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Kohli lends support to Williamson; lauds his ability to bring the team together

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Jan-20203:41

‘Australia tour was a humbling experience’ – Williamson

Kane Williamson is open to the possibility of playing under another captain if it results in the betterment of New Zealand cricket. However, he also said he has been enjoying the captaincy across formats.”For me it’s always been about what’s best for the team,” Williamson said. “If those discussions [about captaincy changes] are to eventuate and collectively there’s a thought that it would be best for the team, then my stance is whatever is right and fits the group.”Williamson took over as captain across formats in 2016, and has had to deal with scrutiny after New Zealand’s 3-0 Test series whitewash in Australia. His poor returns with the bat was even linked to his workload.Ahead of a full home series against India, Williamson responded to the captaincy concerns. For starters, he understands the criticism and scrutiny that come with the role.”I’m always open to whatever is going to help move the team in those directions,” he said. “Without a doubt, there are a number of challenges that come throughout that period that you’ve been in the job.”I’ve been in it for some time now and you are forever dealing with those challenges and that’ll always be a bit different. It’s part and parcel of the job, but for me the focus is very much trying to help the team to grow and move in the right direction. That’s been the focus from day one”His leadership was openly criticised by Brendon McCullum during the Australia series. The former New Zealand captain felt Williamson was being a “reluctant leader at times” and that he wasn’t perhaps enjoying captaincy as much.For Williamson, captaincy is simply an extension of being part of a core leadership group, even before he formally assumed the role.”Even prior to captaincy I was fortunate to somehow be in the leadership role. I do feel fortunate to be leading such a great group of guys that share a similar passion, which is to keep moving this team forward,” Williamson said. “I’m not the only one that is trying to lead that.”There are a number of other guys, senior players and some younger guys who also obviously share the passion. The leadership thing is a collective approach. It is enjoyable and you do learn so much about yourself and about the team.”ALSO READ: India T20Is a chance to test New Zealand’s depth – TaylorEarlier, Williamson’s team-mate and senior batsman Ross Taylor had jumped to his defence, suggesting that taking breaks instead of giving up the role altogether could help him better. On Thursday, Williamson received support from his Indian counterpart Virat Kohli.”I don’t think leadership can always be determined by the results,” Kohli said at his arrival press conference in Auckland. “It’s also about how you get the team together and get the guys functioning under you as well, which Kane has done wonderfully well. I think he has the respect of his team-mates and he has the trust of his team-mates, that is what I can see.”And he is obviously a very, very smart cricketer. But if a team outplays you, you have to accept it as a collective failure, and not necessarily a lack of leadership or captaincy. I don’t think it’s fair to pressurise him.”It’s only fair that he is given space to sort of figure out himself whether he wants to continue or he wants someone fresh to take over, because I’m sure he is thinking in the best interest of New Zealand cricket and the team as well.”He has taken the team to the finals and as much as I know him, he reads the game very well. I think it should be left up to the guy who is most responsible for the team to take that decision and I’m sure that his heart and mind is in the right place.”

Setting aside the ongoing negotiations, the PCB CFO asked the teams to fulfil their outstanding financial obligations, failing which they stand to lose their bank guarantees

Umar Farooq29-Nov-2018PSL franchises have been asked by the PCB to clear all outstanding dues by next week, despite ongoing negotiations between them to re-look at the financial model underpinning the league.The PCB’s chief finance officer Badar Manzoor Khan has asked in an email seen by ESPNcricinfo that all the teams pay up by December 3, failing which the board reserves the right to encash the franchises’ bank guarantees.The move has angered franchises who, in their recent meeting with the PCB in Islamabad, had formed a three-member committee to revisit the revenue-share model on which the PSL was founded, including an effort to gain tax breaks from the government. The email asking for payment has come even as the committee works towards a resolution.One of the primary bones of contention is the franchise fee they pay every year, mainly because those payments are required to be made in US dollars. The value of the rupee, fairly stable against the dollar over the first three years of the PSL at around PKR 105 per dollar, has gone to PKR 134 now.Though all the teams signed a ten-year contract in November 2015, according to which they were liable to pay in US dollars, the franchises want to peg the rate to 2015 standards or pay in Pakistani rupees at the same rate when the contracts were signed. None of the franchises have broken even so far, crippled they feel, by the exchange rate as well as the taxes they are having to pay.The first set of commercial and sponsorship rights deals the PSL signed when it launched have now ended, and with enhanced deals now being inked in, as well as the scare caused by Multan Sultans’ financial meltdown, the remaining five have sensed this is the time to push for a greater slice of the revenue pool. The current financial model adopted by the PCB in 2016 offers equal shares from a central revenue pool to all franchises, despite the difference in franchise fees.After Multan Sultans’ ouster, the PCB is yet to invite a tender to bring in an owner for the sixth side, but various investors in Pakistan including Ali Tareen – the son of Jahangir Khan Tareen, a key figure in the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party – and Aqeel Karim Dhedhi, a prominent businessman, are among those to have shown their interest. The sixth team is presently being regulated by the PCB on its own and with the tender, the board will transfer the ownership to the buyers, allowing them to choose the name of the city.

