All posts by n8rngtd.top

Jim Troughton and Chris Woakes built Warwickshire’s total on the second day at Taunton

Ivo Tennant at Taunton19-Jul-2012
ScorecardJim Troughton made an unbeaten century•Getty Images

It had been three months since Marcus Trescothick, whose importance to his beloved Somerset cannot be overstated, was able to bat. Whether on account of the extent of what initially appeared a standard injury, or his age, or probably both, his return to the crease had been delayed longer than anticipated. Now, after making 42 for the Second X1 against Essex and stationing himself at first slip, he might well be fit enough to play in his county’s Friends Life t20 quarter-final on Tuesday.Trescothick, the foremost batsman in the county game, will assess the state of his ruptured tendons after one further innings and is likely to make a decision as to his fitness on Tuesday morning. He is, it need hardly be said, “desperate” to play. Brian Rose, Somerset’s director of cricket, who journeyed to Coggeshall to watch him bat, is, of course, equally keen for him to return.”Marcus has done very well, but he is still a little wobbly on his legs,” Rose said. “There is no swelling in his ankles, which is a very good sign. We have another one day fixture against the Essex Second X1 and then a
CB40 match on Sunday before the quarter-final. We are still being cautious.”Trescothick himself has another concern about the quarter-final: “The 4.15 start is far from ideal for working spectators, but it has been arranged so two quarter-finals can be screened on the same evening. We are hoping Albie Morkel will be released by South Africa to join his compatriot Richard Levi in our side.”Such selections illustrate how hard it is for young supporters – indeed any supporters – to forge an affinity with their local side, so the return of Trescothick, by name and deed a true Westcountryman, will be especially welcome. As, to a lesser degree, has been the reappearance of Max Waller, playing his first championship match for Somerset at Taunton since August 2009 and indeed his first anywhere since that season. He took the wicket of Rikki Clarke on a day of solid run-scoring by the first division leaders.Varun Chopra, who relishes batting at Taunton, progressed to 93, including 17 fours and a fair degree of application. He collected rather than smashed these runs. Jim Troughton batted with no less assiduousness, for the ball swung in the morning under cloud cover and there was some slow turn for Waller in the afternoon. A straight six off Arul Suppiah’s left arm spin was the shot of the day and, come the close, he was undefeated on 132 after five and a half hours batting.Chris Woakes, too, played a substantial innings. His contribution to a stand of 204 in 50.1 overs with Troughton was 107, his century reached off 142 balls with his 17th four, clouted to midwicket off Waller.As to Somerset’s attack, Alfonso Thomas was the pick. In the morning he had Laurie Evans held in the slips through away swing, Chopra caught down the leg side by Craig Kieswetter, who had missed a more difficult chance off a similar leg glance, and Darren Maddy for a duck by movement away from the bat.Waller struggled with his control, but that was inevitable after such a long time out of first-class cricket. His figures in his two previous matches, back in 2009, were 0 for 147 and 1 for 37 in the two innings in which he came on, which would offer one reason why he had not been chosen again before this match.

The preview of the second Test between West Indies and New Zealand in Jamaica

The Preview by George Binoy01-Aug-2012

Match facts

August 2-6
Start time 1000 (1500 GMT)Chris Gayle last played a Test at Sabina Park in 2009. He made 104 against England.•AFP

