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Ground will turn red to raise awareness for charity

Matt Roller02-Jul-2020England and West Indies will be presented with red caps and wear specially-designed playing shirts on the second day of the third Test at Emirates Old Trafford to raise awareness for the Ruth Strauss Foundation.The charity, which was launched last year, is named after Sir Andrew Strauss’ late wife Ruth, who died in 2018 at the age of 46 after being diagnosed with an incurable lung cancer that affects non-smokers. The foundation provides professional emotional support for families to prepare for the death of a parent, and aims to raise awareness of the need for more research and collaborative efforts in the fight against non-smoking lung cancers.The second Ashes Test at Lord’s last summer saw the ground turn red to mark the day, raising over £550,000 for the foundation. Stumps and boundary boards will also turn red on the second day of the third Test this summer, while the big screens in the ground will be used to show pictures of fans and clubs dressed in red.ALSO READ: Umpires step up for charity“Last year I was humbled and honoured by the support of the wider cricket family,” said Strauss. “We sincerely hope that the incredible display of generosity and community spirit will continue as we look to turn cricket Red for Ruth for a second year to support the Ruth Strauss Foundation.”The day will look very different to last year but we are very grateful to the ECB and Lancashire Cricket Club for their assistance in making this happen during what has been a difficult period for everyone.”Tom Harrison, the ECB’s chief executive, said: “It’s our privilege to name the Third Test in honour of the Ruth Strauss Foundation and to support Red For Ruth Day for a second year running. It’s a cause many of us at the ECB feel very passionately about. I hope that once again we can show how cricket can come together to raise funds to help families going through the toughest of times.””Andrew is a true legend of our sport and it is almost impossible to imagine what he and his family went through,” said Joe Root, England’s captain. “Cricket plays a massive part in so many lives and together we can help other families facing these same devastating circumstances. I ask all of our fans across England and Wales to turn red on the day and support this incredible charity.”Meanwhile, both teams marked the passing of Sir Everton Weekes during their warm-up matches on Thursday. Both teams wore black armbands, while West Indies held a minute’s silence before the start of play.For more information on the Ruth Strauss Foundation and to donate, click here

Players with families might choose to retire, the Australia batsman says, instead of long stints on the road

Daniel Brettig28-Jul-2020David Warner believes that restrictive biosecurity bubbles of the kind Australia are expected to encounter while touring England in September may be a factor for players with families, who might choose to retire rather than face long stints away from their partners and children.Speaking about the realities in the time of Covid-19 – ahead of the England tour, followed by the IPL in the UAE, and then the home summer – Warner said that time with his family of wife Candice and their three daughters would appear less likely in an environment where teams need to be quarantined in order to fulfil international fixtures. The demands of that scenario will figure highly in Warner’s thinking when he considers when to pare back or finish his days as an international cricketer, having flagged last summer that he was considering, at the age of 33, whether to retire from one or more international formats in order to prolong his overall playing time.”Obviously three daughters and my wife, who I owe a lot to, has been a big part of my playing career,” he said. “You’ve always got to look out for your family first, and with cricket and these unprecedented times, you’ve got to weigh up these decisions. Look, at the moment, I’ll keep continuing to aim for that. Obviously the T20 [World Cup] is not here at home, which would have been ideal to play that and win that here. Now that gets pushed back. I will have to have a rethink about that when it comes to India.”I’ll see where I am and where the girls are at with school as well. A lot of that is a big part of my decision. It’s not just when the games are being played and how much cricket’s being played. It’s a big family decision for myself. There are times when you go away and miss your family a lot and at the moment with all these biosecurity measures that are in place, we’re going to not be able to have the luxury of our families coming away with us now and it could be for the foreseeable future.”As the prime minister [Scott Morrison] said, we might not be able to go overseas or visitors won’t be able to come into Australia. They are things that we need to play by ear and if and when I do make that decision, it’ll be predominantly a family decision.”Victoria’s current outbreak has left the state in a precarious position relative to the rest of the country, leaving Warner to conclude that Australia may need to get their heads around not playing in Melbourne around the Christmas and Boxing Day holidays for the first time in living memory.”Yeah, we have to look at it like that. I’m sitting here and you guys are too today looking at how many cases are happening in Victoria at the moment,” he said. “Even the guys trying to get out of Victoria, it’s very, very challenging as well. It’s going to be challenging for everyone. I think we spoke about state cricket. That’s the perfect example. How is Victoria going to be able to start (Sheffield) Shield cricket down there. At the moment, it seems like it’ll be impossible.Players with families might not want long stints away from home, David Warner feels•Getty Images

