Category Uncategorized

The former New Zealand allrounder had been diagnosed with bowel cancer last month, and had a tumour removed

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Jul-2018Sir Richard Hadlee will undergo further surgery following the discovery of secondary cancer in his liver. An NZC statement said it was still at a “very early stage”. The former New Zealand captain had been diagnosed with bowel cancer last month, and had undergone surgery to have a tumour removed.”Medical advice is that it’s still at a very early stage and is operable,” the release, issued on behalf of Hadlee’s wife Lady Dianne, said. “Once he has recovered from the operation, Richard will undergo further chemotherapy treatment.”As with the first statement released on this matter, we disclose these details solely in the interests of transparency, and to avoid speculation and gossip. We would again ask that people respect our request for privacy.”

To stay competitive in the upcoming World Cup, the coach Hemantha Devapriya has helped the batsmen expand their games

Sa'adi Thawfeeq12-Jun-2017An increase in the hitting ability of the Sri Lanka women players should help them pose a greater threat in the upcoming Women’s World Cup, said their coach Hemantha Devapriya.”Since I took over six months ago, I’ve found out that our run-rate has not been that great and our batters’ strike-rate was not so efficient,” Devapriya said. “Other than Eshani Lokusuriyage and Chamari Atapattu who had strike-rates of a little over 60, others were below that, some under 40, which indicated that if Atapattu and Lokusuriyage scored we managed over 200 runs.”What they were lacking was creative shots and use of the feet. They were averaging only 41 singles per match. We worked on it and they improved it to 100 singles. We increased their shot range also, like using the pace of the ball. They were very negative on back-of-the-length balls and not creating a shot off that delivery. We practised with hard plastic balls on granite surfaces to overcome that issue. We also played a lot of practice games with Under-17 boys and in the last two games we managed to get over 200 runs.”It was also identified that improving skills alone will not be enough to stay competitive in the world of modern-day cricket. “Fitness was a big problem I had, especially with ageing players,” Devapriya said. “When you are not fit, it affects the fielding. Gradually, we increased their fitness workload coupled with fielding. At gym sessions, we introduced new exercises to develop the technique to generate power when batting. Overall, I had only six months and I never expected them to reach this standard. They developed very fast and their confidence has gone up.”Another thing in Sri Lanka’s favour is former captain Shashikala Siriwardene coming back from injury. “Her return has strengthened the team a lot,” Devapriya said. “She will make a big impact because she is an allrounder and she has the experience also. Her experience will be very useful in the middle.”Our aim is to try and finish in the top four [and] we have a fair chance of doing that. When you compare us with other teams, they are well ahead of us, but you never know in a tournament of this nature.”That left Sri Lanka’s traditional strength, their spin bowling. Devapriya was wary that conditions in England might not offer much turn, but given warm weather and a dry pitch, he backed his team to pull off a surprise or two.”At the moment, its cold 17 degrees hopefully if the Sun comes out it will be helpful. Those are things we can’t control. Our success will depend on getting a good score on the board and our key is spin. We select batters up to No. 6 and we have two spinners coming in Ama Kanchana and Shashikala,” said Devapriya.”You can swing the ball in the first 10 overs or so and once the swing goes our bowlers are not going to be that effective to get the batsmen out. We have two left-arm spinners as well and sometimes if the fast bowlers fail we may have to go with spin. We are going with a positive frame of mind to score runs and get wickets.”Sri Lanka will play three practice games against India, England and a county side before their first World Cup match against New Zealand on June 24.

New Zealand captain Kane Williamson expected spin to play a big part in the World T20 and hoped that his side would step up to the challenge

