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In an exclusive interview with ESPNcricinfo, the newly elected PCB chairman spoke about the need to revive bilateral cricketing ties between India and Pakistan

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Oct-20184:32

‘The people want India-Pakistan cricket, and you can’t go against their will’

Ehsan Mani, the newly elected PCB chairman, has termed India’s stance on playing Pakistan “hypocrisy”. In a climate of political tension between the two countries, India have not played a bilateral match against Pakistan in any format since January 2013, but have met them 10 times since then in multilateral events.In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, Mani said it was the “will of the people” that cricketing ties between India and Pakistan resume, and added that sporting contact would improve relations between the two countries.”The main thing is that we play cricket against each other. When we play cricket, especially in our countries – when we go to India or when they come here – helps in increasing people-to-people contact. Indian fans come to Pakistan. Lakhs of fans have come to Pakistan from India and everyone goes back happy.”There’s no better way to improve the relations between countries than having sporting contacts, cultural contacts. For me, that is far more important than any amount of money that comes into the game.”Indian public obviously love to see India and Pakistan playing, and so does the Pakistan public. Rest of the work is of the politicians and frankly, once India is in the lead-up to its elections next year, so I don’t think there will be any softening in their attitude. But in the long term, the people want it and you can’t go against the will of the people forever.”There is a lot of hypocrisy at the moment. India plays an ICC event against us but doesn’t play a bilateral series. That is something that we need to address.”India-Pakistan matches, Mani said, had the “highest value financially in the world”, but he maintained that the PCB’s desire for the resumption of ties was about more than money. When asked if Pakistan cricket could survive without bilaterals against India, he had a one-word answer: “forever.””Money isn’t the issue, it’s more about the game,” he said. “There are more viewers for an India-Pakistan match than any other match in the world. So, if the Indian government decides to deprive its own citizens of watching an India-Pakistan match then that is their choice.”Mani’s predecessor as PCB chairman, Najam Sethi, was instrumental in moving the ICC to set up a dispute panel to resolve the impasse over India-Pakistan bilateral cricket. The PCB and the BCCI are currently awaiting the panel’s verdict.Asked if he would have chosen the dispute-panel route, Mani said he would have preferred dialogue with the BCCI and the Indian government, and recalled his role, during his tenure as ICC president, in convincing the Indian government to green-light the first full India tour of Pakistan in 15 years.”I would have preferred for there to be board-to-board discussions and board-to-government decisions,” Mani said. “I was ICC [president] in 2003 and India and Pakistan were not playing each other then.”I went and met the Indian government and I took with me the people that were leading the Indian cricket board at that time – Mr. [Jagmohan] Dalmiya, Mr. [IS] Bindra, Mr. Rajsingh [Dungarpur] – and we went to the different ministries concerned with India-Pakistan cricket relations, and they spoke more in favour of resuming cricket between India and Pakistan than I did as a Pakistani.”I had to be slightly neutral since I was with the ICC. But I didn’t have to say anything – they were the ones saying we want to play against Pakistan. There is always some political interference in India but the Indian government has said, ‘Look, at the end of the day, it is the BCCI’s decision to play or not play against Pakistan, but they have to come and present a case to us,’ and I took them on face value.”It took us about a year but they came in 2004 because I kept going back with people on the Indian cricket board and I was going as the ICC President and not as someone representing Pakistan.”For all that, Mani said he wouldn’t keep trying to persuade India to play Pakistan beyond a point.”I don’t intend to ask India to play us at all,” he said. “If they want to play they tell us, if they don’t want to play that’s fine. But we are not going to go after them, we are not going to beg them. It’s good for the game if India-Pakistan play each other but it will be on equal terms.”

Players’ association includes section on “good decision-making”, which offers guidelines on good communication in sexual relationships

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Oct-2018The New Zealand’s players’ handbook now includes guidelines relating to good communication when engaging in sexual relationships, with particular reference to consent.Amid growing concerns of harassment of women in the work place and by men in positions of power, brought to light through the #metoo campaign, the New Zealand Cricket Players Association (NZCPA) included a section in the players’ handbook for the first time on the importance of consent in sexual relationships.The notes, under a section titled “good decision-making”, begin by saying: “Making good decisions is important in all aspects of life. This is particularly important when relating to sexual relationships, and especially around matters of consent. No matter the situation, sexual consent is crucial.”The notes go on to point out that consent is required by law and that “if they say no, it means no“. It also talks about not pressurising a person into giving their consent, and respecting a person’s freedom to withdraw consent even after sexual relations have started.

