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A fine display of death bowling led Delhi Daredevils to a seven-run victory at home over Rising Pune Supergiant

The Report by Alagappan Muthu12-May-2017

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details5:04

Hogg: It was a big choke from Rising Pune Supergiant

Delhi Daredevils have, over the years, perfected the art of the bizarre, and usually that leads them to lose unloseable matches. On Friday, however, they magicked a way to defend a total of 168 even though Steven Smith appeared in top form and Ben Stokes looked like he was one hit away from finishing the game.Rising Pune Supergiant needed 91 off 60 balls with seven wickets in hand. They brought that down to 52 off the last five overs, and then, were just shut down. Only three boundaries came in the slog overs as a disciplined bowling attack led by the street-smart Zaheer Khan secured a memorable victory and left the opposition unsure of their place in the playoffs.A Powerplay of two halvesAt the toss, both captains said they wanted to bat, even though only once in four IPL seasons has that led to a victory at the Feroz Shah Kotla. Daredevils’ efforts to defy those stats were off to a terrible start. Sanju Samson was run-out in the first over and Shreyas Iyer caught behind in the third. The score was 11 for 2.Rising Pune then turned to Washington Sundar because he has the second-best economy rate (7.35) among the spinners to have bowled at least 50 balls in the Powerplay. But those numbers meant nothing to Karun Nair. All he knew was he was a superb sweeper of the ball and fine leg was up inside the circle. That was the first of nine boundaries in 18 balls.Rishabh Pant, too, received preferential treatment from the bowlers. He had come into the match making 190 of his 321 runs this season on the leg side and that’s exactly where he found 32 of his 36 runs on Sunday, including four fours and two sixes.The squeezeWhile Nair and Pant were together, the lowest a full over went for was nine runs. But once the 74-run partnership was broken, Rising Pune regained control. The new batsman Marlon Samuels could make only three runs in his first 10 balls. He fell top-edging to MS Dhoni, who had to run back, jump up, extend his right hand as far as it could go. Such acrobatics weren’t necessary to stump Corey Anderson; just fast hands and a sixth sense for when the batsman’s back foot lifted up as he toppled over.All the while the set batsman Nair could only watch from the other end. He faced only 11 deliveries in five overs between the 12th and the 16th. He finished 64 off 45. His team-mates 97 off 75.The Supergiant’s supergiantIf Stokes raised eyebrows by becoming the auction’s costliest buy, his performance is making them disappear beyond people’s hairlines. Case in point was the catch he took in the final over. The ball was soaring over his head at midwicket, but he positioned himself on the edge of the boundary, leapt back, caught it in mid-air and threw it back up because he was going over the ropes and then came back to take the rebound.Aside from such remarkable athleticism, there is his power hitting. At 92 for 3, he ran at Daredevils’ fastest bowler Pat Cummins and pummeled a one-bounce four to midwicket, launched Marlon Samuels’ third ball of the match over long-on and nonchalantly flicked Mohammed Shami for a six over deep square leg.Peak DaredevilryIt was amid this carnage that a scorching yorker arrived. So good was it that Stokes, despite putting bat to it, had to worry about not being bowled. The next ball changed the game.Shami ran in looking for the blockhole again. Stokes took a shimmy down the pitch and was surprised by a low full toss. The bat turned in his hand as his loft ended up in long-off’s hands.By the time Dhoni was taking guard for his second delivery the required rate was 12. And before he could get set, he was caught short of his ground by a direct hit. It was only the seventh time in 141 IPL innings that he was run-out.As badly as Rising Pune choked, the Daredevils bowlers were remarkable. They bowled straight, gave no room and nailed the yorkers. The inherent risk in this plan is if the ball doesn’t land where it is supposed to, it can be launched halfway around the world. But the big-hitters were gone, and Manoj Tiwary, as well as he had played for his fifty, wasn’t really a threatening presence.He managed two sixes to start the last over to tempt the Pune fans, but Cummins closed the game out with a slew of 145 kph yorkers.

