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Both Sri Lanka captain Karunaratne and South Africa captain du Plessis shower the Durban hero with effusive praise

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Feb-20190:57

First Lara, then Perera – all the records Sri lanka broke to beat South Africa

“I’m a little tired now, I don’t know what to say.”But for 309 minutes, Kusal Perera knew exactly what to do. Sri Lanka were rank underdogs in this fight. They were pummeled 2-0 in Australia, never even getting close to putting up a total of 250. Their captain was sacked. Their team stripped for parts. Rookies few had heard off were put on the plane to South Africa and now, after four days of outrageous cricket in Durban, they have emerged the victors, chasing down 304 with one wicket to spare.And it was all down to the man who didn’t know what to say.”Especially great effort as a team,” Perera finally managed. “Especially lower-order batsmen, they gave me good support. And because of that I believed in myself.”I did something … I did my part. But we won as a team. The partnerships in the whole innings were great – that’s why we were able to chase 304. You can’t just mention one person or partnership. Even if you scored one run, that counted to the win. All XI of us had to bat. It’s the best Test I’ve played for Sri Lanka.Perera was breathtaking with bat in hand. He barely flapped an eyelid when Sri Lanka lost their ninth man with the target still 78 runs away. He defended with unreal calm. ran like there were ants in his pants, took body blows – 150kph deliveries kept thudding into him – and brushed them off like they were mosquito bites.”In places like these [South Africa], it’s never going to be easy, like [it is] in Sri Lanka. These bowlers are all top five in the world. You never know what kinds of balls they are going to send at you. They don’t give you any room, and they have so much experience. There were very few loose balls.”In these couple of matches, I think I’ve copped six or seven blows to the head. In these tracks, if you’re not willing to wear balls on the body, you might as well not be batting. I don’t know how many times I got hit – honestly I’ve lost count. But you can’t think about those things while you are batting. In Sri Lanka the fastest you get is 130-140kph. Here you get balls that are 150kph. When you come to a country like this, if someone tells you you can bat without getting hit, that’s a lie. We have to be smart about it. That happened to me. That’s what cricket is about.”Highest tenth-wicket partnerships in successful chases•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

At the other end, the most No. 11 of No. 11s, Vishwa Fernando hung on. He made only six runs – four of those from overthrows. There were five extras in that time as well. But the rest of the 67 that Sri Lanka needed to record only their second Test win in South Africa came off Perera’s magic bat. And it spared no one.Dale Steyn was muscled for six over midwicket. Multiple times. One of the world’s greatest fast bowlers was reduced to shaking his head and scratching his chin. Faf du Plessis took the new ball hoping that would help them take the wicket but Perera farmed the strike so beautifully that Fernando faced only seven deliveries in this period.”I didn’t even look at the scoreboard when Vishwa came in and we had a lot of runs to get. I just tried to play it over by over and get us close, little by little. Vishwa told me: “I’ll hit the ball with my body, if nothing else. You do what you can, Kusal .” I took a lot of strength from that. Without any fear I took the single and gave the strike to him. He did a huge job. If he had got out, there wouldn’t have been a point, because we would ahve been all out. I don’t know how many balls he faced. Those are valuable, valuable balls. What he faced was worth more than my runs.”Eventually, in the 86th over, Perera glided a short and wide delivery to the third-man boundary and almost as soon as he made contact he let out a cathartic scream, holding his hands aloft and savouring that “special” feeling.”That was really awesome,” newly appointed captain Dimuth Karunaratne said. “We knew coming into this game that we had a chance. Earlier in 2012, we won a match here in Durban. We had a tough series in Australia but we learnt lots of things so I thought the boys will give their best in South Africa.”We lost lots of matches last few years. Even the Sri Lankan fans, who all are looking to see when we were going to win. So I think it’s a proud moment for us as a team, as a captain, and as a country as well. Winning in South Africa is a real proud moment.”It showed in the Sri Lankan dressing room, which flew into chaos upon seeing the winning shot. Coach Chandika Hathurusingha was leaping about, punching the air. The other players around him were on their seats, roaring in delight. Each of them went over to get a piece of their match-winner, so much so that Perera didn’t even have time to collect a stump as a souvenir. Someone else had to do it for him.Kusal Perera and Vishwa Fernando celebrate a sensational Sri Lanka win•Getty Images

