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Skillful bowling from them and sensible batting from Rohit took Mumbai Indians to No.1 on the points table

The Report by Deivarayan Muthu05-May-20191:10

Vettori: KKR didn’t find the tempo after Lynn

Skillful bowling from the Pandya brothers and sensible batting from Mumbai Indians’ captain Rohit Sharma launched them to No.1 on the points table, setting up a mouth-watering clash against Chennai Super Kings in the first qualifier at Chepauk on Tuesday.The result knocked out Kolkata Knight Riders and put Sunrisers Hyderabad in the playoffs. Despite their defeat against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Saturday, Sunrisers will now face Delhi Capitals in the Eliminator in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday.Asked to bat first on a slower-than-usual Wankhede track, Knight Riders stuttered to 133 for 7 with Robin Uthappa’s go-slow encapsulating their struggles. Hardik Pandya was Rohit’s fifth-bowling option on Sunday, but he made the biggest impact by dismissing Chris Lynn and Shubman Gill in back-to-back overs. At the other end, Krunal Pandya kept cramping batsmen for room and although he ended wicketless he was also central to Mumbai’s smothering of Knight Riders.Rohit then led the chase with a measured half-century, sounding out a warning to Super Kings, whom they have beaten five times in seven matches at Chepauk.#Lynnsanity hits Wankhede
When Sunil Narine was his opening partner, Chris Lynn often took a backseat and worked his way into the innings, which wasn’t quite his strong suit. Since Shubman Gill was bumped up to the top, Lynn has bashed his way to three successive forty-plus scores, the latest being his 41 off 29 balls on Sunday. With the ball coming onto the bat in the early exchanges, Lynn simply did his thing: he cleared his front leg and smote sixes. After rattling the seamers, he imperiously launched legspinner Rahul Chahar twice into the stands beyond long-off. Knight Riders were 49 for 0 after the end of the Powerplay – and Lynn alone had contributed 38 to that score.Make way for the Pandya brothers
Then, just like that, Hardik struck with his first ball – a slower one that trapped Gill for 9. In his next over, he hung up an offcutter wide of off and asked Lynn to manufacture the pace for himself. All he could do was to top-edge it into the hands of Quinton de Kock behind the stumps. In the four overs the Pandya brothers bowled in tandem, they conceded just 12 runs with Hardik dismissing both the in-form KKR openers. Mitchell McClenaghan, much like Hardik, took pace off the ball and bowled a maiden over to Uthappa.Uthappa kept helplessly swishing and missing outside off – and even left Krunal outside off – in a passage of play that lacked intensity according to Knight Riders’ coach Jacques Kallis. Dinesh Karthik, who had promoted himself ahead of the side’s MVP Andre Russell, was then caught at short midwicket, thanks to Krunal’s athletic intervention. In the same over, Lasith Malinga ventured around the wicket and bounced out Russell for a golden duck.In isolation Uthappa took Jasprit Bumrah for a brace of boundaries, but he could barely go at a run a ball. Nitish Raina was more fluent and moved to 26 off 13 balls before holing out in the 18th over. Bumrah was back to his usual self in the final over and he closed out the innings with the wickets of Uthappa (40 off 47 balls) and Rinku Singh (4 off 6 balls).KKR KO’d
Russell’s evening went from bad to worse when de Kock and Rohit hit 21 runs off his first over, including two fours and two sixes. Prasidh Krishna then stopped a rampaging de Kock in his tracks, when he drew a top edge that was snaffled by Karthik running back and diving across to his right.Rohit would be unstoppable, though. He didn’t take any undue risks – he didn’t need to – and just knocked the ball into the gaps. He raised his second half-century of the season off 44 balls when he punched Harry Gurney to sweeper cover in the 15th over. With the asking rate dropping to under six, Suryakumar Yadav also had the luxury of taking his own sweet time to find some form. But from 19 off 17 balls, he zoomed to 46 off 27 balls to seal Knight Riders’ fate. Mumbai wrapped up the victory with nine wickets and 23 balls to spare.

