The drubbing at the hands of Australia suggests a £20m investment by the ECB cannot come soon enough

Matt Roller30-Jul-2019The inquest into England women’s thrashing by Australia is on in full swing, and the tone is predictably funereal. It would hardly be an Ashes drubbing without much weeping and gnashing of teeth by the defeated side, and this series has proved no different.The facts are there for all to see. Australia retained the Ashes at the earliest possible opportunity; they lead 12-2 overall with one game to play, and England are only on the board thanks to the quirk of the points system giving the teams two each, rather than none, for a drawn Test.Across the formats, Australia have four of the five leading run-scorers, and four of the six leading wicket-takers. Ellyse Perry has dismissed Amy Jones four times in the 25 balls she has bowled at her; Anya Shrubsole, the star of the 2017 World Cup final, has taken five wickets at 50.60. No matter where you look, the picture is bleak.But perhaps the most surprising thing about this defeat is that it has come as a surprise at all.Yes, England had won 14 white-ball games on the bounce, a record not to be sniffed at. But consider this: since 2018, Australia have lost two games in all formats – one of which was against India in a dead rubber at the World T20 – and won 29. They have five times the number of professional cricketers that England do. In Perry and Meg Lanning, they possess two of the game’s modern greats.Of course, losing five white-ball games in a row is nobody’s idea of fun – this is England’s worst run since 2007 – and the manner of the defeats at Grace Road and Chelmsford bordered on embarrassing.But heavy defeats do not spring about simply through a lack of application or talent: the simple truth is that England’s domestic structure is miles behind Australia’s.Before its first season in 2016, the Kia Super League was sold as a silver bullet, but has hardly produced many stars. The only two English players in last season’s top ten run-scorers were Heather Knight and Nat Sciver, both established internationals already; the best domestic bowlers were Sophie Ecclestone, who has been around the national squad for several years, and Kirstie Gordon, whose struggles in the Test at Taunton were there for all to see.The KSL was sold as a silver bullet, but overseas players like Rachel Priest (left) and Sophie Devine (right) have dominated•Getty Images

Meanwhile, the noise around a mooted domestic restructure has been a source of confusion. Plans to remove funding for county cricket were greeted with predictable dissatisfaction, and after a consultation process, the ECB will now run and fund a county T20 competition in 2020 and 2021.The headline, though, is that around ten regional teams will play 50- and 20-over cricket from next year, in a bid to give 100 or so players the opportunity to make a living from the game, while contracts for The Hundred are expected to be substantially more lucrative than what is currently on offer in the KSL.For now, there is no easy fix. The 21 players currently holding central contracts will continue to form the basis of the side for a few years yet, and England will continue to be dominant against most teams, and struggle against Australia.”We’re investing £20 million in the next two years into transforming the game for women and girls,” Claire Connor, the managing director of women’s cricket at the ECB, told after the second T20I at Hove. “We’ve got six priorities within the new strategy, and transforming the game for women and girls is one of those six.”We had a very important board meeting last week at which the full two-year plan as to how that £20 million of investment will all break down. That was all approved by the board last week so whilst this [Ashes series] was disappointing and there are huge lessons for us all to learn, we must be very optimistic about the opportunity that lies ahead for us.”[Australia’s] system over the last four or five years has put them in a really good position for this Ashes series, and whilst we’ve had the Kia Super League over the last four years, which has undoubtedly helped bridge the gap between our domestic game and the international game, there is a huge amount more we need to do. Australia have capitalised on the investment and the plan that they’ve made over the last four or five years and they’ve played some outstanding cricket this summer.”Tammy Beaumont, one of the few England players to come out of this series with her reputation enhanced, is of the same view. “You see how Australia have gone about their things,” she said. “The number of players that are coming into their squad – they’re 20-year-old superstars.”But it will take time, it’s not a quick fix by any means. At the moment we’ve got a lot of belief in the group we’ve got, we’ve got to change a few things and work really hard and come back stronger, but looking to the future in maybe four years, five years’ time, that’s what’s got to happen.”In the immediate term, the focus is on February’s T20 World Cup in Australia. An international system with such clear disparities between sides means that England can already be confident of reaching the semi-finals. With Australia, India, and New Zealand all drawn in the other group, England’s pool looks much the easier of the two, and a semi-final exit could hardly be considered an awful return.Until that point, the ECB will be keen to ensure that as many of the squad as possible plays in the WBBL this winter, before moving into a tri-series with Australia and India at the start of 2020.And the immediate focus is on winning Wednesday night’s game at Bristol: it is a dead rubber in theory, but England are desperate to register a consolation victory. If they do, the dreary mood about the side might finally start to lift.