In December 2015, Perera went through the ordeal of a false positive drug test. He faced a four-year ban from cricket, but Sri Lanka Cricket helped him fight the charge and eventually win the case in court. In December 2016, he toured South Africa for the first time but with the team in flux, he was made to bat out of position at No. 3 and discarded after one Test. Perera finally came back to the Test side in June 2018 and now stands as a hero. There might perhaps be only one other man who knows how he feels right now. Brian Lara, who too made an epic unbeaten 153 to win a see-sawing Test match against superior opposition in the company of a No. 11 batsman.No wonder that even the opposition captain couldn’t hold back his praise. “Perera was obviously unbelievable,” du Plessis said. “To get 160-170 out of that score will take a Superman effort. So he deserves all the accolades that come to him after this game.”I thought 300 was enough on this wicket. I’d be lying if there wasn’t emotions going through me on the inside. Difficult for a captain to tactically… you want to try and protect the lead and then you want to bowl at the tail-ender and he played that beautifully. Whatever we tried, we brought the field up, he still managed to get a one away or a boundary away. Just kept knocking away every over. Towards the end, we got a few balls at the tail-ender but unfortunately there were a few plays an misses. Would’ve been nice if there’d been a nick.”

George Dockrell’s first four-for in nearly three years was followed by a century from Paul Stirling, who struck 101 off 97 balls, to chase down 178 with 12 overs to spare

The Report by Peter Della Penna in Sharjah10-Dec-2017Paul Stirling celebrates after notching his fifth ODI ton•Peter Della Penna

