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Eight records that were broken at IPL 2021 auction in Chennai

Dustin Silgardo and Sampath Bandarupalli 19-Feb-20213:31

Did Maxwell deserve the price he got at the auction?

Morris becomes most expensive player in auction history
Chris Morris broke Yuvraj Singh’s record for the highest bid at an IPL auction, earning a winning bid of INR 16.25 crore from the Rajasthan Royals, INR 25 lakh more than the bid Yuvraj got from Delhi Capitals (then Daredevils) in 2015. The bid makes Morris IPL’s second-highest earner after Virat Kohli, who Royal Challengers Bangalore retained for INR 17 crore in 2018.ESPNcricinfo LtdGlenn Maxwell becomes second-highest earner at auctions
With his INR 14.25 crore fee this time, Maxwell has attracted bids totalling INR 45.30 crore in the five auctions he has been a part of – he got bids of INR 5.32 crore in 2013, INR 6 crore in 2014, INR 9 crore in 2018 and INR 10.75 crore in 2020. That puts him behind only Yuvraj in the list of players who have been spent most on at auctions. Yuvraj attracted bids totalling INR 48.10 crore over six auctions, Dinesh Karthik has earned INR 38.85 crore over six auctions, while Morris now has got bids totalling INR 37.96 crore over five auctions. This does not mean these players are the highest earners in IPLs, though, as players who have been retained at high prices would have earned more.ESPNcricinfo LtdK Gowtham gets highest bid for uncapped player
Chennai Super Kings bought uncapped K Gowtham for INR 9.25 crore, going past the INR 8.8 crore Mumbai Indians shelled out for the then uncapped Krunal Pandya in 2018. In 2016, uncapped allrounder Pawan Negi caused a surprise bidding war that Delhi Capitals won for Rs 8.5 crore, while Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab) splurged INR 8.4 crore on legspinner Varun Chakravarthy in 2019.ESPNcricinfo LtdRiley Meredith becomes most expensive uncapped overseas player
A 24-year-old fast bowler from Australia, uncapped Meredith was bought for INR 8 crore by Punjab Kings, making him more expensive than Jofra Archer, whom Rajasthan Royals bid INR 7.2 crore for in 2018. At the time, Archer hadn’t yet played for England. Gowtham earns 46.25 times his base price
Gowtham had set his base price at the minimum, INR 20 lakh, which meant that when he went for INR 9.25 crore, it was the largest jump from base price for any player in an auction. Previously, legspinner M Ashwin held the record – he had earned INR 4.50 crore from an INR 10 lakh base price in 2016.Getty ImagesFour 14 crore+ players at one auction
There had never been more than one INR 14+ crore winning bid at previous auctions. This auction saw four, with Morris, Kyle Jamieson, Jhye Richardson and Maxwell all going past that mark. The limited supply of gun players juxtaposed with some big budgets caused a surge in spending. The only other INR 14+ crore bids in auctions previously had been for Pat Cummins in 2020, Ben Stokes in 2017, and Yuvraj twice, in 2015 and 2014.RCB become franchise with most 14 crore+ players
No team had more than one INR 14+ crore winning bid in their auction history coming into this one. By making two INR 14+ crore winning bids, for Maxwell and then Jamieson, RCB took their number up to three – they had bought Yuvraj for INR 14 crore in 2014. The other teams with INR 14+ crore bids in auctions are Rajasthan Royals (Morris, 2021), Delhi Capitals (Yuvraj, 2015) Kolkata Knight Riders (Cummins, 2020), Rising Pune Supergiant (Stokes, 2017), and Punjab Kings (Richardson, 2021).Kyle Jamieson shatters the New Zealand record
The winning bid of INR 15 crore for Jamieson was three times the INR 5 crore Kolkata Knight Riders bid for Trent Boult in 2017, making Jamieson easily the most expensive New Zealand player in IPL history.

Also: who was the oldest wicketkeeper to make their ODI debut for England?

Steven Lynch13-Jul-2021Who has the most sixes off one bowler in a Test innings? asked Michael Murray from England

