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With nothing except pride and records to play for, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe will both be looking to make more use of their reserves for the final ODI

The Preview by Mohammad Isam30-Nov-2014Match factsDec 1, 2014
Start time 12:30 local (06:30 GMT)Mahmudullah’s return to form has been a huge boost to Bangladesh•AFPBig pictureNo matter the circumstances, there has always been a recurring theme in this series. Zimbabwe lose a game, fight back harder in the next, but Bangladesh somehow just strive to stay on top. There is every chance Bangladesh might take their foot off the pedal sitting on a 4-0 lead, but then again, there is also every chance that Zimbabwe, completely sapped of their confidence following the whitewash in the Tests and the defeats in the ODIs, have already lost hope.With nothing except pride and records to play for, both teams will look to make more use of their reserves. Soumya Sarkar, a seam-bowling allrounder, has been added to Bangladesh’s squad. He is, however, unlikely to bat in his usual opening position as Bangladesh would not want to disrupt the momentum of Tamim Iqbal and Anamul Haque. Sarkar would possibly bat down the order and be picked as a third seamer.Bangladesh have had a lot of positives from this series, starting right from Tamim and Anamul. Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib Al Hasan have been regular contributors, but the most eye-catching has been Mahmudullah’s return to form. Mominul Haque has been shifted around and rested, but his replacement Imrul Kayes failed to make most of the opportunity in the fourth ODI. Sabbir Rahman has scored on and off, so there will be expectations for him to finish well. Arafat Sunny is no longer part of the squad, perhaps being prepared for the World Cup. Bangladesh have unsurprisingly been comfortable on the spinning front, but there is still scope for improvement from their seamers, as none apart from Al-Amin Hossain have been able to create an impression.For the visitors, Brendan Taylor, Elton Chigumbura and Solomon Mire are the only players to have scored more than 100 runs. They have looked the most confident too. The likes of Hamilton Masakadza and Vusi Sibanda have promised much, but delivered little. With the ball, Tinashe Panyangara has been effective while Tafadzwa Kamungozi’s discipline has been quite impressive. Mire and Neville Madziva have had good spells at the top, but they have struggled in the last ten overs. Zimbabwe will ultimately need improvements in all departments if they are to clinch a much-needed morale-boosting victory.Form guide(last five completed games, most recent first)
Bangladesh WWWWL
Zimbabwe LLLLL
In the spotlightTafadzwa Kamungozi has been Zimbabwe’s most economical bowler, giving away 4.05, in the first four matches, without delivering a single maiden from his 38 overs. He is an accurate legspinner who can become a dependable cog in the bowling attack.Mahmudullah got to his first half-century in 18 months, and it ensured Bangladesh got a decent score despite two collapses. He is in his element when either playing attractive shots or rescuing the team. He did both, and finally looks to be back in form.Team newsSoumya Sarkar is set to make his ODI debut but it is not certain if he will replace Imrul Kayes or Sabbir Rahman. Rubel Hossain may be rested to give Taijul Islam a chance, especially if Soumya is used as the third seamer after Mashrafe Mortaza and Abul Hasan.Bangladesh (possible): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Anamul Haque, 3 Imrul Kayes/Mominul Haque, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 5 Shakib Al Hasan, 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Sabbir Rahman/Soumya Sarkar, 8 Abul Hasan, 9 Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), 10 Taijul Islam, 11 Jubair HossainIt has become quite tricky to predict the Zimbabwe line-up in this series. Richmond Mutumbami and Craig Ervine have not played a single game, while Elton Chigumbura has said Sikandar Raza’s injured finger has improved. Timycen Maruma and Peter Moor have also struggled, so the visitors could make quite a few changes.Zimbabwe (possible): 1 Hamilton Masakadza, 2 Vusi Sibanda, 3 Timycen Maruma/Sikandar Raza, 4 Brendan Taylor, 5 Regis Chakabva/Craig Ervine, 6 Elton Chigumbura (capt), 7 Peter Moor (wk), 8 Solomon Mire, 9 Tendai Chatara, 10 Neville Madziva, 11 Tafadzwa KamungoziPitch and conditionsThe talk in the air is that it will be a seamer-friendly wicket to give Bangladesh a taste of what they might expect Australia and New Zealand. Mirpur has had sporting pitches in June, so such a surface is expected. The weather has cooled down in Dhaka too, but dew has not appeared in a big way yet.Stats and trivia When he reached 10 during the fourth ODI, Mahmudullah became the seventh Bangladeshi to score 2000 ODI runs. Solomon Mire became the 10th Zimbabwe player to take three wickets and score a half-century in an ODI. Quotes”We are not thinking about the World Cup today. It is definitely our next preparation but right now we are thinking of tomorrow’s game.”
“We haven’t really been outplayed in all of the games. So I think that’s given us a lot of confidence that we have been in the game a lot.”

