Pakistan allrounder Shahid Afridi is hoping for a “happy ending” to his international career, and is targeting the World Twenty20 trophy next year in India

PTI30-Apr-2015Pakistan allrounder Shahid Afridi is hoping for a “happy ending” to his international career, and is targeting the World Twenty20 trophy next year in India. In December last year, Afridi announced that he would retire from ODIs after the 2015 World Cup, but said he would quit international cricket altogether only after the 2016 World T20.”I want to not only play but also captain the Pakistan team to the T20 World Cup title,” he said. “Who does not want a happy ending to his career? I am looking at that in the T20 format. I never thought I would be at this level and play cricket for Pakistan team. I have made up my mind, but before that I want to also groom a future captain and vice-captain for this format with the board’s support.”Afridi, 35, has appeared in 78 T20Is, besides 27 Tests and 398 ODIs. He announced his retirement from Test cricket during Pakistan’s tour to England in 2010 after captaining the side in just the first Test at Lords. He bowed out of ODIs following Pakistan’s quarter-final defeat to Australia in the World Cup in March.

Jonathan Trott began life in international retirement with an assured 42 but his innings was a mere footnote to a rollicking opening day’s play

Paul Edwards at Edgbaston17-May-2015
ScorecardKeith Barker belted•Getty Images

Cricket has a whimsical gift for misdirection. On a day when many spectators were concerned to see how Jonathan Trott would perform on his return to the county circuit, it was the batting of Ian Westwood and Keith Barker, his Warwickshire colleagues, which eventually commanded more attention than Trott’s innings of 42.Close followers of the domestic game might greet this development with nothing more than a knowing smile. Westwood has been in excellent form this season. His 88 on the first day of this match against Durham took his Championship aggregate for 2015 to 439 runs in seven innings. When he was bowled three overs before tea by a fine ball from Graham Onions which moved off the seam, the compact left-hander with an enviable gift for clipping the ball away on the leg side had provided his side with the foundation upon which their very substantial total was built.So well had Westwood been batting that his dismissal, after a knock which included 14 fours and a six into the Hollies Stand, came as rather a shock. It also occurred in the middle of a difficult period in Warwickshire’s innings, one in which they also lost Laurie Evans, who had been caught behind for 45 by Phil Mustard in Onions’s previous over when playing the loosest of cuts at a ball unsuitable for the stroke.And when Tim Ambrose was so discomfited by the extra bounce extracted by John Hastings that he gave Mustard his third catch a couple of overs after tea, Varun Chopra’s team were 227 for 6 and in danger of wasting the advantage gained when their captain had won the toss. This did not happen, though. On the contrary, some very positive batting by Rikki Clarke and Barker saw 103 runs added in 68 minutes prior to the taking of the second new ball, 28 of those runs coming in consecutive overs from the Pavilion End bowled by Paul Coughlin and Scott Borthwick.Chris Rushworth, as is his skill these days, restored a little control to Durham’s attack and had Clarke lbw for 36 in the 81st over. The ball may have struck the allrounder a little high on the pad and Barker certainly did all he could to avoid a similar fate during the remainder of the evening session. Dropped by Paul Collingwood at slip and Calum MacLeod in the gully off successive balls from Hastings when only 16, Barker used his bat to very good effect and he goes into the second day on 85 not out and with a fifth first-class century beckoning.At the other end Jeetan Patel hit Rushworth for a straight six, straight drove Hastings and Coughlin and reached his 46-ball fifty off the last ball of the day. Durham’s bowlers conceded 199 runs off 32 overs in the final session.But what of Trott? Only 13 days after he had announced his retirement from Test cricket and 16 after the vicious short-pitched ball from Shannon Gabriel which had made that decision something of a relief for his many friends and supporters, the Warwickshire No. 3 batted in a style both familiar and reassuring during his 90-minute inningsGreeted by a warm ovation when he came to the wicket with his side on 18 for 2 after Onions and Rushworth had removed Chopra and William Porterfield, Trott clipped his first ball for four and quickly settled into a recognisable rhythm. This was characterised by frequent marking of the crease, strolls to square leg, and decisive strokes, whether in defence or attack. Renowned as something of an enforcer in the England team, Trott helped Westwood deal with the new ball and one can foresee a few seasons in which he will take care of such business for Warwickshire. Further boundaries followed off Coughlin and Hastings but so did sensible decisions to leave the ball alone.Was Trott tested quite as he had been in Barbados? He was not. Was his technique given a thorough examination by a Division One attack? That did happen and Trott coped with it all well. It was a something of a surprise when he was leg before to Onions’s third ball after lunch.”Trotty’s been fine,” said Dougie Brown, Warwickshire’s Director of Cricket. “This is an environment that he knows and one that he trusts. He responds really well to it and we are delighted to have him back. He looked to be in good order on what was quite a tricky pitch and I thought he played really well. There’ll be a number of bowlers round the country that would prefer it if he was still playing international cricket. He’s a rock in our batting order.”