The answer here is, perhaps unsurprisingly, the same as the man who hit the most sixes in any Test innings. Wasim Akram clobbered 12 sixes in his 257 not out for Pakistan against Zimbabwe in Sheikhupura in 1996-97, and no fewer than nine of them came off the bowling of the unfortunate Zimbabwe legspinner Paul Strang. It rather ruined Strang’s figures: he had 4 for 64 when Wasim strolled in at No. 8, but finished with 5 for 212 (he had, however, made his only Test century earlier in the game). “Two things will stick in my mind,” wrote Wasim: “Just how tired I was after batting for more than eight hours, and Waqar Younis being bowled first ball after sitting with his pads on all that time!”Seven batters are known to have hit six sixes off one bowler in a Test innings (we don’t have ball-by-ball data for all matches, but there are not thought to be any additions): Bert Sutcliffe off Hugh Tayfield (New Zealand vs South Africa in Johannesburg in 1953-54), Navjot Singh Sidhu off Muttiah Muralitharan (India vs Sri Lanka in Lucknow in 1993-94), Andy Blignaut off Nicky Boje (Zimbabwe vs South Africa in Cape Town in 2004-05), Shahid Afridi off Harbhajan Singh (Pakistan vs India in Lahore in 2005-06), MS Dhoni off Dave Mohammed (India vs West Indies in Antigua in 2006), Chris Gayle off Suraj Randiv (Sri Lanka vs West Indies in Galle in 2010-11), and Ben Stokes off Dane Piedt (England vs South Africa in Cape Town in 2015-16).The Sri Lankan slow left-armer Rangana Herath conceded ten sixes in all, finishing with 3 for 240, as India piled up 726 for 9 in Mumbai in 2009; Dhoni hit five, Virender Sehwag four and Rahul Dravid one. (Thanks again to Charles Davis for his help with this one.)Was Mahmudullah’s 150 not out against Zimbabwe the highest score by a player in his 50th Test? And given that he has announced his retirement from Tests, was it the highest by an Asian player in his last match? asked Sunit Kumar from South Africa

That excellent innings by Mahmudullah for Bangladesh against Zimbabwe in Harare last week, much of it compiled with only the tail for company, turns out to be well down the list of scores by players celebrating their 50th Test cap: Chris Gayle marked his with a triple-century – 317 for West Indies against South Africa in Antigua in April 2005 – while Azhar Ali made 302 not out for Pakistan against West Indies in Dubai in 2016-17. There have been four other double-centuries (by Ken Barrington, Sunil Gavaskar, Javed Miandad and Bill Lawry), and in all there have been 17 higher scores than Mahmudullah’s 150 by players in their 50th Test match.Assuming he carries out his threat to retire, Mahmudullah will sit in tenth place on the list of the highest scores in a farewell Test (this excludes four current players who made higher scores in their most recent match). England’s Andy Sandham is on top with 325 in his final game, in 1929-30; among Asian players, Aravinda de Silva made 206 in his last Test, for Sri Lanka against Bangladesh in Colombo in 2002, and Vijay Merchant signed off with 154 for India against England in Delhi in 1951-52.Was John Simpson the oldest wicketkeeper to make his ODI debut for England? asked David Collins from England

Middlesex’s John Simpson was a few days short of his 33rd birthday when he played his first one-day international for England, against Pakistan in Cardiff last week. He was a few months older than Leicestershire’s Roger Tolchard in 1978-79. But England have had one older debutant keeper in ODIs, and he’s another Leicestershire man – Paul Nixon, who’s now their coach. He was 36 years 113 days old when he played his first such match, in Melbourne in 2006-07.In all, 22 players have played their first ODI for England when older than Simpson. Oldest of all was slow left-armer Norman Gifford, who was nearly 45 when he captained against Australia in Sharjah in 1984-85.Paul Nixon (right) was 36 years old when he debuted as keeper for England against Australia in 2007•Getty ImagesWhy isn’t Shahid Afridi’s name on the list of people who scored a century in their first ODI? asked Azhar Siddiqui from Pakistan

The answer here is very simple – he isn’t on the list because he didn’t make a century on his one-day international debut! Shahid Afridi played his first match for Pakistan against Kenya in Nairobi in October 1996, and did not bat, even though Pakistan lost six wickets overhauling a modest target. Two days later, in his second ODI, against Sri Lanka on a different ground in Nairobi, Afridi was pushed up to No. 3. He showed that Pakistan had missed a trick before, by blasting 102 from just 40 balls. He reached three figures in 37, the fastest in an ODI at the time (and still, nearly 25 years later, the third-fastest).Afridi therefore misses out on the list of those who scored a century on ODI debut, since his hundred came in his first innings but not his first match. It has to be said that this is rather hard luck on Afridi, and I think he should at least be mentioned on that records page; I’ve suggested that ESPNcricinfo add a footnote, if that is possible on what is an automatically generated table.I read that you have loads of cricket books – which one is your favourite? asked Michael Lewis from Australia

I’m aware that I’m very lucky to be able to work from home in a study surrounded by hundreds of cricket books (plus a few on tennis for good measure). That means it’s very hard to choose an absolute favourite, and the top ten would probably change every day. That said, a new contender did emerge last year, when Jonathan Rice – in his Notes by the Editors, a look at what the editors have written in Wisden over the years – kindly described me as “the man who quite possibly knows more about cricket than anybody who ever lived”. I’m sure he’s a long way wide of the mark, but it has to be said the quote could come in handy the next time I want a pay rise!Even given that description, I don’t think my No. 1 book has changed since I was last asked this question. My desert island cricket book would still be On Top Down Under, the study of Australian Test captains by the superb Melbourne cricket writer Ray Robinson. It was first published in 1975, and contains beautifully written fact-filled chapters on all the skippers. The book was sympathetically updated by Gideon Haigh around 20 years later (Robinson himself died in 1982).I wrote a little more about the book, and my reasons for liking it, in this article a few years ago. And while we’re tripping down memory lane, you might also like this one, about book collecting.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

