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Harbhajan backs neutral venues for Ranji knockouts

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With three out of the four quarter-finals ending in high-scoring draws, Harbhajan Singh has backed the idea of playing knockout games on neutral venues in the Ranji Trophy

Amol Karhadkar in Jamshedpur10-Jan-2013391 overs. 1133 runs. 13 wickets. The summary of the Ranji Trophy quarter-final
between Jharkhand and Punjab is more than enough to indicate what kind of wicket was
offered for a knock-out game of the premier domestic championship at the Keenan
Stadium in Jamshedpur.And it’s not just about Jamshedpur. The numbers in Rajkot and Mumbai – two of the
other three quarter-final venues – are also similar, if not worse, in terms of
competition between the bat and the ball. This, in a season when the BCCI has issued
a diktat to all the state associations for producing ‘sporting’ tracks.The only quarter-final that saw a result was, not surprisingly, played at a neutral
venue. With England based at the Palam ground in Delhi, Services hosted favourites
Uttar Pradesh at the Holkar Stadium in Indore in what turned out to be a fascinating
contest with David eventually overcoming Goliath.If the four quarter-finals were an indication, isn’t it high time the BCCI returns
to the policy they adopted during the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons? That of playing
all knockout games at neutral venues, thereby negating any home advantage and
reducing the possibility of a flat-bed. Punjab skipper Harbhajan Singh supported the
neutral venue theory despite ending up on the better side.”Yes. Why not? We’re playing the premier domestic competition where all the teams
have got an advantage of playing at home in the league stages. When it comes to
knockout stages, why not have Punjab playing in Mumbai and Mumbai playing in Gujarat
and Haryana,” Harbhajan said, after Punjab progressed to the semi-final on the basis
of the first innings lead against Jharkhand. “It will also be good for the game.
Imagine someone like Sachin Tendulkar going and playing in Haryana or in Delhi,
people will come to watch and it will be a big thing for the game, so why not!”The game in Jamshedpur turned out to be a torrid experience for the bowlers. The
wicket – which neither offered movement or bounce for seamers nor turn for spinners
– surprised Shahbaz Nadeem, the Jharkhand captain. “The two home games we played
here, the wicket was so much better. The ball was coming off the deck much quicker
and the spinners came into the game on the third and the fourth day. Such kind of a
wicket came as a real surprise. It negated all sorts of home advantage we had.”With literally no help from the strip, the bowlers had nothing else to do but “hope”
as Harbhajan said. But he expressed his displeasure with some of the umpiring
decisions that went against him”A few decisions didn’t go my way and for that I have been fined. Otherwise, I could have had three-four wickets in my account,” he said. “I hope that the umpiring standards improve. At least those who are out should be given out. On these kind of wickets, you’re going to get a batsman out only once. And if you’re not given the wickets you’ve earned, then perhaps you have to toil for another 20-odd overs.”If Keenan was bad, Khanderi could be worse for Punjab as they prepare for their
semi-final against Saurashtra. With Rajkot renowned for flat pitches, Punjab could
be in for yet another tough week ahead.”It (the Rajkot pitch) would be more or less similar to this,” Harbhajan said.
“Let’s hope we get a result-oriented wicket. Whether it’s a seaming track or a
spinning track, it should produce a result. That too on the fifth day, not the
sixth. Sixth day will be like… I don’t know. I have never seen it, I have never
played it. If there is no result in six days, then what’s the point. The best thing
is to get a result in five days. It would be better to produce a wicket that
produces a result in five days rather than extending the match by another day.”Over to Rajkot!

Flower named coach of the year

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England team director Andy Flower was named UK Coach of the Year at the 2011 UK coaching awards.

