England’s all-time leading run-scorer is content to be preparing for a season on the county circuit. But that won’t stop people asking the question

Alan Gardner02-Apr-2019Here’s a fun game to occupy the coming months. Which is likely to happen sooner (if at all)? Parliament will gather round, agree on a course of action, and complete the first stage of Brexit. Or the England selectors will gather around, agree on a course of action, and put in a phone call to Alastair Cook.If you thought Theresa May’s attempts to get a different answer to the same question on her EU withdrawal bill were becoming monotonous, just imagine how Cook must feel every time he is confronted with a microphone as England’s search for a Test opener (or two) continues. All it took was a bread-and-butter hundred against the students of Cambridge MCCU last week for the murmurs to strike up – although this time Cook had his Essex captain, Ryan ten Doeschate, to thank for fuelling the speculation.Every time Cook raises his bat during ten rounds of the Championship that will precede the Ashes later this summer, someone is liable to ask: could England’s all-time leading run-scorer be tempted out of retirement? In terms of occupying your time on Twitter, it surely has to beat discussions of backstops and customs unions.ALSO READ: I’d love to bat at No. 3 for England – FoakesThere is something in the stubbornness of May (a proclaimed Geoffrey Boycott fan) that surely chimes with Cook. He clung on for so long with England that there seemed an element of relief when he let it all go – his departing force channelled into one last valedictory Test hundred at The Oval in September. Now he seems equally set on enjoying the last few years of his career with Essex. “I’ve played my last game for England,” he says early in the piece during the club’s media day at Chelmsford.Although, that said… For a man who has given so much for the cause, that definitive full stop is hard to contemplate. In his maiden stint as a radio commentator for the BBC during England’s tour of the Caribbean, Cook let slip a tantalising “never say never”, and although he is happy to make the case for others to take up his mantle, the sense of possibility will linger for as long as he continues harvest runs in the shires.Leaving centre stage is understandably hard. After winning his fourth rowing gold medal at the 1996 Olympics, Steve Redgrave, another sporting knight, said: “Anybody who sees me in a boat has my permission to shoot me.” Four years later, he was wearing a fifth gold around his neck in Sydney.

Harmer named T20 captain

Simon Harmer, Essex’s former South Africa offspinner, has been made captain of the T20 Blast side, taking over from Ryan ten Doeschate, who will continue to lead in the Championship and 50-over competition.
While Essex won the Championship under ten Doeschate in 2017, their limited-overs form has been less impressive in recent seasons, and last year they managed just two wins in the Vitality Blast South Group.
“It’s an exciting challenge,” Harmer said. “I think there’s going to be a lot of expectation going forward as we haven’t performed to the levels we know we’re capable of, but it’s a challenge that I wanted and I’m really looking forward to leading the team in the right direction.”

Cook was never quite so given to melodramatic pronouncements, but he is sticking to the script for now. “I was asked a very interesting question on a panel show, with about 18 different circumstances, and I said ‘you can never say never’. But look, I’ve played my last game for England. There’s always that one thing, if there’s an absolute emergency or something… But I’m nowhere near that mindset. I saw Tendo say something the other day, but I’ve had 12 amazing years of playing for England, it’s time for the next generation of players – certainly top-order players – to try to make their mark.”In terms of pulling on that cap and playing cricket – in one way it’s a sad thing it’s never going to happen again, but I’ve had my time. I had an amazing journey, I’ve loved it, but towards the end I wasn’t the player I was and things had to move on… They won’t be making the phone call to me anyway, and no matter what happens I’ve got the summer with Essex and I’m looking forward to spending it with the Eagles.”The Eagles certainly won’t mind having Cook around as he attempts to quietly unwind after more than a decade on the treadmill with England. Adjusting to the more mundane rhythms of a county season was not the sort of challenge that enthused his predecessors as England captain, Andrew Strauss and Michael Vaughan, but Cook has always played the game at his own tempo. As well as the challenge of winning a few more trophies with Essex – he played his part in their memorable 2017 Championship title – there is the simple pleasure of taking to the field with your mates.”It’s going to be different, it’s the first time I’ve ever played a game without the lure of England selection there, and that’s probably going to take a little bit of time to get used to,” he said.”It was important for me to have something to look forward to. The transition period, I spoke to a couple of people about retiring, and they were very clear that you’ve got to have something to do. I’m not saying I’m just here ‘to do something’ but I needed a date in my diary, and in my mind, that I could have the winter [to myself] and then come back to it.”I didn’t know what else to do, in one sense, but also I’ve spent a lot of time playing cricket here at Essex. I know a lot of the guys here really well, people like Ryan and Ravi [Bopara]. Ravi I played against at Under-11s, the next year I was playing in an Essex team with him. That’s a lot of time and I wanted to carry on playing cricket with people like that – Nick Browne, Tom Westley, people I get on really well with, I want to share a dressing room with.”On who might finally lay an irrefutable claim to his spot in the Test side, as with Brexit, there are no easy answers. Cook is circumspect – “you’ll have to read my column,” he joked – but he more than anyone knows the value of seizing an opportunity when the spotlight is on you. An Ashes summer without Cook to face down the new ball seems a disconcerting prospect; but it is up to his would-be successors to quell talk of a return.”Places are up for grabs, I think everyone who’s played has showed glimpses of good stuff, to be in the side for a long period. It’s certainly not an easy place to bat, and it’s a challenge, but whoever they pick’s got a great summer to go in with, an Ashes summer, always a very exciting time. It’s a great opportunity to do something special. You score a hundred in an Ashes Test match at the top of the order, then you get remembered.”

