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Ellyse Perry, who recently suffered a hip injury, could be a doubtful starter for RCB

S Sudarshanan13-Feb-20254:05

Mandhana: WPL has taught me a lot, not just captaincy

Who’s playing

Gujarat Giants vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Kotambi Stadium, Vadodara, February 14, 2025, 7.30pm IST

What to expect: Mandhana vs Gardner

No bowler has dismissed Smriti Mandhana more often than Ashleigh Gardner in Women’s T20s or in ODIs. With Gardner assuming the captaincy of Giants, she could look to bring herself on early against the RCB captain. With Mandhana in sublime form, it could be an interesting contest.Two of Giants’ four wins across two seasons of the WPL have come against RCB, including their first-ever victory.Related

• RCB's title defence hit by player unavailability, injuries

• Can new captain Gardner change Giants' fortunes?

• How the WPL is changing life for young Indian women

• Vastrakar, Sobhana ruled out of WPL with injuries

Team news and likely XIs: Mooney’s opening partner, Perry’s fitness in focus

The choice of Beth Mooney’s opening partner could pose a headache for Giants. Given Deandra Dottin commands a place in the XI, only one of Laura Wolvaardt and Phoebe Litchfield might find a place in the XI.Gujarat Giants (probable): 1 Beth Mooney (wk), 2 Laura Wolvaardt, 3 Harleen Deol, 4 Deandra Dottin, 5 Dayalan Hemalatha, 6 Ashleigh Gardner (capt), 7 Simran Shaikh, 8 Sayali Satghare, 8 Meghna Singh, 9 Tanuja Kanwar, 10 Kashvee Gautam, 11 Shabnam Shakil/Mannat Kashyap.Ellyse Perry is heading into WPL 2025 on the back of suffering a hip injury during the Women’s Ashes Test in Melbourne. She could take the No. 4 spot in the absence of Sophie Devine. If Perry does not pull up well for the opening game, RCB could go with Georgia Wareham at No. 4 and play Charlie Dean as well. The injury to Asha Sobhana, a sure-starter who has been ruled out of the tournament, adds to the selection complications for them.1:43

Gardner: We have fantastic youth in our set-up

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (probable): 1 Smriti Mandhana (capt), 2 Danni Wyatt-Hodge, 3 S Meghana, 4 Ellyse Perry, 5 Richa Ghosh, 6 Raghvi Bist, 7 Kanika Ahuja, 8 Georgia Wareham, 9 Jagravi Pawar, 10 Kim Garth, 11 Renuka Singh.

Players to watch: Deandra Dottin and Richa Ghosh

With their acrimonious equation from WPL 2023 behind them, Deandra Dottin could be key to Giants’ success. She made a successful return to internationals just ahead of the Women’s T20 World Cup last year, where she was West Indies’ leading run-scorer while picking up five wickets at an economy rate of 5.42. In the home T20Is against Bangladesh, Dottin scored 110 in three games at a strike rate of 203.70. Having played ODIs against India at the Kotambi Stadium, Dottin would have an idea of what to expect, and Giants would want her to step up with the ball too, especially at the death.4:32

RCB will have it tough against well-rounded Giants

Very few Indian players in the WPL can do what Richa Ghosh can – finish matches as a power-hitter. With RCB battling player-unavailability and fitness issues, Ghosh will be a vital cog in that middle order. She showed good hitting form in the home season against West Indies and Ireland. RCB relied on her prowess last year to win the title. She is third in the list of most sixes in the WPL; expect her to move up as the season progresses. How she does could well decide how the defending champions start their campaign.

Key stats

• Ashleigh Gardner is Giants’ leading run-scorer (324) as well as wicket-taker (17)
• Giants have had eight opening pairs in the two years, the most in the WPL.
• Giants have hit 43 sixes in the WPL, the fewest among all teams.
• RCB have two bowlers in their squad with T20I hat-tricks – Ekta Bisht and Heather Graham.

