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Jason Sangha and Chris Tremain gave New South Wales hope of saving the follow-on

AAP17-Mar-2022Some inspired seam bowling from Western Australia’s Matthew Kelly and Joel Paris produced a stunning New South Wales batting collapse at Bankstown Oval to turn a near-certain draw into a possible Sheffield Shield win for the visitors.With both teams vying for a spot in the final, the middle-session on day three of this rain-affected penultimate-round fixture may prove to be pivotal in the course of the season.Kelly picked up wickets in three successive overs leaving the home side limping their way to tea at 5 for 55, as a hitherto benign pitch seemingly turned into a minefield.Kelly’s swing firstly undid Blues’ skipper Kurtis Patterson without playing a shot before Jack Edwards and Hayden Kerr were also sent packing.At the other end Paris started the rot by picking up the crucial wicket of opener Daniel Hughes caught at second slip.Jason Sangha’s lone knock kept the innings together with the 22-year-old digging in to end the day unbeaten on 66.An injured Moises Henriques, who came in at No. 8, led a brief revival only to tickle a catch down the leg side off the bowling of rookie spinner Corey Rocchiccioli on 23.Chris Tremain swiped three sixes late in the day to reach 41 not out, and lift the home side closer to the follow-on mark of 207 in an unbroken stand of 67 with SanghaThe two sides are among five states with five wins apiece vying for a spot in the March 31 season decider.After the entire day two was lost due to rain, Western Australia resumed at 3 for 231 and continued on comfortably enough before closing their innings half an hour after lunch.Hilton Cartwright looked set for a ton but his watchful 209-ball innings ended on 81 when he was caught hooking a Tremain delivery while seeking to up the scoring rate.Tremain’s second wicket came a day and a half after his first with day two lost due to ongoing showers.
Cameron Bancroft had top-scored for WA with 117, before he was dismissed by Tremain late on Tuesday.The hard-hitting D’Arcy Short was the only Western Australia batter who failed to reach double figures when he was caught and bowled by Kerr for 1.Aaron Hardie remained unbeaten on 37, while allrounder Edwards was the pick of the Blues’ attack returning 3 for 58 off 21 overs.

Silk and Bird overcome Overton and Co on a sluggish pitch in Sydney

Tristan Lavalette22-Dec-2023Sydney Sixers survived a late onslaught from Jamie Overton to edge Adelaide Strikers in a thriller at the SCG amid the furore surrounding suspended allrounder Tom Curran.Chasing a tough 156 on a sluggish surface, Strikers needed 18 runs off the final over but Overton inched them closer with 12 runs off the first three deliveries from seamer Ben Dwarshuis. After a couple of singles, Overton needed a boundary off the final ball but mistimed a low full toss to sweeper cover for only two, leaving the Strikers agonisingly short.The lead-in to the contest had been overshadowed by Curran’s four-match ban for allegedly intimidating an umpire in a pre-match altercation in Sixers’ clash with Hobart Hurricanes on December 11.Without Curran, who had starred against Hobart Hurricanes with a three-wicket haul, and spearhead Sean Abbott, Sixers were superbly led by skipper Moises Henriques and veteran batter Jordan Silk as they clinched their third straight win to start the season.Sixers were sent in to bat in clear conditions with persistent rain in Sydney this week suggesting the surface would be difficult for batting. Openers Josh Philippe and James Vince were undaunted and aided by loose new-ball bowling from left-arm quick David Payne.Related

• Henriques 'struggling to comprehend' Tom Curran's four-match BBL ban

• Tom Curran banned for four BBL games for intimidating umpire

Vince also confidently attacked Matt Short’s offspin and smashed a commanding boundary over wide long off as the pair rattled off 39 runs in the powerplay.But Overton then produced a superb over to dismiss Vince and Philippe and Sixers slid further when Dan Hughes, playing his 100th BBL game, was caught behind off seamer James Bazley.It was left to Silk and Henriques to get Sixers back on track like they have many times over the years. By mostly nudging the ball around and finding the gaps, the pair calmly added 66 runs as they eyed a flurry in the backend.But Henriques never found fluency and his frustrations boiled over when he holed out to Overton in the 15th over. It triggered a collapse for Sixers, who lost three wickets quickly with the burden falling on Silk to nudge them over 150.Silk obliged and smoked a boundary to reach his half-century off 38 balls before finishing the innings in style with a last-ball six over deep midwicket to lift Sixers to the type of total they’ve defended numerously at their SCG fortress.Bowling a good line and length, much like in red-ball cricket, seamer Jackson Bird was rewarded for his consistency by knocking over opener D’Arcy Short in the third over.Bird was counterattacked immediately by No.3 Chris Lynn, who skipped down the crease to whack a belligerent boundary through point. Sixers had only managed to hit one six for their whole innings, but Lynn smashed Dwarshuis twice over the boundary, in the seventh over, to race to 33 off 13 balls.Strikers looked in control until Henriques took matters into his own hands by castling Lynn with a full delivery and having Adam Hose ramp a short ball straight to deep third. Henriques had been reluctant to bowl in recent BBL seasons but led from the front tonight.Sixers were on top with offspinner Todd Murphy bowled Jake Weatherald and Strikers slumping at 91 for 4 in the 12th over. The pressure fell on their skipper Short, who struggled for timing with his trademark muscular hitting mostly absent.Strikers’ required run rate kept increasing, but they hoped to unlock boundaries when they took the power surge in the 17th over. Short raced past his half-century as he smashed consecutive boundaries in the 18th over before being deceived by a slower delivery from quick Jack Edwards.Sixers received a fright from Overton in a tense finish before enjoying a much-needed tonic amid the drama over Curran.

