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From not even being handed a Big Bash League contract, to holding his own at the MCG against England, James Muirhead’s rise through the ranks has been fast and spectacular

Brydon Coverdale11-Feb-2014There are eight teams in the Big Bash League, each with a squad of 18 men. That means 144 players begin the season with BBL contracts. This summer, James Muirhead was not considered good enough to be one of them. It was not until December 19 that he was brought in by the Melbourne Stars as a replacement for the injured James Faulkner. Less than two months later, Muirhead has now joined Faulkner in Australia’s squad for the World Twenty20.It has been a rapid rise for Muirhead, who until he was 13th man for Australia’s final ODI against England in January, had never even been to an international match. Five days later he found himself standing in the middle of a heaving MCG in front of nearly 65,000 spectators, bowling legspin to men whose sole job was to hit him out of the park. That would be enough to worry most 20-year-olds, but Muirhead showed a maturity that belied his years.In his four overs, Muirhead took 1 for 17, tossing the ball up, turning it sharply, not worried that he might drag the odd delivery down or serve up a full toss. He did not concede a single boundary in that match. On debut two days earlier, Muirhead’s third ball had been dispatched for six by Jos Buttler in Hobart, but at no stage over the three-game series did he retreat into a defensive style – he kept flighting the ball, dipping it and spinning it, and kept troubling the batsmen.”It was definitely really daunting, especially in front of 65,000 at that game,” Muirhead told ESPNcricinfo last week. “Bowling legspin you just really have to have confidence and believe in yourself and you know you can perform at that level. You just try and take in the crowd and relish the moment and enjoy yourself. You’re going to get hit for a few sixes or a few boundaries bowling legspin in T20, so you can’t put yourself down, you’ve just got to keep fighting against them.”In Twenty20 cricket there’s got to be a balance between defending and attacking, so whether that’s bowling a slider, bowling a faster legbreak or throwing one up, you’ve just got to find that balance. That defines whether you’re successful or not.”Daunting as the experience may have been, Muirhead is a young man not lacking in confidence. It is near impossible to succeed as a wrist-spinner without that self-belief. Muirhead’s team-mate in those three T20s against England, as well as with Victoria, Cameron White, knows the pressure of bowling legspin at international level, and has been impressed by what he has seen.”It’s really exciting. I’ve stood at slip in the three Twenty20 games he’s played for Australia and you can just see he’s a real natural legspinner of the ball, there’s a lot of sidespin on the ball,” White said. “He gets really big turn. I think that’s got everyone excited, including the people he plays with. I can tell you from experience it’s not easy to bowl legspin, especially in front of [nearly] 70,000 that were at the MCG for that Twenty20 game.”He bowled really well in that game and showed that he’s got the mindset and the calmness to then go out and deliver his skill. It’s impressive stuff so far. I think you definitely have to have that type of personality. It’s that confidence, the absolute belief in your ability to perform in front of that many people. To bowl legspin is a big ask and he’s doing it really well at the moment.”The TV commentators during the T20s against England would have had viewers believe Muirhead was the reincarnation of Shane Warne, so excited were they by the emergence of a confident young legspinner. But while such successes, and the upcoming World T20, will improve Muirhead’s career significantly, Australia’s selectors will be equally interested to see how he performs in the Sheffield Shield over the next few weeks.Can he maintain his consistency in the long form, where batsmen have to wait for the bad ball? Can he build pressure over four days, not four overs? We are about to find out, for before the World T20, Muirhead has some red-ball cricket to play. Muirhead has already played more international matches – three – than he has first-class games. His only Sheffield Shield match came late last summer in Adelaide, when he took one wicket in each innings against South Australia.His other first-class outing was for the Cricket Australia Invitational XI against England at the SCG in November; there he claimed six victims for the match, including Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell and Alastair Cook. It was that performance that really made the national selectors sit up and take notice. Now, the Victorian selectors have taken the hint from above, for Fawad Ahmed has been demoted to the Futures League while Muirhead will take on New South Wales in a Shield match starting on Wednesday.”In the shorter format you use a lot more variation than you would in the longer form,” Muirhead said. “In Sheffield Shield cricket I’d probably bowl 90% legbreaks, in Twenty20 I’d probably bowl 70% legbreaks. They’re both pretty hard formats to bowl in. As a leggie, you want to dominate the batsmen and get them out, especially in the longer form. That defines how good you are. At times you’ve got to attack them really hard and go early if you feel confident.”Muirhead certainly speaks with confidence, certain that he knows his game and trusts in his own ability. That will be refined, of course, but it’s a good starting point. Over the past few months, Muirhead has worked with Stuart MacGill on a pre-season trip to Sri Lanka and with Shane Warne, who advised him on tactics and the mindset of a legspinner.Naturally, Warne was Muirhead’s childhood idol, although it was his uncle Daryl Veteha, a club legspinner in Melbourne, who helped him learn his craft in the backyard. Muirhead’s father Matt, who coached him in past years, still provides a valuable sounding board. “We talk most nights about cricket,” Muirhead said of his father, “especially when things aren’t going right.”It remains to be seen what sort of conversation they will have when Muirhead returns from the World T20, where the world’s best strikers will be ready to take him down. Confidence is important, but nothing can really prepare Muirhead for the task ahead of him in Bangladesh, where he will join Brad Hogg and Glenn Maxwell in Australia’s spin attack.Muirhead has played a combined total of 20 days of first-class, List A and T20 cricket; Hogg has 20 years of experience in first-class and one-day cricket alone, from which to draw. Perhaps that’s a Twenty20 omen.

