All posts by n8rngtd.top

Leicestershire pay for underpowered batting effort despite Callum Parkinson four-for

ECB Reporters Network26-May-2023Birmingham Bears maintained their 100% record in the Vitality Blast with a five-wicket victory over Leicestershire Foxes at the Upstonsteel County Ground.The Foxes’ bleak start to the campaign continued after they totalled a modest 166 for 7 on an excellent pitch on which The Blaze had piled up 212 in 20 overs earlier in the day. Every dismissed batter except one passed 15 but only Nick Welch reached 30 as Danny Briggs bowled with his customary nous for 4-0-15-3.That looked chaseable for a Bears side including Glenn Maxwell for the first time and the debutant crunched a muscular 47 off 27 balls as his side reached 167 for 5 with 15 balls to spare. Sam Hain followed his unbeaten 83 in the Blast opener against Yorkshire with an unbeaten 65 off 43 as only Callum Parkinson (4 for 33) caused much interference to the Bears’ pursuit.After the Foxes chose to bat, Nick Welch and Sol Budinger provided a punchy start with an opening stand of 49 in five overs but then fell to successive balls. Welch’s middle-stump was plucked out by Chris Woakes before Budinger heaved Dan Mousley to deep midwicket.Briggs imposed a brake with a skilful spell and bowled Arron Lilley to secure his 240th T20 wicket. Number 241 soon followed when Colin Ackermann sought the crowd at long-on but found only Mousley just inside the rope, much to the disappointment of those in the stand who were jockeying for position in light of the dazzling prize, for any spectator who caught a six, of a ticket to see Tom Jones at the Uptonsteel County Ground on July 15.It’s not unusual to see Briggs among the wickets in T20 and when his third followed, Wiaan Milder top-edging to short fine leg, the Foxes had stuttered to 106 for 5. Rishi Patel and Rehen Ahmed landed a few blows in a stand of 38 in 21 balls but the Foxes appeared to have come in under par.The Bears reply raced to 22 from 13 balls before the early charge was halted by the introduction of Parkinson. He bowled Alex Davies and Paul Stirling in his first five balls but Mulder’s first over, which went for 18, returned the initiative to Birmingham and they never relinquished it.Bowling to Maxwell and Hain when both are in good nick is about as tough as it gets in world T20 and they broke the back of the chase with a stand of 90 in 51 balls. Maxwell lapped Will Davis to short fine leg, but Mousley kept up the impetus with an 11-ball 16 before ladling Parkinson to long leg.Three balls later, Parkinson had Chris Benjamin caught behind to complete his third T20 four-for, but Hain advanced to a 35-ball half-century and the Bears eased home, Hain striking the winning run to long leg with the Tom Jones ticket still unclaimed.

With the series already wrapped up, both Australia and Pakistan will view the remaining two games at Dubai International Stadium as World Cup primers

The Preview by Daniel Brettig28-Mar-2019

Big Picture

Australia’s third emphatic victory in a row over Pakistan – and sixth consecutive ODI win overall – removed any pretense of series priorities to leave the remaining games as purely World Cup primers at the Dubai International Stadium. For both sides, this should offer freedom in terms of selection and experimentation, not that Pakistan have appeared perturbed by unsettling their team given the prolific cycling of players that has already taken place.But for the Australians, there is more fascination given the fact that this will be the first match to take place since the end of the bans for Steven Smith and David Warner, a moment in time that will only ramp up the sense among those players currently selected that they are on borrowed time in terms of shoring up uncertain places. Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Alex Carey and the yet-to-be-selected Ashton Turner will all be looking over their shoulders to varying degrees.One player who appears to be settling nicely into his middle-order role – with the option of floating further up the order in the event of a big opening stand – is Glenn Maxwell.”Maxi is a player who people expect so much from every time he plays – because he has so much brilliance at times,” the captain Aaron Finch said. “But I think what people don’t see at times, when they get frustrated with him, is the amount of stuff he does in the field – if he averages 20 in a series, he might save 20 runs in the field as well.”He bowls overs, gets some wickets. It all adds up to a great package. And the fact he’s batting at six at the moment – to give us that little bit of extra firepower towards the back end – is something we’re conscious of and it’s a role he fits really well.”

