A maiden Championship hundred for Harry Finch saw Sussex take a potentially vital first-innings lead against Middlesex

ECB Reporters Network05-May-20181:32

Harry’s Game for Yorkshire and Sussex

ScorecardHarry Finch’s maiden County Championship hundred put Sussex in a good position against Middlesex after an absorbing second day at Hove. Finch scored 103 as Sussex recovered from 127 for 6 to post 323 in response to Middlesex’s 230.A first-innings lead of 93 could prove crucial on a pitch which continued to provide assistance for the bowlers and Sussex’s position looked even better when Ollie Robinson took his eighth wicket of the match and David Wiese struck five balls later to reduce Middlesex to 9 for 2. But skipper Dawid Malan and Nick Gubbins battened down the hatches, taking their team to to 64 for 2 at stumps.Sussex had resumed on 60 for 4 but Finch shared important stands of 77 with nightwatchman Danny Briggs and then 96 with Michael Burgess before he was eighth out with the total on 242.Australian Hilton Cartwright pinned Briggs in his first over for 23 and then took out Ben Brown’s off stump before ending the Finch-Burgess alliance shortly after lunch courtesy of a brilliant reflex catch by Sam Robson at first slip. Ollie Rayner at second slip had parried a thick edge from Burgess into the air and Robson dived to take a one-handed catch from the rebound.Burgess struck the ball nicely through the off side in his 45 while at the other end Finch relied on steady accumulation although he did go on the attack when he pulled Tom Barber for six to reach his fifty.His century came up with a boundary off Ollie Rayner, the offspinner, and he had faced 201 balls, with 13 fours, when he was out to a ball from James Harris which was virtually impossible to defend as it nipped back and kept horribly low. Sussex’s lead was only 12 runs at that stage but Robinson, who had taken 7 for 58 on the first day, enhanced his allrounder credentials with a rumbustious innings of 52 from 57 balls which included six fours.It enabled the last two wickets to put on 81 precious runs with last man George Garton contributing a career-best 22 not out including a six to get off the mark. James Harris picked up the last three wickets to finish with 5 for 86 but Sussex had momentum and they carried it into Middlesex’s second innings.Briggs pulled off a smart catch at midwicket to remove Robson in the second over then Steve Eskanazi feathered an edge off Wiese in the next. But Malan and Gubbins batted carefully through the remaining 18 overs of the day and will resume on day three 29 runs in arrears.

Their first assignment will be the ICC’s annual meeting in Mumbai later this month, to discuss the playing conditions for the Test Championship in 2019 and the scrapping of the toss, among other topics

ESPNcricinfo staff23-May-2018Former Australia women’s captain Belinda Clark, New Zealand coach Mike Hesson and Scotland captain Kyle Coetzer have been appointed to the ICC Cricket Committee – for a three-year team each – which will convene in Mumbai on May 28 and 29. Among the topics for discussion at the annual meeting are the playing conditions for the Test Championship in 2019, the scrapping of the toss and day-night Tests.Clark has replaced Clare Connor, who completed her third three-year term on the committee. Hesson replaced Darren Lehmann, who was declared ineligible after he resigned as Australia’s coach following the Test series against South Africa. Coetzer was brought in for Kevin O’Brien as the Associate Members representative. O’Brien was ineligible after Ireland achieved Full Member status. Incidentally, O’Brien was the Man of the Match for his 118 against Pakistan in Ireland’s first Test, earlier this month.

Committee members

Chairman: Anil KumbleEx-Officio: Shashank Manohar (ICC Chairman) and David Richardson (ICC Chief Executive)Past Player representatives: Andrew Strauss and Mahela JayawardenaCurrent Player representatives: Rahul Dravid and Tim MayFull Member team coach representative: Mike HessonAssociate Members representative: Kyle CoetzerWomen’s Cricket representative: Belinda ClarkFull Member representative: David White (NZC chief executive)Media representative: Shaun PollockUmpires’ representative: Richard KettleboroughReferees’ representative: Ranjan MadugalleMCC representative: John Stephenson (MCC’s Head of Cricket)

