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Players and four members of the coaching staff to be part of 12-day “residential training camp” in Colombo

Andrew Fidel Fernando31-May-2020Sri Lanka Cricket will go ahead with plans for a 13-man squad of players to begin training on Monday, despite a sharp rise in the number of Covid-19 infections in the country over the past few weeks.The players will essentially put themselves and four support staff in a bubble, over the course of the 12-day “residential training camp” at the Colombo Cricket Club. The squad, which largely comprises of bowlers, will stay at a nearby hotel, and “will not be allowed to leave the hotel premises or the practice venue to attend personal matters” according to an SLC release.Although 531 new Covid-19 patients had been identified in Sri Lanka since May 24, those new cases are believed to be almost entirely from quarantine centres from around the country, with recent returnees from the Middle East comprising the majority of patients. In general, the Sri Lanka government has indicated that the spread of the virus is under control, and has so far avoided reimposing the strict, extended curfews seen through April and the early part of May.The government is also understood to be supporting this resumption of training.”Health officials already visited the hotel and the practice venue, and provided health guidelines to the staff members of the respective venues,” the board release said.Among those who will start training are quicks Suranga Lakmal, Nuwan Pradeep, Isuru Udana, Kasun Rajitha and Lahiru Kumara. Spinners Wanindu Hasaranga and Lasith Embuldeniya and batsmen Kusal Perera and Danushka Gunathilaka have also been included in this squad. Head coach Mickey Arthur and batting coach Grant Flower – both of whom have been in Sri Lanka through the duration of the viral outbreak – are among the support staff.SLC had hoped international cricket could begin on the island in late June or early July, but India – the team that is due to visit next – have not confirmed the tour.

A breakneck 193-run eighth-wicket stand between Carlos Brathwaite and Andre Russell transformed West Indians’ position from dire to dominant in the Colombo practice match, which the visitors went on to win by 43 runs

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Oct-2015No. 9 Carlos Brathwaite walloped seven sixes and 10 fours to make a 58-ball 113•AFP

A breakneck 193-run eighth-wicket stand between Carlos Brathwaite and Andre Russell transformed West Indians’ position from dire to dominant in the Colombo practice match, which the visitors went on to win by 43 runs. The Sri Lanka Board President’s XI’s chase was cut short by rain at 21 overs. Their response of 103 for 3 to West Indians’ 318 was found to be well short via the Duckworth-Lewis method.West Indians had been 109 for 7 after 30 overs, before Brathwaite walloped seven sixes and 10 fours to make a 58-ball 113. Russell struck six sixes to make 89 from 54, helping propel West Indians beyond 300, before both batsmen got out in quick succession, and the innings ended in the 49th over.The President’s XI began poorly when Danushka Gunathilaka, who is in the ODI squad, was dismissed for 13 by Ravi Rampaul. Recent Test debutant Kusal Mendis hit 32 from 46, and Lahiru Thirimanne hinted at a return to better form, in his preferred format, with 41 from 48. Russell and Jason Holder took the other two wickets.Earlier, left-arm seamer Isuru Udana and legspinner Seekkuge Prasanna seemed to have West Indians pinned, when they claimed two wickets each by the end of the 26th over. Only Darren Bravo, from among West Indians’ top seven, made it past 20. Seamer Binura Fernando was expensive, but claimed three wickets – including those of Brathwaite and Russell – towards the end of the innings. Suraj Randiv delivered five overs for 20 runs and took one wicket.

South Africa allrounder will play in County Championship and Royal London Cup

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jan-2021Wiaan Mulder, the South Africa allrounder, has signed to play for Leicestershire as an overseas player in the 2021 County Championship and Royal London Cup.Mulder, 22, impressed in South Africa’s 2-0 Test victory over Sri Lanka earlier this month, taking nine wickets at 20.55. In first-class cricket, he averages 38.73 with the bat, with five hundreds, and 24.43 with the ball.As well as three Test caps, has also been played for South Africa in the ODI format, and had a spell in county cricket in 2019 with Kent. He is expected to be available for Leicestershire throughout the summer.”Wiaan is a top-class allrounder who we have kept an eye on for several months,” Leicestershire head coach, Paul Nixon, said. “He has recently returned to the international scene and we are delighted to have Wiaan sign for us.Related

