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Spanish lessons, yoga and community work for kids with cancer have allowed him to focus inwards since the ball-tampering fiasco

Daniel Brettig30-Jun-20182:49

From sad to angry to awesome – Bancroft ready to play cricket again

Spanish lessons, yoga and a host of community work have all been part of the path taken by Cameron Bancroft since the Newlands ball-tampering scandal. The Australia batsman has been looking to seek the sort of perspective and self-knowledge that will prevent him from following the kind of instructions issued to him by David Warner in the Cape Town dressing room.Bancroft spoke in Perth on Saturday ahead of his return to cricket via Twenty20 and 50-over appearances in the Northern Territory, where he will also endeavour to work closely in developing local talent. It’s the next step on the path away from Newlands as Bancroft serves a nine-month ban from the game imposed by Cricket Australia under its code of conduct.Perspective on life was greatly needed as Bancroft, Warner and the former captain Steven Smith pondered what evolved in South Africa, and Bancroft said he had spent plenty of time devoting himself broadening his own knowledge and also to the service of others as a result.”I’ve been practising a lot of yoga, I started learning a new language, I’ve learned Spanish for six weeks, I’ve been doing a lot of community work, went up to Broome and worked with the Kyle Andrew Foundation and worked with kids with cancer,” Bancroft said in Perth. “I’ve done some work with Manna in a few schools at a breakfast club and things like that, and they’ve all given me great perspective. Personally I’m my own harshest critic at the best of times, so being able to connect with these different points in the community has given me a lot of great perspective for myself and something I’m really grateful for.”I can’t change what happened in South Africa and that’s something I’m completely accountable for. Everything since South Africa I’ve moved towards have been steps closer to one day getting back and playing cricket for Australia again, because I love the game. I love playing cricket and as hard as it may be to connect how learning Spanish links to playing cricket for Australia again, they’re all little stepping stones to me achieving that dream again.”Right now I’m feeling really good, the last couple of months, it has been a bit of a roller coaster, you certainly ride the waves of grieving and everything like that. There’s been times I’ve felt really sad, many times I’ve felt really angry, but overall I’ve worked really hard on myself, been really busy with things and right now it’s just another step forward heading up to Darwin to play some cricket and I’m really looking forward to it.”Getty Images

Warner, Smith and Bancroft have kept in regular contact in recent weeks, while the new Australian coach Justin Langer and the captain Tim Paine have also worked to ensure the suspended trio are up to date on the national team’s fresh direction – an inauspicious tour of England notwithstanding.”I speak to them quite regularly, at least every week, whether that’s a phone call or some messages and stuff, they’re really busy too, but they’re two really great people and we’ve been looking after each other,” Bancroft said of Smith and Warner. “That’s a value I know we hold really closely at the WACA, the idea of looking after your mates, and we’ve been going through all this together and we definitely look out for each other, that’s for sure”Very similarly to me they’ve been up and down as well the way they’ve been feeling, but you can hear it in their voices that you come out of that and you move towards a light at the end of the tunnel. It’s been a little while now since we got back from South Africa [but] it feels like yesterday that I was sitting at the WACA honestly having these really sad conversations with all of you, now here I am and I’m about to step off and play some cricket again. I know those guys would’ve felt exactly the same.”It’s a really great thing for Australian cricket that Justin’s been able to come in and carry forth the values and the hard-working culture he’s produced in Western Australia. I know that all the Australian cricketers, even cricketers that have seen Justin coach WA, have always looked up to him and I have no doubt even with the lack of success they had in England they certainly would have felt overawed by that. It’s a cliche that Rome wasn’t built in a day and I know the Australian cricket team won’t be built in one series; that takes time and no better way than having Justin leading that.”The level of infamy shared by the Newlands trio has been significant, but Bancroft said that there was no stage at which he considered moving away from the game. He stated that the coverage of the ball-tampering incident, and the outrage that stemmed from it back home in Australia, had been “appropriate” to the events that took place.Cameron Bancroft was under massive scrutiny as he came out to bat•AFP

