News from around the circuit, including what Surrey can expect from Virat Kohli, the death of an umpire who became embroiled in a ball tampering affair, and why Stuart Broad won’t be entering Fantasy Cricket

Paul Bolton16-May-2018Surrey are one of the clubs who still believe that their players should earn rather than expect a county cap but it is unlikely that Virat Kohli will be made to wait for his when he arrives at the Oval next month.Kohli will be county cricket’s biggest box office attraction since Shane Warne last played for Hampshire 11 years ago. Apart from putting bums on seats, Kohli will use his six-match stint to acclimatise before India’s Test series in England later in the summer.Surrey’s players will also have the opportunity to learn from the best, particularly the fitness regime that Kohli has developed to drive him to the top.”Around 30 minutes before the bus leaves for a match he does what he calls a ‘priming session’ in the gym,” England all-rounder Chris Woakes, a team-mate of Kohli’s at Royal Challengers Bangalore, told .”It’s like a short burst of Olympic weightlifting. It’s certainly different but it works for him. Overall his fitness work is having a serious impact on the next generation of Indian players. He’s leaner, fitter and more agile than those before.”

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Don Oslear, the former Grimsby fish docks worker who rose through the umpiring ranks to stand in five Tests and eight one day internationals, has died aged 89.Oslear was known as a no-nonsense umpire during his 19 years on the county list but his no-nonsense stance against alleged ball tampering led to his career ending in controversy in 1993.Oslear claimed that the ball had been changed during a one day international between England and Pakistan at Lord’s, where he was reserve umpire, in 1992 because it had been scarred by illegal means.He also revealed further incidents of alleged ball tampering at county level in ‘Tampering With Cricket’ which was co-written with Jack Bannister and published in 1996.Despite making life uncomfortable for the authorities, Oslear sat on an MCC working party which redrafted the laws of cricket in 2000.

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Stuart Broad made headlines when he topped a Fantasy Premier League football table last week but the England pace bowler is banned from using his expertise to enter similar competitions in cricket.ECB anti-corruption regulations prevent all contracted players and county employees from entering fantasy cricket league competitions where there is an entry fee and prize money at stake.”It’s very much a ‘better safe than sorry’ approach to prevent people involved in the game putting themselves at unnecessary risk,” said an ECB spokesman.All players and employees were reminded of their responsibilities in an email from James Pyemont, the ECB’s new head of integrity, on the eve of the new season.Pyemont, a former Sussex and Derbyshire batsman, has joined the ECB as successor to Chris Watts, another former Metropolitan Police detective, who has moved to the British Horse Racing Authority.Broad’s fantasy football success came as manager of Selby Forest who earned him 180 points. In real life Broad is a long-suffering fan of Nottingham Forest who finished 17th of 24 in the Championship.

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County players appear to have been on their best behaviour so far this season with no reports of any being sent off under the new Law 42 at either first team or second team level.Not so at club level where the ECB have revealed that one batsman was ordered off for eight overs during a recent Royal London Club Championship match.The ECB have declined to provide details but have confirmed that it was for a level three breach – intimidating an umpire by language or gesture or threatening to assault a player or any other person except an umpire – the second most serious offence under the revised laws which came into force in October.The offending player’s captain was called onto the field, the fielding side were awarded five penalty runs and the batsman eventually resumed his innings at the fall of a wicket after following his eight over suspension.The umpires submitted a report to the ECB and the player is now serving a five match ban.

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Paul Nixon’s delight at his first win as Leicestershire’s head coach was evident in a post-match press conference which sounded like an Oscars’ acceptance speech.Having suffered defeat after making Durham follow on the previous week, Leicestershire held their nerve to cling on for their first win in two years, edging out Glamorgan by three runs at Grace Road.”It’s a win for the whole club, those on the field and off it. This is for the groundsmen, the marketing team, our chief executive Wasim Khan, the members and spectators, many of whom were still here at 7.30pm. It’s for everyone,” Nixon said.Nixon is Leicestershire’s third head coach in as many seasons. Leicestershire hope his effervescent personality will lift morale and he has enlisted the help of a former SAS officer to improve trust and communication between his players.”If you are sitting next to a bloke for six months we want to make sure you can put your arm around him or give him a kick up the backside,” Nixon said.

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The ECB seem to believe that 100-balls is the way forward for county cricket but the Minor Counties are discovering that Twenty20 still pulls in the crowds after belatedly embracing the format.After a brief and half-hearted flirtation with T20 cricket three years ago, when their competition was played with red balls and white clothing, the Minor Counties Cricket Association have adopted the playing format used for county Second XI T20 with two matches in a day, white balls and coloured clothing.The early signs are encouraging with increased attendances across the country and plenty of entertainment, not least at Jesmond where Northumberland’s two matches against Lincolnshire produced 970 runs in the day, including 58 sixes – and six lost balls – with all four innings exceeding 200.Lincolnshire’s Louis Kimber scored a century in each match with his 274 runs coming from just 100 balls. Kimber’s efforts eclipsed those of Northumberland’s Phil Mustard, the former Durham, Gloucestershire and England one day international wicketkeeper/batsman, who scored 186 runs from 99 balls over the two games.

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Chris Read’s outstanding service to Nottinghamshire has been acknowledged with the commission of a portrait painted by another former England wicketkeeper, Jack Russell.Read retired at the end of last season after 20 years with Nottinghamshire, eight of them as captain, and is now coaching at Uppingham School.Russell’s painting of Read will be displayed in the Trent Bridge pavilion.

