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On a greenish pitch that offered bounce and seam movement throughout the day’s play, Karnataka’s top order continued its poor start to the season, but not before their seamers had bowled Jammu & Kashmir out for 160

The Report by Karthik Krishnaswamy in Hubli05-Jan-2015
ScorecardFile photo: Vinay Kumar led the Karnataka pace attack again, with four wickets•Getty ImagesOn a greenish pitch that offered bounce and seam movement throughout the day’s play, Karnataka’s top order continued its poor start to the season, but not before their seamers had bowled Jammu & Kashmir out for 160. Fifteen wickets fell on the first day in Hubli, including nine in the middle session.There is still a long way to go in the match, but for now J&K’s lower-order collapse – their last seven wickets fell for 38 runs – seemed like the defining period of play.In Karnataka’s three first innings before this, CM Gautam had walked in with the score reading 97 for 5, 69 for 5 and 153 for 5. Here they were 83 for 5 before Gautam and Robin Uthappa steadied their innings with an unbroken stand of 40. Karnataka trailed by 37 at stumps.With Uthappa having gone off the field for 10 minutes during J&K’s innings, it was Karun Nair who walked out to bat alongside Mayank Agarwal. Neither has had a productive season so far, and Ram Dayal dismissed both in the five overs that remained before tea. Nair was bowled playing across the line, Agarwal hung his bat outside off stump and edged to slip.Manish Pandey struck four sweetly-driven fours in a partnership of 53 with Kunal Kapoor before Mohammed Mudhasir found his edge with one that reared at him from a good length in the corridor. Kapoor, who had till then looked untroubled, looked to pull a short ball and ended up gloving a low catch to the left of the keeper. Mudhasir then angled a full ball into the stumps to trap Stuart Binny mid-shuffle. Twelve wickets had fallen in the last 35.3 overs.Batting hadn’t looked anywhere near as difficult at the start of the day’s play, after Karnataka sent J&K in. Vinay Kumar and Abhimanyu Mithun bowled a touch too straight in their first spells, and provided the openers a steady trickle of leg-side ones and twos. Neither Adil Reshi nor Obaid Haroon were really tested outside the off stump until Karnataka changed tack in the 10th over.Left-arm pacer S Aravind replaced Mithun at one end and Vinay went round the wicket at the other. The angle across the right-handed batsmen brought almost immediate reward. Reshi prodded at Vinay and edged a catch to the keeper in the 13th over, and seven balls later Haroon drove away from his body at Aravind and nicked to second slip.The runs dried up, and another wicket looked imminent as Vinay, back to bowling over the wicket, beat Aditya Singh repeatedly in the corridor. His struggles didn’t end even when Vinay took himself off, as Stuart Binny attacked his front pad, thrusting halfway forward and planting itself in front of the stumps. Ian Dev Singh provided the only moments of release in a pressure-soaked half hour, driving Binny on the up through extra cover and skipping down the pitch to launch legspinner Shreyas Gopal over long-on and beyond the press tent. The Aditya-Ian Dev partnership added 27 in 14 overs before Binny dismissed Aditya for a 43-ball 3, finding a bit of in-dip to hit his front pad in front of middle and off.With half an hour to go for lunch, Parvez Rasool went after the bowling, standing up and waiting for balls to slash or pull. He edged a couple of balls through the slip cordon, but was otherwise in control – while never looking entirely convincing with his methods – as he struck eight fours before lunch while racing to 35 off 25 balls.It was J&K’s best passage of play, and it ended in the fifth over after lunch, when Mithun moved one back in off the pitch to strike Ian Dev’s front pad halfway through his stride. In his next over, he speared one in even fuller and pinned Rasool to the crease. From that point on, there was barely any resistance; Karnataka’s four seamers simply landed it in the corridor and waited for the batsmen to feel for the ball. They kept poking, and four of the last five wickets fell to catches by Gautam behind the stumps or by Manish Pandey at second slip.

