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The South African spinner described the Sri Lankan’s consistency as “phenomenal” and said he wanted to incorporate how the older man could turn and slide the ball at will

Andrew Fidel Fernando18-Jul-2018When Keshav Maharaj first saw Rangana Herath at close quarters, Herath was unable to impose himself on the series. Although in the lead up to Sri Lanka’s tour of South Africa in 2016-17, Maharaj had identified Herath as one of his leading spin-bowling influences, he wound up with better returns than the senior man across the three Tests – taking seven wickets at an average of 30.28, to Herath’s six at 48.South Africa had gone out of their way to neutralise Herath on that tour, stating publicly that they had asked for pitches that would not crumble, which partly explain Herath’s modest performances. But now, in Sri Lanka, where tracks are designed to have the opposite effect – to exacerbate Herath’s threat, Maharaj has a chance to watch the master left-arm spinner in his natural habitat, and perhaps pick up a few tricks.”I think Herath’s consistency in phenomenal,” Maharaj said. “Left-arm spinners are known to control the game, but he does something special – he turns the ball at will and slides the ball on at will. It’s something that I’d love to learn in my trade and get some knowledge from him. I did speak to him in South Africa, and he did give me some insight, but I’d like to pick his brain more about playing in subcontinent conditions, because he’s the best in the world at what he does.”What Herath does on Sri Lankan pitches, Maharaj felt, was consistently put balls in good areas. Maharaj had been modest in the first innings in Galle, going wicketless in 17 overs, but seemed to gain some confidence in the second innings, in which he took 4 for 58, dismissing four of Sri Lanka’s top five. “I think on these wickets, as long as you’re putting the ball in the right area with energy on the ball, what happens on the wicket you have no control over,” Maharaj said. “We don’t know when the ball is going to spin excessively or not. You’ve basically got to put the right ingredients into the wicket and whatever happens from there is in God’s hands.”Wherever you play in the world, you want to be consistent in your lengths and cause the batter to be uncomfortable when you’re bowling at him. That’s something I had to pick up after the first innings. Obviously I didn’t have a bit of rhythm, but then I found it in the second innings, and I put the ball in much better areas than I did.”Now that Maharaj’s spin partner Tabraiz Shamsi has returned to the squad, after attending to a family matter at home at the start of the week, South Africa have the option of fielding the same five bowlers at SSC. The five-bowler combination does put a little more pressure on the lower order, however, who will be expected to score runs. At Galle, Sri Lanka’s tailenders had batted well alongside a senior partner to change the complexion of the match, the last two wicket stands adding 111 to the team score.”I put more pressure on myself than anyone else does to score runs,” Maharaj said. “I need to contribute in the lower order. We saw the partnership of Suranga Lakmal and Lakshan Sandakan towards the end – they put on a 100-run partnership and it makes a difference in the Test match. In terms of game plans I’m just trying to keep it simple. I like attacking spinners, but I’ve got to back my defence against them at the same time.”

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.

A last-minute captaincy switch, late changes to the squad, top-order exodus and doubts over Lasith Malinga’s fitness have all left Sri Lanka in disarray, heading in to their World T20 defence

