This was Australia’s fourth consecutive Test defeat. History tells us that Australia’s cricket system can only take so much strain before it breaks.

Daniel Brettig at the WACA07-Nov-2016There’s no other way to say this. Australia’s cricketers are presently in the grip of the kind of slide that has historically ended careers.A fourth consecutive defeat, sealed with more than a session to spare by a South Africa side minus AB de Villiers and Dale Steyn, is Australia’s worst run of losses since six in a row in 2013. The coach Mickey Arthur was sacked by Cricket Australia between the fourth and the fifth.To find another instance of four or more consecutive losses the clock must be wound back all the way to 1984, when the Australian Cricket Board (in its infinite wisdom) scheduled 10 consecutive Tests against West Indies at their mightiest. Kim Hughes led Australia through five straight defeats before resigning in tears at the Gabba. Allan Border’s first Test as captain was a sixth loss in a row.Venture further still into the past, to the divisive days of the World Series Cricket split, and another loss of five Tests in a row – four to Mike Brearley’s England and one to a Sarfraz Nawaz-inspired Pakistan in 1978-79. Graham Yallop – having predicted a “six-nil” Ashes victory – was relieved of his command after a 5-1 series defeat. Hughes was duly in command for the Pakistan loss at the MCG, during which time Kerry Packer and the board chairman Bob Parish met to discuss a much-needed truce in the cricket war.What does all this say? That the system can only take so much strain before it breaks. Another recent example of course is the summer of 2010-11. Three innings defeats in the one Ashes series, while not consecutive, humiliated Australian cricket at home. those results ushered the end of Ricky Ponting’s captaincy, Tim Nielsen’s coaching tenure and the breaking up of the selection panel chaired by the part-timer Andrew Hilditch. Those changes were wrought by the Argus review, a major undertaking that enshrined numerous alterations to how the national team was run.Five years on, and that document still takes pride of place in the personal collection of the team performance manager Pat Howard, among others. But as already discussed, the mixed priorities illustrated by the move of the first Test of the summer from the Gabba to the WACA, and the scheduling of a solitary Sheffield Shield match – under lights with a pink ball at that – place fresh scrutiny on decision-making in the halls of CA’s Jolimont headquarters.Intriguingly, the CA board recently hosted a presentation by the New South Wales chairman John Warn and chief executive Andrew Jones on how they turned around the fortunes of the game’s most populous state. Independent governance at director level should ensure CA’s CEO, James Sutherland, is kept on his toes. So too should a mood for change at senior executive level – Kate Banozic and Mike McKenna have gone, while the former board director Kevin Roberts has come in, alongside a newly promoted head of finance in Todd Shand.Australia fell to another Test loss on the final day in Perth•Cricket Australia/Getty ImagesPressure, too, must fall on the coach Darren Lehmann, despite his recent signing of a renewed deal to see him through to 2019. Earlier in this match, he offered up familiar homilies to ABC Radio about the quality of the individuals currently in the dressing room, how hard they were working and how great their attitudes were. This extended not just to the players but also to support staff including David Saker, Graeme Hick and Lehmann’s old state team-mate Greg Blewett – nominally the fielding coach.”They do all the prep, they’re great young men, they’re trying to do as well as they can for Australia each and every time, it’s just a case of making little mental lapses at times,” Lehmann had said. “Collectively we’re always pretty positive, but stats will show we haven’t batted as well as we would have liked the last few Test matches. There’s no hiding the fact we’ve got to bat better.”There’s always pressure when you’re coaching your country or playing for the country, that’s why the guys have got to where they’ve got to. They’ve been brilliant doing all the work behind the scenes and playing at the level below, now they’ve got to do it at this level.”True as this all is, the fact is that the Australian team is not a club side defined by how well everyone gets along with each other. It is a representative team brought together to win matches. As one former captain said recently: “If you ask me to choose between a happy team and a winning one, I’ll take the winning one every time.”Australia have passed the point where they can keep whistling merrily towards defeat. There should be consequences, and soon.

