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Mitchell Starc has the talent to take 300 Test wickets, but only if his fitness and workload can be properly managed across all three formats, according to Australia’s coach Darren Lehmann.Starc missed the second half of Australia’s Test summer and the World Twenty20 in India due to his recovery from ankle surgery, and made his international comeback in the recent one-day tri-series in the Caribbean. He is set to resume as Australia’s Test spearhead against Sri Lanka this month and Lehmann said juggling Starc through all forms of the game would continue to be key for Australia.”If he stays on the park, he could [take 300 wickets],” Lehmann told the . “He plays all formats – that is the hardest part for him, managing him through that is going to be our challenge as a coaching staff and selection panel, making sure high-priority Test tours, one-day tours, World Cups and all that, are going to be high on the agenda, and making sure he is fit and available for those.”He has had a big lay-off. For him to come back and then do what he did [in the West Indies], as always, he gets wickets … for us it was a pretty good tick-the-box exercise where he got through and looking forward to the next phase of Test cricket.”The Sri Lankan pitches will likely favour spin and reverse swing, and Starc’s ability to get the older ball moving could be important. Lehmann said Starc’s speed and swing would be key assets in Sri Lanka, a view shared by South African fast bowler Allan Donald, who is acting as Australia’s bowling coach for the Sri Lanka tour.”Starc’s the one, without a shadow of doubt,” Donald told . “He’s a 150 (kph) bowler, he’s done it in the World Cup and in Twenty20 cricket. I’ve seen him destroy top orders, middle orders, lower orders doing that same thing from both sides. That’s where he is at, and that’s why he is the leading fast bowler in the world right now.”Australia have a two-day intra-squad practice game in Sri Lanka this week, followed by a first-class tour game ahead of the opening Test in Pallekele, beginning on July 26.

Mickey Arthur has laid down the gauntlet to Pakistan’s one-day squad as they aim to haul themselves up the rankings to secure an automatic World Cup spot, and says that nobody is safe from the axe should performances not improve.Pakistan were comfortably beaten in the opening ODI at the Ageas Bowl with England well ahead of the rate when rain brought an early conclusion. Arthur was particularly pointed when referencing some of the older members of the squad, notably Mohammad Hafeez, who was dropped during the Test series and pulled a Joe Root long hop to deep square in the first game, saying he had started scouring the domestic scene in Pakistan for alternatives.”I said to the players this morning that nobody’s safe. And if you’re over 30 you’ve got to be coming to the table more often than not, otherwise it’s an opportunity to blood some younger players. I’m telling no secrets, nobody is 100% safe in the ODI side and the guys know that. Everybody knows they’re on notice.”I’ve actually started, the other night, going through potential players in Pakistan who can fulfil roles we think we’re going to need to evolve. In the meantime, the 15 players we’ve got here, we’ve got to back, [and] give them the opportunity to stake their claim to be part of the Pakistan ODI squad going forward.”We’re going to build a team we think can compete in a year or two’s time. The invitation is there to every player: step up or we’ll find somebody else who can step up, it’s as simple as that.”Mickey Arthur chats to Mohammad Amir during practice•PA Photos

However, while building a team for the future, there remains the small matter of trying to avoid the World Cup qualifying tournament. Only the top eight nations automatically go into the 2019 World Cup, with the cut-off being September 30, 2017.”Of course it’s a concern, Pakistan cricket should never be down at No. 9 in the world,” Arthur said. “We need complete buy-in from the players, we have got to give them a lot of confidence and allow them to grow in the roles we’ve given them.”Although this leg of the tour, which began with a thrashing of a struggling Ireland side in Dublin, is Arthur’s first time working with the one-day squad since he was appointed, he is already seeing the failings which have frequented the limited-overs team.A lack of power-hitters means they struggle to post or chase 300-plus totals – they did not hit a six at the Ageas Bowl – while there is the challenge of balancing the side. Yasir Shah missed out in the opening game, something Arthur acknowledged would have to change, while he was also pondering whether better use could be made of the in-form Sarfraz Ahmed who compiled a lively 55 off 58 balls in Southampton.”Everything I’ve heard was on view really,” he said. “We’ve had a real good chat about it and got some ideas about how we can put it right.”I’ve said to the boys we’ve got absolutely nothing to lose. I want to see the guys go out and express themselves, play with a bit of freedom. Playing the way we played the other night, we’re behind the times.”Mohammad Amir faced a fitness test on Friday after leaving the field in Southampton with a side problem. Arthur suggested it could have been cramp, but added Amir would have to bowl at full tilt in the nets to be available.

