Defending champions’ “crisis” lasted all of five days before victory over Bangladesh got them back on track

Vithushan Ehantharajah14-Oct-20232:54

Trott wants his Afghanistan team to display ‘more consistency’

Big Picture

Much like gap year students, England left Dharamsala having found themselves, arriving in the sprawling metropolis of Delhi on Wednesday with a self-regard more in step with their white-ball dominance over the last eight years.Their “crisis” lasted all of five days. A nine-wicket battering at the hands of New Zealand led to much introspection, but an equally dominant victory over Bangladesh has eased more than just Net Run Rate woes.Reece Topley regarded the result as “a step in the right direction”, one he facilitated with 4 for 43 after being drafted in to replace Moeen Ali. Throw in strong starts from Dawid Malan and Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow ticking and Mark Wood back up to speed, and things are beginning to look more balanced and settled for the defending champions.They will be the first to tell you this is a marathon, not a sprint. South Africa, India and New Zealand may have charged out in front, but England’s seasoned vets know the drill. Tapering is the name of the game, in a format that allows the odd misstep. It also helps that bitter rivals Australia are flunking, making that route into the top four a little less crowded.Related

• ODI World Cup digest: Pakistan's record chase; Malan mauls Bangladesh

• Jasprit Bumrah and spin do the trick as India hand Pakistan another World Cup beating

• Trott hopes Rashid & Co bring 'joy and happiness' to post-earthquake Afghanistan

• What's holding back Rashid Khan, the ODI bowler?

England did not need to experience defeat in their opener to narrow their focus, but it does mean they will not take Afghanistan lightly. Whether Ben Stokes makes his first appearance of the campaign – the signs in training have been encouraging, though he is likely to be kept in cotton wool – this represents another opportunity to tune up, especially for a middle order that has yet to flex their wares, Jos Buttler included.All that is far from ideal for the tenth-placed side, who have shown flashes of their best selves among two broadly ineffectual displays. Rashid Khan’s failure to launch, not helped by being used questionably by captain Hashmatullah Shahidi, has given a usually sparkling line-up a dour complexion. Below-par scores batting first has also meant exciting left-arm quick Fazalhaq Farooqi has had little to work with, particularly at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium on Wednesday when India made light work of their 273 target, knocking it off with 15 overs to spare.These failings have been put into perspective by matters at home. Around 1,000 Afghans have lost their lives after earthquakes hit the west of the country this week, with thousands more injured. Beyond donations of match fees to help those affected is a sense of duty to lift spirits with an upturn on the field. The healing power of sport only extends so far, but Sunday is an opportunity to offer emotional relief for both fans and the players themselves.This will be only the third meeting between these two teams in the format, both previous occasions coming in World Cups. Eoin Morgan’s 17 sixes at Manchester in 2019 blasted England to a score of 397 for 6 batting first, a total they threatened to better against Bangladesh last time out before stumbling through the back end of their 50 overs. They will fancy something similar if they get first dibs on one of the best batting decks in the competition.Dawid Malan is all smiles after reaching yet another ODI century•Getty Images

Form Guide

England WLWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Afghanistan LLLLL

In the spotlight: Adil Rashid and Mohammad Nabi

It has been a quiet start for Adil Rashid, the kind that makes idle minds wonder. The 35-year-old has so far managed a solitary wicket – that of Bangladesh’s Mahedi Hasan – from 17 overs that have cost 89 runs. He arrived in India as something of an injury doubt, after a tight hamstring kept him out of all but the first of four ODIs against New Zealand in September (taking 1 for 70 in eight overs). Not to mention a long-term right shoulder issue requiring constant management. He was noticeably slower against Bangladesh with 32 per cent of his deliveries below 80kph, compared to 10 per cent versus New Zealand, suggesting a change of tact, though he did have more runs to play with. A notable haul on Sunday would be welcome for a player expected to sign off from ODIs next month.Mohammad Nabi is another at the back end of his career but is not exactly wearing his advancing years lightly. Scores of 6 and 19, aligned with 0 for 18 and 0 for 32 speak of a wider downturn in form. He has just one ODI half-century in his last 21 innings, a period that stretches over the last three years, and is averaging 39.70 with off-spin lacking its usual guile. At 38, his status as a trailblazing cricketer is secure, but some vintage Nabi would be a neat reminder of how he earned that status, and help Afghanistan avoid the wooden spoon.Mohammad Nabi took time to get going against india•ICC/Getty Images

