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The 18-year-old Afghanistan legspinner was thrilled after his selection at the IPL auction, where Sunrisers Hyderabad bought him for INR 4 crore (USD 595,000 approx)

Firdose Moonda20-Feb-20173:31

‘Afghanistan players weren’t bought for emotion’

Rashid Khan was at opposite ends of the cricketing spectrum – and then somewhere in-between – as the IPL auction played out this morning. Physically, he was in Harare with not much to do on a rest day between ODIs against Zimbabwe. Mentally, he was in Bangalore: he was one of the five Afghanistan players listed in the IPL 2017 auction and he had doubts about whether he would attract any bids. Emotionally, he was at home in the Nangarhar province of Afghanistan, where he last saw his parents and six brothers three months ago, and where all eyes were on India.”My parents woke up early to watch the auction. I was still sleeping when they called me and told me to get up and watch because I was coming up,” Rashid told ESPNcricinfo. “So I started to also watch it from here in Zimbabwe and I was really surprised, really happy and really excited when I saw what was happening. I couldn’t believe it actually, it happened very quickly.”After an eager back-and-forth between Mumbai Indians and defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad, Rashid was bought for INR 4 crore (USD 595,000 approx) by Sunrisers, who also acquired his team-mate Mohammad Nabi. The pair will join Kane Williamson, David Warner and Mustafizur Rahman, among others, in the franchise squad and for Rashid, it’s undoubtedly the biggest deal of his young cricketing career. He is only 18 and has been playing international cricket for less than 18 months and has already landed one of the most lucrative contracts going around.Rashid decided to enter the IPL auction on the advice of his agency, Insignia Sports, who also brokered his participation in the 2016-17 Bangladesh Premier League last year. He played for Comilla Victorians, in a squad that also included Jason Holder, Marlon Samuels, Ahmed Shehzad and Nuwan Kulasekara, and finished 11th on the overall wicket-takers’ list with 13 scalps at 14.92.He hoped the BPL performance and his recent returns at the Desert T20 Challenge – where he took nine wickets in the tournament at an average of 6.55 – would tempt an IPL team into buying him, despite a wealth of spin talent in India which saw even the world’s top-ranked T20 bowler, Imran Tahir, go unsold.”What makes me different is that I am a bit quicker for a legspinner,” Rashid said. “That is something that just came to me naturally, not something that I copied from anyone.”Apart from his speed, Rashid also relishes big occasions. At the Asia Cup last year, he was Afghanistan’s highest wicket-taker and the second-highest wicket-taker for his team at the World T20 after Nabi. His performances have been so standout he has squeezed long-term frontliner Samiullah Shenwari out of the starting XI.Rashid admitted he enjoys tough situations. “I love pressure. Mentally, I get myself ready for pressure. That’s how I like to play,” he said. “Maybe it’s because I grew up playing with my brothers all the time and five of them are older than me but I also think it’s the experience of playing a lot of cricket in a short space of time.”Since October 2015, Rashid has played in six ODI series and six T20 series, as Afghanistan seek to make themselves more visible on the global stage. Rashid and Nabi’s IPL signings will aid that cause immeasurably.Having been chosen over some Bangladesh and Sri Lanka stars, the pair’s selection is the biggest indication of the strides Afghanistan are making, and Rashid hopes it does not stop here.”Our main target is to play Test cricket and all the guys are working very hard to get there,” he said. “If we can get there, you can’t imagine how good it would feel.”For now, he is happy to concentrate on the shortest format. “In short formats, the more you enjoy it, the better you will do, and I am enjoying it a lot.”Understandably, Rashid has not made any plans for his new income just yet. He will only see his family after the tournament – Afghanistan travel from Zimbabwe to Greater Noida in Delhi for their series against Ireland and then it will be time for the IPL – and he expects there will be a clamour in his hometown to share in his glory. “Whenever I go home they have a celebration for me so I’m sure this time, they will do it as well.”

Prithvi Shaw became the first Mumbai batsman to score a hundred on Ranji Trophy debut in more than two decades, after Amol Muzumdar last achieved the feat in 1993-94, to highlight Mumbai’s semi-final win against Tamil Nadu

The Report by Arun Venugopal in Rajkot05-Jan-2017
ScorecardFile photo – Suryakumar Yadav’s 73 in the first innings had helped Mumbai get a 106-run first innings lead•PTI

