ESPNcricinfo tracks player movements before the start of India’s 2013-14 domestic season

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Aug-2013Ramesh Powar will play for Rajasthan for the next two domestic seasons•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

KB Pawan moves to Tripura
Karnataka’s KB Pawan has moved to Tripura for the season. Pawan was a regular opener for Karnataka but lost his place to KL Rahul last season. The right-handed wicketkeeper-batsman has played 44 first-class matches for Karnataka, scoring 2642 runs at an average of 37.21.Punjab’s Bipul Sharma moves to Himachal Pradesh
Allrounder Bipul Sharma, who was with Punjab until last season, will turn up for Himachal Pradesh in 2013-14. He made his debut for Punjab in 2005, and has played 14 first-class and 52 List A matches. He has five fifties, and a highest score of 93 in first-class cricket to go with 19 wickets at 41.63. The 30-year-old has also played one game for India A against Scotland in 2010.Karnataka’s Abhishek Bhat moves to Saurashtra
Abhishek Bhat, 24, will be among Saurashtra’s ranks this season. He has played club cricket in Karnataka, appearing in the Safi Darasha Tournament, but is yet to make his debut in first-class or List A formats.Gujarat’s Avi Barot moves to Haryana
Wicketkeeper-batsman Avi Barot has transferred from Gujarat to Haryana for this season. The 21-year-old cricketer, who has also represented India Under-19, made his debut for Gujarat in 2011 and has played four first-class matches so far, scoring 118 runs at an average of 19.66. In 12 List A games, Barot has scored 296 runs at an average of 24.66 with three fifties.Rajasthan’s Rashmi Parida moves to Vidarbha
Batsman Rashmi Parida has transferred from Rajasthan to Vidarbha for the 2013-14 season. Parida, 36, played 29 Ranji games for Rajasthan, scoring 1536 runs with two centuries. He was part of the team’s title victories in 2011 and 2012. Parida started his career with his native Orissa in 1994-95 before shifting to Assam for the 2008-09 season. He spent the next four seasons with Rajasthan.Himachal’s Bhavin Thakkar, Gujarat’s Bhavik Thaker move to Jharkhand
Middle-order batsman Bhavin Thakkar will play for Jharkhand in the 2013-14 season. Thakkar, 31, last played a first-class game in 2010, for Himachal Pradesh. He has played 37 first-class games in all, scoring 1924 runs at 35.62, with five tons and 10 fifties. Before Himachal, Thakkar had played for Mumbai. He changed teams, Thakkar told the , because getting a chance to play was most important to him: “You know Mumbai cricket. There is always someone good to replace you. It’s part of the job. You’ve got to accept it. Sometimes, the selectors feel someone else is doing a better job than you. I have no regrets. I played with pride for Mumbai, but playing this game is more important to me than anything else.”Gujarat’s Bhavik Thaker also moved to Jharkhand. The batsman, who made his first-class debut in 2003, was a part of the Gujarat squad for the Ranji trophy in the 2012-13 season, but didn’t get a game. His last first-class game for Gujarat was in December 2011, while his last List A game for his home state was in February 2012. In 55 first-class games, Thaker has 3000 runs at an average of 40 with six hundreds and 19 fifties.Sanjeev Sharma replaces Dahiya as Delhi coach
Sanjeev Sharma, the former India seamer, has replaced former keeper Vijay Dahiya as Delhi’s coach. A Delhi District Cricket Association official told Dahiya was sacked because of his IPL commitments. “He wasn’t available for the whole season,” the official said. “He is associated with Kolkata Knight Riders and during the second phase when we prapare for Vijay Hazare Trophy, he will be busy with Knight Riders camps. Now we don’t want somebody who can’t devote full attention towards Delhi cricket.” Sanjeev Sharma, who played two Tests and 23 ODIs, and 89 first-class games and 61 List A games in a career spanning two decades – 1983 to 2003 – was Delhi’s assistant coach previous to this.Ashok Malhotra Bengal’s new coach
Ashok Malhotra will take over as coach of the Bengal senior team for the 2013-14 season, replacing former India batsman WV Raman, who had cut his term short in July citing family reasons. Malhotra, a middle-order batsman, had played seven Tests and 20 ODIs between 1982 and 1986. He was prolific on the domestic scene for Bengal though, at one time the record holder for the most runs in the Ranji Trophy: 7274 at 52.49 with 18 hundreds. After retiring, Malhotra had a run as a Test selector. He will have a job on his hands turning around Bengal’s fortunes, as they had a poor 2012-13 season, winning only one Ranji game in eight and losing four to finish seventh out of nine teams in Group A.Ganguly on Bengal’s coaching committee
Sourav Ganguly has been named chairman of Bengal’s cricket coaching committee. The committee’s primary job will be to organise coaching camps in Bengal to develop the cricketers in the state. Ganguly was previously head of Bengal’s cricket development committee.Powar joins Rajasthan
Ramesh Powar, one of Mumbai’s leading spinners, has moved from the domestic powerhouse to two-time champions Rajasthan for the next two seasons. Powar, who played two Tests for India, failed to find a spot in Mumbai’s playing XI on consistent basis last season. He finished the season with five first-class games and took six wickets at an average of 82.16. Hrishikesh Kanitkar, the former India allrounder who has been leading Rajasthan for three years, approached Powar and the offspinner agreed to take up the challenge of playing as a professional for Rajasthan.Sunderam appointed as Rajasthan coach
After succumbing to the pressure of entering the Ranji Trophy as defending champions for two successive seasons and finishing second from bottom in the group stage in 2012-13, the Rajasthan Cricket Association unveiled new plans to revive its team’s fortunes. One of the key decisions is Pradeep Sunderam’s appointment as head coach. Sunderam, a former Rajasthan pace bowler, has been instrumental in shaping young talent from Mumbai for well over a decade as the under-22 coach and bowling coach of the MCA academy. In the absence of a head coach, captain Hrishikesh Kanitkar and bowling coach Meyrick Pringle worked as the strategists’ team. Sunderam’s name was recommended by former India wicketkeeper Chandrakant Pandit, who had to resign from the post of RCA’s director of cricket last September following his appointment as the chairman of the national junior selection panel.WV Raman to coach Tamil Nadu
Former India opener WV Raman will coach Tamil Nadu for the next two seasons, following a contract with the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association. Raman, who was coach of the TN side between 2006 and 2010, recently stepped down from a three-year stint as coach of the Bengal team. “Quite obviously, when your home state wants you to come and help them out, you tend to lean towards it,” Raman told . “You are a part of the Association, you have played for the state for a long time and you now have the opportunity of ensuring that the team is put back on track. Most of the boys who should figure in the scheme of things going forward were under me in my first stint here. Things have since gone southwards. That is probably the biggest attraction for me – to try and get them up and going again, like in my previous stint.”<!– COMMENTED OUTHarmeet to play for Vidarbha
Harmeet Singh, the young left-arm spinner from Mumbai who was in the news after being questioned in the IPL spot-fixing probe, will play for Vidarbha in the forthcoming domestic season. After drawing praise from the likes of Ian Chappell during India’s triumphant Under-19 World Cup campaign last year, Harmeet played for Rest of India during the Irani Cup match in September 2012, and also played in the Challenger Trophy. However, he was not a part of Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy squad during the season due to a finger injury and poor form. The Vidarbha Cricket Association approached Harmeet in July and the spinner grabbed the opportunity, aiming to play his first full season of domestic cricket.END OF COMMENT –>

