A sensational century by Ben Duckett, at 88 balls the third fastest against India in India, left the hosts shell-shocked after they once again left runs un-scored in their first innings of 445. There was none of the streakiness one might associate with a century scored at this pace. None of Duckett’s 19 fours and one six in his first 102 runs came off an edge. No bowler seemed to have an answer for his stroke-play: Duckett pounced on any width from the quicks, swept and reverse-swept the spinners to distraction, and then cashed in on the consequent shorter deliveries.He scored 133 of the 207 England made for the loss of two wickets in just 35 overs on the second day. India had batted 45 overs in the first half of the day for the addition of just 119 runs to their overnight 326 for 5. The recurring theme of India losing wickets without a build-up or a discernible plan from England’s bowlers continued.Not that plans or build-ups were working as Duckett demonstrated. India tried bowling the channel but Duckett stayed beside the line and crashed the quicks through the off side. Kuldeep Yadav tried his wristspin but Duckett swept and reverse-swept seven fours in his first four overs. R Ashwin, who got to his 500th Test wicket with the scalp of Zak Crawley, was allowed no time to celebrate as Duckett slog-swept a good length ball from the stumps and then followed it up by going back and pulling him.Related

• Ben Duckett demolishes India demons in match-altering onslaught

• R Ashwin – a champion at home and India's biggest match-winner

• Ashwin: '500 done and dusted, now got a game hanging in the balance'

• Why England started their innings in Rajkot with five runs on the board

The only time Duckett looked in any kind of trouble was in the first four overs when he was beaten five times. He had tried to hit a four off each of those balls, and wasn’t dissuaded from doing that the next time he saw width.Ollie Pope, who scored the breathtaking 196 to steal the first Test away from India, and Crawley, who has been England’s best batter this series overall, were reduced to being mere spectators even though they batted with assuredness and comfort. Crawley scored just 15 in the first-wicket stand of 89, and Pope just 39 in the 93 added for the second wicket. However, there was still time enough for Pope to display the reverse Dilscoop that left jaws on the floor in the first Test.It was the partnership with Crawley, though, that once again set India back. This was their fourth association of 50 or more in five innings this series. Between 2018 and 2023, all visiting openers put together had put together four stands of 50 or more. By the time Ashwin came onto bowl, Duckett and Crawley had raced so far ahead he started off with a negative line outside leg to Crawley. That ended up bringing his landmark wicket as the ball bounced from the rough to take the top edge on the sweep.Jasprit Bumrah hugs R Ashwin after his 500th wicket•AFP via Getty Images

Now was the moment for India to try to build to another wicket. Pope is not that good a starter, and Kuldeep started by beating his bat on the outside edge. On 2 off 11, Pope, who might not have picked the earlier wrong’un, decided it wouldn’t matter which way it is turning if he gets to its pitch and biffs it over the infield. It heralded another wave of attack, which included the audacious slog-sweep off Ashwin for his first six.Pope then played used the pace from Ravindra Jadeja to start picking boundaries behind the wicket: a paddle-sweep followed by the outrageous reverse Dilscoop. Then the reverse-sweep. Then the orthodox one from Duckett. The closest India came to getting a wicket during this phase when Bumrah hit Duckett’s toe with a yorker, but he had got the inside half of the cue on it just as the ball landed.A particular cause for desperation for India was that they were playing their best possible attack at home, barring probably Mohammed Shami for Mohammed Siraj. And yet, England were bossing them without any trouble scoreboard pressure be damned.India then decided to slow the game down. They did what England did with Mark Wood. A field for bouncers, and keep bowing them one after the other. Not only did it slow the runs down momentarily it also slowed down the over-rate. And then when Siraj bowled one on a length, it behaved like his wobble-seam ball with the new ball does. It took such a good ball with the old ball, and then a review, for India to get some relief. Pope was trapped on the crease, but England were already 182 for 2 in just 30 overs.Even with stumps around the corner, the wicket failed to bring down Duckett’s disdain. He immediately reversed Jadeja for a flat six over what would have been point had he not switched his stance. In the last over, Ashwin came close to getting Duckett out when he defended for a change, but the offbreak had landed just outside leg.The amount of work India are having to put to get their wickets will be a good reminder to them of how easily they gave their own away. After the run-out on day one, the centurion Jadeja patted a return catch to Joe Root in the early exchanges of the day, reminiscent of how Yashasvi Jaiswal got out in the first over on day two in Hyderabad.Ashwin and debutant Dhruv Jurel then added 77 for the eighth wicket, but Ashwin too hit legspinner Rehan Ahmed straight to mid-on in a manner that left him with his hand on his head in a “what-did-I-just-do” kind of way. It is not like the spinners had built any dot-ball pressure on India as loose balls were readily available.Three stands put together 358 of India’s 445 runs. One – for the last wicket – was responsible for 30 of the remaining 87. That, though, has been the story of the series for India’s inexperienced batting line-up.

