All posts by n8rngtd.top

A sizeable crowd had turned up at The Swalec Stadium to see Kevin Pietersen’s return to first-class cricket in his bid to regain his place in England’s Test team, but instead they were treated to fine hundreds from Kumar Sangakkara and Steven Davies

Press Association19-Apr-2015
ScorecardKumar Sangakkara acknowledges his hundred•Getty Images

A sizeable crowd had turned up at The Swalec Stadium to see Kevin Pietersen’s return to first-class cricket in his bid to regain his place in England’s Test team, but instead they were treated to fine hundreds from Kumar Sangakkara and Steven Davies.Pietersen, playing his first County Championship for two years, was at the crease for just 37 minutes as he made 19 before edging Craig Meschede to slip. The remainder of the first day’s play belonged to Sangakkara, who was making his debut for Surrey and from his first ball, appeared determined to celebrate the occasion with a big score.Coming to the crease on the back of four consecutive centuries in the World Cup and 45 in the game Sri Lanka were eliminated, he played every ball on its merit and was soon piercing the off side with some trademark strokes. He reached fifty from 83 balls, and went on score a century that had felt inevitable from 162 deliveries which included a six and 14 fours.After Pietersen’s dismissal, ending a brief partnership which provided more than 41,000 international runs at the crease, Sangakarra was well supported by Davies with the left-handed combination sharing an unbroken partnership of 213 for the fourth wicket. Davies, one of four wicketkeepers in the Surrey team also appeared in prime form and shortly before the close reached his century from 154 balls with fifteen boundaries.Earlier, Gareth Batty had won the toss and had no hesitation of batting on a placid pitch that gave the Glamorgan bowlers no assistance whatsoever. Zafar Ansari and Rory Burns launched the innings with an opening partnership of 104, before Burns was caught behind off Graham Wagg shortly before lunch.Ansari departed after the interval, and Pietersen did not stay for long, but thereafter there was no respite for the Glamorgan attack as Sangakkara held centre stage.Meschede obviously enjoys bowling at famous batsmen – his first victim in first-class cricket was Sachin Tendulkar, and the Somerset allrounder, who is on a season’s loan to Glamorgan was overjoyed at another notable scalp.”It’s nice to get a big scalp under my name but my first first-class wicket was Sachin Tendulkar – so I’d have to say he is my number two!” Meschede said. “It was nice to get him with a nibbly one on a flattish wicket.”He was getting quite agitated and tried to move across, but I kept my same line and it worked. But he likes to play in an attacking way and it has worked for him in the past. He’s a fantastic player and he had a lot to prove today but I’m sure he’ll bounce back.”

R Ashwin closes in on top-ranked Pat Cummins among Test bowlers after picking up eight wickets in Mumbai

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Dec-2021Ajaz Patel, who became only the third bowler in the history of Test cricket to pick up all ten wickets in an innings, against India in Mumbai, has risen to No. 38 following a match haul of 14 for 225. New Zealand still lost the Test by a record 372 runs, and India opener Mayank Agarwal, the Player of the Match for innings of 150 and 62, has jumped 30 positions to No. 11, just one off a career-high tenth spot.For Ajaz, who emulated Jim Laker and Anil Kumble at the Wankhede, it meant a gain of 23 spots; his previous highest was No. 53, and he had started the two-Test series against India, which New Zealand lost 1-0, at 62nd place. He picked up a total of 17 wickets in the series.As for Agarwal, his previous best rankings of No. 10 came back in November 2019, after he had scored 243 against Bangladesh in Indore in what was his eighth Test.

Full rankings tables

• Click here for the full team rankings

• Click here for the full player rankings

R Ashwin was named Player of the Series for his tally of 14 wickets in two Tests, to go with 70 runs across three innings. Ashwin, No. 2 on the bowlers’ chart behind Pat Cummins, has now moved within 25 points of the Australian quick, his 883 rating points well clear of third-placed Josh Hazlewood, who has 816 points.Cummins, however, has started the Ashes series with a bang, returning 5 for 38 on the opening day of the first Test in Brisbane as England rolled over for 147. Hazlewood hasn’t done badly either, picking up 2 for 42.4:11

