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There isn’t too much wrong with either Mumbai or Daredevils’ personnel or squad balance, but a number of big names from both sides are yet to fire

The Preview by Karthik Krishnaswamy13-Apr-20183:35

Dasgupta: Rohit needs to give himself some time

Big Picture

Two games each, two losses each. It doesn’t mean too much given the length of an IPL season. Mumbai Indians have come back from worse starts and gone on to win titles, and both they and Delhi Daredevils can tell themselves their results so far do not fully reflect how they have played. Mumbai have lost two excruciatingly tight games, one of which they had no business losing. Daredevils could say they got on the wrong end of DLS in their last match.But the table simply says both teams have played two and lost two. Both teams need to start winning, ASAP.There’s nothing in the personnel or balance of either side to suggest they can’t do this, but some of the biggest names from both sides are yet to fire this season. We could, therefore, be one Glenn Maxwell or Rohit Sharma innings, or one Jasprit Bumrah or Trent Boult spell, from seeing their respective teams shoot up the table.One of these two teams, however, will lose Saturday’s game, their third in a row, and that – for all of Mumbai’s past escapades – will be a hard place to rebound from.

In the news

Hardik Pandya missed Mumbai’s last match; he did not travel to Hyderabad having suffered a twisted ankle earlier. He has not regained 100% fitness yet and did not train full tilt on Friday evening. He bowled for under 20 minutes in the nets and batted for a marginally longer duration, taking throwdowns from batting coach Robin Singh and a few others; that means his participation on Saturday is still in doubt.

The likely XIs

Mumbai Indians: 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Evin Lewis, 3 Ishan Kishan (wk), 4 Suryakumar Yadav, 5 Krunal Pandya, 6 Hardik Pandya/Ben Cutting, 7 Kieron Pollard, 8 Mitchell McClenaghan/Pradeep Sangwan, 9 Mayank Markande, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 11 Mustafizur RahmanDelhi Daredevils: 1 Gautam Gambhir (capt), 2 Colin Munro, 3 Shreyas Iyer, 4 Glenn Maxwell, 5 Rishabh Pant (wk), 6 Chris Morris, 7 Vijay Shankar, 8 Rahul Tewatia, 9 Shahbaz Nadeem, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Trent BoultESPNcricinfo Ltd

Stats that matter

• Mumbai have won four of their last five matches against Daredevils, and have won five of their six meetings at the Wankhede overall
• Rahul Tewatia has been among this season’s best-performing under-the-radar players. He has only picked up one wicket, but, according to ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats, has conceded 12.95 runs less than par over the course of his eight overs so far. Only Sunil Narine (22.46) and Rashid Khan (15.64) have done better.
• Mumbai’s top three haven’t yet hit their stride this season, which explains why they have the worst Powerplay run rate (7.75) of all eight teams so far.
• Since the start of 2015, Evin Lewis has a strike rate of 123.7 against left-arm pace. In the same period, he has scored at 137.7 against offspin and at a 150-plus strike rate against all other kinds of bowling. It will be interesting to see how he goes against Trent Boult, whom he is yet to face in T20 cricket.
• Glenn Maxwell, on the other hand, has relished batting against all of Mumbai’s left-arm seamers. In all T20s, he has scored 15 runs off five balls against Pradeep Sangwan, 37 off 15 against Mitchell McClenaghan, and 13 off four against Mustafizur Rahman – all this while only being dismissed once.

Strategy punt

In their opening match against Kings XI Punjab, Daredevils batted first and sent out a top four of Munro, Gambhir, Iyer and Shankar. Against Rajasthan Royals, their top four consisted of Maxwell, Munro, Pant and Morris. They were forced into this since they had to chase a revised target, but how dangerous did that line-up look compared to the first one?This, perhaps, could be a front-loaded blueprint for the rest of their season, with perhaps Morris held back for the slog overs; and Gambhir playing the role of a firefighting No. 4 or No. 5 in case Daredevils lose early wickets, and remaining happy not to get a hit if the power-hitters really get going.

