Chennai Super Kings chose to bowl v Royal Challengers Bangalore
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Who's the more difficult batsman to bowl to? Who's better in chases? Sanjay Manjrekar and Shaun Tait discuss all that and more
One team needed extra bowling resources, the other its talisman, and both shortcomings were addressed to give a marquee clash additional sheen. AB de Villiers recovered from viral fever to regain his spot in the Royal Challengers Bangalore XI while Chennai Super Kings handed out a debut to David Willey, the left-arm fast bowling allrounder from England. With his inclusion, MS Dhoni has seven specialist bowling options.
Both captains said they wanted to chase even though the pitch started out dry and is likely to get drier as the sun beats down. Some green grass was left on it to perhaps slow down the deterioration. In any case, that suggests they are more than confident the batsmen in their line-ups can cope in case conditions become difficult, but not the bowlers. And there are stats to back that kind of thinking. CSK and RCB have given away the most runs in the death overs this season.
Willey's addition could help in that regard. He is a specialist T20 player for England, having recently opted out of a first-class contract with Yorkshire, and is noted for his ability to swing the new ball. He also has incredible hitting ability and has a highest score of 118. The IPL audience may want to get used to him. Faf du Plessis was forced to the bench.
By contrast, a player that's been around for a while - Parthiv Patel - will also be in action, playing his first game for RCB this season with Quinton de Kock having left for home to attend a wedding.
Batsman Dhruv Shorey found a place in the CSK XI as well at the expense of legspinner Karn Sharma
Chennai Super Kings: 1 Shane Watson, 2 Ambati Rayudu, 3 Suresh Raina, 4 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 5 Dhruv Shorey, 6 Ravindra Jadeja, 7 Dwayne Bravo, 8 David Willey, 9 Harbhajan Singh, 10 Lungi Ngidi, 11 Shardul Thakur
Royal Challengers Bangalore: 1 Parthiv Patel (wk), 2 Brendon McCullum 3 Virat Kohli (capt), 4 AB de Villiers, 5 Mandeep Singh, 6 Colin de Grandhomme, 7 M Ashwin, 8 Tim Southee, 9 Umesh Yadav, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Mohammed Siraj
Former India women wicketkeeper Anju Jain is set to take over as head coach of the Bangladesh women team. She will replace former England allrounder David Capel, who has been in the job since October 2016.
Capel will step down after the ongoing South Africa tour consisting of five ODIs and three T20Is, that serve as preparation as Bangladesh seek to qualify for the Women's World T20 to be played in the West Indies in November.
While the finer details of Jain's deal are yet to be worked out, it is understood that she will join the national team on a six-month contract and take over as soon as they return from South Africa on May 21. She will be joined by her former India colleague Devika Palshikar and Anuja Dalvi, who are already onboard as assistant coach and physiotherapist respectively.
"An opportunity to coach a national team at this stage is quite exciting," Jain told ESPNcricinfo. "At this moment, the biggest challenge is to help the team qualify for the Women's World T20 in West Indies. There is talent, but you need to give them games. Our primary responsibility as a coaching group will be to ensure they develop the finer skill sets, and that will come with experience."
The BCB has penciled in a 10-day tour of Ireland in preparation for the eight-team Women's World T20 Qualifiers to be held in Netherlands in July. Bangladesh, who lost all their four matches at the previous edition in 2016, are the top-ranked side in the group that consists of Ireland, Papua New Guinea, Scotland, Netherlands, Uganda, Thailand and United Arab Emirates. Two teams from the qualifiers will join the top eight at the World T20.
Jain is a Level-B certified BCCI coach and has extensively taken part in exchange programmes with Cricket Australia. Her involvement with Bangladesh will mean she will step down as head coach of Vidarbha women's team. She previously coached India at the 2012 Women's World T20 and the 2013 World Cup.
Jain is the second India woman cricketer to land the Bangladesh job. Former captain Mamta Maben was previously in-charge of Bangladesh across two stints in 2011 and 2013.
Pakistan fielding coach Steve Rixon has decided not to renew his contract ahead of the 2019 World Cup. Rixon's contract expires in June, but he will complete his ongoing assignment with Pakistan on their tour to Ireland and England.
Rixon, 64, decided not to renew his contract due to personal reasons, which included spending more time with his family, according to a senior official in the PCB. The contracts of the rest of Pakistan's coaching staff run until the 2019 World Cup.
Rixon was brought into the Pakistan set-up in 2016 alongside head coach Mickey Arthur, replacing Grant Luden, who was relieved of his roles as trainer and fielding coach under former head coach Waqar Younis. Luden has since been working with Pakistan as a fitness trainer. Rixon was also part of Arthur's coaching staff with Australia between 2011 and 2014. During his tenure with Australia, Rixon had various positions, including fielding coach, spin-bowling coach and assistant coach.
The PCB haven't begun the process of finding a successor for their next assignment, against Zimbabwe in August. There is also a chance Luden could be tasked with replacing Rixon.
In the last few years, Pakistan's fielding has made considerable improvement under Rixon, particularly in the white-ball formats. Fielding has been a major part of Pakistan's increased focus on improving the level of players' fitness over the last three years.
Speaking for the first time since his emotional press conference in Sydney more than a month ago, Australia's former vice-captain David Warner said he has "learned a valuable lesson" after the ball-tampering scandal in South Africa in March. Warner was banned from playing international and domestic cricket for a year along with Steven Smith, for their respective roles in tampering with the ball during the Cape Town Test.
"Sometimes with our society, something has to happen for the worst for people to come out and show a lot of support and I think I've learned a valuable lesson in this myself for the support I have been given to be on the front foot to help others," Warner told NT News on the sidelines of a cricket clinic he attended with children in Darwin.
"I think the biggest thing for us has been when you are in a routine you can get caught in a bubble - cricket, hotels, packing your bags, coming home. I've missed that part until now where the kids run up to the gate saying, 'Mummy and daddy are here', and I am really enjoying and embracing that."
Warner and Smith were later axed from the IPL and had accepted the sanctions handed to them by Cricket Australia. Cameron Bancroft, who was banned for nine months, also chose to not challenge the ban imposed on him.
Smith also thanked people publicly for their support on Friday, saying "I now have a lot to do to earn back your trust."
Bangladesh's 2017-18 season ended with good news - the move up to No. 8 gave them their highest ranking in Test cricket. But their performance over the last eight months from August to March highlight four areas that need immediate attention.