Warwickshire happier with draw after only 19 overs possible on final day

ECB Reporters Network08-Apr-2024

Warwickshire and Worcestershire launched their Vitality County Championship season with a draw after bad weather shunted a hitherto intriguing game up a cul-de-sac at Edgbaston.Worcestershire were frustratingly denied a chance to press for victory on their return to Division One after a wet outfield prevented play before lunch on the final day. After the loss of the last session the previous day, that took too much time out of the match for Brett D’Oliveira’s side to capitalise on the strong position they had built, largely through Kashif Ali’s two superb centuries.In the sliver of play that was possible on the final day, they took their overnight score from 237 for 2 – and lead of 264 – to 295 for 3. Jake Libby advanced to 101 not out, his 17th first class century, before another downpour proved terminal.Warwickshire’s bowling attack, which will expect to be “better for the outing”, in the words of head coach Mark Robinson, secured just one more wicket when Olly Hannon-Dalby clutched an instinctive return catch from a straight drive by Rob Jones. There was little joy for the other bowlers and least of all for left-arm spinner Danny Briggs who was adjudged to have delivered seven leg-side wides.With the match consigned to stalemate, Libby continued implacably to his ton while Adam Hose enjoyed some time in the middle of his former home ground, restraining his usual attacking game to collect an unbeaten 17 in over an hour.If there was some frustration for Worcestershire at being denied an opportunity to record their first Championship win at Edgbaston since 1993, there was also plenty of room for satisfaction. They acquitted themselves extremely well on their return to Division One.They were the better side with bat and ball. Kashif’s first two first-class centuries – 110 and 133 – lit up a match largely conducted under an unbroken canopy of grey while overseas debutants Nathan Smith and Jason Holder offered promise in the seam attack.”We played some really good cricket during the game,” D’Oliveira said. “Kashif had a really special game and is a really special cricketer. I am excited by the journey ahead of him. Our overseas guys have fitted in really well. First and foremost, they are excellent characters who have slotted straight into the dressing room. Jason is brilliant for me as a captain to have to bounce ideas off. Nathan is a highly talented bowlers who has already showed what he can do in this match.”Every we time we come up we are favourites to go down and we have been relegated a few times, so that’s reasonable, but this year we aiming to us that as a strength and surprise a few people.”Worcestershire will travel to Trent Bridge to face Nottinghamshire on Friday with confidence high. Warwickshire, meanwhile, will aim to be much improved against Durham at Edgbaston after missing Sam Hain (personal reasons) and Liam Norwell (injury) at the heart of their bowling and batting during this match.Robinson admitted that he did not know when either player would return. “We will be better for the outing, as they say. Gary [Barwell] and his groundstaff team did a great job to get a game on but conditions were difficult for the bowlers. I think all the bowlers struggled in the wind and with soft take-off points but Worcestershire’s probably coped a little bit better than ours.”We haven’t been where we want to be during this match. Our prep was affected because we lost one player the day before the game and another one on the morning of the game, but we haven’t bowled particularly well and it was a disappointing session with the bat where we lost five quick wickets to hand Worcestershire the initiative.”Liam Norwell will not be available for a while. He has an injury which we are looking into to get a bit of clarity. The good news, if you can have good news about an injury, is that it is not the disc in his back that has been the problem in the past. With regard to Sam Hain, I don’t know if he will be available for the next game. We will give him all the time and space he needs.”

