All posts by h716a5.icu

Jos Buttler is prepared to try his variety of scoop shots against Lasith Malinga despite a warning from Sri Lanka’s Mahela Jayawardene

David Hopps11-Jun-2013Jos Buttler’s whirlwind 47 from 16 balls against New Zealand at Trent Bridge last week was one of the most brilliantly unconventional innings ever played by an England batsman. In its dexterity, strength and quick-wittedness, it had reminders of racquet sports and baseball with a spot of cricket thrown in.If Lasith Malinga is reverse swinging the ball at the end of England’s innings at The Oval on Thursday and Buttler is on strike, he could be about to face his greatest challenge of all.Buttler’s knock at Trent Bridge was not as much an innings as an escapade, a tricksy collection of outlandish shots, as dapper as they were mischievous. In less than half an hour at the crease, he surely joined Kevin Pietersen and Eoin Morgan as the type of England batsman to whet the appetite of many an IPL owner – if only they could find a way to get England players on the field.Buttler is suddenly the England batsman the world wants to see – but next up comes Malinga as England seek to overcome Sri Lanka and all but assure themselves of a place in the Champions Trophy semi-finals.He will attempt to unveil his collection of scoops, swivel scoops and reverse scoops, with an occasional straight slug for good measure, against the bowler with the thickety hairstyle of the jungle and a yorker that can be suitably ferocious.Buttler did not sound as if he is about to forego the challenge as he prepared for practice in the refined atmosphere of Dulwich College, an independent school in south-east London, where there were more artificial practice strips – a casual count brought 15 – than in any county ground in the land, as well as a square of first-class standard.”Any shot is harder against reverse swing, but the scoop is a big part of my game,” Buttler said. “I practise it a lot and if I feel the situation is right I won’t be afraid to play it.”I played against Malinga in the Champions League for Somerset against Mumbai and also in the World T20. I didn’t score many against him in the Champions League.”He’s a world-class bowler and everyone knows how good he is. But I’m confident I can put in some good performances against him. He’s different, but he’s been around a while so people are more used to him now than when he first came on to the scene.”Mention to Mahela Jayawardene, the great protector of Sri Lanka cricket, that Buttler and perhaps Eoin Morgan too might unveil their scoop shots against Malinga and he smiles at the prospect. He knows it would stretch batting ambition to the limit.Jayawardene himself does not pretend to have the capacity to do it, and there are few more serenely talented players in the game, and he has never seen Tillakaratne Dilshan – Buttler’s TV inspiration when he joined Somerset as a raw teenager – attempt it either.Tricksy Buttler

The scoop: Buttler’s version of Dilshan’s Dilscoop. Also referred to as the ramp shot, it needs immense bravery and a touch of madness. The bat is pointed at the bowler, with the blade virtually flat on the ground to flip a straight, good-length ball over the wicketkeeper’s head.

The swivel scoop: Buttler aims to play this to a much fuller delivery. He plants his back leg across to the off side and swivels 90 degrees to face the leg-side field, depositing the ball over fine leg. This combats bowlers looking to cramp him by bowling full and outside off stump to a predominantly off-side field.

The reverse scoop: This is a rescue shot – and his most innovative of all. Buttler plans to play the ramp shot, prepares to scoop but finds the ball is shorter and wider than expected so flicks it wristily, almost back-handedly, over short third man.

