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Four wickets in five overs at the end of a keenly contested day almost put hopes of a surprise Somerset victory to bed

David Hopps at Hove06-Sep-2012
ScorecardMurray Goodwin received warm applause for what is likely to be his last innings at Hove•Getty Images

Somerset have finished second so often that Brian Rose resigned as director of cricket this week by mutual consent, in the belief that a fresh approach is needed at first-team level, but for a few fleeting moments they must have fondly imagined they could yet pull off an improbable runners-up finish in the Championship as a powerful testimony to the quality he has assembled during his eight years in charge.Four wickets in five overs at the end of a keenly contested day almost put those hopes to bed. Ah well. “This is for you, Brian, another runners-up gong,” might not have been the most subtle parting speech. But Somerset have made substantial progress under Rose’s leadership, developing young players, playing attractive cricket and furthering the sense of pride that is never far beneath the surface in Somerset cricket.To steal that second place from Sussex, Somerset would first have to chase down a target of 396 to win here. When Marcus Trescothick and Arul Suppiah assembled 147 in 43 overs without too many alarms, there was definitely a game on. The excellent Steve Magoffin had been repelled and Chris Nash, the potential partnership breaker, had come close but ultimately broken nothing other than the faith of the Sussex members. “Silly season,” muttered one as the ball disappeared to the boundary.If Somerset could have survived unscathed until the close, the final day would have been evenly balanced. They were half-an-hour away from doing just that. Warwickshire had been confirmed as champions and perhaps a collective gloom would have descended as a result over the south coast. But then Sussex’s players would share more than £150,000 for finishing second so perhaps not.Marcus Trescothick and Arul Suppiah fell on the same score, Trescothick dragging on as he envisaged clumping Monty Panesar over long-on and Suppiah caught by Matt Prior, a rebound off his chest at first slip off Magoffin, seven balls later.Magoffin, a rangy Queenslander of immense reliability, began with five successive maidens up the slope before having a rare outing downhill in an attempt to change his luck. It came off, first Suppiah then Chris Jones, bowled for a single, and the nightwatchman, Steve Kirby, softened up with a blow on the helmet and then caught at short leg. By the close he had 3 for 15 in 14 overs. He concedes runs in Division One at 2.30 per over; few can match such economy.Somerset fought with commendable spirit before lunch to keep their target of 396 down to such proportions. Assumptions had been that Sussex would grind towards a tea declaration but the Great Alfonso came to the fore, Thomas taking 4 for 7 in 28 balls (two with the old ball, two with the new) and Sussex’s last eight wickets were spirited away for 78 in 29 overs.There was no farewell hundred for Murray Goodwin, although he did fashion his best Championship score of a meagre season, 78 from 187 balls, before Thomas had him caught at the wicket. His Sussex career finishes with 14,573 first-class runs at 49.23 with 48 centuries.Sussex have retired Goodwin’s No. 3 shirt as a mark of respect to “a great cricketer and a fantastic team man”. But whether they have retired Goodwin is another thing. Another county might yet come looking. He certainly wants them to. He is even clinging to the “slim chance” that Sussex might change their mind. He said only found out on Sunday that his contract would not be renewed after indications six weeks earlier that he would be retained. As for the collapse in form that has caused his release, he blamed the abysmal English weather.”Not many batsmen have made runs this year,” he said. “I started with a broken wrist and then there were light issues and wet wickets. When you are on and off the field all the time, it plays with your preparation, your mindset and your rhythm. I have struggled with the weather, maybe more than most. But I still think I have more to offer the county game.”If he had to leave Sussex, and he has no wish to, this was not far short of how he might have imagined it: another glorious late summer’s day, a standing ovation from a decent, appreciative crowd and his young sons, Jaydon and Ashton, dashing to greet him as he crossed the boundary rope. Sussex even flew his parents over from Australia for the occasion.”I had been doing some fielding and I came off the field and saw them there,” he said. “It was a nice touch although I was hoping it would happen next year when they could also come over for the Ashes,” he said. Jaydon, 10, is already playing Sussex age group cricket and his father remarked with a grimace: “Jaydon has been giving me stick that he has more hundreds this season than I have.”Goodwin was treated to a gracious lunchtime speech in his honour and, even more impressively, it didn’t go on as long as the rival speeches blaring out of a marquee adjacent to the media centre. Corporate support is necessary for the survival of the county game, and it was all for an excellent good cause apparently, but by the time the auctioneer began to boom “Going… going… gone,” there could barely have been a soul within earshot who did not mutter, “Oh I do wish you were.”Not many at Hove have ever said that about Murray Goodwin.

