The Patriots captain made a 30-ball 64 and starred in both halves of the Super Over as Knight Riders fell short in their defence of 216

The Report by Ankur Dhawan18-Sep-2019

Carlos Brathwaite played an innings to remember, arresting a middle-overs collapse with hitting of the highest calibre to keep St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in the hunt chasing 217, before delivering the knockout punch with both bat and ball in the Super Over after the game was tied – only the second such occurrence in CPL history.If his 30-ball 64 wasn’t enough of a contribution, Brathwaite took it upon himself to snap Knight Riders’ winning streak, smashing Ali Khan for two sixes and a four to set them 19, before conceding just five with the ball. Incidentally, that was exactly what the Patriots needed to win – 19 – when Jimmy Neesham was taken for 18 by Rayad Emrit and Alzarri Joseph to tie the game. A total of 36 fours and 24 sixes were hit overall, and Knight Riders’ Lendl Simmons was a heavy contributor to that tally in his 45-ball 90 – his third successive fifty – with nine fours and six sixes during the course of which he overtook Chris Gayle to lead the run charts this season. But it proved insufficient as Patriots clinched the thriller in Basseterre.Simmons, a sight for sore eyesIt started with an inside edge that narrowly missed the stumps, but thereafter, there was hardly one that missed the middle of Simmons’ bat. His strokeplay through the off side was the perfect union of style and power, belligerent, but a sight for sore eyes. Depending on little changes in length and line, and the field, Simmons either drove through the covers on the up, punched through cover-point off the back foot, opened the face to pierce the infield behind square, or slashed up and over third man. But he was only marginally partial to the off side, as 42 of his runs came through the leg side, some clubbed over long-on, some pulled over deep midwicket, and others tickled fine. However, part of the reason he could pepper all corners of the field was the bowlers’ inconsistency in both length and line. They bowled two lengths – either too short or too full – and strayed on both sides of the wicket, and Simmons, in the form of his life, cashed in every time.
Joseph pulls things backAt 100 for one after eight overs, Knight Riders were on course to push their own record 267 from the last match. That’s when Joseph came on for his first and pulled things back with immediate success. He delivered the first boundary-less over, conceding just six – also the cheapest at that point – bringing some calm to the proceedings. Though Simmons picked up a couple of sixes from his second, he fell to Sheldon Cottrell in the next over, and Joseph came back to unsettle Colin Munro and Kieron Pollard with his pace. His third over went for just two, with the 14-ball period post Simmons’ fall including Munro’s dismissal. His last over was equally miserly, just three coming off it as he finished with 1 for 25, which arguably proved to be the difference as Knight Riders made 94 in their last ten overs, having made 122 in the first ten.Evin Lewis gatecrashes Neesham’s partyThere were no birthday presents for the allrounder who turned 29, as Lewis tore into him from the get-go, launching him down the ground first ball. The next two went for four, and in context of what was to come, it was the best result for Neesham. Lewis, after showcasing finesse with a dab to third man and lap to fine leg, was back to his brutal best, clobbering one over deep midwicket, clubbing another one over long-off, before finishing off with another boundary to take 31 from the over. Neesham continued to have a poor day as he conceded 68 in his four, including the 20th, which went for 18 resulting in the tie.Powerplay squeezeAfter Neesham had been welcomed to the attack with a brutal assault, Ali Khan pulled things back, keeping Lewis off strike by bowling tightly to Laurie Evans. The fifth over was taken for just three as a result, and after Anderson Phillip managed to do the same, he was rewarded with Evans’ scalp, the frustrated batsman holing out to deep square-leg. Lewis had played just two balls in the two previous overs, and another over went by where he was kept at the non-striker’s end, as Mohammad Hafeez struggled to get Khary Pierre off the square. With Lewis back on strike next over, Phillip bowled to a plan, firing them full outside off and keeping them away from the reach of Lewis, who had by then started to lose rhythm, and though a few extras were conceded through wides, Lewis fell into the trap as he sliced the fourth delivery of the eighth to Pollard at deep point.Remember the name!Three wickets in the space of four quiet overs had turned the tide Knight Riders’ way. The required run-rate had shot into the 12s, and he had Shamarh Brooks for company, with a career strike rate of 112.50. What does Braithwaite do? Just presses forward and extends his arms to send one sailing over the sight screen. That was just the start, his second ball, with plenty to come.The next few overs, Brooks went along at a run-a-ball, but every time the required rate threatened to get out of hand, Brathwaite found the boundary – six down the ground, four swept away, a dab to third-man for four. For the time that he was at the crease, Brathwaite ensured the boundary was found every over, and there was fear in the mind of the opposition; a fear he instilled single-handedly, with Brooks managing just one four. And though he fell with 44 still required from three overs, the required rate remained achievable, and Knight Riders had started to panic, something he took full toll of after the game went into the Super Over.