Bangladesh’s batsmen have only themselves to blame for their wretched performance in the two Tests against West Indies, according to Tamim Iqbal

Mohammad Isam15-Jul-2018Bangladesh’s batsmen have only themselves to blame for their wretched performance in the two Tests against West Indies, according to Tamim Iqbal. He said that even when the pitch became easier for batting on the third day of the Jamaica Test, they couldn’t enter into a contest with the West Indies fast bowlers.Instead, Bangladesh collapsed to 168 all out in 42 overs as West Indies completed a series-winning 166-run victory. Home captain Jason Holder finished with 11 for 103 as their fast bowlers dominated the two Tests. Only two out of the 40 wickets West Indies took went to a spinner – Roston Chase. Kemar Roach and Shannon Gabriel took five-wicket hauls in the first Test while Miguel Cummins chipped in with wickets from time to time.”What happened here, there’s nothing to explain,” Tamim told ESPNcricinfo. “We only have ourselves to blame. Our batting was not up to the mark. We were playing on difficult wickets but these were not unplayable. There were exceptional deliveries but it wasn’t so bad that we couldn’t get 200 in any innings. Even today, we weren’t going to make 330 or 340 but it was a really good wicket to bat on. If we could have been in the contest longer, it would have been an interesting game.”None of the Bangladesh batsmen could total 100 runs in the four innings, The team’s series batting average stood at 12.60, their lowest ever. Only Nurul Hasan and Shakib Al Hasan scored fifties while Mahmudullah and Mominul Haque made 19 and 16 runs in the series respectively.The only departure from usual Test conditions that Tamim observed during this series was the use of the Duke ball. The last time Bangladesh played with the Duke ball was during their 2014 West Indies tour. Bangladesh regularly play with the Kookaburra ball both at home and in other countries. The Duke balls are known to have a more pronounced seam than the Kookaburra, helping the pace bowlers for movement off the seam for longer periods.”The only thing that was different here was the Duke ball which we were playing [with] after four years,” Tamim stated. It swings and seams more than the Kookaburra ball, but that’s the only difference. But it is not an excuse for our bad performance.”I think it was more mental than technical. The top six here had similar dismissals. I think we were prepared enough for tackling swing and bounce, but you can’t really prepare for a seaming track where the ball is cutting.”Bangladesh lasted 88.1 overs in this game, after having batted for only 59 overs in Antigua. They only lasted 883 balls across the series, the fewest by a team in a two-Test series since 1888-89, not counting heavily rain-affected contests. Tamim said that it was perhaps their biggest downfall not to bat longer and take advantage of lulls in a Test match. He felt that by batting for 60-70 overs at a time, they could have tired down the West Indies pace bowlers who played three Tests against Sri Lanka recently.”I have played in different conditions in New Zealand and South Africa. In these wickets, you have to spend a lot of time,” Tamim said. “You can’t play a big shot early. But I think our biggest downfall was not being able to keep them on the field for 60-70 overs at a stretch. Their pace bowlers were playing five back-to-back Tests, so they would have been tired.”If we could have stretched the game longer, we could have cashed in. We all know there are difficult phases and easy periods in Test matches. We never gave ourselves that chance. We got all out in less than 20 overs in the first innings in Antigua and here it was no different. We got bowled out in 40-45 overs.”Tamim also questioned his own performance, having scored just 64 runs in four innings, and understood he needed to improve quickly. The battling 47 in the first innings in Jamaica was the only highlight for him in the Test series. “I haven’t failed like this since 2014 so it is shocking to me regardless of how other people feel about my performance,” he stated. “I know that I have to be better at coping with this kind of thing.”From a personal point of view, I would say three out of my four dismissals were very good deliveries. But having said that, I should have handled it differently. I am a senior cricketer from whom people expect runs.”With the three-match ODI series starting next week, Tamim found some solace in returning to a more favoured format, although he said that they needed to shed the memory of the Test series quickly. He, however, warned that completely forgetting how poorly they played in Antigua and Jamaica wouldn’t be ideal ahead of their next Test assignment.”A different format would suit us but we are going in with bad rhythm,” he said. “We have four-five days to forget the Test series and rebuild for the ODIs. But I think we shouldn’t forget it completely. We should keep in mind how we did, before our next Test series.”

