Unbeaten 205-run stand turns the tables as champions endure frustrating day in the field

Andrew Miller10-Apr-2021Worcestershire 350 for 6 (Libby 141*, Barnard 116*, Wessels 54, Cook 4-77) trail Essex 490 for 9 dec by 140 runsThere’s been a fetching pink beanie sitting on the wall by the traffic lights on New Writtle Street for three days now. It’s nearly new, to judge by its lack of contours, although perhaps a touch too Middlesexy in hue for these parts. But much like Jake Libby and Ed Barnard throughout their indomitable seventh-wicket stand of 205, it seems to have hit upon an unlikely strip of Chelmsford real estate, and decided that – come wind, rain or shine – there’s nowhere else that it would rather be.The beanie was still there at the close – of course it was. More improbably, so too were Worcestershire’s incumbents, as they warmed to their task on the coldest, gloomiest day of the season so far, to turn a position of pre-ordained defeat into one from which Sunday’s probable stalemate will feel like a hugely significant victory. A punch of the gloves as the pair strode off at the close underlined the extent to which they had changed the narrative of this contest, and that there’s only one team left that’s likely to derive any enjoyment from its denouement.For Libby, of course, this was business as usual. Of all the batsmen in last year’s Bob Willis Trophy, only Sir Alastair Cook managed more than his haul of 498 runs at 55.33, and Cook only vaulted that tally with his commanding century in the final. But in battling his way to the close on 141 not out from 369 balls, Libby reaffirmed his credentials by putting Cook himself – for much of his innings a chilly onlooker from the slip cordon – through the sort of ordeal that all the best openers should aspire to inflict on their opponents.Barnard, by contrast, came with rather less warning of what was in store. Despite his youthful promise – not least as a white-ball allrounder – a previous best first-class score of 75, and a grand total of four centuries in any representative format (most recently a Birmingham Premier League knock for Shrewsbury in 2017) did not exactly scream of the sort of durability that Worcestershire were crying out for, especially when he arrived at the crease at a listless 145 for 6.Worcestershire were still almost 200 runs shy of saving the follow-on at that moment, and if Libby’s dour half-century was providing a steadfast imitation of Tom Westley’s first-day efforts, no-one other than the been-and-gone Riki Wessels had shown any intention of doing likewise. Wessels had thumped and ground his way to a punchy 54 in a fifth-wicket stand of 89 to hint that resistance wasn’t futile after all. But it was surely going to have to be the second innings, with the threat of imminent defeat to focus the minds, where Worcestershire made their stand.But this was not to be the day that Essex’s frustrated champions had in mind. Not after their surging finish to the second day’s play, when Sam Cook’s biting seam movement had shredded the top of Worcestershire’s reply; not after Cook’s fourth-ball breakthrough on the most bitter, wintery morning of the match had taken his personal tally to four wickets in the space of 12 balls. And certainly not in the first over after lunch, when Ben Cox dropped to one knee for a wild sweep that gifted Simon Harmer the first of what, presumably, will be another bucketload of first-class wickets this season, and brought the diffident Barnard out to join his senior partner.Jake Libby is congratulated by Ed Barnard after bringing up his century•Andrew Miller

But if there was one clear difference between the approaches of Essex and Worcestershire in their two innings, it was in the willingness of the latter to go from their strokes – the life lessons, no doubt, of 157.4 overs of hard yakka across the first two days. For all of Worcestershire’s seamers – not least Barnard himself, whose 3 for 67 looks even better in hindsight – there had been a distinct lack of April zip off the deck, and what few edges they had found had been falling consistently short of the cordon.So Barnard himself chose the pro-active route, trusting himself to aim through the covers with relative impunity. Sure enough, it wasn’t until late in the afternoon session that Essex chose to plug a third man through which more than 50 runs had whistled in the course of the innings, with not a single catchable opportunity among them, beyond Adam Wheater’s second-ball drop of Daryl Mitchell right at the top of the innings.Essex are not used to being made to toil for their wickets on home soil – in three home fixtures in last season’s Bob Willis Trophy, only one team, Kent, managed to post more than 200 in any of their six innings, and even they were rolled aside for 112 second-time around. And their frustrations were epitomised when Sam Cook, in his penultimate over of the day, attempted a shy at Barnard’s stumps in his followthrough, but shanked his throw so badly that it almost took out Alastair Cook’s shins at slip before streaking to the boundary.Related

