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Allrounder’s 27-ball fifty ensures series win with Hope’s century in his 100th ODI going in vain for West Indies

Himanshu Agrawal24-Jul-2022Axar Patel smashed India’s second-fastest ODI fifty against West Indies, leading the way in a collective batting effort in a big chase as India overhauled West Indies’ 311 in the second ODI in Port of Spain. Shai Hope’s hundred in his 100th ODI and Nicholas Pooran’s attacking 74 went in vain, as West Indies lost the match – and with it, the series – despite dominating the majority of their defence.Shreyas Iyer (63) and Sanju Samson (54) also hit half-centuries, but Axar’s unbeaten 64 off just 35 balls turned the tables in the last ten overs.India needed 100 to win from 60 balls with five wickets in hand, and Axar and Hooda were at the crease. Hooda fell for 33 with 56 to get off 36, leaving Axar and Shardul Thakur to complete the job. By then, Axar had already clobbered three sixes. More were on the way.The turning point arrived when 48 was required off the last five overs. Though he dismissed Thakur, Alzarri Joseph conceded 16 – including two above-waist full-toss no-balls – in the 46th, and West Indies missed running No. 10 Avesh Khan out off the last ball. Next over, Axar slammed two fours and Avesh added one more off Romario Shepherd. Suddenly the equation was 19 off 18.Avesh wouldn’t go without collecting his share of runs even though he had earlier leaked 54 in six overs on ODI debut. He hit ten off 12 balls, asking Axar to wipe out the last eight runs in the company of Mohammed Siraj. Axar, in red-hot touch, got a full toss from Kyle Mayers, which he sent flying over the bowler’s head to finish things off with two balls to go.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The chase was set up by a firm start from Shubman Gill, and then a 99-run stand between Iyer and Samson. Gill made up for his partner Shikhar Dhawan’s struggles with a serene 43 off 49 balls. But when he and Suryakumar Yadav fell in the space of 11 balls, India were 79 for 3 in the 18th over.Samson got to his maiden ODI fifty – his knock of 54 off 51 balls included three fours and three sixes – and was at his best when clearing the long-off boundary by lofting the spinners, high elbows and all in full display. Iyer, on the other hand, had had a sedate start, managing only 19 off his first 33 deliveries. That is when he broke free to finish with 63 off 71 balls, cutting, pulling and lifting for boundaries.The fact that India had as many as 312 to chase was down to Hope and Pooran’s fourth-wicket stand of 117, 74 of which came off Pooran’s bat. Hope got 115 – his third triple-figure score in 11 ODI innings.Having taken 124 balls to get to 94, Hope swung back-to-back sixes off Yuzvendra Chahal in the 45th over to get to his landmark and cap an expensive day for Chahal, of whom he took all three of his sixes. Chahal finished with 1 for 69 in nine overs.But it was not just Hope who took a liking to Chahal; Pooran too bashed three sixes – including two in the 39th over – off him. Their partnership, just short of a-run-a-ball, gradually took the momentum away from India, who had struck twice in quick succession after an aggressive start by West Indies.Shai Hope hit a century in his 100th ODI•Associated Press

Through Hope and his opening partner Mayers, the hosts had put on 71 in the first ten overs – their joint-highest score in the period in ODIs since 2020. By the time Hooda broke through, pouching a simple return-catch from Mayers off the first ball of the tenth over, the pair had already smashed ten fours and a six. Mayers led the way in that stand, hitting 39 off 23 balls, as Avesh took the biggest beating.Mayers timed and placed the ball equally well, and thrashed it around too. Once West Indies lost two wickets for three runs, Pooran took over the attacking role.On 11 off his first 26 balls, he hit the first of his six sixes when he went hard and flat over long-off in the 32nd over; three overs later, he skipped down to send Chahal sailing back over his head. While sixes were hit off Axar and Avesh as well, Hope kept the scoreboard ticking at the other end.Hope’s innings was one of three parts: he started with 22 off 21 balls, then got 73 from his next 103 deliveries, and hit 20 off his next 11 balls. It all added up to carry West Indies firmly towards the 300-run mark. He produced impressive drives and punches – and a poke through deep third for four – to start the day with Mayers, accumulated singles and ran well along with Pooran, and went for the slogs in the end after Pooran fell in the 44th over.Cameos from Shamarh Brooks, Rovman Powell and Shepherd helped West Indies’ cause. Brooks got going the moment Mayers fell, and scored 35 off 36; Powell and Shepherd provided the finishing touches.But eventually, the day belonged to Axar and Co despite the heroics of Pooran and Hope, especially the latter, who got to both his fifty and hundred with a six, in Virender Sehwag fashion, even as he played a more anchor-ish role.

