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Australian seamer joins county after helping Perth Scorchers to BBL title

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Feb-2023Andrew Tye, the Australia seamer, has signed for Northamptonshire for the 2023 T20 Blast.Tye was the stand-out performer in Durham’s Blast campaign last season, claiming 21 wickets in 10 matches, to take his overall record in the competition to 67 wickets in 48, following a previous spell at Gloucestershire between 2016 and 2019.He joins Northants off the back of his fourth BBL title, having helped Perth Scorchers overcome Brisbane Heat in last week’s final. In the course of that match, he picked up his 300th T20 wicket in just his 211th match, surpassing the previous record set by Rashid Khan (213 games).”I’m very excited to be joining Northamptonshire for the Blast,” Tye said. “They’re a good team that’s had success in the competition in the past so I’ll be hoping that we can recreate that success this year.”Tye, 36, will be reunited with his Australia team-mate Chris Lynn at Wantage Road, and has also played alongside the club’s bowling coach, Chris Liddle, during their Gloucestershire days.”I’m looking forward to joining Lynny, it’s always better to have him on your team than to try playing against him,” Tye added. “I’m excited to work with John Sadler too, I’ve heard really good things about him plus Chris Liddle and I go back to his playing days at Glos so I’m excited to see him and work together again.”Sadler, the head coach, added: “To get AJ on board is really pleasing, he’s an amazing addition and gives our team a great balance.
“His experience and skill set is exactly what we needed and he knows what’s required to win games and win competitions too. He’ll be a super asset for us this season.”Northamptonshire, two-times winners of the T20 Blast in 2013 and 2016, have struggled in the competition in recent years, with a solitary quarter-final appearance in the past five editions. However, with England’s David Willey also returning to the club after his spell at Yorkshire, the captain Josh Cobb believes they will have a “world-class” core in 2023.”AJ’s got a fantastic record in T20 cricket and we were looking for someone to come in and bring real experience to the attack, someone that can bowl the tough overs in the latter part of the innings and be a banker for us at the death,” Cobb said.”Willo [David Willey] coming back is a great addition for us as an allrounder, then we’ve got Lynny [Chris Lynn] at the top of the order and AJ now with the ball. It gives us a real solid core of world class experience throughout the side.”We know we fell away last year but we played some excellent cricket in the tournament, so hopefully with these two coming in alongside Willo we can push and go one step further this summer.”

Tait resigned from his position a day after Lance Klusener announced his decision to not extend his deal as head coach

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Dec-2021A day after Lance Klusener announced his decision to not extend his contract as head coach of the Afghanistan national men’s team, Shaun Tait has quit as the team’s fast-bowling consultant too. Unlike Klusener, who will see out his contract, which runs till the end of the year, Tait has resigned “with immediate effect”.In a short statement, Tait said, “I have enjoyed my time working with the team especially with the young Afghan fast bowlers whom I personally think have a great future. Having access to a great cricketing mind like Lance Klusener (head coach of Afghanistan during my tenure) has been an absolute pleasure.”Tait, the former Australia quick who is now a Level-2-certified coach from Cricket Australia, was signed up by the Afghanistan Cricket Board in August this year for a period of five months, which was expected to run till the end of 2021. Not long after that, though, the 38-year-old Tait also signed a deal with Indian domestic side Puducherry as their bowling coach, saying at the time that he would be with the team “based on availability from my commitments with the Afghanistan team”.While Afghanistan hardly played any cricket in 2020 because of Covid-19, they performed fairly well under Klusener, winning one out of the three Tests, three out of the six ODIs and nine out of 14 T20Is. Since Tait’s association with the team, Afghanistan’s only international fixtures were at the T20 World Cup, where they lost to South Africa and beat West Indies in warm-up fixtures before winning just two out of their five games in the main competition to crash out in the group stage.

