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The left-arm spinner’s second ODI five-for bowled New Zealand out for another low score before the England opener scored her maiden international ton

Valkerie Baynes30-Jun-2024England sealed their domination of New Zealand via Maia Bouchier’s maiden international century and Sophie Ecclestone’s five-wicket haul to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in their three match ODI series.Ecclestone’s 5 for 25 from nine overs was instrumental in bowling New Zealand out for a sub-par total for the second game in a row – this time they were bundled out for 141 in 41.5 overs – and Bouchier saw England home with 25.3 overs to spare.Only four New Zealand batters, led by Amelia Kerr’s 43, reached double figures, but, as in the opening match of the series in Durham when they were all out for 156, it didn’t look like nearly enough. England’s bowlers kept New Zealand hemmed in, sending down 10 maidens between them, and Amelia faced 10 deliveries in seven overs for her last three runs.Early incisions by Kate Cross and Lauren Filer had New Zealand floundering at 10 for 2 in the sixth over.Ecclestone was introduced to the attack in the 12th over but it wasn’t until the 18th that she broke a sedate partnership of 46 in 72 balls between Sophie Devine and Amelia, her beautifully flighted delivery luring Devine well down the pitch, then dipping and turning to beat the bat as Amy Jones whipped off the bails.Maddy Green had faced 28 balls for her four runs before doubling her score by lofting the penultimate ball of Cross’ allocation to long-on. Green had reached 30 off 48 when Charlie Dean pinned her on the pad with one that turned sharply from outside off stump to end a 58-run stand with Kerr.Her dismissal brought Brooke Halliday to the crease, the standout performer with her half-century in an otherwise poor display by New Zealand’s batters in their nine-wicket defeat last Wednesday. But Halliday couldn’t repeat her innings after she was undone on 6 attempting to sweep an Ecclestone delivery, which clattered into off stump.Ecclestone made it two wickets in four balls and three for the match when, next over, she bowled Lauren Down for a duck with an excellent ball that turned past the bat and crashed into the top of middle stump. That ended Down’s first international appearance since giving birth to daughter Ruby in January before it had begun.Amelia faced 86 balls for her score, passing 2000 career ODI runs in the process, but her innings was otherwise uneventful, her dismissal via a return catch to Dean coming amid a collapse of seven wickets for 27 runs in 10.4 overs. During that time, Ecclestone also removed Izzy Gaze and Molly Penfold.It was Alice Capsey who took the last wicket when she had Jess Kerr caught slog-sweeping to deep midwicket by Nat Sciver-Brunt for 14 with only her fifth delivery of the day.Maia Bouchier celebrates after reaching her maiden international hundred•Getty Images

Tammy Beaumont survived New Zealand’s review when she was adjudged not out lbw on the first ball of the run-chase, Jess striking the pad with one that moved in but was shown to be tracking down the leg side.As in Durham, Beaumont and Bouchier broke the back of the target, this time via a 73-run partnership in 80 balls. Bouchier took charge here, even more so once Beaumont was run-out by the finest of margins for 28. Bouchier struck Amelia to cover, where Suzie Bates gathered and threw the ball back to the bowler to catch Beaumont short despite the dive.Bouchier was on 42 at the time but unfurled five boundaries in eight balls in the aftermath of Beaumont’s dismissal, four of them off one Devine over. She smashed another off Amelia through the leg side moments before Heather Knight despatched Halliday for the only six of the match, over deep square leg. Knight perished on 9, spooning Halliday straight to Amelia at midwicket.Bouchier was on 92 when she was given not out attempting to pull a Jess delivery, which rapped the back pad low down and New Zealand’s review was turned down on umpire’s call, keeping the century on the table.Bouchier skied the next ball and it dropped short of long-off as she and Sciver-Brunt scampered two and two singles took her past her previous best, 95, scored in the third ODI against Sri Lanka last September.With four more runs needed to win, Sciver-Brunt blocked the remaining four balls of Penfold’s over – one of them a full toss – to give Bouchier the strike. Bouchier tucked Jess’ first delivery to backward square leg and ran two more. Then, after a dot ball prodded towards point, Bouchier struck the next into the space through midwicket and took off for the two runs she needed to reach her ton and complete England’s victory.

