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Delhi Daredevils batsman Mayank Agarwal was acquired by the Rising Pune Supergiants in the second trading window for IPL 2017, which is open from January 13 to 20

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Jan-2017Batsman Mayank Agarwal was acquired by the Rising Pune Supergiants from Delhi Daredevils in the second trading window for IPL 2017, which is open from January 13 to 20. The move was the first trade of the season.Agarwal first played in the IPL with Royal Challengers Bangalore for three seasons, from 2011 to 2013, before he was signed by Delhi Daredevils. He played 21 matches in three seasons for Daredevils and scored 355 runs at an average of 17.75. However, in the 2016 season, Agarwal played just three games, and scored 9, 10 and 8 at an average of 9.Through the 2016 season, the Supergiants used three different opening partners with Ajinkya Rahane – Faf du Plessis, Saurabh Tiwary and Usman Khawaja. Du Plessis was ruled out of the tournament with a broken finger after six games.

Australia’s performances in some of the practice matches on previous tours would have highlighted a few lessons for Darren Lehmann to follow, chief among them resilience on the field and in selections

Daniel Brettig16-Feb-2017As he surveys Mumbai’s Brabourne Stadium on the eve of Australia’s warm-up match against India A, there is a chance Darren Lehmann is casting his mind back to the first time he played at the ground. In the equivalent fixture on Australia’s 1998 visit – their first full tour of India in 12 years – Lehmann was one of 10 Australian fielders held spellbound by a ferocious Sachin Tendulkar double-century.Tendulkar led the local XI, and chose the occasion to strike the first blow in a battle he would ultimately win comfortably against the Australians in general and Shane Warne in particular. There was nothing subtle about the way Tendulkar took to Warne, hammering the visitors’ most accomplished bowler to such an extent that he finished the innings with the ugly figures of 0 for 111 from 16 overs.The awestruck Australians proceeded to stumble to an unexpected defeat, leaving their captain Mark Taylor to realise that the calculated assault on Warne had set the scene for a difficult and unsuccessful tour.”Warney’s a bit like all of us,” Taylor said at the time, “we need to improve. I think they’d be his worst figures in his first-class career. You don’t need me to tell you he’s been a great bowler for a number of years, but it shows that if you don’t bowl well and a side attacks you, you can go for runs.”Certainly Tendulkar did not look back, using the Mumbai platform to launch into one of his greatest Test hundreds in Chennai, before the entire Indian batting line-up laid waste to Warne at Eden Gardens. The episode is the most celebrated but far from the only example of Australian spin bowlers being targeted early in an India tour, building doubts in the minds of bowlers, team-mates and even selectors.Trevor Hohns and Darren Lehmann will have to be wary of second-guessing their selections, even as Australia’s spinners will have to respond effectively when they come under attack from India•Getty Images

A decade later, Bryce McGain pulled out of Australia’s India tour party due to a shoulder injury on the eve of a warm-up fixture in Hyderabad. McGain’s misfortune left Jason Krejza as the only full-time spin bowler on tour, a likely debutant in the first Test, and with a big target on his back for an invitational batting line-up featuring a young Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Yuvraj Singh.What followed was another calculated mauling of the spin bowler by batsmen fleet of foot and aggressive of intent. Krejza, feeling the pressure, dropped repeatedly short, and was brutalised to such an extent that he returned the figures of 0-199 from 31 overs, spread across two innings.It was a return that troubled the selectors to such an extent that they summarily ruled Krejza out of the first Test. Then chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch was on duty in Hyderabad and offered a simple verdict down the phone to the rest of the panel back home: “We can’t pick him; they have absolutely slaughtered him in the tour game.”Instead, the tourists opted to include the Victorian captain Cameron White, flown in to replace McGain despite barely bowling his skiddy leg breaks in the Sheffield Shield the previous season. White was ineffective, Krejza unwanted. when the selectors finally decided to give Krejza a belated chance in the final Test, he harvested 12 (albeit expensive) wickets, posing a far greater threat than others had done before him.These lessons have hopefully not been forgotten by Lehmann, nor by the spin bowlers likely to feature in Mumbai over the next three days. Steve O’Keefe, Nathan Lyon, Ashton Agar and Mitch Swepson can expect to be attacked, and will need to be ready to respond effectively rather than thinking in purely practice mode.Likewise, the captain Steven Smith and the selectors on duty in Lehmann and Trevor Hohns should be wary of second-guessing themselves on the basis of a warm-up fixture. Perceived threats will be attacked by the hosts, in the hope of spinning the visitors off their axis. Resilience will be required, both with the ball and at the selection table.

