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Centrally contracted cricketers set for pay hike; number of contracts increased from 15 to 17

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Aug-2019A wider pool of contracted players, extending to the domestic level for the first time, and a significant pay hike for centrally contracted New Zealand women players are among the key features of the new Women’s Master Agreement. When finalised, the agreement will replace the previous Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which was signed in 2016, and expired on July 31 this year.Under the new agreement, reached in principle between New Zealand Cricket and the New Zealand Cricket Players Association, the number of contracted players will be 79 across three levels, up from 15 under the previous MoU, while the total player payment pool will comprise $4.136 million over three years, an annual payment of $1.38 million. The player payment pool in the previous MoU was $1.575 million for three years.The number of centrally contracted players increases to 17, from 15 over the last three years, with pay ranging from $64,000 to $40,000 annually (inclusive of a retainer payment, retirement fund contribution and promotional payment). Players can also each earn up to $16,000 in match fees. Thus, a centrally contracted player could earn up to $80,000 annually (up from a maximum of $48,000 in the last MoU). In addition, centrally contracted players can participate in overseas T20 leagues in Australia, England and India, when not committed to international or Super Smash fixtures.Under the new agreement, eight centrally contracted Development Players will earn a minimum of $7,500 for participating in NZC High Performance Programmes and two domestic competitions.In the first-ever domestic contracts structure, 54 players (nine for each of the six major associations) will be on domestic competition agreements worth $3,250. The agreements will compensate players for their availability for the Super Smash and Hallyburton Johnstone competitions. Non-contracted players selected to play in a domestic competition will be paid an assembly fee.According to a statement from the NZC, the model of the Women’s Master Agreement sought to provide a starting point for the eventual semi-professionalisation of the domestic game. The aim was also to help reduce the financial barriers for the players’ continued involvement in the women’s game, while retaining their ability to maintain their involvement in other vocations – an issue that emerged as a priority following discussions between the players and the NZCPA.The new agreement was welcomed by the players. Amy Satterthwaite, the senior women’s captain, said the investment in domestic and developing players was an important step forward for the game in the country.”I know people tend to focus on the White Ferns’ contracts but the investment in domestic and developing players is an important step forward for women’s cricket in New Zealand,” she said. “This is an agreement that recognises the need to grow the game at grassroots and domestic level in order to produce White Ferns who excel on the world stage.”This means all White Ferns can now ply their trade as full-time professional cricketers as well as having the flexibility to participate in overseas leagues – which is a huge leap forward for all involved. With the ICC Women’s World Cup 2021 on the horizon, this will mean a great deal in terms of upskilling and training, and providing the best possible environment for preparing ourselves and the team.”Batsman Suzie Bates hoped the new agreement would make the game more attractive for aspiring players. “From what I can see, it provides a great framework and starting point for the eventual semi-professionalisation of the women’s domestic game in New Zealand – and that’s probably the most important point in the entire agreement,” Bates said.

Eight years after his last match in India whites, the wicketkeeper is back with a more mature and grounded outlook

Shashank Kishore in Bengaluru12-Jun-20182:07

Afghanistan’s rise is good for cricket – Karthik

Dinesh Karthik knows what it’s like to have had his hopes high, only for them to get dashed. In Chennai four years ago, Tamil Nadu had conceded a first-innings lead against Railways and were fighting to stay in contention for a Ranji Trophy knockouts berth when Karthik, then playing as a specialist batsman, was told of MS Dhoni’s sudden retirement from Test cricket.In Tamil Nadu’s next match, Karthik took the gloves, which meant that designated stumper U Sushil had to be left out. While the team management explained this decision as being down to “tactical calls” and “strategy”, the move is said to have caused a hint of friction in the Tamil Nadu camp. Some even termed it “opportunistic behaviour” from a senior player who was trying to earn a Test spot. As it turned out, Wriddhiman Saha would not only keep wicket in the following Test in Sydney, but make the spot his own for the next three years.There was another call-up in January this year when Karthik, preparing to play for Tamil Nadu in the domestic T20s, was summoned by the team management to South Africa as back-up for a back-up. Saha had pulled up injured after the first Test in Cape Town, and Parthiv Patel, the second wicketkeeper on tour, had a poor game with the gloves in Centurion.The team management, however, persisted with Parthiv for the final game, leaving Karthik on the bench. He would then sit out of the subsequent ODI series and feature in one T20I before returning home. This was also around the time Karthik was discussed as a Kolkata Knight Riders’ captaincy candidate. Then over happened against Bangladesh in the Nidahas Trophy final, and life hasn’t been the same since.Karthik was on his way back from London after playing the charity game for hurricane relief at Lord’s when news of his Test comeback trickled in. Karthik’s initial thought at the time was not surprise but relief, because he had done well in limited-overs cricket and was in the middle of a purple patch.When he was asked on Tuesday, ahead of the Afghanistan’s inaugural Test in Bengaluru, if this was a second wind in his career, Karthik laughed it off. After all, this was going to be his sixth comeback to the Test team, in an international career that is now set to enter its 15th year.”I’ve been asked this question a lot of times. It feels good, but it’s hard for me to put it into phrases like ‘second wind’ and ‘comeback of sorts’ and all that. But I’ll say it feels good to be back in the Indian team in whites,” he said. “To be part of the Test team is something I’ve always dreamed of. I’m just thankful to the people who have stood by me over the years.”The dynamics of Indian cricket have changed in the time since Karthik last played a Test, in 2010. The batting stalwarts who he played with in that game in Bangladesh have all called it a day. Dhoni, the man who replaced Karthik in the Test squad and became India’s first-choice for close to a decade, is now happily retired from the format. Karthik admitted to being frustrated when he lost his Test spot.Dinesh Karthik attempts a catch in the presence of KL Rahul and M Vijay•AFP