The experienced Salma Khatun returns and Rubya Haider misses out with a knee injury

Mohammad Isam05-Jul-2023Bangladesh have left out two big names in Jahanara Alam and Fargana Hoque from the women’s T20I side ahead of their three-match series against India this month. Jahanara, who played just one game in their previous series against Sri Lanka in May, was one of five changes in the team.Fargana is Bangladesh’s second-highest scorer in the format, and along with her, allrounder Lata Mondal and left-arm quick Fariha Trisna were also dropped from the side. Left-hand batter Rubya Haider’s knee injury meant she had to be left out too.The experienced Salma Khatun returned to the side alongside batters Dilara Akter, Shathi Rani and 16-year-old Shorna Akter, apart from pace bowler Marufa Akter. Salma, Dilara and Marufa were not in the squad for the Sri Lanka series. Then selector Manjurul Islam had said at the time that Salma was “rested” due to the volume of cricket this year.

Bangladesh T20I squad changes

IN: Dilara Akter, Shathi Rani, Shorna Akter, Marufa Akter, Salma Khatun

OUT: Jahanara Alam, Fargana Hoque, Rubya Haider (wk), Lata Mondal, Fariha Trisna

Selector Sajjad Ahmed said that they brought Salma back to bolster the spin attack, while Dilara, Shathi and Shorna were promising for the shortest format. Sajjad, however, declined to comment on the players dropped from the side, citing his short time spent in the new role.Bangladesh’s batting will depend on Nigar Sultana, the captain, and Shamima Sultana, apart from Dilara, Sobhana Mostary, Murshida Khatun and Shorna. Uncapped Shathi Rani could open in one of the matches, after she was selected on the back of a strong domestic season.The spin attack will have to carry much of the bowling department, as only two pace bowlers were picked: Marufa Akter and the uncapped Disha Biswas. The spin attack comprises Salma, Fahima Khatun, Nahida Akter, Ritu Mondol, Sanjida Akter and Sultana Khatun.The Indian team will arrive in Dhaka on July 6 for the three T20Is on July 9, 11 and 13 at the Shere Bangla National Stadium.Bangladesh squad for India T20Is: Nigar Sultana (capt, wk), Nahida Akter, Dilara Akter, Shathi Rani, Shamima Sultana, Sobhana Mostary, Murshida Khatun, Shorna Akter, Ritu Moni, Disha Biswas, Marufa Akter, Sanjida Akter Meghla, Rabeya Khan, Sultana Khatun, Salma Khatun, Fahima Khatun

The offspinner, who has faced scrutiny over his action in the past, will need to undergo independent assessment within 14 days

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Aug-2025South Africa allrounder Prenelan Subrayen has been reported for a suspect bowling action following the first ODI against Australia on Tuesday in Cairns.The offspinner took 1 for 46 in his ten overs, dismissing opener Travis Head as South Africa went 1-0 up with a 98-run win. This was the 31-year-old Subrayen’s ODI debut, which came almost two months after he earned his first Test cap against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo.Related

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Subrayen now needs to undergo an independent assessment of his action at an ICC-accredited testing facility within 14 days which South Africa are hoping he can do in Brisbane at Cricket Australia’s National Cricket Centre where Australia’s left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann was tested earlier this year. Bowlers are permitted 15 degrees of elbow extension while delivering the ball and he is allowed to continue bowling in matches until the results of his test are known. But South Africa coach Shukri Conrad said on Thursday that the team has decided Subrayen will not play until he has completed the testing process.”He’s available to play,” Conrad said. “You are allowed to play until you get tested.””We just felt that less noise and get him out of the public eye, make sure he is okay and focuses on the testing.”The process is to get him tested as soon as we can and we are looking to do it in Brisbane. That suits everyone. We are going to the UK via Brisbane so hopefully we can get it sooner rather than later.”This is not the first time the Subrayen has faced scrutiny over his action. In December 2012, Cricket South Africa (CSA) placed him under rehabilitation after two separate independent tests deemed his action illegal. He was cleared to bowl again in January 2013 after undergoing remedial work and re-testing.Subrayen was reported in September 2014 during the Champions League T20 tournament in India, and once more during a domestic T20 game in November 2015, and suspended from bowling after an assessment of his action found all his deliveries to exceed the 15-degree limit. He failed a re-assessment in January 2016, and was eventually cleared to resume bowling after having his action cleared at the CSA’s High Performance Centre in March 2016.”He has gone through this process before,” Conrad said. “It’s never easy. It’s taken him a long time to make his debut and we are rallying around him. Next week will reveal a lot and we will take it from there.”They’ve [the ICC] flagged 12 balls which they’ve forwarded to us. He has got to emulate those 12 balls during the test. We are going to be sending our bowling coach (Piet Botha) with him for support and for us to gain some knowledge about how these things work.”The second and third ODIs, which are the last two matches of South Africa’s white-ball tour of Australia, will be played on August 22 and 24 in Mackay.

