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Playing their 100th ODI, Afghanistan huffed and puffed to a total of 182, which wasn’t quite enough despite Rashid Khan picking up three wickets

The Report by Sruthi Ravindranath29-Aug-2018Getty Images

“Maybe their batting is not quite as strong as it has been recently, so as bowlers we’ve got to help the batters out and try and restrict them to as few as we can,” Tim Murtagh, the Ireland fast bowler, had said after collecting figures of 4 for 31 during his side’s loss to Afghanistan in the first ODI.Those were his career-best figures, and just 48 hours later Murtagh bettered them, picking up 4 for 30 as he, along with the rest of the Ireland pace attack, scythed through the Afghanistan line-up, before Andy Balbirnie and Simi Singh stitched together a crucial partnership to set up a series-levelling three-wicket win, consigning the visitors to their first loss of this tour. Opting to bat first in their 100th ODI game, Afghanistan slumped to 16 for 4 before finding some respite via their middle and lower order to finally post 182 for 9.Murtagh was scathing with the new ball, snuffing out Afghanistan’s top three in his first three overs. He pinned Mohammad Shahzad in front with an inswinger, the same method he used in his second over to remove Hazratullah Zazai’s middle stump. An edgy Gulbadin Naib became Murtagh’s second lbw victim in his third over. When a direct hit from Andy Balbirnie ran Hashmatullah Shahidi out in the ninth over, Afghanistan were in all sorts of strife.The onus was on captain Asghar Afghan and Rahmat Shah to pull things back, and they did just exactly that. The duo took their time, scoring only 20 off the first nine overs of their partnership, and enjoyed some luck too, with Simi dropping Rahmat at midwicket when he was on 4.While the pacers benefited from favourable conditions and bowled with discipline, the spinners did their bit as well to keep Afghanistan quiet. Offspinner Simi accounted for Rahmat, ending a fifth-wicket stand that had consumed 18.2 overs. Mohammad Nabi, playing his 100th ODI, began briskly, but was out for 13 off 12 balls when he slashed Peter Chase to third man. It was a well-deserved wicket for Chase, who hit the deck hard, and caused some discomfort with his short ball.Afghan fell 4.4 overs later, Paul Stirling running him out with a direct hit at the bowler’s end. He had made 39 off 82 balls. At this point, Afghanistan had nearly 16 overs to bat out with only three wickets in hand, and Najibullah Zadran and Rashid Khan at the crease.They added 29 before Murtagh returned to dismiss the scratchy Rashid. Najibullah stepped up his scoring rate, hitting Kevin O’Brien for a four and a six in successive overs from the medium-pacer before holing out looking for a repeat of his pulled six. He had made 42 off 52 balls.With 3.3 overs remaining, Afghanistan were in danger of being bowled out, but their tenth-wicket pair of Mujeeb ur Rahman and Aftab Alam managed to bat through till the end of the 50th over, finding the boundary twice each while adding an unbroken 22.In the first over of Ireland’s chase, Mujeeb came round the wicket to dismiss captain William Porterfield in the first over with a ball that kept low. But the second-wicket pair of Paul Stirling and Balbirne stepped up and stitched together a 69-run stand, even as Afghanistan bowled a spinner and a seamer in tandem until the 15th over in a bid to choke the batsmen. Afghanistan finally got their breakthrough in the 17th over, when Nabi had Stirling stumped on 39.With Balbirne in fluent form, Ireland had the upper hand in most parts of their chase, except when they lost three quick wickets to spin in a space of eight overs and found themselves 97 for 4. While Mujeeb teased the batsmen with the carom ball, Rashid unleashed his googly, one of which foxed Kevin O’Brien and had him lbw in the 25th over.Balbirnie was still there, pulling and sweeping with power. His partnership with Simi was the highlight of the chase, the duo playing patiently against the spinners and making most of their runs via swift running between wickets. With Balbirnie set at one end, Simi was able to take hise time to settle in. During an attempt to take a quick single in the 35th over, Balbirnie slipped near the crease and landed on his elbow, and called for the physio to have a look. Two balls later, he fell to a stunning catch by Najibullah when he edged Rashid to slip. With 39 required with five wickets in hand, Afghanistan sensed a bit of an opening.Gary Wilson and Andy McBrine fell soon afterwards, leaving Ireland 164 for 7 in the 41st over. Simi was the key man now, and he was playing the spinners with ease. He just needed someone to stay with him, and it was Murtagh, fittingly, who kept him company, the eighth-wicket pair seeing Ireland home with an unbroken 19-run stand in 21 balls.The deciding ODI – the last match of Afghanistan’s tour – will be played at the same venue on Friday.

