Both South Africa and Sri Lanka, filled with youngsters accustomed to the shortest format, clash in the first of three T20s at SuperSport Park on Friday evening

The Preview by Firdose Moonda19-Jan-2017

Match facts

January 20, 2017
Start time 1800 local (1600 GMT)South Africa’s T20 squad has a new look to it – just four members of their World T20 campaign have been included for the Sri Lanka series•Gallo Images/Getty Images

Big Picture

In a year with no World T20, it would be easy to forget the shortest format exists at international level, but South Africa and Sri Lanka are doing their bit to keep it alive and kicking. The three-match whirlwind series takes place in five days and will feature an almost entirely new-look South African outfit. Only four members of the squad that played in the World T20 last March, 10 months ago, have been included in the 13-man group for the first two matches as South Africa look to the future.They have assembled the best players from the last two seasons’ domestic T20 competition, and given an opportunity to veterans like Heino Kuhn, who has played professional cricket for more than a decade, and rookies like Lungi Ngidi, who at 20 has already featured in two franchise T20 finals. Of particular interest will be Jon-Jon Smuts, who may make a case as a long-term opening option and Theunis de Bruyn, whose star is rising in all formats.Sri Lanka’s squad has a more familiar hue but with one superstar omission. Lasith Malinga has failed to regain fitness after a bout of dengue fever and had to make himself unavailable for the South Africa tour, leaving Suranga Lakmal and Nuwan Pradeep to carry the seam-bowling responsibilities along with recalled players, Nuwan Kulasekara and Isuru Udana.With only one new batsmen in their ranks, Thikshila de Silva, Sri Lanka will look to their line-up to do a better job than they managed in the Tests even though their form in shorter formats has not been particularly promising. Still, such an inexperienced host side may present Sri Lanka with their best chance to enjoy some success.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)
South Africa: WLWLL
Sri Lanka: LLLLL

In the spotlight

David Miller is in the unusual position of being South Africa’s most experienced batsman. Captain Farhaan Behardien confirmed that Miller will bat higher than his usual No.6 spot, perhaps at No.4 where he scored a century for the Knights earlier in the season, in order to give him the best chance of facing as many balls as possible. Behardien said if Miller faces between 50 and 60 balls, he is almost guaranteed a hundred because of his strike rate. No pressure, then.Sri Lanka will look to their captain Angelo Mathews to spark a revival•Associated Press

Angelo Mathews was under fire for his tactics in the Test series, particularly in the way he used his bowlers, including himself. The limited-overs contests will be a chance for him to redeem himself. Mathews is much more respected as a short-format bowler and will likely take the new ball in a bid to strike upfront. He will have the opportunity to set the tone and, having failed to do that in the longer formats, will know his performance over the next few weeks could be important to his survival as captain.

Team news

South Africa could field as many as six new caps in a completely new-look XI which should see the T20 competition’s leading run-scorer Jon-Jon Smuts open the batting with veteran Heino Kuhn. David Miller, who will bat up the order through the series, and Farhaan Behardien will provide middle-order experience around Theunis de Bruyn and Reeza Hendricks. Mangaliso Mosehle will keep wicket, while Wayne Parnell and Andile Phehlulwayo make the allrounder contingent. Dane Paterson will compete with Lungi Ngidi for a place while Imran Tahir could edge out Aaron Phangiso as the sole spinner.South Africa: 1 Jon-Jon Smuts, 2 Heino Kuhn, 3 Theunis de Bruyn, 4 David Miller, 5 Farhaan Behardien (capt), 6 Reeza Hendricks, 7 Mangaliso Mosehle (wk), 8 Wayne Parnell, 9 Andile Phehlukwayo, 10 Dane Paterson, 11 Imran TahirSri Lanka will need a new opener to partner Danushka Gunathilaka and may turn to one of their youngsters Kusal Mendis or Dhananjaya de Silva to do the job. Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal will hope to turn a disappointing tour around, while Thikshila may make his debut. Two specialist spinners and two seamers, in addition to captain Angelo Mathews, could make up the Sri Lankan attack.Sri Lanka: 1 Danushka Gunathilaka, 2 Kusal Mendis/Dhananjaya de Silva, 3 Angelo Mathews (capt), 4 Dinesh Chandimal (wk), 5 Niroshan Dickwella, 6 Asela Gunaratne, 7 Thikshila de Silva, 8 Sachith Pathirana, 9 Seekkuge Prasanna, 10 Nuwan Pradeep, 11 Suranga Lakmal

