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After four seasons of sweating it out in Indian domestic cricket, Ajinkya Rahane’s chance has finally arrived

Abhishek Purohit22-Aug-2011It took an injury to Virender Sehwag for Ajinkya Rahane to finally get a call-up to the national squad after four seasons of sweating it out in Indian domestic cricket. Fresh off a successful tour of Australia with the India Emerging Players squad, he’s now headed to England for the five-match ODI series. “It is a dream come true for me,” Rahane told ESPNcricinfo. “I have been waiting for this moment for very long, and finally it has arrived.”If having his efforts being repeatedly ignored has hurt, Rahane does not show it. “I have focussed only on my game and my performance all along,” he said. “I just know that I have to keep making runs consistently. The more the competition from other players, it only serves to motivate you, and it is a good thing.”With a first-class average of 67.72 and a List A average of 38.61, Rahane has seen several players leapfrog him into the national side on the basis of meteoric IPL performances. He has shrugged his shoulders and gone back to making runs for Mumbai, firmly believing that the sheer weight of runs would one day tilt the scales in his favour.That day has arrived, but Rahane has learnt the hard way to remain grounded. “I know that it is only the beginning. I will have to work doubly hard from now and keep focussed.”‘Focus’ is a word that Rahane admits to using a lot. It is also a useful ability that he has developed over the years. Many Indians have scored a hundred on first-class debut. Not many have done so in Pakistan, where Rahane hit 143 for Mumbai against Karachi Urban in the Mohammad Nissar Trophy in September 2007. In his second Ranji Trophy season, he racked up 1089 runs with four hundreds as Mumbai won yet another title but the selectors weren’t interested.He made 809 runs in the next Ranji season but the selectors preferred Cheteshwar Pujara – Rahane’s closest competitor in scorching the domestic run-charts – for the home Test series against Australia in 2010. Rahane responded with an unbeaten hundred in the tour match against the visitors and, a week later, scored 191 against the Rest of India in the Irani Cup. He also struck 84 and 95 in the one-day Challenger Trophy immediately after. A couple of days after that, the selectors picked Shikhar Dhawan, Saurabh Tiwary and M Vijay for the ODIs against Australia.Even now, he may or may not make his ODI debut for India in England, but will cherish being part of a side that includes both his idols – Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid – together for the first time. Previously, Tendulkar has been a team-mate at Mumbai and Mumbai Indians, while Dravid shared the Rajasthan Royals dressing room with him during the last IPL season. Those experiences have helped in building up his patience. “Sachin and Rahul have always been my idols. There has been so much to learn from them.”

It is a year to the week since Jonathan Trott made his Test debut in the Ashes decider at The Oval, and after a year of highs and lows that would have tested the mettle of any cricketer, he is back at the scene of his finest hour

