Harry Gurney on his first England shirt, the biggest joker in the Notts dressing room, and the best fast food

Interview by Jack Wilson17-Aug-2014Assess your England career to now.
Very enjoyable and very humbling. It’s with a great deal of pride that I’m playing for my country. I’m desperate for it to continue for far longer.You have played a lot of short-form cricket for England. What are your ambitions?
I’d love to play Tests one day. That would be massive for me – but my ambitions are more short term. I want to go to the World Cup with England in Australia and New Zealand next year and win it.At the start of the 2009 season, you had to win back a contract at Leicestershire having been dumped by them. Now you are an England regular. It has been some turnaround, hasn’t it?
It has. It was one of those moments where I had to swallow my pride a little bit. They decided I had to come back and earn a contract. I just got my head down and worked hard.You are one of a number of players to swap Leicestershire for Nottinghamshire. What problems do they have keeping their top talent?
At the moment it’s difficult for them to attract players. That’s the main problem. But the complaint that players leave for more money elsewhere and that’s why they’re going is rubbish. That’s not true at all.Where is your first England shirt?
It’s tucked away with all my others but I’ll get it framed. I’m not massive on mementos, although I do have all the balls I’ve taken five-fors with, a ball I took a hat-trick with, and the shirt I wore when we won the CB40 final.Which format of the game is most enjoyable to play?
I enjoy playing T20 the most. You get to play in front of good crowds week in, week out. But, saying that, celebrating a good four-day win is the most satisfying thing in domestic cricket.Who is the greatest left-armer to have ever played the game?
Before I answer this, I’d like to say my knowledge of the history of cricket is absolutely abysmal!Let’s change the question. Who is the best you have seen?
The one I’ve enjoyed watching the most is Ryan Sidebottom. He’s been tremendous.Describe your batting in one word.
Destructive.Do you enjoy batting?
Well, that depends. If the bowler is bowling less than 85mph then yes. If it’s above 85mph, I’d say no. I work on my batting a lot in training.What is the secret to bowling the perfect yorker?
Practice, simple as that.Who is the best lookalike in the Nottinghamshire dressing room?
James Taylor – he looks like Barry Manilow.

“Celebrating a good four-day win is the most satisfying thing in domestic cricket”

Who is the biggest joker?
Luke Fletcher. He’s always messing around, chucking stuff off the balcony and winding up the gaffer [Mick Newell].Who is the the most intelligent?
Well, that’s me by a country mile.And the least intelligent?
I could name five who haven’t got any GCSEs.Name one.
Samit Patel.Who eats the most at teatime?
Again, Samit Patel.Who was your childhood hero?
Cricketing-wise, Dale Steyn.What is the best meat to have in a roast dinner?
I’d have to say I’m a chicken man myself. Yep, chicken – but breast, not leg.And the best fast food?
It’s between two. It’d have to be a Big Mac meal from McDonald’s or an Italian BMT from Subway.On a night out, how long would it take you to mention you are a cricketer?
Getting me on a night out occurs once in a blue moon. But on the rare occasion I do, I never mention it!

Mahela Jayawardene’s farewell innings was not his most fluent, but at the end of it all, there was no wistful lingering or sentimentality – just a typically restrained acknowledgement of an exhilarating ride