Afghanistan allrounder will continue to play white-ball cricket, but wants younger players to take over in the longest format

Mohammad Isam06-Sep-2019Afghanistan allrounder Mohammad Nabi has informed the Afghanistan Cricket Board of his decision to retire from Test cricket after the ongoing one-off game in Bangladesh.Nazim Zar Abdur Rahim Zai, the team manager, made a statement at the end of the second day’s play in Chattogram saying that Nabi, 34, would continue to play white-ball cricket, but wants younger players to take his place in the longest format.”Though this is very early for Nabi to stop playing Test matches, this being his third Test match, he will resign from Test matches and this is his last Test,” the team manager said. “I hope he plays well. He bowled well today. He told me that newcomers will join Tests, though he will continue in ODI and T20Is for Afghanistan.”Nabi has been one of Afghanistan’s most influential cricketers right from the time they started playing international cricket, or even in the period when they were coming up the ranks to where they are now.He has been a popular pick and a consistent representative for Afghanistan in the worldwide T20 circuit. Including the IPL and the Big Bash League, Nabi has played in most major domestic T20 leagues for several years, apart from also playing almost every game for Afghanistan.Most recently, Nabi had made a strong impression in the Vitality Blast for Kent, taking eight wickets and scoring 147 runs.

Seamer says call from Ed Smith – while on the golf course – comes as a “nice surprise” after a disappointing Finals Day

Matt Roller23-Sep-2019Pat Brown was playing golf when he got a phone call from Ed Smith on Monday afternoon, and had to interrupt the round with a request to his partner: “Pick my ball up – I’m going to be five minutes.”England’s national selector called Brown to let him know that he was part of England’s squad to play five T20 internationals in New Zealand this winter, and the 21-year-old seamer said he was “speechless” in response.”It’s absolutely incredible,” he told ESPNcricinfo. “I didn’t really expect it to be honest. It’s a nice surprise to have after a disappointing day on Saturday [Finals Day].”ALSO READ: Brown hopes to stave off sophomore syndrome after breakthrough yearWhile Brown’s 2019 season was slightly less eye-catching than his breakout campaign this year, he still ended the tournament with 17 wickets at an impressive economy rate of 8.12. He again shone on Finals Day, with a combined return of 3 for 49 from his eight overs across the semi-final and the final, despite Worcestershire’s eventual last-ball defeat to Essex.Brown’s temperament was particularly notable – he exchanged glares with Dan Christian in the semi-final after dismissing him, and didn’t celebrate after taking the wicket of Paul Walter in the 19th over of the final – and Smith told him that his level of self-assurance was an important part of the decision to call him up.”Ed basically said that they were really impressed with my skills, but also my manner, in terms of how I’ve dealt with the pressure in certain situations,” Brown said, “and being in control, not rushing things, making sure I do what I want to do, and having real clarity in what I’m doing. He said that was impressive, and that it gives off a good image of being in control.”Brown suggested that his battle with Christian on Saturday had been “blown out of proportion”, and that he hadn’t been helped by the TV cameras.Pat Brown glares at Dan Christian after dismissing him•Getty Images

“The cameras made it look worse,” he said. “I celebrated, like, ten yards away from him, but the angle made it look like it was right next to him. I let out quite a roar, and I think he thought I was getting in his face or something, so he had a word with me when he went off. That’s why we were looking at each other, but he was really nice afterwards and said ‘congrats’ – there was nothing malicious in it at all.”Looking at the day as a whole I’m quite pleased with it. Obviously when you lose the final, or lose any game really, you try and work out if there’s anything you could have done, but it’s just one of those things.”Brown reflected that his penultimate delivery – a knuckleball to Simon Harmer which went for four – was not the right option if he was “highly critical”.”If I’m completely honest, in the penultimate over – when Harmer took me for four, that was quite a big moment in the game. I changed it to a knuckleball when I should have stuck with an offcutter, which had been working.”But look, it’s hard to look back and think you could do something differently, because in that moment I thought it was the right thing to do, and Mo [captain Moeen Ali] agreed.”Brown would have played in the Big Bash and the Bangladesh Premier League last season but for a stress fracture in his back, and was not far off being picked up in the IPL auction, and hopes to fit appearances on the franchise circuit into his schedule this winter.”I’ve potentially got a Big Bash deal lined up, which is close to getting pushed over the line,” he said. “Before this news, I was looking at the T10, BPL, PSL, but I’m not sure what my schedule will look like now. I’ll wait and see.”

