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Salman Butt to meet ACSU in Dubai

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Salman Butt, the suspended former Pakistan captain, has been called by the ICC Anti-Corruption and Security Unit to Dubai on April 28

Umar Farooq21-Apr-2015Salman Butt, the suspended former Pakistan captain, has been called by the ICC Anti-Corruption and Security Unit to Dubai on April 28. This comes after the PCB applied for his reintegration into cricket.”I am not aware about the purpose of the meeting,” Butt told ESPNcricinfo. “But I am sure it is related to my request to the PCB about my reintegration into cricket. I am happy that I am being heard and I am ready for the ICC meeting as well.”Butt was originally handed a 10-year ban from any involvement in cricketing activities for spot-fixing during the Lord’s Test in August 2010, with five years suspended on the condition that he would commit no further breach of the anti-corruption code and participate in a PCB-controlled anti-corruption education programme.But the ICC recently approved a revised anti-corruption code that allows banned players to make a return to domestic cricket before the end of their penalty if they meet certain criteria.Butt had told the PCB of his willingness to comply and requested the chairman Shahriyar Khan’s support. In June 2013, he had confessed and apologised for his actions and offered his full cooperation to the mandatory educational rehabilitation program.In a letter to the PCB, a copy of which has been seen by ESPNcricinfo, Butt said “I accept that I am guilty of breaching the ICC anti-corruption code in the manner found by the anti-corruption tribunal in its judgment dated 5 February 2011.”I unreservedly and unconditionally apologise and express deep regret and remorse for those grave breaches and recognise the harm they have done to the cricket and to the image of the Pakistan Cricket Board and Pakistan as nation. As the captain, I accept that I had a greater responsibility than any other player in the team.”I urge all persons playing or planning to play cricket to resist temptations of any kind which may be offered them to fix matches or to spot-fix or otherwise to participate in activates which damage the sports of cricket and beware of the adverse impact that such activities necessarily have on the sport. I urge all person who know of any corruption to reject the approach and report the matter to the appropriate cricketing authorities.”Butt, along with Mohammad Asif, had also been found guilty at Southwark Crown Court in November 2011, on charges of conspiracy to cheat and conspiracy to accept corrupt payments over deliberate no-balls bowled during the Lord’s Test between Pakistan and England in August 2010. Mohammad Amir had pleaded guilty prior to the trial.Butt has served four and half years of his ban, and also served seven months of a 30-month prison sentence in UK. In 2013, he had appealed before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland, to reduce his ban but it was rejected.

Brit Insurance to end England deal

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The ECB have lost a second major sponsor in three months after Brit Insurance decided not to renew its deal as the England team sponsor.

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Oct-2012The ECB have lost a second major sponsor in three months after Brit Insurance decided not to renew its deal as the England team sponsor. In August, Friends Life, sponsors of domestic cricket for six years, also decided against continuing their backing of the t20 competition.Brit Insurance will bring to an end their nine-year association with cricket after “fundamental, structural and strategic change in its business interests.” Earlier this year, the company axed its marketing and communications team and their new direction steers them away from the four-year deal with the ECB which began in 2009 and saw them succeed Vodafone. Brit had previously been the principal sponsor of Surrey, with The Oval rebranded under their name from 2004 to 2010.Brit’s sponsorship of England, reportedly worth up to £18 million, has coincided with one of the most successful periods in the team’s history. The men’s team won the 2010 World T20, regained the Ashes in Australia with a first away series win for 24 years in 2011 and reached No. 1 in the world Test rankings in the same year. The women’s team retained their status as the No. 1 ODI side and reached the final of the 2012 Women’s World T20.”We are very proud to have partnered with the ECB and supported them in what has been a fantastic period in English cricket,” Mark Cloutier, the Brit Group CEO, said. “But as Brit’s business has re-shaped and developed into something very different to the business it was a few years ago, it’s right that we step back and allow another sponsor to come forward and build on this brilliant partnership opportunity.”Brit’s deal extends until April 2014, to include the next Ashes series in Australia but the ECB are looking to agree a new deal for a minimum of three years and have an arrangement that could see a new sponsor take over before Brit’s contract expires.”The ECB thanks Brit for what has been an important and successful partnership for both parties,” the ECB commercial director, John Perera said. “Brit has benefited from significant exposure as both the men’s and women’s teams have achieved extraordinary levels of success since the partnership began. Our search for a new sponsor will begin immediately and we anticipate significant interest from potential partners who wish to be associated with the England cricket teams.”Perera will ensure a new sponsor is apposite for English cricket, “The brand has to have stature commensurate with the England team,” he told “Some of the football deals wouldn’t be appropriate.”Brands that sit comfortably alongside English cricket include investment bank Investec, who added to their sponsorship of the Derby, Tottenham Hotspur and England Women’s hockey with a 10-year deal for the title rights to Test matches, worth a reported £50 million, signed in November 2011 and earlier that year, Buxton Water renewed their sponsorship until the end of 2013.

