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New Zealand will still be well-placed even if they lose, though they would likely need to beat Ireland to ensure progress to semi-final

Matt Roller31-Oct-20224:28

Does Stokes fit into this England XI? Are New Zealand favourites?

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England and New Zealand’s last meeting in this format was an instant classic, a slow-burning epic which saw England’s World Cup hopes go up in flames.Just short of a year on, England will be staring elimination in the face once again, unless they can overcome one of the tournament’s two unbeaten sides at the Gabba. They would still be alive mathematically with a defeat on Tuesday night, but will be relying on Afghanistan beating Australia on Friday, before having to overcome Sri Lanka in their final fixture in Sydney. In short, this is a must-win.Net run rate shouldn’t be a major concern for England at this stage, thanks in no small part to Ireland’s Lorcan Tucker. Australia were heading for a convincing win on Monday evening when Ireland were 25 for 5, but Tucker’s unbeaten 71 closed the margin of defeat significantly. As a result, two wins be enough for England to reach the semi-final; and they have the advantage of playing the last game in Group 1.Related

• Collingwood backs Stokes to deliver with England looking to stay alive

• The future is uncertain, so savour Boult and Southee while you can

• Buttler frustrated by Eng-Aus washout but insists 'right call' was made

New Zealand have been hugely impressive in brushing Australia and Sri Lanka aside, and victory in Brisbane would seal for them a semi-final berth for the third successive T20 World Cup. Moreover, given their net run rate, they will be close to locking in the top spot. New Zealand will still be well-placed even if they lose, though they would likely need to beat Ireland in Adelaide on Friday to ensure their progress.Enough about the permutations and onto the game itself, which could be won and lost in the two powerplays. Trent Boult and Tim Southee, New Zealand’s opening bowlers across formats for most of the last decade, have been lethal with the new ball since arriving in Australia, while England’s top order is yet to fire. Jos Buttler has been very successful against Boult in T20s: but can he take his Rajasthan Royals team-mate down in Brisbane when it matters most?England’s seamers were excellent with the new ball against Afghanistan but were wayward against Ireland; they conceded 59 runs in the first six overs, with Chris Woakes coming in for particularly brutal treatment. Finn Allen is the key wicket: New Zealand blitzed 65 for 1 against Australia when he raced out of the blocks but stumbled to 25 for 3 against Sri Lanka after he fell early on.Moeen Ali and Liam Livingstone could be shuffled up after limited opportunities so far this tournament•ICC via Getty Images

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England LWWWW
New Zealand WWLLW

In the spotlight

“The one person that you want in your team when the pressure is on is Ben Stokes,” Paul Collingwood, England’s assistant coach, said on Monday. Stokes has managed only 41 runs off 42 balls in his five T20Is since arriving in Australia, and for all his quality as a bowler, fielder and leader, now is the time for him to turn the intangibles into game-defining contributions.England’s batters have targeted Ish Sodhi whenever they have faced him in T20Is: he has nine wickets in as many appearances against them, with an eye-watering economy rate of 10.64 runs per over. Sodhi took the key wicket of Buttler in last year’s semi-final, and will need to be at his best on Tuesday night against a deep batting line-up.

Team news

England’s selection came under scrutiny after their defeat to Ireland but they were due to play an unchanged team against Australia before the game was washed out. As a result, it seems unlikely they will make changes barring a late injury, though Liam Livingstone and Moeen Ali could be shuffled up the order after limited opportunities so far in this tournament. Stokes has hardly trained, but has been declared fully fit.England (probable): 1 Jos Buttler (capt, wk), 2 Alex Hales, 3 Dawid Malan, 4 Ben Stokes, 5 Liam Livingstone, 6 Moeen Ali, 7 Harry Brook, 8 Sam Curran, 9 Chris Woakes, 10 Mark Wood, 11 Adil RashidNew Zealand might consider bringing Michael Bracewell in to counter England’s left-hand batters•AFP/Getty Images

Mitchell Santner bowled a solitary over in last year’s semi-final, with Kane Williamson reluctant to use him against Dawid Malan and Moeen. England have added an extra left-hander to their middle order this year in Ben Stokes, which could block Santner’s use again; as a result, New Zealand might consider bringing Michael Bracewell, the offspinning allrounder, into their side.New Zealand (probable): 1 Finn Allen, 2 Devon Conway (wk), 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Glenn Phillips, 5 Daryl Mitchell, 6 James Neesham, 7 Michael Bracewell/Mitchell Santner, 8 Tim Southee, 9 Ish Sodhi, 10 Trent Boult, 11 Lockie Ferguson

