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Vidarbha won their maiden Ranji title with a nine-wicket win, coming back into the game after Delhi’s spirited fightback had threatened a bigger chase

The Report by Vishal Dikshit in Indore01-Jan-2018
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Rajneesh Gurbani is mobbed by his team-mates•Rajneesh Gurbani

Vidarbha proved why they deserved to be crowned the Ranji Trophy champions in their maiden final – a debutant shone in the first over of the match, their best bowler of the season took a hat-trick, their lower order stepped up to hand them a massive lead, and their bowlers delivered long spells on the fourth day to wrap an emphatic nine-wicket win against Delhi in Indore.Vidarbha, who had dominated most sessions of the match, started the fourth day by adding only 19 runs to their overnight lead of 233 runs, losing all of their last three wickets on 547. Delhi had some hope of taking a respectable lead when Dhruv Shorey and Nitish Rana struck half-centuries in the second session, aided by three dropped catches, before both fell minutes before the tea break and offspinner Akshay Wakhare helped wipe out six wickets in the last session. Delhi ended with a scanty lead of 28 with a flurry of late boundaries from Vikas Mishra and the Vidarbha batsmen chased it down in five overs.Shorey and Rana came together in the first session to bring the deficit under 100. Vidarbha’s fielders were also party to the partnership of 114 runs for the third wicket. In the sixth over after lunch, Rana’s inside edge off the thigh pad was put down by short leg when the batsman was on 19. As soon as Rajneesh Gurbani was taken off the attack three overs later, Shorey, on 15, drove Siddhesh Neral but Wasim Jaffer dropped him at first slip. Rana and Shorey scored with ease thereafter and combined for a prolific over against Neral when they were in their thirties: a Rana edge flew wide of Faiz Fazal at slip before Shorey exhibited three classy strokes to race to 45: a flick, a back-foot punch and a cover drive.Rana had barely stretched his score when Shorey was on 59 and edged Aditya Thakare, this time to slip where Jaffer put down a sharp chance again. Wicketkeeper Akshay Wadkar then pouched catches off both Shorey and Rana to land Delhi in trouble again. There was a change in Delhi’s tempo when Shorey fell first off Sarwate: Rana and captain Rishabh Pant started smothering the bowlers to collect quick runs. Pant smacked his third ball so far over long-on that the ball had to be changed and Rana ended that over of Gurbani with two fours through the legside. However, Gurbani had Rana edge what turned out to be the last ball before tea.Wakhare provided the early breakthrough in the last session with a beauty to knock over Himmat Singh’s off stump for a duck but, for some reason, Pant kept swiping at the other end. He also got a life when he survived a stumping chance off Wakhare on 27 but lasted only four balls after that. He handed a skier to point for a 36-ball 32. Six down and trailing by 11 runs, Delhi were running out of time and luck.Mishra’s late surge, including two sixes down the ground, ensured Delhi got a lead, but it was only a matter of time before Vidarbha would chase it down to lift the trophy.Chasing 29 at the end of the day, Vidarbha lost Fazal when he was trapped lbw by Kulwant Khejroliya on the back pad for 2. Jaffer and R Sanjay saw through the next four overs patiently before Jaffer uncharacteristically struck four fours in a Khejroliya over to seal the win. Khejroliya kept banging them short and Jaffer pulled, hooked and tucked the final four to fine leg to lift his arms and be mobbed by his team-mates.Vidarbha had four wickets in hand when the day began and Delhi started the new year the way they had ended 2017. Khejroliya dismissed Siddhesh Neral for the third time in the match off a no ball but it didn’t cost Delhi much. Neral was dropped on 61 too, and he edged one off Navdeep Saini to the wicketkeeper for 74 in the sixth over of the day. Five balls later, overnight centurion Akshay Wadkar swiped for a leading edge to point and this time Khejroliya managed a legitimate delivery. Saini finished the innings in the next over for a five-for by having Thakare edge one to the slips which was a juggled catch that popped out of third slip’s hands and was completed by Shorey at first slip.Delhi’s second innings started with Gambhir cashing in whenever the ball was pitched on middle or leg, collecting three of his seven fours square on the leg side. His brisk innings ended when he was struck in front of leg stump by Gurbani from around the wicket and the angle was such that it would have missed the stumps but he fell to a poor decision. Much before that, the opening stand was broken when Kunal Chandela tried to clear the field down the ground against Wakhare with the new ball, but handed a catch to mid-off for 9.

