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The Sri Lanka Premier League will be broadcast to a global audience via Youtube, SLC president Upali Dharmadasa confirmed on Thursday, with all 24 matches to be streamed on an official SLPL channel

Andrew Fernando02-Aug-2012The Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL) will be broadcast to a global audience via Youtube, SLC president Upali Dharmadasa confirmed on Thursday, with all 24 matches to be streamed on an official SLPL channel.The move to stream the tournament on Youtube had been initiated by Somerset Entertainment Ventures, who are handling the marketing and operations of the SLPL. “It was an idea that was brought to us, and we approved it because it gives the tournament the benefit of reaching more cricket fans around the world,” Dharmadasa said.ESPN Star Sports* hold the broadcast rights to the SLPL and will be screening the tournament in Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, as well as in a host of other South and South East Asian countries.The SLPL begins on August 11, and will see seven franchises competing over three weeks. The final is scheduled for August 31.*ESPN STAR Sports is a 50:50 joint venture between Walt Disney (ESPN, Inc.), the parent company of ESPNcricinfo, and News Corporation Limited (STAR)

MCC has elected four new members to its main committee. Angus Fraser, John Barclay, Hugo Loudon and Robert Griffiths will take up their three-year positions on October 1.

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Mar-2012MCC has elected four new members to its main committee. Angus Fraser, John Barclay, Hugo Loudon and Robert Griffiths will take up their three-year positions on October 1.The four will replace Matthew Fleming, Charles Fry, Christopher Martin-Jenkins and Colin Maber, who will retire as elected members on September 30.”MCC will continue to be well served from October, with a committee intake that boasts an excellent amount of cricketing skills and expertise,” Oliver Stocken, the MCC chairman, said. “I look forward to welcoming everyone on to the committee in the autumn.”Former-England fast bowler, Fraser, is now managing director of cricket at Middlesex; Barclay played for Sussex for 17 years and is a former MCC president; Loudon, 33, is financial controller of BSkyB and, having played for Hampshire and Kent second XI’s, has been a regular player in MCC colours; Griffith is a practicing Queen’s Counsel and has been chairman of the MCC laws sub-committee since 2008.The new members become part of the 20-strong MCC vommittee, which comprises the president, the club chairman, six chairmen of committees and twelve elected members.

Ben Hilfenhaus could be next to join Mitchell Johnson on the sidelines for Friday’s second Test after Australia’s captain, Ricky Ponting, hinted that Ryan Harris was strongly in contention for a recall alongside Doug Bollinger

