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Moises Henriques and Ollie Davies hit half-centuries in tricky batting conditions

AAP and ESPNcricinfo staff28-Nov-2023Some middle-order resistance helped New South Wales fight back on a rain-interrupted opening day of their Sheffield Shield clash with ladder-leaders Tasmania.Ollie Davies’ unbeaten 58 pushed the Blues to 178 for 7 at stumps at the SCG on Tuesday. While nowhere near a defendable total, NSW will be happy with the response after they were left reeling at 26 for 3 in tricky batting conditions under grey skies.Tasmania quick Lawrence Neil-Smith snared his second first-class five-wicket haul, vindicating the decision to bowl first after winning the toss.Following an innings loss to Tasmania in the last round, NSW decided to blood teenage talent Sam Konstas for his first-class debut.The 18-year-old was presented with his NSW cap by former Australia allrounder Shane Watson before coming in to bat at No. 3. Konstas made 10 in tough conditions before falling to Tasmanian allrounder Beau Webster.NSW captain Moises Henriques helped steer the Blues out of trouble, combining with Davies for a vital 81-run stand for the fifth wicket.Neil-Smith returned to break the stand when Henriques was caught behind and two balls later had Matthew Gilkes caught in the slips.Test spinner Nathan Lyon was back in the NSW team after being rested for the Blues’ thumping defeat in Hobart last week. Lyon is working his way back to full fitness after tearing his calf during the Ashes.NSW will be determined to put on a stack of runs when play resumes on Wednesday morning, with Tasmania’s batting line-up having been in scintillating touch to start the season.

Visitors mirror Perth win in Canberra to go 2-0 up in three-match series

Tristan Lavalette12-Oct-2022Dawid Malan showcased his liking for Australian conditions with a blistering 82 then Sam Curran again held his nerve with the ball, as England wrapped up the T20I series with an eight-run victory in Canberra.After winning by the same margin in the series opener in Perth, England overcame a full-strength Australia to build momentum ahead of the looming T20 World Cup.Malan’s blistering 49-ball knock dug England out of an early hole after the visitors were sent in to bat on a seaming pitch in chilly conditions.Chasing 179 to keep the series alive, Australia threatened but were thwarted by a calm Curran with the defending T20 World Cup champions facing continual questions over a misfiring batting order.The series finale will be played on Friday at the same venue.Malan fires in his return to No.3After Jos Buttler and Alex Hales’ record century opening stand in Perth, Malan was the casualty as England sought flexibility and promoted a slew of big hitters up the order.It meant the elegant left-handed batter shifted down to No. 7 and faced just two deliveries at the death. But on a seaming Manuka Oval pitch under lights, against a full-strength Australia attack, Malan returned to his customary No. 3 slot and rescued England from a wobbly 54 for 4.Malan mixed trademark gorgeous cover drives with more belligerent strokes in a further indication that he’s well suited to the quicker Australian conditions. He received strong support from Moeen Ali, who received a life early after a rare drop from Glenn Maxwell at backward point. He made Australia pay with 44 off 27 balls to combine with Malan in a rapid 92-run partnership.After Moeen departed in the 17th over, Malan put the foot down to power England to a competitive total and provide a glimpse of what may lay ahead for the 35-year-old at the T20 World Cup.Starc held back, Stoinis steals the showTheir star bowlers returned after skipping the long journey to Perth, but Australia tinkered with spearhead Mitchell Starc not opening the bowling for just the third time in his T20I career and first since 2014.It seemed to pay dividends with Pat Cummins picking up the big wicket of Buttler in the fourth over before allrounder Marcus Stoinis continued his solid start to the series by removing Hales shortly after.Starc finally came into the attack in the sixth over and was promptly counterattacked by a free-wheeling Malan. The left-armer along with his fellow star quicks leaked runs, but Australia enjoyed a strong contribution from Stoinis, who claimed a three-wicket haul for the first time in his T20I career, while reliable leg-spinner Adam Zampa slowed England in the middle overs.However, they were left to rue several dropped catches in a sloppy fielding display.Australia has unresolved batting issuesAfter recently shifting away from his usual opening role, Aaron Finch returned to the top but it failed to do the trick with the skipper holing out to mid-off for 13.Maxwell, who returned after being rested for game one, had a golden opportunity to get out of a prolonged rut when he entered at 22 for 2 after the wicket of in-form David Warner.But Maxwell once again failed to get going and was caught for just eight meaning he has made only 16 runs in his last six T20I innings. With Steve Smith in the wings, having been unable to crack into the line-up this series, the pressure for spots is fierce.Big-hitters Mitchell Marsh and Tim David looked in powerful form but couldn’t stay at the crease long enough to get Australia over the line.Curran does it againWithout speedster Mark Wood, who ignited game one with rapid bowling in a three-wicket haul, England’s attack appeared susceptible, exacerbated by Chris Jordan struggling in his return from injury.The pressure was on Curran, who delivered in spades with the wickets of Maxwell and Stoinis mid-innings. Much like his clutch death bowling in Perth, Curran held his nerve when he returned in the 18th over to snare the key wicket of David, who was on the cusp of turning the match on its head.It capped another strong performance from the 24-year-old who is primed for a big T20 World Cup.

