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The captain made his fourth century of the season while the legspinner wreaked havoc over the UAE batting line-up

The Report by Peter Della Penna in Abu Dhabi30-Nov-2017
ScorecardAsghar Stanikzai holds up four fingers after scoring his fourth century of the current Intercontinental Cup competition•Peter Della Penna

Asghar Stanikzai’s fourth first-class century of the season – fifth overall – was backed up by a typically incisive spell (15-6-24-3) from Rashid Khan as Afghanistan took major steps forward in their Intercontinental Cup match against UAE in Abu Dhabi.The hosts were lively at the start of proceedings with Mohammad Naveed finding seam movement to have Nasir Jamal caught behind off the fourth ball of the day. But with Afghanistan 324 for 4 and Stanikzai looking quite assured, all thoughts of a quick finish to the innings vanished.Stanikzai had moved to 89 near the end of the first hour of play when he decided enough was enough and targeted Amjad Javed, heaving the medium pacer over midwicket for six, then charging down the pitch to smash him back over his head and finally securing a single through the covers to bring him his century off 122 balls.Mohammad Nabi was equally aggressive early on but cooled off midway through his innings. His effort to dispel the pressure that was building resulted in his being out caught at long-off and Ahmed Raza picking up his second wicket. He would go on complete his fifth five-for in 20 I-Cup matches.New batsman Afsar Zazai struggled to get UAE’s spinners away as the run-rate continued to slow down heading into the lunch break. Five balls after play resumed, Stanikzai fell to Raza with a soft flick floating gently back to the bowler.With Zazai stuck in a rut at the other end, Rashid (40 off 42) brought renewed purpose to the innings as he bashed the first delivery he faced from Raza for four through the covers. While Rahmat Shah and Stanikzai regularly used their feet to score against the spinners, Rashid profited heavily from the sweep, connecting three times for boundaries behind square. It took a drinks break to trigger a lapse in his concentration as an attempted slog against Rohan Mustafa ended up a simple catch for the wicketkeeper.Raza continued to burrow through the Afghanistan tail to finish with 5 for 148 in 53 overs. Zazai hung around long enough for team management to give him an opportunity to make a half-century before declaring the innings closed on 510 for 9 at tea.Dawlat Zadran showed his class with the new ball, consistently troubling UAE’s openers with his pace if not movement. While he was applying pressure at one end, Yamin Ahmadzai struck the first blow, coming around the wicket to trap Mustafa with a delivery angled in. Chirag Suri, the 22-year-old who gained acclaim for being picked up at last year’s IPL auction, looked uncomfortable against Dawlat early, ducking into a bouncer which ricocheted off his gloves to the fine leg boundary. Dawlat continued pushing Suri back before bowling him with a fuller delivery to leave the score at 25 for 2.With both openers gone, Rashid was brought on in the 12th over to widen the breach. It only took him 10 balls to do so, trapping Rameez Shahzad lbw with a flipper. In the 26th, he set up Muhammad Usman by floating one up to be paddle swept before coming back with a quicker ball that beat the batsman defending down the wrong line.Rashid enjoyed a lovely slice of good fortune a short while later when Adnan Mufti was caught at leg slip in peculiar circumstances. The left-hander was trying to cut the ball but ended up bottom edging it onto the wicketkeeper’s boot and into Ihsanullah’s waiting hands. Though there was no third umpire for the game – despite it being televised – Ahsan Raza’s on-field call was confirmed correct by replays that followed.The several hundred Afghanistan fans in the stadium roared louder with each Rashid wicket. When stumps was called, he returned the affection by coming over to the gated fence to take selfies. After five minutes, security decided he was on the verge of creating an unmanageable scene and asked him to finish up. Unfortunately, UAE’s batting line-up has no respite.