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Nov-2011England team director Andy Flower has been named UK Coach of the Year at the 2011 UK coaching awards.Flower, 37, was also named UK High Performance Coach of the Year in recognition of his role in helping England to a first series win in Australia for 23 years and becoming the No. 1 Test side in the world.Having taken over from Peter Moores in January 2009 – initially on an interim basis after Moores and Kevin Pietersen, the then captain, lost their jobs on the same day – Flower has also guided England to become World Twenty20 champions and the ECB chief executive, David Collier, lauded his contribution.”Andy has been an outstanding coach to the England cricket team and I am delighted that his dedication, knowledge and all-round leadership skills have been recognised within the wider sporting world,” said Collier.”The last twelve months have been momentous ones for England and this is in no small part due to Andy’s personal drive and determination to bring the best out of his players and ensure that our preparation and performance are second to none.”A special lifetime achievement award was also presented in honour of the former England fast bowler Graham Dilley, who died in October. The presentation was made to Dilley’s son, Chris Pennell, in recognition of Dilley’s work as a bowling coach with Surrey, Scotland and England, and most recently as head coach of Loughborough University.”Graham made a very significant contribution to our game as a coach,” said Hugh Morris, the managing director of England cricket. “This award is a fitting tribute to the role he played in enabling so many players to realise their full potential at both domestic and international level.”

Unsettled West Indies face tough task

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ESPNcricinfo previews the first Test between Sri Lanka and West Indies in Galle

The Preview by Siddarth Ravindran14-Nov-2010

Match Facts

Monday, November 15

Start time 10.00 (04.30 GMT)
Does Dwayne Bravo still have the appetite for Test cricket?•AFP

The Big Picture

Two teams in a transitional phase come face-to-face in Galle on Monday. West Indies are led by Darren Sammy, a man who till last month wasn’t even sure of his place in the Test side. Two of their senior batsmen – Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo – have turned down central contracts in favour of keeping their options open for the lucre that comes with being Twenty20 freelancers. Another senior batsman, Ramnaresh Sarwan, wasn’t even offered a contract, which caused more controversy, and is not part of the squad. In addition, they are without their two best fast bowlers – Jerome Taylor and Fidel Edwards – both of whom have long-term injuries.

Sri Lanka, meanwhile, have to come to terms with losing their greatest match-winner, Muttiah Muralitharan. No more can their captain toss the ball to Murali and expect the wickets to tumble. They are also pondering how best to use their limited-overs spearhead, Lasith Malinga, whose injury-prone body they are unwilling to subject to the rigours of Test cricket ahead of the World Cup. It leaves Kumar Sangakkara and the team management with the challenge of grooming a bowling combination that can regularly take 20 wickets in a Test.
The other similarity between the two teams is that neither of them have played much Test cricket in 2010, having had to make do with one three-Test home series each so far this year.Sri Lanka will start the series as clear favourites. Their No. 3 ranking puts them four spots above the West Indies, and they have a decent home record to be proud of – losing only one series in more than six years. West Indies, in contrast, haven’t won a series away from home – except against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe – since early 1995. They have a dreadful record in Sri Lanka as well, losing all five Tests in their previous two series and drawing the lone match on their first visit back in 1993.

Form guide

(most recent first)
Sri Lanka: LDWLL
West Indies: LDLLD

Watch out for…

Adrian Barath announced himself with a sparkling century on Test debut late last year, but injuries have hampered his progress since. He has played only one first-class match in 2010, and hasn’t been in the best of form in the domestic season. This series, though, will provide another chance to see how his potentially exciting opening partnership with Gayle develops.Thilan Samaraweera is unsure whether he’ll find a place in the one-day outfit, but he is a dead-cert when it comes to Tests. Whether he’s good enough to boast of a 50-plus average has been debated for long but Sri Lanka won’t care as long as he keeps performing like he did in his previous Test – making a century in the first innings, and 83 in the second to lift his side from the depths of 87 for 7.

