Former India captain excited to be part of another dressing room at Kings XI Punjab

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jul-2020Anil Kumble, the former India captain, doesn’t regret walking away as the team’s head coach in 2017, but feels “the end could have been better”. He stepped down immediately after the Champions Trophy in June, where India finished runners-up to Pakistan, after his partnership with captain Virat Kohli became “untenable.”Ahead of that tournament, reports of Kohli telling BCCI about players being uncomfortable with Kumble’s “overbearing” ways surfaced. “The one year I spent with the Indian team (2016 to 2017) was fantastic,” Kumble said in an Instagram Live with former Zimbabwe medium-pacer Mpumelelo Mbangwa. “We did really well in that one-year period.”During his term from June 2016 to 2017, India rose to become the No. 1-ranked Test team, beating West Indies (away), Bangladesh, New Zealand, England and Australia (all at home). In all, India won 12 and lost just one Test during his 17-match run as India coach.”I was really happy that there were some contributions made and there are no regrets. I was happy moving on from there as well. I know the end could have been better but then that’s fine. As a coach, you realise when it’s time to move on; it’s the coach who needs to move on. I was really happy I played a significant role in that one year.”Kumble currently chairs the ICC Cricket Committee, with still a year to go in his nine-year term. On the coaching front, he will be involved with Kings XI Punjab as director of cricket operations.”Kings XI Punjab haven’t been consistent in 12 seasons of the IPL, and it’s a challenge,” Kumble said. “I’m looking forward to being part of a dressing room again. I’m also towards the end of my term in the ICC Cricket Committee. It’s wonderful being part of the ICC, to keep yourself abreast of what is happening and to contribute in your own way is very special.”

Lace becomes third young Middlesex player to join Gloucestershire in four years

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Aug-2020Gloucestershire have announced the signing of 22-year-old batsman Tom Lace with immediate effect on a three-year contract.Lace, who made 835 County Championship runs at 41.75 last year with three hundreds, becomes the third young Middlesex player to join Gloucestershire in four years, after Ryan Higgins and George Scott.He spent the majority of the 2019 season on loan at Derbyshire, topping their Championship averages and making 83, 57, 16 and 125 in his four innings against Gloucestershire.After passing a medical last week, Lace will go straight into the Gloucestershire squad for their Bob Willis Trophy match against Glamorgan on Saturday having been released from his Middlesex contract with immediate effect.”I’m delighted to have signed for Gloucestershire for the next three years,” Lace said. “I’m looking forward to hitting the ground running and helping the team to more success.”Bristol is a brilliant city and Gloucestershire is a county full of hungry and talented young players. I’m hugely grateful to everyone at the club for the opportunity to be a part of that.”Richard Dawson, Gloucestershire’s head coach, described Lace as a “very talented young batsman” with a “great work ethic”.”Last season we saw first-hand when he played for Derbyshire how good a batsman he is,” he said, “and now we look forward to him scoring runs for Gloucestershire.”Angus Fraser, Middlesex’s managing director of cricket, said: “We are sorry to see Tom leave. He is a fine young man with a bright future in the game. When Tom extended his contract, it was on the mutual understanding that if, for whatever reason, he was not playing regular first XI cricket he would be entitled to seek opportunities elsewhere. Everyone at Middlesex wishes him well for the future.”