Kent beneficiary Darren Stevens hit an unbeaten century in what could transpire to be his final game for the county as the hosts posted 389 for 7 on the second day

ECB Reporters Network21-Sep-2016
ScorecardDarren Stevens’ century was a handy contract reminder•Getty Images

Kent beneficiary Darren Stevens hit an unbeaten century in what could transpire to be his final game for the county as the hosts posted 389 for 7 on the second day of their Specsavers County Championship clash with Essex.After a first day wash-out and an uncontested toss, the 40-year-old all-rounder – whose contract expires at the end of the match – hit a typically belligerent unbeaten 107 to give his side the edge in this contest between the top two sides in the second tier.Sam Northeast and Joe Denly also posted half-centuries as the hosts racked up four batting bonus points, leaving them to secure one more point from this final-round game in order to clinch second place, and with it the ECB’s prize money of almost £57,000.Stevens, who went into this final round game in the midst of protracted talks over a new contract, said: “There was a bit of anger, frustration and disappointment in that knock today, but I’m delighted we’ve almost got to 400 as a team, that we’ve virtually secured second place and we’re now in a good position to go on and win the game.”I love this place and I don’t want to go anywhere else, so my hope is that we can sort something out because I feel I’ve still got two years left in me. I still have passion for the club and for these lads and I want to be successful, so we’ll have to see what happens.”I always love scoring runs and get more satisfaction from scoring runs being that Kent signed me as a batsman. I’ve obviously turned myself into a bit of an all-rounder in the meantime, but my main job is to get runs and the past couple of months have been pretty enjoyable in that regard.”This summer for our batters has been exceptional and we’re all pretty much close to 1,000 runs now. I got a bit edgy against the second new ball because it was sliding on and dong a little bit more in the air. But I backed myself to play my shots and got over the line to my hundred in the last over.”Batting first on a pitch that spent much of Tuesday morning under wraps, Kent lost their first wicket after an hour’s play but only three overs after umpires Russ Evans and Graham Lloyd had changed the misshapen original ball.Having hit seven fours in an attractive 32, Daniel Bell-Drummond threw all but the kitchen sink into a wide cover drive against Will Rhodes, only to edge to slip where Varun Chopra took a sharp, overhead catch.Fellow opener Sean Dickson (16) soon followed when he nicked a defensive push at a Matt Dixon leg-cutter to be caught behind by a tumbling Adam Wheater to make it 50 for 2.Home skipper Northeast posted 109 for the third wicket with Denly within 25.1 overs either side of lunch. Denly posted his fourth championship half-century from 98 balls with eight fours, while Northeast reached his third 50 from 70 deliveries and with seven boundaries.Moments later Northeast’s late decision to shoulder arms to Rhodes saw him deflect the ball onto his own stumps via the face of the bat and depart for 56.Sam Billings marched in to spank a cover drive for four and pull a short one from Ravi Bopara to the ropes at square leg. But, with his score on 16, Billings’ cameo ended when he missed another attempted pull against Bopara to be sent packing lbw by umpire Russ Evans.With Kent’s first batting bonus point on the board, Denly’s stay for an excellent 74 ended when he nicked a back-foot force against Dixon to the keeper, then on-loan Nottinghamshire all-rounder Will Gidman fenced at Dixon’s next delivery to give Wheater a third catch and Dixon, the pick of the Essex attack, a third scalp.Stevens and James Tredwell combined to hoist a third batting bonus point courtesy of a sensible seventh-wicket stand. Essex took the second new ball in a bid to break the partnership, but Stevens lofted the third delivery with the new cherry from Dixon for six over mid-wicket to bring up his sixth 50 for 2016 from 83 balls and with seven fours.Dixon enjoyed a fourth success and ended the stand for 108 by snaring Tredwell for 39. The ball after having Tredwell dropped behind, Dixon snapped one back off the seam to trap the left-hander lbw.With Essex flagging, Stevens unfurled his big drives and cuts to reach an 83-ball 50 off Dixon with a six over mid-wicket, then mark his 125 ball century – the 31st of his first-class career – with a flat-bat six over backward point off Paul Walter. The veteran hit 13 fours and three sixes.