Form guide

Australia WWWWW (completed matches, most recent first)
Pakistan LLLLW

In the spotlight

True story. After three matches of the series, Yasir Shah is the only member of the Pakistan attack to have taken more than one wicket – his tally is a princely two. But at the same time he has also been effectively milked for runs by the Australians on pitches not offering him too much in the way of turn, so much so that Yasir has been the most expensive Pakistani bowler of all those to have bowled more than 10 overs for the series. As a senior bowler, there is expectation that Yasir can lead a revival among his countrymen. The penalty for not doing so may be a less certain place in the team’s plans for the World Cup.There are increasing rumblings that Australia will seriously consider giving the wicketkeeping gloves to Peter Handscomb when Steven Smith and David Warner return, heightening the focus on Alex Carey and his ability to make the berth his own. A little like Tim Paine in Tests, Carey has become adept at the handy innings that is not quite definitive, while his glove work has shown moments of brilliance and and a generally strong standard, though it is not entirely without blemish. For the Australian selectors, Carey needs to provide evidence that his value transcends that of an extra batsman, and he is running short of matches in which to do so.

Team news

With Shoaib Malik, the captain in Sarfaraz Ahmed’s absence, out with a bruised rib he picked up in the last game, Saad Ali will make his ODI debut. Imad Wasim will lead the team.Pakistan (possible): 1 Imam-ul-Haq, 2 Shan Masood/Abid Ali, 3 Umar Akmal, 4 Haris Sohail, 5 Saad Ali, 6 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 7 Imad Wasim (capt), 8 Mohammad Amir, 9 Yasir Shah, 10 Usman Shinwari, 11 Mohammad HasnainKane Richardson will be hopeful of some game time now that the series is decided.Australia (possible): 1 Usman Khawaja, 2 Aaron Finch (capt), 3 Peter Handscomb, 4 Shaun Marsh, 5 Marcus Stoinis, 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Alex Carey (wk), 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Kane Richardson/Jason Behrendorff, 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Adam Zampa

Pitch and conditions

Dubai hosts the final leg of the series, with its surface expected to be straw-coloured and slow.

Stats and trivia

• Australia have clean swept a five-match ODI series four times previously – in New Zealand in 2005, in the West Indies in 2008, against Pakistan in 2010 and against West Indies in 2012.
• Shoaib Malik needs just three runs to surpass Mark Waugh (671) on the list of highest run-makers – Ricky Ponting (1107) leads the pack – in ODIs between these two sides; he will hope to get fit in time for the final game to get those runs.

The former India seamer had been part of Mumbai’s title-winning campaigns in 2015 and 2017

PTI29-Jul-2021Former India pacer Vinay Kumar has been appointed talent scout of the reigning IPL champions Mumbai Indians.Kumar will join former India wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel in the role. Kumar played one Test match, 31 ODIs and nine T20Is before announcing his retirement in February earlier this year.In a first-class career spanning 17 years, Kumar led Karnataka to two Ranji Trophy titles and was also part of Mumbai’s winning campaigns, in 2015 and 2017.Related

• Vinay Kumar retires from first-class and international cricket

• Mumbai rope in Parthiv Patel as talent scout

Kumar will work closely with the Mumbai management and coaching staff, according to a statement from the five-time IPL champions.”Mumbai Indians is established on strong fundamentals of discovering talent and belief in nurturing youth. I am confident Vinay will add value to our ideology and scouting strength,” Akash Ambani, the Mumbai Indians owner, said.”Mumbai Indians strives for excellence in every aspect of the game, and scouting talents is undoubtedly their key strength,” Kumar said. “It’s a new chapter and personally, I reckon it as an opportunity for me to give back to cricket.”

From being swindled for money early on in his journey, the batter is living his dream playing alongside heroes Shakib and Mushfiqur

