All posts by n8rngtd.top

Liam Scott’s brisk half-century boosted the home side’s total then the bowling attack was outstanding

AAP01-Mar-2025Nathan McSweeney’s game-changing cameo with the ball helped South Australia defeat Victoria by 64 runs to collect the state’s first one-day cricket title in 13 years.SA, with Harry Nielsen, Jake Lehmann and Liam Scott making half-centuries, posted 268 for 7 in Saturday’s battle for the inaugural Dean Jones Trophy.Victoria were bowled out for 204 in 43.3 overs in reply at Adelaide Oval as SA captured their first 50-over trophy since 2011/12.Victoria’s run chase, with Marcus Harris flying on 41 from 42 balls, was well on track at 74 for 1 in the 14th over. But McSweeney, who hadn’t taken a wicket all tournament with his gentle offspin, then provided an unlikely – and decisive – turn.Harris gave himself room to hit McSweeney through the offside, but smacked the ball straight to Jason Sangha at cover. In his next over, McSweeney dismissed dangerman Peter Handscomb for 1. The SA captain instinctively flung his right hand at a lofted straight drive, parried the ball, and completed a stunning catch on the second grab.Five overs later, Victorian opener Campbell Kellaway top-edged a pull shot from the bowling of Brendan Doggett and was caught by wicketkeeper Nielsen. Soon after, Sam Harper was taken by Nielsen when attempting a leg glance from Nathan McAndrew.Liam Scott struck an unbeaten 54 off 37 balls•Getty Images

Victoria had lost 4 for 30 in a sudden slide to 108 for 5 in the 24th over and were never in the hunt thereafter, despite captain Will Sutherland’s 50 from 52 balls.McSweeney finished with figures of 2 for 14 from four overs, McAndrew took 3 for 47 from eight overs and Henry Thornton claimed 4-27 from 9.3 overs to be named the first winner of the Michael Bevan medal as player of the final.In SA’s innings, Nielsen top-scored with 68 from 93 balls, Lehmann made 67 from 75 and allrounder Scott, the player of the tournament, finished with a flourish with an unbeaten 54 from 37 deliveries.Victorian captain Sutherland took three of the initial four wickets and veteran Peter Siddle claimed 3 for 40.SA made a solid start with openers Nielsen and Mackenzie Harvey putting on 44 runs before Sutherland struck in the eighth over. Harvey, who hit two fours and a six in his 23 from 23 balls, chopped on to his stumps when attempting to force through the off-side.Sutherland claimed Daniel Drew in the 14th over and McSweeney soon followed. When Sangha fell to Sutherland, SA were wobbling 118 for 4 in the 26th over, before Nielsen and Lehmann steadied with a 56-run partnership.Lehmann later combined with Scott for a brisk 67-run stand, with the latter reaching his half-century from 36 balls in a flurry featuring seven fours and a six.

Defending champions will start T20 World Cup against Scotland on strip used for Namibia’s low-scoring shoot-out against Oman

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Jun-2024England will begin their defence of the T20 World Cup against Scotland on the same Kensington Oval surface which threw up a 218-run shoot-out between Namibia and Oman on Sunday night. They are heavy favourites against their British rivals but were beaten when the teams last met, in a 2018 ODI, and this slow, low surface could make life difficult for their batters.Jos Buttler, England’s captain, said on Monday that he will encourage his players to adapt and judge conditions for themselves and react accordingly, rather than heading into Tuesday’s match with “too many preconceived ideas”. But the evidence from Sunday’s match is that there could be variable bounce on a sticky surface on which wickets fell in clusters.Related

• It's time for Jofra Archer's homecoming

• Matthew Cross: 'We've got four games, and we've got to win four games'

• Superhero Wiese aces Super Over for Namibia in thriller

• Buttler: 'Bairstow has the experience and game to play at No. 4'

• Bairstow: 'It doesn't really matter to me where I bat'

Namibia emerged as winners, but needed a Super Over to do so after reaching 109 for 6 in pursuit of 110. Their fingerspinners, Bernard Scholtz and Gerhard Erasmus, both trapped batters lbw with balls which kept low, while Oman seamer Mehran Khan bowled Jan Frylinck in the final over with a grubber which deflected off his pad.David Wiese, Namibia’s match-winner in the Super Over, said the pitch was “a difficult wicket to start on the whole time… once you got wickets, you got wickets in clusters.” Zeeshan Maqsood, Oman’s ex-captain, suggested that Saturday’s rain in Barbados had impacted the pitch: “There was a little bit of stopping and coming, because a little wetness was there.”England and Scotland will use the same surface that Namibia and Oman did on Sunday•Getty Images

