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England still need to win one of the final two matches to secure the series – and they may come up against the weather again at The Oval, with a poor forecast for the afternoon

Alan Gardner at The Oval28-Jun-2016England’s increasingly proficient one-day side might well offer a beacon of hope for those looking for a distraction this week. England cricket fans knew the meaning of omnishambles long before it was added to the dictionary and might regard it as something of a perversity that, after the country’s footballers were put on ice by the smallest nation at Euro 2016 and as politicians continue exploring the realms beyond satire, it is their sport that provides a fleeting opportunity for optimism.It is not so long ago that England’s ODI players were sent packing from a major tournament to the accompaniment of boos and hisses, of course. Eoin Morgan is periodically asked to reflect on how far England have come since the 2015 World Cup and his responses to how the culture of the limited-overs teams has been changed, and where they can continue to improve, are typically well-rehearsed and emotion-free. Is it a stretch to suggest his cool captaincy and emphasis on collective enjoyment feels ever-so-slightly Icelandic?Morgan is no football fan, however, and England are one of the most well-resourced teams in cricket, so it is hard to make theirs an underdog story – no matter how mangy their one-day performances have been over the last couple of decades. England’s captain, who perhaps took slightly more of an interest during Ireland’s Euro 2016 defeat on Sunday, did concede that “emotions are probably running high with everybody around the country at the moment” but stopped short of endorsing the appointment of an Australian as Roy Hodgson’s successor.Coincidentally, Hodgson watched England’s cricketers train the last time they prepared for a match at The Oval (one they lost by an innings to Australia) but he has now joined Peter Moores and Stuart Lancaster in the most recent ranks of English coaching disaster. Morgan was more interested in Eddie Jones’ success in turning around the rugby team – “it’s been phenomenal to watch a whitewash against Australia on home soil” – but eventually talk turned to his ongoing project alongside Trevor Bayliss in improving England’s ODI stocks.A tie at Trent Bridge, where Liam Plunkett’s last-ball six salvaged a game that appeared lost, was followed by more consummate displays in both disciplines at Edgbaston and another solid bowling performance, before the rain arrived to wipe out any chance of a result at Bristol. That means England still need to win one of the final two matches to secure the series – and they may come up against the weather again at The Oval, with a poor forecast for the afternoon.”It’s very important we work hard, they are a strong side, we don’t take them for granted,” Morgan said. “The series still stands at 1-0, given we’ve played some really good cricket and not been able to capitalise because of the weather. Tomorrow again it is going to be tough to get it to that point but it’s important to emphasise the hard work that needs to be put in.”As England have broken records with regularity over the last 12 months, it has been the batsmen that have taken the plaudits – most recently with Alex Hales and Jason Roy knocking off the highest successful chase for a team winning by ten wickets.However, the bowling has stood out so far in this series, with Sri Lanka limited to totals of 286 for 9, 254 for 7 and 248 for 9. England have got by on five specialist bowlers in each match, with Joe Root contributing three overs of back-up spin, and while Morgan said he would prefer to have more options – such as when Ben Stokes has been fit to play as an allrounder in the top six – results had been encouraging.”At the moment it has worked, ideally we would have more but our strength has been our batting and to stick with that sends quite a lot of confidence through the changing room,” Morgan said of the team’s balance.”It throws it over to the bowlers, more responsibility on them and they have done pretty well with it. Sometimes if you go in with six out-and-out bowlers it can be off the pace a little bit, when you pack your team with batters and if they play poorly you wonder if they rely too much on other people. It’s a balance you just have to stay with what you feel is right for the team.”England have become more accustomed to viewing the limited-overs formats as a squad game and Morgan said there were still plenty of options to consider ahead of next year’s Champions Trophy. Steven Finn has yet to play a game in the series – in part thanks to Liam Plunkett’s strong form – and Stuart Broad’s name continues to linger at edge of selectoral discussions.Meanwhile, a combination of poor batting, good batting (from Hales and Roy) and poor weather, means that Morgan, Root and Jonny Bairstow have had little opportunity for time in the middle. For that reason, as well as the desire to avoid going to Cardiff still only 1-0 up, England will hope the rain stays away over south London on Wednesday. As Hodgson, who led his team through a perfect qualifying campaign for Euro 2016, would attest, you can never be too well prepared for the challenges ahead.”There is a lot of talk going into tournaments about knowing your best 11 but its more than that. A guy goes down in the first game, must-win, it’s more than having 11 – it’s how big your squad is. When you turn to guys at certain stages of a tournament you have got to be able to trust them, it’s not just your best team, but best squad.”