Former Worcestershire allrounder jailed for attack in April 2017

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Apr-2019Alex Hepburn, the former Worcestershire allrounder, has been jailed for five years at Hereford Crown Court after being found guilty of raping a sleeping woman in his team-mate’s bed.Hepburn, 23, had been warned at the conclusion of his retrial earlier this month that a jail sentence was inevitable, after he had been found guilty on one count of oral rape, relating to an attack that took place at his flat in Worcester in April 2017.In the course of the four-day trial at Worcester Crown Court, the jury heard from the prosecution how Hepburn had “dehumanised” women, rating them in text messages to his team-mates in a “sexual conquest competition” on the social media app WhatsApp.Hepburn, it was alleged, had been “fired up” by the contest and took advantage of his victim after finding her alone on a mattress on the floor of the the flat that he shared with his then team-mate, Joe Clarke.The victim had initially believed she was having sex with Clarke, and only realised Hepburn’s identity after 10 minutes.Giving evidence, Hepburn had told the court: “She was engaging in the act so I presumed she was enjoying it.”In handing down his sentence, judge Jim Tindal said: “I sentence you on the basis the jury were sure the victim was woken by you but was still barely awake and in the dark thought you were Joe Clarke.”You thought you were God’s gift to women. You saw the victim as a piece of meat, not another human entitled to respect.”After the verdict, the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) had released a statement emphasising the importance of players participating in its personal development programmes.”This public case provides a stark reminder to all PCA members of all requirements and behaviours demanded of a professional cricketer, provided through its Personal Development and welfare Programme, which is facilitated closely alongside the ECB and first-class counties.”Throughout the criminal investigations, we have provided suitable advice and assistance to Alex. As the game’s player association, offering support and guidance to players in times of turbulence is a fundamental responsibility for the PCA.”

The Bangladesh allrounder reaped the benefits of putting in the hard yards ahead of the tournament as he helped his team to the perfect start

Mohammad Isam at The Oval03-Jun-2019Shakib Al Hasan’s preparations for the World Cup kicked into high gear at this year’s IPL. Left out by Sunrisers Hyderabad for four weeks, Shakib used the time to get into shape through a strict fitness regime under trainer Jade Roberts. At one stage he flew in Mohammad Salahuddin, his mentor since childhood, to India to work on his batting and bowling.Shakib even changed his food habits and lost around six kilos. He looks slimmer, almost like the youngster he was during the 2007 World Cup. His work during the downtime which coincided with the run-up to the World Cup worked a treat. He played only three matches for Sunrisers before heading home for the World Cup camp in Dhaka. After creating a rumpus for not appearing in the team photo, Shakib did well in the Ireland tri-series, only to miss the final due to back spasm.After Bangladesh beat West Indies in their first game in Dublin, Shakib spoke about the extensive fitness work he had been putting in with his eyes on the World Cup.ALSO READ: How Soumya Sarkar shocked South Africa“With the World Cup coming up, like every other player I too have a goal,” he said in Ireland. “I can tell you that I have taken the best preparation for this tournament, something that I had not done for the past eight or nine years. I will keep my end of the bargain, while the rest is up to Allah and my effort.”I feel a lot fitter than before, and as a result I feel more confident. It is important to hold on to this fitness, because it is not always that you have this mentality. The body doesn’t respond in the same way all the time. I got a “kick” from somewhere, let’s not reveal it. It is not a big deal but it certainly woke me up.”Cut to the World Cup itself and Shakib begins the campaign in the best way possible with a composed 75 off 84 balls and 1 for 50 from his ten overs. It was his first Player-of-the-Match award in the World Cup, having now struck a fifty in each of the four editions he has been a part of. This innings – which formed part of a 142-run stand with Mushfiqur Rahim – ensured there was no slip after a terrific start provided by Soumya Sarkar’s bristling response to South Africa’s attempts to use the short ball.Shakib Al Hasan plays a shot as Quinton de Kock looks on•Getty Images

