All posts by h716a5.icu

Mitchell Marsh brought up his fourth first-class half-century of the season as Western Australia recovered from a shaky start on a rain-affected opening day against Queensland at the WACA

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Nov-2013
ScorecardMitchell Marsh finished the day on 69 not out (file photo)•Getty ImagesMitchell Marsh brought up his fourth first-class half-century of the season as Western Australia recovered from a shaky start on a rain-affected opening day against Queensland at the WACA. The Warriors chose to bat but morning rain meant they had to wait until 2pm to start their innings, and the gloomy weather and challenging conditions contributed to a top order collapse as they stumbled to 5 for 47.Ben Cutting picked up two wickets and Luke Feldman, James Hopes and Michael Neser each picked up one as Western Australia struggled until Marsh and Sam Whiteman came together. They put on an unbeaten 109 for the sixth wicket as the Warriors went to stumps on 5 for 156, with Marsh on 69 and Whiteman on 36.Marsh struck 12 fours and one six during his 91-ball innings, which followed the 58 and 62 he made against the touring England side and the unbeaten 65 he made against South Australia.

Pakistan Under-19s won their third match in a row, beating England Under-19s by 47 runs in Sharjah

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Dec-2013
ScorecardPakistan Under-19s won their fourth match in a row, beating England Under-19s by 47 runs in Sharjah. After Pakistan posted a competitive 241, their left-arm bowlers Zia-ul-Haq and Zafar Gohar took three wickets each to dismiss England for 194.Asked to bat, Pakistan made a steady start as their top three combined to score 117. Opener Kamran Ghulam scored 53, his first fifty of the series, and Imam-ul-Haq hit 41 before being run-out. However, they lost four wickets for three runs as Imam, Rafay Ahmed, Ghulam and Hasan Raza were dismissed within ten deliveries, leaving them at 127 for 5. No. 5 Saud Shakeel resisted with an unbeaten 55-ball 45 to take them past 200. Useful contributions Saifullah Khan (28) and Gohar, 25 off 9, meant they scored 51 in the last five overs.England’s openers took more than 13 overs to put on 48 before Ghulam broke the stand. They kept losing wickets at regular intervals as their middle-order batsmen couldn’t convert their starts into big scores. Once Harry Finch fell for 42 in the 33rd over, Rob Sayer was the only other batsman to put up a fight. They were eventually all out in the 46th over when Zia bowled the last batsman to finish with 3 for 33.

England were left mystified by a third-umpire call that sent Joe Root on his way on the second day at the WACA, but the decision appeared to have been in line with the pre-series instructions to the umpires

Brydon Coverdale in Perth14-Dec-2013England were left mystified by a third-umpire call that sent Joe Root on his way on the second day at the WACA, but the decision appeared to have been in line with the pre-series instructions to the umpires. The officials were told before the Ashes that sounds detected on the new Real-Time Snickometer could still be an edge even if they appeared to come after the ball had passed the bat, which may have led Tony Hill to uphold the caught-behind decision against Root.Root was given out by the on-field umpire Marais Erasmus when the Australians appealed for an edge behind off the bowling of Shane Watson and Root immediately asked for a review, shaking his head as if to tell his partner he had not touched the ball. Although there was no Hot Spot on the bat, there was a small noise that registered on the Real-Time Snicko; there was confusion because the sound seemed to show up immediately after the ball had passed the edge.Hill, the third umpire, upheld the out decision, which left Root flummoxed as he walked off the field, but the outcome seemed to have been in line with a pre-series briefing by the ICC’s general manager of cricket Geoff Allardice. In the lead-up to the Gabba Test, Allardice told reporters that where sound showed up on Snicko in the camera frame after the ball had passed the bat, it could still be an edge.”One of the important things to remember is it’s a qualification tool for the umpire about when there is a sound,” Allardice said at the time. “He’s got to say ‘could it have been anything else, was it at the right time’. So one of the things they’ll be looking for, the frame immediately after the ball’s passed the bat, and if there’s a corresponding sound then it says he could have hit the ball. He’ll look at the pictures and he’ll see is there a gap between bat and ball, could it have been something else and then make a judgement.”It’s more conclusive if there’s no sound, if the batsman’s out there waving and there’s nothing as the ball passes the bat, and there’s something a few frames later, that’s the situation where he might say ‘he’s dragged his foot’ or something like that.”Third umpires must see or hear clear evidence in order to overturn the decision of the on-field official, and the possibility that the noise had been an edge appeared to lead Hill to err on the side of Erasmus. Root clearly believed he had not hit the ball, but the same could be said of the Australian batsman Steven Smith, who shook his head as he walked off on the second morning after a noise on the Real-Time Snicko convinced Hill to overturn an on-field not-out decision.”It was a disappointing dismissal for us, and a key dismissal for us,” the England batsman Michael Carberry said of Root’s caught-behind. “He obviously felt he didn’t hit the ball, so he reviewed it. What the decision made by the third umpire was, I’m not fully aware of because I wasn’t there. But obviously we were bitterly disappointed … We were of the opinion he didn’t hit it, hence we reviewed it … the decision [is] made by the third umpire, we don’t control that, so it’s one of those things we have to swallow I’m afraid.”Real-Time Snicko is being tested in this Ashes series for the first time as part of the third umpire’s DRS technologies after the ICC monitored the tool during the English summer and felt it could be used in conjunction with Hot Spot. The ICC’s umpire performance and training manager, Simon Taufel, briefed both the England and Australia teams on the new technology before the series, including on the interpretations that would be used by umpires.