The left-arm orthodox, who played three Tests for Australia in India last year, has signed with Tasmania after not playing any Sheffield Shield cricket for Queensland last summer

AAP23-Apr-2024Three-Test spinner Matthew Kuhnemann has signed with Tasmania in a bid for red-ball game time ahead of Australia’s tour of Sri Lanka next summer.The 27-year-old didn’t play for his home state of Queensland in last season’s Sheffield Shield and has made the move south with hopes of becoming Tasmania’s No.1 Shield spinner and push his case for an Australia recall ahead of the two-Test tour next year.Kuhnemann, who has 20 first-class matches under his belt, played three Tests for Australia in India in early 2023. After being flown over mid-tour, the left-arm finger spinner took 5 for 16 in his second Test to help Australia beat the hosts at Indore.Related

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“I’m very grateful to be given the opportunity from Tasmania to join their talented squad,” Kuhnemann said on Monday.”I’m excited to get down there, challenge myself, and help contribute to winning games and competitions for Tasmania.”Kuhnemann will be eyeing a spot in Australia’s Test squad for their tour of Sri Lanka in February, after a summer series on home soil against India.He will also be available for 50-over selection for Tasmania and remains contracted to the Brisbane Heat in the Big Bash League.”We are excited to have a player of Matt’s calibre join the Tigers and believe he will play a key role for us in the white-ball format of the game,” Cricket Tasmania high-performance manager Salliann Beams said.”Matt’s left-arm orthodox bowling craft will provide us with a different option to our bowling line-up, as someone who has had success for Australia, and on a national stage in the BBL.”Tasmania lost to Western Australia in March’s Sheffield Shield final, with Jarrod Freeman (18 wickets at 46) their first-choice spinner for the season.Kuhnemann, who has also played four one-day internationals, was stuck behind leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson, who took 30 wickets for the season for Queensland.The Tigers also announced the signing of 22-year-old Queensland quick Will Prestwidge, who played two one-day games for the Bulls across three summers.

Mason Mount has admitted that Ruben Amorim’s brutal mid-season assessment of Manchester United as the 'worst in history' deeply hurt him and his teammates. The midfielder reflected on last season’s disastrous campaign, including a Europa League final defeat, and insisted the squad is determined to bounce back this season after a horror 2024/25 campaign.

• Mount hurt by Amorim's 'worst in history' remark
• Man United aiming to bounce back from heartbreak
• Champions League qualification key goal for new season

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  Manchester United finished all the way down in 15th place last season in the Premier League and also added a Europa League final loss to cap off what was the Red Devils' worst season in over half a century. Midway through the 2024/25 campaign, Amorim described his squad as 'probably the worst in United history'. Mount has now opened up on the hurt that the Portuguese boss' comments caused.

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  WHAT MOUNT SAID

  Speaking to The Athletic, Mount said: "As a player, you never want that. I can just speak for myself personally, going away in the summer, you're always looking at what you can do better, how you can be better for your teammates and perform as a group, how we can all perform better.

  "Last season, it wasn't good enough. We know that, but we're kicking on now. We're ready to put that right. And from the first game of the season, it starts off pretty good (at home to Arsenal). A top first game, so we'll be ready for that when that comes around now.

  "I think it's always difficult, a manager coming in halfway through a season. There were so many games, and we didn't have a pre-season to work on things and look at the shape. We obviously changed shape halfway through a season.

  "It's difficult to adapt sometimes to those situations, and I think that could have played a part in that. With the games, we didn't have loads of training time. We play a game and the next day is a recovery day. And then you build up to the next game.

  "We haven't done loads of analysis of last season. We looked at a few areas that we can improve on, but this is a new season. It's like wiping the slate clean. Coming into this season with a different kind of attitude and a feeling about it and we're ready to go."

• THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Despite a break in Ibiza and some time away from football, Mount admits the disappointment lingered and pushed him to reflect on his own performances. He believes that a proper pre-season under Amorim will help Manchester United next season.

  Mount added: "From day one of pre-season, it's about standards and details within training, obviously on the pitch and off the pitch, and really focusing on us as a group and what we need to do to be better and to perform.

  "He (Amorim) is massive on details, the small improvements on the pitch or off the pitch, and he's been really, really big on that. As a group, we know what we need to do in those areas because we need to be performing to the best of our ability.

  "It's important with any new season to set new goals, especially coming off last season. As I said before, it's the details. I think that in some of the games, that kind of let us down where we conceded some goals and weren't creating enough chances."

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  WHAT NEXT FOR MAN UTD?

  With no European football this year, Mount sees Champions League qualification as the top target and says the team is mentally reset for the challenge ahead. He continued: "We obviously want to be back in Europe. I think that is a massive, massive thing for the club. I think that's the focus. The Champions League would be amazing for us, and as a group, we want to be playing in that competition.

