Uncapped opening batsman Niall McDonnell has been included in Ireland’s 14-man squad for the upcoming two-match ODI series against Pakistan

ESPNcricinfo staff19-May-2011Uncapped opening batsman Niall McDonnell has been included in Ireland’s 14-man squad for the upcoming two-match ODI series against Pakistan.The squad includes 13 of the 15 players who were part of Ireland’s World Cup campaign. The two players to miss out are left-arm spinner George Dockrell, who dislocated his shoulder during the World Cup match against Netherlands on March 18, and still hasn’t recovered from the injury, and allrounder Andre Botha, who announced his retirement from internationals earlier this month.Former New Zealand batsman Hamish Marshall, who became eligible to play for Ireland in April, was not considered because of a fractured right thumb sustained while playing for Gloucestershire against Middlesex earlier this month.McDonnell, 31, scored a century for Ireland A against MCC in August last year and reacted with delight to his call-up. “I can honestly say that I can’t find a word to describe how I felt when Peter Gillespie rang me,” McDonnell said.”I suppose it was a mixture of excitement, raw nerves and a little trepidation at being involved at this level. It’s a dream come true in many ways and the prospect of batting with the likes of Paul Stirling, William Porterfield or Ed Joyce is some motivation.”Coach Phil Simmons said a strong performance against Pakistan would boost Ireland’s chances for the 2015 World Cup with a decision still pending on a qualification tournament for the tournament.”Everyone is aware of the importance of these games, not just in terms of ranking points but also in the bigger scheme of things with a decision pending on a qualification tournament for the 2015 World Cup. Two more strong performances against Pakistan will help in that regard.”The 2007 World Cup win against Pakistan was the catalyst for the exponential growth for Irish cricket. I can see no reason why we can’t repeat that success on home soil given the talent we now possess in our ranks.”There aren’t a lot of surprises [in the squad] as we haven’t had any cricket since the World Cup finished. We’ll train hard in the build-up to the game, and hopefully the conditions at Stormont will suit us. The county players have been playing some excellent cricket, and most of them seem to be in really good form which is encouraging for Irish cricket.”The two ODIs will be played on May 28 and 30 in Stormont.Squad: William Porterfield, Alex Cusack, Trent Johnston, Nigel Jones, Ed Joyce, Niall McDonnell, John Mooney, Kevin O`Brien, Niall O`Brien (wk), Boyd Rankin, Paul Stirling, Albert Van der Merwe, Andrew White, Gary Wilson.

Sohail Tanvir has said his experience with Rajasthan Royals back in 2008 helped him captain Rawalpindi Rams to victory in the Faisal Bank Super Eight T20 Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Jul-2011Sohail Tanvir has said his experience in the IPL with Rajasthan Royals back in 2008 helped him captain Rawalpindi Rams to victory in the Faysal Bank Super Eight T20 Cup. Tanvir, who was the leading wicket-taker in the first IPL and scored the winning runs in the final, made special mention of Shane Warne, his captain at Rajasthan.”My experience of playing under Warne helped me,” Tanvir told the . “As a captain you must be on your toes when you need to make important decisions. I gave my players much-needed confidence and they performed to the best of their ability.”One of the features of Rawalpindi’s run in the tournament was that they relied on their young players to perform at crucial times, something Warne has always encouraged at Rajasthan. Jamal Anwar, Rawalpindi’s 20-year-old wicketkeeper, was their leading run-getter in the tournament and Man of the Match in their upset of Lahore Lions in the semi-finals. Raza Hasan, the 18-year-old left-arm spinner, took the second-highest number of wickets in the tournament with 11 at an average of 11.27 and economy rate of 6.20.Tanvir gave Hasan the responsibility of bowling the Super Over in the final, against Karachi Dolphins, and he delivered, giving away just seven runs to secure victory for Rawalpindi. “I was supposed to bowl the Super Over but I gave it to Hasan only because of his high confidence.”Rawalpindi were underdogs in the tournament, but won convincingly against favourites Lahore before holding their nerve in the thrilling final against Karachi. Tanvir said the best thing about the Twenty20 format was that it gave everyone a chance. “This is a modern format of the game and is tough. We were the underdogs but still managed to win through hard work. This is the beauty of Twenty20.”