His match-winning partnership with Agar meant Bavuma’s unbeaten 114 went in vain

Firdose Moonda07-Sep-2023Australia 225 for 7 (Labuschagne 80*, Agar 48*, Coetzee 2-44, Rabada 2-48) beat South Africa 222 (Bavuma 114*, Hazlewood 3-41, Stoinis 2-20) by three wicketsMarnus Labuschagne responded to being left out of Australia’s World Cup squad and their XI in the first ODI in Bloemfontein as only he can: with a hugely influential performance as a concussion substitute. Much like the impression he made during the 2019 Ashes, when he replaced Steven Smith halfway through the Lord’s Test before going on to top the series run charts, Labuschagne gave the selectors a timely reminder of what he can offer in the 50-overs format.He replaced Cameron Green, who was sconed by a Kagiso Rabada bouncer in the sixth over, and got to the crease with Australia on 72 for 5 in their chase of 223. They slipped to 113 for 7 before Labuschagne and Ashton Agar put on an unbroken 112 in 145 balls, a record for the eighth wicket in Bloemfontein, to seal a comprehensive win.Their efforts trumped Temba Bavuma’s third ODI hundred in six matches this year and successive centuries in Bloemfontein as he stood man alone. Bavuma was dropped on 2 and 88, scored only 30 runs off his first 50 balls, had only one partner who stayed with him for longer than 10 overs – Marco Jansen – and saw South Africa slip to 185 for 9, but dragged them past 220 with an unbeaen 114 off 142 balls. He became just the second South African to carry his bat in an ODI innings after Herschelle Gibbs in Sharjah in March 2000.But his efforts were in vain and also left an unanswered question for the rest of the series and the World Cup that follows. Bavuma suffered from cramp towards the end of his knock, on a not especially hot day in early spring, and was only in the field for a short while during Australia’s chase with T20I captain Aiden Markram making most of the tactical decisions on field.Australia have now won four matches in a row on this tour, and have now also snapped a run of five successive ODI defeats to South Africa.Cameron Green went off with a concussion after being hit by a Kagiso Rabada bouncer•AFP/Getty Images

Thinking caps were needed on a Bloemfontein surface that did not play to its reputation as laden with runs. The surface was slow and had evidence of variable bounce, which evened out as the match grew long.Australia’s chase started just before sunset, when there was still a little something in the surface. But the pitch had nothing to do with David Warner’s dismissal. He tried to crack a wide Marco Jansen ball through point but played on instead and was dismissed for a duck.Rabada started out off-colour and missed his lengths in his first two overs but roared back to take two wickets in two overs and Green out of the match with a concussion. With the first ball of his third over, Rabada managed to find late away swing and Mitchell Marsh’s leading edge as the Australian captain tried to hit him through midwicket. Marsh was caught behind. Two balls later, he fired in a 140kph bouncer that angled in from off stump and hit Green on the left ear flap as he turned his head to the offside. There was swelling behind his ear which was visible immediately and he left the field for treatment. In Rabada’s next over, he offered some fuller deliveries before going back of a length and Josh Inglis inside-edged him onto his stumps.Lungi Ngidi was brought on at the other end and, after a T20I series in which he went wicketless, had Travis Head caught at square leg by Rabada. Australia finished the Powerplay on 69 for 4.Gerald Coetzee was brought on the 12th over to bowl his first international delivery in his hometown and thrilled the locals with a wicket with his first ball. He beat Alex Carey’s flick, made a mess of the stumps, and pulled out a vein-popping celebration. That brought Labuschagne to the crease, with Australia in need of a partnership. Marcus Stoinis did not help him provide one. He was rushed by Coetzee’s pace and his pull shot found Heinrich Klaasen at midwicket.Coetzee’s emotions were only matched by those of Keshav Maharaj, who made his ODI comeback after recovering from a ruptured Achilles sustained in March while celebrating a wicket in a Test against West Indies. His third ball spun past Sean Abbott’s bat onto his off stump and Maharaj pulled out a fist pump but did not set off on a victory run. That was where South Africa’s success stopped.Australia’s scoring rate in those first 16.4 overs, thanks in large part to Head’s 28-ball 33, was seven an over, well above the required 4.46. That meant there was little pressure on Labuschagne and the lower order to score quickly, and they did not have to take many risks. He and Agar punished anything that erred on length but were also happy to go 13 overs without a boundary from the 23rd to the 37th over, as South Africa applied something of a squeeze. They were unable to stop the strike rotation, though, and that’s how Australia wore them down. Labuschagne eventually found four off Rabada and Australia only needed 15 runs in the last 13 overs. They got there with 9.4 overs to spare.Temba Bavuma became the second South African to carry his bat through an ODI innings•AFP/Getty Images

