Six Tests (the WTC final and the Ashes) in less than eight weeks is just about perfect for the world’s fidgetiest cricketer, it will keep him straight

Osman Samiuddin02-Jun-2023Chances are, whatever the level and nature of your engagement with cricket, you have felt, heard, or talked about its relentless grind for the last six months what now seems like forever.No sooner had Marco Jansen hit a four and six to finish the SA20 than India and Australia were squeezing out a four-Test series in a month; than New Zealand were pulling off one of the great Test wins over England; than Afghanistan and UAE were sprinting through a T20I series; than Bangladesh were beating the world champions; than South Africa were thumping the West Indies in a Test no one watched; than the TV umpire was ruling Kane Williamson in to seal one of the great Test wins; than Lahore Qalandars were winning the PSL by a single run in one of the great T20 finals; than Ravindra Jadeja was ending the IPL with a six and a four in one of the great T20 finals.The calendar’s gotten so crowded that for a lot of the world outside India, the IPL – where once it was an example of how cluttered the calendar is – is now the one pause. There’s more teams to play for, more places to play in, more leagues to fly to, more matches, all blending into one another like some super unhealthy, super bland smoothie.Related

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You know who doesn’t mind that? Who actually likes it this way? If you guessed Steven Smith, close. If you guessed Marnus Labuschagne, you were right. Somehow it feels entirely in keeping with Labuschagne, the world’s most fidgety cricketer, that he prefers not stopping. There’s never enough runs scored, bowlers beat, fields pierced, balls outside off left (or new ways to leave those balls).So, a summer in which, injury permitting, he will play six Tests in less than eight weeks, where he could end up as a world Test champion and an Ashes winner in, is probably perfect. Like the grind of the county championship, it keeps him straight. He wants in on the rat race. He wants to stay on that treadmill. This doesn’t wear him out. This is what wears him in.”Back-to-back games really helps,” he said as Australia trained ahead of the WTC final against India at Beckenham. “Playing a lot of cricket with not much break in between helps as a batter to get rhythm and feel and you’re able to learn from games rather than sort of stewing over technical things.”That’s one of the big differences. In Australia you might have a week and a half or more between games. Then you go back to training, you might have got out a certain way so you’re tinkering, changing your batting. You come to England, you play Thursday to Sunday for seven weeks straight, and that just creates routine and rhythm. If you miss out in a game, you stick to the same process, you’ve got Monday off, Tuesday you go into a training session, Wednesday you travel and Thursday you play. That rhythm creates good habits of scoring runs. That’s what really helps as a batter over here.”

“Whereas in 2019 I felt like I had to prove to people I was good enough, now for me, it’s just about making sure I do my role in the side and work out ways to score runs. Mentally, I’m as hungry as ever to score runs and want us to win this series”Marnus Labuschagne on the Ashes

Over here, in England, it’s helped him to the extent that he averages over 55 for Glamorgan since 2019. England is so familiar that Glamorgan doesn’t represent preparation for him as much as just normal routine. The country is not only where his international career took off four years ago, as the game’s first concussion sub for Smith, it is also where he believes he started on the path to first-class cricket, playing for Sandwich Town in the Kent Premier League nine years ago. He’s here now as the world’s best Test batter, with a tilt at the official world title (the WTC) and then the unofficial world title for the two countries that play for it (this doesn’t have quite as catchy an acronym).Both will be familiar opponents, the leitmotif of the modern age being that somewhere in the world, Australia, India and England are always playing each other. India and Australia were playing a Test less than three months ago, a series in which Labuschagne ended as the fourth-highest scorer on a succession of surfaces very different from what will greet them at The Oval.”You definitely learn from how you play them there,” he said. “There’s probably a bit more bounce here in England than in India, so probably just need to factor that in to how they bowl. (R) Ashwin’s tactics might change a little bit, Jadeja’s tactics might change a little bit, so just adjusting to those on the fly out there, what they’re going to try and do, making sure you’re nice and aware out there.”We’ve played two of [India’s] main seamers [Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj], who are going to play, at least three actually if Umesh [Yadav] plays as well, two months ago. In terms of seeing and knowing their actions and what they do, we’re pretty clear on that. Obviously with the Dukes ball in hand, they’ll be able to showcase their skills a lot more.”The reality is – I’ve played against Ollie Robinson, Josh Tongue, against Matt Potts this year – I’ve played against all those guys, I know what they bowl, so it’s just about understanding what they’re going to do and preparing well.”In the Test series in India, Labuschagne ended as the fourth-highest scorer on surfaces very different from what The Oval will provide•Getty ImagesSo much has passed since that it’s relatively easy to forget how wobbly Australia felt when they arrived in England in 2019. Labuschagne was not part of the side. Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft were returning to Test cricket after Sandpapergate, Tim Paine was their captain, and their bowling attack was in such flux that Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon only played one Test together. The composition changed regularly.They didn’t lose the Ashes but this time round, by contrast, they are more settled, with Hazlewood’s fitness the only slight unknown as the summer begins.”It’s just we’re really well organised,” Labuschagne said. “Probably in 2019 we weren’t as set on the team. There is a lot more clarity around this team which creates that consistency, it creates the preparation instead of people playing for spots and feel like they’re vying for a position. Everyone knows where they sit, and we can prepare and get ourselves ready.”Central to that sense of stability is Labuschagne himself, more so than nearly any other batter in the side. He’s not ready to get off the treadmill just yet.”In terms of the feeling it’s more about the preparation. Whereas in 2019 I felt like I had to prove to people I was good enough, now for me, it’s just about making sure I do my role in the side and work out ways to score runs. Mentally, I’m as hungry as ever to score runs and want us to win this series.”

