MS Dhoni led superbly to become the first captain in the world to have won all ICC trophies

The Report by Sidharth Monga23-Jun-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Ishant Sharma’s over, the 18th, turned the game on its head•Getty Images

Pinch yourself again and again. This match was completely out of the realms of reality. After the ICC – who hadn’t considered it fit to have a reserve day for the final – added 75 minutes to the rainy day to accommodate 20 overs in the final, both sides panicked in the compressed environment; Ravi Bopara was the bowling demon for England; India defended 129 with slip, gully and silly point for spinners; Ishant Sharma, the most expensive bowler, was the first to bowl out and took two crucial wickets in his last over; and MS Dhoni led superbly to become the first captain in the world to have won all ICC trophies.The only aspects of this game remotely real were the effectiveness of R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, and the early fluency of Shikhar Dhawan and Jonathan Trott. Around them, everything went topsy-turvy. The pitch turned square, despite all his efficiency Jadeja didn’t attempt a crucial run-out, the third umpire seemed to make a big dubious call with Ian Bell’s stumping, but then again there was Dhoni making a superlative call under pressure.You can spend hours debating it, and wonder how it worked. On this turner, Ishant had been the easiest bowler to hit. His three overs had gone for 27, and you asked yourself why he got even the fourth. That third had brought the target down to 48 off 30 thanks to a six smoked clean by Bopara. However, with three overs left and 28 to get – Umesh Yadav had two to go, Ashwin, Jadeja and Bhuvneshwar one each – Dhoni went to Ishant.Even if Yadav had been injured, Bhuvneshwar – three overs for 19 – had one left. The only possible explanation for that choice could be that England would want to kill off the chase in ishant’s over and thus take an undue risk.Dhoni’s hunch, though, seemed to be going bust after a pulled six and two wides from either side of the stumps: 20 off 16 now. Who knows how these things in big limited-overs matches work with Dhoni, but Ishant bowled a slower ball and Eoin Morgan mis-hit to midwicket. It was a front-of-the-hand slower ball, pretty much common fare in limited-overs cricket today, but Morgan didn’t pick it.The next ball seemed even more innocuous on the face of it. Short ball, no sting, head high, pulled down clean, but straight to the fielder at square leg. Roll that dismissal back, though. And it is difficult to figure out the logic here, but there was no midwicket for that ball. That man inside the circle was at square leg, next to the umpire. Ishant Sharma was Dhoni’s new Joginder.The bizarre events weren’t quite over. In the 19th over, Jadeja, almost unplayable and wise so far, had a chance to run the diving Stuart Broad out but he chose not to try. Jadeja could be forgiven a moment after having bowled well all through the tournament, after having scored the pivotal 33 after India had been 66 for 5, and after having begun India’s turnaround with the ball. That was India’s last mistake too.In the 20th, bowled by Ashwin, when Stuart Broad hit a leg-side four, Dhoni brought everybody on the off side asking the batsman to clear it if he thought he was good enough. Broad wasn’t on this occasion. Surprisingly Broad didn’t try to dominate the strike, leaving Tredwell to get 10 off the last three balls. The only way England could have won was for Broad to hit two fours or a six, but two couples later the six off the last ball was a bridge too far for the lesser batsman on a turning pitch. The last ball was cue for an expressive celebration – by his standards – for Dhoni who has been through a tough time over the last two years.India had won a thrilling final of what has been a good tournament, but all was not right. This was hardly the ideal match. The ICC had only tried to cover its backside by stretching the match to 8.30pm. This match should never have been played today after the amount of rain Edgbaston had taken, but there was no tomorrow. So we had a match that put both the sides out of their comfort zones. The Indian batsmen had no rhythm going in and out, and England were playing essentially a T20 with three men who don’t make the T20 side. Remember when the XIs were named at the toss, this was a 50-over game.In the first exchange, though, India seemed to struggle more. On the wrong side of the toss, with two rain breaks in the first half of their innings, they couldn’t really have planned their innings, and soon found themselves struggling when it came to the run-rate. That brought panic, and Bopara was the beneficiary with the wickets of Dhawan, Suresh Raina and Dhoni – for his first duck in ODIs since October 2010. In the last seven overs, though, Virat Kohli and Jadeja brought India back with a punchy partnership of 47 off 33. Kohli couldn’t see India to the end, but Jadeja did, his knock including an inside-out six off James Anderson.For some reason, the England batsmen panicked in the chase too. Trott was fluent, but spin brought the turnaround. Jadeja began with a tight fifth over, and Ashwin got Trott stumped in the next with a dipping offbreak outside leg. Kohli, at backward short leg, had begun to move even before Trott had had an opportunity to strike the ball, but the umpire either didn’t notice it or didn’t consider the movement significant enough to call it a dead ball. Had Trott connected and had Kohli caught it, scenes would have been less savoury.In the next over came another less-than-ideal play. Bell was given out stumped when the third umpire couldn’t have been sure that the foot was in the air when the wicket was put down. England were so displeased Eoin Morgan even made a sign for the review.Morgan managed to put it behind him and, with Bopara, nearly pulled off a special win with calculated hitting and smart running between the wickets. But that was before England imploded, losing four wickets for three runs. You can watch replays of that Ishant over that took out both Morgan and Bopara many times over, but will struggle to explain it logically. Sometimes you just can’t from the outside. Sometimes you have to pinch yourself.