“Well, let them try it and we’ll see,” he grinned. “It is a big chance if you want to go for it. It is a calculated risk and a few guys have tried. Some have come off and some haven’t and some have got hurt.”I wish them all the best with it, I wouldn’t do it against Malinga but if they want to do it then that is up to them. I remember a few tried and got hit on the toe and hit on the wrist and all that stuff so you’ve got to be very, very careful.”I don’t play it. Dilshan doesn’t play it against him either, not at all and not in the nets. Why would you want to do that? That is ridiculous.”Buttler is committed to far more than novelty these days. He is now absolutely committed to developing his wicketkeeping and his steady improvement, although he has a long way to go, is slowly changing perceptions.Paul Nixon, a former England keeper, dismissed Buttler and Jonny Bairstow in January as having a long way to go before either could be regarded as a regular gloveman for England in one-day cricket. Five months later, Nixon has floated the possibility that Buttler could develop into the long-term successor to Matt Prior.”Keeping wicket is a huge part of my game and there’s a lot of scope for improvement still. I’m excited about that,” Buttler said. “The nature of my game means I’m going down the wicketkeeping route.”If Somerset do not satisfy his ambition to keep in Championship cricket early in the season, he will face a tough decision about whether to remain with the county when his contract expires. “Decisions will be have to be made and there will be talks, but at the moment I’m only focusing on the Champions Trophy,” he said.Buttler has also adopted a more meaningful approach to his batting in the Championship. He has dutifully reined himself in all season during a traumatic start for Somerset and, although it does not yet seem entirely natural to him, the result has been 426 runs at an improved average of 42.60, including a century and two near misses.”I had a sit down and looked at my Championship cricket,” he said. “It’s pretty obvious that I’ve underperformed so far. Maybe I had been using one-day cricket as a bit of an excuse, to say I’m a one-day player and shot maker, those kind of things.”They were an easy way out and it was a lazy attitude, so I’ve sat down and thought of a way to transfer into four-day cricket. I was doing myself an injustice because I’m a better player than that. I’ve been happy with my Championship form so far this year.”I do get as much pleasure from making runs in the Championship. It’s great to be adaptable and show that to other people who may question that element of my game.”But that is for the future. Malinga was narrowly fought off by New Zealand, who inflicted a one-wicket defeat on Sri Lanka in Cardiff on Sunday, leaving them desperate to overturn England and maintain a realistic hope of reaching the semi-finals.

Darren Sammy will become the 27th player to represent West Indies in 100 one-day matches when he takes the field against Pakistan on Tuesday.

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Jul-2013Allrounder Darren Sammy will become the 27th player to represent West Indies in 100 one-day matches when he takes the field against Pakistan on Tuesday. On the eve of the second ODI, Sammy confessed to not having thought of such records when he started out, but considered it one of his best moments.”All I really wanted to do was represent the West Indies and give my all on every occasion out there on the field,” he said. “But I will approach it as any other game before, preparing myself both physically and mentally and make sure I am match-ready if selected, for tomorrow’s match. I see this as one of the highlight moments of my career”Having made his debut in 2004, Sammy has scored five half-centuries and has a top-score of 84 off 50 balls at No. 9 against Australia. He has taken 71 wickets at an economy rate of 4.56. His crowning achievement was leading West Indies to the 2012 World Twenty20 title by beating the hosts Sri Lanka in the final in Colombo.West Indies, however, are trailing 0-1 in the ongoing series against Pakistan, having suffered a 126-run defeat on Sunday. The hosts, after restricting Pakistan to 54 for 5 in 21 overs, collapsed spectacularly as Shahid Afridi plundered 76 runs off 55 balls and took 7 for 12.But Sammy, who had captained West Indies to a 2-2 draw against Australia and a 4-1 win against New Zealand in March and July 2012, believed that the team’s return to winning ways was just a matter of piecing together consistent performances.”We have been through times like this before, but someway and somehow we found a way to bounce back,” he said. “We had a good start from the spell Jason [Holder] gave us, but we did not capitalise on that and that is something we really got to improve on, which is driving home the advantage when we have teams in critical positions with our bowling.”Fast bowler Jason Holder, who wrecked Pakistan’s top order with figures of 10-4-13-4, echoed Sammy’s optimism.”Obviously we did not get the result we wanted but I think the guys will be looking to bounce back, while I will be looking to continue the same form by putting the Pakistanis under pressure early.”It was a good pitch to bowl on especially after it dried out. It spun in the second half and like I said, it is not a bad pitch. We just need to apply ourselves a bit more and get the runs.”Misbah-ul-Haq and Shahid Afridi’s 120-run stand for the sixth wicket eventually took Pakistan to 224. In contrast, West Indies managed only two double-figure partnerships, one of which was for the ninth wicket between Sammy and Sunil Narine, when the match was already all but lost.