Ish Sodhi and Shreyas Gopal had been alternated in the XI, but when they finally played together, they strangled Royal Challengers Bangalore

Dustin Silgardo19-May-2018Royals finally play their two leggiesRight-arm legspinners have a better average and economy rate than any other type of bowler this IPL. Royals have two in-form right-arm legspinners. You would think the math would be simple. Play them both and build a strong bowling unit around them. Yet, Royals waited for their last game of the season to play Shreyas Gopal and Ish Sodhi together. They had alternated them through the tournament, despite their Indian pace bowlers struggling.Ish Sodhi played his previous four games this season as Royals’ sole legspinner•ESPNcricinfo LtdWhen those two finally got a go together, they absolutely strangled Royal Challengers Bangalore, taking five wickets for 47 runs from eight overs, and delivered a win that could get Royals into the playoffs – they still need other results to go their way. If Royals don’t end up making it, they will be left ruing not attacking with the Sodhi-Gopal duo earlier in the tournament.How does this result affect the table?A 30-run win means Royals’ net run rate jumps to -0.250, which is still some way behind Kolkata Knight Riders’ -0.091. Kolkata Knight Riders need to lose by a big margin to Sunrisers Hyderabad (for example, by over 50 runs chasing 180) for Royals to go ahead of them. So, Royals’ best chance of qualifying is if Mumbai Indians lose to Delhi Daredevils on Sunday, which will keep them on 12 points. The good news for Royals is that this result makes it extremely difficult for Kings XI to qualify. Their net run rate is -0.490, so they need to win by a massive margin (for example, 53 runs after scoring 180) to leapfrog Royals.Archer experiment denies Samson timeThe risk of sending a pinch-hitter to open is not that he gets out early but that he struggles for form and ends up wasting valuable balls. Jofra Archer’s 0 off four balls meant Royals effectively started their innings in the third over, with Rahul Tripathi on 2 off six when Archer was dismissed.The other drawback of Archer opening was that Sanju Samson, Royals’ best batsman after Jos Buttler, was going to come in at No. 4, behind the captain Ajinkya Rahane. Samson is the one player in the Royals line-up who has shown potential to get a really big score. He also has a much better Smart Strike Rate than Rahane or Tripathi, so Royals could have tried to give him as many deliveries to face as possible.The shuffling of the batting order was a surprise because Royals had already been shown the value of having their best player at the top – when Buttler made five consecutive fifties after being promoted to open the innings.ESPNcricinfo LtdSlow Rahane hurts RRAfter the Archer experiment failed, Rahane backed himself to play the anchor role at No. 3. But a strike rate of 106.45 in a 31-ball innings meant that the Royals innings never gathered momentum. Rahane has not only been the slowest scorer this IPL of all batsmen who have faced 250 or more balls, but he has been significantly slower than the next slowest, Suresh Raina. His Smart Strike Rate is just 101.52, compared to Raina’s 121.29. This means he has cost his team 48 runs this season, more than any other batsman.Rahane may have been concerned that the Royals batting line-up was not long enough, but they had K Gowtham, who has a Smart SR of 281.15, only coming in for the last six balls of the innings. If they do make it to the playoffs, Royals may want to rethink their batting strategy and try to give Samson more time to build an innings and Gowtham more time to explode at the death.

Ambidextrous bowling might sound like a novelty – but Sri Lanka’s Kamindu Mendis is one among a group of young players experimenting with the skill

Alan Gardner26-Oct-2018So, he bowls with his left arm his right?
Yes, that’s correct. Mendis, 20, bowls offbreaks in addition to slow left-arm – the latter being marginally his stronger suit. He caught the eye when playing for the Sri Lanka Board XI against England during a warm-up match earlier this month, sending down his offspin against Eoin Morgan, a left-hand batsman, and then switching to orthodox left-arm against right-hander Joe Root. He had previously showcased his abilities during the 2016 U-19 World Cup.That’s mad… He must be unique?
Surprisingly not. In India, Akshay Karnewar has had some success at senior level bowling fingerspin with both hands, while a talent hunt in Pakistan unearthed ambidextrous fast bowler Yasir Jan, who was promptly given a 10-year development contract by Lahore Qalanders. In the women’s game, Jemma Barsby has alternated between offspin and slow left-arm playing for Brisbane Heat in the WBBL, while Bangladesh’s Shaila Sharmin took up bowling spin with her left arm after finding herself at the back of the queue as a right-arm bowler.Sounds like this is a new phenomenon?
There have been examples in the past: Pakistan batsman Hanif Mohammad, in the 1950s, was believed to be the first to bowl with both arms in a Test, former England captain Graham Gooch was capable of it, and Sri Lanka’s Hashan Tillakaratne (who was also a wicketkeeper) rolled out the trick during the closing stages of a big win over Kenya at the 1996 World Cup. But some, such as former Australia coach John Buchanan, believe now is the time to encourage potentially ambidextrous players from a young age.Ambidextrous bowler Yasir Jan bowling for Lahore Qalandars in a practice session•AFP/Getty ImagesWhat are the advantages?
Chiefly, the ability to change the bowler’s angle of attack according to the situation. Spinning the ball away from a batsman is a preferred tactic, while it might be possible to make better use of the rough by switching bowling style. The mere element of surprise, by delivering the ball with the other arm, could be enough to gain an advantage – which can be all-important in the fast-paced environment of T20.So can the bowler just run up and bowl using whichever arm he likes?
It’s not quite as simple as that, thanks to the Laws of the game, which stipulate the bowler must inform the umpire – who in turn tells the batsman – whether he or she wishes to bowl over or round the wicket, and with which arm, before they deliver the ball. They can switch as often as they like during an over, as long as the umpire is told each time. The MCC deliberated last year about whether to drop the requirement, but decided player safety dictated the batsman should know from where (and which hand) the ball is coming. Just don’t mention the fact that batsmen are not restricted in the same way.Kamindu Mendis could be one to watch, then…
Yes, although it might not necessarily be for his bowling. Mendis, a former Sri Lanka U-19s captain, considers himself a batting allrounder and made 61 from 72 balls coming in at No. 6 in the aforementioned tour game against England. Mendis bats left-handed… but his proficiency at the switch hit is currently unknown.