Five years worth of fluctuating fortunes in the World Cricket League Championship culminates in the 2014 ICC World Cup Qualifier, beginning in New Zealand on Monday

Peter Della Penna12-Jan-2014Five years worth of fluctuating fortunes in the World Cricket League Championship culminates in the 2014 ICC World Cup Qualifier, beginning in New Zealand on Monday. Teams as low as Division Seven of the ICC’s 50-over round-robin tournament structure had the chance to climb the Associate and Affiliate ladder to get within striking distance of a spot at the 2015 ICC World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.Two Associate berths remain available for next year’s event after Ireland and Afghanistan snatched a pair of places by virtue of finishing first and second in the ICC World Cricket League. The bottom six teams in the WCL Championship are joined in New Zealand by the third and fourth place teams from WCL Division Two in 2011 – Papua New Guinea and Hong Kong – as well as the first and second place teams from last year’s ICC WCL Division Three, Nepal and Uganda.The 10 teams are split into two groups of five for the initial phase of round-robin play after which the top three from each group will advance to the Super Six stage and remain in the hunt for a World Cup berth. Points gained from the group stage against fellow Super Six participants will carry over while the three teams in Group A will each play three crossover games with the three that advance from Group B. The top two teams after the Super Six stage will advance to the final and gain entry to next year’s World Cup.Group ACaptain Paras Khadka has been the backbone of Nepal’s success in recent years•ICCWhat the coaches and captains said

Aqib Javed, UAE coach: “We have a good batting unit, but it has struggled on green, seaming tracks. That’s why I am working extra hard with the batters specifically on how to counter seam and swing.”

Paul Collingwood, Scotland coach: “We’ve got confidence from the three wins (in practice games). We’ve nailed down an approach that we want to use throughout the tournament, and the guys have performed well in the middle.”

Pubudu Dassanayake, Nepal coach: “It has really helped us to be here early and get used to the conditions. The guys took two to three days to get over the jet lag and now we’re really settled. The conditions are very different here. Weather-wise, it is similar to Nepal.”

Andy Pick, Canada coach: “We spent a few days in Auckland and played against a local team. It was an acclimatisation process really. Some guys have come from Winnipeg, where the temperature was minus 20 degrees, and they’ve come here where it’s 20 degrees or so, so for some of them the temperature change has been up to 40 degrees!”

Anton Roux, Netherlands coach: “We focused immensely on our strength and conditioning prior to the World T20 Qualifiers and this tournament. I think it is safe to say that this is the fittest that the Dutch team has been in a long time.”

Peter Borren, Netherlands captain: “I would say that we have a very good chance of qualifying. The team spent a fantastic week training and playing in Whangarei.”

Kyle Coetzer, Scotland captain: “Our momentum is good. We’ve got the leading spin bowlers in Associate cricket – Majid Haq especially.”

Jimmy Hansra, Canada captain: “The tournament format means there will be no meaningless matches. So we’ll have to be on our toes throughout.”

Paras Khadka, Nepal captain: “The main reason we came here early was to acclimatise. We felt that in Bermuda for WCL Division 3 in April 2013, the first week was really hard – the time difference, the temperature. It’s really helped us to have the time here.”

