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The flat pitches in UAE suit him, as he darts the ball into the track and gets it to fizz off it, giving batters no time to adjust

Deivarayan Muthu23-Oct-2021This chant from Kolkata Knight Riders’ Dinesh Karthik has become all too familiar in the IPL, aptly summing up what Varun Chakravarthy brings: mystery. It isn’t just limited to his bowling, which we will get to later. Varun grew up wanting to be the next big wicketkeeper-batter from Tamil Nadu or in other words, he wanted to be the next Karthik. After facing multiple rejections, he ditched cricket for architecture. Around the same time, he took a crack at acting in Tamil cinema. He even edited short films and videos.He then fell in love with cricket again, so much that he gave up architecture and became a medium-pacer. Injuries, however, struck him down. So, he brought out the (carrom) ball from the streets of Chennai, and experimented with spin. He demoted himself to lower-division cricket in the city and kept adding one variation after another to his repertoire. Varun’s evolution into a mystery spinner might have been accidental, his shoulder and knees might still be creaky, but his X-factor could be central to India’s T20 World Cup plans in the UAE.Related

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You can’t play Varun off the pitch, as he darts the ball into the track and gets it to fizz off it, giving you no time to adjust. The bigger boundaries in Abu Dhabi and Dubai – and the re-laid pitches in Sharjah – will only amplify the threat posed by Varun. In 23 T20s in the UAE, he has picked up 28 wickets at an average of 20.89 and economy rate of 6.35. In comparison in India, although the sample size is much smaller, Varun has eight wickets in as many matches, with his economy rate jumping to 8.19 an over.During a recent chat with Andre Russell on IPLt20.com, Varun said: “I’m starting to like this ground [Abu Dhabi] a lot. It’s just fun bowling here and it’s a good challenge because more flat wickets kind of suit me. I don’t like the turning wickets like Chennai, I like flat wickets, so it suits me more.”Russell was surprised with Varun’s comments, saying, “you’ve the first spin bowler I’ve heard say that you don’t like turners”. Varun, however, isn’t your traditional spin bowler. He had been fed with a steady diet of 18-yard tennis ball cricket and, in a way, he’s a bit like a medium-pacer who bangs it away on an in-between length at around 100kph and subtly turns the ball both ways at that pace.ESPNcricinfo LtdThe non-turners in the UAE did suit Varun’s style of bowling to a T in the second leg of IPL 2021. He conceded less than seven an over in every game in the UAE this season until the final, when he ran into Chennai Super Kings’ Moeen Ali, one of the best spin-hitters in the world. Also: Varun can bowl at the death, unlike most other spinners. His economy rate at the death over the past two IPL seasons (8.76) is the fifth best among bowlers who have bowled at least 75 balls during this phase.In India’s most recent warm-up fixture against Australia, Varun was held back until the 16th over. He did a decent job, coming away with 23 from his two overs, despite a triptych of boundaries from Marcus Stoinis.Varun is a bit like a medium-pacer who bangs it away on an in-between length at around 100kph and subtly turns the ball both ways at that pace•Sri Lanka CricketRahul Chahar is also an in-to-the-pitch spinner who can turn the ball both ways, and R Ashwin can be a favourable option against left-hander heavy batting line-ups, but Varun’s all-sorts could prove to be a potent point of difference in India’s attack. Varun was working on an eighth variation ahead of the second chunk of the IPL, but seemingly didn’t unleash it there. Will he give it a go at this T20 World Cup?”In my experience at the IPL, the Indian players – they play mystery spin and any kind of spin the best and the overseas players not quite so much,” Carl Crowe, Knight Riders’ spin-bowling coach, had said in the lead-up to Varun’s T20I debut in Sri Lanka. “Some of them like Jos Buttler play them well individually, but not across the board; the overseas players aren’t quite as skilled against mystery spin. You think about a World Cup, where non-Indian players play against a mystery spinner… there might be a few sleepless nights for the batters, trying to see which way the ball is spinning (laughs).”Only four years ago, Varun had made his TNPL debut, as a lower-order batter, in Chennai. He had invited a gang of friends to watch him in action at Chepauk on that day, but his debut turned out to be so dreadful that they ended up ridiculing him. On Sunday, all eyes will be on Varun as he could potentially make his World Cup debut, against Pakistan, as India’s frontline spinner along with Ravindra Jadeja. That would be quite a transformation.

Attacking approach gets Pantsed but Ben Stokes’ team will be more sure-footed in the long run

Vithushan Ehantharajah01-Jul-20222:15

Giles on Anderson: ‘He’s a genius, still a pleasure to watch him operate’

Principles don’t really become principles just like that. You don’t just get to walk into a shop and pick a principle off the shelf, plug in and press play. It needs to scoped, whittled, and honed before it is in any fit shape to be a foundation of your ethos.Above all else, it needs to be robustly tested, even knocked around a bit to see if it can withstand the harsher moments. That way you know it’s of real substance. The reason the All Blacks have a “no d***heads” policy is because, after a lot of experimenting, they realised they weren’t winning much with d***heads.This England men’s Test team are on the other end of that spectrum. In it for each other, expressive, some tactics, seemingly more vibes. Three empathic victories over New Zealand this last month has given them a renewed belief, which has been wedded to a sense they are bringing the noise to Test cricket and waking up the neighbours.Related