The marked tendency to produce result pitches shows they may have underestimated the visiting side

Ian Chappell11-Mar-2023Once again the pre-match media hullabaloo was about Indian pitch preparation.Despite some outrageous predictions, Ahmedabad has provided the best batting surface of the series and opener Usman Khawaja determinedly took advantage to provide Australia with a big first-innings score.If India needed tough practice for the World Test Championship, they got exactly what they wanted. Now they have to rely on other favourable results to reach the final and play Australia at The Oval in June.The pitch furore has showed why it’s annoying when people other than the head curator or groundsman are allowed to have an input into the preparation.Related

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The head curator or groundsman is the best person to produce a presentable pitch. Like players, they are generally competitive and take great pride in their work. Good Test groundsmen all generally say they want to prepare a pitch that gives everybody a chance to display their skill and produces a result late on the last day.The operative words are “a result”. They don’t predict or barrack for a winner.This isn’t happening in India, where some dodgy pitches have been prepared, often at the behest of people other than the ground staff. A good head groundsman in Australia when asked about specifically prepared pitches used to questioner: “B***er off and mind your own business.”India are currently in the spotlight for specially prepared pitches but they are far from the worst offenders. This aspect of Indian culture may well have been developed under English colonisation.I was told in 1968 by ex-Australian cricketer and journalist Jack Fingleton, “Never trust the Poms.” I was sure he was referring to the administrators and not the players. His words were proved prophetic in 1972, following the diabolical Headingley “fusarium fiasco”, where a pitch was specially prepared to negate the effect of Dennis Lillee’s pace and Bob Massie’s swing. Not coincidentally, for the first time in the series, England included left-arm spinner Derek Underwood who was deadly on softer pitches. He claimed a ten-wicket haul in England’s thumping victory.England had previous “form” in special pitch preparation, which included the raging turner at Old Trafford in 1956. In that one-sided affair, offspinner Jim Laker took 19 Australian wickets for a meagre 90 runs in a resounding English victory.

If India needed tough practice for the World Test Championship, they got exactly what they wanted. Now they have to rely on other favourable results to reach the final and play Australia at The Oval in June.

Don’t let anyone tell you that England aren’t among the leaders in specially prepared pitches.Australia may be guilty of administrative failures but pitch-doctoring is not one of them. In general, the nature of an Australian first-class pitch is similar to its Test match equivalent.In the current environment it’s easy to wonder if India have forgotten how they won their last two Test series in Australia. They completed two magnificent upsets by playing good all-round cricket on true, bouncy pitches.India may have underestimated this Australian side. They are not the best Australian team to tour India but they are a good fighting unit, with some solid batters and a frontline spinner. Importantly, they’ve displayed a willingness to attack – albeit sometimes recklessly – at crucial times. They are worthy World Test championship finalists, but this vital competition may have brought to the fore a frailty in the system.There could be a series of bowler-friendly pitches that result in shorter games with results. Current India coach Rahul Dravid made a sensible observation: “It’s really about being realistic about what is a good performance on some of the challenging wickets we are playing on,” he said. “If you look at the last three-four years, all over the world I think wickets have got a lot more challenging,”Dravid’s wise words expose the vast difference between flat white-ball pitches that favour punishing batters and spicy Test surfaces that tend to make batting aggression difficult.There is a need to narrow the gap between the two extremes so that England’s laudable aggression in Test cricket doesn’t go to waste. Test cricket is an endangered species and any viable assistance is welcome.

There are six Indians in the XI, reflecting their dominance in the tournament, but who else made the cut?

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Sep-2023
He started the tournament slowly, bowled by Haris Rauf for 10 in India’s opening game, but had just one poor outing after that – 19 against Sri Lanka. Outside of that, his scores read 67*, 58, 121 and 27*. That century in a losing cause against Bangladesh was his fourth in ODIs this year. Gill ended comfortably at the head of the scorers’ chart. His strokemaking was gorgeous as usual, and he often ensured he batted deep.Related

