“Of all the wickets we’ve played on this World Cup, this one was the best,” Fakhar said

Danyal Rasool05-Nov-20231:47

Mumtaz on Fakhar’s knock: ‘Pakistan’s dreams and hopes alive due to one man’

Pakistan captain Babar Azam believes that as long as Fakhar Zaman was batting on Saturday, they “could even have chased 450″ against New Zealand in Bengaluru. Speaking on an in-house PCB video, Fakhar and Babar talked about their unbeaten 194-run partnership that saw Pakistan post 200 for 1 in just 25.3 overs before rain put paid to the game, giving Pakistan a 21-run win by the DLS method. Pakistan were originally set 402 to win from the 50 overs.”My view was as long as Fakhar was there, we could even have chased 450,” the Pakistan captain said. “When he plays innings like these, we win 90% of games. After every six I said to him, ‘don’t force the issue’. He said okay but then ignored me and started hitting sixes anyway. So I then said to him, ‘do whatever you want, just don’t get out’. [It’s] one of the best innings I’ve seen.”While the prospect of rain had hung around all day, it hadn’t eventuated until partway through the second innings. New Zealand amassed 401, their second-highest ODI total, before a brief rain interruption delayed the start of the chase. But according to Babar, Pakistan approached the chase in the belief the game would go all the way.Related

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“We didn’t have rain in our mind at all,” he said. “But the clouds came suddenly, and then we started to calculate the DLS and we wanted to stay with it throughout. We were trying to keep wickets in hand, and I was trying to take it deep. Fakhar was utilising the short boundary while I held one end up and we made sure we didn’t let the run rate get out of control.Fakhar praised the wicket as “outstanding for batting”. He stopped short of calling it his best innings, reserving that for his 193 against South Africa at the Wanderers in 2021. But the value of an innings where he smashed an unbeaten 126 off 81 was not lost on him; he hit more sixes in that innings than any Pakistani has throughout the entire World Cup. And it meant Pakistan stayed alive, becoming just the second team to win an ODI after conceding more than 400 runs in the first innings.”Of all the wickets we’ve played on this World Cup, this one was the best,” Fakhar said. “It was clear from the second over that the wicket was great for batting. If Southee and Boult aren’t swinging the ball, you know the wicket is great to bat on. After four overs or so, whatever little swing there was also evaporated, and that gave me even more freedom.”This is a World Cup innings so this might be one of my favourite ones. It still doesn’t pip the 193 I scored at the Wanderers, because it’s the fastest wicket in the world and Asian players struggle there, but this innings and the situation I scored my runs in made me very happy.”

Who supports senior quicks Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali is a key question for Pakistan

Andrew McGlashan07-Dec-2023Pakistan are using their four-day match in Canberra to assess the balance of the side they may take into next week’s first Test with at least one fast bowling spot up for grabs, although the key decisions will still be based on what conditions are served up at Optus Stadium in Perth.The visitors have utilised the contest against the Prime Minister’s XI to give their less experienced bowlers a run out in Australian conditions – albeit on a pitch that will likely bear little resemblance to the Test surface – and also to look at the role of the allrounders with a view to how they balance the line-up.Related

