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When Charl Willoughby removed Phil Mustard in mid-afternoon at Chester-le-Street, Somerset went top of the Championship table but it is still far too early to tell who will finish in that prized position

Andrew McGlashan at Chester-le-Street14-Sep-2010
ScorecardSomerset’s bowlers did an impressive job on the second day at Chester-le-Street•PA Photos

When Charl Willoughby removed Phil Mustard in mid-afternoon at Chester-le-Street, Somerset went top of the Championship table but it is still far too early to tell who will finish in that prized position. The visitors, though, aren’t going to die wondering with Marcus Trescothick’s free-flowing 75 leading a quick-scoring reply as Somerset reached 226 for 4 at the close and within sight of a useful advantage.With Nottinghamshire having lost so much time at Old Trafford they are facing an uphill task to secure the 22-point win that gives them the title regardless, so Somerset may not need a maximum bonus-point victory here, either. Their best chance is to bat positively, following Trescothick’s lead, and then hope that Durham’s fight diminishes as the season draws to a close. The scoring rate of 4.77 shows that is their plan as James Hildreth and Peter Trego continued to unfurl their shots despite three quick wickets falling for 48 in seven overs.Trescothick’s fifty came from 65 balls and he was doing as he pleased with some friendly bowling, although the West Indian Ruel Brathwaite bowled an energetic spell on his Durham debut. It was Trescothick’s attacking instincts that brought his downfall as he drove at Ben Harmison – the brother of Steve who, like a host of Durham bowlers, is injured – and edged through to the keeper.Arul Suppiah had pushed a return catch to Liam Plunkett to end an opening stand of 48, but Nick Compton added 84 with Trescothick for the second wicket. Compton played some superb off-side shots, but immediately after hitting his ninth boundary was given lbw against Harmison. Somerset continued to lose their way when Craig Kieswetter played a horrid shot across the line at Chris Rushworth to leave them 180 for 4. There is a fine line between aggression and recklessness, but neither Hildreth or Trego went into their shells. It made for compelling cricket.Yet, this title race could still come down to the autumn weather. The North East was certainly the place to be on Tuesday as a bright and breezy September day meant valuable playing time, with only a brief shower during the evening session. The irony probably wasn’t lost on Somerset, either, that Nottinghamshire walked off at Old Trafford with the sun shining.On a flat pitch it was a commendable effort from Somerset’s attack as their seam bowling is in the workmanlike rather than fearsome bracket. Steve Kirby’s arrival from Gloucestershire for next season will boost their resources considerably. Here, though, Ben Phillips collected four, Willoughby three and Trego a important brace shortly before lunch.Alfonso Thomas bowled without any luck on the opening day but claimed a deserved wicket in the third over of the morning when Dale Benkenstein’s fine innings ended as he pushed away from his body and edged low to Trescothick at first slip. It gave Somerset their first bonus point and closed the gap on Nottinghamshire to just one.Gordon Muchall’s almost three-hour vigil ended with a thin edge to the wicketkeeper off Phillips. Harmison continued his promising finish to the season with an obdurate innings as he and Ian Blackwell added 57 in 16 overs for the fifth wicket. Blackwell, whose average this summer is a modest 32, lived dangerously with a wild, end-of-season, swipe against Willoughby and also drove short of cover before playing around one from Trego to depart lbw.Trego, a valuable cricketer who could find himself on the Lions tours this winter, then delivered Somerset their second bonus point, lifting them level with Nottinghamshire, when Harmison’s resistance ended with a weak pull that looped to square leg.Trescothick employed the twin spin attack of Suppiah and Murali Kartik to reach the second new-ball quickly and the move paid off when Scott Borthwick edged low to first slip against Phillips’ first ball back. Plunkett was lucky to make 11 as Willoughby beat him three times in a row before an edge flew to second slip, then the Championship lead was secured when Mustard inside-edge into his stumps. It was still Somerset’s advantage at the close, but it remains a three-way fight for the trophy.

