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Andre Russell, Lendl Simmons and Evin Lewis were unavailable for selection

George Dobell16-Oct-2020Shai Hope has been tipped for “a tremendous future in Test cricket” despite being dropped from the West Indies Test squad for the tour of New Zealand.Hope, now aged 26 and a veteran of 34 Tests, has long been viewed as one of the most talented batsmen in the Caribbean. But despite performing well in ODI cricket – he is currently placed at No. 12 in the ICC’s batting rankings in the format and was at No. 4 midway through 2019 – he has endured a grim run of form in Test cricket. He has averaged 19.48 since December 2017 and just 14.45 since February 2019. His career average in Test cricket has slipped to 26.27. As a result, he has been omitted from the touring squad and will instead work on his game in Barbados.”I think we would all agree that he’s not been at his best in Test cricket for quite a while,” Roger Harper, CWI lead selector, said. “He’s performed very well in the 50-over version, but in Test cricket he’s not been anywhere close to his best and this has gone on for a while.

West Indies touring party

Test squad: Jason Holder (capt), Jermaine Blackwood, Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, John Campbell, Roston Chase, Rahkeem Cornwall, Shane Dowrich, Shannon Gabriel, Shimron Hetmyer, Chemar Holder, Alzarri Joseph, Keemo Paul, Kemar Roach
Test Reserves: Nkrumah Bonner, Joshua DaSilva, Preston McSween, Shayne Moseley, Raymon Reifer, Jayden Seales
T20I squad: Kieron Pollard (capt), Fabian Allen, Dwayne Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Andre Fletcher, Shimron Hetmyer, Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Rovman Powell, Keemo Paul, Nicholas Pooran, Oshane Thomas, Hayden Walsh Jr, Kesrick Williams

“Sometimes, by continuing to select a player, you do them more harm than good. So, we’ve given him an opportunity to go away and work on his game. The head coach, Phil Simmons, has put a programme in place to help him get back to his best. He’s not being left to his own devices.”He has an important part to play in the future of West Indies cricket. There’s a tremendous future for him in Test cricket, but he needs to get his batting back to where we know it can be. That’s what this is about: giving him that opportunity to find his mojo again in Test cricket and come back a stronger and better player.”John Campbell may consider himself fortunate not to have suffered the same fate. Campbell, who has a top score of 55 after nine Tests, actually scored fewer runs than Hope in England but, while Harper admitted there was “a lot of discussion” over his position, he has held his spot.”There was a lot of debate about this,” Harper said. “And there were a lot of other players considered, including Kieran Powell. But in the end, the panel decided to give him another opportunity to cement his place in the team.”While Harper admitted the batting, especially the top order, had been a concern for a while, he was hopeful the return of Darren Bravo and Shimron Hetmyer would add some solidity. Both men have earned recalls – Hetmyer is also in the T20I squad – after having opted out of the tour to England on health grounds.”The return of these guys is very important,” Harper said. “Our batting at the top has been a bit of a problem. It is an area that has been concerning us for a while. We’re hoping that the return of Bravo will add some solidity and leadership at the top of the order. We hope it will help us lay the foundations to build big totals. He’s been making runs consistently in every format.Rahkeem Cornwall retained his place in the Test squad despite an underwhelming performance in England•Getty Images

“We know how talented Hetmyer is and he gives us a lot more depth, quality and ability in the middle order. He’s hungry to get back and anxious to show what a quality player he is, especially in Test cricket. I personally believe he has the ability to be one of best batsmen in the world in Test cricket. We hope he’ll be able to seize the opportunity to show how good he is.”With quarantine regulations in the Caribbean rendering a training camp difficult to arrange, the squad is expected to depart for New Zealand early and have a camp there. The tour will also see an A side made-up of the reserves, the T20I squad, and those not required by the Test team, play two four-day first-class games during the Test series. Nicholas Pooran, who has only played three first-class games, is one of those expected to feature in these matches. “A lot of consideration was given to [selecting] him [in the Test squad] and we’re still considering,” Harper said.Meanwhile, Harper insisted that both Chris Gayle, who last played T20I cricket in March 2019, and Sunil Narine, who has recently been reported as having a suspect action, remained under consideration for T20 World Cup selection.”Chris is a world-class player,” Harper said. “We know what he’s capable of, so he’ll be considered going forward. And Sunil is a world-class performer. We know what he can do. He understands the process of getting through these challenges. Once he’s available, we’ll look at him.”Andre Fletcher, meanwhile, returned to the T20I squad for the first time since 2018, while there is a first call-up in the format for Kyle Mayers, who enjoyed a good CPL campaign. Rahkeem Cornwall retained his place in the Test squad, too, despite an underwhelming performance in England.”Of course we kept faith in him [Cornwall],” Harper said. “You have to remember, two Tests ago, he has a ten-wicket haul in Test cricket. It was one Test in England. A little bit of inexperience showed there. We expect he can raise his game if called upon again.”Andre Russell, Lendl Simmons and Evin Lewis opted not to participate in the tour. Health concerns and the demands of life in lockdown are understood to be have been key factors, while Lewis told the selectors he was injured. A statement from CWI said it “fully respects their decision” and that it “will not impact consideration for future selection”.

