All posts by n8rngtd.top

Root believes his side can replicate the feats of the 2005 Ashes winners with World Cup success

George Dobell at Edgbaston08-Jul-2019England have the chance to replicate the Ashes winners of 2005 and inspire a new generation of supporters, Joe Root believes.A documentary focused on the series and shown on Channel 4 on Sunday revived memories of that summer: the gripping cricket; the passionate supporters queuing around the block in the hope of a ticket and the celebrations in victory. For a little while, cricket seemed to be the centre of attention.This World Cup hasn’t gripped the nation in quite the same way. Not yet, anyway. Whether due to the rain at the start of the tournament or the lack of visibility of a sport played behind a broadcast paywall, the impression remains that vast swathes of the nation remain untouched by a tournament that has taken a while to come to the boil.But England have effectively been playing knockout cricket for the last couple of games. And now, with a semi-final against the old enemy at a ground on which England have an outstanding record, there is still hope this World Cup can capture the imagination in something approaching the way the sport managed in the summer of 2005.”I can remember that 2005 Ashes as a kid and being really absorbed in that whole series at 14 years old,” Root said. “It was magical.”For us to have a similar opportunity, on a slightly different scale maybe, is very exciting. It is great to see people showing a huge interest in cricket and it is great that this group of players are playing their part in getting people interested.”Every player wants to see the game grow and flourish so it would be great to be able to help do that by achieving something very special. I think it is one of the most pleasing things that you can do as a sportsman. It would be brilliant if we could take that even further by doing what we have done in the last couple of games.”England will have been pleased to return to Edgbaston and not just because Trevor Bayliss suffered a theft before they left Manchester. The England coach’s car was broken into and, slightly bizarrely, thieves made off with his floppy sunhat – though judging by the look of it, there’s a chance it ran off on its own – but left his golf clubs. He was protected from the fierce Birmingham sunshine by a fetching new straw number.Joe Root and Trevor Bayliss during England’s nets session at Edgbaston•PA Photos

More pertinently, they will have been happy to return to a ground where their record is excellent. They have won their last 10 international games across the formats here, while Australia have not won an ODI at the ground since 1993. England have also won 10 of the last 12 ODIs between the nations. They may have been further encouraged by news that the groundsman expects the pitch – a fresh one – to neither offer much to bowlers or deteriorate as the game progresses. It does not, at this stage, look like a two-spinner surface, which may be better news for Liam Plunkett than it is for Moeen Ali.While the whole Australia squad – including those who are injured and those who are on stand-by – came to the ground on Monday (and, for a while, walked barefoot around the playing area in a habit that Justin Langer calls “grounding”), only a few of the England squad attended optional training. Among the batsmen, Eoin Morgan, Jos Buttler, Moeen and Root had a net, while Chris Woakes and Jason Roy had light fitness sessions on the outfield. And while the latter did not look completely comfortable, you do wonder how many legs he would have to lose before England chose to recall James Vince in his place.Australia have some pretty encouraging stats of their own. They have played seven previous World Cup semi-finals and progressed every time – including in a memorable tied game here in 1999 – and they won the last ODI between the sides. As ever, if you torture the data for long enough, it will tell you pretty much anything you like.England may not have quite the level of support they anticipated, though. It would appear many of the tickets for this game were originally sold to supporters of India. And while a decent portion of those are now being offered on the ICC’s resale platforms, there is a danger that some will not come back on the market or will be cancelled having been offered for resale on other platforms. The ICC have reiterated that, if you want to be sure of gaining entry with a resold ticket, you have to have bought it on the official platform.Whatever happens, England know they give themselves the best chance if they are focused yet relaxed, aggressive though adaptable, open to enjoyment but intense and ruthless. They have managed it in their previous two games but will know that, in previous high-pressure situations – not least the Champions Trophy final played at this ground in 2013 – they have come up a little short.”We know that when we play the right kind of cricket and we think clearly under pressure then we will give a great account of ourselves,” Root said. “The more we can stick to our style and philosophy, and the more we can remember the conversations we had before that India game the better. I feel like we are in a good place coming into it. The last two games have been like knock out games for us played in a high pressure environment that will hold us in good stead going into this game. We have to make sure our minds are right and we really enjoy the occasion.”In the past, I found myself on occasions not playing the game at the speed that suits me. I need to make sure I’m in control of what is going on out there as much as I can. And I need to be absolutely clear on how I want to approach different scenarios because you can very easily get wrapped up in the bigger picture and look too far ahead, especially in high profile games.”Having experienced it before and got it wrong – and sometimes got it right – that should stand me in good stead for this game. You also have to remember that the guys in the opposition will be feeling exactly the same.”They probably will. But while reaching World Cup semi-finals is something approaching routine for Australian international sides, it is anything but for England’s. Coping with the moment as much as the opposition will be crucial.

