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West Indies will be without the injured Andre Russell in their must-win game against the new No.1 ODI side

The Preview by Deivarayan Muthu26-Jun-20194:11

Kartik: India’s middle order not a cause of concern

Big Picture

Thirty six years after India sprung a surprise on West Indies in final, the two sides meet again with plenty on the line at Old Trafford. Carlos Brathwaite fell inches short on Saturday, but it’s not quite the end of the road for West Indies, who have just won one of their six matches and are placed just above South Africa and Afghanistan, who are both out of contention for the semi-finals.England’s back-to-back defeats come as soothing news to West Indies, who can still sneak into the knockouts, provided they win their last three league matches and the stars align for them. Should Jason Holder’s men lose tomorrow, though, their dream will be over and India will take a big step closer to the semi-finals.West Indies will have to do without Andre Russell whose utterly wonky knees have given up. There’s also an injury cloud over Evin Lewis, who had hurt his hamstring in the field against New Zealand and later did not open the batting. Instead, he batted at No. 8 and bagged a three-ball duck.Chris Gayle and Shai Hope have blown hot and cold, compounding West Indies’ top-order troubles. They are the only side in the tournament without a fifty opening stand and they have the worst average for the opening partnership (11.2). Sunil Ambris, who has been drafted in as Russell’s replacement, could help remedy this and bring some attacking enterprise at the top while Brathwaite seamlessly fits in as a like-for-like replacement for Russell.Sheldon Cottrell: taking wickets and having fun•Getty Images

West Indies’ new-ball bowlers ditched the bang-it-in plan and hit much fuller lengths on Saturday, and Sheldon Cottrell was immediately rewarded with a double-wicket first over. His left-arm angle coupled with an awkward round-arm action could pose a threat to India’s batting line-up that still has some cracks in the middle order. Vijay Shankar is still feeling his way into the middle order, and he had his first – and only crack – at No. 4 on Saturday. Kedar Jadhav made a scrappy fifty, but he could not find a gear high enough to hurt Afghanistan.That brings us to MS Dhoni. As is his wont, he simply blocked the spinners and set up for the late burst. However, it never came and Dhoni fell in the most un-Dhoni fashion: jumping out to slog Rashid Khan against the break in his last over and getting stumped.Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s injury has also messed with India’s balance. Mohammed Shami bowled a fiery first spell and later closed out the game against Afghanistan with a hat-trick, but his inclusion has lengthened India’s tail. Against West Indies whose batting drips with power and depth, India could consider recalling Ravindra Jadeja in place of one of the wristspinners.ALSO READ: Aakash Chopra on what India need to do against West Indies’ key players

Form guide

India: WWWWL (Last five completed matches, most recent first)
West Indies: LLLLW

In the spotlight

Manchester is a special place for Vijay Shankar. He’s a die-hard fan of Manchester United and he enjoyed a tour of the football’s Old Trafford before pinning Imam-ul-Haq lbw with his first World Cup delivery at cricket’s Old Trafford, against Pakistan. The batting allrounder had a bright start against Afghanistan, but he threw it away, chancing a sweep just after fine leg had been whisked in. Can he make the No. 4 spot his own upon his return to Manchester?ALSO READ – Gollapudi: What Vijay Shankar brings at No. 4Shimron Hetmyer started the tournament quietly and then eased himself into back-to-back fifties against Bangladesh and New Zealand. That Hetmyer is a fine player of spin makes him one of the key figures in the middle order against Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav or Jadeja. Remember his rousing hundred in Guwahati last year, India?4:42

Ganga wants Bravo, Allen in WI’s XI

Team news

India are set to give Vijay another shot at the middle order. But, the big question is will they throw Jadeja into the mix at the expense of a wristspinner? Bhuvneshwar has resumed bowling at the nets, but India are unlikely to risk playing him on Thursday.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 KL Rahul, 3 Virat Kohli (captain), 4 Vijay Shankar, 5 MS Dhoni (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 Kedar Jadhav, 8 Kuldeep Yadav, 9 Yuzvendra Chahal/Ravindra Jadeja, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Jasprit BumrahWest Indies are likely include Ambris if Lewis is unfit, and Kemar Roach might keep his place ahead of the erratic Shannon Gabriel.West Indies (probable): 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Evin Lewis/Sunil Ambris, 3 Shai Hope (wk), 4 Nicholas Pooran, 5 Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Carlos Brathwaite, 7 Jason Holder (capt), 8 Ashley Nurse, 9 Kemar Roach, 10 Sheldon Cottrell, 11 Oshane ThomasChris Gayle has a hit in the nets•AFP

Pitch and conditions

The Old Trafford track is likely to be flat as usual, and there’s no rain forecast for Thursday.

