Tag Futebol

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 round-up of the Under-19 World Cup matches that took place on January 28, 2020

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jan-2020
ScorecardSixteen-year old Emannuel Bawa must have had one of the sweetest experiences of his career on Tuesday. To score a century from No. 7 – with the team in deep trouble at 54 for 5 – and for it to end up match-winning too had to make him feel like he was on top of the world.Zimbabwe, at one point, were in very real danger of going down to Canada in Potchefstroom, but their lower-middle order showed great steel. The No. 5 Taurayi Tugwete hit a 50 off 75 balls and even the No. 9 Gareth Chirawu wouldn’t give his wicket away cheaply, cracking 54 unbeaten runs off only 45 deliveries. Bawa, though, was the star of the show, arriving to the crease in the 16th over and remaining unbeaten, with 13 fours and a strike-rate of 110.Canada suffered a similar batting malfunction, slumping to 69 for 5 in the 21st over, but they could find no one to rescue their innings as Chirawu, Sakhumuzi Ndlela and Nkosilathi Nungu picked up two wickets each.Uzzair Shah flicks•ICC via Getty

ScorecardOsama Hassan produced a fine half-century from the lower order for UAE but his 81 off 68 balls did little to prevent defeat in the fourth quarter-final of the plate group in the Under-19 World Cup. Scotland cruised to victory with seven wickets to spare thanks to opener Uzzair Shah’s nearly run-a-ball 71 and wicketkeeper Tomas Mackintosh’s better than run-a-ball 57.UAE began the game in decent position. They were 129 for 3 in the 30th over after being put in to bat, eying up a strong total. But Daniel Cairns’ offspin triggered a middle-overs collapse where they lost four wickets for 35 runs. Hassan continued to fight though, hitting seven fours and a six during the course of his innings and was the last man out in the 49th over.Shah took centre stage after that, helping Scotland wallop 176 runs by the 27th over before he was finally dismissed, by which time the contest was pretty much done.

Pakistan will hope to extend their T20I winning run to nine in a row having already sealed an 11th consecutive series victory

The Preview by Danyal Rasool03-Nov-2018

Big Picture

Pakistan have been pushed this T20I series, in a manner they weren’t against Australia, but no matter the challenge thrown at them, they seem to find a way in this format. The detractors are finding it harder to explain away Pakistan’s spell of dominance as a purple patch, a streak of good fortune, or a consequence of playing against weaker teams. They have now put Australia and New Zealand to the sword with the same ruthlessness that overpowered West Indies, Sri Lanka and Scotland, showing a versatility in the paths to victory this side can take. They have won tough, they have won easy. They have won by enormous margins and heart-stoppingly narrow ones. They have won batting first, they have won chasing. And now, with one to spare, they have won another T20I series, their 11th in a row.This one comes against the side that has tested them more in this run than arguably any other, both this week and in New Zealand earlier this year. Yet, they go into the final game in Dubai having won their last four against Kane Williamson’s men, and their last eight overall. Should they stick to their plans, they are well-fancied to come out of yet another series unblemished, their strength lying not just in the playing XI, but their overall depth. They might make the odd change to the fast-bowling unit, but in what is overall a very settled side there should be no overhaul for a dead rubber. With Pakistan having such a proud recent record to defend, there really are no dead rubbers for Sarfraz Ahmed’s team.Despite having lost one series within three days of the tour beginning, it is unlikely Williamson will be too disappointed with what his men have showed. There is plenty to suggest New Zealand have a lot to offer for the remainder of this tour, with the visitors always likely to mount sterner challenges in the longer formats. A win in the final T20I could well be a springboard to success in the games that follow, and with New Zealand having lost one game by two runs and the other by two balls, it isn’t a stretch for them to hope they can put one on Pakistan even if they cannot prevent them lifting the trophy.New Zealand have missed Martin Guptill’s big hitting at the top, with the young Glenn Phillips unable to complement Colin Munro quite as effectively. They have to work out how to make better use of the first six overs to relieve some of the pressure on Munro. It may see the captain promoting himself to open, with Williamson famous for his ability to pierce narrow gaps in the infield. There is a large discrepancy between Phillips’ T20I strike rate – 98.27 after nine innings – compared to the 134.20 he boasts in T20s overall, and if he is backed for a third game, he will need to bring his best to give his side the greatest chance to victory.