A programme on the potential risks a cricketer faces has been run by NZCPA for about seven years, according to a report in the , but this is the first time it has been included in the players’ handbook. Sexual relationships apart, the programme on “personal development” also deals with other potential risky situations, including doping and coping with life after cricket.NZCPA chief executive Heath Mills said the handbook was updated with this information simply to make it more accessible to players all over New Zealand.”If people are making good decisions they’re aware of the risks around being a professional cricketer and are aware of the importance of respect and responsibility, then they’re going to be skills and attributes they’re going to have for life no matter what career they’re involved in,” Mills told . “There’s a whole heap of pages in here, and they’re all aspects of the personal development programme that we run. Good decision-making is one aspect to it.”

The opener scored at a strike rate of nearly 200 and helped Blitz make 172 after collapsing to 101 for 8 on a difficult surface

The Report by Varun Shetty01-Dec-2018Quinton de Kock struck his fourth T20 century – a superlative knock on a night where only two other batsmen made more than 30 – as Cape Town Blitz countered Nelson Mandela Bay Giants’ bonus point win on Friday with one of their own. This means that Blitz are now six points clear of the Giants at the top of the table. On the flip side, AB de Villiers’ Tshwane Spartans registered their fourth loss in six games, and will wonder how they managed to lose by 60 runs, having reduced Blitz to 101 for 8 at one point after electing to bowl.The pitch had bothered Quinton de Kock and Janneman Malan early on with its two-paced nature. But not to the extent it would cripple all the batsmen that followed the two openers, who still managed to strike at nearly ten an over during their 83-run stand. The introduction of spin through Jeevan Mendis’ legbreaks brought the dismissal Spartans were searching for. Pinch-hitter Andile Phehlukwayo was bowled by fast bowler Corbin Bosch next over and it was swiftly followed by two wickets in two balls by Sean Williams – Farhaan Behardien and Asif Ali both out after being beaten in flight by the left-arm spinner.And it just didn’t seem to stop. Batsmen fell rapidly against both pace and spin with the pitch showing a dramatic change in nature, and in five overs, Blitz crumbled for a collapse that read 8 for 18.But the return of Lutho Sipamla seemed to have encouraged de Kock, who had taken the bowler for 16 off 4 in the sixth over of the innings. In his third, the 15th of the innings, he hit him for a six and a four off consecutive deliveries. This gave him momentum going into the next over, where he spent the first four balls dismantling Mendis: a six over long-off to start, followed by boundaries at deep extra cover, deep backward square and wide long-on. In two overs, Blitz had moved from 101 for 8 to 133 for 8, and suddenly Spartans knew they were in for a brutal assault. Having galloped from 67 to 86 in five balls, de Kock didn’t take too long to bring up his hundred, a powerful drive wide of mid-off sealing that milestone for him in the 18th over.He fell in the 19th over with the score 158. And it wouldn’t have gone past 160 if Andrew Birch hadn’t overstepped first ball of the 20th. The seamer had managed to get Nandre Burger to sky a leading edge to third man, but his front foot landing ended up costing Spartans a further 12 runs in damage as Blitz remarkably managed to bat out their last 6.1 overs without being bowled out.De Kock’s innings would have encouraged Spartans, nonetheless. It showed that the runs were there to be had, and that Blitz may have well made more if their middle order had chipped in. However, they soon realised that the struggles they caused were more than cosmetic. Even while facing the new ball, strokemaking seemed almost impossible for openers Gihahn Cloete and Dean Elgar. The few boundaries that did come were not all controlled shots, and quite a few of them came off edges.In fact, it got so bad by the time the spinners came on, that No. 3 batsman Theunis de Bruyn couldn’t find the boundary a single time in the 17 balls he faced. When he pulled Mohammad Nawaz to long-on, Spartans were striking at less than seven per over at the halfway stage.Any hopes of recovering from those depths were squashed in the following over, with Malusi Siboto rattling de Villiers’ stumps. It was symptomatic of the pitch: de Villiers got an inside edge onto thigh guard that deflected onto the stumps. Like most other batsmen on the pitch, de Villiers simply couldn’t come to terms with the slowness during his 10-ball innings.Nawaz turned the screws further with his third wicket in the next over and finished with 3 for 14 in his three. There was little Spartans could do to recover, having gone six overs without a boundary after the eighth over of the innings. Attempts at aggression were futile in the end, and Burger used that to round off an impressive first game of the season with figures of 3 for 19.