UAE
They narrowly missed out on one of the two places available for World Cup qualification in the WCL Championship, finishing just one point behind Afghanistan. They were good enough to sweep both 50-over games they played against Afghanistan during the competition and went 6-2 overall in games played in the UAE with their only losses at home coming to Ireland.On the road they were not quite as formidable, going 3-3 including a loss to Kenya in their first match of the tournament and a sweep at the hands of Netherlands, who finished in fourth place on the table. Their ability to adjust to New Zealand conditions with a bowling attack light on seam options and heavy on spin will be a major factor. UAE showed in their two warm-up matches ahead of the qualifier, though, that any fears of a struggle may be unfounded, with heavy wins over Uganda and pre-tournament favorites Netherlands.Scotland
After finishing fifth in the WCL Championship and a disappointing seventh at November’s World Twenty20 Qualifier, a mini shakeup occurred with coach Pete Steindl leaving and Paul Collingwood moving up from assistant coach to the top role for the World Cup qualifiers. Scotland need to exploit the seaming conditions in New Zealand if they are to qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 2007.Seam bowlers Rob Taylor, Saafyan Sharif and Gordon Goudie demonstrated in the warm-up fixtures against Papua New Guinea and Namibia that they will be a handful to deal with. 22-year-old batsman Matt Machan is also carrying solid form into this tournament. Group A is far more competitive than Group B, but Scotland will be extremely disappointed if they don’t make it to the Super Six stage.Canada
Despite qualifying for the last three World Cups, Canada are the most vulnerable of any of the four Associate ODI nations in this event of not progressing to the Super Six stage. They performed poorly in November at the World Twenty20 Qualifier, finishing 12th, and wound up dead last in the WCL Championship. Head coach Gus Logie was dismissed upon the team’s return from the UAE in December and it is up to interim coach Andy Pick to turn things around on short notice if Canada have any chance of keeping their World Cup streak alive.John Davison was Canada’s catalyst for success in the last decade but since his departure after the 2011 World Cup, they have been unable to develop a genuine matchwinner. Former captain Ashish Bagai’s early retirement last month at the age of 31 exacerbated the issue of a lack of batting depth. Teenager Nitish Kumar scored a century in a 39-run win over Netherlands in a warm-up match on Friday, but Canada had also beaten Afghanistan in a World T20 Qualifier warm-up match before flopping in the main event.Hong Kong
This team is one of the most balanced sides in the competition, with a pair of quality fast bowlers in Aizaz Khan and allrounder Irfan Ahmed to go along with good support from spinners Nadeem Ahmed and Nizakat Khan. However, they will miss out on the experience of left-arm spinner Munir Dar, who was the second highest wicket-taker at the World T20 Qualifier. His action was reported twice during the tournament and he was subsequently ruled illegal by the ICC resulting in his suspension from bowling in international cricket for 12 months.Of Hong Kong’s many young batting talents, batsman Mark Chapman has a lot of experience in local conditions. Chapman had a successful school career in Auckland, captaining King’s College, and is expected to make major contributions in the middle order. The only strike against Hong Kong is their mercurial nature, as likely to score 300 as they are to be bowled out for 120. They must demonstrate consistency to make it out of a stacked Group A and into the Super Six stage.Nepal
No team has climbed higher through the most recent WCL tournament cycle than Nepal to reach the qualifier. They started in Division Five in 2010, which they hosted and won, before winning both Division Four in Malaysia in 2012 and Division Three in Bermuda last May. Even though their attack is spin heavy, they have demonstrated that they can be successful in varied conditions away from home.The backbone of the team’s success in recent years has been captain Paras Khadka but Nepal must get quality contributions from a thin pace bowling unit to survive in the tournament. Sompal Kami, a 17-year-old medium-pace bowler, is expected to make his debut and could provide the spark Nepal need. In the warm-ups he took 4 for 36 against Namibia but was rocked by Kenya to finish with 0 for 86. Nepal needs more of the former and not the latter to stay in the hunt.Group BNetherlands fast bowler Ahsan Malik was the leading wicket-taker at the World T20 Qualifier and should enjoy as much success in seam-friendly conditions in New Zealand•ICC/GettyNetherlands