Form guide

Pakistan WWWWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)New Zealand LLLLL

In the spotlight

There are few more exciting players in Pakistan cricket than Fakhar Zaman, and yet, since his heroics in Zimbabwe, he has been going through a slightly barren limited-overs run. Either side of a successful Test debut, Fakhar has scored 105 runs in his last eight white-ball innings at an average of 13.13, numbers that sit uncomfortably with his deservedly elite status in the current Pakistan side. There is no particular reason you could put this down to except just one of those runs every cricketer will go through; after all, in his maiden Test appearance against Australia, he amassed 160 runs. But having returned for the second T20I from a slight niggle, Fakhar may be itching to make the sort of singular impact only he can. With the series won and the pressure off, it is an ideal opportunity, and if Fakhar is primed to grasp it, he could smash New Zealand out of the game very early on.While New Zealand have almost matched Pakistan in both games, the one area where the difference in quality is vast is the spinners the respective captains can turn to. While Sarfraz has a plethora of options the envy of any international side – think Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Hafeez, perhaps even Shoaib Malik – Williamson is limited to Ish Sodhi and Ajaz Patel. There is a reason Sodhi is ranked among the top ten T20I bowlers, but his economy rate is higher than any of Pakistan’s quartet of spinners, and it was his 17-run over that put Pakistan on course on Friday. Add to that the inexperience of Patel, who after an impressive debut was indifferent in the second game, leaving Williamson to draw on three overs of Munro’s medium pace. If New Zealand are to seriously challenge Pakistan, Sodhi and Patel have to perform out of their skins in these conditions where spin matters so much, because so far, the gulf is evident.

Team news

It is unlikely Pakistan will make too many changes to a side so brimful of confidence. With the series sealed, Waqas Maqsood is set to make his debut.Pakistan: (Possible) 1 Babar Azam, 2 Fakhar Zaman, 3 Asif Ali, 4 Shoaib Malik, 5, Mohammad Hafeez 6 Sarfraz Ahmed (capt & wk), 7 Faheem Ashraf, 8 Imad Wasim, 9 Shadab Khan, 10 Hasan Ali/Shaheen Afridi, 11 Waqas MaqsoodIt has been a bit of a surprise not to see Mark Chapman feature yet. He may be drafted in for the third T20I, should New Zealand decide to drop Phillips. Lockie Ferguson’s pace, too, may see him get a start ahead of Adam Milne, who despite looking promising, hasn’t quite hit the heights he may have this series.New Zealand: (Possible) 1 Colin Munro, 2 Glenn Phillips/Mark Chapman, 3 Kane Williamson, 4 Colin de Grandhomme, 5 Ross Taylor, 6 Corey Anderson, 7 Tim Seifert (wk), 8 Tim Southee, 9 Adam Milne/Lockie Ferguson, 10 Ish Sodhi, 11 Ajaz Patel

Pitch and conditions

Winning the toss and batting first seems to be the favoured formula at the moment, and there has been nothing to suggest the teams rethink that. As has been the case all series, competitive totals appear to nestle in the narrow strip between 145 and 155.

Stats and trivia

• Colin Munro’s strike rate of 162.00 is better than any player ever to have faced more than 250 balls in T20I cricket. The best performer in the Pakistan squad is Fakhar Zaman, with a strike rate of 142.12.
• Babar Azam needs 48 runs to reach 1000 in T20Is. Should he get there on Sunday, in his 26th innings, he will beat Virat Kohli (27 innings) as the fastest to the mark.

