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Ireland have not played a Test since July 2019

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Feb-2021No Irish first-class cricket will be played for a second consecutive season, after Cricket Ireland announced a revamped inter-provincial structure for 2021.The Inter-Provincial Championship, the Irish domestic multi-day competition, has had first-class status since the 2017 season, paving the way for Ireland to become a full member of the ICC, but the tournament was not staged last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic and will not be held in 2021 as Ireland focus their efforts on limited-overs cricket.Ireland have not played a Test match since July 2019, when they threatened to cause an upset against England at Lord’s, and are not due to play another until December, when they have a one-off fixture scheduled against Sri Lanka. Their ‘A’ side, the Ireland Wolves, will play a four-day game in Bangladesh later this month, but further red-ball development opportunities will continue to be limited.”With regards to the red-ball format, with no summer Test scheduled in 2021, Cricket Ireland has prioritised white-ball cricket due to there being three white-ball World Cups over the next three years,” a statement said. “However, [we] will be exploring ways to reintroduce the Inter-Provincial Championship when both the pandemic and consequential financial situation permits.”After Leinster Lightning’s domination of the inter-provincial tournaments since their introduction in 2013, Cricket Ireland has overhauled the domestic system to maximise the possibility of “best v best” competition.Previously, talent has been concentrated in Leinster to the extent that players on the fringes of the national set-up have struggled to make their XI, while the other teams – North West Warriors, Northern Knights and, in T20, Munster Reds – have not competed at the same standard.Under the new system, Graham Ford and Andrew White – the national team’s head coach and chair of selectors respectively – will be involved in selecting core squads, rather than provincial union coaches and selectors. “The selectors will adopt a selection policy that, as far as possible, balances the need to strength the tournament via best v best against ensuring the strength of provincial union identity,” the statement said.Related

• Ireland Wolves tour of Bangladesh to start with four-day game

• Ireland white-ball tour of Zimbabwe postponed amid Covid-19 reshuffle

• How Stirling levelled up by slowing down

• Balbirnie: 'Hopefully this is the start of something special'

• Ireland could host Pakistan T20Is in England

A new loan system will also be introduced in 2021 to make squads more flexible, while the Munster Reds will also compete in the 50-over competition, though their coaching hub will be based in Dublin with guidance from Cricket Ireland.The 50-over competition will be played in a double-round-robin series, with each team playing six games in total, while the T20 tournament will be played as a series of three-day festivals. The season will run from May to September, and a new emerging team competition will also be staged.”It is widely acknowledged that more cricket is needed and there is a burning desire for more rounds of both white-ball formats to be played, as well as eventually returning to red-ball three- or four-day first class cricket,” said Richard Holdsworth, Cricket Ireland’s high performance director.”This is an exciting day for domestic representative cricket across Ireland, as we start to move forward with some substantial reforms to the men’s game. A viable and sustainable inter-provincial structure feeding talent into the international set-up is crucial for the competitiveness of our senior side on the world stage.””The ‘best v best’ philosophy seeks to ensure we don’t have a host of talented players sitting on the sidelines, and that they are getting proper competitive cricket. Balancing this with the need to maintain a sense of regional identity was an important piece of these improvements – and will be one of the main components of ensuring that regional coaches are working closely with national coaches.”Ireland are due to play men’s international fixtures against Pakistan, South Africa and Zimbabwe in their home 2021 season, as well as a three-match World Cup Super League series in the Netherlands. They were beaten 3-0 by Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi this month, having drawn 1-1 with the UAE immediately before.

