All posts by n8rngtd.top

Offspinner Sohag Gazi, who claimed Man-of-the-Match awards on Test and ODI debut during West Indies’ ongoing tour of Bangladesh, has been named in the hosts’ 14-man squad for the one-off Twenty20

Mohammad Isam08-Dec-2012

Bangladesh Twenty20 squad

• Mushfiqur Rahim (capt & wk), Mahmudullah, Tamim Iqbal, Anamul Haque, Abdur Razzak, Mominul Hoque, Jahurul Islam, Nasir Hossain, Elias Sunny, Rubel Hossain, Mashrafe Mortaza, Sohag Gazi, Ziaur Rahman, Shafiul Islam

Offspinner Sohag Gazi, who claimed Man-of-the-Match awards on Test and ODI debut during West Indies’ ongoing tour of Bangladesh, has been named in the hosts’ 14-man squad for the one-off Twenty20. Batsmen Anamul Haque and Mominul Haque, who also debuted during this tour, have made the squad too.The fourth among Bangladesh’s debutants, Abul Hasan, who scored a century from No. 10 in the Khulna Test, is the only newcomer to miss out: he is yet to recover from the side strain he suffered in the second ODI in Khulna. The injured Shakib Al Hasan, who was advised six weeks rest due to a shin injury, expectedly wasn’t picked.Batsmen Mohammad Ashraful and Junaid Siddique, and allrounder Farhad Reza, who were part of the squad that played the World Twenty20, were not named in this squad.This year, Bangladesh played their most Twenty20s, winning four out of eight games. The match against West Indies is set to be played in Mirpur on December 10.

Ottis Gibson wants his West Indies side to use their Twenty20 success to help improve their one-day cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Jan-2013Ottis Gibson wants his West Indies side to use their Twenty20 success to help improve their one-day cricket. They go into the series in Australia ranked seventh in ODIs and Gibson is looking for them to move up the ladder.West Indies open their tour against a Prime Minister’s XI in Canberra on Tuesday with speculation surrounding Gibson’s future. He will almost certainly be in charge for the five-match ODI series and the one-off T20 – West Indies first match against a major nation since winning the World T20 in October.”We are the T20 world champions and we are proud of what we achieved in that tournament but that doesn’t put any added pressure on the team,” Gibson said. “Hopefully with that victory and what we achieved more people will come and watch us.”It’s something we have to move on from and think about moving up the ladder in one-day cricket and getting ourselves in the mix with the best teams in the world. We believe we’re a top team but we now have to show it with the way we play.”West Indies welcome back Ramnaresh Sarwan into their squad, which Gibson described as having a “good mix” of young and experienced players. They prepared with the Caribbean T20, which Gibson saw as a positive with all his players getting game time and playing themselves into form.”We’re hoping we can hit the ground running,” he said. “The Prime Minister’s XI is our one opportunity for preparation and it gives us a good chance to get some practice. Hopefully we put on a good show but the main aim is to get our preparation right for the one-day series on Friday.”West Indies captain Darren Sammy echoed his coach’s sentiment on getting their preparation right. “The guys have been playing a lot of cricket back home and hopefully we can get this series off to a great start here. As an individual and as a team we have just got to get the basics right and execute if you want to win.”West Indies lost their last ODI series 3-2 in Bangladesh, and the series against Australia comes less than 12 months after the sides drew 2-2 in the Caribbean last March.”It will be competitive out here, that’s for sure,” Sammy said. “I see it as a continuation of what happened in the Caribbean. We want to play hard, competitive cricket. It’s always a challenge to play Australia anywhere in the world, but even more so in their own backyard. We believe we can come here and if we can execute our plans and play to our strengths, we can be successful.”West Indies have a poor recent record to overcome. They have not won an ODI in Australia since January 1997 – 13 completed ODIs ago – and their last series victory came in 1992, when they won a tri-series also involving Pakistan.”We have a lot of respect for Australia, you can never count Australia out,” Sammy said. “They’re professionals and know how to dig themselves out of a hole. We won’t watch the results of the Sri Lanka series but we’ll look at some areas to implement in our game. I expect it to be a hard-fought battle and we’re looking to play it very hard.”As might be expected, Sammy is looking to Chris Gayle to have a defining impact for them. West Indies played at the same venue against the Prime Minister’s XI two years ago and made 399 for 5 off 45 overs. Gayle made 146 off 89 balls.”I remember Chris hitting the ball all over the park,” Sammy said. “I’m expecting Chris to have a good tour as a whole. When he came back home he looked really good and I think he almost had the most runs in the Caribbean T20 tournament after just a couple of games. We all know what he’s capable of, but the strength for us is the way the team has performed together. We are getting stronger as a unit.”

