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Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals have completed their suspensions of two years from the IPL on Friday and were “welcomed back” by the BCCI.The suspension on the owners of the two franchises – India Cements and Jaipur IPL – was imposed by the Lodha Committee exactly two years ago, effectively ruling out the participation of the two teams. They will now be able to feature in 11th IPL edition next year.The committee had also banned for life Gurunath Meiyappan, a former official of Super Kings, and Raj Kundra, a co-owner of Royals, from any involvement in cricket matches for bringing “disrepute” to the game.The BCCI later decided to bring in two new franchises for a two-year term. In December 2015, the New Rising consortium and Intex won the ownership rights of the new franchises Rising Pune Supergiant (home base: Pune) and Gujarat Lions (home base: Rajkot).Super Kings had won the IPL twice, in 2010 and 2011, while Royals won the inaugural edition in 2008.

Match Facts

June 12, 2017
Start time 10.30am local (0930 GMT)

Big Picture

And so, it has transpired that two fundamentally flawed sides – seventh and eighth on the ODI rankings – now have the chance to scramble over the other into the semi-final of the most competitive one-day tournament around.How this came about deserves a brief recap. Pakistan, who barely strung together five overs of competence against India, choked South Africa’s top order with spin, before the quicks came back to wipe out the middle order with reverse swing. The next day, Sri Lanka, who had been swatted away like a gnat by South Africa, ran down India’s 321 for 6 with ease – Angelo Mathews so cool in the final overs, he practically had a cigar between his lips, and a drink in one hand.Even just two games in, both teams have put together such colourful campaigns. Sri Lanka’s old warhorse, Lasith Malinga, has been sporadically effective with the ball, but has been more entertaining in the field, where his slow-motion dives have brought to mind the keeling over of a ship. If you squint, you can just about see seismic ripples in the turf. Elsewhere, Sri Lanka have attempted singles advisable only on low-gravity planets, have committed batting hara-kiri against high-quality wrist spin, and players have strived en masse to rule themselves out of this game – Chamara Kapugedara, Kusal Perera and Upul Tharanga already unavailable, before a blow to Thisara Perera’s head at training also put him in doubt, though, thankfully, he appears to be fine now.Pakistan, meanwhile, had lost Umar Akmal to fitness concerns a week before the tournament, have seen ace bowler Mohammad Amir go wicketless in both matches, while other bowlers in the attack lurched from abysmal to dominant in the space of three days. Sarfraz Ahmed’s new captaincy has also been eventful. Mohammad Hafeez delivered ten overs and contributed the vital wicket of Quinton de Kock in Pakistan’s win over South Africa, but had not been bowled at all in the previous match, prompting much head-scratching, not least from Pakistan’s own coach.Look, these previews are often an occasion for considered analysis; a platform for weighing up relative strengths, and figuring out which side has the upper hand. But is there really a point with these two teams? When they play as they have, they are impervious to any kind of meaningful dissection. There is so little consistency from one game to the next, the whole exercise loses its value.And a Sri Lanka v Pakistan knockout has so much tragicomic potential that to discuss it beforehand is like giving out spoilers. This preview may already have said too much.

Form guide

Sri Lanka WLWLL (completed matches, most recent first)
Pakistan WLWWL

In the spotlight

Babar Azam, one of the brightest young batting talents on the planet, has five hundreds and six fifties in 28 innings, a rocking average of 54.44, and – crucially for a Pakistan batsman of the last two years – a 21st-century strike rate of 89. He had just been warming up when the rains came down in Birmingham – his last stroke having been a regal on-drive off Kagiso Rabada. Having had a modest tour of England last year, Babar will be eager to cross fifty for the first time on English soil, and Sri Lanka’s limited attack may be the opposition to do it against.Also in possession of a potentially devastating payload of talent is another 22-year-old, Kusal Mendis, whose crinkle-free 89 on Thursday helped set Sri Lanka on track to victory. There are still flaws in his game – Pakistan might be wise to pack their slip cordon early in his innings, for example. But 26 innings in, there is a scientific composure to his game that has been the cause of quiet excitement for Sri Lanka fans. Only Joe Root has hit more ODI fifties than Mendis’ 11, since the latter’s debut almost a year ago.Kusal Perera’s hamstring injury may mean a straight entry into the XI for Dhananjaya de Silva•Associated Press