Big Picture

Kieran Powell was 19 when West Indies last won a Test series against opponents other than Zimbabwe or Bangladesh. He celebrated his birthday on the first day of the Trinidad Test against England, which ended with West Indies’ Nos. 7 and 10 clinging on for dear life to secure a scrappy 1-0 victory in a five-match series. He was 13 when West Indies won before that. Powell, now 22, is one of a generation of young cricketers who have grown up watching West Indies struggle to win series. At Sabina Park, he will have the opportunity to be part of a rare triumph if West Indies draw or win to protect their 1-0 lead.Kane Williamson was 15 when New Zealand last beat a Test side other than Zimbabwe or Bangladesh – a 2-0 win against West Indies in 2006. He was 11 when New Zealand last won such a series away from home – in West Indies in 2002. New Zealand cannot win this series, but a victory in Kingston will secure a draw and build on their relatively satisfactory recent performances – a drawn series in Australia, a 0-1 defeat against South Africa.Like they did in Hobart so memorably, New Zealand will have to win without Daniel Vettori, who’s out with a groin injury. Vettori’s 2012 hasn’t been productive – he’s taken only one wicket in each of his last five Tests. What he does provide New Zealand unfailingly, however, is economy and, with it, a measure of control. Vettori conceded less than two and a half per over in four of those five Tests. His poorest return was 2.81. He reined in Chris Gayle after the batsman had raced to a half-century in the first innings in Antigua. Someone else will have to do that job in Jamaica.New Zealand’s challenge will be to control the pace of the game. Their inexperienced bowling attack needs to slow West Indies down at the start in order to allow Ross Taylor to keep wicket-taking fields. Their batsmen need to find a way not to stagnate against Narine and the rest in high-pressure scenarios like they did on the final morning of the first Test.West Indies, on the other hand, won in Antigua with no contribution from their most reliable player – Shivnarine Chanderpaul. Chris Gayle made a huge splash in his comeback Test, while Narine and Roach took turns to run through New Zealand in each innings. There were useful contributions from several others, too, and Chanderpaul hailed the “fantastic team effort.” A similar performance, beginning tomorrow, will make it extremely hard for New Zealand to force a win.

Form guide

West Indies WDLLL (Completed games, most recent first)
New Zealand LDLDW

Watch out for…

New Zealand’s mongrel. For a country that earned a reputation by felling stronger sides, New Zealand showed little fight in Antigua. They dropped catches, their fielding was sloppy, and their batsmen’s ultra-cautious approach to saving the Test did not last long enough to be successful. Neil Wagner, who is one-Test old, promised New Zealand would come out fighting on Thursday. He spoke of being ruthless and giving West Indies nothing. Without Vettori, that will be a little harder.Sunil Narine was Man of the Match in his first home Test, taking eight wickets in the match. He had to toil through 85 overs for them, though, and called his performance a “big achievement” because of the conditions he had to bowl in. Martin Guptill, who made 97 and 67, said the New Zealand batsman had begun to play Narine better now that they’d seen a bit of him. The threat posed by Narine could be significantly enhanced if the Sabina Park pitch is to his liking.

Pitch and conditions

It’s hot and humid in Kingston and the forecast is for a chance of thunderstorms over the next few days.
The pitch at Sabina Park is expected to have more pace and bounce than the one Antigua. “It’s a typical Jamaica wicket,” Darren Sammy said. “Plenty of runs in it and
hopefully something in it for the bowlers. The wicket here has some early moisture,
[but] most pitches in the Caribbean are good for batting. Sides come here, win toss
and bat first.”Ross Taylor said: “It’s a welcome change. We struggled to maintain pressure on the West Indies batsmen and I’m sure the bowlers are looking forward to having some bounce and putting pressure on the West Indies batsmen.”

Team news

West Indies brought Fidel Edwards into the squad because Ravi Rampaul sustained a groin strain. However, with Tino Best, who sat out in the first Test, already in the squad, Edwards might have to watch from the sidelines.West Indies: (probable) 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Kieran Powell, 3 Assad Fudadin, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 6 Narsingh Deonarine, 7 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 8 Darren Sammy (capt), 9 Sunil Narine, 10 Tino Best, 11 Kemar Roach.New Zealand have to fill Vettori’s spot and the only other specialist spinner in the squad is the legspinner Tarun Nethula, who could be in line for a Test debut. They must also find a new opening combination after Daniel Flynn was ruled out due to a groin injury. BJ Watling is the only back-up batsman in the squad and could slot straight in to open alongside Martin Guptill, or could slot in down the order to allow Brendon McCullum to open.”Daniel has been carrying the grade one injury [a right adductor muscle strain] since the last day of the first Test but had responded positively to treatment,” Paul Close, the New Zealand physio, said. “We felt there was a reasonable chance he would be fit to play but his progress over the past 24 hours plateaued. He was still experiencing pain during the team training session today with a subsequent fitness test ruling him out. We are confident he will be fully fit in time for the upcoming tour of India.”New Zealand: (probable) 1 Martin Guptill, 2 BJ Watling, 3 Brendon McCullum, 4 Ross Taylor (capt), 5 Kane Williamson, 6 Dean Brownlie, 7 Kruger van Wyk (wk), 8 Doug Bracewell, 9 Neil Wagner, 10 Tarun Nethula, 11 Chris Martin