“Cricket was firmly always my path and my focus to come back to,” Bancroft said. “As little a step as it was to get up in the morning and have breakfast at the same time each day, or wake up and have breakfast and then go to the gym and train or run, as little steps as they were, for me they were really positive movements to that end goal – that I’m going to return and play cricket again.”I took a step back and simplified my life a lot. When you’re in the media a lot, good or bad, it can be really challenging to deal with and really challenging to digest the different opinion that flies around. There was a lot of opinion, a lot of people saying things, and for me it was about me, my mistake and the poor decision I made. What anyone else thought or said didn’t change the fact I made a really bad decision and I’ve had to really give myself for that error I made, but it’s all a part of moving forward with it all. Media reacted appropriately to the situation and what happened and I have no anger or judgment or resentment about that at all.”The role of Bancroft’s parents, Frank and Linda, was also significant in helping him emerge from the post-Newlands fog. Over coming days Bancroft will turn mentor himself, as he seeks to repay NT Cricket for giving him an opportunity to play while banned from international and state representation.”There would’ve been times when mum and dad’s phones would have blown up,” Bancroft said. “I’ve had things crop up, particularly when you’re grieving and going through some emotional responses to the events that have happened in South Africa and they’ve been there for me, they’ve listened, they’ve given me perspective and I feel like I’ve stepped closer to coming out of that, moving on with my life and also with my cricketing career too.”I’ve been working with Northern Territory Cricket to give back to some of their programmes they offer, with the weather up there they’ve got quite a few squads that are training right now, so I’ll look to give my wisdom, give my heart, give my all to help those guys fulfil their potential. It isn’t about me in that space and that was a really big learning curve in the community services, I rock up and give my heart to these people and it’s not about me at all, it’s about them. That’s the great thing I look forward to is that I’m not here for me, I’m here for those guys and what can I do to help.”

Chris Gayle and Rovman Powell went berserk at the start and end of West Indies’ chase respectively, but the visitors held on for a 2-1 margin

The Report by Mohammad Isam28-Jul-2018Tamim Iqbal celebrates his 11th ODI hundred•AFP

Rubel handed one demerit point

Bangladesh fast bowler Rubel Hossain has received one demerit point for a Level 1 code-of-conduct offence during the series decider in St Kitts.
In the 28th over of the chase, the stump mic picked up an inappropriate word used by Rubel, after Shimron Hetmyer edged him for a boundary.
At the end of the match, Rubel admitted the offence and accepted the sanction proposed by match referee Chris Broad. No formal hearing, therefore, was needed.
This is the second demerit point accumulated by Rubel in two months, following one that he incurred for showing dissent during the second T20I against Afghanistan in Dehradun on June 5.