A depleted New Zealand outfit look to resume their home domination against Pakistan in the first ODI at the Basin Reserve since 2005

The Preview by Andrew Fidel Fernando24-Jan-2016

Match facts

January 25, 2016
Start time 1100 local (2200 GMT)1:10

Pakistan look to bounce back after T20s

Big Picture

Injuries have hampered New Zealand’s seam attack over the recent limited-overs series. Key batsmen have been sidelined by niggles. They will be without their three most experienced ODI cricketers on Monday, but still, so good have they been at home, New Zealand still appear the more dynamic team. Of the nine limited-overs games they have completed in their summer, they have won seven.Key to New Zealand’s depth has been their management’s skill in spotting and honing talent. Martin Guptill was persevered with through a lean stretch at the end of 2014. He would go on to be 2015’s leading ODI runscorer. Colin Munro had had a lukewarm run in the middle order, before going thermonuclear at no.3, in Auckland. Mitchell Santner has a T-Rex front arm in his delivery stride, but he moves like a raptor in the field, and has contributed smartly in the major disciplines. They are about to switch formats, but the transitions have generally been seamless for New Zealand. As their coach says, “form in any format is great”.Pakistan will feel a little battered after two heavy T20 defeats, but who is to say when metal will strike flint and their fire starts? A change of captain, and the arrival of new personnel lends a little freshness to their tour. Their left-arm pace legion has been bolstered by the arrival of Mohammad Irfan and Rahat Ali, though the spin options do appear barer without Shahid Afridi.Their batting has been wobbly as ever in the past year, on occasion seeming outdated in their inability to attack at vital stages of the innings. There were series victories against Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, but also bruising defeats against Bangladesh and England. On a hard Basin Reserve deck tinged slightly green on the eve of the game, Azhar Ali will need the more experienced hands in his top order – the likes of Shoaib Malik and Mohammed Hafeez – to show the younger lot how to succeed in such conditions.

Form guide

(last five matches, most recent first)


New Zealand: WLWWL
Pakistan: LLLWW

In the spotlight

New Zealand’s selectors have said they are simply resting Luke Ronchi ahead of the Australia series, and are adamant that he remains the team’s no. 1 white-ball keeper. But his lack of runs since June will be among New Zealand’s mild concerns. Ronchi plays the first match of this series, then gives the gloves to BJ Watling for the second and third ODIs. If he gets the chance to bat, Ronchi will want to shore up his place in the XI with the kind of impactful innings he had played in the previous southern summer.A Test-match strike rate of almost 75 suggests Sarfraz Ahmed would take nicely to ODIs as well, but so far, he has been only decent, where he is exceptional in the longest format. There is some evidence that Sarfraz needs a little time at the crease before he unfurls his scything cuts and whiplash sweeps, as he averages over 40 batting in the top three. He has been sent back down the order more recently though, and if Pakistan lose quick wickets on a lively pitch, it may be down to Sarfraz to transform the outlook of his team’s innings, as he often has in Tests.

Teams news

Ross Taylor, Tim Southee and Brendon McCullum are all unavailable with injury, giving the likes of Tom Latham, Colin Munro and Henry Nicholls the opportunity to show their ODI wares. Latham will likely open, but Munro and Nicholls may be competing for one middle-order place.New Zealand (probable): 1 Tom Latham, 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Kane Williamson (capt.), 4 Colin Munro, 5 Grant Elliott, 6 Corey Anderson, 7 Luke Ronchi (wk), 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Adam Milne, 10 Matt Henry, 11 Trent BoultIt is conceivable that Pakistan’s frontline attack will be composed entirely of left-armers – with Imad Wasim likeliest to play out of the spinners. Babar Azam, Sohaib Maqsood and Mohammad Rizwan are probably competing for two middle-order spots.Pakistan (probable): 1 Azhar Ali (capt.), 2 Ahmed Shehzad, 3 Mohammad Hafeez, 4 Babar Azam/ Sohaib Maqsood, 5 Shoaib Malik, 6 Mohammad Rizwan, 7 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 8 Imad Wasim, 9 Wahab Riaz, 10 Mohammad Amir, 11 Mohammad Irfan

Pitch and conditions

This match will be the first ODI at the Basin Reserve since 2005, so average scores at the venue can only say so much. Grant Elliott felt the surface was hard, and should have a bit of pace and bounce. Overhead conditions may be conducive to swing bowling, with cloud forecast for parts of the day – though they are not expected to bring rain.