Fantasy pick

Batsmen have been in control against only 27 of the 47 balls (57.45%) they have faced from Mustafizur Rahman so far this season. It suggests the left-armer is back to his best in terms of his control over his length and variations, and all that rhythm makes it likely he’ll earn valuable fantasy points on Saturday too.

A wrap of the second day’s play of the 8th round match between New South Wales and Tasmania

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Feb-2017
Scorecard
File photo – George Bailey was 93 not out at stumps•Getty Images

George Bailey was within sight of a century at stumps on the second day against New South Wales in Wollongong, where Tasmania had taken a first-innings lead. In reply to the Blues’ 253, the Tigers closed the day with an advantage of 41 runs, at 6 for 294, with Bailey on 93 and Simon Milenko on 18.Bailey already has one hundred this Shield campaign and is the competition’s leading scorer, and he was the anchor for Tasmania on a day when everyone made a start. No Tasmanian failed to reach double figures, but Bailey was the only one able to turn that into a half-century.Doug Bollinger picked up three wickets, including those of openers Alex Doolan for 37 and Jake Hancock for 28. Ben McDermott was second on the run list with 45, while Beau Webster managed 37 before he was caught behind off the bowling of Moises Henriques.

Michael Burns, the former Warwickshire and Somerset cricketer, has been introduced to the ECB’s first-class umpires’ full list for 2016, following the recent retirement of Martin Bodenham

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jan-2016Michael Burns, the former Warwickshire and Somerset cricketer, has been introduced to the ECB’s first-class umpires’ full list for 2016, following the recent retirement of Martin Bodenham.Burns, who played as a wicketkeeper as well as a seam-bowling allrounder in a first-class career that spanned 13 years, also served as Somerset’s captain before retiring in 2005. He was added to the umpiring reserve list in 2012.Bodenham, who was appointed to the first-class list in 2009 following a distinguished career as a football referee, remains the only individual to have officiated across both domestic professional football and cricket.”Martin can be very proud of the successful transition he made from one sporting code to another,” said Gordon Hollins, the ECB chief operating officer. “He has been a highly respected figure within our first-class game and leaves with ECB’s sincere thanks for his contribution to cricket and our best wishes for his retirement.”We are also delighted to welcome Michael onto the full first-class list for the first time and congratulate him on having made such an impressive start to his umpiring career.”ECB Full List 2016 Rob Bailey, Neil Bainton, Paul Baldwin, Mark Benson, Michael Burns, Nick Cook, Nigel Cowley, Jeff Evans, Russell Evans, Steve Gale, Steve Garratt, Michael Gough, Ian Gould, Peter Hartley, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Graham Lloyd, Jeremy Lloyds, Neil Mallender, David Millns, Steve O’Shaughnessy, Tim Robinson, Martin Saggers, Alex Wharf.

Mohammad Ashraful’s Bangladesh team-mates have expressed their surprise at his admission of involvement in match-fixing and spot-fixing during the BPL

Mohammad Isam08-Jun-2013Mohammad Ashraful has continued to be the subject of discussion at all levels of the public sphere in Bangladesh over the last four days. Some of his national team-mates have also weighed in, expressing their surprise at his admission of involvement in match-fixing and spot-fixing during the BPL.Shakib Al Hasan said he had also heard questions about February’s BPL match between Dhaka Gladiators and Chittagong Kings, but wasn’t around the players’ dugout long enough to understand the situation.”After the match everyone was talking about it. The opposition players were asking us, ‘so you’ve thrown the game?’ Shakib told the Dhaka-based . “They were asking questions about Dhaka’s slow batting and the big no-ball (by Gladiators’ Mahbubul Alam).”I was not present in the dugout for too long. I was working on my injury inside the dressing room. Since I didn’t play that game, I can’t be sure how difficult the wicket was for batting.”Shahriar Nafees, a student of the same cricket academy where Ashraful began his career, lauded his courage to speak the truth, but wanted just punishment for the guilty. “This is a sad chapter in Bangladesh cricket.” Nafees said. “I have to compliment his courage to come out and confess. I am feeling bad for him, but if he has committed the crime, he has to be punished appropriately.”Mushfiqur Rahim, Ashraful’s Bangladesh captain for the last two years, sent him a text message that said: ‘Allah will be looking after you for being able to gather the courage to confess your guilt before you die. Thanks for the honesty you have shown and I hope you will again return to the cricket field.’Other team-mates like Enamul Haque jnr and Alok Kapali also spoke out. “I was totally shocked when I read about it in the newspaper,” said Enamul, now playing for Wolverhampton in the Birmingham Cricket League. “It seemed like someone close to you was going far away as I heard his confession.”Kapali, who was among 13 Bangladeshi cricketers who left for the Indian Cricket League in 2008 and was ostracised as a result, had a different message for Ashraful. “I am feeling bad for him but I don’t think we need so much money in our life that we need to get involved in fixing.” Kapali said. “Look at Shakib, he is playing the world over. If you play well, money will follow you.”