Sri Lanka Cricket is considering Muttiah Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas for spin and fast bowling coaching positions, SLC chief executive Ajit Jayasekara said

Andrew Fidel Fernando29-Jan-2013Sri Lanka Cricket is considering Muttiah Muralitharan and Chaminda Vaas for spin and fast bowling coaching positions respectively, SLC chief executive Ajit Jayasekara said. Neither have undergone formal coaching training but are the nation’s highest wicket-takers in Tests and ODIs by a distance.Jayasekara said SLC were not working to a concrete time frame on the potential appointments but discussions between the parties had been encouraging. Their prospective roles were yet to be clearly defined but Jayasekara said both men would likely work closely with the national team, though they might be asked to share their expertise beyond the national set-up.”They are two of our best products, and have had huge success all over the world,” he said. “We are looking to tap that knowledge and make use of it for the betterment of cricket in Sri Lanka. The fact that they don’t have coaching qualifications isn’t a big issue when you consider how much they have to offer.”Vaas was recently employed by the visiting New Zealand side in a temporary coaching role, and had positive feedback from both the players and coaching staff he worked with on the tour. New Zealand’s fast bowlers had a highly successful tour of Sri Lanka, especially notable for the quality of swing and seam movement they produced, which had been a hallmark of Vaas’ own bowling.Vaas, who was playing county cricket as recently as July 2012, said he was enthusiastic about taking a coaching role in Sri Lanka. “I have finished my discussions with the board and they will come back to me with a decision,” he said.Muralitharan is the most successful bowler in the history of the game, leading both the Test and ODI wicket-takers lists, with 800 and 534 scalps respectively. He continues to play in domestic Twenty20 leagues, having just wrapped up a season with the Melbourne Renegades in January.If Murali and Vaas come on board with SLC, their appointments will be among a raft of changes around the national team within a few months. Their former teammate Sanath Jayasuriya was named chief selector of a new five-member panel on Monday, while Sri Lanka’s first Test captain Bandula Warnapura is also expected to become CEO of the board in April.

Michael Clarke has not given up hope of Shane Watson returning to India for the fourth Test in Delhi, despite the vice-captain’s indications that he is considering his cricket future

Brydon Coverdale13-Mar-2013Michael Clarke has not given up hope of Shane Watson returning to India for the fourth Test in Delhi, despite the vice-captain’s indications that he is considering his cricket future. Watson arrived in Sydney on Tuesday night for the birth of his first child, although his departure from Chandigarh also coincided with him being one of four players stood down from the Australia team for this week’s third Test due to their failure to complete a task set by the coach Mickey Arthur.When he left India, Watson said he would use his time at home to weigh up his cricket future, which given his new family commitments was taken as a suggestion that long Test tours might no longer be on his radar. However, Clarke and Watson spoke on the phone after Watson landed in Sydney and Clarke said the best-case scenario for Australia was that Watson could still return to India in time for the final Test in Delhi, which starts on Friday next week.”I think Watto has made it clear to everybody that that’s something he’s thinking about while he’s home,” Clarke said of Watson’s cricket future. “From my point of view he’s vice-captain of this team and he’s a big part of this team, there’s no doubt about that. From the conversation Watto and I have had, 100% he has gone home for the birth of his first child, which is very exciting for him. I know he’s really excited about that.”Hopefully all goes to plan there, Lee has the baby in the next few days and Watto is back here playing the fourth Test as our vice-captain. That’s the best-case scenario from my point of view and from the team’s point of view. The rest is really up to Shane.”The Watson situation was complicated by a press conference in which Cricket Australia’s general manager of team performance, Pat Howard, said that Watson was a team player “sometimes” and alluded to issues between Watson and Clarke. Watson responded by saying that Howard did not know him well and that his relationship with Clarke had its ups and downs but that things were going well between them at the moment.Clarke was careful not to be drawn too far into the debate on the eve of the Mohali Test, but he said he was sure Watson and Howard would be in communication while Watson was at home. Clarke was doing his best to focus firmly on the third Test against India, which Australia could enter with as few as 12 available players due to Watson, James Pattinson, Mitchell Johnson and Usman Khawaja being suspended, and Matthew Wade battling an ankle injury.”I’m not going to get into that,” Clarke said. “I don’t think it’s fair to Watto and I don’t think it’s fair to Pat that I get involved in that. Watto has been around for a long time. Pat has been around sport for a very long time. I know those two will be in communication. For me the focus is this team and trying to have success in these two Test matches.”I think the most important thing is that this group looks forward. The decision has been made. The players have accepted and respect the decision that has been made, and now we’re trying to do what the most important thing is and have success in this Test match. I think it would be very stupid of me to look backwards. I don’t think right now, a day out before the Test, I can afford to do that.”Watto made it clear yesterday that me and him have known each other for such a long period of time. The players respect the position I’m in as captain and that this decision isn’t personal. We made the decision irrelevant to the four players’ names. It was because we thought it was best for the team that we made that decision.”

