And who opens with Tamim Iqbal? Our panelists discuss on the latest episode of Dream Team

Sreshth Shah14-Jan-202159:25

Who makes it to our all-time Bangladesh white-ball XI?

It has been nearly 35 years since Bangladesh played their first ODI. They emerged as giant-killers in the 2007 World Cup and reached the quarter-final of the tournament in 2015. Add semi-final appearances at the Champions Trophy and heart-stopping moments in T20Is, and Bangladesh, on the back of an ever-growing fan base, have become an exciting team to watch. And so, in the latest edition of , we look to pick their greatest white-ball XI. The selectors are Mohammad Isam, ESPNcricinfo correspondent, and two Bangladeshi cricket tragics – Zulquarnain Islam and Issa Farooque.5:29

Who slots in as opener with Tamim Iqbal?

Who partners Tamim Iqbal?
Shahriar Nafees was the first man to score three ODI centuries for Bangladesh, Imrul Kayes has enjoyed success and failure in equal measure and in his short international career, Liton Das has impressed people in many quarters with how easy his batting is on the eye. If Tamim Iqbal is the anchor he usually is for Bangladesh, who is to partner him? After plenty of back and forth, the panelists eliminated one of the two contenders to zero in on their final choice.4:33

Who makes a strong case for the No. 4 position in a Bangladesh all-time XI?

The Ashraful dilemma
Before Iqbal, before Shakib Al Hasan, before Mushfiqur Rahim and before Mashrafe Mortaza, the big star was Mohammad Ashraful. From 2001 to 2013, the boy wonder raised the country’s cricket profile, only to let everyone down with his involvement in match-fixing. He is second on the list of quickest Test fifties ever and has the national record for fastest ODI and T20I half-centuries. Can he be ignored?4:47

Is Mashrafe Mortaza the obvious choice for captain?

An ode to Mortaza
Bangladesh have had 14 ODI captains, but the Narail Express stands head and shoulders above the rest. Numbers and win percentages are one metric, but how a captain brings a team together in times of adversity, while also leading by example, often has much greater value. The panelists explain why Mortaza, the captain of this XI, is the greatest leader Bangladesh (and perhaps even Asian cricket) has ever seen.

A look back to 50 years ago, and the protests against South Africa’s tour of England

Alan Gardner26-Dec-2020It is often tempting to look around and conclude that we live in uniquely troubled times (and the effects of a global pandemic have certainly given 2020 a boot up the annus horribilis league table). But while the world has roiled these past few years amid schisms over race and culture, concerns about democratic accountability and the way governments function in an interconnected world, it is worth keeping in mind that the good old days often don’t live up to their billing.In , Colin Shindler revives the fractious arguments and bitter enmities that characterised a polarising campaign to stop South Africa’s 1970 tour of England. In doing so, he draws parallels with the 2016 European Union referendum – one of the side effects of which has been the demise of the Kolpak era in county cricket – and reminds us how sport can play a central part in shaping our civilisation (even as sportsmen claim their perennial aversion to being lumped in with politicians).If the past is another country, to borrow from the novelist LP Hartley (who finds his way into Shindler’s account, along with many and varied other bits of correspondence dug out from the archives), the UK of half a century ago may not look so alien – particularly to a cricket fan. South Africa returned from sporting isolation in 1992, but cricket in the country to this day is still reckoning with a history blighted by apartheid.Related

When politics killed a tour

The D'Oliveira Affair

Dolly mixture

What has English cricket been like for black players?

Dear Mr Arlott

Meanwhile, despite great strides in many areas, the experiences so eloquently given voice and amplified during an English summer touched by the Black Lives Matter protests around the world – from Ebony Rainford-Brent and Michael Holding to Azeem Rafiq and Michael Carberry – remind us that questions of race and reconciliation are yet to be solved at home.Even in the current climate, it is hard to imagine the deployment of barbed wire – as referenced in the book’s title – searchlights and security guards at cricket grounds around the country simply in order to host a game. But that was merely one aspect of the planning (predicted cost: more than £250,000) for a proposed tour that pitted English cricket’s hidebound establishment against a motley alliance of students, clergymen and MPs.Trouble had been brewing since the D’Oliveira affair of 1968, and South Africa’s refusal to countenance the inclusion of a non-white player in the MCC touring party. Yet the authorities in England persisted in attempts to host South Africa less than two years later, in the belief that blandishments about “building bridges” and claims by the South African Cricket Association that future squads would be selected solely on merit might override objections about the iniquities of apartheid. As Shindler writes: “The bridges did not appear to be facilitating any sort of traffic into the townships.”The temptation of seeing England take on what was considered the best team in the world was obvious. South Africa had just thrashed Australia 4-0 at home, and could field a side containing Barry Richards, Graeme Pollock and Mike Procter, among others; Basil D’Oliveira himself was in favour. But ranged against the blazers at Lord’s was an equally compelling cast.John Arlott had declined to tour South Africa again after observing the country’s racial segregation in 1948-49, and he stepped down from BBC commentary duties ahead of the 1970 series out of opposition to the “completely evil regime” of the John Vorster government. The Reverend David Sheppard, once of Sussex and England, led opposition from the church, while the more militant Stop the Seventy Tour movement was orchestrated by future Labour MP Peter Hain. Learie Constantine, the former West Indies allrounder, then recently ennobled as Baron Constantine of Nelson, voiced fears that the arrival of South Africa “could be disastrous for race relations in this country”.Pitch PublishingMost colourful was the irascible commentary provided by the journalist and broadcaster Michael Parkinson, who railed against the “Marylebone Clodpole Club”, whose refusal to bow in the face of public protest he characterised as follows: “It is a rag-bag of cliché, red herring, zig-zagging, bobbing and weaving, and as an argument in favour of the tour has all the watertight qualities of a string bag.”As well presenting a range of material from newspapers and magazines (in which, amusingly, some people were complaining about the “left-wing bias of the BBC” even 50 years ago), Shindler adroitly sifts the cultural milieu of the time, touching on anti-Vietnam war riots in America and the rise and fall of the Beatles, as well as connecting events to the present day: “The fault line running through the country that divided Leavers and Remainers in Britain after June 2016 is not far removed from the line that divided those who supported the tour from those who exulted in its cancellation in 1970.”The fight to stop the ’70 tour during a summer when cricket grounds became battlegrounds remains an important episode in the history of the game in both England and South Africa, for whom years of isolation were to follow. Shindler’s book, as Parkinson writes in the foreword, is a “powerful reminder of those turbulent times”, as well as of cricket’s capacity to promote change. In another divided era, the struggle for a better world beyond the boundary continues.Barbed Wire and Cucumber Sandwiches
by Colin Shindler
Pitch Publishing 2020
£19.99, 320 pages