Henry Nicholls ended a lean series with an innings of 94, but there was little else for New Zealand A to feel pleased about as they lost their last nine wickets for 86 runs

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Oct-2017Getty Images

Karn Sharma took his third five-wicket haul in four matches as India A wrapped up a 2-0 series win with an innings-and-26-run demolition of New Zealand A in Vijayawada. Since the start of the Duleep Trophy last month, the legspinner has taken 31 wickets in four first-class games at an average of 15.29.New Zealand A began the fourth day at 104 for 1, needing a further 132 to make India bat again. Jeet Raval and Henry Nicholls were both well-established at the crease, having put on 85 for the second wicket. They had extended their partnership for a further 11.3 overs when Raval was lbw to the left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem for 47.That wicket opened the floodgates, as Nadeem and Karn ran through the visitors, who lost their last nine wickets for 86 runs. Apart from Nicholls and Raval, no other batsman got to 15.Nicholls was sixth out, ending an otherwise lean series – he had made 5, 1 and 0 in his three previous innings – with a 190-ball 94 containing 11 fours and a six.

Darren Stevens admitted his disappointment after his side had closed on 397 for 9 for an overall lead of 186 at the mid-point of this the 165th Canterbury Cricket Week fixture

ECB Reporters Network04-Aug-2016
ScorecardDarren Stevens fell short of his century but carried Kent to a strong position•Getty Images

Kent’s beneficiary Darren Stevens was already ‘suited and booted’ by the close of play having top-scored with 81 during Kent’s fascinating Specsavers County Championship tussle with promotion-chasing Worcestershire.With a benefit dinner at the Shepherd Neame Brewery in Faversham awaiting him, Stevens admitted his disappointment after his side had closed on 397 for 9 for an overall lead of 186 at the mid-point of this the 165th Canterbury Cricket Week fixture.”We’re disappointed with our day’s work to be fair. I got in, Dickson and Denly did too, but we all got out without going on to get a big score,” said the former Leicestershire batsman.”Yes, we’ve got a nice little lead, but we only wanted to be four or five wickets won at this stage. Personally I’m disappointed. I started counting down to my hundred and it proved a big mistake. It’ll be the last time I ever do that and I’m really gutted to miss out on three figures.”If I were still there at the end of the day I’d be sitting pretty on 140 not out and the side would have a 220 lead. We should be in a stronger position.”The 40-year-old all-rounder batted 142 minutes and hit 12 fours and a six which, in tandem with half-centuries by Sean Dickson and Will Gidman – the latter on loan from Nottinghamshire and on his Kent county championship debut – ensured that the hosts will go into day three in a fairly dominant position.Resuming on their overnight score of 55 without loss in response to Worcestershire’s 211 all out, Kent lost three first-session wickets as batsmen again struggled to bat long-term on a spicy Canterbury pitch.Daniel Bell-Drummond, celebrating his 23rd birthday, added only seven to his first-day score before becoming the first casualty of Ladies Day at the world’s oldest cricket festival.The right-hander fenced a Kyle Abbott leg-cutter to second slip, where Ross Whiteley held onto the good catch diving to his left in front of first slip to make it 74 for 1.Joe Denly moved smoothly to 21 before having his off stump trimmed by a Charlie Morris yorker then Sam Northeast spooned a catch to cover off a leading edge to gift Ed Barnard a wicket and leave centre stage marooned on 995 county championship runs for the summer.At the other end Dickson, Kent’s South African-born right-hander, posted a 106-ball half-century with nine fours – his fourth 50 of the county championship campaign.Having taken his side in at lunch on 152 for 3, Dickson added only two to his interval score before chopping on against Ed Barnard to go for a well-made 77.Sam Billings and Stevens then teamed up to add an attractive 40 runs inside 13 overs before Billings, on 33, edged an attempted cut to the keeper off the bowling of Charlie Morris with Kent still trailing by two on first innings.Stevens and Alex Blake took the hosts into profit before Blake (9) lamely chipped to short mid-wicket off the bowling of Joe Leach with Kent seven short of their second batting bonus point.Stevens marched on to a 67 ball 50 with six fours and a six, the 69th half-century of his career but only the fourth of this somewhat barren benefit summer.Soon after tea and only 19 from is maiden ton of the summer Stevens slapped one to cover off the bowling of Joe Leach then James Tredwell gloved a half-hearted pull to the keeper to go for 9.The Kent tail wagged however, as Gidman and Matt Coles combined to add 51 inside 14 overs before left-handed Coles holed out to cow corner.Gidman was still unbeaten at the close however, having posted his maiden Championship 50 for Kent from 86 balls and with five fours.

