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Delhi start as the favourites but perhaps the fact that they can afford to lose while Kolkata Knight Riders are desperate for a win can make things interesting

The Preview by Sriram Veera06-Apr-2010

Match facts

Wednesday, April 7
Start time 2000 (1430GMT)Amit Mishra has been the pick of the spinners in the tournament•Indian Premier League

Big Picture

It’s a no-brainer. Delhi Daredevils start as the favourites but perhaps the fact that they can afford to lose while Kolkata Knight Riders are desperate for a win can make things interesting. However, it’s highly unlikely that Delhi will relax when they are still two wins away from making it into the final four.Delhi have come back after a mini-blip and have been combining well as a team. Amit Mishra has sparkled with the ball and the bowling looks more potent with the arrival of Daniel Vettori. Delhi’s strengths are known: Strong openers who are both capable of winning matches on their own, a good middle order in Gautam Gambhir and Paul Collingwood, and one of the better lower middle-order batsman of the tournament in Dinesh Karthik. That AB de Villiers and Tillakaratne Dilshan are still warming the bench is an indicator how well things are going for Delhi.Whenever Kolkata have been in dire straits and looked to have completely lost the plot, they have bounced back with a win. Saurav Ganguly came good a couple of matches ago and Chris Gayle played a fiery knock in the last game. Both have to come good if Kolkata are to push Delhi. They will play four of their remaining six games at home, on a slow surface, though Delhi are more than comfortable playing on sluggish surfaces. Kolkata’s bowlers couldn’t defend a strong 201 in the last game against Punjab and if they don’t turn up with their A game, Delhi can give them a hammering.

Team talk

Brendon McCullum is likely to replace David Hussey. It allows Kolkata, who couldn’t defend a a big total against Punjab in the last game, to bring in an extra bowler instead of Wriddhiman Saha. Delhi are unlikely to make many changes, though their combination will change if Dirk Nannes is fit again.

Head to head

Delhi 3 Kolkata 1
Kolkata won the opening encounter between the teams, with Shoaib Akhtar grabbing 4 for 11; the return fixture was abandoned without a ball being bowled. Delhi had the better of both games in South Africa, winning by nine wickets in Durban and seven wickets in Johannesburg. In the first game this year, David Warner smashed a hundred to help Delhi beat Kolkata by 40 runs.

In the spotlight

Amit Mishra: It’s as if he is out to prove that the wrong leggie has been picked for the World Twenty20. He has been mixing his leg breaks and googlies superbly with his front-of-the-hand sliders and has troubled most batsmen. Even with the presence of Vettori in the side, it will be Mishra who will be the main spinner.David Warner: It’s a simple technique that he deploys. He clears the front foot and either swings through the line to the on side or cuts over the off-side field if its slightly shorter and pushed across him.

Prime Numbers

• David Warner holds the record for the most number of catches in the tournament: Seven catches. He also holds the record for most number of catches in a game: four.
• Paul Collingwood has hit more sixes than fours: Ten sixes to eight fours.

Abhishek Nayar says the KKR captain has been positive despite all the challenges and disappointments he’s faced in recent months

S Sudarshanan02-May-2024Shreyas Iyer has been on a rollercoaster side. He scored two hundreds and three half-centuries in India’s run to the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup in November, then suffered a recurrence his back troubles, had his commitment to red-ball cricket questioned, lost his BCCI contract, and was not even talked about among the contenders for selection to India’s 2024 T20 World Cup squad.He also came into this IPL season having missed the last one with injury and took back the captaincy of a team that finished seventh in 2022 and 2023. After nine games, he’s led Kolkata Knight Riders to second place in the points table with six wins, ahead of their contest against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede on Friday.KKR assistant coach Abhishek Nayar, who knows Iyer from the domestic circuit in Mumbai, said he had dealt with his setbacks with a positive attitude.”He is one of the strongest people, mentally, I have ever known, just in terms of how he has accepted certain things that have happened with him,” Nayar said on Thursday. “I would have seen a lot of people cribbing and talking about it, but I haven’t heard him whine about it or complain about it at all. The way he has approached life is in a positive manner – what is in front of you, you try and accept it.”Related

• Can KKR end their 12-year hoodoo at Wankhede?