A leadership void
Many would justifiably claim that Mashrafe Mortaza and Shakib Al Hasan are well qualified as team leaders but the reality has been different. Former coach Chandika Hathurusingha was arguably the most powerful cricket figure in the country until his abrupt departure in November last year. BCB chief Nazmul Hassan backed him, and while there was a mourning period in the aftermath of his departure, Hassan had expected to replace Hathurusingha swiftly. But numerous rejections by coaches has left a leadership void, as foreign head coaches have tended to become the centre of power in the Bangladesh team. For now, Hassan has assumed the leadership position particularly after Bangladesh's debacle against Sri Lanka at home, and especially after the encouraging showing in the Nidahas Trophy. In the absence of a full-time coach, Hassan had taken charge, and as he usually does, he's been public with plenty of criticism and praise. This is not an ideal situation.
Home truths
This was another season when Bangladesh's main batting performers like Mushfiqur Rahim and Tamim Iqbal were the mainstays. They are the only ones who have scored 700-plus runs across all formats. Mahmudullah and Shakib have played match-winning hands but beyond the batsmen who make up Bangladesh's senior group, there has not been much. Mominul Haque's 466 runs in 10 innings is 26 more than what Sabbir Rahman has made in 25 innings during the same period. Sabbir has been one of the three disappointments among the young batsmen.
Liton Das and Soumya Sarkar have averaged below 20 after more than 15 innings while Anamul Haque and Mohammad Mithun, although not considered young anymore, have also struggled in limited opportunities. Mosaddek Hossain, who made an impressive Test debut in February last year, was kept away for much of the season due to an eye condition. Soumya and Sabbir have lost national contracts while Mosaddek has slipped down the pecking order; Liton is likely to be rewarded with a national contract in the next few weeks.
It is hoped that BCB's tough stance on stripping some players of their national contract will send the message they desire, but a batting coach is paramount over the next 12 months.
Bowling struggles
When Shakib was ruled out of the first Test against Sri Lanka last January, the selectors' hunt for spinners became a farce. They first called up legspinning allrounder Tanbir Hayder and rookie offspinner Nayeem Hasan who left the Under-19 World Cup to join the senior side. Both were curious call-ups, but what happened in the next 24 hours was equally befuddling. Abdur Razzak, the veteran left-arm spinner who had been overlooked for four years despite a bagful of domestic wickets, was picked as the sixth specialist spinner.
Not surprisingly, Razzak stood out with his consistent lengths and wicket-taking deliveries. His call-up was encouraging on many levels, for domestic performers and in terms of opportunities for older cricketers. But his call-up also underlined the lack of fresh spin talent.
Pace, too, has gone through a similar reality check. The narrow focus on only spin-friendly wickets at home has made pace bowling almost redundant. The lack of usage in home internationals and domestic matches leads to rustiness when they get to bowl in helpful conditions. Taskin Ahmed's fall in pace or Mustafizur Rahman blowing hot and cold has put a lot of pressure on Mashrafe, who provides as much as his body allows nowadays. Rubel Hossain has also stood out with his death-overs bowling (although the Nidahas Trophy final didn't go well for him).
As a whole, the bowling hasn't been as effective as it was in 2015 or 2016, and now they have three bowling coaches in Courtney Walsh (pace), Sunil Joshi (spin) and Champaka Ramanayake (the academy's pace bowling coach). The onus doesn't just fall on the specialist coaches' feet, but also on the willingness of the bowlers to improve.
Cricket remains the king
Despite the worries circling the senior team, cricket continues to be healthy in Bangladesh. It is the national pastime with stories emerging from all corners about efforts being made not just to reach the top but also the game's growth being used as a feel-good factor.
The women's game is progressing with heroic tales like those of Muslim Uddin, the coach who turned a toilet into the storage facility for his women's cricket camp. Rumana Ahmed and Khadiza Tul Kubra have also found some overseas experience after being invited to the WBBL in Australia earlier in the year. The story of Salauddin Sakil too, is inspiring, after he made his first-class debut in April, having spent four years of his youth in the Middle East as a migrant labourer.
These people and their stories tell us all how deep Bangladesh cricket goes, and the impact it makes on people's lives.
Yorkshire 50 (Cook 5-28, Siddle 4-7) and 161 for 2 (Bairstow 50, Brook 57*) lead Essex 142 (Bresnan 3-26, Coad 3-27, Brooks 3-63, Lawrence 48, Harmer 36) by 69 runs Scorecard
There's a scene in Where Eagles Dare in which Richard Burton with solid support from Clint Eastwood reveals the identity of the Nazi double agent contained within a notebook. The notebook, perplexingly, is empty. The agent is both revealed within its covers and yet simultaneously not there. Shroedinger's double-agent if you will. Burton delivers every line with mesmeric and gravelly perfection, but after watching that film at least a dozen times, I defy anyone to make sense of what the hell is going on.
For Burton and Eastwood read Sam Cook and Peter Siddle. Given the opportunity to bowl first on a brownish pitch under cloudless skies after Yorkshire elected for and won the toss, they delivered their lines and lengths with irreproachable professionalism and no little flair, but Yorkshire's batsmen were in no mood to match them.
To call the Yorkshire innings a procession would be to do a grave disservice to processions in modest churches up and down the land. It more resembled an unseemly stampede to the bar by smokers in a pub garden on hearing the bell for last orders.
Cook made the initial breakthrough in his first over when Harry Brook poked hesitantly at a ball just outside his off stump and guided the ball into Harmer's enormous mitts at second slip, but this merely brought Che Pujara to the wicket. Yorkshire had "strengthened" their batting with the inclusion of Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow, granted leave by the ECB to get some much needed middle practice before the test series against Pakistan begins in three weeks time, so the visitors boasted five recent and current front line international batsmen in their top six.
None presented a problem for Cook. In his second over he induced a thin edge from Lyth through to the evergreen Foster which brought forth Joe Root, shuffling and sidewinding into the middle for his first innings since April 1st. A bumper crowd got to see the familiar guard, the couple of paces to square-leg, the look round the field and one firm push at a ball beautifully landed on an off-stump line that travelled gently into the gleeful hands of his former captain Alastair Cook at first slip.
Then 9-3 swiftly became 11-4 when Pujara was trapped lbw by Jamie Porter for 9. Pujara was less than gruntled at the decision, but he wouldn't be the last man to be undone by moderately low bounce from the Hayes Close End.
Cook was not yet done with wrecking England's test match preparations. Next to go was Bairstow, bowled by the ball of the day; a beauty that held its line and thudded into off-stump. By the time he had Bresnan trapped in front it truly was a Wonderful Life for Cook as he registered his third five wicket haul in just his sixth championship appearance.
His 5-28 was notable for great control. He was willing to pitch the ball up and make the most of what movement there was off a helpful but far from capricious pitch, was supported by superb close fielding and was aided by a truly abysmal display by Yorkshire with the bat.