Team news

Chris Woakes missed Friday’s training session due to a stomach illness but was back with the group on Saturday evening. Nevertheless, England may use this as an opportunity to give David Willey his first appearance of the tournament and could also be tempted to hand Gus Atkinson a start to rest Mark Wood. Stokes netted for around half an hour at the final training session, though only faced sidearm throws rather than bowlers.England: (possible) 1 Jonny Bairstow, 2 Dawid Malan, 3 Joe Root, 4 Harry Brook, 5 Jos Buttler (capt & wk), 6 Liam Livingstone, 7 Sam Curran, 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Mark Wood, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Reece TopleyJonathan Trott was tight-lipped about potential changes. There is an outside chance left-arm wrist spinner Noor Ahmed is drafted in, but that would require a major rebalancing of the XI given how little he offers with the bat. They are expected to go in unchanged.Afghanistan: (possible) 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 2 Ibrahim Zadran, 3 Rahmat Shah, 4 Hashmatullah Shahidi (c), 5 Azmatullah Oarzai, 6 Mohammad Nabi, 7 Najibullah Zadran, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 10 Naveen-ul-Haq, 11 Fazalhaq Farooqi

Pitch and conditions

There is fresh, live grass on the surface, which suggests plenty of pace and carry. Both teams are anticipating another belting track, akin to the one last week which South Africa used to great effect, setting a World Cup record of 428 for 5 against Sri Lanka.

Stats and trivia

• England and Afghanistan contested the first T20i at this venue during 2016’s World T20. Afghanistan were on the cusp of an upset, reducing England to 85 for 7 before Moeen Ali and David Willey put on a 57-run stand, then combined for three wickets as England triumphed by 15 runs.
• Ramat Shah is set to earn his 100th ODI cap.
• Mohammad Nabi is set to pick up his 150th ODI cap.

Quotes

“We don’t want to look at what could go wrong: we’ll look at what we can do right and how we can affect the game in the right manner. That’s how we’ll prepare. It’s about going in and delivering that.”
“I don’t think Rashid needs the conditions to suit him to cause mayhem. I can’t speak highly enough about the guy and the way he performs and his passion for playing for the side. I know that he puts a lot of pressure on himself to perform and to lead the attack.”

How the ten IPL squads stack up after the player retention deadline of November 26, ahead of the auction on December 19

Deivarayan Muthu26-Nov-20230:46

Moody: RCB releasing Hasaranga and Hazlewood a surprise

Mumbai Indians: Hardik’s back

Mumbai Indians didn’t finalise Hardik Pandya’s return* by the retention deadline on Sunday, but the trade happened shortly after. They also traded allrounder Cameron Green to RCB to free up their auction purse, after releasing 11 other players.Players released: Arshad Khan, Ramandeep Singh, Hrithik Shokeen, Raghav Goyal, Jofra Archer, Tristan Stubbs, Duan Jansen, Jhye Richardson, Riley Meredith, Chris Jordan, Sandeep WarrierPlayers traded in: Hardik Pandya, Romario ShepherdPlayers traded out: Cameron GreenPlayers retained: Rohit Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Varma, Tim David, Vishnu Vinod, Arjun Tendulkar, Shams Mulani, Nehal Wadhera, Jasprit Bumrah, Kumar Kartikeya, Piyush Chawla, Akash Madhwal, Jason BehrendorffPurse for the auction: 17.75 CR

Gujarat Titans: Who will succeed Hardik?

Now that Hardik’s gone, the Titans will have to appoint a new captain for the 2024 season. The rest of their core squad that won them the IPL title in 2022 and took them to the finals in 2023 remains largely intact.Players released: Alzarri Joseph, Odean Smith, Dasun Shanaka, Yash Dayal, KS Bharat, Shivam Mavi, Urvil Patel, Pradeep SangwanPlayers traded out: Hardik PandyaPlayers retained: David Miller, Shubman Gill, Matthew Wade, Wriddhiman Saha, Kane Williamson, Abhinav Manohar, B Sai Sudharsan, Darshan Nalkande, Vijay Shankar, Jayant Yadav, Rahul Tewatia, Mohammed Shami, Noor Ahmad, R Sai Kishore, Rashid Khan, Josh Little, Mohit SharmaPurse for the auction: 38.15 CRRelated

• IPL 2024 auction: Titans' Hardik-sized hole, and other key positions the teams need to fill

• Bangar appointed head of cricket development at Punjab Kings

• Explainer: How player trades work in the IPL

• Lucknow Super Giants trade Romario Shepherd to Mumbai Indians

• Royals trade Padikkal for Super Giants' Avesh in straight swap

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Hazlewood, Hasaranga, Harshal out

RCB need to overhaul their bowling attack, having released Wanindu Hasaranga, recent ODI World-Cup winner Josh Hazlewood, David Willey and Wayne Parnell. They retained England left-arm quick Reece Topley, but he is prone to injuries. Mohammed Siraj is the only certain starter among bowlers in their list of retained players, and they have traded in Green from Mumbai.Players released: Wanindu Hasaranga, Harshal Patel, Josh Hazlewood, Finn Allen, Michael Bracewell, David Willey, Wayne Parnell, Sonu Yadav, Avinash Singh, Siddharth Kaul, Kedar JadhavPlayers traded out: Shahbaz AhmedPlayers traded in: Mayank Dagar, Cameron GreenPlayers retained: Faf du Plessis, Rajat Patidar, Virat Kohli, Anuj Rawat, Dinesh Karthik, Suyash Prabhudessai, Will Jacks, Glenn Maxwell, Mahipal Lomror, Karn Sharma, Manoj Bhandage, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj, Reece Topley, Himanshu Sharma, Rajan Kumar, Vyshak VijaykumarPurse for the auction: 23.25 CR2:06

Will CSK splurge on Cummins at the auction?