Daniel Vettori: Ajaz Patel haul is greatest individual feat in NZ Test cricket

Ashwin has also moved up one place to No. 2 among allrounders. Jason Holder is top of the tally there, while Ravindra Jadeja has dropped from second to fourth, with Ben Stokes between him and Ashwin. Holder, meanwhile, has also moved up one spot to the 14th place among bowlers at the end of the second Galle Test against Sri Lanka, which the home side won by 164 runs to complete a 2-0 series win.Among the others to gain at the end of the India vs New Zealand series were Shubman Gill, up 21 places to 45th, and Daryl Mitchell, up 26 places to No. 78, on the batters’ table, and Mohammed Siraj, who moved up four spots to 41st in the bowlers’ list.Following the Sri Lanka vs West Indies series, three batters made significant gains: Dhananjaya de Silva, whose 155* was the highlight of Sri Lanka’s win in the first Test, moved up 12 places to No. 21, Kraigg Brathwaite went up ten places to 39th, and Nkrumah Bonner was up 17 places to 42nd.Of the bowlers in action, Sri Lanka spinners Lasith Embuldeniya (up five slots to No. 32) and Ramesh Mendis (up 18 places to 39th) made big gains.

India slide after Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli fifties to end up 32 short of 297 target

Saurabh Somani19-Jan-20223:18

Cullinan: South Africa had better ‘all-round’ ODI approach; India lacked fight

A sparkling century from Rassie van der Dussen was complemented by a well-paced one from Temba Bavuma, as South Africa cantered to a 31-run win over India in the first ODI of a three-match series.van der Dussen joined Bavuma when South Africa were 68 for 3 in the 18th over, but they shrugged off that rickety start to eventually drive the team 296 for 4 on a slow Boland Park pitch. India were on track in the first half of their chase, particularly when Virat Kohli and Shikhar Dhawan were batting together in a 92-run stand for the second wicket, but the innings withered after they both fell.Bavuma and van der Dussen had put on 204 runs in just 183 balls, conquering bowlers and conditions. In particular, van der Dussen’s knock took the first innings, and it turned out the match, away from India. In the end, he remained unconquered on an ODI best 129 off just 96 balls. His innings included four hits over the fence and nine to it, with more than half his runs coming via running between the wickets – this on a day when the heat was sapping. In the final over of South Africa’s innings, van der Dussen was often down on his haunches to gather his breath. It was his batting that left those watching breathless though.Related

• Shikhar Dhawan's knock underlines his value in India's ODI side

• Moonda: SA's accumulator and aggressor feed off each other

He got off the blocks quickly, injecting much-needed momentum into the innings, using sweeps and reverse sweeps to devastating effect against the spin duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and R Ashwin. The feature of van der Dussen’s innings was how he took the pitch out of the equation. Till his arrival, scoring had been laborious. But his use of the square boundaries, and ability to capitalise on the slightest errors in length, meant the innings found a new gear.Bavuma had a head start on his innings and got to his century first, with a single off Shardul Thakur in the 45th over. At the start of the 48th over, van der Dussen got to his own hundred with a flick to fine leg.The heat in Paarl saw the Indian bowling also wilt after a good start, as van der Dussen continued to go full throttle. Bavuma, who was on 23 off 45 when van der Dussen joined him and later on 28 off 53, gradually picked up his pace too. He made 82 from the last 90 balls he faced, playing an able foil to van der Dussen. By the time he had holed out to become Jasprit Bumrah’s second wicket, he had made 110 off 143.India’s bowling had begun well. Bumrah got Janneman Malan nicking behind, and the returning Ashwin – playing his first ODI since 2017 – castled Quinton de Kock with a quicker one. When Aiden Markram ran himself out via a direct hit from debutant Venkatesh Iyer at mid-off, India seemed well in control.Aiden Markram sent back KL Rahul•Gallo Images

However, the van der Dussen and Bavuma rebuilding plus counterattack left India looking a bit ragged. There were several mis-fields and overthrows too, which eased any pressure that was built up.KL Rahul, captaining India for the first time, didn’t have an outing to remember. He never went to his sixth bowling option Venkatesh, and had used up eight overs each of Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar by the time the innings was 40 overs old. Eventually, 86 runs came off the final ten overs, including a 17-run final over by Shardul Thakur.When Rahul came out to open the innings, he treated Markram’s part-time offspin with exaggerated caution. Markram bowled six overs on the trot after taking the new ball. Rahul had opted to play him out safely rather than attack, but that approach didn’t pay dividends either when he poked Markram behind to de Kock.That led to India’s best phase in the chase, with Dhawan scoring freely and Kohli building busily. During that period, the target looked within reach, with both men looking in control. However, a sharply turning ball from Keshav Maharaj spun into the Dhawan, past the inside half of his bat and onto his stumps as he was shaping to cut, and Kohli top-edged Tabraiz Shamsi to midwicket three overs later. From 138 for 1 in the 26th over, India’s slide was steady. Thakur, coming in at No. 8, belted a maiden ODI fifty and was unbeaten on 50 off 43 balls, but his hits only served to lessen the margin of defeat.

