The method and the man – how Suryakumar Yadav does what only he can

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Knowing his game, a lot of training, and being a step – or three – ahead of the bowler are the secrets to Suryakumar Yadav’s success

Hemant Brar08-Jan-20234:14

Hardik Pandya: ‘Today it felt like Sri Lanka versus Surya’

Knowing his game inside out
Suryakumar made his T20I debut at the age of 30. By then, he had already played 170 T20s – the most for any player before representing his country. While not getting the call must have been frustrating, his passion for the game kept him going. In his own words, wherever he played, he tried to put up a show.A delayed debut made him hungrier, but it was the time he spent playing domestic cricket and the IPL that helped him know his game well. He has a T20I career strike rate above 180, but you rarely see him trying to muscle the ball. He knows his strength is timing the ball, and he relies on that to score his runs.Related

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“You don’t have to tell him anything,” Hardik Pandya said after Saturday’s game. “He is always clear about his plans and that’s the reason he is successful in this format; he doesn’t doubt his ability.”In the first T20I, Suryakumar was caught at short fine leg when he failed to execute a scoop. The same shot brought him more than 28% of his runs on Saturday. During the innings break, he was asked about his innovative shots, and if he premeditates them. “Yes, a few shots are predetermined,” he replied, “but these are all my shots, which I have been playing since the last one year.”Quick off the blocks
In 43 T20I innings, Suryakumar has three hundreds, and all three have come while batting at No. 3 or lower. No other non-opener has scored that many T20I centuries. A big reason behind Suryakumar’s success is that he hardly takes any time to get into his groove; a six off his first ball in international cricket was perhaps a foretelling of the future.His first-ten-balls strike rate in T20Is is 154.55. Among batters from Full-Member nations, only Marcus Stoinis (172.73) and James Neesham (156.82) are quicker off the blocks (minimum 100 balls). However, Stoinis and Neesham mostly bat at No. 5 or lower, where they are expected to throw their bats around straightaway. Suryakumar, batting at No. 4 or sometimes at No. 3, doesn’t always have that freedom.But his quick starts mean he doesn’t really have to play the catch-up game. That’s why each of his centuries have taken fewer than 50 balls. In fact, eight of his 16 50-plus scores have come at a strike rate of more than 200. The slowest of those – 51 off 36 in the second T20I of this series – came at 141.66.

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360-degree wrists
Everyone knows Suryakumar can play shots all around the park. What allows him to play that 360-degree game is his 360-degree wrists. He can open them to carve a full delivery over deep third, or close them to scoop the same ball over fine leg.On Saturday, he was most destructive over the fine-leg region, smashing 32 off six balls with the help of two fours and four sixes. He also picked up seven runs off two balls to deep third, including a six.”The boundaries behind [the stumps] are actually 59 to 60 metres, so I just try to clear them,” he explained. While he mentioned he was still trying to master that six over deep third, his ability to clear the fine-leg boundary is unmatched.Since his T20I debut, he has hit 27 sixes over fine leg. The next best in that period is Mohammad Rizwan with 13. Suryakumar was in control of 25 of those 27 sixes, which means only two came via a top edge. As he said, those are indeed his shots.3:41

Maharoof: ‘If the bowler has plan A, Suryakumar has plan B and C already lined up’

One step ahead of the bowler
On ESPNcricinfo’s T20 Time Out show, former Sri Lanka allrounder Farveez Maharoof said that if a bowler has plan A in place, Suryakumar has plan B and plan C already lined up. The batter, too, spoke along the same lines after the match.”There are a few strokes that are predetermined,” he said, “but, at the same time, you got to have other shots as well in your armoury, because if the bowler bowls some other delivery, then you also have to be ready with other strokes.”He also tries to figure out from the field what a bowler might do next, and uses the field to his advantage. At times, instead of aiming for a six, he is happy to time the ball over extra cover or mid-off for a four, as there’s inherently less risk in that. At the death, when fast bowlers generally have the fine leg inside the 30-yard circle, he uses the scoop to pick up the boundaries.ESPNcricinfo LtdPreparation makes perfect
The frequency with which he is playing these innings can mislead viewers into thinking it’s easy. It is anything but. A lot of work goes on behind the scenes.”I think it’s really important to put pressure on yourself when you are preparing for the match,” he said. “What you do in your practice sessions, what process and routines you follow is very important. If you put a lot of pressure on yourself when you are practising, then it gets a little easier in the game.”Of course, there’s a lot of hard work involved, but at the same time you got to be doing some quality practice as well. At the end of the day, you should know what your game is and how you are going to get your runs.”Later, in a chat with Rahul Dravid on , he said: “During the net sessions, I only try to hear the sound [of the ball] off the bat, [to know] if I am hitting the ball well. I set [imaginary] fields for myself whenever a bowler is bowling, and try to time the ball as much as possible. And if I am happy with the sound off the bat, even if it has been only ten minutes, I come out of the nets.”Fitness and family support
Dravid narrated an incident from two years ago when Suryakumar took the Yo-Yo test at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru and “dived to get across the line” instead of running all the way through.”That was actually the turning point,” Suryakumar said when Dravid asked him about his fitness journey. “After I got married, my wife has been pushing me really hard in terms of nutrition, in terms of staying fit. We talk about cricket a lot when I go back home, and we discuss how we can get better, how we can be one step ahead at this level, and we really enjoy doing that.”My family has played the most important role in my cricketing journey till now. They have sacrificed a lot. When I started, they were the ones who helped me. In my family, there’s no history of sports. My dad is an engineer. So I had to be a little different for him to see a spark in me and push me.”

