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The injured fast bowler has said India’s attempts to sledge Australia were a ‘defensive mechanism’ in response to the fear that they might lose the series

Daniel Brettig22-Mar-20170:25

Steven Smith upbeat after Ranchi draw

Australia’s injured spearhead Mitchell Starc has said India’s verbal confrontations with the tourists were the result of fear over losing the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after their unexpected defeat in the opening Test of the series in Pune.Starc, who flew home with a foot stress fracture after the second Test in Bengaluru but hopes to be fit in time for the ICC Champions Trophy later in June, stated that a young Australian side had not gone to India looking for fights but found themselves in several stoushes after the dramatic result in Pune.”It’s probably come a lot more from their side than ours,” Starc told . “There’s been a lot made of it before the series, there was so much hype before the series, and I think we’ve gone about the cricket as we have done for a long time now. As a young group, we’re probably still finding our way. We’re still learning about each other’s games and how we’re going as a team probably since the Hobart Test match [last year].”It’s probably showed in how the guys have been playing their cricket, especially the way they batted [in Ranchi]. A couple of young guys performed outstandingly well, [like] Peter Handscomb. It shows who we are as a group and things have come hard, and it’s almost a defensive mechanism for them that we won the first Test match, we’re here for the challenge.”They were scared of us, beating them in India the way they’ve been playing as well. So it was almost a defensive mechanism for them and obviously they come out in the second Test match, performed really well and got back into it.”‘I think we can win. I think we’ve showed throughout the series that we’re definitely up for the challenge’ – Mitchell Starc•Associated Press

Australia’s attitude on the tour has been one of learning and humility, as demonstrated by the way Handscomb and Shaun Marsh played out the final afternoon of the Ranchi Test to secure a draw under concerted Indian pressure. Starc pointed to the eagerness of 20-year old Matt Renshaw to learn about the game – so much that he has tried the patience of some team-mates – as an example.”The more time he spends out in the middle the less time we have to listen to him,” Starc said, laughing. “He’s different but he’s a lovely kid. Loves his cricket, just loves batting – so I think that’s obviously shown in how he’s gone about his cricket in India.”His first trip there, he’s learning – he’s probably not eating the right things, being sick all the time – but he’s performing quite well. He says some strange things, he comes up with some strange theories. He talks a load about [Don] Bradman and whether he scored those runs. He keeps talking about bats these days. He talks like he’s 35.”Starc said his foot fracture was not as serious as the one that kept him out of much of the 2015-16 season. “The foot is okay. It’s not snapped in half like the one 18 months go,” he said. “It’s the same foot, so I did the third metatarsal the last time, this is the fourth. Nice fracture. It’s not displaced though.”I don’t need a boot fortunately. I’m still in the gym getting myself ready for when I do come back whenever that might be. I see the specialist on Thursday and hopefully get a clearer picture then. But the Champions Trophy is clearly not out of the picture.”Looking ahead to the final Test in Dharamsala, Starc said the Australians had demonstrated their ability to defend and attack at the right times. “I think we can win. I think we’ve showed throughout the series that we’re definitely up for the challenge,” he said. “We’re in the fight – we have been for three Test matches. We can knuckle down when we need to but we can attack when we want to and we can.”

West Indies Women narrowed the gap down to four points between themselves and first-place Australia in the ICC Women’s Championship points table after a 57-run win over South Africa Women

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Feb-2016
ScorecardFile photo: West Indies captain Stafanie Taylor top-scored for her side with 79 off 83 balls•WICB Media/Randy Brooks