Stats and trivia

• Since 2004, Gayle averages 65.25 against the top eight teams in wins (excluding Zimbabwe and Bangladesh), and 31.10 in losses against them.
• West Indies’ total of 522 in Antigua was their highest in a result game against one of the top sides since February 1995, when they scored 660 for 5 declared against New Zealand in Wellington.
• New Zealand haven’t won any of their last 15 series against the top sides – they’ve lost 11 and drawn four (dating back to April 2006). During this period they’ve won four Tests and lost 22.

Quotes

“We’re pumped up. We did a great job in Antigua and we celebrated our achievements. It has been a while since West Indies won a Test Series at home, so this will be a chance to do it in front our fans.”
“We’re a young unit, very inexperienced in some ways. The boys learned a hell of a lot in the previous Test. It’s not an easy place to come and play … We will always come out fighting.”

Half-century from 18-year-old prodigy sets up first home Blast win since 2019

ECB Reporters' Network02-Jul-2021Hampshire’s teenage batting prodigy Tom Prest inspired his side to only their second Vitality Blast win of the season with an unbeaten 59 helping seal an 10-run victory over high-flying Gloucestershire at the Ageas Bowl.The visitors needed 20 from the last over but fell short thanks to some fine death bowling from Chris Wood to secure a morale-boosting success for the bottom-placed Hawks who earlier won the toss and elected to bat.Prest, who recently scored a triple century in a second XI match, showed maturity above his years in only his third senior appearance after the hosts lost their much-vaunted opening duo of James Vince and D’Arcy Short cheaply once again.The 18-year-old anchored the innings superbly after the hosts were teetering at 34 for 3 when Colin de Grandhomme chipped a Josh Shaw delivery to Benny Howell at mid-off for 1.Joe Wetherley’s breezy 30 off 24 balls breathed some life into the Hampshire innings alongside Prest before he fell lbw to Tom Smith who then immediately dismissed Lewis McManus for a first-ball duck as the Hawks slumped to 90 for 5 after 12 overs.But a crucial 53-run stand between Prest, who hit six fours and two sixes off 42 balls, and 38 from James Fuller saw the Hawks motor to 163 for 6 before Wood thumped 11 from five balls to help his side finish on 176 for 6 – their second-highest total of what has been a difficult season.Hampshire dismissed Miles Hammond and Benny Howell inside the first four overs for the powerplay but an 82-run stand for the third-wicket from Chris Dent and in-form New Zealand international Glenn Phillips put the visitors in a good position to push for victory.But Dent fell for 42 when he was stumped by McManus off Short before Phillips, who scored 94 in back-to-back innings last month, fell for 57 when young quick Scott Currie tempted him into a pull shot which he mistimed and was caught on the boundary edge by Fuller.Needing 47 from the last four overs, skipper Jack Taylor did his best to push for victory with 30 off 18 balls,but some tight bowling from Brad Wheal and Wood got their side home – much to the delight of the home crowd who witnessed a first T20 win by their side in 22 months.

