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Zak Crawley reaches maiden Test fifty before mini collapse has tourists four down at the close

The Report by Valkerie Baynes24-Jan-2020England’s inexperienced openers brought an air of calm after a chaotic start to the fourth and final Test, but a batting collapse after tea ensured the day continued on a dramatic path.It was an eventful opening day before, during and potentially after play.As if there wasn’t already enough riding on this match, with England closing in on a series triumph and South Africa desperate to salvage something from a tumultuous week that started with an innings defeat at Port Elizabeth, included a confused changing of the guard in the one-day side and ended – if Faf du Plessis had his way – with the captain pleading tunnel vision when it came to answering any more questions about his uncertain Test future.Rain wiped out the first session and, when word finally came through that a 1.20pm start time was in sight, the players began warming up in the outfield. That’s when England’s turmoil began.Jofra Archer, expected to make his return from the elbow injury that ruled him out of the previous two matches after sending down thunderbolts in the nets this week, bowled a few balls and then made a bee-line for the team doctor clutching his arm. He was promptly ruled out of contention, Joe Root claiming upon winning the toss and electing to bat first that the team couldn’t be confident their star quick could make it through the match.Chris Woakes was called into the side and Mark Wood was called upon to play back-to-back Tests for the first time since 2017 as England, understandably, opted for an all-out seam attack at the Wanderers, leaving Dom Bess out despite his five-wicket haul in Port Elizabeth. Horses for courses.So it was that new opening pair Zak Crawley and Dom Sibley set about compiling England’s first century opening stand since December 2016.Playing just his fourth Test, Crawley continued his steady progress since making his debut in New Zealand in November. After scores of 1, 4, 25 and 44, Crawley – who turns 22 early next month – settled in nicely. A flourish through the covers, a thump through midwicket and a commanding straight drive brought him 12 runs off a poor Dwaine Pretorius over and took him to 45 not out, before he brought up his maiden Test fifty with a thick outside edge through point from the first ball of Pretorius’ next over.His knock wasn’t completely smooth, however. Crawley was struck flush on the helmet, right next to the badge, by a ripping 149kph / 93mph delivery from Anrich Nortje not long after bringing up his half-century. He was assessed for concussion and deemed fit to continue as he and Sibley took England to tea on 100 without loss.Earlier, Sibley had survived being caught sharply by Temba Bavuma at gully for 12 when umpire Joel Wilson correctly called a no-ball on the retiring bowler Vernon Philander, who had overstepped. England were 41 without loss at the time.South Africa had been lacklustre throughout the extended session to tea but when they returned after the break, they made things happen.Debutant quick Beuran Hendricks, in the side for Kagiso Rabada who was suspended for an overly robust wicket celebration in Port Elizabeth, made the breakthrough when he had Sibley out, strangled down the leg side for 44.Crawley followed a short time later when he, like Sibley, offered an non-committal shot and was caught by Rassie van der Dussen at slip, delivering Philander his first wicket of his farewell Test.That had England at 116 for 2 but their wobble didn’t stop there, the tourists ultimately losing 4 for 50 when Joe Denly edged a Dane Paterson outswinger to van der Dussen and Ben Stokes fell in similar fashion, lured into an attempted drive by Nortje and edging to van der Dussen, again at slip.The theatre continued as Stokes became involved in an angry verbal exchange with a spectator as he walked off and he could yet be called to answer questions from the match referee. After bad light ended play early, Stokes could be seen chatting to members of the crowd and signing autographs on the boundary.The fact that the day ended with honours pretty much even had appeared so unlikely on the basis of South Africa’s performance earlier in the day. That they found some fight was encouraging for their fans after du Plessis suggested this could be his final Test on home soil amid speculation over his playing future.The intrigue deepended for them when Quinton de Kock was named captain of the ODI side for the upcoming series with England and du Plessis was omitted altogether with uncertainty over whether it was a permanent change. Graeme Smith, South Africa’s director of cricket, later confirmed it was the first step in their succession plan and du Plessis would not be reinstated as leader, should he return to the side.So, with plenty going on off the field – for both sides – the stage is set for more twists and turns on it.