Pitch and conditions

David Hussey describes the Gabba as “probably the best batting pitch in Australia for white-ball cricket”, and the numbers back that up: the average scoring rate there in men’s T20Is is 7.94 per over, the second-highest of any Australian ground. The pitch was on the slow side in Australia’s win against Ireland on Monday, and the same strip will be used on Tuesday, which could bring spinners into play.Bad weather has followed England around over the last week, and the forecast for the match is not the best either, with rain due to fall throughout Tuesday morning. However, the weather is expected to clear up later in the day, and the Gabba’s renowned underground drainage system could ensure the teams get on to the pitch.

Stats and trivia

• Buttler will become the second player to reach 100 men’s T20Is for England after Eoin Morgan, and will overtake his predecessor as their all-time leading run-scorer in the format if he can makes at least 64.
• Malan has dominated Sodhi during their previous meetings in T20Is, hitting 105 runs off the 58 balls. It is one of only five head-to-head match-ups in T20I history where a batter has scored more than 100 runs off a single bowler, where ball-by-ball data is available.
• Allen has the highest strike rate in T20 history among batters with at least 1000 runs.
• New Zealand have never played a T20I at the Gabba, and have a poor historic record there across formats. They have not won a game in Brisbane in the last 20 years, their most recent victory coming in an ODI against South Africa in January 2002.

Quotes

“It’s frustrating when you’ve got the rain around in Melbourne: it was almost like English conditions there. It’s nice to come up to Brisbane where it’s a lot warmer, and we’re all looking forward to getting a full 40 overs in.”
“Our brand of cricket might not look as aggressive as them, but we need to stick to what we have done well for a period of time, and make sure we throw our own punches in our own way.”

Afghanistan kissed the World T20 goodbye by beating table-toppers West Indies by six runs in a low-scoring thriller

The Report by Mohammad Isam27-Mar-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details2:38

Chappell: Afghanistan showed WI’s weakness against leg spin

Afghanistan kissed the World T20 goodbye by beating table-toppers West Indies by six runs in a low-scoring thriller. Asghar Stanikzai had shown his hand when he said they would use spin to restrict West Indies’ big hitters on the eve of the match. Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan backed up their captain’s confidence with figures of 2 for 26 each and kept West Indies to 117 in their chase of 124.West Indies finished as the No. 1 team in Group 1 and will take on either India or Australia in the semi-final, but they will go to Mumbai with a sobering defeat. They became Afghanistan’s second Full Member scalp in the tournament, after Zimbabwe, and the match was another strong reminder that cricket needed to be more inclusive.West Indies required 40 runs from the last five overs, but Rashid had Denesh Ramdin stumped at the end of the 16th to tip the game off balance. Then it was Afghanistan who had to deal with a blow as fast bowler Hamid Hassan was pulled out of the attack. He was deemed to have bowled a second hip-high full toss by the square leg umpire, but Andre Russell, the batsman who had been struck by that ball, was rubbing his body below the waist.Gulbadin Naib finished the over with two dot balls and in the next one, Russell was run out. West Indies needed 25 runs from 12 balls when Carlos Brathwaite thumped Naib for a six over long-off but a ball later, Darren Sammy was caught at deep cover. Brathwaite freed his arms again and found another six over midwicket and wisely nudged the last ball of the 19th over for a single to retain strike. At the time, West Indies needed 10 runs off six balls.Nabi began the final over with two dots before Najibullah Zadran, who got them to a competitive score with his unbeaten 48, ran about 20 yards to his left from deep midwicket to complete a superb diving catch to get rid of Brathwaite, West Indies’ last dangerman. With the equation demanding 10 runs off three balls, Andre Fletcher, who left the field at the start of seventh over with a tweaked hamstring, came out again and could only hobble across for three singles as Afghanistan completed a historic win.West Indies had, however, begun the chase on the right note. Johnson Charles blasted Mohammad Nabi for two massive sixes in the second over. But Evin Lewis, on T20I debut, was tied down and dismissed by Amir Hamza, when the batsman slogged one down Rashid’s throat at deep midwicket.Fletcher struck Hamid and Hamza for fours through cover but Charles, on 22, was beaten by Hamid’s pace and chopped the ball onto his stumps. That’s when West Indies’ troubles began. First Fletcher left the ground with what looked like a hamstring strain and a ball later Rashid removed Samuels with a big-spinning googly.Ramdin and Dwayne Bravo added 41 runs for the fourth wicket, and seemed set to produce the one partnership a chasing team needs in the face of a low total. They took plenty of singles and Bravo crashed the legspinners Samiullah Shenwari and Rashid for a pulled four and six each in the 10th and 13th overs. It was Nabi again who brought Afghanistan back, trapping Bravo lbw in the 14th over, and took them home from there. For a spinner to bowl the last over, with only nine runs to defend, it was a spectacular effort.Things hadn’t looked particularly promising for Afghanistan when they batted. Samuel Badree and West Indies had them at 56 for 5 in the 12th over, but Najibullah persevered. Given a promotion to No. 6, he was unbeaten on 48 off 40 balls with five boundaries that included a six over long-on. His last two fours, in the final over, came via a switch hit and a crash through the covers.Najibullah added 34 runs for the sixth wicket with Nabi, who was unlucky to be caught by Marlon Samuels at mid-off after a rebound from Sammy at cover. That the ball even carried that far indicated how hard Nabi had hit his drive.Such scrapping was made necessary by Badree’s skillful spell. The legspinner, who took 3 for 14 off his four overs, bamboozled Usman Ghani with a googly, kept Mohammad Shahzad quiet and then dismissed him when the release shot – a big hoick down the ground – was taken by mid-off. Shahzad finished as second-highest scorer behind Tamim Iqbal and by the end of the night, he had even more to celebrate.