A solid defensive game, rotation of strike and adding boundary options – Aakash Chopra analyses what the Australian opener needs to do to succeed against the offspinner

Aakash Chopra08-Mar-2017Australia’s batting currently stands on two strong pillars – Steven Smith and David Warner. Even though the pitches for the first two Tests were not batting-friendly, Smith has already managed to leave an indelible impression on the series. Warner, on the other hand, has looked good only in parts. In fact, it would not be an exaggeration to say that his opening partner Matt Renshaw is a more valuable wicket if there is a lot in the pitch for the spinners. In these conditions, R Ashwin has had a wood on Warner, who has managed only 116 runs at an average of 23.20 against him and has already been dismissed five times. The stats for this series are even worse – 37 runs for three dismissals. The worrying bit is not Ashwin’s domination over Warner, but the modes of dismissals as there is a clear pattern developing of him getting either bowled or lbw.To harbour thoughts of succeeding against Ashwin on Indian pitches, one needs to have a fairly solid defensive game, a couple of shots to rotate the strike and a couple of go-to shots to collect boundaries. It is worth examining what Ashwin has tried to do and how Warner has responded.Cramp him for roomIf you were to look at the pitch maps and the beehives for Ashwin’s deliveries to Warner in this series, you will find that, barring the first innings in Pune – the only one in the series in which Warner was not dismissed by Ashwin – there was nothing that pitched away from the off stump and offered any width. Since that first innings, Ashwin’s plan against Warner has been quite evident. Whenever he went around the stumps, he pitched it either within the stumps or slightly outside off, but made sure that every ball finished no wider than the fourth stump. The moment he went over the stumps, he pitched everything outside leg. While the lines have changed a little, the length has been consistent – never short enough to allow Warner to play off the back foot.R Ashwin to David Warner in the first innings in Bengaluru•ESPNcricinfoWarner’s short stature does not allow him to go forward enough to smother the spin, and his tendency to play besides the pad brings about his downfall often. That is why, after getting dismissed lbw in Pune, Warner started standing on the off stump to plant his front-foot outside the line of off, which worked to a certain extent. When Ashwin chose to bowl over the stumps, however, into the rough outside Warner’s leg stump in the first innings, the batsman did not have a clue. Ideally, if the ball has pitched outside leg, one should avoid playing any defensive shot off the front-foot, as kicking is the best defensive option. But it was evident that Warner has not been exposed to that line too often, for he kept planting his front-foot outside leg to open up and defend with the bat. It was only a matter of time before he missed the line, which he did and was castled. Warner’s defensive game has been susceptible against the ball turning away from him, and that allowed Ashwin to explore multiple options to dismiss him.R Ashwin to David Warner in the second innings in Bengaluru•ESPNcricinfoRotation of strikeIf you do not have enough faith in your defence, you must have at least a couple of single-taking shots that keep taking you to the other end. Warner has a fairly short front-foot stride, and the tendency to play inside the line to free up the arms (an asset in short-form cricket) does not allow him to reach the pitch of even the fuller deliveries. Ideally, he should be able to push the ball towards mid-off or mid-on/midwicket quite regularly because of the straight lines bowled at him, but since he is rarely on top of the ball, he fails to do that. The other option to rotate strike against Ashwin could be to play a range of sweeps (fine and square), not necessarily for boundaries but for singles. Unfortunately, he does not sweep with a lot of authority either. If you keep facing six balls of every over of Ashwin without complete command over the defensive shots, it is a matter of when, and not if, you will get out.David Warner’s use of the cut and pull shots against spinners in Asia and Australia•ESPNcricinfo LtdBoundary StrokesLast but not the least, to put pressure back on Ashwin, it is imperative to hit boundaries. Smith has a canny plan against Ashwin: he either sweeps or goes down the ground to 70% of the Ashwin deliveries he faces. But that is not the case with Warner. His boundary shots are either cuts or pulls, which work all right on hard and bouncy Australian pitches. But it is not easy to play horizontal bat shots on low and slow Indian pitches. Moreover, Ashwin has rarely bowled short enough for him to exercise these options. The other boundary option for Warner is using the feet to take the aerial route down the ground. But to go aerial, one must stay away from the pitch of the ball, and that is quite an improbable task against a ball turning away from you on a turning pitch. He does like to reverse-sweep and switch-hit, but it will take a lot of courage to use it as a regular scoring option before reaching small personal milestones.If the pitches for the remaining two games behave similarly to the ones in Pune and Bengaluru, it will take some radical changes in Warner’s approach to get the better of his nemesis.

