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Their key players are out of form and that’s not good when they have to face the tournament’s most in-form batting unit

Sreshth Shah30-Mar-20242:46

McClenaghan: Titans rely too much on Gill, may be a batter short

Match details

Gujarat Titans (GT) vs Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)
Ahmedabad, 1530 IST (1000 GMT)

Big picture

A plethora of subplots from outside the cricket field may have helped Gujarat Titans lift themselves to a come-from-behind win against Mumbai Indians in their season opener, but a 63-run defeat away against Chennai Super Kings begs the question: are the Titans of 2024 championship material?David Miller, for example, has crossed 30 only three times in 15 innings this year and averages 29. His strike rate of 119 this year is also his worst in 13 years, a steep drop from 2023 (135.2) and 2022 (147.2).Another barometer of the Titans’ performance is Rashid Khan. In their wins – they’ve had 12 of those since 2023 – he comes away with an economy rate of 7.35. But in their losses – seven in the same period – Rashid’s economy rate skyrockets to 10.03. It shows that when he struggles, they struggle too. This used to be rare but since last year’s tournament, he has leaked nine runs an over roughly once every three matches (6 out of 19; 5 of those 6 were losses)And that’s where the challenge lies as a rampaging Sunrisers Hyderabad arrive fresh off a performance that rewrote IPL record books. Travis Head has his own love story with Ahmedabad since the ODI World Cup final, Abhishek Sharma has carried his form from the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy well and Heinrich Klaasen is the only man to hit 50 T20 sixes this year. With the Narendra Modi Stadium one of the country’s best surfaces for batters, the Titans will need someone to fill the shoes of Mohammed Shami at both ends of their innings.The Titans, though, can hit back. Barring Pat Cummins, the Sunrisers pacers have gone at 11.93 runs per over in IPL 2024 and it is an area the hosts can exploit, especially their captain Shubman Gill. Ahmedabad is Gill’s favourite venue – 700 runs in 13 innings at an average of nearly 64 and a strike-rate of almost 160 – and with only 37 runs in two innings this season, he will be itching for a sizeable contribution.2:18

McClenaghan on Miller’s poor form: ‘Tough role being a finisher’

Team news and impact player strategy

Gujarat TitansThe Titans are usually predictable with their impact substitutions, so expect fast bowler Mohit Sharma and left-hand batter Sai Sudharsan to swap places. Matthew Wade is also available after missing the first two games playing the Sheffield Shield final. Shahrukh Khan or Abhinav Manohar could be tempting options in the middle order.Probable XII: 1 Shubman Gill (capt), 2 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 3 Sai Sudharsan, 4 Vijay Shankar, 5 David Miller, 6 Azmatullah Omarzai, 7 Rahul Tewatia, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 R Sai Kishore, 10 Spencer Johnson, 11 Umesh Yadav, 12 Mohit SharmaTitans will have their task cut out bowling to Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head and Heinrich Klaasen•BCCI

Sunrisers HyderabadAfter excelling in their season opener, T Natarajan missed Sunrisers’ second game with an unspecified niggle and his availability is unknown. Jaydev Unadkat, his replacement against Mumbai Indians, impressed with his change-ups and could keep his place in the XI. Wanindu Hasaranga has also not yet arrived in India.As for Impact Player options, Sunrisers could start with medium-pacer Nitish Reddy or fast bowler Umran Malik if bowling first, with Travis Head replacing them in the second innings. Washington Sundar could also be a realistic option against left-hand heavy Titans.Probable XII: 1 Mayank Agarwal, 2 Travis Head, 3 Abhishek Sharma, 4 Aiden Markram, 5 Heinrich Klaasen (wk), 6 Abdul Samad, 7 Shahbaz Ahmed, 8 Pat Cummins (capt), 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Mayank Markande, 11 Jaydev Unadkat / T Natarajan, 12 Umran MalikBhuvneshwar Kumar has gone for 104 runs in eight overs in IPL 2024•Associated Press

In the spotlight

In two innings, Vijay Shankar has scored 18 runs in 17 balls. He has not bowled either. Against a high-scoring side like Sunrisers, the Titans could be tempted to play Shahrukh Khan instead to add power to the middle order, especially since he follows a consolidator like Sudharsan at No. 3. Shankar, though, enjoys facing Bhuvneshwar Kumar (16 off 5, strike rate 320) and Jaydev Unadkat (15 off 7, strike rate 214) in T20 cricket.Bhuvneshwar Kumar is yet to take a wicket in his two IPL 2024 outings and has conceded 104 runs in eight overs. Against both Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians, Bhuvneshwar made promising starts to his spell but ended up leaking big runs in the death overs. As the senior-most bowler in a franchise where he has played since 2014, Bhuvneshwar needs to either find wickets or get his runs down. Ideally, he’d want to do both.