Teams

Sri Lanka’s batting is pretty settled, with Nos 1 to 7 being guaranteed starters. The bowling isn’t though, in the absence of Malinga and Murali. Suraj Randiv has been picked out by Sangakkara as Sri Lanka’s main spinner, so he’s likely to play but it remains to be seen who will partner him. The fast bowlers will have an additional responsibilty as Angelo Mathews won’t be bowling his medium-pacers due to a thigh strain.Sri Lanka (probable) 1 Tharanga Paranavitana, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (capt), 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Angelo Mathews, 6 Thilan Samaraweera, 7 Prasanna Jayawardene (wk), 8 Suraj Randiv, 9 Rangana Herath, 10 Dilhara Fernando, 11 Chanaka Welegedera
West Indies are also missing key fast bowlers which leaves the young Kemar Roach as their pace spearhead. The pitch is expected to assist spinners, but will West Indies pick both Sulieman Benn and Shane Shillingford, or go with one spinner and expect Gayle to send down a few overs?West Indies (probable) 1 Adrian Barath, 2 Chris Gayle, 3 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 4 Brendan Nash, 5 Dwayne Bravo, 6 Darren Bravo, 7 Darren Sammy (capt), 8 Carlton Baugh (wk), 9 Kemar Roach, 10 Nelon Pascal, 11 Sulieman Benn

Quotes

“Randiv has become the main spinner in the squad, while Herath is an experienced bowler who has done a great job for us. We expect Mendis to come back very strongly.”

“You saw Sri Lanka just won in Australia where they had never won (a one-day series). It’s an opportunity for the guys to use this as a motivation and go out there and be competitive and consistent.”

Tim Paine to captain Tasmania for Twenty20

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Tim Paine will lead Tasmania for the first time after the captain George Bailey was ruled out of Friday’s Twenty20 game against Queensland with an elbow problem

Cricinfo staff06-Jan-2010Tim Paine will lead Tasmania for the first time after the captain George Bailey was ruled out of Friday’s Twenty20 game against Queensland with an elbow problem. Bailey has an infection in his elbow caused by an abrasion and has been left out, with Michael Dighton and the uncapped batsman John Rogers added to a 13-man squad.Queensland have included the batsman Chris Lynn, 19, in their 13-man group following a strong year in which he was a prolific scorer in the national youth titles and the Futures League Twenty20 tournament. Lynn has replaced Alister McDermott, who is unavailable for the rest of the Big Bash having been named in Australia’s Under-19 World Cup squad.Queensland have lost both their matches so far in the tournament and need a win to lift themselves off the bottom of the table. Tasmania have won one match and lost one.Queensland squad James Hopes, Ben Dunk (wk), Lee Carseldine, Andrew Symonds, Glen Batticciotto, Chris Lynn, Craig Philipson, Nathan Reardon, Chris Simpson (capt), Ryan Harris, Ben Cutting, Ben Laughlin, Nathan Rimmington.Tasmania squad Tim Paine (capt, wk), Michael Dighton, Rhett Lockyear, Travis Birt, Alex Doolan, John Rogers, Naved-ul-Hasan, Brett Geeves, James Faulkner, Jason Krejza, Xavier Doherty, Brendan Drew, Gerard Denton.

Bangladesh drop Shanto, make five changes for SL T20Is

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Naim has been recalled while seamers Taskin and Mustafizur have returned to the squad, having recovered from injury