Fast bowler Kemar Roach has been included in the West Indies Cricket Board President’s XI squad to face the Indians in a three-day warm-up match starting July 14 in Basseterre

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jul-2016Fast bowler Kemar Roach has been included in the West Indies Cricket Board President’s XI squad to face the Indians in a three-day warm-up match starting July 14 in Basseterre. Roach, who has played 37 Tests, was dropped from the Test squad for the India series, after a poor tour to Australia last December.In six other changes to the 13-member squad, John Campbell, Rahkeem Cornwall, Jahmar Hamilton, Montcin Hodge, Chemar Holder and Gudakesh Motie were included for Rajendra Chandrika, Roston Chase and Shane Dowrich, all of whom were selected in the Test squad to face India, along with Damion Jacobs, Marquino Mindley and Jomel Warrican, who was also dropped from the Test squad.Fast bowler Holder, 18, was part of the Under-19 squad that won the World Cup earlier this year in Bangladesh. He took five wickets in three games at an average of 16.40 in that tournament, but is yet to play a first-class game.Captain Leon Johnson and Jermaine Blackwood, who scored 2 and 0 respectively in the two-day warm-up match against the Indians, remained in the Board President’s XI to get some more practice before the Tests.West Indies Board President’s XI squad: Leon Johnson (capt), Jermaine Blackwood, John Campbell, Rahkeem Cornwall, Jason Dawes, Jahmar Hamilton, Montcin Hodge, Chemar Holder, Shai Hope, Keon Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Kemar Roach, Vishaul Singh

ESPNcricinfo previews the third One-Day International between England and Pakistan

The Preview by Andrew McGlashan29-Aug-2016

Match facts

August 30, Trent Bridge

Start time 1400 (1300GMT)

Big picture

The results of the opening two matches of the series were rarely in doubt. Whenever England were under a modicum of pressure, for example when Sarfraz Ahmed has been at the crease or at 35 for 2 in the chase at Lord’s, they have had the depth and confidence to overcome Pakistan convincingly.There will have to be a considerable reversal at Trent Bridge if the series is not to be decided after three matches. There is a chasm between the one-day cricket of these two teams far greater than the current rankings of five and nine would suggest. Pakistan can, at least, look at the middle order and see a few chinks of light. Sarfraz has performed superbly, Babar Azam appears to have a lot of time to play his shots and Imad Wasim is a versatile cricketer.For England, they have rarely had it so good in the one-day game. That Jonny Bairstow can’t find a starting spot highlights their abundance of options. Eoin Morgan has shown signs of regaining his form, which would remove the only real potential for a distraction, while there are other reserves eagerly waiting for their chance.However, they will want to be ruthless. The fielding has been a weak point in the opening two matches – notwithstanding Liam Plunkett’s fantastic grab at Lord’s – and England continue to be poor at hitting the stumps, despite having an urge to throw at them at any opportunity.

Form guide

(completed matches, most recent first)
England WWWWW

Pakistan LLWLL

In the spotlight

Do England stick or twist with Alex Hales? It has been a difficult couple of weeks for the opener who endured his worst match in an England shirt in the final Test at The Oval and has failed twice at the start of this series. Trevor Bayliss’ mantra is to give a player “one game too many than too few” but that, arguably, does not carry as much weight in this scenario because it is well known what Hales can do in one-day cricket. He looks a cricketer with a bit of scrambled mind at the moment.Mickey Arthur has put his entire squad on notice, but made particular reference to those “over 30”. One of those, Mohammad Hafeez, is now out of the series so the spotlight turns to another in Shoaib Malik. He has twice made starts in this series without kicking on, although his numbers since his post-World Cup recall – 741 runs at 61.75 albeit boosted considerably by six matches against Zimbabwe – may buy him a little more time. His bowling, too, helps balance the side although he only sent down two overs at Lord’s.