That Mumbai did not so much storm as saunter into their second successive Ranji Trophy final and their 46th in all – a six-wicket win over Tamil Nadu in two sessions will qualify as nothing less – will gladden them for more than one reason. Firstly, it was a strong opening partnership, an elusive ingredient all season, that set up the chase of 251 on the final day.Secondly, and more importantly, it was Prithvi Shaw, a 17-year-old debutant, who was in the vanguard with a fearless hundred. During the course of his 175-ball 120, Shaw also became the first Mumbai batsman to score a hundred on Ranji Trophy debut in more than two decades, after Amol Muzumdar last achieved the feat in 1993-94.If one delivery were to sum up the contrasting fortunes of Shaw and Tamil Nadu, it was the second ball of the 51st over. Shaw, on 99, steered Vijay Shankar to gully, and as B Indrajith completed the catch, he was shattered. Even as Shaw tried to drag himself off the field, the umpires asked him to wait to check for the no ball.As it turned out, Shankar had overstepped; Suryakumar Yadav instantly went up to Shaw and patted his shoulder. Four balls later, Shaw steered Shankar to gully again. But, this time the ball went along the ground and Suryakumar dashed to the danger end. As Shaw’s helmet came off to reveal his pubescent face, the magnitude of his achievement on the big stage hit home.This wasn’t the first instance, though, of Shaw seeing off a nerve-wracking period; he and his partner Praful Waghela were put under considerable pressure by Tamil Nadu’s bowlers and close-in fielders yesterday – it showed in the nervy running between the wickets – and there was no respite in the morning session either, when play began after a 35-minute delay owing to poor visibility caused by dense fog.This time, however, Shaw wasn’t looking to play for stumps, and found his bearings with a crunchy backfoot punch through covers off Aswin Crist in the second over of the day. Despite two gullies and a short point breathing down on him, Shaw continued to middle the ball confidently. He was similarly unruffled by Dinesh Karthik’s chirp about the impending bouncers from behind the stumps, and was comfortably ducking them.When he leant forward to Crist and produced two punchy cover drives off successive deliveries, it became further evident that neither Crist nor Vignesh posed a threat to him. Also, with little swing on offer, captain Abhinav Mukund turned to Aushik Srinivas, his lead spinner. Aushik hadn’t conceded a run in his three overs late on Wednesday, but Shaw slog-swept his first delivery of the morning from the line of the stumps; it was a shot that would fetch him rich returns all day. Emboldened by Shaw, Waghela, too, unwrapped a brace of powerful sweeps against Aushik, who went for 31 in his four-over spell and was taken off the attack.Shankar and B Aparajith were introduced belatedly, but the outcome wasn’t going to change. If swatting Aparajith for a six over long on was another illustration of Shaw’s bravado, he showed in the next delivery that he could be sensible too; he stayed on leg stump, beside the line of the ball, and gently worked the ball off the backfoot into the vacant cover-point region for a single. Ironically, the top-edged pull for four that brought up Shaw’s fifty was the only shot that lacked conviction. Despite losing Waghela, who was caught after top-edging a pre-meditated sweep off a good length, Mumbai went into lunch the more confident team at 113 for 1.Left-arm seamer T Natarajan, who had been introduced only an over before lunch, was Tamil Nadu’s latest gambit. Mumbai’s response was to unleash a double-barrelled assault, with Shreyas Iyer and Shaw having fun at their opponents’ expense. Aushik returned for a fresh spell, and bowled from over the stumps to target the rough outside the right-hand batsmen’s leg stump. Whenever Shaw didn’t kick the ball away, he swept furiously off the rough.The field was now spread out and the spinners bowled defensive lines to provoke a loose shot, but despite only 29 runs coming in the first 10 overs after lunch, Iyer and Shaw didn’t lose their heads. Eventually, it was Tamil Nadu’s patience that wore thin, as neither the change of bowlers or ball – two balls were replaced in the space of 10 overs – brought them the desired results.Shankar ended the 91-run stand by removing Iyer in the 47th over, but Suryakumar blew out the faintest flicker of hope for Tamil Nadu with some lusty hitting. The only element of interest was if eventual man-of-the-match Shaw would hit the winning runs, but he perished to a slog after attempting to finish the game quickly The winning run in the following over was an anti-climax when Siddhesh Lad turned Aparajith’s delivery into the leg side for a single; it was a good few seconds later – after the scorers provided the confirmation – that Mumbai knew they had done it. In a chase that was as effortless as it was meticulous, who could fault them.

ECB chief executive cites market dynamics for growing gender pay gap amid PCA critcism