“But I think they’ll have to put things in place to play it somewhere else. Even if we do play down there, then coming out of Victoria you’ll have to quarantine for 14 days into other states. There are so many elements to it that it’s out of our control and hands at the moment. Whatever happens, if you put something in place now, it’s going to change tomorrow. It’s very, very difficult to process. We’ll have to see and adapt. And you might see the first Boxing Day Test not in Melbourne.”Looking at the likelihood of travelling to England, then to the UAE for a relocated IPL, then home for scheduled Tests against Afghanistan and India, Warner agreed that a surfeit of white-ball matches would not be an ideal lead-in when lined up against the two or three Shield fixtures that Australia’s cricketers have become accustomed to playing before the start of a home international season.”Usually you have a couple of Shield games leading into a Test series, especially at home,” he said. “So I think the unique thing about it is the Indian team and ourselves are going to be in the same boat really. We’re going to have a lack of red-ball cricket preparation and end of the day we have to make the most of that time training in the lead up to the Test series.”We’ve played enough high-level cricket to adapt to red ball. But there are obviously guys back in Australia who won’t be playing in the one-day series or the IPL, who have to try and get ready to prepare. Hopefully there are a couple of games they can play interstate against each other, if something is put in place. We’re obviously unsure and unclear given states are in lockdown or not letting people from other states go interstate.David Warner – and some others – might head into the home Tests straight after the IPL in the UAE•BCCI

“We have to sit back and wait for the government and states to see what the regulations are behind that. All we can do really is train with our states and prepare as well as we can on the wickets provided to get ready for the season.”In a way, the challenges will be a more concentrated version of the kind of dilemmas Australia’s cricketers and selectors have faced most years since the dawn of the Big Bash League, and even before that with the T20 Champions League, which forced players to juggle formats at a formative time of the season.”I feel that – obviously there is going to be a squad of 15 picked for example, and if there’s no Shield cricket being played up until Christmas, it doesn’t give anyone else an opportunity to be picked,” Warner said. “Like if there’s an injury there is nobody coming up from red-ball cricket. So there are these situations that we’re going to have to play by ear and try to get guys to be prepared in case something happens.”There’s three Tests leading into Christmas and coming off three or four Shield games played beforehand as well. So there’s going to be a lack of red-ball cricket obviously – it’s going to be challenging. If someone goes down, we’ll have to bring a person in with a lack of red-ball preparation. That’s foreign to all of us. It doesn’t really happen – and we’re just going to have to adapt to that.”

India’s visit to Australia in 2011-12 has ushered the return of the limited overs tri-series and the reinstatement of the Australia Day Test match at Adelaide Oval.

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Jun-2011India’s visit to Australia in 2011-12 has ushered in the return of the limited overs tri-series and the reinstatement of the Australia Day Test match at Adelaide Oval.The summer from which Cricket Australia makes the lion’s share of its total income, via the sale of television rights for India matches, features two Tests against New Zealand in December, and four against the Indian tourists, starting on Boxing Day at the MCG.Sydney, Perth and Adelaide will round out the Test summer, before Sri Lanka arrive to be the third team in the revived triangular tournament.Other notable fixture choices include the Sydney Olympic Stadium’s elevation to international status for the first time, to host a Twenty20 international between Australia and India on February 1, while Bellerive Oval will welcome the New Zealand tourists for the second Test of the Trans-Tasman series.The tri-series, which was last seen in Australia in 2007-08, has been redeployed as a way of providing the requisite number of matches for subcontinental television rights, and pits the world’s top three limited overs sides – Australia, the World Cup champion India and the finalist Sri Lanka – against one another.”ICC Cricket World Cup winner India is also the number one-ranked Test team in the world at the moment,” said James Sutherland, the Cricket Australia chief executive. “Sri Lanka has also been in great form as we saw in the World Cup, while we know New Zealand is always a formidable opponent that thrives when playing Australia.”With the commencement of the ICC World Test Championship we know that every Test win is vital and the Australian team will be keen to start the home season positively against New Zealand.”Australia’s November series in South Africa and the late arrival of the Indian touring party means the international summer will stretch well into March, again leaving CA to battle with the onset of the football season and its various codes, for crowds and television ratings.As has become customary, India will have only one tour warm-up match before the first Test, while New Zealand have not been granted any.Test SeriesDecember 1 – 5: Australia v New Zealand, BrisbaneDecember 9 – 13: Australia v New Zealand, HobartDecember 26 – 30: Australia v India, MelbourneJanuary 3 – 7: Australia v India, SydneyJanuary 13 – 17: Australia v India, PerthJanuary 24 – 28: Australia v India, AdelaideTwenty20 InternationalsFebruary 1: Australia v India, 1st Twenty20, SydneyFebruary 3: Australia v India, MelbourneLimited Overs SeriesFebruary 5: Australia v India, MelbourneFebruary 8: India v Sri Lanka, PerthFebruary 10: Australia v Sri Lanka, PerthFebruary 12: Australia v India, AdelaideFebruary 14: India v Sri Lanka, AdelaideFebruary 17: Australia v Sri Lanka, SydneyFebruary 19: Australia v India, BrisbaneFebruary 21: India v Sri Lanka, BrisbaneFebruary 24: Australia v Sri Lanka, HobartFebruary 26: Australia v India, SydneyFebruary 28: India v Sri Lanka, HobartMarch 2: Australia v Sri Lanka, MelbourneMarch 4: 1st Final, BrisbaneMarch 6: 2nd Final, AdelaideMarch 8: 3rd Final, AdelaideTour matchesDecember 18 – 21, CA Chairman’s XI v India, Manuka OvalTBC, PM’s XI v Sri Lanka, Manuka Oval