The captain has been troubled during the second part of the season although he is expected to be available for the IPL

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Mar-2021New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has been ruled out of the ODI series against Bangladesh due to an elbow injury.The small tear in his left elbow tendon has been troubling Williamson in the second half of the season and it has reached a point where he needs to take some time out.Williamson made one significant score in the T20I series against Australia, 53 in the second game in Dunedin, but fell for single-figures in the last three matches.It was already likely that Williamson would miss the T20I series against Bangladesh due to his commitments at the IPL, a tournament coach Gary Stead still expected him to be available for.Related

• Tamim Iqbal grateful for NZ prime minister Jacinda Ardern's help after 2019 Christchurch terror attack

• Bangladesh leave out Taijul Islam for NZ tour

• Ferguson keeps his sights on Test cricket during comeback trail

• NZ rewarded for thinking outside the box to maintain winning season

“Kane loves playing for his country – so it hasn’t been an easy decision to step back,” Stead said. “A batsman’s front elbow is crucial to his game and with the injury not improving it was clear something needed to be done.”You’ve probably got to think the amount of time he’s been batting this year has actually brought on these symptoms, a bit of an overuse injury.”We’ve got a huge year of cricket ahead with an England Test tour and ICC World Test Championship Final first up in May and June, and we want to make sure we have Kane fit and firing for that.”We will certainly miss his class and leadership in the upcoming Bangladesh series, but his omission will no doubt present an opportunity for someone else when the ODI squad is named.”Williamson’s recovery timeline, which is due to see him aim to start batting again in 10-12 days, is expected to fit with the IPL which starts on April 9 .”It’s likely in about three weeks that Kane will be pretty close to being right up ready to go so that fits in with the time frames around the start of the IPL,” Stead said. “We’ll keep talking with him and Sunrisers Hyderabad as well and just making sure he is 100% before he starts again.”What we want Kane to do be able to do is bat pain free and bat for long periods of time. We’ve taken that view, looking after him after making sure his body is in the best condition it can be is paramount for us. I don’t expect there will be any long term problems with this, just this period of rest is what he needs right now.”Williamson’s absence will likely create an opening for Devon Conway to make his ODI debut following a prolific start to his T20I career where he is average 52.28 after nine innings. Tom Latham will likely take over the captaincy from Williamson in a format New Zealand have only played four times since the 2019 World Cup final.New Zealand will name their squad on Thursday with the series starting on March 20 in Dunedin.

Cape Cobras began the MiWAY T20 challenge with a ten-run victory against Warriors at St. George’s Park, Port Elizabeth

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Feb-2012
ScorecardCape Cobras began the MiWAY T20 challenge with a ten-run victory against Warriors at St. George’s Park, Port Elizabeth.The Cobras openers Andrew Puttick and Stiaan van Zyl scored half-centuries to set up a strong platform. van Zyl contributed 58 off 41 balls to a first-wicket partnership of 99, and Puttick made 55 off 52 deliveries. The middle-order batsmen failed to contribute significantly, though, and Cobras made only 56 off 44 balls after van Zyl was dismissed to finish with 155 for 5. Makhaya Ntini took 2 for 19 in four overs for Warriors.The Warriors chase suffered from a lack of partnerships. Five of their top six batsmen got into double figures but Kelly Smuts’ 26 was the best score. The highest partnership was the 31-run stand between the openers. Five Cobras bowlers shared the wickets, with Yaseen Vallie and Alistair Gray taking two wickets apiece. The Warriors were restricted to 145 for 7.

Amanda Samaroo, a 19-year old allrounder from Trinidad & Tobago, has been recalled to the West Indies Women squad after an absence of more than two years

