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Tactics board: Rashid, de Kock, Gurbaz-Ibrahim and Maharaj – the key factors

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Can South Africa break the Gurbaz-Ibrahim alliance quickly? How crucial will Maharaj’s role against Afghanistan’s right-hand batters be?

Nagraj Gollapudi26-Jun-20242:15

Fleming: Afghanistan need more from their batters against SA

The toss factor: make Afghanistan chase

Four of Afghanistan’s five wins at the T20 World Cup 2024 have come batting first.On three of those occasions, the opposition put them in. Uganda, New Zealand and Australia all opted to chase. And Afghanistan elected to bat against Bangladesh on Tuesday in Kingstown.Related

  • Can Afghanistan continue their dream run against unbeaten South Africa?

  • SA coach wants team to embrace 'anxiety and excitement' in low-key semi-final build-up

  • Tarouba venue guide: High-scoring game on even covering of grass with cracks

  • Maharaj: South Africa have found a way to win 'small moments'

  • South Africa knock West Indies out to enter semi-final

But Afghanistan have lost two matches where they have fielded first: against West Indies after winning the toss, and against India, who elected to bat.The solitary match they won fielding first came against Papua New Guinea, which, incidentally, was played in Tarouba, the venue for the semi-final.South Africa, the only team apart from India to be undefeated at the World Cup so far, have won four times batting first and three times chasing. Don’t be surprised if Afghanistan are asked to chase if South Africa win the toss.

South Africa can’t let Gurbaz-Ibrahim flourish

No opening pair at this World Cup has scored more runs than Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran, who are also first and third, respectively, on the list of leading run-scorers in the tournament. The two 22-year-olds, friends from their Under-19 days, have aggregated 442 runs at an average of nearly 74, which is the highest among all teams for the opening wicket – Jos Buttler and Phil Salt, who have compiled 286 runs at an average of 57.20, come a distant second.The Afghanistan openers have stitched together three 100-plus stands and a fifty-plus partnership, and between them have scored nearly half (46.3%) the runs (954) Afghanistan have scored in this World Cup.Gurbaz usually does the power-hitting early on, while Ibrahim provides stability at the other end. Gurbaz, though, hurt his left knee while keeping against Bangladesh and limped out. If he misses out, South Africa’s job might become easier. And if he does recover in time, South Africa will have to find a way to break Afghanistan’s batting spine quickly.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Can Afghanistan stop de Kock?

Quinton de Kock is South Africa’s in-form batter and the enforcer, a role he played to perfection against England in their Super Eight contest. Since 2022, though, de Kock averages 21.60 against offspin at a strike rate of 105.88. Rashid has asked his senior team-mate Mohammed Nabi to bowl in the powerplay frequently, and against de Kock, he could be deployed as a favourable match-up. While Nabi hasn’t got the better of de Kock yet in T20 cricket, he has given away only 32 runs in 28 balls.South Africa’s batting numbers in the powerplay are among the poorest this tournament: not only have they lost the most wickets (15) in the phase, their run rate of 6.73 is nearly three points behind England’s 9.49. Their average of 18.76 is also among the lowest. Afghanistan will look to mount pressure from both ends, combining Nabi with Fazalhaq Farooqi, the tournament’s leading wicket-taker who also has the most powerplay wickets in all T20s in 2024.

Alternate route to get de Kock: go around

Jofra Archer and Tanzim Hasan Sakib went around the wicket to force mistakes from de Kock. Against England, he was caught behind trying to play at a delivery wide outside off, while against Bangladesh he played on.As the graphic below shows, since 2022, de Kock has been susceptible against the around-the-wicket line of attack, often lured into playing away from his body and/or falling when trying to slash hard.His problem becomes glaring if you look at the first ten balls of his innings. In the same period and same matches, in 30 innings, de Kock has been dismissed six times in 82 balls bowled from around the stumps, and has scored just 77 runs at a strike rate of 93.90 and an average of just under 13.In the same period, in the first ten balls he has faced bowled from over the wicket, he has been dismissed 12 times in 64 innings but has scored 436 runs in 313 balls at a strike rate of 139.30 and an average of 36.33.ESPNcricinfo LtdIncidentally, Dwayne Bravo, who is Afghanistan’s consultant, has had success against de Kock bowling around the wicket. So, don’t be surprised if you see Naveen-ul-Haq, who had dismissed Travis Head using the same line, attacking de Kock from around the stumps.

How will South Africa counter Rashid?