Karthik Krishnaswamy in Nagpur14-Mar-2016The last time New Zealand played a World T20 game, they crashed to 60 all out against Sri Lanka. Since that horror day in Chittagong, New Zealand are yet to play any match, in any format, in the subcontinent. In the two years since that nightmare against Rangana Herath, New Zealand have grown immeasurably in terms of confidence and experience, but their personnel remains largely the same, and their ability in spin-friendly conditions remains untested.Kane Williamson is New Zealand’s best player of spin, as he showed in that game by scoring 70% of their total, but seldom adds any spin to his public pronouncements. They are almost deliberately bland. On the eve of his side’s World T20 opener against India, he dead-batted every question thrown at him.”Yeah, whenever you play around the world, you need to adapt to different conditions,” Williamson said, when asked about New Zealand’s preparedness for Indian conditions. “We have been playing a bit of cricket at home, it is important that we make those adjustments coming into this tournament. We have had some good preparations in the UAE and in Mumbai as well. But at the same time, whichever ground you play around India, the conditions can be slightly different so we have to assess those again tomorrow.”Having watched some of the the first-round action from the ground, Williamson expected a slow turner at the VCA Stadium.”We certainly are expecting spin to pay a big part in this tournament,” he said. “I suppose, judging by the warm-up games in Mumbai, they had a bit for the seamers and it swung a little bit. They were very good surfaces but from what cricket we have seen here in Nagpur, spin looks likely to play a big part. It’s important that we adjust our game plans accordingly.”Williamson is leading the side following the retirement of Brendon McCullum, who perhaps surprisingly chose to quit international cricket following the home series against Australia even though the World T20 was only a few weeks. Williamson refused to divulge his views on the timing of McCullum’s exit.”I suppose we were certainly fortunate to have Brendon leading us and being in the side for as long as we had him and I guess, in a way, there is no great time for him to walk away with all the good that he is doing,” Williamson said. “But it’s part and parcel of anything you do that it comes to an end and there’s so many other priorities in Brendon’s life and we certainly wish Brendon well. He is very close to this side still and he has got a little bit of cricket left to play in some of the T20 competitions around the world, which is exciting for him, but I know he will be watching us closely.”New Zealand will be playing for the first time since the death of Martin Crowe, their greatest ever batsman and a mentor to Ross Taylor and Martin Guptill. Williamson said the team would wear black armbands and observe a minute’s silence before Tuesday’s match.”In the match tomorrow, we will be showing our respects by wearing black armbands and I believe after the anthems, there will be a moment where there will be a pause, so that will be a special time of recognition on behalf of the side,” he said. “Some blokes in the side, they were very close to Martin, and I guess they will deal with it in their own way throughout the tournament and throughout the cricket that is coming up. He was a big part of their lives as a cricketer and as a person. It’s just the process that you get through when something significant like this happens.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the second ODI between England and Australia

The Preview by David Hopps07-Sep-2013

Match Facts

September 8, Old Trafford
Start time 10.15am (0915 GMT)Australia captain Michael Clarke is still looking for his first win over England on tour•Getty Images

The Big Picture

Now the traditional Headingley washout has been concluded, it is time to move on to the cricket. Four remaining matches in the NatWest series still give two fresh and experimental squads time to show their true flavour. The sense of anticipation remains, although too many of the showers forecast for Manchester on Sunday might put a bit of a damper on proceedings.England have expectations that Eoin Morgan and Ravi Bopara can make the sort of impact batting at Nos. 5 and 6 that will carry them through to the 2015 World Cup. Confidence abounds following their hundreds against Ireland in Malahide and a partnership of 226, which was an ODI record for the fifth wicket. S Rajesh, in Numbers Game, has reflected upon England’s commitment since another failed World Cup campaign in 2011 to lifting the strike rate at this stage of the innings.Australia’s tour of England has so far included a 3-0 Ashes series loss, a Champions Trophy campaign in which they failed to win a match and only two international victories: a Twenty20 game against England and an ODI win over minnows Scotland.Fifty miles east of Manchester, Yorkshire will be rueing their ill luck. A third washout in five one-day internationals was not the sort of news that Yorkshire need when they are still wrestling with debts not far short of £20m. Profits of half a million from a capacity crowd of 17,250 have been washed away, leaving Yorkshire with no chance to recover the losses made on an under-budget Test against New Zealand in May. One money-saving scheme has been abandoned as Yorkshire have concluded that the floodlights at the defunct Don Valley athletics stadium are unsuitable.

Form guide

(Most recent first)
England WLWWL
Australia WLLWW

Watch out for…

Fawad Ahmed has attracted attention in the pre-match build-up because of criticism of Cricket Australia’s willingness to allow him to follow his religious beliefs and not wear a brewers’ logo on his shirt. The discord that has sounded from the wings cannot have eased his integration and he will be eager to do what he does best and remind everybody of his legspin prowess. For England, Ravi Bopara has had a decent summer. He played with a new maturity in the Champions Trophy and that century in Ireland furthered hopes that, at 28, he can yet have a consistently rewarding England career.

