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Jacob Oram, the New Zealand allrounder, has termed his side’s performance in the fifth ODI against Pakistan at Hamilton as “dumb cricket”, and said captain Daniel Vettori gave the team an appropriately harsh talk after the match

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Feb-2011Jacob Oram, the New Zealand allrounder, has termed his side’s performance in the fifth ODI against Pakistan in Hamilton as “dumb cricket”, and said captain Daniel Vettori gave the team an appropriately harsh talk after the match.Vettori missed the match with a hamstring injury but called a team meeting under the Seddon Park grandstand straight after the match. “Basically Dan kicked the management and support staff out, or maybe they just chose not to come and look us in the eye,” Oram said. “For an hour-and-a-half it was just the players in the dressing room and we didn’t get back to the hotel till 12.30am.”New Zealand’s loss in Hamilton was their 14th in their last 15 completed ODIs, and they have just one more match to play, against Pakistan in Auckland on Saturday, before the World Cup. Ross Taylor had said, after the fifth ODI, that the team was not far away from a win but individuals had to take more responsibility, and Oram said similar themes were discussed in the post-match meeting.”We’re just trying to get to the bottom of what is going on. We’re not far away but it’s happened too often for it to be just a coincidence. As we said, talent isn’t the issue. We all know how good the individuals in this team are. We’re not gelling and we’re not taking responsibility for winning the match for New Zealand.”Coach John Wright and his assistants Allan Donald and Trent Woodhill were absent from the meeting. Wright took over the coach’s job from Mark Greatbatch in December last year, and Donald, the former South Africa fast bowler, joined the team as bowling coach just before the start of the ODI series against Pakistan.Vettori announced after the Test series he would step down from captaincy after the World Cup, but Oram said he was still very much in charge of the current team. “Dan ran the show. He’s captain and he’s hurting more than anyone else because this team is his baby. Everyone had their say and there were a lot of home truths spoken.”There were conversations and it led to debates and arguments but we needed to get a lot of things out in the open. There was some serious honesty. But it will mean nothing if we don’t win tomorrow [Saturday] or do well at the World Cup. It will just be another chat. We’ve got to make sure this big chat means something.”Oram also expressed his disappointment with the apparent lack of composure his team showed in failing to reach Pakistan’s 268 in Hamilton – a gettable total on a flat track. New Zealand had two needless run-outs of Jesse Ryder and Scott Styris, and were eventually bowled out for just 227.Prior to the on-going six-match series, Oram had not played international cricket since August last year, when he had to return home from New Zealand’s tri-series in Sri Lanka because of the recurrence of a tendon injury in his knee. He had later said he would consider retirement if he wasn’t named in the World Cup squad. He was included for the World Cup and has played in four of the five games in the current series, impressing with his end-over bowling in the fifth match.

Tamil Nadu and Bengal marched into the finals of the Vijay Hazare Trophy to set up a replay of last year’s title clash