Most of South Africa’s top-order batters – de Kock, Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller and Tristan Stubbs – have not managed to dominate Rashid in T20Is. Barring Stubbs, whose sample size is low – he has faced nine deliveries and taken 22 runs at a strike rate of 244.44 – no other South Africa batter has a strike rate of over 130 against Rashid in T20Is.The significant duel will be between Miller and Rashid. Miller, South Africa’s second-highest run-scorer in the tournament, ranks among the top finishers in T20 cricket and has been striking at nearly 150 since the start of 2022 against legspin. However, Rashid, who is Miller’s team-mate at Gujarat Titans in the IPL since 2022, has had a significant upper hand against him. Miller has scored just 50 runs off 42 balls against Rashid in all T20s while striking at 119.04 and has been dismissed four times.Rashid will be on the prowl along with Nabi and Noor Ahmad with the trio bowling a majority of the overs in the middle phase.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Maharaj, South Africa’s X-factor

Keshav Maharaj scripted one of the moments of this World Cup when he defended ten runs off the final over of the match against Bangladesh in New York. Even though he got lucky, going unpunished despite slipping consecutive full tosses of the last two balls of the over, Maharaj was resolute and courageous, picking two wickets. Both batters – Jaker Ali and Mahmudullah – were right-handers. In fact, all nine wickets South Africa’s lead spinner has taken this tournament have been of right-hand batters.Maharaj will look forward to bowling against Afghanistan, whose batting is made up almost entirely of right-hand batters – Hazratullah Zazai played just one game, against India, while Najibullah Zadran played the group-stage matches but hasn’t featured since the India game.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

'I had to take it home' – Calm Chase eases West Indies' opening-game nerves

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Tension was mounting for the co-hosts before an Andre Russell six ignited their push to the winning line

Shashank Kishore02-Jun-20241:11

‘We’ve talked about it for years’ – Bishop on WI and dot-ball percentage

The euphoria of an IPL triumph achieved exactly a week to the day, on a heady Chennai night, may have suddenly felt foggy as Andre Russell walked into bat with West Indies needing 40 off 24. Papua New Guinea had pushed the hosts into a corner and were daring to dream of an upset on a tricky Providence surface. Even someone of Russell’s vintage was unlikely to have it easy to be able to strike from get go.Until then, PNG had refused to be intimidated by the plethora of ball-strikers, each capable of hitting bigger than the other. They may have even had West Indies possibly question their own choices at a point, like the decision to sacrifice power-hitting depth for all-round squad balance as they fielded Roston Chase and Rutherford over Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer.Related

  • Powell: Winning the World Cup will give 'massive boost' financially for West Indies