John Simpson 91 not out, but Derbyshire still lead by 121

ECB Reporters Network02-Jul-2019Dawid Malan kept himself in Ashes contention with a batting master-class to blunt Derbyshire’s victory hopes against Middlesex at Derby.The Middlesex skipper played superbly to score an unbeaten 177 to take his side past the 408 follow-on target as the visitors closed day three on 436 for 6, 121 runs behind.John Simpson gave him excellent support with 91 not out as the pair shared an unbroken stand of 186, a seventh-wicket record for Middlesex against Derbyshire.The home side took only three wickets, one of them to Fynn Hudson-Prentice who became only the fifth bowler in Derbyshire’s history to strike with his first ball in first-class cricket for the county.Malan went out to resume his innings knowing a lot rested on him and from the start, he set a tone of defiance with an impressive display of concentration and selectivity.Apart from a couple of false shots, his judgement of when to play and when to leave the ball was exemplary and although Derbyshire switched their bowlers around, they could not force an error.Steve Finn fulfilled his nightwatchman duties by staying with his captain for the first 35 minutes of the day before Logan van Beek knocked out his leg stump and although Max Holden struggled, he hung around for 73 minutes.There was little he could do about the ball that removed him as Hudson-Prentice found late movement to become the first player since John Wright in 1980 to strike with his first ball.Wright was on the ground to see another memorable moment for the 23-year-old who bowled with control and was unlucky to see Simpson missed in the slips on 21.George Scott was not as fortunate when he failed to get over a drive at Ravi Rampaul and saw a thick edge fly low to third slip where Matt Critchley took a brilliant diving catch.At 250 for 6, another 158 runs were needed to avoid the follow-on but Simpson matched Malan’s application to take Middlesex to tea and beyond.Malan completed his third championship century of the season from 200 balls with his 15th four and, Simpson’s escape apart, there was little for the bowlers once the second new ball lost its hardness.Simpson gave another tough chance on 43 when a sliced drive at Reece burst through the hands of Anuj Dal leaping at cover point before he completed a deserved 50 from 138 balls shortly before Malan went to 150 off 302 balls.Leus du Plooy became the eighth bowler used during the day but nothing could part Malan and Simpson who went past Middlesex’s previous best seventh wicket stand of 146 at Lord’s in 1932.

Diamonds skipper makes 56 to keep Thunder rooted to the bottom of the table

ECB Reporters Network13-Aug-2019Yorkshire Diamonds captain Lauren Winfield’s excellent 56 followed by a polished bowling and fielding display under pressure secured a thrilling Kia Super League win by nine runs over Lancashire Thunder at Liverpool.Winfield hit seven fours and a six in a 45-ball knock which underpinned a Diamonds total of 151 for 6 and took her beyond 500 career Super League runs.The Diamonds then soaked up a Lancashire fightback from 83 for 4 in the 14th, including the loss of India star Harmanpreet Kaur for 37, to bowl their hosts out for 142.Legspinner Katie Levick had Ellie Threlkeld caught behind with the first ball of the last over, defending 10, to secure a first victory in three.The Thunder, for whom Emma Lamb impressed with a late 32 off 14 balls, have now lost four from four.Winfield, having won the toss, and Alyssa Healy shared an excellent opening partnership of 68 inside 10 overs.Winfield was particularly strong down the ground in her third fifty since the KSL started in 2016.By the time she reached her latest milestone, off 42 balls, she had lost Healy – bowled by Sophia Dunkley’s legspin having played on trying to reverse sweep.Lancashire, despite a bright 33 from Hollie Armitage, fought back well, with Ecclestone and Lamb’s offspin both striking, along with two wickets for Kate Cross.After Ecclestone had uprooted Winfield’s middle stump to make it 106 for 2 in the 15th over, Cross bowled Armitage and had Indian Jemimah Rodrigues superbly caught at deep midwicket by Sune Luus.Twelve then came off Ecclestone in the last over to secure a competitive, but not insurmountable total.The start of Lancashire’s chase was eventful as Australian Tahlia McGrath and fellow overseas Luus, the South African both hit boundaries as 10 came off Linsey Smith’s first over.Then, in the third, Helen Fenby bowled a head-high full toss before McGrath hit the free hit for six. But the legspinner gained revenge towards the end of over by uprooting McGrath’s leg stump.The Thunder then lost their second wicket in the fourth, leaving them 23 for 2, when Luus miscued the impressive left-arm seamer Katie George to mid-off.And that was when the Diamonds, chiefly with spin added to George, started to turn the game in their favour.Smith, New Zealand offspinner Leigh Kasperek and legspinner Levick all bowled tidy overs as the scored moved to 41 for 2 after 7 overs.Harmanpreet, key to home hopes, launched Kasperek over long-off for six in the eighth over and they reached halfway at 62 for 2, needing 90 more for victory.But she then lost her partner Dunkley, who was caught at mid-off as medium pacer Alice Davidson-Richards struck, leaving the score at 69 for 3 in the 12th.Harmanpreet was caught on 35 off a Smith no-ball before, having added two more runs, falling to Davidson-Richards when she sliced a catch to compatriot Rodrigues at deep cover – 83 for four in the 14th.Lamb’s superb 32 included a six off Davidson-Richards to keep the game alive, taking the target to 28 off 18 balls. But wickets continued to tumble, including herself caught at point off Smith.Ultimately, wickets falling proved to be the issue for Lancashire, who lost Georgie Boyce and Cross to run outs, as they remain rooted to the foot of the table.