Cricinfo staff27-Feb-2010
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Abhinav Mukund kept piling on the runs•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Tamil Nadu’s formidable batting unit clicked again to set up a thrashing of Madhya Pradesh in the semi-finals at the Madhavrao Scindia Cricket ground. It was Abhinav Mukund who made a century this time, supported by half-centuries from opener S Anirudha and S Badrinath. The other major contribution was an all-round effort from R Sathish, blazing a 17-ball 39 and then bagging four wickets to bury MP’s chances.After choosing to bat, Tamil Nadu’s openers piled on a 177-run stand before Anirudha fell at the end of the 32nd over. With the foundation in place, Tamil Nadu stepped up the pace, with Badrinath slapping eight fours and a six to slam a 40-ball 58. Abhinav, meanwhile, progressed to his third List A century, making a steady 130. Medium-pacer Amarjeet Singh removed both off consecutive deliveries in the 44th over to reduce Tamil Nadu to 276 for 3. Even then, there was no respite for MP, with Sathish and K Vasudevadas ransacking 72 runs in the final six overs to set a massive target of 349.MP lost opener Jalaj Saxena early but kept fighting through a brisk 72-run association between Naman Ojha and Monish Mishra. However, a double-strike from medium-pacer Yo Mahesh, removing both set batsmen in the space of the three deliveries in the 14th over took the momentum out of the chase, and MP never recovered. It didn’t help that none of their batsmen reached even 50, and they were bowled out in the 44th over, 134 runs short.
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Manoj Tiwary’s patient half-century steered Bengal past Karnataka and into the finals, setting up a replay of last year’s title clash. His effort came after a solid platform laid by the openers, Shreevats Goswami and Arindam Das, who put up 118 runs, which meant even a late wobble didn’t hurt Bengal. The game had been billed as a clash between Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly, but neither of the former India captains had much of an impact on the outcome.Karnataka’s top-order batsmen flopped after they were sent in, and it was only a battling 93-run partnership between CM Gautam and S Aravind that lifted them from the depths of 130 for 8 to a middling score. The experiment to play Vinay Kumar at No. 3 worked to an extent, his 43 was the highest score among Karnataka’s top six. Dravid stuck around for 48 deliveries to compile 29 before he was caught behind off debutant offspinner Soumya Pakre. That dismissal came in the middle of a collapse that started with Vinay’s exit – Karnataka losing five wickets for 29 runs. It was then that Gautam combined with Aravind, who had made only 15 runs in his career before today’s unbeaten 38, to revive Karnataka.Bengal’s chase had its shakiest period when four wickets went down for 24 runs after the openers had put on a big stand. Tiwary and Wriddhiman Saha, though, put Bengal back on top with a 74-run association, and the target was overhauled with an over to spare.

Radha Yadav to lead India A in T20s, one-dayers and a four-day match in Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jul-2025Allrounder Shreyanka Patil has been included in the India A T20 squad for the upcoming three-match series in Australia following a long injury layoff.Left-arm spinner Radha Yadav was named captain of all three squads for the tour in August; India A also play three 50-over matches and one four-day match against Australia A. Radha took over the captaincy from Minnu Mani, who had led India A on their previous assignment, also a tour of Australia, last August. Mani is the vice-captain of the squads.Patil’s inclusion is subject to fitness clearance from the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence. She had suffered a finger injury during the Women’s Asia Cup in July 2024 but returned to play the T20 World Cup in UAE in October. She then suffered another injury that ruled her out of the 2025 WPL. Patil had been included in the BCCI’s central contracts list in March and was also one of three Indians picked in the draft for the Women’s Caribbean Premier League in September.Apart from Patil, legspinner Priya Mishra’s inclusion in the one-day and the four-day squad also depends on fitness clearance. Mishra has played nine ODIs for India, the last of which was against Ireland in January.Other notable inclusions for the A tour of Australia are batter Shafali Verma and fast bowler Titas Sadhu , who have been picked for all three formats.The tour starts with the T20s in Mackay from August 7 followed by the one-day games in Norths from August 13. The only four-day fixture will be played at Allan Border Field in Brisbane from August 21.

India A T20 squad

Radha Yadav (capt), Minnu Mani (vc), Shafali Verma, D Vrinda, S Sajana, Uma Chetry (wk), Raghvi Bist, Shreyanka Patil, Prema Rawat, Nandini Kashyap (wk), Tanuja Kanwer, Joshita VJ, Shabnam Shakeel, Saima Thakor and Titas Sadhu

India A one-day and multi-day squad

Radha Yadav (capt), Minnu Mani (vc), Shafali Verma, Tejal Hasabnis, Raghvi Bist, Tanushree Sarkar, Uma Chetry (wk), Priya Mishra, Tanuja Kanwer, Nandini Kashyap (wk), Dhara Gujjar, Joshita VJ, Shabnam Shakeel, Saima Thakor and Titas Sadhu

Ricky Bhui will take over, having done the job in the past

S Sudarshanan12-Jan-2024Hanuma Vihari has stepped down as the Andhra captain for the rest of the Ranji Trophy season. Ricky Bhui will lead the team now after Vihari led them to a draw against Bengal at home in the opening round of the season. Vihari continues to be part of the XI as Andhra take on Mumbai in their Group B clash at the Sharad Pawar Academy in BKC, Mumbai.Bhui had scored 175, his 15th first-class hundred, in the clash against Bengal while Vihari managed 51 in the only innings for Andhra.Vihari last played for India against England in Birmingham in 2022. Last season, he captained Andhra to the knockouts, where they lost to Madhya Pradesh in the quarter-final. In that match, Vihari batted left-handed for a major part of the first innings and throughout the second innings after fracturing his left forearm, courtesy an Avesh Khan bouncer. He scored 490 runs in the last season in 14 innings, at an average of 35 with two half-centuries.Related

