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At the halfway stage in Harare, faced with a target of 304, Zimbabwe looked like they might add to their long list of recent losses, but they came out fighting and it paid off

The Report by Arun Venugopal02-Aug-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details1:52

By the Numbers – Ervine overshadows Williamson and Taylor

Coming into their first ODI against New Zealand in over three years, Zimbabwe had won two of their previous 25 completed one-dayers. At the halfway stage in Harare, after Ross Taylor and Kane Williamson had helped pile up 303, it looked like they might add to that list of losses, but they came out fighting and it paid off. Hamilton Masakadza laid the foundation with 84, before Craig Ervine counter-punched with an unbeaten innings of 130 off 108 that allowed the hosts to gun down the target with relative ease. Victory was sealed in rather anti-climatic fashion, Nathan McCullum delivering a wide with Zimbabwe needing one off six balls.That the chase came down to such a canter was courtesy some superb hitting from Ervine. With 34 required off 18 balls, he cracked Matt Henry for a brace of fours and a six to bring the margin down to 16 off 12, and then all but secured victory by hitting James Neesham for an outrageous four – dragged from well outside off to deep square leg with a cross between a sweep and a flick – and a six in the penultimate over.Zimbabwe’s innings was marked by sturdy partnerships right from the start. Their openers, Masakadza and Chamu Chibhabha, not only gave them a strong base but also displayed some positive batsmanship. Both batsmen produced crisp drives on either side of the wicket, mostly off the front foot. It wasn’t until the 15th over – Williamson had deployed five of his bowlers by then – that they were separated. Chibhabha was out for 42 off 48 balls to end the 74-run stand after a Nathan McCullum delivery turned sharply to elude his drive. New Zealand might have hoped that the breakthrough would slow things down, but Ervine’s arrival only strengthened the home side’s response.Masakadza and Ervine were involved in a quality tussle with the spinners, offspinner McCullum and debutant legspinner Ish Sodhi. They swept compulsively and effectively, forcing Williamson’s hand on more than one occasion. He went back to Mitchell McClenaghan and Henry, and also Grant Elliott, but on a largely placid surface the batsmen had the answers. While Masakadza used brute force to pull the spinners, Ervine was getting better at his paddle-sweeps. They would swap strokes as well to further frustrate the visitors.But McCullum struck again to dismiss Masakadza for a 99-ball 84 in the 35th over. The Masakadza-Ervine stand had produced 120 runs in 121 balls. Once again New Zealand sensed an opening. Once again Zimbabwe blunted their hopes through a 66-run partnership between Ervine and captain Elton Chigumbura – this one at just over a run a ball. Chigumbura became McCullum’s third victim, but Ervine ensured there would be no slip ups.Zimbabwe’s icy-calm pursuit laid waste to some fine batsmanship from New Zealand – playing as Aotearoa to mark Maori languages week. Taylor, who scored an unbeaten century, and Williamson led the visitors’ charge. Their 137-run partnership in 27.4 overs for the third wicket was a demonstration of measured run-gathering sprinkled with cleverly-timed bursts after New Zealand, having been sent in, lost two early wickets. New Zealand also benefited from a late burst from Elliott, whose 32-ball 43 helped the visitors ransack 115 runs in the last 10 overs and push the score past 300.Williamson, who began slowly, went on to register his fifth consecutive fifty-plus score. His 102-ball effort ended in the 37th over when he inside-edged Tinashe Panyangara – Zimbabwe’s best bowler on the day whose figures of 2 for 50 could have been a lot better had he received greater support from his fielders – onto the stumps three runs short of his eighth hundred.Taylor, though, hung on, and notched up his 15th ODI hundred – his fourth this year – in an innings of two distinct parts. He began by methodically working out the Zimbabwe bowlers, barely giving in to his indulgences, before unleashing some muscular fury in the end. When Taylor reached his half-century in 89 balls, he had only two fours. By the time New Zealand’s innings ended, he had hit five fours and three sixes.The Williamson-Taylor combination now has an aggregate of 2193 runs in 38 innings at an average of 60.91, but by the end of the day those imposing numbers ceded centre stage to Ervine & Co.

