Category Uncategorized

Ashwell Prince and Steven Croft shared their third century partnership of the summer to help Lancashire open their Clydesdale Bank 40 account at the expense of Glamorgan at Old Trafford

02-May-2010

ScorecardAshwell Prince and Steven Croft shared their third century partnership of the summer to help Lancashire open their Clydesdale Bank 40 account at the expense of Glamorgan at Old Trafford. The Red Rose pair helped their side recover from 89 for 3 in pursuit of 272 with an unbroken 186 to win by seven wickets with 16 balls to spare.Glamorgan seemed well placed to claim only their third 40-over win since September 2008 after Tom Maynard’s 103 not out off 68 balls had boosted the visitors to 271 for 4. Tom Smith and Paul Horton got the Lightning off to a rapid response, bringing up their side’s fifty in the seventh over, but James Harris picked up two quick wickets to rattle the hosts in the 14th over.In fading light an asking rate north of seven an over through the last 20 overs was a tough ask but Prince and Croft continued their fine form together after two hundred stands in the County Championship. Prince brought up a majestic unbeaten 102 in 82 balls when he hit the winning runs off Harris and Croft finished 84 not out off 70 balls. They hit 16 fours and two sixes between them.After Harris had forced Horton to scoop to mid-off and had Stephen Moore caught at mid-on, David Brown bowled Smith for 33. But South African Prince brought up his fourth half-century of the summer in all forms off 55 balls with only one four.Croft has also been in imperious form this season and his fifth fifty came off 54 balls just before the pair took the four overs of batting powerplay at the start 33rd over with the score on 211 for 3. Croft crashed David Harrison for a six and four with the first two balls of the 35th over and this was the first time that the Lightning were on top at any stage in the match.And when the 25 year-old was dropped on 73 by Harris in the same over at square-leg Glamorgan were down and out. Lancashire’s batting powerplay yielded 41 runs. Maynard, who hit 108 in a 40-over game against Northants at Colwyn Bay last summer, earlier built on an opening stand of 86 between Mark Cosgrove and Jim Allenby. Allenby hit 40 and Cosgrove 50 off 53 balls.Left-arm spinner Stephen Parry claimed the wickets of both on the way to figures of 2 for 41 from eight overs and he was the pick of the home attack. But Maynard and Jamie Dalrymple (31) shared 60 for the third wicket before the former and Brown shared a fourth wicket stand of 101 in 10 overs.This was the partnership that really set the Dragons up for a competitive total. Maynard hit two sixes and two fours as he helped take 22 runs of Glen Chapple in the 37th over of the innings and Brown only scored 27 runs in the fourth wicket stand.

Joe Leach claims six wickets, making him the highest wicket-taker in Division Two