Last week, Warner called the Ashes “war” and said he wanted to find “hatred” in England but now suggests that may have been too much

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Oct-20172:53

‘Hope Stokes, Hales incident doesn’t make England reclusive’

David Warner has conceded he may have got carried away when he compared the Ashes to “war” last week and talked of needing to find “hatred” of England when the series begins.While on one hand saying he would take a subtler approach to sledging in light of the ICC crackdown on on-field behaviour, he notched up the pre-series talk by insisting he would be looking to verbally take on the England players.Now Warner has acknowledged a degree of “regret” about his choice of words although not the reason behind them.”I probably regret some of the words I used during the week, but at the end of the day, you’ve got to try and have some inward anger,” Warner said on Channel Nine’s . “You’ve got to create a bit of that buzz out there.”Speaking to last week, Warner said: “As soon as you step on that line it’s war. You try and get into a battle as quick as you can. I try and look in the opposition’s eye and try and work out ‘how can I dislike this player, how can I get on top of him?’ You’ve really got to find that spark in yourself to really take it to the opposition.”You have to delve and dig deep into yourself to actually get some hatred about them to actually get up when you’re out there. History is a big part in this and that is what carries us onto the ground.”His comments were called “pathetic” by former England batsman Marcus Trescothick while former captain Michael Vaughan said they were a symptom of the hyped build-up to an Ashes.”I heard David Warner mention the word ‘war’, I’ve never seen any tanks arrive on a cricket field but these kinds of words come out of people’s mouths as they go into an Ashes series,” Vaughan told ESPNcricinfo.When asked this week if he thought the Ashes would be a hostile series, Warner added: “I’d like to think so.”

Tim Bresnan took a career-best 8-51 in the match as a thumping win at Scarborough reasserted Yorkshire’s title challenge and left Notts staring relegation in the face

Paul Edwards at North Marine Road26-Aug-2016

ScorecardTim Bresnan took a career-best 8 for 51 in the match•Getty Images

No one is mithering about Yorkshire enforcing the follow-on now. The remnants of those discussions were stilled 40 minutes into this final day of the 130th Scarborough Festival when Chris Read, so often the epitome of Nottinghamshire’s resistance, edged his third ball to Jake Lehmann at fourth slip and plodded off North Marine Road with his team six wickets down and needing to bat out another 86 overs for the draw.Recoveries from such positions prompt the writing of slim pamphlets and the composition of raucous songs. For all that Brendan Taylor and Brett Hutton survived for eighty minutes until lunch there was rarely any indication that Read’s cricketers now have it in them to mount such wondrous revivals. The expressions on the faces of the players outside the away changing room after their eventual 305-run defeat said as much.There was angry impotence verging on the emotional emptiness of the truly beaten. Having reduced Yorkshire to 51 for 6 on the first day, Nottinghamshire’s bowlers had facilitated the home side’s recovery and their batsmen had then lost 20 wickets in 94.4 overs. The last four of these had tumbled in 19 balls after lunch, three of them to Jack Brooks. The first, though, had been taken by Ryan Sidebottom, who had Hutton caught by Andy Hodd for 20. Next over Taylor slapped Brooks to Alex Lees at cover and the slow loop of the ball was almost mournful. It was time to pack the picnic away.

Decision vindicated – Gillespie

• Jason Gillespie, Yorkshire coach: “People had a pop at us for not enforcing the follow-on but we stick by what we believe gives us the best opportunity to win a game of cricket. We’ve been vindicated. To go from 51 for six on the first day to win by 300 runs – this team never ceases to amaze me. It’s important how you respond to the positions we find ourselves in at times, but I couldn’t be any more proud of them. There was a real calmness in the dressing room even when we found ourselves in a spot of bother.”

• Mick Newell, Notts director of cricket: “Survival is going to be very difficult. We’ve won one game all season and we haven’t covered ourselves in glory here. We have to go up to Durham, who aren’t playing great either, and see that as an opportunity to win within four days. If we can do that then hopefully we can claw it back. It’s getting tough. Every week you lose it’s getting harder and harder.”