He seems to have gone back to trusting his hands and eye, and allowing his innate attacking game to flourish

Karthik Krishnaswamy03-Jan-20224:05

Ashwin: ‘Maybe our total is a bit short’

It’s not often that anyone outscores Rishabh Pant in a partnership, but R Ashwin on a good day is a plausible candidate for doing so. And after four years when his gifts of eye and timing lay frustratingly dormant, the good days are growing in frequency.Having averaged 16.72 and scored just one fifty in 39 innings from the start of 2017 to the end of 2020, Ashwin has been back among the runs. He’s averaged 26.73 since the start of 2021, and his manner of run-scoring in this period has been as encouraging as the scores he has made.Related

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His 46 on Monday was of a piece with other counterattacking knocks he’s played of late: the 27-ball 22 in the World Test Championship final, and a pair of 30s against New Zealand in Kanpur in November. He moved into strong positions from which to drive down the ground and through the off side, prompting mental flashbacks to his early years in Test cricket when the languid elegance of his strokeplay routinely drew comparisons with VVS Laxman.That fluency had been missing for most of the 2017-20 period, a time when he tinkered constantly with his technique in an effort to get back among the runs.Over the last year or so, Ashwin seems to have gone back to trusting his hands and eye and allowing his innate attacking game to flourish – particularly against fast bowling. Since – but not counting – his stonewalling efforts to save the Sydney Test last January, he’s scored at a strike rate of 69.17 against pace, with 30 fours in 292 balls, a rate better than one every ten balls.Ashwin says he hasn’t made any conscious effort to go after fast bowling; his scoring rate, he reckons, has simply been an outcome of getting into better positions at the crease.”Look, in between, somewhere, for a couple of years, trying to get very technically right or whatever it is to try and build on scores, I think I lost a bit of my flow with respect to getting into good positions at the crease,” Ashwin said, at the end of the first day’s play at the Wanderers.”Even before that I have always batted at a good clip, so there’s not been a conscious effort to go out there and keep playing those shots. If it’s there, it’s there. For me, I get into positions where I can play some of those shots which maybe some of the other specialist batters might not be able to play, but this freedom is what gave me success in the past.”R Ashwin – “I get into positions where I can play shots which maybe some of the other specialist batters might not be able to play”•AFP via Getty ImagesThat line about playing shots that specialist batters might not be able to play is, of course, no idle boast. Even his briefest innings have sometimes been lit up by an incandescent stroke; think of the back-foot drive that he hit off Josh Hazlewood on a pitch of hugely uncertain bounce in Bengaluru, back in 2017, before being bowled by a grubber while attempting a repeat.There were at least three shots in Monday’s innings that might stick in your memory: an effortless push straight of mid-on off Lungi Ngidi, an inside-out drive through the covers off Keshav Maharaj, and an on-drive over midwicket off Kagiso Rabada.”It’s still about choosing [shots] correctly and also getting the flow of my hands right, which I think I’ve been able to get back ever since Australia, or a little bit before Australia,” Ashwin said. “[Batting coach] Vikram Rathour has been very helpful in terms of having those communications and also trying to get those things sorted in the nets.”Ashwin acknowledged that his innings got off to a flier because he got a few balls in his area first up, but he also felt South Africa’s bowlers may have helped him get into rhythm by attacking him with the short ball when he came to the crease.”The moment I went in I got a straight ball which I hit down the ground, then I got one which I hit on the up off Lungi Ngidi on the off side,” Ashwin said. “So the balls presented themselves, and I responded. There was no attempt to try and go there and play at that strike rate; sometimes it happens, sometimes it doesn’t, that’s the beauty of playing the game.”And also, I thought, getting a hang of the pitch. Initially they started with the short ball again, so I feel like whenever I get started off with the short ball, it gets me going a bit, so yeah, I had gameplans. Glad it worked out, and it’s also about building on and trying to be more productive for the team.”

