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Plays of the day from the second T20 between South Africa and Sri Lanka

Firdose Moonda22-Jan-2017Comedy of errorsSouth Africa’s new faces are largely unknown to the wider cricketing world and it looked as though two of them hardly knew each other either, even though they should have. Heino Kuhn and Theunis de Bruyn were team-mates at the Titans before this season but seemed to be strangers at international level. De Bruyn hit Angelo Mathews to backward point and wanted the single but hesitated when he saw Niroshan Dickwella closing in. Dickwella wasn’t as quick as de Bruyn expected so he decided to go for the run again. At the other end, Kuhn was forced to stop-start as he awaited instruction while keeping one eye on Dickwella. But the joke was on Sri Lanka as Dickwella sent his throw comically wayward and allowed Kuhn to saunter through.Danger in the stands When domestic T20 cricket first started in South Africa, the sponsors used to hand out builders’ helmets to the first hundred or so fans through the gates. The sponsor kids still wear them and one may have been handy for the spectators. With South Africa stuttering through the Powerplay, Kuhn took it on himself to move things along, helped by legspinner Seekkuge Prasanna’s generosity. He tossed up the second ball, prompting Kuhn to launch it over long-on and into the stands where he struck a fan in the face and brought up his first international score in double figures. The same thing happened in Centurion on Friday night, suggesting the protective gear may need to make a comeback.Dream debut Lakshan Sandakan would have been forced to bowl his first ball in international T20 again, had Mangaliso Mosehle not reached for it. The left-armer’s googly was well wide of off stump but Mosehle was tempted to go for the cut and got a thin edge through to Dinesh Chandimal to make Sandakan the 15th bowler and only Sri Lankan to claim a scalp with the opening delivery of his T20 career.Not Miller-time South Africa needed to take every chance that came their way in defence of a small total and would not have expected their most experienced hand to put one down. Dinesh Chandimal flicked an on-fire Lungi Ngidi in front of square where David Miller was stationed at a shortish midwicket position. Miller had to dive to his left and got both hands to the ball but could not hold on to it as he tumbled and Chandimal was let off.Tag team Kuhn and Imran Tahir pulled off a relay catch in Centurion and the pair were at again at the Wanderers. Mathews flicked a full Andile Phehlukwayo delivery behind square, with enough power that it appeared to be going all the way for four, but Kuhn made good ground and put in a slide to stop it. He scooped the ball off the turf for Tahir to pick up and the legspinner, not previously known for his fielding, pulled off a quick turn and release to keep the batsmen down to just one.

And who managed to get a World Cup winner’s medal without ever having played an international match?

Steven Lynch04-Apr-2017KL Rahul made six fifties – but no hundreds – in the series against Australia. Was this a record? asked Praful Mehra from India

Against Australia in the series which has just ended, KL Rahul became only the fifth batsman to make six scores between 50 and 99 in the same Test series without converting any into a century. The first to do it was the West Indian opener Conrad Hunte, in the five-match home series against Australia in 1964-65. He was followed by Allan Border in 1989, and Mike Atherton in 1993, both in six-Test Ashes series in England. The most recent addition to the list before Rahul – and the only other man to achieve it in a four-match series – was the Australian opener Chris Rogers, in the last Border-Gavaskar Trophy battle, in Australia in 2014-15. If you include centuries, there have been 26 further cases of a batsman reaching 50 on six occasions during a Test series, and nine cases of seven – the most meritorious probably by England’s Patsy Hendren, who made two hundreds (including a double) and five fifties* from eight innings in the series in the West Indies in 1929-30 (his other innings was an unbeaten 36), and Sunil Gavaskar, whose debut series for India in the West Indies in 1970-71 saw him pass 50 in seven of his eight innings, with four centuries, one of them also a double (his only failure being a knock of 1).Two bowlers took six-fors in a recent match between Afghanistan and Ireland. How many times has this happened in ODIs? asked Connor O’Brien from Ireland

Those hauls by Paul Stirling (who took 6 for 55) and 18-year-old Rashid Khan (6 for 43) in the second match of the recent series between Ireland and Afghanistan in Greater Noida marked the first time in 3851 one-day internationals that two bowlers had taken six wickets in the same match. There are only ten other cases of two five-fors, including one instance by two bowlers on the same side – Greg Chappell (5 for 20) and Gary Cosier (5 for 18) for Australia against England at Edgbaston in 1977.Hanif Mohammad: no problem a triple-century can’t solve•PA PhotosWas VVS Laxman’s amazing 281 at Eden Gardens the highest individual score in a follow-on? asked Varun Singh from India

