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Osman Samiuddin15-May-2017To sign off, a bit of history and a lot of drama: if ever a 101-run victory can said to have been stolen, then it was by Pakistan on the final day in Dominica. Yasir Shah’s fifth wicket of the innings, off the last ball of the penultimate over of the Test, sealed a series win, Pakistan’s first ever in the Caribbean. For the captain Misbah-ul-Haq, a man whose career has resounded with moments of extreme drama, there was no better way to walk off into the horizon – with the bonus of another little notch in a tenure full of them.The win was Pakistan’s 26th under Misbah’s captaincy, nearly double the next closest – Imran Khan and Javed Miandad led in 14 wins. And while the months since he led Pakistan to a brief stay at the top of the Test rankings have represented a dip in fortune, Misbah leaves the game broadly satisfied with what he has done.”Whenever you think back, you think I’ve done this and that, you always have a feeling I could’ve done this a little better,” Misbah told ESPNcricinfo. “I tried all that I could on my part, with whatever authority and responsibility I had, whatever was in my hands, I did what I could. I tried my level best with this team.”And I think, thank God, we have achieved quite a few things in Test cricket especially. One-days also we achieved some things, stuff that other big sides couldn’t do. With the resources, the situation, the limitations of Pakistan cricket I think that I am, to a great degree, satisfied with whatever we have achieved.”As glittering as some of the results have been – the three series against England, the whitewash of Australia – it might come to be the uninterrupted duration of his captaincy that, in time, turns out to be the most remarkable of his achievements.Misbah was Pakistan’s Test captain for well over six years, a stretch in which he missed only two of 58 Tests – and those were only because he was suspended for over-rate breaches. And he was 36 when he took over. Given the historic instability around the Pakistani captaincy, this was almost unimaginable continuity; even when Imran Khan captained over a decade between 1982 and 1992 there were periods when he was not automatically selected as captain”No secret [to his endurance],” he said. “Patience is very important. The other thing, for captaincy, is that the most difficult task, you go there and do it yourself. If you do, then automatically players get behind you and start playing their roles.”I didn’t think of it is as a burden. Neither did I ever think that I would do it for this long, or did I worry about it being taken away from me. You are given a responsibility and you have players and resources around you who help you in fulfilling that.”You maintain good relations with the players, with the board – with whoever you work with. Giving respect to everyone has helped me in my captaincy and I got respect in return.”Somehow, Pakistan must now fill the gargantuan hole left by Misbah’s exit, as well as that of his great comrade Younis Khan. The pair leaves with nearly 200 Tests-worth of experience as well as over 15000 runs. It is not just the runs or Tests, however, that will need replacing.”It will be difficult,” Misbah said. “The most important thing, in any situation, is to have players who truly believe they can do it, players who believe that whatever the situation, whatever circumstances, they are the ones who can do it for the first time. That is the key thing to bring, that belief in a side – who are the players who will bring that belief into a side?”That is where Pakistan will miss Younis Khan. In those scenarios, there has to be someone who can stand up, who can play an outstanding fourth innings, or who is out of form and can make a 200. From nowhere to play such an innings, if you have someone like that, you’re always confident as a team.”And though he is leaving the field, Misbah will stay on in the game. It was unlikely to ever be in any other way. “It’s simple. You’ve spent so much time in cricket, so you try and stay on in the field that you’ve worked in.”Help others, continue things. I haven’t decided specifically what yet, but, even if it is with my department (SNGPL), who have young players, I’ll see what I can do. Or with my district side, if I can do something.”

When Anya Shrubsole was brought back into the attack, India were on course to win the World Cup. Then it all changed.