The gap between Bangladesh and South Africa in terms of experience and performance is significant but the home captain Mashrafe Mortaza has urged his team to play fearless cricket

Mohammad Isam04-Jul-2015The gap between Bangladesh and South Africa in terms of experience and performance is significant but the home captain Mashrafe Mortaza has urged his team to play fearless cricket.South Africa are the second-most successful T20 team in international cricket apart from being one of the five teams to have played at least 75 T20s. Bangladesh languish below Ireland, Netherlands and Afghanistan in terms of wins and have only played 42 matches in this format since 2006. While many of the South Africans play in the IPL, Bangladesh haven’t had a domestic T20 competition since December 2013 and their only T20 moment of note is the win over Pakistan in April, their only T20 game since they hosted the World T20 in 2014.Mashrafe is also keen to see how his team, which is full of confidence after ODI series wins at home against Pakistan and India, reacts against such strong opposition.”South Africa have a number of players who can single-handedly win them a T20,” Mashrafe said. “We don’t have many such players but if we can play as a team and maintain our consistency, we will do well. We have to play with guts. T20 is a game of courage. We have only one option: to play with self-belief. It would be better to sit at home if we are fearing them. It can happen so in that case we should keep that off the field.”What happened in the past will certainly not be of any help. What we did in the last series won’t come to use either. On the day, we have to start and finish well. If we are consistent, it will give us confidence. We don’t have a good record and we play very few T20s. We have only one experienced T20 player and that’s Shakib [Al Hasan]. They have 8-10 players who regularly play T20s across the world. They are ahead of us in that regard. But it is only a piece of statistics. It will be a different game altogether when we play well in the middle.”Mashrafe is pinning his hopes on his bowlers keeping South Africa to around 160, and said he was happy to see the pace bowlers come to the fore after years of spin being Bangladesh’s only bowling strength.”We have been reliant on spin for around 10-15 years but since the Zimbabwe series, we have been getting positives out of using three pace bowlers in the XI. Spin is still our strength but pacers are also contributing in a big way. We have to ensure our best possible combination is out in the field.”Our bowlers can win us the game. India can chase 300-plus totals but our bowlers were outstanding in that game. Of course our batsmen are doing well but I still feel our bowlers can win us a T20. If a team scores 200 it would be hard for us to chase. Our batsmen will find themselves in the game when the opposition can be restricted to around 150-160.”On Friday, Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusingha said it was an exciting time to be a Bangladeshi cricketer, given how much their team was winning against higher-ranked opposition. “I think it is an exciting time for Bangladesh,” he said. “I mean it is always good to win but the way we are playing and winning is more exciting.”