Shikhar Dhawan’s record 248 helped India nudge out South Africa in a high-scoring virtual semi-final in Pretoria

The Report by Devashish Fuloria12-Aug-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsThe year keeps getting better for Shikhar Dhawan•Getty ImagesShikhar Dhawan began with Mo Farah-esque strides and ended with an Usain Bolt-like burst to plunder 248 off 150 balls – the second-highest List A score ever and the record for an A-team – out of India A’s giddying 433 for 3, in the virtual semi-final against South Africa A in Pretoria. South Africa, in reply, made the most of a flat pitch and short boundaries to come close to the target and only ran out of steam towards the end to lose by 39 runs.India had chosen to bat and the innings started with Dhawan driving one straight down the ground. A flurry of boundaries helped Dhawan and his new partner at the top, M Vijay, scoot to 91 in the 12th over, but as Pujara joined Dhawan after Vijay was caught behind for 40, there was a quiet period as the run rate dropped to below seven. It was merely the quiet before the violence.Dhawan arrived at the century-mark off 86 balls with a straight-driven boundary in the 27th over, and found his nitro booster to rocket from there on. In the 28th over, he smashed his first six, off Juan Theron, and immediately followed it with another. The projected team total was constantly being readjusted to higher levels as Dhawan kept finding the boundaries in an unprecedented attack. His second hundred came at almost double the rate as his first, taking 46 balls, as he smashed his way to becoming only the third Indian to record a double-century in limited-overs cricket after Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar. At the other end, Cheteshwar Pujara had quietly brought up his own fifty off 54 balls.Dhawan would not have got his double century had Rusty Theron held on to a chance off the bowling of Roelof van der Merwe when Dhawan was on 154, but with 10 overs still left when he got past that landmark, the 11-year-old record of the highest List A score of 268 looked well within his reach. He fell 20 runs short of it to finish second best. Pujara’s unbeaten 109 off 97 seemed mild in comparison. The two batsmen scored 285 runs together in 33.2 overs, 198 of which came from Dhawan’s bat.South Africa’s bowling unit also entered record books as this was the first instance of five bowlers giving away more than 60 runs each in a List A match, but they were not the only ones to suffer. India’s bowlers were meted out the same treatment as South Africa openers Reeze Hendricks and Rilee Rossouw rampaged their way to 121 by the 13th over and a repeat of South Africa’s senior side’s memorable night seven years ago didn’t appear improbable.A couple of quick wickets fell to the spinners, but Hendricks hammered a 75-ball hundred to take South Africa past 200 in the 25th over. The ball frequently disappeared to the adjacent net-ball courts as South Africa remained abreast with the required rate.After the dismissal of Hendricks, the required rate went over 10-an-over for the first time in the 32nd over, but Vaughn van Jaarsveld, with helpful cameos from Justin Ontong and Roelof van der Merwe, kept up the hope. Van Jaarsveld fell soon after reaching to his century, top-edging an Ishwar Pandey slower delivery to mid-off, effectively ending South Africa’s challenge, as India mopped up the remaining batsmen quickly. However, on a batsman’s day, Dhawan’s knock proved to be the difference.

Ben Stokes, the Durham and England allrounder, has capped an impressive season by winning the Cricket Writers’ Club Young Cricketer of the Year award

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Sep-2013Ben Stokes, the Durham and England allrounder, has capped an impressive season by winning the Cricket Writers’ Club Young Cricketer of the Year award. Derbyshire’s Wayne Madsen, who led the Division One batting averages for most of the season despite his county’s eventual relegation, took the William Hill County Player of the Year award.The recognition for Stokes, who is part of England’s Ashes squad to tour Australia, comes less than ten months after he was sent home from a Lions tour for indulging one late night too many. He will now hope that he can follow the 2012 winner, Joe Root, in becoming one of a number of recipients of the award to subsequently establish themselves in the full England side.Stokes has been capped by England in the limited-overs formats, making his debut in 2011 and taking a maiden five-wicket haul against Australia earlier this month. His impressive displays in the ODI series spurred a call-up to England’s Test party for the first time and he could eventually be asked to fill the allrounder position.As part of Durham’s Championship-winning side, Stokes scored 615 runs at 27.95 and took 42 wickets at 26.57. His father, Ged Stokes, played rugby league for New Zealand, but Ben went to school in the northeast after the family moved to England. He played for Cockermouth CC before progressing through the Durham academy.Stokes is the first Durham player to win the award, which is voted for by CWC members. Eligible candidates must have been under 23 on May 1.Madsen, the captain of Derbyshire, was the second winner of the CWC county award, after Nick Compton in 2012. The 29-year-old made 1221 runs at the top of the order as Derbyshire kept their hopes of Division One survival alive into the final round of the Championship. He was the first batsman to cross 1000 Championship runs and finished as the second-leading scorer in the division, behind Yorkshire’s Gary Ballance.The South Africa-born Madsen, who has been with Derbyshire since 2009, was also recently named the inaugural winner of the Christopher Martin-Jenkins Spirit of Cricket Elite Award, created by MCC and the BBC to acknowledge exceptional sportsmanship, for walking during a crucial Championship match against Yorkshire.The winners will be presented with their awards at the annual Cricket Writers’ Club lunch in London on Monday.

