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Gladiators pick England batter Dan Lawrence as a reserved supplementary pick, while Zalmi roped in Pakistan quick Sohail Khan in that category

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jan-2022Karachi Kings have snapped up English batter Ian Cockbain for the upcoming PSL season. In a heavily English-centric PSL replacement draft, Cockbain, 34, was signed as a substitute for fellow countryman Tom Abell, who sustained a knee injury playing for Brisbane Heat in the BBL.Earlier today, Cockbain, who only signed for the Adelaide Strikers last week – the first overseas T20 league has played – smashed an unbeaten 42-ball 71 to take his side through to the BBL playoffs. He is a middle-order batter for Gloucestershire and was part of the Welsh Fire side in the inaugural season of the Hundred.Peshawar Zalmi’s Saqib Mahmood and Liam Livingstone became unavailable for the start of the PSL on January 27 as they are part of England’s five-match T20I series in the Caribbean. Zalmi, last year’s finalists, have drafted in legspinner Matt Parkinson and fast bowler Pat Brown as partial replacements.Parkinson, 25, has never before competed in an overseas T20 league. He has played for Lancashire in the T20 Blast and the Manchester Originals in the Hundred, in addition to making five ODI and four T20I appearances for England. Brown took 31 wickets in the Blast in 2018, which lead to an England call-up, but a succession of injuries has since seen his progress impeded.England’s T20I series against the West Indies concludes on January 30. Upon reaching Pakistan, Mahmood and Livingstone will be required to enter three days of quarantine in their rooms before linking up with their teams. The current schedule would mean the duo will miss up to five PSL games during that time.Quetta Gladiators selected England batter Dan Lawrence as a reserved supplementary pick, while Zalmi snapped up Pakistan medium fast bowler Sohail Khan in that category.The PSL runs from January 27 to February 27 under strict bio-secure protocols. All games under February 7 will be played at the National Stadium Karachi, before the tournament moves to Gaddafi Stadium Lahore for the remaining games, including the playoffs and the final.In: Ian Cockbain (Karachi Kings), Matt Parkinson and Pat Brown (Peshawar Zalmi – partial)Out: Tom Abell (Karachi Kings), Saqib Mahmood and Liam Livingstone (Peshawar Zalmi – partial)Reserved supplementary picks: Dan Lawrence (Quetta Gladiators), Sohail Khan (Peshawar Zalmi)

Since January 2013, the average first-innings score in ODIs between the two sides is 321. Will the MA Chidambaram Stadium witness another run-fest?

The Preview by Nikhil Kalro16-Sep-20170:52

Irfan Pathan, Tait back India to win series

Big Picture

Only soured friendships and damaged relations remained after the on-field taunts and verbal scuffles on Australia’s previous tour to India. In between, there was a darn good series of Test cricket as Australia proved the stiffest challenge to India’s immaculate home season. Apart from the format, the nature of the surfaces and a few personnel adjustments, not much will change on the limited-overs leg.Australia’s recent ODI form has been atypically horrendous away from home. They have lost their last eight completed matches on the road, last winning one in September 2016, against Ireland. Their emphasis on rotation has meant the set-up, save captain Steven Smith and vice-captain David Warner, has consistently changed. Yet, Australia, who are coming off a resounding Test-series-levelling rout of Bangladesh in Chittagong, are never far away from finding their best, irrespective of the format.In contrast, India have lost just three of their last 15 ODIs, all away from home. They’ve preferred wristspinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav to fingerspinners R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, and possess two of the best end-overs specialists in Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.Their only apparent weakness, it seems, lies in their batting. Does Ajinkya Rahane, who could open in Shikhar Dhawan’s absence, have the ability to match modern scoring standards? MS Dhoni’s finishing skills aren’t getting better, while KL Rahul, Manish Pandey and Kedar Jadhav haven’t yet carved their name in any of the open spots in India’s middle order.