India’s captain and coach had different reasons for the same sentiment, as they celebrated India’s first series win in Australia since first playing there 71 years ago

Sidharth Monga in Sydney07-Jan-20198:23

‘No one plays Test cricket with more passion than Kohli’ – Shastri

India’s captain and coach are both World Cup winners but they rate this series win in Australia higher than those triumphs, albeit for different reasons. Ravi Shastri, the coach, was part of the India squad that won the 1983 World Cup although he didn’t play in the final. Virat Kohli played through the 2011 World Cup that India won.”I was part of 2011 World Cup team,” Kohli said, “but I didn’t have the emotion of not having been able to win a World Cup before. Playing at home and winning it eventually… a lot of the senior players had that emotion. Yes, it was a great moment for me but if you ask me which moment is more emotional, I would say this one because this is my third tour here and I have seen how difficult it is to win here. And all the struggles that we have gone through in the past 12 months as well as the team.”So, from that point of view this one is more emotional for me. It will definitely be more special, purely because of the fact that we really wanted to win a series away from home. We didn’t want to be a one-match-wonder kind of team. So, having stuck to our task and executed what we wanted and got the result, we, as a team, feel absolutely complete now that we have done what we set out to do…not to show to anyone else but to prove ourselves that yes, we could do it and we have done it. From that point of view this one is more special for me.”For Shastri, this is a win achieved in a purer format. “I will tell you how satisfying it is for me,” Shastri said. “World Cup ’83, World Championship ’85. This is as big, or even bigger, because it is in the truest format of the game. It’s Test cricket, which is meant to be the toughest.”There was the usual combative reaction to criticism – Shastri took another potshot at Sunil Gavaskar’s criticism, calling his shots “blanks” that are “blown away like a tracer bullet” by the time they reach the southern hemisphere – but there was a genuine feeling of relief and pride in Kohli. All the psyching up he had to do, all the effort put in to not let the mind wander ahead of himself, could now be laid to rest. He was asked about his comments before the Test that history doesn’t mean much to him.Virat Kohli and Ravi Shastri share a light moment before team photos•Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

“We all play mind-games, don’t we,” Kohli said with a smile. “Look, it’s obviously a very proud moment, more so because we understand what we have gone through as a team for the last 12 months. We understand the kind of cricket that we have been able to play, and I was just mentioning the fact that after losing tosses, we have been in competition throughout in the games that we have lost. We understood as a team we were on the right track. What has come in the most historic series for Indian cricket is the cherry on the cake and something that, as I said, in the 10 years that I have played, is the proudest moment that I have experienced.”I am so happy for the whole team because a young bunch of guys, to have that belief and to keep striving for excellence on a daily basis and to get a reward like this, we definitely have to be happy. Although changing history or creating history is still not what I am thinking of, it is pure satisfaction of the hard work of 12 months to understand that what we believed in has been proven right and regardless of the whole world being against you, if you are striving in the right direction with good intent, God’s going to reward you. So that’s what I am more happy about.””So history does matter?””Of course it does.”Shastri, though, continued to be caustic. He was asked if he would like to share this success with captains who – from Lala Amarnath to MS Dhoni – tried their best to win in Australia but couldn’t. “Past is history, future is a mystery,” Shastri said. “Okay? We have won today after 71 years, I’d like to live in the present. And salute my captain for being the captain of the team that beat Australia for the first time in Australia in a series.”When talking about the satisfaction of winning this series, Shastri again referenced teams from the past, and also said Kohli shows more passion for Test cricket than any other captain in the world.”I don’t think anyone plays Test cricket with more passion than he [Kohli] does,” Shastri said. “At least I don’t see any other international captain coming close to him on the field when it comes to showing that passion needed to play the game. He is very expressive, which is different to others. Other captains could have different personalities but Virat is someone who is in your face and it rubs off on all the youngsters who are watching the game in India. His team-mates watch him, they want to emulate him. And to believe that they can be someone like him who can go out there and strive for excellence.”So when an individual puts his neck on the line as captain then the others follow. And you have seen that transition happening over the last two-three years where guys in the team have become more and more confident, about their own ability and the ability of the team as well and it’s made all the difference. I said in Melbourne – I think I mentioned people taking pot shots and firing blanks. I wasn’t joking there, because I knew how hard this team had worked. When you fire from there, by the time it crosses the southern hemisphere, it’s blown away by the wind like a tracer bullet. But lead with something in it can be pretty serious. And that’s what we have fired right through the series against Australia. We were committed, and it jolly well made a bloody difference at the end of it all.”This is not a team of gods or demigods, seniors or juniors. This is an Indian cricket team that will jump over a cliff to win a match for the country. And that’s the determination, that’s the ruthlessness, that’s the mindset with which this team went to play in this series. And hats off to them to show that courage. Today I can say I am proud of my boys and I can also tell them one thing which Virat touched in the presentation – that this team now has an identity to look at any other Indian team from the past in the eye and say, ‘We play proper Test match cricket. You did, we did too,’ without being intimidated.”

