India went on to achieve their first 5-0 ODI series sweep away from home following another one-sided contest at Bulawayo

The Report by Kanishkaa Balachandran03-Aug-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAjinkya Rahane made Zimbabwe pay after being let off early•Associated Press

There were hopes that an inexperienced Indian team would narrow the gulf between the two sides, but, contrary to expectations, at the end of five games that gulf widened. India went on to achieve their first 5-0 ODI series sweep away from home following another one-sided contest at Bulawayo. The script wasn’t very different from the fourth ODI. Zimbabwe lost the toss, suffered another top-order meltdown, posted a below-par total and watched India’s young batsmen bide their time and pile on scores to keep the selectors interested.Amit Mishra has been in and out of the India squad for the last few years and he had the most to gain from this series, taking 6 for 48 and extending his series tally to 18. Ajinkya Rahane, brought in to replace Rohit Sharma, made good use of his opportunity, making an exact 50. With the series decided after the third game, the remaining matches were nothing more than a selection trial for the A tour of South Africa – many of whom are part of that series – and the tour of South Africa later on.Without taking any credit away from Mishra, he had the Zimbabwe batsmen to thank for gifting away their wickets with abysmal shot selection, in their last chance to salvage a consolation win. A cold and windy Saturday morning greeted the teams and after Virat Kohli chose to give his bowlers best use of the conditions, it was always a question of survival for the top order. Zimbabwe struggled to get partnerships going and it was left to the middle order to build from scratch. When the sun came out, the specialist batsmen were all back in the pavilion, leaving the tail to negotiate more than 15 overs. The innings lasted just under 40 overs.With tougher contests coming up for India in the coming months, there would have been a strong case for India batting first in favourable bowling conditions and gaining experience. The second ODI, where they recovered from 65 for 4, was a test of skill and adaptability but the evidence in the last two ODIs suggested that the emphasis was more on capitalising at the toss with a 5-0 sweep in mind.As expected, the batsmen were nervy at the start. Captain Brendan Taylor’s loss of form was a big concern coming into this match, with him averaging just 8.75 in the series, and in his last chance to make amends he departed for a scratchy 11-ball duck. Taylor tried to break free by chasing one from Mohit Sharma outside the off stump, only to edge to second slip. Vusi Sibanda’s wicket – caught behind off Jaydev Unadkat – started the procession and Zimbabwe’s hopes of turning the corner with the bat were dashed as they lost two wickets within ten overs.Hamilton Masakadza was positive from the outset, but the drinks break broke his concentration. Ravindra Jadeja cramped him for room and yet, Masakadza decided to cut, only to chop it onto the stumps first ball after the break. The loss of wickets put a stranglehold on the scoring, with as many as nine overs in the first 25 producing just one run.A poor shot, off an equally bad ball, cost Zimbabwe another wicket. Malcolm Waller shaped to pull a long hop from Mishra and got a top edge that swirled to Mohit at mid-on. Zimbabwe didn’t lose a wicket for another ten overs but, for the second time, the first ball after a drinks break produced a wicket. Elton Chigumbura was trapped lbw coming forward to Mishra, who struck again in the over getting Tinotenda Mutombodzi to edge to slip.Williams was caught off a top edge off Mishra for 51, but it was a shot of frustration more than anything else. Williams was the only batsman who looked like batting through, but the lack of support at the other end must have upset his plans. Mishra cleaned up the tail to equal Javagal Srinath’s bilateral-series record haul of 18 against New Zealand in 2002-03, though that was a seven-match series.The only Indian player to miss out, for the second time, was Cheteshwar Pujara, bowled for the second time in two games, beaten by a beautiful incutter by Kyle Jarvis. Pujara will have a chance to make amends when he leads the A team to South Africa. Jarvis continued to pose questions outside the off stump, getting Shikhar Dhawan to nick to the keeper, halting a brisk knock that gave India an early push before the lunch break.Rahane’s stint should have ended on 7, when the wicketkeeper Taylor fluffed an easy run-out chance with Rahane yards short. He capitalised on that lapse with a steady fifty, driving and pulling with ease. Kohli held himself back again for the sake of a younger player, this time Jadeja. Like Suresh Raina did on Thursday, Jadeja made good use of the promotion, scoring an unbeaten 48 and sealing the series with a six.The series was good for India’s potential replacements. For Zimbabwe, the challenge may only get tougher when Pakistan and Sri Lanka visit later, if they field full-strength sides.

