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Saim Ayub still “at least four weeks” away from being fully fit

Danyal Rasool31-Jan-2025Fakhar Zaman has been named in Pakistan’s squad for the Champions Trophy, marking his return after he fell out with the PCB over a social media post in October 2024. In a squad that PCB called “horses for courses”, Faheem Ashraf, who last played international cricket in 2023, has also been called up. Khushdil Shah and Saud Shakeel are also included. The same squad will also play the ODI tri-series against South Africa and New Zealand in the build-up to the Champions Trophy.The squad confirms what was widely feared within Pakistan: Saim Ayub remains unavailable because of the ankle fracture he sustained during the Cape Town Test. At the time, it was announced he would be out for six weeks, but it was believed his chances of recovering in time for the Champions Trophy were exceptionally slim. Earlier today, PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi confirmed Ayub’s return remained “at least four weeks” away.Abdullah Shafique’s loss of form has cost him a place in the squad. In the recently concluded ODI series against South Africa, which Pakistan won 3-0, he became the first player to be dismissed for a duck in every match of a series. It means Pakistan will go in with a completely different opening pairing, with Fakhar likely to pair up with either Babar Azam or Saud Shakeel, with the PCB citing Babar’s success opening in Test cricket as a potential factor to consider.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“Fakhar’s opening partner could be either Babar Azam or Saud Shakeel, depending on various factors such as conditions, opposition and match strategy,” a statement from Asad Shafiq, a member of the selection panel, said. “Both players are highly capable at the top of the order, with Babar being particularly seasoned in the role, regularly opening in T20Is and also excelling in the Cape Town Test by scoring two half-centuries in Saim Ayub’s absence.”The squad also retains its pace-heavy element that saw Pakistan win three successive away ODI series towards the end of last year. Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf and Mohammad Hasnain are all part of the final 15, with only one specialist spinner in Abrar Ahmed. Neither Sufiyan Muqeem, who took four wickets on debut in the only ODI he played, nor Shadab Khan, who captained his side to Champions Cup glory in September, have made the final cut.Related

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“One of the standout qualities of this side is its flexibility – an essential trait in today’s modern-day cricket,” Asad Shafiq, a member of the selection panel. “We are confident that this squad strikes the right balance between youth and experience, and has all bases covered. Each player has been chosen with a clear role in mind, ensuring the captain has versatile options at his disposal.”Irfan Khan, who was eyed by the selection committee as a key component of Pakistan’s middle order and feted for his fielding, also drops out. Faheem’s return comes off the back of limited ODI cricket, having had an indifferent Champions Cup in September. Strong showings with the bat in the President Cup in October, however, seem to have played a part in earning him what appeared an unlikely recall.Pakistan’s first game at the Champions Trophy comes against New Zealand in Karachi on February 19, following which they go to Dubai to play against India. They play their final group game against Bangladesh in Rawalpindi on February 27.

Pakistan squad for Champions Trophy 2025

Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Rizwan (capt, wk), Khushdil Shah, Salman Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah

A round-up of how the cricket community is reacting to the Covid-19 threat

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Jun-2020Three members of South Africa’s Women’s team and support staff have returned positive Covid-19 results after they were tested ahead of their training camp scheduled to commence on July 27. Overall, 34 individuals were tested, and those that tested positive showed mild to no symptoms, according to a Cricket South Africa media release.They have been withdrawn from training, and will self-isolate for ten days, with the CSA medical team closely monitoring their condition. The rest of the group that returned negative results will assemble in Pretoria on July 26, a day before they partake in a week-long skills-based training camp. Then, they will return to their respective provinces for individual training from August 3 to 14.There will be another round of testing for the squad and support staff ahead of a second training camp scheduled between August 16 and 27, in preparation for the proposed tour of England in September.Spike in Covid-19 cases halts Zimbabwe training campZimbabwe Cricket have decided to break their two ongoing camps in Bulawayo and Harare owing to a spike in Covid-19 cases across both cities. The training programmes had begun more than a month back with an eye on playing Afghanistan in a five-match T20I series. reported that the team’s communications manager Darlington Majonga has provided the senior men’s cricketers with regimes to follow at home.Though the players had begun training, the team was still awaiting approval from the government to host Afghanistan between July and August. However, Zimbabwe now has over 2000 confirmed cases for Covid-19. Bulawayo is the epicentre of the pandemic in Zimbabwe with 593 cases, closely followed by Harare, which has reported 579 cases. But Majonga said that the board had written to the government for final dates for the series, as the “July to August timeline was just a tentative date”. “The dates for the tour will be determined by the government’s response. We wrote to government and are waiting for their response,” he said.ICC postpones two more eventsThe ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 which serves as a qualifying round for the 2023 Men’s World Cup, and the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup regional qualifier division 2 have been postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The League 2 was to be hosted by Namibia with Papua New Guinea and the United States joining the hosts, while the U-19 tournament was to be held in Tanzania from August 7 to 14, with Botswana​, Kenya​, Mozambique​, Rwanda​, and Sierra Leone joining the hosts.”With ongoing international travel restrictions, global health concerns still prominent and on government and public health authority advice in relation to COVID-19 we have decided in partnership with Members, to postpone two further qualifying events,” Chris Tetley, the ICC’s head of events said.In light of the postponement of the 2023 Men’s World Cup by about six months to allow space for qualification rounds, Tetley added: “We will now work with hosts and participating members to find a window where cricket can be safely and practically rescheduled. With this week’s ICC Board decision to hold the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 in October and November of 2023, we now have been given additional time to work to reschedule the Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 postponed matches and enable us to preserve the integrity of the qualification process allowing it to take place on the field of play.”The last of the League 2 matches took place in February, with matches scheduled for April cancelled as cricket came to a standstill due to the pandemic.Boult returns to trainingTrent Boult was back in training on day three of New Zealand’s camp for North Island-based players in Mount Maunganui. He had missed training on day two, as a precaution after feeling unwell. Back at the Bay Oval to train on turf along with seven of his team-mates, Boult said he was very keenly looking forward to getting the chance to play again.”I think everyone just wants to get back playing some sort of cricket,” Boult said. “There are a few guys who are heading to the CPL, which hopefully will go ahead in the coming months, and then looks like the IPL will follow that. I think guys have been caged up for a few months now and are eager to get out and play some cricket.”Boult is part of the Mumbai Indians squad for IPL 2020, which is now likely to take the slot left vacant by the postponed T20 World Cup.Boult’s new-ball partner for New Zealand, Tim Southee, was also part of the training camp and said he’d consider travelling abroad to play cricket as he trusted all precautions would be taken to keep the players safe. “I think I would. I’d definitely be taking the right precautions to follow all the guidelines that are in place. I’m sure we won’t get sent somewhere where it’s not safe,” Southee said. “We’d all just have to be sensible, but I don’t have to make that decision at this stage and I’ll eagerly wait to see what unfolds over the next couple of months.”CAB office shuts for a week after staff member tests positiveThe Cricket Association of Bengal has shut its office for seven days after a non-permanent staff member of its civil engineering department tested positive for Covid-19.”He is at present admitted at Charnock Hospital,” CAB president Avishek Dalmiya said in a statement. “Even though he had not come to CAB for a week, on the advice of eminent doctors in the Medical Committee, we have asked all to refrain from visiting the CAB office for the next seven days and during this period, extensive sanitizing will take place keeping all safety protocols in mind.”Incidentally CAB has not opened formally and has been working sporadically with a skeleton staff essentially to meet certain statutory compliances and for clearing dues to various stakeholders.”As on Monday, West Bengal has recorded 22136 cases of Covid-19 – 6668 of which are active – and 757 deaths. Kolkata is the state’s capital.Mohammad Hafeez and Wahab Riaz to take PIA flight to England on July 3Mohammad Hafeez and five of his team-mates who have returned two successive negative Covid-19 tests to become eligible to join the rest of the Pakistan squad in England will fly out to Manchester on July 3. Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hasnain, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan and Wahab Riaz are the other five, who, along with Hafeez, will fly from Lahore on Pakistan International Airlines.From Manchester, the six players will go to Worcester and integrate with the rest of the squad pending another round of testing by the ECB.The six players, who had been tested twice in three days, all currently in isolation at a five-star hotel in Lahore.Already, 18 squad players who returned two negatives as well as two reserve players – Musa Khan and wicketkeeper Rohail Nazir – are in Manchester for Pakistan’s tour, having flown out earlier on a chartered plane organised by the ECB. These six players could not fly out with the rest of the squad as they had initially tested positive for Covid-19, before testing negative on the retest; two negative results were required for the players to fly out to England.As part of South Africa’s efforts to bring cricket back, CSA initiated mass testing of its personnel, seven of whom were revealed to be infected with Covid-19.”We were definitely going to have people testing positive,” CSA’s acting CEO Jacques Faul told . “Having conducted over 100 tests, the number of seven is actually quite low.”CSA would not mention if there were any players among those people who tested positive for the coronavirus. “Our medical ethical protocol does not allow us to share info that could ID people that have tested positive,” Faul said.Indian Cricketers’ Association extends help to 60 cricketers’ familiesA total of 57 former players, including six women and a blind cricketer, and the widows of three former players, have received between INR 60,000 (US$800 approx.) and INR 1 lakh ($1300 approx.) – a total of Rs 78 lakh ($102,300 approx.) – as part of the newly-formed Indian Cricketers’ Association’s financial assistance programme during the Covid-19 crisis.”It’s a huge step, especially helping Mr Shekar Naik, the former captain of the Indian blind team, because that was not in our rules and regulations. But we thought that since the Indian government has honoured him and the BCCI has honoured him, why shouldn’t we,” Ashok Malhotra, the president of the association, told ESPNcricinfo. Naik led India to victories at the 2012 T20 World Cup for the blind and the 2014 World Cup for the blind.Malhotra also confirmed that a number of former players, including Dilip Vengsarkar, Arun Lal and Balwinder Singh Sandhu, had made donations to help their needy colleagues. “Many other cricketers, some of them very famous, are coming forward with big and small amounts,” Malhotra said. “We have funds to help more people, and we are hoping to do that.”So far, according to Malhotra, 2800 former players have signed up with the association, and “most of them have contributed” between Rs 1000 ($13 approx.) and Rs 5 lakh ($6600 approx.), the minimum and maximum donation amounts.Sri Lanka want to be ‘best prepared team post Covid-19’Sri Lanka want to be, in the words of head coach Mickey Arthur, “the best prepared international team post Covid-19 and to be ready to play at any given time” and to that end they are heading into a second training camp that starts on June 22.An SLC press release on Thursday said 24 players and six support staff will take part in the 10-day camp. Sri Lanka had been preparing for a Test series against England when the coronavirus pandemic struck, forcing the world into lockdown. Since then the players have already been able to complete one training camp and are no gearing up for another, which will focus on their skills and their conditioning.SL training squad: Dimuth Karunaratne, Dinesh Chandimal, Lahiru Thirimanne, Angelo Mathews, Thisara Perera, Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Perera, Dilruwan Perera, Suranga Lakmal, Dhananjaya de Silva, Niroshan Dickwella, Dasun Shanaka, Vishwa Fernando, Kasun Rajitha, Lahiru Kumara, Nuwan Pradeep, Isuru Udana, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lakshan Sandakan, Lasith Embuldeniya, Oshada Fernando, Avishka Fernando, Kusal Mendis, Bhanuka RajapaksaZimbabwe players start training after testing negativeZimbabwe have become the latest team to start training after Covid-19 fallout as all 37 selected players, as well as the coaching staff, were tested negative for coronavirus.Due to lockdown restrictions in Zimbabwe, the training pool is split into small sub-groups that are practising within their provinces. On Monday, Bulawayo-based players kicked things off with a fitness test overseen by provincial coach Njabulo Ncube at the Queens Sports Club. The players will focus on strength and conditioning sessions for the first three weeks before switching to skills training.Zimbabwe are supposed to host Afghanistan in July-August for a five-match T20I series before travelling to Australia to play three ODIs.Training squad: Brian Chari, Christopher Mpofu, Ainsley Ndlovu, Charlton Tshuma, Sean Williams, Faraz Akram, Ryan Burl, Sikandar Raza, Chamunorwa Chibhabha, Elton Chigumbura, Craig Ervine, Kyle Jarvis, Tinashe Kamunhukamwe, Neville Madziva, William Mashinge, Peter Joseph Moor, Brian Mudzinganyama, Ryan Murray, Brendan Taylor, Regis Chakabva, Luke Jongwe, Wessly Madhevere, Timycen Maruma, Wellington Masakadza, Prince Masvaure, Tapiwa Mufudza, Tinotenda Mutombodzi, Richmond Mutumbami, Richard Ngarava, Victor Nyauchi, Brandon Mavuta, Carl Mumba, Tendai Chisoro, Tendai Chatara, Kevin Kasuza, Donald Tiripano
Zimbabwe players to undergo tests ahead of training
Zimbabwe’s players and support staff will undergo tests for Covid-19 ahead of their return to training on June 15. According to a media release from Zimbabwe Cricket, a squad of 33 players has been put together and only those who pass the medical tests will start training from Monday.Zimbabwe are set to host Afghanistan and India for limited-overs series in July and August, subject to government approval.The players will practice in their respective provinces starting with strength and conditioning sessions for the first three weeks before turning to cricket-specific skills training.As per the ICC guidelines, the use of saliva will be prohibited and all players as well as Zimbabwe Cricket employees will be provided face masks and alcohol-based sanitisers.
Afghanistan to begin month-long training camp starting June 7
Afghanistan captain Asghar Afghan, Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi and Mohammad Shahzad are among 22 players who are going to take part in a month-long training camp organised by the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) in Kabul starting Sunday.The camp, an ACB release said, will be focused on “strengthening their batting, bowling and overall performance as part of their preparations for upcoming tournaments.”This camp will be held under the relevant health guidelines and in close coordination with the ICC, WHO and the ministry of public health of Afghanistan to avoid the spread of COVID-19,” the release said.On Saturday, the ACB held a Covid-19 awareness meeting for players and other relevant officials at the board’s head office to “educate them about the health guidelines to be maintained during the camp.”Afghanistan were scheduled to tour Zimbabwe and play the Asia Cup in the second half of the year but both look uncertain now, and a one-off Test in Australia’s new summer schedule is now slotted for November 21 to 25 at the Perth Stadium.Players participating in training camp: Asghar Afghan (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Hazrathullah Zazai, Karim Janat, Mohammad Nabi, Najibullah Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Rashid Khan, Naveen ul Haq, Shapoor Zadran, Qais Ahmad, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Azmatullah Omerzai, Samiullah Shinwari, Usman Ghani, Mohammad Shahzad, Sayed Shirzad, Darwish Rasooli, Zahir Khan Paktin, Farid Malik, Hamza Hotak, Sharafudin Ashraf.Kapil Dev, Murali Kartik to face off in golf fund-raiserFormer India captain Kapil Dev is set to square off against Murali Kartik, the former India left-arm spinner, in a Covid-19 golf fundraiser at the Delhi Golf Club course on July 11. The 18-hole Covid Relief Exhibition Golf Match will have Dev and Kartik, both regulars at several Pro-Am events during the season, partner Shubhankar Sharma, a two-time winner on the European Tour, and Gaganjeet Bhullar, winner of one European title and nine more on the Asian Tour, reported the .