His bowling was also effective against a South Africa side that looked to be too conservative against his left-arm spin. The wicket he claimed, defeating a well-set Aiden Markram in his fifth over, was his 250th in ODIs. His initial spell of seven overs went for just 25 runs and was key in leaving South Africa significantly behind the required rate.”From a personal point of view, it was a really good day,” he said. “I could contribute to the team, and there were some personal achievements. It was an important partnership with Mushfiq bhai after we got a good start from the openers.WATCH on Hotstar – Shakib’s key innings (Available to viewers in India only)”I think it was a special day for Bangladesh cricket, to start so well against tough opponents in the World Cup. We had the belief but we had to portray it in our performance. Everyone had been confident, which helped us to execute our plan.”Shakib, who will play his 200th ODI against New Zealand on June 5, said the 21-run win will have put opposition on notice when they face Bangladesh although cautioned against getting carried away by one victory.”We still have eight matches to go, so a lot of difficulties await us. Other teams will now be careful against us. It is good because they may be a tensed facing us. But at the other hand, they would also be quite focused and we have to do well against them. We have to prepare better, and execute our plans better.Shakib added that Bangladesh, who reached the quarter-finals of the 2015 World Cup and the semi-finals of the 2017 Champions Trophy, still have a lot to prove but the tag that they are a dangerous side is something he wants other teams to focus on.”We have always tried to say it but others don’t really have time for us. I think we have a lot to prove. We have started well. I think that we are in a good place, mentally. I think if we can continue in this manner we can go a long way in the tournament.”But it is Shakib’s drive to do well, despite having been around for more than 13 years, and having earned plaudits for being arguably the best allrounder in the world, that stands out. Him performing at the top of his ability is nothing new but he has sometimes been associated with the sort of player who doesn’t need a lot of day-to-day training to perform well. However, ahead of this World Cup his extra effort shows how much doing well at the biggest stage matters to him.

Chris Woakes and Matt Henry also break into the top 10 for ODI bowlers

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Jul-2019″Yeah, in a heartbeat,” Kane Williamson said when asked if he’d swap his Player of the Series trophy for one extra run at the end of the greatest World Cup final in history. He might have to keep that line handy again as the ICC announced another individual milestone for the New Zealand captain.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Williamson hit a career-high 799 points on the ODI batsmen’s rankings after the semi-final against India and is currently at No. 6 on the table. Scoring only 30 runs against England, though, has brought his tally down to 796, but he remains one of only two New Zealanders in the top ten, Ross Taylor above him with 817 points.Ben Stokes, the Player of the Final, rose five places to No. 20 after not one but two amazing innings – first to keep England’s chase alive on a remarkably tough pitch and later to lift them in the Super Over while virtually running on empty. Jason Roy, whose power at the top helped England recover from a hiccup in the group stages of the World Cup, is in the top 10 batsmen’s rankings.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

There was another allrounder who made a giant leap on the batsmen’s rankings too. Ravindra Jadeja, who was nearly unstoppable in the semi-final against New Zealand, has leapt 24 places to occupy the 108th spot.ALSO READ: The Monga-Kimber World Cup 2019 XI is hereChris Woakes, whose opening spells were vital to England’s title run, has gone up to No. 7 in the bowler’s rankings. He took seven wickets in the first Powerplay at the World Cup – the joint second-highest – while the topper of that list, Matt Henry, also broke into the top ten. Jofra Archer, playing his first World Cup, finished not only as England’s highest wicket-taker but also one of the ICC’s top 30 bowlers in the world.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

England remain the top-ranked team in the world, while India are at No. 2 and New Zealand at No. 3. Shakib Al Hasan, who produced the most remarkable all-round show ever seen in a World Cup, retains dominance in the allrounders’ ratings.

