Stats – Behind Kapil, ahead of Botham – Shardul Thakur enters record books

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

The first day of the fourth England vs India Test was a good one for quick bowlers, as 13 wickets went down

Sampath Bandarupalli02-Sep-202131 – Shardul Thakur completed his half-century in only 31 balls, the second-fastest recorded half-century in Test cricket for India. The fastest is by Kapil Dev off 30 deliveries against Pakistan in Karachi in 1982. In terms of strike rate, Thakur’s 36-ball 57 is the second-quickest fifty-plus score in Tests for India, behind Kapil’s 55-ball 89, also against England at Lord’s in 1982.ESPNcricinfo Ltd1 – Thakur’s is also the fastest-recorded half-century in Test matches in England. The previous fastest was by Ian Botham, in 32 balls against New Zealand in 1986, also at The Oval. It is also the third-fastest recorded fifty in Tests against England, behind Foffie Williams’ 28-ball fifty in 1948 and Tim Southee’s 29-ball effort in 2008.23.33 – Ajinkya Rahane’s batting average in Test cricket against England. It is the second-poorest average among players to bat in the top six for 20 or more Tests against a single opponent. Alec Bannerman had scored 1108 runs at an average of only 23.08 against England in 50 innings spread across 28 Tests between 1879 and 1893.11 – James Anderson has now sent back Cheteshwar Pujara on 11 occasions in Test cricket – his best against a batter in Tests, joint with Peter Siddle. Nine of those 11 dismissals have come in England, the joint-highest for any bowler at home against a batter in the last 20 years – Stuart Broad had the better of Michael Clarke on nine instances in home Tests, while Ben Stokes has fallen nine times off R Ashwin in India.7 – Ducks for Jasprit Bumrah is Test cricket in 2021, the joint-highest by an Indian in Tests in a calendar year. Bishan Singh Bedi also had seven ducks in 1974, all across ten innings. The only player to bag more ducks in a calendar year is Mervyn Dillion, ten in 2002.13 – Wickets to fall on the first day of the fourth Test, the most on the opening day of a Test match held at The Oval since 1983.

Jemimah Rodrigues, Dane van Niekerk and Sophia Dunkley in Women's Hundred team of the tournament

by h716a5.icu Uncategorized

After their stirring run to the title, Oval Invincibles are well represented in ESPNcricinfo’s selection

Matt Roller22-Aug-2021Jemimah Rodrigues: Northern Superchargers

Rodrigues was given only two opportunities across India’s tour of England so had a point to prove in the Hundred. Her season started with a boundary-laden 92 not out off 43 balls and she was the leading run-scorer in the group stages, scoring heavily – in particular through the covers, lofting over the infield – while maintaining an eye-catching strike rate. Upstaged her more established international team-mates.Dane van Niekerk: Oval Invincibles, captain

Led from the front for Invincibles, playing a match-winning hand on the opening night and reaping the rewards of her attacking captaincy in the final. Anchored with the bat, shuffling up the order mid-season, and kept Invincibles’ knockout hopes alive while both Marizanne Kapp and Shabnim Ismail were out injured. Kept things tight with the ball through the middle.Sophia Dunkley (Southern Brave)

Dunkley’s breakthrough summer extended into the Hundred with a series of key innings at No. 3 during Brave’s dominant winning streak in the group stages. Composed in run chases and flourished on the hybrid pitches at the Ageas Bowl, hitting through the line. Final was effectively over when she edged Kapp to second slip.Related

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Tash Farrant, Marizanne Kapp share seven wickets as Invincibles scrap into final

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Nat Sciver: Trent Rockets

Her team underwhelmed but Sciver was a consistent performer from No. 3, making between 27 and 54 in her first five innings of the tournament and batting with the attacking intent and fluency that have become her trademark. Surprisingly ineffective with the ball but in this team for her batting.Amy Jones: Birmingham Phoenix, wicketkeeper

Never made a match-defining score but Jones’ attacking intent from the middle order was a major factor in Phoenix’s run to the eliminator. She is beginning to nail her new role after shuffling down the England order last year and makes batting looks effortless when in full flow. Led well, keeping spirits high despite a slow start to the season, and sharp glovework standing up helped her complete six stumpings.Alice Capsey: Oval Invincibles

Capsey’s 59 off 41 balls in the London derby at Lord’s was one of the defining innings of the tournament, made shortly before her 17th birthday, and she batted with freedom throughout the season, playing two important cameos in the knockout stages from the middle order. Her quick offbreaks proved effective, to the extent that she was backed to bowl ahead of England’s Mady Villiers by the latter stages of the competition. A remarkable breakthrough – international selection is a matter of time.Marizanne Kapp: Oval Invincibles

Missed half the season due to a thigh injury but beats Sammy-Jo Johnson and Hayley Matthews to the third overseas spot in this team after her starring role across the knockout stages: Kapp steadied the ship with 37 then took 3 for 21 in Friday’s eliminator, then whacked 26 off 14 balls and decimated Brave with 4 for 9 in Saturday’s final. Difficult year recovering from long-term effects of Covid-19 and managing an ongoing heart problem but this was a stunning individual effort.Kate Cross: Manchester Originals

Manchester Originals captain led the way from the start, hitting the Hundred’s first six then taking three early wickets in their opening-night defeat. Her team started slowly but eventually missed out on the knockouts by a single point and Cross’ success with the new ball, nipping it off the seam and hitting career-best speeds of 75mph/121kph will not have gone unnoticed by England.ESPNcricinfo LtdTash Farrant: Oval Invincibles

Has a player ever responded so well to losing a central contract? Farrant has come on in leaps and bounds since early 2019, developing a repertoire of slower balls and perfecting her yorker to become one of England’s leading death bowlers as well as swinging the new ball. Finished clear at the top of the wicket-taking charts and avenged bittersweet memories of watching 2017 World Cup final from the stands at Lord’s by playing her part in a crushing win.Lauren Bell: Southern Brave

Beanpole seamer found hooping inswing with the new ball throughout the season but has added another dimension to her game and took crucial wickets through the middle, several with deceptive back-of-the-hand slower balls. Bell has clearly benefited from the ideal mentor in Anya Shrubsole and will play for England before long.Kirstie Gordon: Birmingham Phoenix

Took wickets in eight out of nine games and picked up big names including Heather Knight, Lizelle Lee and Sciver. Gordon has slipped down the pecking order over the last two years when it comes to England’s T20 spinners but she outdid several of those ahead of her during the Hundred. Her partnership with Abtaha Maqsood, a fellow Scot, was a major part of Phoenix’s attack.