Pool of money for professional and recreational game follows initial bail-out of £61 million

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jun-2020The ECB has committed a further £35.7million to support professional and recreational cricket during the Covid-19 pandemic.The support package, agreed by the ECB board in a bid to mitigate the financial issues caused by the suspension of the 2020 season, follows on from the initial sum of £61 million that was announced back in March.The bulk of the figure, £30.22million, will be released to the first-class counties and MCC on August 1, and will comprise the early release of six months of core payments from the County Partnership, as well as the remainder of the annual payments of £1.3million that were promised to the counties with the establishment of the Hundred.The remainder of the sum, £5.5 million, will be made available to the county boards on August 1, again from core payments from the County Partnership distributions.In addition, recreational clubs will continue to have access to an interest-free pot of £20million through the ECB’s ‘Return to Cricket” scheme, and will also be given a 12-month holiday on loan repayments.”It is the ECB’s responsibility to protect the whole game’s future during the financial uncertainty we face as a sport,” said Tom Harrison, the chief executive.”We continue to work closely with all levels of the game to understand the challenges that are being presented and to map out a plan for the future. While I am pleased the ECB Board has been able to approve this financial support package for the remainder of this year we are still only at the beginning of addressing the impact of this crisis on cricket.”We still should not underestimate the significant financial burden that is ahead of us across all levels of the game. We must seek to reduce the cost base across the game, as we face up to the sobering reality of what lies ahead of us.”The response we have seen within the game has been reassuring and I know how much a return to the field of play would mean to clubs and players of all ages across England and Wales.”It remains our priority to get cricket started again this summer, from the grassroots to the elite level, and we will continue to work with Government to try and do that in a way that keeps people safe but that limits the ongoing impact of this crisis on our game.”

He also confirmed his participation in the SA20 in January, though his “absolute priority” is still playing for New Zealand

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Jun-2024Kane Williamson has confirmed that the SA20 will be his destination in January, after he declined a New Zealand central contract for the 2024-25 season, but added it was no indication that his international career was nearing an end.Williamson stressed that it was NZC’s rules around player availability to be eligible for a contract – they have to play Super Smash if not on international duty – that led him to make the decision, and that he remains committed to New Zealand outside of heading to South Africa.It could be that the only international cricket he misses is three ODIs and three T20Is against Sri Lanka, although reported there was some doubt over his participation in the one-off Test against Afghanistan in September. Williamson will play the WTC series against Sri Lanka and India away, the three-match home series against England, and then make an ODI trip to Pakistan ahead of the Champions Trophy in February.Related