  "We know how difficult that is now in the Premier League. There are so many teams that are obviously investing and playing very good football at the moment. And as I've said many times, it's the small details here and there that really affect that at the top of the league."

Borussia Dortmund are in advanced talks to sign highly rated centre-back Juan Gimenez from Rosario Central, with final details still being discussed.

Dortmund eyeing Gimenez from RosarioTalks are advanced but deal not finalisedBVB prioritising attack before defenceFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

According to , Dortmund are in advanced negotiations to sign highly rated centre-back Gimenez from Argentine side Rosario Central. The expected transfer fee for Gimenez is around €5 million. The talented defender is already making waves in South America and has been a regular starter for Argentina’s U20 national team. While the Black and Yellows are interested, the club are first looking to secure reinforcements in attack before finalising any move for the defender.

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The 19-year-old is considered one of the most promising young defenders in Argentina. Known for his physical presence, versatility, and composure on the ball, he fits the profile of players Dortmund usually targets – young, talented, and full of potential. A move to the Bundesliga would represent a major step in his development and align with BVB’s long-term strategy of building with youth.

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Gimenez, who is under contract until the end of 2025, has made 24 senior appearances for Rosario. Known for his patient build-up play, clean passing, and strong game-reading ability, he has been praised by local media as a “machine” due to his consistency and physical strength.

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The Bundesliga side are expected to revisit the deal after sorting out their attacking signings. If things progress as planned, Gimenez could be BVB’s next defensive gem, potentially joining before the end of the transfer window.

For Malinga Bandara the two-month stint with Gloucestershire was the next-best thing to representing his country

Sa'adi Thawfeeq05-Oct-2005

They say no player’s cricketing education is complete without a tour of England. If one cannot make it to the national team for a tour to England, the next best thing is to get a contract to one of the 18 English counties and play out a season, or perhaps even half a season.For Malinga Bandara, the 25-year-old right-arm legspinner, the two-month stint with Gloucestershire was the next-best thing to representing his country at the highest level.
“The experience I went through and the things I learnt during that time is something that you cannot place a value on,” said Bandara, who returned to Sri Lanka on Saturday. He will be turning out for Ragama CC in the upcoming domestic cricket season.For the record, Bandara represented Gloucestershire in eight first-class matches and took 45 wickets at an average of 24.15 to top the county’s bowling averages for the season. For his excellent bowling efforts Bandara was first named Player of the Month for August – he took 30 first-class wickets in five matches during the month – and then Player of the Year for his outstanding contribution with the ball during the season.Despite his untiring efforts – he sent down 352.4 overs for 1087 runs and 45 wickets – Gloucestershire failed to make an impact and were relegated to division two for next season. The chief cause of the county’s failure in a season in which they had only one win and suffered ten losses in 16 matches was due to their batting, which was not consistent throughout the season despite having the services of West Indies batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan.What was most rewarding for Bandara during his spell with Gloucestershire was meeting Pakistan’s legendary legspinner Mushtaq Ahmed, who was playing for Sussex. “Mushaq taught me a few things which I tried out during the match and was successful in capturing eight wickets,” said Bandara. Bandara said that Mushtaq had taught him to try out as many variations as he could in one over so as to confuse the batsmen and get him caught in two minds. “Most bowlers are afraid to try out variations in a match because they are afraid of getting hit, Mushtaq said.”Mushtaq also told me what Shane Warne had taught him, how to confuse the batsman into a false sense of security by bowling over the wicket for a couple of overs and then changing the line by coming round the wicket but maintaining the same field. This way, he said, the batsman would get tied down and be forced to make an error.”Bandara bowls the legspinner and the googly and has added another delivery to his armoury – the slider, which is a faster delivery which doesn’t turn and often traps batsmen in front of the stumps.Bandara said he experienced a big difference between playing club cricket in Sri Lanka and county cricket in England. “No one thinks negatively at any stage of the match,” said Bandara. “Even if we lose badly or perform badly the coach would always encourage us to do well in the next match. This way no player is put under any kind of pressure. The players are always kept on top and the pressure is taken completely off him.”What I’ve learnt from Gloucestershire is professionalism. Every player has a role to play and it is his duty to go out and perform. If he is struggling for form he is expected to work himself out of the rut with help from the coach and players.”Bandara said that playing for Gloucestershire has opened up a whole new chapter in his budding cricket career. “Luck plays a big role in cricket. Without luck you cannot great the breaks. I was lucky to get a break and play for Gloucestershire.” Bandara replaced another legspinner from Sri Lanka, Upul Chandana, who had to return home for national duty.An agent referred Bandara to the county, but with only one Test appearance against his name he was a virtual unknown to Gloucestershire, who was trying to recruit him. Fortunately for Bandara, Alex Gidman and John Lewis, two members of the club, were touring Sri Lanka with the England A team. At the time when the county was in search of a replacement for Chandana, Bandara turned in a magnificent spell of legspin bowling, returning career-best figures of 8 for 49 runs and subjecting England A to defeat in the second unofficial Test at the NCC grounds.Bandara received high recommendations from Gidman and Lewis and he did not disappoint them and the county. He made a memorable start to his county career by bowling Gloucestershire to a 130-run win over Bangladesh A at Bristol with figures of 5 for 45 off 17.3 overs, and has not looked back since. His best performance was against Middlesex at Bristol where he took five wickets and scored 70 off 89 balls.Bandara said that the although the county was interested in signing him up for another season, they were keeping their options open as they reckoned Bandara might be on national duty when Sri Lanka tour England next summer. Bandara’s performances with the ball have not gone unnoticed by the Sri Lankan selectors, who have included him in a 20-member pool for the tour of India later this year.