Stats and trivia

• Azhar Ali has averaged 45.58 and struck at 84 since becoming ODI captain last year. Both those figures are better than his overall average.
• In 18 matches at the helm so far, Kane Williamson’s average also improves – to 56.43. His strike rate of 81 is slightly lower than his overall figure however.
• The one-dayer between Australia and New Zealand at the Basin Reserve in 2005 is the only ODI that has been played at the venue this century.

Quotes

“Speaking to everyone that’s going to the game, around the city, they’re all excited to have a one-dayer at the Basin Reserve. I think it’s one of the best venues in the world, so to get a capacity crowd out here tomorrow will be fantastic for the guys.”
“The wicket looks quite hard and the wind factor is there, so we’ll try and figure out a combination that will suit these conditions.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the Delhi Daredevils v Kolkata Knight Riders match at the Champions League T20

The Preview by Devashish Fuloria12-Oct-2012

Match facts

October 13, 2012
Start time 1730 (1530 GMT)Kevin Pietersen is part of the dangerous Delhi Daredevils batting trio that includes David Warner and Virender Sehwag•Manan Vatsyayana/AFP/Getty Images

Big Picture

The first match for the two IPL teams will not only be a tug of war for the first points or an opportunity to work-out their strategies for the tournament; the focus will also be on Delhi Daredevils’ Kevin Pietersen, who is making a return to the field of play after his brief stint as a TV commentator.Kolkata Knight Riders may need a shift from the bowling plans they employed in the IPL to suit the conditions in South Africa. The variations that worked well for L Balaji and Rajat Bhatia in India will need adjustments, and it remains to be seen what tricks they use to supplement their lack of pace. Sunil Narine and Jacques Kallis are the automatic choices, but Brett Lee hasn’t had any cricket since Australia’s ODI tour of England in July, where he managed just two wickets in three outings. His competition to get into the team will be primarily with Shakib Al Hasan. Batting-wise, the team will again look up to their captain Gautam Gambhir, despite his recent patchy form, Brendon McCullum and Kallis.Daredevils, on the other hand, are much more settled. Their four first-choice overseas players – the captain Mahela Jayawardene, David Warner, Kevin Pietersen and Morne Morkel – are likely to play all the matches. Their pace-heavy bowling attack, which got batsmen hopping and ducking on benign pitches in the IPL, doesn’t solicit a change and therefore, the team, on paper, will go into the match as favourites.

Watch out for…

Daredevils’ top order features three of the game’s fiercest hitters – Virender Sehwag, David Warner and Pietersen – and that spells entertainment for the crowd. Pietersen, in his debut season for Daredevils, injected an aura into the team with his explosive batting. He played in less than half of the team’s matches – eight – but was the third highest run-getter for the team with 305 runs at an average of 61. The highlights of his stay were the unbeaten 103 and the 20 sixes he racked up in the tournament. Warner came in after Pietersen left and added another century to his T20 tally, while Sehwag was at his consistent best – scoring five half-centuries in a row – on his way to amass 495 runs in the season.Jacques Kallis was one of the pillars of Knight Riders’ success in the IPL. He played in all the matches to score 409 runs and collect 15 wickets. But he has had a forgettable time after South Africa’s successful tour of England. He failed to contribute with the bat – managing 24 runs in three innings – during the World T20 in Sri Lanka. However, in the familiar climes of South Africa, he will be one of the key players to guide the rest with both bat and ball.

Stats and trivia

• The two teams have played each other nine times and Knight Riders are marginally ahead in terms of wins by 5-4
• Gambhir’s strike-rate in IPL 2012 was 143.55, 18 points above his career figure
• Gambhir led Daredevils to wins over Knight Riders twice when the two teams met each other during the IPL 2009 season in South Africa

Quotes

“There are no favourites in this format, but we have the potential. I look around in the dressing room, and see a lot of greats of the game. If all of us play to our potential, we can go a long way in this competition.”
“This is a different challenge. I was asked to do it and I felt since I captained Kochi and a few matches for Kings XI that I would do it this time.”

