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Is cricket all about records and glory or is it about the dream of being given a chance to be the best one can be?

Ninad Sakhadev15-May-2015Cricket is about big runs. Cricket is about records. Cricket is about glory. Cricket is about becoming Sachin Tendulkar.Everyday there is a kid in India who picks up a cricket bat or a ball in the quest to become the best cricketer on the planet. Everyday there is a star born in dusty lanes, crowded grounds and in unfavourable conditions.Everyday there is someone falling out of love with the game simply because the game isn’t loving back. Everyday there is someone heartbroken because cricket is not enough to make ends meet. Everyday someone is giving up cricket knowing fully well that their time may never come.Cricket can throw up a lot of inspiring stories but there also exists another side to cricket that is depressing, demoralising and maybe even devastating. For every inspirational story, there are hundreds of others that make you think twice about taking up the game.And so for all the Rohit Sharmas, Virat Kohlis and Suresh Rainas, Indian cricket needed a Pravin Tambe.Rajasthan Royals have had their fair share of legal trouble. For all that, they still represent a platform – a chance for a number of fringe players to showcase their talent and as in the case of Tambe, a last chance to make a name in cricket. It is the place you want to be as an aspiring cricketer. It is a place where opportunity is given to someone considered worthy of it. So it doesn’t come as a surprise that Royals handed a cap to a 41-year-old who hadn’t played a first-class match.Bowling legspin is an art and a legspinner is an artist. This form of art is defined by the grip of your fingers, the flexibility of your wrists and the limits of your imagination. You can be made to look stupid if you get your line or length fractionally wrong, even though you have not been bad. Like all artists, Tambe too was just waiting for a stage to perform in front of a big audience and be recognised for it. Age is just a number. Age is whatever you think it is. Life begins at 40. I had heard it all before and now I saw what it meant.He doesn’t have the advantage of bounce or trajectory that Anil Kumble or Shane Warne enjoyed but a low bending action means he always gives the ball a lot of air. His action, which must have been refined over years of playing club cricket, easily allows him to bowl faster if he needs to without compromising line or length. Smaller grounds and unhelpful pitches in club cricket have also helped him develop the attitude of a legspinner: giving each ball more flight, especially when batsmen are attempting big shots.His golden period was most definitely the Champions League T20 in 2013. He got plenty of wickets without going for many runs. He flummoxed batsmen with flight, spin and cunning variations. Some of the overseas batsmen had no answer. The big question was always how would he fare against the big hitters and international superstars in the IPL. In IPL 2014, he proved that he was good enough there too. He had plenty of variations to make the batsmen unsure of his next delivery. He had the presence of mind to read batsmen’s movements and change his deliveries accordingly. He even got a hat-trick against Kolkata Knight Riders. He broke the back of the cruising Knight Riders with the wickets of quality top-order batsmen. I have never seen Gautam Gambhir more upset than that day.This year he has been bowling as beautifully and skillfully as ever. The way he dismissed Brendon McCullum was particularly heart-warming. In the previous match against Sunrisers Hyderabad, McCullum had smashed a morale-destroying century. It took Tambe two balls to get him out. The first one was flighted. McCullum mishit it but the ball fell short of the fielder. The next one, just a tad fuller and a tad faster, was simply too quick for him to go back and pull. He holed out at mid-on. When a bowler gets a batsman like this, you know he has defeated him in his own game. You know he has played with his ego and has got the better of him.However, this year he hasn’t been as successful as 2014. He has been taken for runs on a few occasions. In a game against Royal Challengers Bangalore, AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli got stuck into him. It was just too much for Tambe. You feared this all along. You knew this was coming. But like all good dreams, you wished that it lasted just a little bit longer, that you see the flight and dip once more, that you see the man weave a web of spin one more time.This might be his last IPL. At his age there are no guarantees. And if he is done, we can all cherish a run that may not have shattered records but won many hearts with effort, passion and dedication.Perhaps cricket is about effort and not runs. Perhaps cricket is about passion and not records. Perhaps cricket is about love and not glory. Perhaps cricket is about becoming the best cricketer you can be and not about becoming Sachin Tendulkar.