With the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) deciding to hold its elections after the BCCI’s annual general meeting, Sharad Pawar’s anticipated return as an active cricket administrator may be put on hold

Amol Karhadkar14-Aug-2013The Mumbai Cricket Association’s (MCA) decision to hold its elections after the BCCI’s annual general meeting may stall Sharad Pawar’s anticipated return to cricket administration as he won’t be able to represent his home association at the 2013 board meeting. Pawar, who has headed the ICC, BCCI and MCA and is currently a senior minister in India’s federal government, was reportedly eyeing a return to Mumbai cricket administration.The MCA usually conducts its elections in July but interim president Ravi Savant – who has also taken charge as the interim BCCI treasurer – scheduled the elections for after the BCCI AGM in the last week of September. “Now that he won’t be able to represent the MCA at the BCCI AGM, it is not sure if he will indeed contest the (MCA) elections,” a source close to Pawar said.However, Pawar can contest the BCCI’s elections – which will take place during the AGM – even without contesting the MCA polls. According to the BCCI rules, a presidential candidate has to have attended at least two AGMs and should have been a principal office-bearer in the past. A recent amendment to the BCCI constitution says that if Pawar is to contest the September election, he needs a proposer and a seconder from the South zone.*It is understood that Pawar is keen on attending the BCCI AGM. His presence could have made a difference in the working of the BCCI, seemingly divided in the aftermath of the spot-fixing scandal that rocked the IPL. Should he stand for elections – it is a long shot at this point – the opposition towards N Srinivasan’s tenure as BCCI president would have grown. Pawar’s absence could help Srinivasan extend his tenure by another year without much difficulty.The IPL was launched during Pawar’s three-year tenure as the BCCI president. It was Pawar who had approved India Cements to own an IPL team (Chennai Super Kings). Srinivasan is the vice chairman and managing director of India Cements and was the BCCI treasurer when the IPL was launched. Once Pawar handed over the BCCI charge to Shashank Manohar before heading the ICC, Srinivasan was elevated as the BCCI secretary.It was during that time that apparent cracks emerged in Pawar’s relationship with Srinivasan. While Srinivasan and a few others in the board were unhappy with Pawar virtually giving the IPL founding chairman Lalit Modi a free run with the conduct of the multi-million dollar T20 league, Srinivasan vehemently opposed some of the ICC initiatives, with DRS leading the way. It is believed that it was on Srinivasan’s insistence that the Indian team boycotted the
ICC Awards in London in September 2011, an embarrassment for Pawar given that his country skipped the function during his tenure as ICC president.Meanwhile, the already postponed MCA elections may be delayed further after a request from a group of Muslim representatives. A day after Savant announced October 18 as the election date (usually held in July every two years), Shah Alam, secretary of the Mazgaon Cricket Club, met Savant and submitted an application on behalf of around 25 Muslim club representatives.”Since Bakri Eid is slated either for October 16 or 17 and the festival involves three days of religious ceremonies and fasts, we request you to further postpone the elections by another week,” Alam wrote. “The election has already been delayed by three months so another week’s delay won’t make much of a difference.”Savant had announced on Monday that Pawar had expressed his intention to return at the helm of MCA’s affairs. A group of MCA administrators have been trying to pursue Pawar, who handed over the reins to union minister Vilasrao Deshmukh in July 2011, to return to MCA after the latter’s death last August.Irrespective of whether Pawar enters the fray or not, the MCA elections are likely to see at least three panels contesting for the office bearers’ and managing committee members’ posts. The ruling Bal Mahaddalkar group, led by Savant, is set to contest for all the posts. The Dilip Vengsarkar panel, that has the second largest representation in the managing committee, is set to pitch the former India captain for the president’s post for the second time in succession. The Vijay Patil faction, led by the incumbent vice-president, is also likely to contest for all the posts.There is a possibility of a fourth group emerging in case Prof Ratnakar Shetty’s suspension is stayed by the civil court. The former vice-president, who had lost to Savant in the race for interim president, has challenged his expulsion for five years in the court and the matter is sub-judice.* – 1000 GMT, August 14, 2013 – Story updated to reflect that Sharad Pawar can indeed attend the AGM