Afghanistan coach says he will reveal the dubious part former chief selector Dawlat Ahmadzai had played in the selection of the squad

Nagraj Gollapudi19-Jun-2019Five matches played, five matches lost. Afghanistan are currently bottom of the World Cup table, and just four matches left to play, the wounds inflicted by England’s brutal 150-run win only making things worse. Beyond the playing field, too, things are bad, with what seems like a big fallout between the head coach, Phil Simmons, and former fast bowler Dawlat Ahmadzai, who had been demoted from chairman of selectors to the junior selection panel midway through the World Cup.Normally a man of few words, Simmons posted a message on Twitter on Wednesday reacting to statements from Ahmadzai, who blamed selection policy and team strategies for the poor run in the World Cup. Although he did not provide much detail, Simmons said that once the World Cup was over, he would reveal the “part” Ahmadzai had played in the selection of the squad for the tournament, including the controversial removal of Ashgar Afghan as captain and Gulbadin Naib’s elevation to the post.Before the World Cup, Simmons had told ESPNcricinfo that he was never informed about the captaincy change by the Afghanistan Cricket Board. On Wednesday, he tweeted: “I am in the middle of a World Cup and trying to get our team to perform to the level we expect but at the end of the World Cup I will tell the Afghanistan people about the part that Mr Dawlat Ahmadzai had to play in our preparation and his part in the dismissal of #AsgharAfghan.” This was in response to Ahmadzai’s statement to the media on June 11, where he said the Afghanistan team management’s selection policy in the recent past has been questionable. He added that Afghanistan would not win a global tournament if they carried on with such a policy.”Our preparation was not good,” Ahmadzai said. “We always went with one fast bowler, all burden was on the shoulders of Rashid [Khan]. But now, Rashid has no such conditions [in the UK]. If we bowl well we can win a game, but if you think we are able to win a tournament, let me assure you we are not in a position now or in coming five years to win the Asia Cup or the World Cup.”Ahmadzai also hinted that, in his opinion, senior players like Afghan and Mohammad Nabi must move on for the betterment of Afghanistan cricket.”We need to work for it from now on. We are going through a transition period,” he said. “We need to change one generation. They played for 18 years, they have done well we should thank them, it’s time some of our players should retire, as age catches up with them, even if our fans are demanding and asking of them to play, cricket needs fitness.”So we need to bring changes. Whoever is coming to replace me as a selector should think from now that in two years’ time, Nabi, Hamid Hasan, Asghar, Shapoor [Zadran], Dawlat Zadran can play [at the highest level]. If they cannot do so, who should replace them? We know this and think about this. Whatever changes I brought is not personal, all these players are my personal friends of the past 17 years. We need a constructive culture. I mean, if we have one team and there is no youth, we cannot survive. Whatever right is happening, it may not sound good on media but you will see good results in time.”Rashid Khan looks on•Getty Images

Afghan, one of the most senior players in the set-up, was the captain last year when Afghanistan won the World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe. However, in April, the ACB announced Naib as the ODI captain along with Rashid Khan as T20I captain and Rahmat Shah as Test captain. Rashid and Nabi, the two most popular players in the team, publicly criticised the move, warning that it had the potential to disrupt the team’s performance at the World Cup.Indeed, Afghanistan have had a turbulent tournament in England so far. Bowling was meant to be the team’s main strength, but all the senior players have struggled, including Rashid, who suffered the ignominy of ending with the second-worst bowling figures – and worst by a spinner – in ODIs during the defeat to England. Nabi might have better bowling figures, but has just managed 37 runs so far with the bat. None of the specialist batsmen have prospered with any consistency, with Afghanistan players registering just three half-centuries.Afghanistan have also had to deal with the controversy surrounding Mohammad Shahzad, who was sent home by the ACB for being unfit, only for Shahzad to hit back saying that was not true.Then, the ACB removed Ahmadzai from the senior selection committee and named him as head of the junior selection panel. In his place, Andy Moles, who was Afghanistan’s coach at the 2015 World Cup, was appointed to the senior selection panel along with Mujahid Zadran, who has worked as a coach with Afghanistan A.Incidentally, Simmons had told ESPNcricinfo he would be stepping down after the World Cup to pursue other opportunities. Azizullah Fazli, the ACB chairman, told on June 4 that Simmons’ resignation had been accepted by the board, which wanted the head coach to be open to travel and live in Afghanistan.”Our head coach (Simmons) officially emailed me saying that on July 15 his contract is expiring,” Fazli said. “We replied thanking him for his work with us, but we are not extending the contract. Our reason is that we need a coach who can train our team inside Afghanistan.”Before he joined Afghanistan, Simmons is understood to have put a condition in his contract that he would not be forced to travel to Afghanistan where international cricket has never been played due to the security situation in the country.