History will be made one way or another at the CPL final in 2020

Peter Della Penna09-Sep-2020

Big picture

It’s the CPL blue bloods vs the sea blue jerseys in this year’s final. One side is very familiar with their role in the winner takes all championship showdown. The other couldn’t be more alien to the playoffs, let alone playing for the title.Three-time champions Trinbago Knight Riders have been the chalk team virtually since the CPL’s inception. They have never missed the playoffs and have topped the regular season table in three of the last four seasons. The old Oakland Raiders NFL teams of the late Al Davis era might have been envious of the commitment to excellence the Knight Riders have demonstrated in 2020 though, reeling off a run of 11 straight victories as they attempt to be the first CPL side to finish as undefeated champions.Though the Knight Riders have more than their fair share of stars to draw upon, the standout quality from this group has been their collective depth. Sunil Narine, Colin Munro and Ali Khan have all missed time due to injury, but the Knight Riders haven’t skipped a beat as they received handy contributions from unheralded sources like Tion Webster, Jayden Seales and 48-year-old legspinner Pravin Tambe. You know TKR is a juggernaut when Akeal Hosein – arguably the fourth choice spinner behind Narine, Fawad Ahmed and Khary Pierre – is claiming a Man of the Match award in the tournament semi-final after claiming 3 for 14 in a nine-wicket romp over the Jamaica Tallawahs.Standing across from the Knight Riders at Brian Lara Academy on Thursday morning will be the St Lucia Zouks. They have been bottom-feeders throughout their history, making the playoffs for just the second time in eight seasons this year. After years of historic futility, an infusion of Afghan might in 2020 has sparked Daren Sammy’s side to their first ever tournament final.A decade ago it would have been unthinkable for three Afghanistan players to be present in all the world’s franchise leagues combined. But the country’s players are in ever-increasing demand and the trio in the Zouks starting XI – Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran and Zahir Khan – are a microcosm of the battling qualities which have seen both Afghanistan and the Zouks rise in prominence.Their fighting spirit, along with shrewd captaincy from Sammy, has spread throughout the team. On paper, one might think it impossible for a team that has produced just two half-centuries with the bat all season – both by Roston Chase – to be capable of going all the way to the final. But a never say die attitude in the field has galvanized them to some improbable wins. Defending 92 to beat the reigning champions Barbados Tridents tops the list, but sparking a Tallawahs collapse from 84 for 0 to defend a total of 145 isn’t far behind. So it shouldn’t be too surprising then that their bowling unit led by Scott Kuggeleijn, Nabi and Zahir shredded the Guyana Amazon Warriors for 55 in the semis, the second lowest total in CPL history.Logic says the Knight Riders are the obvious choice to prevail on home soil in the final. But there is nothing logical about how the Zouks have continued to defy the odds to arrive alongside them with tournament hardware on the line. One way or the other, there will be a historic result – a maiden undefeated champion or a maiden Zouks crown – by Thursday afternoon.Rahkeem Cornwall smashes one over long-off•Getty Images

Form guide

Trinbago Knight Riders WWWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
St Lucia Zouks WWLLW

In the spotlight

Tion Webster only played half the matches in the league stage, but he has been finding form at the right time as a more than capable replacement in the top-order, first for Narine and then for Munro. He ended the league stage with an unbeaten 41 off 33 balls against St Kitts & Nevis Patriots, then followed it up in the semi-finals with 44 not out off 43 balls against the Tallawahs. While both innings came chasing targets of 78 and 108 respectively, many top order players have found batting tricky in the second innings on tough surfaces. Webster on the other hand has remained carefree and that confidence may play a significant role in the final.Last year it was Hayden Walsh Jr who played a leading role for the Barbados Tridents on their way to the title. Another Liberta Blackhawk from Antigua has a chance to play a key role if his team lifts the trophy in 2020. Rahkeem Cornwall has hit the most sixes for the Zouks, with 13 in nine innings. In an event where most batsmen have struggled to time the ball to the rope, his strike rate of 142.62 has given the Zouks short but fiery starts. The big man showed off his agility in the field on Tuesday’s semi-final with a superb catch diving forward at slip to end the first innings.

