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Faruque Ahmed, Bangladesh’s chief selector, has a full plate to deal with ahead of the meeting to pick the squads for the upcoming tour of the West Indies

Mohammad Isam23-Jul-2014Faruque Ahmed, Bangladesh’s chief selector, has a full plate to deal with ahead of the meeting to pick the squads for the upcoming tour of the West Indies. The limited-overs side is likely to be announced in the next few days after he submits it to the BCB, along with the players included in the Test squad.Changing conditions in the Caribbean, Bangladesh’s worrying batting form and bowling resources, and the absence of their top cricketer are among the many factors he will have to consider.Shakib Al Hasan’s six-month suspension means that for the first time Bangladesh will not select him though he is fully fit. “Shakib is a very important player but this is part of cricket,” Faruque said. “Some players get injured, though Shakib has been suspended. We have played without him in the recent past. From the point of view of the chief selector, we have to add an extra player when replacing Shakib. I think we can fill his place by picking an extra batsman or bowler.”When fit, Shakib Al Hasan has always been the first name on Bangladesh’s team sheet•AFPBangladesh won eight out of 21 ODIs that Shakib missed in the last six years; four since March 2013. However, they have lost all their ODIs in 2014. Tamim Iqbal’s form is a major concern, as are Mahmudullah and Nasir Hossain’s lean patches.”Apart from a stray innings or two, our batting in the last few series hasn’t been up to the mark,” Faruque said. “We couldn’t win a low-scoring match in the India series, so the batting department needs our attention. Many of our players have lost rhythm, which we also have to consider. These bilateral series are important ahead of the World Cup. We want to win, and at the same time see these series as preparation.”I am seeing them batting against short-pitched bowling in the indoor nets, so they are training on particular skills. I hope they can turn the corner and get past their shortcomings.Faruque did not explicitly say he is considering Tamim, but he is making arrangements with an eye on the opener’s form. “Tamim is one of our best players. We hope that most of our key players return to form before the World Cup. When they go through a bad patch, we keep an eye whether they are doing the other things properly. He is working hard, trying. But it is not clear when he will return to form. We have options, so we are making a team in that way.”Thirteen players out of the preliminary squad of 25 were part of the ODI series against India in June, with only Ziaur Rahman being cut. There will be talk of Imrul Kayes, who scored a Test hundred and an ODI fifty in his only opportunities this year, while also top scoring for Bangladesh A in their largely unsuccessful tour of the West Indies in May and June. Robiul Islam and Shafiul Islam will also be considered, though Robiul only for Tests.Rubel Hossain could be considered, though he hasn’t played competitive cricket since March, while Arafat Sunny will also be discussed due to Shakib’s absence. Faruque all but ruled out picking an uncapped player for this tour.”We learn a lot about players in these A tours. We sent a combination of senior players and youngsters to West Indies this time. It will have an effect on the team selection. We will keep in mind those who performed there. I thought Mominul, Nasir, Imrul and Shuvo played well.”We always think of adding one or two new boys. I am not saying there won’t be anyone new in the team this time but we are mindful of the conditions and the challenges of playing in West Indies.”Faruque was not sure whether pace or spin would be Bangladesh’s stronger suit in the Caribbean. In the second and third ODIs against India, Mashrafe Mortaza, Al-Amin Hossain and Taskin Ahmed impressed in helpful seaming conditions, but in the last 12 months spinners have taken the most wickets for Bangladesh. However, Abdur Razzak and Sohag Gazi have struggled this year.”We have had to consider recent conditions in the West Indies before we select the team,” Faruque said. “There used to be a lot of bounce in wickets there but it has changed, become a lot more varied. Maybe there is a thought of not taking too many fast bowlers there, but at the same time we must realise West Indies will play to their strength. We have to consider our strength too, whether that is spin or pace.”