West Indies Women narrowed the gap down to four points between themselves and first-place Australia in the ICC Women’s Championship points table after a 57-run win over South Africa Women in East London. The result follows a 15-run win by West Indies at the same venue on February 24 and they’ll seek a series sweep in the final ODI on Monday.West Indies were 25 for 2 at the eight-over mark after electing to bat when captain Stafanie Taylor (79) and Deandra Dottin (61) teamed up for a 135-run stand, four short of equaling the West Indies Women’s record mark for a third-wicket partnership set by Juliana Nero and Pamela Lavine against Ireland at the 2005 Women’s World Cup. It’s also the sixth-highest partnership overall in West Indies Women’s ODIs and the fifth century stand between Taylor and Dottin in ODIs.The stand ended on the first ball of the 32nd over when Taylor was runout and Dottin perished not long after to end the 34th over. Dottin was the first wicket on the day for 20-year-old legspinner Suné Luus, who finished with 3 for 34 as West Indies were eventually bowled out in the last over for 232.South Africa made a bright start to the chase, reaching 85 for 1 in the 22nd over before Shaquana Quintyne sparked a slide by taking the wickets of captain Mignon du Preez and Marizanne Kapp two overs apart. South Africa’s hopes rested on opener Trisha Chetty to carry her team through but she was the fifth wicket to fall for 51, bowled by Anisa Mohammed. South Africa then lost their last five wickets for 40 runs with Hayley Matthews spinning out the tail to end South Africa’s reply for 175 in 45.3 overs.

The IPL’s governing council will meet before the BCCI’s working committee in Delhi on Friday and is likely to discuss the findings of the IPL inquiry panel

Amol Karhadkar01-Aug-2013

Cricket Association of Bihar files a caveat

The Cricket Association of Bihar, on whose petition the Bombay High Court passed its order, has filed a caveat in the Supreme Court that will enable it to be part of any petition filed in appeal by the BCCI. There are indications that the BCCI will lodge an appeal against the High Court order in the Supreme Court via a Special Leave Petition (SLP). Court rules stipulate that SLPs are listed for hearing only on Mondays and Fridays.

The IPL’s governing council will meet before the BCCI’s working committee in Delhi on Friday and is likely to discuss the findings of the IPL inquiry panel, the setting of which up was declared “illegal” by the Bombay High Court on Tuesday. The council’s stand on the report – to accept it or to abide by the court order and investigate afresh – will decide how the working committee plays the issue.It is currently unclear what decision the council meeting – likely to be chaired by Arun Jaitley, the DDCA president – will take but there is some build-up of opinion in favour of the report being shelved and the court’s directions being honoured.On the eve of the meetings Niranjan Shah, a BCCI vice-president, said he believed it would be best to appoint a fresh committee to investigate the alleged corruption in the IPL. “It is my personal opinion that following the Bombay High Court order, it is in the best interest of the board to appoint a fresh probe panel,” Shah told ESPNcricinfo.The two-member committee, which had submitted its report on Sunday, had essentially cleared the owners of Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings of wrongdoing in the IPL. However, following a petition filed by the Cricket Association of Bihar, the Bombay High Court had questioned the legality of the process by which the panel was set up and said the matter should be investigated afresh.The governing council will discuss the inquiry report and, if it endorses the panel’s recommendation of acquitting Raj Kundra, co-owner of Rajasthan Royals, Jaipur IPL Cricket Pvt Ltd, Royals’ holding company, India Cements, owner of Chennai Super Kings, and Gurunath Meiyappan, Srinivasan’s son-in-law and Super Kings official of wrongdoing for want of evidence, then the report will be tabled in the working committee meeting later in the day and Srinivasan’s quest for returning to power would get a boost.If the governing council rejects the report, then the working committee may be compelled to set up a fresh inquiry, and the voices of dissent within the BCCI against Srinivasan may be heard. However, despite Shah’s stated reservations, it is uncertain to what degree the members will stress their growing feelings of uneasiness over BCCI’s method of functioning at the meeting.The inquiry committee was set up by the BCCI following multiple arrests for alleged spot-fixing and betting in the IPL. Given the implication of his son-in-law and India Cements, the company of which he is vice-president and managing director, Srinivasan had stepped aside as board president for the duration of the probe and passed on the duties to Jagmohan Dalmiya. As per the probe report submitted at the working committee meeting in Kolkata on Sunday, the panel, comprising two retired high court judges T Jayaram Chouta and R Balasubramanian, didn’t find any evidence to prove corruption charges.