Andrew Fidel Fernando at the SSC17-Aug-20146:56

Giles: Jayawardene was a run-accumulator who drove you to despair

The farewell innings had not been perfect. At times in his career a Mahela Jayawardene hundred seemed almost inevitable at the SSC, but throughout his stay at the crease on day three and four, he was some way from his fluent best.Still, he had endeavoured to deliver most of his vintage shots, mostly on day three. He had cover-driven Wahab Riaz, late cut Abdur Rehman and slog-swept Saeed Ajmal. The upper cut, the on-drive and the inside-out shot over cover had all been played with success, too.Having gone to stumps yesterday on 49, an expectant crowd had come on a cloudy day to watch him make 50 at the very least. He defended his first four balls of the morning, then paddle-swept the fifth for four to reach the milestone. The crowd was on its feet. Firecrackers went off for well over a minute. But in the middle, Jayawardene had acknowledged the applause with typical restraint.Moments earlier, Sangakkara had hit the two runs the pair had required to complete their 19th hundred-run stand, and, if nothing else, the SSC saw its heroes meet each other mid-pitch one final time for that familiar soul-brother handshake.Sangakkara was out first on Sunday, and he waved his bat as he left the field – unusual, because he had scored only 58. Was he acknowledging the end of the great alliance with his friend? They finish second on the all-time list for batting pairs with 6554 runs together, but their average of 56.5 together is comfortably the highest among batting pairs who have made more than 5000.But was Sangakkara saying goodbye to more than just his partnership with Jayawardene? With no Tests in Sri Lanka for almost a year, home crowds may have seen the last of him with the bat, too.Jayawardene’s last act with the bat brought a hush from those who had come to watch him, but in many ways, the end fit the man. Saeed Ajmal has dismissed him more than any other bowler in Tests. He was also getting substantial turn and bounce, removing Sangakkara in his previous over. But for 17 years, Jayawardene has had an incurable itch to attack; to dominate the bowling, often when the odds were stacked against him.On 54, Jayawardene danced out of his crease for one final time, aimed a stroke over mid-on, and mistimed it, having not got to the pitch of the delivery. Ahmed Shehzad tracked the skied ball from midwicket, before completing a tumbling catch around mid-on.There was no wistful lingering, no sentimental hanging around. Jayawardene walked off the field as the SSC rose to its feet. Only in the last 20 paces before crossing the rope did he raise his bat, and soak up the applause for one final time as a Test batsman. For the crowd, and for the man, the last 17 years had been some ride.

So far in his short career, Mominul Haque has walked the walk and talked the talk that should have Bangladesh fans hoping he is a match-winner in the making

Mohammad Isam in Chittagong15-Nov-2014The position immediately below Don Bradman’s 99.94 on Test cricket’s batting average charts is a temporary seat for successful beginners. If batsman starts off with a century or a double, or goes on to hit a few in his first few Test matches, he is just a step down from Bradman, people notice. But, eventually, that average inevitably begins to come down. The latest batsman to occupy that spot is Bangladesh’s Mominul Haque, with an average of 63.05 after his unbeaten 131 against Zimbabwe in Chittagong.Of course, Mominul has had a 50-plus average since his fourth Test, but he is only 23 innings into his career and, like all those others before him, being second only to Bradman is not likely to last too long for him either. Still, his position looks awesome and sounds amazing to any Bangladesh fan.And that average is a fair reflection of his unique temperament among his peers. Mominul’s strokeplay, too, and the confidence with which he lays bat on ball, is also starting to standout. The two drives between extra cover and mid-off early in his innings today, his body position while playing drives off the backfoot through mid-on, and the sweeps, pulls, tickles and cuts … it all made for great viewing pleasure.His journey in Test cricket has not been as effortless. Mominul had got to a half-century six times this year before today, and only one of those he converted into a hundred – on all five other occasions, he was out before getting into the 60s. Mominul had to find out a way to get out of the fifties.It was something as simple as having fewer negative thoughts that worked for him, he said after the day’s play in Chittagong. And despite a brisk start – he got to 50 off 69 balls – he did not lose concentration, even willing to battle it out for 22 balls after getting into the nineties before he hit the four that got him to his fourth century.”It really feels great to be able to do something for the team,” Mominul said. “I try in every game to make some contribution. I didn’t want to lose concentration. I wanted to play ball-by-ball, session-by-session. I was less negative today. I had fewer negative thoughts, which possibly helped me get the runs. The wicket was good. I tried to attack, dominate their bowlers.”I didn’t make any technical changes in my batting. It was mostly tactical. I think about my batting when I am on my own. I try to overcome the areas which are not helping me, which were holding me back. It is not a lot of things that I think about. It is better to stay normal and take on less pressure. But now that it has happened, I am saying this. If I hadn’t scored a century, I wouldn’t be able to say it.”To put his 131 into perspective in terms of match situation, compared to his previous three hundreds, Mominul was cruising in Chittagong rather than navigating through choppy waters. His 181 and unbeaten 126 against New Zealand last year came when replying to a large score and trying to save a Test match respectively. Against Sri Lanka, when he scored his third century, an unbeaten 100, it came on the final day with the opposition pushing for a win.This time, he was allowed to bat with the freedom provided by a 165-run cushion and against a bowling attack that was running on empty. It was his third century in three Tests in Chittagong, and he duly pointed out that it would be unwise to expect him to score big every time he turns up at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium.”I have scored three of my four centuries at this ground, but it doesn’t mean I have to score a hundred here every time,” Mominul said. “It is a matter of luck. If it happens, it happens. I don’t think much about it. There was no extra pressure on me.”But I worked out why I was getting out in the fifties. I tried to do something more to go past it. And when success comes to a player, the responsibility rises. Now there is expectation on me, and it is steadily rising.”That attitude of Mominul’s is quite refreshing for those who have got used to Bangladesh cricketers showing early promise, followed by a display of bravado, only to experience the inevitable come-down. Mominul is experiencing the first part of that process, but his personality hasn’t allowed him to move on to the second, so far. He will not be Bradman’s sidekick for too long, but the fact that he has not got carried away by his early success can only be good for Bangladesh.