ESPNcricinfo’s live updates and analysis of Australia v South Africa

Liam Brickhill06-Jul-2019

This will be only the third World Cup meeting between both sides since that epic Edgbaston game

Preview by Andrew McGlashan05-Jul-20192:25

Vettori: Tahir can look back on career with pride

Big Picture

In another world, this could have been the ultimate match to finish the group stage: 20 years since the Greatest ODI Ever at Edgbaston which put Australia on track for the first of a hat-trick of World Cup titles and consigned South Africa to one of their most agonising near-misses.Instead, it’s largely an irrelevant match, except for potentially deciding where Australia will play their semi-final. Another win for them (or a defeat for India against Sri Lanka) and they’ll stay in Manchester to face New Zealand. The opposite set of results and it will be back down the motorway for a rematch with England at Edgbaston. The way Australia overcame both those sides in the recent group matches means they won’t worry who they play, but staying in the same city would make life a little easier – plus they’ll want to keep the winning momentum going.For South Africa, it’s a final chance to salvage a bit more pride from a poor World Cup after they put in a professional display to beat Sri Lanka. They have a host of issues to confront when they get home to begin the challenge of rebuilding over the next four-year cycle with much of their future resting on the shoulders of Quinton de Kock, Aiden Markram and Kagiso Rabada. We already know this will be the last ODIs for Imran Tahir and JP Duminy. A few more many follow.

Form guide

(last five completed matches)
Australia WWWWW
South Africa WLLWL

In the spotlight

Pat Cummins has chipped in throughout the World Cup without quite being a dominant force. It hasn’t mattered, and a record of 12 wickets at 27.25 with an ecomony of 4.66 is very handy, but he has been overshadowed by the left-arm exploits of Mitchell Starc and Jason Behrendorff. However, after a home season where he had to carry the attack perhaps that is no bad thing. It would be no surprise at all if Cummins has a major impact in the closing stages of the tournament and the pace and carry of Old Trafford will suit him.He will continue his T20I career, but this is the final chance for Imran Tahir to clock up the celebration miles in ODI cricket. With one game to go, his 106 outings have clocked up an impressive 172 wickets at 24.63 (someone should do the maths and work out the ground he has covered with team-mates trying to catch him). A pitch that is known to offer some spin and bounce gives him a chance to sign off in style.Getty Images

Team news

Australia’s batsmen went through a brutal net session on Thursday with two casualties: Shaun Marsh is out of the World Cup with a broken wrist and Glenn Maxwell also went to hospital for a scan. Maxwell didn’t sustain any serious damage, but will be assessed before this match. If he is ruled out Peter Handscomb could come straight into the team. The Australia management has previously said they won’t rest quicks for the sake of it, so we could see an unchanged attack.Australia (probable) 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch (capt), 3 Usman Khawaja, 4 Steven Smith, 5 Glenn Maxwell/Peter Handscomb, 6 Marcus Stoinis, 7 Alex Carey (wk), 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Jason BehrendorffSouth Africa put in a solid display against Sri Lanka, winning by nine wickets, so may go with the same team. However, a call on Hashim Amla’s fitness will be taken in the morning, after the batsman appeared to injure his left knee during a practice session on Friday.South Africa (probable) 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 Aiden Markram, 4 Faf du Plessis (capt), 5 Rassie van der Dussen, 6 JP Duminy, 7 Andile Phehlukwayo, 8 Dwaine Pretorius, 9 Chris Morris, 10 Kagiso Rabada, 11 Imran Tahir

Pitch and conditions

It’s usually a very good pitch at Old Trafford with something on offer for everyone, from new-ball bounce to spin and the ability for batsmen to play their shots. The forecast is for a dry day with just the outside chance of a shower

