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Xavier Marshall, Vatsal Vaghela and Jessy Singh have been left out, while Rusty Theron and Cameron Stevenson make their comebacks

Peter Della Penna15-May-2022Legspin-bowling allrounder Yasir Mohammad, who impressed for USA on his T20I debut in a famous victory over Ireland in December, has parlayed that success into a call-up in USA’s 14-man ODI squad for the back-to-back home ODI tri-series as part of Cricket World Cup League Two starting on May 28 in Texas.Yasir, 19, was not initially part of the USA squad that was named for the two T20Is and three ODIs against Ireland, but was rushed into the T20I squad after a Covid-19 outbreak in the camp on the eve of the series. He made the most of his opportunity by bowling a nerveless, albeit wicketless, spell at the death to clinch a 26-run win for USA. Yasir, the New Jersey teenager, came back a day later to take 2 for 32 in a nine-run loss, and then impressed at an exhibition quadrangular series in April between a USA XI and a trio of Major League Cricket invitational squads at Prairie View, Texas.

USA 14-man ODI squad

Monank Patel (capt, wk), Rahul Jariwala (wk), Aaron Jones, Nosthush Kenjige, Ali Khan, Jaskaran Malhotra, Sushant Modani, Yasir Mohammad, Saurabh Netravalkar, Nisarg Patel, Gajanand Singh, Cameron Stevenson, Steven Taylor, Rusty Theron

Yasir is one of several changes to USA’s squad that was picked for the three-match ODI series against Ireland, which was eventually cancelled before the first match could take place because of logistical issues arising out of the Covid-19 outbreak. California left-arm spinner Vatsal Vaghela, who made his T20I debut in the second T20I against Ireland and was in line for an ODI debut a few days later, has been left out to make room for the wristspin offered by Yasir, with two other left-arm spinners – Nisarg Patel and Nosthush Kenjige – being the incumbents.Right-arm medium pacer Jessy Singh has also been left out along with opening batter Xavier Marshall to make room for the return of the pace duo of Rusty Theron and Cameron Stevenson. The two have not played ODIs for USA since the winless tour of Nepal in February 2020, though Theron has remained a part of USA’s T20I squad through their recent undefeated run at the ICC Americas T20 World Cup Qualifier, played in Antigua in November. Stevenson, a dual citizen based in his native Victoria, made himself unavailable for USA because of work and personal commitments in Australia during the pandemic, but has been lured to Texas for this tour after being offered a short-term central contract, according to multiple sources.USA will host Scotland and the UAE in the first of the consecutive tri-series in Texas before welcoming Nepal and Oman for the latter half of fixtures, which run through to June 15. They will be held in the south Houston suburb of Pearland at Moosa Stadium, which will become the second ODI-accredited facility in America after Broward County Stadium in Lauderhill, Florida.

The senior batsman has been given a detailed training programme for his 14 days of quarantine in Sydney

Varun Shetty12-Dec-2020Rohit Sharma has been declared “clinically fit” by the medical team at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru after his three-week rehabilitation stint for a hamstring injury.On Saturday, the BCCI issued a statement clarifying that Sharma had been assessed for his batting, fielding, and running between the wickets, and that the NCA medical staff had found his physical fitness “satisfactory”.As reported by ESPNcricinfo on Friday, Sharma has cleared the NCA’s assessment and is expected to fly to Sydney from Mumbai via Dubai on Sunday to begin a 14-day hard quarantine outside of India’s current bio-secure bubble. The statement also said that Sharma would have to, nonetheless, continue to work on his endurance during his hard quarantine in Sydney – his participation in the final two Tests will depend on the assessment of his “fitness status” by the Indian team’s medical staff.Related

• Virat Kohli on Rohit Sharma's injury: 'Lot of uncertainty and lack of clarity'