He will join former team-mates Dilshan and Tharanga at the Eastern Cricket Association competition

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Jun-2021A Melbourne club team will have the services of former Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya as coach next season after he signed a one-year deal with Mulgrave in the city’s east. That will mark Jayasuriya’s return to the game after a two-year ban for breaching the ICC anti-corruption code, announced in February 2019.Jayasuriya, who played 110 Tests and 445 ODIs in his 22-year-long career at the highest level, will join former team-mates Tillakaratne Dilshan and Upul Tharanga, who are part of the Eastern Cricket Association competition. The reported that it was Dilshan who encouraged Jayasuriya to make the move.”Dilshan opened the door for us there, and it was a fantastic opportunity that was presented to us,” Mulgrave president Malin Pullenayegam said. “We just had to work on it and come to an agreement, and we have.”I think it’s a great opportunity for our young guys to know what international cricket standards are. That kind of exposure from a young age just elevates the standard of cricket they’ll be playing.”Pullenayegam added that the deal only included a coaching role, but if Jayasuriya felt like strapping on the pads, he would be welcome.Jayasuriya’s ban took effect from October 15, 2018, after he was charged with refusal to co-operate with investigators concerning corruption in Sri Lanka. The charges also included obstructing or delaying the investigation, including concealing, tampering with or destroying any documentation or other information which may have been relevant. The investigation was related to Zimbabwe’s ODI series win in Sri Lanka in 2017, specifically the fourth match in Hambantota, which took place when Jayasuriya was serving as Sri Lanka’s chairman of selectors.

The divide is set to come out in open at the March round of ICC meetings in Dubai

Nagraj Gollapudi18-Feb-2020The BCCI has reacted angrily to the ICC for bypassing the strong objections raised by the Indian board along with the ECB over the future set of events in the 2023-31 rights cycle. The divide is set to come out in open at the March ICC meetings, scheduled in Dubai, which is likely to be attended by the top brass of the BCCI.Last week, the ICC had sent out an email asking all members, including Associates, to tender their expressions of interest for hosting any of the 20 global events in men’s and women’s cricket which form part of the 2023-31 cycle. That email came on the heels of ICC chief executive officer Manu Sawhney visiting several countries – both Full Members and Associates – to explain the details of the process model and the bidding process which would determine the hosts for the events. Although Sawhney visited all the major cricketing countries including England, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, and Zimbabwe, missing from that list was India.On its part, the BCCI is annoyed that the ICC opted to overlook the strong reservations the Indian board had expressed last October. Back then, the BCCI’s chief executive officer Rahul Johri had written to Sawhney, saying there would be “wide ranging repercussions on bilateral cricket” in case the ICC went ahead with its decision.ALSO READ: T20 ‘Champions Cup’ part of ICC events for 2023-2031Johri had also pointed out that it would be prudent to wait for an elected BCCI administration to take the final call on the matter.For its part, the ICC has stressed that the proposed set of events had been given the go-ahead from the ICC board in the October meetings. Incidentally, the BCCI representative at that ICC board meeting was Amitabh Choudhury, the acting secretary at the time, who attended the meeting without the approval of the Committee of Administrators, the Indian board’s supervisory authority at the time. The ICC allowed Choudhury to sit at the meeting even though he did not give consent or object to any of the resolutions, saying the appropriate authority would be the elected BCCI administration.The BCCI remains adamant that bilateral series need to be worked out before the ICC events are finalised. “We are very clear on that,” a senior voice in the BCCI said. “Suppose if the important boards don’t file any expression of interest, then… will ICC plan events on its own? By planning ICC event every year, it doesn’t work for world cricket actually. The ICC needs to understand this. Bilaterals are more important. It will affect IPL, Big Bash, bilaterals – there will be no window. And how much can the players play?”Holding a global event every year, this official said, would also potentially reduce the “value” and prestige attached to winning a World Cup.”You lose the charm of winning the World Cup if you are planning to host it every year. Too much of something is not good. When you win a World Cup you look to the next one four years later, but if you host a world event every year then you could lose value of that tournament.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