Vithushan Ehantharajah13-Dec-2024Richard Gould, the ECB chief executive, says English cricket must not apologise for attracting the world’s best men’s players, as he faced down claims from the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) that Thursday’s upheaval to the Hundred’s pay structure for the 2025 season will only benefit overseas players.Top salaries in the men’s Hundred will rise from £125,000 to £200,000 (a 60% increase) and £100,000 to £120,000 (20%) for the second tier. However, the other four salary bands, which cover all but four players in 15-man squads, will receive hikes of between 3 and 5%.The announcement was greeted with disdain by the PCA, with interim-chief executive Daryl Mitchell stating he was “extremely concerned” at how the changes had been pushed through. Having been part of initial talks on how the injection of money would be spread across the board for the upcoming competition, Mitchell believed Thursday’s news reflected “a severe lack of communication and consultation”.Tymal Mills and Sam Billings, two players who have been ever-present since the Hundred’s inaugural season in 2021, took to X to voice their concerns. Billings, who captained Oval Invincibles to successive men’s titles, said: “Remarkable how a category gets a 60% increase yet most others get under 5%… Who has come up with this???”Speaking on Friday in Hamilton ahead of England’s third and final Test against New Zealand, Gould admitted he was taken aback by the PCA’s criticism, stating it was “not what I want to hear”. However, he held an unapologetic line about lifting the top brackets to court the best talent in the world, arguing that the dissenting voices had come from a “small section of male players”.”I don’t accept that,” Gould said, when asked if the top pay packets are almost exclusively reserved for overseas talent. “Because that band also includes central- and potentially contracted (England) players, so you’ve effectively got through that top band. And so, no, I don’t accept that at all.”Competition from overseas leagues, including Major League Cricket in the USA, has been a factor in the ECB’s approach to top-tier salaries, with Pat Cummins admitting to ESPNcricinfo that he hadn’t considered the Hundred when signing a lucrative four-year deal with San Francisco Unicorns last year.”This is a global market. We want the best players, irrespective of nationality. If you’re the best player, you’ll be paid the most,” Gould added. “You only have to look at the IPL and the differential and the spread. And if you look back over the last couple of years, we haven’t had as many of the best players in the world that we wanted in the men’s. We want more, and we’re not going to be apologetic in terms of our ambition to get them here.”Once we’re there, then the money is much easier to spread it throughout the squad. It is a very, very competitive market for a very small number of players, and we are not going to be pushed aside on that. We are going to compete, and we have to compete because we need the best players playing in our competition.”Gould also countered the PCA’s suggestions the ECB are guilty of widening the gender pay gap between the men’s and women’s competitions, citing market forces. While the top women’s bracket has increased by 30 percent, they will be earning three times less than their male counterparts. Next year, the difference in pay will have risen from £75,000 to £135,000.In 2022, the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket (ICEC) called for gender pay parity in the Hundred by 2025. The ECB pushed back on the timeframe as unrealistic in its response to the report, which Gould reiterated.”The gap has got bigger because of market dynamics,” he said. “That wasn’t a recommendation we said we could deliver on and we have been very up front on that. We have seen a significant increase in the salaries we have been able to put into the women’s game.”I’m really looking forward to the point that every county club in the country now has a women’s team. You know, I think in five years’ time, we’ll look back and go, ‘How did it take us this long?’ But I think that’s a really, really significant step for us.”Related

• Stephen Fleming steps down as Southern Brave head coach

• PCA criticises ECB for lack of consultation on Hundred pay increases

• Why Cummins 'jumped at' MLC and 'hadn't thought' of the Hundred

• ECB plans wage hikes, increase in overseas player limit

• Equity sale in the Hundred could be delayed beyond 2025 – Vikram Banerjee

Relations between the ECB and PCA are at an all-time low with disagreement over Hundred salaries following dissent over an issue regarding a new, more stringent No Object Certificate (NOC) policy.A group of domestic players have been blindsided by what they deem as legislation that restrict their earning opportunities. Those hamstrung by the new regulations are ones who have red-ball commitments written into their existing county deals.Though no NOCs have been rejected yet, with 80 handed out to male players in 2024 so far, a group of around 50 cricketers have floated the prospect of strike action in the form of boycotting the 2025 Hundred.Gould accepts there is nuance to the latest NOC stance, particularly for white-ball players with ad hoc agreements with their clubs. Tom Curran, for instance, has been on a white-ball contract with Surrey since 2022, but made two County Championship at the end of the 2024 season as the club negotiated other absences.Nevertheless, Gould believes the updated measures will “protect the sanctity” of county contracts. He also hopes a boycott does not come to fruition.”That may have been discussed on a call with with a variety of representatives, but I’ve heard nothing in that regard and I sincerely hope that’s that’s not the case.”

The home side have confirmed one change to their XI but Australia are still pondering their final call

Andrew McGlashan27-Jun-2023

Big Picture

Are you ready for round two? The opening of this Ashes delivered everything it had promised. Four more matches of that level of exhilaration will be a test for everyone involved.Given all the talk of the past week, where both teams have had some downtime, it would be easy to think England are the side 1-0 up. But courtesy of the partnership between Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon, a stand that will go down in Ashes folklore, it is Australia who hold that advantage and, for now, are quite happy for England to say what they like.However, they also know the result could easily have been different. It probably would have been if England had held their chances, or even if Stuart Broad had not bowled Usman Khawaja with a no-ball. No one is getting carried away that Bazball has been shut down but the opening Test of an Ashes generally shows the way (albeit comparisons with 2005 abound).Related

• James Anderson returns to Lord's with chance to change his Ashes narrative

• Ben Stokes: England's win-or-bust mentality is opening game up to new fans

• Josh Tongue has Steven Smith back in his sights after notable county clash

• No smoke without fire: Ollie Robinson embraces Ashes target man status

• Cummins and Australia will stay true to their approach

So to Lord’s, and five days that will likely decide if Australia can take a vice-like grip – and put themselves on course for a series win in England since 2001 – or whether the home side can draw level and set up a potentially great series.England, for all their talk, and perhaps that’s why they are doing it, have more questions to answer than Australia. Is it right to go without a frontline spinner? Is there enough point-of-difference in the attack? How much can Ben Stokes’ knee go through? Is Ben Duckett a sitting duck to Australia’s quicks outside off stump? Is attack the only way to go?One thing we know, if the players are to be taken at their word, is that they will respond to defeat by trying to be even more aggressive. It was a similar message put forward after the loss to South Africa last year which, ironically, was then followed by (relatively speaking) one of their more restrained batting performances, led by a captain’s innings from Stokes at Old Trafford.Australia believe they have considerable room for improvement. England may rue not winning a Test where Marnus Labuschagne and Steven Smith made just 35 runs between them. At Lord’s they are also going in with a base of knowledge they did not have before Edgbaston, although their camp is content with how the tactics played out under pressure.The marker for this series has been laid down. What happens next is really anyone’s guess. And that’s a tantalising prospect.