Andrew Miller in Adelaide02-Dec-2010Ben Hilfenhaus is set to join Mitchell Johnson on the sidelines for Friday’s second Test after Australia’s captain, Ricky Ponting, hinted that Ryan Harris was strongly in contention for a recall alongside Doug Bollinger. Bollinger is expected to replace Johnson, who was dropped following Australia’s toothless display during England’s 1 for 517 at the Gabba, while Cricinfo understands that the selectors have opted for Harris over Hilfenhaus on a wicket that is not expected to offer much conventional swing beyond the first day.”Hilfy’s strengths are his ability to swing the new ball, he’s very consistent, bowls in good areas and can tie batters down, as we saw at different times during the Brisbane Test,” said Ponting. “Ryan’s strengths are he’s grown up playing all his cricket here, he’s probably slightly quicker through the air, and he hits the wicket a bit harder than Ben does, and he’s probably a better reverse-swing bowler for later in the game, which comes into consideration in Adelaide.”Harris, who has a chronic knee injury, has been in excellent form on the domestic scene since returning from off-season surgery, while Hilfenhaus was Australia’s best bowler in the tour of India in October. Although Hilfenhaus launched Australia’s Ashes campaign in dramatic fashion by capturing Andrew Strauss for a third-ball duck in Brisbane, he failed to claim another wicket in 50.3 overs for the match. He particularly struggled for penetration when the new ball went soft, and is understood to be feeling the effects of a slight hamstring strain.Harris, meanwhile, learned his cricket at the Adelaide Oval before moving to Queensland three years ago, and with his extra pace through the air is a likelier man to exploit any reverse-swing that may be on offer at a venue that can favour the art. “If you put all those things together, it makes that decision a pretty difficult one,” Ponting said.Bollinger, whose tally of 49 in 11 matches to date makes him Australia’s only remaining bowler in the top ten of the ICC World Rankings, seems certain to return after losing out to Peter Siddle at Brisbane. With Johnson already cut from the 13-man squad, the notion of purging two of the three specialist quick bowlers is a drastic one.”Is it unstable [to make two bowling changes]?” Ponting asked. “No, because we have to pick the best team for every condition that we are confronted with in the summer. We didn’t win a Test last week, and so hopefully the team we pick this week will be good enough to win. We wouldn’t make changes if we didn’t think it would make the attack better for this game. We’ve got to pick the best five bowlers we could possibly have to get 20 wickets in each game.”Harris, a bowler whom Ponting rates highly, bowled especially sharply during Australia’s first practice session at the Adelaide Oval on Wednesday. However, he did not feature in the nets on Thursday, leading to a suggestion that he was feeling the effects of his knee problem.Ponting denied that this was the case. “We’re not worried about Ryan’s knee at all,” he said. “The reason he didn’t bowl today was nothing to do with his knee. We’ve made one big decision to leave a guy out [Johnson], so we wouldn’t be doing that if we were taking a risk on someone who’s got an injury. We want to keep it up our sleeves for tomorrow morning, and see what the best 11 is.”Harris’ knee is now a case of bone rubbing on bone and he will have to manage the pain throughout the rest of his career, hence the caution during Thursday’s session. He convinced the selectors of his form and fitness by claiming four wickets for Queensland in a one-day game last week, and a further six in the recent Sheffield Shield fixture against Victoria. He impressed Ponting during his only two Tests to date, against New Zealand in March, during which he claimed nine wickets at 23.”Coming out of the game he played the other day, he had a good bowl yesterday and we didn’t expect all of our bowlers bowling every day before the game,” said Ponting. “That’s pretty much what the staff wanted them to do, to get their workload high enough leading into the Test. If you look at both Bollinger and Harris, what they’ve done in state cricket has been pretty impressive. I faced Dougie this morning and he was impressive, while Ryan was on the mark yesterday. They are obviously ready to go so we’ll work things out tomorrow morning.”

Ijaz Butt, the chairman of PCB, has said no Pakistani team will participate in the Champions League Twenty20 this year

Cricinfo staff25-Feb-2010Ijaz Butt, the chairman of PCB, has said no Pakistani team will participate in the Champions League Twenty20 this year.”I have already spoken to Lalit Modi about this and there is no chance of any team from Pakistan playing in the Champions League this year,” Butt was quoted as saying by . “After the way our players were treated [in the IPL auction] I don’t see our players or teams taking part in the Champions League this year.”The Champions League features the best domestic Twenty20 teams from across the world. The first edition of the tournament was held in India last year. Pakistan was originally included as one of the participating countries, but they were omitted due to the political fallout of the Mumbai terror attacks. The venue for the 2010 tournament is yet to be announced.Despite the exclusion, and the subsequent IPL cold-shoulder, Lalit Modi had expressed confidence that Pakistan would return to future editions of the leagues. Butt, however, said that this was still undecided.”Our future participation in the IPL and Champions League remains undecided but this year atleast we are not taking part in either event.”

The wristspinner recently played for MI Emirates in the ILT20 and has also played one T20I

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Apr-20242:36

Will SRH miss Hasaranga as the pitches dry out?

Sunrisers Hyderabad have signed 22-year-old Sri Lanka legspinner Vijayakanth Viyaskanth as a replacement for the injured Wanindu Hasaranga at his reserve price of INR 50 lakh. Hasaranga was officially ruled out of IPL 2024 on Saturday owing to chronic pain in his heel that initially delayed his arrival for the tournament.Viyaskanth first rose to prominence in December 2020, when he became the youngest player at 18 years and 364 days to feature in the Lanka Premier League for Jaffna Stallions. In that tournament, he also became the first born-and-bred player from Jaffna, in Sri Lanka’s northern tip and once the epicentre of a three-decade-long civil war, to appear in an internationally televised game.He represented Sri Lanka at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou in one T20I. He also impressed with eight wickets in four outings at an economy of 5.43 for title winners MI Emirates – where Mahela Jayawardene is the global head of performance – at the ILT20.Vijayakanth Viyaskanth picked up three top-order wickets•SLC