Leicestershire made it consecutive wins in the NatWest T20 North Division as Durham’s batsmen struggled to come to terms with a well-grassed but relatively slow pitch at Grace Road.

ECB/PA28-May-2015
ScorecardKevin O’Brien saw Leicestershire home with an unbeaten innings•Getty Images

Leicestershire made it consecutive wins in the NatWest T20 North Division as Durham’s batsmen struggled to come to terms with a well-grassed but relatively slow pitch at Grace Road.Durham skipper Mark Stoneman’s decision to bat first after winning the toss looked like it might pay off when the first over, bowled by part-time offspinner Neil Pinner, yielded 15 runs. But Foxes captain Mark Cosgrove turned to his seamers, and in the third over Stoneman, looking to pull a short delivery from Rob Taylor, bottom edged the ball into his stumps.Calum MacLeod was becoming increasingly frustrated when he stepped across his stumps and attempted to scoop a Kevin O’Brien delivery over the wicketkeeper’s head, and succeeded only in edging a simple catch to Ned Eckersley at point.Phil Mustard pulled and square drove boundaries off O’Brien in the 11th over, but in the 12th Paul Collingwood tried to lift the offspin of Jigar Naik over long-off, and was well held by Grant Elliott. The New Zealander then dropped a fierce chance off Mustard, on 41, but the left-hander added only four more runs to his score when he was held by Rob Taylor at long off from the bowling of O’Brien.John Hastings did his best to increase the scoring rate, hitting three beautifully timed boundaries in going to 21 off 13 balls, and together with Gordon Muchall, who made 31 off 27 balls, added 37 for the sixth wicket.A target of just over six an over always looked likely to be inadequate, however, and though Hastings bowled well at Cosgrove when Leicestershire began their innings, youngster Paul Coughlin was lofted high over long-on and into the player’s car park by the Australian left-hander.Coughlin got his revenge, catching Cosgrove at deep-extra cover off Usman Arshad, and Scott Borthwick pinned Eckersley leg before wicket so that after ten overs the Foxes were only just ahead of the required rate.Had Borthwick won a stumping decision when Elliott was only 3, matters might have become really interesting, but after several replays, third umpire Tim Robinson decided there was sufficient doubt to reprieve the New Zealander. Salt was rubbed into the wound when Borthwick’s next over went for 20, and offspinner Ryan Pringle received similar treatment as Leicestershire cantered home with 27 balls to spare.”I don’t think the pitch was too bad at all, I think we bowled pretty well on it, and then the batsmen took us home,” Cosgrove said. “It’s good to back up on beating Derbyshire in our last match, and hopefully we can take the form into our game at Worcester on Friday night.”