192 players will be offered new contracts which represent a stark increase in salary

Umar Farooq26-Jun-2020Pakistan’s domestic cricketers can hope for better pay next season after the PCB announced a record investment of PKR 1.95 billion into domestic cricket.After the deep structural changes to the domestic game last season, which saw a steep fall in the earnings of most domestic cricketers a new grade-based system of monthly retainers and match fees has been introduced. There will now be five categories, starting with an A+ in which ten elite performers (out of 192 players in all) from the previous season will be placed: they will receive a monthly retainer or PKR 150,000.Thirty eight players will be in category A (PKR 85,000), 48 players will fall in category B (PKR 75,000) 72 players will make up category C (PKR 65,000) and 24 will be in category D (PKR 40,000). Which players fit into which category will likely be known by the end of next month.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Although match fees have been reduced, this change does represent an enhancement for some players. Last season, the PCB abolished department cricket and restructured the entire system, with only six provincial teams playing every format. Few players were happy with the change since it left a vast number of them on the outer, as the board decided to push for quality rather than quantity.Last season, every player was paid a flat retainer of PKR 50,000 a month, which for many was a considerable drop in earnings from previous seasons where a number of players were employed – and paid salaries – by departments. In the case of some, the change had represented a reduction of PKR 600,000 or more.The new contracts will be offered to all players next month and will come into effect from August 1.Getty Images

“The PCB had repeatedly spoken about improving domestic retainers year-on-year which we are committed to doing and have backed up this year,” Wasim Khan, PCB CEO, said in a statement. “We very much see this as the start. Overall, we have increased our investment by 46 percent in our domestic contract retainers, as compared to last year. We have also created a category-based retainer system that will better reward and incentivise the high-performing cricketers.”The PCB is optimistic this model will further enhance competitiveness amongst the players, which, in turn, will contribute in the overall uplifting of our domestic cricket. We are likely to have all the six Cricket Association sides in place by mid-August but will continue to keep an eye on the Covid-19 situation. We will only start our 2020-21 season when the Covid-19 curve of cases starts going in the downward direction and we have the necessary permissions and SOPs in place to ensure health and safety of all concerned.”Nadeem Khan, a director at the High Performance Centre, will be overseeing domestic cricket in addition to age-group programmes, which will be given a monetary boost as well thanks to the new financial model.The 2020-21 season set to start in August, assuming the threat of Covid-19 reduces by then. There have been more over 197,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus infections and 4000 deaths in Pakistan, with cases expected to peak towards the end of July and early August according to prime minister Imran Khan. Cricket, alongside other sports in the country, has been on hold since March 16, when most players were last active in the yet-to-be completed Pakistan Super League.

For South Africa, no one apart from Quinton de Kock scored more than 20

Firdose Moonda01-Jul-2021West Indies defended 167 in the fourth T20I against South Africa to lock the five-match series at 2-2 and set up a decider for Saturday. Their big names all took responsibility: captain Kieron Pollard top-scored with 51*, Dwayne Bravo claimed career-best figures of 4 for 19, and Chris Gayle taking a wicket with his first ball to go with two catches were the icing on the cake.The home side scored 20 off their first over and 66 in the final four but their innings suffered a lull in between. They managed just 81 runs in the 15 overs from the second to the 17th as South Africa’s spinners put the brakes on. But their efforts were not enough for a batting line-up that lacks a finisher and remains over-reliant on Quinton de Kock.South Africa’s former captain scored a second successive half-century and a sixth T20I half-century in his last 15 matches, but had little support from the other end as no other South Africa batter scored more than 20. They last successfully chased a target above 160 in February 2018 when they beat India, and last won a T20I series in March 2019 against Sri Lanka, but will still have the chance to turn that around in two days’ time.Opening overload…
Aiden Markram, South Africa’s sixth bowler, was given the new ball and eyebrows would have been immediately raised over that choice. Lendl Simmons swept Markram’s first ball past short fine-leg for four, cut his third delivery, which was short and wide, for four more, and then took two sixes off the last three balls. The first was a sweep over fine leg and the second an audacious smack straight down the ground. West Indies scored 20 runs off that over, their most in the first over of a T20I and the most by any team batting first in this format.
… and then the squeeze

But South Africa pulled things back impressively and took six wickets in the 15 overs that followed. As has been the case throughout the series, their spinners controlled the run rate and frustrated the West Indies line-up. George Linde was introduced after the powerplay and put in the most economical performance of his T20I career by conceding just 16 runs in four overs. He also brought up 100 wickets in the format – across both international and domestic matches – when Simmons was given out leg before after missing a sweep and being hit in front of middle and leg. Just before that, Linde had Shimron Hetmyer caught behind off an under-edge as well.Tabraiz Shamsi bowled overs in tandem with Linde initially – the pair gave away only 14 runs in five overs – and then returned for a second spell. Shamsi had Nicholas Pooran caught at deep backward square-leg off a top-edge and Andre Russell caught at short fine-leg after the latter top-edged a sweep. The left-arm wristspinner equalled his most miserly effort in T20Is with figures of 2 for 13, an identical analysis to the last match.Take it on the knee!
With West Indies on 101 for 6 after 16 overs and a par score looking distant, Pollard took matters into his own hands. He drilled the first ball of Anrich Nortje’s final over straight back to him and clattered him on the left knee. Nortje went down for several minutes, his face scrunched up in obvious pain. He received some treatment on field, got back up and bowled the remainder of his over before hobbling off for some rest to the applause of his team-mates.Dwayne Bravo finished with career-best figures of 4 for 19•AFP/Getty Images

