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The former captain smashed 144, including a last-wicket stand with Tamim Iqbal who came out to bat with a broken hand, to lift Bangladesh to a winning total

The Report by Andrew Fidel Fernando15-Sep-2018
1:01

Maharoof: SL need specialist batsmen, not allrounders

Mushfiqur Rahim’s sublime 144 hauled Bangladesh kicking and screaming to 261, then a fired-up Mashrafe Mortaza set in motion a Sri Lanka collapse, and the first match of the Asia Cup soon turned into a thrashing – Bangladesh claiming victory by 137 runs, after Sri Lanka crashed to 69 for 7, then 124 all out.A third Bangladesh senior had also played an impressive role in the victory. Tamim Iqbal faced only four deliveries in all, but he had crucially come out to bat again with a broken wrist – which he had sustained in the second over – with nine wickets down. Mushfiqur made spectacular use of his teammate’s bravery, hitting a further three fours and three sixes, as 32 runs were added to the team total, lifting Bangladesh from a modest score to a competitive one.Though his contribution was eventually drowned out by those of Bangladesh’s experienced players, one Sri Lanka old-timer also had an outstanding outing. Lasith Malinga, playing his first international in a year, shook off the rust, struck twice in his first over, and finished with 4 for 23 from 10 overs, to suggest that his one-day career was far from done yet. Had his teammates held all their catches, Malinga might have wreaked even more damage. He should have had Mohammad Mithun – who went on to make 63 in a 131-run stand with Mushfiqur – caught at mid on for one, if Angelo Mathews had held the catch while diving forward. In general, Sri Lanka were woeful in the field, spilling no fewer than four catches, including two off Mushfiqur, who was reprieved on 10 and 85. For the umpteenth time in the last three years, their catching can be said to have cost Sri Lanka a one-dayer.Though perhaps it is their batting that was the worse suit on this evening (it’s often difficult to work out which discipline was the worst with this Sri Lanka ODI team). Kusal Mendis – opening in place of Danushka Gunathilaka – was Bangladesh’s first victim, when he got himself trapped in front of the stumps the first ball he faced. Upul Tharanga had been storming away at the other end, and looked good for a big innings, until, typically, he suddenly played a poor shot. Attempting to steer a Mashrafe delivery to third man, Tharanga only managed to play it on to his stumps. Mashrafe would have a second important wicket soon after – nailing Dhananjaya de Silva in front of the stumps for a duck, with de Silva going on to waste Sri Lanka’s review. The review could potentially have saved Kusal Perera later on.Mushfiqur Rahim celebrates after reaching his sixth ODI century•ISHARA S. KODIKARA/AFP/Getty Images

In general, this was not an evening of good decision-making from Sri Lanka’s batsmen. Kusal Perera’s lbw (he had actually got a thin inside edge to that ball from Mehidy Hasan) left the team 38 for 4, not long before Angelo Mathews compounded Sri Lanka’s woes by running out Dasun Shanaka as the pair attempted a painstaking recovery. Thisara Perera holed out soon enough, and Mathews was himself dismissed for 16 off 34 balls – trapped lbw by Rubel Hossain. That Sri Lanka even survived into the 36th over and made as many as 124 was down to a plucky tail, who hung around, despite the target being clearly out of their reach. Even the tail’s efforts were not enough to prevent a record though – this victory was Bangladesh’s biggest in terms of runs, away from home.Although Mushfiqur had a little luck early on – having been dropped in the 10th over – his was nevertheless a terrific innings. He had begun slowly, playing out a maiden against the red-hot Malinga, before later producing Bangladesh’s first boundary of the match, off the last ball of the eighth over. He built steadily alongside Mithun, taking an especial liking to Sri Lanka’s finger-spinners, often venturing down the track to them, sometimes to hit boundaries.Although after Mithun fell, Mahmudullah and Mosaddek Hossain followed in quick succession, Mushfiqur batted efficiently with the tail, looking for boundaries at the start of each over, and singles towards the end. Despite his best efforts, the lower order batsmen continued to perish, however, and Bangladesh found themselves nine down in the 47th over, which should have been the end of their innings given one of their batsmen had suffered a fractured wrist earlier in the innings.Tamim, though, made the courageous decision to bat again, with his bottom hand in a cast. He hid that injured left hand behind his body, and rode out a Suranga Lakmal ball at his ribs, to hand the strike over to Mushfiqur, who didn’t disappoint. Mushfiqur moved expertly around the crease to smoke a spate of valuable late boundaries, moving past his previous best ODI score of 117, while twice making sure to take a single off the last ball of the over, to ensure Tamim did not have to face another ball. Mushfiqur had hit successive sixes off the first two balls of the final over, bowled by Thisara Perera, before he holed out attempting a third six. His valiant hand would turn out to be more than enough for Bangladesh to claim an important first victory in the tournament.