JP Duminy led with an all-round performance to help South Africa pull off a 12-run win in the low-scoring opener of the three-match T20 series against Sri Lanka

The Report by Firdose Moonda02-Aug-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details South Africa’s bowlers were miserly as only two Sri Lankan batsmen managed double-digit scores•AFPReplay the manner in which South Africa were defeated four times on their tour of Sri Lanka so far and you would have expected them to lose this match as well. The top order failed, the middle order was exposed but only just hung together and the bowlers had too little to work with. But this time, they pulled off a heist despite all their deficiencies.JP Duminy followed up his half-century with a match-winning bowling performance while Morne Morkel and Wayne Parnell finally showed capabilities of bowling at the death. Kumar Sangakkara’s 59 was one of only two double-figure scores on Sri Lanka’s card as the rest battled on a slow surface.South African fans would not have expected that, after their team seemed to have lost the match before the first innings powerplay was even complete. Sri Lanka’s offspinner Sachithra Senanayake plucked three wickets from a top order that has yet to find their confidence. Their bowlers, though, had theirs boosted after they defended a low total which required Sri Lanka to score just 37 runs in the last five overs.Sri Lanka looked set to chase down the total without much fuss when they scored 13 runs in the first two overs. Kusal Perera showed attacking intent but his temperament gave way when he mis-hit Morne Morkel to point.Dinesh Chandimal also seemed in a hurry. He hit two boundaries before bottom-edging Lonwabo Tsotsobe, after struggling with the extra bounce.With early setbacks, Sri Lanka’s seniors Tillakaratne Dilshan and Kumar Sangakkara knuckled down and tried to pick singles off Wayne Parnell and Imran Tahir. But all the patience Dilshan showed in the ODI series vanished when Duminy was introduced, as in an attempt to take the bowler on, Dilshan only managed to offer AB de Villiers a catch at long-on.Sri Lanka needed to score 70 runs in the second-half of their innings but with the in-form Sangakkara at the crease, they would have thought it more than possible. While he found the boundary, the rest found the fielders.Angelo Mathews gave Duminy a tame return catch and then Jeevan Mendis swept him to deep square leg the next ball. Duminy didn’t complete a hat-trick but he wouldn’t mind that.Lahiru Thirimanne and Thisara Perera holed out within six balls of each other and suddenly, South Africa had the upper-hand. With 21 runs to defend off 12 balls, Parnell mixed up his pace in a double-wicket maiden and Morkel bowled a few full to ensure run-scoring opportunities were unavailable. Sangakkara hit two fours off the last over but he could not do it alone and in the end, Sri Lanka ended up with a worse batting performance than South Africa.That hardly seemed possible after Senanayake’s start. He exposed Quinton de Kock’s inexperience and had the young wicket-keeper batsman playing down the wrong line to one that straightened to get him lbw.Henry Davids also could not read Senanayake. After trying to work him to leg and push him to cover, he went for the sweep to a full delivery and was trapped in front. And then, Faf du Plessis’ lean series became leaner. After constant shuffling at the crease, he tried to play inside the line of a straighter one and was bowled.De Villiers and JP Duminy posted a small stand of 27 and Duminy took on the responsibility of anchoring the innings. He hung around for long enough to accelerate slightly and along with David Miller, helped South Africa manage 21 runs off the 16th and 17th over.Miller became Lasith Malinga’s 50th T20 victim but Duminy notched up a more favourable record. He brought up his fifty with a slog-sweep off an Ajantha Mendis full toss, which took over 1,000 T20 runs and made him South Africa’s leading scorer in the format, overtaking Graeme Smith, and giving the team a morale-boosting win during a tough tour.

An unheralded bowling attack on a wicket that is made for accuracy and length had Delhi all out for 193 late into the second day in a match they need to win. At stumps, Maharashtra were 3 for no loss