Afghanistan sealed a 3-2 ODI series win over Ireland in Greater Noida by chasing down 230 with the help of an unbeaten century from Rahmat Shah

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Mar-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsRahmat Shah hit 10 fours and a six in his unbeaten 108•Associated Press

Twice in this series, Rahmat Shah failed to kick on after scoring a half-century. In the decider, he scored in triple-figures, for the second time in ODIs, to help Afghanistan recover from an early wobble and convert a potentially tricky 230 chase into a cruise. He steered them towards the target in Samiullah Shenwari’s company and then sealed a seven-wicket win with a six that helped them clinch a 3-2 series win to go along with the T20 clean sweep in Greater Noida, their adopted home ground.While Rahmat came up with the blockbuster knock, Shenwari’s unbeaten 62 was also important. The fourth-wicket pair added 133, helping them recover from 98 for 3 and overcoming pressure Ireland’s slow bowlers built in the aftermath of Asghar Stanikzai’s wicket for 39 in the 25th over. They eventually won with eight balls to spare and completed their second bilateral series win in three attempts against Ireland. The five-match ODI series in July 2016 in Ireland ended 2-2.Ireland, who won their first toss of the series, elected to bat and were driven by the experienced pair of Ed Joyce (42) and Paul Stirling (51), who added 69 for the first wicket. William Porterfield and Niall O’Brien also got off to starts and put Ireland in a position from where 275 looked a possibility. But the absence of the big-hitting Kevin O’Brien, out due to a hamstring niggle, perhaps hurt them in the end overs.The inability of the lower middle order to bring out the big hits on a slow wicket resulted in a flurry of wickets, the bulk of which were taken by Rashid Khan. The legspinner finished with 4 for 29 to top the wicket-takers’ list with 16 as Ireland lost their last seven wickets for 59 runs to be bowled out for 229 in the penultimate over.Left-arm quick Fareed Ahmad, playing his first game of the series, picked up three wickets, while Dawlat Zadran, who kept the pressure up early on in cloudy conditions, finished with two scalps including a ripper of a yorker that sent back the experienced Gary Wilson in the 39th over to delay their slog.Afghanistan lost the big-hitting Mohammad Shahzad in the fifth over when he was snuffed out courtesy a sensational catch at cover by Porterfield. Three overs later, Najeeb Tarakai, who faced 18 deliveries for 5, let pressure get to him as he skewed a catch to long-on to leave Afghanistan wobbling at 25 for 2.Stanikzai, the captain, held down the fort briefly before falling to George Dockrell’s left-arm spin. With the asking rate escalating and pressure building, Afghanistan needed a rescue act and they had one with Rahmat and Shenwari scoring together at a run rate of over 5.5 per over.

Against the third-best best attack of this IPL, David Warner scored a sensational 126 off 59 balls as Sunrisers Hyderabad served notice to the two table toppers with a dominating win

The Report by Sidharth Monga30-Apr-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
David Warner didn’t spare any bowlers•BCCI

