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There will be no DRS for Pakistan’s Test series against Sri Lanka and England in the UAE, though the system will be in place for the one-day and Twenty20 matches

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Sep-2011There will be no DRS for Pakistan’s Test series against Sri Lanka and England in the UAE, though the system will be in place for the one-day matches. The PCB has not been able to reach an agreement with its broadcaster, Ten Sports, to fund the technology required for the DRS for the Test matches, its chief operating officer Subhan Ahmad said.”We in principle support the use of the DRS and want it for both Tests and ODIs but unfortunately we couldn’t reach an understanding with our broadcasters for the Tests,” Ahmad told . “We have however reached an understanding with a company to bear the costs for the use of the DRS technology in the one-day matches in both series.”In its annual conference in June, the ICC had agreed to make the DRS mandatory for all Tests and ODIs, subject to commercial considerations. The DRS it mandated included Hot Spot but not necessarily ball-tracking technology.Since the PCB had contracted its broadcaster before the DRS had been approved, it did not have any agreement on who would fund the required technology. “But when we sign our next contract for broadcasting rights we will try to ensure the broadcaster is willing to bear the costs of using the DRS system in our series including Tests and ODIs,” Ahmad said. There was no announcement about whether the DRS for the series would employ the Hot Spot, ball tracking or both.Since the ICC’s decision at their conference, countries have used the DRS in different forms. For the ongoing England-India Test and one-day series, Hot Spot is being used but reviews for lbw decisions have been disallowed. Contrastingly, Sri Lanka have decided to use ball-tracking technology for their home series against Australia but have not been able to afford Hot Spot. Meanwhile, Zimbabwe have not used the DRS for either of their home series against Bangladesh and now Pakistan. The last time Pakistan used the review system was during the World Cup.Pakistan are scheduled to play three Tests, five ODIs and a Twenty20 international against Sri Lanka in the UAE in October-November, and then three Tests, four ODIs and three T20s against England in January-February next year.

Five Kenyan cricketers have turned down contracts offered by their board on the grounds of insufficient compensation

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jul-2011Five Kenyan cricketers have turned down contracts offered by their board on grounds of insufficient compensation. Cricket Kenya had offered new national contracts to 13 cricketers; seven have accepted them. They are: captain Collins Obuya, Seren Waters, Hiren Varaiya, Rakep Patel, Runesh Gudka, Lucas Ouloch and Ragheb Aga. Alex Obanda, Shem Ngoche, James Ngoche, Nehemiah Odhiambo and Elijah Otieno turned down the contracts and the board promptly withdrew them.Tanmay Mishra, the Mumbai-born Kenya batsman, will be available for national duty, though he’s chosen to play domestic cricket in India this season.
Kenya Cricket’s chief executive Tom Sears said: “We are very pleased with the group of players who have committed to Cricket Kenya but obviously disappointed that some players chose not to sign their new contracts.”Every player received an offer amounting to a basic increase to their monthly retainer of at least 10% and the opportunity to improve that figure significantly through consistent high performance. They were also offered guaranteed match fees for domestic cricket for the first time which would significantly increase their earnings. The fact that they have declined these improved offers calls into question some of the advice they have been receiving but that is a matter for the players themselves.”Having met with all the players on several occasions and heard what they and their advisors have said, we made repeated offers during the last month to meet with the players individually to discuss their contract offers but some declined to do that, either through their own choice or by instruction from their advisors – if we are not told what the players’ issues are it is impossible for us to deal with them. Cricket Kenya can only wait for so long for players to commit and the time has come for us to move on and look at other players who are seeking the opportunity to show what they can do at international level.”Several senior cricketers, including World Cup captain Jimmy Kamande and Thomas Odoyo, were not offered contracts this year in a move to look to the future. The contracts run for 12 months and offer improved salaries and match fees. It remains to be seen if the refusal from the five cricketers puts their availability in doubt. Kenya take on UAE in two limited-overs games next week, followed by a four-day Intercontinental Cup fixture in Nairobi.