Sharda Ugra in Delhi17-Dec-2012
ScorecardMaharashtra made the most of a day of sunshine, a biting breeze and a wicket that had, relatively speaking, eased a tad•Sharda Ugra/ESPNcricinfo LtdDelhi have not reached the Ranji Trophy knock-out for the last two seasons. Their only chance of doing so this year will come if, on Tuesday, they chase down their highest total at the Roshanara Club.Maharashtra, 196 all out in their first innings after being put into bat, have come back into the match with a second batting performance that shook their fists at Delhi. What else would you call a target of 270 to win on a bowler’s wicket?All out for 266 in their second innings, Maharashtra made the most of a day of sunshine, a biting breeze and a wicket that had, relatively speaking, eased a tad. Delhi will have to deal with a target that is 100 runs more than they have successfully chased at this picturesque yet demanding venue.In 2009-10, Delhi had gobbled down a total of 160 against Saurashtra by eight wickets. In the same season, they also scored 112 against Maharashtra at Roshanara. Besides those two successful fourth innings attempts, Delhi’s fourth innings records at Roshanara largely go downhill.There are, in theory, 98 overs to be bowled on Tuesday with play beginning at 9am and ending at 4:30pm. To start with, Delhi will have to bat longer than they have in their last five innings to have any chance of an outright win. In the ten innings they have played this season, Delhi have batted for less than 77 overs five times and less than 90 overs twice. On Tuesday, their batsmen will need to perform double-roles: that of resolute foot soldiers who refuse to yield inches or wickets and also traffic-stopping stroke-makers who can go after the asking rate for under-four runs an over. It is the tallest of orders.On Monday, Maharashtra won both the inches and the yards, thanks to their opener Harshad Khadiwale’s best performance of the season (96, 195b, 12×4). His team lost two wickets in the eighth over of the morning, to Sumit Narwal who, like in the first innings, trapped opener Virag Awate and No. 3 Sangram Atitkar in front. A 130-run partnership between Khadiwale and Ankit Bawne did not pass without incident which had an eventual effect on how the day panned out.Bawne was dropped on 2 by Mohit Sharma leaping backwards at covers off Pavan Suyal. The two batsmen went on securely to lunch, after which Pradeep Sangwan had Khadiwale, caught behind by Punit Bisht on 68. Unfortunately, as happens very often with Sangwan, it was off a no-ball.Bawne had tried to cut and flash against the quick bowlers three times before Delhi captain Shikhar Dhawan stationed a man at deep backward point. The fourth time, the upper cut off Vikas Tokas reached substitute Milind Kumar waiting on the fence. Tokas, the quickest of the Delhi bowlers, bowled a revved-up second spell (10-1-30-2) after lunch. Khadiwale, who said later he had tried to play closer to his body than he had in the first innings, stroked the ball with confidence. Until he entered his 90s.It took him 34 balls to go from 90 to 94. In the meantime, he lost both Rohit Motwani and Kedar Jadhav for very little to left-armer Suyal. Turning cautious, he shouldered arms to Tokas and tried to let one go past him. He laughed later, saying that in a typical Roshanara event, the ball jagged back and took his off stump. “Here, you can get out any time.”Maharashtra were suddenly 170 for 6, but their lower order pulled and pushed them ahead. Chirag Khurana (38) and Srikanth Mundhe (33) made the most of the softer ball. Khurana added 67 with Mundhe for the seventh wicket and Mundhe’s gusty 24-run stand with debutant Nikit Dhumal against the new ball took Maharashtra’s lead to past 250. Sangwan eventually bowled Mundhe, not once but twice, the first being off a no-ball. It was the only moment of amusement Delhi would have had all day.

There may be nothing riding on it, but Saturday's match means so much more to the U.S. team

For the last several years, the new generation of U.S. men's national team stars has been united by two separate, but similar, rallying cries. The first defined their road to the 2022 World Cup. It called on the players involved to change the way the world views American soccer, not just for one tournament, but forever.

That one is still a work in progress. Their efforts in Qatar were definitely admirable and players' progress on the club level has definitely made the rest of the world take notice, but Rome wasn't built in a day. It will take sustained, consistent improvement to accomplish that goal.

Since the summer, though, the U.S. has been discussing a new goal: to change the way that America views soccer forever.

Assistant coach B.J. Callaghan says the team won't be satisfied until there are loads of Christians, Westons, Gios and Matts born and named for the country's soccer idols. The team, as a whole, has said they won't have achieved anything until they've proven they can be more than what they showed in Qatar.

But how can they do that? How does a team approach goals so lofty and so vague? Well, it starts by winning big games against big opponents, making statement after statement until everyone takes notice.

The U.S. won't demand the respect of the world if they are to beat Germany in a friendly on Saturday. Still, for many in this USMNT camp, Saturday's friendly is the perfect time to show how far they've come, and how far they have left to go.

GettyA big chance that won't come to often

The fact is that there won't be many games like this on the road to the 2026 World Cup.

As hosts of the tournament, competitive games will be few and far between for the USMNT. Of course, there will be CONCACAF games, and the U.S. will be very, very thankful for next summer's Copa America but, by and large, there will only be a handful of opportunities to take on marquee opponents.

Germany are one of those opponents, as are Ghana, the USMNT's second match of the window. Germany's national team may be in a state of flux right now but, make no mistake, this is one of the biggest teams in the world. And, because of that, it's one of the USMNT's biggest opportunities to show where they stand.

Wins against the likes of Oman and Uzbekistan are nice, sure. Wins over Canada and Mexico will always taste just a bit sweeter because of all that goes with it. But this USMNT's goals are bigger than that.