In Indore, a slice of cricket history is relegated to the sidelines

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

On the eve of the third India-Australia Test, our correspondent visits a forgotten venue that once hosted the likes of Tendulkar and Botham

Karthik Krishnaswamy01-Mar-2023Every Sachin Tendulkar fan has a list of favourite Tendulkar shots that excludes the obvious candidates – no Shoaib uppercut, please – and is painstakingly curated to show the breadth and depth of their Tendulkar fixation. Mine includes a front-foot late cut from an innings of 139 in an ODI against Australia in 2001. During the course of that innings at Indore’s Nehru Stadium, Tendulkar became the first batter to reach the 10,000-run mark in ODIs.I can summon up nearly every frame of this shot in my mind’s eye, but memory is a tricky thing. I can tell you how this shot was actually three shots in one, a moment of improvisation born of two changes of mind in one delicious instant: a premeditated lap-sweep morphing into a push through cover point before morphing again, with a miraculous twirl of the wrists, into a deft slice past the keeper’s right glove.I can tell you all this, but I had no recollection, until I began writing this piece, of who the bowler was. Mark Waugh? Ian Harvey? YouTube tells me it’s Damien Martyn bowling his occasional medium pace. Yes, of course.I’m watching this innings now because it’s the eve of another India-Australia match in Indore. This match, however, will be played not at the Nehru Stadium but at the newer, larger, purpose-built Holkar Stadium.All these years later, Indore’s Nehru Stadium is a relic of a time when a number of Nehru Stadiums across India – multi-sport facilities maintained by municipal corporations and leased out to sports associations – hosted international cricket regularly. From 1956 – when Vinoo Mankad and Pankaj Roy put on 413 for the first wicket against New Zealand at the Corporation Stadium in Madras (now the Nehru Stadium in Chennai) – to 2014, six Nehru Stadiums and one Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium combined to host 61 international games.A departure from Nehru in more ways than one, that 2014.A statue of CK Nayudu stands outside Nehru Stadium. A new one was inaugurated by Rohit Sharma and Steven Smith at the Holkar Stadium•Karthik Krishnaswamy/ESPNcricinfo LtdIndore’s Nehru Stadium hosted nine ODIs, the last of them the 2001 game that featured that Tendulkar late cut. Ian Botham once smashed a 48-ball hundred here, in a first-class match against Central Zone during England’s 1981-82 tour of India.Walking around the ground now, it’s impossible to picture Tendulkar or Botham ever having played here. The entire outfield, including what must have been the square, is dry earth that’s crumbly in patches and cracked in others, with barely a tuft of grass.Cricket endures, nonetheless, though not of the kind that’s covered on this website. A pitch is being rolled out, well off centre, and a group of boys in cricket whites are practising near one edge of the outfield.Most of the seating is uncovered concrete terraces, and the pavilion is a modest, utilitarian structure with a corrugated concrete roof. It isn’t without charm, though. There are broad swathes of ochre and blue as well as little touches of indigenous architectural flair that modern stadiums often lack. The outer windows, for instance, feature latticework that tussles playfully with the sunlight.There are nods to history too. You enter the pavilion through a gate named after the swashbuckling Mushtaq Ali. And right outside the stadium is a public park with two notable bits of sculpture.One is a statue of CK Nayudu, India’s first Test captain. It’s hard to say with any certainty what shot it depicts. Is Nayudu shouldering arms? Or has he picked the spinner’s length in a flash and rocked back and across to cut or maybe pull? Whatever shot it may be, it’s a statue of a cricketer playing cricket – the new one at the Holkar Stadium has him decked up in colonel’s regalia.The other is the Vijay Balla (Victory Bat), a giant bat commemorating India’s Test-series wins in the West Indies and England in 1971. It features the names of the players who went on the two tours, all in the Devanagari script, and the captain’s jaunty autograph, in English: Ajit Wadekar.The Vijay Balla has weathered storms, both physical and metaphorical•Karthik Krishnaswamy/ESPNcricinfo LtdThree years after the bat went up, an irate mob defaced it, a reaction to 42 all out and every other misfortune that befell India on their 1974 tour of England. Wadekar never captained or played for India again.The Victory Bat shows no signs of the defacement now. Instead, it wears a faint and by no means unattractive network of surface cracks, like a Test-match pitch on a fifth morning that begins with all four results still possible. A monument to a monumental achievement, weathering the passage of time with grace.But what’s old and what’s new can be hard to pin down in Indore. The Nehru Stadium was built in 1964, a year after the remarkable Nayudu played his last first-class match – for the Maharashtra Governor’s XI against the Maharashtra Chief Minister’s XI – at the age of 68. His opponents in that game included a 22-year-old Wadekar.Nayudu never played at the Nehru Stadium, but he played 27 first-class matches at the Yeshwant Club Ground from 1935 to 1953. The old Yeshwant Club Ground occupied a patch of land that partly coincided with what is now the Holkar Stadium. The pitch on which Nayudu and Mushtaq batted is said to have occupied a space that’s now a lane between the new stadium and the Indore Tennis Club, which abuts the Yeshwant Club.Time, like Tendulkar’s late-cutting wrists, traces complex paths in Indore.

Tamim Iqbal slips out the side door after rare taste of English hospitality

by h716a5.icu Uncategorized

That Tamim is unlikely to play in England again is indicative of his side’s treatment by the big teams

Andrew Miller15-May-2023The cry went up from the stands. “Tamim! [Thump, thump, thump] Tamim!”It was the sound of an adoring, optimistic, expectant public – the type that Tamim Iqbal has taken in his stride throughout his 16 years as a Bangladesh cricketer. Despite being made up of an overwhelmingly England-based crowd, the passion was as fervent as you might have expected for a day-night fixture at Mirpur, and afterwards, Tamim’s delight at his side’s thrilling five-run victory over Ireland reflected the true sense of occasion they had lived through.But then, as he addressed the impact that the crowd had had in an entertaining 2-0 series win, Tamim let slip a moment of candour that rather stopped the attending media in its tracks.Related

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“The support here is always special,” he said. “I am not sure if I will be playing in England again. We don’t have any matches scheduled here for the next three or four years. Probably this was my last game here, so I really enjoyed it.”There was not a word of hyperbole in Tamim’s statement, but it was a jarring admission of career mortality nonetheless – and one that deserves, to judge by the euphoric scenes that accompanied his team’s performance, to be accompanied by a huge dollop of administrative regret.For if ever there was a player who embodied the youth, optimism and potential of Bangladesh, it is Tamim. Self-evidently, he has evolved as a cricketer and a character since he burst onto the international scene at the 2007 World Cup: as much than anything, it has been his duty – alongside his fellow veterans, Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim – to develop the worldly wisdom that simply did not exist until they (and others alongside them) had grown into the job. And to that end, it was a somewhat downbeat 69 from 82 balls in this latest ODI, Tamim’s first half-century in 10 innings, that underpinned his side’s series-sealing win at Chelmsford.But in the mind’s eye, Tamim could still be that fearless 17-year-old, skittering down the track to Zaheer Khan at Trinidad, and slapping him for one of the most preposterous sixes of a century that has since been over-run with them. Or he could be that ebullient 21-year-old, leaping in joy and triumph at Lord’s in 2010, while signalling for the dressing-room to etch his name onto the Lord’s Honours Boards, after carting Tim Bresnan into the MCC members for a stunning 94-ball hundred.Or he could be the kid who, a week later at Old Trafford, repeated the dose with arguably an even more extraordinary performance – a run-a-ball hundred in the second Test, where his fellow opener Imrul Kayes made 36 and no other batter managed more than 11.

