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Pollard reiterates demand for another T20 tournament, in addition to the CPL, to “unearth new talent” for West Indies

Deivarayan Muthu31-Aug-2022With Andre Russell joining Trinbago Knight Riders and Nicholas Pooran returning to the line-up, they are dripping with experience and pedigree. With captain Kieron Pollard, Sunil Narine and Colin Munro also in the mix, Knight Riders can stake a claim for being the strongest T20 franchise side in the world. Pollard, though, refused to be drawn into comparisons with other T20 teams on the circuit, and pointed out that big names alone can’t guarantee success.”Yes, I’ve played for a lot of teams with a lot of great players, but obviously, when you look at the team on paper, we have world-class players and a lot of guys who have played around the world,” Pollard said. “Again, to say the strongest and go down that route, I don’t think we are looking at that.Related

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“We are looking at what we can achieve as a team and what we can do on the field as individuals, inclusive of what the team requires, and hopefully, with the experience of everyone, we can bind that together and show some sort of results when the time comes.”For the second time in less than a year, Pollard has called for a regional T20 tournament in addition to the CPL for identifying fresh talent. After West Indies had suffered an early exit in the 2021 T20 World Cup, Pollard had said that a domestic T20 tournament would help expand their talent pool.”I’ve been advocating it. I’ve said it after the last World Cup campaign as well. That is how a lot of cricketers have been unearthed in the Caribbean – through the local tournaments,” he said. “There is the CPL, which is great for the Caribbean players and great for the viewership as well and great for everybody, but in terms of the development – five overseas players coming and four can play at a time, which leaves seven locals. I don’t think that is enough to see the emerging talent. But, at the end of the day, the franchise owners and sponsors are putting in a lot of money to see good cricket. I don’t think they are just looking at development; they’re looking to be known on the global scene.”So, I’ve said [it before] and I’m going to say it again, yes, I think we need another tournament so we can continue to bridge the gap of getting our players through. 6ixty was a good start, but it’s only ten-over cricket, so guys have to go from ball one. We want to unearth new talent not only for T20 cricket, but for 50 overs and Test cricket as well, so that we can have longevity in the sport and compete at the highest level on a consistent basis.”St Kitts and Nevis Patriots are the defending CPL champions•Randy Brooks – CPL T20 / Getty

Bravo: ‘We can also be a dominant force in the CPL’
After winning CPL 2021 and the inaugural men’s 6ixty, St Kitts & Nevis Patriots have now set their sights on defending their CPL title to do a three-peat and establish themselves as a dominant force in the region, their captain Dwayne Bravo said.”Yeah, I’m very excited. Last season I made the decision to leave TKR and try to challenge myself in a different way to keep myself motivated for the game and try and help others develop their game and their cricket,” Bravo said. “I think I made the right decision at the right time and luckily enough, we won the trophy last season, which gave St Kitts & Nevis Patriots their first-ever CPL title. Three days ago, we also won the first ever Universe Boss Trophy.”It’s a good foundation that we started to build, and we started to believe, as a franchise and as a team, that we can also be a dominant force in the CPL and that’s our challenge. That’s our aim and we’re looking forward to defending our title. Not only that, but we also look forward to playing a brand of cricket that entertains fans and makes our franchise owners and the island of St Kitts & Nevis Patriots proud.”Dominic Drakes, who has been Bravo’s project since last season, has grown in leaps and bounds as a T20 allrounder. Bravo is eager to give him the platform to take his game to the next level in the forthcoming CPL and also create a team environment that allows the other players to thrive.Dwayne Bravo played with Dwaine Pretorius in the IPL, and decided to bring him to the Patriots•BCCI

“I’m very impressed with him [Drakes] and very happy with his development in the last 12-18 months. It’s my responsibility to make sure that he doesn’t fall back and keep pushing him and encouraging him,” Bravo said. “Not only Dominic, but so many other players who are involved this season – I want to see Sherfane Rutherford be dominant again. I want to see Evin Lewis follow up from his last season – he was our best player with the bat. Young [Dewald] Brevis… want to calm him down a bit because he has so much talent but sometimes, I think, can be reckless.”Looking forward to seeing my brother [Darren Bravo] get back into some good form – it’s a move for him from TKR as well. I think that change might do well for his cricket and for his career.”Bravo also revealed how he played a role in bringing South Africa allrounder Dwaine Pretorius into the CPL after the IPL, where they played together for Chennai Super Kings earlier this year. Pretorius has a collection of slower balls in his repertoire and often fronts up to bowl the tough overs. Does Bravo see a bit of himself in Pretorius?”Yeah, when I was there in the IPL with him, I asked him if he would be interested in playing CPL and he said ‘yes’. And so straightaway I made a phone call and talked to the owners and got on to his agent and now happy to have him here,” Bravo said. “I’m looking forward to his season because he’s someone very experienced and he’s very eager to learn and obviously, he has international experience, so it’s a good combination to have someone like him who has the experience and is still willing to learn.”