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“Wiaan is a player who is comfortable batting in the top six and is a first-change bowler at the very highest level. He is highly experienced for a young player and will add a huge amount to our group.”I have spoken to many people about Wiaan and everybody has good things to say about how he goes about his work. Wiaan is a match-winner who is very rarely out of the game with his all-round abilities.”Leicestershire finished fifth in the North Group in last season’s Bob Willis Trophy, and will begin the 2021 Championship – which is being played in three seeded groups – in Group 2 alongside Somerset, Hampshire, Surrey, Gloucestershire and Middlesex.

Sri Lanka captain says that the white-ball players who toured Pakistan recently convinced the team to travel for the Tests

Umar Farooq in Rawalpindi10-Dec-2019Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne, who has a strong side at his disposal in Pakistan, feels it is a “great pleasure to play a part” in the revival of Test cricket in the country.When Sri Lanka toured Pakistan for a white-ball series recently, as many as ten of their premier players had opted out, but the experienced Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal are in the ranks now, and the only major player missing is Suranga Lakmal, who is unwell.For Karunaratne, it will be a first time playing in Pakistan in any format. “It my first experience here, but I am really excited,” Karunaratne said at a press conference after the team had been welcomed in the capital city of Islamabad with around 4000 security personnel looking after their safety. “It’s after ten years that we are playing a Test match in Pakistan and it’s a great pleasure for me to be part of it.”Initially, most of the senior players were reluctant to travel to Pakistan over the security situation, but after the one-day and T20 series, those players recommended us to travel here after which we decided to travel. We are delighted to be here and the arrangements are satisfactory.”While Pakistan have lost all their five Tests in the past year, three in South Africa and two in Australia, Sri Lanka have had it better, drawing a Test in New Zealand in December last year, beating South Africa 2-0 in South Africa earlier this year, and most recently drawing a Test series 1-1 at home against New Zealand.”We played really good cricket against Pakistan in Dubai [in the UAE, in 2017] and that confidence helps me to motivate myself in this series,” Karunaratne said. “Most of the guys are travelling for the first time to Pakistan and playing in Rawalpindi, it’s not easy. It’s a good pacy wicket. We have a few plans for each player, and we try to stick to the basics and do the right things at the right time, and get maximum out of the conditions as well.”Sri Lanka might be away from home, but they have Pakistan’s former coach Mickey Arthur in their dressing room. “It’s a positive thing for us. It’s a big advantage for us,” Karunaratne said. “Mickey was very close to the Pakistan team for the last three years, he knows each and everyone closely, even the batters and bowlers, and how the team is going to get prepared. But whatever we get we have to do the things right.”This is the same side we are playing after Mahela [Jayawardene] and Sanga [Kumar Sangakkara], it’s been four years now. We are an experienced side, Angelo, Chandimal, myself, [Lahiru] Thirimanne… lots of senior players are here, we want to play good cricket here, competitive cricket. Pakistan is a good side, they have done well in their own conditions, so we will try to play good competitive cricket.”

The South Group is striking back. Last year, all four teams at Finals Day were northern. But Hampshire have won away, and now Glamorgan have beaten Leicestershire at home

Will Macpherson23-Aug-2017The South Group is striking back. Last year, all four teams at Finals Day were northern. But Hampshire have won away, and now Glamorgan have beaten Leicestershire at home. Both have been drubbings (this one by nine wickets and with 38 balls to spare), and the South Group has more teams at 2017’s Finals Day than it had at the previous two combined. Glamorgan are there for the first time since 2004.If this was a victory forged – through the all-round skills of Colin Ingram, the bowling of Craig Meschede and Marchant de Lange, and the batting of Jacques Rudolph – in South Africa, it was all about home advantage. Welsh rain may have meant Glamorgan have barely played in the Blast at Cardiff this summer, but they clearly know what they are doing there, and were raucously supported too. With the ball, when pace off was required, they took pace off. With the bat, when patience was required, patience was found. Unlike their opponents, they missed little in the field.Craig Meschede took out Leicestershire’s middle order•Getty Images