Shashank Manohar, the BCCI president, is a clear front-runner for the post of IPL chairman but there are a few dark horses

Nagraj Gollapudi24-Apr-2010There is no sign of a compromise between Lalit Modi and the BCCI over the IPL with a day to go for the crucial IPL governing council meeting. On Saturday, the BCCI top leadership was huddled in a series of meetings planning their strategy for Monday; by the evening Modi ended his silence of several days by sending out a message through his Twitter feed that he would not be backing down in what he called a “trial by media”.Adding to the complexity of the situation were the statements of support for Modi from franchise owners, whose role in resolving the crisis – by way of compatibility with any future leadership – would be crucial.Amid the shadow-boxing and unstated positions was the question of how Sharad Pawar – officially the ICC’s president-elect but de facto still the most powerful man in Indian cricket – would defuse a crisis that has seen his family and that of his party and cabinet colleague Praful Patel dragged in. There were reports that Pawar was working on a compromise formula that would see Modi exit the IPL without being disgraced but it is not clear whether such a deal would stand scrutiny from those more hostile to Modi both within the board and – given Pawar’s political avatar – in the public sphere.On record, the most dramatic statements were from Modi, who broke a five-day silence by coming out on Twitter. “People pressurising me to resign – I can tell you will not happen. Let them remove me then,” he tweeted. “Truth will prevail soon. Trial by media and no chance to present the facts is like the wild west.”Wait for the IPL to finish,” he said, “I will reveal the men who have tried to bring disrepute to the game and how we stopped them from doing it.”His messages came a day after the IPL’s awards ceremony, where the BCCI’s top two officials were missing, and a day before the tournament final. On Friday night, his speech at the awards ceremony was interpreted as a sort of farewell speech and the tone continued in Saturday’s tweets. “What we have done has been there for all of you to see for the past 4 years. No one can take that away.”The men who would take that away spent the day first at the BCCI headquarters and later, reportedly, at a city hotel trying to sort out the legal, administrative and political issues. The IPL’s governing council will meet formally on Monday morning – BCCI president Shashank Manohar confirmed the meeting would go ahead as scheduled – to discuss the issue but they would like a plan in place by then.Speculation has begun on who will replace Modi as IPL chairman, with Manohar a clear front-runner for a role in an overseeing capacity, and Ravi Shastri, the former India all-rounder, an outside bet for an executive position. Those familiar with the situation suggest that Manohar’s name will be nominated for the chairman’s position as soon as a consensus is taken on Modi.”Shashank Manohar should be the first choice,” one of the IPL governing council members told Cricinfo. “In whatever capacity he is willing to serve, he is the ideal replacement.”Punters had already tipped Manohar as a favourite for interim chairman of the IPL as Modi’s grip over the IPL weakened by the minute in the last week over numerous allegations that have federal agencies like the Income-Tax department and the Enforcement Directorate investigating all aspects of the league’s operations.Unlike the high profile that Modi has maintained, Manohar is low key, almost austere and inscrutable. A lawyer by profession, he mostly operates from his hometown of Nagpur. His biggest strengths are his simplicity and discipline – and, perhaps, his reluctance to entertain the media. “He is honest and has no allegiance to anyone else. Also his untainted image is necessary for the board at the moment,” said the source.But not everyone is entirely sure if Manohar’s clean image by itself makes him a suitable choice. “A large part of working in the IPL is you are dealing with team owners who are not used to taking no for an answer,” a franchise official said. “You need somebody who is used to dealing with the corporate world. People who works for only the BCCI or for himself like Shashank Manohar, who is a lawyer, is used to diktats and not used to dealing with industry bosses. If you don’t understand their problems then there will be huge differences.”A better choice, according to the official, would be Shastri, whose cricketing background coupled with his diversified interests in the corporate field make him a good proposition. Shastri has logged in more than a decade in the corporate industry in areas such as television, and event management. “The IPL sits on a huge bridge between industry and cricket. Being a man who has his own event management company, knows the showbiz, has worked on both sides, Shastri is not a bad choice. That in this case could prove to be a vital difference,” the franchise official pointed out.The franchises are a big factor in this issue and on Saturday there was some support for Modi, who has been the target of what some have called a witch-hunt, from two franchise owners. Vijay Mallya, the owner of the Bangalore franchise, met Pawar and is believed to have pleaded Modi’s case. “Modi must be given an opportunity at some point of time to explain himself. This whole controversy has become an unnecessary toofan (storm). Yes, there may be some questions about the way in which IPL runs. Clearly, some governing council members may not be happy. Let all that be properly investigated,” Mallya said after the meeting.Also on Saturday, the actress Preity Zinta, a co-owner of the Punjab franchise, said Modi has been unfairly singled out and deserved credit for making the IPL what it is. Her comments echoed those of Jay Mehta, the co-owner of the Kolkata franchise, on Friday; he said, “To make one person the fall guy for this is unfortunate”. There were also tweets from Shah Rukh Khan and Shilpa Shetty, stakeholders in the Kolkata and Jaipur franchises, supporting Modi.