Treating these Tests almost as tour games for the series in South Africa, India were in no danger of the apparent disrespect to Sri Lanka, biting them on the backside instead

The Report by Sidharth Monga24-Nov-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
3:56

Chopra: Sri Lanka batsmen lacked in skill sets and temperament

Treating these Tests almost as tour games for the series in South Africa, India were in no danger of the apparent disrespect to Sri Lanka, biting them on the backside instead. For the sixth straight Test between these two sides, Sri Lanka failed to reach 300, getting bowled out for 205 after winning the toss on a pretty good batting surface. Ishant Sharma, replacing the injured Mohammed Shami, presented his claim to the first XI in South Africa with disciplined bowling and three wickets while R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja reclaimed their turf with seven wickets after both went wicketless in Kolkata.At the toss, India made it clear that they were thinking as much about South Africa as they were about Sri Lanka. The pitch, as expected, had grass on it in an attempt to prepare the hosts for their next tour. Rohit Sharma replaced a bowler in the XI just because they want him to have some game time before South Africa, where he might well be needed as the sixth batsman.The biggest gain keeping South Africa in mind, though, might have come in the field. Since he dropped Alastair Cook in Kolkata in 2012-13 – Cook went on to score 190 from 17 when he was let off – Cheteshwar Pujara has only rarely stood at slip for India. That alone will not be the reason for his banishment from the slips, but Pujara has continued to field at slip for Saurashtra. Now fielding at first slip in Shikhar Dhawan’s absence, Pujara pulled off an excellent low catch to his left, almost diving forward, to send back opener Sadeera Samarawickrama to make it 20 for 1 in the fifth over.This was a significant catch for two reasons. India usually have about a 50% success rate at slips for quick bowlers, and given this was a tough catch, it was an odds-on favourite to go down. And slip catches for quicks will be crucial in a month’s time in South Africa. Given he stays fit enough, Pujara could be an option India need to seriously think about.In the context of this Test, too, it was an important catch. In attempting to create the hard bouncy surface, Nagpur had rolled out a pretty friendly surface to begin with. There wasn’t disconcerting sideways movement in it, and it began to assist spin only later in the day. Sri Lanka had won the toss, and they had got off to a comfortable start. Samarawickrama, though, played an ill-advised drive on the up to give Ishant an early wicket.That wicket taken, India turned the screws with tight lines and lengths. Circumspect batsmen played into their hands. Hardly any runs came in the first session, even singles involved risking a run-out, and eventually led to a big risk seven minutes before lunch to give an India spinner a wicket for the first time in this series. R Ashwin was the man who struck in the 25th over when Lahiru Thirimanne played a big sweep after scoring just nine runs off 57 balls in the best batting conditions of the match.BCCI