Sam Curran reprised his rescue act at Edgbaston, driving his side towards a serviceable total with a belligerent 78

The Report by Andrew Miller30-Aug-2018India 19 for 0 (Rahul 11*, Dhawan 3*) trail England 246 (Curran 78, Bumrah 3-46) by 227 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsTo think that Sam Curran, Man of the Match in that humdinging first Test at Edgbaston, was dropped for England’s Trent Bridge defeat for the sake of the team balance. On what had been shaping up as another ignominious day for England’s batting at the Ageas Bowl, Curran reprised his rescue act in that first match, driving his side towards a serviceable total of 246 by ignoring the match situation and the ineptitude of his senior team-mates.By the time he was last man out for a Test-best 78, bowled on the hoick against R Ashwin with only James Anderson for company, Curran’s efforts had disrupted the dominance of India’s rampant swing-based attack, exceeded the output of England’s entire rejigged top six, and turned a disastrous mid-afternoon scoreline of 86 for 6 into something for England’s own bowlers to rub up against. India capped their day by calmly negotiating four overs before the close, but with Anderson in particular making the new ball talk as ever, a first-innings dogfight remains a likely scenario.Much like England’s inexplicable descent into blind panic in this series, having cruised to a 2-0 series lead at Lord’s a fortnight ago, there was little warning of the calamity in store when Joe Root won a useful toss under clear skies and chose to take first use of a blameless surface that both captains agreed looked like the best batting wicket of the series.And yet, by the time Keaton Jennings – so desperate for runs after his stay of execution from Nottingham – had been bamboozled by Jasprit Bumrah’s lesser-spotted inswinger and evicted for a strokeless four-ball duck, the tone of England’s morning had been set.Sam Curran raised his second fifty of the series•AFP

India, to their credit, were outstanding and attacking from the outset, harpooning England’s batsmen with aggressive full lengths and an unrelenting command of the swinging Dukes ball that brought to mind the 80-over menace that made England’s 2005 attack so formidable.Joe Root, promoted to No. 3 and seemingly burdened by the need to be both anchor and enforcer, endured a ghastly 14-ball stay – he survived a stone-dead review for lbw when replays showed Bumrah had overstepped, but had no answer to his first ball from Ishant Sharma, another hooping inswinger that nailed him on the front pad and persuaded him to burn a review out of desperation. And when Bumrah atoned for his error by serving up a beautifully shaping outswinger that Jonny Bairstow grazed to the keeper, England were 28 for 3 and in very dire straits indeed.If there was a positive about England’s efforts in the first hour, it was in the discipline and confidence of Alastair Cook, who lined himself up on off stump to counter Bumrah’s javelin-like movement and looked as calm in his defiance as he has appeared all summer. But then, on 17 from 54 balls (a perfectly acceptable attrition rate in the circumstances) he lined up a limp cut to a wide ball from Hardik Pandya, and scuffed a top-edge to Virat Kohli in the gully. It was the dismissal of a man who had allowed his fabled concentration to waver, another uncharacteristic blip in a flat-lining summer.Not for the first time this month, England turned to Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes for salvation, and briefly the pair delivered in hauling their side to lunch and beyond in a 33-run stand. But Buttler, whose belligerence at Trent Bridge had met the desperate needs of their hour in that innings, misjudged the requirement on this occasion when, on 21, he flung a hard-handed drive at Mohammed Shami for Kohli to pluck a superbly sharp chance at third slip. Stokes, calm and collected for as long as he survived, was less at fault for his dismissal for 23 – another howling inswinger from Shami nailed him on the shin from round the wicket – but his review was once again optimistic as England found themselves six-down inside 35 overs.Enter Curran, with England’s series lead, no less, in the balance. Alongside him was another of England’s recalled allrounders, Moeen Ali, whose 40 from 85 balls was another vignette of an innings, packed with languid aggression, context-free boshing and ultimately a scuffed dismissal, as Ashwin ended a vital stand of 81 by luring him into a top-edged slog-sweep to square leg – a mode of dismissal that Nathan Lyon had turned into something of a trademark during the Ashes.But if anything, Moeen’s departure clicked Curran into overdrive. He plays every innings with the defiance of a younger brother in the back garden – undaunted by the more exalted reputations around him, and seemingly ecstatic simply to get a chance to have a swing.India kept chipping away as Curran grew into his innings – Adil Rashid was nailed lbw by another big inswinger from Sharma, so big in fact that it would have missed leg stump (there were no reviews left to reprieve him) – but with Stuart Broad loitering optimistically for his 31-ball 17, Curran danced at the crease, kept out the good balls and lambasted the rare bad ones, and even reprised his feat at Edgbaston by romping to his fifty with another six – this time over wide long-on, to go alongside his inside-out clout over extra cover three weeks ago.Curran’s self-admonishment in the wake of his eventual dismissal was telling – he clearly believed that a maiden Test hundred had been within his reach when he took one swing too many against Ashwin. But it wasn’t impossible, given the swing-dominance of England’s own bowlers, that he had already done enough to keep the match in the balance. Curran himself is sure to find some deviation through the air when his turn comes. Much like his batting, he usually finds a way.