Karnataka to face Bengal while Saurashtra will take on Gujarat in the Ranji Trophy semi-finals

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Feb-2020Karnataka will be bolstered by the addition of KL Rahul for their Ranji Trophy 2019-20 semi-final against Bengal at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, after he was included in the 15-man squad for the match starting on February 29.Rahul had asked to be rested from Karnataka’s quarter-final match but is now available for the climactic stages of the Ranji Trophy. Karnataka had already been strengthened by the addition of Manish Pandey for the quarter-finals, with both Pandey and Rahul having returned from New Zealand after India completed the limited-overs leg of their tour.Last year’s finalists Saurashtra will take on Gujarat in the other semi-final, at Rajkot. The other prominent players who will be part of the last four include Parthiv Patel (Gujarat), Jaydev Unadkat (Saurashtra) and Manoj Tiwary (Bengal).Gujarat, Bengal, Karnataka and Saurashtra had finished on top of the combined Groups A and B table, and all four progressed to the semi-finals after dominating their respective quarter-final matches.Gujarat beat Goa by 464 runs with a day to spare, and Karnataka induced a late collapse to beat Jammu and Kashmir by 167 runs to register outright victories. Saurashtra took a first-innings lead of 283 runs against Andhra, and then set them an out-of-reach target of 710 runs in a little over two sessions. Andhra finished on 149 for 4 in a drawn game.Bengal also progressed on first-innings lead against Odisha, bowling them out for 250 after they had made 332. Odisha were then set an unrealistic 456 to win but a combination of time running out and bad light meant they batted only 10 overs in their second innings.

India’s top order, which has been a long time strength, did not fare well on tough pitches in Wellington and Christchurch

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Mar-2020Among the many factors that influenced India’s two-nil defeat to New Zealand in the Test series, former India batsman VVS laxman observed a worrying trend that afflicted some of the batsmen, including captain Virat Kohli, who tallied just 38 runs in four innings and averaged his second-worst 9.50.”Virat was trapped leg before to the ball coming in twice in the second Test, Mayank Agarwal fell in similar fashion in both innings in Christchurch to Trent Boult’s inswingers, Prithvi Shaw was cramped up and dismissed fending by balls following him in the second innings of both Tests,” Laxman wrote in his column for .India’s batting struggled collectively managing just four individual fifties and a highest total of 242, besides being skittled for under 200 on the other three occasions. Laxman felt that though the conditions were tough – India were sent in on green tops in both Tests – New Zealand’s plans were straightforward and that the batsmen should have applied themselves better.”I am sure the batting group would be hurting, especially, since they take a lot of pride in preparation but were caught napping by New Zealand’s game plans for two Test matches in a row. I agree the conditions were tricky and challenging, but that’s no reason why there shouldn’t have been a greater application from the batsmen.New Zealand’s plans were straightforward enough – to get swing with the new ball and make use of the lateral movement and, should that fail to produce wickets, to resort to the liberal use of the short ball.”After the first Test, where particularly in the second innings staring at a large deficit India allowed New Zealand to bombard them with short-pitch stuff, they decided to take it on in Christchurch. While the plan fetched India useful runs, it also led to untimely dismissals of half-centurions Hanuma Vihari and Cheteshwar Pujara in the first innings, and Ajinkya Rahane, who was consistently troubled by that length, in the second.”Ajinkya Rahane’s a tortured stint in the second innings in Christchurch best illustrated India’s confusion,” Laxman wrote. “For an experienced and accomplished batsman who has scored runs all around the world, Rahane seemed all at sea against Neil Wagner and Kyle Jamieson’s short-ball barrage, and tried to hit his way out of trouble. On that surface, it was a method never designed to succeed.”Rahane had a forgettable second Test where he made a total of 16 runs, but more than the lack of runs, the lack of control with which he batted in the second innings stood out. He made 9 from 42 in a bizarre innings where he fended at rising deliveries, took a blow to the side of the helmet in attempt to pull before eventually, he was bowled trying to get inside the line of a Wagner short-one that came on slower than he expected. While one former India batsman and chief selector questioned Rahane’s shot selection, the other attributed his struggles to a technical glitch that he felt had crept into Rahane’s game.”He’s making an extra movement with his hands while batting. He’s moving his bat too much in his backlift. He’s a fraction of a second late on to the ball. It explains why his head isn’t still when the ball is delivered,” Dilip Vengsarkar told .Sandeep Patil was more critical: “You need to leave the short balls alone. They were bowling short-pitched stuff on a green top. Your shot selection becomes very important in such a case. You’ve to show a lot of patience and guts.”Wasim Jaffer, the former India opener and a senior team-mate of Rahane’s in Mumbai when he started out, however, differed on the subject, and felt Rahane needed to trust his natural game, which was to attack.”Sometimes, I feel that he gets too defensive,” Jaffer observed. “The Ajinkya I know plays the best when he’s positive and looking to score runs and attack. At times, he’s defending balls which he can score off. He’s giving the bowlers too much respect. He’s hit 100s in IPL, so he can do it.”Jaffer also felt that the “fear of failure” had crept into Rahane’s game.”I heard about this (batting slowly) when he was playing for Mumbai this season. This happens due to fear of failure. He has led India, he’s got a tremendous overseas record, but all that’s history. Now that he’s been labelled only as a Test player, been out of the India’s limited overs team, human nature is such that one wants to establish himself as a Test specialist. He’s trying to prove a point.”By doing that, you try to show that ‘I’ll be technically correct. I’ll try to occupy the crease. If you want to just ‘occupy,’ you can call a security guard! Who’ll score the runs? I’m not saying throw your bat around. However, when you’ve so many hundreds behind you, this approach is not acceptable. An ordinary player like me survived on foreign soil, these players are champions.”

