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“What I really like is that if he has a plan, he commits to it, and that is really, really important,” he says about Arshdeep Singh

ESPNcricinfo staff and PTI17-Oct-2022Sachin Tendulkar has stressed on the importance of having a left-hand batter in India’s playing XI at the men’s T20 World Cup, saying that they “add in value” and offer variety.Speaking to PTI after the Indians’ six-run win over the Australians in a warm-up game in Brisbane, Tendulkar said, “Left-handers without any doubt add in value, and bowlers have to adjust, fielders have to adjust, and if they are able to rotate strike consistently, it is not something that the bowler enjoys.”Rishabh Pant is the only top-order left-hand batter in India’s squad. Axar Patel is also around, but he is more of a lower-order batter. And in what was a big blow to India’s plans for the tournament, Ravindra Jadeja was ruled out with a knee injury.In 15 innings since June this year, Pant has averaged only 23 in T20Is, with a highest score of 44. Of late, intense competition in the middle order and a lack of runs from him have led to questions about Pant’s place in India’s T20I side. On three occasions recently – against Pakistan in the Asia Cup, and against Australia in Mohali and Hyderabad – Pant was squeezed out of the XI, as a full-strength India weighed their options.”Look, I wouldn’t go by just the [top] three. You always play as a unit and one should see what works well,” Tendulkar said. “You can’t go by top two or top three. As a unit, what you have is important and then to figure out whom to send at what position, and also check what is the opposition’s strength.”Tendulkar also said he was impressed with Arshdeep Singh, who only made his T20I debut this July after building his reputation in the IPL.”Arshdeep has shown a lot of promise, and he looks a balanced guy. And whatever I have seen of him, he looks a committed fellow because you can see a player, you can make out looking at his mindset,” Tendulkar said. “What I really like is that if Arshdeep has a plan, he commits to it, and that is really, really important in this format as batters are going out and playing those extra shots, and some innovative ones. So if you have a plan, commit to it.”

In the end, the visitors’ own record – their team total including Jordan Silk’s century – was enough on a run-laden day

AAP08-Oct-2023South Australia’s Jake Fraser-McGurk set a new world record for the fastest century in a one-day match but it was not enough to stop Tasmania winning by 37 runs in the Marsh Cup.After being sent in to bat at Karen Rolton Oval on Sunday, Tasmania broke the competition record for largest total, with captain Jordan Silk contributing 116 runs of their 435 for 9.Tasmania’s effort was 15 runs greater than the 420 South Australia managed against the Cricket Australia XI in 2016.Related

• Jake Fraser-McGurk on his record hundred: 'Everything felt a lot slower than usual'

• Jake Fraser-McGurk's 29-ball ton breaks AB de Villiers' List A record

• Who is new world-record holder Jake Fraser-McGurk?

But a hot start from Fraser-McGurk put South Australia in position to make history themselves. Despite never having scored a century in any form before Sunday, he needed only 29 balls to reach triple figures, two fewer than South African great AB de Villiers in an ODI in 2015.The next-fastest ton by an Australian in a domestic one-day match, scored by Luke Ronchi, was 22 deliveries slower.In total, the 21-year-old smacked 23 boundaries, 13 of which were sixes. Prior to Sunday, he had only hit 18 sixes in the 49 games of his professional career.Jordan Silk struck a century in Tasmania’s record total•Getty Images

Fraser-McGurk’s formidable innings finally came to an end when he hit Beau Webster’s offspin to midwicket and was caught by Jake Weatherald.Without him, South Australia were never able to fully take advantage of the flat Adelaide deck.Allrounder Mitchell Owen was the pick of the bowlers for Tasmania, taking 3 for 46 including Daniel Drew and Jake Lehmann before they could truly kick on.South Australia were all out for 398 in the 47th over, which was still the fifth-highest total in Marsh Cup history and the largest one not to win.Earlier, Silk helped steady Tasmania’s ship after the loss of openers Caleb Jewell and Jake Weatherald in the space of two overs.On a day of carnage, the 31-year-old showed his maturity by moving slowly through the nervous 90s before launching into party mode after passing triple figures.His innings came to a halt in the 45th over, when he attempted to slog McAndrew for a 15th boundary but was caught by Ben Manenti at deep midwicket. Silk’s century was his first in 57 List A matches.The result comes after Tasmania dropped their first two games and sat bottom of the ladder and leaves South Australia chasing their first 50-over win of the summer.