ECB Reporters Network11-Jun-2023Sussex gave spectators free admission to the opening day of their LV= County Championship match against Worcestershire – and what a day they had. They saw Sussex recover from 142 for 6 to reach 338 for 9 thanks to some late-order hitting from first Nathan McAndrew and then Jack Carson and Henry Shipley, the last two putting on 85 for the ninth wicket, the biggest stand of the innings.At tea, when Sussex were 205 for 7, honours looked appropriately even at the 1st Central County Ground for the second and third placed counties in division two. And it was fitting that Sussex (second) were on top of Worcestershire when bad light drove the players from the field with eight overs remaining.The first, intense session brought some old-fashioned county cricket, with Sussex reaching lunch on 81 for 3 from 30 overs, at a run-rate of 2.70.Worcestershire had chosen to bowl on a humid, sticky morning and the green tinge to the pitch might also have influenced their choice; whether they would have made the same decision had Cheteshwar Pujara and Steve Smith been batting for Sussex, as they were at Worcester last month, is another matter.It was a very testing two hours and the Worcestershire fast bowlers made the batters play at almost every delivery. The best of them, not for the first time, was the bald and bustling figure of Joe Leach, who bowled with thoughtful aggression, round the wicket and over, wide on the crease and close to the stumps.He broke through with the last ball of the opening over, which Tom Clark edged to Jake Libby at fourth slip. His fellow opener, Tom Haines, battled for just under an hour for his nine runs before he edged Leach to wicketkeeper Gareth Roderick and Sussex were 28 for 2 in the 14th over.Tom Alsop (left-handed Toms make up the first three in the Sussex line-up) battled as obdurately as Haines. But his innings of 71 minutes and 56 deliveries ended on 19, when he got one from Leach which straightened off the pitch for Jack Haynes to take the edge at second slip.The Sussex batters looked a little more confident in the last few overs before the interval, after Leach had left the attack, and they carried that impetus into the afternoon session. James Coles and Oli Carter struck a flurry of boundaries but then the impressive and fluent Coles fell to a soft dismissal, with an uppercut off Adam Finch to Leach at third man. Finch had just been warned for running on the pitch. Then, one run later, Danial Ibrahim, edged to second slip for a seven-ball duck and Sussex were 120 for 5.That became 142 for six when Fynn Hudson-Prentice edged to Roderick who dropped the catch but then caught it at the second attempt just before it hit the ground. There was a hesitation and a meeting of umpires before the batter departed and Leach had his 17th five-wicket haul.Carter and McAndrew decided to counter-attack their way out of trouble and this approach brought 59 runs in 14 overs before Carter slapped a short one from Matthew Waite to backward-point. But he had hit 11 fours in his 132-ball 76.McAndrew went on to hit 65 from 68 balls, with a dozen fours. But it was the partnership that followed that won the day for Sussex, forcing Worcestershire to take the new ball without Adam Finch, who was taken out of the attack after running on the pitch.Carson made an unbeaten 60 but the real bonus for Sussex was the effort from New Zealander Henry Shipley, making his first-class debut for the county. Shipley was brought in to bolster the county’s fast bowling options but struck a fluent 41, with six fours and a six. He finally gave the heroic Leach his sixth wicket, making him the highest wicket-taker in the division.

Both teams are likely to go in spin-heavy at a venue which hasn’t hosted a drawn game since 2015

Andrew Fidel Fernando22-May-2022

Big picture

On a flat Chattogram surface, neither Bangladesh nor Sri Lanka had the kind of superlative attack that would have swung the game decisively. The result being the first Test ending in a draw with not even three innings completed after five days. Although Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have both had their bowling stocks depleted – Sri Lanka unlikely to field Vishwa Fernando; Bangladesh having lost Nayeem Hasan to a finger injury and Shoriful Islam to a fractured hand – the Mirpur surface has very rarely hosted draws. Both squads are awash with spin options. Historically, Bangladesh have picked three slow bowlers and one seamer in Mirpur. The pitch, this time around too, is expected to take sharp turn.Bangladesh have won five of their last eight Tests here, but perhaps that stat is slightly misleading, because they are on a two-game losing streak in Mirpur. Last year, finger spinners Rahkeem Cornwall and Sajid Khan took them down, delivering wins for West Indies and Pakistan respectively.Related

• Mushfiqur becomes first Bangladesh batter to reach 5000 Test runs

• Nayeem to miss Dhaka Test because of finger injury

• Shoriful ruled out of Test series, likely to miss first WI Test as well

The problem for Sri Lanka, however, is that neither left-arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya, nor offspinner Ramesh Mendis, were especially impressive in Chattogram, taking just 1 for 123 between them. They do have another frontline spinner in the squad though – slow left-armer Praveen Jayawickrama has already helped win a match against Bangladesh, when he took 11 wickets against them in Pallekele, last year.The batting order for both teams is in decent shape heading into this game. Oshada Fernando and Dhananjaya de Silva continue to be short of big runs for Sri Lanka, but the other batters have made solid contributions. For Bangladesh, Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim struck hundreds, while Mahmudul Hasan Joy and Liton Das made half-centuries in the first Test.Both teams have busy schedules coming up. While Bangladesh go to West Indies for another World Test Championship series post the Test, Sri Lanka host Australia, then Pakistan, at home. These teams are so far back on the Championship table that it seems unlikely either can make a serious run for that top two, but a victory here will at least help keep the dream alive.

Form guide

Sri Lanka DLLWW (completed matches, most recent first)Bangladesh DLLLWMominul Haque hasn’t been in the best of form in 2022•Getty Images

In the spotlight

2, 5, 6, 2, 0, 37, 0 – so read the last six scores of Mominul Haque, despite him having started the year with an excellent performance in that spectacular Test win against New Zealand. This Bangladesh side has several past captains, and the captaincy seems to have weighed heavily on all of them. If Mominul can get himself to a big score in Dhaka, he will feel much better about his leadership.Now essentially a single-format player on the cusp of turning 35, Angelo Mathews’ international career may be entering its twilight. He will hope that in this format at least, there can be a late renaissance, perhaps put in motion by that Chattogram 199. With a tough couple of home series coming up, Sri Lanka need their most-experienced batter near his best in June and July.