Despite New Zealand’s disappointment, there is no animosity between them and England ahead of first Test

George Dobell in Mount Maunganui19-Nov-2019Kane Williamson feels that deciding the result of the World Cup final on boundary countback was “not really cricket”.New Zealand and England could not be separated after a Super Over ended in a tie, but England were awarded the game – and the World Cup trophy – on the basis of a boundary countback. They had hit 26 boundaries to New Zealand’s 17.While Williamson, the New Zealand captain, accepts “those rules were already in place” before the tournament started, he admits losing in such fashion was “hard to take”.He has also suggested the full implications of using boundary countback as an eliminator may not have been adequately considered. As a result, he says it is no real surprise that the ICC has decided to abolish the method. In future, Super Overs will be repeated until one team has more runs than the other.”I genuinely think that no-one ever thought that was going to happen and it did,” Williamson said from Mount Maunganui. “At times, you think about how some of those decisions are made; probably sitting in a room a little like this and throwing a few ideas around. That’s all I can imagine. And then for it to actually happen is a pretty scary thing.”I guess it highlighted something and it will probably never happen again. It’s not really cricket and I think both teams appreciated that. It was hard to take. But at the same time those rules were already in place.”It was a fantastic game to be a part of and a really competitive match. I think everyone has played hundreds of games of cricket and never had one decided quite like that. It is what it is and they were the rules at the time. What you sign up for. But, yeah, it’s no surprise that it’s changed.”Despite the disappointment, it is clear there is no animosity between the New Zealand and England teams. Williamson and the England Test captain, Joe Root, forged a mutually respectful relationship while playing together for Yorkshire, while England’s limited-overs captain, Eoin Morgan, has never made any secret of his admiration for the way in which Brendon McCullum’s side played their cricket. Morgan’s World Cup-winning side was, by and large, built on a template McCullum’s side showcased when reaching the 2015 World Cup final.”Culturally, socially, there are a lot of similarities between the Kiwis and the English,” Williamson said. “If you go back to people who go to uni and do their two-year visa over there, it’s a common thing. People travel and spend a lot of time with the English. A number of guys have played county and franchise cricket. A few friendships have been built through that.”When Joe was around at Yorkshire, we would chew the fat and discuss cricket. I’d ask ‘How do I become as good as you, Joe?’ and try to pick his brains. I loved my time over in county cricket. The social part and the environment is similar. It’s a brilliant place to learn your game.”At the same time, they are really competitive matches and the guys enjoy playing against England.”

He had three WhatsApp chats with a bookie – in November 2017, January 2018 and April 2018