The allrounder James Franklin is the surprise omission from New Zealand’s list of contracted players for the next year

Brydon Coverdale01-Jul-2011Allrounder James Franklin is the surprise omission from New Zealand’s list of contracted players for the next year. Since his return to the one-day side in December, Franklin has topped New Zealand’s ODI batting averages with 325 runs at 54.16, but after a disappointing World Cup, he has been left out of the 20-man list.Also gone from the list are Test fast bowler Brent Arnel, allrounder Grant Elliott, wicketkeeper Gareth Hopkins, Test opener Tim McIntosh, offspinner Jeetan Patel, fast bowler Daryl Tuffey, and retired batsman Scott Styris. The gloveman Reece Young, allrounders Rob Nicol and Luke Woodcock, and the fast bowler Trent Boult have all won contracts.There was also a return for the batsmen Daniel Flynn and Neil Broom, who missed out last year having previously been on the list. But there was no such welcome back for Franklin, 30, who was in a similar position last year when he was cut from the contract list, and considered turning his back on New Zealand and using his Irish passport to become a local player in county cricket.But the lure of the black cap was enough to keep Franklin pushing for national selection, and when he returned for the one-day series in India in December, he starred with 72 not out and 98 not out in his first matches back. Franklin was elevated to the contract list during the season and played for New Zealand in Test, ODI and Twenty20 cricket during the summer.He also won a place at the World Cup, where his major impact was blasting most of the 31 runs New Zealand took off one over against Canada, the third-best over in ODI history. The acting national selection manager, Mark Greatbatch, said it was a difficult call to leave out experienced players like Franklin, but changes were needed after New Zealand won none of their five Tests and only eight of their 27 ODIs over the past 12 months.”It was a tough year performance-wise,” Greatbatch told ESPNcricinfo. “If we keep picking the same players, we’re probably going to get the same results. It was a little bit of a cleanout. There have been some good players left out but they do have the opportunity in first-class cricket to press their claims. Some of these younger guys have caught up with some of the guys who have gone out, or gone past them, in our opinion.”Some guys are playing shorter form only. In Franklin’s case, he picked up points in the shorter forms but he only played one Test out of five last year. He’d like to get his bowling back to where it was four or five years ago in Test cricket. We don’t feel that’s there at the moment. We’ve picked a group of other players we feel can try and improve our Test cricket in the next two or three years.”Young, Bennett and Woodcock started international cricket last season and made the most of their opportunities and are likely to feature prominently in the year ahead. Both Flynn and Broom have worked hard to develop their game after missing out on an NZC contract last year and their inclusion is a clear indication to all players that the door is never closed,” Greatbatch said.Under the new captain Ross Taylor, New Zealand head to Zimbabwe later this year for a Test series, before playing two Tests in Australia. They then head home to host Zimbabwe and South Africa, before a trip to the Caribbean next year.New Zealand contracted players: Hamish Bennett, Trent Boult, Neil Broom, Daniel Flynn, Martin Guptill, Chris Martin, Brendon McCullum, Nathan McCullum, Andy McKay, Kyle Mills, Rob Nicol, Jacob Oram, Jesse Ryder, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Daniel Vettori, BJ Watling, Kane Williamson, Luke Woodcock, Reece Young.