Mohammad Isam18-Mar-2023Towhid Hridoy’s dream run of 2023 continued into his ODI debut in Sylhet. His 92 in the first ODI against Ireland is a Bangladeshi debutant’s highest score in this format. There was an air of inevitability about his innings, firstly complementing in the 135-run stand with Shakib Al Hasan, and then cutting loose in the 80-run quickfire stand with his idol Mushfiqur Rahim.The soft-spoken Hridoy said that he wanted to maintain his aggressive intent, a mantra he developed since the disastrous BPL campaign from 2022. Hridoy said that he tried to learn from Shakib during their partnership, but his main focus was on himself.”I wanted to have the right intent,” Hridoy said after the game. “I didn’t try to bat to get settled at the crease. I tried to play each ball to its merit. It was a great feeling batting with Shakib . He is such an experienced batter. I was learning constantly from him. I really enjoyed it. He was giving me advice at times. When I thought I needed to something, I asked him. He was encouraging me, telling to bat as deep as possible.”Hridoy said that it was a great moment from him to bat with Mushfiqur in the latter part of the Bangladesh innings, since it was a moment from the wicketkeeper-batter’s career, 16 years ago, that inspired Hridoy in the first place.”In 2007 when Mushfiq won us the game against India in the World Cup, he took a stump from that game. When I saw that stump in person during a programme in Bogra, I was really inspired by it. I was very little. I dreamed from that day that I want to play for the national team. Today he said some inspiring words, like he wants me to serve Bangladesh cricket for a long time,” said Hridoy.He said that there’s no regret about not reaching the three-figure mark, when he could have been the first from Bangladesh to do so on ODI debut. “I give all praise to Allah. I could have been out early. I am happy with what I got. I always thank Allah. I got what I was in my Rizq (provision). Hopefully I will do better next time. I have no regrets. I hope those making their debuts later, hope they can do even better,” he said.Hridoy is one of the rare products of the BPL, a tournament that is known for organizing and administrative faults. He made 403 runs in this season’s BPL, batting in an aggressive way that no one expected him to. His batting was on the reasons Sylhet Strikers reached the tournament final this year.It was also Hridoy’s failure in the 2022 BPL that motivated him. Hridoy was on strike in the last ball of last year’s BPL final. He was having a woeful time with the bat, scoring runs at 97.84 strike-rate, averaging only 17. Against Comilla Victorians’ Shohidul Islam, Hridoy hit a half-volley to cover, just running a single as Fortune Barishal fell short by one run.”[My aggressive intent and fearless batting] started after playing badly in the 2022 BPL. I thought I should change myself since that tournament. I tried everything including changing my mentality. As much as possible. It was a bad season for me. I tried to get as far away from it.”I was in the HP (high performance) camp and played domestic cricket in the last 12 months. I spoke to [Khaled Mahmud] Sujon sir regularly. He knew me from my childhood. Shohel Islam sir was always there for me. I have spent the most time talking to him,” he said.Hridoy has had more heartbreak in his life. When he was only 12 years old, a man swindled him of a lot of money when he had come to Dhaka for the first time. It turned out that the academy he had intended to join didn’t exist at all. He nearly gave up the game before Mahmud, the former national captain and current BCB director, kept him in the straight and narrow to continue playing in the age-group levels.”I lost a lot when I went to that academy. I didn’t want to continue playing cricket. My father never supported me to play cricket. My parents don’t understand the game but whenever I used to be adamant with my mother, she would relent.”Around that time when I wanted to stop playing, Sujon sir really supported me. This is from my U16 days. He always gave me opportunities from playing in the Dhaka First Division league,” he said.Hridoy said that his parents were delighted with his inclusion in the Bangladesh team, particularly his mother who would often go around his father’s back to help Hridoy pursue his dream. “My parents are very happy, especially my mother. She always supported me. I was always pressured about my studies, but I didn’t really pursue it. I was focused on my cricket,” he said.

The Lancashire bowler will take up the role vacated by Sandeep Lamichhane when he heads to the BPL

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Oct-2018Lancashire and England Lions legspinner Matt Parkinson has signed with Melbourne Stars for the Big Bash.He will play half the season for the Stars when Nepal legspinner Sandeep Lamichhane switches to the Bangladesh Premier League.Parkinson has established himself as one of the leading limited-overs bowlers in English domestic cricket. He was the second-highest wicket-taker in the 2018 T20 Blast with 25 scalps at 16.60 and an economy rate of 7.32, which backed up being the leading bowler in the 50-over Royal London Cup with 18 wickets, as he pushed his claims for full England honours.”I am hugely excited to have signed for the Melbourne Stars. It’s one of the biggest T20 competitions in the world and I can’t wait to get over there and meet the rest of the squad,” Parkinson said. “It’s a competition I have watched and admired for a long time and one that I’ve always wanted to play in. To have the chance to play for the Stars at the Melbourne Cricket Ground would be a dream come true.”Whilst I’ve been really pleased with my T20 form over the last couple of years, I still have a lot to learn with the white ball and this will be another fantastic opportunity for me to develop my game, learn from some of the best players in the world and challenge myself in-front of some really big crowds.”Legspin will play a key part for the Stars throughout the competition with Adam Zampa, who has been recalled by Australia for the series against Pakistan, also in the squad.