“I guess I did not perform well enough before. I wasn’t consistent enough. There was a highly competitive environment. MS Dhoni was breathing down my neck, causing a lot of stir in Test cricket at that point of time,” he said. “He has gone on to become probably one of the greatest Test cricket captains India has ever produced. So, it’s not that I lost out my place to some normal cricketer. He has been a special cricketer over a period of time and I respect him for that.”Just the fact that I couldn’t at that stage produce enough performances to hold on to my place [frustrates me]. I think I need to be honest with myself. I think I wasn’t as good then. I have another opportunity now and I guess I will try to do my best.”The frustration resulted in a massive dip. That Ranji season, he would make just 200 runs in nine innings. It was then that he felt the need to make peace with the challenges and “respect domestic cricket” to return to run-scoring ways. The love for the game though, had remained intact.”I’ve always enjoyed playing the sport, so motivation has never been a problem,” he said. “I’ve enjoyed playing the Ranji Trophy. It’s a totally different challenge. There are not many out there who come and watch you play; you play because you enjoy the sport, which I’ve always done subconsciously. I’ve enjoyed being part of Team Tamil Nadu. Credit to them as well, for having put up with me through the tough years.”As a senior player, they expect you to perform well. Along the way if I could help out young guys, great. That was my mentality. End of the day, it’s always been great to represent a team like that, for them to have put up with me and backed me… Today I’m really happy where I’m sitting.”The years with Tamil Nadu helped Karthik keep the faith, and have also meant that of India’s current Test side only Cheteshwar Pujara has played more first-class matches than Karthik (157).Now, two days away from his 24th Test, Karthik knows he’s a certainty in the XI. There are no false alarms this time. At 33, he’s more mature and far from the fidgety player he once was. Experience, he says, has changed his outlook on cricket and, as cliched as it may sound, he is simply focusing on the “process” rather than looking long-term and worrying about what he must to do keep Saha out.”That [looking too far ahead] puts a little bit of extra pressure than what is already there,” he said. “I’m trying to be consistent there, where even if I don’t get the opportunity, even if I don’t end up playing at the highest level, I want to be content with the fact that I’ve given it everything.”If I now go and try to think about how I can keep my place and keep someone else out, it becomes very subjective. You end up thinking ‘I need to score here, I need to do this, I need to do that.’ I don’t want to keep it that way. I just want to make the best of the opportunities I get.”Karthik may well go on to be part of the Test squad for the tour of England, a country where he’s had success as an opener. But, for now, he’s happy to be part of a historic occasion. Words of encouragement is all he had for his opponents, even when it was posed to him that their captain had talked up his spin attack as being better than India’s.”At the end of the day experience has a lot of value,” he said. “We saw that with CSK in the IPL. Experience pays. I’m sure in time they will be even better bowlers than when they start off. But the point is, the kind of improvement they have shown in white-ball cricket has been phenomenal. There is no reason why they cannot do that in Test cricket, but I would definitely say our spinners have a lot of experience – and experience is not something that can be easily bought. I’m sure their players will also vouch for that. So I wouldn’t harp too much on that.”With that statement alone, Karthik showed why he’s in his best phase of his career, a player who had matured and left the fidgety self who last played a Test more than eight years ago well behind.

