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On paper, Afghanistan look far stronger, but Uganda have reached here the hard way and will want to make a big impression

Mohammad Isam03-Jun-20243:08

Spinners in focus in Afghanistan vs Uganda encounter

Match details

Afghanistan vs Uganda
Providence, 7.30pm local

Big picture – Can Uganda make it a debut to remember?

It has been a long road for Uganda to the T20 World Cup 2024 but they are here by right, and now have a chance to make a big mark.Their first opponents, however, are not the sort you want to face when trying to ease into the top flight. Afghanistan are a team bristling with talent and ambition after finishing sixth in the 2023 ODI World Cup. They beat England, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Netherlands in an impressive run, and might just have finished stronger had it not been for a once-in-a-lifetime innings from Glenn Maxwell.At this World Cup, Afghanistan would want to finish things off quickly against Uganda in the first game and later Papua New Guinea, the Associates in their group, because co-hosts West Indies and New Zealand are also in the same group, so Super Eight qualification could get tricky. And that’s not counting for upsets, as PNG threatened to pull off against West Indies.Related

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Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran will be expected to give them a quick start. Their spin trio of captain Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman make up one of the most formidable T20I spin attack. Fazalhaq Farooqi and Naveen-ul-Haq are reputed T20 quicks, while allrounder Azmatullah Omarzai is a rising star. It’s a team with a lot of T20 class.But Afghanistan’s batters will have to be watchful against Uganda, who have as many as three left-arm fingerspinners in their ranks. Apart from Najibullah Zadran, none of the likely starters among the batters are left-hand batters. Uganda, on the other hand, have some variety in their bowling, which opponents have to watch out for.They got to the World Cup through the Africa qualifiers, where they beat Zimbabwe by five wickets. It was their first win against a Full Member side, and one that has raised their hopes. They will bank on batter Roger Mukasa, allrounders Riazat Ali Shah and Alpesh Ramjani, and left-arm spinner Henry Ssenyondo, all regular performers.It could become an interesting battle, despite the gulf between the two sides. And if Uganda want some inspiration from history, they could look back at this game from 2009.

Form guide

Afghanistan WWLWL
Uganda WLWWWGetting past Zimbabwe to make the T20 World Cup was a stirring story for Uganda•International Cricket Council

In the spotlight – Azmatullah Omarzai and Alpesh Ramjani

Azmatullah Omarzai was among the top-performing allrounders at the ODI World Cup last year. His 353 runs and seven wickets were comparable to the numbers of Rachin Ravindra and Maxwell among those who scored at least 300 runs and took five wickets. Omarzai doesn’t have great numbers in T20s yet, but Afghanistan see the 24-year-old as one for the future, as did Gujarat Titans in IPL 2024. He will bat in the middle order, and his swing bowling might come in handy in the powerplay too.Allrounders are Uganda’s strength, and Alpesh Ramjani is the leader of that pack with his 469 runs and 65 wickets since 2023. Ramjani bats in the middle order and bowls left-arm spin. A product of Mumbai’s famed cricket structure, he played with the likes of Shivam Dube, and considers Suryakumar Yadav as a mentor. Ramjani moved to Uganda in 2021 at the advice of current team-mate Dinesh Nakrani, and made his international debut in 2022.

Team news

Afghanistan are likely to play Omarzai, Gulbadin Naib and Karim Janat, all seam-bowling allrounders, alongside Naveen and Farooqi. It will give them batting cushion down to No. 8.Afghanistan (probable): 1 Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), 2 Ibrahim Zadran, 3 Gulbadin Naib, 4 Azmatullah Omarzai, 5 Mohammad Nabi, 6 Najibullah Zadran, 7 Rashid Khan (capt), 8 Karim Janat, 9 Mujeeb Ur Rahman, 10 Naveen-ul-Haq, 11 Fazalhaq FarooqiMukasa and Simon Ssesazi are a solid opening pair for Uganda, while Riazat, Nakrani and Ramjani form the all-round core of the side. They can field three left-arm spinners, including captain Brian Masaba, depending on the conditions.Uganda (probable): 1 Roger Mukasa, 2 Simon Ssesazi, 3 Robinson Obuya, 4 Riazat Ali Shah, 5 Dinesh Nakrani, 6 Alpesh Ramjani, 7 Kenneth Waiswa, 8 Fred Achelam (wk), 9 Bilal Hassun, 10 Brian Masaba (capt), 11 Henry Ssenyondo0:50

Which team is the likeliest to be upset?