Chennai Super Kings: Stokes released

As expected CSK released Stokes, who had opted out of IPL 2024 to manage his workload. The departure of both Stokes (INR 16.25 crore) and Rayudu (INR 6.75 crore), who has retired from the IPL, will allow CSK to bid aggressively for overseas allrounders and quicks at the auction.Players released: Ambati Rayudu, Ben Stokes, Dwaine Pretorious, Bhagath Varma, Subhranshu Senapati, Akash Singh, Kyle Jamieson, Sisanda MagalaPlayers retained: MS Dhoni, Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ajinkya Rahane, Shaik Rasheed, Ravindra Jadeja, Mitchell Santner, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Nishant Sindhu, Ajay Mandal, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Deepak Chahar, Maheesh Theekshana, Mukesh Chowdhary, Prashant Solanki, Simarjeet Singh, Tushar Deshpande, Matheesha PathiranaPurse for the auction: 31.4 CR

Delhi Capitals: Prithvi Shaw stays

Capitals have placed faith in Shaw once again despite his poor season in 2023, but they lack power in the middle order following the release of Rovman Powell. They will be on the lookout for a finisher and a fast bowler.Players released: Rilee Rossouw, Chetan Sakariya, Rovman Powell, Manish Pandey, Phil Salt, Mustafizur Rahman, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Ripal Patel, Sarfaraz Khan, Aman Khan, Priyam GargPlayers retained: Rishabh Pant, David Warner, Prithvi Shaw, Yash Dhull, Abishek Porel, Axar Patel, Lalit Yadav, Mitchell Marsh, Pravin Dubey, Vicky Ostwal, Anrich Nortje, Kuldeep Yadav, Lungi Ngidi, Khaleel Ahmed, Ishant Sharma, Mukesh KumarPurse for the auction: 28.95 CR

Rajasthan Royals: Holder, Root released

Royals had hoped Jason Holder would lend balance and depth to their side last season, but they barely used him with the bat and failed to get the best out of him with the ball. A gun overseas allrounder will be top priority on their shopping list at the auction.Players released: Joe Root, Abdul Basith, Jason Holder, Akash Vashisht, Kuldip Yadav, Obed McCoy, M Ashwin, KC Cariappa, KM AsifPlayers traded out : Devdutt PadikkalPlayers traded in : Avesh KhanPlayers retained: Sanju Samson, Jos Buttler, Shimron Hetmyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Donovan Ferreira, Kunal Rathore, R Ashwin, Kuldeep Sen, Navdeep Saini, Sandeep Sharma, Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal, Adam Zampa, Prasidh KrishnaPurse for the auction: 14.5 CR3:42

Was holding onto Andre Russell a good option for KKR?

Punjab Kings: Shahrukh, a surprise release

Releasing Shahrukh Khan (INR 9 crore) into the auction pool has allowed Kings to retain allrounder Sam Curran, who had become the most expensive player in the IPL (INR 18.5 crore) at the previous auction. If Kings can’t buy Shahrukh back at a lower price, they need a new domestic finisher.Players released: Shahrukh Khan, Raj Bawa, Baltej Dhanda, Mohit Rathee, Bhanuka RajapaksaPlayers retained: Shikhar Dhawan, Jitesh Sharma, Jonny Bairstow, Prabhsimran Singh, Liam Livingstone, Atharva Taide, Rishi Dhawan, Sam Curran, Sikandar Raza, Shivam Singh, Harpreet Brar, Arshdeep Singh, Kagiso Rabada, Nathan Ellis, Rahul Chahar, Vidwath Kaverappa, Harpreet BhatiaPurse for the auction: 29.1 CR

Kolkata Knight Riders: Several quicks among 12 players let go

KKR, like RCB, have overhauled their pace department, letting Lockie Ferguson, Shardul Thakur and Tim Southee go among others. They also need a back-up wicketkeeper batter for Rahmanullah Gurbaz, having released both Litton Das and N Jagadeesan.Players released: Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Lockie Ferguson, Shardul Thakur, Mandeep Singh, Kulwant Khejroliya, N Jagadeesan, David Wiese, Aarya Desai, Litton Das, Johnson Charles, Shakib Al HasanPlayers retained: Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Shreyas Iyer, Jason Roy, Anukul Roy, Andre Russel, Venkatesh Iyer, Suyash Sharma, Harshit Rana, Sunil Narine, Vaibhav Arora, Varun ChakravarthyPurse for the auction: 32.7 CR1:55