Watkin, Bezouidenhout offered New Zealand women contracts after impressive performances on the tour of Ireland

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Aug-2018Jess Watkin and Bernadine Bezuidenhout have both been offered central contracts for the New Zealand women, after their performances on the tour of Ireland and England.Watkin made 77 not out on her T20I debut and 62 on her ODI debut – both against Ireland – with the second knock part of a record total of 491 for 4.Bezuidenhout, who played for South Africa Women in 2014 and 2015 before switching over, made her New Zealand debut in the same game, hitting 23 not out off 15 balls.”It really is a dream come true to be offered my first full-time professional contract,” Watkin said. “Getting a taste of international cricket in Ireland and England left me wanting more and it’s awesome that I’ll now be able to train and play all year round.”The 20-year-old Watkin and the 24-year-old Bezuidenhout are among four new players in this year’s list of 15, joining Canterbury Magicians allrounders Hayley Jensen and Kate Ebrahim, who made comebacks to the team this year. Jensen, 25, had last played for New Zealand in 2014, while Ebrahim last played an international game in 2015.The ones who missed out after being on the list last year are Rachel Priest, Thamsyn Newton and Anna Peterson, while Erin Bermingham has retired from international cricket.Priest is the senior-most player to miss out, having played 86 ODIs and 68 T20Is since her international debut in 2007. She has had somewhat lean returns in the last two seasons though, with 440 runs in 19 ODIs at 23.18, though her strike-rate of 84.13 remained healthy. She wasn’t picked for any T20Is in 2017-18, but in the four T20Is she played in 2016-17, she made only 45 runs at considerably slower than a run a ball.The players who have been offered contracts have until August 6 to accept the offer.

Fast bowler believes eight-week break until Sri Lanka Tests will be ample time to recover from exertions in India series

George Dobell12-Sep-20182:08

Anderson: Cook is an idol to me and the team

James Anderson, who became the highest wicket-taking pace bowler in history when he passed Glenn McGrath at The Oval, has urged the England selectors to resist the temptation to rest him for either of this winter’s tours to Sri Lanka and West Indies.Anderson claimed 24 wickets at 18.12 in the course of the five matches against India, and went past McGrath’s tally of 563 wickets by bowling Mohammed Shami with the final ball of the Test series against India. His performance defied pre-series reports that both he and Stuart Broad might need to be rested to cope with the demands of five Tests in six weeks, and it suggested that, at the age of 36, he is still operating at something close to his physical peak.The England team management is considering blooding a couple of young fast bowlers with a view to planning for life beyond Anderson and Broad, who is expected to be out of action for a month after suffering a broken rib while batting at The Oval.Anderson felt the natural break in the schedule – there are about eight weeks until England’s next Test starts in Sri Lanka on November 6 – provides time for them to rest, recover and prepare, even though he may yet be made available by the ECB to play for Lancashire in their final County Championship fixture, starting on September 24, depending on whether the club is still in with a chance of avoiding relegation.

