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Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa, Beth Mooney and Ash Gardner also claimed international awards

AAP03-Feb-2025Travis Head has been named Australian cricket’s Allan Border Medallist and Annabel Sutherland has won the Belinda Clark Award.It was the first time for each player to win Australian cricket’s highest individual honours. While Head was a favourite for the top men’s prize, also claiming the one-day international player award, Sutherland was third in the one-day voting and a distant sixth for the women’s T20I international award.But she was awarded top votes for the two Tests played by the Australian women in the voting period over the past 12 months, most recently scoring 163 at the MCG as the hosts capped their Ashes whitewash.Related

• Annabel Sutherland: WPL will provide intel about India before the World Cup

• Travis Head expects Sam Konstas to open in WTC final

• The finisher: ODI icon Bevan elevated to Hall of Fame

• Christina Matthews inducted into Australian cricket Hall of fame

• 'Defined his generation' – Clarke joins Australia's Hall of Fame

Sutherland the first woman to score a Test hundred at the MCG. In February last year, she scored 210 in the Test against South Africa at the WACA.The extra weighting for the Test votes proved the difference for Sutherland. It is the first time she has won any of the top women’s categories – the Belinda Clark Award, the ODI or the T20I player.”For me, I love batting, probably my Test record shows that, and I try and make the most of that when I get out in the middle,” Sutherland said.Head, who received his award from head coach Andrew McDonald at the team hotel in Galle, was a clear winner of the Allan Border Medal and is the first South Australian to claim the award. He also won the ODI category for the first time.Josh Hazlewood was named men’s Test player of the year•Getty Images

Head polled 208 votes for the Border Medal, well clear of Josh Hazlewood’s 158, with Australian Test captain Pat Cummins third on 147.Head is coming off a bumper 12 months across. The 31-year-old scored a staggering 1427 runs across all three formats in the 12-month polling period that began with Australia’s home Test series against West Indies last January, and ended with the recent Border-Gavaskar Trophy.Smith has the next-most runs with 806, while only Adam Zampa (31) played more games than Head (29) in the voting period.A blistering 140 off 141 balls in his home Test match at the Adelaide Oval against India was an undeniable highlight for Head, and helped reignite Australia’s series after their heavy loss in the first match in Perth.Asked for the highlight of his past 12 months, Head said: “I feel like the Indian series, the Test series that’s just gone. Nice to contribute. It’s such a big five or six weeks.”Sutherland polled 168 to win ahead of Ashleigh Gardner, who won the Belinda Clark Award last year. Gardner polled 143 and Beth Mooney was third on 115, with Gardner and Mooney two-time winners.Beth Mooney and Ashleigh Gardner took out the women’s T20I and ODI awards•Getty Images

While none of the top men’s winners were at the Monday night awards function in Melbourne due mostly to the current tour of Sri Lanka, the women were celebrating in the room after they dominated the Ashes series.Mooney and Zampa were named the top T20I players, while Gardner took out the women’s ODI category and Hazlewood the men’s Test honour.Ellyse Perry and Jess Jonassen were named the players of the WBBL tournament and, likewise, Cooper Connolly and Glenn Maxwell took out the BBL award.Boxing Day Test sensation Sam Konstas was named the Bradman Young Men’s Cricketer of the Year.West Australian Chloe Ainsworth won the Betty Wilson award for the top young women’s cricketer, while Beau Webster and Georgia Voll took the domestic awards.

Full list of award winners

Belinda Clark Award: Annabel Sutherland
Allan Border Medal: Travis Head
Women’s ODI Player of the Year: Ashleigh Gardner
Women’s T20I Player of the Year: Beth Mooney
Shane Warne Men’s Test Player of the Year: Josh Hazlewood

Men’s ODI Player of the Year: Travis Head
Men’s T20I Player of the Year: Adam Zampa
WBBL Player of the Tournament: Ellyse Perry and Jess Jonassen

BBL Player of the Tournament: Glenn Maxwell and Cooper Connolly
Women’s Domestic Player of the Year: Georgia Voll
Men’s Domestic Player of the Year: Beau Webster
Betty Wilson Young Cricketer of the Year: Chloe Ainsworth

Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year: Sam Konstas
Community Impact Award: Cameron Green