The BCCI will implement several measures targeted at players, support staff and team owners to curb corruption in the IPL

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jun-2013The BCCI has announced its first set of proposals to “clean up” the IPL, measures ranging from financial disclosures by players and team owners to curbing the tournament’s controversial “entertainment” quotient, including putting a stop to cheerleaders and after-match parties.The measures are part of “operation clean-up,” announced by acting BCCI head Jagmohan Dalmiya at the end of a working committee meeting in Delhi on Monday. It aims to curb corruption and remove “sleaze” in the IPL by enforcing a “strict code of conduct” for players, support staff and owners, after the 2013 season was hit by charges of spot-fixing against players and by allegations that team owners were involved in illegal betting.Players will be required to reveal sources of their earnings, and owners will have to furnish details of payments and their contractual obligations with players and support staff.Access to the players’ dug-out and dressing room has been tightened once again, with Dalmiya saying that team owners will be restricted from these areas during matches. Owners were allowed in the dug-out and dressing room during the first season in 2008, but following complaints had been prevented from entering those areas thereafter. They now have seating arrangements close to the dug-out. Top officials of two teams, Gurunath Meiyappan of the Chennai Super Kings and Raj Kundra of Rajasthan Royals, have confessed to taking part in illegal betting, according to the Mumbai and Delhi police.Dalmiya also said that “no selector will be allowed to get associated with any franchise in any capacity.” No member of India’s current selection panel is attached to any franchise, but former selection chairman Kris Srikkanth was brand ambassador for the Super Kings for a period at the start of the IPL.Players and support staff will need to provide their telephone numbers to the BCCI before the IPL, and there will be a larger number of officials from the BCCI’s Anti Corruption and Security Unit at grounds and hotels during the tournament. It was also said that cell phone towers at the ground could be jammed during matches.No decision was taken on the strategic time-out, which accounts for five minutes of every IPL match and came into being in 2010. The two intervals of two and a half minutes each in every innings allow teams to strategise with support staff, and commercially it creates 300 seconds of advertising space. However, according to police investigations that led to more than 25 betting-related arrests in Delhi and Mumbai, the time-out was also an ideal period for the syndicates to adjust their session and spot odds. When Dalmiya was asked about this, he said: “We have not thought about it, it was just a financial exercise.”On Tuesday, BCCI’s secretary Sanjay Patel was quoted in the saying that cleaning up the IPL was an “ongoing process” and doing away with the strategic time-outs had “financial implications.” He did not rule out any future change, however, saying that the strategic time-out could form a part of “additional measures in our programme. We will discuss all other issues, including strategic time-out in our future meetings.”Operation clean-up is a work in progress, Dalmiya said, and IPL captains will be called for a meeting and franchises will also be consulted before a blueprint could be finalised at another working committee meeting.By Sharda UgraThe BCCI’s 12-point “Operation Clean-Up” should, in a twisted way, look like a giant leap for Indian cricket. It is the first formal, even if disguised, admission of errors, misdemeanours and lapses in governance that Indian cricket has made since it became the game’s financial behemoth.It was official acknowledgement that the dirt whirling around the IPL could not possibly be brushed under a carpet of delusion. It involved three players, two IPL team owners, the police of two cities, an umpire who was yanked out of the Champions Trophy by the ICC, two dozen illegal bookies and time in prison.Operation Clean-Up addresses IPL’s corruption issues at two levels. Putting an end to cheer leaders and after-match parties and planning to jam cellphones during matches is at worst a cosmetic change, at best tangential. Cheerleaders are not responsible for cricketers being lured by bookies or owners falling prey to gambling. After-match parties have been off limits in the post-Modi IPL world anyway. Jamming cellphones during matches serve no purpose if deals have already been done.The more serious aspect of the BCCI’s plans involve asking cricketers to spell out their financial investments and partnerships, and for IPL owners to come clean with the details of their payment structures with players and support staff. While it may not uncover ‘black’ or ‘grey’ money dealings but it is the most you can do. It must be hoped that these will be early steps towards financial transparency in the BCCI, signaling a departure from the IPL’s very smelly ‘secret tie-break’ culture.Whatever may have been included in the 12-point list, what stayed off it were the unmentionables. Whether BCCI officials would be willing to have their own financial backgrounds so thoroughly examined. To reveal the channels through which they make profits through cricket. Whether the BCCI would consider re-amending their constitution, rolling back the clause that gave N Srinivasan the latitude to buy an IPL franchise. Whether officials fighting misappropriation of funds cases against them could possibly continue in office.Operation Clean Up is a very small first step. It is the follow through that will tell us whether the BCCI has responded to perhaps the worst crisis in its history with a thorough overhaul of its governance structures, or mere window dressing.

