All posts by n8rngtd.top

The two will also train at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane and be part of Queensland Bulls’ pre-season preparations

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Jul-2022Chetan Sakariya and Mukesh Choudhary will headline the overseas presence at the KFC T20 Max series in Queensland next month. They will also train at Cricket Australia’s National Cricket Centre in Brisbane and be involved in Queensland Bulls’ pre-season preparations, as part of the old exchange programme with the Chennai-based MRF Pace Foundation, which had been paused because of Covid-19.Sakariya, 24, made a name for himself during IPL 2021, playing for Rajasthan Royals, and has turned out in an ODI and two T20Is so far while also playing for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2022, while Choudhary was impressive in his debut IPL season, this year, for Chennai Super Kings, picking up 16 wickets in 13 games. The two will be joined by three Papua New Guinea internationals: Norman Vanua, Chad Soper and Charles Amini.Related

• How 'systematic', 'quiet' Choudhary made it from Bhilwara to CSK

• Meet Sakariya – who overcame personal tragedy to make it to the IPL

Sakariya will play for Sunshine Coast, while Wynnum-Manly will have the services of Choudhary. Sandgate-Redcliffe have all the three PNG players – regulars with their national side, which finished third at the recent World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe – in their ranks. Vanua and Soper are medium pacers, while Amini is a legspinning allrounder.There will also be a strong list of current or recent BBL players, some of them internationals, in the mix too: Jordan Silk, Beau Webster, Cameron Boyce, Ben Cutting, Liam Guthrie, Nick Larkin, Clint Hinchliffe, Josh Lalor, Nick Hobson, Jake Lehmann, Arjun Nair, Chris Sabburg, Nick Bertus, Ryan Gibson, Spencer Johnson and Nathan McSweeney.In a note on its website, Queensland Cricket said, “Due to the popularity of the concept and a surge in the number of players expressing interest, Queensland Cricket today updated the competition rules to allow each Premier club to sign an additional interstate or international recruit, moving from three players per club to four.”Several regionally based players have already brokered arrangements with teams, while contracted Queensland Bulls and Brisbane Heat players will be available for selection as part of their pre-season preparations.”The tournament will be played over three weeks, from August 18 to September 4, at the club grounds as well as at the refurbished Allan Border Field, under lights.Exchanges between the MRF Pace Foundation, founded in 1987, and Australia began in 1992, when the academy opened its doors to players from beyond India’s shores.Among the first to come and train under Dennis Lillee, then the director at MRF, was Glenn McGrath, who later took up the directorship once Lillee retired after a 25-year stint in 2012. Fast bowlers from many other countries, including Mohammad Asif (Pakistan), Chaminda Vaas (Sri Lanka), Heath Streak (Zimbabwe), and premier quicks from Australia like Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson, have all trained at the academy over the years. Similarly, young Indian quicks have been given the opportunity to spend time in Brisbane as part of the programme. The last of these, in 2019, were Prasidh Krishna, who has since played ten ODIs for India, and Mukhtar Hussain, the 23-year-old right-arm quick from Assam.

“It does look sometimes like the top order doesn’t trust the middle order, but you can improve this”

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Oct-2022The top T20I teams are “one step ahead” of Pakistan in terms of their approach, particularly with the bat, according to chief selector Mohammad Wasim. He also feels that the top order, Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam specifically, needs to “show more faith” in the middle order for the team to achieve the sort of big totals they need at the upcoming men’s T20 World Cup.”We often talk about the brand of cricket we play, and how we eventually have to play the modern form of T20 cricket,” Wasim told . “Obviously, the sort of cricket England and a few others are playing, they are one step ahead of us in terms of their approach. For us, it will take time to be fully converted into this brand of cricket, because for it you need certain players to be fully ready.Related

• Shaheen Afridi completes rehab for knee injury, to join Pakistan squad in Brisbane on October 15

• Chilly Christchurch brings back the nostalgic charm of a triangular series

• Gratitude the overriding emotion after series of ebb and flow

• Pakistan's batting headaches and World Cup quandaries

• Pakistan's strength is also their weakness in T20Is

“But if you talk about a winning formula, we need our middle-order complementing the top order. We did get success from it as well. Our [2021 T20] World Cup went well, our home series have been good, and our success rate has been up. At the moment, the best policy for us is to mix and match [the batting approach].”One of the issues that has been most under scrutiny is the method of Pakistan’s top order, specifically when setting a total. The top three of Rizwan, Babar and Fakhar Zaman have often anchored their way through an innings, batting deep and leaving fewer balls for the more free-scoring middle-order batters. While chasing, the approach often comes off. While setting targets, though, Pakistan have usually been just around par, if not below it.”It reflects in my selection, but whatever the final strategy is, it is down to the captain and coach,” Wasim said. “The vision about my selection is based on the thought that if the low-value wickets in the lower-middle order are used, then we can get better results. We did see some valuable contributions from Asif [Ali], Khushdil [Shah] and Iftikhar [Ahmed], but I think we need to have more consistency from them.”Khushdil Shah and Iftikhar Ahmed, two of Pakistan’s lower-middle-order hitters•AFP/Getty Images