A rapid 139-run partnership between Glenn Maxwell and Shaun Marsh set up Australia A’s win over India A in the fifth match of the tri series in Pretoria

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Aug-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Glenn Maxwell combined with Shaun Marsh to plunder 139 runs in 97 balls for the third wicket•Getty Images

India A’s bowlers were clueless against Glenn Maxwell once again as he struck a whirlwind 93, to back up his 79-ball 145 on Thursday, to lead Australia A to the final of the tri-series. Set a target of 311, India failed during the chase again, after being 175 for 2 as Josh Hazlewood and Moises Henriques took three wickets apiece to seal a 25-run win.Maxwell spearheaded a 139-run stand with Shaun Marsh, who composed a solid 96, that set up the 300-plus total. It could have been a lot more had seamer Stuart Binny not nabbed three wickets in three overs to deny Maxwell and Marsh their centuries and slow down Australia.Having chosen to bat, Australia’s openers enjoyed their second fifty-plus stand of the series before left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem bowled Aaron Finch off his fifth ball of the match. Nic Maddinson added 41 with Marsh but fell soon after reaching double figures to offspinner Parvez Rasool. With a foundation set, Maxwell signalled his intent early, striking Rasool for consecutive fours in the 28th and 30th overs before carting Rohit Sharma’s only over of the match for 19 runs on his way to his half-century.Maxwell’s onslaught continued as he raced toward a century, smashing Nadeem for three fours in the 35th over. Marsh, having held Australia’s innings together so long, also opened up slamming Siddarth Kaul for 16 runs in three balls.But Binny instigated a turnaround, knocking back the stumps of both Marsh and Maxwell in the nineties and then Henriques’ for a duck. Maxwell had struck 12 fours and three sixes and Marsh while matching the sixes count. Binny’s burst, 4 for 23 in his third spell, wasn’t enough to keep Australia below 300 as Nathan Coulter-Nile and Mitchell Marsh plundered 60 off the last 34 balls.India laid a solid foundation for the chase, with the openers Rohit Sharma and M Vijay, who took Shikhar Dhawan’s place for this game, scoring half-centuries. Rohit’s 58-ball 61 kept India within sight of the asking-rate but his run-out in the 15th over put pressure on Vijay, who had 16 from 32 balls. He opened up, eventually matching Rohit’s seven boundaries to go with a six off Maxwell. But Vijay, in an attempt to keep up with a required-rate that had swelled to seven, holed out for 60. India were 157 for 2, with over 21 overs and eight wickets left to get the remaining 144 runs.Cheteshwar Pujara struck his first half-century of the series but became one of two wickets in the 37th over as Josh Hazlewood tipped the game in Australia’s favour. Ambati Rayudu did his best to tackle an equation which had risen to nine-an-over, but Hazlewood struck again, removing him for 32 off 28 balls. Needing 60 off six overs, Rasool and Kaul, the ninth-wicket pair, hit 24 in 14 balls but Henriques had Kaul caught behind before picking up the last man Nadeem.The defeat means India need to win their next match against South Africa A to qualify for the final.