In a coaching tenure pockmarked by a lack of victories over Full Members, John Bracewell signed off on his time as Ireland coach with two straight wins in Sharjah as Ireland took the series decider by five wickets on Sunday night. George Dockrell’s first four-for in nearly three years was followed by a disdainful century from Paul Stirling, who finished as the leading run-scorer in the series.Afghanistan’s innings started in assured fashion with Dockrell being hit for six by Javed Ahmadi in the second over. In the sixth over, he carved Boyd Rankin through the off side for a series of boundaries. But the slightest pressure applied by Tim Murtagh resulted in the first mistake, Ahmadi forcing a pull in the seventh over to mid-off for 27. Rankin had Noor Ali Zadran dragging on in the next over and from there Ireland grew taller in the field.Whereas most of the Irish damage came from pace in the first two games, Dockrell and Stirling stepped up to take half the wickets. Stirling struck first, getting Asghar Stanikzai to skew a drive to backward point for 5 in the 18th over. Rahmat Shah then got out in arrogant fashion to give Dockrell his first, attempting to bring up a fifty with a six and instead picked out the tallest man on the field, Rankin at long-off.But it was the wicket of Mohammad Nabi that demonstrated Afghanistan’s lack of respect for Irish fingerspin, falling in identical circumstances to Stanikzai as a sliced drive found its way to Kevin O’Brien at short third man. Nasir Jamal picked out square leg with a sweep he middled, to give Dockrell his third and put Afghanistan on 109 for 6 with nearly 20 overs left.Rashid Khan fought gamely to keep Afghanistan in the match. He wound up finishing with a joint-top score of 44 and ended the series as Afghanistan’s second-highest scorer, a major indictment of the recognised batsmen. While he played orthodox strokes, his frustration grew as his remaining partners showed little willingness to apply themselves as Barry McCarthy ran off three straight wickets, two of those in the 41st over. Rashid began turning singles down in the 42nd over and stretched the innings into the 49th, giving the crowd a rise with a huge six off McCarthy into Second Industrial Street, before he was caught in the deep off the same bowler to end the innings.With Dawlat Zadran out nursing a niggling shoulder injury, Afghanistan made the curious call to bring in Shapoor Zadran, who had only played three ODIs since taking the new ball in the 2015 World Cup. Based on his performance on Sunday, he may have wrecked his chances of being in the touring party to Zimbabwe for the World Cup Qualifiers after he was dismantled single-handedly by Stirling. The bruising opener drove Shapoor through extra cover for the first of his 11 fours in the third over, and then nearly took Shapoor’s head off with a searing straight drive in the fifth to knock him out of the attack.Afghanistan’s spinners made inroads in the interim with Mujeeb Zadran bowling William Porterfield for 4 in the next over to land a hopeful blow. Nabi was curiously held out of the attack until after drinks but struck in his second over, drawing Andy Balbirnie into a dance down the pitch for a stumping. Rashid had Niall O’Brien lbw to a legbreak that held its line to make it 96 for 3.But Gary Wilson and Stirling teamed for a half-century stand to straighten Ireland’s chase once more as Afghanistan went crooked with the return of Shapoor to the attack. Stirling hooked the first ball of the 29th over a statuesque Rahmat at long leg for a six that could have been a wicket. But Stirling showed his disdain for Shapoor’s medium-pace two balls later, getting on a knee to slog sweep him over the square-leg rope for six more.Stirling’s hammering of Shapoor culminated in the 36th over. In the space of four balls, he moved from 81 to a century with hooks for four and six over long leg, then a tennis swat over cover for six more. A front-foot pull over midwicket finished the sequence to bring up his sixth ODI century, off 93 balls.Stirling fell to a Rashid googly to end the next over and several of Afghanistan’s players graciously shook his hand before he exited the field to more applause from the Afghanistan fans who remained. Two fours by Kevin O’Brien off Mujeeb in the following over sealed the win with 12 overs to spare.For Ireland, the back-to-back wins after a humiliating loss in the series opener were a major confidence boost in their final scheduled series before the World Cup Qualifier. The series loss for Afghanistan, only their second in nine ODI series since the 2015 World Cup and first since a 2-1 defeat in Bangladesh in October 2016, may dent their standing as one of the pre-tournament favourites heading into Zimbabwe.

High levels of pollution and smog have forced the cancellation of the Group A clash between table toppers Bengal and Gujarat, and the Group C fixture between Hyderabad and Tripura to a later date

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Nov-2016High levels of pollution and smog have forced the cancellation of two Ranji Trophy fixtures in Delhi: the Group A clash between Gujarat and Bengal and the Group C fixture between Hyderabad and Tripura.Both matches will now be played after the league phase, the BCCI announced, without mentioning specific dates or venues. With the league phase ending on December 10 and the quarter-finals scheduled to begin on December 17, it is unclear if the knockouts will be pushed back by a few days to accommodate these rescheduled games. The status of the next round’s games in Delhi, between Odisha-Assam and Hyderabad-Services, scheduled to begin from from November 13, also isn’t clear yet.Not a single ball was bowled in either game, at the Feroz Shah Kotla and the Karnail Singh Stadium. Play was called off on the second afternoon after there was no improvement in the air quality.”The teams were informed around 3.15 in the afternoon that the match was called off,” Sairaj Bahutule, the Bengal coach, told ESPNcricinfo. “Our eyes were burning. Some of the guys had headaches. Pollution was at the highest level. This is the first time in my cricketing life I have come across such a scenario.”At the Karnail Singh Stadium, Hyderabad and Tripura had a meeting at 11.30am, along with the match officials, and upon further inspection, the game was called off. “We could not even stand outside as our eyes started burning. It was impossible to run in or do anything,” Bharat Arun, the Hyderabad coach, said.The players had complained of burning eyes on the opening day as well. Although the sun came out, it failed to penetrate the thick layer of smog that has enveloped the national capital, resulting in poor visibility. The smog is believed to be an after-effect of Diwali fireworks, as well as the burning of paddy stubble in the neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana.”Yesterday, in the afternoon, when light improved, we went out to toss. But the dust and pollution was so bad that our eyes started to water,” Bengal captain Manoj Tiwary told ESPNcricinfo. “In consultation with both captains, it was decided that we’ll call off play. But today, when the same situation persisted, the match referees decided it was unsafe to even attempt to play. It was called off a little after 3pm. We’ve played a lot of cricket in the north, especially Delhi, in winter months in the past. But I haven’t seen anything like this.”