A look at the top batsmen in IPL 2020 through the prism of Smart Stats

ESPNcricinfo stats team04-Nov-2020KL Rahul is the Orange Cap holder with 670 runs, but according to ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats, the leader in terms of Smart Runs is Shikhar Dhawan: his 525 runs is worth 558 Smart Runs, while Rahul’s runs are worth only 553.That is because Smart Runs takes into account not just the total number of runs scored, but also the context. Context includes the scoring rates of the other batsmen in the match, the phase in which the batsman batted and the pressure on the batsman at each ball when he scored the runs. Based on these values, each run a batsman scores gets a Smart Runs value, which adds up to his Smart Runs for the innings.ESPNcricinfo LtdRahul’s outstanding unbeaten 132 off 69 balls against the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Kings XI Punjab’s second match fetched him 147 Smart Runs, but thereafter he slipped into the anchor role in most of his remaining innings. That was perhaps necessitated to some extent by the Kings XI’s brittle lower middle order, but several of those conservative innings came in defeats when other batsmen in the match scored faster. That includes a 54-ball 69 in Sharjah and a 41-ball 46 in Abu Dhabi against the Rajasthan Royals, a 52-ball 63 against the Chennai Super Kings, and a 58-ball 74 against the Kolkata Knight Riders. Those innings fetched fewer Smart Runs than the runs he actually scored.On the other hand, his opening partner Mayank Agarwal has been the enforcer at the top of the innings, which is why his 424 runs are worth 446 Smart Runs. The strike rates are indicative of the way each has played: Agarwal has scored his runs at a rate of 156.5, compared to Rahul’s 129.3.ESPNcricinfo LtdWhile Rahul’s overall numbers have dropped, his unbeaten 132 – the highest score of the tournament by some distance – remains the top batting performance of the tournament, fetching 203.7 impact points.In second place is Nicholas Pooran’s 77 out of a team total of 132 against the Sunrisers Hyderabad; the next-highest score in the innings was 11. Virat Kohli’s 52-ball 90 in a relatively low-scoring game against the Super Kings – no other batsman from either team lasted 15 balls at a strike rate of over 120 – is third, followed by Dhawan’s unbeaten 61-ball 106 against the Kings XI.ESPNcricinfo LtdIn terms of overall average batting impact, Agarwal tops the list because not only has he scored plenty of runs – 424 in 11 innings – but has also done it at a consistently fast clip with at a strike rate of 156.5. Among the 12 batsmen who have scored 400-plus runs, his strike rate is the best, though AB de Villiers, who has 398 runs at 163.8, should top him soon.de Villiers is in third place, after Dhawan, while Pooran’s excellent strike rates in high-pressure situations puts him fourth. Suryakumar Yadav’s twin unbeaten 79s – batting first against the Royals, and chasing against the Royal Challengers – have been highlights of his good season, in which he has combined consistent run-scoring with a brisk strike rate.The tournament’s top run-scorer, Rahul, is eighth in these rankings. His numbers suffer in relative terms because of his strike rate, which is the lowest among the top eight impact players.

Statistical highlights from Islamabad United’s ten-wicket win over Quetta Gladiators in Abu Dhabi

ESPNcricinfo stats team12-Jun-20210 – Number of occasions before Friday’s match when a team had won by ten or more overs to spare in the PSL. Islamabad United’s is the first such instance in the league. Overall in T20s, there have been only 32 matches when a team has won by 10 wickets with 60 or more balls to spare.1 – Number of times a team has won a PSL match by 10 wickets after bowling out the opposition before the United vs Quetta Gladiators game. The previous instance happened in the 2018 season when Peshawar Zalmi beat the Lahore Qalandars after bowling them out for 100. It’s a relatively rare result in T20s, too: this is the 51st time a team has won by 10 wickets after bowling out the opposition (1077 instances).2 – Ten-wicket wins in the PSL before this. The previous instance was in the 2020 season when the Karachi Kings chased down a target of 151 set by the Qalandars without losing a wicket. Incidentally, the Qalandars were also the first team to suffer this result in the PSL having lost to the Zalmi in 2018.0 – Century stands in the PSL that have been strung faster than the opening partnership between Colin Munro and Usman Khawaja. The previous fastest-scoring hundred partnership in the PSL had come between Kevin Pietersen and Sarfaraz Ahmed for the Gladiators against the Qalandars in 2017.13.7 – United’s scoring rate in the chase on Friday night – the highest in an innings lasting 10 or more overs in the PSL. Overall, it’s the second-highest scoring rate in an innings of any length in the PSL. The Multan Sultans scored at 14.1 runs an over to chase down a target of 91 set by United in a reduced game last season, which remains the highest.Getty Images97 – Runs scored in the first six overs by United – the highest in the powerplay in the PSL. The previous highest was 77 by the United against Kings earlier this season. Overall, where ball-by-ball data is available with ESPNcricinfo, there have been only seven instances in T20s when teams have managed to score more in the powerplay.18 – Boundaries hit by United in the powerplay – two more than the previous most hit in the PSL. The Sultans had hit 16 boundaries in the powerplay against United last season. The Gladiators had struck 16 boundaries in the powerplay in a tall chase against the Qalandars in 2016. Overall, where ball-by-ball information is available with ESPNcricinfo, there are only five instances when a team has carted more than 18 boundaries in the powerplay in T20s.20 – Balls taken by Munro to reach fifty – the joint fourth-fastest in the PSL. The United batters have hit four of the fastest seven fifties in the PSL. Munro’s half-century was only the third-fastest fifty for United in the PSL, with Asif Ali’s 17-ball effort against the Qalandars in 2019 being the fastest. Luke Ronchi had struck a 19-ball fifty against the Kings in 2018.

