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Fast bowler returns to Bristol after short-term county stint in early season

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jun-2022Mohammad Amir will play for Gloucestershire in the T20 Blast after signing as a replacement for Naseem Shah.Amir, 30, played two County Championship games for Gloucestershire earlier this season when Naseem was injured and will make his T20 debut for the club against Somerset on Friday night, subject to PCB clearance.Naseem, the 19-year-old fast bowler, returned to Pakistan earlier this month when his father fell ill and while his condition has improved, he will not return to Bristol due to “a hastily arranged Pakistan Cricket Board training camp,” according to Gloucestershire.Naseem played only four games in his time at Gloucestershire due to a shoulder injury which he suffered on debut. “He has shown incredible dedication and work ethic, despite some small issues meaning he couldn’t take the field as much as he and we would have liked,” Steve Snell, Gloucestershire’s performance director, said.”It has been great to see him develop as a young man – his English has improved immensely, which is something he should be very proud of. He is a very popular member of the squad, and we very much hope to see him back playing in Bristol in the years to come.”We’re delighted to welcome Mohammad back to the squad. He’s a proven international performer and to have his experience available to us for the remainder of the Blast tournament will be invaluable.”Just over halfway through the Blast, Gloucestershire sit fourth in the nine-team South Group and are well-placed to qualify. They will be without David Payne, the competition’s leading-wicket taker, for their next three games due to his involvement in England’s ODI series in the Netherlands.

Bopara’s half-century, Mahmood’s double-strike in vain for Peshawar Zalmi

Saurabh Somani21-Feb-2021Shaheen Afridi started it, Rashid Khan did his thing in the middle with the ball, and then came back with the bat as Lahore Qalandars sealed a four-wicket win against Peshawar Zalmi that was nervy in parts, but impressive nonetheless.Afridi had begun by nailing his yorkers, mixing them up with some well-directed short ones, and not giving batsmen room to work with. Some of them might have felt like space to breathe was at a premium too, with having to negotiate the left-arm quick’s accurate hostility. Khan, playing his first Pakistan Super League match, then dived into the game with the ease of the veteran that he is in T20 cricket, giving up only 14 runs in four overs before starring with the bat too. The Afridi-Khan duo had played the lead role in keeping Zalmi to 140 for 6, but Qalandars were wobbly in their chase. When Khan walked in, he was facing a hat-trick ball with his team 109 for 6, needing 32 from 26 balls. He coolly hit 27 not out off 15 balls to turn a skittish chase into a canter.Qalandars, the finalists in the last edition, began on a terrific note, with Afridi getting Imam-ul-Haq caught behind first ball. That set the tone for a rickety powerplay, which yielded 36 for 3 for Zalmi.While Afridi had only a two-over burst at the top of the innings, the Zalmi batsmen had to deal with Khan after the powerplay. Their only substantial partnership was for the fifth wicket between Ravi Bopara and Sherfane Rutherford, but the 64-run stand took 56 balls, partly due to the rush of early wickets. The stabilising did give a platform for a late launch, but against Afridi at the death, that wasn’t going to be easy. A 16-run final over meant they touched 140, but they would need exceptional bowling more or less through their defence to achieve victory.They did have their moments, Saqib Mahmood, in particular, was devastating in his second spell while Wahab Riaz reverse-swung out Ben Dunk, but in between the brilliance there were enough pressure-releasing deliveries too. Mahmood had sent back Samit Patel and David Wiese in his final over, leaving a tricky 32 to get with Mohammad Hafeez the only recognised batsman for the Qalandars. However, an over later, Riaz began with a no-ball for height that was hit to the boundary and sprayed the ball around in a 14-run over that meant Zalmi’s final comeback in the match was done.Star of the day
Khan didn’t concede more than a single in his entire quota of four overs, and though he didn’t pick up a wicket, giving up only 14 runs in four overs was as valuable as his batting cameo.Khan was into his bowling rhythm from the first ball. The Zalmi batsmen were intent on playing him with more caution due to the wickets already lost, true, but he still gave them nothing. Rutherford often had to read him off the pitch, while Bopara was also very watchful.The bowling performance was stellar, but Khan’s batting came to the fore too, and at a moment where his team particularly needed it to. There was no hint of nerves when facing Mahmood, who was reversing the ball, and clinical execution when Wahab erred in length.Miss of the day
There wasn’t too much the Zalmi batsmen could have done with two top T20 bowlers bringing their A games and conceding 28 runs off their combined eight overs, so they needed to make that up with a similar bowling show. The chase was delicately poised with Khan yet to hit a boundary and the equation reading 26 off 19, when the bowling lost its discipline. Mohammad Imran, who had an otherwise impressive debut, bowled a half-tracker off his final ball that Hafeez dispatched for four. Then came the Riaz over that swung the game decisively away from Zalmi, a full-toss above waist height first ball followed by lengths going all over the place for the rest of the over.Honourable mention
Afridi was irresistible whenever he came on to bowl. He was given only a two-over opening spell, but he took 1 for 4 in that, with half the runs coming via a couple of wides.He returned to bowl the 17th and 19th overs, and took out both men who had spent time at the crease in Rutherford and Bopara. The best ball he bowled didn’t even get a wicket, a searing toe-crusher that swung in viciously to Rutherford and had him overbalancing without connecting with the ball. The keeper couldn’t hold on either and it went for four byes. Afridi got Rutherford with the very next ball.