Andrew Miller at The Oval16-Aug-2010It is a year to the week since Jonathan Trott made his Test debut in the Ashes decider at The Oval, and after a year of highs and lows that would have tested the mettle of any cricketer, he is back at the scene of his finest hour, and in arguably the most liberated frame of mind since that remarkable week last August.Trott’s travails have been among the most documented of any of the England squad in the past 12 months. The ice-cool character who compiled twin scores of 41 and 119 on debut against Australia gave way with alarming haste last winter to a fidgety imposter whose temperament appeared to buckle during a tough return to his native South Africa, in particular when his peculiar and time-consuming rituals at the crease were dragged into the media spotlight.But despite regular jibes about the security of his role, Trott’s value to the England team was in full evidence at Edgbaston last week when, in front of his home crowd, he compiled half-centuries in each innings to ensure that England did not squander the advantage that their bowlers had earned in bowling Pakistan out for 72 on the first morning. No other batsman came close to matching the calm authority that he brought to his game, and on the eve of his return to The Oval to face Pakistan, it feels as though his career has come full circle.”The last time I sat here it was a lot fuller,” Trott joked as he returned to the press briefing room in the Oval pavilion. “It’s been a year full of memories, starting here. In that time I’ve been working really hard on my game to improve as a player and contribute to winning matches and series for England. I think I’m a better player now. It may be a cliché, but I feel I’ve learned a lot from my experiences, and there are things I probably do differently now, or take a different approach to.”Regardless of the mixed reception that Trott has received since his elevation to the Test side, there’s no arguing with the numbers he has crunched in that time. In 11 Tests he has racked up 923 runs at 51.27, while contributing to eight victories – including six in a row since the tour of Bangladesh in March – and just a solitary defeat, in Johannesburg in January. The manner in which his confidence has grown has mirrored that of the team as a whole, and he credits the management pairing of Andy Flower and Andrew Strauss for cultivating an atmosphere of inclusivity.”Coming into a team is like getting a new job,” said Trott. “You have to find your role in the team and the dressing room, and all of the background stuff is just as important as what you see on the pitch. But Andy Flower and Andrew Strauss have a big emphasis on pulling the new players in and putting an arm around them. It’s certainly not a feeling of being thrown in at the deep end and seeing if you can swim. It’s put more positively. ‘You can succeed at this level, you’re good enough so go and take your chance’.”Leaving aside his brief and unsuccessful stint in the Twenty20 set-up in 2007, Trott’s first taste of the England environment came ahead of the fourth Test at Headingley last summer, when he linked up with the squad amid concerns about Andrew Flintoff’s fitness, but was eventually released before the match got underway. “I came down to have a drink with Andy and Straussy and I was made very welcome,” he recalled. “It wasn’t just a case of ‘here’s your room key, see you at practice’.”Missing that Headingley match turned out to be a blessing for Trott. England were routed by an innings inside three days, but instead of getting wrapped up in the post-mortem, he was able to save his energies for his remarkable rescue mission in the fifth and final Test. “I was fresh and excited, and champing at the bit to succeed and do well for the team,” he said. “The other guys had been on an emotional rollercoaster and were so tired after the fifth game, so I had come in quite fresh and raring to go, so in hindsight that helped.”A feature of Trott’s performance in that Oval Test was his purposeful footwork. He strode forward to the pacemen and spinners alike, and in so doing exuded a confidence that belied his debutant status. Some of that same authority was on display on a treacherous surface at Edgbaston last week, as Trott set himself to dominate where others remained diffident.”Moving my feet well and in a positive manner expresses what I want to express, meaning good body language and good intent,” said Trott. “I use the word intent a lot when I think about my batting, and when I’m at the crease I think ‘is my intent right here, have I got my focus where I want it to be?’ Intent to score runs is just as important as intent to leave and be defensive. Leaving the ball with minimal footwork is just as bad as playing and missing with minimal footwork.”Alastair Cook would doubtless relate to that sentiment, after another iffy display at Edgbaston took his summer tally to 100 runs in seven innings. His match ended when he was trapped on the crease by Mohammad Amir on the fourth and final morning, and though he boosted his morale by smacking a carefree 38 from 22 balls for Essex in the t20 semi-final on Saturday, his place in the team is unquestionably on the line.Trott, however, offered his support and sympathy, after he himself had been forced to reaffirm his credentials following the tour of South Africa. “At the beginning of the Bangladesh series I was probably where he is now,” said Trott. “It’s only four Test matches since then, so it’s amazing how things change. But whenever I see Alastair Cook and Andrew Strauss at the crease I feel very secure, so I’m sure he’ll be fine.”