Saeed Ajmal took six wickets for 13 runs in a magical 36-ball spell to give Worcestershire a 234-run victory over Leicestershire on the final day of their LV= County Championship Division Two game at Grace Road

Press Association18-Jun-2014
ScorecardSaeed Ajmal destroyed Leicestershire with a six-wicket burst•Getty ImagesSaeed Ajmal took six wickets for 13 runs in a magical 36-ball spell to give Worcestershire a 234-run victory over Leicestershire on the final day of their LV= County Championship Division Two game at Grace Road.The home batsmen had no answer to the mystery spin of the Pakistan star and crashed from 145 for 4 to 169 all out.It was Worcestershire’s fourth win of the season and Leicestershire’s fourth successive home defeat. Worcestershire are now second in the table one point behind Hampshire, while Leicestershire have not won a Championship game since September 2012.Even so the manner of their collapse in this game was extraordinary. Set a victory target of 404 they began the day on 20 without loss and took 19 runs off the first two overs from Jack Shantry and Charles Morris.The first nine overs of the day produced 50 runs and a flurry of boundaries, and it began to look as though Leicestershire might make a decent fist of it.But Angus Robson chopped a ball from Morris on to his stumps, Greg Smith and Ned Eckersley were both lbw to Shantry playing across the line and Josh Cobb was bowled by Joe Leach to leave Leicestershire at 98 for 4.All that was left for them then was a battle for survival. A partnership of 47 runs between Dan Redfern and Niall O’Brien suggested they could stretch the game out – but then Ajmal took centre stage.He had hardly been in the game for three and half days, claiming just one wicket for 46 runs in Leicestershire’s first innings. But a fourth-day pitch that was at last offering some assistance, was right up his street.He had taken a career best 7 for 19 against Essex earlier in the season and almost matched it again. In less than hour after lunch he picked up the last six wickets to leave Leicestershire in a spin.O’Brien edged to slip, Redfern was bowled leg stump, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Richard Jones were both caught off bat and pad, Ben Raine top-edged a slog sweep and Charlie Shreck was trapped lbw.Ajmal finished with 6 for 19 to take his wicket-haul for Worcestershire to 44 in seven Championship games. They will miss him when he joins up with Pakistan for a tour of Sri Lanka in August.Steve Rhodes, Worcestershire director of cricket, said: “The plan is always to try and take a few wickets with our seam attack to provide a platform for Ajmal. In these sort of conditions he can be devastating.”Ben Smith, Leicestershire’s senior coach, said: “Ajmal’s spell was brilliant and blew us away. But we would not have been in that position if we had taken a 150-run first innings lead as we should have done.”

Hashim Amla said South Africa’s victory was especially pleasing because they won after a batting “blowout”