It was a casual stroll to a series victory for India, confirmed by an utterly one-sided third ODI which Zimbabwe lost by seven wickets

The Report by Siddarth Ravindran28-Jul-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Virat Kohli was among the runs again as India won a one-sided encounter•AFP

India’s current tour of Zimbabwe has parallels with the visit to the southern African country for a tri-series in 2010 – a squad filled with newcomers led by a stand-in captain. Three years ago, that young India team had found the tri-series to be a taxing trek, losing three of four matches to crash out before the finals. This time around, though, it has been a casual stroll to a series victory, confirmed by an utterly one-sided third ODI which Zimbabwe lost by seven wickets.Teams winning the toss have enjoyed a huge advantage in this series, and today was no different as Virat Kohli called correctly and watched his bowlers wipe out Zimbabwe for 183. Even reaching that meagre score reflected a recovery for Zimbabwe, who had been at 89 for 6 in the 23rd over, and had three tail-enders, who had shown little aptitude for batting, to come. Amit Mishra’s variations fetched him four wickets, and the chase was orchestrated by Kohli, who continues to find ODI cricket exceedingly easy.The winter pitch at the Harare Sports Club has followed the same pattern in every match this series: assisting the seamers appreciably in the first hour before gradually easing up. Vusi Sibanda clearly hadn’t learnt that, though, charging out and attempting a wild heave in the first over itself, predictably edging a catch towards extra cover. After that Vinay Kumar strike, it was Mohammed Shami’s turn to break through, on his first ball, when he got Sikandar Raza to nick to the wicketkeeper.With the ball hooping around, Brendan Taylor and Hamilton Masakadza survived a bunch of lbw calls and were routinely beaten but hung on. Taylor could have been run-out a couple of times but he didn’t attempt any risky shots, the first sign of enterprise being a controlled pull for four off Vinay in the ninth over. Masakadza was content driving through the off side, didn’t play across the line much, and the pair shepherded Zimbabwe to the relative security of 67 for 2 in the 16th over.The first hour had been seen off, and Zimbabwe were looking forward to more comfortable batting conditions. However, Jaydev Unadkat, India’s best seamer in the previous game, ended the stand, getting Taylor to chip a catch to mid-off.Then, the India spinners took over. Zimbabwe have poked and prodded against them, regularly beset by doubts over how much the ball will spin and in which direction. Mishra’s mix of legspinners, googlies, sliders and seam-up deliveries have proved too much for Zimbabwe and he has prospered in his first stint in the ODI team in two years. He continued to enjoy himself today as in his first over, he had Masakadza caught-behind and trapped Malcolm Waller lbw to be on a hat-trick. He didn’t get one but the double-blow wrecked Zimbabwe’s chances of making a big score.Sean Williams and Prosper Utseya arrested the slide with a 36-run stand but Williams seemed to lose his composure once Utseya fell in the 33rd over. He looked to take as much of the strike as he could, given that Tendai Chatara, Brian Vitori and Michael Chinouya are not known for their batting skills. In a gamble to retain the strike, he took on a throw from Ravindra Jadeja at midwicket, but the powerful and accurate return caught him short.A quick end to the Zimbabwe innings seemed imminent but the bottom three weren’t about to throw their wickets away. Chatara’s hook for six off Vinay was the highlight as the tail extended Zimbabwe’s innings by more than 11 overs before Mishra returned to polish them off.Faced with a small target and a placid pitch, India weren’t too troubled during the chase, and there were never any doubts over which side was heading for victory. Rohit Sharma played a few eye-catching strokes before falling cheaply for the third time in the series. His opening partner Shikhar Dhawan looked set to extend his recent golden run as he feasted on the loose deliveries on offer, but after racing to 35 off 31, he crashed a length ball straight to cover. Ambati Rayudu was slow to start but just as he got going, he chipped a return catch on 33.Unlike the others, Kohli didn’t throw it away. He was edgy to begin with, but calmly worked the singles early on and with the asking-rate never too far from three an over, he was content to coast along. It was only towards the end, with the result almost guaranteed, that he opened out and hurried India past the finish line, completing their sixth successive ODI victory.