It went so quiet in the rest of Warner Park that you could clearly hear the Bangladesh dressing room celebrating their first away ODI series win in nine years. West Indies fought till the end, but ultimately went down by 18 runs in a contest that was decided by the side with fewer mistakes and more nerve. The 2-1 series win comes on the back of an ordinary Test series, but the visitors once again showed that ODIs remain their preferred format. It is also Bangladesh’s second ODI series win in West Indies, and their third overall against them. West Indies though remain without a series win for four years now, and much of the defeat fell at their feet in Basseterre.Rovman Powell’s unbeaten 41-ball 74 that included five fours and four sixes, was the only thing that stood between Bangladesh and an easier win, but he too fizzled out in the last two overs, hitting only one six. He had little support at the other end, with Shai Hope taking up 94 balls to make 64, which is likely to remain a talking point across the Caribbean.But Bangladesh had no such problems when they batted. Tamim Iqbal’s 103 came off 124 with seven fours and two sixes, which set up the last 10 overs for Mahmudullah, whose unbeaten 49-ball 67 got the visitors to a 300-plus total. He added 53 runs for the fifth wicket with captain Mashrafe Mortaza, who promoted himself to No. 6 for the first time in 10 years and made a crucial 25-ball 36.Tamim had batted till the 39th over, helping Bangladesh to a position of strength after they made another indifferent start. Anamul Haque fell early once again, leaving Tamim and Shakib with the rebuilding job for the third time in a row. They added 81 runs for the second wicket, Tamim starting off with three fours in the first Powerplay before surviving a chance at short midwicket on 28.Shakib, who struck three fours in his 37 off 43 balls, fell to a flighted Ashley Nurse delivery. Mushfiqur was bowled by a Nurse half-tracker before Tamim and Mahmudullah added 48 runs for the fourth wicket, during which Tamim reached his century. His first six was a straight hit off Sheldon Cottrell while the second – a slog sweep off Bishoo – took him to 98 before he reached his century in the following over.Bangladesh made 96 off the last ten overs.A whack over the off-side off Mashrafe signaled Gayle’s intent in West Indies’ chase. His first six was literally hit out of the ground. The replaced ball was sent to the boundary the next ball, albeit through an edge going past slip. His next six was a slap over extra cover before Bangladesh pulled things back with Evin Lewis’ wicket. Mashrafe removed him for the third game in a row after he’d scratched around for 13 off 33 balls.But Gayle went on, hammering Mosaddek for a six over his head, before launching Mahmudullah twice off successive deliveries in the 18th over, first over midwicket and then over long-on. But Rubel Hossain brought an end to Gayle’s whirlwind knock in the 22nd over, having him caught at long-on by Mehidy.Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer understandably couldn’t push at Gayle’s pace but did the next best thing: dragged West Indies along for another 13.5 overs without any further damages.Hetmyer struck two fours in his 30 off 42 balls before Mehidy bowled him with one that skidded on from short of a length. Hope, who was dropped by Rubel at long-off on 36, added another 45 runs for the fifth wicket with Rovman Powell who had to do all the heavy lifting at the end. Hope finally fell in the 44th over, with West Indies requiring to score at more than 10 an over.Powell struck all four of his sixes off Mustafizur, two over midwicket and two over long-on, but neither Holder nor Nurse could provide him the strike at crucial times or provide big hits of their own.Bangladesh just held on to the win. Mehidy was the best bowler on show once again, picking one for 45 while Mashrafe took two for 63. Mustafizur and Rubel also took one wicket each.

After being dumped from the Test squad, he responded with 80 in seam-friendly conditions to set up Victoria’s slim victory

The Report by Daniel Brettig16-Sep-2018
Getty Images

On an opening day of the Australian domestic season so early it could only have been played in far north Queensland, its new possibilities were exemplified by the displays of Glenn Maxwell and Nic Maddinson as the bulwarks of a Victorian innings that proved just stout enough to see off Queensland in seam and swing-friendly conditions.For Maxwell, it wasn’t quite the hundred that he has been told he must make in far more frequent fashion to make it into Justin Langer’s preferred Australian teams, but plenty noted it was almost worth three of the 30-plus scores that have apparently become a key metric in determining a batsman’s ability to avert collapses.That is exactly what Maxwell and Maddinson, in his first game for Victoria after becoming unwanted by New South Wales, were confronted with at 4 for 66, and their stand of 121 was critical to lifting the state to an ultimately sufficient 240 in Townsville. While Mark Steketee pouched four wickets for Queensland, the Australia paceman Billy Stanlake was expensive, and was also fortunate when Cameron White was able to get a glove to an accidental beamer that may otherwise have caused grievous injury.At the end of a week in which he was discarded from the Test squad, Maxwell spoke happily of making runs, bailing out his team and ultimately winning – a sensation he noted had been somewhat missing from his experience of 2018 so far. He also contended that if he is to return to international cricket in the longer formats, he would first have to let go of his earlier visions of a key role in the UAE against Pakistan in the absences of the banned Steven Smith and David Warner.”I’m not thinking about that right now, that’s gone at the moment and no point dwelling on it and talking about it, my job right now is to make runs and play well for Victoria,” Maxwell said. “If I can contribute to wins like today, have some success and sing the song together, they’re special moments. I feel like I haven’t won a lot of games this year. In Delhi we had a pretty average tournament, with the English one dayers we got pumped and lost the tri-series final [in Zimbabwe] as well. Hasn’t been much success, I think we lost three of our four practice games as well. So nice to win a game and start the tournament off well.”From the position the game was in I think coming out at three-for in the Powerplay and the ball was nipping around, doing all sorts out there, it was nice to get through that, put on a partnership with Maddo and give us something to bowl at. I think you’re always wary of when it seams in the morning that it’s going to flatten out in the arvo. Luckily enough it still seamed about for them [batting] and we were able to get enough wickets to really drive the game. So it was nice to get some runs and start the tournament off well.”You don’t need extra determination playing for your state and with your mates that’s for sure, it was good fun to get out there and I’ve got a lot of really good mates out here so it’s fun to be up in Townsville.”Getty Images