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Armed with a heightened faith in their ability and self-regard, they charged into the first day of this fifth Test against India, and looked good for the hype. They adhered religiously to the playbook, even if it was only drawn up a month ago: winning the toss and electing to bat last, packing the cordon, encouraging bowlers to use the open spaces to their advantage and entice misjudgements. Within 28 overs of play, they had India 98 for 5.A returning James Anderson led the way with three wickets, but missed out on picking up his all-time great sparring partner, Virat Kohli, who was one of two to fall to Matthew Potts. The Durham quick is one of the poster boys of Bazball, and having removed Kane Williamson three times in the New Zealand series, he unsettled and then unpicked the former India captain. Not since Future has someone come on to the scene and immediately found himself attached to so many high-profile names on merit.It was usually at this point that Daryl Mitchell and Tom Blundell got to work to bump up New Zealand’s scores. And while their partnership averaged 120.7 across six innings, England were always able to maintain some semblance of control, and were even able to keep focusing on taking wickets. This time, however, as 98 for 5 became 320 for 5 in 38.3 overs, they found themselves needing to reassess. Those principles, still being recited for the sake of memory as much as meditation, looked like they might have to be abandoned, even if only for a moment. To bastardise a famous Mike Tyson quote, everyone’s got five slips until you get Rishabh Pantsed in the face.As India’s one-man band of cavalier free-form jazz set about turning the day around, Ben Stokes did his best to maintain tack throughout. As much as the players truly believe in what Stokes and Brendon McCullum are pushing towards, it is only human to have a few doubts when an opposition batter is hitting you down the ground at will: sometimes for four, sometimes for six, sometimes with one hand, sometimes on one leg, sometimes even ending up flat on his back after.Jack Leach, perhaps the most emboldened in the squad, with 10 wickets at Headingley achieved through not thinking about the negative of saving runs, had to regress on occasion. Having been forbidden from pushing a man back on the fence by Stokes just a week ago, he was allowed the cover, first by two-thirds then fully back when it became apparent that it did not matter where the fielder was stood.Ben Stokes had his hands full in the field•Associated PressThe short-ball tactic also had a sense of defence about it. Stokes and Potts took on that workload in a bid to hurry Ravindra Jadeja or encourage Pant’s ego to bring him down. Such was the manner in which both lefties played – particularly Pant, who was more than happy to indulge pull shots – that the leg side was reinforced to stem the flow. Even the fielding standards dropped, with usually sharp fielders diving over the odd boundary, and a couple of unnecessary, wayward launches towards the stumps that coughed up eight runs in overthrows.Given the manner of the 222-run partnership, these moments were easy to understand. Human, in fact. A passage of play that was instigated to test your resolve and have you questioning how you’ve been doing things, especially if you’ve only been doing them like this for a month.Vindication, however, came from an unlikely source. Joe Root tossed one up above Pant’s eyes which had spotted the vacant regions down the ground like Wile E. Coyote clocking the Road Runner. Pant threw his head back and thought of the 150, only to skew an edge for Crawley’s third catch at slip. And with that, India’s charge was halted, and England were back in it.”It was a brave ball, I’ll say that,” England assistant coach Paul Collingwood said when speaking after stumps. “With two men up and having just been hit over his head, it was brave. Sometimes you need a bit of genius or bravery.”The wicket of Shardul Thakur means day two begins on 338 for 7: India, on balance, ahead but England more than able catch up if they start strongly on Saturday. “We can be happy with the day’s work,” Collingwood said. “Anything under 360, 370 would be a good result for us.”We will only know at the end of this match just how effective this late fightback was to England’s cause. They rallied from 55 for 6 to win the previous Test against New Zealand, and here, for the first time in this new era, the bowlers were in a similar state of disarray. Such is the way in sport that our conclusions from this day will be wedded to the result, which is now a binary prospect given this England side’s dislike for the draw.Perhaps, though, this first day should be regarded as a microcosm of this whole period in general: one of trial and error, where winning is less important than the performance. As that goes on, there will be some corrections, as they were here. Encouraging opposition batters to play through point by leaving it vacant is a great way to coax a questionable bat angle for an edge, but can lead to easy singles to rotate the strike and relieve pressure. Keeping mid-on and mid-off up is effective for eventually drawing loose strokes but can lead to frazzled minds in the field and dampen even the most strong-willed spinner.That being said, the thing to take away was that England did not lose sight of the bigger picture, and in turn wrestled back some initiative. There will be more times in the future when the pressure upon them will be even greater. By then, their resolve and those principles will be a little bit surer thanks to days like this.

While some may pose valid financial questions, there’s no doubt the PJL will provide a platform like no other for young cricketers across Pakistan

Danyal Rasool08-Sep-2022The buzz following Pakistan’s dramatic win over Afghanistan at the Asia Cup had yet to dissipate, but early the following morning in Lahore, the PCB was back at work. There was a media scramble as the event got underway just before noon local time. The board chairman, Ramiz Raja, was due to speak, with an extensive player draft to follow. The whole event was live streamed, with the PCB bombarding social media channels and WhatsApp groups with regular updates.The PSL draft, right? It’s that time of year, after all.Wrong.This is the Pakistan Junior League (PJL) draft, a first-of-its-kind league. It’s Ramiz’s brainchild, an event that sees Under-19 players from around the world compete against each other in a T20 league, one of a raft of innovations that signal Ramiz’s desire to leave his mark on the PCB.In a sense, that’s not especially unique. Every PCB chairman has tried to ensure a legacy that outlasts them, though how successful those attempts have been is another matter.Ehsan Mani and Wasim Khan, PCB chairman and chief executive, respectively, before Ramiz, enshrined constitutional changes to make complete overhauls legally more challenging. But, of course, even they only managed that by overhauling the system they had found, revamping the domestic structure despite fierce opposition, and removing board of governors members who did not support them to get the job done.

The financial picture might look bleak but watching actual young cricketers playing high-quality cricket in a world-first league will always have more cut-through with the public than numbers on an accounting sheet

Any notions those changes might survive a change in administration proved quixotic as soon as Ramiz was appointed chairman. It became quickly apparent Ramiz wasn’t the delegating kind, as Mani had been on operational affairs with Wasim. In his first press conference, amid a raft of promises that laid out his vision, Ramiz pledged to organise the world’s first junior international T20 league.Few expected it to come to fruition – other ideas, like drop-in pitches, faded away. Initially, the PCB conceived it to be a franchise-style system, with private investment funding the league; the cost of running it at the PCB’s expense was an unwelcome prospect. It was exacerbated because in the year since that announcement was made, Pakistan has seen its economy come under extreme strain, with the value of the rupee going into freefall.The most uncharitable might call it a white elephant of a vanity project, while the converted portray it as an investment into Pakistan’s future T20 talent. And there’s little doubt of the value the PJL brings to the table.For young cricketers, it represents a unique platform to showcase their skills in front of an audience they could previously only dream of, not to mention the concomitant monetary rewards. For the PSL, the PJL is likely to serve as a free audition weeks ahead of the PSL draft, ensuring any young, emerging cricketers they pick based on PJL performances has league T20 pedigree of some sort. The quality of the cricket on offer will in all likelihood be superior to much of what the players are generally accustomed to, so even if its detractors call it misguided, the tournament still provides a pathway which leaves its participants better off.Related

