Knights opened South Africa’s domestic T20 season with a strong batting performance to derail Cape Cobras by 38 runs in Johannesburg on Saturday

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Nov-2016
ScorecardFile photo – Marchant de Lange picked up the crucial wicket of Richard Levi•BCCI

Knights opened South Africa’s domestic T20 season with a strong batting performance to derail Cape Cobras by 38 runs in Johannesburg on Saturday.Patrick Kruger top scored with a 49-ball 74 as Knights posted 184 for 8 after being sent in to bat. Marchant de Lange’s early strikes crippled Cobras, who were eventually bowled out for 146 in 17.2 overs. In a chase where they needed at least one batsman with a substantial score, the highest was Keegan Petersen’s 39.In comparison, Knights were driven by partnerships, none more important than the 72-run opening stand in 8.5 overs between Kruger and Rudi Second. The wickets of Second and David Miller in quick time raised hopes of a turnaround. But Knights were driven by cameos from Diego Rosier (12-ball 27) and de Lange (11-ball 22) that helped them score 69 off the last seven overs. Amid the carnage, Dane Paterson picked up three wickets, while George Linde and Jason Smith picked up two wickets apiece.In reply, Cobras lost three of their top four – Richard Levi, Cebo Tshiki and Justin Ontong – inside five overs. Kieron Pollard’s dismissal for 5 put more pressure on the middle order. Only Petersen and Linde made 30-plus scores, but by then the chase was all but over.Linde was the penultimate batsman to be dismissed in the 18th over. De Lange picked up three wickets, including that of Levi after he started briskly with four fours and a six, while Kruger took two.

Renegades won their second-consecutive match against their local rivals as they beat Stars by five wickets with three balls to spare

The Report by Will Macpherson in Melbourne07-Jan-2017
ScorecardFile photo – Danielle Wyatt hit five fours en route to her 31-ball innings of 40•Getty Images

Melbourne Renegades, languishing at the bottom of the WBBL table, upset the finals aspirations of their crosstown rivals Melbourne Stars, for the second-successive Saturday in the WBBL.Renegades victory – their third on the spin – was built on a tight bowling performance, led by Lea Tahuhu and Molly Strano, and finished with a calm chase, in which Danielle Wyatt made 40 and Kris Britt 35 as they shared 75 for the third wicket before both fell with victory in sight.Stars’ missed opportunity
The Stars were left to rue their middling total of 127 for seven. All of their top four got in, looked settled and ready to go big, but failed to kick on.Meg Lanning may have inside-edged Tahuhu past her stumps for four off the match’s first ball, but she and Emma Inglis were just beginning to get going when they fell in consecutive balls at the end of the powerplay. The excellent Strano bowled Inglis, then Tahuhu – bowling her fourth over in the seventh of the innings – found a pearler to dismiss Lanning. It pitched on off, then nipped away, beating Lanning’s outside edge and taking the off peg. Stars were 35 for two.Still, Natalie Sciver joined Jess Cameron and together they shared 56, with Sciver raiding Nicole Goodwin’s only over for 18, including a brilliantly violent slog-swept six off a no-ball. Once again, a strong position – 90 for two with six overs to go – was surrendered by one bad over. The 15th, the second of a fine spell from Wyatt, brought about their downfall. Cameron picked out long-off, then Sciver was sent back by Katie Mack – who should have deferred to the set batsman – and run out by a mile. Mack and Hayley Jensen shared 32 runs before three wickets fell in three balls in the final over, but the opportunity to accelerate had been missed.Bowlin’ dry
Goodwin’s costly over aside, this was a fine bowling and fielding performance from Renegades. Wyatt and Maitlan Brown bowled four tight overs each, but the key contributions came from those who broke the opening partnership, Tahuhu and Strano. It’s rare to see a player bowl their four overs up top, but it was obvious why Rachel Priest kept Tahuhu on: the New Zealand international was bowling sharp bouncers with real pace (about 120kph) and unsettling Lanning. Strano, on the other hand, bowled three tight overs before returning at the death. Jensen stepped across her stumps to try to exploit a gap at fine-leg but was bowled, then Emma Kearney and Kristen Beams were run out, the latter by a brilliant throw from Tahuhu.The chilled chase – almost
Priest and Sophie Molineux – who has improved through the tournament’s progress – got the Renegades off to a calm start before falling in quick succession. It will be tough to find a prettier 23 than Molineux’s here – full, as it was, with deft cuts and powerful pulls – but she was caught at mid-on and Priest followed next over. Never mind, the impish Wyatt and more powerful Britt picked up the baton, growing into their 11-over partnership to leave Renegades’ victory beyond doubt.Triscari’s tricks of the trade
Renegades’ best bowling came courtesy of Gemma Triscari’s left-arm trickery, but the strength of Wyatt and Britt’s partnership was their ability to pick their targets. Wyatt licked her lips at the introduction of Alana King’s legspin, and walloped her down the ground for consecutive fours. Triscari’s penultimate delivery – her last over was the 17th – gave her the deserved wicket of Wyatt, hitting to mid-on, while Britt carelessly ran herself out and, with three required, Grace Harris slapped to cover. Strano, who looks every inch a future Southern Star, calmly saw Renegades home.Renegades, having played ten (the joint-most in the competition) of their 14 games, now sit just half a point back from four teams – including the Stars, who are fourth, but have lost four in a row