Liam Brickhill in Harare29-Aug-2014Hashim Amla doesn’t have fond memories of the last time he captained South Africa in a limited-overs tri-series in Zimbabwe. Two years ago, he led a T20 side on an unofficial tour, managed just one fifty and lost to the hosts in the final. He was only a stand-in today, with AB de Villiers rested due to a minor illness, but this match was all the more satisfying after.”Why would you bring that up now?” Amla said when jokingly asked about his experiences in 2012. “I did think about it, and somebody mentioned it to me last night, but it’s a bit of a different team and it’s a fifty-over game so I had full confidence that 230 was defendable, even though we were missing two star players in AB and Morne. It’s a good performance and I think it’s always sweeter when you win after being under a bit of pressure.”South Africa were under a great deal of pressure when Prosper Utseya, the Zimbabwean offspinner heralded more for his economy than his wicket-taking abilities, ripped through the middle order to reduce South Africa from 142 for 0 to 155 for 5. They eventually limped to 231 all out – a total which was, fortunately for South Africa, more than enough after an insipid Zimbabwean chase.”We were 50 or 60 runs short, but with these sort of totals you have to make it defendable,” Amla said. “And we made it defendable. It’s really disappointing but blowouts like that do happen in the game, although usually what happens is you have your blowout and you lose the game. We’ve had our blowout and we’ve won the game so hopefully that’s us done for the series as far as batting errors go. Prosper bowled well so credit to him. Coming to the next game I guess there are a few guys in our team who are due runs, so it’s a good space to be in that respect.”Amla suggested that South Africa’s low total actually spurred them on to bowl with even greater vigour, as every run and wicket really counted. Indeed, one criticism that South Africa faced during their one-day series against Zimbabwe is that they took things a little too easily. That wasn’t the case today.”Had we scored 300 or 350 and won the game, the intensity in the field wouldn’t have been as good as we normally have, so having 230 on the board kept everyone in the game so that’s the pleasing aspect – that we were in the game until they lost the ninth wicket,” Amla said. “Because a few big hits here or there, 60 runs is not a big margin to win by. So in the context of the game, we take a lot of confidence from that.”Amla was also pleased with the performance of his own spinners in conditions which helped them. Imran Tahir and Aaron Phangiso combined to take the wickets of Sikandar Raza, Hamilton Masakadza and Brendan Taylor, snapping the back of Zimbabwe’s resistance.”The funny thing is I think Prosper got most of his wickets with the ones that didn’t turn, which is skill from his side, but also with the wicket, the odd one was turning and others weren’t. Their spinners bowled quite well and tied the game up in the middle period and the wicket got better to bat on. But our spinners are quality spinners, so although the wicket wasn’t turning as much, their accuracy and their skill factor helped and got us to victory.”

Hampshire’s James Vince made the best of a heavily rain-affected draw with Surrey by hitting an impressive 159.

Press Association30-Apr-2014
ScorecardRory Burns had time to reach fifty as the match petered out•PA PhotosHampshire’s James Vince made the best of a heavily rain-affected draw with Surrey by hitting an impressive 159.The result became inevitable after the third day at The Ageas Bowl was completely washed out after the first two days had been heavily interrupted by the weather and the captains could not come to an agreement over a manufacture result despite Graham Ford’s positive talk the night before.Hampshire resumed their first innings on 289 for 3 on day four and their opponents did not take long to make an impact as Will Smith added only three more to his overnight total of 23 before being caught off the bowling of Matt Dunn.Vince, though, soldiered on and took his total past the 150-mark. Hampshire began to settle at the crease but Joe Gatting handed the momentum back to Surrey as he was caught by Dominic Sibley for 11 off the bowling of Stuart Meaker.Just two overs later, another wicket fell and this time it Vince who was removed as Tom Curran (two drew a nick that went through to keeper Steven Davies. Vince’s 159 was his third highest score for Hampshire and his second century of the season after he hit 144 against Gloucestershire a fortnight ago.Sean Ervine (21) and Michael Bates (28) guided the hosts to 363 for 6 at lunch, and the unbeaten pair took their team to 400 before Hampshire declared.The home side then enjoyed a strong start after the turnaround as Surrey captain Graeme Smith was dismissed lbw by James Tomlinson. Fellow opening batsman Rory Burns made use of the time available with a composed half-century that included seven fours and the 23-year-old was still unbeaten at the close of play.The draw means Hampshire remain unbeaten and are now second in the table while Surrey are sixth and still looking for their first win of the season.