  • Chase seals West Indies' jittery victory against spirited PNG

The match, although not sold to capacity, still had a considerable number of home fans clenching their fists as Russell took strike against John Kariko, who had bowled his three overs until then with immaculate control and guile. Phil Simmons, West Indies’ former T20 World Cup winning coach now with PNG as consultant, was furiously chewing gum. There was tension.What chance did a 20-year-old rookie who’d played all his career up until then against the likes of Philippines, Vanuatu, Malaysia and Nepal have against The Dre Russ? Maybe not even an inkling, but Kariko was showing no nerves. He kept landing them on a length. Some straightened, others just went through with the arm. Five balls into his penultimate over, he’d conceded just three runs and West Indies now needed 37 off 19.Just as you wondered if Russell was going the MS Dhoni way of taking it till the end, he got a gift. For the first time in his spell, Kariko erred by bowling a half-tracker. Russell needed no second invitation as he rocked back and muscled the pull to clear deep midwicket. Nervous smiles gave way to an energetic pump of the fists in the West Indies dug out.That release shot had opened the floodgates. At the other end, Chase had killed them softly it with some of the most aesthetically pleasing strokes, not one of them played in anger or in desperation. By the time the 18th over finished, Chase had all but sealed the match by hitting Assad Vala, the PNG captain, for two fours and a six to bring the equation down to a comfortable 13 off 12. West Indies needed only six more balls to get there.Roston Chase assessed conditions perfectly•ICC via Getty ImagesChase may have ended the game in a blaze, but hardly got out of second gear until push came to shove. This wasn’t because he wasn’t capable of hitting the big shots, but it was the need of the hour. Nicholas Pooran fell trying to hit out as did Brandon King. Rutherford struggled for fluency too. All along, Chase milked the runs, batting with a sense of calm that suggested he’d sussed out conditions superbly.”I had to take it home for the team, and I did it,” Chase said after being named Player of the Match for his unbeaten 27-ball 42. “I just thought that the wicket was one that was a bit difficult to start on in terms of playing your strokes and being aggressive. So, I thought it was one that you just had to get in and give yourself a bit of time to get adjusted to the pace of the wicket and once you get in you would get away the ball after a while.”A part of Chase’s batting blueprint may have been formed when he was out bowling. Chase bowled his four overs for 26, during which he used the crease nicely to vary his lines and hit lengths to extract bounce from his tall frame. On two-paced surfaces, this mantra, married to a wicket-to-wicket line, has the potential to be a superb cocktail. While there were no inherent rewards for these efforts in the form of wickets, Chase kept PNG in check for most parts. It was only a late flourish from Kiplin Doriga that helped them finish on 136.”That was very good,” Rovman Powell, the West Indies captain said of Chase’s spell. “Started from a bowling effort, I think he bowled pretty well. And coming at the end, when we were under pressure coming there with composure, and to come out with a winning innings was great for us.”Andre Russell got away a vital boundary as the asking rate was climbing•Associated PressChase’s performances will also be that much more gratifying for himself and West Indies because for a long time he’s battled the perception of being a long-format player. But in 2020, when he was signed as a replacement player by St Lucia Kings in the CPL, something changed. In the following season, he was named MVP and made it to the T20 World Cup squad in 2021 in UAE.Even as most of his team-mates were over at the IPL, Chase went on a West Indies A tour to Nepal, where they played on spin-friendly surfaces in the middle of a heatwave. He topped those performances with two reassuring performances at home against South Africa prior to the T20 World Cup.”I’m full of confidence, even before this knock,” Chase said. “I mean, I had a good series against South Africa. Then I was on the A-team tour in Nepal and had a good series there and then I’ve been putting in a lot of work back home, obviously in the camp before the South Africa series. For me, it’s just to go there express myself when I get the chance and put everything that I put into practice into the game and entertain.”A lot of hard work, sweat, tears [has gone into it], just putting in the hard work. And obviously, believing. I think that’s the main reason. I mean, you can do all the hard work and have everyone rooting for you, but if you don’t have that self-belief, you’re not going to achieve. So, I just think that it’s for me to back any hard work that I did and also believing in my ability that when I get out there that I was showing my [skill].”

Stats – Abhishek Sharma smashes the highest IPL score by an Indian

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Stats highlights from Hyderabad, where Abhishek Sharma and SRH shattered a whole host of records

Sampath Bandarupalli12-Apr-2025246 – Target that Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) chased down against Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Saturday in Hyderabad. It is the second-highest successful chase in the IPL, behind the 262 by PBKS against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2024.8 – Consecutive wins for SRH at their home ground (Hyderabad) against PBKS, a streak that began in 2015. It is the joint-longest winning streak for any team against an opponent at a particular ground in the IPL, levelling Chennai Super Kings’ (CSK) eight successive wins against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at Chepauk.It was also SRH’s ninth win in ten meetings against PBKS at this venue. Only Mumbai Indians (MI) have more IPL wins against an opponent at a venue – ten against KKR at Wankhede.Related

  • Abhishek Sharma takes T20 hitting out of this world

  • 'Felt today was going to be my day' – Abhishek dedicates century to Orange Army

  • Abhishek Sharma's whirlwind 141 leads SRH to second-highest IPL chase

  • Lockie Ferguson hobbles off two balls into his spell

  • Most expensive IPL spells – Shami stops one short of Archer

141 – Abhishek Sharma’s score against PBKS is the third-highest by any batter in the IPL, behind Chris Gayle’s 175* in 2013 and Brendon McCullum’s 158* in 2008.It is also the highest score by an SRH batter – David Warner’s 126 against KKR in 2017 was the previous highest.1 – Abhishek’s 141 is the highest individual score by an Indian in the IPL, bettering KL Rahul’s 132* against RCB in 2020.Abhishek’s 141 is also the highest score in an IPL chase, surpassing Marcus Stoinis’ unbeaten 124 against CSK in 2024.40 – Balls that Abhishek took to complete his hundred, making it the sixth-fastest in the IPL. It is the second-fastest for SRH, behind Travis Head’s 39-ball century against RCB in 2024.10 – Sixes hit by Abhishek on Saturday, the most by any batter for SRH in an innings. No SRH batter had hit more than eight sixes in a match before Saturday.24 – Number of boundaries that Abhishek hit, the joint-second-highest in an IPL innings, behind Gayle’s 30 against Pune Warriors in 2013. The 116 runs Abhishek scored via boundaries on Saturday are also the third-highest by a batter in an IPL match.3 – Number of times Abhishek has brought up his hundred in 40 or fewer balls in T20s – 28 balls vs Meghalaya in 2024, 37 balls vs England in 2025, and 40 balls vs PBKS on Saturday.These is the highest, one ahead of David Miller, Dasun Shanaka and Urvil Patel, who all have two such centuries (where data is available).5 – All five bowlers used by SRH conceded 40-plus runs on Saturday. Only once before have five bowlers concede 40-plus runs in an IPL innings – Rajasthan Royals (RR) against SRH earlier this year.75 – Runs that Mohammed Shami conceded in his four overs, the second-highest by any bowler in an IPL match, behind Jofra Archer’s 76 against SRH at the start of IPL 2025.