The combination of India’s ruthless attack and South Africa’s ordinary batting meant India cruised to a crushing win by an innings and 137 runs

The Report by Sidharth Monga13-Oct-20193:49

Agarkar: Glad Saha, Umesh getting applause for their hard work

The hallmark of Virat Kohli’s captaincy on the field in Test cricket has been the clinical execution. His field placements, his declarations, and his bowling changes have tended to err on the side of conservatism. On Sunday morning in Pune, he took a trip to the wild side by enforcing a follow-on on South Africa, and thus asking his bowlers to bowl a second day in a row.It turned out it wasn’t that wild a ride. The combination of India’s ruthless attack and South Africa’s ordinary batting meant India cruised to a crushing win by an innings and 137 runs, India’s biggest against this opposition. It also sealed their 11th consecutive series win at home. By agreeing to bowl for two days in a row, and doing it so well, the bowlers earned an extra day off between this and their third straight Test.ALSO READ: Stats – India break Australia’s record with 11th consecutive series win at homeModern cricket has shown that you enforce the follow-on only in extreme circumstances, unless you are certain the opposition is so far gone it is not capable of fighting back. There was no rain forecast so that took out one extreme circumstance. India probably felt the pitch was dying down, as was evident with the South Africa lower order’s ease with the old ball, so they needed to make use of it when it was still lively. What the follow-on had going for it was that India had five bowlers, and even if South Africa batted five sessions to save the Test, India couldn’t lose the Test.

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Despite all those circumstances, it is highly likely it all came down to the huge difference in class between the two sides. It has taken some miraculous batting in both the first innings of this series for South Africa to bat over 100 overs. India just didn’t expect South Africa to bat over 100 overs here. They lasted 67.2 overs.Damage began with Aiden Markram falling for a silver pair. So short is his confidence that he didn’t go for the review even though it seemed he wanted to. As was seen in the replays, this inswinger from Ishant Sharma was swinging too much. Theunis de Bruyn, whose series has been only marginally better than Markram’s, soon became a victim of some Wriddhiman Saha magic with a flying catch down the leg side off Umesh Yadav.India’s players celebrate their innings victory•BCCI

Dean Elgar and Faf du Plessis, promoting himself to No. 4 this time, provided some resistance but R Ashwin broke through that in the second hour of the day to go past Dennis Lillee’s tally of 355 Test wickets. It wasn’t without some help. Saha gladdened the hearts of those who facilitated his comeback after he sat out for 22 months, a hiatus that was not his own making. Ashwin drew an inside edge from du Plessis, on to his thigh pad, thus changing direction and heading towards Saha’s ribs. Saha’s gloves followed the ball, but didn’t quite keep up with it. He did get enough to keep the ball in the air, then in desperation he threw his left glove at the ball, lobbing it down the wicket. Now he was about to lunge for the ball, the lunge had started, and he realised there is time. So he took a mini step before lunging, getting enough distance on the dive to finish the catch where silly point would be.Just before lunch, Elgar made an argument for a long-off despite a big lead because batsmen these days can’t help hitting in the air. Because there was a long-off in place, Elgar tried to clear mid-on, and the ball turned to fly off the outside half of his bat for a catch to Yadav.Post lunch, it was the turn of Ravindra Jadeja to get among the wickets, beating a Quinton de Kock slog sweep and drawing an outside edge from Temba Bavuma. The latter was pretty significant because of the pressure Bavuma was under. He got a start, looked like their best player of spin in this innings, but after getting in and with the ball getting softer, he played a loose drive at Jadeja.Mohammed Shami produced an over from hell to almost blast the bat out of Vernon Philander’s hands and then get Senuran Muthusamy fending at a short ball. On day four on an Indian pitch. As has been the norm, there was resistance in the lower order against the softer ball with first-innings fighters Philander and Keshav Maharaj adding a half-century stand. However, once Philander tickled Yadav down the leg side, the end came swiftly.