Stats – India's biggest Test win by runs and New Zealand's biggest loss

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Ashwin completed 300 Test wickets at home and bagged 50 in a calendar year for the fourth time

Sampath Bandarupalli06-Dec-20215:45

Jaffer: India showed the kind of bench strength and depth they have

372 – India’s margin of win in Mumbai, their biggest win-margin in terms of runs in Tests. The 337-run win against South Africa in Delhi in 2015 was their previous biggest win in this format. The 372-run loss is also New Zealand’s biggest defeat by runs, leaving behind the 358-run trounce from South Africa in Johannesburg in 2007.300 – Wickets for R Ashwin in home Tests, the second India bowler with 300-plus Test wickets at home after Anil Kumble (350). Only five players before Ashwin had taken 300-plus Test wickets in their home country.9 – Player-of-the-Series awards for Ashwin in Tests, the joint second most for any player in the format. Muthiah Muralidaran tops the list with 11 awards while Jacques Kallis also has nine.66 – Test wickets for Ashwin against New Zealand, the most by a bowler in Test matches played between India and New Zealand. Ashwin eclipsed Sir Richard Hadlee’s 65 wickets on the fourth morning in Mumbai.14 for 225 – Ajaz Patel’s figures in Mumbai are the best match figures in a Test to end up on the losing side. Javagal Srinath previously held the record with 13 for 132 against Pakistan in Kolkata in 1999. Ajaz also became the first player to end up on the losing side despite taking all ten in a Test innings. The previous best innings figures in a losing cause were 9 for 83 by Kapil Dev against West Indies in 1983.8 for 42 – Ashwin’s match figures are the second best without a five-for in a men’s Test match. Shane Warne has the best figures, of 8 for 24 against Pakistan in Sharjah in 2002.52 – Test wickets for Ashwin in 2021, the first bowler to cross the tally of 50 this year. It is the fourth calendar year where Ashwin has bagged 50-plus Test wickets after 2015, 2016 and 2017. Only Warne (eight), Muralidaran (six) and Glenn McGrath (five) had 50-plus Test wickets in more calendar years than Ashwin.2003 – The last instance of India winning a match against New Zealand in an ICC tournament before the Mumbai Test – in Centurion during the 2003 World Cup. India lost seven of the eight meetings against New Zealand between the two wins.

When faultlines are too exposed, there's no easy way to rebuild after an earthquake

by h716a5.icu Uncategorized

As racism scandal rocks English cricket, Harrison knows importance of seizing what remains of the moment

Andrew Miller28-Nov-2021There was a moment of levity on Friday, in the midst of an otherwise sombre unveiling of the ECB’s new anti-racism action plan, when one senior journalist – caught on the hop by an announcement that had first been anticipated on Wednesday but had already been delayed by yet another hour – burst into the media Zoom call five minutes after its start, and interrupted Tom Harrison’s monologue with a loud and exasperated oath.As an instant reaction to a long-drawn-out and deeply embarrassing episode for English cricket, the outburst had some merit. It would not, however, prove to be the mot juste of Harrison’s address. That would be his use of the word “earthquake” to describe the shock of Azeem Rafiq’s revelations and subsequent fall-out for the game – a word so pointed that he uttered it three times, as if to ensure that every headline on the subject would be obliged to lead on his impassioned response to the crisis.As soundbites go, it certainly made a change from Harrison’s stuttering, management-speak display at the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) hearing in Westminster last week, at which he had been slapped down from the outset with the chair Julian Knight’s refusal to allow him to read a statement to open the ECB’s defence, and was never able to recover his poise thereafter, as barb upon barb flew in about the governing body’s inability to “get its house in order”.As any amateur seismologist would tell you, “earthquake” is probably an uncannily accurate depiction of how this saga has unfolded for the ECB – first, a grindingly slow build-up of pressure over aeons of apparent inactivity, then a shattering denouement as two irreconcilable bodies rip and twist against one another, causing untold destruction. More troublingly for the body politic, it might also be pointed out that earthquakes tend to re-occur along existing faultlines.

“An earthquake can provide the opportunity to accelerate years and years of change in a very quick period of time”Tom Harrison

So here it is, the ECB’s attempt to provide the sport with sufficiently robust architecture to “Build Back Better” in the short term (not that the post-Brexit lingo of the Conservative Party is necessarily the ideal point of reference for this journey), and to cope with whatever ructions may be thrown up in the future. It is a 12-point plan, sub-divided into five distinct sections, to address the structural flaws within the English game, and point the way to a more genuinely inclusive future for the estimated 11 million cricket fans in this country, too many of whom have felt excluded.If the initial reaction to the plan has been perhaps a touch underwhelming, then that’s largely a reflection of the ennui that can creep in whenever the ECB’s lumbering machine attempts to grind its corporate gears and spit out something that goes beyond mere platitudes.And sure enough, when compared to the draft document that emerged from last week’s all-stakeholder’s meeting at the Kia Oval, the proposals in the final product are notable for a fair bit of sandpapering around their roughest edges – perhaps most tellingly, in the ambitious commitment to having 30 percent boardroom representation by women and representative ethnicities by April 2022.Even before that commitment was in the post, the challenge got steeper still with the resignation of Leicestershire’s chair, Mehmooda Duke, who had previously ticked both of those boxes, but whose parting call for “fresh leadership at national level” didn’t exactly sound like a ringing endorsement of the proposals she had been party to crafting.As such, there is a rather ambiguous caveat within that particular proposal, calling for counties to “comply or explain” why they are unable to fulfil the quota within the agreed time. Such are the reasons why an ECB spokesperson had said on Thursday that they “weren’t quite there” with the final wording of the document. When you consider the overwhelmingly white, male make-up of boardrooms across the 18 first-class and 20 national counties, this process may not be so much a case of turkeys voting for Christmas, but dinosaurs bracing for the meteor.Either way, the cataclysm has now been thrust upon the ECB, and Harrison knows it is incumbent upon his regime to seize what remains of the moment.”An earthquake can provide the opportunity to accelerate years and years of change in a very quick period of time,” Harrison said. “It highlights a situation that doesn’t change through cajoling or through contracts, or through moving people through education processes. Perhaps this is the shock that is going to enable us to bring this game together once and for all. And I don’t mean that as the game as we see it now, but the game which has got 11 million fans taking part and who want to be part of it.”Related