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Shaheen Shah Afridi and Hasan Ali are all-but-certain starters in Perth, while legspinner Abrar Ahmed seems sure to feature, but the identity of the third frontline quick could be up for debate with Faheem Ashraf appearing likely to take the No. 7 spot.Left-armer Mir Hamza caused the occasional uneasy moment on a docile surface against the PM XI’s top order while the uncapped Khurram Shahzad bowled tidily and claimed the wicket of Cameron Bancroft.”We’ll only be able to decide when we get closer to the game, see the pitch, see the conditions, see where the guys are at with their fitness and their loads,” captain Shan Masood said on how the Test attack could shape up. “You have to look at the opposition as well, match-ups, or type of bowling, is huge in cricket now.”Obviously Shaheen and Hasan are senior bowlers, they are probably penciled in, but you want to look at everyone and give them a fair run before you make that ultimate decision. The permutations on the structure if the side matters as well – do we go with an allrounder, what will the role of the spinner be? So there are a lot of things we are looking at and we are very glad we are playing a fixture like this.”Masood hinted that he sees Abrar, who has taken 38 wickets in his first six Tests, playing a key role. He sent down 19 overs on the second day and will likely be needed in both attacking and defensive roles in support of the quicks. However, the struggles of Yasir Shah in Australia – he averaged 89.50 in five Tests in the country – are a warning of the challenges ahead.”Spinners are crucial and we’ve seen that with the Australian team, how good Nathan Lyon has been for a number of years,” Masood said. “So a spinner plays an important role, he’s very complimentary to the fast bowlers in these conditions. Abrar has done really well for us, he’s taken a lot of wickets against good sides and we’ll be hoping he does the same on this tour.”Marcus Harris, who was Abrar’s wicket on the second day when he lofted to mid-on, was impressed by what he saw and believed his accuracy would stand him in good stead.”He’s good, he’s different,” he said. “We were lucky to see a bit of footage of him. If you hadn’t seen him before it would have been a little bit tough to face early. He’s very accurate as a legspinner which is half the battle then he’s got some good variations. Not sure the wicket at Perth will suit him too much, or even Melbourne the way it’s been, but Sydney probably won’t be too different to this. Thought he bowled really well throughout the day.”

India’s bowling coach says the fast bowlers have broadened their skillsets and developed a feel for when to use their variations

S Sudarshanan19-Dec-2023Renuka Singh has 38 wickets in women’s T20Is, at an average of 21.13. Since her debut in October 2021, only Ireland’s Arlene Kelly has taken more among fast bowlers from Full-Member teams. Also among the top ten is Pooja Vastrakar, who has picked up 21 wickets in this period, at 24.80.Renuka and Vastrakar were India’s fast bowlers in the one-off Test against England last week and picked up a combined six wickets in the match. Bowling coach Troy Cooley has praised their work ethic and lauded them for broadening their skillsets.Related

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“[Renuka] is definitely improving every time I see her,” Cooley said after India’s training session at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday. “She is coming from a couple of injuries and she has worked extremely hard to not only develop fitness but also to develop her skills. You are starting to see rewards now of all that hard work. Not only does she swing the ball back in naturally. She has now got the ball that straightens and leaves the right-handers.”Renuka had been sidelined with a stress injury since the end of WPL 2023. The T20Is against England earlier this month were her first international outings on her return, and she impressed with her new-ball spells. She dismissed England opener Sophia Dunkley all three times in the T20Is and also in the first innings of the Test, and used the bowling crease well to create angles that tested the batters.”It is great to see her using the angles,” Cooley said. “I really like the way she is putting together the sequence of deliveries and the number of deliveries she has got in option. Her toolbox is quite big now and [she] is definitely using those tools in a strategic and tactical way.”Vastrakar, who made her international debut in 2018, was riddled with injuries at the start of her career. But for the last couple of years, she has been a vital cog in India’s white-ball squads. She was named as a non-travelling reserve for the Asian Games this year, but made it to the squad after Anjali Sarvani pulled up on the eve of departure, and starred in the final with a four-for to help India to a gold medal.In the Test match, Vastrakar used the wobble seam and hard lengths to dismantle England’s top order, including bowling Nat Sciver-Brunt through the gate for a first-ball duck in the second dig. Cooley attributed her success to a balanced run-up and attacking lines.”She had a little bit of a sore knee and she came back through that nicely,” Cooley said. “Through rehab she dedicated herself to improve her run-up and get the most out of it. She has done a marvellous job there. Now she is more balanced at the crease.”You can see the natural tendency now to get into the stumps and challenge those batters. She has got her run-up sorted which is great from a bowling coach [persepective] here. She has got enough pace and variations to be a good red-ball bowler.”In their return to Test cricket after two years – and at home after nine years – India bowled out England for 136 and 131 at the DY Patil Stadium with offspinner Deepti Sharma picking up nine wickets in the match. The fast bowlers held their own even when they didn’t make inroads, adding to the pressure on England’s batters. Cooley said the bowlers have not only added more variations to their armoury but also know when to use them.Along with the inswinger she naturally bowls, Renuka Singh has now developed a ball that straightens and leaves the right-hand batter•BCCI