As for the argument that smaller boards, which don’t have the luxury of a fat broadcasting revenue that the BCCI enjoys, can benefit from the extra revenues ICC can accrue by hosting eight global events in the next cycle, the BCCI official disagreed. “Look, have these smaller countries got better from the existing ICC revenue model? They are suffering.”This official said that for the BCCI, the majority of its revenues come from bilateral cricket. If that is affected, then it will suffer. “After all, how many broadcasters do you have? How much money can they put into all cricket?”Another senior BCCI official argued that if the ICC does go ahead with the eight events, the World Test Championship would be affected too. “The World Test Championship will become a huge challenge. There will be no time for it.”Nonetheless, the ICC is likely to find support from member boards like Pakistan Cricket Board, Cricket West Indies, Sri Lanka Cricket and Zimbabwe Cricket along with the boards from Ireland and Afghanistan. All these countries have been struggling with their finances in the absence of lucrative broadcast deals. As a chief executive at one of the Full Member boards explained, their challenge has been that while the “costs of the cricket have been going up, the value of bilateral cricket has been going down”. He concurs with the view that smaller boards are struggling to find buyers for their cricket rights.Consequently, a majority of these smaller boards rely on the ICC money that is split from the broadcasting pot. “The ICC have hosted an event year historically with the exception of 2018 when there was no global event,” a senior official from one of the Full Member countries said. “In order for the ICC to give consistent cash flows to the members they need an event every year.”However, not everyone agrees with the ICC locking horns with the BCCI. One of the officials, who sits on the ICC working group on the future events, said the ICC’s hostile approach towards the BCCI was “unnecessary”. “I don’t understand why they seem to be going against the BCCI and also the ECB. The ICC’s whole approach has been unnecessary. I question that approach. The working group was still running through various options when the ICC went immediately to the board of directors with the proposal.”According to this official, no authorised person from the BCCI or Colin Graves, the ECB chairman, were present at the October ICC board meetings. He felt a better approach would have been to have further deliberations, which could have been tabled at the March meetings, before arriving at the final call.The working group member said a full calendar should be agreed on by all parties. “Whether you are playing bilateral or ICC cricket first that doesn’t really matter because until you have looked at the entire calendar. Then you juggle around events and remain flexible to strike the right balance. So to ink in the ICC events without even discussing or considering bilateral cricket is not appropriate.”Despite the BCCI and the ICC not seeing eye-to-eye at the moment, a key person who sits on the ICC board said the two bodies can work out their differences amicably during the March round of meetings in Dubai.This person said that the BCCI has not backed the ICC plan only because it is comfortable with the set of events in the current cycle. He said the same applies to some of other bigger boards like the ECB and CA. “BCCI and few other boards want to stick to six events in an eight-year cycle as was the case in the 2015-23. If the BCCI wants to bring in a resolution to object then they should be able to do that within the framework of the rules at the ICC board meeting.”

South Africa’s little-known IPL pick has built a big reputation with his exploits in the Mzansi League