Nagraj Gollapudi29-Oct-2019Failure to report several approaches from Deepak Aggarwal, an alleged corruptor who was seeking inside information, is why Shakib, Bangladesh’s Test and T20I captain, was banned by the ICC’s anti-corruption unit on Tuesday.We don’t know yet why Shakib, the game’s premier allrounder (he is ranked third in Tests, first in ODIs and second in T20Is in the ICC’s player rankings), failed to report the approaches to the ACU, especially as he has previously reported corrupt approaches. But we do know a little about the conversations with Aggarwal that led to this sanction.November 2017According to information made public by the ICC, the first time Aggarwal got in touch with Shakib was in November 2017 during the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL), where he was playing for Dhaka Dynamites. Shakib’s contact, the ICC said, was provided to Aggarwal by “another person” who was close to the player. Aggarwal had asked this unnamed person to “provide” him with contacts for players in the tournament.Over the course of several WhatsApp messages, Aggarwal tried to arrange a meeting with Shakib.January 2018Bangladesh hosted an ODI tri-series with Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe. On January 19, Bangladesh beat Sri Lanka and Shakib was Man of the Match. Aggarwal “congratulated” Shakib on his performance and then followed it with a cryptic message that raised eyebrows at the ACU. “Mr Aggarwal followed this message with a message saying “do we work in this or I wait til the IPL”,” the ICC said in a statement. “The reference to in this message was a reference to him [Shakib] providing Inside Information to Mr Aggarwal.”Shakib didn’t report this approach either to the ACU, or to any other relevant authority.Four days later, Aggarwal sent another message, a more explicit one, to Shakib: “Bro anything in this series?” Once again, Shakib opted not to report the approach to the ACU or even the BCB.April 2018On April 26, during IPL 2018, Sunrisers Hyderabad – Shakib’s franchise – were playing a home match against Kings XI Punjab. Aggarwal messaged Shakib on the day of the match, and it was during this conversation that Shakib eventually said he wanted to meet Aggarwal.”He received a WhatsApp message from Mr Aggarwal that day asking him whether a particular player was going to be playing in the game that day, i.e. again asking for Inside Information,” the ICC statement said. “Mr Aggarwal continued this conversation with him by talking about bitcoins, dollar accounts and asked him for his dollar account details. During this conversation, he told Mr Aggarwal that he wanted to meet him .”Shakib admitted to the ACU later that he had deleted several other messages from this April 26 WhatsApp conversation. It was then that Shakib grew concerned. However, once again, he did not report the approach.”He confirmed that he had concerns over Mr Aggarwal, feeling he was a bit , and that, following their conversations, he had the feeling that Mr Aggarwal was a bookie,” the ICC statement said.The ACU officers interviewed Shakib in person in Bangladesh twice this year – on January 23 and then on August 27.Shakib readily accepted the charges.”During these interviews, Mr Al Hasan was cautioned that the answers and information provided by him could be used as evidence to support a charge or charges in relation to a breach of the Code, if they revealed that Mr Al Hasan might have breached the Code, either by acting corruptly himself or by failing to report corrupt approaches or corrupt actions by others. After receiving these cautions, Mr Al Hasan admitted various failures to report approaches made to him to provide Inside Information to Mr Aggarwal.”

Rovman Powell’s 40-ball 106 not enough for Jamaica to avoid a 13-run loss against Leeward Islands

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Nov-2019Rovman Powell hit a blistering 38-ball century – the fifth fastest in men’s List A cricket – against Leeward Islands, but his ton was not enough for Jamaica to avert a 13-run loss in a chase of 256 at the Super50 Cup in Basseterre, as they folded for 242 in 28.3 overs.Rovman, the Jamaica captain, steered the better part of Jamaica’s chase from No. 5, stitching together three 40-plus partnerships, including a sixth-wicket half-century stand with Derval Green, to take his side past 150. However, once his 40-ball 106, featuring 13 fours and seven sixes, came to an end in the last ball of the 15th over, courtesy Quinton Boatswain, who had him caught behind, the rearguard proved inadequate.Aside from Rovman, who was adjudged the Player of the Match, none of the Jamaica batsmen could make a fifty. That the next best score from their line-up was a mere 26-ball 30, struck by No. 8 Jamie Merchant, was in part down to Boatswain’s 4 for 85. Boatswain was complemented well by Sheeno Berridge and Jason Campbell, who took two wickets apiece.Associated Press

The other century in the match came from the Powell in the opposition camp, Kieran, and stood in sharp contrast to Rovman’s. Built on 13 fours and no sixes, the Leeward Islands opener’s 125-ball 105, however, anchored his side’s 255 for 8 after they were sent in.Kieran’s big 154-run second-wicket stand with half-centurion Amir Jangoo in 29 overs set them the perfect platform to eye a total close to 300. However, medium-pacer Green’s double-strike in the 35th over accounted for Kieran and then sent back No. 4 Devon Thomas for a duck.Kieran’s dismissal also triggered a collapse that saw them lose four wickets for eight runs, and then five for 23, with Jamaica reduced to 214 for 6 in the 43rd over. During that slump, Jangoo holed out to Oshane Thomas for an enterprising 85-ball 69. Thomas later capped off his day with the ball with 3 for 59, as Leeward finished on 255 for 8.

