All posts by n8rngtd.top

Pakistan Women began their home series against Bangladesh Women with a 29-run run victory in the first T20I in Karachi

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Sep-2015
ScorecardBismah Maroof played the match-winning hand for Pakistan•AFP

Pakistan Women began their home series against Bangladesh Women with a 29-run run victory in the first T20I in Karachi. Having won the toss, Pakistan lost Marina Iqbal for 1 in the first over but were lifted by a second-wicket stand of 87 between Bismah Maroof and Javeria Khan. Javeria made 44 and was dismissed in the 15th over, but Maroof remained not out on 65 off 57 balls to take the score to 124 without much support from the middle order.Bangladesh’s chase made a slow but steady start and they had progressed to 49 for 1 after ten overs when Maroof dismissed Ayasha Rahman for 23. From 75 for 3, the visitors lost wickets regularly and slipped to 84 for 6, never finding the momentum needed to challenge the target. They were restricted to 95 for 7 in their 20 overs.

In the bid to revive cricket in Chittagong, Tamim Iqbal has announced that he will organise age-group tournaments for the next three years

Mohammad Isam22-Oct-2015In the bid to revive cricket in Chittagong, Tamim Iqbal has announced that he will organise age-group tournaments in the region for the next three years. He is one of the last international cricketers to hail from the south-eastern division that was once considered the second-most important cricket hub in Bangladesh.Tamim said that the lack of quality among Chittagong players was directly related to the lack of competitive tournaments in the city and region. He will become the second cricketer from Chittagong to take steps to give back to the game after former Bangladesh batsman Aftab Ahmed started coaching and received a good response.Tamim said he will take assistance from local coaches like Nurul Abedin to organise the different age groups. The tournaments will bear the name of his late father Iqbal Khan, who was a footballer and coach, and was instrumental in the rise of his brother Akram Khan, the former Bangladesh captain, and Tamim’s elder brother Nafees Iqbal.”Chittagong isn’t producing many cricketers,” Tamim said. “I think tournaments are not properly held. So I want to organise three age-group tournaments each year for the next three years, in the name of my father. It will be at the U-13, U-15 and U-17 levels.”Tamim hoped the tournaments would pave the way for the future generation of cricketers from his home city to graduate to the national level. Currently, the Chittagong divisional cricket team is third among the four Tier-2 teams in the National Cricket League.”When the likes of Akram uncle and Nannu uncle used to play, Chittagong had big tournaments like Star Jubo or Star Summer,” Tamim said. “Many players from across the country used to play in these competitions but these days although the leagues are going on, these tournaments aren’t taking place. If age-group tournaments can be organised, many players will represent Chittagong at the national level in the future.”After Tamim Iqbal, Nazimuddin was the only cricketer from Chittagong to have played for Bangladesh.

Chris Rogers has spoken of how angry and upset he was after being hit on the helmet while fielding at short leg last summer, and of the psychological effects of a number of blows to the head following the death of Phillip Hughes

Brydon Coverdale08-Nov-2015Chris Rogers has spoken of how angry and upset he was after being hit on the helmet while fielding at short leg last summer, and of the psychological effects of a number of blows to the head following the death of Phillip Hughes. While commentating on the Brisbane Test between Australia and New Zealand for , Rogers said the mindset of all players around the world had changed as a result of Hughes being struck.”I just think we thought we were invincible,” Rogers said. “Everything had been magnified…it took that incident to really put things in perspective, and you look back now and it was just a horrible time, a horrible time.”At Adelaide Oval against India last season, in Australia’s first Test since Hughes’ death, Rogers was asked to field at short leg. Michael Clarke was off the field injured and Haddin asked Rogers, who had fielded in close earlier in his Test career, to take up the position again.”The first thing he said was ‘Buck, you need to get your helmet and box’. And I did a double take, I looked behind me, ‘who is he talking to?’, and I realised I had to go in there. I went in there…Rohit Sharma swept one straight into my hip. Then we came to Brisbane and straight back in there.”Nathan Lyon [was] bowling around the wicket and Rohit Sharma again has just swept one, and I wasn’t the bravest soul in there. You are supposed to just duck and present the top of your helmet, but of course I did a pirouette and jumped and turned my head and hit me right on the back of the helmet.”I was lucky there was no damage done, it actually hit the helmet and after everything that happened, the doc came running out and said ‘are you okay?’ and I actually pushed him away. I sent him a message later that night to apologise.”I was just so angry at having to be in there. I felt I was too old to be in there; probably didn’t have the reflexes I used to. But when you get asked to field short leg for Australia you don’t say no, you say absolutely I’ll do what the team needs. I was pretty upset that night I must admit. Michael Lloyd, the psychologist, came and really spent some time with me. So it can really shake you up.”Rogers has previously said that he considered retirement after that blow at short leg, but he played on and suffered further hits to the helmet before ending his Test career. In the West Indies, Rogers was struck by a net bowler and sat out of the two Tests, but he decided to play on with the lure of one final Ashes series before retiring.”I thought I was okay initially and it wasn’t until the next day I tried to do some exercise and almost fell over,” Rogers said. “That was a bit bizarre, actually, because I didn’t get hit that hard. It must have got me in line with the temple on the helmet. Even the second Test I was still struggling to really do any exercise without the effects of it. I’d start to feel really sick, my vision was really narrow.”A further hit to the helmet from a James Anderson delivery, first ball of the second day at Lord’s during the Ashes, provided one more worrying moment for Rogers.”When you look back and think about all those incidents happening, it is kind of nice to be up here in the commentary box,” he said. “It’s a bit of a relief.”

