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A top-order stutter did not hamper India A’s chase of 48, with the home side taking less than ten overs to seal the win

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Sep-2019India A routed South Africa A by seven wickets in the first unofficial Test in Thiruvananthapuram, chasing down a target of 48 in 9.4 overs after having bowled out the visitors for 186 in the second innings.Resuming day four on 179 for 9, South Africa A’s innings didn’t last long as Shardul Thakur bowled Lutho Sipamla in the fourth over of the day. Shahbaz Nadeem was the most successful bowler for India A, picking up 3 for 21, while Jalaj Saxena and Thakur bagged two wickets each.India A stuttered in their chase, but there were not enough runs for South Africa A’s bowlers to make a match out of it. Lungi Ngidi dismissed Shubman Gill and Ankit Bawne cheaply. KS Bharat didn’t last long either and was caught off Dane Piedt, leaving India A 37 for 3. Shivam Dube though hit the next two balls for two straight sixes to wrap up the game. Ricky Bhui, who was promoted to open the batting, remained unbeaten on 20.Saxena, who was a last-minute inclusion in the squad, was named Player of the Match for his unbeaten 61 in the first innings and 2 for 22 with the ball.The second four-day match will begin on September 17 in Mysore.

The legspinner has been put on probation with a one-year suspension sentence from all forms of international cricket and also fined 20% of his annual contract fee

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Jul-2018Sri Lanka legspinner Jeffrey Vandersay has been put on probation with a one-year suspended sentence from all forms of international cricket and also fined 20% of his annual contract fee. Vandersay was penalised by SLC for a misconduct reported over a night out in St Lucia during the recent West Indies tour. It means he can continue to play but will be suspended from all forms of cricket for a year if there is a breach of contractual obligation again within the next 12 months.”Vandersay was imposed with the above punishment, following the player’s admission of guilt over the incident,” an SLC statement noted. “SLC has also informed the player that during the period of serving the aforesaid suspended sentence, any breach of the contractual obligation shall be severely dealt with together with the suspension.”Vandersay had been sent home from the West Indies mid-tour following the second Test in St Lucia after the player had failed to report back to the team hotel following a night out. While Vandersay’s companions that evening had arrived back in time for the team’s departure the following morning, Vandersay himself is said to have missed the deadline. After the sanctions were announced, he apologised for his conduct on Twitter.
Sri Lanka’s particularly strong sentence is also thought to be down to the fact that Vandersay had been warned at least once prior by the team management over his conduct.

Very many other cricketers have possessed a similar cast of mind, of course, but few achieve their goal with quite the gleeful devil evinced by Alex Davies

Paul Edwards at Old Trafford20-Jun-2017
ScorecardAlex Davies steadied Lancashire with a fine century•Getty Images

