All posts by n8rngtd.top

A dominant all-round performance by Zimbabwe ensured victory in their comeback Test after an almost six-year exile from the format

The Report by Firdose Moonda in Harare08-Aug-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsBrendan Taylor was adjudged Man of the Match for his century, after leading Zimbabwe to a memorable win•Associated Press

A dominant all-round performance by Zimbabwe, capped by their bowlers slicing through the Bangladesh line-up on the fifth day saw them win their comeback Test, after an almost six-year exile from the format. It took just 15 balls after lunch for Zimbabwe to complete their victory after a near flawless morning session from the bowlers. Brian Vitori and Kyle Jarvis created the pressure upfront, leaving the Bangladesh line-up ripe for the picking for Chris Mpofu and Elton Chigumbura.Bangladesh’s batsmen had a tough, but doable, task on a pitch that has not deteriorated and remained good for batting, needing 263 runs with seven wickets in hand at the start of the day. Instead of applying themselves with patience and planning, though, they played a clutch of careless shots, especially as it became evident that their challenge was dissipating. Abdur Razzak’s 43-run cameo added a little bit of sunshine to an otherwise dark performance that mirrored their first innings display in terms of execution.Zimbabwe had done the bulk of their hard labour in the four days preceding the final one, with centuries from two of their stalwart batsmen, Hamilton Masakadza and Brendan Taylor. But, it was the new-ball pair of Brian Vitori and Kyle Jarvis who impressed most, especially after being labelled “ordinary” by a confident Tamim Iqbal at the end of day four and they exacted their revenge early on the fifth. Vitori began by demonstrating that he could move the ball into the right-handers as well, while Jarvis bowled with brisk pace and variety, mixing up his full, short and slower balls.Mohammad Ashraful was up to the task, at least initially. He left well and took advantage of anything overpitched. He batted with the same calm that he had employed in his first innings and was also doing a fine job of marshalling his partner, Mushfiqur Rahim, who showed composed judgment.Vitori continued plugging away, getting some balls to move away, others to hold their line and after several overs of nagging length, Ashraful could take no more. He tried to push a delivery away but it jagged in late and took the inside edge onto the stumps. With that dismissal, Bangladesh were rattled and Zimbabwe fired up.Vitori followed Ashraful’s wicket with a superb over, beating Mahmudullah’s bat twice. The danger for Zimbabwe came when the opening pair was replaced but Mpofu and Chigumbura did not let up. Mpofu varied his lengths while Chigumbura put on an impressive display, bowling as many slower balls as possible.Mahmudullah was determined to cash in where he could but his over-eagerness started a mini-collapse, during which Bangladesh lost three wickets in 12 balls for seven runs. He tried to cut without any foot movement and was caught behind. Five balls later Shakib Al Hasan, who also played irresponsibly, went to a sharp catch from Taylor at second slip after pushing at a length ball, and then Mushfiqur Rahim’s more careful knock ended when he flicked a ball to square leg.Zimbabwe could smell blood but instead of tracking it down with a killer instinct, they relaxed a little and allowed Abdur Razzak to have some fun. He smoked five fours off a Mpofu over and three sixes off Ray Price, two of them slog sweeps. The cameo ended when Chigumbura, from around the wicket, broke through his defence and bowled him.Bangladesh had little to hope for after that and their misery ended inside three overs after lunch. Jarvis struck with the first ball, bowling Shafiul with a length ball that pitched on middle and held its line. With just one more wicket to get, Zimbabwe put in six slips for Robiul Islam, who survived a confident lbw shout first up.He defied the field placing with two fours on the leg side, but was never going to last for any length of time. Jarvis claimed his fourth wicket of the innings, trapping Robiul lbw with a ball that jagged in and hit him on the front pad. As umpire Kumar Dharmasena raised his finger, Zimbabwe’s players immediately formed a huddle, a collective show of unity to mark their victorious return to the Test fold.