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Rohit Sharma (capt)
Not a huge tournament by Rohit’s standards, but he strung together three consecutive half-centuries: 74* vs Nepal, 56 vs Pakistan, and 53 vs Sri Lanka. Marking a departure from India’s strategy in the last World Cup, Rohit also showed more intent in the early overs, and helped get India away quickly. Having led India to the title, he’s the obvious choice for captain.Kusal Mendis displayed uncharacteristic consistency during the Asia Cup•AFP/Getty ImagesKusal Mendis
Mendis was only behind Gill in the scorers’ chart, and – importantly – showed the consistency he has often lacked. He scored three half-centuries in the Asia Cup, all from No. 3, and two of them were big ones: 92 vs Afghanistan and 91 vs Pakistan – the game they won off the last ball to get into the final. He was Sri Lanka’s designated keeper too, and finished with nine dismissals.KL Rahul (wk)
Mendis can keep too, but we’ll go with Rahul for his better dismissals-per-match record at the Asia Cup. He didn’t do badly with the bat either. Drafted into the India XI just a little while before the toss in the Super Four game against Pakistan after Shreyas Iyer had to opt out with back spasms, Rahul hit 111 not out in 106 balls and put together an unbroken 233-run stand with Virat Kohli for the third wicket.ESPNcricinfo LtdCharith Asalanka
Asalanka is Sri Lanka’s one-of-a-kind rescue package, and never was that quality more evident than when he took Sri Lanka home in a chaotic last-ball finish against Pakistan, which secured Sri Lanka’s passage to the final. He starts quickly, is an effortless rotater of the strike, and consistently contributes – all good qualities for a batter still in the early phase of his international career. Though rarely called upon to bowl, he also took four wickets on a big-turning surface, against India.Shakib Al Hasan
It wasn’t a particularly great tournament for Bangladesh, but they had their moments, such as the first-round game against Afghanistan. Shakib, captaining a side without some key players, led from the front in their other win at the Asia Cup – against India. Shakib was the star of the show, even if debutant Tanzim Hasan cornered a plenty of deserved attention. Shakib first scored 80 in 85 balls and then bowled out Suryakumar Yadav.Hardik Pandya played his part whenever he was called upon to do so•Associated PressHardik Pandya
Hardik bowling regularly is what Indian cricket fans have been waiting for, and he is putting in the overs now, in time for the ODI World Cup. At the Asia Cup, he performed the role of the third seamer superbly, and his six wickets came in just 20.2 overs of bowling, including the last three Sri Lankan wickets in the final. He played his part with the bat too, especially in the first-round game against Pakistan, when Ishan Kishan and he revived India from a precarious 66 for 4 to take them to 266. Hardik ended with 87 in 90 balls.Dunith Wellalage
Looking back, Wellalage might well have been the biggest story to emerge from the tournament. A 20-year-old (okay, almost 21) whose bowling is threatening on turning decks, whose batting is fearless, and whose fielding is excellent, shapes as an asset heading into the World Cup, even after the return of Wanindu Hasaranga to the Sri Lanka side. He linked up with Maheesh Theekshana to give Sri Lanka’s innings the finishing kick against Afghanistan, picked up wickets each time he bowled bar in the final when he just got two overs, and put in one of the best all-round performances of the tournament when he ran through India’s top order to return 5 for 40 and followed it up with a solid 46-ball 42 not out.Shaheen Afridi picked up at least a wicket in every match•AFP/Getty ImagesShaheen Shah Afridi
Another bowler who picked up at least a wicket each time he bowled, but Afridi has made a name for that, hasn’t he? His best – don’t forget he is still kind of coming back from a long injury layoff – was easily that first-round game against India, when he did exactly what he is a champion at, blasting out the top order. On that occasion, he had Rohit in the fifth over and Kohli in the seventh, and came back later to remove Hardik and Ravindra Jadeja for 4 for 35.Kuldeep Yadav
Back-to-back returns of 5 for 25 (vs Pakistan) and 4 for 43 (vs Sri Lanka) made Kuldeep irresistible for the specialist spinner role. He has a straighter run up now, with improved pace, and greater accuracy, and he picked up the Player of the Tournament trophy with these new adjustments. Along with Wellalage, Kuldeep was the standout spinner in the tournament. His economy was especially impressive.Mohammed Siraj
Matheesha Pathirana would have been in this XI for his chart-topping 11 wickets, but for perhaps the most exciting spell of fast bowling in the tournament, in the final, where Siraj blew Sri Lanka away with his 6 for 21: it included four wickets in an over and five in ten balls. He is a wicket-taker, and with conditions helping his swing, he was pretty much unplayable on Sunday afternoon. And an opening combination with Afridi does make the mouth water, doesn’t it?

The left hander is not keen to talk about higher honours, but he is impressing the right people after a tough start to first-class cricket

Alex Malcolm01-Oct-2023The search for the next set of Australian Test openers is on in earnest. David Warner’s looming retirement and Usman Khawaja’s age have accelerated the public conversation.The names of Marcus Harris, Matt Renshaw and Cameron Bancroft dominate the debate. But there is a diamond in the rough emerging who could well be the gem that Australia’s selectors are hoping for.Caleb Jewell is starting to make his name in Australian cricket. In three first-class matches for Australia A this year he has posted scores of 66, 78 and an impressive 131 in a losing cause in September under lights against New Zealand A.Jewell is a man who is economical with his words, in stark contrast to his dazzling ball-striking, and is keen to avoid any talk or even thoughts of playing international cricket for now. But he is quick to note that his game has not suddenly elevated to a new level overnight.”I wouldn’t say it’s gone up a level,” Jewell told ESPNcricinfo. “I think it’s probably just more recognisable when you’re playing in those [A] games. I feel like I’ve done our alright for Tasmania the last couple of years, but it sort of gets lost in the games going on everywhere. So when we all come together and play like that it probably gets recognised a little bit more than what it would in the Shield.”He is right. Jewell has been quietly building an impressive resume over the last three seasons for Tasmania. The 26-year-old has made four Sheffield Shield centuries and six half-centuries in his last 41 innings since returning to Tasmania’s side in February 2021 following a near two-year exile.His average of 39.11 in that time does not jump off the page, but for an opener who plays half his games at Bellerive Oval and two others per year at the WACA and the Gabba, that number carries a lot more weight.The quality of his centuries is also worth noting. Three have come against the eventual Shield champions in each season – Queensland in 2020-21, and Western Australia twice in 2022 and 2023. One of those was against an attack featuring Jhye Richardson and Cameron Green in Hobart. Richardson took seven wickets in the match less than a month before his maiden Test-match five-for against England while Green also had a profitable Ashes with the ball that summer. Jewell made 102 and 60 as Tasmania chased down 315 to win in the fourth innings.

My batting was a bit nowhere. I didn’t know what I was. I was a bit at the crossroads to be honest. I pretty much just listened to him for two to three years. He pretty much taught me how to bat againCaleb Jewell on the role of Jeff Vaughan

