Ajinkya Rahane made 86, and Ravindra Jadeja his now-customary fifty as Bangladesh’s bowlers were taken to the cleaners

The Report by Alagappan Muthu15-Nov-2019Mayank Agarwal is never in two minds. It shows whenever he charges at a bowler. His mind is set on getting a boundary and he will have it no matter what. It was Bangladesh’s job to sow doubts into that line of thinking but by the end of the day they were left wondering if they were good enough. The India opener amassed 243 runs all by himself to power India into a commanding lead in Indore.Agarwal has other shots. His drives, for example, are vivid. But nothing showcases his high backlift and a happy-go-lucky approach as well as when he runs at the bowler. He chose to do that nine times through the course of his innings, and failed to find the boundary only once. So confident was he with this tactic that he used it to get to his double-century.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

And all the while Imrul Kayes just watched. He had been at slip when Agarwal, on 32, offered a straightforward chance off Abu Jayed. It went in and then it plopped out.Bangladesh’s hopes of building on that moment of uncertainty, which happened on day one, were severely undercut by the poor work done by their spinners. Mehidy Hasan and Taijul Islam leaked boundaries, 33 of them; Agarwal alone cracked 19. That’s a rate of one every 10 balls, by the way. It was pure mayhem, and yet not altogether surprising considering the protagonist.Agarwal goes at the ball really hard. He hits all around the park. He looked completely untroubled by the opposition. He played the innings we all do in our most shameless dreams because it was what his captain had specifically ordered.Stump mic podcast with Mayank Agarwal: Listen on ESPN radio and SpotifyWhen Agarwal had raised his bat for 150, Virat Kohli put up two fingers to make sure he kept going. Later, when Agarwal got his double and pointed two fingers back at the dressing room again, Kohli grinned and put up three.India should have been celebrating not one but two centurions on Friday. Ajinkya Rahane had spoken about the relief he felt after breaking through a rut of middling scores after making 102 against West Indies in August and ever since then he seems to have rediscovered the flow in his game. There was hardly a stroke in anger, but never a lull in his scoring. India’s vice-captain finished with 86 runs off 172 balls. In all that time, he played only six false shots. One of them was his dismissal, off a powerful cut shot straight to the fielder at deep point.Bangladesh spent most of the day waiting for those kinds of mistakes. Their bowlers couldn’t control the run flow, even though they had four men on the boundary in the fourth over of the day. It was clearly an omen when Agarwal creamed a half-volley through the covers for four off the second ball of that over. And the little moments of success Bangladesh had – like knocking out Cheteshwar Pujara early on the day and handing Kohli his 10th duck in 140 Test innings – didn’t offer any consolation.India made 407 runs in the day, only the third time they’ve made more than 400. They went to stumps leading by a whopping 343, and towards the close, when the dressing room was up on its feet, screaming with glee as Ravindra Jadeja made his now-customary fifty and Umesh Yadav swung for the fences, it was hard to avoid the notion that this Test match had lot all pretence of being a contest.

The franchise only bid for the fast bowler after he had gone unsold twice

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Dec-2019Dale Steyn was lapped up right at the end of Thursday’s IPL auction, after going unsold twice, but he was “always part of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s plans”, according to Mike Hesson, their director of cricket. Steyn was picked at his base price of INR 2 crore by the same franchise that had released him in November.Steyn featured in just two games for RCB in 2019 before a shoulder injury cut his season short, after he had been signed midway through the competition as a replacement for the injured Nathan Coulter-Nile.”We knew we wanted Steyn but we knew if we put a bid on him early, it might have gone up to three or four crore, which would have had flow-on effects,” Hesson said in a video posted by RCB. “It was the same with Isuru Udana as well.”We thought Udana was going to be well sought after, so we had to slow-play that one a little bit. In the end, it worked out the way we wanted but it did require a sense of patience, which is not one of my main attributes.”I probably exchanged a couple of hundred messages with Virat [Kohli, the RCB captain] for a couple of hours. I think he thought we went to sleep in the middle for a couple of hours as well, but he was well aware of what our planning was. He was keen at the end, as we were, to get Udana and Steyn.”Hesson also felt new signing Aaron Finch could help unburden RCB’s superstar batting duo of Kohli and AB de Villiers. Finch, Australia’s white-ball captain, is currently No. 2 on the ICC’s rankings for T20I batsmen. “We want someone who takes the pressure off AB [de Villiers] and Virat, so we’ve got a world class player,” Hesson said of Finch. “Looking at the rankings, we’ve got three of the top five players in the world in terms of the last few years of T20 cricket so that is exciting.”Chris Morris is a really good addition, in terms of being a three-in-one cricketer; he can bowl upfront, can bowl at the death, he’s got some power with the bat as well. Udana is exciting, in terms of especially on slower surfaces, we felt we wanted that. Kane Richardson is one of the best bowlers in international T20s for a while, so we’ve got a really good mix of players.”Hesson said he was surprised at being able to sign Australian wicketkeeper Josh Philippe, whom he termed an “excitement machine”, at his base price. “We never thought we’d get him at 20 lakh,” Hesson said. “We had someone else in mind if he went too high.”