South Africa’s innings was played in exactly the opposite way. They started slowly, with only 25 runs in the Powerplay – the lowest at this venue – and the loss of Quinton de Kock. Bavuma was fortunate to survive after he edged Abbott’s first ball to point but Agar went for the catch with one hand and put it down.Rassie van der Dussen was run out cheaply when he Abbott straight to mid-off and hesitated before deciding on the run while Bavuma was ball-watching. Van der Dussen motored towards the non-striker’s end and by the time he turned back, the ball was on its way to Carey who broke the stumps.Aiden Markram looked more composed and managed two signature cover drives before he top-edged Green miles into the bright blue sky. A sunglass-less Carey judged the catch well. Heinrich Klaasen was bowled by a Stoinis delivery that kept low and David Miller nicked off second ball to open up the lower order with only 100 on the board.Jansen is the only genuine allrounder in South Africa’s World Cup squad and he showed why he deserves that tag. He put on 57 with Bavuma and looked in control until he played a Josh Hazlewood delivery onto his stumps. Coetzee, Maharaj and Rabada fell within 17 runs of each other to leave Bavuma with the No.11, Ngidi, for 6.4 overs. Bavuma farmed the strike and even refused runs and reached his hundred off the 136th ball he faced before adding 14 more to his name. In total, he scored 114 runs of South Africa’s total while the rest of the line-up contributed only 88.

Gavaskar felt Pant must work on his shot selection, but said the young player should not let outside opinions affect him too much

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Sep-2019Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar believes India could send Rishabh Pant in at No. 5 in limited-overs cricket to allow the wicketkeeper-batsman to play his aggressive, natural game. Pant was the subject of a debate last week, after India’s newly appointed batting coach Vikram Rathour said the wicketkeeper-batsman was among a set of young players who needed to be more disciplined in their game plan. Rathour pointed out that “there is a fine line between fearless cricket and careless cricket”.The day after Rathour’s comments, Pant’s discipline and shot selection were in the spotlight again, in the second T20I against South Africa in Mohali, where he deposited a leg-stump short-of-a-length ball into the hands of short fine leg.

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In Mohali, Pant came in at No. 4, a position the Indian team management placed him at even during the World Cup. In the semi-final against New Zealand, Pant heaved the ball to cow corner just as he was in the middle of building a partnership with Hardik Pandya after India’s top-order slump.Gavaskar believed playing Pant at No. 5 could release the pressure on the young batsman. “Giving him a bit of breathing space by slotting him at No. 5 could also help, for at that number he will invariably come in to bat where his aggressive batting is needed from the start rather than when he has to build his and the team’s innings,” Gavaskar wrote in . “Just like a little tweak in the grip can make a world of difference to a player as a bowler or as batsman, so also a little tweak in the batting order could change the fortunes of a player.”Like Rathour, Gavaskar felt Pant had to work on his shot selection, but said the young player should not let outside opinions affect him too much. “In Pant’s case, it’s more of a case of wrong shot selection than anything else. People talk about him getting out to the first ball in Trinidad [in India’s previous series] but those same people were [praising] his audacity in hitting the second ball he faced for a six in his debut innings [in Tests]. So the young man has to bear in mind the fickle nature of the Indian fans and play the way he knows.”With experience he will be better at shot selection and will be more consistent but right now he needs a hand around his shoulders rather than a public dressing down. The most important thing for the young man to understand is that he has to play according to the situation and not according to the expectations of the public.”Former India opener Gautam Gambhir echoed Gavaskar’s thoughts in his column for the . All the debate over his batting will just leave Pant insecure, Gambhir, who was Pant’s captain at Delhi in domestic cricket, cautioned. “It is disappointing to see the team-management using words like ‘from fearless to careless,'” he wrote. “This is no way to handle a young human resource.”What I do know is that the boy is now playing for survival rather than scoring runs. From the outside it seems that his mindset is all over the place. Someone needs to put an arm around his shoulder and tell him that he is wanted in the team.”According to Gavaskar, Pant is experiencing “second-season blues”, much like a mystery spinner whose wizardry has become predictable over time. “The talented young man is going through the second-season blues which most players go through. In the first season there’s not that much information about the player and so he can sail through without much difficulty but by the time the second season starts, there is more data and info available not just through the recorded matches but also through the cricketing grapevine. So the opposition is better primed.”