VVS Laxman’s memorable 281 against Australia in Kolkata in 2000-01 was indeed a remarkable innings – but it wasn’t quite the Test record for a follow-on. That is still held by Hanif Mohammad, with his match-saving 337 for Pakistan against West Indies in Bridgetown in 1957-58. There have been five other double-centuries in follow-ons: 275 by Gary Kirsten for South Africa against England in Durban in 1999-2000, 237 by Salim Malik for Pakistan against Australia in Rawalpindi in 1994-95, 232 not out by Andy Flower for Zimbabwe against India in Nagpur in 2000-01, 218 by Darren Bravo for West Indies against New Zealand in Dunedin in 2013-14, and 200 by Dilip Sardesai for India against New Zealand in Bombay (now Mumbai) in 1964-65.How often has a team been bowled out for the same score in both innings of a Test? asked Michael Broughton from England

There have been eight Tests in which one side returned identical all-out totals. The highest score involved is a pair of 306s, by Sri Lanka against South Africa in Cape Town in 1997-98, although India did make 407 and 407 for 9 declared against Pakistan in Kolkata in 2004-05. Of the other doubles, the highest two were by New Zealand, who made 279 twice against India in Hamilton in 2008-09, and twin 208s v West Indies in Wellington in 1955-56. Then come the following repeats: 201 twice by India against Australia in Sydney in 1980-81, 172 and 172 by New Zealand against South Africa in Wellington in 1952-53, twin 161s by New Zealand against Australia in Hobart in 1993-94, 148 and 148 by Bangladesh against Pakistan in Chittagong in 2001-02, and two 136s by India against Australia in Calcutta (now Kolkata) in 1956-57.Shaun Tait: “…and I only had to play 35 ODIs”•CWC 2015Who’s the only bowler to take six wickets for no runs in a Test? asked James Martin from England

You would do well to get this right in a quiz: the answer is the Jamaican fast bowler Jermaine Lawson, in a remarkable spell for West Indies against Bangladesh in Dhaka in 2002-03. Once Lawson got going, Bangladesh crashed from 80 for 3 to 87 all out. All his wickets came in the space of 15 balls, during which he didn’t concede a run, leading to final figures of 6.5-4-3-6. Lawson played only 12 other Tests, finishing with 51 wickets, in a career clouded by doubts about his bowling action.Shaun Tait recently retired from all cricket, having played only 35 ODIs, but these included a World Cup final. Has anyone with a World Cup winner’s medal played in fewer matches? asked Danish Syed from the United States

The express fast bowler Shaun Tait was part of the Australian side which won the 2007 World Cup final against Sri Lanka in Bridgetown. Although he failed to strike in the final, he took 23 wickets in that tournament, behind only his team-mate Glenn McGrath (26). But Tait’s career tally of 35 one-day caps is quite a few more than several of the West Indian players in 1975, a time when one-day internationals were few and far between. Rohan Kanhai played only seven ODIs – the last of them the first final, as West Indies beat Australia at Lord’s – and Keith Boyce eight. Maurice Foster and Lance Gibbs, who were in that West Indian squad but didn’t play in the final, appeared in only two and three ODIs respectively. But the unbeatable winner in this respect is the Delhi left-arm seamer Sunil Valson, who was part of the 14-man squad for the 1983 World Cup, but didn’t get a game as India pulled off their upset victory in the final at Lord’s. And indeed Valson never got on to the field for India in an international match… but he did get a World Cup winner’s medal.Post your questions in the comments below08:10 GMT: *The answer to the first question was edited to correct an error in Hendren’s numbers for the 1929-30 tour of the West Indies

Plays of the day from the third ODI between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh at the SSC