Afghanistan continued their puppet-mastery of UAE in Twenty20 cricket with a gritty five-wicket win in front of 8000 fans at Sheikh Zayed Stadium

The Report by Peter Della Penna in Abu Dhabi16-Jan-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details2:08

WATCH – What happened after Najibullah Zadran lost his footing?

Afghanistan continued their puppet-mastery of UAE in Twenty20 cricket with a gritty five-wicket win in front of 8000 fans at Sheikh Zayed Stadium. UAE had raced to 91 for 2 in the first ten overs after being sent in, but legspinner Rashid Khan sparked a revival in the field to limit UAE to 55 off the final 10 overs. The total could have been even less had Afghanistan not grassed five chances, including three by their fielder with the best catching reputation in the side, Mohammad Nabi.Just as the slow bowlers held UAE in check, the tandem of left-arm spinner Ahmed Raza and legspinner Imran Haider put the brakes on Afghanistan’s innings after captain Asghar Stanikzai had propelled them to 68 for 3 in the first ten. Samiullah Shenwari laboured through the middle overs scoring at less than a run a ball – he was on 23 off 35 balls at the 14-over mark – to leave Afghanistan needing 59 off the last six overs.Like Namibia 24 hours earlier, UAE struggled gripping the ball later on thanks to evening dew and loose deliveries helped Afghanistan keep the required run rate manageable. With 20 needed off 12 balls, Karim Janat struck a boundary over midwicket to begin the 19th and then swayed out of the way of one speared down leg by fast bowler Mohammad Shahzad that went for five wides and in less than 60 seconds the equation was down to a run a ball. An extraordinary six by Najibullah Zadran over extra cover left Afghanistan needing two to win and victory was achieved with seven balls to spare thanks to another wide followed by a single down the ground.Sedate ShaimanDespite entering in the second over and batting until halfway through the final over, Shaiman Anwar finished his innings scoring at just a run a ball. In fact the only two instances when he had more runs than deliveries faced occurred after cutting Dawlat Zadran through point in the sixth over to move to 12 off 11 balls and the tennis-style smash to a short ball back over mid-off for another boundary off Dawlat in the final over that took him to 52 off 51 balls. He was bowled by Dawlat’s next delivery.Shaiman struggled throughout his innings, dropped three times – on 7, 28 and 45 – as well as being caught off a no-ball on 12. UAE were only four wickets down after 17 overs with the score on 126, but Shaiman never showed a sense of urgency to switch into a more aggressive mode.Reliable RashidA crowd which had been roaring virtually non-stop in the win over Ireland on Saturday night was kept eerily quiet for most of the first ten overs while Mohammad Shahzad, Rohan Mustafa and Ghulam Shabber plundered the Afghanistan fast bowling. When Stanikzai tossed Rashid the ball to signal a bowling change for the 11th, the Afghanistan fans started to come to life with hopeful cheers. They expect Rashid to conjure up some form of magic on a regular basis now and the 18-year-old rarely lets them down.Rashid Khan’s figures of 2 for 12 revived Afghanistan’s bowling effort•Peter Della Penna