England indebted to rookie as Sri Lanka’s bowlers probe away on rain-truncated day

Andrew Miller22-Aug-2024England 259 for 6 (Smith 72*) lead Sri Lanka 236 by 23 runsAsitha Fernando produced a compelling display of all-purpose seam and swing bowling, while Prabath Jayasuriya chipped in with two bewilderingly brilliant deliveries in an otherwise steady display of left-arm spin, as Sri Lanka fought gamely to stay in touch on a gloomy second day of the first Test at Emirates Old Trafford.By the close, England were indebted to their rookie keeper, Jamie Smith, who justified his promotion to No. 6 with a hard-earned 72 not out, his third half-century in five innings since taking over from his Surrey team-mate Ben Foakes at the start of the summer. Harry Brook added another fifty of his own as England recovered from a dicey 125 for 4 to close on 259 for 6, with a slender lead of 23 in the bank.As had been the case throughout the West Indies series earlier in the summer, the impression after two days of action is that England should yet close out this contest with some ease, but the quality and spirit of the visitors’ bowling has forced them to graft with rather more diligence than might have been the case in previous incarnations of the Bazball era. Asitha in particular was superb throughout his 14 overs, spread across three key spells, including an incisive mid-innings bout of reverse-swing that belied the dank conditions.After sweating under the covers for several hour during a rainy morning in Manchester, the Old Trafford pitch was ripe for seam bowling when play finally got underway at 1.15pm, and Asitha was primed to cash in. With his bustling approach and a commitment to a full length, he posed problems from the outset, under still-dense cloud cover and with the floodlights in full beam.His performance went into overdrive from the first ball of his second over, when Dan Lawrence was pinned on the pad and given out lbw by umpire Paul Reiffel. Although that decision was successfully overturned, with the ball shown to be skimming over the bails, the information was stored away and perfectly processed by the bowler.Two balls later, and now with Ben Duckett on strike, Asitha fired the ball in a good two feet fuller, and was this time the successful reviewee, with the ball shown to be both pitching on and hitting leg stump as Duckett was turned inside-out on his attempted flick across the line.And in his very next over, Asitha served up the piece de resistance of his new-ball spell, an exceptional wobble-seam delivery, pitching half a foot fuller than the Lawrence ball, and straightening off the pitch to smash into the top of Ollie Pope’s off stump. England’s captain was gone for 6, and at 40 for 2 in the ninth over, England had a bit of a rebuild to undertake.Root is no stranger to skinny top-order scorelines, of course, and as he bedded in for the long haul, it was Lawrence who initiated England’s counterattack, with a brace of forceful whips through the leg side as Asitha strayed in length. But, having scored just four of his 30 runs through the off side, his vulnerability in the channel was superbly exploited by Vishwa Fernando, who nicked him off after a change of ends, using the breeze from the James Anderson End to push a lifter across his bows from his left-arm angle.Jamie Smith gets on top of a pull•Getty Images