An Indian fan discovers the delights of county cricket in at a dazzling ground

Srinath Sripath17-Jun-2015Choice of game
Among the topmost items on my sports bucket list was to watch a County Championship game, preferably in a bucolic setting, outside of the big stadia. When I made my itinerary for a trip to the United Kingdom, two concurrent fixtures caught my attention – this one and the game at Guildford featuring Surrey. It was a fairly easy choice, with the breathtaking setting at Arundel making it simply irresistible. My only hope, then, was that it would stay rain-free.Team supported
Durham. It is a team that some of my most favourite cricketers have represented over the years – Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Kumar Sangakkara, Javagal Srinath and Paul Collingwood. Despite being the newest county in England, it is astonishing how they have competed so consistently in recent years, and they look on course to being one of the contenders yet again.Key performer(s)
Chris Rushworth’s spell on the first day had earned plenty of mentions in the media, and it was easy to see why, early on the second morning. Teasing lengths, tantalising swing and unerring discipline to sustain it all day, Rushworth can do no wrong this season, it seems. Having said that, Steve Magoffin’s burst in the afternoon, cleaning up the Durham top order, deserves a mention too. For a few minutes, he breathed dragon fire, beating batsmen for pace, with seam movement to go with it. That ripper to send Collingwood’s middle stump cartwheeling was an untameable beast.Wow moment
It took a while to catch my breath, on seeing the ground and the various views it offered. I wandered around all day, trying to pick between them – the Cathedral view from near the beer tents, the botanical garden-esque backdrop from near the Press tent, or the stunning view of the Downs from deep square leg, it took a long while to soak it all in. For someone from India, it was pleasantly surprising to see how they allow any spectator to enter the ground during the lunch and tea breaks. The panorama from pitch side is quite something else.Shot of the day
Early on in the morning, Sussex put up a brief spell of resistance, through Ed Joyce. As he got his eye in, a cover drive off Rushworth came crashing into the advertising boards in front of us. It was the quintessential shot for this setting – head still, right above the ball, off the front foot, with a follow-through that made for the perfect picture postcard.Crowd meter
As the day wore on, the ground was filled to the brim. This would have been a big crowd for a T20 game, leave alone a County Championship fixture. Considering this is the only four-day fixture that Arundel gets every year, it is not at all surprising. The alcohol flowed, predictably, and it was raucous for a brief while in the afternoon, when Magoffin provided some cheer for the home crowd. All the usual debates could be heard at various points in the day – “Is-Stokes-the-next-Botham”,”Should-KP-be-back”, “Is-T20-even-cricket”, and the like. The day would have been incomplete without them.Entertainment
This is cricket in white flannels, in the heart of England. Entertainment, as we know it in today’s game, was absent, for once. PA audio systems hung from treetops, used only for cricket-related announcements – bowling changes, wickets, innings breaks and the like. However, sufficiently inebriated men providing backup appealing to Sussex’s bowlers, in a long afternoon period without a wicket, made for some hilarious entertainment.Cliched moment of the day
An hour and a bit into the morning, Sussex went into the drinks break, with Ben Brown and Ed Joyce seeming to settle in. Paul Coughlin, wicketless hitherto, got one to leave Brown, the ball kissing the edge as it skirted past his prod forward. Michael Richardson, Dave’s son, did the needful behind the stumps. First ball after the drinks break. Somewhere in Bombay, a certain Sunil Gavaskar would have let out a quiet chuckle.Close encounter
In this age of electronic scoreboards and ball-by-ball commentary, the sales of scorecards at English grounds have puzzled me quite a bit on this trip. However, as Paul Collingwood made his way to our area to step into the Corporate Box, I was not one to complain, getting him to autograph the match scorecard for me. Maybe there is a reason to this all. Maybe.Newbie learning curve
Customs at English grounds, like the famous synchronised applause after a good shot or a wicket, have always fascinated me. When I tried to be part of one, my timing went horribly wrong, and I applauded before the batsmen completed their runs. Soon, I could hear my own applause, along with a few raised eyebrows and cold stares. I picked it up by the end of the day, and look forward to following it up over the course of the third day.Away from the action
There was a book sale at the far corner of the ground, where, like the pitch, you needed patience to make the most of it. The titles, for the prices they were on offer, were worth their weight in gold. I picked up Swanton’s , Benaud’s , Roebuck’s , apart from hardback copies of Harry Thompson’s and Basil D’Oliviera’s autobiography, all for a measly 10 pounds. In this e-commerce world, away from all the noise, such sales still thrive in the English count(r)yside.One thing you’d have changed
There is almost no room for any upgrade or improvement to this, but a dream scenario would have been to watch this with the Barmy Army or a singing fan section. It is what club rivalries are characterised by, and with a capacity crowd in, it would have made for a feisty atmosphere.Overall
For any fan of the longest form of cricket, this is it – from the setting, to proximity to the action, there is a perfection to this experience that few around the world can match. Having said that, the action on the field was perfect foil – a slugfest progressing at a frenetic pace, with over 300 runs and 14 wickets yesterday alone. As a package, there aren’t too many experiences that better this, as many in the crowd insisted all day.Marks out of 10
10. Only rain could have brought this score down, but hey, who knows how prettier the Downs and the Cathedral would have looked then? Cricket, lovely cricket.