With every dot ball and appeal for leg before the south stand’s buzzing grew louder. Rashid’s first two overs were wicketless, but the crowd roared their appreciation for having conceded just five runs, with nine dot balls. The pressure he built resulted in Shaiman offering a chance on the following ball, to start the 14th over, before Ghulam was dismissed by Dawlat from the next one, top-edging a bouncer as Afghanistan wicketkeeper Mohammad Shahzad waited for a swirling chance to settle in his gloves.Rashid finally broke through in his third over getting Rameez Shahzad stumped. He barely celebrated, showing more energy in his lbw appeals and deliveries that just missed off stump. In his final over, he became slightly more animated when he bowled Muhammad Usman behind his legs, pointing Usman back to the pavilion after the batsman had walked across the stumps for a paddle scoop. By the time his spell of 2 for 12 had finished the in the crowd were back thumping in rhythm.Look ma, one hand!Najibullah has been a thorn in the side of UAE for the last month. In Afghanistan’s 3-0 T20I sweep over the same opponents in mid December, Najibullah scored 104 runs off 45 balls in three innings without being dismissed. After the stunt he pulled off here, UAE may be wondering if they will ever find a way to get him out.On the fourth ball of the 19th over, Mohammad Shahzad went round the wicket and bowled full and way outside off stump. It was well outside the tram lines and would have comfortably been called a wide had Najibullah left it alone. Instead, he chased after it and in the process lost his balance and his footing. He took his left hand off his bat to brace his landing but, rather than abort his shot, scythed away one-handed and sent the ball sailing five yards over the extra cover rope for an improbable six.In the manner of street basketball And1 Mix Tape legend Anthony Heyward, Najibullah may have just earned himself a new nickname: “Half Man, Half Amazing”. At the very least, his superhuman shot put a full stamp on another victory for Afghanistan.

Eoin Morgan hailed his bowlers’ collective effort after they set up a seven-wicket win, which the captain called a ‘pretty complete performance’ during the first T20 in Kanpur

Vishal Dikshit in Kanpur26-Jan-20172:18

‘We were 30-35 runs short’ – Kohli

Eoin Morgan hailed his bowlers’ collective effort after they set up a seven-wicket win, which the captain called a “pretty complete performance” during the first T20 in Kanpur. After winning only one of their eight matches on tour so far, England kept control by taking wickets at regular intervals and stifling India’s batsmen in the end overs on Thursday.Morgan was especially praiseworthy of Man of the Match Moeen Ali who bowled four straight overs in the middle and finished with 4-0-21-2, his best T20I figures including the wicket of Virat Kohli with his first delivery, and Morgan did not use their limited-overs specialist spinner Adil Rashid at all.”It was a pretty complete performance certainly,” Morgan said. “As complete a performance as any we’ve produced on this trip. To win the toss and bowl is always a bit extra pressure on the bowlers to produce exactly what’s needed on that particular wicket especially bowling at a guy like Virat first up. And I thought we handled that pretty well. Tymal Mills and Chris Jordan coming into the side pretty fresh showed exactly why they’re in the side and selected in the first game in this series, they were outstanding I thought.”Then Moeen was so good in the middle, showed huge amount of experience. I thought he bowled outstandingly well, not getting carried away with what he was trying to bowl or bowl too aggressively. Just nailing his basics and I thought that was a big factor in the game. Then obviously finishing well; when you got to bowl to MS [Dhoni] at the end, especially when he’s faced 10-15 balls already, it’s very difficult, coming in and nailing the skills. CJ and Tymal were brilliant.”Morgan said not bowling Rashid, despite including him in place of Jake Ball, was a factor of the pitch and the result of a discussion he had with Jos Buttler.