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“There’s a number of great competitions on during that time, but SA20 looks really exciting,” Williamson told reporters on his return to New Zealand after the T20 World Cup. “Unfortunately, it meant turning down a central contract, however my priority still is, absolutely, playing for New Zealand. Think I miss maybe a handful of games over a three-week period.”It’s simply the contract, the rules that currently exist meant I wasn’t able to have one but in terms of playing for New Zealand I’m not missing almost any cricket really, so that was important to me.”In terms of how far Williamson’s international career extends, the reported that he and NZC CEO Scott Weenink had discussed the 2028 T20 World Cup to be staged in New Zealand and Australia when he would be 38. Publicly, Williamson remained coy although acknowledged major events and series – such as the Test series in Australia in 2026-27 – remained on his radar.”I want to play as long as I can,” he said. “I’ve really, really enjoyed my time captaining and it’s been a privilege and an honour to do that for a number of years. I’m excited with what’s next for the team in terms of the leadership as well and looking forward to being part of that.”In terms of a timeframe, it’s difficult to say. Want to keep being fit, doing as well as I can, keep trying to improve. That [2028] is a number of years away and it’s a year at a time. All major events and key series are things that whet the appetite and are an exciting prospect. They are down the line. Managing my time as well as I can after doing it for so many years is important and I know New Zealand Cricket are really supportive of that.”Williamson added that he was keen to continue international cricket across three formats, although his T20 spot may come under scrutiny as the team rebuilds from their group stage exit in West Indies.”Naturally after major events there are always different decisions that are made and you are always looking to bring different players through, but being part of this team is so dear to me and I want to remain in that community as long as I can, and as long as I’m offering value,” he said.Meanwhile, Weenink said that the casual playing arrangement afforded to Williamson would only be offered to a handful of senior players, citing Trent Boult, who opted out of a central contract in 2022, and Tim Southee as others who had earned that option. However, Test captain Southee is expected to be on the next contract list.”Those guys have certainly earned the right to be treated in a certain way, in that we want to try and prolong their careers,” Weenink told the . “If we had a hard and fast rule around certain players like Kane Williamson, we would lose him to playing for New Zealand earlier than we would need to.”That casual contract is not going to be offered to everyone and going off contract is pretty risky. There’s a lot of advantages to being on a New Zealand central contract and we will be prioritising the players who are centrally contracted.”

Indian coach lauds “exceptional leader” Rohit Sharma for “giving so much of his time and energy in the dressing room to the boys”

Yash Jha19-Nov-20235:24

Dravid: ‘We gave it everything we had’

India fell “30-40 runs short” of a good total in the final, but it wasn’t because of a safety-first approach in the middle overs – that’s the line Rahul Dravid took in the wake of his team’s defeat to Australia in the 2023 World Cup title bout in Ahmedabad.”I won’t agree that we played with fear. We had 80 runs in ten overs. We had lost wickets, and when you lose wickets you have to change your strategy,” Dravid said at the post-match press conference.Rohit Sharma’s 31-ball 47 had set India on their way, with the team reaching 80 at the end of the first powerplay. But they only managed four boundaries in the rest of their innings to eventually finish on 240. Dravid attributed the slowdown to the loss of wickets at regular intervals, and not a lack of intent.Related

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“We haven’t played any fearful cricket in this final. In the middle overs, they bowled really well and we had lost three wickets. So a period of consolidation was needed, and every time we thought we could get on the attack, we would lose a wicket,” he said. “If you lose wickets, you have to rebuild. We didn’t set out to play defensively.”While Australia eventually coasted to the target with seven overs to spare and six wickets in hand, Dravid reckoned the game would have played out differently had India got 30-40 more runs on a surface he believed was tougher to bat on in the afternoon.”Just felt like the ball was stopping in the afternoon a little bit more than it did in the evening,” he said. “It felt like the ball came on to the bat a lot better in the evening. There was that period where the ball was stopping and we weren’t able to get boundaries. We were able to rotate the strike but we weren’t able to get those boundaries.”If we had got to 280-290 and they were 60 for 3 then it might have been a very different game. But 240, I think they were always one partnership away from getting there.”Sunday’s loss extended India’s run of near-misses at global events; in the last 13 months alone, they have faced a semi-final exit at the T20 World Cup, lost the World Test Championship final, and now the ODI World Cup final.”I’ve been involved in three… and I think we haven’t played really well on the day,” Dravid said. “I thought we were a bit short in Adelaide, in the semi-final [of the T20 World Cup, against England]. We lost the first day in the World Test Championship [final]. We didn’t bowl particularly well after Australia were three down. And here we didn’t bat well enough.”There’s not one particular reason you can pin it down to. I didn’t feel at any stage going into this game that there were any nerves or the guys were intimidated by the game. I thought the energy and the mental space the boys were in leading into this particular game was spot on.”Dravid, whose two-year contract as head coach runs out this month, heaped praise on Rohit for his leadership and his batting throughout the World Cup.”I think he has been an exceptional leader, always felt he’s led this team fantastically well,” Dravid said. “He’s given so much of his time and energy in the dressing room to the boys. There’s been a lot of planning, a lot of strategy, he’s always committed to those things.2:06

Should one of Kohli or Rahul have taken charge?

