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After a three-week SLPL stint as the leading wicket-taker, Jacob Oram’s experience and knowledge about the Sri Lankan local players and conditions is helpful to New Zealand’s preparations, Ross Taylor has said

Andrew Fernando in Pallekele26-Sep-2012Jacob Oram’s Sri Lanka Premier League stint was a stroke of good fortune. He had made himself available for the draft, but none of the teams much liked the idea of an aging, fragile seam bowler on their payroll. Oram’s batting had lost its lustre since his youth and though he had become a wily limited-overs operator since, he is hardly a cricketer that will daunt opponents – even in a domestic tournament. Thankfully for him, New Zealand teammate James Franklin had his Test career resuscitated, and the Uva Next franchise were short of one player who could contribute in both disciplines. Oram, who was called up days before the tournament began, became one of the league’s standout players and an integral part of Uva Next’s victorious campaign over the next three weeks.What made him so potent, Uva Next captain Thilina Kandamby said, was bowling with the new ball – an opportunity he does not often get when playing for his country. At the top of the innings, he was parsimony personified. Oram found an effective length on the reforged Sri Lanka pitches that suddenly favoured seam bowlers, and plugged away predictably. The extra movement and improved bounce made him difficult to get away, and he reaped a tournament record of 11 wickets with a barely believable economy rate of 3.82. Though he has not been at his best in the group matches in the World Twenty20, Oram will hope the confidence and experience from his SLPL exploits will aid his cause in the current tournament, because that was the point.”One of the reasons I wanted to come here was that it’s the perfect preparation for the World Twenty20,” Oram had said.”Missing out on the tournament initially was disappointing, because it meant preparing for the World Twenty20 indoors in New Zealand’s winter, which is obviously not ideal preparation. Once I got picked up as a late replacement, it was the ideal scenario to have a month over here before the World Cup, that is in these conditions, so it really couldn’t be any better.”Oram’s involvement in the SLPL was also something of a reconnaissance exercise for New Zealand. He had hoped to collect information about the changed conditions to notify the New Zealand camp, and as captain Ross Taylor said on the eve of New Zealand’s Super Eights match against Sri Lanka, Oram’s knowledge was proving handy to his side’s preparation.”He’s been telling us about the local players we might not have heard much of as well,” Taylor said. “He was probably the form bowler [in the SLPL], and he plays a vital role in our team as well. Wickets are probably a bit flatter than when he played, and it’s a different time of the year. But he’s a key part of our team and hopefully he can replicate that form that he showed in the Sri Lanka Premier League.”New Zealand may also have insight into the better known players in the Sri Lankan side, with several of them having played alongside Sri Lanka players in the IPL. Taylor, who played for the Delhi Daredevils alongside Mahela Jayawardene said it could be an advantage to have that knowledge of an opponent’s game, but was wary of the knowledge Sri Lanka players would be bringing to the encounter as well.”You learn a lot about those players, but the flipside is, they know a lot about you too,” Taylor said. “It’s tit-for-tat when it comes to that. It’s an exciting time. It’s always nice to play the host country when it comes to the World Cup. They are going to be a tough opposition, but we have some form players who are doing well at the moment, so it’s time for some of the other players to step up and contribute to a team win.”New Zealand head to the Super Eights, like they have often done, as unlikely semi-final candidates. On paper, they are thoroughly inferior to Sri Lanka in both the batting and bowling. If they are to inflict an upset on Thursday to begin a familiar underdogs’ charge to the knockout stages, they must gain an advantage in whatever peripheral area they can. Perhaps knowledge of conditions that aren’t altogether familiar to the home side either, and an understanding of their opponents’ game will give New Zealand the edge to run Sri Lanka close.

India’s MS Dhoni has been named captain of the ICC’s ODI Team of the Year for 2011-12; this is the fifth year in a row that he has made the team

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Sep-2012India’s MS Dhoni has been named captain of the ICC’s ODI Team of the Year for 2011-12. This is the fifth year in a row that Dhoni has made the team.

