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Shaun Marsh’s 84, and a five-wicket haul by the seamer Andrew Tye helped Western Australia win their first game in the tournament after four defeats

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Oct-2013
ScorecardAndrew Tye took his first five-for in one-dayers•Getty ImagesShaun Marsh’s 84, and a five-wicket haul by the seamer Andrew Tye helped Western Australia win their first game in the tournament after four defeats. Marsh’s second successive half-century helped Western Australia to 256, but Tasmania, in response, folded for 204 at the Blacktown Olympic Park Oval.The stand of 150 for the second wicket between Marsh and John Rogers was the defining one. Marsh hit seven boundaries and a six in his knock before he was dismissed in the 34th over. Evan Gulbis then removed Rogers two balls later and Western Australia suddenly had two new batsmen at the crease. Western Australia had stumbled to 182 for 6 before Marcus North and the lower order fought back to take the score past 250.The Tasmania openers began slowly but steadily, adding 53 off 15 overs before Alex Doolan was caught off Tye who took the first of his five wickets. Gulbis, batting at No.3, gave the chase a push with a 46-ball 47 and he had added 44 with Ed Cowan. It turned out to be the highest stand of the innings and Gulbis’ dismissal in the 29th over turned the match in Western Australia’s favour. The middle and lower order failed to step up as Western Australia, led by Tye, struck regularly. Tye picked up his first five-for, in only his fourth match.

Najam Sethi will continue as the chairman of the PCB’s interim management committee (IMC) until the conclusion of the ongoing court appeal, the Islamabad High Court has ruled

Umar Farooq04-Nov-2013Najam Sethi will continue as the chairman of the PCB’s interim management committee (IMC) until the conclusion of the ongoing court appeal, the Islamabad High Court has ruled. On Monday, a two-judge appellate bench heard the arguments of the PCB and the government with regards to the judgment passed by Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui, who had called for fresh elections to appoint a PCB chairman.The next hearing is scheduled for November 7, when former PCB chairman Zaka Ashraf and the petitioner will present their counter arguments.”The PCB and the government understand that the five-member IMC has been reinstated,” the board’s lawyer Taffazul Rizvi told ESPNcricinfo after the hearing. “Our plea was to maintain the status quo with IMC at the helm of affairs at the PCB while the hearing goes on.”The confusion over the status of Sethi and the IMC began on October 28, when Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui suspended Sethi at 9am for not complying with an earlier legal order issued by Justice Siddiqui to elect a permanent chairman for the PCB by October 18. However at 12.30pm on the same day, the board’s lawyers argued successfully to a different two-judge bench at the same court on the same case to maintain the status quo – that is, Sethi and the IMC – at least temporarily. However, the written order of this judgment, released on October 31, refers to no such conclusion, leaving those board officials who received it, baffled.Both judges admitted to an “inadvertent” typing mistake and clarified that the bench meant to ask the PCB to function until the appeal is decided. The PCB had remained without a chairman and administrative body for six days.Monday’s hearing began with Ministry of Inter Provincial Coordination lawyer Asma Jahangir objecting to Siddiqui’s July order, which undermined cricket administration in the country as two chairmen were suspended in five months.”PCB is the only sports body in the country that is generating its own funds and in last ten years has paid Rs 350m of tax,” she said before Justice Riaz Ahmad Khan and Justice Noor-ul-Haq Qureshi. “But for the last many months, its functioning has been badly affected.”The hearing went on for four hours during which Rizvi explained to the court that the ongoing legal crisis was hurting the PCB’s ability to attract sponsors and broadcasters.Siddiqui had also named a retired Supreme Court judge to conduct the PCB elections and set Rs. 2.5 million rupees as a fee for the supervision of the election. The appeal bench ordered a stay against the election and the funds allocated for it.