Essex’s trio of seam bowlers dove-tailed brilliantly to hound Kent out for 107 in their first innings and give them a chance to beat the weather that is forecast to shorten this match

Vithushan Ehantharajah at Canterbury12-Sep-2013
ScorecardDavid Masters has put Essex in a position to try and force a quick victory and dodge the poor weather which is forecast•Getty ImagesIt’s the lot of a bowler that much of their success can be attributed to batsman error. With video clips and a modicum of technical nous, even the most memorable deliveries can be stripped of their pomp: “Why was Michael Clarke trying to work Steven Harmison’s slower-ball through the leg-side, anyway?”As such, it’s important that displays like Essex’s on day two, when their trio of seam bowlers dove-tailed brilliantly to hound Kent out for 107 in their first innings, are treated with the respect they deserve. Much of the plaudits will go to David Masters for his 6 for 41 – his third five-wicket haul of the season – but Graham Napier and Reece Topley deserve recognition for their parts in a relentless display.Forever the leader of the attack, Masters instigated the rout with two spells before tea – taking two wickets in each – that gutted the hosts’ top order with consummate ease. He looked almost unplayable, either beating batsmen outright, or luring them into a false sense of security with some smart approach play, and reaping the payback. The wicket of Daniel Bell-Drummond summed up the disparity between bat and Masters in this mini-session perfectly.With Bell-Drummond unable to score a run off Masters’s previous eight deliveries, playing and missing outside off stump as he tried to remain positive on the front foot, James Foster had a cunning plan.Reinforcing the slip cordon to four, with a man at point, he asked Jaik Mickleburgh to helmet up and come in – quite literally – under Bell-Drummond’s nose. With the man in place at daft-cover, a bat-pad dismissal was now in play. Perhaps realising that only a perfect forward defence would avoid such a demise, Bell-Drummond played away from his body, leaving an inviting gap. Masters is too good not to exploit even the minutest of flaws, and took out the middle stump.A switch to the Nackington Road End only provided a change in backdrop, as he bowled Rob Key and then trapped the dangerous Darren Stevens in front. Along with Napier’s wicket of Brendan Nash, the pair had seen off Kent’s three key batsmen – each with over 900 Championship runs this season – for just 11 runs between them.Napier bagged the sixth wicket, trapping Geraint Jones in his crease, and then treated us to one of the balls of the day; a sharp inswinger from the Pavilion End that uprooted the left-handed Callum Haggett’s leg-stump with such malice that middle and off needed counselling.Topley was then rewarded with his first wicket of the day when Mark Davies swiped wildly to become the fourth batsmen to fall bowled. He was unlucky not to have more, bowling with great control and minimal luck, particularly in his third over, when a hat-trick of lbw appeals were turned down against Key.Fittingly, Masters finished what he started, with two wickets in two balls to leave Kent with a first innings deficit of 169. Naturally, with a forecast of rain over the next two days, Essex enforced the follow-on. Just three hours after they first came to the middle, Sam Northeast and Rob Key were out again to see out the day.Credit, too, for Foster, who ensured he used all 10 of the overs left in the Kent second innings, with four going to spin, with the umpires ready to walk off for bad light in the second over, just as Topley was loosening up to share the new ball.Earlier in the day, Foster scored 46 of the 90 runs that Essex’s last six wickets added. Owais Shah could only add one to his overnight score, while Ben Foakes scored his third fifty of the season, before he chased a wide ball from Charlie Shreck which he could only edge to slip. Once Napier fell, the onus was on the captain to shepherd the tail, and he did so impressively; rotating well with the more-than-capable Masters, before farming the strike when in partnership with Panesar and Topley.Should they replicate today’s bowling performance tomorrow, they will comprehensively trump Kent and Mother Nature.

