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The opener scored his 10th List A century in just his 38th game

AAP16-Feb-2023Birthday boy Daniel Hughes has continued his golden week and special one-day campaign as NSW demolished Tasmania’s Cup final hopes with a 102-run win at North Sydney Oval.Opener Hughes, who turned 34 on Thursday, celebrated by scoring 126 off 130 balls to help NSW to a score of 291 all out after winning the toss.Tasmania, who would have risen from fourth to second with a win, were dismissed for 189.NSW rose from sixth to fourth with the bonus point win, but the final-round match on Sunday week between South Australia (third) and Victoria (second) should determine who meet Western Australia in the final in Perth on March 8.Coming off scores of 178 and 63 not out in the Sheffield Shield match between the two teams at the SCG earlier in the week, Hughes struck 15 fours and three sixes.He was the mainstay of the NSW innings with no other player scoring more than 36 as NSW were dismissed in the final over.Hughes notched his 10th domestic-one day century and boosted his competition-leading season run tally to 526 from six innings at an average of 87. He now has the second highest average in Australia’s domestic one-day cricket behind Michael Bevan.He was part of partnerships of 66 with Oliver Davies (36 off 41), 75 with Daniel Sams (33 off 45) and 65 with Ben Dwarshuis (34 off 25). The last two stands helped NSW recover from 5 for 140 and 7 for 216.It was also a fruitful day for the competition’s leading wicket-taker, with Tom Rogers (4-62 off 10 overs) moving eight clear of his closest rivals and swelling his season swag to 19.Tasmania suffered a big blow off the second ball of their chase with Australia white ball representative Ben McDermott caught behind down the legside for a duck off Sean Abbott.Left handers Caleb Jewell and Jake Doran put on 44 in fluent fashion but the Tasmanian innings subsided after that pair were dismissed.The innings slowed to a crawl with almost 15 overs between boundaries and only 60 runs off 20, with spinners Chris Green and Adam Zampa holding sway.Green also contributed with two good catches and a direct hit run out of Beau Webster from point, ending a 42-run with Mac Wright, who was trapped lbw later in the over by Abbott.

Parag, Kushagra fifties not enough as East Zone fall short by 45 runs chasing 329

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Aug-2023South Zone rode on a 75-ball 107 from Rohan Kunnummal and a three-wicket haul by Washington Sundar to clinch their ninth Deodhar Trophy title in Puducherry.Batting first, South put up 328 for 8, with Mayank Agarwal and N Jagadeesan also cracking fifties. In reply, Riyan Parag’s 65-ball 95 and Kumar Kushagra’s 58-ball 68 threatened to take East close but the South bowlers rallied just in time to bowl the opposition out for 283 and win by 45 runs.The South openers Kunnummal and Mayank dominated from the outset with an 181-run partnership off just 152 balls. Kunnummal’s innings was laced with 11 fours and four sixes. He didn’t hold anything back. Mayank was much more sedate, scoring an 83-ball 63 with four fours.East, having not struck for 24.3 overs, then picked two wickets in 11 balls, with allrounder Utkarsh Singh accounting for both openers. Sai Sudharsan fell cheaply, but Jagadeesan (54) ensured the momentum wasn’t lost. South did lose three quick wickets between overs 42 to 44, but a rapid seventh-wicket stand worth 42 runs between Jagadeesan and R Sai Kishore helped them get over the 300-mark.East’s chase hit the rocks early with their top three going down within the first five overs. V Koushik struck with his first ball, removing Abhimanyu Easwaran for 1 before sending back Virat Singh for 6. Vidwath Kaverappa then got into the act to account for Utkarsh as the score slipped to 14 for 3.Sudip Gharami tried to steady the chase, first with Saurabh Tiwary and then Parag, but perished for 41 in the 25th over. Parag and wicketkeeper Kushagra then got together to raise East’s hopes. The duo added a 105-run stand off 80 balls for the sixth wicket, with Parag doing the bulk of the scoring. Having already smashed two centuries in the tournament, he was looking good for another one when he fell lbw to Washington. When the offspinner sent Kushagra packing as well, the end was nigh.Kaverappa took for the final wicket, of Mukhtar Hussain, to give South the Deodhar crown. Kunnummal was awarded Player of the Match for his century, while Parag was named Player of the Series.

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.”