Team news

Ben Stokes has the capacity to make the grade as a fully fledged allrounder. He batted as low as No. 8 in Ireland but England have resisted the temptation to award a first cap to Chris Jordan, whose bowling suit is a little stronger. Australia are expected to retain the side that gave Scotland a 200-run thumping.England (possible) 1 Michael Carberry, 2 Kevin Pietersen, 3 Jonathan Trott, 4 Joe Root, 5 Eoin Morgan (capt), 6 Ravi Bopara, 7 Jos Buttler (wk), 8 Ben Stokes, 9 James Tredwell, 10 Boyd Rankin, 11 Steven FinnAustralia (possible) 1 Aaron Finch, 2 Shaun Marsh, 3 Shane Watson, 4 Michael Clarke (capt), 5 George Bailey, 6 Adam Voges, 7 Matthew Wade, 8 James Faulkner, 9 Mitchell Johnson, 10 Clint McKay, 11 Fawad Ahmed

Pitch and conditions

After one of the warmest summers in northern England for many years, the weather has turned a little grouchy, which considering the 10.15am start could make bowling first a big temptation. The Old Trafford pitch was one of the better ones in the Ashes series, although the pace and bounce that was often apparent a few years ago is no longer as common.

Stats and trivia

• England’s last one-day defeat at Old Trafford came in 2006 against Sri Lanka. Since then they have won four in a row, including twice against Australia.
• Australia have won five and lost five of their ten ODIs at the ground.
• George Bailey needs 112 runs to reach 1000 in one-day internationals; Mitchell Johnson is five wickets short of 200.
• Ravi Bopara’s hundred against Ireland took him past Neil Fairbrother, Mike Gatting and Ian Botham on England’s run-scorers list.

Quotes

“My plan is to be annoying, just tick along at that door and hope one day someone comes along and opens it – and I get my chance.”
“He talked up his table tennis, and he’s let himself down a little bit there. That’s probably been a bigger issue for him.”

ESPNcricinfo’s preview of the 2nd SLPL semi-final between Nagenahira Nagas and Kandurata Warriors

The Preview by Andrew Fernando29-Aug-2012

Match facts

Thisara Perera has starred with the bat but Warriors will need him to come good with the ball as well•Ron Gaunt/SPORTZPICS/SLPL

Nagenahira Nagas v Kandurata Warriors, SLPL 2nd semi final
August 29, R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)

Big Picture

Nagenahira Nagas’ four wins in the round-robin have largely followed the same blueprint: the bowling has rallied around Shaminda Eranga, whose quality of performance has closely aligned with the team’s, and when batting, the Nagas have relied on strong contributions from the openers and Angelo Mathews, who has been in fine finishing touch. In the two matches where they have been forced to stray from this gameplan, however, things have come unstuck. In Pallekele, a Mahela Jayawardene special left Eranga and company in tatters, before Uthura Rudras decimated the top order in the next match in Colombo. The Nagas have been impressive despite lacking the kind of marquee players the other teams boast, but they have also been dependant on a few key performers to lift the side.Kandurata Warriors have also relied on a strong attack to put them in the semi-finals, but will be without their player of the tournament Sohail Tanvir, who is in the UAE on national duty, along with their best spinner Saeed Ajmal. The batting is also a concern, particularly as captain Sanath Jayasuriya has been a passenger in the top order. If Thilan Samaraweera can produce another surprisingly explosive start, the Warriors will have a foundation for attacking finisher Thisara Perera to work with.

Round robin results

Nagenahira Nagas
Beat: Ruhuna Royals, Kandurata Warriors, Basnahira Cricket Dundee, Uva Next
Lost to: Wayamba United, Uthura Rudras

Kandurata Warriors
Beat: Uthura Rudras, Ruhuna Royals, Wayamba United
Lost to: Nagenahira Nagas, Basnahira Cricket Dundee
Drew with: Uva Next (match abandoned without a ball being bowled)

Watch out for

Angelo Mathews has shepherded three chases so far, and with the Nagas lacking much in the way of firepower in the middle order, he will have to play a key role if his side is to win the competition. Mathews’ reputation as a leader has also been enhanced through the SLPL, as he has marshalled an inexperienced attack successfully. If he can continue to mix his bowlers up effectively and chip in with economical overs of his own, Nagas’ bowling will remain the strength it has been so far.In the absence of Tanvir and Ajmal, Thisara Perera must now don the responsibility of spearheading the Warriors attack, in a tournament that is yet to see the best of him with the ball. He has been a vastly improved bowler for Sri Lanka over the past twelve months, but the steady seamers that have brought him international success have sometimes been wayward in the SLPL. He has, however, been Warriors’ best batsman, and has rescued the side after an early collapse more than once.