The allrounder has cited issues with the team environment as the reason for her decision, and looks forward to “playing domestic cricket around the world”

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Aug-2022Deandra Dottin, the scorer of the fastest century in Women’s T20Is, has announced her retirement from the West Indies team. The allrounder made the announcement via Twitter, citing reservations with the team environment as the reason behind her decision.Dottin has made no indication that she has retired from any other team barring West Indies. She is currently representing Barbados at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, and said in her retirement announcement that she is “looking forward to playing domestic cricket around the world”.Related

• Deandra Dottin ends international retirement ahead of women's T20 World Cup

• Deandra Dottin warns West Indies to get their house in order

• Deandra Dottin's shock retirement took Hayley Matthews by surprise

• Stats – Deandra Dottin, West Indies' six-hitting all-round superstar

• 'When Deandra Dottin says give me the ball, you just give her the ball'

Whether this includes the inaugural Women’s CPL that begins on August 30 – she is set to captain Trinbago Knight Riders in the three-team tournament – remains to be seen, since the tournament will be played under the auspices of Cricket West Indies. She is, however, set to play for the Manchester Originals in the second season of The Hundred in the UK.”There have been many obstacles during my cricket career that I have had to overcome[.] [H]owever, the current climate and team environment has been non-conducive to my ability to thrive and reignite my passion,” Dottin wrote in her announcement.”I am appreciative of the opportunities afforded to me and I have ruminated on my decision over a period of time. Playing for the West Indies and representing the region has been an honour. During my 14 years of playing, I have trained at my best and grown as a player physically, mentally and emotionally. It is the combination of this growth that has assisted me in reflecting on what is truly important to me.”With much sadness but without regret, I realize that I am no longer able to adhere to team culture and team environment as it has undermined my ability to perform excellently.” Dottin is West Indies’ most-capped international cricketer, having played 124 T20Is (she has also played two for Barbados at the ongoing Commonwealth Games) and 143 ODIs since her debut in June 2008. She has scored 3727 ODI runs at an average of 30.54, including three hundreds, and 2697 T20I runs – 2681 for West Indies – at 25.93, with two hundreds. Among the 38 batters to have scored at least 1000 T20I runs, only four have a better strike rate than Dottin’s 122.98.The most memorable display of her spectacular hitting came at the T20 World Cup in 2010, where she smashed an unbeaten 112 off just 45 balls against South Africa in St Kitts. She reached her hundred in 38 balls – it remains the Women’s T20I record, and was the overall record in all T20Is until October 2017, when South Africa’s David Miller hit a 35-ball hundred against Bangladesh.With the ball, Dottin has picked up 72 wickets in ODIs and 62 in T20Is, including a career-best haul of 5 for 5 against Bangladesh in 2018 – the best bowling figures in Women’s T20 World Cup history. Injuries had limited her bowling workload in recent years, but she still made a contribution when she stepped up for the rare over of medium-pace. In the opening game of this year’s Women’s World Cup, she stepped up to bowl the final over when New Zealand needed six runs to win with three wickets in hand. Dottin, who had only bowled 11 overs in the preceding three years, won West Indies the match, conceding just two runs while picking up two wickets and completing the match-ending run-out.

Ranaweera’s four-for had India wobbling but the target was too small to stage a comeback