Essex teenager Ben Foakes narrowly missed out on a century on Championship debut as their game against Leicestershire was left finely balanced

18-May-2012
ScorecardEssex teenager Ben Foakes narrowly missed out on a century on Championship debut as the Division Two game against Leicestershire was left finely balanced at the end of the third day at Grace Road.Foakes, 19, made an eye-catching 93 to help Essex to a total of 409 and a first-innings lead of 37. But with Ramnaresh Sarwan making his second half-century of the match, Leicestershire closed on 148 for 3 to lead by 111 runs going into the final day. Sarwan was still there on 61.Foakes, an England U-19 international who was handed his debut in the absence of both Alastair Cook and Ravi Bopara, became one of five victims for the Leicestershire seamer Wayne White when he edged behind shortly after lunch.But Sarwan and Will Jefferson steered the home side back into the game with a third-wicket stand of 97, halted when Jefferson was out for 49 just before the close as bad light and rain brought an early end with 6.2 overs remaining.Resuming the second day on 239 for 5, still 133 behind, Essex enjoyed a productive first session, adding 121 runs in 32 overs for the loss of just one wicket. The batsman out was James Foster, who received a virtually unplayable rising delivery from Matthew Hoggard and edged behind. His share of a stand of 87 with the impressive Foakes was 26.Foakes looked untroubled, and cover-drove White to the boundary twice in one over. He reached 50 from 72 balls by on-driving Matthew Hoggard to the ropes for his ninth boundary. He went into lunch on 93 but failed to add to his score after the break, edging a fine delivery from White to wicketkeeper Ned Eckersley in the third over of the afternoon. He hit 14 boundaries and faced 139 balls in an excellent debut performance.A typically aggressive knock of 35 from Graham Napier kept the scoreboard moving, but White brought the Essex innings to a close with the wickets of David Masters and Charl Willoughby to finish with 5 for 74 – his third five-wicket haul of the season. Wicket-keeper Eckersley also impressed with five catches.Matt Boyce and Greg Smith went cheaply when Leicestershire batted again, but Sarwan, who reached 50 off 73 balls with seven fours, and Jefferson regained the initiative until Jefferson edged behind off a swinging delivery from Willoughby.

Runs could be doubled in a designated “super-over” and spectators may be allowed to take home balls hit into the crowd as part of Australia’s new Big Bash League next summer.