Team news

Kusal Perera’s exit from the tournament due to a hamstring injury means Sri Lanka’s batting will be in flux again. They have flown in Dhananjaya de Silva and, given Tharanga remains suspended for another match, de Silva may have to walk straight into the middle order. There is a chance Sri Lanka will play Lakshan Sandakan instead of Thisara Perera, but the selectors have generally been conservative, so Thisara could stay. De Silva and Gunathilaka both provide offspin options.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 2 Danushka Gunathilaka, 3 Kusal Mendis, 4 Dinesh Chandimal, 5 Angelo Mathews (capt.), 6 Asela Gunaratne, 7 Dhananjaya de Silva, 8 Thisara Perera, 9 Suranga Lakmal, 10 Lasith Malinga, 11 Nuwan PradeepThere is a chance of fast-bowling allrounder Faheem Ashraf debuting, in place of Mohammad Hafeez. However, Pakistan will perhaps be unwilling to mess with a winning combination.Pakistan (possible): 1 Azhar Ali, 2 Fakhar Zaman, 3 Babar Azam, 4 Mohammad Hafeez, 5 Shoaib Malik, 6 Sarfraz Ahmed (capt, wk), 7 Imad Wasim, 8 Mohammad Amir, 9 Shadab Khan, 10 Hasan Ali, 11 Junaid Khan

Pitch and conditions

The weather is forecast to be cloudy but dry, with temperatures around the mid-teens. A fresh pitch is being used for this match. Scores of 280-300 have seemed about par in the two matches played in Cardiff so far.

Stats and trivia

• The last time these two teams met in an ODI outside Asia was back in 2002. Of their ten most recent encounters – each of which has been in Asia – Sri Lanka have won six.
• Angelo Mathews, who hit 52 not out against India, has averaged an outstanding 50.08 since the start of 2014, with a strike rate of nearly 88
• Since his debut in August last year, Hasan Ali has taken 33 wickets at an average of 25.9 and strike rate of just under 27 – better, by a distance, than any of his team-mates to have played more than one match during that period

Quotes

“We are not trying to get too far ahead. We just want to take one game at a time. We’re not thinking about the semi-final as of now. We’re just taking on Pakistan tomorrow. We’ve got to play really good cricket to beat them, and we all know that they’re a very dangerous team.”
“I think it’s an achievement. Everyone wanted to do well in this competition. I believe, and we believe as a team, we are moving towards the right direction. We know as a team we are gelling together.”