Form guide

India WWWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Australia LLLWW

In the spotlight

How do you stop India’s master chasers Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni? In South Africa’s previous ODI series in India, captain AB de Villiers employed a 4-5 field for his tall seamers, who angled the ball into their ribs. In their defense of 270 in Rajkot, South Africa stole the game from an improbable situation. Kohli and Dhoni may or may not be susceptible to the short ball, but the point is South Africa executed a set of discernible plans while defending a middling total. Bowling without gameplans in favourable batting conditions may not be the best way to go, as Australia found out in their last ODI series in India.Confidence is an influential factor in sport. David Warner would have gained plenty after he overcame arguably the biggest flaw in his record, scoring hundreds in the sub-continent; he scored two against Bangladesh in successive Tests in gruelling conditions. Opening the batting in ODIs in India, against hard, new balls, is every batsman’s dream, and Warner, with his attacking template, is best suited to taking advantage of the Powerplay.Getty Images

Team news

With Dhawan absent for the first three games, Rahane should slot into his opening spot. With Australia – and the rest of the world – struggling to pick wristspin, Kuldeep is likely to be persisted with. Axar Patel is out of the squad after injuring his ankle during a practice session, with Ravindra Jadeja named as his replacement. India will therefore have to choose between him and Yuzvendra Chahal for the second spinner’s slot.India (probable): 1 Ajinkya Rahane, 2 Rohit Sharma, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 Manish Pandey/KL Rahul, 5 Kedar Jadhav, 6 MS Dhoni (wk), 7 Hardik Pandya, 8 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal/Ravindra Jadeja, 11 Jasprit BumrahWith a calf problem ruling Aaron Finch out of the first few ODIs, Travis Head might be forced to open the batting, a position he is accustomed to, having opened for South Australia. With Glenn Maxwell’s offspinning ability, Australia may stick with just one spinner.Australia (probable): 1 David Warner, 2 Travis Head, 3 Steven Smith (capt), 4 Peter Handscomb, 5 Glenn Maxwell, 6 Marcus Stoinis, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 James Faulkner, 9 Nathan Coulter-Nile, 10 Pat Cummins, 11 Adam Zampa

Pitch and conditions

The surface at the MA Chidambaram Stadium tends to get progressively worse for batting. The average first-innings score at this venue is 264, but with modern-day batting at its best, 300-plus totals in both innings isn’t entirely implausible. There is a forecast for thunderstorms on Sunday afternoon.

Stats and trivia

• Since January 2013, the average first-innings score in games between India and Australia is 321.
• In that same period, Rohit Sharma has scored 1104 runs in 13 matches against Australia, at an ” target=”_blank”>average of 110.4 and a strike rate of 102.88
• In the last year, India’s top three batsmen have contributed 57.6% of the team runs, while Australia’s top three have accounted for 54.5%.
• David Warner will most likely play his first ODI in India on Sunday.

Quotes

“You can say what you want, you can keep talking the whole time but if you don’t deliver on the field it doesn’t matter. All those things are to get that aspect of mind games which I think creates an excitement for the fans watching as well. And also the players involved in the series, you know, that becomes more exciting and players are more pumped up to win games and outdo each other.”
India captain Virat Kohli on the verbals between the two sides“I think India play a lot more ODI cricket than we do. I’m not sure how many games Virat has played.”
1505 GMT: The preview was amended to reflect the news of Ravindra Jadeja’s inclusion in India’s squad following Axar Patel’s ankle injury

Pakistan’s captain admitted he had been worried about chasing when considering whether to enforce the follow on against Ireland

Melinda Farrell at Malahide15-May-20181:03

‘I’m a human being, not a machine’ – Amir

Like the Amur Leopard or the Hawksbill Turtle, Pakistan fans who feel confident during a fourth-innings chase are so rare they could be added to the official endangered species list. Especially when the target is low enough to be almost a formality. Whether it be pressure, lack of experience or lapses in concentration, small chases have been a big problem for Pakistan far too frequently to be a coincidence.So as the clouds gathered over Malahide late on the morning of the final day, with Pakistan needing 160, they may as well have been reflecting on the nerves felt in Abu Dhabi last October, when they expired to the spin of Rangana Herath for 114, chasing 136. Or the sinking spirits that came creeping in when, a few months earlier against West Indies, they imploded for 81 on a deteriorating pitch chasing 187. Edgbaston, the Gabba; different settings, different targets, same anxiety.In this context the fifth-day chase against Ireland, with a modest 160 the target, took on a particular importance. Sarfraz Ahmed admitted after the match that the prospect of a possibly tricky fourth innings played on his mind while debating whether or not to enforce the follow-on before lunch on the second day.”It’s very important,” Sarfraz said of Pakistan securing victory, thanks to half-centuries from Imam-ul-Haq and Babar Azam. “You know previously it’s not happened like this. In the last Test match when we were chasing 136 and we were all out for about 120.”Yeah we were thinking, when we called for the follow-on, if we were batting in the fourth innings it would be very difficult. But we are very confident. We are a very young side, we had two debutant players, but we were very confident whatever the target will come, we will chase it down.”Babar Azam acknowledges his half-century•Sportsfile/Getty Images