As England threatened to suffer only their fourth wicketless day in Test history, England’s bowling coach, David Saker, must have been tempted by the vacant director of cricket role at Warwickshire

George Dobell in Nagpur15-Dec-2012On wearing days in India like this, with England for a long period looking as if they would spend a day in the field without taking a wicket for just the fourth time in their history, their bowling coach David Saker could be forgiven for contemplating different challenges.Like the chance, for instance, to replace Ashley Giles as Warwickshire’s director of cricket. Saker has not applied for the position, but he has confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that he would be interested in exploring the opportunity if he was approached. Warwickshire are understood to be keen to talk.”In many ways it would be ideal for me,” Saker said. “But I have an amazing job with England that I love and I would hate to leave it before the 2015 World Cup. Maybe it comes a couple of years early, but I would love to have a conversation with them.”The attraction for both parties is obvious. Saker, appointed as England bowling coach in April 2010, is highly regarded in the England set-up, has an excellent relationship with England’s Warwickshire duo of Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott and is keen to broaden his coaching horizons beyond the limits of specialised bowling coaching.He also lives near Birmingham and has a young family that he sees all too infrequently due to the demands of touring – the same sort of personal issues which caused England’s coach, Andy Flower, to negotiate his withdrawal from day-to-day involvement in the limited-overs formats.A straight-talking, good-natured Australian whose ability to mentor and communicate with players is in contrast to some modern, laptop-based coaches, he would appear to be a very good catch.

Bear fight: who will succeed Giles?

Andy Moles aged 51
First-class career: 1986-1997 (230 matches)
A highly experienced coach, Moles was also part of the highly successful Warwickshire team of the mid-90s and came close to being appointed director of cricket after the departure of John Inverarity at the end of 2005. Although he has enjoyed relatively successful spells as an international coach with Kenya, Scotland and New Zealand, all have ended under a cloud. While his experience and passion for the club should be a major advantage, some perceived baggage might – perhaps unfairly – count against him.
Dougie Brown 43
First-class career: 1989-2007 (209 matches)
As an allrounder, Brown played ODIs for England and Scotland and won multiple trophies in a long career with Warwickshire. He coached Namibia in the 2003 World Cup and moved into a coaching role at Edgbaston – as academy and assistant coach – following his retirement as a player in 2007. Hugely popular with players and supporters at the club, he was short-listed for the role of England bowling coach in 2010.
Graeme Welch 40
First-class career: 1994-2006 (171 matches)
Probably the favourite for the role. Welch, a former allrounder with Warwickshire and Derbyshire, has made an excellent impression as bowling coach with Warwickshire and is credited for the development of the club’s coterie of fine fast bowlers. A lack of coaching experience with batsmen may count against him, but Welch is well-liked by Warwickshire’s players and is believed to have been one of two options chosen by Giles, to succeed him.
David Saker 46
First-class career: 1994-2003 (72 matches)
The England bowling coach cites the Warwickshire role as his ideal job. Close to his home and offering the opportunity to broaden his coaching experience beyond the role of being a specialist with bowlers, the role would also enable Saker to limit his touring commitments. His lack of Warwickshire pedigree may be a major impediment, but Saker is close to the club’s England duo Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott and has developed an excellent reputation in his role with England.

Warwickshire have attracted several other very good candidates. The 2012 county champions have an excellent stadium, a strong squad and, despite a difficult year financially, pay well.Giles, who resigned to become England’s limited-overs coach in the New Year, is known to have favoured an internal appointment – probably the club’s current bowling coach, Graeme Welch or perhaps the club’s academy coach Dougie Brown – but the chief executive, Colin Povey is keen to explore the market in more detail.Povey was reluctant to be drawn on the subject but, when asked about Saker replied: “People have to pick up phones and have conversations.”Saker’s departure would be a blow to England. Not only do the bowlers speak highly of his help in analysing opposition batsmen’s weaknesses, but it was Saker who instigated the successful recall of Chris Tremlett ahead of the Ashes of 2010-11 and Saker who is credited with helping Steven Finn develop from a promising but raw youngster into a world-class fast bowler. England’s record this year is far from unblemished but, with one or two exceptions, it has been the batsmen who have let the bowlers down.His departure to follow that of Flower would be unlikely to destabilise a settled dressing room unduly, but it might serve as a warning to the ECB about the unsustainable burden they are placing on the shoulders of players and coaches in expecting them to fulfil a relentless international schedule.England’s touring programme might also limit the number of potential candidates applying to replace Saker. It just may be that Giles’ relationship with Welch, the former Derbyshire and Warwickshire allrounder who has performed such sterling work developing Warwickshire’s excellent crop of fast bowlers, could effectively engineer a job swap: Saker to Warwickshire and Welch to England.There is little Saker could have told his bowlers that would have made much difference on the third day at Nagpur. England did not bowl badly. They simply came up against admirably determined opposition on a desperately slow wicket. James Anderson and Graeme Swann, in particular, could feel pretty satisfied with their performance, if not the results of it, though concerns remain about Tim Bresnan’s form.