A round-up of all the Plunket Shield matches that ended on October 18, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Oct-2015
ScorecardFile photo: Mitchell McClenaghan ended with match figures of 7 for 106•Getty Images

Auckland’s fast bowlers Mitchell McClenaghan and Matthew Quinn picked up seven wickets each, setting the tone for Auckland’s nine-wicket victory against Canterbury. Auckland were also buoyed by half-centuries from Colin de Grandhomme, Brad Cachopa and Martin Guptill, as the team opened their Plunket Shield campaign strongly.Canterbury, after being inserted, failed to string together any meaningful partnership, and were bundled out for 149, as McClenaghan (4 for 38) and Quinn (3 for 34) ran through the line-up in 48.1 overs. Auckland found themselves struggling at 50 for 3 in their reply, but three big stands – 82 for the fourth wicket between de Grandhomme (70) and Rob Nicol, 68 for the fifth between Nicol and Cachopa (61), and 68 for the eighth between Tarun Nethul and Michael Bates – ensured the hosts posted a total of 316 to collect a lead of 167.Canterbury fared better in the second innings, thanks mainly to a 109-run partnership between Leo Carter (79) and Ken McClure (50), but once again, regular strikes from McClenaghan and Quinn prevented the visitors from pulling away with a large score. Canterbury were eventually bowled out for 321, meaning that Auckland needed just 155 for victory, a total the hosts chased down in 37 overs thanks to Guptill’s unbeaten 94-ball 84.
ScorecardA maiden double-century from Central Districts’ 24-year-old batsman Ben Smith was the highlight of their drawn game against Otago in Napier. In a game that saw 1267 runs scored, it was Otago, opting to bat, who made the early running. Buoyed by a 157-run stand between Sam Wells and James Neesham, the hosts compiled 352. Neesham went on to make 131 off 152 balls, while Otago were also lifted by handy half-centuries from Hamish Rutherford (79*) and Wells (62). Doug Bracewell was the pick of Central Districts’ bowlers, collecting 5 for 67.Central Districts lost Greg Hay early in their reply, but Smith battled on for more than eight hours, scoring 244 off 368 balls, with 29 fours and a six. He shared a mammoth 234-run stand for the fourth wicket with George Worker, who made 129. Will Young (62) and Tom Bruce (71) also chipped in with half-centuries, as Central Districts eventually declared on 650 for 8.With a lead of 298, Central Districts had nearly 90 overs to bowl Otago out and seal an innings win, and looked well on course to doing that by removing Rutherford and Ryan Duffy early. However, Neil Broom held firm, scoring a patient 131, and put on a 204-run partnership with Brad Wilson to guide his team to safety. Otago were 265 for 3 when stumps were called.
ScorecardTim Southee and Trent Boult took 12 wickets together as Northern Districts drew with Wellington and walked away with seven points in their season opener.Right-arm seamer Dane Hutchinson also picked up a five-wicket haul, including a hat-trick, to clean up the Northern Districts tail but by then the first-innings lead had passed 150.Captain Daniel Flynn and Kane Williamson gave Northern Districts a strong base, adding 148. While Williamson became the first of Jeetan Patel’s three victims, Flynn went on to make 102 off 239 balls. Bharat Popli and BJ Watling also scored fifties to steer their side to 429 before Hutchinson became the first Wellington bowler to take a hat-trick since Stephen Hotter in 1997.However, it could not mask the top-order failure in the first innings. Having been inserted, Wellington were reduced to 47 for 5 inside 18 overs with Southee doing the bulk of the damage. However, a rearguard stand of 108 between Tom Blundell and Luke Ronchi helped the visitors recover to 267. Luke Ronchi was the eighth man dismissed for 115 off 112 balls.The batting line-up fared much better in the second innings with each of their batsmen, with the exception of No.9 reaching double-figures. Boult accounted for Stephen Murdoch (93), Blundell (46), and Ronchi (15) but Wellington nudged past 400 before stumps on the fourth day.