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Apr-2012Amanda Samaroo, a 19-year old allrounder from Trinidad & Tobago, has been recalled to the West Indies Women squad after an absence of more than two years, for the home series against Sri Lanka Women from April 22 to May 10. Samaroo’s last international was a Twenty20 against England Women in November 2009.Natasha McLean, 17, was the only new face in the 14-player team led by Merissa Aguilleira. McLean, who plays for Jamaica Women, replaced wicketkeeper Kycia Knight, who along with Shaquana Quintyne was unavailable for the series due to exams. Britney Cooper was also ruled out because of a finger injuryWest Indies Women will play three ODIs and five Twenty20s against Sri Lanka Women. Two T20 matches will in Barbados and the other three in Trinidad. Sri Lanka are ranked seventh in the T20 format, whereas the hosts are fifth. All the one-dayers will be held in Barbados.Squad: Merissa Aguilleira (capt), Stafanie Taylor (vc), Shemaine Campbelle, Shanel Daley, Deandra Dottin, Pearl Etienne, Stacy, Ann King, Natasha McLean, Anisa Mohammed, Subrina Munroe, Juliana Nero, Amanda Samaroo, Shakera Selman, Tremayne Smartt

Akila Dananjaya had a day to remember and a day to forget in the space of an over

Madushka Balasuriya03-Mar-20210:25

Pollard on six sixes in an over: ‘An achievement that’s right up there’

In one of the more ridiculous T20 run-chases you will witness, Kieron Pollard became just the third player to hit six sixes in an over in international cricket off the same bowler, Akila Dananjaya, who had rocked West Indies’ chase just an over earlier with a hat-trick.It felt like it was either sixes or wickets for most of West Indies’ innings as an opening stand of 52 in 3.2 became 52 for 3 when Evin Lewis, Chris Gayle (on his comeback) and Nicholas Pooran fell in three balls to Dananjaya. Eight balls later Lendl Simmons also departed, lbw to the impressive Wanindu Hasaranga, before Pollard’s immense response.Facing the next over from Dananjaya he joined Herschelle Gibbs and Yuvraj Singh in having taken 36 off an over with some of the shots almost going out of the small ground in Antigua. West Indies’ powerplay tally of 98 was also a new record and the wild ride continued when Pollard was also lbw to Hasaranga before relative calm was brought to the game’s final minutes by Jason Holder, who was returning to the T20I fold.His 29 off 24 balls saw West Indies home with four wickets and 41 balls to spare after they had limited Sri Lanka to a sub-par 131 for 9, on what was a good batting surface. Such was the feast and famine nature of West Indies’ batting – 75% of their runs (102) came in boundaries off just 19 deliveries – that the innings required Holder’s steadying touch despite all the preceding pyrotechnics.So devastating was Pollard’s innings that it took off most, if not all, of the sheen off what would have otherwise been a dream return to international cricket for Dananjaya. That said, much of the uncertainty in West Indies’ chase was brought on by Hasaranga, whose back-to-back scalps of Pollard and Fabian Allen – the hosts still needed 31 runs with four wickets in hand at that point – had sown doubt.In the first innings of the rain-interrupted game, Obed McCoy’s 2 for 25 was the pick of the figures, but it was an all-round effort for West Indies with each of the six bowlers used picking up a wicket. Aside from a brief period when debutant Pathum Nissanka and Niroshan Dickwella put on a 51-run second-wicket stand, the West Indies bowlers were always in control. The fact that just the three boundaries were conceded in final 10 overs tells its own story.Kieron Pollard became the third batsman to hit six sixes in an over in international cricket•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