Already Burns has become just the third England opener since Andrew Strauss retired to reach fifty three times in a series

George Dobell in Manchester06-Sep-2019Michael Gove may think society in general has had enough of experts but, from an England cricket perspective, they’re starting to look like a pretty good idea.By reaching 50 for the third time in the series, Rory Burns provided further evidence of the wisdom of picking specialist players for specialist positions. Already he has become just the third England opener since the retirement of Andrew Strauss to reach 50 three times in a single series – Alastair Cook and Alex Hales, who did so against Sri Lanka in 2016 are the others – with all the other openers combined making one half-century between them in the series so far.This should not be a complete surprise. Burns has spent most of his career at the top of the order. He has scored 1,000 runs in each of the previous five domestic first-class seasons and, in the process, learned his trade well. These challenges – these surfaces, these balls – present few mysteries to him.Bearing in mind those statistics, it’s odd that it took the selectors so long to pick Burns. Instead English cricket pursued a policy of selecting aggressive openers – or even just aggressive top-order batsmen who were press-ganged into opening – with Burns picked as something of a last resort. He has shown, however, not only the wisdom of picking players who understand the specific challenges of the role, but men whose techniques might not be aesthetically pleasing but are shown to have worked.Burns’ success is built as much on mental resilience as it is on technical competence. But it’s the combination of the two factors that renders him such a valuable player. For he acknowledges there will be times, especially against an attack as good as this, when he will be beaten on or outside off stump. But while some of his colleagues pushed and prodded at balls nipping away from the outside edge, Burns held the line and played with bat close to his body and under his eyes. And while some of his colleagues would become anxious and allow the pressure to build, Burns has the phlegmatic attitude of a man who accepts such indignities as part of the job. He put each delivery – whether it brought triumph or defeat – behind him and concentrated on the next one. It was an innings that would have made Cook proud.”He knows his game well and he’s committed to it” Josh Hazlewood said afterwards. “He’s scored some valuable runs at the top of the order. He looks a good player.”Burns was helped by a couple of factors. Firstly, Mitchell Starc failed to maintain the impeccable control of his colleagues and allowed some release in the pressure. Burns took him for 22 in 10 deliveries at one stage – a feast by comparison to the rest of his innings – and in all hit four boundaries off him. By comparison, he managed just one off Hazlewood and none at all off the 47 deliveries he faced from Pat Cummins.Also read: Cummins, Hazlewood in rescue tandemThe other factor that may have helped him was Australia’s policy of testing him with the short ball. While the delivery had troubled him earlier in the series – he was dismissed by short balls twice in Leeds and once each at Edgbaston and Lord’s – on this relatively slow surface, he had time to duck and weave his way out of trouble. And, all the while Australia were concentrating on the ploy, they were squandering the chances of dismissing via the outside edge.But this was arguably the most assured innings of his 11-Test career. Increasingly, he looked not just as if he felt he could manage, but as if he belonged. Having struggled to combat Nathan Lyon at Edgbaston – yes, he made a century, but he would be the first to admit he enjoyed some fortune along the way – he looked comfortable against him here despite the surprising degree of turn achieved on a third-day pitch. Making no attempt to drive him, Burns instead waited for anything short. Three times he cut him for four, on another occasion he swept in front of square. As a result, Australia were forced to post a sweeper, allowing just a little less pressure around the bat and a few more holes in the field.”It wasn’t a bad ball,” Burns said of the delivery that dismissed him; a fine ball that demanded a stroke before it both bounced and left him. “It was one of those when sometimes you walk off and you can be pretty at peace with yourself.”The short ball is probably not a bad plan on a surface that wasn’t offering masses in terms of seam movement. But, like Steve Smith said, you are not worrying about your off stump too much when facing bouncers. You can get under stuff and bat for long periods of time. It was a scrap and it was mentally challenging, but it was quite enjoyable.”It would be premature to envisage Burns as a captaincy alternative to Root. While he has enjoyed some experience in the role – he led Surrey to the County Championship title in 2018 – he has more to do before he can be considered an automatic selection in the long-term. This was an encouraging step forward, but he will need to score heavily for an extended period of time before he can be considered a viable alternative.It’s worth contrasting Burns’ experiences at the top of the order to those of England’s other openers in this series. At one stage on Thursday night, Joe Denly – the latest sacrificial offering at the top of the order was beaten by four balls in succession from Hazlewood. At another, he was struck on the shoulder by a Starc bouncer. The two balls before he was out, he was beaten on either edge by Cummins. It was a torturous innings which suggested Denly neither knew which ball to leave or play and that he did not have the compact game to ensure he did not push outsides edges to the slips. He looked, in short, like a man parachuted into the opening position.And then there’s Jason Roy. The knock-on effect of Burns’ excellent third-wicket stand with Joe Root was to delay Roy’s arrival at the crease until the 65th over. As a result, he came in against an older, softer ball and a bowling attack that may in theory – there was little sign of it in reality – have tired a little. And, for a while, as he laced three boundaries between backward point and extra cover, that appeared to help.But, before too long, those technical faults came back to haunt him. Pushing at one from Hazlewood – a terrific ball that nipped in off the seam – with hands advancing ahead of his front pad, he left a hole between bat and pad. Bowlers as good as Hazlewood – and, to be fair, there aren’t many better – will find those gaps and exploit them. Already you fear as if Roy’s confidence – and, indeed, his Test career – may have been compromised by asking him to bat out of position. Test cricket is hard enough without having to learn a new trade on the job. Burns has shown the value of specialisation.

