Rising Pune Supergiants’ seam bowlers, led by Ashok Dinda, used the fresh Hyderabad surface to reduce Sunrisers Hyderabad to 32 for 5, setting up a crucial 34-run D/L win

The Report by Nikhil Kalro26-Apr-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAshok Dinda set up Rising Pune Supergiants’ win with his second-best IPL figures•BCCI

Rising Pune Supergiants’ seam bowlers, led by Ashok Dinda, used the fresh Hyderabad surface as an ally to restrict Sunrisers Hyderabad to 118 for 8, before producing a dominant batting performance to seal a 34-run win via the Duckworth-Lewis method.Sunrisers were reduced to 32 for 5 after mild showers delayed play by an hour. Dinda, brought in for Ankit Sharma, struck off the fourth delivery to dismiss David Warner, Sunrisers’ highest scorer, to set the tone for the evening. He later dismissed Aditya Tare and Naman Ojha to finish with 3 for 23. In the chase, Faf du Plessis and Steven Smith overcame the early loss of Ajinkya Rahane by putting together 80 off just 55 balls to derail Sunrisers.Rain returned to bring a premature end to the game with Supergiants needing 25. It was the 18th win by a chasing side in 22 games this season.Dinda, making his debut for Supergiants, removed Warner with a wide delivery that was cut straight to backward point, eliciting a Cristiano Ronaldo-like celebration. Mitchell Marsh swung the ball both ways to leave the batsmen searching for runs. The pressure of an unproductive Powerplay resulted in loose shots from Tare and Eoin Morgan as Sunrisers slipped to 27 for 3.Sunrisers’ innings went from bad to worse when Deepak Hooda gloved a reverse sweep off R Ashwin’s first delivery to MS Dhoni. In the next over, Moises Henriques was strangled down leg to leave Sunrisers at 32 for 5.Supergiants did not concede a boundary from the sixth over till the 14th, with R Ashwin conceding 14 in four straight overs. It was only the third time he completed his full quota this season.Shikhar Dhawan and Naman Ojha milked the bowling, but the inability to find boundaries forced them into playing the big shots. Dhawan, who was dropped by Rahane at long-off in the 15th over, carried on to post his second fifty of the season, but Bhuvneshwar Kumar provided the finishing touches – his eight-ball 21 gave Sunrisers momentum going into the break.Bhuvneshwar wasn’t done yet; he gave Sunrisers some hope in the chase with a wicket-maiden in the first over, after having Rahane caught at backward point. However, Smith and du Plessis capitalised on loose bowling, hitting 11 boundaries in the next seven overs to all but finish the game. Mustafizur Rahman, Warner’s trump card, was also taken apart by Smith’s wristy flicks.Du Plessis’ fluent knock ended when he edged behind for 30. Dhoni, who got off the mark with a muscular hit over mid-on, nailed a cut straight to backward point off Ashish Nehra soon after just as the drizzle got heavier. The players scurried off immediately with Supergiants at 94 for 3, comfortably ahead of the D/L par score of 60.

A round-up of the first day’s action at ICC World Cricket League Division Five in Jersey