The pre-tournament favourites are banking on a quality seam attack and a steady batting unit to produce a return trip to the World Cup. Captain Peter Borren is a former New Zealand U-19 representative and will be drawing on his experiences before migrating to Holland to aid his adopted country at this event.Fast bowler Ahsan Malik was the leading wicket-taker at the World Twenty20 Qualifier in the UAE and should enjoy just as much success in seam-friendly conditions in New Zealand. A pair of losses in tournament warm-up fixtures to Canada and UAE may cause slight alarm but they are hands down the strongest team in a weak Group B so will be expected to gain maximum points to carry over into the next stage.Kenya
Their weaknesses were exposed in a competitive group at the World Twenty20 Qualifier, but Kenya should now benefit from being paired with fellow African nations Namibia and Uganda in Group B. Steve Tikolo was one of the few bright spots in November after coming out of retirement and if he can produce a few more vintage innings then it should be enough for them to get into the Super Sixes.A big positive for Kenya entering the start of the qualifier is the form of opener Irfan Karim. He made an unbeaten 130 in a narrow two-run loss to Hong Kong in a warm-up fixture on Friday. Kenya are also hoping that a change in leadership, with Rakep Patel taking over the captaincy from Collins Obuya, will help turn things around.Namibia
If they had been placed in Group A, Namibia would have a slim chance of making it out of the group stage. They finished equal with Canada on four points in the WCL Championship, but by virtue of having two wins to Canada’s one, they were seventh in the standings on tie-breaker instead of eighth which subsequently resulted in Namibia landing in Group B and Canada in Group A.Namibia’s luck of the draw is not the only piece of good fortune for them heading into this tournament. Gerrie Snyman, originally left out of the squad for the qualifier, has been added as a replacement for JB Burger. Snyman hadn’t played for Namibia since last January due to a dispute with the Namibia board over his availability but showed what his country has been missing all this time by top-scoring with 73 against Scotland in a warm-up game.Papua New Guinea
The Pacific Islanders showed plenty of energy at the World Twenty20 Qualifier, making it out of the group stage, but the lack of an explosive slogger in their line-up probably prevented them in the end from finishing in the top six. The steady accumulation of runs needed in 50-over cricket better suits their playing style and will aid their chances of success in this tournament.PNG don’t have any express bowlers, but a slew of accurate medium-pacers led by captain Chris Amini and Mahuru Dai may pose problems for the opposition. Geraint Jones is the most heralded player in their squad due to his Test credentials, but opener Tony Ura outperformed Jones in the UAE in November and is hoping to build on that experience.Uganda
After winning just one game at the 2005 ICC Trophy and two at the 2009 World Cup Qualifier, Uganda are aiming to change their struggles at this tournament. However, the chances of that happening are slim due to the nature of conditions and their lack of batting depth. Uganda must rely on their sharp fielding to make up for deficiencies with the bat and in the pace bowling department.In Uganda’s favour is the fact that several players carry the experience into this tournament from playing in previous editions of the qualifier. Medium-pacer Charles Waiswa, wicketkeeper Laurence Sematimba and allrounder Frank Nsubuga will be playing in this event for the third time. They will need to shepherd some of the newer faces through the daunting schedule ahead of them.

