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Three bowlers who will be much sought after at the IPL auction for their skills at the end of an innings

Nagraj Gollapudi and Gaurav Sundararaman25-Jan-2018Death overs stats•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Dwayne Bravo

Base price: INR 2 crore (US$315,000)Angles, bowling form both sides of the stumps, mixing up pace and variations, bowling off-stump yorkers, slower-ball bouncers – all with a poker face. Bravo has evolved to become one of the best slog-overs specialists during his long career. Bravo has battled a hamstring injury over the last year, but he has given himself ample opportunity to keep himself fit for the final phase of his career.NumbersBravo has picked up the most wickets during the slog overs (overs 17 to 20) in T20 history – 201 wickets (of his 409), coming at 9.50 and a strike rate of 11.31. Since 2012, Bravo takes a wicket every 10 balls during the slog overs in the IPL. That is the best for any bowler in the IPL during that period.

Andrew Tye

Base price: INR 1 crore ($160,000)
The knuckle ball is tied to Tye’s name. But that is not the only variation he utilises to dominate batsmen at the end. He uses his tall frame to deliver a very good short ball that is equally lethal. And, like Bravo, Tye has a cool temperament in the high-pressure overs at the end of the innings where being able to breathe easy on the job is an asset.NumbersSince June 2015, Tye has the fourth-best strike rate (10.84) in the slog overs at and economy of 9.57. Tye has taken three hat-tricks in T20s and is only the second player to achieve the feat alongside India legspinner Amit Mishra.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Jaydev Unadkat

Base price: INR 1.5 crore ($315,000)
Heavy balls into the body, sly wide yorkers, and a sharp bouncer – Unadkat teases the batsmen and keeps them thinking. Unadkat always had the pace, but last year, for Pune, he showed his bowling intelligence and brought out all the skills he had worked on to become a complete T20 fast bowler. The variety of being a left-hand bowler adds to his allure.NumbersLast IPL, Unadkat had 16 wickets in the death overs, which was the joint-best along with Bhuvneshwar Kumar, whom Steven Smith had called the best in that phase. Importantly, Unadkat’s economy rate was 8.41. He is the only Indian bowler to take two five-wicket hauls in the IPL. Overall among fast bowlers, Undakat was the second highest wicket-taker in the IPL last year with 24 wickets at an economy rate of 7.02

Opener proud of how he rediscovered his form in the final two matches of the international summer, after an unexpected recall

Andrew Miller15-Nov-2017Jason Roy believes that Ben Stokes and Alex Hales have “dealt extremely well” with the fall-out of Stokes’ arrest in Bristol in September, an incident that inadvertently allowed Roy to reclaim his place at the top of England’s ODI batting order.Speaking at the Chance to Shine Awards at Lord’s, Roy reflected on a disappointing personal season in England’s limited-overs teams, but added that he was proud of the way he put aside England’s huge off-field issue to rediscover his form in the final two matches of the international summer.”The team wasn’t that focused given the events that happened, but as with most sports, you have to come in and take your opportunities,” Roy told ESPNcricinfo. “You have to blank out all the stuff that’s happening in the media, all the stuff that people are saying to you about what’s happened in previous games, and just crack on with the next delivery.”The circumstances of Roy’s return to the side could hardly have been less of a cause for celebration for the player, who had been dropped during England’s Champions Trophy campaign after mustering 51 runs in eight ODI innings.He had seemed resigned to a long stint on the sidelines, but was instead drafted back in for the fourth ODI against West Indies as a direct replacement for Hales, who had returned to Bristol to help police with their enquiries after emerging as a key witness following Stokes’ arrest at 2.30am on the morning after England’s victory in the Bristol ODI.Jason Roy made his first fifty in ten ODI innings•Getty Images