“If you get good pace behind the ball and just put it in the right areas, you can create chances”

Daniel Brettig in Brisbane19-Nov-20191:31

‘Totally different, in-form bowlers’ for Tests – Misbah-ul-Haq

Misbah-ul-Haq knows the secret to getting Steven Smith out, and calls it the batsman’s “blind spot”. It isn’t much of a secret at all: simply hit the same spot, hitting at or near the top of the off stump, that troubles every batsman in international cricket.The first trick, of course, is to get the ball to move off the seam from that spot to force errors. As Smith put it in England this year: “There is no doubt in my mind that the seaming ball is the hardest thing to play in the game. You don’t have time to react, so you have to play the line and if it goes in, you are a chance of hitting the stumps and getting lbw, and if it goes away you are a chance of nicking it.”The other trick, even less of a trick than extracting seam movement, is simply to keep hitting that precise spot, ball after ball, over after over, hour after hour, session after session. Misbah, a past master at the pendulum-like rhythm that brings success whether batting or bowling in Test matches, has done his best to ensure that when Smith walks out to bat in the first Test, starting Thursday, Pakistan’s bowlers will find a way to hit the blind spot near enough to every ball.ALSO READ: Waqar Younis warns against getting ‘carried away’ by bounce“As far as Steve Smith goes, there’s a blind spot for every top batsman in the world; as a bowler you’re always interested in pitching the ball there,” Misbah said. “It’s important that we bowl with consistency there. Our bowlers are executing the plans very well right now, and hopefully we’ll be able to build that kind of a pressure, and stay disciplined especially early in the innings. No matter how good a batsman is batting, it’s about consistency and bowling the maximum balls in those areas that build pressure and the batsman respects you, and you force him to make a mistake.”All the batsmen you talk to, any batsman in the world, that’s the area where you have to defend a ball, and that is a six-to-eight-metre spot where you have to play the top of off stump. That’s the area from where if it’s happening then that creates a great chance. Even if it’s not happening, you have less chances to do anything with the ball.”So it’s about consistency, and top players in the world, if you miss those areas, that special length and line, then they are good enough to just cash in on that. So you have to be very, very disciplined, just keep the ball there, and if it’s happening you are already in the game.”Pakistan’s selection choices seem to be geared to finding not only consistency but also movement, with bounce, off the pitch. Mohammad Abbas, Shaheen Afridi, Muhammad Musa and the 16-year-old Naseem Shah have the makings of one of the tougher pace-bowling attacks Australia have faced at home.”At the moment, they are doing it, but obviously we’ll see how it goes in these conditions,” Misbah said, “because these pitches are hard.”But I still believe if you get good pace behind the ball and just put it in the right areas, you can create chances. That’s what we are looking for, and I think they can, the way Naseem is bowling at the moment, Shaheen is very important with the new ball especially, he gets some movement in the air and off the seam also. We hope that they can do it, but you need to be very, very disciplined.”Then it comes to plan B and plan C, if it’s not happening then where you’re going to attack him. Let’s see, there are good signs for us that a young bowling attack like this, they start understanding what they need to do here. It’s big pressure when they just go in a Test match, that’s a big learning for them. If they can replicate that in the game scenario then these fast bowlers will be a great asset for Pakistan. The kind of form he is in, there’s no doubt Steve Smith is a batting genius. We will try our best to execute our plans and dismiss him.”Misbah-ul-Haq catches up with Brad Hogg at the Optus Stadium•Getty Images

Among Pakistan’s batsmen, the way Babar Azam has begun this tour gives the strong impression that he may be on the verge of a major breakthrough into the very front rank, currently occupied by Smith and Virat Kohli, among others. Misbah is hopeful that he has been able to add the requisite ice to Babar’s shotmaking fire, as evidenced by the maturity he showed in compiling a masterful century against Australia A in Perth.”It was a very difficult pitch for our three-day game and they bowled very well. We were playing pretty much the top four bowlers from Australia A,” Misbah said. “Babar Azam did both the things there – he punished the poor deliveries and respected the bowlers when it was required. He batted with a lot of maturity there. It’s not just aggression, aggression and aggression, he has a very balanced approach. He puts the short balls away and even respects the good deliveries whenever he had to. He is ready to play that sort of a long innings in Tests.”He is very important. I think the way he is playing these days, the most important thing for a batsman is how confident you are, especially after South Africa and those were difficult pitches when Pakistan played last series. The way he played good and attacking cricket there, he has changed totally as a batsman. He understands conditions and here the conditions for batting are a lot better.”The way he has been batting these days in the warm-up games, in the T20s, and even in the nets, you can see his confidence and he has improved a lot technically, you can see the surety in him. He will be a key [batsman], especially with his confidence. Hopefully he will do well, it will be very important for Pakistan.”As for the World Test Championship, Pakistan will finally make their entry to the contest with India already having streeted away to a 300-point lead. Misbah mentioned the psychological value of winning in Australia or England, before assuming a typically serene attitude to the title race.”These two Test matches are here, whenever you come to Australia and England, if you perform well in these conditions as a team, especially a young team, that gives you huge confidence,” he said. “Then four Test matches at home, if we can do well here and then go there and perform well, then these things will take care of themselves.”