Does Shubman Gill fit into India's T20I plans?

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Gill’s recent form is compelling, but he hasn’t played a T20I for a year, and in his absence other contenders have emerged and succeeded as openers

Shashank Kishore13-Aug-2025

In Shubman Gill’s absence, Axar Patel was given the T20I vice-captaincy•AFP/Getty Images

There’s no question about Shubman Gill’s place in the Indian team in two out of three international formats. He broke records as a batter while leading India to a 2-2 draw in England in his debut series as Test captain, and played important roles in India’s run to the 2023 ODI World Cup final and their triumph in the 2025 Champions Trophy. Gill could even be the next ODI captain, whenever Rohit Sharma quits that format too.But India’s next assignment is the Asia Cup in September, to be played in the T20I format as preparation for the 2026 T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, and the question arises: does Gill fit into India’s plans for the shortest format?His most recent T20 form is compelling – 650 runs at a strike rate of nearly 156 in IPL 2025. He’s going to be a cornerstone of Indian cricket for the next decade. Both are reasons in his favour, but the selection question is more complex.Related

  • Asia Cup 2025 in UAE starting September 9; India vs Pakistan on September 14

  • Gill shows he is ready for the grind of India's Test captaincy

It has been a while since India picked a full-strength T20I squad; the last time they did so was for the 2024 T20 World Cup, which they won in the USA and West Indies. Gill was a travelling reserve for that tournament, outside the main 15. Since then, India’s T20I selections have been influenced by scheduling and injuries.Gill was captain of a second-string team for the T20I series in Zimbabwe immediately after the World Cup last year. He was vice-captain of a near full-strength squad for the T20I series in Sri Lanka later in July that year. As Test cricket took precedence, however, Gill was not picked for India’s home T20Is against Bangladesh in October, the T20Is in South Africa in November, and the home T20Is against England in January this year, which were scheduled soon after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and shortly before the Champions Trophy. In his absence, Axar Patel was elevated to the T20I vice-captaincy.The scheduling crunch is ever-present. For example, the Asia Cup final is on September 28, and India’s home Test series against West Indies starts on October 2. This time, however, the selectors have to zero in on the best T20I combination for the Asia Cup with the larger goal of defending their World Cup title next year. They begin from a position of immense strength: since winning the World Cup, India have won 17 out of 20 bilateral T20Is.In Gill’s absence from the T20I side since August 2024, Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson have become the incumbent openers. Abhishek, the top-ranked batter in the format, scored 279 runs at a strike rate of nearly 220 in India’s most recent T20I series, against England in January. While Samson had low scores in those five matches, he had hit three hundreds in five preceding T20Is.Yashasvi Jaiswal is one of the frontrunners to open the batting•AFP/Getty ImagesThe selectors could weigh up whether they want to continue with two ultra-explosive openers in Abhishek and Samson, in keeping with India’s brand of T20I cricket, or go for a more consistent yet aggressive option.Like Yashasvi Jaiswal? Jaiswal, like Gill, has not played a T20I since July 2024 due to India prioritising his Test performances in a packed calendar. However, in India’s previous full-strength squad, Jaiswal was picked as the back-up opener ahead of Gill for the 2024 T20 World Cup. He ended up being a back-up only because India made the relatively late decision to open with Rohit and Virat Kohli, whose retirements since then have put Jaiswal back as one of the frontrunners to open. At the time, Gill was coming off a not-so-hot performance in IPL 2024, and there isn’t a massive difference between his and Jaiswal’s numbers in IPL 2025 either.If the team management doesn’t want to break Samson and Abhishek up at the top, it’s hard to see how Gill – or Jaiswal – can feature in India’s first-choice T20I XI. And if the selectors want to keep the Asia Cup squad size to 15 – they will have to do that for the World Cup – it’s hard to see how they can pick all four of Abhishek, Samson, Gill and Jaiswal, given the need for back-ups for other types of players in the squad. Samson, though, has the advantage of doubling up as a wicketkeeper too.It could boil down to a choice between Jaiswal or Gill in the squad – who the selectors feel will have the stronger impact during India’s T20 title defence.