Leicestershire’s batting is top heavy, and their start was sprightly. Cameron Delport was yorked brilliantly by de Lange and Luke Ronchi swung hand, with a lovely six down the ground off Michael Hogan, until he was castled by Graham Wagg. Still, they made it out of the Powerplay with a base at 57 for 2.Trouble was that 10 overs on, and they had lost seven more wickets for the addition of just 43 runs, and were resigned to trying to eke every last run out of the remaining four overs. If Gavin Griffiths and Callum Parkinson are batting for your team in a T20, the news will seldom be good, but they hauled Leicestershire to the final over and 123, including a memorable six for Griffiths – the first of his career – off Hogan.Where did it all go wrong, then? Glamorgan, through Meschede’s canny variations and Ingram’s loopy leggies, took the pace right off, and encouraged Leicestershire to seek the long square boundaries. Alas, they could not.Meschede, with the keeper up, accounted for the two post-Powerplay wickets, Colin Ackermann holing out then Mark Cosgrove chopping on at the end of the ninth over. The singles soon dried up and Aadil Ali was run out looking for a second that was never there, then Ned Eckersley miscued a cutter from Meschede, who ended with 3 for 17, to short third man.Ingram played his part, too. Adelaide Strikers knew they were signing the fearsome hitter seen later on in the evening, but did they know about this very handy string to his bow? He found 12 dots, cost just 19 and forced Tom Wells to plop one straight back to him in his final over. He may be no Don Shepherd, whose joyous life was celebrated with a minute’s silence before play, but Ingram knows how to slip his way through four overs. It goes without saying that this was a night Shepherd would have enjoyed greatly.The rest had not done much batting this season for a Leicestershire side dependent on its fine top four, and it showed. De Lange returned to bounce out Matt Pillans, while McKay fell to Hogan, trying to clear the long boundary.A target of 124 meant Glamorgan had time on their sides, especially when McKay – the tournament’s top wicket-taker – dismissed Aneurin Donald, caught at mid-off, in his first over. They had just 11 from three overs, without a boundary.Ingram is too good to get bogged down, though. He pulled Ali for four behind square, then drove him for four more over extra cover. Griffiths’ first ball was hoicked for six, then Pillans was edged for four the ball after Rudolph had been shelled at backward point. He ended the Powerplay with 25 of their 37 for 1, and he was dropped at short third man by McKay next ball. He is too good to drop too, and later that over he drilled down the ground for his 27th six of the season, taking him top of the charts.Soon enough Rudolph was feasting too, and by halfway Glamorgan were just 46 away. Leicestershire were increasingly ragged, and had learnt little from Glamorgan’s superb bowling, summed up by Ingram sealing the victory with two more sixes and two more fours from Tom Wells’ wild first over. As Ingram and Rudolph cruised home, another South African, David Miller, sat in the dugout unused, having dashed in from Potchefstroom. Save your legs, Davey, you’re off to Edgbaston.

Alex Doolan’s maiden first-class half-century is unlikely to save Tasmania from defeat at the Gabba, where Ben Cutting’s three wickets put Queensland within sight of victory at stumps on the third day

Cricinfo staff03-Nov-2009Tasmania 156 and 6 for 209 (Doolan 59, Cutting 3-33) trail Queensland 382 by 17 runs

Scorecard
Ben Cutting picked up 3 for 33 to drive Queensland closer to victory•Getty Images

Alex Doolan’s maiden first-class half-century is unlikely to save Tasmania from defeat at the Gabba, where Ben Cutting’s three wickets put Queensland within sight of victory at stumps on the third day. At stumps, the Tigers were 6 for 209 and still trailing by 17 runs, with Daniel Marsh on 40 and Brett Geeves on 16.However, the visitors were going to require some individual brilliance on the final day to save the match after Queensland’s bowlers again proved a handful in their home conditions. The key breakthrough came just before tea, when Doolan (59) hooked Cutting and was caught on the boundary.It was an unfortunate lapse in concentration from Doolan, who had batted for more than three hours and had helped his captain George Bailey provide some fight. When Bailey departed shortly after tea for 25, caught behind off Daniel Doran, the Bulls sensed an opportunity.Cutting followed with two more breakthroughs and finished the day with 3 for 33, and Tasmania will need their former skipper Marsh to bat for as long as possible on the fourth day to have any hope of survival. Queensland started the day still at the crease but lost their final wicket, Chris Swan for 82, from the first ball of the morning.