Nick Compton made a courageous return to the crease, five hours after being forced to retire hurt when he was hit on the head by a Jamie Overton bouncer, to help Middlesex reach 283 all out on the first day of their LV= County Championship Division One ma

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Jul-2015
ScorecardSam Robson top-scored with 69•Getty Images

Nick Compton made a courageous return to the crease, five hours after being forced to retire hurt when he was hit on the head by a Jamie Overton bouncer, to help Middlesex reach 283 all out on the first day of their LV= County Championship Division One match against Somerset at Merchant Taylor’s School, Northwood.Dawid Malan battled to a four-hour 69, Sam Robson played the most fluent innings of the day with 67 from 105 balls, while both Ollie Rayner and John Simpson made useful contributions, but it was Compton’s grit that still stood out from the hard-fought opening exchanges.Former England Test opener Compton returned at the fall of the seventh wicket at 256, with 15 overs of the day remaining, and ended up scoring 32 before Lewis Gregory had him lbw just before the close. Gregory then had Tim Murtagh caught at first slip with his next ball and ended up with 5 for 58 when he bowled last man Steven Finn, also for nought.Compton was on 18 when he slumped to the ground after taking a fearful crack on the side of his helmet while trying to avoid a rapid short ball that seemed to follow him. Happily, he was soon able to stand up, and after drinking some water, walking around the square and being examined by the Middlesex physiotherapist, the sensible decision was taken for him to leave the field.Middlesex were on 69 for 1 at the time, in the 19th over, and, as Compton recovered from the blow in the pavilion, eventually having an afternoon net in preparation for his return to the fray, they then had to manage the loss of three wickets for 30 runs which threatened to undermine the early progress to 124 for 1.Malan, however, kept Somerset’s attack at bay until deep into the final session, when he fell lbw to Peter Trego in the last over before the second new ball after featuring in stands of 38 with Simpson and 56 with Rayner.Simpson edged behind on 24 and Rayner stayed 70 minutes for 31 before Tim Groenewald pinned him lbw to earn himself figures of 4 for 55.Compton and Toby Roland-Jones, who finished 20 not out, then added 27 for the eighth wicket, after Compton had reported, following throw-downs with Middlesex batting coach Dave Houghton: “Yes, I’m feeling OK now and am fine to bat again.”Play had begun at 12 noon due to both teams having NatWest T20 Blast games the previous evening, Middlesex at Richmond and Somerset against Kent at Canterbury, and Robson hit eleven fours – adding 46 with Compton and then a further 55 with Malan – before he mishit Groenewald to point.Malan then saw Eoin Morgan depart for a fifth-ball duck, edging Groenewald to Jim Allenby at first slip as he propped half-forward.And 128 for 3 became 154 for 4 when Middlesex captain James Franklin was lbw for 17 when Gregory made one keep low as he ran down the slope from the Railway End on this scenic north-west London ground.It was Gregory who had earlier made the initial breakthrough when he had Joe Burns, the Australian overseas player, caught at the wicket for 10 during a testing six-over new-ball spell.Robson, though, was soon into his stride, hitting lovely boundaries through cover and midwicket. There were some rather more fortuitous thick edges to the vacant third man boundary by Robson, too, but generally the former England Test opener looked in good order.Batting was generally trickier against the quicker bowlers coming down the slope, with Malan rapped one painful blow on his left hand by Groenewald, and although the pitch played well enough throughout a sun-blessed day attended by a crowd in excess of 1,000, it looks to be a good toss to have won, thanks to Middlesex’s batting resolve and Compton’s heroics.

A trial court in Delhi has discharged Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila, who had been chargesheeted for the IPL 2013 corruption scandal

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jul-2015Charges against Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila, who had been chargesheeted by the Delhi Police for the IPL 2013 corruption scandal, were dropped by a trial court in Delhi on Saturday. The court’s decision, however, did not have an impact on the life bans imposed by the BCCI on Sreesanth and Chavan. The three were among 42 individuals released by the court on grounds of lack of sufficient evidence for prosecution under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).The three cricketers were arrested in May-June 2013 for their alleged involvement in betting and spot-fixing during the IPL. While Sreesanth and Chavan were granted bail within a month, Chandila had to spend more than three months in prison before he was released on bail. The BCCI banned Sreesanth and Chavan in September 2013, while Chandila’s case is pending before the board’s disciplinary committee.