Woolworths Cricket Blaster of the Year: Frankie Mountney
Australian Cricket Hall of Fame inductees: Michael Clarke, Christina Matthews and Michael Bevan

Pollard smashed the fastest half-century of this CPL, off 17 balls, but it wasn’t enough

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Sep-2025Dwaine Pretorius’ late sixes trumped Kieron Pollard’s in a tense chase of 168 to start Guyana Amazon Warriors’ home stretch with a victory and boost their playoff chances. They are fourth now on the points table, just one point behind Antigua and Barbuda Falcons, but with three matches in hand compared to one for Falcons. Trinbago Knight Riders, second on the table and already through to the playoffs, were lifted to a competitive score single-handedly by Pollard’s unbeaten 54 off 18, but it didn’t prove to be enough on a night where batting got easier later on, according to Pretorius.Amazon Warriors were in a spot of bother once their set batters Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer were gone by the 16th over and they needed 38 to win off 18. Pretorius, fresh on the back of his 53 off 34 against Barbados Royals two days ago, ended the 18th over, from Andre Russell, with consecutive sixes to bring it down from 19 to 12, and further eased the nerves in the last over, of which they needed nine, with a hack over wide long-on off Pollard before they reached the target with a ball to spare.TKR got off to a sedate start after they were put in to bat. They kept attempting boundaries, but kept losing wickets in the process as Romario Shepherd rattled Alex Hales’ stumps and Moeen Ali did the same to Nicholas Pooran, leaving them on 40 for 3 at the end of the powerplay. Moeen and captain Imran Tahir slowed them down further with a spin strangle, conceding just 18 in the next four overs with just one boundary. Moeen finished with 4-0-11-1 before Darren Bravo broke the shackles but soon holed out off Tahir for 33 off 35.On 100 for 4 after 16, TKR got a massive late lift when Pollard faced 17 off the last 24 balls and smashed the fastest half-century of the season, off 17 balls, studded with his trademark swings across the line after going back and across. He started with consecutive fours against Pretorius and smashed back-to-back sixes off Shepherd before Keacy Carty retired out for 29 off 34 at the end of the 18th. Pollard took on Tahir too, with a six that travelled 103 metres back over the bowler. The innings ended with a sequence of 6, 6, 4 and 4 as Pollard tore into Shepherd for a 21-run over.Amazon Warriors’ start wasn’t very impressive either, as Akeal Hosein sent back Moeen and Keemo Paul in his first eight balls. Hope, however, broke free with 6, 6 and 4 off Russell before Hetmyer hammered Usman Tariq for three sixes in an over to place them on an impressive 66 for 2 after six overs. But Amazon Warriors, too, slowed down after the powerplay, with the introduction of Sunil Narine. He added to the hosts’ woes by having Hetmyer hole out for 49 and trapping Hope lbw for 53. But Pretorious held his nerve by being prepared for yorkers and variations, and putting a bunch of them away to the ropes to see Amzaon Warriors home.

Fast bowler returns to group with England considering changes for The Oval

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jul-2025England have brought Jamie Overton back into their squad for the fifth Test against India. The addition of Overton, who played for Surrey in the County Championship last week, is the only change to the group from Old Trafford, where India salvaged a fighting draw to keep the series alive.England’s bowlers shouldered a heavy workload in vain during the fourth Test, sending down 257.1 overs across two innings, and captain Ben Stokes admitted afterwards that fresh legs might be required with a three-day turnaround between Tests.”If you look at how long we’ve been out in the field and the overs that we bowled as a bowling unit, everyone is going to be pretty sore and pretty tired going into the last game of the series,” he said. “There’ll be an assessment of everyone, and hopefully we can use these next two or three days’ rest period wisely and then have to make a decision.England squad for fifth Test against India•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“These recovery days are going to be pretty important, and we might have to make a few decisions to get some fresh legs in. But that won’t be decided until we get closer to the last game.”England have largely kept the same attack during the four Tests to date, with Jofra Archer replacing Josh Tongue after two games and Liam Dawson coming in for the injured Shoiab Bashir at Old Trafford the only changes. Chris Woakes has bowled more overs (167) than anyone on either side, while Brydon Carse (155) and Stokes (140) are not far behind. Archer, meanwhile, has only just returned to Test cricket after a four-year absence.Gus Atkinson had been expected to be involved by this stage of the series and could come in for Woakes, having proved his fitness after a hamstring injury while playing for Surrey’s 2nd XI last week. Tongue, who is still England’s second-leading wicket-taker in the series with 11, may also be in contention, while a recall for Overton would see him playing Test cricket for the first time since his debut Test in 2022.England have cancelled their training session for Tuesday to allow the players more recovery time, and will reconvene at The Oval on Wednesday.