Key players rested for final county rounds

Alastair Cook, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Adil Rashid, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and Chris Woakes have all played their final matches of the 2018 season.
Cook has been stood down from Essex duty in the wake of his England farewell at The Oval, while the others have been rested ahead of next month’s tour of Sri Lanka.
Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), James Anderson, Jos Buttler and Keaton Jennings (all Lancashire) have been made available for T20 Blast Finals Day at Edgbaston on Saturday, with Moeen and Jennings both available for the final round of Championship games.
Sam Curran and Ollie Pope can play for Surrey as they seek to cement their title bid against Essex and Somerset, but a decision on Stuart Broad will be taken after an assessment of his rib injury.

“Myself and Stuart don’t play white-ball cricket so we have that time to be able to get ourselves in the right frame of mind and the right physical condition to cope with what’s ahead of us,” Anderson said. “I think I have enough time in between Test series to prepare myself well and get myself in good physical shape.”We came into this five Test series in six weeks with question marks: will the bowlers get through? Will we need resting or will we get injuries? And we’ve done it. We pride ourselves on working hard.”Anderson, who has now been playing Test cricket for more than 15 years, also refused to be drawn on a retirement date following the emotional scenes at the end of The Oval Test as his close friend Alastair Cook brought the curtain down on his England career.”I don’t really think about it,” he said. “I play my best when I focus on what’s ahead of me: the next game, the next series, whatever. I’ll go away now – we have a decent break before Sri Lanka – and I’ll try to get myself in the best condition possible to cope with the rigours of bowling seam in Sri Lanka, which could be tough. Then we’ll see how it goes.”I read something that Glenn McGrath said that he went into the 2006 Ashes with no intention of retiring and by the end of it he thought his time was up. That could happen to me. Who knows? I don’t like looking too far ahead. I don’t think it helps me or the team either, when we look too far ahead, whether it’s in a session or a day or a game. If you look too far ahead, you take your eye off the here and now and that’s what I like to focus on.”Meanwhile, Anderson has hailed Sam Curran as “a diamond of a player” following England’s victory in the Test series over India.Curran, aged just 20, was named Player of the Series and singled out for praise by India captain Virat Kohli in the post-match presentations at The Oval. He claimed 11 wickets at 23.54 and made a couple of vital half-centuries – including an aggressive 63 at Edgbaston which helped England recover from a precarious 87 for 7 – in averaging 38.85 with the bat.After Kohli noted Curran’s “important contributions” as a defining feature in the result, Anderson was full of praise for both Curran’s skill and character, suggesting the all-round depth he provided would prove a huge asset for England.”I think we’ve found a gem there,” Anderson said. “He’s an absolute diamond of a player to be able to score runs in crucial situations or to be given the ball in any situation. He’s extremely skilful with the ball and he loves the battle and the fight that Test cricket brings. He offers us that left-arm option as well.”I think we’ve made really good strides in this series. We’ve had a really inconsistent period in Test cricket and it’s something that we’ve really tried to do something about and make sure we improve and put in more consistent performances. I think we’ve done that.”We always knew we had a pretty strong team and some really exciting talent in there. We’re lucky that we’ve added to that this series.”

It will precede Australia’s three-T20I series against Pakistan starting October 24

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Oct-2018UAE will play their first T20I against Australia, by hosting them in Abu Dhabi on October 22. It precedes Australia’s three-T20I series against Pakistan in the UAE that starts from October 24.The game was handed T20I status after both Cricket Australia and the Pakistan Cricket Board sanctioned the move. It will start at 2pm local time at the Abu Dhabi Zayed Cricket Stadium (Oval 1) ground, with free entry to the ground.”We are delighted to be in a position to announce this fixture and we are extremely grateful to the ICC for their support in accrediting the Abu Dhabi Oval for T20 international cricket at such short notice,” Zayed Abbas, Emirates Cricket Board spokesperson said. “Our thanks also goes out to to Cricket Australia for approaching this opportunity so positively, and especially to the Pakistan Cricket Board for permitting this match during their home tour in the UAE with Australia. It has been an incredible effort from all parties to bring this match to fruition.”Waleed Bukhatir, UAE chief selector, said: “This match will provide an exceptionally good test for our players. We need them to be put under pressure and for them to focus more intently by being challenged by higher ranked, leading teams within our game. To do so it is vitally important for the Full member countries, and the ICC to support and provide the Associates with such opportunities.”UAE have played 26 T20 internationals with nine wins and 17 losses. Their last T20I assignment was against PNG at home in April 2017, when they swept the series 3-0.