Pitch and conditions

Centurion is known for its spicy surface but in limited-overs matches it tends to favour batsmen a little more. This season, though, it has been a touch slower and seen some lower-scoring contests in the domestic T20 competition. Still, at altitude, the ball is set to travel. Tickets have been sold out for the spectacle. A perfect summer’s evening is forecast, with temperatures cooling down from 31 degrees and no afternoon thundershowers lurking.

Stats and trivia

• South Africa and Sri Lanka have never a played a T20 in South Africa before. They have faced each other six times, of which South Africa have won four matches and lost two.
• The last time South Africa and Sri Lanka met in a T20 was at the World T20 – which was also when South Africa last played in the format – and South Africa chased 121 to win comfortably by eight wickets with 14 balls to spare.

Quotes

“As a captain I try to be very lighthearted. The players need to make their own decisions, bring their own flair in the change-room. When they do that, that’s when they can perform at their best and not feel restricted to any sort of structure or anything.”

Martin Guptill will miss the remainder of the New Zealand season and the start of the IPL to undergo strengthening work on his hamstrings

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Mar-2017Martin 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.

Imran Tahir, who went unsold at the IPL auction in February, has said how special it was to pick three early wickets to set up Rising Pune Supergiant’s win against Mumbai Indians

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Apr-2017Listed No. 1 in the ICC rankings for bowlers in ODIs and T20Is, Imran Tahir was “sad” and “down” after going unsold at the IPL auction two months ago. But an injury to Mitchell Marsh opened a door for Tahir: he was signed as a replacement and shone with 3 for 28 in Rising Pune Supergiant’s seven-wicket win in their opening match against Mumbai Indians.After Mumbai raced to 41 for 0 in four overs with consecutive sixes from Jos Buttler, Steven Smith brought on Tahir, who bowled Parthiv Patel around his legs and then removed Rohit Sharma and Buttler within the space of three balls in his next over.”The way they were playing it looked like they were going to end up getting 200,” Tahir told after the match. “I always love challenges, and when I bowl I always look to get wickets. I was very fortunate to get Patel out and obviously, the next two wickets were very special. Those guys were really good against spin bowling and it was very special for me that I got them out and [I’m] really, really happy with the way the ball came out. I’ve been here for one week and I’m trying to do well because it’s a new team and they gave me a lot of confidence.”I always come on the ground with a smile on the face but inside I’m always ready to fight and try to give as much as I can. I love doing what I’m doing and I always look for a challenge.”Tahir expressed how disappointed he was when no franchise picked him at the auction in February, when he had a base price of INR 50 lakhs. He had been released by Delhi Daredevils after an unimpressive IPL last year, playing four matches for five wickets with an economy rate of 8.62.”I was obviously sad not to be part of this league [in the auction] but there’s nothing I can do about it,” Tahir said. “But really relieved and pleased with myself about playing the way I’ve been playing and just deliver it today.”I’m grateful to god and my family supported me, especially my wife. I was quite down when I didn’t get picked in the league. But our life carries on and I came here to prove myself again, that’s what my job is. I don’t blame no one for not picking me. My job, if someone picks me, is to come and perform, that’s what we do for a living.””I always come on the ground with a smile on the face but inside I’m always ready to fight”•BCCI