Against the third-best best attack of this IPL, David Warner scored a sensational 126 off 59 balls as Sunrisers Hyderabad served notice to the two table-toppers with a dominating win. Kolkata Knight Riders, Warner’s victims on the night, and Mumbai Indians still remained at the top of the table with 14 points, but Sunrisers were now breathing down their necks, just one point behind.Some of the best batsmen in the world watched and tweeted in awe as Warner took the Knight Riders attack through the shredders. It didn’t make as much noise as Chris Gayle’s 175, but at one stage Warner threatened a double hundred. This was the fifth-fastest IPL century, but the amount of strike Warner took made the big difference. He reached his century in the 11th over, having faced 43 balls by then already. His share of strike reduced in the following deliveries – 16 out of 32 – and he eventually perished playing yet another big shot.Despite an underwhelming – relatively speaking – second half, Sunrisers managed their highest total and the highest by any team against Knight Riders. And they have only ever failed to defend scores of over 175 on three occasions. Given the depth in their bowling, there was no addition being made to the list on this night, not in Hyderabad where they have now five straight matches.Warner steps outThere was something about Warner from the moment he walked out. To the first ball of the innings, he charged down the track and tried to hit Nathan Coulter-Nile out of the ground. This was a bowler whom Knight Riders used as a strike weapon: in four matches, he had taken 11 wickets, with at least two in every match. Warner wanted to eliminate his threat. He managed only six off that over, but got stuck into Umesh Yadav and Chris Woakes, taking Sunrisers to 35 in three overs.That forced Gautam Gambhir to call upon Yusuf Pathan for only the third time this IPL – he had previously started overs against Suresh Raina and Aaron Finch, and Warner and Shikhar Dhawan – with reasonable success. This time, though, Warner hit him for four, four and six. Sunrisers 52 for 0 in four overs.Knight Riders were not holding back. Now came Sunil Narine. Immediately Warner went down on a knee and switch-hit the first ball for a six over point. Knight Riders had tried every thing, but Warner was unstoppable. Sunrisers 67 for 0 after five.The luckWarner faced 59 balls and hit 18 boundaries. That is one boundary every third ball. And you have to attempt them more often to have this boundary-per-ball rate. It’s quite feasible Warner attempted to hit a boundary every second ball, and if you do that you need some luck to last 59 balls. It arrived when Warner skied a pull off an Umesh slower ball in the second over. Woakes misjudged it, back-pedalling instead of turning around and running. Had he done so, he might have made that catch and possibly sent Warner back for 13.The next time Warner was dropped, by Woakes again, he was moving from 86 to 92, having peppered all boundaries with all kinds of shots.The late controlKnight Riders did well to pull Sunrisers back from 123 for 0 in 10 overs. Dhawan struggled for fluency, scoring 29 off 30, but the duo must have done something right because Warner had faced 46 balls by then, a ratio that had been much higher earlier. Umesh made a good comeback with pace variations, Woakes finally got Warner out, but the classy Kane Williamson’s 25-ball 40 still made sure Sunrisers crossed 200.Uthappa on the burning deckOkay, burning deck is a little too dramatic, especially when it did rain for 45 minutes in the middle of the chase, but once Knight Riders lost Narine and Gambhir early they were always up against it. Robin Uthappa, though, had other ideas, hitting four sixes and four fours in the 28 balls that he faced, and that after having to stabilise the innings a little. The highlight was playing Rashid Khan like an offspinner and slogging him for two enormous sixes.However, once local boy Mohammed Siraj got Uthappa with a slower ball in the 13th over, for a 28-ball 53, the 101 required in 45 balls was always going to be too much against the second-best attack in the competition.

Ellyse Perry was satisfied after Australia’s win over New Zealand in a warm-up match in Southampton, but outlined some clear areas that needed improvement before the Women’s World Cup begins later this month

Daniel Brettig15-Jun-2017Allrounder Ellyse Perry has declared Australia’s women need to find the right tempo with the bat in the closing overs of their innings, in order to finish off in the sort of manner that will enable them to lift the World Cup next month.Batting at No. 3 in the absence of the rested captain Meg Lanning, Perry struck a century in a warm-up win over New Zealand at Southampton on Wednesday, but was concerned by how the lower order fell away when a total of more than 300 looked there for the taking.”It was really great to put on those partnerships with Bolts [Nicole Bolton] at the start and then Elyse Villani as well,” Perry said. “It was just disappointing for me personally but also the lower order, we just fell off again. We were set up to score over 300 and we didn’t get there. That’s something to work on but it was nice to get that time in the middle.”In the next couple days it’ll be a real focus for us in training, just making the right decisions on balls to hit and where to score our runs. We don’t have the right tempo at the moment, we’re either going for big shots or defending, I think there needs to be a little more in between where we pick gaps and not letting bowlers settle and putting pressure on ourselves.”After Megan Schutt pinned Suzie Bates lbw with her very first ball of New Zealand’s reply, three wickets for wristspinner Amanda-Jade Wellington and breakthroughs for Perry helped Australia close out the match. They won by a comfortable 46 runs in a game where both sides could use all 15 members of their squads. Overall, Perry felt that it was a step in the right direction toward the level of polish required in the tournament proper.”Everyone got a good chance out in the middle, which is probably what we’ve needed after a really good prep back home and not as much official games,” Perry said. “A bit of rust, but that’s ok, we’ve got a bit of time before the first proper match.”There were lots of positives with both bat and ball but probably just lacking that polish, probably bowled too many four-balls, and a few loose shots and not really finishing our innings off, which was quite disappointing, but they’re solid opposition and it was good to play some good cricket in patches.”The Australians have a morning gym session on Thursday followed by an afternoon off, ahead of another internal practice match on Friday. They have further practice matches against South Africa and Pakistan before a tournament opener against the West Indies at Taunton on June 26.