Whether it’s bowling at the death or playing the ukulele, this has been a season of learnings for the left-arm spinner

Deivarayan Muthu21-Nov-2021In the 2019-20 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, R Sai Kishore had an economy rate of 4.63 – the best among bowlers who had bowled at least 20 overs. In the 2020-21 tournament, the left-arm fingerspinner had an economy rate of 4.82 – the second-best with the same cut-off.This season his economy rate has jumped to 6.50, which is nevertheless impressive, considering his new role as Tamil Nadu’s middle-and-death-overs spin option in their run to their third straight T20 final.In the last couple of years, when Dinesh Karthik was the captain, Sai Kishore was the side’s new-ball specialist. He has now fronted up to bowl at the slog for the Vijay Shankar-led side, in the absence of their designated death bowler T Natarajan, and Sonu Yadav, who did the job during Tamil Nadu’s run to the title last season.”When DK was the captain, I think we were a little sorted in terms of our death bowling,” Sai Kishore tells ESPNcricinfo on the eve of the final. “It was in the powerplay that he wanted me to bowl, but this year we were playing around our roles a little bit because we weren’t particularly sure of who will bowl when.”I also bowled at the death in the TNPL and this year I had a slot to bowl at the death. I read [the intentions of batters] Vijay (Vijay Shankar) and Jaggi (N Jagadeesan) when I bowl at the nets and the coaching staff has so much belief in me to bowl anywhere. Whenever they want to plug the runs or go for the wickets, they’re trying to use me.”On his 25th birthday, in Lucknow, Sai Kishore netted a hat-trick in the last over against Puducherry, pinning them down to 129 for 8. Sai Kishore says the birthday hat-trick hasn’t sunk in yet and that his job isn’t done yet.”I really didn’t know it was a hat-trick. Jaggi only told me it was a hat-trick,” Sai recalls. “I was worried because the first ball went for six, so I just wanted to end the over well because they had scored 120-125. I didn’t necessarily go for wickets and I just tried to be as defensive as possible. It happens in T20 when you get wickets by luck… I didn’t feel much and it didn’t hit me and I’ve to perform the next match. So, maybe after some time, in hindsight, it will hit me.”Being part of the CSK squad has made Sai Kishore ‘more confident in my game and my game-reading skills have improved’•R Sai KishoreSai Kishore hasn’t got a game for Chennai Super Kings in the past three years but being part of an IPL set-up and a stint as net bowler for India on their Sri Lanka tour last year have helped him grow into a more rounded T20 bowler. He has bowled in various phases for TN in the past three years in both the Vijay Hazare (50 overs) and Syed Mushtaq Ali tournaments, forging a potent partnership with legspinner M Ashwin.”In the last two years my game has gone up, having been part of CSK, though I didn’t get a game,” Sai Kishore says. “I would have learned, but it would have taken more time had I not been there at CSK. I’m more confident in my game and my game-reading skills have improved. So, in a game situation, I’m even willing to go for extra runs, if I can finish the match for the team.”I’m also grateful to have been picked in the India squad from domestic cricket without having played IPL. That experience has given me a lot of confidence as to what that level of cricket is, what is actually needed there and for all those things I’m grateful.”Previously, I also had the ego of bowling one more ball to dare him [the batter] to hit it. If they need 15 runs an over, I can actually be smart here and if I bowl tightly at my end, the other guy has the chance of picking the wicket. When me and Ash (M Ashwin) bowl together, we plan like that. If the target is huge, we can finish it off if both me and Ash bowl well together. That game-reading skills have gotten better that way.”On the flip side, Sai Kishore has had to shift from one bubble to another in recent times, going from the one in Sri Lanka to the TNPL to CSK to Tamil Nadu. Two days after the Sri Lanka tour, Sai Kishore joined the TNPL bubble and bowled Chepauk Super Gillies to victory with 4 for 30. Sai Kishore says he has learned to embrace the bubble life and that he has found other ways to keep him occupied.”CSK bubble was good fun,” he says. “I had Rutu (Ruturaj Gaikwad) with me and the atmosphere was very good. In Sri Lanka, the first one month was spent in quarantine and moving around the hotel. In the TN bubble, I always enjoy being with these boys, so I’m just trying to look at things that are working well.”If I don’t play here and be at home, I know I definitely won’t be happy. After coming from Sri Lanka, I felt I needed match-time, so I played the TNPL, and we won the tournament, so it was a very good feeling.'[Variety] has been there in the repertoire for some time, but I haven’t been able to use it’•TNPL”The bubble has gotten us closer and I’ve got into a bit of music and trying to learn new instruments. I tried violin and the mouth organ but didn’t work for me [laughs]. Ukulele, I guess, came decently to me.”Sai Kishore has also expanded his variations, but has put them back in his locker, instead trying to fit into roles defined by the team management. However, he hints that it might not be too long before he goes funky and unveils those variations.”It’s a work in progress,” he says. “There was one game in the TNPL where I tried to do something different, and I guess sometimes I should come out of the shell sometime soon. I’ve been working on a few variations, but I haven’t bowled anywhere. [when the team wants you to bowl that over for them], it’s slightly harder to go out of the pattern and maybe I should work on a way to bring it out somewhere. It [variety] has been there in the repertoire for some time, but I haven’t been able to use it. It’s similar to a batsman having a sweep and him not having the need to use it right now.”Sai Kishore was padded up in the dug-out when Tamil Nadu suffered a heartbreaking one-run defeat at the hands of Karnataka in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy final in 2019 in Surat. Two years on, he has become a more versatile bowler and one of the faces of a new-look Tamil Nadu side that continues to dominate T20 cricket despite the absence of Karthik, R Ashwin, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakravarthy, M Vijay and Abhinav Mukund.Sai Kishore and Tamil Nadu are now set to face Karnataka in another T20 final in Delhi, and he believes the 2019 result will not have an impact on Monday’s game.”To be honest, there aren’t too much emotions [from the 2019 final],” Sai Kishore says. “When we lost then, I was in my second [full] season – that was when guys like Jaggi, Hari [Nishaanth], Momi [M Mohammed] got regular game-time. Since then, most of these guys have played consistently together but at that time we didn’t have that much experience of playing a final.”I feel we haven’t played to our best yet this season – we’ve been here, been there, but yet to put together a complete game. So, we’re just trying to learn from the semis, quarters and just try and put on a show.”