Lalit Modi, the IPL commissioner, claims a leading English football club is interested in bidding for a new team in the fourth edition of the IPL

Cricinfo staff16-Feb-2010Lalit Modi, the IPL commissioner, claims a leading English football club is interested in bidding for a new team in the fourth edition of the IPL next year. In an interview to the , Modi – also the Champions League Twenty20 commissioner – said he was in talks with the Marylebone Cricket Club who were also apparently eager to become involved in the IPL.”There is a football club, a very famous football club in the UK, very interested in bidding,” Modi said. “[They are] probably one of the most famous football clubs – that’s all I can say. Probably top three. They are interested in taking a stake.”Responding to speculation in the Indian media, Modi later said on his Twitter page that the club in mention was not Chelsea. A report in the named Manchester City as the team looking at buying a franchise although the club told Cricinfo they were not involved.The IPL will include two more teams from the 2011 season and will auction the franchise rights at a base price of $225 million ahead of the third season, which starts in India on March 12, and will invite potential investors this week. That figure – double of what the most expensive franchise was sold for in 2008 and more than four times the base price in that first auction – is, in an uncertain market, a sign of the league’s confidence in itself and the Twenty20 format.According to Modi, the MCC would be a value addition to the IPL and open up the possibility of taking the bandwagon overseas to Lord’s. “I have talked [to MCC] last night and they are quite interested,” he said.Keith Bradshaw, the MCC chief executive, did not deny he had been approached but would not confirm to join the IPL. “At the moment, our finances are focused on the redevelopment of the ground,” he said.The league’s expansion will see a much longer fixture list – 94 games as opposed to 59 in the first two seasons if the format remains the same – and accommodating it in the 45-day window without compromising players’ fitness, and keeping the international calendar in mind, will be a challenge.

Eight-and-a-half-hour 173 leaves group leaders with daunting task on wearing deck

Alan Gardner28-May-2021On their two visits to the capital in this year’s LV= Insurance County Championship, Gloucestershire have had to face up to vastly differing challenges. At the start of May, victory in a seam-friendly dogfight at Lord’s confirmed their status as unlikely pace-setters in Group Two; here, after being pummelled for the best part of two days by Hashim Amla’s velvet-gloved iron fist, they will face a trial by spin to see if they can depart from The Kia Oval with their credentials intact.Having spent five sessions in the field, the majority of which involved the exquisite torture of watching Amla go about his business at close range on the way to 173 from 347 balls, Gloucestershire’s batters had to gird themselves for an uncomfortable examination under suddenly grouchy south London skies. Surrey had the platform they wanted, and the chance to see if this used pitch would start to break up and aid their attempts to break down the visitors.Amar Virdi’s offspin was introduced into the attack as early as the seventh over, and immediately had Kraigg Brathwaite chopping down on a sharply turning delivery that seemed to keep low. It was no surprise that the breakthrough for Surrey came via Virdi, though Chris Dent’s disgust at pulling a short ball to midwicket was evident; not the example Gloucestershire’s captain was hoping to set.Brathwaite might have been dismissed by that point, too, had Dan Moriarty held a straightforward return chance. This has been for the most part a benign surface, but the footmarks into which Virdi and Moriarty will aim to wheel away through the weekend had a foreboding look to them – even if the arrival of light rain at around 5.30pm brought an early close and some respite for the West Country men.Early in the day, as Amla was bedding in once again, the sound of someone whistling the famously eerie refrain from – soundtrack to the scene when Daryl Hannah’s character arrives at the hospital intending to assassinate (again) Uma Thurman’s Beatrix Kiddo – could be heard drifting in through the press box window. Not that Amla was about to indulge in a Tarantino-esque bloodbath, far from it… but the omens for Gloucestershire nevertheless weren’t good.Related