Andrew Fidel Fernando01-Apr-2017The wicketkeeping wit
Mushfiqur Rahim played a memorable hand in Bangladesh’s World T20 loss to India in Bangalore, and it was in that match that the opposition wicketkeeper – MS Dhoni – effected an excellent stumping, by snapping the bails off in the split seconds Sabbir Rahman’s back foot hung in the air. Mushfiqur dusted off a version of that dismissal at the SSC, when, having collected a throw from deep point, he dislodged the bails as batsman Dinesh Chandimal sauntered into the crease. Chandimal initially grounded his bat, but it was just he lifted it again that the bails were disturbed and, as such, was ruled out by the third umpire.The near-fumble
Danushka Gunathilaka would have been feeling pretty good about himself when no fewer than five team-mates rushed to congratulate him on a terrific diving stop at short cover. So good, that he almost fluffed the next ball that came to him – this one an important catch. When Shakib Al Hasan picked him out again immediately after he made that save, Gunathilaka parried the ball on first attempt, but managed to grab it on the second.The botched celebration
When Nuwan Kulasekara took a return catch in the first over, his eagerness to celebrate almost got the better of him. Attempting to throw the ball in the air immediately after he had caught it, Kulasekara lost his grip on the ball and sent it rolling into the infield. The batsman, Tamim Iqbal, was convinced to stay on the field by batting partner Soumya Sarkar, and the third umpire was required to give a definitive decision. Upon review, it was found that Kulasekara was sufficiently in control of the ball to complete the catch.The hoarding removal
In an age where cricket is increasingly intruded upon by ads and commerce, the game fought back a little at the SSC, forcing the removal of five advertising hoardings from just beyond the boundary. It was a batsman that asked for them to be taken down. Soumya Sarkar complained that the hoardings glinted too brightly in the afternoon sun, so umpire Ruchira Palliyaguruge nipped over to the boundary to remove the first one. As Soumya continued to find them distracting, one by one, four further boards were removed.

England bounced back from the Trent Bridge defeat with mature performances in the last two Tests and with the Ashes on the horizon, Joe Root is keen to harness that attitude consistently

George Dobell at Old Trafford08-Aug-20171:54

Root hails England options in SA series win

As the champagne flowed in Manchester, the pain of defeat at Trent Bridge might have seemed long ago and far away.But it was that pain that inspired arguably the best back-to-back performances England have put together in Test cricket since they defeated Australia in Birmingham and then Nottingham to go 3-1 up in the 2015 Ashes. It was the knowledge that England had not done themselves justice at Trent Bridge that motivated them to play some of the most consistent, tough and mature cricket they have put together since the Andrew Strauss-Andy Flower era took them to No. 1 in the world rankings in 2011.It’s worth reflecting on that Trent Bridge performance for a moment. While it was the result, in the main, of an outstanding performance from South Africa, England were also culpable for some soft, naïve cricket.And nobody was more culpable than Joe Root or Moeen Ali. Both fell to loose – even reckless – strokes in England’s first innings. And while some of their team-mates fell in more defensive fashion, they did nothing to suggest they had developed an understanding of how to pace a Test innings. With two spinners and four seamers, England looked poorly balanced and heavily over-reliant upon two or three players for the bulk of their runs.Some of those issues remain. However, in the two Tests since Trent Bridge, Ben Stokes and Root have provided the mature performances required of the senior players they have become in this side, while Alastair Cook provided key contributions at the top of the order.Not only did England play better at The Oval and Old Trafford, but they also played smarter, tougher, more mature cricket that showed they had learned the lessons from that Nottingham defeat, and that they possessed the hunger and commitment to complement their flair. We already knew Stokes and Root could play devastating, attacking innings. But, over the last couple of games, they have also shown they can play patient, calculated knocks that take into account the quality of the opposition and the demands of the surface. Stokes contributed 224 runs in the final two Tests and Root 180.That is an encouraging development. While previous England teams have reacted to defeat in a variety of ways – resignation (India), denial (Pakistan) and scape-goating (West Indies and Australia) – this unit concluded that if they wanted to avoid such sensations in the future, they had to improve. So they accepted the criticism and demanded more from themselves. There is still a lot of work to do before this team can emulate the success of the Strauss-Flower era, but such honesty and desire to improve bode well.”That’s the most impressive thing,” Root said after victory in Manchester. “The way we’ve responded to a difficult week in Nottingham has been very pleasing.”That week wasn’t much fun. It would have been very easy to sit back and sulk, but we knuckled down and worked hard and came back with a really strong response. Hopefully, that is something we can harness and learn from.”Much of England’s success this series can be attributed to the sense of responsibility exhibited by the senior players collectively•AFPRoot is the first to admit he is fortunate to inherit a team with a couple of unusually strong components. The primary constituent is that he leads a side containing two experienced and skilful seamers. The fact that James Anderson came through four Tests in succession – and finished the series with a lower bowling average, 14.10, than Moeen – is hugely encouraging for England, while Stuart Broad bowled some way better than his figures suggest. In conditions offering assistance, either off the seam or in the air, they remain highly valuable performers. “They’re fabulous,” Root said afterwards. “They’ve done it for years and hopefully they can do it for many more.”Most of all, though, he enjoys the presence of at least two outstanding allrounders in Moeen and Stokes. It is similar to two of England’s better captains of recent times – Mike Brearley and Michael Vaughan – who owe their reputations, in part, to their good fortune in having fine allrounders – Ian Botham and Andrew Flintoff respectively – in their sides. In Root’s case, when you add Chris Woakes to the mix – and England surely will within a few weeks – the captain is blessed with a team containing depth with both bat and ball.”It’s a great position to be in,” Root smiled. “We have a few wonderful allrounders in the side.”I said at the start of this series, it was a great opportunity for guys who had played 30-plus Tests to stand up and become senior players. Moeen has taken that on and put in some brilliant performances.”But holes remain. Most pertinently, Keaton Jennings has been unable to take his opportunity at the top of the order, while Dawid Malan has looked uncertain at No. 5 in his few opportunities to date. It is too early to come to any firm conclusions over Tom Westley (or Malan, really), but he has looked the most assured of the new batsmen in the side. With an Ashes series now just round the corner, England want far more certainty in such positions.Perhaps that’s the most encouraging aspect of this victory for England. They have defeated the No. 2-ranked Test side home and away within a couple of years and they have done it without establishing an opening partner for Alastair Cook or settling upon two other places in the top five. It suggests that, if they can fill those holes, there is considerably more to come from them as a side. It will not have gone unnoticed by the selectors that, around the county game on Monday, Haseeb Hameed, Alex Hales and Woakes were scoring runs.”It’s been hard work for the guys at the top of the order,” Root said. “We have batted first on wickets that have done quite a lot. Scores of 20 or 30 have been worth double that. It has been a tough school for guys at the top of the order.”We have three more Tests before we go to Australia and that will be an opportunity for whoever gets the chance to play. Whether that is Jennings or someone else, we will have to wait and see.”This is the start of something. It’s going to take time to develop if we want to be more consistent and make sure we keep challenging the best teams in the world; we are going to have to continue to look to improve individually and as a side. We have to harness that mentality that we’ve had in the back end of the series and repeat it over and over again.”We can’t just be happy with where we are.”That may turn out to be the theme of Root’s captaincy. Even in the wake of a significant success, even when others might be bathing in plaudits, Root is urging his team on to more. Relaxed yet demanding; calm yet urgent; delighted though unfulfilled: this has been an assured start to Root’s period as captain. If they can resolve those top-order batting issues, there’s no reason he should not lead them to more success in the future.