“We don’t have any cricket here in the next three or four years. I did something special in my first tour here. This being my last tour, I wanted to do something special. I couldn’t do it, but it was nice to get some runs to make it a memorable occasion”

Tamim would only have been human had he over-reached in attempting to live up to such standards on his next visit to England for the Champions Trophy in 2017, but not a bit of it. Consecutive innings of 128 and 95 against England and Australia set the agenda for his team’s unlikely qualification for the semi-finals, and though Bangladesh were never really in the running for the World Cup knockouts two years later, three wins in eight completed fixtures – including the scalps of South Africa and West Indies – was no disgrace.But then, without warning, the tale of the tape ends. Four more years have since elapsed, and now suddenly, with a century there for the taking at Essex’s County Ground, a skied slap falls into the hands of Ireland’s Craig Young at short third man, the fans cease their chanting as one in that familiar inhalation of the ground’s atmospherics, and Bangladesh’s most evocative batter takes leave of perhaps his favourite overseas stage for what he understandably expects will be the very last time.”I was a bit disappointed,” Tamim admitted afterwards. “I should have continued from that position. I would have been really happy if I could have made it big today. When you have a long career, you will see lots of ups and downs. I wasn’t at my best in the last two or three series. But I always had the belief that I was one game away [from coming back to form].”It is quite sad, definitely,” he added. “We don’t have any cricket here in the next three or four years. I did something special in my first tour here. This being my last tour, I wanted to do something special. I couldn’t do it, but it was nice to get some runs today to make it a memorable occasion.”Irrespective of the efforts that Essex made to ramp up the occasion this past week, should we not feel a bit robbed that such a box-office competitor has been limited to such a meagre handful of stage-seizing moments in England?Tamim celebrates getting to fifty•Andrew Miller/ESPNcricinfo LtdTo draw a parallel with another teenage Asian prodigy who lived up to his youthful billing, Sachin Tendulkar played 43 matches in England compared to Tamim’s 23, but of those, 33 came in the course of five separate bilateral tours between 1990 and 2011, during which the English public were able to track his evolution from woolly-haired wunderkind to grizzled behemoth. Tamim, by contrast, owes his record in England almost entirely to their hosting of three ICC tournaments in 2009, 2017 and 2019, and now this Ireland stop-over. Bilaterally speaking, Bangladesh have not been invited since Tamim’s Cricketer of the Year-winning exploits, 13 long years ago.Incidentally, at Bristol on the ODI leg of that tour, Bangladesh pulled off their first-ever win over England after 20 consecutive losses, since when the head-to-head has been level-pegging at P18 W9 L9. At the precise moment, therefore, that the team shed the callowness that had undermined its early relevance as an international team, England more or less gave up on Bangladesh as opponents – notwithstanding a pair of memorable losses at consecutive World Cups in 2011 and 2015, the second of which effectively kick-started the revolution that won the subsequent event.And so it could be that a mighty campaigner has just slipped out of England’s side door, accompanied by an enthusiastic knot of Bangladeshi journalists and serenaded by a packed and sun-baked houseful of fans, but virtually unheralded by the UK media – as if providing cricket’s own answer to that philosophical question about oaks falling in deserted forests.And if that is the case, then perhaps there’s a fitting irony to the identity of his farewell opponents. Ireland versus Bangladesh is, after all, a match-up with an infamous place in cricket’s modern history – had it not been for that innings at the 2007 World Cup, and Ireland’s near-concurrent exploits in Jamaica, India and Pakistan would have met as anticipated in their Super Eights clash in Barbados, and the cards of their conquerors might never have been marked to the same extent.Notwithstanding Ireland’s subsequent attainment of Test status, the reluctance of the game’s established nations to share the limelight has been palpable ever since. And the career of Tamim Iqbal, though formidable in its own right, has been denied a return to the stage on which he briefly shone like few batters before him.

Pepper adds the spice in enterprising Essex's title charge

by h716a5.icu Uncategorized

Essex have lost more wickets than anyone else in the Blast but their batters just keep coming

Alan Gardner14-Jul-2023There are three things that it is worth knowing about Essex’s 2023 Vitality Blast campaign. The first is that they squeezed through to the quarter-finals with their last hit of the group stage, as Feroze Khushi’s cow-corner slog was carried over the rope by Chris Jordan to secure a three-wicket win against Surrey. Even then, progress wasn’t confirmed until Kent lost at Somerset later that night.The second and third are linked, and tell you a bit about that dramatic finish at The Oval. No team has gone harder from the start of their batting innings than Essex, a powerplay run rate of 10.30 more than half a run per over above the next team on the list. And similarly, no team has lost more wickets in this year’s Blast. You can land your punches but Essex just keep coming.It may not the perfect strategy, but it clearly suits a group of cavalier young players balanced out by a few senior heads. In that Surrey game, for instance, Essex lost a wicket from the second ball of their chase of 196, then freewheeled along at more than 12 an over until the departure of Dan Lawrence in the 12th; from which point they lost 6 for 48 to put the result back into the balance right up until Khushi’s finisher.Leading the way in a line-up that clearly likes to buckle its swash is Michael Pepper, who powered the Oval chase alongside Lawrence with 75 off 39 balls. A 25-year-old who styles himself on AB de Villiers and speaks with a similar, though less-pronounced, twang – Pepper was born in the UK to an English father and South African mother – he has been Essex’s leading run-scorer in each of the last three editions of the Blast. Over the last two summers, he has 830 T20 runs at a strike rate of 168.35. Only one player has scored as heavily at a quicker rate – Somerset’s Will Smeed (900 at 169.17).Related