She might be one of the greatest cricketers ever but the Australia allrounder is not resting on her laurels

Interview by Andrew McGlashan09-Sep-2021The Australian international season will begin later this month when the women’s side take on India across all three formats. To build up to the summer, which also includes the ODI World Cup early next year in New Zealand, we sat down with allrounder Ellyse Perry to discuss a range of topics.You have two multi-format series, a World Cup and a Commonwealth Games over the next 12 months. Is there one prize that stands out?
I think it’s really exciting to have that much cricket in such a short period of time, but also so much important cricket with big tournaments and something new in the Commonwealth Games. It’s really motivating for the group, and given the complexities of the last 18 months, and trying to play elite sport, it’s nice to have this roadmap.Without trying to be overstated it would be lovely if we could be successful in each of those events. I think as a team we will probably be looking at each of them in succession as the most important at the time. But putting three of them together, it’s a great challenge.Related

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'The more Test matches we play, the better we are going to get at it'

What type of challenge do you think India will pose over the next few weeks?
A huge challenge. They’ve been huge improvers, although it’s really not fair to say that anymore, because they have well and truly arrived, but they’ve been building as a team and as a cricketing nation in the women’s landscape for a while now. They are actually a really scary prospect in a lot of ways – they’ve got so much talent and often have new players coming through that we get to learn about each series we play. They’ve also had a fair bit of cricket this year, playing over in the UK, versus our quiet winter. I think there could be some very good cricket, especially that Test match, and I’m really look forward to that.How much of where women’s cricket goes in the Indian game – things like an IPL – will dictate the growth globally?
I’m sure it will have a very strong influence, just with the sheer weight of Indian cricket on world cricket. But hopefully a lot of the top nations are able to shape the women’s game because we’d love to have our own identity and have a chance to really dictate how that grows and develops.Hammy horror: Perry goes off the field injured in the game against New Zealand at last year’s T20 World Cup•Getty ImagesWhile we often talk about India and England and ourselves, and New Zealand to an extent, the biggest and most important part of that puzzle is the other nations as well, and making sure that across the world you grow and develop women’s cricket. The Commonwealth Games is a great vehicle for that. Equally, if cricket was to make it into the Olympics, it’s another great vehicle. With so many young women around the world having an increased opportunity to play sport, that’s a real area of opportunity for us to hopefully capture that and grow.So, yes, I do think India would dictate a lot of things, and a [women’s] IPL will be brilliant, but I think there’s a big role to play for all the nations and the ICC to make sure that women’s cricket really grows and reaches its potential.The India series starts with ODIs and there’s the World Cup next year. Australia have won 24 matches in a row. What’s the major motivation to keep pushing yourselves beyond the thrill of winning?
Winning is certainly enjoyable, but particularly in the last couple of years, the depth of our squad and the competition for places is pretty hot. There are so many great young players coming through our system and putting pressure on incumbent players.We’ve just been really fortunate to have some really successful players and great contributors to the side. If you look across that stretch of 24 matches, whilst we’ve had a consistent squad, I think all the way along we’ve had different people performing at different times and really understanding their roles. A combination of those things has made it really enjoyable.We’ve seen Georgia Redmayne called up to this squad on the back of her domestic form. Does that type of thing drive players’ desire to keep hold of places when they have them?
Yes, definitely. Just the standard across the board and the ability of players. The gap between Australian contracted players and domestic contracted players is quite small now. So for someone like Georgia in this specific instance, if you perform really well in those domestic competitions, there’s every likelihood that you’ll be rewarded.Bowling in the 2014 Ashes match. “I think there’s a place for Test cricket in the women’s game and this [points-based] format seems to make it fit really nicely”•Paul Kane/Getty ImagesI think, equally, one of the big things that I’ve noticed is just how important it is to be all-round in terms of the skills and what you contribute to the team. I’ve seen a lot of borderline selection calls in the last couple of years made on fielding – being able to be a complete cricketer has become so important. That’s been great for the sport, the way that we play, and really important for people’s development because they’ve had to focus on everything.Looking back to last season, how do you reflect on your own game?
First and foremost, it was just wonderful to play, and I think that probably goes for everyone, given the circumstances we were in. I really enjoyed it, like I have in every season I’ve been part of.From a performance point of view, it was pretty lacklustre. And that’s okay. I would certainly have loved to play a little bit better or contributed a little bit more, but I think it was just one of those seasons that was a challenge for me. In saying that, I felt like I learnt a lot and was certainly really appreciative to people that they helped me get back to playing after being injured.How tough was coming back from the injury? Was it harder than it looked from the outside?
In so many ways, it was tremendously rewarding. One of the coolest things I’ve taken from that is just how much injury can be opportunity as well. While I was rehabbing there was lots of chance to reflect on other parts of my game I’d like to improve on and find means to do that. It gave me a chance to work with different people who I haven’t worked with before and I’m really appreciative for their help.Sophie Molineux (left) and Ashleigh Gardner are two of a number of spinners who give Australia’s attack an enviable roundedness•Getty ImagesI don’t think it’s fair to say it was hard or that it was emotionally tough because I’ve been so fortunate across my career in so many ways. Sure, it was a bit of a bump in the road, but at the same time I’ve taken a lot from it. Maybe it won’t immediately be obvious, but hopefully in the coming years, I can really draw on some of those experiences and some of the work I’ve done to make me a better player.Having had an injury-free pre-season this year, is there anything specific you’ve been working on?