Team news

If the Knight Riders were unwilling to risk Colin Munro in the semi-final, it’s unlikely he’ll be fit enough for this game. Ali Khan has bowled below full pace in his two matches back from a hamstring injury. TKR management will have to decide whether they value his experience in a final – he took a wicket first-ball in 2018 against the Amazon Warriors at the same venue to give TKR a huge lift – is enough to keep his place ahead of Seales.Trinbago Knight Riders (possible): 1 Sunil Narine, 2 Lendl Simmons, 3 Tion Webster, 4 Tim Seifert (wk), 5 Darren Bravo, 6 Kieron Pollard (capt.), 7 Dwayne Bravo, 8 Akeal Hosein, 9 Khary Pierre, 10 Fawad Ahmed, 11 Ali Khan/Jayden Seales.The Zouks have had a fairly settled side down the stretch of the season. It’s unlikely they have any fitness issues after a semi-final which lasted a combined total of 18.1 overs. Expect an unchanged XI.St Lucia Zouks (possible): 1 Rahkeem Cornwall, 2 Mark Deyal, 3 Andre Fletcher (wk), 4 Roston Chase, 5 Mohammad Nabi, 6 Najibullah Zadran, 7 Javelle Glen, 8 Daren Sammy (capt.), 9 Scott Kuggeleijn, 10 Kesrick Williams, 11 Zahir Khan.

Pitch conditions

The five highest totals in the CPL this season (all 172 or more) have all come in 10 am starts at Brian Lara Academy, all made by the team batting first in victory. Though T20 strategy traditionally points teams towards chasing, things could be different in the final, if only because the Knight Riders were responsible for four of those five wins and the Zouks round out the stat. Expect a higher scoring contest than the pair of semi-final duds.

Stats and trivia

• The two half-centuries scored by the entire Zouks roster – both by Chase – are the fewest for any CPL finalist since the inaugural season when the 2013 CPL champion Jamaica Tallawahs had one apiece from Kumar Sangakkara and Chris Gayle. However, the Zouks total of two is the fewest for any team in the current 10-match regular season format as teams only played seven league stage matches in the 2013 CPL.
• Darren and Dwayne Bravo are the only remaining players from the 2015 Trinidad & Tobago Red Steel squad, the previous incarnation of the Knight Riders, which won the first of the three championships for the TKR franchise.
• Though the Zouks don’t have a title as a franchise, it would not be the first title for several of their players. Deyal played one match as a member of the Red Steel in 2015. Kesrick Williams was the leading wicket-taker for the 2016 champion Tallawahs while Leniko Boucher joined the Zouks in 2020 after being a member of the 2019 champion Tridents.

Quotes

“We have come here and played fantastic cricket throughout the tournament and we need the cherry on top of it. Looking around the dressing room, you don’t see overconfidence. You see guys who want to improve each and every time out.”
“We didn’t come here to celebrate a semi-final. You don’t carry anything from before into the finals. It’s a clean slate. Whoever plays good cricket on the day… on Thursday we’re going to come with the same attitude.”

Travis Head made 151 as for the second match running South Australia fought for a draw

Andrew McGlashan02-Nov-2020South Australia batted out the final day – and 160 overs in total – to secure their second backs-to-the-wall draw in consecutive matches. Travis Head made 151 but the hero was 19-year-old Liam Scott, in just his fourth first-class match, as he made 61 from 162 deliveries to see the Redbacks through most of the last session.Two vital moments came early in the final hour when Scott was brilliantly caught by Seb Gotch, when on 54, but Zak Evans had overstepped and next ball he struck a boundary to wipe out the 364-run deficit and knock off a few extra vital overs from South Australia’s task.He fell with the job not quite complete – a sixth wicket for the outstanding Scott Boland who hurled his body through 33 overs – unable to keep out a superb yorker, but Daniel Worrall and Wes Agar stood firm for eight overs.Scott, who mixed excellent defence with calculated attack in an innings that included four sixes, had come to the crease midway through the day when it appeared Victoria had made the game-changing incisions either side of lunch. Head had just gone past 150 for the second match running when he turned Jon Holland off the face of the bat to short leg, leaving South Australia 5 for 264 and the lower order exposed.Head and Henry Hunt had extended their third-wicket stand to 226 in 86 overs when Victoria finally broke through with the second new ball, Boland finding Hunt’s outside edge and then doing the same against Callum Ferguson who bagged a pair.Boland, in a herculean effort during the fourth innings, struck again in the first over after tea when he produced a beauty from round the wicket to bowl Harry Nielsen to break a stand of 66 in 23 overs with Scott and reenergise Victoria.Their victory push gathered steam when Will Sutherland claimed a much-deserved wicket as Chadd Sayers played onto his stumps with South Australia still 26 behind, but as they moved into the lead the clock turned against Victoria and Boland’s sixth wicket came too late.