India welcome back Rohit Sharma and mull over the Umran Malik vs Arshdeep Singh question

Deivarayan Muthu06-Jul-20225:04

Do India go in to the T20I series as favourites against England?

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A mere two days after England Bazball’d their way to a target of 378 – their highest successful chase in Test cricket, at a run rate of almost five – they are getting ready to push the boundaries even further, this time in T20I cricket. After Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes ushered in the new era in grand style, it is now the turn of Matthew Mott and Jos Buttler to lay down their own marker.Mott had already taken charge of the white-ball side for the three-match ODI series in the Netherlands, but this will be Buttler’s first game as full-time captain following Eoin Morgan’s retirement. None of the members who featured in the Edgbaston Test will be in action in the T20I series opener. As much as this white-ball leg is about testing out the young ‘uns, the pre-series focus is on two old boys: 37-year-old Dinesh Karthik and 34-year-old Richard Gleeson.Related

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• Passionate, driven and leading by example – Buttler steps up

Last summer, Karthik was in England as a commentator, grabbing attention with his sharp punditry and snazzy shirts. Long before that, he came to the country as a Test opener and back-up white-ball player, but now he is here to establish himself as one of India’s best T20I finishers. Karthik made a right old name for himself in the IPL smashing fast bowling to all parts to the point that teams eventually began matching him up with wristspinners. The move worked and England will have taken note of that, especially Matt Parkinson, who will get the chance, in the absence of Adil Rashid, to show off his wares against some of the best in the business.While Karthik is in the midst of his zillionth comeback, Gleeson has earned his maiden call-up, three months out from the 2022 T20 World Cup. The right-arm seamer has had dips at the Bangladesh Premier League (Rangpur Riders), the Big Bash League (Melbourne Renegades) and the Abu Dhabi T10 league (Maratha Arabians and Team Abu Dhabi) and his ability to nail yorkers makes him an attractive option to have. Those yorkers were recently on display for Lancashire in the Vitality Blast where he closed out a tie and a one-run win. However, given Gleeson’s history of injuries and the absence of a number of frontline quicks because of injury, England might not rush him into playing three T20Is in four days.

Form guide

England LWLWL (Last five completed T20Is; most recent first)
IndiaWWWWL

In the spotlight

A stress fracture of the lower back put Sam Curran out of last year’s T20 World Cup and the Ashes, but the allrounder is rising once again, having proven his form and fitness in the Netherlands ODIs and for Surrey. Curran’s new-ball swing and big-hitting could for England once again in T20I cricket. The hosts could also play him as a middle-order floater to throw Yuzvendra Chahal off his game.Like Curran, Suryakumar Yadav is working his way back into international cricket after an injury. With Deepak Hooda firing at the top, Suryakumar only had a peripheral role to play in Ireland. He could potentially slot back at No.3 and play a bigger role against England. Or Hooda could get another go and we’ll get to see how he fares against a more potent attack.