Andrew Fidel Fernando16-Mar-20164:27

Arnold: SL bowlers skillful, but need confidence

Big picture

After arriving in India, Angelo Mathews had said he hadn’t been prepared to take up the captaincy, but as a senior, he mused, “How can [he] say no?” It is a strange situation. Sri Lanka have chosen their leader for the defence of a major international trophy the same way most people would nominate a sober driver for a night out. Expectations are also suitably low. Mathews may have taken plenty of chases home safely in the past, but this time it’s believed someone slicker will pick up the trophy.If T20 is the format of helter-skelter mayhem, then Sri Lanka’s approach to the tournament has set the standard. In eight matches played against Full Member oppositions this year, Sri Lanka have lost seven, and been captained by three different men. In the 24 hours before the team departed to India, they not only got a new captain and two fresh players, but a whole new selection committee as well (fans, though, might have been more at ease if Kumar Sangakkara had been rather than made a selector). The top order has been a jumble. The bowling spearhead’s joints seem to be in full-scale revolt. And Tillakaratne Dilshan may have gone overboard with his hair dye – though, you have to admit, it will go nicely with the new team kit’s warm colour palette.The outlook, however, is not totally hopeless. If Lasith Malinga can somehow recover in time to be a force in the campaign, Sri Lanka will still have the attack that was the bedrock of their T20 wonder years. Rangana Herath makes slow-motion dives in the outfield, but, on a good day, may still set rapid collapses in motion as well. Nuwan Kulasekara has lost his big inswinger, which is a bit like Coke not making their cola. Yet he is still gleaning profit from slower balls, yorkers and the away-seamer. They also have new kid Dushmantha Chameera. He may be built like the poles he is trying to knock over, but plenty of top batsmen have found out in recent months that his bouncer doesn’t mess around.Sri Lanka will also be hoping to rediscover that big-tournament mojo that spurred so many of their campaigns between 2007 and 2014. It would be fair to say that Sri Lanka have been the most dominant World T20 side, over the tournament’s five iterations. This time, though, they are grappling with a top-order exodus and a propensity to crumble to defeat from strong positions. They will need to spring a surprise to get to the semi-finals. A tournament triumph may require a string of small miracles – the first of which would ideally be performed on Malinga’s left knee.

At the helm

Because being the most accomplished batsman and opening the bowling are not big enough jobs, Angelo Mathews has been given the captaincy as well. Among Sri Lanka’s concerns though, is his recent batting form. He had hit 81 not out against New Zealand in January, but was quiet through the Asia Cup. If he can return to his best in this tournament, Sri Lanka’s middle order may become formidable again.On the strategy front, Mathews’ conservatism has played a role in matches slipping away from Sri Lanka. Perhaps this is something that can be addressed by new coach Graham Ford – in whose first tenure Sri Lanka had played dynamic, attractive cricket.

Key stat

4
This is the number of T20Is Sri Lanka have won since the 2014 World T20 final, losing 10 in the same period. By comparison, in the two years up to that final, Sri Lanka had won 19 T20Is and lost just eight. It has been a dramatic slide.

Leading men

Dinesh Chandimal had lost his place in the team during the last World T20, but is among the few players stringing together good performances ahead of this tournament. He does have his critics. Chandimal is aggressive in the longer formats, but is the kind of batsman who needs a few quiet overs in the middle before the boundaries flow. As such, there were questions as to why he would open the innings in T20s, but he helped alleviate those concerns with scores of 50, 37 and 58 in the Asia Cup. His glovework is on a steady incline as well, though sadly his appeals haven’t been as watchable recently.T20 is not a format made for Rangana Herath. Arguably, cricket was not a pursuit made for him either. Yet, through sheer power of will, he has excelled at both. Last time, in Bangladesh, Herath delivered arguably the greatest T20 spell so far. Though his limited-overs hauls have not been so dramatic in the years since, he has nevertheless been effective through the middle overs. Look for bowling figures like 1 for 21, or 0 for 18, and know that “Rangana was here”.Angelo Mathews will have to juggle multiple responsibilities as Sri Lanka look to regroup•AFP

Burning question

There are many questions this team needs to answer and almost all of them are burning. Let’s pick a few out of the inferno:Can Thisara Perera come good with bat or ball? In recent months, he has often been out cheaply, before delivering expensive overs.Is Tillakaratne Dilshan too slow at the top of the order now? His wiles have certainly grown sharper as his reactions have slowed, but those breakneck starts are becoming more infrequent.Can Sachithra Senanayake be a reliable second spinner? A pre-remodeled Senanayake was instrumental to Sri Lanka’s 2014 triumph, but how will the straight arm go this time? If pitches wear towards the end of the tournament again, Sri Lanka will need him to play a big role.Can the team cover for the lack of fielding quality from the big bellied? Herath and Malinga are vital to the attack, but may get around the field quicker if they rolled around horizontally.How can Dushmantha Chameera be used effectively? He has shown himself to be a wicket-taking bowler, but occasionally Sri Lanka have looked to him to contain.