Liam Brickhill21-Dec-2018There were a couple of familiar names in the South African contingent of the IPL auction in December: Colin Ingram is an increasingly sought-after T20 freelancer, while Heinrich Klaasen is also no stranger to the IPL, and Hardus Viljoen is a County regular. But not as many will have heard of the fourth South African picked up by Kolkata Knight Riders earlier this week.Anrich Nortje, a 25-year-old fast bowler from Uitenhage in the Eastern Cape, turned enough heads in three Mzansi Super League games to pop up on the IPL radar. Playing for the Cape Town Blitz, Nortje caught the attention of KKR coach Jacques Kallis, himself a Cape Town local, scoring a INR 20 lakh (R400,000) contract, despite currently being sidelined by minor surgery on his ankle.”I didn’t really expect to get picked up, but I thought, well, definitely give it a shot. When I get on the shortlist I was quite happy. I was in Struisbaai, [a picturesque coastal town of a few thousand people] in the Western Cape, just in a shopping centre when someone phoned me and I heard,” Nortje explained. “I was busy getting meat for a braai that night.”While he has been a cricketer – and bowled fast – since childhood, Nortje’s recent rise has been rapid. Having made his first class debut in 2013, and his franchise debut in 2016, in the 2017-18 season he averaged a modest 35 with the ball in the four-day domestic competition for Warriors but, he says, he “changed one or two things during the winter, and just sort of clicked”.Nortje was selected for South Africa A’s tour of India in August, playing in two matches and dismissing Prithvi Shaw and Hanuma Vihari – for 148 – in the second unofficial Test against India A. The tour meant Nortje went into the 2018-19 domestic season match-fit and bowling with rhythm, and in five first class games for Warriors he picked up 24 wickets at 21.04, including figures of 5 for 51 and 6 for 66 in back-to-back games against Knights.”It started with getting selected for SA A, and then just bowling straight through the winter. I had a lot of cricket, a lot of prep, a lot of bowling. It’s been very busy and very exciting. Getting selected for the MSL was also a great thing. It got people looking my way a little bit. It would have been nice to play a little more, but it was still a great opportunity.”Even before the Mzansi Super League kicked off, word of Nortje’s pace started to get around. “Just watching Nortje bowling, he bowled at the speed of lightning, that was pretty scary,” said Dawid Malan after one of the warm-ups. While those games obviously weren’t televised, it was reported that Nortje touched 150km/h. “He’s got raw pace,” his team-mate Dale Steyn summed it up, simply. Blitz coach Ashwell Prince went as far as saying: “I have no doubt he will go on to play successfully at Test match level.””I was also a little bit surprised to see the speeds,” admitted Nortje. “I did change one or two things and I could feel it’s a little bit quicker, and there’s a little bit more power at the crease. But to see the pace was nice.””I definitely think there was one four-day game at Centurion, that I could definitely feel it was quicker. Quicker than what I bowled at MSL. But that was just one spell that I bowled. This season, compared to previous seasons, has definitely been the quickest.”In that Centurion game, Nortje collected the wickets of Aiden Markram and Farhaan Behardien on his way to 4 for 67. He knocked over big names in the MSL as well, dismissing Hashim Amla and Temba Bavuma (first ball) on his way to 4 for 32 against Durban Heat, and then cut through Jozi Stars with 3 for 30. While he was just doing what he had been doing domestically all season, this was televised. The exposure clearly helped.”Without that [Mzansi], I wouldn’t have been picked up. It was my first big T20 tournament, I’d like to get more exposure from here on, and IPL would definitely help that.”Nortje credited the various coaches and trainers who have helped to shape his career thus far, including age-group coach Andre du Plessis, provincial coach Piet Botha, his Warriors fitness trainer and Warriors coach Rivash Gobind, who “sort of just freed us up, the whole team. Those guys really had an influence on me getting to where I am at this stage”.While Nortje’s MSL adventure was cut short by bone fragments in his left ankle that required surgery and put him out of cricket until the new year, with an IPL contract and plenty of buzz around him, he’s actually in a pretty good place right now.”I’m just excited to be playing [in the IPL]. If I can get a game, that would probably be the most exciting thing for me. It doesn’t really bother me who I’m bowling to or whatever. I just want to play and just do my thing.”Playing for the Proteas is an obvious goal for Nortje, but even before that he will have a chance to bowl at some of the best players in the world at the IPL. Including, perhaps, the greatest of them all.”Bowling to Virat? Wow, I don’t know,” he laughs. “He’s an unbelievable player. I’ll have to assess it on the day, assess the wicket, and just go according to the plan of what the coach and the team wants.””I’d definitely like to play for the Proteas. I’d play any time, any format, it doesn’t matter what it is. I just want to get into the green and gold and play for South Africa.”

Selectors take call in consultation with team management to manage allrounder’s workload and lessen his chances of injury

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Nov-20170:54

Chopra: Resting Pandya makes sense

India allrounder
Hardik Pandya has been pulled out of the squad for the first two Tests against Sri Lanka, beginning on November 16.The BCCI said the selection committee had taken the decision in consultation with the team management to reduce the risk of injury to Pandya. “Considering Mr Pandya’s heavy recent workload, the decision was made to negate any possibility of a major injury concern. Mr Pandya will undergo a period of strength at conditioning at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru.”

India squad for the first two Tests

Virat Kohli (capt), KL Rahul, M Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma.

Pandya, 24, played 30 out of 33 matches for India, across formats, since the start of the Champions Trophy. In fact, since June, no one has bowled more overs in ODI cricket than his 147.2 overs. Pandya struck a fifty on Test debut against Sri Lanka in July and followed up with a boundary-laden century in Pallekele.His contributions in limited-overs cricket, however, were arguably greater: he helped India dominate Australia over five ODIs and was the Player of the Series.While Pandya being rested may reduce India’s firepower, the decision was in line with the rotation policy that has been followed in recent times. The selectors have kept R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, India’s frontline Test spinners, on the sidelines in ODIs and T20Is, while fast bowlers Mohammed Shami and Umesh Yadav have been treated in much the same way.Of these bowlers, only Jadeja is playing the fifth round of the Ranji Trophy, which began on Thursday, a week ahead of the first Test against Sri Lanka at Eden Gardens. However, several of India’s first-choice batsmen – Cheteshwar Pujara, M Vijay, Ajinkya Rahane and KL Rahul – and wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha turned out for their state teams.Virat Kohli might also be rested for the third Test against Sri Lanka, and perhaps the limited-overs matches that follow, in order to keep the India captain fit and refreshed for the tour of South Africa in January 2018.”Virat has played the maximum cricket in the world in the last one year. So he needs some rest at some point,” a BCCI official told ESPNcricinfo last month. “They [team management] firmly believe they will win [the] South Africa series and they want to be fully prepared. The BCCI will support and whatever they ask we will help out.”