Strategy punt

• Keep your inswinger ready against Gayle in the Powerplay. The opener has struggled against incoming deliveries in the first ten overs, managing only 19 off 30 such balls while being dismissed twice.
• Gayle sized up Mitchell Santner’s left-arm spin on Saturday, and West Indies have more left-handers in Lewis, Nicholas Pooran and Hetmyer, but India could still take a punt on Jadeja for his athleticism in the field and the batting cover he provides. Even if Jadeja, the bowler, is taken to the cleaners, India have an extra bowling option in Vijay.

Stats and trivia

• Jasprit Bumrah has bowled 15 yorkers in four matches this World Cup. Only Mitchell Starc has bowled more yorkers (16) although he has had the benefit of playing three more games.
• Gayle is 59 runs away from surpassing Brian Lara as West Indies’ top run-getter in ODI cricket
• Tomorrow’s ODI will be Hardik Pandya’s 50th. He needs two wickets to reach 50 ODI wickets
• In ODIs since 2017, at Old Trafford, spinners have managed only 15 wickets in 10 innings as opposed to 56 taken by the seamers.

Jason Roy also absent for birth of child, meaning recalls for Sam Billings and Dawid Malan

George Dobell21-Feb-2019Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes have been rested from England’s T20 squad for the three-match series against West Indies.Buttler and Stokes, key members of the side in all three formats, will be allowed to return home immediately after the fifth ODI of the current series against the same opposition. Both men face a hectic 2019 schedules which include the World Cup, the Ashes and spells at the IPL, which starts on March 23.But Ed Smith, the national selector, insisted there was no way the decision to rest them from the T20 series should be interpreted as a case of prioritising franchise cricket over England duty.”I have not favoured franchise cricket over international cricket,” Smith said. “The contracts that Jos and Ben had with their franchises pre-date my involvement. There were a set of obligations in place and, with a busy year coming up, I’ve accepted the strong recommendations of the head coach to rest these guys now.”Jason Roy will also miss the West Indies T20s to ensure he is on hand for the birth of his first child. As a result, Sam Billings and Dawid Malan have been recalled to the squad for the first time since last year’s tour of Australia and New Zealand.”Sam is a very talented cricketer who hits the ball as hard as anyone,” Smith said. “But he’s been in a position where he’s been picked up by franchises but then not always been playing. And he’s been in England squads but not always been playing.”So last summer we took a view that we didn’t want him to be in a squad and not playing. So we left him out so he could play for Kent and he captained them to a Lord’s final and promotion. He then played both legs of full Lions tours before and after Christmas and I think that will have been a good thing for him. He has considerable ability.”Dawid would love an England career across all three formats. It’s just a question of where the opportunities come and, when he has played T20, he has grabbed his chances.”There were also discussions over whether to rest Joe Root. Ultimately, however, Root, who has not always commanded a place in England’s T20 team, was keen to play.”Joe is an absolutely critical asset for English cricket in the very big 2019 summer,” Smith said. “His form and preparation is essential for England, so we did discuss resting him. But he is very keen to play in these games. He feels playing in the white-ball sides offers a different experience to captaining the Test side and he likes that blend.”While Smith is usually reluctant to talk about players outside the squad, he did confirm that James Vince’s good form in various franchise tournaments “had been noted” and said he remained in discussions.He also had praise for Harry Gurney, who ended up with a winner’s medal from a successful period in the BBL. “Harry has terrific skills,” Smith said. “And we’re very aware of what he’s doing. But he misses out in this instance.”England T20 squad: Eoin Morgan (capt), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Billings, Tom Curran, Joe Denly, Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, Dawid Malan, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, David Willey, Mark Wood

