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Perth Scorchers bring in Laurie Evans, Brydon Carse for 2021-22 Big Bash

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

English duo sign up for maiden BBL campaigns

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Nov-2021Perth Scorchers have signed the English duo of Laurie Evans and Brydon Carse for their upcoming Big Bash campaign.Evans, the Surrey batter, has not been capped but built up an impressive record on the T20 circuit in recent years, featuring in leagues in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Caribbean.Durham seamer Carse made his England debut during the ODI series against Pakistan in the northern summer, when he was called up after a Covid outbreak. Both players were involved in the Hundred and will be making their first appearances in the Big Bash, with the competition due to start on December 5.Related

  • Topley eyes 'pressure scenarios' after joining Renegades

  • Unmukt Chand joins Melbourne Renegades for BBL 2021-22

  • Maddinson to captain Renegades after Finch stands down

“Laurie is a top player who will bring versatility, power and experience to the team, he is a great competitor, and we look forward to welcoming him to the Scorchers,” Perth Scorchers head coach, Adam Voges, said.”Brydon is an impressive young talent who can make an impact with both ball and bat and has the ability to take the game away from any opposition.”Evans, 34, has played 184 times in T20 cricket and averages 33.85 with a strike rate of 133.88. His arrival will help cover for the absence of England batter Liam Livingstone, who made 426 runs at 30.42 last season.”I am chuffed to bits to be given the opportunity to play for the Scorchers this summer, they are a really successful team in the Big Bash,” he said. “I think over my career I have prided myself on being there at the end and winning games of cricket in tight situations, that’s what I’ll be looking to do.Laurie Evans featured for Oval Invincibles in the Hundred•Getty Images

“The Big Bash is certainly a tournament the world looks at as one of the biggest and I’m just really grateful to be given the opportunity to be a part of it.”Carse, a team-mate of Scorchers batter Cameron Bancroft at Durham, has only taken 21 wickets in his T20 career but enjoyed a productive summer across all formats. The 26-year-old claimed a maiden List A five-for in his second ODI appearance for England, and also showed his promise the with bat in scoring a 30-ball half-century in the Vitality Blast.”The Scorchers have been one of the top teams in the Big Bash for a number of years and to have the opportunity to play at Optus stadium in front of Scorchers fans will be special,” Carse said.”I’m hoping to create some match-winning performances with both bat and ball, I like to think I play my cricket with a smile on my face and enjoy it. The squad has a lot of depth in all departments and I’m very confident that we can go all the way – it’s exciting.”

New Zealand's August tour of Bangladesh postponed

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The two-Test series which is part of the World Test Championship is Bangladesh’s fourth postponement since March

Mohammad Isam23-Jun-2020New Zealand’s two-Test tour of Bangladesh, which was scheduled in August-September as part of the ICC World Test Championship, has been postponed for a later date amid the Covid-19 pandemic.Cricket has been suspended since mid-March in Bangladesh, with the Shere Bangla National Stadium, cricket’s headquarters in the country, well within a virus “red zone”. Bangladesh has crossed the 100,000 mark for total number of coronavirus cases, with over 1,500 deaths attributed to the pandemic so far.BCB’s chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury said that the board considered the health and safety of the players when deciding on the postponement.”In the present Covid-19 pandemic scenario, hosting a full cricket series in August 2020 will be a challenge in terms of preparations and we cannot take chances with the safety and health of players, support staff and related stakeholders,” Chowdhury said.”Under these circumstances, the BCB and NZC have felt that the best way forward would be to defer the series. We realise that this will be hugely disappointing for the players and officials of both teams, not to mention the fans of the two nations but I must thank NZC for its understanding and for recognising the rationale behind such a decision.”This is Bangladesh’s fourth postponement since March, following the second Test against Pakistan in Karachi (April), Ireland and UK tour (May) and Australia’s tour of Bangladesh (June). Their tour to Sri Lanka, scheduled for July-August, is still in doubt.New Zealand have also had several deferrals including the cancellation of the Chappell-Hadlee series in March after one ODI. They have postponed their Europe tour (Netherlands, Ireland and Scotland) and a tour to the West Indies.