Brydon Coverdale26-May-2011Runs would be doubled in a designated “super-over” and spectators allowed to take home balls hit into the crowd under proposed rules for Australia’s new Big Bash League next summer.Cricket fans have been asked to comment on a range of possible tweaks to the rules governing Twenty20, many of which are designed to boost scoring rates in the eight-team competition, which is expected to kick off in December.Mike McKenna, Cricket Australia’s head of marketing and the BBL project owner, has made no secret of his desire to spice up the T20 tournament, which will feature city-based sides such as the Brisbane Heat, and two each in Melbourne and Sydney. One of the most unusual suggestions is for each team to be given one super-over, which would likely be nominated by the batting side before the start of the over.Cricket Australia’s survey states the idea, in which the runs from that over alone would be doubled, was intended “to provide both teams an opportunity to get back into the game”. The cricket statistician Ric Finlay, who runs the Tastats website, said introducing such a rule would cause some distortion in the record-books, but it was likely the games could still be designated official Twenty20 matches.”It is true to say that other interventions have distorted outcomes, including fielding restrictions and powerplays and penalties for no balls,” Finlay told , “but this innovation seems on the face of it to be departing more radically from what we know as traditional cricket than anything else that has gone on before. The factor that may allow these matches to be included in records of all T20 matches is the generally-accepted status of all T20 cricket to be a gimmicky form of the game where almost anything goes.”The advantages for the batsmen might not end there. “Based on increasing scoring and making the game more exciting”, as the survey says, the 12th man could be allowed to enter the batting order as a kind of pinch hitter, in a similar setup to the super-sub rule that was used in one-day internationals several years ago.There is also a proposal to allow only one fielder outside the circle in the first five overs of an innings, leaving bowlers little room for error. Two men could be used outside the circle from overs 6 to 10, three fielders from overs 11 to 15, and four men during the final five overs of an innings.And if those ideas don’t create enough of a challenge for bowlers, they may also need to get used to several changed balls throughout an innings. A baseball-style rule is being considered whereby fans would be able to keep a ball that clears the fence, meaning that with many sixes – and the Big Bash record is 14 in an innings – a new ball would be given to the bowler.However, it’s not all bad news for bowlers – allowing two bouncers per over is also a possibility, to allow bowlers a little extra room to attack. The Big Bash League is slowly taking shape, but several key steps remain to be resolved, including the recruitment of players to the eight sides and the part private ownership of two of the Melbourne and Sydney teams.To take the survey and comment on the proposed rules, click here.

Graeme Smith called correctly at the toss, which had been delayed for several hours by persistent rain and gloomy conditions on a damp first morning at the Queens Park Oval, and decided to bat

The Bulletin by Liam Brickhill10-Jun-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
On a severely shortened day, Shane Shillingford picked up two wickets on his Test debut, removing both openers•AFP

Never before has a Test match been played at the Queens Park Oval as late in the year as June, and after a day in which only 34 overs were bowled, it wasn’t hard to see why. When play was possible, a fascinating battle between South Africa’s batsmen and West Indies’ spinners – Sulieman Benn and Shane Shillingford – began to take shape. Graeme Smith and Alviro Petersen had negotiated a seam attack blunted by an unhelpful surface with aplomb to go to tea at 45 for 0. But the spinners came to the fore after the interval, with Shillingford removing both openers on his Test debut and Benn getting rid of the in-form Hashim Amla to leave South Africa struggling at 70 for 3 when bad light stopped play.Though Dwayne Bravo bustled in with characteristic enthusiasm, the quicker bowlers appeared unthreatening on a very dry wicket and it was no great surprise when Benn was brought into the attack early. He immediately found bounce and sharp turn off a tacky surface, although his length was slightly too short at first. He pushed the ball up in his second over and soon had Smith flapping awkwardly off the front foot and, coming round the wicket, he also had the right-handed Petersen poking nervously outside off stump.West Indies have suffered from a dysfunctional team environment in recent times, but good communication between Chris Gayle and his bowlers was evident today in some inventive field placements – a leg gully for Benn, and a close, straight mid off for Bravo. Indeed, Bravo could have had Smith for the sixth time on this tour when, shortly before tea, the South African captain drove in the air to that fielder as the ball plugged in the surface, but a leaping Narsingh Deonarine couldn’t quite get his hands underneath the chance.Denesh Ramdin couldn’t hold on to a clear edge off Petersen’s bat from Benn’s first ball after tea, but the assistance he was getting from the surface convinced Gayle to bring Shillingford on from the other end and he, too, found encouraging bounce and turn.With Shillingford operating from over the stumps, Smith was able to cover the turn and bounce with his body, the lbw shout totally negated by the line of delivery. The South African captain’s tactic was to play back and deep in his crease, and Shillingford responded by pushing his length forward. Smith, having made a habit of playing back, didn’t get a big stride down the wicket, the ball pitched, gripped and spun to take the edge and Bravo held on to the neck-high chance at slip.Where Petersen and Smith had attempted to counter the spin by, generally, staying deep in the crease, Hashim Amla responded by shuffling right across to the off side to Shillingford and was unafraid to use the sweep even at the start of his innings. But while that worked, briefly, to the offspinner, Amla had no answer to the ball spinning across him and edged his ninth ball – from Benn – to slip, where Bravo held on to a second chance, and South Africa were 60 for 2.With South Africa under pressure, men were positioned menacingly all round the bat, but they weren’t needed as Shillingford picked up his second wicket when Petersen’s attempted flick to leg was beaten by the turn and he was struck on the pad. With the UDRS referral system available for this match, Petersen consulted Jacques Kallis and asked for a referral. But, with insufficient evidence to overturn the umpire’s decision, he eventually had to go, and South Africa had lost three wickets for just 15 runs to be 70 for 3.Paul Harris was sent out as nightwatchman and was met with an ultra-attacking field, with slip, gully, silly mid-off, short leg and leg gully all in place, as well as Ramdin’s fidgety presence behind the stumps. He managed to survive until the light deteriorated once more, but with the flaky batting surface already showing signs of breaking up, both Benn and Shillingford – as well as Gayle himself – will surely have a very important role to play as West Indies try to lay a platform for their first win of the series. For their part, South Africa may well have missed a trick by omitting Johan Botha from their side, and even JP Duminy would have found some life in this track.