Mohammad Isam04-Jul-2025Bangladesh selectors have dropped Najmul Hossain Shanto in one of the five changes to T20I squad for three-match series against Sri Lanka later this month. Shanto was part of the squad for their previous T20I series against UAE and Pakistan in May, but featured in only one of the six matches.Shanto had an underwhelming 2024, where he averaged 18.84 in 21 T20Is, with just a single half-century. In contrast, he fared better in 2023, scoring 218 runs in ten innings at 31.14 average, and a higher strike rate of 119.78. Having stepped down from the T20I captaincy in January this year, he now finds himself out of the squad entirely.Left-handed opener Mohammad Naim has been recalled in Shanto’s place, among four other changes in the bowling unit. Naim, who has played 35 T20Is, has returned back to form during the 2024-25 domestic season. He was the highest run-getter in both the BPL and NCL T20s, finishing on 827 runs at an average of 37.59 average and a strike rate of 140.40, including a century and six fifties.Pace duo Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman have also returned to the squad, having recovered from injury and featured in the first ODI against Sri Lanka on Wednesday. Mohammad Saifuddin has earned a recall as well, marking his return after more than a year.The 28-year-old fast bowler was overlooked for last year’s T20 World Cup after a disappointing performance in the T20I series against Zimbabwe in May. He subsequently took a two-month break from cricket in August. Since returning, Saifuddin has picked up 37 wickets across the BPL and DPL– Bangladesh’s premier white-ball competitions.Shoriful Islam, who suffered a groin niggle during the second T20I against Pakistan in May, has been retained in the squad. In the spin department, there’s another shuffle, with Nasum Ahmed replacing Tanvir Islam. The ongoing switch between left-arm spinners suggests the selectors are still undecided on their preferred option for the white-ball formats.Bangladesh will play the three T20Is on July 10 in Pallekele, July 13 in Dambulla and July 16 in Colombo.Bangladesh squad: Litton Das (capt, wk), Tanzid Hasan, Parvez Hossain Emon, Mohammad Naim, Towhid Hridoy, Jaker Ali, Shamim Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Rishad Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Mohammad Saifuddin.In: Mohammad Naim, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Mohammad SaifuddinOut: Khaled Ahmed, Tanvir Islam, Hasan Mahmud, Soumya Sarkar, Najmul Hossain Shanto

One last chance for Smith and Labuschagne to turn around their lean 2023

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Both have not had the impact their high standards demand, and now find themselves at the MCG – a ground that comes with its own challenges for the pair. But could you really bet against them?

Andrew McGlashan22-Dec-20230:31

Could David Warner reverse retirement plans?

Steven Smith had a few words to say about his second-innings lbw as he walked off at Optus Stadium, while the evening before Marnus Labuschagne had needed a trip to hospital to get his hand checked after a vicious blow on an increasingly spiteful surface.Neither moment proved significant for Australia; they won by 360 runs and Labuschagne hadn’t suffered any damage to his hand, although he admitted being “nervous” for a little while. But on an individual basis for two of Australia’s finest-ever players it continued what can probably be described as a frustrating 2023 where neither have quite been able to hit their previous prolific heights.Related

  • Back at MCG, Carey will look to end year of up-and-down fortunes on a high

  • 'I was a bit nervous' – Labuschagne comes through bruising Perth battle

  • Usman Khawaja to contest ICC armband charge, says it was for a bereavement

  • Smith gets back to the grind in search for his best form

  • Pakistan are down, but Shakeel keeps faith in Boxing Day dream

It’s worth saying that it’s far from a crisis. Smith is averaging 42.65 for the year with three centuries and Labuschagne’s figure is 35.04 with what proved a match-saving hundred at Old Trafford. Still, it’s well below what we have become accustomed to. It is comfortably Labuschagne’s leanest year since he cracked Test cricket in 2019, and in a year where Smith has played at least five Tests it’s his lowest average since 2013.Overall, Australia’s Test batting returns for the year are set to only finish around mid-table among their rivals. Leading into the Boxing Day Test, their overall batting average is 33.77 albeit they have played significantly more matches than anyone else. Conditions in India played a part in that, although only the Indore surface was really a lottery for batters.

