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And who played the most Tests without ever bowling?

Steven Lynch16-Aug-2022I was sorry to read that Trent Boult was winding down his international career. Has any other left-arm bowler taken more international wickets, apart, perhaps, from Wasim Akram? asked Bruce McKenzie from New Zealand
You’re right in thinking that Wasim Akram leads the way: he took no fewer than 916 wickets in international cricket – 414 in Tests and 502 in ODIs. Trent Boult currently sits in seventh place among left-armers with 549, but might yet move up, as he is still expected to appear in some formats. Boult currently has 317 wickets in Tests, 169 in ODIs and 63 in T20s. The other seamers ahead of him are Chaminda Vaas (761), Zaheer Khan (610) and Mitchell Johnson (590), while spinners Daniel Vettori (705) and Shakib Al Hasan (631) are also in front. Mitchell Starc is currently only four behind Boult, with 545.Who had the most innings in Tests, having been bowled in all his visits to the crease? How about the other modes of dismissal? asked Andrew Browning from England
Only one man has been out bowled in each of the five times he was out in Tests – the Nottinghamshire offspinner Sam Staples, who played three Tests in South Africa in 1927-28. Nine people have been out twice in Tests and lbw both times; no one managed three. But Reginald Hands played one Test for South Africa, against England in Port Elizabeth (now Gqerbha) in 1913-14, and was stumped in both innings. The unfortunate Hands was killed in the First World War; a tribute to him, instigated by his father, led indirectly to the tradition of two minutes’ silence to honour someone’s passing.The record-holder in this particular regard is the Sri Lankan spinner Milinda Siriwardana, who had nine innings in his five Tests, and was out caught in all of them.England Lions racked up 672 against South Africans last week. What’s the highest total against a touring team in England outside a Test match? asked Gerry Latimer from England
England Lions did indeed score 672 in their innings defeat of South Africans in Canterbury last week, but it won’t make it on to any records list as it was not a first-class match (both sides chose from more than 11 players). But for this irritation, it would have come in a close second: Harlequins (whose cap would soon be made famous by Douglas Jardine) amassed 676 for 8 declared against West Indians in Eastbourne in 1928. This was something of a recovery from 162 for 5: Kent amateur John Knott hit an unbeaten 261, while Nos. 7 and 8, Reginald Bettington and John Evans, both passed 120. The record by a county is Surrey’s 645 for 9 declared against the New Zealanders at The Oval in 1949, when Jack Parker made a career-best 255.In Tests, England piled up 903 for 7 declared against Australia at The Oval in 1938 (Len Hutton 364), and 710 for 7 declared against India in Birmingham in 2011 (Andrew Strauss called a halt when Alastair Cook was out for 294).Wasim Akram has 916 international wickets, over 150 more than the next left-arm bowler on the list, Chaminda Vaas•Getty ImagesI believe that Eoin Morgan’s 17 sixes against Afghanistan is the record for a one-day international. But is it also the most in any one-day game? asked James Rowley from England
Eoin Morgan thrashed 17 sixes in his 148 from 71 balls for England against Afghanistan at Old Trafford during the 2019 World Cup. That broke the existing record of 16 sixes in an ODI innings, shared by Rohit Sharma, AB de Villiers and Chris Gayle.One other man has hit 17 sixes in an innings in List A (senior one-day) cricket: Gerrie Snyman, during his 196 for Namibia against the United Arab Emirates in Windhoek in 2007-08 (this was not an official one-day international). But one man is well clear of both of them: playing for Western Australia against Queensland in the Australian JLT One-Day Cup in Sydney in September 2018, Darcy Short launched no fewer than 23 sixes during his 257, the third-highest innings in any List A game, and the highest in Australia.Who played the most Tests without ever bowling? asked Abhishek Kunjal from India
It’s probably not a great surprise to find a wicketkeeper on top of this list: Ian Healy played 119 Tests for Australia and never got on to bowl. But the men in second and third spots were outfielders: New Zealand’s Stephen Fleming played 111 Tests without ever bowling, and Andrew Strauss 100 for England. Healy’s successor, Adam Gilchrist, comes next with 96 Tests, ahead of the England wicketkeepers Alan Knott (95) and Godfrey Evans (91). Then comes Jonny Bairstow, who has played 87 Tests so far (49 as the designated keeper) without being given a bowling spell.The record-holder in ODIs is Kumar Sangakkara (404 matches). The top non-keeper is a tie between Herschelle Gibbs and Eoin Morgan, who both played 248 matches without bowling. Morgan is also top in men’s T20Is with 115, although for the women Alyssa Healy has so far played 132 for Australia, and Tammy Beaumont 99 for England.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

With Chandrakant Pandit as their new coach, Knight Riders could well make some out-of-the-box buys from the Indian domestic circuit

Ekanth19-Dec-2022Who they’ve got
Kolkata Knight Riders were very active ahead of retention day, letting go of a bunch of players, and trading in Shardul Thakur, Lockie Ferguson and Rahmanullah Gurbaz. They currently have a 14-man squad, with four pace and two spin options in the bowling department. They have reliable first-choice top-order batters too. But there are a lot of gaps to fill and not a lot of money in their pockets.Follow the 2023 IPL auction LIVE

You can watch the auction live in India on Star Sports, and follow live analysis with Tom Moody, Ian Bishop, Wasim Jaffer and Stuart Binny right here on ESPNcricinfo.

