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‘Never thought I’d live to see the day where West Indies are trying to qualify for major tournaments,” assistant coach says

Deivarayan Muthu17-Jun-2023Former West Indies captain and current assistant coach Carl Hooper has called the team’s current position “distressing”. West Indies are ranked tenth right now in ODI cricket, below Bangladesh and Afghanistan, and will have to compete with nine other teams in Zimbabwe to qualify for the ODI World Cup, which will begin in October in India.Earlier last year, West Indies had failed to make it out of the qualifier to the T20 World Cup proper in Australia, losing to Scotland and Ireland.”The position hasn’t changed,” Hooper said ahead of the ODI World Cup qualifier in Harare. “The point is can we go lower than this? Yes, we can go lower than this and if we don’t qualify, we go a step lower. Never thought that I’d live to see the day where West Indies are trying to qualify for major tournaments. I sat in Australia, and we struggled to get through it in the T20s and here we are in Zimbabwe.Related

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“No disrespect to the other teams, but we’re playing against the likes of the USA, Nepal and Scotland. Even Afghanistan is ahead of us, and Bangladesh has gone ahead of us. So, this is distressing, and can we go lower? Yes, we can go lower. This game continues to remind you that until you start doing the right things, you can go lower. As I said before, I never thought I would live to see this day, but here I am in Zimbabwe, starting a game on Sunday. We’ve got to try and beat the USA.”After West Indies crashed out of the T20 World Cup in Australia, Phil Simmons decided to step down as head coach and then Nicholas Pooran also gave up white-ball captaincy. Daren Sammy, Shai Hope, Hooper and Co have tuned up for the World Cup Qualifier with a 3-0 sweep of the UAE earlier this month. West Indies have been bolstered further by the return of their IPL stars who had rested during the UAE tour.”We’re ready. I mean you get a feel, and you get a vibe for the energy in the team,” Hooper said. “I think Daren Sammy, as you know, is a fabulous, inspirational leader. Now he has been tasked, trying to get West Indies into the qualification, which will be massive for us. So, the energy so far in Dubai and with the other boys joining us here in Zimbabwe has been great. We’re looking forward to the game on Sunday and I’m sure we will do well.”Nicholas Pooran and Shai Hope are among the senior players in the side•AFP/Getty Images

Hooper was also pleased with how some of West Indies’ players have adapted quickly to the Harare conditions, despite not getting enough game time in the IPL. Allrounder Romario Shepherd, who got just one game at Lucknow Super Giants, hit the ground running in Harare, smacking 53 off 34 balls and then bowling three overs in West Indies’ 91-run victory over Scotland in the warm-ups. Rovman Powell, who played just three matches for Delhi Capitals for the IPL, got cracking with 105 off 55 balls, including eight sixes and as many fours, in West Indies’ 114-run win over UAE.”What we’ve tried to do is guys who are going to be an integral part of our campaign get a chance to spend some time in the middle,” Hooper said. “We’ve had quite a few players coming from the IPL. I believe five or six of the boys…while they’ve been involved in the IPL haven’t played a lot apart from maybe Pooran. So, the important thing was to get them some time in the middle.”Having said that, the games that we’re going to play here in Zimbabwe are going to start pretty early in the morning. So, we noticed that in the two games we bowled, it certainly swung around. So, we’ve addressed that, and we’ve been having conversations, so there’s not much you can do technically but you can I suppose raise an awareness of conditions and how we might approach them to get the best out of the batting group.”

Sandeep Sharma’s last-ball yorker made Royals the first team to defend a sub-190 total this season

S Sudarshanan12-Apr-20238:20

Moody: We’ve all questioned CSK, and Dhoni is usually right

It was set up perfectly. The whistles at Chepauk were getting louder with each moment as MS Dhoni took strike with 21 needed off six balls. Two wides later, Sandeep Sharma nailed a yorker, before erring in length and seeing Dhoni wallop back-to-back leg-side sixes.Dhoni was leading Chennai Super Kings for the 200th time in the IPL and he had the chance to script another fairytale, and the perfect finish loomed even after Sandeep went around the wicket and pulled things back, bringing the equation down to five needed off the last ball. This was still Dhoni territory, but Sandeep nailed another perfect yorker from around the stumps and Rajasthan Royals eked out a three-run win to go top of the table after four games.

Samson fined for slow over rate

Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson has been fined INR 12 lakh (USD 14,000 approx.) for his team’s slow over rate against Chennai Super Kings. It was his team’s first over-rate offence this season, a post-match IPL statement said.
No in-game fielding-restriction penalty was imposed on Royals during the match.