Provisional approval for Cricket Ireland to start club training
Cricket Ireland has received provisional approval from sports and health authorities for club cricket to move a step closer to limited training in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.However, restarting activity at club level is dependent on when the Irish government and the Northern Ireland executive plan their next phase of reopening, according to a release, and that the clubs undertake pre-opening protocol compliance measures. The board had made its submission to both the governments on May 22 seeking approval to restart activity.”This means that Provincial Unions and clubs can actively progress their Covid-19 safety preparation work in anticipation of each Government’s progression to Phase 2 / Step 2 of respective roadmaps to reopening,” a board release said.In the first stage, Cricket Ireland will make “information packs” and resources available to all clubs across the country starting next week which will include checklists and advice regarding training practices that comply with social distancing and health protocols.
“Our priority from the outset was to take a safety-first approach – to ensure the health of players, coaches, volunteers and families,” Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland CEO, said.”With this in mind, it’s important that we remind our club and grassroots family that the 20km radius rule still applies to club cricketers, and that the ability to restart training depends upon being able to comply with the protocols. We fully understand that it won’t feel like normal, and there will be more work than usual to implement and properly monitor hygiene protocols and social distancing, but we are sure everyone recognises their role in controlling the spread of the virus and protecting the vulnerable in our community.”There will undoubtedly be some details still to resolve during implementation, but we will provide advice on issues as they arise. If we work together on meeting these protocols, then we can begin to look towards an eventual resumption of competitive matches later in the roadmap – a scenario that seemed very distant to many just a few weeks ago.”

