Live Report – Afghanistan v Australia
ESPNcricinfo’s live updates and analysis of Afghanistan v Australia at the World Cup
Deivarayan Muthu01-Jun-2019
ESPNcricinfo’s live updates and analysis of Afghanistan v Australia at the World Cup
Deivarayan Muthu01-Jun-2019
Glamorgan stay in line for promotion as Worcestershire resist the chase
ECB Reporters Network03-Jul-2019Glamorgan 449 and 246 for 5 dec (Labuschagne 100, Selman 58) drew with Worcestershire 370 (D’Oliveira 103) and 143 for 1 (Ferguson 70*, Mitchell 64*)Marnus Labuschagne soon reached the ten runs he needed for his second century of the match and fifth of the Championship season, but Glamorgan’s meeting with Worcestershire crawled to a draw as the visitors made no attempt to chase down their target of 326 in 66 overs at Sophia Gardens.Worcestershire ended on 143 for 1 in glorious sunshine. Ever since the first morning when Joe Leach inserted Glamorgan, his team were on the back foot and, apart from Brett D’Oiveira’s splendid all-round performance, his team lacked confidence and will need to improve if they have any hopes of a return to Division One after this season.At tea, the visitors needed a further 219 from the remaining 34 overs, and with Glamorgan employing attacking fields and the explosive Rikki Wessels next in, there were hopes that Worcestershire might have a go, but the tactics remained unchanged and the supporters – some from over the border – began to drift away disappointed with what they had seen.Glamorgan had added 109 runs during the morning session and were 325 runs ahead at lunch when David Lloyd declared.Labuschagne failed to add to his hundred when he swept D’Oiveira to deep square leg, and after Nick Selman had completed two fifties in the game, and Lloyd went for 12, Dan Douthwaite struck a brisk 40 before departing shortly before lunch.Worcestershire lost Josh Dell for 1 in Lukas CareGlamorgan Head Coach Matthew Maynard said “I thought it was an excellent cricket wicket although it didn’t break up as much as I thought it would. I thought we had a chance, but Worcestershire weren’t interested which was a bit surprising as they had some quality batsmen to come.With five championship games to go we stand a good chance of promotion, but after Middlesex it will be all T20, and after that back to red ball cricket”.y’s second over, but Daryl Mitchell and Callum Ferguson soon settled into their productive partnership against a Glamorgan attack that had minimal assistance from a placid pitch.Ferguson reached his fifty from 75 balls, but Mitchell failed to show any attacking intent and faced 24 more balls than his partner to reach a painstaking fifty.Glamorgan gained 13 points from the game to remain unbeaten and stay in contention at the top of Division Two, while Worcestershire took 10 points ahead of next week’s game against Derbyshire at Kidderminster.Glamorgan head coach Matthew Maynard said: “I thought it was an excellent cricket wicket although it didn’t break up as much as I thought it would. I thought we had a chance, but Worcestershire weren’t interested, which was a bit surprising as they had some quality batsmen to come. With five Championship games to go we stand a good chance of promotion.”