Moody: SRH might regret adding Harry Brook back in the auction pool

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Brook cut loose

Harry Brook headlines Sunrisers’ list of released players, but they already have a ready middle-order replacement for him in Glenn Phillips. Their spin attack, though, appears thin following the releases of Adil Rashid, Akeal Hosein and Mayank Dagar, who was traded for Shahbaz Ahmed.Players released: Harry Brook, Adil Rashid, Akeal Hosein, Karthik Tyagi, Vivrant Sharma, Samarth VyasPlayers traded out: Mayank DagarPlayers traded in: Shahbaz AhmedPlayers retained: Abdul Samad, Aiden Markram, Rahul Tripathi, Glenn Phillips, Mayank Agarwal, Heinrich Klaasen, Anmolpreet Singh, Upendra Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Abhishek Sharma, Marco Jansen, Washington Sundar, Sanvir Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Fazalhaq Farooqi, T Natarajan, Umran Malik, Mayank MarkandePurse for the auction: 34 CR

Lucknow Super Giants: Unadkat, Sams let go

LSG released eight players – none of whom can lay claim to being first-XI players, though new coach Justin Langer said it was hard for the franchise to let Daniel Sams go. Having also traded Romario Shepherd to Mumbai, LSG will eye overseas allrounders at the auction.Players released: Daniel Sams, Karun Nair, Jaydev Unadkat, Manan Vohra, Karan Sharma, Suryansh Shedge, Swapnil Singh, Arpit GuleriaPlayers traded out : Romario Shepherd, Avesh KhanPlayers traded in : Devdutt PadikkalPlayers retained: KL Rahul, Quinton de Kock, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Deepak Hooda, K Gowtham, Krunal Pandya, Kyle Mayers, Marcus Stoinis, Prerak Mankad, Yudhvir Singh, Mark Wood, Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan, Ravi Bishnoi, Yash Thakur, Amit Mishra, Naveen-ul-HaqPurse for the auction: 13.15 CR*.

The dissolution was precipitated by Sri Lanka’s exit from the ongoing World Cup, amidst public outcry at the team’s being dismissed for 55 at the Wankhede

Andrew Fidel Fernando06-Nov-2023Sri Lanka’s sports minister Roshan Ranasinghe has sought to sack the Sri Lanka Cricket board, replacing officials with a government-appointed “interim committee” headed by Arjuna Ranatunga. It is unclear as yet what the ICC’s response to this move is, given the ICC had taken a dim view of Sri Lanka’s last government-appointed committee in 2014.Under Sri Lanka’s own Sports Law, however, the government has the power to dissolve the governing body of any sport – a power it has used several times on SLC in the last 20 years. But during the time of the most-recent interim committee, which presided for roughly a year between 2014 and 2015, the ICC had refused to disburse payments owed to SLC, and held those funds in escrow until a fresh board was elected by SLC’s members. SLC was also demoted to observer status at ICC board meetings.The dissolution was precipitated by Sri Lanka’s exit from the ongoing men’s World Cup, amidst public outcry at the team’s being dismissed for 55 at the Wankhede against India. But trouble had been brewing for over a year, with the sports minister frequently accusing the board of financial misappropriation and mismanagement.Ranatunga has also separately spoken publicly about what he would change if put in charge of cricket in the country.He is the only former international cricketer in the interim committee, however. The others in the seven member committee are SI Imam, Rohini Marasinghe, and Irangani Perera (who are all retired judges of either the Supreme or High Court of Sri Lanka), Upali Dharmadasa, who has previously held top positions in SLC, and Rakitha Rajapakshe and Hisham Jamaldeen, who are sons of politicians belonging to the same ruling, political coalition as sports minister Ranasinghe. Rajapakshe and Jamaldeen work in law, and real estate respectively.Soon after Sri Lanka’s defeat to India last week, Ranasinghe had sent a letter to the other Full Member boards accusing SLC of “mismanagement” – a letter which he sought to essentially pave the way for his appointing his own committee.The ICC’s board is due to meet in the two weeks, and Ranatunga will expect to act as Sri Lanka’s director (the ICC board is made up of directors from all full member nations) at that meeting.