Alastair Cook has called upon both teams to “play the game in the right way” on the eve of the second Ashes Test

George Dobell in Adelaide04-Dec-20130:00

Cook coy on England line-up

Alastair Cook has called upon both teams to “play the game in the right way” on the eve of the second Ashes Test.Cook, the England captain, described the final moments of the first Test in Brisbane as “ugly” and admitted that Jeff Crowe, the ICC match referee, had met both captains separately to discuss the manner in which the match was played. Michael Clarke, the Australian captain, was fined 20% of his match fee after he was heard telling James Anderson to “get ready for a broken f****** arm” in the dying minutes of the game.Now Cook has accepted that both he and Clarke have a responsibility to ensure that their sides do not overstep the mark.”It’s important that both sides recognise a couple of scenes in that last game weren’t great for the game of cricket,” Cook said. “I think both sides recognise that. It’s important we play in the right way. People want to see real tough cricket, it’s what they enjoy, especially between Australia and England, but there’s got to be a boundary we don’t cross.”Maybe last week we let emotion get ahead of ourselves a little bit on some occasions and it became a little bit ugly. Michael and I have responsibility as captains to make sure that doesn’t happen.”Some of those scenes were ugly at the end of that game and we do have a duty to play the game in the right way. We want to play tough cricket just like Australia do but we have to make sure we stick to those boundaries and I bear a responsibility for that.”While Clarke was the man penalised by the ICC, Cook accepts that England were no less culpable for the atmosphere in which the game was played. And while he insisted that there should be no let-up in the intensity of such matches, he felt that both sides had to be careful not to let the emotion of the moment push them over the edge.”Michael and I have responsibility as captains to make sure that doesn’t happen,” Alastair Cook said of the ugly ending to the Gabba Test•Getty Images”We know the responsibility we have when we pull on the shirt,” he said. “And no matter how much emotion there is in the game, we know how many are watching us and we know what responsibility we have to the game. Whether we got it right or wrong in that game I don’t know but we have got to make sure we behave as appropriately as we can out there. There are always guidelines.”Cook did accept, however, that there were times when “sledging” could prove effective and admitted his own concentration had been disrupted at times.”Anyone who says they’ve never been affected by sledging is lying,” he said. “Something will always be said or done which will distract you for that split second. You might listen to it and get a little bit annoyed. The skill of it is how you handle the next ball. I don’t think anyone will say they don’t hear it or don’t recognise it.”It’s not a tea party and nor should it be. People pay to see tough competitive cricket. People are wanting to see hard Test cricket. That’s what people love about the Ashes or love about any competitive cricket.”And it will be tough cricket here. It’s going to be brilliant cricket over the next five days. We have to come back and prove we’re a good side after the loss in Brisbane and obviously Australia want to keep us down, so I think it’s going to be a great Test match.”

Chris Woakes has been added to the England limited-overs squad for the series against Australia

George Dobell06-Jan-2014Chris Woakes has been added to the England limited-overs squad for the series against Australia.Woakes, the 24-year-old Warwickshire all-rounder, has recently returned from a stint representing Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash, but was left out of the original limited-overs squads and named as captain of the Lions squad to tour Sri Lanka from the end of January.He played the last of his 13 ODIs in June, with England appearing to conclude that he was a better red ball than white ball cricketer. While he claimed 6 for 45 in just his second ODI in Brisbane on the 2010-11 tour of Australia, his economy rate of 5.66 has not been good enough to keep him in the side and in his last two games, both against New Zealand, he conceded 94 from 13 overs.A strong fielder and batsman – his first-class batting average is only a fraction below 40 – he has a calm character long admired by the England management and has won another opportunity to prove his value at international level. Woakes made his Test debut against Australia, at The Oval, in August

Bilawal Bhatti and Junaid Khan picked up three wickets late on the third day to put Pakistan in a dominant position at stumps on third day despite Sri Lanka being able to erase the first-innings deficit