A steaming 90 minutes in the hands of Wahab Riaz and Yasir Shah was reminiscent of the rich history of Pakistan cricket with a fast bowler and legspinner working in unison to wreak havoc

Umar Farooq24-Oct-2015A steaming 90 minutes in the hands of Wahab Riaz and Yasir Shah was reminiscent of the rich history of Pakistan cricket with a fast bowler and legspinner working in unison to wreak havoc. It was an evocative sight in Dubai as Pakistan rattled England’s batsmen, inspiring in them awe and fear.The thrill of the Wahab-Yasir combination was a peep into history, recalling Imran Khan-Abdul Qadir, Wasim Akram-Mushtaq Ahmed, Shoaib Akhtar-Danish Kaneria. It brought back memories alive as both fought, and narrowly failed, to take five wickets.Wahab bowled five terrific maiden overs, three with a wicket, conceding only 15 runs while Yasir’s attack was initially less threatening, giving away 34 runs with one wicket. Such a lengthy spell by Wahab was unusual; he is chiefly used for attack. He withdrew after nine overs, missing out on his second five-for, last taken on his debut during an infamous tour to England in 2010.”When I got a good start I felt that I can get more wickets and that is why I prolonged my spell and that was my own decision,” Wahab said. “In cricket when you bowl well you get wickets, even the bad balls sometimes. I pushed myself hard.”Obviously that was one of my best spells. If I could have got a five-for it would have been a very special one but it’s still good because it helped my team.”Pakistan took a 136-run lead on first innings and by the close of the third day had extended that to 358 with seven wickets intact.In general it was expected that the left-arm spinner Zulfiqar Babar would pair up with Yasir but that did not materialise. Babar looked off-colour and is already averaging over 50 this year. The Yasir-Zulfi combo was meant to supersede Saeed Ajmal-Abdur Rehman but the pair have yet to make an impact. That led to a change of plan allowing Yasir and Wahab to get in on the act.”I think Yasir has done well in the past few Tests and he is our main weapon,” Wahab said. “Babar and Imran [Khan] also give me an edge, in a sense that they keep up the pressure which allows me to attack. I might leak many runs but with them around I feel comfortable.”But I enjoy bowling with Yasir and the expectation was that we would both get wickets from both ends and we knew we had to wrap them up soon to get an important lead.”I think Yasir will be the key player tomorrow because there is good spin on the pitch and if we have the kind of score which we are looking for so England will be under pressure. It’s not easy to play spin here and we fast bowlers will also play our part.Pakistan’s head coach Waqar Younis had an extra session with the bowlers before start of play in the search for an immediate impact. For England, Root had stood his ground to be 76 at start of play; his wicket was the main hunt of the morning. “Root’s wicket was important as he is the one who plays freely and doesn’t take pressure,” Wahab said. “We knew where to dry up his runs, we did that and got him out which was a crucial wicket.”It is my role to lead the attack. That’s my responsibility and every day and in every spell I want to produce my best because my team has expectations of me and I want to fulfil those. My energy is always there.”