Gautam Gambhir has cut short his maiden stint in English county cricket with Essex to return to India for “family reasons”, according to a statement released by Essex Cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Sep-2013Gautam Gambhir has cut short his maiden stint in English county cricket with Essex to return to India for “family reasons”, according to a statement released by Essex Cricket. Ignored by the national selectors for a while, Gambhir had signed up with the county in August.”Gautam Gambhir returned to his native India on Sunday for family reasons,” the Essex statement said. “At this stage Essex Cricket and Gautam are unable to make any further comment. Essex Cricket is fully supportive of Gautam and very much hope that he will return to Essex before the end of the 2013 English domestic season.”Gambhir had an underwhelming start with Essex but followed up scores of 31, 21, 2 and 0 with a second-innings hundred on August 30 against Gloucestershire in a drawn match in Bristol.The short stint with Essex was Gambhir’s first outing since the IPL in May. He was not part of the India side for the Champions Trophy, the tri-series in the West Indies and the ODI tour of Zimbabwe. His last game for his country was the final ODI against England at home in Dharamsala in January. He was recalled to the national side for the final Test against Australia in Delhi in March, before missing out after coming down with jaundice.

Zimbabwe dominated the first three days of the first Test before succumbing to Younis Khan and the Pakistan spinners. They will face a bigger challenge on a pitch that will have had less than three days of preparation

The Preview by Abhishek Purohit09-Sep-2013

Match facts

September 10-14, 2013
Start time 1000 local (0800 GMT)Another trial by spin awaits Zimbabwe•Associated Press