Pakistan will take some satisfaction that, after losing three quick wickets, the collapse was stemmed by two of the most inexperienced Test batsmen in the side: debutant Imam and Babar, in his 12th Test, who made the most of a life when he was dropped on 9. The pair put on a century stand and even two late wickets could not divert Pakistan from their goal.Imam has now scored three half-centuries on this tour and it will have pleased Pakistan even more the way he and Babar lifted the scoring rate after early jitters. More often than not in their collapses the run-scoring slows down to a crawl in a chase. Important runs for Babar will be another bonus, given his lean Test career. They will, however, face sterner tests against the likes of James Anderson and Stuart Broad at Lord’s next week.

The ECB have contacted Durham’s creditors to try to negotiate a part writing-off of debts to put the county on a firmer financial footing

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Oct-2016The ECB have contacted Durham’s creditors to try to negotiate a part writing-off of debts to put the county on a firmer financial footing.The message to creditors is that, unless debts are further reduced, Durham’s involvement in events such as the 2019 World Cup cannot be guaranteed and their long-term viability remains uncertain.Durham have received a £3.8m bailout from the ECB. They have been relegated from Division One of the County Championship because of the need for emergency ECB support during the season and have been told that they will no longer be allowed to bid to host Test matches at Chester-le-Street.That, though, is only part of the approach. An ECB spokesman told the : “ECB has written to Durham County Council and the North East Local Enterprise Partnership asking them to support an all-creditors solution to enable Durham County Cricket Club to move towards a fully secure future.”The club’s acceptance of the ECB financial aid package is significant, but on its own does not give a long-term solution.
“For the club to have the best chance of a viable future in first class cricket – as well as host prestigious internationals and play a part in the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup – it needs an approach which has the support of all creditors.”We have outlined a proposal which we believe gives the cricket club a viable future whilst ensuring creditors have the best opportunity to get their money back.”Durham City Council and the North East Local Enterprise Partnership will now be invited to reduce the debt burde4n in a similar manner in which Glamorgan escaped potential bankruptcy last year when Cardiff Council wrote off £4.4m debts as part of a restructuring in which creditors waived 70% of loans.In Glamorgan’s case, politicians conceded that the survival of the club was vital to the Welsh economy and the sporting community and its bankruptcy could not be contemplated. The ECB hopes that the same conclusion will be reached in the north-east.With too many international grounds to go round, the loss of Chester-le-Street as an England venue could easily be masked. But the north-east has been a fertile production ground for England players, leaving the ECB and the public bodies with deloicate negotiations ahead.The ECB already supports each first-class county to roughly £2m a year and felt obliged to penalise Durham heavily so that the impression does not grow that they will happily be the lender of last resort to every county that is badly run or that has embraced necessary expansion to bring England’s cricket grounds into the 21st century.

