Zimbabwe Cricket donating towards rescue and relief efforts following cyclone in which estimated 2.6 million affected

Liam Brickhill26-Mar-2019Zimbabwe’s cricketers have joined the response to the devastation of Cyclone Idai, which ravaged eastern Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Malawi last week causing widespread damage. Hundreds have been killed, with an estimated 2.6 million affected by the cyclone across the region. Zimbabwe Cricket has been one of a huge number of organisations to donate to the rescue and relief effort.Batsman Brendan Taylor also had a personal connection to the disaster. His father Graham witnessed the aftermath of the cyclone first hand, becoming stranded in the flooded area around Beira, Mozambique’s second largest city and the place hardest hit by winds of up to 115mph/185kph, huge swells and more than 150mm of rain in the first 24 hours.”My old man had a torrid couple of days on his way back from Beira helping my older brother out, who took some damage with his properties there,” Taylor told ESPNcricinfo. “He witnessed a lot of chaos, carnage and death. And a lot of destruction. We didn’t have signal or contact with him for 48 hours. He did a lot of walking, covered a lot of ground, and saw a lot of things you don’t want to see. It was a pretty humbling experience for him. But he’s safe. He’s fine.”
Graham Taylor described a scene where communities were “absolutely, totally obliterated”, telling the : “Any roof that was left, and old eucalyptus plantations and any cashew tree, any tree had four, five, six, seven people in it. People were trying to wade across – I think 95% of the houses were obliterated.”Having also caused deadly flooding in Malawi, the cyclone moved inland to Zimbabwe, washing away roads and bridges, and causing landslides that destroyed entire villages in the Chimanimani area. As the army and police aqua units moved in to help those affected, ordinary Zimbabweans and local businesses also rallied and organised a response to the emergency.”It’s been good to see the way the whole country’s come together and contributed as a whole,” Taylor said. “It’s been fantastic. I think ZC has reacted really well. And the players have been on board, so that’s great.”
National men’s captain Hamilton Masakadza said that the followers of cricket in the country are many, and that these followers share in moments of both joy and sorrow with the team, and hence ZC also shares in the grief of the victims of the cyclone. Women’s captain Mary-Anne Musonda wrote on Twitter: “We are all affected by Cyclone Idai. They are us, we are them.”ZC made an official donation of blankets, clothing, cooking oil and sugar beans, among other supplies, to be sent to communities in the Eastern Highlands affected by the cyclone, which has been described as possibly the worst weather-related disaster ever to hit the southern hemisphere.”It is a call that us as Zimbabwe Cricket feel demands every institution to play its part in ensuring the [country’s] president’s call for assistance is fulfilled, hence our small gesture towards supporting victims of Cyclone Idai,” ZC chairman Tavengwa Mukhuhlani said.Sikandar Raza donated his entire match fee and winning bonus from the domestic Twenty20 final won by his team Matabeleland Tuskers to the effort. “The cyclone has definitely hit Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique quite badly,” Raza told ESPNcricinfo. “But what it’s also done is brought all the communities together.””It was hectic last week,” Peter Moor said. “But what was amazing was how the whole Zimbabwean community just came together. On my way home from training I drive past Nazareth House and Highlands Presbyterian Church and these places, and they were just ram-packed with people. Volunteers helping out, food packs, blankets, everything. And it was very special to see how, despite everybody’s political differences and what have you, and even different economic backgrounds, everyone was just helping out and it was really special.”

We are all affected by Cyclone Idai. They are us, we are them. @ZimCricketv Lady Chevrons this afternoon showed up at the Highlands Presbyterian Church to help out with packing provisions going to our family in Chimanimani/Mutare. #CycloneIdai #LadyChevrons #Zimbabwe pic.twitter.com/noP7rTTgNS

— Mary-Anne Musonda

How does CSA plan to minimise losses, what are the implications of a pruned domestic calendar?