Yorkshire reached their first T20 Finals Day with a 29-run win over Worcestershire, inspired by Joe Root’s maiden Twenty20 half-century

Alan Gardner25-Jul-2012
ScorecardJoe Root hit 65 and then pulled off an excellent piece of fielding as Yorkshire reached their first Finals Day•Getty Images

Yorkshire reached their first T20 Finals Day with a 29-run win over Worcestershire, inspired by Joe Root’s maiden Twenty20 half-century, not to mention an impudent piece of fielding on the deep midwicket boundary that brought a boisterous Headingley crowd to their feet. Root also opened the bowling – admittedly to slightly less spectacular effect – in a display that will have again given the England selectors a tug on the sleeve.Phil Hughes’ unorthodox power and placement helped keep Worcestershire in the game but his unbeaten 80 was not enough, as fellow Australia international Mitchell Starc returned to keep a lid on the final overs, finishing with 3 for 24 from his allocation. In the face-off between the tournament’s leading run-scorer and its leading wicket-taker, Starc was the victor on points.After Hampshire’s dramatic victory over Nottinghamshire later on Wednesday, Yorkshire were drawn against big-hitting Sussex for what promises to be an explosive semi-final encounter between the North and South Group winners on August 25.Worcestershire, who were also aiming to reach Finals Day for the first time, kept pace with the Yorkshire par score but were lacking the blast of nitrous oxide provided by the batting of David Miller and Gary Ballance, who hammered 82 from the last five overs earlier in the day. A similar power-up was not forthcoming from the visitors’ middle order, despite forceful twenties from James Cameron and Gareth Andrew.The former was sent on his way by Root – though his name won’t appear on the scorecards. Having hoisted Rich Pyrah high into the outfield, Cameron may have been expecting to record his second six; but Root, running round from long-on, demonstrated quick-thinking to go with his quick feet, catching the ball, steadying himself in front of the rope and then tossing it back to Miller as his momentum took him out of bounds.The third umpire was consulted, as a matter of course, but both Root and his team-mates knew he had pulled off a piece of fielding that is no less exhilarating now that T20 has made it a more common sight. “The cameras are here aren’t they, so you’ve got to make it look good,” Root said, over his on-pitch mic.Root’s contribution with the bat was even more important, if a little less showy. He is an accomplished strokeplayer in the classical mould, though he repeatedly turned to the reverse sweep in a largely unsuccessful attempt to show he could play the peacock too. Perhaps hitting three of his four first-class sixes in a superb innings of 222 not out at West End earlier this month has convinced him to broaden his batting horizons.His runs were scored all around the wicket, though his first boundary came via an edge between keeper and slip. He could – possibly should – have been dismissed on 40, when a reverse dab against Brett D’Oliveira looped off the top edge to Andrew’s left at short third man but the fielder went at it one-handed and only succeeded in fisting the ball to the boundary. Two overs later, Root drove Aneesh Kapil behind square to reach his fifty, from 36 balls, and he was in full flow against Worcestershire’s England Under-19 allrounder, cutting, driving and pulling three more boundaries off successive deliveries before spooning a slog straight up to be caught and bowled.Root, appropriately, had anchored Yorkshire, as Worcestershire chipped away early on. Yorkshire have twice broken the club record for opening stands in T20 this season but Andrew Gale and Phil Jaques combined to less sparkling effect in the first over of the innings, with the Australian run-out off a wide. Jack Shantry’s delivery swung down the leg side, before deflecting away off the wicketkeeper Ben Scott’s pads, and Jaques was three-quarters of the way down before it became apparent that Gale was not for haring.The Yorkshire captain had missed a month of cricket with a hip injury, so was perhaps just feeling a bit ginger early on. After scoring three singles off his first eight balls, he crashed five fours off his next ten, taking 16 off a Shantry over before chipping Daryl Mitchell’s extremely slow medium-pace back to the bowler. Worcestershire’s captain also accounted for Jonny Bairstow, whose mighty bash wasn’t quite mighty enough to clear long-on and at the halfway stage Yorkshire were 83 for 3, behind the rate on a good pitch.Kapil’s costly over, though it saw off Root, was the trigger for a run rush that saw Yorkshire pile on 104 from the last seven. Miller hit the first six of the innings from the last ball of the 16th over, slog-sweeping Moeen Ali into the stands, and Ballance cracked the next ball, from Shantry, over cover for six more. Miller then smacked sixes over long-on and long-off, before pulling a flat missile through midwicket for four more, progressing to a 23-ball fifty in the following over before miscuing a heave at David Lucas.Shantry finished with 0 for 46 from three overs but Lucas, bowling the final over, was not to be spared either. A single off the first ball brought Ballance on strike, red-faced but cool at the crease, and he cleared the ropes four more times – a bottom-handed club over wide long-on; a flat swipe through midwicket; a stand-and-deliver punch down the ground; and a wristy flick over deep backward square leg – to lift Yorkshire to their highest total in this year’s FLt20 and just one run shy of their best in T20.Root, a slight 21-year-old, is not yet the man for such power-hitting but his all-round abilities meant he was given the new ball as Yorkshire started with an over off offspin. Root went for 10, though both of Moeen’s boundaries – an inside edge past the stumps and a paddle past the diving Moin Ashraf at short fine leg – could have resulted in wickets. Starc then struck in the second over, Vikram Solanki pinned lbw despite the ball looking a touch high, to bring Hughes to the middle.His first boundary was a six down the ground but a succession of partners could not match his efforts. As Root showed, it isn’t over until it’s over the rope – and neither could Worcestershire get over the line.