Mathews helps Sri Lanka build lead

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It took until the third-last day of the series, but Sri Lanka finally delivered all the way through their batting order as Angelo Mathews, Tillakaratne Dilshan and Mahela Jayawardene made half-centuries to grind Australia down at the SSC

The Report by Brydon Coverdale18-Sep-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsTillakaratne Dilshan made 83•AFP

Smart stats

  • Only twice have Sri Lanka made more runs in an innings against Australia – 455 in Cairns in 2004 and 547 for 8 declared at the SSC in 1992.

  • It’s the third time that Sri Lanka have taken a first-innings lead of more than 100 against Australia.

  • Four Sri Lanka batsmen topped 50 in their innings – it’s the second time they have managed this in an innings against Australia.

  • Tillakaratne Dilshan’s 83 is only his second 50-plus score in 15 Test innings against Australia. His average against them is 29.28.

  • The 121-run stand between Dilshan and Angelo Mathews is Sri Lanka’s highest for the fifth wicket against Australia.

  • For the second time in successive partnerships against Australia, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene added exactly 101. In seven previous stands against them, they had aggregated 158.

It took until the third-last day of the series, but Sri Lanka finally delivered all the way through their batting order as Angelo Mathews, Tillakaratne Dilshan and Mahela Jayawardene made half-centuries to grind Australia down at the SSC. Throw in a handy 47 from Prasanna Jayawardene and the 79 that Kumar Sangakkara completed on the third morning, and it made for a long, hot day in the field for Australia.But as the Australia bowlers walked off the field at stumps, ready to collapse into ice baths, they knew that their hard work had been worth it. Led by the indefatigable Peter Siddle and Trent Copeland, Australia prised out four wickets throughout the day on a pitch offering little to no assistance, and at least kept their side in the hunt for a draw, which would be enough for Australia to take the series.By the close of play Sri Lanka had extended their lead to 112 runs, with Mathews looking solid, unbeaten on 85, and Shaminda Eranga, the first of the tailenders, on 5. With two days to play, Sri Lanka needed to work out their best route to victory; a quick and significant increase in their lead on the fourth morning could be crucial to that goal. Much will depend on how well Australia bat on a friendly surface.Australia could have had Eranga late in the afternoon, when he edged behind off Copeland and was dropped by Brad Haddin standing up to the stumps. It was a strange move by Haddin to the new batsman, who as a debutant, in the side as a bowler, was hardly likely to charge down the crease to a seamer like Copeland.But it was Mathews Australia really wanted to remove. He has been one of the standouts for Sri Lanka in a series that up to now was notable for their below-par batting. Mathews is Sri Lanka’s leading run scorer in the series, an outstanding achievement considering he batted at No.7 in the first two Tests, and it was no surprise that he was promoted to No.6 for this game.He played sensibly, reaching his half-century from his 119th delivery with an on-drive to the boundary off Peter Siddle, and he generally picked the bad balls to put away. In the first two Tests, an occasional loss of patience had been his one weakness, but there were no such lapses in this innings, as he kept on task until the final ball of the day. By the close, a maiden century was within sight.Mathews had had ample support throughout the day, first from Dilshan and then from Prasanna Jayawardene. His stand with Prasanna was worth 81, as Prasanna put aside his poor batting record against Australia. He pulled two powerful sixes off Nathan Lyon, who struggled for impact, but fell when he drove Copeland on the up to Michael Clarke at short midwicket.The Sri Lanka batsmen found Copeland difficult to get away, even if he didn’t pile up the wickets. He sent down 18 overs during the day, five of which were maidens, and picked up 2 for 36. He had collected the key wicket of Dilshan, who seemed set for a century when he was caught behind for 83 by Haddin, again standing up to the stumps.It wasn’t a pretty take, as Dilshan tried to guide the ball to third man but glided it straight on to Haddin’s right leg, before the ball bobbed up and into the wicketkeeper’s midriff, where he clung on with his gloves. It ended a 121-run partnership between Dilshan and Mathews, a fifth-wicket record for Sri Lanka against Australia, beating a 19-year-old record set by Arjuna Ranatunga and Hashan Tillakaratne.Dilshan had looked far more comfortable down at No.5 than he had while opening in the first two Tests. He went for his shots early and was still keen to use the pace of the second new ball, his driving an especially strong feature of his game, and he brought up his half-century from his 70th delivery, with a punch through point for four off the offspin of Lyon.He arrived at the crease after Australia picked up the key wickets of Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene before lunch, although both men looked in fine touch for the first hour of the day. Just after Jayawardene brought up his half-century with an upper-cut for four off Shane Watson, he perished for 51 when he drove at Watson and edged behind when the ball move just a fraction away from him.It was a wicket against the run of play, Australia having had few encouraging moments in the 101-run partnership. The news was even better for the visitors when Siddle struck in the first over with the new ball, when he found some extra bounce and nipped the ball just far enough off the seam away from the left-hander Sangakkara to entice an edge.The reward for Siddle was well earned. In difficult conditions, he bustled in over after over, and like Copeland kept the runs tight. Mitchell Johnson was much less impressive, finding no swing, no uncomfortable bounce, and thus posing no threat to the batsmen.Still, Australia did enough to give themselves the hope of a draw, if their batsmen are up to the task. Sri Lanka have laid the groundwork; now they must go hard with bat and ball on the fourth day to give themselves the best possible chance of victory. Their series depends on it.