Roy seized his chance, scoring 84 in his comeback at The Oval and 96 in the season finale at the Ageas Bowl two days later, as England wrapped up a 4-0 series win.”For England it was a disappointing international summer,” he said. “I went over to the IPL, got sidelined for a couple of games, came back and didn’t have that rhythm that I usually have. And then in the Champions Trophy, I tried a few stupid things, and got myself in a bit of a rut.”I’ve always been pretty honest with myself and with everybody else about where I’m at, and yeah, I got myself in a bit of a rut and I couldn’t really get out of it. Then found my way with a few runs in the county game with Surrey, a few good wins under my belt, and then finished strongly at the end of the summer.”The star of the West Indies series, however, was Jonny Bairstow, the man who had himself taken over from Roy during the Champions Trophy, and who marked his promotion with two hundreds in a Man of the Series display.”It is healthy for English cricket,” said Roy. “If any one of us is sitting on the sidelines, it’s only going to be a positive for England. At the end of the day that is exactly the mentality of Jonny, Halesy and myself, if one of us is sidelined then happy days, because we must have a seriously strong opening pair.”Neither Hales nor Stokes has spoken publicly since the Bristol incident. However, both men were present at Roy’s wedding in France in October, where they were pictured smiling and joining in the festivities.”They are fine,” Roy added. “It was obviously an unfortunate event, an unfortunate period, but they came to my wedding, all bearing smiles and everything was all good. Obviously it’s something we wish didn’t happen, but it did. They’ve actually dealt with it extremely well.”Jason Roy was supporting Chance to Shine, the national charity who aim to spread the power of cricket through schools and communities. NatWest have partnered with Chance to Shine as part of their Cricket has no boundaries campaign, championing diversity and inclusion in cricket.

South Africa batsman Dean Elgar believes his team will avoid complacency at Bellerive Oval, a venue at which they have never played a Test match

Firdose Moonda in Hobart10-Nov-20162:32

‘We are guarding against complacency’ – Dean Elgar

South Africa are not going to follow Graeme Smith’s lead and dismiss Australia as being low on confidence. In fact, they are bracing for a backlash from the wounded hosts.”If he has said that I’m sure that’s just his personal dig,” South Africa’s opening batsman Dean Elgar said. “I don’t think there is a culture issue within the Australian side. We know they’re still a dangerous team and they can bounce back in the second Test.”Asked whether he thinks Australia have lost some of their bite, Elgar would not be drawn into a slanging match. “Yes and no. We know that the Australian side is still a very dangerous side. Them being beaten in the first Test is working in their favour because they can bounce back, and we’re aware of their bouncebackability. It’s just human nature to withdraw into yourself because of what you’re going through. But they can bounce back hard.”To that end, South Africa are spending the build-up being drilled hard both in the nets and in the analysis room. “Complacency is a big thing for us,” Elgar said. “That’s something we’ve addressed as a team. It’s a new Test, a new challenge and a new venue for us.”South Africa have never played a Test in Hobart before, and the last of their five ODIs at this venue was in 2009. Of the current squad, only Hashim Amla and JP Duminy played in that match, while batting and bowling consultant Neil McKenzie and Charl Langeveldt were part of previous ODI teams at Bellerive Oval. They won’t be able to draw too much from that but have be trawling through the scorecards of previous matches to try and gauge what awaits.0:24

Dean Elgar expects Australia to bounce back in Hobart

The last two Tests have seen Australia post big scores in the first innings against West Indies and Sri Lanka but the one before that was a low-scoring thriller against New Zealand. The pace and bounce of the WACA is a thing of the past but there may still be plenty for the bowlers. Two days before the Test, the pitch was a violent shade of green but much of that grass will be shaved off. What won’t change is the overhanging cloud, at least not for the rest of this week. There will be swing on offer and for South Africa, that may also mean reverse-swing.Josh Hazlewood commented on how effectively South Africa managed to get the ball to reverse in Perth, much to Australia’s envy, and Elgar was sure they would try to do it again. “It is an asset for us if the ball can reverse but also, for a bowler to be able to bowl with the reversing ball is a massive skill,” Elgar said. “We’re fortunate if that most if not all of our bowlers can bowl with the reversing ball, which works in our favour quite nicely. In Perth the ball reversed in both innings for us when we were bowling and it proved to be a massive asset for us.”Elgar maintained that South Africa’s working of the ball does not venture into troublesome territory, even though Hazlewood had noticed their habit of throwing the ball onto the pitch to scuff it up. “We’re trying to throw it into the turf and scuff one side up,” Hazlewood said “They’re pretty well drilled on it and get that side nice and rough and the other one shiny.”But it is “not a deliberate tactic”, according to Elgar. “When you’re on the boundary, there are rules that you are allowed to bounce a ball in from the boundary,” he said. “All teams around the world use that tactic these days. If you are allowed to use it to your advantage all teams are welcome to do it. But obviously within the rules and regulations of the game.”Those are things Smith, who retired more than two years ago, does not have to think about anymore and it’s allowed him to say some of the things he may have been thinking in his playing days. Smith spoke about Australia being a country where you had to earn respect as a player and you could only do that through performance. That’s what South Africa did in Perth and hope to continue in Hobart, but Elgar would prefer they didn’t make too much of a big noise about it.”Having a lot guys put up their hands and make a big play for the team is very important to us,” Elgar said. “It’s very important for us to have those different kinds of players in the team. We don’t talk about it at all. It just comes out naturally.”

Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews has been suspended for two ODIs and his team-mates have been fined 40% of their match fees for their slow over-rate in the final of the tri-series against India in Port-of-Spain

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jul-2013Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews has been suspended for two ODIs and his team-mates have been fined 40% of their match fees for their slow over-rate in the final of the tri-series against India in Port-of-Spain.Match referee David Boon handed the suspension after Sri Lanka were found three overs short of their target at the end of the match, after time allowances were taken into consideration. Mathews accepted the suspension which avoided a formal hearing.In accordance with the ICC Code of Conduct, the captain receives two suspension points and his team-mates are fined 10% of their match fees for each of the first two overs short and 20% for every subsequent over they fail to bowl in the stipulated time. Two suspension points equate to a suspension for one Test or two ODIs.The suspension means Mathews will miss the first two of the five ODIs against South Africa on July 20 and 23 in Colombo.

A cruise to victory for Chennai Super Kings became a tense final-ball one before Rajasthan Royals were beaten

The Report by Siddarth Ravindran21-Apr-2012
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
The spinners put the skids on the scoring-rate•AFP

On another sweltering day, there was another demonstration of how quickly Twenty20 games can turn. With four overs to go, Chennai Super Kings had nine wickets remaining and needed 31 runs – a one-sided game then by Twenty20 standards.A double-strike from Kevon Cooper in the 17th over made the Chennai dressing room a little anxious, but with MS Dhoni and Dwayne Bravo in the middle, things were still under control.
Amit Singh leaked runs in the next over, and when he bowled a legstump freebie with the fine leg up, the game again seemed over.There were no more boundaries in the game, however, and after Cooper bowled another tight over, Karnataka allrounder Stuart bowled yorker after yorker to bring it down to two off the final delivery. Yet again, though, Dhoni showed his ice-cool temperament, whipping the last ball to deep backward square leg and haring through for the second, easily beating a poor throw from Cooper.In Rajasthan Royals’ previous match, little-known Dishant Yagnik, playing his first game of the season had come out on top against the world’s best bowler, Dale Steyn. This time, the unheralded Binny, also playing his first game of the season, nearly pulled it off against the world’s best finisher. Binny who hadn’t batted in the game and was trusted with only one over before the climactic one, produced one of the best final overs of the season, but was left distraught and on his knees, to be consoled by his captain and state-mate Rahul Dravid.There were many similarities in the two innings.Nuwan Kulasekara had earlier produced an outstanding final over, and given away just eight in two death overs to limit Royals to a moderate score. Kulasekara’s tactic was to generally bowl full and wide, which the batsmen found hard to slog.Before Kulasekara, Chennai’s spinners had put the skids on the scoring after Royals openers, Ajinkya Rahane and Rahul Dravid, had made a bright start. Royals had raced to 32 off four overs before R Ashwin intervened. He had Rahane chipping to mid-off and gave away only four in his first two overs. Then left-arm spinners Shadab Jakati and Ravindra Jadeja gave little away in the middle of the innings.For the Royals also, it was their spinner who choked the runs after a decent start from Super Kings. Brad Hogg made his international debut nearly 16 years ago, but few – if any – batsmen are able to pick his wrong ‘un even now. That variation accounted for S Badrinath, and the guessing game Hogg forced the batsmen to play gave him figures of 4-0-18-1.Royals’ batting had revolved around Owais Shah, a player who is having his first successful season in the IPL. He reached his third half-century of the tournament, but it lacked the fluency and big-hitting of his previous two efforts. Shah’s constant shuffling around in the crease, though, brought him reward in the 15th over, as Jadeja fluffed his lines trying to double-guess the batsmen. Two wides for four, and a six over extra cover gave Royals 22 off the over. When Ashok Menaria, Shah’s partner for much of the innings, launched Bravo for a six and a four in the 17th, the big onslaught finally seemed on. Kulasekara, though, scuttled Royals’ hopes of crossing 150.The cornerstone of Super Kings’ batting was also a half-century from one of their players enjoying his first fruitful IPL season. Faf du Plessis got his third fifty in four matches and moved to within 18 runs of getting the orange cap from Rahane. When he and the IPL’s highest run-getter, Suresh Raina, were in the middle, the chase seemed straightforward and the vocal crowd incessantly chanting “CSK, CSK” would hardly have expected the tension-filled finale.

