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Hosts Pakistan set to take on Nepal in tournament opener on August 30 in the latest version of the draft schedule

Nagraj Gollapudi19-Jul-2023Pakistan are set to play India on September 2 in Kandy in the 2023 Asia Cup, which is scheduled to start on August 30, a day earlier than originally planned by the Asian Cricket Council (ACC). ESPNcricinfo has learnt the tournament opener will be played in Multan with hosts Pakistan playing Nepal with the final scheduled in Colombo on September 17.Those matches feature in the latest version of the draft schedule which is likely to see further changes before the ACC announces the final version. The original draft schedule, prepared by the PCB (the hosting board), has already undergone several iterations mainly because of the six-nation tournament being played in Pakistan and Sri Lanka based on the hybrid model approved by the ACC recently.Related

• Misbah: 'Unfair to people' if Pakistan don't travel to India for World Cup

• Four Asia Cup matches in Pakistan; remaining nine in SL

A total of 13 matches will be played in the tournament. Pakistan are grouped with India and Nepal in Group A while Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan are in Group B. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the Super Four stage with the top two teams in this phase advancing to the final. The Asia Cup, which will be played in the 50-overs format this time, is essentially a preparation run for five of the six teams – barring Nepal – for the ODI World Cup which begins from October 5 in India.As per the original model, which was prepared by the PCB, Pakistan were meant to host four matches in just one city. However, Multan was added as the second venue after a new PCB administration, under new chairman Zaka Ashraf, took over this month. In the draft schedule, Multan is scheduled to host just the opening match with Lahore staging three matches and one Super Fours game.Bangladesh are slotted to play Afghanistan on September 3 in Lahore followed by Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan at the Gaddafi Stadium on September 5. The draft schedule also points out that regardless of where they finish in the first round, Pakistan will remain A1 and India A2 while Sri Lanka will be B1 and Bangladesh B2. In case Nepal and Afghanistan qualify for the Super Four stage, they will take the slot of the team knocked out (Pakistan or India in Group A and Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in Group B).The only Super Fours match listed in the draft schedule to be played in Pakistan is on September 6 between A1 and B2. In case both Pakistan and India advance to the Super Four stage, they will play again on September 10 in Kandy. Dambulla is the other Sri Lankan venue listed to host three matches in the Super 4s stage.

Marnus Labuschagne’s legspin in the wickets to limit visitors’ progress

ECB Reporters Network05-May-2022Leicestershire finished day one of their LV= Insurance County Championship match against Glamorgan in Cardiff on 285 for 7 with the visitors losing six wickets for 117 runs after tea.A career best 82 from Rishi Patel and a well-made 64 from Hassan Azad had given the Leicestershire hope of setting a competitive first innings score for the first time this season but a frantic evening session so those hopes fade.The visitors were well placed at tea on 168 for two before wickets for Marnus Labuschagne and two preventable run-outs meant that their middle order made limited impact.When Patel was bowled by James Harris, chopping on while attempting a cut shot, Leicestershire had lost their top order and were still short of passing 300 for the first time in the Championship this season.Having won the toss and put Leicestershire into bat Glamorgan would have been hoping for some early wickets to justify that decision. This was not to be with Leicestershire making slow but steady progress as they reached lunch at 82 for 0.Glamorgan went into this game with six seam-bowling options, but it was the part-time spin of Labuschagne who made the breakthrough. Sam Evans came down the pitch to a ball that turned just enough to go past the outside edge and Chris Cooke completed a simple stumping.Labuschagne could have dismissed Azad when the batter was on 46 but David Lloyd failed to hold on to a chance in the slips. Azad made it to 64 and looked completely untroubled before he was run out by a sharp throw from the boundary by Sam Northeast.Patel came into this side for Colin Ackermann who missed out on this match due to an injured thumb. Patel has had some misfortune himself this season with illness and then injury preventing him from making a first team appearance in 2022 until this match. From the very start of his innings he looked in fine touch as he passed fifty for the first time in his first-class career.While Patel stood firm it was chaotic at the other end with the run out of Azad and Labuschagne picking up the wickets of Wiaan Mulder and Scott Steel in consecutive balls.The new ball brought more wickets with Michael Neser, Harris and James Weighell all chipping in to cause more damage to the Leicestershire batting lineup. .Barring some late order brilliance, Leicestershire will be looking to fight their way back into a match. Given how well things had gone for Leicestershire in the first half of the day Glamorgan will be delighted with their efforts after the tea break.