Usman Khawaja has led the way followed by Travis Head, who has made crucial contributions when they have really mattered, which is as important as the sheer volume of his runs. Mitchell Marsh is the surprise entrant among Australia’s leading batters this year, taking a 2023 average of 67.16 into Boxing Day.Smith admitted before the Perth Test that he hadn’t quite been at his best. For much of the time he was in the middle he looked sharp but was given a bit of a working over debutant Khurram Shahzad before fishing at a reasonably wide delivery in the first innings then getting the borderline lbw in the second. Unfortunately, Shahzad won’t have the chance to add to those successes with his tour ended by injury.Steven Smith and Marnus Labuschagne: the search for big runs continues•AFP

Prior to that, two of Smith’s three centuries – against India at The Oval and England at Lord’s – had set up victories that won the World Test Championship final and gave Australia a 2-0 Ashes lead which ultimately proved crucial. In England he also made a rare admission that the fuss around his 100th Test at Headingley had affected his focus and was then hampered by a wrist injury at the back end of the tour (although still managed twin fifties in the last Test).It is Labuschagne who is the more interesting case having had the trickiest year of his Test career to date, albeit he had set very high standards. He was not alone in being troubled by Ravindra Jadeja in India, although managed to reach double figures in all but one of his eight innings. He was then done by Stuart Broad’s outswinger (which Broad was happy to say was designed especially for him) in the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston. There was also the uncharacteristic slog sweep at a crucial moment of the Headingley Test when Australia were a probably a couple of hours away from setting up a 3-0 lead.

As the best players do, he found a way to still make a telling contribution at Old Trafford – without his scores of 51 and 110 the rain may not have been enough for Australia – but at The Oval he was extraordinarily becalmed in the first innings to get to 9 off 81 balls in nearly two hours before edging to slip against Mark Wood the ball after Broad switched the bails.Through the year, Labuschagne has only failed to reach double figures – what can loosely be termed “a start” – in four of his 23 innings. For someone with such an insatiable hunger for runs, and a love of batting, you would suspect that will add to the angst as much as anything.When asked if his net session against reserve quicks Lance Morris and Scott Boland on the fourth morning in Perth was to test out his hand, he replied: “It was to bat…something I didn’t do enough of in this game.” You pity Australia’s coaches with the wanger in the couple of days leading into Boxing Day.Labuschagne and Smith will be vital for Australia in the next year or so as a transition phase begins. As a sign of the mature make-up of the team, Labuschagne was the youngest member of the XI in Perth – one of only two players under 30, alongside Head who turns 30 during the second Test. David Warner will be the first to depart in two Tests’ time and the selectors will hope that Smith and Khawaja do not end too close together.Smith has an outstanding record at the MCG where he averages 84.75. He hasn’t scored a Boxing Day Test century since 2017 but has twice fallen close with 85. Labuschagne on the other hand averages 28.83 there, his lowest for a home venue with more than one Test.However, it is not insignificant that both Smith’s wait to add to his MCG hundreds and Labuschagne’s relative struggles at the ground have come since more life was injected back into the pitch following the moribund 2017-18 Ashes Test. The groundsman, Matt Page, has promised there will be assistance for the bowlers again this year. There could be some hard work ahead if they want to finish the year on a personal high, but few would be surprised if they find a way to do it.

CSA T20 League: Buttler, Miller, McCoy, Bosch sign up for Paarl Royals

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Buttler, McCoy and Bosch were also part of Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2022

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Aug-2022In a continuing sign of T20 franchise owners gravitating towards players they already know and trust, Paarl Royals snapped up the South African duo of David Miller and uncapped allrounder Corbin Bosch, England’s new white-ball captain Jos Buttler and West Indies fast bowler Obed McCoy. All four have worked for these owners before – in the IPL with Rajasthan Royals – and will continue to do so now in the upcoming CSA T20 LeagueAccording to tournament rules, a team can sign a maximum of one capped South African, three overseas players and an uncapped player ahead of the players auction. So far, the Durban franchise – owned by the same group that manages Lucknow Super Giants and comprising the same core of players who helped take LSG to the knockout stages of IPL 2022 – and MI Cape Town have announced their picks.Buttler bossed this year’s IPL for the Royals, scoring a whopping 863 runs, an average of 57.53 and a strike rate of 149.05. He hit four centuries and smashed 45 sixes and was also the leading run-getter of the competition.