12-Aug-2012
ScorecardAbdur Rehman marked his Clydesdale Bank 40 debut with 6 for 16 – a Somerset record in 40-over cricket – to help them to a five-wicket win over Nottinghamshire at Taunton.The Pakistan left-arm spinner extracted turn and bounce from the pitch as Nottinghamshire struggled to 206 for 9, having been 96 for 1 in the 14th over. Riki Wessels hit 53, Michael Lumb 41 and Graeme White 39 not out.Somerset needed only 29.2 overs to reach their target, Craig Kieswetter leading the way with a rapid 44 and skipper Marcus Trescothick seeing his side home with a responsible 87 not out off 69 balls with 10 fours and a six.Rehman, who was given the new ball, switched ends twice during three spells and made the ball turn with increasing venom. His first victim was Alex Hales, lbw reverse sweeping for 7 with the total on 19.There was no sign of the carnage ahead as Wessels and Lumb put on 77 for the second wicket in good time before Lumb carelessly pulled a to midwicket off Gemaal Hussain. Having switched to the River End, Rehman bowled Wessels middle stump with a ripper that pitched on leg and then had Adam Voges caught at slip by Trescothick for 1.Hussain produced a beauty to clean bowl Chris Read for 10 and it was 133 for 5 in the 25th over. Samit Patel was then caught behind for 22 advancing to drive the left-arm spin of Arul Suppiah.Rehman reverted to the Old Pavilion End to take three more wickets. Steve Mullaney was caught behind and Jake Ball taken at slip by Trescothick, both victims of turn, before Luke Fletcher drove to Steve Kirby at mid-off.That meant the new overseas signing had bettered the previous best 40-over bowling spell by a Somerset player, set by Sir Viv Richards when he took 6 for 24 against Lancashire at Old Trafford in 1983.The home side’s reply was given a whirlwind start by Kieswetter, who smashed four fours and a six off the first five balls of the third over, sent down by Patel.When England’s one-day wicketkeeper departed for 44, Peter Trego smacked 26 off 20 balls to keep the momentum going and all the while Trescothick was building towards his first meaningful score since returning after ankle surgery.He reached his half-century off 30 balls, with seven fours and a six. James Hildreth failed, offering a catch to slip to give White a second wicket on what was proving a good day to bowl left-arm spin, but Jos Buttler contributed 26 to put Somerset on the verge of victory.

Sri Lanka’s top order made the most of their practice game against Emerging Cape Cobras, before their spinners got a good work-out to seal a 78-run win at Brackenfell Sports Field

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jan-2012
Scorecard
Sri Lanka’s top order made the most of their practice game against Emerging Cape Cobras, before their spinners got a good work-out to seal a 78-run win at Brackenfell Sports Field.The fixture was not on the original tour itinerary, but was added on a request made by the Sri Lankan team management. Batting first, Sri Lanka lost their captain Tillakaratne Dilshan cheaply, but were stabilised by a 123-run second wicket stand between Mahela Jayawardene and Upul Tharanga. Jayawardene had endured a barren Test series, and his poor run seemed set to continue when he offered opening bowler Brendan Young a return catch, but it was put down.Jayawardene capitalised with 74 at better than run-a-ball, while Tharanga chipped in with a half-century in his first game on the tour. Thereafter, the Sri Lankans were propped up by chirpy cameos from the youngsters in the middle order – Lahiru Thirimanne and Dinesh Chandimal. Legspinner Alistair Gray slowed down the visitors with three strikes in the middle overs, but Lasith Malinga and Ajantha Mendis slogged efficiently, striking three sixes between them to the push the score to 296 for 9.The Emerging Cape Cobras’ chase got off to a poor start when they lost their biggest name, Richard Levi, for a duck in Malinga’s opening over. Gray, the other opener, continued to have a good game, though. He made 93 off 126 balls to keep the home team in the hunt, but the spinners made frequent incisions at the other end. Mendis and Rangana Herath accounted for six of the victims as ECC’s chase lost steam to collapse from 127 for 2 to 218 all-out.Sri Lanka play the first of five ODIs against South Africa on January 11 in Paarl.