The ECB will announce a new England head coach on Saturday with Peter Moores, who was sacked from the role five years ago, set for a second chance at the job

Andrew McGlashan and George Dobell18-Apr-2014The ECB will announce a new England head coach on Saturday with Peter Moores, who was sacked from the role five years ago, set for a second chance at the job with Paul Farbrace, the recently appointed Sri Lanka coach, tipped to come on board as Moores’ assistant.Interviews of the shortlisted candidates for the top job – Giles, Peter Moores, Mark Robinson, Mick Newell and Trevor Bayliss – have taken place in the last few days at Lord’s or, in Bayliss’ case, via Skype from the Middle East. Farbrace was also interviewed although it is understood he did not want to be considered for the head coach’s position.Since England returned from the World T20, where they were dumped out before the semi-finals and finished with a defeat against Netherlands, the mood had shifted from Giles being the man expected to slot into Andy Flower’s shoes – a step up from his position as limited-overs coach – to Moores, who previously coached England from 2007 to early 2009, being the frontrunner to shape England’s new era.In the wake of the 5-0 Ashes whitewash, Giles presided over a 4-1 loss in the following one-day series and 3-0 in the T20s. Although there was some silverware in the Caribbean, with the one-day series, the subsequent failings in the World T20 appear to have swung Giles’ fate.Moores’ previous spell came from 2007, when he replaced Duncan Fletcher following a previous Ashes whitewash and poor World Cup campaign, to early 2009 when he lost his job alongside the sacking of Kevin Pietersen as captain after it emerged the pair could not work together. Other senior England players also had concerns about Moores, but in the intervening five years he has had the chance to evolve his coaching methods.Flower, who now has a new role with the ECB based at Loughborough, is also an admirer of Moores who he worked under as assistant coach before promotion following Moores’ sacking.Although the manner in which Moores’ stint ended is what it is largely remembered for, he did put in place a lot of personnel who went onto play significant roles in England’s subsequent successes from 2009 to 2013. He oversaw James Anderson’s return to the Test team, recalled Graeme Swann, gave Matt Prior his Test debut and helped mould the early days of Stuart Broad’s career and his fruitful partnership with Anderson.Shortly after losing his England role, Moores became the head coach with Lancashire. He guided the county to their first Championship title in 77 years in 2011 and although they were relegated the following season they were promoted straight back in 2013.Farbrace, meanwhile, the former Yorkshire 2nd XI coach, has made a late run for the line to work alongside Moores. He was only appointed to Sri Lanka in December and led them to the World T20 title earlier this month when they beat India in the final. Farbrace is currently in the UK for the Easter weekend.Farbrace had signed a two-year contract with SLC beginning on January 1 this year, and a move to England would constitute a significant crisis for Sri Lanka, less than a month before their tour of England is set to begin.Financial limitations had severely hindered SLC’s hunt for a new national coach, after Graham Ford left the position and began work with Surrey, in January. On Friday, SLC did not appear to have been informed of Farbrace’s potential move, with CEO Ashley de Silva dismissing reports of his forthcoming appointment in England as “pure speculation and rumour”. Farbrace had not been part of Sri Lanka’s Colombo celebrations after their World T20 triumph, having left the country shortly after the team landed.The speed of the final decision may raise eyebrows – the announcement had not been expected until later next week – but there is not a huge amount of time for the ECB to play with. England’s first international of the season is on May 9 against Scotland, in Aberdeen, before the visit of Sri Lanka later in May.Lancashire will be in need of a new coach and while talk has already started that it may become a home for Giles the club could also look to recruit from within with Gary Yates, the current assistant coach, and club captain Glen Chapple among the options.