Hockley also said India’s tour during the pandemic was one of “great importance” to CA

Himanshu Agrawal24-Nov-2020Cricket Australia CEO Nick Hockley believes that the absence of Virat Kohli from the major part of India’s Test series in Australia will not have any financial implications for the board even considering how much attention India’s captain attracts. Kohli is set to miss three of the four Tests in order to fly back home to attend the birth of his first child, and Hockley said he respected that decision.”I think the first thing is that we’re delighted for Virat and Anushka [Sharma, his wife] for the imminent birth of their child,” Hockley said in an interaction with the Indian media. “We respect Virat’s decision and the BCCI to grant him leave. We’re just delighted he’ll be here to captain the side for the ODIs and the T20Is and the first Test. He’ll bring competitive leadership that we’ve seen before and have become accustomed to watching. I don’t think his absence will have a financial bearing.”With international cricket finally resuming in Australia after all the months of inaction due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Hockley termed India’s tour as one of “great importance” to CA. There were multiple staff cuts in the lead-up to the home summer, with apprehensions of massive financial losses, with Afghanistan having to lose out on an opportunity to play a Test match in Australia.”This series is of great importance to world cricket and Australian cricket,” Hockley said. “One of the features of the pandemic has been how the international cricket community has supported each other. Even we had travelled to England in September, and we are extremely grateful to the BCCI to make this tour happen.”This is a testament to all countries that we’ve got international cricket back up and running. Australia have been extremely fortunate that we’ve managed the Covid-19 situation very well, and I’m excited that the [India] series will be played in front of crowds.”Playing while managing life in a bubble for a lengthy period of time poses its own challenges, and numerous international cricketers – including the Australia opener David Warner – have expressed concern over the long-term feasibility of playing cricket in these circumstances. And so far as its financial implications are concerned, Hockley revealed that the board has had to spend millions to maintain a biosecure bubble that contains a large contingent of players and staff.”We’re taking precautions and using charter planes,” he said. “We had an endeavour of movement of the returning IPL players from the UAE. But precautions and measures have run into several million dollars.”ALSO READ: Marcus Stoinis expects Virat Kohli to be ‘extra motivated’ in abridged tourBut Hockley also accepted how difficult it has been for players to sustain lives in isolation. Some of Australia’s players travelled to England for a two-week tour that involved quarantine before it began, and then flew directly to the UAE to remain in another bubble for nearly two months during the IPL. The series against India, and more life in bubbles, came immediately after.”We’re extremely fortunate with limited cases [of Covid-19] and negligible community transmission,” Hockley said of the current state of the pandemic in the country. “We’ve worked hard to put the best possible conditions. There is an outdoor gym for India and the returning Australian IPL players. The safety of all participants is our number one priority. We’re working closely with the BCCI and working hard to provide the best possible conditions.”Despite all the arrangements and the facilities across Australia, there remains the possibility of an unprecedented outbreak taking place while the India series is on. But Hockley said CA had adequate cover “to ensure there are rescues in case of outbreaks”.”There has been a negligible community transmission in Australia, and more cases have been attached to the return of visitors from other countries,” he said. “We’re confident the work of our medical experts will mitigate that risk.”Hockley sounded positive about the pandemic’s situation in Australia and was confident of the arrangements that CA has made to host India smoothly.”Depending on the situation in each city, what I can say is that from our initial risk ratings, it’s very low,” Hockley said when asked about the protocols and the arrangements for all the players and staff. “[There’s] no or negligible community transmission; Melbourne now has 28 days of zero community transmission. The protocols are clear – [maintain] social distancing – and we’re making sure we have secure, separate areas.”The tour begins with the first of three ODIs in Sydney on November 27. The ODIs will be followed by three T20Is and four Tests.

The former players, after whom the trophy is named, feel Prithvi Shaw is playing ‘too many’ shots at the start