• Rohit Sharma clears assessment, to fly to Australia on December 13

Sharma has also been given a detailed training programme for the period of quarantine.If all goes well, Sharma will be available for India’s last two Tests – of the four-match series – in Australia in January.While there is the question on whether Sharma will come out match ready after the 14-day quarantine, the eight-day gap between the second and third Tests – which begins on January 7 – is understood to have encouraged the management to have the senior batsman in the mix.This official communication from the BCCI potentially ends a weeks-long saga about Sharma’s fitness and availability for the Australia tour, a subject that had left even India captain Virat Kohli confused last month.Sharma had initially been left out of the tour because of the hamstring injury he picked up during the IPL, with the BCCI saying he would be “monitored”. Sharma sat out four matches for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL at the time, but returned – after being left out of the squads for the Australia tour – to lead his team to the title. At the time, on November 9, the BCCI had sad that the selectors had decided to “rest” Sharma from the white-ball leg in Australia in order for him to get more focused rehabilitation at the NCA and be in contention for the Tests. He was subsequently named in the squad for the last two Tests, subject to how his rehabilitation went.Sharma was the incumbent opener before missing India’s last Test series, in New Zealand earlier this year, also because of injury. India currently have a number of opening options with the squad as they prepare for the start of the Tests, but Sharma is expected to bolster the line-up, particularly after Kohli goes on paternity leave after the first Test in Adelaide.

Late collapse, allied to Somerset win, puts pressure on Essex in context where victory is inconceivable

Jon Culley at Edgbaston12-Sep-2019
Consistent, accurate bowling and diligent, resilient batting have been the feature of this match, but on a durable and somewhat slow pitch those worthy qualities looked unlikely to lead to a positive result in favour of either side until a wobbly final 45 minutes put Essex in unexpected trouble.Warwickshire supporters will not complain. Another defeat for Nottinghamshire, their opponents at Trent Bridge next week, means that, provided they do not somehow contrive to lose this match, which seems almost impossible, they can look forward to another season of Division One cricket in 2020.For Essex, on the other hand, the interruption to their run of six straight wins could not come at a less opportune moment, title rivals Somerset having stolen a march on them with their victory over Yorkshire with only two rounds of fixtures left. They must still face each other at Taunton the week after next, but Somerset may be in the position of needing only a draw to claim their maiden Championship crown.Tom Westley compiled his first hundred of the season and Nick Browne a half-century, but Essex’s hand of batting bonus points is not as handsome as they had hoped for, as a result of which, again assuming a draw, Somerset will probably take a lead of seven points into the final two weeks.Essex resumed on 31 for one after losing Alastair Cook late on the second evening, but night-watchman Sam Cook was gone in the sixth over of the morning, well taken at second slip off Oliver Hannon-Dalby, who was getting enough movement to beat the bat with encouraging frequency for the home side.However, Browne and Westley had clearly learned from the disciplined approach that had favoured Matt Lamb in particular during Warwickshire’s marathon first innings. The seamers were equally consistent in keeping to a tempting length but the third-wicket pair were able to negotiate a path to lunch.Their biggest test was always likely to be posed by Jeetan Patel, who was unlucky not to dismiss Westley on 43 when Sam Hain put down a sharp chance at short leg. An hour into the afternoon session, Patel did get his reward, a flighted delivery finding a way inside Browne’s defensive push.Next man Tom Lawrence was never able to find any real fluency and probably should have gone on 16 when Michael Burgess, keeping wicket in place of the injured Tim Ambrose, missed a stumping opportunity.Westley completed his hundred around half an hour into the final session, steering a ball from Hannon-Dalby square on the offside for his 13th boundary, having batted with exemplary concentration save for that one aberration for four hours and 21 minutes.By then, however, Lawrence had gone, caught at point off George Garrett, a young bowler who is among several whose progress has been accelerated by Warwickshire’s seemingly endless injury crisis. His departure for 28 sparked a nervy end to the day.Ravi Bopara was bowled playing back to Patel and Ryan ten Doeschate went without scoring, leg before without scoring to a ball from Henry Brookes that struck him on the back pad as he tried to bring the bat down. When fading light forced a slightly premature close, Essex were suddenly in a spot of bother that they will need to ensure does not become worse on the final morning, still 90 runs short of avoiding the follow-on.Nottinghamshire have been so woeful that the possibility that Warwickshire would occupy this season’s one relegation place instead has looked remote for some weeks, if not months. Nonetheless, it has been a challenging season for on-field and off-field teams at Edgbaston, not least those in the physiotherapy room.The raft of injuries that has kept them busy has forced Warwickshire to use 24 players in the Championship, the most of any of the top division teams. Every match seems to introduce a new name on the scorecard, in this instance Ethan Brookes, the younger brother of Henry.This was always likely to be a season of consolidation and, in that respect, it appears the objective has been achieved.