Form guide

(last five matches, most recent first)
England LWLWW
Australia WWDWL

In the spotlight

England’s response to defeat. What has been put together under Stokes and Brendon McCullum has clearly worked wonders, but it can’t be unquestionable. Last summer they bounced back against South Africa but the tourists had a poor batting line-up. Their only other defeat since then was the one-run loss to New Zealand in Wellington. Hitting back after going 1-0 down at the start of a home Ashes is something entirely different and the biggest test of the ethos (or cult?) that Bazball has created.Labuschagne was twice done by Broad’s new outswinger at Edgbaston, collecting his first golden duck in Test cricket in the process. In his last 17 innings he has made just two fifties at an average of 33 which is considerably below the extraordinary high standards he has set. Should he find his groove at Lord’s it would come at the ground where his Test career took off four years ago after he was parachuted into the team as Smith’s concussion sub.

Team news

England have changed the balance of their side by calling up pace bowler Josh Tongue to replace Moeen Ali. Tongue took a five-wicket haul on his debut against Ireland at Lord’s earlier this season. They have backed James Anderson and Stuart Broad to get through another Test.England 1 Zak Crawley, 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Ollie Pope, 4 Joe Root, 5 Harry Brook, 6 Ben Stokes (capt), 7 Jonny Bairstow, 8 Stuart Broad, 9 Ollie Robinson, 10 Josh Tongue, 11 James AndersonAustralia have narrowed down a 12 with the final decision likely to be between Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland. England took Boland at nearly six-an-over at Edgbaston but the grass on the surface at Lord’s could keep him in the frame.Australia 1 David Warner, 2 Usman Khawaja, 3 Marnus Labuschagne, 4 Steven Smith, 5 Travis Head, 6 Cameron Green, 7 Alex Carey (wk), 8 Pat Cummins (capt), 9 Scott Boland/Mitchell Starc, 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Josh Hazlewood

Pitch and conditions

There was a significant green tinge on the surface ahead of the game, but that is pretty normal for Lord’s. There is the expectation of more pace and bounce than Edgbaston provided. The forecast is fine for the opening day but there is a chance of some interruptions after that.Jonny Bairstow and Brendon McCullum stop for a break at England training•PA Images via Getty Images

Stats and trivia

• Nathan Lyon, who becomes the eighth player to put together 100 consecutive Tests, needs five wickets to reach 500
• Stokes needs five wickets to reach 200 in Tests
• In the last five Tests at Lord’s, since the year-long gap due to Covid, spinners have taken 15 wickets at 50.60
• Conversely, in the last five years the ground provides the lowest average for England’s quicks

Quotes

“Cricket’s a fickle game sometimes. He was the No.1 batter in the world then Broady nicks him off twice. Players like that don’t miss out too often. Broady produced two unbelievable deliveries and it’s always great to see the back of Marnus Labuschagne and Steven Smith early but quality players always find a way to bounce back. We won’t be reading too much into it but it’s nice knowing there might be something there for Marnus.”
“My phone went crazy for a couple of days. These Ashes series, like World Cup finals, you realise how many people love cricket and how much it means to them. Hearing everyone’s stories about where they were when they found out what happened, or watching at all hours of the day is pretty cool.”

Mitchell Santner will re-join Worcestershire next season with his director of cricket, Steve Rhodes, affirming that he has some “some unfinished business” at New Road

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Nov-2016New Zealand allrounder Mitchell Santner will re-join Worcestershire next season with his director of cricket, Steve Rhodes, affirming that he has some “some unfinished business” at New Road.Santner will link up with Rapids for the NatWest T20 Blast, which is now in a condensed midsummer slot, after the conclusion of the Champions Trophy being held in England in June.He will hope that it is a more successful undertaking than last season when he bowled four overs in the opening match against Durham Jets but then suffered a broken finger in the field and was never seen again.Rhodes is delighted to land the services of Santner for a second spell, subject to obtaining the normal visa clearances and a No Objection Certificate from New Zealand Cricket.Rhodes said: “For T20 cricket, people with three disciplines are really exciting. We know spin is a major player for T20 cricket so to have a top spinner is fantastic. We know Mitch can hit the ball out of the ground, because he has done that, but also being a left hander is useful to the composition of our top six – and he is also a great fielder.”There is some unfinished business with Mitch. Last summer he was very unlucky to pick up that finger injury that needed pinning in the first game he played.”We know he is a good player, an international player, but I always like to have signings where people have got something to prove and I think he feels that way so that’s why it is an exciting signing.”Losing Mitch was a massive blow to our hopes of qualifying. We’d had a good start and him playing all those games would have been an extra bonus for us.”Worcestershire have already signed Australian allrounder John Hastings for the 2017 campaign. Hastings’ previous county loyalties have been with Durham but they remain under financial pressure after major restructuring, and an ECB bailout, prevented them from going bankrupt.