Bangladesh allrounder wants team management and board to be in sync with cricketing decisions
Mohammad Isam01-Aug-2019Shakib Al Hasan thinks it’s time for Bangladesh to adopt a rotation policy to ensure their top cricketers remain fit and refreshed. He wants the players, coaching staff and the BCB to be on the same page should such a policy come into effect.”When these breaks are in place, you can give more opportunity to players and you will have players in the pipeline as well,” Shakib said. “So we have to plan by looking at the bigger picture. I am just talking about part of it, but we will definitely discuss this in more details.”I will give you an example from India. Their players had the least injuries in their history last year. One of the main reason was their rotation policy. It helped them build many players who got exposure. At the same time, their players were fresh when they came to the side. Everyone, including Virat Kohli, got rested for one of the formats.”Shakib, who was granted a break by the BCB for the short ODI series in Sri Lanka, also wants the players to come forward and tell the team management that they are not fit enough. He also called for the coaching staff, including the physio and trainer, to gauge when a player is not fit to play a match or series.Bangladesh got through their World Cup campaign with several injured players including captain Mashrafe Mortaza, Mahmudullah, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mustafizur Rahman and Mosaddek Hossain.The BCB, however, had named all of them in the initial 14-man squad for the recently concluded Sri Lanka series which the visitors lost three-zip. Changes were made when Mashrafe aggravated his hamstring injury during a training camp while Saifuddin’s back problem persisted, and both had to be replaced on the eve of their departure to Colombo.Batting and bowling weren’t up to the mark in the three-match series but Bangladesh’s lackluster performance was as much down to poor body language and several fielding errors. It suggested that many of the players were tired after a long World Cup and since performance and fitness are so closely connected, Shakib said that breaks are imperative.”A player can’t play all the time, they need to take breaks. The responsibility falls on both sides. It is also the responsibility to understand. A player is saying that I need or a break, or the coaching staff is telling a player, you need a break. So both sides must understand.”Before the Sri Lanka-bound squad was named, there was a strong case for the BCB to give few players a break to allow them to regain fitness and form. Shakib said that giving established players breaks would also mean that there would be opportunities to test fringe players.But he also stressed that to avoid controversy, the communication should be clear between the players, coaches and the cricket board. “If we are to do this, we must have very good coordination between coaching staff, board and players,” he said. “Otherwise there will be criticism if the right message is not sent.”Shakib, however, remained hopeful things can turn around in Bangladesh cricket if a long-term plan is put in place.”I am sure the BCB are planning for the next three or four years. We have already appointed two coaches, and once all of them get together, the BCB can put forth their strategy. If we can work together, I think our cricket can go forward like it did in the last four years.”
On Monday, the interim committee running ZC had issued a statement instructing all employees, other than those suspended, to report for work or face consequences
Liam Brickhill30-Jul-2019The war of words between the interim committee running Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) and the ousted board has continued apace, and the divisions in the country’s cricket community are widening.On Monday, the interim committee running Zimbabwe Cricket issued a statement instructing all employees, apart from the board originally
suspended by the Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) last month, to report for work on Thursday or face “legal” and “disciplinary consequences”. Their statement appeared to be directed mainly at the administrative and logistical staff.On Tuesday, ZC struck back with a statement of their own, calling the interim committee’s release “condescending, reckless and inappropriate” and denying the legitimacy of the committee.While Zimbabwe’s contracted cricketers are also ZC employees and included in the committee’s initial directive, the national men’s squad is not actually in training at the moment and it is the domestic off-season. The women’s side, meanwhile, are currently in training, clinging to their hopes of making it to the Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifiers in Scotland at the end of August. Their team manager has said they have not heard from the interim committee.This is not the first time that the SRC and the interim committee have tried to get ZC employees back to work. They had initially hoped for employees unaffected by the SRC’s sanctioning of Tavengwa Mukuhlani’s board to return to work by the end of June, but when this did not happen, SRC chairman Gerald Mlotshwa accused Mukuhlani of “sabotage” and of orchestrating the stay-away. Since then, ZC’s offices have remained empty, although a few press releases reflecting the standpoint of the ousted board have been issued through the usual channels.The interim committee’s statement marked their first official public communication. It called the releases that have been issued through ZC’s channels “fraudulent”, unless they bore the signature of interim managing director Vince Hogg, or that of Dave Ellman-Brown, the interim committee’s chairman.”Employees and the public are advised to ignore fraudulent press releases purporting to emanate from Zimbabwe Cricket,” the committee’s statement read. “No such press release has any legal authority unless it bears the undersigned’s signature or the Signature of Chairman of the Interim Committee.”ZC’s response held little back. “We would like to make it very clear to Mr Hogg and the interim committee that appointed him that no amount of threats will cow us into submitting to an administration without legitimacy,” read ZC’s statement.”Our position is clearly informed by the fact that the International Cricket Council (ICC), the supreme custodian of the game of cricket, does not recognise the interim committee,” ZC’s statement continued, going on to emphasize the ICC’s directive to reinstate Mukuhlani’s board if Zimbabwe want the suspension to be lifted.”In the meantime, as players and staff we refuse to be used as pawns in the interim committee’s power grab scheme,” concluded the ZC statement which had ostensibly been drawn up during a “consultative meeting” between players and ZC staff in Harare on Tuesday.Yet it seems that the playing body at large is not fully united behind the board in their battle against the interim committee and the SRC. Most players are seeking not to get drawn into either side’s corner and simply want to be allowed to play cricket again.ESPNcricinfo spoke to several Zimbabwean cricketers on Tuesday evening, most of whom did not attend any meeting – or even invited – and weren’t consulted before ZC’s statement was released. Many did not back ZC’s statement attacking the interim committee, but some did. One invited player who said they couldn’t attend, but did agree with the sentiments of ZC’s statement. Some simply did not respond to requests for comment, even on condition of anonymity.There are clearly strong differences of opinion forming and while battle lines continue to be drawn and the stalemate between ZC and the interim committee continues, the collateral damage is mounting up.Four members of the women’s side have been stopped from taking part in the Global Development Squad fixtures, and Zimbabwe’s participation in either of the T20 World Cup Qualifiers hangs by the thinnest of threads – indeed, under suspension they simply cannot take part.Furthermore, Langton Rusere, who last year made history when he became the first Zimbabwean umpire to stand in the final of a major global cricket tournament at the Women’s World T20 final has now been barred from officiating during the upcoming West Indies v India series, having originally been part of the umpiring panel.