Heat had recovered through Miller and Bopara’s 100-run stand but their total wasn’t big enough

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Nov-2019Durban Heat may have felt that they had dug themselves out of a hole after posting 160 from a precarious 50 for 4 in the eighth over, and may even have briefly entertained thoughts of a maiden win, but against the MSL’s top team this season, it wasn’t quite enough. For table toppers Nelson Mandela Bay Giants who maintained their supremacy with their fourth win in five matches, Jason Roy set things up with a 38-ball 50 at the top and Chris Morris closed off the chase in thrilling fashion with just one ball to spare.Roy dominated the opening stand worth 68 with Matthew Breetzke, before he was caught short of his ground by England team-mate Alex Hales halfway into the 11th over. But No. 3 and captain JJ Smuts took over, racing to 15 off eight balls with the help of a four and a six, before Breetzke, who had laboured to 25 off 31 fell to the legspin of Shaun von Berg.Just as the Giants looked like coasting to their target, they lost three wickets in quick succession, Malusi Siboto removing the dangerous Smuts for 33, before accounting for Marco Marais for a five-ball 11 only two balls later. That left the Giants 31 to get from 15 balls, and the equation came down to 16 required from six before Morris clobbered a six and two consecutive fours off Siboto to seal the match with his 22 off 10.Earlier, Heat lost their way after opting to bat against an attack featuring three of the tournaments’ top five wicket takers. But it was the lesser known medium pace of Nandre Burger that did the damage, first accounting for Hales for a leading edge on the off side and then Wihan Lubbe, who scooped a catch to mid-on.Captain Dane Vilas fell to his counterpart Smuts, before Imran Tahir had the set Wesley Marshall caught at long-on to leave them four down. It was then that David Miller and Ravi Bopara got together for the highest stand of the match, adding 100 in 70 balls, to bring Heat back into the contest. Miller was strangled down the leg side for a 36-ball 45, but Bopara batted through, finishing unbeaten on a 43-ball 57. Eventually, though, their efforts were in vain.Heat are yet to win a match this season, with three washouts to their name so far, and are currently second from bottom.

He conceded just the one boundary in 55 deliveries, of which 40 were dot balls, and picked up six wickets as well

Sreshth Shah in Kimberley17-Jan-2020The sign of a menacing spin bowler is how he takes his wickets.In today’s age of white-ball cricket, too often wristspinners are given the leeway of going for runs, just as long as they can get batsmen to eventually miscue an attacking shot. But on the opening day of the Under-19 World Cup, Shafiqullah Ghafari’s spell of 6 for 15 reminded us all what quality legspin is all about, by putting a chokehold on his opposition and forcing them to tap out after a brief struggle.He attacked the stumps and pegged them back four times. On the other two occasions, he trapped one batsman lbw while one edged a soft push to first slip. None of his wickets needed the help of any outfielder and each of his wickets were taken off batsmen who were simply looking to defend. What does that tell us?It tells us how wary teams are of Afghanistan and their spin contingent. And as they continue to produce wristspinners who take the world by storm, the latest to raise his hand is Ghafari, who fell in love with the art of legspin watching videos on the internet.”When I started playing cricket, all the time I was watching Shane Warne videos online,” Ghafari said after the match.” So I was inspired from him how to bowl legspin.”Six wickets in a World Cup first match, it’s a dream. It has given me confidence for future matches as well. I knew if I bowled in the right areas, then everything would work out.”He wasn’t supposed to be the star of the team. For that, there was Noor Ahmed, the left-arm orthodox spinner who recently made heads turn by becoming the youngest person – at 15 – to participate in an IPL auction. But sometimes it helps to lurk in the shadows. There isn’t much footage of Ghafari floating on the internet, so when he was introduced to bowl in the 14th over, South Africa didn’t know what to expect.In his second over, Ghafari got his googly to turn from a length, and bowled Levert Manje for a duck. Next over, he came around the wicket to trap left-handed Jack Lees lbw for 0 too, and when he was given a shot at dismantling the South African tail, you didn’t need to be a soothsayer to know what was to come.A ripping wrong’un from outside off stump went through Khaya Cotani’s defences to hit the timber. Tiaan van Vuuren then looked to defend what he thought was a googly to the on-side, but instead the legbreak turned past him, took the outside edge and found the fielder at slip, and he got reached his five-for in a classical wristspinner’s style, getting the googly to turn so sharply that Achille Cloete was trying to defend outside off stump, but the ball went through him to clip middle.The cherry on the top was Ghafari’s sixth – the wicket of big-hitting Gerald Coetzee, which turned in so sharply to go through him that the batsman was left on his knees wondering what just happened. Between all this, he conceded just the one boundary in 55 deliveries, of which 40 were dot balls, and helped his side bowl South Africa out for only 129. He effectively won the game for Afghanistan even before their batsmen had to pad up.”When I bowl in tandem with Noor, our focus – all the time – is to bowl dot balls,” Ghafari said. “We want the batsman to make mistakes. We never think about who is taking the wicket. Both of us want to bowl dot balls, keep the economy under three, and the wickets just follow.”So in the land where fast bowlers dream to bowl, a spinner ruled Kimberley. Ghafari reminded us that classical legbreak still has a place in the sport. And he also showed while India produce batsmen by the dozen and Pakistan is the breeding ground of pacers, it’s Afghanistan who are well and truly the world’s best exporters of spin bowlers.