Pitch and conditions

In the last 12 months, teams have had to score 190-plus on average to win games at the Guyana National Stadium. The surface is slow traditionally. There’s a bit of rain forecast for the evening.

Stats that matter

• Among Full Members, Ibrahim and Gurbaz are T20Is’ second-most prolific pair since the end of the 2022 T20 World Cup for any pair to have batted at least ten times. They have scored 503 runs at an average of 41.91 in this period, with a hundred and three fifty stands.
• Ramjani (55) and Ssenyondo (49) were the top-two wicket-takers in T20Is in 2023.
• Mukasa was the second-highest T20I run-scorer in 2023 with 738 runs, five ahead of Suryakumar, who had 733 runs.
• Nabi is Afghanistan’s only surviving member from the 2010 edition of the T20 World Cup.
• Frank Nsubuga, at 43, is the oldest player in the tournament.

Quotes

“I think it’s a good sign for us as a team. We have those players who played recently here in the CPL, and they got that experience. And we share that experience with the boys. But I think in ICC [events], you always expect something different.”

With the SSC pitch not expected to be as spin-friendly as in the past, both teams could add an extra quick bowler in their XIs

Andrew Fidel Fernando01-Feb-2024

Big picture: A fresh chapter for Sri Lanka

The Afghanistan men’s team has played seven Tests in their history; for Sri Lanka, this is the first of eight (perhaps nine) scheduled for 2024. This is, on the surface, a mismatch.Rashid Khan is not with Afghanistan to provide his menacing legbreaks and general inspiration – he is still recovering from back surgery, and has not played competitive cricket since November. Their most experienced spinner in a nation where spin frequently decides matches is left-arm wristspinner Zahir Khan, who has an average of 44.90 from his four Tests. And having arrived in Sri Lanka only on Tuesday night, they have given themselves less than three days to acclimatise. This, increasingly, is the amount of respect Tests are given in some parts of the world.Where Afghanistan will feel they can meet Sri Lanka on more equal terms, however, is with the bat. In the shorter formats, Ibrahim Zadran has had success against Sri Lanka, as has Rahmat Shah, while captain Hashmatullah Shahidi averages 53.57 in Test cricket. In the ODIs Afghanistan have played in Sri Lanka, it is their batting that has most impressed. They will take no little confidence in their recent dominance over Sri Lanka’s bowling in that format.Sri Lanka are at the beginning of a fresh chapter – Dhananjaya de Silva is getting his first Test at the helm. So far, he has not promised anything radical. A greater emphasis on fielding, perhaps, but no wholesale overhauling of strategy or personnel. He has been a dynamic presence in the Sri Lanka Test side, having lately grown into a decent lower-middle-order batter, who contributes substantially with ball and in the field as well. How he marshals an attack without any out-and-out matchwinners and how frequently he bowls himself will make for fascinating viewing.

Form guide

Sri Lanka LLWWL (last five Tests, most recent first)
Afghanistan LWLLWIf there are good batting days at SSC, expect Dimuth Karunaratne to cash in•AFP/Getty Images

In the spotlight: Dimuth Karunaratne and Ibrahim Zadran

Dimuth Karunaratne had asked to step down from the captaincy after the last World Test Championship cycle. The selectors had asked him to hang on for one more year, but have now finally let him go. Karunaratne is the only Sri Lanka player to have made the ICC’s Test teams of the year since 2017 – he has been there three times, including in 2023 – and, since the start of 2021, has averaged 56.18, outstanding for an opener. If there are good batting days at SSC, which is his home ground in domestic cricket, expect him to cash in.Ibrahim Zadran‘s ODI scores against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka are: 22, 54, 98, 162, 10, 106. It is around him that the top order has tended to rally on the island, and from him they have taken cues on how to play spin. He has not been quite so consistent in Tests, with three fifties in the ten innings he has played so far. But with the SSC surface expected to be decent for batting over the first three days (and particularly after the first morning), Ibrahim is best placed from his side to make a substantial score.