Brooks says preparation has been good despite concern at lack of time in the middle for top order

Alan Gardner04-Jul-2020Shamarh Brooks has backed the preparations of West Indies’ batsmen as being good enough to “bring success” in the series against England, despite assistant coach Roddy Estwick admitting to concern about the form of the top order going into the Tests.A likely top five of Kraigg Brathwaite, John Campbell, Brooks, Shai Hope and Roston Chase managed just 29 runs between them in West Indies’ second intra-squad warm-up match, a rain-affected four-day game at Emirates Old Trafford earlier this week, prompting Estwick to describe their lack of time in the middle as one of his “biggest worries”.While Brathwaite, Hope and Brooks did manage fifties in the first tour game, they were unable to build on that, as West Indies’ first-choice pace foursome of Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel, Jason Holder and Alzarri Joseph combined to reduce the Brathwaite XI to 49 for 5 in their only innings. But Brooks remained confident that the building blocks were being put in place for West Indies to be competitive with the bat.ALSO READ: Gabriel added to West Indies Test squad to face England“Clearly our bowling will be our strength, and has been for the past couple of years,” he said. “If you look at our batting, when we do get it right as a unit we have won games. That’s why I’m stressing on the point that we need to bat well, especially against a team like England at home, who are going to be very challenging.”The coach, I guess he would feel that way because of what he saw in the last game, where the bowlers really raised the intensity and we fell down. But I still don’t feel that, when we come to the Test series, it will go that way. We need to apply ourselves, stick to the basics and stick to our gameplans.”Some of us got the opportunity to bat and spend time at the crease. It’s still a batsman or bowlers game [and] our bowlers bowled well, especially in the second game, our Test bowlers really came with a different intensity. It’s good to get out there and have a practice game but I think we are backing our preparation to bring success in this series.”While both teams will have suffered from a lack of preparation time, due to disruption caused by the Covid-19, West Indies have the added challenge of trying to get used to unfamiliar conditions ahead of a challenging schedule of three Tests in as many weeks. There have also been concerns over the form and fitness of captain Jason Holder, while wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich sat out this week’s warm-up match after suffering a side strain.Additionally, a CWI board dispute over the decision to allow coach Phil Simmons to leave the team’s bio-secure bubble in order to attend a funeral has provided an unwanted distraction in the build-up to the Tests. After three negative Covid-19 tests, Simmons is now back in charge of the squad, which has relocated to Southampton ahead of the first Test, starting on Wednesday.”The guys have been working very, very hard,” Brooks said. “We know the English bowling attack is a good one, [but] once we bat well, I think we have a very good chance. Spending time at the crease will be key and as long as we apply ourselves, spend some time out there, it will get easier. We need as a batting unit to stand up in this series and make the difference.”I think we’ve had enough time to prepare. We’ve been here three-four weeks now, we’ve had two practice games, and I think the intensity in those practice games was decent. But having said that, we just came off a first-class season as well, so it’s not like we are out of the woods in terms of not being in cricket form. I know three months [without cricket] might seem like a while, but I think the four weeks we have had here would be enough time to get ourselves back in shape and ready for this Test series.”Brooks, one of the large Bajan contingent in the squad, also paid tribute to Everton Weekes, who died this week at the age of 95. Brooks made his maiden hundred, in only his third Test, against Afghanistan in Lucknow last year, and touched on the influence Weekes had on him as a youngster in the Barbados set-up.”When I scored my first Test hundred in India, I spoke about Sir Everton. Even in first-class cricket, whenever cricket is being played at Kensington [Oval], he would always be in the president’s suite watching. You were always able to go up there, whether it be during the game or after the game, and have a word with him about what he would have seen, what you can do differently. Now that great man has gone but he has left a legacy and hopefully the guys in the team now can carry on that legacy.”

