All posts by h716a5.icu

Daniel Bell-Drummond and Sam Northeast, with his third consecutive century, continued to repay Kent’s faith by putting their side into a very strong position

Alex Winter at the Ageas Bowl15-Sep-2014
ScorecardSam Northeast’s good form in the Royal London Cup has had a knock-on effect with his Championship batting•PA PhotosAt a time when the relevance of some smaller counties is being considered, what a delight it was to see two young, homegrown English batsman doing most of the batting on day one for Kent. The county have afforded their academy products opportunities and here Daniel Bell-Drummond and Sam Northeast, with his third consecutive century, continued to repay that faith by putting their side into a very strong position.Bell-Drummond, 21, and Northeast, three years older, were identified as prodigies at a young age and both served England Under-19s impressively (the 2012 World Cup aside, in Bell-Drummond’s case). Kent are yet to see the best of them but they are among several young players, brought forward by the club out of financial necessity, who are showing the value of investment in an academy system. Yorkshire have proved what is possible.This is Bell-Drummond’s year. His century on day one, his highest first-class score, brought him within touching distance of reaching 1000 runs in a season for the first time. It was his second ton of the summer, after his first in the Championship against Derbyshire in June. That effort, which contained only 11 boundaries, was similar to this in requiring careful play on a pitch lacking pace – it is in the centre of the square close to the international pitches, showing similar characteristics to the Test match surface. Kent will hope another academy product, offspinner Adam Riley, will enjoy conditions later in the match.Bell-Drummond struck 16 fours in this century, reached from 227 balls. One was his only moment of real initiative against the spinners, after tea, when he skipped down to lift Liam Dawson over mid-on. He did it again to move into the 90s. Another boundary from a spinner – this time an Imran Tahir full toss whacked through midwicket – took him to 99. There he spent an awkward 12 deliveries, including a quicker one from Tahir that nearly sneaked past a nervous forward defense, before gaining his satisfaction.Kent’s youth policy has resulted in only one serious challenge for promotion since being relegated in 2010. But it was during healthier times that Northeast was first selected, in 2007. He has yet to fully realise the potential that saw Kent send a coach to Harrow to save him travelling to Canterbury himself. His 880 runs at 55.00 in 2012 has not been built on and this season could be another without reaching 1000 runs.But the Royal London Cup revived his season and he is enjoying his new role at No.5. Following 406 runs at 45.11 in 50-over cricket were successive Championship centuries against Glamorgan and then Essex.Like Bell-Drummond’s, his innings was one of circumspection; the run-rate for much of the day stayed below three an over, with the wicket becoming slower throughout the day. Northeast’s best stroke came after he went past fifty in 121 balls: a thumping straight drive off Chris Wood. He was more aggressive against the spinners than his partner. A slog sweep for six off Dawson forced the bowler to rethink his line of attack to a more defensive 4-5 leg-side split. Northeast cared little for the extra protection and stepped out of his ground again to flick between short midwicket and mid-on. He became more fluent as the day progressed.The pair shared a double-century stand and comfortably played their way through the second new ball as Hampshire went two sessions without taking a wicket. Their attack missed Kyle Abbott, away with South African franchise Dolphins at the Champions League T20, who has taken 36 wickets at 20.33 this season. Abbott has played a major part in setting up Hampshire’s promotion run but they will have to finish the job without him.In place of Abbott, they have parachuted in Tahir, the South Africa legspinner, for the final two matches but here he proved the most expensive of the main attack and picked up a warning for running on the pitch. His most threatening spell came after Bell-Drummond had reached his century, finding a thin edge that flashed past slip’s left hand. In the same over another edge, this from Northeast, evaded slip to his right. Trapping Brendan Nash lbw to bring about an early lunch was his only success.This time last year, Matt Coles was on loan at Hampshire having decided to leave his home county, Kent. Here, he justified his new role with the new ball for Hampshire with two wickets in his opening spell. Both victims have endured poor Championship seasons. Rob Key and Ben Harmison have just five scores over fifty between them in 50 innings. Key was cleaned up by Coles’ second ball of the match and four overs later Harmison gave a catch to Dawson at second slip. But Kent went on to dominate the day. It could prove a poor toss for Hampshire to have lost.