Liam Brickhill13-Apr-2019In October 2018, Cricket South Africa presented a report to a parliamentary sports portfolio committee, projecting losses of 654 million rands [approx. USD 47 million] over the next four years. Now, as they run the risk of hemorrhaging money, CSA are trying to minimise losses, but their methods have put them in direct opposition to the South African Cricketers’ Association, who insist they have not been properly consulted on the austerity measures.”What we are doing is seeing an iceberg in front of us at CSA and we are slowly steering our ship to make sure we don’t hit it,” said CSA chief executive Thabang Moroe. “Our finances remain strong. We just want to make sure that we continue to remain strong, and that involves having a look at our domestic structures.”Here’s a complete lowdown of the situation CSA is in.Why are South Africa’s projected losses so huge?
“One way we got here was from a huge change in the market,” explained CSA acting chief financial officer Ziyanda Nkuta. CSA earns its revenue from sponsorship, broadcast rights and ICC membership, but the broadcast market is changing rapidly and “a large contributor to that is digitalisation”, says Nkuta. CSA have a R1.5 billion deal with broadcaster SuperSport that is up for renegotiation this year, adding to the uncertainty.CSA also spends around R15 million per year on each of the six franchises – which were originally launched in 2005 in the hope that they would become self-sufficient, but have been unable to do so – as well as funding the 14 semi-professional teams in the second tier of the domestic system.Those projected losses do not even factor in spending on the Mzansi Super League, CSA’s homegrown T20 tournament, which lost R80 million in its first season and is expected to lose R209 million over its first four years. Despite these forecasts, Nkuta insisted that CSA is financially stable – provided it can change the way it operates. CSA hope their losses (not including the MSL) could come down to around R200 million over the next four years.What is CSA’s plan to reduce the projected losses?
As part of their austerity measures, CSA are hoping to cut costs substantially by collapsing the existing franchise domestic system into the provincial one, reducing CSA’s responsibilities from 20 teams to 12. That could mean as many as 90 fewer games per season, allowing massive reductions in accommodation, transport and catering costs. They are also scrapping their sponsor-less T20 Challenge competition as of next season.As chief operating officer Naasei Appiah put it: “We’re planning on changing the system from having a semi-pro layer and a professional layer, to having just one layer.”So what’s SACA’s problem with the proposed changes?
SACA say they have been kept in the dark about the full extent of the changes, and have not been properly consulted about their implementation. While CSA is hoping that combining the two domestic tiers will result in at least 72 new professional contracts being awarded, the combination will also inevitably lead to job losses as teams such as Cape Cobras and Western Province blend into a single entity.SACA believe as many as 70 contracts could also be lost and have also raised concerns around how exactly the changes will be implemented. “It is also very likely that if this is part of a cost saving exercise players are going to end up earning less,” said SACA president Omphile Ramela. “If CSA says that is not the case then we want to understand how that is actually going to be possible.”Beyond cutting costs and revamping the domestic system, what else is CSA doing?
They are placing great import on the MSL as a means to opening up new revenue streams, but as explained already, it is not making any money yet, nor is it expected to do so in the next four years.CSA are planning for a very slim increase of just 1% on their budget for the MSL over the next four years, so Moroe has admitted that “the pressure is on us from a commercial point of view that we re-negotiate better contracts” if it is to open up new revenue streams. In order to make any real money, CSA need strong overseas broadcast deals for the league.What if CSA and SACA can’t come to some agreement?
The relationship between CSA and SACA is clearly not in a great place right now, and SACA have claimed that their chief executive Tony Irish has even been barred from attending a meeting during which the domestic revamp was discussed. If CSA and SACA are unable to come to some sort of agreement on the way forward, there is a risk of strike action by professional cricketers in the domestic system, something that SACA has threatened before. In the meantime, a war of words played out in the media looks set to continue.

The Knight Riders captain also added that it was “unfair” to say his team was over-dependent on the West Indian allrounder