Supergiant played two legspinners – Tahir and Adam Zampa – in the absence of R Ashwin and left out Faf du Plessis from the XI. Zampa, their highest wicket-taker last season, did not impress as much as Tahir on Thursday, with 1 for 26 from three overs, but Ajinkya Rahane said the strategy of playing two attacking legspinners worked for them.”Both of them are attacking, both of them look to take wickets, and that’s very important in T20,” Rahane said. “Zampa did well for us last year, and Imran Tahir is a world-class bowler. It’s good to have them both in our side, and we, as a team, know they’re always looking to take wickets.”Rahane gave Supergiant’s chase of 185 impetus, scoring 60 off 34 that featured six fours and three sixes. He brought up his half-century off only 27 balls; Supergiant were 79 for 1 in the ninth over.”When you’re chasing 180-190, it’s important to continue the momentum after the first six overs,” Rahane said. “I knew I was batting really well, and striking the ball well. So, for me, it was really important to play with that same momentum. Smith was completely new [on the pitch] at that time. So, I just wanted to take my chances and play my normal shots. I mean, I didn’t take any risks. But it was important for both of us to keep rotating the strike and hit one boundary or six in an over.”When you are chasing 180 plus, it’s the openers’ job to consolidate the innings. For me and Mayank [Agarwal], our discussion was to play positive cricket. We did not set any target for the first six overs. We just wanted to play our attacking game, and later on just capitalise on that. Unfortunately, he got out, but I was batting well. And Smith was there, I told him I’ll take my chances, and he should just carry on and play a long innings.”

Royal Challengers Bangalore might have to start IPL 2017 without their captain Virat Kohli, as he battles against time to recover from a shoulder injury

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Mar-20171:00

Quick Facts – Virat Kohli in the IPL

Royal Challengers Bangalore might have to start IPL 2017 without their captain Virat Kohli, as he battles against time to recover from the shoulder injury he picked up during the Australia Tests. The IPL starts on April 5, with Royal Challengers playing defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad in the tournament opener.”It’s still a few weeks to go before I can be 100% on the field,” Kohli said at the end of the Dharamsala Test, when asked about his fitness. “But these things happen in your career. Got to take it in my strike and move forward.”Kohli had hurt his right shoulder during the third Test in Ranchi, when he dived in an attempt to stop a boundary. He sat out the final Test as a result.Royal Challengers were yet to offer an official comment on Kohli’s availability. Kohli has missed only one game for the franchise so far, in the inaugural season in 2008. In 2016, he scored 973 runs for RCB and could have become the first player to score 1000 runs in an IPL season.

Last year’s table toppers cannot afford too many mistakes, having played 10 matches for only six points

The Preview by Alagappan Muthu03-May-2017

Match facts

Delhi Daredevils v Gujarat Lions
Delhi, May 4, 2017
Start time 2000 local (1430 GMT)2:49

Bangar: Gujarat’s chance of making playoffs very slim

Form guide

Delhi Daredevils (sixth): beat Sunrisers by six wickets, lost to Kings XI by 10 wickets, lost to KKR by seven wickets.
Gujarat Lions (seventh): lost to Rising Pune by five wickets, lost to Mumbai in Super Over, beat Royal Challengers by seven wickets

Head-to-head

Overall: Delhi Daredevils and Gujarat Lions will play each other for the first time this season, and their head-to-head record stands at 1-1.

In the news

There are no further updates on Daredevils captain Zaheer Khan’s recovery from a hamstring injury. He is expected to be assessed once more on the day of the game. Daredevils have already lost Sam Billings, who has left to resume England duty. It is understood that their South African players – Chris Morris and Kagiso Rabada – will be available until May 7.With Jason Roy having left on international duty as well, Lions’ roster only has five fit overseas players – Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Smith, Aaron Finch, James Faulkner and Chirag Suri.

Qualification scenario

Both teams are languishing in the bottom half with six points, but the situation is slightly more dire for Lions, who need to win all their games to get to 14 points and have any chance of qualification. One loss will eliminate them, as four teams already have more than 12 points. Even with 14, Lions will need other results to go their way to qualify, but they will at least have a shot at finishing in the top four. Three of their remaining four games are against the relatively weaker teams, though: Daredevils, home and away, and Kings XI, away. Apart from that they also have a home game, in Kanpur, against Sunrisers.Daredevils are almost in the same situation as Lions, but they have an extra game in hand. They also have four home games to play, against Lions, Mumbai Indians, Pune, and Royal Challengers, plus an away match against Lions. If they win at least four of the five, they might still have a chance.