Rajasthan Royals’ director of cricket and head coach Kumar Sangakkara had brought him in as a net bowler for the team in the IPL last season. He will now be working with another former Sri Lanka player, Muthiah Muralidaran, the bowling coach of Sunrisers.He has also represented Chattogram Challengers in the Bangladesh Premier League. In 33 T20s, Viyaskanth has 42 wickets at an average of 18.78, an economy of 6.76 and a strike rate of 16.6.Until early last week, the Sunrisers were hopeful of Hasaranga’s participation at some stage and were awaiting details of his consultation with a specialist in Dubai. On Sunday, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) communicated to the BCCI that Hasaranga had to be withdrawn from the IPL with an eye on the upcoming T20 World Cup in June-July.Hasaranga was bought by Sunrisers at his base price of INR 1.5 crore (approx USD 181,000) at the 2024 IPL auction in December, after Royal Challengers Bengaluru, who paid INR 10.75 crore for him in 2022, released him.

Timed-out dismissal: Mathews says that the on-field umpires had admitted to Sri Lanka’s coaching staff that they had not checked the time elapsed

Andrew Fidel Fernando06-Nov-20232:00

Shakib: ‘In a battle, I’ll do whatever is needed to win’

According to Angelo Mathews, the on-field umpires who adjudged him timed out on Monday had admitted to Sri Lanka’s coaching staff that they erred in not checking how much time had elapsed between the previous dismissal, and Mathews’ helmet strap breaking. It appears that Mathews heard of this admission second-hand.”The umpires [Marais Erasmus and Richard Illingworth] also admitted that it was an equipment malfunction and they could have gone upstairs and checked,” Mathews said in his post-match press conference. Sri Lanka coach Chris Silverwood also said, speaking to reporters after the game, that the team’s coaching staff had spoken to match officials about the dismissal, and that conversations between the two groups were ongoing.Either way, Mathews was drawing a line between what constituted a fair “timed out” dismissal, and what constituted time taken out of the game to replace faulty equipment.Related

• Donald on Mathews timed-out dismissal: 'Don't want to see that sort of thing in our game'

• Umpires informed Mathews of timed-out threat before helmet malfunction

• Mathews on timed-out dismissal: 'Never seen a team or a player stoop so low'

• Shakib on Mathews dismissal: 'Felt like I was at war, did what I had to for my team to win'

• Mathews becomes the first to be dismissed timed out in international cricket

However, the playing conditions, as it stands, does not make allowances for equipment malfunction – it only stipulates that the new batter be ready to receive the ball within two minutes of the previous dismissal, which, in a strict interpretation of the rule, Mathews was not.However, umpires frequently allow equipment to be changed mid-over if required – helmets and bats in particular. If the strap had broken one ball into Mathews’ innings, for example, there likely would have been no issues with his calling for a replacement and his taking some time picking one.”We talk about safety of the players, and you guys tell me if it’s right for me to take my guard without my helmet on,” Mathews said. “That’s where the umpires could have done a bigger job at the time because they could have gone back and checked. A wicketkeeper for a spinner they don’t let keep without his helmet. So how can I take my guard without my helmet? It’s completely an equipment malfunction.”What’s the point not checking at that time and then checking it afterwards?” Mathews continued. “You need to have your common sense in terms of using technology. It was clearly malfunction – it [the strap] just came off. I didn’t need to pull it and break it.”Although during the mid-match break, fourth umpire Adrian Holdstock had told Ian Bishop on the Star Sports broadcast that “in the instance this afternoon, the batter wasn’t ready to receive the ball within those two minutes even before the strap became an issue for him,” Mathews was correct in claiming that in fact he had five more seconds before the two minutes were up, when his strap broke.Fourth umpire Holdstock had also suggested at the halfway point of the match that it was the batter’s responsibility to have “all your equipment in place”.Mathews scoffed at this idea.”That’s quite laughable. It is our responsibility, yes – if I went out to bat against a fast bowler, it’s my responsibility obviously,” he said. “But something coming off, do you really think I would know if it’s going to come off? I don’t understand the logic.”