With Delhi in trouble early, Shorey dodges almost all his paradoxes to produce a near masterclass but it wasn’t enough in the end

Hemant Brar in Bengaluru20-Oct-2019Dhruv Shorey’s career has been full of paradoxes. When he plays first-class cricket, his attractive strokeplay makes you think he will be better suited for 50-over cricket. When he bats in one-dayers, you wonder he’s probably going a tad slower. A List-A strike rate of 73 backs that observation.Shorey is supposed to be a mainstay of Delhi’s batting. He has a more than decent first-class record but averages in the low 30s in List A cricket with just one hundred from 42 games.At 27, Shorey’s career is yet to fully take off. Still he finds himself leading Delhi in the 2019-20 Vijay Hazare Trophy, and on Sunday, in the middle with his side at 17 for 2 against a rampant Gujarat in the second quarterfinal. What does Shorey do? He dodges almost all the paradoxes to produce a near masterclass.Chintan Gaja had just dismissed Delhi openers Shikhar Dhawan and Anuj Rawat, while Roosh Kalaria had kept things quiet from the other end. But Shorey not only stabilised the innings – along with Nitish Rana – but also accelerated towards the end to finish with a 109-ball 91.But just like his career, this innings too proved to be a paradox. He played a captain’s knock but failed to take his side to a winning total. In the end, Delhi were all out for 223 in 49 overs, and Gujarat chased the VJD-adjusted target of 225 in 37.5 overs with six wickets in hand.Earlier, Dhawan’s lean run with the bat continued. After failing to open his account in the first six balls, he skipped down the track to Gaja only to chip it towards short extra cover. But the fielder there spilled the straightforward chance, the sort of thing you hope for as an out-of-form batsman. But Dhawan failed to take any advantage of that. He sashayed down once again on the next ball, only to splice it towards mid-off this time. Piyush Chawla made no mistake. Four overs later, Rawat tried to do a similar thing and was taken at cover.With the side in trouble, Shorey and Rana decided to bid their time on a two-paced wicket. The team fifty came in the 14th over, and it took Delhi another 14 overs to reach the hundred-run mark.But Shorey batted with a calm demeanour, hitting mostly along the ground and reached his fifty in 67 balls. At the other end, Rana smashed two fours in one Arzan Nagwaswalla over but mostly found it difficult to get the ball off the square. Despite Rana’s struggles, the two had added 90 for the third wicket in 129 balls.It was once again Gaja who provided his side with a wicket. In an attempt to provide momentum to the innings, Rana ended up flicking one straight to short fine leg and was dismissed for 33 off 61.Shorey had moved to 77 off 98 without much fuss before he decided to take on Axar Patel. Using his feet, he lofted the left-arm spinner over wide long-off. Three balls later, when Axar pitched on short, Shorey got down on one knee to sweep-pull it for another six over fine leg. Suddenly, he was on 90 off 102 balls.With Himmat Singh for company, Shorey took Delhi to 150 in the 37th over, with the last 50 runs coming at almost run a ball. The platform was set, the hundred was there for the taking but then the paradox struck again. Or maybe it was just the nervous nineties. After all, last season he was dismissed thrice in the 90s in first-class cricket.Shorey had looked to play in the ‘V’ until then. But in the 38th over, while trying to steer Nagwaswalla towards third man, he ended up edging one to Parthiv Patel. Another unfulfilled promise as Shorey admitted after the match.”I should have stayed there till the end,” Shorey said. “Initially the wicket was doing a bit but after I got settled, it appeared a very good wicket to bat on. But the way I got out, or Nitish got out, it was a little disappointing. Maybe on this wicket, we could have gone on till the 45th over to pace our innings as anything around 270-280 or 300 would have been a good total.”A brief shower in the 40th over further disrupted Delhi’s momentum and when the teams returned – with the match reduced to 49 overs per side – the lower-order batsmen couldn’t do much against Chawla’s guile.Parthiv and Priyank Panchal then got Gujarat off to a quick start, with the former happily feasting on the buffet of short balls served by the Delhi seamers. Delhi’s fielding didn’t help their cause either. Panchal was on 28 when Rana dropped a sitter at mid-on, while wicketkeeper Rawat failed to grab an inside edge off Parthiv with the batsman on 57.The two added 150 in just 23.1 overs to make light work of the chase. Though Delhi struck back, by then there were not enough runs left to make a match out of it. Only if Shorey had stayed in there for a little longer, but that’s how his career has been so far.