Shaun Marsh is heading to Yorkshire for this season’s NatWest Blast

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Jun-2017Yorkshire Vikings have secured the services of Australian batsman Shaun Marsh as an overseas player for this summer’s NatWest T20 Blast competition.Marsh, a 33-year-old left-hander, has recently completed a 10th successive Indian Premier League campaign, for Kings XI Punjab.Yorkshire had to find a replacement for Travis Head, who stood down after winning an international call-up by Australia A through July and August.”I’ll be looking to bring some experience to the group and obviously some runs would be nice too,” Marsh said. “I’ve played in a lot of T20 competitions now and hopefully I can bring most of what I’ve learned over the years to the group and have a really successful campaign together.”I think we’ve got a really experienced team with a lot of talented players. Hopefully we can get some momentum going early. Having never played at Headingley, I’m really excited by the prospect of that too.”Martyn Moxon, Yorkshire’s director of cricket, said: “It was obviously a bit of a blow to see Travis pull out, but to secure the services of Shaun is a massive coup for us. To get someone of his calibre, with his ability in both formats of the game – in T20 and potentially red ball cricket as well – and at such short notice is fantastic news for us.”Marsh, who has represented Australia in all three forms of the game, has topped the runscorers lists in both the IPL and the BBL in 2008 and 2013 respectively. He averages 39.59 in T20 cricket.”Shaun has had a really good IPL campaign and, with the quality he’s shown throughout his career, he became a really attractive proposition,” Moxon said. “His stats stack up really well and on current form he’s in a really good place. We’re delighted he’s joining and we look forward to him having an enjoyable and successful time with us.”The Western Australia batsman, who was omitted from Australia’s 15-man squad for the Champions Trophy, will be looking to impress throughout the summer as he bids to regain his national team spot.

