Vince becomes second Multan Sultans player to withdraw; Joe Denly lined up as replacement

George Dobell09-Nov-2020James Vince’s involvement in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) is in doubt after he tested positive for Covid-19.Vince, a member of England’s World Cup-winning squad, was set to play for Multan Sultans in the PSL playoffs on November 14.ESPNcricinfo understands he is asymptomatic and will imminently undergo a second test. But he is legally obliged to self-isolate for 10 days from the date of the positive test.Vince has also signed for Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash League (BBL), but, with the start date just over a month away, he should still be able to take part.ALSO READ: Mahmudullah to miss PSL playoffs after testing positive for Covid-19It is the second significant blow to Multan’s title hopes in as many days, following the withdrawal of Mahmudullah, the Bangladesh allrounder, on Sunday, also due to a positive Covid test. Vince scored 155 runs in five innings before the tournament was cut short by the pandemic earlier this year.ESPNcricinfo understands that the franchise are hoping to sign a replacement for Vince, with Joe Denly the likely candidate.It is unclear at this stage who Vince may have been in contact with in recent days but they, too, would need to self-isolate for 14 days from that meeting.

Rohit will replace Mayank Agarwal at the top of the order, while Saini comes in for the injured Umesh Yadav

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Jan-2021India have handed Navdeep Saini a Test debut and brought Rohit Sharma back as opener and vice-captain for the Sydney Test starting Thursday. Saini replaced the injured Umesh Yadav, and Rohit took the place of Mayank Agarwal. There were no other changes to the XI that won the MCG Test and levelled the series 1-1.Rohit last played a Test for India in November 2019, in a season where he made the transition from the middle order to the top. His last Test away from home was the Boxing Day game in Melbourne in 2018 following which he left the tour early for the birth of his child. Later next year, he came back as an opener, scoring three quick hundreds in five home Tests before injuries ruled him out of the Test series in New Zealand and the first two matches of the ongoing series.With regular captain Virat Kohli missing, the Indian selectors named Rohit as the vice-captain of the team, replacing Cheteshwar Pujara. R Ashwin was the other experienced member in the side who might have had claims to the post.”We all are really excited to have him back,” captain Ajinkya Rahane said of Rohit. “His experience at the highest level matters a lot. He is batting really well in the nets. He has had seven nets sessions. He came to Melbourne, and started his practice straightaway after the Test got over. He has been batting really well. The last couple of series he has batted as an opener, so you will definitely see Rohit at the top [of the order].”The man Rohit replaced, Agarwal, debuted at a time of crisis, in the Boxing Day Test of 2018-19. He averages 47.85 in a 13-Test career, but his last few scores – in Australia and new Zealand – have been 34, 58, 7, 3, 17, 9, 0, 5. He has averaged 7.75 in this series.That India would have to hand out a debut to another fast bowler was apparent the moment it was ascertained Umesh Yadav wouldn’t be available for the last two Tests after hobbling off in the second innings of the MCG Test. The 28-year-old debutant Saini has played 46 first-class games for 128 wickets at an average of 28.46. He plays domestic cricket for Delhi, but 14 of his 46 matches have been played for India A, for whom he has taken 34 wickets at 34.35.India XI for Sydney Test: 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Cheteshwar Pujara, 4 Ajinkya Rahane (capt), 5 Hanuma Vihari, 6 Rishabh Pant (wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Jasprit Bumrah, 10 Navdeep Saini, 11 Mohammed Siraj

Formal announcements to be made once tour dates are confirmed by the boards

Mohammad Isam10-Feb-2021Following news that Australia will tour Bangladesh ahead of this year’s T20 World Cup, BCB’s chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury has said that they will also host England and New Zealand. He, however, said that formal announcements will only be made once the tour dates are confirmed by the boards.Chowdhury had said that Australia would play three T20Is as well as a two-match Test series in Bangladesh. But since CA and BCB couldn’t quite fit in the Tests, they have found time for an extra T20I match.”Both boards (CA and BCB) have agreed in principle for Australia’s tour of Bangladesh before the World Cup T20, which is going to be held in October,” Chowdhury said. “It has been scheduled as such. Ahead of the World Cup T20, England, Australia and New Zealand will tour Bangladesh, but a tri-series hasn’t yet been decided.”I think we had a commitment with Australia that they would play two Tests and two T20Is. Since we could fit the T20s we will increase it to three. It is not that it is replacing anything. We would have fit in a Test match if there was enough space. It will be a good preparation for us ahead of the World T20. We have an opportunity to play some high-profile teams.”According to the ICC’s published FTP, England are scheduled to tour Bangladesh in October to play three ODIs (as part of the ICC’s ODI Super League) and three T20Is.Meanwhile, Chowdhury added that all teams can fit in their World Test Championship matches until April after the timeline was extended from March. As such, the BCB is working on a tour of Sri Lanka to play the three-match Test series that was postponed twice last year.”It should be clarified that most of the FTP commitments currently are for the World Test Championships and the ODI competition (ODI Super League). There’s a guideline to complete the WTC matches before the final in June. The guideline to arrange those matches has been extended to April, from March.”To fit in these postponed series, both teams have to be available. At the moment only Sri Lanka is available till April. It is not possible to fit in the rest of the (postponed) matches. Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are free in April so we are trying to schedule the two or three Tests of the WTC during that time.”