They hardly ever faced a ball they didn’t want to hit into the top tier. Chandrahas Choudhury rounds up 11 of cricket’s greatest six-hitters of all time

Chandrahas Choudhury06-Dec-2005

Gilbert JessopA technicality must be ignored for Jessop to take his place in this XI. In his heyday, at the turn of the nineteenth century, most sixes as we know them now still counted as fours – a batsman had to hit the ball out of the ground, not just over the ropes, to claim six. But even so, Jessop hit sixes both real and retrospective while making runs at a manic pace, such as a 77-minute hundred against Australia in 1902. Nicknamed The Croucher because of his stance, Jessop had several shots all of his own, including a hook off the front foot. One of his ways of hustling bowlers was to charge them so that they dropped short, allowing him to play his favourite cross-bat strokes. The stir that accompanies the entry of a Gilchrist or a Flintoff today evokes the cry that used to go up at English grounds a hundred years ago: “It’s Jessop next!”Clive LloydLloyd’s nickname was Super Cat, for his languid grace and prowling gait, and even his massive three-pound bat exuded presence, and was given the moniker Big Bertha. The upshot was that when Super Cat wielded Bertha at the crease, the ball could go a very long way indeed. Lloyd’s massive build and reach – perhaps only Matthew Hayden, himself a big six-hitter, has ever looked so physically imposing at the crease – allowed him to mess with spinners whenever the mood took him. And he was typically West Indian in his love of the pull and hook to the quicks: one remembers his hook for six off Dennis Lillee in the 1975 World Cup final, shortly after his opening batsman, Roy Fredericks, had perished treading on his stumps while himself hooking Lillee over the ropes. Lloyd finished with 70 Test sixes, for some years the record until Viv Richards, to whom he passed on the West Indies captaincy, claimed it.Viv RichardsNo batsman has ever beaten Richards for six-hitting nonchalance. A magnificent hitter to leg, often from outside off stump, Richards could also back away and give the ball a mighty smite over extra-cover for variation, chewing away at his gum as if nothing had happened and it was all part of a day’s work. For many, the most memorable, even representative, Richards six was a stroke from the World Cup final of 1979. Having already made 132, he walked across his stumps to the last ball of the innings and flicked an attempted Mike Hendrick yorker insouciantly over deep square leg.

Kapil DevLithe, loose-limbed, and always exuding the impatience of the natural striker of the ball, Kapil could always be relied upon to raise the game to a crescendo with a few meaty hits, his teeth bared in a grimace of effort as he swung. He was even dropped from the team once after being out trying to clear the field in a game delicately poised, and never forgot this insult. The most memorable Kapil eruption came in the Lord’s Test of 1990 when, with India needing 24 to avoid the follow-on with one wicket in hand, he knocked off the deficit with four thunderous blows in succession off Eddie Hemmings.Chris CairnsSix-hitting was in Cairns’s very genes: his father Lance, though not a batsman of great repute, was one of the most renowned tonkers of the cricket ball in his time. Cairns Mark 2 was an improvement on its predecessor: sharing the majestic height and build, but unquestionably a batsman not a slogger. At the end of a distinguished career marked throughout by seemingly effortless striking of great power and beauty, Cairns entered his final Test series, against England, two behind Richards’s record for the most sixes in Tests: 84. The record was claimed in a worthy fashion. Left in the Lord’s Test with only the No. 11 for company and the occasion demanding a few fireworks, Cairns shuffled around the crease, as he liked to do, and struck four out of seven balls into the stands, all with different strokes.