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Both men brought up their centuries in near-identical fashions – a pair of flicks off the pads on 98, and a pair of urgent scampers back for the second run that brought a pair of throaty roars from the visiting dressing rooms. Barnard in particular bore a look of wonder in his eyes as he contemplated his achievement. It was, he admitted afterwards, “a monkey off his back” to broach three figures given his obvious talent, and his stated ambition, given his current age of 24, to become a genuine allrounder at 5 or 6 in the order.”When there is someone at the other end who is confident it makes it easier,” he added. “It gives you the calmness and the confidence you can do it as well. It was a case of batting as long as we can and trying to save the game. We saw it was a good pitch and knew it could be done, so we just had to get a head start and get on with it.”For Essex, this likely failure to record their habitual home victory is far from panic stations despite the rejigged format for this season – especially given the ECB’s decision to up the points from five to eight for a draw. But, for all of the resolve shown by Libby and Barnard, the lack of life in the surface is already a concern given the truncated group stage.”We knew leading up to the season that the ground was particularly dry for this time of year,” admitted Anthony McGrath, the head coach.”Firstly, credit to Worcestershire. The partnership between Libby and Bernard was really good. They batted well. But there hasn’t been a lot in the wicket all game. We needed to make in-roads with the new ball, which we managed last night, but as we’ve seen through the three days that if someone has got through that then it is a pretty benign pitch.”People talk about us not scoring enough runs at home but in this match we have scored a lot of runs but haven’t taken the wickets. That’s the way it goes sometimes.”There is still a day left so I wouldn’t be going anywhere yet. As we have seen over the last couple of years anything can happen here. We still have a healthy lead and if we can go bang-bang in the morning then we will be trying to push the game forward.”

Middle-order batter could also play two Championship games; James Harris joins Glamorgan on loan

Matt Roller21-Apr-2021Gloucestershire have announced the signing of Glenn Phillips, the New Zealand batter, for the duration of their T20 Blast campaign.Phillips, 24, dislodged Ross Taylor to become a member of New Zealand’s first-choice T20I side this season, playing all 14 of their home fixtures and hitting 108 off 51 balls against West Indies. He will provide a wicketkeeping option if James Bracey misses some of the Blast due to England duty, and can also bowl occasional offbreaks.A specialist middle-order batter, Phillips has improved his game against spin markedly during four seasons playing for the Jamaica Tallawahs in the Caribbean Premier League, and is understood to have been discussed as a possible back-up option by IPL franchises ahead of February’s auction.He will add further firepower to a squad that reached Finals Day last summer for the first time since 2007, joining Ian Cockbain, Jack Taylor, Benny Howell and Ryan Higgins in the middle-order engine room. Phillips spent the 2016 summer in the UK playing for MCC Young Cricketers and for Brondesbury CC in club cricket, and this will be his first stint in county cricket.Related

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Phillips will also be available for the County Championship fixtures that take place during the Blast, specifically against Middlesex and Hampshire at Cheltenham, by which point Kraigg Brathwaite’s stint at the club will have ended. He has a solid first-class record, averaging 40.18, and made a half-century in his only Test to date – against Australia in early 2020. Having missed out on New Zealand’s squad for the tour of England, he will be available to play throughout the Blast, and could be an attractive option as a short-term replacement playing during the Hundred.Ian Harvey, Gloucestershire’s interim head coach, said: “Glenn is very exciting to watch and he’s going to add a massive amount to what is already a powerful T20 batting line-up. He can bat at the top of the order, in the middle and also add to our firepower at the end. He’s a bit of an allrounder because he bowls and keeps wicket as well so he will give us plenty of options.”To have someone in your side with the ability to do pretty much everything is a huge bonus and his experience of playing around the world in franchise cricket is going to be a massive benefit for our players. He’s played Test match cricket and can keep wicket so he gives us plenty of options if we want to bring him in for red-ball games.”James Harris has signed for Glamorgan on a two-week loan•Getty Images

Meanwhile, Glamorgan have announced the signing of James Harris, the Middlesex seamer, on loan for their next two Championship fixtures. Harris, who is president of the Professional Cricketers’ Association, came through the club’s academy system before joining Middlesex in 2012, and is returning to Wales on loan for the second time after a similar move in 2014.Harris has fallen down the pecking order at Middlesex and was not named in their squads for the first two Championship games of the season. Glamorgan are experiencing an availability crisis within their seam-bowling department with Ruaidhri Smith and Jamie McIlroy suffering injuries, Timm van der Gugten reporting muscle tightness and Michael Neser yet to arrive as an overseas player, giving Harris an opportunity to play in their matches against Northamptonshire and Kent.