Just when Bangladesh are becoming a force to reckon with in international cricket, the BCB has decided to go against its policy of giving Tests primary importance

Mohammad Isam25-Aug-2015The BCB’s plan to lop off one Test match from the series against Zimbabwe is consistent with its policy of limiting the team to one particular format ahead of a major tournament. The recent resolution, however, goes against Bangladesh cricket’s historical mandate, which, since 2000, was to give Test cricket utmost priority.History will have to take a back seat for now. In a bid to prepare the team for the 2016 World T20, the BCB believes it will be “realistic” to give the players more recovery time in January and February next year, as they head into a schedule of continuous T20s from mid-February.After the two Tests, three ODIs and three T20Is against Zimbabwe, Bangladesh will play in the Asia Cup, now converted to the T20 format as it is being played just before the World T20. In these two tournaments, Bangladesh are likely to play at least 11 T20Is in the space of three weeks.Before the T20 congestion in March and April of 2016, they will also play T20s for an entire month from November 25, in the Bangladesh Premier League, their domestic T20 tournament. Playing a long T20 tournament a few months before the World T20 makes a lot of sense in terms of getting into the groove of the format. In addition, the changed format of the Asia Cup from ODIs to T20s, will also help preparation for a side that lacks experience, skills and success in T20s.But the sacrifice is looking much greater than the purpose. While on the outside it is only a loss of a single game of cricket, for Bangladesh playing a three-match series is a rare occasion, a big deal and makes a statement to the rest of the cricket world. They have played three-Test series on three occasions, in 2003, 2007 and 2014, but according to the new tour programme formulated last year, they have eight three-match series scheduled till 2022, six of them against Zimbabwe, and two against New Zealand.Bangladesh have already played the first of these eight series, against Zimbabwe late last year, but to cut the second of those series to two Tests makes BCB’s long-term Test planning look regressive. It looks particularly bad during Bangladesh’s best run of form in international cricket.But this isn’t the first time that the BCB has sacrificed Tests for another format. In 2010 they postponed two home Tests against New Zealand so that they could prepare for the 2011 World Cup by playing more ODIs. They played three additional ODIs against New Zealand and won the series 4-0, but it hardly paid dividends to their World Cup outcome as they made a first-round exit. Although the Test series was initially only postponed, it was never held later on.In their first 15 years as a Test playing nation, Bangladesh have refused to play the format twice, despite being regularly questioned about their position in the top ten Test ranking. Also, they have a developing side in the format which needs more matches to become a stronger unit, as opposed to the progress they have made in the ODI arena over the last five years.The current reluctance is allegedly due to player recovery and pace bowlers’ fitness issues but the mindset has changed over the last five years due to the lack of Test wins, which has led to a lack of interest from other boards when they negotiate tours with the BCB. They have had more success in ODIs while their distance from T20 success, financially and on the field, has also led to a bit of apathy towards Test cricket.The sacrifice this time around is also of two ODIs as the series was initially scheduled to have five ODIs. For a team that has been doing so well in ODIs in 2015, playing their next ODI after six months seems like an unhinged programme, and then to have two ODIs reduced gives them very little time to be mentally prepared for the format and that too for a shortened series.BCB’s cricket operations committee chairman Naimur Rahman argued that the pace bowlers’ injuries have made them concerned about playing more than two Tests. His admission is accurate but at the same time, it also reveals how some of the young pace bowlers are shaping their careers towards the limited-overs format. They have been concerned about preparing for and playing Test cricket due to the frequency of injuries as well as lack of recognition.Bangladesh cricket now has a big enough pool to rotate pace bowlers within three Tests and five ODIs. If the need is to rest senior players like Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah, who play all three formats, it could have been done quite smoothly against Zimbabwe.But a couple of facts are clouding the view of the decision makers. Firstly, Bangladesh’s continued success in ODIs may have swayed some into thinking that shorter formats are where there’s more chance of success. Secondly, the hype that surrounds an ICC event – like what happened at the 2015 World Cup – is enough to suggest that a good showing in a big event can make life easier in Bangladesh cricket. And thirdly, the stress laid on particular formats depending on the upcoming ICC events, and not the others.Bangladesh tried to play more T20s ahead of the 2012 and 2014 World T20s but none of those ICC events yielded expected results. The bust of the home World T20 last year should also be kept in mind, as it did seem the players felt a lot of pressure playing in the tournament whose format they have not yet mastered.Bangladesh cricket has always had to adjust to the ways of new decision-makers who come up with their own ideas, effective or otherwise. But they have often been disconnected with the past of Bangladesh cricket and what it stood for. Here, too, the decision seems to do more with immediate success rather than long-term goal-setting, which certainly involves a lot more Test cricket.