Australian legspinner Adam Zampa did not disguise the fact that Essex’s Twenty20 season needs to improve – and fast- after a home defeat against Glamorgan

ECB Reporters Network13-Jul-2018
ScorecardChris Cooke carried Glamorgan to a two-wicket victory off the last ball of a dramatic final over as Essex’s third defeat in four games left them desperately needing to shore up a faltering season.The South African wicketkeeper-batsman hit a four from Neil Wagner’s final delivery to give Glamorgan their second Vitality Blast win of the season.Cooke’s masterly display of hitting brought him 60 from 29 balls, including four sixes and three fours, in a turnaround which included a stand of 61 for the ninth wicket with Timm van der Gugten from just 28 balls.Adam Zampa had done his best to rein in Glamorgan and give Essex a second win with three for 17 from his four overs. The Australian leg-spinner had been the only Eagles bowler to come out with any credit from the heavy defeat by Surrey at the Oval the night before when he took two for 20.Essex had been undone after being asked to bat when they suffered another spectacular collapses, losing their last eight wickets for 50 runs in just 40 deliveries, falling from 117 for two to 167 all out.

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And that after an opening stand of 48 from 32 balls between Adam Wheater and Varun Chopra, and another between Tom Westley and Ryan ten Doeschate of 62 from 27 balls for the fourth wicket. The loss of Ravi Bopara to a suicidal run-out and ten Doeschate next ball for a 28-ball 43 that included three sixes, prefaced the rapid decline.Zampa did not attempt to gloss over Essex’s shortcomings He said of the third defeat in four games: “It’s hard to put into words how disappointing that was. Two defeats in two days isn’t great for momentum.”It was a bit of everything. The batting, we lost wickets in clumps at crucial times. 170 here isn’t enough. Then with the ball we’d done well taking wickets, but we were just losing the crucial moments, just some decision-making. There are things we need to get right very quickly otherwise the tournament is going to crawl away from us very quickly.”Zampa was not sure if Essex are a team short on confidence at the moment. He said: “I’ve only been here a short while so I don’t know what the guys’ characters are like. It’s one of those things, it can turn around pretty quickly as well. If we can get the little things right, it’s T20 cricket and you can get a bit of a roll on. But we’re going to have to sort it out pretty quickly.”We’ve got the skills, everyone playing at this level has got the skills, it’s decision-making and the mental side of things.Michael Hogan bowled four miserly overs for 22 runs and two wickets, and was backed by Graham Wagg’s two for 30 at the height of Essex’s misfortunes.Glamorgan had made steady progress in their reply until Wagner was introduced for his Essex Blast bowling debut. With his fourth ball he had Usman Khawaja swishing at one down leg-side to be caught behind.Colin Ingram, who habitually flays Essex with centuries, found himself tied up in knots by Zampa, and in frustration swept the Australian leg-spinner straight into Chopra’s hands at backward square leg for just two. Zampa then did for David Lloyd, who played all around one and was bowled, He might have had a third but Chopra dropped a simple chance at deep square leg when Donald was 27.When Bopara had Graham Wagg and Andrew Salter bowled in successive deliveries in an over that went for just two runs, Glamorgan were on the verge of suffering a collapse of their own. They were 107 for seven, still 61 runs from their target with 34 balls left. But then the fireworks began.Craig Meschede gave himself room and was bowled to give Zampa his third wicket, his final over conceding just three runs. Cooke then took over. Suddenly 11 were needed off the last over. Cooke took a single off the first ball from Wagner, and Timm van Gugten a single off a wide from the second. Two more for Cooke reduced the target to six from four balls, then five from three, four from two and two from the last ball. A wide from the sixth ball tied the scores before Cooke hit the winning boundary to cow corner.