Nottinghamshire looked a different side to that spoken of as pre-season title contenders as their struggle for survival continued at Scarborough

Paul Edwards at Scarborough19-Aug-2019
The water is up to Nottinghamshire’s neck and very soon it will be little use their cricketers opposing the knock of the tide. So much was clear at tea on the second day of this game after Yorkshire’s openers had successfully extended their side’s 48-run first innings lead to 109 with a partnership that scarcely raised a ripple on the surface of the game.By close of play the advantage was 225 and Yorkshire should have wickets to spend in the search for quick runs sometime on the third afternoon. Having dismissed their hesitant visitors for 184 in the first half of the day, Steve Patterson’s team have now done the groundwork for the victory that will sustain their hopes of the title.And something like an hour after the cricketers had left the ground sleek, dark-suited figures were stalking across the outfield at North Marine Road as they made their way to the great marquee where a dinner celebrating this 133rd festival is being held. Scarborough has always been generous to Yorkshire cricket even in the relatively rare years when the White Rose did not prosper here. The talk this mellow evening will be of Fred and Brian, of Ray and Geoff, but perhaps there will also be a word for the current team who remain in the hunt for another pennant, even in a year when their performances have not forked lightning in the manner of their predecessors.So perhaps the diners will recall this day’s cricket, too. They might recall that while Duanne Olivier had bowled capably for his four wickets, Adam Lyth and Gary Ballance’s 108-run partnership had given them even more satisfaction in the perfect evening sunlight. Lyth’s cover-driving remains one of the joys of the English game and the only sorrow for neutrals was his dismissal for 81, caught at short fine leg off Liam Patterson-White, two overs before the close. Ballance, though, is unbeaten on 52 and one cannot be sanguine about the visitors’ prospects tomorrow afternoon.For already it seems clear that Nottinghamshire will have to score the biggest total of the match in order to win it. One’s mind went back to this second morning when Chris Nash’s batsmen had hopes of securing their own winning position. Those notions were all but destroyed in the first session when the visitors scored 90 runs but lost six wickets, some of them frittered on the sea air. It has been a theme of what is set to be a relegation season.And thoughts even returned to Cambridge in late March when Ben Duckett and Ben Slater put on 325 for their team’s first wicket. Yes, it was only the students, but the runs were far from given away. There was the heady scent of blossom in the city but hardly a tree was in the slightest leaf. Some folk were talking of Steven Mullaney’s team as title contenders. When did it become clear that four-day honours were not to be theirs? “Who turned the page?” asked the poet, Ian Hamilton. Perhaps things are never that clear in an English summer.Yet so much is right at Trent Bridge these days, apart from the cricket. The county boasts one of the finest yet most intimate grounds in the country and they are not short of money. Supporters pitch in, too. When officials decided not to continue with a yearbook the Nottingham Cricket Lovers’ Society stepped in and published the 2019 annual. It is a fine and modestly priced piece of work and one hopes it is continued but God knows what it will say about this year. One thinks of the lines Roy Campbell addressed to “Some South African Novelists”: “They use the snaffle and the curb all right, / But where’s the bloody horse?”There are Nottingham supporters at Scarborough, just as there were at Newclose and Tunbridge Wells this season. If they haven’t greatly enjoyed the cricket, they have at least visited some wonderful grounds. But such excursions are all the more pleasurable when your team is playing well and supporters from Caythorpe or Cuckney were right to be disappointed by the dismissals which smirched the morning. Slater can be excused; he was caught behind off Ben Coad’s first ball of the morning, a delivery which compelled the defensive push only to punish it with an edge to Jonny Tattersall.Others were culpable. Jake Libby’s ugly drive at a wideish ball from Olivier merely deflected the ball onto his off stump. Nash appeared in dominant form when hitting his seven fours but then played too soon at Olivier and was caught and bowled; he left after patting the pitch reproachfully. Joe Clarke prodded at a ball too far from his body and edged Coad to Tattersall; Duckett tried to cut a ball from Keshav Maharaj and was bowled off his pad. None of the errors glared at orthodoxy but they were enough. It is often the way when you are in the toils.There was respite for visiting supporters, though. It arrived in the combative form of Tom Moores, who hit Maharaj for a straight six before lunch and then twice more to the Popular Bank early in the afternoon session. Moores also took three fours off one Maharaj over and while he was batting there seemed a possibility that Nottinghamshire might achieve parity. But after making 48 off 49 balls he pushed jerkily at a ball from Olivier and nicked a catch to Tattersall. It had been an enjoyable innings but not one to change the shape of the game.For that we had to wait for Lyth and Ballance and their easeful strokes across a crystal evening.