And is Mumbai Indians’ eight consecutive losses the worst start to an IPL season by any team?

Steven Lynch26-Apr-2022Mumbai Indians just crashed to their eighth defeat out of eight this season. Is this the worst start to any IPL campaign? asked Narendra Vohra from India

Mumbai Indians’ horror start to the 2022 IPL does indeed turn out to be the worst yet: defeat to Lucknow Super Giants in Mumbai on Sunday meant they had lost all eight of their matches up to that point. Two other teams started an IPL season with six straight defeats – Delhi Daredevils in 2013, and Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2019.Apparently there was a suggestion online that Kings XI Punjab lost their first eight games in 2010, but that’s incorrect: their sequence included seven defeats and a Super Over win after a tie.There have been four cases of a streak of nine consecutive losses mid-season, by Kolkata Knight Riders in 2009, Pune Warriors in 2012 and 2013, and Daredevils in 2014. The record straddling seasons is 11 straight defeats, by Pune Warriors in 2013 and 2014, and Delhi in 2015-16.There were three double-centuries in the recent County Championship game between Derbyshire and Sussex. Has any match had more? asked Robert Sponder from England

The three double-centuries in that match in Derby earlier this month came from Shan Masood, with 239 for Derbyshire, and the Sussex pair of Tom Haines (243) and Cheteshwar Pujara (201 not out). I was slightly surprised to discover that this equalled the first-class record: there had been ten previous instances of three double-hundreds in the same game, the most recent two coming in India’s Ranji Trophy in 2016-17, in the matches between Delhi and Maharashtra in Mumbai and Baroda and Punjab in Delhi.The first such instance was by Barbados and Trinidad in Bridgetown in 1943-44, and it happened again two years later in the same fixture in Port-of-Spain (Frank Worrell reached 200 in both). It’s happened twice in Tests – by Australia and West Indies in Bridgetown in 1964-65, and Pakistan vs Sri Lanka in Karachi in 2008-09.Which bowler has the worst strike rate in Test cricket? asked Michael Robertson from England

Given a minimum of 50 Test wickets, the worst strike rate belongs to the former West Indian captain Carl Hooper, whose 114 victims came at a strike rate of 121 balls per wicket – that’s more than 20 overs for each one. Next comes Australia’s miserly medium-pacer Ken “Slasher” Mackay, who went for well under two runs an over but didn’t take many wickets: his 50 came at a rate of one every 115.8 balls. The worst among those with more than 200 wickets is another West Indian captain, Garry Sobers, whose 235 came at a strike rate of 91.9.Ben Compton became the 12th opener to bat through both innings of a men’s first-class match•Andrew MillerBen Compton batted through both innings of Kent’s recent Championship match against Lancashire – has anyone else ever done this? asked Norman Davidson from England

Kent’s new opener Ben Compton carried his bat for 104 in the first innings of the recent Championship match against Lancashire in Canterbury, and was last out in the second innings for 115. This was the 12th instance of a man batting throughout both innings of a first-class match, the first since Derbyshire’s Luke Sutton (140 not out and 54) did it against Sussex in Derby in 2001.Surrey’s Harry Jupp did it twice – against Hampshire in 1866 and against Yorkshire in 1874, both at The Oval. The only instance in a Test was by Desmond Haynes, for West Indies against New Zealand in Dunedin in 1979-80; he was the last man out in both innings, after making 55 and 105.Thanks to an odd-looking lbw decision, Compton was deprived of the distinction of carrying his bat through both innings – a feat achieved just six times in first-class cricket, most recently by Andhra’s Sudhakar Reddy against Kerala in Calicut (now Kozhikode) in 1991-92, and Jimmy Cook for Somerset vs Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge in 1989.Sunil Narine was run out without facing from the first ball of a recent IPL innings. How often has this happened? asked Josh Willmott from England