The Report by Devashish Fuloria02-Jan-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsBilawal Bhatti dismissed Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jawaywardene off successive deliveries•AFPBilawal Bhatti and Junaid Khan picked up three wickets late on the third day to put Pakistan in a dominant position at stumps on third day despite Sri Lanka erasing the first-innings deficit. Bhatti removed the experienced duo of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene in successive deliveries, while Junaid dismissed the set Kaushal Silva off the last ball of the day to put a win within sights.A 99-run second-wicket stand between Sangakkara and Silva was reviving memories of Sri Lanka’s second-innings fightback two years ago when a double-century from Sangakkara helped them wipe off the 314-run deficit and save the Test. It was a similar determined response from Sri Lanka after conceding a 179-run lead. Sangakkara was unfazed and Silva was accumulating runs at his own pace, both going past their half-centuries.But just when it seemed that Sri Lanka’s fortunes were on the rise, an inspired spell from Bhatti pulled the rugs from underneath. In the final delivery of Bhatti’s second over after the last drinks break, Sangakkara was drawn into a drive, but could only edge it as the ball moved away at the last instance. Younis Khan, at first slip, dived to his right and swooped a good low catch. In the next over, off the first ball, Jayawardene got one that kicked up from a length, hit the shoulder of the bat and lobbed up for the fielder at gully. Unplayable. It also meant that Jayawardene had edged three successive deliveries from Bhatti in the Test (the first one, in the first innings, was a no-ball).Bhatti continued to trouble Dinesh Chandimal with pacy deliveries – one of them, a bouncer at 145 kph that hit the bat handle. But Silva, who had worked hard for his 81, helped Sri Lanka into lead. He looked set to take to take the fight to the fourth day but couldn’t survive the last over from Junaid, edging the third delivery to the wicketkeeper.For much of the day though, it had been Sri Lanka who had managed to claw their way back into the match. The top three batsmen continued the good work started by their bowlers, who picked up Pakistan’s remaining six wickets before lunch on the third day.Both Suranga Lakmal and Shaminda Eranga, fresh after a night’s rest, found the right lengths and repeatedly got the ball to deviate to trouble the batsmen. They found some help from the pitch too. The surface had retained the greenish tinge from the first day, but there were a number of indents – created by the quicks over the last two days – which the two Sri Lankan seamers hit consistently.A circumspect Asad Shafiq flicked Lakmal to square leg, where Silva took a smart diving catch. He had added only a solitary run to his overnight score of 12. Adnan Akmal didn’t last long either edging Eranga to gully. Bilawal Bhatti, the debutant, gave Misbah company for 27 runs before perishing against the gentle medium pace of Angelo Mathews as he got a faint edge to the keeper.Misbah was troubled by the seam movement as Lakmal beat him both with incoming and outgoing deliveries. The first boundary of the day on the off side came through Misbah’s outside edge which was followed by an uncharacteristic attempt to slog a length ball. He continued to play and miss deliveries throughout the first hour, with some hitting the shoulder of the bat.It was only when Rangana Herath was introduced that Misbah started looking comfortable. He reverse-swept the first ball from the spinner, then got a four with a conventional sweep in the same over. He also slogged Herath over deep midwicket for his only six of the innings, before finally being caught at long-on, trying to repeat the shot.In response, the Sri Lanka openers stayed firm during a testing spell against the new ball to give the team its second solid start. As the score approached 50, Karunaratne was dismissed by a Junaid delivery that sneaked in between the bat and pad to strike the top of off stump. But a patient Silva kept the bowlers at bay with his tight defence and compact strokeplay. Ten of his 11 boundaries were on the off side – the cover drive being his most profitable shot – as he brought up his maiden half-century in 113 balls.Silva had the solid Sangakkara with him for company. Sangakkara, despite the pitch showing signs of dual nature, scored an effortless half-century – his 43rd. During a 99-ball stay that included six boundaries, he did use a lifeline once after he was adjudged lbw early in the third session, the replays showing the ball had pitched outside the line of leg stump.Sangakkara’s dismissal, though, opened the gates for Pakistan and they were quick to snatch the advantage. The onus will now be on Chandimal and Angelo Mathews to stretch the fight for Sri Lanka.

South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo has suggested the second Twenty20 in Durban went ahead at the insistence of match referee Chris Broad, despite the captains and umpires agreeing the outfield was too wet

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Mar-20140:00

‘Threat of serious injury in conditions like this’

