Ahmadi, Stanikzai tons lead Hong Kong rout

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsGetty Images

Centuries from Javed Ahmadi and Asghar Stanikzai coupled with Rashid Khan’s seven-wicket match-haul consigned Hong Kong to an innings-defeat inside two days in the Intercontinental Cup match in Mong Kok. The hosts, having won the toss, couldn’t make more than 150 in either innings, handing table-leaders Afghanistan their fifth win in six games and a full 20 points.Hong Kong’s struggle with the bat was evinced in all batsmen barring Anshuman Rath, who scored a half-century in either innings. For Afghanistan, fast bowler Dawlat Zadran began the rout in the seventh over of the match, sniping out opener Matt Stiller for six. Thereafter, Rashid ran through the line-up, abetting Zadran’s figures of 3 for 15 off nine overs, with a third first-class five-for. That the highest partnership – in the game – for the home team was only worth 41 runs for the third wicket – between captain Babar Hayat (39) and Nizakat Khan (16) was further testimony to their inability to gather any momentum through either innings.Having skittled Hong Kong out for 142, Afghanistan stitched together three mammoth partnerships on the back of five of their six batsmen scoring fifty-plus. Afghanistan, who had finished on 270 for 2 at stumps on day one, plundered another 195 runs in 41 overs for the loss of three wickets, before declaring. Ahmadi, who collected more than half his runs in boundaries – 16 fours and two sixes – anchored the opening stand of 124 with Ihsanullah (63), before adding 78 for the second wicket with Rahmat Shah, who took 126 for his 57. Coming in at No.4, captain Stanikzai put on 161 for the third wicket with Rahmat, en route to his 129-ball 125. Stanikzai followed it up with a ram-raid of a partnership with Mohammad Nabi that fetched their side 98 runs at a scoring rate of 7.63.Debutant Kyle Christie, who had earlier ran Ahmadi out, became the fourth bowler in the Hong Kong attack to pick up a wicket in the match with Nabi’s dismissal in the 88th. By then, however, Afghanistan had put on 465 for 5, with Nabi finishing on 63 off 44 balls.With a first-innings lead of 323 to fall back on, Afghanistan’s charge with the ball was led again by the Rashid-Zadran combine who took out the top four before Zahir Khan steamrolled the lower order, picking four wickets for 16 runs. Rashid, Zadran and Nabi bagged two wickets apiece as Hong Kong failed to last 40 overs.

Hostile Viljoen wrecks Sussex run chase

A magnificent display of fast bowling by burly South African Hardus Viljoen inspired Derbyshire to only their second championship victory of the season against Sussex at Hove.Viloen took the first eight wickets to have a chance of all-10 before Harry Podmore nipped in for the last two to complete Derbyshire’s win and end Sussex’s promotion hopes in the processViljoen, 28, followed up his first innings return of seven for 80 to take 8 for 90 to finish with career best match figures of 15 for 170 as Sussex, bowled out for 344, were beaten by 45 runs. It was the fifth best match return by a Derbyshire bowler.This was the fifth time Viljoen had taken ten or more wickets in an match – but it’s the first time he has achieved it for Derbyshire, who must regret that he has been injured for most of the season.At the start of the day it looked as though Derbyshire had been stingy with their declaration. By declaring their innings closed at their overnight score of 322 for 8 they set Sussex a formidable 390 for victory.But Sussex had to go for the win to keep their promotion hopes alive. And Derbyshire knew that that would give them their best chance of victory.Viljoen, who is a genuine fast bowler, started his demolition job in his second over of the day, when he had Angus Robson caught at third slip. The fielder, Matt Critchley, took the ball with his hands high above his head.But by lunchtime Sussex had put themselves in with a chance of pulling off a stunning victory. They were 110 for 1, and needed another 280.Luke Wells and Stiaan van Zyl had set the platform for an unlikely win by the home side, van Zyl bringing up the 100 partnership just before lunch when he straight drove Luis Reece for four.After the break, Wells hit Viljoen for three successive fours but was then lbw looking for a fourth. And when Chris Nash was caught in the slips for just nine in Viljoen’s next over Sussex were 147 for 3 and Derbyshire were back in the match.But the match turned towards Sussex once again as even Viljoen struggled against van Zyl and the more pugnacious Luke Wright as the pair put on 120 for the fourth wicket. At tea, when Sussex were 236 for 3, needing another 154 from 36 overs, they were clear favourites to win the match.But then Viljoen turned the game towards Derbyshire once again. He had van Zyl caught at third man for 85 and then dismissed the Sussex captain Ben Brown, caught at slip. Then, when he plucked out Wright’s middle stump for 80 with a yorker Sussex were struggling at 276 for 6.Ollie Robinson and Jofra Archer continued to encourage the Sussex supporters with a seventh wicket stand of 31. But then Viljoen took out Robinson’s off stump for 15 before having Archer caught at slip for 25.Podmore finished the job for Derbyshire with the final two wickets, thanks to fine catches by Hamidullah Qadri and Ben Slater. But Viljoen was the great hero of the day.