He is making a habit of playing well in the fourth innings. On top of his fourth innings 131 for Australia A, he also made an unbeaten 108 last summer in a successful run chase against South Australia at Adelaide Oval.His innings for Australia A showcased his talent. He counterattacked relentlessly with his team under enormous pressure. He was savage on any width offered and unfurled some fearless pull shots. There were comparisons coming from within the Australia A camp to Travis Head in terms of the quality of the ball-striking and his ability to put pressure back on the bowlers.And while Jewell is very wary of putting his own name up in lights, his Tasmania coach and batting mentor Jeff Vaughan is more than happy to state how good he could be.”He could play for Australia in all formats of the game, I’m certain of that,” Vaughan told ESPNcricinfo. “I think he’s a wonderfully skilled player. He’s incredibly well disciplined. He’s a great trainer. He’s a good human being. He’s a smart cricketer. He’s brave and has a great skill set.”Part of Jewell’s reticence to look too far ahead comes from his journey to this point. He was a prodigious talent at junior level, representing his country at Under-19 level alongside Richardson and Will Pucovski. He scored Youth Test and ODI hundreds against England’s Under-19s in 2015.No easy start: Caleb Jewell doubted himself after being thrown into Shield cricket very young•Getty ImagesThat was enough for him to be selected for his first-class debut in March 2016, just prior to his 19th birthday. Jewell, by his own admission, wasn’t ready to make that jump, and what followed could have ended his career. He would play just seven Shield games over his first five seasons, scoring one half-century and averaging 11.58.”It was a pretty difficult time to be honest,” Jewell said. “I was sort of just thrown into first-class cricket. I was nowhere near ready to play first-class cricket. I hadn’t even made a century in club cricket at that time.”That period coincided with Vaughan’s arrival as Tasmania’s batting coach in the winter of 2017. Vaughan came from South Australia where he had been an integral part of Head’s development to becoming a world-class batter in all forms. He would have an immediate impact on Jewell.”My batting was a bit nowhere,” Jewell said. “I didn’t know what I was. I was a bit at the crossroads to be honest. I pretty much just listened to him for two to three years. He pretty much taught me how to bat again.”We got drilled pretty hard in how to be disciplined batters. I don’t think the Tasmania batting group back then had a whole heap of discipline.”It’s been the foundation for me. I think I’m known as quite an aggressive player but we did a lot of work on defensive stuff, playing short balls under pressure, and all those sort of things.”While Jewell takes a negative view of his initial foray into first-class cricket, Vaughan thinks it might have been the best thing for him.”Sometimes it’s hard because as a kid you question your ability and question whether you’re up to it,” he said. “But sometimes that exposure is the best learning outcome for young players and particularly young batters. You actually get a chance to go away and work on it.A breakthrough: Caleb Jewell celebrates his maiden first-class hundred•Getty Images”At the time, maybe he didn’t see that as a really good opportunity for him to play and be exposed to first-class cricket, go away, reflect, rebuild, and come back a better player. I think that was a huge thing for him.”Jewell also spent time working with former Queensland batter Wade Townsend, who was his club coach at North Hobart at the time before becoming a Tasmania assistant coach and subsequently moving back to Queensland. What followed was an extraordinary transformation.Jewell went from playing Shield cricket without a grade century to his name after 69 club innings for North Hobart, to scoring 11 centuries for his club side in four years, including five in a season in 2020-21.”He needed to face more balls to have success,” Vaughan said. “Physically he had to be able to negate [difficult batting] conditions and survive them first and then be able to thrive. But emotionally he had to be able to understand exactly what it takes, absorb at different times, and learn how to put pressure back on the opposition.”After 15 months without playing a Shield game between November 2019 and February 2021, Jewell made his first Shield century in his first game on return and hasn’t looked back.”I think in those years where I wasn’t scoring runs in club cricket I’d get 30 or 40 and think ‘how good am I going here’ and then suddenly I’m back in the sheds,” Jewell said. “Whereas I really had to make sure that I just found a way to get to 60 or 70 and then after that, your talent takes over. I probably hold that in Shield cricket now as well.”While his name is beginning to be mentioned as a future Test prospect, such is the fickle nature of being a first-class opener, Jewell isn’t looking further ahead than his next game for Tasmania.”I’ve failed a lot in my career,” Jewell said. “That’s probably what’s holding me in good stead now. At the time it was difficult but you’ve got to go through some bad times to come out the other side.”My goal hasn’t changed. Every year I just want to play every game for Tassie because it means that I’m doing something right or I’m not far away from a score or I’m just hanging in. I’m never going to be someone to think any higher than that because I’ve been in and out of the team so much, I don’t want to be in that spot again.”I always look at the centuries board at Bellerive [Oval] and see who I can pick off next. Because that first hundred for me seemed so far away. I just want to get as many as those as I can for Tassie and then what will be will be after that.”

How Aussie legspinner punked England’s batters

Matt Roller04-Nov-20232:02

Why has Zampa been such a threat?

Jos Buttler dances down the pitch to a wide legbreak and swings hard through the line of the ball, flicking his back leg as the ball flies into the upper tier of Dubai International Stadium. Two overs later, he hits an even bigger six back over the bowler’s head then knocks a single; Jonny Bairstow is on strike, and thumps consecutive sixes himself.This used to be the story when Adam Zampa played against England. After that night in Dubai, he had taken four wickets in four T20Is against them while conceding nearly 11 runs per over; across his first five ODIs against them, he took two wickets at 133.50. He might have been good enough against the also-rans, but not against this lot.But the Zampa that came up against England in Ahmedabad on Saturday night is a very different bowler to the one who used to get milked and whacked in equal measure – and England are a very different team to the side who set the standard for the rest of the world, brimming with self-assurance and bravado.Related