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Tom Harrison believes 'earthquake' can accelerate change as ECB unveil plan to tackle racism

In spite of his tendency towards white-collar obfuscation, it does bear repetition that Harrison has tried to do the right thing on the diversity and inclusion front, ever since his arrival at the ECB in 2015. He stepped in personally to address Rafiq’s concerns last summer, after reading about his experiences at Yorkshire on ESPNcricinfo, and he was similarly proactive in the board’s initial response to the Black Lives Matter movement, even if England’s subsequent failure to take a knee before all internationals drew further accusations of tokenism, most notably from the then-Sky Sports commentator, Michael Holding.There was the launch, in 2018, of the South Asian Action Plan – the first concerted bid to build bridges to a community that provides between 30 and 40 percent of all recreational players in the UK. The aims of that initiative have come under fire in recent weeks, not least since Rafiq pointed out in the DCMS hearing that those levels of Asian participation have dropped by the same percentage since 2010. But in highlighting a rise from 7 percent to 28 percent in the past four years for ethnic minority enrolment in ECB academies, Harrison insisted that the fruits of that investment were slowly becoming apparent.Even so, the commitment within the ECB’s action plan to “remove barriers in talent pathways” was perhaps the most significant of its five key proposals, because for all the justifiable focus at boardroom level, it is at this vital choke-point between the grass-roots and the professional game that so many of the sport’s problems lie.A number of factors have long been at play here. The tendency of youth-team coaches towards conformity, both in terms of techniques (many of which have often been honed at extra expense, either through the private-school system or one-to-one lessons); the lack of feedback to talented players from marginalised backgrounds, who are unable to make the most of their one shot at a county trial. The sheer cost of a sport in which helmets, for instance, are now mandatory across all age-group levels.”That decision-making point between talented youngsters and becoming professionals around the country is a worrying statistic for us,” Harrison said. “There may be structural and cultural barriers in place that we need to remove. We just need to accelerate the work that’s going on here, but I don’t think we have all the answers yet.”Tom Harrison has likened English cricket’s racism scandal to an “earthquake”•Getty ImagesIn the course of his defence of the ECB’s progress, however, it was telling that Harrison choose not to address perhaps the most notable aspect of their commitment to doing things differently – the launch of the Hundred, a competition that has been perhaps the central plank of his seven-year tenure as chief executive.Harrison had hinted at the Hundred’s existence during the DCMS hearings, when he spoke of how the ECB had struggled to get “the first-class game to wake up” to the need to put EDI initiatives at the front and centre of its offerings.But it’s a sign perhaps of how desperately the board now wants to limit the contagion from the Yorkshire saga, that an issue that had been shoved down every cricket-loving throat for the past three years is now stuffed very much up the executives’ sleeves, perhaps stored away for a brighter, post-fall-out future – far removed from the rubble that cricket’s earthquake has strewn across the county game – when the prominence of the women’s tournament, the move towards family-friendly, non-alcohol-fuelled events, and the drive towards greater diversity in ticket sales can once again be trumpeted as successes.Either way, given that the executive patted itself on the back to the tune of £2.1 million in bonuses following the Hundred’s launch last summer (Harrison bluntly dismissed that pay-out as an “employment contract” matter when asked to reconsider it on Friday), it would be a remarkable failure of imagination were they not at some stage to embark on some hasty retro-fitting, and present that tournament as the elusive “silver bullet” that Harrison himself admitted the action plan was not.For despite all the best intentions of this action plan, English cricket as we know it is painfully exposed by the revelations of the past month, and damaged by the broad-brush facts that the DCMS hearings placed in the public domain. There’s little room for nuance when politicians on both sides of the House are railing against historic failures and calling, as Jo Stevens, the shadow culture secretary, did on Friday, for a public enquiry. Sometimes, when the faultlines are too exposed, there’s no easy way to rebuild after an earthquake.

Bowlers made hay, Root rose, Kohli fell, and debutants had a ball

by h716a5.icu Uncategorized

All the stats highlights from 2021, when ball dominated bat in Tests, Pakistan called the shots in T20Is, and ODIs faded into insignificance