Varun Shetty15-Dec-20203:21

Gavaskar: India could bring in KL Rahul for MCG Test in Kohli, Rohit’s absence

Shubman Gill has got both Sunil Gavaskar and Allan Border’s backing to open alongside Mayank Agarwal during India’s Test series against Australia. Previewing the series named after them, the first men to 10,000 Test runs discussed Gill’s and Prithvi Shaw’s prospects of sealing a place in the Indian line-up, with a consensus that Shaw’s aggressive style was currently going against him.”I think Shubman Gill should open with Mayank for the first Test match because he’s shown good form,” Gavaskar said. “Allan Border was there for the games [practice games], [and] was very impressed with what he saw from Shubman Gill. So I would imagine that he should open with Mayank Agarwal for the first Test.”Should Gill be picked, he would be making a Test debut and displacing Shaw, who was the incumbent opener alongside Mayank Agarwal in India’s last Test series in New Zealand. In the two warm-up games, Gill’s scores – 0, 29, 43, 65 – got progressively better while Shaw had a more patchy run with scores of 0, 19, 40, and 3. Shaw has had a torrid run of form coming into this tour including in IPL 2020, with his duck in the first practice game being his fourth in his last seven innings across formats.”I’ve been in Sydney the last couple of days, watching the Indian team against Australia A. Gee, I was impressed with Gill,” said Border. “I really think he’s got something about him, his technique. I know he’s young so he can play a few rash shots here and there, but he looks a seriously good player, this kid. He would be my pick out of the guys I saw.”I know you guys [rate] Shaw but it seems to me like he plays a shot-a-ball. Against the new ball, it looks good on flat tracks, but in Australia, you’ve got to be a little bit more watchful about your shot selection. He just seems a bit loose outside the off stump for me. If I’m the Indian selector, I’m looking very close at young Gill.”ALSO READ: Pick your India XI for first TestShaw has currently played in four Tests since his debut in October 2018, and averages 55.83. He has, however, appeared low on confidence since cricket resumed this year and Gavaskar suggested he needed to work on his defence.”I do agree with AB [Allan Border] on that,” Gavaskar said. “I think he’s got to spend a little more time assessing his batting. Because as an opening batsman, you’ve got to give yourself time to see what the pitch is doing, see what the bowlers are doing. And trying to bat the way he’s batting at the moment is not going to make him a consistent player. Yes, he’s going to make runs once in a while – [but] he’s got to tighten up his defence. I agree with AB that he plays far too many shots at the start of the innings.”As far as India’s other opener is concerned, Agarwal looks set to hold onto his spot, earned on the back of a strong debut during India’s successful last tour of Australia. Agarwal had a stellar IPL season earlier this year, and after a couple of unconverted starts in the ODI series, made a fifty in the last practice match.”My player to watch from India will be Agarwal, because he came to Australia for the last couple of Test matches two years ago and he actually showed the way,” Gavaskar said. “Because till then India had not got a start. But he batted brilliantly, he actually showed how to tackle Nathan Lyon because he was stepping down the pitch, hitting him straight. The freshness of youth, you could say.”Since then, he’s only become better. He’s gone from strength to strength. Look at the season he had last year, where he scored a double hundred against South Africa. He got back-to-back double hundreds if I’m not mistaken [two double-centuries in three matches]. So he’s the guy I really am looking forward to in this series.”On another much vaunted topic – the Indian wicketkeeper debate – Gavaskar said he expected India to pick Rishabh Pant over Wriddhiman Saha through this series. Pant has been India’s preferred option in overseas Tests, even when Saha has previously been available, and Gavaskar said that and a couple of other factors would work in his favour. Not least his blistering hundred against Australia A in the second practice game.”It’s going to be a tough one for the selection committee because Rishabh played in all the four Test matches during India’s [last] tour and he also got a hundred. And he seemed to have got under the skin of some of the Australian players with his chirping behind the stumps,” Gavaskar said. “So I guess the team would probably look to have him. And of course, when you’ve just come off a hundred, a few days earlier, you would be the choice I think.”The popular opinion on who the better wicketkeeper is has long been skewed in Saha’s direction, and the experienced wicketkeeper was brought straight back into the Indian team during when he returned from a long injury lay-off last year. That was, however, during India’s home season, where his skill against spinners is considered vastly superior. When India went to New Zealand, Pant was back in the team.”When you’re playing on pitches where the wicketkeeper has to stand up to the stumps, where the ball turns around a bit, that’s when you tend to take your best wicketkeeper – in which case, Wriddhiman Saha would be the obvious choice,” Gavaskar said. “But here, because India will be having pacers, you can stand behind. You get that much more time, about 15 yards behind the stumps. My feeling is they’ll go for that.”Also, because at the top of the order the Indians are a little bit shaky, they won’t know who to go with. […] So with the uncertainty, they’d like to strengthen their batting and I think Rishabh Pant will play. But I hope he plays at six because then that will allow you to pick five bowlers to get 20 wickets.”

They will meet the Perth Scorchers at Canberra on Thursday

Daniel Brettig31-Jan-2021Sam Heazlett and Jimmy Peirson took full toll of some obligingly loose death bowling from the Sydney Thunder at Manuka Oval to rocket the Brisbane Heat into a preliminary final meeting with the Perth Scorchers, also to take place in Canberra on Thursday after a late change due to a snap lockdown in Western Australia.The Heat had control of the Thunder’s innings for most of its journey thanks to a tight initial powerplay and then quality overs of spin from Mitchell Swepson and Marnus Labuschagne. However some characteristic big hitting from Ben Cutting allowed the Thunder to hammer 48 from the final four overs of their innings and set-up a defendable tally.A couple of early wickets gave the Thunder further reason for optimism, but Heazlett held his nerve to get himself set alongside Labuschagne, before counter-attacking boldly and in the end definitively in the company of the wicketkeeper Peirson. The Heat, having won two finals in a row from fourth on the table, are now two more wins from plucking the title itself.Heat plans give and take awayQuite transparently, Brisbane’s new ball plan called for a single over from Xavier Bartlett before he was subbed out for Morne Morkel. But so well did Bartlett bowl, bending the white Kookaburra late and at decent pace, that not only should he have had Usman Khawaja out lbw but his opening maiden raised questions of whether or not the Heat should divert from the blueprint and give him another over. Chris Lynn elected not to step in, handing the ball to Ben Laughlin and leaving Bartlett’s contribution to end with 1-1-0-0.Whatever the debate over this decision, the Heat ended up enjoying much the better of the powerplay anyway. Laughlin should have had Alex Hales caught at short third man only for Mark Steketee to mistime his jump and see the ball skate through his unsteady fingers. Steketee, though, bowled beautifully at the other end, rewarded when Hales jammed a catch to mid on to depart for just eight after a dominant BBL.Swepson’s middle overs, Cutting’s late showMuch as Khawaja and the captain Callum Ferguson tried, the Thunder were unable to build much momentum at all through the middle overs, held back largely by the spin of Swepson and Labuschagne on a surface that gave them just enough assistance. Swepson’s command of changes in pace while bowling a stumps-threatening line was testament to his evolution over recent years. Alex Ross and Daniel Sams were both beaten comprehensively on the back foot to each be lbw, while at the other end Labuschagne tempted Khawaja into a stumping.Mitchell Swepson celebrates with team-mates after dismissing Alex Ross•Getty Images