Fifties from du Plessis and Hendricks was backed up by four catches and two run-outs from Miller as the hosts took a 1-0 lead in the series

The Report by Danyal Rasool01-Feb-2019 192 for 6 (Du Plessis 78, Hendricks 74, Shinwari 3-31) bear Pakistan 186 for 9 (Malik 49, Shamsi 2-33)Where Pakistan play with a stand-in captain and the bizarre arrangement of the PCB announcing captains will be appointed on a “series-by-series” basis, their South African counterpart – captain of all formats and all foreseeable series to come – demonstrated the benefits of having a rock in that position. Faf du Plessis thwacked 78 off 45 in a partnership with Reeza Hendricks that added a colossal 131 at almost eleven per over through the middle overs, helping South Africa post a ground record 192 in the first innings at Newlands. Hendricks played his own part in full measure, adding 74 off 41. Job done, Du Plessis came out to the press conference and announced that he would rest for the remaining two games of the series.For a Pakistan side that had put South Africa in after winning the toss, this was just a few too many. There was no partnership to even remotely be considered a challenger to that Hendricks-du Plessis onslaught. All South Africa’s bowlers needed to do was keep it straightforward, and watch Pakistan crumble under the pressure of a ballooning asking rate. They were more than up for it, and rewarded with a six-run victory, pulling ahead in the three-match T20I series.This might just be the start of the year, but you could be sure the partnership between Hendricks and his captain will rank among the elite by the time 2019 is out. Du Plessis has come in enjoying steely runs in the Test series and solid ones in the ODIs, and here he showed he could do sizzling runs too. From the moment he spanked Shadab Khan – the unfortunate whipping boy among a number of contenders in the Pakistan line-up today – through the offside for four, the gloves were fully off. Eighty-nine runs were scored in the seven overs beginning with that one, Hendricks just as much a participant in the carnage.15,13,12,14,15. Those were the respective fates of the bowlers tasked with sending down overs 11-15, Shadab, Hussain Talat, Usman Shinwari and Faheem Ashraf all unable to stem the flow of runs. The quicker bowlers were a shade predictable in their approach, both in terms of the pace and length they delivered at, allowing two settled batsman to take full advantage with almost consummate ease. Reeza Hendricks eyed Shinwari for the most severe punishment, a six over midwicket from around the wicket to Pakistan’s fastest bowler indicative of the confidence flowing through his veins following a brilliant ODI series.South Africa were so far ahead of par by the 15 over mark – 157 for 1 – they could afford a poor last five and still post a challenging total. Pakistan came back brilliantly with a Shinwari over that removed both du Plessis and Rassie van der Dussen, conceding just one run. Ashraf nailed his yorkers in the dying overs as the runs began to dry up, and where the top order had once eyed 220, the lower order could only manage 192.Pakistan began poorly, Fakhar Zaman edging to slip off just the third ball. The sort of innings they have come to take for granted from the ever-dependable Babar Azam did arrive, and for a period, he and 22-year old Hussain Talat built up a launchpad partnership. The trouble was Talat wasn’t nearly as capable of keeping up with the required rate as Babar, and with the asking rate rising, someone had to take responsibility. 81 was added in 57 balls by the two, meaning around the halfway mark, Pakistan were just three short of South Africa’s equivalent tally.It was there that South Africa’s innings had really taken off, but the same overs in the Pakistan innings saw their challenge fade. Talat went looking for successive big hits, but it was the run out of Babar that twisted the knife into Pakistan. David Miller, who found himself all over the field in the final ten overs, directed a brilliant hit at one stump to catch Babar out. It would be one of a staggering six dismissals he effected, with four catches to complement two run-outs. From there on, Pakistan’s chase took on a manic, even unsophisticated air.Make no mistake, they were in it till the final few balls, but with the class of Babar removed, it was Malik at one end and rudimentary slogs at the other. The hosts were far more effective with the ball in the middle overs; Andile Phehlukwayo was the pick. The pace was varied effectively and the batsmen were routinely out-thought as slogs and misses became the norm, mistimed hits carrying to the deep fielders the expected outcome. Ashraf struck a six and got out, ditto Hasan Ali, and with skipper Malik the anchor from the other end, a bizarre game Pakistan were supposedly out of went to the final over.Here, Chris Morris, coming back into the side after an extended lay-off, showed the utility of his skillset. The yorkers were immaculate off the first two deliveries, forcing Malik to feel the pressure and hole out with three deliveries to spare. Shadab took it deeper still to make it ten off two, but in a game where South Africa always appeared to be just one step ahead, Morris made sure they came away with a six-run win to reflect that fact.

