A round-up of the final round of Ranji Trophy matches from Group B on December 8, 2016

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Dec-2016Saurashtra opener Kishan Parmar, who was playing his second first-class match, struck his maiden century to revive his team from 130 for 5 to 234 for 5 against Delhi in Vadodara. Saurashtra closed the day with a lead of 89 runs.Seamer Navdeep Saini and offspinning allrounder Nitish Rana had done the damage with the ball, sharing four wickets between them. This came after Delhi’s lower order, led by Pradeep Sangwan’s 75 off 100 balls, opened up a first-innings lead of 145. Sangwan was briefly assisted by Manan Sharma (33) in a 62-run stand for the eighth wicket to frustrate Saurashtra. Kushang Patel, the new-ball bowler, picked up his third five-for in first-class cricket as Delhi were dismissed for 237 in 58.3 overs.Half-centuries from debutant Pavan Deshpande and opener R Samarth helped Karnataka gain the upper hand over Maharashtra in Mohali. Resuming on 67 for 1, Karnataka were ahead by 150 as they ended on 313 for 9, with the second-wicket stand of 101 between Kaunain Abbas (41) and Samarth (64) forming the bedrock of the innings. Deshpande then helped consolidate the lead with Stuart Binny and CM Gautam.Karnataka, who could have been down to 10 players after Maharashtra denied them a replacement for Manish Pandey, who was called-up to the India Test squad as a replacement for the injured Ajinkya Rahane, were handed a reprieve after Swapnil Gugale, the opposition captain, did a U-turn. David Mathias, the fast bowler, came in to bat at No. 7 but fell cheaply. Vinay Kumar, the Karnataka captain, struck an unbeaten 36 to all but knock Maharashtra, who need an outright win, out of contention.Left-arm seamer Tanvir Ul-Haq negated Vidarbha‘s advantage as Rajasthan, bowled out for 140, came storming back to dismiss their opponents for 116 in Greater Noida. Tanvir finished with career-best figures of 6 for 21 in 10.3 overs as the Vidarbha innings lasted just 41.3 overs after bad light delayed start of play by over an hour. Siddesh Wath, the wicketkeeper-batsman, playing his second first-class game, top-scored with 50. Rajasthan’s openers Manendar Singh and AV Gautam batted 11 overs to end on 10 without loss.

Melbourne Stars restricted Perth Scorchers to 7 for 134 before chasing it down with 16 balls to spare for a seven-wicket win

The Report by Geoff Lemon in Perth14-Jan-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMichael Beer led a strong bowling performance from the Melbourne Stars, who razed Perth Scorchers at their home venue•Getty Images