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If Kiddo’s codename, as part of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, was “Black Mamba” then Amla would have to be the “Boa Constrictor”, squeezing every ounce out of an innings or situation. He had Gloucestershire trussed up in his coils for almost eight-and-a-half hours, slowly tightening, tightening as Surrey set about making good on the attempt to bat once and bat big, before unleashing their spinners on a wearing surface.Under Amla’s watchful guidance, Surrey produced partnerships worth 104, 61 and 82 for the sixth, seventh and eighth wickets, easing the home side away from potential difficulty at 181 for 5 on Thursday afternoon. Despite losing his overnight partner, Jamie Overton, to the first ball of the day, Amla was not to be diverted from his chosen course. He scored 33 out of 78 added during the morning session, largely through nudging into gaps and turning over the strike, happy to let Sean Abbott deal in more overt statements of aggression, such as when clumping Ryan Higgins into the JM Finn Stand over long-on.Abbott, on his Surrey debut, made a good impression with the bat only to be trapped in front by the toiling Tom Smith shortly before lunch. Gloucestershire had by now decided to put the field out for Amla and concentrate on trying to take wickets at the other end, but there was barely any change in his tempo on the resumption; as if getting himself in the mood for Tokyo 2020, he had apparently resolved to go “slower, higher, stronger”. Dent was then made to rue not having a slip in when the persevering Dan Worrall located Amla’s outside edge only for it to fly wide of Jonny Tattersall for four.An over later, Brathwaite was back in place for a nick that didn’t quite carry. RC Robertson-Glasgow once described Frank Woolley edging when set as “a sudden freak of fallibility, a whim of humanity”, but if there was anything deliberate about the act it was closer to taunting a downtrodden opponent.In the end, it was Gloucestershire’s sixth bowler, Miles Hammond – sporting a combination of long hair, head band and aviator shades that made him look like a roadie for the Kings of Leon – who was the man to breach Amla’s bubble, finding big turn from wide of the stumps and an inside edge into the woodwork. Surrey won’t necessarily have been too perturbed by that sight, with the prospect of purchase for spin their best chance of backing the Group Two leaders into a corner.With Amla gone, Rikki Clarke decided to open up his shoulders and finally deliver some of the staccato violence that Quentin Tarantino might have scripted, lashing Matt Taylor for four fours in a row and then clipping his next ball for one to bring up a 97-ball fifty. He was cheered with as much gusto by the crowd as any of Amla’s landmarks, then tucked into Hammond’s offspin to the tune of 4-6-4. Higgins eventually hit the stumps to account for Clarke and then Moriarty, but on another day of Surrey dominance his four-for was unlikely to make the director’s cut.

Allrounder gets through 16.5 overs on second day in absence of Kasun Rajitha and Dhananjaya de Silva

Andrew Fidel Fernando27-Dec-2020Dasun Shanaka batted well with the tail to complete his first Test fifty on the second morning of the Centurion Test, and yet, his more significant contribution so far may have been with the ball. Shanaka is a batting allrounder but was required to deliver almost 17 overs after two Sri Lanka bowlers – a third of their serious bowling resources – were unavailable through injury.Sri Lanka are unwilling to elaborate on the extent of Kasun Rajitha’s groin injury, believing that hiding that information confers a competitive advantage – however miniscule. But the early signs are that Rajitha, one of Sri Lanka’s three frontline seamers, will bowl no more than the 13 deliveries he bowled in this Test. With Dhananjaya de Silva’s offspin also officially unavailable due to a grade two tear in his thigh, Shanaka may have a heavy bowling workload through the course of this game.”Kasun Rajitha’s injury is really going to affect us – we all know how well he bowled on the last tour here,” Shanaka said at the end of day two at Centurion. Rajitha, it is worth remembering, took nine wickets at 23.22 on Sri Lanka’s last tour in South Africa. “Dhananjaya de Silva also comes in and bowls when they are batting well, and he dries up the runs for us. He does that job. I think we will feel their absence,” Shanaka said.Related