Queensland’s innings mirrored Victoria’s in its struggles against the new and moving ball, particularly in the hands of the young allrounder Will Sutherland, who Maxwell likened to the similarly rangy John Hastings in his height, bounce, late movement and accuracy. Also of interest was the flighted leg spin of Tom O’Connell, who returned a very creditable 2 for 42 on his state debut, including the key wicket of another Test team discard Joe Burns just as he and Mitchell Swepson threatened a rearguard.”Will Sutherland was outstanding, Tom O’Connell a very confident young legspinner and handy with the bat as well,” Maxwell said. “We’ve got some really good young guys … it’s going to be a collective effort from our squad to try and win this tournament, we’re going to need everyone to stand up at some stage and it was great for the guys to stand up, a couple of guys on debut, Maddo played really well today, so to have guys stand up in the first game has been really good.”[Sutherland] is a star, a very good young player. Very similar in the John Hastings mould, big tall guy, moves the ball around, hits a great length and hits the seam. Makes it difficult for batters if you’re getting that movement off the wicket and pressuring their defence all the time, which is ideal. He’s just got a really level head about him so hopefully if he doesn’t run himself out we’ll see him with the bat as well he’s got some really good skills there.”The Bulls captain Chris Lynn, playing his first domestic limited-overs match in five years, was caught at cover by Maxwell for a duck when he tried to power Sutherland through the off side as Queensland wickets fell in a new-ball clump. Chris Tremain, another man who could consider himself unfortunate to be missing out on the Pakistan series, maintained his habit of regular wickets. He claimed three, including the final two Queenslanders, just as they appeared capable of salvaging victory.

Shimron Hetmyer’s sensational hitting and Shai Hope’s near run-a-ball unbeaten hundred brought West Indies awfully close to their highest successful chase in ODIs, but they contrived to somehow fall behind and then hit a last-ball four to come away with

The Report by Sidharth Monga24-Oct-20182:33

Why Kohli’s journey to 10,000 is special

This will hurt more than their three previous one-sided defeats. Shimron Hetmyer’s sensational hitting and Shai Hope’s near run-a-ball unbeaten hundred brought West Indies awfully close to their highest successful chase in ODIs, but they contrived to somehow fall behind and then hit a last-ball four to come away with a tie. When they lost Rovman Powell in the 38th over, West Indies needed just 69 at well under a-run-a-ball, but somehow failed to punish a spate of full tosses bowled with the wet ball and needed 14 off the last over.Relieved was Virat Kohli, who had earlier almost single-handedly carried India to 321 with a century that took him past 10,000 ODI runs in record time. However, he will also be revisiting his decision at the toss, batting first despite knowing the dew in the evening would restrict their three spinners significantly. Kohli scored 157 of the 281 runs that came when he was at the wicket.The final flourish from Kohli – 48 off the last 17 balls he faced – seemed bonus runs given the slow nature of the pitch, but soon it was apparent that India needed every last one of those. In typical scenes at an Indian ground, mild applause drowned in deafening funereal silence as Hetmyer first and Hope later stunned India in dewy conditions. It is usually hard to hear yourself think at an Indian ground except when India are at receiving end of an onslaught by a visiting batsman. Hetmyer seemed like he wanted to find out how quiet Vizag can be. He hit seven sixes in his 64-ball 94, got out trying to hit an eighth, but the more subdued Hope stayed back to make sure West Indies remained the favourites till the end.The ball was wet, it skidded off the pitch, and spin was meat and drink for Hetmyer. Before that, Kuldeep had shown his party tricks to reduce West Indies to 78 for 3. Stock ball, stock ball, wrong’un, and it was enough to send back Chandrapul Hemraj and Marlon Samuels. But now the dew began to have an effect, and Hetmyer amplified it by putting the spinners under extreme pressure. All his seven sixes came against spin and into the leg side. Eventually Yuzvendra Chahal managed to start a long hop so wide that pulling instead of cutting proved to be a fatal error. Still, that partnership of 143 in under 20 overs had put West Indies well on their way.Hope and Rovman continued to bat sensibly, happy with the odd boundary, keeping the asking rate under a-run-a-ball. Kuldeep, though, returned to get Rovman with another wrong’un, a panicked attempt to keep the ball out after reading it off the surface. India had no choice at that time but to have a slip in, where Rohit Sharma completed a sitter.Jason Holder and Hope then batted cautiously – some might say too cautiously – to see through the spin threat. The asking rate gradually began to go up as India got in a spell of 50 balls without a boundary. With 52 required off 39, Hope broke the shackles, hitting Kuldeep for a six over wide long-on, and just like that the game was back in West Indies’ control. When Hope brought up his hundred, West Indies needed just 34 off 29, but then came an Umesh Yadav over where Hope hit one plum half-volley and two even juicier full tosses straight to the infielders.Shimron Hetmyer and Shai Hope shared a 143-run stand for the fourth wicket•Associated Press