Cricket South Africa (CSA) and its players are set for a showdown in the coming months as discussions over their MOU, which expires at the end of April, begin

Firdose Moonda28-Dec-2017Cricket South Africa (CSA) and its players are set for a showdown in the coming months as discussions over their MOU, which expires at the end of April, begin. The agreement is renegotiated every four years and has included a revenue-sharing model for the last 12 years, but CSA wants to relook at player contracts and could alter them radically.”We need to change how we contract our players. The game of cricket has evolved, the economy has evolved, but our way of doing things hasn’t really changed. That’s something I have realised isn’t really working for Cricket South Africa,” Thabang Moroe, CSA’s acting CEO said. “One of the ways we are looking to contract our Proteas is maybe by awarding Test contracts like the ECB does, and allow everybody else to be paid on pay-per-play. Ultimately all white-ball cricketers make their money playing in these (T20) leagues outside of their local programmes. By contracting Test players you have the opportunity to look after your premium players, players you would like to keep for long in the game.”When asked whether the revenue-sharing model would be re-examined, Moroe hinted that CSA’s board could consider it. “That is for the board and its members to debate. I just have a view on how a company should be run from the management point of view and how a company needs to engage with a trade union. Obviously I will be presenting my views to the board and the board will make its decision. If the board feels that’s the way they want to go, so be it. Ultimately the people that make money for cricket is Cricket South Africa, it’s not a union.”The trade union Moroe referred to is the South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA), which is yet to be informed about any possible changes to player contracts. SACA will act on the players’ behalf during the MOU discussions and though it always expect tough talks, this time it is worried about the direction CSA may be taking. “We have these negotiations every four years and it is always a hard negotiation because it is very detailed. But the noises we are hearing from CSA are concerning and goes against the spirit of how things have worked in the past,” Tony Irish, SACA CEO told ESPNcricinfo. “I would be astounded if CSA takes a confrontational approach to the talks. They should look at what happened in Australia.”Earlier this year, Cricket Australia and its players were involved in a lengthy stand-off over player contracts precisely because CA was going to scrap the revenue-share model. There were talks of a player strike and an Australia A tour to South Africa was cancelled. While Irish is asking CSA to keep the Australian situation, which was ultimately resolved when a compromise was reached that included sharing of revenue, in mind, Moroe was fairly bullish about the organisation’s stance.”We would be (wary of what happened in Australia) but ultimately CSA needs to run cricket and the trade union needs to protect their players’ rights,” Moroe said. “If CSA is trampling on peoples’ rights, the union must step in. If CSA decides to take a different direction in growing cricket, there is no room for a union there because we are not trampling on peoples’ rights, we are protecting the sport that we have been put in charge to administer.”Another aspect of the contract negotiations will include an examination of a clause which, for the last 14 years, has allowed nationally contracted players to nominate which domestic team they would like to represent. Though this has usually worked out without complications, especially since the centrally-contracted players seldom appear for their franchise teams, this season an obvious problem occurred when all internationals were available for the Ram Slam, the domestic T20 competition that was moved forward when the T20 Global League was postponed.Titans, the team that dominated the tournament and won, were loaded with South African superstars, so many that they could not fit them all into their playing XI. Big names like Dean Elgar, AB de Villiers, Quinton de Kock, Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel were rotated, which CSA felt diminished the value of the tournament.  To avoid such a situation in future, CSA is considering making changes to the contracts that will distribute the internationals more widely across franchises.”We could look to implement a draft system,” Moroe said. “We realise the importance of having the Proteas spread throughout the franchises. We were very happy with how the Ram Slam was executed, but as Cricket South Africa we feel that it could have been that much better if we had all Proteas playing at the same time in different teams.”If CSA is to take this step, it may do so without consulting SACA at all. “As far as we are concerned, the players’ association should represent players’ needs. They are a trade union ultimately; we are the employers. So as much as we would like to engage with the players’ union, we can’t do it with everything we want to execute,” Moroe said. “If our players don’t want to be drafted into different teams they will come to us first and talk to us. Failing those talks between employer and employee, they can go to their union, and then their union can come back representing a certain viewpoint. This is not about stopping the growth of cricket and how cricket can be administered in this country, so we might not even consult with SACA to be honest with you.”Irish explained that SACA would have to be involved in the debate because, “any changes to the contracting system will form part of the MOU and negotiations with SACA.” He even said that players could be open to the idea, despite several suggesting they are against it.”We will have to see it works. We don’t know what CSA’s proposal is at this stage. For almost 14 years, national players have been allowed to nominate which franchise they want to play for. We all know what happened with Titans in the Ram Slam but that was for one event. If CSA have a T20 league, then they may do a draft, as they did with the T20 Global League,” Irish said. “We will have to consider it once we know what CSA have in mind.”The problem is that CSA may not be as accommodating to SACA as Irish would like. “I come from a corporate environment. I don’t recall a union consulting me on how they want to change the business. I just got an email saying this is how we want to change direction, and this is what it means for you. My manager would call a meeting with me to say that this is how our department executes that strategy. I don’t remember a union being involved in how our company executes its strategy or the direction in which it must go. It only happens in cricket.”Irish warned that trying to change things could prove futile in the current climate. “Players have alternatives. Boards need to be able to keep their players and to keep them playing international cricket,” he said.CSA already knows that, having lost many recently capped internationals to the Kolpak system but remains adamant that its relationship with players and SACA needs to be “redefined”. The contract talks will take place this summer, when South Africa also host India and Australia and this situation could prove a distraction.