With that extra eight months or so from being injured, it’s just been a nice period to work on ironing things out, feeling like I’ve got good rhythm and flow again with different parts of the game, whether that’s been fielding, bowler or batting. Physically being able to concentrate solely on being a cricketer again rather than having too much consideration to my hamstring has been really nice. I enjoyed that kind of headspace of just being a cricketer again and not a rehabber.Are you looking forward to a period dominated by ODI cricket? Of the limited-overs formats, it would appear your ideal fit.
I never really thought of it that way. Particularly in the women’s game, given the amount that we play, one-day cricket and T20 cricket have equal billing even at the national level, which I think is probably a little bit different to men’s cricket and how much franchise T20 is played.It’s a different contribution you are making in T20 because it’s a shorter game and perhaps from a numbers point of view, it doesn’t look the same. I think one-day cricket was probably built to suit my game a little bit more, traditionally speaking, but hopefully given how important T20 cricket is to our game, there are opportunities to contribute there.Have you felt challenged in T20 cricket to keep improving to ensure you keep up with how the game is evolving?
Definitely. I think any format of the game, as time goes by it evolves like any sport, but maybe it’s faster-paced in women’s cricket at the moment just because of how much change and development we’re undergoing. That’s not a new thing for me – I reckon that’s something that I’ve gone through for the best part of my career. I think that in sport you’ve always got to push to develop and get better, otherwise someone always comes along who is going to jump you. It’s actually a really nice motivating thing for me.The long road back: Perry trains during a warm-up game against a New Zealand XI in September last year•Getty ImagesYour role may change at Sydney Sixers this year depending on who is finally signed. Have you had discussions around that yet?
Not seriously, but we have spoken in general terms that as a team we need to evolve as well. We’ve had some formulas that have been relatively effective over the course of the Big Bash, but the tournament is definitely changing. We saw the role of pinch-hitters being so important last season, and that kind of depth in your batting line-up and the ability to really elevate the run rate at the end became so important. So did medium-pacers and how effective they can be.I think there’s a number of areas in our line-up that we’ll probably just tweak. It might depend on game-to-game match-ups with different teams. I’d like to think that it’s not exactly the same Sixers outfit or style of game that that we’ve played the last couple years, but I hope it’s still recognisable as the Sixers as well.One of the talking points of this Australian squad has been the group of young fast bowlers put together. Do you think that’s an area of the game that will keep Australia ahead of the chasing pack?
I do, and I think it’s a really interesting phase of development because we have such exciting young players that are all that little bit quicker, but who are also a little less experienced with less time to develop their game. So I think long-term it’s going to be an incredible advantage for us, but there might be some occasions where just extra pace on the ball with smaller boundaries and quick outfields doesn’t always go our way.Without sounding too arrogant about our team, we actually have some tremendous young spinners and senior spinners as well who perhaps are getting a little bit less talked about because of the exciting quicks coming through. The likes of Georgia Wareham, who I think was a key component to us winning that game against New Zealand to get us into the semi-final of the T20 World Cup last year, and Sophie Molinuex, who is back with the squad again. We’ve got Jess Jonassen, who is unbelievably credentialled, and Ash Gardner, whose bowling has improved in the last couple years and is more of a senior player now. So it’s probably the blend of our two attacks, and the way that our spinners try to turn the ball and attack the game that that makes us quite complete, rather than just the focus on the fast bowlers.”I think one-day cricket was probably built to suit my game a little bit more, traditionally speaking”•Gareth Fuller/PA Photos/Getty ImagesHas the speed of development of that pace-bowling depth surprised you?
Probably not. I think that [given] the mindset around how we want the game to develop, pace bowling has been one of those areas that there has been a fair bit of focus on, and people have really pushed for girls to attack that. You just look at the amount of young players, we are bound to find some quicker bowlers in that group. Rather than that being an anomaly, now they are a lot more common because it’s really being encouraged from a young age for girls to try and bowl fast.The Ashes will be a points-based multi-format series. India played one in England recently and this series could be the same. Are you a fan of that format, particularly given how it promotes Test cricket?
I’m a huge fan. I think the more nations that we can use that format for, it will be great for the game. I think there’s a place for Test cricket in the women’s game and this format seems to make it fit really nicely. It makes it really competitive and gives it a lot of meaning. I think the more that we can play, the more players will get better at it, and probably even more importantly, the more fans will understand it and engage with it and want to see more.Where do you stand on the need for multi-day cricket at the domestic level?
It’s really important and I think it serves dual purposes. Certainly, it helps identify longer-format players, and it helps prepare the Australian team to play Test cricket, but equally, it’s such a great tool for development. We’ve got so many young players in domestic squads now and a lot of them haven’t played a lot of cricket and don’t get a chance to play a lot, particularly at domestic level just because of the way that the summer set up. So for them to be exposed to longer days in the field, or longer days batting, it gives them an incredible resource to improve their skills and develop as cricketers.The 2014 Ashes Test is regularly mentioned as an iconic game. You scored 102 runs and claimed eight wickets as Player of the Match. What are your memories of that?What I remember is how defining it was for women’s Tests. It was, and still is, the most incredible game of Test cricket that I’ve played. It was just such a tussle on any session on any given day. There was no clear winner right to the last session. It was played on a really good, fast, bouncy wicket, a good outfield, in some really hot conditions at the WACA. I just thought that was so the platform for how women’s Test matches should be played and staged going forward. It’s a real shame that unfortunately we don’t get to play at the WACA against India this time around, but hopefully at some point we’ll get to play another Test match there.