If this team wants to change perceptions, it has to regularly prove that it can win games like this, a challenge that will be made all the more difficult by the schedule leading up to 2026.

AdvertisementGettyUnderstanding the opportunity

Because of everything said above, the USMNT is moving just a bit differently this camp. Everyone on the team knows what's at stake. Yes this is a friendly, but, for the U.S., it's also something more.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for us,” Weston McKennie said Wednesday. “I think for us, we want to show that [we can] win games against these top-level teams, that we expect ourselves to win these games now, instead of just competing with them."

He continued: “I think it’s a great opportunity to kind of see where we’re at, and try and make that [vision] come true and win these type of games, because they’re the type of games that we have to win to advance the program forward, to advance ourselves forward, and to be successful in the coming years."

USMNT boss Gregg Berhalter, meanwhile, will be using this game to get a closer look at what several players are made of. The team is littered with World Cup stars like McKennie, Christian Pulisic and Tim Weah, all of whom will be desperate to prove themselves once again after falling short against another giant, the Netherlands, in Qatar.

But it also features some newcomers. Folarin Balogun will undoubtedly face the toughest test of his USMNT career. One of Kristoffer Lund or DeJuan Jones will as well with starting full-back Antonee Robinson out of action. Newcomers like Kevin Paredes, Lennard Maloney and Alejandro Zendejas will hope to get a chance in this game.

And then there's Gio Reyna, who will be playing his first game under Berhalter since the infamous World Cup controversy. That's in the past, Berhalter says. This team isn't dwelling on anything that has to do with 2022; they're now focusing on how they can prepare for 2026.

“Any opportunity we get to play teams like this, we want to do it, and it’s not about being afraid of the result, being afraid of competing,” Berhalter said Friday. “It’s about embracing these moments, and from now until the 2026 World Cup, if we could play Germany five times, Italy, Brazil, Argentina, we would do it because that’s what’s going to really strengthen this group.”

GettyWhat the USMNT wants

The USMNT has found success against Germany before.

The team has a 4-7-0 record against the Germans. There was that infamous 2002 World Cup defeat, one shrouded in a Torsten Frings-led controversy that will still rile up the older generation of USMNT fans. There was the 2014 World Cup group stage clash that saw both teams make it to the knockouts despite Germany's narrow win, and there were a pair of friendlies in the mid-2010s, both USMNT wins led by then-head coach, Germany legend Jurgen Klinsmann.

Throughout the program's history, the USMNT has had a habit of overachieving against big teams. For years, the USMNT's grit and heart helped them upset some of the world's best, most famously Spain at the Confederations Cup.

However, the team doesn't want to keep getting by as underdogs. They don't want to win by gutting out a gritty performance. This group wants to be able to play with Germany, to go at them and make them uncomfortable in some way.

“It’s time where we want to start going into these games with confidence and not just trying to compete,” Pulisic said, “but trying to take control of these games and win these games and feel confident that we can do that.”

At the World Cup, the USMNT learned that there are different forms of that. There's controlling the ball, which was a focus of last cycle. After years of being a counterattacking team, the U.S. is evolving into one comfortable with the ball, one that can play soccer.

However, against the Netherlands, the U.S. learned the hard way that having the ball doesn't always mean controlling the game. They fell right into several Dutch traps, as Louis van Gaal prepared his team to counter and strike hard when the chances came.

So what will the USMNT's version of dictating play look like this cycle, and what will it look like when they face a team like Germany? The U.S. will hope to provide an answer on Saturday.

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Getty ImagesClub connections

What makes this game even more intriguing is that, for many of the USMNT's stars, this one will feel personal.

Five players in the USMNT squad currently play for Bundesliga clubs. Four more have played in the league at one point or another. There's a connection there. Many of the USMNT's top stars will be playing against domestic team-mates and opponents, and they'll also be playing against friends.

"It's definitely a good opportunity for us to be able to play against guys that, at the club level, we've played against and played with," McKennie said, who began his career at Schalke. "Leon Goretzka, for instance, was like a big brother to me when I was coming through the ranks at Schalke, so it's going to be nice to be able to see him and play against him as well and maybe be able to say some bad words to him in German, just to refresh my memory of how it used to be."

Borussia Monchengladbach's Joe Scally added: “It definitely gives you a better feeling in the locker room with a bunch of German guys where you can brag."