In the final, deciding, T20I against England, which Pakistan lost by 67 runs after conceding 209, they were 33 for 3 when Shan Masood and Khushdil got together. They added 53 runs together, but took up 7.1 overs to score those, leaving a huge asking rate for the batters to follow.”I think maybe there isn’t a clear message, or there is a problem in the lower-middle order as they are valuing their wicket a bit more than they should, which is a problem,” Wasim said. “The partnership between Shan and Khushdil wasn’t impressive, it was going nowhere. The big advantage while chasing is that they know the target and it’s easier to set a pattern and plan accordingly.”If you want to play like this, or want to play this sort of cricket, then we don’t need better-equipped players to get in. You will get such resources anyway. It all comes down to what is your game plan.”One of the possible ways in which the problem can be bypassed is to have spin-bowling allrounders Shadab Khan and Mohammad Nawaz bat higher, at four or five, on a more regular basis.”Every team has its stronger links and weaker ones, and ours is bowling; our batting does need to improve for us to win games. As coach [and not as selector], I would love to see Shadab and Nawaz bat higher, and I had this discussion with the management, and you will see it happening going forward.”It might give some shape to the middle order and it’s not for the sake of change, but based on the skillsets they bring. Both can play spin well, bat at a high strike rate, rotate the strike, and accelerate the score.”Pakistan are contemplating making better use of allrounders like Shadab Khan•AFP/Getty Images

Wasim was also asked about the dependency on the opening pair in particular, and whether that has affected trust with the middle order.”It does look sometimes like the top order doesn’t trust the middle order, but you can improve this,” Wasim said. “As a batter, you get disappointed, but at the same time, you have to look up to the other group as well. I am sure coaches have spoken and this isn’t a good message that the top-two wickets falling result in the entire team getting out. So there is a need to show more faith on the others.”The England games are over, and now Pakistan play a triangular series in New Zealand, with Bangladesh as the third team, and then go to the World Cup in Australia. But there are murmurs that there could be a few changes to the squad before the marquee event. Like in 2021.”Last year, changes were made mainly because of injuries and we have encountered similar issues again,” Wasim said. “We are constantly monitoring. I would say that this is the same squad [that will go to the World Cup], but in light of injuries, we will definitely consider replacements if needed.”You can’t say anything about changes during a series, and if there is a plan, we won’t talk about it in public. Because the situation is fluid around the injuries. At the same time, we have backed these boys for a year now and we will still back them. But we are looking into who is expected to be fit and who will be unavailable and who can be a replacement.”

He has led Delhi in 12 T20s in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Tournament, and has been with KKR since 2018

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Mar-2023Nitish Rana has been appointed interim captain by Kolkata Knight Riders, while their regular leader Shreyas Iyer recovers from a back injury that is likely to sideline him for at least the first half of IPL 2023.Rana was one of two candidates for the interim captaincy along with Sunil Narine, who joined the franchise in 2012 and has been with them ever since. Narine had recently led Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in the inaugural edition of the International League T20, where they finished last among six teams with one win and eight losses.Rana has led his state team Delhi in 12 T20s in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, with eight wins and four defeats. A 29-year old middle-order batter, he was bought by KKR ahead of the 2018 season and has been retained by the franchise ever since. He’s played 74 matches for them, scoring 1744 runs at a strike rate of 135.61.”While we are hopeful that Shreyas will recover and participate at some stage in the IPL 2023 edition, we feel fortunate that Nitish, with the captaincy experience of having led his state side in white-ball cricket and the IPL experience he has had with KKR since 2018, will do a great job,” KKR said in a statement. “We are also confident that under head coach Chandrakant Pandit and the support staff, he will get all the support needed off the field, and the highly experienced leaders in the squad will provide all support that Nitish may need on the field. We wish him the best in his new role and Shreyas a full and speedy recovery.”Rana was KKR’s second highest run-scorer last season, behind Shreyas, with 361 runs at a strike rate of 143.82. It was a disappointing year for the team, as they finished seventh in the league with six wins and eight losses.With Rana taking over as captain, KKR will be under whole new leadership this season, with Chandrakant Pandit replacing Brendon McCullum as head coach and Bharat Arun appointed bowling coach.