Team news

Ben Stokes is available to bowl again after his calf injury which gives Morgan another frontline pace option. That suggests both spinners will keep their spots although Morgan is keen on a left-arm seamer so David Willey, who bowled two spells in the nets, will come into the equation. Hales’ form is a worry, but England’s winning form may work in his favour.England (probable) 1 Alex Hales, 2 Jason Roy, 3 Joe Root, 4 Eoin Morgan (capt), 5 Ben Stokes, 6 Jos Buttler (wk), 7 Moeen Ali, 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Adil Rashid, 10 Liam Plunkett, 11 Mark WoodPakistan could juggle their pack again, but it’s debatable what difference it will make. Mohammad Irfan, the giant left-arm paceman, has replaced Hafeez in the squad.Pakistan (possible) 1 Sami Aslam, 2 Sharjeel Khan, 3 Azhar Ali (capt), 4 Babar Azam, 5 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 6 Shoaib Malik, 7 Imad Wasim, 8 Wahab Riaz, 9 Hasan Ali, 10 Yasir Shah, 11 Mohammad Amir

Pitch and conditions

The forecast is for a warm, dry day so the decision at the toss will come down to whether the captain wants to chase or defend under lights. Trent Bridge is one of the most favourable grounds in England for swing bowling although recent matches have produced some astonishing batting: earlier this season England fought back for a tie against Sri Lanka and last year they chased down 350 against New Zealand with six overs to spare.

Stats and trivia

• A few England batsmen are approaching milestones: Jason Roy needs 61 runs for 1000, Jos Buttler needs 18 for 2000 and Joe Root 107 for 3000
• Root has four consecutive ODI half-centuries: the best run for England is five by Geoff Boycott, Graham Gooch, Alec Stewart, Jonathan Trott and Alex Hales.
• Yasir Shah is struggling to make an impact in one-day cricket: in four matches against England he has taken 2 for 227 at an economy rate of 5.89
• The two sides have met six times at Trent Bridge with the head-to-head standing at 3-3.

Quotes

“We need to improve, we feel we need to get a bit better, we all agree on that, and we’re still trying to take it up a notch.”
“Obviously we’re No. 9 in the world. But with the talent we’ve got, I don’t think it’s a No. 9 team. We have to show that in big matches like tomorrow. I believe we can come back.”

Tim Bresnan made an unbeaten 72 to keep Yorkshire’s Championship hopes alive, as Nick Compton’s dropped catch cost Middlesex