Seamer hopes blend of young stars and T20 know-how can help Nottinghamshire to second Blast win in three years

Matt Roller20-Sep-2019Only a handful of teams have managed to string together something approaching sustained success in the 17-year history of English domestic T20: Leicestershire (2004 and 2006), Hampshire (2010 and 2012), and Northamptonshire (2013 and 2016) are the only teams to have won multiple titles within a short period.But Nottinghamshire are well-placed to add their name to those that have gone before. After charging to the title in 2017, they have regenerated over the course of the next two years, losing the experience of Riki Wessels, Chris Read and Michael Lumb while bringing through Matt Carter, Ben Duckett and Luke Wood.On Saturday, they go into Finals Day as firm favourites. And while personnel has changed considerably since 2017, several constants remain. Dan Christian remains in situ as captain and overseas player; Alex Hales will hope to use the day as a platform to stake his claim for England re-integration; and Harry Gurney remains among the competition’s premier death bowlers.”It’s difficult to compare it to the 2017 white-ball teams,” Gurney tells ESPNcricinfo. “We probably had a little bit more experience then, with Brendan Taylor, Read, Lumb, those kind of guys. But this is certainly a very exciting group.”Never has a squad had as much depth as Nottinghamshire’s in the history of English domestic T20 cricket, and that much was evident in their quarter-final against Middlesex.They thrashed a side containing Eoin Morgan and AB de Villiers by ten wickets, with Steven Mullaney injured and Joe Clarke, Zak Chappell, Jake Ball, Luke Fletcher, Paul Coughlin and Ben Slater all left out. Even with Imad Wasim absent on Saturday due to a Pakistan training camp, they will still have a level of bench strength that only IPL sides can rival.”In our quarter-final we were back to batting how I’ve become accustomed to seeing Nottinghamshire bat over the years,” says Gurney. “We were so fortunate for a number of years to have so many destructive players, but with Nashy [Chris Nash] going in and hitting his first ball for four and really setting the tone – it felt sat on the balcony watching – a lot more like those years.””That depth is so important. To have someone like Nashy, who is in the top three run-scorers in the history of the competition, coming into the team and having the impact that he did is amazing.”And then having bowlers of the calibre of Luke Fletcher, Jake Ball sat on the bench, and Coggers [Coughlin] who was captain of Durham a couple of years ago – all of those guys would play in most teams around the country. It’s so valuable.”Dan [Christian] made a point about it in the changing room after the game – the way those guys have behaved despite not being in the starting XI has been really world-class, and that’s part of the reason that we’ve come together so well as a team and as a squad.”In that quarter-final, Gurney’s return of 2 for 44 from his four overs was unspectacular, but by dismissing Morgan in his penultimate over, he may well have saved his side 15 runs.”I’ve been slightly more expensive than I’d have liked this year,” he says, “but I’ve been picking up quite a lot of wickets. That is the key to reducing an opposition score, really – and that wicket was a good example of it.”He remains one of the more sought-after death bowlers on the T20 circuit, and it was no surprise to see him re-sign with the analytics-driven Melbourne Renegades for the 2019-20 Big Bash.Another similarity with the 2017 vintage is the presence in the side of a moving, living insurance policy. That year, Billy Root played ten games as a batsman, but only got to the crease four times; this season, Jake Libby has been picked nine times, but batted in only three of those matches.The logic is simple: with Christian and Samit Patel offering genuine all-round options, the presence of an extra batsman means that the explosive players in the side have less to fear about getting out, safe in the knowledge that there is a proper player behind them.”He’s been a massively underrated T20 cricketer in my view,” says Gurney of Libby. “If you look at his numbers, his average [33.54 over his career] and strike-rate [134.18] are very impressive. He bowls handy offspin, he’s a hell of a fielder, and his versatility with the bat is invaluable to a T20 team.””If you’re 10 for 3, having someone like Libbs to go in and knock it around and rebuild is incredibly useful, and at the same time he can also go in down the order and clear the ropes, or play spin very well.”Jake Libby plays a more important role for Notts than his one innings suggests•Getty Images