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Both Rajitha and de Silva are understood to have been tasked with performing the holding role in this Test. Without them in the attack, South Africa scored at 4.4 runs an over through day two, getting within 80 runs of Sri Lanka’s 395, after 72 overs of batting. Sri Lanka’s remaining bowlers were somewhat indisciplined through parts of the day, but where captain Dimuth Karunaratne might normally replace a bowler after a bad over, he was forced to persist with them, due to the lack of resources.”There’s a big effect with the loss of those two,” Shanaka said. “We’ve only got four bowlers, but we’ll have to manage. We have to think of it as an opportunity. More than the number of overs we bowled today, we didn’t bowl in such a a way that we created a lot of chances today. I think that’s why they were able to score quickly.”It’s a big ask for the other bowlers. But we’ll have to come up with a different plan in the morning and get the job done. Tomorrow morning there will be a bit of freshness in the pitch, so I think the 70-odd run [lead] that we’ve got could be enough to get back in the game.”On a personal note, however, Shanaka has already impressed in his first Test in three years. He might not have played this match had Angelo Mathews been fit, but he added vital runs with the tail, hitting a six-laden 66 not out off 87. And in a similar circumstance, it is unlikely that Mathews would ever have been able to bowl 16.5 overs in a day, susceptible to injury as he is.Shanaka may, in fact, have been his team’s most consistent operator on day two. He claimed the wicket of Dean Elgar, and went at 3.32 runs per over – a better economy rate than any other Sri Lanka bowler.”I was really happy to be able to play a Test after three years,” he said. “I think I’ve got a lot more experience now, and I get a lot of support from the team as well. I was nervous but I was able to turn that around.”

Ten internationals have been named across the two squads for matches against West Indies A and Pakistan

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Nov-20203:32

Lockie Ferguson: ‘Speed means everything to me’

Devon Conway will have a further chance to push his Test claims after being named in the New Zealand A squads to face West Indies A and Pakistan over the next couple of weeks.Glenn Phillips, who hit a thrilling maiden T20I hundred in the second match against West Indies, will be able to show off his long-form credentials, following his hurried Test debut against Australia in January where he struck an impressive half-century, having been included in both squads.In the second of the two New Zealand A matches, against Pakistan in Queenstown from December 10, Lockie Ferguson and Jimmy Neesham will have the opportunity for their first red-ball cricket since March although the status of that match may depend on there not being any more positive Covid-19 cases during Pakistan’s managed isolation in Christchurch.Devon Conway launches one down the ground•Getty Images

“We’re delighted to be naming such strong squads to take on West Indies A and Pakistan,” selector Gavin Larsen said. “It really does highlight the talent depth we currently have and underlines our intentions to look at a wide group of potential Test players over this NZ A season.”To have ten Blackcaps included across the two games is a testament to that depth and we know the next tier of players get a lot of out of sharing a changing room with our internationals.”To have guys in red-hot form like Glenn, Devon and Lockie is a bonus and I know they’ll be keen to prove what they can do in the longest form of the game. We’re excited to unleash Lockie with the red-ball and see what challenges his extra pace can pose to Pakistan.”Conway has started his international career with scores of 41 and 65 not out in the first two T20Is against West Indies. He has not yet been able to force his way into the Test squad with Will Young the spare batsman.New Zealand A v West Indies A, December 3-6 Glenn Phillips, Joe Carter, Devon Conway, Tim Seifert, Cole McConchie, Mark Chapman, Dane Cleaver (wk), Doug Bracewell, Nathan Smith, Scott Kuggeleijn, Jacob Duffy, Blair Tickner, Ish SodhiNew Zealand A v Pakistan, December 10-13 Glenn Phillips, Henry Cooper, Devon Conway, Tim Seifert, Rachin Ravindra, Mark Chapman, Jimmy Neesham, Cameron Fletcher (wk), Doug Bracewell, Lockie Ferguson, Ed Nuttall, Scott Kuggeleijn, Ish Sodhi

England seamer says current levels of inclusion from players of Afro-Caribbean heritage are ‘just not OK’