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Zampa bowls straighter, faster and flatter than he used to, and has reached a point where he has total confidence in where he will land the ball. “I’d say tonight is as satisfying as it feels after an ODI, in terms of my 10 overs,” he said. “My length control was as good as it’s been.”These were difficult conditions for a legspinner. There were signs of dew when Zampa came on in the 12th over, and for most of his spell he found himself bowling to Dawid Malan, Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali: in total, 45 out of the 60 balls he bowled were to left-handers.It meant he relied heavily on his googlies and rarely strayed from a good length or a straight line, targeting the top of the stumps. It was a simple plan, but England gave Zampa little reason to change things up: not only did they fail to hit a boundary in his 10-over spell, they did not even manage to hit a two off him.It was Buttler who finally tried to hit him off his length, skipping down and looking to launch him over long-off, as if trying to rekindle the spirit of that heady night in Dubai. Instead, it was Zampa who came out on top, roaring as loud as he could in celebration as Cameron Green took a simple catch.He was so consistent with his stock ball that any deviation from it seemed to bring a wicket. The ball that got Stokes might have been his worst of the night, sliding down the leg side and swept tamely to short fine leg; he tossed one up full to Moeen, who slog-swept him out to deep midwicket.The ball to Moeen was Zampa’s finally pay-out, the result of the pressure he had built up across his spell. At 49.7mph, it was significantly slower than the majorty of his spell and had enough overspin to take the top edge. “I’m known for bowling flatter and faster,” he said, “so to be able to bowl it slower and bring it back a little bit was a really satisfying wicket.”He finished with extraordinary figures of 3 for 21, the cheapest spell of his ODI career – by a distance. Australia’s decision to pick a solitary frontline spinner in their World Cup squad was a calculated gamble: with 19 wickets across seven matches, the selectors are quids in.Adam Zampa didn’t concede a boundary•Getty ImagesEven if these Australian players are significantly different to those that came before in character, there is still an underlying machismo: most of the squad used their days off at the start of the week to take golf far too seriously, then explained Glenn Maxwell’s injury away by saying that “boys will be boys” and that they “need a mum on tour”.But Zampa is a different personality. He labels golfers “floggers” and stayed in Dharamsala with his family instead. “It was really nice,” he said. “I wore a few robes, and found myself up there in the hills. I just went on a couple of treks… I was a recluse for a few days.”He certainly didn’t work on his batting, and has hardly netted all tour. You couldn’t tell from his innings at No. 10, a vital 29 off 19 balls which included a straight drive off a 92mph Mark Wood rocket, a pull for four off Chris Woakes and a drag through wide long-on off David Willey.To top it all off, he took a blinder in the field to see the back of Willey, running 25 metres from deep fine leg to square leg and diving underneath a spectacular catch. “I mean, I’m not known as the best fielder in the world,” Zampa said, “but it’s satisfying to work on stuff and things come off like that. It’s a good feeling.”Zampa used to be the bowler that England’s batters queued up to take down. On Sunday, he will head to Mumbai with Buttler, Stokes and Moeen in his pocket – and as the leading wicket-taker at this World Cup.

As of now it wouldn’t be unfair to label him too good to limit himself to one or two formats

Sidharth Monga24-Dec-2023There are so many twists of fate in this story that there is no room left for what-ifs. It is too hectic to even attempt a re-telling but at this juncture we must filter out the KL Rahul bits.It was the summer of 2021 in England. An injury to Shubman Gill had brought Rahul back into the Test squad, a good two years after he last played one. He was strictly a back-up batter, probably selected only because he was versatile enough to provide cover for more than one slot. On the eve of the first Test, though, a delivery from Mohammed Siraj injured Rahul’s good friend and the incumbent opener, Mayank Agarwal.It brought together Rahul and Rohit Sharma, two batters still looking to find their bearings in Test cricket, in conditions that were supposed to be their kryptonite, against the new ball, the toughest time to play in England. In testing conditions through the series, the two put on an exhibition of leaving the ball. India’s openers aggregated 784 runs between them in that series, among the top 10 for a travelling side to England.Related

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Kohli leaves South Africa, likely to be back for first Test

India return to sporting South Africa, still chasing history

Later that year, Rahul came back from an injury to complete the set of centuries in Australia, England and South Africa, only the second opener from Asia to do so since South Africa’s readmission. In the next year, he went on to captain India.And yet, two Tests after his captaincy stint, and six after his superlative century in South Africa, Rahul found himself out of the side. At that time, it seemed a horses-for-courses thing in a team that had room only for five batters given their consistent focus on taking 20 wickets by playing an extra bowler. By the time the course changed, though, Rahul had injured himself during the IPL and was in a race against time to make it to the World Cup. In his absence, Yashasvi Jaiswal scored a century on debut, Gill moved down to No. 3, and where was the room for Rahul?So here we are, back to the site of Rahul’s century in Centurion, but with the most probable way for him to get into the XI being taking on wicketkeeping duties despite having started in only one first-class match as a designated wicketkeeper before. This could also mean batting in the middle order for only the second time in his 47-Test career. Not only does it not upset the top three, it also allows him some break after keeping wicket for a whole Test innings.KL Rahul scored 123 in his last Test in Centurion•AFP/Getty ImagesThere are two ways to look at this arrangement, both of them valid. First is to say what a sacrifice Rahul is making for the team in Rishabh Pant’s absence. That he is always ready and willing to do what the team needs him to do. There can be sympathy for a batter of such high skill and ability to have to double up in order to play for India.None of that is misplaced sentiment but Rahul also averages 33.44 after 47 Tests. It is not like Rahul hasn’t been given chances: since his debut, Virat Kohli, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane are the only batters to have played more Test matches for India. We must make allowance for the increasingly difficult conditions Test cricket is played in, especially wherever India travel. The average of openers in the Tests that Rahul has played is 31.24. So while a century every seven Tests might not satisfy everyone, he has only been slightly better than the average opener in the conditions he has played in.This is where you wonder if Rahul has spread himself too wide. Rahane and Pujara were Test specialists. Kohli is the only India batter of this era who has managed to master both Tests and ODIs for more than a decade, and also have a long T20 career. It won’t be inaccurate to say that it hasn’t even been three years since Rohit finally figured Test cricket out.It has been argued previously that Rahul’s shift to a more conservative brand of T20 cricket might have resulted in better performances in Test cricket upon the comeback in 2021.Rahul is only 31 so there is a while to go before a final assessment can be made on his career, but as of now it wouldn’t be unfair to label him too good to limit himself to one or two formats but not quite in that Kohli category to have mastered two of them for so long. Starting with the newest chapter in Centurion, Rahul, already one of the best in the world in the ODI middle order, will want to prove he is good enough to master two of them at the same time.