“I know behind the scenes what work they are putting in and the growth has been in line with the work they have done,” he said. “The biggest improvement is they have added some skills and variations. Not only that, but the control and when to use them, that’s come into it quite nicely.”The strategy behind what ball they are going to use – whether to attack or defend – we talk about talking to the ball now and they are getting some good answers back. They are improving very well, there is still more room to go but they are up for it, and they have got the work ethic to be able to do that.”They have got the support of the captain [Harmanpreet Kaur] and the new head coach [Amol Muzumdar] – he is hell bent that everybody who comes into training or in games is about improving themselves. There are a couple of World Cups coming up and he wants to see improvements all the way and we have got a good environment for that under his leadership.”The fast bowlers put in hard yards behind the scenes even during the domestic T20s, Cooley said, and he felt this would hold them in good stead during India’s upcoming home series against Australia.”These girls have been doing extra work in the last two-three months,” he said. “Their work ethic is through the roof. They may be playing the domestic T20s but in the back they’ll be topping up their work to make sure their resilience and capacity to go into Test-match cricket and to survive international cricket is building up all the way. Full credit to the medical team, the coaching staff and S&C [strength and conditioning] staff who got together and made these plans and worked towards them.”

Punia called up as back-up for Shubha

Priya Punia was seen batting for a long time in India’s first training session ahead of the one-off Test against Australia. She batted against a healthy dose of fast bowling and spin after starting with throwdowns for about 20 minutes. Shubha Satheesh, who top-scored with 69 on debut against England, was not to be seen.Shubha was ruled out of the rest of the game after taking a blow to her left ring finger while training before the start of the second day’s play. She was seen with a splint on her left hand and Harmanpreet confirmed after the match that she had suffered a broken finger and a dislocation.Cooley confirmed that Punia had been called up in case a replacement was needed.”No update on Shubha, the medical team would have got hold of that,” he said. “It is very sad for us to see after she batted so well to get a knock on that finger. We are hoping it will heal quickly. The replacement player is coming in just in case. [Punia is a] very good player, the squad balance and strength is still there. We’ll miss [Shubha] if she is not available.”

The left hander will be the spare batter against West Indies after winning the selection race

AAP11-Jan-20241:30

Michael Clarke not concerned by ageing Australia Test side

After being recalled to Australia’s Test squad, batter Matt Renshaw has been left musing on how the last six months has been “a weird time”, but also the best of times, for him.Renshaw is not in the playing XI, but has been named in the 13-man squad as the spare batter for the first Test against the West Indies, starting in Adelaide on January 17, edging out fellow red-ball openers Marcus Harris and Cameron Bancroft who were also in the mix.Related

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When David Warner announced in the middle of last year that he would retire from Test cricket after the recently concluded Pakistan series, the race was on to find his successor, with Steven Smith now confirmed as opener after being elevated from No. 4.But the 27-year-old Renshaw is just happy to be back in the Test environment, after learning a lot about himself since last being part of the squad during the Test series in India last year.”It is really nice and a lot of hard work has gone into that. It has been a weird six months since Davey said what he said but I have just tried to enjoy my cricket,” Renshaw explained. “That is the big one for me. As much as all this stuff has been looming over my head, I play my best when I am having fun.”Obviously, people come and go. That’s the way cricket is but I’ve just tried to enjoy my cricket…whether that is for Australia A, Prime Minister’s XI, Queensland and in county cricket as well.”Matt Renshaw had a brief return to the Test side last year•Getty Images

Renshaw has scored 1566 first-class runs at an average of 52.20, with seven centuries, since July 1, 2022. They are impressive figures and reveal his consistency.His selection is a message from selectors that he is the next cab off the rank if he can stay on his upward trajectory. The opening position that could have been his has been taken by Smith, rather than a regular red-ball opener.Smith volunteered to move up from No. 4 but Renshaw is not kicking stones. It is a move he understands.”He averages 60 in Test cricket. He is the best player in the world. It gets Cam [Green] in the team as well and we all know what Cam is capable of,” he said. “Selectors talked about the top six batters in the country and there is no doubt those six guys are. It is just about me trying to learn from them while I am in the squad.”We have got amazing players in the team but I’ve had a little nibble at Test cricket already. I know what it is like to score a hundred, and how that feels. I jut want to try and get that enjoyment and be myself around the Test team.”Renshaw was just 20 when he scored 184, his sole Test century, against Pakistan in Sydney.”I feel a completely different player. I look back at that and I think I was very naïve with cricket,” he said. “I came in wet behind the ears and hadn’t really had much experience with what the game can do. I’ve learned from that…tried to get better with that and tried to improve myself as a cricketer.”That’s all-round with my game knowledge and probably some technical aspects. I look back at my technique then and it probably wasn’t that pretty. It is still probably not that pretty, but I feel like I have ironed out a few things I needed to.”