Radha Yadav and Deepti Sharma stifled South Africa women before the captain’s unbeaten 34 steered the tricky chase

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Oct-2019Spinners Radha Yadav (3 for 23) and Deepti Sharma (2 for 19) stifled South Africa women before Harmanpreet Kaur steered the tricky chase to see India women home by five wickets in the additional T20I in Surat. Their victory ensured the extra game, scheduled to make up for two washed-outs, had no impact on the series result as India lead the now six-match series 3-0.After being put in, South Africa kept losing wickets at regular intervals and could manage only 98 for 8. Six of their top seven batsmen reached double digits but none could cross 20. India though stumbled in what looked like a walk in the park and found themselves at 29 for 3 in the seventh over. However, Harmanpreet’s unbeaten 34 off 32 balls, during which she also became the second Indian woman to reach 2000 T20I runs, took the hosts to victory with 17 balls to spare.Earlier, South Africa’s stand-in captain Sune Luus promoted herself to open the innings with Lizelle Lee but the move didn’t pay off. Deepti and medium-pacer Shikha Pandey, who found some swing with the new ball, restricted the visitors to 13 in the first four overs. Lee tried to step it up with back-to-back fours off Deepti in the fifth over but Radha broke through by trapping Luus lbw with her first ball in the next.Lee didn’t last long either and fell to Poonam Yadav for 16 when she top-edged a slog to Smriti Mandhana at deep-backward square leg. Laura Wolvaardt and Nadine de Klerk added 32 in 28 balls to take the side to 57 for 2 at the end of the 11th over. But both batters fell in successive overs. Wolvaardt missed a sweep against Harmanpreet and was bowled for 17, while de Klerk fell to Radha.The lower-middle order dragged South Africa to 96 for 5 before they lost three wickets in three balls while trying to accelerate. On the last ball of the penultimate over, Radha got debutant Anne Bosch while Deepti dismissed Shabnim Ismail and Lara Goodall with the first two of the 20th. Tumi Sekhukhune prevented the hat-trick but South Africa could manage only two runs from the final over and failed to reach even the three-figure mark.Shafali Verma started the chase aggressively by lofting Ismail and Ayabonga Khaka straight down the ground for fours before Ismail got her caught behind for 14. At the other end though, Mandhana once again struggled for the timing and took six balls to open her account and was eventually dismissed for 7 in the last over of the Powerplay. And when Jemimah Rodrigues too fell in the next over, it appeared South Africa had an opening.Harmanpreet though batted sensibly, nudging the ball in the gaps to rotate the strike while still putting away the loose deliveries. Along with Deepti, she took India to safety as the two added 50 in 49 balls for the fourth wicket.Ismail struck again to send Deepti back for 16 but Harmanpreet stayed till the end and finished the game with an imperious square drive.

Tom Latham’s 78 had given in-form Durham a good total but Moeen Ali provided a fast start in the chase before Whiteley took over

ECB Reporters Network03-Aug-2018

ScorecardRoss Whiteley smashed 60 off 26 balls as Worcestershire Rapids gained a dramatic three-wicket win over leaders Durham Jets in a Vitality Blast thriller at New Road.He rescued a game which appeared to be heading in the Jets favour after Tom Latham had hit 78 of their 194 for 7 in 20 overs.But Whiteley and then debutant Wayne Parnell turned the game in the Rapids favour and ended Durham’s five game winning streak.Whiteley was eventually out in the final over, caught at long-on off the first ball from Nathan Rimmington with 10 needed for victory.He struck three sixes and seven fours – and then Parnell hit 4-2-4 off successive balls to see Worcestershire to their sixth win in nine games as they went one point clear of the Jets.Durham were put into bat and Graham Clark struck three boundaries in the opening over from Luke Wood. But after making 17 the opener went for a pull and miscued Pat Brown into the hands of Rapids skipper Moeen Ali backpedalling from mid-off.Liam Trevaskis failed to trouble the scorers before he fell to a fine low catch by Callum Ferguson at short midwicket to give new overseas Wayne Parnell his first wicket for the Rapids on his debut.Latham was full of attacking intent and greeted Moeen’s introduction into the attack with a straight six.The New Zealander and Ryan Davies added 67 in six overs until the latter holed out to long-on off Brett D’Oliveira. Latham went onto reach his half century from 37 balls with three sixes and three fours.He found another able partner in Ryan Pringle who clouted D’Oliveira for two sixes in an over costing 19 runs.Pringle helped Latham to put on 70 in six overs but after making 35 he fell victim to a stunning catch by Ross Whiteley, diving full length at long off, from the bowling of Brown.Latham moved onto 78 but then pulled Moeen down Ed Barnard’s throat at deep midwicket.Worcestershire managed to check the Jets momentum in the final few overs. Parnell bowled James Weighell and finished with impressive figures of 4-0-22-2 on his debut and then Nathan Rimmington was run out attempting a second run off Brown to Luke Wood at third man.When Worcestershire launched their reply, they quickly lost opener Joe Clarke who drove at James Weighell and nicked through to keeper Stuart Poynter.Moeen went on the attack in Chris Rushworth’s second over with a six and two fours and also went 6-4-4 in a Rimmington over. But the introduction of McCarthy into the attack brought a double breakthrough.Moeen, having made 42 off 25 balls, perished at deep square leg and then four balls later D’Oliveira was caught off a leading edge at cover.Ben Cox went for a reverse sweep and became McCarthy’s third victim as keeper Poynter held the chance.Much depended on the returning Ferguson and on 39 he went for a big hit against Ben Whitehead and Trevaskis had a safe pair of hands at long on.McCarthy ended with career best figures of 4 for 31 after Barnard fell at short third man.But then came the typical Whiteley power hitting before Parnell saw the Rapids over the finishing line.