Grace Scrivens ends up on losing side despite four-for followed by 74

ECB Reporters Network02-Jul-2022South East Stars 281 for 8 (Smith 66, Capsey 64*, Chathli 61, Scrivens 4-42) beat Sunrisers 201 (Scrivens 74, Smith 3-37) by 80 runsSouth East Stars beat Sunrisers by 80 runs in their Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy match at Beckenham. Stars posted 281 for 8 before dismissing Sunrisers for 201, Bryony Smith claiming 3 for 37.Smith was also the Stars top scorer with 66, while Alice Capsey hit 64 not out and Kira Chathli 61.Stars had looked like hitting in excess of 300 until Sunrisers’ Grace Scrivens took 4 for 42, but the hosts rallied after a middle-order slide and although Scrivens then made 74 with the bat, the visitors’ next highest scorer was Amara Carr with 35 and they were all out with eight overs remaining.Having won the toss, Stars chose to bat and lost Phoebe Franklin early when she swiped Naomi Dattani to Jo Gardner and was out for 3 in the fifth over. Smith and Chathli then put on 111 for the second wicket, before Mady Villiers had the former caught at square leg by Cordelia Griffith.Griffith also caught Chathli off Scrivens, who subsequently took a sharp return catch to remove Aylish Cranstone for 27. Kirstie White was bowled by Abtaha Maqsood for a second-ball duck and Scrivens then had Grace Gibbs lbw for 2, before bowling Freya Davies for just 1.Having lost four wickets for 17 runs, Stars counterattacked, with Alexa Stonehouse putting on 55 for the next wicket with Capsey before Griffith removed her with a steepling catch off Kelly Castle to dismiss her for 24. Eva Gray then made a quickfire 18 from 11 balls and with 13 coming off the final over, Stars had what looked like a daunting total.Stonehouse removed Griffith early in the chase, caught by Capsey for 10, but Sunrisers recovered to 59 for 1 at the end of the powerplay, only to lose Dattani for 19 in freakish circumstances in the 11th over. She’d comfortably made her ground when the ball ricocheted off the stumps at the Beckenham End, only to get run out by Gray at the other end, chasing a second.Scrivens drove Smith back over her head for the four that took her past 50, but then lost another partner when Villiers charged at Smith and was stumped by Chathli for 10.The Kent allrounder’s high-class innings came to an end in the 28th over when she hit Smith to White and Gardner was then lbw for nought to Grace Gibbs.The run rate remained manageable at just over seven, but Smith then trapped Carr lbw and Castle, who had been dropped on 8, was given caught behind off Capsey for 14. Capsey bowled Katherine Speed for 7 and Gray then wrapped up the win with two wickets in the 42nd over. She ripped out Maqsood’s middle stump, bowling her for 2, before getting Kate Coppack lbw for a duck with the final ball of the over.

Ingram’s 89 goes in vain as Sylhet Sunrisers lose by four wickets

Mohammad Isam09-Feb-2022How the match played outSunil Narine’s late onslaught gave Comilla Victorians a four-wicket win against Sylhet Sunrisers. It brings an end to BPL 2022’s Sylhet leg where the home side lost all three matches, but like in this match, they were in the game for a long time on all three occasions.Comilla won with a ball to spare after Narine hammered 19 runs off the penultimate over bowled by the newcomer AKS Swadhin. Abu Hider struck the winning runs off the second last ball of the game.The result left Colin Ingram, who made 89, with yet another big score in a losing cause. Sylhet banked on a 105-run opening stand between Ingram and Anamul Haque, who made a decent 46 off 33 balls. But the rest of the batters couldn’t quite replicate the big-hitting openers, mustering only 47 runs in the last five overs.Big hitIngram continued where he left off the previous day. He made 90 off 49 balls against Fortune Barishal, but this time, he took a bit more time to get to 89 off 63 balls. A feature of this innings, as was the case on Tuesday, was his ability to thread the gap on the off side. He struck five fours through point, apart from couple of sixes down the ground. Ingram was particularly attacking against left-arm spinner Tanvir Islam, hitting him for five boundaries.Mahmudul Hasan Joy guided Comilla’s chase till the 18th over with his 65 off 50 balls. He struck sweetly through backward point for four boundaries, apart from couple of cover-driven fours and two sixes over long-on. He added 82 runs for the third wicket with Moeen Ali, who survived a stumping chance off his first ball, going on to make 46 off 35 balls.When Alauddin Babu removed Joy, Narine took over, hitting Swadhin for two fours and a six in the 19th over. Comilla captain Imrul Kayes’ 16 off eight balls also contributed to the chase.Big missSylhet captain Bopara continues to have an ordinary BPL campaign, having mustered only 57 runs in seven innings. There have been a few occasions, like today’s game, when he got a bit of breathing room to go after the bowling, but fell to Narine for one. Bopara’s 2016 season was his worst, when he made only 35 runs in five innings.