Mashonaland Eagles are Zimbabwe’s national one-day champions after a narrow two-wicket victory over Matebeleland Tuskers in the Pro50 Championship final

The Report by Liam Brickhill10-Mar-2019Mashonaland Eagles are Zimbabwe’s national one-day champions after a narrow two-wicket victory over Matebeleland Tuskers in the Pro50 Championship final played at the Harare Sports Club on Saturday.Chasing Tuskers’ sub-par 202, Eagles were given a rapid start by Tinashe Kamunhukamwe’s boundary-laden 73 but it was the cool head of Regis Chakabva which got them over the line after Tuskers’ bowlers kept their team in the game until the very end.Kamunhukamwe and Cephas Zhuwao are one of the more destructive opening pairs in local cricket, but Chris Mpofu’s response to the menace of Zhuwao was to dig the ball and push him back with pace and bounce. Charlton Tshuma did even better, getting a length delivery to nip in and take the inside edge of Zhuwao’s swiping bat on its way through to the keeper.Kamunhukamwe, however, soon began to make up for the loss of his senior partner. He played some dazzling strokes, the pick of the bunch being an inside-out six over cover off Tshuma, and brought up a 30-ball fifty by lofting Ernest Masuku over long on in the 10th over.Kamunhukamwe ensured that Eagles took 80 from the Powerplay, and they were well placed before Ainsley Ndlovu snapped up three wickets in the space of seven deliveries after the drinks break. Those dismissals included that of a tiring Kamunhukamwe, who missed a sweep to be trapped in front for 73. With Elton Chigumbura soon run out as a result of a calling mix-up with Chakabva, Eagles were 138 for 6 in the 23rd over and the match was back in the balance.Eagles were in even more trouble at 155 for 6 when Patrick Mambo feathered an edge into the wicketkeeper’s gloves off Sean Williams, and with only the tail for company, the chase now rested entirely upon Chakabva. Runs came in ones and twos amid great tension, Tuskers’ attack keeping things tight and the batsmen unwilling to take any risks.After 10 overs together, Chakabva and Tapiwa Mufudza had put on 20 runs safely and taken the score to 175 with 28 still needed. Their first boundary came a few balls later, as Chakabva cracked a short ball from Masuku through the covers for four. Two overs later, he drove the same bowler wide of mid-on for another boundary.With just six needed for victory, the tension had all but dissipated but an overeager Mufudza then went for a big drive and sliced a leading edge to Tshuma at point to be caught for 17. Chakabva and No. 10 Daniel Jakiel scrambled to take five runs from the next two overs, and Chakabva then clipped Masuku through square leg for the quick single that sealed the titles for Eagles.While Masuku didn’t have a good day with the ball, giving away 62 runs in 8.1 overs, his fighting fifty earlier in the day had helped Tuskers to limp past 200.On a hot and largely sunny morning, Eagles, as they almost invariably seem to do on their home ground, won the toss and sent Tuskers in to bat on a good-looking pitch. After an hour and a half of play, the match seemed as good as over, with Tuskers floundering at 102 for 6 with all their specialist batsmen gone.The trouble started early as Brian Chari chopped Richard Ngarava’s fourth ball on to his own stumps and Jakiel trapped Ncube lbw in the sixth over. Williams then joined the in-form Craig Ervine at the crease. Ervine made back-to-back unbeaten hundreds in the lead-up to this match, but his dismissal was a soft one, the left hander dabbing a ball from Mambo straight to slip. Just as the partnership between Williams and Charles Kunje was beginning to develop, Williams slashed at a ball from Chamu Chibhabha well outside his off stump and was caught at the wicket. Tuskers were now 88 for 4.Tendai Maruma then fell in embarrassing fashion, letting a ball from Chibhabha through to the keeper standing back, and then thoughtlessly taking a step out of his crease, only for the alert Richmond Mutumbami to throw the stumps down and reduce Tuskers to 91 for 5 in the 18th over. When Kunje was trapped lbw for 31, Tuskers were six down and sinking fast.But Masuku started to turn things around with Chris Mpofu for company. While Mpofu blocked resolutely, Masuku brought up a 60-ball fifty – his first for Tuskers – and added 82 with Mpofu before he was run out taking a risky second run in the 42nd over. The end came quickly for Tuskers thereafter, and John Nyumbu was the last man out when he holed out to long off at the start of the 46th over.Had they been able to bat through their innings, Tuskers might have found enough runs to put Eagles under serious pressure, but they were always the underdogs for this match, having only three victories against two defeats behind them compared to Eagles’ five victories out of five. In the event, they did well to push Eagles so hard, but the hosts had enough in the tank to raise the title later in the afternoon.