Sreshth Shah01-Jul-2022India beat Sri Lanka in the opening ODI of the three-match series in Pallekele, but not before a scare. Sri Lanka offspinner Oshadi Ranasinghe took two early wickets, left-arm spinner Inoka Ranaweera took 4 for 39 through the middle overs, and for a brief period, it seemed that Sri Lanka would successfully defend 171.However, their below-par total meant India’s struggling batting line-up could creep up and register a four-wicket win, bringing relief to a unit that would have wanted to chase it down with ease at the halfway mark.For India, the difference between victory and defeat was the 62-run fourth-wicket partnership between captain Harmanpreet Kaur and Harleen Deol. Their partnership, which came at a run rate of 6.2, ensured that not only were runs added on a deteriorating surface, but they came quickly.Deol, in particular, was aggressive in her approach despite the field being spread out, and in her first ODI since her debut in February 2019, she made 34 in 40 balls. Harmanpreet was more watchful, scoring only three boundaries in her 44, and opted to pierce the gaps and push her partner for the extra run when on offer. The duo followed the template set by Shafali Verma in her 40-ball 35 up top, but the three quick top-order wickets and then the Ranaweera burst in the middle overs meant the final hour of the game was full of nerves.But Deepti Sharma ensured she stayed till the end to shepherd the chase through. Coming in at No. 6, and high on confidence from her three-wicket haul in the first innings, Deepti put on an unbeaten 38-run stand with Pooja Vastrakar for the seventh wicket to seal the win with 72 balls to spare. Deepti made 22 off 41 balls, while Vastrakar ended the game with a six to finish on 21 off 19.Deepti was one of two stars with the ball for India. Renuka Singh also picked up a three-wicket haul to bowl out Sri Lanka for 171. Deepti feasted through the middle overs of the first innings, making full use of the big turn on offer, dismissing Hansima Karunaratne for a duck and Hasini Perera for 37. Deepti took the final Sri Lankan wicket too, leaving the hosts with ten deliveries unused.But, arguably, it was Renuka’s early strike that made the biggest difference in Sri Lanka’s chances of searching for the win after choosing to bat. She got the big wicket of Sri Lanka’s star batter and captain Chamari Athapaththu in the third over of the morning, and later closed her day out with two late wickets of Nilakshi de Silva and Ranasinghe with two slower balls.Opener Hasini, the third wicket to fall in the morning, was the early aggressor in Sri Lanka’s powerplay and didn’t rein herself in despite the early wicket of Athapaththu. She struck five fours in her innings, and was the second-highest scorer for Sri Lanka. Nilakshi, who top-scored with 43, hung in as Sri Lanka’s middle order tried to rebuild but fell late in the innings to Renuka’s off-pace full ball.Sri Lanka had a few partnerships bubbling through the innings, but none that would help them dominate a significant portion of the innings. Out of the first five stands, three crossed the double digits but ended before the 20-run mark. The highest partnership of the innings came for the sixth wicket with Nilakshi and wicketkeeper Anushka Sanjeewani (18) adding 47 runs off 91 balls. Sri Lanka lost their last five wickets in 40 runs.India used eight bowlers in all, with part-timer Shafali also getting a bowl. Harmanpreet’s use of herself was the most impressive; she just 13 runs in seven overs and picked up a wicket. Even though Meghna Singh could not get a scalp in her eight overs, her economy of 2.87 was a positive takeaway for India. And thus began a new era for India in a post-Mithali Raj world, with a victory in their first match of the latest ICC Women’s Championship cycle.

All the major movements ahead of the upcoming 2022-23 season

Deivarayan Muthu22-Jun-2022

Wellington

Wellington have lined up Adam Milne to fill in the Hamish Bennett-sized void after the 35-year-old quick retired from all formats of cricket following the last season. After being part of Central Districts for more than a decade, since his debut in March 2010, Milne will now work under head coaches BJ Watling and Bruce Edgar at Wellington. He joins Logan van Beek and Ben Sears in a potent seam-bowling group.Milne has not played red-ball cricket since October 2018, but he did not rule out the possibility of a return, for Wellington. He, however, added that, given his history of ankle and elbow injuries, workload management would be given priority. Milne is now fit again after having been sidelined from his IPL 2022 stint with Stephen Fleming’s Chennai Super Kings with a hamstring injury.Related

• Border restrictions force Foxcroft to miss another domestic season

• Sodhi signs up with Canterbury for 2022-23 after 10 seasons with ND

• 'I'm definitely ready for the challenge' – Watling appointed Wellington's white-ball coach

“I think it happens in sport all around the world, but particularly with my history, it’s important to manage my expectations and the team’s expectations of how much cricket we are playing,” Milne said. “But I’ll try and play as much as I can. I think it’s again assessing how I’m feeling after games or from a week-to-week and if the body is saying that it needs a rest and that’s possible with the team… Obviously, [I’m] trying to keep myself in the best of shape to play as much cricket as I can.”In another move, Wellington have roped in batter Nick Kelly from Otago. The Victoria-born top-order batter also brings with himself CPL experience, having been part of St Kitts & Nevis Patriots.Batting allrounder Luke Georgeson, who recently withdrew his Ireland central contract to chase his New Zealand dream, has also won a deal with Wellington.Wellington’s first-round contracted players: Finn Allen, Jakob Bhula, Luke Georgeson, Troy Johnson, Nick Kelly, Iain McPeake, Adam Milne, Ollie Newton, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Robinson, Ben Sears, Michael Snedden, Nathan Smith, Logan Van Beek, Peter Younghusband

Auckland

Allrounder Simon Keene has earned his first domestic contract after having bagged 25 wickets in five first-class matches earlier this year, including career-best returns of 6 for 44 against Canterbury in March.Auckland’s first-round contracted players: Adithya Ashok, Cole Briggs, Mark Chapman, Louis Delport, Danru Ferns, Ryan Harrison, Ben Horne, Simon Keene, Ben Lister, Robert O’Donnell, Will O’Donnell, Sean Solia, Will Somerville, Ross ter Braak, George Worker