S Rajesh04-Jan-2022A tough year for battersIn the last 40 years, only once has the average runs-per-wicket figrure in Tests been lower than it was in 2021, when 28.78 were scored per dismissal. This one stat confirms that 2021 was another year when bowlers held sway, and batting was generally a difficult task.The only year in this period when bowlers dominated even more was 2018, when each wicket cost 27.58 runs. In fact, these are two of four years in the last 40 when the average has slipped below 30; the other two were 2000 and 1988.ESPNcricinfo LtdIf you look at more metrics, they all tell a tale of bowlers dominating and batters struggling: 17 team totals of 400-plus were scored in 44 Tests, a rate of one every 2.59 matches. Only thrice in the last 40 years have they been more scarce – in 2018 (2.67), 1992 (2.60) and 1988 (3.00). The story is similar in terms of innings per century: 28.53 in 2021; there have been just two instances of longer waits between hundreds, in 2020 (29.54) and 1988 (34.44).Two-hundred-and-fifty-three 50-plus scores were made in Tests in 2021, of which only 58 were converted into hundreds. That is a conversion rate of 22.92%, which indicates that batting wasn’t easy even after the batters got in. The rate was 20.63 last year, but that was a truncated year, which featured about half the number of matches as in a regular year. Before that, you would have to go back to 1995 to find a year with a poorer conversion rate of fifties to hundreds.ESPNcricinfo LtdUnlike in several other years, 2021 was one in which both fast bowlers and spinners flourished. The pacers conceded 27.14 runs per wicket – an average next only to those of 2018 and 2019 among the last 40 years – while spinners averaged 30.52, second only to 2018 in this period.Of the 24 bowlers who took 20 or more Test wickets in 2021, 20 averaged lower than 30, and eight under 20 runs per wicket. The 11 bowlers who picked up 30 or more wickets in the year included six fast bowlers and five spinners. At the top of the pile was R Ashwin, who had a phenomenal year, picking up 54 wickets at 16.64. Never has a spinner taken 50-plus wickets in a calendar year at a better average: the best before 2021 was Muthiah Muralidaran, who took 90 at 16.90. In fact, Ashwin is in the top five for all bowlers with a 50-wicket cut-off, and features twice in the top eight.

2018-2021: four fun years for bowlersBowlers dominating has been a trend for the last few years, during which run-scoring has become relatively difficult again, after the high-scoring first decade of this century. As mentioned earlier, the average runs per wicket in 2018 was 27.58, the lowest in the last 40 years. In the next two years after that, the average was 30.83, which means in the last four years (2018-2021), a wicket has fallen every 29.15 runs, which is far cry from the batting-dominant 2000s: in the four-year period from 2007 to 2010, the average was 35.89. Thus, batting averages have fallen around 18% in these last four years, compared to the 2007-10 period.

In fact, the last time the runs-per-wicket value was lower than 29.15 over four consecutive calendar years was way back in 1960: between January 1957 and December 1960, the average was 29.04. Nineteen bowlers have taken over 75 wickets since the start of 2018, of whom 13 average lower than 25. Clearly, bowlers haven’t had it so good in a long, long time.Root vs Kohli, and other batting storiesDespite run-scoring being difficult through the year, and despite him leading a team that offered no batting support, Joe Root racked up 1708 Test runs in 2021, easily the highest in a year in which no other batter touched 1000. That was the one positive batting stat in the year; most of the other Test batting records in the year were forgettable ones. (For more on Root’s incredible year, click here.)On the other hand, 2021 was the year when Virat Kohli’s batting slump became official; he had averaged 19.33 in Tests in 2020, but that was only over six innings. In 2021, he averaged 28.21 in 19 innings, with just four fifties. That makes it two successive years when Kohli hasn’t scored a Test hundred. The last time he didn’t get one in a calendar year before 2020 was in 2011.Obviously, the career averages of Root and Kohli took highly contrasting paths, thanks to the year they had. Root started 2021 with an average of 47.99, while Kohli was at 53.41 – a difference of 5.42. By the time the year ended, the gap had shrunk to 0.44; Kohli’s average dropped to 50.34 and Root’s lifted to 49.90.

In fact, Kohli is on an unwanted streak of 14 consecutive Tests in which his career average has dropped at the end of the game. It is the longest such streak by an India batter, and the joint second-longest for any batter, next only to Grant Flower’s 16-match streak between 1998 and 2000. If Root and Kohli continue in their respective veins of form in 2022, the two lines in the graph above will soon cross each other.Meanwhile, two other Indians struggled for runs in the middle order: Cheteshwar Pujara averaged 28.08 in 26 innings, while Ajinkya Rahane fared worse, averaging 20.82 from 23 innings. These numbers meant that collectively, India’s numbers three, four, and five averaged 29.02 in 2021, their third-lowest in the last 30 years.Pujara’s aggregate of 702 runs was enough to put him in fifth place in terms of Test runs scored in 2021, despite averaging under 30. That makes him the first batter since Neil Harvey in 1956 to finish in the top five in terms of aggregate despite averaging under 30.ESPNcricinfo LtdRahane’s average of 20.82, meanwhile, is the third-lowest in any year for a batter in the top six who played at least 20 innings in the year. Both cases are illustrative of a team management being extremely patient with out-of-form players. In 2022, Pujara and Rahane need to score plenty of runs to justify that patience. The top three in the list below has two entries from 2021 – Dom Sibley is a spot above Rahane, averaging 19.77 from 20 innings. The top six has two more Indians in the list too – Sourav Ganguly in 2001, and KL Rahul in 2018.

Debutant bowlers on a rollScott Boland destroyed England in the third Ashes Test with stunning figures of 6 for 7, Axar Patel took five five-fors in five Tests, and Ollie Robinson was arguably England’s best bowler of the year, taking 37 wickets at 21.16. The common thread among all these bowlers? They all made their Test debuts in 2021.Apart from being a great year for bowlers in general, 2021 was particularly good for debutant bowlers. Players who made their Test debuts in 2021 went on to take 231 wickets in the format over the year, at an average of 26.44, which is marginally better than the overall average for all bowlers in the year (28.58). Sixteen five-fors were taken by bowlers who made their debuts in 2021, which is the second-highest in Test history: the only year with more five-fors by debutants was 2011, when there were 18. The overall wickets tally by debutants, of 231, is the fifth-highest in any year – 2011 leads the way again, with 321.

Last year’s collective bowling average for debutants, of 26.44, is the best in the last 33 years, and also the best in the 18 years in which bowlers making their debuts took at least 150 wickets. (Shardul Thakur, who took 16 wickets at 23.18 in 2021, narrowly missed out on being included in the list below. He played his only other Test in 2018, but bowled only ten deliveries in that game.)