It must be a hoot inside Viv Richards’s head

Chris Ryan07-May-2016It must be a hoot inside Viv Richards’s head. Joel Garner, as we speak, is heading up the rebuilding operation in Iraq. Ricardo Powell, the US Secretary of State, is fixing himself a stiff drink. Faoud Bacchus, that randy old Greek god, is fixing himself several. Oh, and Dennis Lillee is a cowardly, cream-puff crybaby who stopped bowling bouncers because he was afraid he might cop a couple back.Welcome to the wacky world of Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards. In case you missed the news, the Master Blaster has been indulging in a scurrilous spot of Master Bluster. Now chairman of West Indian selectors – and that’s in the real world, not just his own – Richards has accused Lillee of watering down his ferocity once the likes of Andy Roberts and Michael Holding gatecrashed the Test arena in the late-1970s.Lillee, so the story goes, was terrified that if he pitched short at the West Indians they’d headhunt him back. "Lillee realised what would be coming at him," said Richards. "He was all huff and puff, but he wasn’t quite the same later on."Lillee, in typically swashbuckling style, has dismissed Richards’s taunts as "a heap of bulldust". "If Viv actually made that comment," Lillee went on, "then he must have forgotten a fair bit."And there you have it. The two most watchable and inspirational cricketers of the 1970s and 80s, the defining players of their generation, are at loggerheads.Now, this is all decidedly odd. Cricket is about forgiving and forgetting, letting sleeping dogs lie, what happens on the field stays on the field, and all that. Especially when the events in question occurred a quarter of a century ago. Especially when the two adversaries are revered warriors. And especially when one of them is the great, the one, the only DK Lillee.For Lillee had grace. Pore over the old videotapes and you still marvel at his fluency, his fluidity. He was like a giant gathering willy-willy, slowly uncoiling then scattering all in his wake. He’d reach the top of his run-up and turn, with not a flicker of hesitation. He’d begin with a couple of quickish trots before slipping into rhythm, back arched and arms horizontal, picking up speed as he hurtled creasewards. Then he’d launch into one almighty leap and, for a moment or two, the world stood still. His right arm high. His feet almost kissing the stumps. His torso classically side-on. For all the science in fast bowling these days, nobody has come close to devising so majestic an action.Lillee had charisma. Bucketloads of it, in fact. He made green-and-yellow headbands and chunky gold jewellery look cool. When he got hot and bothered he used to slide a lanky index finger across his forehead and flick away droplets of sweat. Then he’d lope down to fine-leg, shirt unbuttoned to his nipples, gold chain bobbing in a forest of black hair, his pelvis thrust out in the direction of Bay 13. Lillee was sex on legs and the MCG was his favourite tabletop.And yes, Viv, Lillee had guts. He never flinched, never shirked a challenge, never blanched at the sight of yet another flat pudding of a pitch. Ian Chappell always says wresting the ball from Lillee was like taking a bone off a Doberman. If he didn’t get you first time he’d roar back for a second spell, then a third. Then there was the way he kept fighting back from crippling injuries – to his back, his knees and most other vital joints. Lillee was brave, and crazily so.These attributes, what’s more, were widely accepted as fact. Back in the days when glossy magazines used to print long, rambling Q&As with all the star players, Lillee’s name cropped up repeatedly. Most Feared Opponent. Hardest Man To Face. "He had everything," Bob Willis once wrote. "Courage, variety, high morale, arrogance, supreme fitness and aggression."To Don Bradman, Lillee was "capable of the most devastation" of any fast bowler in history. "He had so much intelligence," gushed Sunil Gavaskar. For Richard Hadlee, Lillee was "my idol, my role model … I copied Lillee. I studied him and analysed everything he did, asking myself why he did it and whether there were aspects of his approach I could build into my own game."Now here comes the really curious bit. Richards, until this week, seemed to agree. In his latest book Sir Vivian – "The Definitive Autobiography", whatever that means – Richards calls Lillee "the most dangerous fast bowler I have ever faced". Curiouser still, he notes that Lillee "never bowled a short ball without a reason".He even recounts, almost fearfully, an occasion when Lillee struck him under the heart. Richards couldn’t breathe or speak. Lillee offered not a jot of sympathy. "When I looked up," said Richards, "he was back at his mark. In fact there wasn’t one Lillee ready to come snorting in at me again – I could see two … The crowd was chanting: Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! One Lillee is bad enough, but this was one too many."Sir Vivian came out in 2000. Three years ago. How could so much change so soon?It’s history that Richards, at the turn of the millennium, was voted Wisden’s fifth greatest player of the 20th century. Lillee polled six votes fewer to finish equal-sixth. And yet Lillee’s place in the pantheon is secure. Parts of the Richards legend demand closer scrutiny.Take his fixation with bouncers, for instance. It lives on today, as demonstrated by his gibe at Lillee, but first emerged when he was a brash young batsman. Richards’s refusal to wear a helmet always had more to do with macho breast-beating than commonsense. And was he really so fearless? There were times, Australians with long memories might recall, when Richards looked distinctly unnerved by a young Steve Waugh and even younger Craig McDermott.His greatest slice of luck was to be born West Indian. He only had to face Garner, Holding and Co in the nets. Richards claims Lillee went soft in his old age, yet he is on shaky footing here himself. Richards was dismissed for 15 or under nine times in his last 10 Tests on Australian soil. He remained a thunderous strokemaker once set. But by the age of 30, particularly on bouncy wickets, he could be a clunky starter.By the time Lillee hit his thirties it’s true, of course, that he had eased his foot off the pedal. Quite deliberately. Throat-ticklers were out. Indigestible leg-cutters and indecipherable variations in pace were in. Instead of terrorising batsmen Lillee outfoxed them. Richards is still being outfoxed 25 years later.His bouncer obsession filtered through most pointedly as captain. Under Clive Lloyd’s command the West Indian quicks tended not to waste bouncers on batsmen who could handle them. Bruce Laird, one of the gutsiest of all Australian openers, tells how he endured relatively few short deliveries. Instead they would aim to swing the ball at high speed on a good length. Bouncers remained something of a delicacy. Under Richards they were served up for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Four an over. Five an over. Too much was never enough. Richards, by the end, was a boring captain of a boring team.Boring is something Lillee could never be. He showed it again during a rare TV appearance on Monday night. He was interviewed by Andrew Denton, normally a witty and astute interrogator, who was reduced to shameless sycophancy in the presence of the great moustachioed wonder.No matter. Lillee was as engaging as ever. He told tall stories. He spoke warmly about Shane Warne, regretfully about his own on-field misdemeanours. He did a neat line in modesty too. "I can only remember three or four wickets I ever got – maybe 10," said Lillee. "It’s gone. Not that I want to get rid of it. It’s those red wines."Lillee’s memory might be scratchy but one thing’s for sure – it’s better than Viv’s. Unless Carl Hooper really is the old bloke who used to run the grocers shop on Sesame Street.Chris Ryan is a former managing editor of Wisden Cricket Monthly and a former Darwin correspondent of the Melbourne Age.