Anderson strikes after Stokes lays foundation

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details1:29

West Indies their worst enemies again

While Ben Stokes has made the strongest impression on this match so far, it was given an indelible mark on the second evening as James Anderson became the first Englishman to reach 500 Test wickets. Stokes’ six-for had upstaged his team-mate in West Indies’ first innings and he continued to shape events around him as England gained a 71-run first-innings lead – but Anderson was immediately to the fore as the tourists batted again.By the close on another rain-swept, shortened day, West Indies had wiped out the deficit for the loss of three wickets. Kieran Powell, who seemed set to capitalise on the latest drop in a series of fallible catching, was the third to fall as Anderson returned for a second spell and produced an unplayable bail-trimmer to end a 48-run partnership with Shai Hope. With the pitch continuing to offer assistance to the seamers, the deciding Investec Test was tantalisingly poised.Anderson’s big moment came in his second over with the new ball, a vintage inswinger that cut a path inside Kraigg Brathwaite’s defensive push to knock back middle stump. As Lord’s rose, the trademark Anderson grimace of effort blossomed into a smile, before he gestured with the ball to each side of the ground in acknowledgement of the landmark.

Lord’s low

  • 317 – Runs scored by both teams in their first innings, West Indies 123 and England 194, the lowest in Lord’s Tests in last 50 years, and the fifth-lowest overall.

  • 3 – England players to achieve the double of scoring fifty-plus and taking five-for in the same Test at Lord’s: Ian Botham (four times), Moeen Ali against South Africa earlier this season and Ben Stokes in this match. It’s the first time Stokes has done this all-round double in his Test career.

  • 2 – Instances of West Indies fast bowlers picking all 10 wickets in an innings this year – against Pakistan in Bridgetown and this match. They had not done this even once before this year since 2011. The last time they achieve this in an away Test was in Napier in 2008-09.

  • 6.83 – Kyle Hope’s average this series – the worst by a West Indies player batting five or more innings in a series in top-six batting positions. His scores have been: 25, 12, 3, 0, 0, 1.