James Taylor came to watch his former team-mates in action on the first day of Nottinghamshire’s Specsavers County Championship match against Yorkshire

George Dobell at Trent Bridge01-May-2016
ScorecardSteven Mullaney’s 78 underpinned Nottinghamshire’s innings, before Yorkshire’s revival•Getty Images

James Taylor admitted he is lucky to be alive after returning to Trent Bridge for the first time since being diagnosed with a serious heart condition.Taylor came to watch his former team-mates in action on the first day of their Specsavers County Championship match against Yorkshire, less than three weeks after being diagnosed with the condition ARVC (arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy) that has ended his career as a professional cricketer.After spending two weeks in hospital, Taylor was fitted with an external defibrillator and is expected to undergo heart surgery in the coming weeks.While he described himself as “in hysterics” when informed that he would never be able to play at professional level again, he hopes to remain involved in the game in some other capacity.”I’m lucky to be here, that’s the positive in this situation,” Taylor told Sky Sports. “But at the forefront of my head is that I can’t do what I love to do ever again. When I was told I would never play cricket or exercise again, I was in hysterics. That is sad, but it’s a fact that I know that I’m not physically able to do it.”The condition is made worse by exercise. That’s accelerated through extensive exercise so that suggests I probably shouldn’t be doing it.”But I have a massive passion for cricket and a burning desire to always be involved in cricket and be around it. Obviously I can’t play but in some capacity I’d love to stay in cricket, whatever role that may be.”Taylor said that his pain had been eased somewhat by the support of his family, friends and the wider cricket community.”The reaction and outpouring of emotion towards me as a person has made it so much better,” Taylor said. “It is priceless.”Not only the messages, but all the support from the hospitals and the NHS; let alone my family and my girlfriend. I’m lucky I’ve got good people around me. They have saved my life and kept me going mentally.”Nottinghamshire could have done with a player of Taylor’s quality as they failed to take advantage of an off-colour display by Yorkshire’s seamers on the first day of this match. Having raced to 77 without loss in the first hour – courtesy of a great deal of over-pitched bowling – they declined to 261 all out before bad light curtailed the day by more than 20 overs.That meant that Alex Hales, playing his first game of the season, was unable to grasp the opportunity to cement his England place. Hales and Steven Mullaney timed the ball sweetly in their opening stand, with Hales’ foot movement and judgment outside off stump impressive. Mullaney’s half-century included a series of glorious cover drives and two pulls for six.But when Jack Brooks dismissed Hales with the first delivery of his second spell – reward for a cunningly placed short extra cover and punishment for Hales’ failure to get completely over the ball – it precipitated a change in the balance of power.It was also the start of a much-improved display from Brooks. He was removed from the attack after his first two overs conceded 20 runs and conceded 10 fours in his first seven overs. But he dismissed Hales with the first ball of his second spell and later produced a beauty – pitching on middle and straightening – to punish Michael Lumb for playing slightly across the line. He then bowled Greg Smith off the inside edge and lured Chris Read into a drive with a delivery that left him. He also took a straightforward catch in the deep and ended Stuart Broad’s entertaining counter-attack with an excellent, accurate throw.Adil Rashid – who defeated Samit Patel with one that went straight on and made short work of the tail – was also impressive once again, while Steve Patterson typified a much-improved performance after a modest start. He ended Mullaney’s attractive innings with one that left the batsman off the pitch, though Mullaney may rue pushing at one he could have left.It left Yorkshire coach, Jason Gillespie, feeling upbeat after his team’s revival.”I’m incredibly satisfied with that from where we were after the first hour,” he said. “Andrew Gale said a few things at lunch – not ranting or raving, just quiet authority – and the guys were well aware of where we’d gone wrong. We’d got our lengths wrong and bowled too full. Steve Patterson played a big part in getting things back. He’s a very important performer for us.”Mullaney admitted that Nottimghamshire had contributed to their own downfall. “I thought we started really well,” he said. “But we’ve probably given them six or seven of the wickets. We are disappointed with our batting performance, but it could still be a good score if we bowl well.”In truth, this was a relatively modest display of cricket from two sides containing such good quality players, but Yorkshire will be delighted to have produced such a display and still ended the first day on top.