Super Kings needed an improbable 54 off 18 balls with Ravindra Jadeja and Dhoni still new to the crease. Dhoni began the assault with a four and a six in Adam Zampa’s last over before Jadeja took over in a 19-run penultimate over bowled by Jason Holder, hitting him for a four and two sixes.Sandeep, however, just about kept his calm and Royals became the first side to defend a sub-190 total this season.MS Dhoni rolled back the years but Super Kings fell just short in the end•BCCI

Ashwin, Chahal, Zampa storm CSK’s spin fortress

Chasing 176, Super Kings lost the prolific Ruturaj Gaikwad in the third over. But Devon Conway and Ajinkya Rahane added 68 in 43 balls to keep the chase on track. Rahane, who had scored a blazing half-century against Mumbai Indians in his last outing, was quick off the blocks again, pulling Jason Holder through midwicket and slinking down the track to deposit R Ashwin over the long-off boundary while rushing to a 19-ball 31.In Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal and Impact Player Adam Zampa, however, Royals had a spin attack made for Chepauk conditions, and they extracted plenty of purchase even with dew starting to kick in. Ashwin’s dismissal of Rahane turned the tide for Royals. From 78 for 1 in the 10th over, Super Kings slumped to 122 for 6 at the end of the 17th.Zampa conceded 14 in the 18th over, when Dhoni went after him, but even including that, Royals’ spinners conceded just 95 in 12 overs while taking five wickets, while their Super Kings counterparts went for 84 in 10 while taking three.

Buttler and Padikkal set the tone

Yashasvi Jaiswal has been in red-hot form for Royals this season, and he threatened to go on another boundary spree in the powerplay when he hit two fours off the left-arm quick Akash Singh in the first over, after Super Kings elected to bowl. But Tushar Deshpande, Super Kings’ go-to bowler in Deepak Chahar’s absence, prised Jaiswal out in the next over. Royals kept the left-right combination going by promoting Devdutt Padikkal, who sat out the match against Delhi Capitals, to No. 3.Padikkal and Jos Buttler went after Maheesh Theekshana – who was playing his first game of the season – hitting him for four fours and a six in his first two overs, both inside the powerplay. That got them into groove for a 77-run second-wicket partnership off just 41 balls, which took Royals to a formidable 88 for 1 in the ninth over.R Ashwin made an impact with bat and ball•Associated Press

Bowlers keep CSK in the game

Jadeja helped Super Kings claw back with the wickets of Padikkal and Sanju Samson in the space of three balls, and Royals responded with the now familiar tactic of promoting Ashwin up the order. The scoring rate dipped for a while, with Royals failing to find the boundary in five successive overs, before Ashwin broke the drought with a slashed four off Theekshana in the 14th. He then swatted Akash for successive sixes in the 15th, before falling later in the over for a 22-ball 30.Buttler, who had been 34 off 17 at the time he lost Padikkal, didn’t hit another boundary, and eventually fell for a 52 off 36 balls. In the process he also crossed 3000 runs in the IPL, becoming the third-quickest to the mark in terms of innings taken.The ostensible intent behind the Ashwin promotion was to delay Shimron Hetmyer’s entry, and he came in at roughly his preferred time, with five overs remaining. He did his bit at the finish, smacking an unbeaten 30 off 18, but there was little support from the other end during his time in the middle, as Royals only managed 40 in their last five overs.Having at one stage seemed on course for 200, they finished on 175 for 8, with Deshpande dismissing Holder and Zampa in the last over .

Impact Player Strategy

Royals brought in Zampa as their Impact Player: he walked out to bat at No. 10 to face the last ball of their innings, replacing Buttler. The finger injury Buttler picked up earlier in the competition could have played a part in his removal. Super Kings, meanwhile, yanked off Sisanda Magala, whose two overs went for 14, after he injured a finger in his right hand while taking the catch to dismiss Ashwin. Super Kings subbed in Ambati Rayudu, who batted at No. 6 and lasted just two balls.

Aches perhaps for wannabe Ashes keeper, but pains reserved for Yorkshire as Glamorgan take control