He smashed seven sixes and four fours in his 38-ball 67

Andrew McGlashan12-Jul-2021So, those questions about Chris Gayle’s form. The opener put on a thunderous display, with his first T20I half-century since 2016, to secure a series victory for West Indies as he pummelled the Australia attack around St Lucia in what became a cakewalk of a chase.Having made 102 runs in nine innings since his recall earlier this year, Gayle launched seven sixes in an innings that took him past 14,000 T20 runs. After he departed, stand-in captain Nicholas Pooran ensured there was no hiccup in the chase he closed it out with more than five overs to spare. It is the first time West Indies have won a bilateral series (or more than one match) against Australia in any format since 1995.Australia had made three changes – two enforced by injury to Ben McDermott and Ashton Agar – and changed tact by opting to bat first when Aaron Finch again won the toss, but it was a laboured effort after some initial momentum in the powerplay. Moises Henriques and the recalled Ashton Turner added 59 but it took almost eight overs.

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West Indies were excellent with the ball despite Obed McCoy being able to bowl only one over. Fabian Allen and Hayden Walsh Jr, who took his series tally to eight wickets, bowled their eight overs for 44. Allen also took a spectacular rebound catch in the deep to remove Finch in a display that further enhanced his fielding credentials.The Wade, Finch contrast
The struggle for the majority of Australia’s innings is highlighted by the fact that they had a useful 41 off the first five overs. That was largely down to Matthew Wade who again struck the ball sweetly as he did in the opening match of the series. However, with some of the issues being faced by other batters, Australia needed him to make the most of those starts and kick on but he departed when he missed a slower ball from McCoy. His opening partner is finding things aren’t quite coming out of the middle at the moment and Finch never got his timing during a run-a-ball stay where he was often losing his shapes on shots. He eventually fell to a worldie of a catch, completed by Allen at deep midwicket who remained magnificently alert when Dwayne Bravo missed the initial chance, and hurled himself low to the ground to grab it.Fabian Allen was brilliantly alert to hold rebound catch•AFP

Walsh does it again
The Finch wicket was Walsh’s second of the innings as he again did a terrific job, this time also bringing notable economy to his four overs. Pooran had held back his spinners – the match was a rare example of all the powerplay play overs being bowled by seamers of various descriptions – and when they were introduced Australia struggled to up the tempo. Allen removed the in-form Mitchell Marsh when he missed a sweep and Walsh claimed his first by ending a lively start from Alex Carey who had reverse-swept his first ball of the series for four. The spinners, which included one over from Gayle, did not concede a single six as Australia only cleared the boundary twice – both hits coming from Henriques.Gayle’s reminder
Gayle arrived for the fourth ball of the chase after Mitchell Starc, who bowled excellently after two expensive outings, had Andre Fletcher taken at midwicket. He saw out the over from Starc but then things got lively. When he got on strike to Josh Hazlewood’s first over he went 6, 4, 4, 4. There was a look in his eye of a batter on a mission. He was measured too but after a brief period of more sedate play, he deposited Adam Zampa for a straight six and followed it up in the 11th over with three consecutive sixes against the legspinner, the third of which took him to a 33-ball half-century. He saved the biggest for a huge leg-side blow off Riley Meredith that was followed by another the next ball before a top edge ended the show. Five of the last seven deliveries he faced cleared the rope. The match and the series were done and dusted.

Australia skipper won’t play in Tasmania’s Shield clash against WA; will instead play club cricket and in Tasmania’s Second XI against South Australia

Alex Malcolm17-Nov-2021Australia captain Tim Paine is set to go into the Ashes series without a first-class fixture under his belt but he is set to play club cricket and second XI cricket for Tasmania over the next week before Australia’s intra-squad clash in Brisbane ahead of the Gabba Test.Paine is recovering from neck surgery he had in September and has not played at all yet this summer. His last competitive game was in April.Related

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He was hopeful of playing up to four full matches, including a Shield game, before the first Ashes Test at the Gabba in December.Rain last week washed out any hopes of playing for his club side University of Tasmania. He is now set to play on the first day of their clash with South Hobart Sandy Bay on Saturday, but he won’t take part in Tasmania’s Shield clash against Western Australia, starting on Sunday.He will instead play in Tasmania’s Second XI team in a four-day game against South Australia which is scheduled to begin on Monday. Paine will also have the chance to play in the intra-squad clash in Brisbane starting on December 1.Australia’s chairman of selectors George Bailey was not concerned about Paine’s preparation.”Just get some cricket under his belt, which we’re really confident he’s going to get back this weekend,” Bailey said on Wednesday. “And I think from all reports, surgery has gone really well. He’s feeling really, really confident. I think they’ve actually had to hold him back a little bit in the last couple of weeks to make sure the actual healing process has gone well and now it’s just a matter of actually getting some game time under his belt, so he’s really confident and really excited to be leading the team come the first day at the Gabba.”Paine will turn 37 on the opening day of the Ashes series and told last week that he has not given any consideration to his future beyond this summer.Alex Carey and Josh Inglis have both been named in the Australia A squad on Wednesday but Alex Carey is expected to be the second wicketkeeper in the intra-squad match and the Australia A wicketkeeper, and possibly captain, for the England Lions game starting in December. Inglis is set to play as a batter given he was part of the group that was required to do 14-day quarantine on the way back from the T20 World Cup in the UAE and is likely to head back to Perth Scorchers for the start of the BBL.