Peter Della Penna in Jersey21-May-2016Opener Ademola Onikoyi’s unbeaten 68 propelled Nigeria past Tanzania for a six-wicket win at St Martin. In a match reduced to 28 overs a side, Tanzania chose to bat first but struggled to reach 115 for 8. Sesan Adedeji was the main source of disruption with the ball, taking 3 for 14 in five overs.Kassim Nassoro top-scored with 30 for Tanzania and struck twice with the ball during the Nigeria chase but couldn’t remove Onekoyi. The right-hander brought up his 50 in 61 balls on the way to victory achieved with 19 balls to spare.Guernsey claimed victory by five runs on the Duckworth-Lewis method after their 26-over chase of Vanuatu’s 127 for 6 was halted by rain at 105 for 6 after 21 overs at St Clement. Opener Matthew Stokes top-scored in the Jersey chase with 34 after having taken 2 for 23 in the field. Vanuatu captain Andrew Mansale followed up his 27 by taking 4 for 19 to put Guernsey in trouble at 81 for 6 in the 16th over, but a steady 24-run stand between Ben Ferbrache and Thomas Kirk ensured Guernsey were ahead of the par score when the players came off.Vanuatu had been sent in and opener Jonathon Dunn anchored a methodical innings, making 42 off 57 before being dismissed in the 23rd over with the score on 103 for 4. David Hooper and Thomas Kirk also took two wickets apiece for Guernsey.The feature game of the day at St Saviour between hosts Jersey and World T20 qualifiers Oman ended with no result after just nine overs of the Jersey chase could be completed due to persistent rain. The two sides will restart the game from scratch on Monday’s reserve day.The match began after a five-hour rain delay and was reduced to 23 overs a side with Jersey sending in Oman and restricting them to 132 for 9. Oman initially raced out to a superb start behind Zeeshan Maqsood, who made a streaky 29 off 14 balls before one too many top-edged pulls finally found Cornelis Bodenstein at deep square leg off Charles Perchard.Oman were looking good at 71 for 2 in the 12th over before offspinner Rhys Palmer disrupted the innings with the first of three wickets on the day. To the last ball of his first over, he induced a mistimed drive from Vaibhav Wategaonkar which was taken at mid-on by Anthony Hawkins-Kay for 26. Jatinder Singh was Palmer’s second victim, driving to Jonty Jenner at mid-off for 24 in the 18th before Mehran Khan’s brief assault on Palmer ended with a skied slog taken by a diving Ben Stevens charging in from point for 14 to make it 114 for 6 after 20.Brought back at the death, Perchard struck two more times to finish with 3 for 17. He claimed Rajesh Ranpura to a diving Peter Gough at midwicket for 3 before Aamir Kaleem was stumped for 10 by Jake Dunford standing up to Perchard’s medium pace.In reply, Jersey got off to a confident start behind Gough and Jenner, who added 46 for the first wicket. Jenner made 25 off 23 balls before he was trapped prodding forward against left-arm spinner Aamir Kaleem to end the eighth over. The rain became progressively heavier over the course of the next over before the umpires took the players off. It means both Jersey and Oman now face the prospect of playing five times in five days due to the scheduled rest day on Monday being used as a reserve day to replay the original encounter as a fresh 50-over game under WCL rules.

Toby Roland-Jones, the Middlesex seamer, has been handed his first England call-up and Gary Ballance has been recalled for the first Test against Pakistan at Lord’s.

Andrew McGlashan07-Jul-20162:50

Taylor: Surprised they’ve gone with Ballance

Toby Roland-Jones, the Middlesex seamer, has been handed his first England call-up and Gary Ballance has been recalled for the first Test against Pakistan at Lord’s, which starts from July 14. Injuries have kept Ben Stokes and James Anderson on the sidelines while Jos Buttler has not earned a recall.Roland-Jones, 28, a tall seam bowler, averages 25.17 in first-class cricket and has been on England’s radar for a few seasons. Yesterday he played a key role in a notable Middlesex victory over Yorkshire at Scarborough as he clubbed a quickfire unbeaten 79 and took three wickets in the second innings to finish with six in the match. Overall, he has 30 wickets at 29.06 in the County Championship this season; in 2015 he took 48 wickets at 27.04.Anderson has not recovered sufficiently from his shoulder injury while the selectors want Stokes to play more cricket after his return to action from knee surgery – he has yet to resume bowling for Durham although Trevor Bayliss hinted he may have been included as a batsman.

England squad

Alastair Cook (capt), Alex Hales, Joe Root, Gary Ballance, James Vince, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, Jake Ball, Steven Finn, Toby Roland-Jones