South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo has suggested the second Twenty20 in Durban went ahead at the insistence of match referee Chris Broad, despite the captains and umpires agreeing the outfield was too wet.The game was reduced to seven overs a side and while both teams were ultimately happy to get some match practice in ahead of the World T20 in Bangladesh, it seemed for much of the day that play was unlikely. After a delay of two and a half hours, play began and Australia won the abbreviated contest, but both teams would have been concerned about possible injuries given the wet outfield.Domingo said he thought the captains Faf du Plessis and George Bailey, together with the umpires Adrian Holdstock and Shaun George had agreed the match should not go ahead. However, he said he believed Broad had made the decision for the match to be played.”It was a little bit odd because both captains agreed to not give it a go because of the outfield, and the umpires decided not to give it a go,” Domingo said. “I think it was overturned by the match referee. At the end of the day it turned out to be a great spectacle for the crowd, but there’s always a threat of serious injuries when conditions are like that. But it’s done now, and everyone’s okay.”With both teams set to depart for the World T20 after the third match in Centurion and further rain expected over the next few days, it was not out of the question that the entire series could have been washed out. Brad Hodge, who was named Man of the Match after striking two sixes in the last over of Australia’s successful chase, said it was a tough decision whether play should have gone ahead.”It was a 50-50 call,” Hodge said. “The problem is, you’re leading up to a Twenty20 tournament which is pretty important and both sides would have been worried about injures. It was a pretty good game of cricket in the end … You’ve come all the way to South Africa, you want to play cricket. You don’t want washouts in all three games.”

South Africa will conduct fitness tests on Dale Steyn and the captain, Faf du Plessis, ahead of their World T20 opener against Sri Lanka, with both players attempting to recover from hamstring injuries

Alan Gardner in Chittagong21-Mar-2014South Africa will conduct fitness tests on Dale Steyn and the captain, Faf du Plessis, ahead of their World T20 opener against Sri Lanka, with both players attempting to recover from hamstring injuries.Du Plessis said they had been working hard on fitness and that they currently “seemed to be okay,” but a final call would be taken on Saturday before the game. Du Plessis has been batting in the nets but still had some discomfort while running. Steyn bowled on Friday but at a little off top pace, ahead of a full-tilt session in the morning.”It’s been a pretty intense week for Dale and myself trying to make sure we are 100% ready for the game tomorrow,” du Plessis said. “As of now we are still assessing, we both will do a fitness test tomorrow to see where we are. We seem to be okay, but we will have a look at it tomorrow to see how the hamstring is doing.”Batting is 100% fine, I don’t feel anything, but it’s just when you are sprinting. Pace wise I am up to about 70%, hopefully we can crank that up to around 90-95 tomorrow.”Earlier in the week, du Plessis had been rated a “50-50 chance” and if his mobility is restricted, it would affect his ability in the field as well as running between the wickets. Steyn bowled just a couple of overs in a warm-up game against Bangladesh A on Tuesday but, if he is fit, could find the pitch in Chittagong more to his liking.A surprising amount of pace and bounce has been on display in the qualifying matches played at the ground and the captains of South Africa, England and New Zealand all felt that spin would be less of a factor ahead of the opening matches in Group 1 of the Super 10 stage.”It looks a really good wicket. I was pretty surprised,” du Plessis said. “The grass I don’t think will play too much of a role when it comes to sideways movement but I think it will be a good deck, lot of runs, so it is nice to see. For us, it’s good to see that there is grass on the wicket.”South Africa will begin their campaign against the side ranked the best in the world in T20 and who recently picked up silverware at the Asia Cup. Sri Lanka are one of the favourites for the title due to their greater affinity for the conditions but du Plessis said his players could draw on their T20 series victory away from home last year.”We toured Sri Lanka not too long ago and we beat them in T20s,” du Plessis said. “The conditions there really suited their style of bowling. They have good spinners and it will be crucial how we play spin. Luckily the wicket doesn’t seem like it has too much spin. But also they have got other danger bowlers, Lasith Malinga is a dangerous T20 bowler, they have other match-winners. It’s about making sure on the day that you bring your best.”Sri Lanka is a fantastic team, having said that we beat them and played really good cricket against them. So we are taking a huge amount of confidence from that. There has been a lot of talk about six or seven teams that can win this tournament, everything is going to count on how you play as a team. Hopefully we can start of tomorrow.”The issue of du Plessis’ fitness will have an impact on the batting order but he said the team management was keen to continue with AB de Villiers down the order in a finishing role, particularly given his strength against spin. In du Plessis’ absence, de Villiers came in at No. 3 against Bangladesh A, only to be dismissed for 4.”From a team point of view, it’s nice to know that if you have a good start you always have AB in the bank and he can come in and destroy any team on his day. If you lose him early on, you might see it as losing your best batsman. As a team we play better like that and certainly the guys batting in the top three have done that. They have been performing consistently since last year.”