England squad for the fifth Test against India

Ben Stokes (capt), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes

The 19-year-old is joined by Marcus Harris and Cameron Bancroft but there is no place for Matt Renshaw

Tristan Lavalette14-Oct-2024Teenaged opener Sam Konstas will audition for a Test spot in national team colours after being named in the Australia A squad for the upcoming red-ball series against India A.His spectacular rise has continued after being included in a 17-man squad for the two four-day games in Mackay and the MCG.Konstas, 19, lit up Australian domestic cricket by scoring twin centuries against South Australia in the opening round of the Sheffield Shield. He became the first teenager to achieve that feat in the Shield since an 18-year-old Ricky Ponting in 1993.Related

• Steven Smith's Test opening stint over with middle-order return for India

• Mature McSweeney making his mark in South Australia

• NSW teen prodigy Konstas shines with Ponting-like feat

• Carey and McSweeney hundreds deny New South Wales after Lyon's inroads

With allrounder Cameron Green ruled out of the summer due to a back injury, and Steven Smith likely to move back to No. 4, Konstas has emerged as a contender for next month’s first Test against India in Perth.”He’s in the mix as are plenty of others. I certainly don’t want to single him out,” chair of selectors George Bailey said. “Think the consistency of Cam Bancroft over a number of years, the consistency of Marcus Harris over a number of years, they’ve both had a look at Test cricket as well, so don’t think there’s a need at this stage to put any undue pressure or expectation on Sam.”He’s five games into his first-class career, he’s had a good start and certainly looks like he has a well-organised game that we are really exited [about] and looking forward to seeing at the A level and we’ll continue to watch as that progresses.”Harris and Bancroft are both in the squad but Matt Renshaw, who was the spare batter in the series against West Indies and New Zealand earlier this year, has not been included.Harris started the season strongly after scoring a century and a half-century against Tasmania albeit on a benign Junction Oval surface. Bancroft, who made a pair, and Renshaw both had double failures in the match between Western Australia and Queensland at the WACA.”We still really like Matt’s ability to play,” Bailey said. “As far as Australia A selection goes, part of the process around that is trying to identify opportunities that may come around in the short term but also making sure we do keep an eye on developing opportunities for those players who may become important in different roles in the future as well.”Whilst there’s an Australia A squad there, I think Matt Renshaw, Pete Handscomb, Nic Maddinson, as three examples, are guys who we’ll continue to watch really closely in Shield cricket.”South Australia skipper Nathan McSweeney will captain Australia A in a role he has fulfilled several times previously. Allrounder Beau Webster, the reigning Shield player of the season, has also been named and could be in the mix for Test selection if Australia’s hierarchy decide to go with a like-for-like replacement for Green.Fringe Test quicks Scott Boland and Michael Neser, who claimed a five-wicket haul against WA, have been selected while Victoria quick Fergus O’Neill has been rewarded for his Shield success.Offspinners Todd Murphy and Corey Rocchiccioli are also in the squad and will be firmly in the mix for Australia’s Test tour of Sri Lanka early next year.Cooper Connolly, who made his ODI debut in England, is the only player named in both the ODI and the Australia A squads.Josh Philippe, who left WA for NSW in the offseason, and Jimmy Peirson are the wicketkeepers.The first four-day game in Mackay ends on November 3 ahead of the first ODI on November 4 while the second four-day game at the MCG runs from November 7-10 with the second and third ODIs being played on November 8 and 10.The depth of Shield teams will be firmly tested with those series clashing with the third round of the Shield starting on November 1.”We are really excited by this squad, particularly after some of the tremendous performances to start the Sheffield Shield season,” Australia national selector George Bailey said.”As always with Australia A selection we have picked a side we hope can present performances which are compelling for the upcoming Test summer, whilst also rewarding players for strong domestic form in roles we see as being important further afield.”It will be a great opportunity for these players to shine against a strong Test nation looking to prepare for what is going to be a captivating summer of Test cricket.”