If the rain stays away, two of the best bowling units may be able to coax the ground away from its high-scoring ways

The Preview by Alagappan Muthu12-Jun-20195:04

Agarkar: Vijay should slot in at No. 4

Big Picture

Well, we won’t be seeing a repeat of that warm-up game. For one, the weather’s being a pest. The UK Met Office predicts at least 50% chance of rain in Nottingham on Thursday.But just for a moment, let’s dare to dream. We know Trent Bridge no longer entertains outlandish notions like an even contest between bat and ball. So maybe it’s a good thing that the forecast is for grey skies. It’ll add even more spectacle to what Trent Boult and Jasprit Bumrah can already do. This World Cup has offered some tasty cricket, especially when conditions are tilted in favour of the bowlers. And both these teams have batsmen capable of standing up to such a test.ALSO READ: Mitchell Santner – the X factor is in his instinct and his braveryIndia’s top order has been an immense strength for them but it’s been in a bit of flux heading into this game with Shikhar Dhawan injured and KL Rahul expected to take his place.That’s no big advantage to New Zealand because their opening partnership has been among the least productive since the 2015 World Cup. They rely on their middle order for most of their runs, but even there India have them beat because they have the better quality hitters. Hardik Pandya and MS Dhoni are perfect to build on the typically good starts that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli give them.So, to even things out, let’s have a grey, gloomy, non-rainy, bowler-friendly day and watch who can rise above.Shikhar Dhawan and Trent Boult are in high spirits•IDI via Getty Images

Form guide

(Last five completed matches, most recent first)
India: WWLLL
New Zealand: WWWWW

In the spotlight

KL Rahul has started to become an all-purpose fix-it kind of player. At Kings XI Punjab this IPL, he was given the role of anchor. For the same team in the previous IPL, he was asked to forget about everything and just go berserk. For India, he’s the back-up opener, but then showed he has the game to be their No. 4 bat. That really is the thing here. Rahul has the game – when he’s switched on he can even find a way through those nasty inswingers that keep getting him out and that’s why he’s able to adapt to all the roles given to him. Just a question of staying switched on.ALSO READ: Aakash Chopra on what India need to do to beat New ZealandTom Latham might understand those sentiments. He too is an opener by trade but has had to take up a middle order position because New Zealand needed stability there and he’s got the skills to tackle the kind of bowling most No. 5s usually face – spin, spin and more spin. Plus, he’s taken on wicketkeeping duties as well and has become a very safe presence behind the stumps.

Team news

The only question around the Indian team is who will come in at No. 4. Vijay Shankar was the first batsman to hit the nets. Is that enough of a hint that he’ll make his World Cup debut?India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma, 2 KL Rahul, 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 Dinesh Karthik/Vijay Shankar, 5 MS Dhoni (wk), 6 Kedar Jadhav, 7 Hardik Pandya, 8 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Jasprit BumrahHardik Pandya plays a drive•Getty Images

Colin Munro was worked out the last time these team teams played against each other, so there may be a case of having Henry Nicholls back as opener. Plus, seeing as Tim Southee is fit, he could make a return to the XI, if only because of his record against Kohli: 188 runs, 179 balls and five dismissals.New Zealand (probable): 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Colin Munro/ Henry Nicholls, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Tom Latham (wk), 6 James Neesham, 7 Mitchell Santner, 8 Colin de Grandhomme, 9 Tim Southee/Matt Henry, 10 Lockie Ferguson, 11 Trent Boult

Pitch and conditions

This game will be played on a fresh strip, one that is more centrally located and therefore helping even out the boundary distances. They’ll still be short though and that’s why most teams prefer chasing here. But if you truly do prefer setting a total, just know that, since July 8 2015, the average first innings score that’s resulted in a win is 390. #GoooooodLuck

Strategy punt

• Hardik goes at a strike rate of 114 in his first 20 balls. Out of all the batsmen that have scored at least 500 runs since the last World Cup, that is the absolute best and that is why he is so dangerous. He hits from from ball one; hits any kind of bowling from ball one. But New Zealand might just have a way to get the better of him. His head-to-head with Trent Boult reads 32 runs in 35 balls and three dismissals.
• Attack Kane Williamson with spin. He’s got a very modest record against all the options India might consider throwing at him: 53 runs in 69 balls and two dismissals against Yuzvendra Chahal, 18 runs in 25 balls and two dismissals against Kuldeep Yadav and 64 runs in 81 balls and two dismissals against…. drumroll please… Kedar Jadhav.