ICC one-day Team of the Year

Gautam Gambhir, Alastair Cook, Kumar Sangakkara, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni (capt & wk), Michael Clarke, Shahid Afridi, Morne Morkel, Steven Finn, Lasith Malinga, Saeed Ajmal, Shane Watson (12th man)

His India team-mates, Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir, are also in, with Alastair Cook, Kumar Sangakkara and Michael Clarke making up the rest of the batting. The bowlers include Morne Morkel, Steven Finn, Lasith Malinga and Saeed Ajmal, with Shahid Afridi filling the allrounder’s spot. Shane Watson was named 12th man.Cook, Sangakkara, Clarke and Ajmal were also named in the ICC’s Test Team of the Year for 2011-12. It is the first time that Ajmal, Kohli and Finn are featuring in the one-day team.Several South African batsmen who are near the top of the ODI rankings – such as Hashim Amla (currently No. 1) and AB de Villiers (No. 3) – are likely to have missed out because South Africa played very few ODIs between August 4, 2011 and August 6, 2012, the assessment period for picking the team.*The team was announced on the eve of the ICC’s annual awards function that will be held in Colombo on Saturday. It was picked by a panel consisting of former players: West Indies batsmen Clive Lloyd and Carl Hooper, Sri Lanka opener Marvan Attapatu, Australia allrounder Tom Moody and England Women’s captain Clare Connor. The same panel had picked the Test Team of the Year last month.Lloyd, who was the chairman of the selection panel, said: “This team, along with the Test Team of the Year was extremely difficult to decide upon. We feel the side has strength to bat well down the order, while also having a good variety for any type of conditions when it comes to its bowling attack.”Dave Richardson, the ICC’s chief executive, emphasised the team’s strength. “I think we can safely say that this is one of the strongest ODI Team of the Year selections ever in the awards history,” Richardson said.* September 14 17.20GMT: This story has been updated to include details on South Africa’s batsmen

Mitchell Johnson’s difficulties on his return from a long-term foot injury epitomised the struggles of Australia’s bowlers against England

Daniel Brettig at The Oval01-Jul-2012Given that it was Mitchell Johnson’s first game for Australia since November 2011, and in a country where he has suffered more than the usual share of bowling misadventure, Michael Clarke was careful not to criticise his wayward fast bowler. Yet Johnson’s difficulties on his return from a long-term foot injury epitomised the struggles of Australia’s bowlers against a highly organised England, and scripted another unhappy chapter in his enigmatic career.Called into the side to replace the injured Pat Cummins, and chosen ahead of James Pattinson and Ben Hilfenhaus, Johnson’s first two overs cost 20 and he finished the day wicketless, having also delivered four no-balls and two wides in seven overs that leaked 43 runs. He demonstrated an adjusted approach to the bowling crease and a slightly higher action and gained some swing with the new ball, but overall it was an unpleasant return.Clarke spoke of the indiscipline of the bowling attack generally, but would offer only praise for Johnson. “He’s been very good, he’s been high on confidence, he’s been bowling really well in the nets,” Clarke said. “It’s his first game back as well so it’s going to take a bit of time, but Mitch was really looking forward to his opportunity today. It was unfortunate we couldn’t get a win up, but it is great to have him back around the group.”You need to be able to control the ball. I think our bowling in general we didn’t control the ball enough against good opposition, good batters, on a pretty good wicket. We bowled too many wides and no-balls as well – they’re so costly, not only is it a no-ball but you get a free-hit afterwards. So we’ve got areas we need to improve very quickly, not only with the bat but also with the ball.”Clarke explained that Johnson was considered a more explosive bowling option than either Pattinson or Hilfenhaus and also favoured his left-arm variety to pose different questions for England’s batsmen. However the obstacle of facing a team he has had more difficult days against than strong ones, in a country where he is only likely to be ridiculed rather than revered by crowds, did not help Johnson’s cause.”Mitch has been bowling very well in the nets, he’s got good pace, as Pat Cummins does,” Clarke said. “Pat Cummins has got that x-factor, and we thought Mitch does as well, he’s left-arm so he brought something different, and as you’ve seen today he’s swinging the ball.”Cummins meanwhile will fly home tomorrow, after the latest injury in his brief career. Clarke said the decision to send Cummins home was as much about prevention of further injury as cure of the current side strain, but could not hide his irritation at losing another fast bowler.”He’s obviously very disappointed, I don’t know how severe it is,” Clarke said. “He’s going home tomorrow but there’s a bit of precaution there as well, we want to make sure we look after him. It’s a big loss, not only for the team but for him as well, he was looking forward to spending some time in England and getting some cricket under his belt, so it’s frustrating.”Between Johnson’s struggles, Cummins’ injury and the juggling of six pacemen on a brief tour, it has all added up to a testing job trial for the interim bowling coach Ali de Winter, who has indicated his intention to apply for the fulltime job at the conclusion of the trip. Waqar Younis, the former Pakistan captain and coach, is another contender.