ESPNcricinfo’s Plays of the Day from the fourth day of the fourth Test between England and India at The Oval

Andrew Miller and Nagraj Gollapudi at The Oval21-Aug-2011Shot of the day

Amit Mishra walked in with a bat signed by Virender Sehwag during India’s first innings. Now, Sehwag himself had made only eight runs, faced eight deliveries and bagged a king pair in his first three innings of the series. Either way it wouldn’t have mattered to the England bowlers considering the way they have dominated the Indian batting through the series. But Mishra not only batted with gay abandon, usually a Sehwag trait, but also combined confidence with fluency to surprise the opposition. In his primary role as a legspinner he’d had a shocking time – 38-3-170-0 – but he left the Englishmen gaping when he charged Graeme Swann on the last ball before lunch, to hit the only six of the Indian innings high over long on.Catch of the day

At the MCG in December 1998, Mark Ramprakash at square leg flung himself full-stretch to his right to intercept a pull from Justin Langer, and set England on their way to a highly improbable victory. The circumstances were somewhat different this time around, but Ian Bell’s reactions were every bit as honed, as a valiant 43 from Mishra was brought to a spectacular ending. A short ball from Tim Bresnan got big on the pull, but Bell at short square leg had to watch the shot all the way off the bat, judge the miscued pace, and time his dive to perfection as the ball slapped his left palm, and nestled into his fingers as he fell to earth. A determined 87-run stand had been broken, and England’s victory bid had taken a major leap forward.Ball of the day

The shadows were lengthening and a small sense of satisfaction was spreading through the Indian camp. Despite another tough examination, they were inching towards the close with eight wickets still in hand and two of their big three in harness at the crease. But then, as so often this series, up popped James Anderson. At Trent Bridge he had produced a screamer to uproot VVS Laxman’s off stump, and though this replica delivery wasn’t quite in the same category, it proved far too good once again as it zipped off the deck and crashed into the top of off as a dazed Laxman stared forlornly down the track.Onslaught of the day

Rahul Dravid is not by nature the most demonstrative of batsmen, but whenever Swann has been in his sights in this series, he has come out with a touch of the KPs. Dravid’s handling of England’s spinner has been nothing short of masterful, and today, with 14 runs needed for his hundred, he knew what he wanted to do. From the second ball of Swann’s 20th over, he cleared his front leg and took on a brace of midwickets with a contemptuous slog-sweep. Two balls later, he rocked back on his heels and dabbed a delicious late cut through third man. Swann’s fifth ball was flicked through the gap at midwicket for another four, and he completed his surge with a dab-and-dive single to move to 99. Tim Bresnan made him wait a further four balls for the moment, but when it came, he was celebrating almost before his followthrough was complete.Milestone of the day

At half past three on Sunday, sections of the crowd rose for a standing ovation. Rahul Dravid had not reached the 150 mark. No England bowler had taken a wicket. Not even Sachin Tendulkar had made an appearance. Instead, when Dravid powerfully cut Tim Bresnan for a single, it was the first time India had managed to reach 300 runs in seven attempts this series. However, that was as good as their performance would get. The final two Indian wickets – RP Singh and Sreesanth – fell in the same over in quick succession in a span of three balls.Tempo-setter of the day

First ball of the innings, following on. Sehwag facing James Anderson. You know something is going to happen – something untoward, something exciting. And lo and behold, Sehwag goes for a powerful backfoot punch, only for a thin bottom edge to slither past the off stump and away to the rope for four. A boundary first-up is usually a sign of good times to come for Sehwag, but rarely do such strokes draws monstrous gasps from the crowd.Placard of the day

“England v Dravid, The Wall”. Self-explanatory, isn’t it?

