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While gate receipts have been lukewarm, the TV numbers spell out hope for Cricket South Africa

Liam Brickhill26-Nov-2018The Mzansi Super League attracted a live television audience in excess of 3.4 million South African viewers during it’s opening weekend that featured four matches. The league is only just starting to gain traction and attract fans to matches as summer sets in, but TV figures suggest the league has already struck up significant interest from viewers watching at home.Iffy weather, a cold snap on the opening weekend and the introduction of new teams perhaps resulted in the tournament failing to attract huge number of fans to the ground. Only around 7000 fans turned up for the first match between Cape Town Blitz and Tshwane Spartans at the 25,000 capacity Newlands, while 4896 were at Wanderers for the game between Jozi Stars and Nelson Mandela Bay Giants. At the same time, the match attracted 16,65,546 unique TV viewers in South Africa alone.An audience analysis carried out independently by Nielsen Sport revealed that a unique TV audience of 34,18,594 viewed the first four matches in the league. The Saturday night fixture between the Jozi Stars and Nelson Mandela Bay Giants drew the biggest audience, with all four matches going beyond the 1.3 million mark.SABC-3, the channel the games have been broadcast on in South Africa, typically attracts around 21 million South African viewers in a month. The top rated show on the channel is the soap opera Isidingo, which has been running for 20 years and attracts around a million viewers per episode, to which MSL’s viewership figures compare favourably.For further comparison, the T20I against Zimbabwe on 12 October attracted 6,07,948 viewers to the channel. Outside of South Africa, a broadcast deal with Sony means that the MSL is also being screened in India on the channels Sony Six and Sony Six HD. CSA also have a deal with UK-based channel FreeSports, which is available in 18 million homes in the UK. FreeSports also aired live coverage of the 2017 Bangladesh Premier League.”This fully justifies our decision to take the SABC on board as our domestic host broadcast partner,” Cricket South Africa Chief Executive Thabang Moroe said . “This is truly a product for the people and has helped us achieve one of our key objectives not just to attract traditional cricket fans but to open up a new market as well.”It is a win-win situation for all our stakeholders whether they be administrators, players, coaches, fans or our commercial partners. The MSL can only go from strength to strength as it will continue to grow while establishing itself alongside various T20 leagues around the world. The most watched sporting event in South African television history was the opening match between South Africa and Mexico during the FIFA World Cup in South Africa, with a combined 10,146,793 viewers watching the match on SABC 1 and SuperSport 3 on the satellite DSTV network.While figures for match attendances are starting to rise, with the game between Cape Town Blitz and Paarl Rocks last weekend close to sold out, the television viewing figures are an even more positive sign for CSA after their initial attempt at a homegrown league – the defunct T20 Global League – failed.

The three players had been handed eight-week suspensions in December, for their tweets criticising the facilities at the Southend Stadium in Karachi during the Emerging Teams’ Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jan-2019Three UAE cricketers – Rohan Mustafa, Ahmed Raza and Rameez Shahzad – who were suspended last month, were asked by the Emirates Cricket Board to issue formal apologies to the Pakistan Cricket Board for criticising ground facilities in Karachi during the Emerging Teams Cup. In a statement, the Emirates board confirmed that the apologies had been “received and accepted” by the PCB.The players had each been handed eight-week suspensions from international cricket for violating the ‘Player’s Code of Conduct’ and requirements for the use of social media. The players had tweeted criticising the ground facilities in Karachi after rain wiped out their hopes of a semi-final spot in the Emerging Teams Cup. They had also been fined and the Emirates Cricket Board has said the collected fines will be donated to a Karachi-based charity. The three players, although unavailable for selection, have been training alongside the national squad, which is preparing for the upcoming series against Nepal.”Following the recent disciplinary sanctions imposed on three of its professional players, Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) has today confirmed that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has received and accepted formal apologies made to them by the players,” a statement by ECB said. “As a gesture of good will, ECB will donate the fines imposed on the players to a Karachi-based charity. All three players continue their training and, although ineligible for selection, are currently involved in an intense training programme alongside players that will represent the UAE in the upcoming UAE v Nepal series.”In December, the UAE captain Mustafa, left-arm spinner Raza and middle-order batsman Rameez had taken to Twitter to express their frustration after their match against Hong Kong was abandoned due to rain, wiping out their hopes of a semi-final spot.In a match played at the Southend Stadium in Karachi, UAE had restricted Hong Kong to 87 for 4 in 31 overs before a spell of rain lasting about half an hour interrupted play. However, the venue had inadequate tarpaulin covers to protect the pitch, and water leaked onto the square. Despite several hours of using sponges, the ground staff failed to dry the pitch. As a result, the match was abandoned, with the teams sharing points. A win would have boosted UAE’s prospects of playing the semi-final.The PCB, however, has not made a statement and on the fitness of the venue for future games. ESPNcricinfo understands the Pakistan board is aiming to host women’s international games at the venue in the near future.