Ben Stokes believes Marlon Samuels ‘lacks respect’ following the pair’s various confrontations over the years

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Sep-2016Ben Stokes believes Marlon Samuels “lacks respect” following the pair’s various confrontations over the years.A feisty, often angry, rivalry which began with Samuels’ saluting Stokes after a dismissal in the Grenada Test in early 2015 further escalated during the World T20 final in Kolkata earlier this year went the pair went face-to-face in the middle.Samuels would end up finishing unbeaten on 85, and earn the Man-of-the Match-award, while Carlos Braithwaite clubbed Stokes for four consecutive sixes to seal the trophy.Samuels, who was later fined 30% of his match fee for abusive language, further raised the tension in the post-match press conference by saying: “Stokes is a nervous laddie…he doesn’t learn.”In his autobiography, , which is being serialised in the , Stokes makes clear that resentment remains strong.”Marlon Samuels lacks respect. You get that if you have spent any time with him on a cricket field. Marlon’s conduct after West Indies’ victory over us in this year’s World Twenty20 final showed a total disrespect for the game.”Without removing his batting pads, Marlon walked into a press conference, sat down and placed his feet on the desk. Totally lacking manners.”It didn’t require him to give me a character assassination — bizarrely claiming I am some sort of ‘nervous laddie’ — to help me form the opinion that I do not like him one bit. I believe in the saying ‘respect the game’. I don’t think he respects the game.”Yes, he played an unbelievable innings but, because of our personal history, it stops me short of saying he’s a good player. Team players are the good players in my eyes.”Recalling how the tensions rose early in West Indies’ run chase, after they had been reduced to 14 for 3, Stokes writes:”His mannerisms got me involved with Marlon. I was at mid-off and, in my enthusiasm, found myself creeping in from my position and I noticed that Samuels, at the non-striker’s end, was walking around like the big easy. I couldn’t resist. ‘You’ve got a bit of a swagger on here, Marlon, considering you’re 14 for three,’ I said. ‘Shut the f*** up, you little bitch,’ came the reply.”It appeared Stokes would be able to have the final say, however, when he had 19 to defend off the final over to earn England their second World T20 title. But he began with a poor leg-side delivery to Brathwaite, which was swung over deep square leg, and three balls later it was all over, leaving Stokes distraught, on his knees, in the middle of Eden Gardens.”It was a numb feeling. I felt hollow,” he writes. “My England team-mates were the ones I had affected most with those four deliveries. We had gone all the way to the tournament’s final over. But in a flash, all that hard graft had come to nothing.”I knew the cameras would be all over me to see how I was holding up. I may have looked OK. That was an act. I was gutted. Do not show it, keep your head up — Joe Root had said exactly that to me more than once as I crouched motionless on the square.”In the aftermath, it was natural to question my methods. I wondered whether things might have been different had I plumped for four slower balls. The answer was no. My regret was execution, not selection.”

USA wicketkeeper Akeem Dodson has delivered a stinging critique of head coach Nasir “Charlie” Javed, blaming the leadership group led by him for the team’s failure to qualify for next year’s ICC World T20