“Like always, selection is very opinionated, and they could have picked him but the lack of cricket in the last few weeks has meant they’ve gone that way,” Alastair Cook, the England captain, said. “He’s just back from a long time out of the game.”It has been confirmed that Joe Root will move up to No. 3 – something Bayliss has pushed for – to fill the spot vacated by Nick Compton which means Ballance, who was dropped during last year’s Ashes series, will return in the middle order. Ballance struck his first century of the season against Middlesex this week – he is averaging 33.64 in the Championship – and has fought off competition from the heavily tipped Scott Borthwick who averages 58.50 this season with three centuries.”He hasn’t changed a huge amount in terms of technique, just keep evolving it to keep it in as good a position as you can. What he does have is that hard edge,” Cook said.On Root’s promotion, Cook added: “It’s a conversation we’ve had over the last week, it’s the right thing to do, he’s our best player, and it’s quite an Australian thing to do. There’s no reason why he won’t score same amount of runs as at No. 4.”After the one-day series against Sri Lanka, Bayliss spoke highly of Buttler’s credentials and suggested he could return to the Test side as a batsman despite not having played first-class cricket since he was dropped in the UAE last year, but in the end that lack of red-ball cricket has been a deciding factor. It also means that Bairstow will retain the wicketkeeping gloves.”Those guys and Jason Roy, Tom Westley, Scott Borthwick were all discussed as very good options,” Cook said. “The argument with Jos is he hasn’t played red-ball cricket for a long time, you do need to know your method.”Jake Ball, the Nottinghamshire seamer, who was in each squad for the Sri Lanka series retains his place despite an elbow niggle and will likely compete for a spot in the final XI with Roland-Jones.”It’s disappointing that Jimmy hasn’t made it but Jake’s in the squad, he’s started the season in fantastic form,” Stuart Broad said. “He’s had a slight elbow niggle but he’s learnt a lot about his bowling in last 18 months and he’s ready to make that step up”He’s got physical attributes, he moves the ball both ways, comes round the wicket to the left-handers and hits the ball harder. You can’t make judgements about temperament, but he’s taken wickets on TV which is a good sign.”

Jason Roy fell narrowly short of breaking Robin Smith’s 23-year-old record for the highest ODI score by an England batsman but he is confident that one of the new generation will eclipse it before long

Alan Gardner at The Oval29-Jun-2016Jason Roy fell narrowly short of breaking Robin Smith’s 23-year-old record for the highest ODI score by an England batsman but he is confident that one of the new generation will eclipse it before long.Roy’s innings of 162 followed another record-breaking performance at Edgbaston last week – in which he and Alex Hales knocked off 256 without loss – as England sealed the series against Sri Lanka with a game to spare. However, he was dismissed with 27 still needed for victory on his home ground, and six to pass Smith’s 167 not out at Edgbaston in 1993.”Yeah, 100% someone could break that,” Roy said. “We’ve seen it at Edgbaston, seen it here today – that was obviously a great pitch, tough to defend. Credit to the Sri Lankans, they did bat well, it was just a remarkable evening.”Eoin Morgan, England’s captain, backed up that view after Roy led the way in a chase of 308 in 42 overs – only the fifth time England have overhauled a 300-plus target in ODIs, and the third inside 12 months.”Not to take anything from Jason’s innings today but certainly within our batting line-up I think we’ve guys who have enough talent and ability to push past that,” he said. “Certainly the other day, if we had batted first at Edgbaston and got off to a similar start, you’d think that one of them would go past it.”Jos Buttler probably doesn’t need as many balls as anybody else to go past it. Against New Zealand last year, we got 400, Rooty got a 72-ball hundred and could have kicked on past it. The way to look at it, with the ability and power in the side, we have a lot of match-winners, which is something to be proud of.”England were handicapped on this occasion by the loss of Hales to a back problem and saw his replacement at opener, Moeen Ali, dismissed early in the innings. But Roy, who made an unbeaten 112 in the second ODI, ensured Sri Lanka would remain winless despite posting their highest total of the series in a match disrupted by rain.”Part and parcel of being a successful international player is making form count and Jason epitomised that today,” Morgan said. “He showed the experience of a player way beyond his years, a lot of guys might have got 80-90 or even a hundred and then got out. To go on and get 162 and make a substantial match-winning contribution was outstanding.”The manner in which Jason and our batting unit plays is we do take risks but we’re minimising risk by training very hard and bridging the gap between taking a risk and failing. We have enough firepower to do that and the innings by Jason reinforces the confidence within the batting unit to do that.”Superlative England performances have started to come along with increasing regularity and Roy described the atmosphere in the dressing room as “incredible” as the team continue to embrace a no-fear style of play.”To back up the performance in Edgbaston was extremely special. Not many words to describe how I’m feeling now, I’m just excited to get back in the dressing room and see the boys and celebrate a series win,” he said.”It’s my home ground, I’ve got a few people in to watch, which was hugely special. Credit to the boys, they allow me to go out there and enjoy myself and play the way I want to play. I’ve got no worries about getting out in the first over because I know the guys are backing me. It’s an incredible dressing room to be part of at the moment.”Morgan said that a decision on whether Hales would be fit to play in the final match of the series, at Cardiff on Saturday, was “too early to call” and he would be assessed on Thursday afternoon.