“We’ve got better and better and peaked at the right time to be deserved champions,” says Buttler

Valkerie Baynes13-Nov-20222:44

Stokes is ‘a big presence, a big personality, a big winner’

Ben Stokes has hailed a new legacy under Jos Buttler as England added the T20 World Cup to their 50-over title, becoming the first team in men’s cricket history to hold both trophies simultaneously.Stokes took England over the line with an unbeaten half-century for a five-wicket victory in the final at the MCG after Sam Curran, the Player of the Match and the tournament, took 3 for 12 from his four overs to restrict Pakistan to 137 for 8.Related

• 'England have created a new set of rules in white-ball cricket'

• Pakistan's qudrat crashes in the face of England's calculation

• Stephen Fleming: Ben Stokes is a 'champion under pressure'

• Sam Curran and Stokes the heroes of the final as England break Pakistan hearts

• Pakistan made a 'massive mistake' in the death overs

With the now-retired Eoin Morgan – who captained England to victory at Lord’s in 2019 – standing beside him as a commentator, Stokes told Sky Sports that Buttler had put his own stamp on the team as skipper.”When the great man stepped down and Jos took over, you look how quickly he managed to take control of the team and progress it from the legacy that Morgan’s left,” Stokes said. “Jos has now created his own legacy.”He’s a guy who everyone follows on the field and it shouldn’t be taken for granted how hard it can be making tactical decisions under pressure in this format.”Adil Rashid’s wicket-maiden, with a brilliant caught-and-bowled to remove Babar Azam in the 12th over of Pakistan’s innings, was also an important turning point as he claimed 2 for 22.”Adil Rashid, Sam Curran, that’s what won us the game,” Stokes said. “That was a tricky wicket, it was never one that you felt you were ever in on.”When you chase totals in games like this you so often forget the hard work that’s gone in before. The way that Sam and Rash and all the bowlers bowled to restrict them… I think on that was a huge reason as to why we didn’t feel under too much pressure with the run chase.”I never felt like it was out of our hands at all and [I was] just trying to make sure I stayed there a long as I possibly could at the end.”Both Stokes and Buttler pinpointed England’s loss to Ireland in their rain-affected group game as another turning point, in the context of the tournament.”With that being so early on in the competition we obviously had to address it, say what we said, and then let it go because in tournaments you can’t carry baggage with you,” Stokes said.”That was a little blip on the way. Credit to Ireland for turning up and beating us but the best teams learn from their mistakes, they take it on the chin but they never let it affect them and they just let it go, move onto the next challenge. I feel as if we’ve lived up to all the challenges that we’ve had thrown at us throughout the tournament.”Buttler was pleased with his team’s improvement since that match and thrilled with being able to ice the 50-over World Cup triumph with this latest title.”The Ireland game was really tough for the team to take but since then we’ve improved, we’ve got better and better, peaked at the right time, and now to be, I think, deserved champions,” Buttler said.”To be able to win the T20 World Cup now as well, just immensely proud of everyone here. It’s been a long journey and a few changes over the last few years about how we played but we are reaping the rewards of that.”This felt a long way away after the Ireland match here but the character we showed from that point on in must-win games every time has been amazing.”England were again forced to manage without Mark Wood and Dawid Malan, who both also missed the semi-final through injury, and showed off their depth.”It certainly wasn’t easy at all and we managed to get away with a decent start, which controlled the run rate,” Buttler said. “We bat deep as well, which gives us a lot of options. And that man again, Ben Stokes, was just there at the end.”He is the ultimate competitor in anything he does. He has got a hell of a lot of experience to bank on as well.”Alex Hales, Ben Stokes, Adil Rashid and Chris Jordan were heroes of England’s campaign at various points•Getty Images