Quickly, a chorus of “Oh, Jimmy Jimmy” struck up around the ground on which he claimed his first wicket – Mark Vermeulen, bowled – 14 years ago, as well as several other milestones along the way. With the sun out and conditions at their most hospitable for batsmen (and spectators) in the match, England had an immediate opening – though they spurned the chance to remove Powell, on 2, in the following over, when Stokes dropped a thick edge at fourth slip off Stuart Broad.West Indies did lose their second wicket soon after, Broad in no doubt that his delivery was hitting the stumps before Kyle Hope’s pads intervened. Hope backed name with deed in an optimistic review but was soon on his way after completing a difficult maiden Test series in which he scored 41 runs across six innings.With the clock ticking past 7pm, England’s eagerness began to get the better of them, with both of their reviews wasted attempting to overturn lbw decisions against Hope and Roston Chase. Anderson was also given a second warning – and a talking to from Marais Erasmus – for running on the pitch.England’s advantage had been built during the afternoon on a bristling half-century from Stokes, facing down a five-wicket haul from Kemar Roach, before two lower-order partnerships added to West Indies’ frustrations. They were again left to rue mistakes in the field, as Stokes was dropped on 24. He then combined with Jonny Bairstow to lift England towards parity, although when Stokes fell, Shannon Gabriel hitting his stumps for the second time in an over (the first coming off a no-ball), England were only five runs ahead.That lead was stretched beyond expectations as the last two wickets added a further 60 runs, with Broad’s 38 – including sixes launched into the Tavern and Mound Stands – becoming the second-highest contribution of the innings.Jason Holder eventually put down the tail-end insurrection with his third and fourth wickets to finish an extended middle session and, in bright sunshine, there were plenty of overs remaining in the day. Not since the 2005 Ashes Test had both sides been dismissed at Lord’s for less than 200 in the first innings (the same match, coincidentally, in which Glenn McGrath reached 500 Test wickets).Earlier, in stubbornly overcast conditions, batting was seldom straightforward – even if Stokes’ powerful stroke-making sometimes made it look so – but West Indies once again gave England another potentially crucial let-off. With Holder having just removed one of his three slips, Gabriel drew a thick edge from Stokes that flew towards the freshly created gap and although Kyle Hope flung himself across for a one-handed catch he couldn’t hold on.Holder immediately reinforced the cordon but the chance had gone. If Stokes had fallen, England would have been 65 for 6; instead the sixth-wicket pair put on 56, the joint-highest partnership of the match.With rain interrupting the morning session, play did not get back underway until 2.15pm. Stokes was dropped from the second ball after the resumption and then proceeded to rub it in on his way to a sixth 50-plus score of a summer that has confirmed his maturation as a Test batsman.Stokes and Bairstow have been England’s most prolific pairing since the start of 2016 and they took England into three figures. Stokes’ check-drive to move to 49 was the shot of a man in form and his next delivery was cut powerfully to the cover sweeper to bring up his fifty, which followed on from career-best figures with the ball on the first day.Bairstow had looked less comfortable, his outside edge beaten several times by Roach, who then went wide on the crease to arrow the ball in and win an lbw decision – Bairstow reviewed in vain, Hawk-Eye showing it to be hitting leg stump flush.Things threatened to go maddeningly wrong for West Indies a few overs later, when Gabriel brought a beast of a delivery back in from round the wicket to hit Stokes’ off stump, only for replays to confirm he had overstepped. Gabriel puffed out his cheeks, lugged his sizeable frame back to the top of his mark… and two balls later sent a near-90mph ball straight through Stokes’ defences again, ending any thoughts the allrounder might get on the batting honours board (for a second time) as well.England had, by that stage, crept into the lead and although Moeen Ali did not last long, wafting Roach to gully to complete the bowler’s five-for, the ninth-wicket stand pushed the advantage from ‘slender’ towards ‘handy’. Shane Dowrich dropped Roland-Jones on 11, a poor effort moving to his right, although he only lasted four more balls before edging Holder. Broad and Anderson then made merry to add another 31.Only 4.2 overs were possible during the morning skirmish, although that was enough time for West Indies to take the wicket of Dawid Malan. Roach produced another demanding ball from the Nursery End – similar to that which did for Alastair Cook on the first evening – holding its line up the slope to take the outside edge. While Malan managed only 20, it did at least mean he had doubled the first-innings contribution of England’s top five.

Sriram, Robin Singh to coach SA T20 franchises

S Sriram and Robin Singh are set to coach Jo’burg Giants and Bloem City Blazers respectively in the inaugural edition of South Africa’s T20 Global League in November.Sriram, who played eight ODIs for India between 2000 and 2004, is currently the spin consultant with the Australian team on their tour of Bangladesh. It is a role he performed during their tours of India and Sri Lanka last season, as well as the World T20 in 2016. Giants, incidentally, is owned by GMR, the parent group that owns Delhi Daredevils, where Sriram has worked as an assistant coach.Robin Singh, who played 136 ODIs and one Test for India, has coached T20 sides across the globe in the past. He was the head coach of Deccan Chargers in 2008 before assuming duties with Mumbai Indians, with whom he has been associated since, first as head coach and later as batting coach. He has also worked with Barbados Tridents in the CPL, Khulna Titans in the BPL and Uva Next in Sri Lanka’s T20 competition.On Monday, Graeme Smith, the former South Africa captain, was unveiled as head coach of Benoni Zalmi. Jacques Kallis (Cape Town Knight Riders), Mark Boucher (Nelson Mandela Bay Stars), Paddy Upton (Durban Qalandars) and Stephen Fleming (Stellenbosch Monarchs) are the other high-profile appointments.