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.

Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes held India up ably for much of day four, but they still need just a wicket more to seal the win

The Report by Sidharth Monga21-Aug-2018Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes found some belated fight for England. More than an hour of hilarity before stumps made sure we need to show up on day five at Trent Bridge for one more wicket. But amid all this drama, you could not deny that India once again proved themselves to be the superior side in this game and that the England batting once again proved to be brittle. Despite England’s biggest-ever fourth-innings partnership – 169 runs between Buttler and Stokes – there were chunks of wickets on either side that hurt them: first four for 35, and then four for 10.Ishant Sharma was largely responsible for the first slide, and Jasprit Bumrah was sensational with the second new ball after the final drinks break of the day. Only a wicket off a no-ball, which delayed the completion of a second five-for in four Tests for Bumrah, sent the match into the fifth day. In between Buttler scored England’s first Test hundred of the year from positions 1 to 6 and Stokes scored his slowest half-century to at least set some sort of example for their team-mates.England will take some confidence from the partnership between Buttler and Stokes, they will know it is possible to bat against India – that’s all you can do when chasing 520 with no rain to save you – but they were still left with more frustration than answers. The openers continued to disappoint, Joe Root and Ollie Pope continued to be undisciplined, and as soon as the new ball was taken, the rest all but fell in a heap.Their issues start at the top. In four of their five innings this series, the two openers have got off to soft starts with India spraying the new ball around for the first eight-nine overs. Alastair Cook and Keaton Jennings have enjoyed that generosity, but it is difficult to imagine an India batsman throwing away such free starts on all five occasions. It is as if the sight of Ishant Sharma freezes the pair of them no matter how set they are.Neither of them is sure what to play and what to leave as Ishant angles deliveries in and then gets them to move away. Ishant’s natural inswing release makes it easy for him. Both of them nicked behind. Ishant has now taken Cook 11 times; only Morne Morkel has done so more often. Both are similar bowlers, who relish bowling round the wicket to left-hand batsmen.Getty Images