Team news

Mushfiqur Rahim has been among the tidiest wicketkeepers in the tournament, and has contributed with the bat as well. He missed the final round-robin game through injury but the Nagas will be hoping he is fit to play on Wednesday.Nagenahira Nagas: (probable) 1 Imran Nazir, 2 Ahmed Shehzad/ Udara Jayasundera, 3 Travis Birt, 4 Angelo Mathews (capt), 5 TM Sampath (wk)/Musfiqur Rahim (wk), 6 Colin de Grandhomme, 7 Angelo Perera, 8 Suraj Randiv, 9 Shaminda Eranga, 10 Kanishka Alvitigala, 11 Ajantha Mendis
In addition to the Pakistan players, the Warriors have also lost Scott Styris to the Friends Life Twenty20 competition in England, and if he does not return in time, the Warriors face the uncomfortable situation of only having two overseas players to field in the semi-final.Kandurata Warriors: (probable) 1 Thilan Samaraweera, 2 Tharanga Paranavitana, 3 Sanath Jayasuriya (capt), 4 Chris Lynn, 5 Scott Styris/ Jeevantha Kulatunga, 6 Thisara Perera, 7 Kaushal Silva (wk), 8 Kaushal Lokuarachchi, 9 John Hastings, 10 Kosala Kulasekara, 11 Chanaka Welegedara

Quotes

“We don’t have big name players, but we play as a team and I think that’s our biggest strength. We’ve proven that we can take on teams with the big players.”
“I’ve worked hard to improve my power and my range of scoring shots, so it’s good to see it paying off.”

Rahul Dravid, who made a surprise comeback into India’s limited-overs squad for the five-match ODI series after two years out of the side, has said he will retire from one-dayers after the England tour

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Aug-2011Rahul Dravid has announced his retirement from international limited-overs cricket following the England series. In his announcement, which came hours after he was handed a shock recall to the one-day side for that tour, he said he wanted to retire from the shorter forms and concentrate on Test cricket.Dravid, 38, is the seventh highest run-getter in ODIs, with 10,765 runs in 339 matches, averaging just under 40. He hasn’t been a regular in the Indian one-day side since late 2007 – a couple of months after he reached his career-high ICC ranking of No. 5 – though he made a brief comeback during the 2009 Champions Trophy in South Africa. He admitted he hadn’t expected a recall for the upcoming England series.”Since I had not been picked for one-day cricket for the last two years, I was obviously a little surprised,” he said after India’s tour match against Northamptonshire. “To be honest, because I had not been picked, I had not informed the selectors or the board of my desire to solely focus on Test cricket.”At the end of this one-day series, I would like to announce my retirement from one-day and Twenty20 cricket and concentrate only on Test cricket. I am committed, as always to give my best to India in this one-day series and obviously the Test series that follows.”In the short term I am committed because now I have been picked for the series, but in the long term I think it is best for me and Indian cricket that I focus on Test cricket.”Dravid recently became the second highest run-getter in Tests, and has had a resurgence in form over the past couple of months, scoring three centuries in five Tests to end a relatively lean run in the last few years.When he started his international career in 1996, he was seen as a batsman more suited to the longer form but he soon adapted to the challenges of one-day cricket. Among the highlights of his ODI career was the 1999 World Cup, where he was the top scorer and put on the then largest partnership in a one-dayer, 318 with Sourav Ganguly. Six months later he bettered that with a 331-run stand with Sachin Tendulkar that is still the biggest in the format.As in his Test career, he routinely fitted into roles the team needed him to, notably in the 2003 World Cup, where in order to accommodate an extra batsman in the side, he took over the wicketkeeping duties. One of the lows of his career was the 2007 World Cup, when under his leadership, India crashed out in the first round.

