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The new-ball partnership of Kyle Mills and Michael Bates picked up three wickets each to help bundle Canterbury out for 107 and set up a seven-wicket win for Auckland

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Nov-2013
ScorecardFile photo: Kyle Mills was effective with the new ball, taking 3 for 14•AFPAuckland bounced back strongly from a loss to Wellington yesterday as they dusted Canterbury off by seven wickets, and with over eight overs to spare at Eden Park.Canterbury won the toss and elected to bat, but the opening bowlers, Kyle Mills and Michael Bates, were all over the top and middle order as they were reduced to 31 for 6 in the eighth over. Tom Latham, batting at No. 4, anchored the innings somewhat with his 26, but fell to Kyle Mills in the 15th over. Some late hitting from Matt Henry (29) and Todd Astle (17) ensured Canterbury were able to cross 100, but they were dismissed for 107. Mills and Bates each finished with three wickets apiece.Auckland began positively, with the openers putting on 31. But when Anaru Kitchen fell for a 13-ball 23, Canterbury sensed an opening as Henry dismissed Martin Guptill and Luke Wright off consecutive deliveries to leave the home side at 41 for 3.But Craig Cachopa and Gareth Hopkins saw off the rest of the chase with an unbeaten 67-run stand. Cachopa was the top scorer with 41 off 21 balls, which included five fours and two sixes. With this result Auckland move to third place in the table, tied on eight points with Wellington, but are ahead on net run rate.

Tamim Iqbal and Robiul Islam have plouged lonely furrows as opening batsman and new-ball bowler for Bangladesh in Tests. Mushfiqur Rahim, their captain, hopes his team can find more depth in those roles

Mohammad Isam07-Jan-2014Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim wants his opening batsmen and pace bowlers to make best use of the two longer-version matches later this month. The Bangladesh Cricket League (BCL), a first-class competition that starts next week, will provide the players match practice ahead of the Test series against Sri Lanka, even if they get just two games each.It will be the players’ first taste of first-class cricket since the second Test of the home series against New Zealand nearly three months ago and Mushfiqur believes the longer format is the best place for Bangladesh to improve in two vital areas. Bangladesh’s second opener and fast bowlers were ordinary against New Zealand, and he is worried that the middle order and the spinners will come under pressure if the trend continues.Two partnerships of 39 were the best that the openers managed against New Zealand. Tamim Iqbal scored two half-centuries but Anamul Haque had a poor outing, which brought his place under question. Mushfiqur isn’t keen on dumping Anamul but wants to see the young opener, who is averaging just 10.66 in three Tests, return to form.”There’s nothing better than match practice,” Mushfiqur said. “BCL has the four best teams, which means the level of cricket will be quite good, and competitive. We haven’t played Test cricket for a long time, so it will definitely help us. In terms of batting, we want the top-order give us a good start.”Sometimes the entire batting line-up doesn’t click so it is important to give a good start; what if there’s a lower-order collapse? Tamim and [Anamul Haque] Bijoy know what to do. Bijoy in fact did well recently in the Twenty20 tournament, so I am hopeful of them coming good together.”Tamim has led a lone battle at the top of the order since scoring 53 and 84 on debut against New Zealand in 2008. Starting with those two innings in Dunedin, he has made 18 out of 21 scores of 50 or more by Bangladesh’s openers, which includes all four of their centuries.Tamim – and Bangladesh’s openers, consequently – hasn’t scored a century since his 103 at Old Trafford in June 2010. The last fifty to come from an opener other than Tamim was Nazimuddin’s 78 against Pakistan in December 2011, but he has faded away swiftly since. The last 100-plus opening partnership came more than three years ago when Tamim and Imrul Kayes did it twice against England in 2010. Kayes isn’t on the scene anymore but has been among the runs in domestic cricket recently.Fast bowling is Mushfiqur’s other concern. While Robiul Islam gave a glimmer of hope with his Man-of-the-Series performance in Zimbabwe, the same can’t be said about the other seamers. Robiul was injured in the New Zealand series, prompting the team management to rest him for the second Test and the subsequent limited-overs leg. Over the two Tests, Rubel Hossain and Al-Amin Hossain took just two wickets in 60 overs.Rubel, however, bowled well in the ODIs against New Zealand, famously picking up a hat-trick in a six-wicket haul in the first game. Al-Amin too has been in the news with his bowling in Twenty20s. But they need to come good in Test cricket, where Rubel averages 78 per wicket and Al-Amin has bowled in just one innings.”The pace bowlers too need some work,” Mushfiqur said. “There will be enough opportunities to better these areas in the two matches, and the practice sessions afterwards.”We will look at pace bowling closely. They have to take at least eight of the 20 wickets needed to win a Test match. Otherwise the opponent will be planning very well against spin. [Robiul Islam] Shiplu bowled well away from home, Rubel [Hossain] is doing well and we also have Al-Amin [Hossain]. Even if they don’t take wickets and just bowl economically, that would really help us.”In 2013, the selectors tried seven pace bowlers, of whom Robiul topped the wicket charts. Abul Hasan is on an extended injury layoff while Shahadat Hossain and Sajedul Islam were risked for just one Test each. Curiously, they have kept aside Ziaur Rahman, a seam-bowling allrounder who took four wickets in his debut Test in Zimbabwe. He has been labelled a limited-overs player, but Ziaur has shown a knack of contributing when it matters. Although a knee injury has cut down his pace drastically, he can still do a holding job in home conditions, with the added advantage of batting in the lower order.Bangladesh’s other source of confidence, according to Mushfiqur, is their recent record against Sri Lanka. The drawn Galle Test was the first between the two sides, after 12 straight Sri Lankan wins. Bangladesh also beat them at home in an ODI for the first time, levelling the 3-match ODI series.”There isn’t any fear factor,” Mushfiqur said. “They have a good record against us but we are confident after doing well in their conditions last year. We now believe that we can do well against them. Throughout last year we have played well, so this is a chance for us to start the New Year on a good note.”