After the protracted saga preceding his own appointment as the new India coach, Ravi Shastri is eager for the focus to shift to his players and their cricket

Arun Venugopal in Mumbai19-Jul-20171:50

‘Arun knows these boys better than I do’ – Shastri

After the protracted saga preceding his own appointment as the new India coach, Ravi Shastri is eager for the focus to shift to his players and their cricket. Speaking ahead of India’s departure for Sri Lanka on Wednesday, Shastri provided a peek into the kind of coach he might be, placing the credit for a team’s success squarely on its players, and saying that coaches like him and Anil Kumble will “come and go”.

Shastri hails under-rated Arun

Ravi Shastri hailed newly-appointed bowling coach Bharat Arun’s “outstanding” track record and cited his familiarity with the team’s players as his strength. Arun was appointed by a four-member committee on Tuesday, following Shastri’s recommendation.
“Fifteen years [of] his life he has been coaching,” Shastri said of Arun. “You look at that track record, it is outstanding. Right from junior level to A teams to Indian junior World Cup teams, he has been a part of them. He knows these boys better than I do because he has been in the system for the last 15 years.”
Shastri suggested Arun was under-rated because he hadn’t played much international cricket – representing India in two Tests and four ODIs.
“You look at the last World Cup, India took 77 out of 80 wickets,” he said. “If Bharat Arun’s name was someone else who has played a lot of Test cricket, you would have put him on top of the tree. So, I don’t need to elaborate too much on what he is good at, what are his strengths. It is there for everyone to see”.

“I have matured immensely in the last two weeks [during the coach-appointment process],” Shastri said. “Mine will be a refresh button that will be pushed. I carry on from where I left. I don’t come with any baggage.”The team has done exceedingly well over three years and they are the people who deserve the credit more than anybody else. These Ravi Shastris, Anil Kumbles will come and go. The fabric of Indian cricket will remain and the credit should go to everyone who has participated in this Indian team over the last three years. If they are No. 1 today [in Tests], it is their efforts they have put in over that three-year period and they deserve the credit. People like us will come and go”.India enjoyed considerable success under both Shastri as team director and Kumble as coach. During Kumble’s one-year reign, India won series in West Indies, and at home against New Zealand, England, Bangladesh and Australia, losing only one of 17 Test matches along the way. Under Shastri, whose earlier tenure as team director lasted almost two years, India made it to semi-finals of successive global events – the 2015 World Cup and the 2016 World T20, and also won their first limited-overs bilateral series in Australia, whitewashing the hosts 3-0 in T20Is.In his second coming, Shastri will work with his core team – Sanjay Bangar (assistant coach), Bharat Arun (bowling coach) and R Sridhar (fielding coach) – from his previous stint. Shastri said his job was to make the player focus on his game “without a care in the world for anything outside”.”When you play the game, you want your mind clear,” he said. “You want to be able to focus inwards without a care in the world for anything outside. That happens with good communication with the support staff. My job is to do exactly that with every player – to put him in a frame of mind where he is thinking only about his role and he is thinking about the team he is playing for and, of course, the opposition which we always respect. And that’s his job, period.”Captain Virat Kohli felt working with a coaching staff the team was familiar with meant everybody knew what to expect from one another. “We have worked together for three years – 2014, 2015 and 2016 – so that amount of understanding is bound to be there,” he said. “Since we have worked together in the past, we know what’s expected and what’s going to be on the plate and what’s worked for us in the past.”I think understanding and communication is something that works in every walk of life. The changing-room environment is nothing different. You need to have all those aspects for any relationship to work in life. It’s not just confined to cricket.”We follow the same rules of life that are followed everywhere else. I don’t see anything different that can be elaborated upon this. Everyone has gone through experience of relationships somewhere or the other in their lives. The same rules apply here”.Asked if there was extra pressure to perform since he now had a familiar coaching staff, Kohli replied in the negative and said he shut out external factors. “I don’t think there is any added pressure because what has to happen will happen, I believe in that, regardless of what happens around on the outside world,” he said. “As a team, we aspire to achieve what we want to achieve. Every one of us has faced hardships in the past. Criticism and being criticised is nothing new, so we understand that aspect of playing sport as well.”I only have the bat in hand and my job is to go out there on the field and control what’s being done on the field. And, that’s something that I have focused on in the past couple of months, two months and I continue to do so. [A] lot of speculation and lot of things fly around and those things are not in my control. As I said, my job is to go out there on the field and try to bring the best out of this team along with the management and try to perform to the best of my abilities which I believe in.”I only started off as a player and I wanted to do the best for the team. And, I continue to take up this responsibility and will continue to do so in the future years, till the team I am the captain or I am kept at this position. That’s what I see of it. I mean you only have to look at the series you are going to play ahead of you. If you focus only on these external factors, it’s very similar to you going out to bat and thinking what if I get out. It can happen in any scenario, so you just need to take care of your mindset and move forward.”Ahead of the Sri Lanka tour, where India will play three Tests, five ODIs and a T20I, Kohli looked back on the 2015 series as a “landmark” tour in setting the template for India’s performances overseas. Particularly heartening to him was the manner in which India came back from 1-0 down to win the Test series 2-1. It was Kohli’s second Test series as a full-time captain after India had drawn the only Test in Bangladesh under him in June 2015.”If you look at the average age of that team a couple of years back – I mean obviously the players have matured from then on and it’s been 24 months, but that tour for us was a sort of start of the belief system that we can win away from home and we do have the side required to win away from home,” he said. “And, we do have the culture that’s been created in the team to win whatever Test matches or Test series that we play.”So, the mindset immediately was to try and win series and losing the first Test was a shock to us. The way we bounced back was only because of the team culture that was created at that stage where our players were the less experienced if you compared us and Sri Lanka. The comparison of number of Tests was not even close. But, we showed more belief in our abilities and that we could win from any situation and that really turned our mindset around. From then on, you can see the results that we have had so far.  We have away series coming up, so the same mindset would apply now what we started back in 2015”.