He took 2-19 and then slammed a half-century opening the batting to quell Guyana Amazon Warriors

Report by Saurabh Somani18-Aug-2020
17 overs per sideThere was rain, rustiness and a remarkable display by a bonafide T20 great, as Trinbago Knight Riders overcame a stumble to win the opening game of CPL 2020 against Guyana Amazon Warriors. With most players getting back to cricket after layoffs longer than they’ve ever had before, the cricket was patchy in parts – but that didn’t apply to Sunil Narine. With ball in hand he showed off new tricks, and with the bat, proved just how valuable he could be for a team with the license to go for it at the top of the order.Persistent rain meant the game began 90 minutes after the scheduled start, and was reduced to 17 overs a side. A cloudy sky and a shortened match made it a straightforward decision for Kieron Pollard to bowl first on winning the toss, but he and the Knight Riders would have hoped to chase a bit less than the 144 for 5 that the Warriors got, riding on the back of Shimron Hetmyer’s 63* off 44. However, Narine – who had taken 2 for 19 in four overs – came back out to slam 50 off 28 in the chase, which provided enough of a buffer to account for a late collapse as the Knight Riders won by four wickets, with two balls to spare.The return of Narine, the mystery bowlerHe has apparently spent the Covid-19 enforced lockdown perfecting new skills, because Narine unveiled a new bowling action in his first match back. He did away with any sort of load-up, instead hiding the ball behind his hip as he ran in to bowl and delivering from there itself. He had not been easy to read for batsmen in any case, and now proved even more difficult. Crucially, he didn’t lose any bite or accuracy with the new action. He bowled two overs in the Powerplay (reduced to five overs) and then two in the middle, getting the important wickets of opener Chandrapaul Hemraj and a resurgent Ross Taylor. Narine gave up runs at 4.75 an over, and no other bowler went below 7.Hetmyer carries WarriorsWarriors had a tepid start, with Hetmyer walking in to bat in the first over itself after Brandon King had fallen for a duck. He took his time settling in, preferring to knock the ball around rather than go for big shots. The pitch too wasn’t one where it was easy to start rapidly. Hetmyer assessed that and gradually started stepping on the pace, eventually finishing with a flurry that took Warriors to a more than competitive total. Taylor had provided the initial impetus after two early wickets, which allowed Hetmyer to bide his time. Importantly, he made it count.No rustiness for NarineIn the first four overs, Narine faced only four balls as Lendl Simmons ate up deliveries and was unable to get on with it. There was nothing to show that the mounting rate and not feeling bat on ball affected Narine in any way though, as he blazed merrily away once Simmons fell. As with several Narine top-order innings, this one had its share of balls not always middled, but it also had some amazingly struck shots. Narine gave the Knight Riders enough impetus with his half-century that despite some late strikes by Imran Tahir and an impressive Naveen-ul-Haq, they had the chase within reach at all times.

South Africa’s returning captain lauded his team’s character after they responded to the heavy defeat at Lord’s with a crushing victory

Firdose Moonda at Trent Bridge17-Jul-2017A week is a long time in politics, they say. It’s both much shorter and much longer in sport.For supporters, in a week an entire squad should be changed, a coach replaced and a mindset shifted. After South Africa’s defeat at Lord’s, half the batting line-up were under scrutiny, there was increased interest in Russell Domingo’s position especially with his reapplication still under consideration and concerns that the disappointments of a long and largely unsuccessful trip to the UK were haunting even the mostly successful Test outfit.For the squad concerned, that week was about long day after long day of trying to fix what went wrong without overhauling the system. Practically they cannot pick as many new players as public opinion demands, neither can they change the management and while they can reframe their approach a little, they can’t actually alter what is often spoken about as a “brand” of play in such a short space of time. They know that they will have to take a similar group of players and the same support staff and aim for a different result. So how exactly did South Africa achieve that?A lot can be put down to the basics, both in selection and team performance. South Africa dropped their worst performing batsman from Lord’s, JP Duminy, swapped out another batsman, Theunis de Bruyn, for an allrounder, Chris Morris and had their captain Faf du Plessis back. The changes gave them more stability in the line-up and more options in the attack. They also did not bowl a single no-ball at Trent Bridge after overstepping 10 times at Lord’s and took all their catches in Nottingham after putting down four in London.Those things were not done by the flicking of a switch or the taking of a scolding but by focusing on two key things. “One was character. The style of play we normally have is one with a lot of character and intensity and good body language,” du Plessis explained.South Africa pride themselves on their ability to bounce back, which has its own problems because it means they have to be behind first, but it has allowed them to develop thick, resilient skins. They were reminded of that after their drubbing at Lord’s.The second thing was how they respond to pressure. “In the first Test, we played some good cricket but at times that went missing a bit,” du Plessis said. “It’s important how long and how well we can do that because it puts pressure on the opposition and then also, when you are under pressure, to make sure how you respond to those moments to get the pressure back on the opposition.”South Africa’s battling effort in the first session of the match set the tone•Getty Images