Sunrisers completely retained their bowling unit, while offloading the England duo of Hales and Jordan

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Nov-2018David Warner will don the orange for Sunrisers Hyderabad again in 2019, two years after he last featured for the franchise. Warner, the designated captain, missed the 2018 season following the Newlands ball-tampering scandal.Sunrisers, however, released India wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha, the England duo of Alex Hales and Chris Jordan, and West Indies T20I captain Carlos Brathwaite.

Sunrisers squad

Retained: Basil Thampi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Hooda, Manish Pandey, T Natarajan, Ricky Bhui, Sandeep Sharma, Siddarth Kaul, Shreevats Goswami (wk), Khaleel Ahmed, Yusuf Pathan, Billy Stanlake, David Warner, Kane Williamson, Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi
Traded in: Abhishek Sharma, Vijay Shankar, Shahbaz Nadeem (from Daredevils)
Released: Sachin Baby, Tanmay Agarwal, Wriddhiman Saha, Chris Jordan, Carlos Brathwaite, Alex Hales, Bipul Sharma, Mehdi Hasan
Traded out: Shikhar Dhawan (to Daredevils)

Saha was Sunrisers’ first-choice wicketkeeper through IPL 2018, but suffered a finger injury during the second Qualifier against Kolkata Knight Riders in May. Thereafter, Saha was diagnosed with a shoulder injury and missed India’s Tests against Afghanistan and England and will not be available for the upcoming Australia series as well. Shreevats Goswami, who kept wicket following Saha’s injury, has been retained.In all, Sunrisers retained six foreigners. Joining Warner were Australia fast bowler Billy Stanlake, Kane Williamson and the all-round trio of Shakib Al Hasan, Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi. Sunrisers, however, did not specify a team captain. With Warner set to return, the franchise is spoilt for captaincy choices.The other players released were Sachin Baby, Tanmay Agarwal, Bipul Sharma and Mehdi Hassan. None of them had played for Sunrisers in IPL 2018.Earlier this month, Shikhar Dhawan was traded to Delhi Daredevils, after he felt “unsettled” at the franchise. Sunrisers had received the services of allrounders Vijay Shankar and Abhishek Sharma, and the left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem from Daredevils in return.

Allrounder Hussain Talat and batsman Shan Masood, who are both uncapped in ODI cricket, were called up to the squad