Cox’s Bazaar has been dropped as one of the venues for the next World T20 to be held in Bangladesh next year, while Sylhet has been retained

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Oct-2013Cox’s Bazaar has been dropped as a venue for the 2014 World T20 to be held in Bangladesh between March 16 and April 6. Sylhet, another venue considered doubtful due to ongoing work at the stadium, has been retained.On Sunday, the ICC announced that Sylhet would host all first-round fixtures of the Women’s World T20 and a few group matches of the World T20, along with Mirpur and Chittagong. All six knockout matches will be played in Mirpur.Sylhet and Cox’s Bazaar were in doubt because of ongoing development in the stadiums and were given an extension by the ICC till November 30, after accepting Bangladesh Cricket Board’s request. The original deadline for the completion of the stadiums was September 30.Campbell Jamieson, the ICC general manager – commercial, said he was confident of Bangladesh hosting a tournament successfully, like they have in the past. “Bangladesh hosted the ICC Champions Trophy in 1998 [then known as the ICC KnockOut] and most recently the World Cup 2011, along with India and Sri Lanka. Following the legacies of these two successful events, as well as the U-19 World Cup 2004, I’m confident that Bangladesh will once again produce a world-class tournament.”Groups for the 2014 World T20

Men’s Super 10 Groups
Group 1: SL, England, SA, NZ, qualifier 1
Group 2: WI, India, Pakistan, Australia, qualifier 2
Women’s Groups
Group A: Australia, NZ, SA, Pakistan, Ireland
Group B: England, WI, India, SL, Bangladesh

The format for the World T20 has been modified to accommodate 16 teams in this edition, as compared to 12 in the last edition. The top eight sides of the ICC’s T20 team rankings as on October 8, 2012 have been given direct entry into the Super 10 stage. Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, who finished outside the top eight, will compete with six other qualifying teams in the first round from March 16 to 21 for the remaining two places in the Super 10 groups.The eight teams in the first round have been divided into two groups of four teams each with table-toppers progressing to the next stage. The six qualifying teams to join the first round will be decided at the end of the World T20 qualifiers to be held in the UAE between November 15 and 30. If Bangladesh reach the Super 10 stage, they will play all their matches in Mirpur, facing West Indies, India, Pakistan and Australia.The Super 10 stage will commence with a match between India and Pakistan in Mirpur on March 21. West Indies will begin their title defence on March 23 against India in Mirpur and will play the rest of their group matches against Pakistan, Australia and a qualifying team.The women’s teams, increased from eight to ten, have been divided into two groups of five teams each. Australia, the women’s T20 defending champions, will start their campaign for a third title against New Zealand on March 23. The knockout games for both tournaments will be played on the same day at the same venue.Jamieson said a large chunk of the tickets for the tournament will be available locally: “The majority of tickets will be available for the public here in Bangladesh. I mean a very high percentage, a significant proportion. Moneygram outlets throughout the country. I anticipate the demand for tickets will far outweigh the supply, which is great for the game of cricket but it is a challenge when the sales takes place.” Tickets go on sale from November 10.

South Africa lead the series 2-1 and have the chance to win it in the fourth ODI in Abu Dhabi