Ghosh puts finishing touches to another middle-order rescue act

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

India’s top-order batters have yet to get going in this World Cup, but the good sign for the team is they are still winning comfortably

Andrew Fidel Fernando06-Oct-20254:12

Goud, Deepti, Ghosh make it two from two for India

Harmanpreet Kaur and Jemimah Rodrigues have a tournament average of 20 and 18 respectively so far, having batted twice each. Smriti Mandhana, India’s form batter leading in, has a tally of 31. Even Pratika Rawal, their latest top-order smash hit, hasn’t yet struck a 40 at this World Cup.And yet twice India have clambered their way to good totals against decent attacks, scrambling runs on pitches opponents have nosedived on. They were 124 for 6 in Guwahati against Sri Lanka, 159 for 5 against Pakistan. Without a half-century from any of their top five, they are two wins up in a World Cup that hasn’t pushed them yet.Related

  • India need to fix flaws ahead of tougher challenges in World Cup

  • Goud, Deepti seal another big win against Pakistan

  • Harmanpreet: 'It wasn't an easy pitch to bat'

  • Goud times roll for India's newest new-ball star

It’s the multi-dimensional cricketers in the lower middle order that have prospered. In these two games they’ve rebuilt at times, consolidated at others, and attacked successfully at the death. They’ve suggested strongly, that this India World Cup team has more gears, and more depth than most that have come before.Deepti Sharma has been at the centre of India’s dynamism. Having made a busy 53 against Sri Lanka, she struck a more measured 25 off 33 against Pakistan, on a Khettarama surface no batter looked truly comfortable on.Clearly there is variety here already, but she has yet another mode, thanks to the improvements she has made to her hitting, partly at the WPL. In an extremely high-scoring match against Australia a little over two weeks ago, Deepti clobbered two sixes and five fours to score 72 off 58.Deepti had Sneh Rana for a co-conspirator in both innings at the World Cup, but faced with varying challenges, produced excellent partnerships, both worth 42. Against Sri Lanka, the two had come together with only 21 balls left in the innings, and had thumped their way to the close, Rana hitting 28 not out off 15 balls.Richa Ghosh showed the full range of strokes to provide India a late boost•Getty ImagesAgainst Pakistan, they were joined with 15 overs left to play and were required to take the innings deep. This 42-run stand took 56 balls – Rana scoring her 20 off 33 balls. Rana too is riding a WPL high, her two rapid, finishing innings at this year’s tournament giving India’s selectors a little more confidence in picking her. She had made useful batting contributions in that series against Australia as well, hitting 24 and 35.But against Pakistan it was Richa Ghosh who produced India’s best innings, raising them to an imposing 248 when they had once been at risk of being restricted to 220. She came in with 34 balls to go and got stuck at the other end while Diana Baig bowled a wicket maiden. But roughly midway through the 47th over, she picked a Fatima Sana slower ball and launched it over wide long-on.There was plenty more power in her 35 not out off 20 balls, particularly against Baig, whose full tosses she smoked down the ground for a four then a six. Also against Baig, but in the final over, Ghosh showcased newer elements of her game – a reverse swat that brought four runs over short third.All three of these cricketers also offer substantial skills when India bowl. Deepti claimed 3 for 45, dismissing Pakistan’s best batter Sidra Amin. Rana took 2 for 38 at a ground she has dominated in this year. Shree Charani didn’t get wickets against Pakistan, but had taken 2 for 37 against Sri Lanka.Throw these three spinners together with a batting order that is getting the team to good totals without big innings from the bigger names, and you have an outfit that is beginning to look ominous at a home World Cup. They will face higher-rated opposition when they return to India, but they have unlocked a new level of versatility.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. Stands Firmly Behind Aaron Boone After Helping Yankees Tie Series

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Jazz Chisholm Jr. was seemingly unhappy after he was omitted from the starting lineup of the Yankees' Game 1 loss to the Red Sox on Tuesday night. On Wednesday, however, after the Bronx Bombers tied the series 1-1, the infielder is standing firmly behind his manager Aaron Boone—who made the decision to sit him.