Stats and Trivia

• Kohli needs 57 runs to complete 11,000 in ODIs. And considering he’ll only be playing his 222nd innings, he will be the quickest to the mark, beating Sachin Tendulkar who took 276 innings to get there.
• Ross Taylor has been New Zealand’s best ODI player for the past couple of years – average 79 – and he’ll be ultra-crucial against India because of his record against spin: 87 runs in 101 balls and one dismissal against Chahal, 42 runs in 47 balls and no dismissals against Kuldeep

West Indies toil during unbroken 193-run second-wicket stand but rain cuts further time from the game

Valkerie Baynes11-Mar-2022Joe Root looked genuinely impressed by what he was seeing. As Zak Crawley drove Kemar Roach down the ground for a boundary – not exactly sweetly struck but with the momentum of his considerable levers behind it – the England captain met him in the middle of the pitch for a couple of fist-bumps and approving nods, chattering away in encouragement and eliciting a broad grin from his young charge.Given that it was boundary number eight of 16 and counting for Crawley, who was compiling the second Test century of his career, the exchange may not have been unusual but in the circumstances, it stood out.After a dirty day three when Root more commonly wore a look of anguish as his attack failed to capitalise on prior opportunity, not to mention a tumultuous start to the year, England turned the tables on West Indies with an unbroken second-wicket stand in Antigua worth 193, a century and fifty so far to its protagonists and a 153-run lead heading into the final day.Related

• Zak Crawley makes his mark to begin his repayment of the faith

• Wood's elbow injury casts spotlight on England bowling stocks

• After ten-year wait, Nkrumah Bonner scripts a nine-hour epic

The hosts failed to make further inroads after Roach removed debutant opener Alex Lees, lbw in single figures for the second time in the match, to put the tourists at 24 for 1, still 40 runs in arrears.On a pitch that had admittedly offered nothing for the bowlers all match, the West Indies bowlers leaked runs, Veerasammy Permaul particularly expensive in conceding 51 off his 10 overs.Fellow left-arm spinner Jack Leach, meanwhile, had been one of the brighter lights for England, bowling 20 maidens – almost half his overs – as he took 2 for 79, including West Indies’ last wicket with the third ball of the day as the hosts took a 64-run first-innings lead.Quick Jayden Seales was the man dismissed, and he did not enjoy much more success with the ball, 12 wicketless overs costing 51 runs.But Roach, who was getting considerable swing with the new ball on the fourth morning, set Lees up with a series of deliveries that moved away from the left-hander before banging one in full and straight to beat the inside edge and slam into the front pad. Lees reviewed, perhaps in hope after seeing Crawley successfully overturn an lbw decision from umpire Gregory Brathwaite in the first over, only to have it confirmed that the ball was crashing into leg stump.Crawley was yet to score when he was reprieved the first time, with Hawk-Eye showing the ball was missing leg stump by some way. He had moved to 18 when West Indies burned a review shortly after Lees’ dismissal, Crawley adjudged not out to a Roach inswinger that hit him high on the back leg outside off stump.He had to wait out a 10-minute rain delay and Alzarri Joseph maidens either side of it on 49 before he regained the strike from Root and flipped Roach off his hip for a single to bring up his fifty off 100 balls. Crawley peeled off his next fifty from 81 balls as he and Root hit full flow and West Indies floundered for ideas despite trying seven different bowling options.Joe Root celebrates his half-century•Gareth Copley/AFP via Getty Images

Caught behind off Seales for just 8 in the first innings, Crawley tightened up his defence but played expansively where it was warranted, pulling the short ball with authority, cutting anything wide and finding the boundary with the sweep and drive also.Root raised his half-century late in the afternoon session with a four off Permaul through third, and Crawley survived a hearty shout by West Indies, thinking he’d been caught at slip off the spinner, but for replays to show he had edged the ball into the pitch before it bobbed up to the fielder.Having scored 267 against Pakistan at Southampton in August 2020, his eighth Test, Crawley had made 12 single-figure scores – including two ducks – in 21 innings since.Called back into the side for the first time since the English summer for the last three Ashes Tests when England initially dropped Rory Burns and then Haseeb Hameed, Crawley scored a second-innings 77 in Sydney and survived the post-series clear-out, which also saw Lees called up to accompany him at the top of the order.Just like 19 months before, Crawley again lived up to the potential that put him there as he and Root gave England something to smile about before the intermittent rain that had punctuated play briefly a few times set in.