Didn’t have the runs to try anything – Kohli

Virat Kohli said his team fell short by 30-35 runs when they set England a target of 148 which was chased down in 18.1 overs.
“Today was a case where we were about 30-35 runs short,” he said. “150 was below-par score on that sort of wicket. If we had bowled better we could have made a good fight of the total we had on the board but about 170-175 would have been a more competitive total, I wouldn’t say a match-winning one because the ball was coming on nicely.
“Still, it would have been one that we could have tried a few things with and put the pressure on the opposition but with the start they had, it was difficult to pull things back and that’s where we needed a cushion of 35-40 runs which we didn’t have.”

“I sort of made the decision, I think it was about eight or nine overs when Liam [Plunkett] came back. I think Stokesy bowled an over. We sort of looked at the wicket and it deteriorated a little bit. The slates in the middle started to move. I had a chat with Jos about bringing Liam back on or go on with Adil, I sort of decided that Liam was the best option given those circumstances. But certainly, you are right about the control of the game. Everything about it felt really good. Generally, when things go well, you might have one over and they get carried away and give 15 or 20.”England executed their yorkers much more consistently than in the one-day and improved on their accuracy in the death overs that helped restrict India to 147 for 7. Morgan said reducing India to what Kohli called a “below-par score” was a factor of Kohli’s early wicket and the slower balls the England bowlers used smartly.”I thought it [slower balls] were executed very well,” Morgan said. “They could have bowled bad slower balls, there are two types. But I thought they bowled really well. You are always going to see them bowled in T20 games. But how well they bowled is obviously matter of how they are played. I thought we executed them really well.”It was extremely important to get Virat out. The bowlers did an exceptional job. He is always looking to come hard at you. So to keep him quiet is always a good sign for us.”Kohli, himself, was equally magnanimous in his assessment of the England bowlers who he has dominated for much of the tour.”For sure they showed character,” he said. “They were better with the ball; smarter in the areas that they bowled even at the death. Jordan hit some really nice areas, even Mills bowling back of the hand at the end was pretty good with the slower bouncers.”They executed what they wanted pretty nicely and you could tell they were playing more freely, they were not thinking about conceding too many runs which was evident in their body language and credit to them, they bowled in good areas and made it difficult for us to score off.”Even though chasing 148 against India, who played two spinners, cannot be taken lightly, opener Sam Billings ensured England’s asking rate fell sharply to under seven an over when he smashed Jasprit Bumrah for 20 in the second over. Billings, playing his second match of the tour, was dismissed for a quick-fire 22 off 10 in the fourth over and though that was the second wicket to fall in three balls the start had given England plenty of breathing space.”Personally, I think he is in outstanding form at the moment,” Morgan said. “I watched all the games he played in the Big Bash. In the build-up to this one-day series, he struck the ball as good as anybody. We encourage him to enjoy the form that he is in. I know he has not played a great deal of cricket and it is easy to put yourself under pressure when the opportunity comes.”Part and parcel of taking the opportunity is to be relaxed enough and backing your game. He has done that tonight. When you are chasing a small total, coming out and stamping your authority is a part and parcel of setting the tone of the innings. I think he did that magnificently well for a guy who has played just eight or nine games.”