Strong showing in Tests gives visitors hopes of springing a surprise in opening fixture

Madushka Balasuriya23-Mar-2023

Big picture: Test thrills augur well

Despite the eventual 2-0 scoreline in favour of the hosts, it’s safe to say Sri Lanka might have surprised a fair few folks that tuned into the Tests in Christchurch and Wellington – okay, maybe not so much the latter, but certainly over the course of that epic first Test.In that game, the visitors, in pursuit of an unlikely World Test Championship berth, ran the defending WTC champions as close as pretty much anyone could have imagined. And in the process garnered some well-deserved respect from the wider cricketing world.That, though, was the Sri Lankan red-ball side, one propelled not through individual exceptionalism but an almost New Zealand-esque sense of collectivism. And while their white-ball outings have also seen a marked improvement in recent times, culminating in a memorable Asia Cup T20 victory last year, their ODI unit has largely underwhelmed.Since the start of the ODI World Cup Super League, Sri Lanka have lost away to West Indies, Bangladesh and England, while their home record has been marginally better, losing to India, beating South Africa and, most recently, drawing against Afghanistan.The ODI side’s nadir was arguably reached earlier this year during a 3-0 drubbing in India – a particularly tough pill to swallow in a World Cup year in the same country, especially as the T20I series that preceded had seen them take the hosts to series decider. While any silver linings in Sri Lanka’s recent one-day history might seem like wizard-level straw-clutching, the record will nevertheless also show a 3-2 series win at home to Australia last year – so, yeah, there is that.Which brings us to the present, where for Sri Lanka to have any hopes of automatic qualification for the World Cup later this year they need to complete a whitewash of New Zealand in the week or so ahead – and even then, they’re heavily dependent on South Africa fluffing their lines in a series against Netherlands.What they might have going for them is that the hosts won’t exactly be at full strength. With World Cup qualification secured, and conditions in India unlikely to be anything like what the likes of Auckland, Christchurch and Hamilton have to offer, New Zealand have given clearance for no less than nine ODI regulars to play in the IPL.Sri Lanka meanwhile have a relatively settled unit and, save for the absence of Dushmantha Chameera, will likely be able to put out their strongest XI. On paper at least they look the stronger side.

Form guide

(completed matches, most recent first)New Zealand: WWWWW

Sri Lanka: LLLWL

In the spotlight: Matt Henry and Angelo Mathews

With 65 ODIs to his name, in terms of experience Matt Henry comfortably eclipses the combined match tally of Blair Tickner (9), Henry Shipley (3) and the uncapped Ben Lister – New Zealand’s other seam bowling options for this series – while even the addition of Daryll Mitchell (19) to the list doesn’t help all that much. Lockie Ferguson’s 53 caps certainly would have evened the scales, but even without his recently picked-up hamstring strain, he was due to play only the first ODI before jetting off to the IPL. Henry is coming in on the back of an excellent Test outing against Sri Lanka, and if this youthful New Zealand outfit are to maintain their excellent home record, Henry will have a key role to play in it.Angelo Mathews hasn’t turned out for a Sri Lankan white-ball side since March 2021, and for much of that time a recall could have been categorised under hopeful at best. But if T20 cricket is a young man’s game, well, ODI cricket might still have room for some greying heads, even if Mathews’s recall at 35 in a World Cup year certainly does scream ‘last dance’. An average of 41.67 and nearly 6,000 runs, of course, is nothing to be scoffed at – not to mention his most recent LPL stint where he played the role of finisher in impressive fashion. Sri Lanka will need him to call on all of that vast experience if they are to have any chance at securing automatic qualification.

Pitch and conditions: Bright conditions in prospect

Eden Park hasn’t had much ODI cricket of late, but the last two games have seen 300-plus chased down and 273 defended. The pitch has also been known to aid spin. Weather is expected to be nice and sunny.