Sri Lanka must contend with Sikandar Raza’s contentment in Bangladesh conditions after his success in the BPL

The Preview by Andrew Fidel Fernando20-Jan-2018If Sikandar Raza is in outstanding form in the tri-series so far, the Bangladesh Premier League is owed a little credit. So contended his teammate, Craig Ervine, who has watched Raza top score for his side in successive games.In addition to the 52 against Bangladesh and the 81 off 67 balls against Sri Lanka, Raza has also taken three wickets with his off spin. Last month, he had struck 278 runs at a strike rate of 153.59 for Chittagong Vikings – an experience, Ervine believes, that has served him well.”He came for the BPL, did very well there, and he is very familiar with the conditions in Bangladesh,” Ervine said. “The first two games showed that he is in good form at the moment. He contributes with the bat, ball and in the field. He is a very important team member for us. I am hoping that form continues throughout the tournament.”Sri Lanka meanwhile, have struggled for form through the first round of matches, and Zimbabwe now have the opportunity to knock them out of contention for the final by winning Sunday’s match. There is reason for Zimbabwe to be confident – they have won their three most-recent ODIs against Sri Lanka, including two in Sri Lanka itself.”I am pretty sure Sri Lanka will be very keen to bounce back – they have to win the next two games in order to get to the final,” Ervine said. “I think we have the momentum between the two sides.”Part of Zimbabwe’s success against Sri Lanka has been due to their ability not merely to negotiate spin, but to score off it. Ervine is one of several top order batsmen who have used the sweep shot regularly and to good effect against Sri Lanka. That stroke was effectively the foundation of their series victory in Sri Lanka last year, and it proved invaluable again on Wednesday, when Zimbabwe defeated Sri Lanka by 12 runs.”In recent times, we have been playing spin a bit better,” Ervine said. “A lot depends on the wicket – Sri Lanka may think of adding an extra spinner instead of a seamer. But we just have to turn up tomorrow regardless of what team they pick.”

The West Indies captain sees the World Cup qualifiers as an opportunity to finalise combinations for the showpiece event in England in 2019