Varun Shetty in Hyderabad21-Apr-20191:14

There have been no complaints from Russell about his batting position – Karthik

A stoic Dinesh Karthik said it was unfair to say Kolkata Knight Riders are over-dependent on Andre Russell after his side lost their fifth straight game, effectively making all of their last four games must-wins if they want to qualify for the playoffs.Knight Riders were 124 for 5 against Sunrisers Hyderabad when Russell joined Chris Lynn with 4.3 overs left in the innings. But, Lynn fell next over, leaving Russell in the company of the lower order. Although he’s done that task many times for Knight Riders, including specifically lifting them from being five down for much lower scores, Russell couldn’t keep his golden form running into Sunday and fell for a nine-ball 15.”I think that’s unfair to say,” Karthik said after the match. “Today I think 160 was par if we’d bowled well. Even though Andre only got 15 runs today, the rest of them batted really well and brought us to a score that was defendable. But the fact that we didn’t bowl as well, and the wicket got better under lights, and two good players came out all guns blazing made things look very easy.”On Friday, Russell had brought Knight Riders miraculously close to a win against Royal Challengers Bangalore after coming in with the asking rate at 16.53 and just over eight overs to go. His 65 off 25 had brought Knight Riders “two hits away” from victory – Russell’s words and they came ahead of a cheeky little suggestion.”I believe that [I should bat higher up the order],” Russell had said as he put a finger to his lips. “Honestly, you have to sometimes be flexible as a team. When you look at the make-up of our team, I don’t mind going to bat at No. 4.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Arguably this season’s most impactful player, Russell has come in with an average of 42 balls remaining every innings. Comparable to this are Hardik Pandya and Kieron Pollard’s entry points – an average of 33 and 38 balls remaining respectively. But the fact that Pandya and Pollard play for the same team means Mumbai Indians can hedge their bets on their batting positions. Knight Riders, on the other hand, have often relied on brisk innings around Russell as he singlehandedly pulverises bowling attacks.Karthik alluded to Russell’s comments while saying the West Indian has made no complaints about his batting position. “He had about five overs to face. When he came in, there were 27 balls and we’re looking to play him at a kind of slot where…I think he’s the kind of player even if he had played 10 balls, he’d have made an impact. The key is that we play that well at the top of the order that we set it up for him. There’s been no complaints from his side about the batting part of it. I think he’s been happy with the place where he’s going and he has a clear role in the team which he’s trying to achieve every time he goes out to bat. “Knight Riders are currently placed sixth and in the middle of a losing streak that forced them to drop franchise stalwarts such as Kuldeep Yadav and Robin Uthappa. Those big calls were made, Karthik said, because neither player had performed to the standards they had set themselves. But with four matches to go, and three of them against teams currently placed higher than them, they might just return to the XI in the next game.”It’s always part of the IPL,” Karthik said. “Once you get on a run where you’ve lost a match it puts pressure on the next match. When you win, you can always find ways to win and when you lose, you sometimes find ways to lose. I think these are all the challenges a team always faces in a tournament like this.”We’ve sat together and regrouped and things haven’t gone exactly to plan. Having said that, I have faith in the players I have. I believe there are genuine match winners out there and we need to find ways to find a spark for ourselves and do something special for us. “

The allrounder was pleased to have ended a long wait for a century and said there won’t be recriminations over him trying to win the match with another six

Sidharth Monga at Old Trafford23-Jun-2019Carlos Brathwaite was dropped for West Indies’ last match. There is a good chance he wouldn’t have been playing at Old Trafford had Andre Russell not been unfit. It wouldn’t have been a particularly harsh decision because Brathwaite had scored only five half-centuries in 158 innings since his sensational four sixes to win West Indies a lost World Twenty20 final back in 2016.Yet, with the World Cup dream all but over, Brathwaite reignited West Indies’ hopes with a scarcely believable century to bring them within five runs of New Zealand’s total. He was caught on the boundary trying to clear long-on off the last ball of the 49th over. After the knock, a shattered Brathwaite was honest in saying the knock meant him a lot even if it left him feeling bittersweet.WATCH on Hotstar (India only) – Brathwaite breathes fire with 101“It is a cliché to say that it doesn’t matter if you don’t win, but for me personally, for my confidence, it is a result of all the hard work that I put in,” Brathwaite said of his first international century. “It is finally good that it has come to fruition. I continue to work hard. Obviously heartbreaking to not get over the line but I give thanks for the performance and being able to get the team in the position that I was able to.”Brathwaite came in to bat at 142 for 4, and scored 101 of the remaining 144 runs that West Indies managed. With a stunning 25-run assault against Matt Henry in the 48th over, he brought the equation down to eight runs required off the two overs.”When I lost [Sheldon] Cottrell, then Lockie [Ferguson] had one over to go and [Trent] Boult had one to go,” Brathwaite said. “And the thinking was if we see them off, we can get 30 in three overs.”Now the equation was manageable, but he had only the No. 11 Oshane Thomas, who was yet to score a run, for company. Jimmy Neesham, bowling the 49th over, said they wanted Brathwaite to make more decisions now. The final – as it turned out – decision was whether to look for a single last ball of the 49th over or a six. If he got a single, he would have retained strike with five to get in the final over. If he missed while going for a six – or even if he got four – New Zealand would be able to have a crack at Thomas.As it turned out, Brathwaite went for a six, and was caught a few metres inside the long-on boundary. “I did tell Oshane about it [the possibility of a single],” Brathwaite said. “Told him we remain positive. We are one hit away. Probably memories came back of 2016 when I played a game against Afghanistan [in the 2016 World T20] and patted a full toss for a single instead of hitting it for a six. My thinking was still: watch the ball, still react, and if it is not a ball that I can get a six off, I try to get a single. He was on high alert, but if it came in my area I try and finish the game in that ball, which I did.”Carlos Brathwaite sinks to his knees after getting caught on the boundary•Getty Images