Team news: Bowes and Ravindra to debut

On the eve of the match, New Zealand captain Tom Latham announced that Chad Bowes and Rachin Ravindra would make their ODI debuts. He said, however, that the team hadn’t yet finalised their full XI, and would make a decision on the bowling attack keeping workloads in mind.New Zealand (probable) XI: 1 Finn Allen, 2 Chad Bowes, 3 Will Young, 4 Daryl Mitchell, 5 Tom Latham (wk), 6 Glenn Phillips, 7 Rachin Ravindra, 8 Blair Tickner/Ben Lister, 9 Henry Shipley/Lockie Ferguson, 10 Matt Henry, 11 Ish SodhiMost of Sri Lanka’s XI picks itself but a few key areas remain up for grabs. At the top of the order Nuwanidu Fernando is the likely option alongside Pathum Nissanka. Then with five seamers in the squad, Sri Lanka certainly have options, with allrounder Chamika Karunaratne also able come in if Sri Lanka want an additional batter lower down.Sri Lanka (probable) XI: 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Nuwanidu Fernando, 3 Kusal Mendis (wk), 4 Charith Asalanka, 5 Angelo Mathews, 6 Dhananjaya De Silva, 7 Dasun Shanaka (capt.), 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 Lahiru Kumara, 10 Kasun Rajitha, 11 Maheesh Theekshana/Matheesha Pathirana

Stats and trivia

• Sri Lanka last won an ODI series in New Zealand in 2001 (4-1). Since then they’ve won six of 23 completed ODIs in New Zealand.
• Angelo Mathews needs 165 runs to score 6,000 ODI runs. He will become the ninth Sri Lankan to do so.
• Since the 2019 World Cup New Zealand have won seven of 10 ODI series home and away.

March 24, GMT 0330 The preview was updated with the news that Bowes and Ravindra would debut for New Zealand.

Super Kings struggled against spin after a promising start, leaving Dhoni and Jadeja too much to do at the end

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Apr-2023MS Dhoni has urged Chennai Super Kings’ batters to take “ownership”, after a middle-overs slump cost them victory against Rajasthan Royals on Wednesday night. Chasing 176, Super Kings were well placed at 78 for 1 in the tenth over before Royals’ spinners got to work, reducing them to 113 for 6 by the end of the 15th.Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja nearly pulled off an improbable win with their end-overs hitting – the match ended with Super Kings one hit away from victory having needed 54 from 18 balls at one stage – but the Super Kings captain suggested after the match that it needn’t have come down to that situation in the first place.Related

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“I think [we lost it] in the middle [overs while batting], we needed a bit more strike rotation,” Dhoni said at the post-match presentation. “I don’t think there was a lot [of help] for the spinners. Yes, they have experienced spinners, so they bowled very well. They were bowling the right length, but I felt in that period you have [we had] too many dot balls.”If the wicket is slow, if it’s stopping and turning, then I can understand, but with the set batsman and the new batsman going in, I don’t think it was that difficult. So I think the ownership needs to come from the batsmen.”Super Kings needed 21 at the start of the final over, and the responsibility of bowling it fell to Sandeep Sharma. He started with two wides to Dhoni, and low full-tosses off his second and third legal deliveries that Dhoni smacked for leg-side sixes. Thereafter, however, Sandeep pulled things back smartly, nailing his yorkers after changing angle to go around the wicket to Dhoni.Dhoni faced two of the last three balls, only managing to drag them along the ground for singles. In between, Sandeep bowled one ball to Jadeja, angling it away from the left-hander’s hitting arc from over the wicket and conceding another single.Sandeep explained his thought process when he was interviewed by after the match.”In the last over, I wanted to execute yorkers,” he said. “I’ve been bowling good yorkers in the nets. One side of the ground was bigger, so I thought I would use it and bowl at the [batter’s] heel but they turned out to be low full-tosses and went for six. Then I changed my plan and went around the wicket, hoping for a change, and it was good that the result was different.”I bowled over the wicket to Jaddu and my plan was to keep the ball away from his reach. The shots he hit to Jason [Holder] were down the ground. So my plan was to take it away from his reach. And to Mahi , my plan was to change the angle as I got hit for two sixes while bowling at the heel from over the wicket. So I went around the wicket and bowled it wide, and changed the angle.”

