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Defending champions take all 24 points with ruthless display at Canterbury

ECB Reporters Network22-Apr-2024Surrey have beaten Kent by an innings and 37 runs in the Vitality County Championship at Canterbury.The reigning champions dismissed the hosts for 262 in their second innings, with Dan Worrall taking 4 for 31 and Cameron Steel, claiming 3 for 38. Steel remains the leading wicket-taker in the country this season, with 20 after three matches.Joey Evison made 53 and Matt Parkinson hit his highest first-class score of 39. But after a dogged rearguard action that saw them through the morning session, Kent subsided midway through the afternoon.The hosts were 120 for 5 overnight, still 179 runs in arrears, and their slim hopes of batting out the day were dealt a near-fatal blow when Ben Compton was out in the fifth over of the morning. Compton, unbeaten on eight overnight, chased a Worrall delivery that veered away and was caught behind.The home crowd, however, were pleasantly surprised by the way Evison and Parkinson survived the rest of the morning. Parkinson, promoted up the order to number eight, had spent the winter working on his batting as part of a concerted effort to shore up Kent’s lower order. Although there were a few alarms, by lunch Kent had reached 203 for six at lunch and the impossible now seemed merely improbable.Evison, however, fell to Tom Lawes in the afternoon’s third over. He cut Lawes for fours off successive boundaries to reach his half-century but then edged him behind.With Evison gone, Kent crumbled. George Garrett was lbw to Steel for four and Jas Singh went for a duck when Jamie Smith took a brilliant catch at short leg off the same bowler.Number 11 Arafat Bhuiyan had some fun with the new ball, flicking three consecutive balls from Kemar Roach for a six and two fours on his way to his highest championship score of 22 not out, making him the fourth Kent tail-ender to reach that personal landmark in this match, after Garrett and Singh hit their career-best scores in the first innings.This merely delayed Surrey’s celebrations, however, and an emphatic victory was sealed when Smith took another exceptional close catch to snare Parkinson off Kemar Roach. Surrey take 24 points and Kent two.

Dhawan’s elevation was approved on Wednesday during a board meeting and was backed by Trevor Bayliss, Kings’ new head coach

Nagraj Gollapudi02-Nov-2022Shikhar Dhawan is set to replace Mayank Agarwal as captain of Punjab Kings from IPL 2023. ESPNcricinfo has learnt that Dhawan’s elevation was approved on Wednesday during a franchise board meeting and was backed by Trevor Bayliss, Kings’ newly appointed head coach.Dhawan, 36, will take over from Agarwal who was appointed captain just before IPL 2022. Agarwal was one of two players – Arshdeep Singh being the other – who had been retained by Kings ahead of the mega auction, where Dhawan was the first player they bought.Earlier this year, Kings paid INR 8.25 crore (US$1.1 million approx.) to pick Dhawan, who has been among the most consistent batters since the 2016 IPL. He had a stellar 2020 season where he scored 618 runs at a strike rate of nearly 145 for Delhi Capitals, who had traded him in from Sunrisers Hyderabad. In his first season for Kings, Dhawan scored 460 runs in 14 matches with an average of 38.33 and a strike rate of 122.66.Agarwal joined the Punjab franchise in 2018 and forged a strong opening pairing with KL Rahul, the captain till last season. His elevation up from the ranks coincided with a dip in form though. Agarwal scored just 196 runs in 13 matches at an average of 16.33. The team didn’t do very well either. Kings ended the season in sixth place. Former India head coach Ravi Shastri, during his stint on ESPNcricinfo’s T20 Time:Out programme, was the first leading voice to suggest that Agarwal needed to be relieved of captaincy.Dhawan is among the most experienced players in the IPL having been part of it since the inaugural season in 2008. He has also been leading second-string India teams in ODIs, with his next assignment a three-match series in New Zealand. Overall in IPL, Dhawan has been captain in 11 matches (ten at Sunrisers in 2014 and one for Kings last year) with four wins and seven losses.It remains to be seen whether Kings will retain or release Agarwal. Franchises have until November 15 to submit a list of the players they want to keep ahead of the next IPL. While Kings settled with Agarwal to pay him a salary of INR 12 crore, as per the IPL retention rules, 18 crore was deducted from their overall purse – 14 crore for Agarwal and 4 crore for Arshdeep, who was uncapped at the time.

