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Since their first-round exit in last year’s World Twenty20, Australia have undergone a significant rebuild

Peter English01-May-2010

Overview

Dependable and destructive: Cameron White•Getty Images

Since their first-round exit in last year’s World Twenty20, Australia have undergone a significant rebuild and installed Michael Clarke as their full-time leader. The changes have led to hope of a strong performance but, unlike in the Test and one-day arenas, they don’t really know what to expect in the Caribbean.Cameron White, Dirk Nannes, David Hussey, David Warner and Shaun Tait are some of the limited-overs experts who are now highly rated in the squad while Steven Smith and Daniel Christian provide some youth. Clarke, Michael Hussey, Mitchell Johnson and Brad Haddin bring the experience of productive careers in all three genres.Australia have appeared in 29 T20 internationals, including 15 wins and 12 losses, and should enter the event on a high after being unbeaten at home and in New Zealand during 2009-10. However, they were set back by a tight loss to Zimbabwe in their opening warm-up, which was a familiar result.They were upset by the same team in the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007 and their problems with slow starts continued at the 2009 tournament when they were beaten by West Indies and Sri Lanka. “It will be critical for us that we hit the ground running,” the coach Tim Nielsen said. Already they need to turn things around for the first match against Pakistan on Sunday.

Twenty20 pedigree

Twenty20 is Australia’s worst format and the greatest concern is they don’t really know how to be the best. Most of the players are still learning how to master the tactics, although the selectors have finally relied on an impressive batch of specialists with considerable IPL and Big Bash experience. The national side has appeared in a lot of Twenty20s – nine more than India and 15 more than Bangladesh – but most of their main men don’t get a go in the domestic tournaments due to international commitments.

Strengths and weaknesses

Depending on the day, the fast-bowling attack can be the most frightening weapon or the place to attack. If Tait, Johnson and Nannes are on song life will be almost impossible for the batsmen. If they are loose they will be expensive on the smaller Caribbean grounds. Things might have been worse for the opposition if Brett Lee hadn’t been ruled out on the eve of the tournament with a forearm injury.

Key men

Shaun Tait helped win Australia a World Cup the last time he was in the Caribbean, taking 23 wickets at 20.30. Over the past two years his body and mind have restricted him to limited-overs affairs, where he can bowl a handful of overs at full pace. He has already clocked 160kph this year and is a severe threat whenever operating near his peak. David Warner has become a brutal Twenty20 specialist and has an essential role at the top of the order. While Shane Watson can show his muscle, Warner is the man capable of racing along at two runs a ball without feeling like he’s out of control. In 13 matches with Australia he has a strike-rate of 155.32 and if he fires Australia’s chances improve significantly.

X-factor

It still feels a bit strange saying it, but in this set-up Cameron White is a senior figure. Over the past year he has turned from a fringe limited-overs figure into a vice-captain who is dependable and destructive. With the bat he can add steel or power and when he hits cleanly no ground is big enough. In his previous T20 international he crunched 64 off 26 balls in a barely believable display.