Coach to oversee Test squad during England series, and is expected to remain in charge through World Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jan-2019Cricket West Indies says it will stand by its decision to appoint Richard Pybus as interim Head Coach, in spite of objections from the Leewards Islands Cricket Board (LICB), which claims he was “handpicked” by Dave Cameron, the CWI president.Pybus will now oversee the Test squad during the forthcoming series against England, and is expected to remain in charge at least until August, a period that encompasses the 2019 World Cup and the visit of India to the Caribbean.He had been appointed to the role in place of Stuart Law, who stepped down in September to take over as head coach at Middlesex, in spite of claims that a shortlist of 11 candidates had been submitted. That list is understood to have included Nic Pothas, who was appointed stand-in coach for the Bangladesh tour in November 2018.In a press release, CWI stated that “the appointment of Pybus was made with the support of more than two-thirds of its board to ensure the team had strong leadership ahead of the busy cricket season this year”, and that he would be supported by a technical team “which includes some of the game’s leading experts from within the region and around the globe”.However, LICB had expressed strong opposition to the appointment, writing to CWI earlier this month to protest that the process by which Pybus had been selected was “unacceptable”.”It is unfortunate, unacceptable and unethical for the CWI President to single-handedly recruit a person of his choosing, and to proceed with salary negotiations without the prior knowledge of the Board,” the LICB email, signed by its directors Enoch Lewis and Denrick Liburd, and accessed by ESPNcricinfo, said.In response, CWI stated that Pybus’ appointment had been reviewed and approved by the Corporate Governance, and Audit Risk and Compliance Committees, and that the LICB complaint has been referred to the governing body’s Ethics Committee for review.

Meanwhile, South Africa captain Faf du Plessis has broken into the top 10 Test batsmen for the first time in his 57-match career

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Feb-2019Kusal Perera’s heroics in the Durban Test have propelled him 58 places to a career-best 40th position on the ICC Rankings for Test batsmen. Australia fast bowler Pat Cummins, meanwhile, has overtaken Kagiso Rabada to claim the No. 1 spot on the Test bowlers’ rankings.ALSO READ: Kusal Perera bats with body, heart and soul in innings of a lifetimePerera’s astonishing ascent on the list comes on the back of his match-winning 153 not-out in the first Test against South Africa that Sri Lanka won by one-wicket on Saturday. Having struck 51 in the first innings, Perera walked in to bat for his second dig when Sri Lanka were 52 for 3. He added 96 with the No. 7 Dhananjaya de Silva before riding on an unbroken 78-run last wicket stand with Vishwa Fernando to help Sri Lanka chase down 304.As for Cummins, who became the first Australian since Glenn McGrath in February 2006 to top the Test bowlers’ list, the rise to the top coincided with Rabada claiming only three wickets in the Durban Test. Earlier in the week, Cummins was named the Allan Border medalist at the Australian Cricket Awards in Melbourne to confirm him as the standout performer in a tough and controversial year for the men’s game.Meanwhile, South Africa captain Faf du Plessis has broken into the top 10 for the first time in his 57-match Test career. Du Plessis moved up seven spots on the back of scores of 35 and 90 to claim the joint-10th position along with Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne.Leading the pair by two spots, at No. 8, is du Plessis’ compatriot Quinton de Kock, who had reached his career-best ranking of No. 6 two years ago. Fast bowler Duanne Olivier advanced three positions to reach his career-best No. 22.

Sri Lanka’s selectors now strongly considering handing the ODI reins to Karunaratne for the World Cup

Andrew Fidel Fernando18-Mar-2019Dimuth Karunaratne’s forthcoming stint with the Hampshire county side may be cancelled, with Sri Lanka’s selectors now strongly considering handing the ODI reins to Karunaratne for the World Cup.Hampshire had signed Karunaratne as their overseas player in February, but Karunaratne has now been asked to remain in Sri Lanka through April, in order to play the provincial one-day tournament, during which the selectors will assess his suitability for the Sri Lanka one-day side.Karunaratne has not played an ODI since the last World Cup, and has been pigeon-holed as a Test batsman, partly owing to poor returns in the one-day format – his average is 15.83 after 17 matches.But as Lasith Malinga’s one-day captaincy is yet to yield a victory for Sri Lanka in nine matches, the selectors are considering a left-field move.”The selectors haven’t confirmed anything, but they’ve told me to keep in mind there’s a possibility I could become one-day captain,” Karunaratne told ESPNcricinfo. “They’ve asked me to stay back for the provincial tournament. If I get picked for the World Cup squad, there will be camps and training after that as well, so I might not be able to go to Hampshire in those months.”Although Karunaratne does not generally score as quickly as your standard ODI batsman, there is now a hope he will be able to hold Sri Lanka’s innings together. In recent years, Sri Lanka has frequently lost early wickets. They were unable to last the full fifty overs in any of the four full ODIs they just played in South Africa.The selectors have also been impressed with Karunaratne’s ability to band the team together in tough situations. Sri Lanka’s recent historic upset against South Africa in Tests was partly credited to the manner in which Karunaratne was able to coax the best from a group of inexperienced players. Several of the stars of that series have since paid tribute to Karunaratne’s leadership.In an interview with , chief selector Ashantha de Mel said his committee wants “to see what Dimuth did for the Test team, with the ODI team”. Angelo Mathews, de Mel said, was also in the frame for the captaincy, because Mathews was “someone who has been accepted by everyone in the team”.”But we are also looking at Dimuth,” he said.Through all this, it is still not clear if Malinga will lose his job – the selectors have not ruled out his captaincy for the World Cup either. Essentially, at present, there are three possible choices for captaincy, each with its drawbacks. Karunaratne is not thought of as a one-day player; Mathews is often injured, and although Malinga is both an automatic choice in the one-day XI, and has been fit over the past few months, the selectors do not believe he has the full support of the dressing room.In any case, Karunaratne has not done his chances any harm by hitting 109 off 115 balls for Sinhalese Sports Club in the semi-final of the Premier Limited Over tournament on Sunday.

Left-arm spinner Sultan Ahmed’s 3 for 33, and Shaiman Anwar’s 30-ball 62 helped UAE hold off USA’s pursuit of 183 in a 24-run win at ICC Academy in Dubai

The Report by Peter Della Penna16-Mar-2019Left-arm spinner Sultan Ahmed’s 3 for 33, including the prized scalp of Steven Taylor, helped UAE hold off USA’s pursuit of 183 in a 24-run win at ICC Academy in Dubai.Bowling with the new ball, Sultan struck his first blow in the fourth over when he had a charging Monank Patel stumped down the leg side for 8. Fast bowler Zahoor Khan took another key wicket off the final ball of the Powerplay when Ahmed Raza took a sensational diving catch on the run at deep midwicket to remove Jaskaran Malhotra for 21 to make it 37 for 2.As a stiff breeze blowing across the ground picked up, UAE’s bowlers excelled at keeping the ball wide of the stumps to deny USA opportunities to lift the ball into the air to clear the short boundary on the west side of the ground. Instead, they forced the USA batsmen to hit into the wind towards the much bigger boundary to the other side. While USA added 99 runs when UAE bowlers were bowling into the wind, they only added 59 runs hitting into the wind.Shaiman Anwar launches Timil Patel over the leg side for one of his five sixes•Peter Della Penna

While Taylor and Xavier Marshall added 72 for the third wicket, their struggles adjusting to the windy conditions meant the stand stretched across nine overs as neither batsman was able to find the boundary with regularity. By the time Marshall was well caught by Sultan at deep midwicket to start the 16th over, USA needed 74 off 29 balls.With pressure mounting, Roy Silva tried his best to beat the wind, shuffling across his stumps to flick Sultan over fine leg at the start of the 17th, but in his attempt to repeat the shot on Sultan’s next legal delivery, he failed to get the elevation and picked out Ashfaq Ahmed on the ring. Four balls later, Taylor charged Sultan and creamed a drive flat to Shaiman Anwar on the cover boundary for 49 to effectively end USA’s chances at 129 for 5 after 17 overs. Zahoor took the ball for the final over with USA needing 32 and a slower ball yanked to long-on by Elmore Hutchinson off the second ball of the 20th over mathematically sealed it for UAE.Shaiman’s crucial catch to dismiss Taylor followed his 62 off 30 balls that earned him the Player-of-the-Match honors. Arriving in the second over after Ashfaq was caught behind edging a drive off Jessy Singh, Shaiman added 81 for the second wicket with Rohan Mustafa in brisk time. Mustafa was the aggressor early in their stand, punching Hutchinson for three consecutive fours between cover and mid-off to start the fifth over.After a methodical start, the arrival of legspinner Timil Patel brought out the best in Shaiman. He hammered USA’s all-time leading wicket-taker in T20 cricket for a pair of sixes over the leg side in the eighth over, then drove him over long-on for three consecutive sixes in the 14th, the first of which brought up a 26-ball half-century.Timil finally got his revenge off the fifth ball of the over, dragging his length back for Shaiman to scoop a catch to Silva at long-on, but by that stage UAE were in a commanding position. USA captain Saurabh Netravalkar produced a fantastic death-overs spell which handed him two wickets in the 18th to give USA hope, but Raza’s straight six off Jessy began a 12-run frame in 20th over to ensure the hosts had more than enough runs in the bank to clinch the two-match series.