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Jordan Silk struck an unbeaten 94 to give Tasmania the first-day honours in their pink-ball Sheffield Shield clash with NSW at Bellerive Oval.Silk (94 not out off 186), Tim Ward (64 off 158), Caleb Jewell (45) and Jake Doran (39) all chipped in to lift Tasmania to 309 for 7 before rain brought the opening day to an early finish.Third-placed NSW entered the match knowing they needed to win to have any hope of reaching the final, which will be hosted by South Australia.The strong first-innings total by Tasmania means NSW have plenty of work ahead of them to get a positive result.Tasmania slipped to 44 for 2 after Jake Weatherald (nine) was caught a slip and Nivethan Radhakrishnan (10) was trapped lbw by Ben Dwarshuis.But a 65-run stand between Ward and Jewell, followed by a 82-run stand between Ward and Silk put Tasmania into a strong position.Silk has the chance to post his 12th first-class century when play resumes on Sunday.Tasmania sit in last spot on the table and are no hope of reaching the final.But it’s all on the line for NSW, who must beat Tasmania and then rely on second-placed Queensland failing to get a win against ladder leaders South Australia.South Australia went to stumps on day one at a dominant 359 for 4 against Queensland, giving NSW even more incentive to turn the tables on Tasmania when play resumes.The match also represents another opportunity for NSW opener Sam Konstas to put his name up in lights ahead of Australia’s Test Championship final against South Africa at Lord’s in June.Konstas made a stunning Test debut against India in the Boxing Day Test, but his topsy-turvy form of late has been a big talking point.The 19-year-old rebounded with an important half-century in last week’s Shield draw with WA at the WACA, and his performance against Tasmania will be highly scrutinised as Australia’s selectors mull over who should partner Usman Khawaja at the top of the order.

Big Picture: Australia hit by injury, retirement; SL not at the party

Australia’s four-day victory in Galle gave them an extra 24 hours before flicking into one-day mode as they enter a brief period of preparation for the Champions Trophy 2025. Originally there was just going to be a single ODI in Colombo but a second was squeezed in which will basically be the team’s warm-ups before heading to Pakistan.Injuries to Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Marsh along with the surprise retirement of Marcus Stoinis means there is a bit of a patched-up feel to the Australia squad although a familiar core of the 2023 World Cup-winning team remains with the likes of Travis Head, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell and Adam Zampa around.Related

• Stoinis makes shock decision to retire from ODIs, out of Champions Trophy

• Cummins and Hazlewood ruled out of Champions Trophy

• Sri Lanka leave out Chamindu Wickramasinghe for two-ODI series against Australia

Six players have been added to the originally selected group: Jake-Fraser McGurk, Cooper Connolly, Sean Abbott, Ben Dwarshuis, Spencer Johnson and Tanveer Sangha. It is likely they will all get at least one of the two matches in Sri Lanka as some of those who played both Tests are given a short break. Smith appears set to take the captaincy.It appears likely that Head and Matt Short will form the first-choice opening partnership although Fraser-McGurk could make a late entry. He and Short struggled in the home series against Pakistan in November. Another point of interest is whether Alex Carey finds himself a place in the middle order.Sri Lanka missed out on the Champions Trophy due to their poor ODI World Cup so these matches have little immediate context although they can have half an eye on the road to 2027. They have, however, played the most matches in the format since the previous World Cup (21), notching 13 wins in that time including five series victories. Ironically, they are probably as attuned to the one-day format as anyone.

Form guide

Sri Lanka WLLWW
Australia LLWWLAustralia’s depth will be tested due to injury•Associated Press

In the spotlight: Dunith Wellalage and Matt Short

It was during Australia’s previous visit to Sri Lanka in 2022 that Dunith Wellalage burst onto the international scene with nine wickets in five matches. He only played a bit-part role in the 2023 World Cup but either side of that tournament claimed five-wicket hauls against India in the Asia Cup and last year’s ODI series. He has also shown his prowess with the bat with a top score of 67 not out in a tied match against India. Clearly a key part of Sri Lanka’s future.Matt Short couldn’t quite take his opportunity at the top of the order against Pakistan but the absence of Mitchell Marsh means he’s likely to find a spot in the first choice XI. His 109 off 54 balls for Adelaide Strikers against Brisbane Heat in the BBL was a reminder of what he can bring against the white ball. His offspin is another handy string to his bow and he’s an excellent fielder.Mitchell Starc could be rested for the ODIs•Getty Images