Opening with Aaron Finch for Kolkata Knight Riders, Sunil Narine was run out without facing against Rajasthan Royals in Mumbai last week. He was actually the fourth batter to collect what some call a “diamond duck” in the IPL, following Karan Goel for Kings XI Punjab against Royals in Cape Town in 2009, and M Vijay for Chennai Super Kings against Delhi Daredevils in Delhi in 2012 (both from the first ball of the match), and Colin Munro for Delhi against Royals in Jaipur in 2018, which like Narine’s dismissal was from the opening delivery of the chase.In all T20 cricket there have now been 22 instances of a batter being run out without facing from the first ball of an innings – rather neatly, 11 from the first ball of the match and 11 from the opening ball of the second innings.Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

Is Prasidh Krishna’s hit-the-deck style the way to go? Talking points ahead of India’s three-match ODI series against England

Shashank Kishore11-Jul-2022It is entirely possible the 2019 ODI World Cup final still feels recent, but the fact is that there is another 50-over World Cup upon us next year. While the build-up to it may still be muted, India, like many others, have some work to do. The three-match series against England beginning on Tuesday at The Oval will provide an opportunity for a few players to set things right, while at the same time being an audition for the others.Can Kohli banish talks of a decline?
The numbers are out in the open. It is likely that even the most disconnected fan of the game knows a century has been loading for close to three years. But it hasn’t entirely been doom and gloom for Virat Kohli the batter.Adelaide 2020, Chennai 2021, The Oval 2021, and Cape Town 2022 are a few shining examples. Ever since he gave up the captaincy last year, every innings has brought with it that much more scrutiny.Related

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Even for someone as zoned out as Kohli from external chatter, he is unlikely to forget that the count of century-less innings in international cricket now stands at 77. His struggles have been analysed threadbare, and mindset scrutinised to the extent that there has been a chorus from former players and coaches for him to take a break, which he has received in plenty; fair call to the BCCI there.But the men who matter – Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid – have continued to back Kohli.All said, the upcoming ODIs may be his best chance to shred talks of being on the decline and bring back that air of inevitability to his batting and hundreds, something that was commonplace when Kohli was at his peak between 2015 to 2019. For the record, he has six half-centuries in his last 11 ODI innings.Shreyas Iyer will need a big score to keep someone like Suryakumar Yadav out of the ODI side•AFP/Getty ImagesSuryakumar vs Iyer
Such stifling competition for places isn’t new to Shreyas Iyer. He wasn’t even a first-choice player in India’s Under-19 World Cup squad in 2014. But the reality is that while he hasn’t done much wrong in the opportunities he has got, his methods of handling the short ball have come under scrutiny.Iyer was in the form of his life last year before a shoulder injury sidelined him for six months. But in the time since, he has lost his IPL captaincy, was released by a franchise that he led to their first-ever IPL final a year earlier, and then saw Suryakumar Yadav, Sanju Samson and Deepak Hooda catch up with him as far as the middle-order stakes go.An average of 41 and a strike rate of 97 across 24 ODI innings means he should be an automatic pick, but the competition for places is such that he will need a big score to keep someone of Suryakumar’s calibre out. Suryakumar’s most recent knock was an unreal T20I century on Sunday. Like Iyer, he too has cashed in on every opportunity so far in the 50-over format. This middle-order jostle is a healthy one, though.Hardik Pandya last bowled ten overs in an ODI innings during the 2019 World Cup semi-final•PA Photos/Getty ImagesPandya’s return to 50-overs cricket
He has returned to bowling, and has done quite well so far in T20s, but can his body tune up to the rigours of the longer format? Can he deliver ten overs if required? How will the change in format affect his workload? There are a few questions which Hardik Pandya could potentially answer in this series. He has only featured in nine ODIs since July 2019, the last of which was in Sri Lanka last year when he was part of a second-string squad led by Shikhar Dhawan.In fact, Pandya last bowled ten overs in an ODI innings during the 2019 World Cup semi-final. So clearly, there is plenty to look forward to because the bowler in him lends India a new dimension and squad balance.Prasidh’s hit-the-deck style the way to go?
With Jasprit Bumrah being the pace spearhead and Mohammed Shami clearly still in the ODI plans, the third-seamer spot could be a juicy toss-up with a number of claimants in the ring.There is Prasidh Krishna, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj and now Arshdeep Singh. Among them, Prasidh has so far had an impressive initiation. Even on the most docile surfaces, his height and release allow him to get deliveries to rear up awkwardly on batters. Moreover, Prasidh does this at a fair clip too, at above 140 clicks. These, combined with a perfect seam that gets the ball moving both ways, make him an even more dangerous prospect on surfaces with some assistance.Prasidh had a breakthrough ODI series earlier this year against West Indies, and is being groomed to be the kind of bowler India saw in Ishant Sharma in his early days. Of course, the 50-over format wasn’t one that Ishant always favoured, but Prasidh has shown there is enough to work with if persisted.He is just seven ODIs old but has already picked up 18 wickets at an average of 16.42, and an economy of 4.84. But England’s destructive batting line-up could offer a stern test.