Team news

Phil Salt and Harry Brook will tussle for the middle-order slot left vacant by Morgan’s departure. Tymal Mills missed Sussex’s final group stage games with a toe injury but is expected to be fit for this fixture after getting stitches on Wednesday. He looks set to get the nod ahead of David Willey – who was released to play in the T20 Blast quarter-finals for Yorkshire on Wednesday night – and join a three-man left-arm seam attack. The early signs are that Gleeson will have to wait until the weekend for his international debut.England (probable): 1 Jason Roy, 2 Jos Buttler (capt & wk), 3 Dawid Malan, 4 Moeen Ali, 5 Liam Livingstone, 6 Harry Brook, 7 Sam Curran, 8 Chris Jordan, 9 Tymal Mills, 10 Reece Topley, 11 Matt Parkinson1:48

Does Kohli walk in to India’s full-strength T20I XI?

India will welcome back their captain Rohit Sharma after he missed the Edgbaston Test with Covid-19. He has tested negative since and even had a net session in Birmingham. India will have to choose between Umran Malik and Arshdeep Singh, who didn’t get a game in Ireland, on the bowling front. VVS Laxman will helm the side, at least for the series opener, before Rahul Dravid takes over once again.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Ishan Kishan, 3 Suryakumar Yadav, 4 Deepak Hooda, 5 Hardik Pandya, 6 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 7 Axar Patel, 8 Harshal Patel, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Umran Malik/Arshdeep Singh

Pitch and conditions

The Southampton pitch had a light covering of grass on the eve of the game. The Ageas Bowl has some of the longest boundaries in the country and has been the third-lowest-scoring ground in the T20 Blast this season (7.93 runs per over). The average score batting first here in the Blast this year has been 165, and defending teams have won five games out of seven. The weather is expected to be warm and sunny on Thursday.

Stats and Trivia

• Buttler made his T20I debut in the same game Dravid did, in 2011.
• India’s run rate of 8.61 in the powerplay is the highest among teams who have played at least five or more completed T20Is since November 2021.
• Willey brings with him the reputation of being a new-ball specialist. Against India, he has taken two wickets in 36 balls in the powerplay while conceding only 39 runs in T20Is.
• Chris Jordan is two strikes away from becoming England’s top wicket-taker in T20Is. Rashid currently leads this list with 81 wickets.

Quotes

“There’s a few more things going on in your head: you’re thinking about a few things and maybe talking to a few more people. It’s really important to take really good care of my own game. I want to try and be a captain who leads from the front so it’s really vital I make sure my own practice and preparation is really good.”
“It’s always good to be back playing for your country and you don’t want to miss any games for your country, but certain things are not in your control. Now that I’m back, [I’m] excited and looking forward.”

“The BCCI is committed to international cricket… all bilateral international commitments across all formats will be honoured”

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Jun-2022The blockbuster IPL media rights deal will be followed by a bigger window for the IPL from the next ICC FTP calendar, likely starting with the 2024 edition of the tournament, Jay Shah, the BCCI secretary, has said.Confirming the chatter about the IPL being an 84- or even a 94-match competition in the near future, Shah said in an interview to PTI, “That is an aspect we have worked upon. Let me inform you that from the next ICC FTP calendar, IPL will have an official two-and-a-half month window so that all the top international cricketers can participate. We have had discussions with various boards as well as the ICC.”The current ICC FTP, running from 2018 to 2023, ends with the men’s 50-over World Cup, to be played in India in October-November 2023. It was earlier meant to be played in the first half of the year but had to be deferred to accommodate the many bilateral series and tournaments pushed back because of the Covid-19 pandemic.As reported by ESPNcricinfo during IPL 2022, various options are on the table for the BCCI when it comes to expanding the length – and therefore value – of the IPL, including organising it in two phases every year.”We are having discussions with various stake-holders,” Shah said. “There are also multiple proposals for all the IPL franchises of playing friendlies overseas. That idea is being seriously contemplated but for that we also need to speak to other boards as we would need to know the schedule of international players.”The biggest concern, if the IPL were to take more days every year, is how the international calendar, which is already packed, will be affected. Shah stressed that the BCCI remained “committed” to international cricket.”Indian cricket will remain strong as long as world cricket remains strong – let me assure you of this,” he said. “The BCCI is committed to international cricket. And it’s not just about India versus Australia or India versus England marquee series, we are committed to playing even the smaller nations.”All bilateral international commitments across all formats will be honoured. We are playing Ireland in two T20 Internationals this month only. We want a strong robust international circuit and want to help the smaller cricketing nations by playing against them.”That could, potentially, mean a tremendous workload for India’s premier cricketers, especially the ones that play all formats. The BCCI is trying to figure out a way around the problem, according to Shah, but it could well mean more than one Indian team being engaged in bilateral exchanges at the same time in different parts of the world.”I have had discussions with NCA [National Cricket Academy] head VVS Laxman and we will always have 50 players in our roster,” Shah said. “In future, you will have a scenario, where the Indian Test team will be playing a series in one country and the white-ball team will be engaged in a series in a different country.”We are going in that direction where we will have two national teams ready at the same time.”