West Indies coach Ottis Gibson says the two Tests against India could provide a true measure of his team’s current standing

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Oct-2013West Indies will begin their tour of India in November on the back of blanking their opposition in their last three Test series. But the achievement came against minnows Zimbabwe and Bangladesh and prior to that a young New Zealand side in the process of a rebuild and coach Ottis Gibson views the two Tests against India could provide a measure of his team’s current standing.”This series against India gives us an opportunity to see where we are as a Test side,” he said. “We’ve played some pretty good Test cricket, there’s a lot that’s been said about winning the last six [matches]. People have also spoken about the opposition [we faced] so the India tour gives us an opportunity to test ourselves against them. We are looking forward to that challenge and continue our winnings ways.”Though their last Test was in March, the players have had a busy calendar in limited-overs cricket, with the Champions Trophy, a tri-series featuring India and Sri Lanka, a limited-overs series against Pakistan, and the inaugural edition of the Caribbean Premier League. Gibson said he would have preferred some additional Test match practice ahead of the tour.”We have a week in India, but ideally, I would have the guys in the indoor school hitting balls and play a couple of practice matches because we’ve been off, especially in Test cricket, for a very long time. We haven’t had the physical preparation but there’s a lot of mental stuff we can do to make sure we’re ready for the two games in India,” he said.In lieu of that, the West Indies Cricket Board has arranged a team-building tour of Miami, which is targeted at building better unity within the side and helping them acclimatise to mental challenges, especially while on the road. After completing the India tour, West Indies will visit New Zealand for three Tests, five ODIs and two T20s, returning home in February 2014.”We’ll have some sessions with the sports psychologist,” Gibson said. “We’ll do things other than cricket as we bond and become a stronger unit. It’s a long tour, starting with India and then straight on to New Zealand and we’ll only be back next year. It’s new and the guys are looking forward to it.”Gibson is aware of the significance of the India tour, which features Sachin Tendulkar’s 200th Test following which he will retire from international cricket, but wants his side to concentrate on what they can do.”We understand the importance of the two games, the significance of Sachin Tendulkar’s 200th Test, but we have to be focussed on our job, which is to get there and give India a good fight and if after five days of fierce competition it happens that we are on top, then so be it.”

Chris Nash made his third Championship hundred of the season as Sussex tightened their hold on the game against Somerset