A round-up of the Vijay Hazare Trophy Group B matches played on December 18, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Dec-2015Gujarat joined Jharkhand in the knockouts from Group B after brushing past Kerala by seven wickets. Gujarat and Jharkhand finished with 20 points each from six games. Having chosen to bowl, Gujarat bowled Kerala out for 102, with Axar Patel picking up three wickets and Rush Kalaria, Rohit Dahiya and Jasprit Bumrah taking two each. For Kerala, it was a second successive batting failure, having been shot out for 49 by Karnataka on Thursday. Sachin Baby (41) was their only batsman to cross 15.Gujarat had a slight wobble when they lost both their openers in the space of two overs – with only one run coming between the two dismissals – to slip to 21 for 2. But the target was modest, and Himayala Barad (24), Rujul Bhatt (35*) and Chirag Gandhi (20*) ensured they got there comfortably, with 17.1 overs remaining.The result ended the qualifying hopes of defending champions Karnataka, even though they ended their campaign with a 207-run thumping of Jammu and Kashmir. Sent in to bat, Karnataka powered their way to an imposing 349 for 5, riding on the back of a CM Gautam’s unbeaten 102-ball 109. Gautam added 145 for the fifth wicket with Manish Pandey (79 off 70 balls), and 91, off only 37 balls, with Vinay Kumar, who smashed an unbeaten 51 off 20 with three fours and five sixes.Chasing 350, J&K made a poor start, losing both their openers within the first four overs. Bandeep Singh (42) and Ian Dev Singh (35) kept them interested for a while with third-wicket stand of 78 at 8.06 runs per over, but collapsed after Sreenath Aravind dismissed both of them in the same over. J&K lost their last eight wickets for 50 runs, their innings ending as early as the 28th over.Karn Sharma’s five-wicket haul helped Railways end their campaign with a 106-run win over Haryana. Chasing 220, Haryana were bowled out for 113, inside 36 overs, as the legspinner Karn finished with figures of 5 for 13 in 9.1 overs. Only Nitin Saini (20) and Rohit Sharma (26) got past 20 among the Haryana batsmen.Sent in to bat, Railways made 219 for 7 in their 50 overs, with Arindam Ghosh anchoring their innings with a 118-ball 76. Ghosh struck five fours and a six, and added 77 with Karn (29) for the fifth wicket.

Seeking to make up for a relative lack of exposure to the shortest format, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe prepare to fine-tune their combinations as they clash ahead of the World T20 in March