Stats that matter

Gill has historically struggled putting Bhuvneshwar away at the IPL, scoring only 50 runs in 48 balls while being dismissed three times in nine innings. He also has a strike-rate of only 94.4 against Unadkat.In 23 balls, Abhishek has hit Rashid for three fours and three sixes, averaging a boundary every 3.6 deliveries. His strike-rate against Rashid is 204 overall and this IPL, he is scoring at 226.Klaasen is hitting a six every 5.4 balls in 2024, behind only Andre Russell’s ball-per-six ratio of 4.6. Fifty of his 53 sixes have come between long-off and deep backward square leg.Since the start of IPL 2023, the team batting first has won six of the ten IPL games played in Ahmedabad.

Pitch and conditions

Ahmedabad usually offers a true batting surface with enough on offer to keep pacers and spinners interested. Spinners can also use the long square boundaries to good effect. The average first-innings winning score here since 2021 in the IPL is 188. In the last outing at the venue, the Titans defended 168 successfully. Expect a hot afternoon with a peak of 35 degrees during toss time.

“David served his time like I did. We know he’s a leader around the group, and on and off the field he’s doing a tremendous job”

Andrew McGlashan11-Dec-2022Steven Smith has called David Warner’s lifetime ban from leadership “fundamentally wrong” and conceded that the lengthy saga of trying to get it overturned had been a distraction for him.Warner dropped a dramatic statement on the eve of the second Test against West Indies in Adelaide when he announced he would be withdrawing from the process implemented by Cricket Australia after they had rewritten their code of conduct to allow Warner to appeal the ban.Related

• Ponting: 'Warner deserves the chance to finish the way he wants to finish'

• 'He's eager to continue' – no hint from Warner on impending Test retirement, says McDonald

• Smith hopes to 'get into a nice groove' for South Africa Tests

• Chappell: Good on Warner for telling Cricket Australia where to get off

• Hockley defends CA's handling of Warner's appeal process

“From my point of view, banning for life from leadership is just fundamentally wrong,” Smith said after Australia’s 419-run victory. “David served his time like I did. For us, we know he’s a leader around the group, and on and off the field he’s doing a tremendous job. “Warner, and CA, had wanted a private hearing in front of the independent panel but the commissions ruled that it should be held in public which Warner argued would have become a “lynching” and he wasn’t willing to put his family and team-mates through a retrial of the events at Newlands in 2018.Nick Hockley, the CA chief executive, defended the organisation’s handling of the situation, saying the independent panel was needed for transparency and was “disappointed” Warner had withdrawn. However, Todd Greenberg, his counterpart at the Australian Cricketers’ Association, argued Warner had been left with no choice and expressed the frustration that CA had not handled the appeal themselves.”It’s been a difficult one for him, it’s been a difficult week,” Smith said. “It has been more of a distraction for Davey, no doubt, going through that himself. David has said he’s done and dusted and get on with it. He’s got our full support. Hopefully he can have a really big series for us against South Africa with the bat.”Warner made 21 and 28 in the second Test – after making 5 and 48 in Perth – to continue a lean run in Test cricket over the last two years where he is averaging just 28.12 without a century. He is due to play his 100th Test against South Africa in Melbourne at the end of the month, but questions are being asked as to whether he should be part of the tours to India and England where his record is poor with averages of 24.25 and 26.04 respectively.In the series against West Indies, Warner has twice been out inside-edging the ball onto his stumps•Associated Press