Former Barbados fast bowler Roderick Estwick has been named West Indies’ bowling coach and will replace Curtly Ambrose in the role, the WICB announced on Friday

ESPNcricinfo staff14-May-2016Former Barbados fast bowler Roderick Estwick has been named West Indies’ bowling coach and will replace Curtly Ambrose, who served as a consultant, the WICB announced on Friday.Estwick will join the team at a preparatory camp from May 19, and his first assignment will be the home tri-series against Australia and South Africa, which starts from June 3 in Guyana.Ambrose had served as a consultant for the last three years and his most recent assignment was West Indies’ World T20 triumph in India in April. The WICB press release did not state a reason for Ambrose’s exit.Estwick, who was the bowling coach of the Barbados domestic side, has also coached the West Indies Under-19 and Barbados Under-19 teams previously, apart from participating in the High Performance Centre programme. He played 37 first-class matches between 1982-83 and 1989-90, taking 141 wickets at an average of 21.9. In 42 List A matches in the same period, Estwick took 43 wickets.

A ton from Kusal Perera and a half-century from Ashan Priyanjan guided Sri Lanka A to an eight-wicket win over Pakistan A in the first unofficial ODI in Matara

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Apr-2015
ScorecardFile Photo – Kusal Perera struck 18 fours and a six during his 88-ball 114•AFP

A ton from Kusal Perera and a half-century from Ashan Priyanjan guided Sri Lanka A to an eight-wicket win over Pakistan A in the first unofficial ODI in Matara.Chasing 204, Sri Lanka’s didn’t start well as they lost Shehan Jayasuriya and Dhanuskha Gunthilaka for single digits inside six overs. Perera then had an unbeaten 152-run partnership with Priyanjan for the third wicket. He struck 114 from 88 balls including 18 fours and a six, before retiring hurt in the 30th over.Priyanjan played second fiddle to Perera in the partnership, scoring an unbeaten 57 from 77 balls with four fours and one six. Milinda Siriwardana and Priyanjan saw Sri Lanka home after Perera retired hurt.Pakistan A had chosen to bat and found themselves at 66 for 3 in the 17th over. Umar Amin and Fawad Alam then put on 62 for the fourth wicket, a stand that ended with the fall of Amin’s wicket, leaving them 128 for 4 in the 32nd over.A couple of 30-plus partnerships took Pakistan past 200 but they were bowled out for 203. Their captain Alam top-scored with a 74-ball 58. Tharindu Kaushal, Lahiru Gamage and Jayasuriya picked up two wickets each while Dushmantha Chameera ended with figures of 3 for 34

Yuvraj Singh has answered questions over his fitness with his double-century against Central Zone, according to Shikhar Dhawan and former cricketer Ajay Mehra