South Africa’s batsmen built steadier partnerships than England by playing the patience game and their bowlers broke through England’s attacking approach. As a unit, South Africa could dictate terms throughout the match. “Pretty much from the toss to the last ball that we bowled, we were in control of this Test match,” du Plessis said.Even when du Plessis chose to bat first in conditions most other captains, including the home one, would have bowled in he was confident his men had it covered. “We knew it would be tough but and we are used to making those brave decisions,” he said. “Back in South Africa we prepare green wickets and we’re not scared of batting first. For England to only get one wicket and us to get 56 runs in that session set the tone.”Then they promoted their best batsmen to No.4 and it paid off handsomely. Quinton de Kock’s sprightly 68 gave the first innings life. Though he failed in the second innings, South Africa are set to stick with him higher up and allowing him the freedom to continue playing a naturally aggressive game.”It wasn’t a case of making a decision that’s just a once off, I’m a big believer, in giving guys a fair opportunity,” du Plessis said. “We all know that the way he plays is the way he plays, so we are not going to ask him to change that. He’s going to put pressure on the opposition and he’s a good enough cricketer to understand when to adapt his game to play certain situations, so he’ll learn a lot from this.”The batsmen and the conditions gave the bowlers enough to work with but even after removing England for 205 in the first innings, du Plessis was preparing to play a long game in search of a series-levelling victory. “A lot of people might have thought we had enough runs long before we did, but for me it was crucial we got 450-plus to make sure it looked like a really big total because the pitch was still good,” he said. “We weren’t expecting it to be easy. We were mentally preparing to take it to lunch or even tea tomorrow.”That the win came mid-way through the day was a welcome bonus for a South African side that wanted to be challenged. They spent a week preparing for a fight, because both they knew that any small slip up in the second match would turn the entire tour on its head. The Test series would be un-winnable; the trip irredeemable. Now they have more than a week before they go again. It’s a long time in sport, both long enough for England to forget and long enough for South Africa to remember.

Despite Lasith Malinga’s injury, Mumbai Indians begin IPL 2016 as one of the favourites with a power-packed line-up

The Preview by Akshay Gopalakrishnan08-Apr-20164:15

Jayawardene: Mumbai Indians have spent well on their overseas players

2015 form

Mumbai Indians’ campaign over the last two years has followed a template. In 2014, they didn’t have a single point after five games, before stringing together seven wins in their next nine matches to seal a playoff berth. Their 2015 tournament can once again be split into two parts. They opened with four successive losses, but an injury-forced change to the opening combination and several key players stepping up helped Mumbai turn it around and finish second on the points table. After edging past Chennai Super Kings in the first qualifier, they beat the same opponents in the final to lift the trophy for the second time.

Big Picture

Like most years, Mumbai begin as one of the favourites. While the length of the tournament gives teams ample time to bounce back, Mumbai wouldn’t want to find themselves in a predicament early and would be hoping for a smooth start to their title defence.
Five of the seven purchases made by Mumbai in 2016 were local players. Mumbai splurged INR 3.2 crores on Nathu Singh, the right-arm medium pacer from Rajasthan, who, it has been reported, has already created a favourable impression on Rahul Dravid, Gautam Gambhir and chairman of selectors Sandeep Patil. But whether he fits in a star-studded line-up remains to be seen.