After so many run-fests in this year’s Big Bash League, including Chris Lynn’s fireworks and Hobart Hurricanes’ record run-chase, there was finally a day for the bowlers. No sooner had the Sydney Sixers been kept to 99 for 9 at the SCG than the Perth Scorchers staggered to 134 for 7 at their home ground in the west.Ben Hilfenhaus, Michael Beer and Scott Boland reduced the Scorchers to 4 for 13, which then became 5 for 34 when Marcus Stoinis had recent Test debutant Hilton Cartwright skying a top edge behind the wicket.Ashton Agar and Tim Bresnan piled on 51 unbeaten runs for the eighth wicket that lifted the Scorchers to a respectable total, but it provided few alarms for the visitors. Rob Quiney bashed 35 off 23 balls at the top of the order, Kevin Pietersen ran the middle with a steady-paced, unbeaten 44, and Stoinis produced the late hitting to finish it off. The Stars’ triumph followed up from their win at this venue last season, made it three in a row against Perth.Key performanceWestern Australia’s best-regarded export must be beer, thanks to the Little Creatures Brewery on the shorefront of Fremantle. But locals at the WACA must have been wishing their state’s authorities hadn’t sent a certain spinner back across to Melbourne alongside those kegs of golden ale.Former WA left-armer Beer basically ended the contest in the first-eighth of the game. He opened the bowling to tie down Shaun Marsh and Michael Klinger for three runs, leading to Klinger’s desperate pull shot against Ben Hilfenhaus that knocked down the stumps. Beer’s arm balls then nailed the in-form Ian Bell lbw for a golden duck, and Cameron Bancroft the same way, trying to sweep. The next over, he took a low catch at short fine leg off Boland to dismiss Marsh.A one-run over and a missed stumping later, Beer finished with four overs, two wickets, a dozen runs conceded, and thirty thousand former members of his home crowd looking askance at Scorchers coach Justin Langer.The middleIf Twenty20 cricket is a game played at high pace, it can also be over very quickly. With such a squeeze put on the top of the Scorchers innings, there were few places for this game to go. Andrew Tye coming out to bat after four overs of a T20 wasn’t quite Mitchell Johnson batting in the seventh over of a Test, as per Trent Bridge in 2015, but it was still an incongruous sight.Tye did respond to the challenge, clouting 42 off 33 balls in the middle order, including four to the rope and one over it. Johnson was there too, but only had to watch the bench as Agar and Bresnan got through unbeaten.The Scorchers were able to dismiss the dangerous Luke Wright and new Test star Peter Handscomb cheaply, but with Quiney and Pietersen scoring freely around them, those dismissals didn’t come early enough to produce any pressure. After all the thrilling finishes of recent weeks, you could allow the BBL a foregone conclusion.The cameoIf there was one thing fans of the longer game were looking forward to, it was Johnson versus Kevin Pietersen. The pair most famously clashed during the 2013-14 Ashes series in Australia, when Pietersen was England’s top-scorer across their 5-0 whitewash, before he was ejected from the side in an acrimonious parting of ways.Johnson may not be the terror that he was then, making the red ball leap off the pitch at speeds into the mid-150 kilometre-per-hour range. But he was still operating well into the 140s with the white ball on his adopted WACA deck, and wasted no time sending some short balls up into his rival’s ribcage.It didn’t overly bother Pietersen though, who got away with facing only three balls from Johnson initially, then three more in Johnson’s fourth over. The last of those wasn’t one Pietersen was keen on, after seeing Stoinis wear a fast delivery square in the box, but there was no choice but to take the euphemistically-named leg bye.Heavy traffic at the topThe Scorchers grabbed the top spot on the table by virtue of net run-rate after beating Brisbane Heat in their previous match, but are now vulnerable with both teams on eight points and Brisbane with an extra game in hand. The Sydney Sixers also have eight points, but like the Scorchers, only have one game to play, while the Stars have joined those three teams on eight, but, like Heat, have two games left.That means any of these sides could still make the top-two and host a home final, even at this late stage of the season. Mind you, any of the bottom-four sides could end up on eight points: Hurricanes and Sydney Thunder by winning one game, Strikers and Melbourne Renegades by winning their last two. The Sixers, especially, could be vulnerable on net run-rate if the Stars knock them in the last game of the regular season.

Beneath the shadow of Elephant Rock, England Lions produced the sort of under-par display that even an elephant would want to forget in a hurry

David Hopps in Kurunegala06-Mar-2017Sri Lanka A 187 for 6 (Jayasuriya 83) beat England Lions 184 (Bell-Drummond 51, Jayasuriya 5-35) by four wickets

ScorecardShehan Jayasuriya starred with bat and ball in a comfortable Sri Lanka victory•AFP