He suffered a quadriceps tear during a run of five T20 games in the space of eight days

Matt Roller01-Aug-2021Ollie Pope remains a fitness doubt for England’s first Test against India at Trent Bridge, which starts on Thursday, and has suggested that Surrey’s relentless Vitality Blast schedule was to blame for his injury.Pope suffered a grade three quadriceps tear during a run of five T20 games in the space of eight days during Surrey’s T20 Blast group stage run-in, immediately after a period of self-isolation after he was a close contact of someone who tested positive for Covid-19.The injury ruled him out of their last two Blast games, two County Championship fixtures – meaning he has not played a first-class game since the second Test against New Zealand in early June – and the early stages of the Hundred, and a decision is yet to be made about his availability for the first India Test.Related

• Pope doubtful for first India Test

• Ben Stokes to miss India series, takes an 'indefinite break from all cricket'

• Leach admits 'frustration' over England omission for NZ Tests

• Ollie Pope to miss four Surrey Blast fixtures

“I’ve been hitting a lot of balls just trying to get as much running as I can done as possible and I guess in a day or two a decision will be made,” Pope said on Sunday. “I’m hopeful, but I guess it’s up to physios and management to manage the risk of it.”At the time it was a grade three tear, but I think it looked worse on the scan because I played a couple of T20s on it – after I’d done it – so the swelling was worse than a grade three. Then it’s just about how I’m sprinting – I’m feeling it a little bit but nothing major. It’s just trying to make sure if I did play this one there’s not going to be issues for the next four if selected.”Pope is used to spending long periods out injured following lengthy lay-offs with two shoulder injuries over the last two years, and admitted that it was “frustrating” to have missed so much cricket.”I think the shoulder ones are even more frustrating because there’s not a lot you can do: you give 100% in the field and suddenly you’re left with two shoulder operations,” he said. “I guess this is a more short-term one. It is frustrating, especially when you’re missing games because I just want to play the whole time.”With the schedule, I think we played five T20s in seven [eight] days after I had to do 10 days sitting on the couch isolating as a close contact. Going from 10 days on a couch to five games in seven days is always going to provide a little risk. It is frustrating but hopefully I’ll sort this quad out and that’s the end of it.”As English cricket, the county set-up plays a lot more cricket than any other. I was speaking with Kyle Jamieson, the New Zealander, and they don’t play anywhere near as many games there, especially in that little T20 period. It is a lot of cricket but if it is possible, you’ve just got to try and manage it as best you can.”Ollie Pope: ‘I’ve been hitting a lot of balls just trying to get as much running as I can done as possible’•Getty Images

Pope made a brilliant 135 not out against South Africa in January 2020 to reinforce his status as English cricket’s most promising young batter, but has struggled for runs in Test cricket since, averaging 25.17 with only two fifties since the start of last summer. His county form has remained impressive, with 555 Championship runs at 61.66 this season, but his technique – and in particular his off-stump guard – have come under scrutiny from analysts and pundits.”You’ve got to get used to it,” he said. “When I was first playing, you looked at how I got out and people would say I should stand a little further across and it would help me leave that fifth-stump ball. Then you stand a little further across and get hit on the pad once and suddenly you’re standing too far across.”It’s an interesting one. You’ve got to be pretty stubborn as a cricketer in this environment. You’ve got to work out what’s best for you against these specific bowlers in these conditions and work with your coaches and who knows you best rather than guys who have seen you bat on TV two or three times.”With that technique that I use, I think I average 60-odd for Surrey this year batting like that against international bowlers, so there’s obviously some sort of use behind it as well. Everyone has got their opinions which is absolutely fine, but you’ve got to know your game better than everyone else.”As long as your balance is good, if you can cover that off stump with your eyes level, it helps you leave that fifth-stump ball. Especially in England where the ball does swing and nip around, you need to do what you can to cover one side of the bat. Hence why a lot of the best players of the world, when they come over, that’s where they stand in Test cricket.”Pope admitted that the absence of Ben Stokes – who is spending an indefinite period of time away from the game to focus on his mental wellbeing – represented “a blow” for England, but said that the team supported his decision to miss the India series.”Stokesy is one of, if not the, best allrounder in the world so you’re always going to miss him if he’s not playing,” he said. “But we’re well behind him with that decision and I wish him to be the best he can as soon as he can.”We, as a nation, and the world, look at Stokesy as a real macho fighter character – and he is. But this is a reminder and shows how mentally straining cricket and sport at the highest level can be, and the situation of being in a bubble away from the family does make that tougher.”We all support him 100 percent and would love to get him back as soon as we can, but I think mental health is much more important than a game.”