Current squad: Shreyas Iyer (capt.), Shardul Thakur, Lockie Ferguson, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Venkatesh Iyer, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Tim Southee, Nitish Rana, Harshit Rana, Anukul Roy, Rinku Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Umesh YadavWhat they have to play with
Knight Riders have the smallest purse among the ten teams – INR 7.05 crore (USD 850,000 approx.) – and a maximum of 11 slots to fill, three of which could be overseas players.What they need
An adaptable Indian opening batter to, possibly, partner Gurbaz, and either tee off or set the platform based on the team’s requirement. Venkatesh Iyer has been retained, but a back-up option would help. A death-bowling specialist, along with a back-up option given Andre Russell’s history with injuries and fluctuating form with the ball. An Indian batter who can also be a wicketkeeping option, a floater in the batting order, especially seeing that Sheldon Jackson and B Indrajith have been released and Sam Billings has opted out. Back-ups for some of the first-choice players – finding options for all first XI picks might be tricky seeing their small purse.The likely targets
Phil Salt is an attacking option at the top of the order, and KKR could possibly buy him at a low cost.They might have an eye on N Jagadeesan and Mayank Agarwal, but both of them are likely to interest many other teams, and all of them have more money than Knight Riders.David Wiese could join Russell to bolster both power-hitting and death-bowling departments.Knight Riders might look at little-known, uncapped Indian players, partly because they don’t have a lot of money, and partly because their new coach, Chandrakant Pandit, knows everything there is to know about the Indian domestic circuit.

Harmanpreet Kaur to lead, Meg Lanning, Nat Sciver-Brunt, Hayley Matthews make the cut

S Sudarshanan27-Mar-2023
Hayley Matthews – Mumbai Indians
Her player-of-the-series outing in the inaugural WPL makes Matthews an overwhelming pick. She went unsold in the first round of the auction, eventually being picked up in the accelerated rounds. On the ground, she made an immediate impact, kicking off the WPL with a six and then never looking back. She was also effective with the ball, picking up 16 wickets in ten innings and also the Purple cap.Related

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Yastika Bhatia (wk) – Mumbai Indians
Even if she didn’t always convert her starts into big scores, Bhatia’s fluency at the top of the order helped Mumbai get off the blocks quickly. In fact, Bhatia’s 214 runs are the most in the WPL without a single half-century. She was a safe wicketkeeper and one of the few who contributed well with the bat.Meg Lanning – Delhi Capitals
Lanning carried Capitals’ batting though the tournament, scoring runs in almost every game. She finished as the leading run-getter in the WPL and looked on course in the title-clash too. She continued to middle the ball in the final despite Capitals losing regular wickets – her back-to-back fours off Nat Sciver-Brunt in the third over were all class. Lanning and Shafali Verma’s opening combination was an enviable one in the WPL.Nat Sciver-Brunt – Mumbai Indians
Cometh the big game, cometh the big name. Sciver-Brunt showed why she caused a bidding war in the auction. She occupied a crucial No. 3 spot in the batting order and owned the space, being as comfortable against spin as she was against seam. With the ball, she bowled the second-most deliveries – 114 – in the first six overs and had an economy rate of 5.63. Sciver-Brunt’s unbeaten 38-ball 72 in the Eliminator helped Mumbai romp into the final, where she anchored the chase and saw the team through, remaining unbeaten on 60.ESPNcricinfo LtdHarmanpreet Kaur (capt) – Mumbai Indians
Harmanpreet longed for the winning feeling and ensured she got it by being consistent with the bat. She got the WPL off to a flying start with 65 off just 30 balls against Gujarat Giants, and finished the season as fourth-highest run-getter. Harmanpreet led Mumbai with aplomb, ringing in changes and using the resources at her disposal optimally. In the final, she came in to bat in a tricky situation and calmly defused it with a 72-run partnership for the third wicket with Sciver-Brunt. She only fell with the win almost assured.Dayalan Hemalatha – Gujarat Giants
One of the few bright spots for Gujarat Giants, Hemalatha only enhanced her credentials as a finisher, something she has done quite frequently for Railways in the domestic circuit. Her strike rate of 157.29 for Giants was only second to Sophia Dunkley’s.Shreyanka Patil – Royal Challengers Bangalore
Royal Challengers Bangalore had a disappointing campaign overall, but Patil’s outings with both bat and ball were attention-grabbing. She started the tournament with a crisp pull shot and then showed her wares with the ball, particularly at the death. Patil was unflinching in the face of mounting attacks and can be looked at as a long-term player for Royal Challengers.Shikha Pandey impressed across all three facets of the game•BCCIShikha Pandey – Delhi Capitals
Pandey had a terrific all-round WPL. She finished with the third-most wickets among all pacers in the WPL, threw herself around in the field, and her cameos with the bat often gave Capitals useful impetus from the lower order, not least in the final. India’s captain Harmanpreet also made note of Pandey’s efforts and said, “Shikha was bowling brilliantly throughout the tournament. And today [in the final] when the team needed her batting, she took time and then executed it brilliantly.”Issy Wong – Mumbai Indians
Wong started the tournament with a first-ball six and also picked up the first hat-trick in the WPL. She used her pace and generated enough movement to get the better of the batters and also smartly used change-ups. Wong’s energy on the field often drew wild cheers from the crowd.Parshavi Chopra – UP Warriorz
Chopra had a limited role but left a lasting impact. Her figures of 0 for 35 in her first WPL outing against Mumbai didn’t do justice to the way she bowled. Against Giants, she truly showed her worth, using the wrong’un to dismiss both Hemalatha and Ashleigh Gardner. Part of a team that pushed Indian players to the forefront, Chopra sure grabbed her chances.Saika Ishaque – Mumbai Indians
Ishaque is perhaps the find of WPL 2023. A regular in the domestic circuit for Bengal, her disciplined left-arm spin by attacking the stumps got her rewards in the first half of the competition. After being a bit expensive in a couple of games in the second half, she held her own in both the Eliminator and the final, despite not having a truckload of wickets to show in them.