Their bowlers, led by quicks Siraj and Vysakh, the debutant, put on a special show to put RCB on top after their had put up a modest-looking 174

Alagappan Muthu15-Apr-2023Royal Challengers Bangalore spent a large part of this game under the pump. Frustratingly, every time they thought they got ahead, like when Virat Kohli reached a 33-ball fifty, or when Glenn Maxwell was pummelling the spinners on a spin-friendly pitch, a wicket would fall to douse the momentum. Winning a game like this – a game where their crowd spent the first innings largely silent – will do wonders for their campaign because they clawed their way back. And because their star turns came with the ball.Mohammed Siraj (4-0-23-2) was phenomenal in conditions that should have cancelled him. Their debutant Vijaykumar Vyshak was the most successful bowler on the night, with three wickets including that of an IPL legend, David Warner. Their fielding was electric, a direct hit run-out from Anuj Rawat setting the tone for the fightback. The only Delhi Capitals batters who managed to resist were Manish Pandey (50 off 38) and Axar Patel (21 off 14).Towards the end of the game, it became clear that the pitch had got better for batting under lights. This is the reason why Capitals, having won the toss, chose to bowl in the first place. But their calamitous start to a chase of 175 – 2 for 3 in three overs and then 30 for 4 with Warner dismissed – just didn’t allow them to take advantage.Virat Kohli celebrates his third half-century of the season•Associated Press

Spin > Pace

A slow pitch and the spinners targeting the stumps together meant it was hard for RCB to hit them off the 30-yard circle. Axar and Lalit Yadav bowled three overs in the powerplay for eight dots and just 16 runs.When there’s no pace coming on to the bat, and you also don’t have room to free the arms, it’s really hard to get power into your shots. That’s why Faf du Plessis felt compelled to go extra hard on the quicks and lost his wicket in the fifth over to Mitchell Marsh.RCB hit seven boundaries in the first six overs. Only one of them came off spin. Even for the rest, they often had to charge out of their crease – creating pace for themselves – to get the most bang for their buck.

Kohli on song

A 33-ball fifty on this pitch was an excellent effort, but also typical Kohli. He knew that 1) this wasn’t a 200 pitch so he could bat at his own pace, and 2) the team would almost certainly benefit if he dropped anchor and played out the whole innings. And 3) he is a monster at the death, striking as well as Andre Russell or MS Dhoni in the last four overs.Things were going smoothly enough. He had just played not one but two shots of the match. A stand-still and bottom-hand drill down the ground turning an almost yorker from Mustafizur Rahman into a boundary. And then another stand-perfectly-still and bottom-hand whip to a back of a length ball on his hips for six. The wristwork on that shot to get it so far was just incredible.But then came Lalit Yadav with a massive full toss. It had to be put away. It was begging to be put away. And Kohli went for it, the only mistake he made was dragging it to the leg side, towards the 70-metre part of the ground. He was caught right on the edge of the rope. If he had gone straight, to the 60-metre boundary, it would’ve been six.2:37