Vithushan Ehantharajah04-May-2023There can’t be much Jonny Bairstow and the Archbishop of Canterbury have in common. But for the next few days at least, their hands are of great interest.Different levels, of course. The duties in Westminister Abbey of popping a crown on the head of King Charles III ranks higher than standing up to the stumps for Ben Coad. But even two days earlier and some 195 miles north of Saturday’s Coronation, a different pair of king-making hands were being scrutinised.Thursday’s opening day to this Division Two bout between Yorkshire and Glamorgan by another name was The Much-Anticipated Return of Bairstow, Even with two teams desperate for a first win of the season, this felt as much about one man’s return as it did about a county looking for light to break through the years of dark cloud. And to arrive at the ground in the morning was to know the bright spots were very much to do with one son’s return. Nine months from suffering multiple fractures in his left leg in a freak accident on a golf course, 2022’s Bazball totem was back.It was, in many ways, the perfect scenario. The buzz around the stands dulled slightly when Yorkshire decided to bowl first after winning the toss. And while it was a shame to have to wait to watch Bairstow bat, more insightful was the 71.5 overs spent keeping wicket. Even after a spectacular last summer – 681 runs, four hundreds and an average of 75.66 – his work behind the stumps between now and Tests against Ireland and Australia will guarantee he reclaims a spot in the XI he feels is rightfully his. Ultimately, by taking it away from Ben Foakes.That Yorkshire followed up their removal of Glamorgan for 245 with 62 for 5 of their own leaves more out there for Bairstow. Originally carded at five, he flexed seniority to call on two nightwatchman – Mickey Edwards and Matt Fisher – before having to walk out at 6:36pm for the final two overs anyway. Presumably sending out a third would have been poor form. Either way, a few hours of vintage on Friday Jonny will echo far beyond this match.Before the two sacrificial lambs were three catches of varying degrees of difficulty across a keeping performance that was surprisingly assured. The aches will no doubt come, but there were no pains evident in real-time.The first dismissal got him up and about, in amongst it a matter of minutes after the team huddled beyond the boundary’s edge. Four balls in, a comically loose drive from visiting skipper David Lloyd gave Bairstow an excuse to test out his side-to-side, shuffling to his right to complete the dismissal.Number two gave us a sense of his athleticism, diving to his left to take a spectacular grab with his left-hand a matter of inches off the turf after George Hill had taken Kiran Carlson’s inside edge. The third was as vital to Yorkshire’s cause as it was to the Ashes narrative: Marnus Labuschagne feathering an edge off Hill for 65.The Australian came to the crease with nothing on the board, and together with Sam Northeast dragged Glamorgan out of the Coad-induced hole of 1 for 2. The pair made 83 between them before Northeast, the aggressor, was sent back by Edwards three deliveries after the lunch break, unable to get his bat (and handle) out of a delivery that exploded off a length. Soon afterwards, Coad left the field – this time the explosion was in his groin.Labuschagne had played possum early doors. He took lunch on 19 from 101 deliveries but soon moved to a second half-century of the season just 32 deliveries later. He had just started looking like Test cricket’s number one ranked batter when Hill got one to hold its line off the seam from the Rugby Stand End.This was the one that drew the most emotion from Bairstow, and not just because of their nationalities. Bairstow had been getting in Labuschagne’s ear since the end of the 21st over when the right-hander, on 10, seemingly edged Edwards behind. Labuschagne’s unperturbed demeanour worked well enough to keep the umpire’s finger down, much to the annoyance of the fielding team and those in the stands.That should have been 42 for three, and who knows what that might have meant for Glamorgan this early on in the piece. Contributions from Timm van der Gugten and Billy Root got them within five of what they considered a par first innings score. To have led by 194 with five Yorkshire wickets already is sure more than they would have expected, considering how the day began.Though even Thursday’s conclusion gives the scoreboard an artificial look. Both of Bairstow’s nightwatchmen fell in the space of two balls, meaning he had to come out at anyway under floodlights and with Labuschagne taking the opportunity to return serve now the shoe was on the other foot. Barring a stifled lbw shout second ball, it was largely without issue. A nudge around the corner off his fourth delivery face brought a first first-class run since 49 against South Africa last August, nine months ago.Nine months or “36 weeks” as Bairstow put it on Instagram on Wednesday night. The content of the post spoke of pain, emotions and unanswerable questions during this long stretch on the sideline. What those closest to him knew was distilled in those 115 words for the rest of us.Privately, the 33-year-old’s angst is as much about the crushing disappointment of losing it all when he finally felt settled as it is about having to watch the last six months from home. The T20 World Cup win, the historic Test series in Pakistan, the rise of Harry Brook from place-holder to wunderkind. There’s FOMO, and then there’s whatever Bairstow went through.There were a few byes, notably one for four which wobbled devilishly past his right after sending him left, but nothing worrisome. At times, he was childlike, at one point running over to an advertising board blown onto the field and lying across it, looking to the stands for laughs like this was panto. It duly came.This is only day one of his return, but to see him with a smile on his face, even as he walked off sheepishly at the end, felt like a positive step forward to all this. Even if it moves us closer to an awkward call for the Ashes, that Bairstow is back is only a boost for English cricket.