The two match referees and six umpires managed to get to the BKSP eventually and matches began after a delay

Mohammad Isam13-Jun-2021A group of Dhaka Premier League (DPL) match officials escaped major injuries when the car ferrying them to the Bangladesh Krira Shikkha Protishtan (BKSP) on Sunday morning was attacked during a violent skirmish between protesting garment workers and the police in the Savar industrial area.Eight officials – match referees Debabrata Paul and Adil Ahmed, and umpires Shafiuddin, Tanvir Ahmed, Abdullah Al Motin, Imran Parvez, Barkatullah Turkey and Sohrab Hossain – were in the car and were on their way to officiate in the two DPL matches scheduled at BKSP on the day. The car was completely smashed. Other vehicles stuck in the tailback were also attacked.Related

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An eyewitness told ESPNcricinfo that thousands of agitated workers attacked the cars that had been held up in traffic in a spree that lasted 15 to 20 minutes. The officials managed to escape with help from local police and BCB security personnel. While there were no serious injuries, broken windows had left glass shards on the officials. Once away from the scene, the officials managed to tidy up and find their way to BKSP, and the games were held after a 30-minute delay.Kazi Inam Ahmed, the chairman of the cricket committee of Dhaka Metropolis, called it an “unfortunate incident”, adding, “The match officials showed great courage in the face of such an incident. They could start the matches at 9.30am. The match officials had a police escort but four of them were facing thousands of people in that protest.”On each match day of this season’s DPL T20 tournament, four matches are held at the BKSP, the country’s biggest sports institute, which has two grounds. The match officials, who are staying in one hotel in Dhaka within a BCB bio-secure bubble, take the 40-kilometre journey to the ground together.

Veteran allrounder contributes 15 sixes and 160 out of 166-run partnership for ninth wicket

David Hopps21-May-2021The oldest swinger in town was at it again in Canterbury, clubbing the ball to all parts, defying age and occasionally defying logic. Darren Stevens played one of the most remarkable attacking innings witnessed in the Championship for many a year as he again underlined his status as one of the most notable servants county cricket has ever known.Stevens’ resounding assault on Glamorgan’s bowling, glorious in its simplicity, brought him 190 from 149 balls. Kent, at one time 128 for 8, made 307 as he walloped 15 sixes and 15 fours. On a day of strong breezes which bent tree branches, removed umpires’ caps and caused advertising boards to take flight, the Stevens whirlwind settled in the middle of the square and caused the most damage of all.At 45 years and 21 days, he became the oldest player to score a first-class century since Chris Balderstone (45 years, 247 days) for Leicestershire in July 1986. (Geoffrey Boycott might remind you that he was a slightly older 45-year-old when he struck two centuries earlier that month, although without Stevens’ shower of sixes.)To put things in perspective, before this round of matches the leading six-hitter in the Championship was Nottinghamshire’s Tom Moores… with seven. To further put things into perspective, Stevens entered this game with six single-figure scores on the bounce. In the past two years he has virtually had to talk his way into squeezing another year’s contract. Kent supporters will hope he again has the gift of the gab in September because they are not yet ready to let go. He is a player who can’t be pinned down, who every so often does wondrous things with bat or ball.How fortunate we feel as we edge gingerly out of this global pandemic, like rabbits out of burrows, to witness cricket so free of guile. How blessed Stevens must feel to still be playing on; he lost his father, who loved watching him play, to a Covid-related illness about a year ago, and lived in a caravan for two weeks on his cousin’s driveway in Leicester so he could talk through the window to his mum, who was self-isolating. Dreadful times, and these are the days that we treasure more strongly as a result.Greedily for the statisticians, the six that mattered most was the one that got away. If only Stevens had made a sweeter connection with a blow down the ground against the legspin of the Australia Test batsman, Marnus Labuschagne, he would have equalled the most sixes in English first-class cricket, jointly held by Graham Napier and Andrew Symonds. As soon as he hit it, he walked away from the crease, pausing momentarily to glance over his shoulder to confirm that Kiran Carlson had held the catch at long-on.