First win at Sophia Gardens since 1981 can’t make up for disappointment of missing out on promotion

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay26-Sep-2025Lancashire 374 (Wells 78, Jones 62, Balderson 51, van der Gugten 5-85) and 134 for 3 (Jennings 47) beat Glamorgan 265 (van der Gugten 53, Bailey 5-51) and 241 (Cooke 52, Balderson 4-75) by seven wicketsLancashire wrapped up their 2025 Rothesay County Championship campaign with a three-day win over Glamorgan thanks to a one-day style evening session.Stand-in captain Josh Bohannon oversaw his side’s first County Championship win at Sophia Gardens since 1981 against Glamorgan, whose promotion was confirmed last week. It was also Glamorgan’s first red-ball defeat since April, in departing captain Sam Northeast’s last appearance.After controlling the game from day one, Lancashire took eight wickets, including 4 for 75 for George Balderson before Keaton Jennings’ top-order blaze of 47 from 33 balls set the visitors on their way to chasing 133 inside 26 overs remaining in the day.The north-west county provisionally rise to third in an unsuccessful attempt to gain promotion from their first season back in Division Two while Glamorgan will play in Division One for the first time since 2005 next year.Resuming with the intention and requirement to bat all day, Northeast and Zain-ul-Hassan kept Lancashire’s bowlers at bay for a 58-run partnership before the former’s dubious lbw for 21 in his last Glamorgan innings, and Zain’s reckless reverse sweep on 45 chalked the hard work off.Balderson’s impressive stint of 25 overs all told gave a feel of him nagging at Glamorgan batters for the whole innings. On a varying pitch, his skiddy medium-pace with Matty Hurst stood up to the stumps for the majority saw Billy Root and later Mason Crane pinned, the latter putting up a good fight with half-centurion Chris Cooke before being undone by the new ball straight after tea.Despite single-figure scores prominent, every other wicket seemingly kept day four in contention for Glamorgan – Colin Ingram and Cooke held things together before the wicketkeeper’s hard-fought 50 came up with a counter-attacking six while in the company of No. 11 Ned Leonard.Lancashire made no changes to batting order, seemingly happy to see through day three on a pitch that provided plenty of turn for Tom Hartley – promising signs for Crane – as well as bounce variety for seamers. The assumption was wrong. Luke Wells together with Jennings in white-ball mode belted the new-ball around to take all the pressure off.Twenty from James Harris’ fourth over left wickets of no concern before Bohannon, George Bell and Hurst continued the momentum despite two consolation wickets for Crane.With five to win, Northeast stepped up to bowl as the final act of his four-year captaincy stint.

On his poor run with the bat, Rohit says, “Sometimes it doesn’t come off, and this series it hasn’t come off, which I am very disappointed with”

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Nov-20245:00

Rohit: This will be a low point in my career

India captain Rohit Sharma has admitted after a forgettable and India’s first ever 3-0 whitewash at home that he was “not at my best” as both captain and batter, and that his team “failed as a unit” because they made “lots of mistakes.”Chasing 147 to get any possible WTC points from a series already conceded, India crashed and burned to 121 all out against the spin of Ajaz Patel and Glenn Phillips.”Definitely, you know, something like this will be a very low point in my career, you know, having lost three games at home,” Rohit said at the post-match press conference. “And, yes, we, I fully take the responsibility for that as a captain and as a leader as well. I have not been at the best of my abilities right from the start of the series. And yeah, with the bat as well, I’ve not been good enough.”Related

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For a while, when Rishabh Pant was counterattacking with a 57-ball 64, there was hope for the hosts. But before that it was 29 for 5, and after Pant fell, to a contentious third-umpire’s decision, it all unravelled quite quickly. Rohit looked back on the series as a whole and felt let down by his own decision making.”Right from the start, I said it. You know, I made a decision about batting first on that Bangalore pitch, which was not right,” he said. “And certain tactical errors also, which didn’t go my way. You obviously take chances with those decisions. Sometimes it comes off. Sometimes it doesn’t. And this time around, it didn’t come off, the certain decisions that I took. So, yeah, I was not at my best of my leadership. And probably cost us the series as well.”Rohit’s poor series coincided with an excellent one for Tom Latham – who assumed full-time captaincy of the team just last month – and his men.”New Zealand played better than us throughout the series,” he said at the presentation. “There were lots of mistakes that we made throughout the series, and we have to accept it.Virat Kohli has also been going through a lull•AFP/Getty Images