Ten high-quality fast bowlers in one squad seems a bit excessive for a state team, but it looks like New South Wales will need the full list this summer

Peter English21-Sep-2010Ten high-quality fast bowlers in one squad seems a bit excessive for a state team, but it looks like New South Wales will need the full list this summer. The Blues’ first game is still almost three weeks away and already half the contingent is either on Australian duty or injured.Josh Hazlewood’s back stress fracture forced his exit from the India tour on Saturday and allowed a standby call up for his team-mate Mitchell Starc. Doug Bollinger and Shane Watson are also on that trip while Nathan Bracken is recovering from knee surgery and hoping for a December return.The wise Stuart Clark, the part-time captain and attack mentor at 34, has seen this sort of situation before. “It’s always the issue, you start off with 10, and by about November 10 you’re struggling to find three, due to injury, attrition and playing for Australia,” he said. “There could be a situation where we have too many, but there’s every chance, as per usual, that bowlers are hard to come by.”When the season starts with a one-day game against South Australia on October 9, Clark will probably line up beside a couple of Brett Lee, Trent Copeland, Burt Cockley and Moises Henriques. Life will become more complicated in November when the Test players should be available for two Sheffield Shield fixtures before the Ashes.Copeland, a 24-year-old right-armer, raced to 35 wickets in his first five Shield games for New South Wales last year during an amazing streak that began with 8 for 92 on debut against Queensland. He is in his first full season as a contracted player and said state training had been a who’s who of Australian cricket over the past couple of weeks.He thinks the overall depth in bowling spurs on the players. “It’s good for the competition and competitiveness at training,” he said at the pre-season camp on the Sunshine Coast. “It’s no surprise New South Wales cricket is so strong, because there is competition for places, and it pushes guys to improve their skills.”However, there will still be times during the summer when the fast men are pigeon-holed as first-class or limited-overs players. Brett Lee has made that decision already following his retirement from white clothes last season, while Bracken could also head that way depending on how well his knee recovers from its latest operation.”There are some guys who are probably more suited to certain forms,” Clark said. “But I guarantee it will be all hands on deck for first of the game of the year, due to guys being with Australia and guys with injury. We’ll make these great predictions and they’ll be all useless by the start of the season.”Clark remains enthusiastic about being back on the domestic scene full-time following a disrupted summer last year, which followed the Ashes tour. He gained 12 wickets in five Sheffield Shield matches but missed a chunk of the season with a back injury.”I’m excited about playing cricket,” he said. “I still really want to play, still like going out to bat, bowl, field, run around, and play with the younger guys. There are no dramas there.”For the first time since he was elevated to the Australian squad in 2005 he has completed a proper pre-season. Most importantly for New South Wales, Clark is fit and available, unlike half of his fast bowling team-mates.