Most sixes in County Championship innings

• 16 – Andrew Symonds, Gloucestershire v Glamorgan, Abergavenny, 1995

• 16 – Graham Napier, Essex v Surrey, Whitgift School, 2011

• 15 – Kevin Pietersen, Surrey v Leicestershire, Kia Oval, 2015

• 15 – Aneurin Donald, Glamorgan v Derbyshire, Colwyn Bay, 2015

• 15 – Darren Stevens, Kent v Glamorgan, Canterbury, 2021

It was by no means certain that Carlson would hang on because in the latter stages of their browbeating, Glamorgan had been run ragged. Stevens was dropped three times, a tough diving chance for Lloyd in the slips when he was 67, on 136 when Labuschagne failed to hold a waist-high, running catch at deep square, and again one run later, this time Billy Root the offender as he pushed the ball over the ropes at deep midwicket.Kent’s ninth-wicket record – 171 by Mark Ealham and Paul Strang – also narrowly survived, and that serves as a reminder of the redoubtable part played by Miguel Cummins, who likes a bit of a tail-end hit, but who loyally committed himself to abstinence. Of their extraordinary stand of 166 in 28 overs, Stevens made 160, Cummins 1 and extras made up the rest; Stevens’ contribution of 96.38% of the partnership runs was a record for 100-plus stands in first-class cricket. Cummins had made 7, from 61 balls, when he dragged on Labuschagne to end Kent’s innings.Stevens majored in leg-side clunks and consummate lofts down the ground. He used the wind intelligently, lofting when it was in his favour, wary when it was not. The most startling six was something different when he dropped to one knee to hit David Lloyd’s medium pace over extra cover. The least impressive was probably his first, a wind-assisted top-edged pull to fine leg against Michael Hogan.Every Glamorgan bowler suffered from Stevens’ assault, although the Australian pair, Labuschagne and Michael Neser suffered less than most. Neser, bearded and strongly built, had sparked Kent’s collapse from their overnight 70 for 2 with inswingers to pick off Jamie Cox, Jack Leaning and Daniel Bell-Drummond, but Stevens treated him to a leg-side pick-up when he lost his line. Labuschagne, the seventh bowler tried, looked spooked as he began with a full toss that was called a wide, but he settled and briefly made Stevens look a little cumbersome.Timm van der Gugten, who had rendered Kent strokeless for much of the morning session, conceded two sixes and still returned 4 for 34 in 19 overs. Andrew Salter’s offspin was the meekest adversary. Stevens cleared the boundary five times two overs; Salter tried to hide one or two, but there was no hiding place; he might as well have been the infant putting his hands over his eyes and hoping that the big, bad man could not see him.Stevens soaks up the applause for his 36th first-class hundred•Getty Images

This was a heartwarming innings, an innings of abandon, one which for all his cricketing nous ultimately reduced to game to the basics of “bat hits ball.” It was apt that this was the week that crowds returned in limited numbers because few players have gained more affection than Stevens has in Kent, and indeed beyond. And as well as the smattering of spectators who braved the cheerless conditions, many more rushed to the ball-by-ball services and the live stream.When named Stevens as one of their Five Cricketers of the Year in April it brought delight to many on the county circuit, and some nonplussed looks beyond. He was the oldest player to be given the honour since Leicestershire’s Ewart Astill in 1933 and his reputation had been built without a single international cap. He did not need to prove himself a worthy recipient, but he did anyway.Later, to prevent stiffness setting in, he bowled a few overs and took a wicket – that of Labuschagne, for the second time this season. Afterwards, his captain, Sam Billings made a dressing room speech in tribute, and a rousing one it would have been. Glamorgan, who must have imagined themselves in a winning position, were 55 for 2 at the close, 252 behind, regathering their poise.

Onus on visitors’ batting to find an extra gear after flat displays in first two T20Is

Andrew Miller25-Jun-2021

Big picture

Three days on from the World Test Championship final, the Ageas Bowl (as it is once again allowed to be known) plays host to a final of a rather less epochal variety. The final T20I between England and Sri Lanka will be a daylight-hours dead rubber after England’s comprehensive victories in Cardiff earlier this week, and if that prospect fails to set your pulse racing then never fear – at least you’ll be able to flick over to Wales versus Denmark during the second innings if the going gets too stodgy.Perhaps that’s unfair. Thursday night’s rain-interrupted second encounter had its moments, perhaps most notably Sam Curran’s sublime side-foot into the stumps to run out Danushka Gunathilaka. But for all that England’s bowlers have been excellent in both contests, the grim truth is that Sri Lanka have limped along to consecutive totals of 129 and 111 in their 20 overs – a series run-rate of precisely one a ball. And impressive though their initial defence of that second total may have been, the jeopardy was short-lived once England’s middle-order pair of Liam Livingstone and Sam Billings had calibrated the appropriate tempo for their chase.It is, as Sri Lanka’s coach Mickey Arthur acknowledged, a case of No. 1 versus No. 9 in the ICC T20I rankings, and the gulf has been plain for all to see. Even the continued absence of England’s most accomplished white-ball batter is unlikely to close up the gap between the sides. Jos Buttler has been ruled out for the remainder of the Sri Lanka tour with a minor calf tear, but Jonny Bairstow and Jason Roy – reunited at the top of the order – aren’t exactly a second-best option among white-ball opening partnerships.It’s hard to see exactly where Sri Lanka can hope to catch a break in this contest. Wanindu Hasaranga has impressed once again with his legspin, while their new-ball pairing of Dushmantha Chameera and Binura Fernando bowled with heart and fire in the Powerplay. But Adil Rashid goes from strength to strength, rising to every new role that Eoin Morgan seeks to audition him for, while Mark Wood’s lavish loosener-free pace is a bruising option to bomb the middle overs. When you’re barely stretching the ability of a player with as much star billing as Sam Curran, you know you’ve got your bases covered.Related