Stats highlights from the fourth ODI between England and Sri Lanka at the R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo

Bishen Jeswant07-Dec-2014115 Number of ODIs hosted at the R. Premadasa Stadium, Colombo, the fourth-most at any stadium, overtaking the Harare Sports Club (114). The only venues to host more ODIs are the Sharjah Cricket Stadium (216), the Sydney Cricket Ground (144) and the Melbourne Cricket Ground (138).90 Runs scored by James Taylor, his maiden ODI fifty. He had only played two previous ODIs, both against Ireland, in 2011 and 2013, scoring 1 and 25 respectively in those games.93 The partnership runs between James Taylor and Joe Root for the third wicket, England’s best for any wicket this series. England had two partnerships of exactly 84, for the first and sixth wickets, in the third ODI at Hambantota.1020 Runs scored by Kumar Sangakkara in 2014, the third most by any batsman. The two others to score more than 1000 ODI runs this year are Angelo Mathews (1183) and Virat Kohli (1054).4 Number of consecutive years where Sangakkara has made 1000-plus ODI runs in each year. He is the first Sri Lankan, and third batsman overall, after Kohli and Saurav Ganguly, to achieve this feat. Sangakkara made 1127 runs in 2011, 1184 in 2012, 1201 in 2013 and 1020 in 2014.30 Sixes hit by Jos Buttler in 40 ODIs, the most by an England wicketkeeper. Craig Kieswetter had hit 29 sixes in 43 ODIs.9 Number of wickets taken by the Sri Lankan spinners during England’s innings. This is the seventh instance of Sri Lankan spinners taking nine or more wickets, including an instance where they took all ten. Five of these seven instances have been at home, and two of those against England.3 Number of Sri Lankan spinners who took three wickets each – Rangana Herath, Ajantha Mendis and Tillakaratne Dilshan. This is only the second instance in ODIs of three spinners taking three or more wickets in the same innings. The only other instance of this happening was by Bangladesh against Zimbabwe in 2009.1527 Runs scored by Mahela Jayawardene against England in ODIs. He is one of only three batsmen to have scored 1500-plus ODI runs against England, the others being Viv Richards (1619) and Ricky Ponting (1598).

Last week Irfan Pathan bowled for the first time in a first-class game after two years. Relieved with his comeback, he is now focused on getting through the season and helping Baroda progress to the knock-out stage