Panic only set in next over when he sold Holder down the river although Holder will be the first one to admit he could have done better than 12 off 23 at that stage. West Indies should still have finished the game off with 22 required off 16, but Mohammed Shami bowled a fantastic 49th over to leave Umesh 13 to defend in the last.Umesh began well with yorkers, was unlucky in conceding four leg-byes, but when he erred big time with a full toss, Ashley Nurse had already premeditated a ramp shot. The ball was wide so Nurse’s only option now was a reverse ramp, and India’s third man was fine to complete the catch. Seven runs were now required off two balls. Hope dug the first one – a yorker – out for two, and could get only four off a wide half-volley last ball.India players wore the look of a side that had dodged a bullet. They had banked on the pitch deteriorating in its due course even if the dew affected the outfield, but were surprised by how good it was to bat on in the evening. They should know. When they were batting, West Indies went to spin as early as the Powerplay, and drew instant results too. Nurse removed Shikhar Dhawan to reduce India to 40 for 2 in the ninth over.It was here that Kohli and the newly crowned No. 4 Ambati Rayudu added 139 for the third wicket. While Kohli took one early risk before settling into an efficient typical Kohli innings, Rayudu kept driving between mid-off and cover, hitting five of his eight boundaries in that zone. Rayudu did take the extra risks, though, and that got him out in the 70s.Kohli continued to bat the way he does even as both MS Dhoni and Rishabh Pant – incumbent and successor – failed to convert their good starts. Only 69 came in those 67 balls that Dhoni and Pant were at the wicket. However, in the company of Dhoni, a captain Kohli reveres, he took that single to reach 10,000 runs in 54 innings fewer than the previous record, held by Sachin Tendulkar, a batsman Kohli reveres.However, it was his hitting in the end, having exhausted himself running 62 of the first 102 runs he scored in the humidity of India’s east coast, that Kohli made the vital difference to the game. All four of his sixes came in the last four overs as he showed he can hit the big ones too but chooses not to in the earlier parts of his innings. This is a spell of play that Holder will look back with regret at: he had dropped Kohli on 44, running back from mid-off after debutant Obed McCoy had done Kohli in with a back-of-the-hand slower ball.

India’s captain said she had been nervous before the game, but took her time to settle in and make her start count