South Africa eye series sweep against wilting Sri Lanka

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Sri Lanka stand at serious risk of going into the World Cup without having won a single match this year

The Preview by Andrew Fidel Fernando15-Mar-2019

Big Picture

They have won the first four games so easily that South Africa might now be thinking whether they can really read that much into these results against Sri Lanka. So weak has their opposition been that it is hardly the pre-World Cup priming that South Africa would have yearned for. Only occasionally have Sri Lanka put South Africa under pressure with the ball, while Sri Lanka’s batting has been consistently brittle – no more so than on Wednesday, when only a No. 9’s 78 prevented them from crashing to a truly embarrassing score.So what can the hosts gain from this deadest of rubbers? South Africa opener Reeza Hendricks, who could get one final chance at the top of the order, needs some big runs to assert his World Cup case (although it is possible that ship has already sailed, given his scores of 1, 29, 4 and 8 so far in the series). Aiden Markram needs a decent score to back up his monstrous domestic form as well, in order to suggest to the selectors he has what it takes to cut it mentally in top-flight limited-overs cricket. Dale Steyn could do with some wickets, while JP Duminy will be hoping to produce a performance of significance as he farewells his home ground in this format.Sri Lanka, as ever, are searching for a victory. Any victory. Their coach may be on the brink of being sacked. Their captain’s job could also be on the line. And seven ODIs into 2019, they are yet to win a match, which means they stand at serious risk of going into the World Cup without having won a single match this year.

Form guide

South Africa WWWWW (completed matches, most recent first)
Sri LankaLLLLL

In the spotlight

Not quite as fast as Kagiso Rabada, nor nearly as decorated as Steyn, Lungi Ngidi is quietly putting together the beginnings of an excellent career. He had just returned from injury, but is the top fast-bowling wicket-taker in the series, with seven wickets at an average of 17.28. He will face tougher opponents in future, but in 17 matches so far, he has 33 wickets at an average of 21.81.Can Lasith Malinga raise himself and his team out of this funk? He has been outspoken about the batsmen not taking the opportunities afforded to them through the course of this series, but has himself, at times, been lackadaisical – both in the field, and with the bat in hand. On Wednesday, he failed to slide his bat in, and got himself run-out by a direct hit. There is no doubt that he is one of the smartest cricketers to ever play for Sri Lanka, but it takes more than strategy to lead a team – particularly one that has been struggling in recent years.

Team news

South Africa may play the same XI that won the Port Elizabeth ODI.South Africa (possible): 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Reeza Hendricks, 3 Aiden Markram, 4 Faf du Plessis (capt), 5 JP Duminy, 6 David Miller, 7 Andile Phehlukwayo, 8 Dale Steyn, 9 Anrich Nortje, 10 Lungi Ngidi, 11 Tabraiz ShamsiSri Lanka might stick with Priyamal Perera in the middle order, despite his having been dismissed for a golden duck on debut. However, they may also think about bringing Angelo Perera into the side.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Upul Tharanga, 2 Avishka Fernando, 3 Oshada Fernando, 4 Kusal Mendis (wk), 5 Priyamal Perera, 6 Kamindu Mendis, 7 Dhananjaya de Silva, 8 Thisara Perera, 9 Isuru Udana, 10 Lasith Malinga (capt), 11 Kasun Rajitha

Pitch and conditions

The weather is expected to be good in Cape Town, with temperatures in the mid-20s. This surface is expected to be a little on the slower side, with not a lot of assistance expected for the bowlers. The last two ODIs in Cape Town have yielded first-innings totals in excess of 300.