Team news: Starc likely to rest

Given the odd nature of this series and the short turnaround, it’s tricky to know what each side will do. It was announced on Wednesday that Mitchell Starc had withdrawn from the Champions Trophy and was also unavailable for these two ODIs.Australia squad: Travis Head, Matt Short, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis, Alex Carey, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Glenn Maxwell, Cooper Connolly, Sean Abbott, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Spencer Johnson, Tanveer SanghaSri Lanka squad: Charith Asalanka, Nishan Madushka, Nuwanidu Fernando, Avishka Fernando, Kusal Mendis, Pathum Nissanka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Janith Liyanage, Kamindu Mendis, Asitha Fernando, Lahiru Kumara, Eshan Malinga, Mohamed Shiraz, Maheesh Theekshana, Jeffrey Vandersay, Dunith Wellalage

Pitch and conditions

The R Premadasa Stadium has not staged a day ODI since 2014 so statistics are not that relevant although in recent times, matches at the venue have been on the lower-scoring side. The forecast is for warm and sunny days.

Stats and trivia

• Glenn Maxwell needs 50 runs for 4000 in ODIs and Alex Carey needs 22 for 2000
• Wanindu Hasaranga needs five wickets for 100 in ODIs
• Overall, Sri Lanka have a 35-64 win/loss record against Australia

Who’s playing

UP Warriorz vs Gujarat Giants
Ekana Stadium, Lucknow, 7.30pm IST

What to expect: Little room for error

UP Warriorz and Gujarat Giants enter a crucial phase of the tournament with little room for error as the playoffs race heats up. Warriorz are set to play their first home game across seasons with Lucknow hosting its first WPL clash on Monday. Both Giants and Warriorz will be seeking consistency, having played five matches and winning only two of them so far. Currently, three teams are on four points with net run-rate keeping Warriorz in third position and Giants at the bottom of the table.Warriorz are playing their last three league games of this season at the Ekana Stadium and will be keen to maximise the home advantage. Their last match against Mumbai Indians saw Warriorz rejig their batting line-up with Grace Harris opening with Kiran Navgire and Vrinda Dinesh moving down to No.3. The move seemed to work with both Harris and Dinesh chipping in with crucial 46 and 33 respectively. However, they have struggled to capitalise on the starts with the bat and have either left it too late for some lower-order hitting from Chinelle Henry and Sophie Ecclestone or ended up with below-par totals. The middle overs is the phase where they are most vulnerable and Giants might look to exploit that. Warriorz have lost the most wickets (24) in the middle overs (7 to 16) in this WPL so far and have been the slowest (6.72) in that phase too.For Giants, while the bowling department looks largely sorted in terms of role clarity, there are still question marks over their top order. They have used three different opening pairs in five games with only Beth Mooney remaining the only constant at the top. D Hemalatha batted at No.3 in the first three matches in Vadodara was dropped after low scored before being promoted to open against RCB. Harleen Deol started this season in the middle order and then opened with Mooney before she was asked to bat at No. 3 in their previous game. Giants, however, have strengthened their middle order by having left-hander Phoebe Litchfield along with two star allrounders Ash Gardner and Deandra Dottin. Litchfield also played at No.3 for one game before moving down to No. 5 against MI where she looked at ease, scoring an unbeaten 30.