The likes of MS Dhoni, R Ashwin, Shikhar Dhawan, Ishant Sharma taking part in this year’s tournament will pull more eyeballs

Shashank Kishore09-Dec-2015When MS Dhoni last played for Jharkhand, he was less than three years into his international career. India had played a grand sum of one Twenty20 International and Greg Chappell had just resigned as coach following India’s dismal 2007 World Cup. The inaugural edition of the World T20 was five months away, and the IPL was still a year into the future.Dhoni was a carefree cricketer with long locks, brown streaks and a belligerent batting style that made him extremely popular. The ‘Captain Cool’ salutations were works of imagination, for the leadership mantle was firmly with Rahul Dravid. But two World titles, 90 Tests and a surprisingly early retirement from the longest format later, Dhoni is back to play for his state for at least the first half of the 2015-16 Vijay Hazare Trophy that begins across the country on Thursday.

The way the teams stack up

Group A: Punjab, Mumbai, Tamil Nadu, Assam, Rajasthan, Services and Hyderabad
Group B: Karnataka, Railways, Gujarat, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Kerala and Haryana
Group C: Odisha, Vidarbha, Delhi, Baroda, Andhra, Tripura and Maharashtra
Group D: Bengal, Goa, Himachal, Uttar Pradesh, Saurashtra, Madhya Pradesh

While he may be in his last lap as an international cricketer, Dhoni’s intent and attention to detail while training at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore were indication of his focus. He won’t lead Jharkhand – Varun Aaron has been named captain owing to his familiarity with the squad – but Dhoni’s presence, alongside a host of other India internationals in R Ashwin, Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh, Ishant Sharma, KL Rahul, Stuart Binny, Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan among others will raise the profile of the tournament that has largely been an afterthought in India’s cricket calendar.BCCI’s flagship 50-over tournament which has often slotted in at the end of the domestic season has been advanced over the last two years to help the young aspirants pitch for higher honours. The timing is significant, more so this year, given India’s cricket calendar is brimming with limited-overs matches leading into the World T20 in March-April.India’s T20 batting needs a rejig and team director Ravi Shastri had hinted the door was open for anyone who made a strong case for themselves in the domestic one-day competitions. “It’s a work in progress. We have not played T20s. There’s a long way to go,” he had said in October. “(With) six months to go, form will be crucial. There’s a plenty of one-day cricket coming up – whole of December till January will be watched closely. We have some T20Is in Australia and then Sri Lanka are coming to India. There’s the Asia Cup. A lot of T20 cricket (is) being played. It’s a great opportunity to throw the hat into the ring, it could be young or old or anybody.”Among them will be Bengal’s Mohammed Shami. The 25-year old fast bowler has recovered from knee surgery and is set to play his first game of competitive cricket since the 2015 World Cup, when he was India’s second-highest wicket-taker. Suresh Raina, who had only one fifty in five ODIs against South Africa, went back to the Ranji Trophy and hit form. The Vijay Hazare Trophy is another opportunity for him to bid for a place when India tour Australia in January. Ravindra Jadeja’s return to form also means the allrounder’s spot becomes a three-way fight between him, Axar Patel and Binny.The tournament is also a platform for the fringe players to showcase their talent. Among them are Gurkeerat Singh, who was picked for the senior team after three half-centuries and a five-wicket haul for India A and a double-ton in the Ranji Trophy for Punjab, Shreyas Iyer, the highest run-getter in this year’s Ranji Trophy and Mayank Agarwal, who hammered 176 against South Africa A in August.Unlike previous editions, this is the first time the tournament will move out of its zonal qualification. The 27 sides have been divided into three groups of seven and one group of six, with the top two from each qualifying for the knockouts. This system allows teams to play each other irrespective of the zones they are from whereas in the past, teams were restricted to playing opponents from the same zone, leading to a touch of predictability.While many of India’s top players could make a quick exit should the series against Pakistan see light, the fact that the tournament has been penciled in to give more opportunities to youngsters signals sound intent. All eyes then will be on the selectors as teams will play across multiple venues in Bangalore, Rajkot, Hyderabad and Delhi to earn the right to be crowned as India’s best 50-overs side.