The Bangladesh Cricket Board’s elections will be held on October 10, according to a gazetted notice of the National Sports Council (NSC)

Mohammad Isam26-Sep-2013The Bangladesh Cricket Board’s elections will be held on October 10, according to a gazetted notice of the National Sports Council (NSC). It will be held at the NSC Tower in Dhaka, with the results announced on the same day.The polls will coincide with the second day of the first Test between Bangladesh and New Zealand in Chittagong. But BCB’s acting CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury has insisted that it will not affect the holding of the match.Twenty-three directors will be elected through votes from 172 councillors of various entities around the country. These include all the divisional and district sports associations, the Dhaka clubs, former cricketers, governmental institutions and education boards. The NSC, the sports regulatory body in Bangladesh, will select three directors among their 15 councillors. From these 26 directors, the BCB will choose its president, the first elected chief in the board’s history. A date has not been declared for the presidential election.The BCB’s current president, Nazmul Hassan, and former chief Saber Hossain Chowdhury are taking in the part in the elections, and are likely to head two panels and battle for the president’s post. Both are ruling-party MPs, but have been involved in a verbal battle through the media in recent weeks.While it is the first time the BCB head will be elected, it’s the fifth BCB elections – previously they were held in 1998, 2001, 2005 and 2009. The directors elected in the last election ran the board till October last year, after which the government appointed an ad-hoc committee. The body was supposed to hold elections within three months of their appointment, but have taken almost a year to complete preparations for the elections.

Sussex youngster claims eye-catching 3-47 to keep Leicestershire at bay

David Hopps14-May-2022Leicestershire 210 and 195 for 5 (Patel 67*, Azad 54, Lenham 3-47) trail Sussex 450 (Clark, 138, Carter 72, Haines 50) by 45 runsNearly a year has elapsed since Archie Lenham made a dramatic entrance into county cricket as a 16-year-old having a whale of a time in the T20 Blast.In all that time, Sussex have failed to win a Championship match, a winless run stretching back to April 2021 in Cardiff when Ollie Robinson bowled them to victory, but Lenham has promised to end their anguish after adding a Championship memory to his teenage dream.As he is a year older now, a young shaver no longer, it is probably wise to intimate that no more do spectators come over all protective if anybody hits him a long way. He looks slightly less vulnerable now, more game-hardened. He will doubtless be mightily relieved about that and, anyway, by the time his third over had finished with three wickets for eight runs to his name he had underlined the point for himself.A coltish legspinner in T20 has the advantage of scoreboard pressure on the batting side and can take wickets by hanging in there. And by looking particularly young which can lead to batters muttering “play the ball not the bowler” in a desperate attempt not to be psyched out by the experience. In the Championship, especially when the opposition are faced with a deficit of 240 and can pick him off at will, the challenge is much harder.In his third Championship match, spread over three seasons, he was more than up to it. As tea loomed, and Leicestershire had chipped away 94 runs with relative comfort, Sam Evans their only casualty, he changed the face of the match. Hassan Azad, the Foxes’ most anchored batter, was lbw on the back foot against his third delivery. At the end of his third over he struck twice more in successive deliveries, bowling Colin Ackermann with a ball that dipped and left him to graze off-stump, and then befuddling Lewis Hill, first ball with a turning googly as the new batter blindly propped forward. Three very different balls, all well executed.Related