04-Jul-2011
Scorecard
Surrey held their nerve in a high-scoring contest before a 5,500 sell-out crowd at Whitgift School to beat Sussex by 18 runs in the Friends Life t20 South Group.Steve Davies top-scored with a brilliant 99 not out from just 56 balls in Surrey’s 203 for two, adding 105 with captain Rory Hamilton-Brown, who hit a 36-ball 51. Davies hit two sixes and 15 fours in his man-of-the-match performance.The Sussex reply was launched thrillingly by Luke Wright, who smashed five sixes and eight fours in a cavalier 72 from a mere 31 balls. However, when he was caught at long-on off the bowling of Chris Schofield in the 10th over the Sussex chase lost its spark.Ben Brown made a valiant 68 from 52 balls, with four sixes of his own, after adding a Sussex record 109 for the first wicket with Wright. However, Matt Prior was out for just 4, top-edging a sweep to deep square leg, and Lou Vincent laboured 19 balls for his 14 as Sussex fell short despite reaching the 15th over all but level with where Surrey were at that stage.Chris Nash hit both the fifth and sixth balls of the 19th over for six, but even that late burst off Chris Tremlett still left Sussex needing 23 from the last over and it proved too much. Spinners Schofield and Zafar Ansari were both impressive for Surrey, who also fielded tigerishly in defence of their total on a compact ground which made almost any target achievable.Surrey’s innings began in spectacular fashion with Jason Roy clubbing the first ball, bowled by off-spinner Ollie Rayner, over long-on for six. Roy also hit the fifth ball for six, with an even bigger hit, but on 18 he was foxed by a slower delivery from Chris Liddle and lobbed up a catch to Rayner at mid-on.Davies was also away quickly, leg-glancing the first ball he faced, from Wayne Parnell, to the long leg boundary, and a beautiful extra cover four off Liddle showed Davies was in excellent form despite a relatively quiet record so far in the competition.After five overs Surrey were 44 for one and Hamilton-Brown, after taking a while to get going, swung a slower ball from Luke Wright over wide midwicket and onto the tiled roof of the striking brick pavilion. Davies’ half-century arrived from 29 balls and a six off Liddle was later followed by another maximum, this time over extra cover off Umar Gul.Hamilton-Brown had helped Davies to put on 105 in 11 overs for the second wicket when he drove over a ball from Nash and was bowled after advancing down the pitch. Davies, on 94 when the last over started with Maynard on strike, heaved Parnell’s third ball wide of long-on for four but, having taken a single off the next ball, failed to get the strike back as Tom Maynard flicked the penultimate delivery over square leg for six.Maynard, who finished unbeaten on 29 from 18 balls, led a charmed life as he was dropped three times – on three, 13 and 14 – as another 66 runs were added for the third wicket in just over six overs.Gul and Parnell, Sussex’s two overseas fast bowlers, conceded 85 runs between them from their four-over stints as Surrey sealed an important victory as the battle for a quarter-final place hots up.