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“It’s definitely fearless cricket, just trying to take the game on as much as you can,” Pepper tells ESPNcricinfo. “Always looking to be positive and trust your instincts when you are out there, and it’s definitely helped by our batting line-up batting so deep. Literally anyone in almost the top nine or 10 can win you the game from a lot of different positions. So the fact that we have just that depth the whole way down [means] we can continue being aggressive and that’s definitely our mantra, of trying to take the game on as much as we can.”In fact, according to Daniel Sams, the Australia allrounder who is one of those match-winners down the order – and currently the most valuable player in the competition according to ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats – Essex have tried to dismantle one of T20’s most-established axioms: if you lose three wickets in the powerplay, you are likely to lose the game.”We have lost three wickets in six overs probably more than once this tournament but I’m pretty sure at least one of those games, after six overs we were still going at tens and we still won the game,” Sams says. “So I think that mentality of old – lost a few wickets and we need to hold back – doesn’t really work anyway. The buy in is, ‘Let’s just be bold, let’s be brave and just keep doing what we would do, regardless of the situation.’ Because all the situations or scenarios, that’s just a distraction from how you can best play your game.”Michael Pepper brings out his trademark reverse•Getty ImagesAs befits a team that prizes strike rate above average, Essex have been three down in the powerplay six times this season, and won three of them – including a rocky start of 31 for 4 in 4.2 overs chasing 151 at Canterbury (victory achieved with four wickets and 10 balls to spare).It is four years since Essex won their maiden T20 title with a team, again led by Simon Harmer, featuring club greats Ryan ten Doeschate and Ravi Bopara. Pepper was an unused squad member for Finals Day in 2019 but is now foremost among a clutch of players aged 22-25 – including Khushi, Robin Das and Will Buttleman – who are looking to repeat the feat. Lawrence, 26, who starred in the quarter-final win over Birmingham and is in his last season for the club having agreed a move to Surrey, will also be key, although Khushi has been ruled out of involvement due to a fractured hand.Pepper has already had a taste of the franchise world that is opening up for short-format cricketers, playing in the Hundred and Abu Dhabi T10. But he has not contemplated taking the route Smeed opted for in signing a white-ball-only contract with Somerset and hopes to attract the interest of England – and perhaps one day the IPL – through the established pathways.”I don’t like tipping myself as just a T20 player,” Pepper says. “I’m still trying to get in all the Essex teams. I’ve still got quite a heavy focus on four-day cricket, but it [T20] just seemed to be the one that’s come the most natural to me – [where I’ve] just excelled, being able to go out and express myself, playing on natural feel.”

It is also the format where he is most confident in his using wide range of sweeps, reverse-sweeps and ramps, learnt in part through playing hockey growing up, to manipulate bowlers to his advantage. “I’ve always enjoyed trying to get the field set to how I want it, trying to have a man up where I would like him and then there’s always part of the ground that I’m able to access. Then trying to get various angles and gaps in the field I can then target. [It’s] definitely very enjoyable and quite a pleasing result when it comes off for you.”That’s probably where the sweeps and ramps and reverses [come in], then get men put in those areas and obviously if they’re back it allows a lot of access and gaps for almost normal or conventional cricket shots.”It is the unorthodox stuff that catches the eye, though – such as a brutal reverse-sweep for six off Sunil Narine against Surrey. “Not many people in the world play the way that he plays with some of the shots that he does,” Sams says. “Playing all his tricks, reverse-sweeps and stuff like that, they’re just [like] a normal forward defence.”Essex will return to Edgbaston on Saturday hoping that Pepper’s pep can spice up their challenge in the first semi-final against Hampshire. They lost twice to the reigning champions in the group stage, including being bowled out for 96 chasing 215, but the approach is bound to be the same: go big, or go home early.

There's life after Bravo for St Kitts & Nevis Patriots

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

An extended scouting network, a new main allrounder, and pizza dinners are part of their roadmap as they look to get back to winning ways in 2023

Deivarayan Muthu12-Aug-2023With two titles in the past two years in the Caribbean – the 2021 CPL and the 2022 6IXTY – St Kitts & Nevis Patriots emerged as a force that could challenge serial CPL winners Trinbago Knight Riders. But with Dwayne Bravo, who had led them to that CPL title, now returning to his home franchise for this season – and Chris Gayle not in action – they are on a mission to rebuild the side with the same-old vision of winning titles.Ambati Rayudu, who recently retired from international cricket, has signed with Patriots as their marquee player, replacing South African allrounder Tristan Stubbs. Rayudu brings with him the experience of having played over 100 IPL games and won six IPL titles – the most, along with Rohit Sharma. He will join Malolan Rangarajan, the former assistant coach at Patriots who has now been promoted to head coach, replacing Simon Helmot. This is Malolan’s first stint as head coach in a T20 league but having already worked with the franchise for three years as a strategist and assistant coach, he has earned the trust of the Patriots players and the rest of the staff. He has also been part of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s support staff in the IPL.In the lead-up to the 2021 CPL, allrounder Dominic Drakes was injured and around the same time, he had to deal with the passing of someone close to him. But Malolan and Co sat down with Drakes and created a “family-like” team environment that enabled honest conversations. He ended up hitting the winning runs in the final to give Patriots their first title.Related

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Drakes, now Patriots’ main allrounder in the absence of Bravo, counts such a team environment as one of the franchise’s strengths as they prepare for the new season starting August 17.”Normally when you change a head coach, it can be a bit challenging, in terms of getting the players together,” Drakes tells ESPNcricinfo. “But Malo was here before as the assistant coach when we won, and it doesn’t feel like a big change. He was always there for the players and feels like family, so I don’t think it makes a big difference as players are used to working with him.”In all the teams, even up to date, I don’t think I’ve ever been in an environment that has been so relaxed like St Kitts. Everyone felt comfortable and that they were part of something bigger than themselves. We don’t have too many superstars in the dressing room, which is good. Anyone can have a chat with anyone at any time. It’s always good to have a situation where you feel welcome.”Having worked on his fitness and having played franchise cricket all around the world, including for Birmingham Bears last month in the T20 Blast in the UK, Drakes backs himself to bowl the tough overs, this time without Bravo.”The body is feeling good. It’s just old age (laughs), but the body feels very good at this point,” says Drakes, who missed last year’s CPL due to injury. “Bravo had a very strong influence on us and on me, for sure. He helped me a lot and passed on a lot of knowledge, so looking forward to using it on my own this year. I’m not putting pressure on myself. I think the last I played with Bravo was at the T10 and I haven’t played a lot of cricket [along with him] in the last 18 months.