Chasing 117, Sri Lanka were tied down by spin and could manage only 85 for 9

Firdose Moonda03-Oct-2024Pakistan secured their first win in four meetings against Asia Cup champions Sri Lanka and opened their campaign with a win at T20 World Cup 2024. Sri Lanka had been riding a wave of success since the last T20 World Cup, winning three out of six bilateral T20I series and 22 out of 32 games, but Pakistan, who had lost four out of their last six series and 16 out of 27 games, had the measure of them on a slow, low Sharjah pitch.Run-scoring was laboured on the opening day of the tournament and scoring rates did not get above six an over but Pakistan’s 116 still looked well below par. None of their top six scored more than 23, there were no partnerships in the top eight of over 25, and captain Fatima Sana, batting at No. 7, was the top scorer with 30. For Sri Lanka, left-armer Udeshika Prabodhani, left-arm spinner Sugandika Kumari and captain Chamari Athapaththu, with her offspin, picked up three wickets each.Buoyed by their efforts in the field, Sri Lanka would have fancied their chances of pulling off victory but fared the worst of the four teams in action today with the bat. They were tied down by spin, particularly Omaima Sohail’s offspin and lack of pace. With the ball moving slowly through the air and keeping low, the Sri Lanka batters were often far too early into their shots. They were reduced to 52 for 5 in the 13th over and there was no coming back from that.

The tournament’s first six

It took until the third over of the second match before the World Cup saw its first six and it came from Pakistan’s only centurion in the format: Muneeba Ali. She advanced down the track against Sri Lanka’s only seamer, Prabodhani, and sent her 63 metres over midwicket boundary. On a day when boundaries were particularly scarce, there were two more sixes in the Pakistan innings to go with five fours. Sri Lanka’s innings featured only three fours. There were no sixes in the earlier game between Bangladesh and Scotland and just 15 fours across both innings.Chamari Athapaththu belts out a successful appeal for the lbw of Aliya Riaz•ICC/Getty Images

(Almost) three cheers for ChamariAfter doing an excellent job in keeping pressure on Pakistan by taking the wicket of Sidra Amin and with her bowling changes, Athapaththu brought herself on for a second over in the 14th. Her second ball was full outside off stump and took Tuba Hassan’s outside edge as she camped on the back foot and was caught behind. That brought Pakistan’s last recognised batter, finisher Aliya Riaz, to the crease with plenty of time to cash in but she missed the line of the next ball and was hit on the front pad. Riaz was walking off as she reviewed and the ball-tracking revealed it was hitting middle and leg stump. Athapaththu was on a hat-trick and came oh-so-close to getting it when Diana Baig edged the next ball but wicketkeeper Anushka Sanjeewani could not hold on. Athapaththu finished with 3 or 18 from her four overs.

Sana saves the day

It could be argued that Sana made a tactical blunder by batting herself at No. 7 but she scored 30 off 20 balls, which ended up changing the game, and then took great responsibility with the ball. Baig only bowled one ball before she pulled up with what looked like a calf injury and Sana decided to take over immediately. She finished Baig’s over and kept herself on for more, when she took out her opposite number. Athapaththu was leaden-footed when she drove Sana to extra cover where Sohail took a good catch to her left. Athapaththu understood the magnitude of the moment and punched her bat as she walked off the field. Her dismissal sent Sri Lanka into a shell, and they finished the powerplay on 26 for 2, with the required rate already up at 6.50.

Gunaratne and gone

It was game over, in theory, when Vishmi Gunaratne hit Nashra Sandhu straight down the ground and into the hands of Amin to leave Sri Lanka 52 for 5. But this is not to put the blame on the 19-year-old. Instead, it’s an illustration of the kinds of shots that were being played in frustration as the Pakistan spinners became more and more difficult to get away. On a big outfield, Sri Lanka scored 47 singles but only nine twos and while Pakistan were only marginally better with 51 singles and 11 twos, it’s those tiny margins that make a difference.