Alastair Cook’s numbers were massive, whichever way you looked at them – but he meant more to England than just runs scored

S Rajesh11-Sep-2018The fifth-highest run-getter in Tests and seventh in terms of matches played; sixth in terms of balls faced; the top run-scorer among left-hand batsmen and the only batsman to score 10,000-plus Test runs as an opener; 40% more than the next name on the list for England. Alastair Cook wasn’t the most elegant or attractive batsman in Test history, but when measured by the metrics that matter the most in Test cricket – runs scored and time batted – he did an extremely good job.ESPNcricinfo LtdBatting timeCook is the only batsman to feature twice in the top ten list of batsmen who have played the longest innings, in terms of minutes, in Test history. His 836-minute effort against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi is in third place, while his 773-minute innings against India at Edgbaston is tenth.Among the 36 batsmen who have faced 7500-plus deliveries since Cook’s debut, only eight have a strike rate which is lower than Cook’s 46.95. Cook’s strike rate was very similar to Cheteshwar Pujara’s (46.90), but there was never any debate over Cook’s batting tempo in Tests.Cook was dismissed 275 times in the 26,562 deliveries he faced, which works out to a dismissal every 97 balls. He didn’t quite reach the gold standard of 100 balls per dismissal (with a 7500-ball cut-off, there were 10 batsmen who achieved it in the period since Cook’s debut), but among England batsmen, he was the leader on that attribute, though Joe Root and Kevin Pietersen had higher averages. Among the 19 England batsmen who faced at least 7500 deliveries in Tests since 1980, only two – Michael Atherton and Graham Thorpe – faced more balls per dismissal.ESPNcricinfo LtdIn terms of balls faced, Cook is the leader by far in these last 12 years: since his Test debut, the next highest is Hashim Amla’s 17,806, which means Cook has faced a ridiculous 49% more deliveries than the next highest, in the period since his debut. To some extent, that is also a reflection of England’s schedule (they top with 162 Tests since March 2006, followed by Australia’s 135), but it also shows Cook’s fitness – he played 161 of those Tests – and his immense appetite to bat on endlessly.Not surprisingly, Cook is also among the top leavers of the ball over the last 12 years. Among batsmen who faced at least 10,000 balls since the time Cook made his debut, only four batsmen have left alone a higher percentage of deliveries than he has.ESPNcricinfo Ltd The partnerships manAs is the case with batsmen who play the anchor, Cook’s contribution to the team wasn’t only in the runs he scored, but in the runs that were scored by his more flamboyant batting partners, who were secure in the knowledge that the other end was rock solid.While Cook was at the crease and scoring his 12,472 runs, the batsmen at the other end scored 13,327 runs. Given that England scored 88,245 runs off the bat in the 161 matches that Cook played, it is clear that 29% of England’s runs off the bat were made when Cook was at the crease. That is very nearly as many as the runs scored when Root was at the crease, and higher than the corresponding percentages for Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell (in the period since Cook’s debut).

Overall, Cook was involved in 651 partnerships, which is fourth in the all-time list, after Shivnarine Chanderpaul (770), Rahul Dravid (738) and Sachin Tendulkar (675). The 77 century stands he was involved in is fourth-highest as well: only Dravid (88), Tendulkar (86) and Ricky Ponting (85) have been involved in more century stands over a Test career.ESPNcricinfo LtdA giant in AsiaTwo-thousand-seven-hundred-and-ten. That is the number of Test runs Cook scored in Asia. The next highest, among non-Asian batsmen, is Jacques Kallis’ 2058, which means Cook’s tally is nearly 32% more than the next best. In ten series in Asia, he averaged more than 50 five times, and had at least one such series in each of India, Sri Lanka, UAE and Bangladesh.Overall, he averaged 53.13 from 28 Tests in Asia, but as impressive as the runs he scored was the time he batted in these conditions. He averaged 119 balls per dismissal, which is fourth among batsmen – Asian and non-Asian – who have batted at least 40 innings in Asia in the last 20 years.ESPNcricinfo LtdCook had the advantage of opening the batting, which is often the best position to bat in Asia, but even so, he had to play plenty of spin in his 28 Tests here: 64% of the total deliveries he faced were from spinners. Cook handled that challenge admirably, averaging 50.67 against them. Among non-Asian batsmen with 500-plus runs against spin since Cook’s debut, only three batsmen have a higher average.

The golden yearsThough he finished in style with a half-century and a hundred in his last Test, the last few years weren’t that great for Cook. Despite scoring 218 runs in his last two innings, he still averaged only 28.66 from 10 Tests in 2018. In 2017, he averaged 47.31 from 20 innings, but 54% of his runs came from two innings – 244 not out and 243; his median score for the year was only 15.Though his numbers fell away in his last year, Cook didn’t have a prolonged poor run like some of the other batsmen have had. In his last three years – from 2016 onwards – Cook averaged 40.07 from 38 Tests; from the start of 2013, he averaged 40.87 from 74 matches, which again isn’t that much below his career average. The difference in the later years, though, was the dip in his overseas numbers.Cook’s best years were undoubtedly the period between 2009 and 2012: in these four years, he scored 16 hundreds in 51 Tests, averaged 55.28, and his aggregate of 4423 was the best among all batsmen. Even more impressive than his overall numbers during this period were his away stats: in 25 Tests, he scored 10 hundreds and averaged an incredible 68.12. This was the phase when he had two epic tours, scoring 766 runs from seven innings in Australia, and 562 from eight innings in India. At home during this period, his average was a relatively ordinary 43.07.

From 2013, his home numbers didn’t change much at all: he averaged 43.88. However, his away average dropped to a far more modest 37.20.The Ashes numbersAnd finally, there is the most important statistic for an Australian or England player: his performances in the biggest series of all. Cook played 22% of his Test innings against Australia, and scored 20% of his runs against them, which suggests that he didn’t significantly deviate from his mean performances against other teams, when playing Australia.While the overall stats are reasonable – he averaged 40.20 against them from 35 Tests – what will disappoint Cook is the fact that those numbers are propped up largely by one series. On the 2010-11 tour, he amassed 766 runs in seven innings – that’s 31% of his total runs coming in 11% of his total innings. The 2017-18 series was similarly lopsided: he scored an unbeaten 244 in Melbourne, but managed only 132 runs in eight other innings. Add the 244 to his 766, and it turns out that he scored 1010 runs in eight innings, and 1483 in the remaining 56, including four series when he averaged between 24 and 28.ESPNcricinfo LtdOverall, Cook is one of 12 England batsmen to score 2000-plus runs in Ashes Tests; in terms of averages, he is only 10th among the 12. That is somewhat similar to his overall career numbers, where he is one of 13 batsmen with 10,000-plus runs, but has the lowest average in that group. In Cook’s case, though, the batting average doesn’t do full justice in explaining just what he has meant to English cricket for more than 12 years.