George Dobell11-Jun-2020James Anderson believes the game must be “more active” to combat discrimination and that current levels of inclusion from players of Afro-Caribbean heritage are “just not okay”.Anderson, the leading wicket-taker among seam bowlers in Test history, said that recent events – notably the death of George Floyd and the global reaction it has sparked – had caused him to reflect on his own experiences and question whether he had done enough to combat racism.And he revealed that the England team will talk about how they express their solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement – possibly in conjunction with the West Indies team – when the series between the sides begins in July.”It’s been a very thought-provoking few weeks for everyone,” Anderson said. “It’s made me do a lot of thinking. We will have conversations about what we can do as players to make a stand, definitely. I expect that to be a conversation we have.”It’s made me think ‘have I experienced racism on a cricket field?’ I couldn’t remember any instances. I wasn’t in New Zealand when Jofra Archer was racially abused. But it made me think and it made me think ‘have I turned a blind eye to things?'”ALSO READ: ICC to use ‘common sense’ if players pay tribute to George FloydAnderson admitted he was also struck by a Tweet sent by a journalist on Wednesday which suggested that, by the time the 2019 domestic season ended, there was only one UK-born, state-educated cricketer of Afro-Caribbean heritage playing first-class cricket in England.”I saw the stat that showed there’s only one black player who’s come through the state system in county cricket,” he said. “And that’s just not okay. It can’t keep going the way it is. It’s just not okay.”So, as a sport, we need to actively make this game for everyone. That’s the sort of thing I’ve been thinking about, really. Is there more I can do as a player to help the situation? Can I be more active? As players and a game we need to be more active.” Meanwhile Anderson expressed a hope that the enforced break due to the Covid-19 pandemic will help him extend his career. Anderson will be 38 at the end of July and has been struck by injury in two of his most recent three Tests.”I think the break will definitely have helped me,” he said. “I’ve had a few months off bowling properly and luckily I have some equipment at home so I’ve been doing some good strength work.”But I haven’t thought too far ahead. After the last 12 months, with the injuries that I’ve had, I just want to get back to playing and make sure I don’t get any injuries as has happened in the previous times I have come back to playing. I am fully focused on getting my body in the right place. Who knows how long I can keep playing?”Anderson is 16 wickets short of the 600 mark in Test cricket and 41 short of the 1,000 mark in first-class cricket. If he reaches either milestone, he may well prove the last seam bowler to do so. But despite all the success, he admitted he had been encouraged by his performance in the Cape Town Test, where his seven wickets helped England to a memorable victory and where he proved to himself that he could still thrive at the top level.”It’s not a case of proving myself to anyone else,” he said. “I think when I played those two Tests in South Africa, it’s almost proving to yourself that you can still do it.”The five wickets at Cape Town helped me. If there were ever any doubts about retirement, it certainly told me I was able to keep going, I am able to perform at the top level. I think that’s really important for me at this stage of my career.”The last year has been frustrating for me. Before that, my injury record was pretty good. I’m hoping it was just a dodgy 12-months and my body is in a good place now to be able to cope with whatever’s to come.”As long as I can prove to myself that I am good enough to keep playing, good enough to keep my place in the team, then I will keep going and I’ll keep working hard on my fitness.”

England will be looking to fine tune for the World Cup while West Indies could field two debutants as they seek a winning formula in ODIs

The Preview by Alan Gardner19-Feb-2019

Big picture

Rarely does a five-match ODI series become the focal point of any modern tour but, 100 days out from the World Cup, this is arguably the main event for both West Indies and England. While the tourists, so lacklustre during their Test defeat, will step out after a quick change of clothing as the No. 1-ranked ODI side, ready to hone their plans in the run-in to a tournament for which they are warm favourites, West Indies must attempt to channel the mood of optimism currently suffusing Caribbean cricket into an upturn in form in their weakest format.Jason Holder’s contribution to victories in the first two Tests against England (before he was suspended over his team’s slow over rate) further enhanced his reputation as an impressive young leader – but while the Test side has steadily come together over the last two years, results have been harder to come by in ODIs. Holder was appointed captain before the last World Cup, aged just 23, and has still to oversee a bilateral series win after 11 attempts.There were sparks of encouragement in India before Christmas, when West Indies won one game and tied another (which they probably should have won) while the series was still alive, as Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer shone with the bat; but they went on to lose in Bangladesh, with Holder absent through injury, and are set to rejig their side again just three months out from the World Cup.The likes of Chandrapaul Hemraj, Kieran Powell and Roston Chase have been dispensed with, while Andre Russell and Evin Lewis remain unavailable despite both playing in the BPL final 11 days ago. Chris Gayle is a welcome returnee, and is bound to bring some “Universe Boss” charisma to proceedings in what is set to be his final home series before retirement, while John Campbell could make a debut after impressing in the Tests. But little about the team is settled.England’s players, by contrast, know their roles backwards and you can pretty much pencil in their 15-man World Cup squad already – though the tantalising prospect of Jofra Archer becoming eligible next month adds a little spice. Is Mark Wood capable of replicating his 90-plus mph burst with the red ball in St Lucia? Can Liam Plunkett still harvest regular middle-overs wickets with his back-of-a-length hostility? How fit is Chris Woakes (and David Willey)? These are some of the questions likely to preoccupy Eoin Morgan over the next two weeks – though, as the Tests demonstrated, it would pay not to be complacent.Chris Gayle is back in the fold for West Indies•Getty Images