Vital stats

The South Group leaders overcame a nervy finish to make it seven wins from 10

ECB Reporters Network07-Jul-2024 Surrey 103 for 5 (Evans 25, Stewart 2-24) beat Kent 81 for 3 (Khushi 35, Topley 2-27) by 5 runs DLSSouth Group leaders Surrey held their nerve in a tense finish to beat Kent Spitfires by five runs in a rain-shortened Vitality Blast contest at the Kia Oval.Surrey, put in and with an unfamiliar batting line-up, did well to reach 103 for 5 from 10 overs after play finally got underway two hours and 25 minutes late.And then more rain, arriving just as Kent were about to start their reply, left them needing 87 from eight overs under the Duckworth/Lewis calculations.Despite late hitting from Feroze Khushi, who made 35, and Sam Billings, who swept Reece Topley for six in a seventh over costing 20 and in which Khushi also bludgeoned a six over long on, Kent could only finish on 81 for 3.It was Surrey’s seventh win from ten games, but Kent have now lost seven of their first ten group games and look to be dropping out of contention for a top-four finish and a quarter-final place.There were several decisive moments in a fast and furious affair, the first a brilliant fourth over from leg-spinner Cameron Steel in which he conceded only four runs and also bowled the dangerous Tawanda Muyeye for 22.Muyeye hit Dan Worrall for a slashed four and a superb lofted six to long on in the second over, but Jordan Clark allowed only six runs from the third over, and then Steel’s fine over left Kent on 29 for two with half their innings gone.Khushi smashed Chris Jordan over long on for six and Billings hit the Surrey captain, returning alongside Topley from England’s T20 World Cup campaign, for four over mid off to keep Kent in the hunt.But Khushi’s dismissal from the final ball of the penultimate over, well held by Steel diving forward at long on, felt like a big momentum swing back to Surrey as it left Kent needing 17 from the last over.Jordan began with a no ball, from which a leg bye was scampered, but new batsman Tom Rogers could only dig out a yorker from the free hit opportunity and, although he cut Jordan away for four from the next ball, he and Billings (14 not out) could not find the boundary again as Jordan’s accuracy under pressure closed out the game.The other decisive moment in the match came right at the end of the Surrey innings when they were 94 for five with just one ball remaining to be bowled.Up to then, and despite two offside wides, Grant Stewart looked to be succeeding in keeping Surrey’s total below 100, but he then sent down a waist-high no ball full toss which Ben Geddes swung away high for six behind square.That brought an extra ball, from which a bye was scampered and, in all, 19 runs came from the over, which had started with Clark crunching an extra cover four before being caught at long off for seven.There were five other sixes in Surrey’s effort, the first two pulled by Laurie Evans off paceman Nathan Gilchrist and off spinner Marcus O’Riordan. Evans, coming in after Ryan Patel had departed in the first over, skying Stewart to keeper Billings after one lovely off-driven four, made a punchy 25 before he hit O’Riordan to long off.Dom Sibley muscled Matt Parkinson’s leg spin for six over long on in his 20, which ended to a catch at deep mid wicket off Joey Evison, while Jordan pulled the medium pacer for six and Rory Burns produced a remarkable swept maximum off Gilchrist.Jordan mishit Gilchrist high to mid off to go for 14 and Burns finished 11 not out as he and Geddes, who was unbeaten on seven, saw Surrey to a total that proved – just – to be defendable.Kent saw Daniel Bell-Drummond fall for a duck to the second ball of their reply, hitting Topley high to deep square leg where 19-year-old debutant Ollie Sykes held the catch.

Akash has played nine T20s so far, picking up seven wickets at an economy rate of 7.87

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Mar-2023Chennai Super Kings left-arm seamer Mukesh Choudhary has been sidelined from the entire IPL 2023 with a stress fracture of the back. Nagaland left-arm seamer Akash Singh, who has played for Rajasthan Royals in the past, has been signed as a like-for-like replacement.Choudhary’s injury is the latest blow to the Super Kings attack that is already without New Zealand fast bowler Kyle Jamieson, who has also been ruled out of the entire season with a back injury. Super Kings will also be without the Sri Lankan pair of Maheesh Theekshana and Matheesha Pathirana, who will link up with the franchise only after the end of Sri Lanka’s six-match white-ball series in New Zealand on April 8.Choudhary was one of the finds of the last IPL season, emerging as the team’s joint-highest wicket-taker, with 16 strikes in 13 games at an economy rate of 9.31. Eleven of those wickets came in the powerplay, the joint-most by any bowler during this phase in the tournament.Related

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Akash, who was unsold at the auction, will join Super Kings at his base price of INR 20 lakh. In all, he has played nine T20s so far, picking up seven wickets at an economy rate of 7.87. He made his T20 debut for Rajasthan in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in 2019 before helping India Under-19s to a runners-up finish in the 2020 World Cup in South Africa. He had moved from Rajasthan to Nagaland ahead of the 2022-23 domestic season.

