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Middle-order batsman Babar Azam and left-arm spinner Mohammd Nawaz have been selected in Pakistan’s Test squad for the first time, for the first Test against West Indies

Umar Farooq08-Oct-2016Middle-order batsman Babar Azam and left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz earned maiden Test call-ups, for the first Test against West Indies in the UAE. Azam’s selection came right after he scored three consecutive centuries in Pakistan’s 3-0 ODI whitewash over West Indies.Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Hafeez and Shan Masood were the players left out of the group that went to England this summer, as Pakistan named a 14-man squad for the Dubai Test from October 13. Younis Khan had already been ruled out of the fixture, Pakistan’s maiden day-night Test, because he was recovering from dengue.The squad contained only five specialist batsmen in Azhar Ali, Sami Aslam, Azam, Misbah-ul-Haq and Asad Shafiq, meaning Pakistan are likely to play Sarfraz Ahmed at No. 6, and allrounder Nawaz at No. 7 or go in with five specialist bowlers.Chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq acknowledged that Pakistan have been struggling to find quality allrounders and hoped Nawaz could be the answer. “We have been searching for one who can bat in the lower order and bowl as well. And if you look at Nawaz, he has got a good first-class record. It shows he has been promising with the bat and has competed as a bowler.”Nawaz has 1440 runs and 44 wickets, including three centuries and a seven-wicket haul, across 29 first-class matches.

Changes to the Test squad

• Out – Younis Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Hafeez, Shan Masood

• In – Babar Azam, Mohammad Nawaz

Azam, 21, was picked in the squad after a prolific run in one-day cricket for Pakistan this year, scoring 656 runs in 11 innings at an average of 59 and strike rate of 95. He made his ODI debut in the home series against Zimbabwe in May 2015, and has 886 runs in 18 matches. Azam averages 41.13 in first-class cricket, having scored 1522 runs in 41 innings for five different teams.Hafeez played three Tests on the tour of England, making 102 runs in six innings, before he was dropped for the last match at The Oval, which Pakistan won to draw the series 2-2. He played the one-off ODI against Ireland and the first one against England before he suffered a leg injury and returned home. After recovering Hafeez was asked by the selectors to play in the Quaid-e-Azam trophy, Pakistan’s first-class competition, and he made 68 in both innings of his first game for Sui Northern Gas Pipelines.Inzamam said this was because they didn’t want the players sitting on the bench for too long. “Those who are good but weren’t able to perform in England, we made them to play in first-class cricket. We didn’t want them to waste their time on the bench but rather they play some cricket get themselves back into form.”Hafeez earned a spot in the PCB Patron’s XI against the West Indians in Sharjah, but he made a duck in the first innings and was left out of the Test squad.This meant Pakistan were going into the series with only one specialist opener – Aslam. The selectors felt with Azhar having performed the role in their most recent Test and with it being a home series, they were covered.”See this is our home series and if we need anyone we can bring them over,” Inzamam said. “And if you recall, in the England series, it was Azhar who opened the innings so it’s fine. He knows he will open again.”Squad Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), Asad Shafiq, Azhar Ali, Imran Khan, Mohammad Amir, Rahat Ali, Sami Aslam, Sarfraz Ahmed, Sohail Khan, Wahab Riaz, Yasir Shah, Zulfiqar Babar, Babar Azam, Mohammad Nawaz

From the moment Port of Spain woke up to 2.15pm, when any hope of a resumption of play evaporated, no rain fell at Queen’s Park Oval. Yet not a single ball was bowled

The Report by Sidharth Monga19-Aug-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Port of Rain: There was little rain but the wet outfield accounted for the whole second day’s play•AFP

From the moment Port of Spain woke up to 2.15pm, when any hope of a resumption of play evaporated, no rain fell at Queen’s Park Oval. Yet not a single ball was bowled despite the sun beating down on the ground till 2pm.The umpires came out for inspection after inspection after inspection, but didn’t find the outfield to be fit for play. There was no super sopper to assist the ground staff nor was the whole ground covered when it rained. The eventual downpour at 2.15pm, 15 minutes before yet another inspection, accounted for any remaining hopes.With only 22 overs possible on the first two days, with forecast not great for the rest of the Test and given the facilities available at Queen’s Park Oval, only an unbelievable three days could produce a result. India needed to win this Test to retain their No. 1 Test ranking and not lose it to Pakistan. West Indies were 62 for 2 after 22 overs, all bowled in the first session on the first morning.