England Test coach says boards must “work with leagues” so best players remain available for international cricket

Vithushan Ehantharajah12-May-2023England Test head coach Brendon McCullum believes international boards, including the ECB, would be “completely naive” to assume their stars would turn down longterm franchise contracts.Recent reports have suggested that IPL teams are in talks with a number of English cricketers to sign annual deals. Given their investments across other tournaments such as the CPL, SA20, ILT20, Abu Dhabi T10 and the upcoming Major League Cricket in the United States, franchise owners have been working towards a situation where they can extend control over their most valuable assets beyond three months of the year.At the time of writing, it is understood no formal offers have been made to English players. However, Test nations such as South Africa and West Indies have long been at the mercy of franchise competitions when it comes to controlling the movement of their own players, and it seems only a matter of time before the likes of Australia and England must face a similar reality.Related

• McCullum puts faith in CSK to keep Stokes' Ashes ambitions on track

• Key: 'I thought, what's the worst that could happen?'

• Welcome to the IPL, England-style

In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, England men’s managing director Rob Key spoke of boards needing to work with players regarding franchise competitions for their own good: “You’re never going to compete financially with these competitions. So you’ve got to try and find a way to actually make sure that you do retain control of those players.”Speaking to SENZ Radio in New Zealand, McCullum echoed those sentiments, urging professional empathy in a fast-changing landscape.”The last few years, there’s been a shifting of the sand somewhat around international cricket,” McCullum said.”We’d be completely naive to think that players would turn down huge amounts of money on longterm contracts for a lot less work in these T20 leagues because they should be playing international cricket. Those days are fast approaching to be over. It’s definitely a shifting landscape and you’ve just got to be fluid.”What you’ve got to do is you’ve got to work with these players, you got to work with these leagues and try and allow, ideally, players to have their cake and eat it too because you want your best players playing.”The ECB’s more open approach when it comes to the IPL is reflective of the fact it sees no gain in maintaining England’s early antagonism to the competition. This year’s edition has seen a record 17 Englishman contracted, most notably Test skipper Ben Stokes, Sam Curran and Harry Brook, who all signed on seven-figure deals.Brook, who has taken Test cricket by storm, is currently on an incremental contract with the ECB, earning around £60,000 (US$75,000) for representing England. That his deal with Sunrisers Hyderabad is £1.3 million (US$1.6 million) speaks of the disparity. While it is due to be rectified in the next round of central contract handouts at the end of the summer, particularly given Brook’s role as a multi-format batter, it is unlikely to be more than the eye-catching figure of his first IPL season.McCullum, however, does not anticipate a situation where he will not be able to call upon his best Test players in the near future. Indeed, he feels making international cricket a more enjoyable and meaningful experience can be an easy remedy as opposed to adopting a hardline stance on those who want to indulge in franchise cricket.”How much fun they’ve had, how much those experiences which they’ve been able to get in an England shirt is so great that they are prepared to continue to put their yards [in] even though it might not be as financially viable as some of the other leagues,” McCullum said.”I think we are a little bit lucky, too, because the amount of money that we can pay players is better than some of the other boards around the world. It’s not good enough to say ‘You know what, if they don’t want to play international cricket for us, then bugger them, we’ll move on and find someone different’.”As a spectator, you want to see the best players in the world representing their countries.”

Mohammedan bundled Gazi for 40, edged past Sheikh Jamal but were no match for Abahani

Mohammad Isam06-Apr-2024

Key takeaways</h2Abahani Limited romped to nine successive victories in the Dhaka Premier League after trouncing old rivals Mohammedan Sporting Club and Legends of Rupganj to top the points table after week three. Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club and Mohammedan remain second with seven wins each, while Gazi Tyres Cricket Academy suffered two massive losses.Bowling dominated play this week as only two teams crossed the 250-run mark while there were 12 hauls of four wickets or more. Left-arm quick Abu Hider took 7 for 20 – the second best List-A figures in Bangladesh history – to bundle Gazi Tyres for 40 in 12 overs. Mohammedan chased the total down in 6.2 overs with nine wickets to spare.