Iyer missed IPL 2023 after undergoing a back surgery. He made a comeback in the Asia Cup but suffered back spasms before the match against Pakistan. He made a comeback to play the ODI World Cup, where he scored 530 runs at a strike rate of 113.25 batting at No. 4.After scores of 31, 6, 0 and 4 not out in the Test series in South Africa, Iyer warmed up for the home series against England with a 48-run knock in the Ranji Trophy match against Andhra. But following returns of 35, 13, 27 and 29, he was dropped for the last three Tests against England. He then missed the Ranji Trophy quarter-final, despite BCCI’s directive against skipping it, due to a back spasm but returned for the semi-final. After scoring 95 in the first innings of the final against Tamil Nadu, Iyer complained of back pain and missed the rest of the game. He then linked up with the KKR squad and has played game so far.”Certain things are not in under his control but his fitness is in his control, and he is feeling a lot better now,” Nayar said. “He is great on the field, he is batting longer hours, he has trained really hard. Our S&Cs (strength and conditioning) and physios have worked hard with him.”Mentally, to have a mindset like that after being rejected or not getting his due, he has taken it very positively. Even when he talks about it, he is not negative, he understands he needs to go back and do well.”Iyer has not had a terrific time with the bat in IPL 2024, but he hasn’t been poor either: he has 251 runs -third most for KKR – at a strike rate of 137.15. He has largely batted at Nos. 4 and 5 and has had the luxury of coming in after one of the most explosive opening combinations this season – Phil Salt and Sunil Narine – has done its thing.”His mindset is to score runs, whether he plays the IPL, the Ranji Trophy or for India,” Nayar said. “He looks to score runs, it has affected him but the way he has handled it, kudos to him because I can imagine a lot of people reacting very differently than he has.”The floodlights had taken full effect at the Wankhede when Iyer geared up for a final stint in the nets on Thursday. He focused on power-hitting with Andre Russell slanting the ball full and wide outside off stump from around the wicket. Iyer took a moment to reflect after facing every delivery from Russell as well as the other bowlers, before joining MI captain Hardik Pandya, KKR bowling coach Bharath Arun, and KKR head coach Chandrakant Pandit – all standing right behind the nets Iyer was batting in – for a chat.Iyer may not be part of India’s T20 World Cup squad, or the reserves, but his immediate challenge is to try and lead KKR to victory at a venue where success has eluded them for 12 years.

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

• Motie gives Zimbabwe a scare but debutant Tsiga helps salvage draw

• Gudakesh Motie's 7 for 37 puts West Indies in command

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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.

Both were thrust in at the 11th hour because of Covid guidelines

Andrew McGlashan16-Dec-2021There were two people with positions they did not expect to have on the first morning of the second Ashes Test in Adelaide. Steven Smith was thrust back into the Australian captaincy at the 11th hour and Michael Neser was handed a debut many thought he’d bypass.In the Covid era, situations develop and change quickly. Pat Cummins’ pre-Test dinner (which was entirely within the rules set down by Cricket Australia) put in motion a chaotic 16 hours that resulted in Australia having their third Test captain in three matches and a bowling attack now stripped of two of the big three.It added another chapter to Smith’s storied career. Having been named Cummins’ vice-captain last month there was always a strong chance he would step back into the top job at some point during their joint tenure, but not after one match and in the manner it happened. Smith spoke to Cummins amid the chaos and was told “it’s your team this week.””It’s a huge honour, obviously,” Smith said. “Been a pretty interesting morning, bit been going on.”He was warmly applauded by the crowd when he came out for the toss wearing what appeared to be Cummins’ blazer. There are still those who feel he should not have been granted a leadership position again after the ball-tampering scandal, but he has served his time and life has to move on. Over the last year or so, soundings have been taken from across the game by Cricket Australia about a potential return to the captaincy for Smith with the overall view that he would be accepted.”He, by his own admission, has grown a lot as a person, and has done a huge amount of good work in the community,” Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley said. “I’d say we’ve run a really thorough process for these latest leadership positions, and certainly national selection panel and the board we felt that he demonstrated he was absolutely fit to hold a leadership position again.”Smith will be captaining a bowling attack that has been shorn of 386 wickets compared to the one on the field in Brisbane. Josh Hazlewood’s absence was known a few days ago, but the loss of Cummins has left Mitchell Starc to lead the line alongside Jhye Richardson in his third Test and Neser on debut.Michael Neser wears his brand new Baggy Green•CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images