Like buses, one nearly brought two as Ravindra Jadeja had Dimuth Karunanaratne stumped in his first over, but it turned out he had overstepped. That capped off a session sprinkled with good fortune for Karunaratane. He was on 14 when a 26-ball spell of no runs produced a risky single where he just about beat Pujara’s direct hit. Pressure not yet released, Karunaratne looked to go over mid-on a couple of overs later, but this time the overhead chance burst through Pujara’s hands.Kanrunaratne’s fortune continued post lunch as he survived an extremely tight lbw call through umpire’s call. His former skipper Angelo Mathews wasn’t as fortunate. Having shown some intent against Ashwin, Mathews missed a straight ball from Jadeja because his bat clipped the pad on its downswing and got displaced from the line of the ball. This one too returned an umpire’s call but had been given on the field.Karunaratne and current captain Dinesh Chandimal then put together the most assured-looking batting spell of the day in a 62-run partnership. Chandimal had to take a couple of risks in the beginning – including a thick-edged six off Ashwin – but he settled in nicely. The tandem act of spinners was broken, and Umesh Yadav brought easier runs. Ashwin now began to bowl a defensive line to Chandimal, on off and middle, which was half a victory.Just then, though, Karunaratne ran out of luck, and copped what in traditional sense was a rough lbw. From over the wicket, Ishant pitched short of a length and hit him in front. Barring appreciable seam movement, this ball had to either pitch outside leg or miss the stumps if it pitched within. The review, though, showed that the ball pitched within and shaped back in late and just enough to be clipping the off stump. This umpire’s call finally went against Karunaratne.Chandimal and Niroshan Dickwella then saw Sri Lanka through to tea with a purposeful 29-run stand but they had almost exhausted themselves in trying to maintain parity, that too just about. They might have held off wave after wave of India’s charge in the first two sessions but the dam broke in the hour after tea. The batsmen’s patience ran out and loose shots creeped in.Dickwella charged down recklessly to Jadeja, was beaten in the flight, and then saw the ball didn’t turn as expected to make it the worst possible outcome for him. Dasun Shanaka played for a big Ashwin offbreak, against the round-the-wicket angle and on the first day, which was recipe for the off stump to be flattened. Dilruwan Perera then fell to a non-turner from Jadeja; it had seemed only a matter of time.With the last three for company, Chandimal decided it was time for him to dominate the scoring. With India not providing him any free runs, Chandimal went for a big reverse slog, and was trapped lbw by Ashwin. Suranga Lakmal then swung around for a chancy 17 before Ishant came back to nick him off. Ashwin immediately wrapped things up with Rangana Herath’s wicket.There was some consolation for Sri Lanka in the wicket of KL Rahul, but they were now looking at the reunion of the old firm of M Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara, who have ground into dust the best of the lot at home.

‘He is the most in-form batsman in Australia at the moment,’ says Western Australia team-mate

Mohammad Isam and Andrew McGlashan20-Nov-2017Cameron Bancroft will be the first Australian opener to debut in an Ashes Test since Michael Slater in 1993, but his Western Australian team-mate Michael Klinger believes he has “the fire in the belly” to make a success of his elevation.Bancroft, who was previously selected for the postponed tour of Bangladesh last year, has ousted Matt Renshaw, the Queensland opener, after he endured a torrid start to his domestic season having shown promise early in his Test career.Bancroft’s numbers, which included an unbeaten 228 against South Australia, became impossible for the selectors to ignore and the main question as the squad approached was whether he would bat at No. 6 or become David Warner’s latest opening partner.Klinger has watched Bancroft’s development at close hand for WA and also recommended him to Gloucestershire as an overseas player in 2016. He has seen the player become more attuned his game and learn what sort of a batsman he wants to be.”I have been lucky enough to have a lot to do with Cameron,” Klinger, who is currently at the BPL, told ESPNcricinfo. “I batted quite a lot with him in the first couple of years in first-class cricket, I have spent a lot of time talking to him about cricket and just feeding off each other. I think he has learned a lot in the last two years.”I think he probably went through a period when he tried to over-score too much. He has gone back to batting long periods of time. He knows he has developed enough shots and skills. He knows if he bats for long periods of time, he can score freely. Mentally he has the fire in the belly to bat long periods.”While his double century in Perth earlier this month is the headline number from his season, it was a pair of half-centuries (76 not out and 86) against a New South Wales side boasting Australia’s Test attack that could well have done just as much to propel him to his first baggy green.”Last year he probably didn’t have as good a year he would have liked,” Klinger said. “He started this year brilliantly in the one-day competition and certainly in the Sheffield Shield to come and score, I think, 70 and 80 against an attack that had Starc, Hazlewood, Cummins and Lyon was a super effort. To finish off with a 200-odd not out sealed the deal. He deserves his spot. He is the most in-form batsman in Australia at the moment.”And Klinger had no doubt that he would be able to handle the pressure that comes with not only a Test debut, but in an opening Ashes Test.”I think he has been waiting for a while now. You won’t find a harder trainer than him, certainly. He is very astute. I am looking forward to seeing him how he will cope with the pressure. There’s no doubt he will cope really well. He will make sure he will have everything in place and ready to go.”

Hardik Pandya moves to eighth in the allrounders’ list

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Jul-2022South Africa batter Rassie van der Dussen has achieved his career-best third position in the ICC ODI rankings after his match-winning 134 against England in the first ODI. Van der Dussen now has 796 rating points, with only Babar Azam (892) and Imam-ul-Haq (815) placed higher than him.Among bowlers, Jasprit Bumrah has lost his top spot in ODI rankings to Trent Boult after sitting out of the final match against England with back spasms.Aiden Markram, who also contributed 77 in South Africa’s 62-run victory, jumped 15 places to be No. 61, while David Miller also moved up by one position to be 16th.