ESPNcricinfo presents the plays of the day from the game between Sri Lanka and New Zealand

Andrew McGlashan and Andrew Fidel Fernando31-Mar-2014The head-shake strike-rateHaving made a brisk start, Kusal Perera’s shock at wrongly being given out caught down the leg side for the second time in as many matches was expressed with a bout of furious head-shaking that almost outstripped his rate of scoring. From the moment the umpire’s finger was raised, until he exited the field, it almost seemed as if Kusal was watching two tennis players at the net. What’s more, it was infectious. Incoming batsman Mahela Jayawardene approached the square in visible disbelief as well.The win some, lose some momentStrength becoming a weakness. Tillakaratne Dilshan scored his first boundary with a scoop off Kyle Mills, but in the next over from Trent Boult he tried to reverse scoop the left-armer over slip and only succeeded in providing a catch to Luke Ronchi.The useful overthrowThere is never really a good outcome to conceding free runs in T20 – a format that can be decided by the narrowest margins – but when Brendon McCullum had a slightly unnecessary shy at the non-striker’s stumps, lulled into by the batsman teasing to leave his ground, and the resulting deflection gave away a single, there was a silver lining for New Zealand. Next delivery, Nuwan Kulasekara drove on the up and picked out Brendon’s brother, Nathan, at short cover to leave Sri Lanka 93 for 7.The not out, then outAll of Rangana Herath’s overs were special – in what would become one of the great T20 spells – but in his second he made Ross Taylor, a very fine player of spin, look clueless. The third ball of the over slid on past the inside and took the pad to short leg (the loud appeal correctly turned down) then the next delivery turned considerably, squared up Taylor and struck him on the back leg. Rod Tucker, again, declined the appeal and this time Sri Lanka were harshly done by as off stump would have been hit flush on. At their third time of asking, however, Sri Lanka got the response they wanted when Taylor was again beaten, this time by one that skidded, and Tucker’s finger went up.The dislocationWhen Corey Anderson failed to hold Sachithra Senanayake’s mow down the ground in the 18th over it was a double blow for New Zealand. Not only did it concede six, but Anderson immediately left the field clutching his right hand and was soon on his way to hospital for treatment for a dislocation. It meant he was not available for New Zealand’s innings, but given the margin of defeat it may not have made a difference to the result.

Lionised in Taunton and championed for England by county fans everywhere, Peter Trego has not given up on bringing his brand of belligerence to the international stage

Alex Winter14-May-2014When England called up Ian Bell and Chris Woakes as replacements for their World T20 squad in Bangladesh, there was a slumping of shoulders from England supporters at the lack of inspiration. Fine cricketers both but not exciting new names to raise expectations. Might a jovial West Country allrounder have been the man to enthuse the fans?The sight England have lost, spectators in this season’s revamped NatWest T20 Blast can revel in. Peter Trego, beloved in Somerset and vociferously championed for years by much of the county cricket fraternity on social media, can be expected to bring his own brand of belligerence to Friday nights.Trego provides entertainment. After many years at Somerset, with T20 experience around the world – although escaping the gaze of the IPL – and with high-class ability with both bat and ball, is Trego the man England have missed? Predictably overlooked for the upcoming Sri Lanka series, he begins a fresh new domestic T20 format with international ambitions still to be realised.”That’s the reason I wake up in the morning and want to play cricket,” Trego said after another day delighting the Somerset public, this time with a counter-attacking innings against Nottinghamshire. “I’m not blind to the social media stuff, I get a lot of support from the general public saying they’d like to see me get a crack and that is completely my goal within my career.”I know that I can do it. I’ve done it on the big stage against IPL franchises and world-class attacks and it’s just about doing enough consistently to get that opportunity because I don’t think anyone in English cricket wouldn’t admit that there are spaces in the limited-overs England teams.”Trego moved into England circles in 2010 with 10 appearances for the Lions. But England were then at their peak. The team sheet may now have more blanks to fill than for many years but has this opening come too late for Trego, who will turn 33 next month and pushing the back-end of an average cricketers’ lifespan by the time the next World T20 comes around in 2016? The best advice is to catch him in the Blast while he remains at his peak.”Age doesn’t concern me,” a sanguine Trego said. “Statistically I’m probably one of the fittest cricketers in the country. I train and do triathlons on my days off for fun. From a physical point of view, I’m in the best shape I’ve ever been in in my life. I’ve worked relentlessly, especially over the last two years on my physical self and made some surprising ground even for myself. So it doesn’t bother me. It’s about putting up the numbers on the board.”And Trego’s career numbers compare very well against the members of England’s World T20 squad. In last year’s Friends Life t20, he was among the leading all-round performers with 289 runs at 36.12 and a strike rate of 117.95. With the ball, his economy rate of 5.86 was the fourth best of bowlers to have played in 10 or more matches.