Imran Tahir has said it is ‘very special’ to be ranked the No. 1 bowler in both ODI and T20 cricket

Andrew McGlashan16-Feb-20170:45

Tahir tops ODI rankings for bowlers for the third time

Imran Tahir has said it is “very special” to be ranked the No. 1 bowler in both ODI and T20 cricket. He completed the double when he went top of the one-day table after South Africa’s 5-0 victory over Sri Lanka where he claimed 10 wickets.Tahir began that series with a Man-of-the-Match performance of 3 for 26 at Port Elizabeth and only in the high-scoring Cape Town match, where Sri Lanka replied with 327 to South Africa’s 367, was he punished as he conceded 76 off his 10 overs. Even then he claimed two wickets to snuff out Sri Lanka’s brave chase.It’s that skill of taking wickets, alongside his control, that makes him such a valuable asset to South Africa’s white-ball sides. In recent times he has rarely failed to deliver a breakthrough for his captain – whether that is Faf du Plessis, AB de Villiers or Farhaan Behardien – and his last wicketless ODI was 10 games ago. He has been integral to South Africa’s winning run which stands at 11 ODIs.Tahir was twice previously ranked No. 1 in ODIs, when he briefly held the top spot during the 2015 World Cup before being leapfrogged at the end of the tournament by Mitchell Starc, then again in October 2015, and there is a chance of a bowl-off for the position in this series against New Zealand with Trent Boult, the No. 2-ranked bowler.”When I started cricket I never thought I’d be No. 1 bowler, it’s all the hard work I’ve done and I’m very excited,” Tahir said. “There are a lot of good players in world cricket and coming top of that is a really good achievement and I’m really grateful.”It’s an absolute honour playing for South Africa, the boys have helped me over the years and made me the bowler I am today. Credit goes to them as well. I’ll try and stay in the spot as long as I can but there are some other brilliant cricketers.”Tahir has not been able to produce the same success at Test level. His 20 appearances, the last of which came against India in Delhi, have brought 57 wickets at 40.24 and South Africa have moved on from him in that format.However, with the white ball he has certainly grown older gracefully. “He doesn’t bowl bad balls anymore,” AB de Villiers said last month. “He always used to take wickets but now you don’t see bad balls, which makes him really difficult to play.”When Tahir was asked what advice he would give Ish Sodhi, the New Zealand legspinner he could go up against over the next few weeks, he gave an insight into what had made him such a successful bowler.”If I was him I’d work harder, I’m not saying he isn’t but that’s my advice because when I started like him I didn’t know my game or use my variations,” Tahir said. “I just bowled leggies, but then I worked hard to try to find how what would work for me in international cricket. Coming from South Africa is not easy because the pitches aren’t spin-friendly, so I had to work out how to adjust.”They are skills that will serve him well in New Zealand, too, where – as Sodhi could no doubt attest to – conditions are not what legspinners dream of. Tahir has previously played three ODIs against the hosts in the country, the most recent of them the 2015 World Cup semi-final where he was wicketless but conceded just 40 in nine overs in the high-scoring contest, and New Zealand are aware of the impact he could have.”He’s a great operator for South Africa, and any team he plays for,” Kane Williamson said. “We’ve played a lot against each other. It’s important we play him well.”A few batting line-ups of late have found that easier said than done.

Knowing he might be the likely man to make way when AB de Villiers returns to Test cricket, Temba Bavuma is keen to get his form back and his numbers up