A round-up of the Dhaka Premier League matches played on April 27, 2017

Mohammad Isam27-Apr-2017Prime Bank Cricket Club joined Gazi Group Cricketers at the top of the Dhaka Premier League points table after crushing Victoria Sporting Club by 130 runs at the BKSP-4 ground in Savar. Victoria are one of two teams who are still without a win in the league so far.
Mehedi Maruf’s third List-A century propped up Prime Bank to 283 after they elected to bat. He struck 12 boundaries and two sixes in his 103-ball 101. He added three 50-plus stands with fellow opener Nahidul Islam, their new Indian recruit Abhimanyu Easwaran and Zakir Hasan for the first, second and third wicket stands respectively, before falling in the 34th over.Victoria captain Monir Hossain took three wickets while Moinul Islam, Islamul Ahsan and Rubel Mia took two each. Victoria’s 284-chase didn’t take off, though. They lasted just 33.5 overs, with Shafiul Hayat’s 42 being the highest in the team’s 153 all out. Ariful Haque took three wickets while Al-Amin finished with two.Brothers Union took only three hours and 27 minutes to dismantle Partex Sporting Club and romp to a seven-wicket win at the BKSP-3 ground in Savar. It was their first win of the season, while Partex slumped to their fourth defeat in a row.Batting first, Brothers Union took only 30.5 overs to dismiss Partex for 102, with Sazzadul Haque, the No. 8 batsman, top-scoring with 42. Left-arm spinner Nihaduzzaman took four wickets while Nayeem Hasan and Kazi Kamrul Islam, who turned himself into a left-arm spinner from being a left-arm quick midway through his career, took two wickets each.Brothers Union then took only 17.5 overs to complete the win. Farhad Hossain remained unbeaten on 35 off 36 balls with two fours and three sixes.Mohammedan Sporting Club went back to winning ways by beating Khelaghar Samaj Kallyan Samity by four wickets inFatullah.Batting first, Khelaghar were bowled out for 189 runs in 45.4 overs, with Robiul Islam Robi and Amit Majumder scoring a bulk of the runs . Robiul struck seven fours and a six in his 73-ball 63 while Majumder made 53 off 62 balls. Enamul Haque jnr took three wickets while there was two each for Kamrul Islam Rabbi, Mohammad Azim and Taijul Islam.Mohammedan finished up the chase in 44.5 overs with captain Raqibul Hasan anchoring a faltering chase with an unbeaten 76. They had slipped to 94 for five in the 21st over but Raqibul struck six fours and three sixes in his 92-ball innings, and shared a crucial 64-run unbroken seventh-wicket stand with Taijul – who contributed 14 important runs – to take his team to victory. Robiul took three wickets.

She dismissed Mandhana, Knight and Ghosh before smashing 77* off 38 as Mumbai Indians picked up their second big win in a row

S Sudarshanan06-Mar-20235:27

Matthews punches well above her base price

West Indies’ Hayley Matthews was unsold in the first round of the WPL auction, which was held just at the start of the Women’s T20 World Cup, before Mumbai Indians picked her up in the accelerated round. Surprising as it was, you could attach a logic to it.Matthews was leading a West Indies side that struggled to shrug off their run of losses. They had lost 15 straight T20Is, including one via the Super Over before the win against Pakistan in their last T20 World Cup game. In a bid to revive West Indies’ faltering batting line-up, she also tried moving down the order from her preferred opening spot before coming up to the top again.With a stellar all-round show at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai, Matthews gave everybody, not least the noisy stand next to the sightscreen at the commentators’ box end, a polite reminder of the brilliance she can conjure up. One that continues to give West Indies hope as they look to rise from a lowish phase.Related

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“We were weighing up our options and thought we didn’t have enough money, but we certainly did [eventually],” Mumbai head coach Charlotte Edwards told the host broadcasters as Matthews was helping them coast against Royal Challengers Bangalore. “This tournament, like franchise cricket, is really good for Hayley and it’s good to see her do that in the last couple of days. [During the strategic break] I told her these are the days you need to cash in and on such grounds.”Royal Challengers were done in almost single-handedly by Matthews. After an 11-run opening over, in which Smriti Mandhana and Sophie Devine hit a four and a six respectively, she came back in the last over of the powerplay to dismiss Mandhana. She tossed one up outside off, enticing Mandhana to give her the charge before the dip and turn meant that the batter sliced it to point. On the very next ball, she slipped in a full one that went under Heather Knight’s flick to dismiss her for a first-ball duck.Matthews had helped Mumbai win the first bit of the arm-wrestle against Royal Challengers.With the help of two young guns Richa Ghosh and Kanika Ahuja, Royal Challengers managed to move past 100 inside 12 overs from 71 for 5. Ghosh was happy to punish the bad balls while Ahuja took the attack onto the seamers. An over after Pooja Vastrakar got rid of Ahuja, Matthews was summoned again and she duly delivered by having Ghosh slog one straight to deep midwicket. Only a brilliant counterattack from Karnataka’s Shreyanka Patil helped Royal Challengers cross 150 to have some hopes.Hayley Matthews: ‘Now that I am being forced with responsibility at the international level is helped me realise how to plan my T20 innings’•BCCI