Brathwaite came very close, though. “I thought I had enough bat on it,” he said. “Unfortunately it didn’t. Also it went to probably one of the better fielders in the world as well. So, yeah, it is what is. A game of margins. One or two yards more, we could be victorious.”Brathwaite said it should not be too difficult to move on from the decision he made. “The best dressing rooms create a culture where when you pinpoint any incident, any game, there is [talk around] planning and execution,” Brathwaite said. “The plan was right: obviously stay, reacting to the ball, don’t premeditate, if it is not in your zone, get single; if it is, maximise and get a six. And the execution was off. In the game against Australia as well, I got out to a slow full toss from Starc, kind of haunted me as well. Again it is execution. Back to the drawing board. Probably get some other options to similar ball. I am not going to beat myself up because the ball should have gone for six, and we should have won.”It was “heartbreaking” that it didn’t end West Indies’ way, but there was also personal relief. “I know I can [bat well], I know I should,” Brathwaite said. “I never stopped working, I kept working hard. It’s great to see hard work pay off. At the end of the day it is a century in a losing cause, which is bittersweet.”His captain Jason Holder wasn’t surprised he delivered the runs. “His work ethic is really good,” Holder said of Brathwaite. “He’s not one to shy away from his responsibilities. And he puts in really good effort into his preparation. And that’s one thing that I credit him for. The knock that he played today is not surprising to me.”I guess everybody could sit here and agree that we’d love to see that a little bit more often. But that’s the general feeling within the entire group. I think as a team we just need to be a lot more consistent. But seeing Carlos play the way he did doesn’t really surprise me. Just a matter for us to bring it together more often.”The feeling of awe was on both sides. New Zealand didn’t waste any time in going to congratulate and commiserate with Brathwaite moments after the win was sealed. “New Zealanders are some of the best people in the world to share a dressing room with or to play against,” Brathwaite said. “I obviously socialise with them at franchise tournaments and am good friends with a few of the boys. I guess it didn’t mean much at that point in time because you are just getting over watching Boult take the catch and losing. In hindsight it was good sportsmanship on their behalf. I appreciate the mutual respect the opposition had.”

The Australia fast bowler wants to live up to the potential shown on an injury-curtailed 2013 tour

Daniel Brettig23-Jul-2019To say James Pattinson has unfinished business in Ashes cricket in England would be quite an understatement. It’s six years since he played the first two matches of the 2013 encounter at Trent Bridge and Lord’s, tearfully withdrawing in the middle of the second match with a side strain that was to be only an early instance of the litany of injuries that would follow.Foot, back, side, shin, stomach. All were areas where Pattinson experienced the pain of injury, though it was recurring back stress fractures that caused the most grief. It was something of a final gamble when Pattinson traveled to New Zealand in November 2017 for surgery previously undergone by Shane Bond, among others, a procedure he underwent with one goal in mind – to be in England for this Ashes series.”I knew that if I was up and running, string a few on the pitch, that I would have every chance of getting picked in an Ashes team,” Pattinson said. “Going back to a year-and-a-half ago when I was contemplating whether to get back surgery and whether it was going to work. There was a month there where there was a bit of unknown and conjecture around whether I would get back to playing cricket. Sitting here now after going through all that is quite pleasing that I am here and bowling and putting myself in position to get picked in an Ashes series.”You go through your career, you try different things, you get setbacks, you go through strategies and theories and you work out what’s best for you. You have to try things in cricket, some things don’t work and some things do. For me it worked in a way, with my action it’s sort of somewhere in between when I first started and when I tried to remodel it.”I tried to let that evolve over the last few years and I am happy with where that is, my body is feeling good and more than anything I can relax and run in and bowl and not worry about where my back foot’s landing and if the front arm is high and that stuff. When you are trying to play Test cricket and you are doing that it is hard work, I’m in a good spot at the moment and I have come off a bit of cricket and that’s a bonus for me.”Now Pattinson is here, and by dint of his proven ability to be highly destructive when fit and in rhythm, he appears certain to be one of the members of the final Ashes squad to be named later this week. And as those who have seen him bowl for Nottinghamshire know well, Pattinson has the ability to claim a lot of wickets in a hurry.So, what do you think? Will I get picked? James Pattinson makes faces at a camera•Getty Images