Ricky Ponting sees potential in the current Australia team, despite their disappointing Ashes against England

Renaldo Matadeen17-Aug-2013Ricky Ponting sees potential in the current Australia team, despite their disappointing Ashes against England. Ponting believes that there have been spots of brightness from time to time, but admitted that England were the dominant side.”I have kept in touch with it [the Ashes] and putting my biased goggles on for a minute, I think the boys have probably played a little bit better than the scoreline suggests as they have been in with a chance of winning three Tests,” Ponting, who is on duty with the Antigua Hawksbills in the Caribbean Premier League, said. “But the scoreline reads 3-0 and that is the difference sometimes between the really good and experienced teams, and the ones on their way up… the know-how to actually get across the line and to win games.”England have got a really good team, an experienced team and their bowling group has been together for pretty much the last six or seven years now.”Australia have much to learn still, but they are headed in the right direction, he said. “There are some challenges there for Australia cricket but with Darren Lehmann’s appointment as coach and some of the younger guys they have got around there I think there is enough talent but they are just going to have to learn and at the moment they are learning the hard way.”Ponting will be in the commentary box this Australian summer, covering the Big Bash League, but he also sees himself staying within the game in a more hands-on approach. “There is no doubt I will stay in the game somewhere. There will be some coaching offers that will come my way and I am really interested in coaching. I’m really interested in helping out younger players,” he said. He was confident that he had a lot left to offer the breeding grounds of Australian cricket.”The state Australian cricket is at, at the moment, my services could be used in some way. We will just wait and see, but the one thing I do not want to do is to travel around the world for six or eight months a year.”

A strong all-round performance by the Bangladesh Under-19s helped them win the second ODI against West Indies Under-19s in Georgetown and square the seven-match series 1-1

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Oct-2013
ScorecardMosaddek Hossain top-scored for Bangladesh with 70•WICB Media

Nicolas Pooran joins squad

West Indies added the 17-year-old Pooran to their squad for the series. Pooran was recently part of the Trinidad & Tobago squad that feature in the Champions League T20 in India

A strong all-round performance by the Bangladesh Under-19s helped them win the second ODI against West Indies Under-19s in Georgetown and square the seven-match series 1-1.Bangladesh turned up a much better batting performance compared to the first ODI in which they were bowled out for 135. The resurgence was led by their wicketkeeper batsman, Jashimuddin, who scored 63 off 81 deliveries, and Mosaddek Hossain, who scored 70. The two added 92 runs for the third wicket and laid a solid platform. Nazmul Hossain Shanto then added some quick runs towards the end of the innings to take Bangladesh beyond 250. They were generously helped by the West Indies bowlers, who gave away 41 runs in extras.West Indies suffered an early blow when last match’s half-centurion Leroy Lugg was dismissed for 1, but they were revived by a 70-run stand between Tagenarine Chanderpaul and Jeremy Solozano. Once Bangladesh broke the partnership, though, regular wickets kept on falling. Left-arm spinner Rahatul Ferdous was the most successful bowler as he picked up five wickets.The teams are scheduled to play the third ODI in Providence on Friday, October 11.

AB de Villiers, slinking menacingly around a flat Wankhede pitch, set about the most vicious sustained attack of this IPL, reaping 133 runs at a strike rate of 225.42 to effectively bat Mumbai Indians out of the match

The Report by Andrew Fidel Fernando10-May-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details5:11