Firdose Moonda at Lord's23-Jul-2017Anya Shrubsole was 10 years old when her father, Ian played in a club final at Lord’s. That day she told him she would like to play at the ground too. For England. In a World Cup final. She left out the part about winning. England almost left that part out too.Despite boasting four of the top 10 run-scorers in the tournament, they posted a below-par score in the final. Only three totals lower than their 228 had been successfully defended in the competition, twice against a team that did not win a match. India’s 169 and Sri Lanka’s 221 were both enough against Pakistan. England themselves had turned 220 into enough against West Indies but this was India.India, who had beaten Australia, who were the defending champions. India, whose captain Mithali Raj was five runs away from overtaking Tammy Beaumont as the leading run-scorer before this match and whose No.4 Harmanpreet Kaur had played the most dominant innings in women’s ODI history just three days ago. India, who were in the process of revolutionising the women’s game. And India, who until the 43rd over, were on track and in luck.The things England usually do right, they did wrong. Heather Knight dropped a catch, Sarah Taylor missed a stumping, Katherine Brunt misfielded. The occasion, the rare occasion in which women’s teams could play at Lord’s, rarer still because it was in front of a full house, seemed to be getting to the hosts. Aerial shots were falling safe, gaps were being pierced and Punam Raut was overcoming cramp to play what was shaping as a tournament-winning knock.With Laura Marsh bowled out, Heather Knight brought Shrubsole back in the 43rd over even as she got the sense “things were slipping away.” After the first two balls, they only seemed to slip further. Veda Krishnamurthy struck back-to-back boundaries, India were 191 for 3 and needed 38 off 44 balls. Even a wicket at that stage would only be consolation, right? Maybe not.Shrubsole slid one in from wide of the crease that struck Raut on the knee roll. She was given out. By the time Raut wanted to review, it was too late so she had to go. The review would have been wasted anyway. The ball was going on to hit the stumps.Watching on Raj still wore her pads, as though she was hopeful she may get to bat again. She said afterwards that was not when the butterflies stirred. Neither was it in the next over when Sushma Verma tried to sweep and gloved the ball onto her stumps. India had lost two wickets in five balls but Krishnamurthy was still there. Between those dismissals, she’d executed a gorgeous inside-out cover-drive off Alex Hartley. As far as Raj was concerned, India still had. As far as Shrubsole was concerned, they didn’t.Anya Shrubsole takes the wicket to win the World Cup•Getty ImagesShrubsole was sure England had created enough pressure to cause doubt in their opposition’s minds. With the level of noise, even though it was evenly split in favour of both sides, and the significance of the game, she thought that the two wickets they’d already taken could bring a few more. She was almost proved right the very next ball. India were feeling the heat and Deepti Sharma wanted to be anywhere but on strike. She dabbed the ball into the offside and set off even though Krishnamurthy was not interested. She had to turn back and was saved by a dive but it was obvious there was some kind of panic.At the end of that over, Krishnamurthy decided she would have to do it on her own. Two balls into the next over, she aimed for the stands and slogged but toe-ended it to midwicket. The next time she tried that, Shrubsole took pace off the ball and Nat Sciver settled under a simple catch. Shrubsole ended the over by castling Jhulan Goswami and by then, she was certain all the “key wickets” wickets had been taken. But Raj, still believed.Sharma and Shikha Pandey, in particular, was “the last person I felt could pull the match through”, Raj said. So when Sharma survived a stumping off Shrubsole’s next over, an over she only bowled because she had taken wickets in the previous one after she got wind that Knight was going to take her off, Raj was relieved but Shrubsole may have started to stress. Especially because at that exact moment, a powder-puff drizzle pattered onto the ground.Shrubsole was sent to point for Jenny Gunn to bowl the 48th over. India still needed 14 runs off 18 balls, England needed three wickets. The first ball was steered to third man, the second pushed to Shrubsole and the third wide down leg. 11 runs. 15 balls. Three wickets. Gunn had to bowl the third ball again and Pandey hit it to point again, harder than the first time and ran anyway. Shrubsole collected it and threw awkwardly, Taylor had to try and find her feet while whipping off the bails, Pandey was nowhere near her crease. Raj knew, Shrubsole knew, it seemed everyone knew at that moment where the trophy was going.But those 11 runs were still gettable by the time Shrubsole took the ball at the start of the penultimate over and she had to make sure she did not give them away, especially after their seemed a final twist. Two balls after Sharma had been foxed into skying one to midwicket, Gunn dropped a gift at mid-off. Shrubsole was so sure she would catch it, she was about to charge up to her in celebration and then “had to hold myself back.” She showed very little emotion, and certainly no anger or disappointment or frustration as England had before. She was already sure it was over.”As a batter down the order myself, if you get a full, straight ball, it’s going to be hard to hit,” she said. So that’s what she delivered to Rajeshwari Gayakwad and that’s what secured England’s fourth World Cup. “Pure elation,” is what Shrubsole said she felt afterwards. “Because we were out of the game but came back.”England did exactly the same thing earlier in the week, against South Africa in the semi-final and it was Shrubsole who showed the steel then, too. She hit the winning runs and strutted around like she was born to do it. “We call her ‘Hoof’ because she sometimes walks like a show pony with her feet,” Gunn said. “She was proper serious and I was like ‘we’ve got this.’ She just charged and smashed it through the covers for four which no-one has managed to do all day, but she timed it for four and then jumped at me.”It’s moments like that Shrubsole lives for. “Enjoying the pressure,” is why she plays this game. At least one person was enjoying it with her.Ian has been Anya and England’s biggest fan through this tournament. He has also become what Anya called a “new media super-star” who has “never had this much popularity on Twitter” born through his support of the team. From congratulations to Fran Wilson and Nat Sciver to an interview on , dad Shrubsole has enjoyed this tournament as much his daughter.”Proud parent,” he posted, captioning a photograph of Anya celebrating the win against South Africa in the semi-final. “Super proud parent,” he wrote in the same post, about the adjacent image of her consoling a distraught Dane van Niekerk.This time he might have to find some new words.

Bangladesh have managed to unsettle Steven Smith by bowling from around the wicket, and while it is a relatively untested angle by offspinners, it puts pressure on them to be more accurate