Rohit Sharma’s decision to keep three overs of Khaleel Ahmed for the death backfired

Sidharth Monga in Delhi04-Nov-20198:02

Did a conservative Powerplay hurt India?

It was difficult to focus on it through the toxic haze, and even more difficult for those playing it – two players vomited during the game – but the Feroz Shah Kotla T20I was a great study in minute tactics and larger struggles of batsmen looking to find their touch, and the intersection of both. One captain known for his studied and deliberate decision-making went against a side known for emotionally charged cricket, and it made for a gripping finish.Rohit Sharma, India’s stand-in captain but a clinical leader of the Mumbai Indians, made a seemingly un-clinical move by leaving the young Khaleel Ahmed three overs to bowl in the last six. His third eventually went for 18, sealing Bangladesh’s chase, relieving some of the nightmares Mushfiqur Rahim might have had from the unfinished job in Bengaluru three years ago.Players actually think less of those nightmares than we do. Not least because Mushfiqur knew he has finished many a game off for Bangladesh since then. It was more challenging from the point of view of where Mushfiqur stood and where his team stood. After all the drama of the last fortnight – “the toughest two weeks of my 15-year career” – Mushfiqur knew the only way back was winning matches.ALSO READ: ‘Nothing feels more special’ – Mushfiqur Rahim on making tough runsIn the way of that win were struggles on a slow pitch with turn on it and canny spinners exploiting it. Mushfiqur and Soumya Sarkar struggled to find any sort of fluency in their innings. After they had spent six overs together, ESPNcricinfo’s Forecaster gave them a 65% chance of winning. It seemed optimistic: the ball was turning, and the two were going at around a run a ball despite having tried adventurous shots.The T20 rule of thumb for these situations in chases is that you hit out only if the conditions are flat. Otherwise, if you are a seasoned batsman, if you are finding it difficult, chances are the next batsman will find it more difficult. So you back yourself. So Mushfiqur and Soumya decided to fight it out and take the game deep and wait for the seamers.Unknown to themselves, the Bangladesh pair pushed the seamers back by simply not getting out, leaving, as a result, Khaleel with three overs at the end. Now Rohit might ask Jasprit Bumrah or Lasith Malinga to bowl three at the death, but he ideally doesn’t want Khaleel in that position. However, he is calculating in his head that after Soumya, Mahmudullah will come out to bat, so he is waiting to see if he can re-introduce Khaleel to two right-hand batsmen instead of a left-hand batsman.It is as much about protecting Khaleel’s left-arm angle into the left-hand batsman as it is about exploiting the angle across the right-hand batsmen. Rohit would later say that the angle troubled them too. Rohit knows he can keep Yuzvendra Chahal back for one over but other spinners need to bowl out before the death. So that window to get that one Khaleel over out of the way is brief, a window that Mushfiqur and Soumya unwittingly shut by just looking to take the game deep.Chahal goes for just one run in the tenth, Washington Sundar concedes just four in the 13th, the first six overs of the partnership bring just 40 runs, the asking rate keeps rising, but neither of them gives up the ghost.”Only the batsmen in the middle know what’s going on in the pitch,” Mushfiqur said. “Not anyone in the dugout, not the next batsman. I told Soumya if one of us bats till the 19th over, we can still chase 25 because they will bowl seamers.”It is true India would bowl seamers in the last two, but to get three straight overs from Khaleel to be able to line him up is a bonus Bangladesh get without really working towards it. In ultimate irony, Khaleel gets the wicket of the left-hand batsman, a precondition, if fulfilled sooner, that might have given him an easier task at the death. Such events can make a captain look silly at times, but captaincy is not done in hindsight. Rohit had a sound cricketing reason for what he did.And so begins the 19th over with all the similarities of that Bengaluru heartbreak coming to fore. A similar target, same opposition, the same two batsmen out in the middle. This time, though, they have Khaleel instead of Bumrah. The stakes might not be as high as in a virtual World Cup quarter-final, but losing will raise more questions about their finishing abilities against India. Losing will send them back to thinking about the events of the last two weeks.Mushfiqur gets the better of Khaleel here, ruining his figures of three overs for 20 runs. Mushfiqur eventually ends with a strike rate of 140, Bangladesh have their first win in India after having let the Forecaster drop to 49%, but it is fascinating to imagine how the game plays out if Soumya falls to spin around the 11th over. Khaleel tries to sneak an over in, but surely Bangladesh don’t sit back and let him bowl that over. Or perhaps, in a similar situation next time, Rohit – who usually has a proper sixth-bowling option at Mumbai Indians – tries to sneak one in from Shivam Dube.There is relief too that the next such set piece will be played in much more breathable air.