Mickey Arthur called India a “fantastic team” but insisted Pakistan will focus only on themselves in the build-up to the final

George Dobell at The Oval17-Jun-2017Mickey Arthur has dismissed India’s thrashing of Pakistan in the group stages of the Champions Trophy as “an aberration” and insisted his side have the bowling to “expose” India’s middle order.The two sides contest the final of the competition in London on Sunday with Arthur, the Pakistan coach, encouraged both by the progress of his younger players and the way in which they have bounced back from that 124-run defeat in their first game in Birmingham.And while he accepts India are “a fantastic team” who have the advantage of more “exposure to massive pressure situations”, he is confident his side will not suffer a repeat of the big match nerves which appeared to afflict them in the earlier match.To that end, the focus of Pakistan’s preparation has changed a little. Whereas, before the Edgbaston game, their attention was largely on India – what to expect and how to beat them – they have now decided it is better to concentrate on their own strengths rather than lingering over the details of the daunting challenge that awaits.”The way the players have dragged themselves off the canvas after the beating at Edgbaston was amazing,” Arthur said. “After the defeat against India, we had some honest conversations and the guys took it on the chin. It’s great to get to the final after where we were and credit goes to the players who have been outstanding the way they’ve prepared. I don’t think we’ve exceeded expectations at all.”We dissected India a lot before the game at Edgbaston and we’ve sort of backtracked a little bit. Now we’re sort of solidifying what we did really well, confirming what we’ve done well and building on that. So this match is going to be about us rather than the opposition. We’ve made the focus us as a team.”One of those strengths is their seam bowling. In Hasan Ali they have the tournament’s highest wicket-taker (10), while Junaid Khan is not far behind (seven). Mohammad Amir has recovered from a back spasm and is expected to share the new ball with Junaid.While they will be up against an impressive batting line-up – India’s openers, Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan, are the two highest run-scorers in the tournament, while Virat Kohli is fifth – Arthur hopes they can claim early wickets which he believes can “expose” a potential weakness.”Our strength has been the ability to take wickets,” Arthur said. “We’ve been able to take wickets consistently through the middle periods.”If we can get amongst them with the new ball, we can expose the middle order that hasn’t batted much this competition. That’s pretty much our aim and focus.”We can restrict them or defend against them. We have the attack to do that, providing we can strike up front.”There are a couple of potential flaws in that plan. The first is that, while Pakistan’s attack has taken more wickets than any other team in the competition – 31 – they have taken very few – just two – in the first Powerplay. They are, in this match, up against a side who have lost just one wicket in the first Powerplay all tournament and who have posted four century stands between them. So while the aim of claiming early wickets is sensible, it is a great deal easier said than done. Especially on what is expected to be an excellent batting surface.The other flaw in the plan is that, while it is true that the likes of Hardik Pandya, Kedar Jhadav and MS Dhoni have not scored many runs in this competition, it is largely because they have hardly batted due to the prolific form of the top three. In the few opportunities