It’s time to get the calculators out. The permutations throughout the penultimate round of Championship matches have been many and varied but now some numbers really need to be crunched

Andrew McGlashan at Liverpool09-Sep-2011
ScorecardPaul Horton again missed his hundred but his innings was just what Lancashire needed•Getty Images

It’s time to get the calculators out. The permutations throughout the penultimate round of Championship matches have been many and varied but now some numbers really need to be crunched, especially for Lancashire and Hampshire as they try to keep themselves in touch at either end of the table.Events at Edgbaston – where Warwickshire forced Nottinghamshire to follow-on – are also vital and Lancashire need to at least match the result of the hosts otherwise they’ll be a distant third-favourite in the race for the pennant. Hampshire, meanwhile, are still in with a chance of maintaining their Division One status but they really need victory here to put pressure on Worcestershire. They will need to chase whatever target is on offer and Lancashire can decide what that is after closing 202 ahead following a superb final session.Their hopes for a significant first-innings lead were dented by Sean Ervine’s fine 128 which helped the visitors to keep the gap to seven runs. It left four-and-a-half sessions for either side to manoeuvre a position and Lancashire made the advances as Paul Horton, who fell in the 90s for the fourth time in the campaign, and Stephen Moore added 168 for the first wicket, the team’s best opening stand of the season.There was clear intent from the pair in the hour prior to tea as they scored at four-an-over but without taking risks although Horton was given a life on 25 when he was dropped at slip off Danny Briggs on his way to fifty off 76 balls. Progression wasn’t quite as brisk during the start of the final session as Dimitri Mascarenhas bowled his first nine overs for eight runs but the pace picked up again later.Horton, though, continued to lead the way including a well-struck six over deep midwicket and also used the reverse sweep when Briggs tried to nullify scoring options by coming over the wicket. However, three figures again eluded him – he has also been stranded in the 90s twice in the CB40 – when he picked out deep square-leg.Moore had played second fiddle with a half-century off 122 balls, but Lancashire showed their intent as Glen Chapple came in at No. 3. They will need to decide overnight exactly what they want to set Hampshire. An aggressive hour of batting in the morning will push the lead towards 300 although it will be hard work to bowl a side out.Hampshire began the day still 159 behind, but Ervine and Michael Bates took their sixth-wicket stand to 88 to frustrate Lancashire. The new ball had been taken first thing despite the impact of the spinners, yet Chapple and Kyle Hogg both bowled well enough to be deserve a reward with numerous deliveries missing the edge.With a view to Hampshire’s future it was an important innings from Bates who is an excellent gloveman yet doubts remain over his batting. The county tried to sign James Foster to replace Nic Pothas but it would be good to think they are willing to invest in a talented young player who can develop. Bates certainly didn’t look out place during his near two-hour innings which ended when he was superbly caught at short cover.It was spin that had again provided the breakthrough as Gary Keedy struck in his first over. Despite the breakthrough, though, Lancashire ran out of time for a full hand of batting points as Hampshire reached the 110-over mark on 309 for 6 with Ervine remaining firm having reached his first hundred of the season from 169 balls. Slowly wickets fell at the other end as Dimitri Mascarenhas edged to second slip and Keedy claimed his fifth when he clubbed to mid-off.At that point, shortly before lunch, Lancashire still had a chance of a lead of around fifty but Briggs then provided valuable support to Ervine in a stand of 59. The relative ease with which Briggs batted showed that, while help was offer from the surface, it remained good for batting. However, he was dropped at slip on 10 which cost precious time. He became the first, and only, wicket of the innings to fall to pace when he drove Chapple to cover and the innings ended when Ervine picked out long on.