Scorecard”I don’t like things messy,” said the girl in the refreshments outlet as she wiped down the surfaces with uncommon zeal. It is fortunate she did not have a view of the cricket. “Messy” barely begins to sum up a second day at Taunton in which 18 wickets fell and a succession of batsmen were in suicidal mood.The upshot is that Essex, 10 for 0 at the close, need another 245 with all their second-wickets intact. It is by no means impossible, because this pitch is far better than the scores suggest, although an Essex victory would require no more of the batting tomfoolery that saw those 18 wickets tumble for 253 runs.Neil Wagner, New Zealand’s adopted South African, was the chief beneficiary of a haphazard day in which his persistent use of the short ball reaped more dividends than he could fairly expect even on a wicket which the batsmen had concluded was two-paced and did not trust as a result. But hell, if it keeps working, keep doing it. As he so often has for New Zealand.Wagner has found little swing in Taunton with his new-ball spells, when he pitches the ball up, but his old-ball tactic of bashing the ball into the middle of the pitch has brought untold joy. His burst of 5 for 17 in 34 balls saw Somerset decline to 124 for 9 before a last-wicket stand of 50 between Craig Overton and Jack Leach restored at least a semblance of responsibility. Wagner returned to end that, drawing Overton into an uppercut to third man, and finished with 6 for 48.Somerset’s batting coach Chris Rogers said; “I think a lot of the batsman will feel they have left a lot of runs out there. However, I do think this wicket is playing tricks. It is two-paced and it has become a bit of a lottery. But still, we could have tried to have seen Wagner off and we will need to address. The last pair valued their wicket and that will be a big lesson for the other guys.”A more pressing question is why Somerset dealt with it in such a ham-fisted fashion. Wagner, as a skiddy left-armer, is difficult to leave when he hammers the ball into a somewhat unreliable surface because of the angle he bowls and the height – or lack of it – he generates, but that barely begins to build a defence.Such tactics – as Wagner himself signalled afterwards – are exhausting and cannot be pursued with success before long. Five overs, 30 balls, 15 balls each, to see him off. Against an Essex side only fielding two frontline pace bowlers. Finally, it seems, the Internet age where nobody can concentrate for longer than two minutes has reached Taunton.Wagner’s assault began with Steve Davies, whose square drive off the back foot flew at catchable height to point. Peter Trego was strangled down the leg-side and, further down the scorecard, the shots got worse. Roelof van der Merwe attempted a one-legged whip and was caught at midwicket and Lewis Gregory top-edged a pull to long leg.That left Jamie Overton. Before lunch, Overton had bounced out Wagner: fast bowler bouncing fast bowler to warn him that fire could be fought with fire. Wagner therefore stepped up his short-ball assault and removed Alastair Cook from slip to strengthen the leg-side with the same intent. Blow me, if Overton did not top-edge a hare-brained pull straight up in the air. Perhaps an early contender for the daftest shot of the season. Utterly self-indulgent. There again, these days there is a lot of it about.Essex had not been much better. Resuming on their overnight total of 60 for 2, they lost eight wickets in barely doubling their score with only Cook providing any real resistance. Even Cook lacked his frolicsome approach of the first evening before he played on, 13 added in an hour to his overnight 39, pushing limply at Gregory.Left-arm spin will play a major part in Somerset’s attempt to win the game on the third day. Leach’s solidity will persuade Somerset that his simplified action – following the ECB analysis that deemed his action as illegal – will gradually pose the same threat that was such a central part of their Championship challenge last season. He took two wickets in Essex’s first innings, bowling Ravi Bopara behind his legs on the sweep in a solid introduction to the season. A simplified action looks as if little go wrong, but what he needs are the bowling figures to follow.Van der Merwe, his fellow slow left-armer, bowled the best deliveries of all, none better than the delivery which turned to strike Adam Wheater’s off stump. Perhaps he could have been further forward, but on a day of such batting inadequacies it would be harsh to complain too much.

Centuries from opener Rassie van der Dussen (102 off 138 balls) and Dwaine Pretorius (115 off 79 balls) went in vain for Lions as they fell five short of the 312 target set by Knights in Kimberley. The win kept the Knights’ knockout chances alive.David Miller’s unbeaten 86-ball 123, his third one-day hundred since February, had propelled Knights to 311 for 6 after they had elected to bat. Shadley van Schalkwyk then defended 16 off the last over, despite conceding a six first ball, to seal their win.Van der Dussen had lost four partners by the 23rd over of the chase, and with Lions needing 210 runs off 167 deliveries, the opener was joined by Pretorius. They added 144 runs off 138 balls to keep the visitors in contention before van der Dussen was trapped in front by Dillon du Preez. Mulder (30* off 15) joined Pretorius – who struck eight fours and four sixes during his maiden List A century – and brought the equation down from 61 from 25 to 24 off the last two overs. Pretorious’ dismisal in the 49th over dented the chase, however, and van Schalkwyk conceded only a single when six were required off the last ball.Earlier, useful partnerships at the top helped Knights amass a challenging total. Opener Keegan Petersen hit five fours and a six in his patient knock of 75 but it was Miller whose rapid century – studded with seven fours and six sixes – helped them power past 300 with some support from the lower order. While he reached 50 in as many balls, he took only 28 deliveries more to bring up his eighth List A hundred. Pretorius and Wihan Lubbe were the only two of seven Lions bowlers who conceded less than six per over.Chris Morris earned the Player-of-the-Match award for his 3 for 30•Getty Images