Ten minutes later there were high fives and high jinks in the home dressing room. Yorkshire will return to Headingley for Sunday’s Royal London One-Day Cup semi-final buoyed by the fizz of victory. They will not be weary as Nottinghamshire’s players may be when they go to Chester-le-Street next week. Instead they will travel down to Southampton for their next four-day game a mere five points behind Middlesex and with the prospect of taking on the current leaders in the last match of the season looking ever more delicious.They will feel vindicated, too. Bloody vindicated, probably. “Are you going to ask me about the follow-on?” said their coach, Jason Gillespie, at the opening of his post-match press conference. “People had a pop at us but it was the right call. We stick by what we believe is the best opportunity to win a game of cricket.”And so they should, of course. As will those who believe that Yorkshire had a good opportunity to complete a two-day win at Scarborough. Had they taken that opportunity, there may have been no need for officials to arrange for Headingley’s Blotter to be transported to North Marine Road early on Friday morning and put to work mopping up the drenched outfield. “I think it did bugger all,” said Gillespie.Yet it still seemed faintly miraculous that cricket could be played on the final morning of this game. On Thursday evening thick mist had coiled itself around the town like a cat, hugging each streetlight and soaking every surface. Then, from around ten o’clock until deep into the early hours, rain fell in pitiless rods on deserted streets, as if passing judgement on something.By 11 o’clock in the morning, though, the air was sea-scented and the ground was fit for play. So fit, perhaps, that according to most timekeepers we began three minutes early and Tom Moores suffered the curious indignity of being caught by Adam Lyth off Tim Bresnan a minute before play was due to begin. Bresnan then had Samit Patel caught behind for five, although the batsman cast a couple of glances back at the umpires before dudgeoning off to the pavilion.Bresnan finished the innings with 5 for 36 in the innings and 8 for 51 in the match. Both are career-best performances and they come from a cricketer who is so often at the heart of his team’s most rambunctious triumphs. Bresnan, at least, will be up for the next challenge whereas Nottinghamshire’s players will most probably face some bleak truths in September. Relegation brings financial consequences and it changes lives. Cricket’s poets need to remember that.

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.

A round-up of the fifth round of Ranji Trophy’s Group A matches on December 4, 2012

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Dec-2012
ScorecardJiwanjot Singh made his third century in five first-class games as Punjab completed the formalities on the final morning with a nine-wicket demolition of defending champions Rajasthan. Punjab needed 55 more runs to reach their target of 204, and needed 12 overs to make them. Jiwanjot cracked 21 fours in his unbeaten 110, while Ravi Inder Singh finished on 60, his second fifty of the match. Punjab have 29 points now, having won four out of five games, and are way ahead of second-placed Madhya Pradesh, who have 11 from four.
ScorecardWith Bengal motoring to 116 for 0 in an improbable chase of 391, the final day at the CCI looked set to end in a tame draw. Mumbai allrounder Abhishek Nayar conjured up a six-for out of nowhere, and Bengal were made to work hard for avoiding defeat. Nayar took all but one of the Bengal wickets to fall, and had figures of 19-12-13-6 to go with his twin half-centuries in the game. He had the openers Rohan Banerjee and Arindam Das caught behind for fifties, and also bowled Bengal captain Manoj Tiwary for 14. Seven overs were left when Nayar bowled Laxmi Shukla for a duck, but Wriddhiman Saha, who was put down by early by Kshemal Waingankar, batted out 152 deliveries to ensure a stalemate. Mumbai now have ten points from four games, while Bengal have seven from five.For more on this match, click here.
ScorecardGujarat, having piled up 566, dismissed visitors Hyderabad for 375 in Valsad to take three points. With only six points from their first four games, Gujarat then enforced the follow-on, but Hyderabad were steady at 124 for 2 before the game was called off. Rush Kalaria and Rakesh Dhurv picked up three wickets each in the Hyderabad first innings, which had three half-centuries but no hundred. Akshath Reddy, Hanuma Vihari and B Sandeep could not go on to make big scores like the Gujarat batsmen had.
ScorecardSaurashtra did what Gujarat had done, and asked Railways to bat again after taking a huge lead, but could not break through in the second innings. Kamlesh Makvana picked up six wickets, and Ravindra Jadeja three, as Railways crumbled from a strong 168 for 1 to be dismissed for 335. The overnight batsmen Shivakant Shukla and V Cheluvaraj could not add too many in the morning. Parag Madkaikar and Murali Kartik made sixties, but it was not enough against Saurashtra’s mammoth total. Saurashtra now have nine points, as many as Gujarat have, while Railways are on six.