Netherlands medium-pacer Mudassar Bukhari announced his retirement from four-day cricket and 50-over cricket on Tuesday. Bukhari, 32, said, however, that he will remain available for Netherlands in T20 cricket.Bukhari is the leading wicket-taker for Netherlands in ODIs, having taken 57 wickets in 46 matches from 2007 to 2014. A steady performer, he took three wickets on eight different occasions in the format, though never more than that in a match.Netherlands lost ODI status after being knocked out in the group stage of the 2014 World Cup Qualifier, but Bukhari’s best performances in 50-over cricket came more recently in List A matches for Netherlands. The bowler took a List-A best of 6 for 24 against UAE during a WCL Championship win in January.Overall Bukhari took 148 wickets in 116 List A games for Netherlands. He also played 12 Intercontinental Cup matches for Netherlands, claiming 34 wickets with a best of 6 for 43 against Afghanistan in 2012.Increased competition for pace-bowling spots, with the emergence of Paul van Meekeren and Vivian Kingma, as well as the return of Ahsan Malik after his bowling action was cleared by the ICC meant Bukhari was dropped for Netherlands’ most recent WCL Championship match against Nepal, a 19-run loss. He finished with 0 for 33 in 11 overs opening the bowling during his final Intercontinental Cup appearance for Netherlands against Afghanistan in July.Bukhari remains committed to T20Is for Netherlands and is currently tied with Malik as the side’s highest wicket-taker in T20Is. Bukhari has 43 wickets in 38 games, and his best bowling performances in the format came in the past year with 4 for 7 against UAE in February and 4 for 28 against Ireland in Malahide in the semi-final of last year’s World T20 Qualifier. Bukhari also played a starring role in Netherlands’ win over England at the 2014 World T20, where he was named Man of the Match after taking 3 for 12.

ScorecardMoises Henriques scored a quickfire century•Getty Images

Pat Cummins’ pace came to the rescue for New South Wales as the Blues squeaked past the Cricket Australia XI in a high-scoring Matador Cup affair at Hurstville Oval.After Moises Henriques blasted his way to an unbeaten 164 from 135 balls, with handy support from Kurtis Patterson, NSW seemed well placed to defend 328 against the youthful CA XI, who have only won one match in the competition over two seasons.However, a sensible stand of 141 between the NSW-based Ryan Gibson and the CA XI captain Will Bosisto put the emergent team in strong position to challenge at 2 for 243 in the 42nd over.That was when Cummins intervened in his first match since returning from the latest of a string of injuries dating back to his Test debut for Australia at the Wanderers as far back as 2011. Cummins snared Gibson, Bosisto and Sam Harper in the space of eight balls to tilt the match towards NSW.Even then, the CA XI fought on, and in the end they fell just four runs short of a major upset, making 14 of the 19 runs they needed from Gurinder Sandhu’s final over.Another NSW product, the spinner Arjun Nair, had earlier impressed by returning figures of 2 for 53 against his state squad team-mates.

More than eight years after his previous Test match, and four years after his last international, wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel has earned a recall to India’s Test team. At 17 years and 153 days, he became Test cricket’s youngest wicketkeeper in 2002; now he will be the second-oldest member in the XI if no other change is made to the side that took field in Visakhapatnam.Parthiv came in because of an injury to first-choice keeper Wriddhiman Saha, who strained his left thigh during the second Test against England in Visakhapatnam. He will not play the third Test to avoid aggravating the injury.

Updated India squad

Virat Kohli (capt), Ajinkya Rahane, KL Rahul, M Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Karun Nair, Parthiv Patel (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Jayant Yadav, Amit Mishra, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Hardik Pandya

The announcement came about 15 hours after the India squad had been announced with only one change. Gautam Gambhir had been dropped with Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s return bolstering the pace department.In a release, the BCCI said: “As a precautionary measure, Saha has been advised rest and will not play in the next Test match of the series. Parthiv Patel will replace Saha in the Indian team for the third Test.” The match is set to be played from November 26 in Mohali.ESPNcricinfo understands that Parthiv, 31, was ahead of other candidates to fill Saha’s role because he offers the option of a left-hand batsman. Also, it is understood that the selectors felt it was too early to hand a debut to the 19-year-old Rishabh Pant, who has hit a triple-hundred for Delhi this Ranji Trophy season and smashed a 48-ball ton in a game in which he scored twin centuries.The other big contender was Madhya Pradesh’s Naman Ojha, who played the last Test that Saha missed. Ojha missed the start of the Ranji Trophy with injury. However, he did play MP’s last match.Tamil Nadu’s Dinesh Karthik, who has also had a good recent run with the bat, is believed to have lost to Parthiv because of the latter’s better glove work and the left-hand batting variation.Parthiv, who last played Test cricket in August 2008, also had a fine start to the 2016-17 Ranji Trophy with the bat for Gujarat. He scored 415 runs in his first eight innings at 59.28, with three fifties and a hundred. The century came in the previous round of games, in Gujarat’s second innings against MP. It was a brisk, unbeaten knock: 139 not out off 170 balls.”Parthiv was considered going by form and also the wicketkeeping aspect. More importantly, being a left-hand bat – England have a legspinner and a left-arm spinner in Adil Rashid and Zafar Ansari. So, a left-hander will add more to the team,” a BCCI official told ESPNcricinfo.”Naman had some injuries; he didn’t play in the first three-four matches of the Ranji Trophy this year. As far as keeping is concerned as well, Parthiv stands ahead of Dinesh Karthik. Overall, as a package, he fits the team’s requirements. There is no doubt that Parthiv’s glove work has improved considerably in the last few years. Not sure which position he will bat in; it is up to the team now.”Parthiv debuted in England in 2002, and has played 20 Tests till date for 41 catches, eight stumpings and 683 runs at 29.69 with a best of 69.