Left-arm seamer under pressure to make his case in final two matches of England’s tour

George Dobell in St Kitts07-Mar-2019David Willey has appeared to question whether picking Jofra Archer could destabilise England’s World Cup squad.Archer, the Barbados-born fast bowler, is expected to qualify to be eligible to represent England in a few days. But while Trevor Bayliss, the England coach, has already provided a strong hint that he would be given an opportunity in the ODIs against Ireland and Pakistan that precede the final deadline for the World Cup squad, Willey has hinted that bringing in a new player on the eve of a tournament for which England have been preparing for four years might prove unhelpful.”It’s an interesting dilemma for the captain, coaches and selectors,” Willey said. “It’s a group of players that have been together for three or four years now that have got us to No.1.”And there’s a reason for that. Whether someone should just walk in at the drop of a hat because they’re available, whether that’s the right thing, I don’t know.”Willey would appear to be one of those that are particularly vulnerable should Archer win selection. Having not featured in any of the five ODIs played on England’s Caribbean tour, he is probably on the periphery of that 15-man World Cup squad.But he does have an almost unique selling point in the England squad. Not only does he offer some left-arm variation, but he appears to swing the ball – the new ball, anyway – more than any of his team-mates. As a result, he often poses a threat at the start of the innings and, with the World Cup played in familiar conditions and games scheduled to start at 10.30 am, he may gain more than a little help from the conditions.He enjoyed a good 2018, too. He not only produced career-best ODI figures with the bat – he made a fifty against India at Lord’s – but he claimed 4 for 43 against Australia at Chester-le-Street – and conceded just 4.70 runs an over against a strong India line-up in that series.And, as he hinted, his limited-overs record doesn’t compare too badly to Archer’s. Archer has a List A bowling average of 30.71 and concedes, on average, 5.29 runs per over; Willey averages 31.64 and has an economy rate of 5.65. He has played 42 ODIs, however, and 121 List A matches while Archer has played 14 List A games. Willey’s T20 record – a bowling average of 23.42 and economy rate of 7.90 – is also very similar to Archer’s: 22.38 and 8.01.”I don’t know Jofra particularly well,” he said. “I couldn’t tell you if he’s got a particularly good record in white-ball cricket, to be honest. But it [tough selection decisions] is always part of professional sport. You have to accept these things and there’s one way to make sure it’s not you: by performing out in the middle.”I imagine every bowler sat in that dressing room will be trying to do that, to make sure it’s not them that gets left out should that happen. I think I went quite well last summer in English conditions but you never know. There is plenty of competition for places so you don’t quite know where they are going to go in the balance of the squad and bowling attack.”Willey is likely to face a challenge to perform out in the middle over the next few games. The final two games of England’s Caribbean tour take place on a St Kitts ground that might well have the shortest straight boundaries in international cricket. Bowling against Chris Gayle on such a pitch could be demanding. Willey insists, however, that he will continue to pitch the ball up in a bid to generate some swing and catch the edge of Gayle’s bat.”The reason I’ve played as much white-ball cricket around the world as I have done is my ability to swing the ball up front and being a left-armer as well,” he said. “It is a bonus being able to do that and I need to continue to do that and also have an impact in other areas as well.”If you get wickets early on in T20 cricket they have to rebuild and it slows the run-rate. Or they have to take high-risk options and hopefully you can take wickets.”I was very disappointed not to play in the ODIs, but part of professional sport is that you have to accept these things. I was disappointed but I think I’d be in the wrong place if I wasn’t. Hopefully, I’m the first left-armer on the team sheet should there be one.”Willey’s issue could be that, once the white ball stops swinging – and he admits that could be after a handful of overs – he does not have the pace to compensate. As a result, his control has to be immaculate if he is to perform a role later in the innings. But, as he says, he did pretty well in 2018 and has lacked opportunities since.”I’m confident about coming back later in the innings,” he said. “I did quite well back home last summer and I don’t think anything has changed since then apart from opportunities and game time.”

Wareham has been rewarded for an excellent first season in international cricket as she replaces fellow legspinner Amanda Jade-Wellington on the list

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Apr-2019Legspinner Georgia Wareham has been awarded her first full Cricket Australia contract for 2019-2020, which includes the Ashes and T20 World Cup, after playing a key role in the team’s success over the past season.Wareham took 2 for 11 in the T20 World Cup final against England having made her T20I debut against New Zealand in Sydney last September and over that period claimed 12 wickets in 11 T20Is.She made her ODI debut against Pakistan in Kuala Lumpur and claimed six wickets in six matches over the season including consistent returns in the Rose Bowl series against New Zealand.Wareham replaces fellow legspinner Amanda Jade-Wellington as the one change from 2018-19 contract list.”Overall there has been minimal change in the CA Contract list, which we believe is a good sign,” national selector Shawn Flegler said. “Georgia Wareham was upgraded onto the list during the season and has been rewarded with her first full contract”Amanda-Jade Wellington misses out on a contract after losing her spot in the side earlier in the season. Amanda-Jade is aware of what she needs to improve to put herself back in contention for selection and her first opportunity is through the NPS Program.”Wellington is joined in the National Performance Squad by Tayla Vlaeminck and Lauren Cheatle who played for Australia over the last season. Rachel Trenaman and Annabel Sutherland, who are both 17, will be part-time with the NPS while they continue at school.Players not included in the full contract list are able to earn upgrades during the season if they make international appearances as was the case with Wareham over the 2018-19 campaign.The 2019-2020 season will see Australia head to England for the Ashes series before defending their T20 World Cup title on home soil in the tournament which takes place next February and March. 2018-19 contract list Nicole Bolton, Nicola Carey, Ashleigh Gardner, Rachael Haynes, Alyssa Healy, Jessica Jonassen, Delissa Kimmince, Meg Lanning, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Elyse Villani, Georgia Wareham2018-19 NPS squad Lauren Cheatle, Maddy Darke, Josie Dooley, Nicole Faltum, Heather Graham, Alana King, Maitlan Brown, Tahlia McGrath, Annabel Sutherland, Rachel Trenaman, Belinda Vakarewa, Tayla Vlaeminck, Amanda-Jade Wellington, Tahlia Wilson