The likely XIs

Delhi Daredevils 1 Sanju Samson, 2 Karun Nair (capt), 3 Shreyas Iyer, 4 Rishabh Pant (wk), 5 Angelo Mathews, 6 Corey Anderson, 7 Chris Morris, 8 Jayant Yadav, 9 Kagiso Rabada/Pat Cummins, 10 Amit Mishra/Shahbaz Nadeem, 11 Mohammed ShamiGujarat Lions 1 Brendon McCullum, 2 Ishan Kishan, 3 Suresh Raina (capt), 4 Aaron Finch, 5 Dwayne Smith, 6 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 James Faulkner, 9 Pradeep Sangwan, 10 Basil Thampi, 11 Ankit Soni

Strategy punt

• Sanju Samson has a strike-rate of 153 against fast bowling this season. The gift of timing helps him exploit fielding restrictions, provided there is pace on the ball. Force him to play spin, however, and his strike-rate drops to 107; it dips further to 75 over 20 balls faced in the Powerplay. Those numbers might make Ankit Soni and Ravindra Jadeja tie up their laces quicker so they can demand the new ball.
• Daredevils have a way to stifle Lions’ top-order, too, with Chris Morris. He has dismissed Suresh Raina three times in 17 balls, giving away only 12 runs, and has also knocked over Brendon McCullum twice in 13 deliveries, at the cost of 17 runs.

Stats that matter

• If Daredevils are truly perturbed by Samson’s ups-and-downs, they can try opening with Shreyas Iyer. In 30 T20 innings at the top, he averages 30.78 and strikes at 132. In 17 innings at all other positions, he averages 16.40.
• There is, however, a reason to persist with Iyer in the middle order. In the IPL, he averages 51 against spinners, and hits them at 136 per 100 balls. Against pace, the corresponding figures come down to 22 and 122.
• Daredevils have had four different combinations at the top this season, which puts them on an even footing with Kings XI Punjab and Gujarat Lions, and behind only Royal Challengers Bangalore. Those are the teams that make up the bottom four in the points table. Daredevils’ biggest opening stand amounted to 53 runs – the lowest among all teams this year – and their average scoring rate of 7.81 is the second worst.
• Speaking of openers, Dwayne Smith has had a torrid time in T20s over the last one year. He averages 23, strikes at 122, and has bagged seven ducks, a tally no one has surpassed.
• Moving on to closers, Lions’ Basil Thampi has made an excellent impression in his debut season. Among uncapped players in their debut season, he has bowled more deliveries (78) in the last five overs than anyone else.
• Daredevils have their own back-end specialist. Morris is one of nine men to have bowled at least 10 overs in the death in IPL 2017. His economy rate of 7.76 ranks third in that list after Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Andrew Tye.

Sri Lanka have had a difficult time in ODIs of late, and go into this tournament as clear underdogs. But, with this liberating sense of freedom, will they surprise the world?

Andrew Fidel Fernando29-May-20170:58

The wristspinning trump card?

Overview

The high-intensity training camp has been attended, a foreign bowling coach hired, blessings have been sought, declarations of confidence made, and the press has been conferenced, but will any of that help Sri Lanka leave an impact on the Champions Trophy?