Big Picture

In March this year, Zimbabwe arrived in the West Indies absolutely undercooked. Their only internationals in the previous 12 months: two Twenty20s in Hambantota. The two Tests in Barbados and Dominica lasted five days in all. They barely avoided losing by an innings in the first, but succumbed to the ignominy in the second.Six months later, in what has been a hectic year compared to the famine of 2012, they took a sizeable first-innings lead against Pakistan, and had them effectively 91 for 5 in the second. Then Younis Khan decided to restore order, and Zimbabwe went through one of their capitulations in the fourth innings. The first Test in Harare will become another addition to the long list of heavy Zimbabwe defeats, completely obfuscating their dominance over the initial three days. The scorecard of the Barbados Test says West Indies won by nine wickets but a closer look reveals Zimbabwe had a chance of taking the lead then too, having reduced the hosts to 151 for 6 in response to 211.With utmost justification, Zimbabwe keep clamouring for more cricket. Amid a crippling monetary crisis, they have managed to squeeze in six Tests, 14 ODIs and six T20s this year. The numbers would have been higher had the shortage of funds not caused the postponement of Sri Lanka’s visit. While there was the embarrassment of a 0-5 defeat against a second-string India side, there was also the ODI win over Pakistan, followed by the unexpectedly competitive performance in the first Test.It is a hopeless situation to be in. Very few tours to high-ranked nations because they do not see much value in playing you. Few incoming trips because your board does not have the money to arrange more. How do you improve? A glance at the FTP provides little hope in the near future. The second Test against Pakistan will be Zimbabwe’s last international match before the World Twenty20 in March. Can they make a final, bigger statement of promise?It will not be easy. Pakistan were playing their first Test in more than six months last week. Misbah-ul-Haq warned after the game that his team could not afford to start slowly repeatedly. Complacency, if there was any among the new arrivals for the Tests, will not be there this time.

Form guide

Pakistan WLLLD (last five matches, most recent first)
Zimbabwe LLWLL

Watch out for

Zimbabwe lost 15 wickets to Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman in the first Test. Their batsmen are not accustomed to facing high-quality spinners, and there is no shame in failing to tackle Ajmal when better sides have struggled to. But before this series, Zimbabwe were confounded by Amit Mishra. In West Indies, they lost 29 of 40 wickets to Shane Shillingford and Marlon Samuels.It is only going to get tougher. The Harare square has taken such a battering this season there are concerns over how the pitch will behave, with Hamilton Masakadza expecting a lot more help for spin. Although it has been kept covered to try and retain whatever moisture there is, less than three days is hardly any time to prepare a Test surface, let alone on a ground which has seen so much cricket in recent months. Junaid Khan and Co can be counted on, but again, the real test for the Zimbabwe batsmen will be the Pakistan spinners.Mohammad Hafeez averages 8.00 with the bat in Tests, all outside Asia, this year. He had two productive years after almost a decade of disappointment but questions are now being asked whether he fits in as opener in a format where he is not needed too much as a bowler. He remains important in limited-overs but he’ll be 33 in October, and even if persisted with for a while, is certainly not a long-term option. Which also means he will have to come good quickly, and often.

Team news

The one change Pakistan could make is to bring in the quicker Wahab Riaz in place of Rahat Ali, who took 1 for 105 in the first Test. Mohammad Hafeez ran gingerly between the wickets last week, after straining his hamstring in the third ODI. However, Misbah has claimed that Pakistan’s T20 captain is fit.Pakistan (probable) 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Khurram Manzoor, 3 Azhar Ali, 4 Younis Khan, 5 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), 6 Asad Shafiq, 7 Adnan Akmal (wk), 8 Wahab Riaz/Rahat Ali, 9 Saeed Ajmal, 10 Junaid Khan, 11 Abdur RehmanBrendan Taylor will return to lead Zimbabwe after missing the first Test to be with his fiancee and newborn son but has said he will not keep wicket. It is not often that Zimbabwe have to fret over who to leave out. Sikandar Raza was handed a Test debut after Taylor decided to sit out last week, and looks the most likely candidate to be omitted, although that is no justice for a man who made 60 and 24.Zimbabwe will decide in the morning whether to play a second spinner. If they do, it will mean a Test debut for young legspinner Natsai M’shangwe but they will have a hard time deciding which fast bowler to leave out, as all performed manfully in the first Test. In fact, they carried such a heavy workload – 161.1 overs – that Hamilton Masakadza joked they needed “bed rest and maybe a drip”. Brian Vitori could be called upon if one of them fails to recover.Zimbabwe (probable) 1 Vusi Sibanda, 2 Tino Mawoyo, 3 Hamilton Masakadza, 4 Brendan Taylor (capt), 5 Malcolm Waller, 6 Elton Chigumbura, 7 Richmond Mutumbami (wk), 8 Prosper Utseya, 9,10 & 11 Three out of Tinashe Panyangara/Shingi Masakadza/Tendai Chatara/Natsai M’shangwe/Brian Vitori

Stats and trivia

• Younis Khan is 48 short of becoming the fourth Pakistan batsman to reach 7000 Test runs, after Javed Miandad, Inzamam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Yousuf
• This will be the 12th international game this year at Harare Sports Club, easily the most matches at a ground

Quotes

“We can learn from their mental awareness and the way they switched on and off at different times in the game. We were on top of them for three-and-half days but their two best performers made it tough for us. If we can just switch on at the right times, we could do better.”