Mohammad Nabi, who plays for the Quetta Gladiators in the PSL, wants to take the lessons from his interactions with stalwarts like Viv Richards and Kevin Pietersen to youngsters in Afghanistan

Nagraj Gollapudi in Dubai05-Feb-2016It was December 22. The second day of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) draft was taking place in Lahore. Afghanistan were going to start their limited-overs series against Zimbabwe in three days in Sharjah. Afghanistan allrounder Mohammad Nabi was sitting with the rest of his team-mates in his room in Dubai, closely following the draft. Nabi was one of three Afghanistan players listed in the Silver category at the draft (fast bowler Shapoor Zardan and batsman Samiullah Shenwari were the other two).”I was watching it on TV. It was the last round of the silver category. Considering I was not picked in the first three rounds I was a little upset,” Nabi says, sitting at the team hotel on Friday, recollecting the events. “I thought I would not be picked in the last round. I had, in fact, spoken to Peshawar Zalmi’s owner Javed Afridi. He had promised me he would pick me. But then Quetta Gladiators picked me and I was damn happy,” Nabi says with a smile. [pride] is a word Nabi uses a lot during our half-hour conversation. “I am proud both for myself and for Afghanistan that I am playing in the PSL. It is a big thing,” the 31-year-old, says. This will be his second Twenty20 franchise-based tournament, having played a couple of seasons in the Bangladesh Premier League, where he has represented Sylhet Royals and the Rangpur Riders.Nabi, though, admits the PSL is special: apart from everything else he gets to play alongside his one-time idol Kevin Pietersen. “He is my favourite player. Yeh mere liye fakhr ki baat hain [This is a matter of pride for me]. I am lucky because he was my hero once and now I am playing with him in the same team,” Nabi says.Incidentally Nabi’s fascination for Pietersen started when he bowled against the former England batsman in the nets while playing for the MCC Young Cricketers in the summers of 2006 and 2007. “I bowled a lot at him, but it was very difficult to get him out. He was such a confident player,” Nabi says.Neither has Nabi reminded Pietersen nor does the latter recollect the young Afghan player who bowled at him at nets. “I don’t blame him because even I would have forgotten, especially considering we are so busy with our training and nets and it is easy to forget. But he remains my favourite.”Nabi still recollects fondly the way Pietersen dealt with Australia legspinner Shane Warne in the 2005 Ashes, his shot selection, his confidence in sweeping at will and just playing gung-ho cricket throughout the series. Pietersen continues to influence Nabi’s thinking.On Thursday, in the PSL opener against Islamabad United, Pietersen suggested to Nabi, who is an offspinner, a few field changes, especially against Misbah-ul-Haq. “I was bowling against Misbah with a short midwicket. Misbah was playing the reverse [sweep] a lot. So [Pietersen] suggested that why not vacate the midwicket area and add an extra point fielder. I agreed and we had a short thirdman and a point. And that helped,” Nabi says.Nabi also earned a pat on the back from his hero for taking three catches in the Islamabad innings. “He told me ‘You have safe hands, mate,'” Nabi says happily.Then there is the Gladiators mentor Sir Viv Richards, with whom Nabi is still getting acquainted. “He was surprised that an Afghanistan cricketer was in PSL,” Nabi says, widening his eyes. Richards was curious to know more about Afghanistan cricket then. “I told him we had won our last ODI series and T20 series against Zimbabwe. He was shocked. I told him Afghanistan cricket has improved a lot and we are in the top-10 in ODI cricket. [He was very happy]. He said more talent should emerge from Afghanistan.” Such interactions with great players, Nabi stresses, will not just help him, but also the careers of young Afghanistan players.An established hero himself, when he is back home in Kabul, Nabi is thronged by fans – old and young – asking him to share his insights, experiences and delights of playing the game. “So whatever little I can learn from all the big players in PSL I can then take it to Afghanistan. It is a big thing because if they open up and share from their heart, then I can keep that with me for life. I can then tell our players in Afghanistan this is what is international cricket.”My fans love me. When I go to our academy in Kabul the junior players respect me. If the two or three things Pietersen said, two or three things Viv Richards told me, if I can take those to the youngsters and share them, it would only help Afghanistan cricket.”There is one more thing Nabi is curious to understand which he wants to ask the pair of Pietersen and Richards: how to deal with pressure. “I want to know from these big players how to handle pressure. As I go into the field there is pressure at least the first few balls. I want to learn, as I feel it is important. Top-level cricket is all about handling pressure and if I can manage that, it would reflect in my individual game and my leadership.”