Jeroen Smits, the former Netherlands wicketkeeper, has resigned from his position on the KNCB board with immediate effect as he felt accountable for the team’s poor performances in the World Cup Qualifiers, where they finished seventh

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Jan-2014Jeroen Smits, the former Netherlands wicketkeeper, has resigned from his position on the KNCB board with immediate effect. A press release from the KNCB indicated that Smits, the technical director of “top cricket” in Netherlands, felt accountable for the team’s poor performances in the World Cup Qualifiers in New Zealand, where they finished seventh.”The Netherlands team faces a new period of at least four years outside of top-flight cricket. A new Dutch team will have to be built up,” Smits said. “That’s a task that needs new faces”.An old-style wicketkeeper who could bat a bit, Smits was one of the most dependable members of the team’s 2003 and 2007 World Cup sides. He made 44 international appearances, including 38 full ODIs, and has 49 dismissals behind the wicket to his credit. He had been a member of the board since December 2012, having previously served as the chairman of selectors.

Nigeria landed in Colombo on Sunday for a nine-day tour during which they will play four Twenty20s

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2014Nigeria landed in Colombo on Sunday for a nine-day tour during which they will play four Twenty20s. Sri Lanka Cricket said it was hosting the Nigeria national team to “uplift the standard of cricket of the Associate Members of ICC”.The tour by Nigeria comes three months after Kenya had played seven Twenty20s in Sri Lanka. The opposition for Kenya had been a strong Sri Lanka A team which included the likes of Dinesh Chandimal, Lahiru Thirimanne and Shaminda Eranga.Over the last month, Sri Lanka had also hosted Afghanistan’s training camp for the Asia Cup.

Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara have lashed out at SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga for his handling of the news of their retirement, soon after they landed in Sri Lanka following a victorious World T20 campaign