Thrilling century included key joust with Ashwin, who tormented him on 2016 tour

Vithushan Ehantharajah16-Feb-20242:42

Manjrekar: England template has allowed Duckett to bat freely

As soon as India were bowled out for 445, thoughts immediately turned to which England batter would be R Ashwin’s 500th victim. That, after all, was what most of those in the ground were here for.By leaving the second Test in Visakhapatnam with 499, Ashwin gave everyone 10 days’ notice. Rajkot had the honour of hosting the grand occasion, with enough time for the invites to go out and RSVPs to be returned, decorations to be sorted and caterers hired. With everything set, all that was left was the “batter reveal” – who would get to be unlucky No.500? And, really, how could you have looked past the bloke Ashwin had dismissed five times in seven innings, and twice already this series?Three hours later, however, Ashwin followed that bloke – Ben Duckett – off the field at the close of day two. Ashwin had indeed claimed that one precious wicket, Zak Crawley, albeit for the concession of 37 runs in seven overs. Duckett, meanwhile, had 133 from just 118 balls in his back pocket. This might have been Ashwin’s party, but Duckett had taken the cake.It was an oversight from Rohit Sharma to only bring Ashwin on against Duckett when the opener had 55. Not just because of the last few weeks but also because of their history, dating back to England’s 2016-17 tour.Duckett has long made his peace with his chastening experience seven years ago of averaging six from three innings. He arrived this time around with the phlegmatic perspective that, of course, Ashwin would get him a few more times. But he is better equipped to give a bit back. And how.The tale between the two was of 28 runs scored off 27 balls. Duckett’s first of four boundaries against Ashwin was a good-length delivery turning into middle and off, swept way in front of square, with the front pad comfortably outside leg. The next boundary was arguably the shot of the day: Duckett pushing onto the back foot and playing a turning delivery off the surface, threading it through wide mid-on. It was a ball he would have fearfully pressed forward to back in 2016.Duckett brought up his hundred off 88 balls•Getty ImagesThe real kicker came when the last half of Ashwin’s penultimate over was taken for 13. A slog-sweep for six over cow corner was followed by another slap for four through the same region. It was at that point Ashwin took a backward step, moving the man from point to plug the gap.A flatter straighter ball was then flicked around the corner to take Duckett to 92. The evening session drinks break came and Ashwin was hooked, eventually reintroduced for the final over of the day. He thought he had his man lbw three deliveries from the end, only for DRS to confirm the ball had pitched outside leg stump.”I would have really loved to bowl at him when he was on nought, and not on 60, 70 runs,” a frustrated Ashwin said at stumps. “He’s a very different player to bowl at when he’s on 60-70 for sure.”A couple of shots that he hit, like the slog-sweeps, were really, really special. But again, like I said, Ben Duckett is a phenomenal talent in England. Credit to him, he’s made a wonderful hundred today. I wanted to clap but the hardcore competitor in me didn’t allow me to clap. Very happy for Ben, but nevertheless come the next time around I will try to take him on. That’s just who I am.”Demons like Ashwin are hard to exorcise, particularly when they happen to be an off-spinner who is statistically the most prolific bowler in history against your type (249 of his 500 dismissals have been against left-handers). But winning them over, even for one day, is the next best option.Sure, Duckett would have felt sweet liberation had he reached his century off Ashwin. He did at least send him to fetch the gorgeous on-drive off Mohammad Siraj that took him to a third Test hundred off just 88 deliveries. Not that Duckett noticed, fist-pumping as soon as he realised it was on its way to the sponge, looking to the heavens before saluting a dressing-room chuffed that one who plays so selflessly was getting his moment in the sun.He reached the close of day two on 133 off 118 balls•Getty ImagesIt’s important to state this was much more than Duckett versus Ashwin. This was Duckett versus India. Duckett versus the situation. Duckett versus perception. Duckett versus the past.A mammoth first innings cast a deep shadow over England, yet Duckett’s work – providing more than 64 percent of their overnight 207 for 2 – has given them a glimpse of light, trailing by just 238 going into day three. India’s 119 runs ground out over 44.5 overs this morning were matched by Duckett alone in just 99 balls.A six-over mini-session before tea offered the rainbows and rain that come with Duckett’s territory. There were four boundaries but also five plays-and-misses – three coming in a single over against Siraj. In any other team you’d have expected a stern word was had at the break, given what followed. But the only message Bazball’s most natural disciple was ever going to get was: “Keep doing you”.And he did. Whether top-spin-forehand-ing Siraj through cover from a tight fourth-stump line, or sweeping and reverse-sweeping Kuldeep Yadav to provide 40 of England’s fifty as early as 8.4 overs, or punching a full ball outside off from Jasprit Bumrah inside mid-on for a 19th boundary to move to 97, this was liquid Duckett.Even Rohit cracked a smile when he switched hands and launched Ravindra Jadeja over the fence at point for his 23rd and final boundary of day two. How do you stop this? It’s worth noting that, through the maelstrom of wrists and forearms, there was an inordinate amount of control. Only 14 of those initial 88 deliveries to get him to three figures were logged by ESPNcricinfo as mis-hits, and none of his first 20 boundaries were edged.Related