The franchise system is out, and a lot of other things are in

Firdose Moonda23-Sep-2021It took a legal challenge, a consultation process headed by former ICC CEO David Richardson and 75 job losses, but finally it’s here: South Africa’s new domestic system. Gone are the complications of franchises and back is the simplicity of a provincial structure, with some additions.Not only are each of South Africa’s nine provinces represented in the new system, but some of them have multiple teams. Gauteng has three: the Johannesburg-based Lions, Northerns in Centurion and Easterns in Benoni. The Western Cape has Cape Town’s Western Province, the Rocks in Boland and South-Western Districts in Oudtshoorn, while Eastern Province has teams in Gqeberha and East London, and Kwa-Zulu Natal has a coastal and inland team. Each of the Northern Cape, Free State, Limpopo, North-West and Mpumalanga also have their own teams, ensuring that cricket crosses the length and breadth of the country to broaden the talent pool available to the national selectors.Related

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All 15 sides, along with the South African under-19 team, will be in action in the first competition of the season, a T20 tournament, that kicks off on Friday. It’s a fitting start because September 24 is a public holiday; the day on which South Africans celebrate their diverse heritages. The only drawbacks are that none of the members of the T20 World Cup squad will be involved as they go into a camp to prepare for the tournament, and then to quarantine in the UAE. While this competition competes with the IPL for eyeballs, it still signals the start of summer in the southern hemisphere. To mark the occasion, we take a look at five major talking points ahead of the South African domestic season.Map of South Africa’s new domestic teams•ESPNcricinfo LtdSame, same but different South African domestic cricket has, for the last 16 summers, been fairly confusing for outsiders to understand, because of the franchise system. The six teams were amalgamations of provincial teams, some of whom would never have imagined joining together to form one unit, but did anyway. An example is Northerns, who play in Centurion – as the name would suggest, to the north of Johannesburg – who partnered with Easterns, who play in Benoni, to the east of the city, to become the Titans. Inevitably, most of the Titans activity took place at SuperSport Park while Willowmoore Park was the forgotten cousin. All of that has been restructured away, even though some of the provincial unions will keep their franchises names, so each province plays independently.Northerns, the bigger of the teams that became the Titans, keeps the Titans name and Easterns will be known as Easterns. The Lions’ name has been retained by Gauteng, the Dolphins by Kwa-Zulu Natal, the Warriors by Eastern Province and Knights by Free State. The Cobras name has been dropped entirely and Western Province will be known as such. The Titans, Lions, Dolphins, Warriors, Knights and Western Province are joined by the Rocks (based in Paarl) and the North-West Dragons (based in Potchefstroom) in Division 1. Border, Easterns, Northern Cape, Kwa-Zulu Natal Inland, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and South-Western Districts make up Division 2.What hasn’t changed is that there is still a hierarchy in the domestic system but it is no longer based on professional franchises and semi-professional provinces as was the case before. Now, it’s simply Division 1 and Division 2 but actually, that’s all just semantics. Teams in Division 1 have the budget to contract more players (16) than teams in Division 2 (11), have the nationally contracted players on their books and, when first-class and one-day matches are televised, it will likely be Division 1 on the silver screen. But, these divisions are not set in stone and a promotion-relegation system will be in place from the 2023/24 season, though it is yet to be decided if one or two teams will be moved between divisions. Both divisions play in the season-opening T20 competition.Getty ImagesBig movers While many players have stayed with the provincial unions attached to their former franchises, there have been some notable moves – most obviously in the formation of the two new top-tier teams, Boland and North-West. Boland have acquired the services of international batters, Janneman and Pieter Malan from the Cobras (now Western Province) while North-West have signed Dwaine Pretorius, who played at the Lions, and Senuran Muthusamy, the third-leading wicket-taker in last season’s four-day competition from the title-holders, Dolphins. Thando Ntini has moved from the Titans to the Dolphins, having started his career in Cape Town, Beuran Hendricks has gone from the Lions to Western Province, and Dane Paterson will play for Eastern Province after spending the bulk of his career in Cape Town before a stint as an overseas player for Nottinghamshire.Returning KolpaksKyle Abbott will be eligible for South Africa selection again•Cricket South AfricaThe South African domestic set-up also welcomes back several players who ended their international careers to take up Kolpak deals. Boland are the biggest beneficiaries and have secured the services of batter Stiaan van Zyl and fast bowlers Hardus Viljoen and Kyle Abbott. North-West have also laid claim to a share of the returnees and signed Heino Kuhn. Duanne Olivier will play for the Lions, Simon Harmer for Titans, and allrounder Wayne Parnell returns to Western Province, where he will captain the team in the T20 tournament. The Kolpak system no longer exists, which also makes these players eligible for South Africa again.Involvement of former internationals in coaching structuresThough South African cricket has suffered a brain drain with the loss of Cobras coach Ashwell Prince to Bangladesh as a batting consultant, and Vernon Philander, who was due to play for Western Province, to Pakistan as a bowling coach, there are still former players in the system. For instance, Imraan Khan, who played one Test for South Africa in 2009 and was a stalwart of the domestic set-up, won the first-class tournament with the Dolphins last year and remains their head coach. Robin Peterson head Eastern Province, Allan Donald is in charge at Free State, and Paul Adams has landed a role as head coach of Border, after last coaching at the Cobras in 2016.There’s also a big-name among the support staff. JP Duminy, who retired from international cricket after the 2019 World Cup, is the batting consultant for the Lions and has been seconded to the South African team for the T20 World Cup.Other former players, albeit not internationals, who are involved are Adrian Birrell, former Ireland coach and South African assistant coach, who will be in charge of Boland, former Lions player Richard das Neves, who will coach Easterns and will join Namibia for the T20 Word Cup, and Dumi Makalima, former Border and Gauteng player who will take charge at Limpopo.Commentary in isiXhosa The high-profile names don’t stop on the field. Three former international bowlers will be behind the microphone for dedicated isiXhosa commentary. Makhaya Ntini, Monde Zondeki, and Mfuneko Ngam make up a five-person team which also includes seasoned broadcasters Mluleki Ntsabo and Sixolele Sotyelelwa. Though this is not the first time commentary will be offered in isiXhosa, it appears to be the start of a more regular offering in a language outside of English or Afrikaans and will hopefully be the trend throughout the summer.

Steven Smith completes 3000 Ashes runs in 54 innings, becomes quickest to the milestone behind Don Bradman

Sampath Bandarupalli08-Jan-202210 – Test centuries for Khawaja, all since the start of 2015. He is one of ten players to score ten or more Test centuries in this period, that too after missing 30 of the 66 Test matches Australia have played in this period.Khawaja missed 14 Tests in succession before the ongoing Sydney Test, the most consecutive Tests missed by a player before scoring twin centuries in a Test. The previous record was nine Tests for Steven Smith (in 2019), when was serving a ban, followed by Rohit Sharma (three in 2019) and Andy Flower (two in 2001).2 – Batters before Khawaja to score centuries in both innings of a Test match at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Doug Walters scored 242 and 103 against West Indies in 1969 at this venue, while Ricky Ponting scored two centuries against South Africa in 2006, which was also his 100th Test match.ESPNcricinfo Ltd9 – Khawaja is one of only nine batters to score hundreds in both innings of an Ashes Test. The last to achieve the feat was Smith, in 2019, when scored twin 140-plus scores in Birmingham.9 – Players to score centuries in both innings of a Test match while batting at No. 5 or lower before Khawaja in Sydney. Only two others have done it in the Ashes: Denis Compton in Adelaide in 1947, and Steve Waugh in Manchester in 1997.Related

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1 – Number of players older than Khawaja (35y, 18d at the start of this Test) to score two centuries for Australia in a Test match. Donald Bradman was 39 years and 127 days old at the beginning of the 1948 Test against India in Melbourne, when he scored 132 and 127*. Khawaja is also the oldest of the nine players to score centuries in both innings of an Ashes Test.179 – Khawaja’s partnership with Cameron Green, the second-highest fifth-wicket stand in the Ashes after the fall of the first four wickets for less than 100 runs. Matthew Elliott and Ponting added 268 after Australia were four wickets down for 50 runs at Headingley in 1997. The 179 runs scored by the Khawaja-Green pair is also the highest for any wicket in the current series.54 – Innings needed for Smith to complete 3000 runs in the Ashes, the second-quickest in terms of innings. Bradman was the fastest to the milestone, needing only 38 innings. Smith is also one of the eight players with 3000-plus Test runs against a single opponent, and the fifth to achieve it against England.