A round-up of the third day’s play of the fourth-round matches of the Ranji Trophy Plate League 2009-10

Cricinfo staff03-Dec-2009

Group A

Scorecard
Abu Nechim took his second five-for of the match, finishing with career-best figures of 10 for 83, as Tripura was dismissed for 172 during the follow-on, giving Assam victory by an innings and 55 runs in three days. Tripura began the day on 35 for 3, trailing by 192 runs. Kaushik Aphale and Nishit Shetty steered them to 90 but both batsmen were dismissed by Sairaj Bahutule and Arlen Konwar in quick time. Nechim then began dismantling the lower-order, taking four of the last five wickets to fall to finish with 5 for 43 off 23.2 overs. The victory catapulted Assam from sixth to the top of the Plate League.
Scorecard
Goa’s bowlers backed up a terrific performance from their batsmen by chipping away at the Jharkhand batting line-up and were a wicket away from giving their captain the option of enforcing the follow-on. Jharkhand, resuming on 34 for 1 on the third morning, had only two major contributors. Opener Sachin Prasad scored a century, his maiden first-class hundred, and captain Saurabh Tiwary made 60 but no one else passed 20. Shadab Jakati was the best bowler, taking 3 for 53 in 27 overs, while Saurabh Bandekar and Kshemal Waingankar took two apiece.
Scorecard
There’s an absorbing tussle going on in Jaipur. Vidarbha, having limited Rajasthan to only a six-run first-innings lead, were in turn reduced to 158 for 5, with an overall advantage of only 152. Rajasthan began the third day on 166 for 5, trailing by 72 runs, but their lower-order batsmen failed to string together partnerships. Akshay Wakhare sliced through the batting, taking the last four wickets to finish with career-best figures of 6 for 56, and Rajasthan were dismissed for 244. Vidarbha, in their second innings, made a solid start with the openers adding 61. However, after Amit Paunikar fell for 23, Vidarbha lost wickets regularly to slip to 118 for 5 before Akshay Kohlar, who was unbeaten on 61, steered them safely to the close of play. Pankaj Singh and Madur Khatri took two wickets each for Rajasthan.

Group B

Scorecard
Madhya Pradesh were three wickets away from completing an innings victory against Jammu and Kashmir at the end of the third day in Indore. MP resumed their first innings on 440 for 7 in the morning and Devendra Bundela reached his 150. They were eventually dismissed for 519, with a lead of 348, and Abid Nabi was J&K’s best bowler, having taken 5 for 148. J&K struggled in their second innings, losing two wickets with the score on 15. Captain Vinayak Mane and Hiken Shah revived the innings, steering them to 114, before both batsmen fell in quick succession. TP Sudhindra took 3 for 42, while Sanjay Pandey and Ankit Sharma took two each, to reduce J&K to 206 for 7 at stumps.
Scorecard
A rearguard century from No. 10 Joginder Sharma propped Haryana up to 298 in their second innings, setting Andhra a formidable target to win their Ranji Plate fixture in Anantapur. Haryana were in trouble in their second innings, resuming on 107 for 5, leading by only 139 runs. They soon lost their overnight half-centurion, Rahul Dewan, and were gradually reduced to 184 for 9. Joginder then found support in Sanjay Budhwar, the No. 11 batsman, who hung around for 75 balls and scored 17. Joginder went about doing the bulk of the scoring, hitting 16 fours in his 110 off 178 balls, before he was the last man dismissed. Andhra faced only one ball of the chase before play ended.

Sri Lanka’s spinners picked up nine wickets as West Indies bundled out for 89 in chase of 163

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Oct-2024Sri Lanka’s spinners ripped through the West Indies batters on a turning Dambulla surface to level the series at one apiece, as they won the second T20I by 73 runs.Debutant Dunith Wellalage – belatedly making his T20I bow – was the pick of the bowlers, ending with figures of 3 for 9, while Maheesh Theekshana, Wanindu Hasaranga and Charith Asalanka grabbed two each. Matheesha Pathirana was the sole seamer to pick up a wicket in the innings.With the bat, Pathum Nissanka’s 54 off 49 had helped set the platform as Sri Lanka did well to keep a steady run rate throughout their innings, having won the toss and elected to bat first. There were also runs for Kusal Mendis, Kusal Perera and Kamindu Mendis, but this game was all about Sri Lanka’s spinners who showed total dominance in the West Indian chase.