Brendon McCullum will not take legal action against former New Zealand captain John Parker, following an apology from Parker for his references to McCullum in connection with the Ross Talyor controversy

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Apr-2013Brendon McCullum will not take legal action against former New Zealand captain John Parker, following an apology from Parker for his references to McCullum in connection with the Ross Talyor controversy. McCullum’s laywers were expected to file proceedings in the High Court in Hamilton this week over the document titled “The Taylor Affair”, which they claim was written by Parker.When he made public his intention to seek legal redress against Parker, McCullum had said he was not seeking monetary damages but wanted Parker’s “acknowledgment that the claims he makes are completely false”.Now, through McCullum’s legal team, Parker released a statement saying he did not mean to discredit McCullum. “John Parker’s focus in preparing the document was on addressing shortcomings in governance at New Zealand Cricket,” the statement said. “However in the document John Parker stated that Brendon McCullum knew of the coach Mike Hesson’s movements all along, according to certain players. John Parker did not intend this to mean that Brendon McCullum was involved in the decision to replace Ross Taylor as captain. John Parker did not intend to discredit Brendon McCullum and sincerely apologises to him for any harm to his reputation which may have been caused. Both John Parker and Brendon McCullum have examined and resolved their differences successfully, and no legal proceedings by either party will occur.”Parker, in his document, had been critical of Taylor’s removal as captain in controversial manner, as well as the wider governance of New Zealand Cricket.Following McCullum’s declaration that he was seeking legal action last week, coach Hesson too had issued a statement saying was seeking his lawyer’s advice on the matter.

Faf du Plessis has been ruled out of the remaining two ODIs against Pakistan and the first four weeks of the IPL with back trouble

Firdose Moonda19-Mar-2013Faf du Plessis has been ruled out of the remaining two ODIs against Pakistan and the first four weeks of the IPL with back trouble. Du Plessis will require six weeks rest and has been replaced by Quinton de Kock in the South Africa squad.”Faf has been troubled by low back pain over the past while,” Mohammed Moosajee, South Africa’s team manager, who is also a medical doctor said. “He was recently diagnosed with bony inflammation in the lumbar spine. His symptoms have worsened over the past two weeks to the extent that it has become necessary to withdraw him immediately in order to allow for rest and rehabilitation as well as a course of hyperbaric oxygen therapy to further facilitate healing.”Du Plessis revealed after the second Twenty20 in Centurion just over two weeks ago that he did not bowl himself in the match because of his back condition, although he was tempted to call on his own legspin. “The doctors advised that I don’t bowl for a while, until this is sorted out,” he said then.Since that has not happened, du Plessis will be sidelined for six weeks. He is certain to miss the first nine matches of the IPL, where he plays for the Chennai Super Kings, and is expected to make a comeback in the week starting April 29. If his recovery goes as planned, he should play seven matches for his franchise as well as any knockout contests in preparation for the Champions Trophy in June.Du Plessis’ unavailability leaves a gap in South Africa’s middle order which young de Kock may be required to fill. Also in the squad is Dolphins batsman David Miller who could play in du Plessis’ place as well.De Kock was dropped from the ODI squad after the series against New Zealand, in which he kept wickets and opened the batting with limited success. He will not be handed the gloves in this series, because AB de Villiers has gone back to wicketkeeping permanently in ODIs, neither will he bat upfront so he will have a change of roles.”As disappointing as Faf’s injury is, it must be seen as an opportunity for Quinton,” Andrew Hudson, convenor of selectors said. “He made a good start to his international career during the previous series against New Zealand and this is a chance for him to build on that.”De Kock will play for his domestic team, the Lions, in Tuesday’s T20 match against the Titans in Centurion before joining the national squad tomorrow. The fourth ODI takes place in Durban on Thursday and the final match of the series will be played in Benoni on Sunday. Should de Kock feature in both, the Lions will have to do without him on Friday when they play the Warriors but they may have already qualified for the tournament final by then.