Ireland’s victory over England has thrown Group B wide open, but the match between Bangladesh and West Indies in Mirpur is still a crucial one, and both captains think they can win

Sidharth Monga in Mirpur03-Mar-2011Months before the World Cup started, when the groups were drawn up, instinctively one match was looked upon as the potential knockout before the knockouts. That match is upon us. Bangladesh, ranked higher than West Indies in the ICC one-day rankings, and not undeservingly so looking at the results over the last year or two, meet West Indies at home. However, Ireland and England have jumbled up the equations a bit, and this match is not as simple as a winners-go-to-quarters affair.That doesn’t make the game any less importance though. The team that loses this one will have to travel a long road back into contention. The captains of the sides sought to not talk the game up.”To me nothing has changed,” Darren Sammy said of the upset that Ireland pulled off on Wednesday night to become one of the outside contenders themselves. “Every team in this tournament came out to give a good account of themselves. For me every match is a very important match. We have played two games, we focused on each team on the day we played. Now we focus on Bangladesh, and are looking to go out there and execute whatever plans we have in stock.”Shakib Al Hasan, the Bangladesh captain, said this was not their last chance. “Obviously we want to go to the next round,” Shakib said. “It is not as if we to win tomorrow because we will have three more matches, but a win will surely take us a step forward.”Ireland’s win over England has thrown the group wide open, but Bangladesh do not want to think too far ahead at the moment. “I don’t know how the Ireland game will benefit us,” Shakib said. “It will do so only if we beat England too.”Shakib Al Hasan said Bangladesh’s win in the West Indies in 2009 would give them confidence•Associated Press

Coming back to Friday’s game, both the captains said they could win, the rider being if their sides played as well as they are capable of. “If we play well West Indies are definitely beatable,” Shakib said. Bangladesh swept a two-match Test series and a three-match one-day series in the West Indies in July 2009, but Shakib said he realised that was not a full-strength squad (several West Indies players had skipped the series due to a feud with the board over contracts). “That team did not have some senior players,” he said. “They have all gained in experience, and with the return of Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Shivnarine Chanderpaul, they are a better side now.”But in the back of our minds we will always know that we have beaten them at their home. We will not go onto the back foot even before the start. It is our home and we have so much support. If we consider that, I think the advantage they think they have because of the return of their seniors will be neutralised.”Sammy was expectedly asked about his side being ranked lower than Bangladesh. “Cricket is played on the day,” he said. “You saw what happened on Wednesday night. England scored 327, Ireland chased it down. You can say Bangladesh are ranked higher than us, but we have to go out and play to the best of our ability. We won’t be taking them lightly, but at the end of the day, they are beatable; we have done it before.”Playing to the best of their ability seemed to both captains’ refrain of the day, and if their sides heed their call, it will be some game.

Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf has signed up to play with Bangladesh club Mohammedan Sporting in the Premier Division Cricket League in Bangladesh

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Dec-2010Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf has signed up to play with Bangladesh club Mohammedan Sporting in the Premier Division Cricket League in Bangladesh. The club has brought in Yousuf in place of Sri Lanka allrounder Farveez Maharoof, who returned home after sustaining an injury.Yousuf, 36, who was ruled out the Test series against in South Africa in November due to a groin injury, was not picked for the upcoming Test series against New Zealand due to concerns over his fitness. Yusuf has played 90 Tests for Pakistan, averaging 52.29, but since the beginning of 2008 he has averaged just under 35 in 11 Tests, with a solitary hundred.”I have no idea about the competition [in Bangladesh] but you know cricket is cricket,” Yousuf told reporters after he completed the contractual formalities at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka. “I can understand the standard and nature of the competition after playing the first couple of games. I want to play all the matches if I am not selected for national duty. As a professional cricketer it would not be hard to motivate myself in this competition.”Several Pakistan cricketers including former fast bowler Wasim Akram have played in the Premier Division Cricket League.

Gardner, King take three wickets each to seal victory despite Sciver-Brunt’s 111*