India will tour South Africa for three Tests, seven ODIs and two Twenty20s beginning in December this year and extending to early 2014

Firdose Moonda12-Apr-2013India will tour South Africa for three Tests, seven ODIs and two Twenty20s beginning in December this year and extending to early 2014. This will be the teams’ first meeting since two seasons ago when they battled for the No.1 ranking which India held onto under Gary Kirsten. Now, South Africa are mace holders with Kirsten in their camp.There was talk of a fourth Test being built into the schedule but that has not materialised. Mike Gajjar, CSA’s manager cricket operations, said it was only ever a “possibility” to have an additional Test and the two boards stuck to what was “entrenched in the FTP.”But there is some good news for fans of the longest format. ESPNcricinfo understands the traditional Boxing Day Test will return to Durban after it was cancelled previous season because CSA opted to play three festive T20s instead. Although the other venues have not been confirmed, it is a given that Cape Town will host the New Year’s Test and either Johannesburg or Centurion should get the third fixture.Both teams will be short on Test cricket before the meeting. South Africa last played the format in February and will only meet Pakistan for two matches in the UAE before hosting India while their opposition will not play a single Test between now and then. India whitewashed Australia at home in March but have only fifty-over engagements until they fly to South Africa.That includes seven ODIs against Australia after the Champions Trophy which adds to the glut of matches in the format. South Africa do not usually host ODI series of longer than five matches so India’s scheduled seven is unusual. It should present an opportunity for some of the less visited grounds in the country, such as the Maritzburg Oval, the chance to host international cricket.India’s tour forms part of a bumper summer for South Africa. They also host Australia for three Tests in February-March 2014. Both series are among the more lucrative incoming tours with only England being the other team to bring in sizeable profits from television rights.

An unbeaten century and four wickets from allrounder Laxmi Ratan Shukla helped Bengal beat Mumbai at the Feroz Shah Kotla, and lift the Vijay Hazare Trophy for the first time since the tournament’s inception

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Mar-2012
ScorecardAn unbeaten century and four wickets from allrounder Laxmi Ratan Shukla helped Bengal beat Mumbai at the Feroz Shah Kotla, and lift the Vijay Hazare Trophy for the first time since the tournament’s inception. Mumbai had scored 295 at the Kotla in the semi-final, on Saturday, but could only manage 248 this time, after Shukla prevented the top-order batsmen from kicking on from starts, and repeated strikes in the middle overs prevented an acceleration.It was still a competitive total, though, and Shukla came in after Bengal had crawled to 69 for 2 in 17.5 overs. He took control of the chase, and, after losing a couple of partners, found company in Anustup Majumdar, who scored 50 not out off 45 balls. The pair shared an unbeaten 107-run partnership to take Bengal home in 46.1 overs. Both were aggressive: Shukla hit 12 fours and two sixes in his 106 not out off 90 balls, while Majumdar struck seven boundaries in his half-century.The partnership came after Sourav Ganguly’s 38 off 53 balls and Shreevats Goswami’s 42 off 73 had left Bengal behind the asking-rate. When Wriddhiman Saha was dismissed for 11 in the 33rd over, Bengal were 145 for 4 and the match was still even. Shukla and Majumdar took it away from Mumbai, whose spinners were expensive.Mumbai chose to bat, after the strategy had worked in the semi-final, and had a bright beginning thanks to Wasim Jaffer’s 61 off 48 balls, which included 10 fours and a six. They were 83 for 0 in the 13th over when Shukla bowled Jaffer. Shukla then dismissed Ajinkya Rahane and Anup Revandkar to slow the run-rate down. The dangerous Abhishek Nayar was dismissed for 11 and Bengal kept chipping away at the wickets after that. Suryakumar Yadav held one end up, and scored 50 off 68 balls, but once he was dismissed, Mumbai’s lower order failed to make significant contributions, and they were bowled out in 49.2 overs, Shukla taking the final wicket.