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Colombo08-Apr-2014Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara have lashed out at SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga for his handling of the news of their retirement, soon after they landed in Sri Lanka following a victorious World T20 campaign. In response, SLC issued a statement refuting Jayawardene’s “unsubstantiated accusations against the secretary”, saying Ranatunga had not commented on the matter at all.*The manner in which their retirements were made public caused controversy, when chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya expressed deep disappointment at not having been made aware of the retirements first. Sangakkara had announced his retirement in a one-on-one newspaper interview, while Jayawardene did so via the ICC’s Twitter mirror campaign, in the week before their first official match.”I’m very disappointed that without asking us what we had said about our retirements to any media, our board secretary went to the media and made certain comments about us,” Jayawardene said. “If he had been a responsible person, he would not have done that. He would first have asked us what we had announced.”Jayasuriya later reconciled with the Jayawardene and Sangakkara, after he had spoken at length with the players. He had put their disagreement down to miscommunication – a sentiment Jayawardene agreed with.”We later spoke to the selector who had also made comments, and he had also been told that we had announced our retirements. However, we hadn’t said that. We had said this was our last World T20, that’s all.”I’ve now brought a letter with me saying I’m retiring from World T20, and I’ll hand that over. But I’m very disappointed about the way we were put into that mental state before a tournament like this, by the person who is responsible. That’s the true story.”While the board admitted Jayasuriya had “personally expressed his point of view purely from a selectors perspective”, Ranatunga, it said, “had not volunteered any statement to the press regarding Mahela Jayawardene’s decision to address the media regarding his apparent retirement”. “Sri Lanka Cricket, as an institution, regrets such unsubstantiated accusations leveled against the hony. secretary … by a senior member of the national team without verifying the facts at a public forum.” However, the board would take no further action, the statement concluded: “Sri Lanka Cricket will make no further releases on this subject matter and shall treat this matter as closed.”When pressed for his thoughts, Sangakkara said he agreed completely with the views Jayawardene voiced.”When I was asked by the newspaper, I said this was my final World T20. Neither I, nor Mahela, went out of our way to make these announcements – we just answered questions that were asked of us. Luckily, we were able to clear it up with the one person we had wanted to talk to – chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya. Once we talked to him, it became clear to him and both myself and Mahela what had actually happened. We aren’t responsible for what happened.”Sangakkara had clashed with Ranatunga in October last year, over his Champions League representation, while Jayawardene had a run-in with the board at the end of 2012, about a confidential letter to SLC that had been leaked to the press. The players are also presently engaged in a contracts dispute with the board, after they had demanded SLC reinstate a players’ share of the payment SLC receives from the ICC, for global-event participation.10.30GMT, April 9: The article has been updated with the SLC’s response.

Naman Ojha’s unbeaten 65 guided Central Zone to a win in a tricky chase against East Zone in the quarterfinals of the Deodhar Trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Mar-2014
ScorecardNaman Ojha’s unbeaten 65 guided Central Zone to a win in a tricky chase against East Zone in the quarterfinals of the Deodhar Trophy.Central were floundering at 82 for 5 in the 18th over, losing their middle order to Rahul Shukla and Laxmi Ratan Shukla who struck in successive overs. Ojha then steadied the innings, stitching partnerships with Piyush Chawla (24) and Karn Sharma (22). His 84-ball innings, which contained seven fours and two sixes, enabled Central to chase down the target in 43 overs.Earlier Chawla’s five-for, which included a spell in which he struck in four successive overs, restricted East Zone to 194 after they had chosen to bat.The only substantial partnership East managed in their 46.2-over long innings was the 39-run stand between Kumar Deobrat and Laxmi Shukla for the sixth wicket. The pair took the side to 141 for 5 but once Shukla was out, the lower order could offer little resistance, losing their last four wickets to Chawla for 24 runs .

Watching Kumar Sangakkara bat could never be described as a chore but his grit was of material value to Durham as they quietly applied the sleeper hold to Sussex for their fourth draw of the season.