Central Districts

Milne’s departure has stripped CD of experience and firepower, but they have signed up a promising prospect in Brett Randell, who has moved from Northern Districts. Randell was the joint-highest wicket-taker in last season’s Plunket Shield, with 31 strikes in six games at 14.83. Randell’s entry boots a pace attack that has been further depleted by the injury-enforced absence of Ben Wheeler.CD’s first-round contracted players: Doug Bracewell, Tom Bruce, Josh Clarkson, Dane Cleaver, Joey Field, Greg Hay, Jayden Lennox, Seth Rance, Brett Randell, Brad Schmulian, Ben Smith, Blair Tickner, Ray Toole, Bayley WigginsIsh Sodhi will play for Canterbury this season•AFP

Canterbury

Wicketkeeper Mitch Hay, allrounder Zak Foulkes and batter Matt Boyle have been awarded their first Canterbury contracts. After ten seasons with Northern Districts, Ish Sodhi, who resides in Christchurch with his family, will now represent Canterbury.Canterbury’s first-round contracted players: Cole McConchie, Chad Bowes, Matt Boyle, Leo Carter, Sean Davey, Cam Fletcher, Zak Foulkes, Mitch Hay, Ken McClure, Ed Nuttall, Will O’Rourke, Fraser Sheat, Henry Shipley, Theo van Woerkom, Will Williams

Northern Districts

Tim Pringle, the son of former New Zealand seamer Chris Pringle, has been handed his first Northern Districts contract. The left-arm spin-bowling allrounder was recently part of a New Zealand XI that faced a touring Netherlands side in a one-day fixture in March earlier this year. More recently, Tim made his international debut for Netherlands, where he was born, dismissing Liam Livingstone with a beauty.ND’s first-round contracted players: Joe Carter, Katene Clarke, Kristian Clarke, Henry Cooper, Matt Fisher, Zak Gibson, Brett Hampton, Scott Kuggeleijn, Bharat Popli, Tim Pringle, Jeet Raval, Tim Seifert, Fred Walker, Joe Walker, Anurag Verma

Otago

In one of the major moves of the season, Glenn Phillips has shifted south to Otago from Auckland to reunite with his younger brother Dale. Glenn’s contract will not count towards Otago’s domestic contracts as he is already part of NZC’s central contracts list. This is another opportunity for Glenn to bowl more in domestic cricket and establish himself as an allrounder. He can also keep wicket although a back condition has limited that skill in the recent past.South Africa-born allrounder Dean Foxcroft, who had been locked out of the past two domestic seasons in New Zealand because of border restrictions and visa complications, is now set to return to Dunedin to resume his career. He had recently turned out for Lahore Qalandars in the PSL in February.Otago’s first-round contracted players: Matt Bacon, Max Chu, Jacob Cumming, Jacob Duffy, Dean Foxcroft, Jake Gibson, Andrew Hazeldine, Ben Lockrose, Jarrod McKay, Travis Muller, Dale Phillips, Michael Rae, Michael Rippon, Hamish Rutherford

The city might be gaining a new familiarity with the feeling of hosting international cricket, but there is additional meaning to this latest match, given the identity of the visiting team

The Preview by Danyal Rasool28-Oct-2017

Big Picture

And so it comes again: for the fifth time this year, Gaddafi Stadium will attract global attention for doing what it was first built to do over 50 years ago: host an international cricket match. Sri Lanka are the visitors this time, the team that has been least fussy about playing cricket in Pakistan over the years. That was to their detriment in 2009, with the attack on their team bus, and Pakistan’s status as a venue has been paying the price ever since. A number of big names from Sri Lanka’s line-up are missing, not able to bring themselves back to the scene of the devastation their peers faced on a bleak March morning on their way to play a cricket match.But Pakistan have been more determined about getting international cricket back, particular this year, no matter the cost. The security detail and lockdown of the city in preparation is something Lahoris are beginning to get used to; it comes with the territory these days. It would perhaps be best to focus on what takes place inside Pakistan’s most famous sporting venue as a Thisara Perera-led Sri Lanka look to avoid yet another 2017 limited-overs whitewash. Dead rubber it may be, but the Gaddafi Stadium tomorrow will be brimming with life.Sri Lanka will be bitterly disappointed there isn’t more at stake, given their position of dominance for large parts during the second T20I in Abu Dhabi, where only a penultimate-ball six from Shadab Khan allowed Pakistan to sneak to victory. The visitors needed the win much more, for both confidence and pride. This is a young team put together under exceptional circumstances, expected to play against one of the world’s most in-form teams, and pushing them as they did last night was no mean feat.Pakistan will be eager to take advantage of a rare opportunity to play at what really is home, and should need no further motivation to turn up.
Each of these players are aware that these crowds may only be able to see them a handful of times in their careers, and do their best to grab the opportunity. In any case, it would be a bit of a shame for them to amass such a long winning streak in the UAE, only to see it snapped in Lahore.