George Dobell at Lord's21-Sep-2016
ScorecardHe may have scored two Test centuries and played a part in England series victories in India and South Africa but, around these parts at least, Nick Compton is in danger of being remembered as the man who dropped the 2016 Specsavers County Championship.Had Compton, in the slips, held on to the relatively straightforward chance offered by Andy Hodd on 22 off Steven Finn, Yorkshire would have been 87 for 5 and in danger of seeing their relatively long tail exposed. One of the runners in this three-horse race may well have fallen away.Instead, the chance went down and Hodd, in partnership with the wonderfully resolute Tim Bresnan, added 116 for Yorkshire’s fifth wicket to keep their side in the game. The extent of the dent put into Middlesex’s Championship aspirations remains to be seen but it may well be that Compton has inadvertently done his former club, Somerset, a huge favour. A future in ‘He should have gone to Specsavers’ adverts is unlikely to provide much consolation.Such a reputation would be harsh, of course. Compton played crucial roles in two recent victories against Durham and Nottinghamshire and may yet have a defining contribution to make here. But when title races become as tight as this – and this one is beautifully, breathlessly tight – the importance of such moments is magnified.The concern for both these teams is that their excellence – and this has been a terrific game of tough, high-quality cricket albeit one marked by some significant dropped catches – is in danger of cancelling each other out. While Somerset do battle with a foe currently boasting the resilience of a butterfly, these two teams are bashing each other into a double knockout.For victory alone is unlikely to be enough for Yorkshire. With Somerset seemingly on course for victory at Taunton, Yorkshire need to not only win but win with a minimum of four batting bonus points. They therefore have to score 350 (or more) within the first 110 overs of their first innings here. With 115 more runs required from 41 more overs and three bowlers with modest batting pretensions to come, much remains required of the two batsmen who will resume in the morning.That Yorkshire remain in the race at all is largely due to Bresnan. Having bowled with skill and persistence to help squeeze the life out of the Middlesex batting, he then produced his highest score of the campaign – and his fifth half-century – to take his side within sight of first-innings parity.It’s hard to imagine Bresnan pulling out of a game like this due to weariness or lack of focus. Indeed, you imagine he may well report for duty with an arm hanging by a thread or nursing a nasty attack of the bubonic plague. While there were some murmurs ahead of the game that he was a little high at No. 5 in the batting line-up, he justified his promotion with a mature innings featuring much patient defence and some fine shot selection.Six of his seven fours came on the off-side – a couple of meaty drives, a couple of beefy cuts and a well-judged reverse sweep the most memorable of them – with one laced through midwicket. Reflecting the improvement in his batting, he took his career average above 30 for the first time during the course of this innings and, if he makes the 100 his side probably requires, it will stay there.He came to the crease with the three batsmen above him in the order having failed to contribute a run. Toby Roland-Jones, comfortably the pick of the Middlesex seamers, had defeated Alex Lees with a full ball and drawn edges from hard-handed prods by Gary Ballance and Andrew Gale. By the time the previously fluent Adam Lyth played on in Steven Finn’s first over, perhaps slightly surprised by the pace of a fuller delivery, Yorkshire were 53 for 4 and in danger of seeing their challenge fall away.Had Compton been able to cling on to the chance offered by Hodd – instead he seemed to go at it with hard hands – Middlesex may have taken an unassailable advantage in this match. But, as the sun came out and the ball softened, so batting started to look a little easier and the teams go into day three with the game all but even.Hodd played Ollie Rayner especially well. Refusing to let him settle, he scored at almost a run-a-ball off him, hitting him off his line with reverse sweeps and punishing him if he dropped short. Even after he departed, beaten by a full one from Roland-Jones that he tried to force, Rayner was unable to gain much purchase from the dry-looking square and was twice thrashed for sixes – one drive, one pulled – by David Willey. Though Willey also departed before the close, Azeem Rafiq gave Bresnan good support to keep Yorkshire’s hopes just about alive. Still, 350 looks some way distant.”We just tried to take the game situation – and the table situation – out of it,” Bresnan said. “We tried to focus on little goals: ten runs at a time. They bowled really well at us for a little spell and made it really tough for us. But cricket is about little battles and we managed to overcome that challenge and kick on.”With the clientele we’ve got in dressing room we never say never. We’ve managed to win from some unbelievable positions this season and if we can get up to 350 we’ll be in a good position. We’ve got 40-odd overs left to get 350, which should be plenty of time. We’ll just take it in tens.”Yorkshire’s bowlers were little short of magnificent in the morning session. While Jack Brooks, as accurate and whole-hearted as ever, finished with career-best figures of 6 for 65, he would be the first to admit he was the beneficiary of a sustained performance by all five seamers that never allowed Middlesex to score at even 2.5 an over. It was relentless in the way Test bowlers tend to be relentless: building pressure; forcing batsmen to earn every run. Even with little help from the pitch or the overhead conditions, they were so disciplined that Middlesex were never able to get away from them. Yorkshire aren’t giving up on their status as champions without a hell of a fight.Eventually that pressure showed. Nick Gubbins, perhaps mindful of Middlesex’s sluggish run-rate and keen to gain at least a third batting bonus point, was drawn into a loose drive that ended his fine innings, before James Franklin edged a good one that demanded a stroke. Unsure whether to go for a third batting point or deny Yorkshire a third bowling point, Middlesex blocked for a while only to then give it away when Tim Murtagh slogged to mid-off with just 20 balls left before the cut-off. It may yet prove to be crucial. In all, Middlesex were able to add only 62 runs for the loss of five wickets in 26.3 overs in the morning session. Without Gubbins’ century – and the dropped catch that allowed him a life on 22 – they would have had no answer to Yorkshire’s fine attack.”We’re in a dogfight, but we’re hanging in there,” Brooks said. “We didn’t let them get away and we’re still in there fighting. Bressy has worked his way up from eight to five with his batting and he’s probably been our best bowler in this game as well after coming in as fifth seamer. It shows what a world-class bowler he is.”The equation for Middlesex is, at least, simple. If they win this match, the Championship is theirs. The winning bit is far from guaranteed, though.”It’s nicely poised,” Roland-Jones said in understated fashion afterwards. “We’re trying to treat it as if it’s any other game when it’s obviously an experience you want to be part of and it’s quite high pressure.”You try not to pay too much attention [to what has been happening at Taunton], but of course you see it there. Our attitude coming into the game was to win it. If you come into the last game and dangle the carrot that if you win it you win the Championship, you take that. It’s not a bad place to be.”It will probably be no consolation to any of the sides that fall short – and truly, all three deserve better than disappointment – but the quality and intensity of this encounter reflects wonderfully well on English cricket. Perhaps familiarity has invited a certain complacency (if not contempt) to England’s first-class competition but if we still value developing Test players we will tinker no further with this great competition. The 9000 or so spectators who have attended over the first two days know this already; it’s a shame not all those inhabiting the ECB offices just beside the Nursery Ground share their enthusiasm.