Mohammad Isam31-Aug-2017Australia’s Test tour of India earlier this year may have given Bangladesh a plan against Steven Smith, a possible chink that may have evaded the other attacks he has conquered. In the final Test of that tour, in Dharamsala, India offspinner R Ashwin bowled around the wicket to Smith extensively, and drew an edge to slip from that angle. In the first two Tests of that series, he had bowled only three balls from that angle.In the first Test in Mirpur, offspinner Mehidy Hasan seemed to have carried on from where Ashwin left. His bowling from around the wicket, to some extent, curtailed Smith’s free-flowing batting against spin, although in Chittagong, more accurate lines and lengths could make a significant difference. In 2016 Sri Lanka offspinner Dilruwan Perera had managed to curb Smith’s strokeplay with an around-the-wicket line, dismissing him once in 41 deliveries bowled from that angle. Smith, who has three hundreds in India across two tours, now has a couple underwhelming innings – 8, 37 in Mirpur – and a new challenge to overcome.This is a relatively new angle for offspinners against Smith, and one that bowlers like Graeme Swann, Moeen Ali and Mark Craig did not try extensively over the past seven years. Swann, Moeen and Craig had little success bowling around the wicket to Smith and even Ashwin, from whom Bangladesh have taken their cue, wasn’t successful in the 2013 series: he bowled 62 out of 93 balls to Smith from around the wicket, but his only dismissal came from over the wicket.In the first innings in Mirpur, Mehidy bowled one ball to Smith over the wicket before switching his angle. Three balls later, he had Smith bowled. In the second innings, Mehidy began from around the wicket to Smith and nearly had the Australia captain stumped first ball. He bowled from the same angle for another 30 deliveries during Australia’s unsuccessful attempt at chasing 265.In the first innings, Smith began by charging at Mehidy when he came from around the wicket, but was bowled by a delivery that would have turned to yorker-length after the batsman stepped out too soon. It dipped on him late, and he was left with no room to drive it down the ground, let alone loft it over wide mid-on, which seemed to be the original intention.After the first-innings dismissal, Mehidy said that the Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim had told him on the eve of the Test about this new line of attack.”We had a specific plan for Smith,” he said after the second day’s play. “Mushfiq told me that if you can bowl around the wicket, he can be in trouble. He doesn’t use his feet too well. He is someone who likes to come down the wicket and, if the ball turns, there is a possibility of a stumping or a catch. I just tried to follow his instruction and bowled around the wicket. It worked.”Mehidy’s accuracy, coupled with his subtle variation of pace and turn, made him a dangerous proposition for England last year and now for Australia. While successive Bangladesh captains, including Mushfiqur, have been eager to use offspinners against left-handed batsmen predominantly, Mehidy was given a long run when Smith was at the crease on the third evening and fourth morning. And that also highlighted a challenge for the young bowler.In the second innings, Mehidy’s first ball to Smith was an offbreak that drifted away in the air, drawing the batsman out and catching him slightly overbalanced. Mushfiqur whipped off the bails, but replays showed that Smith had a bit of his boot inside the crease. In Mehidy’s seventh over, Smith flicked one right at the short-leg fielder’s body but a chance wasn’t held.Apart from these two close calls, however, Mehidy struggled with his length from around the wicket to Smith for the rest of the innings. He bowled 13 short deliveries and offered plenty of full balls too, allowing Smith to read him easily. If the new angle has the potential to test Smith, it is also a challenge for Mehidy to maintain his consistency when the margin of error is smaller: anything straight can be whipped through the leg side and a bit of room can be crashed through the covers.After Mehidy spoke about the new angle at the press conference, there was some unease in the Bangladesh camp, as they felt he may have given out too much. Mushfiqur did not comment on it during the post-match press conference, while Sunil Joshi, the spin coach, refused to speak about it, too. Not that Smith would have needed Mehidy to tell him that the around-the-wicket angle was a problem: he was bowled the third ball he faced from this angle, and nearly stumped first ball the next time he came to the crease. The next match, which begins from September 4, in Chittagong will test both Mehidy and Smith.

Over the course of his 124-ball 138 against Tamil Nadu, India’s hottest young batsman took apart the world’s best offspinner with a sumptuous combination of skill and calculation

Arun Venugopal at the Bandra-Kurla Complex27-Oct-2017It was lunch on day three and Tamil Nadu were trailing Mumbai’s first-innings total by 29 runs with only two wickets in hand. While most members of the Tamil Nadu camp might have been plodding through an anxious meal, a group of players and support-staff members headed to a distant corner of the Bandra-Kurla Complex ground for a net.R Ashwin was at the front and centre of the group. His India commitments mean you don’t often see him in a Tamil Nadu jersey – since his international debut in 2010, Ashwin has turned out for his state only 19 times across formats. Before this season, his most recent Ranji Trophy appearance had come in a rain-affected game in 2012. So, for the likes of B Aparajith and Ganga Sridhar Raju, who were going to be Ashwin’s sparring partners in the nets, this was an opportunity to watch their senior partner from close quarters and learn from him.Ashwin, on the other hand, could have used whatever game-time came his way in his build-up to the three-Test series at home against Sri
Lanka followed by a demanding trip to South Africa. There are other factors, too, that would doubtless have been spurring him on. He hasn’t
figured in India’s limited-overs plans recently after being “rotated out” for the series against Sri Lanka, Australia and New Zealand. His absence has since coincided with the rise of two young wristspinners – Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav – who, according to captain Virat Kohli, have been so good that he has been tempted to play them in every game.Ashwin himself wasn’t going to leave the wrist-spin base uncovered. As he has been doing often, lately, Ashwin invested time and effort in bowling legbreaks. To the left-hand batsman Raju, he even bowled the flipper, often on the shorter side of a good length. When he bowled to Aparajith, a right-hand bat, he went over the wicket and from a run-up of eight or nine steps, tried different lengths and lines. He constantly checked with the batsmen and L Balaji, Tamil Nadu’s bowling coach, if the ball was getting enough drop or if there were too many “freebies.”On Thursday, Ashwin would get a crack at putting his plans into work in the middle. They would be subjected to a severe examination, though, by one Mumbai batsman. Over the afternoon and on the following day, he would second-guess and eventually dismantle Ashwin’s plans. The batsman was Shreyas Iyer.John Michel Hard numbers, stripped of nuance, would tell you that Iyer won the duel with Ashwin, by pinfall and submission. He scored 37 off the 40
balls he faced from Ashwin, including three sixes and two fours; on Friday alone, he made 22 off 21. But, the broader story lies in the subtext and the circumstances.At 22, Iyer is currently hot property. For long recognised as one of the country’s best young batsmen, Iyer has backed up the hype with some barnstorming performances in the last few months. It got to a point where the selectors could no longer confine him to to A-team
cricket, and included him for the T20Is against New Zealand next month. Right from his higher-than-usual backlift against fast bowlers on Friday to his nonchalant shrugs, everything about him screams swag.At the other end of the spectrum is Ashwin, nine years Iyer’s senior and with an experience of 209 international games. As India’s main
spinner for a few years now, he’s almost expected to turn up and knock batsmen over, particularly if it’s a domestic fixture. Ashwin had tried bowling around the stumps to Iyer on the third afternoon, but the ploy backfired after Iyer smacked him for two sixes, one of which went out of the park.It wasn’t until after 12 overs on the final day that Ashwin was given the ball for the sequel of their stoush. Iyer was then on 84 and was
racing towards a hundred. There was little of the abrading that is said to be the mark of a fourth-day subcontinental surface; except for
the odd ball, there was very little turn on offer. So Ashwin continued to operate from around the stumps with a 3-6 field, and initially kept Iyer quiet. He did it by landing the ball on middle and leg and turned the ball into the body, and on occasions, outside leg. Every now and then, he would use the carrom ball and also slant one across the stumps.It seemed like a sound strategy at first, as it denied Iyer the hitting width he craved for. Up to that point, Iyer had been brutal on anything remotely outside off stump, either carting it over the bowler’s head or drilling it through the covers. When you combine these factors, it is fair to expect Iyer to lose his rhythm at some point and attempt something rash. Except, that didn’t happen. Iyer knew the field was spread out for him – the Tamil Nadu captain, Abhinav Mukund, later reasoned that Iyer was anyway going for lofted shots, so there was always the possibility of a mistimed hit that would result in a catch – and knocked Ashwin around for singles and twos. Whenever he couldn’t lay bat on ball down the leg side, he was happy to leave. One of those deliveries was even called wide.On only one occasion did Ashwin come close to getting Iyer out. He slid one across the batsman, who slashed hard and edged, the ball flying quickly to the left of slip for four. Soon after, Iyer completed his hundred, and in a repeat of his shot from Thursday, whacked Ashwin over the
wide long-on fence. Ashwin appeared a little rattled, and bowled a faster, shorter legbreak the next ball. This time Iyer went back, held his shape, and steered it behind point for another four. He would invariably follow such shots with a single to sweeper cover or deep square leg.Ashwin went back to bowling over the stumps – a touch belatedly, perhaps – but Iyer had messed his plans up by then. Ashwin’s uninterrupted 11-over spell had cost him 50 runs. An extension of the contest, however, was not to be seen as Iyer was run out before lunch. Perhaps that was the only way Tamil Nadu could have got him out.