He has the smarts, maturity and stroke-play to fill up a spot that was occupied by two greats for almost three decades

Shashank Kishore24-Jun-20232:22

Has Cheteshwar Pujara played his last Test?

The winds of change are here.For a better part of the last 28 years, India have had two rocks at No. 3 in Test cricket – Rahul Dravid and Cheteshwar Pujara, who played 267 Tests between them. Their style of play is a throwback to classical ways: mind over matter, technique and hard grind over flamboyance, and crease occupation as important as runs on the board.They made a single look sexy. Think back to Sydney 2008 or Jo’burg 2018, when they elicited wild applause from the crowd for scoring a run after a succession of dots and leaves. They had that effect on you. Leaving the ball was like muscle memory, a sound defensive game their USP. It’s this layer to their game that brought them a combined 20,483 Test runs and 55 centuries.Related

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Now, with Pujara left out for the start of India’s new WTC cycle, beginning with the two-Test tour of the Caribbean in July, India have three batters to choose from to replace him. Among them, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal have earned maiden call-ups. Then there is Shubman Gill, currently an all-format opener.Irrespective of who they pick, one thing is certain: unlike previously, India will be picking a T20 superstar to fill up one of the most critical batting positions. For now, most indications are that a newcomer will be allowed to ease into the role and it’s likely to be Jaiswal, the 21-year-old from Mumbai who has built a solid body of work for the past three seasons.On the face of it, it’s easy to assume Jaiswal is an IPL pick. No uncapped batter has scored more in a single season than the 625 runs he made in 2023, including the tournament’s fastest fifty, off just 13 balls. He pulls and hooks some of the most fearsome fast bowlers for fun. He mimics Jos [Buttler] ‘s scoops and ramps at training and spends hours off the field talking T20 batting with him.Those who know Jaiswal vouch for that inquisitive nature being a reflection of his personality. A go-getter who constantly seeks help in refining himself. “I realised only if you ask for help, you will get it and when there are so many people willing to, you have to make that effort as a youngster,” he told ESPNcricinfo last year. “Later I realised, it wasn’t just my T20 batting that improved. My English got better too.”Earlier this month, Jaiswal was part of India’s WTC contingent for the final as a reserve player after Gaikwad opted out. And after losing the final, when Rohit Sharma touched upon playing a certain “brand of cricket” and how they needed to find those who have done well in domestic cricket, it was as much hint as one could have that the transition phase was about to get kickstarted into motion.Yashasvi Jaiswal has an impressive first-class record, with 1845 runs from 26 innings•ICC via Getty ImagesThis brings us to Jaiswal’s selection. His record in first-class cricket makes for impressive reading: 1845 runs in 26 innings at an average of 80.21. He has converted nine of his 11 half-centuries into three figures. That’s a peek into his insatiable hunger for runs. It’s the kind of hunger that once had him sleeping in tents as a newcomer to Mumbai; it made him realise if someone made 100, he perhaps needed 200 to get noticed.But without for a moment romanticising this “struggle” those from Mumbai often speak of, it’s impressive enough that Jaiswal has managed to carve an identity for himself over the past year alone. Let’s be clear: Jaiswal is unlikely to be your stonewaller; a first-class strike rate of nearly 70 tells you he’ll be anything but that. Jaiswal has developed into a free-stroking batter without compromising on his technique.It’s an uncomplicated approach. There are no exaggerated trigger movements apart from a tap, and brief back-and-across movement for balance that allows him to easily transfer weight forward or back. Jaiswal almost always meets the ball with his eyes right over. And fluid footwork against the short ball allows him to ride the bounce and look increasingly comfortable while tucking deliveries safely into the square.What sets him apart though is the capability to hit similar deliveries into the long leg fence by getting inside the line. With Jaiswal, there’s no one method. His ever-evolving game is a series of minor tweaks made over time. Yet, he can be stodgy when you need him to be. Like in the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal last June against a decent Uttar Pradesh attack.Playing in only his third first-class game ever, Jaiswal was dropped twice, on 33 and 37. The first was a lazy swish at a fifth-stump line delivery that had him nicking. Then he flashed one to gully where a tough chance was put down. From beyond the ropes, Mumbai coach Amol Muzumdar sent a clear, but stern message. “You have two options: get a single, watch the next 15 minutes from the non-striker’s end or don’t play any shots even if the ball is there to.”For the remainder of the day, Jaiswal embodied composure and walked back after batting for 353 minutes and getting to a century, his second in first-class cricket, to a polite but satisfied “sir, I followed your instructions” note to his coach.It underlines Jaiswal’s maturity, which for someone just 21 is refreshing. As such, the prospect of filling a position occupied by two greats for close to three decades can be daunting. Jaiswal, though, is equipped to not be burdened by that and embrace sterner challenges that will come his way.