Beneath the shadow of Elephant Rock, England Lions produced the sort of under-par display that even an elephant would want to forget in a hurry. There are some Lions on this tour, batsmen and bowlers alike, who will hope the selectors also have an uncharacteristic attack of amnesia about the events of the past week as Sri Lanka A have taken an unassailable 3-0 lead in the series.Sri Lanka’s tormenter with bat and ball was Shehan Jayasuriya, stocky and bearded, whose offspin in his home country has only ever been regarded as serviceable, but who took 5 for 35 as the Lions managed 184 in a sub-standard batting display. Jayasuriya completed a thoroughly satisfying day with a doughty, run-a-ball 83. His follow-up was needed, too, Sri Lanka A’s sense of superiority being somewhat tarnished when they lost six wickets in overhauling an untaxing target with 13 overs to spare.To his credit, Jayasuriya has won a smattering of full caps over the past two years and he does have a habit of tormenting touring teams: he also took five wickets against the Australians at the P Sara stadium in July. Steve O’Keefe took five wickets in the same match and has done all right for himself since.Jayasuriya also caught the attention when he moved last season from Colombo to the less fashionable outstation club, Chilaw Marians, a fishing town on Sri Lanka’s north-west coast – although they play their games closer to the capital, near the airport. Nevertheless, players normally move in the opposite direction but, if Jayasuriya helps to build the status of cricket outside the main centres, it will be a thoroughly good thing. It proved a successful move: Chilaw finished second in the league and Jayasuriya scored 853 runs at 47, but even at club level his impact as a bowler was limited.For the second match in a row, therefore, England Lions fell to a slow bowler regarded as serviceable but rarely seen as a matchwinner. In the second match in Dambulla, the skipper, Milinda Siriwardana, another spin bowler of limited reputation, took four.Now it was Jayasuriya’s turn to prosper – two wickets held at slip, two at leg slip and, to begin the procession, Keaton Jennings slicing to long off as he never quite locked on to a slower, wider delivery. Throughout the tour, whether over four days or one, the captain has got a start then got out.Only Ben Duckett, who set up the innings with some brief, low-slung pillaging before he was yorked by Asitha Fernando, making room to drive, and Daniel Bell-Drummond, who provided a reflective half-century while wickets fell around him, could draw some satisfaction from this Lions batting display.Bell-Drummond has received intense tuition about playing spin bowling from Graham Thorpe and Andy Flower in Dubai in the past two winters, and he knocked the ball around contentedly, but even he will have been frustrated by his edged drive to slip the over after he reached fifty.The rest was a sorry affair. Jayasuriya took wickets in successive balls when he removed Tom Alsop, who cut a ball too close to him after ignoring a chance to cut earlier in the over, and Liam Livingstone for a duck. Livingstone’s first-baller as he deflected to leg slip came after three exhausting innings in little more than a week so at least he could get out of the sun for a while. Jeffrey Vandersay made a legspinner bounce to have Joe Clarke caught at slip before Jayasuriya returned at the media end to defeat Ben Foakes on the sweep and remove Sam Curran, beaten in the flight, at first slip.The Lions were purposeful in the field and, when Sri Lanka lost their third wicket at 95, in the 22nd over, they were actually worse off at the same stage. But Jayasuriya’s range grew with every over, finishing with a fusillade of blows against Curran and Livingstone before falling to a lofted off-drive in the manner of a man who felt the match was as good as won.That confidence might have wobbled briefly when England’s spinners, Ollie Rayner and Livingstone, then took a wicket apiece, but a decent crowd in a ground starved of top-level cricket were able to celebrate the finish they wanted.On three occasions, twice in Dambulla and now in Kurunegala, the Lions have been thoroughly outplayed on low, slow turners. England’s capitulation in India when they fell 4-0 in the Test series and were also beaten in both one-day formats, deepened concern about their slow-bowling resources.There are no easy remedies. A lack of top-class county spinners, it seems, has also naturally led to a generation of batsmen unpracticed in the art of playing slow bowling. The toss regulations introduced last season, which gave the visiting side first option to bowl, should help by controlling the reliance on green seamers, but it is a constant challenge to raise standards.With three matches gone, hindsight suggests that it might have been wise for Tom Westley to remain with the squad after his success in the four-day matches. The departure of Tom Curran to join England’s senior squad in the Caribbean was also unfortunate for the Lions because he was the seam bowler most adept at the change-ups so beneficial on such surfaces.With the series won, Sri Lanka will take the chance to blood many others in Colombo. Danushka Gunathilaka has already joined the senior squad which faces Bangladesh in the first Test in Galle on Tuesday. They arrive with tales of a Lions side struggling to compete.One English-born spinner is having a happy close-season, however. Mason Crane, the Hampshire legspinner, might conceivably have been on this trip, but instead he is playing Sydney grade cricket on an ECB Overseas Placement and receiving tuition from the former Australian leggie Stuart MacGill. With three seven-fors for Gordon to his name, he has been called into the New South Wales squad to face South Australia at the SCG and could become the first overseas player to represent NSW since Imran Khan in 1984.

Ramachandra Guha, one of the four members of the Committee of Administrators, has said the KSCA would insult the awardees if the state body boycotted the BCCI awards on March 8

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Mar-2017Ramachandra Guha, a member of the Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA), has appealed to the KSCA to reconsider its “ill-advised” decision to boycott the annual BCCI awards and the MAK Pataudi Memorial Lecture on Wednesday evening (March 8) in Bengaluru. Guha further said the state body would insult the awardees – present and past – by abstaining from the function.”You have thereby insulted the great cricketers who have won the award this year, including the Karnataka cricketer Shanta Rangaswamy, the first to get the woman’s award,” Guha wrote in an email addressed to KSCA president Sanjay Desai. “You have also insulted the awards themselves, and you have insulted all past awardees, including EAS Prasanna, GR Viswanath, BS Chandrasekhar, Syed Kirmani and all the greats from Karnataka that [KSCA secretary] Sudhakar Rao and you played with.”

KSCA member hits back at Guha

The KSCA, in a statement signed by managing committee member Ashok Raghavan, responded to Ramachandra Guha’s comments on the association’s awards boycott, tagging his comments “despicable”. The statement said Guha was taking his job on the Committee of Administrators “far too seriously”, and that the member would continue to make “submissions every time when the [CoA] cross the line of authority either by way of their action or their words”.
“Your above remarks per se are uncalled for, unnecessary, disdainful, disparaging, despicable and condemnable to say the least,” the statement said. “I being the member of the Managing Committee, who has spent considerable time and energy in carrying out my duties… which is strictly honorary in nature, do not deserve such uncharitable remarks. I respectfully submit that I do not need a certificate from you or from anybody else for that matter, about my extent of love for cricket or lust for power as I personally know the hours I have spent in the Association for its betterment and smooth administration.
“… As a person of public repute far larger than me it is expected that you should have been more mature, measured and sensitive in your remarks… From your statements in the press it appears that you are taking your job far too seriously and making comments without even understanding the other point of view.
“… It is needless to state that the Apex Court has found some merit in your good self to bestow you with the onerous responsibility of a Member of the [CoA] and it would only be fitting if you could carry the confidence reposed in you by the Apex Court with maturity and wisdom.”