Team news

Sri Lanka have a settled batting order but may toy with the idea of playing a third seamer if they feel Afghanistan are susceptible to good seam bowling.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Dimuth Karunaratne, 2 Nishan Madushka, 3 Kusal Mendis, 4 Angelo Mathews, 5 Dinesh Chandimal, 6 Dhananjaya de Silva (capt), 7 Sadeera Samarawickrama (wk), 8 Ramesh Mendis/Kasun Rajitha, 9 Prabath Jayasuriya, 10 Asitha Fernando, 11 Vishwa FernandoShahidi spoke on the eve of the match about testing Sri Lanka’s batters with pace, which could mean that Mohammad Saleem is in for a Test debut. Zahir will likely be among the frontline spinners, with left-arm fingerspinner Zia-ur-Rehman another possible option, especially as Zia can add value with the bat.Afghanistan (probable): 1 Ibrahim Zadran, 2 Abdul Malik, 3 Rahmat Shah, 4 Hashmatullah Shahidi (capt), 5 Nasir Jamal, 6 Bahir Shah, 7 Ikram Alikhil (wk), 8 Zia-ur-Rehman, 9 Yamin Ahmadzai, 10 Mohammad Saleem, 11 Zahir KhanMohammad Saleem could get a Test debut if Afghanistan feel Sri Lanka can be troubled by pace•AFP/Getty Images

Pitch and conditions

There was a tinge of green at the SSC on the eve of the game, which suggests there will be some seam movement on the first morning. Expect it to flatten out and get better for spin later, however. At first glance, this did not seem the spinner’s paradise the SSC has often been for Tests over the past six years. The weather has been relatively dry in Colombo over February. Only brief showers are forecast.

Stats and trivia

• Karunaratne has scored more runs and more hundreds as an opener than any other Sri Lanka batter. He has 6538 runs when opening the batting, with 16 hundreds. Sanath Jayasuriya is in second with 5932 runs.
• Afghanistan won three of their first six Tests. By comparison, Sri Lanka took 42 Tests to notch three wins.
• With this match, Sri Lanka become only the second team to have played all 11 men’s Test nations, Bangladesh having been the first.

Bids were due to be submitted by December 22, but after the meeting between the PM and PCB head, bidders were informed that the process would be delayed

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Dec-2023The bidding for the broadcast and media rights for the PSL has been delayed by two weeks to the beginning of January, meaning the ninth season of the league will only land a broadcast deal a month before it is due to start. Though bids will be submitted to the PCB, the winner will have to be approved by IPC, the government’s ministry for inter-provincial coordination.The delay once again highlights the limitations of the current interim PCB administration, which is under a government mandate to only make decisions on day-to-day affairs and organise elections to set up the Board of Governors. Zaka Ashraf, the current PCB head, met with the interim Prime Minister and patron of the PCB in Islamabad earlier in the week and was told once again that organising the elections and managing daily affairs were his priority.”The Prime Minister/Patron PCB directed PCB that all decisions having financial and contractual implications shall only be taken with the approval of Prime Minister/Patron PCB,” reads a note sent by the IPC to Ashraf after the meeting, and seen by ESPNcricinfo. “Any appointment or awards of rights or contracts of any sort will be violation of the directions of Patron PCB.”The note ends with another reminder that no progress report has been given by the PCB on the organisation of its elections.Related