Sri Lanka’s captain also had words of praise for Ramesh Mendis, though he felt he could improve his lines and lengths

Andrew Fidel Fernando03-May-2021Praveen Jayawickrama was on Test debut, and had played only ten first-class matches before that. Ramesh Mendis was playing just his second Test. The pair combined to take 17 wickets in the match, against Bangladesh, bowling Sri Lanka to a commanding victory in Pallekele – the team’s first win against World Test Championship opposition since August 2019.Jayawickrama, 22, was especially impressive, claiming match figures of 11 for 178, which are not only a record for a Sri Lanka debutant, but the tenth-best by any Test debutant. It was his accuracy that his captain Dimuth Karunaratne was especially impressed with.”Praveen does the simple things well,” Karunaratne said after the match. “He pitches the ball in the right spot. That’s something we saw from Rangana Herath as well. He makes the batsman play, and gives the ball a chance to do something. When you play at this level, you have to have that consistency in line and length. He did his job 100%, and played like a bowler who had more than his ten first-class matches. It’s a great sign for the future of our Test cricket.”The seniors just gave both bowlers confidence. Some players can panic at times when they come into the Test arena, because they try a lot of things. What we tried to tell them was to play as if they would a regular first-class game, and to handle the pressure that way. Praveen absorbed pressure really well.”Dimuth Karunaratne made a double-century in the first Test, and followed it up with scores of 118 and 66 in the second•AFP/Getty Images

Mendis’ match haul was 6 for 189, and he was particularly effective in the second innings, claiming the wickets of Bangladesh’s most senior batters – Tamim Iqbal (caught behind), Mominul Haque (bowled off an inside edge), and Mushfiqur Rahim (caught at leg slip). While Mendis has been a batting allrounder at the lower levels, Sri Lanka coach Mickey Arthur even before this series had identified his bowling as a potential asset to the Test side.”At a time when we didn’t have anyone experienced, both bowlers came and bowled like experienced players,” Karunaratne said. “I think Ramesh also gave Praveen a lot of help from the other end, in terms of building pressure. That bowling partnership was good, and they had an understanding because they also play for the same club [Moors Sports Club].”Ramesh can improve a little bit more in terms of his lines and lengths, but it’s also his second Test, and when he gets to 15-20 Tests, he’ll be able to get the hang of all that.”Karunaratne also praised Sri Lanka’s batting line-up, which put up an imposing 493 for 7 in the first innings, with Karunaratne himself and Lahiru Thirimanne hitting hundreds, before Oshada Fernando made 81 and Niroshan Dickwella produced 77 not out. For Karunaratne, this was a continuation of the progress the batters had made in the West Indies, where Sri Lanka played out two draws.”In the West Indies we did a lot of good things. It’s not an easy place to bat, with the Dukes ball being used. But we fixed our mindset and worked on our temperament and patience. I think that’s why we were able to make big scores in this series – Dhananjaya de Silva’s 166 [in the first Test], and Thiri’s 140. We knew that we needed a big score on the board in the first innings to win a match, so that was playing on our minds. We took responsibility.”