Guha called the decision to boycott the functions “foolish and petty”, and said it would send a message that the KSCA put its opposition to the reforms ahead of honouring cricketers. “Please do reconsider. Think of the message it will send – that KSCA hates reforms in cricket administration so much that it does not even wish to honour its own great cricketers. Do act like gentlemen and come join in the celebration of cricket and cricketers,” he said in the email accessed by ESPNcricinfo.BCCI CEO Rahul Johri had earlier invited state associations for the fifth Pataudi Lecture, to be delivered by former India wicketkeeper Farokh Engineer, and the board’s annual awards. However, the last paragraph of the invitation – “Kindly note that the committee of administrators is constrained to convey that only those office bearers who are qualified as per the Supreme Court orders are expected to attend the function” – struck a raw nerve with the KSCA.In its reply dated March 3, the KSCA said it would be a “humiliation to the very cricketing fraternity” to accept the invitation with constraints and restrictions. “It may seem very rude or undiplomatic, however, looking at the last paragraph of your invitation, we would like to ascertain that we are also constrained not to acknowledge, thank or even remotely think of attending this function,” the two-page mail, signed by Desai and Rao, said.Desai and Rao had also accused the CoA of treating cricketers and administrators shabbily. “Administrators and Cricketers who have contributed their time and energy and also have sacrificed immensely for the development of game over decades are being treated so shabbily by the Committee of Administrators as though all of them are of doubtful integrity,” their reply had said.Many state associations, who are likely to follow KSCA’s lead and stay away from the awards, have been critical of the CoA “overstepping” its role defined by the Supreme Court. Last week, these associations, barring Vidarbha and Tripura, sent the CoA separate emails saying they would not comply with its directives till they got clarification from the Supreme Court on aspects like eligibility of an office bearer.

Bengal’s openers both struck centuries and Pragyan Ojha took 5 for 71 as Bengal defended 329 in a 41-run victory in the second semi-final of the Vijay Hazare Trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Mar-2017
Scorecard
File photo – Pragyan Ojha’s third five-wicket haul in List A cricket put Bengal into their first final since 2012•PTI

Bengal openers Shreevats Goswami and Abhimanyu Easwaran struck centuries to help them post 329 for 4, before Pragyan Ojha took five of Jharkhand’s last six wickets – including that of MS Dhoni – to bowl them out for 288 to win by 41 runs at Delhi’s Feroz Shah Kotla. They will play Tamil Nadu in the final on Monday.Goswami and Easwaran added 198 for the first wicket after Dhoni elected to field. Goswami, who was named Player of the Match, was the more aggressive of the two, hitting 11 fours and a six in his 99-ball 101 before he fell to medium-pacer Monu Kumar in the 35th over. Easwaran also made 101, his second century of the tournament, and like 127 against Mumbai, this innings too consisted of more running than it did boundaries.After his dismissal in the 40th over, Bengal scored 100 runs off 62 balls, fueled by their captain Manoj Tiwary. His unbeaten 75 off 49 balls, took Bengal past 320 while Varun Aaron took the most wickets for Jharkhand, but was also their most expensive bowler, going for 89 runs.Jharkhand started slowly, but their partnerships progressively increased till the fifth wicket fell. The two most substantial of those were 54 for the fourth wicket between Dhoni and Saurabh Tiwary (48) and 97 for the fifth between Dhoni and Ishank Jaggi. But their chase fizzled out when Dhoni fell to Ojha for for a 62-ball 70 at the end of the 43rd over. Jaggi (59) was dismissed by Sayan Ghosh (2-52) shortly after and the last four batsmen fell to Ojha in a collapse that eventually read 6 for 38.