He was a magnificent cricketer who battled hard on the field and refused to play the political game

Mark Nicholas07-Sep-2023At the start of the 1995 English summer, my last in first-class cricket after 18 years with Hampshire, we were engaged in a pre-season “friendly” with Sussex. Stationed at cover-point was our newly recruited overseas player: thick-set and strong, with a deceptive turn of speed, and the most wonderful eye for the ball.The Sussex opening batter cut hard to an area just behind point for what appeared to be a certain boundary off the first ball of the match. The fielder, who was naturally right-handed, threw himself to his left just as a goalkeeper might, and the ball smacked into the palm of his left hand. In one movement he rolled his body 180 degrees, sprung upright like a big cat threatened, and with the ball now cleverly transferred to his right hand, he took aim. The throw was wizard, flat and screaming, and hit one stump flush with the sound of perfect contact echoing around the small and empty ground. It was a breathtaking moment.That man was Heath Streak. It was with the heaviest heart that I read earlier this week of his passing aged just 49. I knew little of the cancer or of his new life but I knew him well back then and did not meet a better man. Modest and quietly spoken, his simple life as farmer, hunter and cricketer had become a complex one of leadership, politics and punishment. He kept sanity through wonderful parents, an extraordinary wife and lively children. He lost some battles but the hardest for any of those loved ones to take was the last one.I first met him as a boy who played cricket in the bush with the kids whose parents worked the family farm. Denis, his father, briefly served time in prison for raging against Robert Mugabe’s land-reclaim initiative that took much of the Streak farm, a magnificent place in Matabeleland about 50 miles from Bulawayo. His mother, Shona, stayed calm and strong through the traumatic experiences of those bewildering days, and somehow the Streaks managed, with about a tenth of what they once had, to keep a few cattle and make a turn from a small safari park.Related

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On my various cricket tours and holidays to Zimbabwe, their hospitality knew no boundary. In 1990 with an England A team that included the likes of Michael Atherton and Graham Thorpe, we stayed a couple of nights to ride horses, swim, play tennis and barbecue. Denis was a good enough seam bowler to have played for Zimbabwe himself, and on one balmy afternoon, we set up stumps and took guard against a couple of Streaks, each of whom made us think and, occasionally, even duck and weave. As the sun set, beer was drunk and the fire burned, and we told stories in the evening shadows and laughed until the stars in the sky laughed with us.Streak junior was a magnificent cricketer, all power, wit and will. Hampshire lost the first three Championship games of the 1995 season, and while reviewing the roles of every player in the team, I urged Heath to drop the modesty and get us winning a few matches. He did, and how! We went on a splendid run, climbing the Championship table to near dizzying heights before settling on the right place for our talent pool at the time, somewhere around mid-table. He bowled a heavy ball fast-medium, swung it late and never gave an inch. He smashed it long but was rarely in for long enough to fully justify that keen eye. He fielded as if he were fighting a war.Of course, it was the war at home that did for him. Made captain of Zimbabwe, he refused to play the political game. Specifically and publicly, Streak objected to the quota system that demanded at least five black players in the national team. His refusal to toe the line cost him his job. Upon the announcement of his sacking (the board’s explanation was that he had resigned), 13 white players stood down from the Zimbabwe team. Streak later returned to the side, albeit briefly, before retiring at 31 years of age.In 65 Tests he took more than 200 wickets, bowling out England at Lord’s and Pakistan in Harare. In one-day cricket he scored 2000 runs and took 200 wickets – remarkable.Streak with a four-legged friend at his farm in 1996•Chris Turvey/PA Photos/Getty ImagesHaving taken over the captaincy of the weakest team in international cricket in 2000, he led them successfully, winning four in 21 Tests and 18 of 65 ODIs. “Our talisman who single-handedly won many games for us,” wrote Henry Olonga, the Zimbabwe seam bowler, in his autobiography.Distressingly, Streak became embroiled in controversy when found to have taken bitcoin for information provided to a potential corruptor. He emphatically denied match-fixing. Having played with him and come to understand the character and beliefs that drove him forward, such an act would seem impossible.In essence, he made a mistake and fell foul of the ICC’s anti-corruption code. From it came an unfairly long eight-year ban, but even that could not wither his desire to return to coaching when it was over.Perhaps the cancer within came from the stress of an always challenging life played out mainly against the odds. It is heartbreaking to think of what Heath had been through and how early he has gone. Cricket can wrap its arms around you or spit you out on the sidewalk of life.I cannot help but think of Denis and Shona, Nadine and the kids, these fabulous people and their loss. They know best that this was a man who gave everything to every moment of his time on earth and that Zimbabwean sport, cricket in general we can say, owes him a great debt.For Denis, at least, there is the tiniest consolation. In 1995-96, he and Heath played a first-class match for Matabeleland together. Not many a father and son can say that. Right now, we can only say goodbye to our African friend and wish him peace at last and for evermore.

