Play 04:33 ‘Let Kuldeep be the way he is’ – Gambhir Gautam Gambhir, who has led left-arm wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav for Kolkata Knight Riders since 2014, believes that his strongest attribute is his consistency of length. Kuldeep made a sparkling Test debut in Dharamsala, claiming figures of 4 for 68 in the first innings. Although Kuldeep has played just three IPL matches for the Knight Riders over three years, Gambhir…
Victoria in command despite Sayers' seven
South Australia 1 for 19 trail Victoria 487 (Harris 120, Dean 94, Pattinson 80, Gotch 52, Sayers 7-84) by 468 runsScorecard Chadd Sayers finished with 7 for 84 © Getty Images Chadd Sayers claimed seven wickets and South Australia gloveman Alex Carey equalled the all-time record for most dismissals in a Sheffield Shield season, but Victoria remained in control on the second day of the final in Alice Springs. The…
West Indies must get familiar with Pakistan's new faces, says Holder
Play 01:48 ‘Not the start we were looking for’ – Holder Allrounder Jason Holder has put West Indies’ loss in the first T20 against Pakistan largely down to the unfamiliarity factor. Shadab Khan, the 18-year-old debutant legspinner, did a lot of the damage as West Indies were kept to 111 for 8 in Barbados, a total Pakistan chased down with 17 balls and six wickets to spare. Going into the…
Mashrafe wants batsmen to emulate 'big teams'
‘The batsmen should learn how to convert 50-60 into a hundred, which is what big teams do’ – Mashrafe Mortaza © AFP Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza wants his batsmen to continue converting starts into big scores, like how “big teams do”, in order to push totals higher. Tamim Iqbal‘s 127 played a major role in Bangladesh reaching their second highest ODI total, 324 for 5, in the first match in…
Australia's collapse leaves India 87 away from Border-Gavaskar Trophy
India 332 (Jadeja 63, Rahul 60, Pujara 57, Lyon 5-92, Cummins 3-94) and 19 for 0 (Rahul 13*, Vijay 6*) need 87 more to beat Australia 300 and 137 (Maxwell 45, Jadeja 3-24, Umesh 3-29, Ashwin 3-29)Scorecard and ball-by-ball details Play 00:56 Chappell: 40-50 runs lead should not be decisive Australia’s batsmen froze in the spotlight of the opportunity to press for a series-sealing victory over India, leaving the hosts…
Ireland, Afghanistan eye slice of Test pie
Match facts March 28-31, 2017Start time 1000 local (0430 GMT) Ed Joyce (in pic) needs 84 runs to reach 1000 runs in the Intercontinental Cup. © ICC/Saleem Sanghati Big picture When the Intercontinental Cup was initiated by the ICC as part of their global development programme, the concept of an Associate using the competition as a vehicle to vie for Test status was a pipe dream. Thirteen years on, it’s…
'Give the fielding team three balls to pick from' – Morkel
Morne Morkel: ‘It’s a grey area because when they change the ball, they pick a ball for you’ © AFP South Africa were thrown off guard by a 59th-over ball change in Hamilton, according to Morne Morkel. New Zealand were building steadily in the middle session, on 163 for 1 when umpires Bruce Oxenford and Rod Tucker ordered a ball change, having felt the ball had gone out of shape….
Tigers circle wounded prey
Match Facts March 28, 2017Start time 1430 local (0900 GMT) Bangladesh won only their second ODI in Sri Lanka to take a lead in the series © AFP Big Picture A win in a landmark Test, post-match calls from the prime minister, outstanding performances from debutants, seniors producing their best work – this hastily arranged tour was only supposed to be the postscript to Bangladesh’s high-profile visits to New Zealand…
Committee of Administrators clips BCCI office bearers' powers
The Committee of Administrators has said every decision taken by any BCCI committee will need its approval © AFP The Supreme Court-appointed Committee of Administrators (CoA) has reiterated to the BCCI office bearers that it remains in charge of the Indian board. On Sunday, the CoA put out a directive on the BCCI website, saying the office bearers cannot take any decisions independently without its permission. Also, any decision reached…
Dickwella out of series with hairline fracture
Niroshan Dickwella picked up an injury on Sunday © Associated Press Wicketkeeper-batsman Niroshan Dickwella has been ruled out of the ongoing ODI series against Bangladesh after suffering a hairline fracture in his left hand. Dickwella had sustained the injury on Sunday, at training. Though it was originally thought to be a minor injury, he had had trouble gripping his bat on Monday. Subsequent X-rays then confirmed the fracture. Team manager…