The Preview by Mohammad Isam14-Jan-2016

Match facts

January 15, 2016

Start time 1500 local (0900 GMT)1:23

Isam: Bangladesh willing to test fresh faces

Big picture

Experimentation is the buzzword around the second Bangladesh-Zimbabwe T20 series in the 2015-16 season. Both teams are looking ahead to the World T20 in March, and with the least exposure in this format among all Test-playing nations, it is hardly a surprise that they are trying to cram in as many T20s as possible before the major event.Zimbabwe have a 16-man squad to choose from, which includes the return of Vusi Sibanda, Sean Williams and Brian Vitori, who in 2011 troubled Bangladesh at home, picking up a matchwinning first-innings four-for in the only Test and topping the wicket charts in the ODI series. The visitors will want to bounce back after their recent series losses, in both ODIs and T20s, to Afghanistan in the UAE. Coach Dav Whatmore said it was a closer contest than the result suggested but Zimbabwe would still be concerned by their current form.Their bowling looks thinner than usual, especially in the absence of Tinashe Panyangara, relying on the legspinner Graeme Cremer for much of their threat and control. Luke Jongwe, Neville Madziva and Vitori are the pace bowlers who will have to back Cremer.Bangladesh have Shakib Al Hasan and Soumya Sarkar back in their squad, with three newcomers also given a chance to show their worth in the first two T20s. Al-Amin Hossain, Mashrafe Mortaza and Mustafizur Rahman are the first-choice pace options while Shakib and Arafat Sunny will be the main spin threats.What will be interesting to see is the way Bangladesh’s batting order lines up, with Mahmudullah likely to bat at No 3, which means Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib can set up a final flourish for Sabbir Rahman or either of the two newcomers Shuvagata Hom and Nurul Hasan, both reputed to be fast starters.

Form guide

Bangladesh: LWLLW (last five matches, most recent first)

Zimbabwe: LLWLL

In the spotlight

Shakib Al Hasan missed out on the two T20s last November so there will some interest in seeing him return to the format after quite a while.Hamilton Masakadza made a half-century in Zimbabwe’s last game, and a lot will depend on him to give his side a good start. Bangladesh are also one of his favorite opponents. He has only played three T20Is against them, but has made more than 1000 runs against them in ODIs and averages 49.60 against them in Tests, with three hundreds.

Team news

Shakib Al Hasan and Soumya Sarkar are automatic choices according to the coach Chandika Hathurusingha but Bangladesh will look to give the younger players an opportunity as well. So two out of Shuvagata Hom, Nurul Hasan and Abu Hider could be playing.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Soumya Sarkar, 3 Mahmudullah, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim, 5 Shakib Al Hasan, 6 Sabbir Rahman, 7 Nurul Hasan (wk), 8 Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), 9 Arafat Sunny, 10 Mustafizur Rahman, 11 Al-Amin HossainThere will be one enforced change in Zimbabwe’s line-up, with Donald Tiripano not included in this squad. Sean Williams will be an automatic choice but Vusi Sibanda and Brian Vitori may have to wait their turn.Zimbabwe (probable): 1 Chamu Chibhabha, 2 Hamilton Masakadza, 3 Richmond Mutumbami (wk), 4 Sean Williams, 5 Malcolm Waller, 6 Sikandar Raza, 7 Elton Chigumbura (capt), 8 Luke Jongwe, 9 Graeme Cremer, 10 Tendai Chisoro, 11 Neville Madziva

Pitch and conditions

The surface has the feel of a typical Khulna pitch and with shorter boundaries, the team batting first should be able to score 150-160. Dew will be a factor, possibly from around 4.30pm, so the team batting second will have some advantage.

Stats and trivia

• Bangladesh and Zimbabwe played their first-ever T20 international at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in Khulna, in 2006.
• Bangladesh are currently 3-2 ahead in the five T20s between the two sides.
• This is the first time two Full Member sides are playing a T20 series that has more than three matches.

Quotes

“We will look into various combinations but whether we get a result out of it is a different issue. We feel that this is the time for trying such things.”
“We have to play our own game and polish where we went wrong in the past and hopefully have a good game.”

A round-up of the Under-19 World Cup matches played on January 31, 2016

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Jan-2016

Saha suspended for illegal action

Bangladesh Under-19s offspinner Sanjit Saha has been suspended from bowling in international cricket, including the ongoing World Cup, after his action was found to be illegal.
Sanjit was reported after Bangladesh’s opening game against South Africa Under-19s on January 27. An analysis done by an event bowling action review panel found Sanjit’s action illegal.
Sanjit has been suspended from bowling in international cricket until his remedied action is assessed independently by an appointed specialist at an ICC Accredited Testing Centre.
Bangladesh have named the offspinner Mosabbek Hossain as a replacement for Saha in their squad.