India’s captain has just ten days to prepare for two home Tests after a gruelling WBBL campaign, having not played the format since 2021 or a home Test since 2014

Alex Malcolm22-Nov-2023How do you prepare for a home Test match when you have not done it for nearly a decade, and you have only done it once in a 14-year international career?That is the big challenge facing Harmanpreet Kaur. India’s captain has had a glittering international career, playing in 285 internationals, and has become a globetrotting superstar in leagues across the world – she is currently the only Indian player playing in the WBBL in Australia.Extraordinarily, though, Harmanpreet will play more home Tests in two weeks in December, against England and Australia in Mumbai, than she has in her previous 14 years at international level. The only home Test in her career came back in 2014 against South Africa where she took nine wickets in a huge innings victory. She has only played one Test match since then, full stop, in 2021 against England, and three Tests in her career overall.Related

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Making the task harder is the preparation. She won’t leave Australia until after Melbourne Renegades’ final game at the MCG against Melbourne Stars on Saturday night. She will then have just ten days to prepare for the start of the three-match T20I series against England that precedes the Test that starts on December 14.”The Test series is something which we are really looking forward to because I haven’t played in front of a home crowd [since 2014], so I’m really excited for that,” Harmanpreet told ESPNcricinfo. “The challenge for us is that we haven’t played with the red ball. We have been playing with the white ball for so many years, even in domestic cricket also we don’t have red-ball cricket back home. So the challenge for us is to make yourself ready in such a short time.”Harmanpreet’s Renegades team-mates are facing the same preparation pressures with England’s Tammy Beaumont and Australia’s Georgia Wareham both aiming to play in the respective Test matches against India with similarly compromised preparations. Although they have more recent Test experience, with Beaumont making a stunning double-century in the Ashes this year.There had been hopes from Australia’s standpoint that their bowlers would get some Test-match practice in during the WBBL in order to increase their loads. They actually trained with pink balls during the October ODI series against West Indies in anticipation of a day-night Test in India, but that was subsequently changed to a red-ball game.

“I had that thought if I can simultaneously do some red-ball practice also, but because it’s such a packed schedule you can’t mix things”Harmanpreet Kaur

But the WBBL schedule is so tightly packed with 14 games in six weeks and a huge travel burden, that it has been difficult to find time. Harmanpreet had grand designs on getting some red-ball practice in while in Australia, but the weekly grind of play, travel, play, travel with very little training in between has made that impossible to implement.”I had that thought if I can simultaneously do some red-ball practice also, but because it’s such a packed schedule you can’t mix things,” Harmanpreet said. “We’re playing T20 cricket and the Test game is a totally different kind of game, so I didn’t want to mix it. When I’m going back, I have ten days to prepare myself.”Harmanpreet missed India’s last Test against Australia on the Gold Coast in late 2021 because of a thumb injury. But she said she spent a lot of that match observing how the game unfolded to try and get a sense of how to play long-form cricket and how to lead her side tactically.”When I’m going back, I have ten days to prepare myself [for Test cricket]”•Getty ImagesBut in the short term, her focus is on finishing the season well with Renegades. It has been a disastrous tournament for a team that had high expectations coming into the WBBL off the back of recruiting three of the world’s most in-form players in Harmanpreet, Beaumont and Hayley Matthews. Renegades are anchored to the bottom of the table with just two wins from 12 games.However, they have a chance to finish the season well. Firstly, against Hobart Hurricanes at Bellerive Oval on Thursday, before finishing with the Melbourne Derby at the MCG on Saturday, which will be part of the WBBL’s stadium series. It is the first time the WBBL has held a standalone fixture at the MCG. There have been games there in the past, but they have been part of double-headers with men’s BBL matches.The Melbourne derby will be the first women’s game at the MCG since the historic 2020 T20 World Cup final, where Harmanpreet captained India against Australia. She said she was thrilled to get the chance to return to the venue and play there again.”It’s always an honour to play here at one of the best stadiums to play,” Harmanpreet said. “When we played the T20 World Cup final here, and before that in some games against Australia, it’s been always amazing. And now again this season we are getting the opportunity to play here and I’m really looking forward to that.”