Ben Brown’s unbeaten 78 held up Yorkshire after the visiting seam attack had made good use of winning the tossing and bowling first

Paul Edwards at Hove11-Sep-2013
ScorecardBen Brown’s innings saved Sussex from complete disaster•Getty Images

There was a curious atmosphere of immediacy and timelessness at Hove on the first day of this game: immediacy because Yorkshire now lie second in the Division One table and clearly need a win this week; timelessness because this is the penultimate first-class match of the season at this ground and the pull of Hove’s rich history and famously varied architecture is made even more powerful by the arrival of autumn.The contrast remained in one’s mind throughout the day. Yorkshire’s attack mastered the conditions in the late morning and one was reminded that a brisk, skittish breeze and the ground’s slope to the sea were problems over which bowlers like Maurice Tate and Tony Buss also triumphed. Their successes, though, did not take Sussex to the title; that moment in time did not arrive until 2003. Yorkshire, meanwhile, had won their first County Championship in 1893 and hope to celebrate their sesquicentennial anniversary with their 31st outright crown.By close of play, Andrew Gale’s men had made good progress towards winning this game. An attack which, in professional parlance, is “always at you” had limited Sussex to 276 for 9, a very decent effort on a flat pitch. Weather permitting, Yorkshire’s powerful batting line-up will hope to build a significant first-innings lead on the next two days of this game.The main obstacle towards Yorkshire claiming an even more decisive advantage came in the shape of Ben Brown, whose sparkling 93 had been a highlight of his side’s innings win at Headingley back in April. Here, Brown combined with Steve Magoffin to add 74 runs for the eighth wicket, as Adam Lyth’s failure to take a straightforward slip catch off Steve Patterson’s bowling when the Sussex wicketkeeper-batsman had 14 to his name assumed greater importance with every over that passed.After a first hour of play in which the conditions had caused Gale’s attack to struggle, Yorkshire ended the morning session in a dominant position with Sussex on 117 for 5. That was remarkable given that the home side were 58 for 1 after 14.3 overs with both Chris Nash and Michael Yardy going well. But Liam Plunkett, the third bowler to be tried from the troublesome Sea End in the first hour, produced the ball of the day to account for Nash, who could be forgiven for not being able to cope with the movement and lift the former Durham seamer generated.From that point on Sussex’s batsmen contributed a little to their side’s demise, Yardy chopping a ball from Plunkett on to the stumps and Ed Joyce being bowled behind his legs by Sidebottom for just 3. Rory Hamilton-Brown, his attacking shots invariably more impressive than his defensive efforts, then whacked Kane Williamson’s gentle and deceptive offspin for two leg-side sixes before the last ball of the same over defeated him with oh-so-gentle turn.Conditions eased a little for bowling in the afternoon. The wind dropped, the atmosphere became a little heavier and the Yorkshire attack bowled rather straighter. Patterson tore out Matt Prior’s off pole two overs after the resumption, with a ball that defeated what looked a copybook forward defensive shot. Sussex debutant Ashar Zaidi, a well-travelled league professional who scored 192 not out and took six wickets for Sussex’s second team against Durham just last week, batted coolly, albeit for just 17, before being pinned on the crease by Sidebottom.That left the home side on 164 for 7 but Lyth’s lapse at slip and the good sense shown by Brown and Magoffin shifted the balance of the day quite markedly, as the weather closed in and September’s less-benevolent aspect enveloped the ground. Brown looked a good player in making 78 not out while Magoffin exhibited admirable good sense: if the ball was pitched up, he drove it; if it was short, he kept it out.Only when the Australian seamer chased a wide-ish one from Sidebottom two overs after tea did his technique let him down. By then, though, he had made 25 and helped to change the complexion of the day’s cricket. The last significant action took place in gathering gloom, when James Anyon was bowled by Williamson. Mark Benson and Steve O’Shaughnessy took the players off soon afterwards. We shall see how good Sussex’s eventual total is over the next couple of days, hoping the forecast rain escapes this tiny portion of the coast. For it can be on such matters of meteorology that titles are decided.