Sri Lanka are the only team close to full strength for the tri-series, but New Zealand could benefit the most from the tournament

Siddarth Ravindran in Sri Lanka08-Aug-2010In its dual role as commercial hub of the North Central Province and site of the holy Golden Cave Temple, a UNESCO world heritage monument, Dambulla has long attracted a varied set of visitors. In 2010, the town seems out to add aficionados of the one-day game to that bunch, laying out 14 ODIs for them in fewer than three months, a feast even Sharjah didn’t offer during its salad days as a cricketing venue.The tickets are cheap, the weather is reasonable, and the pitch isn’t one of those featherbeds which make bowlers despair over their choice of career, but bussed-in school kids made up a chunk of the sparse crowd during the Asia Cup in June, and things aren’t likely to be too different for the
upcoming tri-series.The players involved won’t be bothered by that, though. The teams will be using the tournament to figure out their combinations for next year’s World Cup in the subcontinent. India and Sri Lanka had talked of building up to cricket’s showpiece tournament during the Asia Cup but could not zero in on a settled batting order. The tri-series will be New Zealand’s first one-day tournament in five months, and gives several of their newcomers a chance to test themselves in conditions alien to those at home.For what it’s worth, the tri-series could also cause a major reshuffling in the one-day rankings. Australia are runaway leaders with a 14-point lead, but the next five teams are separated by only seven points. India are second, but that spot could be taken by either New Zealand (now fourth) or Sri Lanka (now sixth) by the end of the tournament.Teams will find it simpler to capture that second spot if their captains win the toss often. The floodlights at Dambulla are a bit dodgy and, more importantly, the pitch assists bowlers more under lights than in the afternoon, making the toss more vital than it should be. Sri Lanka had been the dominant team in the league phase of the Asia Cup, but they lost the toss and the final partly due to the lavish movement the Indian bowlers extracted from a previously benign track.In a time when three-day gaps between Tests are the norm, even if teams have to travel to a different venue, the tri-series follows a leisurely schedule despite being played entirely in Dambulla. There’s a two-day break between each match, giving teams ample time to visit the many archeological
heritage sites in Sri Lanka’s famed Cultural Triangle.

Sri Lanka

The home side is the only one close to full strength and should start as favourites. After looking good for much of their previous two series, Kumar Sangakkara’s team finished poorly in both and were left with only the moderate reward of a shared Test series, something Sri Lanka will want to redress.Their batting order is settled till No. 5, but the Sri Lankan think-tank is still figuring out their best players for the remaining slots. With Thilina Kandamby having fallen out of favour, Thilan Samaraweera, Chamara Kapugedera and the recalled Chamara Silva are battling for two places. The absence of Muttiah Muralitharan means the tournament is a chance for the spinners Suraj Randiv, Ajantha Mendis and Rangana Herath to make cases for a permanent place.

India

Sri Lanka must be among MS Dhoni’s favourite destinations for one-day cricket: his captaincy record in the country is four titles in four tournaments. Adding a fifth could prove difficult, though, because India are without four first-choice players – Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan – which leaves Dhoni with a very young team: 11 members of the squad are 25 years or younger. The good news for him is that most of the youngsters have played plenty of cricket in Sri Lanka and are familiar with the Dambulla pitch as well.The pace attack, which was ineffective during the Tests, is beefed up by the return of Ashish Nehra and Praveen Kumar, but India’s slow-bowling combination will be interesting to watch. Pragyan Ojha had a successful Test at the P Sara Oval, but with Ravindra Jadeja making the XI for his all-round skills, will India go in with two left-arm spinners (in addition to the part-time bowling of Yuvraj) or will offspinner R Ashwin get an extended run?

New Zealand

New Zealand Cricket has smartly lined up matches in all three World Cup host nations in the run-up to the 2011 tournament. The absence of match-winners, such as Daniel Vettori, Brendon McCullum and Jesse Ryder, means New Zealand are a long shot for the tri-series title, but with so many players with so little experience of the subcontinent, they could be the team that benefits the most from the tri-series. The other plus for Ross Taylor’s side is that, while the other two teams have only a few days and no matches to switch from Test to one-day mode, New Zealand have tuned up for the tri-series with two convincing warm-up wins in Sri Lanka.