At 35, the current BCCI secretary will be the youngest ICC chair

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Aug-20249:39

Newsroom: What lies ahead for Jay Shah in his new role as ICC chairman?

Jay Shah has been elected unopposed as the new ICC chair, replacing Greg Barclay. He will begin his new role on December 1.At 35, Shah, currently the BCCI secretary, is the youngest to hold the post. Once Barclay, who had been the ICC chair for two terms since 2020, had confirmed to the board that he would not be continuing for a third term, the board of directors had until August 27 to file nominations for the next chair. Only if more than one candidate was nominated was there to be an election, but Shah was the only nominee.”I am humbled by the nomination as the Chair of the International Cricket Council. I am committed to working closely with the ICC team and our member nations to further globalise cricket,” Shah said in an ICC statement. “We stand at a critical juncture where it is increasingly important to balance the coexistence of multiple formats, promote the adoption of advanced technologies, and introduce our marquee events to new global markets. Our goal is to make cricket more inclusive and popular than ever before.”While we will build on the valuable lessons learned, we must also embrace fresh thinking and innovation to elevate the love for cricket worldwide. The inclusion of our sport in the Olympics at LA 2028 represents a significant inflection point for the growth of cricket, and I am confident that it will drive the sport forward in unprecedented ways.”Jay Shah has been the BCCI secretary since 2019•Associated Press

In a statement released by the BCCI, Shah prioritised Test cricket and spoke about “allocating more resources to women’s cricket and differently-abled cricket.””I would also like to work towards setting up a separate program for talent search during my tenure, and I look forward to your support in this program,” Shah said. “While the T20 is a naturally exciting format, it is equally important that Test cricket remains a priority for everyone as it forms the bedrock of our game. We must see to it that cricketers are driven to longer format and our efforts will be channelised towards this goal.”I eagerly anticipate a tenure rich with collaborative efforts, striving to dismantle the barriers that have hindered cricket’s progress. Every challenge we face is an opportunity in disguise, and together, we will transform adversity into triumph. Let’s embark on this incredible journey, hand in hand, united by our passion for cricket and our belief in its extraordinary potential.”Shah is the fifth Indian to head the ICC after Jagmohan Dalmiya, Sharad Pawar, N Srinivasan and Shashank Manohar.After beginning his cricket administration career in the state of Gujarat in 2009, Shah has been the BCCI secretary since October 2019. It was in 2022 that he became a part of the ICC’s influential Finance & Commercial Affairs (F&CA) committee and took over as its chair in 2023. Shah was also re-elected as BCCI secretary in 2022 and his tenure was to run until 2025. Once he takes over as the ICC chair, he will have to relinquish his position at the BCCI and at the ICC’s F&CA committee. Shah was also the Asian Cricket Council president from 2021 to 2024.