Bishop: Brave call to bring on Kuldeep against Maxwell paid off

Maxwell’s little gem

Prior to this game, among batters with at least 500 runs against spin, Maxwell had the highest strike rate (164) and the best balls-per-boundary ratio (4.6) in the IPL. He lived up to that billing, smashing 20 runs off eight balls against the slower bowlers, and that contribution proved crucial. RCB fell from 117 for 2 to 132 for 6. But they still reached 174 because their spin hitter produced a cameo that allowed their unheralded Indian batters to just play out the overs. The impact sub, Rawat, made only 15 off 26 despite coming in as late as the last five overs and yet it didn’t matter.

Capitals collapse

They were 3 for 2 in the third over. They took 23 balls to hit the first boundary.The first innings was all about fast bowlers being dispatched. Mustafizur, for example, gave up one-third of the total boundaries that RCB hit (7 of 21). They were the ones providing release to under-pressure batters.But RCB’s new-ball attack decided to change all that. Siraj found ways to use even these conditions to his advantage, hitting the deck hard, at high pace and generating movement with his wobble seam variation.Capitals were suddenly under siege against the very type of bowling they thought they’d hit around the park. Yash Dhull certainly thought that when he tried to hit Siraj on the up and over the top, but the problem was, even though it was a full ball, and had very little distance to travel after pitching, it still seamed in to beat the inside edge and trap him plumb lbw. That wasn’t so much a wicket as an exhibition of the gulf in class between bowler and batter.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The end

Vyshak on IPL debut had a great game. RCB’s batters had told their bowlers that digging balls into the wicket was causing problems and he did that all night long.Take his first wicket. It was a slower ball banged into the surface. That length makes you pull on instinct. You know you need to delay their shots on this slow pitch. But that length just over-rides everything. Warner was into the pull too early. Toe end of the bat. Caught at midwicket.That at least was the conditions working against them. Prithvi Shaw, Capitals’ impact sub, which means he didn’t field at all, started by refusing a two that was on, then got run out showing zero urgency to get to the crease. Rawat produced a moment of magic at short extra cover, diving to his right, picking the ball up one-handed and nailing a throw with only one stump to look at. But Shaw just didn’t budget for the fact that his shot could be stopped. He was lazy getting into the run, then didn’t even try to dive when it was clear he was in trouble. His IPL reads 12, 7, 0, 15, 0.That wicket set the tone as Capitals crumbled to their fifth loss in five games this season.

Teams scheduled to play three ODIs and three T20Is in the KwaZulu-Natal province

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Dec-2020The South African women’s team will return to international action for the first time since March when they host Pakistan in January. The teams will play six white-ball matches in a bio-secure environment in the Kwa-Zulu Natal province, beginning with the two ODIs at Kingsmead on January 20 and January 23, and a third at the Pietermaritzburg Oval, which will also host the first two T20Is, before the tour ends with a third T20I at Kingsmead.”Hosting this tour of Pakistan Women is incredibly important to us as this will give our Protea Women much needed game time and also bring in revenue that funds the entire game of cricket especially during these difficult times,” Graeme Smith, CSA director of cricket, said. “We enjoy a very good working relationship with the Pakistan Cricket board and we look forward to hosting their ladies side in what promises to be an exciting tour in the new year.”