Pitch and conditions

Some rain is forecast for the first two days in Mirpur, but then the clouds are expected to clear, and temperatures are expected to rise to as high as 39 degrees for the rest of the week. Even if there are rain interruptions, there tends to be a result on this spin-friendly surface.

Team news

Mosaddek Hossain’s offspin will be put to maximum use if he plays in place of Nayeem. Ebadot Hossain is likely to get his place back after Shoriful’s injury. Bangladesh (possible): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Mahmudul Hasan Joy, 3 Najmul Hossain Shanto, 4 Mominul Haque (capt), 5 Mushfiqur Rahim, 6 Liton Das (wk), 7 Shakib Al Hasan, 8 Mosaddek Hossain, 9 Taijul Islam, 10 Khaled Ahmed, 11 Ebadot HossainSri Lanka will have to decide which of their seamers – Asitha Fernando or Kasun Rajitha – will play in Mirpur. Rajitha had come in as a concussion sub for Vishwa, and been the pick of the bowlers in Chattogram. But Asitha claimed three wickets himself. Jayawickrama is likely to come into the XI in place of the second seamer.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Oshada Fernando, 2 Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), 3 Kusal Mendis, 4 Angelo Mathews, 5 Dhananjaya de Silva, 6 Dinesh Chandimal, 7 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 8 Ramesh Mendis, 9 Lasith Embuldeniya, 10 Praveen Jayawickrama, 11 Asitha Fernando/Kasun Rajitha

Stats and trivia

• Although he began the year with scores of 88 and 13* in Mount Maunganui, Mominul Haque averages 19.12 after nine innings in 2022. His average as captain is 33.44; he scores at 41.47 when not leading.
• Thanks largely to that 199, Angelo Mathews now averages 83.25 in Bangladesh. That was also his first century against this opposition in Test cricket. He is only missing hundreds against West Indies and South Africa out of teams he has played against in the format.
• There have been no draws in Mirpur since 2015.
• Sri Lanka have won each of their four previous series in Bangladesh, winning the last two series 1-0.

WIn sealed with 16 balls to spare as fifth-wicket pairing make hay at Bristol

ECB Reporters' Network11-Jun-2021Phil Salt and George Garton gunned down a target of 178 with 16 balls to spare to get Sussex off to a winning start in the Vitality Blast with a five-wicket win at Gloucestershire.3,600 were admitted into Nevil Road, with all tickets sold in advance, but the fans were sent home disappointed by a flat-out chase.Salt, in his first appearance of the season for Sussex, made 77 not out from 49 balls and Garton, who had only made 103 runs in 23 T20s before this, made 46 from only 25 balls as Sussex waltzed home.The chase was initially under pressure as David Payne held Travis Head, for 2, at short-third man before taking Ravi Bopara caught and bowled first ball. Josh Shaw then took out David Wiese’s off stump for only 11 and Delray Rawlings lazily clubbed Graeme van Buuren to long-on to leave Sussex 57 for 4 after the Powerplay.But Sussex kept the pedal down. Salt lifted two sixes over long-on and whipped Matt Taylor behind square for four. He slapped Shaw for two further boundaries and with Garton slog-sweeping two sixes to the short side, the chase was in control at 102 for 4 by halfway and they never relinquished their position.It rendered Gloucestershire’s 177 for 7 well short having been sent in. Glenn Phillips made 42 from 27 balls but he and the rest of the order threatened greater damage before Sussex took regular wickets to keep their hosts in check.Sussex handed a debut to 16-year-old Archie Lenham, who became the second-youngest player in Blast history after Hamidullah Qadri for Derbyshire in 2017, and he enjoyed a fine debut with 1 for 34.A legspinner who plays club cricket for Eastbourne, Lenham was handed the seventh over and bowled with confidence, using his change-ups, bowling quickly and flat with a large leg-side boundary for comfort. He conceded five from his first over and then forced Taylor to hole out to long-on, drawing a heart-warming joyful leap of celebration.A third over saw him heaved twice over deep midwicket by Phillips but was trusted with a final over that conceded only seven.Garton’s career-best effort with the bat followed a fine performance with the ball where he claimed 3 for 19, including just three from two overs in the Powerplay.