Sri Lanka spinners flex their skills

Hasaranga, Sri Lanka’s premier spinner, bowled his first delivery of the game in the 11th over of the chase. And the fact that he picked up a wicket with that delivery was perhaps the least remarkable aspect about it.What was more astounding was that he was the sixth bowler used by Sri Lanka, and West Indies had still managed to collapse to 39 for 6. But who needs Hasaranga when you have the world-renowned offspin stylings of, um, Charith Asalanka. Yes, with two left-hand batters at the crease, the Sri Lanka captain opted to introduce himself and a right-arm variant of Kamindu Mendis ahead of Hasaranga.Maheesh Theekshana chipped in with two wickets•Associated Press

And it worked too. Asalanka’s two overs brought two wickets for just six runs – and those weren’t even the best figures at that stage of the game. No, that honour belonged to Wellalage – though he is by no means new to the international stage – who had grabbed three for himself.In the lead-up to the game, Asalanka had stated how he had expected more for the spinners in the first T20I, and his wish was granted and then some in the second. Gudakesh Motie turning the ball square in the first innings would have set off West Indies’ alarm bells, but not even that could have prepared them for a 100kph sharp-turning offbreak from Theekshana.

WI need to go back to drawing board

The first T20I had seen the West Indies batters execute their plans to perfection and put Sri Lanka’s bowlers to the sword. Stepping out, moving around in the crease, using the depth, everything came off, with the last over-finish in reality nowhere close as it looked.Sri Lanka, though, took their learnings and came back stronger – mainly in that they were prepared for what this surface was set to offer, replacing pace-bowling allrounder Chamindu Wickramasinghe with Wellalage.West Indies, however, seemed to have missed the memo, and had only two spinners in their line-up. And those two – Motie and Roston Chase – did their part, going for just 37 off their collective eight overs. It will not be a surprise if Fabian Allen gets a go in the final game.West Indies’ batters then seemed at a loss on how to deal with Sri Lanka’s array of spin threats, expertly utilising the conditions along with clever variations in pace, line and length. West Indies will need to come up with plans soon if they are to pose a threat in Thursday’s decider.

Nissanka shines in hindsight

On the face of it, Nissanka’s innings seemed to be more detrimental than anything else – and by the standards of modern T20 cricket, it was not too difficult to understand why. This was an innings that saw 42 runs come in boundaries (9 fours and a six) but also included 27 dot balls.Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis added 77 for the first wicket•Associated Press

In fact, it was a microcosm of Sri Lanka’s innings as a whole; they played out 58 dots. It meant that in five of the first ten overs less than five runs were scored, and roughly half of their powerplay total of 52 was plundered in one Shamar Joseph over, where a combination of luck and belligerence saw Nissanka plunder 25 runs.But if that over was meant to signal the start of Sri Lanka’s onslaught, Nissanka and Co seemed to have other ideas. That over ensured that the first three overs, in which Sri Lanka scrounged together eight runs, were quickly in the rearview; by the end of the powerplay Sri Lanka’s run rate was at a healthy 8.66 – but that was the highest it would reach at any point across their innings.The rest of Nissanka’s time at the crease was spent punctuating periods of dot deliveries and the odd single with an odd boundary. But the time he spent at the crease ensured he was able to do this consistently – and with it keep Sri Lanka’s scoring rate ticking above seven an over.Anchors are largely considered obsolete in T20s, but on a wicket such as this Nissanka – who was named Player of the Match – proved to be invaluable (even if it did not seem so at the time), as he allowed the likes of Perera to take early risks. And then with wickets in hand for the death overs, the middle and lower order hit out freely. As a result, Sri Lanka struck 85 runs in the last ten overs – just four short of West Indies’ final total.