Despite the conditions, Sri Lanka were able to find some appreciable reverse-swing off a typically abrasive Old Trafford pitch, meaning that Root and Brook had to be on their mettle even as their 58-run stand clipped along at more than five an over. Milan Rathnayake, Sri Lanka’s first-day hero, was picked off for three fours in an over as he strained for that swinging full length, but it was Asitha’s return to the attack that would prise the most vital wicket of the day.Root had reached 42 from 56 balls in another understated display of touch and timing when he was undone in expert fashion, climbing into a wider line from Asitha while still playing for the inswing that had been the feature of his over to that point. This ball, however, held its line and skidded straight on, and Dinesh Chandimal scooped up the low edge to leave England wobbling at 125 for 4.Brook, however, kept the foot down in his familiarly forceful manner, driving with heavy timing whenever the ball was over-pitched, and working the gaps well, with Sri Lanka’s field still veering towards the defensive given England’s reputation for boundary-hunting. He duly rattled along to a 59-ball half-century, his 14th in just 25 Test innings, and if it was beginning to feel as though something special would be needed to dislodge him, then Jayasuriya obliged shortly after tea.Sri Lanka’s left-arm spinner had been diligent without being threatening for much of his day’s work, when out of the blue, he served up something unplayable: a perfectly pitched ripper that gripped and bounced on middle and leg to clip the top of off. Brook could only blink in astonishment – as, indeed, would Chris Woakes, some 18 overs later, when he fell in near-identical fashion, to almost the only other spinning delivery to deviate from the straight all day.Between those two moments, however, there was Smith, with the third fifty of his fledgling career, and unquestionably the hardest-earned yet. He was forced to graft against the swinging ball early in his innings, although one massive straight six off Jayasuriya signalled his refusal to be cowed, but it was the mid-point of his innings that displayed his savvy – in particular a relative grind through the 40s, after Rathnayake had induced two inside-edges in the space of three deliveries with his probing fourth-stump line outside the rookie’s eyeline.Woakes was the ideal ally for a defensively minded rebuild, as England – a batter light in Ben Stokes’ absence – focused on batting long, rather than rushing into a lead. Sri Lanka’s tactics arguably failed to adapt to the dominance that their bowlers were exerting in this period, although in reducing the pair to a run-rate of less than three an over in their 52-run stand, they succeeded in keeping themselves in the game.And when the light began to fail, only minutes after Woakes’ extraction, there was never any thought of Sri Lanka bowling spin in the gloom for the sake of filling out the overs, as had been England’s approach at the same stage on day one. Dhananjaya de Silva marched his players straight off for the pavilion, with six wickets in the bank, and the prospect of a night’s rest for his quicks before they continue their quest to stay in touch with a quietly engrossing contest.

Beth Mooney will take the gloves for the three-match series but the opening match is threatened by the weather

AAP and ESPNcricinfo staff18-Dec-2024Australia captain Alyssa Healy’s niggling knee will prevent her from keeping wicket in the ODI series against New Zealand.But she is hopeful she can play as a batter in all three games to ready herself for the Ashes in January. Beth Mooney will continue filling in for Healy behind the stumps, starting in Thursday’s series-opener at Basin Reserve in Wellington.”I won’t be wicketkeeping this series … but there’s not a lot of cricket leading into the Ashes, so for me, it’s an opportunity to try and get back on the park, as a batter, and try and find some runs more importantly,” Healy said on Wednesday.”I feel like I’ve hardly played any cricket for the last eight or nine months and there’s a good opportunity to do that. The knee’s tracking well, it’s just a day-by-day thing, and we’ll just assess as we go.”Healy’s frustrating run with injury opened the door for Australia to debut Georgia Voll in the recent home series against India. Voll, who hit scores of 46 not out, 101 and 26 in her first three ODIs, is set to be the unlucky player to drop out with Healy returning.”We’ve been transitioning for a little while, getting some youth in the side,” Healy said. “But obviously forced hand with some injuries at the moment. I think we’re in a really great space, the depth in Australian cricket is really strong.”And everyone who keeps stepping in, to take my job in particular, seems to make my runs or take wickets, so we’re in a good space at the moment.”New Zealand will enter the battle for the Rose Bowl on a high after winning the T20 World Cup in October with this their first home cricket since that historic moment. However, they have not beaten Australia in a bilateral one-day series 1999 or in an ODI since 2017.”I just remind them we pumped them in the round game, but they’re okay to have the trophy,” Healy said. “There is an air of disappointment around our group after the World Cup, I don’t think there is any way to beat around that.”I think the discussions that have come post that have been really promising, and where we want to take our cricket moving forward and how we want to play our style of game, as sad as that may seem.”New Zealand are in danger of missing direct qualification for next year’s ODI World Cup with this three-match series their last of the current Women’s Championship. They are currently sixth in the table with two automatic spots to claim alongside hosts India and already-qualified Australia, England and South Africa. Bangladesh and West Indies, who are below them, still have matches to play.A crowd of 4000 is expected at the Basin Reserve on Thursday although the forecast is poor before being more promising for the matches on Saturday and Monday.”It’s well overdue [beating Australia], but we also know the challenge we’re up against and we know that we’re going to have to be at our best to win at least two games to get that cup back,” New Zealand captain Sophie Devine said. “This is our first opportunity to play back up at home as T20 world champions…so now we just need the Wellington weather gods to play ball as well.”