Australia A squad vs India A

Nathan McSweeney (captain), Cameron Bancroft, Scott Boland, Jordan Buckingham, Cooper Connolly, Ollie Davies, Marcus Harris, Sam Konstas, Nathan McAndrew, Michael Neser, Todd Murphy, Fergus O’Neill, Jimmy Peirson, Josh Philippe, Corey Rocchiccioli, Mark Steketee, Beau Webster

Harmanpreet admits that the short turnaround between the ODIs in Australia and the T20Is at home against West Indies is “very difficult” to deal with

Sruthi Ravindranath14-Dec-20242:52

Harmanpreet: Australia series was learning experience for young bowlers

Harmanpreet Kaur has put India’s failure to win crunch games in big tournaments – specifically at this year’s Asia Cup and the T20 World Cup – down to the “mindset” of individual players.”I think it’s only the mindset because, if you see, our team has very good players,” Harmanpreet said ahead of the T20I series against West Indies, which starts on Sunday. “All of them have done really well whenever they got the opportunity. I think in the big games it’s only about the mindset and what you’re feeling individually. Because, as a player, as a team, you can only talk about the things you have done well. At the end of the day, it’s only you who is dealing [with the situation and pressure] in the middle and it’s only about you, how you are going to take these things forward.”We discuss whatever is required to win but, at the end of the day, it’s the individual performer’s mindset, about how you are going to win the game for the team.”Related

• India, West Indies meet with T20I records to set straight

• India drop Reddy; Kashyap, Bist, Rawal get maiden call-ups

• Australia rebound after T20 World Cup disappointment

While India have won 13 out of the 20 T20Is they have played this year, they have lost all-important games. They had an unbeaten run in the Asia Cup in July till they lost big to Sri Lanka in the final. Then they missed out on making the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup after losing a must-win match against Australia in the group stage. In the Asia Cup final, Smriti Mandhana top scored for India when the rest of the batters failed. Harmanpreet’s solo effort with the bat went in vain against Australia.India are now coming into the T20Is against West Indies on the back of a 3-0 loss in the ODI series in Australia.”It’s really tough when you’re going through this patch,” she said. “At the same time, we can only talk about the good things we have done in the past. I think having team-bonding sessions are very important. So, when we were coming back from Australia, we had good talks on the flight because that was only time we could talk and think about how we can start this series. Yesterday was a good off-day and today we had a good meeting where we discussed how we have to go about in this particular series.”The scheduling hasn’t helped. These T20Is in Navi Mumbai take place right after the ODIs in Perth and Brisbane – the last was on December 11 – and while Harmanpreet said it was part of playing at the highest level, she admitted it wasn’t easy.The Indians have a very short turnaround between the ODI series in Australia and the T20Is at home against West Indies•PTI

“To be honest, it is difficult because you know we’re coming from Australia. After the game, only within four-five hours we left the country and came back to India,” she said. “But as professionals, these things happen and we just want to stay motivated. Yesterday was an off-day so we tried to rest well and we are looking forward to the game tomorrow.”Think when you have very less time, it’s very difficult to come back and reflect on the things which you have done in the past. At the same time, we just have to keep talking about the positives. The young girls who have come into the team have done really well in domestic and they are also positive. I think staying together is something which is very important, which we have been doing.”Harmanpreet was tight-lipped when asked about the omissions from the squad for the series.India have rung in several changes to the T20I side, but the exclusion of Arundhati Reddy and Shafali Verma have been major talking points, particularly considering Reddy was India’s joint-highest wicket-taker at the T20 World Cup and Shafali has the second-most runs in T20Is for India this year.”I would say to ask the right person, because I can only talk about the team that’s here, and what things we can do to win this series,” Harmanpreet said. “I think regarding Shafali or any other player, [it’s] better to ask the right persons.”