South Africa’s tight work unraveled in those last four overs, when they conceded 66 runs as Pollard and Fabian Allen took on the specialist quicks. The pair scored six sixes in that period compared to the West Indies’ five in the rest of the innings, and Pollard hit three in three balls off Kagiso Rabada, who bowled his most expensive T20 over. Rabada delivered the penultimate over of the innings, which was also the most expensive at 25 runs, and did not complete a full quota for the first time in T20Is since his debut in 2014. Also, Lungi Ngidi’s two death overs cost 30 runs as Pollard brought up a sixth T20I half-century and his highest score in seven innings.Too cool for (old) school

The combined age of West Indies’ opening bowling pair in this match was 80 years, with Fidel Edwards (39) in his second series since his Kolpak comeback and Gayle (41) sharing the new ball, though their youth appeared endless. Edwards gave little away until his last ball, but it was Gayle whose was on full display. He took on bowling duties complete with cap, sunglasses and earpiece on, lured Reeza Hendricks out of the crease, beat him on the drive and had him stumped, before cartwheeling in celebration. Gayle told the commentary team he had been dared to mimic Kevin Sinclair, who showed off some gymnastics moves earlier in the series.Take it on the shoulder now!
Nortje was not the only player to suffer an injury in the match. Allen jammed his right shoulder into the ground beyond the square-leg boundary when he tried to cut off a Temba Bavuma sweep. He didn’t save the boundary and his arm was put in a sling as he left the field before he could bowl, with what appeared to be a dislocated shoulder. Allen was the only specialist spinner in the West Indies XI. His overs were made up for by Pollard and Russell, who bowled his entire quota in a T20I for the first time since March last year.Bravo for West Indies

Allen’s absence was also mitigated by the performance of Bravo, who has been consistently excellent with the ball in this series and continued in that vein in this match. Bravo’s first spell straddled the powerplay and cost just eight runs before a second at the death was laced with slower balls. He collected 4 for 11 in 12 balls in the closing stages of the match to eventually finish with career-best figures of 4 for 19. Bravo had Linde caught at point off a slower ball, de Kock caught in the same position chasing a wide full toss, Shamsi skying a ball to Gayle at extra cover and Ngidi holing out to square leg, as he took 3 for 1 in the 18th over to shut South Africa out of the contest.

In the words of Ron Burgundy, today is kind of a big deal

Alan Gardner21-Jul-2021So, I was watching the football the other night on the BBC, and they started advertising this thing called “the Hundred”. It looked kind of like cricket, so here I am…
Yes ma’am, you’ve come to the right place. The Hundred is the rootin’-est tootin’-est thing to happen to the game since they added a third stump. Or at least since T20 started in 2003.Why does it feel like this is something that’s been buzzing away in the back of my head for some time?
Well, the Hundred is coming in off one of the longest runs imaginable. It was first announced in 2018, to the sound of loud guffaws, and was supposed to be launched last year – only for Covid-19 to force a postponement. Now we’re hours away from the start of the competition, and nobody is laughing any more.What’s it all about then?
It is the Alpha and Omega of the English game. It is the ECB betting the farm and crossing its fingers. It’s about inspiring generations and making up for all those lost years behind the paywall on Sk…[Glazing over] Sorry, you’re losing me
Dang, got to keep this simple. In the words of Ron Burgundy, it’s kind of a big deal.Well that much I had worked out. It’s cricket with pop music and jazzy kits. But how does it differ from, say, T20?
Well, it’s shorter, for a start – 100 balls (hence the name, geddit?) compared to 120. And to speed things up they will bowl 10 balls in a row from each end, meaning a game should take less than two-and-a-half hours.That doesn’t seem significantly shorter than T20…