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Feb-2018Jason Holder has sounded the call for fans to rally round the West Indies team as they begin their campaign to earn a place in the 2019 World Cup.A team which was an automatic pick in each of the past 11 editions, back-to-back champions in 1975 and 1979, now has to go through a qualifying tournament to even take part in the ICC event. But, after expressing disappointment at such a turn of events, Holder invoked the rich history of West Indies cricket and announced that they were putting things in place to win a third world title.”All the guys are motivated and we know what’s at stake,” he said. “I see it as an opportunity for us to grab some momentum heading into next year’s World Cup, get some games under our belt, finalise our combinations, get things right and hopefully turn things around in terms of the ODI format. It’s probably one of our weaker formats and no doubt that we’ve been inconsistent. Obviously it’s something we’ve addressed and moving forward I think hopefully we should see some good performances.”West Indies made it to the quarter-final of the 2015 World Cup, but since then they have won only 8 out of 42 ODIs. Their win-loss ratio of 0.2 is the poorest out of all the teams that have played the format over the past three years.”We have put ourselves in this situation,” he told ESPNcricinfo. “We have got only ourselves to blame. We are here for a reason. Our form off late hasn’t been the best. It is a matter for us to put that behind and make things right. It is something new for us. We never had to qualify for the World Cup. It will be a new challenge. All these Associates teams tend to play fearless cricket, play quite aggressive cricket, trying to taking down the bigger nations.”Considering they are going into a qualifying tournament that entertains 10 competitors but allows only two to progress, West Indies would be pleased to have some of the big players back. Chris Gayle has come off a two-year ODI hiatus in 2017. Marlon Samuels, who has a history of saving his best for World Cups, is also back in the squad having missed their most recent 50-over assignment in New Zealand.”I must commend a guy like Chris, also a guy like Marlon, who’ve come here with that motivation to do well for West Indies and give us a chance to play another World Cup. As I said to the ground, it’s an opportunity to finish their careers well. It’s also an opportunity for guys to make a spark in their career and start their careers in the World Cup.”West Indies will be facing teams that have done well against them in the recent past. In 2017, they suffered a colossal loss to Afghanistan. In 2016, with a place in a tri-series final on the line, they were beaten by Zimbabwe. And Ireland knocked them over with ease in the last World Cup. Nevertheless Holder was confident his players will place their best foot forward.”I think everybody understands the importance of being in a World Cup,” he said. “We’ve obviously won the World Cup on two occasions and I think we’re trying to formulate our plans in terms of getting a third. We’ve done well in T20 cricket, we’ve done well in women’s cricket, Under-19 cricket, so now I think it’s about time we win another World Cup in the ODI format.”West Indies play their first match against UAE on March 6, but they have a warm-up game against Afghanistan on Tuesday.

Madhya Pradesh veteran ends 22-year career as the most-capped Ranji Trophy cricketer, and the third-highest run-scorer in tournament history

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Mar-2018Devendra Bundela, the Madhya Pradesh batsman and most capped cricketer in Ranji Trophy history, has announced his retirement, bringing to an end a 22-year first-class career. The 41-year old Bundela’s last match remains MP’s 2017-18 Ranji Trophy quarterfinal clash that was won by Delhi. Bundela breached the 10000-run mark in first-class cricket in that match.Bundela first rose to prominence as a member of the India Under-19 team that faced Australia in 1995. Shortly thereafter, he made his first-class debut against Tamil Nadu in the domestic season that year. He would go on to play 164 first-class matches in which he amassed 10004 runs at an average of 43.68, with the help of 26 centuries and 54 fifties. Bundela also struck 2299 runs in an 82-game List A career with a lone century and 13 half-centuries.Bundela, who captained MP for seven years, was an integral cog of the state’s batting order for several years, but never got the national call-up. Despite spending over two decades with the MP side, Bundela could never experience lifting the Ranji Trophy. The closest he got to doing so was when MP made the final of the 1998-99 Ranji Trophy, where they lost to Karnataka. He was, however, a prolific run-scorer during his time, his 9201 runs the third highest in tournament history, behind Wasim Jaffer and one less than second-placed Amol Muzumdar.

The Australia captain disagrees that Warner has been ostracised, says banned trio will be welcomed back if they conform to “new brand of cricket”