The Preview by Firdose Moonda07-Nov-2013Match factsFriday, November 8, 2013
Start time 1500 local (1100GMT)Pakistan are in need of a drastic improvement from their batsmen•AFPBig pictureFollowers of this series could easily think they’ve woken up in March, or even in 2010, when these two sides last met in five-ODI series. The result went South Africa’s way in the first game, Pakistan’s in the second and back to South Africa in the third. History would tell us it’s Pakistan’s turn again in the fourth, and they need a victory in Abu Dhabi to stay alive in the series.South Africa, however, could break the pendulum swing of the score line because their batting has improved more than Pakistan’s. On the Abu Dhabi pitch, which has proved the most conducive for run-scoring, South Africa seem to have an advantage but whether they have the temperament to make it count remains to be seen.The two bowling attacks, who tore into opposing batting line-ups in the first two matches, were somewhat nullified by an unhelpful pitch in the third game. Pakistan were blunted more severely by batsmen who were willing to apply themselves. Mohammad Irfan still caused problems and Pakistan will need him and the spinners to be at their best to level the series.South Africa will be happier but not entirely satisfied with the changes they made to their line-up. They will still demand more from the batsmen, especially as the bowlers cannot be asked to do much more. Should they win on Friday, it will be the first time South Africa would have won an ODI series before the final game since they blanked New Zealand 3-0 in 2011-12.Form guidePakistan LWLWW (last five completed games, most recent first) South Africa WLWLLWatch out forPakistan need more competent performances from their two Umars, Amin and Akmal, if they keep their places. Both batsmen have been guilty of needless soft dismissals – think Akmal handing Imran Tahir a return catch off a full toss – and Amin needs to tighten up outside his off stump. They need to make their adjustments quickly or the series could fall out of Pakistan’s grasp.South Africa’s improvement with the bat in the third match included two of their batsmen getting half-centuries, and with the fourth fixture being played on the same placid surface in Abu Dhabi, they will be looking for someone to score a hundred. JP Duminy appears the likeliest candidate. As South Africa’s top scorer from the previous match and the most comfortable batsman against the spinners, he may be the man to score the first century of the series.Team newsPakistan moved Mohammad Hafeez back to the top of the order for the third match and will probably keep him there with Ahmed Shehzad. With the middle order still a concern, it may be time to consider handing Sohaib Maqsood a debut and bringing in Sarfraz Ahmed as wicketkeeper. Wahab Riaz has been unsuccessful with the ball, and Junaid Khan could be a handy replacement.Pakistan: 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Ahmed Shehzad, 3 Umar Amin/Sohaib Maqsood 4 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), 5 Asad Shafiq, 6 Umar Akmal/Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 7 Shahid Afridi, 8 Sohail Tanvir, 9 Wahab Riaz/Junaid Khan, 10 Saeed Ajmal, 11 Mohammad Irfan.With Graeme Smith out of the series, Quinton de Kock will get another opportunity to open and will probably keep wicket as well, although AB de Villiers appears more suited to the task. Faf du Plessis seemed to prefer batting at No.3, so he should stay there with JP Duminy at No.4. Dale Steyn was clutching his hamstring and groin at various points in the third match and if there is a lingering niggle, he could make way for either Wayne Parnell or Vernon Philander, who has not played a match so far.South Africa:1 Hashim Amla, 2 Quinton de Kock (wk), 3 Faf du Plessis, 4 JP Duminy 5 AB de Villiers (capt), 6 David Miller, 7 Ryan McLaren, 8 Dale Steyn/Wayne Parnell/Vernon Philander, 9 Morne Morkel, 10 Lonwabo Tsotsobe, 11 Imran TahirStats and trivia AB de Villiers is 148 runs behind Jacques Kallis as South Africa’s leading run-scorer in ODIs against Pakistan. Shahid Afridi has played in more ODIs than anyone else in Abu Dhabi, with 19 appearances to date.Quotes”It’s the same old story. I think we need to think about our batting if we want to save the series. Our batsmen get starts but are not able to convert them into big scores, and we all have to think that 20s and 30s are not going to win matches for us.”
“Dale is a wonderful bowler. He’s close to perfect. He brings in intensity to the team and he ups the pace of the game. He brings this intensity which is irreplaceable.”

On-field flashpoints have been a feature of the first two Tests between Australia and England but Ben Stokes and Mitchell Johnson have avoided punishment for their coming together on the fourth day