O’Brien: AB de Villiers just doesn’t miss

AB de Villiers, slinking menacingly around a flat Wankhede pitch, set about the most vicious sustained attack of this IPL, reaping 133 runs at a strike rate of 225.42 to effectively bat Mumbai Indians out of the match.Virat Kohli was in sublime form himself, but his 82 from 50 balls from the other end was little more than a sidelight, as a rapturous Mumbai crowd suspended regional loyalty to chant de Villiers’ name. The pair remained unbeaten at the close of the innings, having hit a T20-record 215 in each others’ company. Royal Challengers’ 235 for 1 was also the highest score of the season, beating their own previous record, while de Villiers’ was the highest individual score of the season. The visitors’ score would be 39 too many for Mumbai Indians.De Villiers barely mishit a ball throughout his stay, but Mumbai will rue their own shambolic fielding in the third over of the innings, when a straightforward chance off Kohli was spilled off Mitchell McClenaghan at slip. Kohli would hit 76 more runs from his own blade, but it was the support he provided to de Villiers that made this spill truly costly.Mumbai delivered too many knee-high full tosses and overpitched deliveries to such high-quality batsmen, but when de Villiers began to flit around the crease to launch the ball to almost any region of his choosing, the hosts were understandably battered to breaking point. Lasith Malinga, for example, had figures of 1 for 13 from his first three overs. He came back when de Villiers was in full flow and had a near-yorker scooped over fine leg for four, then was cracked almost casually over cover for four soon after. His final over cost 14.De Villiers began with five dot balls to Malinga, to complete a wicket-maiden, before his expansive game clicked into place with successive square fours – one either side of the pitch – off J Suchith’s left-arm spin in the sixth over. When Mumbai’s spinners failed to generate significant turn from the surface, de Villiers began to hot out with more intent. In Harbhajan Singh’s first over, de Villiers creamed him through the covers, then came down the pitch to clobber him over the long on fence. Suchith came in for more punishment, conceding three more fours – de Villiers once pretending to move toward the off side, only to return to his original position to sweep the confused to the square leg fence – but soon even the quicks were being mauled. De Villiers ran at McClenaghan to drill him to the straight fence, reaching 50 from 29 deliveries, then dropped deep into his crease to crack him past point next ball.Kohli spent much of the early and mid-innings turning strike over to de Villiers, scoring smartly enough himself, but rarely hitting out against balls that did not deserve punishment. De Villiers, meanwhile, made very good deliveries seem woeful. He made room to drive Hardik Pandya for three consecutive fours in the 15th over, then when McClenaghan sent a ball at his chest, hit it behind square leg for four. It was only after Kohli reached his own fifty, off 39 balls, that he moved to match de Villiers’ aggression. Royal Challengers were 160 for 1 after 15 overs. The pair plundered Jasprit Bumrah’s 17th for 25. The second of de Villiers’ sixes in that over took him into triple figures, off 47 balls, before Kohli sent the last ball of the over beyond long on to collect a six for himself.That over was the most expensive in the innings, but there was plenty of mayhem to follow. Pandya’s next two overs were carted for 19 and 17. That he was even given the final over of the innings reflects the chaos that the pair had unleashed on Mumbai’s strategy. When the hosts’ torment finally came to an end at the innings break, Kohli and de Villiers had hit 25 fours and eight sixes between them.Kieron Pollard and Llendl Simmons clobbered 70 runs in 37 balls for the third wicket, to restore a little hope for Mumbai Indians, but even their most productive overs were barely staying in touch with the required run rate. When Pollard holed out on 49 to leave the hosts needing 103 from 40 balls, the match was effectively secure for Royal Challengers. Simmons remained unbeaten on 68 from 58 balls when the innings fizzled out at 196 for 7 from 20 overs.

MS Dhoni, the Chennai Super Kings captain, has been fined 10% of his match fee for making an inappropriate public comment with respect to an umpire’s decision

ESPNcricinfo staff20-May-2015MS Dhoni, the Chennai Super Kings captain, has been fined 10% of his match fee for making an inappropriate public comment with respect to an umpire’s decision.Dhoni had called umpire Richard Illingworth’s decision to give Dwayne Smith lbw “horrible” during the post-match presentation, after Chennai Super Kings lost the Qualifier to Mumbai Indians by 25 runs at Wankhede Stadium.”I felt we lost too many in the middle,” Dhoni had said when asked about Super Kings’ performance. “Not to forget Dwayne Smith got a horrible decision by any standards, but overall I think we need to blame ourselves, we were not up to the mark.”Smith was adjudged lbw to a full toss from Lasith Malinga in the first over of the Super Kings chase, but replays indicated the ball was missing leg stump by a substantial margin. Dhoni admitted the level 1 offence and accepted the sanction, the IPL said in a release.Super Kings will travel to Ranchi to play the second Qualifier on Friday. They will play the winner of the Eliminator between Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Bangalore for a berth in the IPL 2015 final, against Mumbai.