Piet Botha, coach of the Warriors, believes that Wayne Parnell is ready for Test cricket, and that his pace could give him an edge in being picked over Ryan McLaren for the upcoming home series against Australia

Firdose Moonda31-Jan-2014A tweak to his delivery stride, regular first-class game time, and a bit of growing up has put Wayne Parnell in prime position to occupy South Africa’s No.7 Test spot, according to his franchise coach Piet Botha. Parnell is one of two all-rounders in the squad to face Australia, and Botha believes Parnell’s pace could give him the edge over Ryan McLaren.”He is definitely ready for Test cricket again. In South African conditions, where the wickets are a little bouncier, he will be a handful,” Botha, the Warriors coach told ESPNcricinfo. “He is a little bit older now, he’s played a little bit more cricket and he backs himself in tough situations.”It has been four years since Parnell made his Test debut for South Africa as a 20-year-old with dreams to match his promise. He had played nine ODIs before that, with two five-wicket hauls. He also featured in eight Twenty20 internationals, including six in the 2012 World T20 where the seven wickets he took in two games against England and West Indies remain some of South Africa’s finest performances at major competitions.His promotion to play in whites had then seemed a little premature – he had only played nine franchise first-class matches, six three-day provincial games and five division two county games at that point – but South Africa were willing to gamble on his talent. They were searching for a third prong to complete the Dale Steyn-Morne Morkel duo and thought a left-armer would be a good option.Parnell played three Tests- two in India- and took five wickets, but that was the end of the experiment. The talk around the traps was that the team management wanted him to experience a full season of first-class franchise cricket. But before that could happen, Parnell suffered a severe groin injury in May that year.Recovery was slow, relapses were frequent and his constant yo-yoing in and out of the limited-overs sides meant that the chance for a prolonged four-day run was elusive. “There was a period of time where he just wasn’t playing first-class cricket and that was a problem. The injury didn’t help because it plays on a players’ mind, they are are never 100% mentally there,” Botha said. “He always had the skills to play but he just wasn’t getting the game time.”Two seasons ago, in the 2011/12 summer, Parnell played just three matches for the Warriors. Last season, he played five and in the four rounds of the domestic competition completed this year, he has appeared in only one. It was an important one though, as he took eight wickets in the match to give his team a big win.Parnell also found an opportunity with South Africa A and made an impact there as well. He played both unofficial Tests against Sri Lanka A in the winter of 2012, and was the joint second-highest wicket-taker. Last winter, he played both the games against India A. He was under the watch of people close to the South African team, such as former bowling coach Vincent Barnes, and subsequently improved his performances. Parnell was bowling quickly and his batting, something he was always capable of, was developing.”He has always had the ability to bowl 145kph plus and if the technical things are all right, he could even bowl quicker than that,” Botha said. So it made sense to focus on the adjustments. Botha concentrated on what he could do to ensure Parnell did not just bowl speedily on occasion, but could do it consistently. For that to happen, he had to ask Parnell to change one aspect of his delivery stride.”Wayne used to have quite a long stride and he would end up blocking himself off, so we worked on getting it a little shorter,” Botha explained. “By doing that, he would be bowling a lot from over the top, rather than with his arm side-on, and so could bowl at maximum pace.”It sounds like a minor change, and it was, but it still required time in the nets to perfect the action. That was important in fine-tuning Parnell’s work ethic, something he has now become an expert at. “He puts in a lot of extra work these days,” Botha said. “He’s very professional about the way he goes about things.”The rewards of all the long hours he spent in training are not limited to his bowling. Parnell averaged 48.33 in List A cricket in this season’s One-Day cup, scored a century and even opened the batting for the Warriors. His 91 against India A showed he could be more than a white-ball bludgeoner, and Botha believes this can also translate to the Test level.”What he learned is that when he takes his time to get in, he can really build an innings,” Botha said. “When guys come in down the order, sometimes they fall into the trap of thinking they have to score quickly and they end up getting out early. But Wayne has proved if he gives himself a bit of time, he can get runs.”The patience required to play himself in has come with age. “He has grown up a bit,” Botha said “But that comes the more you play and now we can see it in Wayne, he’s more mature. He’s ready for Test cricket again.”The McLaren camp will disagree, citing greater experience and better numbers as the reason their man should fill the gap left by Jacques Kallis. Although both McLaren and Parnell have been international cricketers for five years, McLaren is six years older, has a higher first-class batting average and a lower first-class bowling one.What he does not have, though, is the gas to send down delivers at close to 150kph from an awkward angle. “Wayne is unique, not just because he is left-armer so he has the advantage of the angle but because he is so quick,” Botha said. Because this series has been dubbed a battle of the bowling attacks and pace is expected to play a big role, Parnell is a safe bet to feature heavily in it.

Nepal captain Paras Khadka stressed how Nepal have been working for more than a decade to get to this level, and not just to play in this edition of the World T20

Mohammad Isam in Dhaka10-Mar-2014Nepal captain Paras Khadka strode into the press conference room at a Dhaka hotel impressively. He stressed how Nepal have been working for more than a decade to get to this level, and not just to play in this edition of the World T20. They are among six teams to have made it to the first round of the World T20 from the Qualifier tournament held in the UAE last November.”I think we are here to present Nepal cricket in front of the whole world,” Khadka said. “It is a great opportunity for us. It is not like we have only qualified for this tournament and worked for three months. We have been playing for 10-12 years with hard work and playing continuous cricket. We are here to compete and play to the best of our ability. If we play to our potential, things should be good for us.”Khadka said that Nepal’s participation in the tournament will boost cricket in the country, as the government has already taken interest. “I think we have been playing cricket since 1996. We have been part of the ACC (Asian Cricket Council) since then. CAN (Cricket Association of Nepal) is one of the oldest sporting associations back home. We are getting there.”Football and cricket are the two most popular sports. Everybody follows us. Kids love the game. The game is really growing big time. It is very exciting. We have an amazing fan following back home. The number of cricket fans that we have matches any Test-playing country.”For most people, Nepal came as a huge surprise to be playing at this level. This will be a breakthrough for the country itself. Once we qualified for the World Cup, the government is very keen to find out how to develop cricket further. I hope we can move forward from here.”Nepal shot to fame in the 2006 Under-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka where they became Plate champions, and Khadka said the senior team is now following up on the younger batch’s impressive showing in that tournament over the years.”There was always the criticism that we only do well at the U-19 level. But the national team is doing well in the last two years. You need the junior structure as well. What we need is a basic structure back home.”After Khadka, Rahul Vishwakarma said how he, like all his team-mates, had aspired to reach this stage since childhood. He met one of his heroes, Shakib Al Hasan, but didn’t get a chance to talk to him. Like Shakib, he is a left-arm spinner and left-hand batsman and doesn’t lack the confidence too.”It feels great to be playing at this level, but we belong to this level,” Vishwakarma said. “Hopefully we will do well in this tournament.”