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Technical bids for PSL broadcast were due to be submitted by December 22, but after the meeting between the Prime Minister and Ashraf, potential bidders were informed by the PCB that the process would be delayed. The PSL’s broadcast rights have been an important source of revenue for the PCB, fetching USD 24 million for two seasons under the deal just ended. That, in itself, represented a 50% boost on the preceding deal.It is believed the new deal will be for two seasons, in 2024 and 2025. A number of local sports channels are expected to submit bids and there has been speculation about multiple broadcasters forming a consortium to submit bids. Traditionally, the PSL is broadcast live on multiple channels available for viewing in Pakistan, including PTV (Pakistan Television, the state-run broadcaster).Though the draft for the ninth season was held last week, a schedule has not yet been finalised for the ninth season. The start of the season is complicated by general nationwide elections in the country from February 8. The tenure for the current administration also ends on February 4. It is likely the season will begin in mid-February and though there had been talk of moving the start to the UAE, it will go ahead in Pakistan.It is unusual for the state to be directly involved in approving broadcast deals, but it illustrates the administrative limbo the game is in Pakistan at the moment. Because the authority of the administration is so limited, they have been unable to fire the previous team management set-up, but have new personnel in place. Mickey Arthur, the former team director, and Grant Bradburn, the head coach, have been replaced by Mohammad Hafeez in both capacities, but neither of them have been officially ousted by the board. When Ashraf’s tenure ends, and depending on the new government post-elections, it is very likely a new PCB administration will be in place, which may involve yet more upheaval.

Fifties for Alsop, Ibrahim and Haines go begging in narrow loss for Sussex

ECB Reporters Network22-Aug-2023Ed Barnard continued his outstanding form in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup with his second successive century as Warwickshire scrambled to a one-wicket win over Sussex Sharks at Hove to seal top spot in Group B and a home semi-final on 29 August.The 27-year-old all-rounder, who had earlier taken his 11th wicket in this season’s competition, took his aggregate to 590 runs with 100, two days after he’d made 161 – his maiden List A century – against Durham. He has also scored three fifties.Sussex had fancied their chances of ending a dismal campaign with only their second win when they had Warwickshire 126 for 4 halfway through their pursuit of 276 and again when they removed Barnard and Ethan Brookes, who’d put on 78 for the fifth wicket, in successive overs with 64 still needed.

Knockout fixtures

Quarter-finals: Gloucestershire vs Lancashire (August 25), Hampshire vs Worcestershire (August 27)
Semi-finals: Warwickshire vs Hampshire/Worcestershire (August 29), Leicestershire vs Gloucestershire/Lancashire (August 29)
The final (September 16)

Jake Lintott hit a breezy 28 but Henry Crocombe picked up two wickets to keep Sussex in contention and when last man Oliver Hannon-Dalby walked out Warwickshire still needed 13 off 16 balls.Sussex had one last opportunity but sub fielder Zach Lion-Cachet dropped Danny Briggs on the boundary and Briggs swung the next ball over mid-on for four to seal his team’s seventh win out of eight.Barnard and Rob Yates had begun with 83 in 13 overs for the first wicket, but their progress was checked by three wickets in six overs, two of them for allrounder Dan Ibrahim, who found some extra seam movement to defeat Yates while Alex Davies played on. Skipper Will Rhodes drove to mid-off and Jake Bethell under-edged to the keeper before Barnard and Brookes rebuilt.Barnard was stumped giving off-spinner James Coles the charge, having hit nine fours and twice cleared the short boundary on the eastern side while Brookes (43) was leg before sweeping Bertie Foreman in the next over.For Sussex it was a seventh defeat in their eight games, a bitter disappointment after they reached the last four a year ago, although this was a much better performance.Put in by Rhodes, their 275 for 8 featured three half-centuries, but no one was able to push on and make the big score that would have given them a more competitive total on a slow pitch.Tom Alsop top scored with 68 – his first fifty of the tournament – and Tom Haines hit 55 – his fourth half-century – before Ibrahim made it back-to-back fifties as he added 65 for the seventh wicket with Foreman – another 19-year-old – as 93 were plundered off the last ten overs.At least Sussex made a decent total without a major contribution from Cheteshwar Pujara, who was leg before to Henry Brookes for 23 from 40 balls and looked unusually out of sorts.Warwickshire bowled tightly. The competition’s leading wicket-taker Hannon-Dalby claimed his 24th victim when Ibrahim feathered an edge to wicketkeeper Kai Smith and there were two wickets for leg-spinner Lintott, who pinned Haines leg before to end a second-wicket stand of 83 with Alsop.Alsop has been in poor form in the tournament with single-figure scores in five of his previous seven innings but looked more assured until holing out in the deep to give Lintott a second wicket.Ibrahim and Foreman swelled the total in the closing overs, their partnership spanning just 35 balls with Ibrahim’s 56 coming from 46 deliveries.