The 22-year old wicketkeeper was struck on the head by the ball in the 44th over, a ricochet off the top edge which also resulted in his wicket

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Jan-2020Rishabh Pant has been ruled out of India’s second ODI against Australia, after sustaining a concussion during the first match in Mumbai. A decision on his availability for the third and final match has not been made yet, and will depend on how he responds to treatment during the rehabilitation period.The 22-year old wicketkeeper was struck on the head by a bouncer from Pat Cummins in the 44th over of India’s innings, a ricochet off the top edge which also resulted in his wicket. He didn’t take the field for the second half of the match, with KL Rahul given the gloves for India.With no replacement named by the BCCI, it looks likely that Rahul will continue to keep wicket as the series goes on. Pant, meanwhile, was kept under observation overnight and will now head to the NCA in Bengaluru, which is also the venue for the third ODI, after his scans came back clear.”After getting hit on his helmet while batting in the 1st ODI, Rishabh got a concussion and took no further part in the game,” the BCCI said ina statement. “He was then taken to the hospital for overnight monitoring under a specialist. He is stable and all his scan reports are clear. He has been discharged from the hospital and will head to NCA, Bengaluru to undergo his rehabilitation protocol. He is ruled out of the 2nd ODI. His availability for the final ODI will be based on how he responds during the rehabilitation protocol.”Pant had not needed any immediate treatment on the field after he was hit on Tuesday, and he was able to walk off on his own steam as well, but it soon became clear that he was indisposed. He did not join India’s training in the break between innings and Rahul who was seen practicing his glovework as the Australian openers walked out. Confirmation of the injury arrived when the BCCI put out a statement some time during the first two overs of the chase.Pant had played a good hand, scoring 28 off 33 balls as India tried to recover from a middle-order collapse. India had been 134 for 1 in the 28th over, but were dragged down to 164 for 5 as Australia’s fast bowlers adapted well to a slow pitch at the Wankhede Stadium.The bowlers eventually restricted India to 255, and the opening duo of David Warner and Aaron Finch both hit unbeaten centuries as Australia squashed India by ten wickets, with 12.2 overs to spare.

Marcus Trescothick’s fifth career double hundred enabled Somerset to take a stranglehold in their County Championship clash with Worcestershire at New Road

28-Jul-2011
ScorecardMarcus Trescothick’s fifth career double hundred enabled Somerset to take a stranglehold in their County Championship clash with Worcestershire at New Road. With Trescothick’s 203 in nearly six and a half hours underpinned by four individual half-centuries, the west-country side clearly had thoughts on burying Worcestershire under an avalanche of runs.Trescothick’s opening stand of 207 with Arul Suppiah (88) set the stage for remorseless progress to 591 for 9 declared – a lead of 103 and their highest-ever score against Worcestershire. The one tiny flaw was that they missed a fifth batting bonus point by 28 runs
but they go into the final day sniffing a chance of victory with the home side
on 4 without loss after two overs.Somerset’s powerful position developed as Nick Compton (95) completed 1,000
runs in a season for the second time. The former Middlesex batsman put on 151 with Trescothick and 97 with James Hildreth (67) before Craig Kieswetter rammed home their advantage in a post-tea charge to 68 from 73 balls.Worcestershire initially pinned their hopes on Saeed Ajmal getting the ball to turn and, although a profitable final spell gave him figures of 5 for 150 in 51 overs, it was mostly a day of toil. Yet it began well for the Pakistan offspinner with a misjudgment by Suppiah in playing no shot to a ball that did spin sharply. With his off stump taken out of the ground, the opener missed a first championship century of the season after batting for nearly four hours.Trescothick, though, had no intention of passing up the milestones that came his way. Unbeaten on 106 overnight, he went beyond 150 for the 22nd time and then onto his double hundred after facing 293 balls. With most of his 30 boundaries crunched from the full face of the bat, it came as a surprise in mid-afternoon when a six-and-a-half-hour masterclass ended with
a catch at mid-off by Alexei Kervezee.This wicket went to left-arm seamer Jack Shantry and in the next over Worcestershire claimed their only bowling point when Chris Jones played forward to Ajmal and edged to Vikram Solanki at second slip. Hildreth upped the tempo in reaching 50 in 62 balls but the more conservative
Compton hit only seven fours in 240 minutes before he was taken at slip off the second spinner, Moeen Ali.Hildreth’s departure, drilling a catch to short midwicket off ex-Somerset allrounder Gareth Andrew, only turned up the heat on Worcestershire as Kieswetter hit six fours and a six until he became Ajmal’s fifth victim with another catch at slip.