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Sri Lanka may be tempted to make changes to their line-up, particularly in the batting, but such is the volatility of their current team, at some stage too they will need simply to opt for continuity and trust their chosen players to come out of their shells. That said, it took until the eighth over on Thursday for Sri Lanka to post their first boundary, and nonsensically only two players all night managed so much as hit a four. Kusal Mendis top-scored with a run-a-ball 39; Isuru Udana ruined Chris Jordan’s figures with some belated intent in the 20th over of their innings. Without that, they might not even have scraped past 100.Who knows what England can learn from these contests, although the state of the wickets in Cardiff suggest that they are focused on used-pitch practice given the likelihood of the T20 World Cup taking place in the UAE, straight after the IPL has swiped what little juice the surfaces may have had. That is, after all, the real end-game. This is just another staging post in the quest for further ICC silverware.

Form guide

(completed matches, most recent first)England WWLLWSri Lanka LLLWL

In the spotlight

Dawid Malan has been drafted into England’s ODI squad as a replacement for Buttler, which may help to reassure him that he is still a hugely valued part of the white-ball set-up. But there’s no question he’ll be feeling the heat as the focus intensifies on his place at No. 3. In six T20s this summer – two for England, four for Yorkshire – he has a highest score of 23, while his consecutive scores of 7 and 4 in Cardiff were, incredibly, only his second and third single-digit returns in 26 T20Is. A truer surface in Southampton may be what he needs to get back to his dominant best, although quite how much of a pointer that would be for the T20 World Cup’s conditions is anyone’s guess.Wanindu Hasaranga has been a flicker of hope in a rough period for Sri Lankan cricket. His three-card trick to bamboozle Sam Billings on Thursday capped another fine display of legspin – 2 for 20 in four overs on this occasion – and he is now ranked in the top ten T20I bowlers in the world, according to the ICC. With his combination of accuracy and variety, including a superb googly, if any one player is likely to put in the sort of performance that can earn Sri Lanka a consolation win, it is him.

Pitch and conditions

This will be the first T20 at the Ageas Bowl this season – Hampshire have played a glut of away games in the Blast while the ground was being used as India’s base ahead of the WTC final. To judge by that contest, there should be plenty of carry for the quicks on offer, but most importantly the weather is set fair after the nonsense of this time last week. A pleasant summer’s afternoon is in prospect, come what may.

Team news

As a rule, England are loath to make too many changes to their XIs, although the continued absence of Buttler has caused a degree of upheaval in their ranks. Bairstow is set to open with Jason Roy once more, and probably retain the gloves too, even though Billings was on standby to make his Test debut as a keeper against New Zealand earlier this month. After two blistering displays, Wood may be due a rest – compared to Chris Woakes, his recent workload has been whip-crackingly brutal. Woakes ought to return – otherwise, what did England hope to learn from his recall after a six-year gap? – but then there’s Moeen Ali, absent for ten T20Is and counting.England: (possible) 1 Jason Roy, 2 Jonny Bairstow (wk), 3 Dawid Malan, 4 Eoin Morgan (capt), 5 Liam Livingstone, 6 Sam Billings, 7 Sam Curran, 8 David Willey, 9 Chris Woakes, 10 Chris Jordan, 11 Adil RashidThere’s a chance that Sri Lanka may choose to blood their latest all-round prospect, the 22-year-old Dhananjaya Lakshan, whose lusty hitting and variety-laden seam bowling shot to prominence at the recent Lanka Premier League, where he claimed at least one wicket in each of his outings, and thumped Galle Gladiators into the final with some timely hitting in their semi-final victory over Colombo Kings.Sri Lanka: (possible) 1 Danushka Gunathilaka, 2 Avishka Fernando, 3 Kusal Perera (capt/wk), 4 Kusal Mendis, 5 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 6 Dasun Shanaka, 7 Wanindu Hasaranga, 8 Dhananjaya Lakshan, 9 Akila Dananjaya, 10 Dushmantha Chameera, 11 Binura Fernando

Stats and trivia

• England have won five of their previous eight T20Is at Southampton, including the very first such contest they ever played – and only the second globally – by 100 runs against Australia in 2005.
• Sri Lanka have placed two T20Is at the ground, winning the first by two runs in 2006, but losing the second, ten years later, by eight wickets
• Sri Lanka are yet to score a boundary off Adil Rashid in the series, who has combined figures of 4 for 41 from his eight overs.