Ray Jennings has said that Royal Challengers Bangalore are missing the experience and skill of Zaheer Khan, especially in pressure situations, over the last few weeks

Nagraj Gollapudi15-Apr-2013

Batting worries nag Royal Challengers

Royal Challengers opener Mayank Agarwal is likely to miss the rest of the IPL campaign after he broke his finger while fielding in the match against Super Kings. Attempting to save a four from Ravindra Jadeja in the 16th over, Agarwal threw himself full stretch to his right to save two runs, but in the process dug his little finger on the right hand into the ground. Jennings confirmed Agarwal’s broken finger, which was operated on Sunday, and has been advised at least four weeks rest.
According to Jennings, the franchise was keenly awaiting the return of Indian top-order batsman Cheteshwar Pujara, who has missed the first two weeks of the IPL, recovering from a finger injury he picked up during the final Test of the Australia series in Delhi last month. Pujara’s fitness will be assessed on Monday and a call will be taken by the team management soon.

Ray Jennings, the coach of Royal Challengers Bangalore, feels that the continuing absence of Indian fast bowler Zaheer Khan with a side strain has affected the team, especially during pressure situations like the last-ball defeat against Chennai Super Kings last Saturday. Zaheer, he said, suffered a strain on the left side during the team’s first training session in the week leading into the IPL and hasn’t bowled since.”You are always going to miss any guy with that amount of experience because he has done it so often and he can actually handle the pressure,” Jennings said. “So, of course, you do miss players like that, any team would.” Zaheer was the second-highest wicket-taker for Royal Challengers last season. Zaheer’s presence was missed on last Saturday’s encounter against Chennai Super Kings, where RP Singh bowled an underwhelming over to hand Super Kings a last-ball victory. Against Sunrisers Hyderabad, another misfiring last over from Royal Challengers pushed the game into a Super Over, with Sunrisers’ Cameron White stealing the show from there.Zaheer has been struggling with injuries in the last few months and had come to the IPL fresh off a calf injury that forced him to miss the knockout matches for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy, and subsequently the Irani Trophy. Not only was his fitness an issue but a loss of form was a big factor behind the Indian selectors losing confidence in him.Zaheer last played for India during the third Test of the home series in England. He was ignored for the ODI leg of the England series and then dropped from the four-Test Australia series. He did not feature in the 30-strong Indian probables shortlisted for the Champions Trophy, which is to be held in England in June.However, Jennings maintained that the franchise had enough faith in the left-arm seamer who, he said, was working hard to regain complete fitness. “Zak (Zaheer) has a lot to offer, and is always around the players helping them as well. He has worked every day in the gym, and has the trainer on his case to make sure he is 100% fit, and [that] the recovery from the injury happens soon.”This is Zaheer’s second stint at the Royal Challengers. His first came in 2008; he was traded to Mumbai Indians for the 2009 season and was bought at the 2011 auction by the Royal Challengers. In his 42 matches, he has picked up 44 wickets at an economy rate of 7.85 and is the third-best bowler for the franchise in the IPL.Asked if there was a possibility of Zaheer’s returning soon, Jennings felt the second half of the tournament was a fair bet. “There is no doubt. [The] back nine will be the business end of the tournament where we would need his experience, and hopefully he will be ready. At this stage we want him getting into the act of doing some bowling and that is why the fitness aspect is important, because if you let that go then he is not going to be strong enough to bowl. Once the injury is rectified, it is going to take one or two nets sessions to make sure he is bowling fit,” Jennings said.At the auction this year, Royal Challengers picked seven new players, out of which four were specialist fast bowlers, swelling the quick bowling numbers in the squad to ten. Asked to explain the reason behind having so many fast bowlers in the squad, Jennings said the plan was really to have multiple options.”My feeling in the IPL is to have a limited amount of batsmen because of the lesser opportunities available to them, so you need to settle the guys down. As far as the bowlers go, Virat, the boss (Vijay Mallya) and myself felt that having a larger group is beneficial as bowlers tend to have injuries.” Citing an example, Jennings used left-arm Indian fast bowler RP Singh, who was coming into the tournament having recuperated from a long injury lay-off which had kept him out of the domestic season after the IPL last year, and the franchise did not want to take a chance in case RP was injured early on. “We just felt that if we were going have an extra player, then we should have one in the bowling department.”