Matthew Mott, who took over as England’s white-ball coach in May and has now taken Australia Women and the England men’s team to two World Cups in a year and three in the space of two years, praised Stokes’ performance.”If there’s one you wanted out there I think it’d be him and I think he copped a bit of flack coming into this tournament about T20, but he’s a match winner in every format and we have complete faith in the way he would go about things and he steadied the ship nicely tonight,” Mott said.Mott also paid tribute to Morgan, who quit international cricket in June, having struggled for runs during England’s tour of the Netherlands earlier that month.”I pay credit towards Morgs a bit as well,” Mott added. “That first tour to Holland, we’d caught up before then, he let me know how the group operated and how he thought it could operate going forward.”He set it up and I knew that he wanted Jos to do well and it was a real seamless transition I think for Jos to be over there, he captained the last game over there. I think that really helped set things up.”Since then, England failed to win a white-ball series at home before beating Pakistan 4-3 and Australia 2-0 in T20I series before this tournament. Buttler was injured for the Pakistan tour, where Moeen Ali stood in as captain.”I knew that there’d be some teething problems,” Mott said. “When you lose a strong leader like Morgs who has been around for a long time, it was going to take time to build a team, but I always had faith about great depth in our playing group.”We had some adaptable players and even when we weren’t winning there, I could see a real love for each other in that group… I always knew that the results would turn around if we we stayed the course and didn’t panic.”I think he’s learning all the time, like I am as a coach,” Mott added of Buttler. “And learning about our players. He’s just going from strength to strength. He’s learning more about himself and our relationship’s great. Obviously Morgs’s legacy is pretty strong, he set the team up beautifully and I think Jos is putting his own mark on it now as well.”

Pakistan were rolled for 174 after choosing to bat, as Sarfraz Ahmed’s call backfired, with England moving along to 106 for 2 in response

The Report by Andrew Miller01-Jun-2018England 106 for 2 (Root 29*, Bess 0*) trail Pakistan 174 (Shadab 56, Woakes 3-55, Anderson 3-43, Broad 3-38) by 68 runs

ScorecardSarfraz Ahmed had never before won the toss in his four previous Tests as Pakistan’s Test captain. And after a first-day collapse at Headingley that looks set to be as match-defining as England’s own meltdown at Lord’s proved to be last week, he’d be forgiven for wishing he’d saved that duck-breaking call for another day.Instead, Sarfraz took the bold option – leading 1-0 in the series after Pakistan’s flawless victory in the first Test, he trusted his batsmen to front up once more on a bright Leeds morning and on a straw-coloured wicket, and moreover against an England team whose stock in Test cricket arguably hasn’t been lower for two decades. It was a show of intent from a captain with faith in his troops – a move that would have been hailed as going for the jugular had it paid off. It didn’t.By the close, England had moved along to 106 for 2 – a deficit of 68 – and it was at least clear that Sarfraz hadn’t been wrong in his estimation of the pitch. The trouble was, his team had already been rolled aside for 174 in just under two sessions – and even that total had owed almost everything to another defiant half-century from their young legspinner, Shadab Khan, whose 56 from 52 balls hauled his side out of a swing-induced tailspin at 79 for 7.In truth, England (as a unit) did not bowl as well as Pakistan’s collapse might imply. The exception was Stuart Broad, who dismissed Imam-ul-Haq twice in his very first over of the day (the first was an lbw, overturned on review) and whose new-ball length was, according to CricViz, the fullest he has ever bowled in a Test in England.What England did do, however, was shamelessly stack their side with horses for Headingley’s traditionally swing-friendly course. This was in part a move borne of necessity – when Ben Stokes was ruled out before the toss due to a hamstring strain, the 19-year-old allrounder Sam Curran was pitched into the fray to become the third sub-21-year-old, after Mason Crane and Dom Bess, to make his debut for England this year.But it was also a knee-jerk reaction to England’s thumping defeat at Lord’s last week. So much for Andrew Strauss’s appeal to select cricketers who will play key roles on overseas tours – all that matters right now is getting off the mark in home conditions, so in came another swing merchant, Chris Woakes, in place of the luckless Mark Wood, whose split-field bang-it-in length at Lord’s had not exactly reaped the rewards that seam bowlers might expect in early season England. Better luck in Galle and Colombo, eh?Pakistan, so disciplined in the first Test, where they had strode on to the front foot and visibly sniffed the leather in playing the ball right under their collective noses, were all too often complicit in their own downfalls. Imam’s first-over slash to slip off Broad was a dereliction of duty from a man who had sealed both run-chases at Malahide and Lord’s, while Haris Sohail was another to give his innings away tamely – a fishing-rod snick to slip off Woakes, after he and Asad Shafiq had pieced together the innings after the loss of both openers.Asad himself departed shortly before lunch, to Woakes as well, leaving Pakistan four-down for 62, but it was straight after the break that their innings went into freefall.James Anderson had bowled an in-between length in his new-ball spell – as at Lord’s, he appeared reluctant to leak runs by inviting the drive. However, he was noticeably fuller after the break and having induced a big deflection off the pads into the stumps to send Sarfraz Ahmed on his way for 14, he followed that up by nailing Faheem Ashraf on the knee-roll for a duck. At the other end, Broad had cause to set off on a trademark celebrappeal as he too struck the debutant Usman Salahuddin in front of middle and off, as three wickets tumbled for one run.Shadab, however, wasn’t fazed by the scoreline, and for the third time in consecutive Tests, he pieced together an invaluable half-century – and coaxed key partnerships out of his lower-order colleagues – to help Pakistan add 95 precious runs for their last three wickets.It took a wide long-hop from Anderson to prise England’s next breakthrough, as Mohammad Amir slashed a nick through to the keeper, and when Hasan Ali was undone by a classic bouncer-yorker combo from Woakes for 23, Shadab could only punch his bat in annoyance at the non-striker’s end. But he kept on throwing the bat, with Mohammad Abbas loitering alongside him, until he picked out deep midwicket to allow Curran to wrap up the innings with a maiden Test wicket. Curran’s 7.1 overs had been dispatched for 33, but he had found more swing than any of his colleagues. A promising start, if nothing more than that.In reply, England’s innings got off to a peculiar start when Keaton Jennings – back in the side as Alastair Cook’s new-old opening partner – was warned by the umpires for encroaching on the danger area of the pitch while facing up to Abbas. Jennings had been tormented by Vernon Philander in his last Test appearances against South Africa, and chose to bat way out of his crease to counter Abbas’s similarly medium-paced wiles. But in doing so, he transgressed a law that had been quietly tweaked by MCC back in October.However, Jennings seemed unruffled by the umpire’s intervention, and it took a decent delivery from Faheem to extract him for 29 – albeit a familiar crease-bound dismissal to a tight delivery angled across his body.After that, it was once again over to Cook, who continued his renaissance form with another front-foot-dominant innings as he and Joe Root added 51 for the second wicket. Cook’s personal contribution was 46 from 106 balls, including one of the sweetest cover-drives of a Test career that has now encompassed a world-record 154 consecutive appearances. But he was crestfallen at his dismissal, five minutes before stumps, as he swung into a pull against Hasan, and gloved down the leg side.It was a crucial strike for Pakistan too. Cook had, after all, been head and shoulders above the rest of England’s batting at Lord’s. And with Dominic Bess joining Root as a nightwatchman, it was a reminder, too, that there is a callowness to England’s Test team beneath their record-smashing grandees. For the time being, however, they are just about doing the needful.