Pakistan dominate T20IsTheir defeat in the T20 World Cup semi-final notwithstanding, Pakistan were the team to beat in this format in 2021: they won 20 games and lost only six. Against the top 12 teams, they had an 18-6 win-loss record, easily the best among all teams in the year, and the third-best for a team in any year, with a 12-match cut-off (against the top 12 teams).

The backbone of their success was the opening pair of Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan. Rizwan scored 1326 runs and Babar 939, the two top aggregates for a batter in any calendar year; together they contributed 56.3% of Pakistan’s total bat runs. As a pair, Babar and Rizwan collected 1380 runs in 2021, again the most by any pair in a calendar year. (The next-best is only 756.) (Here are some more numbers on this fantastic batting duo .)With Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali and Shaheen Shah Afridi all taking 20-plus wickets apiece, and Shadab Khan conceding less than seven an over, Pakistan had all the bowling bases covered as well. A World Cup title eluded them but they have the chance to make amends in 2022.The other aspect that stood out was the sheer number of T20I matches played in 2021. Obviously, the overall number grew because of the addition of several teams to the T20I fold since 2019, but even excluding the lesser teams, the increase was significant: there were 110 T20Is among the top 12 teams in 2021, a 57% increase over the previous highest of 70, in 2018.The forgotten format of 2021With the T20 World Cup and the World Test Championship played in 2021, it was quite clear that ODIs would get short shrift through the year. Only 71 matches were played in the format, the second-lowest in the last 30 years (excluding pandemic-hit 2020). Australia played only three ODIs, their lowest in a year since 1978, while India played six, their lowest since 1980.With the two other formats getting top priority, and with Covid-related restrictions affecting travel and itineraries, the top players were often unavailable for ODIs. India’s Test squad was in England when a second squad played ODIs and T20Is in Sri Lanka. England picked five debutants for the first game of their home series against Pakistan.

All of this meant the average experience of a player playing an ODI in 2021 was the lowest in the last 35 years. Last year, a player came into an ODI with an average of 38.1 matches, the least since 1986, when it was 36.9. Since 1987, it was more than 40 matches every year till 2020, with the figure going up to 91.6 in 2005, 86.7 in 2002, and 78.3 in 2012. The graph above shows the average experience for each year since 2011, and puts into context the huge dip last year.With inputs from Shiva JayaramanMore in our look back at 2021

'He's come a long way' – Hamid Hassan's still got it, and he isn't giving it away

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

It has been a tough road back, and the 34-year-old marked it in style with figures of 3 for 9 against Namibia

Deivarayan Muthu02-Nov-2021Hamid Hassan is 34 years old. He doesn’t have the speed he once had. He doesn’t have that long run-up either. Or quite the same hulking figure. And he probably doesn’t have the cartwheel celebration that once thrilled fans.However, he still rocks the headband like his hero Sylvester Stallone did in . He still has stickers in the Afghanistan colours on either cheek. He still has the swagger. He still has the yorker. He still has the bouncer. He is still playing for Afghanistan, at a T20 World Cup, 11 years after he took 3 for 21 and followed it up with a 21-ball 22 against South Africa in Afghanistan’s first-ever T20 World Cup match, in Barbados.Related

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Two of his three victims in that game – Mark Boucher and JP Duminy – are now part of South Africa’s back room. Albie Morkel, who was also part of that game, was in the opposition camp, as Namibia’s assistant coach, when Afghanistan faced them in Abu Dhabi on Sunday.Hamid himself has dabbled in coaching, mentoring, and even commentary when he was recovering from multiple injuries. After suffering a hamstring injury in the 2019 ODI World Cup game against Pakistan at Headingley, he had decided that it would be his last ODI and no one outside the team knew it until he got a guard of honour. Just like that, Hamid’s ODI career ended in a whimper, as did Afghanistan’s ODI World Cup campaign, without a single win.Hamid has only played eight Shpageeza T20 League games across two seasons since then. As for his last T20I before this tournament, it was way back in 2016 during the World Cup in India.Hamid, however, believed that he could push his creaky body into another World Cup. Afghanistan head coach Lance Klusener, too, believed in Hamid and backed him to make a comeback.”Yeah, he was our bowling coach while he was still injured. I’m just extremely happy for him. He’s come a long way with his injuries, and he’s shortened his run-up, but still has excellent control,” Klusener told ESPNcricinfo. “I had a long chat with him not so long ago – he’s just challenging himself to force himself back.”That comeback would have been less likely on Sunday against Namibia had mystery spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman been fit. The stars aligned and Hamid marked his return with figures of 3 for 9 in four overs as he helped Afghanistan give a rousing farewell to former captain Asghar Afghan.

“I have self-belief and [I’m] also a very hardworking person. [Before] the 2019 World Cup also I was commentating for Afghanistan against Ireland. During the one-hour break, I went to the ground, went running, fitness training and bowling.”Hamid Hassan