With only a day available between games, Zimbabwe captain Brendon Taylor said his team would have to mentally work through where they had fallen short against Ireland, and avoid the same mistakes against Netherlands

Abhishek Purohit in Sylhet18-Mar-2014Probably only fellow captains can empathise with Brendan Taylor’s plight after Zimbabwe’s last-ball loss to Ireland. More so considering Taylor himself had blown the chance to take the game into the Super Over by missing the stumps as Ireland scrambled the winning bye. Even as he must have tried to get a hold on his emotions, he had to front up to questions at the post-match presentation, the post-match press conference, and then the pre-match press conference for Zimbabwe’s next game against Netherlands.As he sat blankly in front of the mike, Taylor still seemed to be simmering at what had transpired on the field moments ago. But soon he had to voice his thoughts on how he would try to turn his side around in the gap of a day, now that Zimbabwe needed to win both their remaining matches and hope Ireland did not end up winning all of theirs. Taylor gathered himself and drew hope from how Zimbabwe had bounced back in the warm-up matches, comfortably chasing down 169 against Afghanistan after an unexpected defeat to Hong Kong.”When we lose, we generally do come back stronger,” Taylor said. “Had that against Hong Kong when we played Afghanistan. We realise we have to have two very good games if we are to have half a chance of getting through. We are not looking too far ahead. We are looking to a good training day and come out to win on Wednesday. It is as clear as I can put it for us. We know what we have to do and I am pretty sure we will have an improved performance.”With so much limited-overs experience in his squad, Taylor had said earlier that he did not need to tell his players what to do, and that they needed to take on more responsibility. And with only a day available between games, Taylor added there was no time for individuals to work on their games, and it would all come down to mentally working through where they had fallen short against Ireland, and avoiding the same mistakes against Netherlands.”It is just mental fine-tuning now. You cannot be cramming in hours in the nets and trying to vary your game. Maybe you can go out and have a solid net practice but mentally is probably the most important aspect of leading up to Wednesday. Guys need to sit down, regroup and try and iron out a few areas we can improve upon and come Wednesday, we should be clear about what we need to do.”Taylor hinted Zimbabwe could tweak the playing XI that did duty against Ireland, although he said it was too early for him to reveal more details. “We have got some good guys sitting in the dugout so we might have a closer look at that. I haven’t thought too far. I’ll spend some time with the coaching staff and the selectors. There could be a possible change. We have got some talented guys sitting up.”