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Later he also played the Duleep Trophy for South Zone and the Irani Cup for Rest of India against Ranji champions Saurashtra. In the Duleep Trophy he scored 0 and 43 in the semi-final before top-scoring with 63 and 42 in both innings of the final which they lost to West Zone. In the Irani Cup, he managed just 33 and 22. He was the captain in all those first-class matches.Before the start of this season, Vihari was mulling a move to MP to play under renowned domestic coach Chandrakant Pandit in order to rekindle his Test career. But Andhra managed to retain him at the last minute and he scored 229 runs at a strike rate of 149.67 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and only 109 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. He also did not find takers at the auction for IPL 2024 last month.Bhui, 27, has led Andhra in the past – 22 times across formats and on five occasions in the Ranji Trophy. His last game as captain was against Uttarakhand in March 2022.

Shakib Al Hasan wary of Netherlands threat, and wants his team to remain flexible in their roles

Mohammad Isam23-Oct-2022Netherlands batter Tom Cooper feels his side has the advantage of being a more in-the-groove outfit heading into their opening Super 12s fixture against Bangladesh, having already played three tough games in the first round of the Men’s T20 World Cup.”There are some strong sides in the Super 12s stage, but we like our chances [against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe],” Cooper said. “We’ve come off a few competitive games, and Bangladesh are just starting out. They have had a [warm-up] game washed out, and just one practice game. We will hit the ground running.Related

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“You guys suggested it will be an upset [if Netherlands win], but we don’t see it that way. We are here to compete. We have got close against these guys in the past. I don’t see no reason that we can’t knock them off tomorrow.”The path to the Super 12s had been anything but smooth for the Dutch side. They made it on the back of tough wins over UAE and Namibia. Netherlands then went down to Sri Lanka in the last qualifying game and had to wait anxiously to see UAE beat Namibia before their progression was confirmed.Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan said that his side would in no way treat Netherlands any differently to any other team.”We will prepare for every game in the same way. Whether we are playing against Netherlands, South Africa, Zimbabwe, India or Pakistan, we will think and prepare properly against each of these teams. Netherlands were expected to play at this stage,” Shakib said. “I think it is you [the media] who have created the perception that Bangladesh are relieved that we are playing against Netherlands.”I don’t think any team in the world thinks this way. Similarly, we don’t feel that way. We are always trying to win. We are preparing the same way, even if Sri Lanka or West Indies were our opponents.”Shakib Al Hasan urged his team-mates to be flexible with their roles•Getty Images

Shakib urged his team-mates to be flexible about playing in different positions with both bat and ball, based on what the situation demands. “We have 15 fit and ready players. Everyone has the potential to play in any situation. I want everyone to play freely. They will be prepared to bowl [any] particular over, field in [any] particular position, and generally play according to the team’s needs. Teams that can fit situations do well in T20s. I am hopeful our team has this knowledge.”Shakib also played down questions of pressure on him as he returns as captain in a World Cup for the first time since 2011. Shakib lost his captaincy shortly after that tournament, and this has been his first opportunity since to lead his side full-time in a World Cup (he led Bangladesh in one game during the 2015 campaign).”I don’t believe there’s a challenge for me, or I have to prove something. We have come here to play a World Cup in which Bangladesh hasn’t done well in the past. We have the ability to do something this time that we have not done before,” Shakib said.Cooper meanwhile said that his side’s busy summer – they faced West Indies, England, New Zealand and Pakistan – is another source of confidence. While the results were not always in their favour, Cooper believes the experience will do Netherlands a world of good.”We come here with a lot of confidence. We played a lot of cricket against the big teams this summer. We had the chance to knock them off, so we are taking that experience into this tournament. We are here to compete, not just to make up numbers. It starts with Bangladesh,” he said.Cooper however has the result against Bangladesh at the T20 World Cup six years ago at the back of his mind.”They are a dangerous team. Anyone can beat anyone in T20s. We won’t be looking too much into their record in the past [but] on their day, they can beat anyone. We have had some really close contests with them in the past, so it will be nice to compete and get a win against them tomorrow.”