Bhatia and Harmanpreet steered Mumbai’s chase after Capsey and Rodrigues helped Delhi set a target of 172

S Sudarshanan23-Feb-2024The opening evening of the second season of the Women’s Premier League ended like it started – in a blockbuster fashion.Defending champions Mumbai Indians won a last-ball thriller by four wickets to kickstart their title defence in Bengaluru. A movie-like ending – after the game swung one way and then the other – was only apt after an opening ceremony headlined by the who’s-who of Bollywood.Chasing a challenging target of 172, Mumbai needed 22 off the last two overs with captain Harmanpreet Kaur set. She hit a six off the last ball of the penultimate over to bring the equation down to 12 off 6. Capitals turned to the part-time off-spin of Alice Capsey with the longer boundary on the leg side. The move nearly worked after she dismissed Pooja Vastrakar and Harmanpreet in the first five balls.Related

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But with five needed off one, Kerala allrounder S Sajana, playing her first WPL match, walloped Capsey over long-on to spark celebrations in the strong crowd at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. Only hours ago, Capsey had starred by scoring a 53-ball 75 – aided by a dropped catch by Sajana – but her night ended in disappointment.

Bhatia powers Mumbai’s chase

Mumbai lost Hayley Matthews to the second ball of the chase, when the opener tried to drive Marizanne Kapp and edged behind. Yastika Bhatia got off the mark with a delightful drive past wide mid-off. She then hit Annabel Sutherland for two fours before going after Shikha Pandey in the last over of the powerplay.Bhatia lofted her over mid-off before getting a thick outside edge past the wicketkeeper. She then hit a short delivery over deep midwicket as Mumbai raced to 50 for 1 after six overs.Arundhati Reddy struck with her first ball for Capitals, yorking Nat Sciver-Brunt with an inswinging slower one, but Bhatia powered on. She brought up her fifty off 35 balls and looked set to bat through the chase. But she found Kapp at deep midwicket when she heaved across the line at another slower one from Reddy.

Harmanpreet takes over

Harmanpreet got off the mark with a crisp cover drive first ball. She rotated strike and found boundaries regularly even after Bhatia holed out. The pace of Sutherland and Kapp, as the chase got tighter, helped her. She hit a massive six over long-on to bring up a 32-ball fifty. It seemed like we’d seen it before – she had struck a half-century in a successful chase in the opening game of WPL 2023, too.But Mumbai’s chase seemed to lose steam once she was dismissed, before Sajana did the unthinkable.Shabnim Ismail picked up the first wicket of WPL 2024 by castling Shafali Verma•BCCI

Ismail breathes fire

When Mumbai bought Shabnim Ismail at the auction, there was talk of her being a back-up for Issy Wong. But she not only started WPL 2024 ahead of Wong but also bowled an opening spell that dispelled all notions of her being a back-up. Ismail started with a one-run first over which was backed up by left-arm spinner Saika Ishaque from the other end.Ismail then struck with the first ball of her second over – a 118kph delivery bowling Shafali Verma, who cleared her front leg and looked to mow across the line. Capitals scored only 26 for 1 in the powerplay, with Ismail’s figures reading 3-0-10-1. She then returned at the death, where a dropped catch denied her the wicket of a set Capsey.