Abhishek Purohit15-Oct-2012Yuvraj Singh has answered questions over his fitness with a double-century against Central Zone in his first first-class match since recovering from cancer, according to two men who watched the innings closely. Shikhar Dhawan, Yuvraj’s North Zone captain, said no one could play such a long knock without being fit. Ajay Mehra, the former first-class cricketer who is working as a commentator on the game in Hyderabad, said Yuvraj had proved a lot of critics wrong with his performance. His former India team-mate and opposition captain, Mohammad Kaif, said Yuvraj had displayed impeccable timing through most of the innings*.Yuvraj’s innings lasted over five-and-a-half hours and he took the field after lunch on the second day during Central Zone’s innings, standing in the slip cordon for most of the day. Dhawan, who made 121 and batted for over 20 overs with Yuvraj during their third-wicket partnership, praised his senior partner’s mental strength.”I felt really good for Yuvi ,” Dhawan told ESPNcricinfo. “He is such a motivation for all youngsters. It was a classy innings. I loved seeing him from the other end. The way he came in and started batting, I [laughing] told him he had almost finished the game. He is a very strong man mentally.”If someone is scoring a double-century, he has to be fit. He was running very fast during the innings. We ran several quick singles and threes.”Yuvraj was selected for the recently concluded World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka without having played any competitive match since November 2011, though he trained at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore. He showed signs of rustiness in Sri Lanka and he looked tired after running twos and sharp singles, leading former players to question the timing of his comeback.Dhawan, who also trained at the NCA when Yuvraj did, spoke about the effort he had put into his preparation at that time. “I trained with him in the NCA as well before he went to Sri Lanka for the World Twenty20. Even then, he was sprinting hard with high intensity. Of course, it takes time for things to get together for one in a match.”Mehra said Yuvraj had the option of taking some more time off the field but it was good to see that he had chosen to turn out for North Zone in the Duleep Trophy. “It was a test for him,” Mehra said. “He was playing the longer format for the first time since recovering from cancer and he has proved a lot of critics wrong. He could have easily opted out of the Duleep Trophy. He could have said that he wanted some time to get fitter. What was good to see was the way he slogged it out in the middle. He looked very determined and focused. It was pleasing to see the way he applied himself.”There is nothing like match practice. The more he plays, the more he will improve. He has worked hard on his fitness and is looking much better than he did during the World Twenty20.”Kaif, while also expressing disappointment at the runs coming against his team, praised Yuvraj’s “impressive” showing. “The hallmark of this particular innings in Hyderabad was his timing – one of his strengths over the years. When he times the ball well he becomes a completely different batsman and that is what he did during his long stay at the wicket over the first two days of the [match],” Kaif said in the . “What was as impressive as the number of runs Yuvraj scored was the fact that he was able to bat over five hours across two days and he must be very pleased with his level of fitness, which is key when you play the longer versions of the game.Though he scored a large number of runs in boundaries on way to his double hundred he also showed that he could sprint between the wickets. At different points in the game he did steal quick singles.”*05:53 GMT, October 16: This story has been updated with the Mohammad Kaif quotes

Australia’s captain, Michael Clarke, hopes he will have some input into who replaces Tim Nielsen as the team’s coach

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Sep-2011Australia’s captain, Michael Clarke, hopes he will have some input into who replaces Tim Nielsen as the team’s coach. Clarke arrived back home in Sydney on Wednesday night after leading Australia to a 1-0 Test series victory in Sri Lanka, where Nielsen finished the tour by announcing his decision to step down from the coaching role.That means Australia will have an interim coach for next month’s tour of South Africa – probably one of the assistants, Steve Rixon or Justin Langer – while the search goes on for a full-time replacement. Clarke is believed to have a very high regard for his former New South Wales coach, Rixon, and while he did not name any preferred names, he said he hoped his opinions would be considered as Cricket Australia looked for their new man.”I hope I will [have some input],” Clarke said. “I have a really good relationship with James Sutherland, the CEO, and I’m pretty sure it is important the captain and coach have a strong bond. I would imagine I would have some sort of impact and I’ll be communicating with James over however long, to try and work out who they think the best person for the role is.”There’s a lot of successful coaches around the world, and I think the priority, as the review has made very clear, is they are going to try and get the best person for the job. I think Tim Nielsen has done an amazing job for Australia. He’s been fantastic for me, not only as a captain, but as a player and he’s certainly going to be missed.”Leading candidates to replace Nielsen will include Rixon, who has a successful track record having coached New Zealand as well as New South Wales, and Mickey Arthur, the former South Africa mentor. Arthur is preparing for his second season as coach of Western Australia.Nielsen’s resignation came after the release of the Argus review, which recommended a more wide-ranging brief for the head coach. Whoever gets the new job will not only guide the national team, he will also direct the coaching style that will filter down to state and academy level, and with Clarke will be one of Australia’s five-man selection panel.