Michael Hussey has become the first player to suggest Gurunath Meiyappan was more than just a cricket “enthusiast” after N Srinivasan and India Cements have distanced themselves and Super Kings from Gurunath

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Sep-2013Michael Hussey, Chennai Super Kings’ opener, has become the first player to suggest Gurunath Meiyappan was more than just a “cricket enthusiast” after N Srinivasan and India Cements have distanced themselves and Super Kings from Gurunath, who has been chargesheeted in the IPL betting scandal. In his book, , Hussey has commented that Srinivasan ceded control of the team to his son-in-law.”Our owner was Indian Cements, headed by Mr Srinivasan,” Hussey has written. “As he was also on the board of the BCCI, he gave control of the team to his son-in-law Mr Gurunath. He ran the team along with Kepler Wessels, who was coach.”This comes at a time when the Supreme Court of India is hearing a matter related to the Gurunath betting allegations. Before Mumbai Police first sought to arrest him, Gurunath was often seen in the team dugout, at the auction table to represent Super Kings, represented himself as the team prinicipal on a verified Twitter account, and his IPL accreditation represented him as an owner.Super Kings is owned by India Cements, a listed company of which Srinivasan is vice-chairman and managing director. The BCCI president has maintained that Gurunath had nothing to do with the team, and was just a “cricket enthusiast” who was allowed to travel with them.A two-member probe panel constituted by the BCCI then cleared the Super Kings of any wrongdoing, but Cricket Association of Bihar moved court and procured a stay order against the findings of the panel, the fairness of whose constitution was questioned by the court. The matter is now being looked into by the highest court in India. The next hearing is scheduled on October 7.

All nine players who were nominated in two teams in next month’s Champions League Twenty20 in South Africa have opted to represent their respective IPL teams over their domestic sides