Joe Root and Chris Woakes put on an unbroken stand of 102 to lift England to a four-wicket win over West Indies and seal the three-match series

The Report by George Dobell05-Mar-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsChris Woakes and Joe Root saw England home with an unbroken 102-run stand•Getty Images

England’s limited-overs resurgence may have been built upon aggressive batting but it was, for the second game in succession, their calm under pressure that led them to victory in Antigua.With their side reeling against a familiar foe – spin bowling – at 124 for 6 and having just lost 4 for 16, Joe Root and Chris Woakes produced an unbroken seventh-wicket stand of 102 to take England to a four-wicket victory with 10 deliveries remaining. It means England have taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series, with only Thursday’s game in Barbados to come.This was a far from straightforward win, though. On a two-paced, slow surface that rendered it difficult to time the ball, the batsmen of both sides struggled to dominate.And, had one of the edges offered by Root (on 0 and 51) gone to hand or Rovman Powell and Jason Holder been able to cling on to relatively straightforward chances offered by Woakes on 42 and 58, things might have been different. But Root’s first edge landed just in front of first slip and his second bisected slip and the keeper, and West Indies sorely missed their premier fast bowler, Shannon Gabriel, who was forced off the pitch with a side strain after three overs of his spell.Jason Roy also enjoyed a moment of fortune. He survived a strong appeal for caught behind off Holder before he had scored. And though replays suggested a possible deviation of the ball and there was a sound on the stump microphone, the TV umpire concluded reasonably enough that he did not have enough evidence to overturn the on-field umpire’s not-out decision. Had the host board or host broadcaster been able to come to a deal over the use of ultra-edge – understood to have been priced at £8,000 for this series – there might well have been a different result.Gabriel’s absence allowed Root and Woakes to play out the spinners, rotate the stroke and pick off the runs. The run-rate never rose close to five-an-over and, with Carlos Brathwaite unable to sustain the pressure of the senior bowlers, England simply had to wait for his return and the relatively easy runs that followed. Crucially, while Ashley Nurse and Devendra Bishoo claimed five wickets for 77 from their 20 overs combined, Brathwaite conceded 38 runs in four wicketless overs.It was only Woakes’ second List A 50 for England, with the first (an unbeaten innings of 95) coming in the dramatic tie against Sri Lanka at Trent Bridge last year. He might not be the most pleasing or powerful allrounder in this side, but he has a wonderfully equable temperament and perhaps only Root has a better technique with the bat. His six off Carlos Brathwaite, driven over long-off, was one of the shots of the day.Root, playing within himself, hit only three boundaries. But this was exactly the sort of mature contribution that his captain had provided in the first ODI and, in its way, a masterful demonstration of how to control a limited-overs chase.All of which probably makes it sound like an exciting game. And it is true, it rose to a climax of sorts. But just as a rock fall might be dramatic, it doesn’t make the thousands of years of erosion that lead to it great entertainment. This match was not played on a surface that encouraged attractive or, for long periods, entertaining cricket.It may be widely presumed in these parts that hosting England is something close to a licence to print money. And it is true that somewhere approaching 8,000 travelling supporters made up the bulk of the crowd. But if Antigua continues to greet them with tired hotels, roads that make even the shortest journey laborious and wretched pitches that produce stultifying cricket, they may find they spend their money – and their holiday allowance – elsewhere. Nobody wants the homogenisation of pitches but, with the game fighting for its place among other leisure pursuits, we have to provide better entertainment than this to appeal to an audience beyond the die-hard cricket fan.Still, England can’t hide behind that as an excuse for their middle-order fragility. Instead they will accept that the accuracy and variations of the offspinner Nurse and the turn offered by the legspinner Bishoo illustrated flaws that never linger too far from the surface of English cricket: a weakness against spin bowling.Roy ensured a bright start for England with a fluent half-century but it was his dismissal, caught at long-on, that precipitated a collapse that saw England lose five wickets for 37 runs in 10 overs. Morgan was bowled by one that appeared to skid on with the arm, before Jos Buttler edged a late cut – a poor choice of shot with a slip in place – and Moeen Ali was punished for playing back to one that drifted in, pitched and turned to hit the top of off stump. It was fine bowling by Nurse, who didn’t concede a boundary in his 10 overs, in particular. He has looked the best spinner on either side in this series.But with the specialist spinners bowled out, Holder had no choice but to turn to Carlos Brathwaite and his part-time spinners. Brathwaite’s first over back conceded 10, including that six from Woakes, and the pressure eased never to return.West Indies’ batting was inadequate, though. While Kraigg Brathwaite and Jason Mohammed were able to add 72 for the fourth wicket, West Indies’ power hitters failed once more as England’s seamers varied their pace cunningly on a surface offering them enough assistance to render length bowling a reasonable tactic. West Indies were bowled out with 13 deliveries of their allocation unused and mustered only 15 fours in their entire innings.While Root and Woakes attempted, for the most part, to keep the ball on the ground, five of West Indies’ batsmen fell to catches lofted up to the cordon as a result of mis-timed strokes. Liam Plunkett, varying his pace cleverly, added three wickets to the four he took in the first ODI, while Steven Finn became the tenth England bowler to claim 100 ODI wickets. He is also the third quickest in terms of games (he has played 67 ODIs) behind Darren Gough and Stuart Broad, who both achieved the milestone in 62 ODIs.