“If my body holds up I think I can challenge them over here,” Pattinson said in Southampton. “It’s pretty simple, you get wickets that can assist you and you get wickets that are quite flat so, to have the ability to bowl on a flat wicket or a wicket that’s seaming around hopefully I can do that. It’s pretty simple over here you try to hit the same area. You look at Stuart Broad and Jimmy Anderson, they are always challenging the batsman, challenging the defence.”If we can take something out of the series before is to be trying to always challenge the front foot, challenging the knee roll and trying to stay in one spot in the wicket and not release too many boundary balls. Over here you see a lot of boundaries hit, the run rate is often a lot higher if we can try and cut that down. Over the years we have managed to try and take wickets but a bit more expensive than what it would be in other places, so I think that’s a big push from bowlers.”Since his debut in 2011 when he razed New Zealand at the Gabba, there has been nothing in Australian cricket quite like seeing Pattinson in full flight. It was a sight most recently glimpsed in this year’s Sheffield Shield final at Junction Oval, where New South Wales’ challenge was brought undone by a fiery Pattinson, screeching in aggressive delight at each one of his seven victims. Taking wickets “in clumps” is part of Pattinson’s gift, now allied to a more mature understanding of the pace bowler’s craft in England.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“Over the years I have been able to come on and take wickets in clumps so I suppose the selectors are looking for bowlers who can do a bit of that and bowlers who can bowl economically as well,” he said. “I’ve played enough cricket, I’ve been over here three months with Nottingham which is fantastic for someone like me who hasn’t had a great load of cricket over the last few years. I managed to play a fair few Shield games this year and obviously moved on into the summer here and the good thing is I’ve come off plenty of cricket.”They’ve shown over here they can play swing bowling quite well, if it swings big and you’re not getting the right areas, it doesn’t really matter. So it’s about trying to get the ball in the right area, i think it’ll hopefully do it off the pitch. And obviously if the conditions are right it’ll swing. The hard thing over here is if the sun does come out it’s quite challenging to bowl, because your margin for error is quite low.”So all off a sudden you’ve got to be on the spot, that’s when you try to work with training your positions on the crease and all that sort of thing, to try and work with it. I think it’ll be about thinking on our feet over here and during this next game as well, working together and bowling in partnerships. Hopefully that’ll bring some good success.”James Pattinson in his delivery stride•Getty Images

Pattinson’s aggressive, unbridled approach to fast bowling is epitomised by how he talks about bowling in the nets to Australia’s leading players. In an era of workload management and careful preparation, Pattinson cannot help but admit that he always bowls a little faster to the likes of Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and now the returned Steven Smith.”Throughout my career I’ve always tried to crank it up a little bit to the best batter,” he said. “I know when I first came into a Test match, in 2010 in India, and Ricky Ponting was there. I always made a conscious effort to bowl a bit faster to him then always to Michael Clarke too. You always try to get in with the best batters and bowl well against them, I think the selectors like that.”

A new CAC comprising Kapil Dev, Anshuman Gaekwad and Shanta Rangaswamy is expected to announce the next coach by mid-August