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

Mark Wood chimes in with three as England win by eight wickets

Valkerie Baynes10-Mar-2019
Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentaryDavid Willey made an emphatic point while Mark Wood didn’t miss a beat as West Indies were bowled out for an abysmal 71 and England cruised to an eight-wicket win in St Kitts to sweep their T20I series 3-0.Willey claimed 4 for 7 and Wood 3 for 9 in a staggering West Indies innings lasting just 13 overs in which four players reached double figures but none of them passed 11 runs.Chasing just 72 to win, Alex Hales signalled his intent when he smashed Sheldon Cottrell for 16 runs in the first over of England’s innings and the tourists reached the target for the loss of just two wickets with 57 balls to spare, England’s largest T20I victory in terms of balls remaining.West Indies’ paltry total was their third-lowest in T20Is and only marginally better than their 45 in the second match against England at the same ground on Friday night.Playing on the same pitch which, by all accounts, appeared tacky, West Indies made the surprising decision to bat first upon winning the toss. Sure enough, Willey struck with the first delivery of the match, a fuller-length ball that dug into the surface slightly and, as he pressed forward uncertainly, Shai Hope spooned a simple catch to Hales at short cover.In his next over, a Willey slower ball tempted Shimron Hetmyer into a loose shot that sailed straight to mid-off where star fielder Chris Jordan took an easy catch.Man of the Match Willey, who before the final fixture had questioned the noise surrounding Jofra Archer’s potential World Cup selection, did his best to press his own claims for inclusion when, in his next over, he claimed two wickets in three balls, dismissing debutant John Campbell, who skied a catch to Joe Denly in the covers, and Darren Bravo, caught behind.Wood, who was rested for the first two T20 games, picked up where he left off after an impressive showing in the third Test and the ODI series, after replacing Liam Plunkett for the tour finale.Wood had Jason Holder put down off his second ball in a rare fielding mistake by Joe Root but, after Denly’s part-time spin dismissed Holder next ball, easily caught by Jordan, Wood had Nicholas Pooran out to an athletic catch by Player of the Series Jordan running round to his right at mid-wicket. With West Indies in disarray at 48 for 6, Wood and Adil Rashid cleaned up the tail and left England’s batsmen to chalk off the run-chase with minimum fuss.Hales made a sharp 20 off 13, while Bairstow, dropped by Hetmyer off Holder’s bowling when he was on 19, went on to reach 37 off 31 before he was bowled by Devendra Bishoo. At that point, England needed just 12 more runs for victory and Eoin Morgan saw his team over the line with a six and a four in consecutive balls off Bishoo.

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.

Anya Shrubsole has been ruled out of any part in England Women’s tour of the Caribbean after picking up a series of injuries

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Oct-2016Anya Shrubsole has been ruled out of any part in England Women’s tour of the Caribbean after picking up a series of injuriesShrubsole, the Somerset opening bowler, had hoped to be fit for the third ODI in Kingston after being ruled out of the first two matches in Montego Bay.However, upon returning to training, Shrubsole developed severe joint pain in her neck and will now return home to the UK for further assessment and treatment in the next few days. At this stage no replacement has been named in the squad.”It is disappointing news that Anya won’t be available for any of the matches during this tour,” said Mark Robinson, the head coach. “I know how frustrated she is that she won’t get the chance to make an impact on the series and contribute to the team.”But we have already shown what a versatile bowling attack we have in the first couple of matches out here, so I am sure that the players will all continue to work hard together and put in some strong performances in these final three games.”In Shrubsole’s absence, England won the third ODI by 112 runs to take a 2-1 series lead with the last two matches due to be placed at the same venue on October 16 and 19.

ESPNcricinfo previews the second Test between Pakistan and England

The Preview by Alan Gardner21-Oct-2015

Match facts

October 22-26, 2015
Start time 10am local (0600 GMT)

Big Picture

It took a while for the fuse to burn down in Abu Dhabi but, after four days of attritional accumulation, the series exploded into life on the final afternoon. The sands suddenly shifted and it was Pakistan who were left feeling unsteady, clinging to a draw as the light faded on England’s run chase.Their second-innings collapse was branded “unacceptable” by Waqar Younis, Pakistan’s coach, and he suggested England could no longer be considered underdogs. Such aberrations have become exactly that since Grant Flower became involved with Pakistan’s batsmen, however, and their top order remains the most prolific over the last 12 months. They will also have fond memories of 2012 to draw on.Three years ago, England chose to bat on the first morning in Dubai and found themselves 52 for 5 at lunch. It set the tone for the series and even though they managed to bowl Pakistan out for 99 in the third Test a couple of weeks later, they were steamrollered by tons from Azhar Ali and Younis Khan in the second innings. Only two England players to managed to pass 50 in either Test – Andrew Strauss and Matt Prior – and both are now retired.Since then, Pakistan’s form in Dubai has been patchy, with defeats to South Africa and Sri Lanka and a draw with New Zealand either side of a big win over Australia. The pitch is expected to be more receptive to pace – especially early on – and spin (you would have to trawl the souks to find something with less life), meaning that batsmen on both sides will have to work harder for their runs.Alastair Cook showed England the way in Abu Dhabi and they will have taken great confidence from the way they wrested control of the match. But the scoreline remains 0-0 and Yasir Shah’s return for Pakistan presents a potent threat: he took seven wickets here on debut exactly a year ago.England hope Ben Stokes will be fit after a stomach upset and•Getty Images