Ambati Rayudu and Dwayne Bravo have recovered from their injuries and are available for selection

Sruthi Ravindranath01-Oct-20208:13

Could both Sam Curran and Dwayne Bravo fit into CSK’s XI?

Big picture

That’s MS Dhoni summing up the Chennai Super Kings’ situation after their second straight loss of the season, against Delhi Capitals last week. On the eve of their match against Sunrisers Hyderabad, their head coach Stephen Fleming said the Super Kings have used the six-day break “pretty well” and “have got some clarity” around what they need to do. Alarm bells aren’t ringing just yet, but this early struggle is unusual for a team that is traditionally one of the best starters in the tournament – they’ve won nearly 65% of their first seven games of the season over the last four seasons.It’s not just that they’ve lost two of their three games so far; their last two matches became no-contests less than halfway into their chases. While the imminent return of Ambati Rayudu should help them, their batting seems to be in need of a complete overhaul. And their spinners, who have been key performers for them over many years, are yet to find their groove.Sunrisers began their season with back-to-back losses, but they picked up an important win in their last match against the Delhi Capitals, pulling off the sort of controlled performance with bat and ball that propelled them to the 2016 title. With Kane Williamson key to that win, and with Rashid Khan back at his his best, it’s unlikely they’ll change their combination from that game.Super Kings may have historically performed well against Sunrisers, with nine wins in 12 meetings, but Sunrisers have momentum on their side as they go into the match on Friday.

In the news

Rayudu and Dwayne Bravo, who have been sidelined with injuries, are available for the match against Sunrisers. Rayudu returning would mean either M Vijay or Ruturaj Gaikwad is left out. Vijay has been struggling to get going, making just 32 runs in three games at a strike rate of 74.4. Gaikwad could play in his preferred opening position if Vijay is dropped, with Rayudu slotting in at No. 3 or 4. Rayudu could also open with Shane Watson. Sam Curran has filled in for Bravo and has been one of the better performers in the side, so there’s a chance Bravo might continue to sit out.T Natarajan has been impressive with his yorkers in IPL 2020•BCCI

Likely XIs

Chennai Super Kings: 1 Shane Watson, 2 Ruturaj Gaikwad, 3 Faf du Plessis, 4 Ambati Rayudu, 5 Sam Curran, 6 Kedar Jadhav, 7 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 8 Ravindra Jadeja, 9 Deepak Chahar, 10 Piyush Chawla, 11 Imran Tahir/ Josh Hazlewood.Sunrisers Hyderabad: 1 David Warner (capt), 2 Jonny Bairstow (wk), 3 Manish Pandey, 4 Kane Williamson, 5 Abdul Samad, 6 Abhishek Sharma, 7 Priyam Garg, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 T Natarajan, 11 Khaleel Ahmed.

Strategy punt

• Teams have chosen to chase 36 out of 55 times after winning the toss in Dubai since 2018, though teams batting first have had a slight edge, winning 29 of the 55 games. Teams have opted to field in all four matches at this venue in this IPL season, usually keeping the dew factor in mind, but have ended up on the losing side all four times. Will we see a change in this game?
• Watson has great numbers against the Sunrisers, with two fifties and a century in his last five games against them. However, he has an average record against Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the IPL, getting out to him three times and striking at just 94. If he survives the opening burst, though, he would look to attack Rashid Khan, who hasn’t gotten him out in the 10 innings they’ve come face-to-face in. He also strikes at over 140 against the legspinner, so Sunrisers would want Bhuvneshwar to do the job up front.

Stats that matter

• Warner has the best frequency of 50-plus scores for a batsman in the IPL – he gets past the half-century mark once every 2.69 innings. He’s gone three innings without a fifty this season, though, and if he fails to score one against the Super Kings it will be his longest streak of not making a 50-plus score since moving to the Sunrisers. However, he has an outstanding record against the opposition, with half-centuries in each of his last five innings against them.
• According to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data, the Sunrisers fast bowlers have bowled 16 yorkers in their three games so far – T Natarajan executed them particularly well in their win over the Capitals. None of the other teams’ quicks, however, had bowled more than six each as of September 30.
• Dhoni needs to clear the ropes twice to become the third Indian to tally 300 sixes in T20s.
• Manish Pandey needs 69 runs to become the 12th Indian batsman to reach 3000 runs in the IPL.