Lanka de Silva, coach of the Sri Lanka Women’s team, said he was banking on spinners, particularly left-arm spinners Inoka Ranaweera and Sugandika Kumari, to lead the side’s attack in their upcoming ODI series against Australia Women

Sa'adi Thawfeeq17-Sep-2016Lanka de Silva, coach of the Sri Lanka Women’s team, said he will be banking on spinners, particularly left-arm spinners Inoka Ranaweera and Sugandika Kumari, to lead the side’s attack in their upcoming ODI series against Australia Women, which starts from September 18. The teams are scheduled to play four ODIs and a T20 international, and three of the four ODIs will be counted for points in the ICC Women’s Championship.Australia, who are leading the Championship table with 24 points, are one point away from gaining automatic qualification into next year’s Women’s World Cup. Sri Lanka, however, are placed at the bottom of the eight-team table with five points from 15 matches. While the top four teams gain direct entry into the World Cup, the bottom four teams will have to play the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier with six other regional qualifiers. The top four teams in the Qualifier will then advance to the World Cup.”The Australian line-up has plenty of right-handers, and Inoka and Sugandika, our most experienced spinners in the side, should make it difficult for them,” de Silva said before the first ODI in Dambulla on Sunday. “We also have the off-breaks of Inoshi Priyadharshani and we are banking on the three of them to deliver.”De Silva stated that unlike in the past, the team had prepared for the series well in advance. He said the emphasis during selection had been on picking specialists, and, like the bowling attack, he picked out the players who would take on the batting responsibilities.”We picked the squad of 14 players one month ahead and they have been practising together as a team,” he said. “We played six practice matches and managed scores between 215 and 220 in most of them. If we can come up with similar scores against Australia, we have the bowlers to do the job for us.”The selections were also made with emphasis on specialists rather than allrounders who can do a little bit of both. We have selected seven batters in our squad of 14 and identified captain Chamari Atapattu, Prasadani Weerakkody, Chamari Polgampola and Dilani Manodara as the batting specialists who are expected to put the runs on the board for us.”De Silva, who is eight months into his two-year contract as coach, said that the team had learnt a great deal from the mistakes of this year’s World T20 and had rectified them to some extent. Sri Lanka failed to qualify for the semi-final of the World T20 in India earlier this year, after a third-place finish in Group A, behind Australia and New Zealand.”We showed great improvement in our T20 rankings, moving from eighth to fifth position. In this series, we expect to move at least one rung up the ladder in the rankings,” De Silva said.Atapattu, leading Sri Lanka in the absence of Shashikala Siriwardene, said the series against Australia was an important one in terms of preparations for the 2017 World Cup.”We are sad that our captain Shashikala (Siriwardene) is out of this series due to a back injury, but we have a good team consisting of experience and talent,” said Atapattu. “We have selected very talented players as new caps. Although they lack experience, if they perform to their potential, we can still pose a big challenge to Australia.”The Australian players are physically stronger than us and they can go for big hits whenever needed, but we are confident that our spinners will try and keep them under the 200-run mark as much as possible.”Despite the huge gap in rankings between the two sides, Australia captain Meg Lanning was wary of the conditions.”We know that we will have a tough time here with the conditions, but hopefully, we will give a good performance. This is a good test for us to see how we can adjust to these conditions,” Lanning said.The first and second ODIs of the series will be played in Dambulla on September 18 and 20, while the third and fourth matches will be held at the Khettarama in Colombo on September 23 and 25 respectively. The only T20I of the tour will be played at the SSC on September 27.