they have had, they have looked impressively fluent. Dhoni made 63 (from 52 deliveries) in his only innings against Sri Lanka, while Pandya (29 from 11) and Jhadav (25 from 13) have batted selflessly and effectively.To focus on such factors might well be negative, however, and one of the key changes in Pakistan’s outlook since that first match is increased positivity. Out have gone two of the more experienced players – Wahab Riaz, who is injured, and Ahmed Shehzad, who has been dropped – and in their place have come youngsters who are unscarred by previous setbacks and are apparently fearless about the occasion or the opposition.So while Kohli may have forgotten more caps than Shadab Khan (six caps), Faheem Ashraf (one), Fakhar Zaman (three), Rumman Rees (one) can boast between them, Arthur believes the fear that anxiety that stifled the team ahead of that first game has been replaced by a sense of excitement ahead of the final. And whatever happens on Sunday, he believes that bodes well for Pakistan’s future and the 2019 World Cup, in particular.”The youngsters have been great,” Arthur said. “They’ve come in with no fear of failure. They’ve come in committed to the way we want to play our cricket. Every one of the youngsters that have come in made an impact straight away. That’s a real confirmer for us. They’ve been outstanding.”I guess what it does is solidify the direction we want to move in. That’s the most important thing for us. But it also gives us an insight into the thinking of these younger players, and to see them come in and be very, very brave and very committed to the way we want to play our cricket has been very, very refreshing for all of us.”The guys are under no illusion as to what the expectation is on them, but they’re genuinely excited. I said before the Edgbaston game, I thought they were really, really calm, but they’re very, very excited now, and there’s a hell of a good vibe in that dressing room.”The focus after the final is certainly going to be on the 2019 World Cup. It’s going to be about creating a squad and some depth so that we can come here in 2019 and give it a shake. But it will also be about buying into the way we want to play our game. This will just be a nice confirmer for the players that we’re definitely on the right track.”He does feel, however, that his players’ progress would be accelerated if they had more opportunity to play in “high-pressure” situations. While India’s players benefit from their experience in the IPL, Pakistan’s players – who are not currently involved in the IPL – have only recently had their own comparable domestic T20 competition in which to gain such experiences. As a result, Pakistan are now “catching up with the rest of the world”.”I think one of the differences between the sides has been exposure,” Arthur said. “Exposure to massive pressure situations.”Let’s be under no illusion: India are a fantastic cricket team at the moment. They’re going in the right direction. They’re playing some brilliant cricket. But exposure to high-pressure situations is what India have had above Pakistan.”The PCB has changed that a little bit now with the PSL, which has been a very successful competition. That exposes more and more young players to pressure situations, and I think the more we can expose our guys to those situations, the better results we will get.”We can see our style and method catching up with the rest of the world because we’re being exposed to it now. In the PSL we’re getting all our top players rubbing shoulders with some of the best players around the world, so that is rubbing off on our cricket now, which is filling a void that had existed for a period of time.”