Seales and Forde shared seven wickets between them to bowl Australia out for 179

Sreshth Shah in Kimberley18-Jan-2020Jayden Seales and Matthew Forde shared seven wickets between them to bowl Australia out for 179, after which allrounder Nyeem Young dragged West Indies out of a precarious position to seal a win in the first Group B game of the 2020 U-19 World Cup.After legspinner Tanveer Sangha took four top-order wickets, West Indies seemed to be in plenty of trouble in their chase, but then Young combined in a 78-run partnership for the fifth wicket with Forde to stabilise their chase.The game had begun an hour late after a drizzle delayed the toss. It was reduced to 49 overs a side and West Indies chose to field. While opener Jake Fraser-McGurk was at the crease in the first innings, Australia looked set for a competitive first-innings total despite an early wobble, but his dismissal for a 97-ball 84 triggered a batting collapse that saw them lose their last six wickets for only 21 runs.There were two freak run-outs in their innings when their captain Mackenzie Harvey and Lachlan Hearne were dismissed at the non-striker’s end caught napping outside their crease. Both times, the on-strike batsman’s straight drive took a touch off the bowler before crashing into the stumps at the bowlers’ end.At that stage, Australia were 67 for 4, but Fraser-McGurk continued to pile on the runs at a healthy rate and added 91 for the fifth wicket in combination with wicketkeeper Patrick Rowe (40), but the former’s dismissal began Australia’s rapid slide.Forde, who bowled without any success in his first spell with the new ball, caused the most damage at the back end, bowling uncomfortable lengths to the Australia lower-order who ended up lobbing soft dismissals towards mid-on and midwicket. His wickets of Todd Murphy and Sangha – the last Australia wicket to fall – left him with figures of 3 for 24.Seales, who had his family cheering him on from the stands, capped his solitary wicket in his opening spell with three more in his second spell, dismissing the set Fraser-McGurk who holed out at mid-on. After that, his pace in the late 130s troubled the remaining Australian lower-order batsman, finishing with 4 for 49 in his eight overs as the first innings ended in the 36th over.West Indies’ chase began in a swift manner with Leonardo Julien smashing three fours and a six in the first five overs. That pushed West Indies’ run-rate beyond six but he couldn’t carry on, dismissed for a 22-ball 20. His opening partner and the captain Kimani Melius was out soon too, caught by the wicketkeeper off Sangha’s legbreak. Sangha went on to dismiss the next three batsmen as well, bowling out in a single spell with figures of 4 for 30 leaving West Indies at 92 for 5. He found the ball to turn, and Antonio Morris and Matthew Patrick fell.With Australia no longer having an attacking spin option, West Indies’ No. 6 Young saw off Corey Kelly’s offspin with not much trouble, occasionally finding the boundary to keep the required run-rate in check. He reached his half-century by drilling a drive through the hands of the fielder at cover and raised his bat towards the tiny West Indian contingent on the grass banks.With the score at 170 for 5, it looked like Young and Forde would see West Indies through to a five-wicket win, but both their dismissals at the same score briefly brought the game back to life. Unfortunately for Australia, they could not penetrate further, and West Indies’ No. 8 Joshua James and No. 9 Kirk McKenzie got the final ten runs needed. McKenzie finished the game off in style, cracking a six over extra cover to seal the win in front of a 1600-plus crowd.

He wants India’s batsmen in a more positive and clear state of mind

Karthik Krishnaswamy in Wellington24-Feb-20203:31

‘We did not show enough competitiveness’ – Kohli

New Zealand’s fast bowlers are unmatched when it comes to using the short ball as a defensive option, particularly in home conditions. For the best part of India’s second innings at the Basin Reserve, the hosts’ expert use of shorter lengths on a two-paced pitch with spongy bounce turned the contest into one where both teams were playing the waiting game.It suited New Zealand perfectly, given they had a 183-run first-innings lead. Could India have batted more proactively, and tried to put the bowlers off their plans? Their captain Virat Kohli certainly thinks they could have.”You have to try and get into a positive frame of mind,” he said, after New Zealand had completed a ten-wicket win inside the first session of day four. “I think in Test cricket in general, you have to be in a clear state of mind. At home also, you can’t really play a lot of shots. You can’t just say that I will smash it from ball one. You have to choose which balls to hit even on turning tracks but you also have to maintain that intent when you are putting the boundary balls away.”Also, we have to understand and accept that New Zealand bowled really, really well in this Test match in both innings, although in first innings there was a bit more assistance, but in the second innings, that’s been their strength. They set fields accordingly, get into the mind of the batsmen, and make the batsmen do something that they don’t want to.”I think that’s a very thin line and a very delicate balance of when to attack and when to put bowlers under pressure, which we failed to do in this match, and there is no harm in accepting that. We have done that on many occasions but this was a Test match where we were not able to do it. That has got to do with partly good bowling from New Zealand and partly us not pressing that momentum on to them when required.”It was perfect for them because they bowled well and we allowed them to bowl well for longer periods rather than doing something about it in a partnership. When Jinx (Ajinkya Rahane) started, the plan was to go positive. If we both add 70 to 80 positively, then the game changes. You have to take chances. Sometimes they don’t come off, but if you try and do that for longer periods they do tend to come off and the situation changes, which we have addressed already and something that we will keep in our mind going forward.”According to ESPNcricinfo’s data, India’s batsmen scored 126 runs off 301 short and short-of-good-length balls across their two innings in Wellington, at a rate of 2.51 per over. New Zealand went after short and short-of-good-length balls more often, and ended up with 130 runs off 150 such balls, at 5.20 per over. They lost a wicket once every 32.5 balls with this approach, while India lost one every 75.25 balls, but the averages – 32.50 for New Zealand, 31.50 for India – ended up more or less identical.And because they found runs so hard to come by against the shorter ball, India ended up losing wickets off errors they may not otherwise have made against fuller-length balls.AFP