Mohammad Ashraful and Mominul Haque firmed up their chances of playing the first Test with significant innings on the last day of the tour game in Matara

The Report by Mohammad Isam in Matara05-Mar-2013
ScorecardMominul Haque (left) and Mohammad Ashraful shared a 178-run stand for the third wicket•AFP

Mohammad Ashraful and Mominul Haque firmed up their chances of playing the first Test with significant innings on the last day of the tour game in Matara. The Bangladesh batsmen made best use of a sunny, windy day as their three-day game ended in a draw.Ashraful made 102, his 17th first-class century, and Mominul fell on 99, but missing the landmark wouldn’t deter the young batsman because he made his case for selection for the Galle Test. Mominul batted more than three hours, scoring 99 off 138 balls, and went through phases that were Test-like.He took time to settle down but latched on to anything that made him comfortable. Early on, he used his feet well against the spinners. Mominul was picky against pace, square cutting or driving Lahiru Gamage. He started the second session with a clipped boundary off Kasun Madushanka, and followed up with a cover drive in the same over. He got to his 50 off 74 balls, and then hit a huge straight six against left-arm spinner Dulanjana Mendis. He was batting freely as he neared a fourth first-class century but perished to the pull shot, giving mid-on a simple catch in the final session.Mominul needed to score after a lean BPL to justify his position ahead of Marshall Ayub in this line-up. He was picked to replace Shakib Al Hasan in the side, and thankfully for the selectors the other replacement, Ashraful, also did well.Ashraful left more than he played at in the first session, letting Mominul have a lot of the strike. After lunch he was a different batsman, racing past Mominul to reach 50 when the left-hander was on 47. He moved quickly to his century, off 144 balls, hitting 11 fours and a six. He fell a few minutes later to a terrific catch by Ashan Priyanjan, diving high to his right at first slip.Mahmudullah, the captain Mushfiqur Rahim and Sohag Gazi got some batting practice, making the best of the limited time in the final session. Mahmudullah made a quickfire 56 off 49 balls with three fours and three straight sixes. The fall of his wicket, though, started the fun-phase for Mushfiqur and Gazi as the two added 112 runs in 12 overs. Mushfiqur scored 81 off 69 and Gazi hit 13 fours and two sixes in his unbeaten 82.Opener Jahurul Islam had earlier made a good start but fell for 29 off 74 balls, edging Ishan Jayaratne. Jahurul had been more assured at the crease than Anamul Haque, who struggled to get the ball through the inner circle, and fell for 6.The bowling attack provided less of a challenge to the Bangladesh batsmen, especially on such a good batting pitch that offered almost no lateral movement to the young pace bowlers Madushanka and Gamage. The main spinner, Mendis, is at an early stage in his career and found little assistance in the wicket to challenge the batsmen.

Rain produced a stop-start afternoon and evening session that Kent ended up handling better, thanks to a 145-run partnership between Darren Stevens and Ben Harmison

Vithushan Ehantharajah at Chelmsford23-May-2013
ScorecardDarren Stevens added to his four wickets with an unbeaten 91•Getty Images