Full rankings tables

• Click here for the full team rankings

• Click here for the full player rankings

Another batter who gained significantly in the rankings was Rishabh Pant, who scored an unbeaten 125 against England in the final ODI. The wicketkeeper-batter moved 25 slots to be placed 52nd. His team-mate Hardik Pandya, who hit a 55-ball 71 in the same match and picked up six wickets in the series, gained eight spots to occupy 42nd place in the batters’ list and 13 spots to move to eighth in the allrounders’ list. He also moved up 25 places to be 70th among bowlers.Bangladesh batters Tamim Iqbal and Litton Das climbed two spots each to be 17th and 30th, respectively, after Bangladesh’s 3-0 win over West Indies.On the bowling front, apart from Boult reclaiming his top place, his compatriot Matt Henry moved up by a place to be seventh, while Yuzvendra Chahal was up by four spots to be at 16th position. The legspinner ended with seven wickets in three ODIs against England.In the T20I rankings, Glenn Phillips of New Zealand gained five places to reach 30th position, having cracked an unbeaten 69 against Ireland in the first T20I at Belfast while his team-mate and fast bowler Lockie Ferguson has climbed 25 slots to be at 40th following his 4 for 14.

Wicketkeeper proud of record stands with Mitchell, but admits team ‘haven’t been quite there’

Matt Roller26-Jun-2022Tom Blundell said that New Zealand have “got to fight” on the final day of the Headingley Test in their bid to avoid a 3-0 whitewash, but retains hope that the pitch deteriorating will help them create eight opportunities and bowl England out with only 113 more runs required to win.Blundell was unbeaten on 88 as New Zealand were bowled out for 326 in their second innings to set England 296, but an unbroken third-wicket stand of 132 runs in 26.5 overs between Ollie Pope and Joe Root has put them on back foot.”This team has been known to fight and we’ve got to come out there and do that tomorrow,” Blundell said. “You put a couple of wickets on there and you just never know. Obviously you’ve got two guys out there in good form but if we get one of those, who knows.”The wicket is deteriorating. A little bit of variable bounce, obviously with the spin as well. It’s quite hard to drive with that older ball. It looks like it’s going to deteriorate even more and hopefully we can utilise that tomorrow.”Blundell will finish the series with three fifties and a hundred to his name and an average of 76.60. He has consolidated his position as BJ Watling’s replacement and shared four century partnerships with Daryl Mitchell, but said that the tour had ultimately been “disappointing” after defeats in the first two Tests.”It’s obviously disappointing: as a group we probably haven’t been quite there,” he said. “Who knows tomorrow. On a personal note, it’s been fantastic to bat with Daryl and have those partnerships, it’s just unfortunate that a couple of results haven’t really gone our way.”Jack Leach, who took his second five-for of the match to complete the first ten-wicket haul of his career, said it had been “amazing to experience and be a part of” the England dressing room throughout the series since Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes were appointed as coach and captain respectively.Related

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Leach was due to come in next if a wicket had fallen in the final 20 minutes of the fourth day and joked that Stokes had told him he would be used as a “night-pinch-hitter” rather than a nightwatchman.”It was the longest 20 minutes padded up as nightwatchman,” he told Sky Sports. “I stuck my head out the window and I said, ‘are we still going for this tonight if I get in?’ Stokesy said it’s a night-pinch-hitter now. But no, I would have been trying to survive [until] the morning and then have a swing.”It’s a challenging surface, it’s day four and things are happening, so the way Popey and Rooty especially played there was really good to watch. We’ve got to come back tomorrow and do the good things again but it’s just a positive mentality. You realise how many decisions in cricket are based maybe around negativity.”This new way, if you like, is extremely positive. It feels like in a lot of four or five-day games, you give up on the win quite early in the game, whereas [in this England team] it feels like you’re always pushing for that win. That’s obviously going to be tested – and is being tested now, because we need 100 more on a day-five wicket.”