Home side dismissed for just 76 as Australia legspinner claims women’s Hundred first

ECB Reporters Network13-Aug-2022Alana King took the first hat-trick in the women’s Hundred as Trent Rockets comfortably beat Manchester Originals by 43 runs at Emirates Old Trafford.Fresh from a gold medal for Australia in the Commonwealth Games last weekend, King had a near-perfect day with bat, ball, and in the field, as spin dominated the low-scoring affair.Seven of Originals’ ten wickets fell to spin as they were bowled out in pursuit of 119, after Rockets’ Abbey Freeborn top-scored with an unbeaten 45 off 38 amongst a solid bowling and fielding effort from the home side.But it was King, who scored a quick 19 off nine, claimed 4 for 15 off 20 with the ball, and took a fantastic catch to round her performance off, who will rightly take the headlines.King dismissed Cordelia Griffith, bowled for 12, before Sophie Ecclestone was trapped lbw first ball. With the crowd anticipating something special, Originals’ captain Cross was the victim of the hat-trick ball, as a jubilant King wheeled away in celebration after bowling the England international.After being inserted, Rockets struggled with the bat in the absence of Australia overseas signing Meg Lanning, who is taking an indefinite break from cricket, as they slipped to 43 for 4 after 40 balls.Elyse Villani, standing in as Rockets captain for Nat Sciver, who missed the match for personal reasons, attempted innovation in her three-ball innings, but was out reverse sweeping Hannah Jones for just 4. Marie Kelly, Mignon Du Preez, and Bryony Smith also fell for low scores, as Originals captain Kate Cross utilised the fast-changing nature of the format to introduce all six of her bowlers within the first 30 balls of the match to great effect.Freeborn was the mainstay of the Rockets innings, using a mixture of power and deftness on her way to 45. She was assisted by King’s aggressive 19, including two big sixes over midwicket – the only maximums of the innings – to drag the Rockets to what looked an under-par 119 for 5.The wickets were shared around for Originals with former West Indies player Deandra Dottin’s 2 for 21 from 20 standing out in restricting the Rockets total.Recently retired former South Africa international Lizelle Lee got Originals off to the perfect start, hitting the first ball of the chase for six, and then followed that up with two more fours to take 14 from Katherine Brunt’s opening set of five.However, after Lamb was bowled by Kathryn Bryce for nought, it was Rockets’ spinners that made the key contributions. First, the dangerous Dottin was caught off King without scoring before Sarah Glenn took a spectacular outstretched one-handed catch to dismiss the dangerous Lee for 17. Glenn then struck with her first ball, getting New Zealand’s Amy Satterthwaite stumped.But it was King’s historic hat-trick that the sizeable Mancunian crowd will remember. Her near-perfect day wasn’t over either, as she took an excellent catch diving forward to dismiss Ami Campbell off fellow legspinner Glenn for 13.From there the Originals innings petered out, finishing in disappointing fashion with a run-out to leave them with a heavy 43-run defeat.

An international first took place in a heated contest between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka while Afghanistan look to boost semi-final hopes

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Nov-20233:41

Harmison: ‘I’m disappointed that Mathews was given out in that way’

—Fixtures | Squads | Points table | Tournament Index

Top Story: Bangladesh trump Sri Lanka amid timed-out drama in Delhi

Yet another chapter was written into the story of subcontinental cricket’s most engrossing rivalry, in which Bangladesh came away deserved winners against Sri Lanka, winning by three wickets and, crucially, 53 deliveries in Delhi. The margin of victory means Bangladesh have leapfrogged Sri Lanka on the points table on net run rate, while Bangladesh, Netherlands and Sri Lanka are all on four points and all three – and England – are still vying for the two remaining spots at the 2025 Champions Trophy.This, though, was a game where a solitary incident overshadowed all else. The now customary controversy associated with the “Naagin Derby” was this time a historic first, as Angelo Mathews was dismissed timed out – the first instance of the rare dismissal in international cricket.Click here for the full report