Fourth appearance for cricket at DCMS hearing in as many months

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Feb-2022The Professional Cricketers Association (PCA) has been called to give evidence next week to the parliamentary select committee looking into allegations of institutional racism in English cricket.The session, which is due to take place on Tuesday, comes in the wake of Azeem Rafiq’s emotional testimony to the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) select committee in November, in which he laid bare his experiences as a Yorkshire player between 2008 and 2017, and claimed that, ultimately, “he had lost his career to racism”.In the course of that evidence, Rafiq also pointed the finger at the PCA, accusing them of being “incredibly inept”, and adding that their response to his claims of suicidal feelings – later expressed in an interview with ESPNcricinfo – had been an exercise in “box-ticking”.”The PCA kept telling me when the report comes out, they would support me,” Rafiq told the hearing. “Once it did, they said we have no powers, we can just push the ECB. An organisation that should have been there for me and supported me left me to fight on my own.”The PCA is set to be represented by James Harris, the current Glamorgan allrounder who is also the union’s chair, alongside Anuj Dal, the vice-chair, Julian Metherell, the non-executive chair, and Rob Lynch, the chief executive. It will be the fourth time that representatives of English cricket, including the recreational game, will have appeared before the DCMS committee in as many months.Last month’s appearance by county chairman was notable for the controversial claim, voiced by Middlesex’s chairman Mike O’Farrell, that Black people are more interested in football than cricket, and that Asian players put more focus on education than sport when they reach Academy level.Related

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O’Farrell’s comments were widely condemned for perpetuating stereotypes, including by Rafiq and Ebony Rainford-Brent, the former England cricketer and founder of the African-Caribbean Engagement (ACE) Programme, which helps to address the 75% decline in participation in the Black community.The situation at Yorkshire has escalated since the last DCMS hearing, amid allegations from Robin Smith, the former club chairman, that November’s appointment of Lord Kamlesh Patel as chair was unconstitutional. Following the cancellation this week of the club’s EGM, Lord Patel hit back, stating that Yorkshire’s bid to overturn its suspension from major-match status was at the mercy of individuals who believe the club is being “sacrificed on the altar of Black Lives Matter”.Addressing the issue on Friday during a press briefing at Lord’s, Tom Harrison, the ECB chief executive, said: “We had a board meeting on Tuesday and a delegation came down from Yorkshire to give us a very comprehensive presentation on the progress that Lord Patel and his team have made in the very short time that they have been in charge of YCCC.”The only reflection I would have on the stuff overnight – and believe it or not I haven’t spent a lot of time looking at it because there’s been a few other things going on – but I would just reflect on a broader note that any suggestion that there is not a problem with racism in Yorkshire is a cause for great concern.”

Government body also wants cricket board to make public the forensic report used to sack Thabang Moroe as CEO

Firdose Moonda15-Sep-2020The details of the task team that will look into Cricket South Africa’s administrative and financial affairs remain a mystery despite CSA meeting with the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) on Monday evening.The meeting took place four days after SASCOC instructed CSA’s board and executive to stand down after nine months of what SASCOC called “maladministration and malpractice,” which demanded the mother body’s intervention.SASCOC is a legislatively-created body under which all South African sports federations operate. It wrote to the ICC at the weekend to clarify that its involvement in CSA does not constitute government interference.SASCOC has stressed that it hopes to work with CSA’s Members’ Council – the body made up of the 14 provincial presidents which holds the highest decision-making authority in CSA – despite the Members’ Council opting out of a meeting with SASCOC last Friday. Instead, CSA held a joint sitting of the Board and Members’ Council at the weekend and met SASCOC on Monday.CSA called the meeting “a step forward towards a collaborative approach in the interest of good governance and executive operations.” SASCOC was unavailable for comment. Any hope of obtaining further detail was stymied the three representatives from the CSA members’ council were due to address the media on Tuesday but the briefing has been pushed back to Thursday, and is scheduled to be a joint affair with SASCOC.It is still not clear whether the task team will be finalised by then, even though SASCOC told ESPNcricinfo on Friday that they would announce the members of the task team imminently. The task team is crucial because it could decide who is in charge of cricket in South Africa until such time as SASCOC’s inquiry into CSA is complete. SASCOC had initially budgeted a period of one month to complete its investigations.In the meanwhile, CSA’s forensic report, which it used to dismiss former CEO Thabang Moroe, has still not been made fully available to the Members’ Council who saw a high-level summary at the weekend. SASCOC and South Africa’s sports ministry have also demanded to see the report in full, and SASCOC have rejected CSA’s invitation to view the report after signing a non-disclosure agreement, believing the report should be made public.