Form guide

Sri Lanka LLLLW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Pakistan WWWLW

In the spotlight

Ahmed Shehzad has found himself pushed out of the ODI side by the dashing young Imam-ul-Haq, and only played the T20Is because of his form in the format against the World XI. However, two disappointing scores against a depleted Sri Lanka side means he should be dreading the axe in the shortest format too. With competition for the opening slot heating up, he needs a big performance to end the series on a high note, and to make a stronger case for T20I selection even as younger players look to take his place. His form in Lahore last month was outstanding, and returning to the Gaddafi may rekindle the confidence he has clearly been lacking of late.Seekkuge Prasanna is one of the more experienced players in Sri Lanka’s side, but his numbers haven’t done that experience justice. He played the last two ODIs as well has both T20’s, but has picked up only one wicket – none in the T20I series. He hasn’t compensated with runs either, never reaching 25 and averaging 15. Yet he has shown glimpses of why he’s in the side, and why the captain appears to trust him. But if Sri Lanka are to cause an upset, he’ll need to do more than that, and a high-profile game like this would be a good time to do it.

Team news

With the series wrapped up, Pakistan may experiment, although given the unique nature of this ‘dead’ rubber, everyone will want to start. Therefore, it isn’t unlikely that Pakistan may reward the side that won the series with a starting place in Lahore, going unchanged for three games straight.Pakistan (probable): 1 Ahmed Shehzad, 2 Fakhar Zaman, 3 Babar Azam, 4 Mohammad Hafeez, 5 Shoaib Malik, 6 Sarfraz Ahmed (capt & wk), 7 Imad Wasim, 8 Faheem Ashraf, 9 Shadab Khan, 10 Hasan Ali, 11 Usman Khan.Sri Lanka looked good in the second game, and might rely on the momentum they’ve built to challenge tomorrow. As such, the same eleven wouldn’t be a total surprise, although Lahiru Gamage bowled well in the ODIs and may merit a place.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Danushka Gunathilaka, 2 Dilshan Munaweera, 3 Sadeera Samarawickrama (wk), 4 Ashan Priyanjan, 5 Seekkuge Prasanna, 6 Mahela Udawette, 7 Thisara Perera (capt), 8 Dasun Shanaka/Lahiru Gamage, 9 Isuru Udana, 10 Sachith Pathirana, 11 Vikum Sanjaya.

Pitch and conditions

The start time was brought forward by an hour for fear of excessive dew playing spoilsport in Lahore. The weather in the evening is much more pleasant than anything the players will have experienced in the UAE, and the ball is likely to come on to the bat much better. The winner of the toss is likely to bat first.

Stats and trivia

• If Pakistan make no changes to their side, Usman Khan will play an international in Pakistan for the first time. The other ten players have
  all played international cricket in their home country.

• If Sri Lanka lose tomorrow, it will be their 16th straight defeat in a limited-overs international.

Former India coach wants Jammu and Sunrisers fast man to get BCCI contract ‘straightaway’

Nagraj Gollapudi and Raunak Kapoor18-May-20224:40

Ravi Shastri: ‘Central contract straightaway for Umran Malik’

Umran Malik needs to be given a central contract “straightaway” by the BCCI, in the opinion of Ravi Shastri, who also believes Malik will be “a handful” in first-class cricket and has the potential to even be part of the Indian Test set-up subject to him being put on the development pathway by Indian cricket authorities.Malik, who recently clocked 156.9 kph, possibly the fastest ball in IPL history, is also the fourth-highest wicket-taker this IPL with 21 wickets in 13 matches at an average of 20 and economy rate of 8.93. Playing his first full IPL season, Malik has already bagged a five-for [the second-best figures so far this season], but it is his raw, uninhibited pace that has troubled batters, brought fans to the edge of the seats and excited pundits like Shastri.Related

• Kings' high-risk approach fails to click; Malik, Tripathi shine in Sunrisers' dull season

• Shastri: Jadeja as captain 'looked a fish out of water'

