosgrove, he produced the perfect inswinging yorker which knocked out two stumps and Leicestershire’s captain was gone for 80, made from 136 balls with ten fours.It halted a stand of 49 in 12 overs with Brighton-born Pettini, who ended the day unbeaten on 42 with Niall O’Brien on seven. The umpires brought the players off at 5.20pm because of bad light and play was abandoned for the day shortly afterwards when rain arrived.
Yuvraj Singh and Ben Cutting unleashed some brutal end-overs hitting to nail a chase of 180 in Mohali and all but seal a berth in the playoffs of IPL 2016
The Report by Sirish Raghavan15-May-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsYuvraj Singh finished the chase with an unbeaten 42 off 24 balls•BCCI
Yuvraj Singh and Ben Cutting unleashed some brutal end-overs hitting to nail a chase of 180 in Mohali and all but seal Sunrisers Hyderabad’s berth in the playoffs of IPL 2016. For their part, Kings XI Punjab became the second team after Rising Pune Supergiants to crash out of the tournament, despite a 56-ball 96 by Hashim Amla.Yuvraj showcased his clean striking, with three fours and three massive sixes, in an unbeaten 42 off 24, while Ben Cutting – playing his first game for Sunrisers – chipped in with crucial monster hits of his own. Both batsmen ruthlessly tore into seamer Mohit Sharma in the 18th over, plundering 19 runs to bring the equation down to 20 required off the last two overs. Kings XI were clinging on as Sandeep Sharma conceded only three off the first three balls of the 19th, but Cutting slammed the fourth over the straight boundary to puncture the tension in the Sunrisers dugout. The chase was completed with seven wickets in hand and two balls to spare.The early stages of the chase were anchored by David Warner’s sixth fifty of the season. Warner and Shikhar Dhawan put on a 68-run opening stand, and after Dhawan was run out, Warner and Deepak Hooda looked set to take control of the innings. Just as they seemed to have settled in, however, Warner got out softly against the run of play. Looking to tuck the ball onto the leg side, he stepped deep into his crease and trod onto his stumps.Warner’s dismissal – Sunrisers’ third hit-wicket in four matches – left the game open again. They still required 83 off 47 balls – a stern test for a shaky middle order – but Yuvraj and Hooda hit Axar Patel for a four and a six later in the same over. The next three overs yielded roughly ten runs apiece, courtesy Hooda’s lusty hacks and Yuvraj’s well-timed blows.Hooda’s dismissal off the last ball of the 16th was followed by Axar’s stingy 17th over, which left Sunrisers with 39 to get off the last three overs. But Yuvraj and Cutting laid into Mohit Sharma and never looked back.After Kings XI had opted to bat on a hot Mohali afternoon, Amla set a brisk pace by square-cutting the second ball for four. That shot seemed to bring back the classy, free-flowing Amla, who can unpick the best of attacks with timing and calculated belligerence. An assortment of cuts and drives was accompanied by some rather adventurous scoops.Amla was helped by the fact that Sunrisers’ new-ball bowlers were not at their best. Bhuvneshwar Kumar was tidy but not threatening, while Ashish Nehra offered too many boundary balls in his first two overs. Despite the early loss of M Vijay – who spooned a well-disguised slower ball from Mustafizur Rahman to mid-off – the Kings XI innings soon gathered momentum.Amla stroked 14 fours and two sixes en route to his 96, receiving support from Wriddhiman Saha, Gurkeerat Singh and David Miller, in increasing order of explosiveness. Miller’s unbeaten nine-ball 20 towards the end of the innings was a timely boost to Kings XI, as Amla was beginning to run out of steam.In an increasingly desperate attempt to stem the run flow, Sunrisers used seven bowlers, none of whom proved particularly effective. They even lost Nehra to a leg injury in his third over. However, it was their batsmen who ultimately took them to their eighth win of the season and within sniffing distance of a berth in the playoffs.