Michael Clarke is almost certain to miss his first Test in Delhi due to the degenerative back injury he has sustained throughout his career

Brydon Coverdale21-Mar-2013Michael Clarke appears almost certain to miss the fourth and final Test against India in Delhi after failing to take part in Australia’s last training session before the match. Clarke’s likely absence will open the door for Australia to appoint their 44th Test captain, most likely Clarke’s deputy Shane Watson, which would be a rapid return to favour after he was one of the four players left out of the previous Test for disciplinary reasons, and voiced his opinion that the punishment was “very harsh”.Clarke has had ongoing back problems for more than a decade, and suffered pain while fielding on the fourth morning of the Mohali Test. Although he batted in the second innings of that match, he was clearly hampered, and did not take part in either of Australia’s practice sessions at the Feroz Shah Kotla on Wednesday or Thursday. Australia might not make a decision on Clarke until the morning of the match, but his lack of training would make it near impossible to choose him.Australia could make several changes, with the wicketkeeper Matthew Wade likely to return at the expense of Brad Haddin, after being ruled out due to an ankle injury in Mohali. Xavier Doherty’s chances of retaining his place appear slim, after he looked dejected during a long on-field chat with coach Mickey Arthur. Given the likelihood of a slow, spinning pitch, Glenn Maxwell could be in contention for Moises Henriques’ place as the allrounder.But the major issue for Australia is the likely loss of Clarke, not only for his generally shrewd captaincy, but more significantly, for his run-scoring and ability to handle spinning conditions. Clarke has scored 286 runs at 47.66 on this tour, comfortably the most by any Australian. He is also the only member of the touring party to have made a century in the Test series.By comparison, Watson has failed to convert his starts and has averaged 25.20 since taking on the vice-captaincy in 2011. He has also failed to score a century in that time, with his highest score being 88 against South Africa in Johannesburg. He hasn’t scored a Test century, either as player or vice-captain, since October 2010.”He’s plays his own way, he’s very aggressive and he’s a match-winner. I love seeing him play that way,” Clarke said of Watson before training on Thursday. “I think it’s just a matter of time before Watto (Watson) walks out there and gets a big hundred. He works as hard as anybody. He wants to have success, he wants to help his team win. I wouldn’t be surprised if he walks out in this Test and comes out with a bang, with a hundred to finish this tour.”Although Watson has not officially been declared the leader if Clarke is ruled out, both Clarke and the coach Mickey Arthur have said over the past few days he would be the logical candidate. Watson returned to the squad this week having flown home for the birth of his first child, which coincided with him being axed for failing to complete a homework task set by Arthur. After the innings loss in the second Test in Hyderabad, he was back at training in Delhi on Wednesday.”Shane has my full support if he’s appointed captain,” Clarke said. “Shane, like the rest of the players, missed the last Test match. If he was available for the Test he would have played. He was made unavailable, and that’s why he spoke to his wife and flew home for the birth of his first child.”It worked out nicely but he would have stayed and played the Test match [in Mohali] and missed the birth if he was available. I think Shane, like the other three players, have served their sentence in missing that game. He’s 100% available for this Test match, and at this stage, like I’ve said for a long time, he’s our vice-captain. In my opinion if the board and the other selectors appoint him as captain he has my 100% full support.”Although Clarke was speaking before the training session, and was at the time hopeful of playing, he conceded he had been in considerable pain due to his back injury over the past few days. Clarke, 31, has been managing his back problem since he was 17, and the ongoing issue is sometimes seen as evidence his career might not last as long as some other batsmen. Clarke does not believe the problem will affect his cricket longevity, but believed it was an issue that could flare up at any time.”My back gets irritated when I’m in flexion and I rotate,” Clarke said. “I hurt it the other day while fielding [in Mohali], sprinting for a ball, picking it up, and throwing it off balance, which is exactly the opposite to what my back likes, but I’ve done that a number of times throughout my career in regards to when I field. Sometimes with degeneration of the disc, it can flare up, but I will manage it as well as I can. I’m very grateful for the people around, especially [team physio] Alex Kountouris, and my physio when I’m back in Sydney, to keep me on the park consistently.”I was in a bit of pain [in Mohali], unfortunately the painkillers wore off. I don’t know if it’s as bad as it’s been. It’s not a nice feeling. It was very uncomfortable and it impacted my performance, in regards to not the number of runs I made, but the movement. I felt I couldn’t move down the wicket because I was so restricted, and I’d hate to see what the fielding side of it looked like. It’s slowly improving. If you ask Alex or the team doctor, they might have a different impression.”Clarke has never missed a Test due to injury, but if he is forced to sit out in Delhi it will create extra pressure on the rest of the batting order, given how heavily Australia have relied on him in recent times. Fortunately for the Australians, Steven Smith showed his class against spin during the Mohali Test. Phillip Hughes, who had looked awful when facing the slow bowlers during the first two Tests, fought through his problems and scored 69 in the second innings.”I think Hughesy (Hughes) is probably a great example of learning on this tour,” Clarke said. “I think every single one of us would walk away from this tour and have learnt something. I think Hughesy showed that last game. He changed a couple of things in his game to help him have success in these conditions especially against spin bowling, and it really worked for him.”

