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Calf injury could force out designated captain; Upul Tharanga likely to take over

Andrew Fidel Fernando31-May-2017Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews is likely to miss his team’s Champions Trophy opener against South Africa on Saturday due to a calf injury. Vice-captain Upul Tharanga is the likeliest candidate to lead the team in Mathews’ stead.Mathews has not played internationals since January because of a hamstring complaint, and had also missed a tri-series in Zimbabwe late last year because of “multiple injuries” in his legs.”Mathews had complained of stiffness and pain, prompting the team management to conduct radiographic investigations, which revealed a strain on the muscle,” an SLC release said. “He will engage in supervised recovery over the next few days but will most likely sit out the first group stage match.”Mathews’ absence would be a substantial blow to Sri Lanka, who rely on him to bring balance to the XI – he often delivers 10 overs in ODIs in addition to batting at No. 5. Mathews had also appeared to be in good batting form, having struck 95 off 106 deliveries against Australia in Sri Lanka’s first warm-up encounter. He didn’t play the second practice match against New Zealand.

Zaman got Khyber Pakhtunkhwa off to a flying start with 67 off 40 before Malik’s blistering half-century took them to a formidable total

Umar Farooq18-Oct-2020Khyber Pakhtunkhwa edged out Southern Punjab by ten runs in the final to lift the National T20 Cup. Put in to bat first, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s openers – Fakhar Zaman and Mohammad Rizwan – put up a 76-run partnership, with Zaman’s 40-ball 67 leading the way. When Rizwan fell, Mohammad Hafeez (38 off 26) took over and helped set up an ideal platform for the death overs, where Shoaib Malik rolled back the years and the smashed the fastest fifty of his T20 career, off just 20 balls, to take the side past 200.In the end, it might have been a scoreline that read slightly harshly on Aamer Yamin, Zahid Mahmood, and Mohammad Imran, who took a wicket each and created plenty of chances, but sloppiness in the field cost Southern Punjab. Shan Masood’s side put down no fewer than five catches – three benefitted Mohammad Hafeez alone. It was generosity they could ill-afford to extend to a side as good as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and if they were to win the title, they’d have to chase 207.They didn’t get off to the best start, with Shaheen Afridi getting rid of Shan Masood early. It wasn’t the only damage the tournament’s leading wicket-taker inflicted; he removed Sohaib Maqsood off the next delivery to deal a huge blow to Southern Punjab’s chances. Zeeshan Ashraf’s 16 off 19 came to an end when he offered a regulation catch to extra cover off Wahab Riaz, who snared him off his second ball of the evening. With Southern Punjab 34 for 3 in 5.2 overs, Hussain Talat and Khushdil Shah were left with what seemed like an insurmountable task.Both shared a fighting stand to keep the case alive and put up 74 for the fourth wicket before Usman Shinwari removed Shah. A remarkable diving catch on the boundary by Malik sent Talat back. He had smashed a spirited 33-ball 63, but it wasn’t enough, with Southern Punjab needing a further 76 from 34 balls when he departed. That was never a realistic prospect, with the asking rate always just out of reach, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa wrapped up a deserved win with relative ease by the end.

Ali Asfak Thara was arrested on Monday in Bengaluru and booked for gambling under the Karnataka Police Act

Nagraj Gollapudi24-Sep-2019Ali Asfak Thara, the owner of Karnataka Premier League (KPL) franchise Belagavi Panthers, has been arrested for allegedly betting on the tournament. Thara was arrested on Monday by the Central Crime Branch (CCB) in Bengaluru and booked for gambling under the Karnataka Police Act.According to Sandeep Patil, joint commissioner of police (crime), there was enough evidence to establish Thara was involved in betting during the last edition of the KPL. “The team owner was found to be indulging in betting during the matches,” Patil told ESPNcricinfo. “We have sufficient evidence to show that he was betting.”The Panthers lost in Qualifier 2 against Hubli Tigers in the recently-concluded eighth season of the KPL. The tournament, the first T20 league conducted in India by a state association, is organised by the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA). Among the players in the Panthers squad is India batsman Manish Pandey.According to Patil, the police will, during their investigations, also probe whether Thara, who informed them that he was in contact with a bookie, was involved in any form of match-fixing. “He placed bets with a bookie who is allegedly in Dubai. If a team owner bets we have to see if the was any kind of match-fixing also.”ALSO READ: BCCI ACU launches inquiry into alleged approaches in TNPL 2019Patil confirmed that the police would be speaking with players and team officials as part of the investigation too. “Ali was in touch with players of other teams during KPL. The players are being enquired.”The CCB is in touch with both KSCA as well as BCCI’s anti-corruption unit (ACU) which provides cover for the KPL. “Based on the police report, the ACU will check what all violations have been conducted under our code,” Ajit Singh Shekhawat, the head of ACU, said.Incidentally, this is the second state-conducted T20 league which has come under the corruption cloud. Recently, the BCCI ACU said it had begun an inquiry into approaches made to players from alleged corrupt elements during this year’s Tamil Nadu Premier League.