Despite losing all seven matches so far, the stand-in captain is hopeful of turning things around in the second half of the tournament

Alex Malcolm09-Jan-2020The winless Melbourne Renegades have not given up on their BBL title defence just yet, with stand-in captain Dan Christian believing that the fifth spot in the revamped finals series is still within reach with just seven games left.The Renegades have lost their first seven matches to sit last on the BBL table. Every other side has won at least three matches so far this season. They face the BBL leaders, the Melbourne Stars, in the second local derby of the season on Friday night at Marvel Stadium.Christian, who will stand in as captain while Aaron Finch is in India with the Australia one-day side, was adamant the Renegades season is still alive despite the desperate situation.”We probably think that six wins might be able squeeze into that 5th spot,” Christian said. “Hopefully a few results go your way and a good net run-rate. We certainly haven’t given up the season at all. If we can scratch our way towards the back end of the season you never know.”He was at a loss to explain the Renegades woeful season-to-date.”We’ve been talking about it a lot,” Christian said. “Unfortunately it’s been one or two overs each game that just haven’t quite gone the right way. We’ve been doing lots and lots of good things.”It’s been tough. But that’s the nature of T20. You’ve got those one or two overs here and there where things, unfortunately, don’t go your way. We’d love to be winning of course. But all we can do is keep training well and keep trying to do things right on the field and hopefully turn things around.”He refused to blame the coaching disruption just prior to the tournament as a reason for their form slump. Michael Klinger was appointed less than a month out from the BBL season, starting after Andrew McDonald departed to join the Australian team.”No I don’t think that’s had an impact at all having Maxy Klinger in,” Christian said. “He’s done a fantastic job. He’s obviously been doing his best. It’s been difficult for us as well to not be able to get him that first win given it’s his first coaching job. He’s been really thorough. It’s certainly not as a result of the coaching staff.”Christian did identify that there was a need for the top order to covert their starts into bigger scores. Only one Renegades player, Sam Harper, has passed 70 this season despite six half-centuries being scored. Ironically, they scored just three half-centuries in their entire title-winning season with no player reaching 60.”Every successful T20 team, whether it’s over a season or just in a game, you generally have someone that gets 70-80 in that top order that bats all the way through,” Christian said. “Sam Harper did that really well the other night, got 73 and got us to a period where we could start really cashing in at the back end so we were able to do that, so that was nice. But that’s really been the first time we’ve had someone get a score that high this year.”Shaun Marsh will open in Finch’s absence with Christian expecting a big score from him soon.”Shaun Marsh will get to go back to the top, which is nice for him,” Christian said. “That’s where he’s had most of his success. (He’s) due to get some. He’s been fantastic, hitting the ball really well, but just hasn’t been able to get that 80-odd. We’re not far away.”The Renegades batsmen are preparing for Pakistan sensation Haris Rauf, who has lit up the BBL with some stunning performances, including a hat-trick against the Sydney Thunder.”He’s been really impressive hasn’t he,” Christian said. “He’s bowling fast, he’s swinging the new ball and he’s getting some reverse at the end. I came across him in the PSL early last year and it’s really exciting to see him come out and do so well.”He’s got a short run-up. He’s quite slingy and as the speed guns are saying he’s bowling 150kph, so he’s obviously a bit of a handful. I’m sure the guys have been looking at footage for those that haven’t faced him and hopefully we can get on top of him.”