There are chances that Sri Lanka may have to field a second-string side against India because of the virus

Andrew Fidel Fernando09-Jul-2021Sri Lanka men’s team analyst GT Niroshan has tested positive for Covid-19, one day after batting coach Grant Flower had also tested positive, forcing Sri Lanka Cricket to consider the option of fielding a second-string side against India.Both Flower and Niroshan have been moved to intermediate care facilities.What is especially worrying for the team’s doctors is that both men have contracted the Delta variant of the virus, which is particularly contagious as well as dangerous. The Sri Lanka squad was expected to come out of isolation and enter the team’s bio-bubble on Friday, but will now be forced to spend at least two more days in isolation, and face another RT-PCR test, the results of which will determine whether the main squad can viably play the series against India.SLC does have a contingency plan in place, however. They have two other groups of players in bio-bubbles – one in Colombo, and one in Dambulla – who could potentially step up to play the series against the second-string India squad that has been preparing for the limited-overs series, whose ODI leg is scheduled to start on Tuesday.A member of Sri Lanka’s medical staff said it was “too early to say” if the main squad is out of commission for the series. Sri Lanka’s medical staff believes the two support staff members who have tested positive so far were infected while they were in England.The India squad in Sri Lanka have so far had a relatively uneventful lead up to the series, but the disarray in Sri Lanka’s camp has been worrying for the hosts. Already, Sri Lanka were expected to play the India series under a new captain – Dasun Shanaka – who was appointed in controversial circumstances. This latest news, and the possibility that the top-flight team may not take the field at all, raises questions not just about whether Sri Lanka can be competitive in the series, but also about the broadcast value of such a series.India are due to play three ODIs and three T20s, all in Colombo’s Khettarama stadium, with no crowd in attendance.

The Islamabad United captain hit 77 off 42 balls in what was shaping up to be an exciting game before its damp finish

The Report by Peter Della Penna07-Mar-2020How the game played outShadab Khan’s sizzling 77 off 42 balls vaulted him into second place on the PSL top scorers list for 2020, but the Islamabad United captain’s knock was in vain as rain arrived with Peshawar Zalmi seven runs ahead of the DLS par score at the nine-over mark of their chase, taking the fizz out of what was shaping up to be an exciting game in Rawalpindi.Khan partnered with the two Colin’s, Munro and Ingram, for a pair of half-century partnerships to set a target of 196 in what was an incredibly sloppy fielding performance by Zalmi. But in spite of five dropped chances, including two each off Khan and one apiece off Ingram and Munro, Zalmi’s bowlers managed to haul back the United innings with some brilliant death bowling.A typically pugnacious start to the chase by Kamran Akmal (37 off 21) kept Zalmi well ahead of the DLS par score, even after both he and Imam-ul-Haq fell. Khan protested with the umpires when drizzle increased to the point that the covers were brought on with United 85 for 2, feeling that they could have played on though it was clear he making a hard sell knowing his side were behind on DLS.The match had already been delayed 15 minutes at the start due to early afternoon rain and a wet outfield. After a further 55-minute delay, Zalmi were set a revised target which left them needing 21 off two more overs. But just as the players were about to take the field once again, the rain returned to cement Zalmi as winners on the day.Turning pointThe wicket of Ingram to end a 76-run stand with Khan. United had been cruising at more than 10 an over throughout their innings, but Ingram couldn’t clear long-on trying to smash a Hasan Ali full toss. Liam Livingstone took the catch, which triggered a bizarre stalling of the innings.Khan fell six balls later smashing a length ball from Wahab Riaz to Livingstone again; it was his third catch of the day. Rahat Ali then followed up by conceding just six runs in the final over, wrapping up a sequence in which United scored just 11 runs off the final 13 balls despite having seven wickets in hand. So, instead of sailing past 200, United finished with a comparatively gettable 195 for 5.Star of the dayThough it came in a losing effort, Khan’s half-century – his third of the season to put him level with Munro – continued to build a very strong case for his ending up as Player of the Tournament. He is now joint-second on the PSL scoring chart alongside Akmal with 237 runs at 47.40 and a strike rate of 170.50.Khan is just 11 runs behind United team-mate Luke Ronchi for the overall scoring lead and after striking four more sixes in this contest, he now has a tournament best 15 maximums.The big missThough there were five drops in the United innings, the lone drop in the Zalmi chase was perhaps the clumsiest of all. Tom Banton was on 16 in the seventh over when he top-edged a sweep off Zafar Gohar’s left-arm spin to Akif Javed at short fine leg. Though it was not by any means a steepler, the ball slipped through Javed’s hands as he snatched at it.Where the teams standZalmi joined Multan Sultans at the top of the PSL table on nine points, though Sultans hold a massive advantage on net run rate and also have two matches in hand. United are third on the points table with seven points and a superior net run rate to Karachi Kings, though the Kings have two matches in hand.