Waqar Younis also returns as bowling coach but there are likely to be conflict of interest queries around Misbah’s appointment
Umar Farooq04-Sep-2019Misbah-ul-Haq has been handed unprecedented influence over Pakistan cricket, with the PCB confirming his appointment as coach of the national side, as well as – uniquely – chief selector. Pakistan’s most successful Test captain will also be reunited with Waqar Younis, who has been named bowling coach. Waqar was head coach twice during Misbah’s near-seven-year tenure as captain, the pair working well together in registering some of Pakistan’s finest successes in the period. Both have been given three-year contracts.Speculation had been rife about Misbah being appointed for a while now – though both positions were advertised publicly, the PCB actively chased Misbah. He delayed applying formally for the position and the reason, ESPNcricinfo understands, is because of yet another role he is due to take up: that of the PSL side Islamabad United’s head coach. Eventually, Misbah applied hours before the deadline, was interviewed, and ended up beating Mohsin Khan and Dean Jones, who had also applied. From being a shock candidate to take the captaincy less than a decade ago, Misbah is now, arguably, the most powerful man in Pakistan cricket.Applications were not especially abundant. Waqar was the only one who turned up for the interview after another shortlisted candidate, Mohammad Akram, withdrew at the last minute. This is Waqar’s fifth term with Pakistan in a coaching capacity, having served as bowling coach of the side in 2006-07, bowling and fielding coach briefly in 2009-10, head coach in 2010-11 and again from 2014 to 2016. The end, when it had come, wasn’t a pleasant one as he resigned three months before his contract was to end after a poor World T20. He will be replacing Azhar Mahmood, who was released alongside Mickey Arthur, the previous head coach, after the World Cup this year.ESPNcricinfo
If Misbah’s multiple roles weren’t already a talking point – and he was part of the selection of all province squads for domestic cricket too – he was also part of the very committee that reviewed Arthur’s tenure after the World Cup and then decided to not renew his contract. Now, in effect, one of those responsible for the decision to release Arthur has succeeded him.The PCB had used a five-member panel with two independent former cricketers – Intikhab Alam and Bazid Khan – as well as governing board member Asad Ali Khan, Wasim Khan (chief executive, PCB) and Zakir Khan (director – international cricket) for the recruitment process.The board had also sought candidates for the batting coach role, but didn’t shortlist the only applicants – Mohammad Wasim and Faisal Iqbal. Both were ignored and with Misbah at the helm, the PCB has decided to call in an assistant coach from the NCA as support staff.Of Misbah’s numerous roles, his position as head coach of a PSL franchise and the national team raises questions of a potential conflict of interest – much in the way it had with his predecessor. Arthur was also coach of Karachi Kings during his time as Pakistan coach. The matter was taken up by Ehsan Mani after becoming PCB chairman and he promised to form a policy on dual roles that caused potential conflicts of interest.Before becoming chairman, Mani had questioned the situation of national coaches working with domestic teams. But with Misbah now holding three roles, a definitive position on the issue may not be forthcoming. Last year, under Mani, the PCB did remove chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq from the PSL player draft committee because of a potential conflict of interest since he was involved with a talent-hunt programme run by one of the tournament’s franchises, Lahore Qalandars. Tauseef Ahmed, part of the national selection committee while also serving as Islamabad United’s spin coach, was also left out of the PSL draft committee.The first assignment of the Misbah-Waqar combination will be the upcoming three-ODI and three-T20I home series against Sri Lanka, which will be played from September 27 to October 9. Their first series in the World Test Championship will be in Australia, where Pakistan will play in Brisbane (November 21-25), followed by a day/night Test in Adelaide (November 29 – December 3).