Nick Selman falls one short of century as Glamorgan withstand Luke Wells five-for

ECB Reporters Network30-May-2019Marnus Labuschagne made a career-best 182 to help Glamorgan maintain their unbeaten record in the Specsavers County Championship as they drew with Sussex at Hove.The Australian reeled off his third Championship century since joining the county at the start of the season as he posted a new county record of 291 for the second wicket with Nick Selman, who was out for 99.After their departures, wickets fell regularly with leg-spinner Luke Wells finishing with a career-best 5 for 63 as Glamorgan were eventually bowled out for 466 just after tea. That left Sussex 27 overs to score 233 at 8.03 runs an over.Sussex had nothing to lose but Phil Salt, the one batsman who could have given them hope of chasing their unlikely target, was caught off the splice when Marchant de Lange dropped short. Wells and Harry Finch took their score to 47 for 1 when the players shook hands on a draw with 14 overs remaining.Glamorgan had begun the final day on 218 for 1 and Labuschagne and Selman quickly passed Glamorgan’s previous second-wicket record of 252, set by Matt Maynard and David Hemp against Northamptonshire in Cardiff in 2002.Labuschagne batted for just under five hours until he got a thin under-edge to wicketkeeper Ben Brown to give Wells his first wicket. He hit 31 fours and faced 244 balls.Selman had played the sheet anchor role to perfection but, within touching distance of his hundred, he was leg before to a full-length delivery just after David Wiese had taken the new ball. Selman, who had carried his bat in Glamorgan’s first innings, batted for 343 minutes, faced 252 balls and hit ten fours.Sussex claimed two more wickets before lunch. Billy Root edged Mir Hamza to slip and Wiese got some extra bounce and Kieran Carlson was caught behind.But any hopes they had of ending Glamorgan’s innings quickly disappeared in a flurry of attacking shots from Dan Douthwaite, who struck ten fours in making 63 off 55 balls, the first 50 coming off just 34 deliveries. He lost David Lloyd when Wells returned to the attack and turned one past his bat but Douthwaite had lodged his Championship best when he edged Wells to Brown.The lead was 182 at that stage but Glamorgan’s last three wickets added a further 50 runs with Tom Cullen finishing unbeaten on 28. Graham Wagg was taken at short fine-leg off a top-edged sweep at Danny Briggs before Wells completed his five-for after tea with de Lange and Timm van der Gugten both lbw playing back.Sussex took 13 points from the match and Glamorgan eight.

The allrounder also suffered a bout of gastro that had him well below 100% fitness on day one of the Port Elizabeth Test