Much of India’s short bowling was to New Zealand’s lower order, who could afford to go after the bowling with their team already in the lead. When India batted, they were in situations where survival was of utmost importance. And India’s struggle to score against the shorter ball also had a lot to do with the skill of New Zealand’s bowlers in their own conditions, and an unusual pitch.”We have faced attacks in the past as well, with a lot of variety. We played in South Africa with Morne [Morkel], [Dale] Steyn and [Vernon] Philander all in the side. So we’ve faced those kind of attacks,” Kohli said, when asked about the difficulty of a New Zealand attack containing a left-arm quick (Trent Boult), a right-arm swing bowler (Tim Southee), a 6’8″ fast bowler with steep bounce (Kyle Jamieson) and a medium-paced metronome (Colin de Grandhomme).”But it was a strange pitch. I was talking to Kane [Williamson] as well. It wasn’t seaming around, wasn’t troubling us with swing. But it was slow, on the drier side. So you were not able to get the shots away. And I think to be honest, lack of pace is something that cost us more than something like being intimidated or being bowled out by an attack.”It played perfectly into their plans because they feed off bowling on one spot for long periods and having fielders close in, and unless you take them on, that field is not going to change. I think the way they bowled was very accurate and the pace of the pitch also allowed them to keep bowling there because it wasn’t easy to get those shots away.”To be honest, they did not give us any room, on the front foot or the back foot, so we have to accept that they outplayed us this game and they bowled much better than we did, and put enough pressure on us, understanding the wicket well, which you expect them to do, playing in their conditions. But I think going forward we understand what they would like to do and it’s our job as batsmen to try and disrupt it so that as soon as possible we put enough runs on the board.”Between now and the second Test in Christchurch, which begins on Saturday, Kohli said India would try and work on ways to put New Zealand’s bowlers under pressure with a more proactive approach.”I don’t think there is anything technical [the batsmen need to do],” he said. “It’s all about clarity of mind and taking responsibility individually when you walk out to bat. I feel as a batsman you should not wait for a message from outside to execute something in the middle. I think it’s about understanding what you want to do as a batsman, and if that doesn’t come off then you say fine, I did not do it in this innings.”But if six-seven people can think like that, for sure two-three people will come good. So if we go with a bit of hesitation whether to play our shots or not, rather than just going for shots, then you know, analysing the execution later on, that’s a better balance that we have stuck to in the past, especially playing in away conditions.”We are very clear with what we want to do as batsmen, that we get off to a start and we keep that momentum, we start leaving well, we start defending well, we start dropping and running well so these are things that are an outcome of a clear head. We will definitely be much more positive.”There’s no doubt about it, especially in the first innings. We will try and put their bowlers under pressure and try and make them do something different rather than them making us do something different. I think as international cricketers, we are good enough, and that’s why we are here, and we should be able to find that balance and we definitely take this as a challenge to put in a better batting performance next time.”