Gloucestershire recovered from 46 for 5 to seize control against Leicestershire at Grace Road. After squeezing into a first-innings lead of 30, two late wickets for Will Gidman handed them the initiative.

01-May-2013
ScorecardWill Gidman made a bright half-century and took two late wickets as Gloucestershire won the day•PA Photos

Gloucestershire recovered from 46 for 5 to seize control against Leicestershire at Grace Road. After squeezing into a first-innings lead of 30, two late wickets for Will Gidman handed them the initiative.Benny Howell, Will Gidman and Jack Taylor all hit half-centuries as Gloucestershire’s last five wickets added 234 runs to guide the visitors to a total of 280. Gidman followed that up by dismissing both Leicestershire openers.Michael Thornely bagged a pair, popping up an easy catch to mid-on off the first ball of the innings, and Niall O’Brien was lbw for 7 as Leicestershire closed an eventful second day on 32 for 2, to lead by two runs.Gloucestershire, starting the day still 219 runs behind on 31 for 2, endured a nightmare first half-hour, losing 3 for 15 runs in six overs. Michael Klinger and Alex Gidman were both caught behind flicking at deliveries down the leg side, and nightwatchman David Payne lost his off stump during an impressive spell from Ollie Freckingham.Hamish Marshall and Howell steadied things with a resolute partnership of 61, although Howell survived a chance to Robbie Williams at mid-on when he mistimed a lofted drive off Jigar Naik. He celebrated that escape with a straight six off the same bowler but Marshall, three runs away from a half-century, was trapped lbw by Freckingham soon after lunch.Will Gidman joined Howell in another fine stand of 67, reverse sweeping left-arm spinner Claude Henderson to the boundary to reach his fifty off 51 balls with eight fours, before falling lbw to Naik.The much more cautious Howell reached his half-century off 152 balls hitting two sixes and one four. But, when he was also out lbw to Henderson for 52, Taylor went onto the attack. He reached his fifty off 52 balls and finished unbeaten on 61, having shared a last-wicket partnership of 51 with Craig Miles, who contributed a valuable 23.Freckingham had a career-best return of 4 for 69 and Williams also claimed four wickets. But it was very much Gloucestershire’s day.