James Anderson took his first five-wicket haul in Australia after 30 innings and also became the oldest to do so in Australia since Glenn McGrath in 2006

Gaurav Sundararaman05-Dec-2017First five-wicket haul in AustraliaAfter 15 matches and 30 innings, James Anderson has finally got his first five-wicket haul in Australia. Previously he had four four-wicket hauls, with three of them coming in the victorious 2010-11 series. This was only Anderson’s fifth five-wicket haul away from home. Interestingly, he now has one such haul in South Africa, West Indies, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Australia. He has 20 five-wicket hauls in England. Among the bowlers in the 500-wicket club, Anderson has the worst average overseas and the fewest five-wicket hauls. He has, however, had a great 2017, having taken 47 wickets at 15.82 and with a strike rate of 42.0. His average is the best for any bowler this year.

Old is goldAnderson also became the oldest pace bowler to take a Test five-wicket haul in Australia since Glenn McGrath at the Gabba in 2006-07, and the oldest pace bowler from England to take a five-wicket haul anywhere since George Geary in 1929. Anderson now has three five-wicket hauls after turning 35 and joins an elite list of seven cricketers to achieve this feat. Australia’s low score and England’s tough target Australia’s third innings did not go the way they expected. They have had one lower score at home against England since 1996.
Australia’s second innings had all 11 batsmen scoring 20 or fewer, the sixth time this has happened in a Test innings at home for them. Four of the previous instances ended in defeat, while the only win came in the first ever Test.
However, England need a record fourth-innings score to win this Test. The previous highest was 332 against Australia at Melbourne in 1928. Incidentally, three out their four highest Test chases have been against Australia.

The first day of the Women’s T20 tri-series witnessed a slew of records being set.