Delhi Daredevils bounced back from the ignominy of falling to their lowest IPL total by dominating their chase in a six-wicket win against Sunrisers Hyderabad

The Report by Varun Shetty02-May-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details4:58

Hogg: Nair batted like a T20 cricketer

Delhi Daredevils bounced back from falling to their lowest IPL total in their previous game by dominating the chase in a six-wicket win against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Feroz Shah Kotla.Daredevils’ stand-in captain, Karun Nair, had put Sunrisers in hoping the pitch would stay true through the game. The visitors responded by scoring 66 in the Powerplay. Daredevils fought back in the middle overs, removing Shikhar Dhawan and Kane Williamson in quick succession after strangling them with spin, but lapses in the field allowed Sunrisers a way back in. Yuvraj Singh made use of a dropped catch and dominated an unbroken 93-run stand for the fourth wicket with Moises Henriques that lifted Sunrisers to 185 for 3.Daredevils began briskly in the chase, with Sanju Samson’s 19-ball 24 and Nair’s 20-ball 39 setting the pace. The momentum was picked up by the rest of the top order before allrounders Corey Anderson and Chris Morris put on 41 off 19 balls to take Daredevils past the target with five balls to spare.Jayant Yadav and the opening stand
Against a top four that had three left-hand batsmen, Daredevils picked the offspinner Jayant Yadav. In fact, his only game this season was the away fixture against Sunrisers on April 19, when he had opened the bowling.Jayant did it in Delhi as well and seemed to have David Warner lbw first ball. Warner, who had struck a thunderous 126 against Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday, went for the sweep against an overpitched delivery drifting into him. HawkEye showed his survival was marginal.That was the only sign of the offspin punt working against the openers. Warner and Shikhar Dhawan played Jayant out respectfully – apart from a Warner switch-hit over the backward point boundary.Against Kagiso Rabada and Chris Morris, they were more fluid, hitting five fours and a six before Warner welcomed Mohammed Shami with a boundary to start of the sixth over. That whip over midwicket brought up the fifth opening stand of fifty or more for Sunrisers this season. It ended next ball, however, with Shami sliding a steaming yorker under Warner’s drive to take his off stump.Kotla slows down
Sunrisers were 66 for 1 at the end of the Powerplay. Kane Williamson played four dot ball in the next over against Morris, two of which were slower deliveries. It was a precursor to the home team’s plan for the middle overs. Jayant and Amit Mishra bowled four overs in tandem, which set the tone for Daredevils’ most fruitful phase in the field. Mishra depended heavily on his new-found offbreak against the left-handers, but it was his googly that met the top edge of Dhawan’s attempted sweep.Jayant had cramped Williamson to the extent that the Sunrisers No. 3, aside from a six off a quicker delivery, had only managed three singles off seven deliveries. When Shami came back in the 12th over, his dot-ball ratio had climbed to 50%. That induced a skied hook straight to deep square leg. The six overs after the Powerplay fetched Sunrisers only 27 runs for the loss of two wickets.Yuvraj cashes in
Daredevils gave away extra runs on at least four occasions. The most painful one was when Samson dropped Yuvraj, who had 24 runs in his last four innings, at deep square leg. Samson, who had been involved in that infamous mix-up with Mishra against KKR last week, wasn’t under any such pressure this time – the nearest fielder was yards to his left.However different the two missed chances were, the outcomes were similar. Robin Uthappa had piled on the misery that day and Yuvraj, on 29 off 26 at that point, made 41 off his next 15. His unbeaten 70 took Sunrisers to 185 for 3.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Bhuvi returns the favour, Nair finds his mojo
Another man who had not found runs was Karun Nair. He opened the chase and utilised the Powerplay to hit himself into form. Like Yuvraj, Nair was helped by ordinary fielding. On 20, he toe-ended a scoop to short fine leg, where Bhuvneshwar Kumar was late in getting his hands up to take the catch. Nair made 15 off his next four balls, primarily through shots on the up or ramps behind the wicket while the ball still came on.His knock took Daredevils to 62 in the Powerplay. Shortly after, Nair offered another catch to Bhuvneshwar, who caught the full-blooded drive at long-off. The momentum had been conceded though.Finish it with power
Daredevils had two spinners to tie Sunrisers down on a slow track; Sunrisers had dropped their second spinner, Bipul Sharma, for Deepak Hooda who didn’t end up batting. This proved to be the difference as Daredevils’ young top order scored 36 off Moises Henriques’ 2.1 overs.The promotion of Rishabh Pant to No. 3 also played a part. Warner was reluctant to expose his only other spinner, Yuvraj, against Pant but Yuvraj went for 16 in his only over, bowled after Pant had been dismissed. It allowed Daredevils the luxury of playing legspinner Rashid Khan out at a run a ball without losing a wicket to him. It was only Rashid’s second wicketless game – the previous one also against Daredevils.One might have expected to see Angelo Mathews at No. 5, or even No. 6, as Daredevils lost wickets close to the target. In the end, Anderson and Morris filled up those slots, a signal that Daredevils didn’t just want to win, but wanted to do it comprehensively.