Scarborough’s new tourist attraction might not go down with the locals with a Yorkshire victory about as likely as a huge payout in the Amusement Arcade

Paul Edwards at North Marine Road27-Jun-2018
Scorecard”Roll up, roll up, roll up and see the Mighty Morkel! He’s 6ft 5ins tall, he bowls at 85mph, he eats Tykes for breakfast.” Well, yes, in the era of furled brollies and homburg hats the imposing skills of the Surrey quick bowler might have earned him a job entertaining the holidaymakers in Scarborough’s Peasholm Park End. This afternoon, however, he was more gainfully employed destroying Yorkshire’s batting with a rare display of fierce pace allied to steep bounce and accuracy. Then he watched his batsmen take strides as great as his own towards victory.It in intriguing to ponder the contribution Morkel might make to Surrey’s attempt to win their first County Championship since 2002. On this sunburning Wednesday he made light of his side conceding a 75-run first-innings lead but was surely impressed by the manner in which Ollie Pope’s unbeaten 69 limited that advantage to manageable proportions. Bowling from the Peasholm Park and displaying barely unassuageable aggression, Morkel then whipped out the first three Yorkshire batsmen with only 24 runs on the board.Alex Lees, whose shot selection currently comes from the Chamber of Horrors, tried to drive him down the ground – yes, really – and was caught at mid-on by Jade Dernbach. Adam Lyth was less culpable; his leg glance was pouched by Pope, for whom cricket is a gloriously simple game at present. Gary Ballance was cramped for room and caught at point by Will Jacks.His task accomplished for the moment, Morkel let others put their hands to the plough. Harry Brook fenced outside off stump and fell to Rikki Clarke. Chesteshwar Pujara, whose time in the Broad Acres has not been a success, was bowled when playing no stroke to Jade Dernbach. Yorkshire were then 48 for 5 and Peter May’s Boys took in some sun. For summer returned to Scarborough after Tuesday’s mist and Yorkshiremen also enjoyed it, even as they agonised over the state of their county’s top order. This is still one of the great weeks of their year, after all.For others, the holiday has not begun. Trains arrow through York, Malton and Seamer before reaching this town with its curious division of the littoral. In the South Bay, “Kiss Me Quick”; in the North, “Have We Met”. In the first sun-trap, folk who have only lately arrived wear holiday uniforms and race towards holiday tans and blurred memories. In the second, a loftier location in so many ways, they take the air, ponder the view and remember the times when they, too, went in search of something. One sees John Betjeman, trousers rolled up to his knees, giggling at the fun of it all.Inside the ground Surrey went in search of further wickets. Jack Leaning perished when nibbling at Morkel but the change bowlers were frustrated by the obduracy of Jonny Tattersall and the barely concealed belligerence of Tim Bresnan. Amar Virdi wheeled away from the Peasholm Park End as the hills towards Cromer Point and Burniston jellied in the haze.Then Bresnan pushed forward to Ryan Patel’s medium pace and Pope took his fourth catch of the day. For Surrey’s supporters the scent of victory was as strong as that of the sea and they enjoyed seeing a Northern summer in full blazon. Gulls curved without effort in front of Trafalgar Square’s four-storey houses, some of which could do with renovation. “Voyez, ces oiseaux blancs et ces maisons rouillées,” sang Charles Trenet joyously in “La Mer”.Morkel collected his first five-wicket haul for Surrey when he had Tattersall leg before and Dernbach dismissed the final two batsmen in the space of three balls. Surrey needed 228 to win and the home crowd looked forward to a wicket-strewn evening. Instead Rory Burns and Mark Stoneman ended a frenetic day, on and off the field, by putting on 89 in 25 overs, their perfect composure stifling opponents and spectators alike.Surrey require another 139 runs and are now very strong favourites. If Yorkshiremen need some consolation or tranquillity, there is, as ever, the ocean. Looking out into the North Bay this perfect evening, a mighty ship seemed motionless on the horizon, a grey hyphen between the different blues of sky and sea