Sohail Khan, the seamer who has been included in the Pakistan side for Zimbabwe in the absence of some senior fast bowlers, is confident of using the opportunity to cement a regular place

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Jul-2011Sohail Khan, the seamer who has been included in the Pakistan side for Zimbabwe in the absence of some senior fast bowlers, is confident of using the opportunity to cement a regular place. Sohail, who was discarded in early 2009 after a solitary Test and four ODIs, believes he is better prepared to shine at the highest level in his second coming.”I think my debut came a little early and I failed to impress on the chances that I got,” Sohail told the . “It was a good lesson for me though and I learnt a lot about the game, my fitness, my ability as a fast-bowler and helped me gain overall control of my bowling.”No one likes to be dropped from the side and there are only two outcomes: you either succumb to the degradation or vow to improve and make a comeback. In the last two years, I’ve learnt how to build myself. I used to train more than required and that affected my fitness levels. And for that, I have high regard for Aaqib Javed who helped me attain that. Making a comeback is always a challenge and I did everything required to make it happen.”Sohail’s inclusion comes on the back of impressive results in the recent Super Eight Twenty20 competition. Aizaz Cheema, the 31-year-old seamer, also benefitted from solid domestic performances, after missing out on the tour of West Indies on fitness grounds.”This is a valued opportunity for me,” Cheema said. “I’m desperate to perform given that I have ample domestic-level experience and enjoying optimum fitness. My aim is maintaining accuracy while bowling fast. I’m 31 and mature enough to understand the responsibility that comes with representing Pakistan. The opportunity to play for the country is something which does not come easy and I know how much hard work is required to get to that point.”Sohail Tanvir and Junaid Khan are the other fast bowlers in the squad as the Pakistan selectors chose to rest more established names like Umar Gul and Wahab Riaz. The tour will comprise a warm-up game, a solitary Test starting September 1, a three-match ODI series and two Twenty20s.

Alastair Cook, England’s ODI captain, has warned his team-mates that “no player is guaranteed a place in his side” as England prepare for the one-day series against India

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Sep-2011Alastair Cook, England’s ODI captain, has warned his team-mates that “no player is guaranteed a place in his side” as England prepare for the one-day series against India that starts on Saturday.Kevin Pietersen is being rested for this series and reports emerged on Friday that he will not play for England until January – which would rule him out of the tour to India in October. Pietersen made just two ODI half-centuries in the previous two years but the England management insisted he had been rested, and not dropped, from the current series.”Kevin’s omission is part of our policy of monitoring the workload of players.”‘ Cook told the Daily Mail. “He also has a wrist injury that has to be sorted out. It gives a fantastic opportunity for someone else at four, but Kevin is very much part of our one-day future.”Yet Cook told reporters, “There is no guarantee for anything, because we haven’t had that selection meeting for India,” and when asked if he would prefer someone like Pietersen in his side, Cook repeated “There’s no guarantee for anything.”Pietersen’s absence was an opportunity for Ben Stokes to come into the squad, though it is more likely that Ravi Bopara will feature down the order and Ian Bell be promoted. Unlike the Test arena, where Bell has made himself into one of the best in the world, he is yet to seal his spot in England’s one-day team.

Pakistan continued their winning streak in Zimbabwe with a crushing victory in the first Twenty20

The Report by Firdose Moonda16-Sep-2011
Live Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsCharles Coventry pulled off a catch and a run out, but the rest of the Zimbabwe side struggled in the field•Associated Press

Pakistan continued their winning streak in Zimbabwe with a crushing victory in the first Twenty20 international. Their batsmen treated the opposition attack with utter disdain and smashed Zimbabwe for the highest total they have ever conceded in a Twenty20. Pakistan bowled with precision, fielded with energy and commitment, and skittled Zimbabwe out in the 16th over to register a comprehensive win. Mohammad Hafeez stole the headlines in both departments, scoring 71 with the bat and taking four wickets.By contrast, Zimbabwe slumped into a greater state of haplessness, first with their lacklustre display with the ball and then with an uninspiring chase. Their three frontline bowlers were wayward and unconvincing, and their fielding sub-standard which left them with too much to do with the bat.Pakistan’s smash-and-grab innings started when Asad Shafiq tore into Zimbabwe’s senior fast bowler Chris Mpofu, who made every mistake in the book, mostly by bowling too short. Shafiq scored four boundaries off his second over and brought up the first six of the innings, with a pull off Elton Chigumbura. Hafeez was happy to take a back seat in the early stages of the innings but took over when Shafiq was run out by a sharp piece of groundwork from Charles Coventry at short fine leg.Hafeez took a special liking to Hamilton Masakadza’s medium pacers, and showed off the lap sweep in extravagant style, getting to his half-century in 34 balls. Zimbabwe could have prevented him from reaching the landmark when Hafeez pulled to deep midwicket on 45, but Mpofu parried the ball over the boundary for six instead of catching it.Zimbabwe’s fielding was not up to standard again and they let go of too many chances. Jarvis mistimed a catch off Rameez Raja at mid-on and Vusi Sibanda did the same thing in the next over, giving Hafeez another lifeline. Coventry was the only one with a solid pair of hands and he held on to a cross-batted shot from Hafeez that just did not have enough on it to go all the way.Rameez Raja did not live up to the hype. His 23 runs came mostly in singles and he struggled to time his shots. He was out lbw to Ray Price in the 17th over, allowing Umar Akmal and Shoaib Malik the opportunity to finish strongly.Both were dropped, Umar by Tatenda Taibu behind the stumps and Malik by Mpofu in his followthrough. Mpofu’s day only got worse when Umar slapped him for 15 runs in his penultimate over. Malik made little impact but Sohail Tanvir was destructive at the end. He was almost caught in the deep, but Sibanda had to abandon the catch when he was pushed over the boundary by his momentum. The mistake cost Zimbabwe 18 runs in the last over.With a massive task looming over them, Zimbabwe were overwhelmed but showed signs of greater intent than they have done previously in the series. Vusi Sibanda started with a stunning drive but his second aggressive stroke, off a length ball, saw him caught magnificently by Misbah-ul-Haq at mid-on. Misbah ran backwards and took the catch over his shoulder, with both hands. Sohail Khan could not take the credit for that wicket but he deserved the next one, which came two balls later when newcomer Cephas Zhuwao hung his bat out and got an edge through to Umar.Brendan Taylor, Chamu Chibhabha and Hamilton Masakadza tried to build momentum but Taylor and Masakadza fell trying to play big shots and Chibhabha became the second of Hafeez’s victims when he was trapped lbw. Charles Coventry was the only Zimbabwe batsmen who was able to get more than a start. He thumped four fours and a six before top-edging off Saeed Ajmal.Hafeez, fittingly, finished things off when he bowled Price with a flat, straight delivery, extending Price’s poor day. Price had sent down six wides while bowling and strayed too far down the leg side. Hafeez, however, was bang on target and finished with his best figures in T20s to continue his golden run in Zimbabwe.