By the time Siddle had wrapped up the tail with a spell of 4-7 in 22 balls, Yorkshire had been obliterated in just 18.4 overs before lunch for 50, coincidentally exactly the same length of time it took for Australia to be famously dismissed at Trent Bridge in 2015.
Sages shook their heads in bewilderment but resembled teenage headbangers by the time Alastair Cook wafted a catch to Bairstow - the second England captain to make a duck in a couple of hours - and Tom Westley played a shot uglier than a Communist-era Bucharest tower block, hurling an injudicious bat at an away swinger from Brooks and dragging back on to his middle stump to depart first ball.
The opening session had yielded 61 runs for the loss of 12 wickets. By this stage, four of England's regular top seven last summer had been dismissed for 7 runs between them and a recall for Gary Ballance was looking less far-fetched by the minute.
The afternoon session produced no let-up in the mayhem. Ben Coad and Tim Bresnan, showing due deference to the eternal verities of line of length but at no great pace, made the ball do "just enough", and Bresnan in particular exploited the tendency of the ball to keep slightly (but really only slightly) lower from the Hayes Close End and was rewarded with a couple of lbws for his troubles.
Dan Lawrence tried the novel tactic (up to this point) of going hell for leather and for a while looked to have cracked the code with a 77 ball 48, up to that point by far the most authoritative, if still somehow skittish innings of the day. But aside from a late flurry from Simon Harmer (36) who briefly cover drove with the elegance of Wally Hammond, left the ball with the acuity of Steve Smith and marshalled what was left of the tail better than Angelo Mathews, Essex's innings offered little more sense of permanence than the Mayfly effort that had preceded it.
Three wickets apiece for Bresnan, Coad and Brooks had done the damage and tea was taken with Essex bowled out and in possession of a more than handy 92 run lead.
Record books were dusted down. When was the last time a match was completed in one day (1960 Kent v Worcestershire since you ask)? Might Essex be in a position to take claim the extra half hour? Would this day ever end?
Yorkshire decided to counter attack themselves. Bairstow replaced Brook at the top of the order and went after the new ball. His 44-ball 50 was full of familiar punch drives and lofted shots over the infield. Siddle managed to get the ball changed, immediately bowled Bairstow and had Lyth nibbling to second slip. At 96-2 Yorkshire were just in front but a late flurry of wickets would send them back to square one.
Enter Brook. The press box in Chelmsford was full of the great and the good, all come to watch Root, Cook, Bairstow, Pujara, maybe Ballance and Lawrence. Instead it was the 19-year-old Brook who provided the innings of the day. Entirely untroubled, possessed of a sound technique and keen to rotate the strike, his was the only performance that will have excited the selectors.
Marshalling Yorkshire, in tandem with Pujara to 161-2 at the close, and a more than useful lead of 65, he has the opportunity tomorrow truly to overshadow his more illustrious colleagues. Root, however, may yet have a say in that.
The pitch did ease as the day went on. Wise locals will tell you that it's hardest to bat on day one, but I defy anyone to watch today's play 12 times and explain to me what the hell was going on.
Hampshire 70 for 3 trail Nottinghamshire 302 (Patel 73, Wessels 54, Edwards 4-84) by 232 runs Scorecard
Cricket made a belated return to Trent Bridge, where ongoing building work forced Nottinghamshire to play their first three matches away, but it was not long before the first anguished cries of "Oh! Samit" were heard.
Samit Patel has entertained and exasperated in equal measure throughout a 16 year county career which was encapsulated in the skittish innings he played here.
Patel laid the foundations for a competitive total despite occasionally struggling for fluency but his application against Fidel Edwards' testing and skiddy pace was counter-balanced by two of those "Oh! Samit" moments that have often tested the patience and humour of Mick Newell, Nottinghamshire's director of cricket .
The first came just before lunch when Patel ran out Ross Taylor, who appeared to be easing towards his third half century in four innings. Patel clipped Liam Dawson mid-on and ambled halfway down the pitch before realising that the ball had not beaten Hashim Amla. Patel turned but it was too late for Taylor who was beaten by a short head by his partner as both batsmen arrived at the striker's end while Dawson removed the bails at the other.
"It was a misunderstanding. I can see the funny side of it now to be honest," Patel said."We know these things happen in cricket and Ross knows that. I actually thought the ball had beaten Hashim."
Patel stood mortified, then swished his bat in self-admonishment while Taylor trudged back to the pavilion. Patel apologised to Taylor over lunch but his own innings became more scratchy after he had reached a 51-ball half century.
He spent 41 balls over his next 23 runs and was dropped by Amla in the slips off Chris Wood before Hampshire set an obvious trap and Patel took the bait when Edwards switched to the Pavilion End. Edwards put two men back for the hook, dug one in and Patel, hoping to clear the longest boundary, succeeded only in picking out Brad Wheal at deep square.
"I don't think it was a very good shot, but it might have stuck in the wicket a little bit," Patel said. "There's always a man there either for the flick shot or the pull shot and it's something we should probably address going into the second innings."
Patel's soft dismissal left Nottinghamshire with plenty of work to do before they were able to justify Steven Mullaney's decision to bat first on a green-tinged pitch. It required a battling half century from Riki Wessels, contrasting cameos from Tom Moores and Stuart Broad and some unlikely resistance from Harry Gurney.
Moores progressed mainly through inside and inadvertent edges - he twice found the third man boundary trying to leave deliveries - while Broad gave a passable imitation of David Gower with some languid off drives.
Broad eventually perished when he shovelled Wheal to midwicket trying to clear the invitingly short boundary on the Bridgford Road side and Nottinghamshire were 25 short of a third batting point when Wessels was ninth out, also taken at deep square.
But Gurney, an old-fashioned number eleven, made his second important contribution as a batsman in a week. At Worcester on Monday he held up an end while Luke Fletcher scored the runs Nottinghamshire needed to reach 300 and a declaration. Here Gurney played more shots and helped Jake Ball to secure a valuable extra point.
Having contributed with the bat, Nottinghamshire's pace bowlers then got on with their normal work. Broad produced an accurate and brisk opening spell from the Pavilion End which had Jimmy Adams, with Chanderpaul-esque stance, caught behind and Joe Weatherley at third slip - and at the third attempt - by Taylor.
"Stuart is a world class bowler, he knows exactly what he needs to do to be ready for that first Test Match and he's raring to go for us," Patel said.
James Vince managed to see off Broad but not Luke Fletcher who followed two looseners with a full length delivery that pinned Vince lbw.