Shiva Jayaraman20-Jun-2018New Zealand set a record, England break it in a few hoursFirst, New Zealand set a new record for the highest T20I total in women’s cricket by making 216 for 1 against South Africa, then England Women smashed that record by 34 runs, and against the same opposition. The three teams are involved in a tri-series being played in England. The previous record for the highest total in Women’s T20 internationals was held by Australia, who made 209 for 4 against England at Brabourne Stadium earlier this year. Five of the top six T20I totals in women’s international cricket have come this year. Click here for a list of the highest T20I totals. Before this manic day, Women’s T20Is had seen only two 200-plus totals in 423 games. England’s highest T20I total, across the boardThis is the highest total for England in the T20 international format (men’s or women’s). England men’s 230 for 8 against South Africa in the 2016 World T20 was the previous highest. This was the first time England Women had made 200 runs in this format. Their previous best was 199 for 3, which they made against India in Mumbai earlier this year. Click here for a list of the highest totals by England Women in T20Is. New Zealand’s 218 for 1 was also the first time their women’s team had breached the 200-run mark in T20Is. A record standIn the first match of the tri-series, the New Zealand openers added 182 runs, setting a new record for the highest partnership in T20 international matches (men’s or women’s). They broke the record set by their men’s team: Kane Williamson and Martin Guptill had put together an unbeaten stand of 171 runs against Pakistan in 2016. Click here for a list of the highest stands in men’s T20 internationals. The previous record for the highest stand in women’s T20 internationals was held by the South Africa pair of Trish Chetty and Shandre Fritz, who had added 170 runs against Netherlands back in 2010. Bates gets one record, narrowly misses anotherDuring her unbeaten 124, Bates passed England’s Charlotte Edwards as the leading run-scorer in women’s T20 internationals. Edwards had made 2605 runs in 93 T20 innings. Bates narrowly missed the highest individual score in this format though, falling short of Meg Lanning’s 126 by just two runs. Click here for the highest scores in Women’s T20 internationals. Incidentally, Bates’ 124 is also the highest individual score by a New Zealand batsman (men or women) in this format. Brendon McCullum’s 123 against Bangladesh in 2012 World T20 was the previous highest.Beaumont hits 22 boundaries, and the second-fastest hundredTammy Beaumont, the other centurion of the day, got her name in the record books too by biffing 22 boundaries in her 52-ball 116. These are the joint-most boundaries hit by a batsman in a women’s T20I. Australia’s Lanning too had hit 22 boundaries on her way to the highest T20I score in women’s cricket, against Ireland in the 2014 World T20. Beaumont reached her century in 47 balls, making it the second-fastest of the nine centuries scored in Women’s T20 internationals. Deandra Dottin’s 38-ball hundred against South Africa in the 2010 World T20 is the fastest.

England record the biggest winEngland restricted South Africa to 129 for 6 in reply to their mammoth total of 250 for 3, making their win the biggest in Women’s T20 internationals. Incidentally, the previous record for this was held by South Africa themselves: they had beaten Netherlands in 2010 by 115 runs. Click here for a list of the biggest margins of victory in Women’s T20Is. And the record that stood for the shortest period was …
If you thought New Zealand’s record for the highest total being broken in a matter of hours was the briefest a record stood on this day, then you are in for a surprise. South Africa’s Stacy Lackay bowled the 18th over of the innings and finished up with figures of 2 for 59 – the most expensive figures for any bowler in Women’s T20 internationals. This dubious record was promptly exceeded by Masabata Klaas by the end of the very next over, when she finished with equally expensive figures, but claimed the bottom spot due to her lack of wickets. The pair’s economy-rates of 14.75 are also the worst for any bowlers to have bowled three or more overs in a Women’s T20 international.

Given a fair contest between bat and ball, and the oxygen of publicity, Test cricket can hold its own with Love Island, the Kardashians, or any entertainment in the modern world