Dominic Cork admitted he was considering his future in the game after captaining a young Hampshire side to the Friends Provident t20 title

Cricinfo staff15-Aug-2010Dominic Cork admitted he was considering his future in the game after captaining a young Hampshire side to the Friends Provident t20 title on Saturday evening.Cork turned 39 earlier this month but played a pivotal role on finals day – knocking international stars such as Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann off the headlines. Hampshire snuck over the line in an extraordinary finish at the Rose Bowl with the injured Daniel Christian scrambling a leg bye off the last ball of the game to level the scores and win by virtue of fewer wickets lost. Hampshire ended five wickets down while Somerset lost six wickets in their innings thanks to Cork taking two for three runs in the 20th over.It scripted what could be a fitting finale to a career stacked with triumphs but Cork is unsure whether he is ready to part ways with the game after being offered a new contract by Hampshire.”I’ve been offered a deal for next year. I have been offered a contract,” he said. “Ali Brown, Robert Croft, Mark Ramprakash … they’re all over 40 and I’m 39. But as long as I’m physically okay and feel I can make a difference I want to play. I don’t want to be picked because of what I’ve done in the past, I want to be picked because I can make that difference and if I believe I can do that I’ll carry on.”If I don’t think that then it’s time to let some of the youngsters take the ball and have a good time because it’s been a great career. I’m going to think about it and I’m sure I’ll make the right decision for myself and for Hampshire as well.”

She had finished last season as the Player of the Tournament in Thunder’s fourth-place finish

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Aug-2024Sydney Thunder have secured Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu’s services for the next three seasons via a pre-draft signing ahead of WBBL 2024-25, which is set to begin on October 27.Athapaththu, who played for Thunder last season as an undrafted player, filled the fourth overseas slot on their roster. She finished the season with a Player-of-the-Tournament performance in Thunder’s fourth-place finish, scoring 552 runs at 42.46 and taking nine wickets.”Committing to Sydney Thunder for the next three seasons was an easy decision because I believe in the vision of this club, and I want to be part of its future success,” Athapaththu said.Related

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“There’s so much to love about my Sydney Thunder family. My team-mates are not just colleagues; they are friends who push each other to be better every day, [which] is important to me. Western Sydney is the heart and soul of Sydney Thunder and representing such a diverse and vibrant community is a privilege to have. It’s been an incredible journey so far, and I’m so excited for what’s ahead.”Unlike in previous seasons where overseas players in the WBBL were contracted on a one-year basis, Athapaththu has signed under the league’s new multi-year contract provision. It allows each club to sign one overseas player for up to three years outside of the draft, which will take place on September 1″Chamari is obviously an exceptional cricket player, but she is also an exceptional human being who is team first and fan first,” Sydney Thunder general manager Trent Copeland said. “We know other teams were interested in signing her, but we made every effort to ensure she came back. To see the way she embraced and engaged with our members and fans last summer was something pretty special and on the field she had one of the WBBL’s great seasons.”Athapaththu has had stints in the WBBL previously with Melbourne Renegades and Perth Scorchers. Last season, after not being selected in the draft, she was added to the Thunder squad as cover for their three overseas players. Thunder open their 2024-25 campaign against Hobart Hurricanes on October 28.

Sydney Thunder updated squad

Chamari Athapaththu, Samantha Bates, Hannah Darlington, Saskia Horley, Anika Learoyd, Phoebe Litchfield, Claire Moore, Taneale Peschel, Georgia Voll, Tahlia Wilson

Former players weigh in on the controversial dismissal at The Oval

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jun-20231:37

Was Cameron Green’s grab out or not?

