Tag Futebol

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.

This paves the way for a transition back to autonomous governance following more than three years of oversight from an ICC Americas caretaker administration

Peter Della Penna08-Jan-2019USA Cricket’s application to join the ICC as the 105th member and 93rd Associate has been formally approved by the ICC, paving the way for a transition back to autonomous governance following more than three years of oversight from an ICC Americas caretaker administration.”This is the culmination of a great deal of hard work and I would like to congratulate the Chair of USA Cricket, Paraag Marathe, and the Board, on this important milestone and wish them all the very best for the future,” ICC chief executive David Richardson said.Along with Fiji, USA was one of the first two Associate members of the ICC after joining under the auspices of the USA Cricket Association. But USACA was suspended for the third and final time in 2015 for a litany of governance issues before finally being expelled once and for all in June 2017.A new governing body, USA Cricket, was formed later in 2017 and their inaugural elections took place in the summer of 2018. Their board of directors was fully installed last September following the appointment of three independent directors. The ICC stated in a press release that a transition plan has been approved for the USA Cricket board to take back full control of administrative affairs from the ICC Americas caretaker administration within the next month under the leadership of board chairman Paraag Marathe.”USA Cricket was established to bring together the cricket community in the United States, develop the game and unlock the sport’s undoubted potential for growth,” Marathe said. “Today’s confirmation that it is the ICC’s newest Member is a significant staging post on that journey.”As David mentioned, this recognition is not just the work of our Board but is a result of thousands of volunteer hours over the last 18 months and USA Cricket appreciates the time, effort and sacrifice of all those involved.”USA Cricket is now eligible to receive funding in accordance with the ICC development funding policy like other Associates. However, they had received exceptional funding support – approximately $1.5 million per year according to sources – over the last several years via the ICC Americas caretaker administration.Separately, USA Cricket now has the authority to sanction domestic and international cricket in the United States, which is expected to be a reliable revenue source. Cricket West Indies chief executive Johnny Grave said in August that as part of a commitment to play at least two T20Is per year in North America through 2023, they had paid a sanctioning fee of approximately $100,000 per match to use Florida as a neutral venue.USA Cricket will also receive revenue for continued sanctioning of Caribbean Premier League matches should the CPL continue to stage games in Florida in 2018 as they have for the past three summers. ICC had overtaken authority to sanction events in the USA – such as the Cricket All-Stars tour, CPL matches and India’s T20I series in Florida against West Indies in 2016 – in the time-frame that USACA was suspended and expelled, though all sanctioning fee funds acquired were channeled back to America to fund initiatives such as the USA Cricket combines.USA Cricket recently announced job openings for Under-19 and Women’s head coach positions and a search is also underway for a chief executive as part of efforts to expand administrative staff. It follows a commercial tender put out in December to solicit proposals for the creation of a domestic T20 franchise competition with a target launch date by the summer of 2021.

The former India captain fears aping Kohli’s aggressive words and approach might lead to youngsters not being authentic to themselves