Neser had lost out to Richardson as Hazlewood’s replacement and it was all set for him to add another Test to his tally as drinks career which stands on at least a dozen. He couldn’t force his way into the line-up on the 2019 Ashes, during the following home summer against New Zealand James Pattinson played when Hazlewood was injured and last season the attack was unchanged against India.Since being first included in an Australia squad in 2018, Neser has taken 144 first-class wickets at 21.01 and last week was Player of the Match when Australia A beat England Lions. He should not be out of his depth.The last-minute nature of the situation meant Neser could not have his family present and the cap presentation by Glenn McGrath – a player also associated with a last-minute scratching from a Test side when he famously twisted his ankle on stray ball moments before the toss at Edgbaston in 2005 – was streamed back to Queensland. Few of the 461 male players to be handed the baggy green before him can have done it quite such a bizarre scenario.”You get your opportunity for different reasons, there’s no doubt about that,” McGrath told the . “But you’re there because of the work you’ve put in leading into this moment. The reason you got picked is because of the way you bowled. Just do exactly the same out in the middle and just enjoy it.”As someone who loves to bat and bat in the nets, Smith has had plenty of first-hand experience of the off-field work Neser has put in.”I’m really excited for him,” he said. “He’s worked his backside off for a long time, been 12th man a dozen times. He gets his opportunity, and we’re all looking forward to playing with him this week. It’s a great moment for him.”From the disrupted build-up, Covid-related uncertainties and Tim Paine’s resignation this had already been an Ashes series like few others. And there’s every chance that the drama on the opening day in Adelaide is not the last twist to come.

Also: more than half of the 277 players polled want more than 10 teams playing the World Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Aug-2020ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The opener dominated the first day with a superb 141 against some demanding New South Wales bowling

Alex Malcolm28-Mar-2019Incumbent Australia Test opener Marcus Harris confirmed his status as a genuine big game player after scoring his third century in Sheffield Shield finals to hold Victoria’s first innings together on day one against New South Wales.He made a sublime 141 off 229 balls on a day when the home side managed just 6 for 266. New South Wales will rue the four catches they put down on a day of hard toil for little reward. At stumps the bonus points, which would decide the title in the event of a draw, stood at 0.66 for Victoria and 0.6 for New South Wales.Harris added to his extraordinary record in Shield deciders. He became the eighth player to make 500 runs or more in Shield finals taking his tally to 521 runs from six innings at an average of 104.20. His love affair with the Junction Oval also continued. He now has 661 runs at 94.43 with three hundreds and two 90s in seven innings at the ground. He also took his remarkable Shield season tally to 1165 runs at 72.81 including three centuries.Victoria needed Harris’ heroics after winning the toss and electing to bat on a dry, up and down surface.  The home side agonised in the lead-up over whether to select another specialist batsman but opted for the five bowlers, with James Pattinson batting at No.7, as they have done for most of the season.Travis Dean and Matt Short both played a part in 63 and 80-run stands with Harris but no other player in the top six scored more than 34.Dean played a loose stroke after a solid start edging Sean Abbott on the up to slip. Victoria reached 1 for 87 at lunch before Trent Copeland trapped Will Pucovski lbw for 11.But Harris played with typical fluency while the scoring stalled at the other end. He was savage on any width, particularly off the back foot. The vast majority of his 17 boundaries came square of the wicket with trademark cuts and square drives. He was unperturbed in the middle session as the Blues set quite a defensive field and was happy to milk singles and twos to deep point and deep backward square.He did have a fair bit of good fortune. He edged Abbott knee-high between third slip and gully in the eighth over and popped a drive just over Jack Edwards’ head at cover off Copeland in the 15th. He was also dropped on 71 and 121. Nick Larkin spilt a very sharp low catch to his right at a floating slip before tea and then Copeland grassed a waist-high chance in the same position six overs away from the second new ball.However, the Blues got their own slice of luck with the dismissal of Seb Gotch. Copeland found Gotch’s outside edge with a good length outswinger and Edwards pouched the flying chance at third slip only for replays on the television coverage to show Copeland had overstepped the front line by a long way, which had been missed by umpire Paul Wilson. Despite the final being broadcast live on in Australia, the playing conditions for the final don’t allow for the third umpire Gerard Abood to check for no-balls after a wicket has fallen.The incorrect decision stood as a result, leaving Victoria 3 for 113. That soon became 4 for 124 when Cameron White spooned a catch to point five overs later.  But Harris and Short steadied in the afternoon session. Short fell to a superb catch from wicketkeeper Peter Nevill, diving to his left to grab an inside edge that deflected some way from the bowling of Moises Henriques.Harris got good support from James Pattinson before falling to the second new ball when he edged a very full ball from Abbott to Copeland at slip.Pattinson and Chris Tremain scratched for 57 balls to get to stumps six down, adding just 15 runs to the total. Pattinson also had a reprieve late in the day when the usually flawless Nevill dropping a catchable chance off Copeland after he was wrong footed.