Bangladesh’s newest hero on his international struggles, Air Force background, sledging Ross Taylor, and more

Mohammad Isam06-Jan-2022You have come a long way since that pacer hunt in 2016…I came out as the speedster from the pacer hunt in 2016. The BCB put me in the High Performance unit for three years. They trained me. I played in the A team, BCB XI, and gradually got to this stage.Related

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How did you build towards your figures of 6 for 46 in the first Test?I think we have to go back to the start of the tour. We were in quarantine for 10 days. On the day before our first training session, team director Khaled Mahmud Sujon sir addressed everyone with a speech. He said, ‘We have not won a single match in New Zealand in 21 years. Does it mean we will always lose here? One team has to win here. I think this is Bangladesh’s best team, and the one that beats New Zealand to create history’.This speech inspired me a lot. I thought to myself, someone has to win here. It should be us, this group. Our captain [Mominul Haque], Mushfiq [Mushfiqur Rahim] and Litton [Das] also spoke well. The fact that motivation works, this match is proof. I told myself that we will be the team that beat New Zealand on New Zealand soil. They are the world champions [of Test cricket], but if we give our best in the field, nobody can beat us.During my second spell [on the fourth day], the support from my team-mates stirred me. I think I was doing anything I wanted with the ball. The captain told me, ‘Bowl to your heart’s content, we are with you’. I never looked back. Every ball, I bowled 140-plus.That’s the thing. You kept hitting one specific length, but how did you manage to bowl both spells around the same 140kph speed on the fourth day?If you are fit enough as a fast bowler, you can do anything. Fitness is the first thing for a fast bowler. Part of my preparation was to play four first-class matches before the Test series against Pakistan. I wanted to improve my physical fitness and mental toughness through these four matches, and I think I bowled well against Pakistan as a result.Initially, we were supposed to do three days of in-room quarantine in New Zealand before getting into practice. Unfortunately, we ended up in room for ten days. We obviously couldn’t do any running but the BCB provided us with Theraband flex-bars and stationary cycles. I spent days and nights trying to remain fit. The conditioning coach Nick Lee and physio Bayezid also helped us a lot, [so] all six fast bowlers are fit.”Nobody should begin their international career like me, I struggled a lot initially”•Getty ImagesWhat changed for you in the Mount Maunganui Test from an individual point of view?I hadn’t put things together despite making my Test debut in 2019. It drew a lot of criticism. I have been working with [fast-bowling coach] Ottis Gibson for the last two years. He always encourages me, saying things like, ‘You possess the ability to swing the ball both ways. You can reverse the ball. You have the best release position in Bangladesh. You have everything, except the confidence. The day you have the confidence, you will be the best bowler in the country’.He changed everything in my bowling. With my previous bowling action, I used to lose energy in latter spells. Gibson changed my action, allowing me to bowl faster with less effort. My accuracy has improved too. Today he said in the team meeting, ‘I can see the perfect Ebadot today. He has understood what he has to do. He will now take it further’.The captain was also very encouraging, and he is always trying to help me.The captain Mominul Haque said that you can finish teams off when you are bowling well. He said that when you took those three wickets in the fourth evening, he finally felt that Bangladesh might win the Test…There’s a background to every success. Everyone from outside – the support stuff, the substitutes – were very helpful. Najmul Hossain Shanto kept telling me from the slips, keep bowling fast. The captain and Mushfiq said that the bowlers are doing well, let’s support them. Taskin [Ahmed] kept telling me things are working. We will win the game.Believe me, hearing all of this from all my team-mates made something burn inside me. I wanted to give it my all to win this Test. I gave my 120%. I just kept bowling fast at the stumps, and the ball was reversing so much. It was unbelievable.The key wicket was that of Ross Taylor on the fifth morning. He had survived two chances on the fourth evening. Did you plan to bowl more inswingers to him?Removing Ross Taylor early meant their tail would be exposed, and it meant we wouldn’t be chasing a big total. Mushfiq gave a great tip when he said that batsmen take a bit of time moving their feet early in the morning. I should bowl my best ball in the morning. I saw the first ball move slightly inwards. I bowled the next one with all my strength, and it reversed so nicely that it beat him.It appeared you two were having a brief conversation after you beat him at one point on the fourth evening. What were you two talking about?I told him that you can hit so well, why don’t you hit me? He said, ‘Brother, if you bowl like that on this pitch, no one can hit you’.After the Taylor wicket, what did you make of Shoriful Islam’s catch?It was an catch. Shoriful, Taijul [Islam] and Shadman [Islam] all took brilliant catches. We fielded so well. If you were here, you would have ran inside the ground in delight. I don’t think anyone could have stood still at the ground. We had such a great feeling among us. I think this win proved to our country that Bangladesh can beat any team, anywhere.

“I told Ross Taylor that you can hit so well, why don’t you hit me? He said, ‘Brother, if you bowl like that on this pitch, no one can hit you.'”

It also appears that there’s a lot of affection within the pace-bowling group.We talk to each other a lot. When Taskin was bowling during the Test match, and he bowled a great delivery, I told him that his pace looks scary even from mid-on. Taskin also keeps encouraging me when I am bowling. He told me recently that we spend 11 months in a year together. If we stay like a family, we can do a lot of good things together.There’s now a lot of interest about your Air Force background. I don’t just mean about the celebratory salute, but being in the Air Force must have also helped you become a more disciplined and fit person?It is a different lifestyle for uniformed persons. They are very disciplined and keep it to themselves. It has helped me a lot at a personal level. I always remember this background, which is also a reminder that I am representing my nation on two fronts.Before this Test, did you worry a lot about your bowling average?I don’t want anyone to start their international career like me. I have struggled a lot. I was telling Ottis, ‘Coach, not a single Test wicket came easily. I have had to work very hard for every wicket. I sometimes got a wicket after 17 overs or 22, or 33 overs. There were Tests when I got only one wicket’.He just smiled and said, ‘Welcome to Test cricket’ (laughs). He said, ‘You are a Bangladeshi fast bowler. The conditions are not in your favour. How many Tests do you play in a year? So make the most of your opportunities’.Patience is everything in Tests. This is why it is called “Test”. It tests the patience of batsmen and bowlers. Playing a Test is not easy.