Marcus Trescothick believes the motivation of playing at Lord’s in the Clydesdale Bank 40 final can help inspire his players

Andrew McGlashan at Lord's17-Sep-2010Marcus Trescothick believes the motivation of playing at Lord’s in the Clydesdale Bank 40 final can help inspire his players to bounce back from the disappointment of seeing the County Championship title clinched by Nottinghamshire. It is Somerset’s last chance to take something from an impressive season, but the Warwickshire coach Ashley Giles is intent on making it a weekend to forget for his former England team-mate.The Somerset squad were shattered on Friday evening after watching Nottinghamshire clinch the Championship crown with the final ball of the competition when they claimed the third wicket they needed against Lancashire to earn a third bonus point. After being held to a draw by Durham at Chester-le-Street, Trescothick’s team had to watch the big screen at the ground and await their fate before making a quick dash to Newcastle airport to fly to London for the one-day final.Somerset had already experienced coming a narrow second-best this summer after watching Hampshire take the Friends Provident t20 title by losing fewer wickets at The Rose Bowl and, despite being the most consistent county unit throughout the season, they face the prospect of having no silverware to show for their efforts.”It was a massive day and the disappointment was pretty tough, but we talked a bit last night and had a flight down from Newcastle,” Trescothick said having reflected on the Championship for a few hours. “But just coming here lifts the mood immediately, getting into the changing rooms, seeing the ground – the best in the world – it picks you up pretty quickly and we’ve not had to say a great deal to the boys. They are all ready to go.”It’s almost the best scenario to get right back into it and play such a big game. I think if we had time to dwell on it for a few days then it would probably last a bit longer. The effect of playing the CB40 is that we have to get straight back up, there’s no other option. The boys have turned it around pretty quickly.”Standing between Somerset and a trophy is an in-form Warwickshire team who enjoyed the final day of the Championship when they secured victory against Hampshire to retain Division One status. Despite having played most of his England career alongside Trescothick, Giles only has one interest in his mind and that’s making sure the Taunton trophy cabinet stays empty this winter.”Somerset, runner’s up twice, it’s our job to make sure it’s three,” he said. “I feel sorry for Marcus, but sympathy ends tomorrow when we arrive back at Lord’s.”Warwickshire will be boosted by the availability of Jonathan Trott, after he was released from one-day duty by England, and he will form a strong top order with Ian Bell who will captain the side and Neil Carter who is in line for county cricket’s Most Valuable Player award. Alongside an in-form Chris Woakes and the legspin threat of Imran Tahir, Warwickshire have plenty of weapons to challenge Somerset although Giles is happy if the opposition remain favourites.”We seem to be the underdogs all the time which suits us, people forget we’ve only lost three 40-over games in two years,” he said. “We took the competition seriously last year where others saw it going out and I think that’s helped us this year.”The reduction of the main domestic one-day tournament from 50 to 40 overs for this season provoked much debate because the international game remains the longer duration. And even among the two teams who have reached the final there remained a split opinion.”The international game is 50 overs and I think you have to have a domestic structure that mirrors it if we want to produce players for 50-over cricket,” Trescothick said. “Having said that I like 20-over cricket, but sometimes it’s a little short and 40 overs is pretty good for the crowd.””When we first talked about it there was some resistance but I think it’s been a brilliant competition,” was the view of Ashley Giles, who also wears his England selectors’ hat. “There’s no dead cricket and scores have gone through the roof. Last year 230-240 was a good score but guys are getting 300 regularly now. We’ve moved the game on and the tempo is closer to 20 overs than 50 overs.”The crowd at Lord’s on Saturday will hope the 40-over season is crowned by another high-scoring encounter.

“She can accelerate as well as play the defensive role, which is great as a batter to have”

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Jan-2025Pratika Rawal has made one of the strongest starts to an ODI career by any batter, male or female. No woman has scored as many runs in their first six innings as Rawal has – 444 at an average of 74.00 – and only one man, South Africa’s Janneman Malan, has done better.On Wednesday, Rawal made her biggest splash yet, stroking 154 off 129 balls, adding 233 with her opening partner Smriti Mandhana, and helping India smash multiple records – including their biggest ODI total, 435 for 5 – during the third ODI against Ireland.Related

• Mandhana and Rawal's tons fire India to record win

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Mandhana, India’s stand-in captain in the absence of Harmanpreet Kaur, was full of praise for Rawal after the match, and noted her versatility as one of her biggest strengths.”Yeah, really pleased with the way she’s batting,” Mandhana said of Rawal. “I feel [she] has a really calm head on her shoulders, knows what she’s doing, has I think both sort of games, where she can accelerate as well as play the defensive role, which is great as a batter to have.”To see her rise from the first one-dayer against West Indies [last month] to now is really nice, and good runner between the wickets as well, converts the ones into twos, which always helps in one-day cricket. So really happy for her, and I hope she keeps continuing her form, because it’s a big year for us [India are due to host the ODI World Cup in August-September].”‘Sometimes you have to go out and respect the conditions, but [on] wickets like these – if it’s in your slot, you have to go for it’•BCCI