Devon Conway’s unbeaten 92 and MS Dhoni’s late sixes took CSK to 200 but it didn’t prove enough

Vishal Dikshit30-Apr-20232:12

Moody reckons Conway among the IPL’s best overseas buys of all time

Punjab Kings 201 for 6 (Prabhsimran 42, Livingstone 40, Deshpande 3-49, Jadeja 2-32) beat Chennai Super Kings 200 for 4 (Conway 92*, Gaikwad 37) by four wicketsA last-ball thriller that ended with Sikandar Raza pulling Matheesha Pathirana for three quick runs stunned a Chepauk crowd that may have expected their team to return home with a win and get closer to the top of the table. Chennai Super Kings had almost everything going for them; Devon Conway walloped an unbeaten 92, MS Dhoni stretched their total to 200 with two sixes to end the innings, and they strangled Kings’ chase through the middle overs, but lost despite largely being ahead through the final over thanks to Pathirana’s accuracy.With nine to win off the last over, Raza and Shahrukh Khan couldn’t hit a single boundary against Pathirana’s dipping deliveries. After a single, a leg bye, a dot ball and two twos off Pathirana’s yorkers and slower balls, Kings needed three off the last ball. Raza shuffled across and pulled a short-of-length slower ball over square leg, landing it right in between deep fine leg and deep midwicket to secure three and seal victory with his arms aloft.The two points took Kings to 10 points alongside three other teams, and to fifth place on the table, just behind Super Kings on net run rate.Sikandar Raza celebrates after taking Kings to a tense win•BCCI

Livingstone turns tables at the right time

Super Kings were favourites when Liam Livingstone and Sam Curran struggled to score freely off Pathirana and Maheesh Theekshana. With 72 to win off 30, Livingstone got to face Tushar Deshpande and belted three sixes in four balls with four leg byes in between. Even though he fell off the fifth ball of the over, Kings still had Jitesh Sharma and Shahrukh to come, and the 24-run over brought their equation down to 48 off 24.Curran and Jitesh slammed straight sixes off Ravindra Jadeja in the 17th, but Pathirana was going to bowl two of the last three overs. He removed Curran’s off stump with a stunning, full delivery that swerved past his outside edge, and with 22 needed off 12, Kings went after Deshpande in the 19th to try and ensure they didn’t leave too much for the last over. Jitesh lofted the first ball over cover for four and got out to a contentious decision two balls later when substitute fielder Shaik Rasheed caught him at the wide long-on boundary while almost touching the boundary cushions with his foot. With 15 required off eight, Raza edged his first ball for four to make it a 13-run over.Even though Pathirana sent down an excellent last over, Raza manipulated the field perfectly to pick ones and twos and sealed the match with a hard-run three.

Boundaries rain in Kings’ powerplay, but not beyond

Kings came out all guns blazing in a steep chase. Shikhar Dhawan danced down off the second ball and went on to smash 21 off nine balls in Akash Singh’s first two overs. Prabhsimran Singh took on Theekshana’s carrom ball at the other end in a 12-run fourth over, and Kings raced to 46 for no loss in four overs.Dhawan sliced Deshpande to short third in the fifth over to fall for 28, but Prabhsimran kept his foot on the pedal with at least one boundary an over before being stumped off a 100kph Jadeja delivery in the ninth. It was then that Kings went through a slowdown, with Atharva Taide managing just 13 off 16 before falling to Jadeja in a three-run 11th over. Livingstone and Curran struggled to score freely off the Sri Lankan duo, scoring just 22 runs in overs 12 to 14, which pushed the asking rate beyond 12. But Livingstone soon broke the shackles against Deshpande, and Kings were back on track.Devon Conway made 92 not out, his fifth half-century in his last six innings•BCCI

CSK make quick start on a slow pitch

The Kings bowlers had to bowl in the unforgiving Chennai heat, and they were made to sweat further by Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway. Gaikwad showed excellent timing whereas Conway took the aerial route more often, such as when he hit Curran for back-to-back boundaries down the ground in the sixth over, which went for 16. Super Kings, who have lost the fewest wickets in the powerplay this IPL, finished the phase on 57 for 0.

Conway smashes fifty, Dube promoted to take on spinners

Spinners were always going to be in focus at Chepauk. Rahul Chahar, Kings’ lead spinner, was introduced in the powerplay and the openers hit a six each off him down the ground to push the run rate towards nine. Conway also reeled off consecutive fours off Raza’s flat offbreaks before the bowler unleashed a legbreak to have Gaikwad stumped for 37.Super Kings promoted Dube to counter the spinners, and he also pulled Kagiso Rabada for six soon after Conway reverse-swept Raza to raise a 30-ball fifty.

Conway bosses the middle overs

At 121 for 1 after 13, Kings brought back Arshdeep Singh, who struck when Dube holed out to long-on while attempting his third six. Super Kings kept sending out left-hand batters – Moeen Ali came in next – and they kept attacking the spinners. Conway and Moeen lapped up Livingstone for a 16-run 15th over, and Conway hit two more fours with sweeps off Chahar, before Arshdeep and Rabada slowed things a little with 11 boundary-free balls in the 18th and 19th overs.

The Dhoni show

Once looking set for 200, Super Kings were 185 with an over to go. Two hundred looked even more distant when Jadeja fell off the first ball of the 20th and Dhoni managed just one off his first two balls. But once Dhoni got the strike back, he smoked two sixes to end the innings, an uppercut and a leg-side whack off a low full-toss from Curran. Conway stayed unbeaten on 92 off 52 with 16 fours and a six.

After taking a five-for in the morning, No. 11 Seales hung around for his partner Roach to hit the winning runs