The rationale behind his dipping strike rate is not clear, but he would want to try and find a way out

Shashank Kishore12-Apr-20224:49

Is Hardik Pandya’s batting position dictating his approach in IPL 2022?

When Virat Kohli said one “can’t create overnight what Hardik Pandya brings at No. 6” last October, he was referring to his middle-order power-hitting specifically. Over time, Hardik has been able to marry this ball-striking with the game-smarts that have made him a feared white-ball destroyer.Hardik, who has largely batted in the lower middle order, has notched up the seventh-most number of sixes in the IPL since 2017, with 92 hits.Related

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This fearless hitting was witnessed during the Champions Trophy final in 2017, where Hardik swatted six sixes against spin – almost immediately from the get-go – to make a whirlwind 43-ball 76 in a crumbling chase. We have seen that in Australia, where his finishing act – a 22-ball 42 – in a 195-chase helping India seal the T20I series in December 2020. He has done it numerous times for Mumbai Indians in the IPL.So, what makes Hardik tick? When in full flow, He can line up his scoring zones with a touch of brutality to his game. His powerful wrists and bottom-handed power have added different scoring zones to his repertoire. He can scythe wide yorkers behind point with the same efficacy as playing a helicopter to a yorker-length delivery.But so far this season, this version of Hardik hasn’t yet surfaced. His 141 runs in four innings this season have come at a strike rate of 122.60. This pales in comparison to his overall strike rate of 150.5 in the IPL. In the death overs, specifically, he strikes overall at a mind-boggling 187.60.This time around, Hardik has tried to take his innings deep, before trying to pull off a late jailbreak. This hasn’t worked, like it didn’t on Monday night against Sunrisers Hyderabad when he remained unbeaten on a 42-ball 50, with Gujarat Titans “finishing seven to 10 runs short” by his own admission.Barring the one knock against Punjab Kings where he made 18 off 27, Hardik has largely looked to build an innings. At Mumbai Indians, the presence of enforcers in Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Quinton de Kock, and at times Kieron Pollard, left him with a clear mandate: of going out to take down attacks.2:15

Is No. 4 Hardik Pandya’s best position?

At Titans, it’s easy to assume it’s perhaps the added captaincy responsibility that is making him restrictive in his approach. But there could be a bigger factor at play: the auction. Titans made a splash when they signed Shubham Gill and Rashid Khan along with Hardik as their core group of players, but the batting is still thin on experience.Abhinav Manohar is a middle-order finisher, who hadn’t played a single T20 game until six months ago. B Sai Sudharsan has been picked on the back of one prolific Tamil Nadu Premier League season. It makes for a great story to tell how the franchise has backed two new players to rise to the occasion, but when it affects the overall batting dynamics, it’s hard not to look at the fault lines.Both Manohar and Sudharsan are now playing the role of enforcers. While Gill has been in scintillating touch, Matthew Wade has managed just 56 runs in four innings. Vijay Shankar, a batter they would’ve hoped a lot more from, finds himself out of the mix, firstly because of injury and then due to team combination.The top order isn’t brimming with alternatives either. Hardik’s move up to No. 4 has meant leaving the role he dearly loves to the likes of David Miller and Rahul Tewatia. There is one problem, though. Miller is not the same player that he has been. Since IPL 2016, Miller has the second-lowest strike rate among 59 batters who have faced over 500 balls,For Hardik, as a young captain, this can be a massive sacrifice, but it boils down to a lack of options. With only one other young batter in Rahmanullah Gurbaz to potentially fill in, the dearth of options may have fired Hardik to be a pillar at 4.Hardik’s captaincy mantra has revolved around “taking pressure off youngsters and asking them to play freely.” What freedom does he enjoy? It’s quite striking to look at the significant dip in strike rates of first-time Indian captains in the IPL as compared to the previous two seasons. Hardik’s dip from 151.67 in the previous two seasons to 122.6 currently is the biggest.As the season enters the second half and pitches tire, average scores could come down. Spinners may have a bigger say. The dew factor could be negligible, and Hardik may have to re-look at his approach.Even though it might not be his most ideal role, as a team man, one can understand his rationale behind doing it. But he would want to try and find a way out.

Details of the former Zimbabwe captain’s dealings with the corruptor “Mr S”

Nagraj Gollapudi29-Jan-2022In late October 2019 Brendan Taylor reached India. Taylor landed in Mumbai on the invitation of one Mr S (the ICC has not revealed his identity), who wanted to “discuss” with the former Zimbabwe captain the potential to organise a T20 event in Zimbabwe. Taylor had decided to travel to India despite his agent warning him “not to waste his time with [Mr S] as he had a bad feeling about him.”Though the approach sounds similar to how Heath Streak, another former Zimbabwe captain, was lured in, Mr S is not Deepak Aggarwal, the man involved in the Streak case. Taylor was on Friday handed a three-and-a-half year ban from the game, for four breaches of the ICC’s anti-corruption code, including a five-month delay in reporting an approach.Related