Unbeaten 74 combined with Lyndon James fifty ends run of three defeats

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay14-Jun-2025Notts Outlaws ended a run of three successive Vitality Blast defeats with a scintillating six-wicket victory at Edgbaston.The Bears piled up 206 for 7, with Tom Latham striking 69 off 39 balls and Dan Mousley 53 off 40 before a spectacular late barrage from Moeen Ali and Ed Barnard brought 57 in 20 balls. Liam Patterson-White took 3 for 37.But the Outlaws, who chased down 226 to beat the Bears at Trent Bridge a month ago, powered to 212 for 7, clinching victory when Tom Moores hit the last ball of the match for six. Moores finished on 74 not out off just 33 balls after Lyndon James struck a vital 50 off 40 and Daniel Sams 16 not out from six balls, including two sixes in a final over from which they needed 16.The Outlaws chose to field and started solidly. They removed Alex Davies, bowled by Farhan Ahmed through an attempted cut in the second over, and restricted the home side to 37 for 1 in the powerplay.Latham and Mousley then sped through the gears, however, in a partnership of 116 in 70 balls. Mousley reverse-lapped, swept and straight-drove Ahmed for sixes while Latham reached his half-century, from 29 balls, by pulling a short ball from Calvin Harrison into the crowd.Latham’s demise, when he skied Patterson-White to square leg in pursuit of his fifth six, sparked a wobble of four wickets for 22 runs in nine balls. Patterson-White removed Sam Hain, lbw, and George Garton, caught at long on, and Mousley, his tenth T20 half-century banked, slapped Dillon Pennington to extra cover.It was a spirited fightback from The Outlaws but they then ran into a late storm of sixes and fours from Moeen (34, 12) and Barnard (23 not out, 8) which lifted the total over 200.Joe Clarke dominated the start of The Outlaws’ reply, hitting 30 of the first 34 but then missed a Mousley full toss and was lbw. The spinner struck again with his seventh ball which Jack Haynes was lbw to, one that pitched on his boot. A third lbw decision terminated Freddie McCann’s counter attack of 32 off 17 when he missed a reverse-sweep at Moeen.James, starved of the strike early on, and Moores hit freely to keep the Outlaws in contention, with 60 needed from the last five overs, but the first of those overs, from the excellent Barnard, cost just five runs.Moores lifted Hasan Ali mightily over extra cover for six and followed up with four to reach a 24-ball half-century. James followed to his half-century in 39 balls but was run out by quick-thinking Hasan Ali to leave the Outlaws needing 16 off the last over, from Barnard.Sams lifted the first and fifth balls for six leaving the scores level with one ball left – and Moores thumped that one over long off for another six to complete a remarkable Outlaws double over the Bears.

Pakistan seamer takes 4 for 36 after Daniel Lategan’s 78 lays foundation

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay31-Aug-2025Worcestershire powered through to the Metro Bank One-Day Cup final with a 131-run (DLS) victory over Somerset at New Road.Put in, the home side totalled a solid 275 for 9 as Daniel Lategan struck his List A-best 78 against a disciplined Somerset attack with Jack Leach’s excellent 10-1-28-2 at its heart. Ben Green took 4 for 52.The target looked around par on a good pitch but Somerset’s top order imploded against Khurram Shahzad (4 for 36). The visitors lurched to 108 for 7 from 23.4 overs before rain arrived with them more than 100 runs behind the DLS score.After the resumption they further crumbled to 141 all out as Worcestershire emphatically secured a place in the final at Trent Bridge on September 20.Somerset chose to bowl but were kept waiting for their first breakthrough as openers Lategan and Brett D’Oliveira (45) added 85 in 15 overs. The bowlers gave little away though and, as risks were taken in search of acceleration, wickets began to fall.D’Oliveira drilled Kasey Aldridge to extra cover. Kashif Ali was caught with the greatest nonchalance by Finley Hill on the midwicket boundary off Green. Jake Libby skied Aldridge to mid off.Nineteen-year-old Lategan posted a polished maiden List A fifty but fell lbw, reverse-sweeping, to Leach as the spinner built pressure which also saw him bowl Rob Jones through a failed sweep. After Ethan Brookes was lbw, sweeping Tom Lammonby, Worcestershire needed some late order contributions. They got them from Henry Cullen (32) and Matthew Waite (24) before Tom Taylor (22 not out) clubbed three sixes to hoist the total to 275.Pakistan international Shahzad then began with two wides, one of which went for four, in his first three balls. From the dubious platform of 0.1-0-6-0, however, he built an opening spell of 7-2-36-4. Lammonby and Lewis Goldsworthy were beaten for pace when trying to pull and sent up catches. Archie Vaughan was brilliantly caught by Ben Allison at mid-wicket. Thomas Rew edged to slip.Worcestershire’s other seamers deepened Somerset’s plight. Waite had Joshua Thomas well caught by Lategan on the long-leg boundary and Allison dismissed Finley Hill, caught at slip, and Green, caught at mid-off.Green fell to the last ball before heavy rain arrived with Somerset in dire straits at 108 for 7. They resumed needing another 165 from 14.2 overs and quickly lost Aldridge, caught behind, and Leach, stumped, off Brookes.Last pair James Rew and Jake Ball needed to find 137 runs from ten overs. They managed five before Rew lifted Brookes to long off to trigger loud and long celebrations from the home fans.