A round-up of the Logan Cup matches that ended on April 9, 2014

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Apr-2014An unbeaten double-century by Sikandar Raza was the driving force of Mashonaland Eagles’ innings and 94-run win against Southern Rocks in Harare that helped the team maintain its second position in the Logan Cup table. It was the second time within a week that Rocks’ bowling had bore the brunt of Raza’s aggression: a day before the start of this match, Raza’s 130 had downed Rocks in the Pro50 Championship game.Within 24 hours of that loss, the Rocks were batting again and despite a solid 64-run stand for the first wicket, their fortune didn’t show any signs of change. Brian Vitori, who had not played the List A game, dismissed both the openers, then added three more wickets to complete his fifth first-class five-wicket haul. Other bowlers chipped in and the Rocks were bowled out for 164.By the time Raza came in to bat on the second morning, the Eagles had all but wiped off the lead with a 161-run stand for the second wicket between Nick Welch and Mark Vermeulen. Both batsmen fell in the 80s, but Raza and Regis Chakabva, who scored 102, pummelled the bowling with a 235-run stand. The Eagles declared their innings with a lead of 343 runs as soon as Raza reached the 200-run mark.Batting might have seemed easier during Eagles’ innings, but it changed when Rocks came back. Faced with a mountain to climb, the Rocks lost their openers early, and despite brief periods of resistance, succumbed to the pace of Vitori who bagged a second five-for to finish with career-best figures of 12 for 106.A five-wicket haul from the legspinner Natsai M’shangwe helped Mountaineers clinch a comprehensive 162-run win against Matebeleland Tuskers in Mutare. Tuskers were set 289 for victory, but barring a 66 from Sean Williams, none of the other batsmen could muster more than 23 as the team folded 126 in 47 overs. M’Shangwe finished with 5 for 39 – his third five-for in first-class cricket – as only three batsmen managed to reach double digits.Mountaineers, put in to bat, fared poorly in their first essay, as a five-wicket haul from Williams restricted the team to 157. Tuskers, however, were unable to make that advantage count, as they were bundled out for 147, handing Mountaineers a 10-run lead. Williams once again stood out with a fighting 98, but received little by way of support at the other end, as Donald Tiripano snared four wickets to prevent the batting team from gathering any momentum.Mountaineers struggled to build a foundation until a 74-run association for the fourth wicket between Kudzai Sauramba (56) and Timycen Maruma (50). Sauramba added a further 66 runs for the seventh wicket with M’Shangwe, as Mountaineers ended on 278.

Mumbai Indians slumped to their second defeat in as many matches against Royal Challengers Bangalore, who have now won two out of two

The Report by Abhishek Purohit19-Apr-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
10:05

Mumbai need to rethink batting order

Mumbai Indians slumped to their second defeat in as many matches against Royal Challengers Bangalore, who have now won two out of two. The defending champions struggled at the start, scratched around in the middle and crumbled at the death on a somewhat difficult surface seeing its first IPL match. For their opponents, it was the bowling again that set up the win, although their batsmen, minus the recovering Chris Gayle again, did not find it easy.Mumbai’s problems began at the top as Michael Hussey and Aditya Tare failed to make good after being dropped on 1. Mitchell Starc and Albie Morkel found swing and seam to go with some pace and bounce, and the Mumbai openers were tied down. Tare was beaten several times for pace, especially on the short ball.Even as Hussey departed, swinging Morkel to backward square leg, Varun Aaron’s speed and accurate back-of-a-length deliveries kept up the squeeze on Mumbai. Tare’s struggle ended when he connected a short ball only to top-edge it.Then came the decisive spell of the game. Young legspinner Yuzvendra Chahal tossed it up liberally, and lured Rohit Sharma into a half-hearted loft to long-off. Chahal stuck to his approach, and earned another big wicket of Kieron Pollard in his next over, the batsman trying to launch a six but only going as far as long-on, where Sachin Rana jumped to collect a sharp catch.Ambati Rayudu and Corey Anderson pushed Mumbai past 100 but they never looked in control as no Royal Challengers bowler provided them any release. Ashok Dinda went for just 14 in his four overs. Mumbai were to collapse from 101 for 4 to 115 for 9 in the last four overs, batsman after batsman slogging and holing out in the deep.Royal Challengers were to be reduced to 17 for 3 in the chase. Nic Maddinson could not keep out an inswinging Lasith Malinga yorker. Zaheer Khan then nipped out Virat Kohli and Yuvraj Singh in the space of three deliveries. AB de Villiers was the new batsman in. He had Parthiv Patel for company, but with only Albie Morkel, Sachin Rana and the bowlers to follow, Royal Challengers needed the pair in the middle to do the bulk of the job.Which was exactly what de Villiers and Parthiv did, putting on an unbeaten 99 run-partnership that brought up the win in the 18th over. They had their nervy moments, but hung around to steer their side home. Parthiv seemed to have thin-edged Malinga to the keeper with 41 needed off the last seven overs, but Mumbai did not even appeal. It might have made a difference, it may not have, but in the end, Mumbai just did not have enough runs to push Royal Challengers.