A round-up of the second day’s play from the Ranji Trophy Plate semi-finals

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Dec-2011Vidarbha‘s lower order made use of the satisfactory platform built on the opening day, crafting a formidable first-innings total by keeping Hyderabad on the field for the entire second day in Nagpur. At the end of it, Vidarbha had reached 467 for 8 and were in control of the semi-final. It had not begun well, though. They resumed their innings on 225 for 5 and soon slipped to 267 for 7, losing Sairaj Bahutule and Shrikant Wagh. But Ranjit Paradkar, who has two centuries this season, provided stability and momentum in the first two sessions with a watchful 75.If Hyderabad sensed an opportunity to polish off the tail after Paradkar departed with the team total on 342, they were in for a surprise as the lower order pair Amol Jungade and Akshay Wakhare raised an unbroken 125-run stand for the ninth wicket. Jungade’s 92 was his best first-class score, and Wakhare’s 50 was his second half-century. Hyderabad were left ruing a missed chance – Wakhare was let off when only on four and the total on 364. Barring that one chance the Jungade-Wakhare combine continued to frustrate the visitors’ bowlers unhindered.Maharashtra claimed three vital wickets after posting a strong first-innings total, to take control of their semi-final against Himachal Pradesh in Pune. Resuming the innings on 232 for 4, Ankit Bawne converted his 56 into a century, finishing on 137 off 375 balls. Bawne found able support in his captain Rohit Motwani, who made 59 before his attempt to cut his HP counterpart, Vikramjit Malik, led to his downfall. The fifth-wicket combine of Bawne and Motwani had added crucial 110 runs.Bawne stayed firm, despite the absence of a stable partner at the other end. The left-handed Bawne had batted for more than seven hours as he hit his second century of the season. He was the ninth batsman out, and Maharashtra’s innings ended on 415. When it was Maharashtra’s turn to bowl, Samad Fallah gave them an ideal start by dismissing HP opener Paul Valthaty lbw off the fourth delivery of the first over. Paras Dogra dominated a half-century partnership for the second wicket but he lost his partner, Abhinav Bali, with the score on 62. Dogra was then involved in the run out of S Sriram, who had once represented Maharashtra, in the final over of the day. At 68 for 3, HP have a mountain to climb.

Neil McGarrell has become a strong candidate to be picked for USA’s squad that will travel to Hong Kong for ICC World Cricket League Division 3 in January

Peter Della Penna28-Nov-2010Neil McGarrell, the former Guyana captain who played four Tests and 17 ODIs for West Indies, has become a strong candidate to be picked for USA’s squad that will travel to Hong Kong for the ICC World Cricket League Division 3 in January. In his first year of playing in USA Cricket Association tournaments McGarrell, a 38-year-old left-arm spinner, captained the Atlantic Region to a second-place finish at the recently concluded USACA Senior Nationals, which was won by the North West Region. He took 6 for 44 in three matches in the tournament to be the third highest wicket-taker and also topped the runs tally with 147 in three innings without getting dismissed.”I thought McGarrell was really outstanding,” USA coach Clayton Lambert said. “His all-round performance was really up to par.” At the USACA Eastern Conference tournament played in Atlanta in September, McGarrell claimed the Best Bowler award after taking 7 for 60 in three matches.”Obviously, Neil McGarrell has been a standout,” USA captain Steve Massiah said. “Over the last two tournaments in Atlanta and here, he was exceptional. I think if he is to become available to the US, that would be the link that we’re missing.”USA’s most pressing need since returning from WCL Division 4 in Italy has been a left-arm spinner. At the previous two World Cricket League tournaments USA participated in, they witnessed the success of Nepal’s array of left-arm spinners including Basanta Regmi, who was the leading wicket-taker at the tournament in Italy, and Rahul Vishvakarma, who took 7 for 15 against USA at the Division 5 final in Nepal.”One thing we have to try to do is include some more spin,” Lambert said. “We are anticipating that the wickets are going to be turners, kind of Asian-style wickets. Instead of overloading on the fast bowling side, we were looking to keep the senior fast bowlers and try to bring in more allrounders and include a few spinners in there.”It appears that the only thing holding McGarrell back from joining the team is his day job. “I wouldn’t have a problem representing the USA, but my job comes first,” McGarrell said. “If I’m getting the time off from my job, I’ll definitely represent the USA.””It would be great to have a person like Neil in the team with the wealth of experience he has. His skill level would definitely lift this team and give us a much needed boost, especially in the fielding department which at times can be complacent,” Massiah said. “Neil is someone who throughout his career has been an outstanding fielder and I guess having him in our squad would do wonders.” Even at 38, McGarrell’s fielding skills inside the circle remain sharp and he was responsible for two run-outs for his Atlantic team in Florida.Lambert, Massiah and vice-captain Sushil Nadkarni were part of a selection meeting at the conclusion of the Senior Nationals in Florida to help decide the initial 18-man list sent to the ICC before the squad is trimmed down to the 14 players that will go to Hong Kong. USA’s three appointed selectors, Sew Shivnarine, Sunny Khan and Abrar Ahmad, did not attend the Senior Nationals. According to multiple USACA officials, they were not asked to come because their observations from USACA tournaments in September were deemed sufficient to make selection decisions. However, Ahmad did not attend any of the USACA tournaments in September either.