We live in an entertainment-rich, time-poor era. And being able to squeeze in a televised game between 6.30-9pm – primetime on the BBC – was supposedly one of the big selling points. It’s also SHINY and NEW, which might help when being dangled in front of the flighty young channel-surfers the ECB is hoping to attract to the sport.The Hundred is here, and it is going to be a load of fun. Or else…•Getty Images

The ECB thinks kids still watch linear TV?
Look there’ll also be clips on Twitter. Please don’t make this any harder than it has to be.[Returns to scrolling on smartphone] Okay, you’ve got my attention. Give me the hard sell
For the next four weeks, over the course of 34 men’s and 34 women’s games, the cream of English cricket – plus a generous dollop of overseas talent – will be bouncing around on a nightly basis in front of (hopefully) packed stands. All of the games will be broadcast on Sky’s cricket channel, with a selection also showing on the BBC (if you’re following in India, it will be on FanCode). There will be in-house DJs to add to the atmosphere in the grounds, and rule tweaks to try to makes things simpler for casual followers. As in T20, fours and sixes will be the order of the day; unlike T20, it won’t drag on until beyond the kids’ bedtime (probably, depending on when your kids go to bed). In short, every ball matters.Doesn’t every ball matter in the other formats then?
Very good, clever clogs. But they actually matter more in the Hundred, since they are now the unit of bowling currency – rather than dowdy old “overs”. Plus, if you’ve invested several million quid into getting this off the ground, as the ECB has, then it all matters a great deal.So it’s a load of balls, got it. What have they spent all the moolah on?
Well, creating eight teams from scratch, for a start. And paying the players extra wedge, particularly the overseas ones – even if a lot of them have pulled out at the last minute due to Covid-related restrictions on travel. Despite all that, the ECB still hopes that the tournament can be profitable (if you discount the annual payments of £1.3m to each of the counties in order to get the whole thing signed off – but we won’t bore you further with that here).As always, it’s about bums on seats, eyeballs on screens and selling as much Butterkist as you can…
The usual globalised capitalist schtick. The revolution will be televised – and the opening night will actually be quite revolutionary, with a standalone women’s fixture between Oval Invincibles and Manchester Originals at the Kia Oval to kick off the whole shebang. The men’s and women’s teams share the same branding and are promoted in the same way, while the two competitions will also share equal prize money.Breaking down gender barriers, eh? I like the sound of that!
Yes, although it’s probably also worth noting that the highest salary band for the women is £15,000, compared to £100,000 for the men; the lowest-paid male players will receive £24,000. There has also been a bit of a row on the eve of the tournament about extending financial support to some of the part-time female players who have had to give up work in order to satisfy biosecurity requirements.Ugh, more bio-bubble life for the players to contend with?
Not exactly – the ECB has opted against putting in place too many restrictions, with most of the rest of society in the UK opening up. But given contact tracing and the requirements to self-isolate have led to a number of cancellations in domestic cricket over recent weeks, there is a chance the Hundred could fall foul of the pandemic once again.I’ll keep my fingers crossed (and my mask on). If there’s one thing we need after the last 18 months, it’s a bit of joy in our lives again…
Yep, the ECB is banking on that. Probably while hoping the good weather holds. With restrictions on crowd capacity in England ending this week, it could potentially be a feel-good moment for the game, helping to finally neutralise some of the rancour around the concept.Related

• Did we really need the Hundred?

• With friends like these? A Hundred reasons why the ECB has failed the game

• The Hundred timeline: How the ECB's new format came about

• English cricket's atomic option highlights failure to capitalise on T20 revolution

• Katherine Brunt on Women's Hundred pay row: 'Equality doesn't happen overnight'

You mean not everyone’s pleased with developments?
That would be putting it mildly. Traditional fans don’t see it as cricket, established formats have been marginalised (including the successful women’s T20 Super League), and some fear it could be the beginning of the end of the county game. But whatever your view, it’s here and it’s happening. And they do say there’s no such thing as bad publicity.Go on then, I’m sold. Give me a quick rundown of the rule changes and things I should look out for

Balls will be delivered in sets of five, with an option for captains to keep a bowler on for ten balls in a row if they’re feeling in the groove (and they can bowl their quota of 20 balls in two sets of ten each, but not consecutive sets). There will be a 25-ball Powerplay, with fielding restrictions in place, and the fielding side can call a two-minute strategic timeout thereafter. Unlike other forms of the game, if a catch is taken after the batters have crossed, the next batter in will still be on strike. For one, ahem, lucky player per side, fans will get to vote for their walk-on music. There’ll probably be a fair bit of working it all out on the hoof, but the spectacle by and large should look recognisably crickety.Sounds like something the mums and kids should be able to follow. And is it too much to ask about the musical acts involved?
Yes. Yes, it is. But you’ll give it a try?How does that song go? “I don’t like the Hundred, no…”
You love it?Steady on. I was thinking, “…but I’m not implacably opposed.”
It’s a start. We’ll take it.