The allrounder made 21 and 11 after returning to the Sheffield Shield and appears unlikely to play the second Test against India

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Dec-2018Mitchell Marsh missed an opportunity to make a forceful statement to Australia’s selectors after being left out of the first Test against India and doesn’t know the impact his omission will have on his role as joint vice-captain.Marsh was named as vice-captain of the Test side alongside Josh Hazlewood earlier this year, but neither have played in the same team yet after Hazlewood missed the Tests in the UAE and now Marsh’s axing for Adelaide. It is an unusual situation for a team to have a designated vice-captain on the sidelines other than through injury.”I don’t know where I stand in that sense,” he said. “Lucky we’ve got two vice-captains.”Marsh was dropped when Australia favoured Peter Handscomb as a specialist batsman in the middle order and the allrounder was sent back to the Sheffield Shield with instructions to score runs.ALSO READ: A genuine fight, but more pain for Australia
He returned 21 and 11 for Western Australia against Victoria at the MCG – and claimed 1 for 102 – in a performance that did not hammer the door down for an immediate recall.”I was obviously very disappointed to miss out in the first Test but I understood the reasons why,” Marsh told reporters in Melbourne. “Ultimately, you’ve got two ways to go about it – you can either sulk and go into your shell or you can put a smile on your face and enjoy the hard work, enjoy the challenge of getting back into that Test side.”Despite struggles in the UAE against Pakistan, where he made 30 runs in four innings which continued a lean Test run dating back to South Africa, Marsh returned to domestic action with 151 against Queensland last month but then followed that with scores of 1, 44, 6 and 30 in the next two matches before the Test squad assembled.”I still felt like I was in really good form and feeling very confident heading into last week. But ultimately I still had two chances before the Test match to put a big score on the board and I didn’t do that. The message was clear – I needed more runs.”It appears unlikely Marsh will get his chance in his home state of Perth despite continued discussion about the workload Australia’s three quicks face without the presence of an allrounder.Mitchell Starc, who sent down 40.5 overs, was disappointing in Adelaide but has been backed by captain Paine while Hazlewood clocked up 43 overs and Pat Cummins 37.”I was certainly pumped about [playing in Perth] and I still am,” Marsh said. “I’m in the squad so I’d say I’m a chance … ultimately it’ll come down to conditions and how the bowlers pull up.”

Opener Sophie Devine struck 41 off 29 balls and followed it with the wicket of Ayesha Zafar to underpin New Zealand’s 15-run victory in the first T20I in Sharjah

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Nov-2017
ScorecardGetty Images

Opener Sophie Devine struck 41 off 29 balls and followed it with the wicket of Ayesha Zafar to underpin New Zealand women’s 15-run victory in the first T20I in Sharjah. After Devine and wicketkeeper-batsman Katey Martin (46) took New Zealand women to 147, the slower bowlers strangled Pakistan’s chase.Pakistan had had a strong start to their chase with Zafar and Nahida Khan adding 44 for the opening partnership. Both batsmen fell in successive overs but captain Bismah Maroof and Javeria Khan repaired the chase by putting on 47 for the third wicket in 45 balls. When seamer Lea Tahuhu had Maroof caught behind, Pakistan needed 54 from their last five overs.Thamsyn Newton, who claimed 2 for 22, and the spinners then tightened the noose around the batsmen to limit Pakistan to 132 for 7.Earlier, New Zealand lost their captain Suzie Bates for a duck in the first over, but Devine and Katie Perkins steadied the side with a 68-run stand for the second wicket. They stumbled when both batsmen fell in quick succession, but Martin hit four fours and a six to haul the score near 150. This, despite New Zealand losing five wickets in their last five overs. Left-arm spinner Sadia Yousuf was the pick of the bowlers for Pakistan, ending with 3 for 30.