Sulieman Benn, the West Indies left-arm spinner, has been suspended for breaching the ICC Code of Conduct during his team’s third Test match against South Africa in Barbados

Cricinfo staff10-Jul-2010Sulieman Benn, the West Indies left-arm spinner, has been suspended for breaching the ICC Code of Conduct during the third Test against South Africa in Barbados last month. South Africa had asked the ICC to take disciplinary action against him last week following his altercation with fast bowler Dale Steyn on the third day of the Test.Benn pleaded guilty to a Level 2 breach of the code and was penalised by match referee Jeff Crowe. His previous disciplinary troubles means he now faces a ban of one Test or two ODIs or two Twenty20s, whichever comes first.The incident took place during lunch on the third day at the Kensington Oval when Benn barged into the South African dressing room and taunted some of the players and management. This followed the dismissal of Steyn a few overs before lunch when the fast bowler appeared to spit in the direction of Benn as he walked towards the pavilion. That cost Steyn his entire match fee, though the match referee agreed that Benn had provoked Steyn in the overs leading up to his dismissal.”Whatever had gone on before Sulieman entered the Proteas’ dressing room, while helping to explain his behaviour, cannot justify it,” Crowe said. “Clearly, Sulieman has acted inappropriately here and in a way that is contrary to the spirit of cricket.”Benn has had behavioural issues over the past year, including a dust-up with Mitchell Johnson and Brad Haddin during the Perth Test in December, which earned him a two-ODI ban. He was fined his full match fee by the West Indies management last month after he was ordered off the field by captain Chris Gayle for failing to follow his instructions during the fourth ODI against South Africa.His spat with Steyn was not the only ugly incident in an ill-tempered final Test in Barbados. Fast bowler Kemar Roach lost half his match fee after a run-in with Jacques Kallis during the closing stages of the match. He repeatedly walked up to and exchanged words with the batsman after testing him with a series of bouncers. The stand-off threatened to escalate and required the intervention of the umpires and West Indies fielders to come under control.

Chasing 146, Sri Lanka romped home with 20 balls remaining

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Aug-2024Harshitha Samarawickrama’s 86 off 45 balls sent Sri Lanka galloping to a 17th-over win in the first T20I of their series against Ireland in Dublin.Ireland had put together what had seemed a competitive 145 for 6 after being sent in, with contributions from opener Gaby Lewis (39 off 33), Oria Prendergast (29 off 27), captain Laura Delany (25 off 21), and Rebecca Stokell (21 not out off 16). Prendergast and Lewis had supplied the innings a foundation with a 59-run second-wicket stand.Related

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But the total was no match for a Sri Lanka side flying high on confidence following their Asia Cup win. Samarawickrama, who top-scored in their chase in that final too, combined with Vishmi Gunaratne (30 off 34) in an opening stand worth 83.Samarawickrama then largely took control of the remainder of the chase, hitting 15 fours and one six in all, as the remainder of the top order produced small innings in support. Sri Lanka will be especially buoyed by pulling off this chase without their best player, Chamari Athapaththu, who is with her Hundred team. Samarawickrama’s 86 not out is the fourth-highest T20I score by a Sri Lanka batter, and the highest by anyone other than Athapaththu.On the bowling front, the left-arm seam of Udeshika Prabhodani and the left-arm spin of Sugandika Kumari were effective at keeping a lid on Ireland’s scoring. Offspinner Inoshi Priyadharshani collected the game’s best figures, however, taking 2 for 35.Freya Sargent, Arlene Kelly and Delany struck for Ireland, but they were unable as a unit to contain Samarawickrama.