India’s batters enjoyed a hugely productive series against Ireland, chasing down 239 in less than 35 overs in the first ODI and posting 370 in the second before Wednesday’s record-obliterating events. Mandhana felt that the Rajkot pitch was the kind where batters could play their shots with utmost freedom, and she certainly did on her way to scoring India’s fastest-ever ODI century, off 70 balls, and finishing with 135 off 80 balls.”I would love to carry this wicket [everywhere I go] as a batter for sure, but as a captain I don’t know. It’s a hard wicket to bowl on. But for me it was very clear than I wanted to go out and try and play shots which are in my arc, because it’s not every day that you get the opportunity to do that as an opening batter, because sometimes you have to go out and respect the conditions and play, but [on] wickets like these and the outfield – if it’s in your slot, you have to go for it.”There was no clear plan. I just said, if it’s in my arc, I’m going to go for it. Some days it comes off, some days it doesn’t. Today I’m happy that it came off.”Having posted a record total, India went on to defend it with aplomb, with spinners Deepti Sharma, Tanuja Kanwar and Minnu Mani sharing six wickets and help bundle Ireland out for 131. The 304-run win was India’s biggest in ODIs.Tanuja Kanwar picked up 2 for 31•BCCI

Ireland had batted through their 50 overs in the first two ODIs, but Mandhana felt India’s bowlers had been just as good in those two games – it was just that there was a bit more help for the spinners in the third ODI, with the same pitch being used through the series, and that Ireland’s batters had tried to play more shots in pursuit of their steep target.”I think today the wicket also gave a lot of assistance to our spinners, because it was the same wicket which was used in the first two ODIs as well, so there was a little bit of spin on offer,” Mandhana said. “I think first two one-dayers, there was not much in it, and also today they came out and were trying to play some shots, and sometimes, when the batters play shots, that’s the best time to get opportunity to get them out.”In the first two one-dayers I thought they were just trying to take a single or double, which again… it’s a hard wicket to bowl and try and get them out. I wouldn’t say that the bowlers did not do [well] in the first or second ODI. I think they bowled brilliantly in the first and second ODI as well, but today there was a little bit more in the wicket for them and, as I said, the batters playing shots helps.”For all the damage the spinners did, it was fast bowlers Titas Sadhu and Sayali Satghare who set the tone, taking two of the first three wickets to begin Ireland’s slide.”Yeah, I think they both bowled really well, got us the first two early wickets, which is always good to get with the new ball, sets the foundations for the spinners to come,” Mandhana said. “Saima [Thakor], Sayali, Titas, all three bowled really well throughout the three ODIs, and it’s a pretty difficult wicket and outfield to bowl [on], so really happy for them.”

New Zealand are on a five-game winning streak, but Afghanistan have just felled England in commanding fashion

Ashish Pant17-Oct-20233:17

McClenaghan: Afghanistan’s spinners will be a big threat for New Zealand

Big Picture: Two teams on a high face off

The 2019 World Cup champions have been taken down. Time for the runners-up next?Afghanistan players have time and again called India their second home. At various points, they have had their base set up at Indian venues like Dehradun, Lucknow and Greater Noida, where they played their “home games”. IPL regulars Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi have always been a crowd favourite, while Naveen-ul-Haq keeps the buzz going.Which is why there was genuine excitement among the Delhi crowd when Afghanistan served defending champions England a 69-run thrashing on Sunday. It was only Afghanistan’s second-ever win in an ODI World Cup game in 18 attempts and their first since 2015.Related

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However, even with the confidence of a big win under their belt, Afghanistan know they have their work cut out as they run into red-hot New Zealand in Chennai. Unbeaten so far in the tournament – three wins out of three – New Zealand seem to have all the pieces of the puzzle in place. But the Chennai surface could prove to be a potential banana peel against the spin trio of Rashid, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Nabi. The three spinners lead the wicket-taking list for Afghanistan in the World Cup so far and will hope for more success on a pitch which is expected to turn.Afghanistan’s biggest issue remains their over-reliance on the top three of Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran and Rahmat Shah. In ODIs since the start of 2021, the trio has accounted for 52.79% of the total runs that Afghanistan have scored. Among all Full Members nations, their middle order (Nos. 4 to 7) has the lowest average: 26.00.This was on display in the game against England as well where Afghanistan collapsed from 114 for 0 to 190 for 6 before the lower order bailed them out. The likes of Hashmatullah Shahidi, Azmatullah Omarzai and Nabi will need to step up and quick.New Zealand have far fewer problems. They come into this game on a five-match winning streak, having won each of these games rather convincingly. Their top order has fired in every game while the bowling unit looks well-rounded. Of course, Kane Williamson’s “undisplaced fracture” to his left thumb might be a cause for concern for them, especially given the nature of this Chennai pitch, but Tom Latham has proven to be an effective leader in his absence.New Zealand might be on a high, but they can’t afford to be complacent against a side that seems to have finally found its mojo.3:47

Should New Zealand look to bring Southee in?