South Africa’s second-innings 73 was their lowest total since readmission, while Dilruwan Perera picked up his career-best innings and match figures

S Rajesh14-Jul-201873 – South Africa’s total, their lowest since their readmission to Test cricket. Their previous lowest was 79, on that wretched tour to India in 2015. Six of their eight lowest scores in Asia have come since November 2015.28.5 – Overs that South Africa’s second innings lasted, which is also their lowest in Asia. Over both innings, South Africa lasted 83.2 overs, which is again their lowest in Asia when they have played two complete innings in a Test. Overall, there have only been eight instances of South Africa playing fewer overs in two complete innings in a Test.ESPNcricinfo Ltd2 – Instances of Sri Lanka bowling out an opposition team in fewer than 28.5 overs. Both of them were against Bangladesh: 25.2, at the P Sara Oval in 2007, and 27.4 at the Premadasa in 2005.278 – The margin of defeat by runs, one of the heaviest for South Africa in Asia. They have lost by a higher margin (in terms of runs) three times, with the highest being 337 runs against India in Delhi in 2015.10/78 – Dilruwan Perera’s bowling figures in the Test, his second 10-wicket haul in Tests, and his best match figures; his 6 for 32 in the second innings are also his best innings figures. His only other 10-wicket haul was also in Galle, against Australia in 2016, when he took 10 for 99. In seven Tests in Galle, Dilruwan has taken 45 wickets at 24.20, but that also includes disappointing figures of 1 for 197 against India in 2017.17/174 – Match figures for Sri Lanka’s spinners in the Test: apart from Dilruwan’s 10 for 78, Rangana Herath took 5 for 77, and Lakshan Sandakan 2 for 19. South Africa’s spinners struggled in comparison, with combined figures of 8 for 242. Both Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi took four wickets each, but conceded more than 100 runs.ESPNcricinfo Ltd153 – Runs scored by South Africa’s top seven over both innings of the Test, which is also their lowest since readmission. The previous lowest was 194, in the Nagpur Test of 2015. South Africa’s top seven averaged 11.77 runs per dismissal in the Test.19 – Runs by which Dimuth Karunaratne outscored the entire South African team in the Test. Karunaratne scored 218 runs in two innings, while South Africa made a combined total of 199.31 – Tests for Kagiso Rabada to get to 150 wickets, the third-fastest in terms of Tests for South Africa, after Hugh Tayfield and Dale Steyn, who got there in 29 matches each. In terms of age, Rabada is the youngest at 23 years and 50 days, breaking Harbhajan Singh’s earlier record of 23 years and 106 days.6 – Instances of both openers being out stumped in an innings in Test history. Both Dean Elgar and Aiden Markram were out in this manner in South Africa’s second innings, which was a first for the team. Four of the six such instances are by England.

CPL 2018 broke records for the most sixes, the most 200+ totals, and the most overs with 30+ runs

Bharath Seervi17-Sep-2018Record run rate, number of sixes, and totals
The Caribbean Premier League 2018, which was won by Trinbago Knight Riders, had the highest ever scoring rate in the tournament’s history. The average run rate in this edition of the tournament was 8.53, which was about 0.4 runs higher than the previous best: 8.13 in 2016. The run rate in the last edition was 7.93 per over. However, the scoring rate at the start of the edition was 9.01 in the first 12 matches, before dropping off a bit.The average runs per wicket for the season was 26.63, again the highest among all six editions.ESPNcricinfo LtdThe season had a record nine totals of 200 or more. The total number of such scores in the first five seasons were just six, with not more than two 200-plus totals in any season. There were three matches in excess of 400 runs this time, compared to just one such aggregate in the first five seasons. Six of the seven highest totals in CPL history have come in the 2018 edition.There were a record 530 sixes hit in the season, which is 82 more than the previous highest in a season. The 2018 season is also the first when a boundary was hit within every six balls on an average.