The BCB has also decided to extend the terms of white-ball batting consultant Neil McKenzie and selectors Minhajul Abedin and Habibul Bashar

Mohammad Isam27-Jul-2019Charl Langeveldt, the former South Africa fast bowler, will take over as Bangladesh’s new fast-bowling coach. He will join the team full-time on a two-year contract.The BCB has also appointed Daniel Vettori, the former New Zealand left-arm spinner, as Bangladesh’s spin-bowling coach, on a short-term basis. Vettori will be with the team for 100 working days – which will include the tour of India later this year, and the T20 World Cup next year in Australia – and also conduct spin-bowling camps in Dhaka.Langeveldt and Vettori replace Courtney Walsh and Sunil Joshi, whose contracts were not renewed following Bangladesh’s eighth-place finish at the World Cup.The BCB made these appointments during its board meeting on Saturday, where it also decided to renew the contracts of senior selectors Minhajul Abedin and Habibul Bashar, and extend the tenure of the white-ball batting consultant Neil McKenzie until next year’s T20 World Cup.The role of head coach remains vacant, with the BCB having spoken to a number of candidates since it parted ways with Steve Rhodes after the World Cup. “We spoke to some coaches, and Andy Flower is one of them,” Nazmul Hassan, the BCB president, told ESPNcricinfo. “But nothing has been finalised. We are still talking to the coaches.”ESPNcricinfo has learned that Flower, who had initially shown interest, has declined the role due to personal reasons.The future of fielding coach Ryan Cook could be in doubt, with the BCB displeased by Bangladesh’s fielding during Friday’s first ODI against Sri Lanka in Colombo. “After what happened yesterday, we have to ask the fielding coach what’s wrong,” Hassan said. “After that we will decide if we need a new fielding coach.”Langeveldt has previously held the role of bowling coach with South Africa (2015-2017) and Afghanistan (a short-term role in 2018). Vettori has vast experience of coaching at the franchise level, having served spells at Royal Challengers Bangalore, Middlesex, Brisbane Heat and Rajshahi Kings. He is also the current assistant coach of Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred and head coach of Dublin Chiefs in the Euro T20 Slam.”This is a team on the rise and there is so much experience and potential,” Vettori said. “It will be a pleasure to work with the likes of Shakib Al Hasan, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taijul Islam and the other up and coming youngsters which I am looking forward to with a lot of interest.”Spin bowling has been a traditional strength for Bangladesh. I hope to share my knowledge as a player and coach of the demands of modern day spin bowling in all versions of the game and help the bowlers make good intelligent decisions so that they can maximise their talents and skills.”

They had few alarms completing a seven-wicket victory over Leicestershire

ECB Reporters Network13-Sep-2019Northamptonshire moved into second place in Division Two after completing a seven wicket victory over Leicestershire in the Specsavers County Championship match at the Fischer County Ground.Beginning the day on 22-0, with a target of just 141 to win, openers Ben Curran and Rob Newton extended their partnership to 68 before Newton went leg before to an Alex Evans delivery that came back in to the right-hander.Curran, on 40, edged a flat-footed drive at Will Davis to Colin Ackermann at second slip, and Ackermann picked up a second catch when first innings centurion Rob Keogh edged a drive at left-arm spinner Callum Parkinson.The odd ball was beginning to turn for Parkinson, but by that stage Alex Wakely was well established, and the vistors’ former skipper saw his side across the line with an unbeaten 40.