West Indies seamers keep batters in check Holder exercised all his considerable experience and showed exactly why the selectors had chosen to put their faith in him. Utilising his entire repertoire of variations – yorkers, slower balls, slower bouncers, you name it – he reeled back the Sri Lanka innings in the middle overs, just as they would have been looking to up the scoring.His four overs went for just 19 runs, and accounted for the wicket of Dickwella, who had been growing increasingly frustrated as a result of the obduracy of Holder and the West Indies bowlers in general.Alongside him, Dwayne Bravo – another veteran returning to the side – and the much greener McCoy used similar variations to keep the visiting batsman quiet.Fidel Edwards meanwhile also enjoyed a fruitful return to international cricket. At 39, he still showed he was able to hit the 140kph mark fairly regularly, and he was rewarded with the wicket of Angelo Mathews.Nissanka impresses in brief cameoBoth Dinesh Chandimal and Angelo Mathews were guilty of picking out fielders when it would have been easier not to, while other seasoned campaigners, Dickwella and Thisara Perera, will not want to look back at their shot selection. But in Pathum Nissanka there was Sri Lanka’s one bright spark in an otherwise forgetful performance with the bat.While he has impressed in first-class cricket, here he showed off his T20 chops. Coming in following the early dismissal of Gunathilaka, Nissanka showed no sign of nerves, comfortably rotating the strike initially, before switching gears. A glorious slog sweep for six over deep midwicket off Kevin Sinclair was undoubtedly the highlight of his innings, while a few more well-placed boundaries served to show some of the reasons behind his selection.He will still be disappointed though at his inability to build on what was a promising start, getting bogged down towards the end of his innings, culminating in an ill-judged saunter down the tracks that saw him stumped off a flighted Fabian Allen delivery. He finished with 39 off 34 balls.Akila Dananjaya took a hat-trick to shake West Indies•AFP/Getty Images

All aboard the Dananjaya rollercoasterRarely will a bowler’s emotions have fluctuated as wildly on a cricket field as Dananjaya’s; by the end of his second over, the young spinner could hardly have accounted for a more perfect return to international cricket. He had just picked up his first-ever international hat-trick, one which included the wicket of Gayle. And in the process he looked to have hauled his side back into a game that was slipping away fast, following some lusty hits from Lewis and Simmons.That was the good. What followed next is the cricketing equivalent of being subjected to a pop quiz that you haven’t studied for at all, and having no option but to simply stare at a blank piece of paper, resigned to your fate, as you solemnly evaluate the life choices that led you to that point.Maybe even that doesn’t quite sum up the dread and helplessness Dananjaya must have felt as Pollard proceeded to activate what is known in video game parlance as “boss mode” to pummel, crush and wallop six straight sixes off Dananjaya’s third over.Dananjaya to his credit did try and mix things up, but whether he went length, full, wide of the stumps, around the wicket, or fired it on the pads, the result remained the same. Dananjaya, in his very next over, was hit for his seventh consecutive six by Holder, and on the next ball Holder was dropped at deep midwicket by debutant Ashen Bandara. No support for HasarangaHasaranga continued on from his fine form in the Lanka Premier League, where he had topped the wicket-taking charts. He muddled the West Indies batsman with his precise lines and lengths, and dangerous variations. His four overs brought about three wickets and went for just 12 runs. But more than that, it was clear the West Indies batsman were struggling to execute their plan A – whack everything out of the park – against him.None of the other bowlers could back him up, something they will have to do if Sri Lanka are to bounce back in the series.

Ottis Gibson and Darren Sammy are targeting continued improvement on West Indies tour of England

Nagraj Gollapudi03-May-2012It was an interesting question put to Ottis Gibson, the West Indies coach. What would he consider to be a successful series for his side in England? Gibson started by admitting the visitors would have a tough time against the No. 1 Test team in cold conditions, before finishing his answer with a witty retort. “The last time we played at Lord’s, I was in the England dressing room, and the game was over in two-and-a-half days. If we can take this Lord’s Test to four days, that will be great,” Gibson said pithily.Gibson cannot, and does not, have a defeatist mindset. He was simply being realistic as he made it clear immediately that West Indies have a far better chance during the ODI leg of the tour considering the squad would be bolstered by the return from the IPL of first choice players like Chris Gayle.”It seems that not much is expected of us, which is good, in a sense. We can just go out and play and enjoy our cricket,” Gibson said from Hove, a day after landing in England. “We know what we are capable of. The Test series is going to be tough but we believe we have a one-day team that is more than capable of winning the ODI series. The one-day series is where I think the success is more likely to happen.”However Gibson assured that West Indies would aim to be competitive during the three-Test series, starting at Lord’s on May 17. Gibson, who was the England bowling coach during West Indies’ 2009 tour, has taken the same kind of approach he learned under Andy Flower. Gibson has remained his own man, taken hard decisions and not relented despite the outside pressure since taking the coaching reigns with West Indies. His public criticism of Gayle as soon as he took over is still raw.Darren Sammy and Ottis Gibson concede that England will be difficult opponents for their developing side•PA Photos