On an evening when it really mattered, the 19-year old soaked in the pressure and won it for his team – this time, with the bat

Danyal Rasool08-Sep-20223:21

Is Naseem Shah now second to only Shaheen Afridi for Pakistan?

It’s the 18th over of Pakistan’s first game at the Asia Cup, and Naseem Shah already looks done. He’s bowling to Ravindra Jadeja as India close in on a scrappy win. He’s been thrown the ball because Pakistan need wickets, but his 19-year old legs can barely support his body weight. He slumps to the floor almost every delivery, that expressive face contorting in agony. Oppressively muggy Dubai evenings and bowling at 145kph, evidently, do not go together.He’s helped to his feet, is basically hopping on one leg as he starts his run-up and then, like the flick of a mental switch, he canters in, gathering pace as he approaches the bowling crease once more. There’s no let-up in pace, and yet, the moment the ball leaves his hand, his body remembers what it’s being put through, and the pain overcomes him once more. He goes down again. Then gets up and again. And he does it over and over, showcasing a level of mental resolve that belies his teenage years.

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The occasion is finally here – Pakistan against Afghanistan. A city so full of migrants from both countries each of them has learned to call it their second home of sorts. Significant Indian interest in the game too, lending it an extra edge – a Pakistan win would put the giants of this continent out of the tournament.Related

• Naseem Shah's latest arrival feels like the real thing

• Pakistan have problems, and they begin at the top

• Tactics Board: Tackling Hasaranga, Sri Lanka's in-form openers and the toss impact

• Sri Lanka and Pakistan in dress rehearsal for final

• PCB to write to ICC to 'lodge a protest' over crowd trouble in Sharjah

Like it or not – and very few do – India, Pakistan and Afghanistan have seen their fates inextricably linked together in the world of geopolitics. That, for one surreal evening in Sharjah, it also holds true as far as cricket goes is an unusual case of sport imitating life. The narrative is delicious enough to be used as a cliché; of sport bringing people together, or, less pleasantly, chest-thumping jingoism depending on how the game goes. Thankfully, at this Asia Cup, there has been almost none of the latter.The hype around the game, though, seems misplaced at half-time. Pakistan keep Afghanistan’s batters in check, the 129 they manage the third-lowest first-innings score all tournament. Naseem allows just 19 runs in his four overs, the most economical bowler among his team-mates.