C for Capitals, C for Capsey

Meg Lanning and Capsey had rebuilt Capitals’ innings steadily before the shackles were broken in the first over after the powerplay. Capsey danced down to loft Amelia Kerr over extra cover before Lanning did the same to hit over mid-on. Another legspinner, WPL debutant SB Keerthana, was taken for 13 in her only over. When Lanning and Capsey hit a six and a four in Kerr’s next over, Capitals had managed to score 37 in three overs after the field restrictions were lifted. One over after the timeout though, Sciver-Brunt managed to get the better of Lanning.Despite losing the captain, Capsey accelerated, hitting two sixes and a four off Matthews to bring up a half-century off just 36 balls. Along with Jemimah Rodrigues, who combined deft touch and aggression, Capitals managed to find boundaries regularly heading into the death overs. Capsey and Rodrigues added 74 off just 40 balls before Capsey missed a reverse sweep to get trapped lbw off Kerr.Rodrigues also showed her power by regularly peppering the on-side boundary. She deposited an Ismail slower one over long-on before clubbing a slower bouncer from Sciver-Brunt over deep midwicket.A final flourish from Kapp, who hit three fours in the last over, helped Capitals finish on 171. But that was not enough for Mumbai, who maintained their perfect record in chases in the WPL.

All-round Nitish Kumar Reddy backed up by the SRH quicks took the side over the line defending 182

Himanshu Agrawal09-Apr-2024Sunrisers Hyderabad dropped three catches of Ashutosh Sharma in the final over off which Punjab Kings needed 29 runs. Two of them went over the ropes for sixes and nearly turned the match. But when the third went down, only one delivery remained and Kings needed nine. Shashank Singh sent the last ball miles over the long-off boundary, but Kings fell short by just two runs in their chase of 183 to give Sunrisers their third win of the season.It was Jaydev Unadkat who bowled that last over which went for 26. As fate would have it, it was Unadkat who Harshal Patel had dropped on the final ball of Sunrisers’ innings and the ball had popped up over the rope for six. Fine margins.What a dream it would have been had Shashank and Ashutosh pulled off another heist like they did five days back against Gujarat Titans. But eventually, they were left with too many to get in the final over of the chase.

Shashank, Ashutosh at it again

They joined forces when Kings were 114 for 6 halfway into the 16th over. The required rate at the time was 15.33 which soon shot up to 16.75 with 24 balls remaining. Different bowlers bowled each of those four overs, and each one of them was taken to the cleaners.In the 17th, Shashank took on Bhuvneshwar Kumar. He got a streaky outside edge over short third first ball of the over for four. The next ball was drilled to wide long-off, and the fifth one slashed to deep extra cover.Ashutosh then kept Kings in the hunt, swatting and ramping Pat Cummins for back-to-back fours in the 18th over. The odds still remained with SRH, with Kings requiring 39 in the last two overs. T Natajaran was taken for ten, an excellent over in the context of things, which left Unadkat with 28 to defend in the 20th.Unadkat’s final over started with a six, two wides and another six. Fourteen runs gone in two balls. But he came back well conceding just six runs in his next three balls. Shashank deposited the last ball for six, but Kings narrowly missed out on getting over the line.Nitish Kumar Reddy’s 37-ball 64 took Sunrisers Hyderabad to an above par total•BCCI

Reddy rescues SRH

Nitish Kumar Reddy’s heart would have been in his mouth during the carnage in the final over. After all, he had spilled Ashutosh’s catch the first ball of the final over. But it was Reddy’s knock of 64 from 37 balls that rescued SRH from a precarious 64 for 4 in the tenth over and took them to 182.After Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Heinrich Klaasen and Aiden Markram fell cheaply, it was down to Reddy to do the repair work. On 14 from 18 balls at one stage, he slammed Harpreet Brar for four and a six in the 11th over. Kagiso Rabada was hooked over long leg for six, and Sam Curran was smashed over deep square. But Reddy really turned the screws in the 15th over, when he deposited Brar for 4, 6, 4, 6 off successive balls.

Arshdeep sets things right

Coming into the game Arshdeep Singh had four wickets in as many games in IPL 2024. Against SRH, he doubled his season tally on his way to figures of 4 for 29. The first of those came when on the second ball of the third over, Dhawan turned around 180 degrees and back-pedalled from mid-off to catch Head. Two deliveries later, Arshdeep angled one across Markram, and had him edging behind to the wicketkeeper. Arshdeep’s first spell figures were 2-0-8-2, and as a result, SRH had their worst powerplay of the season, being restricted to 40 for 3.Before Tuesday night, Arshdeep had only one wicket in 20 balls in the death overs this season. His economy rate was 11.70. But against SRH, he was brought back for the death overs, where he bowled two out of the four.Reddy and Abdul Samad had added 50 in just 19 balls when Arshdeep went full and wide to Samad on the third ball of the 17th over, who found deep point. The fast bowler then removed Reddy, who only managed to loft a low full toss to long-on. Shahbaz Ahmed took 15 from the 19th over of the innings to somewhat spoil Arshdeep’s figures, but it was still an excellent day out for the quick despite ending on the losing side.