ESPNcricinfo understands the CAC will first speak to both Anil Kumble and Virat Kohli in an attempt to resolve any differences that may have emerged between the pair

Nagraj Gollapudi11-Jun-2017The three-member cricket advisory committee (CAC) tasked with finding a new coach for India will first attempt to keep hold of the incumbent, Anil Kumble. ESPNcricinfo understands the CAC will speak to both Kumble and captain Virat Kohli in an attempt to resolve differences that have emerged between the pair. In case that fails, the CAC is likely to sit separately with Kohli – who has publicly maintained he has no issues with Kumble – to reach a deeper understanding of the reasons why he, and some players, are finding it hard to cope with his approach, which has been said to be headmasterly.Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, the CAC trio, met for the first time formally on June 8 in London and are understood to have had “good detailed discussions” on the matter. Also present were BCCI secretary Amitabh Choudhary and the board’s chief executive officer Rahul Johri.And as it stands now the role of the CAC is a problem-solving one. Only if the differences cannot be resolved will they move on and invite the rest of the shortlisted candidates for interviews. According to one official, one reason the CAC and BCCI are keen for Kumble to stay on – beyond the obvious importance of continuity – is that they believe there is no certainty similar issues will not arise with a new man in charge. The committee understands the “onus” is on them to make the right choice, especially as Kumble was their choice in the first place.Given the significance of the task, the CAC is not likely to be pushed into making any hasty decisions. With Kumble’s contract coming to an end after the Champions Trophy, and India’s tour of West Indies starting on June 23, the BCCI was in favour of appointing the new coach as soon as possible. But the CAC has asked the BCCI to allow it time and space to work through the situation, facilitating where needed in arranging various meetings.The BCCI’s acting president CK Khanna has sent out an email to Choudhary asking the interview process to be postponed to after the board’s special general meeting on June 26, though there is an element within the administration that would prefer the issue to be resolved sooner rather than later.The performances of the Indian team in the ongoing Champions Trophy will not have any bearing on the CAC process. With Ganguly and Laxman in the UK on broadcast assignments and Tendulkar also present, much of the CAC’s deliberating will take place in the country.

Hampshire continued their winning start to this season’s Natwest T20 Blast campaign thanks to a Man-of-the-Match performance by Michael Carberry

ECB Reporters Network14-Jul-2017
ScorecardMichael Carberry summoned some of the old magic [file picture]•Getty Images

Middlesex were still closed away in the dressing room, refusing requests for interviews, more than a hour after a spectacular collapse against Hampshire at the Ageas Bowl consigned them to a 29-run defeat in the NatWest Blast.Even that was something of a release for Middlesex, who found themselves 74 for 7 in the 13th over before Tim Southee hammered five sixes in his 64 off 32 balls to narrow the margin.Hampshire were still comfortable winners, with young leg-spinner Mason Crane taking 3 for 15 off four overs and Reece Topley, Gareth Berg and Kyle Abbott all grabbing a wicket a piece.Crane said: “”Three good performances so far and everyone has contributed in all of them. It hasn’t been the same players in every game and that shows we have a strong team. The crowd were amazing. I’ve never seen it that full for a Hampshire game.”Hampshire continued their winning start thanks to a Man-of-the-Match performance by Michael Carberry, who smashed 77 off 45 balls and followed it up with two catches.The former England opener showed he is still capable of some devastating power hitting at the age of 36, while captain James Vince played some classy shots in his brief 34 to get his side on the front foot from the off.Vince won the toss and opted to bat first in his side’s first home game of the season, backing up his decision with six classy fours and a six in his quickfire 34 off 15, before skying one from Toby Roland-Jones high into the air only to be caught by Southee at square leg.Rilee Roussow and Carberry put on a measured 48-run partnership, ensuring the scoreboard ticked over, but the South African soon followed his captain back to the dressing room after clubbing a flat catch to James Franklin at long-on off the bowling of Nathan Sowter.Carberry followed up his 41 not out against Sussex on Wednesday night with a magnificent batting display in front of the Ageas Bowl crowd, placing a delicate shot through gully to reach his 50 off 32 balls. And the 36-year-old wasted no time in following that up with two sixes straight back down the ground and into jubilant crowd.A tough evening for the Middlesex bowlers showed no sign of easing up, as Aussie George Bailey smacked 28 off 19 balls, with a six and three fours, but Roland-Jones cut his innings short as it began to reach full flow having him caught at long-on by Dawid Malan.Shahid Afridi’s batting struggles continued, the 37-year-old failing to add anything to a tally of five runs in this year’s Blast competition when he was caught in the deep by Malan trying to power Roland-Jones for six.After looking as if they would set Middlesex a score of over 200 to win, the steady fall of wickets, including that of Carberry in the final over, bowled by Franklin, Hampshire managed 189 for 8.Roland-Jones, released by England from the Test squad, ended the pick of Middlesex’s bowlers after taking 4 for 39 off his four overs, while Franklin took three wickets in the last over of the innings to end with 3 for 19 off two overs.Hampshire continued as they started, Abbott sending Paul Stirling packing for just six runs and Topley following up with the wicket of dangerman Brendon McCullum, thanks to a stunning acrobatic catch from Rossouw at midwicket. England captain Eoin Morgan put up some resistance, making 23 off 22, before wicketkeeper John Simpson and New Zealander Southee came together in an eighth-wicket stand of 86 to try and salvage the game.Southee reached a half-century off 28 balls, while Simpson made 37 off 34 as Middlesex fell 29 runs short.