“The first and the second Test, we didn’t put enough runs on the board in the first innings. And we were very much behind the game. This game, we got that 30 [28]-runs lead and we felt that we were a little bit ahead of the game. That target was chaseable. All we had to do was a little bit of application, which we failed to do as a unit.”Questions about Rohit’s own batting form have been cropping up this series. Apart from a 52 in the second innings of the first Test in Bengaluru, he has managed scores of 2, 0, 8, 18 and 11. On ESPNcricinfo, Sanjay Manjrekar also spoke about Rohit’s captaincy, and what he called T20 tactics in a Test match.In this chase in Mumbai, Rohit hit two fours in a run-a-ball 11, but fell when he couldn’t get his favourite shot – the pull – right against Matt Henry.”Look, when you’re chasing a target like that, you want runs on the board as well. And that is something that was there in my mind,” Rohit said. “It just didn’t come off. When it doesn’t come off, it doesn’t look that great. There are certain ideas, certain methods that I go into bat with. Sometimes it doesn’t come off, and this series it hasn’t come off, which I am very disappointed with.”The other senior batter in the side – Virat Kohli (93 runs in six innings) – has also been going through a lull, which has forced a need for serious introspection. India will be facing the reigning Test match champions Australia in just over two weeks’ time.”Obviously, it’s [his and Kohli’s lack of runs] a cause of concern without a doubt,” Rohit said. “If the batters are not performing, that is a cause of concern. But what’s done is done now. I think as a player, as a captain, as a team, we all have to look forward and see how we can correct what we didn’t manage to achieve here. There is a good opportunity for us to go and do something really, really special in Australia.”But right now, it’s just trying to understand what we didn’t do right [against New Zealand], what are the things that we need to do better as a team. We made a lot of mistakes, so I think those mistakes need to be addressed and something that we will talk about. And then moving forward, when you land in Australia, I think it’s important to just focus on that particular series, the first Test match. You know, it’s a five Test match series, so it’s important to break down those Test series, those Test matches and focus on one Test and then just take it from there.”As always, there were positives. In the batting department as well, where the younger players – Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, Sarfaraz Khan, and Washington Sundar showed, at various points, that runs could be scored on tough pitches.”Those guys showed how to bat on these surfaces,” Rohit said about the younger lot. “You have to be slightly ahead, and be proactive when you’re playing on a pitch like that. Which we all know. Which we have discussed many a time in the last three or four years. We are aware of what we need to do. It’s just that, this was an unfortunate series where it didn’t come off. We tried to do certain things, it didn’t come off. Which is why we lagged behind in the series.”

The match between RCB and CSK in Bengaluru on Saturday will decide the final playoff spot

Ashish Pant17-May-2024The weather in Bengaluru could impact the crucial IPL 2024 match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Saturday night.It’s a game that will likely decide the final qualifier for the playoffs, but it’s not impossible that the game could be affected by rain.The Indian Meteorological Department has said “heavy rain/thundershowers associated with gusty winds (40-50kph) are very likely” in some parts of Bengaluru on May 18.Related

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The city has received consistent rainfall over the last couple of weeks after a spell of uncharacteristically hot weather. While it was relatively dry on May 15 and 16, central Bengaluru, where the M Chinnaswamy Stadium is located, had overnight rain that continued into the morning on Friday. It was cloudy all morning on the eve of the match and the forecast had rain and thunderstorms in the evening. But, as it turned out, the promised rain did not arrive with the clouds giving way to relatively clear skies in the evening. Both the teams had long nets sessions without any disruptions.The forecast for Saturday does not look promising either with accuweather.com saying there could be thunderstorms in parts of Bengaluru, accompanied by showers, in the evening. The temperature around 7.30pm, the match start time, is expected to be around 23°C with a 100% cloud cover.It should be noted that the Chinnaswamy Stadium has an excellent drainage system. It is one of the few grounds in India with a subsurface aeration system, which allows play to begin 30 minutes after rain stops.A washout will end RCB’s chances of making the playoffs. Having lost seven of their first eight games, they have won five matches in a row to remain in contention. They currently have 12 points and a net run-rate of 0.387, while CSK are on 14 with an NRR of 0.538. To go past CSK’s NRR and make it to the playoffs, assuming a score of 200, RCB need to beat CSK by 18 runs or chase down the target with about 11 balls to spare. A truncated game will make that task tougher.For CSK, the equation is simple: a win, a washout, or even a narrow defeat is enough for them to join Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the final four.”The weather and these kind of things we don’t have control over,” Dwayne Bravo, the CSK bowling coach, said on the eve of the game. “We don’t try to bring up things that we don’t have control over. It’s another game for us to push for a playoffs spot and we’re really looking ahead to the challenge against a very good team tomorrow.”