A round-up of the Group A games of the Ranji Trophy 2015-16 season on October 16, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Oct-2015
ScorecardFile Photo – Arup Das and Krishna Das shared all 10 wickets from the Odisha innings•PTI

Seamer Krishna Das took 7 for 21 to bowl Odisha out for 88 and give Assam, who had made only 92 yesterday, an almost inconceivable first-innings lead. Assam then managed to cobble a total in triple-figures, finishing on 137 for 8 at stumps. The Cuttack pitch afforded 15 wickets on Thursday and 13 today, so any advantage seems vital and the visitors are 141 runs ahead.Krishna and Arup Das, who took 3 for 45, took care of all the Odisha batsmen. Only Natraj Behera and Anurag Sarangi managed to get double-figure scores and Odisha’s best partnership – 22 runs – was put on by the ninth wicket.But the help that was available to the fast bowlers meant the hosts were able to reel in some of the ground they lost. Suryakant Pradhan struck twice in the second over of Assam’s second innings to dismiss Kunal Saikia and Gokul Sharma for ducks. At the other end, Basant Mohanty removed Amit Verma, also for a duck, to leave the visitors on 13 for 3.By the 45th over Assam were 86 for 6. But coming in at No. 7 Syed Mohammad struck 42 off 158 balls with four fours to record the highest score of the match so far and perhaps tempt his team into contemplating an away victory.
ScorecardOvernight rain followed by intermittent showers on the second day resulted in only 16.2 overs being bowled in the Group A game between Bengal and Rajasthan at the Eden Gardens.The start of the match was delayed by an over hour. Resuming from 104 for 3, Rajasthan lost two wickets while putting on 38 runs. Pragyan Ojha got the first when he went through the defences of Ashok Menaria in the 43rd over while Ashok Dinda had Puneet Yadav caught for 14 in the 50th.Ojha came back to dismiss Arjit Gupta for 5 in the 59th over but then the weather intervened. Only 59.4 overs have been possible after two days. Karnatka v Vidarbha in Bangalore – Satish 81* leads VidarbhaDelhi v Haryana in Delhi – Sehwag threat looms

Four Sri Lanka batters hit quick 30s to overcome Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s 45-ball 84

Sreshth Shah03-Sep-20222:55

Maharoof: ‘Gunathilaka proved a lot of people wrong’