• SRH v MI: Tripathi, Malik keep Sunrisers alive

• Scenarios: All eyes on Capitals and RCB

• Moody on Sunrisers' dream fast-bowling line-up

“Central contract straightway,” Shastri said on ESPNcricinfo’s T20 Time Out after Malik put on another impactful performance with a three-wicket haul in Sunrisers Hyderabad’s win against Mumbai Indians on Tuesday. “And keep him in the mix, don’t let him float around. Keep him in the mix with the main players and then he learns seeing (and) being around with the [Mohammed] Shamis and the [Jasprit] Bumrahs, and see the way they train, see the way they manage their workload.”Of course, there’ll be the team management there, support staff, that’ll help him do that, but don’t let him stray at the moment. Get him into the mix, and keep him there and groom him.”While Malik has rattled the best batters in the IPL – on Tuesday, Malik hit Rohit Sharma in the helmet – with his extreme pace as well as uprooted stumps, someone like Shami has called on him to focus on combining “pace with accuracy”.”He’ll get better and better,” Shastri said. “You see his bowling once he takes a wicket. Look at the lines he starts bowling as opposed to when he has not got a wicket – that’s when he is trying everything, his lines are all over the place. You don’t want him to cut down on pace. The last thing you would tell him looking for control, cut down on pace. What you want him to do is get his lines right: if he can bowl that stump line, attack the stumps on a constant basis, varying his lengths, he will trouble [batters].”If he gets a wicket and new guy comes in, he can really rattle him because he has got the pace, he can keep the bloke on his toes, but it’s that line – if he gets into that channel, without cutting his pace it will make a huge difference.”Shastri: ‘Get him into the mix, and keep him there and groom him’•BCCI

And if Malik could stick to that plan, Shastri said he would not be surprised if Malik is soon be part of the Indian Test squad. “I promise you, this guy is going to be a handful in red-ball cricket. Handful, really. If he is part of an Indian pace battery that (already) has Bumrah, Shami, you add this bloke in (as) a fourth guy, it’s going to be a serious attack.”Shastri’s views are similar to that of Sunrisers’ head coach Tom Moody, who had said Malik was like a “Ferrari” and there was no point asking him to cut down his pace and focus on line and length.At 22, Malik is enjoying the best time of his life, doing something that comes naturally to him: bowling fast. But you can sense he is also hearing what the experts are saying. After the win on Tuesday, Malik was keen to understand how his senior Sunrisers team-mate Bhuvneshwar Kumar had bowled a maiden in the penultimate over of Mumbai’s chase.Bhuvneshwar pointed out that he had worked out delivering yorkers was the “best option” based on the behaviour of the pitch, and he managed to pull it off. Malik then wanted to know what was the key to bowling successfully in death overs, the most difficult phase in T20 cricket. “The most necessary thing in death bowling is to keep yourself calm because what happens often is the pressure comes as soon as a boundary is hit,” Bhuvneshwar told Malik in a chat on . “So the only thing I will say is how much you can keep calm and have a calm mind then it will help you.”

Shreyas Iyer, Mohammed Siraj and Axar Patel have all levelled up

Nagraj Gollapudi03-Mar-2022India allrounder Hardik Pandya and senior batter Shikhar Dhawan have suffered the biggest slides in the new set of annual contracts finalised by the BCCI and its selectors. Also getting demoted are the senior trio of Ishant Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara. In contrast, Shreyas Iyer, Mohammed Siraj and Axar Patel have all levelled up.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The annual contracts – running from October 2021 to September 2022 – were ratified by the BCCI’s Apex Council late on Wednesday. The Apex Council also finalised former India fast bowler Abey Kuruvilla as the general manager cricket development, a position that was left vacant since February after Dhiraj Malhotra left on January 31.No fresh additions were made to the A+ category, worth INR 7 crore (USD 930,000*), with the trio of India captain Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah retaining their contracts.It was the Grade A slab (INR 5 crore or USD 660,000) that was trimmed severely from 10 in the last cycle to half that number. Pandya and Dhawan have dropped from Grade A to C. Pandya, who had moved from Grade B to A in the 2020-21 cycle, has suffered with fitness issues over the last two years and has not played for India since the T20 World Cup last October. Dhawan, meanwhile, has become more of a one-format player in the least year, with the selectors favouring him in 50-overs cricket and little else.Many will wonder as to why Rahane, Pujara, Ishant were handed Grade B contracts (down from Grade A last season) when none of them were considered for the two-match home Test series against Sri Lanka starting on Friday. Chetan Sharma, India’s chairman of selectors, had pointed out that he had spoken to all three players, along with Wriddhiman Saha, about how his panel wanted to give youngsters more chances without closing the door on the seniors. Barring Saha, the other three players have featured in the league phase of the Ranji Trophy, to keep their chances of returning to the national team alive.Iyer, Siraj and Axar, who featured in the last cycle in Grade C (INR 1 crore or USD 130,000), have all been moved one rung up on the back of their consistent performances over the last year. Another key player, who has featured for India in all three formats, bowling allrounder Shardul Thakur, retained his Grade B contract.* All USD values are approximations where 1 USD =75 INR