Warwickshire produce unbroken opening stand in response to Kent’s mammoth 585 for 7 declared

ECB Reporters Network01-Jul-2019Injury-hit Warwickshire mounted a spirited response on day two of their Specsavers County Championship match with Kent played out on featherbed pitch in Canterbury.After seeing the hosts post a mammoth 585 for 7 declared – courtesy of a Championship best 166 from Daniel Bell-Drummond and Sean Dickson’s season’s best 161 – the visitors countered with an unbroken opening stand worth 142 in the 47 overs through to stumps. Will Rhodes hit an attractive 70 and Dom Sibley provided able support with an unbeaten 60 allowing Warwickshire to cut the first-innings deficit to 443 runs at the mid-point of the match.Kent, resuming on their overnight score of 338 for 2, batted on until an hour after lunch in adding 247 in 48.1 overs for a season’s best total. Third-wicket partners Bell-Drummond and Dickson scored at a healthy lick in the opening exchanges to extend their stand to 197.Dickson’s nicely-timed cover drive against Toby Lester for his 17th boundary raised his individual 150, but Dickson’s 390-minute vigil ended with his score on 161 after a mistimed pull to midwicket off the bowling of James Wainman.The wicket gave Warwickshire their only bowling bonus point and very brief respite before Kent cantered past 400 for maximum batting bonus points and Bell-Drummond notched his maiden century of the Championship summer. Bell-Drummond’s cover drive, again off Wainman the left-armer, dissected the cover field for a 13th four and bring up his 181-ball century. It was Bell-Drummond’s first Championship hundred since April 2016 against Leicestershire.In attempting to plunder quick runs, Kent’s acting captain Heino Kuhn gifted Wainman another scalp when, with his score on 17, he clipped a wide short one straight to backward point.Just before lunch, Bell-Drummond reached his 150 from 236 balls with 21 fours and a six and soon went past 153, his previous best in Championship cricket scored against Hampshire in 2014. The right-hander, who turns 26 next month, eventually went for 166 after 300 minutes at the crease after edging an ambitious drive against Wainman to the keeper.”It’s been a while since my last Championship hundred so it’s been a great day for me personally,” Bell-Drummond said “I want to move forward from here, take all the positives and keep going in this format. I’ve been doing really well in white-ball cricket but it’s been a tough few years for me in this format, which annoyed me quite a bit, because I prefer red-ball cricket to the others. It’s never too late to learn things in this game and I’ll hope to keep looking forward and put these past three years behind me.”I’ve still got the hunger, even more so after today, so I’ll be looking to kick on to enjoy and improve in the four-day game.”After Bell-Drummond’s demise, Ollie Robinson kept the board ticking with a sprightly 78 before his top-edged pull gave Lester a wicket caught in the deep, then Jeetan Patel, having sent down 43 overs of offspin, had Darren Stevens caught off a skied slog sweep to spark Kent’s declaration and finish with 1 for 135.Wainman posted creditable figures of 3 for 112 for a makeshift Warwickshire attack that had toiled manfully for the opening nine hours of the game.

His 115 off only 109 deliveries was key to overhauling a target of 255 with four wickets and 32 balls to spare

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jan-2019Paras Khadka struck both his and Nepal’s maiden ODI century as he led the team to a memorable four-wicket victory over UAE in Dubai. His 115 off only 109 deliveries was key to overhauling a target of 255 with four wickets and 32 balls to spare.Nepal were actually struggling in the chase at one point. From 81 for 1 in the 15th over, they slipped to 129 for 4 in the 26th as spinners Imran Haider and Ashfaq Ahmed took control in the middle overs. The series was tied at 1-1. The game was starting to drift away. A big innings was needed and as is often the case, the captain stood up.Khadka batted through to the 39th over, acting as both the sticky-tape that held his team together, and also a source of rapid runs. He struck 15 fours and a six, ensuring that Nepal were never too far behind the asking rate. He finally fell with only 40 runs needed, which proved an easy ask for Sompal Kami and Aarif Sheikh as they raced to the target.The fireworks at the end were in stark contrast to the start of the game, when UAE’s openers were dismissed for ducks even though they faced a combined 28 deliveries. Kami removed Ashfaq and KC Karan took out Chirag Suri as the score stuttered to 2 for 2 in the sixth over. It took some insane hitting by the middle order to get to a decent total, with Shaiman Anwar coming in at No. 6 and hammering 87 off 70 balls and Mohammad Boota scoring his maiden ODI fifty and a blistering one at that – 59 off only 31 balls. UAE were 47 for 5 in the 21st over but somehow they managed to get to 254 and would have had high hopes of defending it. But Khadka just wouldn’t give in.