Several minutes after the Dhaka Dynamites players had taken a partial victory lap at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, they gathered around the DJ’s stage on which Dwayne Bravo was hoisted to sing a few lines of his song . The players danced to the tune for a few minutes before gathering near the post-match presentation area.There was joy on their faces, as well as relief. Though Chittagong Vikings had built a strong squad, and Comilla Victorians were defending champions, Dhaka were overwhelming favourites to win the BPL. After failing to make the final in 2015, the franchise owners put together a team that had everything. The excess of talent and experience left on the Dhaka bench – Mahela Jayawardene for example – said enough about their preparation and ambition to winning the title.The pressure on the players was immense at times, and certainly so in the final. Shakib Al Hasan, the Dhaka captain, said support from the coach Khaled Mahmud and senior players like Kumar Sangakkara and Jayawardene had helped ease nerves when the team got a bit shaky in the tournament.”There is always a bit of pressure,” Shakib said. “We had a good team and everyone expected us to be champions. Sujon [Mahmud] made it easier for us, and the senior players helped us. We didn’t have to be tense. We had the experience and so whenever we wavered, we knew how to come back.”Shakib said a number of players had served the team well through the tournament but he had to make sure the local players’ hunger was at the same level as their more experienced team-mates.”I said at the start of the tournament that the target was to win the cup. This is a very big deal. The biggest thing was the way the entire team played. You may have many famous players but it is important how the team performs.”Throughout the tournament, majority of the players performed at different moments. We wanted the others to get the desire from the more famous players. We managed to create a good environment.”Sangakkara, who was adjudged Man of the Match in the final for his 33-ball 36, said that a domestic T20 final still got him going. “It doesn’t matter what stage, when you play a final you want to win it. Everyone plays to try and win trophies. BPL this time was an outstanding achievement.”The credit goes to everyone, even to Abul and Akhtar who helped us with our bags and pads. When all these things are in place our job becomes very easy.”

Match facts

Wednesday, February 1, 2017
Start time 1900 local (1330 GMT)3:27

‘Time for DRS in T20s’ – Root

Big picture

It is not often that India have to contend with their batting being a weakness but ahead of the deciding T20I in Bangalore – which only gained that status courtesy Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling – that seems to be the case. The line-up is not quite as deep as it tends to be in Test cricket and their losing wickets a little too frequently hasn’t helped, leading to totals such as 147 and 144. A good partnership at the top of the order could do nicely with the trophy on the line.England have coped well despite injuries. David Willey was ruled out after damaging his left shoulder in the final ODI and Alex Hales had to board an early flight out with a broken hand. It is testament to their limited-overs bench strength that they go into the final match on an even keel. Chris Jordan’s death bowling has stood out while Moeen Ali has improved on his most economical four-over performance in consecutive matches.India haven’t yet won a bilateral T20 series against England, with their two-match series in 2012-13 ending in a stalemate, and England coming out on top in three previous one-off clashes. There was a distinct chance of this record staying intact but an umpiring error “shifted momentum” away from the visitors. Eoin Morgan has raised the issue with the match referee, but might well prefer to do most of his talking on the field so that England can return home with at least one piece of silverware after a long and difficult tour.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)India WLLWW
England LWLWLJasprit Bumrah’s slog-overs bowling could be key to India’s chances•AFP

In the spotlight

Jasprit Bumrah‘s intelligent variations of pace resulted in several swing-and-miss moments, leaving England frustrated in Nagpur. In two overs at the slog, he conceded just four runs, and took out Root and Buttler in the 20th to win the game. India would love a spell like that in Bangalore, a place notorious for producing run gluts.Sam Billings has not shown his full potential in this series. He could very well find himself back on the bench again when Hales regains his fitness. But with one more chance to impress the selectors – with the series up for grabs – his future could yet be in his control.