Gibson has laid emphasis on installing a professional platform in the West Indies dressing room, giving priority to fitness above anyone and anything. He did not relent when a senior batsman like Ramnaresh Sarwan was dropped after a bad bout of form; he only played the hardworking Ravi Rampaul in one Test against Australia as the fast bowler was not completely fit.Gibson’s biggest supporter in the team has been Darren Sammy, the West Indies captain, and the coach’s right-hand man. Today Gibson sat to his left and Sammy vocally described the respect for his coach.Though ‘Gayle v WICB’ dominated the headlines over the last 12 months, in the background Gibson and Sammy worked hard to establish an atmosphere where every player put the group ahead of himself.Even though West Indies did not cause any major upsets, they have come close. Last year during the Test series in India, in Delhi and then Mumbai, the batsmen posted a good first-innings score only to lose their spine in the third innings; the same mistake was repeated in Barbados against Australia this April. They lost both those series.England, and England in May, will not be forgiving. The same cold and damp conditions experienced in 2009 have been forecast this time around, too. Only three players – Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Denesh Ramdin and Fidel Edwards – in the current 15-member squad toured England on the last trip. Still, the visitors are not exactly shivering in the cold.
Sammy is not bothered by inexperience or the elite status of the opponent. He believes his fast-bowling attack, comprising Kemar Roach, Fidel Edwards, Ravi Rampaul and the young, untested Shannon Gabriel, is capable of giving England a scare.”Oh, yes, no doubt,” Sammy responded, when asked if the fast bowlers can cause problems for England’s batsmen. “We have been taking 20 wickets in Test cricket for the last year-and-a-half. I must give coach Gibson credit for that. All the bowlers commend him on the work he has been doing with the bowlers. We are a much improved bowling team. The conditions up here do tend to aid fast bowling and swing bowling and I am quite confident that our guys can put the English batsmen under pressure.”Captain Sammy has overseen an overhaul of West Indies’ team attitudes•Associated Press

At the same time Sammy willingly admitted his own top order is more than vulnerable, as seen against Australia during the three Tests at home earlier in April. “It is a fair comment. Stats don’t lie. Our top order did not click against Australia, but the selectors have shown faith in two of them [Adrian Barath and Kieran Powell]. They are quite young, they are still learning on the job. Yes, they will fail sometimes. But there is one thing we won’t do and that is give in. We are going to come out there and work hard for every run and every wicket.”Gibson, too, echoes Sammy’s words, but highlighted the fact that it is important to erase errors to make progress. “If we can eradicate some of those mistakes, I think we’ve shown enough of ourselves that we can be competitive here in England.”Despite England’s lukewarm Test form, losing 3-0 against Pakistan and then fighting back to level the series in Sri Lanka, both Gibson and Sammy are not under any illusions. Both agree England are No. 1 in the Test rankings for a reason. They said they are more concerned with getting their own house in order.This is part of the new culture, Sammy pointed out, which someone like Gayle will need to fall in line with: the culture of discipline, hardwork and focus and team bonding.”Guys work hard for each other,” Sammy said. “Ever since coach Gibson came on board he has tried to instil the professional attitude. One of our team mottos is to display a positive, can-do attitude at all the times. As you could see the way we have played recently, normally when we have had our backs against the wall we would kind of crumble. But so far, somehow we have found a way to get out of the situation. That is because of the constant drilling of the team, that is why that is happening. The whole mindset about doing it for the West Indies people, the guys are taking it on board. That is at the forefront of our minds.”