England completed their four days of preparation in Auckland with a far more convincing batting display than against the pink ball

Andrew McGlashan at Seddon Park17-Mar-20182:23

England look sharper with red ball ahead of Test series

England completed their four days of preparation in Hamilton with a far more convincing batting display than against the pink ball. Captain Joe Root led the way with a century as only James Vince missed out on the final day when he was trapped lbw. There remain question marks over the balance of the side for the first Test which are largely centred around the bowling fitness of Ben Stokes and will be clearer next week.Stokes ends six-month waitIt had been a long time since Stokes last faced the red ball – September 8, when he made 60 against West Indies at Lord’s. He strode out at an almost deserted Seddon Park, Root allowing others a chance ahead of him, at No. 5 which could yet be the position he takes up at Eden Park if he is unable to bowl or has a reduced workload capability. Stokes looked in good order, striking five boundaries in his 32-ball stay, until top-edging a pull and being superbly caught by Glenn Phillips who ran in from deep square-leg. He also had a gentle run through his action on the outfield before play and will bowl at higher intensity in the nets on Monday.Everyone gets somethingEngland got better over the four days and just about took what they could from the fixtures. The lowest combined return over the multiple innings for the top order was Vince’s 50 runs and at various time each of the top order showed encouraging signs. Mark Stoneman responded to his twin failures against the pink with a positive 48 before getting a sharp lifter from Scott Kuggeleijn, Alastair Cook was finding the middle of the bat and Dawid Malan was at ease before chipping a full toss to midwicket.Captain comfortableAfter a brief stay in his first knock against the pink ball, Root has looked especially at ease with the bat. He made a half-century after he came back in under the lights and followed that with 115 off 150 deliveries against the red ball. He looked set to bat to the close until another fantastic catch by Phillips, this time at point. Root ended his wait for an ODI century in Dunedin; it has been 12 Test innings since he has reached three figures (which was in the day-night Test at Edgbaston) and in that time he has failed to convert six half-centuries – not including when he was ill at Sydney. His last red-ball century was against South Africa, at Lord’s, last July. If England do go with the extra bowler in Auckland there will another debate over whether Root should move to No. 3.On to AucklandIt has been a low-key week in Hamilton and England will need to make sure they quickly find the higher intensity needed for a Test match. It makes the lead-up days in Auckland important – Monday is set to be an optional training day, although Stokes will bowl, before the session two days out from the Test which will be most full-on. The New Zealand squad have had a two-day camp in Mount Maunganui to step up their preparations. The main decision for them is which of Colin de Grandhomme, Todd Astle and Matt Henry misses out.