England captain Andrew Strauss admitted to being shocked and disappointed at his side’s three-wicket defeat to Ireland in Bangalore

Liam Brickhill in Bangalore02-Mar-2011England captain Andrew Strauss admitted to being shocked and disappointed at his side’s three-wicket defeat to Ireland in Bangalore, as Kevin O’Brien’s record-breaking hundred highlighted lapses in the field and a worrying lack of penetration with the ball. Strauss backed his side to bounce back from the loss, however, and insisted “we’re not out of the World Cup by any means”.”It was a bit of a shock for us if I’m honest, and bitterly disappointing because we did a lot of things badly in the field again,” said Strauss. “We could have taken our catches. I dropped him and we dropped three other catches as well, which in the end cost us the game, there’s no doubt about it.”Our bowling could’ve been better, certainly in the Powerplay,” Strauss added. “I think we got a bit taken by surprise there. And we just can’t afford to give away that many chances on these sorts of wickets. It’s very hard to get people out on very flat wickets, and if you’re dropping four of them then you’re asking for trouble.”England appeared to be cruising to victory after Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott and Ian Bell all fired with the bat to boost their side to 327 for 8, and the bowlers followed that up by dismissing half of Ireland’s line-up with just over 100 runs on the board. Then came O’Brien’s no-holds-barred innings, which utterly changed the complexion of the match the longer it went on.”I thought we were in a great position to win the game, absolutely,” said Strauss. “We knew they had some dangerous hitters in the back end of their batting order but with the rate climbing as much as it was, it seemed that if we just kept very patient then wickets would fall, but O’Brien had other ideas. It was an outstanding innings. Just the gall he showed to take the game to us in that situation. They took the Powerplay and [he] struck the ball beautifully. He rescued them from a perilous position to one where they were up with the rate and just had to keep their heads at the end.”England were bewildered by their shortcomings in Bangalore•Getty Images

The inability of his bowlers to stem the flow of runs towards the end of the innings will be a particular worry for Strauss and 62 runs came from the batting Powerplay, effectively bringing Ireland back into the game. Strauss pointed out that bowlers on both sides had struggled, and would continue to do so on wickets tailored to suit batsmen.”The wickets here have been very, very flat wickets. We’ve easily got 300 in two of the three games and chased 290 in the other, so the bowlers have got to expect to go for the odd run here and there. But what we don’t want to be doing is haemorrhaging runs on both sides of the wicket and chasing our tail too much, which potentially we have done in those last three games, and we’re going to have to improve.”It’s hard work, certainly the two wickets we’ve played on here haven’t suited any one particular bowler. All bowlers have suffered at the hands of the wicket. But it’s still a game of cricket, you’ve got to get more runs than the opposition team. You’ve got to handle those conditions better than the opposition team, and if you don’t you’re going to lose the game.”England remain second in their group, with three points, despite the defeat, but Group B has been thrown wide open and their next game, against South Africa on Sunday in Chennai, is sure to provide a stiff challenge.”The game coming up against South Africa is a huge one for us. Generally we’ve bounced back from defeat well in the past, whether it’s in Test cricket or one-day cricket. We’re going to have to do that very quickly and probably be honest with each other and realise where we can improve and make those improvements very quickly. Hopefully it’ll galvanise us as a team. The equation is pretty simple now: we can’t afford any slip-ups and we’re going to have to go out there and deliver.”

Golden-armed spells by winter recruit James Anyon and offspinner Ollie Rayner helped Sussex maintain their 100 percent record with a 53-run victory over the Emerging Cape Cobras