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Nov-2018India’s captain Harmanpreet Kaur smashed 103 of 51 balls, despite suffering from “a little bit of a back problem” on the eve of the Women’s World T20 opener against New Zealand and stomach cramps on the day of the game. Her innings – incredible even without those two issues – led India to a 34-run victory in Providence, Guyana.”Yesterday, I was having a little bit of back problem. And in the morning I was not feeling well. And I think when I came to the ground, I was feeling a little low and getting some cramps,” Harmanpreet said, when asked why she had needed attention from the physio during her innings. “Later on when I went for batting … when initially I was running two runs, I got a cramp, and after that physio gave me the medicine and then it settled down. Then I thought instead of running too much, if I can get more, make a big shot, because if I’m running too much then I was getting more cramps.”And the big shots came. Harmanpreet launched eight sixes and hit seven fours during her innings, one that had started slowly – she was 5 off 13 balls at one stage, having come in with India 40 for 3 in 5.4 overs.”Well, it was the first game. And to be honest, I was nervous … and I’m also human, I also get nervous,” Harmanpreet said. “But yes when I was middling the ball, once I started middling the ball after that I started just getting my shots.”Once you settle down you need to execute. I took my time. And later on when I was watching the ball well and then I just executed. I was looking for the open areas where I can hit and I can get the runs. I know it’s a good batting track. And if I settled down, I can get the runs. And that’s what I was thinking. I just need to settle down.”And once she had settled down, Harmanpreet switched gears and brought up 50 off 33 balls. Her 134-run stand with Jemimah Rodrigues set India up for a match-winning total of 194 for 5. Rodrigues made 59 off 45 balls, and her form gave Harmanpreet the space she needed to pace herself.1:06

I perform better under pressure – Harmanpreet Kaur

“Yeah, when she [Rodrigues] got her first boundary, she was looking very good, the way she played that cover drive,” Harmanpreet said. “That really gave me confidence, when someone is getting good runs and middling the ball really well. When I went initially I took my time, she was getting runs for us. And once I settled down, then we were trying to attack from both sides.”Harmanpreet went from 50 in the 15th over to 100 in 20th – it had taken her only 16 balls. She said the focus had been on just getting as many runs as possible, because New Zealand had powerful batsmen in their line-up.”Well, I was really not looking at how many runs I was getting. I was just looking how much we need to win the game and we knew they have really good batters,” Harmanpreet said. “So with Sophie Devine and [Suzie] Bates, we knew if we scored just 150 we’re not able to make it because they are also good hitters.”With New Zealand beaten, India’s next game is against Pakistan on November 11, and Harmanpreet said they needed to work on their batting in the Powerplay – India were 41 for 3 after six overs against New Zealand.”We need to focus on the first six overs, because when you have only two fielders outside, how much can you get, it’s always a plus point for us,” Harmanpreet said. “And that is the only reason we went Taniya [Bhatia], who can play freely [as opener]. Because if you have youngster who is not thinking too much, just want to enjoy your game, I think that is a reason we started with Taniya today.”

The series ends just nine days before the 2019 World Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Nov-2018Sri Lanka will hop over to Scotland for two ODIs before making their trip to England and Wales for the 2019 World Cup, Cricket Scotland has confirmed in a press release. They will compete in two ODIs – on May 18 and May 21 – with the venues slated to be announced in December.The last time Sri Lanka played Scotland was before the 2017 Champions Trophy for two unofficial ODIs staged in Kent, with Scotland upsetting the visitors in a high-scoring first game. Sri Lanka, though, bounced back to level the series 1-1.Scotland captain Kyle Coetzer was excited at the announcement of a contest against a Full Member nation, and believed that playing in front of home crowds would only push the hosts to play better cricket.”There is nothing better that playing cricket at home in front of a full house of Scottish fans and we are determined to continue to improve on our recent performances,” Coetzer said. “We will be well prepared for these matches and go out to win.”We are really excited to be playing these ODIs versus another Full Member. Following our 1-1 draw in the 50-overs series last year, it will be a real challenge for us to go one better and win this ODI series.”The last ODI between the two sides in Scotland was in 2011, when a Lasith Malinga five-wicket haul skittled the hosts out for 101.The 2019 World Cup begins just nine days after the ODI series, with Sri Lanka’s first game scheduled against Afghanistan on June 4 in Cardiff.

The Australia opener was saved by a no-ball before he’d scored – after calling for the DRS – but opted against a review moments before tea