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The pitch is turning (it is a fine sight as many surfaces have refused to wear this summer) and Leicestershire have a decent spinner in the slow left-armer, Callum Parkinson. They will be desperate to give him something to bowl at, and woe betide them if they don’t because judging by his exasperation if people misfield off his own bowling, he is a hard taskmaster, his standards not undermined by the county’s position at the foot of the Second Division.They finished the third day still 45 runs adrift, heartened by Rishi Patel’s unbeaten 67 from 201 deliveries. It was a worthy effort, and he is an attractive player, but there is an uncontrolled element to his game which can make his attacking shots rather less than a done deal. One of those, on 30, should have brought about his downfall when he mis-pulled Henry Crocombe to backward square leg only for Delray Rawlins to get himself into a good position but shed the catch. Wiaan Mulder met Lenham more assertivlve than anyone but he became the fourth lbw victim when he shouldered arms to a delivery from Rawlins that would have gone on to clip off stump.Leicestershire had fielding follies of their own as Sussex added 64 to their overnight score. Robinson reached 26 thanks to drops off consecutive balls from Ben Mike, by Patel at second slip and Hill at third man, but it is luck with the ball that Robinson needs if he is to attract the England selectors and today at least it was Lenham who was attracting attention. Spinners bowled 36 overs in all, limiting Robinson to 11 wicketless overs, solid enough, but no clear message to England’s selectors in only his second match of the season about his form or stamina levels.Lenham also added a personal-best 48 with the bat before he was dismissed trying to pull Chris Wright and so missed out on a maiden half-century. “Two PBs, so a good day for me,” he said. “I was a bit annoyed to get out on 48, but never mind, I had a dream start with the ball and those three wickets got us right back in the game. I just feel lucky to be playing first-class cricket early in my career, and I’m loving it. That said, it feels like a long day and I’m pretty tired right now.”

Chandika Hathurusingha, the Bangladesh coach, has said that India sending their best team for the ongoing ODI series is an indication that they regard Bangladesh as a stronger unit than last June

Mohammad Isam in Mirpur20-Jun-2015Chandika Hathurusingha, the Bangladesh coach, has said that India sending their best team for the ongoing ODI series is an indication that they regard Bangladesh as a stronger unit than last June. He was, however, not entirely satisfied with his team’s performance on Thursday despite them posting their biggest win against India.”The best example (of the change in the Bangladesh team) is that India is sending their strongest team,” Hathurusingha said. “It speaks for itself, how far we have come from that series to now. It is always good to gauge your success or what you are doing, by how your peers are looking at you. I think it is a big rap for our boys that India came with their full strength. Our confidence is high, the way we are playing now is also a bit different.”During last year’s three-match ODI series, India were without regular captain MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammad Shami. But Suresh Raina’s side won 2-0, including the one in which they bowled Bangladesh out for just 58 runs. It was also Hathurusingha’s first assignment as head coach and it was a tumultuous time after Shakib Al Hasan had got into a fracas with a fan during one of the matches.Bangladesh turned around their fortunes remarkably since the Zimbabwe series last November, winning nine consecutive ODIs at home on either side of a decent World Cup campaign. This time India are only without Shami who is recovering from a knee injury.Hathurusingha, however, was not pleased with the Bangladesh batsmen giving away good starts in the first game. Tamim Iqbal and Soumya Sarkar got to fifties but didn’t push on despite looking comfortable. Debutant Litton Das and Mushfiqur Rahim fell early before Shakib Al Hasan and Sabbir Rahman got them back into reckoning with a strong fifth-wicket stand.”I am not happy at all with the last game,” Hathurusingha said. “That’s the scary part: we still can improve in all departments. We played better against Pakistan. I think we are looking to improve from the next game.”When you get a start, we always talk about going big in partnerships. We talk about simple things, which we did well against Pakistan. I want them to do that in the middle. We had three-four hundreds against Pakistan. If one of the top batters get set and go for a big score. It helps us to score big runs,” he said.On Mustafizur Rahman, who took a five-wicket haul on debut in the previous match, Hathurusingha said it helped him that he is an “unknown factor” but his job would only get challenging as teams would start preparing for his kind of bowling.”Definitely for any bowler, when you come into international cricket, because you are unknown factor, it is a big plus,” he said. “Nowadays even before that, they can look at videos and be prepared. For Mustafizur it is going to be a challenge because people get to know more and respect him a bit more. But again, he has to execute well, so has the batsmen. We expect the Indians to come hard at us.”