West Indies women levelled the series against New Zealand Women in the second game in Jamaica, courtesy a late lower-order push and excellent bowling to defend a total of 148

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Oct-2013
ScorecardShaquana Quintyne took two wickets and led a crucial 43-run stand for the ninth wicket•West Indies Cricket Board

West Indies women levelled the series against New Zealand women in the second game in Jamaica, courtesy a late lower-order push and excellent bowling to defend a total of 148.After electing to bat, West Indies fumbled a promising start by the openers – Kycia Knight and Natasha McLean put on 52 runs – as they meandered from 72 for 2 to 90 for 7. Morna Nielsen began the slide with the wicket of Shemaine Campbelle and finished with figures of 10-4-12-3, but 17-year old Shaquana Quintyne and Shakera Selman rallied back in the course of a 43-run union for the ninth wicket. Quintyne caused problems with the ball as well, picking up two wickets as the New Zealand tail became easy prey for her leg breaks.The visitors had to wait till their eighth wicket to record their first partnership in double figures, and only just at 12 runs. Deandra Dottin compensated for her failure with the bat by running out two of the top three batsmen and New Zealand never recovered. Katie Perkins offered the only resistance and remained unbeaten on 18, as offspinner Stefanie Taylor and left-arm seamer Shanel Daley picked up five wickets between them and reduced New Zealand to 32 for 7 in the 17th over, which all but sealed the game.

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.”

By his own admission, Luke Wood has no pedigree as a batsman. When he made his debut at the end of last season his thoughts were that if he might achieve anything in cricket it would be through his ability with the ball. He might now have to revise that

Jon Culley at Trent Bridge01-Jun-2015
ScorecardLuke Wood made a fine century•Getty Images