The downtime hasn’t stopped Australia’s limited-overs captain looking at the challenges to come

Andrew McGlashan26-Jun-2020Despite the sport largely being shutdown since March, cricket has not been far from the mind of Australia’s limited-overs captain Aaron Finch as he thinks ahead to the 2023 one-day World Cup campaign in India as well as the two T20 World Cups that are scheduled to be played before then.It appears highly unlikely that the T20 World Cup set for this October and November in Australia will take place due to the Covid-19 pandemic with a range of options on the table as to when it could be moved to, from early next year to a 12-month delay to pushing it as far as 2022. Under the current schedule, India are due to host the 2021 T20 World Cup in the October-November of that year.As things stand the next 50-over men’s World Cup will take place in February and March of 2023 in India. Following Australia’s semi-final exit in last year’s tournament, when they turned their one-day form around significantly leading into the competition, there is already considerable thought going into how to prepare.ALSO READ: Australians who could have IPL-state cricket clash“I’m a cricket nuffy so you are always thinking about it, especially being captain and with what’s coming up with the T20 World Cup, whenever that might be, and there’s a couple of them and looking forward to the 2023 50-over World Cup in India,” Finch told RSN. “We are just in the processing of nutting out how we go about winning that, what we’ll need to do down the track to be successful in those three tournaments.”In the 50-over space it’s about working back from that 2023 World Cup and really getting a detailed plan of how we think we’ll have to win it, what’s the structure of the side we’ll need in India. Is it going to be two spinners, is it going to be an extra allrounder, and kind of work back from there.”Aaron Finch drives one through cover•Associated Press

Finch, who has made clear his ambitions of still being part of Australia’s one-day squad for the next one-day World Cup, said it was important to start identifying new players who could be part of the side now so that they can be given enough game time ahead of the tournament. He suggested the selectors will be looking at around 25 names over the next couple of years being whittling it down to the final squad as the tournament approaches.”[We need to] nut out what resources we’ll need in terms of players. If there’s someone new we identify who could perhaps have a big impact, how many games can we get into them over the next two and a half years to make sure they have enough experience so in a high-pressure semi-final you aren’t going in hoping they’ll do well, you know they have the form and enough experience behind them to make sure they are comfortable with international level.”It’s either working out what the 15, or say 25 players now, what that looks like, does it match our game plan going forward, or do we pick the side the other way round with a game plan in mind and adapt it that way. It’s not rocket science, it’s going through data, a bit of gut instinct of what you feel will be the trends of one-day cricket. Will it be 400, or will it be that 320-mark with some wearing pitches in India and a couple of spinners in your side?”Since their World Cup exit against England, Australia have played seven ODIs with six of those away from home which included being beaten 3-0 in South Africa. They beat New Zealand behind closed doors at the SCG in mid-March before Covid-19 brought sport to a sudden halt.They could return to limited-overs action in September with talks continuing about heading to England for the ODI and T20I matches that were originally scheduled for July. In the 2020-21 home season they are currently scheduled to play two three-match ODI series against India and New Zealand in January.

First-class competition voted through by slim margin

George Dobell07-Jul-2020Counties may be offered an opt-out of this season’s first-class competition as part of plans to restart domestic cricket.While the first-class counties voted by a narrow margin to play first-class and T20 cricket in the abbreviated 2020 season, it is understood one or two retain strong reservations about hotel stays. Hampshire, in particular, are understood to have doubts about the safety of such trips. They, along with several other sides, voted to start the season with a 50-over competition and not play first-class cricket in 2020.What the vote means in essence is that the county season will begin at the start of August. It will, subject to withdrawals, feature three regional groups of six teams who will each contest five first-class games. The two top sides at the end of that qualifying period will contest a final played over five days at Lord’s which is likely to start on September 29 and could finish as late as October 3.ALSO READ: Regional red-ball competition in prospect as counties vote on season formatsDiscussions over what to call the competition are ongoing, but the Bob Willis Trophy is a strong possibility. Willis, the former England captain, died in December. The counties are hopeful this game will be broadcast by Sky but will attempt to stream it if not.The T20 Blast season will start on August 27 and end with Finals Day at Edgbaston on September 26. Clubs remain confident that some spectators will be allowed into grounds before the end of the season. There will be no domestic 50-over cricket this year.Although the vote was far from unanimous – unconfirmed reports suggests it finished 11-7 – most clubs appear happy to go with the majority decision. Leicestershire, for example, expressed a preference to start the season with List A cricket but have confirmed they will happily take part in the first-class competition. It may be relevant that it was made clear to reluctant counties that if they opted out of first-class cricket this season, they may not be welcomed back in the future.Hampshire are probably the most reluctant at this stage. It is understood that, during the meeting of county chairs to discuss options, their chairman Rod Bransgrove expressed strong discomfort over asking players to put themselves in positions where they could be at risk of illness or injury. It is also understood that, following the vote, he has formed a sub-committee of the Hampshire board that will advise on the safety implications of away travel. At this stage, the club have yet to confirm their intentions.Social distancing measures being put in place before the first Test•Getty Images