Yorkshire claim 13 points, Gloucestershire take 12 as rain intervenes

ECB Reporters Network28-Jun-2023Gloucestershire all-rounder Ollie Price completed an excellent maiden first-team century during an otherwise low-key final day at Headingley as their LV= Insurance County Championship clash with Yorkshire finished in a draw.Price moved from 97 not out overnight to reach three figures in the day’s first over as the visitors were bowled out for 464 in reply to a first-innings 550 for 9 declared during the first half of the morning.Price was last man out for 113 off 162 balls to on-loan left-arm spinner Dan Moriarty, who finished with 5 for 139 on Yorkshire debut.Yorkshire started their second innings with a lead of 86 and reached 200 for 6 in the 48th over when rain stopped play at 4.30pm, a lead of 286. No more play was possible.During a weather-affected third day, 22-year-old all-rounder Ollie Price shared a seventh-wicket partnership of 162 with his older brother Tom. This season, the brothers have both posted their maiden first-team centuries in this competition after new-ball seamer Tom did it in a draw at New Road in April.There was always the chance of a potential final day contrived finish, but that didn’t eventuate and both sides – relegated from Division One last year – remain closer to the bottom of the Division Two table than they are to the top.Yorkshire claimed 13 points and have won once from seven outings, while Gloucestershire took 12 and remain winless after eight.Price reached his milestone century with a leg-glanced boundary off the fifth ball of the day from George Hill’s seam. Two balls later, Matt Taylor edged seamer Dom Leech to first slip as Gloucestershire slipped to 425 for 9.Unfortunately for the smattering of spectators present on an overcast day at Headingley, this wasn’t a day’s play jam-packed with edge-of-your-seat action.But even though the game was drifting, Gloucestershire bowled well after lunch and took some scalps with them back to the South West. Adam Lyth also posted a pleasing 55 either side of lunch for Yorkshire.Given the position of both sides in the Division Two table and no threat of relegation, it was somewhat of a surprise that no adventure was shown.Wrapping up Gloucestershire’s innings, debutant Moriarty bowled a sweeping Price to secure his fifth wicket having joined Yorkshire from Surrey for the next month of Championship action.Lyth and Fin Bean shared a 73-run opening partnership at the start of Yorkshire’s second innings, with Bean caught behind pushing forwards at Zafar Gohar’s left-arm spin three balls into the afternoon for 38 including a pulled six off Ollie Price’s off-spin.Lyth pulled, reverse swept and drove before edging Zaman Akhter’s seam to first slip, ending a 56-run second-wicket stand with captain Shan Masood, who was bowled reverse sweeping at Gohar shortly afterwards, leaving Yorkshire at 135 for 3 in the 31st over.By this stage, the floodlights had been turned on at Headingley. For the game, it was very much lights out.A break for bad light and rain from just before 3pm accounted for the loss of seven overs before played resumed, allowing impressive Gohar to claim his third wicket when Dawid Malan was caught behind cutting for 20. That was the first of two wickets in five balls as Ben Charlesworth’s first ball accounted for Jonny Tattersall, caught at slip as Yorkshire fell to 161 for 5 in the 40th over.Gohar was the pick of the bowlers with 3 for 63 from 18 overs, while Chris Dent struck with his third ball, getting Hill caught at slip with his left-arm medium pace. Dent celebrated in disbelief and patted Hill on the back as he departed, maybe owing to the fact he usually bowls part-time left-arm spin. It proved to be the fixture’s final ball.

Despite Ben Duckett coming close to twin tons, Nottinghamshire were below par, particularly with the ball