Sanath JayasuriyaThe human arm is such that batsmen swing most powerfully to leg, and this is the side to which most sixes are hit. But Jayasuriya’s strengths are most unusual: while he hits sixes on the leg side often enough, with pulls and swipes at the spinners or sweet pick-up shots off the quicks, he is at his most destructive when presented with a smidgen of width on the off side. Cricket has had many powerful cutters but never one who so often cuts for six. The body rocks back to make a little room, the powerful forearms, often glistening with sweat, slash ferociously at the ball at the top of its bounce, and the sound of a rifle shot accompanies the spectacle of the ball flying over point or third man. At 240 sixes and counting, Jayasuriya is the most prolific six-hitter in international cricket.Wasim AkramAkram said that he often didn’t know what the ball was going to do when it left his hand. But he was probably being disingenuous. He also played down his allrounder tag by saying he was just a happy hitter. This was quite true. However, technique doesn’t matter too much when you come in to bat in a one-dayer with three or four overs remaining, and in those situations Akram showed he had the eye and brute strength to shovel just about any delivery over deep midwicket or long-on. He also had a fast bowler’s contempt for spin: when he broke the world record for most sixes in a Test innings, against Zimbabwe at Sheikhupura, nine of his 12 sixes were off the suffering legspinner Paul Strang, whose spin partner Andrew Whittall was let off with only three.

Sourav GangulyJust as most people have a mental picture of what a bouncer at a club looks like, so they have a picture of what a six-hitter looks like. Ganguly is about as far from this image as could be. But even from his early days of domestic cricket, his slender frame – which has since filled out with time – somehow never stopped him from sending the ball soaring off the square in a massive arc. Ganguly is a ruthless clouter of the spinners, and hits most of his sixes against them, but it is his spectacular striking when charging the quicks – a move that cuts down what is already a miniscule reaction time – that deserves special mention. Two images come to mind: a six over point off Glenn McGrath in a brief innings in the World Cup final, and Ganguly charging Andrew Caddick in a game at Mumbai, finding a waist-high full-toss coming at his body, and quickly adjusting to punch it down the ground for six.Adam GilchristThe feature of Gilchrist’s batting that makes bowlers feel especially wretched is how many good balls he hits for six. He swivels suddenly and pulls a good-length delivery over the midwicket boundary, or, after playing one ball defensively, opens his shoulders to an identical delivery and sends it into orbit over long-off. Swift as a gunslinger in a western, he is the Jessop of his age, placing attacking batting over all other imperatives, and cheerfully taking on – and usually beating – boundary fielders.

Shahid AfridiWhat would the nature of the six-hitter truest to his art be like? Here is an estimate: he would eye the hit out of the ground from the very first ball he faced; take no heed of the match situation or the number of fielders on the boundary; and hit plenty of sixes without making too many runs, since he would also be out quickly most of the time going for broke. In other words, he’d be a bit daft. Of all six-hitters in the history of cricket, perhaps Afridi answers to this description best. In his very first innings in international cricket, as a teenager in an ODI against Sri Lanka, he equalled the world record by smashing 11 of the 40 balls he faced for six. After eight years in the game, and several axings from the side for his intransigence, Afridi’s nature remains unchanged: one-fourth of his runs in one-day cricket have come from sixes. If all attacking batsmen profess the belief that `the ball is there to be hit’, then with Afridi the ball is there to be hit for six.Andrew FlintoffAlways a talented hitter, Flintoff rained sixes upon ecstatic crowds in 2004 – 47 of them in international competition. As with most large, powerful men, Big Freddie likes lashing bowlers down the ground and over midwicket, often stopping in his follow-through to admire a piece of work well done. And best of all, he can let bowlers know that he’s after them and family members know that he’s thinking of them with the same stroke, as he proved against West Indies at Edgbaston last year by picking out his dad in the crowd with a six.