Group CJack Burnham’s second century in five days stamped a dominant England Under-19s performance in Chittagong. They chose to bat, their top three all scored fifty-plus and a total of 288 for 4 proved 129 runs too many for Zimbabwe Under-19s.Dan Lawrence provided the early impetus by hitting fast bowler William Mashinge for a hat-trick of fours in the fifth over. Then came a special hit for six over square leg, which showcased Lawrence’s strong wrists. He got to 50 off 54 balls and his pace was vital to England because the other opener Max Holden struggled to keep his strike-rate up – he was 6 off 17 by the end of the 10th over. Zimbabwe’s spinners did well though: Wesley Madhevere, the 15-year old, and Rugare Magarira gave away only 18 runs off six overs which led to Lawrence’s wicket in the 20th. England were 91 for 1 and out walked Burnham, with the responsibility to push the run-rate up. Holden, at the other end was, on 24 off 48 balls.Holden’s nickname of “little chef” was a clear giveaway of his batting style considering the big “chef” is England Test captain Alastair Cook. It is easy to imagine that he has been placed at the top of the order for the big-hitters to bat around, and this England side do have some. Burnham made up for a slow start – 9 off 22 balls – with a six and a four off Zimbabwe captain Brendan Mavuta’s legspin in the 27th over. Holden reached his fifty off his 87th delivery but was dismissed off his 90th looking to make a little too much of a back of a length ball from Mashinge.That though did not end up in Zimbabwe’s favour. The next man in, Aneurin Donald, a former England Under-19 captain, contributed to a fourth-wicket partnership of 52 runs off 33 balls and when he fell Burnham took over. He hammered a couple of sixes to move to 92 but his spotlight was stolen when 17-year old Sam Curran smashed five fours in the 48th over bowled by Mashinge. He had been disappointed not to get a single off the second ball, and the next four disappeared.Burnham finished unbeaten on 106 off 104 balls with five fours and six sixes and there was even enough time before the lunch break for England’s bowlers to knock over the Zimbabwe openers. The only resistance came from Jeremy Ives, who made 91 off 132 with 12 fours, a lot of them through the arc between cover and point. He was strong against pace bowling, especially with the cut shot, but might need to work on getting singles against spin. The contest was done long before the match was and the question of if Ives might reach his century was answered in the negative with an emphatic inswinger from Sohaib Maqsood, who finished with 4 for 39.An all-round display from Gidron Pope and a blazing century from Shamar Springer lifted West Indies Under-19 to a 262-run win over Fiji Under-19s, who ended the group stage without once having crossed the 100 mark. Pope’s 76 at the top of the order got West Indies off to a solid start, before they lost four wickets in the space of scoring 20 runs to slip to 140 for 4. From there, Springer and Jyd Goolie added 157 for the fifth wicket, before Goolie fell in the 46th over for 66 off 75 balls. Springer was out in the final over for 106 off 78, having struck 10 fours and four sixes, and West Indies finished on 340 for 7. Six of the seven wickets went to the medium-pacer Cakacaka Tikoisuva.Fiji had been bowled out for 72 against England and 81 against Zimbabwe. Now they were bowled out for 71, their innings folding inside 28 overs with fast bowler Alzarri Joseph (3 for 15) and offspinner Pope (4 for 24) in the thick of the action. As against England, Peni Vuniwaqa waged lonely resistance, scoring 29 off 49 balls, with five fours.Group ANamibia Under-19s reached the quarter-finals with a sensational upset, pulling off a two-wicket win over South Africa Under-19s in Cox’s Bazar. Defending champions South Africa, who also lost their opening game against Bangladesh, are now out of contention for the quarter-finals.The match-winner in a low-scoring game was Lohan Louwrens, who came in at 10 for 2 and scored an unbeaten 58 to steer Namibia to a target of 137. Louwrens did not receive too much support apart from Charl Brits, who scored 27 and added 52 with him for the sixth wicket, as Namibia steadily lost wickets. But he stayed there even as Brits, Chrischen Olivier and Francois Rautenbach fell in the space of 13 balls, steering Namibia home in the 40th over.Having chosen to bat, South Africa were on the back foot right from the start. Left-arm seamer Fritz Coetzee dismissed both their openers within the first three overs, and reduced them to 2 for 2. Namibia kept chipping away at the wickets, and South Africa were 60 for 8 and in danger of falling short of 100 before Willem Ludick (42) and Lutho Sipamla (17) averted that danger with a 55-run ninth-wicket stand. Sipamla and last man Ziyaad Abrahams ensured South Africa batted out the 50 overs, but could only stretch the score to 136 for 9. Coetzee finished with three wickets, and Michael van Lingen with four.The win was Namibia’s first over a Test-playing opposition in a Youth ODI since they beat Sri Lanka Under-19s in the 2002 edition of the tournament.Nazmul Hossain Shanto is jubilant after reaching his hundred•ICC