Amol Karhadkar12-Jan-2015Between November 2012 and January 2015, Irfan Pathan played only three first-class matches as a specialist batsman, the result of a long struggle with injury. Last week, for the first time in more than two seasons, Irfan made a comeback with the ball, opening the bowling for Baroda in their Ranji Trophy match against Uttar Pradesh. In the lead-up to the match, there was controversy over reports that Irfan had threatened to leave Baroda if he wasn’t picked but by the end of the game, that stress had been forgotten and was replaced by relief and the creation of new goals for the season.”It was good to be playing again, doing what I love the most. Really looking forward to the rest of the season,” a relieved Irfan told ESPNcricinfo. “When you play after a long layoff, there is always anxiety whether everything will fall in place. That went really well. In fact, contributing to the team’s cause made it perfect. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to return to the field.”Irfan scored 98 in Baroda’s first innings and finished with a match haul of 3 for 70 runs off 29 overs. More than his batting, the fact that Irfan has resumed bowling augurs well. In October-November 2012, Irfan played seven days of first-class cricket – for India A in a tour game against England in Mumbai, followed by a Ranji Trophy game against Karnataka in Vadodara – before an injury breakdown.He recovered from his shoulder injury in time for IPL 2014 – where he played 10 matches for Sunrisers Hyderabad – but did his knee in during the Twenty20 league and was ruled out for more than six months. During that time, he worked with Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala, his orthopaedic consultant, and physio Ashish Kaushilk who had also helped him through the injury lay-off in the previous season. He resumed bowling in December and is hoping to be fit for the remainder of Baroda’s league matches.While he was glad to return to the field for Baroda, Irfan said he was disappointed with some Baroda Cricket Association officials who had reportedly tried to portray him in bad light. Reports suggested that Irfan had threatened to leave Baroda if he was not included in the squad for the match against UP.”It was disappointing to see some of the dressing-room discussions being made public, that too with a negative tone,” Irfan said. “The selectors and the BCA wanted me to prove fitness, which I did by playing two three-day club games. Still, some of them were raising doubts unnecessarily, so I told them that five associations are interested in hiring me. If Baroda cricket, which will always remain my first love and first priority, does not want me, then I might as well move on.”But it was a statement made in the spur of the moment. That’s why it hurts that it appeared in the papers, that too on the first day of the match. But I have discussed the episode and I am glad everyone involved in it is mature and we have decided to move on.”Irfan was happy that his performance in the match justified his selection. His returns bettered the performances of Praveen Kumar, RP Singh and Munaf Patel, who also featured in the game.”Of the four India pace bowlers playing in the match, I was the most successful pacer. That is something for me to be happy about,” Irfan said. “More importantly, the fact that my brother [Yusuf, who picked six wickets in the first innings] and I played a crucial hand in Baroda’s first victory of the season matters a lot to us.”Before the game against UP, Baroda had five points from three games and were placed seventh on the Group A table, in danger of relegation. However, the 10-wicket win against UP has lifted them to second place in the group and they are now in contention for the knock-out stage.Helping Baroda qualify for the quarterfinals is Irfan’s prime objective now. On a personal note, he has set himself a target of 20 to 30 wickets from five games and hopes to get noticed by the national selectors again”The target [of wickets] may vary depending on the conditions. The wicket in Lucknow was low and slow so pacers had little role to play in it,” he said. “Whereas, I have been hearing some of the pitches are really conducive for seam bowling this season. So the personal goal is bound to change depending on the conditions.”

Far from assuming the role of plucky underdogs, Ireland were forced to deal with unexpected pressure of being heavy favourites against UAE