Firdose Moonda in Wellington14-Mar-2017Temba Bavuma was ready for the worst. In the midst of the toughest period in his short international career, when he went seven innings with a highest score of 21 and with South Africa preparing for the return of AB de Villiers, Bavuma accepted he may be the man to make way.”We all anticipated AB was going to come back sometime. For me, there’s not much emotional feeling towards him for pulling out of the Tests for the whole year. He’s a world-class player. If I was told to not play because of him, there’s nothing I can counter that with,” Bavuma had said at a sponsor event in Cape Town on January 24, although by then he knew his place was safe. De Villiers had ruled himself out of Test cricket for the majority of 2017 in an effort to make the 2019 World Cup.Still, underperforming was no longer acceptable for the first black African batsman to represent the country in the longest format. “I’ve spoken to people who are quite close to me,” Bavuma said “And they keep saying I’m not out of form and that I’m playing well. But my feeling is that you can’t be playing well and not scoring runs. I’ve had time to reflect on the Sri Lankan series, and I don’t think there’s anything technical that stands out. It’s probably more from a mental point of view. That’s the biggest thing for me.”Bavuma did some work with South Africa’s batting coach and former team-mate Neil McKenzie. “He has been with me from the beginning and probably knows my game better than I do. He’s a deep thinker on the game. He’s always asking you questions and getting you to think the right things about your game.”Slowly, there was an improvement. Bavuma scored a half-century in a first-class game for the Lions and another in a List A match and although the runs were not raining down, he arrived in New Zealand in better frame of mind and it showed. He struck his first half-century in four months at Dunedin, and shared in a 104-run fifth-wicket stand with Dean Elgar to take South Africa from a slightly shaky 148 for 4 to a more stable 252 for 5. During the match, Elgar said it was the best he had seen Bavuma bat and the man admitted he felt more confident in his own ability.”I do feel that I was able to get some kind of batting rhythm,” Bavuma said in Wellington seven weeks after voicing concerns over his form in Cape Town. “Mentally, it was just being up for the fight, understanding that there will be pressure situations and just trying to find a way to get through those.”The next challenge was pushing on. “Obviously one is never happy, never satisfied with getting a fifty or a sixty, we know that for the team, especially batting in the middle order, we’ve got to get those big runs to put the team in a strong position. I will just try and build on that and not sleep on what happened in Dunedin.”Batting at No. 6, Bavuma might not always get the opportunity to go big. His value is instead measured in the type of runs he provides and the situations in which he scores them. In Perth, Hobart and Dunedin, Bavuma’s efforts came when South Africa needed them the most and although he recognised his contribution to the cause, he remained hard on himself.”Stats are a big part of cricket, especially as a batter,” he said. “At the end of the day, you are judged on your stats. My mentality is always to try and contribute to the team but there is that fine balance of making sure your numbers are also in order. That’s probably the most disappointing thing thus far with my international career. I have contributed to the side but probably my numbers don’t justify all of that.”After 18 Tests, Bavuma’s average is a smidge over 30 and he only has one hundred to his name but he has some time on his side. There are three Test series – the current one in New Zealand, a four-Test tour of England and two matches against Bangladesh at home in September-October – before de Villiers’ proposed return and you can be sure no-one is more aware of that than Bavuma.

Worcestershire made it two wins in a row in the Specsavers County Championship and ended Northamptonshire’s 100% start to the season with a victory in two days in a tense, low-scoring contest at New Road

ECB Reporters Network22-Apr-2017
ScorecardJoe Leach was on a hat-trick early in Glamorgan’s innings•Getty Images