Form guide

UP Warriorz LWL (last three matches, most recent first)
Gujarat Giants WLL

Team news and likely XIs

The Lucknow surface is generally known to assist slower bowlers. Warriorz might be tempted to play an extra spinner in Alana King and drop Tahlia McGrath, who has been struggling with both bat and ball this season.UP Warriorz (likely XI): 1 Kiran Navgire, 2 Grace Harris, 3 Vrinda Dinesh, 4 Deepti Sharma (capt), 5 Shweta Sehrawat, 6 Uma Chetry (wk), 7 Chinelle Henry, 8 Saima Thakor, 9 Alana King, 10 Sophie Ecclestone, 11 Kranti GoudGiants are likely to stick to the same XI.Gujarat Giants (likely XI): 1 Beth Mooney (wk), 2 D Hemalatha, 3 Harleen Deol, 4 Ash Gardner (capt), 5 Phoebe Litchfield,6 Deandra Dottin, 7 Kashvee Gautam, 8 Bharti Fulmali, 9 Tanuja Kanwar, 10 Meghna Singh, 11 Priya MishraKashvee Gautam has been among the brightest young talents at this WPL•BCCI

Players to watch: Grace Harris and Kashvee Gautam

It took her four matches and a move to the top of the order but Grace Harris finally lit up the tournament with an entertaining knock of 45 off just 26 against MI though it went in vain. Having found her mojo back, Harris will be determined to contribute more to help Warriorz win in the Lucknow leg.Kashvee Gautam has been among the brightest young Indian fast bowlers not just for Giants but at the tournament as well. With six wickets in five matches, she has also been the most economical bowler in this edition with an economy rate of 5.58. While she fared well in helpful conditions in Bengaluru, how she adapts to Lucknow will be something to keep an eye on.

Key stats

• Gardner has hit 15 sixes in this WPL, the most by a batter so far.
• After amassing 295 runs in eight matches last year, Deepti Sharma has not found her feet this season – she has hit a total of 88 runs in five matches.
• Not a single batter from Warriorz features in the top ten list of highest run-getters in this WPL.

Glenn Maxwell’s heroics inspired the Melbourne Stars to a crucial 16-run upset of the ladder-leading Sydney Sixers at the MCG, keeping their slim BBL finals chances alive.On the same day his Test ambitions likely ended for good, Maxwell belted a game-high unbeaten 58 and took two important catches in the deep.Related

• Connolly, McSweeney, Kuhnemann included for Sri Lanka tour

• Hasnain returns to BBL with Sydney Thunder

• How Mitch Owen became Hobart Hurricanes' century-making opener

Marcus Stoinis was out cheaply, but Stars’ captain claimed 2 for 30 in a valuable contribution with the ball.Ben Duckett appeared to have cost Stars dearly when he dropped countryman James Vince on 36. It was only two weeks ago Vince smashed an unbeaten century in a thumping Sixers win against Stars at the SCG on Boxing Day.But Maxwell made no mistake when he hung on to a high catch in the deep, leading to Vince departing for 53. The 36-year-old almost spilled the chance, too, and stayed on the ground for a long time in pure relief.Just two balls later, Maxwell was in the action again when he took a catch to dismiss Sixers captain Moises Henriques, sparking passionate, animated celebrations with Stoinis and other Stars players.James Vince scored a half-century but the Sixers fell away after his dismissal•Getty Images

Maxwell was overlooked for Australia’s Test tour of Sri Lanka on Thursday, with selectors preferring younger options in the squad.Numerous replays were needed to decide on a return catch to Stars spinner Usama Mir, with Sixers allrounder Jack Edwards eventually given out by the TV umpire.Stuck in a deep hole at 64 for 4 at the halfway mark of their innings, Stars were rescued by an 88-run stand between Maxwell and Test hero Beau Webster.After a fairytale debut for Australia, Webster’s golden run continued when he was out off a no-ball and was called back, then was dropped by Vince.During Maxwell’s blazing 32-ball knock, he became the fifth player in BBL history to reach 3000 career runs, joining Chris Lynn, Aaron Finch, D’Arcy Short and Henriques.Play was stopped for about two minutes after a seagull was taken down by a powerful shot from Vince.After starting the season 0-5, Stars can still qualify for finals if they beat the Melbourne Renegades and Hobart Hurricanes in their remaining two games and other results go their way.Sixers (4-2, one no-result) missed a golden opportunity to consolidate their position on top of the table ahead of a clash at the SCG on Saturday against Perth Scorchers.