Last Saturday, Sri Lanka were all out for 105 against Afghanistan. Just seven days later, though, the very same batters put in a strong all-round performance – this time batting second, out of choice – to thwart Afghanistan’s challenge and complete a four-wicket win in the first match of the Super 4 round of the 2022 Asia Cup.Even though the highest individual score for Sri Lanka was 36, many of their batters chipped in, pulling their weight with a target of 176 in front of them. Kusal Mendis provided the early assault, Pathum Nissanka showed his many gears, Danushka Gunathilaka helped them shift the momentum, and as the game entered the death overs, Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Wanindu Hasaranga mauled the Afghanistan bowling to help the competition’s official hosts win with five balls to spare.However, it wasn’t all about the Sri Lanka batters. Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s special innings of 84 off 45 balls meant Afghanistan were eyeing 200 at one stage, but the Sri Lanka bowlers restricted them to a much-lower total.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Maheesh Theekshana conceded just eight runs off his two overs at the death, Hasaranga went for only 23 in his four overs, and left-arm seamer Dilshan Madushanka took 2 for 37. Overall, it was the highest successful T20I chase in Sharjah and, more importantly, gave Sri Lanka two points on the Super 4 table.For Afghanistan, it was a first T20I loss after posting a 170-plus total. They will now have to recover quickly, otherwise a slide is a realistic possibility with fixtures against India and Pakistan to follow. Rashid Khan went for 39, no other batter apart from Gurbaz looked fluent, and the 2022 Asia Cup suddenly seems very wide open.The Gurbaz show
It was an early reprieve for Gurbaz that kickstarted the Afghanistan innings’ lift-off. After hitting his first six of the day in the third over, Gurbaz tried to repeat the same on the next ball but ended up hitting it to long-off where Gunathilaka took the catch but stepped on the boundary skirting in the process.Gurbaz’s eight off five balls soon became 50 off 22 as he continued finding boundaries, preferring the region between long-on and deep midwicket most. With Hazratullah Zazai struggling to a 16-ball 12 before being bowled by Madushanka, and Ibrahim Zadran, the No. 3, slow off the blocks, it was Gurbaz’s attacking shots that brought up the team fifty in 6.1 overs.Rahmanullah Gurbaz hit four fours and six sixes in his 45-ball 84•Getty Images

The pitch was two-paced – there was the occasional low bounce – but Gurbaz rallied on to take Afghanistan to 70 for 1 by the eighth over. But no boundary in the next four overs brought Sri Lanka back into the game. Gurbaz, though, dragged the momentum back in Afghanistan’s favour by finding sixes off Dasun Shanaka and Chamika Karunaratne in back-to-back overs, and Ibrahim joined in with a few lusty blows of his own down the ground.The Sri Lankan squeeze
Karunaratne’s 21-run 14th over meant Afghanistan entered the final six overs needing only 68 more to reach 200; with nine wickets in hand, that was a real possibility. But Hasaranga gave away only six in the 15th over, and Gurbaz was caught at deep midwicket in the next while trying to take Asitha Fernando on. Theekshana’s 17th and 19th overs went for a total of eight runs, and Ibrahim fell to Madushanka, for a 38-ball 40, in the 18th.Najibullah Zadran did smack 17 in ten balls, but his dismissal, along with the quick wickets of Mohammad Nabi and Rashid in the last two overs, meant Afghanistan could add only 12 off the last 12 balls, and only 43 off the last 36.Sri Lanka’s openers put on 62
Nissanka struggled early against Fazalhaq Farooqi – their wrecker-in-chief in the previous outing – but Mendis was not afraid to take on Afghanistan’s two main spinners. His region of choice was the square boundary on the leg side against both Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Rashid, as he creamed a slog sweep over deep midwicket off the former in the fourth over and hit two sixes off the latter in the sixth, which went for 17.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Only once before had Rashid conceded 17 or more runs in his opening over in T20Is, and with Sri Lanka at 57 for no loss after the powerplay, the base was set for the middle order to take the chase forward.Mendis fell for a 19-ball 36 just after the powerplay ended, mistiming a pull off Naveen-ul-Haq to deep midwicket, which brought the spotlight on Nissanka. Nissanka looked like the anchor around whom the others would hit out, but he fell in the ninth over, for 35 off 28, when trying to chase a Mujeeb half-tracker.The middle order steps up
With both openers out in quick succession and two new batters at the crease, Afghanistan had their tails up. Gunathilaka and Charith Asalanka were watchful initially, and that saw the required run rate creep up to 9.88 after 11 overs. But Gunathilaka then attacked Mohammad Nabi, and Sri Lanka took 14 and 11 from his two overs, the 12th and 14th of the innings respectively. That ensured the required run rate stayed under ten even though Shanaka and Asalanka fell attempting big hits.2:54

What went wrong for Rashid Khan?

However, Afghanistan’s back broke when Rajapaksa hammered Naveen for 4, 4, 6 in an 18-run 16th over. The first boundary was hit past point, the next one was straighter through deep extra cover, and the best of the lot – the six – was hammered over the bowler’s head. Rajapaksa was dropped off the final ball of that over, and with the Afghan shoulders drooping in unison as a reaction, it seemed like the match was already in Sri Lanka’s pocket.Rashid then got into a chat with Gunathilaka after the batter reverse-swept him for four, forcing Rajapaksa to intervene and keep matters under control. Even though Rashid won that battle with Gunathilaka’s wicket for a 20-ball 33, Sri Lanka needed only 25 from 20 balls at that stage.Hasaranga smacked three fours off the first six balls he faced, and even though Rajapaksa fell for a 14-ball 31 trying for a glory shot when the target was two runs away, celebrations began among the Sri Lanka fans well before the winning runs were hit.