A round-up of the ninth round of Sunfoil Series matches that ended on January 15, 2017

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Jan-2017A mammoth second-wicket partnership of 355 runs between Senuran
Muthusamy and Vaughn van Jaarsveld – the fourth-highest for the wicket in first-class matches in South Africa – was the highlight of a high-scoring drawn game between Knights and Dolphins in Kimberley.Muthusamy’s 181 and van Jaarsveld’s 203 – his highest first-class score – helped Dolphins pile up 538 for 7 declared in response to Knights’ score of 487 for 7 declared. The pair came together in the 17th over of Dolphins’ innings, after the wicket of Divan van Wyk, and stayed at the crease for 86 overs; Dolphins’ entire innings lasted 141 overs. Van Jaarsveld brought up his century first – off 145 balls – while Muthusamy took 190 deliveries to reach his sixth in the format. Van Jaarsveld took only 86 more deliveries to get to his double century, hitting 27 fours and three sixes in his 237-ball knock, which was ended by Theunis de Bruyn. Muthusamy was out ten overs later, also dismissed by de Bruyn, having hit 20 fours and two sixes in his 348-ball stay. Knights used ten bowlers, and the most successful ones – de Bruyn with two and Rudi Second with 4 for 105 – were also the players who had struck centuries for them earlier in the match.De Bruyn and Second added 258 for the fourth wicket, pulling Knights out of trouble after they were struggling at 85 for 3 by the 28th over, having been put in to bat. The pair came within six runs of the partnership record for the fourth wicket in the competition, held by Albie Morkel and Justin Kemp. De Bruyn slammed 19 fours and four sixes in his 249-ball 182 while Second scored 125 off 170 balls with 14 fours. Knights were 364 for 5 by the time both batsmen were dismissed and managed to move past 450 with solid contributions from Keegan Petersen (65*) and Marchant de Lange (42).Dolphins took 8.07 points from the game, the most in the round, to grab a slender lead over Titans at the top of the table.Cape Cobras and Warriors remained in the bottom half of the points table as poor weather, bad light and a wet outfield truncated play in the draw in East London. Both teams saw half-centuries from their top and middle-order batsmen while offspinner Dane Piedt impressed with 4 for 64 on the last day after the third day didn’t see any play.Once Warriors opted to field, Cobras were in some trouble, at 200 for 6, after opener Andrew Puttick fell for 85. However, Aviwe Mgijima’s second straight fifty led them to a more respectable 291 as Basheeru-Deen Walters and Sisanda Magala finished with three wickets apiece.Warriors’ batting did not impress much either as they conceded first-innings lead after only Colin Ackermann (89) and Yaseen Vallie (94) scored more than 30. They were 175 for 5 at the end of the second day and Piedt claimed four wickets in the space of eight overs on the last day to restrict Warriors to 260. Cobras batted for 23 overs in the second innings to post 71 for 3, collecting 7.82 points compared to Warriors’ 7.2.Lions had the upper hand in their draw against Titans, who batted their way to safety after being set a fourth-innings target of 405 in Benoni.Lions scored 347 after being put in to bat, largely due to the efforts of Nicky van den Bergh (99), Devon Conway (66) and No. 10 Nono Pongolo, who struck an important 49 not out. Van den Bergh and Conway shared a 128-run partnership to pull Lions to 238 for 3 before seamer Malusi Siboto’s strikes left them in danger of being bowled out for less than 300. Van den Bergh and Pongolo added 80 for the ninth wicket.The Lions bowlers, particularly Ayavuya Myoli and Bjorn Fortuin, ensured a 96-run first-innings lead, with the pair taking four wickets each. The Titans batsmen got starts, but the top score in their innings was an 80-ball 39 from Chris Morris at No. 8.Morris’ three strikes, in a space of two overs, had threatened to keep Lions’ lead to manageable proportions, leaving them 61 for 4 in their second innings after they were 59 for 1. However, Dominic Hendricks and Mangaliso Mosehle struck centuries and added 163 runs for the sixth wicket to swell Lions’ lead. Mosehle struck a brisk 123-ball 100, with ten fours and three sixes, while Hendricks finished the innings unbeaten on 103, ensuring the side’s lead had passed 400.Aiden Markram struck a fifty at the top of the order for Titans n their second innings, which eventually closed at 143 for 2.