At 8 for 134 with 10 balls remaining, the Thunder were staring at the sort of total they had themselves successfully chased to knock out the Adelaide Strikers at the Gabba. Cutting, though, had plenty of reason to be focused against the Heat after a running verbal battle with his former club for much of the season. He was able to find the range of Morkel, cracking one six over midwicket in the 18th over that pinged off the top of the Bradman Stand, then following up with two more telling blows in the 20th. Brendan Doggett chimed in with a couple of boundaries and suddenly the Heat was facing a pursuit closer to 160.Heat regather after initial reversesWhen Joe Denly and then Lynn were dismissed cheaply by the hard new ball, the Heat captain causing scenes of unrestrained jubilation when he miscued Doggett wretchedly to mid off, the game was drifting very much towards the Thunder. Brisbane’s response may in the past have been to panic; certainly that had been a not uncommon occurrence in recent seasons. Instead, Labuschagne and Heazlett took their time, calmly allowing the required rate to drift towards 11 per over but building a base from which to attack.Importantly they did not allow Tanveer Sangha or Chris Green to be as impactful as their Heat counterparts, leaving plenty of overs for the pacemen to bowl in the closing overs. Labuschagne’s exit, to a highly debatable run out decision when it could not reasonably be determined whether the bails had been first dislodged by the ball or Sam Billings’ gloves, looked to be a blow to the chase, but also allowed the busy Peirson to enter the fray with plenty of balls to spare.Heazlett and Peirson bring it homeWhat the calm, “take it deep” attitude of the Heat did was it presented a scenario where the Thunder bowlers could not afford to miss their marks as the overs ran out. Heazlett was by this time well established at the crease, familiar with the pace of the pitch, and able to capitalise with some panache from all the various errors in line and length the Thunder’s pacemen proceeded to serve up. Peirson was as effective himself, their left-right combination helping to bring further errors from the bowlers, with the runs piling up at better than two per ball.There will doubtless be plenty of post-mortems from the Thunder and their coach Shane Bond on why the Sydney side’s bowling fell apart so completely. But the value of set batsmen for the closing stages was writ large across a stand worth 92 from 44 balls, bringing a conclusion that was both dramatic in its turnabout but also remarkable for how much ease the Heat ultimately won with. For Heazlett, given an arguably premature ODI debut in New Zealand as far back as 2017, it was a cathartic performance; demonstrating quality that has seldom been seen on this stage. A light sprinkling of drizzle in these overs made the ball fractionally greasy, aiding Heazlett as he feasted square of the wicket.

The secret to the Indian bowlers’ success in the Border Gavaskar trophy is finally revealed

Shashank Kishore22-Jan-202130:34

Match Day: Looking back on Australia vs India, and all the ‘no-fear cricket’

R Ashwin coming on inside the first hour at MCG and bowling a middle-and-leg line. India attacking Steven Smith and Marnus Labuschagne with a leg gully. Jasprit Bumrah’s plan of bowling short and into the body to Joe Burns and Will Pucovski – all these were part of India’s comprehensive bowling plan for Australia, one that was formulated long before the details of the tour were worked out.This was revealed when B Arun, India’s bowling coach, threw light on the preparation done by the backroom staff, which was then put across to the captains – Virat Kohli and later Ajinkya Rahane – to implement during the Test series. In addition, they also took cue from New Zealand’s plans, particularly Neil Wagner’s short-ball strategy, against Smith during their 2019-20 series.”Ravi Shastri (head coach) called me sometime in July,” Arun said. “When we were discussing the Australia tour, he said that we need to take the off-side out of the Australians. So, we had our own analysis and felt that most of the runs that Steven Smith and Marnus Labuschange had scored was off the cut, pull and on the offside. We also took a cue out of the New Zealand attack when they bowled to Steven Smith, where they had attacked his body and he had felt very uncomfortable at that point in time.”India’s bowling coach B Arun says they devised the plan to attack Steven Smith on middle and leg stump in July 2019, well before the start of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy•Getty Images

Between India’s previous tour in 2018-19 to the start of the series that just finished, 36% of deliveries faced by Australia’s right-handers were played to the leg side. In this series, however, that number jumped to 45%, a consequence of India’s steadfast middle-and-leg lines to complement their strong leg-side fields. But the true effect of it can be seen in another far more stat: 36 out of Australia’s 68 dismissals were either bowled, lbw or caught on the leg-side.It’s a tactic India tried to execute from as far back as January last year, during a three-ODI series in India. In the series-decider in Bengaluru, Mohammed Shami and Navdeep Saini were tasked with the challenge of attacking Smith’s body with a leg slip in place. For a batter part of that contest, Smith looked ungainly.He was beaten for pace while trying to get inside the line, and when he did eventually manage to take them on, the timing was elusive. While Smith went on to make a century there, it wasn’t high on the fluency charts. By the end of it, India’s think tank may have seen enough of the plan to believe they had something to work with going forward.”Ravi called and said, ‘I want you to make a plan where we eliminate the offside for the Australians.’ Then we sat and planned the whole thing,” Arun said. “We said we’re going to attack them with straighter lines and have on-side fields for batsmen. The thought process started in July and when we had discussion with Virat [Kohli], he bought into the theory. We employed it in Adelaide and Ajinkya [Rahane] was magnificent [in his use of the plan] in Melbourne onwards and the bowlers responded beautifully.”