Daniel Brettig10-May-2018Australia’s captain Tim Paine has denied that there is a relationship barrier to David Warner’s return to the national team after his 12-month ban from the game expires next year.Warner was pinpointed by Cricket Australia as the instigator of the Newlands ball-tampering plot, and there were testy scenes in Cape Town in the days after the match, as CA’s integrity officer Iain Roy conducted interviews with a selection of players and coaching staff before code of conduct charges were laid.At the time, Warner was described as “going rogue” and being at odds with the rest of the team over what had occurred and who knew of the attempt to rough up the ball with the use of sandpaper. At the same time his stocks with CA’s management and board had sunk to a level where it looked unlikely that he could reconcile. On his return home to Australia, Warner acknowledged that his days as an international cricketer may well be at an end.”It is heart-breaking to know that I will not be taking the field with my team-mates I love and respect and that I have let down,” Warner said. “Right now, it is hard to know what comes next, but first and foremost is the well-being of my family. In the back of my mind, I suppose there is a tiny ray of hope that I may one day be given the privilege of playing for my country again, but I am resigned to the fact that that may never happen.”But in the coming weeks and months, I’m going to look at how this has happened and who I am as a man. To be honest, I’m not sure right now how I’ll do this. I will seek out advice and expertise to help me make serious changes.”A little more than two months after the saga unfolded, there has been a concerted softening of attitudes towards the suspended players, Warner included, while the former coach Darren Lehmann has been given a chance to coach young players at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane.His successor, Justin Langer, and the chief executive James Sutherland, have both suggested that there is a way back to the team for Warner, and Paine joined the chorus on Thursday by rejecting the notion that Steven Smith’s ex-deputy remained at odds with the rest of the South Africa touring party. Warner, Langer and Paine all share the same manager – Ricky Ponting’s longtime agent James Henderson.”No, he wasn’t [ostracised by the group] actually,” Paine told reporters in Hobart on Thursday. “Certainly the week in South Africa was very difficult and everyone said that, but guys in that team get along well and David is a respected member of that team and always has been. For as long as I’ve been around the team, he’s been really well-liked and really well-received by his teammates. Within our team, he’s someone with that energy and that competitiveness who we love playing with.”All three [Warner, Smith, Cameron Bancroft] are certainly going to be welcomed back into our team, if they’re prepared to toe the line with our new brand of cricket, which I know they will. I know they’ll all do the right thing and score enough runs to be back in our side and they’ll be certainly be welcomed back.Paine, who charted a new path for the national team that would dispense with the sledging and unsociable attitude to opponents that characterised most Australian sides over the past 30 years, said he had discussed the new direction with Langer. “Justin and I are certainly on the same page with the way we want it to look,” he said. “There’s just going to be a fine line between being still a really competitive, hard, Australian cricket team and being able to be a bit more respectful of our opposition and the game.”

Scotland captain Kyle Coetzer said they had “two opportunities to make more statements” ahead of the T20Is against Pakistan

Peter Della Penna in Edinburgh11-Jun-20181:26

More eyes on Scotland after England win – Coetzer

Scotland’s win over England at the Grange was not just their first ever over the “Auld Enemy”. It was also the first time an Associate country had ever beaten a No. 1-ranked side, and predictably it has reignited a debate which continues to lurk around such encounters: whether or not more teams, specifically Associates, deserve to be included in the World Cup.For a country like Scotland, the question has a double-edged sword. Yes, they want to keep hammering home the point with performances like that on Sunday to prove they belong. But the continued ignorance of global cricket administrators that results in the question constantly being asked can be exhausting.It was a hot topic after Scotland’s win, but rather than dwell on their absence from next summer’s showpiece event, Scotland coach Grant Bradburn indicated that such victories aren’t introducing much into the debate that hasn’t already been said, considering his side has also beaten Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan in the last 13 months.”It sends a message and now maybe confirms that there’s not only ten teams in the world that are reasonable cricket teams, but I think the world knew that looking at the way these guys played and the other Associate nations played in Zimbabwe [at the World Cup Qualifier],” Bradburn told ESPNcricinfo after Scotland’s six-run win. “There’s some fantastic Associate teams out there and hopefully today, if it helps the Associate cause then that’s fantastic.”I don’t think it’ll be any surprise to a lot of teams that we’ve competed well enough to stay in the game long enough and we’ve actually found a way to win the game. I don’t think it will come as any surprise because those who watched [the qualifier] have seen this team progress and personally I feel that the team were just bubbling away for a performance like that for quite some time. We got the conditions today and all of our batsmen appreciate conditions like that.”In past matches in which Associates have caused great upsets over Full Members, a constant theme has been that the underdog seized upon a good toss, bowler friendly conditions to skittle an unsuspecting opposition. Not so for Scotland. Their wins over Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe in particular came on similarly flat batting tracks, where bowlers had to work hard for wickets while a stream of runs flowed.Against England, just as impressive as Scotland’s record-breaking total of 371, the highest ever by an Associate country, was the way their bowlers defended it. After Jonny Bairstow’s 54-ball ton got England off to a rip-roaring start, Mark Watt and Alasdair Evans built the pressure that eventually sparked a collapse for England to fall from 220 for 2 in the 27th over to 365 all out.Kyle Coetzer helped Scotland to a terrific start•Getty Images