Despite the efforts of Patel and Broad a crowd of almost 2,200 reserved their warmest applause for Fletcher on his first appearance at Trent Bridge in 10 months following his recovery from severe concussion.
Sussex 60 for 4 trail Middlesex 230 (Holden 84*, Robinson 7-58) by 170 runs Scorecard
Sussex seamer Ollie Robinson produced championship best figures of seven for 58 as Middlesex were bowled out for 230 at Hove.
It was the second time this season that Robinson had taken seven wickets in an innings - last month he enjoyed a career-best return of seven for 23 against Loughborough MCC University on the same ground.
But Middlesex hit back when Tim Murtagh took two wickets in successive overs to leave Sussex five for two in the fifth over. And then James Harris also struck twice to leave the match in the balance with Sussex 60 for 4 at the close.
"I trained hard in the winter, playing grade cricket in Sydney, and I feel I have come back fitter and stronger," Robinson said "And the lads say I'm hitting the gloves harder as well, so there might be a bit of extra pace there too. I was injured a lot last season. Now it feels good to have a proper bowling stint and not to have sore legs afterwards."
Middlesex had won the toss before this Specsavers County Championship Division Two match but their batsmen were made to work hard against a spirited attack on a lively pitch. At lunch they were 81 for five before a damage-limiting unbeaten 84 from former England Under-19 captain Max Holden gave their bowlers something to work with in a compelling day's cricket.
Robinson broke through in the fifth over when he removed Nick Gubbins' middle stump as the batsman played all round a straight one. Gubbins was playing his first match of the season after recovering from a hamstring injury.
Robinson dismissed the other opener, Sam Robson, in his next over, as the batsman nibbled at a fine delivery that moved away from him.
Sussex missed their first chance when Stevie Eskinazi, on 28, was dropped by Phil Salt at backward point off George Garton. Eskinazi had added ten runs before he was dropped again, this time in the slips off Robinson.
Sussex put down their third catch when Hilton Cartwright, on two, was dropped behind, a difficult diving attempt to the wicketkeeper's left off David Wiese.
But Eskinazi failed to make the most of his second escape. He had not added to his score when he was lbw to Robinson and the same bowler had Cartwright caught in the slips for four. Then, just before lunch, Robinson had Dawid Malan lbw for 13.
After the interval Holden and John Simpson added 56 in 18 overs for the sixth wicket before Simpson was caught on the deep midwicket boundary off Danny Briggs. It was soon 135 for seven when Harris was caught at point off the same bowler for a single. Ollie Rayner was then lbw, half-forward, to give Robinson his sixth wicket.
That left Middlesex in a very ordinary position at 169 for eight. But Holden, dropped on 28, found late order support from Murtagh and the pair put on 51 for the ninth wicket. Murtagh finally played a poor stroke and was caught by Luke Wright at mid-off. Robison completed his demolition work when he plucked out Tom Barber's off stump to leave Holden stranded.
But Middlesex fought back valiantly. Murtagh had Luke Wells and Salt well caught in the slips before Harris struck. First, he had Stiaan van Zyl caught by Eskinazi at third slip and then he bowled Luke Wright, shouldering arms, for nine.
Somerset 321 for 5 (Bartlett 110, Trescothick 100) vs Lancashire Scorecard
Until just before three o'clock on the first day of this game one of England's best and best-loved cricketers was enjoying yet another lovely afternoon. Once again Marcus Trescothick was holding a Somerset innings together. He had batted with increasing assurance against a Lancashire attack including Jimmy Anderson and was only five runs short of his 96th century in all top-level cricket. Then Trescothick played defensively to a ball from Matt Parkinson and collapsed at the crease with what was later confirmed as a broken fifth metatarsal bone in his right foot.
Scarcely half a mile from the other Old Trafford he had sustained an injury made famous by one of English football's more famous sons. Though we didn't know it, Banger had become Becks.
After treatment on the field Trescothick carried on batting and managed to garner the runs he needed for his hundred. However, clearly tethered by pain, he was caught at the wicket off the very next ball and hobbled off Emirates Old Trafford accompanied by his runner, Matt Renshaw, and the good wishes of everyone in the game.
"Marcus will be out for the foreseeable future but it's too early to say whether he'll be back later in the season," said the Somerset coach Jason Kerr. "We need to get clarity on the extent of the fracture. If it's a clean break, it's just a few weeks' recovery and then we'll get him back on his feet. He's broken his metatarsal so we'll be calling him Beckham from now on."
Yet while this day will undoubtedly be seen as an unpleasant setback in the late career of one of Somerset's most steadfast servants, it might be scarcely less significant in the development of one of the county's youngest talents. Barely two hours after Trescothick had left the field George Bartlett was celebrating his maiden century in only his 11th first-class innings.
Having added 134 for the second wicket with his very senior colleague, Bartlett took on a more dominant role, first by lifting Matt Parkinson straight for six and then by accumulating the runs which took him to three figures in 189 balls. It was tempting to think that a mantle was being passed from one generation to the next.
The long-term consequences of Trescothick and Bartlett's experiences at Old Trafford this lovely Friday afternoon have yet to unfold. For the moment they have certainly put their team in a commanding position in this game. Although Bartlett was eventually brilliantly caught by second slip Liam Livingstone off Joe Mennie for 110, his team ended the day on 321 for five, their satisfaction only slightly impaired by the dismissal of Steve Davies, who was caught down the leg side off Jordan Clark's final ball of the day.
The loss of Matt Renshaw for 21 and James Hildreth for five could be viewed as acceptable damage. Only the persevering Mennie had taken more than one wicket. Anderson had dyed his hair some variety of blond and bowled from his own End but had really made no other impression on events. The Somerset skipper Tom Abell finished the day on 48 not out and his confident side clearly have power to add.
As the day ended it was testing to recall that it had begun with the news that Haseeb Hameed had been dropped for the first time in his Lancashire career. But while Hameed was adjusting to not appearing in what would have been his 47th first-class match, another England opener, Trescothick, was preparing for his 378th. You do not need to hail from Combe Florey or Stogumber to hope that there are still a few more to come.
One of Pakistan's main concerns as they flew to the United Kingdom was how to replace their strike bowler, legspinner Yasir Shah. He was the top wicket-taker in their past two Test series and against England on the previous tour in 2016 but was ruled out of the upcoming Tests with a hip injury. Shadab Khan's career-best 6 for 77 on the first day of the second tour match at Northampton gave further evidence that the role may be covered.
Shadab, just 19 years old, has become a Pakistan prodigy. This is only his ninth first-class match but he already has a Test debut behind him - in Barbados a year ago - having risen to prominence in T20 cricket at the Pakistan Super League and subsequently for the Trinbago Knight Riders and Brisbane Heat.