There is some irony in Hampshire’s reluctance to stay in hotels. The England and West Indies squads as well as broadcasters from Sky and the BBC are all currently staying in hotels at the Ageas Bowl, their home ground. But the level of investment into creating something approaching bio-secure venues for international teams cannot be replicated at a domestic level and there have been concerns expressed that county players are not receiving the same level of protection as international players. All players will be obliged to opt in before they are considered for selection.The majority of the counties, however, hope that as passions cool there will be an acceptance over the schedule. They remain hopeful that all 18 counties will participate. The ECB have put no deadline on counties confirming their involvement, but hope to sign the schedule off at board level later this week.With the city of Leicester currently in lockdown, it may well be that the club’s home games are played at Kibworth CC. Lancashire, meanwhile, are expected to play their home games at Liverpool, while Hampshire are currently training at Arundel and could be facing the prospect of playing every game away from home. Derbyshire, too, may lose their ground for several weeks as it is likely to be the venue for women’s internationals.

A 21-man squad has been named for a tour that will include three T20Is and three ODIs

Daniel Brettig14-Aug-2020Riley Meredith, Josh Philippe and Daniel Sams are among 21 members of the Australian squad to venture to England for a limited-overs tour of ODIs and T20I matches in September, the national team’s first assignment since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.The outsized squad will enable the team, led by Aaron Finch and coached by Justin Langer, to play internal practice matches on English soil in Derby after entering the biosecure bubble in which they will face Eoin Morgan’s World Cup-holding ODI team in three matches at Old Trafford in Manchester after an initial three T20Is at the Ageas Bowl in Hampshire.The T20Is will be played on September 4, 6 and 8 followed by the three ODIs on September 11, 13 and 16.Josh Hazlewood brings out the elbow bump after taking a wicket•Getty Images

Marcus Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell are both back into ODI calculations after time out of the side since last year’s World Cup, while the senior assistant coach Andrew McDonald will not join the tour party due to his pre-existing contract as part of the support staff for Rajasthan Royals in the IPL.D’Arcy Short, who played Australia’s previous four ODIs, misses out from the 26-man squad named last month along with Usman Khawaja, Ben McDermott, Travis Head and Michael Neser.After Cricket Australia experimented with an array of leadership combinations over the past two years, a more traditional set-up has been restored with Pat Cummins as the sole deputy to Finch, meaning a demotion of sorts for the wicketkeeper Alex Carey.”It’s a squad with great depth and a sprinkle of some exceptional young players,” the selection chairman Trevor Hohns said. “After taking advice and reviewing the leadership of the squad we have decided to revert back to the traditional captain and one vice-captain set-up.”Alex remains a genuine leader within the squad and will continue to provide valuable support to Aaron as skipper. Pat is very much in the same category and someone the entire squad has immense respect for as a person and a player. This is not a reflection of succession planning, but rather a decision to return to the traditional leadership set-up that has served Australian cricket so well for generations.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“We now have quite an established and experienced senior playing group who all play an important role in the leadership of the team on and off the field. As has always been the case all senior players have a strong voice in all aspects of planning, preparation and playing.”In McDonald’s absence, CA have made the intriguing call to include Trent Woodhill, recently appointed as a consultant to the Big Bash League, as a member of the team support staff for the tour, alongside the seasoned pace-bowling coach Troy Cooley and the selector on duty George Bailey.”We are very pleased with the final group which was chosen with a view to continuing our recent form in T20 cricket and the longer term goal of returning to the top in the 50-over game,” Hohns said. “The top and middle order is extremely strong, there’s plenty of accomplished all-rounders, fantastic fast bowling depth and spin options.”The squad also has the cover required to meet all contingencies given replacements are not available for this tour if injury or illness were to occur. The NSP believes this squad, along with those who missed out and others who perform well in domestic cricket, offers a solid platform for success in the white ball game going forward.”The team will assemble in Perth before their departure to England on August 23 where they will initially be based at Derby. Three T20 and one 50-over practice matches will follow, before they face England in matches in Hampshire and Manchester, taking advantage of the on-site hotels at both venues.Upon their return home from the tour, members of the Australian squad will quarantine and practice in Perth for two weeks ahead of the home international summer – arrangements for this are still being finalised with the Western Australia state government – and those in the IPL will fly directly to the UAE after the ODI series.”It’s vital for cricket that we do everything we can to keep the game going in these tough times,” Langer said. “I am delighted with how the players have returned to their states from the break back in March. The whole squad has come back fitter and stronger, which is great testament to each of them.”We have a massive assignment ahead with World Cups, Test Series against India and South Africa and the Ashes next year. We can’t wait to get back into it again.”