He will abstain from discharging his duties as the BCCI president for now but N Srinivasan will continue to represent the Indian board at the ICC

Amol Karhadkar02-Jun-2013He will abstain from discharging his duties as the BCCI president for now but N Srinivasan will continue to represent the Indian board at the ICC.After returning from the working committee meeting in Chennai, Mumbai Cricket Association’s acting president Ravi Savant confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that Srinivasan emerged as the preferred choice when it came to representation at the game’s governing body.While Savant didn’t elaborate on the reasons, another member revealed ‘continuity’ as the main factor. “Since Srinivasan has been attending most of the ICC meetings for the last couple of years, it makes sense not to disturb the pattern,” he said, preferring anonymity.Representation at the ICC was one of the critical issues during behind-the-doors deals going into Sunday’s working committee that resulted in Srinivasan temporarily stepping aside as the BCCI president.The ICC’s annual conference is to be held in London from June 25 to 29, and it remains to be seen whether Srinivasan, often accused (or complimented) as the man who unofficially drives ICC’s decision-making, will enjoy the same clout among the group of ICC chief executives that he has enjoyed so far.Had it not been the for the arrests of three Rajasthan Royals players on May 16 for alleged spot-fixing, Srinivasan wouldn’t have had to convene two emergency working committee meetings in as many weeks. However, neither the arrested players nor Srinivasan’s son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan, the Chennai Super Kings management member who has been arrested on the charge of betting on IPL games, were even discussed during the meeting. “Neither betting nor spot-fixing was mentioned even once during the meeting, just like resignation,” said another member.Meanwhile, one of the first tasks of Jagmohan Dalmiya, who has been put in charge of BCCI’s day-to-day activities till the internal probe is completed, will be to appoint a new secretary and a treasurer. Even though the BCCI working committee has requested Sanjay Jagdale and Ajay Shirke to withdraw their resignations, both Jagdale and Shirke have made up their mind not to backtrack on their decisions to step down as secretary and treasurer respectively. Besides, Dalmiya will also have to name Jagdale’s replacement in the three-member internal inquiry panel to probe into complaints against Super Kings, Meiyappan and Royals.Even though Dalmiya can choose candidates of his choice, the appointments will have to be ratified by the BCCI’s working committee. Similarly, all the decisions taken by him will have to be approved by the working committee, which is likely to be convened once every fortnight. “In all likelihood, Srinivasan will abstain from all the working committee meetings till his name is cleared in this episode,” a member said.The situation where the BCCI finds itself after ten days of back and forth with Srinivasan, offering suggestions and conditions on how to deal with the news of his son-in-law’s arrest, is exactly what had been offered to Srinivasan on the first day – that he ease himself off his official duties until the board’s own investigation into the IPL corruption scandal could be completed.Srinivasan though dug his heels, ensured that the escalating crisis took out his two most competent aides, forcing him to call the working committee together for the first time following Gurunath’s arrest. It meant that that the agenda of the meeting moved from the crisis in the BCCI to saving an individual.