The ECB have appointed John Neal as Head of Coach Development – a new role encompassing coaching strategies from grassroots cricket to the senior England teams

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Apr-2017The ECB have appointed John Neal as Head of Coach Development – a new role encompassing coaching strategies from grassroots cricket to the senior England teams.Neal has extensive experience both inside and outside sport as a performance psychologist, and faculty member at Ashridge Executive Education, in a range of roles in cricket, with the Rugby Football Union, and the Premier League.”We see this as a very significant and exciting appointment,” said Andrew Strauss, the ECB’s director, England cricket.”As our Head of Coach Development, John will have the opportunity to create a game-wide strategy to ensure that coaches have impact from the moment someone picks up a bat for the first time right up to the pinnacle in our England teams.”He is a well-known and respected figure in cricket, having worked previously with Middlesex, Somerset, Gloucestershire and as an advisor to the ECB, including in the assessment of our coach development programmes.”But coaching is about people development as much as technical intricacies, and it was John’s breadth of experience in sport and beyond that made him an outstanding candidate for this role.”Neal has been a director of the Sports Business Programme at Ashridge since 2001, and in that role he was director of the RFU’s World Class Coaching Programme from 2002-7, before joining the Welsh Rugby Union as National Performance Coach from 2006-08.He has been director of Sport Northern Ireland’s Elite Coach Programme since 2011, and academic co-director of the Premier League’s Elite Coach Apprentice Scheme since 2015.He has worked with teams at three World Cups across two sports and both genders with West Indies Cricket, England Women’s Rugby, and the WRU.”I’m delighted and very proud to have been appointed into a role where I believe I can make a real difference within a sport which is very close to my heart,” said Neal.”Coaches play a crucial role in the sport and especially ensuring young people love playing cricket and then follow their passion for a lifetime at their local club or through to international level. I am excited to have been given the opportunity to develop our coaches and make an impact on the future of English cricket and its cricketers.”

Delhi Daredevils made five of the top 13 buys of the IPL auction, and three of them were uncapped players. But the franchise defended their strategy by saying that youngsters were more hungry for success