Ross Taylor led Sussex to their highest T20 score as they began their NatWest T20 Blast season with victory over Gloucestershire by a single run on Duckworth Lewis

ECB Reporters Network20-May-2016
ScorecardRoss Taylor led Sussex to a rain-assisted win•Getty Images

Sussex Sharks kicked off their NatWest T20 Blast season with victory over Gloucestershire at the Brightside Ground, Bristol, by a single run on Duckworth Lewis.Ross Taylor’s unbeaten 93, off just 48 balls, helped Sussex to their highest ever T20 total, beating the 239 for 5 scored against Glamorgan in 2010.However, the Sharks needed a little help from the rain to achieve their opening night success in the west country.
Chasing 240 to win, Gloucestershire looked well on course to at least take the game to the wire when the rains came. It was an agonising end for the host county whose 83 for 1, off 7.3 overs, left them just one short of their required target on the D/L method.Having been asked to bat first, Sussex made a decent first of things with the bat. Chris Nash and Phil Salt put the host county under genuine pressure with 48 for the first wicket inside five overs.When Nash was eventually bowled by Craig Miles for 30, Salt and Ben Brown added 14 for the second wicket in quickfire time before the former was caught by Miles off former Sussex left arm spinner Tom Smith, for 24.Salt’s ill advised attempted reverse sweep, brought Taylor to the wicket and the Kiwi looked in decent touch from the first ball he faced. He and Brown added 88 for the third wicket inside eight overs with Taylor particularly harsh on anything full outside the off stump.When Brown was stumped by Cameron Bancroft, off the bowling of Benny Howell in the 14th over, for 43, Sussex were 150 for 3 with Taylor having already passed his half century off 28 balls.Gloucestershire found it difficult to defend the short boundary to one side of the Bristol wicket and with Taylor and Matt Machan increasing the run rate, Sussex piled on the agony in the closing overs.Machan perished, in the 18th over, but not before hitting 31 off just a dozen deliveries. Wicket keeper Craig Cachopa was caught by Hamish Marshall off the bowling of Miles, for 0, with the bowler rounding off a decent spell of 2 for 29 from four overs.Still, Taylor was not to be undone and with Payne going for 27 in one over, the New Zealander closed in on his century. Unfortunately, for him, he fell seven runs short. He struck just four fours in his stay at the crease, but helped himself to eight sixes.The innings included six penalty runs for slow over rate. By the time the rains came later on, those runs would prove valuable, for Sussex.Gloucestershire lost Hamish Marshall for 12 at 14 for 1 in the second over of their response before captain Michael Klinger and Ian Cockbain struck the ball with great accuracy, to all four corners. At one stage, they were ahead of the D/L rate and looked in a decent position to at least challenge for maximum spoils.Sadly, for the home supporters, umpires Nick Cook and Rob Bailey took the sides off midway through the eighth over with Sussex ahead on the D/L method, by one run. With no further play possible, the victory points went back to Hove, if only just.

South Africa’s head coach admits team needs to be “more desperate on the field” after series defeat

Firdose Moonda07-Apr-2021If Mark Boucher thought the scant trophy cabinet that has so far characterised his tenure – two outright wins and a shared cup in nine series – was his biggest issue as this summer ends, he’s wrong. It’s the mounting list of unavailable players which is set to grow by one ahead of the T20I series against Pakistan.Related

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New captain Temba Bavuma’s prospects of leading in his first T20I series are “not good” after he injured his hamstring while batting in the third ODI. Bavuma was in too much pain to navigate the staircase at SuperSport Park for post-match interviews, so Boucher stood in for him.”Temba is a tough guy so when you see him hobbling around and it’s only got worse in the change room, the way he is walking, I think he might have done something fairly bad,” Boucher said. “He seems to be in pain. It doesn’t look good which doesn’t put us in a good position.”Bavuma showed signs of discomfort at the start of the 22nd over, when he had faced 18 balls. He required on-field treatment and appeared to be offered the choice to retire, but chose to continue. He ran awkwardly and only faced another five deliveries before being bowled, leaving an inexperienced middle and lower order to attempt to pull off the highest successful chase in Centurion.South Africa were also without Rassie van der Dussen, who suffered a quad injury, and seems certain to miss out on the T20Is.”Rassie is probably out for 10 days from yesterday. I’d be stupid to push him to try and play in these T20s. He is still staying in the squad and hope he can have a quick turnaround but it doesn’t look likely that he is going to get on the park,” Boucher said.That means a South African team that were already five down – Quinton de Kock, David Miller, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi have all left for the IPL – could go into the four-match T20I series without seven first-choice players including the captain, with Heinrich Klaasen most likely to take over.Janneman Malan’s half-century couldn’t quite get South Africa over the line•AFP via Getty Images