Hosts Delhi faced the ignominy of officially crashing out of the Ranji Trophy as table toppers Karnataka are closing in on a comprehensive victory to finish their league engagements on a high note as Virender Sehwag’s first-class season ended with yet ano

The Report by Amit Shetty in Delhi01-Jan-2014
ScorecardRonit More took three wickets to put Karnataka on topHosts Delhi faced the ignominy of officially crashing out of the Ranji Trophy as table toppers Karnataka are closing in on a comprehensive victory to finish their league engagements on a high note as Virender Sehwag’s first-class season ended with yet another poor outing. With opener Karun Nair completing a well-deserved century, Karnataka scored 289 in their first essay taking a handy first-innings lead of 87 runs before Delhi’s top order once again flattered to deceive as they ended the day at 132 for 6.This effectively means that Delhi are 45 ahead with four wickets in hand and a possibility of Karnataka winning with bonus points can’t be ruled out. The back-to back defeats are embarrassing for a Delhi team that looked formidable on paper with the likes of Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Mithun Manhas to name a few while Karnataka decided to rest their pace spearhead Abhimanyu Mithun and top run-scorer KL Rahul.Having taken the lead yesterday, Karun Nair (105) completed his maiden first-class ton in his third game with a drive off Manan Sharma. Ashish Nehra, Delhi’s best bowler this season, removed Nair with a delivery that kept low. Nair faced 232 balls hitting 12 fours and a hooked six off Nehra.While Nehra, 3 for 39 from 20 overs, bent his back, there was no help for the pacers as the ball refused to rise above knee roll. Not that there was anything special in store for the spinners as the balls that kept low spelt danger for the batsmen. Varun Sood got his wickets with identical deliveries and finished with 3 for 93.With Punjab already beating Jharkhand fair and square, there was a considerable lack of interest among the Delhi players as Sehwag (11) and Gambhir (26) came out to open. They were together for 11.2 overs in which they added 38 but not for a single moment did they have any conviction in their batting. Gambhir, as usual, played those dab shots which went past the slips while Sehwag tried to concentrate without looking convincing at all.Finally, it was Gambhir who paid price for the low bounce as an HS Sharath delivery thudded onto the pads when he hadn’t totally committed to the frontfoot. Within the addition of another three runs, Sharath got Sehwag with one that kept low but moved in after pitching as umpire Michael Gough raised his finger almost immediately. Sehwag has managed 234 runs in this season at a dismal average of 19.50 from 13 innings.Left-handed batsman Manan Sharma (2) was taken by seamer Ronit More with one that held its line after pitching. Mithun Manhas (32) and Rajat Bhatia (30) tried their hands at repair job but it only worked for a while before legspinner Shreyas Gopal pulled off a stunner. Manhas charged down and hit a thumping drive and the bowler dived full length to take an acrobatic catch.At 82 for 4, Rahul Yadav joined Bhatia as they added 39 runs before More removed both at the fag end of the day. He first got Bhatia nicking an outswinger to wicketkeeper CM Gautam while Yadav was done in by the slowness of the pitch as he dragged one back onto the stumps. It is now a matter of time before Karnataka end another woeful domestic season for Delhi where they hardly ticked any positive boxes.

Bangladesh batsman Nasir Hossain and bowler Abdur Razzak have both defended their form ahead of the ICC World Twenty20 after they received criticism for their recent performances in the ODIs

Mohammad Isam10-Mar-2014Bangladesh batsman Nasir Hossain and bowler Abdur Razzak have both defended their form ahead of the ICC World Twenty20 after they received criticism for their recent performances in the ODIs.Nasir has made just 140 runs in seven innings this year, and is going through his longest streak without a fifty in ODIs, while Razzak managed just two wickets in the last three games.Nasir, though, has said he doesn’t feel out of form and he is trying to get out of a mental rut. “From where I bat, I don’t get chance to bat long,” he said. “My strike-rate has to be more than 100. If I am defending 10 off 20 balls, it brings pressure. These things happen to everyone. I have made 30 or 40 odd in the last game, but I think my form is okay.”I think I am having a good enough time. You may think otherwise. I think it can happen, not scoring runs in a few matches. I am trying to get out of this. I think the media talks more than the people. I thought ‘I have to perform, people are talking,’ so probably that put some pressure on me.”When Nasir was first picked, the then chief selector Akram Khan had said his strength was to bat according to the situation. Nasir, too, reiterated that, saying his job was to stay around till the end without worrying about goals.”I can’t set a goal. I have to think of being in the middle when 20-25 balls are left, so I have to keep focusing on that,” he said.While Nasir’s lack of runs deprived Bangladesh of strong finishes with the bat, the criticism Razzak received was for giving away 18 runs when Pakistan needed 31 off 18 balls in the chase of 327. Razzak, though, said the criticism was uncalled for.”For most of the time in my career I have bowled in the first, second Powerplays and in the last four overs,” Razzak said. “Fingers were pointed at me when I have done badly, which I think is a good thing in a way. I can understand that I am not doing it well.”If you see my past, I have given five to seven runs,” he said. “Have you ever thought we have won games because of such overs? Maybe at some point, someone could have noticed and written on it.”Razzak was confident he would continue the role of being Bangladesh’s go-to bowler in the Powerplays and slog overs. “I can get a top-edge and it can go for four, off a good ball. Shots can go over the top, but I enjoy bowling in such situations. They believe in me to bowl in those times, so I want to keep that belief.