Following the win, one that saw Chisholm score the winning run and Boone make some smart—and bold—decisions with his pitching staff, the 27-year-old spoke about the relationship he has with his skipper:

"There was never a problem between me and Aaron Boone," he answered when asked if everything was OK between the two. "He's been my manager all year and I've stood behind him all year."

We always have disagreements," Chisholm continued. "I mean, I played third base this year and we had a little bit of a disagreement in that. But at the end of the day, I always stand with Boonie because he understands where I come from. He knows I'm a passionate player and he knows I wear my feelings on my sleeve. He knows that I'm here to compete."

A good answer from Chisholm, who Boone confirmed will remain in New York's lineup for Game 3.

Now tied with a chance to advance to the ALDS, the wild-card series between the Sox and Yankees is a history-making one. First pitch from the Bronx will—in all likelihood—be set for 6:08 p.m. ET.

"Highly-rated" Leeds gem could now leave "on a free transfer in January"

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Leeds United youth prospect Alex Baird could depart West Yorkshire in the upcoming January transfer window.

At the second time of asking, Daniel Farke led the Whites back to the Premier League last season, ascending as centurions and winners of the Championship. To prepare, the Whites made a number of summer signings, aiming to avoid the fate of all six promoted sides across the past two years, who were immediately relegated.

Unsurprisingly, Leeds have been linked with a number of potential incomings ahead of the January transfer window, in which they can reinforce their squad. Alongside Sunderland and Burnley, the 2025/26 season looks to be one in which, finally, promoted teams can compete in the Premier League once more.

It would appear, though, that the Whites may have to navigate the departure of a promising talent this January.

Baird could leave Leeds this winter

Journalist Pete O’Rourke has claimed that Alex Baird could depart Elland Road for free in the upcoming transfer window. Though he is a promising player, currently in the ranks of Leeds’ Under-18s squad, Baird’s pathway to the first team is unclear.

Ahead of Baird in the youth academy’s pecking order are Darryl Ombang and Rory Mahady. The latter is particularly regarded as a star prospect and both have spent time, in recent months, on loan with clubs in the English football pyramid.

Given that both seem ahead of Baird, it makes sense that the youngster could leave and join a club with a clearer route to first-team football. Not only that, but Leeds are well-stocked in the goalkeeping department at a senior level too.

Illan Meslier, who has not played for Leeds since early 2025, looks set to leave the club sooner rather than later. The fact that Meslier did not, in fact, depart in the latest summer transfer window was rather surprising.

Elsewhere, though, the Whites signed Lucas Perri from Lyon to be their new number one in the summer. Karl Darlow has performed admirably when called upon as a back-up shot-stopper and Alex Cairns, now a veteran who is a Leeds youth academy product, is the club’s third choice keeper.

What Baird goes onto achieve as a player remains to be seen, though it would appear that these accomplishments will not be achieved at Elland Road.

"Indespensable" Leeds star now struggling for form

Alfie Ogborne, Thomas Rew help Somerset overcome Will Rhodes' all-round show

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Durham allrounder hits 100 and takes three wickets but ends up on losing side

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay08-Aug-2025Alfie Ogborne took his first Somerset five-for as Somerset carved out a four-wicket victory over Durham at Taunton to extend their winning start to the Metro Bank One-Day Cup campaign.Playing in front of a near-sell-out crowd at Taunton, the 22-year-old left arm seamer claimed 5 for 41 as Durham were restricted to 255 for 9 after winning the toss. Will Rhodes kept the visitors afloat, staging an assured knock of 100 from 120 balls with 10 fours and sharing in stands of 78 with Haydon Mustard and 58 with Paul Coughlin for the fifth and seventh wickets respectively. Mustard contributed 38 and Coughlin, the only Durham batter to score at better than a run-a-ball, raised 38 from 30 balls and accrued two fours and a six.Teenage prospect Thomas Rew then anchored Somerset’s run chase, top-scoring with 84 not out from 81 deliveries and striking eight fours and two sixes as the home side reached their target with 22 balls to spare. He shared in a crucial partnership of 95 for the fourth wicket with his brother, James, who posted 39, while opener Archie Vaughan weighed in with 37 and Ben Green scored 34 not out at the death. The pick of the Durham bowlers, Rhodes capped a fine all-round performance by taking 3 for 42 in a losing cause.Will Rhodes impressed with bat and ball•Getty Images