The next week or so holds the promise of being a momentous one for the club with Championship and T20 titles on the line
Alan Gardner20-Sep-2019It is the business end of the season, and Essex are threatening to get busy. The next week or so holds out the promise of being a momentous one for the club. Modestly resourced but tightly run from their endearingly ramshackle Chelmsford HQ, the culmination of the summer brings opportunity on two fronts – a rare chance in the modern county game to enjoy simultaneous first-class and limited-overs success.It is more than a decade since Sussex last managed to combine winning the Championship with taking home one-day silverware as well, beating Lancashire in the 2006 FP Trophy final. Currently top of Division One, Essex know they are in a scrap to hold off Somerset and claim a second title in three years; but before that denouement in Taunton, Vitality Blast Finals Day and the chance of a maiden T20 trophy.Such an outcome looked more than a long shot back in August, when they had won just two of their first ten games. Essex were “dead and buried”, says Ryan ten Doeschate, captain of the Championship side and a vastly experienced old lag in T20. Then came three wins and a tie from the last four and something in the universe aligned – not since the Blast had switched to a 14-game season, had a team sneaked through to Finals Day on such meagre rations.Also read: ‘Young players win you games, but experience wins you titles’ – GurneySuccess had not been signposted by Essex’s recent T20 form, either. Last season brought just two victories and a seventh-place finish in the South Group, while the most recent of four previous Finals Day appearances came in 2013.Ten Doeschate has been involved in them all, though none was particularly memorable from an Essex perspective. “Is it four?” he asks, furrowing his brow. On each occasion – against Leicestershire in 2006, Kent in 2008, Hampshire in 2010 and Northants six years ago – Essex were beaten in the first semi-final. The joke going around this time is that, with their game against Derbyshire scheduled for 2.30pm on Saturday, this is already the furthest they have been in the competition.Ten Doeschate handed over the white-ball reins for this season to Simon Harmer, the former South Africa Test offspinner who has played such a vital role in Essex’s Championship push. Harmer has overseen the return to Finals Day contention, with a largely similar squad to previous seasons – aggressive opener Cameron Delport the one significant addition.It took a while to find the right balance for the team, with Varun Chopra eventually omitted and Tom Westley moving up to open alongside Delport. There have also been new roles for ten Doeschate and his old mucker, fellow Finals Day veteran Ravi Bopara, further down the order. But they seem to have found a formula at the right time.”What’s most exciting is we’ve turned things around with pretty much the same personnel,” ten Doeschate tells ESPNcricinfo. “The last few years has been a bit of a struggle, Harmy coming in has shaken things up. The fact we haven’t had two overseas for a lot of the games – the way the young guys have stepped into their roles.”He’s created a belief. He’s gone with the approach, ‘This is what we’ve got, we’ve got to make it work’. I think he’s instilled a lot of confidence, particularly in the young guys. He wants the batters all to be positive, the change we’ve made a) in the batting order and b) personnel, I think that’s made a big difference.”Essex will have to cope without their overseas players at Edgbaston on Saturday, with Adam Zampa and Mohammad Amir both unavailable (Amir missed almost half of the group stage with visa issues anyway). Netherlands seamer Shane Snater and young left-arm spinner Aron Nijjar have been added to the squad, and aside from ten Doeschate, Bopara