“If I didn’t have a great relationship with him, I think it could have spiralled into something nasty,” captain says of star allrounder

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Jul-2020Andre Russell, man of the tournament in IPL 2019, had criticised the “decision making” of his franchise Kolkata Knight Riders midway through the tournament, when losses for the team were piling up. That criticism had come on the back of Russell having suggested a week earlier that he wouldn’t mind moving up the order given his devastating form, saying: “To go out there and chasing 14-15 per over, it’s not the best way you want to start as a batsman.”KKR captain Dinesh Karthik had copped the blame for Russell batting lower down, but he said on Sunday that Russell was a “heart on sleeve” kind of player, and that they both shared an excellent equation which prevented a sour situation from turning ugly.”I think he’s one of those guys who wears his heart on his sleeve. It’s up to you how you take it,” Karthik said on the . “If you want to take it offensively, the mistake is on your part. If you want to take it constructively, which is how I looked at it… we had a conversation over it. Man to man, we discussed it. He wasn’t unhappy with me, he wasn’t happy that the team wasn’t winning. That is the bottom line.”ALSO READ: Andre Russell questions KKR’s decision-makingKarthik said that there was a gulf between the meaning Russell had intended to convey with his words and how they were perceived.”Whatever he said, I completely respected it. I think he got a taste of the Indian media then as well,” Karthik said. “Because what can be said and what comes out can be two different things. The tone of what you say to what comes out can be very different when it comes in print. He realised (that) and was a little apologetic as well. But at the end of the day, I have a great relationship with him. That makes the difference. If I didn’t have a great relationship with him, I think it could have spiralled into something nasty. Because I have an honest relationship, I can go straight up to him and say, ‘Russ, I don’t think what you said is right, because the way it has come out is not great, so what are we going do?’ And he said, ‘No, skip. This is how I felt about it, not how it’s come out.’ So there itself half the battle is over because what he said to what people are reading are two different things.”Karthik said that the duo had worked out the issues Russell had while explaining his own rationale, and had met his star allrounder “halfway”.”As a leader, I think having different opinions and dealing with it is one of the most important things,” Karthik said. “You need to be able to stand up and have a conversation, sometimes a hard conversation.”

England allrounder reflects on incident that threatened his career in first full interview since being acquitted of affray

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Apr-2019Ben Stokes has said the chain of events that escalated from his fight outside a Bristol nightclub in September 2017 may be the “the best thing that could have happened to me”, as he reflected on his brush with career oblivion in his first full interview since the incident occurred.Speaking exclusively to ESPNcricinfo during a visit to a children’s charity in Jaipur, Stokes – who is playing for Rajasthan Royals in this year’s IPL – said that his lifestyle had been transformed since he was acquitted of affray at Bristol Crown Court in August last year.And, having missed last year’s Ashes tour of Australia after being suspended by the ECB pending the police investigation, Stokes said that he is doubly determined to win this year’s World Cup on home soil, because “I don’t want to be remembered as the guy who had a fight in the street”.”Thinking all this is going to be taken away from me might be the thing that has changed the way I do things,” Stokes said of an episode which dogged his career for 15 months before being concluded in December last year, at the completion of the ECB’s Cricket Discipline Commission (CDC) hearing. “I was that close to my career ending and being thrown away just like that. Maybe that is it.”It sounds silly but, could Bristol have been the best thing that could have happened to me? Who knows. But maybe in terms of my way of thinking.”Stokes said that his off-field activities had changed since his arrest outside Mbargo nightclub at 2.30am, in the wake of England’s victory over West Indies in an ODI in Bristol.”I don’t go out anymore. I mean, I might go out for dinner, but I don’t go out-out [for a big night] anymore in England.”I used to love going out and celebrating with the lads. But we can do that in the hotel and I don’t miss it. I don’t feel that urge any more. Once you make the transition to not doing it then you don’t miss it”It’s pointless. You get recognised and then, after someone has had a few ego boosters, a few vodka and whatevers, they feel they can come up to you and say whatever they feel. There are people ready to target you everywhere you go. I prefer staying in and chatting nonsense with my team-mates.”Stokes added that he had learned a different way to let off steam amid the pressures of being a high-profile sportsman, and accepted that, at the age of 27, he’s reaching the point of his career when he needs to take greater care of his athleticism.”The older you get the harder you’ve got to train,” Stokes says. “You don’t have niggles when you’re 20. But as you get older you start to feel it. I’m only 27 but it is about this age that everything starts to hurt a bit more and it’s harder to get going.”I just feel that the best thing to do if I want to play for as long as possible is be as fit as I can be. I don’t want to look back at the end of my career and say I could have done more and I could have tried harder.”He also insisted that the England team as a whole did not have a “drinking culture”, a claim that was exacerbated by a spate of incidents during the Ashes tour in 2017-18, the trip that Stokes himself missed in the wake of his arrest.”I’m not sure where that phrase came from,” he says. “But it’s very unfair. I guess you put what happened in Bristol and then what happened in Australia with Jonny Bairstow together and, even though they were completely different situations, they involve alcohol, so suddenly it’s seen as a drinking problem. It’s not right the phrase.””That night wasn’t normal,” he added of the Bristol incident. “I hardly drink. I might have a beer or glass of wine over dinner.”Stokes’ involvement with a children’s charity in Jaipur is just one aspect of how he is now seeking to use his high profile to improve the lot of others who are less fortunate than he is.”I know I’m in a very fortunate position. I make a good living doing something I used to do for fun as a kid messing around in the garden. I’m in a fortunate position, so you try and give what you can, I guess.””It is a terrible situation,” Stokes said of the levels of child poverty in India. “But it is good that people are going to hear about it and see what I’ve had my eyes opened to. I’m definitely going to stay involved.”He added: “No matter what happens in life with me now, the Bristol thing will always be there. It’s something I’ll always carry with me. It’ll always be there. Always.”I want to do things on the field to be remembered for. If we win the World Cup, that becomes the first paragraph [of his ESPNcricinfo profile], doesn’t it? I don’t want to be remembered as the guy who had a fight in the street.”