He got there in 103 balls, breaking the record previously held jointly by Travis Head and N Jagadeesan in men’s List A cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Oct-2024Chad Bowes scored the fastest List A double-century on Wednesday for Canterbury against Otago in the Ford Trophy. Bowes brought up the milestone in 103 balls, before eventually falling for 205 off 110 deliveries.The record was previously held by Australia’s Travis Head and India’s N Jagadeesan, who both took 114 deliveries each to get to their respective double-centuries. Head achieved the feat for South Australia against Queensland in the 2021-22 Marsh Cup, while Tamil Nadu’s Jagadeesan did it during his record-breaking 277 against Arunachal Pradesh in the 2022 Vijay Hazare Trophy.Playing his 100th List A match, Bowes hit 27 fours and seven sixes as he helped Canterbury post 343 for 9 after they were put in to bat at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch.”It might sink in over the next day or two, but obviously a great day here at Hagley and a good occasion to do something special,” Bowes said after his innings. “These things happen naturally, organically. You don’t plan for it or try to do it, so I’m glad it was my day. Probably not [hit he ball] consistently that well, so it was nice to get most of them out of the middle and hit it around the park. It started off really nicely so I just kept going and it was working so I didn’t try to rein it in too much and just kept the foot on the gas.”The 32-year-old got off to a quick start and continued to show his aggression despite losing his opening partner Henry Nicholls for a five-ball duck in the second over. He got to his half-century in 26 balls and brought up his century in 53 deliveries. He took another 50 deliveries to complete his double, before being trapped lbw in the 39th over by Matthew Bacon, who registered a five-for. This was Bowes’ best List A score, comfortably going past his previous high score of 126.Only two other batters in Canterbury’s top seven reached double-figures, with captain Cole McConchie’s 40-ball 27 the next highest score. However, No. 8 Zakary Foulkes gave them a late boost with a 46-ball 49 to take them close to 350.Canterbury bowled Otago out for 103 to complete a 240-run win.

New Zealand allrounder expected to feature in full campaign in 2022 season

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jan-2022James Neesham, the New Zealand allrounder, has agreed to join Northamptonshire for their T20 Blast campaign.Neesham, whose heroics in the 2019 World Cup final at Lord’s were instrumental in that contest’s thrilling finish, gained a measure of revenge over England in the T20 World Cup in the UAE in November, where his 27 from 11 balls helped to eliminate Eoin Morgan’s men in the semi-final. However, New Zealand went on to lose the final against Australia.In 181 T20 fixtures – 38 of which have come for his country – Neesham has made 2,360 runs at a strike-rate of 136.81, and taken 158 wickets. He has previously featured for Derbyshire, Essex and Kent in county cricket, and last season turned out for Welsh Fire in the inaugural season of the Hundred.”I’m excited to get going with Northamptonshire in 2022,” Neesham said. “The club has a fantastic history in the Blast and I hope that we can recreate those successes from 2013 and 2016.”Josh Cobb, Northamptonshire’s captain, played alongside Neesham last season, and is excited about the prospect of linking up with him again.”Having spent time with him at the Welsh Fire in The Hundred last year I know what he can bring to us.” Cobb said.”He’s a three-dimensional cricketer with genuine power and a high strike rate in the middle order, but it was his character that stood out to me. He’s someone who wants to win and is very selfless, he’s a real team-first kind of player.”I’m looking forward to having him here as a leader, to pass on his experience and help drive us to be better.”Assuming New Zealand’s international schedule remains clear, Neesham should be available for the duration of the Blast campaign in May, June and July – with the final at Edgbaston this year following closely on from the group stages to ensure that overseas players can take part. He will also be on hand for County Championship action in June.”The opportunity to possibly play some first-class cricket for the county in Division One is also an exciting challenge.” Neesham said. “I look forward to linking up with everyone at Wantage Road soon.”

England captain hails “best white-ball cricketer in the world” after Dutch demolition

Matt Roller17-Jun-2022Eoin Morgan labelled Jos Buttler “the best white-ball cricketer in the world” after his innings of 162 not out off 70 balls led England to a record ODI and List A total against the Netherlands in Amstelveen, while Buttler suggested he was playing the best cricket of his career.Buttler hit seven fours and 14 sixes, a boundary every 3.33 balls, after England’s bright start saw him promoted to No. 4 and his partnerships of 184 off 90 balls with Dawid Malan and 91 not out off 32 with Liam Livingstone saw them fall two runs short of the first 500-plus score in 50-over history.Morgan, England’s white-ball captain, said Buttler was “in a world of his own, like he has been for the last year or two,” and said that his hitting made him “incredible” to watch. “It’s not something that we ever get sick of and it’s not something that we take for granted,” he said. “It is amazing cricket, and it’s the reason he is probably the best white-ball cricketer in the world at the moment.”Buttler came into this series after a short break with his family following a remarkable IPL season for Rajasthan Royals, in which he hit four hundreds and won the orange cap and the MVP award. He said he felt “in good touch” ahead of this three-match ODI series and that he had focused on “getting back to enjoying cricket” after a disappointing Ashes tour.”The IPL couldn’t have gone better for me,” he said. “I absolutely loved it, and that gives you a lot of confidence. Coming here I was feeling in good touch: I turned up with a lot of motivation and freshness which I think is really key.Related

• Dutch courage required in face of England's ruthless six-hitting machines

• Unburdened, unshackled, unbelievable: Jos Buttler channels AB de Villiers in record onslaught

• Pieter Seelaar admits to 'frustrations' as key Netherlands players put county over country

• Eoin Morgan: 'I can still contribute to a World Cup win'

• England re-write record books with mammoth 498 in crushing win over Netherlands