Nazmul Hossain Shanto’s unbeaten century followed by tight bowling performances from Saleh Ahmed Shawon (3 for 27) and Mohammad Saifuddin (3 for 17) sealed Bangladesh Under-19s’ quarter-final berth with a mammoth 114-run victory over Scotland Under-19s.Bangladesh were reduced to 17 for 2 in the eighth over, after they were asked to bat. Shanto then walked in took control of their innings with an unbeaten 113 off 117 that included ten fours. He was a part of two century partnerships, adding 101 with Saif Hassan for the third wicket, after which he put a 100-run stand with captain Mehedi Hasan Miraz (51) for the fourth wicket. By the time Miraz fell in the 48th over, Bangladesh were at a commanding 218 for 4. Shanto then propelled the hosts to 256 for 5 by the end of their innings with Bangladesh taking 30 off the last two overs. During his innings, Shanto overtook Pakistan’s Sami Aslam to become the leading run-scorer in Youth ODIs with 1747 runs in 54 matches. Mohammad Ghaffar was the pick of Scotland’s bowlers with 4 for 60.Neil Flack and Rory Johnston gave Scotland a steady start in their chase, adding 48 for the first wicket. Bangladesh’s bowlers, however, struck to reduce Scotland to 113 for 5 by the 38th over. Except Azeem Dar (50 off 89), the rest of Scotland’s batsmen could not manage a score of above 30 and they were eventually bundled out 142 in the 48th over.

A fine performance by Sri Lanka’s spinners was capped by a stroke-filled 95 from opener Avishka Fernando as they brushed England aside by six wickets to move into the semi-final of the Under-19 World Cup

Mohammad Isam07-Feb-2016Sri Lanka had done most of their job before the umpires called for the lunch break. They hadn’t just bowled England out for 184 runs in 49.2 overs, with the bat they had reached 51 for no loss in eight overs.While some bowling sides struggle to fit in 50 overs in three-and-a-half hours, Sri Lanka got through theirs in an hour less as 42 overs were bowled by spinners. After a short ten-minute break, opening batsman Avishka Fernando then tore into the England attack.He had already reached 35 off 24 balls, with the help of seven fours, by the lunch break. Four of them came on the trot in one Sam Curran over. He hammered the ball over cover and point for the first two fours before hitting one with the bottom of his bat towards the off-side. The final boundary in the over was square-driven past point.The tone was set as he reached his fifty off 44 balls and added a six over midwicket. His final flurry of boundaries was in the 80s when he whipped one down the leg-side for four before late-cutting another to enter the 90s. He ramped another four to get to 95 but, next ball, was caught off an edge while attempting to flay at another Saqib Mahmood short ball.But by then, Sri Lanka were just 14 runs away from a place in the semi-final. Fernando, who went to St Sebastian College in Moratuwa, said there was no regret at not getting to his century. “I am not disappointed but it was a very good opportunity,” Fernando said. “I am very happy today. I played very well. I am doing the basics right.”Sri Lanka captain Charith Asalanka said that Fernando clicked after a run of middling form. “He is a good batsman but he couldn’t get to his rhythm in last matches,” Asalanka said. “Today he played his natural game.”He also admitted that they were given a dressing-down by the coach Roger Wijesuriya after losing to Pakistan in their final group match in Mirpur on February 3. Asalanka and Fernando broke into a giggle when asked about this stern talk.”There was a little problem with our batting,” Asalanka said. “The guys played really bad shots. He was angry at that time. He told us to play good cricket and play for the team. It helped us with what the coach told us. He told us to bat longer.”