Sri Lanka’s new coach, Graham Ford, who is set to begin his second stint with the team, has cautioned against expecting quick fixes

Sa'adi Thawfeeq03-Feb-2016

Malinga T20 captain, Mathews vice-captain, Chandimal third in line

Lasith Malinga, if fit, will captain Sri Lanka at the World T20, Sri Lanka Cricket has confirmed. SLC president Thilanga Sumathipala: “Angelo Mathews will be the vice-captain and Dinesh Chandimal his deputy. “These three players have been given the responsibility to work together and build the national team. They have a colossal amount of experience and ability to build the team.”
Malinga, who will miss the upcoming T20s in India as he recuperates from a knee injury, will lead in the Asia Cup as well if he regains fitness in time. Chandimal will captain in India in his absence.

Sri Lanka’s new coach, Graham Ford, who is set to begin his second stint with the team, has cautioned against expecting quick fixes. The team, he said, is in transition, so he expects the job to be challenging.”Sri Lanka is in the early part of a rebuilding phase, so don’t expect any quick fixes,” Ford said on arrival in Sri Lanka. “I am very aware what a huge challenge it is. A lot of hard work needs to be done. It’s very important that this team building is done on a very solid foundation, so patience is required.”I know there is an abundance of talent within the system, but it is about identifying those who have got the mental toughness to go on and become consistent players and match-winners at international level.”Jerome Jayaratne, Sri Lanka Cricket’s head of coaching, who took charge of the team on a temporary basis when Marvan Atapattu resigned as coach in Sri Lanka, is expected to be appointed full-time assistant coach. Ford said it was important to draw on his experience, and for the entire Sri Lankan cricket set-up to work together.”It’s quite a long process which is required. A lot of hard work, not just for me but all involved, particularly Jerome who has been involved in Sri Lanka cricket for a long time, knows the players so well and has a wealth of knowledge technically and tactically.”It’s important to have his input, and also to have the selectors and the board all working together to ensure the long-term process can take place so that we can take Sri Lanka back to the top of the international stage.”Jayaratne also expected to play the role of team manager, a position previously held by Jeryl Woutersz.Ford’s first assignment is the three-match T20 international series in India, which he said would be a tough beginning but one he could use to find out how good the team is at present.SLC president Thilanga Sumathipala said Ford was one of 12 coaches his board interviewed for the post, and he was confident they had made the right choice. “We have secured the services of one of the best coaches in the world,” Sumathipala said. “We have appointed him for 45 months [from February 1] so that he covers the 2019 World Cup in England, where he has first-hand knowledge of the conditions having coached the counties.”Sumathipala also thanked Kumar Sangakkara for playing a pivotal role in securing the services of Ford from English county Surrey, which Sangakkara represents.

Binura Fernando and AK Tyronne scored a century each in the second innings to help Sri Lanka Under-19 salvage a draw against India Under-19 in the second youth Test in Kurunegala

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Aug-2013
ScorecardBinura Fernando and AK Tyronne scored a century each in the second innings to help Sri Lanka salvage a draw against India in the second youth Test at the Welagedara Stadium in Kurunegala.The pair added 188 for the eighth wicket to seize the initiative, leaving India to chase an improbable 319.Sri Lanka, electing to bat, struggled to get partnerships going in the first innings. Left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav finished with figures of 6-38 and spearheaded a fine bowling performance, as Sri Lanka were bowled out for 212. Only Kavindu Kulasekara scored a fifty and his 84 took the hosts past 200.India, in reply, led by a century from the captain Vijay Zol, established a firm foothold on the match with a fine batting display. Zol struck 16 fours during his 128, and put up a 160-run third-wicket partnership with Sanju Samson, who scored 70. Shreyas Iyer, batting at No. 5, then scored 84 to take India to 393 and establish a lead of 181.After Sri Lanka lost three wickets for 99, Sadeera Samarawickrama and Kusal Mendis scored half-centuries, adding 60 for the fourth wicket to arrest India’s momentum. But medium pacer Chama Milind picked up four crucial wickets to leave Sri Lanka precariously placed at 258 for 7, with Fernando and Tyronne at the crease, facing a big defeat.However, the pair counterattacked with 32 fours and four sixes between them. Tyronne departed for 123 and Fernando remained unbeaten on 100 to take Sri Lanka to 499, and all but secure the draw.India were 113 for 3 at the time of stumps, with Iyer and Samson at the crease and the series was drawn 0-0. The two teams will now play three youth ODIs.