Jahurul Islam has been fined 50% of his Bangladesh Cricket League final match fee after appearing for Dhaka University in a university match without the BCB’s permission

Mohammad Isam27-Feb-2013Jahurul Islam has been fined 50% of his Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL) final match fee after he played in a university match without the Bangladesh Cricket Board’s (BCB) permission. He was also warned that a similar incident in the future will result in an automatic two-match ban.Ahead of the third day of the BCL final held at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, he played for Dhaka University in the nearby Suhrawardi Indoor Stadium, in an inter-university indoor cricket tournament. With the final being a day-night match, Jahurul returned to the ground two hours before play started, having played an eight-overs-a-side match. Later on the same day, he was named in the 15-man Test squad for the Sri Lanka tour, returning after almost three years.A day after the final, which Jahurul almost won single-handedly for North Zone, he was summoned by the BCB’s cricket operations committee because he is a contracted player under Grade C.”The BCB disciplinary committee felt that as an experienced cricketer at domestic and international level, Islam should have been more aware of the terms of his engagement with the BCB,” the board said in a statement. “As captain of a side playing in the final of a first-class event, he should have displayed a more responsible attitude, not only to his team-mates, but also to the outcome of the match.”Finally, by playing in an unauthorised capacity, in an unfamiliar format, he had exposed himself unnecessarily to the risk of possible injury, thereby jeopardising the selection process of the Bangladesh Test squad for the tour of Sri Lanka.”

Somerset are likely to be without Alviro Petersen for the first game of the Championship season

George Dobell08-Apr-2013Somerset are likely to be without Alviro Petersen for the first game of the Championship season.Petersen, who has signed as club’s overseas player for the first part of the season, has been detained in South Africa to complete fitness tests for the national board. He will fly on Tuesday night and arrive in London on Wednesday morning, leaving little time to complete the necessary formalities and travel to Chester-le-Street for the match against Durham.”He will arrive in London on Wednesday morning,” Dave Nosworthy, Somerset’s new director of cricket told ESPNcricinfo, “so it’s unlikely we can get him through customs and up to Durham in time.”Petersen’s absence is a blow to Somerset. They are already without Nick Compton, who is being rested on the order of England following his impressive efforts for England over the winter, and hoped that Petersen could help plug the gap.They do welcome back the seamer Alfonso Thomas, however, who had an agreement with the club to prioritise the Championship over any potential IPL contract. Somerset were second in the Championship in 2012, equalling their best-ever finish.Warwickshire, last season’s champions, are also set to be missing a key player, with Chris Woakes rested on the orders of the ECB. The allrounder is suffering from fatigue, so will not be available again Derbyshire. Keith Barker and Boyd Rankin are also out, with Dougie Brown, Warwickshire’s new coach, confirming that Oliver Hannon-Dalby and 20-year-old Tom Milns will form the bowling attack alongside Chris Wright.

New Zealand will be without Ross Taylor and Tim Southee, who has a “slight hammy niggle”, for the first ODI against Sri Lanka

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Jan-2015Atapattu keeping Sri Lanka’s options open

Sri Lanka coach Marvan Atapattu has said his team will be flexible about where to bat Mahela Jayawardene in the upcoming ODIs against New Zealand, as well as in the World Cup. When Jayawardene can be slotted in as opener, it will give Sri Lanka the chance to play the extra spinner, he said.
“Having Mahela in the squad gives us the opportunity to bat him in the middle order or let him open if we want to. [Regular opener] Dimuth [Karunaratne] is in the squad, so depending on the oppositions and the conditions we’ll decide if we want Mahela in the middle or at the top, which would mean we can play another spinner in the middle order.”
Atapattu said Lasith Malinga not being fit till the last couple of ODIs of the New Zealand series also gave the team a chance to explore their options. “If at all [we rest anyone in view of the World Cup], it’ll be fast bowlers. Malinga is also not ready till the last one-dayers. That’s a bit of a setback for us because he has been a champion bowler, especially at the death, But it’s a good chance for the others, we’ve got 17 players here, it’s a chance for us to see how the others go.”