A total of 663 players are eligible to be picked, with six teams having a pre-set order and various categories to choose from

Umar Farooq19-Nov-2018The player draft for PSL 2019 will need franchises to keep several factors in mind. Here is a quick explainer.How is this draft different from the previous one?
Last year, the teams could retain only a certain number of players in each category since it was an expansion year. But this year, all teams have been given the option to retain up to 10 players across any category they want, subject to the overall category restriction, which is three players in Platinum, three in Diamond, three in Gold, five in Silver, and two in Emerging.The retention window this year closed on November 13, with Islamabad United retaining ten players, so they can pick six more from the draft. Karachi Kings, Lahore Qalandars, Peshawar Zalmi and ‘The Sixth Team’ retained eight players each and can pick another eight on draft day. Quetta Gladiators will pick seven more to add to their nine retained players. Each of the six teams has an optional round to pick another four players from the Supplement category.How many players will be available for picking in the draft?
A total of 663 foreign and local players are part of the Diamond, Gold, Silver and Emerging rosters for teams to pick their player at the draft.What is the value of each category?
Platinum (US $570,000): Teams can have a maximum three players with no more than two local or foreigners. The base price $160,000 and the maximum for one player is $250,000.Diamond (US $270,000): Teams can have a maximum of three players and the base price starts from $80,000. The maximum one player can get $100,000.Gold (US $180,000): Teams can have a maximum of three players, with base price $50,000. The maximum a team can pay a player is $70,000.Silver (US $140,000): Teams can have five players with the base price being $24,000. The maximum for one player is $40,000.Emerging (US $25,000): Two players can be in a side with prices of $12,000 and $13,000 respectively.Supplement (US $175,000): This category doesn’t have a maximum and minimum payroll. It’s an additional round, allowing teams to pick extra players as backup. They can pick a maximum of four players from the purse of $175,000. All foreign supplementary round picks will be active members of the squad. All local supplementary round picks may be confirmed as active players at the discretion of the team.What is the “Sixth Team”?
The PCB recently terminated the eight-year ownership rights of Multan Sultans after the franchise failed to pay their annual fee of US $5.2 million. The PCB repossessed the ownership rights and are reselling the rights before the start of next year’s PSL. Pending further updates, the team shall be referred to as ‘The Sixth Team’ of the PSL.The new rights holder will have the option of choosing the sixth franchise city and name. The board took complete responsibility of all player and coach contracts, and will handover the operation to the new rights holders.How many foreign and local players can a team have in its 16-man squad?
Franchises must pick at least one foreign and one local player in Platinum, meaning they can have two foreigners and one local player or vice versa. But at the conclusion of the Gold round, each team must have four foreign players and four local ones before going into the Silver round. In total, each 16-man squad can have a maximum of five foreign players only. In the Supplementary round, each team can pick up up to two foreign players, to bring their roster up to seven players at the maximum.What is the draft sequence this year?
The formula that the PSL management and franchises have agreed upon is the reverse order of the previous year’s standings. Islamabad United are the title holders and on top of the table, so they will be the last to pick a player in every round. Lahore Qalandars – who finished last in the 2018 season – will have first pick in each round. The Sixth Team will be second, Quetta Gladiators will be third, Karachi Kings fourth and Peshawar Zalmi will be fifth.Every team has retained players in every category. What will they do at the draft?
Teams will first pick new players where applicable in a particular category. So if a team had retained three Platinum players, they can skip their turn in the Platinum round. This will be the same for every category. If a team has retained two Diamond category players going into the draft, that team will use its first pick in the Diamond category to select a new player. The retentions will be counted against the remaining picks in that category.Who traded whom before the draft?
Lahore Qalandars traded Umar Akmal and Sunil Narine to Quetta Gladiators, in exchange for spinner Hassan Khan and fast bowler Rahat Ali. This trade also meant Gladiators gave up their Platinum pick to Qalandars in the first round. Both Gladiators and Qalandars also swapped their second-round picks in the Silver category.The Sixth Team, formally Multan Sultans, sold Sohail Tanvir to Quetta Gladiators for a Diamond-round pick, and bought Mohammad Junaid in exchange for getting the second pick in the Emerging Category.How can a player be an Ambassador for a team?
Each team can have one Ambassador, given additional ambassadorial responsibilities. Teams are allowed to have one player in the squad in a lower category than designated one to prevent ‘underhand’ deals. An Ambassador can be appointed at the time of retentions, or after a player has been picked at the draft.What is the role of a mentor?
A player can be eligible for a mentor’s role if he has captained his national team and has either announced retirement from international cricket, or been inactive in the national team set-up for at least one year. The role was instituted for players like Brendon McCullum, Kumar Sangakkara, Shahid Afridi, Misbah-ul-Haq. This nomination allows teams to not spend their Platinum picks on players close to retirement.A player mentor can be relegated by a maximum of one category if designated at the time of retentions. If he is picked in the draft, he cannot be relegated and appointed mentor.

Ireland are yet to win a game in the tournament’s history, and it’s hard to see them breaking the duck in the Caribbean

Shashank Kishore08-Nov-2018

Squad list

Laura Delany (capt), Kim Garth, Cecelia Joyce, Isobel Joyce, Shauna Kavanagh, Amy Kenealy, Gaby Lewis, Lara Maritz, Ciara Metcalfe, Lucy O’Reilly, Celeste Raack, Eimear Richardson, Clare Shillington, Rebecca Stokell, Mary Waldron

World T20 pedigree

Ireland are yet to win a game in the tournament’s history, and it’s hard to see them breaking the duck in the Caribbean. With no disrespect to their players, many of whom have careers outside the game to sustain themselves financially, it’s a blot on the system which has been slow in helping Associate nations rise.Since Ireland aren’t involved in the Women’s Championship, like Bangladesh, they’re forced to spend time negotiating with other cricket boards for matches. Fortunately, attempts are on to bridge this gap, especially with the Irish government announcing the injection of EUR 1.5 million into high performance sporting organisations. This includes EUR 40,000 in new funding specifically for the women’s team ahead of the 2018 World T20. There’s also talk of them being inducted into the Championships from the following cycle, which offers a ray of hope.While all of that will eventually ensure Ireland move forward, it can’t mask their struggles in recent times. The T20I they played against New Zealand in June this year was their first one in close to two years. With that massive a gap between matches, no side, let alone the smaller teams, can build momentum.Laura Delany gets forward to block•Sportsfile via Getty Images

Recent T20I form

They beat Scotland, Thailand and Uganda to finish atop their group in the Women’s World T20 Qualifiers in June. They faltered in the final, though, losing to Bangladesh by 25 runs. Prior to that, they were beaten by New Zealand and Bangladesh at home.