Alan Gardner at Hove14-May-2014
ScorecardKumar Sangakkara made his first century for his temporary county•Getty ImagesWatching Kumar Sangakkara make a hundred could never be described as a chore, even though some prefer the more delicate strokeplay of his long-time Sri Lanka batting buddy, Mahela Jayawardene. Sangakkara has a little bit more of the streetfighter about him and, although Hove is perhaps not a cauldron of enmity for visiting opponents, his grit was of material value to Durham as they quietly applied the sleeper hold to Sussex for their fourth draw of the season.Paul Collingwood, Durham’s captain, was happy to allow Sangakkara an extended centre-wicket practice session, having declined Sussex’s offer of an innings forfeiture to set up a run chase. That would have meant Durham attempting to get 369 in 96 overs but Collingwood was happy to pursue a few more bonus points and preserve his team’s unbeaten record – even if that means the champions remaining uncomfortably close to the bottom of Division One.Mark Robinson confirmed that Sussex “wanted to have a game” but he was respectful of the polite snub. He was a little more perturbed about not being able to field Chris Jordan for the second match running. Jordan was ruled out of last week’s trip to Old Trafford due to his involvement in the Scotland ODI and the ECB asked for him to sit out this match as well due to a concern about over-bowling.Sussex have back-to-back T20 games at the weekend, before England’s players link up again ahead of the Sri Lanka series. Jordan took part in a 2nd XI T20 fixture on Wednesday, specifically to practise his death bowling, and Robinson described him as a rhythm bowler who performs better when he is playing regularly, although he was pragmatic about the situation.”Peter Moores is the England coach, he’s trying to protect an asset, I want my asset playing here to win a game,” he said. “The county game needs its best players playing, where possible. At times it won’t be possible.”In Robinson’s words, Sangakkara was “the biggest winner out of the day”. His 159, spread over six hours and many more minutes in the dressing room while the rain fell on Tuesday, was his highest first-class score in England, surpassing two centuries for Warwickshire against Durham in 2007 and 153 in a tour match at Chelmsford three years ago. His only Test hundred in this country also came in 2011, a match-saving 119 in Southampton, and this short-term spell in county cricket has been aimed at improving on a mediocre record here.He has been keen to express his gratitude to Durham for their part in the deal and the brief time spent sharing knowledge with young team-mates in the dressing room will doubtless have been beneficial. This innings was also the main plank in securing Durham four batting points – though they fell short of the maximum haul during the 11-ball scramble for eight more runs that followed his dismissal.There was much for a generous-minded crowd to applaud when Sangakkara finally fell on the stroke of tea, reward for Steve Magoffin, who had seen him dropped in the slips on 20 the previous day. Sangakkara had steadily grown in fluency, with his first fifty taking 116 balls (and being completed around 24 hours after his innings began); the next took 76 and the final 55.Sangakkara now has a few grey strands in among his black tousled hair – perhaps that was why Scott Borthwick referred to him as a “cricket badger” after their century stand on the third day – and this was a wise old knock. Every time he was beaten, or dropped the hands to nullify an edge, he recalibrated his batting senses and got back on with the job at hand. Luke Wright was breezily flicked for six, Ashar Zaidi clubbed a little more ruthlessly over the short, leg-side boundary. His footwork was sure and his striking, for the most part, crisp.His partnership with Collingwood was worth 144 in less than 30 overs as Durham hit the accelerator after losing Borthwick, for his overnight 84, and Michael Richardson. Collingwood unpacked his boxfresh cover drive again, at one point hitting six boundaries in 11 balls, though he had no regrets about declining Sussex’s offer. “I thought it was a bit early in the season to go hunting for victories,” he said.His mood was further improved by the suggestion that Graham Onions’ back problem may not be as bad as first feared. He said that the “scans look positive” after Onions’ trip to see a specialist and the seamer could be fit to play again after an injection.Although the poor weather that sluiced away much of the previous two days was chiefly responsible for condemning this game to a draw, the pitch was a willing accomplice. By the end, Ben Brown was having his first-ever bowl in senior cricket, with Michael Yardy filling in behind the stumps. Without the sight of Sangakkara to enjoy, most joined the surface in nodding off to sleep.

Sarwar Imran has been appointed Bangladesh’s assistant coach for the India series next month

Mohammad Isam24-May-2014Sarwar Imran has been appointed Bangladesh’s assistant coach for the India series next month. Since the newly-appointed head coach Chandika Hathurusingha is supposed to arrive on June 10, Imran will be in charge of the 23-member training camp that begins on May 26.The three-match ODI series begins on June 15, which would give Hathurusingha very little time to get acquainted with the team. Imran is expected to help him out in that regard. Akram Khan, the BCB cricket operations committee chairman, did not give a timeframe for Imran’s appointment.”We have appointed Imran as assistant coach for the upcoming India series,” Akram told ESPNcricinfo. “Since Hathurusingha arrives on June 10, Imran will begin the training from Monday. He has been Bangladesh’s coach previously. He will be with the team till the India series, and then we will take it from there. “Imran, a highly-respected figure in Bangladesh cricket, was coach of the last two Dhaka Premier League champions, Victoria Sporting Club and Gazi Tank Cricketers, while also having had multiple stints with the national team previously.He was Bangladesh coach in 2000 when the team played its inaugural Test match, after Eddie Barlow fell ill. Later he was in charge during a tri-series between Bangladesh, India and South Africa and a two-match Test series against South Africa in 2003, after which Dav Whatmore took over. Imran was also Bangladesh’s bowling coach on various occasions.Akram said the hunt for the bowling and fielding coach was progressing well. “We have lined up a few coaches, and we are still in discussion with them. Hopefully we will finalise someone soon,” Akram said.

Zaheer Khan wants Ishant Sharma to take over from him as the leader of India’s fast-bowling group