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Jan-2019Fast bowler Mohammad Amir and wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan have been recalled into Pakistan’s ODI squad for the five-match series in South Africa. Seam-bowling allrounder Hussain Talat and batsman Shan Masood, who are both uncapped in ODI cricket, were also called up to the squad.Asif Ali and Junaid Khan, who were part of the ODI squad for the New Zealand series in the UAE, have been left out while Haris Sohail is recovering from a knee injury.Since the Champions Trophy final in June 2017, Amir has played only 10 ODIs, managing just three wickets at an average of 100.66. Amir, though, showed excellent form in the first two Tests in South Africa, picking up eight wickets at an average of 23.87.
“Amir’s good performance in the Test series not only made him an automatic selection, but also helped us in the decision to rest Abbas,” Inzamam-ul-Haq, the chief selector, said.Inzamam clarified that Junaid was left out because of “fitness issues” while Asif was dropped after scoring 9 in the only ODI he played against New Zealand. Despite smashing a 33-ball 80 for Cape Town Blitz in the 20-over Mzansi Super League in South Africa and then hitting a 62-ball 97 not out for Islamabad in the National T20 Cup, Asif was omitted.”Junaid Khan has not been considered for this tour because we feel he has to work more on his bowling since the fitness issues that he had cut short his series against New Zealand.”Asif Ali has been dropped due to an inconsistent and below-par performance. In his place, we have decided to give Hussain Talat an opportunity to show his mettle and skills. He is a good left-handed batsman, who can also bowl.”ALSO READ: Shan Masood, from accidental starter to unlikely starTalat, who was Asif’s team-mate in the MSL, though, was rewarded for his good performances for the Pakistan emerging team in the 50-over tournament and the National T20 Cup. He had struck a match-winning 116 off 109 balls against UAE in Karachi in December last year. He followed it with 149 runs and six wickets in four matches in the domestic T20 tournament. Talat has been earmarked as an exciting talent from the 2017 PSL, when he cracked a 39-ball 56 for Islamabad United.Rizwan, who had last played an ODI in January 2017, was also rewarded for fine run with the emerging team as well as the A team. He is the second wicketkeeper in the squad, behind captain Sarfraz Ahmed.Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Afridi and Usman Khan form the seam attack along with the recalled Amir while legspinner Shadab Khan, who is now fit to play the third Test in Johannesburg and left-arm spinner Imad Wasim are the only frontline spin options.Masood, who wasn’t initially in the fray for the Test series now finds himself in the ODI squad as well. He will be vying for a role in the middle order that includes Babar Azam, Shoaib Malik and Sarfraz.Pakistan ODI squad: Sarfraz Ahmed (capt & wk), Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Hasan Ali, Hussain Talat, Imad Wasim, Imam-ul-Haq, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Hafeez, Mohammad Rizwan, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Afridi, Shan Masood, Shoaib Malik, Usman Khan

With a chance to go up to third place in the Test rankings, the New Zealand batting coach hopes the team can find its due reward for long-term excellence

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Christchurch24-Dec-2018New Zealand have trounced West Indies 2-0, squeezed past England 1-0, snatched a series away from Pakistan 2-1 in the UAE, and now the series against Sri Lanka comes down to one Test in Christchurch. With the chance to go 4-0 in terms of Test series in the last year, this is the opportunity to move up one spot to third in the Test rankings – reward for long-term excellence in the format, despite a frustratingly light Test schedule.”[Four consecutive series] wins would mean a lot to the side, in terms of consistency of winning against some very good opposition,” batting coach Craig McMillan said. “Quite often, when you’re talking about international sport, and cricket in particular, you’re talking about consistency. We’re very proud of our home record, and that’s the challenge for us now. This is a one-off Test, and the series is on the line.”The victory in the UAE had been especially important – New Zealand becoming the first non-Asian side since 2013 to win a Test against Pakistan there, and the first non-Asian side ever to win a series. “We’ve been challenged in a lot of areas in a lot of different conditions,” McMillan said. “This side has always found a way. They’re just finding a way to win, to perform well, which is all you can ask as a coach – that you adapt, that you have good gameplans, and you go out and just worry about executing. The challenge for us is just to do that for another five days.”In order to stretch their winning record, however, New Zealand’s batsmen will have to negotiate what are likely to be very seam-friendly conditions, on one of the most lively decks in the country. The first session of the match shapes as a vital one, McMillan said.”You know what you’re going to get at Hagley – it has pace and bounce. It’s something as a side we’re always looking for. It suits the bowlers and suits the batsmen.”History says you win the toss and you generally bowl at Hagley. There’s been plenty of times when we’ve won the toss and we’ve had to bat first. It’s about getting your head around it and adapting to the conditions. Quite often, that first session is crucial – especially if the sun is out and there’s a bit of wind about, it can be a pretty good batting track later in the day. It will be challenging for that first session.”Whether New Zealand bat first or not, opener Jeet Raval’s performances may be under the microscope. Raval has been a frequent contributor to the New Zealand cause, but is yet to cross fifty in 10 innings this year. Twenty-five innings into his Test career, he’s also yet to make a triple-figure score.”One of the messages to Jeet is that he’s actually batting very well at the moment,” McMillan said. “He’s made some errors, and errors can be very fatal at the Test level. The key for him is trying to eliminate those. In terms of some of his decision-making up to the point he’s got out, that’s some of the best I’ve seen him bat. He’s got a lot of confidence from that.”