and Adam Wheater, who went to Finals Day on more than one occasion with Hampshire, most of those on the bus up to Birmingham will be experiencing the occasion for the first time.”The fact that most of the guys haven’t been to it is probably a good thing, we’ll go there tomorrow and it won’t play on too many peoples’ minds,” ten Doeschate said. “The experience some of us do have, particularly myself and Rav, we’ve played a lot of games and hopefully we can spread that through the squad and prepare the guys for tomorrow. The fact it’s been a season for turning things around, and we’ve done it against the odds. The position we were in with four games to go, we were dead and buried, virtually no way we could make it. That’s a nice way to go into a final.”It was ten Doeschate and Bopara who were in the middle together as Essex sealed a quarter-final win over North Group winners Lancashire a fortnight ago. With 344 and 329 T20 appearances respectively, as well as experience in the IPL and beyond, they will hope to provide the big-match savvy as Essex seek that first semi-final success.Ravi Bopara and Ryan ten Doeschate celebrate after beating Lancashire in their quarter-final•Getty Images
“There are very few games at Essex I’ve played without Ravi in the team. So it’s always special to go out to bat with him. We are getting on, so we keep saying ‘One more time, one more time’. But the form he’s been in, and his approach to the game in the last six weeks – we don’t like to single people out, but he’s played a massive part in getting us to this stage of the competition.”As to whether Essex are overdue a limited-overs title, having last won the FP Trophy in 2008, ten Doeschate points out how difficult it is to combine success across the formats. Essex, of course, won the Championship in 2017, having been promoted the year before, and have set their store by red ball in recent years. Of the three other teams at Finals Day, Nottinghamshire have already been relegated in the Championship, while Worcestershire and Derbyshire are in the bottom four of the second tier.”There’s not many teams who do well in both formats,” he said. “This year’s a prime example. There’s a lot of merit in saying it’s hard to win both. But it’s great that we have an opportunity to go there and win a cup that’s long overdue.”With a rare double in prospect, can Essex be the exception that proves the rule? Ten Doeschate smiles and shakes his head. He will be 40 next year and hopes to still be playing for the club he joined in 2003 – whatever happens over the next week won’t change his view.”To dwell on results isn’t healthy. I think the club can be immensely proud of what the team’s done this year. The change in fortunes in white ball is something to be very proud of – and again the way we’ve competed in red ball. I’m not too focused on where we end up. It’s five days – I’m not going to let five days define whether I think it’s been a good season or not a good season. I think it’s been a great season, and the chance to win two cups is fantastic. Of course we want to give it a crack.”
Marcus Harris, Joe Burns and Usman Khawaja will duel for a top order spot for the Pakistan Tests
ESPNcricinfo staff29-Oct-2019Jhye Richardson is set to be unleashed against the touring Pakistanis in Perth alongside fellow firebrand Riley Meredith for Australia A. Alex Carey will lead ahead of recent Test vice-captain Travis Head, and Marcus Harris, Joe Burns and Usman Khawaja will duel for a top-order spot.In one of the strongest Australia A teams chosen to face a touring side in quite some time, Will Pucovski and Nic Maddinson will also take part, alongside a four-man pace attack that also features Sean Abbott and Michael Neser. The Australian team for the first Test at the Gabba will be named at the end of the match and the concurrent Sheffield Shield round.