The CoA felt such a blunt measure was necessary only because the three office bearers – president, secretary and treasurer – had failed to ensure the implementation of the Lodha Committee’s reforms

Nagraj Gollapudi16-Aug-2017In another damning indictment of the BCCI, the Committee of Administrators (CoA) has asked the Supreme Court to remove the three office bearers of the board with immediate effect.The CoA felt such a blunt measure was necessary only because the three office bearers – CK Khanna (acting BCCI president), Amitabh Choudhary (secretary) and Anirudh Chaudhry (treasurer) – had failed to ensure the implementation of the Lodha Committee’s recommendations despite having given a written undertaking in January.The CoA said the court had already set the precedent in January when it had removed the two senior-most BCCI office bearers – Anurag Thakur (president) and Ajay Shirke (secretary) – after the pair had failed to implement the reforms, thus violating the court’s order delivered on July 18 last year. Simultaneously, the court stated that if Khanna, Choudhary and Chaudhry wanted to continue as office bearers, they would need to make written submissions saying they would help the BCCI implement the reforms. The CoA said that it has been more than six months and the three office bearers are “not in a position to make good” on their undertakings and hence should be sacked.”The current office bearers of the BCCI have demonstrated scant regard for the directions issued by the Committee of Administrators and continue to flout the same with impunity,” the CoA noted in its fifth status report, which is likely to be heard by the Supreme Court on August 18. “There is a need to direct that the existing office bearers of the BCCI shall forthwith cease and desist from being associated with the working of BCCI.”The report also said that with fresh BCCI elections scheduled for September, the running of the board should be entrusted “exclusively” with the COA, which would work closely with the board’s professional management led by its CEO Rahul Johri. “The governance, management and administration of the BCCI may be entrusted exclusively in the hands of the Committee of Administrators along with the professional management of the BCCI headed by the CEO until elections are held in accordance with the New BCCI Constitution and a new set of office bearers take charge.”The stonewalling by the BCCI and majority of the state associations against implementing the reforms has finally started to test the patience of the CoA. Vinod Rai, the committee’s chairman, admitted in an interview last month that his “consensus-building” efforts paid no dividends. Disappointed but not disheartened, the CoA asked the court in the fourth status report to issue an order under Article 142 of the Indian Constitution that would enforce the implementation of reforms.Without mincing words, the CoA has once again said unless the court did not issue the directives as requested in last two status reports, its judgment would never see the “light of the day”. “The Judgment of this Hon’ble Court will remain a writ in sand and the implementation of reforms mandated by this Hon’ble Court will never see the light of the day.”In its latest status report, the CoA presented various examples, which exposed the “willful disobedience” and the “resistance” put forth by majority of the BCCI members, which are the state associations. The CoA was annoyed that the three office bearers had just remained ineffective, instead of imposing themselves.The latest instance, the COA said, came around the BCCI’s last special general meeting, on July 26. Two days before the SGM, the court, responding to the “urgent” intervention sought by the COA, had directed that only qualified office bearers/representatives from state associations could attend the meeting.The CoA’s fifth status report is likely to be heard by the Supreme Court on August 18•AFP