Civil consequences will continue to affect cricketers

Suhrith Parthasarathy, a lawyer told ESPNcricinfo that the trial court’s decision would have little impact on the ‘civil consequences’ faced by the cricketers.
“They were charged under a law that was meant to deal with organised crime in Maharashtra and the charges have been cleared because the prosecution was unable to produce before the court sufficient evidence to prove their charges,” Parthasarathy told ESPNcricinfo,”In criminal law, the kind of evidence the prosecution needs to bring to court is a kind of evidence that shows beyond reasonable doubt that these individuals had committed the offences under the MCOCA. Obviously the Delhi Police was unable to do it in this case and therefore the court has cleared them of all these charges. This does not mean that the other civil consequences that Sreesanth and the other cricketers would face follow. Those would continue to apply.
“Obviously Sreesanth and the others will try and go to the BCCI and say, look the criminal court has cleared us of charges now you also overturn the life ban. The BCCI can still say that under our regulations, we believe you have committed spot-fixing. The balance of probability shows that you have committed the offence and therefore we are not overturning the life ban.”

With the absence of a specific criminal law to deal with spot-fixing in India, the cricketers were chargesheeted for offences under the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the MCOCA. The court, however, said there was not enough evidence for charges to be framed under the MCOCA, a special law passed by the Maharashtra state government to tackle organised crime syndicates and terrorism which contains far stricter provisions relating to bail and admissibility of confessions compared to the Indian Penal Code.In its reaction to the court’s decision, the BCCI said its disciplinary action would remain unaltered. “Any disciplinary proceeding or decision taken by the BCCI is independent to any criminal proceeding and has no bearing. The decisions of the BCCI, based on its independent disciplinary action, shall remain unaltered,” the board said in a press release.The three cricketers, were, however, hopeful of returning to the game. Sreesanth said he wanted to start training as soon as possible to get back into the selection process. “I’m very, very happy. I want to thank God,” he said. “I will try to start training properly as soon as possible, I wasn’t allowed anything. Hopefully I can get permission from BCCI to use their facilities so that I can get fit and come into the selection process.”Reacting to the court’s decision, Chandila said the period following the spot-fixing scandal was “the worst of my life”.Chavan also expressed hope of returning to the game: “So far I just know that I have been given a discharge and now I am looking forward to play cricket. So let’s see how it goes. I am taking it step by step. It was tough for me as a cricketer. It was a tough time but I got through with support from family and friends. I am sure I will be back to cricket again.”

Kane Williamson is a vocal proponent of New Zealand’s team-first culture, and contends that a focus on individual milestones can be a ‘distraction to achieving it’

Firdose Moonda13-Aug-2015Kane Williamson looked a leader long before last week, when he took New Zealand to a series win in Zimbabwe, long before last year, when he took them to victory over Pakistan in the UAE, and even before July 2012, when he headed up their humbling in the West Indies. It was earlier that year, on a windy and wet Wellington afternoon, when he saw off an increasingly vicious Morne Morkel, survived being struck everywhere it hurts – his arm, his shoulder, his box – and forced a drawn Test against South Africa that Williamson first made his claim as a future captain.

‘Captaincy helps my batting’ – Faf du Plessis

While Kane Williamson compartmentalises captaincy and batting, his opposite number Faf du Plessis combines them to form a complete package. Du Plessis took over as South Africa’s T20 captain in February 2013 and believes the extra responsibility has enhanced him as a cricketer.
“I really love captaining. It makes the game feel a little bit easier for me because I am thinking of all the aspects and I feel it also helps my batting because I am a cricketer that relies on being smart when I bat, that carries into my captaincy,” du Plessis said.
“I’ve played under really good leadership and I think I have matured a bit more than I was two years ago. Even though I have always enjoyed captaincy, the more you do it the more you mature and you understand what makes people tick. In that sense I’ve grown the most.”