Richard Thompson predicts “a long and successful future” for the competition

ESPNcricinfo staff26-May-2023The Hundred is going nowhere before the end of 2028 and has “a long and successful future well beyond that”, according to the ECB’s chair.Several outlets reported last month that Richard Gould and Richard Thompson – the ECB’s chief executive and chair respectively, who previously held the same roles at Surrey – were discussing options to adjust the format of the eight-team, 100-ball competition, or even to scrap it altogether.But, in an interview in the June edition of the magazine, Thompson said that there had been “an awful lot of misreporting” on the tournament’s future, emphasising that it is part of the ECB’s lucrative broadcast deal with Sky Sports which runs until the end of 2028.”We’re signed up with the Hundred until 2028 and there’s been an awful lot of misreporting around that,” Thompson said. “The reality is that the Hundred exists with Sky until 2028 and I’m sure it has a long and successful future well beyond that.”Related

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The ECB announced this week that Sanjay Patel, the Hundred’s managing director, would step down from his role at the end of this summer’s edition. In the announcement, Gould also predicted a “very long and successful future for the Hundred”.A report by Fanos Hira, the Worcestershire chair, earlier this year suggested that the Hundred had made a £9 million loss to date, figures which the ECB disputes. Thompson said: “It’s a historical report looking at the income and cost base of the ECB. And it [the Hundred] will help us across the game.”It depends how you attribute those costs,” he added. “Especially the £1.3m that each county receives a year [which is directly linked to the Hundred]. The game has invested a significant amount of money into the Hundred to ensure that it finds a new audience, which it has done. But the reality is it’s an investment in the future.”The prospect of private investment in the Hundred has also been regularly mooted over the last two years. “We’re only in year three of a very new tournament,” Thompson said on the subject. “And the game has got to make that decision. That’s not an ECB decision.”The Hundred takes place in a standalone window from August 1-27 in 2023, the first time that it has not clashed with any England men’s or women’s international cricket. As a result, the final Test of the English summer is due to finish on July 31 – a situation that Thompson said “absolutely will not” happen again.”It doesn’t feel right, does it? Finishing the Test season in July means the whole season feels truncated,” he said. “My understanding of the decision was they felt there are a significant amount of white-ball internationals playing through September.”And the idea behind that was to give us the best possible chance of defending the 50-over World Cup which starts in October. But certainly, you don’t want a situation where you’re playing just one format or one tournament in the way we are at the moment… the Test summer absolutely will not be squeezed like this in future.”

New Zealand will likely field an unchanged side with Gary Stead not expecting conditions to differ much

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Feb-2022Trent Boult will not be available for the second Test against South Africa with his lack of recent bowling deemed to be put him at too great of an injury risk.It means Boult has likely played his last home international cricket of the season with those having IPL deals expected to be unavailable for the ODI series against Netherlands at the end of March.Boult was not in the squad for the opening match of the series in Christchurch as his wife awaited the birth of their third child and though he will join team-mates to bowl in the nets around the second Test it was felt too much of an ask to put him through a game.Related

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“[He] is not in a position to be available with his loads and where he’s at,” New Zealand coach Gary Stead said. “Since his wife has been having the baby he’s missed out on a lot of opportunities to play cricket and bowl. We just felt the risk of him playing was far too great at the moment.”New Zealand have retained an unchanged 15-player squad for the second Test which means no place for a specialist spinner. Ajaz Patel has yet to return to Plunket Shield action after injury and Stead did not expect conditions to alter much from the first Test where New Zealand’s quicks dominated by bowling out South Africa for 95 and 111. Allrounder Rachin Ravindra is part of the squad should a spin-bowling option be required.”We considered a [frontline] spin option but didn’t feel as though we needed it on this pitch, through history and the way it was looking after the last Test match,” Stead said.The absence of Boult and lack of changes to the squad means the same four-strong pace attack that dismantled South Africa first time around are set to get another chance together. Matt Henry was the leading light with a career-best 7 for 23 as part of a nine-wicket match haul.”He’s always been a good bowler and sometimes you need that opportunity to strike and make the most it,” Stead said. “He bowled beautifully throughout the Test but I thought the whole bowling unit bowled really well together and thought that was one of the reasons we were so convincing.”