Peter Della Penna28-Aug-2015USA wicketkeeper Akeem Dodson has delivered a stinging critique of head coach Nasir ‘Charlie’ Javed, blaming the leadership group led by him for the team’s failure to qualify for next year’s ICC World T20. The events at last month’s qualifying tournament in Ireland and the UK included a dramatic attempted revolt by players and staff against Javed.While a senior USACA official conceded to this writer they were aware of the incidents, Javed said the team’s inability to qualify for the World T20 was down to a lack of preparation and warm-up games. It’s not clear, though, how the crisis will be resolved, especially given Dodson’s blunt comments.”The reason why we lost and are looking back on it now, not finishing where we should have, is that we really lacked leadership and the positive kind of coach necessary for our team to succeed, especially a new team playing together for the first time without any practice,” Dodson told ESPNcricinfo following USA’s return from Ireland.”You need someone that is going to positively motivate them. Without practice games to get going, everybody was up in the air as to how to measure themselves and match up situations. What it needed was a coach and captain that is super positive and is able to give them the confidence they need.”The captain feeds off the coach and management staff and they are expected to work together. I really think that’s where we were lacking the most, the coaching. A lot of the decisions, the coach took into his own hands, especially the first three games and he shunned any outside opinions. He just wanted to do everything his own way.”Dodson also questioned Javed’s coaching credentials, saying that while he may have had an illustrious career as a legspinner for USA – tied for fourth all time in 50-over cricket with 41 wickets – he lacked any ICC coaching certifications.When contacted by ESPNcricinfo, Javed said that no member of the team confronted him during the tour regarding any issues they had with his leadership, and that his experience as a player and an apprenticeship as an assistant coach for USA under Robin Singh made him suitable for the role.”You have to read and see cricket,” Javed said. “I go to YouTube and read articles. I try to follow other people and how they execute the game. I’ve seen 700 or 800 games on TV and other places in clubs.”Having certified level one, two or three… I don’t want to criticise any players. I think they need to focus on their own games and how they performed instead of criticising the coach if he has a level one, two or three certificate or not. I’ve played enough cricket to know. I played in Australia and coached women’s cricket at Randwick Cricket Club in Sydney. I was over there and coached when I played. Geoff Lawson helped me in that time.”According to multiple sources in the squad, the tour management was especially fractious, with the staff split into different factions, and that problems had been brewing since the ICC Americas Division One tournament in May. An emergency meeting was hastily called the day after the loss to Namibia – USA’s third in a row in the World T20 Qualifier – in which all members of the squad were present except for Javed.Though Javed’s name was never mentioned, sources claim a team official spoke of “changes to management” that could be made and it was clear this meant Javed since he was the only person not present. The official claimed to have received authorization to make the change from USACA vice-president Owen Grey.Players were then asked by a show of hands to vote if they wanted Javed removed, but before anyone voted it is understood that team video analyst Sriram Somayajula intervened and advised the squad against taking drastic action in the middle of the tournament. The meeting adjourned and the following morning, members of the squad received an email from Grey indicating that no such authorization had been given to make a change and that the management staff would be in place through the end of the tour.”I started getting some text messages that there was a meeting about to take place but I really got involved after the meeting took place,” Grey told ESPNcricinfo. “I got the same feedback not only about Charlie but the entire management staff including the manager. It wasn’t just Charlie. Many players felt the entire management staff prevented them from moving forward to the World Cup.”As far as this incident, what happened is that a couple of players including the captain reached out to me at midnight saying that there was a meeting held in the assistant coach’s room about removing Charlie because the players were unhappy and they kept on going to the manager because they weren’t happy with Charlie’s leadership. This happened five hours before their next game against Jersey.”I sent an email back to the entire 15-man squad and said look, you guys focus on the game tomorrow. Stay together as a collective group. I did not authorise any meeting. Let’s move on. Whatever changes might be made will happen post-tournament, not during the tournament. Getting these messages about this meeting going on, I was caught off guard. That’s when I stepped in with the president and we addressed it. It goes right across the board, everybody had a big ego and a chip on their shoulder and they did not realize that their issues were distracting the team.”Several members of the team also stated that a players-only meeting was called in which the 15-man squad committed themselves to ignoring whatever instructions and assistance the coaching staff was providing because the advice was often conflicting due to the internal battles within the coaching staff. Dodson said it helped the team bond together and was a factor in winning their last three games.”No one was outwardly disrespectful or tried to shun Charlie but mainly the focus of most of the players was to focus on the game and block out negativity which unfortunately included the coach,” Dodson said. “When I say negativity, that’s very broad. The guys were trying to focus on their own game and play to the best of their potential with a clear mind. The way Charlie was trying to approach the game or trying to explain to us, it was very elementary, too basic.”Javed felt the team’s lack of preparation was the main cause of its failure to qualify, and said he was hamstrung by the lack of warm-up games or a preparatory camp by the USACA, since he and other members of the staff had never watched some of the new players in the squad.”Alex Amsterdam, I never seen this guy in my life, who he is or how he plays,” Javed said. “He just came [to Ireland the day before the first match] and I can’t just put him in to play. When he came at practice, he couldn’t touch the moving ball. Everybody plays on matting wicket or synthetic wicket in USA. When I reached Ireland, I don’t know Shiva [Vashishat]. I had never seen him or Amsterdam and one other guy. As a coach I knew some guys but not three or four guys. In my opinion, the selection process had hiccups. But these guys were good. I didn’t have a problem with anyone. They just needed to play [more games] together.”Regarding the team’s lack of preparation, Grey said the USACA was at fault and had let the players down but that the organisation was managing the situation with the resources they had at their disposal.”I’m very disappointed that the team did not qualify to the World Cup but I’m very proud that the team pulled together and performed extremely well in an adverse situation in the lead up to the tour. As a member of the board of directors, I feel responsible and you can hold me accountable for not giving the players the tools necessary to succeed. But I can’t do it by myself. We just didn’t have the resources. As a board, we need to come up with a plan so we can get these players and the team the resources in the future.”