Misbah-ul-Haq had implored his top order to produce an innings of substance in the approach to the series but even he may not have expected his top four to respond as emphatically as they did

The Report by Andrew Fidel Fernando18-Dec-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMohammad Hafeez’s century set up a match-winning total•Getty ImagesMisbah-ul-Haq had implored his top order to produce an innings of substance in the approach to the series but even he may not have expected his top four to respond as emphatically as they did. Two young batsmen stroked alluring half-centuries, while Mohammad Hafeez ended his poor form with a canny 122, to set up Pakistan’s third-highest total in 115 matches at Sharjah. Misbah had also warned his side that Sri Lanka don’t stop fighting, and he perhaps hadn’t expected his side to ignore that advice so flatly either.When they had Sri Lanka at 221 for 7 in the 42th over, Pakistan allowed feeble bowling and inept fielding to creep in, and Seekkuge Prasanna and Sachithra Senanayake produced a courageous 87-run stand that drew Sri Lanka to within 15 runs of the target with eight balls remaining. In the end, the Sri Lankan tailenders could not sustain their fire. Senanayake toe-ended one to deep cover and the chase unraveled quickly after that, handing Pakistan an 11-run victory.Hafeez had been relatively quiet in the early overs, perhaps aware that he had not passed 35 in his last eight ODI knocks. Despite his caution, his innings did not suffer from lack of intent. Sharjeel’s fluent hand at the other end had prised open spaces in the outfield after the mandatory Powerplay and Hafeez mined the gaps conscientiously, even if he had begun scoring with two sleek fours off genuinely poor balls.Finding singles and twos was to become the hallmark of Hafeez’s entire knock. Occasionally he took on the more benign elements of Sri Lanka’s attack, like when he blasted a six and a four of Tillakaratne Dilshan in the 20th over, but although he scored at a strike rate comfortably over 90 he had hit only four fours and two sixes in his first 75 runs. The death overs drew a crescendo from him as well but even late in the innings the heavier hits often came when he turned the strike over to the man at the other end. He made an exception when he launched one into the stands behind long-on to reach triple figures for the seventh time in ODIs, and he fell attempting a big shot as well, with only two balls to go in the innings.Sharjeel Khan’s bright half-century had set Pakistan off apace when he posted a bold riposte to Lasith Malinga, who had struck him on the shoulder with the first ball of the fourth over. Sharjeel hooked the next ball into the square-leg stand and then whipped two more leg-side fours in the over, embellishing the promise he had shown in the Twenty20s by making an unruffled run-a-ball 61. The ease with which he struck through the line, though, made the friendliness of the surface plain – and perhaps of the fast bowling as well.Sohaib Maqsood was just as free-flowing through the middle overs in his sixth ODI, and he set about manipulating the field in step with Hafeez. He hit four sixes – all over wide long-on – but there were only two fours in his 73, which came from 68 balls. His 140-run stand with Hafeez was the biggest in the match, yet it was achieved with such laidback finesse they almost snuck by Sri Lanka, who allowed the game to meander through lack of imagination.At times, only a perfect yorker seemed immune to being worked away, so Sri Lanka’s quicker men attempted plenty of those. They had success with it in the middle overs and Malinga was instrumental in conceding only 25 in the batting Powerplay, but later in the innings they began to miss their length, and Pakistan were unforgiving.Shahid Afridi walloped two sixes in three balls to help plunder 18 from Suranga Lakmal in the 46th over, on his way to a 12-ball 34. Lakmal had only played because Sri Lanka had bafflingly omitted Nuwan Kulasekara, whose early-overs penetration and experience at the death could not have been missed more sorely.Senanayake and Prasanna had been Sri Lanka’s most economical bowlers, and both men showed why they had been earmarked for long service in the limited-overs teams when they came together with the bat. Pakistan’s bowling flagged for sure but the pair made apt use of what remained a good batting pitch and drilled the dross to the fence, relying heavily on their leg-side scoring zones. They benefited from some appalling fielding but as victory became a real prospect towards the end of the innings, Senanayake went for a boundary that he perhaps did not need to attempt at that stage.Tillakaratne Dilshan was Sri Lanka’s key man in Mahela Jayawardene’s absence, and it did not bode well for the visitors that he was far from fluent in the early overs. Flat-footed against the fast men and uncertain against spin, Dilshan timed the ball poorly and placed it even worse. He contributed 30 from 43 to a 66-run stand that placed Sri Lanka in a moderate position, but given the firepower in that opening partnership, it was a crucial one to break.Kusal Perera had less strike early on and was also short on boundaries, but he found the gaps that eluded Dilshan and eventually started to put the balls that fell in his strike zone to the fence. He was especially severe on short deliveries, using his short-arm pull to good effect most notably against Junaid Khan. The singles continued to flow freely and he reached his half-century off 43 balls, but slowed up a touch after that and was lbw for 64 off 68.Dinesh Chandimal and Angelo Mathews combined for 73 for the fifth wicket to inspire hope, but the top order had not made enough in the opening overs and the quest for quick runs eventually accounted for them both. Chandimal will at least be comforted that 46 is a better score than he had managed in the 14 previous ODI innings, and that during his stay he seemed to reclaim some of the chutzpah that ruled his cricket when he first played for Sri Lanka.