Shubman Gill’s dismissal in India’s second innings of the World Test Championship final sparked debate over whether the catch taken by Cameron Green at gully was clean or not.It was a spectacular effort from the 6’7″ Green once again. He had taken a high one-handed blinder with his right hand in India’s first innings to dismiss Ajinkya Rahane, and here he had to dive low to his left and pluck the ball milliseconds before it hit the turf. Replays though suggested it was a close call.Both Gill and his opening partner Rohit Sharma had seen the edge dying on its way to the cordon, so they waited, bringing the TV umpire into play. Previously, contentious catches referred to the TV umpire used to come with a soft signal – out or not out – from the on-field umpires, and there needed to be conclusive evidence to overturn the on-field decision. The ICC has only just scrapped the soft-signal rule, and this was the first instance of a TV umpire adjudicating a contentious catch on his own. In this case the TV umpire Richard Kettleborough saw enough from the visuals to suggest Green had got his fingers under the ball.Rohit didn’t agree though. He seemed to mouth an audible “No” as the “Out” flashed on the big screen at The Oval. Gill, also, put out a tweet after the day’s play, using emojis that suggested he did not believe it was a clean catch. The replays on the broadcast lost a frame between Green catching with his fingers underneath the ball as he fell to the grass and then throwing it up in celebration. Did the ball in that frame – as he rolled his hand over – touch the turf? There seemed to be no conclusive evidence to say either way, and both of ESPNcricinfo’s Match Day experts – Sanjay Manjrekar and Brad Haddin – were of the opinion the right decision had been made.”When you see it real time, it is very important thing to see and something I have advocated to a lot of people about when there is a review for a low catch that goes upstairs to the TV umpire, they get a lot of angles and the frozen image is something that sets the cat among the pigeons,” Manjrekar said. “The viewers see the frozen image and see the leather touching the turf … in real time, it looked like a pretty brilliant catch, just a nice motion. If you ask me if that was a catch, I’d say, yes, brilliant catch.”Haddin said: “I thought it was a clean catch and Green got his fingers underneath the ball. I like it at real time because if you slow it down too much and look at different frames, it can create a lot of doubt. In this case, he had his fingers under the ball and it was a clean catch.”The catch that Cameron Green took to dismiss Shubman Gill•Getty Images

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting also agreed with the interpretation that it was a fair catch. “When I saw it live, I knew it had carried to him on the full, but I wasn’t sure what the action was after that from all replays we have seen,” he told the ICC. “I actually think some part of the ball did touch the ground and it is the interpretation of the umpire that as long as the fielder has complete control of the ball before the ball hits the ground then it is out. That must have been what the umpires’ interpretation was and I think that is exactly what happened. It carried probably six or eight inches off the ground then there was another action after that.”Former India allrounder and coach Ravi Shastri, speaking after the day’s play, said two fingers under the ball often means the ball has touched the ground but, in this case, he could certainly see why the umpire when with the out decision. “If I saw what I saw there as the third umpire, it’s very difficult to say that the ball hit the ground, because you could see the two fingers under it,” Shastri told Star Sports. “I’ve always believed when it comes up with two fingers, the chances of the ball touching the ground are much more as opposed to three fingers, where the three fingers come under the ball. So what I can see of Cameron Green there, there are two fingers. So it’s a tough one, but you go down the umpire’s route, he has to be convinced that the ball has touched the ground.”And let’s not forget, he has got giant fingers, he’s a big fellow, and you can see the angle of the fingers, it’s under the ball. You’ve got the thumb on top, the fingers are wrapped around the ball. Richard Kettleborough, I can see where he’s coming from.”Former Australia opener and coach Justin Langer, on the same segment on Star Sports, agreed with Shastri’s assessment. “Richard Kettleborough is a world-class umpire, and what he goes on, he had to probably give it out. The other thing that I always find interesting is the initial reaction of the fielder. Cameron Green got underneath it and was convinced he had caught it. Often if there’s any doubt, you can see it in the body language of the fielder.”Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh and former India batter Virender Sehwag both said the replays viewed by the third umpire were inconclusive, and giving the batter out based on those visuals was incorrect. “Inconclusive evidence. When in doubt, it’s not out,” Sehwag tweeted, while Harbhajan told PTI: “The replay was inconclusive. They should have zoomed in on his fingers closely before taking the call. It could cost India dearly in the run chase.”That was the last action before the tea interval on the fourth day, with the players leaving the field to boos from the largely Indian crowd. Gill fell for 18 off 19 with his team 41 for 1 in 7.1 overs in a chase of 444.