The former West Indies captain’s tenure, which began in January 2017, will end when his contract expires at the end of June

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Jun-2023Cricket West Indies (CWI) is on the lookout for a new director of cricket, with Jimmy Adams’ tenure set to end when his contract expires at the end of June. Adams, a former West Indies captain who played 54 Tests and 127 ODIs, has held the role for nearly six-and-a-half years, having taken over from Richard Pybus in January 2017.CWI has set June 14 as the deadline for new applicants.Related

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“We are extremely grateful for the leadership and contribution that Jimmy has made over the past six and half years,” CWI CEO Jonny Grave said. “He has overhauled our High-Performance structure, especially with respect to Coach Education & Development, Sport Science & Medicine and most recently with the launch of our Academy based at the Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG) in Antigua. I have no doubt that Jimmy will continue to contribute to the game, particularly West Indies Cricket.”Apart from these achievements, Adams’ tenure also coincided with CWI starting the women’s Caribbean Premier League, appointing separate selection panels for women’s and youth teams, and more recently approving a Women’s Cricket Transformation Committee to work towards achieving equality for women’s players.During Adams’ time as director of cricket, the West Indies men’s team endured a difficult time on the field. They haven’t reached the knockout stages of an ICC tournament since winning the T20 World Cup in 2016, and have finished second from bottom in both the 2019-21 and 2021-23 World Test Championships. Based on the recommendations of an independent review panel instituted after the team’s first-round exit from the 2022 T20 World Cup, CWI appointed format-specific coaches for the senior men’s team: Andre Coley for Test cricket and Daren Sammy for white-ball cricket.”It’s been an honor to have been involved in the ongoing evolution of CWI,” Adams said. “I have had the privilege of working with some amazing people across the organisation and am grateful for all the support they gave me over the past six plus years. I wish everyone all the best going forward, especially in light of the various challenges that exist both regionally and globally.”

Bahrain’s consolation win not enough; Philippines rolled over for 36 by Oman while Canada crumble to 80

Peter Della Penna in Muscat21-Feb-2022A wild day in Oman saw three blowouts and one match go down to the wire to decide the four semi-finalists still in with a shot at reaching the 2022 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia. Here’s how the final day unfolded.Group A
Bahrain and UAE experienced the full gamut of emotions in a see-saw affair that saw Bahrain prevail by two runs in the biggest upset of the tournament. However, they still failed to advance to the semi-final as UAE stayed fractionally ahead of them on net run rate.Choosing to bat first, Bahrain lost a wicket on the second ball of play as Muhammad Younis cut Basil Hameed’s offspin to backward point for a duck. But they counterattacked through captain Sarfaraz Ali and wicketkeeper Umer Imtiaz, who put on a 50-run stand for the second wicket. Sarfaraz muscled four fours and two sixes, seizing on UAE’s bowling unit going too full, to drive over the in-field on the way to 32 off 22 balls. He finally fell trying to drive over the top one time too many, as legspinner Karthik Meiyappan induced a skied catch to long-off in the seventh over to break the stand.Imtiaz eventually fell for a career-best 42 before Sathaiya Veerapathiran followed five balls later for 2. But former Karnataka player David Mathias, who hit 46* off 35 balls, teamed with Haider Butt, who got 35 from 17, in an extraordinary 76-run stand off the final 34 deliveries. UAE almost paid dearly for choosing to rest their best pace bowler Zahoor Khan, as their replacement options at the death failed to contain Mathias and Butt, who like Sarfaraz continued to seize on full lengths as Bahrain ended up with nine sixes in their innings.On paper, UAE were set a target of 173 to win the match but needed to score at least 158 to stay ahead of Bahrain on net run rate tie-breaker. UAE lost heavy-hitting opener Muhammad Waseem for 2 in the second over to a flat-footed swish, giving an edge behind off Shahid Mahmood’s medium pace. Chirag Suri then fell on the first ball after the powerplay for 26, miscuing a pull to midwicket off Veerapathiran’s medium pace.But Rohan Mustafa joined 19-year-old Vriitya Aravind for a 91-run partnership to get UAE back on course. With the score 65 for 2 after ten, it became clear that UAE’s primary focus was on getting to 158, with the match target of 173 a cherry on top. Bahrain had a chance to heap more pressure on the opposition, but failed to capitalise on a pair of chances offered by Mustafa. The first came on 18 in the 12th over bowled by left-arm spinner Muhammad Waseeq, who induced a skied chance to long-off that Junaid Aziz failed to hold on to running in from the rope.That became the only over of spin bowled in the chase as Sarfaraz took Waseeq straight out of the attack. It meant that Sarfaraz also did not give a single over to Aziz despite the fact that the legspinner had been Bahrain’s leading wicket-taker in the tournament, having turned in a Player-of-the-Match performance of 5 for 5 against Germany before following it up with 2 for 16 in four overs against Ireland.Mustafa could have been run-out on 25 in the 14th over as well following a near collision with Aravind while trying to pinch a leg-bye after the ball plopped dead adjacent to the pitch. But Veerapathiran’s throw upon collecting in his follow-through sailed wide at the non-striker’s end with Mustafa several yards short, and wound up turning into two thanks to an overthrow. Mustafa was not as fortunate in the 18th over though, as a relay from Butt at long-on caught him sleeping while coming back very casually for a second run to end his innings for 41.Kashif Daud was caught next ball heaving to deep midwicket for a golden duck, leaving UAE needing 32 off 16 deliveries to clinch a spot in the semi-final. Aravind had managed to cross with the ball in the air on Daud’s wicket, and swung momentum back UAE’s way with back-to-back sixes, bringing up a 44-ball half-century in the process.Sarfaraz then bowled a magnificent 19th over to build tension further, conceding six runs while taking the wickets of Hameed and Zawar Farid off consecutive deliveries before Muhammad Usman saw off the hat-trick ball by striking a two to end the over. It meant Aravind would have the strike for the final over, needing 12 to see UAE into the semi-final, and 27 to win the match outright and clinch the top spot in the group ahead of Ireland on points.Mahmood was given the ball but misfired on his lengths throughout the over. Aravind drove the first ball back down the ground for four before heaving over midwicket for another boundary. A two on the third delivery was followed by a six driven straight down the ground to clinch UAE’s spot in the semi-final and knock Bahrain out.With 11 needed off the final two balls to win and 10 to force a Super Over, Aravind cleared the boundary with another sizzling straight drive for six off the penultimate delivery before scuffing the final ball for two to long-off. But despite his heroics seeing UAE into the semi-final with an unbeaten 84, the match officials awarded Player-of-the-Match honours to Sarfaraz for leading Bahrain to their first T20I win over an Associate nation with ODI status.File photo: Paul Stirling and Andy Balbirnie added 67 for the first wicket•Sportsfile via Getty Images