“I love the fact that I entertain and will continue to do so. T20 is a great opportunity to go out there and give the crowd exciting cricket and that’s certainly what I’m trying to deliver”Peter Trego

Not blessed with express pace and often asked to bowl during the Powerplay, Trego has developed a number of change-ups to ensure he remains unpredictable. His armoury contains an offcutter, legcutter, one out of the back of the hand and a seam-up delivery where he does not snap his wrist. He uses the yorker only as a last resort but has been working on the wide full delivery that is in vogue.”I’ve almost got to bowl with a spinner’s mentality,” he says. “With three or four variations on my slower ball and making sure that my stock delivery into length is bowled hard into the pitch so if there is some seam movement I exploit that.”I’m not a particularly strong yorker bowler, so I need to find different ways of tying the batsman down. When you’re not blessed with huge amounts of speed you have to rely on a bit of craft so having different slower balls is pretty crucial.”Trego is also tasked with a top-order slot in the batting and made handy runs in last season’s FLt20. But it was in the 40-over competition that he found his best form last season, with 745 runs at 82.77, the leading tally in the tournament as Somerset reached the semi-finals.It would be easy to see Trego’s heavily tattooed arms, hear the gentle West County burr in his voice, realise his love for entertaining and cast Trego as a happy-go-lucky cricketer. But success rarely comes without a plan and, like the careful thinking behind his bowling, he talks intelligently about tactics with the bat.”I like to go in in the first 10-15 balls and just look to hit fours, not necessarily look to go aerial,” Trego says. “I normally find that when I’m hitting the ball sweetly and piercing the gaps for fours, the sixes take care of themselves a bit.”I think as a top-order batter in one-day cricket you have to back yourself to maybe see a few dots in the early part of your innings but with the confidence that you can catch up later on in your innings and get the boundaries flowing.”I’ll be looking to concentrate on my ball-striking really and making sure I’m connecting with balls in the right ways, not trying to over-hit too much. I think there were times when a lot of guys used to try and hit the ball three streets away whereas you only have to get it over the rope.”With all the gym work we do nowadays and the big bats, it’s all about timing really, the guys who are successful at T20 are good timers of the ball, they don’t just go out swinging blindfolded.”Trego enjoys a T20 day – a refreshing affair after the rigours of four-day cricket, where at Taunton the games are difficult to get through for an allrounder. The shortest format also provides the best platform for his desire to please the crowd: “When I’m having fun is definitely when I’m at my best.” The dashing 86 that lit up Somerset’s last Championship match, a tame draw against Notts, demonstrates that he plays in the same way across all formats.”I play with one of the greats of the modern era in Marcus Trescothick and it’s a great feeling for me to have an equally loud clap when I walk to the wicket,” Trego says. “I love the fact that I entertain and will continue to do so. T20 is a great opportunity to go out there and give the crowd exciting cricket and that’s certainly what I’m trying to deliver.”

His reliability, respect within the team and an ability to draw the line during media interactions make Mashrafe Mortaza a good candidate for Bangladesh’s ODI captain