Rohit Sharma has led inspiringly and with tactical skill. Stokes is aggressive but has a task on his hands

Ian Chappell24-Feb-2024Despite the absence from the India-England series of star players Virat Kohli and Mohammed Shami, very good cricketers KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja missing Tests through injury, and the resting of elite pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah, India are still a very good team.They’ve unearthed talented players in opener Yashasvi Jaiswal and middle-order batter Sarfaraz Khan. Shubman Gill is a skilful batter and more responsibility on his shoulders should eventually pay dividends.While the spin bowling has been in the capable hands of R Ashwin and Jadeja for a long time, the realisation that Kuldeep Yadav is a reliable wicket-taking option is a bonus for India.Related

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One area of concern is fast bowling and the future support for the crucial trio of Bumrah, Shami and the feisty Mohamed Siraj. However, debutant Akash Deep quickly answered some of those questions, producing some skiddy fast bowling with the new ball in the fourth Test.In the sudden shuffling of the Indian side after a prolonged period of selection stability, the leadership of Rohit Sharma is often overlooked. Rohit, in his quiet but efficient way, is a very different leader from the aggressive and highly visible Ben Stokes. His capable handling of the many changes to personnel and the tough loss of the first Test shows his resilience. He also produced a masterful century when the Indian team needed it, at the start of the third Test, to confirm he wasn’t a ceremonial captain.Rohit has a pedigree of leadership success and his reputation helped him guide a fluid Indian line-up in the right direction. Any failure in his leadership could easily have led this Indian team to faltering when the going got tough. Thanks to Rohit’s strength under fire, it is now England who look to Stokes to provide the leadership to ensure there isn’t a serious letdown after two consecutive Test losses, the second of which was a flogging. There is no doubt the elite skill of Bumrah and the talent of Jaiswal and the other inexperienced players India introduced to the team is helpful. However, it required the leadership guidance and the tactical nous of Rohit to ensure that a changing team retained belief in their cricket.His clever use of Kuldeep during the third Test in the absence of Ashwin was a masterstroke in turning a potential disaster to the team’s advantage. Rohit’s ability to remain unyielding and calculating after a depressing loss in the first Test has helped his side bounce back against a competitive English team.

The elite skill of Bumrah and the talent of Jaiswal and the other inexperienced players India have introduced is helpful. However, it required the leadership guidance and the tactical nous of Rohit Sharma to ensure that a changing team retained belief in their cricket.

The outstanding success of Jaiswal at the top of the order has been crucial to India’s new-look team finding success. Jaiswal will no doubt have down periods but he has the shots and all-round skill to be an overall success in any format. His tremendous success has been symptomatic of the evolution of the Indian team under Rohit.By meekly capitulating against spin in the second innings of their devastating loss in the third Test, England left themselves vulnerable to another trial by slow bowling in the fourth match. This became pretty obvious once talk of Bumrah being rested reached a crescendo.Part of the task for Stokes was convincing the batters – mainly Joe Root – to be more judicious if they must employ any “fancy” shots. Root was a mammoth and quick scorer batting traditionally and I’m not sure why he wanted to employ any premeditated and therefore risky shots. Whether he personally decided it or Stokes prompted some introspection, the talented batter returned to his roots to produce a telling century on an engaging first day, dragging England out of a perilous situation to ensure the visitors provided a challenging first-day total in Ranchi.Captaincy didn’t suit Root but sensible batting does.Whatever the result, England have displayed their resilience under Stokes and the ability to not fold like a tent after a debilitating loss. Ranchi is shaping as yet another highly competitive Test featuring two very good Test captains.

Their margin of victory has heaped pressure on England and given Richie Berrington’s team the chance of a famous progression