“In a league where there are three IPL teams, for a non-IPL team to be the first to conduct a talent scouting camp and to have a development squad in the CPL, full marks to our owner and our management”TA Adhishwar, Patriots’ director of cricket

“Playing in the UK at the Blast was a massive help. It was a different world. When you’re playing in the CPL, you don’t have as much pressure as an overseas pro. They always look forward to the overseas pro to do well. It gives you the mentality to be there in the pressure situation, so you can take that calmness and experience going into international cricket and local franchise cricket.”Local fast bowler Oshane Thomas, who was traded in from Barbados Royals, and Afghanistan wristspinner Izharulhaq Naveed, who was signed at the draft, are among the new faces in the Patriots side for this season’s CPL. Thomas is fit again and is back to hitting speeds north of 145kph while Naveed has a deceptively quick wrong’un in his repertoire, a skill that had caught Malolan’s attention when Naveed was a net bowler at RCB in the IPL. Malolan said that the squad was constructed with a sharp focus on the batting-friendly conditions at Warner Park, where Patriots will play four of their ten league matches.”Warner Park is nothing like Chinnaswamy, if you ask me,” Malolan says. “The scores can be quite identical, higher altitude so on and so forth…But Warner Park under lights is a batting paradise and the wind plays a huge, huge factor. Day games feel like you’re playing at one venue and night games feel like you’re playing in a different venue.”Most of players we have retained and [those who have] come in like Oshane have some sort of experience playing at Warner Park. We have enough experience to understand what the conditions are there – how early you go into bowling death at Warner Park, which type of bowler to attack, how to hit into the wind and against it, small details like that. If you hit high into the air, you’re gone, you’re better off hitting flat into the wind.”Patriots had a forgettable CPL last year, when they finished second from last in the six-team league. After that season, the team management cast their scouting nets wider and set up a first-of-a kind player development camp in the CPL in April this year. Allrounder Kofi James, who had also impressed in a local Antigua T20 tournament, is among the products of Patriots’ extensive scouting.Patriots finished fifth in last year’s CPL•Ashley Allen/CPL T20/Getty Images”St Kitts is not a big island,” TA Adhishwar, the director of cricket at Patriots, says. “If you see the kind of diversity in the West Indies national team, there are a lot of players from Trinidad, Barbados and Jamaica. These three are the bigger islands which have a clear cricketing structure in place whereas St Kitts doesn’t have as much.”In the second-third year of a cycle, it’s difficult to get quality talent through a common recruitment process – be it an IPL auction or a CPL draft. The only way we can identify new talent was to go through guys who are undrafted and paying attention from grassroots cricket upwards. So we did a lot of talent scouting right from the Under-16s in the Caribbean to going up to senior cricketers. In a league where there are three IPL teams, for a non-IPL team to be the first to conduct a talent scouting camp and to have a development squad in the CPL, full marks to our owner Mahesh [Ramani] and our management.”For both Adhishwar and Malolan, the off-field activities and team bonding are as important as the on-field action.”It’s not just about creating facilities on the field, it’s also about creating that environment off the field,” Malolan says. “Dominic was one of those cricketers with whom I was able to connect, funnily off the field regarding on-field activities. He wanted to talk more about his bowling, then we met over pizza. Me, him, and Joshua Da Silva have this pizza dinner usually during the CPL. Things like that are going to be very important and I don’t think it’s any different to someone who has a nine-to-six job, and someone who is not comfortable there will put in their papers.”With Sherfane Rutherford, fresh from winning the Global T20 Canada, and with Evin Lewis coming into the CPL on the back of making the knockouts of the Zimbabwe Afro T10 league, Drakes believes that Patriots can do the three-peat this CPL.”I think we still see ourselves as champions,” Drakes says. “Winning two out of three cups in the last two years, I think anyone would take that. We didn’t have a really good showing last year [in the CPL], but if anything, we always have the belief to bounce back. Evin is in good form, Rutherford is in good form, and I think overall we’re in a good space to challenge for the title once again.”Having drifted away from West Indies’ T20I radar, Drakes, Lewis and Rutherford all have a point to prove. Impactful performances in the CPL could potentially put the trio back in West Indies’ plans ahead of a home T20 World Cup next year. They have everything to play for in this CPL.

India's thorny Centurion questions: Rahul vs Bharat, Thakur vs Ashwin

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

And will they continue with Shubman GIll at No. 3?

Sidharth Monga23-Dec-2023As India prepare to play their first Test match in five months, against South Africa at Centurion, they will have four areas of debate when they select their team. Here are their options, and what each of them offer.Top order
India have tried it once previously but for the first time in a year, and the first time away from home since January 2012, they line up for a Test match with neither Cheteshwar Pujara nor Ajinkya Rahane in their XI. While the transition away from those two seems to be complete, there are still some questions around certain roles, particularly No. 3.Related

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Shubman Gill has opened in 16 of his 18 Tests so far, and alongside Rohit Sharma in 10 of them. In the West Indies earlier this year, he dropped down to No. 3 with Yashasvi Jaiswal opening wiith Rohit. Jaiswal’s first three innings in Test cricket brought him 171, 57 and 38. In the same two Tests, Gill made 6, 10 and 29*.It leaves Gill on unsure footing: he averages 32.20 after 18 Tests and his two centuries have come on flat tracks: against Bangladesh in Chattogram and Australia in Ahmedabad in a rare home draw. KL Rahul, who batted superbly on the last tour of South Africa, can be a good fit at No. 3 but that gives him little time to recover should he take the keeping gloves too. And if Rahul doesn’t keep, it leaves India half a batter light.Wicketkeeper
Virat Kohli – assuming he rejoins the team ahead of the first Test, as expected, following his departure for personal reasons – and Shreyas Iyer are locks in the middle order as is Ravindra Jadeja. That leaves a question mark over only one remaining slot: that of the wicketkeeper. India have preferred of late to pick the better batter of the choices available to them. If they continue with that philosophy, Rahul will be starting only the second first-class match of his career as the designated wicketkeeper. If he does so, it will only be fair he is not asked to bat in the top order. If India do go with KS Bharat, either Gill or Rahul might have to make way depending on who they prefer at No. 3.Bowling allrounder
The No. 8 has always been a matter of debate when India have travelled to seam-friendly countries, and they have tended to pick Shardul Thakur ahead of R Ashwin, one of the Test greats. That seems to be the likely choice more so because there is rain forecast on the first two days of the first Test, which in Centurion means more assistance for seam and little time for the pitch to deteriorate.Fast bowlers
Jasprit Bumrah, playing his first Test since July 2022, and Mohammed Siraj are certain starters barring any fitness issues. With Mohammed Shami injured, the choice for the third seamer comes down to Mukesh Kumar, who debuted in the West Indies earlier in the year, and the uncapped Prasidh Krishna.Mukesh has the Shami-like attributes of upright seam and skiddy accuracy, but not at Shami’s pace. Prasidh brings exactly what India seemed to miss on their last tour of South Africa: Ishant Sharma-like height and the ability to hit the deck.A third option for the third quick could be Thakur but that would mean going in with two spinners.