  Quotes

  “It’s something I’ve worked hard on for this sort of opportunity, to push my way into a team as someone that can offer something in all three facets of the game.”
  Allrounder Liam Livingstone believes he’s got the skills to enhance England’s T20I line-up“We’re consistently talking about freedom, about taking the handbrake off as a batting unit. But you can only bat as well as you’re allowed to and I thought England were world-class with the lengths they hit.”
  Sri Lanka coach Mickey Arthur praises the discipline and skill of England’s attack.

Finch, Kuhn set Kent up before Hooper’s three wickets keep Middlesex to their lowest Blast total

ECB Reporters Network16-Jul-2021Elliot Hooper enjoyed a dream debut as Kent routed Middlesex for their lowest ever Vitality Blast score of 80 at Lord’s.The 25-year-old left-armer, one of seven debutants for the visitors because of a Covid-19 outbreak, took 3 for 24 in the 77-run victory – the hosts failing to reach their previous worst tally of 92 made against Surrey at Lord’s eight years ago.Fellow new boys Matthew Quinn, Safyaan Sharif and Marcus O’Riordan were also among the wickets, all this after Harry Finch top scored with 47 and Heino Kuhn made 42 in Kent’s total of 157 for 8, Blake Cullen taking 4 for 33.Another of the Kent new boys George Munsey swept the second ball of the match from Mujeeb Ur Rahman for six but departed later in the first over.Kuhn was then dropped at point by Joe Cracknell from Tom Helm’s first ball and he and skipper Zak Crawley set about the host’s attack.Crawley hit three sixes as 50 came up in the sixth over, but attempting a fourth he was brilliantly caught by Max Holden at deep square – the first of Cullen’s four victims.Kuhn and Finch continued the onslaught, helped by a succession of misfields, adding 65 in 43 balls, meaning the visitors were sitting pretty at 118 for 2 early in the 13th over.However, Kuhn holing out in the deep off the excellent Nathan Sowter sparked a turning point as runs dried up and wickets tumbled.Finch tried to hold things together making hitting six fours, in his 35-ball stay but just 40 runs came from the last eight oversChasing 158 for a rare win, the hosts simply fell to pieces. Sam Robson was yorked by Quinn and when the dangerous Joe Cracknell pulled Harry Podmore straight into the hands of deep square they were 16 for 2. It 20 for 3 when New Zealand international Daryl Mitchell was trapped lbw by Sharif, who returned 2 for 10.Hooper trapped Middlesex debutant Varun Chopra in front before Podmore returned to have John Simpson caught at short mid-on.Holden was caught on the fence to give O’Riordan his first Blast wicket and the procession continued as Hooper scattered Sowter’s stumps.Helm, Hooper’s other victim, and Mujeeb were the only Middlesex players other than Chopra to reach double figures as the hosts were bowled out with 21 balls to spare.

Kurtis Patterson made 112 while James Pattinson took 5 for 71 as NSW set Victoria 248 to win in 53 overs, but rain and early wickets saw Victoria bat the day out for a draw