“[Our batsmen] are all free-flowing shot-makers and they have the encouragement from us and they know their skills,” Bradburn said. “You put them on a good surface like that, it doesn’t really matter who is bowling and it happened to be the No. 1 team in the world. They’re a good team and it actually makes it sweeter that they played so well too.”You mentioned Jonny Bairstow, but there’s a number of players in their order that played magnificent contributions. Moeen Ali, I didn’t think the game was in our pocket until that wicket. It was a key wicket for me. I think our guys have been brewing for awhile.”Since the match, captain Kyle Coetzer has been inundated with messages from other players and captains across the Associate world, a typical example of the bond shared by players across emerging nations. Coetzer is mindful of the fact that when they perform the way they did Sunday, they are scoring a victory not just for themselves but enhancing the reputation of all other Associates by extension.”Prior to the game various other Associate players were messaging their messages of support and good luck and then afterwards they came flooding in even more after the game,” Coetzer said during the pre-series press conference ahead of the two T20Is against Pakistan starting on Tuesday. “I think that just shows how supportive every Associate member is of each other. In actual fact there’s been plenty of members of the English team messaging well done and good luck for the future and that will show the development of the game.”The messages of support and what’s come around from everyone, I think it’s been exceptional. We always want to support the Associate game but most importantly promote cricket as a special sport.”Whatever we do is great for Cricket Scotland but it’s great for the Associate world and there’s another two opportunities to make more statements. We’ve had messages flooding in from all around the world. Yeah it’s going to do wonders for the game in Scotland but it’s going to do wonders for the Associate game. It’s going to do wonders for the world game.”As for Calum MacLeod, Sunday’s Man of the Match after becoming the first Scotsman to score an ODI century against England, the win will go down as “one of the great days for Scottish cricket”. But he wants to make sure it’s not the end of the story.”Hopefully we use it as a springboard to kick Scottish cricket on,” MacLeod said. “Hopefully it’s a clear message to everyone watching that Associate cricket is strong and Scottish cricket is strong.”You just don’t know how it’s going to pan out. We’ve been crying out for more cricket and hopefully you always got the sense before that teams might add this game on. Now I hope it can be a catalyst that teams want to come and play us when they’re over in the UK and we can have more weeks and series like we do this week.”

Colin Ingram marshalled a challenging total before Luke Wright preyed upon weak Glamorgan bowling to make Sussex the early leaders in South Group

ECB Reporters Network08-Jul-2018
ScorecardLuke Wright led by example at Sophia Gardens by striking 88 from 53 balls, as Sussex gained their second win from two games and lead the Southern Group after an impressive all-round performance.It was a battle of the captains at Sophia Gardens, with Colin Ingram top scoring with an undefeated 81 from 44 balls to take Glamorgan to a challenging 173 for 4.But Glamorgan were let down by some poor bowling, as Wright and Laurie Evans shared a match winning partnership of 123 in just 12.4 overs. “I thought we had enough, especially on a used pitch, but we came up against two batsmen in good form,” said Ingram.Needing to score at 8.6 runs an over, Wright began with a flurry of boundaries although he lost his opening partner Phil Salt in the fourth over when he attempted to pull a short ball from Michael Hogan, edged to the wicketkeeper.

Marsh worry for Glamorgan

Australia batsman Shaun Marsh is having a scan on his shoulder after an injury suffered while fielding.He fell awkwardly while trying to make a boundary save, called for medical attention and left the field immediately.
“Shaun’s a tough guy, so it’s certainly not a bruise the way he walked off holding his shoulder,” Glamorgan’s coach Robert Croft said.”So we’ll have to wait and see, but we hope the scan will be favourable to us.”