Arun Venugopal06-Feb-20162:39

‘We have had 95% success rate in this auction’ – Daredevils mentor TA Sekhar

One of the biggest talking points of the IPL auction was how Delhi Daredevils spent their money and who they spent it on. They acquired the as yet uncapped Pawan Negi for INR 8.5 crore, the highest billing for an Indian player this year. They paid 40 times Karun Nair’s base price of INR 10 lakh; he too is yet to play international cricket but will earn more than Kevin Pietersen’s INR 3.5 crore this IPL season.Then they went after Carlos Brathwaite, who has played only 2 T20Is for West Indies and 37 T20s overall, to the tune of INR 4.2 crores, and picked up Sanju Samson for the same amount to eventually end up with as many as four wicketkeepers.Overall, Daredevils were responsible for five of the top 13 buys in the auction and are the only team to reach the maximum stipulated squad strength of 27. It could be that a number of these players may not even get a game. But Hemant Dua, the Daredevils CEO, mounted a sturdy defence of what he called a “strategic shift.””We have invested definitely in younger talent. We have bought the bigger names in the past and you know what has happened,” he told ESPNcricinfo.After much deliberation over the last year, Dua said the Daredevils franchise, which has never won the IPL, decided to do away with the star system and put youth first. This shift in thinking has had a lot to do with the success they had with Shreyas Iyer last year.”We have banked on stars in the past and it has not paid off. We banked on a guy like Shreyas Iyer, and he was proving us right by being the emerging player [of the tournament]. Gave us a lot of confidence.”We spent a lot of time analysing various players and scouting. In the past we have done everything and we haven’t gone where we should have.”Dua also said Daredevils weren’t entirely devoid of a core of senior players. “You look at seniors in a different way. We look at them differently,” he said. “I think Quinton de Kock is a senior player. He has done well for South Africa, especially in Indian conditions. JP Duminy, Zaheer Khan and Mohammed Shami are very senior players. What we have done is we now have performers.”He also justified the price paid for Negi and the other young players as decisions based on their knowledge of local conditions, and also as an investment for the future. “Even the Indian selectors have seen something in Pawan Negi to pick him in the World T20 squad. We were not the only team bidding for him. Obviously we spent what we did also because the other team had bid for him up to a point.”The youngsters we have taken, a lot of them are youngsters with IPL experience like a Samson or a Karun Nair. They know what they have to do. Like a Negi or a Rishabh Pant, they are Delhi boys. [Pawan] Suyal again is a Delhi boy. It gives us a Delhi story. They know and understand the field they play on.”Dua was unconcerned about the possibility that most of these players may be stuck warming the bench, and that with the big auction in 2018 only a handful of them would be retained. “A couple of years is far away. I don’t know what the rules will be. We don’t know what is going to happen,” he said. “I need to perform in the next few years. You think why I have picked a [Mahipal] Lomror or a Khaleel [Ahmed]? The reason is very simple: they will learn from masters like Zaheer Khan.”We might end up retaining guys like them. A Mahipal Lomror knows he will never get to play. They don’t get frustrated at 16 years. People who get frustrated are the 30-40 year olds.”There is a strong imprint of Rajasthan Royals in Daredevils’ choice of players – Samson, Nair and Chris Morris have, in fact, played for Royals in the past. Added to that were rumours of Rahul Dravid being roped in as the team’s mentor, but Dua categorically denied Dravid’s hand in their auction strategy.”If you think there is an RR influence, yes we had hired Zubin Bharucha, who has worked with the Royals in the past,” he said. “So he has brought this influence. But this is a collective influence. There was Sunil Valson, Zubin, [Sridharan] Sriram, [TA] Sekhar and [Pravin] Amre who scouted extensively for talent.”All sorts of speculation has been going on [about the appointment of Dravid as mentor]. But I can tell you that there are three or four coaches we are evaluating and they are all in the mix. We will make a decision by the end of the month.”Dua said he was satisfied with the way the auction had panned out, and was confident that the results would justify their approach. “Simple catch: youngsters are more hungry than older players. In the past, Moneyball has worked for a lot of teams. I am confident it will work for us. Not a single boy we didn’t get except Nathu Singh, for whom we went up to Rs 2 crore.”When we spent Rs 16 crore [on Yuvraj Singh] were we asked why we did it? Now, when I spend Rs 8.5 crore on Negi, again there is the same question. In the past, our thought process has been different. At the end of the day, when the boys do well on the field, people will understand [our decisions]. Everything will fall in place.”

Umar Akmal’s 46 off 36 gave Pakistan the final surge to take them to 135, which their bowlers made look like 185 on a slow, dry and used pitch to give them the Twenty20 series to go with the ODI spoils

The Report by Sidharth Monga28-Jul-2013Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsUmar Akmal’s late burst gave Pakistan enough to defend•WICB Media