“His batting as well, I thought it was fantastic the way he set the tone for us. We knew that we wanted to play a certain way, we wanted to play a positive, attacking brand of cricket, and he was very committed to doing that. He wanted to lead by example, and I thought right throughout the tournament he was superb. Can’t speak more highly of him, as a person and a leader.”Dravid, who had made the walk towards the press-conference room even as Australia were being handed their winners’ medals, admitted that emotions were running high in the Indian dressing room.”There was a lot of emotions in that dressing room. It was tough to see as a coach, because I know how hard these guys have worked, what they’ve put in, the sacrifices they’ve made,” he said. “But that’s sport. That happens. It can happen. And the better team won on the day. I’m sure the sun will come up tomorrow morning.”We’ll learn from it, we’ll reflect, and we’ll move on. That’s what you do as sportsmen. You have some great highs in sport, and you have some lows in sport. And you keep moving on. You don’t stop.”

Foxes’ four-run loss hits chances of sealing spot as one of the third-placed sides chasing qualification

ECB Reporters Network15-Sep-2020Leicestershire Foxes suffered a setback in their bid to reach the quarter-finals of the Vitality Blast as Derbyshire Falcons pulled off a first victory of the season in a low-scoring North Group affair at the Fischer County Ground, Leicester.Having restricted the Falcons to 147 for 8 from their 20-over allocation, seamer Gavin Griffiths taking a career-best 4 for 35, the Foxes fancied their chances of cementing their position as one of the third-placed sides chasing qualification, especially after defeat for Birmingham Bears in the Central Group earlier in the day.But despite an unbroken stand of 68 for the fifth wicket between Harry Dearden and George Rhodes, building on a useful 32 on home debut from Nick Welch, the Foxes fell short of their target, some tight and intelligent death bowling from Dustin Melton and Michael Cohen pinned them down over the final three overs, when neither batsman could find the rope.Having opted to bat first, the Falcons were 42 for 1 after the Powerplay overs, largely down to Wayne Madsen, who had made 26 of them off 16 deliveries but was almost out without scoring, backing away a little to a ball from Callum Parkinson, the left-arm spinner, that missed leg stump by a whisker and was given as four after evidently taking a deflection off the bat as it sped past wicketkeeper Lewis Hill. The same over had seen Luis Reece dismissed as Parkinson read the batsman’s intention to step down the pitch and turned the ball away from him to facilitate an easy stumping for Hill.Madsen made the most of his good fortune with boundaries of a more authentic nature off Griffiths and Will Davis, including the night’s first maximum as he lofted the latter over long-on, and though a bowling change at both ends stemmed the flow of runs a little, Madsen looked well set at 33 off 22 balls in the 10th over when Billy Godleman’s poor decision to take a single as George Rhodes swooped to field at short extra gave his experienced colleague no chance to make his ground, leaving the Falcons 64 for 2 at the halfway stage.It was a scratchy innings by Godleman, who loosened his arms to launch Parkinson over long-off in the 13th over but was out next ball as the left-armer beat him in flight and enabled a second stumping for Hill. Matt Critchley and Leus du Plooy kept the board turning over but at 101 for 3 after 15, Derbyshire needed to build some momentum to post a competitive score.It did not help that Du Plooy, having helped one round the corner for his second boundary, was out to the second ball of the 16th over, his steepling drive dropping for Davis at long-on, and when leg-spinner Gareth Delany bowled Critchley in the next over the Falcons were looking at a relatively modest total, even though Anuj Dal announced his arrival with a six muscled over wide long-on.A slower ball from Griffiths accounted for Dal at the start of the final over of the Falcons’ innings and after Alex Hughes swelled the total with six over the bowler’s head, new batsman Mattie McKearnan and Hughes were caught in the deep off the last two balls as Griffiths claimed three wickets in the over.The Falcons’ 147 for 8 left the Foxes needing to score at 7.4 runs per over to register a third win of this truncated season, a rate of which they were quickly ahead as openers Delany and Nick Welch helped themselves to half a dozen boundaries in the first three overs. Welch, the 22-year-old Zimbabwean making his home senior debut, picked up two in the same over off his compatriot, Dustin Melton, and dispatched him for a towering six over deep mid-wicket, clearing the roof of The Meet.But the left-armer Michael Cohen struck back for the Falcons, dismissing Delany via a swivel-pull scooped up at short fine by Hughes and Arron Lilley, whose uppercut turned into a catch taken low down by Melton at third man as the Foxes completed the Powerplay overs only marginally in front and with two important batsmen lost.Colin Ackermann found his range immediately, lifting Matt Critchley’s leg spin for six over long and slog-sweeping four in the same over before repeating the feet in Critchley’s next. Welsh pulled Cohen to the rope and the Foxes seemed to be back on track until Hughes entered the attack to remove the threat of Ackermann, taken by wicketkeeper Brooke Guest standing up.The Foxes had now slipped marginally behind the required rate at 72 for 3 after 10 and suffered another setback when Critchley produced a lovely ball to bowl Welch for 32, leaving Harry Dearden and George Rhodes with a rebuilding job.Although the two found boundaries hard to come, they kept the total building with intelligent placement, yet entered the final five overs of the contest with still 42 required. Hughes and McKearnen, the other leg-spinner in the Falcons side, kept the pressure on and though the left-handed Dearden picked up a boundary off each the Foxes still required 20 from the last two overs, which came down to 10 off the final six balls.It proved too much, Melton coming up with an excellent final over to leave the Foxes five short of their target. Rhodes could have won the match with a six off the last ball. He failed and although he was dropped in the attempt Derbyshire’s joy was not diminished.