Ben Raine half-century seals comfortable six-wicket win

ECB Reporters Network13-Sep-2020
Matty Potts claimed career-best T20 figures to inspire Durham to a comfortable six-wicket win over Leicestershire Foxes in their Vitality Blast contest at Emirates Riverside.Potts was deadly accurate with the ball in his four-over spell of 3 for 19, leading a disciplined effort in the field from the home side. Liam Trevaskis was equally impressive with figures of 2 for 17, preventing the Foxes from setting a competitive total. Arron Lilley top scored for the visitors with 45 in their innings of 130 for 9.Durham made a rapid start courtesy of Graham Clark, notching 35 from only 14 balls. Ben Raine continued his impressive form with the bat, playing the anchor role with an unbeaten half-century, ending the game in style with a six. Durham secured their second win on the bounce, giving them a glimmer of hope of advancing from the North Group with three games remaining in the term.The Foxes won the toss and elected to bat and debutant Nick Welch began with a reverse sweep to the boundary, but the home side soon put the clamps on during the powerplay. Gareth Delany scored a blistering 68 in the first meeting between the sides this term, but he fell for a duck lbw to Trevaskis. The Foxes’ other star from their victory over Durham at Headingley, Lilley came to the crease and dispatched Paul Coughlin for a six and a boundary to get his innings off running.Welch tried to follow suit, but could only pick out Trevaskis on the leg-side boundary. Leicestershire struggled to find their rhythm in the powerplay, scoring only 26 from the opening six overs. The pressure to get the scoreboard moving was evident amid tight bowling from the hosts. It resulted in a brilliant run-out as wicketkeeper David Bedingham gathered the ball and connected with his throw to the bowler’s end to dismiss Foxes skipper Colin Ackermann for 10.Lilley attempted to up the run-rate, taking the attack to Scott Steel with two maximums in the 10th over. However, his third attempt at a six cost him his wicket for 45 lofting the ball into the hands of Trevaskis at long-off. Trevaskis continued to be a thorn in the side of the Foxes – this time producing a diving one-handed catch of his own bowling to remove Lewis Hill.Brydon Carse and Potts continued to stymie the visitors with strikes to send Tom Taylor and Ben Mike back to the pavilion. Potts saved his best for the final over, which cost only four runs, removing Harry Dearden for 30 and Will Davis for a duck. Leicestershire limped to a total of 130 for 9 from their 20 overs, putting pressure on their bowlers to respond.Clark was dominant from the off dispatching Taylor for 20 in the first over, including three fours and six to hand Durham a lightning start. Alex Lees continued the assault from the other end with two boundaries off Gavin Griffiths before Clark finished the over with a drive through the covers to the fence. The right-hander reached 35 from only 13 balls before he was pinned lbw attempting to reverse-sweep Ackermann. Pace off the ball yielded another wicket for the Foxes as Callum Parkinson turned one through Alex Lees’ gate.The home side were well ahead of the required run rate, but Bedingham still managed to pick out the man on the fence to fall for nine to Mike. Raine kept Durham on course, maintaining his form from his impressive knock against Derbyshire. He cleared the rope with a well-placed hook to bring up the 100 in the 12th over. The left-hander was there at the end to notch his second T20 fifty in a row, powering his team over the line with 28 balls to spare by dispatching Will Davis for a maximum.