Punjab’s Abhishek Sharma and Prabhsimran Singh put on a record-breaking 298 for the opening wicket against Saurashtra

Shashank Kishore01-Jan-2025

Mayank hits purple patch

Mayank Agarawal, the Karnataka captain, recorded his third straight List A century, in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy in Ahmedabad on Tuesday. However, it wasn’t enough as Hyderabad chased down 322 with two balls to spare. Hyderabad’s chase was fuelled by Tilak Varma, who laid the foundation with a 106-ball 99.After four games, Agarawal is currently the second-highest run-getter in the 50-over competition, having racked up 428 runs in five innings. His strike rate of 117.26 is the highest among the current top five run-scorers.Agarawal’s up-turn in form comes at a time when Karnataka’s senior players are all on notice, with the selectors keen on handing opportunities to younger players. The selection churn has already led to the likes of Manish Pandey and K Gowtham finding themselves out of favour, while a number of other senior players, like R Samarth and Karun Nair, have found homes with other state sides.Related

• Ayush Mhatre breaks Yashasvi Jaiswal's record for youngest to hit 150-plus in men's List A

• Anmolpreet Singh hits third-fastest List A century off just 35 balls in Vijay Hazare Trophy

• Samson and Pandey excluded from Vijay Hazare Trophy squads

Agarawal, who went unsold at the IPL 2025 auction, has been in patchy form this season. He managed just 179 innings in seven innings at the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. More importantly, he presided over Karnataka’s group-stage exit. In seven innings in the first half of the Ranji season, Agarawal managed just 203 runs at an average of 29.With four wins in five games, Karnataka are currently second in Group C, tied on 16 points with toppers Punjab. Mumbai, the T20 champions, are currently third with 12 points.

Nair leads from the front

Elsewhere, Agarawal’s former Karnataka teammate, Nair, has been in rip-roaring form for Vidarbha, whom he’s also captaining. Unbeaten in the competition, Nair’s scores so far read: 112*, 44*, 163* and 111*. The last of those knocks, also the most recent one, was instrumental in Vidarbha knocking the wind out of Tamil Nadu in Visakhapatnam, whose knockouts qualification has taken a slight hit.Nair currently sits on top of the run charts, his 430 runs in four innings coming at a strike rate of 116.21. His form has coincided with Vidarbha topping Group D with four wins in as many matches. Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu are currently second and third.Nair was also the team’s top-scorer at SMAT.File Photo: Prabhsimran Singh made 125 off 95 balls against Saurashtra•BCCI

Abhishek, Prabhsimran set records

Abhishek Sharma and Prabhsimran Singh, Punjab’s openers, put on 298 in their 424 for 5 against Saurashtra, in Ahmedabad, on Tuesday.This is the joint second-highest opening stand in the tournament history, equalling the record set by Bengal’s Abhimanyu Easwaran and Sudip Gharami in 2022.Abhishek, also Punjab’s captain, hit a career-best 170, off just 96 balls, while Prabhsimran hit 125. The record for the highest opening stand is currently held by Tamil Nadu’s N Jagadeesan and B Sai Sudharsan, who put on 416 against Arunachal in November 2022.Punjab’s 424 is also the joint fifth-highest total in Vijay Hazare history. Saurashtra’s Arpit Vasavada was their top scorer with 104, but they fell 57 short eventually.A game prior to that, Arshdeep Singh recorded his second List A five-for, taking 5 for 38, as Punjab beat Mumbai, in Ahmedabad. Prabhsimran then hit an unbeaten 150, off 101 balls, as Punjab chased down 249 in just 29 overs to gain a massive net-run-rate advantage over the rest of the pack.Earlier in the tournament, Prabhsimran’s cousin, Anmolpreet Singh, recorded the third-fastest List A hundred – off 35 balls – against Arunachal.