Faisalabad Wolves are upbeat about their chances in the CLT20 after undergoing two weeks of “thorough” preparation in Pakistan

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Sep-2013With their visa trouble firmly behind them Faisalabad Wolves, only the second Pakistan team to participate in the Champions League, are upbeat about their chances in the tournament after two weeks of “thorough” preparation.”We have been practising since two weeks. For a week we prepared at the local ground in Faisalabad, before moving to the National Cricket Academy in Lahore where we spent another week,” said vice-captain Mohammad Salman. “So, we have been thoroughly preparing for this tournament. We were very confident of participating in this tournament.”Faisalabad aren’t shy of international experience, with Misbah-ul-Haq and Saeed Ajmal in their ranks, but Salman voiced faith that in the youngsters making a mark as well. Two of them, Asad Ali and Ehsan Adil had made their Pakistan debuts this year.”Barring Misbah and Ajmal, we mainly have young and upcoming cricketers in our squad,” he said. “The teams that we beat at the domestic level had many superstars and still we managed to become the [Pakistan domestic T20] champions. It only shows how much potential our young players have and I am confident they are ready for the big stage.”Their opponents, Otago Volts, are the only team in the qualifiers who are not from the subcontinent and in hopes of minimising the unfamiliarity of overseas conditions, they had undergone training in Sri Lanka.”We had a preparation camp in Sri Lanka where we got used to the conditions and it was great, especially for the guys who hadn’t been in the subcontinent before,” their captain Brendon McCullum said. Their coach Vaughn Johnson seconded him by saying, “We played four full matches in Sri Lanka and the guys did a pretty good job of handling the heat and humidity there. We played on some spin-friendly wickets and our batsmen seemed to stand up to the challenges reasonably well.”Otago lost all their matches in their only previous outing in the CLT20, back in 2009, but McCullum was hopeful of an improved showing this time around. The side has nine players with international experience, including Hamish Rutherford, who made 171 on Test debut earlier this year, offspinner Nathan McCullum and Netherlands allrounder Ryan ten Doeschate.”I think if we’re playing outside of Chandigarh, we’ll probably be underdogs,” McCullum said. “But since here the wicket is slightly faster and bouncier than the normal Indian tracks, we can be confident that we have the right team to exploit the conditions.”

The batting of Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim is what everyone will come to see at the Shere Bangla National Stadium. Never before have two batsmen been in such good form for Bangladesh

Mohammad Isam05-May-2015When it is a two-man club, the exclusivity creates a mutual admiration society. Mushfiqur Rahim and Tamim Iqbal are Bangladesh’s only double-centurions in Tests and have a lot of praise for each other.Considering that there have been 340 200-plus individual innings in Test history, two is only a drop in the ocean. Pakistan have 38 such scores in their history.  Still, it is a worthy subject in Bangladesh and particularly among the duo who are now the flag-bearers of long innings in the country.After his 206 in Khulna helped Bangladesh draw a Test against Pakistan for the first time, Tamim said that it would be Mushfiqur who would surpass his 206. “I think it will be broken in the next 12 months. Mushfiqur is most likely to break it. He is our best batsman. I know that he is very happy about my score. He helped me through tough times,” Tamim said.To which Mushfiqur offered a smile, and some praise, ahead of the second and final Test in Dhaka. “That’s his personal opinion. I will try to play a big innings,”Mushfiqur said. “Tamim’s batting reflects how much he is in form. The way many of our batsmen are playing, I think any of them can break this score. Everyone’s individual game is now helping the team.”Tamim now holds Bangladesh’s highest scores in all three formats: 206 in Tests, 154 in ODIs and 88* in T20s. His two centuries and fifty in the ODI series against Pakistan gave him the most runs (312) by a Bangladesh batsman in a bilateral ODI series. He is now 149 runs short of the Bangladesh record for most runs in a Test series, currently held by Habibul Bashar (379 runs against Pakistan in 2003).But it wasn’t as rosy for Tamim, even as recently as the World Cup. There he averaged 25-plus in six innings with just one significant score, the 95 against Scotland.Before his twin centuries against Zimbabwe last year, he was going through a prolonged bad patch, his fifty against West Indies in Basseterre in September 2014 being his first 50-plus score after 17 innings across formats. There were calls for his axing. But it bothered him no ends, and after he had struck his second century in the ODIs against Pakistan, he spoke at length about the hurt he felt.Mushfiqur has been arguably Bangladesh’s first batsman to endure a consistent form. Since the 2011 World Cup, after his place was called into question, Mushfiqur has risen to be the team’s highest scorer in all formats. He is now 30 short of 4,000 runs. There is constancy in Mushfiqur’s work with the bat.Tamim can take a tip or two from Mushfiqur’s turnaround. Tamim has had bursts of form since his debut in 2007. But since the ODI series against Pakistan, he has been able to extend that run. It could have come through the constant questioning of his place in the team, just like with Mushfiqur.Both batsmen, however, are carrying injuries into the second Test in Dhaka. Mushfiqur hurt his right ring finger while Tamim was struck on his foot by Junaid Khan in the second innings. But Mushfiqur said that both were going to play.”Neither I nor Tamim have fractures. But we are also not 100% fit, but then we have to play,” Mushfiqur said. “Tamim is in form and there isn’t any reason for him not to play. There is some pain, but we will prepare ourselves. I kept wicket today and felt good. I will also do it a bit before the warm-up tomorrow because Test cricket is not easy and I have to do it for five days if I am to handle the job well. I may do it 100%, but whatever I can I will try to help the team with that.”The batting of Tamim and Mushfiqur is what everyone will come to see at the Shere Bangla National Stadium. Never before have two batsmen been in such good form for Bangladesh.