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If there’s such a thing as the opposite of a city, that’s what Lower Dir – where Naseem hails from – must be to Dubai or Sharjah. It’s chilly, mountainous, small-time and tribal as opposed to the desert metropolis that is the UAE. It was perhaps understandable the father tried to talk his son out of pursuing a professional cricket career in his early teen years, but telling Naseem not to do something is perhaps the fastest shortcut to making him do it. Even when it comes to a long shot. The boy was willing to take that chance, and the pain of almost certain failure was just the price he might have to pay.The route to the Pakistan national set-up sometimes feels less a pathway and more a maze, but the generational nature of Naseem’s raw pace and brimming potential was blindingly obvious. You didn’t need a pathway to discover him, only a set of eyes. And so, from the day he made his first-class debut, the national side had eyes for him. He picked up a five-for in just his second first-class match. He had not yet turned 16.But the road from there to here in the UAE wasn’t a straight line. There were doubts, setbacks, moments of exaltation, and, of course, a lot of tribulation. There was the loss of his mother on the eve of his debut, when the 16-year old Naseem was on the other side of the world in Australia. Things like this shouldn’t happen, a child far from home playing professional sport in the hour of his greatest grief, but Naseem does it anyway. It isn’t just physical pain barriers he plays through.Naseem Shah is joined by his team-mates in celebrating an epic win•AFP/Getty ImagesNot that there aren’t physical pain barriers to contend with, mind. There was a multiple stress fracture of his back that saw him in the hospital more frequently than on the field. Talk of wrist positions and run-ups quietly – ominously – gave way to chatter about PET scans and period of recuperation. There were issues with his shoulder as recently as this year, so any sense of his presence at the Asia Cup being an inevitability would be misguided.But as twilight gives way to the night, Sharjah, no stranger to cricketing drama, is adamant not to let this occasion become a footnote in history. This game might still be viewed by some as a proxy between India and Pakistan (and haven’t Afghanistan tired of hearing that before?), but Afghanistan have fought for their place in cricket’s biggest continental cup, and they will not let anyone else tell their story. Fazalhaq Farooqi (3-31), Mujeeb Ur Rehman (4-0-12-0), Fareed Ahmed (3-31), Rashid Khan (2-25) and Mohammad Nabi (3-0-22-0) take the attack on, landing blow after blow until a punch-drunk Pakistan just about sink to their knees. Asif Ali, ostensibly their last hope and the second-last wicket, is dispatched – first with a short ball, and then a bit of a sledge and a shove. He doesn’t like it – Pakistan don’t like it, but Afghanistan don’t feel they owe Pakistan any pleasantries.Finally, the boy from Lower Dir comes in. The last obstacle to a famous Afghan win. They’ve come agonisingly close each of the last two times against Pakistan, but this feels different. For Naseem might be a boy wizard with ball in hand, but wielding the blade, he’s a regular old Muggle.Farooqi steams in. An hour earlier, he had dismissed Babar Azam, probably the best batter in the world, for a golden duck. Mohammad Nawaz, Pakistan’s hero against India, and Khushdil Shah, slayer of Hong Kong, had proved no match either. So why would Naseem, with zero career T20I runs and just 63 in all T20 cricket, prove any match?Eleven needed off the last over. Farooqi strides in and misses the yorker. Naseem has a swing, and it connects, heading straight for a pocket of Afghan fans behind the sight screen who find their celebration give way to nervous anxiety. But one is no judge of success, and Naseem must do it all over again.It’s another full toss, and Naseem has another swing. This one isn’t as clean, and for the briefest fraction in time, the ball hovers in the air within reach of long-off, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan’s fates hanging on the path it takes on its descent. But Naseem’s thrown his arms at it, and if those arms can support a 19-year old bowling at 145kph, then there’s strength enough. The ball still teases long-off, but by the time the man puts in a despairing dive, Afghanistan’s fate is sealed.Naseem drops his bat, and, by the look on his face, his guard. Incredulous, he sprints towards the onrushing Pakistan players and staff. With the ball, there might be no end to what he backs himself to do, but with bat in hand, he is subconsciously giving himself the ultimate compliment: even he’s surprised by what he’s done.As the mood in the crowd turns sour and ugly, Afghanistan sink to their knees, their eyes shimmering as they take in the bitterest of defeats. This wasn’t meant to happen, but Naseem has done it anyway.

The defending champions need some crucial replacements after trading out a couple of players

Abhimanyu Bose21-Dec-20225:12

Who should replace Lockie Ferguson at Gujarat Titans?

Who they’ve got
Gujarat Titans, the defending IPL champions, released only six players ahead of this mini-auction and, rather unsurprisingly, have kept the majority of their title-winning squad intact.

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Current squad: Hardik Pandya (capt), Abhinav Manohar, David Miller, Shubman Gill, Matthew Wade, Wriddhiman Saha, B Sai Sudharshan, Darshan Nalkande, Jayant Yadav, Pradeep Sangwan, Rahul Tewatia, Vijay Shankar, Rashid Khan, Alzarri Joseph, Mohammed Shami, Noor Ahmad, R Sai Kishore, Yash DayalWhat they have to play with
The Titans have a total purse of INR 19.25 crore (USD 2.3 million approx.), and seven slots to fill, including three overseas slots.What they need

• A fast bowler. They traded Lockie Ferguson to Kolkata Knight Riders and will need a replacement, as head coach Ashish Nehra said earlier this month.
• Another Indian quick will also help, because they would want a back-up for Yash Dayal. Not to forget Hardik Pandya’s workload management.
• Having released Jason Roy and traded Rahmanullah Gurbaz to Knight Riders, Gujarat would also want to bring in a top-order batter, who can either open or come in at No. 3.
• And a fast-bowling allrounder, but with only Rajasthan Royals (INR 13.2 crore), Royal Challengers Bangalore (INR 8.75 crore) and Knight Riders (INR 7.05 crore) left with smaller purses than them, they may end up being out-bidded for the big names (think Sam Curran, Cameron Green, Ben Stokes) in that category.

The likely targets
Sam Curran would be a perfect fit, adding batting depth while also replacing Ferguson as a frontline quick. However, he will be in high demand and teams like Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings have plenty left in their purse and could break the bank for him.Reece Topley, a tall left-arm quick with a deadly yorker, will add to the team’s arsenal and might be easier to get than some others. Titans could target him as a like-for-like replacement for Ferguson.Jaydev Unadkat has a history of being expensive, but he brings with him a wealth of experience as well as form and confidence. He led his domestic side Saurashtra to the domestic 50-overs Vijay Hazare Trophy title this month, and also got a Test recall for India’s ongoing tour of Bangladesh.Mayank Agarwal is likely to be the most sought-after Indian batter in the auction. He would fit into the Titans top order, but they will face stiff competition from several teams.And why not Kane Williamson? He was released by Sunrisers and could become Titans’ glue at the top of the order. He can open the innings or play at No. 3.