Danyal Rasool15-Aug-2021Antigua 2000, Dominica 2017 and now Jamaica 2021. West Indies and Pakistan added another chapter to the list of enthralling, nail-biting Tests between these two sides as the hosts eked out a stunning one-wicket win with Nos. 9 and 11 holding on.As Kemar Roach and Jayden Seales kept batting, the nerves kept building. Finally, it all came down to a fateful Hasan Ali over, as a nick evaded a valiant dive from Mohammad Rizwan to race away for a boundary before Roach pushed two through the off side to guarantee a 1-0 series lead.Pakistan had their chances, but the story, for now, is thoroughly West Indian. The hosts looked like they had been edged out of this match so often towards the death, and yet refused to acknowledge it was game over. But it did look like that when Roston Chase and Kyle Mayers fell in quick succession, when Jason Holder was cleaned up by Hasan and when Joshua Da Silva – the last recognized batter – fell with 26 still to go. However, West Indies kept knocking down the runs, and the scoreboard pressure shifted entirely to Pakistan. The visitors might have been firm favourites after the hosts had been reduced to nine down, but as Pakistan lost their nerve, Roach and the teenager Seales held theirs.For Pakistan, there was historical precedence in perhaps their most famous Test of all. In 1954, a Fazal Mahmood inspired side defended 167 – exactly what they had on the board today – against England at the Oval: the origin story of Pakistan cricket. It might even have been comfortable when Shaheen Afridi blew apart the top order, and when a middle-order West Indian collapse saw Pakistan burrow deep into their tail. But the catching, so sensational up until the final session, let them down in crucial moments.Roach was put down by Rizwan as a partnership with Da Silva flowered, before Hasan dropped him as well in the deep with 19 runs still to get. In the final session, Da Silva was once again dropped by Abbas. Rizwan’s 45-yard sprint to seal Jomel Warrican’s fate looked also to have done it for West Indies, but there was perhaps an opportunity to pluck a diving one-handed catch off the Roach edge that ended up going to the boundary in that final over.It may seem ages ago now, but a dramatic morning session saw more drama than many entire days, spanning eight wickets across two innings. Seales led the charge in the mission to remove the lower order cheaply, and within an hour-and-a-half, Pakistan’s last five had fallen for 35. Of those 35 runs, 28 were added by an enterprising Hasan in just 26 balls with two fours and two sixes. That pushed the lead above 150 for Pakistan, each extra run giving himself and his fellow bowlers precious breathing room.Moreover, Babar Azam’s presence at the crease was always going to be vital, but a Mayers delivery seared up off a crack and looped up to Holder at second slip early in the day. Azam had departed for a valiant 55, and while it brought Pakistan agonizingly close, his side ended up needing just a bit more from him.From there on, it was down to the raw pace of Seales against Pakistan’s lower order. Yasir Shah and Afridi were sent back with little bother, but Hasan rode his luck as Pakistan brought up 200. Seales, though, would not be denied a maiden five-for in just his second Test, and got there when Hasan’s hook went straight to Roach at fine leg. In the process, he became the youngest West Indies bowler to earn a Test five-for as the hosts were set 168 to win.Jayden Seales became the youngest West Indies bowler to a Test five-for•AFP/Getty Images

The Afridi show began in a somewhat surreal over that had three reviews for leg before wicket by Pakistan against Kieran Powell, the third finally resulting in success. Kraigg Brathwaite didn’t last long in the face of a hostile spell from Afridi, his poke at one that jagged away leading to his downfall, but only after a review. Nkrumah Bonner dragged on in Afridi’s following over, and suddenly, the pre-lunch session turned into a damage-limitation exercise for West Indies.After the mad rush of the first session came the relative slow burn of the second. No less absorbing for its slightly slower pace, it carried with it the sensation of a building crescendo. West Indies made the early running as Chase and Jermaine Blackwood, West Indies’ top scorer with 55, threatened to take it away for the hosts with a 68-run fourth wicket partnership.They came out after lunch a much more confident pair, Blackwood continuing to put anything too wide or too full away. Hasan in particular came in for punishment off successive overs as he struggled with his lines; and with a small target to defend, there wasn’t much room for error, every boundary tilting the scales the batters’ way.Chase, Pakistan’s pet peeve in 2017, was looking just as untroubled without quite having as much of an impact on the scoreboard. But all West Indies needed was a partnership, and as long as the pair continued remained at the crease, the danger signs flashed for Pakistan.Faheem Ashraf, Pakistan’s impact allrounder of late, was the man to break the partnership, constantly threatening Chase’s outside edge in a probing over. When the edge came, Imran Butt was never going to drop a low catch; and in Ashraf’s next over, the same combination got rid of Kyle Mayers for a pair.But the moment of the session came in late, when a few Holder boundaries had brought the required runs down under 60. Blackwood hung his bat out at Hasan once too often, sending it straight to first slip; except Butt at second decided only he could be trusted behind the stumps, diving sensationally to his left to hold on to a stunner. On the stroke of tea, Holder found his off peg knocked back with a beauty.It looked like a bridge too far when Da Silva and Roach came out after tea still needing 54, but as in Antigua and Dominica, the West Indies lower order refused to give in. They began to knock off the runs gradually, and suddenly, with the pair looking relatively untroubled, West Indies had less than 30 left to go. Pakistan, to their alarm, found they were still in a game, and with West Indies refusing to roll over, it became a game of shredded nerves as much as exquisite skill.There was the glory of Rizwan’s catch that spanned the length of the ground, the errors like Hasan’s drop at deep square leg, the guts of Roach going for his shots with the ultimate consequence on the line and the heart of Seales seeing off some searing pace bowling from Afridi. Pakistan broke West Indian hearts four years ago, but in a classic that contained shades of Antigua, West Indies have exacted exceptionally sweet revenge in Jamaica.