All you need to know about the men's Under-19 World Cup 2024

by h716a5.icu Uncategorized

The 15th Under-19 men’s World Cup begins this week in South Africa; here’s all you need to know about the tournament

Abhimanyu Bose17-Jan-2024When does the 2024 Under-19 Men’s World Cup begin?
The tournament starts on January 19, with USA taking on Ireland, and South Africa facing West Indies. The final is scheduled for February 11.Where’s it being played?
South Africa are the hosts, and the games are in Potchefstroom, Bloemfontein, Benoni, Kimberley and East London. The semi-finals and the final will all be played in Benoni.Related

ICC shifts Men's Under 19 World Cup from Sri Lanka to South Africa

Uday Saharan to lead India at 2024 Under-19 World Cup

NZ's Afghan-origin legspinner Hekmat wants to be a role model

Hold on, weren’t Sri Lanka supposed to be hosts?
Indeed. This edition of the Under-19 World Cup was supposed to be played in Sri Lanka. But that was until the ICC suspended Sri Lanka Cricket in November because of extensive government interference in the board’s administration. This led to the biennial tournament being moved to South Africa, making them hosts for the third time – after 1998 and 2020.Is the format going to be the same as in the previous edition?
Not quite. There’s been a tweak in the format this time; the competition will follow the format used in last year’s Under-19 Women’s World Cup. The 16 teams will be divided into groups of four each, with the top three from each group qualifying for the Super Sixes stage, where the 12 teams will be divided into two groups of six each. The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals.However, even for the four teams that get eliminated in the group stage, it won’t be the end of the tournament. The players will get crucial playing time through playoffs to decide the positions from 13th through to 16th.How did the teams qualify?
Sri Lanka retained host qualification rights even though the tournament was moved to South Africa, and the other Full Member nations that participated in the 2022 edition also got automatic qualification. The other five teams made it through the regional qualifiers.New Zealand, who had opted out of the previous edition due to Covid-19 quarantine protocols for minors, progressed from the East Asia Pacific qualifiers. Namibia won the Africa qualifiers, while Nepal emerged on top in Asia. Scotland won the European qualifiers, while USA topped the Americas qualifying group.Luc Benkenstein (left) is one of the names to look out for in 2024•ECB via Getty ImagesAny teams playing the World Cup for the first time?
Nope. All teams participating this year have qualified for previous editions of the Under-19 World Cup. USA are the most inexperienced team, with this being their third appearance at the U-19 World Cup.Who are some players to look out for?
There’s India’s seam-bowling allrounder Arshin Kulkarni, who opens the batting. New Zealand’s Rahman Hekmat is a legspinner of Afghan origin inspired by Shane Warne and of course Rashid Khan. Pakistan’s Ubaid Shah, Afghanistan’s Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar and England’s Luc Benkenstein are just a few of the other names who may shine in the tournament.Ubaid Shah? That surname sounds familiar.
Well, that’s because Ubaid is the brother of Pakistan international Naseem Shah. And that’s not the only familiar name in the competition!Mohammad Nabi’s son and Rashid Khan’s nephew will be teaming up for Afghanistan, while Luc is the son of former South Africa batter Dale Benkenstein. Sarfaraz Khan, who had starred in the 2016 Under-19 World Cup for India, will have his brother Musheer in action this year. These are just a few of the many family connections at the 2024 Under-19 World Cup.South Africa had also hosted the Under-19 World Cup in 2020, when Bangladesh were victorious•ICC via GettyWho are the defending champions?
India won the tournament held in 2022 under Yash Dhull’s captaincy by beating England in the final. India are also the most successful team in the competition’s history, winning it five times – in 2000, 2008, 2012, 2018 and 2022.Who else has won the tournament?
Australia have won the title three times – in 1988, 2002 and 2010 – while Pakistan have clinched it twice, in 2004 and 2006. Bangladesh (2020), South Africa (2014), West Indies (2016) and England (1998) have won the tournament once each.Finally, will the matches this time have DRS?
While there will be a TV umpire for every game, DRS will not be available in the tournament.

Oscar Jackson, the criminal justice student who captains New Zealand Under-19

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

He opens up about chasing elusive title at the Under-19 World Cup, his “awesome experience” in India, pursuing a bachelor’s in criminal justice, and more

Shashank Kishore30-Jan-2024Oscar Jackson was 11 when cricket truly captivated him. A day out at the Westpac Stadium in Wellington in the summer of 2015 was his ticket to a “lifelong dream.” Nine years later, he is captaining New Zealand at the Under-19 men’s World Cup, hoping to win the tournament, something no other Kiwi team has managed to.”Watching Martin Guptill wallop that double-hundred in a World Cup game against West Indies sparked something.” Jackson reminisces with ESPNcricinfo. “The way he was hitting them out of the park, it was an amazing moment to be a part of, especially watching from the stands. It wasn’t my first memory of the game but quite an experience nonetheless.”How Brendon McCullum and Co won the hearts of an entire country had several youngsters, including Jackson, take to the game. Until then, he had grown up playing both cricket and rugby. When Jackson made his school’s first XI two years down the line, he eventually decided to pursue cricket “more passionately” than any other sport.Related