Explainer: The Mathews timed out – what happened

Angelo Mathews argues with the umpires after being timed out•AFP/Getty Images

Angelo Mathews became the first player ever to be timed out in international cricket after a helmet malfunction in Sri Lanka’s World Cup group match against Bangladesh in Delhi, adding further drama to a rivalry not short of it.Mathews was already on the pitch and in his final preparations before taking strike against Shakib Al Hasan. His helmet strap broke just as he was tightening it around his chin. He called for a replacement helmet, which was run out to him by Chamika Karunaratne. Shakib then appeared to initiate a discussion with umpire Marais Erasmus, after which Mathews, as he was not ready to face his first ball within the two minutes to do so as allowed in the ICC playing conditions, was informed he was timed out.Read the full piece from Andrew Fidel Fernando

Must Watch: Shakib Al Hasan explains his actions

2:00

Shakib: ‘In a battle, I’ll do whatever is needed to win’

News headlines

• Steven Smith is in doubt for Australia’s game against Afghanistan after revealing he had been suffering from vertigo.
• Netherlands captain Scott Edwards knows there’s plenty riding on next World Cup match against England.

Match preview

Afghanistan vs Australia, Mumbai (2pm IST; 8.30am GMT; 7.30pm AEDT)4:18

Kumble: Spin can trouble Australia at Wankhede

There was a time when facing Afghanistan in a World Cup held no fears for Australia. The five-time World Champions have been nothing short of ruthless in the two previous ODI World Cup meetings. In 2015, in Perth, Australia piled up 417 for 6 with David Warner cracking 178, on their way to a 275-run win. In 2019, in Bristol, Australia romped home to a seven-wicket win with 91 balls to spare having bowled Afghanistan out for 207 before Warner again made 89 not out.But there is no chance the 2023 Australians are heading to the Wankhede Stadium assuming they will win again at a canter. Afghanistan poses an enormous threat, despite Australia’s five-game winning streak. Afghanistan have won three in a row themselves and have already taken down England, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Netherlands as they push for a maiden semi-final berth.Full previewTeam newsAfghanistan (probable): 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz, 2 Ibrahim Zadran, 3 Rahmat Shah, 4 Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), 5 Azmatullah Omarzai, 6 Ikram Alikhil (wk), 7 Mohammad Nabi, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 10 Naveen-ul-Haq/Noor Ahmad, 11 Fazalhaq FarooqiAustralia (probable): 1 David Warner, 2 Travis Head, 3 Mitchell Marsh, 4 Steven Smith/Marnus Labuschagne, 5 Josh Inglis (wk), 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Marcus Stoinis, 8 Pat Cummins (capt), 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh HazlewoodFeature: Maxwell prepares to take on Afghanistan’s spinnersGlenn Maxwell is standing diagonally behind the Australia team nets. Arms folded, his body straight, the cap worn backwards on the head, dark shades covering the eyes which are presumably fixed on what’s going on in the nets.He has watched Josh Inglis and Marcus Stoinis smash the ball around. He has seen enough of Steven Smith and Marnus Labuschagne take throwdowns. And the way he is holding his pose only a few steps away from the nets with a dead-pan straight face, it would seem as if he is barred from batting and has been punished further by watching his team-mates smother the ball in the nets, especially given the amount of runs that could again be on offer at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday.