At a time when the paucity of spinners in England is such a concern, Monty Panesar should be pushing for an international recall. Instead, a troubled period has led him to take an indefinite break from the game

Tim Wigmore10-Jun-2015At a time when the paucity of spinners is a matter of profound concern for the England international side, Monty Panesar should be pushing for an England recall. Instead Panesar has endured a troubled start to 2015, leading him to take an indefinite break from the game and seek help from the Professional Cricketers’ Association.Panesar has only just turned 33 and is second only to Graeme Swann among England’s spin bowlers since Derek Underwood. But even his future as a county cricketer is uncertain. His contract with Essex expires at the end of the summer, and it is understood that Panesar is unlikely to be offered a new deal.Neil Burns, Panesar’s mentor and coach, had confirmed that Panesar had flirted with retirement earlier in 2015. But he now says Panesar, who he is working with extensively, plans to return to the game this season.”I wouldn’t want to put a timeline on that but hopefully soon. When he’s really happy with his game that’s when he’ll decide he’s ready to come and play full-time. Hopefully by being nurtured in a quiet way away from the spotlight he’s going to be right on top of his game as and when the time is right for him to re-enter the first-class arena.”Burns is working to reinvigorate Panesar’s love for the game. “At his best he bowls with real passion and puts all of himself into his bowling – so it’s not just a technical thing, it’s that real desire to spin the ball hard and be an aggressive spin bowler. That’s about ensuring that all of his energy is in the right place at the right time.”Sometimes when players go through ups and downs in their lives then one’s love for the game can be challenged. A big part of my work is helping Monty to get really back in love with the game that’s been such a central part of his life.”Panesar made an encouraging first step, albeit a very tentative one, when he recorded figures of 4-16 against Essex for Ravi Bopara’s All Star team in a benefit match for Bopara at Chelmsford on Thursday night. His career has been at a very low point. He must take hope where he can.”The performance for the All Stars against Essex was really important. Confidence for any sports person is the most important aspect,” Burns said. “It was nice that that happened. It was also lovely for him being in the company of some really good friends in the All Stars team who recognise his quality and realise that Monty is one of the most exciting talents in world cricket.”Panesar retains hope of playing for England again. “That’s one of the biggest drivers in a professional players’ career,” Burns said. “It’s only 30 months ago that he bowled Sachin out twice in the match in Mumbai, so that’s a memory that’s not that far away.””There are always going to be moments when you wonder if your time has come and gone. But everybody has it in them to be available and force the selectors’ hands through sheer weight of performance.”But it will be a long way back. Panesar’s last professional game was a Championship match at The Oval at the end of April. At the start of May Essex signed Adeel Malik, a 29-year-old legspinner who had taken eight wickets in 14 games in Pakistani first-class cricket, on a three-month contract. Aron Nijjar, a 20-year-old left-armer, has also provided spin in Panesar’s absence. A former England spinner who has fallen away from his county side so dramatically has much ground to recover.Panesar’s move to Essex had the feel of being a last chance. After getting divorced in 2012, he had a series of difficulties at Sussex. Famously, in August 2013, he was arrested and fined £90 for being drunk and disorderly after urinating over bouncers outside a nightclub in Brighton just after 4am. Panesar released a statement offering an “unreserved apology” for his behaviour, and soon moved to Essex, initially on loan, before joining on a two-year contract ahead of 2014.He has certainly provided illustrations of his class at Essex. Against Glamorgan at Swansea last August, Panesar took 11-168 in 73 overs in the match. In total, he took 46 first-class wickets at 24.86 apiece last year.Yet Essex have grown frustrated with Panesar in spite of these impressive numbers. He was dropped for poor time keeping last season, and there have complaints about his unpredictable attitude.Even in Division Two of the Championship, his consistently poor batting and fielding means Panesar can pose problems for the balance of the side. He does not fit into Essex’s limited overs plans, and has played only three List A or T20 games since joining the club. If Essex do not renew his contract, it might prove a struggle for Panesar to find a fourth county of his career. Burns said that a new deal “depends, I imagine, on how the rest of the season goes.”As he tries to find his way back, Panesar is working closely with a personal development manager at the Professional Cricketers’ Association. The PCA were not willing to disclose further details, although it is understood that Panesar’s current issues are not alcohol related.”One of our PDMs is working on personal development stuff with him. 81% of current pros are doing similar,” said Jason Radcliffe, the Assistant Chief Executive of the PCA. “It wouldn’t be right to discuss any of it.””What they discuss is personal and private. The programme aims to enhance cricket whilst not distracting from it and tries to ensure that players are best prepared for life after cricket whenever that might be.”Recent events have come as a surprise to many who worked closely with Panesar earlier in his career. Dave Parsooth, his former agent and a family friend, remembers Panesar as someone who “was quite strong and could handle himself” when he first broke into the England side in 2006.”Everybody is a bit shellshocked as to the big downfall,” Parsooth said. “He was good enough for England but I don’t know about now – I can’t tell.”