In a bizarre session of play, India collapsed in the space of 92 balls out of which Yuvraj faced 46. The following manhattan graphic shows the passage of play after lunch

George Binoy22-Mar-2006At 75 for 3, India were in with a definite chance to draw the game. They had their two best batsmen in Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar at the crease and had Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag and Mahendra Singh Dhoni to come. But in a bizarre session of play, India collapsed in the space of 92 balls out of which Yuvraj faced 46. The following ‘Manhattan’ graphic shows the passage of play after lunch.The only period where the Indians offered some resistance was when Dravid and Tendulkar put on 42 runs for the third wicket. Andrew Flintoff was simply superb in the morning session. He cut the ball sharply into the right hander and made Wasim Jaffer look like a school boy playing on a bumpy road. Flintoff conceded no runs of the 23 balls he bowled to Jaffer and beat the bat on eight occasions. He finally got him leg before with one that cut back sharply and struck him in front of off and middle.This is England’s first victory in India in over 21 years. Their last success was at Chennai (then Madras) in 1985.England’s 212-run margin of victory is their highest in India in terms of runs beating the 202-run win at Chennai in 1934.Sachin Tendulkar’s average of 20.75 is his lowest average for a series with a minimum of three Tests. He averaged 37.80 against Sri Lanka in December and 21 in Pakistan. This is the first time he has averaged below 40 in three consecutive series.

Dileep Premachandran comes up with the plays of the third day of the Trent Bridge Test between England and India

Dileep Premachandran at Trent Bridge29-Jul-2007

Eyes wide shut: After stroking a lovely boundary through point, Sourav Ganguly must have sensed what would follow. Even then, he was caught unawares by Chris Tremlett’s bouncer. His eyes were already shying away from the ball and the body was in a bit of a tangle but the bat instinctively swung across for the hook. The contact was nearly perfect, and carried the ball well over the rope at square leg.Eyes wide shut – part deux: He may have been rated the ICC’s best umpire the past three years, but Simon Taufel had a distinctly average Sunday. First, the Sachin Tendulkar leg before with the ball missing even the fourth stump, and then a real shocker to send Ganguly packing. These days, players get fined for showing displeasure at decisions, but you had to feel some sympathy for Ganguly as he walked off mouthing a couple of words that can’t be printed.Legspin and all that: Nasser Hussain had some withering things to say on air about Sreesanth’s preparation, which apparently involved legspin bowling in the nets. The older players have managed fine without a coach to guide them but Sreesanth, eccentric at the best of times, seems to be struggling without a knowing voice in the ear. Zaheer Khan and RP Singh have both outbowled him in this series, and he needs to get his act together quickly. Abandoning legspin would be a start.Just like old times: For most of his innings, Tendulkar played with a great deal of circumspection. There was little similarity to the batsman who dominated the attack here 11 years ago for 177. But when Monty Panesar floated one up, he was down the track and driving on the up over mid-off, a glorious stroke that reprised the glory days.Drip drip drip: Ryan Sidebottom was relentless in the morning, shaping ball after ball away from Tendulkar’s bat without the merest hint of luck. While those that bowled far worse got wickets, or were gifted them, Sidebottom toiled away patiently. Reward came with a reckless swish from Mahendra Singh Dhoni, and a routine catch for Matt Prior. Figures of 1 for 75 don’t really reveal how well he bowled.The ultimate pro: With the sun having beaten down all day, Anil Kumble could certainly be a factor in the latter stages of this match. On Sunday, he did his bit with the bat, first stodgily and then with a dash of flair, smacking Monty down to the midwicket boundary on one occasion.
If everyone else in the team had his work ethic and dedication, India wouldn’t be a mid-ranking side.