Batsman says proactivity may be needed in conditions, but expects less trouble from red ball

Andrew Miller02-Mar-2021Zak Crawley admits that England may need to be more proactive as a batting unit to overcome another spin-friendly surface in Ahmedabad this week, but he’s confident that a reversion to red-ball cricket may remove some of the challenges associated with last week’s pink-ball Test – particularly those posed by the left-arm spinner, Axar Patel.Patel, who now has 18 wickets at 9.44 in his two-Test career, dismissed Crawley twice in the third Test, including with the first ball of England’s second innings, to set in motion a collapse to 81 all out and an eventual two-day defeat.Nine of Patel’s 11 wickets were lbw or bowled – and 20 out of 30 in the whole match – as batsmen on both sides were consistently beaten for pace off the pitch, as if the shiny lacquer of the pink ball was helping it to skid through more quickly than a conventional red ball might have done.And while Crawley expects few changes to the prevailing conditions at Ahmedabad – where anything other than an England win will secure India’s progression to the World Test Championship final – he believes that England must keep faith in the gameplans that earned them a memorable victory in the first Test in Chennai, even if they have then to adapt them as the match progresses.”I think it will be a very similar pitch this week. Why wouldn’t it be?” Crawley said. “It wasn’t easy to score, for sure. But it was the same for both sides and they played very well. We had our chance, we batted first and started well, but unfortunately we didn’t play as well as we needed to.”But if it’s the same pitch, I do think it will be slightly easier [this time],” he added. “I felt like the pink ball was a bit harder and therefore skidded on quite quickly, which is why both sides got so many wickets lbw and bowled.”[Axar] still has that ball in his armoury for sure and he’ll still be a massive threat with that one, but it might not skid on with the same pace as the pink ball, in which case we don’t need to change too much.”But if it looks like it’s going to be just as tricky, and it plays the same way with one skidding and one turning, then we may need to be more proactive, [otherwise] just play your natural game.”Crawley himself provided some of England’s most proactive batting of the winter on the first morning of the third Test, as he raced to a 68-ball half-century with ten fours, before England lost their last eight wickets for 38 to be bowled out for 112 midway through the afternoon session.Left-arm spin has been a consistent issue for Crawley this winter•Sri Lanka Cricket

And while he acknowledged that his strong start was made possible, in part, by an early diet of seam bowling, he said he would still take great confidence from that performance, particularly after making a top score of 13 in four innings on the Sri Lanka leg of the tour, prior to the wrist injury that caused him to miss the two Tests in Chennai.”I had the best of it facing the seamers but it was nice to score some runs nonetheless,” he said. “In these conditions, you need to have a clear gameplan before going in there, and you also need a lot of luck. But just spending time in the middle, and getting a sighter for their bowlers, I feel like I’ve got better gameplans now, and I feel confident going into this game for sure.”Patel’s left-arm approach, however, has been a consistent issue for Crawley all winter long. He was removed by left-armer Lasith Embuldeniya in all four of his innings in Sri Lanka, and has scored just 30 runs from the 73 balls he’s faced from both bowlers, for six times out.But, just as Patel’s offspinning partner, R Ashwin, has proven a particular challenge for England’s left-handers – not least Ben Stokes, whom he has now dismissed on 11 occasions in Tests – Crawley dismissed the suggestion that he is unusually vulnerable to the challenge of left-arm spin.Related

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“I don’t think it’s a big issue,” he said. “I’ve been bowled some good balls and faced a lot of left-arm spin. If I’m facing spin pretty much from both ends all the time, I’m going to get out to one of the spinners, unless I get 200 not out.”You have to get out some way, and one of them is going to be an offspinner and the other a left-armer. And for a right-handed batsman, the left-armer is going to be more of a challenge.”One ball is going to skid on and attack the stumps, and if I miss it I’m going to be out, whereas with Ashwin – unbelievable bowler as we all know – if one goes straight on, I’m going to miss it. Those are just the difficulties right-handers face and that’s why left-handers find it so hard against Ashwin.”It was a measure of the challenge that England faced in Ahmedabad that even their most accomplished player of spin, Joe Root, struggled to assert himself, making scores of 17 and 19 after opening the series with a matchwinning 218 in Chennai.Root was also England’s most effective bowler in the third Test, claiming the remarkable figures of 5 for 8 in 6.2 overs, but Crawley insisted that his captain was not feeling any burden of “carrying” his team-mates.”He’s an unbelievable player, but he loves all that,” he said. “I don’t think he feels like he’s carrying us at all. He’s loving being the best player in our side, and one of the best in the world, and contributing with the ball and as captain.”We all know how tough it’s been,” he added. “They’ve got great players in their side and they’ve struggled for runs as well, so it’s not like they’re scoring millions and we’re scoring none. It’s been a pretty low-scoring encounter, especially the last game. So, we’ve still got loads of confidence in our ability, and it’s all a learning curve.”There’s definitely a way back [into the series]. We’re only one game down, we won a great first Test match. It’s going to require us to get a good first-innings lead, and that’s going to require us to bat very well. Our bowlers have been doing nicely, getting them out for 145, so if we can replicate that, then get a nice lead, that will put them under a lot of pressure.”They would be very disappointed with a drawn series for sure, and we would be very happy with that. It’ll be unbelievable if we can pull off four out of six Test matches.”