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Duckett’s record under Ben Stokes right now reads an impressive 1,260 runs at an average of 54.78, scored at a strike rate of 92.24. After a run of six starts between 20 and 48 in his last six knocks, he now has the showpiece innings they promised, with the third fastest recorded Test century by a visiting batter in India. Only Adam Gilchrist (84) and Clive Lloyd (85) managed quicker.Six years prior to his recall to the Test side for last winter’s tour of Pakistan, Duckett had thought all this was beyond him. In 2018 he had undergone a pre-season hand operation, but a foolish return for Northamptonshire – four weeks ahead of schedule – almost irreparably changed his batting grip. That was eventually remedied in the 2020-21 winter with the help of his Nottinghamshire head coach Peter Moores and assistant Ant Botha. By then, he assumed he had fallen out of the England loop.A penchant for a good time earned him a reputation as unprofessional, especially after a couple of notable missteps. In India, he accidentally threw up on Trevor Bayliss when hungover on a plane As a member of the Lions tour that ran parallel to the 2017/18 Ashes, he missed a tour match for pouring a drink over James Anderson . It was far from ideal (though in his defence, he didn’t start the former latter) but it seemed his card had been marked permanently for mistakes that most young twenty-somethings make.What we have seen over the last 15 months, and especially on the second day in Rajkot, is not simply maturity but a player who has grown while retaining his youthful flair. It is a hell of a combination, and one that does not happen – or can be maintained – by accident. The ability to keep striking boundaries across 35 overs after spending 130.5 in the dirt, during which he often conversed with Stokes on tactics, was a remarkable blend of attacking zeal and aerobic fitness. As of now, Duckett has been on the field for every moment of the first two days of this Test.Should he keep up that streak until tea, England might expect to have a lead. Even with Joe Root at the other end, desperate to arrest his slump, and with an equally hungry Jonny Bairstow and Ben Stokes to come, Duckett continuing this rampage is England’s best hope of keeping a win on the table. Few could have produced an innings like this, and fewer still have the capacity to do it all over again on day three, and turn it into a truly once-in-a-lifetime event.

T20 franchises won’t be too bothered by his middling T20 numbers as long as he brings genuine pace, left-arm angle, height and swing

Sidharth Monga22-Mar-2024When Mitchell Starc runs in at Eden Gardens on Saturday and lets the ball go for the first time in an IPL match since 2015, it will cost his franchise upwards of INR 6 lakh (approx. US $7,200). It’s the cost of every legal ball that Starc delivers, assuming he bowls his four overs in every game, plays every match, and that Kolkata Knight Riders play 17 games. If you look at cold numbers, you might call this a big gamble.Since the start of the T20 World Cup in 2022, Starc has played just two T20 matches outside World Cups in one-and-a-half years. The last time he was available for a T20 World Cup match, Starc was dropped by Australia. Outside his replacement Kane Richardson, Starc was Australia’s most expensive frontline bowler at that World Cup at home in 2022.The last time Starc played T20s outside international cricket, he was representing Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL in the year 2015. Since that game, Starc has conceded 8.14 runs an over across all T20s, as against his overall career economy of 7.47. His average in the intervening period, meanwhile, has been 25.53 versus a career average of 19.74. And during the same period, Starc has gone at 9.62 runs an over in the death overs – his career economy in that phase is 8.74 – which ended up becoming the reason for his being dropped during the World Cup in 2022.Related

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And yet, Starc is one of the most sought-after players at the IPL. Only seven players made more than Starc’s INR 5 crore in the 2014 auction, the first time he played in the IPL. RCB retained him, and that yielded 20 wickets in the next IPL. Injury and workload management kept him away in 2016 and 2017, but in 2018, only five players attracted higher bids than the INR 9.4 crore Starc got from KKR. Injuries, preference to ODIs and Tests, and other personal reasons kept Starc away from the IPL since then until he came back for this season as the most expensive player bought at an auction ever: for INR 24.75 crore (approx. US $2.97m).Even if you set aside the idiosyncrasies of auctions, Starc’s appeal to the IPL has been constant and universal. In throwing big money at Starc, the IPL teams show they appreciate two things about T20 cricket: that bowlers have limited agency, and that potential trumps non-recent form. In a crunched format with ten wickets still available, it becomes even more important to separate actions from results when assessing bowlers in particular.When it comes to Starc, the IPL doesn’t see his numbers from the five matches he plays every year on an average. What it instead sees is the genuine pace, the left-arm angle, the height, the ability to swing the ball, and that he is an absolute great in the other two formats. There is also acknowledgement that it is easier for longer-format specialists to adjust to T20 than the other way around.This year will see just the 28th IPL match for Mitchell Starc•BCCIThere is not a substantial amount of cause you can establish for Starc’s middling numbers in T20s. Yes, the new ball swings less, and there is hardly any reverse, but that is true for all bowlers. Starc’s handicap perhaps is his smooth action, which makes for spotting the ball sooner than irregular actions, thus making his pace appear lesser to the batter than what the speed gun registers. Still, if he can consistently stay north of 145kph, it is a big asset in the IPL regardless of the smoothness and the orthodoxy of his action.Evidently, we have precious little to go by. Starc has hardly ever played a tournament for long enough for proper analysis or match-ups to develop, or for him to make alterations against certain players and come back. On Saturday in Kolkata, Starc will begin addressing one of the anomalies of our times when he goes up against Sunrisers Hyderabad, the side led by Pat Cummins, another great fast bowler in other formats, and who also happens to be the second-most expensive buy at an IPL auction ever.This year will see just the 28th IPL match for Starc; he has played fewer in the BBL, and none in any other league.Not only is Starc fit and available and ready for a full IPL season, but he will also get on the ride to try to correct his own numbers and reputation in T20s. The last time he was left out by Australia, Starc said he had some “pretty strong” feelings about the decision, and he had let his team management know. Now comes the IPL and the T20 World Cup hot on its heels, where he can actually demonstrate why he shouldn’t have been left out.

The World Test Championship, the Ashes, and the ODI World Cup are already in Pat Cummins’ bag. Is the IPL trophy next?

Deivarayan Muthu25-May-20245:54

Shreyas Iyer: ‘Wicket looks completely different from Q2’

Chepauk was a little chaotic on the eve of the IPL 2024 final.The press conference room was packed, and photographers ran around hurriedly to get the perfect shot of Shreyas Iyer and Pat Cummins with the shiny trophy. Soon after, a sudden shower arrived and quickly became a downpour, catching the groundstaff off guard. They scrambled to dismantle the nets and rush the covers on to the square. Preparations for the closing ceremony were also disrupted by the rain.Amid the frenetic scenes, Cummins kept calm. When reporters asked Shreyas probing questions about his fitness, Cummins leaned back on his rocking chair to watch highlights of MS Dhoni hitting sixes on the TV. When the captains were asked about the prospect of dew during the final, Cummins showed off his dry sense of humour.Related

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“We don’t know how the wicket is going to play tomorrow and also looking at the match [second qualifier] from the TV, we felt the dew factor would play a great role,” was Shreyas’ response. “But it didn’t and the ball started spinning…”Cummins interrupted at this point with a quip: “No, there was heaps of dew.”Cummins was being Cummins. Composed. Stress-free. On and off the field.