The BCB has postponed the Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League, Bangladesh’s domestic one-day competition, for an unspecified period of time

Mohammad Isam21-Jun-2013The BCB has postponed the Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League, Bangladesh’s domestic one-day competition, for an unspecified period of time. Earlier this week, BCB president Nazmul Hassan had admitted to being unsure about holding the league at this stage, with the ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit’s report on the alleged corruption in the Bangladesh Premier League still pending.This is the third such delay for the tournament; it was originally pushed back from March this year because Bangladesh were touring Sri Lanka at the time, before a players’ strike in late May forced the BCB into declaring that the league would begin in early July.”The player recruitment programme and the commencement of the Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League 2012-13, originally scheduled for June 23 and July 3 respectively, have been deferred due to unavoidable circumstances,” a BCB text message said. “Fresh dates for the player recruitment programme and the schedule for the league will be announced soon.”Hassan had said on Wednesday that he was unsure whether the tournament would go ahead as scheduled. His anxiety lay in the possibility of the ACSU finding more names, apart from just Mohammad Ashraful’s, implicated in the alleged corruption, and he called the ACSU report his “topmost priority”. Hassan said that he expected to receive the ACSU report during the ICC’s annual conference, which will be held in London from June 25 to 29.He had hinted at a process by which the report will be scrutinised, following which the BCB will take its decisions based on the ACSU’s recommendations. The entire process will take at least a few weeks.That would likely push the league into the 2013-14 season, which was what was supposed to happen in the first place – prior to the protests – given the work that’s going on in stadiums around the country in view of the 2014 World T20. The delay will further hit Bangladesh’s professional players’ finances.

Durham needed just 17 balls to take the final Sussex wicket on Wednesday morning to secure a 309-run victory that saw them move to fourth in the Division One standings

Press Association25-Jun-2014
ScorecardBen Stokes received a glowing report from Paul Collingwood•Getty ImagesDurham needed just 17 balls to take the final Sussex wicket on Wednesday morning to secure a 309-run victory that saw them move to fourth in the Division One standings.Resuming on 41, James Tredwell edged Chris Rushworth’s second ball of the morning through the slips for four before driving the next to the cover boundary.A single took him to 50 but he was then left stranded when Lewis Hatchett edged Rushworth to third slip to wrap up a convincing Durham victory – their second of the season in the four-day format.Durham have the chance to secure their third win when they face Division One leaders Yorkshire at Headingley on July 7-10.Victorious skipper Paul Collingwood said: “I’m delighted with the performance. I wasn’t sure what to do when I won the toss and the first hour was tricky. But after that we steadily built the pressure and having people score runs down the order is crucial.”Ben Stokes changed the game in their first innings and his bowling was superb throughout. It’s good for Durham to have him when we expected him to be in the Test team.”He is the type of character who wants to prove people wrong and he has proved his fitness with long spells in this game.”Sussex, who have slipped to third bottom in the standings, are at home to bottom club Northamptonshire in their next match, starting on July 6.Coach Mark Robinson said: “We are in a relegation battle but there are so few teams in the division you are nearly always battling neat the top or bottom. We conceded too many runs in the first innings here after having them 148 for five.”

BCB president Nazmul Hassan has played down the impact of the West Indies Under-19 team’s withdrawal from its tour of Bangladesh, following an explosion near the team hotel in Chittagong, on the country’s hosting of the World Twenty20

Mohammad Isam09-Dec-2013BCB president Nazmul Hassan has played down the impact of the West Indies Under-19 team’s withdrawal from its tour of Bangladesh, following an explosion near the team hotel in Chittagong, on the country’s hosting of the World Twenty20. Once the general elections (scheduled for January 5) are held the violence is likely to dissipate, Hassan said, so he is “not worried” about hosting the World T20 in February.”The impact won’t be severe,” Hassan said. “The situation can’t be like this all the time. We are hoping that before the start of the World T20s, there will be a solution to our political situation. If there is no solution then the games won’t work, but by January all these solutions will come. So I am not worried about the future games. I am not worried about the World T20s. I am hopeful that all the instability will be over by December.”The West Indies players and staff have remained within the premises of Hotel Agrabad in central Chittagong, but are expected to move to Dhaka on Tuesday morning. The WICB had said on Sunday that it was making arrangements for the players to leave the country, but the BCB wants to discuss resuming the tour with the West Indies board. Hassan said had directed his acting CEO, Nizamuddin Chowdhury, to discuss the matter with his counterpart at the WICB.”Now whether they [West Indies] are thinking about the future, and that because the elections are coming closer there might be more danger, I don’t know,” Hassan said. “We will have a telephone conversation with them on [Monday] evening.”The ongoing troubles in Bangladesh have seemed to escalate over the past two months, as the two main political parties have been at loggerheads and taken it out to the streets. Hassan said he would appeal to the political parties once again, but pointed out that cricket has always been shielded from the violence.”I have always appealed to all the political parties to leave cricket aside and I have always received their support. I might appeal again that such things don’t interfere with the cricket. There is a bit of political instability, this has always happened, but I don’t believe that we have reached a scenario where the games would be called off.”