Hosts find top-order stability that has been a stranger over the past year, thanks to Pieter Malan

Firdose Moonda in Cape Town06-Jan-2020Until all is said and done on Tuesday, whatever it is that may be said and done, it’s difficult to say anything definitive about this South African batting performance. They might go on to score more than 300 for only the fifth time in 18 innings since January 2018, or they might not. They might have their first centurion of the new decade, or they might not. They might, and it is a very small might, bat out the day for a memorable draw, or they might collapse.Whatever happens, they have already given themselves plenty to think about, a little to be a pleased out and a problem they won’t mind having from their performance on the fourth afternoon.With 71, Pieter Malan and Dean Elgar gave South Africa their second-highest opening stand in the last two years after Elgar and Aiden Markram put on 85 against India in Centurion. Malan and Zubayr Hamza then gave the team a second-wicket partnership of 52, providing top-order stability that has been a stranger to the South African line-up over the past year.In India, five of South Africa’s six innings started badly: 63 for 4, 70 for 8, 53 for 5, 16 for 3 and 36 for 5. At SuperSport Park, they were 32 for 2 and 29 for 3, so 126 for 2 is a much better position than South Africa have become used to and they have Malan to thank for that.ALSO READ: ‘I wouldn’t waste a referral like this’ – ElgarFrom the first over, Malan made it clear that he knew exactly where his off-stump is. He left extravagantly, shuffling across, shouldering arms and jutting out a hip almost every time. But he also defended confidently, came down the wicket to dead-bat James Anderson and was not rattled when he was forced back to shorter balls from Stuart Broad. He used his feet well against the spin of Joe Denly and Dom Bess and weathered the late storm served up by Ben Stokes.Malan fronted up to a nasty end to the day, when Stokes bent his back, turned up the pace and aimed for the body. The result was Malan being hit on the chest. No matter. He reached his first Test fifty in the next over, off 144 balls, with only two boundaries. Temperament, more than anything else, was what stood out about Malan.”The fight that he has shown today – he knows his game pretty well. He played the situation perfectly this afternoon,” Jacques Kallis, South Africa’s batting consultant, said. “He knows how to switch on and switch off. He is very organised and I was very impressed with the mental capabilities that he has got.”Kallis’ endorsement will go a long way to ensuring Malan has a decent run in the XI, something that seemed a distant possibility a week ago. Malan would not have played if Markram hadn’t fractured a finger while fielding at Centurion, but there’s an argument to be made that that should not have been the case. Like most of the South African line-up, he had a tough tour of India, with 44 runs in four innings, including a pair in Pune. Unlike Theunis de Bruyn and Temba Bavuma, Markram did not pay the price for his poor form.The three half-centuries he scored in early 2019 (one against Sri Lanka and two against Pakistan) saved him, but if Markram had been benched too, he couldn’t really complain. His latest injury has forced him to spend some time thinking about his approach, which, as was apparent at SuperSport, is positive but sometimes too risky.It also provided an opportunity for a more experienced first-class opener to make the step up, and Malan, on his home ground, has shown the value of his years. He has already done an impressive enough job to merit a place for the rest of this series, and perhaps even the winter tour to West Indies. Markram may have to work his way back in, through the domestic structures, and that’s no bad thing. Bavuma and de Bruyn are currently doing that and if Malan is anything to go by, they will return better players.That’s something for South Africa to think about in the months to come. On Tuesday, their only concern is to get through each ball. Not the runs, not the series situation, not the record that could be within reach. Just the next ball. “We’re going to face as many balls as we can and have a look at tea,” Kallis said.If they get there. Though batting on days three and four in cool, cloudy conditions was significantly easier than on days one and two in bright sunshine, that could change. Usually overhead cover assists the seamers but here the clouds kept the full-strength summer sun from opening up the cracks, specifically the one outside the right-handers’ offstump at the Kelvin Grove End. With warmer weather forecast for the final day and a second new ball due just before lunch, the smart money will be on the contest ending in England’s favour at some point in the afternoon.Even Kallis seemed to agree as he called it a “tough ask,” to chase down the target of 438, from which South Africa are still 312 runs adrift. But he wouldn’t be a professional sportsman if he didn’t also think it could be done. It was Kallis who, after Australia hit 434 against South Africa in ODI at the Wanderers, joked that the opposition were 10 runs short and the bowlers had done their job. If he offered anything similar here, it hasn’t been made public yet but what he did say is, at the very least, there is a chance for someone to make a name for themselves and the rest to see how it’s done.”It’s an opportunity for guys to put their hands up and become heroes,” Kallis said. “It’s in situations like this where you see what guys are made of and how good they are and how far we can go. No matter what happens, the team will learn a lot from this game and that’s exciting, especially with this young batting line-up that we’ve got.”