The New Zealand left-arm spinner and the Pakistan batsman took the top spot from Ish Sodhi and Colin Munro respectively

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jan-2018New Zealand left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner has displaced team-mate Ish Sodhi as the No. 1 bowler in T20Is, following his haul of four wickets in the home series against Pakistan. Ish Sodhi, who took two wickets in the series at an economy rate of 8.66, has moved down to third place. Santner leads the second-placed Rashid Khan by one point. He is the fourth New Zealander after Daniel Vettori, Shane Bond and Sodhi to secure the top spot for bowlers.Pakistan batsman Babar Azam, who was the leading scorer in the series with 109 runs in three innings at an average of 54.50 and strike-rate of 125.28, has vaulted 11 places to become the No.1 batsman in T20Is. Babar is only the second Pakistan batsman, after former captain Misbah-ul-Haq, to the landmark. Colin Munro, who had held the top spot before the start of the series, slipped to fourth after managing 50 runs in two innings.Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan continues to be the top-ranked T20I allrounder followed by Australia’s Glenn Maxwell.Shakib was also the No. 1 allrounder in the ODI rankings, having reclaimed the top spot from Mohammad Hafeez. In the ODI rankings for bowlers, Hasan Ali dropped to fifth from first. South Africa legspinner Imran Tahir leads the list followed by Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah and Josh Hazlewood.

A round-up of the second day of matches at the ICC WCL Division Three in Uganda

Peter Della Penna in Kampala24-May-20171:19

‘Rizwan Cheema is quite destructive’ – Nitish Kumar

Canada continued their hot start to Division Three on Wednesday with an 83-run win over Oman at Lugogo Stadium. One day after clubbing 91 off 44 balls, Rizwan Cheema claimed his second-straight Man-of-the-Match award after giving Canada a late surge to 274 for 9 with 42 off 25 balls. Cheema then returned to break the back of the Oman chase with a double-wicket over in the 27th, snaring Naseem Khushi for 22 before trapping Amir Ali leg before for 1 to make it 148 for 7, forcing Oman to subside for 191.Though Cheema received the chief plaudits, Canada’s performance was a consummate team effort. Six players passed 30 in the Canada innings, though none made more than the 44 that teenage opener Bhavindu Adhihetty, who teamed with captain Nitish Kumar for a 77-run opening stand after losing the toss, scored. Oman threatened to contain Canada to a modest total considering Lugogo’s short boundaries when Cheema was dismissed in the 42nd over to make it 202 for 7, but Hamza Tariq (34 off 22) and Nikhil Dutta (41 off 34) partnered for a 72-run stand for the eighth wicket before each fell off the final two balls of the innings to Mohammad Nadeem.Wickets fell regularly early in Oman’s chase as four of their top five fell for single digits, but Zeeshan Maqsood motored on in counterattack-mode with 63 off 62 balls. Oman were well ahead of the required run rate with Maqsood in the middle, but he fell to Satsimranjit Dhindsa in the 22nd to make it 107 for 5, ending a 50-run stand with Ajay Lalcheta. Cheema’s double-strike, a short time later, left Lalcheta running out of partners and he eventually fell for 39 to Kumar, middling a sweep to backward square leg for the eighth wicket to snuff out Oman’s hopes of victory.Rizwan Cheema’s all-round show helped him collect his second Man-of-the-Match award in as many matches•Peter Della Penna