New Zealand will be without Ross Taylor and Tim Southee, who has a “slight hammy niggle”, for the first ODI against Sri Lanka in Christchurch, batting coach Craig McMillan has said. The injury is nothing to worry about, he said.”Ross has gone home to spend a couple of days with the family. He won’t be part of this first game. Tim Southee has gone home as well for a couple of days’ rest. It’s important that we give some of the players a bit of R&R, a little rest before we get into a really hectic season.”Tim had a slight hammy niggle before that second Test in Wellington. It’s just a little bit of time to recover, as much physically as mentally. There have been a couple of long tours thrown in as well and Tim’s played pretty much every format. Just a couple of days’ R&R and he’ll come back when we head north.”No injury problem [for Taylor]. You’ll find most players have got niggles and have tape around certain parts of the body. It’s part of being a professional cricketer. There are very few players playing at bang on 100%. No major issues.”New Zealand will play the Sri Lanka series with the same squad that they selected for the World Cup. Fast bowler Kyle Mills, who had to return home from the series against Pakistan in the UAE in December with a groin strain, is part of the World Cup squad, but is not back to full fitness yet. He will not feature in the first ODI, either, McMillan said.”He’s still resting but he’s not far off. He’s been bowling, I think he’s coming off full runs,” McMillan said. “So I think he’ll join us as we head north and he’s looking forward to some game time.”To cover for Southee and Mills’ absence, Matt Henry, who missed out on the World Cup 15, has been added to the squad. However, he’s being brought in “just in case”, McMillan said, with Adam Milne, Mitchell McClenaghan and Trent Boult set to make the playing eleven. “Adam, Mitch, Trent, all three likely to play. Matt Henry is going to come in as cover. Obviously he was very unlucky not to make the [World Cup] squad. He’ll come out and join us tomorrow, he’s playing for Canterbury today at Rangiora [in the Ford Trophy].”

Munaf Patel, the Mumbai Indians fast bowler, has been fined 50% of his match fee for making offensive gestures during the match against Kings XI Punjab at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Apr-2012Munaf Patel, the Mumbai Indians fast bowler, has been fined 50% of his match fee for making offensive gestures during the match against Kings XI Punjab at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, the IPL stated in a release.The incident happened during the third over of Kings XI’s innings, after Nitin Saini hit Munaf for two fours. Munaf had a word with Saini at the end of the over, forcing the umpires to intervene. His captain Harbhajan Singh then had to step in to calm him down. Munaf pleaded guilty to the Level 1 offence and was fined by the match referee Raju Mukherjee.This is Munaf’s second offence in this tournament, after he was fined 25% of his match fee in the game against Deccan Chargers in Visakhapatnam. Munaf was appealing for the wicket of Kumar Sangakkara, who was bowled off the inside edge, but was initially denied the wicket by the on-field umpires. Munaf and Harbhajan both argued with the umpires, who eventually referred the decision.

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Aug-2012Zimbabwe squad for World Twenty20

Brendan Taylor (capt), Vusi Sibanda, Hamilton Masakadza, Stuart Matsikenyeri, Malcolm Waller, Elton Chigumbura, Craig Ervine, Graeme Cremer, Ray Price, Kyle Jarvis, Chris Mpofu, Richard Muzhange, Brian Vitori, Prosper Utseya, Forster Mutizwa
Non-travelling reserves: Regis Chakabva, Tendai Chatara, Shingirai Masakadza, Tinotenda Mutombodzi, Richmond Mutumbami

Richard Muzhange, the 21-year old Mid West Rhinos medium-pacer, is the only new face in the 15-man Zimbabwe squad for the ICC World Twenty20 to be led by Brendan Taylor.Brian Vitori, the left-arm fast bowler, is the only other member of the squad yet to play a Twenty20 international, although he’s already represented his country in Tests and ODIs.”This is one of the hardest squads we’ve had to pick for a while because we had quite a few players competing for places,” Heath Streak, the Zimbabwe bowling coach, told ESPNcricinfo. “Most of these guys are the ones that played against South Africa and Bangladesh in the tri-series. They did well there and we hope they will do well at the World Twenty20. We are in camp now and we will be playing some warm up matches there.”Ray Price, the left-arm spinner, missed the tri-series against South Africa and Bangladesh with an injury but has now returned to the squad.Zimbabwe are in Group C in the World Twenty20, along with South Africa and hosts Sri Lanka. They will play the opening game of the tournament against the hosts on September 18 in Hambantota.