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But even if the PCB’s critics conceded those points, the ripostes have already been prepared. For one, it isn’t yet clear what the extent of the financial stress the PJL now places on the PCB, but it’s likely to be considerable. The PCB initially claimed there had been “an overwhelming and encouraging response from potential sponsors, partners and entrepreneurs”, but were quickly forced to abandon the franchise model after failing to find bidders willing to match base prices in the market.Miscalculating the sincerity of that interest meant the PCB had to take control of the six teams. A roadmap to the sustainability for this league is yet to be presented, which effectively tethers the PCB into taking on a similar financial burden every year this league is held. That makes the PJL vulnerable to scrapping the moment cost-cutting becomes unavoidable, because as things stand, it appears difficult for the PJL to sustain itself financially.All this attention for the PJL has left the PSL’s stakeholders feeling jilted, too. There is no indication yet of when that league’s draft – and whether it will be a draft or some draft-auction hybrid – will actually be held, never mind any public announcement about available players. That leaves the franchises less able to plan effectively for the upcoming season, or sponsors to effectively gauge the level of commercial interest. The wisdom of ignoring an established, money-making brand for an unproven one has been questioned – not least at a time when two brand new, cash-rich T20 leagues are about to start in the UAE and South Africa.Pakistan have won the Under-19 World Cup twice, in 2004 and 2006•AFP/Getty ImagesThose problems may be unavoidable, but an odd unforced error might further dampen enthusiasm. The PJL coincides with the senior team’s T20I tri-series in New Zealand and the opening stages of the T20 World Cup, naturally stripping attention away from the PJL. The national side, naturally, attracts attention whenever it plays, and while it might have been tricky to slot the PJL into a vacant window, the effort would likely have been rewarded with an increase in viewership.But, for the PCB’s charismatic current chairman, the temptation to leave something tangible by way of legacy could well have proved tempting enough to override other concerns. There might be a revolving door at the head of the PCB, but in the PJL, Ramiz can market a real, concrete project he envisioned and brought to term almost single-handedly, in spite of the concerns and drawbacks that threatened to derail it.The financial picture might look bleaker but watching actual young cricketers playing high-quality cricket in a world-first league will always have more cut-through with the public than numbers on an accounting sheet. A new chairman might come in and decide to roll back or entirely do away with the PJL, but it’s unlikely to be a choice that proves popular with anyone but the finance department. Few people in Pakistan cricket understand that better than Ramiz.There might be egos as well as visions at play here, but when, in a month’s time, young cricketers from Pakistan and around the world – 24 from nine different cricket boards including Associate players, which is progressive – take each other on in a T20 league, they’ll be watched by large numbers, and paid handsomely for it. And who, really, could begrudge that?

Fourth List A final between these sides joins the others in providing memorable images

Paul Edwards17-Sep-2022At its heart, of course, the 2022 Royal London Cup final was a contest between Lancashire and Kent. Yet it was also a challenge to the ECB after its utterly mis-scheduled ham-fisted staging of this event last year, and also to the supporters of both teams to prove that something as 20th century as a 50-over county match could attract a decent crowd to a Test-match ground. So maybe we should say first of all that while Kent won what might become known as Joey Evison’s match, the ECB recovered some kudos and the fans turned up in good numbers.One can always tell a game is poorly attended when the TV cameras greet every dramatic moment by focusing on the same tiny group of manic supporters. This was very different. Trent Bridge was not a sell-out, nothing like it in fact, but the stands behind the bowlers’ arms were full and the 9040 spectators certainly created a sense of occasion. To a degree this was plain in the absolute quietness that descended on the ground well before the players came out for the official minute’s silence in memory of the late Queen. As at The Oval last week, the spectators’ voluntary recognition of solemnity – of life being different – was far more impressive than the orchestrated respect. Somehow one was not quite ready for it.As ever, though the vendors of alcohol were greedily rigged up for anything. Jim and Tonic were offering The Outlaw (£8.50 for a large snifter) comprising Mediterranean gin, Indian tonic, orange and rosemary. Rather more plebeian was Keeton Corner, in tribute to the old Nottinghamshire opener, Walter, or Parr’s Bar, with a nod to George. At both places a pint of IPA could be purchased for £5.50.There was even an EBar which prioritised efficient consumption above human contact by merely requiring customers to place a plastic glass and their credit cards in the right places in order to be presented with a pint of strong lager. Judged in that light, the injunction to “Drink responsibly” seemed a little hapless. One felt it could have been followed with “On the other hand…”For most of the first innings, Kent’s supporters had plenty to enjoy and heaps to toast. Most obviously, this was apparent in Evison’s 97 but there was also Joe Denly’s 78 and the general reassurance that this wasn’t going to be one of those one-day finals in which the side batting first is four down for spit inside the first ten overs. Those matches were played at Lord’s, of course, where inserting the opposition was always a favoured tactic on September Saturdays. Steve Birks’ pitch allowed no such eccentricities; Evison and Denly made that plain.Related

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And it was not only Lancashire supporters who didn’t appreciate the fluency of Kent’s batsmen. “How sharper than a serpent’s tooth it is to have a thankless child,” says King Lear when Goneril is telling him some homeless truths and Nottingham-based fans at Trent Bridge might have felt something similar as they watched their former Academy product Evison’s 111-ball innings, an effort which provided the backbone of what seemed a clearly competitive 306 for 5.Kent’s batters also had help from an improbable source. For after a season in which they had prided themselves on their performance in the field, Lancashire’s players had something of a shocker. There were overthrows and misfields, on top of which Wells and Keaton Jennings managed to drop three catches between them, the last of them of Darren Stevens in the final over, when a colossal skier more or less bisected them, Jennings chose, or was chosen by Wells, to take it and spilled the thing. The batters managed two and Danny Lamb looked more or less ready to self-combust. Mind you, Kent had their misdemeanours, too, never more so than when Ollie Robinson discarded his glove to chase a ball and Harry Finch picked up the mitt to take the return, thereby incurring a five-run penalty.At that stage Lancashire’s pursuit was going well. They were more or less up with the required run-rate and better placed than Kent after almost each over of their innings. Then Jennings, after disrupting opposing bowlers with his long-armed drives and praying mantis sweeps, chipped Hamidullah Qadri to Alex Blake at cover and Lancashire were 125 for 3 in the 22nd over.That, though, was nothing like the game’s crucial dismissal, nor was Jennings’ 71 the vital innings. As much as anything, this fine final was decided by Kent’s magnificent catching, first Alex Blake off Croft, then Evison off George Lavelle and finally Grant Stewart off Danny Lamb in front of the Kent supporters in the Fox Road standAnd at once this fourth List A final between Lancashire and Kent joined the others in its ability to provide memorable images. In 1971, of course, it was Jack Bond’s catch off Asif Iqbal; in 1974 it was Alan Knott and Bob Woolmer nudging Kent home in a low-scoring game; and in 1995, Lancashire prevailed despite a conjured century from Aravinda de Silva. In 2022, in a very different, much less confident era, it was Evison’s innings and a series of Kent fielders leaping and swooping to grab cricket balls before being submerged beneath a heap of sky-blue shirts and happiness.So a day that began with “Abide with Me” would end very fittingly, with the darkness deepening and the mid-September eventide falling very fast. Kent’s cricketers will notice neither Saturday’s dusk nor Sunday’s dawn. And quite right, too. Good luck to them.