“Obviously any time you manage to play like that as a team is fantastic. I’ve said many times, this is the most fun environment I’ve ever played in, so it’s great to be back and it’s been great to be on a normal tour and being able not to worry about bubbles and that kind of thing.”Buttler’s promotion to No. 4, the role mastered by his idol AB de Villiers, was in keeping with a general theme of England pushing him up the order to capitalise on strong starts in recent years, but also hinted at their desire to give their most valuable asset the best opportunity to influence the game.”Over the years, when we’ve got off to good starts, I’ve sometimes been pushed up to No. 4 and today we got off to a fantastic start with [Phil] Salt and Malan,” he said. “We’re pretty flexible as a group and if that’s what they want to do on the day. I enjoy that middle-order role in one-day cricket so I’m very happy with the role I’ve got.”Buttler also laughed off the suggestion that there might be some disappointment at having fallen two runs short of the 500-mark as a team, but said that coming as close as they did highlighted England’s attacking intent.”We keep trying to push the boundaries, keep trying to take the game forward and take the game on. Everyone who played today, we really stuck to that. We’ll have to keep trying: it’s a tough thing to try and achieve, you have to play on a belting wicket and a small ground but the biggest thing, irrelevant of the score, is the mentality that we’re showing as a team and we keep trying to better that and be aggressive and brave when we play.””We don’t take days like this for granted at all,” Morgan added, asked about the prospect of reaching that 500 milestone as a team in the future. “We earned the right to give it a nudge. We’ve worked incredibly hard to earn days like today.”

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.

Senior pros Sean Williams and Craig Ervine have both been omitted from the T20I squad

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Nov-2024Zimbabwe have picked three uncapped players – Trevor Gwandu, Tashinga Musekiwa and Tinotenda Maposa – in their ODI squad for the upcoming three-match series at home against Pakistan.While Gwandu and Musekiwa have both played T20I cricket for Zimbabwe, quick bowler Maposa, 21, is uncapped in international cricket. He has played just three List A matches so far, picking up four wickets at an economy rate of 6.29. Blessing Muzarabani and Richard Ngarava will continue to lead the seam attacks in both ODIs and T20Is.”The series against Pakistan is an important platform for Zimbabwe, and we believe the ODI squad we have selected is well-rounded,” David Mutendera, Zimbabwe’s convener of selectors, said in a statement. “The presence of seasoned players like Craig [Ervine], Sikandar [Raza] and Sean [Williams] provides stability, while young players like Clive Madande, Brian Bennett, Dion Myers and the uncapped trio bring energy and the potential for game-changing moments.”Sean Williams, who had missed the white-ball series in Sri Lanka earlier this year because of an injury, returned to the ODI side, but was omitted from the T20I squad. ODI captain Craig Ervine was also left out of the T20I side. Williams last played an ODI in July 2023.Zimbabwe retained the same T20I squad that had won the men’s T20 World Cup 2026 sub-regional qualifier in Kenya last month. During that tournament, Zimbabwe had broken the record for the highest T20I total.”We felt it was essential to maintain the same T20I squad that excelled in Kenya,” Mutendera said. “This continuity allows the team to build on the cohesion and confidence that drove their outstanding performance.”The white-ball series against Pakistan will begin with the first ODI on November 24 and will run until December 5, with Bulawayo set to host all the games – three ODIs and three T20Is.

Zimbabwe ODI squad for series against Pakistan

Craig Ervine (capt), Faraz Akram, Brian Bennett, Joylord Gumbie, Trevor Gwandu, Clive Madande, Tinotenda Maposa, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Brandon Mavuta, Tashinga Musekiwa, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava, Sikandar Raza, Sean Williams

Zimbabwe T20I squad for series against Pakistan

Sikandar Raza (capt), Faraz Akram, Brian Bennett, Ryan Burl, Trevor Gwandu, Clive Madande, Wessly Madhevere, Tinotenda Maposa, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Brandon Mavuta, Tashinga Musekiwa, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava

Head coach pays price for poor season, as assistants take over for remainder of campaign

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Sep-2024Northamptonshire have sacked head coach John Sadler, the day after their quarter-final defeat to Somerset in the T20 Blast effectively ended their season.Northants are winless in Division Two of the County Championship and finished eighth out of nine teams in their Metro Bank One-Day Cup group, winning two games out of eight. The Blast had been the one bright spark in an otherwise miserable season, but Thursday night’s defeat knocked them out of the competition.Sadler took over from David Ripley in September 2021 and oversaw a sixth-placed finish in Division One of the Championship in his first full season in charge. But results have tailed off, with only two Championship wins last year – culminating in relegation – and a winless 2024 campaign in the second tier.Adam Rossington and Josh Cobb both left the club during Sadler’s tenure after strained relationships with him, while Emilio Gay did not feature in the squad for Thursday’s quarter-final after agreeing a move to Durham at the end of the season. Tom Taylor also rejected a new contract with the club to join Worcestershire during Sadler’s time in charge.Northants confirmed on Friday that they have “parted company” with Sadler. “Throughout his tenure at Wantage Road, [he] has led the club with professionalism, dedication and a strong work ethic… and has been a much valued member of the Northamptonshire team,” a club statement said. “Everyone at the club wishes him well in his future career.”The club’s assistant coaches – Rory Kleinveldt, Greg Smith and Graeme White – will take charge for Northants’ three remaining Championship fixtures. “The process for recruitment of a replacement for the position is underway,” Northants added.

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.