****

Most people would love the lunch at Lord’s. Except perhaps Cummins, who had ordered a takeaway after the controversial Jonny Bairstow stumping last June. It was one of the biggest controversies in recent Ashes history but Cummins was in his bubble, one that IPL pressure will find hard to pierce.Before taking over as Sunrisers Hyderabad captain, Cummins had never led a team in T20 cricket. Sure, he had won the World Test Championship and the ODI World Cup last year, but leading an IPL franchise is entirely different. Especially if you’re an overseas captain. Just ask Cummins’ predecessors at SRH: Aiden Markram, Kane Williamson or David Warner.Cummins outlined some of those challenges on the eve the final. “I think in a tournament like the IPL, there’s so much pressure from obviously the number of fans that are watching, media, journalists,” Cummins said. “But also from their own team back home, or their own coaches and everything as well.”SRH had finished last in 2021, eighth in 2022, and last again in 2023. Under Cummins, they have risen spectacularly to make the final ahead of more-fancied teams this season. They used to be the side that defended sub-150 totals for fun. Then 2021-2023 happened and they lost their identity. Under Cummins’ leadership, this SRH side has transformed into the second-fastest scoring team in IPL history.Pat Cummins is eyeing another trophy to add to his collection•AFP/Getty ImagesTravis Head and Abhishek Sharma at the top. Heinrich Klaasen in the middle. Cummins himself can give it a whack lower down the order. The conditions in Chennai may or may not be extremely batting friendly on Sunday, but Cummins has encouraged his players not to change what has worked for them so far.”I mean there has been a few changes [in the team] this year,” Cummins said. “Obviously, Dan Vettori, as head coach, is a big one as well. Few other guys have come in this season, but I think at the start of the season you map out the style that you want to play to give yourself the best chance to win. Obviously, along the way you’re allowed to adapt and maybe change the personnel.”But we were pretty strong with how we wanted to play – super-aggressive – and in a 14 game-season, you’re not going to win every single game, but we think if we play that way, you’re going to win most of them. That’s kind of how it played out – there are little bumps that come along the way but that’s okay, you try and make sure it stays on course.”Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat and T Natarajan have complemented SRH’s explosive batting with their defensive bowling skills. Their find of the season, however, is 20-year-old Nitish Kumar Reddy, who displaced the experienced India player Washington Sundar as the first-choice allrounder in the SRH XI. Nitish smashes spin, bowls seam, and is extremely agile in the field. Cummins believes he is a star in the making.”It [the contribution of Indian players] has been huge,” Cummins said. “Our experienced bowling line-up as well – [Jaydev] Unadkat, Bhuvi [Bhuvneshwar Kumar], Nattu [T Natarajan] have all been amazing and some of the youngsters who have come through have won us games themselves. Nitish [Reddy] and Abhishek [Sharma] are probably the two biggest examples. [These are] guys away from the Indian set-up but have been fantastic. That has been the story of our season – those guys have taken the game on and putting themselves out there and are having breakout seasons.”As for Cummins himself, he’s had an up-and-down season with the ball. His form was similar during the league phase of the ODI World Cup, but in the final in Ahmedabad, he rocked India with one cutter after another during a boundary-less spell and claimed the wickets of Virat Kohli and Shreyas.The conditions at Chepauk – a dry red-soil pitch – could offer Cummins the bounce and grip he enjoys. Bet against him at your peril in the IPL final.

All the major records broken during the incredible run-fest between KKR and Punjab Kings at Eden Gardens

Sampath Bandarupalli26-Apr-2024262 The target Punjab Kings chased down against KKR at Eden Gardens – it is the world record for the highest successful chase in T20 cricket. The Kings smashed the record for the highest chase in the IPL by a whopping 38 runs.42 Sixes in the match between KKR and Kings, the highest in any T20 match. It surpassed the 38 sixes hit by SRH and Mumbai Indians in Hyderabad last month, and by RCB and SRH in Bengaluru last week.ESPNcricinfo Ltd24 Sixes the Kings hit in their chase against KKR, the second most by a team in a T20 after Nepal’s 26 sixes against Mongolia last year. Kings’ 24 sixes are the most by a team in an IPL match, breaking SRH’s record of 22 sixes last week against RCB and Delhi Capitals.523 Total runs scored by KKR and Kings at Eden Gardens on Friday – the joint second highest match aggregate in T20s , behind the 549 runs scored by RCB and SRH in Bengaluru last week.4 Openers with fifty-plus scores in the match between KKR and Punjab: Phil Salt (75), Sunil Narine (71), Prabhsimran Singh (54) and Jonny Bairstow (108*). It is the first instance of all four openers scoring 50-plus in in an IPL match and the eleventh occasion in men’s T20s. The 308 runs scored by the openers is also the highest in an IPL match.5 Half-centuries that were scored at a strike rate of 200 or more in the match between KKR and Kings – Salt (25 balls), Narine (23), Prabhsimran (18), Bairstow (23) and Shashank Singh (23). It is the first instance of five fifties scored off 25 or fewer balls in a men’s T20 (where ball-by-ball data is available).7 Targets of 200-plus successfully chased down by Kings , two more than any other team in T20 cricket. Quetta Gladiators, Mumbai Indians, India and Australia have successfully chased down 200-plus targets on five occasions.