The former union minister was the president of DDCA from 1999 to 2013, and also served on the IPL governing council

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Aug-2019Arun Jaitley, the former union minister who also served as a vice-president of the BCCI, has died aged 66 following an illness.Jaitley’s involvement in Indian cricket began in earnest in the late 1990s, when he became a member of the Delhi and Districts Cricket Association, the governing body of cricket in the national capital. In 1999, soon after becoming a union minister, Jaitley took charge as the DDCA president, a post he held till 2013, the same year he became vice-president of the BCCI for a brief period before resigning in the wake of the IPL spot-fixing scandal.”A remarkable statesman, Mr Jaitley was a passionate cricket follower and will always be remembered as one of the most able and respected cricket administrators,” the BCCI said in a statement. “During his long tenure as the President of the Delhi & District Cricket Association, he brought about a tremendous change in the cricketing infrastructure.”A close friend of the cricketers, he always stood by them, encouraged them and supported them in their quest for excellence.”Jaitley was also a member of the IPL governing council. Following news of his death on Saturday, a number of Delhi-based cricketers, as well as some others, expressed their condolences on Twitter.

Eoin Morgan’s men are missing aggression at the top, while KL Rahul and Co are just a step away from nailing their best XI

Hemant Brar25-Apr-20217:30

Can KKR arrest their powerplay issues? Do Punjab Kings need another specialist bowler?

Big picture

After the Kolkata Knight Riders’ latest defeat – against the Rajasthan Royals on Saturday – their captain Eoin Morgan urged his batters to show intent throughout the innings, saying that they were behind the eight-ball from the get-go. That approach has worked well for Morgan and his England teams but is yet to produce the desired results for the Knight Riders, who are languishing at the bottom of the points table with four defeats in five games so far in IPL 2021.One reason behind it could be that such an approach doesn’t bode well with the natural styles of the Knight Riders openers; both Shubman Gill and Nitish Rana are more anchors than aggressors. In the IPL, Gill has a strike rate of 120.10 in the powerplay, while Rana scores at 114.39 in that phase. What the Knight Riders can do instead is open with Gill and Rahul Tripathi, who has a powerplay strike rate of 141.43, and have Rana at No. 3.If the top three can provide a solid platform, Morgan, Andre Russell and Dinesh Karthik possess enough firepower to build a skyscraper. But, for that to happen, the Knight Riders must ensure the trio faces enough balls to make a difference.After three successive defeats, the Punjab Kings put their campaign back on track with a nine-wicket win over the Mumbai Indians. While Nicholas Pooran has got three ducks in four innings so far in the tournament, it should not be a concern at the moment. In fact, the Kings have got the top six slots in the batting line-up almost sealed. With Ravi Bishnoi doing well after coming in for M Ashwin, they are now one step closer to finding their ideal bowling combination too.One thing the Kings would expect from their captain KL Rahul is to bat more freely, especially with the Chennai leg now over; and unlike Gill and Rana, he has got the gears to do that.

Likely XIs

Punjab Kings: 1 KL Rahul (capt & wk), 2 Mayank Agarwal, 3 Chris Gayle, 4 Nicholas Pooran, 5 Deepak Hooda, 6 Shahrukh Khan, 7 Moises Henriques, 8 Jhye Richardson/Chris Jordan, 9 Ravi Bishnoi, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Arshdeep SinghKolkata Knight Riders: 1 Nitish Rana, 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Rahul Tripathi, 4 Eoin Morgan (capt), 5 Andre Russell, 6 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 7 Sunil Narine, 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Shivam Mavi, 10 Prasidh Krishna, 11 Varun ChakravarthyCan Shubman Gill provide the start the Knight Riders want?•BCCI/IPL

Strategy punt

• Against right-handers in T20 cricket, Varun Chakravarthy has 14 wickets at an average of 30.92 and a strike rate of 25.5. Against left-handers, he has ten wickets at 11.60, striking every 9.4 balls. Therefore, the Knight Riders could consider saving Chakravarthy’s overs for Chris Gayle and Pooran instead of giving him the new ball against Rahul and Mayank Agarwal.
• In the recent India-England T20I series in Ahmedabad, fast bowlers were more effective than spinners. Considering that, and with Deepak Hooda showing he can bowl a few overs of spin, the Kings may consider bringing in Chris Jordan or Jhye Richardson in place of left-arm spinner Fabian Allen.

Stats that matter

• This IPL, Pat Cummins has gone for 9.6 runs an over while bowling in the first ten overs of a match. Moreover, he is yet to pick up a wicket in that phase. In the last ten overs of a game, however, he has conceded 8.74 an over while picking up four wickets.
• Last season, Bishnoi dismissed Morgan twice in two games, both times with googlies.
• Since IPL 2019, the Knight Riders have never won when they have scored 160 or fewer while batting first.