With N Srinivasan set to be re-elected as BCCI president on Sunday, a few of his allies are also likely to be given plum positions within the board

Amol Karhadkar28-Sep-2013With N Srinivasan set to be re-elected as BCCI president on Sunday, a few of his allies are also likely to be given plum positions within the board.Dr G Ganga Raju, the Andhra Cricket Association (ACA) secretary, is likely to be awarded the post of the BCCI’s finance committee chairman at the annual general meeting. Raju, along with Goa Cricket Association (GCA) chief Vinod Phadke, had been contemplating defecting from the ruling group, led by N Srinivasan, to lend support to the Sharad Pawar group that was testing the waters from a distance to see whether Srinivasan could be challenged in the president’s election.However, once both the ACA and the GCA came over to Srinivasan’s side, the possibility of an organised opposition to Srinivasan died down, since the BCCI rules require a challenger to be supported by at least two members from the incumbent’s zone – south zone in Srinivasan’s case.As a result, Raju is likely to replace Jyotiraditya Scindia, a junior minister in India’s federal government who was also a member of the disciplinary committee that conducted the enquiry against former IPL chairman Lalit Modi. Scindia was one of the first BCCI bigwigs to criticise Srinivasan following his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan’s arrest in the IPL corruption scandal.If appointed, Raju will join the long list of Srinivasan aides who are likely to hold key posts in the BCCI over the next year. ESPNcricinfo also understands that Sanjay Patel and Anirudh Chaudhary have been “handpicked” by Srinivasan for the post of secretary and treasurer, respectively, with the former having served as interim secretary over the past four months.Even two of the vice-presidents who are likely to be replaced following an internal vote among their respective zones are from the anti-Srinivasan camp. Niranjan Shah, a Pawar confidant, and Sudhir Dabir, a Shashank Manohar loyalist who is considered to be close to Pawar, are likely to be replaced as vice-presidents from the west and central zones, respectively. Their likely replacements, Ravi Savant, who will enter the AGM as interim treasurer, and Rajiv Shukla, another junior minister in the federal government, are part of the Srinivasan lobby.Arun Jaitley’s decision to pull out as vice-president and recommend his Delhi & District Cricket Association colleague SP Bansal also raised a few eyebrows. While some BCCI insiders perceived Jaitley’s decision as a “mark of protest” against Srinivasan’s handling of affairs, a DDCA official clarified that Jaitley – who was considered to be Srinivasan’s legal advisor during the recent tumult and is the leader of the opposition in the government – decided to step aside only because he “won’t be able to spare time” for the BCCI in an election.Ranjib Biswal, the president of the Orissa Cricket Association, and current BCCI interim head Jagmohan Dalmiya are prime contenders for heading the IPL committee. Heads of other key committees, including the marketing committee and National Cricket Academy board, have not been decided due to a lack of consensus among members. The decisions will now be taken during the meeting, scheduled to start at 11am.Meanwhile, Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) may emerge as the only BCCI unit not to be represented at the AGM. MCA had earlier nominated its president, Ajay Shirke, who had resigned as BCCI treasurer after criticising the manner in which the BCCI handled Meiyappan’s arrest, to attend the AGM. However, since Shirke has been in the UK on business, the MCA had sent a letter seeking a replacement. However, the replacement application reached the BCCI office in Chennai at around 5.20pm, almost an hour and half after the 4pm deadline. “The house will decide whether to allow MCA to be represented once the meeting is convened,” a BCCI official said.