A pitch almost as green as the outfield made Kent captain Sam Northeast’s decision to bowl first a simple one, and he would have been satisfied after his side bowled Leicestershire out for just 159

ECB/PA05-Jul-2015
ScorecardMatt Coles picked up a six-wicket haul as Leicestershire crumbled for 159•Getty Images

A pitch almost as green as the outfield made Kent captain Sam Northeast’s decision to bowl first a simple one, and he would have been satisfied after his side bowled Leicestershire out for just 159 on day one of their Championship Division Two encounter at Grace Road.Leicestershire’s total could have been even fewer had the visitors held all their chances, particularly during a morning session throughout which the ball seamed and swung, but which ended with the home side on 109 for 4.Ned Eckersley was the only Leicestershire batsman to offer any defiance as he made 41 from 52 balls and, after the rest were skittled inside 52 overs thanks largely to Matt Coles’ six-wicket haul, Kent reached 44 for 2 in reply by the close.Three of the morning-session wickets fell to Coles, and first to be dismissed was Matt Boyce, who pushed hard at a rising delivery and was well held by Adam Ball at second slip, the ball flying quickly and at chest-height.However Angus Robson and Eckersley then added 58 for the second wicket, taking advantage of a series of wide or over-pitched deliveries, before Robson drove loosely at Coles and thin-edged a catch to wicketkeeper Sam Billings. Only one more run had been added when Greg Smith, returning to his former county on a month’s loan from Nottinghamshire, pushed forward at his first delivery and edged a comfortable catch off Calum Haggett to Coles at second slip.Darren Stevens dropped Eckersley off Haggett but Coles, having switched ends, bowled Eckersley with a pitched-up delivery as Leicestershire lost three wickets for just seven runs.They were seen through to lunch by Andrea Agathangelou and Aadil Ali, the latter a 20-year-old academy graduate making his first-class debut for the county. But Kent bowled with a lot more accuracy after the break, and picked up the last six wickets for 65 runs. Coles took three of them, ending with figures of 6 for 55 to take his season tally to 48.Agathangelou led the procession, edging an attempted cut at Stevens to Ball at first slip. Ali had applied himself with determination, going to 13 before edging a Stevens outswinger to Coles at second slip.Lewis Hill and Clint McKay miscued attacking shots off Coles’ bowling, which resulted in their giving off-side catches to Sam Northeast and Joe Denly respectively. Ben Raine was bowled by Coles and Ollie Freckingham top-edged an attempted hook off Haggett to leave Leicestershire all out for 159.To add to their woes, a heavy shower forced the umpires to call an early tea before their bowlers could look to put the Kent batsmen under immediate pressure in reply.When play did restart, only 14 overs were possible before the rain returned to end play. Kent lost the wickets of Denly, caught at bat and pad off Raine, and Daniel Bell-Drummond, leg-before on the back foot to a delivery from McKay that kept low.

Sohag Gazi has made a return to the Bangladesh international side after he was picked in the Twenty20 side for the two-match series against South Africa which begins on July 5