While some will question the decision for CSA to have entered into an agreement with the BCCI to release players for the IPL and others will ask about the timing of this series, Boucher refused to use that as an excuse for South Africa’s series defeat.”We knew that the IPL guys were leaving and we made arrangements for that,” he said. “And the guys who came in knew they would be playing the last game and they prepared for that.”For some of them, that was evident. Janneman Malan and Kyle Verreynne scored half-centuries and Keshav Maharaj took 3 for 54 but South Africa lacked Nortje’s killer instinct, Ngidi’s ability at the death and a left-hander in the top six. “With a short boundary and having a left-hand, right-hand combination puts a bowling side under pressure so not having a left-hander in the top six is something we need to look at,” Boucher said.Similarly, South Africa will aim to address their handling of key moments in close matches. “Where we are not having good pockets in the game, we are having really bad ones,” Boucher said. “Today, in the last few overs, there were over 40 runs scored and in the first match, when we lost, we played 50% cricket and we still had a chance of winning the game.”South Africa conceded 56 runs in the last three overs in the final match and dropped a catch in the penultimate over of the first game. They also put down leading run-scorer Fakhar Zaman in the second match, and he went on to score 193, almost taking the game away from them. Boucher has identified fielding as a third area for South Africa to improve on. “We need to be more desperate in the field. Where usually we are very good, we are not that good at the moment.”That assessment could translate to a downcast camp, who are also confined to a bio-bubble, but Boucher indicated that the mood has not totally soured as South Africa approach their final opportunity to win silverware in the T20s, starting at the wicket.”I don’t think there is any negativity. The guys are desperate for opportunities,” he said. “It’s not ideal having injuries but with injuries, opportunities open. There are some guys who would like to represent their country and see what international cricket is all about. We want to start winning series, especially at home.”

Scorchers, Renegades, Heat and Strikers are the confirmed finalists with Perth set to host the title showdown

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Nov-2021Melbourne Renegades’ hopes of progressing straight to the grand final ended with a batting collapse against Brisbane Heat meaning Perth Scorchers will – barring mathematical miracles – host the showpiece occasion next weekend.In the absence of Harmanpreet Kaur who was unable to bat in the chase, Renegades never challenged the target in what they will hope will not be a momentum-sapping loss as they head into the Challenger final on Thursday.Georgia Redmayne was the star for Heat, who will face Adelaide Strikers in the Eliminator final on Wednesday, with a superbly-paced 71 off 51 deliveries. She added 82 for the second wicket with Georgia Voll who gave another display of her stroke-making ability. From 1 for 119 in the 15th over Heat may have been a little light with 156 but it didn’t matter.Redmayne then produced the highlight of the second innings with a brilliant leg-side stumping late in the same to remove Ella Hayward off the medium pace of Nadine de Klerk.Darcie Brown again claimed big wickets•Getty Images

Adelaide Strikers secured their spot in the finals by trouncing Sydney Sixers whose forgettable season hit another low as they were bundled out for 82.Strikers raced to their target with 58 balls to spare making it the second-biggest winning margin in a chase in WBBL history. Dane van Niekerk and Katie Mack added 54 inside the powerplay.It was an awful day for Sixers from the moment Alyssa Healy skied Megan Schutt in the opening over. Ash Gardner collected her fourth duck in a row when she edged her first delivery from Darcie Brown and after a brief flurry of runs Ellyse Perry was lbw to the same bowler. Their woes were compounded when Shafali Verma was run out without facing a ball.At 8 for 52 there was a chance Sixers would register the lowest WBBL of all time (66 held jointly by Heat and Hurricanes) but the last two wickets avoided that unwanted record. Captain Tahlia McGrath bowled her four overs for just eight runs.The result confirms the four finalists: Perth Scorchers, Melbourne Renegades, Brisbane Heat and Adelaide Strikers. Finishing top means direct entry into the grand final. Third play fourth before the winner of that match plays second to determine the other finalist.Mathilda Carmichael played a vital innings•Getty Images