He will be returning to competitive cricket during the BPL in January

Mohammad Isam27-Nov-2023Tamim Iqbal will ‘wait till January’ to make a decision about his future in international cricket.”After the World Cup, I felt that there should be a decision about my international future,” Tamim said during a press conference on Monday. “Throughout my career, I have always kept myself away from indecision. I have always been very open and clear about whatever decision I have taken in my life. I was not in the country for quite some time, so this meeting [with BCB president Nazmul Hassan] was due.”We held the meeting today because we had to postpone it yesterday too. Today is actually not a great day to do all this. The Test match [against New Zealand] starts tomorrow. Since we had to do the meeting today, a statement afterwards was always forthcoming, so I apologise that I am doing this the day before the game. It is important for me and the Bangladesh team that there’s no impact of this in the game.”Related

• Shanto wants Tamim 'available in all formats' for Bangladesh

• How Tamim Iqbal's un-retirement unfolded

• Tamim hits out at BCB; claims he would've been fit for World Cup

• Shakib: Tamim 'childish' and 'not a team man'

Tamim had retired from international cricket last July, only to reverse his decision after meeting Bangladesh’s prime minister Sheikh Hasina the following day. A month later, he also resigned from ODI captaincy. Tamim then played two out of three ODIs against New Zealand in September, even as his successor Shakib Al Hasan had later criticised him for leaving the captaincy at the time. Tamim is yet to respond to Shakib.Tamim said that he was holding back the announcement about his future at Nazmul’s request, adding that he will be returning to competitive cricket during next year’s Bangladesh Premier League in January.”I don’t want to keep things hanging for a few more months. I don’t want to stretch it unnecessarily,” he said. “After discussing a lot of things with the president and the board, I want to respect their decision and wait till January. I could have told you my plan today, but let me play in the BPL, and then we will have another discussion for sure.”Nazmul, meanwhile, said major discussions regarding the issue with Tamim will be done only after national elections – where Nazmul has got the ticket from his home district alongside Shakib Al Hasan and Mashrafe Mortaza – in January.”There wasn’t enough time [to discuss matters with Tamim],” Nazmul said. “He said some stuff. But he came at a time when I didn’t have enough time for him. I have the elections in a month. I spend most of my time in my constituency. I told him I will listen and speak to a few more people after the elections. I want to know where the problem is. I want to go into its depth.”

The left hander comes in as a replacement player with the defending champions losing key overseas names

Andrew McGlashan and Alex Malcolm14-Jan-2024Marcus Harris, who recently missed out on a Test recall, has been signed as a replacement player by defending champions Perth Scorchers for the closing stages of the BBL.Scorchers have lost Zak Crawley to England Test duty and will also be without Laurie Evans for the finals as he has an ILT20 deal. Stephen Eskinazi returned to the line-up against Brisbane Heat but Scorchers have bolstered their options by bringing in Harris, who did not have a BBL deal, as a replacement for the injured Jhye Richardson.Related

• Hobson, Connolly hurt Heat again but Scorchers' bigger challenge awaits

• Scorchers, Heat face crunch depth test in bid for BBL title

Harris’ previous BBL outing came for Melbourne Renegades last season. He also played 14 matches for Scorchers between 2014 and 2016. Overall he has 981 runs in T20s at 20.43 and a strike-rate of 121.71.”We saw the need to add to our batting options with Laurie Evans and Zak Crawley unavailable for finals, and Marcus fits the bill nicely,” Perth Scorchers general manager, Kade Harvey, said. “He has plenty of domestic and international experience playing on a variety of surfaces, and he knows WA well having started his career in Perth. We’re pleased he’s on board for the remainder of the season.”Scorchers secured a place in the finals with victory over Brisbane Heat on Saturday, but face a key game against Sydney Sixers on Tuesday to earn a spot in the Qualifier, also against Heat, which would allow them the crucial second chance to reach the decider on January 24 as they aim to become the first team to complete a hat-trick of BBL titles.Harris would be able to play in finals even if he does not face Sixers. Overseas signings have to make a regular-season appearance in order to be eligible, but that does not apply to local replacement players.Harris was overlooked for a Test comeback last week when the selectors opted for Matt Renshaw as the spare batter in the squad to face West Indies after deciding to promote Steven Smith to open and recall Cameron Green at No. 4.

They had slipped to fifth after the defeat in Hyderabad, but are now firmly back on top

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Mar-2024 • Updated on 11-Mar-20242:35

How significant is this series win for India?

India have extended their lead at the top of the 2023-25 World Test Championship (WTC) points table by beating England in Dharamsala to win the five-match series 4-1.The 4-1 series win also helped India overtake Australia at the top of the ICC’s Test rankings and they remain No. 1 even though Australia beat New Zealand in Christchurch. India are also the top-ranked ODI and T20I side at present.How the WTC points table looks after the conclusion of the New Zealand vs Australia Test series•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

India had slipped to fifth place in the WTC points table after losing the first Test of the series against England in Hyderabad, but climbed back up to No. 1 by winning the next three matches. The innings victory in Dharamsala extended their percentage points to 68.51%, having earned 74 out of 108 points after playing nine matches (six wins, two defeats, one draw) in the ongoing WTC cycle.According to the WTC points system, a team gets 12 points for a Test win, six for a tie, four for a draw, and nothing for a defeat. And they are ranked according to the percentage of points won because each team plays a different number of Tests in the WTC cycle.Points are also deducted for slow over rate penalties, which is why England have only 21 points despite winning three Tests in this WTC cycle. They have lost 19 points for slow over-rate penalties and are in eighth place with only 17.5 percentage points after playing ten Tests.Related