Stats and trivia

  • Sri Lanka have lost both previous ODIs against South Africa at Newlands although they did beat West Indies at this venue during the 2003 World Cup.
  • Quinton de Kock has 347 runs in the series so far, with an average of 86.75 and a strike rate of 113.02.
  • Sri Lanka’s best batsman, Kusal Mendis, has hit 146 runs at an average of 36.5. Only Mendis and Isuru Udana have struck half-centuries for the visitors in the series.

'Wanderers has been a special venue for us' – Kohli

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India’s captain hopes his team can take inspiration from past deeds at the Bullring, particularly the Test match they dominated for large periods on their 2013-14 tour of South Africa

Sidharth Monga in Johannesburg23-Jan-2018The Wanderers, intimidating when full with its Bullring feel, can be an intimate place when empty. The team bus brings players right up to the back entrance of their dressing rooms. The front balcony looks out onto a grass bank, and then the field of play. From behind the balcony they can walk to the nets. The press conference room is just around the corner.This is where, in December 2013, in India’s first Test without Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli sat, having scored a century on day one of the series, aware of the presence of South Africa bowling coach Allan Donald in the room as he waited for Kohli’s press conference to finish. Kohli drove the knife in, mocking a caption the host broadcaster had used for an analysis package, calling the South Africa bowlers non-threatening.This time, though, Kohli the captain comes in fighting to avoid a whitewash. After a particularly scrappy press conference in the aftermath of the defeat in Centurion, Kohli was subdued in his answers. Make no mistake, he will be just as feisty on the field, and will look at the last Wanderers Test for inspiration.”Definitely the things that worked for us last time we’ll focus on that,” Kohli said. “Although there is more grass on the wicket this time. The pace and bounce will probably be similar to what it was in 2013 also. Their bowling attack is slightly different but [Morne] Morkel and [Vernon] Philander are playing, which was the case last time also. Look we have to take the positives from that Test, what worked for us, what other things we have to repeat again to be able to perform in this game or this venue.”Yeah, we’d love to have another situation where we can capitalise and this time around actually consolidate on it and bring the Test towards us rather than let it slip away again. As a team, we are looking to correct all the mistakes that have happened. Wanderers has been a special venue for us, hopefully we can play the same kind of cricket.”India won the World T20 final here in 2007, and are yet to lose a Test in Johannesburg. They had a day and a half to win the last Test in, but couldn’t finish the job. “It was a very exciting Test for everyone to be involved in,” Kohli said. “For both the teams as well as the crowd, the last day being a really see-saw day. We came back sometimes, then we thought we were going to lose, and then it ended up being a draw. Yeah it was a very memorable Test match for me personally and for us as a team. Because we gave South Africa a total and forced them to play their best cricket to go for it.”I always love playing at this stadium, it’s a great vibe, I feel really good when I walk into this ground. The last time’s Test match was very special and hopefully we can have as exciting a cricket as we had last time this time too.”How nice the vibe would have felt had Kohli come here with the series alive. His coach Ravi Shastri said better preparation would have helped the side, but Kohli insisted preparation was not an issue. Asked if he was going to follow up on what Shastri said and make sure the mistake is not repeated on future tours, Kohli said: “I personally don’t feel that we didn’t feel prepared starting this series. I won’t sit here and point that out after losing a Test series. We had a week to prepare ourselves, five days because one day we were travelling. So we had that, and we went ahead with that.”We are not going to sit and think of outside factors that made us lose. It was our errors, our mistakes of not capitalising on situations that led us to the result being 2-0 so far. I am not pinpointing anything else, I think those talks are left for later planning for future.”One of the errors, Kohli said, was the batting, and that every batsman has been working on it. “Everyone has been spoken to individually,” Kohli said. “The discussions have happened as to what went wrong, what happened, why it happened and the guys have taken it well. And as I said, any time you step on to the field, you have an opportunity to correct your mistakes, and that’s how you progress at the international level. I am sure everyone is looking forward to rectifying those mistakes, and then if they are in the same positions, consolidating those positions.”Kohli also said the fielding needed to improve. “They have fielded better than us and it’s visible and not a question of having numbers attached to it,” Kohli said. “That is something we definitely need to step up because fielding I feel is a bit of a controllable on the field. It depends on an individual’s attitude. Batting, I would still say, there’s always a bowler involved who has his skills as well and same for a bowler up against a batsman.”From the batting point of view, I’ve mentioned it’s a personal responsibility and from the fielding point of view, it’s just a mindset of wanting to make a difference for the team every ball that you are standing on the park. Definitely these two things we have to take into consideration going into this Test match.”