The captain and coach

This is the first time Ireland will have a captain other than Isobel Joyce at the Women’s World T20. Laura Delany, Cricket Ireland’s Female Player of the Year, led the team in the qualifiers too and her aggressive strokeplay at the top of the order will be crucial in putting oppositions under pressure. She’s a handy bowler as well; among her proudest moments on a cricket field is defending eight off the final over in a must-win game against Netherlands in the 2013 World T20 qualifiers.Aaron Hamilton, a former first-class cricketer from Western Australia, has over two decades of coaching experience. He has been with the side since 2015. In May 2017, he signed a three-year extension that will take him up to the 2020 World T20 in Australia. Fifty-over wins against South Africa, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh stand among his bigger achievements till date. He also works closely with the country’s development squad and has a bird’s eye view of the stream of talent coming through.Gaby Lewis runs in to bowl•Sportsfile via Getty Images

Best players

Kim Garth has matured into a very reliable opener over the years. She has benefited from the Women’s Big Bash rookie programme for Associates, having trained with Sydney Sixers and eventually earning a promotion to play with the full squad. In 2016, she became the first – and only – Irish player to have been picked by the ICC in a World XI side.She’s all of 17, but Gaby Lewis has already played over 50 internationals for Ireland. The allrounder was the first player born after 2000 to represent an international team, debuting at just 13 years and 166 days, against Australia. Cricket is in her blood – father Alan Lewis and grandfather Ian Lewis have also represented Ireland. Her sister Robyn Lewis has played alongside her at the club and international level. Lewis honed her skill by being part of the Women’s Global Development squad. She has also been part of the WBBL development programme, having trained with Melbourne Renegades, where she has impressed with her lower-order batting and fast legbreaks.

Where will they finish

Placed in a group alongside India, Australia, Pakistan and their recent-tormenters New Zealand, it’s hard to see them winning too many matches. If it is their day, they could run Pakistan close, just like their men’s team famously did 11 years ago in the Caribbean at a World Cup.

A year ago, he wasn’t in the ODI scheme of things; after 383 runs in India, he might be in the XI in the UK whether Smith and Warner are back or not

Deivarayan Muthu in New Delhi14-Mar-20194:23

Very satisfying from a personal point of view – Khawaja

Not too long ago, there was no room for Usman Khawaja in Australia’s ODI side despite the unavailability of both Steven Smith and David Warner. Now, about two weeks before the bans on Smith and Warner get over, Khawaja has made a strong case for World Cup selection.He is in his best physical shape. He is unflappable against pace and spin alike. He has been scoring runs for fun in India: 50, 38, 104, 91, 100. His tally of 383 runs in five innings at an average of 76.60 is his best-ever in an ODI series.From having zero ODI hundreds prior to this tour to peeling off nearly three in three innings, Khawaja has struck such rich form that Shaun Marsh, Australia’s best ODI batsman in the past year, can’t find a place in the XI.ALSO READ: Stats – Australia script a comeback to rememberIt has been some turnaround for Khawaja, and you knew it meant so much to him when he emotionally celebrated his hundred that set the scene for Australia sewing up their first ODI series win in India in ten years. Khawaja raised his helmet, pumped his fist animatedly, acknowledged the applause from the dressing room and hugged Peter Handscomb, who has also raised his ODI game to a new plane on this tour.The shot that brought up the landmark for Khawaja neatly summed up why he has been so successful this series. When left-arm wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav fired his stock ball on off – or just a shade outside – Khawaja leant back, allowed the ball to turn, and deftly guided it through extra-cover with soft hands.

Look, one day at a time. I am not looking too far ahead. No one knows what the next day might bringUSMAN KHAWAJA

He had displayed similar assured technique against legspinner Yasir Shah and offspinners Bilal Asif and Mohammed Hafeez when he had helped Australia pull off a great escape in Dubai last year. He pressed right forward to full, turning balls and smothered them. That threw the bowlers off their lengths and allowed Khawaja to pick off runs off the back foot.In a game where Australia had to bat out 840 balls (140 overs) to save the Test, Khawaja alone played out 302 balls – the most faced by any batsman in the fourth innings in the UAE.He was playing a different format in India, but the UAE lessons proved crucial. Khawaja has also been part of two Australia A tours in India previously – first in 2015 and then more recently in 2018.3:32