Her one-time coach Muslim Uddin passed away soon after the team had arrived in Australia

Annesha Ghosh in Melbourne29-Feb-2020Tears streamed down Bangladesh medium-pacer Ritu Moni’s face at the Junction Oval’s press conference room as she took her mind back to where her journey began – Bogra – and to Muslim Uddin, the man who helped her live her dream.It is in Bogra, a northwestern city in Bangladesh, that the dreams of many of the team’s current women’s cricketers started taking shape under local coach Muslim. As Moni, one of Muslim’s students, reflected on the career-best 4 for 18 – also the best so far at the ongoing T20 World Cup – she picked up against New Zealand on Saturday, memories of a personal loss – Muslim’s death on February 10 – left her sobbing inconsolably.ALSO READ: The toilet leading a women’s cricket revo-loo-tion“I started training under him and I am here today because of him,” Moni said after Bangladesh’s 17-run loss. “He passed away soon after we arrived in Australia for the World Cup. It is a big loss for all of us, considering how he helped so many of us to realise our dream of playing for Bangladesh. He was a great person, and has played a big part in my life.”We were to play a practice match a few days after his death, and it was quite difficult for me to get over the shock. But I told myself, ‘Muslim sir showed a lot of confidence in me. I must try to do my best in the tournament because it would be the best I can do for him.’ If he were alive today, he would have been able to see this day in my life.”In an international career spanning nearly eight years, Moni, now 27, has made 45 international appearances, scoring 292 runs and taking 17 wickets across the white-ball formats. The defining moment of her career, though, arrived on Sunday, her maiden four-for orchestrating New Zealand’s biggest collapse in T20Is – 8 for 25 – from the fall of the third wicket.By the innings break, Moni’s exploits, complemented brilliantly by captain Salma Khatun’s 3 for 7, had begun inspiring hopes of an unlikely upset in Group A as New Zealand set Bangladesh a modest target of 92.New Zealand’s slide began with the dismissal of Suzie Bates, their leading run-scorer in the format. Hurled at a gentle pace hovering just above 90kph, Moni’s inswinger on off had enough benignity to lure Bates to aim towards midwicket, only for her to lose her middle stump. Bates’ wicket in the 13th over was followed by Katey Matin’s in the next as she holed out to point, in a bid to force some pace on a slow, sun-baked Junction Oval track. It wasn’t long before Moni’s control and slowness through the air earned her two wickets in her fourth – and the innings’ 19th – over, with Fargana Hoque taking a stunning catch diving forward and Fahima Khatun gobbling up Amelia Kerr’s square drive with ease.”I didn’t do much, to be honest; just maintained my line and length,” Moni said, praising the role played by head coach Anju Jain and assistant coach Devika Palshikar, both former India players, in her growth as a medium-pacer. “Devika ma’am has been of incredible help. She makes sure that at the nets I am focused on my line and length. She asks me to bowl in, say, one area over after over.”And Anju ma’am says the same thing about bowling in my block, you know, to not try anything fancy. Sometimes simple and uncomplicated bowling can get you wickets, break partnerships, so that has been one instruction from our coaches I have tried to respect.”And Javed Omar [the former Bangladesh men’s Test cricketer, who was appointed manager of the women’s team last year] has also encouraged me to believe in myself. I hope that the confidence I have got from today’s performance takes me ahead in the future.”

Michael Beer and Jason Krejza will duel for a Test spin bowling berth on Australia A’s tour of Zimbabwe.