Victoria on top; Siddle and Bird press their claims

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ESPNcricinfo staff26-Oct-2016
ScorecardSimon Milenko picked up 3 for 98•Getty Images

Jackson Bird and Peter Siddle both performed admirably in their Test auditions on a rain-affected second day at the MCG, where play continued until 10.30pm in an effort to make up lost overs. At stumps, Tasmania were struggling in their first innings on 4 for 93, with George Bailey on 25 and James Faulkner on 14, and they still trailed Victoria by 322 runs.It was a difficult evening session for Tasmania’s top order against the pink ball as Siddle and his pace-bowling colleagues Chris Tremain and Scott Boland proved hard to get away. Siddle sent down 10 typically miserly overs and picked up 1 for 17, bowling Beau Webster for 20 after Tremain had earlier trapped both Tasmania openers – Caleb Jewell and Ben Dunk – lbw cheaply.Daniel Christian also chipped in with the wicket of Alex Doolan, lbw for 21, and it meant a mountain of work remained ahead of the Tigers at the halfway point of the match. The Bushrangers had resumed the day on 4 for 351 and batted for a further 22.2 overs for the loss of their final six wickets, putting on 64 runs in that time.Matthew Wade was lbw to Simon Milenko for 78 and Cameron White was caught for 64 off the bowling of Bird, who had been tidy on day one without gaining many rewards. Bird also had Christian caught behind for 3 to finish with 3 for 75 from his 30 overs, which included 10 maidens, and ahead of Friday’s naming of Australia’s squad for the first Test against South Africa it was a solid performance.The likelihood is that Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood will be joined by Nathan Lyon and one further fast bowler in the WACA Test, with Bird and Siddle both leading candidates having played on February’s Test tour of New Zealand. It is possible that both men will be named in the squad on Friday before the final XI is chosen closer to the match.

Kusal, Thirimanne lead Sri Lanka to series win

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Kusal Perera struck a 99 lit up by flashes of aggression, but tempered by maturity, while Lahiru Thirimanne stroked a serene 81 not out, as Sri Lanka made light work of a revised target of 225 in the second ODI against West Indies