All five matches will be held at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka

Mohammad Isam22-Jul-2021The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has confirmed that Australia will arrive in Dhaka on July 29 to play five T20Is against Bangladesh, from August 3 to 9. Australia will comply with local health regulations by being quarantined in their hotel rooms for three days before they begin training at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, where they will play all five matches.”The BCB and Cricket Australia have worked tirelessly together for confirming the itinerary,” BCB’s chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury said. “Naturally this was a challenge due to the Covid-19 pandemic as ensuring health safety and security is a priority prerequisite for holding any cricket series in these times. I am pleased to say that a comprehensive bio-security plan is in place and will be implemented during the tour for the protection of players and staff of the two teams and the match officials.”

Australia in Bangladesh T20Is

• First T20I: August 3

• Second T20I: August 4

• Third T20I: August 6

• Fourth T20I: August 7

• Fifth T20I: August 9

BCB and Cricket Australia (CA) have reportedly agreed on extensive pandemic protocols that include a 10-day quarantine, which began earlier this week. Both teams will count their current bio-bubble measures on their respective tours as part of the quarantine. Match officials have already been isolated while the Bangladesh T20I team currently in Zimbabwe will go straight to the team hotel in Dhaka upon arrival. Bangladesh’s T20I series against Zimbabwe was also brought forward by a couple of days.The major protocols for this tour include Australia’s immigration process conducted separately after CA expressed reservations about exposing their touring party in a hall room inside the airport. After they go through the VIP entry and into the team bus, their passports will be processed separately.The team hotel will be completely off-limits to the public during the tour, which is reportedly a tighter plan than the BCB’s bio-bubbles for West Indies and Sri Lanka earlier this year. The scheduling of the series has been at the CA’s request: to be held at one venue over a short window.”We would like to thank our friends at the Bangladesh Cricket Board for developing a detailed bio-security plan to keep players, staff and match officials safe,” Cricket Australia CEO Nick Hockley said. “Both boards have worked extremely hard to do all we can to ensure the safety and wellbeing of everyone involved in the tour.”We are looking forward to a competitive and entertaining series in Dhaka as both teams continue their preparations for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup later this year.”Bangladesh, in the midst of a second wave of Covid-19, reported 173 deaths on Wednesday, taking the tally to 18,498 since March this year, according to the Directorate General of Health Services. According to the official data, the Covid-19 fatality rate in Bangladesh is now 1.63 percent and the current recovery rate is 84.56 percent. Bangladesh has been on strict lockdown since July 1. Although the government allowed a temporary easing of restrictions from July 15 to 22, the initial lockdown conditions are expected to return to force from July 23 till August 5.Australia fast bowler Josh Hazlewood said on Thursday that the team is familiar with the limitations of movement on tours.”We’ve had a few meetings about what it’s going to look like in Bangladesh and it’s obviously going to be quite tight restrictions and within the bubble,” Hazlewood said. “I think it’s purely going to be either at the hotel or at the cricket ground, which we’ve done before and we’re used to. It’s quite a short trip as well, which is good, so I think it’ll be no dramas, we’ll get that done on the back end of this tour.”This is Australia’s first tour to Bangladesh since their 2017 visit to play two Tests in Dhaka and Chattogram. They had cancelled their 2015 and 2016 (Under-19 World Cup) visits due to security concerns.

The National Cricket Academy could soon be shifted out of Bangalore, with Pune, Dharamsala and Mohali shortlisted as possible alternatives