Hodge: Australia showed they can do it without Smith and Warner

In the UAE, after bedding in, Khawaja got on top of the spinners with a variety of sweeps and regular advances down the pitch. He has followed a similar template in India and it was on bright display when the series was on the line in Delhi.He stepped out against Kuldeep in his first over, reached the pitch of the ball, extended his hands, and launched him over long-on. He then paddled the first ball he faced from left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja to long leg. Anything that Jadeja tossed outside off was swept or reverse-swept with great authority.Jadeja had bowled Australia captain Aaron Finch with a ripper and dismissed Glenn Maxwell with one that stuck in the pitch. He even troubled Handscomb with his arm ball, but here was Khawaja showing him who was the boss: in all, he took 23 off 22 balls from Jadeja.”Jadeja bowling Finch was a beauty, it gripped and turned,” Khawaja said at the post-match press conference. “It was one of those games, when the spinners come into the game, you have to have enough areas to score. We’ve to respect the good balls too.”Just being in these conditions a lot lately, myself and a lot of us, we’ve played in Dubai, India A series and a lot of the guys played IPL too. I think just being around the conditions helps a lot of the guys, guys that have had success in the past to know what they’re trying to do, just like the Indians have for a long period here. There have been lot of good players of spin here. Pete has batted beautifully, Maxi has always looked like he’s going to get a lot of runs and been free-flowing.”Khawaja’s unlikely bumper run has formed the centerpiece of Australia’s unexpected series win. It was the first time that Australia bounced back from being 2-0 down to clinch a five-match ODI series.”It’s huge. To win a series in India is huge,” Khawaja said. “It’s a tough place to come play cricket against a very good side. They beat us in Australia, so to come back from those first couple of games, the losses, to come back and win three in a row to win the series, it’s a great feeling.”From a personal point of view, it’s huge as well. Man of the Series in a one-day tournament in India. I wasn’t in the ODI side this time last year. So, to be here in India and win the series is massive. It’s always a tough place to play cricket, for any Australian to come over. Then you have the conditions, then you have the crowds, so it’s really satisfying to come back into the one-day side and contribute. Even more so to get that win, to get that series win because it is not easy out here.”When asked if he has done enough to force his way into World Cup contention, Khawaja downplayed his form and shifted his focus to the upcoming five-match ODI series against Pakistan in the UAE, where Australia are likely to come up against similar slow pitches and spin-heavy attacks.”Look, one day at a time. I am not looking too far ahead,” he said. “No one knows what the next day might bring. We’ve got five one-dayers in the UAE. Would love to come out on top and win that series and there’s a long time between now and the World Cup, so for us as a team, we’re just enjoying each other’s company, enjoying the wins with each other and hopefully we can do that in UAE in the next tour.”If Khawaja continues to score runs for fun in the UAE too, he could well make Australia’s first-choice World Cup XI, with or without Smith and Warner.

Cheteshwar Pujara faced 1258 balls. Cheteshwar Pujara scored two match-winning hundreds… stop, enough already

Yazad Aria20-Jan-2019Cheteshwar Pujara.Ugh.What. A. Guy.All I have heard this past month is “Pujara this” and “Pujara that”.Enough.It ends now.I have held my tongue for too long.The world deserves, nay, needs to know the truth about the type of man that Cheteshwar Pujara really is.His list of crimes read like the titles of books.Ladies and Gentlemen, I give to you the Cheteshwar Pujara.Mr SelfishM Vijay may have played his last Test Match. KL Rahul was dropped, recalled, and will likely be dropped if Prithvi Shaw is fit to play India’s next Test match.And it is all Cheteshwar Pujara’s fault.Get this: he batted 1258 balls in the entire series.The only reason he was able to do is because Rahul and Vijay chose to selflessly give him the chance to test himself in tough conditions, against the best bowling attack in the world. They also gave him the chance to essentially hone his game as an opener, and prove that the new-ball bursts could be negated if batsmen applied themselves.Were they rewarded for this selfless behaviour? No.Did Pujara not realise that he was making them look bad? He probably did.Did he care? Nope.If you are not yet convinced, sample this.At Adelaide Oval, while the rest of India’s front-line batsmen threw their wickets away with simply atrocious shot selection, Pujara dug in and scored 123. Pujara was like that friend who gets full marks in the exam that you failed. Never mind that you failed because you didn’t apply yourself, and they scored full marks because they worked hard. Never mind that you were inspired by them, worked hard, and did well on your other exams by following their example.You blame them for making you look bad, just as I blame Cheteshwar Pujara for making the rest of the batsmen look bad.Mr DisrespectfulIndia’s 2-1 series win in Australia was possible due to not one, but two match-winning centuries by Pujara.He scored 123 in Adelaide, and 106 in Melbourne.Now that is all well and good, apart from one teeny problem.They were match-winning centuries.Look, scoring centuries in Australia is all right, but centuries?It is practically a rite of passage: the valiant but ultimately futile century by the Indian batsman in Australia. So near, yet so far, and all that sort of jazz.Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli have each scored six centuries in Australia. Do you know how many were match-winning? Zero.Sunil Gavaskar, Gundappa Viswanath, Rahul Dravid, and VVS Laxman have each scored one match-winning century in Australia. That’s right. One.There are some of you who will think that all this proves is the immensity of Pujara’s performance, that scoring match-winning centuries in Australia is incredibly hard work. That this feat must be lauded.You are all wrong.It clearly proves that Pujara not only spits in the face of tradition, but is trying to somehow imply that he is better than everyone else.Mr Poor Role ModelSample this quote: “As a batsman, you just need to get used to pace and bounce. Playing in different conditions, in South Africa, in England, in county cricket has helped me improve my technique. For me, it’s about the right preparation”.Instead of complaining about how tough it is to bat overseas, he pushed himself out of his comfort zone and played overseas to improve his game.Instead of being content with the fact that while he had not done so well overseas, he had at least scored runs in India, he chose to score 521 runs in Australia.What sort of message is he sending children everywhere? That you ought to be ambitious, work hard, and do your best to succeed no matter what the circumstances?Do you want your children emulating Cheteshwar Pujara?That’s what I thought.Mr BullyNobody likes a bully.Cheteshwar Pujara is a bully.Australia were still reeling from the ball-tampering scandal, their cricketing culture is being scrutinised, and the last thing they needed was a home series defeat.And then Pujara came along.Everybody knows that this is a weak Australian team.David Warner and Steven Smith are not playing.Their absence is the only reason Pujara scored three centuries, and 521 runs.It is simply obvious that if Smith and Warner were playing, Pujara would not have scored any runs.None at all.And I’m not talking about the ball-tampering.Smith and Warner are secretly the greatest bowlers in the history of the universe.Smith started out his career as a legspinner, as the next Shane Warne, and has taken as many as 17 Test wickets.David Warner has taken four Test wickets.Pujara is a bully who kicked his weakened opponents when they were down.Cheteshwar Pujara may have scored all those runs against perhaps the most well-rounded bowling attack in the world, but it is that he would have failed against the part-time legspin of Smith and Warner.