Perth Scorchers scrambled to a final-ball victory to maintain their push to host a home grand final as the middle order produced an important display to overcome Melbourne Stars whose lingering slim hopes of the knockouts were ended.A tense finish had Scorchers needing nine from the final over which came down to one off the last ball after Alana King was run out attempting a match-winning second. Taneale Peschel struck the final delivery straight to mid-off but Kim Garth missed the run-out attempt.A rare double failure for Sophie Devine and Beth Mooney had put pressure on a Scorchers middle order now missing Chamari Athapaththu. When Heather Graham played on against Annabel Sutherland they were 3 for 39 in the ninth and Chloe Piparo’s departure left them needing 54 off 40 balls. However, Marizanne Kapp and Mathilda Carmichael, the latter with 30 off 20 balls, added 43 to put Scorchers on track before the finish became very tight.Stars’ innings had a bizarre look to it, dominated by Elyse Villani’s 84 off 66 balls with the next-best score being Sutherland’s 9. Despite Villani’s efforts they had struggled to lift the tempo after solid, wicketless powerplay. Kapp went at under three an over with 17 dot balls while King and Heather Graham combined to take 4 for 32 from their eight overs with 24 dots.Hobart Hurricanes 5 for 147 (du Preez 87*) beat Sydney Thunder 9 for 143 (Johnson 39, Vakarewa 3-8)Belinda Vakarewa produced a superb spell•Getty Images

Mignon du Preez and Belinda Vakarewa were at the fore as Hobart Hurrcianes finished their season on a high with a four-run victory over ousted champions Sydney Thunder.du Preez’s 87 off 61 balls was the mainstay of Hurricanes’ innings then Vakarewa returned the outstanding figures of 3 for 8 from four overs which included removing the in-form Smriti Mandhana for a third-ball duck. She later returned to claim Anika Learoyd who had looked capable of taking Thunder close to the winning line.It came down to needing 24 off the last two overs and consecutive boundaries by Phoebe Litchfield lifted their hopes as it became 8 off 5 balls in the final over. However, Sasha Moloney struck twice in two balls then kept Thunder to singles to close out the game.Earlier, Issy Wong had continued her knack of removing big names where she castled Rachel Priest with a full, swinging delivery in the opening over.

Opener hints he might stay for another Ashes tour while also targeting victory in India

Alex Malcolm29-Dec-2021Australia opener David Warner has hinted that he might want another crack at winning an Ashes series in England in 2023.Warner turned 35 in October during the T20 World Cup when he was player of the tournament in Australia’s triumph and he will be nearing 37 by the time the next away series against England rolls around.But after Australia wrapped up the home Ashes series 3-0 inside 12 days at the MCG yesterday, Warner suggested there were still a few things he would like to accomplish before he stops playing Test cricket.”We still haven’t beaten India in India,” Warner said. “That would be nice to do. And obviously, England away, we had a drawn series [in 2019], but hopefully, if I managed to get that chance and opportunity, I might think about going back.”Warner has played 13 Tests across three series in England and eight Tests in two trips to India but Australia have lost four of those five series and Warner has lean records in both nations, averaging 26 and 24 respectively without a century, something that he would clearly like to rectify.He sees age as no barrier having silenced his doubters following sterling performances across the T20 World Cup and the first three Tests of this series.”I think James Anderson sets the benchmark for older guys these days,” Warner said. “We look up to him as we’re getting on in our days. But for me, it’s about performing to the best of my ability and putting runs on the board. In the first two Tests, I actually look like a proper batsman, it’s almost like I’ve played my career the other way and had to knuckle down and respect the bowling and the line and lengths that they were bowling and obviously, the hundred eluded me.”I feel in good touch. As I said, I was out of runs not out of form, so hopefully, I can put some more numbers on the board leading into this new year.”Related