Valkerie Baynes16-Jul-2023Alana King and Ashleigh Gardner spun Australia to victory – and retention of the Ashes – with a thrilling three-run win over England in the second ODI in Southampton.A century to Nat Sciver-Brunt, her third in four ODIs against Australia, brought the hosts to the brink of a win that would keep the series alive but, with five runs needed off the final ball, she managed only a single off the left-arm spin of experienced death bowler Jess Jonassen before a crowd of 12,380. Australia have eight points to England’s six with one more match to play at Taunton on Tuesday, where the best England can hope for is to secure a win which would draw the series.Ellyse Perry had set Australia up nicely with 91, helped by Annabel Sutherland’s half-century and a thrilling cameo of 37 off just 14 balls from No. 8 Georgia Wareham. Perry’s 81-run partnership for the sixth wicket with Sutherland, in addition fifty stands with Beth Mooney and Gardner, provided the backbone of Australia’s total of 282 for 7 which asked England to produce their most successful run chase in ODIs for the second match in a row after their pursuit of 264 in Bristol.But King, who hadn’t played since the Test match, which opened the series, replaced quick Darcie Brown as Australia went for a spin-heavy attack and broke the game open with three wickets for 15 in the space of 23 balls while Gardner claimed 3 for 54 and conceded just six runs off the penultimate over, leaving England chasing 15 off the last. Sciver-Brunt marshalled the closing stages almost to perfection with No. 9 Sarah Glenn, who remained unbeaten on 22 from 35 balls. But, in scenes reminiscent of the 2022 World Cup where Sciver-Brunt scored fighting centuries in losing causes to Australia during the group stage and in the final, her 111 not out fell agonisingly short.In-form opener Tammy Beaumont set England’s response off in fine fashion, her back-to-back fours off King past mid-off gave her 20 runs in boundaries by the end of the sixth over and after the 10-over powerplay England were 62 without loss.Legspinner Wareham came on in the 12th over and struck with her third ball as Sophia Dunkley tried to paddle but instead had the top of her off stump rattled to depart for a laboured 13 off 30.King then rapped Heather Knight on the front knee-roll in line with middle stump in the 18th over and, although Knight reviewed immediately, her dismissal was upheld convincingly. Sciver-Brunt managed to overturn her lbw decision to Tahlia McGrath in the next over when replays showed the ball was missing down the leg side. But then King produced a stunning legbreak to beat Beaumont’s forward defence and ping the top of off stump and had Alice Capesy out cheaply, picking out Gardner just inside the rope at deep midwicket to leave England 123 for 4.Nat Sciver-Brunt played another valiant knock but was unable to get her side over the line•Getty Images

England were still looking good at the halfway point of their innings, at 132 for 4 compared to Australia’s 119 for 4 but then Danni Wyatt sent a Gardner delivery high to Sutherland at long-on and it fell to Sciver-Brunt and Amy Jones to make running repairs to the innings.Consecutive fours to Jones off Megan Schutt in the 33rd over eased the pressure and Sutherland missed a difficult chance running back at mid-on when Jones was on 34 but then Jones’ attempted reverse-sweep off Gardner found Schutt at backward point and her 57-run stand with Sciver-Brunt ended. Sophie Ecclestone followed lbw to Gardner three balls later and Australia needed 73 from the last ten overs.With England needing 38 off last five, King conceded just three runs off her last over, the 46th, while Jonassen conceded eight off the 48th. Sciver-Brunt was dropped by Wareham at deep midwicket off the second ball of the penultimate over but England couldn’t quite make Australia pay, despite Sciver-Brunt’s slog-sweep for four followed by two mad dashes for two.Earlier, Phoebe Litchfield unleashed a sumptuous cover drive for four off Lauren Bell, but was pinned back by one that angled in from just outside off stump on the next ball and Bell had her second wicket when Alyssa Healy spooned tamely to Capsey at short third so that Australia were 27 for 2 inside six overs.They stretched that to 59 for 2 by the end of the powerplay as Mooney and Perry settled into a 61-run stand. The Australian duo upped the tempo in the 16th and 17th overs as Mooney crashed a one-bounce four off Sciver-Brunt down the ground and swept Ecclestone to the boundary. But it was Mooney’s attempted sweep off Ecclestone in the 19th over which was her undoing, Bell snaffling the edge at short fine leg and Australia were 88 for 3.Legspinner Glenn struck with the first ball of her second over when had Tahlia McGrath caught behind attempting to cut. Gardner received a life on 4 when she sent a Capsey delivery looping towards short third, Ecclestone running across and getting her left had to the ball but failing to hold on. Gardner capitalised by sending Glenn over long on-for six and moments later Perry brought up her fifty with a pull to square leg for two.Fans flocked to Southampton to watch the second ODI•PA Photos/Getty Images