Daniel Brettig in Port Elizabeth12-Mar-2018When Mitchell Marsh dropped Aiden Markram at first slip before lunch on day four, it was not only the spillage of Australia’s last chance to win the Port Elizabeth Test, but also the revelation of a groin injury for the allrounder that has the potential to have ruinous consequences for the tourists.Not only is Marsh a vital bowling option for Australia, as proven by his spells of reverse swing in South Africa’s first innings at St George’s Park, he has also been their best-performing batsman, soaking up more balls than any other member of the touring team and going closest of anyone to a century with his 96 in Durban.Even if the 10-day break between the Port Elizabeth and Cape Town matches is enough to have Marsh passed fit for Newlands, it will leave him needing to be carefully managed as a bowling option, lest a worsening of the injury leads him to being ruled out altogether. Given the struggles of various other batsmen on the tour, this is a scenario Steven Smith can not afford.”He’s got a bit of a groin strain so he was struggling to move a little bit,” Smith said. “I was told at the break that he can actually run, so unfortunately he could’ve been out on the field when he was in the slips, but still should’ve taken that catch but everyone drops it every now and again, I’ve been pretty guilty myself in recent times. It’s just one of those things and we’ll move on.”Marsh had entered the Test with a bout of gastro that had him well below 100% fitness on day one. David Saker, Australia’s assistant coach, has said that Marsh’s value to the team went beyond runs and wickets to dressing room presence and burgeoning leadership skills. “On the first day he had some gastro, he obviously wasn’t feeling that good, but once you take the field, when he went out to bat, you’ve just got to get on with it,” Saker said.”It obviously didn’t go the way he wanted, but since that time he’s had some really good contributions, two really important wickets for us and a fantastic batting performance. His form since’s he’s got back in the Australian team has been fantastic for us, he’s not just a batter, he does some bowling for us, he’s a fantastic person in the dressing room for us and a future leader of the team, so there’s more than just the package you see from the outside because inside he’s a very valued member of our team.”While none of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood or Pat Cummins have reported injuries at the end of back-to-back Tests, by the conclusion of the second match they were all down somewhat in pace when compared to Durban, with the lack of snap being capitalised upon by AB de Villiers in particular. This also created a contrast with Kagiso Rabada, who notably beat several players for pace, not least Marsh himself in the first over of the final morning.”I think all the quicks are going really well,” Smith said. “I haven’t heard today, but before today they were all feeling fine, so hopefully with a good 10-day break they can freshen up a little bit and in regards to Mitch Marsh it’s a good break now between now and the next Test match and he’s telling me he’ll be fine but we’ll wait and see how things go.”

Gujarat will have to achieve the highest successful fourth-innings chase in Ranji Trophy history to beat Mumbai in Indore

The Report by Shashank Kishore in Indore13-Jan-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details2:45

Kishore: A test of nerves for Gujarat

With one day to go in the Ranji Trophy 2016-17 final, this much is clear: Mumbai’s lead is big enough that Gujarat have to achieve the highest successful fourth-innings chase in Ranji Trophy finals history for their first title. Gujarat had a quick start to their chase of 312, ending a long day in the field positively. However, batting out the whole of Saturday could also give them the title by virtue of a first-innings lead.By spreading the fields, bowling wide and saving runs – all within the rules, even if debatable, in the second session after taking four wickets – Gujarat allowed the game to meander until Mumbai had no option but to go for broke and set up a target.What Gujarat did not do within the rules was bowl their overs in time – they bowled 70.1 overs in six full hours, the time which constitutes a full day of 90 overs – which could result in a third over-rate breach for Parthiv Patel, the captain, and his team.Gujarat’s openers, Priyank Panchal and Samit Gohel, played a lot more freely, compared to the first innings, in the 13.2 overs that were possible on the fourth evening before bad light ended play more than an hour after the scheduled close. They overcame a few nervy moments, but drove the side to 47 for no loss at stumps on a surface that didn’t show signs of deteriorating too much.With the cold not lifting until noon despite the presence of bright sunshine on each of the four days, the red soil surface hasn’t broken up as much as Mumbai would have liked. While this could hurt Mumbai considering they have two left-arm spinners, they would believe an incisive burst upfront with the new ball on the final day come boost their quest for a 42nd title.The lead was built largely because of Abhishek Nayar’s industry. On the one hand, he had to farm the strike and ensure he didn’t expose the tail-enders. On the other, he had to also keep an eye on the lead and time remaining to give his side the best possible chance of pulling off a coup. He battled hard for 146 deliveries to make 91 as Mumbai, resuming on 208 for 3 were bowled out for 411 in the final session.Fifty-five of those runs came courtesy five sixes and a four in the final session, a far cry from the post-lunch session that yielded just 67 runs in 30 overs. After the interval, Nayar risked his wicket by taking on the fielders in the deep repeatedly, but the power in his hits was unmistakeable. Vishal Dabholkar helped Nayar put on 44 for the ninth wicket, while Vijay Gohil, who was unbeaten on 0 from seven balls, added 41 for the last wicket before Nayar fell lbw to RP Singh.Chintan Gaja, presented an opportunity only because Jasprit Bumrah was unavailable, walked back with figures of 8 for 167, his first five-wicket haul in first-class cricket in third match. The rest of Gujarat’s bowlers largely played supporting roles cast on a day where wicket-taking, for large parts, wasn’t even on their mind.The only time they genuinely came close to making things happen was early in the day. Setting attacking fields worked immediately as Aditya Tare was caught at gully, attempting a cut. Replays suggested it was a tight call, which was eventually deemed no-ball. He was given another reprieve when Panchal put down a regulation catch at gully on 38. Tare’s luck ran out soon after lunch, when he was trapped lbw by left-arm spinner Hardik Patel, but not before he made 69.Suryakumar Yadav ploughed along for 40 deliveries to add four to his overnight score of 45 before being strangled down leg side. With Mumbai’s lead on 226, a lower-order collapse seemed on the cards when Balwinder Sandhu and Shardul Thakur fell trying to hit out. That is when Nayar took charge. He mistimed a few, slogged others, and picked out fielders. But none of it frustrated him, until it got to a point where he simply swung his way out of trouble, ensuring, in the process, that the title could possibly be decided on the final session of the final day.