Alex Davies irritates opponents and seems to greatly enjoy doing so. Very many other cricketers have possessed a similar cast of mind, of course, but few achieve their goal with quite the gleeful devil evinced by Davies. For example, Hampshire had only to place two short midwickets during the second session of this day for him to clip the ball along the ground between them. Such calculated daring brought Davies a third Championship century of the season and it refreshed Lancashire supporters on an afternoon when the heat blanketed anyone emerging from shade.Davies’s approach is often garlanded with risk. He was dropped twice on the way to his hundred and on 17 he would have been run out by the length of a 1930s dole queue had Matt Salisbury’s throw hit the stumps. But Davies seems to savour danger, too. For all his 22 years and, one might assume, relative maturity, he grins out of his photographs like one of William Brown’s outlaws in Richmal Crompton’s once popular stories. One can imagine him scrumping apples or making good use of a catapult in the age before screens sought vainly to dull the young. That disarmingly wide-eyed innocence deceives no one; Davies is one of cricket’s good-hearted rascals and one of the game’s undiluted competitors.He is also a fine batsman. By the time he was caught at deep square leg by Michael Carberry off James Vince’s fifth ball of the innings he had taken Lancashire to within 26 runs of avoiding the follow-on. That task was completed by Dane Vilas and Ryan McLaren during a session when the bat held sway over the ball and the day drifted into the warm reverie of a summer evening. At one stage, the batsmen were having a drink, Lewis McManus was changing his wicketkeeping gloves and a Hampshire cricketer was removing grit from a team mate’s boots. Our cricket ended at nearly seven o’clock with Lancashire 117 runs in arrears and Vilas unbeaten on a fine 76. The crowd drifted off for their restorative suppers and perhaps they will be encouraged a little by the South African’s disciplined application.In mid-afternoon, though it seemed longer than that, the home supporters – all sun hats, polo shirts and cotton dresses – had required reviving for other reasons. Having seen Hampshire complete their recovery from 177 for 6 and post a healthy 395, they had then watched as Lancashire lost their first three wickets for a mere 69. This decline began when Rob Jones, having taken a blow on the helmet from Gareth Berg, was snared lbw for 2 by the next delivery, which caught him on the crease.That was a fine piece of cricket by this impressive Hampshire team and it was followed by another four overs after lunch when a Berg inswinger removed Luke Procter’s off stump. Steven Croft, Lancashire’s normally combative captain, then played perhaps the most quiescent innings of his career, scratching a single from 32 balls in 54 minutes before he was leg before when playing no recognisable shot at all to a ball from Kyle Abbott which nipped back off the pitch.Lancashire’s recovery from these toils was led by Davies and it was begun by his rather skittish partnership of 74 with Shivnarine Chanderpaul. Having taken only two runs from five overs near the beginning of their stand, the pair then collected 47 from the next 30 balls. Chanderpaul got off the mark with two cover-driven fours and he and Davies both took sixes off the same Brad Taylor over. Runs came in something of a torrent on this true pitch which currently facilitates attacking strokeplay. Davies manufactured fours to third man and clipped the ball backward of square and Chanderpaul, who can exhibit all the gay daring of a borough surveyor examining a warehouse, matched Davies shot for shot, but was stumped for 33 when lured forward by an excellent ball from the offspinner, Taylor which turned past the outside edge. Yet Vilas batted with even more disciplined aggression into the evening session and it suddenly seemed ages since the last rites of Hampshire’s inningsThose had begun when James Anderson, who bowled with more threat in six overs on the second morning than he had managed in 22 on the first day, removed Taylor in the third over but Salisbury then put on 43 for the last wicket with Abbott. Indeed, so unruffled were the last-wicket pair that it seemed Abbott would follow Jack Brooks’ example in the previous first-class match on this ground and cruise to a maiden century. Alas for such Natalian dreams, Salisbury skied McLaren to Chanderpaul at mid-on when Abbott was 97 and the visitors’ innings ended on 395.Hampshire were well-placed with that total on the board and were in an even stronger position in mid-afternoon. But ultimately the day belonged to Davies. Short, combative and increasingly skilful, Lancashire’s wicketkeeper long ago won the respect of his colleagues; he can now add the fond regard of the county’s supporters, all of whom know that he is one of those players who always give of their best and whose loyalty has been firmly pledged. A year ago his career was threatened by a knee injury and in early April he had yet to score a first-class hundred; now he has three of them although not yet a full cap. Lancashire cricket is both his livelihood and his sporting love. She will never suffer if he can prevent it.

The PCB is considering the prospect of adding another team to the Pakistan Super League with the possibility of the sixth team being named Kashmir, after the territory of Pakistan-administered Kashmir in Pakistan