Strategy punt

• Bowl Pat Cummins to Faf du Plessis: in six innings the pair have faced each other in ODIs, Cummins has dismissed the South Africa captain on four occasions. In 68 balls, du Plessis has scored 46 runs off him.
• Quinton de Kock could also be in for a tough time because he struggles against left-arm pace (average 38.20 in the first ten overs) and also offspin (average 30 in the first 10 overs) which gives Australia at least three options to target him with. In comparison, against right-arm pace in the opening Powerplay, de Kock averages 60.50.
• Aaron Finch has had a terrific World Cup and South Africa will want to consider using Tahir against him. Tahir has removed him three times with only Kane Williamson, Shakib Al Hasan and Mahela Jayawardene more regular victims (which just emphasises how good a bowler Tahir has been)

Stats and Trivia

• Mitchell Starc needs three wickets to overtake Glenn McGrath’s 2007 haul of 26 wickets as the best for Australia at the World Cup.
• This is the 100th ODI between Australia and South Africa.
• This will also just be their third World Cup meeting since that 1999 epic at Edgbaston. Two of those came in 2007.

Quotes

“Once you cross the rope, Australia are my favourite team to play against.”

He is set to miss next month’s one-off Test against Afghanistan and the T20I tri-series which follows, making it the first time he will not be available for Bangladesh barring injuries

Mohammad Isam10-Aug-2019Tamim Iqbal has requested for a break from cricket. The 30-year-old opener had gone to the Bangladesh Cricket Board in early August to seek time off, and ESPNcricinfo understands that it has now been approved. As a result, he will miss next month’s one-off Test against Afghanistan and the T20I tri-series which follows.This follows the BCB’s decision to give Shakib Al Hasan a break – following a request from the player – during last month’s ODI series against Sri Lanka. They had also allowed Shakib time off during the 2017 Test series against South Africa.Tamim, who will leave the country in the next few days to work on his fitness, will be available for Bangladesh’s next assignment, a tour of India in November when they play three T20Is and two Tests.ALSO READ: Out-of-form Tamim needs patience, and a spot of luck, says batting guru Jamie SiddonsIn his letter to the BCB, Tamim asked for a break after he had gone through a tough time in the last three months. Apart from an ordinary World Cup campaign in which he scored only one fifty, and a disastrous ODI series against Sri Lanka, in which he also led Bangladesh, Tamim was subjected to a lot of criticism on social media.During the 2019 World Cup, Tamim spoke about the demons of the 2015 tournament, in which he made only 154 runs in six innings, and was subsequently abused on social media. Tamim said those memories affected his preparation for this year’s event in England and Wales, leading to a sequence where he was bowled in six consecutive ODI innings.After his match-winning 141 in the BPL final in February, Tamim had a rough time in the ODIs in New Zealand before bouncing back superbly in the Tests. He then continued his good form during the tri-series in Ireland, scoring crucial runs before slowly going off the boil in the World Cup.

The Warriors spinners combined for figures of 7 for 46 as they kept their perfect season rolling with a 12-run win (DLS method) against Barbados Tridents