Alex Carey (capt/wk), Marcus Harris, Joe Burns, Usman Khawaja, Will Pucovski, Travis Head, Nic Maddinson, Michael Neser, Jhye Richardson, Sean Abbott, Riley Meredith
The selection could be an indication that Australian cricket is developing the sort of depth that the selectors have been seeking for some time. Cameron Bancroft is absent after playing two Tests on the Ashes tour, while Kurtis Patterson is still recovering from a quad injury. Tom Cooper, Shaun Marsh, Marcus Stoinis, Daniel Hughes and Moises Henriques were also left out despite strong starts to the Sheffield Shield.Carey’s selection as captain underlines his leadership credentials, with the national selector Trevor Hohns recently telling ESPNcricinfo that he would “seriously like to see” the wicketkeeper leading South Australia.”Alex Carey has proven himself to be an exceptional leader in his role as vice-captain of the Australian men’s One-Day International and Twenty20 International teams,” Hohns said. “This fixture represents an opportunity to provide Alex with more leadership experience and he will be supported by two experienced vice-captains in Usman Khawaja and Travis Head.”In terms of the batting line-up, we were eager to give Khawaja, Head and Marcus Harris another opportunity to push their respective cases for Test selection this summer given all three were part of our winter Ashes campaign. Joe Burns was an unlucky omission for that tour to the UK and deserves a chance to push his case for Test selection in this tour match.”Additionally, Will Pucovski and Nic Maddinson have started the season strongly for Victoria and we’re looking forward to giving them an opportunity to perform against a quality international team. Both are exciting batsmen whom we’ve had our eye on for some time.”Richardson was a standout performer in his first two Tests against Sri Lanka in Brisbane and Canberra last summer, before injury wrecked his Ashes chances. He now has the chance to push for a place in the Test squad alongside Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and James Pattinson.Abbott’s selection follows his call-up into the Australian T20I squad against Sri Lanka as a replacement for the injured Andrew Tye, and rewards him for a series of strong bowling displays under the tutelage of New South Wales bowling coach Andre Adams.”The pace attack is similarly strong. Sean Abbott has been a very good performer for NSW for the last couple of seasons and has improved with both ball and bat,” Hohns said. “Riley Meredith is an exciting young prospect and a wicket-taking option, while Jhye Richardson continues to improve in his return from shoulder surgery. And Michael Neser has started this season in excellent form after touring with the Ashes squad through the winter.”We’ve taken into account local conditions as well as individual requirements when selecting this Australia A XI. We have not selected a spinner because we felt they would receive limited opportunities in a three-day day-night fixture in Perth compared to a four-day Sheffield Shield match.”We will closely monitor performances in this match as well as the coming rounds of the Sheffield Shield before deciding upon our squad for the two-Test series against Pakistan.”
“No need to panic” insists England captain, despite innings defeat in Mount Maunganui
ESPNcricinfo staff25-Nov-2019A failure to capitalise on a solid foundation in the first innings cost England dearly in their defeat in the first Test against New Zealand, Joe Root has admitted.England were well-placed at 277 for 4 on the game’s second morning, before Ben Stokes’ dismissal set in motion a collapse of four wickets for 18 runs, and an eventual score of 353 all out. Root told Sky Sports afterwards that “getting into the position we did and not kicking on is probably what cost us the game”, but defended his side’s performance, insisting that there was “no need to panic” despite another crushing defeat away from home.”We missed an opportunity, if we’re being brutally honest,” he said. “You look at the two [first] innings in comparison: two of their guys went on and made really big contributions. We had a couple of guys play really well, but could have done with making those big scores – making a score over 450, really.”That was a big opportunity for us that we missed. There were probably a lot of similarities where we had them four or five down for the score where we finished on day one… the difference being they had a guy with a double-hundred and someone support him with a hundred.”We had three guys [Stokes, Joe Denly and Rory Burns] play very well. [I’m] not trying to take anything away from our boys – we played extremely well, we just have to do it for longer, do more of it, and make those nineties, seventies and fifties into two hundreds and hundreds.”ALSO READ: Watling innings reignites questions about England’s gameThe build-up to this series was dominated by Root’s declarations that England would revert to an old-fashioned method in Test cricket, with a batting blueprint that involved occupying the crease for long periods after a couple of years playing “in fast forward”. And England’s captain insisted that there was no need to panic ahead of the second Test at Hamilton, saying that defeat should not be considered “the end of the world”.”It’s not going to happen overnight,” Root admitted. “It’s quite different to the style of cricket we’ve had to play in our own conditions of late, so it is going to take a little bit of time. There are areas that we can address, and get better at, and we’ll have to look at very quickly.”We have to be honest with ourselves, not panic, not think that it’s the end of the world, and make sure that we continue to work really hard. It’s a mentality thing more than a technical thing – it’s a mindset thing. So trying to harness that early and trying to learn from mistakes like this game and move on very quickly from it… if we can do that, then we’ll see rapid improvement.”I can’t fault the effort from the guys. I think we tried extremely hard. It’s very easy to look too in-depth at the things we could have done better and not give credit to the opposition, who played very well.”Root admitted that several dismissals in the second innings had been “soft” – including his own, as he tamely steered a Colin de Grandhomme bouncer to gully – but said that it was important to give credit to New Zealand’s “very disciplined bowling attack”.It was a frustrating day for Jofra Archer•Getty Images
He also echoed Jos Buttler in defending Jofra Archer’s underwhelming performance in his first overseas Test. Archer finished with figures of 1 for 107 in 42 grueling overs, and was repeatedly used as an enforcer.”He’s obviously an extremely exciting talent, and [has] got a huge amount of skill,” Root said. “[But] he’s a young guy at the start of his career. He’s come onto the international scene and taken it by storm, but this is a new ball [the red Kookaburra] that he’s never bowled with before, completely foreign conditions for him, and it might take a little bit of time to adjust to that and get used to that.”Having too much an expectation for him so early in his career is a very dangerous thing for us as a team, and us as guys around him that know what he’s capable of. I think we’ve got to be quite patient and understanding that he’s not going to get it straight away.”