Captain hopes to have full squad to choose from as Archer makes progress from elbow injury

George Dobell10-Mar-2021There will be no complaints from Eoin Morgan, irrespective of the conditions England encounter during the T20I series in India.Morgan, England’s limited-overs captain, accepts the tour is likely to prove “a challenge” for his players but, with a T20 World Cup to be played in India towards the end of the year, he knows it presents an excellent opportunity to gain experience in such conditions.In particular, he is relishing the chance for his team to get to grips with playing on turning surfaces. All five matches in this series will be played on the Ahmedabad square which proved so helpful for spinners during the two Tests at the venue, so Morgan is anticipating – and welcoming – the prospect of low-scoring matches.”We’ve been in great form in T20 cricket,” Morgan said of his No.1-ranked side. “We’ve had some confidence along the way and picked up some serious wins over the last two years, which is great.”But also we need to develop our game and go into a World Cup with as few weaknesses as possible. I think having the strongest squad available to us, which doesn’t really happen that often, allows us to play around with any plans we might foresee using in the World Cup as well.”I wouldn’t say we’re hoping for similar pitches to the Test series. I’d say [we’re hoping for] turning pitches.”Morgan recalled England’s experiences at the last World T20 in India in 2016, where his side progressed to the final in spite of an array of challenging surfaces along the way – not least in a close-fought contest at Delhi, where they survived a trial by Afghanistan’s spinners to progress by 15 runs.”Going back to the 2016 [T20] World Cup, we didn’t necessarily play on big turners. There were some really, really low-scoring games – New Zealand turned over India and India and Afghanistan turned over West Indies on really dry surfaces – so depending on fixtures for the World Cup we want to go through that ourselves.”We know when we play on a really flat surface, our batting department is equipped, our bowling department is still learning and it’s more challenging the better the wicket we play on. But in low-scoring T20 games we do need to get better, so we’re looking forward to the challenge.”Day four or fay five [Test] pitches aren’t going to be ideal playing a T20 game on, but a turning pitch like we witnessed in 2016 – where
120 plays 90; very low-scoring games in this day and age – it’s an area we need more experience in because we’ve not played in a lot of games like that.Jofra Archer should be fit to play in the series despite elbow problems•ECB

“Would we welcome the learning experience that extreme conditions could bring? Yes. It’s not the sole purpose for being here, but we are going to use it that way.”I think this tour is going to be a challenge for everybody – batting, bowling and fielding – but one that we’re really looking forward to.”While Morgan is among those in the England squad to have suffered with sickness in recent days, he is hopeful of having a full squad
from which to select ahead of the first game on Friday. That includes Jofra Archer, who had emerged as an injury worry with a recurrence of elbow pain in recent days.”I wouldn’t say I’m 100%, but I’m way better than I was five days ago,” Morgan said. “And I am hopeful Jofra will be fit for the whole series. If the game was tomorrow he’d be fit. We obviously have two days of training to come through, but hopefully he’s good.”Obviously we’re playing five games on the same ground. We don’t know yet if we’re playing on the same surfaces twice or a number of times. But I imagine our team selection will evolve as we see it.”Game on game, if we think of anything that might arise down the line that we think is worth running through or simulating here, we’ll do it. Everybody’s available for selection.”Related

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Morgan also expressed his confidence in the bio-bubble put in place for the series in India, comparing it favourably with what he had witnessed in South Africa before Christmas when England abandoned their tour having lost faith in the integrity of the safety protocols.”I think one thing we did learn [from the tour to South Africa] is probably that level of expectation, in terms of what was said would be achieved and the protocols adhered to, weren’t necessarily monitored the whole time,” he said. “So having a constant assessment of what is going on within the bubble and not taking for granted that things are being done [is important].”Here and in Sri Lanka, from the feedback, everything is being done within everybody’s power to try and restrict the number of cases. There’s always been an instance where if there is a positive case, there is a way of dealing with it, where you can limit your exposure by being very diligent and disciplined.”South Africa was a unique case. From the very first day the bubble was broken. They had a positive test and the guy had been integrating in their team and in our team. What followed, in terms of positive tests, there was a sense of inevitability about it.”

He played an unofficial Test against Ceylon in Ahmedabad in 1965

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Nov-2020CK Bhaskaran, the former Kerala first-class cricketer who once played an unofficial Test for an Indian team led by Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi against Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) in January 1965, has died at the age of 79. Bhaskaran passed away in Houston, USA, where he had practiced medicine for the past many years.Bhaskaran, born in 1941 in Thalassery, played 42 first-class matches between 1957-58 and 1968-69 as a medium pacer, picking up 106 wickets at an average of 29.05. He had five five-wicket hauls to his name.That game against Ceylon, in Ahmedabad, was the closest Bhaskaran got to international cricket.Opening the bowling with Mumbai left-arm medium pacer Umesh Kulkarni, he returned 2 for 35 from ten overs in the Ceylon first innings, and bowled a further eight overs (none for 16) in the second as Pataudi’s star-studded team lost by four wickets.