Six England players pick up deals while sealing the deal against Ireland in Paarl

Valkerie Baynes13-Feb-2023England and Ireland entered their World Cup contest on Monday in the most bizarre circumstances of any side at the tournament, with many of its participants walking onto the field with virtual price tags hanging over their heads like thought bubbles – some stamped “sold” and others not.The WPL auction had been the “elephant in the room”, according to Sophie Devine, the New Zealand captain who was eventually sold to Royal Challengers Bangalore for her base price of 50 lakh (£50,000). But all of a sudden it was adding weight to every shot, every wicket, and every catch at the picturesque Boland Park in Paarl, even while playing out 8,000km away in Mumbai.Sophie Ecclestone duly wore her price tag as a badge of honour, striding onto the pitch as a marquee spinner for UP Warriorz after being picked up for the equivalent of £180,000, before taking two wickets in two balls among her 3 for 13. Leg-spinner Sarah Glenn’s 3 for 19, however, couldn’t sway the buyers, as she went unsold for her asking price of 30 lakh.What about the six Alice Capsey heaved onto the grass banks beyond backward square leg to bring up a 21-ball fifty, the equal fastest at a World Cup and equal third-highest in all Women’s T20Is? Delhi Capitals would like more of that please – for 75 lakh (£75,000), thank you – although Capsey herself might have earned a fair bit more had she been able to produce that innings before the hammer went down.Then there was Nat Sciver-Brunt, who took the field knowing that she had fetched a cool £320,000 from Mumbai Indians, the equal second-highest price alongside Australian allrounder Ashleigh Gardner (Gujarat Giants), and behind only Smriti Mandhana, who went to Royal Challengers Bangalore for about £20,000 more.Heather Knight, England’s captain, could not deny that the auction had been on the players’ minds. She had even had to move a team meeting because the India squad are staying at the same hotel in Stellenbosch and, because they aren’t due to play until Tuesday, were able to enjoy the occasion accordingly.And such was the game-face that England had to wear – particularly in light of Ireland’s remarkable victory over Australia in last week’s warm-ups – Knight herself was given no inkling that she’d picked up a deal with RCB midway through the run-chase, not even when she was greeted by her coach, Jon Lewis, at the top of the pavilion steps after the match.”No not at all. It’s probably a good thing the way I batted,” Knight said, after an uncharacteristically scratchy 14 from 22 balls. “If they’d seen that I don’t think I would have got picked up at all, it made it a little bit hard work out there, but no, when we were at the ground it was all about just focusing on the game, and I just got told afterwards and obviously who’d been picked up and who’s missed out.”The England camp left it up to individuals to decide when they wanted to find out the results of the auction, with 10 of their playing XI having put their names forward. Six of them, plus reserve Issy Wong, secured deals worth nearly £800,000 combined.Sophie Ecclestone was one of England’s big winners at the WPL auction•AFP/Getty Images”It was strange, it’s something we’ve never experienced and you don’t often get it in the men’s game, I don’t think, when it’s on match day,” Knight said. “It was all about trying to manage it as best we could, trying to do what individuals wanted and also trying to, when we got here, our main focus obviously was on the game.”Some of the girls would have known going into it, the ones picked up early. I think Soph knew and she’s someone that really thrives on that pressure. A few of the girls would have known arriving but, during the game, our self-focus was on trying to obviously get the two points.”Knight wasn’t the least bit surprised that Sciver-Brunt had fetched such a high price, and she was conscious of ensuring that her vice-captain was as comfortable as possible with being in the limelight again, after taking a mental health break last year.”I think she’s one of the best, if not the best, cricketer in the world and Nat probably won’t like all the attention,” Knight said. “She’s very humble and she’s just very, very good at cricket. I’m super glad she’s on our team.”I think also it’s about making sure that Nat’s able to deal with that, because it’s not potentially just a positive, the pressure that comes with that. But also I think hopefully it’ll be something that she thrives on and she’s at the top of her game at the moment, so yeah, it’s not a surprise at all.”Sciver-Brunt’s wife, veteran seamer Katherine, went unsold, as did wicketkeeper Amy Jones and Danni Wyatt, while fellow opener Sophia Dunkley was a bargain for Giants at £60,000, given her recent form. Quicks Lauren Bell and Wong went to Warriorz and Mumbai Indians respectively for £37,000 each, while Knight’s 40 lakh (£40,000) base-price deal came after being overlooked in the initial draw.Related

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Knight said it was also important to make sure those who hadn’t secured a place in the competition, beginning on March 4, were doing okay too.”I think the whole team will make sure individuals are looked after, that’s really important and what we’re about as a side,” she said. “The value of players to the England team doesn’t change because they haven’t been picked up, they’re still very valuable, everyone in the squad is hugely valuable to us trying to win a World Cup, so that doesn’t change.”They’ll certainly be looked after and given space if needed, to deal with anything and try and refocus and get back on it. Every individual will be given that support and ultimately we want to get the best out of every player, however we do that. The main thing is making sure they’re okay and then trying to refocus on cricket and get the best out of all the individuals in our team.”In the end, England managed to retain their focus to secure a comfortable win, after bowling Ireland out for 105 with 1.5 overs to spare, even if they made their run-chase a little harder than it might have been, with only Capsey passing 16 thanks to Cara Murray’s 3 for 15 on a golden day for spinners. Auction-wise, no Ireland players were chosen, despite expectations that Gaby Lewis – their top-scorer with 36 off 37 – might spark some interest.For 18-year-old Capsey, a fine (pay)day was made sweeter by the fact that she only recently returned from a broken collarbone suffered in December.”We were expecting to not have her available, so to see her come back and overcome that sort of injury – and mentally it can be quite tricky as well – so the fact that she’s worked her way through that and come back is brilliant,” Knight said. “She fits with exactly how I want to play the game, that fearlessness, she goes out and plays in one way and really takes on the powerplay, which is what we want from our top three players.”At least by the time South Africa and New Zealand lined up for a crunch match in the evening, with both sides looking to avoid a second straight – and potentially tournament-ending – defeat, there was no auction hanging over them, just a stunning Paarl sunset.

He was on his way to becoming one of the forgotten men of West Indies cricket, but has now been named in their World Cup Qualifier squad

Deivarayan Muthu08-Jun-2023Johnson Charles became the forgotten man of West Indies cricket after their – and his – second T20 World Cup title in 2016. Since the end of that tournament and the start of the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia, Charles had played just five T20Is.But, after strong returns in CPL 2022, he returned to West Indies’ T20I set-up and earlier this year, and smashed a 39-ball hundred in Centurion – the fastest by a West Indian in men’s T20Is, bettering Chris Gayle’s 47-ball effort.Charles, however, wasn’t supposed to travel to the UAE with West Indies’ ODI squad for the ongoing three-match series, but Devon Thomas’ suspension opened the door for an unexpected comeback in the format.Related

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In his first ODI in almost seven years, Charles scored a 19-ball 24 and followed it up with a match-winning 47-ball 63 in the second ODI, indicating that he is by no means finished, and shouldn’t be forgotten.Charles’ main strength is still intact: clear the front leg and swat the ball to the leg side. But he has also expanded his game by hitting with similar power down the ground and through the off side. The new-found range was on display on a hot and humid evening in Sharjah on June 6.”I just had to work on the basics,” Charles said after the second ODI. “It’s not much, but just trying to keep my balance and not trying to over-hit the ball and having a strong base. And hit the ball where it has to be hit and that’s what I’ve been working on.”