“I didn’t realise it was that lean, to be honest,” former Australia captain Ricky Ponting, speaking on on Saturday, said of Warner’s recent record. “Coming on for two years for a Test-match century. Four half-centuries in his last 26 innings.”You talk about how things are getting tougher for Warner with the attack the South Africans have got. Well, it’s never easy in India either. We know what wickets we will get there. We will get turning pitches. No doubt. It’s never been easy for any Australian batsman going there and trying to play in those conditions. Then on the back of that, what’s after that? The Ashes, in England as well. We will get conditions that will suit [Stuart] Broad, [James] Anderson and [Ollie] Robinson.”Smith, however, believed that more than anything Warner needed a change of luck to see the big runs return. One thing perhaps in his favour is that South Africa are among his most productive opponents with an average of 52.26 from 12 Tests including four centuries although that dips to 40.18 in Australia.His dismissals in this series have been inside edges driving against Alzarri Joseph and Roston Chase, a nick to the keeper chasing a wide delivery, and a bat-pad catch to short leg.”Davey’s a once-in-a-generation player, he’s arguably the best-ever opener for Australia,” he said. “The way he’s able to put pressure on bowlers from the outset helps everyone down the order as well.”He’s been an incredible player for a long period of time, his record suggest that. There’s no reason why he can’t have a big series for us coming this week as well. He’s batting nicely. He hasn’t had a great deal of luck lately either, it seems like every time he gets an inside edge, it goes onto the stumps. A lot of the time when you’re scoring runs you need some luck.”For me it’s in his body language the way he goes out there – he’s really positive and just in a good frame of mind. Particularly yesterday when he went out to bat he was in a good frame of mind, the way his feet were moving was really sharp.”

Eight close contacts of the allrounder, most of them players, are also in isolation

Nagraj Gollapudi27-Jul-2021Krunal Pandya has tested positive for Covid-19, forcing the second T20I between Sri Lanka and India, scheduled for Tuesday evening, to be pushed back by a day.Pandya’s positive test result came not too long before the scheduled start of play – 8pm local time – and eight other members of the Indian contingent have so far been identified as Pandya’s close contacts and asked to isolate in their hotel rooms.It is understood that Pandya complained of a sore throat on Tuesday morning, after which the Indian medical staff asked him to take the rapid antigen test, which came out positive. It is also understood that Pandya also underwent the RT-PCR test, globally recognised as the gold standard in Covid-19 testing, and that came out positive too.Related

• Manchester Test in question after another Covid-positive case in Indian camp

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• Krunal Pandya's immediate contacts test negative for Covid-19

• Andy Flower tests positive for Covid-19

• Chahal's simplistic approach recaptures confidence

BCCI secretary Jay Shah said in a media release that the entire Indian squad would also undergo the RT-PCR test to “ascertain any further outbreak” in their camp. The BCCI did not identify the eight people who had been asked to isolate along with Pandya, but a board official told PTI that the majority of those were players. “The reports (of today’s tests) will come in the evening (around 6pm) and if everyone is in the clear, we can have the match on Wednesday. Maximum among the eight close contacts who are also in mandatory isolation are players.”It could not be confirmed how long Pandya and the eight others are going to be in isolation, but one person privy to the discussions in the camp said that the period would be determined based on the strain of Covid-19 in question.There are no reports of positive results among the Sri Lankans, who are scheduled to be tested next on Wednesday morning.Professor Arjuna de Silva, who overseas SLC’s bubble protocols for international tours, told ESPNcricinfo that it remained a mystery as to how Pandya could have contracted Covid-19, as there have been no reports of the bubble being broken, nor any other significant irregularities. The series has been played behind closed doors and both teams have been operating out of a bio-secure bubble with their movements restricted to only the team hotel and the ground.The India team has a hotel – the Taj Samudra – to themselves, and even the staff working in the hotel are essentially in the bubble, and undergo frequent testing. de Silva said that no one else, including staff, had tested positive so far.Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav were scheduled to leave for England immediately after the Sri Lanka series•Getty Images