David Hopps at Hove05-Sep-2012
ScorecardChris Nash: unlikely to be falling into the vacancy at England opener despite more runs for Sussex•Getty ImagesAndrew Strauss has retired and the debate about who will step into his England opener’s job has suddenly become more pressing. Nick Compton and Varun Chopra, who have both passed 1,000 Championship runs in Division One, have their admirers. As for Chris Nash, whose unbeaten century left him 43 runs short of becoming the third England-qualified batsman to 1,000, he never merits a mention.It will probably always be this way for Nash, no matter how much he waves his arms. In fact, it is perhaps something to do with the way he waves his arms. Les Lenham, Sussex’s batting coach, might put it more technically, but after a couple of Lions appearances, England have lost interest. “It’s always a dream,” he said. “All you can do is score runs and put your name in the hat.”But Sussex spectators appreciate Nash’s fighting spirit and his hundred against Somerset, from 157 balls, has left them strongly placed for victory as, to all intents and purposes, they chase runners-up spot in Division One. He had a few alarms as his hundred approached, stealing a tight run to mid-on to reach 99 and surviving Steve Kirby’s direct hit and then was spared an lbw appeal before he drove Peter Trego down the ground.Alongside him, Murray Goodwin assembled only his second Championship fifty of the season in his Hove farewell. He received a sitting-and-standing ovation as if Sussex members were confused about correct etiquette. They will doubtless get to their feet sometime today.Sussex have lavished praise upon him, and he upon them, and that has just added to the feeling that, at 39, he is heading into retirement. But he wants none of it – he is looking for another county and as he is also viewed as a good team man he should get one last deal. He set off at a dash, with four boundaries in eight balls, his signature cut shot was warmed up by some short and wide stuff by Sajid Mahmood (his signature ball muttered one cynic) and he got the confidence to try to bat big one last time.It was a gorgeous late summer’s day at Hove, the sort that Britain had seemingly forgotten how to produce, and Nash and Goodwin, in an unbroken third-wicket stand of 139, topped up Sussex’s first-innings lead of 87 rather like a few of the spectators are topping up their tans: pleasurably and methodically with a minimum amount of fuss. They led by 273 at the close. You could almost hear Somerset’s ageing pace attack creaking.They had collapsed dismally in the morning. At 68 for 1, Somerset were making sturdy, if unspectacular, progress towards Sussex’s 221. Then they lost nine wickets for 66 in 24 overs. It is never good news for Somerset when Marcus Trescothick gets out, but this was overdoing the feeling of despair.Trescothick, 20,000 first-class runs under his belt, fell lbw to Sussex’s rangy Australian quick, Steve Magoffin, and Somerset lost three wickets for three runs in three overs, the weakest shot from James Hildreth who shovelled Monty Panesar to midwicket.Peter Trego bats like a gambler. In fact, sometimes he bats like The Dice Man, the cult novel by Luke Rhinehart, which tells of a psychiatrist who begins making increasingly important life-and-death decisions based on the casting of dice. It all looks highly exciting and somewhat random. Trego took four boundaries in a row off Magoffin but then self-destructed, hooking James Anyon to deep backward square, where Nash took an athletic catch.Magoffin’s three wickets were matched by Lewis Hatchett, a young left-arm quick, and Panesar, whose three cheap wickets against the tail will have done him no harm as he gently reminds the England selectors that he is still around ahead of the selection next week of the Test squad for India.When Steve Snell drove him to mid-off, Panesar lugubriously joined the celebrations as if he was not entirely sure he had been invited, like the hanger-on walking into the room at a student party. Well, not entirely like that because obviously he wasn’t carrying a cheap four-pack of lager.

Rory Hamilton-Brown returned from a month’s compassionate leave as Surrey won a tight game against Nottinghamshire