His greatest asset is generating significant turn and on a decent first day Wantage Road pitch, he found plenty of it to plunge Northamptonshire from 104 for 2 to 143 for 6 after lunch before returning to complete just a second first-class five-wicket haul after his 5 for 82 for Pakistan A in 2016.
After a series of big-turning legbreaks, two balls that skidded on trapped Richard Levi and Rob Keogh lbw. Rob Newton was caught behind trying to cut a ball not short enough to do so. The most eye-catching of his dismissals, however, was a googly that Josh Cobb simply did not pick, shouldered arms to, and lost his off stump.
And after Adam Rossington and Ricardo Vasconcelos compiled a smart stand of 80 for the eighth wicket to revive Northants, a classic legbreak turned sharply inside Vasconcelos' drive and Rossington was lured down the pitch to be stumped.
Pakistan were weighing up whether to include a specialist spinner for the Tests against Ireland and England - where seam-bowling conditions are likely to prevail - but a bowler so alien to UK-based players is a unique weapon and Shadab couldn't have made a stronger case here.
He initially began a little short as Newton and Levi were able to play him off the back foot but in his second over after lunch, he removed Levi to begin a memorable spell and one that could lead to a second Test cap in Malahide next week.
Rossington and Vasconcelos - on his Northants debut - were the only batsmen to figure out how to survive against him as Northants - almost certainly - fell short of a par total.
Rossington took two calculated risks, skipping down to lift sixes over long-on, but otherwise was content to largely play with the spin to take runs through the covers. He made a spirited fifty in the second innings against Warwickshire in Northants' previous County Championship match. As he began to pull with authority after passing fifty in 65 balls - there was a notable short-arm jab off Faheem Ashraf - he looked set for a first century of the summer. But he lost his longest partner at a bad time and fell 10 short.
Vasconcelos, South African but a Portuguese passport holder, shaped up very smartly on his first appearance for his new club - indeed perhaps an entirely new phase of his career. He was organised in defence, played with confidence to turn runs square of the wicket but undid his graft until that point with a lavish cover drive.
Earlier, Pakistan's seamers were a touch inconsistent. Rahat Ali picked up the opening wicket of the day with a ball that nipped back to trap Ben Duckett lbw. His second wicket was Steven Crook caught at third man top-edging a cut. Fellow left-armer Mohammad Amir, back in the UK after his stint with Essex last season, was used in short bursts without success and Mohammad Abbas, signed by Leicestershire this summer, beat Newton regularly but also went wicketless, leaving Shadab to ensure a good first day for the tourists.
Kent 163 for 9 (Denly 43, van der Gugten 6-40) lead Glamorgan 94 (Murphy 39*, Selman 33, Stevens 6-26 , Henry 4-31) by 69 runs Scorecard
Nineteen wickets fell in two sessions at the renamed Sophia Gardens on the first day of Glamorgan's opening home championship game, with the seamers relishing the overcast conditions that prevailed throughout the day.
Glamorgan suffered an astonishing collapse after lunch, losing all ten wickets for 37 in only 75 minutes, as Darren Stevens and Matt Henry exploited the conditions to share the wickets. When bad light ended play with three overs remaining, Kent were 163 for 9 with a potentially matchwinning lead of 69 , especially if the pitch continues to offer the same assistance in the second innings.
Nick Selman and Jack Murphy had put on 57 before lunch, before Stevens dismissed Selman with the second ball after the interval. Henry then had Shaun Marsh caught by the wicketkeeper and thereafter the new ball pair demolished the Glamorgan middle order, with Stevens producing a spell of 4 for 7 in 31 balls.
The 42-year-old allrounder ended with 6 for 26, while Henry took 4 for 31, taking his season's tally to 23 in only his third championship game. Murphy carried his bat for 39, the lowest score for a Glamorgan batsman to bat through the innings since Tom Morgan scored 13 not out against Lancashire in 1922.
"We thought we were in for a long day in the field," Stevens said, "but the roller must have worn off, and everything happened. I kept it as simple as possible, and with Matt bowling so well, we seemed to complement each other
Timm van der Gugten then achieved career best figures for Glamorgan of 6 for 40, although Glamorgan were frustrated by an unbroken stand of 22 for the last wicket between Harry Podmore and Ivan Thomas.
The Glamorgan batsmen were undone by swing and seam, with four of Stevens' six victims trapped leg before, as the home team's last four wickets fell for three runs.
Their bowlers then responded by reducing Kent to 29 for 3, as Van Der Gugten gained two leg before decisions, and Michael Hogan dismissed Heino Kuhn with his second ball. Joe Denly and Zac Crawley then restored Kent's position with a partnership of 78 for the fourth wicket, with Crawley using his long reach to nullify movement from the pitch.
After Kent had established a lead, the fourth wicket pair were out in quick succession, with Denly top scoring with 43, and Crawley becoming the ninth lbw victim of the game. When Will Gidman fell to David Lloyd, Kent had lost four wickets for eleven runs, and Van Der Gugten claimed his fifth wicket when Henry, attacking at every opportunity, skied to Hogan at mid -off.
Mumbai Indians 176 for 4 (Suryakumar 51, Krunal 31*, Rohit 24*) beat Kings XI Punjab 174 for 6 (Gayle 50, Stoinis 29*, Bumrah 1-19) by six wickets
Mumbai Indians are on a cliff edge, but not yet weak enough to be pushed off just yet. Rohit Sharma and Krunal Pandya's unbeaten 56-run stand off 21 deliveries helped them chase down 175 with four balls to spare, after Kings XI Punjab had the upper hand for the most part of the game.
Needing 50 off four overs, Ashwin threw the ball to Afghanistan spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who had picked up two wickets and caused Mumbai's batsmen much trouble. Rohit responded by hitting him for two sixes. The floodgates truly opened when Marcus Stoinis missed his lengths in the next over as Krunal got stuck in to take 20. This brought the target within touching distance, with four leg byes off a missed heave sealing Mumbai's third win in nine matches.
The Gayle-Rahul party continues
Mumbai had a plan for Chris Gayle: to hit hard lengths, target his rib cage, and not give him anything full or wide in his hitting arc. Gayle had scored one off eight balls as a result. His fluency was missing and KL Rahul, who began with a sparkling inside-out six over extra cover off Mitchell McClenaghan, was denied strike. But by hitting Hardik Pandya for three fours in the fourth over, Gayle caught up to get Kings XI going again. His hoist of McClenaghan for a 92-metre six that cleared the roofs at deep square-leg marked his arrival.