This is the second time Covid-19 has forced Sri Lanka Cricket to tweak the itinerary of the six-match series. The ODI series was originally meant to commence on July 13, but had to be pushed to July 18 after a few positive cases emerged in the Sri Lankan group.This is also the second time in the last week that an international match has been postponed because of a positive Covid-19 test: the second West Indies vs Australia ODI in Barbados had to be postponed after the toss had been conducted because a non-playing member in the West Indies camp had tested positive.As things stand, the second and third Sri Lanka T20Is will now be played back-to-back on Wednesday and Thursday. Though Pandya and some other players are likely to be unavailable for the last two games following the latest developments, India have enough back-up to field an XI, as they have travelled with an expanded squad of 20, plus five reserve bowlers.Though the series will end on schedule despite the postponement, the Indian team’s return home, slotted for Thursday, is likely to be delayed. The development is also set to impact plans for Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav, the two batters who were selected to join the Indian Test squad in England. Shaw and Yadav were scheduled to travel to England at the end of the tour of Sri Lanka.India, who earlier won the three-match ODI series 2-1 – despite being in Sri Lanka with a squad missing many first-choice players, who are in England to play a five-Test series in August-September – are 1-0 up in the T20I series following their 38-run win in the first fixture.

Dawid Malan was unbeaten on 50 as Yorkshire closed three down and needing 68 more for victory

Paul Edwards at Chester-le-Street03-Aug-2020
Sometimes the incomparable game reaches back into its rich past even as it charms us with its dynamic present. Should the forecast be correct this match may yet be curtailed by the weather. Yorkshire need 68 runs to win, Durham require seven wickets, yet the threat of rain means any result is possible in a contest that has recalled treasured dynasties.Cricket, you see, has its simple lists and its honourable lineages. Bowling fast and opening the batting for Yorkshire are among the latter. Bill Bowes, Fred Trueman and Darren Gough are just three of those who have taken the new ball for the White Rose while Herbert Sutcliffe, Leonard Hutton and Geoffrey Boycott all opened their county’s innings. All six cricketers performed their skills with much honour for England on very many occasions. And there were seasons when Halifax-born batsman Alex Lees seemed destined to follow in their line. For had not those mighty prophets Boycott and Bird assured us it would be so?Such years have now been consigned to the Elder Days. Lees left Yorkshire nearly two years ago, having fallen out of favour with the club’s management. There were even days when it seemed he didn’t much like the game itself. So neutrals were pleased to see him make a success of his move to Durham while Yorkshire supporters could be reassured that since his new team was in the second division there was little immediate chance of him playing against their county in proper cricket.That, though, was before Covid-19 and the inception of the Bob Willis Trophy. No one foresaw that Lees might do anything so dastardly as to make a century against Yorkshire, something he accomplished early on this third afternoon at the Riverside when he nudged Harry Brook backward of square for two runs on the off side. It was his 16th first-class hundred, a dozen of which have been scored for the county of his birth.So maybe it was thought fitting that Lees’ innings should be ended – and the match changed utterly – by York’s Matthew Fisher, who still has a career bubbling with promise despite the injuries that have haunted him in recent seasons. When Fisher took