Zimbabwe need their experienced hands to show the way, while Pakistan might be tempted to experiment with their XI

Danyal Rasool09-Nov-2020Big picture
After all the promise of a competitive ODI series, the T20Is have been something of a damp squib. Pakistan brought their top form to both weekend games, and illustrated the chasm that evidently exists between a Pakistani side that’s rapidly improving and a Zimbabwean unit that needs improvement desperately. teams As you might expect, if these two teams simply go through the motions, Pakistan will nearly always emerge on top and do so with relative comfort.If anything, the hosts may be slightly disappointed they weren’t challenged further to be able to assess how well some of the youngsters afforded opportunities this series would fare in that scenario. Haider Ali and Usman Qadir have both excelled, but they could have been undergoing net sessions for all the intensity of the contest. Haris Rauf’s pace has been enough to get him a cluster of wickets, but he may have to demonstrate more nuanced skills against more competitive opponents. And while Babar Azam has scored two sumptuous half-centuries, you wouldn’t expect any less of him against the quality of bowling he has faced; if anything, his frustration must centre on a failure to remain at the crease to knock off the winning runs. Pakistan have just turned up and not more, and so far, it’s been more than enough.Much of that is down to Zimbabwe. The visitors haven’t come close to a level of performance they will believe they are capable of. In two of the three ODIs, Zimbabwe pushed themselves to the limit. But in the T20Is, even the in-form batsmen have floundered, while with the ball and in the field, Chamu Chibhabha’s side has been – at best – lacklustre.You could level more scathing criticism at Chibhabha himself, who arguably shouldn’t be anywhere near this side based on his numbers over the past several years. When a frontline batsman who averages 13.24 over the past four years leads the side out on a challenging tour, it is of little surprise if he returns just 34 runs in five innings. It’s a level of performance that’s unacceptable for any international side whatever the ranking, and when the middle order doesn’t bail Zimbabwe out – as on Sunday – they fall apart alarmingly quickly.Form guide

Pakistan WWWLW
Zimbabwe LLLLW
Wesley Madhevere looked good while he was out there•AFP via Getty Images

In the spotlightThese are uncertain times for Fakhar Zaman, for whom being the leading run-scorer in the recent National T20 Cup doesn’t seem to have brought international T20 runs. In the format he should be most useful at, at home and against a mediocre attack, Zaman’s lack of confidence has been laid bare by the manner of his dismissal on Sunday. A low-percentage, ill-timed drive straight to mid-on sent him back for 5, the 16th consecutive T20I innings in which he has failed to reach 40. In that time, he has crossed 25 only once, and for all his domestic form, Zaman wouldn’t be able to complain if the Pakistan selectors – who have shown uncharacteristic patience with him – get twitchy fingers after another failure on Tuesday.Despite being the highest run-getter for Zimbabwe in the ODI series, Brendan Taylor’s twin failures in the T20Is may signal a deeper malaise. He, too, has crossed 40 in T20I cricket just once in the past 16 innings, though he has continued to produce cameos fairly regularly. But against Pakistan, he will need to take more leadership at the top of the innings, especially with Chibhabha out of form. If anything, it may relieve some pressure off the young shoulders of Wesley Madhevere, and give his bowlers something to defend if Zimbabwe are to bat first again.Team newsPakistan maybe open to some experimentation in the bowling. Mohammad Musa will be itching to get a game, while even Rohail Nazir could get a call-up with the series sealed.Pakistan (possible): 1 Fakhar Zaman, 2 Babar Azam (capt), 3 Haider Ali, 4 Mohammad Hafeez/Abdullah Shafique, 5 Mohammad Rizwan/Rohail Nazir (wk), 6 Khushdil Shah, 7 Imad Wasim/Faheem Ashraf, 8 Haris Rauf, 9 Wahab Riaz, 10 Mohammad Musa, 11 Mohammad HasnainZimbawe have been somewhat cautious, never quite ringing the changes this series. It would be a surprise to see that change, though with the series gone, they can afford to experiment.Zimbawe (possible): 1 Chamu Chibhabha (capt), 2 Brendan Taylor (wk), 3 Sean Williams, 4 Wesley Madhevere, 5 Craig Ervine, 6 Sikandar Raza, 7 Elton Chigumbura, 8 Tendai Chisoro, 9 Carl Mumba, 10 Richard Ngarava, 11 Blessing MuzarabaniPitch and conditions
The pitches prepared for this series have been dry and flat, and expect that to remain unchanged tomorrow. Rain should not be a factor.Stats and trivia

• Sikandar Raza has batted 34 times in T20Is without being dismissed for a duck. The only active internationals with longer streaks are Kusal Perera (46), Faf du Plessis (47) and David Miller (68)
• Azam has scored six half-centuries in his last nine T20I innings
• Taylor needs 99 runs to become just the second Zimbabwe batsman after Hamilton Masakadza to tally 1000 runs in T20I cricket

Renuka Singh took three wickets to help restrict India A to 144 for 5 and set up victory

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Nov-2022Yastika Bhatia, Jasia Akhter and Renuka Singh starred for India D as they beat India A by seven wickets in Raipur to lift the Women’s T20 Challenger Trophy.Put into bat, India A didn’t have a great start, with Renuka trapping Shivali Shinde lbw in the first over. Soon after, she dismissed Disha Kasat too, making it 25 for 2 in the fifth over. Wicketkeeper-opener Nuzhat Parween and Harleen Deol stabilised the innings, taking the side to 52 for 2 by the halfway stage of the innings.The next five overs produced 46 runs as both batters opened up. Deol reached her fifty in 40 balls, with Parween following her in 42. The two added 105 for the third wicket, in 13.1 overs, before Renuka broke the stand with Parween’s wicket. Deol fell in the last over of the innings to Rajeshwari Gayakwad, who also had Sajeevan Sajana stumped three balls later.Chasing 145, Bhatia and Akhter set the platform with their 70-run opening partnership in 11 overs. Akhter was the aggressor, hitting three fours and as many sixes in her 38-ball 47.Jemimah Rodrigues and D Hemalatha fell for single-digit scores but by then Bhatia had assumed control. At one point, she was on 21 off 27 balls. Off the next 14, she smashed 31 to bring up her half-century in 41 balls.India D needed 38 runs in the last five overs, which Bhatia and Sushma Verma knocked off with an over to spare.