Ricky Ponting was committed to the last. He closed the first class chapter of his career with an unbeaten 169 to earn Surrey a draw against a Nottinghamshire side which was powerless to build on an impressive opening two days

Vithushan Ehantharajah11-Jul-2013
ScorecardRicky Ponting ended his first-class career with the sort of commitment that has been taken for granted during an illustrious career•Getty Images

Ricky Ponting was committed to the last. He closed the first class chapter of his career with an unbeaten 169 to earn Surrey a draw against a Nottinghamshire side which was powerless to build on an impressive opening two days. Needing nine wickets, they could only manage seven, as Ponting unfurled a special innings to sign off his long-form career with impeccable class.He finishes on 24,150 runs – 493 of them coming in his six innings in Surrey whites, including two hundreds and a fifty. Today’s hefty unbeaten score gives him an illusory average of 123.25 in this stint, but it wouldn’t seem right if a career so illustrious came to end with a dismissal.That was particularly so when it all ended by him facing the part-time leg spin of Ajmal Shahzad, who resorted to his party trick for the last over of the day before hands were shaken. “There’s no worse time to be batting when a part-time bowler comes on,” he told ESPNcricinfo, laughing. But after resisting some juicy long hops, that was that.”First class cricket is over for me,” he said. “As much as I enjoy it, I need to look after in my personal life now. It’s been nearly 21 years that I’ve played and a lot of that time has been away from home. I’ve got a young family and it will be nice to just live a life as a father.”Those that turned up were treated to a display so masterful that at times it seemed Ponting played the day better than the sun itself – guiding Surrey away from dark periods with illuminating boundaries when Nottinghamshire sniffed blood. He was impenetrable in defence and countered with some smart hitting that gave Graeme White and Shahzad (off his long run naturally) cause for self-reflection; the ball thudding off his bat with that signature twang whenever they tried to settle.He ended immovable, satisfied but, ultimately, disappointed that Surrey come away from yet another Division One game with very little.”It’s nice to finish knowing you can still play,” he said, “but unfortunately it wasn’t in a winning team. We just haven’t grabbed the opportunities we’ve had. Even at the start of this game, winning the toss on this wicket and getting bowled out for 198 – that was the big moment in this game. We had to bat well in the first innings if we wanted to win and we didn’t do that.”There is no doubt that Surrey have developed a great affection for Ponting, who finishes his stay at the end of July before a cameo in the Caribbean Twenty20 and the start of an off-field career with Channel Ten as part of their Big Bash coverage.Beers were cracked open in honour of their adopted great, before the skipper hammered it home: “It wasn’t until Gareth spoke to the boys up there about my career being over that I had the chance to sit back, take my white pads off and put them to one side and think that’s the last time I’m going to be wearing them.”Behind the scenes, Ponting has taken it upon himself to imprint his values into the talented and impressionable youth at the club. It’s an ingrained stewardship that he says came to him in his final years as an international player, as he looked to bring Australia’s next crop through.He even had half an eye on Ashton Agar’s exploits at Trent Bridge, conscious of the 19-year-old’s talents having watched him guide Western Australia home against Tasmania in a Sheffield Shield match – a knock Ponting described as “fearless”. As Agar notched up a 98 in a similar manner, the former Australian captain couldn’t help but smile. “I thought I played pretty well on debut to make 96 and he’s ended up making more than me!”The day started awkwardly, with two Surrey wickets falling in the first hour; Harinath bowled by Harry Gurney, essentially around his legs and Zander de Bruyn’s suicidal run out.When the new ball arrived immediately, Ponting upped the rate but the wicket of Davies brought about a change of tact from the Australian. Only six runs ahead, with five wickets remaining – the last four of which added nothing in the first innings – runs were traded for minutes, and Zafar Ansari batted brilliantly for his 117.Nottinghamshire had a whiff of victory when Samit Patel removed both Ansari and Gareth Batty in nine balls, before also ending Chris Tremlett’s 34-ball stay with some ominous variable bounce.
It was no less than Patel’s efforts deserved as he displayed commendable appetite and stamina to dig out a win with more than 50 overs of bowling – the vast majority of which were on the money.But he was no match for Ponting, and that is something a lot of other bowlers have had to accept over the last 20 years. He leaves Surrey staunch in the belief of his teammates and that success in the county championship is a won toss on playful pitch away.As for the next two days, family time and rest are the order of the day – his long term future in a nutshell.He recognised as much: “I’ve spent a lot of time in the middle – these old bones need a little bit of time off,” he said.