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Warner made it clear that Australia aren’t satisfied with just securing the Ashes at home. The team is already looking forward to upcoming tours of Pakistan and Sri Lanka which will be vital in their quest to reach the next World Championship final, an opportunity they missed earlier this year after last summer’s defeat to India at home.”Those [tours] will really show where we are as a team and our character,” Warner said. “When you go to the subcontinent, you potentially could play two spinners. And then the selectors look at the batting line-ups with who they feel is probably going to be better on the subcontinent wickets and who’s not. There are going to be some brave decisions being made. But we’re looking forward to that.”Warner was pleased to see his opening partner Marcus Harris amongst the runs in Melbourne after a lean start to the series and the pair are determined to forge a strong partnership together.”Awesome to see Harry score some runs,” Warner said. “He is a tough tenacious fella. We gel well together when we’re out there. Obviously, a minor hiccup last game but that’s what happens in cricket can happen. His courage to keep fighting and working ways out to score runs when bowlers are bowling these good lines and lengths, he fought it out well. I’m really, really pleased for him.”When he’s looking to score and I’m looking to score, I think our defence takes care of itself and we’ll be in and amongst the runs in the next two Tests.”

India’s players had a lot to celebrate with the latest update in the ICC rankings

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Mar-20216:53

Rohit Sharma – I don’t want anyone get upset when Pant gets out playing shots

The rise of Rishabh Pant continues. He has now secured the highest points tally (747) by any Indian wicketkeeper on the ICC Test batting rankings. That puts him at the joint-seventh place, along with team-mate Rohit Sharma and New Zealand’s Henry Nicholls.Much as he was when India beat Australia in their own backyard, Pant was a central figure in his team’s victory over England last week which sealed their place in the inaugural World Test Championship final. He struck his first century at home, in Ahmedabad, an innings that drew praise from the very best in the business – Adam Gilchrist and Brian Lara to name two. His coach Ravi Shastri was particularly effusive about the way he committed to a sterner fitness regime that is helping him churn out these big runs.Pant has amassed 544 runs from seven Test matches, making him India’s top-scorer in the 2020-21 season and third-highest overall. Among those runs was a 97 that helped India keep an incredible series alive in Sydney and then he sealed it in even more incredible fashion by scoring 89 thrillingly unbeaten runs in Brisbane.Providing equally invaluable contributions, but with the ball, R Ashwin is now ranked second among all bowlers in Test cricket. This comes soon after he set the record for fastest – in terms of balls (21,242) – to 400 Test wickets. The India allrounder had a stellar series against England, scoring a century on his home ground, which he said made him feel like a hero, and he finished it with 32 wickets from four Test matches.Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant are ranked joint-seventh among Test batsmen by the ICC•BCCI

Not far behind him was Axar Patel. The left-arm spinner playing only his first Test series struck 27 times in three matches to average a scarcely believable 10.54. Thanks to that performance, he climbed eight places to 30th, but more notably, he has 552 points. Only two bowlers have ever done better after their first three Tests – former India leg-spinner Narendra Hirwani (564) and Australia fast bowler Charlie Turner (553), who played in the 19th century.Sharma has reached his career-best spot after a string of excellent performances in tough conditions. His 161 in the second Test on a Chennai turner was later hailed as the turning point on which India were able to come back from 0-1 down and beat England 3-1. Overall, he is the team’s second-highest scorer this season – and fourth-highest overall – with 474 runs at an average of 47.40.The latest ICC ranking update also included a couple of blips for India. Their captain Virat Kohli (fifth place with 814) is sitting on his lowest points tally since November 2017 and their No. 3 Cheteshwar Pujara has slipped below 700 for the first time since September 2016.England, whose captain Joe Root admitted they didn’t take enough of their chances to trouble India, could take solace from James Anderson moving up to the fourth place in bowlers’ rankings. His burst of reverse swing on the last day of the first Test in Chennai was crucial in giving the visitors a lead that they couldn’t capitalise upon. Also moving up the ranks was batsman Dan Lawrence, who rose 47 places to 93rd. An equally rapid mover was Washington Sundar, who was stranded on 96 in the Ahmedabad Test match. He gained 39 places and is at the 62nd position.