David Payne chimes in with two wickets as Gloucestershire beat Middlesex

ECB Reporters Network04-Jun-2023Oliver Price produced a telling performance with both bat and ball to guide Gloucestershire to an emphatic seven-wicket victory over Middlesex in an ultimately one-sided Vitality Blast contest at Bristol’s Seat Unique Stadium.The Oxford-born allrounder top-scored with 46 and shared in crucial partnerships of 60 with Miles Hammond and 52 with Zafar Gohar for the second and third wickets respectively as the home side chased down a target of 140 with 10 balls to spare to register their second win in three days.Middlesex have struggled to post big totals in the short format this season and this match was no exception, the visitors struggling to build meaningful partnerships and coming up short on 139 for 9 after being put into bat. Jack Davies hit a defiant unbeaten 46 and Max Holden contributed a valuable 34, but veteran left-arm seamer David Payne claimed 2 for 21 and off spinner Price 2 for 18 as Gloucestershire took wickets at regular intervals to keep a lid on things.Victorious in three of their last four outings, improving Gloucestershire kept alive their hopes of progressing to the knock-out stages, but Middlesex are already down and out, consigned to the foot of the South Group after losing their opening six games.Just as they did against Surrey on Friday night, Gloucestershire restricted their opponents to a below-par total and then managed the chase in a controlled fashion.Promoted to open the innings on the back of his record-breaking 19-ball 50 against Essex last week, Ben Charlesworth has yet to spark at the top of the order, and he was stumped off the bowling of Josh de Caires for 12 as Gloucestershire lost their first wicket with 24 on the board in the fourth over.Also pushed up the order, Hammond made a better fist of things, twice cover driving Blake Cullen to the boundary and then stepping down the track and hitting Thilan Walallawita straight down the ground as the home side advanced their score to 43 for 1 while the fielding restrictions were in place.Cautious beginnings gave way to adventure on the part of Price, the 21-year-old tucking into spinners de Caires and Walallawita to provide Gloucestershire with crucial momentum. The 21-year-old plundered a brace of fours off de Caires in the sixth over and then repeated the feat against Walallawita in the ninth, Gloucestershire reaching the halfway stage of their innings well-placed at 73 for 1.Requiring a further 67 runs at 6.70 an over with nine wickets in hand, Gloucestershire were well served by their second-wicket pair, who accumulated in a controlled fashion to lay the foundations for a successful chase. By the time Hammond squirted a catch to extra cover off the bowling of Luke Hollman, the partnership was worth 60, the Cheltenham-born left-hander having contributed 34 of those from 38 balls with four fours, and the rate remained at just over a run a ball.Within four runs of a maiden T20 50, Price attempted to reach that landmark and win the game with a single blow in the 18th over, only to over-balance and fall to a sharp stumping by Davies. Left to finish things off, Zafar remained unbeaten on 37 from 22 balls, with a six and three fours, while skipper Jack Taylor hit the winning run.Gloucestershire performed at the top of their game to reduce Surrey to 29 for 4 in the powerplay at Bristol 48 hours earlier, but were unable to emulate that feat on this occasion. They began well enough, Payne having Stephen Eskinazi caught at the wicket in the act of driving recklessly and Joe Cracknell hoisting Danny Lamb to square leg as Middlesex lurched to 20-2 in the third over.But the home side then blotted their copybook when Holden, still to get off the mark, was put down at point by Matt Taylor off the bowling of Zafar with the score on 26. He and Pieter Malan advanced the score to a respectable 45 for 2 at the end of the powerplay as the visitors sought to make the most of their good fortune.But Gloucestershire continued to press hard and Price had Malan caught at long-on for a 19-ball 21 and Zafar bowled former team-mate Ryan Higgins for one as Middlesex, struggling to contend with spin from both ends, were reduced to 52-4 in the eighth over.Fortunate to still be at large and determined to make good his escape, Holden led a Middlesex fightback of sorts, partially rebuilding the innings with a restorative fifth-wicket stand of 24 with de Caires. Gloucestershire were already regretting dropping the left-hander when he hoisted Matt Taylor for the first six of the match, and he went on to add a quartet of fours in a progressive innings that yielded 34 from 22 balls.Veteran slow left armer Tom Smith eventually put paid to Holden’s antics, luring him into a trap that saw him hit straight to Price at deep mid-wicket as Middlesex slipped to 76 for 5 in the eleventh.A good deal of responsibility resting on their shoulders, de Caires and Davies ran hard between the wickets and scored at slightly better than a run-a-ball in adding 29 for the sixth wicket. But Gloucestershire stuck to their task and de Caires, having made 18 from 20 balls, hoisted Price to substitute fielder Zaman Akhter at long-on and perished going for the big hit with the score on 105, while Luke Hollman was run out for one by Smith’s throw from deep backward square as Middlesex slumped to 114 for 7 in the sixteenth.Worse followed for the visitors, Tom Helm falling cheaply to the returning Payne, who applied concerted pressure at the death, keeping things tight to further frustrate Middlesex.In danger of running out of partners and forced to take matters into his own hands, Davies batted with real purpose to finish just four runs short of a half century, his 33-ball innings containing 3 fours and a six. Blake Cullen stayed with him long enough to stage a ninth-wicket alliance of 22 in 20 balls, but there was no escaping the strong suspicion that the Londoners had fallen short.