Rain greeted Chelmsford’s early birds and, while it didn’t affect the start time, it did return to produce a stop-start afternoon and evening session that Kent ended up handling better, thanks to a 145-run partnership between Darren Stevens and Ben Harmison. Coming together at 43 for 4, the pair worked patiently to see off the rain delays – 25 overs’ worth – and give Kent a first-innings lead for the first time this season.The arrival of Stevens injected calmness into proceedings, as he kept his concentration to bat throughout the day while also staying alert to any error in line or length from the bowlers. As the sun shone late into the evening session and batting conditions improved he took the attack to the bowlers – Ravi Bopara in particular feeling the brunt of Stevens’ wrath.The 37-year-old seems to relish his encounters with Essex – averaging over 45 with the bat and under 28 with the ball – and after his four wickets on the first day it seemed almost inevitable that he would excel again. Fitting, too, that he would be the one to score the runs to take Kent past Essex.Harmison, a slightly smaller yet fuller version of his brother Steve, went under the radar somewhat, content to play out maidens without even a glance at the scoring rate. He stirred in the forties, crashing two fours of Ryan ten Doeschate in three balls to take him to his half century, before chasing a wide one off the same bowler to depart for 55.The moisture in the air coupled with overhead conditions helped David Masters and Reece Topley in the morning. Masters beat the outside edge of Sam Northeast’s bat on more than one occasion; unfortunately for Masters, when he did find it, first slip was found wanting. But the bowler at the other end had more to smile about thanks to an excellent five-over spell that earned him two wickets for only seven runs.It’s hard not to be excited by Topley; his approach to the crease is smooth, with an action easy on the body, losing none of his 6ft 7in at the crease and, unlike Steven Finn, he might even be taller than his own run-up. His wicket to get rid of Brendon Nash was a thing of beauty – the ball angling into the left-hander, before arching away slightly and nipping off the pitch to just miss the bat and catch off stump, flush. For his next wicket, Topley squared-up the right-handed Mike Powell, who could only edge to Tom Westley at third slip.When Northeast was strangled down the leg side, you would be forgiven for thinking Kent were on for successive disappointments with the bat, after being skittled by Worcestershire and Alan Richardson for 63 last week.But Stevens and Harmison came together and rebuilt the innings in an impressive 48-over stand. If anything, they were aided by the rain delays as Essex’s bowlers struggled to get into any real rhythm or build on their morning success. Leaving the field four times would not have helped that. Even then, Masters thought he had Stevens caught behind until umpire Alex Wharf said otherwise, and then Michael Gough at the other end was asked to adjudicate on a ball from Graham Napier which did not bounce and hit Harmison on the pad. It looked very close but he too turned down the appeal, much to the bowler’s dismay.

Mitchell Santner, meanwhile, has been ruled out of the next game with a finger injury

Deivarayan Muthu08-Jun-2021New Zealand spin-bowling allrounder Mitchell Santner has been sidelined from the Edgbaston Test with a finger injury. His captain Kane Williamson is under an injury cloud, having sustained an elbow niggle ahead of the second Test, which starts on June 10. New Zealand head coach Gary Stead said that the team management would take the final call on Williamson on the eve of the match.Trent Boult, their premier seamer, however, has been lined up for a Test return after having linked up with the squad for his first training of the tour at Lord’s on Saturday. Boult also trained with the group at Edgbaston two days out of the second Test.Santner had suffered a cut to his spinning finger during the intra-squad match, in the approach to the tour, and then aggravated his injury by playing the first Test at Lord’s. Santner, who was the only frontline spinner in either team in the opening Test, had gone wicketless in 23 overs, conceding 68 runs. He served up eight full-tosses in that game, including a chest-high beamer, according to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data, giving up 16 runs. Stead conceded that the cut to Santner’s left index finger disrupted his rhythm.”People probably would have seen him open up the piece on his finger again; he had quite a bit of blood on his pants,” Stead said of Santner. “That came from the cut he originally had. We thought it had healed okay, but obviously we needed a little bit more time for that to happen and it definitely hampered his ability in the match as well.”New Zealand have two other left-arm fingerspinners in their squad to replace Santner – Ajaz Patel and Rachin Ravindra. Patel, himself, is working his way back into international cricket after a calf injury; he had last played Test cricket in February 2020. Ravindra, the Wellington batting allrounder, meanwhile, is uncapped in international cricket.As for Williamson, this isn’t the first time this year that he’s dealing with an elbow complaint. He had earlier been ruled out of the ODI series against Bangladesh at home and subsequently missed the start of IPL 2021.”His [Williamson’s] elbow is still niggling him a wee bit,” Stead said. “We’ve had some more treatment on that and we just want to make sure it’s the best thing for him, playing in this match versus taking a bit more time to be ready and training the way he needs to train.”Mitchell Santner is nursing a finger injury•Getty Images