Form guide: New Zealand on a roll

Afghanistan WLLLL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
New Zealand WWWWW

In the spotlight: Mitchell Santner and Mujeeb Ur Rahman

Mitchell Santner has turned his 2023 upside down and how! Coming into the World Cup, Santner had only four wickets in seven ODIs at an average of 80.25 and economy of 5.24 in 2023. Three matches into the tournament, he has already doubled that tally and is currently the joint-leading wicket-taker alongside Jasprit Bumrah and Matt Henry with eight scalps at 15.87. He’s been excellent with his pace variations and has tied the batters down in the powerplay. Chepauk is like home away from home for Santner. He has been with the Chennai Super Kings squad in the IPL since 2019 and will want to put up another solid show on “home” territory.Mujeeb Ur Rahman did not start off the World Cup the way he wanted but did a star turn against England first with the bat and then picking up 3 for 51 to take home the Player of the Match award. He’s been Afghanistan’s joint-leading wicket-taker in ODIs this year and, having found his groove, will want to inflict more damage against New Zealand come Wednesday.

Team news: Who comes in for Williamson?

With Williamson out injured for a while, Will Young is the likely candidate to take his place in the New Zealand XI. He is likely to slot back into the opening position, with Rachin Ravindra expected to move to the No. 3 spot. Tom Latham will lead the side once more.New Zealand (probable): 1 Devon Conway, 2 Will Young, 3 Rachin Ravindra, 4 Tom Latham (capt, wk), 5 Daryl Mitchell, 6 Glenn Phillips, 7 Mark Chapman, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Matt Henry, 10 Lockie Ferguson, 11 Trent BoultCan Rashid Khan and Co spring another surprise?•Associated Press

Afghanistan are unlikely to make any changes to the playing XI that beat England convincingly.Afghanistan (probable): 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz, 2 Ibrahim Zadran, 3 Rahmat Shah, 4 Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), 5 Azmatullah Omarzai, 6 Mohammad Nabi, 7 Ikram Alikhil (wk), 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 10 Naveen-ul-Haq, 11 Fazalhaq Farooqi

Pitch and conditions: Turner in Chepauk?

The first game of the World Cup in Chennai, between India and Australia, was played on black-soil turner, but the second game had a lot in it for the fast bowlers. Historically, surfaces in Chennai have aided spin and that is likely to be the case on Wednesday as well.There was a slight drizzle in Chennai on the eve of the game, but the forecast is clearer on match day.

Stats and trivia

• Mitchell Santner is just one short of 100 wickets in ODIs, while Mujeeb Ur Rahman needs four wickets to reach the 100-mark in the format.
• Rashid Khan has gone wicketless just three times in ODIs in India and has picked up two or more wickets in an innings seven times in 15 innings.
• Rahmanullah Gurbaz has fallen to left-arm orthodox spinners in four out of seven innings and averages just 20 against them.
• Ibrahim Zadran is just 17 short of 1000 runs in ODIs. If he gets there on Wednesday, he will be the quickest Afghanistan batter to the landmark in the format.

Quotes

“See Rahmanullah [Gurbaz] is one of the players in our team who is I believe a match-winner player. He can change the game anytime.”

Clubs won’t have long to lock down their recruitment strategies for the new season