Heavy rain in Kolkata has forced the Champions League Twenty20 governing council to move the four scheduled matches at Eden Gardens to Hyderabad and Bangalore

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Sep-2011Heavy rain in Kolkata has forced the Champions League Twenty20 governing council to move the four scheduled matches at Eden Gardens to Hyderabad and Bangalore, subject to approval from the local authorities.The Group B matches scheduled for September 25 and 27 will now take place in Hyderabad, while the match on September 29 involving Royal Challengers Bangalore and a team from the current qualifier will be played in Bangalore.”With regret and in the best interests of the tournament, CAB [Cricket Association of Bengal] and CLT20 have reluctantly agreed to moving its four scheduled Group B matches away from Eden Gardens due to the heavy rains that have deluged Kolkata,” Jagmohan Dalmiya, the president of CAB, said in a statement.”We’re disappointed that we’re not able to host the matches, but this decision was unavoidable and taken out of our hands due to the current weather conditions. We wish CLT20 luck for the tournament and hope CAB will have the chance to host the event in the coming years.”

A superbly-paced century from Tom Cooper delivered victory to South Australia in their first match of the domestic season as New South Wales were left to regret a sluggish finish to their innings

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Oct-2011
ScorecardTom Cooper was the star for South Australia•Getty Images

A superbly-paced century from Tom Cooper delivered victory to South Australia in their first match of the domestic season as New South Wales were left to regret a sluggish finish to their innings. Usman Khawaja made his second one-day hundred and Phillip Hughes posted 96 to give the Blues a dream start, but they needed more than their 3 for 261 to prevent the Redbacks succeeding in their chase.Cooper struck the winning runs with an over to spare, timing his dash to triple-figures perfectly, as the final drive past mid-on from the bowling of Trent Copeland brought up his century and the victory. It was his second hundred in one-day cricket for the Redbacks, and he had solid support in the end from Cameron Borgas, who ended up unbeaten on 30.Callum Ferguson made 53 at better than a run a ball, until he was caught at deep midwicket trying to smash Moises Henriques out of the ground, and the captain Michael Klinger set the chase off to a bright start with 75. Mitchell Starc began perfectly, with Daniel Harris lbw first ball to a beautiful inswinger, but the young New South Wales fast men struggled to contain South Australia.Josh Hazlewood, in his first match for his state since February 2010, following a long lay-off due to a stress fracture in his back, battled to find his rhythm. However, the real problem for the Blues was that the target should have been closer to 300 after Hughes and Khawaja put on 212 for the first wicket.Hughes started slowly and while he lifted his tempo later, he still finished at well below a run a ball, with 96 from 129 deliveries, while Khawaja’s 116 used up 137 balls. The Blues passed their 200 with nearly ten overs to go and ten wickets in hand, but some good bowling at the death from Gary Putland and Kane Richardson was crucial in preventing a blowout.Khawaja fell from the final ball of the innings, when he flicked Putland in the air to deep square leg, the second wicket for Putland. But while Khawaja was the star of the first half of the game, Cooper was Man of the Match for his match-winning effort.