The case hadn’t been registered by the FIA yet as Babar’s legal team had obtained a stay order

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Mar-2021The Lahore High Court has suspended last week’s order by a sessions court that had directed Pakistan’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to file a case against Babar Azam on charges of blackmail and harassment.This, after Haris Azmat, Azam’s counsel, told the court that the earlier judgment had been passed without the court having heard the cricketer’s point of view on the matter. In any case, the case had never been registered by the FIA, as Azam’s legal team had obtained a stay order against any such move.All parties involved – Azam, Hamiza Mukhtar, who had filed the complaint against Azam, and the FIA – have been given two weeks’ time to respond.Mukhtar had initiated the case last year ahead of Pakistan’s tour of New Zealand. She held a press conference in which she alleged that the Pakistan captain had harassed and exploited her. She had approached a court at the time, and the court in question had directed the police to investigate the matter.The sessions court had subsequently directed the police to register a case and investigate Azam within the boundaries of the law, as it felt the allegations were disturbing and warranted a full investigation.That case, too, had never been registered, as Azam’s legal team had managed to secure a stay order from the Lahore High Court, and the proceedings were adjourned as Azam was playing against South Africa first and then in the PSL, both requiring him to be inside a bio-secure bubble. He is presently preparing for a tour of Africa to play South Africa and Zimbabwe.After that, however, Mukhtar filed a complaint with the FIA, alleging that she had received threatening phone calls and messages from unidentified people. On investigation, the FIA found one of the numbers to be registered in the name of Azam – referred to as Muhammad Babar. Azam was summoned to appear before the agency but didn’t. In his place, his brother Faisal Azam appeared, asking for more time.In their original report, once Azam didn’t appear, the FIA had concluded: “This shows guilty form [sic] his part.” Judge Hamid Hussain last Thursday directed the FIA “to proceed further with respect to registration of the FIR against the culprits within the stipulated time following legal formalities”.Azam has so far not commented on the matter – the PCB has also maintained silence on it – but did say last week, “It is in court and my lawyer is handling it. We face all sorts of hurdles in life and I am used to it. This issue has not affected my form or cricket.”

Stuart Broad leads the line with three wickets in rare county outing

George Dobell16-Apr-2021Nottinghamshire have given themselves an excellent opportunity to secure their first win in first-class cricket for almost three years by dominating the second day of the Championship match against Warwickshire.Notts have gone 27 Championship matches without a win – it’s 28 if you include all first-class games – with the most recent victory coming in June 2018.But at the halfway stage of the match against Warwickshire, they lead by 200 runs with eight wickets in hand. On a surface offering just a little bit of variable bounce, batting fourth could prove challenging.To make matters worse for Warwickshire, they look set to be without Dom Sibley for the rest of the game. Sibley was diagnosed with a small fracture of a finger on his right hand after dropping a chance at slip on the first day and was unable to bat in the first innings. While Warwickshire have not ruled out his further involvement, it does seem highly unlikely – not least as they will be reluctant to risk further damage to that finger.While the injury is not thought to be serious – he should have recovered long before the Test series against New Zealand – he is likely to miss the next few rounds of games. With that in mind, there might be more thought given to playing Pieter Malan and Hanuma Vihari in the same side. Malan, who now has his visa, is expected to be available from May 6.The short-term loss of Sibley is significant, though. He averages 205.50 against Nottinghamshire in first-class cricket – albeit over a sample size of just three games – with a lowest score of 87. The last time these teams met, in 2019, he made an unbeaten 215 in the first innings and 109 more in the second.If Nottinghamshire do go on to win, they will be grateful for the contribution of Stuart Broad. In claiming three of Warwickshire’s top four – albeit one of them a nightwatchman – Broad gave his side a grip on the game which they show no sign of relenting.It was typical modern Broad, really. Threatening the stumps relentlessly, he struck with the second ball of the day – the left-handed Will Rhodes edging one which demanded a stroke from round the wicket – and returned to dismiss the stubborn Danny Briggs with one that held its line.Stuart Broad picked up valuable wickets in Warwickshire’s first innings•Getty Images

That Briggs wicket took Broad to something of a milestone: his 150th first-class wicket for Nottinghamshire. The fact that it has taken Broad so long to reach the figure – he made his first-class debut for the side in 2008 – is a reflection of the modern game. England duty has dominated ever since he made his Test debut that same year. His more-than-respectable average of 23.88 confirms his commitment on the occasions he has been available.It bears reiterating that it was Broad’s choice to play in this game. The England management originally had him scheduled to take another week off. But such is his enthusiasm to play, he asked to return early and has led the attack with authority.”It’s great to be training and playing here again,” he said afterwards. “Even without the crowds there is an aura about the place and it is always easy for me to feel at home again when I come back.”I pride myself on trying to set the tone so it was nice for me to get wickets early in my spells. I thought as a bowling unit the pressure we created all day was pretty strong and we almost deserved a little bit more, but we put a few chances down.”This was a satisfying day for Nottinghamshire. As well as seeing their seam attack combine well, they watched a couple of their talented young batters, Joe Clarke and Haseeb Hameed, batted with assurance and fluency in reaching half-centuries in the second innings.Hameed’s forcing strokes off the back foot – reminiscent of Mike Atherton – were pleasing, but Clarke’s back-foot drive for four off Olly Stone was the shot of the day; a thing of real beauty. Given the depth of talent in this squad, it really is hard to fathom that they have gone winless for so long.It’s wasn’t perfect, though. Warwickshire’s batsmen had three reprieves within the space of a few minutes in the morning session, with Sam Hain (on 24) and Briggs (on 19) both surviving edges to the slip cordon where Lyndon James was unable to cling on. The unfortunate bowler on both occasions, Dane Patterson, also had Briggs (still on 19) caught and bowled, only to learn that he had delivered a no-ball.Related