A round-up of the third day of the third round of Ranji Trophy matches in Group B, also featuring a five-wicket haul from Ashok Dinda and Gujarat’s batting prowess in Lahli

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Oct-2016Abhinav Mukund’s second successive first-class ton led Tamil Nadu‘s strong response to Uttar Pradesh‘s 524 in Dharamsala. Abhinav, the captain, made 154 off 249 balls, including 26 fours and one six. Dinesh Karthik (73) and B Indrajith (70 not out) lent excellent support to lift the team to 398 for 6. Fast bowler Ankit Rajpoot returned two wickets for Uttar Pradesh. Tamil Nadu were still 126 runs in arrears.Five-wicket hauls from Ashok Dinda and debutant seamer Amit Kuila bowled Bengal to a 133-run first-innings lead against Punjab in Bilaspur. Punjab, 168 for 4 overnight, were all out for 271. Uday Kaul top-scored for them with 77 off 149 balls, but the second-highest was 46 from No.10 Sandeep Sharma. Bengal captain Manoj Tiwary’s 61 in the second innings took the overall lead to 315 at stumps. Seamer Siddarth Kaul was the pick of the bowlers for Punjab, taking 3 for 30.Opener Akhil Herwadkar’s patient 136 not out led Mumbai‘s reply after Madhya Pradesh had racked up a total of 445 in Raipur. Herwadkar watched his team slump to 56 for 3, before adding 67 for the fourth wicket with Suryakumar Yadav. He then found a stronger ally in captain Aditya Tare with whom he put on 155 in 55.5 overs. The fifth-wicket stand ended when Tare was trapped in front by seamer Ishwar Pandey for 80. Herwadkar and Tushar Deshpande took Mumbai to the close at 290 for 5.Priyank Panchal’s hundred helped Gujarat set Railways an improbable target of 501 in Lahli. Bharghav Merai (70), Parthiv Patel (53), Manpreet Juneja (66), Chirag Ghandhi (60) also contributed to Gujarat’s surge on the third day. Railways, in reply, were reduced to 91 for 4 before Arindam Ghosh and wicketkeeper-batsman Mahesh Rawat (52) put on an unbroken 80-run partnership for the fifth wicket to take the team through to stumps at 171 for 4.

A wrap of day two of the eighth round of Ranji Trophy Group C matches

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Nov-2016Andhra lost three early wickets, but steadied to reach 99 for 3 in their chase of 233 at stumps against Goa in Dhanbad.Goa had overturned their 34-run deficit early in the day, but found themselves 60 for 3 in the 16th over. An 88-run stand between Snehal Kauthankar (65) and Darshan Misal (32) steadied Goa’s innings, before Kauthankar’s wicket brought three more in a short span as Goa fell from 148 for 3 to 156 for 7. This was before allrounder Saurabh Bandekar and medium-pacer Rituraj Singh (33) counter-attacked with an eighth-wicket stand of 71 that came off just 9.4 overs. Bandekar then dominated a 49-run stand for the ninth wicket that took 9.1 overs, before eventually falling for 75 to the part-time offspin of Andhra captain Hanuma Vihari (3-17). Goa folded for 276.Andhra lost three wickets for 36, before they put on a counter-attack of their own through an unbroken 63-run stand for the fourth wicket between DB Ravi Teja (35 off 46) and Ricky Bhui (32 off 44).Tripura captain Manisankar Murasingh and part-time medium-pacer Sanjay Majumder took four wickets each as Kerala folded for 193 to concede the first-innings lead in Cuttack.Kerala lost Bhavin Thakkar and Rohan Prem in the first two overs of the day. Mohammed Azharuddeen (41) and Jalaj Saxena (18) put on 50 for the third wicket, and Salman Nizar (25) put on 54 for the fifth with Sachin Baby (29), but the rest of the partnerships barely contributed and Kerala were soon reduced to 131 for 6. Murasingh, who had batted with his last three batsmen to add 89 on the first day, took Kerala’s last three wickets to secure a 20-run lead for Tripura. Tripura then reached 17 for no loss at stumps.Haryana made an improvement to their overnight run rate of 2.66 as they added 165 in 43 overs on day two, to finish with 402 in their first innings in Valsad. They then took three Himachal Pradesh wickets before stumps.Overnight batsman Guntashveer Singh’s maiden-century knock was cut short early in the day, when he was dismissed by Rishi Dhawan (3-138) for 120. Contributions from Rohit Sharma (50) and opener Shubham Rohilla (64) – who had retired hurt the previous day – added to useful knocks from the lower order to take Haryana past 400. Medium-pacer Kanwar Abhinay finished with career-best figures of 6 for 84.Himachal Pradesh lost 3 for 54 after an opening stand of 41, as they went into stumps on 101 for 3. Robin Bist (12*) and Sumeet Varma (3*) were at the crease.The second day at the Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai started poorly for Chhattisgarh, who lost Abhimanyu Chauhan for a duck before they had added to their overnight score of 8 for 0. But half-centuries from Manoj Singh (67) and Amandeep Khare (51) took them to 281, and a 56-run first-innings lead over Services.But it wasn’t straightforward. Right-arm fast bowler Diwesh Pathania struck regularly, causing Chhattisgarh to slip to 199 for 8, still 26 adrift of Services’ total. A 66-run ninth-wicket partnership between Manoj and Kant Singh took Chhattisgarh well into the lead. Pathania finished with 6 for 78.After limiting Hyderabad to 328, Jammu & Kashmir slumped to 156 for 7 by stumps on day two in Vadodara.Resuming on 234 for 3, Hyderabad lost both overnight batsmen, including centurion Tanmay Agarwal, for the addition of just 30 runs to the score. Kolla Sumanth and Mehdi Hasan then departed for ducks to leave Hyderabad at 266 for 7. The tail added some handy runs, though, to take Hyderabad past 300. Jammu & Kashmir captain Parvez Rasool finished with 4 for 63.But Jammu & Kashmir quickly slipped to 31 for 4. They closed on 156 for 7, with Ravi Kiran taking 4 for 31 to deliver a telling blow to their chances of taking a first-innings lead.