Stats highlights from the Champions Trophy semi-final between England and Pakistan in Cardiff

Bharath Seervi14-Jun-20171 Pakistan have entered the final of the Champions Trophy for the first time in eight tournaments. Their previous best finish was semi-finals in 2000, 2004 and 2009. The last time Pakistan made the finals of am ICC ODI tournament was the 1999 World Cup.2013 The last time Pakistan successfully chased a target of more than 200 with only two or fewer wickets lost, against Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi.10 Wickets for fast bowler Hasan Ali in this tournament – the most. He surpassed Josh Hazlewood’s tally of nine. Hasan’s wickets are also the most by any Pakistan bowler in a Champions Trophy, going past Saeed Ajmal’s eight wickets in 2009.8 Three-wicket hauls by Hasan in 20 ODIs, including three in his last three games – 3 for 24 against South Africa, 3 for 43 against Sri Lanka and 3 for 35 in this match. All other Pakistan bowlers have managed only seven such hauls since Hasan’s debut. Hasan’s 39 wickets are the most for a Pakistan bowler after 20 matches; Sarfaraz Nawaz had 36 after 20 games.ESPNcricinfo Ltd15 Number of boundaries hit by England – their fewest in a completed innings since the 2015 World Cup. All those boundaries were only fours and no sixes. Of the 15 fours, only three were hit in the last 20 overs and just one in the last ten overs.0 Instances of England going without a six for 25 overs since the last World Cup. The last time they did not hit a six an ODI facing those many overs was against New Zealand in the World Cup. England averaged more than six sixes per game in this period.4.23 Run rate of England’s innings – their second lowest in a completed innings since the World Cup. Their average run rate was 6.29 since the 2015 World Cup.2010 The last time an England player faced more balls in an innings without hitting a boundary before the 64 balls by Ben Stokes in this game. Paul Collingwood scored 47 off 71 balls without any boundary against Pakistan in Southampton.2008 The last time Pakistan’s top four batsmen scored 30 or more in an ODI chase. They had chased 211 against Bangladesh in Dhaka with similar contributions from their top four. Overall, this was only the tenth such instance for Pakistan.

Also: Has anyone scored a fifty in a team score of under 100 in a Test?

Steven Lynch09-May-2017Has anyone ever scored a fifty in a Test innings in which his side was dismissed for under 100? asked David Roberts from England

There have been three instances of a batsman making an individual half-century in a completed team innings of less than 100. The most recent example was also the most extreme: when Sri Lanka were bowled out for 82 by India in Chandigarh in 1990-91, Asanka Gurusinha scored 52 not out, or 63.4% of the total (this remains the sixth-highest percentage by a batsman in any completed Test innings). The previous instance was also by a Sri Lankan: Arjuna Ranatunga scored 51 out of 97 (52.5%) against New Zealand in Kandy in 1983-84. And back in 1957-58, Trevor Goddard carried his bat for 56 out of South Africa’s 99 (56.5%) as they slumped to an innings defeat by Australia in Cape Town.I believe that Sialkot Stallions have the longest winning streak in all Twenty20 cricket. But who has the longest losing run? asked Arshad Mahmood from the United Arab Emirates

You’re right that Sialkot Stallions have the longest winning run in T20 matches – 25 in a row, between February 2006 and October 2010. Next come the New Zealand province Otago and the Kolkata Knight Riders with 14, then Surrey with 13 in 2003 and 2004, in the early days of T20. Otago actually went 15 games without defeat, as their run of victories was ended by a tie (although they won the one-over eliminator), against the South African Lions in Jaipur in the Champions League T20 in September 2013.The longest losing run was suffered by another team from Pakistan: the Quetta Bears lost 27 successive games between April 2005 and December 2012. Next come Jammu & Kashmir (22) and Sydney Thunder (19). J&K actually went 36 successive T20 matches without a victory: their run of 22 defeats was ended by a tie, against Punjab in Mohali in April 2014, then they lost their next 13 games as well. They finally won in January this year, beating Punjab by 26 runs in Dharamsala. Flushed with success, they won again the following day, beating Himachal Pradesh in Nadaun.Luke Ronchi holds the record for the highest List A score by a No. 7 – 170•Getty ImagesRoelof van der Merwe scored 165 not out for Somerset in the Royal London Cup the other day. Is this the highest List A score by a No. 7 batsman? asked Savo Ceprnich from South Africa