Worcestershire made it two wins in a row in the Specsavers County Championship and ended Northamptonshire’s 100% start to the season with a victory in two days in a tense, low-scoring contest at New Road.After bowling out the home side for 153 in their second innings, Northants were dismissed for 164 and went down by 20 runs after being hi-jacked late in the day by Joe Leach and Josh Tongue.Having survived a tricky start at 45 for 3, the visitors seemed to be inching towards a third consecutive victory when Adam Rossington and Max Holden played responsibly in a stand of 40.But the game tilted back towards Worcestershire with two wickets in 13 balls for Leach. The newly-appointed captain had Rossington caught at cover for 22 and then bowled on-loan Middlesex left hander Holden for 37.Worse followed for Northants when Tongue picked up two in four balls. Richard Levi was lbw for 22, playing back to the 19-year-old paceman, who followed that by yorking Steven Crook.The two seamers chipped out two more wickets but Mohammad Azharullah kept up the fight with an unbeaten 17 until the result was settled at 7.20pm when Andy Carter was lbw for 8, giving Leach match figures of 10 for 122.After 16 wickets had crashed under heavy cloud cover on the first day, it was tempting to assume that batting would become easier in bright sunshine, but it proved to be just as difficult to put partnerships together.In all, 24 fell on a protracted second day.A grassy pitch, probably typical of early season with its seam movement, was a factor which became critical when coupled with a number of rash shots. Patience was not the name of the game.The first job of the day was to deal with Northamptonshire’s last four wickets and they were duly swept aside in under an hour, although they would have been reasonably happy with the 55 runs added.Nathan Buck’s unbeaten 24 included a pick-up for six off Leach and Crook gave John Hastings the first success in his spell of 3 for 27.
With Worcestershire holding a lead of 31, their marginal advantage was quickly diluted with the scoreboard showing 3 for 3 after four overs from Buck and Azharullah.Daryl Mitchell nicked Buck’s third delivery behind the wicket, Moeen Ali scythed a catch to Ben Duckett in the slips and Brett D’Oliviera was given out lbw for a second wicket for Azharullah.Worcestershire came up with an innovative response by sending in Hastings and Leach in a fourth-wicket partnership after batting at Nos 9 and 10 in the first innings.The move worked to the extent of 22 for Hastings and 16 for Leach, but half the side went for 56 before regular middle-order batsmen were together at the crease.Joe Clarke did not last long before edging Buck for another slip catch by Duckett, but hopes were raised by Tom Fell (23) and Tom Kohler-Cadmore (22).Again, however, it was not as substantial as they would have wanted. Fell was bowled by Buck and Kohler-Cadmore sliced to gully in a short spell by Crook.Carter, having come out of retirement to sign for injury-hit Northants, took his fifth wicket of the match when Ben Cox was caught behind but the last pair put together the biggest stand of 45 until Tongue was bowled by Buck. Ed Barnard was left unbeaten with top score of 26.

Hours after resigning as India coach, Anil Kumble tweeted “thank you!”, and attached a statement to his tweet

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Jun-2017I am honoured by the confidence reposed in my by the CAC, in asking me to continue as Head Coach. The credit for the achievements of the last one year goes to the captain, the entire team, coaching and support staff.Post this intimation, I was informed for the first time yesterday by the BCCI that the Captain had reservations with my ‘style’ and about my continuing as the Head Coach. I was surprised since I had always respected the role boundaries between Captain and Coach. Though the BCCI attempted to resolve the misunderstandings between the Captain and me, it was apparent that the partnership was untenable, and I therefore believe it is best for me to move on.Professionalism, discipline, commitment, honesty, complementary skills and diverse views are the key traits I bring to the table. These need to be valued for the partnership to be effective. I see the Coach’s role akin to ‘holding a mirror’ to drive self-improvement in the team’s interest.In light of these ‘reservations’, I believe it is best I hand over this responsibility to whomever the CAC and BCCI deem fit.Let me reiterate that it has been an absolutely privilege to have served as Head Coach for the last one year. I thank the CAC, BCCI, CoA and all concerned.I also wish to thank the innumerable followers and fans of Indian cricket for their continued support. I will remain a well-wisher of the great cricketing tradition of my country forever.- Anil Kumble

Come to watch the Champions Trophy safe in the knowledge that you are well protected. That is the message from Ronnie Flanagan, the chairman of the ICC’s anti-corruption and security unit, in the wake of the terrorist attack in Manchester this week