With the World T20 tournament drawing closer, the series against India gives Sri Lanka a chance to look for solutions to an unsettled combination

Andrew Fidel Fernando08-Feb-2016Sri Lanka rose to No.1 in the T20I rankings when Graham Ford was coach and won the World T20 after Ford’s first tenure ended. He has begun his second stint in charge of a far less settled T20 unit, with another global tournament in the coming weeks. These are just five of the many questions Sri Lanka may seek answers to during this three-match joust with India.Danushka Gunathilaka offers Sri Lanka an opening option, but he will have to contend with Niroshan Dickwella for the spot•Getty ImagesWho will partner Tillakaratne Dilshan at the top?Two months ago, this question was easily answered. But with Kusal Perera hamstrung by a doping charge, and almost certain to be unavailable for the World T20, Sri Lanka must reopen a debate they thought Kusal had ended.The present frontrunner is Danushka Gunathilaka, who dazzled in one ODI innings in New Zealand; his strokes as potent as they were pretty. But one half-century in seven international innings will not secure him the place. He will have to deal with a challenge now from wicketkeeper batsman Niroshan Dickwella, who has been in crunching domestic form, hitting 189 runs at a strike rate of 173 in the recent Super T20 Provincial Tournament.Can Sachithra Senanayake be effective with his remodeled action?Senanayake’s returns in New Zealand and Australia suggested he was a diminished bowler with the remedied action, but he has since expressed confidence he will get better over time. He wasn’t in Sri Lanka’s T20 XI on the recent tour of New Zealand, as the selectors chose to test Jeffrey Vandersay. Perhaps a return to turning, Asian conditions can reinvigorate Senanayake’s career.Sri Lanka need him in form. He had been instrumental to their World T20 success in Bangladesh in 2014, and that experience is valuable. However, the present selection panel has proved itself virtually impervious to sentiment. Ajantha Mendis finds himself out of the squad, despite many great T20 feats in past years. Senanayake will know he could follow if the good performances don’t begin stacking up.Can Thisara Perera be a match-winner again?Since the start of 2015, Thisara Perera has averaged 11 with the bat in ODIs, and 58.21 with the ball. For the moment, he is living on potential and reputation. He had been important to Sri Lanka in past limited-overs campaigns, and hit the winning runs in the 2014 final, but his recent run of form is beginning to blot those memories out. What has worried the team management, especially, has been a relaxed work ethic in comparison to team-mates – though there were signs of improvement on that front during the recent New Zealand tour.Coaches will hope that knack of playing match-winning hands can return to him, but for now, Perera will want to prove he is worth his place, in one discipline at least.With Sri Lanka fielding a second-string seam attack, Dushmantha Chameera has a chance to bowl himself into the World T20 squad•Associated PressIs Sri Lanka’s fielding good enough to cover for less-mobile bowlers?Sri Lanka’s two greatest match-winners over the past five years are modest fielders. Lasith Malinga dives at balls in slow motion. And it sometimes feels like Rangana Herath could lose a foot race to a fungal infestation. Malinga will, no doubt, return to the team, but Herath’s T20 future is a little less certain. He has repeatedly proved his quality as an all-format bowler. But is his fielding too much of a liability in the shortest format? If Sri Lanka field well in this series and prove they can cover for the less mobile players, Herath’s chances of playing in the World T20 will increase.Who will provide Sri Lanka’s seam-bowling cover?With Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekara and Angelo Mathews all ruled out of this series, Sri Lanka will field a second-string seam attack. The quicks are a varied bunch. There is Dilhara Fernando, making a surprise return at 36. Shaminda Eranga had a late call-up to replace the injured Binura Fernando. And Dushmantha Chameera is the young tearaway trying to prove his worth in limited-overs cricket, after some heartening Test results. Each man now has his chance to bowl himself into that World T20 squad.

Virat Kohli went through the gears to record his maiden T20 hundred but it was not quite enough to inspire his side to victory