A round-up of the sixth round of matches in the Quaid-e-Azam trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Feb-2013A first-innings six-wicket haul by Azam Hussain followed by an all-round team effort helped Karachi Blues demolish Islamabad by an innings and 33 runs at the Diamond Club Ground, Islamabad. Islamabad ended their league stage on 18 points and although they have qualified for the super-eight along with Karachi Blues, their final position in the table will depend on the result of other group matches.Islamabad, after being put in to bat, had collapsed to 73 for 7, but recovered to finish on 197 in their first innings. Hussain, with his left-arm spin, picked up the 11th five-wicket haul of his career. The Blues responded with 345 in their first innings, with Khurram Manzoor’ 79 being the highest score. Three other batsmen scored half-centuries in the innings to give the Blues a 148-run lead. Islamabad’s batting collapsed a second time in the match, with their innings lasting 42.2 overs, and the team failed to clear the deficit. Akbar-ur-Rehman was the most successful bowler for the Blues, picking up three wickets for 63 runs.Lahore Shalimar collected nine points for their innings win against Hyderabad at the Gaddafi Stadium and went to the top of Group II. Second-placed Rawalpindi are just three points behind with the result of their match pending. Shalimar chose to field and their bowlers justified the decision by bowling out Hyderabad in the 44th over for 103. Aizaz Cheema was the pick of the bowlers with five wickets.Shalimar’s response was led by an unbeaten century by Usman Salahuddin who helped the team take a 243-run first-innings lead. Fast bowler Rehan Riaz took five wickets in the innings. But the lead turned out to be enough for Shalimar’s bowlers as they dismissed Hyderabad for 218 in the second innings. Wahab Riaz, who had three wickets in the first innings, picked up four in the second. Hyderabad, who ended the league stage on 18 points, have also qualified for super-eight stage.Centuries from Sohaib Maqsood and Naved Yasin gave Multan three points against Sialkot at the Multan Cricket Stadium, but Multan couldn’t convert it to victory, which would have given them a Super-Eights spot. After being put in to bat, Sialkot lost wickets regularly – spinner Zulfiqar Babar took seven wickets – and no one besides Majid Jahangir, who scored a century, provided any resistance. Babar’s bowling was backed up by a commanding batting performance, led by a 150-run stand between Maqsood and Yasin. Ultimately, though, Sialkot’s No. 3 and 4 consumed time on the final day to force a draw.After bowling their opponents out for 189, Multan lost two early wickets to be reduced to 33 for 2. However, the next three batsmen in the line-up – Saeed Anwar, Maqsood and Yasin – rescued them, and Multan were strong at 289 for 4. No. 7 Maqbool Ahmed scored an unbeaten half-century to help his team cross 400. But time prevented them to get more than three points out of the game, and in the final standing, they were three points behind their opponents, at the fifth spot.Spinner Atif Maqbool and seamer Adeel Malik took nine wickets between them to help Karachi Whites cement their spot in the Super Eights, as they drew their match against Faisalabad at the Mirpur Cricket Stadium. However, they were bowled out for 207 in their second dig as medium-fast bowler Samiullah Khan took six wickets, and Faisalabad needed 357 runs to win the contest. At 213 for 6 on the final day, with Faislabad having no chances of qualifying for the next stage, both sides agreed to a draw.After choosing to field, Faisalabad were pegged back right from the outset, as the openers put on 103 runs. The Whites’ dominant innings was based on knocks of 90 and 83 from Daniyal Ahsan and Khalid Latif. The last six wickets fell for 44 runs, as seamer Asad Ali took seven wickets, to leave them three short of 300. In reply, Zeeshan Butt scored an unbeaten half-century, but didn’t find valuable support from any other batsman, and Faisalabad were bowled out for 148. Although the Whites were dismissed for 207 in their second dig, rescued by Khald Latif’s century, Faisalabad still faced a daunting task of chasing 357. Their batsmen put up a decent performance, but the match was drawn on the final day.In Lahore, Imran Farhat’s triple-century in the first innings led Lahore Ravi to three points in a drawn match against Peshawar. Farhat struck 50 fours in his knock of 308, off 429 deliveries, as Ravi declared their innings at 512 for 6 on the second day. Their spinners Adnan Rasool and Jahangir Mirza shared seven wickets between them to bowl Peshawar out for 209. However, the match was drawn when Peshawar reached 59 for 3 off 37 overs, on the final day. Peshawar finished the league stage at the bottom of the points table, and Ravi took the third spot.Choosing to field, they were dominated by Ravi from the outset as Farhat built a huge total. In reply, they were in trouble at 42 for 3, and a half-century from Naved Khan and a knock of 40 from Mohammad Rizwan took them past 200, but they couldn’t avoid the follow-on. But having secured three points, and with less time, Ravi couldn’t push for victory.Rawalpindi secured their spot behind Lahore Shalimar at the top of the points table by taking three points off their drawn contest against Bahawalpur. Umar Amin’s century, and half-centuries from Umar Amin and Hammad Azam took them to a commanding total of 404 for 7. Although Bahawalpur’s captain and opener Usman Tariq also scored a century, they fell 88 short of their opponents’ total, thereby conceding three points. Eventually, both sides agreed to draw the game.Bahawalpur finished the league stage positioned second from bottom in Group II.