England captain says ‘there are still a lot of issues to be a girl in sport’

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Nov-2020Heather Knight believes comments by former Football Association chairman Greg Clarke have highlighted that there is still work to be done for sportswomen to achieve equality with their male counterparts.Clarke resigned from the FA and from his role as FIFA vice-president this week after using a series of racist and offensive phrases while speaking at a parliamentary committee meeting.He was also criticised for saying a coach had told him that a lack of women’s goalkeepers was because girls “don’t like having the ball kicked at them hard”.Knight, the England women’s cricket captain, said there were still “lots of issues” surrounding how women in sport are viewed and treated.”To have someone so high up in football to say that is not a great place to be,” Knight told Sky Sports News. “There’s a lot going on at the moment in terms of women’s football academies not being able to train whereas the boys’ academies are [under UK Covid-19 restrictions].”It highlights that there are still a lot of issues to be a girl in sport. It’s not a problem purely for football, there are lots of examples from other sports where girls don’t get the same opportunities as guys. I think it highlights there’s still a lot of work to do in that area and still a lot of changes that need to be made.”Boys’ football academies were allowed to stay open during a second national lockdown because they met government requirements for elite sport, but girls’ academies initially remained closed because they fell outside the FA’s interpretation of those rules.Following political pressure, girls’ academies will be allowed to open, although Baroness Campbell, the FA’s director of women’s football, told Telegraph Sport that she expected only “one or two” to be able to do so because of the costs involved in complying with Covid-19 prevention measures – a problem not faced by the significantly better resourced boys’ academies.Knight acknowledged that many positive changes had occurred in women’s cricket and women’s sport over the course of her decade-long England career.”When I was growing up [cricket] was very much a male-dominated sport,” Knight said. “I played men’s cricket down in Devon and you had to have a thick skin sometimes [due to] the comments you got.”Luckily a lot of that has changed. I think perceptions to women in cricket and in sport in general is miles away from where they were while I was growing up.”It has become a lot more normal to become a woman in sport, and a lot easier for young girls to aspire to be that and to emulate the people they are now seeing a lot more in the media, obviously with women’s sport being a lot more visible. I think we’ve still got progress to make, but in terms of my career playing for England for the last 10 years, it’s changed massively.”During a Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Committee hearing on Tuesday, Clarke referred to “coloured footballers”, stereotyped south Asians and Afro-Caribbean people as possessing “different career interests” and described homosexuality as a “life choice”.Asked in the hearing if he would like to withdraw the use of the word “coloured”, Clarke apologised for using the term.In his resignation statement, Clarke said: “My unacceptable words in front of Parliament were a disservice to our game and to those who watch, play, referee and administer it. This has crystallised my resolve to move on. I am deeply saddened that I have offended those diverse communities in football that I and others worked so hard to include.”

Initiative to recognise prominent grassroots campaigners for efforts during pandemic