Daniel Brettig23-May-2011Michael Beer and Jason Krejza have both been included in the squad for Australia A’s tour of Zimbabwe, and will use the opportunity to duel for a Test spin-bowling berth. Ben Hilfenhaus has been given a chance to show his international career is not fading away after the Ashes. The squad for the four-day matches against Zimbabwe was announced on Monday and has a strong Test team component, as the national selectors ponder their options ahead of tours to Sri Lanka and South Africa.Usman Khawaja, Phillip Hughes, and the tour captain Tim Paine have all played recent Test cricket for Australia, while the likes of Callum Ferguson, Trent Copeland, Mitchell Starc and James Faulkner will all be in serious contention for the Sri Lanka touring party.The most pointed battle will be between Beer, who played the spin role in the final Ashes Test at the SCG and bowled better than his figures suggested, and Krejza, the enigmatic slow bowler with the sharpest offbreak in the country but a mixed international record. Krejza went to the World Cup after injuries ruled out Xavier Doherty and Nathan Hauritz, and it appears that he remains ahead of that pair.”It’s really just a matter of trying to get as much exposure for our spin bowlers as possible so we can keep working out just where our stocks are,” the national selector Greg Chappell told . “It’s pretty open. It’s no secret that spin bowling is an area that we’re keen to get at, finalise or make some ground on. We haven’t really for one reason or another, either through injury or form had much consistency in that area.”Spin bowling’s not a straightforward issue. It is easily crowded by the success that Shane Warne had but most countries take time to find spin bowlers and good ones certainly don’t just drop out of mid-air. I think we’ve got about seven spinners in our sights, the four going there, Hauritz, Doherty and Steve Smith. So there’s about seven guys there and nobody’s really nailed the spot down at this stage.”We’re trying to give as many of them opportunities as we can and find out which ones have what we’re looking for. It’s about trying to find the right people for the right conditions and that can vary depending on where you’re playing, South Africa will be different from Sri Lanka, and Sri Lanka’s different from India even – it was quite remarkable watching the Sri Lankans and Indians play in each other’s country.”While Hauritz is still recovering from a dislocated shoulder and is at long odds to be limber enough for Sri Lanka, Doherty is fit but not selected. His place in the limited overs squad has been taken by South Australia’s Nathan Lyon, a classical offspin bowler who enjoyed a surreal promotion from the Adelaide Oval ground staff to the Redbacks’ XI last summer.Hilfenhaus, meanwhile, will need to show evidence he can regain the knack for taking wickets, after his spells grew increasingly unthreatening against England at home, resulting in the paltry return of seven wickets at 59.28 in four matches.Tasmanians Faulkner and Luke Butterworth were rewarded for their prolific wicket-taking for the Tigers during their Shield-winning 2010-11 campaign, and may be considered with an eye towards the humid air and seaming pitches that can sometimes be encountered in Sri Lanka.The teenagers Nic Maddinson and Mitch Marsh have been included in both squads, better to aid their development as Test players of the future, while Cricket Australia eyes will be narrowed on the captaincy progress of Paine and his deputy Ferguson, who spent the Indian Premier League together in with the Pune franchise. Another IPL commodity, David Warner, has the chance to defy his stereotype with runs in both formats.Chris Lynn, the promising Queensland batsman, is a notable inclusion to the limited-overs squad having missed out on selection in the provisional 25, but will need to pass a fitness test on a finger injury before travelling. Stephen O’Keefe has the chance to press his case as a spinning allrounder in the shorter formats.Even though the tour program is still being finalised, the squad is booked to leave Australia on June 25 and return on July 25, about the same time as the senior squad ventures to Sri Lanka. The A squad will take part in a pre-tour camp in Brisbane in early June.Australia A four-day squad Tim Paine (capt, wk), David Warner, Phillip Hughes, Usman Khawaja, Callum Ferguson, Nic Maddinson, Mitch Marsh, Luke Butterworth, James Faulkner, Jason Krejza, Trent Copeland, Ben Hilfenhaus, Mitch Starc, Michael Beer.One-day squad Tim Paine (capt, wk), David Warner, Aaron Finch, Callum Ferguson, Chris Lynn, Nic Maddison, Mitch Marsh, Luke Butterworth, Stephen O’Keefe, James Faulkner, Ben Hilfenhaus, Trent Copeland, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Starc.

Seamer hopes reverse-swing expertise can earn him spot in side for first Test in Sri Lanka

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Mar-2020There was a time when Saqib Mahmood – a young seamer capable of reaching speeds of 90mph/145kph and extracting reverse-swing – would have been like gold dust for England.But with Jofra Archer and Mark Wood both regularly cranking it up over the last 12 months of Test cricket, Mahmood recognises that the bar has been raised.”For someone like me who touches 90mph, you’re looking at these guys and it’s almost like that’s not quick enough anymore,” Mahmood told PA. “I think those two guys have really raised the bar in terms of pace.ALSO READ: Kookaburra would bring ‘different skillset’ into Championship – Mahmood“A few years ago… we were crying out for 90mph bowlers. Now we’ve got two bowlers who can get it up past 95mph. These guys make me hungrier to keep working hard and get quicker.”Mahmood, a late call-up to England’s squad in Sri Lanka after Wood’s injury, is yet to make his debut in Test cricket, but is one of only four frontline seamers to have made the trip alongside Stuart Broad, Sam Curran and Chris Woakes, with Archer also missing out through injury. And while he is not taking anything for granted, Mahmood hopes that his skill with the old ball can help catapult him into the side following strong showings across two warm-up games.”In this team that’s probably what I’ll be looking to do: bowl short spells and try to be as quick as I can be,” he said. “As a seamer over here you’re not going to bowl the same number of overs you would in England so you have to make the most of them.”I want to attack with the new ball, but I also want to attack later in the innings and not just be a bystander in the field when the spinners are getting through their overs. Whether that’s by getting the ball reversing or by making something by bowling three or four overs as fast as possible, I just want to show everyone what I can do.”Mahmood has regularly touched 90mph in his televised appearances for Lancashire, but after struggling to reach such speeds in his handful of international caps to date, it has been suggested that he needs to focus on finding that mark more regularly.But Mahmood is confident that an extra yard of pace “will come naturally” as he grows older and stronger.Saqib Mahmood was a late call-up to England’s squad after Mark Wood’s injury•Gareth Copley/Getty Images