Table-toppers Cape Town Blitz faltered badly on the day it mattered most and were beaten by eight wickets

Liam Brickhill in Cape Town16-Dec-2018Jozi Stars claimed the inaugural Mzansi Super League title with a barnstorming eight-wicket win over Cape Town Blitz in the grand final at Newlands. Blitz lost their talisman Quinton de Kock early, having chosen to set a total, and never recovered. They limped to 113 for 7 on a slow, slightly two-paced pitch that eased out in baking afternoon sunshine, allowing Reeza Hendricks and Rassie van der Dussen to steal the show, and seal the title, with an 86-run second wicket stand. Van der Dussen raised his third fifty in a row.Already unsettled by the illness that ruled regular opener Janneman Malan out before the game, Blitz were in big trouble by the second-over dismissal of de Kock, upon whom they have relied so heavily to get this far. De Kock scored 412 runs for Blitz in eight MSL innings, Malan 305 in nine, while no-one else in the squad came close to those numbers. Asif Ali was next best with 150, but 80 of those came in his very first innings of the tournament. Over-reliant on de Kock’s brilliance, Blitz floundered when he failed.After two half-chances in the first over, bowled by Simon Harmer, it was Beuran Hendricks who struck the vital early blow. Two balls after de Kock had slashed him over point for the first boundary of the innings, Hendricks surprised the left-hander with another lifter. De Kock lost his shape and sent a swirling top edge towards midwicket, where Reeza Hendricks sprinted backwards, keeping his eye on the ball plunging towards him out of a brilliant blue sky, and finally dived at full-stretch to hold the catch inches from the turf. While there were a few twists and turns thereafter, that play essentially sealed the game.Dawid Malan struggled to 3 from the first 16 balls he faced before cracking three boundaries in three balls off Kagiso Rabada and Duanne Olivier, and then got out attempting a fourth, chipping a drive to mid-off. His dismissal meant Blitz ended the Powerplay at a paltry 29 for 2.Mohammad Nawaz and Asif Ali came and went quickly, adding just seven runs to the total between them, and halfway through the innings Blitz were going nowhere slowly at 54 for 4. They continued to stumble, Kyle Verreynne mis-reading a slower one from Rabada to be trapped in front of his stumps for 23, and Andile Phehlukwayo needlessly run out chasing a second run as the score dipped to 80 for 6 with just under five overs to go.Rassie van der Dussen and Dane Vilas celebrate their title win•MSL

While Nono Pongolo didn’t feature with the ball today, he pulled off an acrobatic catch at third man to get rid of Blitz captain and their last hope Farhaan Behardien in the 17th over. Pongolo positioned himself to catch an upper cut off Beuran Hendricks, but the momentum carried him over the boundary, where he expertly parried the ball back into play and then leapt back himself to pull off the dismissal.Without a sizeable score to defend, Blitz gambled on their strike bowlers up front. Dale Steyn beat Reeza Hendricks’ outside edge three times in a row in the first over, and then burst one through Ryan Rickelton’s defences to make a mess of the stumps. He was kept on for three overs, with two slips in place, but Reeza Hendricks and van der Dussen were happy to play him out, even conceding a maiden.Once Steyn and Nandre Burger were seen off, the pressure swiftly dissipated. Malusi Siboto leaked 12 runs in his first over, van der Dussen slamming three fours in a row through the off side, while medium pacer Ferisco Adams was carted for 14 by Reeza Hendricks, including a handsome cut over backward point for six.With that, the required rate dipped under a-run-a-ball, and stayed there. Despite their wiles, Phehlukwayo and Nawaz were unable to break through, and Reeza Hendricks raised the fifty stand with a single down the ground in the 10th over.Reeza Hendricks eventually clipped Siboto into the hands of Malan at deep square leg, but van der Dussen took on the returning fast bowlers, pulling Steyn flat and hard for six and drilling Burger over mid-off to motor into the 40s. He raised a perfectly-paced 49-ball fifty with a cut off Adams in the 17th over, and took the equation to 5 required from 19 balls with a second characteristically clean hit through the covers in the same over.Van der Dussen’s crisp hitting has raised his stocks notably through this tournament, but he has also won friends and fans with his self-effacing, team-first approach. Fittingly, he left it to his captain Dane Vilas to hit the winning runs, who clubbed Burger through midwicket to spark hugs, handshakes and a booming fireworks display around the ground.