Nagraj Gollapudi29-Jul-20190:41

Everyone in the team shares mutual respect with Ravi ‘bhai’ – Kohli

A day before the window for the applications for India’s coaching staff closes, captain Virat Kohli has endorsed Ravi Shastri for continuing as the head coach. Shastri and the rest of the coaching staff’s tenure was originally until the World Cup, but the BCCI extended that till the end of India’s tour of the West Indies, which is scheduled to finish on September 3.”With Ravi , all of us have a great camaraderie, everyone in the team shares mutual respect [with him]. And we have done really well together as a group,” Kohli said at the pre-departure press conference for the tour of USA and West Indies. “Yeah, we will definitely be very happy if he is continuing as a coach, but as I said it is upon the CAC to seek my advice or opinion if they want. Right now, I haven’t been contacted at all. And I don’t know what is going to happen with the process.”Earlier this month, the BCCI put out an advertisement inviting applications for the entire coaching staff with July 30 as the deadline. It is understood that the next coach is likely to be announced by mid-August.While posting the advertisement the BCCI said Shastri and the rest of the existing coaching staff comprising Sanjay Bangar (assistant coach), Bharat Arun (bowling coach) and R Sridhar (fielding coach) would get automatic entries during the recruitment process but will be interviewed if shortlisted.The interviews would be carried out by a three-person Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) comprising former India captain Kapil Dev, former India batsman and coach Anshuman Gaekwad and former India women’s captain Shanta Rangaswamy. This CAC replaced the previous panel comprising Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and VVS Laxman, which had picked the previous two India coaches: Anil Kumble in 2016 and Shastri a year later after the former decided to resign.According to Kohli, the new CAC had not yet contacted him, but he was open to give his opinion if sought. “The CAC hasn’t contacted me yet,” Kohli said. “If they tell me we want your opinion, yes, I’ll definitely go and speak to them.”Incidentally, before Kumble stepped down controversially, Kohli had been contacted by the previous CAC, which had tried to sort the differences between the pair. It is understood Kohli did not want to budge, which eventually resulted in Kumble opting to walk away.Shastri replaced him albeit after the CAC took some time to finalise its choice. Having conducted the interviews with Shastri and four other candidates, the CAC had then spoken to Kohli before the BCCI announced Shastri as the new coach.This time the CAC will have about two weeks to shortlist the candidates and conduct interviews. Although the CAC has not been given a deadline, it is understood the panel is likely to make its choice around August 14.Gaekwad, who was India’s head coach between 1997 and 1999, said that the CAC would look for a couple of specific criteria in the shortlisted candidates. “You need to have good man-management skills,” Gaekwad told ESPNcricinfo. “There is not much technically you can do [at this level], but surely you need to keep an eye on the players who can develop some kind of snag over a period of time which ought to be corrected immediately. So man-management and planning are the key elements.”

West Indies T20 captain Carlos Brathwaite has defended the allrounder against criticism over his fitness issues

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Aug-2019Andre Russell has ruled himself out of West Indies’ first two T20Is against India starting on Saturday. The allrounder had only just returned to action after knee surgery but experienced “some discomfort” while playing in the Global T20 Canada and then expressed his unavailability to the West Indies selectors. However, only hours after a CWI press release had said this, Russell turned out to play for Vancouver Knights against Edmonton Royals.Carlos Brathwaite, the West Indies T20 captain, launched a stirring defence of Russell in the pre-match press conference in Florida. “I think he’s been knocked in the press a bit because of his injury woes. And I think it’s easy for us to see him hobbling around the field and just take for granted that he’s injured but we can also look at it on the other side and say he can be home, he could be elsewhere and not trying to play for the West Indies.”And speaking for myself as captain of the T20 team and speaking for myself as Andre’s friend, whenever we speak about playing for West Indies, that’s always his main goal. And we’ve seen in the World Cup -whether he was 100% or not, it’s debatable – but the fact that he wanted to be at the World Cup, wanted to pull on the shirt and wanted to perform for the people in the West Indies and his mates in the dressing room, I think, is testament to the person he is. And I think we need to start commending the fact that he actually tries to get on the park and stop lambasting the fact that he probably doesn’t stay on it till the end of the 50 overs or the 20 overs.”Even against my better judgment, I told him to sit out this series, but he really wanted to play, he really wanted to come and show off his skills and show off what he does in franchise cricket for the West Indies. Unfortunately, he took another knock and he doesn’t think that if he comes here that he’d be doing justice to other people who could be here and are 100%. Obviously, he’s a big loss, not only on the field but off the field. In the dressing room, in and around the team, he’s a big character, very jovial and in my eyes, a leader in the dressing room as well. But obviously, if we need to get him ready for the Twenty20 World Cup, we have to do without him for a couple of series, I prefer that than pushing him in this series and making a long term injury.”Jason Mohammed scored a 59-ball half-century•AFP