Gautam Gambhir and the Delhi Daredevils leadership group took pains to make sure the public knew the former captain was leaving of his own volition, and not being pushed out

Sidharth Monga in Delhi25-Apr-20182:13

Gambhir weighs up IPL future after quitting as captain

The writing was on the wall the moment you saw Gautam Gambhir, Ricky Ponting and Delhi Daredevils CEO Hemant Dua walk out for a press conference two days before the team’s second home game of the season. Gambhir, the astute leader who turned around Kolkata Knight Riders’ fortunes, was struggling with the bat and his side was down, having won just one out of six matches. It was clear Gambhir was going, but the big question was whether he was jumping or being pushed or jumping before the push could come.The franchise, the coach and now the former captain were emphatic in dismissing any suggestions Gambhir was under pressure to resign. In fact, Ponting and Dua went a step ahead and said it was unprecedented in Indian cricket for a player of his stature to put the team ahead of himself and resign.And then there was Gambhir’s statement: “Absolutely my decision. I was the one who initiated the meeting. I thought I haven’t contributed enough. At the same time, the performance of the team. I had to take the responsibility as the leader of the ship. I owe that responsibility. I should. As a leader. I feel it was the right team because we are still very much in the competition. Absolutely my decision [to resign], no pressure from the franchise, they have been absolutely supportive about it. But sometimes when your conscience says it is the right time, and you just take that.”Gambhir was candid enough to admit it gets difficult to turn things around as a player gets older. Released by Daredevils eight years ago, he did turn it around not just for himself but for the entire Kolkata Knight Riders team, winning them two titles. Now, though, he felt he might have been too desperate to repeat it.”Maybe the only thing I can point to is, I was too desperate to turn things around,” Gambhir said. “And at times it can backfire as well because sometimes you are too keen and it makes you too hard on yourself. Sometimes you realise that maybe I just couldn’t handle the pressure that came with the position, the responsibility I was given.Gautam Gambhir is all smiles while leading his team back to the pavilion•BCCI

“Maybe coming back to Delhi was an emotional decision as well. Sometimes when emotions get better of you and you are too desperate to turn things around, that is the only thing I can think of at the moment. Too early in the tournament to reflect on what went wrong but one thing that came to mind is this. When I joined KKR, I was 28. Now I am 36. That could be one of the reasons. You can handle more pressure when you are 28 than when you are 36.”There is one recent precedent in IPL of a captain resigning mid-tournament, and that came from the man sat next to Gambhir. Ponting had quit as the Mumbai Indians captain when he, and consequently, his team were struggling in 2013.”I think Gautam deserves a lot of credit for the way he has handled this situation,” Ponting said. “It is unheard of in Indian cricket for a senior player to put his hand up and say I don’t feel like I am playing well enough. And for the team’s sake I am going to stand down. I did it when I was at Mumbai as a player. I knew that I had better players that I was keeping out. I decided to do the right thing.”It doesn’t happen everyday, it might not happen again in Indian cricket or in IPL for someone of his stature, of his talent, of his ability, of his overall record, just to say it is time for a change of direction for this team. I am proud of what he has done. I am sure his younger team-mates are exceptionally proud of the fact that he came out and said that to the team today. And he has created an opportunity for one of India’s best young players (Shreyas Iyer) to captain his franchise.”The franchise has been under pressure too, and CEO Dua was asked if he, too, was going to resign. He said he would be happy to resign and let the owners take a call should they fail yet again, and also stringently defended Gambhir.”I knew these questions were going to come that the franchise has pressurised Gautam,” Dua said. “It is his decision. You should respect when somebody takes the decision and give him the due credit. That’s the problem with all of us. When somebody takes that decision, respect that. Because this kind of decisions are not taken in India. We totally back and salute Gautam. And I think it is important that the media notes that.”Gambhir took the call after the last Daredevils defeat, chasing a below-par total against Kings XI Punjab at home. “I have always set very high standards for myself as a player, and if I am not able to achieve that, it puts doubt in your mind if you have put enough weight to be in the team. Obviously when I spoke to my wife, she said as a leader you have given opportunities to other players, you have given 14-15 opportunities, why only four to yourself? And my only answer was I have set different standards for myself than I set for other players. Sometimes when you are not able to achieve those standards, you have got to put your hand up and say I was not good enough.”