A round-up of all DPL matches played on June 1, 2016

Mohammad Isam01-Jun-2016Ashok Menaria’s impressive all-round performance led Prime Doleshwar Sporting Club to the top of the DPL points table with a five-wicket win over Gazi Group Cricketers in Mirpur.Menaria’s unbeaten 61-ball 59 that included two fours and sixes steered Doleshwar’s chase of 214 after hostile opening spells from pacers Mohammad Sharif and Sajedul Islam had reduced them to 70 for 3 in the 24th over.Wicketkeeper Anamul Haque took a brilliant catch after opener Imtiaz Hossain top-edged a pull. Just as the ball was going over his head, Anamul leapt backwards and completed a one-handed catch to give Gazi Group an early breakthrough. Robiul Islam Robi and Raqibul Hasan added 42 runs in the next 11.4 overs before their wickets, in the space of five overs, tied Gazi Group down.Menaria lifted Doleshwar by first adding 64 runs for the fourth wicket with Nasir Hossain, who scored 40 off 56 balls, and then 70 runs for the fifth wicket with Rony Talukdar, who made 43 off 45 balls. Sharif and Sajedul’s efforts with the ball were undone by sloppy fielding. Gazi Group dropped as many as five catches, and both bowlers had to settle with one wicket each.Earlier, Gazi Group had slipped to 97 for 5 by the 33rd over, with both in-form openers Anamul and Shamsur Rahman falling cheaply. Elias Sunny’s 46 dragged his side past 150, after which a 51-run stand for the eighth wicket between Farhad Hossain and Sharif took them to 213 for 8. Menaria was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3 for 29 in nine overs, including a maiden.Abahani Limited finally had their big players firing, in their five-wicket win over Prime Bank Cricket Club at the BKSP-3 ground. They are placed third in the points table, with 12 points from 10 matches.Yusuf Pathan, fresh off the IPL, slammed seven fours and two sixes in his 47-ball 60, but when he fell in the 28th over, Abahani still needed 89 to reach the 241-run target. Shakib Al Hasan was dismissed for 3 in the next over, but Mosaddek Hossain then anchored the chase with an unbeaten 64 off 49, his second successive half-century.Having been stuck in traffic at the Dhaka-Sarvar highway, Yusuf had arrived 41 minutes after scheduled start of play. But the opposition captain Shuvagata Hom and the match officials allowed him to take the field, despite being late.Mosaddek and Liton Das added an unbroken 87 runs for the sixth wicket as Abahani sealed the win with 33 balls to spare. Liton stayed unbeaten on 25 off 51 balls.Abahani captain Tamim Iqbal had laid the platform with 40 off 46 balls, before falling to Shuvagata in the 13th over. Nazmul Hossain Shanto and Yusuf then put on 94 runs for the third wicket to help Abahani eat into the target.Earlier, Prime Bank posted 240 for 9 in 50 overs with Nurul Hasan top-scoring with 46. Openers Mehedi Maruf (26) and Shanaj Ahmed (24) got starts, but they were dismissed in successive overs. Prime Bank were further pushed back when Sabbir Rahman and new Indian recruit Unmukt Chand exited for a duck and 2.Shakib led Abahani’s bowling surge with returns of 4 for 35, including the wickets of Sabbir, Chand and Mehedi. He was complemented by left-arm spinner Saqlain Sajib who claimed 3 for 37. Shuvagata and Taibur Rahman added 50 for the sixth wicket to help Prime Bank recover from 79 for 4. After both batsmen fell, No.10 Monir Hussain scored a brisk 25 to take his team to 240.Kalabagan Cricket Academy beat Cricket Coaching School by five wickets (D/L method) in a bottom-of-the-table tussle in Fatullah.Having opted to bat, CCS managed only 185 for 9 in 50 overs as no batsman passed 38. As many as five batsmen got starts but none got a substantial score. Captain Mahmudul Hasan led KCA’s superb bowling effort with returns of 3 for 37.Then it was the turn of Jatin Saxena to play a match-winning hand. The Indian batsman struck 87 off 95 balls, including seven fours and three sixes. Jatin was assisted by Mahmudul who made 46 off 84 balls. Rain interrupted KCA’s innings but they reached the revised target of 184 with 53 balls to spare.Left-arm spinners Nasum Ahmed and Saleh Ahmed Shawon took two wickets each for CCS.

He has been dropped and has struggled to be as effective as he once was, but Saeed Ajmal says it is all part of a plan and that he needs more time to rediscover his old form

