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Mumbai, who elected to bat and were cruising at 147 for 2, lost a clutch of wickets to leave the match on an even keel

Shashank Kishore22-Jun-2022On possibly their biggest days in domestic cricket in the last 23 years, Madhya Pradesh banished nerves and bad luck, and overcame staunch resistance from Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was gunning for a fourth straight first-class ton.Mumbai, who elected to bat and were cruising at 147 for 2, lost a clutch of wickets to leave the Ranji Trophy final in Bengaluru on an even keel. They ended the day on 247 for 5, with Sarfaraz Khan, the tournament’s highest run-getter, unbeaten on 40. He had Shams Mulani, the allrounder, for company, in their quest to try and stretch their first innings total.The sun hardly peeped through on a leaden day, ensuring a relatively dry surface didn’t break further. With the ball turning right from the first over, MP employed both their spin options optimally, but it was their faster bowlers who kept plugging away and reaping rewards for their persistence and discipline throughout the day.Most impressive of the lot was Gaurav Yadav, who wheeled away for 23 wicketless overs, despite creating several wicket-taking opportunities. Bounding in relentlessly, he opened up Prithvi Shaw’s inside edge and outside edge five times in a single over in the first hour, before Anubhav Agarwal reaped the rewards.What that Yadav over did, where he had Shaw all at sea against the moving ball, was create doubts in his mind. As such, Shaw isn’t a leaver of the cricket ball; Agarwal’s accuracy only made it tougher. Drawn forward by a delivery that appeared to be moving away, the ball nipped back in off the seam to beat the inside edge and crash into the stumps to break an 87-run opening stand.At the other end, Jaiswal tried to do what great Mumbai batters of the past have taken great pride in doing: grinding the bowlers down and then cashing in on some tired bowling later. While he managed to keep the bowlers at bay, largely refraining from playing away from the body against pace, he was particularly aggressive against spin.His first boundary of the day was a six off left-arm spinner Kumar Kartikeya. Seemingly intent at trying to unsettle him, Jaiswal picked off a series of boundaries to get going. Just prior to that, though, he survived a run-out reprieve in the fourth over after a mix-up with Shaw. Jaiswal, who tucked the ball to square leg, was halfway down the pitch when he was sent back and only managed to make it as the throw was wide of the keeper at the striker’s end.The first session had several instances where MP were left wondering ‘what if’. The run-out aside, Kartikeya managed to have Shaw jabbing at an arm-ball, only for it to lob over short leg’s head in the fifth over. In the 10th, Shaw’s thick outside edge off Yadav flew between second slip and gully as he attempted a flashy drive without any feet movement. Then, he beat Shaw five times in an over, before they had him.Yashasvi Jaiswal drives towards midwicket•Special Arrangement

Armaan Jaffer looked steady and resolute in defence, but hard hands proved to be his nemesis as he got a thick inside edge off Kartikeya to a shortish midwicket. It was an excellent piece of captaincy from Aditya Shrivastava that resulted in the wicket. Immediately after lunch, he specifically had the fielder there for Kartikeya’s arm-ball that fizzes in. Although the delivery that got the wicket wasn’t an arm ball, it was close to being one. A regulation left-arm orthodox bowled with a slightly faster trajectory skidded through to lob off the inside edge as Jaffer was gone for 26.Suved Parkar was the next to go. Mumbai’s new No. 4, who only got a break for the knockouts because Ajinkya Rahane wasn’t available, managed all of 18 before getting a leading edge to midwicket where Shrivastava took a simple catch running back to give offspinner Saransh Jain his first wicket. This left Mumbai at 147 for 3.In came Sarfaraz, who immediately shelved his natural game. It isn’t something he is known to do, but the dismissal of Jaiswal soon after, where he pushed away from the body to see Yash Dubey take a smart catch at gully, further had him shut shop and show signs of maturity in trying to see off the bowlers. Until then, Jaiswal’s was a knock studded with impeccable timing, oodles of concentration, a hint of luck and enterprise.Jaiswal who brought up his half-century off 129 balls, started picking the gaps easily and when the fast bowlers bounded in trying to rough him up with short deliveries, he immediately gave them something to think about by ramping it over the slip cordon for a boundary. Jaiswal looked set for a fourth straight ton that would’ve had him join an elite club of Vijay Merchant and Sachin Tendulkar, before he literally had to drag himself off in disappointment, having poked at a delivery he would’ve left most times.Like the other four batters who missed out, Hardik Tamore too got off to a start and then fell, playing for turn when there was none as he edged to slip to give Jain his second wicket, in the final session. This was shortly after he was dropped in the slips by Akshat Raghuwanshi on 22. Sarfaraz and Mulani, who came together in the 75th over, saw off the rest of the day without too many hassles, intent on crease occupation and batting it out to stumps to try and resume their grind against the second new ball.Purely in terms of the quality of cricket, it was a day where both teams played restrictively, trying to ensure one doesn’t concede ground to the other. It could change come Thursday.