“Looking at match-ups, we figured that today was one that really suited me well,” Matthews said after her player-of-the-match outing. “After that first over I was a bit under the pump. But [captain Harmanpreet Kaur] had faith in me to toss the ball back at me and it worked out very well.”Matthews dashed any semblance of those hopes. She used the width provided by Renuka Singh to steer one past slip in the opening over before flicking one through square leg in the third. She then heaved left-arm spinner Preeti Bose over deep square leg before going back to a half-tracker and punching it over covers.Megan Schutt, who earlier scored a 14-ball 20, was next in Matthews’ firing line. Matthews first punched one through the covers before timing the straight drive past the bowler as Mumbai cruised to 54 for 1 at the end of the powerplay, with Bose trapping Bhatia for the only wicket in the phase.Even after the fielding restrictions were lifted, Matthews hit Renuka for two fours in an over and eventually brought up her half-century – after narrowly missing out in the opening encounter – off just 26 balls with Mumbai on 95 for 1 at the ten-over mark. Nat Sciver-Brunt’s canter was reduced to a postscript.Thereon, Mumbai knocked off the remaining 61 runs in 26 balls to register a second thumping win. Matthews was walking back with a huge smile and an unbeaten 77 off just 38 balls with Nat contributing 55 not out off 29.In her last 11 T20I innings, Matthews crossed the 30-run mark six times and made a fifty-plus score in only one of those. While she admitted to thinking about this when she was in her thirties and forties, she also said that being the responsible batter for West Indies helped her tone down her aggression when needed and become a better T20 player.”Funnily enough, when I got into the 40s, I was thinking that in my last ten to twenty innings I have had about seven 30s and 40s,” she said. “I sadly wasn’t able to get past the mark in more than one game. For me, it comes down to [the] concentration thing sometimes. I told myself to stay focused and it worked out.”Probably being a bit more responsible at the crease is something I had to pull on a lot more with WI and I think that’s naturally helped me in my T20 game as a whole and it has helped me here as well. Probably [I] wasn’t getting the amount of runs I would have wanted in the past due to probably giving away my hand quite a bit. Now that I am being forced with responsibility at the international level it’s helped me realise how to plan my T20 innings.”After those exploits, only two words explain Matthews finding no picks in the first round of the WPL auction – “auction dynamics”.Saika Ishaque is pumped up after claiming two wickets in an over•BCCI

Turning point

Opting to bat, Royal Challengers were off to a perfect start. Mandhana slapped Matthews for four through covers before Devine launched the slog sweep deep into the midwicket stands. Mandhana was picking up lengths early and heaved Sciver-Brunt through midwicket. Issy Wong’s first over then saw Mandhana pick three fours – one through covers, one via an edge through the vacant slip region and one through mid-on.Bengal’s left-arm spinner Saika Ishaque turned the tables to apply the brakes. Devine hit her for a first-ball four in Ishaque’s first over and repeated the drill in her second over, too. Ishaque then slowed it down and bowled it on the stumps, once again having Devine play the slog sweep. The shot connected but went straight to Harmanpreet at deep midwicket.A couple of balls later, Disha Kasat looked to charge down and push the ball down the ground, only for her to be beaten and be bowled. In a space of three balls, 27-year-old Ishaque had managed to stall Royal Challengers’ flying start and made the sparse Brabourne crowd seem humongous with its roar.The seeds of trouble were sown.

South Africa no longer have the pressure of winning the series upon them, and are free to experiment ahead of the World Cup

The Preview by Andrew Fidel Fernando12-Mar-2019

Big Picture

When Sri Lanka last won an ODI, farming had not been invented, and woolly mammoths were roaming the planet. Don’t look it up on Statsguru, but that is what it feels like. Every recent series plays out the same way. The captain – generally there is a new one every couple of series – arrives confident that Sri Lanka’s long-standing one-day problems have been sorted. They are sure that the last clot of losses has been learned from, and that the injection of new personnel will bring fresh energy.Then they get out on to the field and players who had been in form are no longer in form, players who had been out of form are doubling down on their bad form, and players who are constantly threatening to get into decent form keep threatening without actually quite getting there. They have lost each of the six ODIs they have played this year. Of their last 10 completed matches, they have won only one.This terrible run of ODI results over the past three years has cost various Sri Lanka captains their jobs. Upul Tharanga, Thisara Perera, Dinesh Chandimal and Angelo Mathews have all been jettisoned as captain in the last two years. With no wins from seven attempts under his leadership, it is not a stretch to say that Lasith Malinga’s job is also now on the line. If Sri Lanka don’t snap the losing streak, there’s a chance they go to the World Cup with a new captain.South Africa, meanwhile, no longer have the pressure of winning the series upon them, and are free to experiment with their XI. There are World Cup spots still up for grabs, and the middle order batting – while pretty good in Durban – still has a little room for improvement. Questions that require answers include: Is Dale Steyn up to another World Cup? Can they dream of life beyond Hashim Amla (who will miss this match due to personal reasons)? Is Anrich Nortje worth investing in?With two ODIs to go before the selectors have to name the World Cup squad, there is more riding on these dead rubbers than usual.