Tour schedule

• 1st ODI: Jan 20, Durban

• 2nd ODI: Jan 23, Durban

• 3rd ODI: Jan 26, Pietermaritzburg

• 1st T20I: Jan 29, Pietermaritzburg

• 2nd T20I: Jan 31, Pietermaritzburg

• 3rd T20I: Feb 3, Durban

The Pakistanis will begin their preparations with a warm-up match at Durban’s Chartsworth Oval on January 16 against the South African Emerging squad.”It is critical for women’s cricket that we continue to invest in the game in these difficult times, otherwise all the efforts and hard work that have gone recently in building the profile, enhancing the standard and generating fan interest and following will be wasted,” PCB women’s chief selector and head of the women’s cricket, Urooj Mumtaz, said. “I am delighted that Cricket South Africa have agreed to host us for a full tour despite having already qualified for the ICC Women’s World Cup 2022. This is yet another indicator and reflection of our relationship with the Member boards who are willing to help and support each other in any possible way.”The ODIs will be broadcast on pay-television provider, SuperSport, while the T20Is will be live-streamed. The series is the latest is ongoing good relations between South Africa and Pakistan, which will see the men’s team tour Pakistan for the first time in 14 years early next year and Pakistan reciprocate with a white-ball tour to South Africa next March. The women’s series is not part of the ICC Women’s Championship. South Africa have already qualified for the 2022 50-over World Cup in New Zealand while Pakistan will have the chance to secure their spot at the qualifying event, which, according to a PCB statement, will be held in July.Pakistan’s tour to South Africa will also be their first assignment under head coach David Hemp and bowling coach Arshad Khan, who were appointed in October and November respectively.Bismah Maroof and Dane van Niekerk share a light moment during the captains’ photoshoot•AFP

“To prepare and select the best available side and in continuation to the Women’s High Performance Camp and the National Triangular T20 Women’s Cricket Championship, the women’s national selection committee has invited 27 women cricketers for a training and preparation camp, which will be held at the Hanif Mohammad High Performance Centre in Karachi from 20 December,” the PCB said in a statement. “From the start of the training camp until the side’s departure for Durban on 11 January, the women cricketers will remain and train in a bio-secure environment, besides undergoing routine testing in line with the PCB Covid-19 protocols. Prior to joining the camp, each cricketer will require a negative test and another negative test after reporting for the camp before being allowed to integrate with other members of the group.”The South Africa women’s team has not played competitive cricket since the 2020 Women’s T20 World Cup in Australia, where they made the semi-finals, and have had series against Australia (at home) and West Indies (away) postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic. They had hoped to travel to England for a series in September, but were forced to decline the invitation because of travel restrictions in South Africa at the time.Since then, all domestic and international sport has been allowed to resume in the country, behind closed doors. The men’s national team played England in three T20s and were due to play three ODIs against them before those matches were postponed because of Covid-19 concerns. The men’s national team’s next assignment is against Sri Lanka over the festive season even as the country is into an official second wave, with restrictions on movement to be announced this week.Pakistan’s probables for the South Africa tour: Aiman Anwar, Aliya Riaz, Anam Amin, Ayesha Naseem, Ayesha Zafar, Bismah Maroof, Diana Baig, Fatima Sana Khan, Iram Javed, Javeria Khan, Javeria Rauf, Kainat Imtiaz, Kaynat Hafeez, Maham Tariq, Muneeba Ali, Nahida Khan, Najiha Alvi, Nashra Sandhu, Natalia Pervaiz, Nida Dar, Omaima Sohail, Rameen Shamim, Saba Nazir, Sadia Iqbal, Sidra Amin, Sidra Nawaz and Syeda Aroob Shah

James Pattinson has conceded that he has found it hard to balance all three forms of the game, and he said he was not disappointed at being left out of Australia’s 30-man preliminary squad for the ICC World Twenty20

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Jul-2012James Pattinson has conceded that he has found it hard to balance all three forms of the game, and he said he was not disappointed at being left out of Australia’s 30-man preliminary squad for the ICC World Twenty20. Despite being part of Australia’s most recent T20 series in the West Indies, Pattinson was one of the surprise omissions from Australia’s initial squad announced on Wednesday, from which a final 15-man group will be chosen.Pattinson, 22, signed with the Melbourne Stars on Thursday for a one-year Big Bash League deal, but he said at international level he was happy for his focus to remain on the longer forms of the game. Asked whether he was disappointed not to be part of the 30-man group, Pattinson said: “Not really, I suppose where I am with my cricket now there’s a big emphasis on me playing the longer formats of the game – Test cricket and one-day cricket.”I think, being young, it’s pretty hard to juggle all three forms of the game at my age. I’m just excited to be involved in the one-day and Test team and, look, if the chance comes when I’m a bit older, I’d love to take that. Probably another thing, my performances haven’t been too great in Twenty20 cricket of late.”As a 22-year-old I have found it quite hard to juggle all three forms at the one time, it’s quite a lot of pressure on you. For me it’s probably easier to go back to the two formats and concentrate on that while I’m young and inexperienced.”Pattinson remains part of Australia’s one-day international plans and was named in the squad to take on Pakistan in the UAE in three ODIs starting next month. Pattinson and the offspinner Nathan Lyon were two of the most surprising omissions from the World T20 expanded group, after both appeared to be in the selectors’ plans for the short format earlier this year.