Glenn had an lbw appeal turned down in her next over, Perry surviving England’s review on umpires call, missing a tough caught-and-bowled chance in an eventful 28th over.Ecclestone made up for her earlier blunder with an excellent catch at mid-off from Bell, who had just returned to the attack to remove Gardner and break a 56-run partnership with Perry.Kate Cross had already bowled her ten-over allocation when she went off with what was later diagnosed as persistent cramp after putting down Perry on 63 at mid-off from Ecclestone.Sutherland contributed an impressive 50 from 47 balls, including three fours off one Bell over, down the ground, over wide mid-on an through fine leg. She and Perry were busy in the 43rd over, Glenn conceding 17 from it.But then England’s bowlers regained control with Ecclestone bowling a tight 45th over, which went for just five runs, and Bell conceding only four from the next. Sutherland brought up her fifty with a single cut just short of point off Ecclestone’s next over but then Ecclestone snared the wickets of Perry and Sutherland, holing out to long-off and long-on respectively in the space of four balls.Sciver-Brunt conceded just five runs off the penultimate over but then Wareham helped herself to 26 runs from the last. As Bell kept putting the ball in the slot, Wareham launched back-to-back sixes over deep square leg and deep midwicket, followed by fours over mid-off and extra cover which bookended another maximum over mid-on.

Nepal knocked out, even as Max O’Dowd fell for 90 in the 168 chase to miss out on his first ODI hundred

Ekanth24-Jun-2023Netherlands progressed to the Super Sixes by bouncing Nepal’s batters, and later belting their bowlers in Harare. The loss knocks Nepal out of the World Cup Qualifiers, and also confirms West Indies and Zimbabwe’s progress into the next stage. Put in to bat in bowler-friendly conditions, Nepal folded for 167, unable to navigate a middle-overs crisis caused by Vikramjit Singh and furthered by Logan van Beek.Van Beek found movement in the air and off the seam early on. He had Aasif Sheikh chop on in the third over of Nepal’s innings, which brought Kushal Bhurtel and Bhim Sharki together and they fought their way through even if they didn’t always look in control. They miscued a lot of their horizontal bat shots.Bhurtel welcomed Vikramjit with a cut that went through cover for four and a punch through mid-on for three. But Vikramjit found his lengths to firstly dry up the runs, and then dismiss Bhurtel and Aarif Sheikh in the 15th and the 17th over, respectively. That started Nepal’s slump from 46 for 1 to 91 for 5, and they could not recover thereafter.Extra bounce and seam movement from Vikramjit accounted for Bhurtel (caught behind) and Aarif (caught at gully). Sharki, who saw out the new ball, started aiming for the boundary after Bhurtel’s wicket. He mistimed a hook, and almost cut Bas de Leede to the fielder. His luck ran out when he sliced Clayton Floyd’s first ball to point.Kushal Malla’s characteristic positivity led to the first six of the game when he slog swept Floyd over midwicket in the 21st over. But his aggression didn’t work against Aryan Dutt, who bowled back-to-back maidens and then got Malla to mistime a slog to long-off.Nepal captain Rohit Paudel pounced on Aryan in the 29th over, taking him for a six and a four. That led to van Beek’s return, and the full-fledged deployment of the short-ball tactic. Paudel and Dipendra Singh Airee were out to the pull in the space of two overs.Despite Sandeep Lamichhane impulsively making room to open up gaps and Gulsan Jha working the ball around to build a steady 32-run stand for the eighth wicket and thus give Nepal some respectability, it was only a matter of time till the bouncers fetched Netherlands wickets. This time it was de Leede, who got Jha and Karan KC in the 42nd over. Lamichhane got a couple of streaky boundaries before also succumbing to the pull. He was the last man out; Nepal’s innings closed out with 33 balls to spare.Max O’Dowd started the modest chase with a clear plan: get across the line and hit the spinners to the leg side. He swept and pulled Lalit Rajbanshi, Lamichhane, and Airee to end the first powerplay with Netherlands up to 58 without loss.Vikramjit offered steady support at the other end, and by the time Lamichhane trapped him lbw in the 13th over, Netherlands had already broken the back of the chase with an 86-run opening stand.Two overs later, Lamichhane having Wesley Barresi out reverse sweeping to short third led to a minor slowdown. But new batter de Leede settled in thereafter, and combined with O’Dowd to rotate strike and find regular boundaries to take Netherlands close.With ten runs left to win, O’Dowd was knocked over for 90 by Jha. Despite O’Dowd missing out on what would have been a match-winning first ODI century, Netherlands had no trouble powering through to a seven-wicket win with as many as 137 balls remaining.