Jeremy Culley at Trent Bridge01-Aug-2012
ScorecardRory Hamilton-Brown made his return for Surrey after a month on compassionate leave•Getty ImagesIt is unlikely those connected with Surrey will remember this season for anything positive but this was their most decisive step yet in recovering from the death of Tom Maynard.Their victory at Trent Bridge on a turning pitch was doubly special, firstly as it enabled them to leapfrog hosts Nottinghamshire and go top of their Clydesdale Bank 40 group. But, more importantly, it marked the return of their captain Rory Hamilton-Brown to the team after a month on compassionate leave following the death of his flatmate and close friend.On the field, Surrey owed a lot to Matthew Spriegel, whose controlled spell of 2 for 21 in eight overs and innings of 47 in testing conditions set up his team’s victory.The surface, so conducive to slow bowling neither Surrey quick Stuart Meaker or Notts’ Jake Ball bowled a single ball, appeared difficult to bat on but the hosts’ meagre score of 149 only briefly looked competitive before late hitting from Spriegel and Gareth Batty handed Surrey victory with 23 balls to spare.Hamilton-Brown did not assume the captaincy on his return but his colleagues made a superb start after stand-in skipper Batty won the toss and opted to open the bowling with two spinners. Spriegel and Murali Kartik both achieved considerable turn and the former made early inroads, getting Michael Lumb to chop on in the fifth over and Riki Wessels to pick out Jason Roy at midwicket.The pressure exerted by Spriegel benefitted Dernbach. The England bowler served up some filthy early fare, which Alex Hales flayed away square of the wicket, but then snared two cheap wickets.Samit Patel top-edged an attempted hook and Hales carved a short, wide ball to Zander de Bruyn at point to leave Notts floundering on 52 for 4. They were perhaps too eager to break free from the stranglehold achieved by Surrey’s four spin bowlers, but Adam Voges and Chris Read showed no such impatience.They added 67 in 17 overs for the fifth wicket but their good work was undone when both fell in quick succession. Voges nicked a superb delivery from Kartik to slip before Read picked out Spriegel in the deep to hand Zafar Ansari a wicket.Notts then collapsed, Batty claiming two deserved wickets and Dernbach bowling Luke Fletcher – returning after a three-month absence – with a slower ball after Graeme White had been run out.If a script appeared to have already been written, Harry Gurney swiftly tore it up. Hamilton-Brown, opening for Surrey, nicked off in the left-arm seamer’s first over for 2. Gurney, who like James Taylor joined Nottinghamshire from Leicestershire in the winter, then ousted Roy first ball with a vicious delivery that the Surrey No. 3 fended to White at point.Gurney was unlucky not to claim a third victim in the tenth over, Hales granting Gary Wilson a reprieve by shelling a tough slip chance.Surrey were recovering steadily but suffered a setback when opener Steve Davies skied one to Voges when he looked set on 35. Wilson then charged White, who was spinning the ball a long way, and was stumped to ensure Hales’ error was not too costly.Pressure was building on Surrey but Spriegel provided welcome relief by heaving a four and six to the vacant midwicket boundary off successive Steven Mullaney deliveries. His partner de Bruyn remained bogged down and tamely clipped a half-volley from Mullaney to Voges. Surrey’s chase began to look challenging but Spriegel took the initiative and twice smashed White over the top before being caught on the square-leg boundary.After that wicket White inexplicably overstepped and Ansari hit the free-hit for four. Batty then hit Patel for two boundaries – one a maximum – before Ansari won it with a six off White.

Umar Farooq29-Apr-2013Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan allrounder, middle-order batsman Umar Akmal and fast bowler Sohail Tanvir have been left out of the ODI squad for the Champions Trophy in England this June. Fast bowlers Ehsan Adil and Asad Ali, and batsman Umar Amin, were selected, after they had been omitted from the tour of South Africa.Pakistan’s selectors met in Lahore on Monday to trim the 29 probables – Umar Gul was unavailable because of injury – down to 15 for the Champions Trophy, as well as the ODIs in Ireland and Scotland. The announcement of a Pakistan squad is usually made before 7pm (PKT) but the selection committee did not emerge until at 10.45pm after getting the approval Zaka Ashraf, the PCB chairman, at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore.”Afridi had been selected as a bowling allrounder but he was not up to the mark and couldn’t score at crucial occasions so we had to left him out,” chief selector Iqbal Qasim said. “His career is not finished, if he performs at domestic level, he can stage a comeback. He is an asset to Pakistan, and as long as a player is performing he keeps on playing, if he doesn’t perform he goes out of the team.”Afridi had been dropped from Pakistan’s squad for the ODI series in India in December 2012, but was chosen for the trip to South Africa because of his skill as a legspinner. He failed to take a wicket in 37 overs, though, and scored 126 runs in four innings with a high score of 88. Since the start of 2012, Afridi’s taken only 15 wickets in 21 ODIs, and five of those came in one game against Afghanistan. His batting average during this period is 19.”Had he scored at the domestic level he could have earned the place,” Qasim said. “It’s always difficult to drop such a senior player but ultimately selectors have to take a decision for the sake of the team.”Pakistan have named five specialist fast bowlers, two full-time spinners while Mohamamd Hafeez, Shoaib Malik and Amin fill the allrounder roles. Besides Afridi, Pakistan had already left out Younis Khan from the initial squad, but Wahab Riaz, the left-arm quick, has been retained despite a poor showing in South Africa.Amin, a left-hander who also bowls right-arm medium pace, played four Tests and three ODIs in 2010 while Asad was selected for the India ODI series but did not it into the playing eleven.”We have picked the squad from the best available resources after consulting the captain and the input from the coach,” Qasim said. “There obviously were arguments but when the team is made, it’s made with consensus.”Pakistan are in group B for the early stage of the tournament which includes the enticing prospect of a clash against India, plus matches against West Indies and South Africa. “Pakistan indeed has a tough pool but our team is good and has the ability to do well,” Qasim said. “Pakistan always has a good record in the international events and I am hopeful that the players will play at their potential to produce good results.”The PCB also named Trent Woodhill, a former assistant coach of New Zealand, as their batting coach for three weeks during the tournament in England.The squad will now train in Abbotabad from May 3 to 9 before departing for Scotland.Squad: Mohammad Hafeez, Imran Farhat, Nasir Jamshed, Kamran Akmal, Misbah ul Haq (capt), Shoaib Malik, Asad Shafiq, Saeed Ajmal, Junaid Khan, Mohammad Irfan, Asad Ali, Wahab Riaz, Umar Amin, Abdur Rehman, Ehsan Adil