With 50 games done in IPL 2024, no team has qualified for the playoffs – and no team is out of the race yet

S Rajesh02-May-2024Mumbai Indians can still make the playoffs. Even though Sunrisers Hyderabad’s victory over Rajasthan Royals has made their task tougher, Mumbai can still make the top four with 14 points.As things stand, it’s still possible for MI to be tied for third spot on 14 points, if RR and Kolkata Knight Riders win most of their matches and take the top two positions. For example, if Lucknow Super Giants and Sunrisers lose all their remaining games except the ones they play against each other on May 8, then the winner of that match will finish on 14, tied for third place with MI if they win their last four. It’s even possible for the six remaining teams to be tied on 12 each.

What if Mumbai lose to KKR?

If MI lose to KKR and the other matches follow the result pattern mentioned above, then MI will be one of seven teams tied on 12, fighting for one spot. That means mathematically they’ll still be in the mix even if they lose on Friday.

What about RCB’s chances? Are they still in the mix?

With six points from 10 games, RCB are in the same position as MI, except that they are on a two-match winning streak, compared to three losses in a row for MI. Fourteen points could keep them in the mix but at this stage, even 12 gives them a mathematical chance.

Rajasthan Royals have all but qualified, right?

Well, not quite. They are, of course, in the best position among all teams with 16 points from 10 games, but if they lose their four remaining matches, then it’s possible for four teams – KKR, SRH, LSG and Chennai Super Kings – to finish on 18 or more points. Even if they win one, RR could still be one of five teams with 18 or more.So, with 50 games done in IPL 2024, no team has qualified for the playoffs, and no team is out of the race yet.

It adds to CSK’s woes who are already running thin on seam-bowling resources

Deivarayan Muthu02-May-20243:14

How should CSK balance their overseas bowling combination?

Chennai Super Kings’ depleting bowling stocks have disrupted their balance as they enter the business end of IPL 2024, their head coach Stephen Fleming has said.Deepak Chahar, who had missed two games with a niggle earlier in this season, bowled just two balls on Wednesday evening against Punjab Kings before pulling up and leaving the field. While Shardul Thakur filled in for him and completed the over, Chahar didn’t return. CSK were already without Matheesha Pathirana, who was out with a niggle and Tushar Deshpande, who didn’t even travel to the ground because of flu.While Fleming didn’t specify the nature – and extent – of Chahar’s injury, he suggested that early signs weren’t promising.Related

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“Yeah, the travel log is pretty busy,” Fleming said after CSK lost to Punjab by seven wickets. “There’s a lot of ins and outs. So, Deepak Chahar doesn’t look good. The initial feeling wasn’t great. So, I’m hoping for a more positive report when the physio and the doctor have a look.”The Sri Lankan pair of Pathirana and Maheesh Theekshana is also set to fly out to Colombo for visa work ahead of the T20 World Cup in the USA and the West Indies. CSK, though, are hopeful of having them back for their reverse fixture against PBKS in Dharamsala on May 5. Mustafizur Rahman’s IPL stint, meanwhile, ended with Wednesday’s match. He will now link up with the Bangladesh side for their home T20I series against Zimbabwe, which begins on May 3.Richard Gleeson impressed on his IPL debut•AFP/Getty Images