Hamid first popped into action when he casually got under a skier at deep square-leg to dismiss Michael van Lingen off Naveen-ul-Haq. He then struck in his second over when he literally knocked over Namibia captain Gerhard Erasmus with an inswinging yorker, providing a throwback to his heyday. While Erasmus fell on the floor, Hamid wheeled away towards square leg, clapping in delight.Then came the surprise bouncer. JJ Smit was so surprised that he didn’t even offer a shot or move his gloves out of the way. The ball tickled Smit’s glove on its way to Mohammad Shahzad.Hamid wasn’t done yet. He also cleaned up David Wiese, Namibia’s main man, with another inswinging yorker, this one from wide of the crease.”It was a great comeback for me, especially after five years of long break,” Hamid said on the eve of Afghanistan’s group-stage fixture against India. “I was fit enough to play cricket [recently] but couldn’t make it to the national side. Last tour against Zimbabwe I was part of the team, but couldn’t get my Dubai visa on time, so I missed that. From the last couple of years, I was just practicing hard, to get there and get the opportunity. Day before yesterday, I bowled very well and Afghanistan won that game.”I have self-belief and [I’m] also a very hard-working person. I never give up very quickly. During [before] the 2019 World Cup also I was commentating for Afghanistan against Ireland in Dehradun. During the commentary time, during the one-hour break, I went to the ground, went running, fitness training and bowling. So, I’ve always managed myself. And [I] just try to keep working hard. Because it was part of cricket, it was a great experience for me as a commentator.”Hamid Hassan: “Naveen is one of the best options and one of the best finds for Afghanistan”•Getty ImagesHamid also delivered a glowing endorsement of Afghanistan’s depth in talent, saying they are capable of toppling India – a win on Wednesday could put Afghanistan on the verge of making the semi-finals.”Afghanistan is a very good side – bowling, batting and fielding is much improved,” he said. “We have one of the best spin attacks in the world – [Mohammad] Nabi, Rashid [Khan], Mujeeb. It’s a proper, complete squad. If you see our top-order may or may not click but the good sign is that the middle-order is getting runs, especially skipper [Nabi] and Gulbadin [Naib] in the middle.”The good news is that we haven’t gotten all out so far, we have batting till No. 9, most of the batsmen can hit, even Rashid hasn’t batted yet. So, we have good opportunities against India, if we score good runs on the board, we can defeat them with bowling and fielding.”Afghanistan have come a long way since they faced India – and South Africa – in the 2010 T20 World Cup, and Hamid has watched the progress from close quarters.”True, that was our first World Cup for Afghanistan in our cricket history in 2010 in the Caribbean when I was part of the team,” he said. “Luckily, I’m again part of this team in the T20 World Cup. That time it was for us very new, very different. Big occasion, playing against one of the best teams in the world. It was such a brilliant experience of my life, to play against South Africa and India in 2010.”Right now, you see the players, they are very famous playing cricket all around the world. It’s one of the best signs for Afghanistan’s future that players are involved in different leagues all over the world.”Among the Afghanistan short-format globetrotters is Naveen who, in fact, grew up idolising Hamid. Naveen was the top wicket-taker in the most recent T20 Blast for Leicestershire and has had stints in the CPL, BBL, LPL and T10 league. It won’t be too long before he breaks into the IPL, too, as far as Hamid is concerned.”I have to say Naveen is one of the best options and one of the best finds for Afghanistan,” Hamid said. “He has improved a lot in the last couple of years playing T20 cricket [in] every part of the world. Only one IPL is left, hopefully he’ll get a chance there as well the way he’s performing in this World Cup.”Not many expected Hamid to return to top-flight cricket, but he’s here. He simply refuses to give up, and if he can continue to deliver, body permitting, he won’t have to.

McDermott's chance to shine and effectiveness of five-bowler strategy

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

A few talking points on Australia’s squad build-up with another T20 World Cup scheduled in nine months

Andrew McGlashan10-Feb-2022Reserve battersThere is a good chance that the top seven (or, in fact, the entire XI) that faced New Zealand in the final in Dubai is the same when they face New Zealand at the SCG on October 22. However, nothing is certain. The series against Sri Lanka has thrown up a couple of natural vacancies with David Warner and Mitchell Marsh rested. That meant a chance for Ben McDermott to build on his superb BBL for Hobart Hurricanes where he was the tournament’s leading run-scorer and a first opportunity for Josh Inglis at No. 3. It is likely that there will only be room for one spare batter in the World Cup squad and Inglis, who was also the wicketkeeping reserve, had the role in the UAE. However, McDermott is also a wicketkeeper, taking the role for Hurricanes in the BBL ahead of Matthew Wade, and could push himself into that spot. One factor working in Inglis’ favour is his versatility with him seen as someone who could bat anywhere in the top seven.Related

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“Josh Inglis has been someone who has been shuffled around the order a little bit,” Aaron Finch said. “[His selection] is a sign of how well he’s played over the last couple of years, but also how great he was around the group at the T20 World Cup. He hasn’t got the runs he would have liked throughout the Big Bash as he has done in the past. But he was playing slightly different roles. So it’s a great opportunity for him.”It might not just be between those two, either, although having cover for Wade could be important. Moises Henriques is also part of this squad, a somewhat unexpected opportunity after his struggles in West Indies and Bangladesh, and while there isn’t a lot of time for anyone else to force their way into contention, the likes of Josh Philippe (another keeper-batter) and Ashton Turner may yet be talked about.Balance of the sideAfter clinging to the plan of five specialist bowlers for so long, they changed things for the T20 World Cup with four frontline bowlers, seven batters and a trust in the allrounders to fill in the overs. Midway through the tournament they reverted and were thrashed by England before correcting the mistake just in time. What needs to be pondered now – or over the next few months – is whether that is the same balance that will work at home in October. It certainly appeared to let the top order play with a greater degree of freedom while they largely got through with a combination of Marsh, Marcus Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell as the fifth bowler. Wade, who came off as a finisher in spectacular style against Pakistan in the semi-final, will continue in the No. 7 position when they go with the four-bowler option.The interesting player in all this is left-arm spinner Ashton Agar, who has been forced out of the side having become a central figure. His only way back would appear to be if five bowlers are selected because Australia will want three frontline quicks on home soil. The size of the grounds could come into his favour with the bigger playing areas offering more scope for the spinners. However, it never felt like he was able to convince as a No. 7.”It just comes down to the conditions, the opposition but we’ve also got to stay true to what’s our best XI,” Finch said. “I think Ashton Agar has got a really important role to play going forward. He was bitterly disappointed to miss out for most of the games at the World Cup, and rightfully so. He’d done a wonderful job. It wasn’t the fact that he was dropped, it was just a change of strategy with the side. He’s still got a massive job to play for the Australian team.”Kane Richardson is one of the fast bowlers in the squad waiting for an opportunity to prove his mettle•Associated PressQuick-bowling depthHaving not played a T20I together before the last World Cup, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood were not separated during the tournament. With a heavy schedule coming up they may not play too many more matches together before the next tournament but will start the series against Sri Lanka at the SCG. Beyond them, there’s a pair of Richardsons – Kane and Jhye – waiting for their chance. Neither of them have played a T20I since last year’s tour of New Zealand although Kane Richardson was part of last year’s World Cup squad. He had a solid season for Melbourne Renegades before missing the back end of the competition while Jhye Richardson appeared for Perth Scorchers in the BBL finals and impressed with the new ball.Daniel Sams is now also part of this T20 squad although provides more all-round cover. Others on the fringes may include Nathan Ellis, who was a travelling reserve at the World Cup along with Sams after taking a hat-trick on his debut but had an injury-hit BBL, and Sean Abbott ,who is  lucky not to have played more international cricket.