Buttler said he saw “bits and pieces” of Sunday’s match, but suggested that England should be accustomed to conditions in Barbados. They played a five-match T20I series held entirely at Kensington Oval in early 2022, and also played an ODI and a T20I there when they toured the Caribbean in December last year.”We’ve played some games here, so we know what conditions can be like,” Buttler said. “But it’s important not to have too many preconceived ideas and assume the pitch will play in a certain way. We’ve got to be prepared. That’s where communication and assessing conditions quickly – with bat or ball – will be key to the game.”He told the BBC: “We are trying not to play the game before the game has been played. It’s good to be here and get a feel for conditions, but on each day, you have to be ready to adapt… it is not in the batters’ favour all of the time in T20 cricket. We need to be able to adapt and communicate well as a team, and work out what will be a winning score.”England have been joined in Barbados by Kieron Pollard, who has been enlisted as a consultant coach for this World Cup and has spoken to the players about the impact that stiff crosswinds can have in the Caribbean. “That’s part of selection discussions and team discussions, being aware of the wind and right-hand/left-hand combinations,” Buttler said.”[Pollard] has fitted in really well. Some of the guys have played with him, or played lots of cricket against him, so have a nice relationship to start from. Obviously, he’s got a wealth of T20 knowledge and everyone should have been tapping into that, sponging up any really good information that he’s got for us.”And obviously, [he knows about] local conditions. He knows everything about the Caribbean, and he’s got that winner’s mindset. I think that’s something that we’re really tapping into. He’s won a lot of competitions around the world… it’s great to have guys like that around the group.”Kieron Pollard will assist Matthew Mott during the T20 World Cup•Gareth Copley/Getty

England come into the World Cup after beating Pakistan 2-0 in a rain-affected series, and Buttler said there is “a really good vibe” around their squad. “We had some good performances there, but we’re fully focused on the game tomorrow. We need to make sure we bring 100% intensity to that, first of all.”He acknowledged that England will be expected to beat Scotland comfortably, but said: “It’s a great game: our first of the World Cup. We’re all excited for that and we expect a tough challenge. They’ve come here to try and win games, and they want to beat us; we want to beat them. It’s pretty straightforward.”Buttler also declined to give any clues as to England’s XI for the opening match, saying: “I think we’ve got lots of really good options, from No. 1 to 15. We picked a squad with a lot of different options, and we’ve got to work out what we feel is the best combination for the first game.”

Teams likely to have a purse of INR 100 crore to build their squads for next season

Nagraj Gollapudi26-Oct-2023The IPL player auction ahead of the 2024 season will be held on December 19 in Dubai; it is the first time the auction will be held overseas.The event will coincide with the second ODI of India’s tour of South Africa, which is scheduled for December 19 in Gqeberha.The ten IPL teams have until November 15 to submit the lists of players they are retaining and releasing, after which the auction pool will be finalised by early December.Each team will have a purse of INR 100 crore (USD 12.02 million approximately) to build their squad for the 2024 season, a INR 5 crore increase from last season’s purse of INR 95 crore. How much each team has to spend on auction day depends on the value of players they release, in addition to their unspent purse from the 2023 auction.Punjab Kings have the largest purse at present – INR 12.20 crore (USD 1.47million) – while Mumbai Indians have the smallest at INR 0.05 crore (USD 0.006 million). Of the remaining teams Sunrisers Hyderabad have INR 6.55 crore (USD 0.79 million); Gujarat Titans and Delhi Capitals both have INR 4.45 crore (USD 0.54 million); Lucknow Super Giants have INR 3.55 crore (USD 0.43 million); Rajasthan Royals have USD 3.35 crore (USD 0.40 million); Royal Challengers Bangalore have INR 1.75 crore (USD 0.21 million); Kolkata Knight Riders have INR 1.65 crore (USD 0.2 million); and defending champions Chennai Super Kings have INR 1.5 crore (USD 0.18 million).Despite being only a day-long event – compared to the two-day mega auction once every four years – mini auctions have produced some of the most expensive buys, especially in the overseas players category. Ahead of the 2023 season, Sam Curran became the most expensive player in IPL history when he was bought by Punjab for INR 18.5 crore in December last year.Several prominent overseas players are likely to enter the upcoming auction, including Australian fast bowler Mitchell Starc who recently said he was “definitely” heading back to the IPL after an eight-year hiatus. Pat Cummins is also likely to put his name up for bidding, having skipped the IPL last year. Some of the other key players franchises expect to see at the auction are Travis Head, Chris Woakes, Alex Hales, Sam Billings, and Gerald Coetzee.