Lyon has become a major threat for India, taking nine of his 16 wickets off defensive shots. Sweep could be a lower-risk option to put pressure back on him

Sidharth Monga in Melbourne24-Dec-20183:58

WATCH – Ashwin, Jadeja and Rohit train ahead of Boxing Day Test

There was a time when everybody used to be surprised when a spinner did well against India, leave alone a humble offspinner. However, there is no surprise right now who the highest wicket-taker in this series is. He is Australia’s most successful bowler against India, and the world’s second-most successful spinner against the same opposition, known for their batsmanship against spin. Nobody has dismissed Virat Kohli as many times as he has. That he is fit and performing is proving to be a big advantage for Australia. Nathan Lyon, with 16 wickets at 19.43 each, is currently the most threatening bowler in the series.India’s batsmen – under fire anyway – once again have questions asked of their techniques against spin. While it is true that spinners like Moeen Ali feed off the pressure created by their seam bowlers at home – they have much better numbers against India at home as compared to in India, where they should ideally do better – Lyon has now been troubling India both home and away.That nine of Lyon’s 16 wickets this series have come off defensive shots in what can’t be classified as dream conditions for spin is a matter of big concern if you are India’s batting coach. That combined with low strike rates of batsmen against Lyon means two things: the defensive technique is not what it should be, and that they don’t have enough low-risk attacking options. Not only is Lyon taking wickets, he is bowling beautifully in one spot when the wickets are not coming. Those who have managed to score at a strike rate of over 50 against him have not been able to bat long enough, which points to the high-risk game Rishabh Pant and Rohit Sharma have had to play against him. The fact that others – even Kohli – haven’t been able to force mistakes from him points to lack of attacking options too.One of those attacking options was seen in the nets on Sunday, three days before the start of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne. When batting against spin, Kohli played a succession of sweeps. Perhaps he was just toying with the idea, and we might not necessarily see him play that shot often, but there seems to be an intent to attack spin. Even Cheteshwar Pujara lofted spin in the nets on one occasion on Monday.The sweep remains an interesting option, though. Traditionally Indian batsmen have prided themselves on not needing the sweep: they are either right forward or right back, playing the ball either before it turns or after it has turned. The sweep has been considered the weapon of the less proficient. Yet, it is an effective shot. When played well, it not only plays with the bowler’s rhythm, it also makes the fielding captain defend more scoring zones, removing an attacking fielder.R Ashwin and Nathan Lyon share a laugh•AFP

In this series, Lyon has been swept or reverse-swept only 23 times, which is once every five-and-a-half overs. On the last trip here, when Lyon averaged 35 against India, he was swept or reverse-swept 92 times, once every two-and-a-half overs. Even when Lyon toured India last year, India swept or reverse-swept him once every three-and-a-half overs.India’s relationship with the shot has been sporadic. On two consecutive tours of England, they went to the shot in the nets only after Moeen Ali had troubled them. Trailing 2-1 in 2014, they tried it only before the finale at The Oval. Those who were present in England this year talk of how the Southampton defeat sent them to the shot in the nets at The Oval.India have trained hard to face spin although what Lyon does is difficult to replicate in nets. That quality of bowling with that much overspin is not readily available. Still India have tried to simulate the conditions, creating artificial rough; once Kohli batted at the edge of a pitch at the SCG nets with Sanjay Bangar, the batting coach, throwing balls down diagonally into some rough there. Kohli has been practising the sweep in the nets since Adelaide, but he has not played a single sweep against Lyon. Perhaps he doesn’t feel he is ready with it yet, which makes it a risky option as opposed to his against-the-turn cover-drive, which he used to good effect in the first innings in Perth.In this series, even R Ashwin, who has played only one Test, has been swept or reverse-swept only nine times, which makes it once in almost 10 overs. Seven of those shots have been played by a lower-order batsman, Lyon himself. So perhaps the conditions – both Adelaide and Perth strips had appreciable bounce in them – make the sweep a risky option. Perhaps, by sweeping Lyon more often than Australia have swept spin, India have been proactive but just haven’t been able to find a way.Melbourne should bring India more scoring options against Lyon, especially with less bounce from the pitch to aid his overspin. We might just see more sweeps. Whatever they do, India will need to find a way to attack Lyon. Even if Lyon is not a wicket-taking threat, India can’t afford to let him hold one end up, which gives the fast bowlers time to recover and take turns from the other end. One of Lyon’s big successes this series has been that Australia’s fast bowlers have fewer overs in their legs, which allows them to play an extra batsman. With the reputation they have against spin, India should not be allowing that to happen.

England’s women made it five wins out of five on their tour of Sri Lanka, after easing to another untroubled eight-wicket win

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Mar-2019England women 109 for 2 (Jones 36, Wyatt 37) beat Sri Lanka women 108 for 6 (Brunt 2-31) by eight wickets
England’s women made it five wins out of five on their tour of Sri Lanka, after easing to another untroubled eight-wicket win in the second T20I in Colombo.After their 3-0 clean sweep in the ODI leg of the tour, England ensured they wrapped up their second trophy of the trip with a match to spare as well, after restricting Sri Lanka to 108 for 6 in their 20 overs.The spoils were shared around, with five different bowlers claiming a wicket, and Katherine Brunt claiming a brace to finish with figures of 4 for 31. Freya Davies, who opened the bowling with Linsey Smith, didn’t pick up a wicket but set the tone for England’s performance with four economically delivered overs conceding just 15 runs.Sri Lanka started their innings with resolve, adding 45 for the first wicket in seven overs as Chamari Atapattu and Imalka Mendis laid something of a foundation.But Nat Sciver struck with her first delivery to bowl Atapattu for 24, before Shashikala Siriwardene and Mendis fell to Sophia Dunkley and Heather Knight in consecutive overs to keep the run-rate in check.In reply, England wasted little time in getting ahead of the requirement. Amy Jones, in a fine vein of form, added 79 in 7.2 overs with Danni Wyatt before Wyatt was stumped off Siriwardene for 37.And when Jones fell to the same bowler with 19 runs needed, Tammy Beaumont and Sciver knocked off the final requirement with 37 balls to spare.