Umar Farooq in Mirpur04-May-2015Saeed Ajmal ran through four batsmen in one hour during a training session under the scorching heat at Shere Bangla Stadium in Mirpur. But he appeared to be bowling for the sake of it and helping the batsmen practice. Meanwhile, Pakistan’s spin coach Mushtaq Ahmed was busy looking after Yasir Shah and Zulfiqar Babar.Ajmal has struggled on his return to international cricket with a remodelled action. He has played only two ODIs and a T20, produced only one wicket in 22.3 overs and conceded runs at 6.57 per over. He was dropped for the final ODI of the three-match series against Bangladesh, and subsequently sat out of the Khulna Test as well. Ajmal, however, said there was a plan in place and he needed time to regain his confidence as a bowler.”For me it’s been a tough last eight months and I knew it will be tough moving forward also,” he told ESPNcricinfo. “I’d said prior to coming here that I need time and I am disappointed that I am not able to fulfil the expectations of the nation. But I spoke to the captain and the coach and they have a plan for me. I need time to regain my confidence. It doesn’t come in overnight.”Ajmal has been an important wicket-taker in the past and Pakistan may have banked on that reputation while picking him on the tour. That he was then dropped indicates the management may have lost some faith in him and he is eager to set that right.”I don’t want to play cricket on the basis of reputation,” he said. “I want to play with my head held high and with the same confidence level I had in the past. Things are not going well presently, but you will see in coming days that I have improved. If I am benched, that is the plan and the players playing in place of me are the best and performing well.”It’s true that you can go from bad to good and it’s also true that you can go from good to bad,” he added. “I don’t think I have changed my action significantly, only minor tweaks. I know my doosra is not being effective which is reflecting in my performance. But I am doing my best to get myself back on track as soon as possible. I am bowling with different angles from top and from side and things are improving and I am optimistic that I will be same Ajmal as I was.”Ajmal has been a vital part of Pakistan’s success. Since 2011, he has taken a third of the team’s wickets – 145 off 570. In his absence, however, Zulfiqar and Yasir have picked up the slack. They had contributed 14 wickets apiece during the team’s series win over Australia in the UAE and were again trusted to lead the slow-bowling threat in the drawn Khulna Test.”I think it’s their right to play ahead of me,” Ajmal said. “They have done great without me and spare a thought about Khulna Test where pitch was slow enough to kill the spin, otherwise they are good and have proved their ability.”Yasir, though, said he could have used the kind of help Ajmal can offer. “Sometimes you miss having an experienced partner in the field with whom you discuss [tactics] and seek advice from,” he said. “Like it was tough taking wickets on flat tracks in Khulna where the pitch was unresponsive and we all were struggling to take wickets. So having a player like Ajmal around gives you confidence.”Pakistan are yet to win a game against Bangladesh on this tour and were blindsided by Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes’ world-record 312-run opening stand in the second innings in Khulna. But Ajmal conceded the hosts’ form was so powerful that “any team would have struggled”.”They are at the top of their form,” Ajmal said. “There is no weakness in their combination; their batting, bowling and fielding is clicking at the moment.”They are a developing team and at the moment they can give any team a tough time. We underestimated them. We never thought they will play like that and that’s the reason we are shocked. Yes, in Test cricket we could have done better but the pitch was the main difference. I hardly saw the ball spin on the track but Pakistan is a better side in Tests and we have a plan this time and I don’t see any reason why we can’t beat them.”

Virender Sehwag has recovered from his ankle injury and will be fit to play in Delhi Daredevils’ opening Champions League 2012 match, against Kolkata Knight Riders, on Saturday

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Oct-2012Virender Sehwag has recovered from his ankle injury and will be fit to play in Delhi Daredevils’ opening Champions League 2012 match, against Kolkata Knight Riders, on Saturday. He had played in the franchise’s warm-up game on Thursday, against Sydney Sixers.Daredevils’ team mentor, TA Sekar, confirmed that Sehwag was fit, and said that he had obtained fitness clearance before flying to South Africa. A BCCI official said the board had nothing to do with the decision to play Sehwag: “The BCCI has nothing to do with it. It is a franchise tournament and it is for them to take a call.”Sehwag was initially doubtful for the Champions League, after straining a ligament in his left ankle during India’s Super Eights match in the World Twenty20 against South Africa in Colombo on October 2. He had gone off the field during South Africa’s innings and did not return, and it was reported that he could require two weeks of rest.His fitness has been suspect over the past year: after the 2011 World Cup he delayed a shoulder surgery, playing the IPL and subsequently missed India’s tour of the West Indies and half of the Test series in England. Earlier this year, towards the end of the Australia tour, he had back spasms that forced the selectors to rest him for the Asia Cup.Sehwag will not captain Delhi Daredevils at the Champions League, having asked the franchise to relieve him of the responsibility so he could concentrate on his batting.