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“It was around then I realised I want to push as hard as I can for as long as I can with cricket,” Jackson says.In 2017, he had his first taste of cricket outside New Zealand when he toured India with the Hutt Hawks Cricket Club. He was part of the group alongside current New Zealand star Rachin Ravindra. Jackson remembers his time in India fondly, for he brought up his first hundred in any form of cricket on that tour, in Anantapur, a town 200 kilometres north of Bengaluru.”Went over to India with Ravi [Krishnamurthy, Rachin’s father] at the end of 2017 and it was an awesome experience,” Jackson says. “To get the opportunity was cool. It’s the kind of cricket I had never experienced before. To play against quality spin on those pitches was tough and scoring my first-ever hundred was special.”A lot of guys, me included, are grateful for Ravi for taking us on those trips. I haven’t come back to India since, but I’m really looking forward to another opportunity whenever it happens.”On Tuesday, he will play against India in a Super Six game at the ongoing Under-19 World Cup. New Zealand will have one other game against Ireland. They will likely need to win both to make the semi-final. Jackson himself has had a middling tournament, scoring a match-winning 75 against Nepal followed by scores of 26 and 12. He has also picked up three wickets with his seam-ups.Before coming on tour, he sought out Ravindra for some advice. “He’s an unbelievable guy,” Jackson says. “He’s super nice and shows genuine interest towards the youngsters coming up in Wellington. He’s very relatable. To see him make the step up from Under-19s to Wellington to the Black Caps side is very cool. He’s humble and grounded, is always looking out for the youngsters, so to be able to learn off him has been awesome.”Oscar Jackson made 75 against Nepal, followed by scores of 26 and 12•ICC/Getty ImagesJackson is equally passionate about his academic pursuits. He’s currently pursuing a bachelor’s in criminal justice from the University of Canterbury. “I love it,” he says. “It keeps me motivated in terms of balancing cricket and university. It’s tough. I play in two different cities. I’ve been fortunate to have two supportive clubs. So balancing studies, cricket, social life, friends and family – it’s tough but I am working towards getting the balance right.”What is his degree all about? “It’s sort of looking into preventing crime,” Jackson explains. “Looking to rehab those who have committed a crime, how you can help reintegrate them back into society after serving time in prison. It’s a mix of policing, studying law, and psychology. It’s a nice little mix of all those things put together. To have those in one degree is pretty cool.”Jackson plays for the Onslow Cricket Club in Wellington from November to January and represents Burnside West Cricket Club in Christchurch from February to April. Shuttling between two cities has given him the best of both worlds. More importantly, it has made him a “true allrounder.””At home, I was pretty useless,” he laughs. “Everything was done for me. You put the dish in the sink, and you see the dishwasher has done the job. You put the clothes into the washing basket and the next day the clothes come clean. So moving to Christchurch for university was a step up in terms of life skills and self-management which I took time to adjust to.

“He’s an unbelievable guy. He’s super nice and shows genuine interest towards the youngsters coming up in Wellington. He’s very relatable.”Oscar Jackson on Rachin Ravindra

“It wasn’t that hard, I wasn’t sad or anything, but yeah it was a bit of a wake-up call for me to take more ownership. That has really helped me in all facets of my life, including cricket.”Jackson also looks up to Kane Williamson for his calm demeanour, and range of strokes and he hopes to be able to discuss with the New Zealand white-ball captain one day. He likes building an innings, and lives by the mantra of “batting positively without being reckless.””I’d like to think I am naturally aggressive,” he says. “[I] take some time at the start, but look to also put pressure back on the bowlers by being dominant. I like to show good intent.”Intent the Finn Allen [another Wellington mate] way?”Nah, nah, definitely not that level,” he laughs. “He’s had remarkable success lately. His ball-striking is second to none. I’m not quite that aggressive but yes, I do give myself a chance to get in initially, play percentage shots and take it from there.”As we wind up the chat, Jackson has one simple request. Of wanting to show his gratitude and acknowledge the contributions of some key personnel in his life.”Ivan Tissera my one-on-one coach from childhood, has been a great mentor for me who has helped me technically and mentally,” Jackson says. “Our school’s first XI coach Duncan Murray was an unbelievable leader and role model on and off the field. They’ve shaped me to become the cricketer I am.”For now, he’s happy to indulge in everything – fun and serious – that teenagers do. Including cooking, playing golf and, of course, cricket.”Golf is a nice way to reset,” he says. “I don’t play it too seriously, but I put it with my mates. I love spending time outdoors, never been those indoor guys on the PlayStation or Xbox. That’s not for me. I’d rather be outdoors, playing ball, kicking or hitting the ball or teeing off. Being active outdoors keeps me going.”

Anderson's recall comes with a point to prove – even at 41

by h716a5.icu Uncategorized

England’s leading wicket-taker has the chance to put his Ashes struggles behind him in Vizag

Vithushan Ehantharajah01-Feb-2024Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls – the 22nd year of James Anderson in Test cricket gets underway on Friday.It begins at the ACA-VDCA international cricket stadium, the site of England’s second Test against India. Confirmation came through of the auspicious day on Thursday, as Ben Stokes revealed Anderson would replace Mark Wood as the lone seamer from the successful first Test in Hyderabad.”Bringing Jimmy in, we just feel like there’s a bit more I can turn to him for,” Stokes said in his final press briefing before the Test begins on Friday. “Not only his new-ball skills – reverse skills, his offcutter skills and stuff like that.”After all these years, and all those wickets, it was peculiar to hear an England captain having to justify Anderson’s selection. Spending so long as the first name on the teamsheet rendered any words laying out his case redundant. There was no need to speak about greatness for greatness’ sake, much in the same way that you wouldn’t bore someone with the history of the potato before offering them one of your McDonald’s fries.To be fair, conditions at Visakhapatnam made it necessary. England abandoned thoughts of playing two seamers after one last look at the pitch on Thursday. But the fact Wood was the man in possession, even with his extreme pace a clear point of difference, reflects that Anderson arrives into 2024 with some respect to put back on his name.A forgettable 2023 Ashes of five wickets at 85.40 puts extra focus on what’s to come. Retiring was not an option, even at 41, even as his long-term new-ball partner Stuart Broad slips seamlessly into sun-chasing commentary gigs after nailing the perfect goodbye. But an offer of a regular 12-month central contract amid a flurry of multi-year deals suggests the end is a consideration for others at the ECB.The last 12 days in India have offered some insight into Anderson’s remaining hunger. He has looked sharp in the nets, often achieving good carry on underprepared practice wickets generally catered towards the spinners. His most ferocious session was an hour-long one-on-one battle with Joe Root two days out from the first Test. At the time, it felt like Anderson was bowling to push his case for the XI. In hindsight, it was likely he was taking out some frustration on Root having been informed he had missed the cut.Anderson runs the drinks in Hyderabad•Getty ImagesAnderson ended up fairly busy in Hyderabad, often running drinks and fielding for long stints after Jack Leach sustained a knee injury at the end of day one. He fulfilled some bowling-coach duties when Wood sought his counsel, and, like a millennial desperate to seem down with the kids by jumping on the latest TikTok trend, he showed off his left-arm spin to fit in with the two selected.”It’s small things,” said Stokes when asked of how Anderson had dealt with starting the series on the periphery. “Like being 12th man when it’s hot, lads need rehydrating and we need to concentrate the whole time with guys coming on and off the field. Even guys who aren’t in the XI have a real understanding that they are contributing, albeit not physically in the game.”Even with the in-match duties, Anderson enjoyed a long bowling session out in the middle during lunch on day two. There were a few seasoned observers who noticed a ferocity that seemed to be missing last summer.Perhaps that’s not all that surprising given his last competitive match was the final Ashes Test at the Oval, back at the end of July. The intervening period has been spent devising a new run-up to add the zip he lacked last season. If the toned arms are anything to go by, plenty of hours have been spent in the gym, too.History suggests that last bit is particularly important. You have to go back to the Covid-19 pandemic for the last time Anderson had anything resembling this six-month gap in his schedule. The initial pause of the international treadmill meant he could spend a little more time on conditioning and building muscle – the kind of work that gets neglected when Test series come thick and fast because of the onus on rest and recovery from match to match.Related