Adil Rashid’s importance to Yorkshire is also highly symbolic and the county will be relieved that differences have been patched up

David Hopps18-Sep-2018Adil Rashid is on the verge of confirming his commitment as a Yorkshire cricketer and signing a new all-format deal with the county.An anticipated four-year deal would bring a successful end to a fraught period during which Yorkshire expressed their dismay that Rashid had been recalled for England in Test cricket even though he was only on a white-ball contract for the county which was due to expire at the end of this season.To some extent, if Rashid retains international form, the deal is largely a public relations exercise because he will rarely be available for county cricket anyway, but it is an important symbolic moment for Yorkshire nonetheless.They have defied many off-the-mark assumptions that Rashid would never play for the county again and, as such, have prevented collateral damage to a concerted player development programme in Asian communities, headed by investment in the historic Park Avenue ground in Rashid’s home city of Bradford.Rashid initially responded angrily to Yorkshire’s complaints about his selection, saying: “If they treat me like they have done I have to think about the future in terms of which county I play for.”That led Yorkshire to make rapid attempts to defuse the situation, explaining that their issue was not with him but with the national selector Ed Smith. They contended that allowing England players to play Tests on white-ball only contracts would jeopardise the future of the County Championship and cause a gradual fall in England’s Test standards as a consequence.That protest was successful with Smith quickly conceding that next summer any player chosen for England in Tests must have signed a multi-format contract.Rashid has had many suitors – not least of them Worcestershire where he could have teamed up with his friend and England colleague, Moeen Ali.Joe Root has a word with Adil Rashid•Getty Images

But he is reluctant to leave Bradford where he has iconic status, and where faith in him has never wavered. He has been with Yorkshire’s age group sides since 10 years old and became the first Yorkshire-born cricketer of Pakistani heritage to represent the county. There would seem to be a natural role for him in the city once his career is completed.Yorkshire have also worked hard to address any misunderstandings, led by the chief executive Mark Arthur and director of cricket Martyn Moxon, with both involved in what appeared to be successful negotiations on Tuesday while Yorkshire played the opening day of their Championship match against Hampshire at Headingley.Differences with the coach Andrew Gale have also been part of the discussions, perhaps belatedly. Gale and Rashid had tactical differences when Gale was captain and then Gale was outraged when Rashid pleaded fatigue and did not play in a Championship-decider against Middlesex at Lord’s two years ago. Rashid also explained that his grandmother was ill.Notably, the coach at the time, Jason Gillespie, was more understanding about the decision which had been a long-standing arrangement.Yorkshire are now in the unlikely position of having two specialist leg-spinners on their staff, having signed Josh Poysden from Warwickshire on the assumption that Rashid’s white-ball deal would continue. It is not unique, however, as Mark Lawson was only on the Yorkshire staff when he first broke into the side.Such disruption to their squad building, at a time when their cricket budget faced cutbacks, was barely addressed by critics who could see no further than England’s international needs.Rashid is likely to be instructed by England to rest, in any event, before England’s World Cup preparations begin in early May with a limited overs series at home to Pakistan.In April, with the seamers predominating, Poysden will not hold high hopes of any cricket either.Rashid made limited impact in England’s 4-1 Test series victory over India, claiming 10 wickets at 30 apiece, but he produced one of the memories of the summer on the last day at the final Test Kia Oval when he intervened at a critical time with a monumental leg-break out of the footmarks to bowl India’s century-maker KL Rahul.A Test and one-day tour next month to Sri Lanka – the one-day squad will be announced on Wednesday – is inevitable.

Darren Lehmann has announced that the Johannesburg Test will be his last as Australia coach, as the ball-tampering scandal that occurred in the Cape Town Test continues to take its toll on Australian cricket

Daniel Brettig29-Mar-2018Steven Smith’s anguished arrival was the final straw. A day after vowing to stay on and drive cultural renewal, Australia’s coach Darren Lehmann bowed to the inevitable on Thursday and chose to resign at the conclusion of the Wanderers Test match after five years at the helm of the national team, saying the former captain’s tears had convinced him it was the only course of action.His public announcement, a matter of minutes after he told an already shell-shocked Test squad, was followed by a surreal training session, where the touring party engaged mainly in football and fielding drills while the Wanderers public address system belted out classic Australian songs such as How to Make Gravy by Paul Kelly, Into My Arms by Nick Cave, Reckless by Australian Crawl, Don’t Dream It’s Over by Crowded House and Wide Open Road by The Triffids.Lehmann confessed to not being able to sleep since Saturday night following the team’s exposure for ball tampering. While maintaining his lack of knowledge of the plot between David Warner and Cameron Bancroft, with the approval of Smith, Lehmann conceded it was impossible for him to stay on as coach while the team and Cricket Australia continued to be under attack. The home Test series sponsor Magellan cancelled its deal on Thursday, while longtime broadcast partner Channel Nine looked the other way in signing a new five-year deal with Australian tennis.