Hosts fail to capitalise on bowlers’ discipline but don’t feel match has got away from them

George Dobell in Mount Maunganui21-Nov-2019New Zealand were left to rue missed opportunities after a day of hard work and few rewards at the Bay Oval.On a slow – some might say painfully slow – surface, New Zealand kept such a check on England’s scoring that, for much of the day, the run-rate barely rose much above two-an-over.But a couple of missed opportunities – not least a dropped chance offered by Ben Stokes on 63 – meant New Zealand were unable to capitalise on their bowlers’ discipline. Rory Burns also survived a chance on 37, when he edged the deserving Tim Southee between slip fielders who left the chance to one another while Burns might also have been given out had New Zealand reviewed an appeal for caught behind when he had 10. Replays suggested he had edged Trent Boult to the keeper, but New Zealand were unable to hear the edge in the blustery wind.Also read: Patience pays off in England’s new old-fashioned wayWhile Neil Wagner later insisted, with more than a little justification, that New Zealand were satisfied with the way they bowled and “fairly happy” with the match situation, he accepted such moments were “frustrating”.”By no stretch have they got away from us so I think we’re still fairly happy with where we are at,” he said. “It is frustrating when catches go down and those things happen, but we’re a close group and no-one drops a catch on purpose. It can happen.”Ben Stokes is a special talent and he is a bit of a freak at times. Everyone wants to get him out because you know how important a wicket he is.”When it’s windy it’s quite hard to hear those things [edges]. There was a little bit of a noise but it was a bob each way, you have to take that risk with reviews but also you want to keep hold of them for when you do need them.”I thought we bowled well today and stuck at it. I know that our bowlers have bowled way worse than that and had more luck.”Although New Zealand were able to gain more swing than was, perhaps, anticipated the slow nature of the pitch meant both sides were persuaded to take a fairly attritional approach to the game. And Wagner was quick to pay tribute to England’s patient batting.”They batted really well,” he said. “They showed lots of patience and left well. There was swing on offer throughout the day and everything we threw at them they played quite well. At times they had a bit of luck but you need a bit of luck sometimes in cricket. The toss was always going to be crucial. It tends to be nice to bat on on day one.”There may be questions about the role – or the usage – of spinner Mitchell Santner, though. He was not called upon to bowl until the 72nd over of the day and delivered only five overs on the day. He may yet win the game for New Zealand in the second innings – though it doesn’t seem especially likely; he’s taken 13 wickets in 10 Tests in New Zealand – but his lack of overs on the first day does increase the workload on his colleagues.Much of the burden was taken up by Colin de Grandhomme. In 19 disciplined overs he conceded only two boundaries and went at under one-and-a-half an over. He also claimed the wickets of both openers as he maintained a perfect length and gained just enough swing to threaten the edge of the bat.”He’s got good skills and, with the pitch being on the slow side and getting slower, his slight lack of pace makes it hard to force the gaps,” Rory Burns said. “The men in the ring become catching options and you have to wait to pick him off.”The pitch seems like it’ll probably get slower so it’s lending itself to quite attritional cricket. You’ve got to scrap in and get in.”Wagner added: “There’s a long way to go and a lot of cricket to play. It is hard to say if the pitch will deteriorate. There’s a lot of unknown factors at the ground. This is the first Test match here and in the domestic games we’ve played here it tends to dry out with the wind.”

Kyle Mills, the New Zealand seamer, has been ruled out of the remainder of the World Cup with an injury and will be replaced by left-arm fast bowler Andy McKay

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Mar-2011Kyle Mills, the New Zealand seamer, has been ruled out of the remainder of the World Cup with an injury and will be replaced by left-arm fast bowler Andy McKay.Mills was not one of New Zealand’s first-choice seamers in the early stages of the tournament, but Hamish Bennett’s injury gave him his opportunity. Mills played in three matches, but suffered a quadricep strain in the last of those games, against Canada, on March 13. He missed the quarter-final victory against South Africa, and although his injury had improved, he would not be fully fit in time to play the semifinal on March 29.Despite not being in the XI, Mills was involved in a mid-pitch confrontation when he carried the drinks during South Africa’s chase in Mirpur. Mills exchanged words with South Africa batsman Faf du Plessis following the run-out of AB de Villiers, and has been fined for breaching the ICC code of conduct.McKay, 30, was a part of New Zealand’s disastrous tour of the subcontinent late last year. He will join the squad in Colombo on March 27, two days ahead of the semi-final, where New Zealand will play the winner of the Sri Lanka v England quarter-final clash. McKay is the second replacement player in the New Zealand side, after Daryl Tuffey, who came in for Bennett.