A round-up of the second day’s play of the eighth-round Group B games of the Ranji Trophy 2013-14

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Dec-2013
ScorecardFile photo: Yashpal Singh scored 67•ESPNcricinfo LtdSeamer Nishan Singh ran through Railways’ batting order to take his second five-wicket haul in first-class cricket, as Services took a narrow but potentially crucial lead at the Jamia Millia Ground. Railways hadn’t added to their overnight 85 when they lost their sixth wicket off the second ball of the day, as Suraj Yadav got Ashish Yadav caught behind. Nishan took the next four wickets, dismissing Nitin Bhille for a 128-ball 21 before wrecking the tail to finish with 5 for 21.Services too lost regular wickets, mainly to medium-pacers Anureet Singh and Krishnakant Upadhyay, but ended the day with a 44-run lead thanks to Yashpal Singh, who struck eight fours and a six in a 139-ball 67.Railways captain Murali Kartik didn’t bowl during the Services innings. The former India left-arm spinner, who is playing his sixth match of the season, has only bowled 40 overs so far.
ScorecardRajasthan’s openers resisted Tamil Nadu’s unrelenting spin examination to end the day unbeaten and give their side hope in their hunt for the first-innings lead. Replying to Tamil Nadu’s 318, the openers Siddharth Saraf and Vineet Saxena played through 47 overs to reach 89 for no loss at stumps. Tamil Nadu’s spinners bowled 39 of those overs.Resuming on 231 for 5, Tamil Nadu lost overnight half-centurions R Prasanna and Vijay Shankar early, before a 39 from Malolan Rangarajan and 15 from captain L Balaji pushed their total to 318. After Pankaj Singh dismissed Shankar to complete his five-for, Rajasthan’s spinners took the remaining wickets, with left-armer Aristh Singhvi finishing with 3 for 83.There was no play in Kanpur between Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh due to fog.Read the full report of Baroda v Saurashtra here: Yusuf, Utkarsh put Baroda on top

A round-up of the action from the seventh match-day of the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier in Bangladesh

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Nov-2011Bangladesh Women secured one-day international status for the first time with a nine-wicket victory over USA Women in a low-scoring game in Savar. USA won the toss and chose to bat but were bowled out for 78 thanks to 4 for 20 from Khadiza Tul Kubra. Bangladesh then took just 18.5 overs to reach their target with Suktara Rahaman top scoring with an unbeaten 29.Bangladesh captain, Salma Khatun, was delighted with her side’s achievement. “It feels fantastic to have gained ODI status and it means a lot for Bangladesh women’s cricket, things can only get better from here.”

Ireland Women retained their ODI status by beating Netherlands Women by four wickets in Savar. The Dutch, batting first after winning the toss, could only post 139 for 9 from their 50 overs, with Kerry-Anne Tomlinson making 34 before being run out by the Ireland captain, Isobel Joyce. Jill Whelan’s 27 was the mainstay of the Ireland innings as they got home with 17 overs to spare. The result means Netherlands lose their ODI status.”We aimed to retain ODI status today so I’m not too disappointed with the team’s performance,” Joyce said. “That being said, we will have to improve if we are to beat Bangladesh and retain ninth place in the global rankings on Saturday.”

Elsewhere, pre-tournament favourites South Africa Women were the victims of an upset as they lost to Pakistan Women by three wickets in Mirpur in the first semi-final. South Africa, ranked fifth in the world, batted first and scored 180 for 9 with skipper Mignon du Preez making 41. In reply, Pakistan slipped to 140 for 7 before 28 not out from Marina Iqbal and 22 not out from Asmavia Iqbal saw their side home with 13 balls to spare.Pakistan will play West Indies Women in the final after they were comfortable 58-run victors over Sri Lanka Women in Fatullah. West Indies won the toss, batted first and posted 235 for 5. A partnership of 70 for the fourth wicket between Deandra Dottin (73) and Merissa Aguilleira (53 not out) helped their side to a commanding total which Sri Lanka, despite an opening stand of 67, never looked like chasing as they lost 7 for 40 with three wickets for Anisa Mohammed, closing on 177 for 7.