Monty Panesar will take another step towards resuming his professional career on Wednesday when he embarks on Northamptonshire’s pre-season tour to Barbados

George Dobell09-Mar-2016Monty Panesar will take another step towards resuming his professional career on Wednesday when he embarks on Northamptonshire’s pre-season tour to Barbados.Although Panesar, who underwent shoulder surgery in December, is not yet fit to return to bowling, he will continue his rehab and take the opportunity to get to know the squad. As an experienced player, the club also hope his insight will prove valuable to a relatively young group of players.Northants have not yet offered Panesar a contract. While hopes that his salary may be subsidised by the ECB have faltered – they contributed to his pay while he was with Essex – it is still possible that sponsorship could be agreed to help Northants pay for him. At present, the club – who announced significant losses for the second year in succession earlier this week – have only a modest sum (perhaps as little as £15,000) to offer which had been allocated towards signing a second overseas player in the NatWest Blast.If Panesar is able to recover his fitness, however, there is little doubt he could prove a significant asset to Northants. The club have, at present, a playing staff of just 15 and Panesar’s ability to bowl long, tight spells could ease the burden on the rest of the attack.The prospect of an England recall can’t be entirely discounted, either. While there may be some bridges to build, such is Panesar’s ability and England’s pressing need for a potent spin attack ahead of the winter tours of Bangladesh and India that it remains just about possible he could stake a claim over the next few months. Aged 33, he potentially has several years ahead of him in the professional game.On a more basic level, many will celebrate the idea of Panesar simply returning to cricket. He first captured the imagination as a highly skilled spinner whose enthusiasm for the game was infectious. Somewhere along the way, though, those qualities became somewhat clouded and he has, at times, appeared something of a troubled soul. He was dropped from both his previous sides, Essex and Sussex, due to disciplinary issues. The thought that a move back to the club where he stated out might help him put his troubles behind him is encouraging.A move back to Northamptonshire appeals for several reasons. Not only would it enable him to live close to his family in Luton and benefit from their stabilising influence, but it is close to the Gurdwara (Sikh place of worship) he attends in Coventry.Panesar emerged through the youth system at Bedfordshire and Northants and played some of his best cricket for the club. But he lost his central contract at a time when Northants were committed to the signing of Nicky Boje and, with the club struggling to fulfil his salary expectations, he was allowed to leave for Sussex at the end of the 2009 season.

Two teams on the upswing – Delhi Daredevils and Gujarat Lions – look for a win to continue their momentum in the second half of the season

The Preview by Nikhil Kalro26-Apr-2016

Match facts

Wednesday, April 27, 2016
Start time 2000 local (1430 GMT)

Big Picture

Many feared another gruelling season was in store for Delhi Daredevils after they suffered a demoralising loss against Kolkata Knight Riders in their tournament opener. Daredevils have bounced back with three consecutive wins, though, to intensify the race for the playoffs. Led by Zaheer Khan’s wiles, Daredevils defended 164 in their last game against Mumbai Indians.Quinton de Kock has carried in his confidence from the World T20, and Sanju Samson hit form with a steady 60 against Mumbai. With the ball, Amit Mishra and Zaheer have used their experience to limit the damage towards the end. Can Daredevils continue their form through the middle part of the tournament?Gujarat Lions have had one bad day, but four wins have left them comfortably placed in the points table. An in-form top order has resulted in relaxed chases, but the batting hasn’t been tested while setting a target. In the previous match, Dwayne Smith and Brendon McCullum made up for the injured Aaron Finch’s absence with a quickfire start in the chase of 181.Lions’ bowling, though, has failed to live up to expectations since the exclusion of James Faulkner. Dwayne Bravo picked up figures of 4 for 22 in the first game against Kings XI Punjab, but has since taken two wickets at an economy rate of 10.06. Considering the trend this season, and Delhi’s short boundaries, both sides may prefer bowling first. But do Lions have enough depth if they are asked to bat?

Form guide

Delhi Daredevils: WWWL (most recent matches first)
Gujarat Lions: WLWWW

In the spotlight

Amit Mishra‘s returns this season: seven wickets at an economy rate of 6.00 and an average of 10.28. He has primarily been used in the second half of the innings, and his control over his variations has helped Daredevils during the end overs.With 3873 runs, Suresh Raina is the highest run-getter in the IPL, and 174 of those have come for his new franchise. His consistent starts have set a platform for Lions’ successful chases.