India’s captain has a plan in place for the new ODI regulations and a new bowling star to spearhead his strategy

David Hopps05-Jun-2013″It’s good to be in England.” MS Dhoni did not just utter it once, he uttered it twice. But, oh dear, Dhoni is in Wales, a land proud of its distinct national identity. For all Dhoni’s charming smile, the good folk of Cardiff will be shuddering, there will be revolution in the valleys and in Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerych-wyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch, the village with the longest name in Britain, they will be lost for words. There again, with a name like that, that is not altogether surprising.Welsh passions have occasionally boiled over. Robert Croft, a former England spinner, much loved in the Land of Song, was such a proud Welshmen that he always insisted he was playing not for England but for the British Lions. Croft once got into a dressing room altercation with Mark Ramprakash when Ramprakash questioned his allegiance.But India’s captain need not worry himself unduly about his slip. Britain is routinely confused over whether it regards itself as Great Britain, the United Kingdom, or three of the UK’s constituent parts: England, Scotland and Wales. That is even before you consider the European Union.If Croft leads a party of protesting Welsh nationalists outside the ground they will be lost in the general melee because, by the time the match begins, Cardiff will not be in Wales, it will be part of Little India. India v South Africa, the opening match of the Champions Trophy is sold out, and flags of saffron, white and green will fill Bute Park. The bottomless passion for cricket among India and Pakistan fans will help to bring this tournament alive.The ECB (that is actually the England and Wales Cricket Board, not that everybody remembers the silent W) expects 10 of the 15 matches to be full to capacity – 11 if India top the group and return to Cardiff for the semi-final, perhaps to meet England. If there is one thing Cardiff could rely on, it is if England reached the semi they would know they were in Wales.But that is not all. Even those who know they are in Wales might be confused once they reach the stadium. For years, the locals have implacably referred to the ground as Sophia Gardens, in defiance of its renaming as the Swalec Stadium when the old ground was largely demolished in the search for international cricket. And we have to admit, ESPNcricinfo has often not known what to think.Thanks to naming rights issues, for the Champions Trophy, and Champions Trophy alone, the ground has been rebranded as Cardiff Wales stadium, with poor old Sophia Gardens nowhere to be seen, except in the hearts of tens of thousands of county supporters.It is astonishing what confusion can descend upon a cricket ground once the politicians and business executives get involved. They would be better advised to turn their attentions to why so many shops are boarded up in St Mary’s Street.Dhoni, of course, proves that all this renaming malarkey is largely a waste of time unless somebody posts it on Facebook.One matter Dhoni was definite about was that India will respond to the new rules – two new balls and more fielders in the circle – by fielding five specialist bowlers. “With the new rules it will be very difficult to play four bowlers and rely on the part-timers so definitely five bowlers will feature,” he said. “It depends who you consider an allrounder and who you consider a bowler.The team, at a best guess, will have Rohit Sharma and Shikar Dhawan as openers and Ravindra Jadeja and Ravi Ashwin batting at No 7 and No 8. The weather is set fair in Cardiff, at least for this week, so India should be able to field two spinners without suffering as a consequence.This is the first tournament India have played outside their own country under the new regulations — two new balls and an extra fielder in the circle. In India, the regulations keep the balls harder in the middle overs and make strokeplay more possible, but in England, more conducive to seam bowling in any event, the bowlers will have a distinct early advantage.The emergence of Umesh Yadav, in particular, makes India well equipped to take advantage with the new ball when batting but there are questions over whether they can achieve early stability with the bat if the conditions are testing. Even so, they should begin overwhelming favourites against a South Africa one-day side which lacks the strut of its Test counterpart.”The game, you can say, has changed a bit with the introduction of the new Laws,” Dhoni said. “It means if you keep wickets in hand you can really exploit the conditions and make a lot of runs. Most of the teams will see a bit of a change in their approach and try to keep wickets intact in the first 10 when the new ball may do a bit.”The fast bowlers have a really important role. If you see the way the game has progressed, and see the statistics, most of the sides in the first 10 overs will be happy to get 40 or 45 runs and keep as many wickets intact as possible. That loss of 20 runs in the first 10 you can make up later if you have wickets in hand. If a side gets going more often than not they will end up scoring more than 300. We need to adapt quickly.”Yadav, who collected five top-order wickets in as many overs against Australia, has been allowed a privilege not granted to other members of the Indian party. He married Tanya Wadhwa, a fashion designer, in Nagpur on May 29 and has been allowed to bring his wife on honeymoon. There will be a few envious looks from team-mates in the hotel reception.