The ECB are shortly due to confirm the major match allocations for 2020-2024 which will also include the host venues for the new T20 tournament

George Dobell07-Feb-2018Hampshire look set to be one of the main beneficiaries when the ECB announce their major match allocation next week.They are expected to be awarded one of the most coveted games in the schedule – an Ashes Test in 2023. While the club hosted their first Test against Sri Lanka in 2011 and a second against India in 2014, the opportunity to host a Test against Australia would represent the culmination of many years’ work – and many millions of pounds of investment – for the club’s benefactor, Rod Bransgrove.While it is not anticipated that Hampshire’s Ageas Bowl ground will host any other Tests during the period, it is likely it will be given a couple of international T20 fixtures each year and confirmed as the base for one of the teams in the new T20 competition scheduled to start in 2020.The allocation – which will account for major matches staged in England and Wales from 2020 to 2024 – was originally scheduled to be announced on February 14, though it is possible that deadline could slide if the ECB board demand more explanation before ratification.

England fielding coach

The ECB is understood to have offered the job of fielding coach to the former Sussex batsman Carl Hopkinson. He is currently Sussex Academy coach.

There could also be good news for Lord’s in the allocation. While the reduction in England’s Test programme (they will play six Tests per summer from 2020 rather than seven as is the case at present) looked likely to harm them, confidence within the MCC remains high that they will continue to host two Tests a year. In summers where a team plays five Tests against England – a scenario that is currently only relevant to India and Australia – Lord’s would host one match in that series and a further Test against a side outside the ICC’s Test Championship. Lord’s is also likely to be confirmed as a host for a new team in the T20 competition.The other likely host venues for the new T20 competition are The Oval, Edgbaston, Trent Bridge, Cardiff, Manchester and Headingley though it is possible a few games will be played at other venues including Bristol and Durham.The remainder of the Tests will be split between England’s traditional Test grounds. With Durham no longer eligible to host Test cricket as part of a raft of penalties imposed on the club following their financial problems and Cardiff understood not to have applied to host any Test cricket during the period, the competition for the remaining three Ashes games will be limited to Edgbaston, Trent Bridge, The Oval, Old Trafford and Headingley.But with the ECB having altered the process by which games are allocated, it is the grounds with the largest capacity – The Oval, Old Trafford and Edgbaston – which are best placed to win the fight to host those Ashes Tests in 2023.Whereas clubs used to bid against one another – sometimes being seduced into over-spending in their desperation to host games – they now apply for packages of matches on the understanding that ticket sales (but not catering or hospitality revenues) will be shared with the ECB. For the most popular games, such as Ashes series, that revenue share is understood to be 50% of ticket sales.

Middle-order batsman Ajinkya Rahane has been ruled out of the fourth and fifth Tests against England with a finger injury