Trinbago’s third title, Guyana’s fourth lost final
Trinbago Knight Riders won their second successive CPL title and their third in four seasons. While Trinbago are the most successful side in the tournament, Guyana Amazon Warriors have been runners-up four times in the six seasons. In the last four years, no team has won more T20 tiles than Trinbago and no team has lost more T20 finals than Guyana. Titans, of South Africa, have also won three titles in the last four years.Bumper overs
The number of overs than yielded 30 or more runs in this edition of CPL were four. The highest was 32 runs, and there were three overs worth 30 runs. There were another five overs of 27 runs each. Comparing this to other T20 tournaments, there was no such over of 30+ in this year’s Indian Premier League. In the first four seasons of CPL, there were only two overs of 30 or more runs.Darren Bravo was the batsman who hit Kieron Pollard for those 32 runs in an over, which included five sixes. Pollard, while batting, hit 30 runs off Devenra Bishoo eight days later.Munro’s massive season
Colin Munro smashed 567 runs in CPL 2018, easily the most by a batsman in any edition of the CPL. Chadwick Walton’s 458 in the 2017 season was the previous highest. Munro scored 109 runs more than that tally. He averaged 51.54, scoring at strike rate of 140.34, and hit six fifties in 13 innings. Munro has made 350-plus runs in each of the last three seasons of the CPL; no other batsman in the tournament has scored more runs than his 1315 runs in 37 innings in this period.

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Smart Stats champs
Dwayne Bravo scored 209 runs but his Smart Runs* were 280.62, meaning he contributed 71.62 runs more taking into account the context under which he scored his runs. His Smart Runs contribution was the highest among all players.The batsman with the highest Negative Smart Runs was, rather surprisingly, David Warner. He scored 220 but his Smart Runs were just 162.46, thus he effectively cost his side 57.53 runs. Hashim Amla, Andre Fletcher and Chris Gayle are the top four in this list along with Warner.Bravo also had the best Smart Strike Rate among all batsmen who faced 100-plus deliveries: 252.81. Andre Russell had a Smart Strike Rate of 259.88 facing 83 deliveries.Martin Guptill had the least Smart Runs (95.54) among all players who faced 100+ balls and Evin Lewis slotted in last in the Smart Batting Index (-12.29).

Bravo was one of the best batsmen according to ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats but he was also one of the worst bowlers by the same metrics. His Smart Economy Rate was 11.77, which was the worst among all bowlers who bowled 100-plus deliveries. Imran Tahir had the best Smart Economy: 4.23. Tahir also saved the most runs for his side (80.56) while Rayad Emrit leaked most runs (55.24).Nepal’s Sandeep Lamichhane impressed with his ability to bowl dot balls in a row. He had the best Dot Ball Pressure Index among all bowlers to deliver 100-plus balls: 1.86.

Virat Kohli smashed records on reaching 10,000 ODI runs. Here’s how the cricketing fraternity reacted on social media

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Oct-2018.

The intensity and consistency with which you bat is just amazing. @imVkohli, congratulations on achieving 10,000 runs in ODIs. Keep the runs flowing. pic.twitter.com/tQUhY8bHna

— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) October 24, 2018

Virat Kohli stands alone, no one now or ever is close to his genius! #ODI #INDvWI

— Tom Moody (@TomMoodyCricket) October 24, 2018

Software update all the time. Virat Kohli has redefined what consistency means. Got his 9000th odi run just 11 innings ago and got his 10000 th today, to go with his 37th century. Enjoy the phenomena #KingKohli pic.twitter.com/OPhvIsBRDJ

— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) October 24, 2018

One of the finest reaching 10k in a hurry @imVkohli take a bow..congratulations an all the best.#stayblessed

— Angelo Mathews (@Angelo69Mathews) October 24, 2018

Switch on the TV, @imVkohli is batting on 144 having crossed the collosal 10k run mark. Double it up now as they would be calling for it in the dressing room. #battingartist #INDvWIN

— Ashwin Ravichandran (@ashwinravi99) October 24, 2018

ODI runs and in no time!! Congratulations on the record @imVkohli #Virat10k

— Jasprit bumrah (@Jaspritbumrah93) October 24, 2018

Congratulations to @imVkohli to achieve milestone of 10000 runs in ODI cricket , Great player & Humble human , u entertaining all fans of cricket with ur Skills , Passion & determination , stay blessed

— Mohammad Hafeez (@MHafeez22) October 24, 2018

View this post on Instagram

Take a bow the greatest limited over cricketer EVER!! I bet you'd get 20,000 ODI runs. Congratulations. Here's to 10,000 more!! @virat.kohli @indiancricketteam @icc #GOAT #10000runs

A post shared by Robin Uthappa (@robinaiyudauthappa) on Oct 24, 2018 at 5:19am PDT

And the insanity continues with an undying intensity. Congratulations #KingKohli on 10,000 ODI runs and 37th century. The hunger, consistency and intensity is simply incredible pic.twitter.com/DGoP1GlZ01

— VVS Laxman (@VVSLaxman281) October 24, 2018

Well done @imVkohli on becoming he fastest man to 10,000 runsWhat is next on your list to off? #INDvWIN

— Lisa Sthalekar (@sthalekar93) October 24, 2018

Exactly why he is the!! #Fact https://t.co/oE1vhsZtAq

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) October 24, 2018

Congratulations #KingKohli on becoming the fastest to 10000 ODI runs. What a player ! pic.twitter.com/fUkMgldTEx

— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) October 24, 2018

Fastest 10k odi runs.Legendary stuff from #ViratKohli

— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) October 24, 2018

“Century pe century baar baar, run hue pure dus hazaar!”
Heartiest congratulations brother @imVkohli
Fastest player ever to complete 10,000 ODI runs! What a remarkable journey it’s been so far!#ViratKohli #Virat10K pic.twitter.com/HRzLEGaxzN

— Suresh Raina (@ImRaina) October 24, 2018

You are not just a run machine but also a ton machine, @imVkohli
Congratulations on your amazing achievement of becoming the fastest player to reach 10K runs#KingKohli #INDvWI