England have brought back several white-ball regulars for the one-off T20 against Pakistan at Old Trafford next week, with Liam Dawson – who took 3 for 27 on debut against Sri Lanka – among those to miss out

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Aug-20161:08

Stokes, Wood back in England T20 squad

England have brought back several white-ball regulars for the one-off T20 against Pakistan at Old Trafford next week, with Liam Dawson – who took 3 for 27 on debut against Sri Lanka in July – among those to miss out.Joe Root, Alex Hales and Moeen Ali all return after being rested for the Sri Lanka fixture, while Ben Stokes and Mark Wood are back after recovering from injury. Stokes is in line to play his first T20 international since being hit for four consecutive sixes by Carlos Brathwaite in the final of the World T20 in April.James Vince, who played against Sri Lanka but was dropped for the one-day series with Pakistan in order to try and find some form in red-ball cricket after a tough introduction to the Test side; Jonny Bairstow, and the uncapped Dawid Malan were the others omitted from England’s 14-man squad.The availability of Moeen as a spinning allrounder, as well as Stokes’ return to bowling after a calf tear, may have counted against Dawson, who is currently with the ODI squad but has yet to feature against Pakistan.Wood has only played one previous T20 for England, taking 3 for 26 against New Zealand last year, but has impressed with the one-day side after recovering from ankle surgery. Alongside Tymal Mills, the Sussex left-armer who also made his debut against Sri Lanka at the Ageas Bowl, and Liam Plunkett, England have the option to field a trio of pace bowlers who can hit 90mph.The strong squad is another sign of England’s commitment to limited-overs cricket. Root has played more games than any other England player in 2016, with 31 appearances so far across the three formats, while Hales and Moeen are not far behind with 29 – seven more than the next most-selected.”It is excellent to see the progress we are making in white ball cricket across both formats,” England’s national selector, James Whitaker, said. “The IT20 international against Pakistan will give the squad another opportunity to measure their development.”The squad has an exciting feel with exceptional talent throughout. We are delighted to welcome back Ben Stokes and Mark Wood into the squad. Both are world-class players and are an important part of our long-term plans to become the best side in the world. It is testament to the excellent work being nurtured in the county structure and through the England Lions, that there is a depth of quality pushing the nucleus of the current group.”England have also announced that Steven Finn has been training with Middlesex after a hamstring injury suffered during the Oval Test against Pakistan and could be fit to play a part in next week’s Championship game against Nottinghamshire.England T20 squad to play Pakistan: Eoin Morgan (capt), Moeen Ali, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, Tymal Mills, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Mark Wood

ESPNcricinfo previews the fourth match of the tri-series between West Indies and India in Port-of-Spain

The Preview by Devashish Fuloria04-Jul-2013

Match facts

Friday, July 5
Start time 0930 (1330 GMT)A different ball game: The Indian team has found the going tough on the slower pitches in the Caribbean•AFP