Roelof van der Merwe’s astonishing innings against Surrey in Taunton last month – he came in at 22 for 5 and slammed 165 not out – is actually the second-highest by a No. 7 batsman in all List A (senior one-day) cricket, behind only Luke Ronchi’s 170 not out for New Zealand against Sri Lanka in Dunedin in 2014-15. Van der Merwe’s innings was the highest by a No. 7 in England, beating Sam Billings’ 135 not out from 58 balls for Kent against Somerset – also in Taunton – in 2014.Which pair of brothers represented different countries in Tests? asked Joel Pojas from the Philippines

There are actually two instances of this. The recent one involved the fast-bowling Pattinson brothers: Darren was a rather controversial choice in one Test for England, against South Africa at Headingley in 2008, while his brother James Pattinson has so far played 17 Tests and 19 white-ball internationals for Australia. Darren was born in Grimsby, in England, but James was born in Melbourne. Interestingly, James has now followed Darren to Trent Bridge, where he has been playing for Nottinghamshire.The Pattinsons are not quite unique, though. Back in the 19th century, when qualification rules were less rigid, Frank Hearne played for England in South Africa in 1888-89, and stayed there. He made his Test debut for South Africa in Cape Town in 1891-92 against an England team containing his brothers Alec and George, and their cousin Jack.James (left) and Darren Pattinson aren’t the only brothers to have represented two different countries in Test cricket•Chris Hyde/Getty ImagesWho has scored the most runs in the Sheffield Shield? Is it still Don Bradman?! asked Craig George from Australia

Don Bradman did hold the record for runs in the Sheffield Shield – Australia’s domestic first-class competition – for many years: he made 8926, at an average of 110.19, in only 62 matches, with 36 hundreds. But a lot more matches are played now – Western Australia and Tasmania did not take part in the Shield in the Don’s heyday – and Bradman has been pushed down to 17th on the current list, although he was still on top until the early 1980s, when John Inverarity crept past his tally, finishing his long career with 9341 from 159 games, at an average of 38.44. In first place now is Darren Lehmann – Australia’s current coach – who amassed 13,635 runs in the Sheffield Shield. He’s nearly 3000 clear at the top, although there are six other batsmen with more than 10,000 runs: Jamie Cox (10,821), Jamie Siddons (10,643), Michael Bevan (10,621), Brad Hodge (10,474), Matthew Elliott (10,263) and Martin Love (10,132).Post your questions in the comments below

The World XI that will tour Pakistan next month is the latest in cricket’s long history of super-teams, most of whom were formed for important causes that went far beyond the game

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Aug-2017

The former England Women captain has been busy since her international retirement, and coaching in America has been a highlight

Peter Della Penna02-Jul-20173:08

‘America’s passion for cricket shone through for me’ – Edwards

It’s an unusually warm autumn evening in Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love that has a rich history in the American revolution. And as a sorority of women’s cricketers on tour from England came to find out, the city’s cultural artifacts are not limited just to battlefields, Betsy Ross’ house and the Liberty Bell.”I wouldn’t have expected to come to the US and be stood in a cricket library and to see some of the books, the bats,” said England legend Charlotte Edwards of the CC Morris Library on the campus of Haverford College in suburban Philadelphia. “I held Don Bradman’s bat and I would never have expected to do that in America. I would have expected to do that in Bowral in Australia, where I’ve played and Don Bradman lived, but that blew me away really.”To think about how passionate many of the people here are about cricket, and they do know a lot about cricket. There was one guy who, I think, knew my stats better than I did. That, for me, is just the power of the game, and it really does feel that the game is growing so quickly. It has a huge amount of history to it, which people feel so invested in, and that’s brilliant. I’m a cricket geek myself and I kind of love it all, so to be there was absolutely brilliant.”