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Patterson won belated rewards at the end of the innings. He claimed Warwickshire’s final three wickets without conceding a run. Figures of 3 for 61 will feel much better than 0 for 61.In Sibley’s absence, only Hain mounted meaningful resistance in recording his highest first-class score since September 2019. This is a big year for Hain. While his long-term first-class record is respectable – he averages 35.90 – he hasn’t quite lived up to early expectations. He made his debut for Australia U19 as a 16-year-old, after all, and, as an 18-year-old, broke Ian Bell’s record to become Warwickshire’s youngest first-class centurion. Not long afterwards, he became the club’s youngest double-centurion, too. There were six centuries in his first 18 first-class games up to July 2015.But there have only been four more since. And while his List A record remains phenomenal – at 59.78, he has the highest average in history of anyone with a minimum of 50 innings – he averaged only 18.25 in first-class cricket in 2020 and has slipped some way down the reckoning for a Test place. That red ball, nipping around laterally far more than its white counterpart, tends to expose technical flaws.You can see why the selectors might have some reservations. His predilection for the leg side renders him something of a leg-before candidate – invariably bowlers have their hands to their heads even while the ball is skipping over the square-leg boundary – while the limitations of his front-foot approach were demonstrated when the distinctly sharp Zak Chappell persuaded one to lift sharply from just back of a good length. Hain, unable to move out of the way, was fortunate to see the ball fly just out of reach off the shoulder of the bat.The talent is obvious, though. Leaving well outside off, he invites bowlers to straighten their line and is then merciless off his legs. In partnership with the admirably determined Briggs, he added 73 for Warwickshire’s fourth wicket and, while he was there, gave his side hopes of parity. It was something of a surprise when he missed a straight one from Liam Patterson-White.It may be the dismissal of Tim Bresnan that most concerns Warwickshire, though. He was caught off the glove by one that reared off the surface and ballooned to point. It was not an encouraging sight for a team likely to be chasing a demanding target in the fourth innings.

Visitors move ahead of par score off final ball amid controversy at Radlett

ECB Reporters' Network17-Jun-2021Ian Cockbain hit his first half-century of this year’s Vitality Blast to earn Gloucestershire a narrow win over Middlesex after rain at Radlett prevented a nail-biting finish.Cockbain, who top-edged the final ball of the 18th over from Steven Finn for six, did just enough to edge his side ahead by two runs under Duckworth-Lewis-Stern calculations. Until then, Gloucestershire had been behind the required rate, but Cockbain and Ryan Higgins, with an unbeaten 20, did enough to tilt the contest in their favour, reaching 157 for 5 when a downpour halted play.The run chase was controversial, with both captains questioning the decision to start a fixture at an outground – without floodlights – as late as 5.30pm. Middlesex were told to bowl spin at one stage due to poor light, leading to prolonged delays while Eoin Morgan spoke to the umpires. They brought Finn back in the 18th over, though he conceded two sixes to tilt the game in Gloucestershire’s favour.”The more frustrating thing from my side was that it was so dark, so early,” Morgan said. “The fact that you’re forced to bowl spin, as a captain, when it’s probably not the best option to do so at that time. That happened in about the 12th over and in a game of T20 cricket your hand is forced.”The light was questionable the whole time, but there are two very experienced umpires out there and you have to trust their decision. Given the situation we found ourselves in, the right decision was made. It was dark by the end of the game and when it’s dark, safety comes into it.”Jack Taylor, Gloucestershire’s captain, said: “The umpires were stuck between a rock and a hard place – it did get pretty dark early on. In white-ball cricket, you try and stay out there and they obviously wanted to keep a full game, but I think to be honest a lot of it’s down to the start time.”I don’t think we can play at half past five any more, without lights. Ultimately we all want to play full, good games of cricket and that tarnished some of the good cricket we played in the first half. We had a similar thing at Glamorgan last week – the floodlights weren’t working so we started at 5.30 and the last half-hour of the game was too dark.”Middlesex had posted 179 for 5 after being put in, built around Joe Cracknell’s 41-ball innings of 67 – the youngster’s second successive half-century.Related

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The home side struggled to find momentum in the powerplay and lost Paul Stirling for just 8, slamming Josh Shaw into the hands of mid-off. However, Cracknell looked assured at the crease, punching the ball cleanly and finding the boundary regularly as he and Stephen Eskinazi added 59 from 45 balls.Tom Smith broke the partnership, luring Eskinazi down the track for Glenn Phillips to pull off a stumping, but Cracknell advanced past 50 before mistiming his drive off Dan Worrall and picking out the long-off fielder.Higgins squandered a chance to dispose of Morgan early, dropping him at point – and the Middlesex captain made him pay, thrashing 21 off his next over as he raced to 38 from 22 balls. Higgins got his man eventually, caught in the deep after a knock that included three sixes, before a late flurry from Chris Green, who hit 13 not out from six deliveries, lifted Middlesex to 179.Gloucestershire got away to a flying start courtesy of Chris Dent, who took three successive fours off Tim Murtagh and dispatched Blake Cullen for two sixes to reach 32 from just 15 balls.Despite the departure of Dent – tempted by Steven Finn’s short ball – the visitors reached 61 for 1 in the Powerplay and Cockbain maintained the scoring rate with a succession of boundaries. However, spin duo Green and Luke Hollman, who finished with figures of 2 for 30 and 2 for 33 respectively, slowed Gloucestershire down during the middle overs with flight, variation – and a clutch of wickets.The pick of those was Morgan’s grab at short cover to dismiss Benny Howell off Hollman, but Cockbain remained to marshal the chase and ultimately did just enough to secure Gloucestershire’s victory.