“There is a fine margin, you have to be careful as a bowler and not search so hard for something that you lose what you’ve got,” he said.”At the moment I can bowl high 80s and also have skill and control. I wouldn’t want to sacrifice anything in search of another three of four miles an hour but hopefully that will come naturally. I’m only 23 and as I grow older I should get stronger in my action.”England trained for the first time on their tour on Thursday at the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. Jack Leach, who has a calf niggle, warmed up on his own before bowling in the nets, while Ben Stokes has arrived in the country after delaying his departure to attend a funeral.Their first warm-up game against a Sri Lanka Board President’s XI begins on Saturday.

India had been talking about reaching the World Cup final and what they would do there for a year, says their mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton

Sidharth Monga at the Wankhede Stadium 02-Apr-2011Harbhajan Singh wept into the India flag, Yuvraj Singh couldn’t hold back tears either. Sachin Tendulkar, not used to having his feet off the ground, for a change felt comfortable on the shoulders of his team-mates as they took a lap of the Wankhede. He was being taken around a ground that had once booed him. All that didn’t matter today. A life-long dream had been achieved in a sixth attempt; in front of his home crowd, at a ground where he played most of his domestic cricket. MS Dhoni, Yuvraj, Zaheer Khan and Gautam Gambhir followed with their arms around each other’s shoulders. Virat Kohli, playing in his first World Cup and inconsolable when he had got out earlier, sang to the crowd.There was delight, there were tears of joy, there was contentment. There was relief after a campaign in which their every move was noticed, dissected and criticised or praised. It was a moment nobody could take away from the Indian team. They took their time as they celebrated. Slowly, savouring each moment. Months of tension, build-up, sleepless nights, inability to eat regularly, cramps, vomit, sweat, toil; all of it was over, and in their hands was the World Cup.Gary Kirsten’s contribution was not forgotten. After Tendulkar had been around the ground on the strong and reliable shoulders of Yusuf Pathan, the team chaired Kirsten too, who was coaching India for one last time. An equally loud applause followed. Quietly, Paddy Upton, the mental conditioning coach, and Eric Simons, the bowling coach, watched. They watched men become kids, they watched and heard, 33,000 people’s gratitude.”There have been some incredible moments in my involvement with sport, but this has got to be the highlight,” Upton told ESPNcricinfo.Upton spoke of the year the team had been through: the anticipation, the preparation, the hard work. “We set on this a year ago. Gary and myself and Eric Simons asked the question, ‘Are we ready to win the World Cup?’ And we felt we had the team to win it, the skill and the talent, but mentally we possibly weren’t ready.”That was in Dambulla where, as Virender Sehwag mentioned, they started visualising the World Cup final. “We had planned a year ago what we needed to do in order to set ourselves up to win the World Cup,” Upton said. “For a year we have been talking about we play the final in Mumbai, and it was amazing yesterday [Friday] to reflect in the team meeting and say, ‘Guys we have been talking about exactly this for a year, and we have been preparing for it and we know we are ready.’ So while there were nerves, we went in with the confidence that we are better prepared than the opposition.”Some of the players had been struggling to sleep properly, but Upton believed – as it now seems – in something preordained. “Strangely I slept quite comfortably, because the job was done, we just needed to go and act out the script that was already written.”The nerves he felt towards the closing moments, despite himself being a mental conditioning coach, he said was a feeling like no other. “I get bloody nervous. Believe you me. It was magnificent.”The greatest moment of his greatest achievement in sport was watching the players weep. And looking after the mental side of players who perhaps are under the most pressure in world cricket, he has seen them in tears of anguish too. “The greatest moment today was getting together with the team in the middle of the pitch; and just seeing the looks on the guys’ faces, and the tears running down their cheeks. Tears of joy and relief and ecstasy. It was a special moment.”