the new ball ten overs after lunch Durham were 215 for 3 and were digging themselves out of trouble. Their 96-run first-innings deficit had been cleared and Lees was unbeaten on exactly 100.Immediately, though, Fisher achieved prodigious swing, even on a warm afternoon unthreatened by cloud. Lees thin-edged his first ball to fine leg for four and had collected two more runs before the sixth delivery swung in, brushed his pad and sent the off stump sprawling.Fisher was merely warming to his task. Four overs later he produced what may be seen as one of the balls of the season: a ferocious inswinging yorker which not only removed Jack Burnham’s middle and leg stump but even succeeded in knocking the hapless batsman off his feet as he sought to play or avoid it. Two balls later Durham’s newly appointed skipper, Ned Eckersley, played sloppily across the line and was leg before. In the next over Paul Coughlin departed in similar fashion although not as culpably. Fisher had taken four wickets in 19 balls.Durham’s batsmen were allowed no respite. Jordan Thompson, a Loiner, replaced Fisher at the Finchale End and immediately dismissed both Ben Raine and Matthew Potts, who might have fared just as well had they been batting with a stick of tusky. Chris Rushworth joined Gareth Harte and the pair added 27 with a mixture of useful thumps and alert running. Durham’s lead was 170 when Steve Patterson completed the collapse by trapping Rushworth leg before. Less than two hours earlier he had begun it when he removed David Bedingham in like fashion for 77 four overs before the new ball became available. That wicket brought to an end the South African’s 136-run stand with Lees; more significantly it began a tumble that saw Durham lose their last eight wickets for 59 runs, and 6 for 18 before the last-wicket merriment.Yorkshire now needed 171 to win but fortunately we had an interval before the game’s final innings began. Dishes of tea were taken and chatty reports about the arrival of the soon-to-be ermined Lord Botham of Somewhere-or-Other were discarded. Wits were gathered and then immediately puréed as Rushworth rumbled in from the Lumley End and had both Adam Lyth and Will Fraine leg before in the first five overs of Yorkshire’s innings. At that point supporters of the away team watching events on the live stream may have decided that something stronger than tea was required.Dawid Malan and Tom Kohler-Cadmore calmed matters with a stand of 52 but Rushworth switched to the Finchale End and Kohler-Cadmore became the 14th batsman in this match to fall leg before. He was on his front foot but Graham Lloyd’s decision looked fair enough. That was Rushworth’s 500th first-class wicket in a fine career and his team-mates gave him a round of applause which was rather more enthusiastic than the one Lees had been afforded by his former colleagues. That was understandable enough, of course, although Patterson, a decent fellow at the worst of times, patted the opener on the back when he was out. Come to think of it, Yorkshire’s other cricketers may simply have been rubbing sanitiser into their hands.Durham pressed for further wickets in the soft evening sunlight and Malan was dropped on by Sean Dickson at first slip off Ben Raine when he was on 32 when Yorkshire needed a further 96. We then wondered if eight overs might be added to the day’s allocation but the umpires decided we had seen enough. Malan will resume on 50 after reaching his first half-century for Yorkshire in the final over of the day. His only contribution to the third morning had been to negotiate an obstacle course and retrieve the ball from a stand into which it had been hit by Bedingham. One imagines the former Middlesex batsman rarely had to perform such vulgar tasks when he worked at Lord’s but he may have something more useful to do on the fourth morning of this fine match.