Mayank Yadav bowled a 156.7 kph delivery in his match-winning spell of 3 for 14 in four overs at the Chinnaswamy Stadium

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Apr-2024Two Player-of-the-Match awards in his first two IPL games, the most deliveries north of 155 kph in the IPL, and the fourth fastest delivery (156.7 kph) in the history of the league – Mayank Yadav, Lucknow Super Giants’ 21-year old tearaway, is already in elite territory after his match-winning spells against Punjab Kings on Saturday and Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Tuesday.His searing spell of 3 for 14 in four overs at the Chinnaswamy Stadium included the wickets of Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green, batters accustomed to facing high speeds on bouncy pitches in Australia, and a well-set Rajat Patidar”Feeling really good to get two Player-of-the-Match [awards] in two games but I’m more happy that we won both games,” Mayank said after LSG’s 28-run win against RCB. “My aim is to do well for the country for as many years as I can. This is just the start, and my focus is on the main goal.”Mayank said his favourite wicket was that of Green, who was beaten on the outside edge and bowled by a delivery so fast that the ball flew off the stumps and cleared the boundary on the first bounce.”You need quite a few things to bowl at this pace – like diet, sleep and training,” Mayank said. “If you want to bowl fast, it’s important to be perfect in everything. My focus is on my diet, and also on my recovery – like [taking] ice bath.”Related

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The LSG captain KL Rahul was keeping wickets and said one of Mayank’s balls hit his gloves “really, really hard.””So happy to see Mayank bowl the way he is bowling in the last couple of games. He has quietly, patiently waited for two seasons in the dugout,” Rahul said. “[He] missed out last year because of injury unfortunately. But he has been in Bombay with the physios, working really hard.”He understands bowling 155kph is not easy. At a young age, he has already had a few injuries… He has a great temperament, and I’m enjoying seeing him bowl from 20 yards behind the stumps. That’s where I’d like to be when he’s bowling!”LSG opener Quinton de Kock said Mayank was “bowling rockets”.”Glad to have him in our team. He’s bowling really well,” de Kock said. “Normally as a youngster, a guy with express pace, you get caught up with a lot of things. But he’s keeping it really simple and doing really well.”RCB captain Faf du Plessis said it was difficult for batters to judge and adjust quickly to the “new action” of a young fast bowler.”Especially if there’s a bit of pace behind it, it’s really promising,” du Plessis said. “So it takes batters a few times just to get used to someone’s action, just to see how the ball is coming out of the hand. So really impressive to see his pace. But more impressive for me tonight was his ability to control length and bowl with some really good discipline. That’s more impressing – pace combined with accuracy.”

Matthews bowled the final over with Heat needing just six to win and conceded only three runs, to break an eight-game losing streak for Renegades

AAP18-Nov-2023Melbourne Renegades have broken an eight-game losing streak in a thrilling two-run upset win over Brisbane Heat, with skipper Hayley Matthews proving the hero in the final over.The Heat needed six runs to win at the start of the 20th over bowled by Matthews, but the West Indies star conceded just three runs to keep Nicola Hancock and Courtney Sippel quiet at Brisbane’s Allan Border Field.Earlier, Matthews was due a match-winning score and she delivered with her best and most influential innings of the WBBL season, scoring 46 off 28 balls to help Renegades post 169 for 7.Heat opener Grace Harris kept her side in the hunt in the chase with a powerful 65 from just 36 balls before a late flurry by Jess Jonassen and Hancock put them on the brink of victory at the end of the 19th over.Matthews took the early wicket of Georgia Redmayne and two slick catches before her heroics in the final over to restrict the Heat to 167 for 9.With the bat, Matthews played strokes all around the ground. She was looking ominous in the closing overs until she was bowled by seamer Hancock, who finished with her career-best figures of 4 for 20.Opener Emma de Broughe made a classy 42 at the top of the order and supported Matthews well.The Renegades were 134 for 2 in the 16th over before Hancock and part-timer Harris pegged them back. Harris picked up 2 for 16 with her offspin.The loss could be costly for the Heat who stay in third position on the WBBL table on 14 points, two behind leaders Perth Scorchers.