In the most unbelievable turnaround Ricky Ponting’s men up-ended Pakistan on a swinging day to wrap up the series at the SCG

Peter English at the SCG06-Jan-2010All the Australian team talk was right and the doubters were wrong. In the most unbelievable turnaround Ricky Ponting’s men up-ended Pakistan on a swinging day to wrap up the series at the SCG and earn smug smiles and wild celebrations.Under Ponting the Australians have secured a handful of unthinkable wins, but Ponting rated this at the top, given the self-inflicted circumstances and the huge amount they were behind. There were many reasons why they shouldn’t have won by 36 runs: Ponting shouldn’t have won the toss and batted; Pakistan shouldn’t have given up a 206-run first-innings advantage; Kamran Akmal shouldn’t have dropped Michael Hussey three times; and Australia shouldn’t have been able to escape from eight-down on the final morning with a lead of 80. They don’t matter now.Ponting believes in his team at every position and on days like today everyone can see why. “What we have read over the last couple of days and what we have seen on the news has probably just steeled us all a little bit,” Ponting said. “It’s just made us want to fight the game out as much as we can and prove that we are never out of the contest.”They did this sort of thing in Adelaide in 2006-07, when the second Ashes Test was drifting to a draw before Shane Warne intervened. A year later it was Michael Clarke’s three wickets in the last over that did for India at the SCG, and on the same ground 12 months ago Mitchell Johnson bowled the injured Graeme Smith just before time ran out. In those games Australia were in charge, racing to seal the victory they deserved.This time they stole it from Pakistan by completing an outrageous comeback on a ground the local players now believe they can do anything on. “I think this is the most satisfying one [of the SCG wins] because I don’t think anyone in the world apart from all the blokes inside our dressing room thought we could win,” Ponting said.Australia’s current unit is not jammed full of world-beating talent, but it is crammed with desire, and will suffer for their captain. Nathan Hauritz picked up a bleeding finger and a bruised chest from his caught-and-bowled off Mohammad Yousuf’s stinging straight drive, the key wicket of the final innings, and walked off with his second five-for in two Tests.Peter Siddle carries a sore shoulder from his career-best 38, an innings as important to the victory as Michael Hussey’s 134, which pulled Australia from depression. Shane Watson’s smooth 97 was also invaluable and Mitchell Johnson slid through on his captain’s backing with two wickets in his opening over before tea. That reduced Pakistan to 3 for 51 in their previously comfortable chase of 176, but they were quickly being tortured. Ecstasy was soon the only emotion for the locals who were jigging, jumping and dancing on and off the field.Results like these can change the course of history. In 1992 in Colombo, Australia were faced with a similar situation, surging back from a 291-run first-innings deficit to dismiss Sri Lanka for 164, 17 short of victory. Warne was the hero in the final stages of that game and was soon drenched in match-winning aura as the team shot to the top of the world. In this one Hauritz got in the road of Pakistan to leave with 5 for 53, the best return of his 12 Tests.Ponting was heavily criticised from the first day for his decision to bat on a juicy surface that set up Australia’s fall for 127. By the end his logic was satisfyingly sound. “I backed us at the start of the game to make more runs in the first innings than what I thought Pakistan could make in the last innings,” he said. “As it turns out we got 120-odd and bowled them out for 139 in the last innings of the game.”At one stage during his post-mortem a relaxed Ponting teasingly asked all those in the press conference who had doubted his decision to raise their hands. All the Australian journalists’ arms went up. “I feel better now,” he said. He smiled, knowing that when it comes to Australia’s Test team he knows best. “It comes down to results and we’ve got a great result here,” he said. “So I look like a genius where I didn’t a couple of days ago.”