Durham’s decision to bat first backfired when they slumped to 67 for 4 inside 15 overs. Jake Ball had Emilio Gay caught at the wicket for seven, while the impressive Ogborne persuaded Scott Borthwick to top-edge a pull shot to mid-wicket and then produced a startling yorker to remove Colin Ackermann without scoring. When Ben Green located Ollie Robinson’s outside edge and James Rew again demonstrated sound glovework, Somerset were on top.Charged with the task of rebuilding the innings, Rhodes and Mustard played responsibly, adding 50 in 83 balls to redress the balance.Somerset needed a wicket and skipper James Rew recalled Ogborne at the Marcus Trescothick Pavilion end, the left-armer having Mustard caught by Green at point with the score 145 for 5 in the 34th. When Kasey Aldridge came on at the same end and had George Drissell caught at backward point, the visitors were 170 for 6.That was the cue for Coughlin to seize the initiative, relegating Rhodes to a supporting role in a seventh-wicket stand of 58 in 7.2 overs. Rhodes still saw enough of the strike to post his second List A hundred from 118 balls, clipping Ogborne into the leg side to attain that milestone in the 46th. He was out later in the same over, hoisting Ogborne to square leg.Ogborne then completed his first senior five-wicket haul, inducing Coughlin to hit straight to long-on with the score 237 for 8 in the 48th. Somerset’s chase was afforded a super-charged start, Vaughan and Lammonby assuming T20 mode in harvesting nine boundaries between them in an opening stand of 51 in 8.1 overs as Durham’s seamers struggled with their lengths.Thomas Rew bats under the floodlights•Harry Trump/Getty Images

But the home side did not have things entirely their own way, Mitchell Killeen affording the visitors much-needed relief by bowling Lammonby for 24. Vaughan was then dismissed for 37 in near-identical fashion by Rhodes with the score 78 for 2 in the 16th. That soon became 78 for 3, Goldsworthy shuffling in front of a straight one from Drissell as Durham roared right back into contention.Just as they did when defeating Middlesex at Radlett a few days earlier, Somerset looked to the Rew brothers to steady the ship. Both oozed calm confidence, going about their business in workmanlike fashion to keep the reply on track, James initially proving the more aggressive and Thomas dropping into a supporting role.Elder sibling James timed the ball from the outset, playing a superb back-foot force for four off the bowling of Rhodes as Somerset advanced to 124-3 at halfway, requiring a further 133 at 5.2 an over. The 50 partnership arrived via 59 balls, 17-year-old Thomas raising that landmark with a wristy cut for four off Luke Robinson.Warming to his task, the teenager fine cut Killeen for four through third man and then whipped him over midwicket for six before pulling and cutting Robinson for successive boundaries to overtake his brother. The partnership was worth 95 when Rhodes fooled James Rew into mistiming a drive and holing out to mid-on for 39.Undeterred by events at the other end, Rew junior went to his second successive 50 from 45 deliveries. But Rhodes accounted for Josh Thomas, held at long-on, and Fin Hill was run out for a duck with the score 189 for 6. Calm in the face of pressure, Green offered Rew staunch support thereafter, contributing 34 not out to an unbroken stand of 69 for the seventh wicket.

There's a certain sadness about Babar Azam's mortality

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

His being dropped may not be the worst thing, but it does dent his halo, bringing him down to the ranks of the merely very good

Osman Samiuddin14-Oct-2024As first tasks go, telling Babar Azam that he was about to be dropped must have been some introduction to selection for Azhar Ali. Welcome to the committee. Before you settle in, here’s the mess you’ve inherited. Mind cleaning it up, pronto?Thankfully Azhar is used to this kind of stuff given his introduction to international cricket was the soap operatic mess of the 2010 tour of England, and that at one down, it was pretty much his entire JD. He’s a good, empathetic man, who probably would have wanted the responsibility of telling Babar he was going to be dropped. It can’t have been an easy call, and made no lighter by the almost ironic twist that it was under Babar’s captaincy that Azhar’s Test career ended, sooner, perhaps, than Azhar would’ve liked.These days, of course, teams tiptoe around the idea that anyone is being dropped. “Rested” as the PCB said diplomatically in their press release. A later communication said that Babar had been “spared from the team”, which, given recent results and mood, well, you can picture Freud slipping can’t you?Related