This, incidentally, is not the first time something like this has happened. In late 2018, Russell missed tours of India and Bangladesh, with chairman of selectors Courtney Browne saying that Russell – as well as Sunil Narine – “are injured at this time”. But when the first T20I against Bangladesh was played on December 17, Russell was playing for Somerset Cavaliers in the US Open Cricket tournament, a T20 competition, in its tenth year, played in Florida’s Central Broward Regional Park.With Russell absent, middle-order batsman Jason Mohammed gets to revive his West Indies career. “He [Mohammed] is a player with lots of experience in all three formats and – having done well for Trinidad & Tobago as well as Guyana Amazon Warriors,” Floyd Reifer, West Indies interim head coach, said.”It is not easy to the fill the shoes of someone like Andre Russell, who has dominated T20 cricket all over the world and helped West Indies win the ICC T20 World Cup on two occasions. We believe Jason is capable of good performances and we back him to perform at this level and win games as well.”Russell was last seen in a West Indies shirt in the World Cup, but after playing four matches, his knees gave out and he had to be replaced. The 31-year old played his first match since recovering from that injury on July 25 but he didn’t bowl or bat in it.Mohammed, who last played for West Indies in the ODI series against Bangladesh in July last year, was Trinidad & Tobago’s highest run-scorer last season in the four-day domestic tournament. The 32-year old captained a weakened West Indies side that toured Pakistan for a T20I series last year, where he made just 28 runs in three games. He has played nine T20Is and averages 18.The first two T20Is against India are scheduled to be held at the Broward County Stadium in Florida on Saturday and Sunday. The third and final T20I will be played at the Guyana National Stadium on Tuesday.

Kuldeep Yadav was among the wickets as South Africa A slumped against spin in Mysuru

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Sep-2019South Africa A slumped against spin on the second day of the second four-day game against India A, but there was one encouraging development for the visitors as Aiden Markram found some form in the lead-up to the Test series. Responding to India A’s 417, South Africa A trailed by 258 runs at stumps, with half their side back in the dressing room, but with Markram still at the crease on 83 off 140 balls.ALSO READ: First day report – Gill, Nair make South Africa A toilMarkram had endured an unhappy time during the first four-day game in Thiruvananthapuram, scoring 0 and 4. Runs finally came his way in Mysore, and he held South Africa A’s innings together even as Kuldeep Yadav and Shahbaz Nadeem ripped through the heart of their batting. Markram and his Test team-mate Theunis de Bruyn put South Africa A in a solid position with an 82-run stand for the second wicket, before the spinners combined to turn 102 for 1 to 142 for 5 in the space of 15.2 overs.Kuldeep, who is vying for a starting place in India’s Test bowling attack, took the wickets of Senuran Muthusamy and Heinrich Klaasen, who are both in South Africa’s squad for the Tests.At stumps, South Africa A were 159 for 5, with the allrounder Wiaan Mulder batting alongside Markram.Kuldeep Yadav pumps his fist after taking a wicket•AFP

Mulder had made an impression at the very start of the day, when he dismissed Karun Nair in the second over of the morning, before the batsman could add a run to his overnight 78. Thereafter, though, South Africa A had to wait long periods between wickets, as the lower middle order dug in. Wriddhiman Saha, on 36 overnight, went on to make 60, while Shivam Dube contributed a quickfire 68 off 84 balls, with 10 fours and a six.Dube fell after putting on 63 for the sixth wicket with Jalaj Saxena, who went on to add 68 with the last four batsmen, and finish unbeaten on 48.Mulder and the offspinner Dane Piedt, who is part of South Africa’s Test squad, finished with three wickets each, while Vernon Philander and Lungi Ngidi took a wicket apiece.

The new selection panel also picked left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican and top-order batsman Sunil Ambris

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Oct-2019The newly-picked West Indies selection panel has dropped Darren Bravo for the upcoming one-off Test against Afghanistan in India next month. With Shannon Gabriel injured, his place was taken by fast bowler Alzarri Joseph who proved his fitness in the CPL recently.