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Dec-2018Aaron Finch came within a couple of millimeters of bagging a pair, but his use of the DRS showed that Ishant Sharma had overstepped. The ball was clipping the stumps, so if Ishant’s heel had been behind the line the on-field decision by Kumar Dharmasena would have stood.Given that it appeared Dharmasena was barely watching the frontline, it is to be presumed the wicket would have been checked anyway. But you never know. So it was a good job Finch took it out of the umpire’s hands and called for the DRS.How Finch was probably wishing he had done the same moments before tea.Pressing forward at R Ashwin, the delivery bounced and turned, lifted towards the top of Finch’s pad and, in the view of the umpire, seemed to glance the glove before being gathered by Rishabh Pant. Finch did not call for the review immediately, which batsmen normally do if they are sure they haven’t hit the ball, and after a word with Marcus Harris accepted his fate and walked off.But as the players left the field for the break, the multitude of replays – Snicko and HotSpot – suggested there had not been any touch on the glove. The debate continued into the next session, which showed how tight it was, but with a flat line on Snicko it would have been no surprise if the decision had been overturned had it been reviewed.It wasn’t the first time this season Finch was left to rue not calling in the third umpire. In the first ODI against South Africa he declined to review his lbw against Lungi Ngidi which was going over the stumps.He was also the non-striker when he helped Travis Head to decide to review his lbw in the next match against South Africa, in Adelaide, which was shown to be crashing into the stumps.

The allrounder hit two sixes in the last over to tie the game, and defended 11 in the One-Over Eliminator

The Report by Mohammad Isam12-Jan-2019How the game played outChittagong Vikings prevailed in the One-Over Eliminator against Khulna Titans, after Robbie Frylinck, whose two sixes had earlier taken Vikings close to their target of 152, bowled a wide yorker beyond Paul Stirling with three needed off the last ball. Chittagong ended up defending the 11 runs they made in their over, to get their second win.There was more drama in normal time too, particularly in the last over. With Chittagong needing 13 off the last three balls, Frylinck hit Ariful Haque for successive sixes, before failing to connect with the last ball and being run-out in an attempt to steal what would have been a match-winning bye.Yasir Ali’s 41 had carried Chittagong to within 66 runs of the target, and they needed just under nine an over with 7.3 remaining when he was the fourth batsman dismissed. Mushfiqur Rahim made a 26-ball 34, but Chittagong lost regular wickets at the other end to fall behind the asking rate, before Frylinck’s big hits brought them back in contention.Sent in to bat, Khulna posted 151 for 6 thanks largely to a third-wicket stand of 77 between Mahmudullah and Dawid Malan, who top-scored with 45.Turning points

• Khulna hit just one boundary in the last three overs of their innings, losing three for 20 in that crucial period.
• With Chittagong needing 23 off the last two overs, Junaid Khan bowled a critical penultimate over, conceding just four runs with a mix of slower bouncers and full deliveries.
• Chittagong required seven off the last two balls, and Frylinck deposited Ariful’s full-toss high over midwicket for his second six.
• With three needed off the last ball in the One-Over Eliminator, Stirling missed Frylinck’s wide yorker from round the wicket.

Star of the dayTwo sixes in the last over made Robbie Frylinck the star of the day. He had earlier bowled tidily to end with 1-32 from his four overs. Then he bowled a fantastic Super Over to give Chittagong the win.The big missChittagong Vikings’ Mohammad Shahzad found Paul Stirling at point in his attempt to reach out to cut a short ball from Junaid Khan. Shahzad was irate with the dismissal, understandably because he has lurched from one low score to another this season. So far, he has only scored 43 runs in three innings.Where the teams standKhulna remain winless with four losses in a row, while Chittagong have won two out of three.

In Hamilton, the batsman showed that he had learnt to bat time and curb his natural stroke-making instincts

Mohammad Isam in Hamilton03-Mar-2019That Soumya Sarkar’s first instinct when he walked out to the bat in the second innings of the Hamilton Test against New Zealand was survival suggests that Bangladesh’s dire situation must have affected him quite seriously.In his short international career so far, Soumya has built a reputation of being someone who doesn’t put a big enough price on his wicket. There have also been times when his premature dismissals, particularly after making a flashy start, has put his team in trouble. But with his side 371 short of avoiding an innings defeat – they still went down by an innings and 52 runs – when he walked in on the third evening, Soumya said he felt that it far was more important to be at the crease.The 149 he scored was his maiden Test hundred, coming in his 13th Test, spread over four years. Only during their last home series against West Indies did Soumya, through runs in the ODIs, return to the Test side. But 31 runs in the four innings meant that he was ignored for the New Zealand Tests too, and it was only Shakib Al Hasan’s injury that caused the selectors to ask him to stay back after the ODIs, which ended on February 20.Perhaps with this performance, which came at a time when his side desperately needed him to bat for a long period, Soumya can set himself an example: that he can bat in a different way.There were long phases during the 149 when he had to shed his natural instincts and invent ways to at least touch the ball, which was mostly fired at him at chest, throat or head level. The moment he whip-pulled Neil Wagner, Kane Williamson posted the fine-leg fielder very fine. Then came the very fine third-man, and thus followed more attempts to stop him from scoring those boundaries.Williamson moving around his fielders was exactly what Soumya and Mahmudullah had wanted throughout the fourth morning as they ducked and weaved around Wagner’s bouncer barrage. Once they had weathered the storm, both batsmen strode into their drives and flicks more confidently, and it was evident when Soumya launched Todd Astle for a straight six to move into the nineties.Trent Boult gives vent to his emotions after dismissing Soumya Sarkar•Getty Images