Kings XI had averaged 59 in the Powerplay coming into this game. They were slower today - 49 for 0 - but the openers eventually brought up their fifth fifty-plus partnership of the season. They were soon separated, though, when Rahul picked out JP Duminy at deep midwicket off Mayank Markande's half-tracker in the seventh over.
Yuvraj continues to struggle
Yuvraj's Smart Strike Rate of 40.32 was the poorest among 51 batsmen who have faced at least 50 balls this season. He started slowly again after being promoted to No. 3, making just five off his first nine balls. Yuvraj then smacked Krunal for six over deep midwicket, but that was the only highlight of another rusty effort as he was run out after a second mix-up with Karun Nair. Yuvraj's efforts: a run-a-ball 14, taking his season's tally to 34 in six innings. The move to drop Manoj Tiwary after just one game looking even more baffling.
Mumbai's poor finish
Jasprit Bumrah was superb in the Powerplay, and superb in the death; his figures of 4-0-19-1 were his best so far this season. But Mumbai still did not get the finish they wanted. After restricting Kings XI to 135 for 5, they conceded 39 off the last three overs. Two nights ago in Bengaluru, their final over, bowled by McClenaghan, went for 24. Here, Marcus Stoinis scored 21 off the last over, from Hardik. Stoinis finished with 29 off 15 and Kings XI had momentum, even though they may have been 20 runs short.
Kings XI use spin upfront
While Mumbai bowled only five overs of spin, Kings XI bowled those many in the first eight overs. R Ashwin, who kept Evin Lewis and Ishan Kishan quiet, bowled three. Then Mujeeb struck with his fourth delivery in the sixth over, when Lewis nicked a skidder to Rahul. Ashwin eventually bowled out by the 11th over, with Mumbai needing 99 off 54. Suryakumar Yadav scored a quick half-century even as a watchful Kishan, trying to overcome a slump of three ducks in five innings, played himself in. When it got to a point where they had to go, Suryakumar fell to an ugly hoick.
Rohit's batting position
Yuvraj batting at No. 3 and Axar Patel at No. 5 weren't the only surprises of the night. Mumbai played Hardik at No. 4 ahead of Rohit, who had smashed 118 off 43 against Sri Lanka in his previous T20I in Indore. On Friday, Rohit came in at No. 5 after Kishan fell, with Mumbai needing 75 off 42.
Hardik's 13-ball 23 ensured Mumbai kept up with the asking rate, but his dismissal brought Krunal to the crease. And then Kings XI lost their lengths. Stoinis, playing in place of Aaron Finch, bowled three slower length balls and a full toss to concede three fours and a six in the 17th over, as Krunal used the depth of the crease on a true surface and found the leg-side boundary. He finished on 31 off 12 balls, Rohit on 24 off 15, and Mumbai had six points, same as the three teams below them in the league.
Warwickshire 375 for 6 (Lamb 79*, Trott 76, Wright 72, Rhodes 50) lead Derbyshire 318 (Madsen 144) by 57 runs Scorecard
Important contributions from new and old guards lifted Warwickshire into control against Derbyshire on the second day of their Specsavers County Championship match at Edgbaston.
Division Two leaders Warwickshire closed on 375 for six, 57 ahead of their nearest pursuers in the league table after a day of solid advance.
Jonathan Trott struck 76 (138 balls, five fours) the day after confirming that he would retire at the end of the season, Chris Wright 72 after going in as nightwatchman) and Ian Bell 44.
While those three players have 698 first-class matches between them, Will Rhodes (50) and Matt Lamb (a career-best 79 not out) are just starting out, so their batting, the most attractive of the day, was much enjoyed by another big Birmingham crowd.
For Derbyshire, it was a testing day. On a pitch on which they choose to bat first, they bowled with insufficient accuracy to build the pressure needed to force errors. The three senior seamers having together bagged 62-6-236-3, Ravi Rampaul might be forgiven for reflecting on his omission from the team as unjust.
After resuming on 32 for one, Warwickshire lost just one wicket in the morning session. Rhodes completed his first half-century for his new club before edging Mark Footitt behind.
That was Footitt's first wicket back at Derbyshire on loan from Nottinghamshire and a second should have soon followed when Ian Bell, on 12, edged but Billy Godleman dropped a straightforward catch at second slip.
Wright batted throughout the morning session and added 77 in 27 overs with Bell before the latter fell lbw to Hardus Viljoen. The nightwatchman was within five runs of his career-best when he missed an attempt to cut leg-spinner Matt Critchley.
When Critchley trapped Sam Hain lbw, Warwickshire were 206 for five and Derbyshire had an opening but the next hour shaped the day as Trott and Lamb added an unbroken 60 up to tea. Footitt looked understandably rusty and Viljeon and Duanne Olivier were erratic.
A day after announcing that he will retire at the end of the season, Trott showed that his appetite for runs and ability to collect them remain high. His departure, bowled by Critchley just before the close, evoked the warmest ovation of the day.
Over-aggressive at first, Lamb settled to play some pleasing strokes in the final session and help ease his side into the lead and then into a position from which a significant lead beckons tomorrow.
Mumbai Indians are on the edge, but not yet ready to be pushed off the cliff just yet. Rohit Sharma and Krunal Pandya's unbeaten 56-run stand off just 21 deliveries helped them pull off a 175 chase with four balls to spare, after Kings XI Punjab had the upper hand for most parts.
Needing 50 off four overs, Ashwin threw the ball to Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who had picked up two wickets and caused Mumbai's batsmen much trouble. Rohit responded by hitting him for two sixes. The floodgates truly opened when Andrew Tye missed his lengths in the next over as Krunal got stuck in to take 20. This brought the chase within touching distance, with four leg byes off a missed heave delivering their third win in nine matches.
Gayle-Rahul party continues
On Friday, Mumbai came up with a clear plan against Chris Gayle: to hit hard lengths, target his rib cage and not give him any width to swing or bowl full in his hitting arc. This left Gayle on one off eight balls at one stage. The fluency was missing, the timing was off and KL Rahul, who began with a sparkling inside-out six over extra cover off Mitchell McClenaghan was denied strike. But in hitting Hardik Pandya for three fours in the fourth over, Gayle caught up to get Kings XI back up again. His hoisting of Mitchell McClenaghan for a 92-metre six that cleared the roofs at deep square leg marked his arrival.
Kings XI averaged 59 in the Powerplay coming into this game. Here, they were only marginally slower: 49 for 0, but considering how dangerous the pair have been so far - four fifty-plus opening stands coming into the game - they would've taken it. They brought up their fifth fifty-plus score, but were soon separated when Rahul picked out JP Duminy at deep midwicket off Mayank Markande's half-tracker in the seventh over.