An interesting mini duel ensued between Root and Bumrah. The problem for the batsman was the same as in the first innings. Bumrah bowled big inswingers, but they all ended up on the stumps, making Root play everything. All this while he had to watch for the ones that hold their line outside off. Root kept him out, but never came close to being at ease. Virat Kohli kept Bumrah on for an eighth over. And Root attempted to punch the widest delivery of the spell. It was also one of the wider releases in relation to the crease, making him play the angle. Bumrah to Root: 23 balls, two runs, one catch to second slip – one of the seven KL Rahul held, now one behind the world record with one wicket left standing. The wicket prompted Rahul to try a Dele Alli celebration.Pope has reminded people of Ian Bell with his driving and stroke-play, but Bell will not be proud of the big cover drive he attempted to a wide Mohammed Shami outswinger. Buttler and Stokes showed more application. In fact Stokes went through 28 Hardik Pandya balls for just two runs. As the day progressed, though, the truth reinforced itself: if you bat long enough, the ball stops moving, the bowlers get tired, and if someone is not a 100% fit, you can take advantage of that bowler.All of those things happened. The sun came out. The ball stopped doing things. R Ashwin, struggling with a hip issue, couldn’t impart the spin he would have liked, and Buttler capitalised with some glorious shots. In three of the four innings in this match, 387 runs have come for the loss of one wicket between overs 30 and 70. In the one other innings, England didn’t give themselves an opportunity to use that quiet period, instead trying all kinds of shots against Pandya when the ball was swinging.With the second new ball, though, questions re-emerged for the batsmen. Buttler left Bumrah alone in the first over with the new ball only to see it sail over the stumps with movement back in. In the next over, he made a similar decision a touch too early, the ball was fuller this time and trapped him lbw. Jonny Bairstow walked out with a broken finger and got an unplayable delivery first up. He did almost everything right – covering the angle, covering the swing in the air – but after pitching this Bumrah delivery held its line to beat the outside edge and hit the top of off.Chris Woakes survived the hat-trick ball, but he fell to his second bouncer of the match, this time a brutish lifter that followed him as he looked to sway out of the way. Bumrah nearly had five when Adil Rashid edged him behind, but it turned out to be a no-ball, and Rashid swung his way to a merry, unbeaten 30 by stumps. Amid sledging from Kohli, Stuart Broad also enjoyed some luck and scored 20. The umpires utilised the extra half hour available in the provisions of the game, but India couldn’t remove either Rashid or James Anderson.

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.

Leicestershire launched their season in style with a convincing 10-wicket victory against Glamorgan which reflected their superiority over the four days

ECB Reporters Network20-Apr-2016
ScorecardAngus Robson helped knock off the target with ease•Getty Images

Leicestershire launched their season in style with a convincing 10-wicket victory against Glamorgan which reflected their superiority over the four days.Paul Horton and Angus Robson made light work of a target of 113 after Glamorgan’s final two wickets had been taken within the first six overs of the morning as Ben Raine finished with 4 for 57.Victory was achieved half an hour after lunch as Leicestershire secured 23 points and demonstrated to other Division Two teams that they are no longer the whipping boys after spending three seasons propping up the table.Clint McKay showed in this game that he is a consummate professional, taking eight wickets in the game and scoring a valuable 65 in the first innings which was instrumental in Leicestershire gaining a first innings lead. The club has also recruited well, with Horton, the former Lancashire opener scoring two fifties in the match and establishing a solid opening partnership with Robson. Neil Dexter and Mark Pettini are also shrewd signings, and with promising young players establishing themselves, there is a good blend of youth and experience.Andrew McDonald, Leicestershire’s Director of Elite Performance, could have issued the same advice to his squad that Richard Cockerill gave to his rugby players as they prepare for the European Cup, when he said he “wanted the Tigers to emulate the city’s footballers, and make their own bit of noise in the city”Although there might not be the same noise emanating from Grace Road on a balmy summer’s afternoon, this success will hopefully attract plenty of supporters for Leicestershire’s first home game against Kent on Sunday for which the club are offering free admission to the first day.McDonald said: “[I’m] thrilled with the very professional performance over the four days. All our batsmen contributed, while our bowlers – after perhaps a below par performance in the first innings – were spot on in the second innings. They got the rewards they deserved , while Mark Cosgrove and the others who make up the leadership team – Horton, Pettini and Dexter – were always talking and discussing tactics.”Glamorgan, meanwhile, managed a decent first innings total of 348, but then let themselves down at the start of Leicestershire’s innings when the openers were dropped three times before lunch and then allowed the opposition to score 147 for the last four wickets.When Glamorgan started their second innings, yet again the top order failed to contribute – as happened on many occasions last year – and apart from 19-year-old Aneurin Donald’s half-century, there was little resistance top order. They will be hoping that Colin Ingram, one of their leading batsmen, will soon be fit again after suffering from a troublesome knee that caused him to miss the opening game.Glamorgan captain Jacques Rudolph said the defeat was “a wake -up call, and we must learn that after being 132 for 2 it is not acceptable to lose three wickets for one run. Our catching was not good enough, but it was not easy on the second day fielding in the slips in the bitterly cold conditions.”