Fast bowler will overtake Alastair Cook’s mark of 161 caps if he plays in second Test

Andrew Miller08-Jun-2021Few players have married skill and longevity to quite such staggering effect as James Anderson, who stands to overtake Alastair Cook as England’s most-capped Test cricketer this week, if selected for his 162nd appearance against New Zealand in the second Test at Edgbaston.But, as he reflected on his 18-year journey from a raw but successful debut against Zimbabwe at Lord’s in 2003, Anderson admitted that his initial reaction to the big stage was one of intense self-doubt, as he questioned his right to be there at all.”I thought I wasn’t good enough,” Anderson said, as he recalled how his first over, from the Nursery End at Lord’s, was picked off by Zimbabwe’s openers for 17 runs, including two fours and a three for Dion Ebrahim as he strayed too close to the right-hander’s pads.”I thought it was a huge step up from county cricket,” Anderson added. “I remember Nasser [Hussain] didn’t have a fine leg for me and I went for quite a few runs. My first ball was a no-ball as well so there were a lot of nerves there and I did feel like this was maybe a step too far for me at that point.”Anderson soon settled into his spell, however, and after striking in his third over to bowl Mark Vermeulen through the gate for 1, he returned from the Pavilion End to pick off four quick wickets in the final 20 balls of the innings.He left the field with figures of 5 for 73 to earn the first of his six entries on the Lord’s honours board, and begin his journey towards becoming the most successful fast bowler in history, with 616 wickets now to his name.”I think I cleaned up the tail in that game,” he said. “Until you play against the best players in the world and you’ve got them out, only then do you feel like you can compete and belong there.”James Anderson took five wickets on debut against Zimbabwe in 2003•PA Photos

That process, however, was not a swift one for Anderson, who slipped out of favour after a tough series against South Africa later that summer. He played a total of four Tests in 2004 and 2005 as England, under the new captaincy of Michael Vaughan, finetuned the four-pronged seam attack that would go on to reclaim the Ashes.Throughout this period, Anderson cut a forlorn figure, often practising alone during lunch breaks at Test matches, and though he played an important role in a famous victory in Mumbai in 2005-06, his progress was further hampered by the diagnosis of a stress fracture in his back – an issue that was partially brought about by the ECB’s efforts to remodel his action, ironically to reduce the likelihood of injury.”I’m proud of the fact that I’ve overcome little hurdles throughout my career and they’ve made me stronger,” he said. “The stress fracture was like hitting the re-set button I guess.”I’d gone through a lot of changes in my action before that and that stress fracture was probably a Godsend. It made me go back to my old action and since then I’ve felt really comfortable and got more consistent. That’s really helped me and makes me feel proud I got stronger from that and never looked back.”The pivotal moment, however, arguably came against Anderson’s current opponents, New Zealand, on England’s 2007-08 tour when – for the second Test at Wellington – he and Stuart Broad were thrust into the front line in place of Matthew Hoggard and Steve Harmison, to form a matchwinning partnership that has scarcely looked back since.”We both look back on that Test with great fondness,” he said. “I think it was a proper starting point in our Test careers. The fact that Peter Moores, the coach at that time, showed that confidence in us, because he left out two senior bowlers who’d been extremely influential in the England side up until that point.”He brought us in and gave us that responsibility, showed that faith in us. We still look back on that with great fondness and we’ve enjoyed every minute of it. Hopefully there will be a few more memories to come.”Since that recall, Anderson has claimed 554 Test wickets at 25.17, compared to 62 at 39.20 in the first 20 matches of his career, spread across five years. He went on to play key roles in three consecutive Ashes victories from 2009 to 2013, and was also described as the “difference between the sides” by MS Dhoni when England won in India in 2012-13.”It took a few years,” Anderson said. “I think it was about putting in some performances against the better sides in the world.Related

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“No disrespect to Zimbabwe, but playing against teams like South Africa and Australia and India, once you put in performances against the top teams in the world, that’s when you can feel like you can actually perform at that level. So it did take a few years and a few tours around the world to make me think I could actually do it.”Whether he can do it this week will depend on England’s approach to rest and rotation, given that Anderson turns 39 next month, and England are understandably keen not to over-bowl him with big series against India and Australia looming later in the year. His eagerness to get involved, however, has not diminished with age.”I’m not sure on the team yet,” Anderson said. “Hopefully I’ve got the opportunity to do that on Thursday. It’s been an incredible 15 years really. Knowing how much Cooky played it makes me very proud I’ve actually got to this point.”One player who could come into the reckoning is the Warwickshire fast bowler, Olly Stone, who made his Test comeback against India in Chennai this winter, after one previous appearance on home soil, against Ireland at Lord’s in 2019.”I think Olly is a really impressive person,” Anderson said. “I like him a lot as a bloke. He works incredibly hard, he’s got pace and he’s got skills as well, he can swing the ball.”He’s got character to play Test cricket, we saw that in India briefly. He’s someone I think is very exciting and has a decent Test career ahead of him. He’s got all the attributes to perform at this level and, I would say, the character.”England could also be sweating on the fitness of James Bracey, who made his debut as wicketkeeper at Lord’s last week. He took a blow to the finger during a drills session on Tuesday, and was reportedly in some pain before resuming light training with strapping on his hand. He will be assessed again in the morning.In the absence of Ben Foakes, who tore a hamstring in the Surrey dressing room earlier in the month, as well as Jos Buttler and Jonny Bairstow who have been rested after their IPL stints, the uncapped Sam Billings is England’s reserve keeper.