Durham hope to complete the signing of Stephen Cook as an overseas player within the next few days

George Dobell06-Jan-2017Durham hope to complete the signing of Stephen Cook as an overseas player within the next few days.While Cook, the South Africa opening batsman, has not yet signed a contract and any deal is subject to approval from the ECB due to Durham’s straitened circumstances following their bailout last year, it is anticipated that he will be available to the county for the first three months of the English season before he joins his South Africa teammates for the Test series against England.There will be relief in South Africa that Cook has resisted the temptation to sign as a Kolpak registration. Aged 34, there might have been a temptation to secure his financial future with a long-term deal but, having waited a long time for his opportunity in international cricket – he made his debut only a year ago, scoring a century on debut against England – Cook has clearly decided he has not had his fill of it yet.Durham are not keen on the Kolpak option, either. Despite losing 10 players over the last few months – most due to their financial troubles that has seen their salary bill cut by 50% in five years – their head coach, Jon Lewis, told ESPNcricinfo that the club still took pride in producing players for England and would be reluctant to go down the Kolpak route.”We have taken a hit in recent times, but it doesn’t change what we are about as a club,” he said. “I’m not going to completely rule out the Kolpak option for us, but nothing is planned now and it isn’t something we would do in an ideal world. We are more likely to look at a loan deal to bring a young English player into the club.”2016 was a tough year for us. It was brutal. And we had to say goodbye to some good players – including some good young players – that we wouldn’t have done in other circumstances. But if there is any club that could cope, it was us and we are through that not. We are looking forward and we are optimistic about the future.”The club also lost one of their brightest young talents – Asher Hart – to Hampshire at the end of last season. “They offered him a lot more money,” Lewis admitted phlegmatically. “What can you do? We didn’t want to lose him at all, but you can’t blame him.”While declining to confirm Cook as the club’s new signing, Lewis did provide a brief character outline. “We needed the right character,” he said. “We needed the right quality as a player and the right quality as a person. We have scoured lone and hard and we think we have that now.”The club are also talking to overseas players about filling Cook’s position while he is on international duty. Tom Latham, the New Zealand batsman, is currently a favoured candidate though it is understood no contract has yet been agreed.Due to the loan agreed by the ECB in October to keep Durham afloat, any signing will have to be agreed by officials at Lord’s before it can be confirmed.But with the club having lost two of their top three (Scott Borthwick and Mark Stoneman both left for new opportunities with Surrey) and Hampshire, who finished below Durham at the end of the Championship season, having just signed two Kolpak registrations and one of Durham’s better young players, it would seem monstrously harsh not to allow them to sign a replacement. Having already been relegated, though, and facing a 48-point deficit at the start of the Championship season, some might suggest Durham are used to being treated harshly.

Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim has brushed aside suggestions that the one-off Test has historic relevance, saying that their focus is on putting up a strong performance against a good team instead

Mohammad Isam01-Feb-2017Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim has brushed aside the portrayal of their maiden Test in India next week as a “historic” one, saying that he feels it is more important to treat the game as an opportunity to show Bangladesh’s measure in world cricket. He also hopes that a good performance in the one-off game will prompt the BCCI to invite them frequently.The team leaves Dhaka on February 2, to play a two-day practice match against India A and the Test in Hyderabad, which will be Bangladesh’s first in India since gaining ICC Full Member status in 2000. Interestingly, it was the BCCI’s push that was vital in their ascent from Associate Member, and India played against them in their inaugural Test on November 10, 2000. India toured Bangladesh four more times to play Tests thereafter.”I’m a little surprised, I don’t believe that this is a historic Test,” Mushfiqur said. “Take for example when we play against Zimbabwe. The pressure is more because if we lose against them then there is nothing more shameful than that. I will say that it is better that we are going there now and not five years ago.”We want to tell world cricket what we can do in India. I don’t think about how many years later we are going to play in India. We want to play in such a way that India invites again and again. This to me is just another Test match.”Mushfiqur, who has returned to the Test squad after missing Bangladesh’s last game in New Zealand due to a finger injury, said that he hopes the team puts together a collective performance. Bangladesh lost both Tests in New Zealand but gave the home side some tough sessions.”I hope that the recent performers will hold on to their form and put together a team performance. And to those who haven’t done well in the recent past, you have a chance to give a good account of yourself.”A team effort will give us a good result. They have a strong squad, and are always really good in their home conditions. We want to do well against them over five days, and not just two or three days,” he said.Mushfiqur said Bangladesh’s squad is balanced, with four pace bowlers and three specialist spinners and depth in the batting department.The return of Imrul Kayes, Mominul Haque and Mushfiqur himself means that Bangladesh have their full batting strength back. Soumya Sarkar and Imrul are likely to be in competition for the role of Tamim Iqbal’s opening partner, while Mahmudullah, Shakib Al Hasan and Sabbir Rahman will be expected to make runs in the middle order.”No matter what conditions they offer, we have a balanced side. We have enough pacers and spinners and depth in batting.”I think our batsmen will have a challenge in their hands against their world-class attack. As a bowling unit we are inexperienced, but one or two bowlers did do well in New Zealand. If we can perform as a team we can do well against any other good team.”

Dinesh Chandimal, Sri Lanka’s vice-captain, needs a break from the game to rediscover his form, according to stand-in skipper Upul Tharanga

Firdose Moonda07-Feb-2017Dinesh Chandimal, Sri Lanka’s vice-captain, needs a break from the game to rediscover his form, according to stand-in skipper Upul Tharanga. Chandimal was left out of the team to play the fourth ODI after a string of low scores on the South African tour and could even miss the final match on Friday as he seeks to put a poor tour behind him.”It was a hard decision [to leave him out],” Tharanga said. “We chatted to him and he was okay to rest. He needs a few days away from cricket. We all know he is a very good cricketer. He will come back in the next tour. For a few days he needs to get away from cricket and get some rest.”In 12 international innings across all formats on this visit, Chandimal has scored 180 runs all told at an average of 16.36. His highest return has been 36 in the second ODI in Durban and he has endured six single-figure scores. But a break would not be the obvious choice for the vice-captain.He sat out Sri Lanka’s last tour, to Zimbabwe, as he recovered from a hand injury and, earlier in the series, coach Graham Ford had said he thought Chandimal came into this tour “slightly underdone”. Ford believed Chandimal is not far off his best but that he needed game time to get there.Now it seems he may have to wait until the T20s in Australia, with his replacement Sandun Weerakkody impressing with a half-century in his second ODI. Weerakkody took Sri Lanka to the brink of victory at Newlands and earned special praise from Tharanga for making the most of the chance he got against a strong South African attack.”This series was a very good opportunity for youngsters to learn the game and the way we played today, everyone learnt really good lessons,” Tharanga said. “Sandun playing his second game – the way he batted is good for him and the team.”The same could be said for Tharanga himself. Although a veteran of the international game, who has played for more than a decade, he has gone almost four years without an ODI hundred and has only recently returned to opening the batting. Tharanga batted in the middle order in 2015 and 2016 but now, back at the top, he has fulfilled a life-long dream to score a century in South Africa.”Opening has given me the chance to get some big scores,” he said. “It’s very different conditions. The South African attack always has very good fast bowlers. To get a hundred in South Africa, as a batsmen, gives me a lot of confidence.”