A round-up of the action from the Stanbic Bank 20 Series 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Nov-2011Mid West Rhinos took a close game against Mashonaland Eagles by seven runs, defending 184. After being put in, Rhinos were given a solid start by their openers Brendan Taylor and Riki Wessels: the pair put on 111 in 13.5 overs before Wessels fell for 51. Taylor fell soon after for 54, but Gary Ballance built on the start with a rapid knock of 53 off 25 that included five sixes. Rhinos finished with 184 for 2, and Eagles launched a solid reply through Stuart Matsikenyeri. The opener hit 73 off 55 before falling to Michael Chinouya. He was backed up by Peter Trego, who slammed 71 not out of 49, but the run out of Ryan ten Doeschate for six in the final over just about secured the match for Rhinos.Mountaineers registered their third win in four games, beating Southern Rocks by 43 runs to move to the top of the Stanbic Bank 20 points table. The win was fashioned by a team performance. After being put into bat, Mountaineers put on 166 for 6, as six of their eight batsmen got into double figures. Opener Phil Mustard was their top scorer, with 40, but the fire power was provided by Kudzai Sauramba – he slammed 36 not out off 15 balls to carry the side past 150. Southern Rocks’ reply was mainly driven by a quick half-century from Shane Burger, but he fell for 62 to Dirk Nannes. There was not much of a challenge raised from the other, as Southern Rocks managed only 123 for 6 in their 20 overs. Shingi Masakadza was the pick of the Mountaineers’ bowlers, taking three wickets in a miserly spell.

A round-up of all the Ranji Trophy Group C matches on October 9, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Oct-2015
ScorecardFile photo – Nikhil Gangta hit 12 fours and five sixes•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

A century from Nikhil Gangta powered Himachal Pradesh into an innings lead against Jammu & Kashmir in Dharamsala. J&K could add only 19 runs to their overnight score of 274 for 8 before being bundled out 4.5 overs into the day, leaving Parvez Rasool unbeaten on 114. The visitors, however, immediately fought back, strikes from Rasool and medium-pacer Umar Nazir Mir reducing Himachal to 77 for 4. Gangta and Robin Bist led a counterattack, batting together for 44 overs to string a 157-run partnership, helping the team to 300. Bist hit seven fours for his 66, but was trapped lbw by Ram Dayal towards the end of the day. Gangta was not out on 111, with 12 fours and five sixes, when stumps were called.Rohan Prem made his maiden first-class double century, which contributed to more than half of Kerala’s total. Prem, who began the second day on 106, added another 102 runs before he was the eighth batsman dismissed. Prem had good support from Raiphi Gomez (41), Monish Karaparambil (37) and Fabid Ahmed (37) as Kerala built solidly but slowly. Legspinner Akash Bhandari collected his second five-wicket haul in first-class cricket but by then Kerala had reached 400.Karaparambil further strengthened Kerala’s advantage by nipping out Hyderabad opener Tanmay Agarwal for 6. Akshath Reddy and Hanuma Vihari, though, survived till stumps, with Hyderabad finishing at 40 for 1.
ScorecardResuming on 230 for 3, Services posted 402, with No. 6 Sufiyan Alam becoming the fourth half-centurion for his side. He was aided by handy contributions from Muzzaffaruddin Khalid (23) and Diwesh Pathania (26) after overnight batsman Rajat Pailiwal added 36 runs to his tally. Paliwal was trapped lbw by left-arm spinner Darshan Misal and in the following over Shahshank Sharma fell to Shadab Jakati. Alam struck seven fours before he became the first of pacer Rituraj Singh’s three victims.In reply, Goa lost opener Amogh Desai in the first over when he was out lbw to Diwesh Pathania before tea. Swapnil Asnodkar and Sagun Kamat managed to grind out 32 together before Poonam Poonia struck to remove Kamat for 24. Asnodkar and Dheeraj Jadhav, however, ensured that the hosts ended the day without any further damage. Goa still trail Services by 340 runs.Saurashtra v Jharkhand – Jadeja topples Jharkhand in under two days