Tim Southee and offspinner Mark Craig demolished West Indies for the second time in successive days at Sabina Park to record New Zealand’s second Test win in the Caribbean

The Report by George Binoy11-Jun-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsShivnarine Chanderpaul was out padding up to Ish Sodhi•Associated PressTim Southee and offspinner Mark Craig demolished West Indies for the second time in successive days at Sabina Park to record New Zealand’s second Test win in the Caribbean. Craig took four wickets in the final innings to finish with 8 for 188 in the Test, the best match haul by a New Zealand debutant.West Indies were left to reflect on another abject batting performance. Their second-innings total of 216 was inflated by an 82-run stand for the last wicket between Sulieman Benn and Shane Shillingford, who swung merrily to score the second fastest Test fifty in terms of balls recorded. It only delayed the inevitable defeat.After West Indies had been set 403 to win, Chris Gayle began the chase with two boundaries in the first over,from Trent Boult, becoming the eighth West Indian to pass 7000 Test runs. He then watched Tom Latham move lithely at short midwicket, diving forward to catch a low flick from Kieran Powell, giving Southee a wicket in his first over. In his second, Southee pitched a delivery on a good length around off and angled the ball away from Gayle. It was a delivery he had beaten Gayle with umpteen times in the first innings before finally hitting the edge. He did not have to wait at all this time. Gayle prodded from his crease with poor footwork and edged a low catch to the wicketkeeper BJ Watling, leaving West Indies on 11 for 2.West Indies’ slump took a break for tea and then resumed unabated. Brendon McCullum brought on Craig in the 12th over and the offspinner struck with his second ball, dismissing Kirk Edwards for the second time in the Test, caught at leg gully after the batsman pushed forward too early.New Zealand’s fielding and catching had made West Indies’ efforts in the field look lethargic all through the Test, and two outstanding catches gave Craig two more wickets in the space of three balls. The wicketkeeper BJ Watling adjusted to the high bounce of an offbreak and caught the outside edge from Darren Bravo near his shoulder, and Latham dived quickly to his left at short leg to hold an inside edge from Marlon Samuels, who bagged his second two-ball duck of the Test. West Indies were 54 for 5.Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Denesh Ramdin began to form a partnership but there was a sense of futility to their efforts, given the magnitude of the task ahead. Unlike in the first innings, when Chanderpaul was solid all through his unbeaten 84, he played shots and edged a couple of his early deliveries. And when he padded up to the legspinner Ish Sodhi, and the New Zealanders went up in prolonged appeal, umpire Rod Tucker gave him lbw. It was a marginal decision, because Chanderpaul had taken a long stride forward and the ball was turning big, but replays predicted it would have clipped the top of leg stump. A broken innings now lay shattered.It was left to the new West Indian captain, Ramdin, to avert a four-day defeat, but when he missed a slog sweep and was bowled by Sodhi not long before stumps, New Zealand took the 30-minute extension to knock over the tail. What seemed a certain four-day finish, however, began to seem unlikely as Shillingford and Benn frustrated the bowlers with free-spirited, no-pressure hitting. One over remained in the day, and McCullum gave it to Kane Williamson. He needed four balls to have Benn caught behind; Watling capping a phenomenal match behind the stumps.Before their batsmen failed for the second time in the Test, West Indies’ bowlers had produced a much-improved performance to slow New Zealand’s attempt to build on an overnight lead of 260. In the second over of the day, Jerome Taylor hit the back pads of nightwatchman Sodhi and Ross Taylor with consecutive deliveries. Both were dead lbw.Ramdin brought on his spinners from the 10th over of the day, and while Benn was economical, Shillingford took a while to find a good length. Once he began to toss it up fuller, he became more effective, and eventually spun one through McCullum’s defences. New Zealand were 55 for 5 at that point.Jimmy Neesham came out and played with the fluency that had brought him his first-innings century, and even charged Shillingford to hit him over the straight boundary. West Indies could have had Latham’s wicket had they reviewed an lbw appeal from Benn that was turned down. He was on 25 at the time, and gave West Indies no more chances.New Zealand were slow in the first half hour after lunch, scoring only five runs. The partnership for the sixth wicket had grown slowly to 63 when Neesham miscued a loft against Shillingford and holed out to long-on.The tempo picked up after Watling joined Latham. The batsmen rotated strike almost every other ball and Watling went on the offensive straightaway, sweeping and cutting Samuels for boundaries. In the first over after drinks, Latham played an uncharacteristically flamboyant drive and was caught at slip for 73, the first sign that the declaration was near.Craig clobbered his first ball in Test cricket over the long-on boundary, and moments later McCullum called his troops in. He had given his team a little over four sessions to bowl West Indies out, a little over three if they wanted to watch the first match of the football World Cup, and a little over two if they wanted to catch the opening ceremony as well. Southee, Craig and Sodhi needed less time than that.