The Report by Varun Shetty23-Sep-2019
Guyana Amazon Warriors sealed a spot in the 2019 CPL playoffs with a 12-run win (DLS method) in a rain-truncated chase against Barbados Tridents. Their win was built on yet another impressive performance from their bowlers, particularly their spinners. Chris Green took a career-best 4 for 14, and Imran Tahir and Shoaib Malik took three between them as the spinners combined for figures of 11.3-0-46-7 to dismiss Tridents for 138. Tridents’ spinners couldn’t come into play as effectively, as Brandon King’s unbeaten fifty led the way in a chase that was stopped after 11 overs by rain with Amazon Warriors comfortably ahead of the par score.They now have 12 points in six matches, while Tridents stay in fourth place with four points in five games.A cracking start with the batAfter being put in, Tridents were served several short and wide balls by Keemo Paul in the first over, with a free hit also thrown in. They made 17 off that over, but Johnson Charles fell, slicing a cut to third man.Alex Hales, returning from the Vitality Blast, found his timing and played smart shots – flicks over square leg and one imperious cut through the covers. JP Duminy, caught in a rut last match, came out attacking too, picking up 14 off three in one sequence. Once again, it was Paul at the receiving end, with his second over going for 18. Tridents were 63 for 2 after the Powerplay.Spinners turn the gameThe very first ball after the Powerplay, Hales crunched a slog sweep off Tahir, but couldn’t get enough elevation on it. He picked out Shimron Hetmyer at deep midwicket. Tahir made it a double-wicket over off the last ball, screeching desperately as Jonathan Carter was struck on the front pad. After long consideration, the umpire nodded his head and raised his finger. Carter wasn’t pleased, but replays showed the legbreak had turned enough to hit him in line.Jason Holder then struggled during his short stay, being beaten twice on the inside edge by Malik and Tahir, before chipping one to long-on off Malik. Amazon Warriors had used spin to apply a squeeze in their last match as well, with Malik playing the fourth spinner’s role. On Sunday, he bowled four overs for ten runs.With the middle order crashing rapidly, Green was back to bowl in the final stages of the innings and had Ashley Nurse stumped, Duminy caught at deep square leg, and closed the innings with wickets off consecutive deliveries.A no-fuss chaseChandrapaul Hemraj struggled for rhythm but did just enough to put up yet another formidable opening stand with King. They put on 61 in seven overs before Hemraj chipped one back off Sandeep Lamichhane. He had hit one handsome shot, a back-foot punch over extra cover for six previously, but fell for 20 off 23.Hetmyer was out top-edging Duminy next over, but King had done enough to keep the pressure at bay. He hit three sixes, one running down the track and two rooted to the crease to lift over the leg side, and hit back-to-back boundaries square on either side just before rain stopped play. By that time, he was on 49 off 30 with Malik at the other end. The DLS par score was 61 for 2, and Amazon Warriors were 16 ahead.When play resumed an hour and 15 minutes later, the revised target was 97 – 20 to win off four overs – and King brought up his fifty in the only over bowled before rain returned.

‘I was confident I would win this one,’ he says of not being allowed to contest the same elections in 2017

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Sep-2019″There are only three things on my mind right now – cricket, cricket, cricket,” Mohammad Azharuddin said after becoming the new Hyderabad Cricket Association president on Friday with a landslide victory, in which his team swept all six apex council seats on offer.The former India captain and member of parliament was not allowed to contest for the president’s post in January 2017 as his nomination papers were not accepted by the election officers, who were unsure about Azharuddin’s status because of the BCCI life ban that was imposed on him in 2000 for match-fixing (struck down by the Andhra Pradesh High Court in 2012). This time, there was no stopping him.”We will have to restructure everything and turn things around,” Azharuddin told the newspaper. “Look at the state of Gymkhana ground, it’s left for the cows to graze. We need to get to the grassroots and unearth talent now.”The members have done their job, mine starts now. I know it won’t be easy but I will give my best to revive the game which has suffered a lot in the last three years. We will seek support from all the club secretaries and take the game forward. Their suggestions as well as those of cricket enthusiasts will be more than welcome.”Azharuddin had no involvement in cricket-related matters after the life ban and became a politician in 2009. His initial attempts of challenging the ban were unsuccessful but in 2012, a division bench of the Andhra Pradesh High Court ruled the BCCI ban illegal. He recalled the beginning of his Test career, which saw him slam three centuries in his first three Tests in 1984-85.”Just a bit,” he said when asked if he was as nervous getting into cricket administration as he was when making his Test debut. “Back then I had worked very hard for close to 15 years to get into the Indian team and was very nervous when I played my first Test. Here, we worked as a team and campaigned hard and knew the result straightaway.”There are tense moments in any election, as I know anything can happen – having contested two general elections – but I was confident I would win this one. It’s a big victory though.Looking ahead in his new avatar, Azharuddin said, “I am really looking forward to BCCI meetings because I have so much to offer, having played the game for quite a while. I have represented the BCCI on teams but now to deal with the board as an administrator will be different – this should be much easier than playing.”

In response to SACA’s claims asking CSA to seek outside intervention into the reasons why the payment was delayed, CSA said it considers the matter closed

Firdose Moonda31-Oct-2019Cricket South Africa will not hold an independent investigation into the 2018 Mzansi Super League dispute, which resulted in players’ commercial rights fees not being paid for almost a year; neither will it have any independent investigation into its finances despite calls from the South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA) for an external inquiry*. In a statement issued on Thursday night, in response to SACA’s claims earlier in the day that CSA should seek outside intervention into the reasons why the payment was delayed, CSA said it considers the matter closed.The payment dispute had led to the suspension of three senior CSA staff members, including interim director of cricket Corrie van Zyl. The three remain suspended for alleged dereliction of duty over the late payment. While SACA, through its outgoing CEO Tony Irish, expressed surprise over the suspensions and sought to clear the trio – the others being chief operating officer Naasei Appiah and commercial manager Clive Eksteen – CSA refused to even identify the names of the members of staff it suspended and rejected SACA’s suggestions.”Mr Irish has confirmed that the dispute over players’ rights for the 2018 Mzansi Super League (MSL) has been settled and that also an agreement is in place for the 2019 edition of the tournament as well. As the MSL issue has been settled to the satisfaction of both parties there is no need for the independent investigation that Mr Irish has suggested,” CSA’s statement read.In a statement issued on Thursday morning, SACA had said it was “very surprised” that the three had been suspended, as their own dealings with them had been “co-operative”. The player body called it “highly unlikely” that CSA chief executive Thabang Moroe would have been unaware of the payment obligations, and said that Moroe had signed the players’ commercial rights agreement in November last year. SACA had launched a formal dispute over unpaid commercial rights fees, alleging that CSA had breached an agreement to pay money for use of the players’ commercial rights, which includes their images, for the inaugural edition of the MSL.”We are very surprised that Naasei Appiah, Corrie van Zyl and Clive Eksteen have been suspended in relation to allegations surrounding CSA’s non-compliance with the 2018 MSL commercial agreement,” Irish, whose tenure with the organisation ends at the end of 2019, said. “SACA didn’t deal with Appiah on this issue and in its dealings with Van Zyl and Eksteen over many months they both expressed a strong desire to resolve the payment issue, but it eventually became clear that higher approval to do so was necessary.”We think it’s highly unlikely that CSA’s chief executive, Thabang Moroe, would not have been aware of this ongoing issue. He was undoubtedly aware of payment obligations as he had signed the agreement.”SACA confirmed that the money, understood to be an amount of Rand 2.4 million (US$ 159,200 approx.) had now been paid but said the protracted non-payment was part of a wider attempt by CSA to marginalise the player body.Corrie van Zyl addresses a press conference•Getty Images

SACA cited disputes dating back to 2018, when negotiations between CSA and SACA over the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which governs the players’ employment contract, dragged on for so long that a new MoU was signed three months after the previous one expired. It also mentioned CSA’s failure to engage with SACA on matters relating to the proposed domestic restructure, over which SACA took CSA to court.In the statement, SACA released a detailed timeline explaining its side as far as the process to have the players’ commercial rights fees paid is concerned, including the correspondence it had with CSA staff. According to SACA, on October 14, 2019, it sent communication to CSA, including to Moroe, referencing the breach of the 2018 MSL commercial agreement, in which players’ fees was not paid. Two days later, SACA sent a follow-up email to Eksteen copied to Moroe, in which SACA issued a final warning to CSA to resolve the matter or face a formal notice of dispute. On October 17, SACA received a reply from Eksteen, indicating CSA’s intention to resolve the matter and SACA gave CSA a deadline of October 21. When that was not met, SACA launched a formal dispute on October 23. Six days after that, on October 29, the matter was settled.Since April this year, SACA has been barred from attending CSA sub-committee meetings, including of the finance and commercial committees, the chief executive’s committee, and the cricket committee, which SACA claims is in breach of CSA’s own terms of reference.SACA says it has sought to resolve its issues with CSA on numerous occasions, most recently on August 24 this year, when the parties met to discuss the domestic restructure and SACA’s concerns over CSA’s finances.”At the meeting, it was agreed firstly that CSA would conduct an external review of its longer-term financial position and secondly that SACA and CSA would put in place a roadmap and facilitation process to attempt to resolve the relationship issue and the domestic restructure issue by the end of October 2019,” the SACA statement read. “As was also agreed, and to ensure the process was committed to in writing, SACA sent a draft roadmap agreement to CSA on 26 August 2019.”Despite requests made by SACA to CSA for it to respond CSA failed to do so for seven weeks thus rendering the attempted roadmap and facilitation process unworkable and ineffectual. CSA has also failed to act on the agreement to conduct an external review of its finances.”*1830GMT The story was updated after CSA issued a statement

Sanju Samson returns to the national frame after last featuring in India’s blues back in July 2015

Vishal Dikshit in Mumbai24-Oct-2019Mumbai allrounder Shivam Dube has earned himself a maiden India call-up, figuring in the squad for the three-T20I series against Bangladesh at home in November. Kerala wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson has got a recall, having played his only previous international game – a T20I against Zimbabwe in Harare – back in July 2015.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Regular captain Virat Kohli has been rested for the T20I series, and MS Dhoni continues to be absent. Rohit Sharma will lead the team in the T20Is.ALSO READ: We are moving on’ – India’s chief selector MSK Prasad on MS DhoniThe three games will be played from November 3 to 10 in Delhi, Rajkot and Nagpur. The T20I squad also saw the return of Shardul Thakur and Yuzvendra Chahal. Thakur returned to the international fold after a year and replaced Navdeep Saini. Prasad confirmed both Saini and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who also missed the South Africa T20Is, weren’t available because of fitness issues.Kohli is, however, a part of the squad for the two Tests – Indore (November 14 to 18) and Kolkata (November 22 to 26) – and will lead a side featuring the first-choice 15 from the recent series against South Africa at home. Shahbaz Nadeem, who replaced an injured Kuldeep Yadav for the final match of that series for his Test debut, was left out with the left-arm wristspinner fit for action again.”The selection committee and all of us, Virat [Kohli], we were all convinced with Nadeem and with his performances in domestic cricket,” chief selector MSK Prasad said after announcing the squads in Mumbai. “So we had drafted him into the squad when Kuldeep Yadav had an injury on his shoulder. With the opportunities that we have given to Nadeem, he has really excelled. But the fact remains that we have to go back to Kuldeep, he is our premier bowler in the squad.”Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya didn’t feature in either squad following their respective surgeries in the UK earlier this month for back injuries.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Pandya’s absence, in particular, opened the doors for Dube’s inclusion in the shortest format, Prasad said. “You can see, earlier we had Hardik Pandya, then we also tried Vijay Shankar. All of us in unison, along with captain Rohit, felt that [given] the role that he has to deliver, Shivam Dube fits in much better. Because he really bats aggressively, extremely well. His performances in the India A series in West Indies and also against South Africa A in the ODIs was phenomenal. I think he has gone up by leaps and bounds with regards to his skillset and we were very, very much convinced about it.”Pant has been the heir to Dhoni, who hasn’t featured in any international fixture since India’s exit from the 50-over World Cup earlier this year. Prasad clarified Samson was also picked as a back-up wicketkeeper and it’s possible both Pant and Samson will be seen in the playing XI in Kohli’s absence as Prasad said Samson will “definitely play at the top”.”[Samson] comes in as a batsman who can keep wicket. Samson was there in the Indian T20 team 4-5 years ago. His problem was inconsistency. In the last one year or so, he has had a fantastic IPL followed by a good domestic and India A series against South Africa. And he had a wonderful Vijay Hazare as well. He is more consistent now and that is the reason we thought of drafting him in the squad.”We’re looking at younger options after the World Cup, so you can understand our thought process. We definitely had a chat with Dhoni and he also endorses our view of backing youngsters,” Prasad said of 22-year-old Pant and 24-year-old Samson.Samson finished the recent Vijay Hazare Trophy with an average of 58.57 and strike rate of 125 largely on the back of an unbeaten 212 off 129 balls he smashed against Goa.Ravindra Jadeja missed out because the selectors deemed that he offers the same skills as Krunal Pandya in the format. Prasad didn’t rule out a return, however. “At some point, both of them [Jadeja and Krunal] will play together and we will see how each of them progresses.”On the Test front, Shubman Gill, who was a back-up opener for the South Africa Test series, retained his spot and will only feature in India’s Test plans for now.”He’s an exceptionally talented cricketer but you can only pick 15 right?” And it’s only a three-match [T20I] series. Going forward he will definitely be one of our key players in all formats,” Prasad said.T20I squad: Rohit Sharma (capt), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Sanju Samson (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant (wk), Washington Sundar, Krunal Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal, Rahul Chahar, Deepak Chahar, Khaleel Ahmed, Shivam Dube, Shardul ThakurTest squad: Virat Kohli (capt), Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant (wk)

The opener smashed 81 off 44 balls with his winning six lodging on the roof of the famous SCG pavilion

Alex Malcolm18-Dec-2019A dazzling innings from Josh Philippe backed up a disciplined Sydney Sixers bowling display as the home side thrashed the Perth Scorchers at the SCG. Philippe pummelled 81 not out from 44 balls with 11 fours and three sixes against the side who had chased his signature during the off-season, proving why he is such a sought-after T20 commodity despite a modest season to date in the other two formats for Western Australia.He made like work of the Scorchers’ under-par total, mowing it down with five overs to spare, bringing up the winning runs with a six onto the roof of the famous SCG Ladies Pavilion. The Scorchers had earlier imploded in the powerplay losing 4 for 29 on a good batting surface through a combination of poor decision making from both the batsman and the umpires. The Sixers bowlers were disciplined and gave up very few boundary balls as the Scorchers struggled to even pick up ones and twos on a slow outfield that had been heavily top-dressed with sand.No DRS triggers disastrous start for the ScorchersThe lack of DRS in the BBL has been a talking point already this season. The debate will rage further after the Scorchers’ England import Liam Livingstone fell lbw in the opening over to Ben Dwarshuis. Replays showed the ball clearly pitched outside leg and would have been overturned if DRS was available. It triggered a collapse where the Scorchers’ new top order lost four wickets in the powerplay. They paid the price for being too aggressive too early. Cameron Bancroft was stumped running past a leg-side wide from Steve O’Keefe in the second over, aided by some impressive glove work from Philippe. Josh Inglis survived an easy dropped chance at backward point by Jordan Silk but then holed out off Tom Curran. The Scorchers capped off a shocking powerplay when Ashton Turner ran himself out trying to pinch a second run.Fabulous FawadThe innings was salvaged first by a steady 58-run stand between Mitchell Marsh and Cameron Green before a freakish cameo from Fawad Ahmed. Marsh, once Australia’s great hope as an international allrounder, was clearly hampered in his first game back from a serious hand injury and was overshadowed by Australia’s next great hope in Green. The 20-year-old looked the senior pro in the partnership. His striking, placement and control was excellent on the poor outfield before he fell miscuing a high full toss from Ben Manenti to the long boundary. Marsh was far less fluent and found long-on with 27 balls left in the innings for 32 from 33 balls. The Scorchers looked unlikely to reach 120 at one stage. Enter Fawad at No.11, on debut for the Scorchers with a highest score of 5 not out in 88 T20 matches. He was dropped at long-on in the penultimate over before climbing into Curran in the last. He slapped a high full toss over long-on for his first career T20 six and then planted the following free hit over the sightscreen to double his tally. He then carved an attempted yorker over mid-off for another boundary before being caught off the last ball of the innings for 19 off 9 to lift the total to 131.Philippe proves a pointPhilippe picked up where he left off from last year’s semi-final although this innings had some extra impetus. Philippe has endured a tough start to the season with Western Australia. He was dropped from the Sheffield Shield team and the 50-over Marsh Cup side, also missing out on the winning final. The Scorchers had hoped to lure him home to WA over the off-season given the connection between the WA and Scorchers program, but he elected to stay with the Sixers and he made the Scorchers pay.The Scorchers’ new-look attack features more spin with Ashton Agar opening the bowling. He had strangled Sri Lanka and Pakistan in the T20I series earlier this summer but Philippe dispatched him to all parts, going inside over the off side, against the turn over mid-on, and sweeping and ramping him fine. He also planted Fawad over cover and thumped the quicks down the ground with tremendous bat speed.Daniel Hughes provided calm support in the 73-run stand before falling to Chris Jordan. Agar and Fawad conceded 70 in seven wicketless overs between them. There was one more instance where the DRS could have been used with James Vince given out caught behind off Jordan. The umpires checked upstairs to see if the catch carried, which it did, but Vince was not convinced he had made contact. Philippe finished the job in style with Moises Henriques to remind the competition that the Sixers are a threat again.