AB de Villiers can no longer be considered a permanent wicketkeeper especially in shorter formats, according to South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo

Firdose Moonda31-Dec-20141:17

Domingo: Wicketkeeping a burden on AB in ODIs

AB de Villiers can no longer be considered a permanent wicketkeeper especially in shorter formats, according to South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo. Although de Villiers will don the gloves in the third Test against West Indies at Newlands, in the absence of the injured Quinton de Kock, he is unlikely to carry the same responsibility into the T20s and ODIs which follow or the World Cup.”There are times when AB is going to have to keep and we are very fortunate that he can pick that up. He hasn’t practiced his keeping in about six months and he is probably keeping as well as he ever has. He has always found keeping in one-day cricket more tiring, especially with the captaincy, it’s more of a burden on him. I’d prefer him not to keep in one-day cricket,” Domingo said. “Where there is an opportunity for him not to keep, we are hoping to pursue that. I’m sure we will have another keeper in the one-day side now that Quinton de Kock is not there.”South Africa play three T20s and five ODIs against West Indies in 19 days between January 11 and 28 and will have to use those matches to introduce another gloveman into an already settled 50-over squad. Morne van Wyk, who was part of the 2011 World Cup squad, is the leading candidate not least because he is also an opening batsman, which is the other position de Kock occupied. South Africa’s medical team remain hopeful de Kock will recover from his ankle ligament tear in time to play some part in the World Cup but will want to cover their basis in case he is not and they will face a tricky decision with the 15-man squad having to be named by January 7.Their more immediate concern is the New Year’s Test where their conundrum extends to issues in front of the stumps. South Africa will be forced to reassess their attack on a surface which Domingo expects will “offer a little bit more nip,” but also calls for a contribution from a spinner. Newlands takes turn later in the game and South Africa cannot depend on Imran Tahir to produce that consistently or effectively. That much was evident from the number of times they have dropped him – three – in the last two years and to give themselves another option, the South African selectors have included Simon Harmer in the squad.Simon Harmer has been drafted into the Test squad and could yet force his way into the side as South Africa look to expand their spin options•Getty ImagesThe Warriors offspinner was overlooked in favour of Dane Piedt earlier in the year but has since come back into contention for two reasons. The first is that Piedt has only played one first-class match following a three-month lay-off from a shoulder concern and the second, because South Africa are planning long-term. Although they won’t play Test cricket again until mid-2015, their next two away tours are to Bangladesh and India and they want a strong spin contingent for those trips.”We’ve got a lot of cricket in the subcontinent in the next few months so we want to get to know Simon a bit more and then we will make a call on whether we play him,” Domingo said.That does not mean Piedt, who took eight wickets on Test debut in Harare in August, has fallen behind in the queue, just that South Africa want to ensure he is fully fit before making a comeback. “It leaves Dane Piedt with time to get himself where he needs to be. He needs to play some more cricket particularly after a severe shoulder injury,” Domingo said.Someone else who is fighting for a spot on those tours is South Africa’s senior opening batsman, Alviro Petersen. His run of innings without a century has extended to 25 and the New Year’s Test will mark exactly two years since he raised his bat to a hundred, which has caused calls for his head but Domingo is trying his best not to hear them.”It’s a tough one because he seems to be playing really well in the nets and even in the middle. He looks really good and I don’t think a big score is too far away,” Domingo said. “Even in this match, he got out playing a shot that he probably wouldn’t play if he had to do it again.”For much of Petersen’s lean run technique seemed his biggest problem as he struggled against the left-armers in the Pakistan and Australia attacks. But his shot at St George’s suggested his temperament is failing him as well. He was tempted into a tennis-stroke by a short, wide delivery from Shannon Gabriel which has put him under even greater scrutiny. “He knows that if he doesn’t score soon, he is under massive pressure,” Domingo said.Exactly when “soon” is yet to be determined because, as Domingo explained, there are other reasons to keep Petersen around for now. “He is an experienced player, a hell of a slip fielder and offers a lot in the team space,” Domingo said. “We’ve just lost a lot icon players. It’s not so easy to throw away a guy who is capable of scoring big hundreds. I still think he has got a lot to offer this team.”Petersen will know South Africa’s transition is progressing well and a player like Stiaan van Zyl is nipping at his heels. “It does feel like we are moving in the right direction. We have a lot of youngsters in the side and you will go through some ups and downs. We’ve been going through more ups than downs,” Hashim Amla said. “It’s just to be patient with the guys we have because they have been identified as the future of South African cricket.”The future may be glimpsed at the New Year’s Test.

Pakistan struck thrice in the morning but New Zealand’s lower order resisted in the afternoon to push the score past 400

The Report by Abhishek Purohit18-Nov-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details1:22

Sodhi and Craig contribute with both bat and ball

Smart Stats

156 Overs played by New Zealand in the first innings – the fourth time they have batted 150-plus overs in a Test innings this year. The only year they had played 150-plus overs more times was in 1972 – five innings.