South African batsman joins club on two-year deal following international retirement in August

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Oct-2019Surrey have completed the signing of Hashim Amla on a Kolpak registration.As reported by ESPNcricinfo, Amla joins the club on a two-year deal, though the second year could be jeopardised by the UK’s impending departure from the European Union.Amla, 36, retired from international cricket in August after a 15-year career playing for South Africa, and joins his former team-mate Morne Morkel at The Oval.He previously played for Surrey as an overseas player in 2013 and 2014, and ESPNcricinfo understands his representatives also held talks with Middlesex and Hampshire.Alec Stewart, Surrey’s director of cricket, said that the number of his players in or around the England set-up meant that the opportunity to sign Amla was “too good to ignore”.”His record speaks for itself and we know from his previous spells here that he will be an excellent resource for all of our players to learn from both on and off the field.”With several of our players now in or around the international setup, the opportunity to bring Hashim back to Surrey was too good to ignore.”Amla said: “Surrey are one of the most established and accomplished cricket clubs in the world and I am very excited to be joining them again while also not forgetting the opportunity to play alongside my good friend Morne Morkel again.”I was part of the Surrey team in 2013 and 2014 and thoroughly enjoyed myself during those stints, so to rekindle that relationship for a longer period is something that excites me. I’m really looking forward to working with Alec Stewart and the rest of his team.”Amla is the latest in a raft of signings the club has made in the past week. Michael Neser (Championship), D’Arcy Short and Shadab Khan (both T20 Blast) will join as overseas players, while Reece Topley has signed on a white-ball deal. Nick Kimber and James Taylor, both England Under-19 internationals, have joined from Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire respectively.

Having finally broken into the Test team, batsman is determined to ‘serve Pakistan with distinction’

Umar Farooq in Rawalpindi15-Dec-2019Twelve years in domestic cricket, 7116 runs in 106 first-class games, averaging 57.43 in the last three seasons. In contention for two years, Abid Ali finally managed to play a Test on a historic occasion with Pakistan hosting the longer format for the first time in 10 years.Having made his first-class debut among many who grew up at a time when international cricket was absent from the country, Abid made his maiden Test appearance at the age of 31. And he made the most of it by scoring a century, becoming the only player in history to reach three figures in his first Test and ODI.Also read: The day all of Pakistan was hoping forBeing “thankful for a chance”, Abid recalled the persistence and hard work that played a major part in his success. He had been with the team for more than a year but could not break into a congested top order which also included Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq and Shan Masood.When Pakistan rested their leading ODI players ahead of the World Cup, Abid earned a rare chance against Australia in UAE and made it a dream debut with a hundred. He travelled with the team to England only to be ignored for the World Cup squad. In his previous outing with Pakistan to Australia he again missed out making into the XI for the entire series.”I had never grumbled upon being ignored,” said Abid. “I had patience and I had a belief that my time will come and then I will prove what I am capable of.”I had been with the team and kept my fitness level high and keep on working on my skills set with small plans. I knew someday I will get a chance and I was always ready for it. Thankfully I got it and a hundred on debut is what else you ask for. I waited long for this very day to come and here I am.”Abid hails from Lahore and is a product of Shafqat Rana Academy in the Race Course Park in the centre of the city. He often struggled to make it into the squad for his own region and was forced to play elsewhere. He had a lengthy association with the Islamabad region and represented Baluchistan province. Most recently, he failed to find a place in his own provincial side, Central Punjab, and was drafted to Sindh where he averaged 76.75, scoring 307 runs in five innings with a highest score of 249 not out.Despite Imam sitting on the bench and Sami Aslam knocking on the door, Abid said he had not felt uncomfortable.”I know there is a competition around me but it has increased a lot recently but all I know is that I have to keep on performing to stay relevant,” Abid said. “I need to raise my game and with every chance I have to perform well.”I had never complained, rather I have the self-belief that what is up for me I will get it. I waited for my time and finally I got it. It would be a great disappointment for me if I hadn’t performed but thanks to God that all my hard work is rewarded.”Along with Azhar Ali, Abid shared an 87-run stand for the second wicket which at times lacked synchronisation. Both scored at the rate of 3.0 and were involved in mix-ups that nearly had them run out on two occasions. With in-form batsman Babar Azam, Abid looked more comfortable and added an unbeaten 162-run stand at a rate of 4.24.”Babar is a world-class player and he is very well-respected,” he said. “He was the one who really gave me confidence to stay put and wait for the bad ball. I was bit nervous when in the 90s but he carried me all along and saw me through my hundred.”One of the mix-ups with Azhar it was actually my mistake … as we never played together ever so had trouble in making calls but with the innings going we got settled.”Despite being nicknamed “legend”, Abid urged fans and journalists to not relate him with big names in cricket.”I am an ordinary player and I can’t match those great players,” he said. “I am Abid Ali and please see me as Abid Ali only. I, being down to earth, would like to keep on performing and serve Pakistan with distinction. The crowd supporting us really doubled up my confidence so I am thankful to the crowd for coming to the game and backing us.”

Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje share seven wickets as England fall well short

The Report by Andrew Miller29-Dec-2019There were, as you might expect, a few twists and turns along the way, but in the end, the result was thoroughly comprehensive. South Africa won the first Test at Centurion – their first non-defeat in six attempts – by 107 runs, thanks to a sustained new-ball assault that delivered England’s last six wickets in 11.5 overs at a cost of 46 runs.The star of the show on this fourth and final day, however, was not the first-innings hero, Vernon Philander, nor the kingpin of their attack, Kagiso Rabada, crucial though he was in crashing through England’s resistance with four wickets in his final seven overs.Rather it was the snorting, bull-necked pace of the rookie quick Anrich Nortje, the man whose 40 runs as a nightwatchman on Saturday morning had been so crucial in setting up an imposing target of 376, and whose three second-innings wickets included two of the most prized scalps of the lot – England’s overnight obstacle, Rory Burns, for 84, and then the captain, Joe Root, whose fluent 48 had been looking like his side’s best hope.The day’s other big wicket, however, was perhaps the most crucial of the lot, not because of how he had been proceeding, but because of what his enduring presence stood for. After achieving the impossible with that innings at Headingley, Ben Stokes stands as living proof that no cause is entirely lost, and when he came to the crease at the fall of Joe Denly, just as he had done in that very knock, England’s requirement was 218 further runs with seven wickets standing … just as it had been in August.The similarities continued as he bedded into his stay, with caution to the fore as he ground his way to 4 runs from his first 42 balls (compared to 3 from 74 at Headingley) before the re-introduction of Keshav Maharaj singled a critical change of intent. A first-ball slog-sweep for four was followed by an inside-out smack down the ground, as England attempted to expel the spinner from South Africa’s attack. But two overs later, Maharaj had the final say in the duel – inducing an inside-edge on to the woodwork as he found some grip from the rough outside Stokes’ off stump.The euphoria of South Africa’s celebrations betrayed the magnitude of the moment. Stokes’ departure for 14, with the second new ball only seven overs away, was the incision that England could not afford, given the fallibility of the men lurking down the order.And few, alas, proved more fallible that the wretchedly out-of-form Jonny Bairstow. He had been recalled to the team when Ollie Pope succumbed to England’s lurgy on the eve of the Test, despite having played no first-class cricket since being dropped for the tour of New Zealand. And that was no sort of preparation for a player of Rabada’s intent. A flick off the pads from his first new-ball delivery proved a false dawn. One ball later, Rabada served up a juicy outswinger that was slapped with flat feet and an open face straight to gully.At 222 for 5, with another 154 still needed, the writing was suddenly on the wall, even if Jos Buttler – who missed the third day through illness – showed admirable stoicism as he dug in alongside his skipper. But, while Rabada was a constant menace, his new-ball colleague Philander was slightly off the boil at the other end, finding less of his habitual swing and proving a relative sinecure as that precious new-ball shine began to be eroded from the Kookaburra.ALSO READ: Silverwood defends Root’s toss decisionAnd so Faf du Plessis, to his credit, chose to spell Philander after just three ineffectual overs, and back came Nortje with licence to let rip. Sure enough, his second ball bagged the big one. Root, whose only moment of discomfort in the course of a serene stay had come when Nortje had rapped him on the wrist with a lifter in the morning session, was once again taken aback by extra pace outside off, and flinched a second-ball edge through to Quinton de Kock to fall for a valiant but insubstantial 48.The remainder of England’s innings turned into a predictable bar-brawl of big hits and regular wickets, as the tail chose to roll the dice en masse, and try to smoke their way to within touching distance of their target rather than bed in for the inevitable. Buttler and Sam Curran took Nortje’s next over for 15, including a wild pull from Buttler that sailed onto the grass banks, but prolonged resistance was futile.Rabada found Curran’s outside edge to give de Kock his eighth catch of the match, before Jofra Archer snicked Nortje to slip. Buttler then decided to go for broke, crashing Rabada over cow corner for his second six of the innings but holed out in the same direction one ball later, and Stuart Broad’s timbers couldn’t survive the rest of the over.South Africa’s celebrations were heartfelt and long overdue – they’ve endured as wretched a year as England’s has been intermittently glorious (in one format at least), but this was a vindication for a new regime that was appointed in the throes of crisis at the beginning of the month, and has already dredged an admirable team spirit in the face of adversity.That’s not to say it was an easy denouement. There were nerves aplenty along the way, as England resumed on their overnight 121 for 1, with Burns entrenched on a steadfast 77 and their collective eyes as firmly on the prize as they can be when such a distant target of 376 is glinting on the horizon.But just as England’s morning session on the Saturday had been so crucial in their eventual demise, so South Africa’s victory was built on the discipline that they showed in conceding just 50 runs in 25 overs before lunch, while chipping out two hugely significant wickets.And Nortje, once again, was instrumental in the session’s biggest moment. Burns, whose authority at the top of England’s order has been enhanced significantly in this contest, was 16 runs shy of his third Test century and playing with control and composure, when he gambled on aggression as the change bowlers entered the fray. Rabada and Philander had been seen off with caution, but Nortje’s second delivery was a rapid bouncer that got big on a pre-meditated pull. The ball spiralled to Rabada at mid-on as Burns turned in disgust for the pavilion, and the rock of England’s innings had been dislodged.Four overs later, and Denly too was gone – pinned on the pad as Dwaine Pretorius nipped one off the seam, and sent on his way despite a review for 31. And on a fine day for South Africa as a whole, Pretorius provided a footnote of extra optimism, as it was confirmed that he had chosen country over county in turning down a mooted Kolpak move to Nottinghamshire. England’s hosts still have myriad problems to surmount as they seek to shore up their sport’s foundations, but results such as this are the sort of tonic that they so desperately need.