After conceding a 2-1 lead to New Zealand Women in the series, Veda Krishnamurthy said India Women had failed in the third ODI because of poor starts in batting and bowling

Vishal Dikshit in Bangalore03-Jul-2015India Women posted their highest total of the series. They put on their first fifty-plus partnership of the series. Veda Krishnamurthy surpassed the team’s highest individual score of the series and for the first time in three games, the team was not bowled out – but . The scorecard of the third ODI showed many positives in the Indian batting, in context of the series, but the margin of improvement did not seem big.India have struggled to get the runs from the start of an innings, have strived to put on substantial partnerships, and have relied on only one batsman per match. On Friday, it was Krishnamurthy’s 63 that hauled India past 150 to an eventual score of 182 for 9. She said after the match that the team has been “banking on the bowlers” to defend whatever total the batsmen put up, and that was also one of the factors behind the team’s decision to bat first in all three games, despite their struggles while doing so.

Worked on mental aspect of my game – Krishnamurthy

Veda Krishnamurthy excelled on her ODI debut with a 57-ball 51 against England back in 2011. Since then she has played only 11 ODIs, with single-digit scores in her last six innings, and her 63 today was only her second half-century in the format. Playing her first ODI series since July 2012, Krishnamurthy said that a few mental changes had made the difference to her approach.
“I worked a lot mentally because when it comes to technique, that was never a problem for me,” she said. “I used to fail because I used to lose it mentally and I had a good domestic season this year and selectors had faith in me that I am going to do well. It just came out well.
“I am playing a one-day (series) after two years (sic) so failing in the first game and not playing in the second, this game was very important for me as well as for the team to post a good total. Personally it helped me gain confidence for the rest of the series.”
When asked what kept her going in her efforts to make a comeback, she said: “I have a lot of faith in myself that I am good enough to play at this level. I was just giving in everything wherever possible and luckily this year came out really well where I performed at the right moment which helped me get confidence. And to come here and play a series and to perform has given me a lot of confidence.”

“We are just having faith in our bowling that we can defend whatever we post,” Krishnamurthy said. “Right now the bowling is the strength so three spinners playing in the XI and Jhulan (Goswami) being the top bowler, we bank on the bowlers for whatever total we post. It didn’t work out but this is the reason we were looking to bat first.”I think we played a lot of dot balls initially and there were hardly singles taken. Throughout the series, we have been losing too many wickets in the beginning and then whoever is going in has to build an innings and take it forward, rather than going and playing their game. That is the main concern.”India’s bowling probably relied too much either on Goswami, or on the spinners to trouble the New Zealand batsmen on slow and turning pitches in the first two matches. In the first ODI, the spinners took all eight wickets to fall to bowlers, and in the second Goswami returned with economical figures of 10-3-14-2. The scenario changed in the third match when New Zealand openers Suzie Bates and Rachel Priest came out with an attacking mindset.”We gave too many boundaries initially, we gave a lot of boundaries in fact,” Krishnamurthy said. “That’s where the game got out of our hands. We had to look for wickets initially. They were getting a lot of boundaries initially so at that point the game was in New Zealand’s hands because they had a good first-wicket partnership and to come back from there was very difficult. You have to expect a collapse or a hat-trick or something.”Priest played a key role in that opening stand, attacking the spinners from the second over to ensure that the partnership stayed intact, even if it meant scoring only a few runs from Goswami’s bowling. She scored boundaries off every spinner except Rajeshwari Gayakwad and scored the least against Goswami – three runs off 13 balls.”She [Goswami] bowled really well again today, it was just probably a sub-conscious mind shift for us that we were going to be aggressive against everybody,” Priest said. “She’s definitely their most dangerous bowler for us. We weren’t too worried about what we scored off her as long as we scored at the other end. She’s always going to be a threat to us but as long as we can be confident and play out shots against her, we’ll score against her as well.”After her 19-ball duck in the series opener and a watchful innings against spinners in the second match, Priest decided to attack the spinners the third time.”We had that discussion after the first game and just tweaked our game plans,” Priest said. “For me personally it was more about being aggressive and taking on the bowlers, the spinners in particular. It was about moving our feet and trusting our game. It (attacking) is an extension of my natural game. I think I went away from that in the first game which didn’t work for me, I think I might look to be more attacking.”