Trio’s centuries in the first innings followed by Kartikeya’s four in the second helped restrict Mumbai to a lead of 107

Shashank Kishore26-Jun-2022Madhya Pradesh are the Ranji Trophy 2021-22 champions, 69 years after they last won the coveted trophy in their former avatar, as Holkar, and 23 years since they last had a shot at Indian domestic cricket’s biggest prize. At the same venue of their 1998-99 heartbreak, MP redeemed themselves in the best way possible, vanquishing 41-time champions Mumbai to lift the trophy on a cloudy Sunday afternoon.Victory was achieved shortly before tea on the fifth day when Rajat Patidar pushed Sarfaraz Khan for a single wide of point as MP had converted potentially tricky 108 chase into a cruise. Patidar, whose 122 helped set up MP’s 162-run lead in the first innings, was 34 not out, along with Aditya Shrivastava, the captain.Mumbai’s bowlers needed to go for broke and they struck gold early when Dhawal Kulkarni breached Yash Dubey’s defense in the third over to leave MP 4 for 1. The next half hour provided an engaging passage with runs coming in a trickle. But MP hardly looked under pressure, calmly battling through the new-ball burst, and putting away the occasional boundary balls with the fields in to keep tucking away at the runs.Once set, the batters tried to go for the big hits. This led to the dismissals of Himanshu Mantri and Parth Sahani, but there were no more twists in store. Patidar tantalized the crowd with some exquisite cover drives to the all-familiar RCB chants.Madhya Pradesh players pose with the trophy•Afzal Jiwani/ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Mumbai’s aspirations of setting a bigger total took a beating right from the outset as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals, even as MP restored to a defensive line of attack all morning. Their placers employed a wide line – almost sixth stump outside off – with six fielders to protect the off-side boundary. Against spin, especially Kumar Kartikeya’s left-arm variety, they employed a leg-stump line with six fielders stationed on the leg side.As such, the onus was on Mumbai to force the pace. Suved Parkar, who made 252 on debut in the quarterfinals against Uttarakhand, made a half-century but fell soon after Arman Jaffer was castled by a Gaurav Yadav slower delivery. Mumbai lost two early and MP were on the march.Sarfaraz employed the sweep to good effect, and repeatedly kept peppering different parts of the leg-side boundary by hitting against the turn. He made 45 before being the seventh wicket to fall when he holed out to deep backward square leg off left-arm spinner Sahani. He ended the season with 982 runs, 324 more than second-placed Patidar.After sweeping his way to some handy runs, Sarfaraz was out to the very shot that brought him runs – sweeping from way outside off to find the boundary rider. Mumbai’s last three hardly troubled the bowlers and were rolled over quickly for 269, leaving MP more than two sessions to gnaw at the target.When they came out, MP banished early jitters to set the tone for some serious celebrations in the MP camp. After five days of sitting motionless in the dressing room, belting out instructions through the 12th man, Chandrakant Pandit, the man who sobbed pitch side after the 1998-99 heartbreak, had his moment of redemption shortly before tea. As for the rest of the young group led by Shrivastava, it was time for some celebrations as the first step towards dominating the red-ball scene had been taken quite emphatically.