Sunrisers edged past when the sides last met, as middle order form continues to elude Super Kings

Shashank Kishore12-Oct-20208:01

Is it time for CSK to revamp their approach in chases?

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If social media is anything to go by, this contest is also cheekily termed the MRC Nagar derby. India Cements and Sun TV networks, the parent companies of Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad respectively, are headquartered in the same upscale Chennai locality right opposite each other. Cheeky references aside, both teams are at a stage where they desperately need to accumulate wins; the Sunrisers only slightly better off, having won three out of seven to the Super Kings’ two.The Sunrisers saw two points being stolen from under their nose on Sunday against the Rajasthan Royals after being in control of their defence for 16 overs. Not often do opposition teams look to take on Rashid Khan; but Rahul Tewatia did and it came off spectacularly, as the Sunrisers saw the game slip away. This has left them needing five wins in the second half of the tournament to enter the Qualifiers, not impossible by any means with their batsmen continuing to put runs on the board.Jonny Bairstow has found form and as has David Warner. Manish Pandey announced himself with a half-century on a sluggish surface, while Kane Williamson has played the role of a finisher. Where then is the problem? Yes, the runs are coming but the Sunrisers will want to show a little more urgency upfront. Warner has made 500 runs every season for the Sunrisers and is well on his way there, but his average and strike rare so far has been the lowest for him since he joined the franchise in 2014. Can he get back to his marauding best to give his bowlers a bit more cushion?The Super Kings continue to be heavily reliant on openers Faf du Plessis and Shane Watson. They’re yet to set a target this tournament, and should they eventually be in a position where they have to, they will need that middle order to fire. MS Dhoni seems to have shaken off his rust, but the problem is the lack of experience among the young Indian batsmen, a variety they’ve never invested in unlike other teams.Which is why Ruturaj Gaikwad played his first game in nearly two years and N Jagadeesan finally debuted in the IPL against the Royal Challengers Bangalore after a long wait since 2018. Without Suresh Raina and with a patchy Ambati Rayudu struggling for momentum, the batting simply wears too thin. So no matter how well the bowlers deliver, the batting may still struggle. The situation is so dire that Dhoni shook off his template of backing under-fire players by leaving out Kedar Jadhav and handing a debut to a rookie. Now, having taken the bold call, the management can only hope it pays off.

In the news

• Khaleel Ahmed has blown hot-and-cold this season while Siddarth Kaul proved expensive in the only game he played. Possibly, the Sunrisers could give Basil Thampi a look-in.
• With the surfaces slowing down, the Super Kings won’t mind the control and zip that the veteran Imran Tahir, last season’s Purple Cap holder, brings. This could mean playing two legspinners – Karn Sharma being the other – but it’s not entirely outlandish. That way, however, they will have to leave out one of Dwayne Bravo and Sam Curran.

MS Dhoni and Chennai Super Kings left themselves with too much to do at the end•BCCI

When they last met

The Sunrisers’ top order wobbled, but found a way out courtesy of Priyam Garg and Abhishek Sharma, who helped put up a competitive 164. Bhuvneshwar Kumar injured himself and the Super Kings mounted a late surge with the help of Ravindra Jadeja and Dhoni, but fell seven short. T Natarajan impressed with his superb death-overs execution to help pull off a tight win for the Sunrisers.

Likely XIs

Chennai Super Kings: 1 Shane Watson, 2 Faf du Plessis, 3 Ambati Rayudu, 4 N Jagadeesan, 5 MS Dhoni (capt), 6 Ravindra Jadeja, 7 Sam Curran, 8 Dwayne Bravo, 9 Deepak Chahar, 10 Shardul Thakur 11 Karn Sharma Sunrisers Hyderabad: 1 David Warner (capt), 2 Jonny Bairstow (wk), 3 Manish Pandey, 4 Kane Williamson, 5 Priyam Garg, 6 Vijay Shankar, 7 Abhishek Sharma, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Sandeep Sharma, 10 Khaleel Ahmed/Basil Thampi, 11 T Natarajan

Strategy punt

One of the areas where the Super Kings have been affected a great deal is their batting slowdown in the middle overs. Their scoring rate is a poor 6.90 from overs 7-13, the second-worst in the tournament. One way of looking to correct this is to perhaps have a dasher at No. 4. Only two batsmen have struck at over 130 in this period for them. One of them is Shane Watson, who opens the innings.Sam Curran is the other, someone the management can promote with a clear mandate. His strike rate of 227 in the first ten balls that he has faced this season is the highest for a Super Kings batsman. This move of sending in a left-hander could also challenge David Warner in how he uses left-arm spinner Abhishek Sharma and Rashid Khan, his premier legspinner. If the move pays off, it could free up the likes of Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja, possibly leaving them with a lot lesser to chase down in the last five, should it come to that.