Liam Dawson smashed a 68-ball century and Glamorgan were then blown away with the ball to lose by 186 runs in Swansea

ECB Reporters Network31-Jul-2016
ScorecardLiam Dawson thumped his way to a century from 68 balls•Getty Images

Liam Dawson smashed a 68-ball century and Glamorgan were then blown away with the ball to lose by 186 runs in Swansea. They slipped to 29 for 6 against the seam of swing of Gareth Berg and Ryan McLaren, the pair finishing with eight wickets between them to keep Hampshire’s hopes of a Royal London quarter-final alive.Forty runs came from the final two overs of Hampshire’s innings, with Dawson reaching an unbeaten hundred by hitting the last ball of the innings, bowled by Michael Hogan, for six. Having been 70 from 61, he cleared the ropes four times in six deliveries at the death to record the second List A hundred of his career.Glamorgan made a terrible start when David Lloyd was leg before to McLaren to the first ball of the innings and, despite the slow pitch, the Hampshire seamers repeatedly beat the bat, as Jacques Rudolph and Will Bragg edged balls to the wicketkeeper.Colin Ingram, who struck hundreds in both one-day competitions against Essex last week, was the next to go when he top-edged a hook to fine leg. When Graham Wagg was leg-before to a perfect yorker from Berg, the home team, playing the first day of the festival at St Helen’s, had lost five wickets for seven runs, with Berg taking 4 for 2 from 16 balls.There were ironic cheers from the sizeable crowd in the 15th over when Mark Wallace became the first Glamorgan batsman to reach double-figures by driving Brad Wheal to the boundary. Craig Meschede top-scored with 45 and his partnership of 30 with Tim van der Gugten enabled Glamorgan to pass three figures, but it was little consolation for the home side or their supporters.In complete contrast, Hampshire scored freely after winning the toss. Tom Alsop, who has struck a hundred and three fifties in the competition this season, made a fluent 35, before chipping Meschede to mid-on while Will Smith made the most of being dropped on 23 at midwicket off Andrew Salter to an anchor the innings with 84, putting on 61 with Joe Weatherley and 86 with Dawson to take Hampshire to 223 for 4 in the 43rd over. Dawson then hit the accelerator during a partnership of 60 in 34 balls with McLaren.Dawson, captaining the side in the absence of Sean Ervine, said: “The win sets us up nicely for the final game against Somerset on Tuesday, and a chance to qualify for the quarter-finals. We were undecided what to do after winning the toss, but knowing the history of the Swansea ground, it was a good decision, as the pitch doesn’t get any better in the second innings. We thought that around 270 would have been competitive, but to reach 316 was a massive bonus.”

Miguel Cummins, the West Indies fast bowler, has signed as Worcestershire’s overseas player for the final three rounds of the Championship

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Aug-2016Miguel Cummins, the West Indies fast bowler, has signed as Worcestershire’s overseas player for the final three rounds of the Championship. Cummins, who made his Test debut against India last month, replaces South Africa’s Kyle Abbott as Worcestershire aim to maintain their pursuit of the one promotion spot available in Division Two this season.Abbott was called up for South Africa’s Test series with New Zealand and, after two defeats in their last three matches followed by conceding 551 against Northamptonshire, Worcestershire have decided to strengthen their attack by bringing in Cummins.With one day of their ongoing match at New Road to go, Worcestershire sit fourth in the Division Two table, 56 points behind leaders Essex after they secured a three-day win against Leicestershire.Steve Rhodes, Worcestershire’s director of cricket, said: “We have signed Miguel for the last three games of the season. I am delighted not only to be getting someone who has been playing recently but also someone who has recently been playing international cricket and that says a lot for his quality.”He played in the West Indies-India series and was successful in the penultimate Test of that series. He is a young guy with no experience of county cricket or English conditions but he is hungry to do well, try and impress and make an impact and he has got this opportunity in the last three games and we are looking forward to having him on board.”He is a little bit quicker than any of our bowlers, with a bit of bounce, and he is well thought of by Ottis Gibson. I spoke to him and he gave a very good recommendation for him and when you look to give someone an opportunity, you want someone with a point to prove.”There is a lot of unavailability [of overseas players] towards the end of the season and we are very lucky to get Miguel.”Cummins, who took 6 for 48 in the St Lucia Test against India, has a career record of 125 first-class wickets at 22.44. He was the most successful pace bowler in this year’s WICB Professional Cricket League, with 33 at 20.69. He is expected to arrive at the club on Monday and be available to play Essex at Chelmsford, starting on Wednesday, followed by games against Sussex and Derbyshire.”I am relishing the chance to play county cricket for the first time,” Cummins said. “I am always keen to learn and broaden my cricketing knowledge and experiences and this is an ideal opportunity for me. Several West Indian players have played for the county and I hope I can make a significant impact and help the club towards its goal of trying to achieve promotion.”