World T20 history

Despite the bleak outlook this year, Sri Lanka have had a knack of getting their act together when the tournament starts. They didn’t make huge waves in the 2007 edition, but have made the semi-finals in each of the four World T20s since then, and been finalists in three of those. Unsurprisingly, the tournament’s highest scorer (Mahela Jayawardene) and highest wicket-taker (Malinga) are Sri Lankan.

In their own words

“We found it really hard to even compete in the Asia Cup sometimes, and that is the truth we admitted. We didn’t play good enough cricket to get to the finals. But this is a fresh tournament for us. We have learnt so many things from the Asia Cup and we will take that experience going forward.”
– Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews

Jamaica Tallawahs beat Guyana Amazon Warriors by seven wickets to win the first Caribbean Premier League

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Aug-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsChris Gayle guided Jamaica to the title with a well-paced innings•Getty Images

In the lead-up to the final against Jamaica Tallawahs, Curtly Ambrose, assistant coach of the Guyana Amazon Warriors, spoke about the importance of bowlers, specially Krishmar Santokie, Lasith Malinga and Sunil Narine. Santokie had had an impressive tournament, emerging as the leading wicket-taker with 16 at an average of 13.68.The ending to his good run, however, went a little awry. Against Jamaica, in the final, the seamer was called on to bowl the 17th over, his last of the match. His last three overs had yielded an economical 11 runs. Jamaica needed 26 off 24 with seven wickets in hand and Guyana had a sliver of a chance at victory, after their batsmen had managed 128 for 5.Guyana’s defence of a middling total fell apart in that over. Santokie started with two wides down the leg side, one of which raced past the wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin to the boundary. Two balls later, he bowled another wide outside off stump, and followed that up with three more down the legside. By the time he was done with the 11-ball over, Santokie had conceded 20 runs, 11 of those in wides. It took Chris Gayle and Andre Russell a mere three more balls to knock off the remaining six runs and help Jamaica claim the title.Santokie’s nightmarish over aside, Guyana had managed to stay in the chase for most of the innings. At the end of the 13th over, Jamaica were 58 runs adrift before Chris Gayle and Andre Russell took 20 runs of a Christopher Barnwell over to bring a seemingly ungainly chase under control.Gayle played a steady innings, eschewing risks but hitting the occasional boundary to keep the asking rate in check. He watched from the other end as Chadwick Walton lost his wicket after some expansive shots in the third over and Kumar Sangakkara brought an end to his stint at the crease with a slog off Barnwell. Gayle finished with a well-paced 47 off 48 balls, with his 62-run fourth-wicket stand with Russell at the end taking his side to victory.Earlier, Jamaica’s bowlers did a good job of restricting the Guyana batsmen before James Franklin played an aggressive knock of 17 off 9 to take Guyana from 108 for 5 in the 19th over to 128 for 5. Pacer David Bernard struck in successive overs to dismiss opener William Perkins and Tillakaratne Dilshan, before Lendl Simmons and Ramdin steadied the innings with a third-wicket stand of 52. The pair scored the runs in good time, playing Muttiah Muralitharan with caution but going after Nikita Miller and Chris Gayle.Ramdin smacked a six and a four off Russell in the 14th but just when their innings seemed to be gathering some momentum, Miller had Simmons caught in the deep by Sangakkara for 40. A couple of overs later, Sunil Narine, promoted ahead of Sarwan and James Franklin, fell for 9. Two deliveries later, Ramdin was dismissed by Gayle for 29. Franklin’s last-over hits to the boundary ensured that Guyana had a respectable total to defend.Gayle was awarded the Man-of-the-Match award for his innings, while Santokie was named Man of the Series.The CPL result, however, will have no bearing on West Indies’ representation in the 2013 Champions League T20, as Trinidad & Tobago have already qualified for the tournament by winning the country’s domestic T20 competition earlier this year.