By his own admission, Luke Wood has no pedigree as a batsman. The 19-year-old from Worksop is a left-arm seamer by trade and when he made his debut at the end of last season his thoughts were that if he might achieve anything in cricket it would be through his ability with the ball.He might now have to revise that view a little, having suddenly found himself with a first-class century to his name in only his eighth innings, rescuing Nottinghamshire from a familiar plight with a performance a man of no less experience and judgment than Mick Newell described as “the most remarkable hundred I’ve seen in first-class cricket”.It was certainly an extraordinary one, given what had gone before and indeed what followed. Put in on another green-tinged result pitch, Nottinghamshire slumped to 38 for 5, their top order blown away by the combined forces of Steve Magoffin and England’s Chris Jordan. Under glowering clouds, the Australian Magoffin seemed to have the ball on a string as he reached 30 wickets for the season, dismissing both Taylors – Brendan and James, the latter for a second-ball duck — and the in-form Riki Wessels.Jordan dismissed Steven Mullaney and Alex Hales in spectacular style, taking a brilliant diving catch off his own bowling to remove Mullaney and sending two stumps flying with a ball that Hales could only prod at in hope.Six down for 55 was hardly a recovery and although Will Gidman did a sterling job in taking up the finger-in-the-dyke role customarily performed by the currently injured Chris Read, at 98 for 7 Nottinghamshire’s position still looked as bleak as the weather.At this point emerged young Wood, fresh from a pair in his last match, a catastrophic defeat to Somerset on an even greener pitch, with no greater ambition than to support Gidman in doing what they could to salvage some respectability if nothing else. Yet 23.2 overs later, Nottinghamshire had two batting points and Wood a century from 105 balls with 10 fours and six sixes, an innings buzzing with youthful exuberance yet after a fairly wobbly start constructed with remarkable assuredness.For good measure, in the chill of the evening before a final burst of rain did for the day, with a third of the overs lost, Nottinghamshire added value to their unexpected success by reducing Sussex to 39 for 3, with Wood taking two of the wickets.He could have been out several times early on as he flailed the bat in hope, but once he began to feel he might just help the cause with a few meaty blows he began to target the short boundary on the Bridgford Road side of the ground and the bat began to connect rather nicely. A high cut off Matt Hobden from the Radcliffe Road End sailed into the New Stand, and then he went after Magoffin, bowling from the Pavilion End. Gidman fell to the first ball after tea, edging to first slip after a solid 57, after which Jake Ball decided he would join the fun, he too hitting Magoffin into the New Stand and then launching Jordan way over extra cover to clear the longer boundary before a top-edge off Magoffin saw him caught a third man.But Wood was not done. Remarkably, given that the adrenalin must have been pumping as never before, he managed to score his last 28 runs at nine wickets down and with Harry Gurney, what is known as a genuine No. 11, at the other end. Gurney was in for 25 minutes but did not face a ball as Wood took control, keeping the strike by running singles off the bat or byes to the last ball of every over.Two sixes in the same Magoffin over took him to 98, at which point Chris Nash, captain with Ed Joyce on Ireland duty, tried something different at last, turning to Luke Wells to bowl spin. It took only four balls to do the trick, but not before Wood had taken the chance to push his third delivery into an open space and scamper two runs, at which point he leaped into the air to celebrate, waving his bat above his head as the crowd stood, the Nottinghamshire team lined up on their balcony and every Sussex player on the field joined in the applause.Magoffin finished with six wickets but had gone for 109 runs by the time Wood had done with him, half of those scored by the teenager himself.”In first-class cricket it’s the most remarkable hundred I’ve ever seen,” Newell said. “For a kid who got a pair in the last match and when he first went in looked like getting out every ball, to hit it as cleanly as that is remarkable. To hit that many sixes against a high quality attack is incredible.”Wood himself certainly had no idea he was capable of such a feat. “I couldn’t see us getting 200 as a team, let alone me getting a hundred,” he said. “I’ve not done a massive amount with the bat before really. I work hard at it and I try to be positive but I’ve not done anything like that before.”I didn’t really think about the hundred until I was in the 80s and it’s been pretty phenomenal how it has turned out. The best feeling I’ve ever had on a cricket field and to get two wickets at the end has topped it off nicely.”Wood dismissed Mike Yardy and Matt Machan to catches in the slips after Ball had trapped Wells leg before, lifting Nottinghamshire’s spirits to unexpected heights. “It was looking pretty gloomy at lunch,” Newell said. “We lost a toss we wanted to win and were in danger of feeling sorry for ourselves. But it was a case of good bowling rather than poor batting that put us where we were and had a chat and picked ourselves up.”

Brad Hodge’s 61 in a 36-ball assault gave Guyana Amazon Warriors an easy 23-run win against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in Basseterre

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Jul-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsBrad Hodge struck three sixes and five fours in his 61•Caribbean Premier League

Brad Hodge’s 61 in a 36-ball assault gave Guyana Amazon Warriors an easy 23-run win against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in Basseterre. Rain brought a premature end to the match in the 17th over of the chase, by which time Amazon Warriors were comfortably ahead of the D/L target.Patriots lost their openers within the first four overs after choosing to bat, but were resurrected by Marlon Samuels’ 40-ball 61 – the only score above 20 in the innings. Samuels and Tonito Willett added 54 for the third wicket before Willett holed out at long-off in the 13th over off Marchant de Lange. Samuels then took 16 runs off the remaining four balls of the over, which set a strong platform for the last few overs. Patriots finished well to end with 158 for 6 – 51 coming in the last five overs.In the chase, Amazon Warriors lost Trevon Griffith in the second over for 6. However, Denesh Ramdin counter-attacked with 31 in 15 balls, which included two sixes and three fours, before he was caught behind in the seventh over. Hodge took the attack to Patriots from the outset, while Assad Fudadin, who was playing his second match of the season, dropped anchor with a run-a-ball 43. Patriots couldn’t stop the run-flow as boundaries were hit regularly. An unbeaten 98-run third-wicket stand took Amazon Warriors to 146 for 2 in the 17th over, when the D/L par score was 123.