Electric was the right word to describe Sri Lanka’s fielding in their opening Twenty20 victory, and the articulate Angelo Mathews found it

Daniel Brettig26-Jan-2013Electric was the right word to describe Sri Lanka’s fielding in their opening Twenty20 victory, and the articulate Angelo Mathews found it. His opposite number George Bailey noted ruefully but truthfully that he had never seen a team get outfielded in this format and go on to win the game. Mathews was by contrast delighted with the way his XI had attacked Australia, as bowlers and fielders, taking wickets early and then restricting their scoring.Australia’s tally of 3 for 137 had looked inadequate, even if it had been pulled together largely via an outstanding, controlled innings by David Warner. And the fact Sri Lanka had such a manageable chase could be put down to the hard work put in earlier by Mathews’ alert and agile team, who responded to their captain’s first full match in charge, after a washed-out encounter against New Zealand in October.”We started off brilliantly,” Mathews said. “We were electric in the field and the bowlers bowled very well, I thought Lasith [Malinga] and [Nuwan] Kulasekara were brilliant. They showed their class and they were the ones who pulled us back.”I thought the par score was 150 to 160. It feels great beating Australia. Playing in Australia the Aussies are always competitive, it is a great challenge and the boys did extremely well today.”Australia made only 31 runs from the final four overs of the innings, delivered with great skill and precision by Kulasekara and Malinga. It was here that Mathews and Bailey felt the game was won. “I knew Lasith had two overs and Kulasekara had two overs, I know they’re world-class bowlers and it was totally up to them to make their fields,” Mathews said. “They were absolutely brilliant today.”Bailey doffed his cap to Sri Lanka’s endeavour in the field, and was disconsolate that his side had not been as tight in the field as numerous wild returns and outfield fumbles were compounded by the odd dropped catch.”I thought we ended up a few runs short, but we had that platform set, and to be fair I thought Sri Lanka bowled unbelievably well their last four overs,” Bailey said. “Any side that can bowl to Davey [Warner], set, and deprive him of boundaries, and Vogesy [Adam Voges] too … they executed unbelievably well.”I thought our fielding was disappointing, and that probably cost us 10 runs in fielding, so that adds up in a T20 game, plus some dropped catches. I’ve never seen a T20 game where if you get outfielded you win the game – I think the best fielding side always wins.”Sri Lanka’s only concern is a cut over the eye of Tillakaratne Dilshan, inflicted by a Ben Laughlin bouncer. He will have the wound assessed ahead of game two in Melbourne on Monday.