Matthew Mott, the Glamorgan head of elite performance, is no longer in contention for the New Zealand coaching job so will remain in county cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Jul-2012Matthew Mott, the Glamorgan head of elite performance, is no longer in contention for the New Zealand coaching job so will remain in county cricket.Earlier this week it was confirmed that Mott, 38, was on a three-man shortlist to take over from John Wright after Glamorgan gave him permission to chase the role and interviews took place this week.”I’m grateful to the Club for giving me the opportunity to speak to New Zealand Cricket,” Mott said. “Like all ambitious coaches, I have aspirations to work at the highest level. That said, I am 100% committed to Glamorgan – I recognise that there is a great deal of hard work to do, but I remain focussed on improving the team’s performances and on bringing success back to the club.”Alan Harmer, Glamorgan’s chief executive, said: “Although we gave Matthew our consent to speak to New Zealand, we publically stated that we didn’t want to lose him. We are therefore pleased to confirm that Matthew will be continuing in his role as the club’s head of elite performance and we can now focus on the remainder of the current season and our plans for next year.”Mott arrived at Glamorgan for the 2011 season having spent four years as head coach of New South Wales. He also spent two years working under Buchanan at Kolkata in the IPL.New Zealand and Delhi assistant coach Trent Woodhill and Mike Hesson, the New Zealander who resigned as Kenya’s head coach in May, are understood to be the other candidates on the shortlist for the role to replace Wright, who decided against signing a new contract in April after a disagreement with New Zealand director of cricket, John Buchanan. Wright will leave his role at the end of New Zealand’s tour of the Caribbean.Paddy Upton, the former India and current South Africa mental conditioning coach, was also on the shortlist but has pulled out.

Surrey moved to fourth in the Friends Life t20 South Group and inflicted an 11th defeat on basement side Middlesex after clinching a nine-run success at Lord’s

08-Jul-2011
Scorecard
Surrey moved to fourth in the Friends Life t20 South Group and inflicted an 11th defeat on basement side Middlesex after clinching a nine-run success at Lord’s.A St John’s Wood crowd of around 16,000 were left subdued for much of an encounter that Surrey edged from the moment their captain Rory Hamilton-Brown won the toss and went on to play a cameo role in his side’s impressive total of 182 for 3.Visiting openers Jason Roy and Steven Davies gave the Lions a roaring start by posting 92 for the first wicket, including 64 in their six powerplay overs. They were assisted by some slack Panthers fielding and wayward Middlesex bowling from all bar Steven Finn, whose four overs cost 26.Steven Cook sent down three wides and conceded 35 in his only three overs, while replacement Ryan McLaren leaked 19 from his opening over, including the first six of the night by Roy over long-on.Middlesex skipper Neil Dexter temporarily stemmed the flow of boundaries with his medium-pacers from the Pavilion End, but left-arm spinner Tom Smith proved expensive at the Nursery End as Roy plundered another straight six on his way to a 35-ball half-century.But two deliveries later Roy drilled the first ball of the night from off-spinner Jamie Dalrymple into the hands of Chris Rogers at wide long-off to make it 99 for one at the innings mid-point. Left-handed Davies lofted a cover drive to the ropes to post the second half-century of the match from 25 balls and with eight fours, only to fall to Dalrymple’s next delivery. Drawn down the pitch, he edged his drive to keeper John Simpson, who whipped off the bails for good measure.Simpson stumped Hamilton-Brown off Smith, but blotted his copy book by dropping Tom Maynard when on 17 as Finn returned to complete his tidy four-over allocation and keep Surrey below 200.Chasing at a rate of 9.15 an over, Middlesex were in trouble in the opening over when Paul Stirling saw Stuart Meaker hold a swirling, high chance on the run at long-on. Three balls later Scott Newman, aiming to pull a short one from Chris Tremlett, gloved one leg-side to the keeper Davies to make it 10 for two only seven deliveries into the home reply.Rogers went for 18 after playing inside a leg-cutter from left- armer Dirk Nannes that clipped off stump, but Dexter and Dalrymple salvaged home pride in a stand of 74. Even so Panthers’ asking rate continued to escalate and, with pressure mounting Dexter sallied down the pitch to be stumped by a yard against leg-spinner Chris Schofield and go for 49 off 36 balls.Dalrymple deposited a full one from Gareth Batty into the Grandstand for six and carved four through backward point in Meaker’s next over, only to lose Simpson when he splayed a Nannes full-toss to deep cover.Dalrymple miscued to mid-wicket to go for 48 off 35 balls then McLaren and Cook followed in successive balls to give Nannes his maiden five-wicket haul in t20 cricket and help Surrey to their sixth win of the campaign.

