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Andrew Strauss could face his “biggest decision”, Pietersen warns, as old tensions are rekindled

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Dec-2017Kevin Pietersen has become the first major England player, past or present, to state publically that Ben Stokes should play no part in the Ashes – and he has even reopened old wounds with his former adversary Andrew Strauss by suggesting that Strauss’ job could be in jeopardy because of the issue.The Crown Prosecution Service will decide whether charges will be brought against Stokes after receiving a report from Avon and Somerset Police about his alleged part in an incident outside a Bristol nightclub in September.Stokes is playing domestic cricket in New Zealand with the blessing of the ECB after voluntarily assisting with police interviews which, in his case, are now complete.But Pietersen told the that his mind is already made up and that it would be wrong for Stokes to take part in the Test series.Strauss, director of England cricket, was instrumental to the banishing of Pietersen from England’s set-up on the grounds that he undermined the team ethic.In a wide-ranging interview, Pietersen says he is not bitter, and that he is “in such a cool space” as he rebuilds his life on the T20 circuit and with a commitment to rhino conservation.But he warned: “The issue with Ben Stokes isn’t about Ben Stokes. It’s about Andrew Strauss. He’s the one who’s going to make this call about if and when Stokes returns. The CPS might make it for him but if they don’t, this is on Strauss.”This is his biggest decision. Forget what he’s ever done to me. This is his biggest call. He likes to do things by the book. By his book. He doesn’t have much hair at the moment. He could lose it all on this decision. It’s a monster.”

Squad takes week off ahead of series decider at Oval after three-day loss

Firdose Moonda30-Aug-2022Smarting from their defeat inside three days at Old Trafford, South Africa have taken the week off and will break away to the West Midlands before resuming training in London on Saturday.No further details have been provided about their itinerary except that they will “stay together as a group” and engage in team activities including golf rather than have individual time away, as was initially discussed. Speaking after the second Test, Dean Elgar said they would use the time to reconnect, to “pull ourselves towards ourselves”, and “don’t forget why we are here”.The mood is somewhat different to the one the team had after beating England in three days at Lord’s. Players were given the remaining two days off to do as they pleased with the only instruction to “be back at the hotel for an 11 o’clock leaving time otherwise it’s an expensive Uber to Manchester,” Elgar said.Related

• James Anderson hails 'absolute freak' Ben Stokes, and proves there's life after 40

• Engine failure condemns South Africa after Keegan Petersen, Rassie van der Dussen keep the wheels turning

• Dean Elgar promises 'honesty' as South Africa look to regroup after crushing loss

• New bowler, new ball: Fitter, more focused Ollie Robinson shows he's worthy of key promotion

The gap between the second and third Test was initially scheduled for nine days to accommodate the Hundred’s final week. That became 11 days after England stormed to an innings-and-85-run win. South Africa remained in Manchester for what would have been the final two days of the Test and will leave for their getaway on Tuesday.While Elgar emphasised they would like to get away from cricket to a degree, South Africa will not be able to avoid addressing questions over their game, especially as the decider looms. Chief among South Africa’s considerations will be how to juggle the batting line-up after they were dismissed for under 200 in both innings.Rassie van der Dussen has returned home with a finger injury and will be replaced by one of Ryan Rickelton or Khaya Zondo, but both reserve batters could come into contention given Aiden Markram’s poor form.Allrounder Wiaan Mulder, who has been playing at Leicester, has been added to the squad in van der Dussen’s absence, and provides another option in the lower middle-order.

Half-centuries from both opening batsmen took the total to 208 for 3, which was well beyond the Jamaica Tallawahs’ reach

The Report by Peter Della Penna22-Aug-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsChris Gayle notched up a half-century in his 50th CPL match•Ashley Allen – CPL T20 / Getty