Vithushan Ehantharajah09-Jun-2024A lot of things can get sorted over a drink. A business deal, a second date – even an end to dating altogether. Over a couple of chugs of water and isotonic formula, Brandon McMullen and Matthew Cross decided to sort something among themselves. Why not blow this Group B wide open?It was during the drinks break after 10 overs of the chase, with Scotland just 41 away from overhauling Oman’s par score of 150 for 7, that the license for the kill officially came through from captain Richie Berrington. Granted, 60 runs had come from the four overs that followed the powerplay. But for the first time in the innings, the conversation out in the middle turned to the prospect of pumping up that net run rate.”The priority was to win and get the points, but at drinks we said, ‘we should get this done’,” revealed McMullen later. And how.Just 3.1 overs were needed to dust off what remained: 34 of them in boundaries, three of them sixes. McMullen finished on 61 not out, Cross unbeaten on 15. The wicketkeeper-batter even went as far as chastising himself for missing out on a cut shot off Ayaan Khan at the end of a 13th over that had already gone for 20 because it could have finished the job a ball earlier. Scotland even overshot their target by two, finishing on 153 for 3.That’s how serious they were about notching a statement win that now forms the backdrop of the next seven days. The column showing Scotland’s five points to put them top of Group B is now rivalled for relevance by the adjacent one reading “2.164”. Scotland’s NRR is currently 3.964 better than England’s – their likeliest challengers for a Super Eight spot – who can now only equal their points tally.The onus is on Jos Buttler’s men who will have to thrash Oman and Namibia in their next two games. And even that might not be enough. Enter the tantalising prospect of England rooting for Australia to inflict enough damage on Scotland in the final match of Group B to reduce the run-rate figure.The defending champions relying on favours from their enemy. Perhaps nothing sums up just how well Scotland have done in this World Cup more than that sentence right there.Comparisons are flimsy at this juncture, given skewed sample sizes (Scotland’s two-and-a-half matches to England’s one-and-a-half) and differing opponents. But there’s a serenity to Scotland that England are missing and might not find. A control of their own destiny. Heck, even something as simple as comfort. The kind that should come more naturally to three-time World Cup winners across formats than a team who usually arrive at ICC events having to qualify to be let in having already qualified to be let in.The first half of this match was by no means crisp. George Munsey dropped Pratik Athavale over the fence for six to take Oman batter to fifty. Cross missed the chance to stump Ayaan on 14, allowing him to bat through to the end, finishing unbeaten on 41.The chase should not have been as high as it was. And there were portents for awkwardness against a side that had Australia fretting. Scotland responded with 50 for 1 in the first six overs, their most productive powerplay yet. At that stage, Australia had only managed 37 for the loss of Travis Head against a combination of Bilal Khan, Kaleemullah and Mehran Khan.Much like Bridgetown, Antigua’s North Sound had itself a short boundary and an assisting breeze. Before McMullen and Cross utilised it for a quick finish, the early going was made straight and true or with the odd shuffle down the pitch to pierce the infield. Then Munsey dipped into his bag of sweeps once the fielding restrictions had been lifted – notably with back-to-back reverse swept sixes off opposition captain Aqib Ilyas – and the rest piled in.In a tournament that has largely played out on slower, grippier surfaces so far, Scotland’s malleable top six can lay claim to being the most in form, with the receipts to prove it. Munsey and Michael Jones started with an unbroken 90 against England. Berrington and Michael Leask stunned Namibia with an expertly rescued second innings, before McMullen – the team’s first half-centurion on this trip – and Cross did their bits here. All are striking above 130 through attacking whenever possible, buying into a broader team edict of aggression while encouraging batters to find their best ways of achieving that. McMullen’s wristy hockey strikes through a V of mid-on to forward square leg was a shining example of that.This is already shaping up as the best of Scotland’s nine appearances at global ICC events. It will be confirmed outright if they make it through to the next stage. Of course, they do not need to beat Australia on Sunday to do that. Losing in style works just as well. Not that they’re entertaining the latter. Why would they given how things have run for them thus far?”We’re just going to have to be the quickest team to adapt when we get there and assess out the conditions first,” said McMullen, reciting from a well-worn but effective playbook. “And then just go and play our brand of cricket.”It is hard to remember a time when Scotland had such a clear brand of cricket, so instep with modern trends and yet equally adaptable. It will face its strongest test next weekend. That glory sits on either side of the result is more a condition of their excellence than the whims of weather and scheduling. Most of all, it has been earned.

With India about to embark on a long Test season, a crowded list of fringe players will hope to catch the selectors’ eye during the Duleep Trophy

Shashank Kishore03-Sep-2024The Duleep Trophy, which opens India’s 2024-25 domestic season, is set to kick off on September 5 in Bengaluru and Anantapur, with a number of big names featuring. With the Test squad for the home series against Bangladesh set to be picked later this week, there’s an opportunity for those on the fringes to impress the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel as they look to shortlist players for India A tour of Australia in November, which shadows the senior team’s five-Test tour of the country.Here are a few things to look forward to.Who is the next reserve opener?Barring injury and illness, Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal are likely to be India’s first-choice opening combination for the moment. Shubman Gill currently occupies the No. 3 spot, while KL Rahul has expressed his preference to bat in the middle order. Both have opened in the past, however, and can slot back in at the top if temporarily needed.But there’s plenty at stake for the domestic openers on the fringes. On top of the list are Bengal’s Abhimanyu Easwaran and Karnataka’s Devdutt Padikkal, who made his debut against England earlier this year in Dharamsala, albeit in the middle order.Related