In an interim order on July 24, the court had also indicated that it was willing to reopen debate over some of the reforms. “All concerned (BCCI and state associations) shall implement the recommendations of the Justice Lodha Committee Report as far as practicable, barring the issues which have been raised pertaining to membership, number of members of the selection committee, concept of associate membership, etc.”At the SGM, the BCCI agreed unanimously to implement all but five broad reforms: membership status which includes the one-state-one-vote reform, disqualification of office bearers, ministers and government officials based on eligibility criteria such as the age cap, tenure and cooling off period, the strength of the Apex Council – which replaces the existing working committee, the division of powers between the office bearers and the professional management, and strength of the national selection committee.Barring the recommendations concerning one-state-one vote and the strength of the selection panel, the other three “identified” by the BCCI form the “fundamental core” of the reforms that were approved by the court in its original order last July. “Describing these issues as ‘impracticable’ or ‘difficult’ is nothing short of gross abuse/contempt,” the CoA said. “It is obvious that the whole idea was to stonewall the fundamental core of the reforms mandate by this Hon’ble Court and make the same a dead letter.”The CoA was disgruntled with the office bearers also because they did not send it the minutes of the July 26 SGM despite being asked to. The CoA also took strong exception to the BCCI’s decision, asking Johri and the BCCI administrative staff, including the board’s legal team, to leave the SGM, which it said was “pre-planned and orchestrated.”When the CoA checked with the office bearers as to why they did not “reprimand” the BCCI members who asked Johri to leave the SGM, their response was “ingenious”, saying he had “left of his own accord.” “The conduct of the office bearers is such as to demonstrate that they are unfit to continue and ought to removed.”

In the event of a Full Member refusing to come, the PCB will examine the possibility of organising further tours by a World XI side over the next two years

Osman Samiuddin in Lahore13-Sep-2017Emboldened by the relatively smooth progress of the ongoing series against the World XI, Pakistan are hoping to attract a side for a full home tour next year. In the event of a Full Member refusing to come, the PCB will examine the possibility of organising further tours by a World XI side over the next two years.That could be the upshot of a three-year investment the ICC has made in ensuring that security in Pakistan for tours, by international sides, is of a standard that allows teams to visit. The game’s governing body will pay $1.1 million over the next three years to two security firms – Reg Dickason as well as Nicholls Steyn and Associates – who will assist with security on tours to Pakistan.David Richardson, the ICC chief executive, was in Lahore for the second T20I on Wednesday evening where he offered a slightly different view from an earlier statement by Najam Sethi, the PCB chairman. On Tuesday evening, Sethi had told the that a series with a World XI had been “planned for every year for the three years”.Richardson, however, said that the priority was to bring more Full Members to Pakistan. “The ICC has already agreed to invest in security and developing security capabilities for a three-year period.”Whether years two and three include a World XI tour is not decided, maybe not. Certainly, I think the intention would be to bring more and more PSL matches to Pakistan, but also to bring [Full] Member countries to tour Pakistan – not a World XI tour. And that would be the ideal to have international cricket return to Pakistan in normal circumstances.”If the ongoing series is organised without incident, Sri Lanka are scheduled to play one of their three T20s against Pakistan in Lahore on October 29. West Indies, too, are due to play three T20s in Pakistan in November.”This is an ice-breaking event,” Sethi said. “We hope that by this time next year there will be a full-fledged tour by at least one member country and in the absence of that, we will go back to the ICC in order to push this process. I have no doubt in my mind that we expect full support from the ICC.”The return of high-profile cricket in Pakistan has primarily been accented towards the shorter formats. Barring Zimbabwe playing three ODIs in 2015 – though one couldn’t be completed because of rain – after a two-match T20I series, all other games, including the PSL final in March this year, have been 20-over games.Hosting a Test series remains, for now, a distant prospect, for there remain other priorities for the Pakistan board to attend to – such as moving outside of Lahore as a venue.”It’s a long process,” Richardson said. “This is a stepping stone in the right direction. A Test series is, by its nature, much longer than three T20s. I think the next step is to grow capabilities, improve capabilities to areas and cities outside of Lahore itself to build the confidence of teams like Australia and England, and all other teams that it’s safe to tour Pakistan on a more regular basis and for much lengthier periods of time.”