Head coach says there’s hardly any series for them where they can ‘take the foot off it’

Alex Malcolm09-Mar-2020Coach Justin Langer says there is no opportunity to rest his weary senior players with each series as important as the next as Australia continue to search for their best T20I and ODI combinations.Australia travelled home from South Africa on Sunday after being trounced 3-0 in the ODI series. They did win the preceding T20I series 2-1. But there is no chance to rest as they head straight to Sydney for a three-game ODI series against New Zealand which ends in Hobart on March 20, followed by a three-match T20I series in New Zealand starting on March 24 in Dunedin.The majority of Australia’s senior players, with the exception of Mitchell Starc, will then head to India for the IPL.Langer conceded his senior men who play all three forms for Australia, including Steven Smith, David Warner, Pat Cummins and Starc are feeling the pinch.”The truth is we’ve got some weary boys at the moment, particularly our senior players,” Langer said after the third ODI in Potchefstroom.”They play so much cricket. When you think about what they’ve done since we started the World Cup, they went straight from the IPL, which is almost a year ago, straight to the World Cup, straight to the Ashes, straight to what has been a golden summer for us until probably these last three one-dayers. We’ve got some weary boys. We know we’ve got six more games to play and then they’ve got to go again.”Australia rested Cummins and Starc from the third ODI after the series had already been lost in South Africa. Starc was given leave to head home early to watch his wife Alyssa Healy play in the Women’s T20 World Cup final in Melbourne.But both are preparing to play in Friday’s first ODI against New Zealand at the SCG. Langer said there is currently no room in the schedule to pick and choose when players rest.Getty Images

“The challenge is, which series is less important,” Langer said. “Because South Africa here is a really important series. Coming back after [what happened] two years ago, that was a really important series for us. And I’ve got to say it’s been a great series or a great time here both in the hospitality, the way we’ve been treated, the way everyone has looked after us has been brilliant. So that’s an important series.”Then we play New Zealand who made the World Cup final. They’re a very good team and great rivals so that becomes a pretty important series. The T20s we’re pushing for the World Cup, so that’s a pretty important series. So there’s not too many now in international cricket where you think maybe we can take the foot off it, because as soon as you do get beaten like we have today and it’s a terrible feeling being beaten.”Australia were beaten comprehensively in the ODI series, failing to make more than 271 in any of the three games. They have now lost seven of their last eight ODIs dating back to the final pool game in the 2019 World Cup against South Africa at Old Trafford. South Africa have also beaten Australia in six of the last seven ODI meetings since Langer took over as coach in 2018, and 11 of the last 12 dating back to September 2016.”The truth is we’ve got a bit of an eye to the T20 World Cup. Obviously, we’ve got two [T20 World Cups] in a row,” Langer said. “We’ve still got another four years until the next one-day World Cup. That said, we haven’t played good enough cricket. It’s very disappointing. South Africa, it reminded me a bit of great German soccer teams, they’re so disciplined, they’re so fit, and their processes are just so disciplined all the time. They’ve got the better of us in one-day cricket so far, for some time now, and we respect how they play their one-day cricket and they were too good for us this last three.”We’ve got to work out. I think England are showing their cards a bit about how they’re playing their one-day cricket with a bigger picture view. So, we’ll have those discussions in the next few weeks. We’ve probably learned lessons from that in the past as well when the guys are playing all three forms, and playing IPL, how we keep them really sharp. We know how brilliant cricketers they are, but even the best of the best, staying 100% sharp all the time is really hard to do. They’re mentally tough guys but it’s a real challenge for us.”Australia have selected the same squad for the series against New Zealand with the exception of Jhye Richardson, who has been released to play the Sheffield Shield for Western Australia.