“The Sri Lankan boys are off to get their visas,” Fleming said. “We’re hoping that their process is smooth and we get them back for the next game up north. Richard Gleeson was good and it was a positive. Losing Fizz [Mustafizur] is disappointing, there’s a lot happening isn’t it?”Tushar has a bit of flu going around as well. So we’ve had to make a few changes, which is unusual. Again, that’s part of it and again we have got the resources. Just they haven’t had the game time to be really comfortable with their roles and us to be comfortable with a game plan, which we’re struggling with a little.”On his IPL debut, Gleeson, 36, swung the new ball both ways, and provided CSK with one of the three wickets they took on Wednesday. Gleeson also has yorkers and bouncers in his repertoire but beyond him and Pathirana, CSK don’t have a specialist overseas seamer in their squad.Former New Zealand fast bowler and ESPNcricinfo expert Mitchell McClenaghan suggested that left-arm fingerspinner Mitchell Santner could be an option for CSK when they come up against PBKS in round two on Sunday.”Gleeson is a good new-ball bowler and can swing the ball both ways and had a little bit of zip and one hit Dhoni’s gloves hard,” McClenaghan said on Timeout, ESPNcricinfo’s analysis show. “He was impressive in his first outing in the IPL in difficult conditions. So he is going to be good from there and it’s what you do with the other spot. Mustafizur is gone. If Pathirana is out for more than one game, I would probably look at playing Mitchell Santner against Punjab. Because you can bowl him in the powerplay to Jonny Bairstow and Prabhsimran [Singh] and if you get Rilee Rossouw out, he will be a good operator in the middle.”3:15

Did CSK err by using Rizvi as the Impact Player?

Mukesh Choudhary, who has played just one competitive game since the start of 2023, and Simarjeet Singh, who hasn’t played any competitive matches in that period, are among the Indian bowling options along with Maharashtra legspinner Prashant Solanki, who was on the subs bench for Wednesday’s fixture.Reshuffling of personnel aside, CSK rejigged their batting line-up against PBKS, with Daryl Mitchell, who had scored a half-century against Sunrisers Hyderabad from No. 3, sliding down to No. 8. CSK aimed to stem a collapse on a slow surface by slotting in Sameer Rizvi as Impact Player, replacing Ajinkya Rahane, but he laboured to 21 off 23 balls. At one point, CSK went 55 balls without a single boundary off the bat – the longest stretch this season, beating Gujarat Titans’ 38 against Delhi Capitals. Fleming tried to make sense of those moves.”The Dube factor is the one [reason],” Fleming said. “So if you get to six overs, that’s the perfect time for him to come in. The next thing is with left-right [combination], we want [Ravindra] Jadeja, who has got a positive role as well, to come in and take them [the spinners] on as well. But they bowled well. The Rizvi one, we will discuss a little bit more, may go the other way around with that one but again he’s positive and his ability to hit sixes in training has certainly been good. But there’s a temperament part of that as well that young players need to learn. So we have got a bit of information from that.”The casualty was Mitchell going down the order. What we learnt from the first part of the tournament was if it goes too low, there are other players – Moeen Ali and MS [Dhoni] – who can push the game along. So the window closes there but it was very much getting the tactics right for what we wanted to do in the middle. And that was to break their spinners up but they won that competition.”

Tom Bailey, Will Williams take two wickets apiece with Kent still well adrift in second innings

ECB Reporters Network25-Jun-2024Lancashire were closing in on a huge victory in their Vitality County Championship with Kent at Canterbury, having reduced the hosts to 143 for 6 at stumps on day three. Kent still trail by 162 with just four second innings wickets remaining, Charlie Stobo and Beyers Swanepoel the not out batters on 25 and 18 respectively.Lancashire declared on 549 for 9, a lead of 305, with Josh Bohannon making 205 and Matty Hurst 50, while George Garrett took 3 for 89.Will Williams and Tom Bailey then both took two wickets apiece to leave Kent six down at stumps. Ben Compton was their highest scorer with just 37 and the chances of them escaping with anything other than a heavy defeat to their relegation rivals are bleak.The only question at the start of day three was how long Lancashire were going to bat for, with a lead of 158 already in the bank, although for a side who’d been pummelled for four straight sessions Kent at least managed to stop Lancashire from scoring too freely.Bohannon reached his double-hundred with a pushed single off Matt Parkinson, before his former team-mate finally got him out lbw with a ball that might have been going down the leg side.Hurst eased to fifty with a single off Joey Evison but he was then stumped by Harry Finch when he tried to charge at Parkinson. It was 499 for 6 at lunch, during which a band called the “Useless Pluckers” performed, prompting one Lancastrian observer to remark: “They’re not Goons’N’Roses.”Garrett took all three of his wickets after the interval, which at least prevented an onslaught. Jack Blatherwick tried to hit him out of the ground and went for 18, caught by sub fielder Jaydn Denly. Garrett then had George Balderson caught behind for 42 and when Bailey skied him to Parkinson, Lancashire declared.They didn’t have to wait long for a wicket: Williams had Marcus O’Riordan caught at first slip by George Bell for 4 in the fourth over.Nathan Lyon came on after 12 overs but it was George Balderson who struck next, pinning Daniel Bell-Drummond lbw for 9 to leave Kent on 59 for 2 at tea.Compton always looked like being the key wicket but he inexplicably tried to slog Bailey and the ball flew in the air off his bottom edge. He spread his arms wide in despair well before Bell took the catch when the ball finally fell to earth.Williams sent Evison’s off stump flying for 10, Bailey had Tawanda Muyeye caught behind for a six-ball duck and Finch lasted for 56 balls for 23 until Lyon had him caught by Bohannon at mid-on.Swanepoel, who’d been unable to bowl, came out with O’Riordan as a runner and caused confusion by running anyway, but he and Stobo at least managed to drop anchor for the final 11.4 overs to take the game to a final day.