Glamorgan suffered their first Championship defeat of the summer as Essex crushed them by 248 runs in their Division Two match at Chelmsford

ECB/PA15-Jul-2015
ScorecardJesse Ryder completed a 10-wicket match haul to hand victory to Essex•Getty Images

Glamorgan suffered their first Championship defeat of the summer as Essex crushed them by 248 runs in their Division Two match at Chelmsford.After resuming on 110 for 1, having been left a target of 462, they were bowled out for 213 soon after lunch with only 18-year-old Aneurin Donald putting up much resistance. The teenager caught the eye with some fine strokes either side of the wicket before he tried to square cut a shoulder high delivery from David Masters and was caught behind by James Foster for 67.Donald’s fine innings contained seven fours and one six and served to underline the shortcomings of most of his colleagues. Admittedly, overcast conditions did provide the Essex bowlers with some assistance but not nearly as much as their efforts would imply.Poor shot-selection speeded Glamorgan’s demise and left Essex celebrating a third victory from their last four games. Fittingly it was Jesse Ryder who sealed the win by having Graham Wagg caught at long-off by Graham Napier.Wagg decided to hit out and struck two sixes on his way to 28 from 18 balls before Ryder had the last word. It gave Ryder 4 for 53 and a match haul of 10 for 100, only the second time in his career he has picked up a ten-wicket haul.The game from which Essex emerged with 21 points also provided captain Foster with personal satisfaction as he emerged with seven catches, five of them in the second innings. The first of those ended the resistance of his Glamorgan counterpart Jacques Rudolph, who added just 2 to his 45 before Ryder found the edge.This set the Welsh county on a slippery slope as seven wickets tumbled in the morning session for 72 despite Donald’s valiant attempts to keep his side’s interest in proceedings alive. But they quickly evaporated as Colin Ingram, Chris Cooke, Mark Wallace and Craig Meschede all departed within 12 overs, only Ingram managing to reach double figuresMasters, with 3 for 37, supplied Ryder with his main support while left-arm spinner Liam Dawson 2 for 34 and Jamie Porter, who ended with 1 for 41, shared the other wickets as Essex were able to avenge the 89-run defeat suffered in Cardiff earlier in the season. Glamorgan return to Wales with just three points and reflecting on a setback that put the brake on their promotion ambitions.

Australia completed a 277-run demolition of West Indies inside four days at Sabina Park to win the Frank Worrell Trophy 2-0

The Report by George Binoy14-Jun-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMitchell Starc took 3 for 34 in the second innings•Getty Images

Australia completed a 277-run demolition of West Indies inside four days at Sabina Park to win the Frank Worrell Trophy 2-0. West Indies began the day with eight wickets in hand, but their resistance was feeble. The contest was all but over after they lost 5 for 56 in the first session, and they crumbled for 114 shortly after lunch.

Smart Stats

0.65 West Indies’ win-loss ratio at home over the last 10 years, the worst for any top-eight team. West Indies have played 41 home Test during this period, winning 11 and losing 17.
9 Number of times three out of West Indies’ top six batsmen have been dismissed for ducks in a Test innings. Five of those instances have come since 2000.
31 Runs scored by West Indies’ top six batsmen in the second innings, the second-fewest in a Test innings at home. The fewest runs scored is 24, also at Sabina Park, against England in 2004.
49 The eighth-wicket partnership between Veerasammy Permaul and Denesh Ramdin in the second innings, the highest in 24 years for West Indies against Australia in a home Test.
611 Balls faced (or 101.5 overs) by West Indies’ batsmen in this Test, the third-fewest against Australia when they have been bowled out twice. The fewest balls faced is 457 (or 76.1 overs) in Port of Spain in 1999.