Australia’s acting chairman of selectors, Andrew Hilditch, does not believe Mitchell Johnson should be dropped from the Test side for the upcoming series in South Africa

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Sep-2011Australia’s acting chairman of selectors, Andrew Hilditch, does not believe Mitchell Johnson should be dropped from the Test side for the upcoming series in South Africa. Johnson has been axed from the Twenty20 squad to take on South Africa next month but was retained in the one-day outfit, while the Test squad is yet to be named.Depending on when Cricket Australia appoints its new selectors, the Test touring party could yet be chosen by the interim panel led by Hilditch. Johnson was far from his best during the recent tour of Sri Lanka but he enjoys the conditions in South Africa, where he swung the ball and found awkward bounce on the previous Test tour in early 2009.”In Twenty20 cricket I think his form’s not been the best,” Hilditch said. “Mitch is disappointed. Obviously I’ve spoken to him about it. Sri Lanka was tough for him. The reality is he didn’t do quite what we wanted in Sri Lanka. They were very difficult conditions for him and the way he bowls.”Probably the best he’s ever bowled was against South Africa three years ago when we played there and won. I think he’ll be looking forward to the South African conditions and I think he’ll do really well. From my perspective he’s not under any threat at all [to be dropped from the Test side].”The Twenty20 squad also did not feature the offspinner Nathan Lyon, who made his name in the format for South Australia last summer. Lyon made his Test debut in Sri Lanka and is likely to retain his spot for the South African Tests, but the selectors instead went for Steve O’Keefe and Steven Smith in the T20 side.”At the moment we’re concentrating on him in Test match cricket,” Hilditch said of Lyon. “But obviously he’ll want to push his path to be part of all three forms of the game. We’re really happy with the way he went in Sri Lanka. We’re just not sure that he’s ready and hard enough to play three forms of the game internationally, so we’ll concentrate on Test match cricket for the moment.”As he gets more accustomed to the hard grind of playing international cricket I’m sure he’ll want to push to play in all three forms. I don’t think it’s an unhealthy thing either to have three spinners in three different forms of the game because they’re all pushing hard and they’re all getting international experience, so that’s a good thing as well.”The squad is likely to be the last, with the possible exception of the Test squad for South Africa, picked by Hilditch and his panel. He said it was one of the most exciting groups he had ever chosen, with the inclusion of two teenagers: Mitchell Marsh and Pat Cummins.”I think this is one of the most exciting squads we’ve ever announced,” Hilditch said. “You haven’t seen young players of that sort of ability being added to a squad. You’ve got Patrick Cummins at 18 playing both forms of the game for Australia. A fast bowler with immense ability – it’s really exciting.”Mitchell Marsh is only in the Twenty20 squad but pushed hard for the one-day squad as well. These young players we think can be champions of the game and that’s what we’re trying to find at the moment.”We’re all as a panel pretty excited about what we’ve just done. I think the addition of these young players – I’ve never been part of picking a squad as young as this and picking a squad that has so many young talented players. These young players are ready to go and that’s fantastic. I reckon it’s been a long time since we’ve been in that position in international cricket and there’s still a lot of good young players who aren’t in these squads that deserve that opportunity.”

Mumbai’s bowlers just about hung in to prevail in a last-ball finish, but their team was knocked out of the tournament

The Bulletin by Sidharth Monga19-Sep-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were outThe moment that turned the game – Anil Kumble is about to drop Dwayne Bravo•Getty Images

Royal Challengers Bangalore seemed to have out-thought, out-planned and out-executed Mumbai Indians until Anil Kumble dropped Dwayne Bravo off his own bowling in the 15th over, a catch that would have reduced Mumbai to 86 for 6. Bravo, Saurabh Tiwary and Harbhajan Singh added 79 more to the rest of the innings. Mumbai’s bowlers then just about hung in to prevail in a last-ball finish, but their team was knocked out of the tournament.