England opener returns to form in style after lean run in 2022

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jan-2023Jason Roy put what he described as a “horrible year” behind him with a career-saving century in Bloemfontein on Friday, and admitted afterwards that the angry emotions that he unleashed upon reaching three figures had been “locked away in a cupboard” throughout his run of lean form.Roy’s 79-ball century was his 11th in ODIs but his first against a Full Member nation since the 2019 World Cup, and though it was not enough to secure victory for England in the opening match of their tour of South Africa, it may well have transformed his prospects of helping to defend their 50-over title in India later this year.He struck 11 fours and four sixes all told, as he passed fifty in an England shirt for the first time in 15 innings, dating back to the tour of the Netherlands in June 2022. With the teams back in action on Sunday for the second ODI, also at Bloemfontein, Roy admitted that his personal satisfaction, for once, far outweighed the frustration of defeat.”I’m feeling very good,” he said on the morning after the match. “I actually didn’t sleep that well – I had about five hours sleep. I was a bit overcome with a few emotions and stuff like that, it’s been a turbulent few months. I woke up really well, though, it was the best five hours’ sleep I’ve had.”Yeah, it was a little bit of anger around it all, just because I set everything to the back of my mind and locked a few things away in a cupboard and went out and played the way I have played throughout my career and which I haven’t played in the last couple [of years]. I was frustrated I hadn’t got to that mindset earlier but it was a very nice feeling.”Unlike their build-up to the 2019 World Cup, England have limited opportunities to fine-tune their squad for India. The forthcoming tour of Bangladesh offers their last chance for 50-over practice until September, when New Zealand and Ireland visit for three ODIs each.Roy, however, doesn’t consider his return to form against South Africa to be any guarantee of selection for the World Cup.”No, not at all, absolutely not, I don’t see it that way,” he said. “I’ve played a lot of games in my career, been around for a while now and even after a bad year you can get forgotten quite quickly. It’s a case of keeping pushing, keeping this environment going in this culture we have in the team because it’s a huge year ahead for us in 50-over cricket.”Hopefully [I will play the World Cup] but it’s one step at a time. It’s one game into a series, one game into the year in international cricket, so I’ve got to keep scoring runs and just building this team to the place where we were at back in 2019.”It’s been a horrible year – it’s not how you start the year, it’s how you finish it. I think I started last year pretty nicely and then things went downhill from there. I’ve just got to stay positive and keep pushing.”Roy had given little indication of a return to form during his stint in the SA20 this month, having managed a top-score of 33 in eight appearances for Paarl Royals. However, with his England captain Jos Buttler alongside him at the franchise, Roy said that the support of his team-mate had been crucial in keeping a level head.”I’ve got a great relationship with Jos on and off the field, we speak very honestly with each other and spending the last couple of weeks with each other at the SA20 league has helped,” he said. “I had a lot of thoughts and opinions and how I felt my last year had gone, and those conversations were great and it allowed me to free myself up for this innings I just played.”

“He has absolute control of what he is doing. So when he steps out on the field, he knows how much he can contribute for the team”

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Sep-20193:38

Hanuma Vihari is the find of the series – Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli has called Jasprit Bumrah “the most complete bowler in world cricket”. His comments came at the end of a series in which Bumrah picked up 13 wickets in two Tests at an average of 9.23, including the third hat-trick in the format by an Indian.”There is not much you can say about Jasprit, the way he has been bowling,” Kohli said after India completed a 2-0 series win in the West Indies. “All we can say is we are really lucky to have him on our team.”Very rarely do you find a pack of bowlers who are hunting together. And bowling for each other, bowling in partnerships. If you see today, he had a bit of a niggle, but he came in and just bowled three overs in a spot, did the job for the team when he was in pain as well.”

Virat Kohli on…

Concussion subs: “It’s very different because on that day you can play but when you come out the next day it’s a different situation altogether. AB [de Villiers] got hit in thre IPL this year, against Mumbai, against Jasprit [Bumrah] and then on the night he played and he was fine. And the next day he was dizzy waking up. If a guy has had a bad hit, that next day is critical and if he is not in a good shape, you cannot put out a guy when he is dizzy, it can get dangerous.”
India’s performance: “I think the find of the series has to be Hanuma Vihari. The way he has batted under pressure especially. And on a much more challenging wicket here in Jamaica than in Antigua, I think his skills set were outstanding, his temperament and techniques were top notch and he countered everything the oppositions threw at him. So very, very pleased with the way he has come about. And the bowlers outstanding as they were, Ajinkya Rahane as well, getting back into the runs, one of our top test players over the years – really, really happy to see everything coming along nicely.”