The Universe Boss marked his 50th CPL match with his 63rd T20 fifty as St Kitts & Nevis Patriots brushed past Jamaica Tallawahs by 37 runs to clinch a place in the playoffs for the first time in their three-year history.Chris Gayle made the most of a life on 15 to top-score with 71 not out off 55 balls as the Patriots racked up 208 for 3, the highest total of the CPL this season, and the second-highest including the previous four. Armed with scoreboard pressure, they were then able to restrict the Tallawahs to 171 for 7 in reply with left-arm wristspinner Tabraiz Shamsi picking up 3 for 35 in four overs.A night to forget in the fieldTallawahs did themselves few favors over the course of the night, following up Kumar Sangakkara’s decision to bowl first by producing a slipshod fielding performance either side of a 35-minute rain delay at the eight-over mark. The Patriots had a comparatively modest start, only scoring 38 in the Powerplay, but a key moment occurred in the sixth over when Gayle was spilled at long leg by Odean Smith.Kesrick Williams tucked Gayle up trying to pull and sent the chance Smith’s way, but the 20-year-old was perhaps preoccupied trying to position his body to stay within the ropes. He wound up bobbling the ball initially before dropping it altogether as it bounced over for four. Smith followed up in the next over and was swiftly punished by Lewis three times to the cover and fine leg rope as he motored toward 69 off 39 balls. By the time the Gayle-Lewis stand ended, they had piled on 110 off 12.3 overs.The race for 200After Lewis fell, Carlos Brathwaite and then Mohammad Nabi teed off at the other end. Like Gayle, each had early let-offs. Brathwaite was put down by Andre McCarthy on 13 to end the 15th over before finishing with 26 off 13 balls. Nabi should have been taken on his first ball but Jonathan Foo bailed out of a chance.While Gayle was sedate for most of his innings – he took 46 balls to reach his half-century – he sprang to life in the 18th over, smashing Mohammad Sami for a four and two sixes off consecutive balls as part of a 25-run over. Two more sixes by Nabi off Rovman Powell and Williams off the last two overs took Patriots past 200.Shamsi’s squeezeTallawahs gave a hearty effort early in the chase but never seriously challenged the Patriots total. Jonathan Carter made the initial breakthrough as Trevor Griffith miscued a full toss on 42 in the ninth over.Tabraiz Shamsi burrowed his way through the Tallawahs in the middle overs, finishing with 3 for 35 as five of the final six wickets fell to spin. Glenn Phillips fell three balls after drinks, as he tried to hit Shamsi over midwicket for his second six in a row but only managed to pick out Shamar Brooks. Shamsi was involved in the wicket of Sangakkara next, snaring a catch at point off Nabi to set the Tallawahs back further at 87 for 3 in the 12th over.Lendl Simmons then found Brooks on the midwicket boundary again for Shamsi’s second wicket in the 13th over before Foo missed a sweep in Shamsi’s next over.

Warner’s captaincy has received praise from fellow opener Aaron Finch after the loss in Ranchi, and from his Sunrisers Hyderabad mentor VVS Laxman in the recent past

Arun Venugopal in Guwahati09-Oct-2017David Warner feels his style of captaincy is an extension of Steven Smith’s ethos, as Australia look to his leadership to reverse their trend of losses in India. Standing in for Smith, who injured his shoulder during the final ODI in Nagpur, Warner captained Australia in their nine-wicket defeat in the rain-affected first T20I in Ranchi. He stressed that the team was trying its best to win every game.”From my point of view, it’s about following on from what Steve’s values are and the standards of the team and what we do to respect him,” Warner said ahead of the second T20I in Guwahati. “I try to follow down the same key messages to the guys so we’re preparing as best as we can to go out on the field. We’re doing our best and that’s all I can do to the best of my ability. It’s up to the player to follow directions.”Despite Australia’s loss, Warner’s leadership came in for praise from different quarters. Opener Aaron Finch thought Warner’s experience of playing and leading in India was put to good use. “It can be quite refreshing when another skipper comes in who doesn’t have to worry about the off-field stuff quite as much as the regular skipper does,” Finch said. ” did a fantastic job under the circumstances. Dave’s obviously played a lot and captained a lot over here in the IPL. He knows the opposition very well, he’s very calm under pressure the majority of the time. He’s a fantastic leader. He’s the vice-captain of the country for a reason.”Former India batsman VVS Laxman, who mentors the IPL franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad – which Warner captains in the IPL – felt the opener was a more aggressive leader than Smith. On the subject of captaincy, Warner said it was “great fun” but came with its share of responsibilities.”From where I stand, it’s my mind, Steve’s mind, different players’ minds, we’ve all got minds of our own,” he said. “When you’re out there and you’re not captain, you don’t have the pressure on yourself to keep thinking all the time. I can just sit back and say I’d have done this, I’d have done that but the difference is you’re not captain. The ideas everyone brings to the table, you say that to the captain and bring in some ideas and that’s what we do to help each other out because it’s a tough job when you’re out there.”I think if you ask each individual, you have a sense of responsibility no matter what. It’s not just me but everyone, who puts that captain’s cap on. You’ve got a responsibility, you’ve got to lead your troops. It’s great fun, we enjoy it, but I enjoy going out there and winning games for my country and whichever team I’m in front of. And if I’m leading, I’m doing it to the best of my ability, even more than you normally would just to get the guys in the right direction as a leader.”And despite the team’s frequent middle-order collapses, Warner said he couldn’t afford to worry about them. “I don’t look too much into because if you get out early, then there’s a collapse in the middle after a partnership,” Warner said. “Everyone becomes frustrated with why it happens. No one means to get out.”There are always reasons about why it [collapse] happens. People talk about pressure, people talk about having two batsmen in and two batsmen get out. We have to play like the way we know and that’s the brand of cricket we bring to the table. You can’t worry about a collapse going to happen. No one is worried about that at all. We have to keep backing ourselves 100%. We know that when we do well we do very, very well.”