RCB captain du Plessis says Kohli is in good spirits and is seeing the “lighter side of it”

Sidharth Monga13-May-2022Virat Kohli believes a big innings is around the corner, his IPL captain Faf du Plessis has said, and the Royal Challengers Bangalore coach Mike Hesson is not ruling out that big innings in their final league match, which could well be a must-win affair.Kohli has not scored an international century since the end of 2019, but his T20 batting has been cause for bigger concern. In this IPL, he has scored three golden ducks, has been run out twice, and on Friday he managed to get caught at short fine leg off his thigh pad, which left him frustrated because he had got himself in and was looking good.”He is seeing the lighter side of it,” du Plessis said. “Every single way you can think possibly to get out. Just how the game works, doesn’t it? Sometimes when you are under pressure, the game finds ways to keep you under pressure. What you can really do is keep working hard, keep up a good intensity, a good attitude, keep staying positive, knowing that it’s around the corner. He played some really good shots tonight. Obviously he would have liked to have kept going but he is handling it really well. Tough patches are difficult for all of us but he is in good spirits. He also believes it is around the corner.”Related

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Hesson also spoke of Kohli’s poor luck. “Virat, I thought, looked very good today,” Hesson said. “He looked in good touch, he was aggressive, and he is doing everything off the park as well in terms of making sure he prepares well. I thought today was going to be his day but once again… it hits the other side of the thigh pad and goes down and he gets a single. He hasn’t had a huge amount of huge fortune especially when he has got himself set, when he has got himself in. He is as frustrated as anybody. We thought today was going to be the day.”Hesson doesn’t believe much is wrong with Kohli’s game. “Look he is the best we have ever had in terms of RCB,” Hesson said when asked what was going wrong. “He is an incredible player. He hasn’t scored the volume of runs he would have liked. Today he looked in really good touch. It is not a technical thing. As I said, he is putting in a lot of work behind the scenes. He looked in really good touch today. He was unfortunate. I thought we were going to see something special. Virat is as frustrated as anyone but we know that the epic one is around the corner. We have got a huge game coming up. So there is no reason why it won’t be in a few days’ time.”Kohli’s lack of big runs in any format of cricket has been a matter of debate over the last year or so. During this period he has given up – in phases – his India captaincy and also RCB captaincy. His former India coach and confidante Ravi Shastri has said he is overcooked and needs a break.

The hosts are seeking their first series victory over Australia and only their fourth overall since being granted Test status in 2000

The Preview by Daniel Brettig03-Sep-20172:42

Isam: Rain threat looms over Chittagong Test

Big Picture

Australia’s desire to keep its rare Test series against Bangladesh as brief as possible has had the unintended consequence of meaning that Steven Smith’s team can now do no better than tie the series following their narrow defeat in Mirpur. Equally it means Bangladesh are themselves within touching distance of their most significant series victory in 17 mostly faltering years of Test cricket. Their other wins have come against Zimbabwe (twice) and the West Indies, both of whom have spent much of that time propping up the bottom of the ICC’s rankings table – besting Australia would be another matter entirely.The visitors will likely be better for the run last week, having not previously had any competitive cricket leading into it. However, their team composition is shrouded in conjecture as doubts swirl around the places of Usman Khawaja and Matthew Wade in particular. Wade, at least, has the knowledge that his only possible replacement is the part-time wicketkeeper Peter Handscomb, who notably trained for his more customary short leg posting at the team’s main session on Saturday. However, Khawaja could find himself missing out in place of the allrounder Hilton Cartwright, creating room for the unexpected return of Steve O’Keefe and leaving Pat Cummins as the only paceman. Bangladesh look altogether more settled in comparison.Perhaps the biggest obstacle to Bangladesh in Chittagong will be mental, simply getting used to the idea that a series defeat of Australia is not just a possibility but an opportunity waiting to be taken. But after significant Test wins over England and Sri Lanka in the past 12 months, it would be the logical next step in the team’s evolution. Australia, by contrast, need a victory to offer evidence of progress away from home, and also to bolster confidence ahead of a home Ashes series in much friendlier climes. All this is without mentioning that the weather forecast for Chittagong over the next five days is far from promising – another variable given added weight by the scheduling of a mere two Tests.

Form guide

Bangladesh WWLLL(completed matches, most recent first)
Australia LLDLW

In the spotlight

Not only did Mehidy Hasan prove the ideal foil for Shakib Al Hasan in Mirpur, his skilful use of a line around the wicket created plenty of problems for Australia’s captain and key batsman in Smith. As a better known quantity for the Australians second time around, Mehidy will have lost some of his mystery, and it will be intriguing to see whether he can ask different questions of batsmen who have also seen the advantage of David Warner’s decisive approach in the second innings.Whether or not Australia choose two spin bowlers or three, Pat Cummins, asked to bowl swiftly and well in back-to-back Tests, will be the spearhead of the attack. For so long unavailable due to persistent injuries, Cummins now finds his stamina tested and also his ability to operate as a senior bowler, dialling up or down depending on what his captain requires. As Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc both convalesce, Cummins’ wellness and effectiveness will be closely monitored not only by Australia and Bangladesh, but also England.Matthew Wade’s place in the Australia XI is under heavy scrutiny•Getty Images