He also praised England’s bowling attack for not panicking despite injury setbacks

Andrew McGlashan15-Nov-20224:05

Moody: Teams need to consider separate players and staff for different formats

For the second time in less than three years, Matthew Mott held a World Cup aloft at the MCG.In March 2020, it was the history-making performance of Australia’s women’s team, in front of 86,174 spectators, and a few days ago the England men’s team became the first male side to hold both World Cups at the same time to forge their own legacy.”It hasn’t fully sunk in yet,” Mott told ESPNcricinfo on Tuesday. “It was an amazing event, again. I probably never thought I’d coach either team, really, so to coach them both to a trophy is something very special.”Mott’s time with Australia came to end after their ODI World Cup victory in New Zealand as they, too, were able to unite the two pieces of limited-overs silverware. He was interviewed for the Australia men’s position when Justin Langer was forced out, but that was always going to Andrew McDonald (do not be surprised, though, if it’s Mott’s job in the future).Matthew Mott’s shift to England came after leading Australia to T20 and ODI World Cup wins•ICC/Getty Images

The time was right to bring an end to a storied run with Meg Lanning’s team and England’s interest was impossible to ignore. But even though he was moving into another set-up that had enjoyed white-ball success, had immense depth and were going to be one of the tournament favourites, a lot had to go right to win a World Cup at the first time of asking, particularly after things had gone wrong.While Australia’s title in 2020 and this one for England have not quite followed the same path, they both became fraught affairs. Australia were beaten by India in their opening match and couldn’t afford another defeat; England’s loss to Ireland at the MCG left them in a similar position.There were also injuries to contend with, both before and during the event. In 2020, Tayla Vlaeminck was ruled out on the eve of the tournament, as Reece Topley was this time. Australia lost Ellyse Perry at a vital time; England were without Mark Wood and Dawid Malan in the semi-final and final. Both teams had the depth to come through.”They are interesting tournaments,” Mott said. “There’s so much that can go right or wrong. Run rate is such a big thing that’s looming. To get out of a very strong group, there was a lot of relief after that. Once you get to the semi-finals and finals you play a slightly different brand of cricket, you can actually relax a little more. Think the team thrives on that.”Matthew Mott celebrates with the side after England clinched the trophy•PA Photos/Getty Images

“I think England’s depth is incredible. If you look at all the players who missed out in that team – Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Reece Topley – and even the quality that was still sat on the bench, David Willey has done nothing wrong at all and we couldn’t squeeze him in.”Probably the most pleasing thing – everyone talks a lot about the batting – but with Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Mark Wood, there’s now incredible depth in the bowling. Thought Adil Rashid had an amazing tournament. Think the way we adapted was key. In tournaments like this you will always lose a couple of players, but if you don’t panic and give other players an opportunity it really adds to the group.”Mott only started working with England in June on a short tour of Netherlands which ended with Eoin Morgan’s retirement from international cricket. Mott sensed it could be coming, but it still meant there was an entirely new captain-coach axis as Jos Buttler took over four months before the World Cup. The home summer was a stuttering affair as three of the four series against India and South Africa were lost.Related

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However, things started to come together in Pakistan, even though Buttler wasn’t playing. Mott pinpointed that trip as vital to what has played out in Australia, lauding Buttler’s decision to go on the tour. Their relationship was strengthened while Mott also believes the development of Buttler’s captaincy was aided by watching Moeen Ali.”Any time with a captain-coach relationship it takes time to build that trust,” Mott said. “I hadn’t really known Jos before I was in this role. Like any good working relationship, you have to build trust in each other. I really felt the best thing for us was when Jos selflessly said he’d come to Pakistan even though he wasn’t going to play.”He just wanted to observe and his relationship with Moeen Ali was strengthened over there, it was a brilliant. That really set the tone for us, to build a team around him. He observed a lot from Moeen’s captaincy and [I] think he took a lot out of that. He added an extra layer of calmness and assuredness.”In 2020, the destiny of the title had been all but decided by the batting of Alyssa Healy and Beth Mooney. Mott subsequently said he was even able to give himself a moment to soak in the experience that day. This time it was rather different, a tense affair that was only really decided when Shaheen Afridi limped off and Ben Stokes seized the moment.Mott caught up with a number of the Australians over the last few weeks and many of them sent him messages before the final. “Felt like in a strange way they shared in that even though it was England,” he said. “At least they had someone to cheer for in the final.”