Watching Bumrah from the slips, Kohli says he sympathised with the batsman facing him. The 25-year old has only played 12 Tests but already has 62 wickets at 19.24.”It’s not all about going for wickets all the time, it’s about bowling in partnerships, but when he gets some kind of momentum, you can see what he can do in five-six overs with the new ball which we saw in the first innings [when he took the hat-trick],” Kohli said. “I haven’t seen many more lethal spells than that in the last couple of Tests, than those two spells by Bumrah, and as a batsman you feel, standing in slips, you can feel for the batsmen who are playing him, you know.ALSO READ: Captaincy is just a ‘c’ in front of your name – Kohli“He confuses you with angles, with swing, he’ll set up for the outswinger, then bowl the inswinger, and it’s coming at pace, and then he can hit you with bouncers as well. So I think he is the most complete bowler in world cricket right now.”Asked what made Bumrah the bowler he was, Kohli said it was the effort he put in to improve constantly.”It’s the mindset, when you put your mind to a certain thing, you strive towards it,” Kohli said. “He definitely wants to be the best bowler in the world, there is no question about it. He has moulded his life like that, he has moulded his discipline, his work ethic, the way he trains, the way he takes care of his diet, the way he bowls as much as he has to.Jasprit Bumrah is swarmed by team-mates after completing a hat-trick•Associated Press

“He has absolute control of what he is doing. So when he steps out on the field, he knows how much he can contribute for the team. It is really pleasing to see a guy who was tagged as a T20 specialist, he came in and took over the one-day scene, and now he is taking over Test cricket. He is proving people wrong that there is a set template for every format. If you have belief, you can play every format. I totally vouch for that as well. He definitely has the mindset to succeed in all three formats and wants to be the best in the world.”Asked about India playing Ravindra Jadeja ahead of R Ashwin as their lead spinner on this tour, Kohli said the left-armer’s control won him the spot.”It’s the control we can bank on with Jadeja,” he said. “He has probably been our most consistent and most accurate bowler away from India, and there is a reason why he is constantly playing in the eleven, because he gives you control even when the wicket is not supporting his bowling.”As a batsman, when the bowler is pitching balls in areas where you can get out constantly even when it’s not turning so much, he is always in the game, and that’s his USP, with the bat, with the ball, and in the field there is no one better than him in the world, so he is just in a great zone right now.”He is willing to contribute for the team all the time, and you can see he wants the ball. He wants to do the job for the team, and when a guy is bowling like that and when he is in that mindset, then your job becomes easier.”

A lack of big contributions from the line-up, a strong Australian attack and surfaces that are expected to be drier and more abrasive than usual may force the hosts to avoid thinking about a fourth fast bowler

Firdose Moonda07-Mar-2018South Africa are likely to keep their combination of seven batsmen for the second Test against Australia which starts on Friday. Though they had opted for a fourth fast bowler at the expense of a batsman in the previous series against India, a lack of big contributions from their line-up, a strong Australian bowling attack and surfaces that are expected to be drier and more abrasive than usual have forced the hosts to rethink their approach.St George’s Park is traditionally the slowest surface out of the big Test venues in South Africa, and is generally where spinners find some success. It is also where reverse swing has been a factor in the past and, with Mitchell Starc showing how effectively he could make use of that in Durban, the need for an extra batsman is apparent. “When you look at the nature of the pitch and the Aussie line-up, you feel like you need an extra batter,” coach Ottis Gibson said. “We bowled them out twice but we weren’t able to get enough runs, especially in the first innings. You can’t bat that badly in your first innings against a top team like Australia and expect to win the Test match. Even though we gave ourselves a chance of winning in the end, the poor batting in the first innings really cost us.”After being shot out for 162, with the big names not performing and the lower order collapsing, South Africa were behind the game from day two. Gibson said they simply had to “bat better” as the series moves on and the second innings in Durban showed they are capable of doing so. Aiden Markram led the resistance with a career-best 143, Theunis de Bruyn boshed an aggressive 36 and wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock returned to form with a stubborn 83.With the places of seniors Dean Elgar, Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis secure, South Africa could go in with the same line-up, however they may give consideration to reserve batsman Temba Bavuma, if he has recovered from injury. Bavuma suffered a broken finger earlier in the year and has not played franchise cricket since January 17. He featured in a club match in a fitness test of sorts before this series, but was ruled out of Durban because he was not fully recovered.Gibson revealed Bavuma may be able to play in Port Elizabeth, but did not say at whose expense. “Temba is being assessed by medical staff. Last week he felt he wasn’t 100%. He’s had an extra week now and is hitting more balls in the nets. Hopefully he’ll be closer to playing.”Similarly, the extra quick in the squad, Lungi Ngidi may have to wait a little longer for his turn after an impressive debut against India. South Africa’s struggles to nip out the Australian tail has led to some calls for Ngidi to play but Gibson has faith in the current pack to do the job. “With regards to the lower-order bowling, they have got Starc and you’ve seen how he has bowled to our tail. He has been aggressive but he’s also pitched the ball up and hit the stumps. We have Rabada, even Keshav bowled well. We’ve got to find a way to get the tail out and it might be with the spinner coming into it to try and disrupt their tail that way.”