— surya77 (@surya_14kumar) October 24, 2018

We assess the chances of all eight teams ahead of the opening round of the season in our Division One preview

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Apr-2019

Essex

Alastair Cook during Essex’s pre-season match against Cambridge MCCU•PA PhotosLast season: 3rd
Coach: Anthony McGrath
Captain: Ryan ten Doeschate
Overseas player: Peter Siddle
Ins:
Outs: James Foster, Matt Dixon, Ashar Zaidi, Callum TaylorIt was always going to be difficult to follow up their extraordinary 2017 title but, although Essex were soon trailing in Surrey’s wake, a season of consolidation was not the worst outcome for a county that had never before managed consecutive seasons in Division One. The defence was hobbled from the outset, when their opening fixture at Headingley was abandoned without a ball being bowled, and form remained patchy until the final third of the season, when Essex won four out of their last five fixtures – powered in part by the late signing of India opener M Vijay, who scored three fifties and a hundred in five innings.Anthony McGrath will be hoping the team can pick up where they left off, and he’ll have a new deputy to invigorate the dressing room after the appointment of Andre Nel, the former wild man of South African cricket. With Peter Siddle returning after a successful spell in 2018 when he claimed 37 wickets at 16.40 – Australia selection notwithstanding – an attack led by Jamie Porter and supported by Simon Harmer’s offspin should among the most challenging in the division. And with new knight of the realm (and England’s greatest run-scorer) Alastair Cook free to bat for as long as he wants, Essex ought to be in the running again.One to watch: Among the young talents in county cricket, few are as prodigiously gifted as Dan Lawrence. Scorer of six first-class hundreds before he turned 20 – including becoming the third-youngest centurion in the Championship – his fortunes suffered a dip last season, when he averaged 23.40, albeit while compiling career-bests in the short formats. Still only 21, big Championship runs could push him into the Test frame. Alan GardnerBet365: 10-3

Hampshire

James Vince pulls during his lengthy innings•Getty ImagesLast season: 5th
Coach: Adrian Birrell
Captain: James Vince
Overseas players: Aiden Markram (April-May)
Ins: Keith Barker, James Fuller, Harry Came, Oli Soames, Felix Organ
Outs: Reece Topley, Jimmy Adams, Sean Ervine, Chris Sole, Asher Hart
Hampshire will be looking to transfer their Royal London Cup winning ways to the red-ball game in 2019. They have at least two fringe England players keen to catch the eye of national selectors, with James Vince moving up the order to open, replacing the retired Jimmy Adams and hoping to break back into the Test set-up for the Ashes, and spinning allrounder Liam Dawson vying for a World Cup berth.The batting line-up was somewhat unsettled by the late withdrawal of Sri Lanka opener Dimuth Karunaratne, but their swift recruitment of Aiden Markram just a week before the season start is a boost after Markram forced his way back into the South African side for their recent limited-overs series against Sri Lanka with some prolific run-scoring at domestic level.Off-season recruits James Fuller, from Middlesex, and Keith Barker, who was a title-winner with Warwickshire, bolster a bowling attack which has lost Dale Steyn, but which includes Kyle Abbott and the vastly experienced Fidel Edwards. Often tipped to challenge only to then underwhelm, new coach, Adrian Birrell, will be looking to change that.One to watch: Mason Crane’s professional career began so brightly when he became England’s youngest-ever legspinner with a Test debut in Australia last year, but two back fractures meant a long stretch on the sidelines and he is bursting to make a comeback. Valkerie BaynesBet365: 7-1

Kent

Darren Stevens celebrates with Joe Denly and Zak Crawley•Getty ImagesLast season: 2nd (Division Two)
Coach: Matt Walker
Captain: Sam Billings
Overseas players: Matt Renshaw (April-May)
Ins: Matt Milnes, Fred Klaassen, Jordan Cox
Outs: James Tredwell, Will Gidman, Matt Hunn
Kent won 10 matches last season, as many as any other team in the country and a number equalled only by Division One champions Surrey who, like Kent, never lost two in a row. It is this record that is fuelling a popular refrain around Canterbury that Kent could “do an Essex” by winning the title in their first season back up, as happened in 2017. With away games to Warwickshire and Somerset first up, their start will be crucial to cementing that belief.Kent bolstered their side, which will be missing key batsmen Sam Billings and Joe Denly to the IPL, by recruiting Australia opener Matt Renshaw for the first part of the season. They will then need to look for an overseas fast bowler to replace Matt Henry, their leading wicket-taker by a long shot for 2018 with 75 wickets at 15.48, who is expected to play a part in New Zealand’s World Cup campaign.Kent need to bat deeper and runs could well come from Zak Crawley, who established himself at the top of the order towards the end of last season, Sean Dickson and Heino Kuhn, whose 780 runs at 33.91 were second only to Denly. Bowling-wise, Harry Podmore, Nottinghamshire recruit Matt Milnes and 42-year-old veteran Darren Stevens may shoulder a considerable load.One to watch: Daniel Bell-Drummond’s growing standing was recognised when he was made interim vice-captain to Kuhn for the start of the season. He carries the club’s lofty expectations after a rare lean year in 2018 when he made just one fifty in 13 Championship matches, having demonstrated previously he can do so much more. VBBet365: 14-1