A half-century by Georgia Voll was the decisive factor as Heat won by 26 runs

AAP21-Oct-2022Georgia Voll whips off her toes•Getty Images

Brisbane Heat’s batting depth has come to the fore with a match-defining half-century by Georgia Voll securing a 26-run win over the Melbourne Renegades in the WBBL.Heat posted 8 for 163 and dismissed the Renegades for 137 at Adelaide’s Karen Rolton Oval. It was the Heat’s second win in three days over the same opposition after prevailing in Mackay on Tuesday.Heat slumped to 3 for 31 at the end of the sixth over before Voll (52 off 37 balls) and Amelia Kerr (27 off 22) conjured a rescue mission to get their side back in the game.Voll’s innings was a masterclass of placement and common sense in a knock that included nine boundaries. She stayed until the 19th over to hold the innings together with late cameos from Jess Jonassen and Pooja Vastrakar giving the Heat bowlers a total to defend.Renegades’ innings was a carbon copy of Heat’s at the start as they crashed to 3 for 15 in the fifth over.Josephine Dooley (40 off 28) gave the Renegades a sniff but the turning point came when she holed out to the first ball of the 11th over. Two balls later Heat medium pacer Courtney Grace Sippel dismissed Georgia Prestwidge without scoring.Melbourne needed 99 from the last nine overs and a whirlwind hand by Ellie Falconer (27 off 11) gave her side a chance before she chopped on to Kerr. Courtney Webb ran out of partners when the last wicket fell at the end of the 19th over.Heat’s bowlers performed well as a unit with legspinner Kerr (3 for 26) and offspinner Charli Knott (3 for 19) chiming in with key wickets to swing the momentum their team’s way.Renegades announced on Friday that they had signed Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu for the remainder of the season.The 32-year-old will join the squad following Monday’s match against the Adelaide Strikers, and she replaces Indian skipper Harmanpreet Kaur, who was ruled out for the season with a back injury.Meanwhile, the dates for the WBBL finals have been confirmed, with all three matches to take place between November 23-26.The Eliminator (3rd v 4th) is on November 23, with The Challenger (2nd v The Eliminator winner) to be held a day later.The November 26 final is on the same day as the Socceroos’ World Cup clash with Tunisia, and also the Victoria State election.

He is expected to take at least three weeks to recover

Mohammad Isam20-May-2022There’s more bad news for Bangladesh’s bowling attack, with Nayeem Hasan ruled out of the second Test against Sri Lanka, in Dhaka, with a finger injury.A BCB statement quoted national team physio Bayzidul Islam as saying, “Nayeem had a contusion of the right middle finger while batting and fielding in the first Test. An X-Ray after the match confirmed an oblique fracture on the tip of the middle finger. He will miss the second Test. We will take specialist opinion before planning his rehab and recovery.”Offspinner Nayeem was seen with his right hand in a sling, and the injured finger in wraps, on the flight from Chattogram, where the first Test was played, to Dhaka on Friday. Nayeem will be the fourth frontline bowler to be sidelined from the two-Test series after injuries to Shoriful Islam, Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Taskin Ahmed; Mehidy and Taskin are missing the whole series.Nayeem took career-best figures of 6 for 105 in the first innings of the Chattogram Test as he made his return to the Test team after 15 months. The injury took place on the fourth day, when Nayeem couldn’t hold on to a return catch offered by Dimuth Karunaratne and his finger was jammed into the pitch. He still ended up bowling 23 overs in the Sri Lanka second innings as the match petered out into a draw.Earlier in the same afternoon, quick bowler Kasun Rajitha, himself a concussion sub for Vishwa Fernando, struck Shoriful’s hand during the Bangladesh innings, and the left-arm quick did not take any further part in the match. He has already been ruled out of the Dhaka Test and, like Taskin, is unlikely to play in the West Indies Test series next month.The second Test will start on Monday.

Australia batsman Peter Handscomb had been due to lead side in 2020 and 2021

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jul-2020Middlesex have named Stephen Eskinazi as their captain for this summer’s Bob Willis Trophy, after confirming that Peter Handscomb, the Australia batsman who was set to lead them this summer, will defer his two-year contract until 2021-22.Eskinazi, 26, will take charge of Middlesex’s red-ball team in the competition that has replaced the County Championship this summer due to the impact of Covid-19. England seamer Toby Roland-Jones has been appointed as his vice-captain.ALSO READ: Kent opener Dickson signs for Durham“Steve was the obvious choice for me as the captain of our squad in Pete Handscomb’s absence,” Middlesex coach, Stuart Law, said. “Last year when Steve stood in for us, the team played really well and with a smile on their face and had immediate success. Good signs for sure and I look forward to working with him again this season.”Handscomb had been signed as the club’s overseas player and captain for the Championship and Royal London Cup, but his deal was put “on hold” after the global shutdown cause by Covid-19. The Bob Willis Trophy, named after the former England captain who died last year, will begin on August 1, while the 50-over competition has been dropped this summer.Dawid Malan captained Middlesex during the 2019 season but stepped down from the role after they finished eighth in Division Two, before leaving for Yorkshire over the winter.