A round-up of the action from the first day of the eighth round of matches in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Division One 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Nov-2011Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited drew first blood in their top-of-the-table clash, bowling out Water and Power Development Authority for 192 at the National Ground in Islamabad. WAPDA were put in and made a steady start, reaching 75 for 1 thanks to opener Asif Khan’s 59. A collapse of seven wickets for 63 runs followed and they were 138 for 8. No. 10 Sarfraz Ahmed counterattacked, scoring 40 off 35 balls to take WAPDA near the 200-run mark. ZTBL’s bowlers shared the wickets around, with seamers Junaid Nadir and Rehan Riaz picking up three each. ZTBL lost a wicket early in their innings and finished on 22 for 1.Six wickets from fast bowler Sajid Shah helped Habib Bank Limited bowl State Bank of Pakistan out for 204 on the first day at the Diamond Club Ground in Islamabad. Sajid rocked State Bank’s top order, leaving them 34 for 4 before Adnan Raees and Rameez Aziz began a recovery. Raees scored 34 and Aziz 44 but Sajid came back to remove Aziz and a couple of strikes from legspinner Danish Kaneria left State Bank 135 for 7. Rizwan Haider scored 62 at No. 8 to take State Bank’s total beyond 200. He was Sajid’s sixth victim, while Kaneria bagged another wicket too, to finish with three. HBL lost a wicket early in their response and finished the day 13 for 1.Seamer Kamran Sajid’s four wickets helped Pakistan International Airlines reduce National Bank of Pakistan to 216 for 9 at the Jinnah Stadium in Sialkot. Lots of National Bank’s batsmen got starts but none could carry on and make a big score. Fawad Alam’s 49 was the top score while the biggest partnership was 59, for the second wicket. The wickets fell at regular intervals, with seamers picking up all nine to fall on the day. Kamran Sajid bowled 16 overs through the day and took 4 for 47.A combined effort from Abbottabad‘s seamers and spinners restricted Islamabad but a 101-run seventh-wicket partnership helped Islamabad reach 254 for 7 on the first day at the Abbottabad Cricket Stadium. Islamabad lost wickets regularly early on, and despite Zeeshan Mushtaq’s 37 slipped to 145 for 6. Abbottabad, who had chosen to field, may have been hoping to bowl their opponents out within the day, but Zohaib Ahmed, the Islamabad captain, and Faizan Riaz shared an important stand. Riaz was dismissed for 46 before the close of play but Zohaib remained not out on 52 and will try to extend his team’s total on the second day.Karachi Blues squandered a solid start and ended on 265 for 7 against Faisalabad at the Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad. Karachi’s openers Shahzaib Hasan and Asad Baig vindicated their captain’s decision to bat by each getting half-centuries and sharing a 97-run partnership. Seamers Abdur Rauf and Naseer Akram managed to cause a mini-collapse in which five wickets fell for 51 runs, leaving Karachi 145 for 8. The lower-middle order did not crumble, though, and contributions from Nos 7, 8 and 9 ensured Karachi crossed the 250-run mark. Naseer finished the day with figures of 3 for 58.A strong performance from Rawalpindi‘s middle order helped them get to 326 for 5 against Sialkot at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. Rawalpindi were put in and were reduced to 89 for 3 before No. 4 Awais Zia became the first of three half-centurions on the day. Zia was dismissed for 51 before Usman Saeed and Babar Naeem got half-centuries and put together 85 runs for the fifth wicket. Naeem then stitched together an unbeaten 90-run stand with Zahid Mansoor to take Rawalpindi to a dominant position. Naeem ended the day on 80 not out while Mansoor was unbeaten on 44. Rawalpindi scored their runs at 4.55 runs an over, allowing them to go past 300 even though only 71.3 overs were bowled in the day.