Form guide

West Indies: LWLLL (Last five completed matches, most recent first)
England: LWWW

In the spotlight

The spotlight is where Chris Gayle loves to be, and the announcement that he is to call it a (one-)day after the World Cup will ensure that he casts a long shadow in a squad light on experience. Gayle has only played 15 ODIs since the last World Cup, passing 50 three times, while his returns on the global T20 circuit have slipped from unparalleled greatness to merely very good. But just one sweetly struck six into the Kensington Oval crowd could be enough to light some farewell fireworks.Talking of explosive openers, England have a couple in Jonny Bairstow and Jason Roy. While Bairstow’s role in the Test side has been subject of much discussion – from batting and keeping at No. 5, to specialist No. 3 back down to No. 7 and reclaiming the gloves – he has appeared at ease with his belligerent brief in one-day cricket. Roy, meanwhile, could look to push his Ashes credentials via white-ball success. With Alex Hales hovering, neither will want to experience a dip in form.

Team news

Campbell looks set to win his maiden ODI cap just a few weeks after coming into the Test team, while Nicholas Pooran, a member of the T20I side, is also in line for a potential debut. Kemar Roach may be rested, following his Test exploits, while Carlos Brathwaite has only just flown in from the Pakistan Super League.West Indies: (probable) 1 Chris Gayle, 2 John Campbell, 3 Shai Hope (wk), 4 Darren Bravo, 5 Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Nicholas Pooran, 7 Jason Holder (capt), 8 Fabian Allen/Devendra Bishoo, 9 Ashley Nurse, 10 Sheldon Cottrell, 11 Oshane ThomasEngland rested Jos Buttler for their warm-up match on Sunday but he is set to slot back in ahead of Hales. Woakes got through seven overs against the UWI Vice-Chancellor’s XI, having struggled for fitness during the Test leg of the tour, while Wood was preferred as his new-ball partner, which could mean Willey and Tom Curran are the bowlers to miss out.England: (probable) 1 Jason Roy, 2 Jonny Bairstow, 3 Joe Root, 4 Eoin Morgan (capt), 5 Ben Stokes, 6 Jos Buttler (wk), 7 Moeen Ali, 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Liam Plunkett, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Mark Wood

Pitch and conditions

There has only been one 300-plus total at the Kensington Oval in the last 10 years – made by England in 2017 – but the pitch is expected to be a good one. The forecast is for a warm, humid day with some cloud cover but minimal chance of rain.

Stats and Trivia

• England have won their last nine ODIs against West Indies, including a 186-run thrashing in Barbados two years ago.
• West Indies’ last bilateral series win in ODIs came against Bangladesh in 2014.
• Joe Root needs 54 runs to become the fourth Englishman to reach 5000 in ODIs.