George Dobell at Edgbaston03-Aug-20181:51

We’ll go to bed and dream of getting Kohli out – Anderson

In the fury of the moment – with the advantage shifting by the over and every act appearing to have far-reaching ramifications – it can seem that the result of games like this is everything.And it is true, the 90 minutes or so of cricket we are likely to see from Edgbaston on Saturday will have consequences for many of those involved. Lose this Test, in these conditions, and the pressure on England – not just their underperforming batsmen and fielders, but their coaches and administrators – increases markedly.If India lose, meanwhile, Virat Kohli’s valiant attempts to paper over the cracks in his side’s batting line-up will be thwarted. Reputations, egos, careers, perhaps even lives could be altered by the events of Saturday morning. At such moments, it can feel as if defeat is unbearable.But it’s not so. Not for those of us who are spectators, anyway.In the grand scheme of things, it matters most that it matters at all. It matters most that, here we are, 1,000 Tests deep, and this grand old game remains as beguiling, as entertaining, as magnificent as ever.Of course Test cricket has its problems. The ticket sales for this series – for almost every series – tell us that loud and clear. We’re fools if we don’t heed those warnings.But this game has provided a reminder that the Test game – the product, if you like – can still thrive in the modern world. Given decent weather, a decent pitch and two decent sides, Test cricket can remain as compelling as it ever has been. It can hold its own in the age of T20, Love Island and the Kardashians. England could play another 1,000 Tests, given half a chance.Edgbaston has a reputation as something of a party ground. Fancy dress, stag nights, beer snakes and congas: all are regular sights here. And there’s nothing wrong with any of that: it reflects our changing society and the way cricket has had to market itself not just as an entertainment product, but as a backdrop to a different form of entertainment.Over the last few days, though, we’ve seen little of that sort of thing. Instead, we’ve heard that lovely hush that settles over a ground when the action is so riveting that nobody needs a distraction. When James Anderson was running in to Kohli, for example. Or throughout India’s second innings. When every ball seemed to threaten a wicket and every run erode that modest target.Sam Curran steps out during his counter-attacking half-century•Getty ImagesSo you could hear the batsmen tapping their bats on the pitch or the bowlers thumping their front feet down. And, when ball beat bat, you could hear the intake of breath from everyone in the stadium. Even the man in the Kim Jong-Un mask – at one stage he exchanged inflatable missiles with the man in the Donald Trump mask – even the nuns, the Tarzans, the Elvises (what IS the collective for lots of Elvises? A jailhouse? A Tender? A heartbreak hotel?) sat in rapt attention. The cricket demanded it. Nobody needed gimmicks.There are lessons to learn here. Among them is this: the game – at least the first-class game – remains more entertaining when the ball slightly dominates the bat. We don’t want circumstances where batting is a lottery – irregular bounce, in particular, is best avoided – but there is little that’s more damaging to the game than dull surfaces (and dull balls) where teams can amass vast scores and bowlers are reduced to patience and attrition. Even if those games eventually produce a winner, it does not justify it. A rock fall might be dramatic, but the thousand years of attrition that led to it would not make compelling television.Nothing – not match-fixing, not drugs cheats, not ball tampering and certainly not broadcast piracy – threaten the future of the game more than dull pitches. The Ashes Test in Melbourne, for example, or the Trent Bridge Test between these sides in 2014, were far more damaging to the long-term health of the game than players mimicking mic-drops. The ICC really need to focus on the things that matter.Nor is this match the aberration some would have you believe. While there have been relatively few tight Tests involving England over the last few years, there have been compelling series against Pakistan and South Africa, a stirring victory from West Indies in Leeds and a breathless finish in Chittagong.In a different age, several members of this England side might be household names. Joe Root, for example, is surely a better batsman than Mike Gatting or Allan Lamb: but who is better known? Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes, too, probably offer as much excitement as any players England have ever had. Not so long ago, a generation of kids would be in the park tomorrow ‘being’ Sam Curran.

Had this Test been available free-to-air, there is no reason millions would not have immersed themselves. Heck, it’s not so long ago the nation was glued to a few days of curling or a TV show about baking.

But there’s the rub. Not enough people are seeing our great game. And while we continue to hide it behind paywalls, while we continue to meddle with the start times (the third day here should have been a Saturday, allowing more people to follow the action), we risk reducing its relevance and diminishing its audience.It doesn’t need new competitions and another thousand sets of plastic bats and stumps to thrive. It doesn’t need five-ball overs, 12 players a side or any other gimmick.It needs the oxygen of publicity. It needs that more than anything.Cricket remains, whether played over 50 overs, 20 overs or five days, a wonderful sport. If we could just get a few more people to see it, there is no reason each format should not thrive. And had this Test been available free-to-air, there is no reason millions would not have immersed themselves in every twist and drop and edge in the same way millions immersed themselves in every kick of England’s World Cup campaign. Heck, it’s not so long ago the nation was glued to a few days of curling or a TV show about baking.The ECB’s new broadcast deal may be lucrative, but they must reflect that not every cost can be measured in pounds. And if all the money they make from the new broadcast deal has to be reinvested in finding a new audience, isn’t that money just fool’s gold? Even billionaires suffocate without oxygen, after all.Edgbaston reminded us we’ve something special here. It needs nurturing and protecting but it can still thrive.

While the 21-year-old showed his class during his 78-ball 106 in the first ODI, a little more tempering will not hurt

Varun Shetty in Guwahati22-Oct-20181:39

You never know what the par score is against a team like India – Holder

This reaction from ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball commentator during the second innings of the Rajkot Test both put a finger on the pulse and unwittingly turned into a premonition. Coach Stuart Law was visibly displeased by Shimron Hetmyer swinging across the line against Kuldeep Yadav, and he would be again in the second innings in Hyderabad where Hetmyer got out the same way, against the same bowler – this time when West Indies were looking at setting India a challenging target.Every time Hetmyer was dismissed during the Test series, he looked out of sync. It began with a mix-up that culminated in that Ravindra Jadeja bait-and-troll run-out in Rajkot, and in the middle of his two injudicious slogs, he was lbw shouldering arms to a Kuldeep googly.It could just have been one of those situations where a bowler has you for the entirety of the series, because the moment Kuldeep was left out of the team for the first ODI, Hetmyer produced the kind of devastating innings that has already become a trademark in a very young career. In 13 ODI innings, Hetmyer has now made three centuries and each of them has been scored with a strike rate hovering around 135.”It was good to see him get back to form,” captain Jason Holder said after the match. “He had a lean patch in the Test series and pretty innocuous dismissals as well, so it’s good to see him get a score on the board. He has been doing pretty well in the limited-overs format for us, so it’s good to see him put up his hand and score a hundred today. A bit unfortunate, the stage he got out, I thought he could have gone a bit deeper, probably take us a little further into the innings. But credit to the young player coming and scoring his third ODI century.”The Guyana batsman was identified as one of the most talented young players in the Caribbean in 2013-14 when he played in his first Under-19 World Cup. In 2014, he was named their Junior Cricketer of the Year before captaining West Indies to the Under-19 World Cup title in 2016. And there was enough in Sunday’s innings to understand why he was rated like that.Shimron Hetmyer celebrates his hundred•Associated PressOn a bouncy pitch, where even the settled Kieran Powell before him was struck in the body many times while trying to play with a horizontal bat, Hetmyer brought out a ruthless collection of pull shots against India’s fast bowlers. There was a noticeable plan to bowl short to him from the quicks who, until then, had preferred to hit a length and get the ball to rise at the batsmen. Having settled in after their initial examinations, Hetmyer capitalised. And while the lack of balls turning away from him contributed greatly to his 65 runs on the leg side, his two best moments came against the fast bowlers.The first one was a six against Khaleel Ahmed’s rising offcutter in the 28th over. The variation was meant to follow him into the leg side and Hetmyer could have been entangled if it weren’t for his fast hands. What ended up happening was that the ball was slapped over wide long-on with a horizontal bat.The next one was his most picturesque six of the afternoon, and this was the one that took him past a hundred – a front-foot drive extended to lift the ball over extra cover against Mohammed Shami. It was a majestic hit and fully deserved the standing ovation that followed.But even on a day of such magnificence, the end of Hetmyer’s innings had elements of inexperience to it. Once again, he was out top-edging a spinner with just over 11 overs and only four wickets in hand. So while the 21-year-old might be a completely different player in ODIs, at least from the small sample we’ve seen, some more tempering is needed anyway.”Hetty was quite aggressive,” Holder said. “Fortunately for us, it worked out and it was really good to see him get as deep as he could. But against a team like India, you’re never quite sure what the par score is.”In hindsight, 320 was probably par score and we needed to kick on a little bit further. Having said that, I was pleased to get at least 300 and bat out all the overs. Inexperience did show when we batted as well as when we bowled. So probably just a matter for us to learn quickly and hopefully correct one or two mistakes that we made today.”

They were outplayed by India and then crushed an injury-hit Sri Lanka who couldn’t compete. What does it mean for Australia’s Test side?

Andrew McGlashan06-Feb-20194:39

Cricket Tragics’ Review: How do you judge Australia’s thrashing of Sri Lanka?