Tailender Corey Rocchiccioli’s 28-ball 50 pushed Western Australia to 386, before Pucovski made 59 in Victoria’s reply

Alex Malcolm01-Apr-2022A brilliant five-wicket haul from Will Sutherland, and a half-century from Will Pucovski helped drag Victoria back into the Sheffield Shield final against Western Australia on the second day at the WACA.Sutherland’s third Shield five-wicket haul saw Western Australia bowled out for just 386 after beginning the second day at a solid 3 for 290. His withering spell in the morning was vital for Victoria as the ball nipped and swung prodigiously under cloudy skies after barely moving for large portions of the opening day.Western Australia’s total could have been even less without a spectacular 28-ball 50 from No.10 Corey Rocchiccioli. It was the first half-century by a No.10 in Shield final history, and was made all the more extraordinary by the fact he had faced just eight balls and scored one run without being dismissed in his only three Shield matches prior to the final. Rocchiccioli had also never made more than 38 in first-grade cricket for his Perth premier cricket club university.In reply, Victoria batted sensibly in the afternoon against some very consistent bowling, with Pucovski making a composed 59. But at the end of the day, Western Australia’s quicks managed to restrict Victoria’s run rate to 2.53, leaving them in danger of falling well short of Western Australia’s first-innings bonus-point tally, something which could decide the Shield if the match ends in a draw.Western Australia lost 4 for 17 in the first 12 overs of the day, with Sutherland nicking off nightwatchman Matt Kelly, 17-year-old Teague Wyllie – who was playing just his second game – and wicketkeeper-batter Josh Philippe in quick succession. Kelly was squared up by a ball that leapt from a length and nicked to second slip, where Peter Handscomb took a Shield record 24th catch for the season for a non-wicketkeeper, before finishing the day with one more.Wyllie and Philippe fell in almost identical fashion, with Sutherland going wide of the crease to both right-handers to angle into off stump. Both were caught on the crease as the ball straightened a fraction to catch the edge, as Matt Short held two simple catches at first slip.Will Pucovski scored 59 in Victoria’s reply with the bat•Getty Images

In between, Cameron Bancroft, the hero of the opening day, was strangled down the leg side by Scott Boland, falling a touch too far across as he glanced too fine and Sam Harper moved superbly to his left to take the catch. Bancroft finished with an outstanding 141 from 269 balls with 17 fours.Western Australia then slumped to 8 for 322 when Aaron Hardie attempted a booming drive off a Mitch Perry outswinger to be caught behind.But Rocchiccioli, Joel Paris and Lance Morris added 64 for the last two wickets, with Rocchiccioli producing a staggering rearguard. He clubbed four fours and two sixes to reach 50 off 28 balls. Although he had nicked a couple to third man to get his innings underway, Rocchiccioli then unfurled some sensational hitting by slog sweeping Jon Holland for six, and hooking Perry into the stands.Rocchiccioli brought up his half-century with a heave to long-on, and celebrated with a huge smile having reached his highest score at any level of cricket in nearly five years. He was clean bowled next ball trying to launch Sutherland into the Lillee-Marsh Stand to hand the Victorian quick his fifth wicket.Victoria’s openers then started steadily with a 75-run stand against a disciplined Western Australia attack. They had to survive four consecutive maidens at one stage, with Travis Dean fortunate not to fall after Bancroft spilled a low chance to his left at second slip off Kelly.Pucovski looked superb at the other end, producing two silky on drives and a classy cut shot. Dean was less assured and fell not long after tea to an excellent piece of captaincy from Shaun Marsh. He put in a short leg after Dean had inside edged several balls onto his pad. Hardie got one to bounce and seam a touch more, and the inside edge bobbled off his pad to short leg where Wyllie dived forward to take a very good catch.Pucovski remained unflustered, reaching 50 from 107 balls with five fours. But Paris found a way through his rock-solid defence, snaking one back from around the wicket through the gate to scratch the inside edge and hand Philippe a simple catch behind.Victoria’s scoring slowed to a crawl thereafter, and Short’s tortured stay ended as he edged Hardie to second slip for 10 off 45 balls with Bancroft making amends for his earlier miss pouching the chance at full stretch to his right. That is when Perry came in as nightwatchman and did his job.Handscomb played nicely to finish on 39* at stumps, but Victoria remained 239 runs behind with just 42 overs left tomorrow to overcome a 0.77 bonus-point deficit, with 0.01 points accrued for every run scored over 200 inside the first 100 overs, as Western Australia look to add 0.1 to their tally with every wicket taken in the same period.