Spinners likely to get help from the pitch as early as the first day

Nagraj Gollapudi11-Feb-2021After toiling on a slow and flat surface in the first Test, Indian spinners are likely to get more purchase in the second Test, starting on Saturday, as the pitch is expected to take turn as early as the first day.The key difference between the two surfaces is the nature of the soil. The pitch for the first Test comprised purely of red soil and it did not break until late in the match. However, the surface for the second Test will have a base comprising red soil and a top layer comprising black cotton soil. It is understood that if the conditions are dry, the top layer, primarily made of black clay, will start to disintegrate faster.The red soil in Chennai is different from the Mumbai variant. The Mumbai one stays true through the match, while in Chennai, it usually crumbles quickly if underprepared. However, the pitch was well-bound ahead of the first Test to ensure the match stretched to the fifth day.On the eve of the first Test, Chepauk head groundsman V Ramesh Kumar had told ESPNcricinfo that he would make a surface with an “English look”, to suit all bowlers. But by the time of the toss, Chepauk pitch had been shorn of any grass. Consequently, the pitch was slow.The new ball lost its shine quickly and the leather softened early too, thus hurting India’s fast-bowling duo Jasprit Bumrah and Ishant Sharma. Sharma highlighted the bland nature of the pitch across the opening two days, by saying it resembled a “road”.Even R Ashwin, India’s premier spinner, who is closing in on 400 Test wickets, struggled to find purchase from the surface over the first two days. England took advantage of the bald, hard, flat surface as Joe Root made a double-century and England amassed 578 in the first innings.The one factor in favour of the bowlers still was the bounce, which remained consistent mostly throughout the five days. Gradually, the surface became abrasive and it helped both spinners and fast bowlers, the latter making an impact with the reverse swing as James Anderson showed in a memorable spell on the fifth morning.What India might have a desired in the first Test – a quick turner where they can dominate England batsmen – they are likely to get this weekend.Usually, groundsmen stop watering the pitch two days before the Test match to allow the moisture to be retained. When England arrived for training on Thursday morning, the pitch was left uncovered. Later, it was covered with the hessian cloth to protect against the high temperature, which is in the mid-30-degree Celsius.Another significant difference in the second Test could be the low bounce, as a consequence of the dry pitch. It remains to be seen how much grass is left on Saturday morning.The turning nature of the surface is likely to influence the final XI for India, who face difficult questions regarding their second line of spinners to assist Ashwin. India captain Virat Kohli has already spoken about the lack of contribution from Shahbaz Nadeem and Washington Sundar in the first Test.Axar Patel is likely to make his Test debut having recovered from the knee injury he picked on the eve of the first Test. In case Patel plays, the Indian team management will need to figure out whether they go with Sundar or Kuldeep Yadav as the third spinner.

They fielded only two Black African players instead of three, and have provided a written explanation to CSA

Firdose Moonda29-Oct-2019Cricket South Africa (CSA) will launch an inquiry into the Cobras’ team selection, which saw them miss their transformation target in the ongoing four-day, first-class fixture against the Warriors at home. The Cobras took to the field with two black African players, Thando Ntini and Tladi Bokako, one short of CSA’s requirement of three black African players. However, they met the overall target for players of colour, with a total of seven.The Cobras confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that they provided a written explanation of their team composition to CSA, which has been received. The franchise opted not to make any comments at this stage. CSA, meanwhile, said it will consider the matter in the coming days.”CSA has noted the submission by Western Cape Cricket (Western Cape Cricket) in lieu of a request for a deviation from the administrative conditions. CSA will launch a further enquiry into this incident and will consider all the related and relevant information in order to arrive at a decision about the strength and the validity of the argument by WCC,” Thamie Mthembu, CSA’s head of communications told ESPNcricinfo.The inquiry is expected to be complete within 14 days. All the other five franchises fielded the required number of black African players.This is the second time Western Province have found themselves in hot water with CSA in as many months. In September, CSA suspended the Western Province Cricket Association (WPCA) board and placed it under administration citing concerns over financial and governance issues. WPCA has since taken CSA to court, challenging this decision. The matter is ongoing.