“Today my aim was to survive in the wicket in that particular situation,” Soumya said. “If I had hurried against this type of bowling, I think it would have negatively impacted me and the team. I tried to adjust to the pitch and their type of bowling. Once I was set, I tried to play on merit (of the ball). We were behind by a lot of runs with two days left, so all of these things were in my mind. It was good to have Riyad alongside, as we slowly progressed.”I realised that if I only [tried to] survive in the middle, a good ball may take my wicket, and I wouldn’t have scored runs. I decided that I should at least be a little aggressive, even if it is not every ball, so that they, at least, think of changing their plans.”Soumya said that it was the first time that a bowling attack had attacked him in this manner, targeting his head and torso for hours, and setting catchers mostly on the leg-side to take anything that might pop up.”I don’t think I have batted against this type of a bowling plan, when the ball is bouncing so much from back of a length. I have never batted against these field set-ups too,” he said with a laugh. I never expected someone can set such a field. I decided to play the short ball behind, by using the bounce and the pace, rather than playing in front.”Soumya rued not batting for longer than the four hours and 15 minutes he lasted in the middle, his innings ending when Trent Boult burst one through his attempt to work the ball through midwicket.”I think if I could have batted longer, they may have had to bat again. I am sure Riyad would have continued to bat similarly if I was around for longer. But still, the first Test hundred is also special,” he said. “When I got the chance in this Test series, I thought about my first ODI fifty, which was also in Hamilton.”Soumya is regarded as one of the most talented batsmen in Bangladesh but since his first season, when he impressed during the 2015 World Cup and the three ODI series thereafter against Pakistan, India and South Africa, he has had a lean period, marked by inconsistency, resulting in him being dropped from the Test and ODI sides.There have been many false dawns from Soumya, but if he bats consistently over the coming weeks in Wellington and Christchurch in the next two Tests, the Bangladesh fans can finally believe there is a lot that Soumya can offer. And there is good news on that front: “When I work hard and have the mentality to stay in the wicket, I think it is possible to get results,” he said.

UAE’s top order flounders with no batsman crossing 50, legspinner Ryan Burl finishes with career-best figures

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Apr-2019After running Zimbabwe close two nights ago, UAE were put through another tough examination in Harare in the third ODI of their four-match series, and the quality of Zimbabwe’s batsmanship was good enough to help them clinch the series 3-0 with one to play.This was made possible courtesy Sean Williams’ third ODI century, an unbeaten 84-ball 109, that helped Zimbabwe post 307 for 4. Williams was helped along the way by Craig Ervine and Peter Moor, the captain, with whom he put together 104 and 145 respectively.Moor made 58 off 52 balls during the course of the mammoth fifth-wicket stand off just 107 deliveries. That helped the pair add 100 in the last ten overs. They took a special liking to offspinner Rohan Mustafa, whose 1 for 67 was the most expensive spell for UAE.In reply, UAE slumped to 15 for 3 in the sixth. Zimbabwe were briefly kept at bay by CP Rizwan and Muhammad Usman, who made 47 and 49 respectively, but that served to merely limit the damage. Ryan Burl, the 24-year-old legspinner, first removed Rizwan and then returned to clean up the lower order to finish with a career-best 4 for 32.The two sides will square off in the fourth and final ODI on Tuesday.