United States of America bounced back from their opening day loss to Oman with a resounding six-wicket win over Malaysia at Kyambogo Oval. Captain Steven Taylor received Man-of-the-Match honors in recognition of USA’s stifling bowling effort in which he finished with 2 for 12 in 9.5 overs. Opening medium pacer Ali Khan was almost as miserly in taking 2 for 7 in five overs while legspinner Timil Patel’s 3 for 36 triggered a middle-order collapse that saw Malaysia go from 90 for 4 to 117 all out.USA’s quick bowling rate meant they batted 14 overs before lunch to reach 51 for 1. Taylor fell for 25 to make it 60 for 2 in the first over after play resumed, slog sweeping to deep square leg in an effort to improve the team’s net run-rate. Power hitters Timroy Allen and Elmore Hutchinson were both promoted up the order with the same intent in mind, but each fell slogging for 1 and 3 respectively.Ibrahim Khaleel and Camilus Alexander calmly knocked off the rest of the runs in an unbroken 51-run fifth-wicket stand that helped USA achieve victory with 21.5 overs to spare. Khaleel top-scored for the second day in a row, ending unbeaten on 49.Uganda defeated Singapore by 66 runs at Entebbe to even up both teams’ records at 1-1. Singapore’s chase of Uganda’s 217 for 9 was thrown off course in the 29th over when first-day Man of the Match Anish Paraam was caught behind off Mohammed Irfan for 20 just after helping his team move past hundred. Irfan continued to burrow through the middle and lower order to finish with 5 for 38 as Singapore were bowled out for 151 in 44 overs.Opener Hamu Kayondo helped set up a defendable total for Uganda with 41, the first of three scores in the 40s for Uganda. The Uganda innings was crawling at just above three per over through the 31st until Shahzad Ukani (46 off 51) and wicketkeeper Arnold Otwani (47 off 46) combined for a comparatively speedy 86-run stand in 77 balls to help set a target well out of reach for Singapore.Thursday is a scheduled off day at the tournament before play resumes on Friday. Canada will look to maintain their unbeaten record against winless Malaysia at Entebbe while USA plays Singapore at Lugogo Stadium. Hosts Uganda takes on Oman at Kyambogo Oval. The winners of the last two contests will remain in strong contention for promotion berths but a loss could be crippling to their chances of advancing to Division Two.

Visitors caught on the hop after dominating on flat deck in warm-up match

Matt Roller23-Jan-2022Eoin Morgan was frustrated by England’s failure to adapt to conditions at Kensington Oval in their nine-wicket defeat to West Indies in the first of five T20 internationals, on a pitch with variable bounce.England had posted 231 in their only warm-up game against a BCA President’s XI on a pitch that Jason Roy – who hit a 36-ball hundred – described as “massively flat”. However, they were bowled out for 103 on Saturday night, and even that total represented something of a recovery after they had slumped to 29 for 5 and 49 for 7, with Jason Holder enjoying conditions on his home pitch.Holder found some steepling bounce from a good length with the new ball but several deliveries kept very low, while Akeal Hosein, the left-arm spinner, got the ball to turn away sharply from the outside edge of England’s right-handers.”[They were] actually the opposite conditions to the wicket that we played on two or three days ago,” Morgan said. “West Indies dominated the game early on: we lost early wickets [and] we didn’t seem to adapt well enough in running, which is what you have to do when challenged like that with movement and a bit of bounce.Related

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“We’ll have to come back tomorrow, fresh gameplan, try and execute it better, because I think conditions have a chance of being very similar. It was something that we spoke about pre-game: when we come to the West Indies, probably more so in Barbados and one other island – St Lucia – there’s a little bit more bounce.”The only thing we found tricky today [was that it] wasn’t that consistent. But again, trying to get that mindset around risk-reward, we found a challenge today. Hopefully we’ll come back better tomorrow and rectify that.”England were asked to bat first after Kieron Pollard won the toss but Morgan admitted that he would have chosen to do so himself. He has not chosen to bat first in a T20 international since 2016 and while England have been among the world’s strongest chasing teams, their inexperience batting first contributed to their semi-final defeat against New Zealand at last year’s World Cup.Sunday night’s game will be played on a different strip but England are expecting it to play in a similar way, offering the bowlers something throughout both innings. It remains to be seen if Liam Livingstone has recovered sufficiently from a mild illness (England clarified it was not Covid-related) to take part, but Liam Dawson, who stepped in as a spin-bowling allrounder in his first T20I since 2018, said that the short turnaround was a positive.”I think it’s a good thing,” he said. “We’ve got an opportunity tomorrow night to learn from tonight and put it right, and get a win on the board. All the boys will be really excited to go again tomorrow.”We knew it wasn’t going to be a belter. Looking back if we’d have got 130-140, it would potentially have been a completely different game. Going into tomorrow, we’re going to have to learn and maybe take our time a little bit more and put a score on the board.”It wasn’t very dewy out there at all. Conditions didn’t really change to be honest; I think we just didn’t get enough runs on the board for us to win. I think batting first could be the way going forward, and putting a score on the board.”