Teams play down Ponting-Zaheer spat

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A day after Ricky Ponting called for a controversy-free tour, he was ironically involved in the first real incident of the series

Sidharth Monga in Mohali01-Oct-2010A day after Ricky Ponting called for a controversy-free tour, he was ironically involved in the first real incident of the series. After he was run out by a superb direct hit from Suresh Raina, Ponting was seen exchanging words and gestures with Zaheer Khan. Ponting was walking off, and it seemed Zaheer had something to say to him from the team huddle. Ponting turned back and was seen pointing his bat towards Zaheer.Both sides, though, played down the incident, and no charges had been pressed last checked. “When two top teams are playing, you expect some competition and that’s what it was,” Pragyan Ojha said after a tough old-fashioned day of Test cricket. “When you play hard, you obviously exchange some words. Nothing more than that.”Watson sought to play with the similar straight bat as was the hallmark of his unbeaten, restrained century, but cheekily opened the face at the last moment. “The umpires didn’t get involved, did they?” he said. “Wasn’t too bad. Something that does happen on a cricket field when people are competitive. As you did see, on the footage – everyone really knows how Ricky is, he is not going to go looking for a fight unless someone steps out of the line, out of the huddle, and has a bit to say. It was there for all to see.”The good thing, though, is that neither team seems to be bothering too much about it. And in what was a welcome sight, at stumps, the Indian players, including Zaheer and Harbhajan Singh, almost queued up to congratulate Watson on his effort. All’s well that ends well. At least until the next incident.

Hard-hitter Jacobs gets maiden New Zealand call-up for Sri Lanka T20Is

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Daryl Mitchell, Rachin Ravindra and Will O’Rourke also return to the white-ball squads after being rested for the Sri Lanka tour

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Dec-2024Hard-hitting middle-order batter Bevon Jacobs has been handed his maiden New Zealand call-up by being picked for the upcoming three-match home T20I series against Sri Lanka.Jacobs was part of the New Zealand XI side that took on Sri Lanka in a 10-overs-a-side tour match in Lincoln on Monday, although he did not get a chance to bat.Jacobs’ call-up comes barely a month after he was picked up by Mumbai Indians in the IPL 2025 auction, joining New Zealand internationals Trent Boult and the new white-ball captain Mitchell Santner. Jacobs’ maiden IPL contract came after an impressive Super Smash campaign last season, where he hit 134 runs in six innings at a strike rate of 188.73 while batting as a finisher.Related

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“It’s obviously an exciting time for Bevon and his family,” NZC selector Sam Wells said. “He’s a promising player with a lot of talent and we’re looking forward to exposing him to international cricket.”He’s clearly got a lot of power with the bat, but he’s also shown in the longer formats that he has a decent technique and temperament.”Having come through the system at Auckland, Jacobs had made a switch to Canterbury for whom he made his List A and T20 debuts just over a year ago. But he returned to Auckland ahead of the ongoing home summer, and made his first-class debut for Auckland last month, with scores of 75 and 79.After narrowly missing out on another half-century in his second before, he racked up 80 against his old team, Canterbury.Fast bowler Zakary Foulkes, wicketkeeper Mitchell Hay and top-order batter Tim Robinson are also part of the T20I squad, and could play their first international home games, having made their debuts abroad earlier in the year.Foulkes and Robinson debuted in the T20Is in Pakistan in April, while Hay’s debut came in Sri Lanka in November. Hay is set to keep wickets in the T20Is, and will be cover for Tom Latham in the ODIs that follow.While Jacobs, Foulkes and Robinson have only been called up for the T20Is, Latham, Will Young and Will O’Rourke will join the squad for the one-dayers. O’Rourke has been rested for the T20Is after a heavy Test workload, having featured in all eight Tests against Sri Lanka, India and England.Daryl Mitchell and Rachin Ravindra will be back in white-ball action for New Zealand•Associated Press