The new fitness requirement has been criticised by the players

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Sep-2019The Bangladesh Cricket Board has decided to raise the beep-test requirement at the domestic level in a bid to address the overall drop in fitness levels among Bangladesh men’s players. The national selectors recently instructed the first-class teams to only pick players who reach at least 11 on the test, an increase by two levels from last season when a fitness test first became mandatory.”We have noticed that the fitness of the national players are very poor,” Nazmul Hassan, the BCB president, said. “The coach [Russell Domingo] asked, ‘What sort of fitness is this? I have never seen such fitness of players in South Africa’. We cannot suddenly increase the fitness-level requirements. We cannot reach the mark of 13 points [in the beep test] or even go above that.”So, there has been a decision regarding this, that if we keep the fitness acceptance levels so low in the domestic or lower-tier competitions from where the players get into the national side, then naturally the players in the national side will only score nine or ten in the beep test. Now let’s see. We have taken the decision after considering everything. I think we have to improve the fitness.”But the new requirement, made known to the cricketers three weeks prior to the start of the 2019-20 season, has not gone down well with some. Tushar Imran, the leading first-class run-scorer, said it was unfair on the part of the selectors to impose it so close to the season.”I am always prepared to take up a challenge,” Tushar told , “but it is not fair to say that we can’t play if we can’t reach 11. Cricket is our bread and butter. It is going to be difficult for a lot of cricketers.”A lot of ‘super-fit’ players from the senior side are not scoring a lot of runs or taking wickets. What will the selectors do with them? [But] we are prepared to take the challenge, because it is our livelihood.”Former Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful argued that only players in the national side or in the high-performance camp will get the necessary facilities to raise their fitness levels.”It wouldn’t have been any problem to get 11 if we were given proper training facilities in the off-season,” he said. “I got 11.5 last year, but these facilities are only available to the national team, the high-performance side and the Under-23 team. I remain hopeful that I can do 11.5 this year too, since I never had fitness concerns when playing for Bangladesh.”Shuvagata Hom, a domestic star who has played 17 international matches, said that if a certain fitness level was set as a requirement, the domestic players should have been given more time to be prepared for it.”It is going to be difficult for players outside the national set-up,” Hom said, “because we hardly get seven to ten days of training for the first-class competition. We don’t get to do long fitness camps, which would have helped us reach that stage in fitness when asked to take this beep test at a short notice.”The first-class sides will announce their squads after the fitness test, which is likely to be held on October 1. The National Cricket League begins on October 5.

Only one India A batsman crossed 50 as Roosh Kalaria took 3 for 20 and Mohammed Siraj ended with 2 for 30

The Report by Annesha Ghosh31-Oct-2019Ruturaj Gaikwad’s 113 and Baba Aparajith’s 101 secured India B an emphatic 108-run victory over India A in the opening fixture of the 2019-2020 Deodhar Trophy, being played in Ranchi. In reply to India B’s formidable 302 for 6, India A rolled over for 194 inside 48 overs, with left-arm quick Roosh Kalaria picking up 3 for 20.India A’s decision to bowl returned little dividend for them. Gaikwad returned to form after an unimpressive run at the Vijay Hazare Trophy earlier this month while Aparajith extended his excellent form from the same tournament even as R Ashwin, the star bowler in the India B ranks, returned 2 for 40 off his ten overs.India B started sluggishly, scoring 20 for 1 in eight overs, with opener Priyank Panchal falling for 3 off Jaydev Unadkat. They, however, picked up the pace courtesy – for the most part – Gaikwad, who attacked both the pacers and the spinners and got to 80 off 90 balls, before slowing down a touch with the century in sight. Dropped on 86 by Abhimanyu Easwaran off Ashwin, Gaikwad brought up his century off 117 balls, but fell lbw to Ashwin trying a reverse sweep, even though he was struck outside the line.Aparajith carried on to bring up his sixth List A century and sixth 50-plus score this month, playing second fiddle initially to Gaikwad until he got to his half-century. The 25-year-old batsman was run out in an all-Tamil Nadu dismissal, when Vijay Shankar’s straight drive deflected off Ashwin’s hand at the bowler’s end to catch him short of his ground. Big hits from Vijay (26 off 16) and K Gowtham (19* off eight) got India B to a competitive total.In reply, the Hazare trophy’s top-scorer Devdutt Padikkal chopped on to Kalaria for 10 while a fiery spell from Mohammed Siraj accounted for Abhimanyu, the other opener, and the No. 3 Vishnu Vinod, making Amandeep Khare join captain Hanuma Vihari at 52 for 3 in the 14th over.Kedar Jadhav dropped Vihari at slip on 12 off Shahbaz Nadeem, with India A on 66 for 3 at the start of the 19th over. Two excellent cut shots for fours from Vihari injected vigour in his stroke play, and he put on 55 for the fourth wicket with Khare to take India A past 100.Vihari then added 61 off 70 balls with Ishan Kishan, who was run out off an excellent throw from the deep by Vijay at the bowler’s end. Vihari’s dismissal for 59 two balls later decided the eventuality of the match to a great extent, as it left India A tottering at 168 for 6.Ashwin and Unadkat fell in quick succession, while an offcutter from Kalaria ended Shahbaz Ahmed’s 25-ball 18, bringing the game to a close as the injured Sandeep Warrier had retired hurt and didn’t come out to bat.Vihari’s India A will face India C, led by Shubman Gill, on Friday at the same venue.

Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant could not put in big scores for their teams

Hemant Brar24-Nov-2019KL Rahul’s blazing half-century against Punjab gave Karnataka their third win in as many matches in the Super League of Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2019-20. Prithvi Shaw played a similar knock for Mumbai as they defeated Jharkhand in the other Group B game.Meanwhile, in Group A, Haryana beat Delhi with the help of Yuzvendra Chahal’s three-for and replaced Baroda at the top of the table. Baroda lost to Maharashtra earlier in the day.Karnataka v PunjabRahul’s unbeaten 48-ball 84 trumped Mandeep Singh’s 76 off 50 balls as Karnataka beat Punjab by seven wickets.In response to Punjab’s 163 for 6, Rahul got Karnataka off to a flyer and despite Devdutt Padikkal scoring 2 off three balls, the duo added 33 in just 2.1 overs for the first wicket. Rahul kept going for his shots and brought up his fifty off 22 balls.Along with Manish Pandey, Rahul took the side past 100 with a 60-run stand for the third wicket. Pandey fell for a 29-ball 33 but by then his side required just 25 from 29 balls, which they knocked off with 12 balls to spare.Shubman Gill, who was released from the Test side along with Rishabh Pant on Friday, managed only 11 off nine balls, as Ronit More took 4 for 27, his best T20 figures.Mumbai v JharkhandSmarting from their defeat against Tamil Nadu, Mumbai rode on Shaw’s 39-ball 64 to take down Jharkhand by five wickets.Chasing 171, Shaw targeted the arc between long-on and deep midwicket and took Mumbai to 50 in 5.2 overs. He got to his fifty off 28 balls with a straight six off left-arm spinner Sonu Singh before dragging a sweep on to his stumps.Despite Shaw’s innings, Mumbai still needed 64 from 36 balls. However, a 26-run 16th over took the game away from Jharkhand. It started with Shivam Dube hitting offspinner Utkarsh Singh for three successive sixes, and while Dube perished attempting the fourth, Siddhesh Lad smashed the fifth ball for four before collecting two off the sixth.Earlier, Kumar Deobrat struck 58 off just 30 balls with the help of eight fours and two sixes, but once he was dismissed, Mumbai didn’t let the other batsmen score freely. Jharkhand’s eventual 170 for 5 didn’t prove enough.Maharashtra v BarodaRuturaj Gaikwad, Kedar Jadhav and Azim Kazi all scored in 40s before their bowlers skittled Baroda for 98 to give Maharashtra a 67-run win.Continuing his good form, Gaikwad smashed seven fours and a six in his 27-ball 47 before he was trapped lbw by Swapnil Singh. Jadhav (47* off 42) and Azim (48* off 33) then added 87 in 61 balls in an unbroken third-wicket stand to take them to a competitive 165 for 2.Baroda’s chase never really took off. Samad Fallah dismissed Aditya Waghmode for a first-ball duck in the opening over. And when Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya too fell cheaply, Baroda were struggling at 37 for 3 in the seventh over.Kedar Devdhar (27 off 20) was the only one to offer some resistance but once he was run out, the rest of the batting just collapsed.Haryana v DelhiHimanshu Rana starred with 59 off 40 balls as Haryana beat Delhi by 30 runs in the north India derby.Batting first, Haryana lost their openers in the first two overs but Rana and Shivam Chauhan (47 off 31) added 105 in 66 balls for the third wicket. While they got out in back-to-back overs, the incoming batsmen kept finding the boundaries and powered the side to 181 for 6.Navdeep Saini had an uneventful return from the groin injury, conceding 21 from three overs without picking up any wicket.Bolstered by Pant’s addition, Delhi would have backed themselves to chase the target down but the wicketkeeper-batsman ended up consuming 32 balls for his 28. By the time he got out, the asking rate had gone past 13. Nitish Rana showed some fight with a 25-ball 37 but it came a too little too late. For Haryana, Chahal was the most successful bowler, registering 3 for 27, his best figures in the seven matches he has played this tournament.