As England began their first practice session of their tour of Bangladesh, stand-in limited-overs captain Jos Buttler said it was “refreshing” that the focus was back on the cricket

Mohammad Isam02-Oct-20160:55

Focus on security as England arrive

Just after 3.45 pm on Sunday afternoon, England entered the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur for the first time on their tour of Bangladesh. The convoy was long, but the security personnel’s movement had been well rehearsed and spot-on. It had taken them less than 20 minutes to reach the ground from their hotel, driving mostly on roads emptied for what is locally called “VIP movement”.There wasn’t too much fuss after their arrival as they smoothly went about their business at the National Cricket Academy ground, a plush facility that has several practice pitches and a rectangular outfield. England began their warm-up while their stand-in captain Jos Buttler went to his first press conference on tour.

Farbrace on security

England’s assistant coach, Paul Farbrace, toured Bangladesh with Sri Lanka in 2014, when the political situation had people doubting whether the series, and the subsequent Asia Cup and World T20, would be held there due to security reasons.
But all three tournaments went off smoothly, and Farbrace has good memories of that tour. He said that the security in Bangladesh doesn’t come in their way in the team hotel, adding that the players’ uneasiness would dissipate once they saw the environment at the cricket grounds.
“The good thing is it’s been no different to the last time we were here,” Farbrace said. “Around the hotel it’s not too in your face, like Pakistan where there are guards sat outside your door with guns. First thing you see in the morning is a pair of boots and the butt of a gun. It’s not like that here and I don’t think we could be in a better place really.
“Once you get the first practice out the way, if the lads are in any way apprehensive, they will realise it’s about cricket now. There was always going to be a big show at the airport, but you only have to be here a day to realise how everyone just wants to talk about cricket. Once Reg had given his OK, you have to trust him.”

As the nets were being drawn up and the batsmen got padded up, assistant coach Paul Farbrace sized up the net bowlers, who nearly outnumbered the England entourage. Buttler said this is exactly what he and the team had been looking forward to – the cricket.”Security is paramount when traveling to the subcontinent but we are always looked after well,” Buttler said. “Obviously there is a lot of security but that’s part and parcel of making the tour okay. Thankfully, now we are here. We will start practicing today and start thinking about cricket. I think those things will go back into the background. It will be a very competitive series.”I think today we start training and start gearing up for the matches. Bangladesh have been playing well in their own conditions. We need to be prepared. All we want to do is play cricket. Once we start, it will be very refreshing to start talking about the cricket side of things.”This is Buttler’s fourth tour to Bangladesh, having come here earlier with the England Under-19 in 2009, England Lions in 2012 and the senior team during the 2014 World T20. He said that the challenge would be for the batsmen to survive the tricky early period of every innings which would reveal the nature of the pitch. He added, though, that while adjusting to conditions they would not lose their attacking team persona.”It would be a good challenge for the guys,” Buttler said. “We had a series in Dubai last winter on those pitches in which we played well. We have to learn to adapt and win in all conditions. We still want to be aggressive and bat as fast as we can, but conditions will dictate.”From previous experience, I think it takes 10 or 15 balls. If you can get through that period, then you start to get used to the pace of the pitch and the timing. Rotation of the strike, and boundaries may be tougher to come by. We will play our brand of cricket but we will adjust it to conditions.”Buttler said that playing against Bangladesh would be a major challenge, given how confident they are playing at home. They have now won six ODI series in a row at home since November 2014, and have developed several match-winners along the way.”We will be playing against a confident team in their own conditions. If you look at the makeup of the Bangladesh side, their spinners have been doing well. We will be ready to get used to the conditions. We are focused on ourselves and what we need to prepare. We are a young athletic team and I will want us to play in the same way.”