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.”

Dhananjaya De Silva’s second Test century and a serene 79 from Upul Tharanga helped Sri Lanka fight back from 112 for 4 to end the opening day of the second Test in Harare on 290 for 5

The Report by Shashank Kishore06-Nov-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsDhananjaya de Silva’s 143-run stand with Upul Tharanga helped Sri Lanka fight back from 112 for 4•Getty Images

It took Upul Tharanga multiple stints and close to 11 years after his first Test century to bring up his second. A week on, he looked set to add to that tally. He had progressed serenely to 79 during the course of a 143-run fifth-wicket stand with Dhananjaya De Silva and revived Sri Lanka after a top order wobble, before fading light brought about a slightly more circumspect approach that may have contributed to his dismissal. At the other end, Dhananjaya calmly waded through the 90s to bring up his second Test century as Sri Lanka nudged ahead on a see-saw opening day, ending it 290 for 5.Things could have been much better for Zimbabwe had they fielded and caught better. In the penultimate over of the day, Brian Chari’s underarm flick at the bowler’s end missed the stumps and reprieved Asela Gunaratne, who was on 10. Before that came a costlier miss, Peter Moor fluffing a chance down the leg side off Graeme Cremer to let Dhananjaya off on 64. That was the only uncertain moment in Dhananjaya’s innings, which showcased his ability to tailor his tactics to Sri Lanka’s situation.Happy to hit through the line against the seamers, he eliminated drives against Cremer’s legspin as the day wore on. That wasn’t to say he was completely guarded, for the bad balls were punished, at times with a touch of disdain.If Tharanga was an accumulator, Dhananjaya was the artist during the course of Sri Lanka’s highest fifth-wicket stand against Zimbabwe – they surpassed the previous best of 114 between Asanka Gurusinha and Hashan Tillakaratne at Sinhalese Sports Club (Colombo) in 1996. The pair batted through 50.3 overs on a surface that offered plenty of lateral movement.As the day progressed, there was even a hint of turn and inconsistent bounce, which further underlined the importance of the partnership. Dhananjaya, who walked in to bat with Sri Lanka 112 for 4, hit 11 fours and was batting on 100 at stumps.Zimbabwe, who were on the wrong side of several decisions in the first Test, were beneficiaries of the Decision Review System that was introduced for the first time in the country. Tharanga, initially given not out by umpire Simon Fry, had to walk back when replays suggested he had nicked the ball while driving away from his body at Cremer, before the ball bounced to slip off the wicketkeeper’s pads.Zimbabwe’s relief was palpable, and continued to attack with the seamers, taking the second new ball as soon as it became available, but Dhananjaya and Gunaratne saw out the rest of the day’s play.Choosing to bowl first, Zimbabwe were dealt an early blow when Carl Mumba, one of their three frontline seamers, left the field with knee trouble after bowling his first over. His absence, coupled with the waywardness of Christopher Mpofu, helped Dimuth Karunaratne and Kaushal Silva to rattle off 60 in the first hour.Hamilton Masakadza led Zimbabwe’s revival with his part-time seam after being summoned up to give Mpofu and Donald Tiripano a breather. It took him just 10 balls to break the 62-run opening stand, Dimuth Karunarate gliding an away-going delivery into the hands of Sean Williams at gully. In Masakadza’s next over, Kusal Perera swiped a full-length delivery to Mumba at long-on.The pressure Zimbabwe maintained thereon played a part in their next breakthrough, Mpofu trapping Kaushal Silva lbw with an in-dipper in the penultimate over before lunch. It was a dramatic dismissal. Given out by umpire Fry, Kaushal was denied a review by his own indecision – he took more than the prescribed 15 seconds before asking for it. Replays suggested Zimbabwe were lucky, with ball-tracking showing the angle taking the ball past leg stump.Two overs after lunch, Sri Lanka lost Kusal Mendis and were a precarious 112 for 4. Tharanga, who walked in at No 5, laced the first two balls he faced to the cover boundary and glanced his fourth ball for another four. Having gotten off to that turbocharged start, he progressed steadily. Early in his innings, Dhananjaya marked his arrival, splitting midwicket and mid-on with a whiplash flick off Mpofu. That was just one of several moments of class in his effort to lead Sri Lanka’s revival.