Chris Morris and AB de Villiers made resounding returns to Momentum One Day Cup, as they helped Titans thump Warriors by seven wickets in the penultimate round-robin match of the tournament at Willowmoore Park in Benoni. Morris’ 3 for 30 set the tone for Titans as they bowled Warriors out for 147 and Titans chased it down with 131 balls to spare, led by de Villiers’ unbeaten 75, and claimed the top spot from Dolphins with six wins from nine matches ahead of the final set of games on Thursday.Morris made his presence felt at the very outset, bowling Warriors opener Gihahn Cloete off the second ball of the match. Fellow fast bowler Lungi Ngidi (3 -32) further compounded Warriors’ poor start, removing the two Colins – Ingram and Ackermann – with a double-strike in the sixth over. Captain JJ Smuts (39), the second-highest run-scorer in the tournament, resisted Warriors’ slide with a 66-run fourth-wicket partnership with Yaseen Vallie, whose 61-ball 44 pushed Warriors to 113 before Morris had him caught behind in the 30th over. Jerry Nqolo (26) and Andrew Birch (16) were the only two other batsmen to get into double figures as Warriors folded in 41.2 overs, with the last three wickets falling for seven runs.In reply, Titans suffered the early loss of Jonathan Vandiar (1), but Aiden Markram and Heino Kuhn added 23 each, before de Villiers made short work of the chase, clobbering ten fours and one six on his way to a 62-ball 75. His unbeaten 87-run stand for the fourth wicket with Farhaan Behardien (24*) helped Titans chase down the target in 28.1 overs.Titans are now placed at the top of the table, a spot that will guarantee a home final should they stay there after the last round of matches.

The majority of England’s centrally contracted players (who are not otherwise engaged at the IPL) have been made available to play for their counties in the early rounds of the Specsavers County Championship and the Royal London One-Day Cup next month.The player availability, which was confirmed by the ECB on Friday, means that Essex’s return to Division One of the Championship, against Lancashire at Chelmsford on April 7, could provide some intriguing individual match-ups.In particular, England’s former Test captain, Alastair Cook, will face up to his long-term attack leader, James Anderson, in his first first-class outing since relinquishing the captaincy, while Cook’s likely opening partner for July’s Test series against South Africa, Haseeb Hameed, will be fronting up at the top of Lancashire’s batting.Joe Root, the new Test captain, will sit out Yorkshire’s opening Championship fixture against Hampshire at Headingley, as will his Yorkshire team-mate, Jonny Bairstow, who might have been playing in the IPL during the same period had he not gone unsold at the auction. Moeen Ali and Jake Ball will also miss the opening round of matches, for Worcestershire and Nottinghamshire respectively, following their busy winter schedules.However, those players will be made available for at least one of the opening three rounds of the Championship, before attention returns to white-ball cricket with the impending ODI series against Ireland and South Africa, followed by the Champions Trophy.Several other players who have featured in England’s Test plans in the past 12 months will also be available to their counties in that period, including Moeen Ali, Stuart Broad, Alex Hales, Steven Finn, Mark Wood, Keaton Jennings, Liam Dawson, James Vince, and Root and Bairstow’s Yorkshire team-mates, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid and David Willey.The list, naturally, excludes the eight England players who will be on IPL duty in India, including the allrounders Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes, the one-day captain Eoin Morgan, and the one-day opener, Jason Roy.All England players who are currently with their counties, however, have been made available for the opening three rounds of matches in the Royal London One-Day Cup, which has been brought forward in the season this year building to a final at Lord’s on July 1.