Andrew Fidel Fernando04-Nov-20150:52

Sangakkara surprised at ‘one-sided’ series

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsKusal Perera struck a 99 lit up by flashes of aggression, but tempered by maturity, while Lahiru Thirimanne stroked a serene 81 not out, as the second-wicket pair’s 156-run stand made light work of a revised target of 225 in the second ODI against West Indies. The match had been shortened to 38 overs a side, after rain forced an interruption of more than three hours 26.4 overs into West Indies’ innings. Johnson Charles’ searing 83 and Marlon Samuels’ measured 63 formed the guts of the visitors’ score.The match marked a bonafide return to form for three Sri Lanka cricketers, playing in their favoured format. Thirimanne had been poor enough in Tests to warrant his exclusion last month, but was chanceless on Wednesday, prospering square of the wicket as fluidity appeared to have returned to his game. Kusal had had a bleak Test series against West Indies with the bat, but here delivered Sri Lanka to the doorstep of victory before miscuing a short ball one run short of his third hundred. A trimmer Lasith Malinga also appeared back to near his best, both with the ball and in the field, effecting two direct-hit run-outs off his own bowling. He collected figures of 2 for 43 from 7.4 overs, first claiming a wicket with his second ball of the game, then thwarting West Indies’ final sprint with his variation.The victory hands Sri Lanka the series, with the third ODI to be played in Pallekele on Saturday.Kusal crashed two fours and a six from his first 11 balls, while the new-ball bowlers were in operation, but soon scaled down his ambition when the spinners came early to the crease. He found plenty of singles in the cover region, and was content to progress at less than a run-a-ball until he neared his fifty. He slog-swept seamer Carlos Brathwaite over deep midwicket to reach the milestone, then larruped two more sixes and a four off his next six deliveries. He was lucky to make one of those sixes – the ball was parried over the deep midwicket rope by Jermaine Blackwood – and that reprieve on 62 was enough to coax him back into a sager state of mind.Thirimanne began his innings with a late cut for four off Sunil Narine, and struck a high, straight six off Samuels soon after but, like Kusal, quickly established a pattern of singles and twos against spin. The cut was his most productive stroke; each of his five fours came in the arc between the keeper and sweeper-cover. Perhaps importantly, Thirimanne was not tested early in his innings by seam bowling, which has recently been a weakness for him.Kusal fell with 29 runs still to get. The scoring slowed considerably after his departure, but Thirimanne and Dinesh Chandimal nursed the chase home with nine balls to spare.West Indies appeared poised to push Sri Lanka’s target up closer to 240 when a well-set Samuels and Brathwaite were at the crease at the death. They struck 16 off Suranga Lakmal in the 36th over, but West Indies mustered only six runs from the last two overs, during the course of which their four remaining wickets were all surrendered via run-outs. They made 214 in the end, and this figure was scaled up via the Duckworth-Lewis method.Earlier, Charles had collected his first boundary via an outside edge that flew over second slip, but he quickly slipped into a more effective attacking rhythm. Charles was particularly severe on the spinners, who were introduced as early as the fifth over. Jermaine Blackwood had holed out trying to put Sachithra Senanayake’s first ball into the sightscreen, but Charles succeeded where Blackwood had failed. Two overs later, Charles ran at Senanayake to put him several metres beyond the sightscreen, registering the first six of the match.He continued to run at the spinners and hit them straight, but he also found the paddle-sweep productive. He slinked from leg to off to manoeuvre an Ajantha Mendis delivery to the long-leg boundary in the 11th over, then reached his fifty off the next ball, when Mendis went full and Charles launched him over long-on. The half-century was Charles’ fourth in ODIs, and came in 32 deliveries.Sri Lanka had claimed three wickets at the other end while Charles attacked. In addition to Blackwood, who perished for 9 on his ODI debut, opener Andre Fletcher had also fallen cheaply, nicking Malinga behind first ball. Darren Bravo appeared secure during his 33-ball stay, but was out lobbing Milinda Siriwardana to short midwicket for 21, ending a 70-run stand with Charles.Samuels had just begun to free his arms, hitting consecutive square boundaries off Ajantha Mendis, before Charles was out lbw to Siriwardana. The rains soon arrived to force the long interruption, when West Indies had reached 149 for 4 after 26.4 overs.Samuels continued to play his shots after resumption, but lost two partners in quick succession. He could have been out himself for 38 had Shehan Jayasuriya held the chance off Malinga’s bowling at deep cover. Instead, Samuels survived to wallop a straight six during Malinga’s next over, shortly before he completed his 50th run off the 51st delivery he faced.Samuels was at the centre of a minor controversy in this match, after he was cleared to bowl by the ICC despite the 14-day grace period afforded to reported bowlers having elapsed. West Indies had been wrongly told by the ICC that he was eligible to bowl in this match, and had picked their team on that basis, so the governing body made an exception in this case. He delivered 5.3 overs but did not make a major impact on the match.