South Africa’s shortage of fixtures against Zimbabwe stems from the absence of an enforceable FTP, rather than a reluctance to play so-called smaller teams, according to Tony Irish, CEO of the South African Cricketers’ Association
Firdose Moonda13-Jun-2016South Africa’s shortage of fixtures against neighbours Zimbabwe is mainly due to the absence of an enforceable Future Tours Programme (FTP), rather than a reluctance to play so-called smaller teams, according to Tony Irish, CEO of the South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA).Irish was responding to a claim made by Makhaya Ntini, former South Africa fast bowler and current interim Zimbabwe coach, who told the that South Africa were “not keen on visiting here and don’t want much to do with Zimbabwe”. Irish explained the issue was not about preference as much as it was about trying to draw up an international calendar.”The real problem is with the international cricket structure as a whole. At the time of the “Big Three” takeover at ICC, the FTP was de-regulated and the smaller countries lost the benefit of being part of a framework in which all countries were obliged to play all others home and away every four years,” Irish told ESPNcricinfo. “The FTP was replaced with ad hoc bilateral agreements with no touring guarantees for the small countries. The schedule is now so packed with these ad hoc agreements that it’s difficult to schedule additional tours with a genuine [South Africa] team just to help out another country.”Since 2014, when India, England and Australia led a restructure of the ICC, South Africa have enjoyed more fixtures against bigger nations – including two four-Test series against India and England respectively – but fewer against smaller ones. In that time, they have toured Zimbabwe only once; in August 2014, South Africa played a one-off Test and competed in a triangular ODI series which also included Australia.Ntini claimed South Africa had not wanted to make the trip and had “nearly pulled out” of the triangular but Irish said he was unaware of any threat not to tour. “I wasn’t aware of any suggestion that South Africa wouldn’t visit Zimbabwe in 2014,” Irish said.South Africa have included Zimbabwe in the season-opening Africa T20 Cup, which is in its second year. Zimbabwe do not have a team in any of South Africa’s other domestic competitions, unlike Namibia, who feature in the semi-professional provincial tournaments which are played in three-day and one-day formats. South Africa have scheduled an A team tour to Zimbabwe later this year but there are no senior men’s tours on the calendar.Zimbabwe had a quiet 2015, in which they hosted no Tests and had only India and New Zealand visit for limited-overs matches. That is set to improve this year, with India currently touring for three ODIs and three T20Is, New Zealand due to play two Tests in July-August and Sri Lanka set to visit on their way to South Africa at the end of the year. They are in the process of revamping their structures with a slimmed administrative office, a new selection panel headlined by the return of Tatenda Taibu and a new-look coaching staff, comprised of South Africans, with Ntini at the helm for now and Lance Klusener as batting coach.While Klusener did not have his contract renewed with Dolphins, Ntini has not coached in South Africa at all and attempts to open an academy in his home town have been stalled by lack of funding. He was appointed Zimbabwe’s bowling coach ahead of the World T20 in March and has taken over the main job in the aftermath of Dav Whatmore’s sacking.Ntini said he believed the faith Zimbabwe showed in him demonstrated an “ability here to identify leadership potential”, and he hit out at the South African system for not providing him with opportunities to give back to the game. “It works differently in South Africa where you roast in the system and find that other coaches leapfrog you,” Ntini said. “There are talented coaches in South Africa who need to get their international dues.”
Glenn Maxwell produced a jaw-dropping 46 not out from 26 balls to deliver Australia into the tri-series final and left his batting partner Mitchell Marsh lost for words at the other end
ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jun-2016In the lead-up to Australia’s must-win match against West Indies, acting coach Justin Langer spoke of how important Glenn Maxwell’s experience and finishing ability could become at the business end of the tri-series. As if on cue, Maxwell produced a jaw-dropping 46 not out from 26 balls to deliver Australia into the tri-series final and left his batting partner Mitchell Marsh lost for words at the other end.Australia needed 62 off 50 balls with six wickets in hand when Maxwell walked to the crease, a man who had failed to reach double figures in any of his past five ODI innings and had been dropped earlier in the series. But Maxwell found his x-factor and got Australia home with eight balls to spare, along the way reverse-sweeping Sunil Narine for six.”I said give yourself a few balls mate and then go for it,” Marsh said. “I was literally speechless at the other end watching an innings like that. Maxi has had a lot of doubt and hasn’t been in the greatest of form but an innings like that tonight shows why he’s one of the first picked in this side, because he’s so dangerous and can win us games like that in a few overs. Really rapt for him.”He actually told me we’ll just take them for ones. Next thing he’s playing a reverse-sweep for six. I absolutely loved it. Maxi is a free spirit, you’ve just got to let him go and do what he does. When it comes off like that it’s unbelievable to watch.”Maxwell and Marsh steered Australia to victory with their 62-run partnership, which followed on from a 122-run stand between Marsh and captain Steven Smith. Marsh’s innings of 79 not out from 85 deliveries was critical given that he had come to the crease at 99 for 3 chasing 283, and like Maxwell he had struggled for batting form in the series, having not reached 20 in any of his previous for innings.”It’s right up there, I think any time you can bat through an innings and be not out in a win in a crucial chase like that, it’s very satisfying,” Marsh said of his own innings. “I’ve put in a lot of work. I haven’t had much of an opportunity – well, I have, but I haven’t taken them in this series. So it was really nice to step up and get us over the line.”Australia’s place in Sunday’s tri-series final in Barbados is now secure, and they will take on the winner of Friday’s clash between West Indies and South Africa.