Root’s double-wicket burst towards close plus Tongue’s two wickets meant all was not grim for England

Andrew McGlashan28-Jun-2023Steven Smith and Travis Head gave the opening-day honours to Australia at Lord’s, but the scorecard was not quite as bleak for England as appeared likely shortly before the close until Joe Root burgled a double-wicket over after what had been a largely uninspired performance from the home side.It may only have been day six of the series, but as Smith and Head were combining to add 118 in a bit over 20 overs for the fourth wicket, it felt as though Australia were taking a significant step towards having a stranglehold in the Ashes. A close-of-play total of 339 for 5 may yet end up proving decisive but England were clinging on.Head had played in what has become his trademark style as he flayed 77 from 73 balls, catching up with Smith who had a 43-run head start when he joined him at the crease. But having deposited Root down the ground he could not resist trying again and this time he was beaten convincingly, although Nathan Lyon will have noted the turn on offer.Two balls later Cameron Green played a very out-of-character hoick, miscuing Root to mid-off, and Australia’s good work was in danger of unravelling. However, Smith remained immovable and was closing in on Test century No. 32 on the ground where he was felled and concussed by Jofra Archer four years ago. As had been expected, there was not going to be two Tests in a row where he and Marnus Labuschagne did not contribute.David Warner, riding a little bit of luck along the way, had helped lay the early foundation under slate-grey skies which looked tailor-made for bowling although the surface itself was much less green than the days leading into the game. When he departed shortly after lunch, during a terrific over from the recalled Josh Tongue, England threatened to hit back but first Smith and Labuschagne, then Smith and Head shut them out before Root’s late incisions.David Warner already has crossed his tally of Ashes 2019•Getty Images

On an overcast morning where light drizzle and a pitch invasion by Just Stop Oil protesters, which required orange powder to be removed from the square, caused a couple of delays Ben Stokes was happy to insert Australia but England failed to take advantage of conditions. As at Edgbaston, catching – this time from the slip cordon – was one of the key reasons.Usman Khawaja, on 1, survived a low edge to first slip which just reached Root. Then a much more clear-cut chance escaped Ollie Pope at fourth from Warner off Stuart Broad when he had 20. Dismissal No. 16 went begging. Pope later spent much of the day off the field nursing a shoulder injury after diving to intercept a ball.Although Australia did not initially race away with the scoring – they were 39 for 0 after 17 overs – they had weathered the early window, albeit with a little bit of good fortune going their way. Warner had not been afraid to try the unconventional, twice stepping outside off stump to effectively sweep Broad, the first of which brought smiles between the batter and bowler.Warner, who passed his tally from the 2019 Ashes in three innings this time, scored more freely than Khawaja and it appeared the pair would take Australia to lunch without loss. However, Tongue, whose first three overs had cost 24 – including a hooked six by Warner to reach fifty – brought one back down the slope and Khawaja judged poorly as he left it alone.Josh Tongue cleaned up both Usman Khawaja and David Warner on either side of lunch•Getty Images

After the interval, Tongue got the better of Warner during an over where he produced an inside edge that narrowly missed the stumps then sliced him in half with a delivery that went for four byes before bowling one a touch fuller to obliterate the middle and leg stumps. Warner, though, has done enough to ensure he gets the rest of the Ashes, and probably the Sydney farewell he has mapped out.Labuschagne, coming off 0 for 13 at Edgbaston, still did not appear quite at his best but did not have to front up to Broad early – he had faced 29 balls by the time Broad was brought on. Broad’s comeback over involved drama with Smith who began by taking consecutive boundaries and was then given caught behind but the DRS showed daylight between bat and ball.Labuschagne started to find his groove with three boundaries in an over off Broad and another brace off Stokes as the scoreboard rattled along. Then he, too, made use of the DRS when given lbw shouldering arms to Broad against one which nipped down the slope but was shown to be going over off stump. Two overs later, England used a review against Labuschagne, but the ball had been trapped off the inside edge.The partnership had just passed 100 shortly after tea when Ollie Robinson found Labuschagne’s outside edge to give England an opening. But they bowled poorly to Head and he was away to a flying start by dispatched two short, wide deliveries from Robinson through the off side.In the blink of an eye Head was at a run-a-ball and though the ball occasionally flew past his outside edge there was plenty crunched out of the middle – some of his timing through the leg side was exquisite. Smith, as he was during the World Test Championship final against India, was happy to ride in Head’s slip stream as his fifty came in 102 balls during which he became the second-fastest to 9000 Test runs.Tongue, the quickest of England’s attack, was briefly used for a short-pitched plan against Head with the field spread far and wide but he threaded the gap on the leg side to reach fifty from 48 balls. A repeat of the Gabba, where he scored a century in the final session of the day, was on the cards before the spirit of adventure brought his downfall. Smith and Alex Carey negotiated the closing stages, including two overs against the second new ball, but while Australia are not out of sight England are already playing catch up.