AAP23-Nov-2021The Sheffield Shield match between NSW and Victoria at the SCG petered out to a draw despite a captain’s century and final-day declaration from Kurtis Patterson.Patterson celebrated his first hundred of the Shield season then ended the Blues’ second innings at 7 for 285, setting Victoria a target of 248 late in Tuesday’s post-lunch session.Victoria slipped to 3 for 54 when teenage legspinner Tanveer Sangha bowled Matt Short, extending a promising start to his first-class career. But captain Peter Handscomb’s steadying 39 and a determined Jonathan Merlo, who finished 7 not out from 82 balls, ensured their side held on for 43 overs.Victoria originally had approximately 53 overs, weather permitting, to complete the chase. Rain, a near-constant presence in the contest that started a day late because of Will Sutherland’s positive Covid-19 test, returned in the shadows of tea.Handscomb clipped his 73rd delivery straight to Jason Sangha at leg slip, but there was no chaotic collapse under darkening skies. Patterson, who replaced Peter Nevill as NSW captain for 2021-22, started the season with knocks of 48, 4, 2 and 24 during losses to Victoria at the MCG and Drummoyne Oval. The left-hander, who played two Tests in 2019 but was not invited to Australia’s upcoming pre-Ashes boot camp in Queensland, showcased his talent on Tuesday in front of national selector Tony Dodemaide.Patterson eventually fell unselfishly chasing quick runs as he became one of James Pattinson’s five victims in the innings. Pattinson, who last month announced his retirement from international cricket, finished with impressive match figures of 7 for 103.He made up for lost time after the start of Tuesday’s play was briefly delayed because of showers, removing Moises Henriques with the first ball of the day. It proved the only wicket to fall before lunch as Jason Sangha and Patterson shifted momentum in a 151-run stand, withstanding a testing examination from Pattinson.Sangha hammered two sixes off Wil Parker in the 49th over, signalling his team’s intent to try to make a game of the clash. Hayden Kerr and Chris Tremain each cleared the rope before Patterson called the unbeaten batters in, but the hosts failed to conjure 10 wickets.

With Rachael Haynes back and Tahlia McGrath’s form against India, there’s a battle for batting spots

Andrew McGlashan12-Jan-2022Ellyse Perry faces the prospect of being squeezed out of Australia’s T20I side at the start of the Ashes as the selectors look for continued evolution in the format and a focus on strike rates.Since her T20I debut in 2008, Perry has featured in 126 of Australia’s 144 T20Is but with the bat, her game is starting to feel out of place for the middle-order role she generally takes, and she has been used sparingly with the ball of late, with just three overs in three matches against India earlier this season.The return of Rachael Haynes, who missed the India matches through injury and is seen as Australia’s middle-order safety net in T20Is, and the outstanding performances by Tahlia McGrath mean there may not be a place for Perry against England next week.Related

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With the bat in T20Is over the last two years she has scored 152 runs at 16.88 and a strike rate of 103.40 while in this season’s WBBL, her 358 runs came at a strike rate of 91.32 – the slowest among the top 30 run-scorers – as she was shuffled around Sydney Sixers’ batting order. That followed a 2020 season where her strike rate was 96.53.Her overall bowling figures in T20Is are outstanding, with 115 wickets at 19.45 and an economy rate of 5.87, but she has been sparsely used since returning from the serious hamstring injury suffered at the T20 World Cup in March 2020.”We’ve got to work through that over the next few days and finalise that team,” national selector Shawn Flegler said. “We’ve been really clear with the type of cricket we do want to play and what our batters need to be doing in T20 cricket. We want to keep pushing the boat out with our strike rate, so we’ll work through it over the next week.”We’ve got a couple of intrasquad games [in Adelaide] on Tuesday, so if Ellyse does get the opportunity, I’m sure she’ll do well. She’s played for Australia for a long time and is highly experienced, but we always want our players to develop and evolve, and Ellyse is no different.”Speaking to ESPNcricinfo before the India series last year, Perry acknowledged that she needed to keep pace with the T20 game.”I think any format of the game, as time goes by it evolves like any sport, but maybe it’s faster-paced in women’s cricket at the moment, just because of how much change and development we’re undergoing,” Perry had said. “That’s not a new thing for me – I reckon that’s something that I’ve gone through for the best part of my career. I think that in sport, you’ve always got to push yourself to develop and get better, otherwise, someone always comes along who is going to jump you.”It has been the return of McGrath to international cricket that has added to the pressure on Perry’s role after she made her T20I debut against India, with scores of 42 off 33 balls and 44 off 31 batting at No. 6 below Perry.”Tahlia has really accelerated in her ability to have an impact on games,” captain Meg Lanning said. “We saw in the India series it wasn’t just easy conditions she was coming into, she was able to dig the team out of trouble a couple of times and that was a really good sign for a player who doesn’t have a lot of experience at international level. Nice to have an extra option in the middle order and with the ball as well she has some pretty good skills.”

“I think after losing the toss, putting a significant score on the board, and then for the bowlers to do their thing, was outstanding.”