Melbourne Stars captain says new BBL rules will allow teams to “show the tactical side of the game”

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Nov-2020Glenn Maxwell endured a torrid IPL with the Kings XI Punjab, managing just 108 runs across 11 innings with a highest score of 32. He seemed to struggle for fluency right through the season, and ended it without a single six.Just before the IPL, Maxwell had cracked 186 runs in three ODIs against England, including a match-winning, series-clinching innings of 108 in the third ODI at Old Trafford. Maxwell is confident of getting back into that sort of form ahead of Australia’s limited-overs series against India starting next week.”Yeah, I’m sure we’ll be fine. I was just hitting the ball fine, but wasn’t getting much of a crack,” Maxwell said during a media interaction. “And [I’m] just looking at the bigger picture and understanding my role within the Australian side; trying to put the IPL aside and think about… what I need to do to get ready for every game. And [I] just know that I’m doing the right things and that when the time comes, when I need it, I can still perform really well.”Maxwell reckoned his lean run in the IPL was largely down to the situations he batted in.”It didn’t have anything to do with the pitches at all,” he said. “I suppose it was more to do with the amount of time I had left in the game most of the times. I was either rebuilding or trying to go from ball one with only a couple of balls left. If you don’t hit it, you’re in a bit of trouble. I don’t take too much out of it. I’m still training as hard as ever and still working on the right things. But I came from arguably one of the best innings I’ve played in my career [at Old Trafford] to not being able to clear the ropes. I don’t take too much out of that.”Two days after the third T2OI against India on December 8, the BBL is scheduled to begin. Maxwell, who will captain the Melbourne Stars, is excited by the new rules that will be in place during the tournament.Glenn Maxwell falls on the floor after attempting an unorthodox shot•BCCI

“It’s going to be different that’s for sure,” Maxwell said. “It’s going to be hard work for captains to implement them as well as they can to get an advantage on the rest of the competition and that presents a good challenge for teams to have good squad depth to be able to use their 12th and 13th players. I think it’s exciting.”It’s a different way of playing the game. It’s not going to be the traditional T20. For me personally, I find it exciting to show the tactical side of the game and it’s a good opportunity for teams to show their technical nous and find ways to get ahead of the game.”ALSO READ: Darren Lehmann backs BBL’s X-Factor over previous one-day SupersubThe new rules have come in for criticism from former players including Shane Watson, who termed it a “misguided attempt to re-invigorate the tournament”. But as captain, Maxwell looks forward to using the Power Surge – where the traditional six-over Powerplay will be scrapped and replaced by a mandatory four-over block at the start of the innings and two overs to be chosen by the batting team after the 10th over.”I will just wait for the time,” Maxwell said. “A guy like Nic Pooran who I’ll probably try and use in that space a lot. He’s an extremely powerful hitter and I’m looking forward to seeing him in the Big Bash.”The first game of the 2020-21 BBL will be played between the Hobart Hurricanes and the Sydney Sixers on December 10, with Maxwell’s Stars to open their campaign a day later against the Brisbane Heat.