The Daren Sammy impact

Charles 2.0 appeared at CPL 2022, where he tallied 345 runs in nine innings at an average of 43.12 and strike rate of 133.20 for St Lucia Kings. His coach was Daren Sammy. Charles and Sammy go back a long way. Sammy was Charles’ first T20I captain and they went on to win two T20 World Cup titles together. Charles has a stand named after him at St Lucia’s Beausejour Stadium, which has been renamed in Sammy’s honour.Charles hailed Sammy’s leadership skills after West Indies wrapped up a 2-0 series victory against UAE with one game to go. “Not just mine. It [Sammy’s leadership] has a positive impact on everybody’s performance because he’s an inspirational leader,” Charles said. “So that positiveness will run down on the other guys, and it will definitely push us to bring out our best.”Positiveness is definitely up there as No. 1, and inspirational. These are the two main things about his coaching that I could highlight right now.”UAE are currently ranked 19th in ODI cricket and their team is in flux, with Robin Singh recently ending his role as director of cricket following a prolonged lean patch, and Mudassar Nazar taking temporary charge of the team. Charles, though, insisted that West Indies haven’t taken UAE lightly, and are pleased with their own progress in the lead-up to the 2023 ODI World Cup qualifier, which is set to start in Zimbabwe on June 18.Darren Sammy and Johnson Charles go back a long way•Sportsfile via Getty Images”People could say what they want, and people make their judgements,” Charles said. “It’s fair enough but we know we never take any opposition for granted. So, saying that, it’s very nice we came up with a series win. Two out of two so far, and you know I find that the team is gelling very well as a unit. We’re definitely playing to our strengths and working on that and playing to how we want to play in the World Cup qualifiers and going forward. So, I think that we’ve played well, and we’ve definitely not taken them for granted. So, that’s a good thing.”Since CPL 2022, Charles has had a good run in franchise T20 leagues. Notably in the BPL 2023 final in February, where he cracked an unbeaten 79 off 52 balls from No. 4 to give Comilla Victorians their fourth title. He even earned a call-up to Kolkata Knight Riders’ squad for IPL 2023, but didn’t get a game.”Going back to the basics and trying to get them right all the time; if not, then most of the time,” Charles said of the change. “That has been working for me [in T20 cricket] along with the positive mindset. Yes, I just lapsed a little bit [in the second ODI in Sharjah] and that cost my wicket and you know it [hundred] is going to come.”Charles was on Thursday added to West Indies’ ODI squad for the World Cup qualifier in Zimbabwe*, replacing injured spinner Gudakesh Motie. And although Kyle Mayers, fresh off an IPL stint with Lucknow Super Giants, is set to partner Brandon King at the top, further contributions in the oppressive Sharjah heat could put him contention for a starting spot.Not many gave Charles a chance to return to the West Indies side, but he is now the only man from the XI that beat England in the T20 World Cup final in 2016 to be involved as a player with this current team.*1955 GMT – This story was updated with news of Charles’ call-up

He has one of the best strike rates in ODIs while playing the cut, and on Sunday he put the shot to excellent use to neutralise Australia’s biggest spin threat

Karthik Krishnaswamy09-Oct-20231:58

Kumble: KL Rahul looks like he’s back to his original self

There are balls that deserve to be hit for four. This was by no means that kind of ball. It was the second ball Adam Zampa had bowled on Sunday at Chepauk, and it was the kind of ball he’d have been happy to bowl while beginning his day’s work in any ODI, anywhere. It was quick, just shy of 90kph, flat, and the stock-standard white-ball legbreak that’s designed not to turn much at all, its primary object the denial of width to the right-hand batter.This ball pitched just outside off stump and straightened so little that it was still angling into the batter when it reached him: there was a chance it may have clipped off stump if he’d missed it, and the length was such that there was no chance it would have bounced over the bails.It was the kind of ball most batters would have looked to punch down the ground and pick up a quiet single. With India 57 for 3 in a chase of 200, it would have been a perfectly desirable outcome for the batter.Related

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KL Rahul wasn’t interested in the quiet punch for one. He transferred his weight nimbly on to the back foot, instead, and created room to bring his bat scything down, wrists turning over on top of the bounce. The ball ran away into the vast, unpatrolled area between slip and backward point.The classic late cut is one of cricket’s most glorious sights, but it’s a rare and subtle thing, a shot that seldom, if ever, enters the realms of social-media virality, lacking the main-character energy of the cover drive and the straight drive, the overt machismo of the pull and the hook, and the holy-smokes-how-did-he-do-that trendiness of the switch hit and the reverse ramp.The late cut is the kind of shot your granddad loved because he heard a radio commentator describe GR Viswanath playing it and spent the rest of the afternoon imagining how it must have looked.Rahul is from Karnataka, the land of Viswanath and also of Rahul Dravid, another magnificent player of spin. I have spent many futile hours searching for footage of Dravid’s fourth-innings 75 in Kandy, an innings full of daredevilish cuts and punches against the turn of Muthiah Muralidaran (hit me up if you know someone who knows someone who might have recorded it). Seldom has anyone looked in such control against an undisputed all-time great.Rahul’s late cut off Zampa echoed an even better one he had played last month against Sri Lanka in Colombo, against a rampant Dunith Wellalage, who at that stage had figures of 3 for 16 in 5.1 overs. This time there was no doubt that the ball, skidding on with the angle from left-arm around, would have crashed into the stumps had Rahul missed. So quickly and lightly did he move into position, though, that it seemed as if he knew all along that this ball – whose behaviour off the pitch was almost certainly the result of natural variation rather than design on the bowler’s part – would not turn, and even that it would keep a touch low.ESPNcricinfo LtdShots like these, off perfectly reasonable deliveries, can put bowlers completely off their radar. Spinners in white-ball cricket are always looking to avoid pitching in the batter’s arc, and it’s an occupational hazard to bowl one every now and then that’s ever so slightly short of a length. The best players of spin pounce on these marginal errors, and Rahul is among the best at doing this with variants of the cut.Since the end of the 2019 World Cup, Rahul has scored 102 runs off 69 balls while cutting, late-cutting and steering spinners, according to ESPNcricinfo’s data, without once being dismissed. His strike rate while playing these shots is the fourth-best among all ODI batters who have scored at least 50 runs with them in this period. On top of the list is another terrific player of spin, Shreyas Iyer. It’s one of the many things that make India’s middle order so formidable in Indian conditions.How does a spinner respond to having a blameless delivery late-cut for four? Zampa did so in classic legspinner fashion, bowling the wrong’un. He landed a touch too short, though, and Rahul had all the time in the world to unfurl another, even more delicate late cut, placing it much finer this time.What happened next was one of those things that seem both inevitable and remarkable, coming from a quality international bowler. Over-compensation. Zampa tried going fuller, ended up floating up a full-toss, and Rahul put it away in the prettiest manner possible, bringing back more echoes of Viswanath and Dravid with a wristy inside-out drive that neatly bisected short extra-cover and deep cover point. A forced error, put away most graciously, and just like that, in a match set up by the unhittability of India’s spinners on a sharply turning pitch, Rahul had neutralised Australia’s biggest spin threat.