Mohammad Isam01-Oct-2014Mashrafe Mortaza’s appointment as Bangladesh captain for the five-match ODI series against Zimbabwe in November can easily be slammed as a late, reactionary decision that has come after the team had slumped beyond recognition. Closer to the truth, however, is the fact that the BCB has chosen a respected figure and a largely reliable character, despite his fitness issues. This is more of a last-ditch effort to restore confidence in the team’s most favoured format.Mushfiqur Rahim might wonder whether he will have another chance to rectify his blotched CV as a captain, but the winless streak of 13 matches in ODIs was a problem that pointed to the team’s dynamics first, then the captaincy. Now that the latter has been found faulty, there has been a change in leadership with the hope of a fresh mind. The easier choice could have been to opt for Shakib Al Hasan, who was a close contender, but his recent controversies – including suspensions for misbehaviour and for making an inappropriate gesture – made him a second option.Instead, Mashrafe, one of the last bastions of this battered team, has been put in charge. He could have given up at least 11 times – the number of major surgeries he has had on his body hip-down – but he stood up straight despite the frequent injuries. Mashrafe has missed 106 ODIs and 44 Tests since his debut in 2001 but his time as a Bangladesh cricketer has mostly been controversy-free.Over the last 13 years, he has stayed away from making strong comments. It stems from his modesty as an individual though he is prone to striking back at times. When he had returned from a long lay-off in early 2010, he left the team hotel after feeling “unwanted” among his team-mates. Earlier this year, when a journalist had, as part of a question in a press conference, called Bangladesh’s 2012 win over India an “upset”, he did not seem keen on the particular word. But he knows where to draw the line, a quality much needed by the BCB.Mashrafe’s captaincy will also invigorate his team-mates and push them to newer places from time to time. This was evident when Bangladesh pushed Sri Lanka right down to the wire in two T20s under his captaincy at the start of the year, particularly in the second game in Chittagong when the home side had to defend 120 runs. Mashrafe’s bowling changes were rapid and random, unhindered by any particular set plan that has usually come out of Bangladeshi dressing-rooms.He was unafraid to use a newcomer, left-arm spinner Arafat Sunny, as an opening bowler; he switched bowlers seemingly at will but, mostly, a new one was present every time a Sri Lankan wicket fell. There was heavy dew that evening and there, too, he used his experience as a seamer, bowling the pacers – himself, Rubel Hossain and Farhad Reza – more than the spinners in tight situations.The visitors slumped to 50 for 6 in the 12th over, after which Kumar Sangakkara and Thisara Perera brought them back in contention. Sri Lanka needed two off the final ball, and Mashrafe told Reza to bowl a bouncer to Sachithra Senanayake. The zany move didn’t pay off because of the bowler’s military-medium pace and the softer ball stood up quite nicely for a pull shot, which was duly hit. Mashrafe, to his credit, did not hide from admitting that he had instructed Reza before the final ball.On the other hand, Mashrafe is also part of the same dressing-room that regularly brings out ultra-conservative strategies and use of skill, designed only for damage control: bowling left-arm spinners to right-handed batsmen and off-spinners to left-handers; invariably sending a left-handed or right-handed batsman according to the opposition spinner in the attack at the time (knowing full well that the opposition captain can change the bowling too); slipping to the eight-batsmen strategy even in ODIs only to contain the opposition; bowling poorly to a new batsman and at the death, and making knee-jerk selection calls in the playing XI.It remains to be seen how Mashrafe’s own form will play out in his time as captain. During his captaincy, Mushfiqur’s batting undoubtedly took strides in ODIs, with an improved average, a strike-rate that rose from 66 to 77, a slightly better 50 to 100 conversion rate and ultimately a more central role as a batsman. With Tamim Iqbal out of form for much of the year, and Shakib Al Hasan facing suspension, Mushfiqur was the only reliable batsman in the side. He did not just have to restore parity to a batting order at risk of a collapse, he was also its anchor and chief hitter in the later overs. Moreover, he has been Bangladesh’s wicketkeeper for most of the last seven years, though his standards in that skill have dropped of late.Mashrafe, meanwhile, uses seam and conditions better as a bowler now, benefiting from the two new balls in ODI cricket these days. His pace has slowed considerably but he showed, in favourable conditions at home in June against India and on a couple of occasions in the West Indies last month, that he can still bowl quickly and keep beating the bat.Mashrafe Mortaza and Shakib Al Hasan will take on the roles of captain and vice-captain again, like they did in 2009•BCBThe question-mark in his bowling has always been his inability to cut down runs in the last ten overs of an innings. Though Bangladesh cannot boast of a specialist bowler who concedes less than six an over during the last ten overs of an ODI, Mashrafe’s economy-rate of 7.57 has always made fans nervous, particularly after he starts the innings well.The other major factor considered when giving him the captaincy was his injury-prone body. His first stint as full-time captain ended when he injured himself while bowling in his first Test in charge in 2009 against West Indies. When he was given back the reins after more than a year, he lasted only seven matches.A twisted ankle kept him out of cricket for a few months and, with Shakib leading by example, he was not considered for the role again. Coincidentally, and perhaps due to the strange ebb and flow of Bangladesh cricket, Shakib is his deputy once again, as was the case when they were first appointed Bangladesh’s captain and vice-captain in mid-2009, following Mohammad Ashraful’s meltdown in Nottingham.Mashrafe has often struck one as a man who wants to move forward. This time, with only five matches and a dangling carrot of leading the team to the 2015 World Cup, he doesn’t quite have any other direction. He will simply have to be careful while wildly diving to stop a defensive prod, lest he injure himself again.