The CA central contracts for 2019-2020 and the Australia A sides to tour England will also be named on Monday

Alex Malcolm12-Apr-20191:22

Shaun Marsh in for Handscomb? How many quicks in total?

How many announcements are expected next week?It is expected that Cricket Australia will make a raft of announcements on Monday, April 15 including naming the contract list for 2019-20, the 2019 World Cup 15-man squad, as well as the Australia A limited-overs and four-day squads that will tour England in June and July.That’s a lot of players…There will be 15 players in the World Cup squad as well as possibly another 15 or so in the Australia A white-ball squad in England in late June for five 50-over games. The Australia A red-ball squad will assemble in early July just after the conclusion of the World Cup and will feature a number of players from both white-ball squads plus some additional long-form specialists and perhaps some young players with an eye towards the future. There is an Australia versus Australia A four-day game in Southampton on July 23 that will require a minimum of 24 players. The Ashes squad is slated to be formally announced after the conclusion of that game, just five days out from the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston on August 1.Why so late for the Ashes squad?The selectors want the opportunity to pick players after seeing the performances on the Australia A tour and potentially county cricket. For the two previous Ashes tours the squad was selected and named more than two months out from the tour. A wider squad will be picked on Monday well in advance of the first Test in August but it gives the selectors the flexibility to add players depending on form and fitness.ALSO READ: Aussies overseas: Warner and Smith find form, Renshaw misses outRemind me where we are with the World Cup squadThe selection panel of Trevor Hohns, Greg Chappell and Justin Langer met in Perth on Tuesday to finalise the squad for the World Cup as well as discuss the Australia A squads. The World Cup squad will almost certainly be picked from the squad that toured India and the UAE for 10 ODIs in February and March as well as previously suspended duo Steven Smith and David Warner, and injured fast bowlers Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood. It is unlikely than any player outside of the 15 who toured India and UAE plus those four will come into the World Cup mix.Usman Khawaja celebrates his maiden ODI century•Getty Images