The selectors decided not to name any replacement for the allrounder for the series which starts on August 17

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Aug-2018Allrounder Vijay Shankar has been ruled out of the upcoming quadrangular series in Vijayawada, scheduled to begin on August 17. Vijay, who was set to represent India B in that series, is currently undergoing rehabilitation for his injured left hamstring at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru.The selectors have decided not to name a replacement for him for the quadrangular series, which will also feature India A, South Africa A and Australia A.India B, who will be led by Manish Pandey, have likes of Mayank Agarwal, Shubman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Ishan Kishan, Jayant Yadav, Siddarth Kaul and Prasidh Krishna in their ranks, while India A include Prithvi Shaw, Suryakumar Yadav, Nitish Rana, Sanju Samson, K Gowtham, Krunal Pandya, Deepak Chahar and Shivam Mavi, under the leadership of Shreyas Iyer.The series will run till August 29, with India B scheduled to play their first match against South Africa A on August 17.India B squad: Manish Pandey (capt), Mayank Agarwal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubhman Gill, Deepak Hooda, Ricky Bhui, Ishan Kishan (wk), Shreyas Gopal, Jayant Yadav, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, Siddarth Kaul, Prasidh Krishna, Kulwant Khejroliya, Navdeep Saini.

Supported by Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav, Gill shepherded the first successful chase of the tournament this year

Sidharth Monga25-Oct-2018Shubman Gill looks to the heavens after bringing up his century•PTI

Shubman Gill has dazzled in the IPL, but for those of the more conventional disposition, he made a big statement with his first List A hundred in a chase. From 85 for 3, India C mounted the first successful chase of this Deodhar Trophy, sealing their berth in the final against the undefeated India B. All three matches have been played at Feroz Shah Kotla, but this pitch played better than the previous two where the chasing teams managed only 218 and 201. Gill, though, shepherded this chase of 294 with the first hundred of the tournament.Gill was supported by wicketkeeper-batsman Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav. What will impress the three national selectors in attendance is that there was a lot of sensible batting to go with impressive stroke-play. Going by the trend in this tournament, and with Ajinkya Rahane and Suresh Raina both gone, India C seemed out of the contest chasing the biggest total of the tournament.Pretty early on in the chase, Gill settled down to bat through, and Kishan assumed the role of the enforcer. Kishan has shown in the past he can innovate and hit against slower bowlers. He hit international bowlers Mohammed Siraj and R Ashwin for two boundaries in an over. His strike rate was under 100 only against Ashwin and Nitish Rana. In between, Gill tonked Ashwin and Shams Mulani for a six each.International teams might also want to look at the tapes of this chase as a tutorial on how to face Kedar Jadhav, who was making his comeback from his latest hamstring injury. They played the full balls straight – Kishan even drove one back past him for four – and waited for the short ball. Suryakumar was the most severe on Jadhav, hitting a short, low-bouncing ball for an inside-out six over extra cover.By this time, Gill and Suryakumar had sailed through the slightly nervous period after Kishan’s dismissal for a 60-ball 69. Now Gill, too, began to show off, hitting a slower bouncer from Dhawal Kulkarni over wide mid-off. Suryakumar responded with two sixes in empty stands, which slowed down the progress of the match. Suryakumar’s power hitting again was from a chasing template: the top order brings you to the 35th over with the asking rate in control, and then the big hitter kills the contest.Gill brought up his hundred with just 12 runs required, and then finished the game off with a boundary off the last ball of the 47th over.