ESPNcricinfo previews the chances of the teams in the Friends Life t20 North Group

Vithushan Ehantharajah26-Jun-2013Derbyshire (28-1)
Overseas players: Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Albie Morkel
T20 pedigree: Not good. Only once have they got past the group stages (a quarter-final in 2005) – the worst record of all the 18 counties. A team exceeding the sum of their parts they might be, but success in this format is built on having one or two expressive players, which they just haven’t had…
Prediction: Until now? The acquisition of Morkel for the nine of the ten group games is a smart one, providing the team with a big hitting allrounder with six seasons of IPL cricket behind him. For all his talents, however, the onus is on ‘home’ players such as Wes Durston, Chesney Hughes and Mark Footitt to get them out of the group. It’s probably too much of a stretch.Durham (20-1)
Overseas players: None
T20 pedigree: Two quarter-finals and one Finals Day appearance to date, all in the last five years. Durham have slowly got to grips with Twenty 20 cricket, coinciding with back to back Championships titles from 2008.
Prediction: An organised unit they will always be, but the responsibility taken on by their younger players should see them reach the quarter finals. Mark Stoneman has been a revelation at the top of the order this season, while Scott Borthwick and Ben Stokes are two of the most in-form allrounders in the country and Graham Onions is a class act. Look out for Mark Wood , too, one of the quickest bowlers around, with good Twenty20 credentials – so much so that he nearly earned himself a contract to play in last season’s Big Bash League in Australia.Lancashire (12-1)
Overseas players: Simon Katich, Mitchell McClenaghan
T20 pedigree: They have appeared at three Finals Days and made the quarter-finals on all but two occasions but, for all their consistency, Lancashire have never won the competition. The closest they came was in 2005 when Graeme Smith ‘s unbeaten 64 won a rain-affected final for Somerset.
Prediction: McClenaghan has taken to English conditions with glee and his searing left-arm pace will had something extra to an attack that has bowled the side to the top of Championship Division Two and third in Group B of the YB40. Quarter-finals are a given.Leicestershire (25-1)
Overseas players: Joe Burns, Shakib Al Hasan
T20 pedigree: The most successful Twenty20 side, Leicestershire have won the competition three times. The squad has a much more youthful look to it than when they were last FLt20 champions in 2011 but, as they have shown before, they possess the raw talent and exuberance that can see them through limited-overs games.
Prediction: Shiv Thakor and Rob Taylor will need to support captain Josh Cobb, who can be a match-winner – he already has three one-day hundreds this season and is useful with the ball, as his match winning 4 for 22 in the 2011 final proved. The invaluable experience of Shakib – ranked the fifth-best T20 bowler in the world – and Niall O’Brien could secure them third in the group.Nottinghamshire (8-1)
Overseas players: David Hussey, Ian Butler
T20 pedigree: Underachievers, when you look at the talent they possess. Runners-up in 2006 is as close as they’ve come to glory but they have reached the quarter-finals in each of the last three years, going one stage further in 2010.
Prediction: Could this be their year? Even with England call-ups, their bowling attack contains handy variety, with Ajmal Shahzad’s speed, Harry Gurney’s left-arm seam, and the orthodox spin of Samit Patel, who also adds to an impressive batting line-up capable of dealing with any of 20-over cricket’s permutations. Add into that the part-time off spin and unparalleled Twenty20 run-scoring of Hussey and you should have one of your Finals Day participants.Yorkshire (12-1)
Overseas players: None
T20 pedigree: David Miller nearly single-handedly dragged Yorkshire to victory in last year’s final with some exceptional hitting but that was the first time they had made it past the quarter-finals. Their previous two forays beyond the group stages came in 2006 and 2007.
Prediction: Flying in Division One yet floundering in the YB40, the discrepancy between their Championship and one-day performances and personnel suggests the former is the main priority. The riches of Twenty20 cricket may have them changing tack but they will miss Joe Root and, perhaps, Jonny Bairstow and Tim Bresnan for most of the group stage. Mitchell Starc was the competition’s top wicket-taker in 2012 and they will need to bring in a player of similar standard to give them a chance of coming close to what they achieved last year.Odds from bet365.com