Our diarist survives bumpy rides, cancelled flights and missing TV channels in the course of covering the World Cup

Mark Nicholas29-Oct-2023October 16, Delhi, 4.20am
Air India 112 landed from London an hour and 15 minutes ago. After a dash to the ITC Maurya Hotel, I am in room 1530 with a tailor. There is bad if unsurprising news: off the back of me emailing some iffy measurements last month, the suit that is the ICC commentators’ uniform for the tournament doesn’t fit. He promptly measures most of me again, while his translator explains that the cutting rooms are an hour away but not to worry, they will be back at 8.30 with alterations and elegance assured. I find this difficult to believe, on both counts.They are in the lobby by 9.15am, apologising for being late. Your turn not to worry my friend, I say, great effort, and thank you. Dinesh Karthik is sitting patiently outside in a Toyota Landcruiser, insisting that we will make the 11.00am flight to Dharamshala. Good. We do. Easy.Well, ten minutes before IndiGo Airlines close check-in, but the suspicion lingers that in the presence of Dinesh they’d have opened it again. The flight is then delayed. For four hours. Before it is cancelled. Problem. The IndiGo man works feverishly to get us on a late-afternoon flight to Chandigarh and book drivers for the 5.5 hour road trip into the mountains.”We” are us two lads in the Landcruiser plus Shaun Pollock, Matthew Hayden, Sanjay Manjrekar, Kass Naidoo and Anjum Chopra, the former India captain, whose quick wit and bossy demeanour are a great bonus for us pilgrims. It is past five o’clock, so she suggests we drop the idea of the run to Dharamsala: ’tis a dark and stormy night on a dodgy road. Everyone is tired. I’m knackered. Hayden knows the boss at the Hyatt in Chandigarh, who is splendidly excited when we arrive and cannot do enough for us. Superb hotel.October 17, Chandigarh, early
At 4.40am the iPhone alarm bursts through the sleeping pill. At 5.20am, in four SUVs, we head off and then, after just an hour, inexplicably stop at a roadside dhaba. Someone fancied a mug of chai. After that it’s acceleration, deceleration, roadworks, rickshaws, kids, cows, dogs, tuk-tuks, a Mercedes, and zillions of side-saddle ridden jalopies on a road well known in India for its vagaries. Some of our number nod off, others (me and Haydos) listen to The Rolling Stones on the back of “Angry”, the new single, which is terrific. New album, is out on October 20.Michael goes to the mountain: Atherton conquers the Triund trail•Michael AthertonOctober 17, Dharamshala, 10.30am
It’s pissing down. Play delayed by two hours. Temba Bavuma wins the toss and puts Netherlands in to bat. South Africa don’t bowl very well, and 243 is scoreboard pressure. Having lost to Netherlands at Adelaide Oval in last year’s T20 World Cup, South Africa don’t bat very well either. The pressure is too much and they lose here too.That’s some win double for the boys in orange. Put simply, the Dutch outplay South Africa in every one of cricket’s disciplines. Odd really, because the Proteas have just won five on the bounce, four of them against Australia. They looked short an attack dog and less likely now than six and a half hours ago to win the Cup. We shall see.Here is a stat: the South Africans have the wood over every one of their opponents in bilateral ODI cricket. But no World Cup biscuit. Hayden – and history – tells us that contrary to his guess, South Africa have the Aussies covered by 55 wins to 50. Upon which, our thoughts turn back to the ’99 semi-final at Edgbaston. Ouch. Even watching that final over now, it seems impossible. Bavuma needs to convince his team to park it and move on. In four days they play England, who just got done by Afghanistan. You never can tell, say us old folks.October 18, 6.30am
After five hours’ kip, I’m up to walk the Triund trail. Well, a short length of it. This was a firm instruction from Michael Atherton, who did the whole shebang last weekend and sent a glamour picture of himself, Hillary-like, atop a mountain. Even at the lower level, in the forest, the views are spectacular. The monkeys are remarkably sedate, and occasionally a moped zips by with a cheery wave from a rider who seems to be saying “Really? This is quite a climb y’know.” Indeed, but I can’t tell Athers I didn’t. So I did, less than halfway but for a couple of hours anyway, and loved it.After which, Pollock, Chopra and I head for the throwback that is the local airport and jump on board the South Africa team charter to Mumbai. The two days and some since arriving back in India for the first time in a while have not been without incident! On the flight, the South African players recover their sense of humour with a pack of cards and the battle for tricks.How many of those jerseys have “Virat” on the back?•Associated PressOctober 19, Pune. The toss
I ask India’s captain if his wonderfully free-spirited batting illustrates just how much he is enjoying the tournament. He basically said yes, and referred to his determination to play as he did in his youth, before the traffic moved in.India beat Bangladesh comfortably. Rohit Sharma makes 60-odd with almost contemptuous ease. Virat Kohli matches him in strokeplay and cruises past him in numbers, to a zinger of a hundred. The sea of blue in the stands goes nuts. Jasprit Bumrah had earlier bowled searing yorkers and the Indian fielders were cutting-edge sharp. The home team are strong favourites, of course, but wary of New Zealand, one imagines. They play each other on Sunday.A full and ecstatic house at the terrific MCA stadium has a night out, Kohli makes sure of that. At a wild guess, 80% of those fans in blue had “Virat” printed on the back of their branded India team shirts. The Ronaldo of cricket.October 21, Super Saturday… somewhere
So much travelling, not sure where. Head cold is annoying, though not as annoying as the absent television channels in the hotel. Ah, Lucknow, that’s where we are. “” is Hindi for “Smile, you’re in Lucknow”. Luck now, get it? Good. Well, I wasn’t. Having not seen a ball of England’s thumping defeat by South Africa in Mumbai, the heaviest ever for England in one-day cricket, I’m now not going to see a try, tackle or kick in the rugby World Cup semi-final. The duty manager said channels 475 and 483 would show the match. Nope. England lost by a point. Yup. Horrendous. Deserved better in that game, but maybe didn’t deserve to win the World Cup. The Springboks will now play New Zealand, the All Blacks. It’s an old rivalry and not for the soft-hearted. It is perfectly possible that the two countries meet in the cricket World Cup final too.Regards England cricket, the party is over for now. Confidence is low and it is upon confidence that the freewheeling survives. Their selection lacks certainty and it is upon certainty that good selection depends. Sri Lanka are next for Jos Buttler, who won’t be relishing the three games to come: India and Australia follow. Ye gods.In the end, then, it was anything but a super Saturday. The head cold was worse in the morning and England were all but out of two World Cups.England’s fall from defending World Cup champions to now the bottom of the points table has been scarcely believable•Gareth Copley/Getty ImagesOn another note, a fine dinner was to be had at the Taj Mahal hotel in Lucknow with Jeff Crowe, the match referee, and Rod Tucker, the umpire. Principled men, whose take on the game, if not without agenda because we all have our seeds to sow, is forthright and level-headed. We all wondered if 50-over cricket should now be 40-over cricket. None of us wanted it dumped, however.Lucknow is thought of as one of the food capitals of India. If you pass by, don’t pass up on a kebab: minced lamb, or buffalo, made with milk because the old Nawab, who had lost his teeth, asked the chefs for food he didn’t have to chew, and up with the kebab they came.October 23, Mumbai
Bishan Bedi has died, aged 77. I played against him once, in Dubai, in 1980. To my knowledge it was the first floodlit cricket outside of Australia. It was an unofficial England XI against a Combined India-Pakistan XI. I was a greenhorn, gratefully accepting a last-minute offer from Keith Fletcher to fill a spot vacated by an injury to Bob Woolmer, as I remember. There were a lot of big names – Imran, Gavaskar, Snow, D’Oliviera, as examples… and Bedi.On an Astroturf mat, on an Astroturf outfield, in a football stadium, Bedi cast his spell. Incredible it was too. The ball hung in the air as if suspended by a magic trick. I reached forward and missed. After the third attempt, he walked halfway down the pitch to say “Wait, you have to wait, because eventually the ball must arrive. The more you try to come and get it, the more it will elude you. Just wait.” So I just waited, and hit a few, eventually making some runs and learning about spin bowling of a type and quality I could never have imagined.I once asked Barry Richards which was the best innings he ever played. The 356 for South Australia at the WACA against Lillee, McKenzie, Brayshaw and Lock perhaps? Or the hundred against Australia in his second Test of only four? “The English summer of 1973,” he answered, “For Hampshire against Northants in a battle for the County Championship: Bishan Bedi on a Southampton dustbowl. I managed 37 not out in the fourth innings to see us home. The hardest runs I ever made.”October 24, Mumbai, Wankhede Stadium
As I write, South Africa have made 382 for 5 against Bangladesh, scoring 144 from the final ten overs: a run more than they made over the same distance against England on Saturday. Quinton de Kock eased his way to 174 in his 150th ODI. De Kock’s record is worth a moment’s attention – 20 hundreds in 150 innings at an average of 46 and a strike rate of 96.76. To give this perspective, Adam Gilchrist made 16 hundreds in 279 innings at a strike rate of 97 and an average of 35.8. But Gilchrist won three World Cups. QdK is to retire from ODI’s after this one. Perhaps South Africa’s time is now.I can do this with one hand: De Kock made easy work of Bangladesh with his 174•ICC/Getty ImagesOctober 26, Chennai
My word! Turn on the TV to see Sri Lanka have bowled out England for 156. Chris Silverwood, who was the previous England coach and fired for his efforts, is now coach of Sri Lanka. Oh, the ironies and caprices of this game.Every time I watch the Sri Lankans play, I think back to the modern builders – Roy Dias, Sidath Wettimuny, Duleep Mendis among them, and then, of course, Arjuna and Aravinda in Lahore for the 1996 triumph, when Tony Greig could barely contain himself.Watching England play such timid cricket is a shock. This is hero-to-zero stuff in the blink of an eye. I can’t pick an obvious reason – though, even on paper, the bowling is pretty ordinary – but it’s certainly a bad month for good batters. The return of Ben Stokes has not gone to plan, but then not much has. And there has been indecision surrounding Harry Brook, who most of us would have in the side for every game in every format.October 27, Pakistan vs South Africa
The M Chidambaram Stadium is a belter and the place where MS Dhoni and his Chennai Super Kings have had so much success. A good crowd is in but the cricket lurches from exhilarating to excruciating in periods of play that depart from common sense (about which someone once said, “The trouble with common sense is that it’s not very common”). Babar Azam wins the toss and chooses to bat, so South Africa will have to chase for a change. Of their last eight ODIs, South Africa have won seven batting first and were beaten by Netherlands when batting second at Dharamsala. Is there a little gremlin tapping away on South African shoulders? We shall see later.Well, there might be. In the chase for 271, it is a nipper for a while, first when Heinrich Klaasen is caught at third man, and then when David Miller nicks one behind. After which, it becomes a nerve-shredder with South Africa nine down and 11 still needed. That well-known batting pair Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi edge their horrified team-mates over the line.Shattered Pakistan players fall to their knees; others, equally consumed by shock, simply stare into space. Precious little has gone their way, not least a desperate imploring for an lbw against Shamsi. They are possibly out of the tournament, which is a big miss for those who delight in young talent and the thrill of unpredictability. Some things are not meant to be…As for me? It’s the 5.10am flight to Kolkata tomorrow. Good night. And good luck South Africa.