Nathan Lyon’s reprieve during the Adelaide Test appears to have been in direct contravention of the ICC’s directives for umpires using the DRS

Melinda Farrell and Daniel Brettig30-Nov-20151:08

‘Waiting to hear back from the ICC’ – Hesson

Nathan Lyon’s reprieve during the Adelaide Test appears to have been in direct contravention of the ICC’s directives for umpires using the DRS.In a decision New Zealand have lodged a formal protest against, the third umpire Nigel Llong ruled that Lyon was not out despite Hot Spot showing a mark where the ball had passed the back of the bat, before ballooning off Lyon’s shoulder and into the hands of Kane Williamson at slip.Llong’s deliberations were broadcast live on the Nine Network’s television coverage and, while viewing the Hot Spot vision, he stated three times that he could see a mark. He then told the on-field umpire S Ravi: “There’s a mark on the bat but it could come from anywhere.”ESPNcricinfo has confirmed that umpires make their deliberations under instructions that Real-time Snicko (RTS) is only to be used if Hot Spot does not show a mark.”If the umpire gives it out [and it is reviewed], the third umpire will look at the spin-vision replay to start with, then he’ll go to Hot Spot,” Geoff Allardice, the ICC head of cricket operations, had said when explaining the introduction of RTS in 2013. “If there’s a mark on Hot Spot he’ll go straight to out. That’s his conclusive evidence straight away. The only time Snicko will be used is if there’s no mark on Hot Spot.”Allardice’s quotes, however, did not explain the protocol to be followed in the case of not-out decisions.While RTS was introduced as a virtual insurance policy in cases where Hot Spot does not show a mark on the bat, the technology based on stump mic recordings is not infallible.Since deliveries from spinners are slower, and therefore the impact softer, stump mics have more difficulty picking up faint sounds. This is compounded when a player steps forward and increases the distance between the stump mics and the ball, their body shielding the mic further from any faint noise. In this instance, after passing the bat, the ball went on to hit Lyon’s shoulder. At that point of impact, there was also no spike on snicko.There was no spike on snicko at the point of impact on the shoulder