An attempt will be made to persuade him to step down ahead of a board meeting on Wednesday

Firdose Moonda10-Feb-2020Chris Nenzani’s tenure as Cricket South Africa president could be nearing its end. ESPNcricinfo has learnt that an attempt will be made to persuade Nenzani to step down ahead of a board meeting in East London on Wednesday. This would present a more seamless way forward for CSA because, according to an insider, it could take between 45 to 60 days to vote a sitting president out.Jack Madiseng, the president of the Gauteng Cricket Board, who resigned from the CSA board in December, is understood to have lobbied enough support to succeed Nenzani.The process to vote a sitting president out of office requires support from two-thirds of the Members’ Council (the body made up of the 14 provincial presidents). That equates to 10 of the 14 presidents being in favour of the motion. Then, the CSA president has the opportunity to respond to the grievances leveled against him and if their explanation is accepted, they could continue in office. If not, they would be dismissed.Given the time such a procedure would take, and the fact that Nenzani’s term ends in September, a more immediate way for the presidency to change hands would be if he voluntarily walked away.A few months ago, such a thought would have been unlikely. Nenzani has one of the longest serving members in CSA. He has been in office since February 2013 – that’s two three-year terms and then he was able to amend the CSA constitution to secure a one-year extension as well. At the time, Nenzani claimed he was staying on to tide the board through an unsettling period, with major administrative changes in the works.”Since 2018, there has been a high turnover on the board; we failed at the World Cup and that has forced us to introduce a different structure for the team management and team coaching. We are appointing a key person, a Director of Cricket, and at the same time we have given a lot of responsibility to the management through the office of the CEO,” Nenzani said at CSA’s AGM last September. “These are not small changes, they require sensible leadership – which is not to say no one else can provide that – I’m part of a collective and that collective will provide that sensible leadership.”However, in the months that followed, CSA’s executive unraveled, four board members resigned, sponsors were lost and seven staff members including CEO Thabang Moroe were suspended. Key stakeholders, such as the South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA) called on the board, and specifically the president and vice-president, to be held accountable for the multiple crises affecting the organisation. Now, it appears the pressure has told and Nenzani is likely to take the fall. The position of vice-president Beresford Williams is unclear but the rest of the board are set to remain in their positions.