James Faulkner, Australia’s man of the match in the World Cup final, has been suspended for four international matches as he awaits trial on a drink-driving charge

Daniel Brettig14-Jul-2015James Faulkner, Australia’s man of the match in the World Cup final, has been suspended for four international matches and will not be considered for the limited overs matches that follow the Ashes.While playing for Lancashire, Faulkner crashed his car after a night out drinking in Manchester with his Tasmania teammate Tim Paine and was found to have been more than twice over the legal blood alcohol limit.Faulkner spent the night in the custody of Manchester police and will face court on July 21. However, Cricket Australia have acted swiftly under the board’s code of conduct to suspend the allrounder.His ban covers the match against Ireland, plus the Twenty20 and first two ODIs against England. Faulkner had been warned that a suspension would effectively rule him out of the tour.It is another blow to the tourists and a help to England’s chances of maintaining their upward curve in the short formats, begun against New Zealand.Team performance manager Pat Howard said Faulkner had accepted his penalty.”James has acknowledged the seriousness of his actions and has accepted the penalties handed down today,” he said. “He has cooperated fully with the disciplinary procedure and is deeply remorseful.”We have reminded James that his actions had serious potential to cause harm to him and others. Aside from the suspension handed down, he has been formally reprimanded for his behaviour.”In saying that, we do acknowledge that James has been a player with a good track record and we would like to think that this episode is very much out of character.”Howard and CA also expressed disappointment in Paine, who was also in the car with Faulkner at the time.

Mike Brearley, chairman of the MCC’s World Cricket Committee, has apologised to Giles Clarke, the ECB president, after suggesting Clarke would have to “do what he’s told” with regard to the possibility of cricket seeking to become an Olympic sport

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Jul-20155:00

Dobell: The times are a-changin’

Mike Brearley, chairman of the MCC’s World Cricket Committee, has apologised to Giles Clarke, the ECB president, after suggesting Clarke would have to “do what he’s told” with regard to the possibility of cricket seeking to become an Olympic sport.Brearley was speaking at a press conference after the MCC announced its support for cricket’s involvement in the Olympics. Clarke, who was ECB chairman between 2007 and 2015, is understood to be opposed to an Olympic bid.However, Brearley said there could be a change of stance at the ECB, after discussions with the new chairman, Colin Graves, and chief executive, Tom Harrison. Clarke became the ECB’s first president when Graves succeeded him and Brearley said he would have to accept whatever decision the governing body made.”Colin and Tom acknowledged that the view of the ECB has been strongly anti it, but they say they are open to rethinking,” Brearley said. “The president of the ECB is an employee of the board and has to report to the board. He has to do what he’s told.”The MCC has now released a statement from Brearley, clarifying his comments.”I have apologised to Giles Clarke,” Brearley said. “What I should have said was that if the ECB changes its policy regarding cricket in the Olympics, then it would of course be Giles’ job to present that policy to ICC. Giles is not an employee of the ECB board and I did not intend to imply that he was.”The latest gathering of the World Cricket Committee also led to criticism of the ICC’s decision to reduce the World Cup to ten teams, calling it “a handbrake for the development of the sport”. The committee, which is made up of former players and officials and is independent of the MCC, meets twice a year to discuss issues affecting the game.

Warren Deutrom, Cricket Ireland chief executive, is hoping to secure a steadier diet of bilateral fixtures against Full Members after playing just nine ODIs between the 2011 and 2015 World Cups