Umar Akmal’s 46 off 36 gave Pakistan the final surge to take them to 135, which their bowlers made look like 185 on a slow, dry and used pitch to give them the Twenty20 series to go with the ODI spoils. Pakistan threatened to leave Ahmed Shehzad’s platform of 44 off 46 to waste, but Akmal did just enough – with 38 in the last four overs – for the bowlers, who were soon all over the West Indies batting.Sohail Tanvir’s extra bounce accounted for Johnson Charles and Marlon Samuels, Mohammad Hafeez got Chris Gayle for the second time in two afternoons, and before you knew West Indies were 17 for 4. A strategic promotion for Sunil Narine injected some life into the chase as he scored 28 off 16, Kieron Pollard gave them late hope with 23 off 10, but they were fighting too much quality.After Charles edged Tanvir to Akmal, Gayle’s horror home season continued as he fell to a leading edge; since his century in the first ODI of the tri-series earlier in the season, Gayle has not crossed 30 in 10 international innings, and has averaged 10.2. Samuels got a bit of a brute that kicked at him just outside off, and took the gove. Lendl Simmons soon played for a Shahid Afridi legbreak, but it didn’t turn and took the middle stumps.As Dwayne Bravo fought hard, Narine swung merrily, and enjoyed some good timing and some good luck. The two added 47 in 5.3 overs, and brought the target down 72 off 39. Pollard took time to get going, and by the time he decided everything needed to go as West Indies needed 62 in four overs. Over the next four balls, he brought out some savage hits against the 34-year-old rookie Zulfiqar Babar, losing two balls and scoring 20 runs. Babar, though, went over the wicket, and managed to get the outer edge, which still carried to deep cover. Immediately, he got rid of Bravo, who also wanted to go over the off side but found long-off.In those two balls, the brief life in the chase had frizzled out. Not even a shambolic no-ball call – for the cutting the side crease – could make any difference. In contrast, Pakistan might not have had any such spells of brilliant hitting, but they stayed around the six-an-over mark before going for the big runs in the end.West Indies seemed to have learned their lesson from having failed to defend 152 in the first game. They didn’t give Pakistan any pace to hit. When the visitors ended the Powerplay at 39 for 1, it was the last time their run rate would reach 6.5 before Akmal’s hitting in the 19th over. They had to fight a controlled West Indies effort throughout.Shehzad, who scored 44 off 46, found little support from the other end. Hafeez, opening in the absence of the dropped Nasir Jamshed, was caught on the late cut again. Umar Amin was done in trying to drive on the up. Haris Sohail swung before he got used to the pace of the pitch. Shahid Afridi hit Narine into the strong wind and in the air. Shehzad perished trying to pull Pollard, who had dug the ball in and provided no pace to go with.At 96 for 5 in the 16th over, it seemed Pakistan would struggle to get to a defendable total, but Akmal kept them in the game. Most of his good work came in the 19th over when Bravo went round the stumps and angled the ball across Akmal with little cover on the cover boundary. He was taken for a four and a six in the 16-run over, but Narine ended his good spell with just six runs in the 20th. As it turned out, Akmal had done enough damage by then.

Andrew Strauss was splendidly to the fore while making an unbeaten 127 for Middlesex at Uxbridge in his last innings before the first Test against South Africa next week.

David Lloyd at Uxbridge13-Jul-2012
ScorecardAndrew Strauss is back in the groove after a month off that included this visit to the tennis at Wimbledon•Getty Images

Andrew Strauss was splendidly to the fore while making an unbeaten 127 for Middlesex at Uxbridge in his last innings before the first Test against South Africa next week.Strauss had scored more than half Middlesex’s runs in their paltry first innings total of 98 before being dismissed by a virtually unplayable delivery from Andre Adams.He was then blameless as Nottinghamshire established what appeared to be a vice-like grip, not responsible for any of the five Middlesex catches that went to ground as they conceded a first-innings lead of 231.But far from deciding he had done enough before leading England in the summer’s showpiece series, Strauss tuned up his game further, batting with great certainty and fluency on a pitch that still had a trick or two in it despite having flattened out considerably compared to the first day.Strauss needed a bit of luck against the new ball – and he must have been perilously close to falling lbw to Harry Gurney’s second delivery. With just a single to his name, the left-hander was neither back nor forward but a long appeal failed to bring the response Nottinghamshire wanted from umpire Jeremy Lloyds.Thereafter, Strauss gave the Nottinghamshire precious little encouragement. Inevitably, he played and missed a few times and edged Adams, on 59, a fraction short of the diving wicketkeeper, Chris Read. Then, moments before tea, he mistimed a pull against Andy Carter that could have gone anywhere but dropped safely in the deep.Those incidents apart, though, Strauss could not have batted much better. His cover drive was working well, as it had been in the first innings, he cut and glanced confidently and, when Samit Patel’s left-arm spin entered the attack, his game went into overdrive.Patel was driven for a soaring six way beyond the marquees at long off, one of several meaty hits that saw him race from 62 to 100 in the space of 24 deliveries. By then, it looked as though nothing could stop Strauss, apart from rain, that is, which duly arrived during the tea interval and ended play two hours early.By then, he had faced 205 balls, struck 13 fours as well as that six against Patel and guided Middlesex from a position of gloom and doom to a fairly rosy 239 for 2 – eight runs ahead and, given a good imagination and a full final day, with all results just about possible.It needed more than Strauss’s first championship century of the season, at the seventh attempt, to revive Middlesex, however. Although Sam Robson, who was dropped in the slips by Adam Voges on seven, made only 26, he helped Strauss to put on 55 for the first wicket and, more important, see off the new ball.But it was the second-wicket stand of 143 between Strauss and acting captain Chris Rogers that really deflated Notts. The pair started steadily, then counter-attacked brilliantly after lunch until Rogers became just a little too confident and went lbw to Gurney, playing across the line. By then, though, Nottinghamshire knew nothing would come easy.”I think we were unlucky with the conditions over the first couple of days,” said Rogers. But he admitted: “We put in two bad days so we needed to change that – and fortunately we did. We let ourselves down in the first innings and we wanted to show each other that we are still a good side and can fight hard.”Rogers responded “I guess not” when asked whether he had ever seen England’s captain in better touch despite taking a month off since the end of the West Indies series.”Straussy was amazing,” he said. “He looks in control, his balance is just about perfect and mentally he is in a very good space. It’s amazing that when you are in good form you can have a break, come back and still play well. Hopefully he can take that into the series against South Africa.”