In his first big ODI tournament, the left-arm seamer is taking wickets across phases and even out-thinking top batters

Andrew Fidel Fernando08-Nov-20231:10

Kumble: Madushanka showing maturity at a young age

Forty matches into this World Cup, who did you think would be topping the wicket-takers’ chart? If you were picking a fast bowler, perhaps you’d have guessed Jasprit Bumrah, or Mark Wood, or Kagiso Rabada. Narrow it down to left-armers, and it’s gotta be Shaheen Afridi, right? Mitchell Starc? Trent Boult?We’re going to tread lightly here, because the actual leading wicket-taker belongs to the most delicate of all modern cricketing species – a kind of player so fragile that even looking too long at their hamstrings could trigger a strain.Seriously though, lower your voice. Squat down into the undergrowth, and peer through the bushes. You don’t want to spook him. He has just made a promising start to his career, so we must be especially careful. But that over there, is wow, a Sri Lanka fast bowler. One who’s been tearing up the World Cup.It’s a little bit mad, because there had been no serious signs that Dilshan Madushanka was going to have this spectacular a tournament. He’d been injured through most of the World Cup Qualifier (of course), and missed the Asia Cup completely with a tear in his side. In terms of form leading in, there was not even a little sample on which to base hopes. And in terms of ODI career in total, the guy had played six matches, and gone at more than seven an over in two of them, though never without looking like he could, eventually, maybe, with a lot of work, and whatever cosmic force still holds Sri Lankan cricket together, kind of be a good player?Related