The fast bowler reckons that a surfeit of cricket played a part in the stress fracture he recently sustained

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Jan-2020Since his debut in the second half of 2018, Deepak Chahar has made rapid strides to be among the near-certainties in India’s T20I squad, while staking his claim to a regular spot in the ODI squad as well. Chahar enjoyed a particularly productive 2019 in the shortest format, for India as well as Chennai Super Kings in the IPL. That included a world-record haul of 6 for 7 against Bangladesh.Chahar followed that performance up by turning out for Rajasthan, his state team, in India’s domestic T20 competition, and continuing to take wickets in clusters, but the surfeit of cricket took a toll. Chahar was ruled out of India’s deciding third ODI against West Indies with a stress fracture on his lower back, and is now on the rehabilitation road.The experience has prompted Chahar to reconsider his schedule, and he said he would be more selective about the domestic matches he turns up for. Chahar had a particularly busy time in November and December. It began with a three-match T20I series against Bangladesh, and two days after his 6 for 7, he was turning out for Rajasthan in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He played four T20 matches from November 12 to 17, and then three more from November 25 to 29. Subsequently, he was back in India colours for the T20I and ODI series against West Indies, from December 6, playing five matches before being ruled out of the final one.”The stress fracture in my back is mainly due to playing excess matches,” Chahar told . “Before the Ranji Trophy began, I was playing almost all matches. In fact, it’s been happening like this for the past two years. So I have to be a bit selective now. Else, I won’t be able to survive.”Chahar has spoken earlier of the work he had put in to increase his pace from the 120s (kph) to the high 130s. Now he says constant cricket has also brought his pace down.”The year starts on a poor note, unfortunately, because of the injury,” Chahar said. “My objective is to obviously keep performing better, but I will also be doing the required training and exercises to regain my lost pace. Since I was playing continuously, I had lost two-three kilometres [per hour] of pace.”Chief selector MSK Prasad had indicated Chahar could be out until March-April, but the seamer himself hasn’t put a timeframe to his return. He made it clear, though, that his being selective with the matches he plays would not apply to the IPL.”Match fitness is also important,” Chahar said. “If you take proper rest and utilise your time properly, then the IPL is a really good platform to regain your rhythm. In two months, you have to play 14 matches in the IPL, which is not much.”The problem was, after the Bangladesh series where we played three matches in seven days, I started playing the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy where the gaps between each game were very short. So if I have to play, say eight to nine games in 12 days, that is more difficult. Therefore, in these cases, I need to be selective. These situations are more harmful to the body (because you are continuously playing).”Besides, the schedule in the Ranji Trophy as also in the Vijay Hazare Trophy is such that sometimes you have to play back-to-back matches. I played four matches in five days in this season’s Vijay Hazare Trophy [he played four List A games from October 1 to 6], and such a scenario may lead to injuries.”

Pakistan saw a collapse of 6 for 26 as left-arm quick Sushant Mishra took 3 for 28

The Report by Sreshth Shah in Potchefstroom04-Feb-2020Having been deflated with a collapse of 6 for 26, Pakistan Under-19 could pose no challenge to the India Under-19 opening pair of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Divyaansh Saxena, who shared an unbeaten stand of 176 to lead the defending champions to a thumping ten-wicket win in the first semi-final of the Under-19 World Cup in Potchefstroom. India’s victory took them to their third straight final and closer to a fifth Under-19 World Cup title; they will play the winner of New Zealand and Bangladesh in the final on February 9. Jaiswal reached his first hundred in the tournament with a six to seal India’s win while Saxena remained unbeaten on 59.Pakistan, who opted to bat, seemed on course for a respectable total as their opener Haider Ali and captain Rohail Nazir put on a half-century stand for the third wicket. The duo helped Pakistan recover from 34 for 2 in the ninth over, but Haider fell soon after reaching his fifty while trying to cut part-timer Jaiswal. At 96 for 3 in the 26th over, Haider’s wicket pegged Pakistan’s progress significantly, as Nazir saw four more wickets fall in front of him. India’s two quicks Sushant Mishra and Kartik Tyagi did most of the damage – sharing five wickets between them – while legspinner Ravi Bishnoi finished with two from his 10 overs.Pakistan’s collapse began in the 35th over, with the score at 146 for 4, and it took a spectacular effort from Saxena at deep square leg to trigger the slide. Mohammad Haris’ sweep off left-arm spinner Atharva Ankolekar seemed destined for a one-bounce four, but Saxena ran across and dived full length to complete the catch just inches from the ground. That effort pushed the other India players to raise their game, and Tyagi delivered a yorker three overs later to bowl Irfan Khan. Only five balls later, Bishnoi trapped Abbas Afridi lbw with a contentious decision as Pakistan slumped to 163 for 7. Nazir was dismissed for 62 three overs later and by the 44th over, they were bowled out for 172.India’s chase started with caution, with Saxena and Jaiswal scoring at under four per over for the first 15 overs. They played out the new ball under overcast conditions with a strong crosswind blowing across the ground, offering no chance for Pakistan to come back into the game via an early wicket.After Jaiswal got his fifty off 66 balls in the 22nd over, he started using his feet against the spinners to hit over long-on or pull the pacers behind square. Saxena stroked the ball along the ground for the most of his innings, letting Jaiswal be the aggressor. Saxena reached his fifty in the 30th over by driving to deep cover off 83 balls and the asking rate had now come down to two runs per over. Saxena hit six fours while Jaiswal struck eight fours and four sixes, including one that brought up his hundred and India’s victory. After sealing the chase, Jaiswal raised both arms in the air, looked upwards and kissed the chain around his neck.Nazir praised India’s bowlers for their effort but said that Pakistan’s batsmen failed to live up to their potential.”It’s hard, but cricket is all about the game. One team wins, and we didn’t play good cricket today. India were better in the field and with their bowling. They outclassed us,” Nazir said in the post-match press conference. “When me and Haider were batting, we were going really nice. But after Haider’s wicket, we didn’t build partnerships.”That’s the reason why our batting line-up could not get the big runs. With the batting, our shot selection was poor in the crucial time. Three middle-order wickets fell cheaply in crunch situations. Because there weren’t enough runs on the board, our bowlers could not penetrate either.”The game had the best attendance of all the matches in the tournament thus far, with Pakistan supporters twice as many as India’s. Chants, both of the friendly and not-so-friendly kind, rang through the JB Marks Oval from both sides, the Pakistani voices diminishing as the game progressed. India have now pulled level with Pakistan as far as the sides’ Under-19 World Cup head-to-head record goes. Jaiswal is leading this edition’s run-scoring charts, having earned his fourth 50-plus score in five games. India’s victory was also the first ten-wicket win in the history of Under-19 World Cup (non-Plate) knockouts.