The Bangladesh team management have made Sabbir Rahman aware of the danger he faces of getting suspended after he accrued three demerit points under the ICC’s updated code of conduct

Mohammad Isam11-Oct-20161:07

Disappointed with Bangladesh’s celebrations – Buttler

The Bangladesh team management have made Sabbir Rahman aware of the danger he faces of getting suspended after he accrued three demerit points under the ICC’s updated code of conduct.He has been punished twice in the space of two weeks since the new system was introduced on September 22, and along with India allrounder Ravindra Jadeja, who is also on three points, will be on a good behaviour watch list for the next two years.This is because if they accrue one more point during this period (totalling four points), it will be converted into suspension points which will determine how many matches a player will then miss. The number of demerit points range from one to eight depending on the level of offence the player is charged with. Four points would equate to two suspension points which means they would miss one Test or a combination of ODIs and T20s.Bangladesh manager Khaled Mahmud said they have told Sabbir to be careful of his behaviour, especially with his celebration that brought him the second punishment.”We have already spoken to him about the risk that he is facing regarding the suspensions,” Mahmud said. “He is aware where he stands. After what happened in the last game, I think he has to tone down his celebrations, avoid doing what he did in that incident. He can obviously celebrate but within the appropriate limits.”Sabbir’s first incident was during the first ODI against Afghanistan on September 25 when he argued with umpire Sharfuddoula over a leg-before decision. The next offence was when he and Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza were penalised for “overstepping their celebration” against England.In another change from the old regulations, after serving a ban the player’s disciplinary slate will not be automatically rubbed clean in terms of the demerit points. The points under the 2016 regulations would hold for the next 24 months, and in case of further penalties, add up and will move onto five and above, reaching the next level of suspension – eight and above demerit points – which then make a player liable to be banned for two Tests. The demerit points would only be wiped clean after 24 months.Mahmud however said that the new system is easier for players to understand where they stand in terms of breaching the code of conduct.”I think the new system is quite helpful to the players,” Mahmud said. “They now know where they stand in terms of the demerit points. Previously he may have been suspended after the second incident but now he has another chance.”

Sachin Tendulkar has suggested that every Ranji Trophy game be played on two different pitches with two different balls to prepare the Test team for bigger challenges in overseas conditions

PTI03-Dec-2016Sachin Tendulkar has suggested that every Ranji Trophy game be played on two different pitches to prepare a better Test team for overseas assignments.He also suggested that bilateral Test series could be made more engaging by having back-to-back home-and-away rubbers so that the strength of two teams remains mostly constant but the varying conditions pose a bigger challenge.”I have thought a lot about neutral venues in Ranji Trophy [which is being tried this season],” Tendulkar said at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit in Delhi.”I have a suggestion which can be radical. When we go to places like Australia, New Zealand, West Indies and South Africa, we play with Kookaburra balls which swing early. Think about a young Ranji batsman playing with SG Test ball in India and then facing difficulty overseas.”Let us have the first innings on a greentop with Kookaburra balls, which would give openers a challenge. Even the bowlers will have something. Our spinners will also learn how to bowl with the Kookaburra on greentops.”Now let there be a pitch adjacent to the greentop which would be a rank turner. Now the second innings will be played on that track with the SG Test ball which would also help our batsmen play against quality spin bowling. We have been too focussed on playing pace in overseas conditions but we should not forget how to play spin bowling.”Tendulkar felt the use of two different pitches and two different balls would nullify the toss factor.”A captain would start thinking that winning the toss will give him only 10 percent advantage that is his right to choose first,” he said. “But if he chooses to bowl on greentop he should remember that he would need to bat on a turner in the fourth innings.”BCCI president Anurag Thakur was also among the audience.