Andrew Strauss has warned his England teammates they are playing for their places in the final Test of the series against Pakistan in Dubai.

George Dobell in Dubai02-Feb-2012Andrew Strauss has warned his England teammates they are playing for their places in the final Test of the series against Pakistan in Dubai.Pakistan have already taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three match series, with several England batsmen enduring miserable tours. Strauss (17), Eoin Morgan (10.25), Ian Bell (9) and Kevin Pietersen (4.25) are all averaging under 20 in the two Tests and have been largely at fault as England’s batting has struggled in three of the four innings.”You can’t keep underperforming forever,” Strauss said. “All of us have a responsibility to improve our games. I’m a strong believer that no-one is guaranteed their place in the England side. The environment only works if there is pressure on your for your place, so we all have to work very hard for the next five days.”Despite Strauss’ words, it is far from certain that England will make any changes for this game. While there is a temptation to bring in Ravi Bopara for Eoin Morgan – Bopara’s medium-pace bowling gives the Essex player an edge in that regard – the England management have invested a lot of time and faith in Morgan. The continuity of selection policy has served them well and they are loathe to drop a player they feel has the character to flourish at this level. Morgan did make a Test century against India only four Tests ago and the management signalled their liking for him by appointing him vice-captain of the T20 side. Similarly, England are not about to forget about the excellent months that Pietersen and Bell enjoyed before this tour.They are no further injury concerns in the England squad. Bell had recovered sufficiently from his stomach trouble to resume training on Thursday and nobody else in the squad has contracted the illness.Back in England, Chris Tremlett could be set for three months on the sidelines after seeing a specialist and being told he needs surgery. He tweeted: “Scans reveal a bulging disc and may require a little clean up. Hopefully back playing mid to end of April.”Strauss denied there was any tension within the England squad about players appearing in the IPL, though he did admit there was a balance to find to ensure the team enjoyed the best preparation ahead of the series against West Indies. “We’ve become very comfortable with the fact the ICC have given our players a window to play in the IPL and that window stipulates those games have to have enough time to prepare properly for our next Test series,” Strauss said. “We all know where we stand. I certainly won’t stand in the way of players who want to play. But, with my Test captain’s hat on, I want to make sure they have enough time to prepare for the West Indies Tests next summer. We’re all comfortable with that.”The series may have been decided, but England retain plenty of motivation going into this game. For a start, they are “desperate” in Andrew Strauss’ words, to avoid the humiliation of a 3-0 whitewash. They have not suffered such an indignity since the 2006-07 Ashes and, before that, the 1992-93 series in India. Such a result here would feel like a particular humiliation for the top-ranked side.They are also keen to denounce their poor record in Asia. Excluding Tests against Bangladesh, England have won just one of their last 19 Tests in Asia and that was back in March 2006, when they defeated India in Mumbai. If England are to travel to Sri Lanka with any realistic confidence, they need to show some signs of improvement. While they could point to the first three innings of the Abu Dhabi Test as evidence of progress, the manner in which the game finished – England spun away for just 72 – superseded the earlier positive signs.Pakistan, by contrast, approach this game in good spirits. They are aiming to complete just the fifth series clean-sweep (three matches or more) in their history and their first against England. It would also be the first time they have done so outside Pakistan. They have one selection decision to make – Aizaz Cheema and Wahab Riaz are both vying for the second seamer’s spot that was filled by Junaid Khan in Abu Dhabi – but go into this Test looking as settled and calm as any Pakistan team in many years.Perhaps their most remarkable achievement in this series has been exorcising the ghost of spot-fixing. Almost anyway. While talk of the subject has slowly ebbed away over the last few weeks, the release of Mohammad Amir from prison on Wednesday prompted renewed interest. Misbah-ul-Haq, typically, blocked any questions on the issue with the straightest of bats, stating that: “Such incidents are always sad, but you cannot do anything about it.” Strauss, in similar mood, was also reluctant to be drawn on the issue but did suggest that “the deterrent should be very strong to stop these guys doing this again.”Misbah was happier talking about the causes of Pakistan’s success, crediting a strong team spirit and continuity of selection as the key factors. “If you look two years back, you can say it was an inexperienced side with a lot of young players,” he said. “Now they have played almost two years, getting experience, getting mature and gelling well in the team. Everybody knows each other well, understands the game and their responsibilities and what he has to do for the team. That’s the main thing for improvement in Pakistan cricket. As you play together and you keep playing against good sides you improve.”Victory in this Test would complete a remarkable rehabilitation for Misbah and his side. In 2010, when Pakistan cricket was tarnished by the corruption scandal and Misbah was omitted from a 35-man preliminary squad, few would have suggested that, less than two years later, he would be the man at the helm of a resurgent Test side. But now on the eve of the final Test of the series, few would doubt his team’s ability to complete the clean sweep.