Chasing 189, West Indies slumped to 100 all out with Shimron Hetmyer playing a lone hand of 56

Sidharth Monga07-Aug-2022India thrashed a seemingly directionless West Indies by 88 runs in the fifth T20I to end the series with a 4-1 scoreline. Both sides made four changes each for the dead rubber but West Indies looked like just going through the motions. Their bowlers bowled three no balls, and on more than one occasion didn’t seem interested in fielding the ball in their follow-through, and most tellingly their attack lacked quality: there was no express pace, no point of difference, no accuracy.With their regular openers Kyle Mayers and Brandon King rested, West Indies’ batting order was bizarre. Jason Holder opened, the right-hand batters were bunched together, and Axar Patel feasted on them in the powerplay. A forgettable series for captain Nicholas Pooran ended with a 6-ball 3. Playing their first matches of the series, wristspinners Kuldeep Yadav and Ravi Bishnoi had some fun against the hapless middle and lower order as West Indies slumped to 100 all out. This was the first time spinners had taken all 10 wickets in a men’s T20 international.Iyer, Hooda set India up
Having rested both Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav, India opened with Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer. On a pitch that was in use for a second day running, shot-making wasn’t as straightforward as Kishan discovered when he went to pull Dominic Drakes in the fifth over but managed only a top edge to mid-on.Iyer and Deepak Hooda, though, made batting look easy during the course of a 76-run stand in 7.2 overs. It helped that West Indies often failed to bowl to their fields. Iyer often got width with the field up on the off side, and gleefully kept hitting over the 30-yard circle. He also played a gorgeous aerial off-drive off Odean Smith for his second consecutive six in the eighth over.He was only to be outdone by Hooda who drove legspinner Hayden Walsh inside-out, into the wind and over extra-cover for India’s third straight six. From 95 for 1 in 10 overs, the two batters showed even higher intent, taking 17 off the 11th over, bowled by Obed McCoy for whom the series has gone south after his six-for in the second match. India were looking for a massive total here.Shreyas Iyer top-scored for India with 64 off 40 balls•AFP/Getty Images

The pullback
Walsh and Smith made a good comeback in the second half of the innings, which was interrupted for a while with the lightning-threat alarm going off. Under the Florida state laws, no sporting activity can go ahead if there is a threat of lightning in a seven-mile radius of the venue. Even the spectators had to find shelter.On the field, West Indies found some respite with the ball sticking into the surface. Before the break, Walsh went round the wicket with a change of ends, made Hooda hit into the wind on the leg side, and had him caught in the deep. Holder had Iyer caught and bowled for 64 off 40.Smith conceded just 18 off his last three overs – the 16th, 18th and 20th – by bowling into the pitch and varying his pace. He was rewarded with three wickets as India looked for quick runs. Except for the 19th over, in which stand-in captain Hardik Pandya hit Holder for two sixes and four, India struggled to score briskly. The last nine overs produced just 76 runs, but India had an imposing total on the board.Axar owns the powerplay
Possibly because India saw two right-hand batters walk in to open, they threw the new ball to Axar, who consistently troubled the right-hand batters with lack of turn. After being hit on the inside half of the bat twice, Holder looked to paddle Axar only to be beaten on the inside edge and have his leg stump knocked back. After a wicket-maiden at the start, Axar took out Devon Thomas and Shamarh Brroks in the fifth over. Thomas looked to cut but the ball skidded on to beat the inside edge. Brooks was stumped, also beaten on the inside edge.Wristspinners take over
Hetmyer played a lone hand of 56 off 35 at one end, but at the other, Kuldeep and Bishnoi wreaked havoc. Pooran was done in by a Kuldeep flipper, playing back to a full ball. Rovman Powell and Keemo Paul had no clue about the Bishnoi wrong’un. Drakes and Smith failed to respond to Kuldeep wrong’uns. Only Hetmyer stretched the innings before holing out to long-off off Bishnoi.

Spin-bowling allrounder expected to play majority of 2023 Blast season

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Dec-2022Michael Bracewell has signed a contract with Worcestershire for the Vitality Blast, effectively replacing Moeen Ali in their T20 side.Moeen has joined Warwickshire on a three-year contract and his departure left a hole in Worcestershire’s top order for a left-handed batter and offspinner.Bracewell, the late-blooming allrounder who has made his New Zealand debuts in all three formats this year, has signed a contract that will see him play county cricket for the first time in the 2023 Blast.Worcestershire did not specify his availability but he is expected to be available for the majority of the tournament. He is likely to spend April and May in the subcontinent – either in Pakistan for a white-ball tour, or in India if he is picked in Friday’s IPL auction – with Worcestershire’s first Blast fixture on May 24.Alan Richardson, Worcestershire’s head coach, said: “It’s always good to have someone of his calibre, but the fact he is a true allrounder means we are really getting two players.”Michael’s international white-ball cricket record is outstanding, but he also has a very healthy first-class record and will offer great experience.”Bracewell will extend a recent relationship between Worcestershire and New Zealand players, with Colin Munro, Hamish Rutherford, Martin Guptill, Ish Sodhi and Mitchell Santner among the Kiwis to have spent time at New Road in recent seasons.Worcestershire will hope he can play a part in reviving their T20 fortunes. They were champions in 2018 and losing finalists the following season but struggled badly in 2022, finishing rock-bottom with two wins in 14 group games.”I’m really looking forward to my first experience of the Blast, a competition in which Worcestershire [have] had a lot of success in recent times,” Bracewell said. “I’ve heard a lot of good things about Worcestershire from a lot of New Zealand players who have recently played there, and I’m really excited to have the opportunity to join up with the group next summer.”