That day Williamson impressed not by virtue of his runs – and he made 102 of them – but by his resoluteness. He could not be broken because if he was, his team would break with him and that, more than the individual feat, was the most important part of being an international cricketer to him. He said so that day; he said so again today.”That’s a lot of what we talk about: playing for the right reasons, playing to move the team forward and being able to somewhat remove too many selfish endeavours – which can be a challenge in the game. There’s so many stats around that they can come into individuals’ mindsets but the biggest thing for us is that when we play for the team the obligation is purely to help the team and move the team forward.”New Zealand’s kumbaya culture of cricket has multiplied manyfold since that day. Now it’s not just Williamson that believes in taking one for the team, but all of them. Close your eyes and attend a New Zealand press conference and you will think they keep bringing the same man to the microphone, because they all say the same thing, but unlike the rehearsed corporate speak of professional sport today, New Zealand actually sound sincere.It helps that when they’re on the field, they walk that talk too. Just think of the World Cup. New Zealand represented true team culture. They were having what Brendon McCullum called “the time of our lives,” and we couldn’t help having it with them.”It was a lot of fun. We had a great time. It was just a fantastic time to be playing cricket; to have it in our own country, it really changed the way the country looked at the sport,” Williamson said. “In New Zealand, rugby is No.1 but during that World Cup we might have taken that spot for a brief moment in time, which it made it all that more special.”No regrets over not going that one step further? None, it seems. “It would have been nice to go all the way but still, we played the cricket we wanted to play. Someone had to lose in that final and it was us,” Williamson said. “Now the World Cup’s over, that’s cool, and we are still looking to improve.” Because next year there is another major trophy to play for and New Zealand want to win as much as anyone else.A serious challenge on their part will likely require a Williamson in top form, even though he will not admit it himself. “It is about playing for the team in any situation. I am a believer that sometimes results or figures that you try and reach can be a distraction to achieving it. My focus is contributing playing a role that I’m given and if you are able to pass milestones along the way, thats great.,” he said.Captaincy is one of those milestones. Williamson is not likely to lead because McCullum will be back but Williamson’s seniority and the experience he gains as captain on this trip will come in handy. He has admitted this trip is challenging him in different ways, with demands of both bat and brain but he has come up with a way to handle them.”I think captaincy is separate to batting. In the field, it’s applying yourself more in terms of thinking, whether it’s bowling changes, fielding positions, the whole lot. And it’s an enjoyable challenge, particularly in T20 cricket where there’s so much happening and things happen quickly so you need to stay on your toes,” Williamson said. “It’s enjoyable and a challenge as well with a new-look side.”The newness of the New Zealand side should, in theory, increase the pressure on Williamson to perform with the bat more often but he insists it hasn’t. The responsibility is shared by old and new players, who Williamson said will always put the team first. “It’s more about looking to contribute to a team performance, a team win, and that’s where we want people playing their games. Whether that means one or two guys consistently perform and hold a position that great but ultimately we want a bunch of guys that are going to be giving to the team and moving the team forward.”

Karun Nair scored an unflustered hundred to put Karnataka on top against Bengal on a day that could have easily gone either team’s way in Bangalore

The Report by Vishal Dikshit in Bangalore09-Oct-2015
ScorecardFile photo: Karun Nair’s unbeaten 119 ensured Karnataka had a lead to take into day three•K Sivaraman