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Dec-2020The Kia Oval has been renamed for 24 hours as the Kia Shahidul Alam Ratan Oval, in honour of a former Bangladesh cricketer who is now the leader of a London cricket charity which has been helping to keep children active during lockdown.The Oval was one of a number of prominent sports venues in London to join an initiative to honour grassroots sport community workers and volunteers who, with the support of National Lottery funding, have gone above and beyond during the Covid-19 pandemic.Ratan, a wicketkeeper in Bangladesh’s pre-Test days in the 1980s and 1990s, is chief executive of Capital Kids Cricket, a charity which uses cricket as tool to change the lives of disadvantaged children.During lockdown, Capital Kids Cricket created a digital activity zone to keep kids active, learning and keep in touch with each other socially. Ratan oversaw all their activity, including running virtual sessions with vulnerable kids such as refugees. The charity also arranged regular quiz evenings and family consultations via Zoom to ask about challenges they might face and offer support.”It is brilliant news to be recognised with this honour and it means a lot,” Ratan said. “This may bring some light to the charity and people like me who want to make a change, who want to go the extra mile to help people who need it.”To have a prestigious stadium like The Kia Oval named after me is a huge honour in the cricketing world, not only here in the UK. I would like to thank Surrey Cricket as well.”Without funding, we can’t do anything. The National Lottery are a very generous funder,” he added.”We work across London but we do a lot of coaching in Newham, Waltham Forest, Tower Hamlets, Hackney, Westminster and Camden – then some bits in Hammersmith & Fulham and Ealing.”As soon as we found out about going into lockdown, I had a call with our coaches and said we must make sure we keep things going.”We have three or four clubs we look after and we told our coaches to set up activities within a home environment. Show the kids what they can do with batting, bowling and fielding within their home – in living rooms, small backyards or alleyways between houses.”After two weeks, we decided to introduce a virtual challenge and competitive element. It was very simple challenges like keepie-uppies with the bat and ball, seeing how many times they could keep the ball up in the air, or juggling with two or three cricket balls.”Once we finished that competition, we’d started to establish a connection with clubs around the world. We then wanted to do something simple to connect with those clubs and even more people.”The charity initiated a virtual ball-passing game globally. Hundreds of people joined from the USA to Australia, South Africa to Sweden, including Syrian refugee camps from Lebanon, ending with a virtual celebration with 130 people and families from across the globe joining via zoom.They have now started women and girl’s activities online, running aerobics exercises and boxing classes, and they also ran summer cricket camps in three locations, while constantly supporting parents over the phone who are facing loneliness or suffering from mental health challenges.Other venues to change names this week will be Twickenham rugby stadium, The Redgrave Pinsent Rowing Lake, The Paula Radcliffe Athletics Track, The Geraint Thomas Velodrome in Wales and The National Outdoor Centre in Wales.Dame Katherine Grainger, UK Sport Chair said, “It’s fantastic that sports across the nations have been able to come together to celebrate grassroots champions who have gone above and beyond this year. Around £30m a week is raised for good causes across the UK by people playing The National Lottery, and has helped sport at all levels, from the smallest rowing club to helping athletes prepare for the Tokyo Olympics next year.”Tim Hollingsworth, CEO of Sport England, said: “With the help of The National Lottery’s players, thousands of grassroots sports workers and volunteers from local clubs and organisations across the UK have been be able to continue to help people and communities to remain active, connected and motivated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Grassroots sport also has a fundamental role to play in providing much needed physical and mental wellbeing in these difficult times.”