Mumbai Indians squad

Rohit Sharma (capt), Corey Anderson, Jasprit Bumrah, Jos Buttler, Unmukt Chand, Marchant de Lange, Shreyas Gopal, Harbhajan Singh, Kishore Kamath, Siddhesh Lad, Mitchell McClenaghan, Lasith Malinga*, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Parthiv Patel, Kieron Pollard, Deepak Punia, Nitish Rana, Ambati Rayudu, Jitesh Sharma, Lendl Simmons, Nathu Singh, Tim Southee, J Suchith, Vinay Kumar, Akshay Wakhare
*Lasith Malinga is unlikely to feature in IPL 2016 due to injury

While it’s hard to pick a stronger suit, Mumbai’s batting looks more dangerous than their bowling. The timely recovery of Kieron Pollard, who missed the World T20, from a knee injury will come as a relief. Rohit Sharma has already indicated his preference for opening and could be partnered by one of Lendl Simmons or Parthiv Patel. Considering Mumbai’s ample firepower, Rohit could also drop anchor and build the innings. With Pollard, Corey Anderson, Jos Buttler, Hardik Pandya and Ambati Rayudu to pick from, Mumbai’s middle order is among the most destructive forces in the competition.Lasith Malinga is all but ruled out of the tournament, but Mumbai have enough bench strength to make up for it. Malinga’s absence improves the playing chances of Tim Southee – one of two overseas inclusions along with Jos Buttler. Jasprit Bumrah’s fantastic few months with India makes him a certainty and the carrier of slog-over bowling duties.Mumbai have four specialist spinners and yet have variety – offspinner Harbhajan Singh, left-arm spinner J Suchith, legspinner Shreyas Gopal and offspinner Akshay Wakhare. Despite the presence of several pacers, Mumbai chose to shore up that department in the auction, leaving their spin unit wearing a slightly depleted look. But with the Wankhede surface among the flattest in the country, as evidenced in the World T20, it may come down more to how astute the bowler is rather than the kind of bowler operating.

Burning question

Mumbai have seven foreign players to choose from and it isn’t straightforward to identify their best combination. If Simmons opens the innings, Mumbai will have to choose between Anderson and Pollard. Likewise, only one of Mitchell McClenaghan or Southee is likely to make the cut.Additionally, with a wicketkeeper already there in Parthiv, it remains to be seen if Buttler is handed the big gloves or used as a specialist batsman only.

The go-to men

Rohit Sharma had a central role to play in Mumbai’s turnaround and subsequent win in 2015. Rohit’s detractors are always ready to criticise him, and after a poor World T20, he will be keen to prove a point. Besides, Rohit has already shown his willingness to take responsibility in past editions, and captaincy has done wonders for his batting. Rohit’s 390 runs at a strike rate of 129.13 in 2014 was the second highest for a Mumbai batsman. In 2015, he amassed 482 runs at a strike rate of 144.74 – that included a 26-ball fifty in the final against Super Kings.Lendl Simmons has been a consistent performer for Mumbai. He was the franchise’s highest run-scorer in 2014, despite playing seven matches fewer than the next best performer. Simmons has also shown the ability to step up when it matters. In 2015, he replaced an injured Aaron Finch at the top and scored 540 runs to once again top the batting charts. More recently, he blasted a match-winning 82 not out in the World T20 semi-final against India after being called up just two days prior to the match.Harbhajan Singh will be expected to keep the run-flow in the middle overs in check, a task he has performed brilliantly over the years as a career economy rate of 6.61 after 195 T20 matches testifies.

Bargain buy

Mumbai weren’t the most active franchise at the auction, making just seven purchases – the least, along with Kolkata Knight Riders. Mumbai struck a good deal with Buttler’s acquisition for INR 3.8 crore. While Buttler bagged the highest price among the seven players, his imperious form during the World T20 and big-hitting ability should make for a favourable return on investment.

Availability

Mumbai are yet to announce a replacement for Malinga. There are no other known injury concerns.

Coaches

Mentor – Sachin Tendulkar, head coach – Ricky Ponting, coach – Paras Mhambrey, assistant and batting coach – Robin Singh, bowling coach – Shane Bond, fielding coach – Jonty Rhodes, assistant strength and conditioning coach – Afzal Khan, trainer – Paul Chapman.

Quotes

“It is very important to start the tournament the way you want. T20 format is about momentum. The way you play reflects in the next game. We have stressed on it. We haven’t started well, but have managed to win the title. We don’t want to repeat that this year though.”