Australia are a match away from sealing a dramatic and entertaining triangular series, but it is all too apparent that Michael Clarke’s team is staggering towards the finish line

Daniel Brettig in Adelaide05-Mar-2012Match factsMarch 6, Adelaide
Start time 1350 (0320 GMT)Michael Clarke wants more from his weary team to close out the series in Adelaide•Getty ImagesBig PictureAustralia are a match away from sealing a dramatic and entertaining triangular series, but it is all too apparent that Michael Clarke’s team is staggering towards the finish line. To wrap up the finals 2-0 the hosts will have to win two in a row for the first time since games one and two of the series, and do so on an Adelaide surface far more amenable to Sri Lanka than Brisbane’s was supposed to have been. Mahela Jayawardene’s Sri Lankan team, meanwhile, carries plenty of momentum from the Gabba, not least in terms of the fight shown by a lower order that was about as inclined to quit as the American revolutionaries at the battle of Bunker Hill in 1775.Clarke’s concerns entering the second final revolve principally around his bowling, which lurched into indiscipline as Nuwan Kulasekara and others provided an unexpected fright. It was not the first time the home attack had been exploited in the later overs this series, something Clarke was at pains to address in the aftermath of the match, when he spoke less as a victor than as a leader wary of how his men are flagging. Ben Hilfenhaus and James Pattinson were particularly loose, and only Shane Watson looked entirely in command of his length and direction. David Warner’s fitness is also a problem following his match-shaping 163, and will likely force a change in the batting order.While Sri Lanka’s attack looked powerless at times on a flat surface in Brisbane, they can expect a little more help in Adelaide, on a pitch that may slow up and turn in the evening. Most pressing among Jayawardene’s requirements will be that one or more of his team’s vaunted top order provides a more worthy contribution than they managed at the Gabba, where the late fightback masked the earlier inattention that made such a stirring rearguard necessary.Form guideAustralia WLWLW (Most recent first)
Sri Lanka LWLWWIn the spotlightXavier Doherty bowled tidily at the Gabba, maintaining his knack for the useful. However in Adelaide he will expect to play a more central role, taking wickets as well as keeping the runs down. David Hussey managed to burgle four wickets in Brisbane, and Doherty’s lack of a major haul across his matches in this series will be the one thing nagging away at him. These finals are the last ones he will play as the undisputed No. 1 ODI spinner, as Nathan Lyon will vie for a place against Doherty in the Caribbean.Nuwan Kulasekara is nobody’s idea of a conspicuous cricketer, his steady right-arm medium fast bowling the sort of handy skill that can make an ODI career of substance rather than fanfare. However the way he crashed into Australia’s bowlers with the bat at the Gabba suggested greater depths of flair lurk beneath, and must have caused more than a few to ask “who was that masked man?” as he left the scene with 73 to his name. His challenge in Adelaide will be to replicate that impact, with ball or bat. Another star-turn would help keep the series alive.Team newsDavid Warner is in extreme doubt due to a groin injury picked up during his Gabba innings, leaving Peter Forrest the most likely reinforcement while Shane Watson returns to the top of the order. One of Pattinson or Hilfenhaus should make way for Clint McKay.Australia (possible) 1 Shane Watson, 2 Matthew Wade (wk), 3 Peter Forrest, 4 Michael Clarke (capt), 5 Michael Hussey, 6 David Hussey, 7 Daniel Christian, 8 Brett Lee, 9 James Pattinson, 10 Clint McKay, 11 Xavier Doherty.An extra spinner is a likely gambit by the visitors, while they are also waiting on the fitness of Angelo Mathews.Sri Lanka (possible) 1 Mahela Jayawardene (capt), 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 4 Dinesh Chandimal, 5 Lahiru Thirimanne, 6 Upul Tharanga, 7 Farveez Maharoof, 8 Sachithra Senanayake, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Lasith Malinga, 11 Rangana Herath.Pitch and conditionsAdelaide’s surface can be expected to be of similar character to that which hosted the domestic limited-overs final. The match was a dramatic tie that ended with South Australia and Tasmania locked on 285 runs apiece, a comfortable batting surface offering some turn in the evening. The weather forecast is fine and temperate.Stats and trivia Sri Lanka were victorious the last time they met Australia in a final at Adelaide Oval, in 2006. That night Tillakaratne Dilshan had a hand in no fewer than four run-outs This will be the last international match (or matches) hosted by Adelaide Oval before the start of redevelopment work that will dramatically reconfigure the ground.Quotes”A win is a win. But we have a lot of work to do with our Powerplay and death bowling. It hasn’t been good enough all series. It continues to let us down. We are the No.1 one-day team and we have to be better than that. Hopefully that [scare] allows us to understand that we have to be better than that.”
“The boys, at the end, showed some real character and kept fighting which is something you want to cultivate in a team.”
Edited by Siddarth Ravindran