Openers' failure costing CSK – Badrinath

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Following Chennai Super Kings’ unexpected loss to Pune Warriors, batsman S Badrinath has admitted to the team having issues with their opening combination

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Apr-2013Following Chennai Super Kings’ unexpected loss to Pune Warriors, batsman S Badrinath has admitted to the team having issues with their opening combination. Apart from the match against Kings XI Punjab, in which Super Kings cruised to a 10-wicket win, their openers have failed to lay the required platform, Badrinath said.”The openers are not able to get us to the required start. In that one game against KXIP, the openers just saw us through. Apart from that, this is an issue that needs to be addressed,” Badrinath told the IPL website. “Faf [du Plessis] was brilliant for us last season at the top of the order. Opening is such a key role in Twenty20 cricket. In the first six overs the fielders are inside and you need to capitalise on that. That start takes on the momentum to the middle order and further in the innings.”In their first three matches Super Kings opened with Michael Hussey and M Vijay, and apart from the game against Kings XI, the pair put on stands of 10 and 4 in two overs each. Against Pune Warriors, Hussey was left out to accommodate allrounder Albie Morkel, and Vijay opened with S Anirudha, who was out for a second-ball duck. South Africa’s du Plessis, who was successful when given the chance to open in 2012, is out with injury.The idea behind leaving Hussey out, Badrinath said, was to improve the team balance: “It was something to do with the combination. We wanted Anirudha to get quick runs at the top, and to get Albie in to add some firepower in the batting and another bowling option. It was very unfortunate that Anirudha got out off the second ball.”Badrinath, however, still backed his batsmen to come good. “Let’s be honest: we haven’t been able to get great starts and we’ve lost too many wickets at the top order. That’s something that needs to be addressed,” he said. “However, these batsmen have done it for us before and we need to have faith in them.”

Sehwag rested, Tendulkar picked for Asia Cup

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Sachin Tendulkar has been included and Virender Sehwag has been rested from India’s squad to the Asia Cup

Siddarth Ravindran29-Feb-2012

India’s Asia Cup squad

MS Dhoni (capt & wk), Virat Kohli (vice-capt), Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Manoj Tiwary, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Praveen Kumar, Vinay Kumar, Rahul Sharma, Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, Ashok Dinda
Out : Virender Sehwag, Zaheer Khan, Umesh Yadav, Parthiv Patel
In: Yusuf Pathan, Ashok Dinda

Virender Sehwag has been rested from India’s one-day squad for next month’s Asia Cup, with Virat Kohli taking over as vice-captain. Sachin Tendulkar has been picked for the tournament, while allrounder Yusuf Pathan and Bengal fast bowler Ashok Dinda make comebacks. Fast bowlers Zaheer Khan and Umesh Yadav have been rested.Kohli’s elevation to vice-captaincy comes after his sustained run of success in one-day cricket. He was the highest run-getter in the format in 2011, is the leading run-scorer in the ongoing Commonwealth Bank series and has been one of India’s few bright spots on the dismal tour of Australia. “The selection committee and board feels that Virat Kohli could be good future captaincy material,” Kris Srikkanth, the chairman of selectors, told reporters in Mumbai.Over the past few days, there had been intense media speculation about whether Sehwag and Tendulkar would be selected for the Asia Cup. Sehwag has had a poor run in the ongoing CB series in Australia, averaging 13 in five one-day innings.Srikkanth stressed that Sehwag had not been axed. “Unfortunately Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan have been asked to take rest by the physiotherapist. It is purely on injury grounds both have been rested,” he said. “I can assure you that nobody has been dropped.”Tendulkar has been selective about the ODI series he plays over the past couple of years. The CB series, in which he’s made 143 runs in seven innings, was his first limited-overs engagement for India since last year’s World Cup.The CB series is also the only ODI series the injury-prone Zaheer has been involved in since the World Cup. The decision to rest him and Yadav opened the doors for Dinda, who last represented India in the previous edition of the Asia Cup, in 2010. His selection comes on the back of a successful Ranji Trophy, in which he was the second-highest wicket-taker with 37 in six matches. Several other contenders for a fast bowling slot, including Varun Aaron and Sreesanth, are still recovering from injuries.Allrounder Yusuf has recovered from a knee injury which cut short his Ranji season, and will resume his battle for the No. 7 allrounder’s slot with Ravindra Jadeja. Yusuf has been out of the Indian side since a listless tour of West Indies soon after being part of the World Cup-winning squad. Jadeja cornered that spot with some impressive performances against England and West Indies last year, but has not been at his best in the CB series. In the league phase, he took three wickets at an average of 109, and scored 101 runs in seven innings.Among the fringe players, India have retained batsman Manoj Tiwary and legspinner Rahul Sharma, but have axed backup wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel.India are defending champions of the Asia Cup, which will be held in Mirpur from March 11 to 22 and also features Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

