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South Africa coach Ottis Gibson insisted that while they asked for surfaces that would assist their pace attack, the exaggerated bounce and lateral movement was unexpected

Firdose Moonda in Johannesburg26-Jan-2018South Africa insisted that the uneven and excessive bounce and seam movement at the Wanderers in the third Test was not part of their request for helpful pitches. Though South Africa admitted to asking for surfaces that would assist their attack, they maintained that all they wanted was pace and bounce, and not the lateral movement or exaggerated bounce that this surface provided.”Everybody is making a big issue of grass but we’ve never asked for grass, we asked for pace and bounce. If you’re a groundsman and we ask you to make a wicket with pace and bounce, and you feel that the best way to do that is leave grass on the wicket, that’s it. Then we get on and play with it,” Ottis Gibson, South Africa’s coach said. “The Test in Cape Town only went three days, but we thought it was a good wicket. We asked for a similar wicket in Centurion, and it was more like Mumbai than anywhere else, and it was a great Test match as well. With this one, the wicket has unfortunately got worse as the match has gone on.”Asked whether the pitch may have been a result of extra pressure placed on the groundsman by the knowledge that South Africa would not settle for anything less than bowler-friendly conditions, Gibson did not think that was the case. “I can’t speak for groundsman. We asked for a certain type of pitch and then the groundsmen have a month to try and get it right,” he said.But there is some expectation within the home camp that the scrutiny on the surface will not let up, even after play resumes on day four. “There is no doubt that questions are going to be asked about the preparations of the pitch, Mohammed Moosajee, South Africa’s team manager said. “When we got here on day one, it looked like a sporty wicket, and from a South Africa perspective, all we wanted was a wicket with pace and bounce. Obviously, the ICC will rate it and there will be some form of repercussion.”South Africa stopped short of criticising the Wanderers surface and reiterated their willingness to play on. But between the two sides, they placed more emphasis on safety after Dean Elgar was struck on the grille of the helmet in the ninth over of South Africa’s chase. The incident caused play to called off 19 minutes before the scheduled close.Initially, it appeared that the ball had veered up off a crack, but television replays showed that it had pitched at a back of a length, and Elgar had gone forward fairly far, which may have made it look worse than it actually was.”Dean went forward and the ball took off from a length. Whether it was 8m or not, even on a third-day pitch, you are not expecting the ball that pitches at 8m to take off and hit the batsman on the head without the batsman even having the time to take evasive action” Gibson said. “At the end of the day, the umpires will make a decision, which they did. Before you go on about India batting twice on the same pitch, yes they did. And there were balls that were taking off from a length, and our captain was saying that, ‘I’m not sure that this is fair either.’ So it’s not like we are sour grapes or anything. We felt this morning that when balls were taking off off a length, it was obviously a little bit tricky and a decision would have to be made.”Elgar was the only batsmen to be hit above the throat in the match, but players on both sides copped body blows. Hashim Amla was hit on the ribs, Ajinkya Rahane on the elbow, M Vijay on the hip, and several others on the gloves. South Africa’s concerns appeared to have begun then, especially because they felt batsmen did not have time to defend themselves.”When I spoke to Faf at lunch, he said that if a ball is going to hit you on the finger and the bowlers are bowling at 140 and you haven’t got time to react or respond or take evasive action, then the umpires have to think that they have to look after player safety,” Gibson said. “If you think it’s getting a bit dangerous – and the umpires in the middle were saying that before lunch – Faf said, ‘A couple on the fingers, we can get away with, but when the ball rears up and hits you on the face then it’s a different situation.”And after all that, Gibson said the team are “absolutely not” making excuses for the position they find themselves in now on an increasingly difficult pitch.”Throughout the whole game on both sides, we saw batsmen wearing a few on the body, and we are not complaining. I hope you are not sitting here thinking we are complaining. But obviously Dean got hit in the face when he wasn’t able to take evasive action, and there was one before that that he went forward to that he was going to leave that bounced up and hit him on the hand. But again he wasn’t able to take evasive action. Once they (the match officials) tell us what the decision is, we’ll get on with it.”And on the fourth morning, they will have to.

KL Rahul, who had aggravated an injury to his left forearm in the nets in Mohali, has been released from the India squad but is expected to be fit in time for the fourth Test against England in Mumbai on December 8

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Nov-2016KL Rahul, who had aggravated an injury to his left forearm in the nets in Mohali, has been released from the India squad but is expected to be fit in time for the fourth Test against England in Mumbai on December 8. Allrounder Hardik Pandya has had to leave the team as well, having hurt his right shoulder while training at the PCA Stadium. The BCCI’s medical staff have advised him to “consult a specialist to decide the future course of action”. No replacements were named by the board in its media release.Rahul had picked up his problem while batting in the Visakhapatnam Test – which was his comeback from a hamstring injury picked up in September. His career has been a bit stop-start. Soon after making a century in his first Test series, in Sydney, he contracted dengue and missed a one-off match in Bangladesh. He was brought back into the XI when M Vijay was injured in Sri Lanka, but didn’t play the home Tests against South Africa. Rahul reclaimed his place and became India’s first-choice opener on the tour of the Caribbean, when he made a century and a fifty. His unavailability in Mohali led to Parthiv Patel – on a comeback of his own – opening the batting for India.Pandya was with the Test squad for the first time, his pace and one-day form impressing the selectors. He was the only uncapped player in the squad by the time he picked up the injury, with Jayant Yadav making his debut in Visakhapatnam and Karun Nair in Mohali.

Irfan Karim, the son of former Kenya captain Asif Karim, starred in his campus team – Loughborough Marylebone Cricket Club University’s – seven-wicket win against European University of Bangladesh in the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Finals on Tuesday

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Oct-2015Irfan Karim – the son of former Kenya captain Asif Karim – starred in his campus team, Loughborough Marylebone Cricket Club University’s, seven-wicket win against European University of Bangladesh in the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Finals on Tuesday.The 23-year-old Kenya batsman struck an optimistic note about the future of cricket in Kenya, despite his team’s poor showing in the World T20 qualifiers, where they are currently placed joint-fourth with Oman, in Group B, behind Scotland, Netherlands and Afghanistan.”Teams like Kenya, Ireland and Afghanistan have shown that they can reach that level,” Karim said.”Associate cricket has done well in the World Cups, and upsets therein are a case in point. We just need to have the right structure in place and a good pool of players. There’s no reason why we can’t succeed.”His quick fire 48-ball 71, on Tuesday, helped LMCC emerge as strong title contenders in the Campus Cricket tournament currently being played in Dehradun.His performance isn’t a one-off, as he has performed impressively in the ODI format, for his national team in his short career, as well.He currently has 396 runs at an average of 44 in his short career. His statistics in T20’s are less impressive, his seven T20’s yielding just 47 runs.”I enjoy playing on the international stage. My passion for the game came from my father. I saw him play for Kenya from a young age and that’s how I got into it as a kid. It has stayed with me ever since and I am really enjoying pursuing cricket. Of course, my dad, for he inspired me to play cricket. I was always playing with him around me. “”I want to play at a higher level in England, particularly county cricket. That is why I am playing club cricket there as well. They have many opportunities, some good facilities and good coaching. They are very professional in their set up.”Asif Karim, unlike his son, was more judicious of his assessment of cricket in Kenya.”Kenya cricket is dead. It is dead and buried. Your intent can be good but if you’re not competent to do something, it doesn’t happen. We’ve had an incompetent administration for the last ten years. The results are clear. Where is the cricket now? My prediction is that from being an Associate team having ODI status we will become an Affiliate,” he told Tim Wigmore in September last year.”We’ve had an incompetent administration for the last ten years. The results are clear. Where is the cricket now?” he asserted.

The PCB has lodged a request with the ICC to host the World Cup qualifying tournament in 2018

Umar Farooq18-Apr-2013The PCB has lodged a request with the ICC to host the World Cup qualifying tournament in 2018, which will determine the final places at the following year’s event in England, as they attempt to revive international cricket in Pakistan.There have been no international games in country since March 2009 when the buses carrying the Sri Lankan team and ICC officials were attacked on their way to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore. There have been tentative steps to try and bring visiting teams back, but Bangladesh’s withdrawal from their tour last year confirmed how much concern remains.Pakistan has had two ICC events removed from them in recent years with the 2008 Champions Trophy shifted to South Africa and they were taken off the 2011 World Cup due to the ongoing security problems. The PCB had previously shown interest in hosting the 2014 World Twenty20 which was awarded to Bangladesh and now wants to push again for an event.”There is a ICC event in 2018 and Pakistan have requested it should be given an opportunity to host the event,” Ashraf said at Lahore airport on his return from recent ICC meetings in Dubai. “We have also asked them to evaluate the security situation when the time comes, but keep the slot for us. They have agreed and have given it to the committee and when the time comes they will assess the security situation and will decide accordingly.”Pakistan was previously part of a global event when it co-hosted the 1996 World Cup alongside India and Sri Lanka. Ashraf admitted that a lot of work remains to convince teams that touring Pakistan is a viable option.”I have talked with three to four presidents of cricket boards and they are reluctant when they hear the name of Pakistan especially after the Bangladesh ran away last year,” he said. “They think when Bangladesh did not come how could they tour? We are talking with another country and they have asked us to send the request. We are trying their women’s team or Under-19 team so that something starts and the confidence level is developed.”

David Balcombe has made an eye-catching start to the season and that continued when he took five Glamorgan wickets to put Hampshire in control on the first day

19-Apr-2012
ScorecardDavid Balcombe has made an eye-catching start to the season and that continued when he took five Glamorgan wickets to put Hampshire in control on the first day of their rain-interrupted Division Two clash.Balcombe recorded figures of 5 for 33 to go with his match figures of 11 for 119 against Gloucestershire last week.He was denied a sixth wicket as Glamorgan imaginatively declared their first innings on 103 for 9 during the last of three breaks for rain in an attempt to recover lost ground by making inroads into the Hampshire batting in the final hour. The tactic paid limited dividends as Huw Waters had Jimmy Adams caught behind. Hampshire closed on 29 for 1, 74 behind.Glamorgan’s batting woes continued after their consecutive defeats to Leicestershire and Derbyshire. Despite winning the toss and electing to bat, they were 68 for 5 at lunch. Stewart Walters attempted an expansive drive and was caught at second slip by Liam Dawson off Balcombe; Gareth Rees fell leg before to Chris Wood; and then Nick James, brought into the side to bolster the middle order inhis first game of the season, was neatly caught by wicketkeeper Michael Bates.Before lunch, Glamorgan lost two more wickets. Danny Briggs, their left-arm spinner, struck in his fourth over to have Ben Wright caught at short leg by James Vince and just two overs before the interval, Jim Allenby went lbw to Balcombe playing across the line.Rain during the lunch interval forced a delay of an hour. Will Bragg seemed to enjoy the break, taking two fours off Balcombe’s first over of the afternoon session to move to 42. Another break for rain, however, proved calamitous for Glamorgan as four wickets fell in the space of only three overs.They still have not made a Championship fifty. Bragg threatened to become the first, but on 45 he was brilliantly caught one-handed, low down at second slip, by Liam Dawson off Wood. Balcombe then had Moises Henriques lbw, removed Graham Wagg at mid-off, attempting to pull, and completed his haul with another lbw decision to dismiss Dean Cosker.

United Arab Emirates offspinner Nasir Aziz has been reported for a suspected illegal bowling action during the final of the World Cricket League Division Two tournament

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Apr-2011United Arab Emirates offspinner Nasir Aziz has been reported for a suspected illegal bowling action during the final of the World Cricket League Division Two tournament against Namibia, which was played on Friday.Aziz, 24, was reported after the end of the game by on-field umpires Sarika Prasad and Buddhi Pradhan, along with third umpire Gary Baxter. ICC Tournament Referee Graeme La Brooy handed over the copy of the report to UAE team manager Mazhar Khan on Saturday morning.Where a bowler is reported by the umpires due to a suspected illegal action in a WCL match, the policy requires the relevant member board – in this case the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) – to instigate an assessment. In the meantime, the player is still free to take part in international cricket.The ICC has asked the ECB to make arrangements for the assessment of Aziz’s bowling action within 21 days from today, April 17. As soon as the assessment has been completed, the ECB must formally report back to the ICC as to what the results of the tests were and what action has been taken.

James Franklin’s first one-day century inspired Gloucestershire Gladiators to a
51-run win over Derbyshire Falcons in the opening Clydesdale Bank 40 fixture at
Bristol

25-Apr-2010
ScorecardJames Franklin’s first one-day century inspired Gloucestershire Gladiators to a
51-run win over Derbyshire Falcons in the opening Clydesdale Bank 40 fixture at
Bristol.The New Zealand all-rounder responded to his new position as opener by hitting
133 off 121 balls, with 10 fours and three sixes, as his side ran up 230 for
5 after losing the toss. Alex Gidman (35) and Chris Taylor (32) offered good support.Steve Kirby (3 for 44) then took two early wickets to reduce Derbyshire to
31 for 2 and, despite 37 from Chris Rogers and 41 from John Sadler, the
visitors were restricted to 179 all out. It was an important win for Gloucestershire, beaten at home in their first two County Championship games of the season. Batting frailty in those matches led to the experiment of promoting Franklin up the order and he responded with a superbly-paced innings.Overcoming the early loss of Jonathan Batty and Hamish Marshall, the elegant
left-hander added 89 in 17 overs with Gidman and 70 in 10 overs with Taylor. Franklin owed his hundred to Taylor’s quick thinking. On 95 he would have been run out had his partner not sacrificed himself by crossing before bowler Tom Lungley’s throw hit the stumps.Soon afterwards the Kiwi reached three figures off 104 balls. Surprisingly for
an international player of his pedigree, it was the first time he had done so in
any one-day competition at home or in England. Franklin’s three sixes were all hit straight down the ground.Tim Groenewald was the pick of the Derbyshire attack conceding 37 runs from his
eight overs. After Kirby’s double strike, Rogers and Greg Smith put on 47 in 11 overs for
the Falcons third wicket before Smith (28) was caught at the second attempt by
wicketkeeper Batty off Gidman.There was still hope for Derbyshire at 103 for 3. But then Garry Park, on
13, carelessly swung off-spinner Taylor’s first ball of the game down the throat
of Steve Snell at deep mid-wicket. The key wicket of Rogers followed when he had a swing at Franklin and skied a steepling catch to Batty. At 107 for 5, the Falcons were suddenly staring down the barrel.Sadler ensured their total would reach respectability by being last man out,
having hit his 41 off 34 balls, but it was always in a losing cause. He became Kirby’s third victim, while Anthony Ireland and Taylor claimed two each.

Hosts UAE eliminated after a sloppy display in the field, and eventually fell well short in a chase of 172

Danyal Rasool04-Sep-2025Fakhar Zaman and Mohammad Nawaz punished an error-strewn display in the field from the UAE, helping Pakistan recover from a jittery 80 for 5 and seal a 31-run win. Having set UAE 172 to win, Abrar Ahmed, playing his first game this series, helped run through the top and middle order, removing each of Muhammad Waseem, Asif Khan, Rahul Chopra and Harshit Kaushik. UAE would end up folding with limited resistance, and the result guarantees Pakistan and Afghanistan passage through to the final on Sunday, with the hosts eliminated.Pakistan soon ran into trouble after winning the toss and opting to bat. Sahibzada Farhan made a brisk start once more but couldn’t find staying power, holing out to the short onside boundary. It is the fourth game in a row he has been unable to convert a start, and Saim Ayub fell soon after.Related

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UAE dragged Pakistan back post-powerplay, but sloppiness in the field was a harbinger of what was to follow. After Zaman and Nawaz were each put down off an excellent Haider Ali over, Pakistan found their opportunity to cut loose, flaying the UAE for 69 in the final four overs to post 171.The hosts’ response never truly got going, as if they were unsure how to pace the chase. Waseem was circumspect for once, and Alishan Sharafu wasn’t as belligerent at the top as he would be later on during his half-century, and the asking rate only climbed. Abrar was superb through his spell, and ran through the top order, getting rid of each of Waseem, Asif Khan and Rahul Chopra. Sharafu attempted to reignite a flagging chase with a sublime display of power-hitting at the backend, and while it did plenty to burnish his reputation, UAE’s fate in this tournament had already been sealed.Drops lose matchesDespite a vastly improved bowling showing, the first innings was littered with errors in the field for the UAE, who made their bowlers’ jobs much harder than they already were. It all came to a head in the 16th over.Left-arm spinner Haider Ali had conceded just six runs in his first three overs, getting rid of Mohammad Haris and Hasan Nawaz in the process. His final over represented a chance to break the burgeoning sixth-wicket stand between Fakhar and Nawaz, with the possibility of running through the tail afterwards. Having nearly yorked Fakhar first ball, he drew Nawaz into a miscue off the penultimate delivery, only for midwicket to grass it. So he made sure the catch Fakhar offered up the next ball was as easy as it could be, arrowing straight down to long-on. That, too, would somehow be dropped by Sharafu, to howls of anguish from the bowler. That frustration would become even more acute by what followed. The wheels come offBy the end of the 16th over, Pakistan were stuttering at 108 for 5, with the UAE dragging them below seven per over. They had had multiple chances to get rid of the Fakhar-Nawaz pairing, but so far, the damage was manageable. But it was now, the first delivery after those two dropped chances, that the momentum swung on a dime.Fakhar clipped Junaid Siddique for six over long-off, and though he got out of that over, the boundaries soon began to rain down. Fakhar smashed Muhammad Jawadullah for a pair of boundaries to bring up his half-century, but the real carnage came in the final two overs. Nawaz, who had found his innings a struggle until then, lashed Siddique for two fours and two sixes off the final four balls of the 19th, before Fakhar plundered five boundaries on the trot to finish the innings off. The final two overs had gone for 42, and the final five for 74. UAE were never to recover.UAE had no answer to Abrar Ahmed’s wiles•Emirates Cricket Board

Abrar’s career-bestAbrar had lost his place to Sufiyan Muqeem in the starting eleven, but spent that time honing more than just a flashy new haircut. Given his first opportunity, the 26-year-old wasted no time making a statement. In a dazzling display of modern legspin bowling, all of his variations were on display in the shop window, and on a spinning surface, the UAE could not muster a response. A brave over in the powerplay, where he packed the offside and challenged Waseem to beat it, yielded just two, and he snared his man off the first ball of the second sliced wildly towards point.Taken out of the attack, he returned for the 13th over, and his impact was instant once more. He had the courage once again to float one to big hitting Asif Khan, whose eyes lit up as he succumbed to temptation, leathering it high into the Sharjah sky. Shaheen Afridi and Nawaz orbited around it before narrowly avoiding a collision as Afridi held on, and while Rahul Chopra was unfortunate to be adjudged lbw off a googly two balls later, Abrar had earned his luck. He would sign off his spell with the scalp of Kaushik, and ensuring he finished with his best-ever T20 figures, 4-0-9-4 a true reflection of his artistry.

Notts lose last six wickets for 34 runs as visitors regain advantage

ECB Reporters Network06-Apr-2024A Joe Clarke century was the highlight as Nottinghamshire secured a 40-run first-innings lead on day two of their Vitality County Championship match against Essex, although they may regret not building a bigger advantage after a late collapse saw them lose their last six wickets for 34, which included a Sam Cook hat-trick.Essex had their noses in front again by the close, although they lost Feroze Khushi to a catch at first slip, finishing on 65 for 1. A further twist to an eventful final session may follow if what appeared to be Khushi’s bat is confirmed to have exceeded the regulation size after an on-field check by the umpires required it to be changed.Clarke made 104, sharing a partnership of 159 with Nottinghamshire debutant Jack Haynes, who hit 77. But Clarke’s dismissal prompted a collapse from 259 for 4 to 293 all out, Cook dismissing Lyndon James, Brett Hutton and Dillon Pennington with consecutive deliveries in his first over with the second new ball to finish with figures of 4 for 59.It was the 26-year-old seamer’s second senior hat-trick – his first came against Kent in the Vitality Blast last summer – and the first by an Essex bowler in first-class cricket since Danish Kaneria achieved the feat against Derbyshire in 2009.Essex had earlier been dismissed for 253 in their first innings as Nottinghamshire needed only 13 deliveries at the start of the morning to pick up the one wicket needed overnight, although Jamie Porter was able to secure a first batting point of the season before he was caught at first slip as Pennington grabbed a second debut wicket.Essex, who had themselves suffered a collapse from 170 for 2, recovered to have the home side three down at lunch in reply. Nottinghamshire openers Haseeb Hameed and Ben Duckett looked comfortable initially, but when Shane Snater relieved Porter at the Radcliffe Road he dismissed Duckett with his first delivery, which did enough to pass the edge of the England left-hander’s defensive bat and clip off stump.Cook followed up with a leg before against Ben Slater before Hameed, dropped at first slip off Porter on 28, perished in Porter’s next over, caught behind for 32.From 93 for 3 at lunch, Nottinghamshire were 100 for 4 soon afterwards, losing Matt Montgomery to a catch by Simon Harmer at second slip as Snater found enough movement away to claim a second wicket. The Netherlands international’s career-best 7 for 98 came on this ground in 2021.Yet Essex could make no further inroads in the afternoon session as Clarke and Haynes took control. Clarke, who enjoyed his best season as a Nottinghamshire batter in 2023, seemed to reach a turning point with his match-saving marathon 229 not out against Warwickshire in June. Since then he has looked like a batter with more clarity in his process without compromising his ability to inflict damage on opponents.For four hours it looked like something similar might be on the cards again, his focus rarely drifting as he passed fifty with a pull for six off Paul Walter and completed his 21st career hundred by sweeping and cutting Harmer for consecutive fours, moments of aggression in the context of well-judged progress. Little wonder that his shoulders slumped after a rare loose shot saw him caught at mid-on.It had been a fine innings, nonetheless, with 16 fours and that one six, as was that of his young partner, another former Worcestershire batter, albeit one whose senior debut came after Clarke had left New Road. Haynes played shots that were pleasing on the eye, any debut nerves seemingly calmed by Clarke’s assuredness at the other end.Their partnership added 159 in a little over 44 overs, putting Nottinghamshire in a seemingly strong position, six runs in front. Yet the breaking of it by offspinner Harmer’s first wicket of the season let Essex back in, with Haynes soon falling to another tame dismissal, a full toss spooned to mid-on, caught by sub fielder Ben Allison, on briefly for Cook.It left the home side with two new batters and the new ball due, one with which Cook promptly took a hat-trick, trapping James and Pennington leg before, with Hutton bowled by a corker in between. Porter wrapped things up by bowling Dane Paterson.