Stats highlights from the second day’s play of the first Test between New Zealand and Sri Lanka in Christchurch

S Rajesh27-Dec-2014303 The first-innings lead for New Zealand, which is their third-highest in a Test against Sri Lanka. Their best is 364, in Dunedin in 1997, while they led by 311 in Wellington in 2005. New Zealand won both those Tests.3-15 Sri Lanka’s draw-loss record in the 18 Tests when they’ve followed on. New Zealand have a 12-5 win-draw record when they’ve enforced the follow on.28 The number of times Sri Lanka have been bowled out in under 50 overs in a Test innings. Sixteen of those have been in overseas, including each of the last five instances. Their total of 138 is their third-lowest against New Zealand.8 Number of times, out of 25 innings, that Sri Lanka have been five down for less than 100 runs in a Test in New Zealand. Fourteen times they have lost half the side for less than 150.102 Trent Boult’s wickets tally in Tests. He has become the 13th New Zealand bowler to take 100 or more Test wickets.23.54 Boult’s average in 11 Tests in New Zealand, where he has taken 48 wickets at a strike rate of 50.4 balls per wicket. In overseas Tests he has 54 wickets in 18 matches at an average of 30.90.1094 Angelo Mathews’ aggregate in Tests in 2014. He has scored those runs in 19 innings, at an average of 78.14, with two hundreds and seven fifties.108 Lahiru Thirimanne’s aggregate in nine Test innings in 2014, at an average of 12. His highest this year is 38.84 The opening partnership so far between Dimuth Karunaratne and Kaushal Silva in Sri Lanka’s second innings. Only once have Sri Lanka added more runs for the first wicket when following on: against West Indies in Galle in 2010 when Tharanga Paranavitana and Tillakaratne Dilshan added 102 in a drawn game.2 The number of times in Test history that the opening partnership in the follow-on innings has exceeded a team’s first-innings total. Against West Indies in Barbados in 1958, Pakistan’s opening partnership added 152 in their second innings after they had been bowled out for 106 in the first; in 1924 at Edgbaston, South Africa’s opening wicket added 54 when following on after being bowled out for 30 in their first innings. Pakistan saved the Barbados Test, but South Africa lost by an innings and 18 runs. Sri Lanka’s opening pair is currently 55 runs from overtaking their first-innings total.

Stats highlights from an enthralling game in Dunedin, where Afghanistan notched up their first World Cup win, and Scotland their 11th defeat

S Rajesh26-Feb-20155 one-wicket wins in World Cup games. There were none in 2011, two in 2007, and one each in 1987 and 1975.96 Samiullah Shenwari’s score, his highest in ODIs, and his ninth 50-plus score. It’s also Afghanistan’s highest in the World Cup, and their third 50-plus score in the tournament.147 Balls faced by Shenwari in his innings, the most by an Afghanistan batsman in ODIs. The previous best for them was 143, by Usman Ghani, who made 118 against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo in 2014.122 Runs put together for the ninth wicket in the match – for Scotland, Majid Haq and Alasdair Evans added 62, while Afghanistan responded with a 60-run stand between Shenwari and Hamid Hassan. It’s the second-highest in a World Cup match, next only the 1983 game between India and Zimbabwe, when Kapil Dev and Syed Kirmani added 126 undefeated runs for the ninth, and Zimbabwe’s Kevin Curran and Peter Rawson added 41 to that. The Afghanistan-Scotland game, though, is the only one where the ninth-wicket pairs of both teams have added more than 50.11 World Cup games for Scotland without a win. Afghanistan have got their maiden victory in their third World Cup game.1 Time, in 11 World Cup games, that Scotland have topped 200 with the bat. This was the first such instance. Their previous best was 186 against South Africa in the 2007 World Cup. (Click here for Scotland’s scores in their 11 World Cup games.)14.19 Scotland’s batting average in their 11 World Cup games. It’s the lowest among all teams which have played at least 10 matches in World Cups.62 The partnership between Evans and Haq, Scotland’s highest for the ninth wicket in all ODIs. Their previous best was 48.4 for 38 Shapoor Zadran’s figures in the match. It’s only the second time he has taken four or more wickets in 33 ODIs – his best figures are 4 for 24, against Netherlands in 2009. It’s the first haul of more than two wickets for Zadran in 18 innings.