A maiden first-class double-hundred from captain Hamilton Masakadza helped Mountaineers salvage a draw against Mid West Rhinos at Kwekwe Sports Club

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Oct-2010
Scorecard
ESPNcricinfo Ltd

A maiden first-class double-hundred from captain Hamilton Masakadza helped Mountaineers salvage a draw against Mid West Rhinos at Kwekwe Sports Club. The visitors were bowled out for 191 in their first innings and forced to follow on, but Masakadza shared in partnerships of 77 with opener Tino Mawoyo and 130 with Mark Vermeulen to secure the result on his way to an unbeaten 208.Masakadza’s marathon effort made up for his erroneous decision to put Mid West Rhinos in to bat on a docile pitch after winning the toss. The Mountaineers attack, without Shingi Masakadza who was rested for this match after picking up a back strain, were put to the sword on the first day as Brendan Taylor and Gary Ballance put on a massive 227 for the first wicket.Taylor, who was dropped twice, was the first to his hundred just after tea but then slashed at a wide ball to be caught behind for 110. Mountaineers fought back through offspinner Prosper Utseya, who removed Ballance – for 104 – and Vusi Sibanda in the same over as the hosts slipped to 234 for 3. But the Rhinos were able to declare at a healthy 460 for 6 after half-centuries from Friday Kasteni and Malcolm Waller, and their seamers soon had Mountaineers in deep trouble.They had crashed to 45 for 5 before a late revival through Greg Smith and Utseya’s combined efforts. They put on 107 for the sixth wicket, both passing fifty, but once they were removed the tail soon folded and Mountaineers were skittled for 191, still 269 runs adrift of the Rhinos’ first-innings effort.Mountaineers’ batsmen showed much better application in the second innings, Masakadza and Mawoyo shaking off Jonathan Beukes’ second failure of the match with a counter-attacking partnership. Mawoyo was eventually removed for an 82-ball 55 that included five fours and two sixes, but Masakadza then found a willing partner in Vermeulen and they took Mountaineers to 223 for 2 at the close on the third day.Masakadza went to his hundred early the next morning and, though Vermeulen fell for 46, battling innings from the lower middle order aided his efforts to deny Rhinos victory. He surpassed his previous first-class best of 188, made against Mashonaland Eagles last season, striking 24 fours and three sixes to reach a double century shortly before the game was declared a draw.

Marlon Samuels is adamant he is the man to revive West Indies’ embattled batting line-up when he returns from a two-year suspension for links to an Indian gambler