Worcestershire’s bowlers bounced back in impressive style from their weekend semi-final mauling in dismissing Kent for 260

ECB Reporters Network19-Jun-2017
ScorecardJoe Leach’s early spell set an impressive tone for Worcestershire•Getty Images

Worcestershire’s bowlers bounced back in impressive style from their weekend semi-final mauling in dismissing Kent for 260 on day one of the Specsavers County Championship promotion battle at New Road.But then Kent responded themselves with the ball despite a boundary-laced cameo from England all-rounder Moeen Ali as Worcestershire closed on 95 for 3.The home side, who conceded 363 runs in the Royal London One-Day Cup clash with Surrey, may have feared the worse after Kent skipper Sam Northeast won the toss on a good batting wicket in the blazing heat.Skipper Joe Leach and 19-year-old Josh Tongue in particular impressed with the ball and Kent, despite lower order resistance from Matt Coles and Adam Rouse, would have been disappointed to be bowled out in 73.1 overs.All of their batsmen except openers Daniel Bell-Drummond and Sean Dickson got into double figures but no-one went past 50.As well as Leach and Tongue bowled, some of the shot selection of the Kent batsmen was questionable and their score was below-par.Leach bowled an inspired opening spell and sent back openers Bell-Drummond and Dickson during an initial burst of 7-3-7-2.Bell-Drummond nicked through to Daryl Mitchell at first slip and then Dickson tried to work the ball on the leg side and the ball struck his pads and bounced onto the stumps.Joe Denly drove Ed Barnard straight to Brett D’Oliveira at point and then Tongue bowled a fiery spell after lunch which accounted for Northeast and Will Gidman.In between Joe Weatherley wafted at a wide Leach and was caught behind and then Darren Stevens flat batted John Hastings straight into the hands of deep extra cover.Kent were then 139 for 7 but resistance came at last from Coles and Rouse who opted to counter-attack in adding 79 in 16 overs.It needed the return of Tongue to break the stand shortly before tea as Rouse provided Mitchell with a third catch and then Coles played back to Moeen Ali and was lbw.Leach finished with 3 for 42 to take his season’s wicket tally to 36 and Tongue, in his first season of senior cricket, 3 for 56 to move onto 24 victims.The wickets were soon tumbling when Worcestershire launched their reply and D’Oliveira failed to trouble the scorers before he was pouched at second slip off Stevens.Moeen was ultra aggressive in his approach with nine fours in his 37 off just 16 balls, a mixture of glorious cover drives and edges which just eluded the slip cordon.But then he fell for the three card trick and was caught at deep midwicket off Coles who then had opener Mitchell taken at third slip.
The positive aspect for Worcestershire was Joe Clarke looking like he was returning to form during an unbeaten 34.He received good support from George Rhodes, in his first senior appearance of the season during an unbroken stand of 47.

Bangladesh are thin on bowling attack sans Taskin and Mehidy in their first home Test of the year

Mohammad Isam14-May-2022

Big picture

A new Prime Minister in the country, a new cricket coach and a host of newcomers in the Test side. Sri Lanka, on and off the field, are making a new start, of sorts. They take on a Bangladesh side that is keen to restore some parity in 2022, where they have blown hot and cold, so far.It will be Chris Silverwood’s first Test as Sri Lanka coach, and they have gone with a new approach by bringing in a host of youngsters. Kamil Mishara, Kamindu Mendis, Dilshan Madushanka and Suminda Lakshan are among eight changes in their Test squad, after their 2-0 blowout in India earlier this year.Related

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• Should Mushfiqur Rahim give up the reverse sweep?