Mitchell Starc had accounted for Kraigg Brathwaite and Rajendra Chandrika in the first over of the innings late on the third day, and he struck in the fifth over this morning. A full ball curled into Shane Dowrich after angling across him from over the wicket and brushed his front pad. Starc whipped around to appeal for lbw, not realising the ball had gone on to hit off stump. He had figures of 6-4-2-3.There was seam movement on offer in the morning and Josh Hazlewood bowled an impeccable length around off stump, moving the ball just enough to constantly trouble the batsmen. Darren Bravo eventually pushed forward with hard hands, and the deviation off the pitch caused the outside edge to carry to gully, where Shaun Marsh stooped to take a low catch. Shortly after, Hazlewood induced Jermaine Blackwood to play on to a delivery that nipped into the right-hander from a good length, and West Indies were 33 for 5.The partnership between 21-year old Shai Hope and Denesh Ramdin lasted nine overs before Mitchell Johnson let one rip from round the wicket. Hope pushed forward with a gap between bat and pad and the ball cut in to hit off stump. There was no resistance from Jason Holder this time; he fell clipping Shane Watson tamely to short midwicket.West Indies were 72 for 7 at lunch but Ramdin and Veerasammy Permaul kept Australia waiting after the break. Their partnership extended to 49 at 4.5 runs at over before Johnson broke through. He squared Ramdin up and Michael Clarke dived to his right at second slip to take a low catch.The offspinner Nathan Lyon had not been used much in the innings but in his seventh over he ended the match off consecutive deliveries. Kemar Roach popped a catch to short leg, before Jerome Taylor was bowled slogging across the line to bag a pair. West Indies had lost 20 wickets in 101.5 overs in the Test.

Pat Howard has signed on for another two years as Australia’s executive general manager of team performance

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Apr-2015Pat Howard has signed on for another two years as Australia’s executive general manager of team performance.Howard was appointed in 2011 to the newly created role recommended by the Argus review and although his contract was due to end in June, his reappointment will now take his tenure through until at least 2017.”This recognises the outstanding job Pat is doing leading the team performance function at Cricket Australia,” Cricket Australia’s chief executive James Sutherland said. “Our men’s and women’s teams continue to succeed on the world stage while strong foundations are being built to achieve sustained success in all forms of the game.”Howard’s time at Cricket Australia has been eventful and he was part of the decision to sack Mickey Arthur as coach on the eve of the 2013 Ashes series in England.However, the team has enjoyed significant on-field success in the past two years – Australia currently hold the Ashes, World Cup and the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.The major challenge in the coming months, though, will be to sustain that performance away from home, with Test campaigns in West Indies, England and Bangladesh.

Round-up of the first day of the eighth round of Ranji Trophy’s Group C matches

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Dec-2012
ScorecardOn a strange day in which two players single-handedly dominated the bowling and batting for their respective sides, and in doing so, created history, Jammu and Kashmir played out an evenly-contested first day against hosts Kerala. Opener Ian Dev Singh scored an unbeaten century, becoming the second J&K batsman to have carried his bat, and seamer CP Shahid, playing in his third first-class game, took 8 for 51 to register third-best figures for any bowler in his side in history. Besides opener Adil Rishi and No. 3 Bandeep Singh, who were the first two to be dismissed, all fell to him, as J&K were bowled out for 215.But wickets didn’t fall in a heap, as Ian Dev struck useful partnerships, especially for the third and the seventh wicket. None of them, however, lasted beyond 59 runs, and seven single-digit scores put paid to J&K’s hopes of a big first-innings total.
ScorecardServices captain and opener Soumik Chatterjee scored a century to lead his side to a strong 284 for 4 against Goa at stumps in Porvorim. After choosing to bat, they lost their other opener Pratik Desai in the fifth over, No. 3 Ansuhl Gupta for 31 in the 18th over and the next batsman Soumya Swain after ten more overs. But Chatterjee then combined with Yashpal Singh, who gave him able support, to give their side a strong foundation. The duo added 141 runs for the fourth wicket, before Chatterjee got out in the final session after scoring his fourth century.
ScorecardIn Guwahati, Assam built the foundation for a strong first innings against Himachal Pradesh after being put in to bat. Opener PP Das, playing his eighth first-class match, was dismissed for ten short of what would have been his maiden first-class century. Although none of the top-order batsmen scored a fifty, they featured in four productive partnerships, to help their side reach 213 for 4 at stumps.Das’ innings of 90 contained 15 boundaries, but he also played out many dot deliveries, as his innings’ strike-rate was 48.36. For Himachal, offspinner Gurvinder Singh, with two wickets, was the most productive bowler.
ScorecardJharkhand held the upper hand in their contest against Tripura in Agartala after right-arm fast bowler Ajay Yadav, in only his second first-class match, took 6 for 38 to help bowl Tripura out for 106. After a poor start to their reply, Ishank Jaggi and Saurabh Tiwary scored 85 runs together to leave their side to within 11 runs of their opponent’s total.Tripura’s innings crumbled from the beginning. Opener Shubhrajit Roy top-scored with 43, and only two others scored beyond five runs in the innings. When five wickets had fallen for 12 runs in the 11th over, Shubrajit and Debabrata Chowdhury stuck for 17.2 overs, and helped them to a better position, adding 54 runs. But Chowdhury’s dismissal led to another collapse, and Tripura were soon bowled out. Their bowlers, however, gave them a positive start with the ball, as Jharkhand were reduced to 10 for 3, but Tiwary and Jaggi batted responsibly to ensure their side’s dominance.