Nicholas Pooran has also earned his first call-up to the 50-overs side for the first two matches against England

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Feb-20192:32

Gayle returns for first two ODIs against England

Chris Gayle and Evin Lewis are back in West Indies’ squad for the first two ODIs against England.Gayle last played for West Indies during the home ODI series against Bangladesh in July 2018, and had made himself unavailable for the tours of India and Bangladesh over the 2018-19 winter in order to play the Afghanistan Premier League and the T10 League. Lewis had withdrawn from the India tour for personal reasons, and missed the ODIs in Bangladesh as well, but returned to the squad for the T20Is.Nicholas Pooran, meanwhile, has been called up to the ODI squad for the first time. The left-hand batsman has impressed with his shotmaking ability in the eight T20Is he has played so far, most notably while cracking an unbeaten 53 off 25 balls against India in November.West Indies’ 14-member squad for the first two England ODIs features a number of other changes too. Captain Jason Holder is back, as expected, having made a successful return to the Test side after missing the Bangladesh tour with a shoulder injury. The offspinner Ashley Nurse returns too, having made a comeback to domestic first-class cricket after injuring his shoulder on the India tour.Batsmen Marlon Samuels, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Kieran Powell and Sunil Ambris, and allrounders Roston Chase and Carlos Brathwaite, who were all part of the ODI squad in Bangladesh, have been left out.Samuels, according to chairman of selectors Courtney Browne, is undergoing treatment on a knee injury. He also suggested that the fast bowler Shannon Gabriel could feature in the latter part of the series.”As we continue our Cricket World Cup preparations, the upcoming series against the top ranked ODI side is a great opportunity for us to gauge where we are as a team,” Browne said. “This allows us to identify any areas that need addressing relating to selection and also helps the coaching staff to fine tune their game strategy.”We welcome the return of Chris Gayle who missed the last two series and Ashley Nurse from injury. We are pleased to introduce Nicholas Pooran to the ODI cricket for the first time. He is clearly a young player with undoubted talent and we believe he can add value to our middle order. Shannon Gabriel remains very much in our World Cup plans but with a heavy workload expected in the Test series he will be considered for selection later in the ODI series.”The ODI series against England begins on February 20 at the Kensington Oval in Barbados.West Indies squad: Jason Holder (capt), Fabian Allen, Devendra Bishoo, Darren Bravo, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope, Evin Lewis, Ashley Nurse, Keemo Paul, Nicholas Pooran, Rovman Powell, Kemar Roach, Oshane Thomas
In: Jason Holder, Chris Gayle, Evin Lewis, Ashley Nurse, Nicholas Pooran
Out: Marlon Samuels, Roston Chase, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Carlos Brathwaite, Kieran Powell, Sunil Ambris

Former captain endorses David Warner’s aggressive style, but old adversary Simon Katich says he’s ‘missing the point’

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Nov-20184:28

A Nation’s Shame: How do Australia bounce back?

“Australia are ‘not going to win s**t” by playing nice, according to former captain Michael Clarke. But an old adversary of Clarke has said that he is “missing the point”. Simon Katich, whose relationship with Clarke fell apart after an argument over singing the team song in 2009, said that Australia’s problems stemmed from more than just their aggression, but rather that they premeditatedly cheated.Clarke endorsed the aggressive style in which David Warner played his cricket even though he was seen as a central figure in some of the most controversial episodes, including the ball-tampering scandal at Newlands, which tipped Australian cricket into the abyss.In the wake of the South Africa tour and cultural reviews, new coach Justin Langer and captains Tim Paine and Aaron Finch have made a conscious effort to rein back the team’s approach on and off the field, including pre-match handshakes, the introduction of a Players’ Pact, and the emergence of the term “elite honesty”.None of this has gone down well with Clarke while the team continues to struggle on the field ahead of the Test series against India, which begins next week.”Australian cricket, I think, needs to stop worrying about being liked and start worrying about being respected,” Clarke told Macquarie Sports Radio. ”Play tough Australian cricket. Whether we like it or not, that’s in our blood.”If you try and walk away from it, we might be the most liked team in the world, we’re not going to win s**t. We won’t win a game. Boys and girls want to win.”Katich, however, differed and felt that Australian cricket needed to rectify the reputation garnered from the Newlands incident and years of bad on-field behavior.”Once again we find someone missing the point,” he told SEN radio. “What’s been forgotten in all of this is we blatantly cheated. The point is, we were caught for blatantly cheating and we have to rectify that as soon as possible to earn back the respect of the cricketing public in Australia and worldwide.”We’ve been a disliked team for a number of years through that on-field behaviour and it obviously came to a head in Cape Town.”Speaking specifically of Warner, who had confrontations with England and South Africa players during the two series before his year-long ban, Clarke said the aggression Warner showed on the field was an attempt to have it fired back at him when he batted, and described it as a “turn on”.”He brings that positive approach to the Australian cricket team. You can’t ask him to bring that and then, on the other hand, blame him or ask him to be a pussy cat when it comes to giving it,” Clarke said. “David Warner gives it to certain blokes on the field because he wants them to give it to him when he’s batting. It’s like a turn on, it makes him play better.”It’s his style; he’s very upfront, in your face. What you see with David Warner is what you get. Your greatest strength can be your greatest weakness. To me, I always loved having him in the team I was captaining because he brought that aggression that I wanted. In saying that, there was always a line, he knew that. We had a number of conversations one-on-one about that line he couldn’t overstep.”Oppositions have noted Australia’s attempts to change their ways, with South Africa captain Faf du Plessis saying they felt “tame” as compared to in the past, something Langer took him to task on.”I’m not sure what people want from us,” Langer said. “We can’t confuse the messages. On the one hand, we’re too aggressive and probably stepped over the line. Now we’re getting called tame.”We’re going to play good, hard cricket. It’s what the fans want to see. It’s what Australia wants to see. When you lose a series, it’s easy for someone to come out and say we’ve been a bit tame. You can’t have it both ways.”