Stephen Peters added another century to keep alive Northamptonshire’s slim hopes of clinching promotion to Division One

Jon Culley at Northampton10-Aug-2012
ScorecardStephen Peters batted all day for an unbeaten 137•Getty Images

A week after registering his first century of a season that has seen him short of runs, Stephen Peters added another to keep alive Northamptonshire’s slim hopes of clinching promotion to Division One.Time is running out and Derbyshire, the leaders, look out of reach but a victory in this match combined with a couple more in the final quarter of the season might yet put them in contention for second place. After the psychological damage left by last season, when they appeared to have the prize in their grasp only to let a big lead evaporate, they should need little motivation.There is a new man providing it now – or rather newish. David Ripley, who joined the club as a player in 1984 and has never left, has been on the coaching staff for more than a decade, took charge of the first team temporarily last month after the sacking of David Capel, another long servant, and was told the job was his permanently earlier this week.There had been suggestions that a fresh voice might be needed to bring renewed vigour to the dressing room but the move has been a popular one among the players. Oddly enough, Peters offered his personal support for the appointment on the eve of this match. If form reflects contentment, then this innings was a further endorsement.He rarely put a foot wrong, sharing an opening stand of 126 with Niall O’Brien, who was back in the side after his latest tour of duty with Ireland, and one of 139 with Andrew Hall that re-established Northamptonshire’s grip after an afternoon session in which Leicestershire had mounted a fightback.Now 33, Peters has become a solidly dependable opening batsman, blessed with superlative powers of concentration. Yet in full flow he is an attractive strokemaker who can easily switch to attacking mode. His unbeaten 137 would have looked better still, though, had Hall not been out to what became the last ball of the day, driving loosely at a ball from Nathan Buck that provided a catch for wicketkeeper Ned Eckersley. Nonetheless, with a third batting point in the bank and some capable batting to come, Ripley will feel it has been a satisfactory opening day.Leicestershire are bottom of the table, which has become a sadly familiar position for them. However, they are not so far behind that what remains of the season is meaningless. Indeed, the gap between themselves and Northamptonshire at the start of this match was only 20 points.Yet for the most part they were disappointing. Josh Cobb, taking charge of his second Championship game after Matthew Hoggard left himself out in favour of Robbie Joseph, chose to bowl first on a grassy wicket on winning the toss but was probably regretting the decision fairly quickly.None of his bowlers seemed capable of finding anything in it to help their cause and the Northamptonshire openers made the most of a rare opportunity to bat in sustained warm sunshine, finishing the morning session 95 to the good.The afternoon was much more productive for Leicestershire, albeit within the space of 11 overs. The seamers bowled what you might refer to politely as a mixed bag. There were a few too many easy boundaries, and a bit too much work for Eckersley to do on the leg side of the wicket, yet from time to time there would be a ball that flew past the edge or had the batsman in two minds. Wickets went begging a couple of times for want of an extra slip fielder.Wayne White, in particular, offered a threat. He has some pace and hostility in his armoury and took two wickets in two balls towards the end of his second spell, breaking the opening partnership when O’Brien, a little flat-footed, edged a drive. The Irishman had looked impressive in reaching 70. Two balls later, David Sales, struggling for runs, edged low to first slip. He did not walk immediately, but after a consultation between the umpires had to accept that the ball had been taken cleanly.When Shiv Thakor, the 18-year-old allrounder for whom Leicestershire have great hopes, then removed Alex Wakely and Rob Newton within the space of four deliveries, across two overs, Northamptonshire were 161 for 4.White’s third spell deserved more success but Hall and Peters steadily reasserted themselves. Peters reached his century by cutting Claude Henderson, the left-arm spinner, for his 12th boundary and followed it immediately with another. He had increased his tally to 16 by the close.Whatever else happens in Northamptonshire’s season, it will not involve Chaminda Vaas. The 38-year-old former Sri Lanka fast bowler, who was the county’s player of the year in 2011, has been released from what remains of his contract after a season dogged by injury problems.

ESPNcricinfo previews the fourth ODI between Zimbabwe and Bangladesh in Bulawayo

The Preview by Firdose Moonda18-Aug-2011Match facts
August 19, Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
Start time 09.30 am (07.30 GMT)With the pitch at the Queens Sports Club likely to help spinners, Ray Price could return to Zimbabwe’s XI•Getty Images