So what’s the toughest decision for the selectors?There are two areas of contention. The batting is the toughest issue to solve. The inclusion of Warner and Smith means there are surplus to requirements in the top four. Usman Khawaja and Shaun Marsh on recent performance have every right to remain in the side but Warner and Smith are proven world-class players and World Cup winners. What it will mean is Ashton Turner misses out but they will lose a freakish power-hitting finisher at the expense of having six batsmen who are all top-four specialists, none of whom possess Turner’s late-over hitting ability.The bowling is less complicated despite the number of quality options. Starc, if fit, will likely replace Jason Behrendorff as a like for like. Jhye Richardson’s fitness may be an issue depending on his recovery from a dislocated shoulder. The other debate surrounds Hazlewood’s inclusion. He could well be left out in order to preserve his body for the Ashes. The wicket-keeping spot is unlikely to be up for debate. Alex Carey looks set to be the No.1 with Peter Handscomb only to be used in the case of injury.Who had central contracts in 2018-19?The initial list, not including players who qualified for upgrades during the year was: Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Aaron Finch, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Shaun Marsh, Mitch Marsh, Tim Paine, Matthew Renshaw, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis and Andrew Tye.Who might miss out this time?Smith and Warner are almost certain to be contracted after missing out last year due to suspension although the interest will be at what level. Renshaw did not represent Australia in a single international in the contract period so he is unlikely to keep his contract. Mitchell Marsh was named the Test vice-captain last year but lost his place in all three forms. Agar, Tye and Stanlake were out of favour by the end of the summer, although Agar missed a lot of cricket through injury and Tye was called up to the India ODI tour as cover for Kane Richardson. But Zampa has become an automatic selection in Australia’s limited-overs teams and would almost certainly be added while Peter Siddle and James Pattinson could become integral parts of Australia’s England plans, and Pattinson is a tantalising prospect long-term given he is seemingly back to full fitness.The other issue is whether the Test specialists will be rewarded given there were fewer Tests in this contract period than previously. Marcus Harris played all six Tests over the summer and appears a certainty for the Ashes squad at the very least. Joe Burns and Kurtis Patterson made Test hundreds in their last Test appearance against Sri Lanka while Marnus Labuschagne also played in five of Australia’s eight Tests over the last contract period.

Late blows from Steve O’Keefe and Ben Dwarshuis left Sydney Sixers needing eight off three balls, but Michael Neser sealed Adelaide Strikers’ second win with three yorkers

The Report by Alex Malcolm28-Dec-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAdelaide Strikers belied expectations after holding their nerve against Sydney Sixers at the SCG.The Strikers were in control after high-quality innings from Alex Carey and Jonathan Wells and excellent Power-play bowling upfront left the Sixers needing 61 from 30 balls will no recognised batsmen left. But Steve O’Keefe, Johan Botha and Ben Dwarshuis found a way to reduce the equation to 22 off seven before O’Keefe and Dwarshuis hit consecutive sixes off Ben Laughlin and Michael Neser. Another well-run two made it eight runs off three balls but Neser responded with three pinpoint yorkers to secure the Strikers second straight win.Conversely, the talent-laden Sixers slumped to their third straight loss after their batting line-up failed to fire again.Lefties galore
The Strikers’ new-look top four is made up exclusively of left-handers. It allowed the Sixers to set up their attack specifically to counter them. The Sixers made several changes to the side that lost their first two matches. Moises Henriques was ill, with Botha standing-in as captain. Dwarshuis came in for Doug Bollinger as a like-for-like but the Sixers picked the extra right-arm off-spinner in Will Somerville specifically to counter the left-handers. Jake Weatherald has a poor record against left-arm quicks in the BBL and the trend continued after he skied a Dwarshuis short ball in the first over. Botha and Somerville were able to bowl six of the first 12 overs at Carey and Travis Head, conceding 40 runs between them and picking up Head. By the time Colin Ingram fell to Dwarshuis for a run-a-ball 15 the Strikers had only managed to score 7.23 per over through 13 overs and were headed towards a below-par total at the SCG.O’Keefe not used, Carey and Wells cash in
According to , Steve O’Keefe has the third-best economy rate at the SCG in the last three BBL seasons. Botha, understandably, did not use the left-arm spinner in the first 13 overs against the four left-handers. But when the right-handed Wells walked out, with one boundary significantly larger than the other, it seemed a perfect time to bring O’Keefe on. Instead, Botha opted for Somerville again. Wells nailed a sweep, with the turn, for four to get himself going. Wells and Carey put together an unbroken 74-run stand in the last seven overs to get the total up to 167 without facing a single delivery from O’Keefe.Carey displayed power and placement early to get to his maiden BBL half-century. But despite losing his timing late in the innings, his supreme fitness saw him sprint four twos and one three. He finished with an unbeaten 83 from 59 balls. Wells’ cameo was outstanding too. He hit two fours and a massive 104m six onto the roof of the Bill O’Reilly stand in the last four balls of the innings to finish with 33 not out from 19 balls.Strikers strike early again
Taking early wickets in the Powerplay has been Perth Scorchers’ modus operandi for years when defending totals. The Strikers look to have copied the blueprint, attacking with their seamers upfront. Billy Stanlake conceded just two runs in the first over. Jason Roy flicked him for a huge six in the third over, but Stanlake set the trap for Daniel Hughes tucking him up with two men back and Hughes picked out one of them on the boundary. Neser had Nic Maddinson nicking off with Carey completing an outstanding one-handed catch. Roy, who looked to be fighting his way out of a form slump, did not do his homework on Ben Laughlin, lofting a predictable slower ball first-up high to mid-off. The Sixers were 3 for 42 at the end of the Powerplay before spin was needed.Silk road too long
Jordan Silk did his best to make the chase interesting. In his first appearance for the season as a replacement for Henriques, he struck ball as sweetly as any batsman all night. He raced to 50 off 31 balls with seven classy boundaries. But when he chopped Rashid Khan onto his stumps all hope seemed lost.Rashid had earlier bowled the Sixers’ last recognised batsman in Sam Billings. Botha and O’Keefe kept hopes alive with a 17-run over off Neser. O’Keefe and Dwarshuis then raised heart-rates with two massive blows inside the last seven deliveries after Laughlin and Neser missed their lengths. But Neser found the mark with his last three to wrap up the Strikers’ win.