The series against Sri Lanka will also see Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell and Matt Henry make a return to the white-ball squads, having been rested during their tour of Sri Lanka to prepare for the home Tests against England.New Zealand will miss many big names, due to their commitments to various franchise T20 leagues. Lockie Ferguson, Finn Allen, Adam Milne and Tim Seifert are away at the BBL, while Kane Williamson and Devon Conway are part of the SA20, which is scheduled to begin on January 9.Ben Sears and Kyle Jamieson remain unavailable as they are still recuperating from knee and back injuries respectively.The team will be coached by Luke Ronchi, with regular head coach Gary Stead taking a break. Ronchi will have Jacob Oram for support as the bowling coach, while Craig McMillan will look after the batting and fielding.This will be New Zealand’s final ODI bilateral series before the Champions Trophy, where they will take on hosts Pakistan in the tournament opener.New Zealand also will play a tri-series in Pakistan, also featuring South Africa, before the Champions Trophy begins.”As with the squads that recently toured Sri Lanka, we’re keen to keep exposing new talent to the big stage and it’s nice to have an experienced core of players around them,” Wells said. “The Champions Trophy, like all ICC pinnacle events, is an obvious incentive for players and I know many will be keen to put their best foot forward in the ODI series to be in the frame for selection.”The T20Is will be played on December 28, 30 and January 2 before the ODIs on January 5, 8 and 11.

New Zealand T20I squad vs Sri Lanka

Mitchell Santner (capt), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes, Mitchell Hay, Matt Henry, Bevon Jacobs, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Robinson, Nathan Smith

New Zealand ODI squad vs Sri Lanka

Mitchell Santner (capt), Michael Bracewell, Mark Chapman, Jacob Duffy, Mitchell Hay, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Daryl Mitchell, Will O’Rourke, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Nathan Smith, Will Young

Nortje, Magala to undergo fitness tests to determine World Cup availability

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Should either of the two be ruled out, South Africa are likely to call up Andile Phehlukwayo

Firdose Moonda17-Sep-2023Anrich Nortje and Sisanda Magala will undergo fitness tests this week to determine their availability for the ODI World Cup. They were named in South Africa’s initial 15-member squad for the tournament, but played only one fixture each of the five-match ODI series against Australia, before sustaining lower-back and left-knee injuries respectively. A final call on their inclusion will be taken before South Africa leave for India on September 23 with early indication that they are both at risk of not making the trip.”We are continually taking stock as to where both of those players are,” Rob Walter, South Africa’s white-ball coach said following the team’s 3-2 series win over Australia. “The fact that they weren’t playing today with a week to go before we board the plane for the World Cup is obviously a cause for concern. We would have wanted them out there. There are complications around taking players that are injured into a World Cup because then you have to provide a medical reason to be swapped out.”Related

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  • Fit-again Maharaj makes it to South Africa's World Cup squad

  • Time to panic? No, South Africa just need to 'raise our intensity' a bit, says Klaasen

If Nortje’s absence is confirmed, it will be a major blow for South Africa as he is their quickest bowler, with substantial experience in India, where he plays for Delhi Capitals in the IPL. Nortje played in the Major League Cricket tournament in USA over the South African winter and was rested for the T20Is against Australia. He was then ruled out of the first ODI but played the second. He managed to bowl only five overs before leaving the field. He missed the third game after he was sent for scans and was then ruled out of the series, but was due to begin bowling again with the coaching staff this weekend.Magala’s issue also appears serious. He had not played any cricket since splitting the webbing in his hand at the IPL in early April and was subsequently ruled out of the T20Is against Australia with infrapatellar tendinopathy – pain in the tendon that connects the kneecap to the shin bone. He played in the third ODI against Australia, where he bowled four overs, and has since experienced discomfort in the knee again.Should either Nortje or Magala be ruled out of the World Cup, South Africa are likely to call up Andile Phehlukwayo, who has made his way back despite losing his national contract earlier this year.Andile Phehlukwayo is likely to be called up for World Cup•Getty Images