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Oct-2017The impact of Virat Kohli’s in-your-face persona on young, impressionable cricketers is a cause for concern for Rahul Dravid. The former India captain feared aping Kohli’s aggressive words and approach might lead to youngsters not being authentic to themselves.While Dravid admitted to cringing at some “outrageous” things Kohli says on occasions, he also defended him by saying that so long as he was true to himself, and it helped get the best out of him it shouldn’t matter.”I think the game is still about performance. So let’s not take that way from someone like Kohli,” Dravid said at the Bangalore Literature Festival on Sunday. “That’s his personality. People have asked me, ‘Why didn’t you behave like that?’ But that’s not what got the best out of me. I would have been inauthentic to myself if I had tried to put tattoos and behave like Virat.”Sometimes, especially before an Australia series, you’ll find Virat saying the most outrageous things. And I read the paper and cringe at times. But then I think back, maybe he actually wants that contest. He wants that lip on the field because that gets the best out of him. Now that might not be everyone’s cup of tea. But at the end of the day, he’s got to do what gets the best out of him. Ajinkya Rahane is very different and he gets the best out of himself by doing different things. I think being authentic to yourself is very, very important.”If engaging in a contest, sometimes needling the opposition, is getting the best out of Virat – and it certainly is because his level of performance is second to none in the world today – then so be it. You can’t blame him for it.”What worries me a little bit is a lot of that gets translated into junior cricket. That’s the scary thing for me, not so much what Virat does. Kids at 12, 13, 14 want to become the next Virat Kohli, not realising that maybe that’s not authentic to who they are.”During the Test series against Australia earlier this year, Kohli took on Steven Smith and alleged systematic DRS abuse. He also said his relationship with the Australia players was irrevocably damaged. Dravid was happy that cricketers today were a far more confident lot and that the financial security that came with playing the game even at a lower level empowered them.”I think there’s a certain confidence and belief in Indian cricket today which has come about through results,” he said. “It’s definitely more evident today than from the time I started. I remember I was sitting on a flight and I was really excited going on one of my early tours and said, ‘It’ll be great if we can win the series.’ And what I got was, ‘We’ll be lucky if we can win one Test match. Let’s hope we can win one and draw the rest’. People expect India now to win. Certainly, there is a level of fitness, confidence and belief that probably didn’t exist when I was starting out.”When I look at a lot of the India A guys or Under-19 guys that I coach, I can see the fearlessness and confidence. It also comes with a certain level of financial security. For me, as a 21-22-year old, I knew that the B.Com degree I barely managed to get in college wasn’t going to suffice, and I needed to make cricket work. There was a pressure to make cricket work and make it possible for me to lead a good life. Today’s cricketers know that even if they don’t play for India, they can still make a very good living for themselves. I’m very happy about that.”Dravid, however, had one cautionary note for young players: they don’t need a player agent until the time they reach a high standard of cricket. “One of the things I like to tell young cricketers is that you don’t really need an agent. Okay, a Virat Kohli or a Mahendra Singh Dhoni today needs an agent because if they have to focus on their cricket and play at that high level, they need to ensure that somebody else is looking after their finances,” he said. “They don’t want to be chasing their dates, or chasing people for money that is owed. But at the younger age of 17, 18 and 19, having agents is definitely not necessary. I don’t see any big hoarding of a 17 or 18-year old. The only hoardings you see today are Kohli or Dhoni or one or two other Indian players. So it’s only when you reach that standard of cricket do you need agents to support and help you.”

The New Zealanders’ batting line-up notched up four half-centuries on a solid day for the tourists against a Zimbabwe A attack who went without much reward on the first day of the tour match in Harare

The Report by Firdose Moonda22-Jul-2016
Scorecard2:20

‘Happy with time in the middle’ – Guptill

The New Zealanders’ batting line-up notched up four half-centuries on a solid day for the tourists against a Zimbabwe A attack who went without much reward on the first day of the tour match in Harare. They took four of the seven wickets that fell on the day with three New Zealand batsmen retiring out. Henry Nicholls and BJ Watling both made half-centuries but Mitchell Santner cut his innings short on just 32.That was only after Martin Guptill and Tom Latham laid a platform. They posted 44 and dealt well with the early swing – the only hint of assistance the bowlers got – before Latham was caught down the leg side off Victor Nyauchi. Guptill kept going, alongside uncapped Jeet Raval, and took the New Zealanders to 111 for 1 at lunch.Zimbabwe A’s best period followed in the middle session when Gerald Aliseni had Raval caught at midwicket and Guptill dismissed lbw. The twin wickets did not prompt the New Zealanders to send in Kane Williamson but rather allowed opportunity for the rest and they did not disappoint.Watling and Nicholls ensured Zimbabwe A could not celebrate too long. They scored 52 and 61 respectively and found the boundary 16 times between them to leave the bowlers frustrated.Tendai Chatara, who will lead Zimbabwe’s attack in the Tests, showed glimpses of what he can do when he had Luke Ronchi caught at slip without scoring but Ish Sodhi took New Zealand to the close in a comfortable position.Perhaps more concerning than the fact that the New Zealanders still have three wickets in hand will be the fortunes of two of Zimbabwe’s Test slower bowlers. Sean Williams bowled just two overs and conceded 20 runs while Sikandar Raza’s seven overs cost 39 runs. Nyauchi and Aliseni, who have not been included in the Test squad, were the most economical.