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.”

South Africa won their first-ever bilateral series in India after Faf du Plessis’ first, Quinton de Kock’s second and AB de Villiers’ third centuries of the series, which helped the visitors soar to 438

The Report by Firdose Moonda25-Oct-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details4:51

Agarkar: AB the best batsman in the world in all formats

South Africa won their first-ever bilateral series in India after Faf du Plessis’ first, Quinton de Kock’s second and AB de Villiers’ third centuries of the series helped the visitors soar to the highest total in the five matches, the highest at the Wankhede and the highest against India. They did not subject India to their biggest margin of defeat, but they did bowl them out more than 200 runs short of the target, no mean feat in batsmen-friendly conditions.South Africa’s line-up enjoyed the track, which offered almost no bounce or turn, and applied aggression in waves reminiscent of the day nine years ago when they scored this exact number of runs against Australia at the Wanderers. Then, South Africa were chasing, this time they were making India’s bowlers do that. India have never conceded more runs in an ODI; South Africa have scored more but only by one. This was their sixth score over 400 and fourth in 2015 alone, and it underlined their ability to dominate opposition on their own turf.India will be disappointed by the way their challenge died in both departments. Their bowlers began with an over-reliance on the short ball and then just ran out of ideas while their batsmen showed the right intent upfront but lost wickets trying to sustain the scoring rate. In the end, they conceded a second series to South Africa on the tour with the main event, the Tests, still to come.The signs of South African authority were evident from the start. They raced to fifty inside six overs during which Hashim Amla became the fastest batsmen to 6,000 ODI runs. Amla was dismissed cheaply for a fifth time in the series but that did not have an impact on South Africa’s morale.De Kock owned the pull shot and with the seamers failing to generate anything, MS Dhoni introduced spin in the seventh over. Harbhajan Singh kept things tight at first but the tension was routinely broken at the other end. South Africa grew in confidence, brought up 100 in the 15th over and appeared unstoppable until de Kock hit Amit Mishra in the air to mid-off and presented a chance. Mohit Sharma got fingertips to the ball but could not hold on. De Kock was on 58 at the time and Mohit’s mistake would prove costly.He was seeing the ball well and found the rope so regularly, there was barely a need for singles. More than two-thirds of his runs came in boundaries but he reached his century, his fifth against India and eighth overall, with a single.Du Plessis had almost been a spectator in the proceedings and allowed de Kock most of the strike but when de Kock was caught on the long-off boundary, he knew he had to take over. With de Villiers egging him on, du Plessis upped the ante, assisted by Dhoni using part-timers Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli against South Africa’s two most destructive batsmen. They pierced the gaps and hit with power as the intensity increased.De Villiers injected impetus into the innings with his scoring rate – his fifty came off 34 balls – and du Plessis followed suit. After taking 61 balls to score fifty, he needed just 44 more deliveries to get a century, even as he battled cramps to get there.South Africa entered the last ten overs on 294 for 2 but would have been wary of the squeeze that can strike with the new playing conditions. This time, they were not strangled. Du Plessis plundered 24 runs off the 43rd over, bowled by Axar Patel, even though he could barely stand up and had to retire hurt on 133.Then, it was de Villiers’ turn. His century came off the 57th ball he faced to chants of “ABD” from the Wankhede crowd. South Africa were on the brink of 400 when de Villiers edged an attempted pull and was caught behind and India had finally got through the senior batsmen. Farhaan Behardien and David Miller had free reign to slog as hard as they wanted and they made the most of what time they had. South Africa scored 144 runs in the last ten overs. By the time India had that many, it looked as though a thriller might just play out.India lost Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the first eight overs of the reply but Shikhar Dhawan, who had been middling until this match, and Ajinkya Rahane kept them in it. Rahane was particularly severe on Dale Steyn and Imran Tahir but neither of them targeted South Africa’s fifth bowler, Behardien, as much as they should have. Still, they applied pressure, forced mistakes from South Africa in the field and were on track despite the length of the journey.Then it all changed when Kagiso Rabada proved there is no substitute for pure pace. He was brought back on in the 23nd over, angled a fuller ball across Dhawan and drew the leading edge. Hashim Amla fell face first taking the catch and India were faltering. In Rabada’s next over, he dished up a leg-stump yorker than snuck past Suresh Raina and broke the back of the Indian chase.Rahane, who batted with composure and class and scored 50 off 41 balls, was feeling the heat. He holed out to midwicket off Dale Steyn, whose veins popped. In South Africa, the corks would have been doing the same as the series was all but sealed. India lost their last five wickets for 29 runs and South Africa secured a second limited-overs series on their longest-ever visit to India.

David Hussey waited until the last Sheffield Shield round to make his first century of the season but Victoria still finished a rain-interrupted day trailing Tasmania

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Mar-2013
ScorecardDavid Hussey waited until the last Sheffield Shield round to make his first century of the season but Victoria still finished a rain-interrupted day trailing Tasmania.Victoria fell 11 runs short of Tasmania’s first innings total despite Hussey’s innings, and the hosts’ reply was again underpinned by a strong opening stand between Jordan Silk and Mark Cosgrove.Cosgrove perished to Fawad Ahmed for 50, but Silk continued in the company of Alex Doolan, leaving Tasmania in a position to set a target on the final day, provided the weather is kind. Both sides require an outright result, the Bushrangers to host the final and the Tigers to have a chance of reaching it.

Durham will participate in the Emirates Twenty20 competition, in Dubai at the end of March, for the second year running as part of their preparations for the new county season

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Feb-2012Durham will participate in the Emirates Twenty20 competition, in Dubai at the end of March, for the second year running as part of their preparations for the new county season. The club will also send groups of players to India and South Africa for specialised coaching sessions.Durham’s second XI coach Jon Lewis will accompany Gareth Breese, Mark Stoneman, Tim Raglan, Ryan Buckley and James Weighall to the Global Cricket School in India in February; while Mitchell Claydon, Stephen Harmison, Liam Plunkett, Chris Rushworth, Ben Stokes, Josh Bousefield and Usman Arshad will go to South Africa for outdoor practice with bowling coach Alan Walker and limited-overs captain Dale Benkenstein.”Our tours to Dubai have been really successful in previous years and have proved to be an effective way to continue our pre-season preparation in outdoor conditions,” Durham’s head coach Geoff Cook said. “It’s important for the bowlers to get as much outdoor practice as possible before the start of the season which is why we’ve also taken the opportunity to send groups to India and South Africa.”