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• Stokes: 'We're man enough to say that we've been outplayed'

Australia are presently second with 62.50% points and New Zealand are third at 50%. With only a Bangladesh-Sri Lanka Test series to go before the IPL season begins on March 22, India are set to remain No. 1 for a few months.Bangladesh, on fourth place behind New Zealand in the WTC points table, have played only one series in the ongoing cycle. They are followed by Pakistan, West Indies, South Africa, England and Sri Lanka.The top two teams at the end of the WTC cycle will play the final at Lord’s in June 2025. India had qualified for both the previous WTC finals so far, but lost to New Zealand in 2021 and Australia in 2023.

RCB batter says it hasn’t been a conscious decision to bat at a higher tempo this IPL season

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Apr-20241:01

Kohli’s form ‘never in doubt’ – Wasim Jaffer

Virat Kohli is scoring at a strike rate of 146 in this year’s IPL. Only once has he ever scored quicker and that was in 2016 when he was the kind of form where he was threatening the 1000-run mark. Is this a conscious effort? Is he trying to bat differently, more aggressively?”Look I’m not coming with any premeditation,” Kohli said after making the first century of the 2024 season that took Royal Challengers Bangalore to a total of 183 on a Jaipur pitch that was on the slower side. “Whatever the surface allows me to do, I do that. Today I wasn’t 20 off 9. I was 12 off 10.”Kohli has seemed more willing to take risks, particularly looking to hit over the top to find boundaries. He is lofting more balls per innings this year than in any of the last 10. But he is putting that down to his usual process of assessing the game in front of him and knowing that if the need arises he can go big whenever he wants.”So I knew I can’t go over-aggressive. I don’t want to be predictable. I know I can step up at any point because I’m hitting the ball well. But I want to keep the bowler guessing as to what I’m going to do. They probably want me to come hard at them so they can get me out or have an early breakthrough. But I feel like if I’m set and if I bat beyond six overs, then our chance of getting good totals becomes that much better. So I guess it is just experience and maturity over the years and understanding the conditions that you’re playing. I basically play the conditions and I have the game ready to play in two or three different ways.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Kohli’s century on Saturday night was the eighth of his IPL career, two clear of any other batter in the history of the tournament. He needed 67 balls to get there though, which makes it the joint-slowest. Kohli explained that it was not easy to hit the shots that he wanted to hit because of the lack of pace and bounce, which the Rajasthan Royals spinners used to their advantage to finish with combined figures of 8-0-62-2.”Nothing really came onto the bat. Even a few shots that I tried to play against Yuzvendra Chahal, just trying to slog him, they kept going under the bat. Even R Ashwin, it just felt like you couldn’t get under the carrom ball to hit over midwicket. All you could target was straight if they missed their length. So if you’re consistent enough, the batters were finding it difficult out there.”The wicket feels like its flat but as soon as you see the ball holding up in the pitch, that’s when you realise the pace is changing pretty quickly and then the big dimensions of the ground come into play. Our target initially was 190, 195, to be honest. But then assessing the pitch and how it was slowing down, we decided if one of Faf [du Plessis] or me get out, then the other had to bat till the end so that we can get that boost closer to 180-185, which we did, which I feel is a very effective total on this pitch.”Kohli has contributed 38% of all of RCB’s runs this season. He holds the Orange Cap with a tally of 316 from five innings and has now crossed 7500 runs in the IPL,