ECB Reporters Network17-Apr-2022An unbeaten half-century by world No. 1 Test batsman Marnus Labuschagne guided Glamorgan to a seven-wicket victory over Nottinghamshire in the LV= Insurance County Championship, ending their first visit to Trent Bridge for a red-ball match since 2007 with a first win on the ground since 1998.Chasing 166 to win in the fourth innings after taking Nottinghamshire’s final two second-innings wickets inside the first hour of play, Glamorgan wrapped up a 23-points win before tea on the final afternoon.Australia’s Labuschagne, in his first game back with the Welsh county after successful summers in 2019 and 2021, was dropped on 25, although it is doubtful that the miss had any bearing on the outcome of the match.It is a sobering result for Nottinghamshire, a popular tip to be Division Two champions this season. Ben Duckett came close to scoring a century in each innings but it was generally a below-par performance by the home side, particularly with the ball.James Pattinson, in his first match back at Trent Bridge, was outbowled by fellow Aussies Michael Neser and Michael Hogan, while the Australia-born Netherlands seamer Timm van der Gugten made an outstanding contribution both with bat and ball.Nottinghamshire added 18 runs to their overnight lead of 147 before Glamorgan removed their last two wickets. Brett Hutton shouldered arms to the ball that bowled him, one of three dismissals in the match where the batter offered no shot. Joey Evison made a creditable 37 before gloving a legside catch to wicketkeeper Chris Cooke as he went to pull James Weighell.Evison batted with a runner and was unable to bowl as Glamorgan set about their chase, one in which Nottinghamshire needed a salvo of early wickets if they were to create any real pressure for the batters on a wicket that had lasted well.None was forthcoming, openers David Lloyd and Andrew Salter rattling along at four runs an over before the latter departed in the 14th, the home side’s ambitions not helped by Pattinson conceding 22 in three overs.Salter was lbw as left-arm spinner Liam Patterson-White managed to squeeze the ball past his inside edge. There was a second setback for Glamorgan in the last over before lunch when Lloyd was also out to a ball he chose to leave, Dane Paterson bringing one back to clip off stump.Paterson and Patterson-White applied a squeeze after lunch. That changed when Labuschagne lofted the left-arm spinner for six over long-off and Sam Northeast crashed four through the covers but when Northeast took on a short ball from Pattinson in the next over, he was caught at long-leg by Paterson, who struggled to track the flight of the ball against the glare of the sky before landing on his back with ball in hand.Northeast’s dismissal took one of Glamorgan’s potential match-winners out of the equation but others remained, not least Labuschagne, who had a let-off behind the stumps on 25 when Tom Moores dived across first slip but could not cling on to an edge off Paterson’s bowling.Labuschagne completed his half-century, a relatively workmanlike affair, when he cut Pattinson for just his third four, before Kiran Carlson, who made 47 in a stand worth 74, completed the victory with a flourish, handing Pattinson the indignity of being hooked for six to win the contest with 39 overs to spare.

Top-order batsmen getting runs will be good news as the international season approaches

Firdose Moonda05-Nov-2020 Results Summary The Knights became the first team to record a win in this year’s first-class competition when they beat the Warriors by 179 runs in Bloemfontein. The match was Allan Donald’s first in charge of his home franchise and first as a head coach in South Africa.Whether the win would have been as resounding had the Warriors had a fully-fit squad to pick from is a matter of debate after six players were forced to withdraw ahead of this round of matches. As a result, the Warriors were without a significant number of their first-choice bowlers and it showed. Batting first, the Knights piled on 430 for 6, with all of their top five in the runs. In response, the Warriors managed only 158. The Knights’ 272-run lead gave them the luxury of being able to declare their second innings on just 93 for 8, setting the Warriors 366 to win. Given their first-innings effort, that was always going to be a bridge too far and they fell short by a distance.In Cape Town, the Titans came back from a first-innings deficit of 114 runs to beat the Cape Cobras by two wickets. They chased down 316 in the fourth innings of the game despite being bundled out for 150 in their first innings. The Cobras set the tone by declaring on 264 for 9 on day one, and took a big advantage into the second innings, where they scored 201. They would not have been too unhappy with setting the Titans a target over 300, but with several international batsmen and time on their side, the Titans won after lunch on the final day.Not long after that, the Dolphins joined the victory parade. They defied a rain-affected first-day to topple defending champions the Lions, who started proceedings with 258 in the first innings. If the Lions were wondering that was a middling total, the Dolphins replied with 458 for 3 declared, taking exactly the lead they would need – which was worth 200 runs – to push for an innings win. They didn’t get that, but needed just 11 runs to seal victory in a chase that lasted only 16 balls.Theunis de Bruyn plays the sweep•Associated Press