Sri Lanka open against sparky minnows

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ESPNcricinfo previews the third game of the 2011 World Cup between Sri Lanka and Canada in Hambantota

The Preview by Sahil Dutta19-Feb-2011

Match Facts

February 20, Hambantota
Start time 14:30 local time (09:00 GMT)
Ashish Bagai and his side can prove Associates have a role in World Cups with a good showing against Sri Lanka•AFP

Big Picture

Sri Lanka begin their World Cup campaign – the first in Asia since they stunned the world 16 years ago – against Group A minnows Canada. With a team forged around much of the same group of players that made it to the final in the Caribbean last time around, Sri Lanka start as one of the tournament’s fancied sides. Canada – a team of immigrants, expats and five home-grown former Under-19 stars – have had a good run in the warm-up against Netherlands and England but will need a World Cup miracle to beat Kumar Sangakkara’s side.Sri Lanka’s home record is imposing but the surroundings of Hambantota are almost as unfamiliar to them as they are to the visitors. A new pitch at a new stadium, the captains have been keen to praise the look of both. The state of pitches at this tournament is already shaping up into a bone of contention, and set against the fiasco at Eden Gardens, the Sri Lankan board should be credited for getting the stadium ready in time.The last time these two met in the World Cup, Canada slumped to the lowest World Cup score in history. The entire cricketing infrastructure in Canada has improved since then, with players centrally contracted for the first time and big sponsors like Reebok jumping on board. Upsets have been hard-wired out of the format for this World Cup, and with the ICC taking it a step further next time by expelling Associate nations altogether, a competitive show from Canada would do wonders to the minnows’ case for inclusion.

Form guide

(Most recent first)
Sri Lanka: WWLWW
Canada: LWWWL

Pitch and conditions

The Mahinda Rajapaksa International Stadium has not yet hosted a full international match so the pitch in Hambantota is something of an unknown quantity. There were concerns when the pitch produced a low-scoring ‘A’ match between Sri Lanka and Pakistan, but at the time the curator insisted his pitch was not to blame. After practicing at the ground Sangakkara was happy, saying “the wicket looked fantastic and the conditions were beautiful for cricket”. The Sri Lankan weather has been anything but for recent series and there were a few clouds circling on the eve of the game, which could mean an early outing for Duckworth and Lewis, in their fourth World Cup.

Watch out for…

There is still something about the 50-over format that promotes unqualified utility players, who are unable to hold their place in either discipline. England have Luke Wright, while Australia have John Hastings. Sri Lanka’s Angelo Mathews is the model the rest are chasing. In the last 12 months Mathews has averaged 54.50 with the bat, 32.90 with the ball, and has been a lynchpin behind the celebrated duo of Sangakkara and Mehela Jayawardene.After his exploits against England, there is one Canadian that everyone will be looking out for: Gun batsman Rizwan Cheema. The Pakistan-born’s ODI strike-rate of 119.4 beats even Shahid Afridi for crazed slugging. Faced with Lasith Malinga’s slingers and Muttiah Muralitharan his task is less than straightforward, but alongside the youngsters in the side and captain Ashish Bagai, he could be the prime contributor of runs.