Form guide

South Africa WWWWL (completed matches, most recent first)
Sri LankaLLLLL

In the spotlight

Aiden Markram has been decidedly modest in ODIs so far, having made only one fifty from 16 innings. But in domestic List A cricket this season, the man has been in such scorching form, that it would be almost unthinkable for the selectors to leave him out of the XI on Wednesday. In his last three matches for the Titans, Markram has hit 169, 139 and 85 – the second of those scores coming in a world-record sixth-wicket List A stand with Farhaan Behardien. If Markram can carry that form through into international one-day cricket, South Africa will feel they have options in their top order.Though often ineffective in ODIs last year, Kusal Mendis finally seems to be regaining his footing in the format, hitting 60 in the first one-dayer, then 41 in the third. With Sri Lanka’s batting order now substantially weakened (Kusal Perera has joined Angelo Mathews on the hamstring injury list), there is a little extra responsibility on Kusal Mendis – something he generally relishes.Dale Steyn bowls•Getty Images

Team news

South Africa will be tempted to rest Kagiso Rabada and Imran Tahir for the dead rubber, while bringing Steyn into the fold for the first time in the series. JP Duminy may enter the XI as well.South Africa (possible): 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Aiden Markram, 3 Faf du Plessis (capt.), 4 Rassie van der Dussen, 5 JP Duminy, 6 David Miller, 7 Andile Phehlukwayo, 8 Dale Steyn, 9 Anrich Nortje, 10 Lungi Ngidi, 11 Tabraiz ShamsiWith Kusal Perera now out of the frame, Angelo Perera may have a chance to play his first ODI in almost three years.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 2 Avishka Fernando, 3 Angelo Perera, 4 Oshada Fernando, 5 Kusal Mendis, 6 Kamindu Mendis, 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Isuru Udana, 9 Akila Dananjaya, 10 Lasith Malinga (capt.), 11 Kasun Rajitha

Pitch and conditions

The weather in Port Elizabeth is forecast to be cloudy at times, but no rain is expected. The pitch generally has something in it for the spinners.

Stats and trivia

• South Africa have now won their last five bilateral ODI series, defeating Zimbabwe, Australia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka twice.
  
• Sri Lanka, meanwhile, last won a bilateral ODI series in mid-2016, against Ireland. There have been two wins in tri-nations tournaments since, however. Both of those tournaments have featured low-ranked teams.
  
• In three previous ODIs against Sri Lanka, Markram averages 7.66, with a high score of 20. Those games had been in Sri Lanka, however.

Southern Brave suffer first defeat and will play Trent Rockets in Friday’s eliminator

Katya Witney31-Aug-2022Southern Brave suffered their first defeat of the Women’s Hundred, losing by 20 runs to Northern Superchargers to leave their hopes of direct qualification to Saturday’s final in tatters.Laura Wolvaardt continued her fine run of fine form, scoring 50 off 35 balls as Superchargers posted 145 for 6.Brave could muster only 125 for 9 in reply to leave them with an anxious wait to see whether Oval Invincibles could leapfrog them by beating Manchester Originals on Wednesday afternoon. Invincibles’ commanding win means Brave face Trent Rockets in Friday’s eliminator.Superchargers’ margin of victory was not enough to secure their place in the knockout stages: they needed to win by 46 runs to leapfrog third-placed Rockets on net run-rate.Brave lost both openers Danni Wyatt and Smriti Mandhana without scoring inside the first 10 balls of their reply, before Sophia Dunkley’s 38 from 30 balls ended Superchargers’ slim hopes of qualification despite victory. Katie Levick and Alice Davidson-Richards took two wickets apiece.”It’s a bittersweet win,” Hollie Armitage, Superchargers’ captain, said. “We knew going out there with the ball that we needed to restrict them to 99 to get our net run-rate up to where it needed to be to finish third.”Unfortunately we weren’t able to do that. But I’m really pleased with how the girls went about their business today. We went out there and played some really good cricket and have beaten a fantastic side.”Related

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After being put into bat in front of a home crowd, Superchargers were again faced with the early loss of Alyssa Healy who rocketed a ball straight into the hands of Dunkley at cover for 17.Wolvaardt set the tone for her side once more with the bat, forming a solid partnership with Heather Graham worth 45 off 27 balls. By the time Graham fell for a well-played 26 off 19, Superchargers were 98 for 4 with 26 balls still to come.Wolvaardt’s classy innings saw her pass the record for the most runs scored by any woman in the Hundred’s short history, having racked up 286 runs across six innings before she was caught superbly on the boundary by Wyatt. The previous record holder, Dane van Niekerk, managed 256 from 10 innings last season.Laura Wolvaardt cracks one away•Getty Images

A cameo from Jenny Gunn with 15 from 7 balls after Wolvaardt’s dismissal gave the Superchargers a whiff of qualification, setting the Brave 146 to win. The home side’s hopes were boosted by a perfect start in the field, Wyatt falling off the first ball of the innings caught at short fine leg, and her opening partner, the dangerous Mandhana, falling just eight balls later.As Brave’s batting line-up wobbled under pressure, Dunkley stood firm with wickets falling around her. Tahlia McGrath was bowled by the impressive Graham and Maia Bouchier was caught off Davidson-Richards.By the time Georgia Adams nicked off to a tempting delivery from Levick, Dunkley was the only thing standing in between Superchargers and an unlikely qualification.Her steady innings of 38 off 30 came to an end when she was caught on the boundary by Graham, effectively taking Brave’s hopes of winning the game with her as she walked back to the dugout.A partnership between Amanda-Jade Wellington – who earlier took three wickets with her legbreaks – and Freya Kemp, worth 41 off just 18 balls, ended Superchargers’ hopes of qualification.But the bowlers could not see Brave home with the bat, and they finished on 125 for 9.