Squad

Angelo Mathews (capt), Upul Tharanga, Dinesh Chandimal, Niroshan Dickwella (wk), Nuwan Pradeep, Asela Gunaratne, Chamara Kapugedera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Suranga Lakmal, Lasith Malinga, Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera, Thisara Perera, Seekkuge Prasanna, Lakshan Sandakan

Their reality is stark. Sri Lanka’s first game of the tournament is against South Africa, who whitewashed them 5-0 earlier in the year. Their second match is against India, who have beaten them 12 times in their last 15 meetings. Even Pakistan – Sri Lanka’s third opponent – whose own ODI form has been modest, defeated Sri Lanka at home in the most-recent bilateral series between them. Never in this century, perhaps, has a Sri Lanka side approached a global tournament with expectations so low.Yet, along with the low expectations, comes a sense of freedom, Sri Lanka say. There is the hope someone in their top order will take the tournament by the collar – perhaps Kusal Mendis, who has already made his mark in the Test format, or Niroshan Dickwella, whose heroics so far, have been in T20s. There is the belief someone like Lakshan Sandakan, the left-arm wristspinner, can make his presence felt during the opposition’s middle overs.Most of all, Sri Lanka are desperate for a roaring return to ODIs for their longtime match-winner, Lasith Malinga. Though he hasn’t played an ODI since 2015, largely due to injury, Malinga’s form did appear to improve through the recent IPL. Earlier in the year, Malinga’s return to T20s also showcased just how much his experience can lift the attack – not only is he an expert end-overs operator, even the other bowlers appear to lift their performance when Malinga takes the tough roles off their hands.But even with Malinga, it is as yet unclear whether he will be fit enough to deliver 10 overs at full intensity. Where other teams have form, runs and wickets behind them, Sri Lanka have only hope.

Champions Trophy history

1998 – Semi-finalists
2000 – Knocked out at first stage
2002 – Joint-champions
2004 – Knocked out at group stage
2006 – Knocked out at group stage
2009 – Knocked out at group stage
2013 – Semi-finalists

Form guide

This does not make for pretty reading. Sri Lanka drew a home series 1-1 against Bangladesh this year, but had been pulverized in South Africa, and have been regularly walloped by New Zealand over the past few years. Sri Lanka have not beaten a Champions Trophy side in a bilateral series since late 2014, when they defeated England in a seven-match series at home.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Strengths

The least of Sri Lanka’s weaknesses appears to be their top order. Their likely top six will feature Upul Tharanga, who provides experience, and has prospered in this tournament before. Also on show are Dinesh Chandimal and Angelo Mathews – senior men with a history of consistent output, even if the latter is coming back to the side following a long layoff.But perhaps the most-watched players will be Mendis and Dickwella, both of whom are blinding talents, but for whom the most significant hurdle will be the moving ball. Though Mendis had been the player of the tournament in last year’s ODI tri-series in Zimbabwe, and has more recently hit a maiden ODI ton at home, he had made a string of modest scores during Sri Lanka’s tour of South Africa, where the ball behaved roughly the same way it is expected to in England. Dickwella’s game, meanwhile, remains a little raw, and perhaps he is over-reliant on the areas behind square for his runs. If both these batsmen can find form however, Sri Lanka’s totals are likely to be healthy.

Weaknesses

There is plenty to choose from here, but it is difficult to look past Sri Lanka’s fielding, which in addition to having cost the team plenty of matches, has also been one of the world’s great recent sources of slapstick comedy. Over the past few years Sri Lankan fielders have routinely dived over the ball, kicked it to the boundary, fist-bumped it, chest-bumped it, groin-bumped it and occasionally used it as a blunt object to hurt themselves with. The quality of Sri Lanka’s fielding has also often been inversely proportional to the temperature, so if London or Cardiff sees an especially cold day, spectators could be in for a few laughs.

Key stats

• Over the past three years, Sri Lanka have lost twice as many matches (36) as they have won (18) against Champions Trophy oppositions
• Sri Lanka have also conceded an average of 57.9 runs in the last 10 overs of an opposition innings – the worst for any side participating in this Champions Trophy
• Upul Tharanga has 14 ODI centuries. The remaining batsmen in Sri Lanka’s squad have 10 combined
• Lasith Malinga last played an ODI on November 7, 2015

South Africa are ‘optimistic’ Vernon Philander will be able to bowl on the fourth day of the ongoing Test against England