David Smith has described himself as “stunned” and “embarrassed” after he was refused entry by Northamptonshire on Friday night

George Dobell22-Jun-2015David Smith has described himself as “stunned” and “embarrassed” after he was refused entry by Northamptonshire on Friday night. Smith, who was chief executive of the club until December, had taken his 15-year-old son to watch the team play Lancashire in the NatWest Blast but was stopped at the gate and told he was no longer welcome.Onlookers suggest he was stopped by a gateman who consulted the ground supervisor who then informed him that the board had issued an order to prevent him from attending. Smith’s son was allowed to watch the game, while Smith waited outside.”I don’t really want to talk about it,” Smith told ESPNcricinfo. “The whole situation is very embarrassing and I’m hoping it’s a mistake. I don’t understand it at all. It all happened in front of my son and various other spectators.”I had no forewarning and I’ve had no explanation. I thought we parted on excellent terms and it wasn’t as if I’d asked for free tickets or anything like that. I’ve taken my sons to watch several matches this season and one of them is in the Northants Under-13s side. I’m stunned.”Northamptonshire chairman, Gavin Warren, admitted he had no idea the incident occurred when first contacted but, after checking with other board members, said the club would not comment.Smith, who was previously chief executive at Leicestershire, a player with Warwickshire and sat on the ECB’s cricket committee, experienced some dramatic ups and downs in his time at Northants. Taking over in January 2012, he saw the club enjoy one of the best seasons in their history in 2013 – they won the domestic T20 competition and promotion in the Championship – and, having invested heavily in the conference facilities, financial turnover grow by around 20% during his spell. The club also bought the freehold of their Wantage Road ground.But Northants suffered relegation and declared a loss of over £300,000 in 2014. While turnover continued to grow, they were hit by a substantial reduction in ECB funds compared to the previous year, with the retirement of Graeme Swann costing them around £100,000 in performance related payments and a drop in prize money of over £200,000. Smith left the club at the end of the year, with several other directors investing heavily in the club to continue the ground’s redevelopment.

Ben Foakes finished unbeaten on 57 as Surrey completed a convincing six-wicket LV= County Championship win against Kent to close to within eight points of Division Two leaders Lancashire

ECB/PA16-Jul-2015
ScorecardBen Foakes ensured Surrey made reasonably smooth progress to their target•Getty Images

Ben Foakes finished unbeaten on 57 as Surrey completed a convincing six-wicket LV= County Championship win against Kent to close to within eight points of Division Two leaders Lancashire.Surrey, who had bowled Kent out for a second innings 99 to take control of the match, reached their fourth innings target of 125 with few alarms, the 22-point victory being confirmed in 36.1 fourth day overs.Rory Burns led the way with 46, with Foakes helping the opener to add a valuable 55 for the third wicket. And, as Surrey closed in on the win, Foakes had some fun by pulling Joe Denly’s leg spin for six and also twice lifting James Tredwell over the legside boundary for maximums.In all, Foakes faced 91 balls, hitting three fours besides those three sixes, while Jason Roy hit the winning runs by cover-driving Tredwell, who finished with 3 for 61, for four.Resuming on 4 for 1, having seen Zafar Ansari bowled by the last ball of day three by Tredwell, Surrey were a nervous 26 for two when Kumar Sangakkara fell for just a single in the sixth over of the morning.Jumping down the pitch to drive, Sangakkara was beaten by off spinner Tredwell’s sharp turn and stumped by wicketkeeper Sam Billings.Burns, however, looked in good touch from the start, punching Tredwell through mid wicket for the day’s first boundary and later lofting him over mid on for another four.Tredwell was Kent’s chief threat in spin-friendly conditions, but both Burns and Foakes, promoted to no 4, played him well as he toiled away from the Pavilion End.Both needed some good fortune against the turning ball, with two Tredwell deliveries beating them and keeper Billings to fly away for byes.Foakes, on 21, also edged Tredwell just short of Matt Coles at slip but soon he was hitting him high over mid on for four to keep Surrey moving swiftly towards their target.It was something of a surprise when Burns was bowled around his legs aiming a sweep at Tredwell, but by then he had hit eight fours in an important 85-ball knock for his team.Arun Harinath replaced Burns at the crease and joined Foakes in a partnership of 34 before on 14 edging Denly to Tredwell at second slip to leave Surrey 115 for four. But withonly ten more runs required, it did not take Foakes and Roy long to see Surrey over the line.