Umar Farooq09-May-2016The PCB is considering the prospect of adding another team to the Pakistan Super League with the possibility of the sixth team being named Kashmir, after the territory of Pakistan-administered Kashmir in Pakistan. The move looks unlikely, however, for different reasons: opposition from some of the current franchises on financial grounds and the potential for controversy given Kashmir’s sensitive status vis-a-vis India.The current structure of the PSL comprises five teams whose names are derived from provincial capitals – Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad, Quetta and Peshawar. According to a contract signed between the PCB and the franchises, the number of teams cannot be increased until the third edition.Sethi had tweeted last month: “My dream is to launch 6th Kashmir team in PSL this year. Hope our five franchisee partners will support me in this initiative.” Peshawar Zalmi team owner Javed Afridi supported Sethi’s initiative but the other teams were not as enthused. Sethi said Kashmir, Faisalabad, Sialkot and Gilgit-Baltistan were in the fray for the potential team.”We will not have [a new team] until the third year that is written,” Sethi confirmed in an exclusive interview with ESPNcricinfo. “But at the same time we are looking at the financials about the addition of a sixth team, in terms of whether it will be Kashmir, Faisalabad, Sialkot or Gilgit-Baltistan or any other team. That decision is pending. We have to weigh up the pros and cons and that’s the issue right now but we cannot have it until franchises agree. Without their consent we can’t make it.”The opposition from the franchises is centered around the potential cut in their share from the central revenue pool. After the inaugural edition of the PSL, 70% of the revenue was split equally among the five franchises and the percentage would have been higher had the tournament been held in Pakistan instead of the UAE. Sethi said he was trying to convince teams that the addition of a sixth side would benefit them.”Of course we have to offer guarantee to the teams that they will be better by having a sixth team and have to convince them. I have my team working on different values and estimated profits and revenues before pitching this idea to them but this idea is definitely under consideration. Basically the advice from our finance department is that this is the high time to add sixth team as the values are very high at this stage before the second edition. We have to cash in the hype we have created from the first edition and this may or may go down next year.”The PCB regulates the franchises and manages the day-to day-cash flow, bearing the cost of logistics and payment to foreign and local players to avoid any dispute. Sethi confirmed the spending cap of each franchise, currently placed at US$1.2m, has been increased by 10% for the second season.Najam Sethi confirmed the possibility of creating a sixth team to boost the league’s valuation•AFP

In a recent PCB meeting, Sethi, who is also head of the central executive committee, made a bid to register PSL as an independent entity, primarily to cut down on hefty taxes paid by the Pakistan board and the franchises. Sethi took up the case with the finance ministry, but the negotiations fell through; the only concession was the overseas players getting a tax-free salary.”The idea is to make it a non-profit, registering it as separate company, to allow PCB to re-invest the net profits into development of cricket,” Sethi said. “Right now it is still in the pipeline and may not be an easy task. Although we sought seed money from the PCB budget for the first edition, we will have our own budgets from next year. We thought it will be a PCB-owned company but absolutely independent, and whatever money PSL makes it will go down into development which will be exempted from tax.”According to Sethi the first edition of the league generated $11.4million in revenue which is 30% higher in value than the estimated $8.02million. He admitted direct and operational expenditures had increased from $7.71million to $8.93million but PCB still manage to produce an estimated profit of $2.47million. The tournament operations were started with approximately $3-4m of seed money from the PCB’s budget and more income was generated after selling the five teams for $9.3 million.”We have beaten our own expectations and the asset value of each team has increased drastically,” Sethi said. “Teams aren’t really making profit right now from the market and they need time to make themselves a proper brand but their asset value has gone up significantly. If anyone of the team want to sell their team they can get hike of one million in their original price, which is a welcoming sign. They incurred some loses and we have covered it up from our own PCB’s central pool and gave them $400,000 each apart from the 70% of our revenues from broadcaster, gate money, title sponsorship etc.”Sharing key figures from the financial report, Sethi said: “We sold franchises in $9.3million with the first year and revenue from other means was $2.11million for the first edition. We spent $1.22million extra from our estimated budget $7.71m; the expenditures were $4.71m in direct and $4.22m in operational cost which is mainly because of the high value of renting the stadium in UAE which cost us $3.27m (Dubai and Sharjah).”The PCB is also mooting workshops to give franchises an understanding on how to leverage their business further and explore different revenue streams at a time when they are yet to break even. “Teams should be profitable by the third year,” he said. “We have been insisting that merchandising is a key revenue stream for them. That is directly linked to the marketability of the franchise and so far Peshawar is the only team that has done fairly well in this regard. We also need them to step up and market themselves better.”

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.