Peter Della Penna25-Aug-2015Though Thursday’s ODI against Australia is yet another in a string of one-off matches against Full Members that Ireland have had to make do with, Cricket Ireland chief executive Warren Deutrom expects that being part of the ODI rankings table may enable them to schedule 15 ODIs per year against Full Members ahead of the rankings cutoff in September 2017.”We’re targeting now something in the region of maybe 7-10 ODIs per year at home and hopefully maybe another 2-3 pre and post year,” Deutrom told ESPNcricinfo. “So we’re looking at something in the region of 15-20 ODIs a year. That’s going to be our primary focus alongside trying to be a Test country.”In January, Ireland scored an administrative win after being included in the 12-team ODI rankings table in order to determine the top eight sides to gain automatic berths for the 2019 ICC World Cup in England. However, after going 3-3 in the group stages of the 2015 World Cup, scoring on-field wins has posed a far bigger obstacle simple because of a scarcity of ODIs.Ireland have had just one ODI – a rained out one-off match against England in May – since signing off from the World Cup with a seven-wicket loss to Pakistan in Adelaide. In contrast, Pakistan have played 11 matches since the World Cup in a four-month stretch from April to July – against a combination of Bangladesh, Zimbabwe, and Sri Lanka – which is the same as the number Ireland had scheduled against Full Members in a four-year stretch between the 2011 and 2015 World Cups. Only eight were completed though, with two completely abandoned and just 10.4 overs played against Australia before rain halted proceedings in 2012.In the period between the 2011 and 2015 World Cups, only Pakistan and Sri Lanka played multiple bilateral ODIs against Ireland. Pakistan played a pair of two-match series in 2011 and 2013, while a two-game series scheduled against Sri Lanka in 2014 was cut in half by Dublin rains. As for away fixtures, Ireland only played against West Indies in an ODI along with two T20Is in Kingston.Deutrom, who is hoping to correct that disparity, said he has seen positive signs that may point to Ireland securing a steadier diet of bilateral fixtures, both home and away in the wake of the ICC annual conference in June. The relationship with Pakistan and Sri Lanka was reinforced with Tuesday’s announcement of four ODIs in 2016, two against each team, and Deutrom said Cricket Ireland is close to finalizing a possible tour to Zimbabwe in October.”For the very first time, talking with the ICC, the CEO went around the room and asked all the Full Members what discussions they were having with Ireland, Afghanistan and the lower-ranked Full Members to ensure that they can get enough fixtures,” Deutrom said. “Am I encouraged by the discussions I’m having at the moment? Yes, very much so.Ireland have played just nine ODIs against Full Member nations between the 2011 and 2015 World Cups•Getty Images

“We’re going to be heading down to Zimbabwe in October. We haven’t quite yet announced what that’s going to look like in terms of the fixtures but we’re in advanced discussions with Zimbabwe Cricket. It’ll involve a third nation as well. Next year we’re looking to have a reciprocal arrangement whereby Zimbabwe and that other nation would come to Ireland and we’re also pretty confident of playing at least four more ODIs at home.”In addition to the cramped schedule of fixtures, a perceived lack of revenue-generating appeal seems to be another reason for Full Members being reluctant to schedule fixtures against Associates like Ireland. To help alleviate this issue, the ICC has proposed an ODI fund to defray the costs of such matches and help encourage a series such as Ireland’s tour to Zimbabwe.Deutrom said he is trying to be creative to seek out dates for fixtures against Full Members. Ireland are scheduled to play Papua New Guinea – who have previously used Townsville in Australia to host matches – in an Intercontinental Cup match ahead of the ICC World Twenty20 in March. Expecting the game against PNG to take place in Australia, he is hoping to potentially arrange a few fixtures against Full Members on either side of the Intercontinental Cup match, and not necessarily against Australia.”I’m in discussions with another quite senior Full Member in terms of something prior to the World T20 itself, which is going to be in and around our Intercontinental Cup game against PNG which we’re hoping to play outside of PNG, probably in Australia and that’s something I’ve been discussing with Cricket Australia and with Papua New Guinea at the moment.”So if we think about opportunities at the beginning of the year, then the World T20, then our home series with 7-10 ODIs and then what we’re looking to arrange towards the end of the year through discussions with other Full Members, it gives me great encouragement that we’ll actually be able to achieve those numbers as well. Given the fact that the Champions Trophy is in England in 2017 and the World Cup is in England in 2019, that provides us with many more opportunities.”Despite the ICC confirming their place in the ODI rankings table in January for World Cup qualification, Ireland’s four ODIs against Sri Lanka and Pakistan for 2016 are the first ones agreed to since then. However, they have seen 14 guaranteed ODIs against fellow Associates as part of the WCL Championship disappear. Deutrom did not consider it a likely problem when asked if he was worried about other Associates being better prepared for the 2018 World Cup Qualifier.”I’m fairly confident that’s not going to happen,” Deutrom said. “Afghanistan is also part of the 12-team ODI structure. Now of course, Afghanistan and ourselves don’t want to be playing each other six times a year because let’s face it, the point of both of us being in the structure is not to have to play each other. It’s about trying to play as many of the teams above us. Why? Because it’s about trying to create more competitive teams on the world stage.”Of course, would I be happier if we actually had some guaranteed structured fixtures against all of the Full Members? Yes of course but the world doesn’t work that way and we’re trying to work around it.”