Smriti Mandhana’s 98-ball 84 and fast bowlers Jhulan Goswami and Shikha Pandey’s combined returns of 7 for 47 in 17.2 overs, helped India to a thumping 88-run win against South Africa

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Feb-2018
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Smriti Mandhana’s 98-ball 84 and fast bowlers Jhulan Goswami and Shikha Pandey’s combined returns of 7 for 47 in 17.2 overs, helped India open the new cycle of their ICC Women’s Championship campaign with a thumping 88-run win against South Africa in the first ODI in Kimberley. India climbed to fourth on the table after just one game, ahead of England, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, who have played three games apiece.After electing to bat first, India made a strong start with a 55-run opening stand between Punam Raut and Mandhana in 90 balls. The game, though, was set up by a 99-run second-wicket stand between Mandhana – who reached the milestone of 1000 runs in ODIs with a four – and No. 3 Mithali Raj, who fell five runs short of her fifth fifty-plus score in the last 10 matches. MandhanaSouth Africa hit back with four wickets for 14 runs in the space of 39 balls. After Mandhana fell in the 35th over, India could only muster 59 runs in the last 87 balls. Marizanne Kapp and Ayabonga Khaka claimed two wickets each.India’s quicks then did irreparable damage to South Africa’s top order with three wickets in the first 10 overs. The hosts were quickly reduced to 57 for 5 before captain Dane van Niekerk and Kapp steadied the innings with a 37-run partnership. Pandey finished with 3 for 23, while Goswami, who is now one shy of her 200th ODI scalp, cleaned up the tail to return figures of 4 for 24 as South Africa were bundled out for 125 in the 44th over.

A round-up of the third round of matches from the Plunket Shield 2016-17

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Nov-2016Tim Southee and Ish Sodhi took fourteen wickets between them to lead Northen Districts to a 21-run win in a low-scoring match against Canterbury in Hamilton. The win took Northern Districts to the top of table.Northern Districts batted only 29.5 overs in the first innings after being put in, and were bowled out for 138. Medium-pacer Kyle Jamieson did the bulk of the damage, taking 4 for 32. But Tim Southee’s five-wicket haul and Ish Sodhi’s four added to a first-day tally of 21 wickets as Canterbury folded for 112 in response.Daryl Mitchell (44) top-scored for Northern Districts in the second innings, and five others got into double figures, as they were bowled for 181. Canterbury began their chase of 208 with a 62-run opening stand between Michael Davidson (45) and Peter Fulton (28), before losing 5 wickets for 41, to slump to 103 for 5. The last-wicket pair of Henry Shipley (26) and Ed Nuttall (11) put on 33 – the second-highest partnership of the innings – but could only take them to 186 before the match ended early on day four.Luke Woodcock scored his second consecutive century of the season – an unbeaten 203 – as the match between Wellington and Auckland ended in a draw. Martin Guptill, who scored 159 runs in the three Tests on the tour of India, struck form in the game, with a fifty in the first innings and an unbeaten 128 in Auckland’s second innings, after they were set a target of 342.Woodcock’s innings was instrumental in helping Wellington declare their first innings at 475 for 8 after having been at 79 for 4 early in the match, following strikes from Cody Andrews (3-101) and Dan Grobbelaar (2-95). Woodcock put on century stands with Tom Blundell (85) and Matt McEwan (63) – the latter for the eighth wicket – as Wellington last four wickets added 396 runsJeet Raval’s 84 and his 110-run opening stand with Martin Guptill (56) set Auckland up in their reply. Michael Guptill-Bunce then made 109 at No.3, but there were no other significant contributions, as they were bowled out for 374 and conceded a 101-run lead. McEwan followed up his half-century with 4 for 80.Both teams scored at well over four runs per over in their second innings. Legspinner Tarun Nethula took 5 for 71 as Wellington played attackingly while trying to set a target.Anaru Kitchen (133) and Josh Finnie (98) both made career-best scores as Otago overturned a shaky first-innings start to take control of the rest of their drawn game against Central Districts in Dunedin.19-year-old Finnie joined Kitchen when Otago were reduced to 101 for 5 after electing to bat. He narrowly missed out on a maiden century when the pair’s 182-run stand was broken by Doug Bracewell (3-58). Kitchen then reached his seventh first-class hundred and put on 61 with Derek de Boorder (45*) who batted with the tail to stretch Otago’s score to 402.Fast bowler Neil Wagner then took three early wickets to reduce Central Districts to 22 for 4 from 19 for zero. A 112-run partnership between Tom Bruce (83) and Dan Cleaver (50) briefly stabilized Central Districts, but they conceded a 186-run lead – in being bowled out for 216 – that allowed Otago to press for a result and set a target of 400.Hamish Rutherford led that effort – 213 for 7 at 5.39 per over – with a 107-ball 110 studded with nine fours and five sixes. But Central Districts were led by Ajaz Patel (45), Mitch Renwick (48) and Tom Bruce (55) as they batted out a little over three sessions to earn a draw.