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Easwaran is largely old-school and copybook and has scored 7006 first-class runs at an average of 47.65 in a decade-long career so far. He’s been on tours with the national team previously and has led India A, but the Test cap has been elusive.Padikkal, meanwhile, started off as an opener but has carved a niche at No. 3 over the past year. But with R Samarth having left Karnataka, it’s likely Padikkal will be back at the top of the order for his state side. Padikkal scored 556 runs in six Ranji Trophy innings at 92.66 in 2023-24, including three hundreds. A strong follow-up to start 2024-25 will keep him in the mix.Another contender who has impressed the selection committee with his temperament is Tamil Nadu’s B Sai Sudharsan. While the left-hand batter plays at No. 3 or 4 for his state side, he is open to batting at the top. He began his ODI career with back-to-back half-centuries as an opener late last year in South Africa.Sudharsan will come into the Duleep Trophy fresh off a century for Surrey in the County Championship.A crowded list of middle-order candidatesThe Test series against England earlier this year featured a number of impressive performances from new faces in the middle order, particularly Sarfaraz Khan, who made three half-centuries in his first five Test innings, and Dhruv Jurel, who won the Player of the Match award with a pair of brilliant knocks in only his second Test. But they could find themselves crowded out by the imminent returns of Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant, who both missed the series. Rahul, who missed the last four Tests with injury, is likely to slot right back too.Is Sai Kishore ready for the step up to Test cricket?•PTI If all of them are fit, India could opt for a top seven of Rohit, Jaiswal, Gill, Kohli, Rahul, Pant and Ravindra Jadeja in the first Test against Bangladesh in Chennai. Jurel will likely be the reserve wicketkeeper, which leaves Sarfaraz and Shreyas Iyer – who was dropped after the first two Tests against England – in a fight to squeeze into the squad.All this adds extra spice to the opening-round Duleep fixtures. Apart from Sarfaraz, Jurel and Iyer, other middle-order candidates who could be in action include Rajat Patidar, who endured a difficult Test initiation against England, and B Indrajith, who has been knocking for a few seasons now. Earlier this year, after being left out of the Tamil Nadu squad initially, he was instrumental in the team’s stirring run to the semi-final. Across 111 first-class innings, he averages 53.85 with 16 hundreds.The search for India’s next set of spinnersFor more than a decade now, R Ashwin and Jadeja have been constants in the Test set-up. Over the past couple of years, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel have pushed themselves ahead of the chasing pack to establish themselves as the next spinners in line.Beneath the cream, there’s a healthy crop of upcoming left-arm spinners. R Sai Kishore, the highest wicket-taker of the 2023-24 Ranji season (53), and Saurabh Kumar are high up in the pecking order. But the selectors are also looking keenly at the old-school Manav Suthar from Rajasthan who finds himself in the NCA’s targeted pool of players.The 22-year-old Suthar has picked up 55 wickets over the past two Ranji seasons and has been part of the India Emerging (for the Asia Cup) and India A (against England Lions) squads.Yash Dayal is among the left-arm quicks jostling for the selectors’ attention•Manoj Bookanakere/KSCAAmong the offspinners, Washington Sundar is the frontrunner, having already shown his utility as an allrounder in his brief but impressive spell in the Test side in 2020-21. He’s made a splash in white-ball cricket more recently, having been named Player of the Series in the T20I series in Zimbabwe for his eight wickets in five games at an average of 11.62, and following that up with decent returns during the limited-overs tour of Sri Lanka. He’ll hope to translate that form into red-ball cricket.The other offspinner the selectors have been keen on looking at is Delhi’s Hrithik Shokeen. The 24-year-old is only two seasons old in first-class cricket and has so far picked up 30 wickets in 10 games at 33.93. He, like Washington, is more than useful with the bat as well, as he has shown with two fifties and an average of 32.16 so far in his first-class career. He has also been to the UK on an exchange program with Mumbai Indians.The fast-bowling reservesIndia’s search for a left-arm fast bowler post Zaheer Khan hasn’t yet yielded a long-term solution, at least in Test cricket. Arshdeep Singh is a T20I regular now, but his challenge is to show he can sustain the intensity of red-ball cricket: he has only played 16 first-class games so far, and averages 31.97. Khaleel Ahmed, who has endured a stop-start career thanks to injury, has also played very little first-class cricket: just 12 games in seven years, while averaging 35.00.These two are set to feature in the Duleep Trophy, as is Uttar Pradesh’s Yash Dayal, who can swing the new ball both ways and has impressed India’s team management with his skills. He has picked up 72 wickets in 23 first-class games at 29.26, and has come into the limelight on the back of a stellar IPL 2024 for Royal Challengers Bengaluru.Among right-arm quicks, the Bengal pair of Akash Deep and Mukesh Kumar will hope to build on their impressive Test initiations, while Avesh Khan, who has an excellent first-class record – 165 wickets in 43 games at 22.49 – will hope he can find a way to break into the Test side having been in and around the white-ball set-up for a while. Prasidh Krishna, meanwhile, is finally fit again after two years of run-ins with injuries either side of a lacklustre debut Test series in South Africa.With a long Test season about to begin, India will want to make sure they have the right back-ups in place for the lead Test trio of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj.