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A collective effort from Dolphins’ bowlers, led by seamers Rabian Engelbrecht and Craig Alexander, helped them end their season with a 118-run win over Knights at Kingsmead in Durban

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Apr-2016A collective effort from Dolphins’ bowlers, led by seamers Rabian Engelbrecht and Craig Alexander, helped them end their season with a 118-run win over Knights at Kingsmead in Durban. The win, however, had no effect on Dolphins’ position in the points table, as they finished fifth, behind Cobras. The result, however, hurt Knights, as they conceded the second spot to Lions.Chasing 382, Knights were reduced to 25 for 4 in 13 overs. Rilee Rossouw, who top scored with 84, and Rudi Second, the wicketkeeper-batsman, rebuilt the innings with a 148-run partnership for the fifth wicket. Andile Phehlukwayo, the seamer, then broke the stand in the 67th over when he had Second caught by Sarel Erwee. Phehlukwayo soon had Rossouw caught behind as Knights were weakened to 181 for 6. Tumelo Bodibe and Malusi Siboto pitched in with thirties each, but Knights were eventually bowled out for 263. Engelbrecht was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 4 for 43.Dolphins had begun steadily, scoring 203 for 3 in 74 overs on the opening day, after being asked to bat. Vaughn van Jaarsveld made 106 – his 14th first-class century – while Senuran Muthusamy and Daryn Smit shone with half-centuries. Dolphins were also helped by lower-order contributions from Keshav Maharaj (31), Mthokozisi Shezi (28*), Alexander (21) and Engelbrecht (28) as they finished with 375. Right-arm seamer Dillon du Preez returned five wickets for Knights.Alexander’s 6 for 60 then ensured Knights were kept to 218 in their reply. Opener Reeza Hendricks was dismissed in the third over, but Michael Erlank hit a fifty to lift his side. Rossouw and Second built on the platform, but the lower-middle order fell away, as the Knights conceded a 157-run first-innings lead.Captain Imran Khan then helped Dolphins consolidate by scoring an unbeaten 106, including 14 fours, with support from van Jaarsveld, who followed his ton with a fifty in the second dig. Dolphins declared on 224 for 3 to set Knights a steep target.

While Derbyshire were gifted a way back into the game by some wasteful Surrey batting, their bowlers remained diligent to battle hard on a pitch that rewarded patience

Vithushan Ehantharajah at The Oval30-Aug-2013
ScorecardMark Footitt’s four wickets ensured Derbyshire remained in contention at The Oval•Getty Images

The Surrey scorecard tells the tale of unconverted starts and a lower-order collapse that saw the final four wickets fall in 13 balls, for the addition of just two runs. But while Derbyshire were gifted a way back into the game, their bowlers remained diligent to battle hard on a pitch that rewarded patience, whether with bat or ball.David Wainwright, back in the side as one of two spinners in the Derbyshire XI, enjoyed his best day of a modest season so far with 3 for 46. Mark Footitt bowled with impressive pace and attacking intent for his four scalps, removing Chris Tremlett and Tim Linley in successive balls to leave him on a hat-trick in the second innings.However, Surrey are ahead thanks to a brilliant 93 from Vikram Solanki, who rolled back the years and dug out a few classics hits – the wristy cover drive and dab through point – to entertain what was a good Friday crowd. Three figures were not meant to be for Solanki although all in attendance thought he merited a standing ovation when he trudged off just seven shy of a second hundred this season.His dismissal was as ugly as they come; a bottom edge down onto his pad before disturbing the stumps. An ungainly end to an innings so classy it made you feel like a better person simply for watching it.The wrists were supple yet strong, as the orthodox spin of Peter Burgoyne and Wainwright – right and left arm, respectively – were manipulated to both sides of the ground with such precision that you wondered whether Solanki was in pursuit of a symmetrical wagon wheel.Aesthetic perfection was still on course when he passed fifty with a skipping drive for a straight six off Burgoyne that finished dead straight. A few loose drives squirted behind point, along with a deflection through a vacant third slip that could be put down to nous rather than negligence. Solanki aside – who is the only player to pass fifty in the match so far – none of the Surrey batsmen who played themselves in stayed around long enough to make it count.Hashim Amla prodded Footitt to third slip after hitting Matt Higginbottom for two crunching square drives in his second over of the day. Rory Burns looked to be getting himself out of a rut before he paid for indecisive footwork to fall lbw to Burgoyne. Zander de Bruyn fell in similar fashion having accompanied Solanki well in a partnership of 96. He could argue that the ball failed to get up, but Wainwright should be credited for a well-disguised arm ball that hurried on.Steven Davies continued to frustrate. It is becoming impossible to enjoy his strokes without knowing a self-inflicted demise is but a juicy full toss away. Hitting his third ball for four – a crisp flick through midwicket after meeting a ball from Wainwright on the full – he inexplicably lobbed a full toss to Paul Borrington at cover, who somehow failed to hold on. The same combination would do for Davies 88 balls later, as he offered another tame catch which Borrington, now at midwicket, took simply.Gareth Batty can be excused from any gripes, his 35 taking Surrey’s first innings lead past 60. That his wicket proved to be the Jenga slab that brought about the collapse does his efforts a disservice and exonerates those before him from blame.The tail should also take responsibility for their poor returns this season. In the last week alone, run-heavy late-wicket stands from Derbyshire and Somerset have seen them win games against Middlesex – victories that saw both climb out of the relegation spots.Given how the pitch is holding up, there is every chance they will be needed for an awkward last innings chase.

Yuvraj Singh has received the Arjuna Award, an Indian government honour to recognise outstanding achievement in sport, from Indian president Pranab Mukherjee

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Aug-2012Yuvraj Singh has received the Arjuna Award, an Indian government honour to recognise outstanding achievement in sport, from Indian president Pranab Mukherjee in Delhi. Yuvraj is currently preparing to make a comeback to international cricket after recovering from a rare germ-cell cancer.”It’s a special award for me,” Yuvraj said. “I had been nominated few times but finally I got it this time. It’s a proud moment for me and my family. The award will give me a lot of confidence to make a comeback and perform well.”Yuvraj hasn’t played any top-flight cricket since last November but has been picked for the Twenty20s against New Zealand next month and the World Twenty20 as well. He brushed aside doubts over whether he is fit enough for the rigours of top-flight cricket.”Experts are not watching me. They don’t know about my fitness. It’s me who knows what’s going on. It’s me who is feeling it from inside,” Yuvraj said. “I know myself better and I am confident enough to do well in the World Cup in Sri Lanka.”Following chemotherapy in February and March, Yuvraj began training in June. “I am practising hard at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore,” he said. “The experts over there are watching my fitness level. I know what I am doing and I just want to concentrate on my return and playing cricket.”If you look at the last three months, I am really training hard and peaking well. I am looking forward to play my first game after a year.”Yuvraj also insisted that he had enough practice to be ready for the World Twenty20. “I had played three practice games at NCA. I will get some serious match practice in the two matches against New Zealand scheduled September 8 and 11. Then, I would be playing two more practice matches. So, you see, I will be having seven games before the World Cup. I will be having enough match practice.”

Twilight Sheffield Shield matches will be tried again as part of the push towards night Test cricket in an Australian domestic schedule heavily influenced by the expansion of Twenty20

Daniel Brettig17-Aug-2011Twilight Sheffield Shield matches will be tried again this summer as part of the push towards night Test cricket, in an Australian domestic schedule heavily influenced by the expansion of the Twenty20 Big Bash League.Night Shield cricket was first experimented with in 1994 but the administrative desire to take Test cricket into the night has driven a return to the gambit, which will take place in a handful of matches played in the states that take part in daylight saving adjustments to local time.Shield and limited-overs matches have been heavily weighted towards the first part of the season, with each state having to play six of 10 regular first-class fixtures by the first week of December.This imbalance has been imposed in order to allow the BBL to operate without any crossover with the demands of the state associations between December 17 and January 28, as numerous players leave their states to play elsewhere for the manufactured city-based teams unveiled for the T20 competition.Australia’s players will face the hurdle of having to choose between the polar extremes of Test matches or T20 throughout the show-piece home series against India.The jump between formats will open plenty of questions in terms of tactical adjustments and physical conditioning should the selectors decide to make changes to the team that will face India, as seems likely.A more positive outcome of the schedule is that domestic aspirants for Test selection will get a significant chance to press their claims ahead of the series against New Zealand and India.Matches will be played in a handful of regional centres also, with Queensland to host a one-day fixture in Mackay while New South Wales play in Canberra.The domestic limited-overs competition has been reduced in size in another concession to T20, as each team will play eight preliminary matches rather than 10.Fixtures will revert to 50 overs after last summer’s experiment with a split-innings format, but other playing conditions will be more experimental in nature.Bowlers will be allowed to bowl a maximum of 13 overs rather than the traditional 10, and the batting Powerplay will have to be taken between overs 16 and 40, a change soon to be implemented in international limited overs matches.Also announced is the schedule for the hotly-debated Futures League second tier competition, which reverts to four-day matches with no over restrictions.The number of players allowed over the age of 23 has also been doubled from three to six, allowing young cricketers a better chance to learn from more experienced teammates.

Paul Hawkins says the players’ doubts simply reflect a lack of understanding and is confident of altering the mindset if given a chance to explain the technology to them

Tariq Engineer12-Aug-2010The use of the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS) in India is still in the balance given the opposition of several Indian players, including India captain MS Dhoni and Sachin Tendulkar, and the indifference of the BCCI. But the inventor of Hawk-Eye, the ball tracking technology that is most often used for the UDRS, has said the players’ doubts simply reflect a lack of understanding and is confident of altering the mindset if given a chance to explain the technology to them.India were part of the first trial of the referral system during their tour of Sri Lanka in 2008. They struggled with their referrals, getting most of them wrong. The team has been reluctant to use the technology since. However, the technology used in that series was Virtual Eye, a different technology from Hawk-Eye.”The issue of whether to use it or not has nothing to do with cost issues,” Paul Hawkins, managing director of Hawk-Eye Innovations, said. “I think it is mainly whether the Indian team has confidence in the technology. If the Indian players take some time to understand the system fully, that it wasn’t Hawk-Eye [in Sri Lanka]; if it was explained to them properly, those concerns would go away.”Hawkins said he would like to sit down with the players and show them how Hawk-Eye works. He has met with India coach Gary Kirsten in the past and says a lot of Kirsten’s questions were answered.”We are trying to get to speak to some of the players,” Hawkins said. “I think Dhoni has expressed an interest in coming and learning a little bit more. You need to sit down for half-an-hour and explain things properly. Hopefully he [Dhoni] will find the time when it suits him.”Prior to the 2010 India – Sri Lanka Test series, Sri Lanka wanted to use the UDRS but India objected. “It’s still not a 100% correct system,” MS Dhoni said at the time. “Let’s wait and see until the ICC comes up with a foolproof plan.”The ICC’s minimum requirements for the referral system include ball tracking technology, super slow-motion cameras and a clean audio feed from the stump microphone. Hawk-Eye uses triangulation to map the trajectory of the ball as it travels from bowler to batsman. Seven high-speed video cameras record the ball’s path and bounce and relay the data frame by frame to a computer system. This data then allows the system to predict the future movement of the ball. While there is a margin of error involved, Hawkins says it is relatively small (2.6 mm) and the margin is built into the modus operandi of a referral.”Our system’s margin of error is so small, given the protocol that is used, it is kind of irrelevant. You have the zone of uncertainty built in, which is effectively a model of the umpire’s zone of uncertainty.”It is this incorporation of traditional umpiring philosophy into the UDRS that allows the system to be used without completely changing the traditions of the game. For example, when a batsman is hit more than 2.5 metres down the wicket, the umpire is not required to abide by Hawk-Eye’s prediction.”That would massively change the game,” Hawkins said. “Not because of the accuracy of the system, but because it has never been given out in the last 100 years.”Hawkins says the most difficult prediction for Hawk-Eye to make is where the ball travels less than 40 cm after pitching, though it is rare for an LBW to occur when the ball has travelled such a short distance (there has been only one such referral so far). In those instances, it is best to let the umpire decide whether a batsman is out or not.”If there is less than 40 cm of travel, in that instance a good umpire should be giving greater benefit to the batsmen,” Hawkins said. “That is the most difficult – less than 40 cm – as a model. It [the protocol] also protects the tracking system when there has been little data.”