Depleted Sri Lanka offer Zimbabwe a glimmer

Match Facts

June 30, 2017
Start time: 1000 local (0430GMT)

Big Picture

Normally the outcome of a Sri Lanka v Zimbabwe match is among the more straightforward to predict. Sri Lanka may not always be among the best one-day nations, but they have in the past been adept at putting away the weaker sides – star players rarely passing up the chance to buff their stats a little.This time, however, Zimbabwe may have an opportunity. Not only has the opposition ventured a green squad, Sri Lanka are also in some turmoil – the head coach having been pushed out by SLC, and their spearhead having been effectively placed on probation. On top of all this, the side was also subjected to uncommonly caustic criticism after their Champions Trophy exit, which was seen to be the result of poor fielding.Zimbabwe, meanwhile, come into the series with the unusual record of having won almost as many matches as they have lost this year – though both of their series so far had been against Associates. They narrowly lost the five-match series against Afghanistan, going into the decider tied 2-all before Afghanistan’s spinners made short work of them in Harare. And though Zimbabwe lost the first match to Scotland in Edinburgh two weeks ago, they romped to a six-wicket victory in the second game, and followed that up with a 2-1 win in a List A series against the Netherlands.Still, despite their depleted state, Sri Lanka will be the more confident side in the approach to the game. Even if things go badly for the junior players, in Lasith Malinga, Angelo Mathews and Upul Tharanga, they will feel they have enough experience to prevail.

Form guide

Sri Lanka LWLWL (completed matches, most recent first)
Zimbabwe WLLWW

In the spotlight

Lasith Malinga has been at the centre of the fallout from Sri Lanka’s Champions Trophy exit, and will be especially keen to underscore his value to the Sri Lankan team, following a frustrating campaign in England. Zimbabwe are just the kind of opponents he could bounce back against. Though many in Zimbabwe’s XI have played against him before, they will not have faced him at length. And while he’s not as quick as he once was, the yorkers remain accurate, and the slower ball is still difficult to parse.Though he didn’t play in that five-match series against Afghanistan, captain and legspinner Graeme Cremer has recently put together an impressive run of form – taking a five-for in that ODI victory against Scotland, having also claimed 14 wickets in six List A games for the Mid West Rhinos in Zimbabwe’s Pro50 competition. He has not taken a wicket in two previous matches in Sri Lanka, but may perhaps break that duck on a Galle pitch that has traditionally been known to take turn.Kusal Mendis is 28 runs away from becoming the joint second-fastest Sri Lanka batsman to score 1000 ODI runs•Getty Images

Team news

Amila Aponso, the left-arm spinner who impressed against Australia last year, was a late addition to Sri Lanka’s squad. With so many young players in the mix, the XI is difficult to predict, but is likely to feature a healthy phalanx of spinners. Danushka Gunathilaka will likely open alongside Niroshan Dickwella, displacing Upul Tharanga to the middle order.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 2 Danushka Gunathilaka, 3 Kusal Mendis, 4 Upul Tharanga, 5 Angelo Mathews (capt.), 6 Asela Gunaratne, 7 Lahiru Madushanka, 8 Dushmantha Chameera, 9 Lakshan Sandakan,10 Akila Dananjaya/Amila Aponso, 11 Lasith MalingaZimabwe have played with an unchanged XI in three consecutive wins against Scotland and the Netherlands. They may opt for that combination again.Zimbabwe (possible): 1 Solomon Mire, 2 Hamilton Masakadza, 3 Craig Ervine, 4 Sean Williams, 5 Sikander Raza, 6 Ryan Burl, 7 Peter Moor (wk), 8 Malcolm Waller, 9 Graeme Cremer (capt.), 10 Tendai Chatara, 11 Chris Mpofu

Pitch and conditions

The Galle pitch is unlikely to be the snake pit it is in the back end of Test matches, but is likely to take some slow spin. As ever during this time of year, there is a chance of showers in Galle.