The Zimbabweans’ woes continued on their tour to Bangladesh, as they were convincingly beaten by the BCB XI in a warm-up game before five-match ODI series that begins on Friday

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Nov-2014
ScorecardThe Zimbabweans’ woes continued on their tour to Bangladesh, as they were convincingly beaten by the BCB XI in a warm-up game before five-match ODI series that begins on Friday.The Zimbabweans chose to bowl in the 13-per-side game, and their bowlers enjoyed some early success, reducing the hosts to 51 for 3 in the 15th over. However a half-century stand was put on by Shamsur Rahman and Sabbir Rahman for the fourth wicket to make sure the team didn’t slump. They fell in quick succession, Shamsur for 49, before a 94-run sixth-wicket partnership at 6.55 between Shuvagata Hom and Nasir Hossain set them on their way to a very competitive 282. While part-time seamer Vusi Sibanda got the most wickets – four – he was expensive like many of his team-mates; only new-ball bowler Neville Madziva and legspinner Tafadzwa Kamungozi went at under a run a ball.The Zimbabweans had a promising start in the chase with 40 for the first wicket by Brendan Taylor and Regis Chakabva, and 77 for the third between Sikandar Raza and Timycen Maruma, but a slide followed and the team never recovered. They lost six wickets for 36 runs, going from 132 for 2 to 168 for 8. The BCB XI bowlers shared the wickets around, with, somewhat surprisingly, the seamers being more among the wickets than the spinners. The Zimbabweans were eventually bowled out for 194 in the 46th over.

Bangladesh’s captain Mushfiqur Rahim has called upon his senior players to make use of a rare opportunity to succeed against a higher-ranked side in Test cricket, ahead of the second Test in Colombo

Mohammad Isam in Colombo15-Mar-2013Mushfiqur Rahim, the Bangladesh captain, has called upon his senior players to make use of the rare opportunity to succeed against a higher-ranked side, ahead of the second Test in Colombo. The top order that was led by two inexperienced players in Galle will be bolstered by the return of Tamim Iqbal. The team may also include veteran left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak.Senior batsman Mohammad Ashraful, who had a memorable return to Test cricket, scoring 190, will continue to be a vital cog in the middle order along with vice-captain Mahmudullah, who didn’t contribute much in the first Test.”We have the opportunity [to draw the series], but it is still five days away,” Mushfiqur said. “These opportunities don’t come to us often. I think it is good to be under pressure, because the best players perform under pressure. I see it as a positive sign because some of our top players play well under pressure.””The expectation would be to play consistent cricket. The last Test is history. We will take positives from that game. We made mistakes in the bowling and fielding departments.”The mistakes he referred to are the dropped catches and the inconsistent lines and lengths their bowlers bowled. The worry among many in the Bangladesh management is whether their seamers would have the stamina to bowl at their strongest throughout the day.Mushfiqur is mindful of the challenges ahead, and although he mainly outlined those that they face internally, he was aware that the pitch at the R Premadasa Stadium might aid the bowlers.”It was almost expected that if they can’t get us on a spinning track, they will prepare a green wicket. They will also have to play on this wicket, so the problems will be similar for them,” Mushfiqur said.”There is some live grass in the wicket, that’s why the seamers will get purchase from it. But I don’t think it will last for all the five days, probably the first day or two. In that case, the new ball will be very crucial.”If they put us in, we have to get set against the new ball and [then] there will be plenty of runs in the track. If we bowl first, we will take some early wickets hopefully and put the pressure back on them.”He was also eager to have another go at Kumar Sangakkara, who struck twin centuries in the first Test. “We have some plans for [Tillekaratne] Dilshan and [Kumar] Sangakkara, so let’s see if we can manage to get them dismissed early.”Sangakkara is a legend, he’s done well against us and other teams regardless. He has played very well in the first Test but there were a few chances which we didn’t grab. I think those made the big difference, so if we get another chance, we must take it,” he said.In due course, however, Mushfiqur understands where his real challenge lies: to make sure the team does exactly what it did in its last match, which hasn’t happened in the past.On four previous occasions when they did draw a first Test of a series, they went on to lose the second one. To prevent the Galle performance being perceived as a flash in the pan, they would have to back it up in Colombo.