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jul-2017South Africa are “optimistic” Vernon Philander will be able to bowl on the fourth day of the ongoing Test against England after an x-ray revealed bruising but no fracture to his right hand.Philander was hit by James Anderson while batting and received treatment on-field before going on to score 52. He did not take the field for the first 38 overs of the England innings but returned for the final 13, although he did not bowl. Barring anything “out of the ordinary” normal service should resume on Sunday.Philander sustained the injury off the 12th ball he faced, when he had not yet scored a run. A short ball from Anderson reared up and struck him on the glove but did not prevent him from playing some of the better shots in the South African innings. Although Philander routinely wrung out his hand after several shots, he did not appear to be in any significant discomfort and found the boundary seven times, including with a bottom-handed hoick over midwicket.When South Africa’s innings concluded, Philander was taken to the hospital and could not join his team-mates on the field. He returned to the change-room and received icing before making an appearance in the final hour. Even though Philander would have been able to bowl immediately – because his injury is external and so does not require him to spend the same amount of time on the field as he was off it – he did not bowl on Saturday afternoon and fielded with his left hand. Overnight rest should see him ready to bowl on Sunday morning.The diagnosis is a relief for South Africa, who feared being robbed of a third first-choice player. They are without Faf du Plessis for this Test after he remained at home following the birth of his first child and will be without Kagiso Rabada for the second Test after he was suspended for a code of conduct violation.

Andre Fletcher and Marlon Samuels blitzed fifties to lead St. Lucia Stars to 173, but couldn’t prevent Jamaica Tallawahs from completing the fourth-highest successful chase in CPL history

The Report by Nikhil Kalro16-Aug-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAndre Fletcher struck seven fours and four sixes in his unbeaten 84•Ashley Allen – CPL T20 / Getty

For the first 37 overs of the game, St Lucia Stars were ahead and cruising. Then came that one over everyone talks about in this format. With the Tallawahs requiring 40 off three overs in their chase of 174, Mitchell McClenaghan conceded 20 runs, and the Stars’ hopes of their first win of the tournament faded into their sixth successive loss. It was also the fourth-highest successful chase in tournament history.Andre McCarthy recovered quickly from a run-out that led to Rovman Powell leaving the field like he was ready for a locker showdown, and struck a match-winning unbeaten 61 off 37 balls to lead the Tallawahs to a five-wicket win with two balls to spare. It wouldn’t be much solace for the Stars, but they put on a much-improved performance with the bat. Andre Fletcher and Marlon Samuels blitzed fifties to lead them to 173, their highest score of the tournament.Pace off the ballThe Darren Sammy National Stadium was hit by passing showers just before the start. On a slow surface, that moisture may have just done enough to negate the penetration of seam-up deliveries – a burst of rain will only quicken a pitch up slightly, not change its nature. That should have been an indication for the Tallawahs’ bowlers to take pace off the ball.It took a few heaves and punches for the bowlers to switch to offcutters. It worked right away, an offcutter from Mohammad Sami took the inside edge of Johnson Charles and uprooted leg stump. The mode of operation didn’t change much thereafter.The unmatched utility of boundaries in T20sFletcher isn’t known for his ability to find gaps for singles. He is, however, an efficient boundary-hitter. The value of boundaries in T20s is high, but the utility of boundaries without consuming too many dot balls is significantly higher. In his 53-ball innings, he struck 24 singles and played 13 dots, effectively 24 runs off 37 balls.He also hammered 11 boundaries, seven fours and a six, almost as many as the number of dot balls he faced. That meant he finished with 84 off 53 balls with a strike-rate of 158.49. A T20 masterclass beckoned if he could convert a few more of those dots into singles.Keep calm and bat onWhen McCarthy stabbed a ball towards extra cover, called for two and didn’t respond, the Tallawahs were reeling. They needed 81 runs off 46 balls with six wickets in hand, and Powell was fuming all the way off the field. For McCarthy, that could have been a scarring emotional blow.Instead, he bided his time, found the boundary when he had to and delivered under duress. Imad Wasim also brought his experience and ability to a 45-run sixth-wicket stand that carried Tallawahs home. A few moments later, Powell was leaping onto McCarthy in joy.