Is it a “ridiculous” idea or is it necessary “for this day and age”? Listen to the players’ opinions and decide for yourself

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Jan-2020The ICC is exploring the idea of regular four-day Test cricket, to the point of possibly making it part of the 2023 Test championship. The argument for the move is that it could free up a calendar that is currently clogged with too many fixtures. But there is also a worry that without the fifth day, chances of a definitive result might reduce. Here’s what the players think.Joe Root, England captain: I think here’s a place for it in the game.”I do,” he told . “Whether that’s across the board or can it be flexible – we’ve obviously played one against Ireland. I’m sure that pitch would’ve been fit for a three-day game. I think it’s worth trialing. I do think it’s worth trialing and it might not always make sense for England to play especially if its against Australia or some of the bigger sides but it might draw a bit more interest with some of the countries who struggle to get people in the ground.”ALSO READ: ECB gives ‘cautious’ backing to four-day proposalFormer England captain Nasser Hussain prompted Root about the possibility of spin going out of the game if there isn’t enough time for a pitch to deteriorate, especially outside Asia. “If you don’t try it you don’t know,” Root replied. “You should be open minded enough to at least try it and see how it goes. I think the most important thing is not making a definitive decision. I love playing five days of cricket personally. I think it’s the best format. The extra day, like you say, it really does make [sure], majority of the time, 99% of the time, the best team’s won the game.Joe Root rallies his team before the start of play•Getty Images

Nathan Lyon, Australia offspinner: I hope ICC aren’t even considering it“Ridiculous. I’m not a fan of four-day Test matches,” he told “I believe you’ll get so many more draws and day five is crucial.”One, there’s the weather element. But the wickets these days are probably a lot flatter than they have been in the past, so it allows teams to bat longer and to put pressure on sides. You need time for the pitch to deteriorate and bring spinners in more on day five as well.ALSO READ: One day too many? Early finishes point to new possibilities for Test cricket“It’s a challenge You’re challenging yourself in different ways – physically and mentally. It’s not just a walk in the park. Five-day Test matches, they are hard work especially if the conditions aren’t in your favour. You want to challenge yourself. I’m all against four-day Test matches.”Nathan Lyon holds the ball up after his five-wicket haul•AFP

David White, New Zealand Cricket Chief executive: It demands serious attention“Given the congested schedule, four-day Tests demand serious consideration in order for us to accommodate an increasingly packed calendar – ICC world events, bilateral arrangements, and domestic leagues,” he told .Glenn McGrath, former Australia fast bowler: Hate to see it get shorter“I’m very much a traditionalist I like the game the way it is. To me five days is very special and I’d hate to see it get any shorter. The introduction of pink Tests, day-night Tests is a great way to continue keeping our game fresh and moving forward. In respects to changing how many days its played, I’m actually against it. I like the way it is.”Jos Buttler, England wicketkeeper: In this day and age, we have to consider it“Test cricket is the pinnacle but you have to be open to change,” Buttler said. “I think the game has changed and if four-day Test cricket could preserve and potentially improve Test cricket I think it has to be looked at. I think we all love a five-day finish with all three results possible on the last day but can four-day cricket be a success? I think if it’s done properly it can be. In this day and age we have to consider all the opportunities to see how we can do what’s best for Test cricket.”The scoreboard reflects Glenn McGrath’s best Ashes figures•Hardy’s

Vernon Philander, South Africa fast bowler: I am a purist“I hope five-day Test cricket doesn’t come to an end,” he said. “There is only one format and that’s Test cricket. T20 cricketers come and go and the names come and go, Test cricket is the ultimate. Hopefully we can still see five-day Test matches. I know there has been a lot of talk about having four-day Test matches but I am a purist when it comes to cricket and I would like to see Test matches survive for five days.”Tim Paine, Australia captain: Merit in trying it out for the odd Test“I think it should be taken into consideration,” he said. “I dare say going back six or seven years if you let the players decide on pink ball that probably wouldn’t have happened. There is always going to be some give and take. I think there is some merit on it being in the odd Test like we did with England and Ireland. But I think the big marquee Test series, the Test championship stuff has to stay five days.”Vernon Philander celebrates the wicket of Joe Root•Getty Images

Rassie van der Dussen, South Africa batsman: Pitches will change to force results“I’ve never played a five-day match in my life,” he said. “It’s difficult to say. In terms of over rate, we were a bit slow [in Centurion], England were also a bit slow, so there is definitely scope to fit in more overs in the day. We were coming off at 5.30 and there was bright sunshine on most days and you can definitely squeeze in half an over there and make up another eight overs. In the calendar these days, it’s definitely something that you have to consider. The pitch does deteriorate enough in four days to get a result and I think that will also make groundsmen prepare pitches that will force results in four days, like we had at Centurion. We’ll also probably have it at Wanderers where the cracks open up. It’s something to consider.”Keshav Maharaj, South Africa left-arm spinner: I just want to play“I just want to play Test cricket, whether its five days, four days, two days,” he said. “I just want to bowl and hopefully get some runs when I bat. I’ve got no issues with the duration of the Test match, I just want to play Test cricket.”