Big Picture

India arrived in the West Indies with their confidence rocketing sky-high but in just over a week, the engines have come off. The two losses in Kingston mean they now find themselves in a position where even two wins won’t be enough to guarantee their progression. Both Sri Lanka and West Indies have the cushion of a bonus point and India will need to find at least one to improve their position. A loss won’t totally obliterate India’s chances either but will leave them hoping for the remaining results to work in their favour. West Indies, on the other hand, are sitting comfortably with nine points from two games and a win will confirm them as one of the finalists.India were rightly being showered with a lot of praise after their success in the Champions Trophy which was built on the energy the young shoulders brought. Since then, the players, as well as the captain, have proudly talked about them being the No. 1 side in the ODIs in a manner reminiscent of India’s Test team a couple of years back. But there are lessons to be learnt from the nosedive India took in Tests after that.Top sides are not dependent on a couple of players to pull them through every tricky situation. Top sides have attacks that are not neutralised by conditions. Top sides do not let everything through in the field all day after proclaiming themselves as the best fielding unit. Till India can bring the consistency to deliver in a variety of conditions, their hold on that No. 1 ODI ranking will remain slippery. One thing in their favour, however, is that they have a young team which has shown the right facets to be successful in the longer term.India’s free-flowing batsmen found the going tough on the slowish pitches at Sabina Park and with the conditions not likely to be too different in Port-of-Spain, the lesson for them is that once you are in, make it count. Chris Gayle did that in the first match, then Johnson Charles followed that route in the second and in the third, Mahela Jayawardene and Upul Tharanga proved how effective it can be. Rohit Sharma did the tough part in the first match before taking a wrong turn when the freeway beckoned.

Virat Kohli fined for slow-over rate

India captain Virat Kohli has been fined 20% of his match fee for maintaining a slow over-rate against Sri Lanka. The rest of the India players have been fined 10% of their fees after the side was found to be one over short.

India’s bowling remains a bigger worry and it remains to be seen how they regroup after the battering they received in the previous match. Shami Ahmed lacked rhythm and at times, his run-up reminded of Munaf Patel’s slow amble to the crease. Despite him being as guilty of leaking runs as anyone else, he could be the first head to roll, and the onus could be back on Bhuvneshwar Kumar to bring the bowling unit’s confidence back.West Indies’ bowling has thrived in home conditions. Their fast bowlers were the only ones who managed to make use of the moisture in the Sabina Park pitch and their medium-pacers and spinners have been tough to score off. With their long batting order in good nick, they are finally showing signs of extending their Twenty20 form to ODIs.

Form guide

West Indies WWTLW (most recent first, last five completed matches)
India LLWWW

In the spotlight

His claim to fame maybe T20s, but after six years and 80 matches, you would expect Kieron Pollard to crack the ODI code. But he hasn’t. His average throughout his career has stayed below 30 and his underachievement in the format can be likened to how West Indies themselves have fared in ODIs – replete with talent, but nothing to show for it. Pollard has been generally found out by quality quick bowlers around the world, but in this series, he has two of the slower attacks in cricket, and in India, one of the weakest too. After scoring 0 and 4 in the series, it is high time he takes the advantage.In a line-up full of generous bowlers, R Ashwin boasts of an economy of less than five but for a lead spinner, he doesn’t buy his captain many wickets. After 55 ODIs, his best is 3 for 24. His numbers suffer further when he bowls outside the subcontinent. Two days ago, when Ashwin was introduced to rein in the Sri Lanka openers, he had no answer. India’s weakness in pace is well-known, but it’s the ineffectiveness of their spinners in this series that is worrying.

Team news

West Indies made one change to their squad for the Trinidad matches, bringing in fast bowler Jason Holder in place of the injured Ravi Rampaul, but they are likely to keep their pace combination of Kemar Roach and Tino Best to hustle the India batsmen. Dwayne Bravo, who was rested in the previous match as a precautionary measure following a groin strain, will return to lead the side at his home ground.West Indies (probable) 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Johnson Charles, 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Dwayne Bravo (capt), 6 Kieron Pollard, 7 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 8 Darren Sammy, 9 Sunil Narine, 10 Kemar Roach, 11 Tino BestIndia felt Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s absence in their previous game as the first wicket that usually comes early took 39 overs to come. He could replace Shami Ahmed in the XI.India (probable) 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Rohit Sharma, 3 M Vijay, 4 Virat Kohli (capt), 5 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 6 Suresh Raina, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Ishant Sharma, 11 Umesh Yadav

Stats and trivia

• West Indies’ win-loss record against India at Queen’s Park Oval stands at 7-4
• In this series, Bhuvneshwar Kumar is the most economical of India’s frontline bowlers. He is No. 15 on the list
• Chris Gayle has four centuries against India, his most against any country

Quotes

“The wicket last time was really slow and I just had a look, it has a bit of grass this time around, but it seems to be the same as the last time. I don’t think there is much of an adjustment needed as far as the conditions are concerned.”
“It’s like a dream come true for me. It’s always good to play in the Oval. But to be the captain of the West Indies team is something special.”