Pakistan, fighting to stay alive in the Asia Cup, watched Harbhajan Singh heave the penultimate ball of the match from Mohammad Aamer over the midwicket boundary to trigger explosive celebrations in the Indian dressing room

The Bulletin by George Binoy19-Jun-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsGautam Gambhir’s half-century gave India the advantage before the drama began•Associated Press

The Asia Cup’s marquee clash was a cliffhanger. The contest between India and Pakistan simmered tantalisingly, with one team edging ahead at several junctures only to be pulled back by timely strikes from the other. The ebb and flow went on until the match reached flashpoint during India’s chase. Tempers flared, nerves frayed, batsmen resorted to the desperate, bowlers lost their radar and fielders fumbled as margins for error became non-existent. And Pakistan, fighting to stay alive in the Asia Cup, watched Harbhajan Singh, fuelled by adrenalin and his love for a scrap, heave the penultimate ball of the match from Mohammad Aamer over the midwicket boundary to trigger explosive celebrations in the Indian dressing room.Pakistan, after the emotion subsides, will identify a period during their batting, when they let a critical advantage slip, as a factor that contributed significantly to their exit. Their top three – Salman Butt, Imran Farhat and Shoaib Malik – had built a platform from where a total of 300 was probable, but a collapse eroded their position from 144 for 1 to 159 for 4. A regular fall of wickets thereafter, and especially the loss of Shahid Afridi and Adbul Razzaq before the batting Powerplay was underway, gave rise to the possibility of a total less than 250. It needed a counterattack from Kamran Akmal to lift Pakistan to 267, a score well short of what they were on course for. It was the ninth consecutive ODI in which Pakistan had failed to last 50 overs.This tensest of finishes – India needing three off two balls with tailenders batting – seemed improbable when Gautam Gambhir and MS Dhoni put on an exhibition of clinical accumulation during their partnership of 98, which left only 89 to get off the last 15 overs with eight wickets in hand. They ran hard, pierced gaps, and muscled pressure-relieving boundaries whenever the asking-rate crept over six an over. India were in control even after Gambhir’s dismissal – bowled trying to cut a straighter one from Saeed Ajmal – with Dhoni, who had clouted a Shoaib Akhtar free-hit over midwicket for six to reach a half-century, taking charge.India’s advantage began to shrink between overs 38 and 41. Pakistan had 76 runs to defend at the start of this period and conceded only 15 in four overs. Rohit Sharma was then trapped by a Shahid Afridi flipper, but it was Dhoni’s freak dismissal, in the 43rd over bowled by Malik, that made Pakistan the latest favourites. Malik drifted a friendly full toss down leg side, Dhoni reached away from his body and tried to paddle it fine. He was early on the shot and the ball ricocheted on to the stumps off the back of the bat. India now needed 58 off 46 with two brand new batsmen in the middle.Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja nudged and pushed until 50 were needed off the last six overs and decided it was time to take the batting Powerplay. Afridi brought back Shoaib Akhtar, who was economical in his first spell but expensive in his second, for the fielding restrictions and he bowled an exemplary over, troubling both batsmen with quick short-of-a-length deliveries. Raina and Jadeja managed only one off him.Jadeja was castled by Ajmal off the first ball off the 46th over and Raina was then joined by Harbhajan. Raina had struggled to make contact with Shoaib’s bouncers and so he targeted Ajmal, cutting the ball to the boundary before heaving it over midwicket. That 13-run over narrowed the gap between runs required and balls remaining significantly and Ajmal hobbled off the field shortly after.Pakistan had held the edge since Dhoni’s dismissal but their grasp on the contest weakened when Harbhajan lofted Shoaib over long-on with impeccable timing, reducing the equation to 30 off 22. Shoaib, however, mixed slower balls with sharp bouncers to concede only three of the next four balls. In the 48th over, Aamer’s direction failed him and he delivered two wides, but the batsmen managed only singles off the first four legal deliveries. Then Raina went deep into his crease to convert a yorker into a full ball and swung it powerfully through midwicket, finding the gap between two boundary riders.Raina took on Shoaib in the 49th, pulling a short ball – this one didn’t rise as much – for six to slash the equation to 10 off 11 balls. Shoaib, however, once again finished strongly, beating Harbhajan with consecutive bouncers off the final two deliveries. He followed up those fiery deliveries with an equally fiery verbal volley. It riled Harbhajan who responded before Billy Doctrove intervened.With India needing seven runs off the final over, Raina took a single off the first ball, giving Harbhajan the strike. Raina tried to get it back immediately by stealing a bye but his desperate dive was beaten by Kamran Akmal’s throw. Kamran was pumped: he had dropped Sharma earlier, and had a confrontational tête-à-tête with Gambhir over an appeal for a catch.Praveen Kumar, India’s No. 9, scored three off his first two balls and gave Harbhajan the strike for the penultimate delivery. Aamer ran in and pitched on a length, Harbhajan wound up, swung hard, and began to raise his hands in triumph as the ball cleared the ropes. And then he roared, and roared, and looked for Shoaib.