Dwaine Pretorius also cleared to join as squad size is reduced from 19 to 17

Firdose Moonda18-Dec-2020Top-order batsman Raynard van Tonder and fast bowler Lutho Sipamla have received maiden call-ups to South Africa’s Test squad, while allrounder Dwaine Pretorius has been cleared fit to be a part of the group too. In addition to members of the squad that was named last week, two more players have tested positive for Covid-19 and will no longer be part of the playing group. That takes the total number of players in preparation for the two-Test series against Sri Lanka to 17.In keeping with doctor-patient confidentiality, CSA will not name the two players who have been removed from the squad but them, and at least 10 others including van Tonder and Sipamla, were part of domestic matches in which cases of Covid-19 were detected this week and may not be able to enter the bio=bubble on Saturday, which may necessitate further changes to the squad.Related

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former national Under-19 captain van Tonder has been rewarded for his form in the domestic four-day competition, where he is on top of the run-chart. His most recent knock was a double-hundred, which set the Knights up for a big win over the Lions, Sipamla’s team. That match was Sipamla’s first red-ball cricket of the summer and he took 2 for 75. Also, in that fixture, one Lions player tested positive for Covid-19 on day three and was substituted, with the game allowed to continue. Testing and monitoring have continued when it comes to other Lions players.Pretorius, who also plays for the Lions, was not involved in the match as he was recovering from a hamstring injury, which had ruled him out of the aborted white-ball series against England. He was due to play in the round of fixtures that were scheduled to start this Sunday but because the matches have been postponed, Pretorius has been added to the national squad.”Pretorius has made great progress from the hamstring injury he picked up last month just before the start of the England tour. He would have completed the last step of the CSA Return to Play protocol by playing in the now postponed round of the 4-Day Cup and will instead work closely with the team’s medical staff and coaches to ensure that he is Test match-ready,” a CSA statement said.Kagiso Rabada, the other injured player among South Africa’s regular playing group, has not been cleared to play after sustaining a groin injury against England and is expected to sit out the Sri Lanka series. Rabada’s absence has resulted in South Africa calling up reinforcements including Sipamla and, earlier this week, Migael Pretorius.South Africa’s players were tested for Covid-19 between Wednesday and Thursday and will be tested again on arrival in Centurion tomorrow. They will spend the first 72 hours in managed isolation in their hotel rooms with training on a one-on-one or small group basis and will be tested for a third and final time on Tuesday next week, two days before the series starts on Boxing Day.Squad: Quinton de Kock (capt & wk), Temba Bavuma, Aiden Markram, Faf du Plessis, Beuran Hendricks, Dean Elgar, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Rassie van der Dussen, Sarel Erwee, Anrich Nortje, Glenton Stuurman, Wiaan Mulder, Keegan Petersen, Kyle Verreynne, Migael Pretorius, Dwaine Pretorius, Lutho Sipamla, Raynard van Tonder

“We had a really good match, it was just some small moments that we could’ve done better,” says New Zealand head coach Gary Stead

Madushka Balasuriya25-Sep-2024You win the toss, you bat. When it comes to playing a Test in Galle, that is not so much as received wisdom as it as an etched in stone eleventh commandment. While this might on the face of it seem a ploy to get the best of the batting conditions, in actuality, it’s more down to not wanting to get the worst of it.In the first Test, Sri Lanka won the toss and obviously batted, but while the notable turn on day one signified a raging turner from the outset, Sri Lanka still managed to run up 305 in the first innings – even accounting for them losing their last four wickets for just 24 runs.And after that, it was in fact New Zealand’s batters that got to utilise the most batter friendly of conditions across the Test – on day two, when the turn had slowed down and Sri Lanka’s spinners struggled for control. But their innings, too, was hampered by a late collapse, going from a pretty strong 269 for 5 to 340 all out.Related