Two years into the job, Steven Smith is already thinking of the 2021 Test tour of India, which he craves to lead in and win

Adam Collins in Mirpur26-Aug-20171:04

Gambhir: Australia will start favourites in Bangladesh

Occasionally, selection is just as much a pointer to the coming months and years as it is for the five days ahead. That is the case with Steven Smith’s side for the first Test in Mirpur. They will be making two changes to the XI that lost their previous Test, in Dharamsala against India in March.Ashton Agar returns after four years away, while Usman Khawaja is principally back to get into the Test groove again before the Ashes opener in November. Smith’s explanation of Steve O’Keefe’s omission from the squad, in favour of Agar, is instructive of his longer-term leadership goals. Namely, that he plans to be around for a long time.Since Allan Border, no Australian leader has spent more than Ricky Ponting’s seven years in the job, the rest staying for somewhere short of five. With two candles nearly on the cake for Smith, he is already thinking four years ahead to the next time Australia is due for a Test series in India, one he craves to lead in and win.While O’Keefe’s numerical return at Test and first-class level is top class, at 32 he is nine years Agar’s senior. The younger man has far from bashed the door down on conventional measures, claiming his first-class wickets at more than 40 apiece. Despite his two Ashes Tests in 2013 (for just two wickets) he remains, to a certain extent, a project player. But that project aligns neatly with Smith’s own: the aforementioned Indian return bout in 2021.”He’s come a long way,” Smith said of Agar’s inclusion. “For us it’s more looking to the future. Ashton has obviously been on the radar for a long time and someone we see as having a pretty bright future. Four years’ time back in India it’s something I want to achieve while I’m captain. I want to win in India, that’s big on my bucket list.”Similar logic applies to Khawaja. Aside from a dismal run in Sri Lanka last year where he lost his subcontinental spot, he has a body of work to dream of since returning to the side two Australian summers ago. But Smith made a more basic point about why Khawaja has nudged ahead of Shaun Marsh in the pecking order.”Usman obviously hasn’t played any cricket since the Sydney Test match, that was his last game and that was a long time ago,” he said. “We need to get him back into the fold and get him playing cricket again.” Before the home Ashes, Smith means, where the stylish left-hand batsman remains a lock.The series presents an opportunity for both Glenn Maxwell and Usman Khawaja•AFP