Arun Venugopal24-Apr-20162:51

Cullinan: Kohli is on a mission

Virat Kohli hasn’t batted a lot without AB de Villiers at the other end this IPL. They have had three 100-plus partnerships for the second wicket in their previous four matches, with their lowest tally being 59 against Mumbai Indians where their exit in the same over resulted in a diminished total. Against Gujarat Lions, Kohli and de Villiers completed their customary 50-run stand, but added only one more run as Pravin Tambe snipped de Villiers with a flatter legbreak that constricted his inside-out scoop. Their partnership lasted six overs, their shortest alliance so far in terms of number of balls faced.Prior to this innings, Kohli had played only 41 balls and scored 63 without de Villiers’ company, as opposed to 203 off 171 with him present at the other end. It wasn’t exactly Green Lantern minus his power ring, but the most synchronised partners of this IPL were now separated. With Shane Watson opening the innings and being dismissed early there wasn’t much middle order muscle either. You could argue they still had Sarfaraz Khan, Kedhar Jadhav and Stuart Binny but, without de Villiers, Kohli had to be the pace-setter, especially after he had opted to bat first.Giving Kohli company was KL Rahul, who wasn’t even supposed to be playing in the first place. His name was penciled into the side after Mandeep Singh injured himself at the last moment. Rahul’s previous contributions amounted to 30 off 24 balls from two innings. Meanwhile, Kohli had already launched into a dash, and as repetitive as it might seem, his gap-finding ability couldn’t be overstated. In the fifth over, Tambe bowled with a cluster of fielders on the off side with a big gap between cover point and extra cover. Kohli drilled a pair of successive drives smack bang into the gap – he moved slightly inside the line on the first occasion and then punch-drove the second off a good length.But, after de Villiers departed Kohli had to contend with a lull from overs eight to 12, where Royal Challengers scored only 25 runs. He had started to cramp up as well – Kohli later said he had slightly sprained his ankle while pushing for a quick double – and needed Rahul, who was on 12 off 15 balls, to back him up. Rahul amped up his innings at the right time, and scored at least one boundary in four of the next five overs.The force was decisively multiplied in the 16th over after Rahul played out three dot balls to Dhawal Kulkarni, getting beaten on two of those. Kohli, on 62 off 46 balls, walked up to him and, going by his gesticulation, appeared to tell him where he could target. The next two balls were pulled and carted over deep midwicket and long-off respectively. Royal Challengers ransacked 65 runs off the last five overs as Kohli switched from marathon to sprint mode. He moved from 75 off 53 to 85 off 58 and finally 100 off 63 – his maiden T20 century. The crowd, when Kohli was batting, had no issues in switching loyalities. His runs were not gained from easy put-aways to short boundaries.Kohli ran at full tilt despite his niggle and, in a fascinating piece of play, clipped Bravo to Ravindra Jadeja at deep midwicket and hared back for the second run. Jadeja hurtled in like a man possessed and launched a flat throw right next to the stumps, but Kohli still had enough in his tank to get home. Rahul, while not de Villiers, had proven himself to be a worthy partner as they raised what was seemed a competitive total.Kohli probably knew that questions would be asked of his team’s bowling, but tactically there weren’t many more buttons he could have pushed. He did well to mix up spin and pace in the first six overs, but 72 runs – the highest Powerplay score in this year’s IPL – had left them with little wiggle room later. Tabraiz Shamsi had another successful outing but Kohli afterwards rued too many hittable deliveries from the rest of his attack, along with nine wides and two no-balls. Royal Challengers, through Yuzvendra Chahal and Watson, hit Lions with whatever they had towards the end, but couldn’t really muster that little extra when required. To get there, they needn’t look beyond their captain for inspiration.

Plays of the day from the fifth ODI between England and Sri Lanka in Cardiff

Andrew McGlashan in Cardiff02-Jul-2016Single of the day

Jason Roy and James Vince made their ODI debuts in the same game, the rain-ruined match against Ireland last May. Today they opened the batting together, Roy beginning the match with 840 runs to his name and Vince zero – he had not played another ODI since that dank day in Dublin when he did not get a bat. He soon opened his account this time, gliding his first ball down to third man. June had been a frustrating month for Vince as he faced just 96 deliveries across six innings – perhaps July will be kinder to him.From good fielding of the day…<BR
Sri Lanka's fielding has been a mixed bag throughout this tour. And so it continued. Kusal Perera held a good one to cut off Roy – just 166 runs short of a double hundred – but the pick of the grabs was from Kusal Mendis when he ran round at deep cover to dismiss Eoin Morgan. The England captain had just deposited a straight six towards the River Taff but then he tried to go inside-out over cover and did not get the placement quite right. It extended to 21 Morgan's run of international innings without a fifty.…to bad fielding of the day

It appeared Sri Lanka would finish their fifty overs without a major blemish. But it wasn’t to be. Joe Root was shelled on 90 when he skied to deep midwicket but Suranga Lakmal could not hold the catch running in. Then, two balls later, debutant Chaminda Bandara let a ball through his legs at short third man to gift Chris Woakes a boundary.Power of the day

The wonders that Jos Buttler can produce with bat in hand are nothing new, but that doesn’t make them any less notable. In the 47th over, Nuwan Pradeep delivered a very respectable slower-ball yorker. It was just outside off stump, pitching almost perfectly on the popping crease, yet Buttler was able to drive it wide of long-off as he whipped his bottom hand through the shot to generate astonishing power.Throw of the day

Another factor to be thrown into the debate as to whether Jonny Bairstow should be England’s Test wicketkeeper is his brilliance as an all-round fielder without the gloves. He eats up the ground in the outfield and has a rocket-like throw, both facets coming together to remove Mendis. Bairstow sprinted round the boundary from deep square, swooped and skimmed a flat throw towards Buttler who completed the run out.Ball of the day

Liam Plunkett’s pace has given England’s attack an important dimension in this series, keeping Sri Lanka’s batsmen on the back foot for lengthy periods of time. He has spoken about banging the ball in and allowing the pitch to provide variation, but he removed the 22 yards from the equation to dismiss Angelo Mathews with a searing yorker. His celebrations suggested it was a dismissal he would remember fondly.