Rory Hamilton-Brown has announced that he will stand down as Surrey captain to focus on his own game

George Dobell10-Aug-2012Rory Hamilton-Brown has resigned as captain of Surrey having struggled to regain equilibrium following the death of close friend and team-mate Tom Maynard. Although Hamilton-Brown has reaffirmed his commitment to pursuing a playing career, he has accepted it will take time to regain the mental and physical fitness required to fulfil one of the more demanding jobs in cricket.Gareth Batty will continue as Surrey captain until the end of the season, with the club making a decision about a longer-term solution in the off-season. Batty and new signing Vikram Solanki will be among the candidates for the role, though Chris Adams, Surrey’s director of cricket, has made no secret of his desire to bring in new faces.Hamilton-Brown’s resignation brings to an end an experiment that was beginning to bear fruit. Just 22 at the time of his appointment in 2010 – the youngest Surrey captain in more than a century – Hamilton-Brown assumed leadership of a team struggling in all formats of the game. While progress was not always smooth, Surrey won the CB40 competition and Championship promotion in 2011 and, with a squad boasting several highly talented young players, looked set for a period of sustained success.Then came the tragic incident in June that claimed the life of Maynard – a young batsman in whom club and country had high hopes – and Hamilton-Brown was given indefinite compassionate leave to come to terms with his grief. While he has taken the first tentative steps towards a first-team return, he has decided that the responsibilities of captaincy are a burden he can do without at this stage of his rehabilitation. Surrey have not won a Championship game in his absence and endured a poor T20 campaign.”I am honoured to have captained Surrey, the county I have played for since I was nine years old,” Hamilton-Brown said. “It has been a privilege to have been in charge of a fantastic group of players and what we achieved together is a great source of pride to me, particularly our unprecedented record of only one defeat in 20 Clydesdale Bank matches.”I am only 24 and would now like to concentrate on my own game and try to achieve ambitions I have in the game by continuing to play well for Surrey.”Adams said: “I would like to thank Rory for everything he has achieved during his three years as captain. Having taken on the captaincy in 2010, winning a Lord’s final and securing promotion to Division One in 2011 were both fantastic achievements. He has undoubted talent and a desire to take his game to the next level. I hope he achieves all his ambitions within the game in the years to come.”Surrey remain in contention to retain the CB40 trophy – they are top of Group B having lost just one of their eight games – but have slipped into relegation trouble in the Championship, losing their most recent match against Durham by an innings.

Independent Director Marius Schoeman offers resignation if the report is not sent

Firdose Moonda06-Oct-2020Cricket South Africa (CSA) have committed to presenting the South African Parliament’s portfolio committee on sports, arts and culture with the full forensic report – which it used to fire former CEO Thabang Moroe – by Friday. In a two-hour meeting on Tuesday morning, the Committee expressed their “disappointment” with CSA for the continued delays in making the report public. It also demanded access to the report before addressing any other issue related to the organisation.Under that pressure, CSA independent board director Marius Schoeman promised to step down from the board if the report is not delivered to the committee by the end of the week.While it is unclear whether the committee members, who are members of parliament, will be required to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) – as has been the case for everyone who has seen the report so far – CSA’s legal team will interact with parliament’s lawyers prior to the report being released.”The protocol to follow is that Members’ Council will confirm that the board may release this report to you. It will be released in hard copy, by Fundudzi, by Friday, close of business, 16h30,” Schoeman said. “If this is not done by 16h30 on Friday, I will resign.”It is significant that the report itself will be sent to parliament by Fundudzi – the forensic services company that compiled the report – and not CSA’s lawyers, where the report is being kept. That is to ensure that the parliamentary committee receives a copy of report that they can be sure is not tampered with. This comes after several members of the committee said they suspected CSA of hiding information given the lengthy delays. Again, Schoeman gave a personal guarantee that will not be the case. “There is absolutely no way I will stand by to allow that anything be removed [from the report],” Schoeman said.ALSO READ: Explainer: What South Africa’s cricket crisis is all aboutCSA released the summary of the report, which contained several damning findings of administrative and financial irregularity and breaches of the Companies’ Act by Moroe, on Monday morning. Schoeman confirmed that acting president Beresford Williams, who was present at Tuesday’s meeting, and board member Donovan May, are also implicated in the report, albeit to a lesser degree. The summary also detailed an incident in which they entire board had failed in their fiduciary duties, which suggests that any punitive action CSA may take could be wide-ranging.For that reason – and that litigation against any implicated individuals could yet take place – CSA have refused to release the report in full to anyone other than three of their independent board members, the 14 presidents of the provincial affiliates on condition that they sign NDA’s and the country’s sports minister Nathi Mthethwa, who was not present on Tuesday. Mthethwa has already instructed CSA to give the South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) full access to the report, but CSA have not yet done so, which could lead to Mthethwa taking action against CSA.The pending issue of access to the forensic report was the only matter discussed by the parliamentary committee on Tuesday, forcing topics such as transformation, South Africa’s blank fixture list – which, to date, shows no international or domestic matches for the 2020-21 summer – and CSA’s finances to take a backseat. The committee will meet with CSA again once they have read the report.