Stats and trivia

  • Zimbabwe have won two and lost 26 matches against Sri Lanka since 2000. They have never beaten Sri Lanka on the island, in eight attempts.
  • Kusal Mendis needs 28 more runs to complete 1000 in ODI cricket. If he does it in the next innings – his 28th – he will become the joint second-fastest Sri Lankan to the milestone, behind Roy Dias (27).
  • This will be Galle’s first ODI since July 2000.

Quotes

“We rely heavily on our spinners. If there’s a bit of spin we can exploit that. After the Holland and Scotland tours we found that we have lot of batting depth. We bat all the way up to number ten.”
” Consistency is something we are looking for, and we saw it in the Champions Trophy where we didn’t meddle with the batting order too much. It’s one aspect we are not trying to experiment too much with. We will try and go with the same six to eight batters in the next few months.”

Derbyshire show bottle and being plundered

ScorecardNed Eckersley’s 91-ball hundred was part of a rapid double-century stand•Getty Images

Skipper Billy Godleman led a Derbyshire fightback after Leicestershire had passed 600 on the second day of the Division Two County Championship match at Derby.Godleman marked his 50th first-class appearance for the county with an unbeaten 60 as Derbyshire closed on 154 for 1 in reply to Leicestershire’s 619, still 465 behind.Leicestershire captain Mark Cosgrove top-scored with 188, adding 239 in 38 overs with Ned Eckersley who made a career-best 158 while Sri Lankan allrounder Jeevan Mendis took 6 for 204.It was a question of how many Leicestershire would score at the start of another hot day and the answer was plenty as Cosgrove and Eckersley plundered 100 in the first hour.Cosgrove passed his previous best for the county of 156 at Derby two years ago with a pull for four off Tony Palladino and he launched Mendis for two sixes to bring up the 500 before he was caught at long on.The fourth-wicket stand beat the previous highest for the county against Derbyshire of 207 by Maurice Hallam and Willie Watson in 1959 and there were more records as Leicestershire erased their previous highest score at Derby of 552 for 6 declared 12 years ago.When Eckersley completed his first hundred of the season from only 91 balls, it was only the 13th time in Leicestershire’s history that three batsmen had scored centuries in the same innings and another declaration looked like the only way Derbyshire would get off the field until Eckersley clipped Tom Taylor to deep midwicket.His departure sparked a collapse that saw the last six wickets go down for 38 with Mendis the main beneficiary of Leicestershire’s pursuit of quick runs as he returned the best figures by a Derbyshire legspinner since Kim Barnett, now director of cricket, took 6 for 28 against Glamorgan at Chesterfield in 1991.It was also the most expensive analysis by a Derbyshire bowler in 113 years although he had bowled 52 overs, 24.3 of them in one spell from the Racecourse end broken only be lunch.But the most relevant figure for Derbyshire was 470, the runs required to avoid the follow-on, and Slater and Godleman gave them a solid start although both had some narrow escapes before Slater was caught at short leg off Zak Chappell for 42.Shiv Thakor played and missed several times but hit Chappell for three successive fours although Derbyshire have a lot of batting to do to save the game.

Washout diminishes RCB's playoff chance


Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsVirat Kohli and RCB might have to win all their remaining six games to make the playoffs•BCCI

On the heels of collapsing for the lowest total in IPL history, Royal Challengers Bangalore had to endure a washout at home, putting their hopes of making the playoffs in jeopardy.They have only two wins from eight matches so far and might have to win each of their next six games to be among the top four on the points table. Should they pull off such a streak, they will have 17 points. Only four times in the IPL’s past nine years have teams got through to the final four with less than 16 points.Sunrisers Hyderabad, on the other hand, are already at third place, might well have enjoyed having an extra night off during a tournament so hectic. The weather soured approximately an hour and a half before the toss and though it was only a drizzle for the most part, it was persistent. The umpires finally called the game off at 11 pm, which meant David Warner’s men continue searching for their first win away from home in 2017.