Spinner takes six wickets to help West Indies inflict an innings defeat on Zimbabwe

Abhimanyu Bose14-Feb-2023Gudakesh Motie spun West Indies to a 1-0 series win as they wrapped up the second Test against Zimbabwe by an innings and four runs.Motie, playing his third Test, returned figures of 7 for 37 and 6 for 62 as West Indies won the match convincingly inside three days, despite rain wiping out large durations on the second and third days. His figures of 13 for 99 are also the best in a Test match by a West Indies spinner, as he went past Sonny Ramadhin’s 11 for 152 against England in 1950.Despite good performances by Victor Nyauchi, Innocent Kaia and captain Craig Ervine, Zimbabwe succumbed to a big defeat, with their batting line-up faltering in the absence of Gary Ballance, who missed the game due to a migraine headache.Related

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Play started late on day three due to a wet outfield and once it did, Nyauchi made an instant impact, getting Jason Holder to nick off with the first delivery of the day.Motie, the other overnight batter, soon became Nyauchi’s fifth victim as he found deep midwicket with a pull as West Indies added just two runs to their total, taking a 177-run lead. It was Nyauchi’s first five-wicket haul in Tests.For the second time in the match, Kaia was off the blocks quickly, hitting three fine strokes for boundaries in the first two overs. But Alzarri Joseph gave West Indies the first breakthrough in the third over as Tanunurwa Makoni edged behind, looking to play an expansive drive.Then, the first bowling change brought a wicket, with Chamu Chibhabha chopping on off Holder’s bowling in the seventh over.Kaia, Zimbabwe’s best batter in the first innings, continued to chip away at West Indies’ lead, even hitting Holder for three consecutive boundaries.Ervine held down one end as Kaia scored 30 of the 41 runs that they made for the third wicket.When Motie came out to bowl, Kaia immediately started attacking him with the sweep, but looked less in control than he was against the pacers. Kaia and Ervine saw Zimbabwe reach lunch at 46 for 2. In the third over after lunch, Kaia finally fell to the sweep, as he got a thin top edge that Joshua Da Silva held on to after a small juggling act.Innocent Kaia got off to strong starts but failed to convert them•AP

He fell seven runs short of a half-century, after being dismissed for 38 in the first innings.Ervine then shed his defensive approach to keep the scoreboard ticking, even as Motie castled Milton Shumba and Tafadzwa Tsiga in quick succession to complete his first Test 10-wicket haul.Gabriel further dented Zimbabwe’s ambitions when he got one to sneak under Donald Tiripano’s bat to uproot the off-stump.Ervine then brought up his half-century off 73 deliveries with a reverse-sweep off Motie.Motie soon struck again as Wellington Masakadza gifted a simple catch to forward short leg as he came out of the crease to defend.West Indies would have hoped to wrap things up quickly, but Ervine and Brandon Mavuta held firm to see Zimbabwe reach 158 for 7 at tea, with the deficit whittled down to 19 runs.Zimbabwe then took seven off the first over after tea, bowled by Joseph, to bring the deficit down to 11 runs. But Chase had Mavuta caught at forward short leg with the first ball of the next over to give West Indies another opening.Motie came back into the attack immediately and was quick to wrap the game up.He trapped Ervine lbw for 72 – Zimbabwe’s highest score in the match – as he played back to a length ball that spun in and stayed low before getting the ball to spin past an advancing Nyauchi for Da Silva to complete a simple stumping.