Team news

India don’t have reason to change much. Yuzvendra Chahal should keep his place in the XI, considering he will be on home turf having played for Royal Challengers Bangalore since 2014 in the IPL. Amit Mishra did well in Nagpur and would be hopeful of another start as well. Considering the must-win nature of this game, it is likely Rishabh Pant will spend his first series with Indian team on the sidelines.India (probable) 1 Virat Kohli (capt), 2 KL Rahul, 3 Suresh Raina, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Manish Pandey, 6 MS Dhoni (wk), 7 Hardik Pandya, 8 Amit Mishra, 9 Jasprit Bumrah, 10 Ashish Nehra, 11 Yuzvendra ChahalEngland’s batsmen struggled on a sluggish pitch in Nagpur, but should relish the one at the M Chinnaswamy stadium, famous for its true-paced nature. Liam Dawson, though, might have reason to complain, for he may find himself replaced by a fast bowler, possibly Liam Plunkett, in light of the ground’s short boundaries.England (probable) 1 Jason Roy, 2 Sam Billings, 3 Joe Root, 4 Eoin Morgan (capt), 5 Ben Stokes, 6 Jos Buttler (wk), 7 Moeen Ali, 8 Chris Jordan, 9 Liam Dawson/Liam Plunkett, 10 Tymal Mills, 11 Adil Rashid

Pitch and conditions

With a new outfield, the Chinnaswamy stadium is all set to host its first match since the IPL final in May last year. That match had over 400 runs scored. A flat deck and small boundaries could produce the highest totals in this series yet. The weather is expected to stay clear through the match.

Stats and trivia

• India have played three bilateral series involving three T20Is before this and have won each of them.
• Ashish Nehra has taken the most wickets among India bowlers in the Powerplay. He surpassed R Ashwin with his dismissals of the England openers in Nagpur.
• Out of England’s current squad, only Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler and Chris Jordan have played at the Chinnaswamy stadium in the past.

Paul Grayson has been named as the new head coach of Yorkshire Diamonds on a three-year deal.Grayson, 45, spent six seasons as a player at Headingley between 1990 and 1995, before moving south to Essex where he was head coach for eight years until his departure in 2015.He takes over as Diamonds boss from Richard Pyrah, who is moving across to the men’s squad to work as assistant to the new Yorkshire head coach Andrew Gale.Grayson will combine his new role in the Kia Super League with his current post at Durham University MCCU.”I am delighted to be joining as head coach for the Yorkshire Diamonds,” said Grayson. “The opportunity to work with an elite female team is really exciting for me and a role which gives me a fantastic opportunity to use my first-class coaching experience.”I am looking forward to meeting up with players and the Diamonds support staff very soon and preparing for Super League competition.”Jane Hildreth, Yorkshire Diamonds General Manager added: “I am thrilled that we have been able to recruit Paul as Yorkshire Diamonds head coach.”Paul has a wealth of experience in the game having had a successful coaching career with Essex County Cricket Club and Durham University MCCU. Paul will take the Yorkshire Diamonds forward and build a team who will be challenging for the title in 2017.”We are all excited to be working with Paul and look forward to welcoming him back to Headingley”

ScorecardFile photo – James Pattinson finished with 5 for 7 in the second innings•Getty Images

Victoria will host the Sheffield Shield final in Alice Springs after they skittled Queensland for 61 on the third day at Allan Border Field in Brisbane, securing an innings victory and ending the Bulls’ hopes of reaching the decider. James Pattinson scythed through the Queensland line-up to finish with 5 for 7 from six overs, while only two Bulls players reached double figures.The day began with Victoria on 6 for 201, still trailing Queensland on the first innings by seven runs. However, the Bushrangers added a further 79 for their last four wickets, which gave them a 72-run first-innings advantage. To have any hope of reaching the final, Queensland needed an outright victory, but instead collapsed to the lowest Shield total by any side since South Australia were rolled for 45 in late 2014.Pattinson struck in the first over by bowling Jimmy Peirson for a duck, and the pain continued for the Bulls, who capitulated to be 7 for 21 in the 11th over, by which time Pattinson had taken all five of his wickets. The captain Chris Hartley, playing his last Shield game after announcing his retirement recently, top scored with 18 and Cameron Gannon managed 13, but that was all the fight that was offered.The outcome means Victoria will host the Shield final, though the unavailability of the MCG means they will hold the match at Traeger Park in Alice Springs, which has become a home away from home for the Bushrangers in recent summers. At the conclusion of this match, New South Wales, South Australia and Western Australia remained in contention for the other place in the final.