Mhatre – fast climbing up the ladder

Mumbai’s Ayush Mhatre set a new record for the youngest player to score 150-plus in List A cricket, during Mumbai’s clash against Nagaland on Tuesday. Mahtre did it at 17 years and 268 days, bettering Yashasvi Jaiswal’s record (17 years, 291 days).Mhatre, who made his debut for Mumbai earlier this season, clobbered 11 sixes and 15 fours to make 181 off only 117 balls while powering his side to an imposing 403 for 7, which was 189 too many for Nagaland.

England suffer double blow with Duckett injury and Pope falling cheaply after stepping up to open

Alan Gardner08-Oct-2024Salman Agha became Pakistan’s third centurion to cement their dominant position in Multan, before a chaotic interlude in which England lost Ben Duckett to injury and their captain, Ollie Pope, for a duck left the touring side scrabbling for a foothold in the first match of the series.Duckett suffered a painful-looking blow to his left thumb taking the catch to dismiss Pakistan’s last man Abrar Ahmed – who had already been given two lives – meaning that when England began their innings midway through the evening session, it was with Pope walking out alongside Zak Crawley. Pope only lasted two balls, Aamer Jamal plucking a one-handed screamer at midwicket to further galvanise Pakistan and bring Joe Root, England’s designated No. 4, to the middle in the second over.The riposte, as it often does, came from Crawley, back in the side after missing the Sri Lanka series with a broken finger. He slashed his sixth ball, from Shaheen Afridi, to the boundary and did the same to Naseem in the following over, before taking Afridi for a brace of fours to end the seamer’s opening spell. That led to the early introduction of spin – and another statement of intent from Crawley, as Abrar’s first over went for 11.Crawley brought up England’s 50 in the 11th, hauling Abrar through the leg side, and he continued to go after Pakistan’s legspinner, who claimed 11 wickets as a debutant on the same ground against England two years ago. Two more fours down the ground left Abrar with opening figures of 4-0-31-0, before a ninth boundary, clipped through midwicket off Naseem, took Crawley to a 55-ball half-century.Beyond a trio of speculative lbw appeals, there was little to encourage Pakistan’s attack – as had been the case for England during 149 overs in the field – with Root slipstreaming Crawley to the close in an unbroken partnership worth 92. Although Duckett’s availability to bat later in the innings remained unclear, their position looked a little more secure.It was, nevertheless, a day in which Pakistan put a commanding stamp on proceedings. Saud Shakeel steered the innings during the first forays, quelling England’s mini-fightback from the first evening – with a little help from Naseem’s cameo at nightwatcher. Salman then set about driving home the advantage on the way to a 108-ball hundred, his third in Tests, as Pakistan reached a position from which they could hope to dictate the course of the match, even against Brendon McCullum’s Bazballers.England’s six bowlers all had something to show for their efforts, with Brydon Carse taking his first Test wickets and Jack Leach finishing with 3 for 160. They generally kept at it in the field, although there were signs that five-and-a-half sessions in the baking heat of Multan would take a toll, Jamie Smith missing a simple chance to stump Abrar and Gus Atkinson then dropping the No. 11 after he had skied a chance to midwicket.England chipped away with two wickets in each session, but Shakeel and Salman ensured Pakistan did not squander the firm foundation provided by centuries from Shan Masood and Abdullah Shafique on day one. The innings progressed in fits and starts but Salman’s judicious assault on England’s spinners, in particular, helped maintain the hosts’ momentum.Salman was scoreless at lunch, but stroked the first ball after the break through the covers for four – bringing up the Pakistan 400 and signalling his own intentions. He came down the track in the same over to hit Leach through long-off, and was clearly in the mood to get the scoreboard clicking after Pakistan had added only 69 runs during the morning.His battle with Leach provided a compelling spectacle, as England’s most-experienced spinner was taken for four fours and two sixes in a four-over spell. But it almost went awry for Salman, with the first of his sixes coming perilously close to causing his dismissal: Chris Woakes thought he had done a good job as he backpedalled towards long-off, tossing the ball up as he went out of bounds to then return and complete the catch. But after lengthy deliberation and various replay angles, the third umpire, Chris Gaffaney, ruled that Woakes’ foot was in contact with the ground outside the rope as he claimed the ball a second time.Shakeel had been content to play second fiddle, even during his initial partnership with Naseem. He combined with Salman for another fifty stand but was undone by some sharp turn from Shoaib Bashir – a rare unplayable ball during a tough outing so far for the 20-year-old. Drifting into leg stump from round the wicket, Bashir found grip and then the outside edge, the ball deflecting off Shakeel’s back leg to Root at slip.Jamal fell cheaply to Carse but, with Afridi for company, that was the cue for Salman to emerge on another counter. Having moved to his fifty from 71 balls, he reverse-swept Bashir and then took him down the ground, before adding another brace of fours off Leach, followed by a single to bring up 500. In between, Pope added another burned review to the pile with an lbw appeal that was shown to have pitched outside leg.Pakistan were 515 for 8 at tea, with Salman resuming watchfully before hitting Leach over long-on to move into the 90s. He reached his hundred with a swept single, having scored 59 out of a ninth-wicket stand worth 85, at which point Afridi missed a slog at Leach to be bowled.England were beginning to look a little frazzled, and their problems had begun in the morning against the unlikely batting force of Naseem, who made his highest score in any format of the game – 33 from 81 balls – and held up a persevering attack for more than 90 minutes. His efforts, which included hitting three sixes during a stand of 64 alongside Shakeel, ensured that there would be no quick route back into the game for the tourists.With a ball only five overs old, England were hoping to get into the lower middle-order but found Naseem in resourceful – and impish – mood. He was not cowed after being hit on the helmet by Atkinson and went after Bashir and then Leach, the third of his sixes an audacious inside-to-out hit over extra cover. The stand passed 50 and Naseem was outscoring his senior partner by the time he finally became Carse’s maiden Test wicket, succumbing to a round-the-wicket barrage via an edge to leg slip.