The home side has been dominant in bouncing back from a poor recent run of results

The Preview by Mohammad Isam26-Jan-2020

Big picture

Pakistan’s dip in T20I form was a cause for concern, but they have shown signs of being dominant again with back-to-back wins over Bangladesh at home, the wins giving them an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the three-match series. The final game could be an opportunity to try out some new faces, but they would certainly want to make a statement with a series sweep.Not much has gone wrong for the home side in this series. They restricted Bangladesh to scores of 141 and 136 in the two matches, and then chased the targets down comfortably enough. The Lahore pitch hasn’t allowed for much flamboyance so far, but that shouldn’t bother a side that had lost eight out of their last ten T20Is before this series.Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez have made an impact with one good innings each, while Babar Azam led from the front in the second game. Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Hasnain bowled well in both games, while Shadab Khan has mostly been on the mark. Newcomers Ahsan Ali and Haris Rauf have shown glimpses of their ability too.Bangladesh, though, look unsure of how to go about handling Pakistan’s bowling attack. It’s not so much a lack of skills, but with roles not being defined clearly enough – there are six opening batsmen in the squad – it hasn’t been straightforward for captain Mahmudullah and coach Russell Domingo.Their bowling, too, hasn’t come to the party, with senior quick Mustafizur Rahman guilty of erring in lines and lengths in the first two games. Their lack of a genuine spinner has also added to the lack of balance, as Bangladesh are a team that has always banked on spinners to do a lot of the work, even in T20Is.

Form guide

Pakistan WWLLLBangladesh LLLLWMustafizur Rahman looks on as new boy Hasan Mahmud has a bowl in the nets•Raton Gomes/BCB

In the spotlight

Babar Azam is the No. 1 T20I batsman in the world, and bounced back from a duck in the first game with an an unbeaten 66 in the second. Pakistan would want him to have another good game as they look for the whitewash.Mustafizur Rahman has taken just one wicket for 69 runs in the seven overs he has bowled in the two matches. His areas have been off on a slow pitch that the ball has at times gripped on, exactly where he is expected to be most effective. He needs to get it right in the final game.

Team news

There’s a strong chance that Amad Butt and Usman Qadir will get their international debuts.Pakistan (possible): 1 Ahsan Ali, 2 Babar Azam (capt), 3 Mohammad Hafeez, 4 Shoaib Malik, 5 Iftikhar Ahmed, 6 Imad Wasim/Amad Butt, 7 Mohammad Rizwan (wk), 8 Shadab Khan, 9 Haris Rauf/Usman Qadir, 10 Shaheen Afridi 11 Mohammad HasnainDomingo has said that Bangladesh will find space to field Najmul Hossain Shanto, Rubel Hossain and newcomer Hasan Mahmud.Bangladesh (possible): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Liton Das (wk), 3 Mahedi Hasan, 4 Najmul Hossain Shanto, 5 Afif Hossain, 6 Mahmudullah (capt), 7 Soumya Sarkar, 8 Aminul Islam, 9 Shafiul Islam/Rubel Hossain, 10 Mustafizur Rahman, 11 Al-Amin Hossain/Hasan Mahmud

Pitch and conditions

The Gaddafi Stadium pitch has been difficult to score quickly on, though Pakistan did go past Bangladesh’s 136 for 6 with 20 balls to spare in the second game. The weather forecast isn’t great, as there’s a chance of rain.

Stats and trivia

• With the late Abdul Qadir’s son Usman likely to make his debut in the third T20I, we will have an addition to the list of fathers and sons playing international cricket for Pakistan
• In the last five years, Mahmudullah is the only Bangladesh batsman to have hit more than ten sixes in the last five overs of their innings in T20Is

Quotes

“I need to give everyone opportunity. We are 2-0 down in the series. The three boys who haven’t played will definitely come in and have a game, so that we can look at a few more options.”

The three Pakistan cricketers accused of spot-fixing in a Test match against England will stand trial from May 20, a British judge has ordered

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Mar-2011The three Pakistan cricketers accused of spot-fixing in a Test match against England will stand trial from May 20, a British judge has ordered. Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir, and the agent Mazhar Majeed, will be tried in Southwark Crown Court in London on charges of conspiracy to cheat and conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments.The four accused were present – dressed in suits and looking relaxed – at the City of Westminster Magistrates’ court on Thursday for the hearing to set the trial date. The cricketers were given unconditional bail and Majeed was told to surrender his passport and not apply for international travel documents.The prosecution objected to unconditional bail being granted but the players’ lawyers told the court they would attend all future hearings and, though sureties of up to £50,000 were offered to secure their bail, the judge, Howard Riddle, said it was unnecessary.He warned all four to ensure they attend Southwark Crown Court saying: “There is no doubt the allegations are very serious and I know you recognise that.” Noting all four were of good character, Riddle said the men’s reputations were of the “utmost importance” to them.The cricketers were previously funded by the Pakistan Cricket Board but, according to , their lawyer confirmed outside court that had ended.Accepting corrupt payments is an offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act 1906 and carries a maximum sentence of seven years’ imprisonment and an unlimited fine. Cheating is an offence under Section 42 of the Gambling Act 2005, carrying a maximum sentence of two years’ imprisonment and an unlimited fine.They players and their agent were charged after being questioned by Scotland Yard detectives over the alleged scandal in the Test at Lord’s last August, following accusations by the tabloid newspaper.The three players have already been banned by the ICC, which held a separate inquiry, for periods ranging from five to ten years. All three have, however, already filed appeals against their bans at the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland.