Umar Akmal made 38 to give Pakistan a late boost after a regular fall of wickets, and the target was made to look bigger with the bowlers dismantling the Zimbabwe top order inside five overs

The Report by Deivarayan Muthu29-Sep-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details1:12

By The Numbers – Six on the trot for Pakistan

The second T20I between Pakistan and Zimbabwe more or less followed the same script as the first. Having chosen to bat, Pakistan scraped to 136 again, and the Zimbabwe batsmen were never on course during the chase. Umar Akmal struck a busy 38 to lend the visitors late boost after a regular fall of wickets, and the target was made to look bigger with the Pakistan bowlers dismantling the Zimbabwe top order inside five overs. The asking rate continued to rise and the hosts eventually fell short by 15 runs.Chamu Chibhabha was given out lbw in the third over of the chase despite the ball pitching outside leg stump, Hamilton Masakadza made room and carved Mohammad Irfan to third man, while some sharp fielding from the tag team of Shahid Afridi and Sohaib Maqsood ran out Craig Ervine. Imad Wasim then struck in his second over when Richmond Mutumbami, scoreless for seven balls, was bowled through the gate. The Pakistan fielders cranked up the intensity, cut down runs and ably backed their bowlers up.Sean Williams and Sikandar Raza offered some resistance with a 60-run partnership, using nudges and bunts while occasionally attempting reverse-sweeps and slogs. Just as Zimbabwe looked to find a higher gear, Raza was dismissed by a canny slower ball from Imran Khan for his maiden international wicket. At that point, the equation read 53 runs from 23 balls.Elton Chigumbura, though, gave Zimbabwe an outside chance when he hit two sixes off Imran over long-off in the 17th over. The first one was palmed over the fence by Ahmed Shehzad, and the second cleared him comfortably. The returning Irfan, coming in for Wahab Riaz, snuffed out Zimbabwe’s slender chance by having Chigumbura caught at long-on for 17 off 8 balls. Williams and Luke Jongwe fought it out but could only reduce the margin of defeat.While Irfan generated typical extra bounce even on a slow pitch, Imran was impressive with his assortment of slower cutters. They finished with combined figures of 8-0-60-4 as Pakistan claimed their third straight T20 series win.The match-winning target was set up by Akmal, who came in at 72 for 4, and boosted Pakistan’s innings. He began with a brace of fours before he launched the first six of the game off the penultimate ball of the innings. Akmal was also adept in finding gaps and Wasim managed a couple of fours as Pakistan took 14 runs off the last over.The start too had been bright before the middle order botched it up. Mohammad Hafeez, the other change in Pakistan’s XI, did not take much time to find his bearings, playing a handsome drive and two pulls.However, Tinashe Panyangara dismissed Shehzad for seven in the fourth over, and two overs later Hafeez was undone by the slowness of the pitch when he tamely chipped Jongwe to short midwicket.The Shoaibs – Malik and Maqsood – threatened to mount a recovery but were foiled by the spinners. Their 30-run stand ended when Malik dragged Graeme Cremer to long-on. Instead of going back to rebuilding mode, Maqsood advanced down the track the following over and played an injudicious shot: skewing one into the lap of backward point. Rizwan and Afridi also failed but Akmal lifted Pakistan, despite good variations from Panyangara and Jongwe at the death.