Daniel Brettig25-Feb-20151:56

‘Was confident we’d pull it off’ – Wilson

Ireland were in the unfamiliar position of runaway favourites for a World Cup match. Then the UAE were in the even less familiar position of having a match against a higher ranked team more or less in their keeping. Finally, both sides were in the uncharted territory of a thrilling encounter that sustained the attention of the globe like no other match at this tournament so far.Associate nations have to learn to be resilient. They suffer for a lack of funding, facilities and fixtures. Many players must juggle jobs. But seldom do they have to cope with the sort of expectation that has now settled upon Ireland at this event.They had not just squeaked past the West Indies but beaten them with plenty of room to spare. They look a more settled unit than Pakistan, a team they have of course defeated before. And they carry the torch for cricket’s second tier with passionate play and equally forceful words, as demonstrated by William Porterfield on match eve.In a match against a Full Member country, Ireland can keep a low profile, play to their limits and hope that things will run their way. Often enough in ICC events they have done so. But against the UAE, a team they had not lost to since 2001, there was a requirement to go into the contest knowing they should win, and knowing that all spectators and viewers fully expecting them to do so, and handsomely.Such a scenario can do strange things to the mind, the hands and the feet. First of all, at the unfamiliar Gabba, the captain William Porterfield elected to send the UAE in to bat, even though the surface looked brimful of runs and locals could attest to the ground’s propensity for more extravagant swing and nip off the pitch in the evening. Porterfield stuck to what Ireland have known best as an accomplished chasing team, but his choice left the bowlers to toil in warm conditions and in the absence of much movement.Next Shaiman Anwar, a middle order dynamo who was flushed with confidence after notching his highest ODI tally against Zimbabwe, made more than a few members of the Ireland attack look pedestrian after the UAE had slipped to 78 for 4 and then 131 for 6.In particular, Anwar drove Kevin O’Brien to distraction by moving laterally across the crease, causing the bowler to stop in his run-up several times and also deliver a motley collection of wides and other loose offerings that the batsman leapt eagerly upon. A chase for 279 was at least 40 more than expected. His first ODI hundred, and the first by a UAE batsman in the World Cup, had the feel of victory.There was a heaviness to Ireland’s early progress in the chase that conveyed further anxiety. The new balls zipped and curved in the early evening air, Manjula Guruge doing a decent enough impression of Chaminda Vaas by alternating inswing with away slant and accounting for Paul Stirling in the process.Ireland suddenly had a weight of expectation on them against UAE•Getty ImagesEd Joyce was exceptionally lucky when Amjad Javed struck his off stump but the corresponding bail refused to fly off, but even this rare moment could not prevent Ireland from fretting to 97 for 4 thanks to some nifty spin bowling by the ageless Mohammad Tauqir.Intriguingly though, the development of a scenario in which Ireland were no longer favoured to win proved to be the making of their victory. Suddenly minds were clarified by a simple, steep equation, much as they were on that memorable night in Bangalore. Alongside Andy Balbirnie, Gary Wilson set a platform, and once the younger man was dismissed for 30, O’Brien reprised his England burst while Wilson scurried busily between the wickets.It was an exhilarating stand, changing the game in the course of six overs and 72 runs. Wilson enjoyed the recognisable support at the other end from O’Brien.”A few people have mentioned that to me now,” he said afterwards. “I’ve batted a lot with Kev over the last 10-15 years, last year with Surrey and then with Ireland. We dovetail really nicely – I poke it for one and he hits it out the ground, so it’s great!”Perhaps not surprisingly, the team’s return to a favoured position brought another seemingly reflexive wobble, as O’Brien, John Mooney and Wilson fell to leave the cool-headed George Dockrell to smite the sealing boundary. Wilson spoke of how his team were unhappy to have let the match get as close as they did, but equally that they were sustained by a handsome record in chasing.”It was obviously closer than we wanted it to be definitely, but we’ve been in this position before at a World Cup and chased down totals before, and I think that really stood us in good stead,” he said. “We knew that if a couple of us were there until close to the end we would have a pretty good shot at winning.”Chasing is familiar but favouritism is not so common. For their next assignment, against South Africa in Canberra, Ireland will once again be cast as resilient outsiders. After the travails of a thrilling Brisbane evening, it is a position they will relish once again.

Against South Africa in a mutli-nation tournament in 2013, is how Shikhar Dhawan revived his ODI career. He will now face the same opposition while trying to revive some form this time