Mohammad Isam11-Jan-2022New Zealand captain Tom Latham said he was pleased with his team’s scoring rate, which he believes put Bangladesh under a lot of pressure, in the second Test in Christchurch.New Zealand scored at more than four runs an over as they posted 521 for 6 in the first innings, and they eventually won by an innings and 117 runs in Christchurch, completing the match inside three days. Latham made 252 runs with 34 fours and two sixes.”After getting put in first thing in the morning when we definitely would have bowled, to make that significant contribution at that point of time, was really good for us,” Latham said. “We were focusing on each partnership. Will Young and Devon Conway played really well. We spoke about doing things for longer than what we did at the Mount [Maunganui Test], I thought we did that really well.Related

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Latham particularly went after the short ball, bringing out the pull shot often, which he said came “naturally” while he was batting.”I was trying to execute strong positions. As we have seen here, you can score quickly due to more pace and bounce. It wasn’t a conscious effort to go after the short ball but it certainly happened a little bit naturally. Perhaps I was able to execute (more shots) down the ground and through the off-side.”The rate that I scored at was probably most pleasing, being able to put them under pressure. (We could) ask them to come back for spell after spell, I thought we three guys – myself, Will Young and Devon Conway – did that well on the first day.”New Zealand exceptional bowling was also on show, starting with Trent Boult and Tim Southee with the new ball on the second afternoon when reduced Bangladesh to 27 for 5, eventually bowling them out for 126 in the first innings.In the second innings, it was Kyle Jamieson and Neil Wagner who bowled well in tandem, taking important middle and lower-order wickets.”I thought we bowled well in partnerships and being patient at both ends. We kept them under pressure for a long time. You can score quickly on this surface. The way we found different ways to get guys out, it was the most pleasing thing.”The best thing about this bowling unit is that they always want the ball in hand,” Latham said. “They are always willing to bowl another over. It was no different today. I am certainly happy to have all these guys in our side.””It is always nice for guys to sign off on a winning note. But for us, it was about putting a performance to be proud of. I think after losing the toss, putting a significant score on the board, and then for the bowlers to do their thing, was outstanding. Certainly, it was the perfect performance.”

Former coach cites reported lack of support but writes of pride in what he has achieved

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Feb-2022Justin Langer has apologised if he came across as “too intense” in an emotional letter of resignation to the Cricket Australia board but said he hoped he had left the men’s team in a better position than when he arrived.The letter was published in the newspaper on Sunday, just over 24 hours after Langer had tendered his resignation as Australia men’s head coach, declining a short-term six-month contract extension that was offered to him on Friday.In the letter, Langer addressed the media speculation about his coaching style and said he accepted that the team wanted to head in a different direction.”There has been a great deal of media speculation on my future as the Australian men’s cricket coach over the last 12 months and this has taken an enormous toll on my family. I hope through this time, and throughout my tenure, I have held myself with integrity and dignity,” Langer wrote in the email to CEO Nick Hockley.”Last night I was offered a short-term contract until the end of the T20 World Cup in Australia, with the sentiment of ‘going out on a high’. After careful consideration I have decided not to accept this contract renewal, and as a result I believe it is in everyone’s best interests for the Australian cricket team to begin the next chapter immediately.”If media reports are correct, several senior players and a couple of support staff don’t support me moving forward, and it is now apparent the CA board, and you Nick, are also keen to see the team move in another direction. I respect that decision.””My life has been built on values of honesty, respect, trust, truth, and performance and if that comes across as ‘too intense’ at times, I apologise.”Related

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Hockley confirmed on Saturday that the six-month offer, unanimously endorsed by the board on Friday, would have been the end to Langer’s tenure with the view that it was time to transition to a new coaching era in the men’s team sighting unity as one of the key factors of the decision.Hockley also acknowledged that player relationships with Langer, which had come to a head last August before high-level talks patched the situation up to the extent that the World Cup and Ashes were won, were a factor in the board’s decision. Senior assistant Andrew McDonald has been appointed interim coach.Langer flew to Perth on Saturday having not been home in five months due to Western Australia’s border restrictions and began 14 days home quarantine.”It is said that in any venture, if you leave things in a better place than when you started then you have done your job,” he wrote.”Whilst it is not up to me to judge, I hope Australians respect what has been achieved over the last four years in Australian cricket. From day one I believed it was possible to both win and play the game in the spirit that is now expected from our supporters.”For the last four years it has been proven this can be achieved and I am very proud of the team for their efforts on and off the cricket field. I hope we have made Australians proud and earned respect from countries around the world.”In terms of ‘going out on a high’, I am blessed to have been a part of a T20 World Cup-winning squad, an Ashes winning squad, watched the Test team rise to #1 ranked team in the world today, been selected as the Wisden Coach of the Year and been elevated to the Australian cricket Hall of Fame; all this in the last five months.”I am grateful that today, I am going out on a high.”