A hundred caps, check, but don’t rule out a hundred more

George Dobell03-Feb-20213:59

The key stops in Joe Root’s journey from 1 to 100

This was one half-century he was always going to convert.From the moment Joe Root toddled out to bat in Nagpur – really, did old-school Yorkshiremen like Brian Close or Ray Illingworth, look as young as Root did that day even in their pre-natal scans? – it looked likely he would spend a decade and more in the side. A hundred caps: check. Don’t rule out a hundred more.Yes, there have been a few stumbles on the way. And yes, there are one or two hurdles – notably runs in Australia – yet to clear. But, even now, he averages more than any of England’s other top-10 Test run-scorers. By the time this year is over, still aged 30, he will have scored more than any other than Sir Alastair Cook.Is he as good as Virat, Kane and co? Right now, you would probably have to say no, though the story isn’t over. But even if he isn’t, a player can be brilliant without being as good as that trio. You don’t judge Sachin a failure because he’s not Bradman, do you?It’s interesting, though, that those who claim James Anderson’s record is flattered by playing half his career in English conditions, rarely acknowledge the reverse influence on Root’s figures. He actually averages more away from home than Virat or Kane. If he had their home surfaces to enjoy… As ever, you have to be careful with stats.If you need any further evidence of how tough batting in England has become, consider this: when was, Root apart, the last time England gave a debut to a specialist batsman who went on to enjoy a Test career of unquestionable success? The answer is Jonathan Trott, probably, in 2009. If you want to go back to the last England-born batsman, it is probably Alastair Cook, in 2006, and before that Ian Bell in 2004. Whichever way you look at it, Root is a giant among contemporary English batsmen.But now, as he reflects on joining an elite club – he will be the 15th England player to win a hundred Test caps; none have a higher batting average, only three have more wickets – it is more the future than the past which occupies his mind.”It’s eluded [the century] me a few times with the bat so I’m really proud to be on the eve of playing a hundred Tests,” Root says. “It feels great to join that club. There are some fantastic players – people I’ve looked up to for many years – among them. For a young kid from Sheffield… from being seven or eight years old, dreaming of playing for England, to be sat here now… I’m sure he would be extremely proud.”I hope it’s not near the end. I still feel like there’s a lot left in me. There’s certainly a burning desire to keep going and play as long as I can. I’m really excited about the coming year.”It says much about Root’s general attitude that he believes the key to his future is adopting a more selfish attitude with the bat. There have, he concedes, been moments in the past where his attention was not fully focused on his primary role as a batsman. Now, he says, he has understood the need to put himself first at times.”That [selfish] mind-set certainly helped me in the last two games in Sri Lanka,” Root admitted. “In the nicest way possible, I’ve tried to be a bit more selfish with my batting, knowing if I bat for a long period of time I make big runs and it’s obviously going to benefit the team.”It’s sounds simple. You might ask why has it taken you 99 games to figure it out. But I’m just desperate for us to do well collectively and that’s naturally how I’ve always tried to think about the game. At times I do think about too many things and try and overthink certain periods of play.”Root admits he’s become more selfish with the bat•SLC

In the shorter-term, Root provides a strong hint that Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes will return to the team for the first Test in Chennai. And while it seems safe to assume Ollie Pope and Stuart Broad will also return, it is unclear at this stage which of Dom Bess or Moeen Ali is first-choice off-spinner.”Any team would welcome Ben back with both arms as often as possible and we certainly do,” Root says. “Having watched him practice, he looks like his bowling is strong, he is batting very well and very much ready to get going.”I had the displeasure of facing Jofra today and he bowled at the speed of light. He looked in great rhythm.”Despite that, Root is under no illusions about the size of the task ahead of him. Success would, he admits, represent his “greatest achievement”.”As a captain, I think it would be,” he says. “I played a very small part in the amazing 2012 series. That was very special. But I don’t think at the time I appreciated how hard it is to win in these conditions.”Having toured since I have a better understanding of it. It would be a huge achievement for this group of players. But it’s one we certainly have the tools to do. I’m really excited about it. It should be good fun.”We ask a lot of our top sportspeople. Over the years, Root has not only carried his side’s batting, but emerged as a willing spokesperson for the benefits of diversity and importance of protecting players’ mental health. At the same time, he had made a point of decrying homophobic ‘banter’, ensured his side have remained focused and positive during their long periods in the ‘bubble’ and been a willing advertisement for a game that has been hidden behind a paywall for too long.Related

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You can’t really quantify the value of such attributes. But most would agree these things matter. Yes, Root has overseen a succession of away wins that hasn’t been seen since zeppelins were the future of transport. And yes, he requires only one more victory to equal the record for most successes as an England Test captain. But perhaps an equally important contribution is his leadership of the sport through a time of social upheaval. Somewhere along the way, Root has grown into an impressive man.”Understanding that responsibility is really important,” Root says now. “We’re very aware that we’re role models and it is very important we use that in a positive way and try to make cricket as good as it can be while we have the opportunity to have a big effect on it. As players at the top of the game, we have a really good opportunity to make changes for the better.”As a player and captain, in particular, you want to try to lead the way in those opportunities and that image for the sport. You want the next guy to come in and the next generation to be inspired. For the kids to look at the game and think, ‘I want to be a part of that, I want to play cricket because it looks so much fun. It looks a really good sport to be a part of.'”News that Channel 4 will broadcast the series free-to-air in the UK, means there is every chance that a new audience will have an opportunity to watch the sport over the coming weeks. In Root, they will have a fine role model to admire as player and man. Whatever happens – and even the most fervent England supporter would concede their team has an almighty challenge in front of them – there’s a lot to like about him and his team.