After weeks of pay talks with their board, there was some cheer on the field for the Australians as they warmed up for the Champions Trophy with a two-wicket win over Sri Lanka

ESPNcricinfo staff26-May-2017
ScorecardAfter weeks of pay talks with their board, there was some cheer for the Australians, on the field, as they warmed up for the Champions Trophy with a two-wicket win over Sri Lanka at the Oval. Aaron Finch smashed 137 off 109 balls with 11 fours and six sixes while Travis Head, reprieved on 60, made an unbeaten 85 to help Australia overhaul 318 with two balls to spare.The victory would be that much sweeter to the Australians, even though this was only a precursor to the main tournament, as it came without their captain Steven Smith and frontline fast bowler Mitchell Starc, who were both rested.All this meant Angelo Mathews’ 95, which underlined his importance in Sri Lanka’s starting XI, went in vain. Mathews, playing his first competitive match for his country after a four-month layoff due to a hamstring injury, did bulk of the damage in allrounder Asela Gunaratne’s company. The pair added 91 in 92 balls to offset Sri Lankans’ middle order woes; they had been reduced to 152 for 5 in 28 overs.Mathews, who walked in at 71 for 3 in the 12th over, began cautiously – taking 77 balls to get to his half-century – before cutting lose in the end overs. His innings ended when he holed out to Adam Zampa in the 44th over. Gunaratne then took seamer Josh Hazlewood for three sixes and a four in the penultimate over. He was well supported by legspinning allrounder Seekkuge Prasanna, who hit 31 off 19 balls, as Sri Lankans took 57 off the last five overs.The Australians started their chase in a sedate manner but Finch’s blitz soon helped them take control. The opener raised his century off just 76 balls with a six off Gunaratne. He added 75 with Head before Nuwan Pradeep gave his side hope by getting rid of Finch and Glenn Maxwell off successive deliveries. But reprieving Head on 60 with Australia needing 21 off 15 proved costly in the end for Sri Lankans, who will play New Zealanders at Edgbaston on May 30

Virat Kohli felt India ticked most boxes during the course of a dominating win in Galle

Sidharth Monga in Galle29-Jul-20171:43

Agarkar: The gulf between both sides stood exposed

Away Test wins rarely come any easier than the one for India in Galle. Ever since Shikhar Dhawan was dropped on the first morning – Asela Gunaratne injuring himself out of the series in trying to catch him – this Test for India was about as tough as an arrack joint in Sri Lanka. The toss was won, runs were scored and scored at a frenetic pace, the wickets were taken, more runs piled on, and then India’s biggest away win was sealed on the fourth evening.It was a near-perfect Test for India, but they would have wanted to finish it much earlier by not letting Sri Lanka’s lower-middle order score runs. In the first innings, Sri Lanka’s last four wickets added 148, in the second 129. Victorious captain Virat kohli identified that as an area of improvement to target.”There are still some areas that we want to look back and try to improve upon; especially when you get four-five wickets and not letting the lower order to get away with the few runs in the later half of the innings,” Kohli said. “It’s something that we can still identify and work on in the next two games as well.”But all in all, I think, playing Test cricket – February [the Australia series ended in March] is when we last played Test cricket – and from then, having played so much one-day cricket and not having the time to prepare so much in between… I think from that point of view it was good to get back into the groove and do things that are supposed to be done to win a Test match.”Amid this glut of one-day cricket, it was easy to forget what a poor series Kohli had the last time he played Tests, against Australia. It was a welcome return to red-ball runs for him as he scored a century while setting up the declaration, but Kohli said he wasn’t even conscious of that series against Australia.”I wasn’t looking at things from that point of view,” he said. “I think people on the outside start counting the number of innings when a batsman doesn’t score well, but for us as batsman or anyone playing in the XI, it’s all about what the team wants at that particular situation. And you end up scoring runs as well plus you end up helping team also.”I think the second innings required us to play more positively, and I am glad I was able to do that along with Abhinav [Mukund] to get us enough time to get the opposition out and enough runs on the board for us to feel comfortable. Yeah, I wasn’t certainly looking at things like how many innings I haven’t scored because when you are playing all formats, you don’t think which format you have not scored runs in how many innings. You can’t utilise so much energy in that.”Energy here was utilised in taking wickets because the pitch was really flat. “The last time when we played here the surface offered much more to the bowlers,” Kohli said. “It kept the bowlers in the game throughout, the quicks and the spinners more so. This time around the wicket was really good to bat on even till today. I mean if you applied yourself, you could easily score runs on that surface.”So, yeah, we had to work hard for getting all the wickets that we did. I think the bowlers came up with different plans, persisted with them long enough to get those breakthroughs and that’s something that always helps at the beginning of a series, to get a victory on a surface which is not offering much and that really gives the team the confidence of doing it once more if we get a surface like that.”More confidence is drawn from having found Hardik Pandya as the allrounder to give them the balance. “First innings, he didn’t get opportunity to bowl much but I think in the second innings, he bowled really nicely on a wicket that wasn’t offering much and he kept it in the right areas,” Kohli said of Pandya. “He used the bouncer well. He bowls around 135, when he bends his back he can go higher. So he is a great asset and I have mentioned this before as well.”And specially his batting. Otherwise we would have been 540-550 in the first innings. He got 50 quickly and that saves you time as well. That gives you another 15 overs to bowl at the opposition. And his fielding is also tremendous. I have a lot of faith in him as far as any format is concerned. Test cricket, he has got the technique. He is a really good batsman. You might not look at it precisely but we understand how much he can bring to the table, and I surely have a lot of faith in him that he will be able to perform on any surface on which he plays.”Kohli hoped Pandya will be able to contribute to India in a measure similar to Ben Stokes for England. “When you play away from home, one guy [allrounder] gives you a lot of balance, and I think Hardik can be that guy going ahead, specially playing so much cricket away from home,” Kohli said. “If he grows in confidence – you see someone like Ben Stokes, what he does for England. Brings in great balance as an allrounder. I see no reason why Hardik Pandya can’t become that for India.”