Wright then greeted Graham Wagg by driving him straight for six, followed by a rasping cover drive for four, and when Wagg was taken off after one over, he had conceded 16 runs. The Sussex captain raced to his fifty from only 33 balls, and his team were well placed at the halfway stage on 89 for 1.Wright was well supported by Evans, who also punished some indifferent bowling from Glamorgan, who bowled far too short on a good pitch, and at 109 for 1 at the end of the twelfth over, were coasting to victory.Glamorgan then suffered a setback, when Shaun Marsh, their Australian overseas batsman, dived in an attempt to stop a fierce drive from Wright, but landed on his shoulder, and had to leave the field in some pain.Sussex required 41 from the final 5 overs, but there was no respite for the bowlers as Wright drove Ingram and hooked Wagg for sixes, before holing out on the mid-wicket boundary. Evans settled the issue by striking Hogan for two sixes in the 18th over, and there were eight balls remaining when Tom Bruce struck the winning runs.Glamorgan’s innings was built around a typically aggressive innings from Colin Ingram who struck from balls, and the captain was well supported by David Lloyd, who made 33, including a straight six off Rashid Khan, who again bowled his leg spin economically and picked up two wickets.Glamorgan were 59 for 3 after nine overs, after Shaun Marsh had pulled a long hop from Jofra Archer to deep mid- wicket, Usman Khawaja mishit to deep cover, and Aneurin Donald holed out to Khan at long off.Ingram was then soon into his stride, and played Khan, who was in the same Adelaide Strikers side that won the Big Bash Australia last winter, with respect, as the Afghan spinner ended with the creditable figures of 2 for 27 from his four overs.Ingram accelerated in the final overs. Ollie Robinson and David Wiese were struck for two huge sixes over long on as 53 runs were added in the final five overs.

The former wicketkeeper has been handed charge for upcoming season along with Wilkin Mota, who will coach Mumbai Under-19s

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jul-2018Former wicketkeeper Vinayak Samant has pipped Ramesh Powar to become head coach of Mumbai for the 2018-19 season. Samant’s appointment ends a month-long fracas that first started with Sameer Dighe’s resignation in June.”I’m very glad and very happy, but at the same time I know that it’s a very big responsibility on me,” Samant said. “I’m sure that I will fulfil with very positive results. So I’m hoping my presence will benefit players as well as the association. Let’s hope for best.”Samant, Powar and Pradeep Sunderam, the former Rajasthan fast bowler, were the three shortlisted candidates formally called for interviews by Mumbai’s Cricket Improvement Committee (CIC) comprising Balwinder Singh Sandhu, Raju Kulkarni, Kiran Mokashi and Sahil Kukreja. However, the CIC also then approached former India batsman Pravin Amre to take up the vacant role even though he hadn’t formally applied for the job.Amre, who was last Mumbai coach until the 2015-16 season, is understood to have asked for time, because his involvement as batting coach with Delhi Daredevils put him in a direct conflict of interest. The final decision was taken a day after the matter was deliberated over a nine-hour long meeting in Mumbai.Samant, 45, represented Mumbai, Assam and Tripura during the course of his 16-year first-class career. His last stint as a player with Mumbai, with whom he won four Ranji Trophy titles, was in 2010. He formally retired from first-class cricket in December 2011. In all, he played 101 first-class matches and made 3496 runs at 28.19.Samant has previous coaching experience, having helmed Mumbai’s Under-23 squad for two seasons after being appointed in 2015 following Sairaj Bahutule’s resignation. Meanwhile, recently-retired allrounder Wilkin Mota was handed charge of the Under-19 side for the 2018-19 season.Mumbai, who last won the Ranji Trophy in 2015-16, have had as many as three coaches in the last four seasons. Chandrakant Pandit, who returned for two seasons, was sacked following Mumbai’s loss in the Ranji Trophy final to Gujarat in January last year.They endured a difficult 2017-18 domestic season, where they were were beaten in the quarterfinal of both the Ranji Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy, by Karnataka and Maharashtra respectively, while losing three of their four matches in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20s.

Jack Brooks gave a reminder of the qualities that Yorkshire will miss as he took four wickets against his new club