Miller, who was part of the IPL title-winning Gujarat Titans, amassed a total of 449 runs at a strike rate of 141.19. He was eighth in the list of leading run-getters this season – and second behind captain Hardik Pandya for the Titans.McCoy, who represented Royals in the IPL this year, chipped in with 11 wickets from seven matches at an economy over nine. Early this month, he picked up his career-best figures of 6 for 17 for West Indies against India in the second T20I which the hosts won by five wickets.The uncapped South African Bosch joined the Rajasthan franchise this IPL as a replacement for injured fast bowler Nathan Coulter-Nile, but didn’t get to play a single match. The 27-year old, who plays for the Titans in domestic cricket, is a seam-bowling allrounder who bats in the lower-middle order. Having made his T20 debut in 2014, he has played only 30 games, scoring 151 runs at a strike rate of 120.80 and picking up 18 wickets at an economy of 8.16. He has also played 24 first-class games and 21 List A games.The CSA release on Wednesday also said the player auction would take place “in the next few weeks” before the league begins in January 2023. All six franchises have been bought by groups that own teams in the IPL and the league is likely to allow four overseas players in the playing XI with no requirements for transformation as of now.

Thirimanne fifty blunts West Indies after Brathwaite ton

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Suranga Lakmal took 4/94 but the captain’s century and the allrounder’s 73 kept the home team strong

Andrew Fidel Fernando30-Mar-2021Stumps Kraigg Brathwaite completed a ninth Test century in the first over of the day, before Rahkeem Cornwall and later Lahiru Thirimanne completed half-centuries during a meandering day of Test cricket that ended with neither team ascendant, again.West Indies’ eventual 354 was more than Sri Lanka would have liked to concede. But, at stumps, Sri Lanka had reached a reasonable 134 for 3. On a pitch that offered little assistance to the bowlers, they were still in the hunt to haul in the opposition’s lead.This was, however, a slow day of Test cricket. Only six wickets fell, and despite that, only 203 runs were scored across 86 overs – a scoring rate of 2.36. Only Cornwall batted with adventure, in the first hour of the day, with both West Indies’ and Sri Lanka’s remaining batsmen choosing to dig in on a slow track.The visitors had Dinesh Chandimal and Dhananjaya de Silva not out at the close. Chandimal was 34 off 80; de Silva 23 off 95. Slow.There had been some excitement in the earliest overs of the day, however, as Brathwaite moved from his overnight 99 into triple figures with a single to fine leg. Cornwall then completed a half-century, edging a ball behind point for four in the third over of the day.It was in the first hour of play that West Indies made the most ground, and it was Cornwall who did most of the damage: flicking, punching, driving and sometimes edging fortuitously as Sri Lanka grew visibly frustrated that the eighth wicket had taken them so long to get. The pair batted through the first hour and wound up producing a century stand, the first of the innings. Their partnership was worth 103 when Cornwall holed out to mid-on to give Suranga Lakmal his fourth wicket, ending with 73 off 92 balls.Lahiru Thirimanne scored his third successive half-century•RANDY BROOKS/AFP/Getty Images

Kemar Roach attempted to hang in and managed to stick around for 36 balls while Brathwaite continued to hold his end tight, progressing only gradually. Dushmantha Chameera put an end to the innings though, having Roach caught behind and getting Brathwaite to play on for 126 in successive overs. Still, West Indies had frustrated the visitors for an entire session, and grown their total by 67 runs.Sri Lanka’s response was sedate from the outset. Although Thirimanne began confidently, driving his second ball through mid-off for four, he quickly settled into a measured rhythm. That first boundary did set up something of a trend as Thirimanne collected four of his eventual six boundaries down the ground. But it was the less ambitious strokes that defined the innings – the blocks, the leaves and the singles square of the wicket. Not long after tea, he reached 50 with a run to point. It was his third consecutive half-century.Around him, though, the top order faltered. Dimuth Karunaratne fell cheaply again. He took a single off the first delivery he faced, remained scoreless for the next 15 balls, then fell attempting an expansive drive off the bowling of Alzarri Joseph. Karunaratne’s thick edge might have passed between the cordon and gully, but Nkrumah Bonner provided the best piece of catching in the series when he leapt hard to his right and clinched the ball one-handed as it threatened to zip rapidly by him.Oshada Fernando produced an uncharacteristically pained innings, making 18 off 71 as he survived several close lbw shouts before eventually succumbing to a Kyle Mayers delivery that jagged in off the seam. Not long after, Thirimanne fell inside-edging a Roach ball that hit his pad, then ricocheted on to the stumps.Chandimal and de Silva were meticulous in their defence as they took Sri Lanka through to the close. West Indies thought they had de Silva caught behind in the last over, but his bat had flashed right past the leg-side delivery from Cornwall bowling a negative line around the stumps, and the hosts lost a review. De Silva padded away the next delivery to end the day’s play.