Cheteshwar Pujara, Rishabh Pant, Marnus Labuschagne and Kyle Jamieson moved up the tables

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jan-2021Kane Williamson, who hit 238 in the Christchurch Test, consolidated his position at the top of the ICC rankings for Test batsmen by reaching 919 rating points – the highest ever by a New Zealand player. There was a switch just below him, with Steven Smith replacing Virat Kohli in the second position following the Sydney Test where he was the Player of the Match.Williamson’s previous best points tally was 915, which he had reached in December 2018, already taking him past Richard Hadlee, the only other New Zealand cricketer to have crossed the 900-point mark (909 in December 1985).Meanwhile, Smith’s scores of 131 and 81 at the SCG took him past Kohli, who went back home from Australia after the first Test for the birth of his first child.Related

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In other changes after the thrilling draw in Sydney, Marnus Labuschagne achieved a career-best 866 points to stay at No. 4 – he hit 91 and 73 in the game – and among bowlers, Josh Hazlewood gained three places to reach No. 5 after picking up four wickets in the game.For India, Cheteshwar Pujara’s twin half-centuries pushed him up to No. 8 from the tenth spot, while Rishabh Pant’s aggressive 97 in the second innings helped him jump 19 spots to No. 26. Shubman Gill, Hanuma Vihari and R Ashwin also made gains after playing crucial innings in helping India salvage the draw.Kyle Jamieson ran through the Pakistan line-up in Christchurch•Getty Images

Following the conclusion of the Christchurch Test between New Zealand and Pakistan, Henry Nicholls’ 157 brought him inside the top ten for batsmen after he gained three places to become No. 9. Kyle Jamieson – who bagged a career-best match haul of 11 for 117 at Hagley Oval – was another big mover: he climbed seven spots to reach No. 21 among bowlers, and also became the fifth-ranked allrounder after just six Tests.Also, Pakistan – despite losing the series 0-2 – had reason to cheer after Azhar Ali’s 93 and 37 helped him advance seven places to No. 18 and Mohammad Rizwan’s 61 took him to No. 37 following a gain of ten places.In the other update following the Johannesburg Test between South Africa and Sri Lanka, opener Dean Elgar reached No. 13 after innings of 127 and 31* in a ten-wicket for the hosts. His team-mates Anrich Nortje, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi and Lutho Sipamla also rose in the bowlers’ chart to be No. 38, No. 45, No. 47 and No. 49, respectively.Sri Lanka too had their share of gains – captain Dimuth Karunaratne’s second-innings 103 took him to No. 15, while Kusal Perera, the visitors’ highest run-getter in the series, moved up four spots to No. 56.

Test cricket is “big-man cricket” and West Indies cannot use their youth and inexperience as a crutch to deflect against poor performances, according to Marlon Samuels