Phehlukwayo played in the second and fifth ODIs against Australia. While he did not make much of an impression in the first game, he scored 38 off 19 balls to finish the innings strongly in the series finale and then took 1 for 44.”Andile is one of a couple of guys who are part of a broader squad and today he showed us, especially with the bat, what we have seen in terms of his capability,” Walter said. “That knock, you can look at it, and say it was match influencing. A total of 270 looks different to a total of 315 and he was a massive role-player in that. He took an important wicket with the ball as well. I am very happy that Andile was able to deliver that performance today.”South Africa’s conundrum will be what to do if Nortje and Magala are ruled out of the World Cup, especially as Kagiso Rabada experienced ankle discomfort and had to sit out the final ODI. There are other niggles among the back-ups. Wayne Parnell – not part of the World Cup squad – is nursing an elbow injury after also picking up a shoulder niggle and has not played for his domestic side, Western Province, but ESPNcricinfo understands he is recovering well from both. Another candidate is Lizaad Williams, who played in the T20I series but has just one ODI cap to his name and does not have Nortje’s pace or Magala’s death-bowling reputation. “Lizaad is part of the T20 group and that’s really it,” Walter said.Walter also mentioned left-arm spinner Bjorn Fortuin, though calling him up would change the make-up of South Africa’s squad, which is heavily reliant on fast bowlers.

Glamorgan give Ajaz Patel chance to bring consolation to quiet English summer

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Barely used by New Zealand, Patel replaces Michael Neser for the final month of the season

David Hopps21-Jul-2022Ajaz Patel has been given the opportunity to bring consolation to a largely inactive UK summer by agreeing terms with Glamorgan as an overseas player for the final four matches of the LV= County Championship season.New Zealand only turned to Patel’s left-arm spin for the opening Test of their series against England at Lord’s, where he bowled just two overs in the match, before rebalancing their side with the inclusion of the offspinning allrounder, Michael Bracewell.He replaces the seam bowler, Michael Neser, who will return to Australia to join Queensland before the start of the Sheffield Shield.Glamorgan are making a concerted bid for promotion from Division Two of the Championship (assuming the current set-up survives) and were only one point behind second-placed Middlesex going into this week’s round of matches.Related

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Patel has played 12 Test matches and taken 43 wickets at an average of 27.65. Last year, he became only the third player in Test match history to take all ten wickets in an innings when he claimed 10 for 119 against India in Mumbai, following the England offspinner Jim Laker (vs Australia in 1956) and the India legspinner Anil Kumble, who achieved the feat in 1999 against Pakistan.He has had limited experience of cricket in England and Wales but already has success on UK shores under his belt. Prior to his short stint with Yorkshire in 2019 – his two Championship games yielded a single wicket – he had dominated Surrey club cricket while already an active Test cricketer, turning in a series of match-winning performances for Cranleigh.He will be available for all Glamorgan’s first-class matches in September, starting with the fixture against Worcestershire on September 5 at Sophia Gardens, and will doubtless be hoping that the weather holds in a strikingly dry summer.Glamorgan’s director of cricket, Mark Wallace, said: “Michael Neser has been absolutely brilliant for us this season, but we are delighted to replace him with someone of the quality of Ajaz.”He is a high-class operator and proven match-winner who will give us variety and options in our attack and hopefully help our promotion push as we reach the back end of the season.”Wallace may also look to recruit a replacement for Colin Ingram in September, who will be playing in the Caribbean Premier League. Marnus Labuschagne, who has also been used as an overseas player this season, will be unavailable on Australia duty.

Perth lockdown shifts Scorchers' home Challenger to Canberra

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A snap lockdown of the city due to a Covid-19 case in Western Australia’s hotel-quarantine programme forced the move