A specialist batter – Renshaw or Handscomb – is expected to be the replacement, with Australia fielding just four specialist bowlers

Alex Malcolm07-Feb-20231:11

Steve O’Keefe: Todd Murphy will be a superstar

Cameron Green is very unlikely to play in the first Test against India, to be played in Nagpur from Thursday, with the fractured finger he suffered during the Boxing Day Test requiring more time to heal.Green did not bat during Australia’s first training session at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur. He did do some fitness work and light centre-wicket bowling, but Australia have opted for a cautious approach to his recovery given he had surgery to insert pins in his finger only five weeks ago.He jarred his finger while batting during the training camp in Bengaluru, before travelling to Nagpur, and while it did not cause any damage, it was enough to make the team management cautious.Related

• Meticulous Australia must avoid getting punched in the mouth

• Ian Chappell: 'Load of rubbish to worry if a batter is left-handed or right-handed'

• Watson on Australia's spin challenge

• Winning a Test series in India is 'bigger than the Ashes'

• Nagpur Test: Who partners Nathan Lyon?

Australia vice-captain Steven Smith felt Green was unlikely to play given he hasn’t faced fast bowling in the nets. “I don’t think he is [going to play],” Smith said. “I don’t think he’s even faced fast bowlers yet. So I dare say he won’t be playing but who knows. I’m not entirely sure. We’ll wait and see.”But it’s unlikely, I think.”This would mean that Australia pick a specialist batter at No. 6 and just four bowlers for the first Test.Matt Renshaw played in place of Green in the Sydney Test against South Africa at No. 6 but Peter Handscomb is also in the frame, with Australia’s selectors considering the balance of the top six in terms of left and right-hand batters. If Renshaw were to play, Australia would have five left-handers in the top seven.

Matt Renshaw or Peter Handscomb?

Handscomb has also done a lot of short-leg training in the lead-up to the Test both in Bengaluru and in Nagpur, although Renshaw has also done some close-in fielding work, at silly mid-off. Both men are good close catchers but Handscomb is the more experienced of the two in those roles.Scott Boland is a lock to replace the injured Josh Hazlewood. Lance Morris is the only other quick available but he only did some centre-wicket bowling in Nagpur alongside Green.Australia look set to play two spinners and two quicks with the surface looking extremely dry two days out from the start of the Test.”It’s pretty dry,” Smith said. “Particularly one end that I think will take a bit of spin, particularly the left-arm spinner spinning it back into our left-handers. There’s a section there that’s quite dry. Other than that, I can’t really get a good gauge on it.”I don’t think there will be a heap of bounce in the wicket. I think for the seamers it will be quite skiddy and maybe a bit of up-and-down movement as the game goes on. The cracks felt quite loose. We’ll wait and see when we get out there.”But no decision has been made on who the second spinner would be. If the surface looks like a raging turner, then Ashton Agar could be preferred over Todd Murphy to give Australia a left-arm orthodox option. But Murphy remained a chance to make his Test debut with Australia still considering the option of playing two specialist offspinners, with Nathan Lyon the primary choice.If the surface does look like it will spin big from ball one, Australia might have considered three spinners, but with Green set to be unavailable, that option appeared off the table.”I think if Green was fit it definitely be more of an option,” Smith said. “Without him, maybe. I’m not entirely sure. I think we’ve got a strategy meeting this afternoon where we’ll have a talk about what we think but ultimately it’s down to the selectors to pick the team they think is best for the surface.”

Surrey chased down a Middlesex total of 221 for 5 with almost contemptuous ease to win by nine wickets at The Oval