A look back at the Australia-Sri Lanka encounters in World Cups

Daniel Brettig07-Mar-20158:14

Men of the Finals: Aravinda de Silva

When pondering the most storied opponents at the 2015 World Cup, a few spring instantly to mind – India v Pakistan, Australia v South Africa, England against practically anybody. But a compelling case can be made for Australia and Sri Lanka as the two most enduring combatants at the tournament, a classical battle between a cricketing behemoth and a more recently emergent force, a clash of cultures and of cricketing styles. The following five matches and their surrounding issues illustrate why, ahead of a meeting at the SCG that will define who finishes second in Group A and thus gains the more favourable draw – in Australia’s case a home semi-final may be at stake.1975
Their first meeting, on June 11 at The Oval, showed Sri Lanka to be unexpectedly doughty opposition and Australia not shy in using any means necessary to assert authority. On a typically flat pitch south of the Thames, Alan Turner’s lone ODI century set Ian Chappell’s team on the path to a handsome 328 for 5 from their allotted 60 overs. A similarly large score in the opening match had caused India’s infamous “go-slow” response at Lord’s, but on a track so friendly, the youthful Sri Lankan XI was soon taking unexpected liberties against anyone other than the fearfully fast Jeff Thomson. A platform of 150 for 2 had been set when a somewhat worried Chappell recalled Thomson to the crease, and with great hostility he prevented Duleep Mendis (struck in the forehead) and Sunil Wettimuny (struck in the ribs, the chest and the instep) from continuing their stand. Both batsmen retired hurt and Sri Lanka’s challenge petered out, but the memory of the day’s injuries lingered. “Next morning a policeman walked into my room,” Duleep told Ashley Mallett. “He held his bobby’s helmet under one arm and he asked, ‘Do you want to press charges against a Mr Jeff Thomson?'”1996
A match that wasn’t and then a match that was. Death threats conveyed by mail and by phone, then the explosion of a bomb in downtown Colombo in the weeks before the tournament were enough to cause Australia to pull out of their scheduled meeting with Sri Lanka at the start of the 1996 edition. The decision followed on from a fractious home summer in which Muttiah Muralitharan was called for throwing and a spiteful World Series finals series saw Glenn McGrath and Sanath Jayasuriya bump shoulders before the Sri Lankans refused to shake victorious Australian hands, citing poor sportsmanship. The abrasive Arjuna Ranatunga marshalled his men expertly on the subcontinent, and their surprisingly smooth progress to the World Cup final meant another meeting with Mark Taylor’s men in Lahore. Taylor would have batted, and was not perturbed when Rantunga sent his men in. But after a fast start they were bogged down by a slowing surface, then thick dew aided Sri Lanka as Aravinda de Silva mounted a masterful chase. Shane Warne was neutralised as Ranatunga had confidently predicted, and the Australians reeled at a most unexpected defeat. Warne remains irritated by the memory to this day.2003
If the record books show an Australian stroll to the 2003 World Cup final, undefeated, then those present can remember how deep they had dig to win a trio of matches on a sluggish surface at Port Elizabeth to defeat New Zealand, England and finally Sri Lanka in the semi-final. This was the match in which Adam Gilchrist walked after it appeared Rudi Koertzen would reprieve him, and Australia’s struggle to establish a bridgehead was illustrated by the fact only Andrew Symonds passed 50 in an innings that would tally a mere 212 for 7. Sri Lanka had reason to be confident, particularly given a surface more Galle than Gabba. But Ricky Ponting’s side knew their ability to pull matches from the fire at this venue, and they duly did so again. Brett Lee bowled like the wind, Jayasuriya levered McGrath to Symonds, and the Sri Lankan chase was confounded by bowling of a uniformly high standard. India would not get even that close in the final.2007
If Gilchrist’s team-mates felt they owed him one for Port Elizabeth, he would repay them in spades at Kensington Oval in Barbados, delivering his last of many great and enduring innings in the final. A rain-delayed start limited Australia to 38 overs, but Gilchrist’s pyrotechnics – helped by a squash ball in the glove of his bottom hand to ensure he did not drag across the ball too much – left them with a total that would have looked substantial after 50. Coached by Tom Moody, the Sri Lankans were unable to stem the flow, and while their pursuit began brightly enough thanks to Jayasuriya and Kumar Sangakkara, momentum was sapped by the timely interventions of Michael Clarke and Brad Hogg. The match ended in a comical conclusion based upon the match officials’ fundamental misunderstanding of their own rain regulations, and some members of the Cricket Australia entourage were said to have left Kensington Oval early to enjoy the comforts of James Packer’s boat moored offshore.2011
To say Sri Lanka have not beaten Australia at a World Cup since 1996 is to state a fact but also to miss some significant detail. Their 2011 group encounter in Colombo was to be a critical one, deciding principally who would avoid the co-hosts and favourites India in the quarter-finals. Sri Lanka had the benefit of a surface that appeared made to their orders – Ricky Ponting spoke disdainfully of a pitch that was “basically rolled mud” – and they were making smooth enough progress at 146 for 3 in the 33rd over when the rain set in. Quoth Ponting: “I think it might have been a pretty good game of cricket… they had batted pretty well and it would have been a difficult run chase considering the way the wicket was playing. I think it would have been a decent game of cricket. I’m disappointed for the crowd more than anything today.” Since then, Sri Lanka have been partly responsible for the appointment of Darren Lehmann as coach – sealing Australia’s elimination from the 2013 Champions Trophy and thus Mickey Arthur’s tenure. Sunday may provide another pivot point for both teams.