Hrishikesh Kanitkar slammed his second century against Mumbai in as many innings to take Rajasthan to a position from where they can think of a first-innings lead

The report by Sidharth Monga in Mumbai10-Nov-2011
Scorecard
Hrishikesh Kanitkar, the Rajasthan captain, made his second consecutive century against Mumbai (file photo)•ESPNcricinfo LtdIt was a significant day for Hrishikesh Kanitkar, formerly Maharashtra’s second-best batsman of all time and now a professional for Rajasthan. He scored his 31st first-class century today, 26 of which have come in Ranji Trophy cricket, matching the tally of Maharashtra legend Surendra Bhave. There was more to it, though.When Kanitkar started playing first-class cricket for Maharashtra, his side was the kid brother to a side called Bombay. Now that he has moved on to Rajasthan, the side most often his team’s nemesis is called Mumbai. Until he joined Rajasthan, Kanitkar averaged 17.3 against Mumbai and Bombay combined. Last year he broke through, scoring his first century against them and helping Rajasthan knock defending champions Mumbai out of the Ranji Trophy in the quarter-finals. Rajasthan would then go on to be crowned champions for the first time in their history.With some talk of revenge in the air as Mumbai, the shoe now on the other foot, faced the defending champions at home, Kanitkar slammed his second century against them in as many innings to take Rajasthan to a position from where they can think of a first-innings lead.Kanitkar came in after the early fall of Aakash Chopra, gave respect to the new ball, and then accelerated to take toll of tired bowlers and end the day unbeaten on 129 out of a total of 309 for 4.Rajasthan were helped by a flat pitch at the Cricket Club of India, and the overnight illness to Mumbai’s Aavishkar Salvi. They did lose Chopra in that first session, but thereafter Kanitkar had good company. He added 77 with Vinit Saxena for the second wicket, and a quick and dominating 137 for the fourth wicket with Rashmi Parida, who fell to what proved to be the last ball of the day.Kanitkar’s acceleration was acute – he reached 50 in 122 balls, and brought up the hundred off the 182nd ball he faced. He did so without any frenetic hitting but through correct shots along the ground. The only hiccup came when he could have been run out on 70, but Iqbal Abdulla threw wide from cover.Kanitkar, however, wasn’t aware of his statistical achievement. “I don’t really give a lot of importance to centuries unless they really contribute to the team cause,” he said. “You try hard every game; sometimes you get runs, sometimes you don’t. I am very happy with the way I played. I hope the result will be good for us.”Mumbai could draw heart from how they got rid of Parida in the last over the day when Dhawal Kulkarni trapped him with one that moved in. Kanitkar and Parida had exploited a tired attack and set of fielders for the last 31.5 overs. This was a flat pitch that now stands an even chance of backfiring on the hosts. A measure of how unresponsive Mumbai found the track lay in how they used as many as seven bowlers in the first session.Wasim Jaffer, the Mumbai captain, said that keeping the nature of pitch in mind his side had done a fair job of containment in the first two sessions of the day, but conceded 30 or 40 too many in the final session. With the wicket of Parida, though, they have a new ball in hand and a new batsman to bowl to on the second morning. A crucial first session follows.