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Dec-2013On-field flashpoints have been a feature of the first two Tests between Australia and England but Ben Stokes and Mitchell Johnson have avoided punishment for their coming together on the fourth day in Adelaide. Shoulders collided when Stokes ran past Johnson while batting, and the pair were later separated by umpire Kumar Dharmasena, but they were found not guilty of breaching the ICC’s code of conduct.The match referee, Jeff Crowe, who had spoken to both teams before the second Test about standards of behaviour, conducted separate hearings with Stokes and Johnson after the match. Both pleaded not guilty to the charges, relating to “inappropriate and deliberate physical contact between players” in the ICC’s code of conduct, and Crowe was satisfied that the mid-pitch encounter was not intentional, although they were warned against a repeat.Stokes, the Durham allrounder, put in a combative showing on his Test debut. Having been denied his maiden Test wicket in Australia’s first innings, when he had Brad Haddin caught behind off a no ball, Stokes struck up a lively discussion with Haddin at the end of the over in which the batsman was recalled. He was also given a send-off by Ryan Harris after a stubborn, 90-ball stay in England’s second knock.”I am satisfied in respect of both players that their physical contact was not deliberate,” Crowe said. “Both players, however, could have done more to avoid each other and they have been so counselled. We do not condone physical contact, but recognise that on occasions such contact could be accidental.”The charges were brought by on-field umpires, Kumar Dharmasena and Marais Erasmus, third umpire Tony Hill and fourth umpire Simon Fry, with suspension for a Test the maximum possible sanction. Instead, Stokes and Johnson could face each other again in a few days time, in the third Test starting in Perth on Friday, with England 2-0 down and chasing a way back into the series.Australia’s captain, Michael Clarke, was fined 20% of his match fee after the first Test in Brisbane, after his suggestion that James Anderson should prepare to have his arm broken whilst facing Mitchell Johnson was picked up by the stump microphone. Australia’s aggressive approach has been a clear element of their strategy to regain the Ashes – Johnson’s pace no small part of that – and tempers flared again as England battled in vain to avoid another heavy defeat in Adelaide, with Johnson, Stokes, Stuart Broad, Matt Prior and Clarke involved in various exchanges on Sunday.

Mark Lane, the former England women’s head coach, will link up with Ireland women as part of their coaching staff leading into the Women’s World T20 in Bangladesh in March.

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Jan-2014Mark Lane, the former England women’s head coach, will link up with Ireland women as part of their coaching staff leading into the Women’s World T20 in Bangladesh in March.Lane, who oversaw England’s world cup success in 2009 before leaving the role in May 2013, is being retained by Ireland as coach mentor having undertaken a consultant role alongside Trent Johnston, who was recently appointed Ireland women’s head coach.Cricket Ireland Performance Director Richard Holdsworth said Lane would have a noteworthy effect on Ireland women: “We believe a coach of Mark’s calibre and experience will support Trent and the players significantly.”His knowledge of the other women’s international teams and the brand of cricket they play is second to none, and we feel his passion and confidence will rub off on the Irish players.”Lane said he was delighted to accept a new challenge, which begins with an ODI tri-series in Qatar against South Africa and Pakistan on January 10. Four round-robin matches are scheduled before the final on January 17. The format is then replicated with T20 fixtures and the tour concludes on January 24.Ireland tour party for Qatar
Isobel Joyce (capt), Laura Delany, Emma Flanagan, Jennifer Gray, Cecelia Joyce, Amy Kenealy, Louise McCarthy, Kate McKenna, Lucy O’Reilly, Rebecca Rolfe, Melissa Scott-Hayward, Clare Shillington, Elena Tice, Mary WaldronFixtures

January 10, Pakistan
January 11, South Africa
January 13, Pakistan
January 14, South Africa
January 17, Final
January 19, Pakistan
January 20, South Africa and Pakistan (double header)
January 22, South Africa
January 24, Final

The Bangladesh Cricket League match between East Zone and North Zone was stopped for two and half hours after the first over of the morning due to a damp pitch

Mohammad Isam18-Jan-2014The Bangladesh Cricket League match between East Zone and North Zone was stopped for two and half hours after the first over of the morning due to a damp pitch. The decision was taken keeping in mind the safety of players, some of whom will feature in the series against Sri Lanka.Tamim Iqbal faced six deliveries of varying bounce from Farhad Reza, the North Zone pace bowler. The umpires consulted the two captains – Tamim and Mushfiqur Rahim – and decided that the wicket needed further drying. A sunny day possibly saved the situation as it didn’t take too long for the wicket to dry up, after which the umpires deemed it acceptable to start play.There was definite moisture on the surface due to the time of the year, and added water in an effort to make it more sporting. But it is not clear why the umpires let the game start at 9.30am in the first place. The incident came a couple of days after the BCB ordered the curators at the two BKSP grounds hosting the first-class tournament to make the wickets more balanced after a string of centuries in the first round.Play restarted at 12:10pm, after which the wicket played much better as East Zone moved to 261 for 8 in 81 overs.