Fast bowler hopes to ‘bring a little bit of anxiety’ to England’s batting lineup

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Nov-2019Lockie Ferguson says that international cricket has had an “awesome year with fast bowlers”, and that he hopes to “bring a little bit of anxiety” to England and Australia’s batsmen after being named in New Zealand’s squads for their upcoming Tests against those opponents.Ferguson is in line for a Test debut, having exclusively played white-ball cricket in his international career to date, but has an impressive first-class record, with 153 wickets at an average of just 24.30 in his 42 games in the format.ALSO READ: Ferguson in line for Test chance amid packed schedule“[I’ve] been very much focused on white-ball [cricket] for the last year,” he admitted. “I think I played three first-class games – a couple against India A – last summer, and then obviously not a lot over the winter we just had.”I’ve played a lot of red-ball cricket for Auckland and some ‘A’ games as well, so I understand what it takes to be a fast bowler at that level, and you can’t always go at 100 percent like you can in one-day and T20 – you have to pick and choose when to bowl quick spells, and that’s all part of the learning process.”[Test cricket] is definitely going to be a new challenge. Obviously like in other formats, it’s a step up from domestic level, and fortunately I’ve played quite a lot of these players before at that level, so it’s not completely new. But the red ball is a whole new different beast, and it’s the longer form both mentally and physically, so it’s going to be a challenge.”Ferguson faces a tough challenge to break into New Zealand’s side. Tim Southee, Trent Boult and Neil Wagner have formed an impressive seam-bowling trio over the past five years, and since November 2017, they have played as a triumvirate in all but one of New Zealand’s home Tests.But head coach Gary Stead has hinted at rotation over the next five Tests, given New Zealand’s punishing upcoming schedule, meaning that there should be opportunities for Ferguson and Matt Henry at some stage.”We’ve got three internationally-recognised, world-class bowlers who have been doing an exceptional job for us, and put us [at] No. 2 in the Test rankings,” Ferguson said. “That’s fantastic, and it’s awesome to be in and around, and learning off those guys as well – it’s just nice to rub shoulders with them.”It’s going to be a tough team to break into, but there’s obviously a lot of Test cricket coming up.”Lockie Ferguson at his point of release•NurPhoto/Getty Images

Ferguson was the second leading wicket-taker at the World Cup this year, and said that international cricket has had a great year as far as fast bowling is concerned.”I think international cricket has had quite an awesome year with fast bowlers,” he said. “I know at the World Cup, earlier on perhaps they were talking about spinners being the real threat, and it was exciting for me as part of the fast-bowling fraternity to see fast bowlers at the top of [the wicket-taking] list.”I don’t think it changes at all for Test cricket: fast bowlers are going to cause problems and create a threat for batters just from pure pace. At the same time, you have to be accurate, and I guess personally that’s one thing I’ve worked on for a long time – bowling quick, but making sure that I’m putting it where I want to put it.”Ferguson admitted that if he does play, his role – as New Zealand’s fastest bowler – will involve trying “to bring a little bit of anxiety” to England’s batsmen, but added that raw pace was part and parcel of playing at the top level.”England obviously have some quick bowlers too with Jofra Archer in their line-up, and it does the same thing to both teams,” he said. “That’s probably the most exciting part about Test cricket – there’s no limit on overs, so you know you’re probably going to face [opposing quicks] at some point in time.”The first Test against England will be played at Mount Maunganui, which will be the inaugural Test at the ground, and Ferguson suggested that the wicket should be good for batting, though may offer some variable bounce.”I haven’t played there in a few years,” he said, “[but] my flat-mate Henry Cooper is an ND [Northern Districts] boy, and said that it’s not a bad batting track but it does go up and down a little bit. It’s hard to tell at this stage – every wicket you play on in New Zealand can be different, so I’m sure we’ll be turning up and assessing the conditions when we’re faced with them.”