Karun Nair scored an unflustered hundred to put Karnataka on top against Bengal on a day that could have easily gone either team’s way in Bangalore. Karnataka were in slightly precarious positions a couple of times and Nair stitched two crucial partnerships to avoid any further hiccups for his team, as the hosts ended the second day with a lead of 10 runs and six wickets in hand. After Karnataka lost two wickets in the first session and two more in the second, Nair’s unbeaten 119 ensured the third went wicketless as he cruised along with Shreyas Gopal during a century stand.Nair’s first consolidating alliance came with Manish Pandey for a stand of 98 runs, after three batsmen had returned to the pavilion, including Shishir Bhavane retiring hurt. The bigger and more sedate partnership came with Gopal for 113 runs that saw Bengal’s bowling line-up run out of options.The Nair-Pandey stand was shorter but more entertaining and exciting. The pair came together at 76 for 2 in the second session after Bhavane had been injured, and the umpires had decided to take lunch. For a new session, Pandey and Nair brought out a new plan – they unleashed a flurry of boundaries and doubled the score in no time. They hammered nine fours together in a space of five overs by targeting the pacers in the beginning. Pandey battered Dinda for three fours in the 33rd over and Nair used his late cut effectively against Shukla to pierce the gaps. Manoj Tiwary brought on Sourav Sarkar and Pragyan Ojha immediately, but could not bring any respite.They weren’t treated differently. Sarkar conceded two fours in an over and Pandey drove Ojha inside-out in the next over for consecutive overs. As both batsmen neared their fifties, Tiwary now brought Veer Pratap Singh and he was dispatched for three fours in two overs. While Pandey used more power, Nair relied more on timing and the pace of the ball to place the ball in gaps. Bengal finally got a break soon after Pandey’s fifty, that featured nine fours, when the batsman pulled Shukla straight to midwicket.Shukla was the only bowler to ask questions of the batsmen with a tight line. He had earlier been denied Pandey’s wicket when the batsman was trapped in front of middle stump just after lunch, but the umpire had turned the appeal down. Shukla continued to toil after dismissing Pandey and made CM Gautam edge one but the keeper was up and the ball flew past him.As the runs dried up before tea, Pragyan Ojha picked his maiden wicket for Bengal by extracting extra bounce to have Gautam caught at backward point with an excellent catch from Shreevats Goswami. Bengal might have thought of picking up a few more quick wickets, but Nair and Gopal dashed their hopes.The two started slowly but steadily in the last session by nudging the ball around. The ball was over 50 overs old and Nair was already in his 60s. Tiwary brought himself on, Ojha started bowling outside leg, Shukla came back for another spell but Nair and Gopal negotiated each of them rather easily. Without any risks and aerial shots, they hauled the score past 300, their partnership crossing 100. Gopal stamped his authority by coming down to Ojha and pushing the ball firmly between mid-off and cover with sheer timing to inch closer to 50.However, the Karnataka dressing room applauded the hardest and the school kids whistled the loudest when Nair cut Ojha late to the third-man boundary for four to reach his century. Nair followed it with a handsome cover drive for the same result. That hundred and Gopal’s fourth first-class fifty soon took the hosts into the lead and a safe position.Earlier, the platform for crossing 300 was laid by R Samarth (30) and Bhavane (32) once Dinda bowled opener Robin Uthappa for 3 in the third over. The brought up a fifty stand as Bhavane left plenty outside off and Samarth drove nicely on either side of the pitch. But Veer Pratap soon drew Samarth’s outside edge as the ball held its line outside off to open up the batsman. The bigger blow came when Bhavane was hit on his right wrist by Dinda at the stroke of lunch against a rising short ball and was unable to drop his hands in time. Bhavane was declared fit by the end of the day and should be ready to bat on the third day.Bengal could not add anything to their overnight 312 for 9, as Dinda swatted Vinay Kumar and was caught at mid-on on the second ball of the day. The Karnataka captain finished with 4 for 80.

Batsman Peter Forrest will captain Queensland in next month’s Matador Cup tournament after Chris Lynn was ruled out due to a dislocated shoulder

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Sep-2015Batsman Peter Forrest will captain Queensland in next month’s Matador Cup tournament after Chris Lynn was ruled out due to a dislocated shoulder. On Monday, Lynn had been named as the stand-in captain with full-time skipper Usman Khawaja set to be on the Test tour of Bangladesh, but by the end of the week Lynn too had become unavailable for the duration of the tournament.Lynn dislocated his left shoulder during a fielding session at Queensland’s training on Thursday and although the full extent of the injury is unknown, he has been ruled out of the Matador Cup. Lynn also missed last summer’s one-day tournament after having surgery on the same shoulder.”Chris fell awkwardly during a fielding drill yesterday and has unfortunately dislocated his left shoulder,” Queensland physio Martin Love said. “We are currently unsure of the full severity of the injury, however we expect to know more when we receive the results from his latest scan.”We can confirm he will miss the Matador Cup and the start of the Sheffield Shield season, but it is hard to put an exact timeline on his recovery until we have all information on the injury available.”In the absence of Lynn and Khawaja, Forrest will captain Queensland for the duration of the Matador Cup. Wicketkeeper-batsman Jimmy Peirson, who had been named in the Cricket Australia XI squad for the tournament, has been transferred into the Queensland squad to replace Lynn. Western Australian wicketkeeper Josh Inglis will replace Peirson in the CA XI squad.