Amol Karhadkar13-Aug-2015The National Cricket Academy’s restructured Centre of Excellence is likely to be shifted out of Bangalore. The NCA board, during its meeting in Delhi on Thursday, decided to move the premier training academy to a permanent facility with world class infrastructure and short-listed Pune, Dharamsala and Mohali as possible alternatives.Bangalore has been home to the NCA since it was founded in 2000. During a meeting on April 30, the NCA board, headed by MP Pandove, had held preliminary discussions over the possibility of moving it out due to impending issues over the 49-acre plot on the outskirts of the city. The BCCI had in 2013 decided to move the NCA from the Chinnaswamy Stadium premises to a new facility at Kurki, near the Bangalore airport, but the plan couldn’t take off since the plot that was bought was embroiled in a legal tangle.Pune may lose out to the two northern cities. Despite having perhaps the most modern cricket stadium in the country, the Maharashtra Cricket Association still does not have a residential academy. Mohali and Dharamsala, on the other hand, have residential academies run by the Punjab Cricket Association and the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association, respectively.Besides, some NCA board members, during Thursday’s meeting, were of the opinion that stationing the NCA in a city at a higher altitude may help cricketers increase their stamina. Dharamsala is situated roughly 1500m above sea level.The BCCI is likely to take the final call during its Annual General Meeting next month.

Travis Dean became the fourth batsman to cap off his first season with a century as his 111 helped Victoria take giant strides towards overhauling SA’s 340 in the Shield final

The Report by Daniel Brettig in Adelaide27-Mar-2016
ScorecardGetty Images

Back in October, Travis Dean was the talk of Australian cricket, as only the second man after Arthur Morris to make dual centuries on his state debut. As Victoria sought to squeeze South Australia, Dean joined another select group by becoming the fourth batsman to cap his first season with a hundred in the Sheffield Shield final.Justin Langer, Phillip Hughes and Jordan Silk are the others, and their efforts all contributed to victories. Dean helped the Bushrangers take a giant stride towards doing likewise, setting the platform for what may yet become a mighty first-innings total in reply to the Redbacks’ reasonable, but now eminently reachable 340.SA took the second new ball with four overs remaining and Daniel Worrall, the day’s most outstanding bowler, soon curled a perfect inswinger through the defences of Matthew Wade. Nightwatchman Scott Boland survived numerous uncomfortable moments before the close, including a missed chance by Sam Raphael behind point, as another vocal Glenelg Oval crowd of 2,548 rode every delivery.Aided by a fluent Peter Handscomb, Dean absorbed plenty of pressure on a cool and overcast day that lent itself almost perfectly to seam and swing bowling. His technique stood up to more or less everything Chadd Sayers, Joe Mennie and Daniel Worrall hurled at him, and it was not until the final hour that Elliot Opie was able to coax him into an edge.Dean’s occupation thwarted a bowling attack that had carried much before them this season, and highlighted the trouble with choosing four seamers on a pitch that has offered some movement but is also drying into something where a spinner can prosper. SA’s captain Travis Head was left to bowl his offbreaks a little more than he might have preferred, with Adam Zampa in India and Tom Andrews, the left-arm spinner, missing out on the final XI.The final two South Australian wickets had added only 15 on resumption, giving Sayers and company the chance to defend a greater tally than many they had successfully followed up on over the course of the season. Rob Quiney was able to get off to a swift start as several Sayers deliveries swerved towards his hip. But after those early boundaries, it was a challenging time for batsmen.Quiney succumbed when he guided Worrall low to Raphael at gully, and Marcus Stoinis was beaten first ball. Plenty of questions were asked by the bowlers, and Dean needed all his technical skill to answer them. He achieved one small victory by prompting Worrall to try a short-pitched attack, but Stoinis was unable to endure, judged by umpire Paul Wilson to have gloved a bouncer to Alex Carey behind the stumps.Handscomb’s beginning was somewhat skittish, and he survived one vehement lbw appeal from Sayers. But he showed an inclination to get the scoreboard moving more regularly, and eased the pressure on Dean by putting some back onto SA’s seamers. Gradually, some of the Redbacks’ earlier discipline wavered, and Dean was able to pick off a few more loose balls.The partnership gathered momentum after tea, as SA became increasingly fretful for a wicket. Words were exchanged between Handscomb and Head when SA’s captain fielded off his bowling and fired a throw back towards the stumps, which the batsman swatted away to the boundary by way of self-preservation. The Redbacks appealed for obstructing the field, and after some consultation between the umpires, were turned down.Dean’s well-deserved century arrived soon after, not only making some Shield final history, but also breaking a recent sequence of lean scores – 9, 11, 1, 4 and 0 before this innings. An emotional celebration was follow by further occupation, but on 111, Opie was able to find a crack in the wall to break the stand at 140. That wicket gave SA an opening, and the loss of Wade before the close left the match delicately balanced once more.