Tom Alsop, James Coles add fifties on shortened second day in Bristol

ECB Reporters Network28-Apr-2023A trademark defensive masterclass from captain Cheteshwar Pujara batted Sussex into a promising position on the second day of the rain-affected LV= County Championship match with Gloucestershire at Bristol.After a delayed start at 1.50pm due to a saturated outfield, the visitors took their first innings total from 47 for 1 to 302 for 4, India Test star Pujara leading the way with 99 not out, one short of his 58th first-class century, while Tom Alsop contributed 67 and James Coles a career-best 74.Zafar Gohar was the most successful Gloucestershire bowler with 2 for 67. But even his efforts on a docile surface could not unsettle the patient Pujara, who by the close had faced 190 balls and hit 13 fours and a six.Warm sunshine and a drying breeze dispelled fears of a second day washout after only 16 overs had been possible on day one before persistent heavy rain left standing water on an already wet outfield.Umpires Billy Taylor and Mark Newell decided play could resume after inspections at 11am, 12.30pm and 1.20pm. Gloucestershire skipper Graeme van Buuren opted to open the bowling with left-arm spinner Gohar and it paid quick dividends.Ali Orr, having added five to his overnight score of 31, went to reverse sweep the first ball of the third over and only succeeded in top-edging a gentle catch to wicketkeeper James Bracey, making the score 58 for 2.Having advanced from 11 to 34, Alsop survived a sharp chance to Miles Hammond at gully off Marchant de Lange, the ball stinging the tips of the fielder’s fingers on the way to the third-man boundary. It was all the good fortune the Sussex left-hander needed to progress to fifty, off 123 balls, with 6 fours, out of a total of 111 for 2.Ominously for Gloucestershire, Pujara looked to be setting his stall out for a long innings from the moment he took strike. The experienced India Test batter exercised great caution, particularly against the accurate de Lange, who had figures of 1 for 17 after 11 overs, four of them maidens.Pujara took 78 balls to reach 19, but then cut loose with a pulled four off de Lange and a square cut boundary off Gohar. By tea, which was taken at 4pm, Sussex had made 138 for 2 from 49 overs, with Alsop on 63 and Pujara on 28. The visitors were clearly intent on only batting once in a match already heavily curtailed by the weather.The final session began with Ajeet Dale going past the inside edge of Alsop’s bat, the ball swinging late and beating Bracey to add four byes to the total. Dale troubled both batsmen from the Ashley Down Road End, working up decent pace on the slow pitch, and got his reward when Alsop edged a defensive shot to first slip where Chris Dent held the catch into his midriff.At 158 for 3, Sussex needed to rebuild. But by then Pujara had moved on to 40 off 108 deliveries and looked well set. He was joined by a player more than 16 years his junior in England Under-19 international Coles.With the Seat Unique Stadium bathed in sunshine, Pujara moved to his half-century, having batted for almost exactly three hours and hit eight fours. He celebrated with a glorious driven boundary through extra cover off van Buuren, an indication of the fund of attacking shots in his locker when he chooses to unleash them, while Coles looked untroubled in sharing a century stand in 24 overs.The nearest Pujara came to getting out was an inside edge past his leg stump off Gofar. He responded by cutting two boundaries off the left-arm spinner’s next over.Gloucestershire took the second new ball after 80 overs, with the scoreboard reading 258 for 3. But it made no impact as Coles reached a fluent and chanceless fifty off 85 balls, with six fours. The 19-year-old fell in the final over of the day, stumped moving down the pitch to Gohar in an effort to give Pujara the strike.The Indian maestro is unlikely to lose any sleep over being on 99 and will look to add significantly more on day three.

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.