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Sep-2012All nine players who were nominated for two teams in next month’s Champions League Twenty20 in South Africa have opted to represent their respective IPL teams over their domestic sides.This includes the Trinidad and Tobago players Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard and Sunil Narine, who will now turn out for Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders. The other players who have confirmed their participation for their IPL teams include Faf du Plessis, Albie Morkel and Michael Hussey (Super Kings), Mitchell Johnson (Mumbai), Brett Lee (Knight Riders) and Morne Morkel (Delhi Daredevils).According to the tournament rules, the IPL franchises which have acquired the nine players will have to pay US$150,000 as compensation to the ‘home’ teams of the players. The Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board may gain financially, but will be considerably weakened by the loss of three key players, all of whom are integral to West Indies’ limited-overs setup.Trinidad is among the six teams that will play a qualifying round, starting October 9. The other teams in the mix are Yorkshire, Uva Next, Auckland, Sialkot Stallions and Hampshire. The top two teams in the qualifying round will join the remaining eight sides for the group stage, starting October 13. The final will be played on October 28, in Johannesburg.Meanwhile Virender Sehwag, who led Daredevils to the top of the table in the league phase of the IPL this year, has stepped down as captain, with Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene taking over. Sehwag has been Daredevils’ regular captain for most seasons, except in 2010 when Gautam Gambhir was put in charge.Auckland Aces: Gareth Hopkins (capt), Andre Adams, Michael Bates, Brad Cachopa, Colin de Grandhomme, Martin Guptill, Ronnie Hira, Anaru Kitchen, Mitchell McClenaghan, Azhar Mahmood, Bruce Martin, Chris Martin, Kyle Mills, Colin Munro, Lou VincentChennai Super Kings: MS Dhoni (capt), R Ashwin, S Badrinath, Doug Bollinger, Dwayne Bravo, Faf du Plessis, Ben Hilfenhaus, Michael Hussey, Ravindra Jadeja, Albie Morkel, Suresh Raina, Wriddhiman Saha, S Anirudha, M Vijay, V Yo MaheshDelhi Daredevils: Mahela Jayawardene (capt), Virender Sehwag, Varun Aaron, Ajit Agarkar, Unmukt Chand, Morne Morkel, Pawan Negi, Naman Ojha, Irfan Pathan, Kevin Pietersen, Andre Russell, Venugopal Rao, Ross Taylor, David Warner, Umesh YadavHampshire: James Adams, Shahid Afridi, Kabir Ali, Michael Bates, Daniel Briggs, Michael Carberry, Liam Dawson, Sean Ervine, David Griffiths, Dimitri Mascarenhas, Hamza Riazuddin, Bilal Shafayat, Glenn Maxwell, James Vince, Christopher WoodHighveld Lions: Temba Bavuma, Gulam Bodi, Zander de Bryun, Quinton de Kock, Neil McKenzie, Pumelela Matshikwe, Chris Morris, Dirk Nannes, Ethan O’Reilly, Alviro Petersen. Aaron Phangiso, Dwaine Pretorius, Sohail Tanvir, Jean Symes, Thami TsolekileKolkata Knight Riders: Gautam Gambhir (capt), Iqbal Abdullah, Shakib Al Hasan, L Balaji, Rajat Bhatia, Manvinder Bisla, Jacques Kallis, Brett Lee, Brendon McCullum, Sunil Narine, Yusuf Pathan, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Shami Ahmed, Ryan ten Doeschate, Manoj Tiwary

No break for some Australians

Australia’s captain Michael Clarke had stated that the Twenty20 Champions League would be an equal impediment for both his side and South Africa’s ahead of their Test series down under in November. However the announcement of the squads for the club competition has shown that in this case, one side is slightly more equal than the other.
Seven Australian Test players have been chosen for T20 duty in South Africa: Ben Hilfenhaus and Michael Hussey (Chennai Super Kings), David Warner (Delhi Daredevils), and Pat Cummins, Brad Haddin, Mitchell Starc and Shane Watson (Sydney Sixers). The five South African Test players to be involved will be Morne Morkel (DD), Alviro Petersen (Highveld Lions), Jacques Kallis (KKR), AB de Villiers and Jacques Rudolph (Titans).
Two likely Australian Test players, Ed Cowan and James Pattinson, hold T20 contracts but were not chosen for their respective sides. Players participating in the final of the Champions League on October 28 will have little more than three days to change gears before South Africa’s tour match against Australia A at the SCG from November 2. The first Test begins in Brisbane on November 9.