ESPNcricinfo’s preview of the second ODI between West Indies and Pakistan in Gros Inlet, St Lucia

The Preview by Liam Brickhill24-Apr-2011

Match Facts

April 25, Gros Islet, St Lucia
Start time 0930am (1330 GMT)Saeed Ajmal was a constant threat to West Indies’ batsmen in the first match, and is sure to be a handful in conditions that will continue to suit the spinners•AFP

The Big Picture

West Indies’ joy after their win in the opening Twenty20 of Pakistan’s tour was short-lived as they crashed to an eight-wicket drubbing in the opening one-day international at Gros Islet. After the buzz and energy of their performance in the Twenty20, the hosts looked badly behind the pace for much of the game on Saturday and a fatal misreading of the pitch backfired when the seamers were carted for 162 runs in 29.3 wicketless overs, allowing Pakistan’s batsmen to canter to victory on a spin-friendly wicket.Monday’s game, played at the same venue, will give West Indies a chance to rectify some of their mistakes. The question of team balance is a delicate one for them, however, and the inclusion of both captain Darren Sammy and Dwayne Bravo when it might be argued that only one of the two similar allrounders should slot in at No. 7 in a balanced XI throws the team’s ballast off centre. West Indies looked a batsman light on Saturday, but it’s likely that legspinner Anthony Martin will be brought in for the second ODI – probably at the expense of allrounder Andre Russell – meaning that there will be even less batting firepower, heaping more pressure on a top order shorn of its most experienced members.The lack of bite in the seam attack on docile pitches also doesn’t bode well for the Test series that follows the one-dayers, and for the sake of success in both formats West Indies are going to have to find a way to take more wickets. The one area of concern for Pakistan – and it’s a relatively minor one for a team that has moved seamlessly on from defeat in the tour opener with a commanding performance by both the batsmen and an impressive trio of spinners – can also be found in the seam department. Wahab Riaz gave away 11 wides and three no-balls on Saturday, while Junaid Khan also sent down six wides, and without the help of extras West Indies would not have passed 200.Such inconsistency is unforgivable on a pitch that offered minimal movement for the quicks either through the air or off the pitch, but so masterful was the performance from Pakistan’s slow bowlers – in particular Saeed Ajmal, whose variations proved impossible to pick – and so composed were their batsmen, three of whom scored half-centuries, that ultimately it barely mattered. West Indies will be motivated to regain some pride and level the five-match series, but it is Pakistan who start as firm favourites.
.

Form guide

(most recent first)West Indies LLLLW
Pakistan WLWWW

Watch out for…

Darren Bravo has only played 21 ODIs, but due to circumstance and and his own undeniable talent (not to mention a resemblance to a certain former West Indies great) he has already become a vital cog in West Indies’ middle order. His half-century in the first game held things together, and he looked set to take a heavy toll on the bowling at the death before he was cut down by an amateurish run-out.
Pakistan have a bowler perfectly capable of dealing with the Bravo threat, however. Saeed Ajmal beat the outside edge of Bravo Jr.’s bat no less than five times in his first over on Saturday, and deserved more than just one wicket as he weaved webs of doubt in the minds of all the batsmen with his .

Team news

West Indies are almost certain to hand a debut to Martin, an Antiguan legspinner, but it’s not clear who he might replace in the XI. Andre Russell seems the most likely candidate, as he conceded 36 runs in five wayward overs in the first match. That leaves the batting even lighter, but West Indies only have five specialist batsmen in their squad and all of them played in the first match.West Indies (possible): 1 Devon Smith, 2 Lendl Simmons, 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Kirk Edwards, 6 Dwayne Bravo, 7 Carlton Baugh (wk), 8 Darren Sammy (capt), 9 Devendra Bishoo, 10 Kemar Roach, 11 Anthony Martin
Pakistan’s successful start to the ODI series means their side doesn’t really need any tinkering, and it’s unlikely they’ll risk disturbing their equilibrium. Young allrounder Hammad Azam was not called upon with either bat or ball on Saturday, but it would be very harsh if he was not given another chance to prove himself in the second match.Pakistan (possible): 1 Ahmed Shehzad, 2 Mohammad Hafeez, 3 Asad Shafiq, 4 Misbah-ul-Haq, 5 Umar Akmal, 6 Hammad Azam, 7 Mohammad Salman (wk), 8 Shahid Afridi (capt), 9 Wahab Riaz, 10 Junaid Khan, 11 Saeed Ajmal.

Pitch and conditions

The St Lucia surface lost pace noticeably over the course of the Twenty20 match that opened the tour, but appeared to flatten out when Pakistan were chasing down their runs with ease on Saturday afternoon. It remains a welcoming track for spinners, however. Another warm day is expected, and while the rain stayed away in the previous games there remains a slight risk that it could intrude upon proceedings later on.