New Zealand wicketkeeper reaches ton before rain settles in to further reduce Glamorgan’s promotion hopes

ECB Reporters Network24-Sep-2019Glamorgan’s slim hopes of promotion took a huge hit thanks to the weather and BJ Watling in their Division Two clash against Durham at Chester-le-Street.Only 15 overs of play were possible on day two due to heavy rain, although the home side were able to record two batting bonus points, while Watling notched his 17th first-class century to frustrate the Glamorgan attack.Marchant de Lange took the two wickets to fall on day two, but Durham were able to grind out a strong platform for the rest of the game.Glamorgan need to win the contest and hope Gloucestershire are unable to claim enough points from their clash against Northamptonshire to earn the final promotion spot to Division One. However, the rain has left their margin for error next to nothing heading into the final two days of the match.”We’re obviously frustrated with the weather around,” said de Lange. “We knew it was coming. We would have loved to have scooped up the four wickets this morning. It didn’t go that way for us, but we’re still in it, and there’s still two days left so we’ll see how it goes.”Everyone here and around the country is watching the points system, but at the same time we know what we need to do. We need to go session-by-session and get as many points as we can for bowling and batting we know that we need to put up a good total and hopefully it will come down to the last day.”You never what can happen in this game.”The hosts resumed on 197 for 6 with Watling and Ben Raine at the crease. However, it took only three deliveries for Glamorgan to make the breakthrough. Raine got caught in two minds whether to leave a de Lange delivery and played on to his own stumps to fall for 26.Leg byes brought up the 200 for the home side and the first batting point of the game before Brydon Carse upped the run rate as he pierced the off side with regularity to find the fence. He was looking comfortable at the crease, scoring a brisk 27, but then fended a rising ball from de Lange through to Chris Cooke behind the stumps.Watling worked his way through the nineties and took his opportunity on 99 to send a quick single into the leg side, notching his first hundred for Durham from 201 deliveries. The home side secured their second bonus point after passing the 250-run mark, solidifying their position in the match before rain brought a premature to the day.

In an extraordinary turnaround, Central Zone have qualified for the Duleep Trophy semi-finals, after bowling out East Zone in less than a session and then chasing down the required 134 runs before tea on the fourth day

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jan-2011
ScorecardIn an extraordinary turnaround, Central Zone have qualified for the Duleep Trophy semi-finals, after bowling out East Zone in less than a session and then chasing down the required 134 runs before tea on the fourth day. The result seemed impossible at the start of the day, with East leading by 61 runs with nine wickets in hand, and looking set to go through on their first-innings lead.However, Central’s pace trio of Uttar Pradesh’s RP Singh, Rajasthan’s Pankaj Singh and Vidarbha’s Umesh Yadav had other ideas. Pankaj sparked the collapse, taking three quick wickets, including that of first-innings centurion Ishank Jaggi, to leave East, whose batting line-up had been shortened due to an injury to Saurabh Tiwary, in trouble at 44 for 4. Yadav, who recently signed a lucrative contract with IPL franchise Delhi Daredevils, continued the destruction, getting the other first-innings centurion Manoj Tiwary for 21. Yadav and RP Singh wiped out the tail and East were bowled out for 96, having added only 72 runs in the day.It was an unexpected collapse, since both teams had scored heavily in their first innings, and Central proved that the pitch hadn’t suddenly developed demons overnight. They made light work of knocking off the required runs, losing just one wicket in the process. Openers Aakash Chopra and Mohnish Mishra made up for their first-innings failures with half-centuries in the second and Central were home with only 61.2 overs bowled in the day.Central coach Abhay Sharma praised his bowlers. “It has been a thrilling game throughout the four days. Even we did not know that such a turnaround could be possible. But the three fast bowlers bowled their hearts out in the second innings. We targeted short of a good
length, and bowled a disciplined line. And we also held all the chances that came our way.”I must also give credit to our batsmen, especially Kaif and Bundela, who got us so close to the East Zone total. We were disappointed at conceding the lead, but I am delighted at the way we fought back.”Central will play South Zone in the semi-final, which begins on January 26.