'All three might play' – Kohli on the Rohit v Dhawan v Rahul selection

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“I’m not insecure about where I bat,” says Indian captain on moving down the order to accommodate all three openers

Vishal Dikshit in Mumbai13-Jan-20203:21

Happy to bat at number four – Kohli

KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan are both in form in the lead-up to India’s ODI series against Australia starting Tuesday, and India captain Virat Kohli revealed that playing both of them, along with Rohit Sharma, in the XI could be a possibility. Rahul and Dhawan opened together and made useful contributions in the recent T20Is against Sri Lanka, and with the return of Sharma, who was rested for the T20Is, it appeared that India would be forced to pick one out of Dhawan and Rahul. But India are now considering a new combination for the upcoming ODIs.

Kohli reiterates openness to d/n Test in Australia

India captain Virat Kohli has reiterated that India are “open” to playing a day-night Test in Australia when they tour for four Tests in 2020-21, after the T20 World Cup. India recently played their inaugural day-night Test, against Bangladesh in Kolkata, winning the game by an innings and 46 runs.
“We played the day-night Test here, we’re pretty happy with how it went and it’s become a very exciting feature of any Test series so we’re absolutely open to play a day-night Test,” Kohli said. “We’re ready enough for the challenge and whether it’s Gabba or Perth, doesn’t matter to us, we do have the skillsets as a team to compete against anyone in the world, anywhere, in any format of the game – whether it’s white ball, red ball or pink ball. We’re ready to play anything.”

“All guys in form is always a good thing for the team,” Kohli said in Mumbai, where the three-match series begins. “You don’t want a guy out of form for him not to start in the XI. You obviously want to have the best players available and then choose from what the combination should be for the team. We’ll figure out what combination we want to go in with, there’s a possibility all three might play.”Rahul has been in more prolific form of late, having scored three half-centuries and a century against West Indies in three T20Is and as many ODIs, before making 54 and 45 against Sri Lanka in the T20Is. Dhawan missed the games against West Indies with an injury and he slotted back straight in the XI against Sri Lanka in Sharma’s absence, finishing the series with an impressive 52 off 36 to stake his claim for the opening slot again.Playing Sharma, Dhawan and Rahul together would push Kohli to No. 4 and Shreyas Iyer to No. 5, but that would then create a problem for the lower order. India will be forced to pick one out of Rishabh Pant and Kedar Jadhav for No. 6 as dislodging Ravindra Jadeja from the No. 7 slot would reduce the bowling options to four. Kohli said he was “very happy” to move from his usual No. 3 spot to accommodate the in-form batsmen, but he did not say anything about the lower-order combination.Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul share a light moment•AFP