It remains uncertain whether players from overseas will be able to travel to Australia by October

Andrew McGlashan27-Apr-2020There remain more questions than answers about how the next Australia cricket season will look due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, but Australia batter Beth Mooney believes the Women’s Big Bash could be a success as a domestic players only event if international travel remained restricted.The WBBL would be one of the early marquee competitions if the Australian summer followed the same structure to last year. In the 2019-2020 summer, the WBBL was staged from mid-October to early December as a standalone event for the first time rather than being run concurrently with the BBL. Despite being staged outside of the peak holiday season, it was considered a significant success and attracts international talent from around the world.ALSO READ: Cricket Australia mulls five India Tests behind closed doorsHowever, while Australia is making positive progress in tackling the coronavirus – and there are overtures about some exemptions to travel restrictions – there remains a great deal of uncertainty whether border restrictions will have lifted enough to allow an influx of overseas players by October, which is also leaving significant doubt over the men’s T20 World Cup.”I’m sure those conversations will continue to happen and worst-case scenario, we might have to keep it as a domestic tournament for this year, but I think that would provide good opportunity for young players and really show the depth we have in Australian cricket,” Mooney said”The real positive thing that’s happening at the moment is the fact that the AFL and NRL are trying to get up and running. Sport is a huge part of the Australian public’s lives and we want to give something for people to feel joy about and watch in isolation. So there’s a real positive that they’re moving slowly towards bringing back elite sport and i think that will hold us in good stead for a WBBL to happen.”Among the other multiple moving parts for the women’s game is the potential impact on the 50-over World Cup in New Zealand next February if other events before then – notably the T20 World Cup – have to be moved. There is also the looming problem of the qualifying event which is due to be held in Sri Lanka in July, which looks unlikely at the moment.Mooney acknowledged that there are issues beyond sport being dealt with at this unprecedented time but hoped that with nine months still to go before the World Cup that the situation would be resolved.”You want to be playing as much cricket as you can and a one-day World Cup is one of those things that’s always in your calendar and eye line as a cricketer,” she said. “There’s bigger things in play so if it was to get moved I don’t think anyone would be too disappointed if it was because we were trying to take care of people.”There’s a bigger picture in the cricket landscape as well trying to fit everything in from the male and female programs. At this point we are a long way off, have a lot of time up our sleeve, New Zealand’s summer aligns with ours so hopefully time is on our side and helps us get a World Cup in February.”Mooney was also confident that if the build-up to the World Cup was disrupted Australia would still be able to get themselves in shape for the tournament.”The real positive about the Australian women’s team is that we’ve been professional for a few years now,” she said. We’ve kept the same core group of players across that time. We’ve also played a lot of cricket in the last 18-24 months, so I actually don’t think it will take us a really long time to get back in the groove of it.”