Mohammad Isam01-Jul-20151:42

Isam: Bangladesh squad still has unanswered questions

Bangladesh have recalled offspinner Sohag Gazi for the two-match Twenty20 series against South Africa, which starts on July 5. This is his first call-up since his bowling action was cleared by the ICC in February this year.Rubel Hossain and Jubair Hossain have also been included for the two matches. Gazi, Jubair and Rubel replaced Mahmudullah, Taskin Ahmed and Abul Hasan who were part of Bangladesh’s last T20 squad, against Pakistan in April this year. Rubel and Jubair were also a part of the ODI squad for the series against India last month.Gazi’s last international match was in August last year, before he was suspended for an illegal action in October. He played most of the 2014-15 domestic season, taking 37 wickets at an average of 37.94 in nine first-class matches, and 17 List A wickets. He also scored two centuries and two fifties.Faruque Ahmed, Bangladesh’s chief selector, said Gazi was picked to fill the role of a specialist offspinner in the side.”We wanted a specialist offspinner so we picked Sohag Gazi. He has been out for a while now, but now he is back with a new action,” Faruque told ESPNcricinfo.Jubair earned his first call-up in Bangladesh’s T20 side, although he hasn’t played any recognised T20 matches in his short domestic career.Mahmudullah is still recovering from a finger injury that ruled him out of the Test and ODIs against India last month, while Taskin is out with a left side tear. Faruque said that Mahmudullah had not “sufficiently recovered” from the injury. Abul Hasan only played the first ODI against Pakistan, going wicketless, and hasn’t played for Bangladesh since.Bangladesh T20 squad: Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), Tamim Iqbal, Litton Das, Rony Talukdar, Soumya Sarkar, Shakib Al Hasan (vice-capt), Mushfiqur Rahim, Sabbir Rahman, Nasir Hossain, Arafat Sunny, Jubair Hossain, Sohag Gazi, Rubel Hossain, Mustafizur RahmanBCB XI squad for practice match: Imrul Kayes (capt), Anamul Haque (wk), Rony Talukdar, Mosaddek Hossain, Mahmudul Hasan, Saikat Ali, Shuvagata Hom, Abdur Razzak, Sohag Gazi, Al-Amin Hossain, Abul Hasan, Kamrul Islam Rabbi

Hong Kong legspinner Nizakat Khan has been suspended from bowling in international cricket after an ICC panel found his action to be illegal

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jul-2015Hong Kong legspinner Nizakat Khan has been suspended from bowling in international cricket after his action was found to be illegal by an ICC panel at the World T20 Qualifier.Umpires reported his action after Hong Kong’s match against Nepal on July 15. An event bowling action review panel analysis found his elbow to flex beyond the permitted 15 degrees.Nizakat bowled three overs in a five-wicket victory for his side in Stormont. He will now have to undergo an independent assessment at an ICC accredited testing facility and cannot bowl until he is cleared by the ICC.Nizakat, 23, made his Hong Kong debut in 2014 against Nepal. He has picked up four wickets from five T20Is at an average of 17.25 and an economy of 5.30.

Derbyshire’s bowlers made sure there was not too heavy a price to pay for their post-tea collapse on day one by bowling Kent out for 159

ECB/PA22-Aug-2015
ScorecardMark Footitt led the Derbyshire attack once again•Getty Images

Derbyshire’s bowlers made sure there was not too heavy a price to pay for their post-tea collapse on day one by bowling Kent out for 159 on the second day of their Championship match in Derby. Four wickets for Mark Footitt, taking him to 60 for the season, and two each for Tony Palladino and Ben Cotton earned Derbyshire a first-innings lead of 94, which they had extended to 167 at the close.Unable to find the breakthrough in 11 overs the previous evening, Derbyshire were kept waiting five more in the morning before Rob Key was lbw to Footitt for 29 at 50 for 1 and the sides then settled in for a period of attrition which saw only 13 runs added in 12 overs.The arm-wrestle was won by the bowling side, with Daniel Bell-Drummond lbw to Cotton for 19 and Sam Northeast pushing at a Palladino ball to be caught behind for one in the next over.Footitt returned to the attack to have an instant impact, as his second ball was played on to the stumps by Joe Denly and the fifth flattened the off stump of Ben Harmison, who did not offer a shot. Calum Haggett edged Palladino and was caught at third slip by Godleman after the ball was pushed into the air by Chesney Hughes at second, then Sean Dickson was lbw to Cotton to make it 119 for 7.James Tredwell held out for 20 before Footitt bowled him and though Matt Hunn gave the Kent innings a late flurry for 23 not out the innings ended when Ivan Thomas was run out coming back for a third run only to be beaten by the throw by Scott Elstone at deep cover.With Sam Billings absent because of the dislocated finger he suffered keeping wicket on day one, that was it for Kent. Footitt finished with 4 for 61 and Cotton 2 for 45, with Palladino’s unerring 16 overs bringing him 2 for 21. Shiv Thakor played no part for Derbyshire after suffering concussion from a blow to the head while batting, which made their bowling performance even more impressive.Kent hopes that they could find similar success quickly faded as Derbyshire openers Billy Godleman and Ben Slater extended the lead before Slater chopped a Thomas ball on to his stumps to make it 43 for 1. But Godleman, scorer of a century in his last two Championship innings, was immovable and was 42 not out when bad light and rain brought an early end to the day.