Skipper’s 181-run stand with Rachael Haynes flattened the Pakistan bowling, after which Sophie Molineux’s 4 for 14 bowled Pakistan out for 123

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Oct-2018Meg Lanning latches on to a short ball•Getty Images and Cricket Australia

Meg Lanning’s 12th ODI hundred in 68 innings helped Australia trounce Pakistan by 150 runs in the second ODI in Kuala Lumpur. Batting first, Australia posted an imposing 273 for 7. Left-arm spinner Sophie Molineux then ran through the Pakistan line-up with a 4 for 14 to bowl them out for 123, helping Australia go 2-0 up in the series with one match still to go. The win also put Australia two points clear at the top ICC Women’s Championship table.Pakistan displayed a marginally better show with the bat on Saturday after being skittled for 95 in the first encounter. But that was all thanks to opener Nahida Khan’s 114-ball 66, the highest score by a Pakistan batsman against Australia. The second-highest contribution was Sana Mir’s 15, while the rest of the batsmen crumbled once again.Chasing 274, they were 37 for 3 in the tenth over with Megan Schutt and Ellyse Perry doing the damage early on, after which Molineux came to the fore. Molineux took two wickets in her first spell to reduce Pakistan to 77 for 5 before coming back to break the 44-run sixth-wicket stand by Nahida and Sana. In her nine overs, Molineux bowled 48 dots. Eventually, Pakistan were all out in the 41st over with Ashleigh Gardner’s two wickets cleaning up the tail.Earlier in the day, Lanning opted to bat after winning the toss, and walked in when Alyssa Healy was dismissed by Diana Baig in the seventh over. Lanning then saw Nicole Bolton and Perry make the walk back, after which she combined with Rachael Haynes for a 181-run fourth-wicket stand that flattened the Pakistan bowlers. Haynes and Lanning were then dismissed in the 44th and 46th over respectively, as Nashra Sandhu helped Pakistan finish their bowling effort on a strong note.

Fear grows about emergence of eight ‘Super Counties’ as the row over compensation to Test match grounds intensifies

George Dobell16-Mar-2018Pressure continues to mount on Colin Graves with an emergency chairmen’s meeting called for March 26 amid mounting disquiet within the county game.Graves, the ECB chairman, is under fire after it emerged that ‘compensation’ payments could be paid to some Test-hosting clubs in the years they did not stage a match despite the policy having not been discussed at Board level.That revelation resulted in the resignation from the ECB board of former Somerset chairman Andy Nash citing failures in the governance of the organisation.It has also now resulted in a claim that Graves misled at least one county about discussions on the subject and a warning that such additional rewards for Test-match grounds will result in “dire effects” for the counties that do not host teams in the new T20 competition.Bob Warren, the Sussex chairman, has raised particular concerns. In a letter written to Graves and seen by ESPNcricinfo, Warren complains about a lack of transparency from the ECB and appears to express serious doubts over Graves’ assurances.”You used the word transparency several times,” Warren wrote. “Unfortunately, at the moment, we don’t have this between the ECB and the counties.”The ECB policies are, taking into account the way matches and money are being distributed, going to produce eight super-counties with dire effects for the rest of us.”You mentioned at the start of our conversation that the policy of compensation was discussed and agreed by the ECB board around 15 months ago. I asked if you could send me a copy of the minutes which reflect this. You agreed with my request. I have now looked through those minutes and I can’t find any mention of this policy even being mentioned. Furthermore, a Board member told me he couldn’t recall a conversation about this, let along an agreement.”The resignation of Andy Nash confirms that the issue was not discussed by the board prior to the policy being agreed with the TMGs [Test Match Grounds].”While the ECB insist a payment made to Glamorgan was to help the club deal with creditors, other counties – some of whom have worked hard to ensure they are not burdened by debt – are now asking if they, too, can benefit from such an arrangement. The apparently contrasting treatment of Durham, who were stripped of their right to host Tests in return for an ECB bailout, is also intriguing.Meanwhile at least three of the Test-hosting grounds seem bemused by the furore around the proposed payments as they were under the impression they had been common knowledge for many months.Having already incurred the wrath of several counties who feel commitments made over the ownership of the new-team T20 have not been kept – in December, 10 of them signed a letter calling for assurances and clarification – Graves’ would now appear, for the first time, to be facing the possibility of a full scale revolt from a majority of the first-class counties.Perhaps most serious of all is the legal advice taken by some counties and revealed by ESPNcricinfo on Wednesday which suggests the compensation payments might be considered “unlawful”. It also suggests the money could have to be repaid and any directors responsible for sanctioning them held personally responsible.