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But as the Test wore on, particularly on the fourth and fifth day, batting became the chore Galle is more commonly renowned for, with 14 wickets falling on day four and two wickets within 15 minutes on day five to wrap up the game.”The pitch can change quite quickly and we saw that,” New Zealand head coach Gary Stead noted on the eve of the second Test. “From being relatively good off the straight areas, to then spinning, quite a bit on that fourth day. The conditions can change very quickly.”So I think every run you get in the first innings is very important. And making sure you can post a as large a total as possible, as that means it’s just less runs you have to score in the second innings.”Stead’s sentiment was something shared by Sri Lanka batting coach Thilina Kandamby, who spoke towards the importance of setting the tone early on, be it with the bat or ball.”Setting the tone is key in Test cricket, even with the ball. In Manchester also, if you remember, we had a really bad day starting with the bowling. Then we recovered really well. That’s the positive part of it, whether it comes to bowling or batting our recovery is really good. But setting the tone is really important, and all the players know that.”Both teams are also acutely aware of the areas in which they need to improve, primarily in pressing home hard-fought advantages. With five wickets in hand, 50 runs adrift of Sri Lanka’s first innings total, and a set pair of Daryl Mitchell and Glenn Phillips at the crease at the start of day three, New Zealand might have been eyeing a hefty first-innings lead – particularly taking into account the confidence with which they had approached their batting the previous day.As it turned out, they would lose their remaining five wickets for 86 runs on the third morning, and in the process relinquish the grip they had on the game. With 63 runs the final margin of defeat it’s pivotal passages such as these, that Stead knows proved the difference in the end.”I actually think we had a really good Test match and for the most part it was very evenly contested. I thought that it was just some small moments that we could have done better,” he explained. “We probably should have got more run in terms of that first innings, and the lead from the position we were in.”And then the second session, I think it was of the third day, where we didn’t take a wicket. [Dinesh] Chandimal and [Dimuth] Karunaratne batted very well, but we maybe were just a little bit slow to adjust and adapt to that situation.””We probably should have got more run in terms of that first innings, and the lead from the position we were in” – Stead•AFP/Getty Images

Kandamby had similar grievances with his own side. Sri Lanka lost five of their top six batters (including Angelo Mathews who retired hurt) inside the first 35 overs of day one, before a century from Kamindu Mendis and a Kusal Mendis fifty revived their innings. In the second innings, having got to 153 for the loss of just one wicket, Sri Lanka stumbled to 178 for 4. And then again went from 286 for 6 to 309 all out.”Mindset will be the same [going into the game], but we have discussed where we went wrong, especially in the batting,” revealed Kandamby. “We had a collapse in the third or fourth day, it had happened a couple of times earlier also. The senior players need to take the responsibility because they have played a lot of cricket in Galle. We all knew the wicket would be helpful for spinners.”When we see the stats, I think they swept more than us, which is a concern. We played some good sweep shots as well, but you can’t always trust the defence on a wicket like this. So you’re better always to be in a positive mindset to score runs.”One other area of concern has been the contribution from Sri Lanka’s tail. In terms of batting contributions from those batting at 9, 10 and 11, Sri Lanka know they could be doing better. Across both innings they contributed a total of 13 runs, while Ramesh Mendis batting at eight offered not much more.This has partly been reason for Sri Lanka bringing in Milan Rathnayake – following his impressive showing with the bat in England – in place of Lahiru Kumara, but Kandamby said it was nevertheless an area they were actively looking at improving on.”Yes we’re looking for runs from them [the tail], but more than that it’s about supporting the batter at the other end. It’s only after the recognised batter gets out that we start thinking about how to put the pressure back on the bowlers and get some runs. So honestly if they can get about 30-40 runs, that would be good. Because if you look at it compared the rest of the Test playing nations, our batters at 9, 10, 11, are quite low down.”Whenever we have practice, batting is compulsory for them. And when we’re not playing in a series, they will work the coaches at the HPC (high performance centre) to work on their technical errors.”