McClenaghan, Milne and Anderson return for Champions Trophy

Fast bowlers Mitchell McClenaghan and Adam Milne, and allrounder Corey Anderson have been recalled to New Zealand’s ODI squad for the 2017 Champions Trophy, after proving their fitness in the ongoing Indian Premier League.Milne has played two matches for Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2017 so far, bowling his full quota of overs with returns of three wickets at an economy rate of 8.75. McClenaghan, who impressed with Mumbai Indians last season, has turned in another good performance, bowling 28 overs and taking 12 wickets at an economy rate of 8.67. Anderson, playing for Delhi Daredevils, has continued to take on bowling responsibilities – he has bowled a total of four overs across two innings so far, continuing his short bowling stints with Northern Districts in Plunket Shield matches this season.New Zealand’s squad comprises five specialist batsmen, four pace bowlers, three seam-bowling allrounders, two spinners and one specialist wicketkeeper in Luke Ronchi, with Tom Latham as a back-up option behind the stumps.New Zealand coach Mike Hesson said the three players returning from injury had done everything possible in a bid to be fit for selection.”It’s been good to see all three back on the park and bowling; together they add a lot of experience to our squad,” Hesson said. “Mitch and Adam have been running in well, and Corey has shown he’ll be capable of providing an option with the ball.”We believe it’s an exciting squad; an experienced squad, and one that has the batting power and the bowling variations to prevail in a potentially high-scoring tournament.”Having four all-rounders (including Mitchell Santner) certainly helps with balance, and the return of Mitch and Adam will offer options with the new ball, through the middle of the innings, and in the death overs.”Mitchell McClenaghan has proved his fitness with steady performances for Mumbai Indians in IPL 2017•BCCI

Beset by injuries, both McClenaghan and Milne have not played international cricket since the World T20 in India last year. Hamstring, side and elbow injuries meant that Milne played only one more match in 2016 – an IPL game for Royal Challengers – after the World T20, before making a return to competitive cricket in the Plunket Shield first-class tournament in March.McClenaghan’s last ODI appearance came against Pakistan in January 2016, before an eye injury ruled him out of the subsequent one-day series against Australia. McClenaghan returned to play in the World T20, and impressed in IPL 2016 with 17 wickets in 14 matches. A pelvis injury, picked up during a county stint, ruled him out of the India tour in October last year, and an ankle niggle kept him out of New Zealand’s international assignments this year.McClenaghan later reacted to the news on Twitter with a Terminator-like response writing “nice to be back”.In Anderson’s case, the New Zealand selectors and Hesson were happy with his return to bowling duties. The recurrence of a back injury during the World T20 had kept Anderson out of tours of Zimbabwe and South Africa last year and he was picked for the ODIs against India as a specialist batsman. He played four of the five matches in India and also bowled four overs in the fifth ODI in Visakhapatnam. However, with the selectors considering him a specialist batsman in view of his long-term injury issues, Anderson missed New Zealand’s subsequent ODI series against Australia, Bangladesh and South Africa. He was considered for T20 internationals, playing the home series against Bangladesh and South Africa.The three players have replaced Dean Brownlie, Lockie Ferguson and Matt Henry from the squad for the home series against South Africa earlier this year. The only other change was the inclusion of offspinner Jeetan Patel in place of legspinner Ish Sodhi.New Zealand are in Group A of the Champions Trophy and will play their first match, against Australia, on June 2, with matches against England and Bangladesh on June 6 and 9 respectively. Prior to the tournament, they are scheduled to play two warm-up matches – against India on May 28 and Sri Lanka on May 30.New Zealand will play an ODI tri-series in Ireland ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy and Hesson confirmed a small group of players from that squad were likely to remain in England as cover during the tournament.