“It’s more [about] getting used to the tactical side of it. I haven’t played a lot of T20 cricket in the last couple of years”

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Apr-20240:54

Starc: ‘Taken me longer than I would’ve liked to get back into rhythm’

Until Sunday evening, Mitchell Starc had only two wickets across four IPL matches this season, while averaging 77 with an economy rate of 11. That after he became the most expensive player ever in the IPL, in the last auction, with a salary of INR 24.75 crore. But Starc turned his form around with 3 for 28 against Lucknow Super Giants at Eden Gardens, as Kolkata Knight Riders eventually dominated the chase of 162 for an eight-wicket win.”I don’t read anything, so that doesn’t bother me,” he said after the match about the expectations and the noise around him.Starc returned to the IPL this year for the first time since 2015, and since the T20 World Cup in 2022, he had played just two T20s in one-and-a-half years before coming to India for the ongoing tournament. Starc admitted that he was still getting used to the “tactical side” of the shortest format.Related

• Aussies at the IPL 2024: Starc sizzles, Marsh flies home, Fraser-McGurk fires

• The constant and universal appeal of Mitchell Starc

• Phil Salt and Mitchell Starc headline KKR's thumping win

“It’s T20 cricket; for the guys who have played a lot of Test cricket, this is definitely a lot easier physically,” he said. “It’s more [about] getting used to the tactical side of it. I haven’t played a lot of T20 cricket in the last couple of years, so it has probably taken me a little bit longer than I would have liked to get back into the rhythm of things and make a better impact. So today was nice in that regard.”Against LSG, Starc bowled three overs in the powerplay, and conceded 23 as he was hit for four fours. But that spell also included eight dots and the wicket of Deepak Hooda. When brought back to bowl the last over, Starc gave away just six runs, and struck twice. On the first ball he had Nicholas Pooran, LSG’s best batter this season, for 45. And on the last ball, he swung one back into Arshad Khan and cleaned him up.The next T20 World Cup begins just six days after the IPL ends on May 26 in Chennai. As every team plays 14 league matches while travelling around the country in the IPL, Starc said games coming in thick and fast is “a feature of T20 cricket”, and he can look after his workload even with the World Cup looming.”I’m 34, so I’m pretty good with my workloads”, he said. “I’ve been doing this [for] a long time. We play again on Tuesday, and I think that’s a feature of T20 cricket. Whether you have a good day or a bad day, games come around so quickly that you can’t really think about what’s been; you quickly focus on the next game.”

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.

After 15 wickets fell on day one, the teams were not able to take the field in Mirpur

Mohammad Isam07-Dec-20231:27

Explainer: Mushfiqur Rahim’s obstructing the field dismissal

Rain prevented any play from happening on the second day of the second Test between Bangladesh and New Zealand in Mirpur. The day was abandoned at 1:55pm local time.The rain had begun early on Thursday morning and continued through the day. The umpires inspected the conditions a few times, with the last one at 1.00 pm, after which the rain intensified and forced the abandonment.However, given the pace at which the Test progressed on day one, there is still plenty of time for a result. Bangladesh were bowled out for 172 on the first day with New Zealand’s spinners picking up eight of the ten wickets. Tim Southee took one, while Mushfiqur Rahim became the first Bangladesh batter to be given out for obstructing the field. His dismissal would have been a bigger talking point for the hosts had their spinners not reduced New Zealand to 55 for 5 when bad light ended play.Bangladesh are still 117 runs ahead in the first innings, and are pushing for their maiden Test series victory against New Zealand, after winning the first match by 150 runs.Play is scheduled to start at 9.15 am local time on day three in Mirpur, with a minimum of 98 overs to be bowled.

Babar, 28, becomes the youngest person to ever receive the Sitara-e-Imtiaz

Danyal Rasool23-Mar-2023Pakistan captain Babar Azam has received the Sitara-e-Imtiaz, the third-highest civilian honour in Pakistan. It was conferred onto him at a ceremony in Lahore on Pakistan Day, which is a national holiday in the country. Babar, 28, becomes the youngest person to ever receive the honour, beating out another cricketer, Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed. Sarfaraz was awarded the Sitara-e-Imtiaz in Karachi in 2018, when he was 31. Former Pakistan women’s captain, Bismah Maroof, meanwhile, has been awarded the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, the fourth-highest honour. Masood Jan, a former blind cricker for Pakistan, received a Pride of Performance Award.The Pakistan government announced last year on August 14, Pakistan’s Independence Day, that it would give Babar the award for his achievements in the field of cricket. He joins a number of former cricketers who were given this award, with Javed Miandad, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Yousuf, Younis Khan, Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal and Misbah-ul-Haq also honoured in this way.Babar called the award “an immense honour” dedicating it to “his parents, fans and the people of Pakistan”. He was congratulated by a host of cricketers past and present, including Kamran Akmal, Ajmal, Shahnawaz Dahani, Saim Ayub and Mohammad Haris.