Mark Pennell in Dubai19-Mar-2010Sussex 102 for 8 (Gatting 37, Ramela 3 for 8, Vallie 3 for 21) beat Emerging Cape Cobras 49 all out (Anyon 5 for 11, Rayner 3 for 6) by 53 runs
Golden-armed spells by winter recruit James Anyon and offspinner Ollie Rayner helped Sussex maintain their 100 percent record with a 53-run victory over the Emerging Cape Cobras in Dubai.The South African franchise youngsters, fresh from defeating Surrey in their opening game, capitulated for only 49 in the space of 14 overs in a hapless pursuit of Sussex’s modest 20-over total of 102 for 8.Anyon, who joined Sussex from Warwickshire in the close season, bagged 5 for 11 including a spell of four for one in eight balls, leaving Rayner to polish off the job by running through the tail with figures of 3 for 6 in three overs. Only two Cobras batsmen, Uwe-Karl Birkenstock and Chris Cooke, reached double figures as Sussex wrapped up their second win of the day with 36 balls to spare.The county’s batsmen had found batting on a crumbling pitch just as tough against a Cobras attack buoyed by their 46-run success against Surrey. Their spinners proved particularly tough to get away and Omphile Ramela and Mohammad Vallie justified their excellent figures as Sussex hit only one four in their entire allocation of overs to go with four sixes.Joe Gatting glued their innings together as best he could with 37 from 36 balls, but only Luke Wells (14) and Ben Brown (10) stuck around long enough to join him in double figures.The tournament concludes on Saturday when Sussex look set to contest the final on hopefully a firmer surface here at 7he Sevens Stadium.

“Sometimes we can be too humble. We don’t show off to the world enough what we’re capable of doing”

Firdose Moonda16-Aug-2025

Shukri Conrad wants South Africa to play with a little more chutzpah•Getty Images

It’s not whether South Africa have the skills and mental fortitude to come out on top in close games that concerns their coach Shukri Conrad. It is whether they have the confidence to show that they possess those qualities.In the aftermath of their last-over defeat in the T20I series decider against Australia in Cairns, which came after a last-over defeat in a tri-series final against New Zealand last month, Conrad asked his players to strut their stuff a little more if they want to become a champion side.”Sometimes we can be too humble. We don’t show off to the world enough what we’re capable of doing,” Conrad said, as he almost used Australia as an example of what self-belief could look like.Related

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“This has got nothing to do with the way Australia plays, but they have got a blueprint as to how they want to play. There are times when it looks absolutely brilliant and it’s box-office stuff. And there are times when you can have them in trouble, like we had them in the first couple of games. But they stay true to it. What does it mean for us? It’s easier on the batting front, guys like [[Tristan Stubbs] and Ricks [Ryan Rickelton] and Aiden [Markram] himself… there’s so much that they can do. But feel that they have maybe boxed themselves in a little bit too much.”Of the three Conrad mentioned, only Rickelton made a score of significance in the series – 71 off 55 balls in the first game – but even after that knock, he acknowledged that he started too slowly for South Africa to successfully chase 179. There was another name on Conrad’s lips when he spoke about how he wants to see his players approach matches: Dewald Brevis.Dewald Brevis finished the series with a strike rate of 204.54•AFP/Getty Images