Jonathan Trott will continue as Afghanistan men’s head coach till the end of 2025. His next assignment will be the ODI leg of Afghanistan’s multi-format tour of Zimbabwe, but he will not take charge in the other formats for personal reasons. In his absence, Hamid Hassan will deputise as head coach and Nawroz Mangal as assistant coach.The Afghanistan Cricket Board has extended Trott’s contract by 12 months following a highly successful 2024 for the team. The year featured Afghanistan’s first ever World Cup semi-final appearance following victories over New Zealand and Australia in the Group- and Super-Eights stages of the T20 event in the West Indies and the USA. They have since beaten both South Africa and Bangladesh in ODI series in Sharjah.Related

• Jonathan Trott to step down as Afghanistan head coach after 2026 T20 World Cup

• Mujeeb returns for Zimbabwe tour, Akbari earns maiden T20I call-up

• Afghanistan's Mohammad Nabi to retire from ODIs after Champions Trophy 2025

Afghanistan’s next major global tournament is a maiden appearance in the Champions Trophy next year. They qualified for the event after finishing among the top eight teams on the 2023 ODI World Cup points table, after a campaign that featured wins over England, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.Trott’s tenure began in July 2022 with an 18-month stint that was renewed by a year in January 2024. Afghanistan have won 14 of the 34 ODIs and 20 of the 44 T20Is they have played since his appointment.The ongoing stint with Afghanistan is Trott’s first as head coach. He was a consultant with Scotland during the 2021 T20 World Cup. As a player, he made 3835 runs in 52 Tests at an average of 44.08, and was a key figure in England’s away Ashes victory in 2010-11. In ODI cricket, he made 2819 runs at an average of 51.25 with four hundreds and 22 fifties.

KL Rahul is looking forward to playing with “freedom” in a “much more balanced” environment as he enters the mega auction ahead of the new IPL cycle. Rahul was released by Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) following their seventh-place finish at IPL 2024.At the time, franchise owner Sanjiv Goenka spoke of their keenness to hold on to “players who have a mindset to win” and those that “put the team before their personal goals and aspirations”. Did that in any way prompt Rahul’s keenness to enter the auction?Related

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“No, I mean, I think the decision was made already and I don’t know what the comments are, but they must have come after the announcement,” Rahul told in an interview aired on November 12. “I just felt like I wanted to start fresh, I wanted to explore my options and I wanted to go and play where I could find some freedom and the team atmosphere would be something much more balanced.”The pressure is already there in the IPL, it’s so high. You see teams like Gujarat [Titans] and CSK [Chennai Super Kings] and all of these teams, and you see when they win or lose, they seem really balanced and the dressing room is really calm. That’s something that’s very important for me as a player. I feel like if that happens, it gives all the players the best chance to perform.”We tried that at LSG with Andy Flower [head coach] and GG [Gautam Gambhir, mentor] first and then last year with [new head coach, Justin] Langer, we tried to create that in the change room. I think it was a brilliant atmosphere in the change room. I think sometimes you just need to move away and find something good for yourself.”Rahul led LSG into the playoffs in their first two seasons, in 2022 and 2023. Asked to look back on IPL 2024, Rahul suggested that external pressure may have contributed to their drop in results. After starting with a loss to Rajasthan Royals, they won three matches on the bounce before stuttering mid-season. And then, they went on a downward spiral, even as Rahul topped their charts with 520 runs at a strike rate of 136.12.1:30

Rahul: I want to play where I can find some freedom

Despite those runs, there had been considerable speculation over Rahul’s future at the franchise ever since visuals surfaced of an animated chat between him and Goenka following LSG’s defeat to Sunrisers Hyderabad towards the end of the league phase.”There’s always ups and downs,” he said. “You need to be able to hold your nerves and be able to keep and you need to be able to keep putting up good performances after good performances. All the travel, all the drama outside, the pressure – all of it is there every year. But somehow this season, it felt like there was a lot more and somehow I think that affected the team and we couldn’t put in performances when it really mattered.”Looking ahead, Rahul said IPL captaincy wasn’t the most important thing for him at this stage, but playing in a “good environment” was. “I would never go and ask someone for it,” Rahul said when asked how important IPL captaincy was to him. “If you feel that my leadership skills are good enough, and you find something good in the way I play my cricket and in the way I handle myself, the way that I handle the team that I’ve captained in the last four to five years, and if you find it worthy, then of course I’m happy to do it.”But it’s not something that is a make or break for me. I just want to be part of a team that has a good environment. You feel loved, cared for and respected in that environment and everyone on that franchise has one single goal to win the idea. there then that’s a perfect fit.”Even as social media chatter of a potential reunion with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, his hometown team, gathers steam, Rahul was pragmatic about the possibility of playing anywhere. But it’s no secret which team he has a soft corner for. “I most enjoyed playing at RCB. It’s also home,” he said. “You get to spend a lot of time at home, and I know the Chinnaswamy [Stadium] really well. I’ve grown up playing on that ground. So yeah, I really enjoyed my time in RCB.”Would he love to go back to RCB?”Yeah, of course like I said, it’s kind of home and the people there know me as a local Kannada boy, and it would be nice to go back there and get an opportunity again. But yeah, it’s an auction year so you can go anywhere.”

Even as Abhimanyu Easwaran stood tall from one end to post an unbeaten 143 for India B, Anshul Kamboj ran through the batting unit to take 5 for 66 to give India C the advantage by stumps on day three in Anantapur. With one day of action remaining, India C are now favourites to claim the first-innings-lead points, with India B still 216 runs behind at 309 for 7.Day three began with India B on 124 for 0. The opening pair of Easwaran and N Jagadeesan were looking to build towards overcoming India C’s first-innings score of 525, but Kamboj struck in the day’s fourth over, dismissing Jagadeesan for 70.That triggered a slide that had India B sipping to 194 for 5, with each of those dismissals belonging to Kamboj. After getting Jagadeesan caught behind, the seam-bowling allrounder had both Khan brothers – Musheer (1) and Sarfaraz (16) – dismissed lbw, and then followed it up with the wickets of Rinku Singh (6) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (2). While Ishan Kishan caught Rinku off Kamboj, Reddy was out bowled.However, Easwaran, from an overnight score of 51, could not be dislodged through the day. He brought up his 24th first-class century after lunch, and with the help of 12 fours and a solitary six finished the day seven short of his 150. With Washington Sundar (13), he added a 43-run sixth-wicket stand, and with Sai Kishore (21), he stitched a 46-run partnership for the seventh wicket.The two promising lower-order partnerships were ended by Vijaykumar Vyshak and Mayank Markande respectively, while Rahul Chahar (18*), coming in at No. 9, saw off the last eight overs with Easwaran on a day when only 65 overs were bowled.India B’s middle-order crumble, which saw them lose 5 for 65, now leaves them with very slim chances of earning any points from this round two fixture. If India C take the last three wickets and claim the lead – which they are favourites to do – they will earn three points and be guaranteed to move to the top of the Duleep Trophy table. India C’s best-case scenario, though, would be to enforce follow-on early on the final day and then hunt for the six points on offer for an outright win.

England will continue to take a cautious approach to Jofra Archer’s workloads during their five upcoming ODIs against Australia, after he bowled just 3.3 overs across the drawn, rain-affected T20I series.Archer has been steadily eased back into international cricket this year, playing two T20Is against Pakistan in May before featuring in all eight of England’s matches at June’s T20 World Cup. He did not play at all for Sussex in the second half of the Blast group stages and was managed carefully through the Hundred, twice being rested to the frustration of Southern Brave captain James Vince.Since the end of the Hundred, he has played two matches: one for Sussex in the quarter-final of the T20 Blast, and the other for England in their defeat at the Utilita Bowl on Wednesday night. He was rested for Friday night’s game in Cardiff and would have played in Sunday’s series decider had it not been washed out by the Manchester rain.He has proved why England have invested so heavily in him, since his comeback from the back and elbow issues that have kept him on the sidelines for so long. He was their joint-highest wicket-taker at June’s World Cup, and on Wednesday night provided a reminder of his skills at the death, clean-bowling Sean Abbott and Xavier Bartlett in successive balls.Related

• Mahli Beardman added to Australia ODI squad as cover

• Australia's fast-bowling injuries a reminder of the juggling act to come

• Rain forces England-Australia T20I decider to be abandoned

• Harry Brook to captain England for Australia ODIs with Jos Buttler ruled out

Archer is in England’s 15-man squad for the five-match ODI series which starts in Nottingham on Thursday, though may be rested for one or two of them. He has not played a 50-over game in the last 18 months and while he retains long-term ambitions to play red-ball cricket, he has not played a first-class match since May 2021.”Jofra will have to be managed throughout the series,” Jos Buttler told Sky Sports on Sunday. “He’s played a really good stint now of T20 cricket, but obviously you can only bowl four overs in there. There’s a jump in intensity getting loads up to taking full part in an ODI – and of course, as an England fan, to push those loads up hopefully to get back into the Test arena as well.”Marcus Trescothick, England’s interim coach, said that Archer was “comfortable” with the ECB’s long-term plan to manage his workload. “He knows the plan,” Trescothick said. “It’s discussed long in advance of picking the team on each day. We know what we’re doing with him, and where we’re going. He’s comfortable: he knows what he’s doing.”That’s a bigger structure, in terms of what we’re trying to do with Jofra. You come into the series knowing what we’ve got and what we can do with him. That’s an agreed plan between the coaches, directors, physios and all the different people. We’ll still be managing him [in the ODIs] – exactly the same thing.”Trescothick will be part of all three of England’s tours pre-Christmas, as an assistant coach for the Test series in Pakistan and New Zealand, and continuing to deputise for Brendon McCullum during the white-ball tour of the Caribbean in November. “It’s going to be slightly abbreviated, but I’ll be popping into all of them,” he said.He said that his manner as a coach has been informed by his experience working with McCullum, which he hopes will allow for a smooth transition when McCullum takes charge across formats from January. “I’m directing it in a way that I know will be very similar to when he comes in,” Trescothick said. “He’ll talk the same way, manage in the same fashion, and debrief in the same way.”We’ve spent two-and-a-half years together coaching… It’s not copying it, because I’m putting my own stamp on it, but it’s done in a very similar sort of fashion involving the very similar people in terms of the coaches we have around it. It’s the start of what’s going to go on, and it’ll carry on pretty seamlessly when he takes over in January.”

Despite half-centuries from Shan Masood, Saim Ayub and Salman Ali Agha, and four dropped catches of varying difficulty, Pakistan were bowled out for 274 on the second day of the second Test in Rawalpindi. For Bangladesh, Mehidy Hasan Miraz caused the most damage, finishing with figures of 5 for 61.The Bangladesh openers, Shadman Islam and Zakir Hasan, had two overs to face before stumps. Mir Hamza got Shadman to edge the first ball of the innings to fifth slip but Saud Shakeel grassed the chance, letting Bangladesh go back unscathed.That Pakistan are without Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah makes their position even more precarious. With Naseem “rested”, Pakistan’s four frontline bowlers for this match have played a combined experience of 16 Tests.Earlier, a warm and sunny morning greeted the teams after rain had washed out the opening day. Given the moisture in the pitch, Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto had no hesitation in bowling first in what is now a four-day Test.Taskin, who returned from a shoulder injury, proved his captain right by striking in the first over. After bowling five outswingers to Abdullah Shafique, he got the last ball to nip back off the seam. Shafique was not prepared for it. He came forward to defend but left a huge gap between the bat and the pad. The ball sneaked through and hit the top of off stump.For a while, Taskin and Hasan Mahmud kept Ayub quiet by bowling predominantly from around the wicket. Ayub was on 4 off 25 balls at one point but hit three fours in the next 11 balls he faced. Masood was positive right from the start. As a result, the fifty stand between the two came in just 68 balls.Saim Ayub and Shan Masood had a century partnership for the second wicket•PCB

It was not that the Bangladesh seamers did not induce mistakes but none of them brought a wicket. As the day progressed, the pitch eased out. Ten minutes before lunch, Masood brought up his fifty, off just 54 balls. He hit only two fours in his fifty, which made it the fastest fifty in Test cricket since 2002 with two, or fewer, boundaries.At lunch, Pakistan were comfortably placed on 100 for 1 from 25 overs. But things changed after the break with Mehidy removing Masood and Ayub in quick succession. Bowling around the wicket, he first trapped Masood lbw with the one that straightened after pitching. Ayub brought up his fifty with a pulled four off Nahid Rana but when he came out of his crease to smash Mehidy, the offspinner beat him in the flight and had him stumped.Mehidy had an opportunity to further increase Pakistan’s woes but he dropped a regulation catch of Shakeel at second slip off Rana’s bowling. Had the catch been taken, Pakistan would have been 125 for 4.Shakeel failed to take advantage of the reprieve, though. He did hit Taskin for back-to-back fours but chopped on the last ball of the over onto his stumps to be dismissed for 16.At 151 for 4, Pakistan were relying on Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan for the umpteenth time to pull them out of trouble. But it was not to be. Shakib had Babar playing back to an arm ball when the batter should have been forward and had him lbw. Shakib could have had Agha too in the same over but Zakir failed to hold on to a difficult bat-pad chance at short leg.Rizwan fell shortly after tea, fending a short ball from Rana to first slip. Agha and Khurram Shahzad added 25 for the seventh wicket to keep Bangladesh at bay for a while. Mehidy threatened to end their resistance when he got Shahzad to edge one low to the left of first slip but Shadman could get only fingertips to the ball.Mehidy, though, did not have to wait for long. In his next over, Shahzad miscued a lofted shot towards mid-off where Shakib moved swiftly to his right to take a tumbling catch.But Bangladesh were not done with their gifts. Soon after, Mominul Haque dropped a straightforward chance from Mohammad Ali at leg slip off Shakib. However, that also did not hurt Bangladesh as Mehidy had Ali caught at slip in the next over.Agha got another life on 46. He inside-edged Taskin onto his pad and Mehidy caught the rebound at gully. But the umpire failed to spot the edge. Having burnt all their reviews, Bangladesh had no other option than to accept the on-field decision. Agha rubbed it in by pulling Taskin over fine leg for a six to bring up his fifty.With only two wickets left, Agha was taking more and more chances. Along with Abrar Ahmed, he added 28 for the ninth wicket before pulling Tasking into the hands of fine leg. From the other end, Abrar gave charge to Mehidy and was stumped, bringing curtains to the innings.

Former India allrounder Abhishek Nayar and former Netherlands allrounder Ryan ten Doeschate are set to join India’s support staff as assistant coaches for the upcoming white-ball tour of Sri Lanka. The pair will reunite with newly-appointed India head coach Gautam Gambhir, having recently served as his assistant coaches during Kolkata Knight Riders’ run to the IPL 2024 title.ESPNcricinfo has learnt that former South Africa fast bowler Morne Morkel has been approached to become India’s new bowling coach. Morkel had worked with Gambhir at Lucknow Super Giants and Durban’s Super Giants in the SA20, where Gambhir was the global mentor.Related

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Former India and Karnataka seamer Vinay Kumar has also been shortlisted for the bowling coach role, but Morkel is understood to be the leading candidate.The new coaching set-up’s first assignment will be a white-ball tour of Sri Lanka, comprising three ODIs and three T20Is, which begins on July 27.Nayar, 40, played three ODIs for India and won multiple Ranji Trophy titles with Mumbai in his first-class career, which spanned over 100 matches. Even when he was an active player, Nayar mentored Dinesh Karthik and helped him stage an international comeback. More recently, mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy heaped praise on Nayar after KKR won their first IPL title in ten seasons. Nayar has also worked as the head coach of Trinbago Knight Riders in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL).As for ten Doeschate, he is currently with Los Angeles Knight Riders in the USA’s Major League Cricket as an assistant to head coach Phil Simmons. He also brings with him the experience of having been a batting coach at Kent.