Quotes

“We have got to be clear on our bowling – England pack a heavy punch in their batting, they bat deep, and are top-ranked for a reason. We have to be precise. The way ODI cricket has gone, 300-320 is par these days.”
“We got beaten by Scotland last year and they are ranked lower than West Indies. Any side can be a threat on the day. West Indies are very strong at the moment and we’re not taking them lightly.”
England captain Eoin Morgan says they won’t underestimate the opposition

The former India captain, who is part of the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators to oversee the BCCI, believes certain members of the board have not been pleased with the recent success of the women’s team

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Aug-2017The BCCI is a “male chauvinist organisation” that continues to look down upon women’s cricket in India, according to former India captain Diana Edulji. Speaking at a private event, Edulji, who is part of the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators that oversees the BCCI, also claimed that certain members within the board were not pleased by the impressive performances of the team at the recent Women’s World Cup in England.”I’ve always been a BCCI basher, right from the day women’s cricket came into the BCCI fold in 2006,” Edulji said, at an event organised by the Indian Express Group. “BCCI is a very male chauvinist organisation. They never wanted women to dictate terms or get into this thing. I was very vocal right from my playing days, from when I started. Even now, I would still say that it is not yet well accepted within BCCI that women’s cricket is doing well. It is very difficult for them (some BCCI members) to accept the fact that this team has done very well.””[In 2011], When Mr [N] Srinivasan became president, I would like to say that I went to congratulate him at the Wankhede Stadium. He said, ‘If I had my way, I wouldn’t let women’s cricket happen’.”India’s success at the Women’s World Cup, where they lost a tense final to England, will spur more interest and development in women’s cricket, according to the team’s batting sensation Harmanpreet Kaur, whose 171* in the semi-final against Australia propelled India into the final.”When I was young I would have to beg the girls to play with me so that we could form a team of 11 players. Eventually, I would have to gather girls who were good at other sports,” Harmanpreet said. “When I started, there wasn’t a single academy in Moga (Kaur’s hometown). My coach started one just for me. Now, there are three exclusively for women.”Kaur also expressed her enthusiasm for a women’s IPL in the near future, an idea that has been doing the rounds after India’s recent performances. “I hope we don’t end up saying many years later that ‘we also used to hit sixes during our time,'” she said. “So, I feel if IPL starts now, then it’s great.”

Shahzaib Hasan has appeared before the PCB’s three-man tribunal for the first time since being charged for alleged corruption

Umar Farooq21-Apr-2017Shahzaib Hasan has appeared before the PCB’s three-man tribunal for the first time since being charged for alleged corruption.Last month, the PCB handed Shahzaib a provisional suspension for allegedly failing to report a suspect approach in time and in full detail, and also for allegedly inducing players in corruption.Shahzaib attended the opening hearing along with his lawyer, Barrister Malik Kashif Rajwana, and agreed to the timelines to be adopted under the PCB’s Anti-Corruption Code, with a formal hearing set for June 1 in Lahore. The PCB, according to the procedure laid down by the tribunal, will submit its opening brief and submit its evidence on May 4.The tribunal, thereafter, will offer Shahzaib an opportunity to respond by May 18 and the PCB may, at its discretion, file a rebuttal by May 25. The final hearing will initiate on day-to-day basis from June 1 at the National Cricket Academy.In a separate proceeding, Shahzaib could also be facing more charges for breaches of the PCB’s anti-corruption code. As ESPNcricinfo reported on April 17, the PCB may have found fresh leads in the ongoing investigation into the allegations of corruption surrounding the second season of the Pakistan Super League. The board had issued fresh notices against the players, and asked them to appear for interviews before its Security and Vigilance Department on April 27.Shahzaib was the fifth player to come under the scanner during the second edition of the PSL in the UAE, and was charged with breaching three clauses of the PCB’s anti-corruption code. The player has reportedly accepted at least one minor charge that covers the non-reporting clause but has challenged the major breach that centered around inducing players in corruption directly or indirectly.It has been more than six years since the opening batsman Shahzaib last played for Pakistan, and the highlight of his brief international career of three ODIs and 10 T20Is was being part of the victorious World T20 side in 2009.