Steven Price interviews Dean du Plessis, the blind Zimbabwean commentator

Steven Price09-Dec-2006

Dean du Plessis: ‘I can tell when a bowler bowls a yorker from the way the batsman jams down the wicket’ © Getty Images
When you first hear Dean du Plessis talk about cricket on Zimbabwean radio and television or on South African radio, his natural broadcasting voice grabs you instantly.Then there is the flawless English and articulation, and a perceptible authority with which he speaks, accompanied by a fine knowledge of the game.It is amazing, then, to learn that Dean was born blind in Harare 28 years ago. Touring sides and commentators alike have all been left awestruck by du Plessis’s gift.He is able to tell the kind of shot from the sound made by the ball on the bat. He can also tell the bowler by the way he lands his feet on the deck. “For example, the way Dwayne Bravo drags his feet, you can make him out, and Shane Warne sounds like he is constipated.”The technique applies to the batsmen, too: “When a batsman hits through the off side, the ball makes a sharp cracking sound. When he plays leg it’s a bit muffled because he is playing off his pads. I can tell when a bowler bowls a yorker from the way the batsman jams down the wicket.”Although his brother Gary played cricket in Zimbabwe for Mashonaland and Mashonaland Country Districts, du Plessis did not start off as a cricket fanatic. The seed was planted while at a school for the blind in Worcester, South Africa, when the national side had just been reintroduced to international cricket. But the biggest spur-on for Dean came from his own national team, Zimbabwe, in the 1992 World Cup.”I really got hooked on to cricket when Zimbabwe beat England. I was very satisfied when Eddo Brandes clean bowled our Zimbabwean export, Graeme Hick. Then afterwards I started doing mock commentaries in the hostel at school. I would wake up in the evening to do commentary. Most of the times it involved Zimbabwe and South Africa, and mostly it would be a Zimbabwean doing something to a South African – like Eddo Brandes clean-bowling Gary Kirsten, or Dave Houghton hitting someone for six.”The kids didn’t like me doing that, and they wanted to sleep, but I paid no attention. Then one evening we were studying for an exam, and I started commentating. One of the very strict teachers heard me and walked up to me. I said to myself ‘now I’m in real trouble’. He came up to me, tapped me on the shoulder, and told me, ‘Dean, you should take this up as a profession, because you are brilliant!’ That coming from a very strict teacher, I felt really motivated.”On returning home to Zimbabwe in 1994, du Plessis followed the domestic first-class competition, the Logan Cup, where he developed his amazing art.In 2001, he got his first chance to mix with international journalists. “It was Zimbabwe’s first ever triangular series involving India and the West Indies. Cricinfo had a media team doing online updates, and a guy called Neil Manthorp said I had a good voice.”He then made his television debut in 2003 when West Indies toured Zimbabwe, getting involved in the second ODI at Bulawayo, alongside Tony Cozier, Pommie Mbangwa, Bruce Yardley and Jimmy Adams. “It was obviously very nice,” he said. “TV is different from radio but I adapted quickly, fortunately.” I have never been paid for doing this. I’m doing it because I love doing it du Plessis laments the day his country let go experienced players, which left the team heavily weakened. “It hurts me to see what has happened to our team,” he said. “The rebel issue was very devastating. Losing a whole team like that was like being wiped away from the face of earth. I think the biggest loss was Sean Ervine. I know this is a big statement – but if Ervine had played Test cricket the same number of games Heath Streak played, he would have achieved more than Streak.”du Plessis refuses to blame inexperience as the cause for the Zimbabwe team’s poor showing, including the recent ODI series defeat in Bangladesh. “In 1983, in our first World Cup, we beat Australia. In 1987 Dave Houghton got 142 runs, and he and Iain Butchart actually had a record stand for the ninth wicket. Bear in mind that we had no international cricket experience apart from the odd first-class match. We had no top international cricket, yet we still performed admirably.”In 1992 Zimbabwe had no ODI and Test status, but we beat England. Andy Flower got a hundred against Sri Lanka, so it is a pathetic excuse to say this team has no experience when they have played more that 20 ODIs this year alone. Why is it that the players of those years played lesser games over a period of three years or so, and they were more competitive than the current players?”He talks as well of an undying craving to see a full-strength Zimbabwe side again, but “if we can’t get all the players back, the only way to improve is to have a lot more four-day games against top sides. We have to be competitive and even beat them, otherwise next year Tests will be ending in two days.”du Plessis currently freelances for a Zimbabwe radio station and presents a cricket TV programme. His biggest dream, to turn professional, however, remains unfulfilled.”You cannot make a career out of broadcasting in Zimbabwe. I have never been paid for doing this. I’m doing it because I love doing it,” he said. “But now I want to become professional. I’m keen to visit even more countries. If I get something elsewhere, I’m willing to leave the country I love so much.”Raised in Kadoma, a small town south-west of Harare, Dean pays tribute to his family. “If it was not for my brother Gary, I would not have known anything about the game, it’s simple as that. My father has been very instrumental. He makes sure I get to the studio on time and gets me stuff from the internet. My family means a lot to me.”So let’s hope to hear more of Dean du Plessis.