Alex Brown02-Dec-2009Marlon Samuels is adamant he is the man to revive West Indies’ embattled batting line-up when he returns from a two-year suspension for links to an Indian gambler. Samuels, who was banned by a West Indies Cricket Board disciplinary committee for discussing team information with Mukesh Kochar and later approaching him to pay a hotel bill, will be eligible to return to cricket on May 9 next year and is confident of being promptly reinstated to the regional team.Samuels has consistently maintained his innocence over the charges, and his belief that the WICB disciplinary committee were pressured into delivering a guilty verdict by both the board and the International Cricket Council’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit. He told the hearing last year that phone taps in which he was recorded discussing bowling and personnel changes were never intended to assist in gambling, and that the $1,238 paid by Kochar for a hotel room in Mumbai was intended as a loan after his own credit card was declined.A four-man panel consisting of Richie Richardson, Justice Adrian Saunders, Lloyd Barnett and Aubrey Bishop voted 3-1 that Samuels had violated the ICC’s code of conduct, but stated the Jamaican batsman had not acted “dishonestly or in a corrupt manner” and that he “is an honest cricketer … [who] has never betted on cricket matches”. Richardson, one of the three panel members to rule against Samuels, later said he regretted his decision and argued that the minimum two-year sentence set down by the ICC was “unfair”.Samuels has maintained a low profile during his suspension, having abandoned his original plan to conduct a judicial review of the verdict through the Antiguan courts. He has spent much of the last 18 months in the gymnasium preparing for his re-entry to cricket – which coincides with the second week of the World Twenty20 tournament in the Caribbean – where he hopes to revitalise West Indies’ misfiring top- and middle-orders.”It’s always hard to see your team lose,” Samuels told Cricinfo. “I’m a West Indian and that will always be my team. I hope Chris Gayle will pick up his troops and take them to bigger and better things. I watch a lot of games and a lot of tapes. It has been very frustrating sitting and watching cricket all this time, but I am hoping to come back better than before. I will definitely come back with a stronger frame of mind.”Most definitely my intention is to return to the West Indies team. I have trained very hard and been very disciplined while I have been out of the game. The two years will be over soon. I want to bat No. 4 for West Indies. That is where I always wanted to bat, but unfortunately I haven’t been able to get that opportunity. I am very much looking forward to batting again with guys like Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan. I think I could have a positive impact.”Samuels is not alone in making that assessment. Clyde Butts, West Indies’ chairman of selectors, is buoyant about the exiled batsman’s international prospects for a year that will include Test series against South Africa and Sri Lanka.”Once Marlon’s suspension is over and he’s playing cricket again he will be considered,” Butts told Cricinfo. “Of course, the performances have to be there. When Marlon was suspended he was just starting to score a lot of runs and look the part. He’s someone who could strengthen the middle order and he also offers part-time off-spin.”Samuels insists he has no regrets over his dealings with Kochar, whom he befriended during a limited-overs series in Sharjah in 2002. He claims his tapped telephone conversation with the Indian gambler before a one-day international against India in Nagpur two years ago did not amount to corruption, and Kochar’s settling of the hotel bill in Mumbai two weeks later was the result of Samuels being short of cash when a paid television appearance was cancelled at short notice.”I don’t want to go into too much detail, but it has really been one man against the world,” he said. “An appeal would not have worked. I had a lot of telephone conversations with all kinds of people, and they told me an appeal would be a waste of time. Why would I do anything different? Anyone in that situation would have done the same thing. There have been past players come out and say things about me when they have done the same things themselves. The entire world has seen my case and know that I am innocent.”It is nine years ago to the month that Samuels, then 19, made his Test debut against Australia at the Adelaide Oval, the same venue where West Indies will attempt to improve their Frank Worrell Trophy prospects this week. Memories of confrontations with the Glenn McGrath-led Australian attack evoke in him both pleasant memories and sadness. He had hoped to make a third tour of Australia.Samuels achieved notoriety at the conclusion of the 2000 series when he asked Steve Waugh, the then-Australian captain, for a piece of his famous red rag. Waugh obliged, and Samuels to this day counts the tattered piece of cloth among his most treasured items. “To me, he is one of the greatest players I have seen,” he said. “That red rag is very special to me. It will die with me. I have it in a glass case inside my house so when my career is over I will have something to show the world. He is a great Australian icon.”I would have loved to be making my third tour of Australia and giving Ricky Ponting a good run for his money. I have great memories of being there as a 19-year-old making my debut. It was good to see (Adrian Barath) scoring a century also as a 19-year-old and I wish him all the best. I wanted to go there as a fearless cricketer and approach the Test matches as if they were club games for Melbourne in Jamaica. I was just trying to play the ball, not the name that was Glenn McGrath.”Just how Caribbean and international audiences will greet the return of a player linked to gambling remains to be seen, but Samuels is hopeful of a positive response. He is spending the last few months of his suspension in the company of family, whom he expects to see less of from May 9, and mentally preparing himself to return to cricket’s elite competitions. “I know that when cricket starts again I will be away more often, so I am using this time now to do the things I want to,” he said. “When the time comes to play again, I know I will be ready.”