Central Districts confirmed a third-place finish to the league stage of the Ford Trophy after beating Auckland by seven wickets at Pukekura Park. Auckland crashed out, collapsing spectacularly to hand Central Districts the advantage.Having chosen to bat, Auckland were well placed to gun for a big total when they were 203 for 3 in the 33rd over, courtesy contributions from Jeet Raval (46), Sean Solia (60) and Colin Munro (62 off 43). Ajaz Patel’s dismissal of Solia, to end a 36-run fourth-wicket stand with Colin de Grandhomme (37 off 23 balls), triggered Auckland’s slide: they lost their last seven wickets for 34 runs and were bowled out in the 44th over. Left-arm spinner George Worker was the wrecker in chief, with figures of 4 for 22 in six overs.Central Districts took only 39.1 overs to romp home, thanks to an unbeaten 106 by their captain Will Young (104b, 15×4) and his partnerships of 81 with Jesse Ryder (54) for the second wicket and an unbroken 137 for the fourth wicket with Tom Bruce (70* off 53 balls).Central Districts finished on 16 points, while Auckland ended up on 15. Auckland were knocked out despite having the same points total and a better net run rate (+0.001) than Northern Districts (-0.307) or Otago (-0.448), since Northern Districts had earned more bonus points.Northern Districts, as a result, finished in fourth place and qualified for the playoffs despite losing their last match to Otago, by two wickets at University Oval.An unbeaten 143 (85b, 11×4, 8×6) by Anaru Kitchen helped Otago blaze through their chase in just 34.1 overs, though their frequent wicket losses kept Northern Districts in the game. Northern Districts may have fancied themselves when Otago slipped to 191 for 6, but Kitchen added 67 for the seventh wicket with Josh Finnie (32 off 16) to keep the match in the balance. Finnie and Derek de Boorder fell in quick succession to Ish Sodhi, who finished with figures of 4 for 85), before Kitchen and Christi Viljoen steered Otago home with an unbroken 26-run stand for the ninth wicket.Kitchen also opened the bowling for Otago and bowled economically, finishing with 0 for 21 from six overs. That spell – along with James Neesham’s 3 for 58 and Michael Rippon’s 1 for 34 – helped restrict Northern Districts to 288 despite half-centuries from Bharat Popli (69), Nick Kelly (67) and Daryl Mitchell (72 off 48 balls).Wellington ensured a top-spot finish after beating Canterbury by two wickets at Hagley Oval. An unbroken ninth-wicket stand of 20 between Matt Taylor (48*) and Hamish Bennett (5*) dragged Wellington home after they had slipped to 229 for 8 in a chase of 247. Despite the regular loss of top- and middle-order wickets, Wellington had always stayed in touch with the target thanks to Hamish Marshall’s 100-ball 108. Marshall was one of three batsmen dismissed by the legspinner Todd Astle.Canterbury’s 246 for 9 was achieved on the back of an unbeaten 50 from their No. 6 Cole McConchie, who held one end together even as the lower order fell apart around him, with no one from Nos. 7 to 11 getting into double figures. Canterbury had made a solid start to their innings, thanks to Tom Latham (38), Henry Nicholls (64) and Peter Fulton (43), and were at one point 190 for 4 in the 40th over of their innings. Left-arm spinner Luke Woodcock was Wellington’s most successful bowler with figures of 4 for 50.