Ireland finished on top of the group after thumping Germany by seven wickets with 41 balls to spare. They started the day behind Bahrain and UAE on net run rate, but leapfrogged them both after sending Germany in and restricting them to 107 before speeding to the target. Faisal Mubashir top-scored with 45* off 40 balls for Germany but found little support elsewhere. Josh Little was named Player of the Match for Ireland after taking 2 for 13 in a brisk spell of left-arm pace.Paul Stirling hit 34 off 27 balls and Andy Balbirnie 32 from 21, having added 67 for the first wicket before both fell in quick succession, followed a short time later by Gareth Delany for 11. But Harry Tector cracked three fours in his unbeaten 24 off 15 deliveries to take Ireland into the semi-final.Kushal Bhurtel and Dipendra Singh Airee completed Nepal’s paltry chase•Peter Della Penna

Group B
On the adjacent oval in Al Amerat, Oman completed their rally from behind the eight-ball after a day-one loss to Nepal by completing a nine-wicket win over Philippines. Following up on another nine-wicket victory – over Canada in which Oman chased a target of 156 with two overs to spare – Oman achieved the same result chasing a far smaller target as they bowled Philippines out for 36.After fielding first in their first two group matches and conceding back-to-back totals in excess of 200, Philippines opted to bat and responded by being bowled out for the fifth-lowest total in men’s T20I history.While the medium pace duo of Kaleemullah, with 2 for 5, and Fayyaz Butt’s 2 for 7 ripped apart the top order, legspinner Khawar Ali whittled through the lower order taking 4 for 11 in a Player-of-the-Match performance. After Kashyap Prajapati fell on the second ball of the chase, Khurram Nawaz dashed any hopes Philippines had of a historic upset by cracking an unbeaten 33 off 12 balls as Oman needed just 17 deliveries to haul down the target.The results mean that Nepal will face UAE in one semi-final, while Ireland will face Oman in the other. Each match is a winner-takes-all shootout, with the victor in each semi-final clinching a spot in the first round of the 2022 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup and a spot in the final of the qualifier in Oman, while the pair of losing sides fall back into a consolation third-place playoff.