Guptill ruled out for six weeks to strengthen hamstrings

Martin Guptill will miss the remainder of the New Zealand season and the start of the IPL to undergo strengthening work on his hamstrings in an attempt to ensure he is fully fit for the Champions Trophy in June.Guptill suffered injuries to both hamstrings in quick succession over the last few months and though he returned in extraordinary style, with his unbeaten 180 off 138 balls in the fourth ODI against South Africa, it has been decided that for his long-term prognosis he needs further rehabilitation.After his century in Hamilton, and a full fifty overs in the field, Guptill said the hamstrings felt “a little stiff” but that it was nothing unexpected after his period out of the game. He did not have any middle time before his return to the one-day side.He will travel to India for the IPL, where he was bought by Kings Punjab XI having been put back in for the second round of the auction, but won’t initially be available for selection and his recovery will be monitored by New Zealand physio Tommy Simsek, who will also be at the tournament.”At the moment Martin isn’t fit to play and the time we give him now to strengthen his hamstrings will play a big role in mitigating future risk too,” Simsek said. “We’ve put a programme in place to make sure that Martin can return to full strength and we’ll continue to monitor him closely.”Mike Hesson, the New Zealand coach, said: “Having Martin fully fit is critical, as we all know the positive influence he has on our side. Martin knows this is an important period to get back to 100% so that he can be fully confident when he is on the park. The Champions Trophy isn’t far away and we obviously want Martin firing on all cylinders for that tournament.”Guptill’s times back on the sidelines means his move into the middle order for Auckland, with a view to pushing for a Test recall in that position, will not happen until the next domestic season. It also means that he will not come into consideration if New Zealand need a replacement for Ross Taylor who retired hurt on the second day in Dunedin with a calf injury. Guptill was dropped from the Test side after the tour of India in October.

Vinay Kumar cameo tips thriller Karnataka's way

Karnataka skittled Hyderabad for 108 and limped to the target with one wicket to spare in a match that saw 19 wickets fall in 73.2 overs. Vinay Kumar, playing his first match of the tournament after recuperating from injury, marked his return with a match-winning cameo of 35 off 56 balls, including six fours. He stayed unbeaten along with No.11 Prasidh Krishna and handed Karnataka their fifth win in five games.Karnataka lost Robin Uthappa and R Samarth inside five overs and stumbled further with captain Manish Pandey, Anirudddha Joshi, and Pavan Deshpande all bagging ducks. Binny then contributed with 14 before Vinay tipped the thriller in Karnataka’s favour.Earlier, offspinner K Gowtham, playing his third List A match, ripped through Hyderabad’s line-up with 5 for 28. S Badrinath and Akash Bhandari were the only Hyderabad batsmen to reach double figures.Parvez Rasool struck a 48-ball 53 and picked up four wickets, including a hat-trick, to give Jammu & Kashmir a low-scorer against Saurashtra in Kalyani. This was Jammu & Kashmir’s first win in five matches in this season’s Vijay Hazare Trophy.After being sent in, they were quickly reduced to 40 for 5. Rasool and Ram Dayal, who also made a fifty, then revived the innings with a 57-run partnership. Apart from these two, only Zahoor Sofi reached double-figures. Jaydev Unadkat and Kushang Patel claimed three wickets each to bowl Jammu & Kashmir out for 170 in 46 overs.Saurashtra fared worse, getting bowled out for 147 in 34.3 overs. Prerak Mankad mounted a fightback with 47 off 43 balls, but it was not enough with wickets tumbling around him. Rasool got rid of Sheldon Jackson, Chirag Jani, and Unadkat off successive balls in the 21st over of the chase to secure the hat-trick.Chhattisgarh survived half-centuries from Soumya Swain and Suraj Yadav, and registered a 14-run win over Services in Kolkata. Chasing 247, Chhattisgarh fell to 62 for 5, but Swain and Yadav revived the innings and threatened to topple Chhattisgarh. However, it was not to be. The last five wickets fell for 29 runs. Pankaj Rao and Shubham Agarwal claimed three wickets each for Chhattisgarh.Having opted to bat, Chhattisgarh lost opener Abhimanyu Chauhan in the first over, but Manoj Singh (49), the other opener, and middle-order batsmen Ashutosh Singh (84) and Mohammed Kaif (65) fired to lead their side to 246 for 7.