Scotland’s improved fielding display can’t save them from second loss in a row

Valkerie Baynes06-Oct-2024A quick rethink after their disappointing tournament opener put West Indies’ T20 World Cup campaign back on track with a comprehensive victory over Scotland.Having lost by 10 wickets to South Africa, West Indies won by six wickets with 50 balls to spare at Dubai International Stadium on Sunday night. That was after Chinelle Henry’s opening four-over burst yielded 1 for 10 and restricted Scotland to 27 for 2 after seven overs. Afy Fletcher, their 37-year-old legspinner, then took 3 for 22 to restrict them to 99 for 8 and it could have been worse for Scotland had West Indies held their catches.Qiana Joseph marshalled the run-chase with 31 off 18 balls while Henry chipped in with 18 off 10 and Deandra Dottin finished it style with 6-4-6 off Abtaha Maqsood, over long-off, reverse-swept through backward point and pummelled over deep midwicket.”The first game didn’t go to plan,” Fletcher said. “No one wants to lose but, at the end of the day, you have to have a winner. It didn’t go the way we wanted so we go back to the drawing board as all teams do, and we look at areas that we really need to work on and execute. We’ve come out with strong plans and I think the team gave a strong performance throughout the game, and the result was really good.Olivia Bell took a fine return catch to dismiss Shemaine Campbelle•Getty Images

“After the first loss, we were a bit down. But from the night itself, we picked ourselves up and we got together and motivated each other and said, ‘look, we’re here, not just to come on a joyride or anything but we’re here for business, we’re here to play hard and tough cricket’. So we just got our thoughts together to see how we could bring our best game for the other games.”It was Scotland’s second defeat in as many matches after they lost the opening match of the tournament to Bangladesh by 16 runs in Sharjah. There, they struggled with the searing heat and a rash of dropped catches.”We were all quite disappointed in our own way with the Bangladesh game,” said batter Lorna Jack-Brown. “It was a great experience for us to be at a World Cup and a lot of nerves were there in the team but I think tonight we didn’t really have that, we believed that we could come in and really cause an upset. It never went our way tonight but that’s T20 cricket.Related

• October 10 at the World Cup: West Indies eye winning momentum against bruised Bangladesh

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“We’ve got a couple more games and we always look to improve, and we’re up against world-class players here. We are here to compete, we are here to play cricket, competitive cricket, but we’re also here to learn. Not a lot of our girls have come up against world-class players and it’s an exciting prospect to be here, and even more exciting if we can take some learnings away from it and put those into our games.”Scotland were very good in the field, holding a number of difficult catches to show that their joint mission to learn and show their skills at this tournament was also on track.Priyanaz Chatterji held onto an excellent diving catch at short fine leg to end Joseph’s innings and Olivia Bell took a sharp caught-and-bowled to remove Shemaine Campbelle cheaply while Hayley Matthews, the West Indies captain, managed just 8 before she was taken by opposite number Kathryn Bryce, running in from mid-on to complete a strong, low catch.”After the last match, where we had a bit of trouble with our catching, a lot of the girls went to training last night and did some catching under the lights because it’s a different ball-game under the lights,” Jack-Brown said. “So they’ve done quite well and taken their learnings from the Bangladesh game.”It’s just about volume. You know how to catch, it’s just different in the lights. Probably in the Bangladesh game, the nerves were there and the conditions and everything, you’ve got to think about quite a lot of things. We just went back to basics, just get under the ball and hopefully your hands will take it.”