Aditya Verma, who has sought to depose before the panel looking into the sexual-harassment allegations, slams the language used by the panel

Sidharth Monga & Sharda Ugra09-Nov-2018The independent inquiry committee looking into allegations of sexual misconduct against the BCCI CEO Rahul Johri has been criticised for using language that will “dissuade and discourage people from coming forward”. That’s the view of leading women’s right lawyers contacted by ESPNcricinfo after Aditya Verma, who sought to depose before the committee, said he felt the first response he received from the three-member panel was trying to “scare away complainants”.Verma, the whistleblower whose original litigation resulted in the Lodha reforms, had earlier written a letter to the BCCI’s Committee of Administrators (CoA), accusing it of “hushing up” a previous complaint of alleged sexual harassment against Johri from a BCCI employee. The CoA has never acknowledged such a complaint. Now, Verma aside, former Mumbai captain Shishir Hattangadi has also offered to help out with a fresh complaint of alleged sexual misconduct that pertains to a time when Johri was the board CEO.Responding to the messages received from Verma and Hattangadi, the committee said in an email: “At the outset we expect from you to demonstrate your bona fides and locus standi to put forth your statement, material before the committee.” ESPNcricinfo has seen this email, which goes on to ask of the complainants: “Are you friend/guardian, close relative, husband of the alleged sexually harassed lady or woman, employee of BCCI or a visitor to the premises office or in some way associated with the affairs of BCCI? How are you connected with the subject matter?”In his response to that email, Verma has objected to both the language used and the concept of locus standi (as defined by the Cambridge dictionary, locus standi is the right or ability to bring a legal action to a court of law or to appear in a court). ESPNcricinfo has seen Verma’s response, in which he has also pointed out that a member of the independent committee, Veena Gowda, had been excluded from the mail sent by the committee. Gowda is also an external member of internal complaints committees at the BCCI and other corporations under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013. Moreover, the committee has failed to maintain confidentiality in communication by marking both Verma and Hattangadi on the same email.”This committee needs to appreciate the fact that the principle of locus standi does not stand the test of public interest,” Verma wrote, referring to earlier Supreme Court rulings that have found the BCCI to be “discharging public functions”.”In the case of BCCI, which is a body that performs some public functions, the organisation cannot hide behind the veil of locus standi, especially in the case where their top functionary is accused of sexual harassment or worse. An attempt by the committee to thwart a member of the public from bringing to its notice information that may be relevant flies in the face of the judgments of the Hon’ble Supreme Court.”Verma went on to write: “The message that your email carries seems to be one to scare away complainants rather than to make it conducive for them to complain about being harassed. It lacks the basic sensitivity required to deal with such situations.”This is a sentiment that finds resonance with prominent women’s rights lawyers. Vrinda Grover, lawyer, researcher and human and women’s rights activist, told ESPNcricinfo: “The communication of the committee should encourage people to come forward because the probe is against a very powerful, high-profile man. The tone and tonality should not dissuade or frighten the person putting the statement forward. The way this [email] is crafted, the presumption is that I am a motivated person if I am giving a statement out. The presumption should be otherwise, because I am not the one you are inquiring into.”The committee is completely right in asking the person to present a statement and/or material evidence that is relevant, but to ask a person to first demonstrate their bona fides (as per the Cambridge dictionary, bona fides refers to the abilities and experience that make someone suitable for a particular job or activity, or proof of these abilities and experience) is quite unwarranted. Under any proceeding, whether it’s an inquiry or a trial, the witness must be relevant, but to ask a witness to prove their bona fides is in my view counter-productive. That will dissuade and discourage people from coming forward and the objective of the committee will be lost.”I would go to the extent of saying that they [the committee] should be asking that person, ‘Would you want us to provide you confidentiality? Do you apprehend any retaliation? Do you need any support?’ That is how you encourage witnesses.”Also for a committee examining a complaint of sexual harassment, it is imperative that all communications and proceedings of the committee are sensitive and respectful. For instance, it’s a bit baffling why the email insists on making a distinction between a lady and a woman. Also, why does the email specifically ask if the person is the husband, when it has already asked the person to clarify whether they are a family member or relative. Surely that would include a husband too? It’s very crucial for all communications of the committee to demonstrate gender sensitivity, respect and impartiality.”Abha Singh, a former civil servant and a lawyer in the High Court of Judicature in Bombay, told ESPNcricinfo: “Such types of emails by an official committee are uncalled for. An inquiry committee should themselves exhort a person to provide information and leads, which may help unravel the hidden evidence. If a person has some incriminating information against the delinquent, it is the duty of the committee to call him for a statement and to interrogate him, in case they find there is something amiss or if they feel that more evidence or clarifications are necessary.”In short, the disposition of the committee should be to welcome informers and those who possess incriminating evidence. To send such discouraging emails would not be conducive to a complete and in-depth probe. They are a regrettable aberration on part of the committee.”Gowda aside, the three-member independent committee includes Rakesh Sharma, former judge at Allahabad High Court, and Barkha Singh, former chairperson of Delhi Commission for women.Today is the last date for people – within or outside BCCI – to reach out to the inquiry committee on the e-mail address provided ([email protected]). Over the next two days, the committee will study the material it receives and then call people it “considers necessary to appear and depose”. It is understood that if the committee seeks more time, the CoA will be willing to extend the time frame to complete the probe.