Abhishek Purohit in Melbourne19-Feb-2015The towering stands of the Melbourne Cricket Ground instantly give you a sense of occasion. Even as the South Africa team played football at the start of their training session at the ground, multiple groups of people were being taken through paid guided tours of the MCG. A group was standing on one level, another on the upper tier, then another one still further up, almost vertically in line. In an otherwise empty ground, even a smattering of people on various tiers created an effect strong enough to give a hint of the spectacle a filled MCG will create when India meet South Africa on Sunday.For Shikhar Dhawan, it all started with India versus South Africa in another multi-nation one-day tournament. The opening match of the Champions Trophy in Cardiff in June 2013 was the first time he and Rohit Sharma opened together, and their 127-run partnership began India’s victory march towards the title. Playing his first ODI in two years, and riding the confidence of a spectacular Test debut hundred three months ago, Dhawan cracked 114 off 94 deliveries, his maiden century in the format.Knowing that Dhawan was prone to compulsively attacking the short ball, South Africa tried to bounce him, but the opener charged fast bowlers and swatted boundaries.Dhawan has had his technical issues, which have been brought to the fore during his earlier miserable run on this long tour of Australia. One knock of note in the Test series when the Brisbane match was more or less over as a contest. Dropped for the fourth Test. Failed in the following one-day triangular series too. Got a break for about a week or so before the World Cup warm-up matches. Made 59 against Australia in the first warm-up match, and then, rose to one of the biggest occasions of them all with 73 off 76 against Pakistan in India’s tournament opener in Adelaide four days ago. Involved in a 129-run partnership with Virat Kohli that set up the match for India.As his hundred on Test debut, the Champions Trophy century against South Africa, and the Pakistan knock in Adelaide illustrate, Dhawan is a confidence player. He will probably always have issues with accurate fast bowling just outside off stump as he likes to remain inside the line and carve deliveries through cover and point. He likes to instinctively play on the up without really getting forward or back.Confidence is a strange thing. As MS Dhoni has said often in the past, it can take a matter of feeling a few deliveries nicely on to the bat for the confidence to return. It can also disappear similarly, making the same erstwhile flowing player look scratchy. You can bat all you want in the nets. It may return, it could even get worse. You could start fretting too much about what is going wrong, and tie yourself up further.Players who rely on confidence and touch, such as Dhawan, need to be handled carefully. Sometimes they just need to be taken away from the everydayness of practice and matches, matches and more practice, and be left to sort themselves out in peace. On India’s tour of New Zealand in early 2014, Dhawan was getting starts in the one-dayers but didn’t get the big runs. Dhoni left him out of the fourth ODI in Hamilton. Dhawan returned to make 115 in the first Test in Auckland and 98 in the second in Wellington.”Whenever you get rest, it is good,” Dhawan had said then. “You are getting a break from the match pressure and you can think what you can do better. I was relaxed and I came back.”India had a few days off in the lead-up to the World Cup where they put away the kit bags and unwinded, and Dhoni said that was one of the key reasons they were able to put behind a forgettable tour so far and raise their performance against Pakistan. Probably the best example of someone having benefited from the break was Dhawan. He was made to hop a couple of times by Mohammad Irfan, but he also hooked the fast bowler for a six. He also left and defended outside off reasonably well.On India’s tour of South Africa in late 2013, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel claimed Dhawan once each on strokes he likes to play – the former on the instinctive cover drive, the latter on the pull. MCG on Sunday will be a much bigger occasion than a couple of bilateral ODIs. Dhawan seems to have regained his touch against Pakistan. The confidence man and the big occasion combined the last time these two teams met in a world event.

James Anderson had tormented Lahiru Thirimanne on their previous meetings but the roles were emphatically reversed in Wellington

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Wellington01-Mar-20152:37

‘Sangakkara’s innings eased pressure’ – Thirimanne

The best bowlers in the world have a way of scrambling young batsmen’s brains. In the last English summer, James Anderson eroded Lahiru Thirimanne’s game so intensely, it sometimes seemed he only needed to sneeze in Thirimanne’s direction to reduce him to dust.Thirimanne by then was no easy target. This was a man who had won his team an Asia Cup months before, and played crucial innings in a World T20 win – including a top-score in the semi-final. But as Anderson sent poison down that fifth stump line that would later enfeeble Virat Kohli as well, Thirimanne’s belief grew frailer and frailer. Sri Lanka persevered with him till the end of the tour but, not long after, he was dropped.

***

Nine days after Tim Southee’s swing had eviscerated England on the same pitch in Wellington, Thirimanne is crouched and tense as Anderson steams in. The first ball – a short one on the hips – is defused into the leg side.Anderson himself is not at his best this World Cup. But if there is a top-order batsman in the world he would fancy throwing him a cheap wicket, it would be Thirimanne. Across all internationals, he has had his scalp 10 times. So he begins pushing it across the batsman next over, trialling a variety of lengths, but staying largely on the same line, like a fisherman angling at his lucky spot on the river.For now, Thirimanne doesn’t bite. He is back and across to defend with the full face when Anderson drops short. Forward and across when he is full. For four balls he does this, then something strange happens. Thirimanne is the man suddenly waiting for Anderson to stray. He gets one on the pads. He works it away.

***

Daryl Cullinan despises being known as Shane Warne’s bunny. For batsmen, being repeatedly dismissed by a bowler is so much worse than simply having a weakness against a particular team. Fans begin to talk about it. Worse, they begin to joke about it. This is the batsman’s livelihood. For young cricketers especially, batting is also an integral part of their identity. It cuts close to the bone when you become an incompetent in the public imagination.There were whispers early in England’s ODI tour of Sri Lanka that Moeen Ali’s offspin had a hold over Kumar Sangakkara. At this stage of his career, Sangakkara is in no mood to suffer this. He worked the spinner out and top-scored in that series. In the Tests against New Zealand, when suggestions that he was weak against Trent Boult began to emerge, Sangakkara went to the nets again. He would hit a first-innings double ton against New Zealand in the next match.