Team news

Sri Lanka’s top-order is settled and the only contention is over the last bowling place. Ajantha Mendis’ star has faded as his mystery unravelled with exposure so he competes with the Rangana Herath for the second spinner’s role. If the damp conditions prompt another paceman, however, Thisara Perera might come up on the blindside to take the final bowling spot.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 2 Upul Tharanga, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (capt & wk), 4 Mahela Jayawardene, 5 Chamara Kapugedera, 6 Thilan Samaraweera, 7 Angelo Mathews, 8 Dilhara Fernando, 9 Rangana Herath, 10 Muttiah Muralitharan, 11 Lasith MalingaCanada have banked on their youngsters to support their array of more experience imports and will be hoping Hiral Patel and Nitish Kumar can come good.Canada (probable): 1 John Davison, 2 Hiral Patel, 3 Nitish Kumar, 4 Ashish Bagai (capt & wk), 5 Jimmy Hansra, 6 Rizwan Cheema, 7 Zubin Surkari, 8 Khurram Chohan, 9 Balaji Rao, 10 Henry Osinde, 11 Harvir Baidwan.

Stats and trivia

  • The last time these teams met at the World Cup, Canada were bowled out for 36 and swept aside by nine wickets in a match that lasted a mere 23.2 overs – the quickest in World Cup history.
  • Since making successive hundreds against Pakistan and Bangladesh in Karachi in June 2008, Kumar Sangakkara has played 59 matches, and made 1970 runs at 37.16, without ever passing three figures.
  • Canada’s opening batsman, and producer of one of World Cup cricket’s most dazzling centuries – John Davison – is, at 40, the oldest player in the tournament.

    Quotes

    “Hard-hitting. I like to hit the ball… Out of the park”
    “You can’t change what other people say about us whether they say that we are good enough to win the tournament or whatever.”

Williamson stars in Northern Districts' win

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

A terrific all-round performance from Kane Williamson helped Northern Districts complete a ten-wicket thrashing of Auckland inside three days at Whangarei

Cricinfo staff14-Mar-2010A terrific all-round performance from Kane Williamson helped Northern Districts complete a ten-wicket thrashing of Auckland inside three days at Whangarei.Northern Districts took the upper hand on day one, dismissing Auckland for 227 after they chose to bat, with Brent Arnel, Joseph Yovich, Bruce Martin and Williamson taking two wickets apiece. Reece Young, who made 50, was Auckland’s only half-centurion and the innings suffered from a lack of partnerships. Northen Districts, however, started their reply poorly and were 36 for 2 at stumps on the first day.Williamson began the second morning on zero and went on to forge century partnerships with the Marshall brothers, Hamish and James, and Peter McGlashan. Williamson batted the entire day, scoring 163, and ensured Northern Districts had a lead of 121 at stumps with three wickets intact. He and McGlashan continued to build Northern’s advantage on the third day before getting bowled by Colin de Grandhomme for 192, his highest first-class score. Williamson had batted nearly eight hours, faced 352 deliveries and hit 22 fours and two sixes. Northern Districts were eventually dismissed for 410, with a first-innings lead of 183.It was fast bowler Graeme Aldridge, though, who made the victory possible inside three days. He ripped out Auckland’s top order, reducing them to 52 for 4 in the second innings, and finished with figures of 4 for 19 in 13 overs. Arnel and Martin continued Aldridge’s work and Williamson contributed 3 for 48 as Auckland were dismissed for 188. Auckland, who lost their ninth wicket with the score on 131, were saved from innings defeat by No. 10 Michael Bates, who slammed 57 off 25 balls with four sixes and six fours.His eventual dismissal, however, left Northern Districts with only 6 to get and the openers, BJ Watling and Brad Wilson, did it in an over.