Australia coach Mickey Arthur has said the selectors would welcome Michael Hussey back if he decided to make a return for this year’s Ashes series, given the lack of experience in Australia’s Test squad

Brydon Coverdale in Delhi19-Mar-2013Australia coach Mickey Arthur has said the selectors would welcome Michael Hussey back if he decided to make a return for this year’s Ashes series, given the lack of experience in Australia’s Test squad. However, Arthur said he was confident that in time the younger members of Australia’s team would be capable of filling the vacuum left by the retirements of Hussey and Ricky Ponting, although their absence had contributed to the slipping team culture over the past few months.Arthur also conceded he had put his job on the line with the uncompromising decision to leave four players out of the Mohali Test due to their failure to complete a task in which they were asked for ideas on how they and the team could improve. But he said such a move was necessary to bring the culture of the team back to where it needed to be following the departures of Ponting and Hussey, whose intense work ethic served as examples to their younger colleagues.A Hussey comeback appears unlikely given his decision to retire was made largely due to his desire to spend more time at home with his young family, and the Ashes tour would require him to be away for two and a half months. But the Australians have missed Hussey badly during the ongoing Indian tour and given that he has remained a solid run-scorer in the Sheffield Shield, Arthur said the door would be open if he wanted to return.”We’d certainly listen to Mike Hussey if Mike Hussey came knocking at our door,” Arthur said. “But that’s a hypothetical at the moment. He’s retired. We’ve moved on now, you know. Yeah we miss him. We miss the aura of Ricky Ponting. But I’m hoping that these younger players will take over that mantle in time to come. They’re nowhere near ready yet.”But in time to come they’ve got to step up and take on those mantles because they’re going to be the role models for the next generation of cricketers. I’m confident we’ve got the best players here. These guys just need to be given that confidence and just need to stand up. I’m pretty sure they will.”However, the young squad did need a rev up from Arthur, captain Michael Clarke and team manager Gavin Dovey last week when those four players were left out of the team. The bold decision was described by Arthur as a line in the sand after standards had slipped among the wider playing group during the Indian tour, from players being late to meetings to wearing the wrong uniforms, to giving back-chat.The decision has split opinion in the cricket world and although Cricket Australia’s board backed the team management in their move, Arthur is well aware that it could be a make-or-break moment in his coaching career. Arthur took the reins of the Australia team in late 2011 but it is 2013 that will define the Arthur-Clarke leadership team, with two Ashes series coming up. Things have not started well in India.”I would say I’ve put my neck on the line,” Arthur said. “But I’ve put my neck on the line because I’m really passionate about Australian cricket and I’m very passionate about this team. I want this team to achieve ultimate success and that’s to get to number one in the world. It was needed. It had to happen and the responses have been fantastic. I’m comfortable. It was a week of massive pain. It really was. But I’m comfortable.”I sit here now knowing that this team is going in the right direction. People will say why did it take so long. It took so long because the team was running itself, because we had some senior players around it; we don’t have those senior players around this team any more. This team needed to be shown direction and it got a pretty clear message of that before this Test match.””We’ve got to understand where we’re at at the moment with a very young group of players that needs to be shown the right way to go. If you’ve got older, senior players the team governs itself and then it’s easy just to run and coach. If you’ve got a young team you need to grab the team and really make the players understand what their responsibilities and ownerships are of the side.”Although Arthur is happy with the response from within the squad after the tumultuous past week, his hardline stance has brought him plenty of criticism from former players, fans and the media. In fact, the online abuse became so bad that Arthur decided on Tuesday to delete his Twitter account.”I think if you’re on it you just open yourself up to that [abuse],” he said. “There has been some very positive stuff as well, but it’s not worth it. I’ve got bigger things to worry about than Twitter to be honest.”