A round-up of all the Group A Ranji Trophy matches on November 1, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Nov-2015
Scorecard0:55

Uthappa 160 drives Karnataka

Robin Uthappa’s first century of the season, a 128-ball 160, gave Karnataka a chance of securing their first outright win this season. Rajasthan, set a target of 358 in a little over three sessions, were tottering on 42 for 3 at stumps.With a 39-run lead in the bank, Karnataka pressed forward courtesy Uthappa’s belligerence to declare their second innings on 318 for 5 in 63 overs. Abhishek Reddy, playing his first game of the season in KL Rahul’s absence, made a solid 69, while the late impetus was provided by Stuart Binny (29) and CM Gautam (36 not out).Rajasthan’s quest for survival received a body blow as S Aravind accounted for Vineet Saxena in the sixth over. In his next over, he had Vaibhav Deshpande feel for a delivery that nipped away late and R Samarth pouched one at first slip. When Ashok Menaria, the captain, chopped on to David Mathias in the dying moments of play, Karnataka were cock-a-hoop. Tanveer-ul-Haq, the nightwatchman, blunted 17 deliveries in opener Pranay Sharma’s company to prevent further casualty.
ScorecardAs many as 15 wickets fell, most of them to spin, in Nagpur, with the match headed towards a thrilling climax on the final day. Vidarbha, who had Maharashtra on the ropes by taking a first-innings lead of 95, collapsed to 149 all out in their second dig, with left-arm spinner Akshay Darekar taking five wickets. Chasing 245, Maharashtra lost Swapnil Gugale in the second over to end the day at 3 for 1.Maharashra, who resumed on 144 for 6, had Chirag Khurana (74) to thank for bringing the deficit to below 100. Vidarbha’s second innings then unfurled rather quickly, with Wasim Jaffer (33) being the lone top-order batsman to offer any sort of resistance. Amol Ubarhande, who walked in at No. 8, hit five fours and two sixes in his 40-ball 47 to give his side a chance of registering their second win this season.
ScorecardHaryana struck back after conceding a 104-run lead as Bengal ended the day at 146 for 7, ahead by 250 to set up an intriguing final day in Lahli. Ashish Hooda, the medium pacer, triggered the Bengal slide by picking up four wickets; Sudip Chatterjee was the only batsman to weather the attack and top-scored with 49. Pankaj Shaw, who made 54 in the first innings, and Pragyan Ojha were at the crease when stumps were drawn.Earlier, Haryana, who resumed on 186 for 8, added 39 to their overnight total. Yuzvendra Chahal, the legspinner, made a handy 42 to eat into Bengal’s lead. Mukesh Kumar, the medium pacer, picked up 4 for 53, while Ashok Dinda and Veer Pratap Singh claimed two batsmen each.
ScorecardAnurag Sarangi’s unbeaten 76 kept Odisha in the hunt for first-innings honours against Delhi in Bhubaneswar. They were 116 adrift of Delhi’s 311 with six wickets intact at stumps.Delhi’s lower order resisted for a good part of the first session. Resuming on 245 for 7, they were driven by Pulkit Narang, who made an unbeaten 41 after coming in at No. 10, while Pradeep Sangwan made a handy 30 to help Delhi get past the 300-mark.Odisha were in trouble at 40 for 2, but Natraj Behera’s 77-run stand for the third wicket with Sarangi kept Delhi’s bowlers at bay. Behera was bowled by Narang, but Sarangi kicked on to finish the day unbeaten on 76, 24 short of his maiden first-class century. Sangwan had two wickets to show for his efforts.