ECB Reporters Network03-Aug-2018

ScorecardTruly remarkable hitting by Aaron Finch and Jason Roy thrilled a sell-out Kia Oval crowd of 24,000 as Surrey chased down a Middlesex total of 221 for 5 with almost contemptuous ease to win the Vitality Blast London derby by nine wickets.Finch finished on a stunning 117 not out from 52 balls, while Roy had made 84 from only 37 balls when he swung seamer James Fuller to deep mid wicket off the fifth ball of the 14th over.Even Paul Stirling’s spectacular 58-ball 109 was overshadowed as Finch and Roy plundered an astonishing 194 for Surrey’s first wicket – scoring 98 in the initial six-over powerplay alone – to spearhead a victory achieved with a barely believable four overs to spare. It was Surrey’s fourth win from eight South Group games, but Middlesex’s seventh defeat from nine.Australian powerhouse Finch, the world’s No 1 T20 batsman, led the assault by reaching his fifty in a mere 16 balls – unsurprisingly a Surrey record – but England white-ball opener Roy was hardly a slouch, racing to his own half-century in 24 balls.Finch and Roy’s partnership was also a Surrey T20 first wicket record, beating the 187 they had themselves put on against Kent at the Oval two years ago.Spare a thought for Middlesex’s shell-shocked bowlers as sixes and fours simply flew from the bats of Finch and Roy. Tom Barber’s first over, the second of the innings, went for 17 as Finch plundered three successive fours and poor James Harris, who sent down the third over, saw it cost 23 runs as Finch smashed his first, second and fourth balls for six.In all, Finch hit eight sixes and 11 fours in his sixth T20 hundred, and second of this Blast campaign, while Roy’s final tally was seven sixes and seven fours. Nic Maddinson then came in to keep Finch company until the win was completed at 222 for 1, swinging Barber for a six of his own high over mid wicket in his unbeaten 13.Ironically, Middlesex’s 221 for 5 equalled their previous highest total in T20 cricket, the 221 for 2 scored against Sussex at Hove in 2015.Stirling, dropped off the first ball of the match by Maddinson at cover when he lifted a back foot force at Jade Dernbach, soon settled into the destructive hitting which is such a feature of his white-ball batting. He also hit a 36-ball 66 when Middlesex beat Surrey at Lord’s on July 5.Nick Gubbins, however, did most of the early scoring with four fours in a quickfire 20 before he was held on the deep mid wicket ropes by Tom Curran off Dernbach.Stirling then took over, swatting Mat Pillans’ first ball for six and square cutting his next ball for four. Curran was driven for two offside fours and the six-over powerplay ended with the same bowler being thumped over long on for six as Stirling went to 34 and Middlesex accelerated to 67 for 1.Gareth Batty’s off spin was also savaged, with sixes lofted wide of long off and pulled over mid wicket. Batty’s next ball, in the 11th over, disappeared over long on for another six and the Northern Irishman reached 99 with his seventh and final maximum, a massive blow launched off Will Jacks’ off spin over wide mid wicket.A single from the next ball took him to three figures, and there were two more fours off Rikki Clarke before the veteran all-rounder bowled him leg stump, making room, with the final ball of the 16th over.Stevie Eskinazi made a useful 27-ball 31 to support Stirling in a second wicket stand of 111 before giving Clarke a swirling catch off his own bowling with a skied swipe in the 14th over.That left Middlesex 136 for 2 and, although Eoin Morgan was run out for nought without facing a ball, after a mix-up with Stirling, runs continued to come quickly as Fuller thumped Dernbach for two sixes.When Stirling finally fell, a recalled James Franklin hit out merrily in an eight-ball 21, but little did he know that his and Fuller’s efforts would be in vain, despite what seemed to be a challenging total, as Surrey’s openers laid waste to the Middlesex attack.