The head coach defends tactics after team gets bowled out for 106
Mohammad Isam at Eden Gardens22-Nov-2019Bangladesh’s decision to bat first in Kolkata may look unwise after they were blown away for just 106, but it is the type of boldness that coach Russell Domingo said he wants to bring to the dressing room. Conventional cricketing wisdom certainly went with Bangladesh but there was also the perception that an inexperienced batting line-up was left to take on a red-hot fast bowling unit.That plan which had already played out poorly for the visitors in Indore but Domingo said doing anything other than putting runs on the board would have been a negative approach.”Obviously, it was a terrible day for us but I really think it is important to understand that Bangladesh are not just here to serve up balls for India,” he said at the end-of-day press conference. “I know everyone was hoping Bangladesh can bowl first so India can get 400-450. But that’s not why we were here. We think the best way to win a Test match in India is to bat first. Ninety-nine per cent of the time you bat first in the sub-continent, on a good wicket. We have no qualms with the decision to bat first.”ALSO READ: Bangladesh batting falls flat on big occasionIn time, Domingo hoped Bangladesh can approach big games as calm as they approached the T20s earlier this month, when they won the Delhi game to go 1-0 up in the series.”When we won the first T20, our dugout was calm and no one was jumping up and down. It is a conscious thing we are doing, by not being surprised when beating India. It has to become something that we expect to do. When you win the toss in India, doesn’t mean we will bowl first because we are scared of getting bowled out. We are trying to make those brave decisions that will benefit us in the long run. There’s going to be some hurt and disappointment now, but hopefully we can continue making those brave decisions and it will ultimately help us.”Domingo said that the big gap in experience and performance between the two sides is making a big difference in this Test series. He cited the example of Virat Kohli having more Test centuries than the entire Bangladesh team to explain the gulf between the two line-ups. Domingo said that no matter how well they were prepared for the pink ball, that gap would not have shortened in a week.”I wouldn’t say we were underprepared for the pink ball. India had similar time to train. There’s a big difference between the two sides, regardless of six or seven days of preparation for the pink ball.”We are a long way behind in Tests. Virat Kohli has 26 Test hundreds while our whole team has 16 or 17. We have to address that, going forward,” he said.Domingo said that the batting line-up is short in confidence too, and they have a number of issues to deal with, which will take time to get over. “There’s lack of confidence. There’s lack of experience against this type of attack week in, week out. It is a bit of mental, technical and confidence.”It was not a 30-over all out wicket. There’s no doubt that we didn’t bat well enough. We are facing some really world-class bowlers and coming short. We have to deal with a whole host of issues at the moment.”