“I held Don Bradman’s bat and I would never have expected to do that in America”

For Edwards, the gathering at the library may have provided a sense of the place that America holds in the history of cricket. Her own presence was helping to add to that legacy, with the city hosting the first MCC women’s touring squad to America late last year.”After making my [international] retirement, I had a call from the MCC to ask me whether I want to go on this trip and I sort of jumped on the chance,” she said. “An opportunity to play in the US is something I felt I couldn’t turn down, and it’s lived up to everything I thought it would be, really. I’ve loved every minute of it.”The trip to America is just one of many things Edwards has been doing to keep herself busy since her illustrious England career ended last year. Though she has spent part of that time playing in franchise T20 cricket – the Kia Super League and the Women’s Big Bash – another chunk has been spent pursuing ways of giving back through mentoring and coaching.Edwards at the CC Morris Library: “I wouldn’t have expected to come to the US and be stood in a cricket library”•Peter Della Penna”Coaching is something I’m hugely passionate about,” Edwards said. “I’ll be really looking to get some coaching experience over the next two years, probably away from England. Australia, New Zealand – anywhere really.”Doing some stuff [in Philadelphia] was brilliant and I really, really enjoyed it. So that’s something I’ve got to look into. Working with players is something I feel I can give a huge amount to, and I look forward to doing that over the next few years.”The USA is not exactly a women’s cricket superpower, but getting to work with players who are a bit raw was part of the appeal for Edwards.

“I’ll be really looking to get some coaching experience over the next two years, probably away from England. Australia, New Zealand – anywhere really”

“I know they played in the Qualifiers a few years ago [in 2011] but other than that I didn’t really know too much,” Edwards said. “I think that’s what this tour was about for me. It was about learning about US cricket. I’ve had lots of chats with lots of players and found out lots about the challenges they have playing the game here. But what’s shone through for me is their passion for cricket. You can’t buy that.”I did a masterclass on batting with them and I just want to help as much as I can. I’ve gotten a huge amount from cricket globally and I just want to promote the game. That’s something the MCC want to do, and that was part of my role coming over here – to promote the game and hopefully see the game grow globally.”Edwards with USA women’s Shebani Bhaskar: “I came away from it so, so excited by how much they listened, and they want to get better, and that’s all you can ask for”•Peter Della PennaThere are tangible signs of the impact Edwards, who is currently working on the TV commentary crew for the Women’s World Cup, had in a 20-year international career to help take the game to where it is today. For instance, the TV coverage itself, and full professional player contracts. Heck, even playing in standard coloured uniforms, with full-length trousers.”I feel incredibly lucky to have played in the era I played,” she reflected. “I [debuted] in 1996, where I paid for my blazer, and I played in a skirt. So it’s been an amazing transformation over those years and the game is unrecognisable to the one I started playing. The administrators should be very, very proud of what they’ve done, but I think there’s a huge way to go.”I think the main thing is that from the profile of the game now, a lot of the players are known worldwide. To come to America and people know who I am shows how far the game has come. Whether it be me or Claire Taylor or any of the current international players, people know globally who plays women’s cricket. I don’t think you could say that when I started playing. They knew Rachael Heyhoe-Flint, I think, and that was about it. I think the media has played a huge part in us growing the game as well and being more attractive to sponsors. That’s probably been the biggest change in how the profile of the game is now seen.”

“I think the main thing is that from the profile of the game now, a lot of the players are known worldwide. To come to America and people know who I am shows how far the game has come”

As much as Edwards wanted to continue playing for England, she said that getting out of “the England bubble” has had its share of positives. For one thing, there’s far less stress when she has turned out to play for Southern Vipers in the Kia Super League and Adelaide Strikers in the WBBL. International retirement has also opened up opportunities to get back into other hobbies and activities away from cricket, one of them being tennis.”I do love my tennis. I think that’s been the great thing since stopping playing – that I’ve been able to get on the tennis courts, been able to do stuff that I haven’t been able to do for years,” Edwards said. “The privileges you get through playing cricket or being captain of your country are enormous, so I’m truly thankful for every opportunity I’ve had. At the moment I don’t necessarily miss too much.”I miss the competitive element of playing for your country, wearing the Three Lions, singing the national anthem, but I’ve just been so lucky since my retirement that I’ve been able to still play at a very good standard and do some wonderful things. I went to Wimbledon in 2016 and sat in the royal box. I’ve been to Lord’s, I’ve come to the USA with the MCC, so I don’t feel like I’m missing out too much. But the one thing [I miss] would probably be putting that shirt on and representing your country, which no one, unless you’ve done it, will know how that feels.””I do love my tennis. I think that’s been the great thing since stopping playing – that I’ve been able to get on the tennis courts”•Peter Della PennaFor Edwards her 72 hours in Philadelphia provided “a glimpse of a difference you can make with a team”.”You just see how much room there is for them to grow as a cricket team,” she said. “As a player and coach, that’s something obviously you would be really interested in and I am. Doing the session with them, it was quite inspiring for me and I came away from it so, so excited by how much they listened and they want to get better and that’s all you can ask for.”Edwards followed through on her promise to come back and coach when USA Women were given a wildcard spot in the Europe T20 Qualifier this August. She was recruited to come help USA’s high-performance players at a series of camps held in Texas during the spring in conjunction with the CanAm Women’s Cricket Program.