Australia will pip India to the post – and set up a final against New Zealand – if England win the fourth Test

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2021The ten-wicket win, well inside two days, in the pink-ball Test in Ahmedabad has not only given India an unassailable 2-1 lead in the four-Test series, it’s given them a clear shot at qualifying for the inaugural World Test Championship final, to be played at Lord’s from June 18. The result in the third Test also means that it’s now a two-horse race to meet New Zealand in the final – Australia vs India – with England’s hopes lying in tatters.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The target for both India and England, before the series, was to top Australia’s points percentage of 69.17. England, having slipped to 64.1 after the latest reversal, cannot get there, but India can, unless England spoil their party in the final exchange.What India need to do to reach the finalAs things stand, India are actually ahead of New Zealand on points percentage. India have 71.0 (490 overall) compared to New Zealand’s 70.0 (420). In terms of the WTC final, India’s target, even before the series had started, was to earn 70 points – having come into the third Test with 30 points for a win and a loss, they needed to win the series 2-1 or 3-1.They are now at 2-1, but…What if India lose the final Test?There, that’s the only way they can’t make the WTC final, which means that though they are out of the hunt themselves, Joe Root’s boys can be killjoys for Virat Kohli’s team, and make Tim Paine and Co very happy. A 2-1 (with a draw in the final Test) or 3-1 scoreline does the job for India, while 2-2, the only other possibility, isn’t good enough for them.What about the possibility of points being docked…?Related

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A 3-1 series win will be perfect for India, and they don’t have to worry about being docked points for slow over-rates or anything else. Australia might have avoided a lot of the uncertainty had they not dropped four points because of a slow over-rate against India in the Boxing Day Test. Had that not happened, Australia would have been level with New Zealand on 70, which would then have brought the runs-per-wicket ratio into play (that is the ratio of the runs scored per wicket lost, and the runs conceded per wicket taken). Australia’s ratio is currently 1.39 while New Zealand’s is 1.28.This means Australia would have stayed ahead of New Zealand, and would have been certain of qualification. Now, they will need England to help them out, if they can.Importantly for India, the WTC rules state that even if the Ahmedabad stadium gets an unfavourable rating from the ICC – the Test got over in under two days, with spinners running amok – the team, India, will not be affected.

Yasir Ali led the way with the bat, scoring 92 in the Bangladesh Emerging Team’s only innings

Mohammad Isam28-Feb-2021Tanvir Islam’s career-best match haul of 13 for 106 cleaned up the Ireland Wolves as the Bangladesh Emerging Team won by an innings and 23 runs, finishing the only four-day game of the tour on the third day. Islam, a 25-year-old left-arm spinner who had taken 19 wickets in his 11 previous first-class games, finished with figures of 8 for 51 from 28.3 overs in the Wolves’ second innings at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram.The visitors were bowled out for 139, having made 151 in their first innings, as they went through yet another struggle against spin. In the first innings, Islam took 5 for 55 while captain Saif Hassan, who bowls part-time offspin, took two wickets. In the second innings, it was Islam again with the wickets while Ebadot Hossain and Hassan took one each.In between the Wolves’ two innings, the home side were bowled out for 313 with Yasir Ali top-scoring with 92. He struck eight fours and five sixes in his 115-ball knock. Bangladesh’s top three – Saif, Tanzid Hasan and Mahmudul Hasan Joy – all got out in the forties.Mark Adair and Graham Hume took three wickets each while Jonathan Garth took two wickets. Among the Wolves batsmen, only captain Harry Tector struck a fifty for the visitors, having got out for a duck in the first innings. Curtis Campher top-scored with 39 in the first dig.The two sides next take on each other in five one-day games and two T20s in Chattogram and Dhaka.