The Big Picture

Bangladesh finally arrived in Zimbabwe, a couple of weeks later than they should have. After being outplayed in the only Test and the first two ODIs, they showed a bit of tenacity with a competitive – but not match-winning – performance in the third one-dayer. It came too late, as a devastated Shakib Al Hasan said, but it was something worth taking heart from and bodes well for the remaining two matches, which take place at a different venue.For the first time on the tour, the cricket moves to Bulawayo. And while the series as a whole is dead – Zimbabwe are 3-0 up – the smaller contests have come to life. A tight chase, a well-paced century and a wonderful spell of death bowling brought the third match alive, and cricket lovers will hope it continues to be a close contest in Bulawayo.Even though Bangladesh didn’t win, the fact that they put on an impressive performance in the first half of Zimbabwe’s innings, formed partnerships and eventually came within one shot of completing a tricky chase, was promising. Bangladesh will not want go home winless. For Zimbabwe, a whitewash will carry them to within two points of Bangladesh in the ODI rankings, and they could use the next two matches as a learning curve.In fact, they began doing so in the previous match, when they were given a different test – being asked to bat first. The Zimbabwe bowlers were presented with a new challenge, that of defending a total, and though it seemed that the match was slipping from their hands, an accurate performance topped by Kyle Jarvis’ yorkers at the end, showed they could cope. They will be keen to prove they can do so consistently.

Form guide (most recent first)

Zimbabwe: WWWWL
Bangladesh: LLLLL

In the spotlight

After being relieved of the captaincy, Elton Chigumbura has batted with a little more purpose when he has had the opportunity. He has batted in situations where the top order has created the environment for him to lash out, and he has capitalised with his ability to hit the ball a long way. His bowling hasn’t been as impressive, and he was expensive in the previous match, though he was better in the first two. His role as the fourth seamer needs some polishing. With his allrounder’s spot not guaranteed, he could use the next two matches as an opportunity to make a convincing case.Shakib Al Hasan has the difficult job of lifting a defeated team. He looked a broken man after the series was lost, but as the leader, he will have to persuade his men to give a respectable account of themselves in what has been a forgettable tour. Shakib also has his own performance as an allrounder to think about. In the third match, he was finally able to bat in a normal situation as opposed to a crisis and got out just as he had his eye in. The match situation also allowed him to bowl after the first 20 overs. If the same can continue, he can start to concentrate on steering the middle order in the latter half of the innings and employing more innovative tactics as captain.

Team news

Zimbabwe could now be open to experimentation. If they were to approach it radically, Brendan Taylor, who has failed with the bat so far, will be moved down the order and Regis Chakabva brought in to open the batting with Vusi Sibanda. That may result in one of Forster Mutizwa or Craig Ervine sitting out. Chris Mpofu may be due a rest and with conditions likely to suit spinners, Ray Price could be recalled.Zimbabwe (probable): 1 Regis Chakabva, 2 Vusi Sibanda, 3 Hamilton Masakadza, 4 Tatenda Taibu, 5 Brendan Taylor, 6 Craig Ervine/Forster Mutizwa, 7 Elton Chigumbura, 8 Prosper Utseya, 9 Ray Price, 10 Brian Vitori, 11 Kyle JarvisBangladesh’s combination finally clicked and although it was harsh, their decision to drop Mohammad Ashraful and Shahriar Nafees almost paid off. It may be tempting to bring one, or even both, back but in the interests of allowing an XI that showed promise a chance to prove its worth, they could field the same line-up. Shuvagoto Hom was excellent on debut, but Nasir Hossain bowled a hodge-podge of medium pacers and offspinners and was targeted. Despite his showing, it would hardly seem fair to drop the 19-year-old just yet. Mushfiqur Rahim was reported to have a niggle after his century, but it may have been his aching heart and not his hamstring, and he should be cleared to play. Abdur Razzak may come back in on the spinner-friendly track, but it would be a tough choice dropping one among Shafiul Islam, Rubel Hossain and Nazmul Hossain.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Imrul Kayes, 3 Junaid Siddique, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim, 5 Shakib Al Hasan, 6 Shuvagoto Hom, 7 Mahmudullah, 8 Nasir Hossain, 9 Abdur Razzak, 10 & 11 Nazmul Hossain/Shafiul Islam/Rubel Hossain Pitch and conditions
Batsmen usually enjoy their outings in Zimbabwe and if they thought Harare was a smooth surface, Bulawayo is even better. The pitch is traditionally flat. Accurate, consistent bowling should be rewarded, but the fast bowlers will have to bend their backs to get anything out of the track. Spinners should have an easier time and it is likely that we will see a little more turn than we have so far.