Nottinghamshire

Peter Moores with his son Tom ahead of a Nottinghamshire match•Getty ImagesLast season: 6th
Coach: Peter Moores
Captain: Steven Mullaney
Overseas players: James Pattinson (April-July)
Ins: Ben Slater, Ben Duckett, Zak Chappell, Joe Clarke
Outs: Matt Milnes, Ben Kitt, Will Fraine, Riki Wessels, Billy RootNew signings Ben Duckett and Ben Slater suggested a solution to the conundrum of Nottinghamshire’s top order by putting on a first-wicket stand of 325 against Cambridge University in pre-season. Duckett’s 216 came off just 180 deliveries, while Slater hit 130, marking impressive starts to their first full seasons with Notts. With Joe Clarke also joining from Worcestershire and Tom Moores looking to build on a breakout 2018, the batting stocks suddenly look much healthier for a side which narrowly avoided relegation.With last year’s leading wicket-taker Harry Gurney signing a white-ball only contract for 2019, the arrival of Australia fast bowler James Pattinson is welcome in Stuart Broad’s testimonial year. The duo should be well supported by Jake Ball and Luke Fletcher, while Mark Footitt and Luke Wood look to press their claims with early season loans to Lancashire and Northants respectively. Can Peter Moores mould an unprecedented third title-winning team, following previous successes with Sussex and Lancashire?One to watch: Paul Coughlin is on the comeback trail after a serious shoulder injury and has his sights set on making himself the go-to allrounder, although ex-Leicestershire recruit Zak Chappell may have something to say about that. VBBet365: 15-2

Somerset

Jamie Overton celebrates a breakthrough•Getty ImagesLast season: 2nd
Coach: Jason Kerr
Captain: Tom Abell
Overseas players: Azhar Ali
Ins: James Brooks
Outs: Johann Myburgh, Fin TrenouthEver the bridesmaid, never the bride. Somerset have been Championship runners-up twice in the last three seasons – and four times since 2010 – but they remain one of only three counties never to have won the title. But, if there was a sense in 2017 that a golden generation might be running out of time to break that longest of ducks, that notion was scotched by their resurgence last season. They proved to be the best of the rest behind an outstanding Surrey side, and have retained the core of the squad that revived those fortunes.Certainly Marcus Trescothick, who turned 43 in the off-season, rumbles ever onwards, while the acquisition of Pakistan’s Azhar Ali for the entire season is an eye-catching addition. Factor in the evergreen (and ever-ignored) James Hildreth, fresh from yet another 1000-run season, and Tom Abell, whose runs returned in 2018 as he came to terms with the club captaincy, and there’s an admirable spine to Somerset’s batting.As for the bowling, well, the vagaries of a spin-dominant surface at “Ciderabad” will continue to raise eyebrows in some quarters, but there’s little quibbling with the entertainment that can be on offer – witness the remarkable tie against Lancashire last season, after a fourth-innings collapse to 77 all out. Jack Leach has clearly benefitted from plying his trade on receptive decks and even if he may need to be factored in for an Ashes call-up at the sharp end of the season, Somerset retain quality spin back-up in Dominic Bess and Roelof van der Merwe – and Bess in particular will need to be given some opportunities in the wake of his England baptism last season, to persuade him not to seek a new county.Their seam attack, meanwhile, has been considerably boosted by the arrival of Yorkshire’s Jack Brooks, a proven matchwinner and a man who knows what it takes to finish top of the table. There will be strength in depth at Taunton, to allow for inevitable injuries and – who knows? – England call-ups as the summer wears on.One to watch: Jamie Overton came excruciatingly close to an England call-up this winter – Ed Smith opted instead for Olly Stone but the message was clear after the bowling shortcomings that undermined the Australia tour last year: 90mph bowlers make a difference, a fact underlined by Mark Wood’s success in West Indies. There’s a long lead-up to the Ashes in August, and lots of time for Overton to make his case for pace. Andrew MillerBet365: 8-1

Surrey

Surrey captain Rory Burns was on the end of a dousing•Getty ImagesLast season: 1st
Coach: Michael Di Venuto
Captain: Rory Burns
Overseas players: Dean Elgar
Ins: Liam Plunkett, Jordan Clark
Outs: Mathew PillansSurrey are not a club that do things by halves. After nigh on two decades in the Championship wilderness, everything fell into place in a stellar 2018 campaign. They romped to the title by a 46-point margin, making light of a plethora of England call-ups along the way, and just as was the case in the 1890s, the 1950s and the early 2000s, the feeling around The Oval is that one title is set to bring several.Typical Surrey hubris, you might be tempted to say. But, it’s hard to quibble with the depth, breadth and variety of their squad. It’s not inconceivable, for instance, that Mark Stoneman, Rory Burns and Jason Roy could be England’s one, two and three come the start of the Ashes in August, and elsewhere, Dean Elgar, Ollie Pope and Ben Foakes have all represented their respective countries within the last eight months.The club’s youth policy is coming up trumps at every turn, with Will Jacks and Jamie Smith among the latest starlets to hit the ground running, while the bowling is an enviable mix of youth and experience, with Liam Plunkett’s arrival from Yorkshire providing another toweringly authoritative dressing-room figure to go alongside last year’s marquee signing of Morne Morkel, as well as the old sweats in Rikki Clarke, Jade Dernbach and Stuart Meaker.Jordan Clark, fresh from Lancashire, adds welcome all-round quality too, particularly valuable as and when the Curran brothers are away on IPL and international duty. Nothing can ever be taken for granted in the County Championship, which is why it remains such a coveted title to win, but you can’t accuse Alec Stewart and Michael di Venuto of leaving anything to chance in preparing their defence.One to watch: Ollie Pope’s precocious arrival in professional cricket seemed to hit the buffers over the winter – due largely to the fact that England’s only batting vacancies are at Nos. 1-3, and he is very much a 4-6 in this early stage of his career. But undaunted by his Test omission, he’s got on with the crucial business of making runs. His season-opening 251 against MCC was quite the statement of intent. AMBet365: 5-2