Plays of the Day from the second ODI between Bangladesh and Pakistan in Mirpur

Mohammad Isam in Mirpur19-Apr-2015The calmer celebration
All eyes were on Tamim Iqbal when he reached the 90s, to see how he would celebrate this hundred. The moment he clipped Junaid Khan through fine leg, he went running towards the dressing room. This time there was no anger, just joy. He swung his arm around five times and punched the air. Sixth ODI hundred in the bag, he just soaked up the applause.The chant
Mashrafe Mortaza threw the ball towards Rubel Hossain at the end of the seventh over, which brought a loud cheer from a half-filled Shere Bangla National Stadium. The in-house DJ didn’t need to announce Rubel’s name, but he did, and the crowd cheered again. A few seconds later the uncovered eastern gallery started a chant. It was the name of the actress with whom Rubel was embroiled in a controversy before the World Cup.The cry rolled around the whole ground until Rubel got to the top of his mark after a couple of swings of the arm. He bowled slightly outside off stump, Sarfraz Ahmed edged it and Soumya Sarkar at slip obliged. Curiously but thankfully, the chant didn’t start again.The connection
Haris Sohail was at the crease for 30 overs but hardly connected a ball with full satisfaction. Both his boundary hits, however, were drilled past and over the bowler. The first was through mid-off off his 12th delivery, but he crawled back into his shell. Finally off his 56th ball, Sohail bludgeoned Shakib Al Hasan over his head for a six. The hit was clean, went high and higher, hitting the sightscreen.The relief
Saeed Ajmal hadn’t played international cricket for more than seven months. He made his comeback in the first ODI but went wicketless and was carted for 74 in ten overs.The attack kept going after Tamim hit him for three successive fours in his first over of this game. In his fourth over, Ajmal finally got his first wicket when Mahmudullah missed a slog sweep. There wasn’t much of a celebration but there was relief written on Ajmal’s face.The trademark
Mushfiqur Rahim going down on one knee to a spinner and slogging towards midwicket has become his trademark. He has hit through that region plenty of times in the last four years, most famously against West Indies on his captaincy debut in 2011 when it brought Bangladesh a victory off the penultimate ball.In the last game he struck two sixes and three fours with the shot and the moment he middled one off Saeed Ajmal in the 19th over, there was only going to be one result: a six.

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Apr-2015Piyush Chawla broke the 42-run opening stand by dismissing McCullum for 19•BCCIAndre Russell then removed Suresh Raina for 17 to leave Super Kings at 67 for 3 in the 10 over•BCCIKnight Riders bowlers maintained the pressure by removing MS Dhoni and Dwayne Bravo to leave Super Kings at 88 for 5 after 13 overs•BCCIFaf du Plessis was Super Kings’ top-scorer with a run-a-ball 29, as they ended up with 134 for 6•BCCIRobin Uthappa got Knight Riders’ chase off to a blistering start, slamming Ishwar Pandey and Mohit Sharma for 11 and 13 runs in the third and fourth overs•BCCIR Ashwin gave away just five runs in his two overs and picked the key wickets of Uthappa and Manish Pandey, leaving Knight Riders at 64 for 3 in eight overs•BCCIWith 14 runs required from the final over, Bravo conceded only 12 against Ryan ten Doeschate to seal a two-run victory•BCCI

Second-string or not, India’s visit will fill stadiums and that is simply the start of a pleasantly fuller season