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)
Pakistan DWLWW

England DLWWL

In the spotlight

It is rare that so much attention falls on legspin, simply because opportunities to get all gooey are few and far between, but Adil Rashid’s flip-reverse debut performance and the presence of a fit-again Yasir Shah will have fans of wrist action all hot and bothered. There will be some who contend that Yasir would have made the difference in Abu Dhabi, bowling at a quicker pace and turning the ball both ways, but he has been somewhat upstaged by Rashid running through Pakistan in the second innings. Rashid should consequently be feeling a little less pressure and it is Yasir, expected to be Pakistan’s match-winner, who must be prepared to shoulder a weight of expectation, dodgy back notwithstandingThe runs flowed, thick and slow like treacle, across the first four days at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium but the top orders won’t have it so easy (possibly ever) again. Pakistan’s subsequent capitulation was all the more concerning as it began with a Rash dismissal by Younis and then gathered speed when Misbah-ul-Haq also tossed his wicket away. They have been dismissed for 99 in the first innings at Dubai twice – South Africa did not let them off in the manner England did – and have generally found bigger totals harder to come by. England dealt with some of their UAE demons last week but Cook will not always contribute half of the total and the likes of Moeen Ali, Ian Bell and Joe Root must build on solid starts.

Team news

Ben Stokes missed training on Tuesday due to an upset stomach but turned up to take part 24 hours later, having seemingly recovered. Cook said that his condition would be assessed closer to the time, with England mindful that five days in the heat is a demanding business even at peak fitness. Including Samit Patel as a third spinner is an option that has not been ruled out while Liam Plunkett and Chris Jordan – who has arrived as Steven Finn’s replacement – are the other candidates if Stokes is held back as a precaution. Mark Wood has previously suffered from playing Tests in quick succession but Cook suggested there were no plans to rest him.England (possible) 1 Alastair Cook (capt), 2 Moeen Ali, 3 Ian Bell, 4 Joe Root, 5 Jonny Bairstow, 6 Ben Stokes, 7 Jos Buttler (wk), 8 Adil Rashid, 9 Stuart Broad, 10 Mark Wood, 11 James AndersonYasir, who missed the first Test with a back spasm, returned to practice even as his spin partner Zulfiqar Babar was slogging through 72 overs in Abu Dhabi and he is fit to take his place in the XI, most likely at the expense of Rahat Ali. Azhar Ali was expected to have recovered from a toe injury but the death of his mother-in-law means he has returned to Pakistan and won’t be available – which in turn means Shan Masood is likely to keep his place despite ending the first Test in James Anderson’s pocket. Offspinner Bilal Asif has joined the squad and will be considered even though he has undergone testing for a suspect action.Pakistan (possible) 1 Shan Masood, 2 Mohammad Hafeez, 3 Shoaib Malik, 4 Younis Khan, 5 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), 6 Asad Shafiq, 7 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 8 Wahab Riaz, 9 Zulfiqar Babar, 10 Yasir Shah, 11 Imran Khan

Pitch and conditions

The pitch has reportedly been shaved of grass, though it has tended to offer a little extra pace for the seamers in the past. Misbah called it a “typical” Dubai surface and both captains were expecting a more even contest between bat and ball; Cook suggested a shadow cast by the stand could result in it retaining moisture first thing. Otherwise, the sun will take its toll throughout the five days, though temperatures might be a little cooler than Abu Dhabi.