Warwickshire

Warwickshire claimed the Division Two title•Getty ImagesLast season: 1st
Coach: Jim Troughton
Captain: Jeetan Patel
Overseas players: Jeetan Patel
Ins: Liam Norwell, Craig Miles, Rob Yates
Outs: Jonathan Trott, Grant Elliott, Chris Wright, Josh Poysden, Keith Barker, Andy Umeed, Sunny Singh, Boyd RankinIt’s a big year for Edgbaston, with their central role in hosting the World Cup swiftly followed by the Ashes opener in August. And those ambitions have been matched in their domestic preparations, with Paul Farbrace’s arrival as the new director of sport signalling their intent to get back to their rightful berth in Division One, after the trauma of their relegation two seasons ago.It’s a much-changed squad who will embark on Warwickshire’s campaign. A raft of veterans have been moved along in one way or another. Jonathan Trott called time on his illustrious career last season, while nothing screams the start of a new era louder than the departure of the two quick bowlers on whom their last Championship-winning campaign in 2012 was built, Chris Wright and Keith Barker. Their absences may be felt in the early season in particular, given that Olly Stone will be missing due to the back injury he suffered while on England duty in the Caribbean. New signings Liam Norwell and Craig Miles can expect a rigorous work-out.For a while in 2017, it seemed Ian Bell might be drifting towards retirement too. But he found the post-England bloom that he always knew was lurking within him to produce a renaissance 2018, and his enduring quality – along with that of the skipper Jeetan Patel – will be crucial in helping to ensure a smooth transition to a brighter new era.Farbrace will not hold the squad’s day-to-day reigns – Jim Troughton remains the first-team coach – but his cheery outlook on life will doubtless permeate the club. And with little wonder. On the field and off it, it looks like a good year to be a Bear.One to watch: A curtain-raiser in Dubai is nothing much to be going on, but the manner in which Dom Sibley took on his former team, Surrey, for MCC in the Champion County match last week augurs well for the summer. He and Will Rhodes struck up a formidable opening partnership in Warwickshire’s promotion campaign and will hope to replicate that in Division One. AMBet365: 8-1

Yorkshire

Steve Patterson claims another•Getty ImagesLast season: 4th
Coach: Andrew Gale
Captain: Steve Patterson
Overseas players:
Ins: Duanne Olivier, Josh Poysden, Mat Pillans, Will Fraine
Outs: Liam Plunkett, Alex Lees, Jack Brooks, Andy Hodd, Azeem Rafiq, James WainmanThe time had come for an overhaul in the Broad Acres. It is only four years since the second of Yorkshire’s back-to-back Championships but standards had slipped. With three games of the 2018 season to go, Yorkshire found themselves in a scrap to avoid relegation (pretty much the same scenario as the year before), before two wins and a draw saw them finish fourth, just as in 2017. Nevertheless, Martyn Moxon, the director of cricket, recognised the signs of stagnation and had already begun the clear out: Alex Lees departed early for Durham, Liam Plunkett was allowed to join Surrey, while Somerset came in for Jack Brooks.With several new signings competing for places alongside the usual stock of homegrown talent, there is a sense that the Andrew Gale era starts here. Gale, a title-winning captain, has been in the coach’s role for two years without enjoying the same level of success. While some of his old muckers in the dressing room remain – Tim Bresnan, Adam Lyth, Steven Patterson – the team’s fortunes are as likely to be driven by 20-year-old Harry Brook or South African Kolpak signing Duanne Olivier. And with the indefatigable Patterson taking up the captaincy full time, a quietly effective campaign could be in order.One to watch: Following an impressive southern summer in South Africa’s Test side, Olivier could have been preparing to play in his first World Cup. But having been offered the security of a three-year contract with Yorkshire, he chose to turn his back on international cricket (for now, at least). Had a productive spell at Derbyshire last year and should be a potent force. AGBet365: 15-2

It’s been a long way to the World Cup from Race Course, Jamaica, but West Indies fast bowler Oshane Thomas is just getting started

Saurabh Somani21-May-2019Growing up in the township of Race Course in the parish of Clarendon, Jamaica, can be a daily struggle. Even if all you want to do is play sport. Take the case of one such young boy, born in the wrong kind of neighbourhood. He’s got four brothers, all but one older, with whom he tags along to play ball as soon as school is done. Even before he hits his teens, one of his brothers is shot and killed, at 16. It’s that sort of place.The boy has talent. He can hurl a ball 22 yards without bending his arm, at frightening speeds. He makes progress. The brothers can’t keep up, and they settle down to jobs. As the boy would later say, “You’ve got to eat”.He moves to the capital, Kingston. At 20, he’s the victim of a stick-up by three men when he goes to an ATM before heading to the local supermarket. When he speaks of it later, he laughs. “They don’t rob with less than guns over there. I had to give them my money, watch, chain…”But cricket has lifted him. He is spotted by an icon of his country and drafted into a T20 franchise. The next year, he gets his hero out in the CPL for a duck. Then he gets an international debut in India, rattling a star-studded top order. He is picked in the IPL. He dismantles England. And now he’s going to the World Cup.It has been quite a journey for Oshane Thomas. To make it through the sort of childhood he had takes uncommon fortitude. To make it through to top-level sport means having uncommon talent too. Thomas, clearly, has both. His recollections of childhood are chilling, but he’s chill.We’re sitting in the cafeteria of an understatedly opulent hotel. It is luxury far removed from Clarendon, and it’s apt, because Thomas is now far removed from the struggles he once faced, his face untroubled even when he talks about the gun violence in the place where he grew up.Did he actually see any of it up close?”All the time, man,” he laughs. “I got used to it at one point, to be honest. I’ve seen my brother get shot and killed. He was 16, I was probably 11. [But] I was just never in any wrong place at the wrong time. It doesn’t trouble me anymore.”Thomas has played nine ODIs and seven T20Is for West Indies so far, mostly on batting-friendly surfaces, which means his bowling figures aren’t immediately striking. But it’s what he has done to get here that has made people think of him as a new fast-bowling hope from the land that used to factory-produce them at one time.