Liam Brickhill08-Jul-2015Though the country lies wholly within the tropics, Zimbabwe’s seasons are marked by profound changes in scenery. By mid-June, the verdant green overgrowth of the highveld summer has withered to a tawny brown where the vegetation remains. The smell of woodsmoke from hearth-warming fires pervades the evenings even as temperatures plummet with the setting sun. Yet in the centre of Harare there is a remnant of summer. An oval emerald oasis. Harare Sports Club.Cricket is, arguably, far more suitably played in winter in Zimbabwe. Summer days are punctuated by massive electrical thunderstorms, which usually arrive at 4pm on the dot and rain disruptions are also frequent. In winter, as much as the nights are decidedly frigid, days are characterised by the virtual certainty of cloudless blue skies. Provided you can finish a game by 5pm, it’s perfect cricket weather.This fact certainly hasn’t been lost on Zimbabwe: Sri Lanka, India, South Africa and Australia have all been hosted in mid-winter. Indeed, with little else going on, Hararian winters would seem decidedly empty without a little cricket to look forward to. Second-string side or not, India’s visit is an event and big crowds can be expected on Friday afternoon, Sunday and at the T20s. The fixtures are also pleasing for a Zimbabwean side which has struggled to attract touring teams, and struggled to cover the costs of those who did visit in recent years.Zimbabwe might even be in with a shout to win a couple of games, though as coach Dav Whatmore pointed out, this adds an extra element of pressure to proceedings. “[India] are a great team, but then they’ve changed their group [for this tour],” he said. “And it’s almost like a different pressure now: that you’re expected to do well. If you win, people might say they’re only a second rate team, and if you lose it’s ‘bloody hell you can’t even beat a second rate team’. It’s a little bit tricky.”

When you think about what we had just a few months ago with Solomon Mire, Elton Chigumbura, and now Chamu Chibhabha also showing good progress, I think we’re the envy of a few to be honestZimbabwe coach Dav Whatmore

Whatmore has been with Zimbabwe since before the World Cup in Australia, after which he had to weather the departure of Brendan Taylor, Zimbabwe’s best batsman in a generation. Yet they did alright without Taylor on their historic trip to Pakistan: both Elton Chigumbura and Sikandar Raza made centuries, while Hamilton Masakadza struck the ball with his usual vim and Sean Williams’ batting was predictably energetic. Zimbabwe were also greeted by the warmest welcome and the biggest, noisiest crowds they’ve ever played in front of.”With Pakistan not having played for six years, there were just huge crowds,” Whatmore said. “What we saw was real emotion. Every Pakistani was singing their anthem. It was really powerful, moving stuff.”The weather was really hot, conditions were tough for bowlers. And we know that our attack has been one area of our game that we need to improve on. Fielding and fitness is the other. The batting has been terrific, and we continued to show improvement in that area in Pakistan. Mind you, one area we really improved on was our extras, which does make a difference. It was like an average of two a game. Perfect. Little things like that make a difference.”With so many inexperienced faces in India’s squad, the visitors will also be looking to work on those little things and gain some experience. Indeed, they tackle some of the same issues Zimbabwe do: if India win, it’s only against Zimbabwe, but a series defeat will only add to depressed morale after the losses to Bangladesh last month.Stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane repeated the refrain that’s used whenever anyone, anywhere is playing Zimbabwe – that they’re not opposition to be taken lightly – and also suggested that he’d learned a great deal under MS Dhoni but would also use the chance to test out some of his own ideas about captaincy.The series will certainly not be without its challenges for Rahane, with Zimbabwe’s squad ahead in terms of one-day international experience. Winter cricket also suits Zimbabwe’s strengths. The feeling within the team is that their seam attack might not be able to match India’s on a green track, but that dry pitches that will play slow and low could even things out and make spin more important.”We’re pretty lucky that two of our batsmen in the top six [Raza and Williams] are both spinners,” Whatmore said. “Wonderful. And then the legspinner Graeme Cremer, I think most teams around the world would love that. And then when you think about what we had just a few months ago with Solomon Mire, Elton Chigumbura, and now Chamu Chibhabha also showing good progress, I think we’re the envy of a few to be honest. They might not have the experience, but bloody hell, I think there’s about eight or nine who can bowl in an ODI, and that’s a good position to be in.”The real work, insists Whatmore, will be for Zimbabwe to get their heads straight and iron out the mental side of their game. “The hardware is there, you’ve seen it, it’s the software that they’ve got to work on. Keep their heads, execute. Skillset is important, but so’s mindset and that’s what we’re hoping to improve upon. I don’t care if you get hit for four or six, I don’t care if you mis-hit and get caught, you make a decision and you execute it to the best of your ability. If you make a wrong decision then fine, we can improve that, but if you can’t make a decision with 100% commitment, then that’s worse.”The absence of money worries, which have for some time been a perennial problem, will help to clear Zimbabwe’s heads, and they can also look forward to the prospect of plenty of cricket coming up: New Zealand arrive in August. West Indies, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan may be on the docket too. So for Zimbabwe, a winter of contentment could well lead to a summer of plenty.