A round up of Ranji Trophy Group A matches on November 17, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Nov-2015
ScorecardFile photo: Arun Karthik is at the crease for Assam, with the side 95 runs away from a third win in six games•PTI

Assam drew with defending champions Karnataka, beat former back-to-back winners Rajasthan by an innings, toppled Haryana at home in Lahli and are now on the cusp of beating Delhi. Ninety-five runs separate the newly-promoted team from registering their third win in six matches and consolidate their place at the top half of the Ranji Trophy points table in Group B. They still have seven wickets in hand, with opener Rahul Hazarika and KB Arun Karthik are at the crease in the final innings in Guwahati.Much of their position has been down to the bowlers who dismissed Delhi for totals under 200 both times. Spinners Amit Verma and J Syed Mohammad took six wickets between them. Unmukt Chand made 44 yesterday and that remained the top-score of the innings. Pulkit Narang tried to delay the inevitable with 26 off 133 balls and remained not out even as Delhi were all out for 172.
ScorecardHaryana crumpled to 216 all out in their first innings, which well short of Odisha’s 529 for 6 declared and were made to follow-on in Lahli. Seamers Basant Mohanty and Suryakant Pradhan picked up three wickets each whilst the only substantial resistance came from opener Nitin Saini and his 51 off 146 balls.Haryana, resuming on 38 for 0, were bundled out soon after tea. Although there wasn’t a startling collapse, none of the batsmen could put up a substantial score. Besides Saini, Jayant Yadav made 46 but the remaining eight batsmen could not push past 30. A definite problem when there is a batsman among the opposition who made 255. Natraj Behera, the Odisha captain, appears all but certain to have helped his team to their second win of the season.
ScorecardAditya Sarwate struck a combative fifty from No. 8 and then nipped out four wickets to keep Vidarbha’s hopes of an outright win. The match had been petering towards a draw with Rajasthan on 150 for 2 when he, Akshay Wakhare and Ravi Jangid orchestrated a collapse. Seven wickets fell for 69 runs and Rajasthan ended the day on 226 for 9, leading by 195 with one day left to play in Nagpur.Ashok Menaria and Vineet Saxena had picked up a half-century each during a 110-run partnership for the third wicket, but as soon as it was broken, Rajasthan’s stability was lost. Jangid provided those vital wickets, having both men caught by Wasim Jaffer for 76 and 54 runs respectively. That opening was enough for Sarwate who got rid of Rajat Bhatia for 3 and then ran through the tail to finish the day on 4 for 58.
ScorecardMaharashtra made a solid reply to Bengal, who had declared overnight at 528 for 8, with Rahul Tripathi’s third first-class century. He was unbeaten on 116 at stumps in Pune with Ankit Bawne on 59 not out keeping him good company. The hosts had put on 296 runs on the board, but were still 232 runs behind.An early wicket is not what teams going in to bat after conceding 500 runs want, but Maharashtra had to contend with opener Harshad Khadiwale falling for only 5. But his partner Swapnil Gugale made 35 off 68 balls after which Sangram Atitkar breezed to 69 off 118 balls as Maharashtra recovered nicely and gave themselves an outside chance of taking a first-innings lead.