This was a difficult innings in testing conditions but there was a familiar assertiveness in David Warner’s footwork

Sidharth Monga in Taunton12-Jun-2019Shaheen Shah Afridi got off to an ordinary start, setting the tone for Australia’s domination, but this was a good ball. On a length, just outside off, slight seam in, by no means a half-volley. This was the last ball of the fourth over. David Warner’s right foot moved forward, he offered the ball what it deserved – a watchful defensive push – but he had got so close to it that he felt confident opening the face and placing the ball in a gap.Wahab Riaz was on the moment he got the ball. Fourth bowler used on the day, he continually hit the bat high. The first ball of the 11th over stopped on Warner and bounced extra to take a leading edge. The third ball, to which Warner was forward, hit him on the splice of the bat. To the fourth ball – slightly shorter in length, slightly wide – Warner was in a position to cut. In the 12th over came another push-drive to a length ball that missed a fielder.With the ball still doing something well past the drinks break, Mohammad Amir came back to beat both of Warner’s edges with successive deliveries in the 23rd over. And yet he was moving forward to the next ball and looking to find a gap. In Amir’s next over, Warner survived an lbw shout from another Amir beauty because his feet had got outside the line.ALSO READ: Smart Stats – Cummins the enforcerYou will hear a lot of analysis say how Warner was more pro-active in this innings than his two earlier half-centuries in the tournament – his two slowest ODI fifties ever – which probably means that Warner was hitting a lot of such balls straight to fielders in the previous two innings. His head and feet were not close enough to the ball to be manoeuvring it without taking risks.Here Warner was able to access gaps because he had his feet moving and because he was looking more at hitting gaps than obsessing over hitting the ball sweetly. And when you get into that flow of placing good balls into the gaps, you invariably tend to get into positions where you can punish slight errors in length. When batsmen are in form, they do it effortlessly; here the word from the Australia management was that Warner perhaps needed a slight change in mindset.It didn’t need anyone from the outside to point it out, even though Kumar Sangakkara made an insightful critique that Warner was probably playing with too much fear of getting out. Sangakkara was not off the mark. Pat Cummins said Warner himself admitted he had been slightly timid. That he needed to get his attacking mindset back.Cummins was asked how his team-mates can tell the old Warner is back. “Just the way his energy out there in the middle is,” Cummins said. “His running. Sprinting for singles all the time. Dancing down the wicket. Playing pull shots off slightly short of a length.”David Warner goes on the attack•Getty ImagesThat indeed was the shot that got Warner going in this innings. It was only slightly short from Afridi – hip high – and Warner was in position to pull him for four. The two half-centuries before this were scored in easier conditions than these. This was a Test-match contest with seam, swing and uneven bounce available, Warner said. India did bowl well to him – provided him no room on a used, and hence slow, surface – but this was a test by conditions. The Taunton pitch had been under covers for two days. There had been enough rain, there was enough grass, and there were enough clouds overhead for both teams to pick four fast bowlers and for Pakistan to not think twice before choosing to bowl.WATCH on Hotstar (India only) – Warner’s centuryThat Pakistan had a slip even when Warner was in the 90s tells you a lot about how difficult it was to bat in the first innings. It bears out in his control percentage: it was 85% in Bristol, 82% at The Oval, and 73% in Taunton. And yet Warner’s strike rate went up from 78 and 67 in the first two innings to nearly a run a ball in this match.Warner spoke about the transition. One of the most instructive things he said was that if he is looking to score, his defence takes care of itself. Here he was doing that. “Against India I hit a lot of fielders,” Warner said. “As a player, you feel like you are not in a rhythm. And that’s what happened. But today was one of those wickets, if you’re still looking to score and your defence is tight, you’ll create those opportunities for yourself. And that’s what we focus on as a batter.”Whether it was the pitch that switched him on or the self-realisation of need to shed some of the timidity, Warner – as Cummins said – was on from ball one. An on Warner is a fearless Warner. A fearless Warner is a dangerous Warner. And he was disappointed he didn’t bat through the innings, and left a few runs out there. Bowlers, better watch out now.

His USA selection caused a stir, but the Antiguan has crossed several hurdles to realise his ODI dream

Peter Della Penna in Windhoek27-Apr-2019″I think he would be proud. I’m sure he dreamt of it for himself because at one stage he was close to playing for the West Indies. My uncle was close to playing for the West Indies. So for someone of his blood to actually play international cricket, then I think he would be proud.”

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“Do you prefer to go by Hayden Walsh or Hayden Walsh Jr. ?”, I ask as he sits down for the chat. “Hayden Walsh Juniahhh,” he replies.In some ways, these words are a subtle embodiment of how Walsh Jr. operates on the field. The man who has been key to USA’s rise to ODI status is blessed with athletic genes.His father and uncle played cricket for Leeward Islands. His cousin, Chavaughn, and younger brother, Tahir, were both part of Antigua & Barbuda’s 4x100m relay team at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.While going to boarding school at Sutton Valence in Kent, someone once told him he might be good enough to make it to the England men’s field hockey team if he persevered. But cricket drew him in, thanks to his father. So, the ‘junior’ in his name is a way of respecting the one who came before him.Walsh Sr. ran a well-known local academy in Antigua that helped produce the likes of West Indies international Devon Thomas. He made it clear to Walsh Jr. at the outset that cricket was a big boy’s game.”I remember I played a game against some Under-17s when I was about nine-years old,” Walsh Jr. says. “He was like, ‘Go out there and be a tough guy. Just don’t let them get you out.’ Those guys were much bigger and stronger. A ball hit me on my thigh and I had to come off the field because it hurt so bad. At nine, that’s gonna hurt.”But then he said, ‘Come on. Just rub it and go back out there.’ In this day and age, it’s probably not acceptable to send a nine-year-old to go out and bat against Under-17s. You’d probably get locked up for that. Haha! But he taught me to be a warrior.”Aaron Jones (left) and Hayden Walsh shared in another USA record partnership for the fourth wicket against Namibia•Peter Della PennaPerhaps, it was this kind of a warrior that USA needed to get over the hurdle of WCL Division Three after four prior failures.