“There are no grudges” as Australia and South Africa prepare for first Test face-off since sandpaper saga

Andrew McGlashan16-Dec-2022Dean Elgar believes there could be moments where the contest between Australia and South Africa over the next three weeks becomes “feisty” but both he and his opposite number Pat Cummins are confident it won’t come near the levels of the ugly 2018 series.Although the two sides have met in ODIs and T20Is since that controversial encounter more than four years ago, this is the first Test match battle – a format of the game that allows contests, both good and bad, more time to build and stew. This series will also have a significant bearing on who reaches the World Test Championship final in June.Related

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• What India, Australia, SA need to do to make the WTC final

Both captains and their teams have insisted in the build-up that in the changing rooms 2018 has not warranted a mention, but its fallout lives on, particularly in Australia with David Warner’s recent leadership ban saga bringing it back to the forefront over the last week and also in the recent books published by Tim Paine and Faf du Plessis.”There will be moments, no doubt, where there will be a few feisty encounters but hopefully it doesn’t reach the stage that we experienced in 2018,” Elgar said. “What’s happened in the past happened. There are no grudges. We know they want to win and we want to win. There will always be a moment where egos and the heat of the moment gets to the guys but think it will be better controlled this time.”If they’ve got added issues with regards to [what happened] then that’s their thing, but with regards my team we haven’t spoken about it once. It’s history for us.”Cummins, who was part of the 2018 bowling unit and has played through Australia’s rebuilding and is now leading the team, followed a similar theme. There has been less turnover in their side meaning that along with him, five other players remain from Cape Town: Warner, Usman Khawaja, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon. Josh Hazlewood would also have been here but for injury.”We’ve all moved on,” Cummins said. “I don’t think we’re probably as abrasive as we’ve been in the past. It’s working for us. How we are off the field is pretty similar to what we play on the field I think – calm, very chill, just enjoying it out there, really competitive. And we’ve done that really well over the last 12 months.”Speaking on Thursday, Khawaja provided a perspective of someone who was in the team at Newlands, then spent time out of the side, before his recall earlier this year.”Honestly [it] hasn’t been [discussed] and I’m being genuine,” he said. “It’s because time heals all wounds. We’ve just come so far from there that we’ve got a bigger picture. I think that actually gave guys a lot of perspective. Australian cricket, both as a whole and as individual as players we were probably at rock bottom right there too.”It gives you a lot of time to reflect and look back on things. I genuinely look and I see where the guys were four years ago to where they are now. There’s been a lot of growing up and there’s been a lot of maturity. I probably got to see it better than most because I was in the team, then I went away and then I came back in so it’s been a nice change.”No one is willing to say what it would take for the good behaviour code to be broken; for their part South Africa, who have won their last three series in Australia, have intimated they would need to be provoked to respond – “it doesn’t take much for our guys to step up when needs be,” coach Malibongwe Maketa said – while Cummins insisted Australia would not be goaded.”We’re really strong on who we are as a team, how we want to go about it,” he said. “The last 12 months have been a great example on that. We’re pretty firm on how we want to act and conduct ourselves. Whatever gets thrown at us, won’t change that.”