Sri Lanka arrive in Edinburgh having lost eight straight ODIs and new captain Dimuth Karunaratne must now not only band together a struggling team, but also prove his own worth in the XI

The Preview by Peter Della Penna in Edinburgh17-May-2019

Big picture

On the eve of the World Cup, there’s still time for a tune-up fight or two for a former champion as they gear up for the main event. In one corner, wearing purple and gold trunks, stands the Associate annihilator. Across the ring in the other corner, wearing plaid blue and white, stands the Associate on the rise.Arguably no Full Member has feasted on global cricket’s second-tier opposition more than Sri Lanka. They have especially enjoyed their fill when raiding European shores.Before new-age England made 400 totals passé, Sri Lanka’s total of 443 for 9 against Netherlands in 2006 stood as the ODI benchmark for more than a decade. Eight years later, they bowled the same opposition out at the 2014 World T20 for 39. They continued to show no mercy against Ireland on a visit to Malahide in 2016 by sprinting to 377.But they arrive in Edinburgh having lost eight straight ODIs, including a 5-0 sweep at the hands of South Africa. If traditions are made to be broken, then Scotland helped end the wretched run for Associates against Sri Lanka with a seven-wicket win in an unofficial warm-up at Kent in 2017 leading into the Champions Trophy. After two decades of futility against Test nations, that win gave Scotland the belief that they no longer have to hope heavyweight opposition shows up overweight and out of shape to be vulnerable enough for a sucker-punch.Scotland’s players aren’t afraid to stand in the middle of the ring and trade punches with a bloodied and bruised opponent, to wear them down and go all 12 rounds if not knock them down to the canvas. Just ask Zimbabwe, Afghanistan and a No. 1 ranked England.Though Netherlands claimed the WCL Championship and a spot in the 13-team ODI Super League beginning next year, it is Scotland who have made an even more compelling case over the last two years to become the 13th Full Member by virtue of their sustained competitiveness against Test nations. That feistiness was on display once again last week in a two-run loss on DLS to Afghanistan. In fact, a win over Sri Lanka will tick off one of the ICC’s defined criteria for applying for Full Membership: having three wins in ODIs or T20Is over top-10 ranked opposition inside 24 months.That run of form since 2017 has put ringside seats in hot demand. Cricket Scotland announced on Thursday that the malleable capacity at The Grange, capped at 1500 with temporarily imported stands for this series, had sold out for the first ODI. The Stockbridge faithful and a loyal Sri Lankan traveling fan troupe await the ding-ding-ding of bat on ball to signal the opening bell.

Form guide

Scotland LWLLW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Sri Lanka LLLLLMatthew Cross is all smiles after scoring a hundred•Getty Images

In the spotlight

A former MCC Young Cricketer, wicketkeeper Matthew Cross had been simmering with the bat for several years before a breakout 106 not out as part of a 201-run opening stand with Kyle Coetzer in the seven-wicket warm-up win over Sri Lanka in 2017. He followed it with his maiden ODI ton last year, then another against UAE at the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe. Though Kyle Coetzer gets most of the plaudits at the top of the order, Cross remains a threat.Few players at the forthcoming World Cup find themselves in as strange a position as Dimuth Karunaratne. Not part of Sri Lanka’s ODI side since the 2015 World Cup, he has been parachuted in as an emergency captain, following eight successive losses under Lasith Malinga. Karunaratne must now not only band together a struggling team, but also prove his own worth in the XI. Whether the selectors made the correct choice in installing him as captain remains to be seen, but he will feel a lot better about his leadership if he can produce runs at the top of the order.