Callum Ferguson and Phillip Hughes both reminded the national selectors of their presence with centuries that kept South Australia firmly on top on the second day against Victoria at the MCG

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Nov-2013
ScorecardCallum Ferguson brought up his ninth first-class hundred (file photo)•Getty ImagesCallum Ferguson and Phillip Hughes both reminded the national selectors of their presence with centuries that kept South Australia firmly on top on the second day against Victoria at the MCG. The Redbacks had claimed first-innings points on the first day after the Bushrangers were skittled for 118, and the second day was largely about South Australia extending their lead in the push for victory.That was achieved with the help of a 98-run fourth-wicket stand between Hughes and Ferguson, which ended when Hughes was lbw to Fawad Ahmed for 103. The century was Hughes’ second from six innings in this Sheffield Shield campaign, and it was followed by a hundred from Ferguson, who has always been a stylish batsman but over a near decade-long career has struggled to pile up enough hundreds to make him a strong Test contender.Ferguson brought up his ninth first-class century with three boundaries in five deliveries from Clint McKay, and his innings ended on 110 from 187 balls when he was caught behind down leg side off the bowling of Scott Boland, who finished with 4 for 62. Ahmed collected 3 for 47, but one of the most interesting wickets of the day was that of Johan Botha, who was out hit wicket when he tried to get his bat out of the way against Daniel Christian and struck his stumps.South Australia finished with 343 and a lead of 225, although that had been reduced to 147 at stumps as Victoria moved to 0 for 78 with Rob Quiney on 31 and Aaron Finch on 39.