On the national radarPerhaps the best news for the new national selector Victor Mpitsang was that top-order batsmen performed well. Dean Elgar’s hundred made up more than two-thirds of the Titans’ first-innings total, while Theunis de Bruyn’s 127 took the Titans to victory.De Bruyn was dropped for last summer’s Tests but could force his way back in with form this season. Aiden Markram and Pieter Malan, two others competing for the openers’ role, could only manage scores of 2 and 48, and 51 and 1, respectively. Worryingly, Rassie van der Dussen’s returns were just 1 and 10 and Temba Bavuma, who was also captaining his franchise, made 43 and 25. Keegan Petersen, who trained with the South African squad last summer, made a strong case with his 173 for the Dolphins against the Lions.None of South Africa’s frontline Test bowlers were in action at home with all of them occupied at the IPL, but spinner Keshav Maharaj showed his ability to close out games. He opened the bowling for the Dolphins in the Lions’ second innings and took 6 for 101 to bowl his team to a win. George Linde, who made his Test debut in India last year, took nine wickets for the Cobras to become the early leader on the wicket charts, followed by Tabraiz Shamsi and Maharaj with seven wickets each, making the top three bowlers after round one all spinners.International allrounders Andile Phehlukwayo and Dwaine Pretorius were in action, with Pretorius carrying a heavier bowling load. He bowled first change for the Lions – after Beuran Hendricks and Sisanda Magala – and delivered 21 overs, which brought him 1 for 44. Phehlukwayo only bowled in the Lions’ first innings and sent down 13 overs, with a return of 1 for 49.Reeza Hendricks gets behind the line•Getty Images

Top performers The Knights’ Jacques Snyman became the first batsman to score a century in this first-class competition before lunch since Rilee Rossouw did it back in 2010 to register his first century at the franchise level. His opening partner Matthew Kleinveldt scored 73, as Raynard van Tonder got 85 at No. 3.Also at the top of the order, Sarel Erwee’s 199 set the Dolphins up for their big win. Reeza Hendricks made 76 for the Lions and although the Warriors did not have much success with the bat, Matthew Breetzke’s 77 at the top of the order also sent a message to the selectors. In the middle order, Kyle Verreynne’s second-innings 85 for the Cobras stood out in an otherwise lean scorecard.Lizaad Williams, who moved upcountry from the Cape this season, is the leading seam bowler after the first round with six wickets. He took 4 for 51 in the Cobras’ first innings and 2 for 23 in the second to finish with an average of 12.33.

The former India captain will join the 106 Territorial Army Battalion (Para) and stay with them from July 31 to August 15

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jul-2019MS Dhoni’s version of down time after a World Cup campaign that took him and his team very nearly to the final itself is to spend a fortnight with the Indian territorial army, an auxiliary unit of the Indian army.The 38-year old wicketkeeper had expressed his unavailability for the tour of West Indies next month and will instead head to the Kashmir Valley. There, he will join the 106 Territorial Army Battalion (Para) and stay with them from July 31 to August 15.”As requested by the officer and approved by Army Headquarters, he will be performing duties of patrolling among other such activities and would be staying with the troops,” a spokesperson for the Indian Army said.Dhoni, an honourary Lieutenant Colonel, was even seen playing India’s first World Cup game with gloves that carried a symbol similar to his regiment until the ICC requested that he remove it because it was against protocol.There has been speculation over how long Dhoni will continue to play cricket for India. On Sunday, when picking the squads for the Caribbean tour, chairman of selectors MSK Prasad said that there were plans in place to groom his successor but insisted that a legendary player like him knows when to retire.