Daniel Brettig31-Jan-2021A snap lockdown of the city of Perth due to a Covid-19 case in Western Australia’s hotel-quarantine programme forced Cricket Australia into a last-minute shift of the Perth Scorchers’ Big Bash League Challenger on Thursday to Canberra’s Manuka Oval.The Scorchers squad, having lost to the Sydney Sixers at Manuka on Saturday night in the Qualifier between first and second, were fortunate their scheduled flight home to Perth was not due to depart until late afternoon Canberra time, meaning the news of WA’s five-day lockdown until Friday arrived in time to keep them in the eastern states.BBL officials were called into urgent meetings on Sunday afternoon to finalise a contingency for the match between the Scorchers and the winners of Sunday’s Knockout between the Brisbane Heat and Sydney Thunder in Canberra. The final has already been awarded to the SCG and the Sixers.Tickets for the original Thursday-night fixture at Perth Stadium had not yet gone on sale, to an extent reducing complications for tournament organisers. Nevertheless, the change to plans for the Scorchers and their opponents plus match and CA officials remain significant. CA was also in talks with WA health authorities about the status of the Perth Scorchers players due to return home following the conclusion of the tournament.Should they qualify for the final in Sydney, the homeward bound Scorchers players may be required to sit out two weeks of quarantine upon entering the state, since its borders are still closed to recent visitors to Sydney following the Northern Beaches outbreak over December and early January.Speaking of the late change in plans, the head of the BBL, Alistair Dobson, said, “The League would like to extend its best wishes to all BBL fans in Perth, particularly those Scorchers fans who were hoping to see their team in action this Thursday, following the announcement of a hard lockdown by the WA Government. We support all governments across Australia in their efforts to manage the ongoing public health situation and wish Western Australia all the best in managing these latest developments.”Likewise, we’d also like to thank the Perth Scorchers for their understanding regarding the decision to move the Challenger to Manuka Oval. This has been an unprecedented BBL season and the ongoing flexibility and cooperation has been vital in getting us to this point of the Finals series.”Finally, we’d like to recognise the incredible work of the ACT Government, Venues Canberra, Cricket ACT and Cricket NSW who have again come to the fore to ensure we deliver a safe, successful and complete BBL season. The League, our clubs and all BBL fans are grateful for the enormous contribution everyone in Canberra has made to this season and we look forward to seeing their cricket-loving community out in force again this Thursday night.”

Resurgent Tridents lie in wait as Amazon Warriors look to cap streak with elusive title

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Amazon Warriors have finished runners-up four times in the past, while Tridents won the CPL back in 2014

The Preview by Peter Della Penna12-Oct-2019

Big picture

When most of us think of CPL star power on the domestic player front, the first names that roll off the tongue are of Andre Russell, Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard, Darren Sammy, Sunil Narine and the like. But this year’s tournament has suggested that a change of guard maybe on the cards, with none of those big names taking part in the final, to be played between perennial bridesmaids Guyana Amazon Warriors and a resurgent Barbados Tridents.In past years, the Amazon Warriors have fallen short after building their team around overseas stars like Rashid Khan, Martin Guptill and Chris Lynn. Most of their additions during draft time in 2019 may have flown under the radar, but coach Johan Botha has cultivated incredible chemistry to produce the most remarkable winning streak in CPL history, currently standing at 11 matches.Yes, the Amazon Warriors have their share of established talent. Captain Shoaib Malik has provided metronomic consistency in the middle order with 313 runs at an average of 78.25. Imran Tahir’s manic sprints have shown few signs of slowing down with each wicket celebration, leading the team with 15 scalps. Chris Green has been miserly and incisive with his new-ball offspin. Nicholas Pooran, Sherfane Rutherford and Shimron Hetmyer have provided the muscle and flair to give them the late kick when needed.ALSO READ: Amazon Warriors’ perfect ten, and other remarkable T20 streaksBut their improbable record is equally due to the contributions from a number of unheralded and often underappreciated players. Brandon King was taken in the ninth round of the 2019 draft in the traditional US$ 15,000 slot but he is the tournament’s leading scorer with 453 runs. Romario Shepherd was taken a round later in the US$ 10,000 position but has needled opposition batsmen with 12 wickets to stem momentum in the middle overs. Chandrapaul Hemraj lasted until round 13 in a US$ 5,000 slot, yet has been a handy foil for King at the top of the order and has also chipped in with key overs of left-arm spin in the powerplay, like the 3 for 15 to plough through the defending champions Trinbago Knight Riders.The Tridents’ record has a few more blemishes, but their formula to reach the final has not been much different. Johnson Charles, discarded by West Indies in 2016, has powered their starts with a team-leading 376 runs. In the same vein as Malik, Tridents captain Jason Holder has been a source of inspiration not just with his 14 wickets, third-highest in the tournament, but for shrewd bowling changes and some special fielding, especially at long-on and long-off in the slog overs.Though the management misfired with their first overall selection at the draft in the form of Alex Hales, who has yet to score a fifty, coach Phil Simmons has made wise decisions in his choice of replacement players after the draft. Shakib Al Hasan’s nuggety knocks and tidy spells have been a late-season bonus. JP Duminy has been a reassuring presence in the middle order and fired the tournament’s fastest fifty against the Knight Riders. Harry Gurney’s variations have thrown big-hitters out of sync at the death.The Tridents’ bargain shopping has trumped the Amazon Warriors’ by some distance too. Raymon Reifer, who iced the semi-final against the Knight Riders by trapping Seekkuge Prasanna for his tenth wicket of the season, was taken in round 14 for US$ 5000. The Tridents mined a diamond in the final round with their US$ 3000 ICC Americas pick, taking USA’s Hayden Walsh Jr., who is not only the tournament’s leading wicket-taker with 21 in eight matches, but has been the event’s most electric fielder. Just ask Pollard, who fell victim to a momentum-shifting run-out by Walsh Jr. on Thursday night.Saturday night might not be as raucous an occasion at the Brian Lara Academy without the host franchise involved. But there’s no doubt it will be a memorable one as the Amazon Warriors pursue perfection while the Tridents try to pull off an upset.Jason Holder has been hugely influential for Barbados Tridents•CPL T20/ Getty Images