A vintage Kamran Akmal century made light work of a modest target of 149 set by Quetta Gladiators.

The Report by Peter Della Penna22-Feb-2020
A vintage Kamran Akmal century made light work of a modest target set by Quetta Gladiators, chasing down 149 with nine balls to spare. Jason Roy paced the Gladiators’ innings with a 40-ball half-century, but struggled to get into third gear in the waning overs in the face of some excellent death bowling led by Wahab Riaz.Roy’s half-century looked pedestrian by the time Kamran got going in the Zalmi Powerplay. Whereas Roy finally reached his fifty in the 15th over with a two off Darren Sammy, Kamran needed just 20 balls, reaching the milestone two deliveries into the fifth over of the Powerplay when he drove Mohammad Hasnain through mid-on for his eighth four. That matched the number of dot balls he had faced while he’d also driven two sixes over wide long-off and swept another over square leg.By the end of the Powerplay, the required rate was already under a run a ball. Kamran adjusted in kind, waltzing his way to three figures off a subsequent 34 deliveries as he brought up the landmark top-edging a sweep to deep fine leg. He fell next ball middling another sweep to Roy at deep midwicket in the 17th over to gift Fawad Ahmed his second wicket in the space of three balls, but by that stage the target was down to single digits. The scorecard might show that Zalmi only reached the target halfway through the 19th over, but that flattered Gladiators’ limp effort in the field in what was a very one-sided contest.Kamran Akmal whacked 13 fours and four sixes during his 55-ball 101•Pakistan Super League

Turning pointJonty Rhodes remarked on TV commentary that Tom Banton played the best shot of the opening over of the chase, taking a single first ball to get off strike so that Kamran could run wild on Mohammad Nawaz. Kamran charged the left-arm spinner immediately to clear him over mid-off for six, then followed with a sweep over the man at deep square leg. After a dot, he drove him again over mid-off for a one-bounce four before ending the first over pulling a half-tracker over midwicket. Gladiators were left shellshocked and never recovered.Star of the dayIt was Kamran’s day virtually from the moment he walked out. He slowed down after crossing fifty mainly because he could afford to. His confidence and aggression sucked the life out of the Gladiators, who were always going to struggle to defend when taking into consideration that a target of 203 on the same ground a day earlier went down to the penultimate ball. He ended with 13 fours and four sixes, having done the bulk of the dirty work in the first six overs.The big missNawaz had a chance to exact revenge on Kamran after being victimised in that 21-run first over. After Kamran had pulled Sohail Khan over square leg midway through the second over for another four, the batsman punched Sohail to extra cover off his next ball, where Nawaz made a brilliant diving stop as Kamran took off impetuously for a single. Banton stayed at the non-striker’s end with Kamran stuck halfway down the pitch on 24.But Nawaz rushed a throw from his knees rather than take an extra moment to gather himself. The throw to the striker’s end bounced over the stumps with Kamran six yards short. Nawaz also had another chance to make amends in the 14th when Kamran cut Sohail to him at backward point on 94, but he spilled a knee-height chance.Where the teams standGladiators stay on two points after having won their opener while Zalmi bounced back after being on the wrong end of their first match of the season. Both teams are behind Multan Sultans and Karachi Kings on net run rate despite equal points.