Having built up their batting to match a resourceful bowling attack, Sunrisers look a well balanced side

The Preview by Alagappan Muthu17-Apr-20147:09

Hyderabad team preview

Probable first XI1 Shikhar Dhawan (capt), 2 Aaron Finch, 3 David Warner, 4 Naman Ojha (wk), 5 Darren Sammy, 6 Irfan Pathan, 7 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 8 Amit Mishra, 9 Karn Sharma, 10 Dale Steyn, 11 Ishant Sharma.2013 finishA formidable bowling attack masked inadequacies in batting to guide Hyderabad as far as the eliminator match on tournament debut.Big pictureNot since Rajasthan did an underdog gain as much following as Hyderabad. The fans liked the world’s most fearsome fast bowler playing treasure hunt with match tickets. They ate up one of the most brutal hitters of the ball playing with a pacifier. The locals would have especially enjoyed reversing a woeful home record. Their previous avatar lost 17 out of 20 matches in Hyderabad. This outfit lost only one. Hyderabad would have only four opportunities to build on that though, considering the bulk of their matches are scheduled in the UAE and at away venues in India.Expectations would still be high courtesy a good auction. David Warner and Aaron Finch form a frightening threat at the top and should they fire, Hyderabad’s average of 144 while batting first will undergo significant redecoration. The Australia duo’s recent T20 form and a dodgy reputation against spin means an asterisk is probably needed against that prediction.Hyderabad will hope David Warner can channel his stunning form during the Australian summer•Getty ImagesThey have depth in bowling, but will need to find a useful partner among the gaggle of medium-pacers for Dale Steyn in the final overs. Ishant Sharma was an able new-ball partner in 2013 and would hope for a good season, especially after being ignored for the World T20 which led him to contemplate ODI retirement.Amit Mishra managed to replicate his IPL form – he is the second-highest wicket-taker – for India in recent times and will lead the Hyderabad spin attack. The economical Karn Sharma will be his deputy and their partnership could find help from UAE pitches that have handled a considerable amount of cricket over the last six months.Big playersDale Steyn is cricket’s answer to the Hulk. His terrifying efficiency made him the lynchpin of Hyderabad’s success and it was no surprise that he was among the those the franchise retained. They will be hoping he can continue the form he showed in Bangladesh during the World T20.A resurgent Shikhar Dhawan twirled his moustache into Wisden’s Five Cricketers of the Year. Injury sidelined him from the majority of last season but this year he would complete one of the best top orders in the tournament, if those cover drives are not hampered by the burden of captaincy.Bargain buyThe only offspinner in the side Parvez Rasool (INR 95 lakh) is also a handy lower-order batsman. He leads his state side Jammu & Kashmir and comes into the competition on the back of 139 runs and five wickets in five matches, with an economy under six in India’s domestic T20 tournament.AvailabilityAll fit, and with no international commitments.Quotes”I don’t set personal goals for myself. Because in doing so you end up putting pressure on yourself.”
Odds11/2 – joint third-favourites with Mumbai Indians