No end to Yuvraj's struggle
Yuvraj's Smart Strike Rate of 40.32 this season was the poorest among 51 batsmen who've faced at least 50 balls this season. He started slowly again after being promoted to No. 3, making just five off the first nine balls he faced. Then he smacked Krunal, perhaps held back to negate the Gayle effect, for six over deep midwicket, but that was the highlight in another rusty effort as he was run-out after a second mix-up with Karun Nair. Yuvraj's efforts: a run-a-ball 14, taking his season's tally to 34 runs in six innings, the move to drop Manoj Tiwary after just one game looking even more baffling.
Mumbai's poor finish
Jasprit Bumrah was superb in the Powerplay, superb in the death; his figures of 4-0-19-1 his best so far this season. But that didn't translate into the finish Mumbai would've wanted. After strangulating Kings XI to 135 for 5, they conceded 39 off the last three. Two nights ago in Bengaluru, their final over, bowled by McClenaghan, went for 24. Here, Marcus Stoinis took the final over by Hardik for 21. He finished with 29 off 15 as Kings XI had momentum, even if they may have felt 20 lighter.
Kings XI go spin upfront
Where Mumbai bowled all of five overs of spin, Kings XI bowled those many in the first eight itself. R Ashwin, who kept Evin Lewis and Ishan Kishan quiet, bowled three of those. Then Mujeeb struck off his fourth delivery in the sixth over when Lewis nicked a skidder to Rahul. Kings XI had a tight lid on the runs. Ashwin eventually bowled out by the 11th, with Mumbai needing 99 off 54. Suryakumar Yadav held fort to construct a quick half-century, even as a watchful Kishan, trying to overcome a mini-slump after three ducks in five innings, played himself in. When it got to a point where they had to go, Suryakumar fell to an ugly hoick with Rahul taking a swirler to mount pressure.
More to follow
Shashank Kishore is a senior sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo
Leicestershire 301 for 4 (Carberry 73, Horton 75, Cosgrove 66*) vs Durham Scorecard
Leicestershire have made an imperious start to their Specsavers County Championship Division Two clash against Durham posting 301 for 4 on day one, punishing Paul Collingwood for inserting the visitors at Emirates Riverside.
Michael Carberry, Paul Horton and Mark Cosgrove all made fifties as the home side's bowlers toiled on a flat pitch, leaving them with a huge task ahead of them to get back into the contest.
The toss was contested and Collingwood opted to send the visitors into bat, despite the bright sunshine at the Emirates Riverside. Carberry and Horton were watchful at the crease in the early stages of the innings to see off the threat of the new ball. Once Chris Rushworth and Nathan Rimmington were removed from the attack, boundaries flowed off the bowling of Barry McCarthy and James Weighell as Leicestershire coasted into lunch at 80 for 0.
Horton remained composed after the break and notched his fifty off 114 deliveries - his second on the bounce in the County Championship. The visitors eased past the 100-run mark before Carberry reached his half-century as he guided a shot down to the boundary, reaching the milestone slightly quicker than his partner in 97 balls.
The opening partnership of 146 was broken when Horton played a loose cut off the bowling of Nathan Rimmington, drilling the ball straight to Cameron Steel at point for 75. Carberry followed for 73 when he was adjudged lbw to Barry McCarthy in a tight call. Colin Ackermann found the boundary with regularity, notching five fours and six, and was looking comfortable at the crease as Leicestershire passed 200.
However, the South African fell one delivery shy of the tea break when he edged behind a delivery from James Weighell for 36. Mark Cosgrove found his feet and was able to compound his side's advantage, blunting Durham's attempts to break back into the contest. McCarthy notched his second breakthrough of the game when he snagged Ned Eckersley lbw for nine.
Cosgrove remained composed and reached his fifty with a boundary, nudging a McCarthy delivery through gully. The Australian's half-century was the quickest of the lot, taking only 80 balls, with nine boundaries in his innings.
Durham took the new ball with the hope of making further inroads, but the attempts of Rushworth and Rimmington were in vain as pitch continued to offer little assistance. Cosgrove and Lewis Hill continued to put runs on the board and they took Leicestershire's total beyond 300 in the final over the day, with the Aussie unbeaten on 66.
Surrey 278 for 4 (Burns 137*, Foakes 72) vs Worcestershire Scorecard
Rory Burns played a captain's innings of 137 not out as Surrey took the first day honours in their Specsavers County Championship match against Worcestershire at the Kia Oval.
Burns was joined by Ben Foakes, who scored a fluent 72 from 105 balls, in a fourth wicket stand of 125 as Surrey reached 278 for 4 against Division One's bottom side.
Promoted Worcestershire, who have begun the new campaign by losing all three of their previous games, bowled with spirit in the first session and a half after Surrey had chosen to bat on winning a toss.
Joe Leach's two-wicket burst immediately after lunch, in which he had both Scott Borthwick and Ryan Patel caught behind, initially pegged Surrey back to 99 for 3 - before Burns and Foakes carefully launched the counter-attack in impressive fashion.
At tea they had taken the total on to 176, with Burns on 84, and it was something of a surprise when Foakes fell in the 73rd over having just extra cover driven Ed Barnard regally for his 11th four. Barnard, to his credit, then produced a superb delivery which moved away from Foakes just enough to touch the edge of a defensive bat on its way into the gloves of wicketkeeper Ben Cox.
In the final hour and a half, however, Burns and Ollie Pope added a further 54, with Pope finishing unbeaten on 18, and by the close Burns had faced 294 balls, hitting 12 fours.
Earlier, Mark Stoneman's run out for 28 was the only blot on an otherwise profitable morning for Surrey as they reached 87 for 1 by lunch. England Test opener Stoneman featured in a hard-working first wicket stand of 50 with Burns, with both left-handers dealing well with a new ball that did nibble around enough to give Worcestershire's seam attack significant encouragement.
But then Stoneman pushed a ball from Josh Tongue into the covers, called for what was always going to be a risky single and was beaten by Barnard's excellent pick-up and direct hit on the bowler's stumps.
Both Borthwick and Patel got to 10 before the two left-handers were beaten by Worcestershire captain Leach's away movement from around the wicket and edged to Cox.
Fast bowlers Stuart Meaker and Conor McKerr were brought into Surrey's team, replacing Matt Dunn and Jade Dernbach, and Patel - who played in the draw at Lancashire last week - was pushed up the order to bat at No 4 in place of overseas batsman Dean Elgar, who is missing this match due to a prior commitment back home in South Africa.