Sam Curran, the England Under-19 allrounder, said his initiation into top flight cricket came much earlier than expected, but hopes the first-class experience will help him and his teammates in their quest to win the Under-19 World Cup

Mohammad Isam in Chittagong28-Jan-2016Sam Curran is living the dream of every young cricketer: suddenly picked out of nondescript cricket to play in the big leagues with a great of the game, and now touring abroad to represent his country at an international tournament. It’s not exactly a scene straight out of the Hollywood flick , because despite how young Curran comes across, he is nothing like the 12-year-old protagonist in the film.Sam was the second-youngest debutant for Surrey last season, when he was plucked out of the Second Eleven Championship to play T20s. Now, after just six first-class matches for Surrey, which he has played alongside his older brother Tom, he is now considered one of the most talented junior cricketers in England.Ahead of England Under-19s’ second World Cup match against West Indies on Friday, Curran reflected on his elevation, which he termed “heady, but exciting.””I think everything came a bit faster than I thought,” Curran told ESPNcricinfo. “There were couple of injuries in the Surrey team and I got the call-up. I just went from game to game, and they came very quickly. I thought I was dreaming when I was playing with someone like Kumar Sangakkara.”Quite a few us here have played first-class cricket, especially Dan [Lawrence] and Jack [Burnham] who got hundreds against Fiji. I think there are eight of us who have played first-class matches, so it gives us the experience that we can share with the other guys because we are playing in conditions lot different than we are used to in the UK.”Curran was born in England but moved back to Zimbabwe when his father Kevin Curran was made Zimbabwe’s head coach in 2005. As is the case with many cricketers, his game flourished while playing backyard cricket, even though it meant he only got to bowl to his older brothers. Nonetheless, he says it was a happy childhood until three years ago when his father passed away.”My dad was the main inspiration for us brothers,” he said. “We brothers were very competitive in garden cricket. I used to be the main bowler because obviously the older brothers used to take most of the time batting. I got my turn at the end for two minutes and they would hit the ball over the tennis court and it was game over. All good fun though, now that we look back as we are a bit older. Obviously the tragedy of what happened to my father got us to move back to the UK. I think now it couldn’t have worked better with the cricket.”Bring up the names of Sangakkara and Alec Stewart, and the child-like enthusiasm and excitement in Sam surfaces. He also admires Jade Dernbach and Tom, his older brother, immensely for the role they have played in shaping him as a cricketer.”Jade and Tom have been great with me,” he said. “We are a bowlers’ union. Jade has helped me in white-ball cricket. He is one of the most skillful bowlers. When batters are coming hard at me, he just tells me to take my time and think about what I am going to bowl. Tom does [check on me] now and again. He is in the UAE now with the Lions. Both of them are very supportive and we catch up now and again.”Curran also looks up to Wasim Akram, quite obviously because he is also a left-arm quick, and Brett Lee for the aggression. “Wasim Akram is someone, and then Brett Lee. He is quite a big one for me. I also wear the No 58 as he did,” he gushed. “I just loved his aggression. For my batting, Kumar Sangakkara has helped me. Probably in a few years, I see myself batting at No 6 in the allrounder’s spot like I am doing for the U-19s now.”Serious talks aside, Sam also joked about how he and his older brother often keep arguing about who is the better batsman. “We have had this argument before. I think, depends… I am probably a better four-day batsman and he is probably better in the one-day stuff,” he laughed. “He is a bit stronger than me but in a couple of years down the line, I will get up the order and he can bat at No 11.”Curran’s rapid rise has made him adjust to life as a cricketer, be it age-group or as a pro, and as a student at Wellington College. His plate is full at the moment, with his immediate challenge being the ongoing Under-19 World Cup, a tournament England are yet to win since 1998. “Obviously the dream is to play for England but I want to take it one at a time,” Curran said. “Even last winter, I thought I would play a couple of second team games.”It all kicked off from nowhere. My main aim over the next couple of weeks is to win the U-19 World Cup. It is our dream. Then I want to go back to Surrey and do well. I have to finish my A-levels this May and I have just signed a three-year contract with Surrey. Hopefully that’s where I will be for the rest of the time I would play cricket.”