***

Thirimanne is on strike again as Anderson begins his third over. The ball is full, just wide of off stump again but, once more, Thirimanne has his foot to the pitch of the ball, and this time meets it with a drive. It travels briefly in the air, but it’s too straight to interest the mid-off fielder. He gets his first intentional boundary. The belief grows again. There is an ambitious lofted drive two balls later, which fetches the batsman two. Next over Anderson is picked away on the leg side for another couple.It is in the ninth over – Anderson’s fifth – when the battle really begins to turn. Anderson is coming around the wicket now. How many times in his career has he straightened balls down the line to left-handers, and caught them plumb in front? Yet, even with only 13 runs having been scored off his first four overs, he feels the need to change his angle, and virtually rule out a mode of dismissal. The pitch is not helping. The angler is growing impatient.Lahiru Thirimanne became the youngest World Cup centurion for Sri Lanka•AFPThe first ball is full, wide and juicy – exactly the kind Thirimanne was getting out to at Old Trafford and Edgbaston – but he is on bended knee in Wellington now, creaming this one through a crammed cover field. The shoe is switching feet. The tables are turning. Anderson is under fire now. Thirimanne has got him on hook.Four balls later, he pitches one up to Thirimanne again, angling it slightly, hoping to shape it away. Thirimanne batsman sees it is too wide. Out comes the drive again, but this it is an even bolder rendition. He opens the face and cracks it square. It’s coming out of the middle. It’s scorching a line to the fence. Thirimanne admires the shot, stands tall and looks toward the southern stand. Sri Lankan flags are billowing. Thirimanne is winning this one.That over, which cost 10, would be the final one in Anderson’s spell. Anderson would come back during the Powerplay and almost have Thirimanne caught, but the batsman was already on 98 at that stage. In the end, Anderson would bowl exactly half of his 48 deliveries at Thirimanne, and Thirimanne would hit him for more than a run-a-ball.Another England tour is scheduled for Sri Lanka in 2016 and Thirimanne will meet his nemesis again. But he has hit a hundred against Anderson now. He is the youngest batsman to make a World Cup hundred for a country that has seen a lot of batting talent bloom at these events. Next time they meet, fans might remember Thirimanne’s immense role in this outstanding chase. Next time they meet, no one will be laughing.

It was relief, rather than raucous, rampant celebration for South Africa because relief has to be the leveller for a side who have made history but still have more history to make

Firdose Moonda at the SCG18-Mar-2015And breathe. This is what the collective exhale of 23 years of expectation feels like.It is not an unbridled rush of joy – the kind that sends Imran Tahir bolting whenever he takes a wicket – it is just a release. For a South African side that has been suffocated for so long, by themselves, their slew of support staff and the significant expectation shoved down their throats, it is a release and a relief that was a long time coming.For six World Cups, the disappointments have collected like layers of silt and settled on the shoulders of each successive squad. This one could not escape that. There were questions about their strength from the time their squad was selected. Would they be balanced enough? Bat deep enough? Have enough options to make up a fifth bowler? And after the group stage, there was the other question, the one that had been answered in the negative against India and Pakistan – would they be able to chase? In their quarter-final, they answered the last two of those, by dominating in such a way that the first two became irrelevant.Their attack won the game before their balance or their batting needing to be tested and in so doing, allowed South Africa to showcase the strength they have spent so long trademarking as their own. Fast bowling. Aggressive bowling. Short-ball bowling. Incisive, obliterating bowling. When you think of South Africa, that is what you think of but at this tournament that hid in the shadows until now. Sweet relief. It’s back.Dale Steyn was back. His vein popping was back. His scary eyes were back. And he was back with a partner and a follow-up bowler who both looked the part. Relief.Kyle Abbott was picked ahead of Vernon Philander because South Africa could see the SCG track promised bounce and carry. Combined with his pace and passion, South Africa could create a pressure cooker at both ends of the pitch and then “follow up with a lot of heat,” as AB de Villiers put it, with Morne Morkel. Relief.South Africa were not the ones holding their breath. Sri Lanka were. Kumar Sangakkara was. The runs were. Relief, but then could have come release.Sri Lanka’s line-up are more than just capable against spin, they can be merciless against it. They bided their time against the pace pack, presumably to target the spin but JP Duminy did not let them. Not long ago he was just a part-time offspinner who would be used to get rid of some overs in the middle phases of a match, today he was a disciplinarian, holding the line so tightly that he gave almost nothing away. Relief.