The postponement is the third major incident to affect domestic cricket this summer

Firdose Moonda17-Dec-2020South Africa’s final round of four-day domestic franchise fixtures in 2020 have been postponed after a spate of Covid-19 cases in the midst of the country’s second wave of the pandemic. The matches will be replayed in 2021, with domestic cricket on pause until the start of the One Day cup, on January 8.ESPNcricinfo had earlier reported that 10 of South Africa’s 16-man squad participated in matches where positive cases of coronavirus were detected, putting their participation for the first Test against Sri Lanka in doubt. As a result, with several players infected across at least two of the six franchises, CSA could not take the risk of having the round that was scheduled to start on Sunday go ahead.That means matches between the Knights and the Cobras at Newlands, between the Warriors and Dolphins in Port Elizabeth, and between the Lions and Titans in Johannesburg will be played at a later stage. All three venues are in provinces where infections are climbing at a higher rate than anywhere else in the country, which is how CSA explained their decision for the games not to go ahead.”The decision to postpone the upcoming round of four-day matches, which were scheduled from 20-23 December, comes in light of the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic which is currently affecting South Africa. In addition, some of the host stadiums are in Covid-19 hotspots,” a CSA statement read.Further, CSA has one eye on the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka and would not want to incur further infections before that begins, which resulted in putting the breaks on the domestic game. Those in the national squad, including the 10 who were involved in the Covid-19 affected matches, have been tested today and will be tested two more times before being given the all-clear to play.South Africa are due to go into camp on Saturday, when they will be tested and isolated in their rooms, with training to take place on a one-on-one basis for the first 72 hours.They will then be tested again on Tuesday ahead of the first day of the series next Thursday.”CSA is committed to mitigating the impact of COVID-19 on the 2020-21 season, with the upcoming two-match Test Series between South Africa and Sri Lanka being played in a bio-secure environment, which is a more controlled space than the domestic competition,” Graeme Smith, director of cricket said.The postponement of this round of fixtures is the third major incident to affect domestic cricket this summer. Six players from the Warriors were forced out of the first two rounds of competition after two tested positive and four were deemed close contacts. The Warriors lost both matches.Then, earlier this week, the match between the Titans and Dolphins was called off after the first day’s play when a Dolphins player tested positive for coronavirus. At least five others from the franchise are also infected, as well as two who returned positive tests before the team traveled to play the Titans, and three others who were close contacts of the player who tested positive on day one.No decision has been made on when or whether the match will be replayed or if it will be declared a draw, with points shared. The other match affected was between the Lions and the Knights, in which a Lions player tested positive on the third day but the fixture ran to completion.

The record for highest CPL total was broken twice on the same night as Patriots completed the second-highest T20 chase of all time