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Taylor’s agent, based in the UK, had spoken to Mr S in September 2019 about the prospects of his client featuring in the Afghanistan Premier League that year. That tournament never took place and Taylor was informed by his agent nothing had materialised from the talks with Mr S.Nevertheless, Taylor decided to travel to India after getting assurances from Mr S. “In late October 2019 Mr Taylor travelled to India for three nights, four days, at [Mr S’s] expense, and met with [Mr S], his family and his associates,” the ACU said in a redacted recounting of the case released on Friday by the ICC. “[Mr S] said that he wanted to talk to Mr Taylor about setting up a T20 tournament in Zimbabwe and to discuss potential sponsorships, and would pay Mr Taylor US$15,000 for his time and services during the trip.”In a Twitter post last Monday (January 24) in which he first publicly confessed to the approach, Taylor had said he was a “little wary” about Mr S’s offer. But the main reason he travelled to India, he said, was because Zimbabwe Cricket had not paid its players for six months and their future as a Full Member seemed uncertain. Zimbabwe had become the first Full Member to be suspended by the ICC in July, though in mid-October – presumably before Taylor’s late October trip – they had that status reinstated.The ACU findings echo Taylor’s tweet in that he immediately told the corruptors he wasn’t going to do anything illegal. “Mr Taylor told [Mr S] that “if there’s any skullduggery, or dodginess, one, I’m not flying”, to which [Mr S] responded “no, we don’t work like that. We are legitimate people”,” the report says.USD 35,000 offer for spot-fixingIn his four interviews with the ACU – conducted in 2020 on April 1 and 2, August 17, and December 8 – Taylor would provide further details of his various interactions with Mr S. Soon after landing in India Taylor received a Samsung S10 phone from Mr S because his own phone was “busted”. He also got “some new clothes” and was also “provided” with “various things for his entertainment” during his stay in India.It was just before he was to return to Zimbabwe that Taylor was confronted by Mr S and associates with an offer to make USD 35,000 for “engaging in spot fixing in upcoming matches.” According to ACU the offer could have been for Zimbabwe’s tours of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in February-March 2020.Brendan Taylor failed a drugs test after his final game for Zimbabwe, against Ireland in Belfast in September 2021•Sportsfile via Getty Images”He [Mr S] also told Mr Taylor that he needed another player involved to make the fix happen, and he wanted him to help find this other player,” the ACU report says. “[Mr S] then handed over $15,000 in cash to Mr Taylor (as part payment) and told him that he would receive the rest of the money once the fix occurred. Zimbabwe were due to play Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in February and March 2020.”According to the ACU, the first time Taylor contacted them was on March 31, 2020, nearly five months after his India trip. He did not “mention” the “discussion around corruption” with Mr S, though he did admit to receiving USD 15,000 in cash.”In his initial interviews, Mr Taylor stated that the $15,000 payment was effectively a payment for his services in travelling to India, basically an appearance fee. In subsequent interviews, however, Mr Taylor changed his story and accepted that while he had initially travelled to India believing that he would be paid an appearance fee of US$15,000, at the end of his trip when the payment was actually made to him, it followed a discussion around corruption and a request for him to be involved in corrupting matches in exchange for payment, with the payment being made as a deposit for his involvement in corruption.”Taylor, the ACU concluded, did not fix matches but had taken on Mr S’s offer by accepting the money. “Mr Taylor has stated that it was never his intention to carry out any fixing for [Mr S] and he did not do so, however while he initially said no to [Mr S’s] approach he ended up agreeing to the offer and accepting the US$ 15,000.”Mr Taylor said that he did so because he felt he had no choice because after he initially said no, [Mr S] told Mr Taylor that he ([Mr S]) had a compromising video of Mr Taylor which he would release to the media and Mr Taylor’s wife unless Mr Taylor did some work with him.”That video was of him “doing cocaine” after the “celebratory dinner” he had with Mr S on his last night in India. Taylor said he “foolishly took the bait”, was “cornered” and “willingly walked into a situation” that has changed his life forever.”Throughout the course of his interviews,” the ACU findings note, “Mr Taylor stated that he only accepted the money (i) because it was his appearance fee for travelling to India, and (ii) he felt threatened and scared and he did not know what [Mr S] or his associates would do if he refused the money, so he therefore took the money so he could get out of the room, although he never intended to go through with anything.”Asked to ‘block’ Mr S, Taylor deletes all correspondenceTaylor was contacted by Mr S once again in mid-March 2020 when he was on Zimbabwe’s tour of Bangladesh. Mr S wanted Taylor to “work” for him during that series, which the latter refused – this was the call that prompted him to report the approach.”Mr Taylor stated that he refused to do any work (which he understood to be a reference to fixing) for [Mr S] to which [Mr S] responded by again threatening to release the video to the TV and radio, as well as his wife. [Mr S] then asked Mr Taylor to return the money and they could call it quits. This was followed up by a message from [Mr S] to Mr Taylor again threatening to release the video because he had refused to do any work for him.”Following the call he received from [Mr S] in mid-March, Mr Taylor realized that he had to report this matter to the ACU (albeit late). This he did on 31 March 2020. Mr Taylor did not, however, provide full details at that time, including making no mention of any discussion around corruption.”Taylor deleted his entire correspondence with Mr S, leaving the ACU ‘deprived of the ability to review such messages, which may have been (and probably were) relevant to its investigation’•AFP via Getty ImagesTaylor was told to “block” Mr S and not have any contact, but the ACU said Taylor deleted his entire correspondence with Mr S. “Mr Taylor claimed that he did this in fear of his family finding the messages. As such, the ACU was deprived of the ability to review such messages, which may have been (and probably were) relevant to its investigation.”As for the USD 15,000, the ACU has been told by Taylor that it is being “looked after safely” by a friend. Taylor’s ban will expire at midnight on July 25, 2025. But the ACU has put a rider on any return post that.”Mr Taylor acknowledges and agrees that it is not appropriate for him to retain the US$ 15,000 he received from [Mr S]. In particular, he acknowledges and agrees that neither he, nor his family nor his friends can benefit from this money (whether directly or indirectly) in any way. It is therefore agreed that Mr Taylor’s return to participation in cricket following the expiry of his period of Ineligibility is conditional upon him demonstrating, to the ICC’s satisfaction, that neither he, nor his family nor any of his friends have benefited (whether directly or indirectly) from this money.”Taylor took cocaine three days before Ireland ODIOn January 25, Taylor got himself admitted to a drugs rehabilitation centre after admitted he had a “problem”. He would also confess to the that he failed a dope test in September 2021, the last time he played for Zimbabwe. That was on September 8 last year when Taylor, after the ODI against Ireland in Belfast, submitted a urine sample as part of the in-competition doping test that players regularly undergo.On October 13, a WADA-accredited laboratory in Cologne certified that Taylor’s urine sample contained the cocaine metabolite Benzoylecognine, a prohibited substance as per the ICC’s anti-doping code.On November 30 Taylor was informed by the ICC that if he could prove he had “ingested” the prohibited substance out of competition and it was unrelated to sport performance, he could get a ban of three months, which could further be limited to one month “if he were to satisfactorily complete a Substance of Abuse treatment program approved by the ICC. The other option was for Taylor to get his B sample tested. Taylor accepted the original findings, admitting he had “ingested cocaine on 5 September 2021, three days before he provided his sample, for recreational purposes.”The ICC gave Taylor a month-long ban for the doping violation, which it said would run “concurrently” with the sentence he will serve for breaching the ACU code.