Batter seemed to have been ousted from the England Test team but is now back as one of its senior-most members

Andrew Miller11-Aug-20212:41

Bell: Moeen the spin-bowling allrounder lends better balance to England

At the start of the summer, it wasn’t out of the question that Jonny Bairstow’s Test career was done and dusted. He finished a dispiriting tour of India with three ducks in four innings in Ahmedabad, and with Dan Lawrence joining the likes of Zak Crawley and Ollie Pope at the vanguard of a new generation of England middle-order batters, it seemed that his pre-eminence in England’s white-ball squad might finally take full-time precedence.Now, however, everything’s back up for grabs. Following his recall for the first Test at Trent Bridge, Bairstow’s senior status will be plain for all to see this week, in a second-Test squad that has been dramatically shorn of so many of its usual suspects. With Ben Stokes absent, and Stuart Broad and James Anderson also set to be sidelined by injury, there could be no-one bar the captain Joe Root boasting more than Bairstow’s haul of 76 caps come the first ball on Thursday.Related

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“It would be a big loss, naturally because they’ve (Broad and Anderson) got a thousand Test wickets between them,” Bairstow said on the eve of the match. “But with that comes an opportunity for other people. When we’ve seen that previously in the summer, in the Pakistan [ODI] series, there were opportunities that arose for other people coming in and they rose to those challenges.”Bairstow continued to look at the bright side, hoping for “someone to come in and step up”, while explaining that England were well-prepared for these speed bumps.”I don’t think it’s too much of a de-stabiliser to be honest,” he said. “With the nature of professional sport, there are going to be injuries at times, there is going to be illness, it can happen overnight and you’ve got to be adaptable within the group. That’s what we have been. Whether it’s in South Africa [in 2019-20], rewinding to when everyone was unfortunately poorly, or other occasions.”Jonny Bairstow sprints during England training•Getty Images

To be fair, Bairstow has overcome so many logistical challenges already this year that a bit of team uncertainty on the eve of a Test match is nothing much to faze him. “I’ve been busy,” he conceded, after a 2021 itinerary that began with two Tests in Sri Lanka, continued with a bout of quarantine in Ahmedabad ahead of his two Tests in India, a packed one-day campaign, and a successful IPL, and culminated in his arrival at Loughborough at 1.30am, ahead of the Trent Bridge Test, fresh from the second of his two match-winning performances for Welsh Fire in the Hundred.”You’re going from playing a Hundred game the night before, and trying to hit as many balls as possible into the River Taff, which was great fun, to then facing Broady and Ollie Robinson with a Dukes ball,” Bairstow said of his build-up to that Test recall. “So there’s definitely many differences within that process.”But I was content, I was happy,” he added, after scores of 29 and 30, which – Root aside – represented England’s most consistent run-scoring in the Test. “It was obviously slightly different to the week before, but to spend a decent amount of time at the crease was pleasing. I didn’t go on to get a big score but if I keep doing what I was doing in those two innings, keep with that method and mindset, then hopefully there is going to be a fairly big one to come fairly soon.”Expectations of England’s team are fairly low at present, given their struggles to assert themselves either against India or in their 1-0 series defeat against New Zealand earlier in the summer, and changes in the batting are on the cards as well, with Moeen Ali set to return at No. 7 after his own blazing performances in the Hundred, and Haseeb Hameed a strong chance to earn his own recall after four years, given the recent struggles endured by Crawley and Dom Sibley at the top of the order.All of which means that England’s middle order could have an improbably familiar look to it, given that Root, Bairstow, Jos Buttler and Moeen are all more familiar with one another in the triumphant 50-over format than they have been of late in Test cricket. It’s a prospect that Bairstow welcomes, given how important the team’s mindset has become in this extraordinary summer, when opportunities for conventional match practice are so vanishingly scarce.Rory Burns, Moeen Ali and Jonny Bairstow are all smiles at the team photo•Getty Images

“It’s a fair point,” he said. “Having relationships and experience within that middle period there is something that we can latch on. It is a very fun experience, being out there together in the middle, and being able to recall those experiences and relish those partnerships that you’re able to have. Hopefully we’ll be able to have a chuckle while we reflect on what’s been a positive, successful partnership between individuals, but also as a collective.”Just as Bairstow’s return to the Test team coincided with a run of success in the Hundred, so Moeen is back with his form and confidence brimming over, after a brace of blazing performances for Birmingham Phoenix in the past week. And speaking from personal experience, Bairstow admitted that feeling good about your batting, no matter the format, is a huge part of cricket’s mental battle.”If you’re coming back in with confidence and off the back of scoring runs, no matter what format it is, and you are able to harness those approaches and you’re going out with an amount of confidence that’s out there, then I think it’s great,” he said.”Mo’s coming back in and he’s been striking the ball very nicely in the Hundred. We know Mo’s quality within Test cricket. He was the second-fastest [England player] ever to 100 Test wickets and 2000 Test runs. Now, that doesn’t come by coincidence. In Mo, we’ve got someone that’s extremely skilful, with a lot of experience, and he brings a lot to the side.”