Opener makes 85 as visitors give themselves hope of securing first-innings lead

ECB Reporters Network13-Apr-2024Keaton Jennings put behind his disappointment at missing out on England’s Test tour to India by beginning his Vitality County Championship campaign with a half-century.Opening batter Jennings impressed as part of the England Lions squad acting as support for the Test squad in the sub-continent this winter, but was not considered for the main event, with Ben Duckett and Zak Crawley remaining Ben Stokes’ and Brendon McCullum’s preferred opening pair.He totted up 85 with only one dropped catch as a blemish in an otherwise authoritative innings, with his opening partner Luke Wells reaching 55.Lancashire ended the day on 233 for four, 134 runs behind Hampshire’s first innings total on a placid Utilita Bowl pitch.Having bowled the hosts out for what felt like an about-par 367, Wells and Jennings made hay in good batting conditions.Mohammad Abbas’ battle with Wells was intriguing, with the Pakistan fast bowler sending down 16 challenging dot-balls before the batter could manoeuvre himself off strike.And from that point, the former Sussex opener slowly put himself on top of the home side’s bowling attack to rush towards his first half-century of the season.He found straight driving particularly profitable as he needed just 65 balls to reach the milestone – the 68th fifty of his career.Wells fell to end an 87-run partnership, of which he had notched up 55 when he clipped Abbas to Tom Prest at short midwicket – in doing so becoming the fifth batter to 50 but not 100.Jennings was far less aggressive in his approach but never looked in too much danger as the Kookaburra ball quickly went soft.His main approach to the lack of pace in the pitch was to bat further and further out of his crease, with Lancashire’s general tactic of hitting down the ground in opposition to Hampshire’s square domination.Jennings was dropped at point on 36 by Nick Gubbins, who lost his trousers in the process, before slowly closing in on 57th first-class half-century – which eventually arrived in 122 balls.Josh Bohannon made 30 out of 38 with Bohannon before chopping James Fuller onto his own stumps, after a big build-up of pressure from the Pavilion End – started by Kyle Abbott and continued by Fuller.Jennings then teamed up with George Balderson in an 86-run stand which appeared to be never-ending until Balderson recklessly slogged to deep midwicket for 38, before Tom Bruce was brilliantly caught at first slip by Liam Dawson to give Holland two wickets in two balls to turn the momentum.George Bell narrowly avoided edging the hat-trick ball before surviving to the close with Jennings.Earlier, Hampshire added 62 runs to their overnight score as they extended their first innings by an hour and a half, with three batting points pocketed.Dawson had gone to bed on 61 having begun his season in the sort of form that 2023 was remembered for, and continued to tick along with Ian Holland and James Fuller in 38 and 45-run partnerships.Barring a little scamper to reach 350 in plenty of time – which included Dawson pulling Will Williams for six – there was hardly any deviation from a placid tempo.Holland fell leg before to Williams before Fuller edged a drive off Wells to a helmeted Jennings at first slip, while Dawson fell for an innings-high 86 by a smart catch behind off Tom Bailey. It meant none of Hampshire’s four fifty-makers were able to convert to three figures.Nathan Lyon completed the innings when Kyle Abbott was caught at long-on by Jennings – the Australian ending with three for 110 from a backbreaking 38.1 overs.From then on in, Lancashire bedded in and made the most of a pitch and ball that was suited for patient long-form batting.

Australia are likely to name the in-form top-order batter in Fraser-McGurk and a batting all-rounder in Short rather than any spare bowlers

Alex Malcolm20-May-20242:05

How Jacks, Fraser-McGurk have set the IPL alight

Australia are set to take two travelling reserves to the T20 World Cup with Jake Fraser-McGurk and Matthew Short likely to be named as the 16th and 17th squad members who will join as cover in case of a tournament-ending injury to one of the first-choice 15.Australia’s chair of selectors George Bailey had suggested that Australia would carry just one reserve to the Caribbean when the provisional squad was announced, but they are likely to add a second with the in-form Fraser-McGurk set to be named alongside Short.Related

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• Takeaways: Why Fraser-McGurk and Smith missed out on T20 World Cup selection

• Stead leaning on 'experience' of NZ squad in absence of official warm-ups ahead of World Cup

• Fraser-McGurk and Smith left out of Australia's T20 World Cup squad, Marsh to captain

They have elected not to add a third frontline spinner as a travelling reserve. Legspinner Tanveer Sangha was with the squad as a reserve at the ODI World Cup last year when Australia had just one specialist spinner but this time Ashton Agar is included in the 15. Sangha is also understood to be managing a hip flexor issue and therefore wasn’t in contention. Left-arm orthodox Matthew Kuhnemann trained with Australia’s non-IPL players in Brisbane in the two camps held over the past fortnight but is yet to play a T20I for Australia despite playing Test and ODI cricket over the past two years.Fraser-McGurk’s omission from the main squad caused a stir given his stunning IPL form with many in Australia and overseas believing he should have been included. He has yet to make his T20I debut and has only played two ODIs. He was not selected in the main squad on the basis that Australia have an established top three in David Warner, Travis Head and captain Mitchell Marsh and that the selectors needed players with more versatility to fill roles outside the first-choice XI. Fraser-McGurk will likely provide cover if one of the top three gets injured during the tournament.Jake Fraser-McGurk made a stunning entrance to the IPL•Associated Press