Stead, though, welcomed Boult back into the set-up, all but confirming his comeback. After the IPL was suspended, the left-arm seamer opted to return home to spend time with his family in Mount Maunganui rather than head straight to the UK along with the rest of the New Zealand contingent. Before the Lord’s Test, Stead had indicated the turnaround for Edgbaston would be too tight for Boult but updated quarantine protocols have allowed him to train immediately after arriving which has advanced his preparations by a few days.”Trent’s back and available to be selected and it’s likely we’ll play him in this game as well,” he said. “It’s good news for us. Things did change when he got here or from the information we had initially. So, think it’s the best thing for Trent to get out there, get the Dukes ball in his hand and show us what he’s capable of.”With an eye on the forthcoming World Test Championship [WTC] final against India, which begins on June 18 at the Ageas Bowl, Stead reckoned that the rest of the attack could also be rotated. Tim Southee, Neil Wagner and Kyle Jamieson all had solid workouts at Lord’s, bowling 40 or more overs each across both innings, despite the entire third day’s play being wiped out by a persistent drizzle. Matt Henry, Doug Bracewell and Southland’s Jacob Duffy, who is also uncapped, are the potential seam-bowling replacements for the frontline quicks. Stead said that they would lock in their XI on Wednesday.”They [bowlers] have all scrubbed up pretty well, but it doesn’t necessarily mean they will play in the next match,” Stead said. “With an eye to the [WTC] final we want to make sure the key bowlers who we think will take part in that game are fresh, raring to go and ready for that first ball of the match versus India.”We’ve got a squad of 20 obviously. So, a lot of guys have played Test cricket before. Matt Henry is here, Daryl Mitchell is here, Doug Bracewell, Ajaz Patel…there’re guys in and around the squad who’ve played for us in the past. So, again, we’re having those discussions with them about what’s best for them given training loads, playing loads and readiness for that match.”

A makeshift Surrey side saw their quarter-final hopes take a hit with nine-wicket defeat

ECB Reporters' Network09-Jul-2021Kent Spitfires restricted Surrey to just 128 for 7 before strolling to a nine-wicket victory at the Kia Oval and strengthening their position at the top of the Vitality Blast’s South Group.Daniel Bell-Drummond went on to a 37-ball 53 not out after he and Joe Denly put on 64 in eight overs for the first wicket to set up a comfortable chase that ended with 4.3 overs to spare. Ollie Robinson also struck a breezy unbeaten 45 from 30 balls and Kent have now won eight of their 12 group matches while Surrey look unlikely to qualify for a quarter-final place.Jordan Clark managed an unbeaten 37 from 31 balls, and there were brief flurries from Jamie Overton and Tim David as 86 came from the last ten overs, but otherwise Surrey’s batsmen could not handle an impressive Kent attack on a sluggish surface. Adam Milne, the New Zealand fast bowler, was outstanding both with the new ball and in the final overs to take 2 for 13.Surrey, put in, were in trouble even before the end of thePowerplay, in which they failed to hit a single boundary while staggering to 17 for 3.
Jamie Smith top-edged a pull at Milne to extra cover in the second over, Ben Geddes fell for 8 when pulling Fred Klaassen’s left-arm seam to deep midwicket and Laurie Evans departed for 6, skying Matt Milnes’ first ball to midwicket at the start of the sixth over.After nine overs Surrey had only reached 28 for 3 but then came three successive boundaries – the first of the innings – as Rory Burns first missed with a reverse swipe at Jack Leaning’s offspin, the ball running away for four byes, before connecting with two more reverse sweeps to ironic cheers from a 5000 crowd.Qais Ahmed bowled four overs of legspin for 22, although he was driven straight for six by David, and Surrey slumped further to 59 for 5 in an extraordinary 12th over.David, a big-hitting 25-year-old Australian-raised Singapore international signed for two Blast games in place of injured New Zealand paceman Kyle Jamieson, clubbed Darren Stevens for a big six before being brilliantly held by a diving Jordan Cox at long on for 20 from the next ball.Stevens found himself on a hat-trick when Burns (19) was then magnificently caught left-handed by Klaassen, flinging himself to intercept a sliced cut at short third man, but Overton defended his first ball before swinging Stevens for the first of his three sixes in the veteran allrounder’s second over.Klaassen and Denly were hit for Overton’s other sixes before he mishit a knee-high full toss from Milne to extra cover to go for 23 in the 17th over.

Rassie van der Dussen and Quinton de Kock also chip in with vital half-centuries in big batting effort