Team news

Scotland vice-captain Richie Berrington suffered a broken left pinky in the field after making unbeaten 170 off 145 balls on Monday playing for Western Warriors in Scotland’s domestic 50-over competition. Dylan Budge has been drafted into the squad but Berrington’s slot will more likely be a toss-up between specialist batsman Michael Jones and Michael Leask’s all-round package.Scotland (possible): 1 Kyle Coetzer (capt.), 2 Matthew Cross (wk), 3 Calum MacLeod, 4 Michael Jones, 5 George Munsey, 6 Craig Wallace, 7 Tom Sole, 8 Mark Watt, 9 Alasdair Evans, 10 Safyaan Sharif, 11 Brad WhealIt’s difficult to pin down Sri Lanka’s exact XI, but Malinga has not yet arrived in Scotland, having played in the IPL final last Sunday, giving an opportunity for some of the medium pacers to make a final argument for being in the first choice World Cup starting XI against New Zealand at Cardiff on June 1.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Dimuth Karunaratne (capt.), 2 Lahiru Thirimanne/Avishka Fernando, 3 Kusal Mendis, 4 Kusal Perera (wk), 5 Angelo Mathews, 6 Dhananjaya de Silva, 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Isuru Udana, 9 Suranga Lakmal, 10 Jeffrey Vandersay, 11 Nuwan Pradeep

Pitch and conditions

Regardless of the finish being decided by Duckworth-Lewis, Scotland’s first innings total of 325 looked below par in the loss to Afghanistan last week and the pitch may force bowlers to toil once more. The forecast is calling for rain in Edinburgh from midnight until 1pm on match day, though the drainage at the Grange is excellent so the probability of completing a reduced-overs match is high.

Stats & Trivia

• Dimuth Karunaratne is one of the few players to have been in the XI on Sri Lanka’s last visit to the Grange in 2011. Both he and Mahela Jayawardene made half-centuries opening the batting in Sri Lanka’s 183-run win.
• The only other official ODI between the sides was at the 2015 World Cup, which Sri Lanka won by 148 runs.
• Calum MacLeod needs 47 runs to become the second Scotland batsman to cross 2000 runs in ODIs. Captain Kyle Coetzer became the first during his 79 last Friday against Afghanistan.

Quotes

“I think the thing we remember most about the match is the style of cricket we played. We talked about being aggressive with the ball and bat, stamping our authority on the game. It kind of kickstarted from there for everything that followed that so it was quite an important day in Scottish cricket.”
“We had a bad year for one-dayers but I think we did really well in the Test series. In South Africa, the major thing was team spirit. We played together. There was no senior-junior things. We played 11 as a team. So that sort of thing I want to get into the one-day side as well.”

The Pakistan captain understands the frustrations of their fans but pleaded with them not to get personal

Osman Samiuddin at Lord's22-Jun-2019\0:50

Social media comments hurt us – Sarfaraz

Who says India-Pakistan doesn’t matter anymore? Judging by the reactions of some Pakistani fans to their team’s defeat to India last Sunday, it matters to them, and perhaps a bit too much.The last week has been a cruel one for Pakistan’s players. Becoming the subject of countless memes is now par for the course, but the kind of real-life abuse their players have received has been harrowing.The captain Sarfaraz Ahmed – with his child – was abused to his face by a fan who, having videoed it on his phone, later issued an “apology” in which it sounded as if the fan had been unintentionally caught on camera. Two other players were abused while out shopping. Families have been dragged into it. They’ve been pilloried for daring to be out and about, as if to have dinner itself is a crime. Ex-players have joined this deafening cacophony.The PCB has taken note. “We have advised players to be aware of the situation and be cautious,” a spokesperson said. “It is not correct that we have barred them from going out as is projected in some parts of the media.”Sarfaraz, captured yawning during the game against India, has borne the brunt of it. And ahead of a series of do-or-die games starting with South Africa at Lord’s on Sunday, he looked like a man on whom this last week has weighed heavily.It has been, Sarfaraz admitted wearily, a tough week. They took two days off immediately after the India game and since practice has resumed, Mohammad Hafeez and then Wahab Riaz have also asked for a certain degree of calm and respect from fans.
“Social media and media are not in our control,” he said at Lord’s. “They are so big that you cannot stop them. Teams have lost before but now on social media it is unstoppable. Whoever thinks [anything, they just] write it on social media. That hurts, too much. Players are affected psychologically.”Criticise us on our game, that’s not an issue, but don’t abuse us. Their families get affected. If someone is hitting, then pushing anyone that’s not good. Our fans are emotional and these same people lift us when we win. But if they feel sad on a defeat we also feel the same way.”We feel it much more because we are playing for Pakistan.”Sarfaraz himself has tried to retain whatever semblance of balance he can through all this, insisting that he is like he was before, that cricket brings ups and downs like this. But the pressures are telling.