Bangladesh’s captain said he hasn’t thought about stepping down because he doesn’t believe it’s his decision to make, adding that he should be given more opportunities precisely because he made mistakes

Firdose Moonda in Bloemfontein08-Oct-2017Mushfiqur Rahim is hurting. Physically, after a Duanne Olivier bouncer that crashed into his helmet and emotionally, after copping the blame for Bangladesh’s worst Test defeat to South Africa and overall limp showing in the series.Despite the pain, Mushfiqur insisted he has no plans to step down as Test skipper and will let the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) decide whether he is fit for the role.”When the team does really well, all the credit goes to the management and when we are not doing really well, all the blame comes to the captain. I can take it,” Mushfiqur said after the Bloemfontein Test.”Obviously all the blame comes to me being the captain. The board will decide about me, since there’s a lot of time before the next Test series. It is not about what I want. I can’t decide to stay as captain, neither can I leave it. The board has to take the decision and I am sure they will take a good one for the team. Country comes first, not the individual.”Mushfiqur was appointed Bangladesh’s all-format captain in 2011, attempted to resign from the limited-overs roles in May 2013 but was convinced to stay on and was then replaced as ODI captain in September 2014 by Mashrafe Mortaza. The six years of varying leadership experience Mushfiqur has to his name has made him realise something about taking charge of a team like Bangladesh: it’s not easy.”Captaincy is always challenging, more so in a team like ours. We are ranked No. 9 or 10 always, so there’s a lot of pressure playing against top sides. The last two Tests didn’t go as the last couple of years have gone,” he said.While Bangladesh were not necessarily expected to win in South Africa, their form over the last few months – especially at home – suggested they would put up more of a fight. But they didn’t give themselves the chance when they chose to bowl first on flat pitches, twice.Both times, Mushfiqur explained the decision as being based on the hope that his attack would get to make use of any early moisture or movement but both times, it was obvious there wasn’t much of either on offer. BCB president Nazmul Hassan said he was “surprised,” by Mushfiqur’s decision and though the captain is willing to admit he may have got it wrong, he wants the chance to make things right.”The blame is coming at me, because I decided to field first in both Tests. Maybe I haven’t been leading properly and that’s why the team isn’t doing well. This is why I am saying that I should be given opportunity to correct my mistakes,” Mushfiqur said. “I haven’t heard anything from them [BCB]. I said it honestly and if it hurt someone, I have to say sorry. I don’t want to be the reason for the team’s bad result. I always tried to inspire the team, and lead from the front. I am also a human being, and I am bound to make mistakes.”Mushfiqur would not be drawn into detailing how much of a say the coach, Chandika Hathurusingha had on decision-making, instead deflecting by insisting the camp was democratic.”Everyone tries to give their opinion. We take decisions collectively. It is not any person’s team. Everyone has a say in selection and plans, which I try to execute in the field,” he said.He also would not say what his relationship with Hathurusingha, which is though to be strained, is like. “It is better to ask him because I am always trying my level best,” Mushfiqur said. “The team management also try to do their best.”And so do the players. Mushfiqur was at pains to point that they had a very strong motivation not to go down in the manner they did.”Everyone gives their 100 percent but not all can be successful. I think we all tried. It is not a club game; we are playing for the country. We don’t want to lose the respect that we gained over the last four years,” he said.Asked whether the batting or bowling let him down more, Mushfiqur said he was equally disappointed in both departments.”I think it is both. There was not a lot of pace and movement in these wickets. But our bowlers, I felt, were good enough to bowl more consistently. I wasn’t worried about the outcome but I wanted to see them do the process right. I think they bowled well towards the latter part of the innings. We have a lot to learn from these Tests,” he said.Faf du Plessis had some sympathy for his opposite number, especially because Mushfiqur did not have the resources at his disposal to properly challenge South Africa.”You look at the two different styles of teams. Bangladesh don’t have tall bowlers. In these conditions you need bowlers who are a bit taller and who can get a bit more bounce. Bounce and pace is what you need when you go to South Africa or Australia,” du Plessis said.But he also pointed the finger at the Bangladesh players, who did not even apply basics.”Then there’s control. That was lacking from Bangladesh in this series. As a batting unit, we felt that every over there was a boundary you could score, so control is very important,” du Plessis said.