Karthik Krishnaswamy in Kingston29-Jul-2016Test cricket is “big-man cricket” and West Indies cannot use their youth and inexperience as a crutch to deflect against poor performances, according to Marlon Samuels. Two days before the second Test against India at Sabina Park, Samuels said the young players will have to keep earning their places with their performances.”Well, first and foremost, I’m not going to be here to tell you that it’s a young team,” Samuels said. “For me to say that is like finding excuses for the team. It’s a Test team, and Test cricket is big-man cricket, and the players should know that by now.”They are here, playing Test cricket. So we all have to step up to the plate, and put up a very good challenge against the Indians. The Indians are a very good team, a very good unit, so what we want to try and build right now is a team spirit, and build a stronger unit in order [to move forward]. Yes, we have new players coming in, but they still have to deliver. At the end of the day, you have to do that to keep your job here.”A string of impressive limited-overs performances won Samuels West Indies’ Cricketer of the Year award, but his Test form has been poor in recent months. Before scoring a half-century in the second innings of the first Test in Antigua, he had failed to pass 20 in his 10 Test innings.”You make a half-century, it’s a milestone,” he said. “You have to cherish it, but at the end of the day I always want more. I haven’t been getting the runs that I’m looking for in the Test arena, but I’ve been making up in the shorter versions, so it augurs well that I’m doing well for the team as well. It’s just, I need to start focusing more and putting in some big performances, so the team can benefit from my performances.”Samuels looked forward to another Test in front of his home crowd at Sabina Park, and said he wanted to show them “what they have been seeing over the years – me coming out here, playing shots and just enjoying myself in the middle”. But his main aim, he said, was to help West Indies bounce back from their innings defeat in Antigua.”It’s a great opportunity for me,” he said. “Not too many sportsmen get to play in front of their home crowd. I’ve got the opportunity more than one time, so I cherish it, playing in front of a Jamaican crowd. As I said, it’s a great opportunity, not only for me, but for the team to make a turnaround and come here and play some positive cricket and put up, not just a challenge, but a fight.”According to some media reports, Samuels has been considering Test-match retirement, and Jeffrey Dujon, the former West Indies wicketkeeper who is part of the TV commentary team for this series, had suggested on air that this might be his last Test series. Samuels did not reveal his plans, and said his only focus, for now, was to do well in this series.”Jeffrey Dujon can say anything,” Samuels said. “But what I say is, I’m here to focus on the Test series and put my best foot forward, and make a significant contribution, so that whatever I do, the team can benefit from it. So that’s my ultimate goal and that’s my focus at the moment.”

Darren Sammy struck an unbeaten 27-ball 55 to complete a heist and lead Rajshahi Kings to the second qualifier by beating Chittagong Vikings by three wickets in the eliminator

The Report by Mohammad Isam06-Dec-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsDarren Sammy hammered an unbeaten 55 to complete Rajshahi’s come-from-behind win•Raton Gomes/BCB

Darren Sammy blitzed a 27-ball 55 to lead Rajshahi Kings to the second qualifier after they beat Chittagong Vikings by three wickets in Mirpur. Rajshahi recovered from 57 for 6 to chase down 143 in 18.3 overs after Sammy put on 37 and 49 with Mehedi Hasan and Farhad Reza respectively. Chittagong were knocked out of the competition.Sammy cracked Mohammad Nabi for three fours in the 12th over to get the chase rolling again. Mehedi’s needless run-out in the 15th over dented their progress, but Sammy smashed three fours past point in the next over, bowled by Subhasis Roy. Sammy reached his second fifty of the tournament with a straight six off Nabi, before Farhad struck two fours to seal the chase.Sammy was unbeaten on 55 with seven fours and two sixes, while Farhad struck three fours in his 11-ball 19. As soon as he struck the winning runs, the Rajshahi players celebrated in their unique style of pretending to take group photos and selfies.Chittagong, though, lost their way towards the end of their innings where they lost 30 runs in the last 5.1 overs. The top order had set a strong platform and a strengthened batting line-up was unable to capitalise. Chittagong included Dwayne Smith as an opener, pushing Chris Gayle to No. 3, just the sixth time he has not opened a T20 innings.After fast bowler Kesrick Williams had Smith caught at slip in the third over, Gayle launched five sixes, four over the straight boundary. However, Gayle chipped a full toss off James Franklin to long-on, which began Rajshahi’s comeback. His 44 came off 30 balls.Shoaib Malik and Tamim Iqbal, who made a record equalling sixth fifty in the BPL, lofted catches into the cover region before Mohammad Nabi was brilliantly run out by a Sabbir Rahman throw from the deep midwicket boundary in the penultimate over.In the same over, Williams removed Abdur Razzak and Taskin Ahmed to complete his second four-wicket haul in T20s.