Stats and trivia

• Brendan Taylor has been out for 10 or less 43 times in his 121-match career. Three of those dismissals have been in this series.
• Of the 43 completed matches at the Queens Sports Club, 25 have been won by the team that chases.

Quotes

“We knew from the first two games that Bangladesh were capable of playing better than they did. And they showed it. We’d really love to have a 5-0 win.”
“I don’t think we need to lift the team anymore. We fielded well in the first 20 overs – lots of hustle, noise, encouragement, some great stops. Even though the series is gone, there’s pride at stake.”

Indian fast bowler Munaf Patel will join the one-day squad for the tri-series in Sri Lanka

Cricinfo staff12-Aug-2010Indian fast bowler Munaf Patel will join the one-day squad for the tri-series in Sri Lanka. Munaf was part of the Test squad, but wasn’t named in the original touring party. He joined the team in Sri Lanka when Sreesanth had to pull out before the Test series due to a knee injury. The debutant Karnataka seamer Abhimanyu Mithun was preferred over Munaf, who sat out all three Tests. Mithun bowled only four overs in the opening one-dayer before suffering a heat stroke.Munaf could get a look-in if Ishant Sharma fails to recover from his knee injury, which resulted in his absence from India’s opening game against New Zealand. Ishant – with an ankle brace on his left leg – bowled a long spell during India’s practice session on Thursday afternoon and felt fit enough to do a fielding drill.

Former India coach had captained and mentored RR previously in the IPL

Nagraj Gollapudi04-Sep-20247:30

Will coach Dravid’s India experience make a difference at Royals?

Rahul Dravid is set to return to Rajasthan Royals (RR) as head coach ahead of the 2025 IPL season, following the culmination of his tenure as India coach after the 2024 T20 World Cup win in June this year.ESPNcricinfo has learned that Dravid recently signed a deal with the franchise and has had initial conversations on player retentions ahead of the upcoming mega auction. He has a long-standing working relationship with the RR captain Sanju Samson, who came through the under-19 ranks on Dravid’s watch.Dravid has history with RR. He was their captain in IPL 2012 and 2013, and served as team director and mentor in the 2014 and 2015 seasons. In 2016, Dravid moved to Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) until he became the head of the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru in 2019. In 2021, he was appointed head coach of the India men’s team and ended his three-year stint with their first ICC title in 11 years.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

RR are also likely to sign former India batter Vikram Rathour as one of Dravid’s assistant coaches. Rathour, a former India selector, was part of Dravid’s coaching staff at NCA before he became India’s batting coach in 2019.It is understood that while Dravid will take charge of Rajasthan Royals in the IPL, Kumar Sangakkara, who has been their director of cricket since 2021, will continue with their franchise and look after their teams in other leagues – Paarl Royals in the SA20 and Barbados Royals in the CPL.RR have not won the IPL title since the inaugural season in 2008; their next best finish was in 2022 when they came runners-up to Gujarat Titans. They failed to make the playoffs in 2023, finishing fifth in the league despite a terrific start to the season, but did so in 2024 and were knocked out in Qualifier 2.

Spinner experienced “low back symptoms” during Ireland Test

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Jun-2023England spinner Jack Leach has been ruled out of the men’s Ashes after scans revealed he had suffered a lumbar stress fracture. Leach developed “low back symptoms” during the Test victory over Ireland at Lord’s and he will now miss the entire series against Australia.Leach was among in the 16-man squad for the first two Tests announced on Saturday, with England set to name a replacement “in due course” according to an ECB statement.Related