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They could put together a revamped top six, with Lahiru Thirimanne, Charith Asalanka and Pathum Nissanka out of the Test side. The pace attack too has to step up after Suranga Lakmal had retired after the previous series, and the board asking Lahiru Kumara and Dushmantha Chameera to focus on white-ball cricket.All these changes would put a lot of onus on Dimuth Karunaratne, their captain, and also, the highest run-scorer for Sri Lanka in the last two years. The likes of Kusal Mendis and Dhananjaya de Silva would bank on their recent experience in Bangladesh’s domestic competition. The left-arm spin duo of Lasith Embuldeniya and Praveen Jayawickrama will form their bowling arsenal against a home side that is doubting itself against spin recently.Bangladesh’s scores of 53 and 80 against South Africa in the previous series have put them under immense pressure, going into their first home Test of this year. They have usually batted well in Chattogram. Shakib Al Hasan’s inclusion might be a bit of relief but whether he will be at his 100%, soon after recovering from Covid, has to be seen.Mominul Haque has to find his form, end his lengthy run drought in Chattogram. As a captain, he will have tough decisions to make in his bowling attack, given Bangladesh are without their key bowlers Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Taskin Ahmed, and, Shakib’s bowling is unlikely to be in full capacity.

Form guide

(Last five completed matches; most recent first)Bangladesh LLLWL
Sri Lanka LLWWW Shakib Al Hasan has just recovered from Covid•AFP/Getty Images

In the spotlight

Mahmudul Hasan Joy has already seen both sides of the coin in his first six months of international cricket. Starting with a duck, he impressed with a solid fifty in New Zealand and a century in South Africa, but then came the pair in Gqeberha, which exposed a bit of his weakness against moving outswinger.His last Test century came more than two years ago, but Kusal Mendis is among runs. He struck an unbeaten first-class century in Hambantota, and another hundred in the Dhaka Premier League, Bangladesh’s premier one-day competition, a month ago. A solid knock in Sri Lanka’s top order will go probably set the tone of the Test series.

Team news

Shakib is likely to bat at No 7, but the big decision will be who replaces Mehidy Hasan Miraz. Mosaddek Hossain might be a safe choice at No 8, as he offers a bit of batting and can bowl 12-15 overs a day. Picking Nayeem Hasan or going with a three-man pace attack would be a bold move from a Bangladesh perspective.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Mahmudul Hasan Joy, 3 Najmul Hossain Shanto, 4 Mominul Haque (capt), 5 Mushfiqur Rahim, 6 Litton Das (wk), 7 Shakib Al Hasan, 8 Nayeem Hasan/Mosaddek Hossain, 9 Taijul Islam, 10 Shoriful Islam, 11 Ebadot HossainSri Lanka will have to make at least three changes to the side that played the second Test against India in Bengaluru. They could drop Dinesh Chandimal to pick an extra bowling option in Ramesh Mendis or Chamika Karunaratne.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), 2 Oshada Fernando, 3 Kusal Mendis, 4 Angelo Mathews, 5 Dhananjaya de Silva, 6 Dinesh Chandimal/Ramesh Mendis, 7 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 8 Lasith Embuldeniya, 9 Kasun Rajitha/Asitha Fernando, 10 Praveen Jayawickrama, 11 Vishwa Fernando

Pitch and conditions

Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium has the highest batting average (minimum 10 matches) in Asia in the last 10 years, make it a welcome change for the Bangladesh batters who usually have a difficult time in Dhaka. Rain, even the odd thunderstorm, is in the forecast for all five days of this Test.

Stats and trivia

• Among the current players, only Mushfiqur Rahim has scored more than 1,000 runs in Bangladesh-Sri Lanka contests.
• Sri Lanka are likely to play both their left-arm spinners in Chattogram, but overseas left-armers haven’t been as successful in Bangladesh. The last five-wicket haul taken by a visiting left-arm spinner was in 2008.

Quotes

“We have to play well over five days. We have to dominate the game. We are not worried about the opponents.”
.”That’s a big advantage for us. Naweed Nawaz has been with the Under-19 side for a few years, but he knows the conditions so we can get some ideas from him. But I don’t think the previous years’ results have any bearing on this series. I think we have to play good from ball one up to day five. I don’t think we’ve won in Chittagong, even though we’ve won most of the matches in Dhaka. So I think we need to make a change to start off on a winning note here.”
Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne speaks about their new assistant coach who is a Under-19 World Cup winner for Bangladesh.