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Whatever the semantics, it is a big call. A bigly call, even. So big it’s difficult to recall a bigger one in recent Pakistan history (maybe Inzi after the 2003 World Cup). Big players have been banned, punished, forced to retire, yes, but dropped for as mundane a reason as form? And make no mistake, they don’t come bigger than Babar, Pakistan’s best batter, in the conversation to be their greatest ever, their unquestioned all-format captain until not long ago, and – because these things matter – the biggest draw in Pakistan cricket. That he was helped on to that last pedestal by the very board that is now nudging him off it is by the by, of course. The simultaneous absence of Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah from the second Test amplifies the sense of a culling of stars, but fast bowlers, Pakistan have always thought, are expendable. The epicentre is Babar.So yes, a big call. Was it one Pakistan had to make? Is this really the call that turns their fortunes around?At one level, this is a proper Statement Axing. There’s a(nother) new selection committee in town. Pakistan have suffered another record-breaking, earth-shattering loss. Drastic change feels necessary. Scapegoats must be found, and the captain can’t be sacked one Test into the series. So sack the former captain. Even by the PCB’s standards, this selection committee is an eclectic mix of the outré and strait-laced sensibility – Aaqib Javed and Aleem Dar with Asad Shafiq and Azhar Ali – but it’s telling they were unanimous in their view on Babar. The captain and coach weren’t involved in the decision, and given their pleas for continuity, it’s logical to assume they are not entirely pleased with the call.

There is a tangible sense that a break really might do Babar good, that what he needs most is to decompress. The last couple of years have been especially taxing and toxic

It is possible, though, to see a level where it does make sense. That isn’t concerned so much with the batting and the returns, because those can be argued either way. Yes, the numbers aren’t great. Yes, he’s getting dismissed early and he’s getting dismissed when he’s set. Yes, he’s getting beaten on the outside edge and the inside. Yes, he’s falling to pace and spin.No, his form doesn’t feel terminally bad. Two years without a half-century sounds like a long stretch, time-wise, but no, nine Tests without one doesn’t sound so long Tests-wise. That is part of the problem. Pakistan just don’t play that many Tests and those they do come with great irregularity. These nearly two years, for example, include a stretch of no Tests for six months, then nearly five months without one, then almost eight months without one again. How do you get out of a rut and into a run in this stop-start schedule? Ollie Pope not scoring runs in a few Tests, for instance, is less complicated, given there’s almost always another Test right around the corner for him to right things. And if Pope has issues, he knows he has Marcus Trescothick, England’s batting coach since 2021, to turn to. Babar? Speed dates spend more time getting to know each other than Babar has had with some coaches lately. So given his track record and the general acknowledgment that he remains Pakistan’s best batter, retaining him for the remaining two Tests against England would have been far from a terrible call.Instead, more than the runs or the form is this tangible sense that a break really might do him good, that what he needs most is to decompress. The last couple of years have been especially taxing and toxic. Stripped of the captaincy, given parts of it back, then having to let go again; poor results cascading in tune with administrative clownery; becoming the eye of every storm, whether it is the culture wars over his intent in T20s and ODIs, the obsessive, magnified dissection of his lack of Test runs, the dismissals of his insipid captaincy, or the growing talk of team factions and disunity. Against this, a break should be considered a period of convalescence.At the very least, it is a moment to pause and breathe and take in the giddying journey of his last few years. Hardly had he established himself as a Test batter in early 2019 than he was rising to all-format captain in 2020 and to global superstardom shortly thereafter. The relentless playing schedule, the burgeoning celebrity and its distorting effects since, have likely sheened onto this period a sense of unreality. It’s worth trying to unwrap that. Maybe even for him to tend to his primary occupation, by working on his batting with someone and rediscovering what made him so good.Since the start of January 2023, Babar has averaged 20, as against 49 before•AFP/Getty ImagesRisk is inherent, of course, in that genuine resets in the Pakistani context are rare, and in an environment as corrosive as the prevailing one… well, there’s as much chance he comes back broken as he does having not taken a meaningful break, and as captain. There’s a reason why so many Pakistani cricketers never willingly take a break, because they know well the vagaries of Pakistan selection.Which is why there is an overriding sense of sadness about all this. Babar wasn’t supposed to be just another talented Pakistani cricketer. It really did feel like he was the real deal, the batter who, one day, we would look back on as the undisputed greatest in Pakistan’s history, who rode out pace and bounce in Australia and South Africa, who coped expertly with seam and swing in England and New Zealand, who plundered at home and on the subcontinent, and who maybe even won a world title along the way.He may still get there eventually, but that road is a crooked one now. He’s been tarred with a little mortality, suddenly pervious to the tremors and jitters of ordinary cricketers. In the long term, and for a life away from the game, it is probably no bad thing. Call it a life lesson. In the short term, that’s hardly consolation.

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