Team news

Bangladesh will most likely keep the same side that prevailed in Mirpur, with the only possible change being allrounder Nasir Hossain left out in favour of batsman Mominul Haque.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Soumya Sarkar, 3 Imrul Kayes, 4 Sabbir Rahman, 5 Shakib Al Hasan, 6 Mushfiqur Rahim (capt & wk), 7 Nasir Hossain/Mominul Haque, 8 Mehidy Hasan, 9 Taijul Islam, 10 Shafiul Islam, 11 Mustafizur Rahman.Seldom has more doubt surrounded the composition of an Australian Test XI, as Khawaja and Wade both find themselves under heavy scrutiny in addition to the place opened up by Hazlewood’s side strain. Hilton Cartwright, the just-flown-in O’Keefe and Jackson Bird are all possible inclusions, but the team’s final composition will not be known until the toss.Australia (probable): 1 David Warner, 2 Matt Renshaw, 3 Steven Smith (capt), 4 Peter Handscomb, 5 Glenn Maxwell, 6 Hilton Cartwright, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 Ashton Agar, 9 Steve O’Keefe, 10 Pat Cummins, 11 Nathan Lyon.

Pitch and conditions

The Chittagong surface looked rock hard but can be expected to take spin. The weather forecast is far from promising, as rain is expected on all five scheduled days of the Test.

Stats and trivia

• Bangladesh are seeking their first series victory over Australia and only their fourth in all series since entering the Test arena in 2000. The others were against Zimbabwe in 2005 and 2014, and against the West Indies in 2009.
• Australia’s previous Test appearance in Chittagong reaped an innings-and-80-run victory for the visitors in 2006, a match remembered for Jason Gillespie’s double-century as a nightwatchman.
• Defeat in Chittagong would see Australia will drop to sixth on the ICC Test rankings, their lowest position on the table since it began in 2003. A win or draw would slip them down from fourth to fifth. Bangladesh will climb from ninth to eighth with a win or a draw.

Quotes

“I hate losing games of cricket. It wasn’t a nice end to the game but again I’m confident again this week that we can come out and hopefully play with a good skillset and turn things around. It’s important for this group moving forward. We just need to play better cricket for longer and hopefully stay in the contest and get the result we’re after.”
“They know they are under pressure, because normally they announce the XI. In this case they haven’t announced the XI. But the Australia team are very strong and they will come back hard. We know that. But our boys are also pretty fresh and they are very consistent in Chittagong also. So if we do the right things I think the result will come our way.”

Mac Wright was left unbeaten on 78 when Tasmania’s tail fell swiftly in the final session

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Feb-2022New South Wales 276 (Kerr 88) and 9 for 226 dec (J Sangha 75, Gilkes 64) beat Tasmania 213 (Wright 57, Doran 54, Tremain 5-48) and 214 (Wright 78*, Copeland 4-46) by 75 runsTrent Copeland and Jack Edwards were the key wicket-takers for New South Wales as they made it back-to-back Sheffield Shield wins with a hard-fought 74-run victory over Tasmania.Mac Wright played excellently for an unbeaten 78, to follow a half-century in the first innings, and Tasmania were still in with a chance of chasing down 290 in the final session before the last four wickets fell for 14 to a combination of Copeland and Chris Tremain.Copeland had earlier claimed his 400th first-class wicket when he produced a beauty which nipped back to bowl Beau Webster.Tasmania’s top order had made the home side work hard to add to the wicket they claimed on the third evening. Legspinner Tanveer Sangha provided the first breakthrough when he produced a good delivery to defeat Tim Ward then shortly before lunch Harry Conway found Eamonn Vines’ outside edge from around the wicket to end a 112-ball stay.Edwards’ part-time medium pace made an important impact during the afternoon when he lured Jake Doran into a drive which found point and he added a second early in the final session with a superb delivery to clean up Nivethan Radhakrishnan.At six down with and 127 still needed Tasmania might have considered trying to hang on but Tom Andrews played aggressively to move along at a run-a-ball as he and Wright added 37 in seven overs to bring the requirement down to double figures.But Andrews picked out mid-on against Copeland and the lower order went quickly. Jackson Bird was bowled by a delivery that kept low, Sam Rainbird’s off stump was nicked by Copeland and captain Kurtis Patterson held a good catch at mid-off from Peter Siddle to wrap up the match