Sutherland says he will stay on

James Sutherland has said that he will not step down as Cricket Australia’s chief executive in the wake of the ball-tampering scandal that has already resulted in bans for Steven Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft and the resignation of the coach Darren Lehmann.
“I’m absolutely committed to my job, my employment and tenure is a matter for the board of Cricket Australia but I’m not resigning, in fact what has happened over the last few days has only strengthened my resolve to ensure that Australian cricket and the Australian cricket team gets back on track, and back in a place where it has not only the full respect but the pride of the Australian community,” Sutherland said in Johannesburg shortly after Lehmann had made his announcement.
“It’s been a difficult week, but most difficult for those three players who have returned to Australia. They are obviously in a very difficult and sad place, and between CA and the ACA, we will offer all of those players all the support we can, all the welfare services within and outside our system. We will make sure we support the players and their families as best we can.”

“It’s been happening for a few days, and you think you can keep going, but the amount of abuse or whatever word you want to use just takes its toll, everyone has their views out there, but they made a mistake, and we need to get the game back on track,” Lehmann said. “And speaking to my family they’ve had enough of traveling 300 days a year and not being home at all to see your family, so that’s also a big reason, the main reason. Spend some time with them, see the kids and maybe go and watch my son play cricket, and be there for my daughters.”I’ve been speaking with the hierarchy the last couple of days, and this morning, no sleep last night again, no-one’s slept, that’s the biggest challenge fronting up tomorrow. I don’t think I’ve slept since Saturday to be perfectly honest, couple hours here and there, playing around in your head, and what’s right, and let the game move forward.”After seeing events in the media today with Steve Smith and Cameron Bancroft, the feeling is that Australian cricket needs to move forward and this is the right thing to do. I really felt for Steve as I saw him crying in front of the media and all of the players are really hurting. As I’ve stated before I had no prior knowledge of the incident and do not condone what happened at all, but good people can make mistakes.”2:02

Lehmann’s long history of confrontations

After watching Smith and Bancroft speak emotionally in Australia, Lehmann said he hoped his decision would help the team and game to move on from a hellish five days. “It’s been unbelievable. Watching those two young men face the media and I’m sure David will be the same, it’s been unbelievable,” he said.”Hopefully the game gets back to the game of cricket, it is a game to be loved and enjoyed. I’ve had a great time coaching in my career and coaching the Australian team is a real high. So for me looking forward to having some time off and what’s the next step from there. I’d love to stay involved in the game because I love it so much. My family and I have copped a lot of abuse over the last week and it’s taken its toll on them.”As many of you sitting in this room will know, life on the road means a lot of time away from our loved ones and after speaking with my family at length over the last few days, it’s the right time to step away. I’m ultimately responsible for the culture of the team and I’ve been thinking about my position for a while, despite telling media yesterday that I’m not resigning, after viewing Steve and Cameron’s hurting, it’s only fair that I make this decision. This will allow Cricket Australia to complete a full review into the culture of the team and allow them to implement changes to regain the trust of the Australian public. This is the right thing for Australian cricket.”Asked what his proudest moment as coach had been, having won the Ashes twice at home and also the 2015 World Cup, Lehmann pointed to the way the team dealt with the death of Phillip Hughes in November 2014. “I would say the way we dealt with Phillip Hughes,” he said. “We’re only playing a game, that’s all we’re playing, we lost a great young man and the way we tried to deal with that is probably my proudest moment as coach. You win games, you lose games, that for me would be the most pleasing one.”Lehmann agreed it would be extremely difficult for the team to find the mental strength to perform at a high level over the next five days. “I thought this was tough, but speaking to the players and saying goodbye, telling them the news, that’s the toughest thing I’ve ever had to do,” he said. “It’s about fronting up for your country and playing good cricket over the next five days.”Like all Australians, we are extremely disappointed and as a team we know we’ve let so many people down, and for that we’re truly sorry. The players involved have been handed down very serious sanctions, and they know they must face the consequences. They’ve made a grave mistake but they are not bad people. I hope the team rebuilds from this and the Australian public find it in their hearts to forgive these young men and get behind the XI who are going to take the field tomorrow.”It’s been an unbelievable series marred by some incidents, but it’s great playing against South Africa, two rival countries that really play the game of cricket really hard and it’s been an exciting Test series. So our challenge is to get back to level the series, and that’d be a big challenge but the boys will be doing everything they possibly can.”That effort started with the Australian playlist over the Wanderers speakers. These are extraordinary times.