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Sep-2016Anil Kumble’s term as India’s coach already includes a Test series win overseas, but a massive home season looms with 13 Tests, eight ODIs and three T20Is against New Zealand, England, Bangladesh and Australia.Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Kumble was excited with the depth of talent in the Indian team and picked out R Ashwin as the world’s best spinner and a vital cog to the team’s success0:46

‘Ashwin, the best in the world’

Having a strong bench can still lead to the odd problem or two. In India’s case it was the choice between Cheteshwar Pujara and Rohit Sharma. Kumble said his job, with regards to selection, was to simply feed the captain as much information as possible and let him take the final call0:51

‘Picking an XI is captain’s call’

Speaking of captains, was it hard for Kumble to manage a high-profile player like MS Dhoni?1:09

‘Handling Dhoni not a problem at all’

When he was appointed India’s coach for one year in June, Kumble insisted that he wanted to work behind the scenes and has reiterated that by saying he wanted the players to treat him like an ‘elder brother’1:22

‘Trying to be an elder brother to the players’

And the elder brother couldn’t resist the temptation to return to the bowling crease. Kumble said he sent down more than few deliveries in the nets and even injured his calf in the Caribbean.0:42

‘Got carried away in the nets’

Australia’s first 350-plus total against New Zealand, Boult and Henry’s dubious record, and other stats highlights from the second ODI in Canberra

Bharath Seervi06-Dec-20166 Centuries for David Warner in 2016 – the most by an Australia batsman in a calendar year. Ricky Ponting (2003 and 2007) and Matthew Hayden (2007) previously held the record, having hit five centuries each. Only two players have hit more centuries in a year than Warner – Sachin Tendulkar (9 in 1998) and Sourav Ganguly (7 in 2000). In 2016, no other batsman has scored more than three ODI centuries.2 Bigger totals for Australia in ODIs than the 378 in this match. They made 434 against South Africa at Wanderers in 2005-06 and 417 against Afghanistan at WACA in last year’s World Cup. This is the third-highest total for any team against New Zealand and Australia’s first 350-plus total against them.126 Runs conceded by New Zealand in the last ten overs of the innings – the joint-highest they have conceded in ODIs since 2001. They gave away 126 against Pakistan in Christchurch in 2010-11. Out of the 126 runs, 89 came in the last six overs.1 Number of higher totals in ODIs at Manuka Oval than Australia’s 378 in this match. South Africa scored 411 for 4 against Ireland in the 2015 World Cup. Australia’s previous highest at this venue was 348 for 8 against India in January this year. They have posted 300-plus on each of the four occasions they batted first here. The scoring rate in first innings at Manuka Oval is 6.53, which is easily the best among all venues to have hosted more than one ODI.85 Number of innings taken by Warner to score 10 ODI centuries – the fourth-least by any batsman. Quinton de Kock is the fastest to the mark (55 innings), followed by Hashim Amla (57) and Virat Kohli (80). Before Warner, Mark Waugh (125 innings) was the fastest to ten ODI hundreds. Warner is the fifth player to score 10 or more ODI centuries for Australia. Before his six centuries in 22 innings in 2016, Warner had hit only four in 63 innings.1 Matt Henry conceded 91 runs and Trent Boult gave away 80 to mark the first instance of two New Zealand bowlers conceding 80 or more runs in the same ODI. Mitchell Santner conceded only 47 runs in 10 overs, and was the only New Zealand bowler with an economy of less than six.2 Instances of four Australia batsmen scoring 50 or more in an ODI innings at home. Apart from Warner’s century, Steven Smith, Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh struck fifties. The first such innings at home came against Sri Lanka at SCG last year. Overall, this was the eighth such instance for them.7 Consecutive ODIs at Manuka Oval which have been won by the team batting first, since 2013. In the previous six ODIs, the team winning the toss elected to bat, unlike in this match, which was perhaps due to the overcast conditions. Australia’s 116-run win is their third-biggest against New Zealand at home.2012 The last time New Zealand lost two or more consecutive bilateral ODI series. Before losing the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy, they were beaten 3-2 in India. New Zealand were defeated in three consecutive series in 2012 – against South Africa at home, and in West Indies and Sri Lanka.4/41 Pat Cummins’ figures in this match – his best in ODIs. This was his third four-for, after two such hauls at Lord’s and Leeds in his last ODI series, in 2015. These are also the fourth-best figures for any bowler in Canberra.