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.

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.

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.”

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.”

West Indies, Pakistan and Australia players’ availability in doubt

Matt Roller17-May-2021A number of overseas players are expected to withdraw from the inaugural season of the Hundred due to clashes in the international calendar and complications regarding international travel caused by Covid restrictions.West Indies, Pakistan and Australia players with contracts to appear in the men’s competition will have their availability limited if they are involved in the two T20I series due to take place in the Caribbean in July and August, while two Australia players – Rachael Haynes and Jess Jonassen – have already withdrawn from the women’s tournament due to quarantine requirements.Cricket West Indies announced its men’s fixtures for the 2021 home season last week, with the end of the T20I series against Australia overlapping with the start of the Hundred. Seven of the nine Australians contracted to play in the men’s competition were named in an enlarged 23-man squad on Monday – Chris Lynn and Nathan Coulter-Nile were the exceptions.Those seven include marquee names in Aaron Finch, Glenn Maxwell and David Warner, and while it is possible that they could still play the majority of the eight-game group stage subject to quarantine periods, Cricket Australia remain in talks with the Bangladesh Cricket Board regarding a possible tour which would present a further clash.Related

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Four West Indians are also under contract: Nicholas Pooran and Kieron Pollard are both key parts of the T20I set-up, while Andre Russell and Sunil Narine are likely to come back into the picture ahead of this year’s T20 World Cup. Their series against Pakistan starts on July 27, three days after the Australia T20Is finish, with the fifth and final match scheduled for August 3 in Guyana – which is on the UK’s travel red list, adding to the complications – though it is understood they remain keen to be a part of the tournament if possible.Pakistan stay in the Caribbean for two Tests on August 12 and August 20, which will effectively rule Shaheen Shah Afridi out of his deal with Birmingham Phoenix. Shadab Khan, the other Pakistan player involved, may be available for the second half of the tournament with Manchester Originals if he is overlooked for the Test squad again.The ECB remain confident that the Hundred will feature some of the best overseas players in the world but are realistic about the fact that some players will withdraw in the coming weeks and months. The new 100-ball tournament’s inaugural season was postponed last year due to operational challenges, and is now due to start on July 21. “The realities of Covid mean there remain practicalities that are difficult for some overseas players to overcome,” a spokesperson said.Jonassen was replaced by compatriot Georgia Wareham in the Welsh Fire squad last month, while Haynes’ withdrawal from her Oval Invincibles contract was revealed by London’s last week. They are the only two confirmed withdrawals as yet, but the fact that salaries are significantly lower in the women’s competition (£3,600-£15,000) than in the men’s (£24,000-£100,000) reduces the incentives for players to travel to the UK specifically for the tournament. As such, it is possible that further Indian players will sign deals and stay on following the conclusion of their tour to England on July 15 – six days before the start of the Hundred.Jess Jonassen and Rachael Haynes have both pulled out of the Hundred•CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images

In the men’s competition, there is a broad pool of nearly 250 overseas players registered as replacements. Several of them, including Dan Christian, Glenn Phillips, Lockie Ferguson and Carlos Brathwaite, will already be in the UK to play in the T20 Blast for their respective counties, and as such may be attractive options, either to fill in for a handful of games or to play the full season in the event of withdrawals.Meanwhile, Manchester Originals can begin to negotiate with county cricketers who were not signed in February’s re-draft following Harry Gurney’s retirement. Gurney was an £80,000 signing in the draft and his withdrawal from the competition means that there is a free slot up for grabs at that price bracket for any domestic player without a contract.The ECB are hopeful that England’s centrally contracted red-ball players will be available for up to three group-stage games at the start of the tournament before the start of the men’s Test series against India, and potentially the eliminator and the final. Ashley Giles, the managing director of England men’s cricket, said last week: “We’ve got a lot of cricket coming up so it’s a difficult juggling act but I know the players are also looking forward to that tournament and would love to be involved at some stage if they can.”England men’s players on all-format central contracts will earn £40,000 for their involvement in up to three matches, and those on red-ball deals will earn £28,000. All centrally-contracted players will then earn £4,608 per match for any additional fixtures. Players with white-ball contracts are due to be available throughout the Hundred, and are paid directly through the draft mechanism.