The Report by Varun Shetty11-Sep-2019
A rollicking run-fest at Warner Park in Basseterre ended with the second-highest successful T20 chase of all time, with hosts St Kitts and Nevis Patriots scaling down Jamaica Tallawahs’ 241 for 4 with seven balls to spare. The batting records tumbled on a night when the CPL got two highest team totals in a matter of hours. In all, 37 sixes were hit in the match, the joint-most in T20 cricket. Patriots’ win also resulted in the first points taken by a team other than Guyana Amazon Warriors and Trinbago Knight Riders this CPL.Chris Gayle held the largest share of that, hitting ten sixes during his 22nd T20 century in the company of Chadwick Walton, whose 36-ball 73 came in a record CPL stand of 162. But Evin Lewis set the chase rolling with the fastest CPL fifty, off 17 balls, and the rest of the top four put in significant performances as Patriots overcame a late stumble to complete the win.Patriots hand the advantage earlyAfter a delayed start due to broadcast issues, Patriots opted to open the bowling with the left-arm spin of Fabian Allen. This played into the hands of Gayle, who hit him for two sixes and a four within the first four balls. In the second over, Alzarri Joseph bowled two bouncers to concede a no-ball, bowled a wide off the free hit, and then a short ball to give away a four. Without any risks, Tallawahs got 26 off the first two and put the pressure on Patriots.A record partnership, a record totalDespite the early damage, Patriots enforced a brief period of quiet by bowling their seamers for seven overs in a row, including bowling six straight dot balls from Carlos Brathwaite to Walton at the start of his innings. But when legspinner Usama Mir came on, the shackles were broken again. Walton hit him for two glorious straight sixes in an over that went for 19, and the pair didn’t relent from there. Walton kept the rate up when Gayle was kept quiet, with stylish strokes straight over the bowlers, and one especially inventive ramp over third man.Mir’s second over set Gayle free, the flat trajectory landing nicely in his arc as he lifted him over long-on in a 15-run over. With runs coming quickly from both ends, Patriots’ haphazard bowling plans were put under even more pressure. From the 11th to the 16th overs, Tallawahs hammered 13 sixes and one four. Only in one over during that period did an over go for under two sixes.Chris Gayle and Chadwick Walton fist-bump during their partnership•CPL T20 via Getty Images

In a rare quiet 17th over, Gayle brought up his 22nd T20 hundred, and off the next ball, the pair took a double that brought up the highest CPL partnership for any wicket – 162. Walton holed out against Joseph, Gayle off Allen – who also dismissed Andre Russell – in the last over for 116 off 62 balls. But it was too late by then. The last ten overs had leaked 153 and Tallawahs had reached a record CPL total.Patriots fly in the chaseThe record-breaking streak continued into the Patriots innings, with the pitch proving with every over that it had nothing for the bowlers. Lewis picked the off side against both Jerome Taylor and offspinner Steven Jacobs, hitting delightful sixes square off the former, and attacking the straight boundaries off the latter. Opening with the promoted Devon Thomas, Lewis smashed 53 off 18 balls and was dismissed with the score on 85 in 5.3 overs. With 89, Patriots had the second-highest Powerplay score in the CPL.The wicket didn’t put a stop to the scoring. At No. 3, Laurie Evans began with a four first ball and continued the attack with Thomas. He was fed several leg-stump deliveries, some of them duly put away for sixes, as Thomas was characteristically more deft with his scoring options, trying to pick the gaps in the field to hit more fours than sixes. They put on 76 off 39 before Evans’ check-shot found sweeper cover at the end of the 12th over. At that point, they needed 81 off eight overs, far below the original asking rate of 12.10.Allen shows how it’s doneWicketkeeper Glenn Phillips took a sensational flying catch to his right, one-handed, as Thomas’ attempted slog against Oshane took a big outside edge. It turned out to be the first of three wickets in the 14th over, which had begun with Patriots needing 66 from 42 with eight wickets in hand. Captain Carlos Brathwaite slapped one to sweeper cover and Jason Mohammed edged one down the leg side trying to pull, for a three-ball duck. From 161 for 1, Patriots stumbled to 177 for 5.From being favourites, Patriots seemed to be slipping, with their coaching staff visibly frustrated at what seemed to be a compulsion to play big shots. But Allen alleviated any anxieties from the Oshane over, playing two controlled shots – a classy drive past mid-off and a cut past point – to pick up fours off consecutive balls against Russell.At the other end, Shamarh Brooks survived after swinging and missing at a few, before he too found the boundaries in an important 15-ball 27. When he fell in the penultimate over, with Patriots needing 15 from 12, Brooks and Allen had already put up 50. Soon, Allen pulled Russell over midwicket, cut him past point, and hooked him over short fine leg to seal the victory without needing the last over. Allen’s unbeaten 15-ball 37 came at a remarkable strike rate of 246.66, considering how chanceless and risk-free his innings had been.

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.