Mumbai Indians: Harbhajan Singh, Sachin Tendulkar, Mitchell Johnson, Dinesh Karthik, Dhawal Kulkarni, Richard Levi, Lasith Malinga, Pragyan Ojha, Munaf Patel, Thisara Perera, Kieron Pollard, Ambati Rayudu, Rohit Sharma, Dwayne Smith, Suryakumar YadavPerth Scorchers: Tom Beaton, Michael Beer, Paul Collinwood, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Ryan Duffield, Ben Edmondson, Herschelle Gibbs, Brad Hogg, Simon Katich, Mitchell Marsh, Joe Mennie, Shaun Marsh, Marcus North, Nathan Rimmington, Luke RonchiSialkot Stallions: Shoaib Malik (capt), Qaiser Abbas, Sarfraz Ahmed, Shakeel Ansar, Mohammad Ayub, Umaid Asif, Bilawal Bhatti, Raza Hasan, Ali Khan, Imran Nazir, Faisal Naveed, Naved-ul-Hasan, Abdur Rehman, Haris Sohail, Shahid YusufSydney Sixers: Brad Haddin, Shane Watson, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, Michael Lumb, Nathan McCullum, Nic Maddinson, Ian Moran, Phil Nevill, Stephen O’Keefe, Ben Rohrer, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, Dominic ThornleyTitans: Martin van Jaarsveld (capt), Farhaan Behardien, Henry Davids, Marchant de Lange, AB de Villiers, Paul Harris, Heino Kuhn, Eden Links, Ethy Mbhalati, Mangaliso Mosehle, Rowan Richards, Jacques Rudolph, Roelof van der Merwe, Alfonso Thomas, David WieseTrinidad and Tobago: Denesh Ramdin (capt), Samuel Badree, Adrian Barath, Darren Bravo, Kevon Cooper, Rayad Emrit, Shannon Gabriel, Sherwin Ganga, Jason Mohammad, Evin Lewis, Yannick Ottley, William Perkins, Ravi Rampaul, Lendl Simmons, Navin StewartUva Next: Thilina Kandamby (capt), Fawad Alam, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Dilhara Fernando, Umar Gul, Charith Jayampathi, Chintaka Jayasinghe, Andrew McDonald, Dilshan Munaweera, Jacob Oram, Seekkuge Prasanna, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Sameera Zoysa, Sachithra Senanayake, Upul TharangaYorkshire: Joe Root, Moin Ashraf, Jonny Bairstow, Gary Ballance, Andrew Gale, Oliver Hannon-Dalby, Dan Hodgson, Phil Jaques, Adam Lyth, David Miller, Steve Patterson, Azeem Rafiq, Adil Rashid, Ryan Sidebottom, Iain Wardlaw

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.

Warwickshire secured County Championship Division One safety on Thursday with a comprehensive 10-wicket win over Hampshire at the Rose Bowl

16-Sep-2010
ScorecardWarwickshire secured County Championship Division One safety on Thursday with a comprehensive 10-wicket win over Hampshire at the Rose Bowl. Chris Woakes, with 5 for 34, caused the damage as Hampshire, resuming at the start of their second innings 85 runs behind, could only manage 132 all out.Jimmy Adams was the first to depart for the hosts, caught behind to give Woakes his first victim of the day. Fellow opener Michael Carberry lasted just a few more deliveries before snicking Keith Miller behind to leave Hants in trouble at 13 for 2.Worse was to follow as Australia’s Phil Hughes stay at the crease lasted a solitary boundary for four before he was trapped leg before by Woakes. The in-form seamer had his third wicket of the day soon after when Hampshire’s first-innings saviour Liam Dawson departed for just nine – the fourth of Hampshire’s top four to fail to reach double figures.Wicketkeeper Michael Bates maintained the Hampshire upper orders dreadful run of scores when he became another Woakes dismissal. The unenviable clean sweep of single-figure scores for the home side’s top six was soon complete – youngster James Vince was trapped lbw by Darren Maddy to leave Hants reeling at 44 for 6 – still 41 runs short of making Warwickshire bat again.The wicket brought Sean Ervine to the crease with fellow experienced campaigner Dominic Cork but even their wise heads could muster no more than a 10 run partnership before Maddy had Cork caught by Rikki Clarke.Ervine, aware that the responsibility for Hampshire reaching a respectable total lay solely with him, began to play with freedom, cutting and driving powerfully. In tandem with James Tomlinson, they added 22 before Imran Tahir tempted Tomlinson into snicking to give Clarke his second catch of the innings.Ervine was now swinging from the hip in his bid to make Warwickshire bat again and with the dogged Danny Briggs, raced to a quick-fire half century from just 44 balls, with six fours and two sixes.But after the pair had put on 56 for the ninth wicket, Briggs’ resistance was finally ended when he was trapped by a quicker Tahir delivery for 11. Ervine’s innings followed seconds later as he skied an attempted slog to give Woakes a simple return catch and his fifth wicket of the innings as Hants set Warwickshire a paltry 48-run victory target.Openers Varun Chopra and Ian Westwood knocked the runs off without alarm as Warwickshire ended a disappointing County Championship season in style.