Bangalore fined

Royal Challengers Bangalore have been fined for maintaining a slow over-rate during the match. The fines were assessed after Bangalore were ruled to be one over short of their target at the end of the match.
In accordance with Champions League rules, Anil Kumble, the captain, has been fined US$1500 while the rest of the players have been hit with a US$750 fine each.

Rahul Dravid’s anchorman 71 off 58, and Virat Kohli’s 24-ball 47 that almost deserved to be on the winning side, had brought 40 off 18 down to 13 required off the last over. Zaheer Khan – a former IPL team-mate – began with two superb slower short balls, but he also missed two yorkers by a few inches. Kohli smashed those low full tosses for leg-side boundaries. Three required off the last ball. Another yorker went wrong. Low full toss. Kohli had done it twice, he just needed to repeat it, but the wrists turned a fraction of a second earlier. So hard had he swung, the leading edge kissed the sky and came down.Ambati Rayudu held his nerve when a drop there would have produced a tie. Zaheer and Rayudu exulted, Kohli went down on his haunches. The man his technique is often compared to, Dravid, stood there, patted his back, consoled him, but it didn’t seem to work.Bangalore, though, will get another chance. Mumbai won’t. In fact, the result doesn’t change the course of the tournament much. The Bangalore-Lions game still remains a knockout affair. Bangalore need to win to force a three-way tie between themselves, Lions and Mumbai for the second semi-final slot from Group B. Kohli’s late hitting, however, has made sure their net run-rate stays the best of the three, while Mumbai’s ends worst.When it comes to the Twenty20 environment, Trinidad & Tobago can improvise on a famous saying, and claim, “If Pollard doesn’t get you, Bravo will.” Especially when Bravo is dropped when on 1. That big Mumbai finish was exactly what Bangalore were trying to avoid when they held back Dale Steyn through the first 10 overs. As far as Steyn was concerned, he executed the plan perfectly. Charged up, he responded by inflicting a three-ball duck on Kieron Pollard, bowling two overs for five runs and two wickets.The plan did involve some risk, but the Kumars at Nos. 1 and 2 started its perfect execution. Praveen took Sachin Tendulkar’s wicket, Vinay took Rayudu’s. Shikhar Dhawan and JP Duminy then got stuck, going from nowhere to nowhere. They soon fell, setting up the much-awaited contest between Pollard and Steyn.In came slip and a short leg. Bouncer. Ducked under. Slower ball. Missed. Length ball, extra bounce, leading edge, gone. Soon Kumble had a chance to finish Mumbai off, but he missed a return catch. Bravo thanked Kumble by hitting him for two fours in the same over, and then launching him for two sixes and a four in his next. It was clean hitting with the typical Bravo flourish.There is a risk of understating the performance from Tiwary, who didn’t look intimidated at all, slapped a Steyn bouncer for a flat six, and followed it up with back-to-back fours. A high full toss in the 19th over ended Bravo’s 17-ball 29, but that didn’t slow Mumbai down as Harbhajan hit three boundaries to finish strongly.Abu Nechim, the Assam seamer who was playing his first match of the tournament, started the turnaround in the chase, trapping Jacques Kallis lbw with his second ball. He managed to get movement and extra bounce from the lively Kingsmead pitch.On a night when Lasith Malinga and Zaheer were stable at best, Bravo utilised the conditions best, following Kallis’ wicket with those of Robin Uthappa and Ross Taylor. When Harbhajan removed Cameron White with a yorker in the 14th over, leaving Dravid and Kohli needing 66 off 37, it seemed the game was over.Neither batsman is renowned for big hitting, and with Malinga and Zaheer to bowl three overs, big hitting was what was required. Kohli was then to endure a heartbreak. Ironically, though, those three extra runs wouldn’t have mattered in the larger picture. Mumbai are still out, Bangalore still need a win.