The ECB has threatened to take legal action against Pakistan board chairman, Ijaz Butt, unless he makes a public apology for alleging that England’s players accepted a bribe to lose the third ODI at The Oval

Cricinfo staff22-Sep-2010The ECB has threatened to take legal action against Pakistan board chairman, Ijaz Butt, unless he makes a public apology for alleging that England’s players accepted a bribe to lose the third ODI at The Oval.”We are looking for an apology. If it does not come we’ll look at other options,” ECB chief executive David Collier told the . “You can’t impugn someone’s integrity without having proper evidence.”To date I can say that we have received zero evidence of anything having influenced any England player. Clearly we will seek advice but there are quite strong laws of defamation.”In an extraordinary statement, which he read out to ESPNcricinfo, Butt had said, “There is loud and clear talk in bookie circles that some English players have taken enormous amounts of money to lose the match [the third ODI]. No wonder there was such a collapse.” He had also accused certain “august cricket bodies” of conspiring to defraud Pakistan and Pakistan cricket.Butt’s allegations were of such gravity that the ECB waited almost 24 hours before formulating an official response, and their statement was issued after a meeting between the board and the team. Present at the discussions were Collier, ECB chairman Giles Clarke, the managing director of England Cricket, Hugh Morris, and the England captain and coach, Andrew Strauss and Andrew Flower, who went on to have a subsequent meeting with all of the England team.The ECB and the team issued a strong statement rejecting Butt’s allegations and Collier said that they had decided to proceed playing the final two ODIs “in the best interests of world cricket, England cricket, the ICC and the world game.”Pakistan went on to win the fourth ODI at Lord’s and level the series 2-2 ahead of Wednesday’s decider at the Rose Bowl.

Bajan hits 67 not out off 37 then takes two key wickets as Welsh Fire fall short

ECB Reporters Network16-Aug-2022A superb all-round display from ex-West Indies star Deandra Dottin led Manchester Originals to a thrilling 11-run women’s Hundred victory over Welsh Fire at Emirates Old Trafford.Dottin’s 67 off 37 balls underpinned a total of 156 for 2 having been inserted, the fourth-highest in competition history.But, in a clash between two sides who had lost their opening games, Fire were on course for victory as Dottin’s fellow Bajan Hayley Matthews whacked an equally impressive 69 off 41 from the top of the order.She shared 110 in 72 balls with fellow opener Tammy Beaumont. However, Sophie Ecclestone bowled Matthews and Dottin later struck twice in two balls with her medium pace, and Fire were left needing 19 off the final set of five. They finished on 145 for 3.Related

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The game, which saw Beaumont finish unbeaten on 45 off 42 and Dottin with 2 for 21 from 15 balls, narrowly avoided a controversial ending.Fire actually bowled 101 balls in their innings following a miscount from the umpiring team, and the rogue delivery was cut for four by Emma Lamb at the end of the third set of five. For large parts of the chase, it was very realistic that the extra four runs would come into play in the final reckoning.As it was, Dottin’s double-strike to get Australians Rachael Haynes caught at mid-on and Annabel Sutherland caught at midwicket left the score at 123 for 3 after 83 balls and brought about a telling squeeze in the run rate.Deandra Dottin picked up two wickets in two balls to hurt Fire’s chase•ECB/Getty Images

The Manchester innings included contrasting scores in the mid-thirties from England duo Lamb and Ecclestone. Dottin muscled eight fours and two sixes in 37 balls, while opener Lamb struggled for momentum in 35 before unbeaten Ecclestone added an excellent quick-fire late 36 off 18 with two sixes.Dottin, the self-professed ‘World Boss’ who retired from international cricket at the start of the month, came in at No. 3 with the score 27 for 1 after an early wicket for the excellent Alex Hartley, the left-arm spinner returning to home turf.Dottin, who reached her fifty in 31 balls, dominated a second-wicket stand of 67 with Lamb before adding an unbeaten 62 with Ecclestone in the final 31 balls.She was strong on both sides of the wicket, hitting two sixes over midwicket off Matthews and another over long-off against Katie George.Originals scored 96 off the final 50 balls of their innings, a competition record.Hartley, an Original last year and still a mainstay of the Old Trafford-based Thunder’s regional team, was superb with 1 for 17 from her 20 balls, making the initial breakthrough by getting Lizelle Lee caught at short fine leg off a top-edged sweep.Matthews was strong on both sides of the wicket, punishing anything too short or too full as she hit 12 fours.Like Dottin, she reached her fifty off 31 balls. But when she was bowled trying to cut a quicker ball from Ecclestone’s left-arm spin, it proved a key moment in an entertaining fixture wrapped up as Kate Cross defended 19 against Beaumont and Fran Wilson.