He is currently placed in isolation, and the match is expected to go ahead as scheduled

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Feb-2022Sri Lanka allrounder Wanindu Hasaranga has returned a Covid-19 positive Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) on the morning of the third T20I against Australia in Canberra. He is currently placed in isolation, and the match is expected to go ahead as scheduled.Hasaranga is the third member of the touring party to test positive for the virus after Kusal Mendis and Binura Fernando. Mendis, who returned a positive test on February 7, is expected to be available for selection for the third T20I after serving a seven-day isolation. Fernando, meanwhile, has been ruled out of the T20I series after testing positive on Saturday, the day after the series opener in Sydney.According to Arjuna de Silva, head of SLC’s medical department, Hasaranga will certainly miss the rest of the tour with Australian government protocols requiring a minimum seven-day isolation period upon contracting the virus. The series ends with the fifth T20I on February 20 in Melbourne.Hasaranga is also understood to be showing mild symptoms, but SLC are hopeful of having him back for next month’s tour of India.”He has some mild symptoms, some body aches,” de Silva said. “We think he probably contracted it from Binura. Unfortunately there’s no way that he’ll be able to play again on the tour, as he can only start training after three negative PCRs. After this tour, we’re going straight to India, so the aim now is to get him fit for that.”Hasaranga played in the first and the second T20Is, picking up a total of five wickets.Over the weekend, Hasaranga also bagged a big IPL deal when he was bought back by Royal Challengers Bangalore for INR 10.75 crore (USD 1.43 million). Hasaranga’s first team was also Royal Challengers and he had played two matches for them in IPL 2021.

Durham seamer draws level with Graham Onions after five-wicket haul

ECB Reporters Network14-May-2021Durham 246 (Lees 99, Tongue 5-39) and 79 for 1 lead Worcestershire 213 (Fell 44, Leach 42*, Rushworth 5-56) by 112 runs Chris Rushworth joined Graham Onions as Durham’s highest first-class wicket-taker after notching a five-wicket haul to dismiss Worcestershire for 213 in their LV= Insurance County Championship clash at Emirates Riverside.Rushworth was at his imperious best to claim figures of 5 for 56 to put the hosts in a strong position and move level with his former team-mate with 527 first-class strikes for Durham. Brydon Carse and Ben Raine were also on point, although late resistance from Joe Leach kept Worcestershire in the game.Although the home side lost Alex Lees early in their second innings, Scott Borthwick and Will Young held firm to leave the north-east outfit in control of the contest with a lead of 112 runs.Durham made a strong start to day two through Rushworth, who began the day by dismissing Daryl Mitchell for the ninth time in his first-class career, pinning the opener lbw with an inswinger. Jake Libby performed well in tough conditions, mustering 24 before he was undone by a brilliant delivery from Raine.The seamers were on the mark and did not allow Jack Haynes to settle. In his second spell, Rushworth removed Haynes lbw for 8 to reduce the visitors at 60 for 3. Brett D’Oliveira battled with Tom Fell to take Worcestershire into the lunch break, but the pressure resumed immediately after the restart.Related

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Fell survived a close lbw shout against Raine, but the right-armer plugged away and removed D’Oliveira for 10 in his next over. Fell offered solid resistance, grinding his way into the forties amid excellent bowling from the hosts. He was given a life by Borthwick, who put down a routine chance at second slip off Raine. The Durham captain’s blushes were spared by Carse as he skittled Fell, taking his off and middle stump out of the ground.Rushworth whittled through the lower order from the Lumley End, breaking through Riki Wessels’ defences tbefore pinning Ed Barnard on the crease. Mark Wood and Carse reduced the visitors to nine down by using their pace to prise out Ben Cox and Josh Tongue.However, Leach frustrated the hosts with a vital knock of 42. The Worcestershire captain produced a fifty partnership with Morris to bring his team within 33 of Durham’s first-innings total. Rushworth wrapped up the innings with his record-equalling scalp to bowl Morris, earning his 28th five-wicket haul in the process.Worcestershire claimed the vital wicket of Lees before the end of the day, but Young and Borthwick put together an unbeaten stand of 51 to leave Durham in a formidable position at 79 for one in their second innings.