Did too much intent trip up KKR on a tacky track?

by h716a5.icu Uncategorized

The conditions on offer – and the fight they put up in nearly defending 128 – made a good case to rein in their typically aggressive approach and aim for 150

Sidharth Monga30-Mar-20221:24

Should Shreyas Iyer trust Venkatesh Iyer more with the ball?

If Royal Challengers Bangalore had won the game easily, we wouldn’t be asking ourselves this question. For we were playing at venue where 206 was chased down in the last match, and where dew was always going to play a big part. So if you are going to lose with a 170-180, may as well risk getting bowled out for 130 in an attempt to go for 220. And Kolkata Knight Riders are a team that that don’t die wondering. They’d rather lose big chasing an improbable win rather than lose respectably.However, this pitch was different. Even with the dew, the KKR bowlers came within one good throw of putting RCB under extreme pressure. As the KKR coach Brendon McCullum said, there was spongy tennis-ball-like bounce on the pitch, which made it extremely difficult to play shots at will. And in these conditions, KKR lost eight of their 10 wickets to boundary attempts despite the score suggesting they could get bowled out cheaply if they kept doing so.That’s how T20 is supposed to be played on most occasions really. That’s how KKR play too. But could they have read the conditions better on the night and perhaps looked to push for 150 or so? Especially given how close they came to defending 128 after having not played seven balls of their allotment.If there is one coach who will not fret over this, though, it is McCullum.”I actually loved the intent to be honest,” McCullum said. “I thought the intent was great. You back the fact that you played the extra batter, and you played a long batting line-up. You don’t anticipate being bowled out obviously.”Honestly I felt we didn’t have a lot of luck today. Every time we sort of went for our aggressive option, we seemed to find a fielder or things didn’t quite go our way. That can happen sometimes. But I want us to continue to keep that intent because that served us so well last year. The way we set our teams up at the auction, and the players we picked, it suits them as well.”Sometimes you are going to go a little bit too hard, but if we can add a little bit of craft on the wickets we come up against and look to use the bounce as our friend rather than our foe, it gives us a good chance. Not quite enough runs tonight but I was pleased with our intent. A little bit of luck, and things would have been different.”It is rather interesting that McCullum feels being aggressive all the way is the style of play that suits his side. For most parts it is true. They are a side that looks to use the best of Sunil Narine the batter, Andre Russell is the fulcrum of this side, and McCullum himself encourages aggressive play whenever in doubt. The opening partnership, though, is a little at odds with that approach: Venkatesh Iyer and Ajinkya Rahane are both more of anchors. Perhaps the arrival of Aaron Finch will resolve that issue.There was a threat to the aggressive core of their side as Russell didn’t seem a 100% fit towards the end of the match. Consequently Venkatesh had to bowl one of his overs at the death.”Dre had run around the boundary and dived, and unfortunately picked up a little bit of bump,” McCullum said. “His shoulder was a little bit sore. But Dre being Dre, he still wants to try to get the job done, and he wasn’t quite able to. Those are things which happen in low-scoring games.”KKR will be hoping it is no more than just a bump as they look to continue playing aggressively over the rest of the tournament.

Four-day cut-off robs yet another women's Test the room to thrive

by h716a5.icu Uncategorized

Scheduling intransigence causes series of outstanding performances to be overshadowed

Valkerie Baynes30-Jun-2022England were desperate for a result. South Africa hoped to hold out for a draw. In the end, the latter got their way as the weather had the final say when their Test in Taunton finished in a stalemate.What cricket there was – and there was plenty over the first two days in particular – was hard-fought and full of highlights.There was Marizanne Kapp’s heroic 150 to keep her side in the contest after England’s debutant seamers Issy Wong and Lauren Bell combined with new seam-bowling leader Kate Cross and Nat Sciver to reduce them to 45 for 4 on the first morning.Then there was Player of the Match Sciver’s unbeaten 169 and Alice Davidson-Richards’ century on debut before England’s sporting declaration, 133 runs ahead.When Wong took two wickets at the end of a frustrating third day full of rain delays to leave South Africa 45 for 3, the hosts’ prospects of pushing for victory looked very good. But then came the stunning resistance of Tumi Sekhukhune who came in as nightwatcher and proved to be immovable, as did Kapp, so that by the time the rain came back one last time there was no chance of a result.Poignantly, nearly every player who spoke about this match, in the lead-up and during, talked of feeling a responsibility to “put on a good show” in the context of questions over the future of women’s Tests.Kate Cross is pumped up after getting rid of Sane Luus for 10•Getty ImagesA great contest ruined by the weather has been the fate of countless Tests down the years, regardless of which gender is playing, and yet there is one key difference. This match boosted the argument for women’s Tests to be played over five days rather than four.Cross, who stepped up in the absence of the retired Anya Shrubsole and Katherine Brunt and took six wickets for the match, posted on the subject on Twitter while Heather Knight, England’s captain who has long been a supporter of five-day Tests for women, was hopeful that things might change for the Ashes in England in 2023.”I can give my opinion, I’ve given that before and that hasn’t changed,” Knight said. “And also with the rain, it’s kind of reinforced that opinion a little bit and hopefully it happens. We’ve got an Ashes Test match in in the summer next year, and hopefully the ICC gives the option for the boards to choose four or five days, and hopefully that’ll be the case.”When we play Tests so rarely… I think it’s important that it has the chance to come to a crescendo and to finish and the stats in terms of the amount of draws speak for themselves a little bit. It’s hard to keep trying to fight the corner for women’s Test cricket when a lot of the games finish in a draw.”