Following the Supreme Court’s warning to the BCCI to follow the directive to implement the Lodha reforms, the board’s defiance seems to have given way to anxiety ahead of the SGM on Friday

Nagraj Gollapudi and Arun Venugopal 29-Sep-20162:25

Lodha proposes, BCCI disposes

Following the Supreme Court’s warning to the BCCI to “fall in line” and follow the directive to implement the Lodha Committee’s recommendations, the board’s defiance seems to have given way to a mixture of anxiety and uncertainty a day before its crucial special general meeting on Friday in Mumbai.The agenda for the SGM, the BCCI had pointed out last week, would be to “consider directions of Justice (Retd) Lodha Committee in connection with the formal adoption of the new Memorandum of Association and Rules for the BCCI.”The court asked the BCCI to respond within a week to the status report submitted by the Lodha Committee on Wednesday. If the BCCI fails to adopt the new Memorandum of Association and Rules at Friday’s meeting, the board risks facing further flak from the court. The BCCI could wait for the court to issue a directive based on the board’s response to the status order, but either way there were not many options left for the BCCI, keeping in mind the two sets of timelines drawn by the Lodha Committee, the first of which will expire on Friday, September 30.A number of board members ESPNcricinfo spoke to admitted to being clueless about the BCCI’s next course of action, and said it would be chalked out by president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke at the SGM. An experienced administrator termed it a “crisis”, but said it was not the end of the road for the BCCI. He felt if the court did not budge, it was time for a new wave of administrators to take charge.A BCCI office-bearer said the board was looking to drag things for as long as it could. “You should understand one thing: whatever needs to be done, we’ll do it,” he said. “The affidavit [filed by the BCCI] is just to prolong things as far as possible.”Some members were, however, wary of the aggressive stance taken by the Lodha Committee and the Supreme Court. The president of a south zone association said the BCCI’s response had to be measured, and people needed to be “careful” about what they said.Another office-bearer of the board, meanwhile, faulted the confrontational approach adopted by the BCCI so far, and said the members of the board were not apprised of relevant developments. “Nobody is kept in the loop. Only president and secretary know what’s happening,” he said. “The BCCI has always been [president and secretary-centric]; that’s the problem we have. All the members could have actually interacted individually with the Lodha Committee, but that was denied. From the beginning itself it has been derailed and we have never got an opportunity to put it on track. From there on, things are messed up.”Ever since the court approved the Lodha recommendations on July 18, the BCCI has resolutely opposed them. The main recommendations the BCCI does not agree with are the cooling-off period after a three-year term, imposing an age cap of 70 for administrators, and having an official of the Comptroller and Auditor General on the proposed Apex Council. The proposed Apex Council is itself contentious as it would replace the existing, and powerful, working committee and the one-state-one-vote proposal, which would bring Mumbai, Maharashtra, Vidarbha. Gujarat, Saurashtra and Baroda under one cluster and limit their voting power to just one vote by rotation.Most state associations, too, have continued to wait for the BCCI’s direction on amending their constitutions. So far, only the Vidarbha Cricket Association has decided to put to vote whether the Lodha recommendations can be adopted by the September 30 deadline set by the committee in its first set of timelines.From being unresponsive at the beginning to openly critical of the Lodha Committee, the BCCI has pursued a combative strategy. Last week, it asked three former India captains, Ravi Shastri, Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev – all hired by the board as television commentators – to back its stance and ask the Lodha Committee to modify some of the recommendations through a dialogue.However, RM Lodha, the chairman of the Lodha Committee, made it clear that there can’t be any dialogue.”Our recommendations have merged with the July 18 judgment after the Supreme Court accepted them and ordered their implementation,” Lodha told the . “The recommendations are part of the judgment. Any attempt to impede implementation of the reform recommendations would be construed as non-implementation of the judgment itself.”