Changes to West Indies’ Test squad

IN: Alzarri Joseph, Shane Dowrich, Sunil Ambris, Jomel Warrican
OUT: Darren Bravo, Shannon Gabriel, Jahmar Hamilton

Shai Hope, who had sustained a finger injury during the Tests against India, was picked too – including in the ODI squad – having proved his fitness in Barbados Tridents’ run to the CPL title.Bravo was dropped after managing a mere 47 runs in four innings at an average of 15.66 against India. His form hardly improved in the CPL thereafter, with 128 runs in seven innings, striking at 103.22, and only one half-century. Gabriel’s recent form against India wasn’t impressive either. He claimed just four wickets in the two Tests and averaged as much as 56.50 with a strike rate of 99. He then went to the UK last month to play county cricket for Gloucestershire, and took only two wickets in three innings there, with figures of 0 for 39, 2 for 20 and 0 for 121.Wicketkeeper Jahmar Hamilton, who made his Test debut in the second game against India, was also left out of the Test squad. He got the chance against India after injuries to both Hope and Shane Dowrich, but with both fit to travel to India, there was no place for Hamilton this time.Joseph, who returned to the CPL after an injury layoff, was picked for all three formats. He is yet to make his T20 international debut. He had injured his right arm while playing for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL in April and returned to the field after nearly five months to represent St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in the CPL recently. He played nine matches to pick as many wickets and ended with an impressive economy rate of 7.75.Apart from Joseph’s return, the selectors picked left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican and top-order batsman Sunil Ambris. Both Warrican and Ambris last played a Test in November 2018 against Bangladesh. While Ambris struck some form against India A recently in both four-day matches and one-dayers, Warricon impressed more while playing for Barbados in the domestic first-class competition at the beginning of the year.The lone Test will be played after the T20Is and ODIs, starting November 27 in Dehradun.Test squad: Jason Holder (capt), Shai Hope, John Campbell, Kraigg Brathwaite, Shimron Hetmyer, Shamrah Brooks, Roston Chase, Shane Dowrich, Sunil Ambris, Jomel Warrican, Rahkeem Cornwall, Kemar Roach, Keemo Paul, Alzarri Joseph

The offspinner has never missed a Test through injury, but it would leave a massive headache if it did happen

Andrew McGlashan24-Oct-2019Shane Warne believes the lack of cover for Nathan Lyon as Australia’s Test spinner is a “real issue” and he has been disappointed with some states not selecting a frontline spinner in the early stages of the Sheffield Shield.While Australia would not want to lose Steven Smith or Pat Cummins to injury, the loss of Lyon could be an even bigger headache given the gap that has developed between him and the rest of the options available around the country.Australia did not select a second frontline spinner for the Ashes with Jon Holland, the Victoria left-arm bowler who was in the Australia A squad, not making the cut leaving Marnus Labuschagne’s improving legspin as the next spin-bowling resource.Labuschagne is a more-than-handy option for Tim Paine to have – as he showed with the ripping leg-break to remove Jack Leach late in the Old Trafford Test – but it would be a tall order for him to be thrust into a Test as the only spinner.It is not a problem Australia have had to confront with Lyon’s impressive durability meaning he has never missed a Test through injury during a 91-match career that has brought 363 wickets, but all it would take is a fielding mishap or blow in the nets to leave a significant problem.Holland probably remains the next in line, but he was left out of Victoria’s match against Western Australia in Perth, Ashton Agar might be a candidate while Queensland’s Mitch Swepson was the second-highest wicket-taker among spinners last season but has yet to play this summer.”Luckily we have such a quality spinner in Lyon, he’s done so well in all conditions around the world, held that attack together, but if something happened to him it would be a real issue,” Warne said at Fox Cricket’s season launch. “It’s important for Australia – I’m not saying Lyon is retiring or anything, he’s got a lot more in him – that if something does happen for Australia that someone could set up.”Only four spinners other than Lyon took more than 10 wickets in the Sheffield Shield last season: South Australia’s Tom Andrews (12 at 14.50), Steve O’Keefe (20 at 27.95), Swepson (24 at 38.16) and Holland (26 at 28.15). In the first two rounds of this season’s tournament, just 18 wickets have fallen to spin. That, perhaps, is partly mitigated by there being two matches at the WACA and the Gabba but Warne said that room should be made for a frontline spinner regardless of conditions for the benefit of Australian cricket.”They should always pick a spinner, it’s disappointing if sides are not picking spinners regardless of conditions we should be encouraging spinners in all forms because they’ll learn how to bowl in different conditions. The job of Sheffield Shield sides is to make sure you are producing international cricketers, it’s not just looking after your own state. You have to make sure Australian cricket is strong and they should be picking spinners.”In terms of Australia’s side for the opening Test against Pakistan next month, Warne endorsed bringing Usman Khawaja back to open alongside David Warner and introducing Will Pucovski at No. 6. “I think it’s time we picked a good, young player in there, bit like the old Australian way. Put him in at No. 6 and he can work his way up,” he said.