Jamaica made it six wins out of six by completing a clinical victory over Combined Campuses and Colleges in Bridgetown, Barbados

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Mar-2012
Scorecard
Jamaica made it six wins out of six by completing a clinical victory over Combined Campuses and Colleges in Bridgetown, Barbados. It was a team effort from Jamaica, with a string of useful contributions from the batsmen taking them to decent totals, and the bowlers hunting in packs to dismiss CCC cheaply.CCC were set a target of 321 runs, a tough ask in a season in which the highest fourth-innings total to win a game is 219. They managed to last only 56.1 overs and were all out for 166 early on the fourth morning. Legspinner Odean Brown picked up a five-wicket haul as CCC lost their last five wickets for only 23 runs.CCC had a chance to put Jamaica under pressure after bowling them out for 200 on the first day. Medium-pacers Jason Dawes and Jason Holder had taken three wickets each to inflict the damage. However, CCC failed to capitalise and crashed to 137 all out. Shacaya Thomas, who scored 78, was the only batsman who showed resistance against Jamaica’s persistent bowling attack.With a 63-run deficit to deal with, CCC were unable to restrict Jamaica’s top order, with Tamar Lambert getting a half-century. Although no one else got to 50, each of the top five made contributions, and Jamaica added enough runs to take the game away from CCC. Ryan Austin bagged five wickets but he too struggled to curtail the scoring and gave away 89 runs.Jamaica will face Guyana in the semi-finals, in Kingston from March 30.

Graeme Swann admitted that England were left shell-shocked by the manner and magnitude of their incredible three-wicket defeat at the hands of Kevin O’Brien on Wednesday night

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Mar-2011Graeme Swann admitted that England were left shell-shocked by the manner and magnitude of their incredible three-wicket defeat at the hands of Kevin O’Brien on Wednesday night, but insisted that the team’s best response would be to put the result right out of their minds as they turn their attention to Sunday’s crucial showdown against the Group B pacesetters, South Africa, in Chennai.As Ireland’s celebrations continued long and loud in the wake of the biggest result of their lives, England flew out of Bangalore knowing that their World Cup campaign is in danger of sliding out of control, after three consecutive fixtures – including a thrilling tie with India – in which their frailties have been exposed with both bat and ball. However, with contests against South Africa, Bangladesh and West Indies still to come, qualification for the quarter-finals remains in their own hands, so long as they revert to winning ways at the earliest opportunity.”If we are going to win this World Cup – which we truly believe we can – we’ve got to go out and prove it, and we do that first and foremost in the field,” said Swann. “Four or five days ago, the whole world was saying ‘Oh my God, England can win’ this – because we didn’t get destroyed by that invincible Indian team. We know the fickle nature of the world, and we’re going to ignore that and just carry on and play the best cricket we can.”At 111 for 5, chasing a massive 328 for victory, Ireland’s chances of victory were seemingly non-existent, until Kevin O’Brien climbed onto the offensive with the innings of his – or anyone else’s – life. His incredible 50-ball century slammed England’s bowlers onto the defensive, and in partnership with first Alex Cusack and then John Mooney, Ireland clawed their way back into the contest.”It’s disappointing to lose any game of cricket,” said Swann. “But it was one where we got ourselves into a position of such dominance, to then have it taken away from us is quite shell-shocking. Every now and again someone wakes up and has the best day of their life – and yesterday Kevin O’Brien did that. We should have bowled better; we certainly could have bowled better, but that’s tarnishing the knock he had – personally I think he won the game rather than we lost it.”Despite that assertion, the cracks in England’s performance were visible long before O’Brien got going, with Matt Prior dropping a steepling chance behind the stumps to reprieve Ed Joyce, and Swann himself was visibly peeved with his fielders before claiming three quick wickets to put his team firmly in charge of the contest. “A lot of guys were peed off, and rightly so,” he said. “We got ourselves into a position where the opposition were 110 for five, with 20 overs to go. That’s a game an international team of the calibre that we feel we are should win 10 out of 10.””It’s annoying in the extreme, but I’m not taking anything away from Kevin O’Brien and the performance of his life,” Swann added. “It’s the best knock I’ve seen in a long time. If a guy gets 100 off 60 balls [sic], a guy gets 100 off 60 balls. There’s not a lot you can do, except say we should have bowled differently – and in the next game we will do. If we start panicking and thinking we’re the disgrace that half the people on Twitter thought we were last night, there’s no point in us playing.”You can always bowl better,” he added. “When a guy hits that many sixes you are obviously putting the ball in the wrong place. We could have bowled more yorkers and more slower balls wide of the wicket – that’s easy in retrospect to say. When you’re in the middle and the pressure is on with a guy going great guns, it can be difficult to think clearly. But we back ourselves to be professional and think clearly, so in future that’s certainly something we have to look at.”