New Zealand’s coach Mike Hesson made his feelings clear with a sarcastic response to a question about Llong’s ruling.”It was excellent, wasn’t it?” he said. “I think everyone at the ground saw what unfolded, and I think it has been spoken about a lot. We’ve certainly made a representation to the ICC, and at present we’re still awaiting an acceptable response. I’ll let you know when I hear it.”If Lyon had been given out, Australia would have been 9 for 118 in the first innings with only the injured Mitchell Starc left to bat. Some may point to the fact New Zealand could still have secured victory with a tighter bowling performance after the Lyon ruling, or by avoiding their first-innings batting collapse, but there is no doubt the decision changed the course of the match.”I guess we’ll never know,” Hesson said. “The game carried on and took a number of other twists and turns after that, so it’s something that I can’t answer. But it certainly had an impact.”Hesson said he has no issue with the technology used in the DRS, but New Zealand clearly believe Llong did not follow the correct procedure in using the information available to make his ruling.”There is a process that needs to be followed within these decisions, and we need to make sure that process was followed correctly,” Hesson said. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the technology at all.”The decision descended from controversy to farce when Llong asked to see the ball tracker, to check for an lbw. By this stage, nearly four and-a-half minutes had elapsed and, as Llong had not previously asked to use the Eagle Eye ball tracker, a scramble among technology operators led to the wrong replay being show, which Llong did not seem to notice. The ball tracker showed a replay in which Lyon swept and the ball went to the leg side off the pad.ICC chief executive David Richardson has indicated in the past that specialist third umpires may be required to implement the DRS more effectively, but even he seemed unsure about the process Llong was required to follow when asked about the incident on the final day of the Test.”No issues (with the process). I was watching it on television when it happened and I think the process was ok,” Richardson told . “Umpiring decisions are mostly up to the umpire’s judgement and you can’t be guaranteed which way it’s going to go in individual instances.”I was interested in a poll Channel Nine ran just after, asking ‘would you have given it out or not out?’ It was pretty much 50-50 the response so it was an extremely difficult decision.”The entire incident suggests that officials, commentators and fans alike require a greater understanding of the correct procedures and the technologies involved, and that umpires need more direct communication with the people who design and operate them.That this all played out live, with Llong’s audio available to viewers, may help in speedier improvements to the DRS system. It may not help New Zealand now. But it would be progress.

Ireland have named an unchanged 14-man squad to take on Pakistan in two ODIs at the end of the month

ESPNcricinfo staff14-May-2013

Ireland squad to play Pakistan

William Porterfield (captain), Alex Cusack, George Dockrell, Trent Johnston, Ed Joyce, John Mooney*, Tim Murtagh, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, James Shannon, Max Sorensen, Paul Stirling, Andrew White, Gary Wilson.
*Mooney is suspended for the first match on May 23.

Ireland have named an unchanged 14-man squad to take on Pakistan in two ODIs at the end of the month. John Mooney is included, despite being unavailable for the first match after being suspended over a tweet about the death of Baroness Thatcher.William Porterfield will lead the side, who beat UAE in both their World Cup qualifiers in March, and Ireland’s coach, Phil Simmons, is eyeing an upset against Pakistan, who are touring in preparation for the Champions Trophy in England.”We’ve always got a chance in our conditions,” Simmons said. “We’ve turned in some strong performances in recent years especially against England and Australia and lost matches we should have won. We’re getting stronger all the time and we’ll be well prepared and try to put them under pressure from the start.”There’s a great atmosphere at Clontarf with the Irish fans behind us, and with a full house expected for both games, I’m hoping they can get us over the line against Pakistan. It’s certain to be a great carnival of cricket over the two days. We know how important it is to keep the momentum going with Irish cricket and we’ll be looking for headline victories in our marquee games this year.”Both ODIs, which will take place on May 23 and 26, are close to being sold out. Ireland have been keen to play more cricket against Full Members and Simmons said his players were looking forward to another opportunity to cause a surprise against the nation they memorably beat at the 2007 World Cup.”There’s no doubt we’re going to be up against it in both games, but that’s what we want,” Simmons said. “We’re crying out for this type of challenge and it’s fantastic that we’ve got these two ODI’s against one of the games superpowers.”