Al Amin Hossain, Hasan Mahmud, Rubel Hossain and Nasum Ahmed also miss out from the New Zealand tour party

Mohammad Isam20-May-2021Najmul Hossain Shanto has been omitted from Bangladesh’s ODI squad for the first two matches of their three-match series against Sri Lanka. Shanto is one of five exclusions from the large white-ball squad that toured New Zealand in March. Shakib Al Hasan has returned to the side and is the only addition in the 15-member squad.Shakib had missed the New Zealand tour because of a thigh injury and opted out of the subsequent two-match Test series in Sri Lanka to play in the IPL. He and Mustafizur Rahman were in hotel quarantine since returning to Dhaka after the IPL’s suspension and started training on May 18 after completing 11 days in isolation.The squad also excludes Al Amin Hossain, Hasan Mahmud, Rubel Hossain and Nasum Ahmed, who toured New Zealand for the white-ball leg. Mahmud and Rubel are both recovering from back injuries, while Mohammad Naim, who played the T20Is against New Zealand, finds himself among the four standby players.Chief selector Minhajul Abedin said Shanto, whose 163 against Sri Lanka in the first Test in Pallekele had brought him out of a batting rut, was dropped due to his ODI form. “Shanto hasn’t done well in ODIs so we thought of giving him a break,” Abedin told ESPNcricinfo.Shanto has just 93 runs in eight matches so far, including 38 runs in three innings in the ODI series against West Indies. He was in the squad for the New Zealand tour but didn’t play any of the ODIs.Abedin was confident that the selected squad can turn things around after their 3-0 defeat to New Zealand and sought to focus on their 3-0 win over West Indies at home in January.”We beat West Indies quite comprehensively in the last home series, so we didn’t change the squad too much,” he told media on Thursday. “We have almost kept every one. The selection panel hopes that we play better cricket against Sri Lanka.”Things are a little different at home and we have done well against them [Sri Lanka] in the past. The team always feels better with the best players. Everyone is fit, and playing in the practice match.”We have kept four standbys with the 15-man squad. They will stay with the team. It is a contingency for Covid-19 situation.”All 19 players are taking part in a practice match in Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protishtan (BKSP) on Thursday, before having two days of training ahead of the first ODI on May 23.Squad: Tamim Iqbal (capt), Liton Das, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammad Mithun, Mahmudullah, Afif Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Mohammad Saifuddin, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Soumya Sarkar, Mosaddek Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Shoriful Islam
Standbys: Mohammad Naim, Taijul Islam, Shohidul Islam, Aminul Islam Biplob

Jamie Overton’s miserly spell stifles run chase to keep Hampshire rock bottom of South Group

ECB Reporters Network30-Jun-2021Surrey moved to the top of the Vitality Blast South Group after their bowlers successfully defended a target of 147 and kept Hampshire Hawks rooted to the foot of the table.In the first Blast match to be played in front of a crowd at the Ageas Bowl in 22 months, the home side looked to have given themselves a great chance of securing a second win of the season after holding Surrey to 146 for 7 after winning the toss and elected to field.However, a Jamie Overton-inspired Surrey restricted the Hawks to 126 for 8 to seal a 20-run victory with the former Somerset allrounder finishing with figures of 2 for 14 from four outstanding overs and Gus Atkinson pitching in with 3 for 21.Related

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On a sluggish pitch, Hampshire’s attack also bowled magnificently with the visitors scoring just 36 runs in the final seven overs of their innings.A fantastic spell from Scott Currie halted Surrey’s hopes of posting an imposing total when he dismissed Jamie Smith, who top-scored with 59, and England batter Ollie Pope for 22, within three balls.Currie grabbed 3 for 21 from three overs with Brad Wheal taking two wickets and Mason Crane and Chris Wood one apiece.D’Arcy Short and Hawks skipper James Vince got the hosts off to a flying start in their response as they scored 23 off the first three overs. However, Australian opener Short’s struggles with the bat continued when he thumped a full toss straight back at Overton to be caught and bowled for 13.Short’s departure brought 18-year-old Tom Prest to the crease but the talented teenager struggled to get bat on ball against Surrey’s experienced bowling attack as the visitors put the brakes on the Hawks’ run-scoring as they limped to 40 for 1 after the powerplay.Gus Atkinson celebrates a breakthrough•Getty Images

Veteran spinner Gareth Batty then grabbed the crucial wicket of Vince when he rattled the stumps of the England batter, who departed for 19.Overton’s tight bowling in conjunction with Atkinson and giant New Zealand quick Kyle Jamieson shut down the Hampshire batters with boundaries hard to come by as Prest departed for 20 and Colin de Grandhomme for six.Joe Weatherley tried manfully to up the run rate with a glorious shot that found the rope only to find himself back in the pavilion after the next ball thanks to a stunning flying catch on the boundary from Pope off Overton.Hampshire scored just one four in the final five overs as wickets continued to fall, leaving them needing 27 runs from the final six balls for victory as Surrey closed out an impressive victory.