The 32-year old fast bowler has a more rounded bowling arsenal and that will be vital as he goes up against India’s batting might
Deivarayan Muthu22-Jan-2020Hamish Bennett had made his Test debut along with Kane Williamson in 2010. He bolted into New Zealand’s World Cup squad the next year and later, in 2014, he gave Virat Kohli a proper workout in tied ODI with his searing pace.Bennett nailed the hard lengths and stopped Kohli from pulling or driving in a sequence of back-to-back maidens. Then, he had the batsman nicking off with a 143kph rocket that took off after landing on the pitch. Kohli v Bennett: 1 off 16 balls at a strike rate of 6.25.Fast-forward to 2020: Williamson and Kohli are now international veterans and world beaters. Bennett, meanwhile, is preparing to make his T20I debut in the series opener against India at Eden Park – the scene of his incredible burst against Kohli.This Kohli is a white-ball monster. These India players are, as Ross Taylor put it, rock stars. Former batting coach Craig McMillian calls them the real deal. New Zealand, though, are missing several of their first-choice seamers, including Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult and Matt Henry. In their injury-enforced absence, they have turned back to Bennett, who is a also a changed cricketer.He’s no longer a one-trick pony, who just bounces out batsmen. He has overcome multiple injuries and has transformed himself into a well-rounded white-ball bowler, and is currently the holder of both the 50-over Ford Trophy and the 20-over Super Smash titles.ALSO READ: Southee backs New Zealand to bounce back from Australia set backIn the final against Auckland Aces earlier this week, where the Wellington Firebirds were defending 168, he began his spell in the Powerplay with a brace of lifters, having Martin Guptill ducking and weaving. Then, when Bennett missed his lengths and went too full, Guptill planted his front leg and cracked him for a brace of fours.Having conceded 11 runs in his opening over, he came back strongly in his second, the fifth of the innings, and had Colin Munro nicking behind with a back-of-a-length delivery that seamed away. Guptill, though, settled down and rebuilt the innings with Craig Cachopa, pushing the Aces to 82 for 3 in the 12th over.Bennett hit hard lengths once again and mixed it up with his offcutters to hike the required rate close to 12. One such offcutter, reared off the pitch and took the splice of Guptill’s bat before streaking away towards cover prompting the batsman to just see off the bowler’s third over.Hamish Bennett exults after getting rid of Virat Kohli•Associated Press
With wickets falling around him, Guptill aimed to take the chase deep, but with the Aces needing 52 off 18 balls, he had to go for broke. And he happened to run into Bennett again. When Bennett bowled length and outside off, Guptill lined him up and smoked him over midwicket for six. Bennett went much fuller the next ball and Guptill helicoptered it, MS Dhoni-style, with his strong wrists. The ball seemed destined to sail over the midwicket boundary, until Logan van Beek pulled off a stunning relay catch. The wicket was down to van Beek’s brilliance at the edge of the boundary and some luck, but the pressure created by Bennett earlier had also played a part. The Aces’ gun batsman was gone for 60 off 53 balls. Game over for them.All told, Bennett has been among the most consistent T20 bowlers in New Zealand over the past couple of seasons. He has 26 wickets in 20 games at an economy rate of 8.06. Kyle Jamieson (30 wickets), Mitchell McClenaghan (27), his Firebirds team-mate Ollie Newton (27), Ajaz Patel (27) and Blair Tickner (27), have picked up more wickets than him but they have come at greater cost. In this season alone, Bennett has bagged 17 wickets in 11 games at an economy rate of 7.20 and emerged as the leading wicket-taker.He has also been in fine form in the Ford Trophy and has developed a reputation of being a bowling leader at Wellington, after a decade-long stint at Canterbury. The switch up north has switched his fortunes as well, and in the absence of Boult and co. Bennett is likely to shoulder the bowling load for New Zealand along with Southee.”He has done extremely well in white-ball cricket for Wellington – not only the T20s but the one-day stuff as well,” Southee said of Bennett on Wednesday. “He has earned his recall and it has been a while and he knows his game now. He’s a little bit older and I’m sure he’s excited about the challenge and he probably is bowling as well as he has ever in his career. Pleased for him, [I’ve] played a bit of cricket [with him] when I was younger. So, nice to see him still trucking in and getting another opportunity.”The environment is pretty good, the guys can come in and someone like Hamish, he feels comfortable when he comes in. And he’s able to be himself, which I think helps going forward in the field. You’re relaxed and if you feel welcome, then I guess it makes the transition easier out onto the field with your mates.”Bennett doesn’t want to put too much pressure on himself and instead just wants to enjoy his cricket, a shift in mindset that gave him a second wind after moving to Wellington.”I’d never given up on playing for New Zealand. I don’t think anyone does,” Bennett told the New Zealand Cricket website. “You just have to keep plugging away. For me, I just enjoy playing cricket. I don’t live and die by New Zealand selections, but I’m still trying to be the best cricketer I can be.”Now, at 32, Bennett will have another crack at Kohli at Eden Park again, and a chance to find a second wind in his chequered international career.