The 22-year-old was the leading run-scorer in the series, became the holder of South Africa’s highest individual T20I score of 125 not out in the second match and had the highest strike rate among all batters of 204.54. He played in a way that is best described by the Afrikaans word , which is a mixture of confidence and cockiness and is maybe best explained by one of his shots in this series.In the second T20I in Darwin, Brevis was on 22 when he lofted Sean Abbott for six over long-on and didn’t even need to look at where the ball went. Watch the replays and you’ll see Brevis keep his head down until well after the ball has gone into the stands in a manner that seems to suggest, “I’ve hit that so well, I don’t even need to look at where it’s gone.” Off the field, Brevis is as modest as they come, and attributes his talent to God alone. Whatever ego he has is confined to what happens on the field but it’s enough to allow him to play with freedom, and Conrad hopes it will rub off on other players.Chief among them is Markram, who has gone 31 innings without a T20I half-century, and who was dismissed driving waftily in all three matches in the series. One reason for Markram’s under-performance in Australia is that he is still getting used to his new role as an opener; another could be that he has been too tentative in his shot selection. Whatever it is, Conrad knows Markram has it in him a little because he saw him do it just two months ago, when it mattered most. “I know it’s a different format, but in the World Test Championship final not so long ago, Aiden showed exactly what he is about,” Conrad said. “And I’m sure he is a couple of games away from unlocking that state of genius.”Even when he does, Conrad cautioned that South Africa could not expect to come out on top every time because that’s just the nature of sport but at least, they would be giving themselves a good chance. “It’s not always going to result in winning. But I just want us to show off a bit more.”Whether that’s Conrad talking up or having a little dig at his hometown is to be figured out at another time. For now, his work is to continue preparations for the next T20 World Cup in six months time. So far, under his watch, South Africa have lost two deciders – one chasing, one defending. Against New Zealand, they needed seven runs off the last over and Conrad believes they “should have won going into the last over” but “in and amongst all of that, I’m really happy with the growth”.That was a series played without several regulars, this is one that is only without David Miller, which has left the batting line-up unbalanced. Conrad conceded that South Africa were a “batter light” but explained that if the players they have were willing to play with a little more chutzpah, it could work in their favour. “If we want to be brave, we have got to select attacks to beat a team like Australia and if I can nudge a batting unit into playing a certain way where we are a batter light and I concede we were a batter light, imagine what they can do when we have got a properly balanced side,” he said. “It’s all part of the slightly longer-term plan.”He also rejected the idea that he has put his store in allrounders, albeit that both his left-arm spinners, George Linde and Senuran Muthusamy, were also picked on batting strength, and that his selections are conventional. “Your top six will be your best batters, and Nos. 7, 8 possibly allrounders, so there’s nothing untoward,” he said. “I’m not obsessed with allrounders in T20 cricket, I can guarantee you that.”And he said it with the kind of conviction he expects his players to have.

Ricky Ponting suggested the club might need to consider moving to find better conditions

AAP09-Jan-2024Sydney Thunder remain committed to their western Sydney home, despite question marks over a Showground wicket labelled “substandard” by Ricky Ponting.Thunder’s seven-wicket loss to Perth Scorchers on Monday was plagued by questions over a slow, spinning wicket that produces the lowest scoring rates in the Big Bash League.Ashton Agar took 2 for 6 off four overs for Scorchers, as Thunder were kept to 137 for 8 from their 20 overs. Scorchers reached their target with five balls to spare.Related

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It is not the first time the Sydney Showground wicket has come under attack, with Scorchers captain Ashton Turner labelling it “disappointing” in early 2019.The run-rate at the Showground of 7.76 since the BBL’s inception is the lowest of all regular grounds, with spinners and off-pace deliveries the norm.That raises questions over the ability of the venue – situated in one of Sydney’s most-populated areas – to assist the BBL in acting as a gateway for new fans into the sport.Former Australia skipper Ponting, in commentary for Seven on Monday night, went as far as to question whether Thunder should move to Canberra permanently, concerned the Showground wicket would stop them attracting or keeping talent.Two of Thunder’s home games this summer are at Canberra’s Manuka Oval.But AAP has been told there are no plans for Thunder to shelve western Sydney, or for the number of games in the area to be reduced.It is more likely Thunder could increase games in the region, given its population of 2.6 million, with the hope of kick-starting the introduction of better facilities.Thunder captain Chris Green rejected any suggestion the club should pick up and leave the Showground for the national capital.”We’re the Sydney Thunder, this is where we like to play. This is our home ground. This is where we’re from, the west of Sydney,” Green said.”I’d hate to see us move down [to Canberra] permanently. I like staying at home, playing at home, having my family come and watch me play. This is our home base.”Green also shot down any suggestion the Showground pitch had been a long-term issue, joking he would love to take the wicket everywhere he goes as a spinner.”This is better than a lot of wickets in the country. It’s just about adapting to those conditions better,” Green said on Monday. “We had a 200-game here last year [in the finals] and the rain ruined it. The Sixers game this year was a sellout, and the rain ruined it.”If we scored 10 more runs or about five less wides tonight, it’s probably going down to the last ball which is an entertaining fixture. So I disagree with those comments.”We can’t just roll out a belter of a wicket and have 220 plays 220, because that tests one side of skill – but this is another side of skill.”