Nagraj Gollapudi30-Jun-2014Zaheer Khan wants Ishant Sharma to take over from him as the leader of India’s fast-bowling group. Ishant, according to Zaheer, has enough experience to be able to guide his fast-bowling colleagues during India’s five-Test series in England. Of the six frontline seam bowlers in India’s squad, Ishant is the only one who has toured England before. Zaheer, who has been part of three England Test tours, missed out on selection with a side strain.”It is Ishant who has played the most number of matches and he has been around for a while,” Zaheer told ESPNcricinfo. “It is time he steps into that role. For Bhuvi [Bhuvneshwar Kumar] and [Mohammed] Shami, it is their first (England) tour so they will look to Ishant and [bowling coach] Joe Dawes for inputs to perform in those conditions.”Despite having played 55 Test matches, Ishant hasn’t really shown signs that he could be looked at as the bowling captain. He has only played four Tests in England, during India’s 2011 tour, during which he took 11 wickets. Incidentally, it was Praveen Kumar who led the attack – after an injured Zaheer limped out of the tour after just 13 overs in the first Test – and finished the series as India’s best bowler, with 13 wickets in three Tests.Ishant was India’s best bowler in the two-Test series in New Zealand earlier this year, with 15 wickets at an average of 25.13, and bowled diligently during the South Africa tour before that. Zaheer, though, was present on both tours to mentor Ishant and Shami.Zaheer was impressed with Shami, who he said possessed “very good pace” and complemented the rest of India’s seam attack very well. “I was also impressed by someone like Mohammed Shami, who was able to perform the pace bowler’s role very nicely,” Zaheer said. “For a successful bowling unit you require a good fast bowler with very good pace and Shami has that. And that helped me cope with my workload. You do need a balanced bowling attack. You can’t have bowlers with similar styles. It was a perfect combination we had, I felt. Ishant, being a very tall guy, adds that extra bounce on helpful pitches. If conditions are suitable for swing, I come in and also bring the experience.”Shami was once again the pick of the bowlers in the Indians’ first warm-up match, a three-day game against Leicestershire that finished in a draw. Although Shami remained wicketless, he hurried the batsmen with his speed and movement and was able to make use of the overcast conditions much better than his senior partner Ishant. Ishant started with a no-ball – he finished with an embarrassing count of seven in just nine overs – and was constantly riled by Indian fans from the sidelines. Zaheer pointed out that a long series always provide the potential to settle in, and it would help India’s fast bowlers to play as many matches as possible. “If you hit a good rhythm a series like this is the best thing that can happen to a bowler,” he said. “Play as much as possible. It is important to get the confidence of bowling in those conditions and the two practice matches are crucial for the bowling unit to get used to the conditions and hit the ball in the right areas.”Zaheer said he would dearly miss being part of the Test series, having been part of three England tours in the past and played a key role in winning the 2007 series with 18 wickets. During the New Zealand tour, Zaheer said, the team management had told him to stay prepared for the England tour and manage his workload accordingly. He suffered a side strain during the IPL, however, and is still four weeks from being able to bowl again.”That was the whole plan (playing in England),” Zaheer said. “I have been working towards this tour for the last year. I was focusing on Test matches. Even through the IPL my routines were working towards the England tour. Considering all that it was disappointing to miss out. I just hope that Indian team does well on English soil.”

New Zealand A pulled off their second win in as many days, an emphatic dismantling of Sri Lanka A to follow victory over England Lions, giving them control of the triangular series

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Aug-2014
ScorecardTom Latham struck 64 from 56 balls as New Zealand A completed a comfortable win (file photo)•AFPNew Zealand A pulled off their second win in as many days, an emphatic dismantling of Sri Lanka A to follow victory over England Lions, giving them control of the triangular series. Their bowlers were again impressive, with Doug Bracewell and Ish Sodhi sharing seven wickets, before rattling through the chase with more than 30 overs to spare.The Sri Lanka A innings got off to a solid start, reaching 43 before Bracewell took the first of his three wickets. Hamish Bennett removed the other opener, Mahela Udawatte, in the following over but Sri Lanka A progressed to 84 for 2 only for the innings to really to unravel.Bracewell had the Sri Lanka A captain, Ashan Priyanjan, caught behind for 20 and dismissed Bhanuka Rajapaksa in the same over. Dinesh Chandimal, the other set batsman, fell to Colin de Grandhomme one ball later, with the score still on 84, and Sodhi then got involved as Sri Lanka A slipped to 101 for 7.Sodhi, whose 4 for 10 came off six overs, broke a stand of 31 for eighth wicket by having top-scorer Seekkuge Prasanna caught for 24, as the innings was wrapped up with 15 overs to spare. The New Zealand A bowlers managed six maidens between them, with only Bennett going at more than five runs an over. While seven of the Sri Lanka A batsmen got into double figures, none could go on to build a substantial innings.If there were any fears about the state of the Bristol pitch, New Zealand A’s openers allayed them by racing to 85 inside ten overs before Hamish Rutherford fell for 38. Tom Latham completed an aggressive half-century as Sri Lanka A used eight different bowlers and, although Dushmantha Chameera took two in two balls, the result was never in doubt.