But Knight was also hopeful that people would look beyond the scoreline – this was the sixth women’s Test in a row to end in a draw – and recognise what a good contest full of wonderful performances the match had been.”We came here today thinking the weather might play a part but thinking we could still push for that victory and it’s just a shame that it has intervened and probably now the conversation is going to be about four or five days, rather than the really amazing cricket stories that came from the Test,” she said.”I do think some brilliant cricket’s being played. Nat’s hundred, ADR’s hundred, how exciting was last night, Issy Wong tearing in trying to take those South African wickets? It was so much fun being out there and some really exciting stuff, so I do hope people can look beyond that and if you have watched any of the game, I think you’ll naturally do that.”Another challenge for women’s Tests is ensuring that more countries have the resources to play the format. This was only the second time since 2007 that a team other than England, India and Australia have played a Test, and South Africa’s first since 2014.Related

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Issy Wong double-strike, Nat Sciver's 169* keep England on top on rain-hit day

As a result, South Africa fielded nine debutants, including Sekhukhune and Sune Luus, their captain, who felt her side had done enough to prove they should play more Tests.”I think it was exciting,” she said. “We got a lot of positive feedback and I think if Tumi’s innings didn’t show the character and the fight and didn’t persuade a lot of people back home, then I don’t know what’s going to.”Everything was quite a new experience for me, but I think the girls thoroughly enjoyed it. Every day we came off the field, there was still lots of laughs and although it was tough situations at certain points, I think the girls really enjoyed it and some of the girls stepped up and hopefully we get some Test matches in the near future as well.”

Smith's T20 World Cup hopes hang by a thread as 'incredible' David shines again

by h716a5.icu Uncategorized

With two weeks to go before Australia’s tournament begins, it’s hard to see how Smith fits in the best XI

Alex Malcolm07-Oct-2022Steven Smith knows he needs to show intent now that he’s been shed of the ‘Mr Fix it’ role.”Just having that more attacking mindset rather than when I was playing that kind of role,” Smith said on Thursday. “I was probably in a more defensive frame of mind and almost just trying to get through without taking the game on as much.”The problem is, he’s not showing it. And he’s running out of time ahead of the World Cup as Tim David once again showed why he simply cannot be left out of Australia’s best side with a brilliant 42 off 20 in Australia’s victory over West Indies at the Gabba that sealed the series 2-0.Friday was the perfect chance for Smith. Back in the team in the absence of the rested Mitchell Marsh, he walked out at No. 4 as Australia continued to tinker with their line-up.Related

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David, Warner and Starc shine as Australia secure convincing win

But he started with four singles in nine balls. It wasn’t just that he couldn’t score. He scarcely played a shot in anger as he tried to find some feel on a tacky surface. In the meantime, David Warner fell for a scintillating 75 off 41 having watched four consecutive dot balls at the other end in the 11th over.Eight balls later Glenn Maxwell was run out trying to pinch a single that arguably wasn’t there to try and get back on strike as Smith continued to battle for timing.Smith wasn’t the only one to struggle. Aaron Finch made a torturous 15 off 19 with one boundary having shifted to No.3 after batting at No. 4 on Wednesday.But Finch is the captain and looks likely to open in the World Cup unless an injury sees Cameron Green come into the squad.For all of Finch’s struggles over the last 12 months, his strike-rate of 121.17 in that period looks electric compared to Smith’s 112.77. Finch has reached 20 in more than half his innings in that time. Smith has done it in just a third of his.Even in Smith’s best innings, he has struggled to make up for sluggish starts. In Pallekele, against Sri Lanka, he was 15 off 17 before he hit his first boundary and finished with 37 not out from 27. In Mohali last month against India, Smith was 9 off 8 while Green was striking at 200 at the other end. Smith finished with 35 off 24, striking at 145.83 when the combined strike-rate of the two teams was well above 170.Tim David smoked 42 off 20 balls•Getty ImagesUnlike David, Smith can’t make up the gap with raw power and he freely admits it.”I’m obviously not as strong and powerful as some of the other guys but some wickets entail just being smart and punching the ball and timing the ball really well as well,” Smith said the day before the Gabba match.But he hasn’t been able to do that. Warner’s innings was full of quality stroke play rather than raw power. He mixed crisp timing with superb running between the wickets. Smith at his best can do that. But he hasn’t been able to strike fear in the opposition’s bowlers in T20 cricket in the way he does in Test and 50-over cricket.David’s breathtaking hitting would have struck fear in Australia’s World Cup opponents as it has done in franchise cricket the world over. Yannic Cariah and Obed McCoy felt the full force as David swatted three sixes with a combination of easy swings and brute strength. Warner was in awe of David’s capabilities.”Now he’s in our team and our set-up, it’s a godsend,” Warner said post-match. “He’s an incredible player. Has some serious power so it boosts our middle order, and to come out and play like that and with his height as well and strength it suits us, that’s for sure.”Now where does he fit in the line-up as well and what’s his role? I think coming out and playing that role there perfectly, when it was a hard wicket to start on, really opens our eyes to okay, now how do we utilise that?”You don’t get these types of players every day. So it’s going to be good for us moving forward and hopefully there’s a spot there as well because the selectors have got a headache now I think.”While conventional thinking might see David’s emergence as a threat to Marcus Stoinis, given David has occupied the No.6 spot in the order and shown exceptional skill and adaptability in playing that role, the reality is David and Stoinis are not like for like given David does not bowl. Australia can’t carry four batters in their top six who don’t bowl when Marsh’s bowling fitness is still not guaranteed. Stoinis is set to return against England on Sunday in Perth and will be fit and needed to bowl.Smith has now become vulnerable to David the Goliath. Australia’s hierarchy had been confident Smith would come good in T20 cricket this year. Confident that the team’s best problem-solver would solve his strike-rate problem with more repetitions in the middle order.He now looks surplus to requirements in a team intent on defending their title.

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