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Leach has been ever-present under Ben Stokes, with the captain trusting him to fulfil a more attacking role in the side. In 13 Tests, he had taken 45 wickets at 38.22, including a maiden ten-wicket haul in the win over New Zealand at Headingley last summer.The Somerset left-armer is also the only English-qualified spinner to have taken more than 10 wickets in the County Championship this season. Candidates to come into the squad could include Rehan Ahmed, Will Jacks and Liam Livingstone, all of whom made Test debuts in Pakistan over the winter, as well as the previously capped Dom Bess and Liam Dawson.Leach picked up 3 for 35 in the first innings against Ireland, but struggled for breakthroughs on the third day as Andy McBrine and Mark Adair put on a 163-run stand for the seventh wicket to help avert an innings defeat.Stokes also turned to Joe Root’s offspin at Lord’s, and one option for England could be to select another quick bowler and rely on Root for fill-in overs.England have already lost the services of Jofra Archer, following the recurrences of his elbow problem, and did not consider either James Anderson or Ollie Robinson for the Ireland Test due to minor injuries. Olly Stone is also currently sidelined, while Jamie Overton is recovering from a back stress fracture – although England’s pace stocks were buoyed this week by a five-wicket haul on debut for Josh Tongue.They hope to have Stokes available as an allrounder, as he continues to manage a knee issue, but Leach’s injury less than two weeks out from the start of the first Test at Edgbaston only adds to concerns around how to balance the bowling workload.

The new CA chair has indicated the next head coach will be confirmed next month

Andrew McGlashan23-Feb-20222:06

McDonald: Touring Pakistan after decades an ‘exciting challenge for Australia’

The next head coach of the Australia men’s team is likely to be confirmed during the upcoming tour of Pakistan, but Andrew McDonald, who is taking interim charge for the trip and is the favourite for the long-term position, is confident the process of replacing Justin Langer will not take the focus away from the on-field ambitions.Lachlan Henderson, the new Cricket Australia chair, has said in recent days that the appointment of a new head coach will not be a drawn-out process and is likely to come to a conclusion in March. That raises the prospect of McDonald finding out midway through the tour whether he has the job or not, although he said he has yet to have conversations with CA on the matter.”Very happy with whatever timelines they want to work within. It won’t become a distraction,” McDonald said. “That will just be happening in the background, our focus is firmly on the first Test in Rawalpindi and the preparation here, so we are firmly focused on that as a coaching staff.Related

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“What happens outside of that with the process they run and how that looks is entirely up to the admin base to work through that and I’m sure they won’t be making that a distraction for us at all. The coaching stuff is well and truly in the background for us here.”When Langer resigned earlier this month CA chief executive Nick Hockley indicated the board would look for one replacement rather than splitting the roles between red and white ball, although speaking to ABC Radio, Henderson said it was a topic he would take more soundings on.”I’m open to advice on that [split coaching],’ he said. “I think it is a very time-consuming role for one individual and maybe a more distributed method of coaching is the way of the future. They’re the sort of things that are playing out at the moment. We are going for a single head coach to be installed in the near future.”How it plays out after that will depend a bit on that appointment, their availability and how that works across all forms of the game in what’s going to be a really busy 12 to 18 months. It may be that person is not available for every single tour around the world over the next 18 months.”George Bailey, the national selector, is of the view that the new head coach sitting out some series would not present a major challenge – it was used during the Langer era with McDonald leading limited-overs tours of India and New Zealand, while he was due to oversee the recent Sri Lanka T20Is before Langer’s departure.”Essentially, what you’re after is trying to find the very best person for the role, and you want to keep them in there as long as possible,” he said. “If that means that they don’t do absolutely every tour that’s fine.”I don’t think there’s an easy answer. I don’t think there’s a one-size-fits-all and I don’t necessarily think whichever structure is landed on by Cricket Australia will necessarily be the right one when you next have to make that appointment.”For now, McDonald is enthused by the challenge that lies ahead over the next few weeks in Pakistan as Australia tour the country for the first time in 24 years.”I’ll work through it once we see what the job looks like,” he said. “There’s been some speculation around split roles, whether it’s one coach and all that type of thing, that’ll all come out. The key thing for us is to focus on the cricket. We’ve got a big job in the next three days, then getting the preparation right when we land, so that’s where are our thoughts are firmly focused to give these players the best opportunity to succeed.”You can see the excitement within the group. It’s a little bit of the unknown as well and think that’s always exciting going somewhere people haven’t been before. We’ve got a creative element to what we can do as well on the back of Australian teams not being there for a period of time.”