Best batters – Anamul tons up, Mohobbot shines on debut

Parvez Hossain Emon remained the top run-getter despite three low scores. Meanwhile, his Prime Bank team-mate Tamim Iqbal breached the 400-run mark this week. Sheikh Jamal’s Saif Hassan, Abahani’s Anamul Haque and Brothers Union’s Abdul Mazid struck hundreds.Anamul struck his 15th List A century, an unbeaten 107, with seven fours and four sixes, spanning 118 balls, to help Abhani beat Gazi Group Cricketers by seven wickets. Gazi Tyres’ opener Mohobbot Hossen Roman struck 63 off 47 balls on List A debut against Rupganj Tigers at a strike rate of 134.04.

Best bowlers – left-arm pacers rule

Left-arm quicks Hider, Maruf Mridha and Ruyel Miah are now the top three wicket-takers in the DPL. Hider overtook Maruf with his seven-wicket haul to climb to the top of the tally, while Ruyel’s second five-wicket haul, against Gazi Tyres, earned him a spot among the top three.

Best match – Saif’s resilience can’t take Sheikh Jamal over the line

Before a defeat against arch-rivals Abahani and a big win against Gazi Tyres, Mohammedan started the week by beating Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club by five runs in Fatullah.Defending 200 runs, Mohammedan’s bowlers didn’t allow Sheikh Jamal to settle. Saif kept them going with a half-century but retired hurt after 33 overs – 60* at the time – due to cramps. He returned in the 44th over and remained 84* off 120 balls but couldn’t finish the job. Kamrul Islam Rabbi was the bowler who kept him down and successfully defended 14 runs in the last over.

Points to ponder

There’s no stopping Abahani who crushed Mohammedan with 90 balls to spare. If they win the last two games of the first phase, it will be tough for the rest of the Super League teams to topple them.City Club finally won a game but there was no such luck for Rupganj Tigers who remain winless in eight games. After winning two games last week, Gazi Tyres got hammered this week: 84 all out against Gazi Group Cricketers and 40 all out against Mohammedan. The latter is the second lowest List-A total in Bangladesh.

Players to watch – Saif Hassan

Saif’s all-round skills came to the fore this week. He made 115 and took 2 for 44 against Prime Bank, apart from his three-wicket haul against Legends of Rupganj, both in winning causes. Mahidul Islam Ankon is the only uncapped player among the top run-getters in this year’s DPL. The Mohammedan wicketkeeper-batter has struck six fifties in nine outings so far, and looks primed for some time in the Bangladesh A side in the coming months.

The captain’s two wickets threatened a huge result but West Indies’ depth saw them home

Shashank Kishore03-Jun-2024

John Kariko’s excellent spell put pressure on West Indies•ICC via Getty Images

From being labelled as the nearly men in the cut-throat world of associate cricket, the tide is beginning to turn for Papua New Guinea. They missed the bus in 2014 and 2016 after frittering away a good chance to qualify but are now playing their second T20 World Cup in three years, after breaking through for the first time in the UAE in 2021.Sunday’s T20 World Cup 2024 opener against West Indies was only their eighth against a Full Member and, for a while reputation counted for little as PNG smelt an upset. After having huffed and puffed to 136, they had West Indies on the racks at 97 for 5 in 16 overs. Then their dreams were shattered as Andre Russell and Roston Chase bailed West Indies out.Related

• Chase seals West Indies' jittery victory against spirited PNG

• 'I had to take it home' – Calm Chase eases West Indies' opening-game nerves

Assad Vala, the PNG captain, felt they may have been in a position to challenge West Indies with a “few more runs towards the end” after playing catch up for most parts of their innings. From 34 for 3, PNG recovered courtesy a fine 43-ball 50 by Sese Bau. Then towards the end, Kiplin Doriga injected momentum to make an 18-ball 27.”I think batting as well, I think we didn’t play the crucial moments the way we wanted,” Vala said. “They had batsmen towards the end, which we didn’t. I think we missed out on a few runs towards the end as well. But I think credit to them. They got a lot of experience. So, I think we played really well. We executed our skills really well.”We just couldn’t execute towards the end when we were put under pressure, but really happy with the overall performance of the boys. We didn’t post the target we wanted, but they fought till the end, so really happy with the effort.”Assad Vala’s two wickets had PNG dreaming•ICC via Getty Images