Left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak, who last played a Test for Bangladesh in August 2011, was named in the squad for the first Test against New Zealand, which starts on October 9

Mohammad Isam02-Oct-2013Left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak, who last played a Test for Bangladesh in August 2011, was named in the 14-man squad for the first Test against New Zealand, which starts on October 9. The only new face in the list was pace bowler Al-Amin Hossain, while there were recalls for Anamul Haque, Marshall Ayub and Naeem Islam too.Mahmudullah was retained in the squad despite his poor Test form. He is the vice-captain, and will once again bat at No. 8, his regular position in the line-up.Al-Amin is currently the second highest wicket-taker in the ongoing Dhaka Premier Division with 18 wickets. He had an impressive tour of England for Bangladesh A in August and had been in the selectors’ gaze for quite a while, having been a prolific bowler for Khulna Division in the National Cricket League.”Like any other cricketer, it was my dream to make it to the national team,” Al-Amin said. “I am really excited about the opportunity. My next aim is to make it to the playing XI, and take as many wickets as I can.”He could however miss out on a Test debut as both Robiul Islam and Rubel Hossain are in the squad. Robiul is recovering from a hamstring injury, while Rubel had muscle stiffness, but the bowlers are expected to be fit in time. Bangladesh are unlikely to pick three seamers, given that Sohag Gazi and Shakib Al Hasan are automatic picks.As a result, Razzak’s inclusion isn’t much of a surprise and is he unlikely to play unless there is an injury. He has been the perennial back-up spinner in the Test squad previously too, despite his bags of first-class wickets. He is considered a limited-overs specialist and has done well in both ODIs and Twenty20s. He, however, had an impressive first-class season in 2012-13, picking 54 wickets for Khulna and South Zone in the two longer-version tournaments.Naeem returns after a good two Tests against West Indies where he looked like a long-term prospect at No. 4. He scored a century in the first Test, but a careless injury in the Bangladesh Premier League cost him two consecutive tours – Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe. Marshall was in the Test squad for Sri Lanka, but didn’t get a chance to play there. He continued to score runs domestically, scoring six centuries.Anamul, who missed the tour to Zimbabwe due to college exams, has replaced Jahurul Islam and will open with Tamim Iqbal. There are going to be a few contenders for the No. 3 and 4 positions, with Naeem, Mominul Haque and Marshall picked to give the team management options for the two places.Squad for first Test: Mushfiqur Rahim (capt.), Mahmudullah, Anamul Haque, Tamim Iqbal, Shakib Al Hasan, Nasir Hossain, Abdur Razzak, Naeem Islam, Sohag Gazi, Rubel Hossain, Mominul Haque, Marshall Ayub, Robiul Islam, Al-Amin Hossain

Virender Sehwag has been named the captain of Delhi Ranji Trophy squad for the 2012-13 season