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Dec-20161:01

Quick Facts: Manish Pandey

Middle-order batsman Ajinkya Rahane has been ruled out of the fourth and fifth Tests against England with a finger injury, while fast bowler Mohammed Shami is an uncertain starter for the Mumbai Test, beginning Thursday.Karnataka batsman Manish Pandey replaced Rahane in the squad, while Shardul Thakur was brought in as back-up for Shami, who has a sore knee. Bhuvneshwar Kumar is likely to be the first-choice replacement in the XI for Shami, while Karun Nair is likely to take Rahane’s place.Pandey and Thakur had to be pulled out of ongoing Ranji Trophy matches and flown to Mumbai. Pandey was playing against Maharashtra in Mohali, and Thakur against Punjab in Rajkot.The BCCI said Rahane had suffered “an avulsion fracture on his right index finger” after getting hit by a ball during a practice session on the eve of the Mumbai Test. He managed only 63 runs in five innings in this series. The board also said that Shami’s fitness was being monitored and a decision on his inclusion in the XI would be taken on the morning of the match.Shami has had trouble with his leg since the start of the series, when he was seen clutching his hamstring on the first day in Rajkot. The team management, however, said he was merely suffering from cramp and he continued to play the remainder of that Test and those that followed in Visakhapatnam and Mohali. Shami was especially potent with reverse-swing, taking 10 wickets at an average of 25.20.If Shami doesn’t make it, India are almost certain to play Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who took a five-wicket haul in the last Test he played. That was why Kohli wasn’t too worried about Shami’s availability.”If you see, whoever has stepped in has given match-winning performances,” he said. “You speak about Bhuvi, he has come in at St Lucia once and in Kolkata once, and both times he has picked up five wickets, and he has been the match-winner for us. I am not worried because the guys sitting outside are waiting for opportunities. It is not like that they are not looking forward to playing, which is I think a great sign for the team and that is why whoever has played at any stage has given those performances for us. As I said they are pretty keen to step on to the field to grab the opportunity with both hands.”Pandey, Rahane’s replacement in the squad, had himself hurt his finger while playing a Ranji Trophy game in November. He returned to action last week, making 75 and 58 against Saurashtra. Thakur, meanwhile, has been a more consistent presence this season, claiming 13 wickets in six matches, including a six-wicket haul against Bengal last week. He had been picked in the 17-man squad for the four-Test tour of the West Indies in July-August, but did not get a game.

Shashank Manohar is set to be elected BCCI president unopposed on Sunday, replacing Jagmohan Dalmiya who died in Kolkata on September 20.

Nagraj Gollapudi and Amol Karhadkar03-Oct-20154:48

Ugra: BCCI’s legal wrangles the challenge for Manohar

Shashank Manohar is set to be elected BCCI president unopposed on Sunday, replacing Jagmohan Dalmiya who died in Kolkata on September 20. At 3 pm on Saturday, the deadline to file nominations, only Manohar’s name was filed as a candidate for the election that will be held during the special general meeting in Mumbai on Sunday afternoon.Manohar received backing from all the six members from East Zone – Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), National Cricket Club, Odisha Cricket Association, Jharkhand Cricket Association, Assam Cricket Association and Tripura Cricket Association. It is understood all six East Zone members nominated him, as it is the zone’s turn to nominate the president for the period till 2017. Soon after Dalmiya’s death, there was talk of the East camp wanting one of its own to stand for the elections, but there was no consensus, thus paving the way for Manohar.Confirming the East zone’s stand, former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly, representing the CAB, told the media at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai: “A lot of important people have led BCCI in the past and Manohar has also done it quite well. I am sure he will do a good job.”Dalmiya was the first BCCI president to die while in office, thus necessitating the unprecedented action of the board choosing a replacement at a special general meeting. This will be Manohar’s second stint as BCCI chief – he served as president between October 2008 and September 2011. He had first emerged as the consensus candidate when the ruling political party in India, the Bharatiya Janata Party, backed him and opposed Sharad Pawar’s candidature.

Ralph Waters has been named the new chairman of the local organising committee for the 2015 World Cup which will be hosted by Australia and New Zealand

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Mar-2013Ralph Waters has been named new chairman of the local organising committee for the 2015 World Cup hosted by Australia and New Zealand. Waters was previously the deputy chairman of the committee and succeeds James Strong, the previous chairman, who died in Sydney last week.Waters, a prominent businessman from New Zealand, said he would work closely with the home boards organising the World Cup and carry out a successful tournament.”Like myself, James [Strong] had lived and worked in Australia and New Zealand and was determined to put on a truly world class tournament in 2015,” Waters said. “I share his vision and will work closely with the ICC, Cricket Australia and New Zealand Cricket to deliver a successful tournament for cricket fans around the world.”Alan Isaac, ICC president, said Strong would be missed, but a successful World Cup would be delivered nevertheless. “James’ passion and expertise will be missed by all of us,” Isaac said. “I know Ralph shares the same love for the game and together we will deliver a great tournament.”