Stats that matter

• Since 2018, no batsman has scored more against the Sunrisers than Watson. In seven innings, he has made 311 runs at a strike rate of 156. This includes a match-winning century in the IPL 2018 final. His match-up against Rashid Khan, who is Warner’s trump card, should encourage the Super Kings fan. He strikes at 143 and hasn’t been dismissed yet by the Afghanistan legspinner.
• T Natarajan’s seven wickets are the second most among uncapped bowlers this IPL. He has also bowled 29 yorkers, the most among all bowlers. It’s significantly better than even the likes of Jasprit Bumrah (15) and Trent Boult (13).
• Teams have often looked to play out Khan in the middle overs. This explains his economy of 4.70 – which is the best – in the middle overs among all teams. Yet, he’s also managed to pick up nine wickets in this period, which is also significantly better than the second-best bowler Rahul Chahar, who has five wickets and concedes at 7.70 per over.
• Warner needs 19 runs to get to the 5000-run landmark in the IPL.
• Sandeep Sharma is three short of 100 IPL wickets.

Balochistan missed a chance to seal a semi-final spot, while Southern Punjab managed to hang in with a 70-run win over Sindh

Danyal Rasool15-Oct-2020 Northern beat Balochistan by 39 runs
Balochistan missed out on a chance to seal qualification to the last four, falling to a 39-run defeat against Northern. Sitting on eight points, they had a chance to put both Central and Southern Punjab out of the tournament with a win but will now have to wait until their final game for another shot at the last four.Haider Ali’s 50-ball 86 meant they were set exactly 200 to chase. The opener set up a 92-run partnership with Ali Imran, whose 22-ball 41 got them off to a flying start; Northern brought up the 100 before the 10th over was complete. Haider looked set for a hundred before Akhtar Shah trapped him in front. It was a rare moment of joy for the bowler, who would otherwise be clobbered for 40 in the three overs he bowled. Haris Sohail and Amad Butt put the brakes on with a couple of cheap middle order wickets, but Shadab Khan was around to inject some momentum at the death, striking a breezy 42 off 27 to set Balochistan a stiff target.Balochistan appeared well on track for the chase in the first powerplay, staying abreast of the run rate without losing a wicket. Awais Zia and Imam-ul-Haq put up a 69-run opening stand off just 44 balls, but things began to unravel when Imam was run out to give Northern a breakthrough. Shadab removed Zia and Bismillah Khan off consecutive balls; his figures of 3-0-13-2 were the catalyst for Northern’s win. So the wickets began to tumble, the run rate soared. Just one batsman, Sohail, crossed 15 in the innings thereafter, and Balochistan crawled to 160, long out of the game by the time the final ball had been bowled.Southern Punjab beat Sindh by 70 runs
Southern Punjab kept their hopes of a semi-final spot alive with a resounding 70-run win over Sindh. Shan Masood’s side recovered from losing three wickets for eight runs thanks to a scintillating 121-run partnership between Sohaib Maqsood and Khushdil Shah, who both scored quickfire half-centuries to steer their side towards a big total. Not afraid to counter-attack from the outset, they ensured Hassan Khan, who was smashed for 23 in one over, and Anwar Ali – who leaked 59 in four – came in for particular punishment as Southern Punjab posted 191 for 6.Having conceded at least 200 runs in seven of their previous eight matches, Southern Punjab were by no means guaranteed to defend what they had put up, but Sindh were never really in it. Khurram Manzoor’s 49 off 35 was the closest thing equalling resistance for the already qualified side, and Mohammad Abbas’ early removal of Sharjeel Khan set the tone for the chase. None of their other big hitters fired either, with Azam Khan and Danish Aziz falling cheaply, and soon, the only point of interest was how much Southern Punjab would improve their net run rate.Sindh were bowled out inside 17 overs, which means the last semi-final spot comes down, somewhat, to a showdown between Balochistan and Southern Punjab Friday. With Central Punjab also on eight points, the chance of a three-way tie in case Southern Punjab win sets up a dramatic final day of the league stage.