Mohit Sharma also took four wickets to knock Sunrisers out of the playoffs race

Srinidhi Ramanujam15-May-20232:47

Should Gill have paced his innings better?

Gujarat Titans stormed to a top-two finish for the second time in a row with a 34-run win against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Ahmedabad on Monday. With 18 points from 13 matches, the defending champions are the first team to seal a playoff berth, en route knocking Sunrisers out of the contention.Shubman Gill’s maiden IPL hundred and Sai Sudharsan’s 47 propelled Titans to 188 for 9 after being put into bat. That set the stage for Mohammed Shami, Yash Dayal and Mohit Sharma to trigger a Sunrisers collapse very early in the chase and that was basically that. Despite Heinrich Klaasen’s fighting fifty, too much was left too late to chase down.It was also a night when pacers called the shots, accounting for 17 of the 18 wickets to fall on the red-soil pitch at Motera Stadium. Bhuvneshwar Kumar was one among them, who shone the brightest by taking a five-wicket haul, however, it wasn’t enough for Sunrisers who now have nothing to play for but their own wounded pride.

Gill and Sudharsan turn it on

Wriddhiman Saha’s stay was short-lived as he nicked an outswinger from Bhuvneshwar to be out for a duck off the third ball of the innings. From there on, it was the Gill-Sudharsan show as the duo put on 149 runs for the second wicket. Barring them, none of the Titans’ batters even touched double-figures.Both Gill and Sudharsan’s innings were filled with fours – 13 to the centurion and six to the almost half-centurion. They hit ten fours in the powerplay with four of them coming back-to-back in the fourth over bowled by left-arm quick Fazalhaq Farooqi. A pull, a short-arm jab, a cover drive, a scoop, you name it, Gill played it.From 65 for 1 after six overs, the total touched 100 in the next four as the Titans kept accelerating. Interestingly, the first six of the innings came only in the 11th over, off Sudharsan’s bat when he scooped left-arm seamer Marco Jansen over fine leg.Having reached his first fifty, with nine fours and no sixes, in 22 balls, Gill slowed down a bit, needing 34 more to bring up his hundred.Sudharsan, who replaced Vijay Shankar to play his first match in almost a month, looked solid in terms of technique, finding gaps and putting away loose balls. He did, however, benefit from two dropped catches.Bhuvneshwar Kumar picked up three wickets in the final over•BCCI

Five-star Bhuvneshwar

It all began in the 15th over bowled by Jansen, who had missed Sunrisers’ last few games. By that time, the left-arm pacer had conceded 32 runs in his three overs and had bowled four wides and two no-balls. Yet Aiden Markram backed him and the bowler repaid that faith. He dismissed Sudharsan with his first delivery of the over when Natarajan ran from backward point and took an excellent catch.In the next over, Bhuvneshwar had Hardik Pandya caught at backward point. Natarajan came on for the 17th over and he picked up the wicket of David Miller. It was then Farooqi’s turn to dismiss the IPL debutant Dasun Shanaka.Then came the final over where Bhuvneshwar went W, W, W, 1, W, 1b to close things out. He scalped three wickets and effected a run-out to finish with an excellent figure of 5 for 30.Three four-wicket hauls in GT vs SRH•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Titans strangle SRH upfront

Sunrisers couldn’t handle the pace of Shami, Dayal and Mohit, who combined to take all nine wickets that fell in the chase. In the first over, Anmolpreet Singh top-edged a back-of-the-length ball and was caught by Rashid Khan, running across from deep third. In the second, Dayal induced an outside edge to send Abhishek Sharma back. Then came steaming hot Shami who was too good for both Rahul Tripathi and Aiden Markram. At that stage, he seemed almost unplayable – three wickets for five runs in 10 balls.Sunrisers’ 29 for 4 became 59 for 7 when Mohit picked up three wickets in his first two overs.

Klaasen, the lone warrior

Losing regular wickets at the other end didn’t stop Klaasen from looking for quick runs. In an otherwise forgettable season for Sunrisers’ batters, the South African was the only one to cross the 300-run mark this season. On Monday, though he started patiently by scoring 23 off his first 18 deliveries, he took the attack against Noor Ahmad, smashing two sixes and a boundary off his bowling to up the ante. He got to his second fifty of the season in 35 balls. The only notable partnership for the visitors was the one for the eighth wicket between Klaasen (64) and Bhuvneshwar (27) as they stitched 68 runs off 47 deliveries.