Form guide

Guyana Amazon Warriors WWWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Barbados Tridents WLWWL

In the spotlight

Coming into CPL 2019, 24-year-old Brandon King had just one fifty and 267 runs in 14 career T20 innings. But he has four 50-plus scores in his last seven matches. He broke Russell’s record on Sunday for the highest score in CPL history, bashing an unbeaten 132 off 72 balls with 11 fours and ten sixes. It was an innings that brought coach Botha to tears, but the tournament’s most improved batsman was restrained in his celebrations, an indication that he may have bigger plans in store for the final.Hayden Walsh Jr. entered the season as the back-up legspinner to Sandeep Lamichhane, the same role he served when the pair was together in 2018 at St Kitts & Nevis Patriots. But when Lamichhane left after the sixth match for national duty with Nepal, Walsh Jr. got an opportunity to come back into the line-up and exploded with a five-wicket haul against the Knight Riders. Walsh Jr. now has a CPL-best 21 in eight matches, has never taken fewer than two wickets in any game, and is a spark plug at backward point.

Team news

The only reason the Amazon Warriors may change the line-up that beat the Tridents in the qualifier is if they feel they need another variation bowler at the death. Ben Laughlin is a candidate if so, but if it ain’t broke, they are unlikely to fix it.Guyana Amazon Warriors (probable XI): 1 Brandon King, 2 Chandrapaul Hemraj, 3 Shimron Hetmyer, 4 Shoaib Malik (capt), 5 Nicholas Pooran (wk), 6 Sherfane Rutherford, 7 Keemo Paul, 8 Chris Green, 9 Romario Shepherd, 10 Odean Smith, 11 Imran TahirThe Tridents leadership will be sweating over Duminy’s fitness after he had to retire hurt with what appeared to be a hamstring injury during his innings on Thursday against the Knight Riders. If he can’t go, the most likely alternative is Justin Greaves, who scored a half-century earlier this season when Hales left temporarily for the T20 Vitality Blast final.Barbados Tridents (probable XI): 1 Alex Hales, 2 Johnson Charles, 3 Shakib Al Hasan, 4 Shai Hope (wk), 5 JP Duminy/Justin Greaves, 6 Jonathan Carter, 7 Jason Holder (capt), 8 Raymon Reifer, 9 Ashley Nurse, 10 Hayden Walsh Jr., 11 Harry Gurney

Pitch and conditions

The Tridents fielders looked like they were on ice skates at times in the outfield, which had excessive dew after Thursday’s qualifier playoff was pushed back to 8.15pm local time due to transportation problems the Tridents experienced making the drive south from Port-of-Spain to Tarouba. But the final is scheduled for a 5pm start, making the dew less of a factor. The Brian Lara Academy pitch has regularly been challenging for batsmen, and scoring more than 150 batting first hasn’t been easy.

Stats and trivia

  • The Tridents’ only CPL title came in 2014, when they beat the Amazon Warriors in the final in St Kitts by eight runs (DLS method). Current Amazon Warriors captain Malik was Man of the Match in the final for the Tridents, scoring an unbeaten 55 off 42 balls. That loss by the Amazon Warriors was the second of four runner-up finishes, including last year.
  • The tournament’s leading wicket-taker has been a part of the champion squad on three occasions: Krishmar Santokie (16) for Jamaica Tallawahs in 2013, Dwayne Bravo (28) for Trinidad & Tobago Red Steel in 2015, and Fawad Ahmed (22) for the Knight Riders in 2018. Only once has the tournament’s leading scorer played for the champion team: Colin Munro (567 runs) in 2018 for the Knight Riders.