30 Number of years since New Zealand posted four 50-plus partnerships in an away Test innings against Pakistan. The last time was in at Karachi in 1984.

24 Number of years since New Zealand have had a bigger seventh-wicket stand in an away Test against Pakistan. BJ Watling and Mark Craig posted 68 for the seventh wicket – the fourth highest in the list.

18 Number of runs Ish Sodhi needed to score to become the first player to make three 50-plus scores in Tests while batting at No. 10 or 11. Sodhi was unbeaten on 32 when New Zealand were bowled out for 403 in their first innings.

30 Years since New Zealand made a 400-plus score in an away Test against Pakistan. The last time was at Karachi in 1984. During this period, they have made 400-plus three times in India, and four times each against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Pakistan struck thrice in the morning but New Zealand’s lower order resisted in the afternoon to push the score past 400. They also kept Pakistan on the field for more than five sessions, something Misbah-ul-Haq’s men hadn’t endured during their three successive previous wins in the UAE, over Australia and New Zealand.The hosts’ batsmen were then at the receiving end of spin for once in the 19 overs they had to negotiate till stumps. There was no swing for the new-ball pair of Trent Boult and Tim Southee but Mark Craig and Ish Sodhi took out the fresh pair of openers. Sodhi spun a flighted legbreak through the gate to hit Shan Masood’s middle stump and Craig had Taufeeq Umar stumped as he failed to drag his back foot in after missing on a forward push.The late strikes capped a proper scrap of a day for New Zealand after they had lost their overnight batsmen within the first three overs. Corey Anderson gifted his wicket to Ehsan Adil, and Rahat Ali removed Tom Latham on his overnight score of 137. Jimmy Neesham fell to Yasir Shah after an hour of resistance, and had Rahat not dropped Craig off the same bowler, New Zealand would have lost four before lunch.Anderson had managed to scrap and survive against the second new ball on the first evening but he tried to drive his fourth delivery of the second morning and only spooned it to cover. Latham, meanwhile, had carried on in his calm manner, leaving assuredly, and defending solidly off either foot, when Rahat produced a beauty. He made Latham play with one pitched up on off, the opener ensured he pushed straight, but his feet did not move much for once, and the slight away movement took the nick through to the wicketkeeper.The spinners set about the new batsmen BJ Watling and Neesham with slightly more help from the surface compared to day one. The first ball from Zulfiqar Babar turned and bounced past Watling’s forward push, and the last ball of the same over squared him up and went over the stumps.Neesham was troubled by the legspinner Yasir with men at forward short leg and leg slip. The occasional straighter ones outside off were another challenge, beating the left-hander. Watling was content to block and awkwardly block some more, but Neesham, eager to break the stranglehold, walked out to Yasir, failed to reach the pitch, and chipped a catch to midwicket.Craig swung Yasir cleanly over midwicket but skied a slog in the same over on 9, only for Rahat to overrun the ball running in from the deep, even as Asad Shafiq looked on from nearby at square leg.It was back to attrition for New Zealand till lunch. They had managed 24 runs in 14 overs in the first hour, 28 in 15 in the second, and had still not reached 300.Pakistan reprieved Craig, on 13, again after the interval. Adil induced an edge in the first over upon resumption but the keeper Sarfraz Ahmed did not go for the ball a couple of feet away to his left. In Adil’s next over, Craig punched just short of a diving Shafiq at gully. Craig was beaten several times outside off stump, especially by Adil’s excellent lines, but he hung on.Watling and Craig went through five successive maidens and it was only off his 78th delivery that Watling picked up his first boundary with a cut off Yasir. The fifty of the partnership came in the 24th over when Craig pulled and Watling cut Rahat for fours.Misbah-ul-Haq turned to the part-time legspin of Azhar Ali, and off his third ball, Watling failed to keep a cut down on 39. It was Azhar’s second Test wicket after he had dismissed Kumar Sangakkara leg-before for 211 in October 2011 in Abu Dhabi.In the next over, Craig missed a pull off Babar to depart leg-before for 43. Ish Sodhi batted very competently once more and remained unbeaten on 32, and Tim Southee hit a couple of big ones before Babar ended the innings in the 156th over to finish with figures of 45-8-137-4.The most overs Pakistan had bowled in the previous six innings was 103.1. Their batsmen had posted 450-plus totals in each of their three previous first innings. Reaching that mark this innings will be a challenge.