He remains suspended from bowling in top-flight cricket with Bangladesh’s selection for the Champions Trophy imminent

Mohammad Isam12-Jan-2025Shakib Al Hasan has failed a test of his bowling action for the second time after being suspended from bowling in top-flight domestic and international cricket. This latest independent re-assessment of his action took place at the Sri Ramachandra Centre for Sports Science in Chennai last month.Shakib’s suspension will remain in place, as a result. “Consequently, the player’s existing suspension from bowling in international cricket following the initial independent assessment at the testing centre of Loughborough University in the UK, also remains in place,” the BCB said in a statement on Saturday. “A successful reassessment is required for the bowling suspension to be lifted.Related

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“While Shakib is currently unable to bowl, he is eligible to continue playing as a batsman in all forms of domestic and international cricket.”Shakib had failed his first test at the UK’s Loughborough University late last year, after he was reported for a suspect action during an English county match in September. This prompted the ECB’s action to suspend him, and, in accordance with clause 11.3 of the ICC’s regulations for illegal bowling actions, his suspension was automatically recognised and enforced by the ICC in international cricket and by all national cricket federations in their respective domestic competitions.The continued suspension is likely to have an impact on Bangladesh’s squad for the Champions Trophy in February-March, although BCB president Faruque Ahmed said on January 3 that he desired Shakib back in the team. It was also reported recently that Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto gave his nod to the BCB regarding Shakib’s ODI return. The BCB has announced it will announce the Bangladesh squad on Sunday noon.Shakib has been out of international cricket since the two-match Test tour of India in September-October 2024. Following that tour, he could not travel back to Bangladesh in the face of student protests. Shakib had been a member of parliament in the Awami League government, which fell from power on August 5, in the face of a student-led revolution in Bangladesh.Shakib last played for Bangladesh in the two Tests against India, and his last ODI came during the 2023 World Cup.