“It was not an easy decision to make,” according to Johnathan Atkeison, CEO of USA Cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Oct-2024USA Cricket has announced the departure of Stuart Law as the head coach of the men’s national team. While the reason behind his departure has not been made public, Johnathan Atkeison, CEO of USA Cricket, said “it was not an easy decision to make”.The announcement came in the middle of USA’s ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 campaign, a day before their game against Nepal in Dallas.Law’s tenure, which started in April, lasted just over seven months despite the team beating Bangladesh in a T20I series and then advancing into the Super-Eights stage of the T20 World Cup for the first time in their history.USA beat Canada and more significantly, Pakistan, to progress in the tournament they co-hosted with the West Indies.”Given Stuart’s contribution to the program, this was not an easy decision to make,” Atkeison said in a press release. “Unfortunately, we felt that a change was necessary for the next phase of competitive preparation.Venu Pisike, Chair of USA Cricket added, “We thank Stuart for his contributions to USA Cricket during his tenure. We wish him nothing but success in his future endeavors.”USA are currently placed second on the Cricket World Cup League 2 points table with six wins in nine games, and are looking to qualify for the 2027 ODI World Cup.

Indian opener hits 10th List A ton as Northants thrash Durham with 24.2 overs remaining

ECB Reporters Network13-Aug-2023Prithvi Shaw followed up his brilliant innings of 244 with another outstanding knock of 125 not out to lead Northamptonshire Steelbacks to a dominant six-wicket win over Durham in their Metro Bank One-Day Cup clash at Seat Unique Riverside.Shaw unleashed an onslaught of hitting on Durham’s bowlers in the Steelbacks’ chase of 199, hitting15 fours and seven sixes in 76 deliveries. The 23-year-old was given a life on 21, and duly capitalised to power Northants to their target with 24.2 overs remaining. He scored a sumptuous 68-ball century, the 10th of his List A career.”Humble is the perfect word to describe Prithvi Shaw,” John Sadler, Northants’ coach, said. “He’s gracious and respectful, he’s loved being a part of the team. We’re loving having him here as well.”His skill speaks for itself, he’s a superstar. He’s as good as I’ve seen in 25 years of playing this game. He’s up there with the best in terms of ball-striking. He genuinely wants to win games of cricket and has been a star in the dressing room.”Earlier in the day, Luke Procter tormented Durham with the ball taking a List A career-best of 4 for 34, tearing through the middle order. Liam Trevaskis worked a desperate 37 to propel the hosts towards the 200-run mark, but their eventual total always appeared short after failing to bat out their fifty overs.After Durham won the toss, the Steelbacks bowlers prevented the openers from making a fast start. Graham Clark scored two early boundaries, but his attempt to find a third resulted in an edge to Shaw at first slip. At the end of the powerplay, the hosts had mustered only 36 runs, highlighting the slowness of a used wicket and accurate bowling from the Northamptonshire attack.