The ICC match officiating team’s “poor” rating of the Nagpur pitch has had no impact on Virat Kohli’s outlook towards the playing surfaces

Sidharth Monga in Delhi02-Dec-20153:27

Wicket is blamed when visitors don’t play well – Kohli

The ICC match officiating team’s “poor” rating of the Nagpur pitch has had no impact on Virat Kohli’s outlook towards the playing surfaces. If anything, it has infuriated him further, to the extent that he has effectively accused the ICC of having double standards when rating the pitches. He brought up the recent Adelaide Test, which finished in three days, and a few others in South Africa where the ball dominated the bat, at least on paper.”Well there have been three scores of under 50 in Tests in South Africa,” Kohli said on the eve of the final Test of the series. “I haven’t seen any articles about that. Teams have been bundled out for less than 100 six times in South Africa. There’s not been an article about that. Articles are there to be written. It’s about the mindset or opinion of someone. I don’t relate to it. I don’t understand it, and I certainly don’t entertain it. It doesn’t bother me or the team. People can write articles as and how they wish.”

Kotla kickstarted my career – Kohli

On a happier note, Virat Kohli will be captaining in an international on his home turf for the first time. He spoke fondly of Feroz Shah Kotla memories. “Well, this ground is where everything fell in place for me,” Kohli said. “First time I was selected for junior cricket was because of a practice trial match here. All the selectors and administrators were watching and I was able to score some runs and probably caught their eye. That is how I was selected into the team after being rejected last year.
“This is the ground which has literally kickstarted my career as far as state cricket is concerned. I made my Ranji debut for Delhi here so that day remains special as well. I scored a lot of runs here at this ground in Ranji Trophy, IPL and ODIs, I have an ODI hundred here so I really like playing here. I like the feel of the ground so that is something that is always there in my mind and I can relate to that. It is a ground where I like walking in to bat. It is a very special feeling for me personally.”

Midway into this sermon Kohli had to be reminded the issue here was not articles, but the ICC’s assessment of the pitch in Nagpur. “I’m talking about everyone,” Kohli said. “I’m not talking about people writing articles in general. It is an assessment that has happened in every condition, in every ground. Unfortunately, in our country and in our situation, it is highlighted a lot more. That’s a fact. Because all we have been talking about is the pitch.”In South Africa, the only thing we were talking about is how badly we were playing. So it’s been going on for a while. There’s no change in pattern. The Indian team is going into a new mindset. Apart from that, the thinking of the rest around it has not changed too much. Because we are criticised about our games and techniques when we don’t play well but when visitors don’t play well, it’s always the wicket. So there is no sense to it as far as I am concerned or the Indian team is concerned.”In India reporters are not allowed anywhere near the pitch, which leaves captains as the only sources of information on the pitch, but Kohli refused to talk about what to expect from Delhi. “I don’t want to talk too much about the pitch,” Kohli said. “Because there has already been a lot of talk about it. If we have to talk about the cricket, it will be better. Because when the team wins, the support should come from all quarters. Always, we look at points to criticise. There’s hardly a point where the team is backed to make them confident. So, in my view, I don’t understand the logic behind it. There have been comments from all sides about the pitch. I don’t think anyone has written articles about the Adelaide Test, which finished in two-and-a-half days. So I don’t see anything wrong with any kind of wicket that we play on.”If the pitches are not an issue, there must be some reason there have been only four half-centuries in the series, two of those from India. The team director Ravi Shastri has bemoaned the decline in the art of grafting for runs. When asked if he was concerned about his side’s performance against the spinners – and lesser spinners at that, when compared to R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Amit Mishra – Kohli again retorted with apparent frustration.”We are prepared to face anyone anywhere,” Kohli said. “We are prepared to take up any sort of challenge. I don’t understand why we are not sitting here and talking about the fact that we are 2-0 up in the series, and again we are trying to criticise our players. As regards our weaknesses we know them and we are working on them, we are international cricketers, and we are not here to hide from any mistake. But if that’s the only point that is going to be raised in press conferences and debates then as a cricketer you don’t see any sense in answering those questions after a while. I think we should appreciate what the team has done and move forward in the same direction.”Kohli was asked if the cricket played lived up to the billing in the lead-up to the series. “I think it was good Test cricket,” Kohli said. “People have liked watching it on TV. You saw the crowds in Bangalore, in Nagpur, even Mohali we had a decent crowd. People want to see results. People want to see exciting cricket, and that is what has happened in this series. We have certainly enjoyed it. Playing and putting pressure on the opposition, we have enjoyed as a unit.”