Short was also unlucky to miss out on a spot in the final 15 having appeared in nine of Australia’s last 14 T20Is and also played in multiple batting roles. He opened in five games having been BBL player of the tournament in back-to-back seasons as an opener but batted at No. 3 once and No. 6 twice as Australia looked to build some middle-order depth. He only bowled his part-time offspin in four of those matches including an over in the powerplay in three of them. He is likely to provide cover for a number of different roles in the squad.Australia have opted not to carry another fast bowler in their reserves as there may be times in the tournament they only play two of the four they selected in the squad. They have the capability of playing two spinners or the extra all-rounder in Cameron Green to lengthen the batting line-up down to No. 8.Spencer Johnson, Xavier Bartlett and Sean Abbott will all be in the UK playing in the T20 Blast during the World Cup and can be flown into the Caribbean more easily than anyone remaining in Australia.Australia’s squad members not involved in the IPL finals will fly to the Caribbean on Thursday for a training camp in Trinidad that will include two practice matches against Namibia and West Indies on May 28 and 30 respectively. There is a potential that Australia will have limited numbers available for those matches with Head, Green, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Glenn Maxwell set for a delayed arrival due to the IPL playoffs not being completed until May 26.But while New Zealand opted not to play any practice matches due to the logistical challenge of having chunks of their squad arrive at different times into the Caribbean, Australia are prepared to play the warm-up games with limited numbers to choose from.A number of their players including, Marsh, Warner, Agar, Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa, Matthew Wade, Nathan Ellis and Josh Inglis have either played no cricket since the end of the Australian domestic summer in March or have played very little cricket in the IPL. Under ICC rules, only players named in the 15-man squad can play in the warm-up fixtures.Marsh, Hazlewood, Inglis, Zampa and Agar have all trained in Brisbane over the past fortnight along with Short. Marsh is understood to have recovered from his hamstring injury but he is still yet to bowl.

He says Nepal will be on the right side of results if they get more exposure against the best sides in the world

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Jun-20243:06

Morkel: Nepal’s bowling made life difficult for SA

After his team came agonisingly close to a historic win and what would have been their first against a Full-Member side, Nepal captain Rohit Paudel has asked for more exposure against top teams. Nepal were on top of their modest chase of 116 against South Africa until Tabraiz Shamsi returned to claim two wickets in the 18th over, which began with Nepal needing 18 from 18. Anrich Nortje then conceded eight off the 19th and Ottneil Baartman defended seven in the last over, which included the tense situation of Nepal needing two from the last ball, but they couldn’t get even one, which would have taken the game to a Super Over.”I am very proud of the unit, especially the way we bowled and batted, I’m very proud of that,” Paudel said at the presentation. “We were very close but a little far. In crunch moments we did well, but the way we fought was very good. If we get more exposure regularly then next games we will be on the other side [of the result].”Nepal’s stunning performance was scripted by spinners Dipendra Singh Airee and Kushal Bhurtel, who claimed seven wickets between them for just 40 runs in their eight overs. Sandeep Lamichhane, who was playing his first game of the T20 World Cup 2024 after missing the USA leg, bowled four frugal overs for just 18 runs, giving away only one boundary. In all, the Nepal spinners bowled 14 overs for 75 runs.Related

• Shamsi: 'We've been put under pressure every game and stood up to it'

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When asked if Nepal had expected the spinners to get so much assistance from the pitch, Paudel said: “Yeah, when we saw the wicket yesterday, we thought it would be on the slower side. Eventually when we were bowling I thought the wicket was helping the spinners and then we introduced Bhurtel and we carried on with the spinners.” Bhurtel claimed 4 for 19, which included the big scalps of Aiden Markram and Henrich Klaasen as well as those of Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada.South Africa played just the one frontline spinner – Shamsi came into the XI for Keshav Maharaj – and bowled six overs of spin overall, with two from Markram. Shamsi came into the attack after seven overs, by which time Nepal were 34 for no loss. Markram later admitted South Africa should have picked another spinner on a track on which the ball was stopping, turning and bouncing. Markram brought himself on after the 13th over.2:22

Morkel: SA could play two spinners on slower pitches

“We have a good pace attack and you want to back that,” Markram said at the presentation. “I thought if we got the ball in the right areas, there could be something in the wicket and I felt like it was challenging for the batters. Looking back in hindsight, we should have probably picked an extra spinner on this wicket. I didn’t think it’d spin that much. But the pacers kept us in the game and a lot of credit has to go to them tonight.”South Africa’s start wasn’t promising either, after they were put in to bat. They managed just 38 for 1 in the powerplay and struck only two sixes in their innings. Only one batter – Tristan Stubbs – scored at over a run a ball and had it not been for his unbeaten 27 off 18, South Africa might have finished well below 115. While acknowledging the tough conditions, Markram also praised the Nepal bowlers.”I think it’s two things: first and foremost, the way [Nepal] bowled it made it really tough for us throughout the game,” he said. “You have to give them a lot of credit. They put us under a lot of pressure, and it shows the quality they have in their change room. If you mix that with maybe not enough conviction in our plans and a slight lack in intensity, you can get stuck, and that’s what happened tonight. Like I said, there’ll be a lot of learnings and we’d assume Caribbean conditions might be a little similar moving forward so it’s about backing plans that we develop and pretty much be at ease with whatever comes after having solid plans.”South Africa finished on top of Group D with four wins out of four and will be in Group 2 in the Super Eight, along with USA, West Indies and one out of England and Scotland from Group B.