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Sep-2012Virender Sehwag has been named the captain of Delhi’s Ranji Trophy squad for the 2012-13 season according to report in the . Gautam Gambhir has been named his deputy.The Ranji Trophy selection committee, which met at the Delhi and District Cricket Association on Friday evening, released the list of 35 probables.Delhi begin their Ranji campaign against Uttar Pradesh on November 2. The Test series against England begins on November 15 and it is likely that the national players could be available for the opening Ranji match, in a bid to warm up before the Tests. Neither Sehwag, Gambhir or Virat Kohli played any match in Delhi’s Ranji Trophy elite campaign last season. Allrounder Mithun Manhas captained Delhi last season.Delhi are in Group B of the revamped Ranji Trophy along with Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Vidarbha, Baroda and Odisha.Probables: Virender Sehwag (captain), Gautam Gambhir (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Rajat Bhatia, Shikhar Dhawan, Mithun Manhas, Ashish Nehra, Ishant Sharma, Puneet Bisht, Unmukt Chand, Yogesh Nagar, Sumit Narwal, Pradeep Sangwan, Parvinder Awana, Mohit Sharma, Vikas Mishra, Pawan Suyal, Manoj Chauhan, Milind Kumar, Dhruv Shorey, Jagrit Anand, Vaibhav Rawal, Sunny Sehrawat, Kshitiz Sharma, Rishit Saini, Javed Khan, Parvesh Chikara, Manan Sharma, Varun Sood, Chetanya Nanda, Rahul Yadav, Shoaib Prasad, Vikram Dahiya, Shelly Shaurya, Vikas Tokas.

Mohsin Khan, the Pakistan chief selector, has said picking a young team for the Zimbabwe series will help in planning for the contest against Sri Lanka in the UAE

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Sep-2011Mohsin Khan, the Pakistan chief selector, has said picking a young team for the Zimbabwe series will help in planning for the contest against Sri Lanka in the UAE next month.Mohsin had been criticised for selecting an inexperienced side to tour Zimbabwe – in the only Test, of their three fast bowlers two were debutants and the other had played only one match – but Pakistan ended up winning the Test and sweeping the one-dayers.”As a whole, the team performance is very satisfactory and even though Zimbabwe was not a weak opposition, our boys played well and won every game,” Mohsin told the on Thursday. The tour ends with two Twenty20 matches, one on Friday and the other on Sunday.Several of the new players picked and those recalled for the series, such as fast bowler Aizaz Cheema and opening batsman Imran Farhat, have performed reasonably well. “This tour of Zimbabwe will help us a lot in putting together a solid combination for the upcoming series against Sri Lanka, which is one of the best teams in the world,” Mohsin said. However, the final call on the squad for the UAE will be made with the region’s playing conditions in mind. “Since the Sri Lankan series will be played in the UAE where the conditions are different, we will make the combination accordingly.”Pakistan face Sri Lanka in three Tests, five ODIs and a Twenty20 in a series that starts on October 18.

Zimbabwe’s chairman of selectors, Alistair Campbell, has criticised Cricket Scotland’s decision to not tour Zimbabwe for an ICC Intercontinental Cup fixture

Cricinfo staff04-Sep-2010Zimbabwe’s chairman of selectors, Alistair Campbell, has criticised the UK government’s advice against visiting the country and Cricket Scotland’s subsequent decision to not tour Zimbabwe for an ICC Intercontinental Cup fixture in October.”We have ten Englishmen playing cricket and coaching in Zimbabwe, including our national coach Alan Butcher, and apart from anything else the decision is an insult to them,” Campbell told AFP.The match was initially scheduled for a neutral African venue before the Scotland board agreed to a proposal to play in Zimbabwe, but a change in the UK government’s policy led to the reversing of the decision. It was a setback to Zimbabwe’s return to the fold following their withdrawal from Test cricket in 2006. India and Sri Lanka toured the country for a triangular series in May, and Ireland confirmed their September trip for an Intercontinental Cup game and three ODIs. Kenya and Afghanistan also played their Intercontinental Cup matches in the country recently.When asked about Zimbabwe’s proposed visit to Pakistan later in 2010, Campbell was confident that most of the players would be willing to tour the country. The players are yet to be sounded out on the sensitive issue of touring Pakistan, where no international cricket has been played since March 2009 following the terror attacks on the touring Sri Lanka side. Campbell said that if a player refused, he will not be pressured to go.Zimbabwe Cricket had earlier said that it was prepared to send a team to Pakistan to help raise funds for people affected by the floods that have ravaged the country. However, the schedule of Pakistan’s tour of New Zealand may have to be altered in order to accommodate Zimbabwe’s trip.