All other players of the squad set to undergo tests on Tuesday, with results expected by evening

Press Trust of India23-Feb-2021The Vijay Hazare Trophy, the domestic 50-over men’s competition in India, has seen its first case of Covid-19 with a Bihar player testing positive for the novel coronavirus, following which all the other members of the squad are being tested.”It is confirmed and the concerned player has been isolated from other players,” a senior Bihar Cricket Association (BCA) official was quoted as saying by . “He is currently in Bangalore as he cannot travel.”Another source reportedly said all the other 21 players in the squad will undergo Covid-19 tests on Tuesday with the results expected by evening.Bihar are placed in Group C and their league games are scheduled in Bengaluru. They faced Karnataka on Monday, and their next match is against Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday, which is expected to go on as scheduled according to a BCA official. Earlier, a player each from Maharashtra and Himachal Pradesh, too, had reportedly tested positive for Covid-19 last week, but both the teams have continued playing their league games after undergoing tests.All matches of the Vijay Hazare Trophy are being played under bio-secure bubbles across multiple cities. This is the second tournament, after the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, conducted by the BCCI in the curtailed 2020-21 domestic season.

The allrounder wants to be allowed to develop into his own style of player without comparisons to the past

Nagraj Gollapudi at Trent Bridge19-Aug-20180:47

‘Let me be Hardik Pandya, I’m good at being Hardik Pandya’

Hardik Pandya wants to be Hardik Pandya. He wants to stop being compared to the India’s greatest allrounder, Kapil Dev.Pandya took his maiden five-wicket haul within 29 balls on the second day at Trent Bridge, breaking England’s spine as they conceded 168-run lead, which was extended to 292 by the close with India having eight wickets in hand. Pandya is now the second-highest wicket-taker for India with eight and has the best average.Ever since Pandya smashed a 50 on debut and then made a century in his third Test during last year’s tour of Sri Lanka, the question has been asked if he can perform the role that Kapil did for India for about 15 years.Last week, the former West Indies fast bowler Michael Holding told ESPNcricinfo that Pandya is not yet completely performing his role as a bowling allrounder convincingly. Holding had heard Pandya was being compared to Kapil during the South African Test series this January. Based on his own observation Holding said Pandya was “nowhere near” Kapil and India needed to find “somebody” who could contribute more.After his performance on Sunday, which turned the match firmly in India’s favour, Pandya said he is tired of the comparison and wants to put a stop on the talk.”The problem with this is you compare yes, but all of a sudden something goes wrong and they are like he is not that [Kapil Dev],” Pandya said. “I have never wanted to be Kapil Dev. Let me be Hardik Pandya. I am good at being Hardik Pandya, reached here till now, I have played 40 ODIs and now 10 Test matches being Hardik Pandya, not Kapil Dev. They are great in their era. Let me be Hardik Pandya. Stop comparing me with anyone. I will be happy if you don’t.”Talking to former England captain Nasser Hussain on Pandya said he does not care what the critics think. “For sure not. I will simply say one thing. Let’s not worry about me. I know what I am exactly doing. My team backs me. That’s what matters. And to be honest I don’t care what people say.”Pandya told Sky Sports the focus of the bowling group in the second session was to bowl full. “I tried to swing the ball and if you try to swing the ball you go little full. You tend to get driven. I am not afraid of getting driven because if the wickets come runs does not matter.”Pandya added that he did not want the batsmen to read him and one way to do that was to vary his release points, bowl from different parts of the popping crease, use the seam in different angles and create doubts in the their mind.”I feel that if I keep on bowling the same way they might get used to it,” he said. “So I always focus on using the crease or even the line where I am bowling because it is very important, it makes a huge difference. If I go wide and I bowl the same ball the batsman thinks it is coming in with the angle, but if goes out you get the opportunity of getting him out.”In the later press conference, Pandya revealed Ishant Sharma had jokingly told him to talk about his role in the five-for. Jokes apart, Pandya acknowledged Ishant did play a “big role”. Having played against most of the England batsmen in international and county cricket, Ishant has the knowledge of their weaknesses which he shared with Pandya.”Ishy [Ishant] was telling me the same thing: don’t go for the wickets, if you keep bowling at the rights areas, you have the talent to get them. That’s the same thing I tell him and same thing which we tell other bowlers. Keep it tight, let’s see what they do, let’s check their patience and once again we saw the result what happens.”Last year, in Pallekele, Pandya raised his bat to celebrate his maiden Test century. Today, in Nottingham, he flashed the ball to relish the maiden five-wicket haul. Which did he enjoy more? “I am happier with taking five-wicket haul than scoring a hundred. I have taken very few five-wicket hauls, I think this is the second of my life. and it has come at a very important place so I am very happy.”