Earlier, Jansen picked up 6 for 52 to restrict Pakistan but a late burst has ensured South Africa do not rest easy overnight

Danyal Rasool28-Dec-2024The first Test match at Centurion is tantalisingly poised after Pakistan took three wickets in nine overs to leave South Africa wobbling at 27 for 3, still 121 runs away from the 147-run target that seals a win, as well as a place in the 2023-25 World Test Championship [WTC] final.After South Africa had bowled Pakistan out for 237, they needed a fairly comfortable 148 to secure victory, but an unerring spell of accurate medium-fast bowling from Mohammad Abbas and Khurram Shahzad was well rewarded. Aside from Aiden Markram, the South Africa batters were somewhat timid in their approach to the last few overs of the day, while Abbas and Shahzad targeted the pads. Abbas brought one to jag back in sharply into Tony de Zorzi for the first breakthrough.Pakistan’s reviewing was chalk and cheese from the previous innings, successfully overturning two lbw calls. Shahzad found similar seam movement from around the wicket to strike Ryan Rickleton on the front pad, viciously enough that it hit him in line despite the batter having moved well across.Having successfully overturned that one, Pakistan repeated the formula, with Abbas finding the right line and adequate sideways movement, which has seen him find bouts of high success. Tristan Stubbs took a step out of his crease but was beaten on the outside edge, and yet again Pakistan went up collectively for the umpire to turn them down. But Shan Masood signalled to go upstairs once more and was proven right again.One of Marco Jansen’s six wickets included Mohammad Rizwan•AFP/Getty Images

Earlier in the day, Marco Jansen’s six-wicket haul had helped South Africa tighten their control over the game. He picked five wickets in the afternoon as Pakistan squandered a promising start following a rain delay that wiped out the morning session. He picked one more in the final session as the hosts returned to polish off the Pakistan tail after stubborn resistance from Saud Shakeel.Babar Azam and Shakeel put on 79 for the fourth wicket, with Babar reaching his first Test half-century in nearly two years, but holed out to deep point immediately after. Mohammad Rizwan was squeezed down leg as Pakistan crumbled around Shakeel.Persistent rain saw the game start an hour after the lunch break concluded, and Pakistan began by taking advantage of a bowling effort that was nowhere near its best. Shakeel and Babar each worked Kagiso Rabada away for four in the third over, and the runs flowed for the next half an hour. Twenty-three runs came off the next three, and though Babar still found himself beaten a few times, he was also finding the timing that in the past was so often a precursor to a big score.Corbin Bosch found that out when he missed his line twice and Babar helped himself to two fours, before a clip into the covers brought up his long-awaited half-century, his first in 20 innings. But he threw it away disappointingly, failing to get on top of a short and wide one from Jansen, Bosch barely having to move to send a devastated Babar on his way.Saud Shakeel’s struck an important 84•AFP/Getty Images

Jansen was finding the wickets that eluded him in the first innings, with Rizwan and Salman Agha falling cheaply. A brief stand between Shakeel and Aamer Jamal once more gave the impression Pakistan would go into tea six down, before Jamal lobbed a tame Dane Paterson bouncer straight to deep midwicket, and Naseem Shah helpfully nicking Rabada into the slips.Shakeel attempted to farm the strike post-tea and would enjoy some success as wayward bowling allowed for the odd boundary and comfortable late-over singles. A regal pick-up for six over midwicket was the highlight, but Pakistan’s penchant for gifting wickets to deliveries that did not merit them struck again when a knee-high full toss rapped into Shakeel’s front pad and effectively concluded Pakistan’s batting effort.It appeared to be the final nail in the coffin, but Pakistan’s bowlers have seen to it that South Africa do not rest easy overnight.