Freya Kemp set to bat at No. 5 at Edgbaston in allrounder’s absence

Valkerie Baynes10-May-2024Nat Sciver-Brunt will miss England’s opening T20I against Pakistan at Edgbaston on Saturday after undergoing a “minor medical procedure”, her captain Heather Knight has revealed on the eve of the match.Knight said the absence of allrounder Sciver-Brunt opened the door for left-hander Freya Kemp to bat at No. 5. Allrounder Kemp is in England’s T20I squad purely as a batter as she continues her return from a back problem.”Nat Sciver-Brunt is unavailable tomorrow,” Knight told reporters on Friday. “She’ll be available for the next game. She’s had a minor medical procedure, so this game tomorrow comes a little bit too soon for her.”We obviously played those three T20s in New Zealand without her as well and without a few other players, so that gave us an opportunity to find out about a few people and add to our depth a little bit. There’s some good young allrounders coming through. Dani Gibson has been impressive, particularly with the ball at the back end. Freya Kemp is obviously a massive clean ball-striker and a left-hander which we don’t have a lot of in England, and when she’s back bowling as well, she’ll become a real asset.”There’s some really good talent coming through. It is just about guiding those younger players and keeping them on the right track to fulfil the potential that they have.”Related

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• Powerplay: Scotland, Sri Lanka World Cup bound

• Fit-again Sarah Glenn ready for Pakistan after concussion lay-off

• No surprises in Nida Dar-led Pakistan side for white-ball tour of England

• Dunkley, Beaumont 'still in conversation' for T20 World Cup despite Pakistan omission

Maia Bouchier enjoyed a breakthrough tour of New Zealand in March, making the most of her opportunities at the top of the order amid the late arrivals of Danni Wyatt and Sciver-Brunt from the WPL as England won the T20I series 4-1.That tour was an important stepping stone in England’s build-up to the T20 Women’s World Cup in Bangladesh in October, as is this visit by Pakistan and the upcoming home series against New Zealand in June and July.”In New Zealand I felt like our T20 game evolved a little bit,” Knight said. “We played on pitches that were slightly more tricky in the powerplay, slightly bigger boundaries, and we had to play a slightly different game. That was really good for us. It probably added a few more tools in our bag and made us be a bit smarter with how we attacked, and how we put pressure back on the bowlers. There was a lot more hitting into pockets, hitting twos, it was harder to hit sixes out there.”I feel like that’s evolved us a lot as a side and evolved our method a little bit. That’s going to be the same in Bangladesh, it’s conditions that we haven’t played a huge amount of cricket in as a squad, so it’s about having as many skills in our cricket toolbox to try and call upon when we need them, and building settled positions. As a bowling unit as well, having different people to bowl in different positions and giving opportunities as and when there is the chance to do that.”Heather Knight during a practice session in Birmingham•PA Images via Getty Images

Meanwhile Pakistan are coming off the back of a disappointing tour by West Indies, who won their T20I series 4-1 and swept the ODIs 3-0. But Knight said there would be no complacency in her side as a result.”They’ve had some good results as well in New Zealand, they won that series away, which is a really good result for them,” Knight said of a Pakistan side captained by Nida Dar since last year, taking over from Bismah Maroof who recently retired from international cricket.”They’ve also got a new captain and a few retirements in their team and that quite often I think brings energy and reinvigorates the team, so we’re certainly not underestimating them at all. They’ve obviously got a few gaps to fill, so it’d be interesting who they bring in and what young talent they potentially bring in. It’ll be a good challenge for us.”The match in Birmingham is the first of three T20Is between the sides, with games in Northampton and Leeds to follow ahead of a three-match ODI series.