“Yeah, big possibility, very happy to [change my batting position],” Kohli said. “I’m not possessive about where I play and I’m not insecure about where I bat. Being the captain of the team, it’s my job to make sure that the next lot is also ready as well. A lot of the other people might not look at it that way but your job as the captain is not only to look after the team right now but also to prepare a team that you can leave behind when you eventually pass it on to someone else.”So I think these are times where you need to be aware, it’s very easy to get into a personal zone saying, ‘no, I need to get runs’. It’s not like that, it doesn’t work like that. The vision has to be always on the larger picture and figure out how you can make these guys more confident. If at all someone has to take responsibility, it should be me and give the other guys opportunities as well. I’m very open to it and I really want to see guys stepping up and taking responsibility. That’s part and parcel of being captain and it’s good to see players finding their game, realising their own potential when you’re captain. I think that’s probably the most satisfying thing you can feel as a captain.”In order to slot both Jadhav and Jadeja, India could consider leaving Pant out, hand the wicketkeeping gloves to Rahul and play Jadhav at No. 6 as the sixth bowling option. Batting coach Vikram Rathour had said on Sunday they had not considered that option then, but the management was open to giving it a thought.”Rohit is an obvious choice, of course. Shikhar and Rahul are playing well, Shikhar has done tremendously well in one-dayers, Rahul is in great form. There are still a couple of days to go, the management will sit down and make a choice. I don’t see an issue, one of them will have to sit out, so that’s okay,” Rathour had said.When asked if Rahul would keep, he had said: “We haven’t really started thinking on those lines yet. At this point I think Pant is the first wicketkeeping option. Rahul can keep, that’s a skill he has so it will depend if the team management feels at any stage we require that.”

Marcus Stoinis, Jason Behrendorff return to T20I squad as Australia rest Test players

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Mitchell Marsh, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon and Peter Siddle have all been rested in preparation for the Test series against India

Alex Malcolm08-Nov-2018

Australia T20I squad

Aaron Finch (capt), Alex Carey, Ashton Agar, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Chris Lynn, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, D’Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa

Australia have opted to leave out Mitchell Marsh, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon and Peter Siddle from the T20Is against South Africa and India in preparation for the upcoming Test series against India.Allrounder Marcus Stoinis and left-arm quick Jason Behrendorff have been added to a streamlined 13-man squad for the four matches in Gold Coast, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.Marsh and Lyon were both left out of the ODI squad in order to be rested ahead of a “busy summer schedule” and both have been left out again to continue to play Sheffield Shield cricket for their states.”We know coming off the back of the tour to the UAE, a huge summer at home, and the World Cup and Ashes just around the corner that we have to get the balance right between playing our best T20 team and preparing for the upcoming Test series,” Australia coach Justin Langer said.”While I know all four have a desire to be playing cricket for Australia in every format, with a really tough Test series against India coming up, we believe their best preparation is to go back and get some really good cricket under their belts in the Sheffield Shield.”Marsh played two T20Is in the UAE while Lyon played just one. Starc did not play any due to a hamstring niggle and Siddle stayed in the UAE as cover for Starc but also was not called upon.Stoinis returns to the T20I fold. He played in the triangular tournament in Zimbabwe mid-year but was left out of the UAE squad while he recovered from a minor injury.”Marcus missed our recent T20 matches in the UAE because he hadn’t resumed bowling, but now he’s back to full fitness he’ll add great depth to the squad,” Langer said. “Marcus is such a versatile player, he’s a powerful middle-order batsman and he provides us with another solid bowling option.”Behrendorff played two T20Is in India in October 2017 and took 4 for 21 in Guwahati before breaking down with stress fractures in his back in November 2017. The WA and Perth Scorchers quick returned in the JLT Cup and impressed in the Prime Minister’s XI match against South Africa in Canberra, taking 3 for 35.”It was exciting to see him bowl well in the JLT Cup and in the recent Prime Minister’s XI match, and it gave us more evidence of how devastating he can be with the new ball,” Langer said. “Tactically we believe it’s important to have a good left-arm swing bowler at our disposal for the four matches.”Behrendorff, Ben McDermott and Andrew Tye have all been included in the Cricket Australia XI team to play South Africa in a warm-up T20 in Brisbane on November 14 with the rest of the squad currently involved in the ODI series.

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