Stats and trivia

• Fresh from breaking Javed Miandad’s record, Younis Khan is 103 runs short of becoming the first Pakistani to 9000 in Tests
• Two of Sarfraz Ahmed’s three Test hundreds have come in Dubai
• Alastair Cook has now scored 9015 runs at opener. He needs 16 to overtake Graeme Smith in second and almost 600 more to catch Sunil Gavaskar
• Ian Bell is set to go level with David Gower as England’s fourth most-capped player, on 117 Tests

Quotes

“It was just one odd day and I think we have to forget that, but we have to be really professional in the next game.”
Misbah-ul-Haq wants to move on quickly from the final day in Abu Dhabi“No one has beaten Pakistan here yet and it would be great to be the first side to do it.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the match between Mumbai Indians and Pune Warriors in Mumbai

The Preview by Abhishek Purohit12-Apr-2013

Match facts

Saturday, April 13, 2013
Start time 1600 (1030 GMT)The Robin Uthappa of old was on display against Rajasthan Royals•BCCI

Big Picture

One of the biggest mysteries of the IPL is how did Pune Warriors manage to lose 11 games on the trot with such an impressive squad. Probably on par in mysteriousness is how Mumbai Indians have not been able to win a single IPL title with some of the biggest names on their rosters, both playing and non-playing. While Mumbai Indians have made it to the knockouts for the previous three seasons before stumbling, Warriors’ string of defeats – an IPL record – had become self-perpetuating in a way.Match after match, their top order would look like it would rather be somewhere else. There was no intent, there was no attempt to take on the opposition. There was a strange hesitation, as if they were waiting for someone else to take charge, and no one was actually doing it. It took a frank call from their captain Angelo Mathews to evaluate their “intent and attitude”, and an injury to Marlon Samuels, to finally wake up the sleeping Warriors.Aaron Finch came in to partner Robin Uthappa at the top of the order. It wasn’t just the fact that the pair added 58 inside five overs against Rajasthan Royals to get rid of the losing streak. It was the way they went about doing it that showed Warriors were serious about discarding their diffidence.Warriors are up against a side which, in its previous game against Delhi Daredevils, recovered from 1 for 2 to make 209 for 5. The first two wickets were those of Ricky Ponting and Sachin Tendulkar. Dinesh Karthik and Rohit Sharma’s response was to blitz 132 in 13 overs. It shows what this Mumbai Indians side is capable of doing.

Players to watch

The opening partnership has been a constant headache for Mumbai Indians for a couple of seasons. The one between Ponting and Tendulkar began with much expectation but has had a couple of failures. While a chance to see the two legends walk out together is enough to fill the ground, how many games will Ponting give himself before dropping down the order, given Mumbai Indians were so keen to chop and change previous season?The Robin Uthappa of old was on display against Royals, swatting length deliveries over long on, swinging powerfully over deep square leg and also purposefully punching through the off side. He made more than 400 runs in IPL 2012, but the strike-rate of 118 mirrored the hesitation that marked Warriors’ approach. Mathews would want more of the intent Uthappa displayed against Sreesanth.

Stats and trivia

• Mumbai Indians won their previous meeting with Warriors by one run, only the fourth-such result in the IPL
• Sachin Tendulkar has taken the most catches by a non-wicketkeeper in an IPL game – four

Quotes

“We have a good side and it takes a while to gel, since we have a new captain, and a lot has changed for us this year – Angelo is the captain, Yuvi is back and Ross Taylor’s in the side.”

“I do not get worried too much with a few failures. This is a format where you need a little bit of time to get into the groove and then score freely. This is my style of playing, this is the way I play and I am glad that I have got some runs.”

Umesh Yadav, the India fast bowler, has said that he has recovered completely from the shin injury he picked up during India’s tour of Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Mar-2012Umesh Yadav, the India fast bowler, has said that he has recovered completely from the shin injury he picked up during India’s tour of Australia. Yadav, who is currently in Mohali to play for Central Zone in the Deodhar Trophy, was not rested for the Asia Cup. “I’m back to full fitness,” Yadav told the . “I’m not concentrating on anything other than achieving my goals, like working on my bowling and maintaining my fitness.”Yadav was called the “find of the tour” by team-mate Gautam Gambhir after he impressed with his speed and aggression in the Test series. He finished with 14 wickets from four Tests and his strike rate of 50.5 was the best among India’s bowlers. But in a move to protect the fast bowlers, Yadav was rotated during the one-day triangular series, where he finished with just five wickets from six matches. “As a fast bowler, you cannot go on playing matches for long periods as it exposes you to injuries, besides weakening your muscles,” Yadav said.Yadav’s focus is now to hit peak form as soon as possible and the Deodhar trophy opener today against South Zone will be a good test. He pointed out that he would have to adjust from bowling on the fast and bouncy tracks in Australia to the much slower and flatter pitches in India. One factor in his favour is that the tournament is being played in Mohali, where the pitch is more generous to the fast bowlers, and Yadav said he would like to take advantage of that fact.”The conditions don’t matter much. Yes, you get more bounce and pace on the wickets abroad while in India, I can only name a few places like Bangalore and Mohali which are a bit pace-friendly. But as a bowler, all you have to look for is the correct line and length.”Edited by Tariq Engineer