Team news

Daredevils played four South Africans in their previous game. Legspinner Imran Tahir, who replaced allrounder Carlos Brathwaite, produced figures of 0 for 29. Daredevils may not tinker with their winning combination.Delhi Daredevils (probable): 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Shreyas Iyer, 3 Sanju Samson, 4 JP Duminy, 5 Karun Nair, 6 Pawan Negi, 7 Chris Morris, 8 Imran Tahir, 9 Mohammed Shami, 10 Zaheer Khan (capt), 11 Amit MishraFinch left the field with a hamstring injury in Lions’ last win and did not bat. If he is unavailable for this game, Lions may bolster their bowling attack by including Dale Steyn or Faulkner. If they decide to include an overseas bowler, Shadab Jakati may be left out.Gujarat Lions (probable): 1 Dwayne Smith/Aaron Finch, 2 Brendon McCullum, 3 Suresh Raina (capt), 4 Dinesh Karthik (wk), 5 Dwayne Bravo, 6 Ravindra Jadeja, 7 Akshdeep Nath, 8 James Faulkner/Dale Steyn/Shadab Jakati, 9 Praveen Kumar, 10 Dhawal Kulkarni, 11 Pravin Tambe

Pitch and conditions

Daredevils defended 164 against Mumbai in their previous game in Delhi. Despite the Feroz Shah Kotla’s short boundaries, scores generally do not cross 180 here. The weather is expected to remain dry, with temperatures lingering around 35C.

Stats and trivia

• In his previous eight IPL games, Raina has six scores between 20 and 29
• Dwayne Bravo has bowled his four-over quota in 15 of his last 16 T20 games. His record in this IPL so far, however, is not that great – five matches, 19 overs, at an economy rate of 9.10 and an average of 28.83

Nick Browne rediscovered the form that brought him five centuries last season as he anchored Essex’s innings at Chelmsford

ECB Reporters Network15-May-2016
ScorecardNick Browne made an impressive 154 not out•Getty Images

Nick Browne rediscovered the form that brought him five centuries last season as he anchored Essex’s innings at Chelmsford.Browne’s unbeaten 154 was not only his highest first-class score but it also more than doubled the 150 runs he had managed from seven previous innings.The opener equalled his previous best of 151 not out at Leicester last year with a straight drive off Shiv Thakor after more than six hours at the crease.At that point he had batted for 293 balls with 23 fours. His sterling effort put the Specsavers County Championship Division Two leaders in a strong position to dictate the course of this match.The left-hander was particularly strong off his legs and was textbook-style in his straight-driving. But he did allow himself one extravagant shot, pulling Thakor through midwicket when he was well past his ton.Browne gave one chance during his knock, and that in reaching his half-century off 78 balls. Chesney Hughes at slip got a hand to an edge, but could not stop the ball speeding to the ropes for Brown’s 11th boundary.He had faced another 125 balls when he punched Madsen through the covers to reach a century that included a further seven fours.The 25-year-old put on 111 in 41 overs with Ravi Bopara, their third-wicket partnership ending two balls after Browne passed three-figures. Bopara finished one short of a second half-century of the season when he was lbw to Thakor.Derbyshire took up the option of an uncontested toss and elected to bowl. It seemed a puzzling decision at the time, and by stumps it looked even more debatable.Essex started serenely with Browne and Jaik Mickleburgh putting on 61 runs in 19 overs before Tony Palladino took the first of two wickets in three balls.Mickleburgh was given a life on four when Matt Critchley spilled a decent chance at point. And he had added another 20 runs before being trapped to one high on his pads.He was followed by the in-form Tom Westley, who had scored 432 runs in his previous six Championship innings this year. He lasted three balls, without scoring, before he was pinned in his crease by a ball that swung in to him.It was an untimely duck as England batting coach Mark Ramprakash had travelled to Chelmsford specifically to check up on him.Derbyshire’s seam attack toiled but still restricted Essex to just 80 runs in an afternoon session that was alleviated by the introduction of spinners Critchley and Wes Madsen.Browne greeted Critchley’s arrival by rocking on to his back foot to punch another boundary through the offside. And Bopara punished the 19-year-old leg-spinner by thumping a wayward full-toss for four.If Essex had been reliant on boundaries in the first two sessions, Daniel Lawrence had Browne scampering singles, twos and threes as the Derbyshire visibly wilted in the field. Browne, however, still looked spritely.The giant Anguillan Hughes missed his second chance of the day when he was slow to react to Lawrence’s steepling miscue that landed two feet beyond him at midwicket. By the end the miss had cost Derbyshire 30 additional runs from Lawrence’s bat, including one sumptuous on-drive for four off Palladino.Lawrence also made it to fifty by the close, by which time the fourth-wicket stand was worth 103.