Quotes

“If you start thinking about going into a bigger game then you add extra pressure on you. Since we have so many youngsters, my message is still the same. When you come to the ground, whatever responsibilities you get, just try to handle them not thinking about how this is a final because then your brain is only working towards a trophy.”
“The beauty of our performances so far in this tournament is we’ve held on in close games. We also lost some close games but the majority of our games we held our nerve and been able to come out on top.”

Unknown spinner Trevaskis shocks Lancashire in memorable finale

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Liam Trevaskis took three wickets in the final over as Durham continued to defy expectations in North Group

ESPNcricinfo staff and ECB Reporters Network07-Aug-2018
ScorecardLiam Trevaskis a part-time left-arm spinner from Carlisle, took three wickets in a brilliant last over as Durham once again proved their ability to scramble wins from unpromising situations as they snatched a startling victory against Lancashire at Emirates Old Trafford.Trevaskis, 19, who had taken only one wicket in seven previous T20 appearances, defended just six off the last over and finished with a career-best four for 16 as Lancashire chased a 155 target, slipping badly from a position of strength at halfway.He conceded only one in the last over as he had James Faulkner caught at long-on, Lamb stumped and Matthew Parkinson caught at deep midwicket. The Lightning needed 63 off the last 10 overs with six wickets left and finished on 150 for nine.It was another blow for Faulkner, Lancashire’s Australian allrounder, who is attempting to rebuild his reputation after his career was blighted by injury.Trevaskis made his T20 debut last season, dismissing England’s Alex Hales in the match against Nottinghamshire at Chester-le-Street and also played for England’s Under-19 side in the One-Day series with India.

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Durham’s four-run win significantly strengthens their hopes of quarter-final qualification. The second-placed Jets have moved to 14 points from 10 games, one behind leaders Worcestershire. Lancashire are fourth on eleven points from 10. Durham, assumed to be also-rans, are proving more resilient then many deemed possible.”I’m still a little bit lost for words on how we actually came out victorious,” said Durham captain Tom Latham. “James Weighell was going to bowl the last over, but it looked easier with pace on the ball and Liam had bowled a good couple of overs beforehand. He hasn’t played a huge amount of T20 cricket, and his main role is as a batter.”Earlier, Lancashire’s Afghanistan spinner Zahir Khan impressed with 2 for 19 on his debut on an Old Trafford pitch again prepared with slow bowlers in mind.Durham posted 154 for 7, a total which looked under par when Alex Davies flew out of the blocks in reply with 53 off 33 balls.Zahir, also 19, has signed for the rest of the season on Jos Buttler’s recommendation having been squad mates at Rajasthan Royals in the IPL earlier this summer. He bowled considerably more googlies than chinamen in a mid-innings spell that seemed to have made Lancashire strong favourites.Trevaskis was bowled around his legs as he tried to sweep and veteran Paul Collingwood fell lbw sweeping in an eye-catching four-over spell.Durham started positively with the bat, reaching 56 for 1 in the seventh over. But they stumbled through the middle in the face of Khan and Lamb, whose sister Emma also struck twice in a Kia Super League game earlier in the day.In the end, the Jets did well to get up to 154 as veteran Will Smith hit three sixes in 37 not out. Their innings included nine sixes and only six fours.Danny Lamb had James Weighell caught at deep cover off a full toss and Stuart Poynter caught at mid-off in only his second Blast appearance of the summer and third in all. Earlier, Jordan Clark caught younger brother Graham at long-on for 29 off leg-spinner Matthew Parkinson.Chris Rushworth had Karl Brown caught at mid-on in the first over of the Lightning chase, but Davies quickly found his range on the way to a club record equalling fifth Blast fifty of the season.Davies found useful support from pinch-hitter Arron Lilley (28). They shared 72 inside eight overs for the second wicket before Lilley was run out to leave the score at 78 for two in the eighth.Davies reached his fifty off 32 balls in the 10th over, but he was caught behind off Ben Whitehead’s leg-spinners with his next ball – 88 for three.Steven Croft miscued a return catch to Trevaskis as Lancashire’s target became 41 off the last six overs. Whitehead struck again to remove Dane Vilas as the game tightened up significantly to 19 off two overs. Jordan Clark fell to Nathan Rimmington in the penultimate before Trevaskis had the final say.Lancashire face Yorkshire at Emerald Headingley on Thursday evening, while Durham host Leicestershire on Wednesday in a busy week that could decide their season.