Five of the six first-class teams will have Test players as captains, while a second XI competition will also run concurrently

Umar Farooq26-Sep-2022The Quaid-e-Azam trophy, Pakistan’s premier first-class tournament, is set to start from Tuesday with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) defending their title in the 31-match event.Five other teams – Northern, Central Punjab, Southern Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan – will be taking part in the tournament, which will kick off with three simultaneous games in three of the five venues: Abbottabad, Rawalpindi, and Faisalabad. Karachi and Islamabad, which were initially slotted as venues, have been replaced by Multan and Lahore due to logistical challenges. The larger part of the tournament is slotted in the Southern and Central Punjab region with the final scheduled for November 26.Five of the six teams will be led by Test players, the only exception being KP, who will be captained by veteran domestic allrounder Khalid Usman. Hasan Ali has moved from Central Punjab to South Punjab as captain while Azhar Ali will be leading Central. Sarfaraz Ahmed – who last played a Test for Pakistan in 2019 – will take Sindh’s reins. Umar Amin will lead Northern while legspinner Yasir Shah will captain Balochistan.The Cricket Associations Championship, which is a non-first-class red-ball tournament consisting of second-XI players (Grade 2), will commence simultaneously at three different venues within Karachi. The majority of the Associations Championship will be played in Karachi – with UBL complex, NBP sports complex and KCCA stadium the designated venues – and three games are scheduled for Quetta’s Bugti Stadium.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Recapping last season

Northern and KP faced each other in the final in December 2021. KP’s 169-run win was fuelled by Iftikhar Ahmed’s hundred. Sindh finished third, despite having the same number of wins, losses, and draws as KP while Central Punjab (fourth) and Southern Punjab (fifth) had two and one wins respectively. Balochistan were winless and finished last.Muhammad Hurraira, who was 19 at the time, became the first player to top the run charts in his debut season. He made history by becoming the second-youngest batter to score a first-class triple century in Pakistan, behind Javed Miandad, who made 311 in the Kardar Summer Shield final, at 17 years and 310 days. Hurraira’s knock was the second triple-hundred of the season, following Ahsan Ali’s 303* for Sindh.Mubasir Khan, the offspinning allrounder, was the player of the tournament. He amassed 458 runs at 32.71 – mainly at No.6 – along with 30 scalps, adding to the run-fest from his brief 2020/21 season where he made 307 runs at 51.16. His exploits earned him a PSL call-up with Islamabad United in the emerging category.Last season was also the season where Pakistan opener Abid Ali, who was batting on 61 for Central Punjab against Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, withdrew from the match abruptly due to chest pain. After being taken to hospital, he was diagnosed with a case of Acute Coronary Syndrome (ACS) and underwent a stenting procedure in his artery. He did return to white-ball cricket after extensive rehab, but the upcoming Quaid-e-Azam will mark his return in the longer format.Left-arm spinner Ali Usman was the leading wicket-taker with 43 dismissals at 27.93 while Sohail Khan (30) and Sameen Gul (31) were the only two pacers to be among the top five leading wicket-takers. Mohammad Ali (32) and Mubasir (30) were other prominent spinners. Rohail Nazir, with 21 catches and ten stumpings, was the wicketkeeper with the most dismissals. He was handy with the bat, too, scoring 198 in 10 games.How is this season different?
The tournament continues to be played on a double-league basis though the arrival of foreign coaches to lead a couple of teams will be worth following. Nottinghamshire assistant coach Paul Franks will be the head coach of Central Punjab while Leicestershire head coach Paul Nixon will take up the same role with Sindh.Bilal Shafayat, who is working with Notts’ age-group levels and second XI, will be assisting Franks as fielding coach for Central Punjab. John Sadler will be Sindh’s fielding coach, while some other names include Richard Stonier (Central Punjab), and Ian Fisher (Sindh), who will help with strength and conditioning.The second XI Cricket Championship will also be played on a double-league basis, across formats. The three-day tournament that used to be played as a pathway to first-class cricket will now extend to a four-day league [though they will not be officially recognised as first-class fixtures.] And just like the T20s and the 50-over tournaments, each side will get a minimum of ten matches.New and improved central contracts
Ahead of the tournament, the PCB has given an increment to the 192 domestic players in their monthly retainers and match fees – across all formats and levels – for the season. As per the new financial model, a player featuring in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy will now get a match fee of PKR 100,000 as opposed to the previous sum of PKR 60,000. Similarly, the match fee for the Cricket Associations Championship has been increased from PKR 25,000 to PKR 40,000.