Southee and Boult pick up two wickets apiece as India fold for 242

The Report by Sidharth Monga28-Feb-2020
The depth in New Zealand’s five-man seam attack pulled India back from positions of strength on two occasions to leave them bowled out for 242; their openers knocked 63 off that total by stumps. While Kyle Jamieson starred on the scoreboard with a maiden five-for, the other three frontline quicks played their part: Trent Boult took the first wicket, Tim Southee took out Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane, and Neil Wagner’s short-pitched bowling broke India’s biggest stand of the series.At 63 overs, India’s innings was shorter than either of their digs in Wellington but, thanks to more positive intent and a quicker pitch, they ended up with a bigger score. And yet they will be disappointed that despite three fifties from their specialist batsmen, despite lives through dropped catches, they ended up with the third-lowest Test total in an innings that featured three or more scores of 50-plus from the top-seven batsmen.On an individual level, there was improvement as all three half-centurions made technical or mindset adjustments after Wellington. Out of sorts with lack of footwork and struggling against the short ball, Prithvi Shaw got his front foot moving and scored a 64-ball 54 to give India a rollicking start. Two men in the spotlight for their slow going in Wellington and their captain’s subsequent remarks about intent, Cheteshwar Pujara and Hanuma Vihari batted with urgency and purpose in their half-centuries, but aggression got the better of both of them with the team score in the 190s as India lost their last six wickets for 48 runs.Asked to bat once again, India had a tough job in the morning after a delayed start because of an early-morning drizzle. Shaw, though, went on to show that conditions in New Zealand can look tougher than they are. His forward movement allowed him to track the swing, and his instinctive positive batting remained intact. As a result, Southee in particular couldn’t bowl the really full swinging ball, and Shaw made merry every time Southee pitched even slightly short of a good length. There was a gorgeous on-drive off the full ball too.Boult, though, brought New Zealand some cheer by setting up Mayank Agarwal by moving the first four balls of the sixth over out, in, out and in. Pujara showed he was mindful of his attitude to loose deliveries after he was guilty of not always taking advantage of them in Wellington. To the 13th ball he faced, a full wide one, he threw his hands, ending up slicing it over point. Shaw at the other end made sure Colin de Grandhomme, first-change bowler, couldn’t achieve a repeat of Wellington where he bowled at under two an over.As early as the 19th over, New Zealand went to Wagner and his short-pitched bowling, which nearly brought immediate benefit. Shaw hooked the second ball from Wagner, top-edging it just over the tallest man on the field, Jamieson, at fine leg. That brought up his fifty, a credit to him and the support staff that they could figure a way out of his Wellington issues in one net session between the Tests. Minutes before lunch, though, Shaw had a drive at a full wide one from Jamieson, falling to an acrobatic catch by Tom Latham at second slip. New Zealand would struggle to maintain that catching form.Kohli had tense few minutes to survive before lunch, and Williamson immediately went to Southee. Before lunch, Southee kept dragging Kohli across with outswing outside off before bowling the perfect delivery immediately after lunch. These are not always bowled by design, but you reap the benefits only if you are accurate. This was an outswinger just outside off, but it seamed back in upon pitching and hit him in front, leaving Kohli no chance. A more defensive batsman might have perhaps got an inside edge, it was that good a delivery.While Pujara had now begun driving well, and timing them instead of punching them, Rahane committed a mental error in Southee’s fifth over after lunch. Just visually, Rahane has looked the most comfortable of India’s batsmen on tour, defending late and playing under his head, but this time he was drawn to defend in front of his body, and the outswinger took the edge. When Jamieson pushed Vihari back, hit him on the finger, and then drew an edge to a full one, 80 for 1 was all set to become 134 for 5. Except that BJ Watling dived in front of first slip, and managed to get only fingertips to it.Pujara and Vihari then batted freely, especially against Boult, which meant New Zealand went to plan B in the afternoon. Wagner kept the batsmen honest with a seven-over spell for just eight runs, mixing the bouncers and knuckle balls, nearly getting Pujara with one. But India didn’t allow de Grandhomme to settle, which meant the run rate remained healthy. However, just before tea, Wagner did his job. Having had enough of his bouncers, Vihari decided to take Wagner on in a fresh spell. He kept a pull down, upper-cut him for a four, drove a knuckle ball, but to what turned out to be the last ball before tea he managed only a glove through to Watling. Time and again, it has been seen that there is only one winner when you start taking Wagner’s bouncers on, which will make Vihari question his approach moments before tea.If Vihari’s dismissal was disappointing, Pujara’s was near inexplicable. Just after tea, Pujara went to hook the tallest bowler in the opposition, managing only a top edge to a ball not that short. At the other end, de Grandhomme and Watling reprieved Rishabh Pant in successive deliveries, but the uncertainty that Jamieson’s height brings got the better of him in the next over. Pant pushed at a length ball outside off, but his feet remain rooted, thus producing a played-on dismissal.Umesh Yadav was no match to Jamieson, and Ravindra Jadeja – selected ahead of R Ashwin for his batting – top-edged another short ball to give Jamieson the five-for. A 26-run roulette for the last wicket took India to 242, but the bowlers sans Ishant Sharma had a big task.In the 23 overs before stumps, India kept the batsmen honest, but couldn’t produce an opportunity that would go to hand. Tom Blundell and Latham batted watchfully, respecting the good balls and then cashing on the odd loose ones. They will hope the loose ones will increase in number if they can keep India on the field for a long time on day two.