Durham make inroads on shortened day but experienced South African stands firm

ECB Reporters Network07-Apr-2022Just 47 overs were possible on a day curtailed by weather in the LV=Insurance County Championship match between Glamorgan and Durham in Cardiff. The home side reached 164 for 4 at the close on a day that saw repeated weather delays after lunch.It was the visitors who won the toss and put Glamorgan into bat. Useful contributions of 28 from David Lloyd and 24 from Sam Northeast gave Glamorgan a decent start but two wickets in eight balls just before lunch brought Durham back into the game. Colin Ingram was the star for Glamorgan, finishing on 71 not out before a huge hailstorm took the players off the field for the final time just after tea.Glamorgan experimented with Andrew Salter as an opener, the third time in three different matches that he has been given the job. This one was no more successful than the other attempts with Salter now having made 7 runs from three innings at the top of the order. While there has been some batting success for the offspinner – he has nine fifties in first-class cricket – it will be interesting how long-lasting and how successful this experiment will be. When Eddie Bryrom is back from injury the expectation is that he will be given the job.Lloyd, himself a relative newcomer to opening in first class cricket, looked much more assured with real positive intent from the outset. He played an enterprising innings before edging to David Bedingham off the bowling of Ben Raine.New Glamorgan signing Northeast looked in good touch before he was trapped lbw by Chris Rushworth. When Raine had Kiran Carlson bowled for 1 in the next over Glamorgan found themselves 108 for 4 despite having looked in control for much of the morning session.Ingram, who has played just one other first-class match since 2017, looked in fantastic touch, passing his fifty from 76 balls with one half chance in the gully being his only slip up. Lloyd joked afterwards that Marnus Labuschagne, who has only just arrived in the country, might have a fight to get his place back.”We will have to send Marnus back home I think, and Colin can take his place,” he said. “Obviously, it is a good place to be having that competition and Colin has come in and done a really good job. He has a lot of experience and knows he’s game pretty well so I think it is a bit easier than someone a bit younger coming in to do it. He has fitted in very well and has looked good all pre-season so he has finally showed his form.”Just 17 overs were possible after the lunch break, with short but heavy rain and hail showers taking the players off the field at regular intervals before one almighty downpour forced them off for good.Despite these regular interruptions Ingram and Chris Cooke put on an undefeated partnership of 56 for the fifth wicket. With the ball getting older things looked a little easier for batting although there was still the odd delivery that seamed or swung.Raine was the pick of the Durham bowlers as he got the ball to move often enough to trouble the batters throughout his 11 overs, and he will be disappointed that the weather prevented him from having further opportunities for wickets.

Former Nottinghamshire seamer Jack Blatherwick also joins Lancashire

George Dobell13-Nov-2020Luke Wells has signed for Lancashire on a two-year deal.Wells, a top-order batsman who was tipped for England recognition not so long ago and has 18 first-class hundreds to his name, was somewhat surprisingly released by Sussex at the end of the season.Wells finished the 2017 season as the club’s highest County Championship run-scorer, averaging 64.60 in the competition that year. But he was unable to sustain such form over the next couple of seasons – he averaged in the mid-20s – and was not selected for a single Bob Willis Trophy match in 2020, with Sussex picking a developmental side. Having hardly played limited-overs cricket in recent years – he averages 11.60 in the List A game and just 3.60 in T20 – Wells found his old-school, obdurate style of batting a little out of a fashion at Hove.For Lancashire, however, that may be just what is required. While the club gained promotion back into the Championship’s top division at the end of 2019, they could not manage a single first-class century in 2020 and finished third in the North Group of the Bob Willis Trophy.The scheduling of the Hundred could also favour him. With the tournament set to be played at the same time as the domestic List A competition, he could well have another opportunity to impress in the white-ball game. There was a time, not so long ago, when his legspin was seen as a useful tool in limited-overs cricket; in the 2018 season, only four men bowled more deliveries for Sussex in the Royal London One-Day Cup.”Luke’s record in first-class cricket speaks for itself,” said Paul Allot, Lancashire’s director of cricket. “He is a skilled batsman who values his wicket and has the ability to bat long periods of time. The opportunity to sign a player of his quality does not come around every day and was one we could not pass up on.”Lancashire have also announced the signing of former Nottinghamshire seamer Jack Blatherwick on a two-year-deal, following the retirement of Graham Onions and with Toby Lester released at the end of the season.Blatherwick played a number of times for England Under-19s in 2017, but struggled for game time at Trent Bridge, making only five first-team appearances.

Agarwal plays his part with a half-century before chase got tense; Warner’s unbeaten 70 in vain

The Report by Peter Della Penna08-Apr-20191:28

Restricted Warner’s scoring shots outside the off stump – Rajpoot

KL Rahul’s third fifty in four matches helped Kings XI Punjab over the line with a ball to spare, ensuring they maintained a perfect home record in IPL 2019 with a six-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad. The visiting bowling unit did well to stretch the match into the final over as a 114-run second-wicket stand between Rahul and Mayank Agarwal nearly went to waste due to a late stumble chasing a target of 151.With 19 off 18 balls required and nine wickets in hand, Sandeep Sharma and Siddharth Kaul suddenly dragged Sunrisers back into the contest with a superb pair of death overs that claimed Agarwal, David Miller and Mandeep Singh to leave Rahul and new man Sam Curran needing 11 to get off the final over bowled by Mohammad Nabi. But Sunrisers paid for sloppy fielding in the ensuing sequence as a pair of would-be singles by Curran turned into two twos, before a final fumble by David Warner at long-on on the penultimate ball allowed a single to become another two for the winning run.Power outageAfter R Ashwin won the toss and sent the visitors in to bat, the Kings XI bowling unit strangled Sunrisers top-order in the first half of the innings. Jonny Bairstow fell to Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s fourth ball in the second over as a leg stump line of attack that initially resulted in a pair of leg-side wides finally paid off with a catch flicked to Ashwin at midwicket.Warner survived a run-out chance by Miller at backward point on 4 in the fifth over as both he and Vijay Shankar struggled to get momentum going in the face of a disciplined display by the hosts, ending the Powerplay at 27 for 1. The pair reached 50 for 1 at the halfway mark, having gone 5.1 overs without a boundary. The pressure finally resulted in Shankar edging Ashwin behind in the 11th as his attempted late cut to third man went awry due to some extra bounce.2:45