Sri Lanka, who at one stage seemed set to take a commanding lead, claimed one of only four runs and were 40 runs ahead by stumps

Andrew Fidel Fernando17-Jul-2022Prabath Jayasuriya terrorised Pakistan in the first session before Babar Azam struck a valiant 119, much of it in the company of No. 11 Naseem Shah, as the hosts surged back into the match either side of tea. Between Jayasuriya’s 5 for 82, and Pakistan’s 70-run last-wicket stand, the teams ended day two roughly even in the context of the match.Sri Lanka, who at one stage seemed set to take a commanding lead, claimed one of only four runs and were 40 runs ahead by stumps. They had lost captain Dimuth Karunaratne to the left-arm spin of Mohammad Nawaz. Nightwatcher Kasun Rajitha was at the crease alongside Oshada Fernando.Babar’s century was extraordinary for how many of his runs came in the company of the tail. When Pakistan lost their seventh wicket, he was on 28. When they lost their eighth, on 36. One wicket to go, he was on 55. And this was when he started farming the strike beautifully, facing 133 of the 185 balls Sri Lanka delivered to the last-wicket pair.It wasn’t as if he suddenly switched to hyper-aggression either. Sri Lanka put their field back for Babar, routinely putting at least seven fielders on the boundary while he was on strike, then bringing the field in for Naseem. Thanks in part to Naseem’s resolute defence, and refusal to be tempted into big shots even when the spinners tossed it tantalisingly into the air, Babar kept pressing. Occasionally, he would have enough of merely taking the single off the fourth or fifth ball, and ventured boundaries. Against Kasun Rajitha, for example, who he smoked down the ground, lashed over midwicket, then whipped aerially through deep square leg, to hit three successive boundaries off the last three balls of the over.This was after Naseem had proven his mettle, though. Next over, he saw six Jayasuriya balls out, much to the frustration of the bowler, who kicked the turf when his last ball – a quicker one at the stumps – was blocked out. Naseem’s contribution to a 70-run partnership was just five runs. But he survived, unbeaten, for 52 balls.Prabath Jayasuriya celebrates his five-wicket haul•AFP/Getty Images

This pair having come together roughly midway through the second session, Pakistan went to tea with Babar needing five more for his hundred, which he got three balls into resumption, whipping a full toss from Maheesh Theekshana through wide mid-on for four, before nurdling a single square on the legside to completed his seventh Test hundred, and third against Sri Lanka. He’d turned down many singles for the sake of keeping the strike before this.He hit two more boundaries – a six over wide long-on off Jayasuriya, and four through square leg off the same bowler, before eventually Theekshana spun an offbreak through his defences and hit him in front of the stumps. The last-wicket stand had taken them from 148 for 9, to 218.Earlier, it had been Jayasuriya who ran the show. First ball of the day, he had Azhar Ali chipping to cover, only for Dimuth Karunaratne to shell the chance. It didn’t matter. He slid one into Azhar’s pad two balls later. Bowling unchanged at the fort end right through that first session, he also removed debutant Agha Salman with a straighter one, then claimed the wickets of Mohammad Nawaz (jumping down the pitch, clipping straight to short leg who held a chance that hit his chest), and Shaheen Afridi (lbw) off successive deliveries.Having also dismissed Abdullah Shafique the previous evening, this completed Jayasuriya’s third five-wicket haul in as-many bowling innings. He was not quite so good against the tail, failing to break through after lunch, as Yasir Shah, and Hasan Ali put on useful stands worth 27 and 36, respectively, with Babar. In his 39 overs, during which he secured figures of 5 for 82, Jayasuriya repeatedly beat right-handed batters’ outside edge, and threatened their pads with his straighter one. Ramesh Mendis, who took 2 for 18 from his 13 overs, was more economical and gained greater turn. But no one threatened like Jayasuriya.