Danyal Rasool04-Apr-2021South Africa survived an astonishing onslaught from Fakhar Zaman to secure a series-levelling 17-run win against Pakistan in Johannesburg.Zaman’s 155-ball 193 was heroic, a one-man show in the truest sense of the word because no other Pakistani managed more than 31 in a chase of 342. It is the highest score in a chase in ODI cricket history, and the second highest ever in a losing cause. Zaman also surpassed Herchelle Gibbs’ 175 to record the highest individual score at this venue.After several stutters, South Africa did manage to get over the line, thanks to a commanding batting performance spearheaded by the top order. Captain Temba Bavuma top-scored with 92, while Quinton de Kock, Rassie van der Dussen and David Miller each brought up half-centuries, allowing South Africa to post 341 in the face of a listless bowling effort from the visitors.Pakistan were never really in the chase right until the final 15 overs; once Zaman brought up his first ODI hundred in two years, he would run riot. Despite finishing with the highest score by a Pakistani in ODI cricket in South Africa, it always looked like an unassailable task, and in truth, proved so by some distance in the end.Pakistan have never chased a total of this magnitude in ODI cricket, and a daunting challenge became even tougher when Imam-ul-Haq, one of the protagonists for the side at SuperSport Park, fell in the second over. For a brief while, Pakistan looked to have course-corrected with a 63-run partnership that exuded easy elegance from the bats of both Azam and Zaman. But Pakistan’s bane on Friday, Nortje, would return to haunt them once more, exploiting a vulnerability against the short ball that brought about the seismic wicket of Azam in his first over. Two balls later, he would dismiss Mohammad Rizwan, and just like that, Pakistan’s most in-form batsmen had been taken out of the equation.It was an uncharacteristic innings through the middle from Zaman, as he reined in his belligerent instincts while the middle order crumbled around him. Danish Aziz was no match for Nortje’s short lengths, while Shadab Khan and Asif Ali had little to contribute. Around that time, Zaman decided to go hell for leather once more, bringing up a 70-ball half-century with a colossal six over square leg.That point on, the shackles were off, and even as wickets fell and the asking rate rose, runs off Zaman’s bat came freely. In what seemed like a flash, he had brought up a hundred, and farmed the strike while plundering South Africa’s bowlers, particularly the spinner Tabraiz Shamsi. Temba Bavuma persisted with him for an over too many even as Zaman singled him out and at one point struck five sixes in six balls off the spinner, bringing a ballooning asking rate back under control.The central problem at this point for Pakistan was there were three number 11s at the other end, with Shaheen, and then Rauf, unable to turn the strike over reliably enough. Zaman was forced to take on ever increasing responsibility, turning down singles in a contest where every run was priceless. Thirteen runs off the 48th over brought the equation down to 38 off 12, and individual records were tumbling. By now, Zaman had overtaken Herschelle Gibbs’ 175 in that famous chase of 434, 15 years ago, posting the highest individual score at the Wanderers. In the present, a disciplined penultimate over from Andile Phehlukwayo only allowed seven. A direct hit from long off from the first ball of the final over finally put an end to Zaman’s resistance, and South Africa were home and dry at last.Conditions here were quite similar to the one at Centurion two days ago. Azam called correctly again and elected to field on a belter. But this time, there was no sedate start from Aiden Markram, who set the tone with a classy cameo in the first powerplay, his 34-ball 39 ensuring Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Hasnain were unable to build much pressure early on. Once he fell, driving on the up off Faheem Ashraf, de Kock took more of a leadership role.Haris Rauf was smashed for a six over fine leg and a boundary in the same over, while neither he nor Bavuma allowed Shadab, whose nosediving form shows little sign of recovering, to settle. Even Afridi, brought back a little earlier than Pakistan might have planned owing to the lack of wickets that fell, suffered punishment in his second spell, with de Kock taking 18 runs off his two overs.There was little incision at the top from Pakistan, and while the rawness of Hasnain means there will be ups and downs, he was especially indifferent on Sunday. While Bavuma and the irrepressible van der Dussen were in full flow, Pakistan looked like they had reverted to going through the motions; discussions between captain and bowler were few and far between, and slot balls and full tosses abounded.Van der Dussen brought up his half-century with a sweep to midwicket, following it up with another six and four off the hapless Hasnain. But with the South African going after just about every ball by this stage, he would hole out in the same over to long on, his 37-ball 60 having pushed what looked like a 300 total past 330. Bavuma was unselfish at the other end, continuing to go for high-risk shots even as a first hundred as captain beckoned, and found deep midwicket just eight short of the milestone.By this time, Pakistan’s sloppiness was infectious, as Ashraf leaked 13 off one ball when a no-ball and the free hit were dispatched for six by David Miller whose 27-ball 50 further damaged the visitors. Rauf did manage to pick up a couple of late wickets that slowed South Africa in the final few overs, but Miller would compensate for it by plundering 19 off Afridi’s final over. In a game that ultimately only ended in a 17-run win, it turned out every one of those late blows would come in handy.