Tait: Yusuf Pathan needs to be replaced

Warner shifts gearsEntering the 16th over, Warner was still striking at under a run a ball before taking Mujeeb on to give Sunrisers a late burst. Warner had earlier showed signs of getting unstuck by reverse sweeping Mujeeb over point for a boundary in the 13th and became aggressive once more against the Afghan by stepping outside leg stump to loft him over long-on for six, moving to 47 off 46 balls. He brought up a 49-ball half-century later in the over, the slowest of Warner’s T20 career.Warner survived another chance on the second ball of the final over. After Mohammed Shami had Manish Pandey caught at deep midwicket to start the over, Warner should have been out on 69 gloving an attempted scoop to the keeper but was given not out. A single next ball allowed Deepak Hooda on strike, who flicked four past the keeper before two straight drives accounted for another 10 runs to complete 100 off the final 10 overs for Sunrisers.Rashid nabs Gayle the whaleThe 20-year-old Afghan legspinner took a famous beating at the hands of the Universe Boss on the same ground last season when Gayle torched Rashid Khan for six sixes, including four in a row during one over, on the way to an unbeaten 104 off 63 balls. Rashid ended with 1 for 55 on that day in a Kings XI win.But on this occasion, their showdown was short and sweet in favour of Rashid who nabbed the biggest fish out there. Having already scored 16 of Kings XI’s first 18 runs, Gayle decided to take on the first delivery Rashid bowled after entering the attack in the fourth over and wound up driving a catch to Hooda at long-on, who charged in for a brilliant take.Rahul stays coolAfter Gayle fell, wickets were hard to come by for Rashid and everyone else in the Sunrisers bowling unit. Rahul continued his fine early season form by steering the rest of the Kings XI chase. He smacked Nabi for two boundaries in the 13th to bring up a 34-ball half-century.Victory looked assured before the late wobble of wickets. But after five runs by Curran to start the final over, Rahul’s dominance over Nabi continued with a straight driven four to take the equation down to two off two balls. Another flick by Rahul toward long-on was certain to level the scores but wound up becoming the winning shot after Warner couldn’t pick up the ball cleanly.

Should Hong Kong chase the target down, it would be their highest successful T20I chase

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Sep-2025Sediqullah Atal and Azmatullah Omarzai struck half-centuries each to carry Afghanistan to 188 for 6 in the opening match of the men’s T20 Asia Cup. Hong Kong had their moments, their spinners in particular harnessing slow conditions well enough to frustrate their more pedigreed opponents. But the gulf in class eventually showed as Yasin Murtaza’s side dropped catches and committed misfields to hurt their own chances.Sediqullah has brought up each of this three T20I fifties in his last four innings, and as well as he looked out in the middle, standing tall at the crease and largely coping with the lack of pace, he benefited from three missed chances. A man who could’ve been dismissed in the very first over in the end batted through to finish on 73 off 52.Murtaza was involved in all three lives Sediqullah got – twice dropping the catch himself and once having to watch it go down off his own bowling. He did the best he could to make up for it, the three Hong Kong spinners giving the ball such little pace but so much air that this game looked straight out of the 90s. As such, the more modern day T20 batter wasn’t able to adjust. Murtaza, Ehsan Khan and Kinchit Shah picked up 3 for 75 in 11 overs.However, the arrival of pace in the 17th over changed the game with Atal and Omarzai targeting Ayush Shukla. Afghanistan scored 69 runs in the last four overs with Omarzai raising his first T20I half-century. From the simple clear-the-front-leg slog to the cheeky ramp past the keeper, the Afghanistan allrounder has shown impressive range on a difficult batting pitch and finished with a strike rate of 252.38.Should Hong Kong chase the target down, it would be their highest successful T20I chase.