Mumbai are coming off two losses in two games and will be keen to get off the mark against in-form KKR

Shashank Kishore05-Apr-20222:01

Does Cummins walk into the KKR XI straightaway?

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Over time, Mumbai Indians have made it a habit. Starting slowly, before revving up as mid-season approaches and then pouncing on teams at the back end. They have started poorly this time as well, but the margin for error could be smaller in a 10-team pool. Therefore, they need to get up and running quickly. There’s just one problem. They’re going up against IPL 2021’s runners-up Kolkata Knight Riders, whose firebrand approach to batting, has lent a dazzling touch to the season so far.

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You can watch the match live on ESPN+ in English and in Hindi.

In both their losses so far, Mumbai have failed to capitalise on their batters putting them in strong positions. Against Delhi Capitals, both Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan struck half-centuries in a robust opening stand to set up the game, but the middle order came a cropper. Against Rajasthan Royals, they couldn’t close the game out despite going into the final six overs needing 65 runs with seven wickets in hand.Mumbai also have concerns over one bowling spot, currently occupied by Basil Thampi. In the opening game, Lalit Yadav and Axar Patel took him to the cleaners. In the second, he was carted for 26 in his only over. It might be time for a change. There’s plenty of experience in the form of Jaydev Unadkat, but the only hitch is he’s nearly like-for-like to Tymal Mills, in terms of his slower variations and left-arm variety.0:51

Tim David: Rohit Sharma has been ‘a fun captain’

Knight Riders have unlocked magic from Umesh Yadav. Throw Pat Cummins into the mix and their pace attack looks mean. Their spinners are always bound to ask interesting questions, provided there isn’t too much dew around.So far with the bat, the Knight Riders have expressed their desire to play an aggressive brand of T20 cricket. It can look spectacular, like when Andre Russell went after Punjab Kings in a small chase, or fall flat, like when they got bundled out by Royal Challengers Bangalore. Going forward, they will expect a lot more from the likes of Venkatesh Iyer and Ajinkya Rahane.

In the news

Cummins has completed his mandatory three-day quarantine upon arrival and even trained with the team on match eve, which means he is all set to take Sam Billings’ place in the Knight Riders XI. This means the wicketkeeper’s slot will be taken up once again by Sheldon Jackson, whose glovework has been impressive. Sunil Narine, Russell, and Tim Southee are likely to take up the other overseas slots.Mumbai have their entire complement of players to choose from. It remains to be seen if they will finally unleash Suryakumar Yadav, who has only just recovered from a wrist injury. If he is able to handle to workload of batting in the IPL, Mumbai will likely pick him in place of Anmolpreet Singh.1:18

McCullum: ‘We utilise Russell in the role which we see as his strongest suit’

Likely XIs

Mumbai Indians: 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Ishan Kishan (wk), 3 Suryakumar Yadav/Anmolpreet Singh, 4 Tilak Varma, 5 Kieron Pollard, 6 Tim David, 7 Daniel Sams, 8 M Ashwin, 9 Tymal Mills, 10 Jaydev Unadkat/Basil Thampi, 11 Jasprit Bumrah Kolkata Knight Riders: 1 Venkatesh Iyer, 2 Ajinkya Rahane, 3 Shreyas Iyer (capt), 4 Nitish Rana, 5 Sheldon Jackson, 6 Andre Russell, 7 Sunil Narine, 8 Tim Southee, 9 Pat Cummins, 10 Umesh Yadav, 11 Varun Chakravarthy

Strategy Punt

Cummins vs Kishan: three innings, five balls, three wickets. Rohit vs Narine: 18 innings, seven dismissals, average 19.6. How can anyone ignore stats like that? The Knight Riders just have to open with Cummins and Narine to try and take on Mumbai’s in-form batters. More so because Rohit, who has started this IPL differently – striking at 147 off his first 10 balls, will immediately be face-to-face with the bowler who has dismissed him the most times in the IPL.

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