Earlier, a disciplined bowling performance from Karachi strangled Lahore’s batsmen

The Report by Danyal Rasool12-Mar-2020Karachi Kings snuffed out Lahore Qalandars’ resurgence with a clinical performance to put themselves back in consideration for the playoffs of PSL 2020. Following a washed-out game against the Multan Sultans and a Ben Dunk-inspired defeat at Lahore’s hands last week, Karachi bounced back thanks to a disciplined bowling performance that strangled Lahore’s ability before cruising to the total without losing a single wicket – just the second ten-wicket win in PSL history.Openers Babar Azam and Sharjeel Khan barely appeared to get out of the third gear, but that didn’t stop them from overwhelming the Lahore bowlers completely. They scored 69 and 74 respectively and took the side to victory inside 17 overs.Put in to bat, Lahore did get off to a solid start thanks to their ever-improving captain Sohail Akhtar, whose 49-ball 68 held together an innings that appeared to be gearing up for a big finish.But the middle order let him down, while Karachi’s accuracy and intelligence following the halfway mark ensured Lahore never really attained the fluency they required to put up a challenging total. Umaid Asif took the key wickets of Fakhar Zaman and Dunk kneecapping Lahore’s big-hitting prowess, while Chirs Jordan’s accuracy at the death ensured Lahore managed only 150.Enter Azam and Sharjeel. It seemed Sharjeel might have been going too slow to start off, but seeing off the dangerous Shaheen Afridi proved a tactical masterstroke. The only way for Lahore to get into the match was to take wickets, depriving them that saw the pressure lift quickly, and the run-scoring increased exponentially. Azam was supremely untroubled, and before long, Sharjeel unleashed the big hits. It might have been billed as the contest of the season, but ended up being a cakewalk.Star of the dayArshad Iqbal had struggled during the early stages of the PSL, but thrust into the big game today, he repaid his franchise’s faith with his best performance of the season. When he was called upon for the ninth over, Lahore were going steadily at 65 for 1, with Chris Lynn having just arrived at the crease. Iqbal was greeted by a slice behind backward point for four by Akhtar but came back strongly in the over conceding just three more while also getting rid of Lynn, who was deceived in the air and holed out to deep midwicket. Iqbal was unlucky not to have sent Akhtar back off the first ball of his next over, with Alex Hales dropping a skier. He got his man in his next over, though, with Akhtar misjudging the bounce of a delivery that struck his pads, and the lbw call withstanding despite Lahore’s review. Iqbal didn’t complete his quota, but the two wickets he picked up in three overs came at the cost of just 15 runs.Miss of the dayWith Dunk having proved the tormentor-in-chief for Karachi just four days ago, Lahore had high hopes from the Australian who appeared to be in the form of his life. Instead, Dunk had perhaps his worst game of the season. When he came out to bat, he struggled for fluency. Both Usama Mir, who bowled well enough for his first game of the PSL, and Jordan kept him quiet before he lost his patience. The left-hander went for a half-hearted pull shot against Asif, only for Mir at short fine leg to complete a simple catch. It had taken fourteen balls for him to score 9 runs, and his day would get worse. He put down a simple chance Sharjeel offered during the powerplay, when the Karachi opener had just scored 18. He would go on to smash 74*.Where the teams standKarachi leapfrog Lahore to get to nine points and third place on the table, while Lahore stay on eight with four wins and five losses. Both teams should qualify with one more win, though Karachi have two games to get there, while Lahore’s final game is likely a must-win.

England captain confident Tests can be played this season

Matt Roller07-May-2020England captain Joe Root has said that no cricket should be played this summer if “the game itself, how it’s played and the intensity it’s played at” is compromised in any way.The ECB have drawn up extensive contingency plans to play cricket behind closed doors in a ‘bio-secure’ environment, with the intention of fulfilling scheduled Test series against West Indies and Pakistan.Root said he was “confident” that it would be possible for England to play international cricket at some point this summer, but stressed that the health and wellbeing of players and staff was “paramount”.ALSO READ: England players face ‘long stint’ away from home as part of Test planning“It’ll all come down to what the government decide we’re allowed to do,” Root told Sky Sports. “We’re obviously tied by their decision-making and all we can do is to try and plan as much as possible, and make sure that guys are fit and ready to go if and when we’re given the chance.”I think if the game is compromised then it shouldn’t be going ahead. I don’t think the game itself, how it’s played, the intensity it’s played at… I personally feel that if you can’t play Test cricket at its absolute best, then we shouldn’t be playing it because it’s not a fair reflection on the sport.”There’s been talking about changing the ball, and it’ll be interesting to see things that you could potentially change… [but] from a personal point of view I’d like to think that the product itself and the standard of Test cricket would not be compromised to play those games.”Root’s own situation is complicated by the fact that his wife, Carrie, is expecting a baby at some point this summer, and raised questions as to whether he would be able to attend the birth and then return back to a bio-secure “bubble” in time to play soon after.”It will be a challenge from that side, and there will be other guys involved that have similar problems,” Root said. “I suppose we’ve got to be quite flexible in these times. You’ve got to move with what’s happening. Within seven to eight weeks, things could drastically change and we could be in a very different position.”We’ve got to look at safe ways of getting guys in and out of the bubble. If that was a possibility, would I be able to get to the birth? Would I then be in isolation for two weeks? Would I be able to be tested coming back into a bubble? Who knows exactly how that would look right now. Those are discussions that will have to happen in the coming weeks.”As for the environment itself, Root said that things would look “very different” to a typical Test match week for players and backroom staff, but that “it’s probably manageable”. Games would have to be played at the Ageas Bowl and Emirates Old Trafford – the two major grounds with on-site hotels with a significant number of rooms – with parts sectioned off to minimise outside interactions.”You’d all be together throughout – you wouldn’t be interacting with the opposition, with broadcasting crews, with media, officials. It would just be trying to keep that as tight as possible.”Within the grounds it would be very similar: going into separate lunch rooms, how the changing room would look still depends on a few things. It would be a very different look and feel to how a normal Test week would go and the environment we normally work in, but I do think it’s probably manageable.”