India captain Mithali Raj hoped on the eve of the final that an Indian win would inspire young girls in the country to take up the sport, and serve as the catalyst for a women’s IPL

Firdose Moonda at Lord's22-Jul-20174:09

Runorder: How long before a Women’s IPL?

Mithali Raj is right. “Everybody”, as she puts it, was rooting for India. Even England, their opposition in the Women’s World Cup final, wanted to see Raj and her team at Lord’s.”India being in the final is the best result for women’s cricket,” Heather Knight, England’s captain, said. “There’s massive scope for growth and support from India. And with their team being in the final, BCCI will take note and support women’s cricket the way it should be.”The BCCI have already done exactly that. On the eve of the final, they announced a bonus of INR 50 lakh (approx US $ 77,500) for each member of the squad, irrespective of whether they return home with the trophy or not. It means that for reaching the final, Indian women will receive more than three times the amount of an annual Grade A contract, which is set at INR 15 Lakh (approx US $23,200). If they win, who knows how much richer they could become.Raj hoped the wealth won’t be measured only in numbers. “There might be a lot of changes back home if we go on to win the World Cup, and those changes will benefit the future generations,” she said. “Women’s cricket in India will have a brand of its own. It won’t require anything else to support it and promote it as a sport. This platform and this win will definitely give it that edge for young girls to take up sport back home and maybe a women’s IPL might be in the pipeline.”This is not the first time Raj has proposed a women’s IPL. Before last year’s World T20, Raj predicted that if India did well at the event, it would “give birth” to the women’s IPL. As things transpired, India only won one of their four group games and did not make the semi-finals. Now, things have changed. The team is on the up and Raj has reason to restate her request for an IPL.”It is time. Looking at the way the girls have been performing in the last couple of years. And we’ve seen how Smriti and Hamanpreet have benefitted from their exposure to WBBL,” she said. “I am sure if the other young girls in the squad are exposed to the culture of a T20 league, the domestic standard in Indian women’s cricket will also improve immensely.”Knight agreed that an IPL could become one of the showpiece events for the women’s game, and that the performance of the Indian team at this World Cup could be the catalyst for starting it. “A women’s IPL would be brilliant. The BBL and KSL have been really successful and they’ve been a part of pushing women’s cricket forward,” she said. “You’ve seen players involved in those competitions really develop and perform in this World Cup. All we can keep doing as cricketers is keep improving and keep pushing. The more cricket we play, the more competitive and close games, people will improve quicker.”England coach, Mark Robinson, however, was a little more sceptical about another T20 competition. Being a national coach, his reservations are understandable, especially because the women’s game is still trying to find its feet when it comes to regular bilateral fixtures. “I think we have to play more international cricket before we get into IPL. We don’t play enough international games. We haven’t played since November coming into this competition,” he said. “We can’t get too far ahead of ourselves. England need to play New Zealand more, Australia more, South Africa more. We need to play more good games, home games from a selfish point of view. The IPL might improve cricket in India, but we want to play more international games.”Even in that regard, Raj aimed to please. Though T20 is foremost on her mind, she also wanted to see the game develop more traditionally. “I would also prefer women cricketers playing the longer format, because that is the ultimate challenge,” Raj, who has played 10 Tests, said. “T20 is a good way of promoting the sport and it gives more range for the batters to be more innovative and proactive in their shot selection. But if you want to see quality bowlers, it’s the longer version that you give them that space. We need to have bowlers also in the game and not just focus on batters.”But not at Lord’s tomorrow. Raj was hopeful of “plenty of runs” at the ground where she averages 153. She has only played at Lord’s twice, first in 2006, when she made 59 in a losing cause, and then in July 2012, when her unbeaten 94 helped India beat England. She remembers the first occasion because all she wanted to do back then, as a 24-year old first-time entrant at the venue, was “click pictures.” Now that she is back here to finish her World Cup career, she considers it “destiny.”Though Raj believes she can continue playing for India for a little longer, she has confirmed this is her last World Cup and she wants to give it everything because she does not know how great the rewards could be. “Unlike 2005, where I played with a lot of pressure, this time I want to enjoy being out there,” she said. “In all the years, there were a lot of occasions where I could have enjoyed the success of my team or a few of the innings I played, but it never occurred to me. Now, I will make sure I will not let the fear of what might go wrong cross me.”What about what might go right? “It’s a final and everybody will have their nerves. No matter how many finals we play, there’s always that fear of putting a wrong foot,” she said. “But this bunch of players is playing a final for the first time. I don’t see any fear in them now. It’s completely different to 2005 when we were all overwrought by the situation.”India’s calm comes from a place of certainty, because they know that everybody, at least everybody that matters to them, is rooting for them. “The whole world will be watching India play. Everybody is rooting for India back home,” Raj said. “We’ve been getting calls from various parts of the country to acknowledge and appreciate the efforts of the team so far. Everybody is very happy with the way the team has performed through the tournament. One more game can change the fortunes for women’s cricket and Indian women’s cricket.”