Heading the right awayTravis Head filled his boots in Canberra, reward for the hard yards he had put in when faced more demanding conditions throughout the season. He had started well against India on two tricky pitches in Adelaide and Perth before throwing his wicket away in the latter part of the series. Against Sri Lanka he helped ensure a big lead in Brisbane then twice scored runs when the first three wickets had fallen cheaply at Manuka Oval. For now, he is on the outer of the ODI team so he may be able to focus on his red-ball game ahead of the Ashes, where he appears locked in for the middle order.Greatness in CumminsWe already knew Pat Cummins was a terrific cricketer, but for large parts of this season he has carried the Australian team. As with Head, the somewhat easier successes against Sri Lanka were payback for the grind of bowling to Cheteshwar Pujara. The other notable aspect for Cummins is that he has now stayed fit throughout two full home summers – there were times earlier in his career when it was possible to wonder if that would ever happen. One of the challenges for the management in the months ahead is how to ensure he is ready for the matches that really matter. At the end of the Sri Lanka series, former England captain Michael Vaughan tweeted that one day Cummins would win an Ashes on his own: a potentially career-defining year lies ahead.ESPNcricinfoBeyond the big threeIf Josh Hazlewood hadn’t suffered a back injury it’s likely that Australia’s pace attack wouldn’t have changed all season. But Jhye Richardson earned his chance against Sri Lanka and, though the opposition was weak, he looked at home. He is a different type of bowler – shorter, skiddier – than the main three and it has prompted a debate about whether he has the skills to be an Ashes starter. Even if he doesn’t make the XI at Edgbaston there has been the chance to have a look at a bowler outside the big three which both reinforces the pace-bowling depth and ensures the incumbents are kept on notice. The other thing to note about Richardson was that he appeared to find a hint of reverse swing in Canberra, something the Australia quicks struggled to obtain this season.Flexible thinkingIt took five Tests and a long-winded route to get there, but by the end of the season Australia’s Test side was close to having the best available batsmen in the XI. Joe Burns (a specialist opener opening the innings) and Kurtis Patterson may not have made a difference against India, but they are batsmen who have performed consistently in the Sheffield Shield and were worthy of selection. The fact the selectors made the last-minute decision to call-up Patterson both highlighted their uncertainty but on the other hand should be acknowledged as sensible, pragmatic thinking.ESPNcricinfo LtdWarner and who?But the belated batting successes does not mean all the questions have been answered. The entire season has been played with the backdrop of the suspended duo of David Warner and Steven Smith. They are both certain, fitness-permitting, to return for the Ashes. The two Tests against Sri Lanka have created some doubt as to who will open with Warner. Marcus Harris impressed against a world-class India attack but couldn’t take his chance against Sri Lanka while Burns flayed 180. There could yet be space for just one of Harris or Burns in the Ashes squad. If so, it’s a tough call.The comebacksAnd talking of the banned pair, that represents a challenge of its own. While there’s no doubt they will return – Tim Paine said he saw them playing a key role in the Ashes – there are still some unanswered questions about how the process will be managed. Is there any lingering resentment that needs to be sorted out? Is Warner, especially, willing to adopt a new way of playing? The early weeks in England – beginning with the World Cup build-up – are likely to be a bit of circus, although Smith may not be there. Then there’s the question of getting back up to speed for international cricket. Regardless of the world-class ability Warner and Smith possess it’s not a given that they can stroll back into the international game.Winning when it’s swingingYes, England’s batting is struggling badly at the moment, but while Australia ended their century drought with four hundreds in Canberra there was also a reminder of an old problem they will need to counter in the Ashes. In the two innings they were 3 for 28 and 3 for 37 as the Sri Lanka seamers, with just five caps between them, managed to cause problems in the short period where the Kookaburra ball swung. There was some hard-handed driving that will be a risky approach in England against the Duke ball which continues to move for much longer. It remains to be seen what sort of pitches are produced for the Ashes but there needs to be some tightening up in the top order.

Under Eoin Morgan, the two spinners have thrived: Rashid as the lead and Moeen as his foil

Alan Gardner28-May-2019There have been many unlikely aspects to England’s reinvention as a one-day powerhouse – the unfettered batting, the sense of enjoyment, the surprising lack of selection bloopers – but among them must rank the team’s reliance on a pair of spinners, Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid. Both have thrived under the captaincy of Eoin Morgan, giving England options and balance as their quest for that elusive first World Cup reaches its defining moment.”Mo’n’Rash”. That’s how they are known in the dressing room, a portmanteau that confirms their status as a twosome by default. A couple of British Asians completely at home in England colours, they are quiet, humble men by nature, and central to the team’s fortunes – to the extent that debate about who should be the squad’s back-up spinner (Liam Dawson edged out Joe Denly) occupied the selectors almost as much as the Jofra Archer question.The feats of England’s batsmen tend to dominate discussions about their charge to the No. 1 ODI ranking, but while the bowling has proved more erratic, there is no doubting the effectiveness of Rashid in particular. First capped as a diffident 21-year-old, he made his comeback after five and a half years out of the ODI team in Dublin (technically under the captaincy of James Taylor) following the 2015 World Cup; last summer, as Morgan’s England set about dismantling reigning world champions Australia 5-0, Rashid moved past Graeme Swann to become his country’s most prolific spinner in the format.