David Miller, fresh off his second century in three ODI innings, will not be available for the rest of the series against Sri Lanka because of a finger injury.Miller sustained a cut to the little finger of his right hand during the second ODI in Durban when he could not quite get underneath a diving catch in the eighth over of the Sri Lanka innings. He did not field for the remainder of the match and will require stitches which means seven to 10 days of recovery time.He remains in contention for the limited-overs series against New Zealand, which starts with a T20I on February 17.Miller made 117 off 98 balls at Kingsmead, adding 117 for the fifth wicket with Faf du Plessis, to help turn an uncertain South Africa innings into a total of 307 for 6 which set up a 121-run victory.South Africa, who are 2-0 up in the five-match series, have not named a replacement for Miller in their squad which is already without paceman Lungi Ngidi. Farhaan Behardien is the only reserve batsman and most likely to be given an opportunity after he made his international captaincy debut in the T20 series.Dwaine Pretorius, a bowling allrounder, is also at South Africa’s disposal and if he is used it could see Wayne Parnell pushed a place higher in the order. Parnell has been used to open the batting at T20 level and has a recent first-class hundred to his name. He has been keen for opportunities with the bat at international level.The third ODI, which South Africa will play in pink to raise awareness for breast cancer, will be played on Saturday at the Wanderers.

MS Dhoni, India’s limited-overs captain, believes his break from international cricket has given him ample time to work on his fitness. Dhoni, who retired from Test cricket in December 2014, was last involved with the national team during a short limited-overs series in Zimbabwe in June.”When you have a break, it’s easy to maintain fitness because there’s enough preparation time,” Dhoni said in Lauderhill ahead of the first Twenty20 against West Indies on Saturday. “There has been a lot of rain in India, which is a good thing since we needed that. So I trained indoors with the bowling machine when it came to the skill aspect.”Dhoni, who will be involved in just a handful of games in India colours this season owing to a prolonged Test run at home from September to March, believes the breaks have helped him remain fresh in his quest to prolong his international career.”During a packed season, maintaining fitness becomes tough because you can’t put too much effort into it. You’re constantly monitoring workloads. When you have a break, you can plan your schedules. That’s what I’ve done so that it helps prolong my career. Overall, it’s important to relish the in-between time.”Back from the break during which he had briefly mentored his state side Jharkhand at a first-division tournament in Chennai, apart from promoting his yet-to-be-released biopic, Dhoni is now faced with the prospect of facing the current World T20 champions, which he felt would be “quite a challenge”.”West Indies is an extraordinary team in the limited-overs format,” he said. “Sometimes having one allrounder can give you balance. They have two or three. Power-hitters become crucial in the smaller formats, and they have so many of them. They also play an entertaining brand of cricket, so it will be a challenge for us.”Among the things he is most looking forward to on his return, Dhoni said, was the opportunity of working with new head coach Anil Kumble, from whom he had taken over the Test captaincy in 2008.”He is a straightforward guy who will tell you what he has to to your face,” Dhoni said. “I learnt a lot from him while playing with him. One of the things that struck me was how he planned dismissals and went about his game. I was amazed at his consistency and the thinking aspect he brought to the game. It will also help him as a coach because you can’t have the same plan across different formats.”I feel, the more time I spend with him, the more I’ll get to know him. I’ve known him as a player. Now, I will know him as a coach. We’ve seen previously how people are slightly different in both cases. He’s calm, composed and confident, and that will only help the team.”