Sourav Ganguly, president of the Cricket Association of Bengal, said that Bengal need Ojha in their team for the 2017-18 season

Arun Venugopal31-Aug-2017The Cricket Association of Bengal [CAB] has turned down left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha’s request for a transfer to Hyderabad ahead of the 2017-18 domestic season. Sourav Ganguly, the CAB president, said Bengal need Ojha to play for them, as the side finds itself in Group D for this season’s Ranji Trophy.”Ojha will be playing for us. We have decided not to give him the NOC (no-objection certificate),” Ganguly told reporters in Kolkata on Wednesday. “‘When Hyderabad were playing in the lower division, we had given him the opportunity to play for us. Now we need him, so he will have to play for us.” Ojha couldn’t be reached for a comment.Ojha, 30, left Hyderabad to become Bengal’s professional recruit before the 2015-16 domestic season. At the time, Hyderabad were languishing in Group C, the bottom-most rung of the Ranji Trophy, and Ojha’s decision to switch teams was to ensure he had the opportunity to compete with the best sides in the circuit.Ojha had a bumper start as Bengal’s lead spinner in the 2015-16 season, with 36 wickets in nine Ranji Trophy games at an average of 24.36; he was the team’s joint-highest wicket-taker with Ashok Dinda that season. Ojha, however, couldn’t reprise that performance in the 2016-17 Ranji Trophy: he took 10 wickets from six matches. There were also reports of a spat between Ojha and Dinda during the season.Ojha’s reason for wanting to move back to Hyderabad was no different from the one that prompted him to leave the team in the first place. By virtue of their quarter-final finish in the Ranji Trophy last season, Hyderabad are clubbed with the stronger teams in Group A. Bengal, meanwhile, are in Group D, alongside Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Vidarbha, Services, Goa and Chhattisgarh.”We are back in the Elite group and [I] look forward to do well by giving that extra bit as an experienced cricketer,” Ojha had told last month. “I want to do well and even contribute with the bat and be one of the main members of the team. We have a few youngsters who have been doing well.”Ojha also told PTI that his decision to move back to Hyderabad had nothing to do with the CAB. “I had a cordial relation with everyone. CAB always allowed me to play the kind of cricket I wanted. It’s important to have that space.”They never doubted my decision as far as cricket was concerned. I am especially thankful to Dada [Ganguly] and captain Manoj [Tiwary] who were [the] backbone of me doing well for Bengal. [Coach] Sairaj Bahutule and Manoj always had the confidence in me and backed me.”CAB joint-secretary, Avishek Dalmiya, said the decision to not let Ojha go was taken with the best interests of Bengal cricket in mind. “I think it is all about the betterment of Bengal cricket and Sourav, who was dealing with the matter, has done that keeping in mind,” Dalmiya told ESPNcricinfo. “The thinking must have been that otherwise Sourav wouldn’t have taken a decision like that. It was just decided yesterday [Wednesday]. A mail has been sent to the BCCI informing the decision. I am sure Pragyan will also be informed [soon].”