At 166 for 6 just after lunch, and a lead of just seven, Middlesex were slumping to defeat but now they have a chance of winning after following-on

ECB Reporters Network21-Aug-2018
ScorecardMax Holden and James Harris gave Middlesex hope of producing a remarkable turnaround against Northamptonshire at Wantage Road. The pair added 121 for the seventh wicket on the third afternoon to help steer Middlesex to 374 for 9 following-on, leading by 215.At 166 for 6 just after lunch, and a lead of just seven, Middlesex were slumping to defeat. But Holden and Harris gathered themselves and began to work their side back into the game with careful, considered batting with the clouds parting and the zip from the surface easing.Holden led the resistance, simply happy to occupy the crease. He left the very ball well and nudged and flicked his way to an 83-ball fifty – his second of the summer – but it did include a sumptuous cover-drive, one of eight boundaries.Harris was a more jittery early on and cut and missed several times and edged Brett Hutton just short of first slip. But he too was prepared to ground it out and take the innings as deep as possible.Holden, on the ground where he spent a profitable loan spell last season, got to within six of a maiden Middlesex century against the second new ball but, agonisingly, drove loosely at Hutton and edged to second slip. He peeled himself from the field having undone all his hard work with a shot he had largely ignored for his previous 163 balls.After Holden fell, the lead was only 128 and Northants had ambitions to run through the lower order. But Harris wasn’t finished and went past his own half-century – a third in this year’s Championship – in 138 balls with seven fours.Harris managed to take Middlesex to the close, 79 not out, sharing a stand of 54 with 19-year-old Ethan Bamber on debut, and No. 11 Tim Murtagh then holding out to stumps.Such a recovery was beyond the ambitions of the most ardent Middlesex supporter as they slumped just after lunch with Northants again excellent with the ball. They took three wickets in three overs after an initially quiet 45 minutes play. Nathan Buck nipped a ball into Stevie Eskinazi to win an lbw decision before Rory Kleinveldt swung a ball into Dawid Malan to remove his off bail for just 5 and another to Eoin Morgan that trapped him lbw for a third-ball duck.Sam Robson battled away well for 11 cloudy overs on the second evening and went on to make 72 – his highest score of the season – before gloving a catch down the leg-side in the final over before lunch and when Robbie White was caught at slip for 5 after the break, the game was only heading one way.But Holden and Harris ensured Middlesex have a fighting chance of pulling off just a fifth first-class win when following-on. They were helped by the 56 extras Northants conceded – the most Northants have given Middlesex in a first-class innings – taking the match tally given by Northants to 93.

Ireland head to Lord’s looking to atone for a heavy beating in their first ODI on English soil

The Preview by Andrew Miller06-May-2017

Match facts

May 7, 2017
Start time 1100 local (1000 GMT)1:08

‘We can’t play like that at this level’ – Porterfield

Big picture

With apologies to the County Ground at Bristol, enthusiastic hosts of Ireland’s (somewhat underwhelming) first ODI on English soil, this is the big one. A maiden international fixture against England at Lord’s – with its Long Room, honours boards, and anticipated 22,000 crowd – is the occasion that Ireland’s cricketers have been dreaming about for a decade.It’s a staging post like few others in a team’s journey up the pecking order (notwithstanding that Ireland played there against Sri Lanka during the 2009 World T20), replete with the sort of memories that cannot help but inspire any visiting side – Ireland might, for instance, take inspiration from Sri Lanka’s maiden Test appearance on the venerable old ground in 1984, when Sidath Wettimuny and Duleep Mendis ignited their country’s imagination with a brace of glowing hundreds.Or, in a nod to their shared ancestry, Ireland’s players might take a look up at the ranks of Australian names etched on the dressing-room walls, and remind themselves of how England failed to beat their oldest enemy in a Test match on this ground for a full 75 years between 1934 and 2009.However, for many of the players in Ireland’s ranks, the allure of playing at Lord’s stems from the familiarity that it offers, as much as the mystique. Tim Murtagh, their senior seamer, was a mainstay of Middlesex’s Championship-winning side, while Paul Stirling is another to ply his more regular trade at Lord’s. Andy Balbirnie was on their books for a while, while Ed Joyce was another central figure until his migration down to Hove.Having fluffed their lines rather chronically in Bristol, Lord’s offers home comforts for half the team, bucket-list allure for the remainder, and a chance to relaunch their England expedition for the whole. As William Porterfield, their captain, said in the aftermath of defeat: “You have to be able to get fired up for a game at the Home of Cricket.”None of the above, however, makes their challenge any less forbidding. As their senior players had been gently telegraphing in the lead-up to the tour, this is not a comfortable time for Ireland’s creaking squad, and the crushing manner in which England put them in their place on Friday was every bit as emphatic as the doom-mongers had been anticipating.From an England perspective, the only real disappointment about their seven-wicket win was the lack of game-time that it afforded to their hungry squad. Their bowlers enjoyed a decent run-out, not least the impressive Mark Wood and destructive Adil Rashid, but the batting was a cakewalk, albeit that Jason Roy failed to atone for his fallow workload at the IPL with a first-over duck.Joe Root and Alex Hales made such light work of a nominal target of 127 that, for all Eoin Morgan claimed he would have bowled first given the choice, you wonder if he’d rather take first use on Sunday, just to ensure the match has to go a longer distance.These are, however, Good Problems To Have™. Ireland, on the other hand, are the ones with the challenge of rustling up a response. There’s no better venue to find one than Lord’s.Defeat in Bristol provided a chastening experience for Ireland’s players•Getty Images

Form guide

England WWWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Ireland LLWWL

In the spotlight

With his reinforced bowling boot, and burgeoning confidence following a successful reintroduction to the England team on Friday, all eyes will be on Mark Wood as he attempts to back up his exertions with another telling performance. Although he was required to bowl just six overs at Bristol, it was notable how Wood grew into his spell, as he cranked up his speed and hostility with every new delivery. No one doubts Wood’s ability, or his importance to England both in this summer’s hunt for trophies and in the winter’s bid to retain the Ashes. Unfortunately, his susceptibility to injury is very much part of the package he offers. The challenge of coming through two internationals in the space of three days will be a vital indication of his readiness to lead the line at the Champions Trophy.For a fleeting five-and-a-half overs of the opening ODI, Ireland seemed to have settled into a very promising rhythm. They were 40 without loss and looking set for many more, when Paul Stirling gave himself too much room and was bowled by Wood to open the Irish floodgates. His 20 from 18 balls was a typically frustrating return from a player with talent to burn, but whose shot selection isn’t always as adept as his eye. Nevertheless, he is one of several Ireland players with intimate knowledge of the next venue – in fact, only last week, he clattered 71 from 60 balls as Middlesex racked up 341 for 5 against Sussex. What is more, he is the holder of the highest ODI score by a European batsman – his 177 against Canada in 2010. When he gets in, he has the ability to stay in.

Team news

If Rashid was a slight surprise as England’s solitary spinner in Bristol, he more than justified his selection with five skilfully worked wickets, as Ireland’s blind spot for legspin was ruthlessly exploited once again. Morgan had justified Rashid’s selection ahead of Moeen Ali by pointing out his ability to turn the ball both ways, which made him a more versatile weapon for the short boundaries in the first ODI. That aspect is less applicable at Lord’s, but he surely won’t be left out now.England: (probable) 1 Jason Roy, 2 Alex Hales, 3 Joe Root, 4 Eoin Morgan (capt), 5 Jonny Bairstow, 6 Sam Billings, 7 Adil Rashid, 8 David Willey, 9 Liam Plunkett, 10 Jake Ball, 11 Mark WoodIreland played the extra batsman at Bristol, but that didn’t exactly pay dividends, as they crumbled to 126 all out in 33 overs. The question is whether to stick or twist – keep the same balance in the hope that they’ll come up with the goods now that they’ve got their stage fright out of the way, or reinforce their bowling in a bid to rein in England’s ambitions. They may be forced into a change, with John Anderson added to the squad as cover for Niall O’Brien, who has a finger injury. Though Peter Chase provided a crumb of comfort with all three wickets at Bristol, it’s hard to see England’s batting line-up easing off the accelerator as they head for their most familiar venue. Ireland will simply have to keep up.Ireland: (probable) 1 William Porterfield (capt), 2 Paul Stirling, 3 Ed Joyce, 4 Andy Balbirnie, 5 Niall O’Brien (wk), 6 Gary Wilson, 7 Kevin O’Brien, 8 Stuart Thompson, 9 George Dockrell, 10 Tim Murtagh, 11 Peter Chase

Pitch and conditions

A brighter day is in prospect but cloud cover is still anticipated and that tends to be a more significant factor at Lord’s than the pitch, which is invariably flat and run-laden.

Stats and trivia

• England have had a mixed record in their recent ODIs at Lord’s. In their last 12 matches dating back to 2009, they have won just three, although that does include their most recent, a four-wicket win against Pakistan last August.
• Kevin O’Brien, who did not bowl in Bristol, but claimed seven wickets in his previous two ODIs against Afghanistan, needs three more to reach 100 ODI wickets.
• Joe Root, who finished unbeaten on 49 at Bristol, has scored 240 runs for once out in his last three ODIs, following scores of 90* and 101 against West Indies in Antigua in March.

Quotes

“You don’t become bad players overnight. It was one bad game, one bad day at the office.”
“It was probably up there – I’ve had a couple of other performances as well. I hope I can now carry it on into the summer.”

If West Indies win in Nagpur, they’re through to the last four of the World T20 and South Africa’s journey there becomes that much harder

The Preview by Firdose Moonda24-Mar-2016

Match facts

Friday, March 25, 2016
Start time 1930 local (1400 GMT)2:07

Match Day – Drop Abbott or Rabada, play Phangiso

Big Picture

It has been talked up as the fixture that will decide Group 1, making the match-up between South Africa and West Indies perhaps the most intriguing of the group so far.West Indies hold the aces after two wins from their opening two matches. A third will see them take control of the group and set themselves up to top it, with only Afghanistan left to play. It will also guarantee them a semi-final berth.South Africa remain far away from such safety. Defeat to England means that even after beating Afghanistan, they still have to deal with the two most recent champions if they are to ensure advancement. On paper, South Africa should not be too anxious of the West Indian challenge, but we all know the saying about where sport is actually played.In sharp focus will be the contrasting approaches of these two sides. Well-planned South Africa take on carefree West Indies, perhaps the last people they want to see when under pressure – it means South Africa have to think of what they can expect and what they can’t from a West Indies side that thrives on the spontaneous. Already, one of South Africa’s strategies – to use JP Duminy to bowl more – has been spoiled because Duminy is injured. West Indies don’t even have that worry after Chris Gayle’s injury scare passed.For both sides, this may be their toughest test before the knockouts. As such, whoever wins this may become favourite for the title.

Form guide

South Africa: WLLLW (last five completed games, most recent first)
West Indies: WWWLL

In the spotlight

With spin set to take centre-stage Imran Tahir and Samuel Badree could be game-changers, albeit in different ways. Badree has opened the bowling against England and Sri Lanka, against whom he was both container and destroyer-in-chief, while Tahir tends to be held back for when the fielding restrictions are lifted. Both times, he has been successful in pulling back opposition from fast starts but they may not get off to those if he is used earlier on.Should South Africa be pondering any experimentation in the PowerPlay, then Nagpur will be the venue and West Indies the team to do it against. Unlike Mumbai, where South Africa conceded 89 and then 64 against England and Afghanistan respectively, things will slow down at VCA and West Indies already seem to like it that way. They’ve scored 55 and 39 in their previous two PowerPlays but, importantly, have only lost one wicket in each to ensure they stick to a more traditional approach of keeping firepower for the end.

Team news

JP Duminy’s injury-enforced absence means the balance of South Africa’s side will be affected. They will have to bring in a batsman to replace Duminy in the middle-order with Rilee Rossouw and Farhaan Behardien competing for the spot, but they will also need to make room for an extra spinner. Aaron Phangiso should make his first international appearance in five months, at the expense of either Chris Morris or David Wiese. Kagiso Rabada will have to lead the attack if Dale Steyn continues to sit out.South Africa: 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 Faf du Plessis (capt), 4 AB de Villiers, 5 Rilee Rossouw/Farhaan Behardien 6 David Miller, 7 David Wiese/Chris Morris, 8 Kyle Abbott 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Aaron Phangiso 11 Imran TahirChris Gayle has been declared fit to face South Africa after tweaking his hamstring in the Sri Lanka match, which should see West Indies go in with the same XI as they used for that game.West Indies: 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Johnson Charles, 3 Andre Fletcher, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Dinesh Ramdin (wk), 6 Andre Russell, 7 Dwayne Bravo, 8 Darren Sammy (capt), 9 Carlos Brathwaite, 10 Samuel Badree, 11 Sulieman Benn

Pitch and conditions

The pitch is under severe scrutiny after the qualifying round was played on a sluggish surface. The ball struggled to reach the bat and there was significant turn, which was also evident during the India-New Zealand clash. On Wednesday, two days before this match, the ICC’s pitch consultant Andy Atkinson oversaw preparations, with game-strip moving to an adjacent surface to the one the first round and the opening match of the Super 10s were played on. The new surface has been watered recently and has more grass, so is expected to hold together better, which could mean the spinners may not play as much of a starring role they were being primed for. That does not mean it will be easy-going and South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo’s assertion that the batsmen will have to “earn the money” will still hold, especially in hot, humid conditions.

Stats and Trivia

• South Africa have the historical advantage over West Indies. They have won six of the nine T20Is played between them. But West Indies have enjoyed more recent success. They claimed the series against South Africa in January 2015
• The first of Chris Gayle’s two T20I hundreds was scored against South Africa, in September 2007. The second came at this tournament, against England
• Hashim Amla is 49 runs away from becoming the fourth South African to 1,000 T20I runs

Quotes

“I’ve said it many times, once we do what we do well, we are a force to reckon with. We are very destructive. We’ve doing just the basic things well.”
“[When] you peak at the right time, that’s when you win tournaments. When it happens the other way around, you generally fall out in those [big] games. As a team, we’ve been possibly going at 60-70% for a while and I’m hoping that we’ll step up a gear when it comes to crunch time.”

Duncan Fletcher, India’s head coach, will join India A on their tour of South Africa, where they will compete in two unofficial four-day Test matches

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Aug-2013Duncan Fletcher, India’s head coach, will tour with India A for both of their unofficial four-day Tests in South Africa. The two matches are scheduled to be played in Rustenburg between August 17 and 20, and Pretoria between August 24 and 27. India A recently won a one-day tri-series also featuring A teams from Australia and South Africa.Cheteshwar Pujara, the India A captain, was optimistic about his side’s chances ahead of the two Tests. “Winning the ODI series has given us a confidence boost going into the four-day series,” Pujara said. “We played really well throughout that series, except for a couple of close games against Australia that we lost.”South Africa A had an indifferent ODI series, finishing bottom of the table with just one win in four matches. Their captain, Justin Ontong, said it was vital that his team regrouped and moved on.”We had a disappointing ODI series but in saying that I still think we played good cricket,” Ontong said. “It was particularly hard for the bowlers on those sort of decks, but I think we took a lot of lessons from that experience.”We are in a very good space as a unit,” he said. “Our four-day disciplines are where we want them to be. We are encountering new opposition, so it is a new challenge for us, and also a new opportunity for players to put in some noteworthy performances.”Both captains expect dry, bowler-friendly conditions, a change from the placid pitches at the LC de Villiers Oval in Pretoria that produced tall totals in the one-dayers. “If it turns, it will be helpful for us because we are used to playing in turning conditions,” Pujara said. “But let’s see how it will turn out. We know conditions in South Africa normally suit the fast bowlers. We will have a better idea of our playing XI once they have trained in the conditions.”Ontong, who is better acquainted with the local wickets, said, “We know this type of wicket is different from the HPC (Pretoria) wicket. As a batsman, you are never in. The seamers and spinners are always in the game. It’s going to be a huge challenge for the batsmen to construct their innings and put on big scores. Patience is going to be the key.”

West Indies need 71 runs with six wickets in hand to wrap up their Test series against New Zealand 2-0, but they will hope that the tropical storm Ernesto gives them enough time to knock off those runs

Subash Jayaraman in Jamaica05-Aug-2012West Indies need 71 runs with six wickets in hand and two full days to go to wrap up their Test series against New Zealand 2-0, but they will hope that the tropical storm Ernesto, expected to hit Jamaica on Sunday, gives them enough time to knock off those runs. After lashing the Windward Islands over the past few days, affecting Barbados, Dominica, St Lucia, St Vincent, Martinique, Guadeloupe, and the Grenadines, Ernesto is making its way towards Jamaica, and is expected to bring rains and heavy gusts of wind on days four and five.As Ernesto moves towards the western Caribbean, “a region with lower wind shear and warmer water temperatures”, it is expected to strengthen further. High winds, rain and thunderstorms are predicted for the Kingston area for Sunday and Monday. Some locals say there haven’t been elaborate emergency procedures put in place, which could suggest they are not expecting the full fury of a hurricane, but it is still likely to bring rains, putting play in serious doubt.The weather was perhaps at the back of Chris Gayle’s mind when he started the chase of 206 with a first-over six. West Indies took 19 off the first two overs, but Trent Boult and Tim Southee sent back the openers to slow the charge. Although Marlon Samuels, centurion from the first innings and the one batsman who seemed to be at ease on this pitch, got another rapid start, New Zealand were able to apply the brakes on the scoring again with two further wickets.Only 79 came off 31 overs in the last session of the day. If the weather does deny West Indies a win, they will be left wondering whether they could have been more urgent in that phase, coming close enough to the target by stumps on day three so as to be able to ask for the extra half hour to finish the game.

Sri Lanka and Australia are likely to have the DRS only for the Test-leg of the upcoming tour because of a shortage of cameras required for the minimum technology standards

Sa'adi Thawfeeq24-Jul-2011Sri Lanka and Australia are likely to have the DRS only for the Test-leg of the upcoming tour because of a shortage of cameras required for the minimum technology standards. Only one of five necessary cameras are available as the other four are being used in the ongoing Test series between England and India.”We are in touch with the ICC and the Australian company that is handling the equipment to try and make the technology available from the Twenty20 International, but the hitch is that they don’t have sufficient cameras,” said Upali Dharmadasa, Sri Lanka Cricket’s interim chairman.It was initially reported that SLC were not going to use the DRS because of financial constraints but Dharmadasa cleared up that confusion. “We were made to understand that the DRS became mandatory from October 1, 2011, but when I spoke to ICC CEO Haroon Lorgat, he told me that the DRS was mandatory at the end of the ICC meeting in Hong Kong on June 30. So we decided to go ahead with it.”We told him that SLC had not budgeted for the use of DRS for the series, and if the ICC could help us in some way to cut down the costs, it would be helpful. Mr Lorgat promised to assist us in whatever way he could.”Dharmadasa said Sri Lanka were keen to have ball-tracking technology also included in the DRS, a technology that is not being used in the ongoing England-India Test series.Australia begin their tour of Sri Lanka with a Twenty20 international in Pallekele on August 6.
The Test series between England and India ends on August 22, when the Sri Lanka-Australia five-ODI series also concludes. The three-Test series starts in Galle on August 31.

Allrounder Julia Chibhabha, sister of Zimbabwe batsman Chamu Chibhabha, returns to the women’s national squad for the Women’s World Cup Regional Qualifiers to be held in Kenya in December

Cricinfo staff11-Aug-2010Allrounder Julia Chibhabha, sister of Zimbabwe batsman Chamu Chibhabha, returns to the national squad for the Women’s World Cup Regional Qualifiers to be held in Kenya in December. The tournament will include the hosts and Zimbabwe along with Uganda, South Africa and Tanzania.”There have been no major changes in the line-up, apart from the return of Julia Chibhabha into the squad,” Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) Women’s Cricket Coordinator, Caroline Nyamande, said. “The franchises have done well working with the players, the ladies have played more cricket in the last eight months and selectors had a tougher time choosing the squad not only because of increased number of candidates but the swell of competitive players.”ZC introduced the country’s first inter-franchise women’s age-group competitions in March, starting with the Under-13 category to the senior levels.Squad: Sinikiwe Mpofu, Nonhlanhla Nyathi, Ashley Burdett, Chipo
Mugeri, Pellagia Mujaji, Julia Chibhabha, Christabel Chatonzwa, Monalisa Chimutashu, Sharyce Saili, Nyasha Gauzeni, Precious Marange, Ashley Ndiraya, Sarah Dambanevana, Thandolwenkosi Mlilo, Sharne Mayers.