With Tony Ura, PNG’s highest run-getter and arguably their most destructive batter, gone early and Vala out for 21 to a sensational catch at backward point by Chase, PNG needed someone to step up, and Bau’s efforts gave them chance to be in the contest.Fast bowler Ale Nao dismissed Johnson Charles first ball. They should have had Nicholas Pooran first ball, but for a lbw shout PNG chose not to review, with replays confirming the ball had pitched in line and would have hit middle and leg. Pooran eventually got going as he went after Bau to hit him for 18 in his only over, but his dismissal for a run-a-ball 27 in the ninth over had PNG turn the screws as the spinners came storming back.Vala dismissed Brandon King and Sherfane Rutherford, while John Kariko, the 20-year-old left-arm spinner, built on his wicket of Pooran to finish with figures of 4-0-17-1 to count as one of many positives for PNG. All told, PNG were in the contest until the 18h over.”I think Sese Bau batted really well. And John Kariko, the left-arm spinner bowled really well. I think, Alei upfront with the new ball. There was a lot of stuff that we did really well,” Vala said. “I think there are a lot of positives to take out from the game today. I think the overall performance was really good, but just the key moments that we just couldn’t put the nail in the coffin. But I think as I said before the effort was outstanding, we kept fighting against a really good side so happy, really happy.”How crucial did the decision to not review Pooran prove to be? Vala pointed to their inexperience of using technology as the reason for the one that got away.”It’s a bit of a funny story,” Vala said. “It was a bit like in street cricket, we don’t use a lot of DRS, so there was a lot of calls coming from everywhere – take it don’t, take it, take it, don’t take it. I didn’t know who to listen to but it is something we can learn from like I said we need to get the communication right when we [play] in the upcoming games.”

Filling in as opener, Babar Azam had a good day with the bat but was left to ponder what could have been

Danyal Rasool06-Jan-2025Babar Azam found himself rooted to the crease in disgust. He couldn’t believe the shot he’d played after being set on a surface where there was limited threat from either the pitch or the bowlers. He must have thought he’d never make that mistake again, but two sessions later it happened.So, on a day where Babar scored two half-centuries, the bigger talking point surrounded his shot selection. Well set during Pakistan’s first innings in the opening session, Kwena Maphaka had bowled one well down leg side, and managed to coax Babar into tickling it through to the wicketkeeper. It has been a persistent issue with Babar – the strangle down leg. But then again, so is his manner of dismissal two sessions later when, in the dying throes of the day, he threw his hands at a wide delivery from Marco Jansen, and edged it straight to gully.Related

• Pakistan need to know what they want from Test cricket

• Babar, Masood fight for Pakistan after South Africa enforce follow-on

• Stats: Masood and Babar raise the follow-on bar for openers

• Masood practices the art of not letting go

Babar admitted the dismissals meant it was disappointment rather than relief that dominated his emotions. “I’m very disappointed with both innings. I started well, but didn’t finish well,” he said. “If you settle, you must go much bigger. That is why I was a bit upset. There were just 15 minutes left.”It was all the more frustrating because South Africa posed no danger of dismissing either him or Shan Masood, who scored an unbeaten hundred. Having sent down nearly a hundred overs across the two innings, their discipline over the last two sessions had been poor; they bowled 10 no-balls in 49 overs of the second innings. There was almost no swing or movement of the seam, and Pakistan’s openers appeared set to finish the day unbeaten, looking to salvage something after the disaster of the first.”The conditions here are different from Centurion,” Babar said. “When you come to South Africa, you don’t expect that [the pitch will be so flat]. With the new ball, it was a bit challenging, but once you settled down and built a partnership, it became easier. But there are some rough patches; you saw a couple of overs from Maharaj to Shan which got some turn and bounce. So the spinner is a bit of a challenge for the batter. But against the fast bowler, if you’re settled, just play your normal game.”There was, however, some relief for Babar. After about two years without a Test fifty, he had scored three on the trot, a run stretching back to the second innings in Centurion. However, all three dismissals were down to poor shot selection rather than bowlers working him out.”I should have capitalised during our partnership, but unfortunately it didn’t happen,” he said. “In the second innings, my partnership with Shan has helped us come back into the game a little. Tomorrow, we have to try and build a partnership, and the longer those partnerships are the more pressure there’ll be on South Africa.”But there is a bigger picture, one that his continued struggle of late has put him in a better position to appreciate. He is the highest run-scorer for Pakistan this series, and now has something every batter values: competitive time at the crease under his belt.”Things change in life all the time,” he said. “I learned a lot during this time [of poor form] when what I wanted to do I wasn’t able to do, and when I couldn’t do the things that people expected of me. I just kept telling myself to stay calm, and believe that my ability and hard work would be vindicated, and to try and enjoy myself. But what was really important was to spend some time on the pitch, and thankfully [that has happened this series].”