Lancashire legspinner Matt Parkinson, the leading wicket-taker in the group stage of the Royal London Cup, has been included

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Jun-2018Nottinghamshire captain Steven Mullaney will lead England Lions in their triangular series against India A and West Indies A later this month.The squad features five players capped by England – Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Craig Overton and Reece Topley – and also Ben Foakes who was part of the Test squad throughout the tour of Australia and New Zealand.Matt Parkinson, the Lancashire legspinner who has impressed this season with red and white ball, is included – he is the leading wicket-taker in the Royal London Cup with 18 wickets at 18.22.Topley’s inclusion is significant encouragement for the left-armer who has played 10 ODIs and six T20Is for England. He has suffered a succession of lower-back injuries and has opted to focus on white-ball cricket in 2018.Joe Clarke, the Worcestershire batsman, has not been included with a decision to allow him to play red-ball cricket. The tri-series coincides with two rounds of the County Championship – Worcestershire play Lancashire and Nottinghamshire during that period – and pulling players out for Lions duty has caused tensions in the past.Squad: Nick Gubbins (Middlesex), Tom Kohler-Cadmore (Yorkshire), Sam Hain (Warwickshire), Liam Livingstone (Lancashire), Steven Mullaney (Nottinghamshire, captain), Ben Foakes (Surrey, wk), Liam Dawson (Hampshire), Sam Curran (Surrey), Craig Overton (Somerset), Matt Parkinson (Lancashire), Matthew Fisher (Yorkshire), Reece Topley (Hampshire), Tom Helm (Middlesex)

Aaron Beard four-for seals victory after Paul Walter’s 49 helps lay foundation

ECB Reporters Network24-Jun-2022Michael Pepper continued his Vitality Blast love affair with the Cloud County Ground before Aaron Beard returned career-best figures as Essex Eagles condemned Surrey to a second straight loss.Pepper took his Chelmsford tally to 304 in six innings – and 386 in total – with a tubthumping 48 as Paul Walter continued his fine form with 49 as the Eagles soured to 198 for 7 before fast bowler Beard, making just his second appearance of the season, removed openers Will Jacks and Jason Roy to eventually pick up 4 for 29 – as Surrey fell 43 runs short.Essex boosted their hopes of securing a home quarter-final to move to seven wins out of 12, while Surrey remain top and will host a home knockout game but having been previously unbeaten in all competitions until Thursday night have lost momentum.On a fixture celebrating Essex Pride, Surrey stuck the Eagles in to bat and had Adam Rossington caught behind in the second over, with the first two overs only going for six before Pepper went ballistic.He struck 30 from the first nine balls he faced, with just a dot and a single punctuating his boundary blitz. The South African-born batter began by scooping a six, something he replicated in the following over between a bullet cut shot and followed by four consecutive boundaries off Dan Moriarty.His hitting paused after a strike to the box, which he never really recovered from as he limped to five more runs before he reversed straight to third – the second wicket in three balls for Sunil Narine.Essex’s rebuild and second 10 overs were a textbook display of accumulation – with only seven dot balls, along with four wickets coming in the second half of the innings for 110 runs.Walter was the chief architect of the scoring with his 49, which included four towering sixes, as he put on 51 with Dan Lawrence and 44 with Simon Harmer.Reece Topley made sure his former county didn’t get to 200 as he chipped away throughout and added Walter, Daniel Sams and Harmer to his earlier Rossington dismissal to end up with 4 for 37.Beard made an electrifying start as he picked up both a yorked Roy and Jacks, brilliantly caught at short fine leg by Tom Westley.Smith and Rory Burns put on 57 with a low-risk approach, while still keeping up with the rate before Dan Lawrence stuck one through Smith. Burns followed by skewing Beard to mid-on and Narine fired back at Harmer as Surrey lost their way.Laurie Evans continued the slump when sub fielder Ben Allison produced a spectacular solo relay catch at wide long-on – Harmer grabbing two wickets in the over to return two for 20. Beard had debutant Tom Lawes skying to mid-on for his fourth.Sams pilfered Chris Jordan and Sam Cook had Conor McKerr as Surrey could only reach 155 for 9.