Stuart Thompson and Shane Getkate dropped; David Delany misses out as he continues his recovery after an injury

Matt Roller10-Jul-2020Ireland have left Stuart Thompson and Shane Getkate out while naming an expanded 21-man squad for a three-match ODI series against England this month, while David Delany is missing the trip as precaution following an injury.

Ireland squad

Mark Adair, Andy Balbirnie (capt), Curtis Campher, Peter Chase, Gareth Delany, George Dockrell, Jonathan Garth, Tyrone Kane, Josh Little, Andrew McBrine, Barry McCarthy, James McCollum, Kevin O’Brien, William Porterfield, Boyd Rankin, Simi Singh, Paul Stirling, Harry Tector, Lorcan Tucker, Gary Wilson, Craig Young

Curtis Campher, the South Africa-born allrounder who was awarded an emerging contract earlier this year, has been included in a senior squad for the first time after having represented Ireland A against Namibia in February, while there is another new face in legspinner Jonathan Garth – whose sister Kim quit Irish cricket to take up a contract with Cricket Victoria last month.Ireland will arrive in Southampton on a charter flight from Dublin on July 18, and play an intra-squad warm-up match and a fixture against England Lions before the group is separated into a 14-man squad and seven reserves. They will play three ODIs – the first game in the new ODI Super League – at the Ageas Bowl, before returning to Dublin on August 5.”The selectors were delighted to have been able to meet once more to select a squad for international action. We have lost so much cricket this year, so to have a series – let alone such a major series as this – to look forward to is a great relief for all,” Andrew White, the chair of national men’s selectors, said. “This lack of on-field action since March – and the short lead-in programme to the ODI series – influenced our thinking on the broader squad. However, the unique circumstances of the situation has allowed us to involve more players than we would normally bring on such a tour.”White also said that some players had been selected to “help our batters prepare for the type of opposition we’ll be facing”, which seemed like a nod to Garth’s inclusion. He is one of two legspinners in the wider party alongside allrounder Gareth Delany, while England have also named two in their 24-man training group in Adil Rashid and Matt Parkinson.”The form shown by several players in the Caribbean in January, Wolves tour in February and the Afghan series in March really bolstered their case for selection,” White said. “We’re delighted that our top wicket-taker in 2019, Mark Adair, returns after recovering from ankle surgery, and feel we have the right squad balance for these important fixtures – keeping in mind that they are World Cup qualifiers.”Thompson and Getkate’s exclusions might come as a surprise, not least given that both have central contracts for 2020-21 and that both have been regulars in white-ball squads in recent years.”While a number of players like Stuart Thompson and Shane Getkate are unfortunate to not to be travelling, the experience that will be gained on this trip by a number of the younger players will be invaluable in their development,” White said. “Additionally, David Delany was not considered for selection this time. As a result of his previous surgery, and the subsequent extended lockdown period, we were not fully confident that he has had the time to complete the necessary amount of preparation in order to safely play in these matches.”As well as the task at hand, several Ireland players will hope that strong performances in this series can provide them with a springboard towards contracts for the T20 Blast. Paul Stirling’s overseas deal at Northants is one of only a handful yet to be cancelled in the competition, and ESPNcricinfo understands that some names in this squad have been floated to counties in recent weeks as possible options to replace their bigger overseas names.