Hashim Amla’s departure hastened a collapse which both he and AB de Villiers marked as the defining moment of the match

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Pallekele29-Jul-2013Hashim Amla’s return to the batting order initially appeared to be the tonic South Africa required to build their first imposing total in the series, but after his departure in the 23rd over, the visitors embarked on a collapse both Amla and AB de Villiers marked as the defining period of the fourth ODI.Amla’s 71-ball 77 had driven a brisk second-wicket stand that had taken South Africa to 110 for 1 after 20 overs, but South Africa succumbed to Sri Lanka’s spinners, and managed no more than a mediocre 238. JP Duminy, who partnered Amla during that partnership, made 97, but could not find sustained support from the middle order.”That period was the most disappointing thing about today,” de Villiers said. “Hash (Hashim) set us up really well to go big, but I think the previous wicket played a bit on our minds. The middle order created more turn than there was. I think we were mentally a bit drained and we didn’t support JP well enough. It was definitely, at the very least, a 260-score kind of wicket. Maybe 280, with our kind of batting line-up and the foundation we laid.”Amla had progressed with equal ease against Sri Lanka’s fast bowlers and spinners, and looked set for a ton before Tillakaratne Dilshan had him lbw with a delivery that turned more than Amla expected. De Villiers departed in Dilshan’s next over, and though Duminy managed a 46-run stand with Faf du Plessis, the team lost six wickets for 33 runs, making a competitive score almost impossible. South Africa had also used up their batting Powerplay by the 21st over, hitting the spin of Ajantha Mendis and Rangana Herath for 24 runs in the five overs.”When Mendis was on in the Powerplay, everything was going quite smoothly,” Amla said. “We were knocking the guys for about four or five an over. Unfortunately, I got out, and I think the momentum broke there. We then built up some momentum when we hit 170, but lost our way there as the wicket became a bit harder to bat on in the late afternoon for the new guys coming in.”Sri Lanka’s three spinners bowled 29.4 overs in total and took seven wickets and South Africa’s progress had slowed significantly against them in the middle overs, which contributed to the string of quick dismissals.”I’ve got to take a bit of responsibility because I got out to Dilshan and the guys coming [in] were a bit more aware of him, trying not to lose their wickets,” de Villiers said. “I feel that Dilshan’s not a bad bowler, but you can dominate him if you get on top of him, and I was trying to get that going. Unfortunately, I got out playing my first attacking shot, and the rest of the guys following up were a bit circumspect about facing the spinners. Just as we’d get a partnership going, we’d lose another wicket.”De Villiers also said South Africa expected the pitch to become harder to bat on than it did, for the second innings. Both the visiting seam bowlers and spinners found the surface to their liking under lights on Friday, as they comfortably defended 223.The fresh pitch on Sunday appeared much more suited to batting however.”Towards the later afternoon we were hoping for it to start turning and misbehaving a bit. When we bowled it skidded through and we didn’t see the bounce that treated us so well in the previous game.”The match also marked a serious dip in South Africa’s fielding standard, after the team produced their most polished performance of the series on Friday. Wayward throws and misfields allowed easy runs throughout the innings, but were particularly prevalent towards the end of the match – albeit after Sri Lanka had begun their final march to victory.”I’m the kind of guy that likes to keep it professional right throughout the hundred overs, so the fielding was disappointing. In saying that, they were batting without any pressure there so they were always going to take the field on a bit more. The boys still tried their best and it’s hard to keep your head in the game when they need to knock off 60 odd runs off 80 balls with eight or nine wickets at hand.”