Tamim Iqbal, the Bangladesh batsman, will get his first taste of county cricket after signing for Nottinghamshire as a short-term replacement for David Hussey

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Jun-2011Tamim Iqbal, the Bangladesh batsman, will get his first taste of county cricket after signing for Nottinghamshire as a short-term replacement for David Hussey.Hussey has to return to Australia to prepare for the ODI series against Sri Lanka and will play his final Friends Life t20 game for Nottinghamshire against Lancashire on June 26. Tamim will then play six FLt20 fixtures, provided he gets clearance from the Bangladesh Cricket Board.”David Hussey has been excellent for us and he still has a lot to offer to the Australian team,” said Nottinghamshire coach Mick Newell. “His contract with us was always subject to international commitments and I’m pleased that we have been able to secure a quality replacement.”Tamim, 22, has a Test average of 40.13 and scored five fifties in six innings against England including centuries at Lord’s and Old Trafford last summer.”Finding quality overseas players at short notice is always a challenge but we are very pleased to have agreed a deal with a player of Tamim’s quality,” said Newell. “He’s an exciting player who has established himself on the international scene at a young age and he is already assured of a long Test career.”Tamim has made no secret of his desire to play cricket in England and was understandably delighted to be offered the chance. “It has been a dream come true in every sense as I have longed to play county cricket ever since I became a professional cricketer,” he said.”I have enjoyed every moment whenever I have been in the UK in the past and it is a privilege to be part of such a great club like Nottinghamshire, which has an awe-inspiring tradition and character.”I am very excited to take the field and perform and help with Notts’ mission of winning the Friends Life t20. As the second Bangladeshi in county cricket, it is also an honour for me and I hope to live up to the expectations of the club and the fans.”Meanwhile, Adam Voges has been awarded the FLt20 captaincy and will remain with Nottinghamshire at least until the end of the group stage of the competition.

N Srinivasan, the BCCI secretary, has said a new member would be appointed to the disciplinary committee since Shashank Manohar had recused himself following Lalit Modi’s repeated requests for the same

Cricinfo staff23-Jun-2010N Srinivasan, the BCCI secretary, has said a new member would be appointed to the disciplinary committee since Shashank Manohar had recused himself following Lalit Modi’s repeated requests for the same. The original panel comprised Chirayu Amin and Arun Jaitley, both members of the IPL governing council, along with Manohar. Incidentally Manohar, in a letter marked to Srinivasan on June 19, stepped down, saying that he would like to give Modi a “fair” trial during the enquiry.In his original reply to the first notice on May 15, Modi had also asked that Srinivasan be recused from the hearings against him but that was not granted. “Since Lalit Modi has also accused Mr Manohar [of being biased], he would be replaced by another member to be decided by the general body,” Srinivasan told PTI.Reacting to Manohar recusing himself, Mehmood Abdi, Modi’s legal counsel called the whole process “an eyewash”. “After having decided that Modi’s replies are not satisfactory, as being reported by a TV channel, Manohar has recused himself,” Abdi said. “And the man who is not part of the disciplinary committee, and whose recusal we had demanded, secretary N Srinvasan, is the man who has referred the matter to the disciplinary committee.”