David Hopps29-Aug-2018
ScorecardAccording to psychologists there are four states of competence and as Lewis Gregory and Steven Davies struck the ball to all parts on a sunlit evening, and Somerset helter-skeltered to 374 for 8 by the close, there was little doubt among the Headingley cognoscenti which category they were minded to put the Yorkshire attack.Optimists were never going to be in the majority with Yorkshire only four points above the relegation positions – the Roses match in a fortnight could be a tense affair – but when Somerset’s openers, Marcus Trescothick and Eddie Byrom, had departed in the first half-hour with only five runs on the board, a few of them could be found, cowering ever so slightly as they suggested that perhaps things were not as bad as painted and that Andrew Gale, the coach, deserved patience in a difficult transtion period.But by the close, nobody would have made much of a claim that this had been a day of Conscious Competence and certainly not of Unconscious Competence, a state of perfection that even the great Yorkshire sides were rarely allowed by the critics to have attained. Nope, it was a toss-up between Conscious Incompetence and Unconscious Incompetence and, while they were on the subject of tosses, why on earth had Yorkshire chosen to bowl?There was easily enough life in the pitch for the pace bowlers to make it an eminently fair call, but they failed to take advantage, particularly in the first session, and now must negotiate the rest of the match with three pace bowlers after a recurrence of a split toe for Matt Fisher, which first needed stitches on England Lions duty a month ago.The Headingley mood might have been lightened when Jack Brooks arrested Somerset’s charge with two wickets in a single over – Gregory flicking to midwicket for 65 from 46 balls and then Davies falling to a good catch by Gary Ballance at extra cover for 80, itself quick enough at 122 deliveries. After a vigorous stand of 114 in 18 overs, Somerset had been pegged back a little at 346 for 7.

Hildreth upbeat

James Hildreth was confident Somerset were in a powerful position after the first day at Headingley.
“It was doing loads out there,” he said. “It was swinging a lot, it was a bit up and down, and there was also movement off the seam as well.
“We knew we had to fight it out and wait for the bad ball, which they bowled a few of to be fair. We knew we’d play and miss and edge to third-man, but we just had to go with it. Fortunately for us, it paid off.”

But this was the Brooks, the crowd-pleasing Brooks, the headband-warrior Brooks, the Brooks who can enliven the most prosaic of sessions in an instant with fulsome, attacking pace bowling, sometimes even attacking batting. And this was also the Brooks who it was confirmed this week will join Somerset at the end of the season on a three-year contract, because Yorkshire would only offer him two. Brooks, in many ways, has been a psychologist for the more hardened members of the Yorkshire crowd, a player who makes it fun, and as such a little bit of happiness has slipped away.A three-year contract for a fast bowler, at 34, clearly has considerable risk attached, and Somerset would be foolish not to know that, but Yorkshire are facing a difficult transition when good humour will not be readily available. Brooks’ uplifting qualities will be missed. To announce his transfer now had not pleased every onlooker but he is a professional and it helped to clear his mind in a difficult situation.Jack Brooks appeals•Getty Images

“I’m not ready for goodbyes yet – I fully intend to finish on a high,” Brooks said on the eve of the game. To help keep Yorkshire up, Somerset’s title challenge would have to be collateral damage. A return of 4 for 103 in 25 overs proved he still has much to offer without the need for sheepish looks towards the away dressing room and also took him within five wickets of 300 first-class victims for Yorkshire.He took one of the two new-ball wickets, defeating Byrom with bounce and providing a catch to Andy Hodd. Hodd’s presence was unexpected. As soon as Jonny Tattersall added wicketkeeping to his CV and broke into Yorkshire’s side this season in all formats, he had announced his retirement at the end of the season, but Tattersall suffered a back spasm the day before the match and Hodd made an emergency return from Taunton where he was due to play for Yorkshire’s 2nd XI.If there was life in the pitch for Yorkshire’s bowlers, there was not quite enough pace and several edges in the first hour fell short of the slips. Somerset’s innings duly settled, underpinned by a third-wicket stand of 137 in 33 between James Hildreth and Azhar Ali who both made 80s. Hildreth flirted with danger early on before settling into some fine square-of-the-wicket play; David Willey eventually won a catch at first slip with one angled across him. Azhar was more watchful, treating Brooks, in particular, with respect, and he possessed such security in far-from-straightforward conditions that it was something of a surprise when Josh Shaw yorked him with his hundred in sight.The mood of the sixth-wicket stand of 114 in 18 overs was something else. If you bowl short and wide at Davies you will certainly rush the game on, one way or another, and he feasted on Shaw after tea. Gregory, encouraged forth by some Yorkshire fill-in bowling, picked up where he had left off in the Vitality Blast quarter-final, turning a situation that Somerset were barely edging at 229 for 5 (par was perhaps 260) into a day with which they would have been immensely pleased.