Allan Donald, part of the heartache in 1992, 1996, 1999 and 2003, embraced Russell Domingo, not with a chest-bumping machismo but with genuine tenderness.

Then, he became the only South African with a World Cup hat-trick to his name. The tournament surprises in mysterious ways too.None more mysterious than Imran Tahir, who has come into his own as a limited-overs bowler, particularly at World Cups. Tahir seems to thrive on big tournament pressure. For South Africa, who are filled with players who seem to shy way from that, having one person who is willing to take it head on is a relief.Tahir’s variations are becoming the literacy test for batsmen and most are failing to read it. Mahela Jayawardene may be the highest-profile example of that. Tahir has had Jayawardene baffled since the middle of last year when he dismissed him in three successive ODIs. Today, he added a fourth to that. That wicket had Sri Lanka 83 for 4 and separated the two men who could have done the most damage to South Africa. Relief. So much relief Tahir allowed himself t enjoy it with one his customary over-the-top celebrations. “It’s because I just enjoy every wicket,” he said. And why not?As a whole, South Africa do not allow themselves to get as carried away as Tahir because of the burdens they have borne. Even when they dismissed Sri Lanka with more than 12 overs still left in their innings and a small target to chase, they did not seem to be pre-empting success. They couldn’t. Doing that has been their undoing before. Instead they just enjoyed the relief of knowing that this time, surely, it would not be.When Quinton de Kock hit the winning runs, his inner-child wanted to celebrate it with all the gusto it deserved. He wanted to fist-pump his way to the boundary. He hit the ball but he stopped, mid-salute, before his emotions could overtake him. Relief brings reason before it brings anything else. He took in the moment, and let others take it in too.In the dugout, Allan Donald, who had been part of the heartache in 1992, 1996, 1999 and 2003 and had watched it unfold in 2011, embraced Russell Domingo. Not with a chest-bumping machismo but with genuine tenderness. The rest of the support staff, more than a dozen of them, just grinned. Relief all round. Relief, rather than raucous, rampant celebration because relief has to be the leveller for a South African side who have made history but still have more history to make.For now, they have broken through the ceiling that has capped them at every World Cup they have ever participated in and won a knockout game but they have not yet won the World Cup. And they are not under the illusion that they have. All they know is they have cleared the path and given the country the breath of fresh air it has spent more than two decades gasping for.

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Mar-2015Trent Boult struck in the sixth over to get rid of Imrul Kayes and leave Bangladeh at 4 for 1•Getty ImagesBut Mahmudullah rescued Bangladesh again, adding 90 runs for the third wicket with Soumya Sarkar, who struck his first ODI fifty•Getty ImagesDaniel Vettori struck in the 28th over to remove Sarkar and Bangladesh were 117 for 3•Getty ImagesShakib Al Hasan was caught behind for 23 in the first over of batting Powerplay•Getty ImagesMahmudullah, though, kept the runs coming for Bangladesh and brought up his second successive ODI and World Cup ton•Getty ImagesSabbir Rahman hammered 40 off 23 balls, as Bangladesh scored 104 in the last 10 overs and finished on 288•Getty ImagesBangladesh started with spin and Shakib Al Hasan dismissed Brendon McCullum and Kane Williamson in quick succession•Getty ImagesFrom 33 for 2, Ross Taylor and Martin Guptill scripted a recovery with a 131-run stand for the third wicket•AFPGuptill brought up his first century in over a year despite suffering from cramps. He was dismissed for 105 off 100 balls•Getty ImagesGrant Elliott made 39 off 34 balls but was dismissed in the 39th over•Getty ImagesBangladesh used the opening and dismissed Taylor for a 97-ball 56 in the 42nd over, the target was still 70 runs away•Getty ImagesCorey Anderson thumped 39 from 26 to defuse a tense situation•Getty ImagesTim Southee and Daniel Vettori struck crucial boundaries at the end to give New Zealand a three-wicket win•Getty Images