Late wickets keep visitors in ascendency after Northants set 284 to win low-scoring game

ECB Reporters Network01-Jul-2024Sussex’s bowlers dealt Northamptonshire a double blow late in the day at Wantage Road to close in on victory and the chance to stretch their advantage at the top of Vitality County Championship Division Two.Set a target of 284, Emilio Gay’s 67 appeared to have given Northamptonshire a fighting chance – but he and skipper Luke Procter both fell in the space of four balls to leave the visitors as clear favourites in a low-scoring contest.Seamer Nathan McAndrew, who dismissed Gay leg before, ended with 2 for 37 as the home side closed on 137 for 4 – still needing another 147 to pull off a first win of the season.Procter played a key role with the ball earlier in the day, recording season’s best figures of 4 for 45 as Sussex were bowled out for 237 in their second innings, while Ben Sanderson took 3 for 44.The opening day’s play had encompassed 22 wickets – and more of the same looked on the cards when Tom Alsop departed in the first over, edging Sanderson behind with no increase to Sussex’s overnight lead of 129. In a tight opening spell Sanderson soon dismissed nightwatcher Sean Hunt as well, taken at first slip, while Raphy Weatherall and Justin Broad also extracted movement and bounce off the surface.James Coles settled down to dispatch a series of classic cover drives to the boundary, while Oli Carter shook off a slow start by whipping Procter for six over square leg, but the Northamptonshire captain responded by bringing one back to pin Coles in front.Broad then struck twice just after lunch with a ball that seamed and bounced to clip Carter’s off bail before Fynn Hudson-Prentice miscalculated a cut shot and speared it into the hands of mid-off instead.Having spilled a number of catches in Sussex’s first innings, the home side squandered an opportunity to remove John Simpson as Gay, springing across from second slip, fumbled a sharp chance off Sanderson. In the same over, Broad’s throw from cover should have left McAndrew short of his ground and the Australian capitalised on that let-off, thrashing five boundaries to reach a valuable 22 before he was out in peculiar fashion.McAndrew’s leading edge off Procter looped up towards mid-off, with the bowler racing to gather it, colliding with the substitute fielder and dumping the ball on the turf in his follow-through – yet the catch stood.Procter swiftly polished off the last two wickets, including that of Simpson for 40, to leave Northamptonshire almost a session and a half’s batting and they lost Ricardo Vasconcelos prior to tea, trapped in his crease by McAndrew’s second delivery.However, Prithvi Shaw got off the mark by crunching McAndrew to the cover fence and continued to exhibit classy strokeplay on either side of the wicket as he and Gay built a partnership of 69, the highest of the match.Left-armer Hunt produced a beauty to separate the pair, knocking back Shaw’s off stump for 37 – and he might also have dislodged Gay in his next over but Simpson, leaping low to his left, was unable to pouch the chance.The opener took advantage to pass 50 for the sixth time this season from the next ball and he and Procter dug in to reach 118 for 2 before Sussex prised them both out in successive overs. Offspinner Jack Carson persuaded Procter to nudge one to Simpson and the swift loss of Gay left Matthew Breetzke and Rob Keogh with the task of ensuring Northamptonshire at least live to fight another day.