How Old Trafford encounter inspired English club’s foray into Indian market

George Dobell25-Nov-2020It was, Daniel Gidney says now, a day that changed everything.Gidney, the chief executive of Lancashire, had heard plenty about the passion of India v Pakistan matches in the past. But he had witnessed Old Firm derbies in Glasgow, the Derby della Lanterna in Genoa, the most raucous of Twickenham internationals and more than his fair share of T20 Roses encounters. He thought he had seen it all.But then came the World Cup match on June 16, 2019.”It opened my eyes,” he tells ESPNcricinfo. “Our previous chairman, the much-missed David Hodgkiss [who died of Covid-19 in March], had urged me to look east in terms of our future strategy, but I only half got it. After that game, I was all-in.”So, what was it he witnessed that left such an impression?”Well, Manchester airport ran out of space for private jets,” he says. “Some planes had to land in Liverpool instead. That’s not even happened for big games at Manchester United.”Meanwhile, rooms in our hotel [Lancashire run a Hilton which overlooks their ground] were selling for £3,500. And there were a billion people watching on TV. The passion and noise was unbelievable: there was a man on a white horse draped in a Pakistan flag outside the ground. You don’t get that at Lancashire games. I’d not seen anything like it. It became very clear that we had a huge untapped market out there and that India had to be at the core of our future strategy.”ALSO READ: Two additional T20Is, fewer Tests in England’s tour of India – GangulyTo that end, Lancashire invested in their streaming operation during the 2020 season. Their set-up included seven cameras including the recruitment of specialist ‘ball following’ operatives, and arranged for their games to be live-streamed in India on JioTV; a service with more than 350 million subscribers. As a result, “our numbers went bananas” as Gidney puts it. Somewhere around 2.5m unique users (that’s even more than Surrey’s 2020 figures) watched the matches.Alongside that, Lancashire’s top-order batsman, Keaton Jennings, led a networking delegation from the club to India in January. Alongside representatives from Visit Manchester and VisitBritain, he highlighted opportunities ahead of the 2021 Test between England and India at Emirates Old Trafford. Jennings, as a man who had made a Test century in Mumbai, was seen as a suitable person to break the ice in such discussions, with the opportunity also helping him expand his own experiences with a view to life after his playing career. Emirates Old Trafford hosts England’s final Test of the 2021 summer.More will follow in 2021. The Lancashire team will – virus allowing – return to Mumbai for pre-season training (they also went there in February of this year) with the aim of closer links and, perhaps, friendly matches against Mumbai Indians (they did actually play – and narrowly defeat – a Reliance XI containing around half a team of Mumbai Indians players in a pre-season match in February). A commentary team will also be assembled to ensure the streaming coverage is appropriately complemented. In time, it could lead to a return to the days when Lancashire looked to India for its overseas players.”At this stage, we’re just interested in growing our audience,” Gidney continues. “In the longer term, yes, we hope to monetise this interest and we will be looking to secure a sponsor for Lancashire TV. My aim is that, one day, everyone in India will see Lancashire as their second favourite team.”While Lancashire’s off-field performance in recent years has been exceptional – only Surrey can claim to be a bigger club in financial terms these days – the on-field performance has not always matched. But Gidney is keen to assure supporters that the move to embrace the Indian audience, just like the move to invest in a hotel and conferencing business, was driven by a desire to see Lancashire cricket – and cricket in Lancashire – thrive. Previously, the club has pledged to invest profits into reintroducing cricket into state primary schools in the region.”We’re a cricket club,” Gidney says. “We’re doing all this so we can invest more money into cricket. We don’t have to pay dividends to share holders; we’re looking to develop more cricketers and invest in even better facilities.”The Indian market is huge and passionately interested in cricket. We can’t ignore the game’s biggest market. We will continue to build strategic relationships that help the club, and our brand, grow on the subcontinent.”