Durham, once bereft in North Group, added leaders Worcestershire to their victims as they continued to transform their season

ECB Reporters Network20-Jul-2018
ScorecardBen Stokes put on a clinic with bat and ball to guide Durham Jets to a dominant seven-wicket victory over Worcestershire Rapids in their Vitality Blast clash at Emirates Riverside.The England all-rounder was imperious with the ball, claiming figures of 4 for 16 from his four overs. He then opened the innings to blast a score of 43 off 24 deliveries, and with Graham Clark’s knock of 55, the home side were able to canter to a comfortable win.Durham have won their last three matches on the bounce against tough opposition and are well in contention to reach the knockout phase of the competition, while the Rapids have now dropped their second game in a row, needing a response to stop their slide after their strong start.Clar said: “”We’ve played some good teams. We’ve beaten the two finalists from last year and to beat top of the group tonight it’s standing us in good stead. Confidence is sky high at the moment and hopefully we can keep winning in this competition.”The Jets on the toss and elected to bowl boosted by the return of Stokes, although Paul Collingwood and Chris Rushworth missed out. Worcestershire had Moeen Ali back in their ranks and hit the second ball of the innings to the boundary over point, but James Weighell responded to dismiss him in the next ball. Martin Guptill struggled to get the ball off the square and was to fall victim to a Stokes’ delivery that kept low for seven.Travis Head’s form at the crease allowed his side to post 40 from their opening six overs. Rimmington turned the momentum in favour of Durham by removing Daryl Mitchell. Head continued his knock, although his strike rate did not get away from the home side. The Australian fell for 40 as he was undone by a straight delivery from Imran Tahir, sparking a collapse in the Rapids’ innings.Stokes returned to the attack to have both Ross Whiteley and Ben Cox caught on the boundary, while Tahir notched his second strike of the innings as Ed Barnard knicked off. Luke Wood continued the procession of wickets, drilling straight to Liam Trevaskis in the deep. Stokes ensured that the Rapids were held in check as he claimed his fourth scalp by bowling Dillon Pennington, while a fine piece of fielding ended the innings for 121 as Rimmington ran out Patrick Brown with a flick out of the back of his hand.Graham Clark and Stokes got their side off to a flying start in their chase. Both openers were able to find the boundary with regularity, putting the home side comfortably ahead of the required rate. The duo reached their fifty partnership at the end of the fifth over, compounding their advantage at the crease.Stokes dispatched Ali over long on for a huge six to reach 43, but his England team-mate had a semblance of revenge as Guptill took a catch on the fence from the following delivery, ending the opening partnership at 77. Clark continued to put the Rapids to the sword after the loss of Stokes, reaching his fifty off 35 balls, including seven boundaries and a six. The opener fell before the Jets could close out the victory as Trevaskis hit the winning runs.

Pakistan have opened up a nine-point lead on West Indies in the updated ICC ODI rankings

ESPNcricinfo staff01-May-2017Pakistan have a nine-point lead over West Indies in the updated ICC ODI rankings, in their race to qualify directly for the 2019 World Cup in England. Pakistan are placed eighth at present, and West Indies ninth, and only the top eight teams as of September 30 qualify directly for the showpiece 50-over tournament.

Updated ICC ODI rankings

1 South Africa (123 points)
2 Australia (118 points)
3 India (117 points)
4 New Zealand (115 points)
5 England (109 points)
6 Sri Lanka (93 points)
7 Bangladesh (91 points)
8 Pakistan (88 points)
9 West Indies (79 points)
10 Afghanistan (52 points)

West Indies have ODI series against Afghanistan and England scheduled before the cut-off date, but will not be part of the eight-team Champions Trophy in England in June, having failed to qualify for the event. Last month, West Indies had lost an ODI series to Pakistan 2-1 at home.At the top end of the rankings, South Africa and Australia retained their No. 1 and 2 positions following the annual points update on May 1. The annual update discards older results from calculations; currently, after the update, the points reflect results from May 1, 2014 (50% weightage), with results from May 1, 2016 onwards carrying 100% weightage.India and New Zealand swapped places, with India moving up to No. 3. Sri Lanka and Bangladesh remain No. 6 and 7 respectively, with Afghanistan rounding off the top ten, above Zimbabwe and Ireland.Ten teams outside the top eight in the ODI rankings will play a qualifying tournament in April 2018, from which the top two will make it to the ten-team World Cup the following year.