ScorecardSam Hain continued his excellent limited-overs form•Getty Images

Birmingham put their NatWest t20 Blast campaign back on track after three straight defeats with a 28-run victory over Leicestershire at Edgbaston.The Bears’ 186 for four was built on an opening stand of 125 inside 13 overs by Sam Hain, who scored 79 off 52 deliveries, and Ian Bell, who made a 35-ball 57.While those two were together the Bears looked set to total over 200 but the Foxes, led by Clint McKay’s one for 16 off four overs, fought back well to leave a target around par on a good batting pitch.But though a string of Foxes batsmen got a start, none played the decisive innings the team needed as they fell short on 158 for nine.A Bears attack including Keith Barker for the first time in the competition this season kept taking wickets at important times to reassert theirqualification bid and extinguish the Foxes’.After the visitors won the toss, Hain and Bell began in measured fashion, with the latter still to score after two overs, before accelerating past 60 in the sixth over.The century partnership arrived in the 12th over, both openers having taken advantage of a short boundary to clear the ropes on the off-side.Hain was first to his half-century, from 36 balls, Bell’s following from 32, but the latter’s dismissal after striking four fours and four sixes in his 57, edging Rob Taylor behind, signalled a sharp drop in momentum.Bell’s wicket was quickly followed by that of Matt Wade, on his home debut, as the Australian fell lbw to his countryman McKay for five.When Hain sought another six – his third of the innings to go with nine fours – off Cameron Delport but found only the hands of Ben Raine at deep extra-cover, three wickets had fallen for 26 runs in 18 balls.Laurie Evans perished in similar fashion to Hain and although Rikki Clarke (24 not out) landed a couple of hefty blows, a skilful final over from McKay sent the Foxes into the mid-innings break in perky mood.The Foxes reply started briskly with Mark Cosgrove and Mark Pettini adding 36 in 27 balls before the latter pulled Oliver Hannon-Dalby to Jeetan Patel at deep mid-wicket.Delport’s 18-ball 20 included an audacious reverse-swept six off Josh Poysden but the South African perished attempting a repeat off Ateeq Javid.As the required run-rate rose, greater risks had to be taken. Cosgrove (42 from 29 balls) hoisted Patel to long off, Lewis Hill charged the same bowler, missed, and was adroitly stumped by Wade and when Farhaan Behardien lifted Clarke to long-off all that remained in the Foxes’ locker was some futile swishing.

ScorecardEd Barnard’s nightwatchman stint saw off Derbyshire•Getty Images

A career-best 73 from nightwatchman Ed Barnard helped Worcestershire save the Division Two match against Derbyshire at the 3aaa County Ground, Derby.Barnard and fellow former England Under-19 team mate Joe Clarke, who made 63, shared a third wicket stand of 146 to rescue the visitors after Brett D’Oliveira had gone in the first over of the day.Will Davis removed them both but Alexei Kervezee made 41, and Tom Kohler-Cadmore 48 in 40 overs as Worcestershire closed on 294 for 6 , denying Derbyshire a first home Championship win since the end of the 2014 season.The day had started so well for Derbyshire with Tony Palladino striking with the sixth ball of the morning when D’Oliveira played across the line and was lbw without a run added.But that was the last success until 13 overs into the afternoon session as Barnard and Clarke played with impressive judgement and maturity to raise Worcestershire’s hopes of saving the game.Derbyshire used seven bowlers but could not break the concentration of the two 20-year-old’s whose approach and application was an example to some of the senior batsmen.Barnard completed the second first-class 50 of his career before lunch and the pair had been together for nearly 44 overs when Derbyshire finally broke the stand.Will Davis was rewarded for an aggressive spell from the Racecourse End when he tempted Clarke into a mistimed pull which ended in the hands of midwicket and Barnard’s admirable innings ended when he was succoured into taking on another short ball.If Alexei Kervezee had been taken down the legside off Davis on 13, Worcestershire would have been 188 for 5 but it was another 25 overs before Derbyshire broke the fifth wicket stand.The second new ball was always likely to be Derbyshire’s last chance and Ben Cotton broke through when Kervezee tried to play the ball off his hip and this time Tom Poynton made no mistake.The light was murky enough for the floodlights to be switched on but Kohler-Cadmore dug in and although he edged a big drive at Chesney Hughes with seven overs left, Ross Whiteley faced 59 balls to finally close the door on his former team.Derbyshire captain Billy Godleman said: “I’m really proud, other than the first couple of hours on the opening day it was a very flat and slow wicket so for us to have taken 16 wickets having made them follow-on and bowled 120 overs plus on the trot is an exceptional effort.”We’ve played a lot of four day cricket this year where we’ve been either fighting to stay in the game or losing the game so to be playing on the last day and to be in charge and dominating definitely gives us a lot of confidence going into the game against Kent.”