Sulieman Benn was named West Indies’ Player of the Year for the 2013-14 season in WICB’s annual awards function in Kingston on Tuesday

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jun-2015

WIPA/WICB 2013-14 award winners

• Player of the Year: Sulieman Benn

• ODI Player of the Year: Denesh Ramdin

• Test Player of the Year: Kraigg Brathwaite

• Twenty20 International Player of the Year: Samuel Badree

• Emerging Player of the Year: Jermaine Blackwood

• Women’s Player of the Year: Stafanie Taylor

• Regional four-day Player of the Year: Shacaya Thomas (Combined Campuses & Colleges)

• Regional limited-overs Player of the Year: Dwayne Smith (Barbados)

• Regional Twenty20 Player of the Year: Lendl Simmons (Trinidad & Tobago)

• Regional four-day Team of the Year: Barbados

• U-19 Player of the Year: Shimron Hetmyer (Guyana)

• Regional U-19 Team of the Year: Guyana

• WICB Lifetime Achievement Award: Chetram Singh

• WIPA Lifetime Achievement Award: Renford Pinnock

• Outstanding Performer WIPA in the community: Ronnie Goddard

Sulieman Benn was named West Indies’ Player of the Year for the 2013-14 season in WICB’s annual awards function in Kingston on Tuesday. Benn picked up 28 wickets in five Tests at an average of 25.03 between October 2013 and September 2014 – the period of consideration for these awards.Kraigg Brathwaite was awarded the Test Player of the Year, while Test captain Denesh Ramdin was named ODI Player of the Year. Brathwaite scored 593 runs in the five Tests that were played during this period at an average of 74.12, which included a 129 against New Zealand and a double-century against Bangladesh. Ramdin produced impressive numbers in ODIs, scoring 445 runs in 11 games at an average of 63.57, including two centuries and a half-century, with a career-best 169 against Bangladesh.Jermaine Blackwood, who scored 63 on his Test debut in 2014 against New Zealand, and a hundred and fifty against England recently, was named Emerging Player of the Year and Stafanie Taylor was awarded the Women’s Player of the Year.Samuel Badree was named T20I Player of the Year for his 19 wickets in 12 matches during this period, with an average of 12.36 and economy of five runs per over.

Mitchell Johnson pressed his Test claims with four wickets but Tasmania remained in complete control on the second day against Western Australia in Hobart, where the Warriors faced a challenge to avoid an innings defeat

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Nov-2012
Scorecard
Mitchell Johnson pressed his Test claims with four wickets but Tasmania remained in complete control on the second day against Western Australia in Hobart, where the Warriors faced a challenge to avoid an innings defeat. At stumps, Western Australia were 1 for 54 in their second innings, with Marcus North on 33 and Sam Whiteman on 19, and after their disastrous first innings they needed another 327 runs to make the Tigers bat again.Tasmania had started the day on 2 for 201 and they added another 246 for the loss of their remaining eight wickets. The opener Ben Dunk missed the chance for his maiden first-class century when he was caught behind off Nathan Coulter-Nile for 97 and George Bailey became the first wicket for Johnson when he was caught for 66.Johnson, who could come into calculations for the third Test against South Africa in Perth, picked up two more middle-order wickets before James Faulkner offered some serious resistance with an unbeaten 76. Evan Gulbis (35) and Jackson Bird (26) also provided important tail-end runs and Johnson finished with 4 for 103.