‘Cricket is all about batting, so if you can contribute with the bat, as an individual it’s more pleasing,” says Player of the Match Sunil Narine

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Apr-20241:13

Aaron: KKR have a ton of matchwinners

The price tag of INR 24.75 crore (US$2.98 million approx.) almost ran in with him as Mitchell Starc bowled in his first two IPL 2024 matches, where he went for a combined 0 for 100 in eight overs. It might have on Wednesday in Visakhapatnam too, but with the batters scoring an almost-record IPL score of 272, the pressure was perhaps a little off. And Starc, one of the best in the modern-day game, struck in his second over, getting Mitchell Marsh to slap one to cover point, and then again in his third, when he got David Warner to under-edge an attempted cut on to his stumps.Figures of 2 for 25 look a lot better than 0 for 53 or 0 for 47, and while Starc didn’t quite admit to feeling a bit out of place in the previous matches, he did say that those returns weren’t what he had hoped for.”In a game of T20, we all need a little bit of luck, a few edges go by, a dropped catch or two, that’s T20 cricket,” he said on the host broadcast after the game. “You move on pretty quickly, because the games come thick and fast. Yeah, probably not the start I wanted, but we’ve been winning games, so that’s what it’s about. We’re three-nil. And tonight, with bat and ball, we were pretty good, I think.Related

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“It can be brutal at times, particularly on the bowlers [in T20 cricket]. I think we’ve seen on some of the grounds, some of the scores… so yeah, you take a little bit of luck here and there. Yeah, we’re three-nil at the start of the season, and tonight we were pretty clinical with bat and ball. Personal stuff aside, the team’s start has been fantastic.”That’s the bigger picture. The fact that almost every Knight Rider has put in at least one performance of note in taking KKR to three wins on the trot and the top position on the table after all the teams have played at least three games.As for the smaller picture, getting Marsh and Warner must have felt good? “It’s nice to have those ones in the pocket,” Starc said with a laugh.But before Starc got into his act, it was Vaibhav Arora, 26 years and just 34 T20 matches old and not really anywhere near international cricket, who created a flutter, getting rid of Prithvi Shaw in his first over as Delhi Capitals chased a mammoth 273 for victory. Arora did it at his mid-130s pace with a lot of swing into the right-hand batters and the occasional well-directed bouncer, and finished with 3 for 27.”That’s all him, he was fantastic tonight, and I thought he used the short ball really well,” Starc said when asked if he had a role to play in Arora’s success. “For me, it’s probably more conversations around training, around bowling meetings, when we’re taking on Dave and Mitch, who some of these guys haven’t played before. So just talking a bit around that sort of thing. Just see how they go about their business in the nets, and if they ask questions, just little conversations around that. Certainly not me telling them how to bowl and tonight I thought our whole bowling attack was fantastic.”The bowling came later. First, it was the batting. Sunil Narine – 85 in 29 balls. Angkrish Raghuvanshi – 54 in 27 balls. Andre Russell – 41 in 19 balls. Rinku Singh – 26 in eight balls. KKR – 272 for 7. Just five runs behind Sunrisers Hyderabad’s 277 for 3 the other day, which is the highest IPL total ever.”Not at all. To be honest, the way we were at the start, maybe we’d reach around 210-220, but 270 [272 for 7] was icing on the cake,” Shreyas Iyer, the KKR captain, said when asked if topping SRH’s total had crossed his mind. “Sunny’s [Narine’s] job is to go out there and free his arms and see to it that he gets us a great powerplay. Even if he doesn’t, we’ve got other batters who can basically take on the bowlers and see to it that we get a commendable total by the end of the powerplay. So that is the mindset, to keep intent strong and taking on the bowlers.”1:42

Moody: Narine prides himself on his batting

As for Raghuvanshi, playing his first IPL innings and looking like he has always belonged, Iyer said, “He was fearless from ball one. When you see him, his work ethic is phenomenal. He is top notch in analysing situations and he is a smart batsman when it comes to reading the situation. The way he played today, the shots were literally pleasing to the eye.”Starc and Raghuvanshi and Arora played their part, but the man of the moment, and the Player of the Match, not just for all those quick runs but also the 1 for 29, was Narine.’Cricket is all about batting, so if you can contribute with the bat, as an individual it’s more pleasing. But I still enjoy my bowling,” he said when asked which of the two disciplines are more his thing.What Narine’s performance did, of course, was give KKR a huge net run-rate boost. Not only are they top of the table, but their NRR of 2.528 is way ahead of the others’ – second-placed Rajasthan Royals are at 1.249.”On a good wicket like that, trying to keep it as tight as possible, to try and win with a bigger margin so it can help our run rate later on in the tournament,” Narine said on the matter.