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“I didn’t really know much about USA cricket,” Walsh Jr. says. “My mom actually told me, ‘You should look into playing for the US because they might have something going on. I was like, ‘Mommy, they don’t even play professional cricket so why would I?’ She knew I was eligible but I just didn’t really take it on.”After making his first-class debut for Leeward Islands in 2012, Walsh Jr. struggled for consistent opportunities over several subsequent years, balancing cricket with his day-job as a physical education teacher at an Antiguan school.He bounced between Barbados and Leeward Islands, where the then head coach, Reginald Benjamin, the former Antigua fast bowler, had broached the topic of playing for the USA during the 2016-17 season. Benjamin too migrated to USA and represented the country at the ICC Trophy in 1990, 1994 and 1997.Walsh Jr. still didn’t take the opportunity afforded by his US passport – a consequence of being born in St. Croix of the US Virgin Islands – seriously until this past summer, when fate would link him with Ibrahim Khaleel, the USA captain at the time, at the CPL. With playing opportunities limited in the St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots squad, the two had plenty of time to chew the fat during games.Then in October, when USA arrived in Barbados for the Super50 tournament organised by Cricket West Indies, Walsh Jr. first met head coach Pubudu Dassanayake. He played three games in the tournament for Barbados, including two against USA. He put in the efforts outside of the matches to demonstrate his future availability for USA, doing double sessions with Barbados in the morning and USA in the afternoons.After two training sessions with the USA squad, along with a “team bonding” experience at a local beach, he had suddenly been fast-tracked into the USA squad for WCL Division Three the following month in Oman, along with Barbados team-mate and fellow USA passport holder Aaron Jones.Their inclusion spurred outrage on social media within the small but tight-knit USA cricket community. Their contention was neither Walsh Jr. nor Jones had participated in the USA Cricket Combines, which was mandated of other players to be considered for selection.Walsh Jr. says he was aware of the torrent of comments on social media and why it was coming his way. “I expected it because… who am I to just kind of walk into the team? I’m not saying I’m not good enough, but everybody went through a process and I literally just kind of had two sessions, if you look at it that way.”But, honestly, I was in such a good space at that time, I didn’t think about what he or she is saying. I was confident when I went to Oman, I was gonna tear this up.”In a match situation that was evenly balanced against Kenya at 121 for 4, Walsh Jr. produced an 83-run stand with Jones to put USA in command for a win. A grimmer scenario unfolded a few days later against Denmark, when he walked in at 87 for 5. But he added with Jones a USA record sixth-wicket stand of 131 on the way to scoring his first half-century in a gritty 14-run win.Walsh Jr. was arguably USA’s MVP on tour, scoring 167 runs and taking seven wickets in USA’s run to promotion. He was also USA’s best fielder, as marked by a new squad tradition where the title is passed with a white hat stitched with “Best Fielder” along the side.”Oman was such a blur,” he recounts. “I was just enjoying playing and just being around the guys. I didn’t feel any pressure to perform and make sure they go through. When I have a big leading role and there’s a lot of pressure, I find my game advances a lot more.””[My dad] taught me how to stand up when the chips are down. Maybe that’s why I play like that. Instead of giving me 100 drills, 100 pulls, 100 drives, 100 sweeps, he taught me a lot of mental toughness.”Hayden Walsh completes a wristy flick through midwicket•Peter Della Penna

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It was January 9, 2010, and Walsh Jr. who was 17 at the time, had just been dropped off by his dad for a cricket training session. Hayden Sr. then went to the Dove Cove Hotel where he was “going to have a staycation” to spend time with his six-year-old twin brother and sister Malik and Yenique.Only a week earlier, Walsh Jr. had suffered a head injury on a basketball court in Antigua and blacked out while being taken to hospital. When he woke up, his dad was being treated for high blood pressure. But nobody had an inkling of what was to follow.”I came home in the afternoon and then someone called the house saying my dad’s sick,” Walsh Jr. remembers. “They said he was on his way to the hospital and I thought he should be fine then. But then a police officer came to the house. I didn’t really know the significance of a police officer coming to the house. I told the police officer that my grandmother was home so she went to my grandmother and told her.”My grandmother shouted, “Hayden, your dad is dead!” I was like, ‘What is this crazy woman saying?'”Local media reports at the time stated that Walsh Sr. died in a swimming pool accident, but gave few details. Hayden Jr. says his dad had to be dragged out of the water after losing consciousness. An autopsy later revealed he had no water in his lungs and that he had actually suffered a massive stroke. He was pronounced dead on the way to the hospital aged 46.Despite all the pain Hayden Jr. was experiencing emotionally, one of the few outlets he knew that would let him escape was going back to the bond he shared with his dad. Less than a week later, he was back at cricket training.”My dad was basically my mentor. He guided me through age group cricket, through England. So I was like, ‘Let’s go. This is what I was doing with my dad. So let’s continue this.’ It was a getaway from all the feelings and what not. Ever since, I’ve always been super focused…[because] I wanted to be a professional and I know he wanted to see me be a professional.”Walsh Jr. is now hoping to accomplish that dream with USA. Just as he did in Oman, he contributed another USA record partnership with Jones – 127 runs, this time, for the fourth wicket – in a two-run win over Namibia that helped USA gain ODI status, a result that may help push USA into a truly professional era.ODI status brings with it increased ICC funding. With 36 ODIs over the next two-plus years, Walsh Jr. aims to go all-in for a central contract with USA, having terminated his contract with Barbados in February, and not being picked again in Friday’s CWI first-class draft.But at the top of his agenda right now is USA’s first one-day international since 2004, against Papua New Guinea, to close out WCL Division Two in Namibia. Playing full-fledged ODI cricket is an occasion he and his dad dreamt of, and one that his father may be looking at with pride from up above.”It’s my ambition, but he wanted it as well,” Walsh Jr. says. “So we were actually working together to help myself. So instead of just dropping it and saying, ‘Well, my dad’s not here to help me,’ I just said, ‘Okay, let’s continue.’ He showed me up until this point, so let me just continue and make him proud.”