For Worcestershire, the 20-year-old former England Under-19 all-rounder Ben Twohig was making a first-class debut and he bowled his slow left-arm spin with energy and decent control in several spells during a well-fought day in which Burns - and Foakes - proved to be the difference.
South Africa women 270 for 9 (Tryon 65, Lee 54, van Niekerk 44, Akter 2-22) beat Bangladesh women 164 (Hoque 69, Tryon 2-14, van Niekerk 3-23) by 106 runs
Captain Dane van Niekerk and Chloe Tryon's all-round shows handed South Africa a 106-run win against Bangladesh in Potchefstroom. Van Niekerk's 52-ball 44 and Tryon's 42-ball 65 took South Africa to 270 for 9, and then the duo shared five wickets between them to skittle out the visitors for 164.
South Africa were off to a strong start after opting to bat. Openers Lizelle Lee and Laura Wolvaardt put together a 67-run stand which was broken by legspinner Fahima Khatun. A couple of quick wickets followed, but Van Niekerk, at No. 5, steadied things with a 63-run stand with Mignon du Preez. Tryon came in after that and stayed on till the 49th over to push the total past 250. Left-arm spinner Nahida Akhter was Bangladesh's most successful bowler with 2 for 22 in eight overs.
In reply, Bangladesh lost opener Murshida Khatun in the second over to pacer Marizanne Kapp. Sanjida Islam partnered Fargana Hoque in a 63-run second-wicket stand, the pair putting up the only two noteworthy performances with the bat for Bangladesh. It was the legspin of van Niekerk that caused the breakthrough, as Sanjida stepped out, missed the line, and was stumped. South Africa used as many as nine bowlers, with five out of them picking up at least one wicket.
Bangladesh crumbled from 74 for 2 to 112 for 9, as van Niekerk ripped through the middle order with two wickets in four overs. The left-arm pace of Tryon helped wrap up the tail; she picked two in her five overs and conceded at 2.80.
Hoque kept going with a 146-ball 69 before du Preez struck in the 50th over to dismiss the No. 11 Panna Ghosh to end the game.
A change in leadership is the natural response for a faltering organisation - in business and in sports. Occasionally, a professional sports team still fails to rally around a new captain for several reasons, the lack of skill being the most influential factor. On other occasions, a team finds success with a new group of players immediately, like Delhi Daredevils under Shreyas Iyer.
Delhi have won two of their last three games after Gautam Gambhir's exclusion. Overall, they have three wins in nine games. Iyer, Rishabh Pant and Prithvi Shaw have sparkled, but there are still too many holes. Glenn Maxwell, Jason Roy and Colin Munro haven't been substantial contributors, and Daredevils still haven't found their best bowling combination.
Sunrisers Hyderabad, on the other hand, have hardly had to bother with the quality of their bowling. They have defended 151, 132 and 118 in their previous three games. The absence of David Warner has discernibly weakened their batting, but it hasn't hampered the efficiency. That they lead the points table without a 180-plus score - the only team not to cross that mark in the IPL this season - can attest to that.
In the news
Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who missed the last two games with a back injury, could return on Saturday. Captain Kane Williamson said "it wasn't a serious injury, but something he did need to allow rest."
Likely XIs
Sunrisers Hyderabad: 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Alex Hales, 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Manish Pandey, 5 Shakib Al Hasan, 6 Yusuf Pathan, 7 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10 Sandeep Sharma, 11 Siddarth Kaul
Prithvi Shaw has aced pace so far in this season. He has scored at a strike rate of 181.4 against pace, but just 132 against spinners. Colin Munro too has scored quicker against pace (164.5) than spin (144.2) in T20s since 2015. In that same period, Jason Roy has a strike rate of 152.1 against pace, but 124.9 against spin.
Sunrisers could not only start with spin, but could use slower bowlers in tandem against Daredevils' openers.
Stats that matter
As per the numbers, Sunrisers are the worst batting team in every phase - Powerplay, middle and death overs - of an innings this season. They are also the best bowling team in every phase of an innings.
The average score batting first in day-night games at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium last season was 172. That par score has come down considerably this season, to 134.
Sunrisers have not lost a game defending a total this season, in three games. Daredevils have won just one of five games while chasing a target this season.
Fantasy pick
The Hyderabad surface this season has been quite slow and has taken plenty of turn. That generally means that batting could get gradually harder, which makes the Powerplay the best time to score. Alex Hales is, therefore, a batsman that could score quickly earlier on, earning some valuable fantasy points.
India captain Virat Kohli will play county cricket for Surrey in June. Kohli will head to the county after the IPL finishes at the end of the month
India captain Virat Kohli will play county cricket for Surrey in June. Kohli will head to the county after the IPL finishes at the end of the month. The Indian captain won’t be part of the one-off Test against Afghanistan to be played in June.
"Surrey county cricket club are delighted to announce the signing of India captain Virat Kohli for the month of June Kohli will be available for all cricket throughout the month until the close of Surrey's trip to Scarborough to face Yorkshire," Surrey County Cricket Club said in a statement released on Thursday.
"It has long been an ambition of mine to play county cricket and I am thankful to Alec Stewart and Surrey for allowing me the opportunity to join them during their 2018 season. I can't wait to get to the Kia Oval,” Virat Kohli was quoted as saying in an NDTV report after the signing.
Kohli is the fourth Indian player in county cricket this year.
Alec Stewart, Surrey's Director of Cricket, was quoted as saying in an NDTV report, "We are thrilled to have signed the biggest name in world cricket for the month of June. Playing and training alongside Virat will be a massive benefit for our players who will have the opportunity to learn so much from him.”
Kolkata Knight Riders had sweet revenge for their defeat against Chennai Super Kings the last time the two teams met with a comfortable victory on Thursday.
Kolkata Knight Riders had sweet revenge for their defeat against Chennai Super Kings the last time the two teams met with a comfortable victory on Thursday.
One of the stars of the win was Shubman Gill with 57 off 36 balls, and KKR skipper Dinesh Karthik was all praise for the young lad.
“Credit to the management to have taken so many U-19 players. We were a little harsh on Gill earlier, but he’s hit first-ball boundaries in the past too, so he’s been good,” said Dinesh Karthik at the post-match presentation.
“That boy is special. I don’t want to hype it up and put extra pressure on him. I can see a lot of years of India Blues in him,” the KKR captain added.
Karthik also heaped riches on the spin trio of Narine, Kuldeep Yadav and Piyush Chawla. “I picked it up early, that we can bowl a lot of spin on this wicket. Our bowlers are so confident. They wanted to bowl.
“You need to be pushing boundaries. Narine is a thorough all-rounder. Provides impetus at the top and also bowled the pressure overs. He’s a great player to have in the team,” Karthik went on to add.