Derbyshire make off with points for draw after century stand between sixth-wicket pair

George Dobell11-Apr-2021A century stand from Matt Critchley and Harvey Hosein led Derbyshire to safety on the final day of their Championship match at Edgbaston. Resuming on the fourth morning with a lead of 39 and five wickets in hand, Critchley and Hosein added 113 in 36 overs to steer their side from danger.While Derbyshire had dug something of a hole for themselves with their aggressive batting on the third evening, Critchley and Hosein adopted a more sophisticated approach on the final day. Prepared to wait for scoring opportunities, they played admirably straight, shrugged off the times they were beaten – inevitable on these early-season surfaces – and put away the loose ball without fuss.Perhaps understandably in these horribly uncomfortable conditions – play started in sub-zero temperatures – Warwickshire’s seamers lacked the required consistency to build pressure. For although ball continued to beat bat fairly regularly, there were also a number of release deliveries that helped Derbyshire stretch their lead towards safety.Critchley was, perhaps, the more eye-catching of the pair. While every other batter in the match has struggled for fluency, he timed the ball sweetly in both innings and looked a high-class player. He was particularly efficient off his legs and punished anything overpitched. He brought up his half-century (73 balls, eight fours) with a rasping cut for four off Hannon-Dalby and finished as Derbyshire’s top-scorer in both innings.Related

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Hosein offered steadfast support. Although generally patient – his half-century occupied 103 deliveries – he produced a gorgeous on-drive when Craig Miles overpitched and put away anything on his legs efficiently.Maybe the batters were helped by a change in atmospheric conditions, too. Although the temperature remained uncomfortably cold – indeed, this may well have been the coldest day of the match – the heavy cloud cover of the previous day dispersed for a few hours to produce slightly more benign conditions. They were the only pair to bat through a completed session in the match.While Warwickshire’s seamers beat the bat enough to justify their usage, it might have been worth a look at the spin of Danny Briggs a bit earlier. He wasn’t called upon until the 67th over of the innings by which time Derbyshire were almost 200 ahead.It was something of a surprise when Liam Norwell made the breakthrough. He had generally struggled to rediscover the menace he showed in the first innings but, angling one in, he trapped Critchley leg-before 17 short of a well-deserved century.”It was a great partnership for us,” Billy Godleman, the Derbyshire captain, said. “Critchley played beautifully in the first innings and backed it up today under immense pressure with the game situation. I was really proud of our players today.”The value of the stand was demonstrated as Derbyshire lost their final four wickets for 25 runs. Although Fynn Hudson-Prentice helped Hosein add a further 35 for the seventh wicket, after he was well held by Michael Burgess, standing up to the seam of Will Rhodes, the final three went cheaply. Hosein was left unbeaten on 78, his fourth half-century – two of which have been unbeaten – in his nine most recent first-class innings.That left Warwickshire requiring 213 in a minimum of 41 overs for victory. Maybe, had poor weather not intervened, we might have seen an exciting finish. But five overs into the Warwickshire “chase”, snow started to fall and play was suspended.There was little indication Warwickshire had been tempted to go for their target, anyway. Two of the first four overs were maidens and Dom Sibley was scoreless after 10 deliveries. They head to Trent Bridge later in the week with Olly Stone and, perhaps, Hanuma Vihari expected to come into their side. A decision on Vihari, who is only due out of quarantine on Wednesday, will be made nearer the time, but it could be he replaces Briggs in the XI. Suffice to say, he faces quite a culture shock in terms of weather and pitches.Afterwards, Mark Robinson, the new Warwickshire head coach, admitted to a touch of frustration.”Maybe our seamers could have been a tad more consistent on the final morning,” he said. “And maybe we could have been a bit more ruthless both on the last morning and when we got level with them in the first innings.”It’s a new start for us and I’m still learning about the team. We’re not perfect. But we’ll get better game by game. It’ll be a hell of a team.”But, while this was ultimately a frustrating day, there was a first glimpse – in the first team environment, anyway – of Jacob Bethell. Warwickshire are confident they have uncovered something of a gem in the 17-year-old Barbadian. You suspect his appearance here, albeit as a substitute fielder, will be the first of many.