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Batters could have a party on traditional Vizag pitch

It paid off then. When cricket finally resumed in 2020, Anderson finished series against West Indies and Pakistan with an average speed greater than any of the previous five summers.He would go on to suggest that extended period might have bought him an extra couple of years in Test cricket. The hope is that this one has had a similar effect. The only difference is he came into this particular break with regret.He emerges motivated, and, as ridiculous as it may seem, with a score to settle. There is no doubt he is England’s greatest, but is he England’s best?We’ll have a better handle on that in the next few days. Even on a pitch that will spin from the start, Anderson’s skills will mean he is constantly in the match, as per previous India tours. Even in a bowling attack featuring two wunderkind spinners in Rehan Ahmed and Shoaib Bashir, both born after Anderson made his Test debut in May 2003, his selection offers the most intrigue.Given the potential for Rehan, Bashir and Hartley to lose their grasp on proceedings, Anderson could end up with more than his share of overs. As England look to push on after taking the lead in this series, the veteran will assume multiple guises in multiple situations.Another year of James Anderson is upon us, and like many others, it begins with England’s fortunes resting on his brilliance and perseverance. But for the first time in about 15 years, he might also have something to prove.

Sri Lanka and Athapaththu finish 'happy' and 'smiling', South Africa have 'lots of learnings'

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

South Africa have lost nine of the 12 completed matches since the T20 World Cup last year while Sri Lanka registered first series wins against them as well as England

Firdose Moonda04-Apr-2024Chamari Athapaththu had not got to fifty in her last 11 T20 innings. She had not even reached double figures in her last five. So when she walked out to bat with Sri Lanka chasing 156 to win a series against South Africa for the first time ever and then saw her opening partner and match-winner from the previous game Vishmi Gunaratne dismissed for 1, you could say she was under some serious pressure. And that is just the way she likes it.”I love the pressure. Without pressure I can’t perform,” Athapaththu said at the post-match press conference. “And I know how to handle the pressure.”And there’s no arguing with that.Athapaththu scored 73 off 46 balls, including five sixes and shared a 97-run second wicket stand with Harshitha Samarawickrama to put Sri Lanka on track for a historic victory. But she did not take them all the way there. She was dismissed in the 13th over, with 54 runs still to get, and she had to watch a middle-order wobble before Samarawickrama hit the winning runs. Then, Athapaththu could wear what she knows looks best on her: that signature smile.Related

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“I always smile, that’s my style,” she said. “Sometimes we don’t play really good cricket, sometimes we lose, sometimes as a captain I don’t perform but I keep smiling and focus on the next game. I just want to play my natural game. I don’t want to take too much pressure on my shoulders. Just keep smiling. Keep playing.”Over the last eight months under Athapaththu’s captaincy, Sri Lanka earned a series win in England, reached the final of the Asian Games in China and have now beaten T20 World Cup finalists South Africa in their own backyard. Though she remains the leader in name and by performance, Sri Lanka are starting to achieve success through some of their younger stars.”As a captain, I am really proud of my girls. I am really happy with the youngsters, especially Vishmi and Kavisha (Dilhari) and how they batted and handled pressure in the second game,” Athapaththu said. “I also enjoyed today with Harshita. She is really young as well. The youngsters have played really good cricket in the last two games.”Vishmi Gunaratne scored her first T20I fifty and helped Sri Lanka to a win in the second game•Sri Lanka CricketGunaratne, 18, was playing in her 26th T20I when she scored her first fifty in the format and batted Sri Lanka to a series-levelling win on Saturday. She had Dilhari, who is 23 with 47 caps to her name, at the other end in that chase. Samarawickrama, 25, was unbeaten on 54 when the series was won in East London on Wednesday. Athapaththu’s point about the depth Sri Lanka are creating through their younger players bodes well for the future but they need to qualify to play in the next T20 World Cup.Later this month, Sri Lanka’s campaign to participate in the tournament will take place in Abu Dhabi, where they have been clubbed with Thailand, Scotland, Uganda and USA in Group A. They have to top the group to claim one of two spots available for the T20 World Cup which, on current form, seems likely. And Athapaththu is confident: “I don’t have any pressure on me because the other players are playing good cricket.”.Her counterpart, Laura Wolvaardt, cannot say the same. South Africa have lost nine of their last 12 completed matches since the T20 World Cup final last year and their batting fortunes are heavily dependent on her.Wolvaardt’s century in the first T20I, her first in this format, helped South Africa post their second-highest total in T20Is and record their biggest win over Sri Lanka. But Wolvaardt missed the second game with illness and though Anneke Bosch was a handy replacement at the top of the order and scored fifty, South Africa lost 7 for 47 as the middle-order collapsed. In the end, they could only post 137 for 8.Laura Wolvaardt celebrates her maiden T20I hundred•Getty ImagesSimilarly, in the third match, South Africa lost three wickets for 46 runs in the space of 44 balls. Though Nadine de Klerk put some of their issues down to “trying a few things and testing the depth of our squad,” the experienced players underperformed. Sune Luus, who scored a total of 22 runs in three innings, has not scored a half-century in her last 11 international innings across all formats and has not got past 20 in her last eight T20I knocks. Tazmin Brits only got into double figures once in the series, Chloe Tryon scored three runs in two innings and de Klerk herself is still finding her feet as a finisher.”That is a skill that I need to nail so hopefully, I can just get better and try and figure out how I’m going to be really destructive at the back-end especially with the wickets being a bit lower and slower and with the World Cup being in Bangladesh.”She also said South Africa’s approach to spin as well as their fielding needed to improve but cautioned against panicking about their preparedness for the tournament.”I won’t really say it’s a concern. This was a great opportunity to give the chance to some of our younger players,” she said. “But you also don’t want to go to a World Cup having really struggled in the T20 format. I really hope that we can take a lot of learnings and a lot of positives from these couple of games and keep finding ways to try and win games of cricket especially in the T20 format.”For now, the focus shifts to the longer white-ball game. South Africa and Sri Lanka will play three ODIs as part of the Women’s Championship, which determines qualification for the 50-over World Cup from next week. South Africa are currently second on the points table and Sri Lanka are eighth.

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