“I miss the competitive element of playing for your country, wearing the Three Lions, singing the national anthem […] No one, unless you’ve done it, will know how that feels”

However, the 2017 Kia Super League clashes with USA’s appearance at the qualifier in Scotland, ruling out Edwards’ potential involvement on USA’s coaching staff at the event. But there’s no doubt she’ll be keeping an eye on their progress as they seek to move forward in their qualification journey for the 2018 World T20. Whether it is with USA or another country in the future, Edwards is determined to help out where she can to lift up the women’s game around the world.”Seeing them and just seeing their passion for the game is quite contagious, and I want to help as much as I can. I want the game to be in the best possible shape it can be, and for me that means we have to grow the game as much as we can globally and get more teams playing the game.”

Coming up to the South Africa Tests in England, we present a quick glossary

Compiled by Firdose Moonda04-Jul-2017First, the basics:

Try translating these

Kastaiings uit die vuur krap
Pronounced: Cas-tie-ings eight de fuur krap
Literal translation: Scratch chestnuts out of the fire
In English: Get the team out of a crisis
For example: Hashim Amla
Or: Hashim Amla saved the team after they lost three wickets.

Die bal maak aapstert
Pronounced: Di bal maak aap-start
Literal translation: The ball becomes a monkey’s tail
In English: The ball has looped up, most commonly off bat and pad, to a close-catcher.
For example: JP Duminy
Or: The ball turned a lot. JP Duminy tried to play it deep and the ball looped to the short-leg fielder.

Krieket
Pronounced: Krii-ketKolwer

Pronounced: Coal-ver

Literal Translation: Batter

In English: BatsmanSnelbouler

Pronounced: Snell-bowler

Literal translation: Speed bowler

In English: Fast bowlerDraai-bouler

Pronounced: Dry-bowler
Literal translation: Turn bowler

In English: Spin bowlerPaaltjiewagter
Pronounced paal-kie-wagghh-ter
Literal translation: Small-pole watcher
In English: WicketkeeperSkeidsregter

Pronounced: skates-regghh-ter

Literal translation: Separate judge

In English: UmpireKolfkampie

Pronounced: Colf-kamp-y

Literal translation: Batting camp

In English: CreaseNulletjie

Pronounced: Nil-le-kie

Literal translation: Baby zero or little zero
In English: DuckAnd now a few more specific terms:Nag Uiltjie

Pronounced: Nagghh-eil-kie

Literal translation: Night owl

In English: NightwatchmanWegbreekbouler
Pronounced: Vegghh-breek-bowler
Literal translation: Getaway bowler

In English: OffspinnerGoelbal

Pronounced: Ghoel-bal

Literal translation: Magic or ghost ball

In English: GooglyAnd here’s one we all remember because it was part of incriminating messages sent by a certain Englishman about one of his team-mates:Doos

Literal meaning: Box

Also used as a profanity in the same line as “idiot” (and other, ruder, terms)ESPNcricinfo LtdAnd then there are the fielding positions:Gangetjie
Pronounced: Ghh-ang-e-kie

Literal translation: Small hallway

In English: GullySlagyster Posisie

Pronounced: Slagghh-ayster-po-zees-ee

Literal translation: Slaughter-rron position

In English: Short legVlak weg

Pronounced: Flak-vegghh

Literal translation: Shallow away

In English: Silly mid-off