Nagraj Gollapudi25-May-2017Come to watch the Champions Trophy safe in the knowledge that you are well protected. That is the message from Ronnie Flanagan, the chairman of the ICC’s anti-corruption and security unit (ACSU), in the wake of the terrorist attack in Manchester this week.Flanagan said that cricket could not “yield” to the terrorists. “Basically come safe and secure knowledge that we will make this a safe and secure tournament,” Flanagan, who has experience on the police force, said at a media briefing in London. “Don’t let the terrorists have their way. In my experience sport can be a wonderfully positive influence in the face of adversity and in the face of terrorism. We have seen that in South Africa. I saw at first hand in Ireland.”Following the attack in Manchester, which took place at a music concert, the UK government raised the threat level from severe to critical – the highest level. Armed military personnel have been deployed across the country to assist the police in averting any further attacks.Flanagan’s past experience as a cop is highly relevant. Before arriving at the ICC, he was the Home Office chief inspector of constabulary for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and previously was the chief constable of the police service of Northern Ireland.According to Flanagan the ICC and ECB were working closely with the police to make sure the teams’ movements will not be affected.”I have every confidence that we cannot yield in any way to terrorists’ intentions,” he said. “I would ask the public to be vigilant and the old adage, if they see something, to say something. But come to our matches.”But, come expecting some additional inconvenience, expecting pat-down searches, vehicle searches etc. And searches of any equipment they bring with them. And there will be fast lanes for those not carrying equipment. So that might be an encouragement for people who might have normally brought picnics and all sorts of things. May be they want to reconsider that. Perhaps this tournament just might offer a little opportunity to break through the gloom in some small way.”Security was tight at the first England-South Africa ODI, at Headingley•Getty Images

It is understood that so far none of the eight participating teams have raised any concerns to the ICC. Training sessions have carried on as per schedule. There has been no restriction on player movements, but the team managements have been briefed by the ICC security officials. Captains of various teams including India, New Zealand and Sri Lanka confirmed that, saying the players remained confident and secure.”What happened here few days back was really saddening and very disturbing for everyone who saw it, especially a place like England has not had many of these incidents happen in the past,” Virat Kohli, the India captain, said. “Yeah, for a few people it can be sort of a nervous time, but I don’t think as a squad you have time to focus on those factors because eventually you understand you are here for a sporting tournament.”That for us remains paramount in our thought patterns. I personally don’t feel any nervousness as such. I saw life resume pretty normally and that is always a healthy sign. There wasn’t anything disturbing to see on the streets to say the least, nothing different from what I have seen in the past. I am actually excited to play the tournament.”India landed in London on Thursday morning, and Kohli said the team had already been briefed about dos and don’ts. “With the security information coming in it is be very helpful for the players – what are the areas we can access, what times we can access them, what are the areas we need to avoid… All those sort of those things come into play when you have a situation like this, which the players need to respect. There is a lot at stake for everyone here: the cricketers, the ICC, ECB. Everyone is worried about everyone’s security.”

Ian Holland brought more gloom for Somerset as they suffered another batting collapse at the Ageas Bowl

ECB Reporters Network28-Jun-2017
ScorecardIan Holland had a field day at the Ageas Bowl•Getty Images

Ian Holland manufactured a Somerset batting collapse as Hampshire gained an upper hand on day three of their Division One Specsavers County Championship clash at the Ageas Bowl.The Australian all-rounder took 4 for 8 in just four overs to leave the visitors reeling.Hampshire had been frustrated firstly by a completely washed out first session and when played did start at 5:20, Eddie Byrom and Adam Hose initially piled on the runs. The second wicket saw 77 runs as debutant Byrom reached an unfussy 43 before Holland, playing only his fourth first-class match, entered the attack.The Zimbabwean opener struggled to adjust to the slower pace and tamely chipped a dolly catch to George Bailey at mid-off.The wicket sparked a flurry of departures, as Holland struck again in his second over as James Hildreth was hit on the pads.After a wicketless over, Holland was at it again as he had Somerset captain Tom Abell caught behind before repeating the trick to see off Steven Davies two balls later.Holland could not be kept out of the action when the ball was taken out of his hands, as Lewis Gregory slipped while taking off for a quick single, before Holland at backward point threw to Lewis McManus, who ran the batsman out.Gareth Berg was surprisingly brought into the attack to replace Holland, who completed the session with figures of four for 16 – his best first-class figures.But the shock of seeing the in form bowler out the attack was lessened when the South African had Hose – who had kept his head down to reach 48 – leg before to his first delivery of the new spell.Craig Overton was the final wicket to fall before the interval as he clipped Berg to Jimmy Adams at midwicket.Somerset had fallen from 102 for one to 135 for 8 in 14 spectacular overs but rain during the supper interval made sure the players failed to return to the field again.