A round-up for ACC Premier League matches played on May 2, 2014

ESPNcricinfo staff02-May-2014For the second time in two days, Sompal Kami and Mahaboob Alam played leading performances helping Nepal register their second successive win, this time against Malaysia, in the ACC Premier League match in Kuala Lumpur. The two players had picked up three wickets each in the win against UAE; here Kami bagged a five-wicket haul, and Alam hit a half-century to steer what threatened to be a tricky chase. Chasing 150, Nepal were rocked by Suresh Navaratnam’s triple-strikes and at 36 for 4, were in serious trouble. However, Alam added 89 for the fifth wicket with Sharad Vesawkar to almost seal the match. He was run-out for 53, but with only 25 needed, Nepal overhauled the target without much fuss. The foundation for the win had been laid earlier though, when Kami ran through the Malaysia top order. Malaysia’s batsmen failed to construct meaningful stands and the team was bowled out for 149 in the 43rd over.A batting blitz towards the end of the first innings was the highlight of Afghanistan’s thumping win against UAE. Put in to bat, Afghanistan were in already in a good position – 172 for 4 – at the 40-over mark, thanks to half-centuries by their openers Noor Ali Zadran and Usman Ghani. But what followed stamped out the bowler’s confidence. Mohammad Nabi and Samiullah Shenwari ransacked 116 runs in the last eight overs to lift the total over 300. The mayhem included 11 fours and seven sixes. UAE were not dazed by the assault – the openers added 70 and Amjad Ali went on to score 98 to keep the team in the chase. But Amjad’s dismissal gave Afghanistan an opening which they seized immediately. Rahmat Shah picked up five wickets, including that of Amjad, to complete a comprehensive win.Oman won their second match in a row, beating the more established Hong Kong by nine runs in a low-scoring encounter at the Selangor Turf Club. A victory didn’t seem on the cards for Oman after the first hour of the game during which their top order caved in. At 57 for 6 in the 21st over, a swift end to the game seemed likely, but Oman reached 143 thanks to 30s from No. 8 Sultan Ahmed and No. 9 Amir Ali. Hong Kong’s top order was similarly fragile, and the chase was in ruins at 25 for 4 in the eighth over. Again, it needed 30s from the lower order, this time No. 7 Ankur Sharma and No. 9 Haseeb Amjad, for Hong Kong to get close to the target. Though Amjad threw his bat around when he had the last man for company, he holed with Hong Kong ten short.May 2, 10.45am GMT The article had incorrectly referred to Malaysia v Nepal game as a List A match.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul, the Bravo brothers and Sunil Narine have knocked off the top prizes in West Indies men’s cricket at the WIPA/WICB awards for the 2013 season. Stafanie Taylor was the big winner among the women

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Jun-2014Award winners for the 2013 season

U-19 Player: Tagenarine Chanderpaul
U-19 Team: Jamaica
Regional Limited-Overs Player: Shane Shillingford
Regional 4-Day Player: Nikita Miller
Regional 4-Day Team: Trinidad & Tobago
Emerging Player: Miguel Cummins
Caribbean Twenty20 Player: Darren Bravo
ODI Player: Dwayne Bravo
Test Player: Shivnarine Chanderpaul
T20I Player: Sunil Narine
Women’s Player: Stafanie Taylor
Player of the Year: Darren Bravo
WICB Lifetime Achievement Award: Teddy Griffith
WIPA Lifetime Achievement Award: Lockhart Sebastien
Special awards: Shivnarine Chanderpaul (150 Tests), Chris Gayle (100 Tests)

Shivnarine Chanderpaul, the Bravo brothers and Sunil Narine have knocked off the top prizes in West Indies men’s cricket at the WIPA/WICB awards for the 2013 season. Stafanie Taylor was the big winner among the women.Chanderpaul took home the Test Player of the Year Award; he had topped West Indies’ Test batting charts in 2013, with 523 runs in seven games at 58.11, with two tons and a fifty. Dwayne Bravo was named ODI player of the year after accumulating 388 runs and 33 wickets in 22 games in the format last year. Sunil Narine, expectedly, was the top performer in Twenty20s, having taken eight wickets in five matches while conceding just 5.40 to the over.Darren Bravo won the overall Cricketer of the Year award, having scored 374 runs at over 37 in six Tests and topped the one-day batting charts with 788 in 24 games, including a century and eight fifties.Taylor had aggregated 707 runs in 21 ODIs in the period, and 313 in nine T20s, averaging 39 in both formats.Among the domestic cricket award winners were spinners Nikita Miller and Shane Shillingford, who won first-class and limited-overs titles respectively. Darren Bravo took home a second award on the night, for his showing in the Caribbean Twenty20.Twenty-three-old Barbados pacer Miguel Cummins was named the Emerging Player of the Year, while Chanderpaul junior, Tagenarine, was the Under-19 Player of the Year. Teddy Griffith, a skillful batsman who played 25 first-class games for Jamaica and Barbados in the ’50s and ’60s, was given WICB’s Lifetime Achievement Award, while Windward Islands’ Lockhart Sebastien – who played 92 first-class matches between 1971 and 1989 – was handed the WIPA Lifetime Achievement Award.