It isn’t just the fortunes of Khawaja that have changed since that Sri Lankan shocker. Whitewashed three-zip after going in favourites, expectations for India were measured, to say the least. But there, they stopped the rot and put on a better than commendable show, not least by breaking a nine-game losing snap in the region. It governs a far healthier mindset.”Something I learned a lot about in India as a captain in particular was knowing the different tempos of the game and when to attack a little bit more,” Smith said. “It’s been a good learning experience for me. I think the key to winning overseas is to ensure that you’re adapting consistently and putting those performances on the board consistently.”This confidence translates to relying on four bowlers alone to capture 20 wickets. Smith has been reluctant to use Glenn Maxwell’s spin since his return to the Test side in Ranchi, and seldom bowls himself now despite earning his national debut as a bowler first.”I know I copped a little bit of criticism for not using him [Maxwell] as much in the India series but again, you’ve got two quality spinners and they’re there to do a job,” Smith said. “In an ideal world, someone in the top six could bowl some good medium pace or good pace, it’d be ideal, but at the moment we’ve got to go with what we’ve got.”The tacit message to Maxwell came in response to the next question put to Smith, about England’s allrounder penchant. May it necessitate a seaming allrounder for Brisbane in November? “Yeah it could,” the Australian captain said. “They’ve got a very deep line-up.”With Smith also detailing a scenario where five specialist bowlers could be included for that series opener – a fit fab four of Australian quicks (Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and James Pattinson) alongside Nathan Lyon – it’s doubly important for Maxwell to use these Tests to make himself indispensable at six. “He does have an opportunity,” Smith continued. “He played pretty well in India, a lot better than other guys in that last Test. He certainly has the opportunity to nail down that spot, that’s for sure.”For all the inevitable Ashes chat, Smith was quick to clarify that Bangladesh won’t be underestimated, given they bossed over England inside three days the last time they played a Test here. Bangladesh also beat Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka to level a three-Test series in March. “We’re going to have to be at our best here,” he said.A slightly dry surface has been chosen in Mirpur among the two shortlisted, but Smith was reluctant to enter the encounter worrying too much about that. “There’s a ‘no whingeing’ policy about anything here in the subcontinent, wickets certainly fall under that,” he said. “They’ve put some grass clippings down to make it look a bit greener than what it is but it’s pretty dry underneath. I dare say it’ll be pretty slow.”Off-field, it is the first time an Australian team of any variety has played since the conclusion of the bitter pay war earlier this month, finally striking an agreement that made this tour possible. As a consequence, Smith acknowledged the importance of now rebuilding the brand of the game and national team after a torrent of bad blood was shed between players and administrators.”The pay dispute went on longer than we all would have liked but thankfully it’s all dealt with now,” he said. “We can move on with playing and trying to win back a few fans that we perhaps may have lost along the way. I think we’ll do that by playing good, hard fought cricket and winning games of cricket.”Bangladesh is good a place to start as any. Smith’s predecessor Michael Clarke put a premium on winning away and had middling success in doing so. For Smith, he managed it at the first time of asking in New Zealand, but came away without a trophy in the next two attempts. So drawing from the qualified-success of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, there is no better time or place to square the ledger and begin charting the course to his long-term Indian summit.

Harry Podmore’s previous highest score was 21 but his unbeaten 66 left Sussex needing a miracle to keep their promotion chances alive

ECB Reporters Network14-Sep-2017Derbyshire put themselves in a position to claim only their second win of the season in the Specsavers County Championship after an attritional third day against Sussex at Hove.They closed on 322 for 8, a lead of 389 against a Sussex side who will be obliged to chase any target on the final day for a victory to keep their slim promotion hopes alive.It has been a collective effort by the Derbyshire batsmen with nine players scoring between 38 and 66 in the match. They included Middlesex loanee Harry Podmore, whose previous highest score was 21 but who was unbeaten on 66 at stumps from 117 balls. He hit five fours and a six off George Garton in the final over.Derbyshire’s run rate never got much above four an over throughout the day but, having resumed with a lead of 108 and nine wickets in hand, they did not need to take risks.Sussex kept at it but with their spearhead Jofra Archer showing the effects of a long season and struggling for full pace and a slow pitch blunting the efforts of the rest of their seam attack the hosts had to work hard for their wickets.The big positive for Sussex was Derby-born Stuart Whittingham, who claimed his maiden five-wicket haul in only his third Championship appearance of the season. Whittingham bowled with real venom at times and the yorker which speared into Ben Slater’s stumps after the opener had made 45 would have been too good for most batsmen.After lunch Whittingham, who took eight wickets in two games against Derbyshire last season, persuaded Matt Critchley, who played the most fluent strokes of the day in his 51, to pull into the hands of deep mid-wicket when the bowler dropped short before taking two wickets with the second new ball.Harvey Hosein demonstrated plenty of resolve but shortly after reaching a 111-ball half-century – one of five in the match by Derbyshire batsmen – with four boundaries before he sliced a full-length ball to backward point.Hardus Viljoen was yorked by Whittingham, who had Will Davis caught at mid-wicket for 25 in the penultimate over. But the ease with which Podmore batted suggests that Sussex’s batsmen could be in business on the final day.With the pitch offering little assistance and no spinner in their attack to offer any variety, it was hard work for the home attack, Whittingham apart.
Ollie Robinson was rewarded for a good opening spell when Wayne Madsen shuffled in front for 31 while a toe-crushing yorker from Garton was too good for Alex Hughes in the second over after lunch.