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But we’re not getting our hopes up. The jinx gods are likely watching, and these are guys that prey on Sri Lanka quicks like Godzilla on Tokyo.We’re on firmer ground appreciating the things Madushanka has already done: swing the new ball into the right hander late, and at speed with the new ball, develop a cutter that jives off the pitch but which does not need him to fold his wrist on delivery and thus sacrifice a lot of pace, bowl an excellent bouncer when required, become more comfortable coming around the wicket.Even still, 21 wickets in eight World Cup matches at an average of 22.23 is special for a 23-year-old in his first big ODI tournament. What is especially impressive is the strike rate of 20.57 – only Mohammad Shami (who has not only himself been ridiculously good, but bowls in a ridiculous attack), and Gerald Coetzee have a better strike rate among bowlers with more than 10 wickets this tournament.Madushanka’s hauls have even been a surprise to Mahela Jayawardene, who has overseen his development in big tournaments, as Sri Lanka’s consultant.”To be honest, no, I didn’t expect him to have such a good World Cup,” Jayawardene told ESPNcricinfo. “I thought it would be a bit too much for him, because it’s his first one-day World Cup. At the start he also didn’t have the experienced guys around him – Dushmantha Chameera wasn’t there. But I thought the young man bowled brilliantly.”Dilshan Madushanka’s offcutter to Rohit Sharma is a serious contender for the ball of the tournament•ICC/Getty ImagesThat he’s always gleaned sharp, late inswing with the new ball has been known, but of his 21 wickets, only nine have come in the first 15 overs this World Cup. He’s also become a middle-overs menace, taking seven wickets at an average of 27.42 between overs 16 and 40.”He’s coming around the wicket and creating good angles,” Jayawardene said of Madushanka’s middle-overs bowling. “He’s used the slower bouncer pretty well, and bowled the [faster] bouncer pretty well. And the length control is excellent. He’s not giving too much away. He’s staying within the stumps even from around the wicket.”In the last 10 overs Madushanka has been expensive, going at 9.16 per over, but there is wicket-taking threat there too, says Jayawardene. He’s only now developing skills for that phase of the game, but perhaps he has some innate advantages.”He’s also got a very unnatural wrist release. It’s not the normal left-armer’s wrist. It’s got a bit of a wind-up. With that he’s getting shape even with the older ball. So we’re just trying to see how best he can how best he can use that and what angles will work.”At the death, the wide slower balls, the yorkers – these are things we’ve been speaking to him about, but with the confidence he’s got now, he’s had much better execution.”Madushanka also produced Sri Lanka’s most unforgettable moment of the tournament (not counting timed-out dismissals), when second ball, at the Wankhede, he sent an offcutter across no less a batter than Rohit Sharma, and uprooted his off stump.Madushanka came to hard-ball cricket late in life compared to many of his team-mates. Hailing from Hungama, deep in the south, it was only when he impressed Chaminda Vaas at a regional fast bowling trial that he made the leap from softball to competitive cricket. But already, he is out-thinking top international batters.”I told him that good batsmen will always open their front foot to him, especially the right handers,” Jayawardene said. Right-handers open their front foot in order to access the inswinging deliveries they expect from Madushanka. “It was something that we were working on with him, with the bowling coaches as well. But we can’t take credit for that [Rohit] dismissal. It was just an idea. It was his execution that got the wicket.”He’s also a smart kid, because even though he’s a late bloomer, he understands the cricket language quite well, including adapting to tactics.”In order to avoid tempting fate, this is perhaps as much praise as a story about a young Sri Lanka quick should contain. But from a wreckage of a World Cup campaign, it is no small thing for Sri Lanka to have pulled out a bowler of Madushanka’s promise.

The West Indies allrounder looks ahead to his season with Mumbai Indians, and talks about his memorable dismissals of Glenn Maxwell and Shakib Al Hasan

Interview by Deivarayan Muthu22-Mar-2024West Indies allrounder Romario Shepherd has established himself as a regular in T20I cricket and franchise T20 leagues around the world. In the run-up to the 2024 T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA, coach Daren Sammy name-checked Shepherd as one of the players who can dominate the tournament. But before that, he will be in action for Mumbai Indians in the IPL.Shepherd talks about his power-hitting, slower balls, growing up with Shamar Joseph in Baracara, and reuniting with Kieron Pollard at Mumbai.Your next assignment is with Mumbai Indians – one of the best franchises in T20 cricket – where you will reunite with your first West Indies captain, Kieron Pollard. How excited are you?
Yes, Kieron was the one who gave me the opportunity [to play for West Indies] in Lucknow [in 2019]. I’m thankful for that. To go back and play under him at MI once again is a joy. He has also been someone who has shared a lot of information with me, both batting- and bowling-wise. He has played so many T20 games and the experience is always there. He always has some challenge for you to work on.Related

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When I got the call that I will be with MI this IPL, I was very happy to play for one of the best franchises in the league and one of the well-known franchises in the world. That’s something that comes with some added pressure because you’re in the spotlight playing for a champion team. But I don’t want to pressure myself too much. I just want to relax and work my way into the team. If given an opportunity in the XI, I must be ready for any challenge thrown at me.Being a middle-order power-hitter or finisher is one of the toughest roles in T20 cricket. How do you prepare for the role?
Yes, it’s very tough and it’s something I’ve been working on. Before the CPL started, [the Guyana Amazon Warriors team management] told me that [lower down the order] is where I’m going to bat and that I will not get a lot of deliveries to face. So if I get just five balls, I have to make use of it. Obviously, the role might change if there are a lot of overs remaining.The way I train and prepare myself before the game is just to face ten to 12 balls, because I was only facing that many in the match down the order. Most times I was ready mentally because I was training for that. In those games where I get those ten or 12 balls, I try to get 20-something. That’s the way I prepare before a game. I have to capitalise on any loose ball that comes my way. That was a conversation with the coach [Lance Klusener] and captain [Imran Tahir] at the CPL.

“I’ve always been someone who you can give different roles to because I understand the game a bit more now”

In my role – both batting and bowling – I think the game situation dictates how I play. If I go out to bat and I know it’s boundary time, I would have had a look at the game and I would have a fair idea of what each bowler is trying to do in those conditions. When I get out there, it’s about me pushing on. I know how captains try to bowl at me and how bowlers bowl at me. These days, most bowlers go wide or bowl into the wicket, according to the boundary size, so that’s something I prepare for. When I reach the crease, I know how I want to go.What is the key to your six-hitting?
Sometimes it’s just strength (), so I’m going to make sure that he doesn’t get me out. And hopefully, I can hit him for a few [runs].