Stats and trivia

• One man who could solve multiple problems for West Indies in both the batting and spin-bowling departments has taken more wickets and scored more runs in ODIs at this ground than anyone. Chris Gayle has scored 444 runs and taken 11 wickets, but unfortunately it’s unlikely he’ll be back any time soon.
• The two men behind him on that run-scoring list are none other than Ramnaresh Sarwan and Shivnarine Chanderpaul.
• West Indies have played three ODI’s against Pakistan in St Lucia and lost all of them, Pakistan winning by 40 and 22 runs during the 2005 series won 3-0 by the visitors and by eight wickets on Saturday.
• Pakistan’s top-scorer in the first match, Misbah-ul-Haq, has scored the most runs without hitting a century in ODIs among current Pakistan players. Out of all current players, only Elton Chigumbura, Stuart Matsikenyeri and Daniel Vettori have more ODI runs without a ton.

Quotes

“The Pakistan spinners bowled some good balls, but to be a great player you have to find a way to score off the good balls not just the bad balls.”
“I was very happy when West Indies won the toss and chose to bat because I thought the pitch would help our spinners. I think our spinners have been doing a great job for us in the last few months, and they again set things up for us.”

Our guide to Sunday’s main player draft for the new competition’s first season

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Oct-2019What is it?The Hundred is the ECB’s new 100-ball tournament, which will be played in July-August 2020. It will be played by eight new teams, based in seven different cities (there are two London teams).Who are the new teams?Birmingham Phoenix (Edgbaston)
London Spirit (Lord’s)
Manchester Originals (Old Trafford)
Northern Superchargers (Leeds)
Oval Invincibles (The Oval)
Southern Brave (Ageas Bowl)
Trent Rockets (Trent Bridge)
Welsh Fire (Cardiff)Who’s making the picks?All the teams are owned by the ECB, so unlike in plenty of other leagues there will be no owners on the draft tables. Picks will be made by head coaches, but with plenty of behind-the-scenes inputs from the rest of their staff and their analysts.The head coaches are as follows:Birmingham Phoenix – Andrew McDonald
London Spirit – Shane Warne
Manchester Originals – Simon Katich
Northern Superchargers – Darren Lehmann
Oval Invincibles – Tom Moody
Southern Brave – Mahela Jayawardene
Trent Rockets – Stephen Fleming
Welsh Fire – Gary KirstenDo they have any players already?Yes. Each of the men’s sides has picked one England player. Teams could choose one Test-contracted player from their ‘catchment area’, meaning Northern Superchargers faced the choice between Ben Stokes, Jonny Bairstow, and Joe Root (they went for Stokes), while those players left over were allocated to a team without a Test player.Joe Root of Trent Rockets, one of the eight new teams that competing in The Hundred•Getty Images

Each team then picked two ‘local icons’, each of whom spent the 2019 season at a county in the new team’s catchment area. They were able to negotiate a salary with their new team, and ESPNcricinfo understands that some players were convinced to take lower salaries due to the security of being picked up before the main draft.That means that the majority of England’s one-day players have been picked already, though a handful – Joe Denly, Sam Billings, and Mark Wood, for example – will be available in the draft.How does the draft work?After a random draw, the order of picks for the first round was decided, with Stephen Fleming’s Trent Rockets set to pick the first player. The order of picks will then be reversed for the second round, and so on. Where a local icon has been picked, the team will skip that turn in the draft.Each team has 100 seconds to make their pick in each round. Salaries are pre-decided, and depend on how early a player is picked. First and second-round picks will earn £125,000 each, while round 13 or 14 picks earn £30,000.What about overseas players?As revealed by ESPNcricinfo, some 240 overseas players have registered for the draft, and with the exception of India’s white-ball stars and AB de Villiers, most of the big names are available.Each team will be permitted three overseas players, in both their squad and their XI.Can they sign anyone after the draft?Yes – each team will also be able to make a ‘wildcard’ pick after the conclusion of next season’s Vitality Blast, who will receive a £30,000 contract.What happens next season?Teams will be able to retain up to ten players in their squad for the 2021 edition of the tournament, and will mutually agree the salary band with the relevant player.What about the women’s competition?There’s no draft for the women’s competition, with players instead negotiating deals directly with head coaches. Each team has already signed two England-contracted players, and has until the end of May 2020 to complete their squad.When is the draft?The draft starts at 7pm local time in Sky’s London studios, and ESPNcricinfo will bring you live coverage throughout the evening to see who ends up where.