Alex Malcolm22-Jun-2022The BBL will aim to get a jump on the new rival T20 leagues emerging in UAE and South Africa by hosting its first overseas player draft in August in a bid to secure leading players early as it attempts to revive the competition.The tournament announced a new overseas recruitment model on Wednesday with top-line overseas players set to earn $AUD340,000 and given the option of nominating the amount of games they want to be available for during December and January without having to commit to the whole tournament.It has been difficult for the BBL to match the riches on offer in the UAE and potentially South Africa, as well as even the BPL and the PSL, given the league is bound by a $AUD1.9 million dollar salary cap for an 18-man squad and for a competition that is significantly longer. But players will get to nominate for three price categories – Gold, Silver and Bronze – with an additional Platinum level on offer for the biggest names. Cricket Australia will contribute a significant portion to each salary bracket to sit outside the cap to help the clubs.There is no official date set for the draft but it is understood that it will likely be held in August, up to four months before the start of the BBL season. The tournament will once again be a full 14-game home and away season likely to run from mid-December to late-January, with fixtures set to be announced in July. There is a need to lift the competition ahead of the next TV rights deal, with the current deal ending in 2024, after a difficult few years compounded by Covid-19.An August draft is not ideal for clubs, who would prefer it be held closer to the season so they have greater clarity on their needs and player availability. However, BBL general manager Alistair Dobson and BBL player acquisition and cricket consultant Trent Woodhill both believe the earlier draft will give high-profile overseas stars clarity and options to lock themselves into playing in the BBL prior to the UAE and South Africa leagues getting established in what is set to be a crowded January calendar.”We are keen to be able to provide players and agents and clubs with a timeline that gives certainty and allows them to plan their year and be confident that the BBL is a place they want to come and play which we know they’re looking forward to,” Dobson told ESPNcricinfo.The BBL is confident they can secure some big names after early fruitful discussions with agents.”It’s actually been really positive,” Woodhill told ESPNcricinfo. “I feel like there’s clarity. Players want certainty. Player agents now have an opportunity to put their players up in lights and then work with the clubs to promote their players. The clubs get a choice. And I think it really suits the competition. And I’m confident they’re going to get some really good names.The league has previously left the recruitment of overseas players to the clubs to do privately. But Woodhill believes the draft will bring greater fan interest to the process with clubs’ decisions on who they select base on who is available now out in the open.”By having a draft, it’s up in lights,” he said. “It’s harder for the clubs to dismiss a high-profile player and they have an opportunity to draft them or choose somebody else in the draft.”I like the fact there is a choice. The choice for the player in what band they nominate in but also a choice for the clubs to see how they fit into their existing domestic team. And then explaining why they’ve done that. You always want to know why teams have gone for a spinner or a quick or an allrounder or maybe a frontline bat. So I’m excited to see the viewpoint of the club and the explanation from the club as to why they’ve gone for one big name over another.”The one downside that has been discussed among players is that the draft does not allow overseas names to choose where they will play, with a summer stint based in the beachside eastern suburbs of Sydney proving a popular recruiting tool for Sydney Sixers pre-Covid, for example.Clubs have also been reluctant in the past to pay big portions of the salary cap to star players for short-term deals with some clubs preferring to recruit lower-tier overseas players for specific roles over a full season. Andre Russell did a short stint last year at Melbourne Stars and they missed the finals while AB de Villiers’ six-game stint at Brisbane Heat in 2019-20 was equally unsuccessful.On the flipside, Perth Scorchers recruited lesser-known Englishman Laurie Evans last year for a very specific middle-order role. He was available to play for the entire campaign with Scorchers on less money and ended up being Player of the Match in the final fulfilling the exact role he was recruited for.There was some push and pull from the BBL and the clubs initially when the draft concept was raised with clubs still keen to do their own bespoke recruiting. However, clubs have been pleased that they were able to work with the league to come up with a draft model that allows clubs to use one retention pick, so that teams like Adelaide Strikers get to retain Rashid Khan even if another club drafts him.Clubs also won’t be forced to take a big-money Platinum player who is only available for a short stint if they would prefer to recruit a lesser name in a Silver or Bronze category for the full year. Dobson, Woodhill and the clubs have been meeting weekly over zoom to discuss the mechanics of the draft.”We’ve consulted for a long period of time with clubs and they’re excited about what the draft brings,” Dobson said. “I think there’s a bit of apprehension around the pressure and it is new territory for clubs in terms of being live on draft day or draft night and I think we’re excited to see how they handle that.”Clearly, success is the quality of the players that we get in. But trailing along not far behind that is the amount of interest and stories we can tell and speculation and debate and potentially controversy that sits around that because we think that’s all going to be a great build-up to the start of the BBL season.”Woodhill, who was formally the list manager at Melbourne Stars and has worked on auction strategy with Royal Challengers Bangalore during his time coaching in the IPL, was in no doubt about what his approach would be if he was entering the draft with a club.”You can’t underestimate star power,” Woodhill said. “Some teams look at it as a whole year approach. I’d be looking at how many wins do we need to make the top five and then I’m looking to find the best player possible in the draft to help me get to that point. If it’s seven games, then we need to get the seven games. So that’s my first target.”So it’s hard to look past an Andre Russell, a Sunil Narine or a Kieron Pollard, Faf du Plessis because they win a lot of player of the match awards. So I’d be aiming high.”