Needing 23 from the last four overs with six wickets in hand, India A choked against Nathan Coulter-Nile and Josh Hazlewood to lose by seven runs

The Report by Abhishek Purohit08-Aug-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo: Glenn Maxwell went from 50 to 100 in 19 balls•Getty ImagesIndia A had been stunned by an incredible assault from Glenn Maxwell, who had smashed an unbeaten 145 off 79 deliveries to take Australia A to 298 from 152 for 8 in the one-day tri-series in South Africa. They had absorbed that unexpected blow and Suresh Raina, Ambati Rayudu and Rohit Sharma had responded with fifties to put them on course in the stiff chase. They needed 23 from the last four overs with six wickets in hand and Rayudu in flow. However, Nathan Coulter-Nile stepped up, and India A choked. They lost four wickets and managed 15 runs, with Coulter-Nile delivering a double-wicket maiden in the penultimate over. In stark contrast, Maxwell, in the company of Josh Hazlewood, had looted 59 off the last four in a ninth-wicket stand worth 146 in 13.4 overs.India A’s meltdown started when Coulter-Nile conceded just two singles in the 47th over, tying down Dinesh Karthik. Hazlewood then gave away five off the first five balls of the 48th, and trapped Karthik lbw off the last. Coulter-Nile all but sealed the result in the 49th, removing Rayudu for 70 and Stuart Binny for a duck to go with four dot balls. Sixteen off the final over from Hazlewood was going to be too much for the tail, a sign of how quickly and decisively Coulter-Nile had turned the match.Lalchand Rajput, the India A coach, said losing Karthik and Rayudu off successive deliveries suddenly derailed the innings but believed the side had a lot to take away from the game. “The wickets of Rayudu and Karthik put a lot of pressure on the incoming batsmen, who had no time at all to get themselves in,” Rajput told ESPNcricinfo. “Even if they had had a bit of time, things might have been different. But it was a fantastic game. It is not easy to chase around 300 and we got so close. It is a good learning process for the boys.”Rajput praised Maxwell’s big-hitting performance, saying that was the reason he had attracted so much interest in the IPL. Maxwell’s reputation as a power-hitter and his all-round ability had earned him a surprise reward in February this year, when he was bought by Mumbai Indians for $1 million in the IPL auction. “We all know how hard he can hit the ball. That is why he went for a million dollars in the IPL. He hit some unbelievable shots. I will not hold anything against my bowlers. They had taken all those wickets and brought us back. We had them at 152 for 8 but it was his day today. “Maxwell almost doubled Australia A’s score with No 10 at the other end. He came in at 122 for 5 in the midst of a collapse following a strong beginning and went on club 18 fours and six sixes.Fast bowlers Mohammed Shami and Jaydev Unadkat had prospered against the Zimbabwe line-up in the recent ODI series with the senior India team. Here, they ran into Maxwell, who hit them for three successive boundaries each, Unadkat suffering that fate twice. The third fast bowler, Punjab’s Siddarth Kaul – one of the six India A players not to have travelled to Zimbabwe – was taken apart for three successive sixes in the final over, also the costliest of the innings at 23 runs.This was easily Maxwell’s highest List A score, beating the previous one of 61. Maxwell’s assault was notable as much for how long it lasted as for the fact that it arrived with only No 11 left to come in. He had just kickstarted his acceleration when he reached his first fifty off 47 deliveries. He needed 19 more of them to zoom to his hundred, and 13 thereafter to end five short of 150.India A’s spinners had brought them back strongly after Cheteshwar Pujara asked Australia A to bat and watched them build their way to 120 for 2, with Alex Doolan and Nic Maddinson steering the innings. Raina began the collapse when he had Doolan caught by Pujara for 30 in the 26th over. Two balls later, Maddinson was bowled by another part-timer, Shikhar Dhawan, for a brisk 52. Dhawan had Tim Paine stumped in the same over, and two wickets in two balls from left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem followed, before Maxwell took charge.Rohit and Dhawan, who have opened in India’s previous three ODI series, set up the chase with a stand of 47. It was Coulter-Nile who broke through, having Dhawan caught behind. The middle order built partnerships all the way down till the death, the highest being 85 between Raina and Rayudu and the lowest 46 between Pujara and Rohit. While Rohit took 87 balls for his 66, Raina and Rayudu made 83 and 70 at more than a run a ball, not allowing the asking-rate to go much beyond eight an over.After Raina fell to Maxwell with the score on 236 in the 43rd over, Rayudu seemed to have settled matters when he hit the legspinner Fawad Ahmed for successive sixes in the 46th. However, Coulter-Nile was not prepared to give in.