Libby’s role in the side is almost unique across sports; he is a player whose failure to exert any influence on a game demonstrates that his team-mates have been at their best.”He’s very versatile, a very handy cricketer,” says Gurney. “It’s frustrating for him fulfilling that role at times, because when things are going well he gets shoved down the order, but I’m sure he won’t complain if he’s got a medal round his neck on Saturday night.”On Finals Day, Nottinghamshire will play in the first semi-final against Worcestershire, who turned them over at Trent Bridge both this year and last, but Gurney is convinced that will count for little. “It can work the other way,” he says. “If you play against a team who you’ve had the wood over, you can start to overthink it, and wonder if they’re due to beat you. From a psychological perspective they might feel like it gives them a little bit of confidence, but I don’t think we’ll be short of that.”The other consideration for Gurney is that he has a poor record against two Worcestershire batsmen. In the past three seasons, he has bowled 16 balls at both Ross Whiteley and Ed Barnard; they have hit him for 39 and 34 runs respectively.”I’ll definitely trust my method against them,” Gurney says, “and the positive to take from a match-up like that is that you don’t go into a game taking anyone lightly. Maybe sometimes if you’ve got a good record against someone you can become complacent – there are games where you haven’t done your homework and think ‘I probably should have done’. That won’t be the case on Saturday.”And while the young players have caught the eye at times this year, Notts will rely on the experienced heads on Saturday. “There’s a bit of an adage that goes around in cricket: young players win you games, but experience wins you titles,” Gurney notes.If he is somewhere near his best at Edgbaston, that adage will be rooted in reality.

The India captain wants his team to adapt to conditions quicker than they have done on their previous tours abroad

Sidharth Monga in Adelaide05-Dec-20180:55

Don’t think any Australian side vulnerable at home – Kohli

For the first time, perhaps, India have come to Australia with their bowlers in collective good form. data says only four sides have travelled to Australia with better collective bowling averages in the two years leading up to an Australia tour. No Indian side has done better in the lead-up period. Add to it the fact that Australia are missing Steven Smith and David Warner, and it is hard to not see why India are relaxed and positive about their chances.Then again, less recent history is not kind to these Indian bowlers. Two of the bowlers to play in Adelaide are among the three worst specialist bowlers to have sent down 2000 balls in Australia. Other bowlers have unflattering records, too. Asked how he felt about his bowlers a day before the first Test, Virat Kohli exuded optimism, saying the bowlers felt at the peak of their game and didn’t really need a certain set of conditions to be able to perform well.”I think it’s pretty different from what we had when we came here last time,” Kohli said. “They are more experienced, and the guys are way fitter than they were when they came here last time. I think the key in Australia is to keep bowling in the right areas for longer periods of time. The conditions also become hard because it can get really hot and the pitches can be flat purely because of the Kookaburra not doing much after 20-odd overs till it reverses around 45-50 (overs). That middle phase is very crucial.”We have identified those things and the guys themselves feel that they are at the peak of their skill level at the moment. They are looking forward to this challenge, they don’t want to be in a situation where we are looking for ideal bowling conditions or ideal batting conditions. So the bowlers are in a mindset that whatever the situation might be, or however hard it might be, they are looking forward to performing in those conditions and doing what the team wants at the end of the day.”No one is going out there gunning for a six-wicket haul for himself. If it means bowling eight good overs in a spot and getting a wicket for the team, they are ready to that. So I think that mindset is very crucial and that feedback is coming from the bowlers themselves. It’s not been told to them; they only are talking about it, which I think is a very positive sign.”Getty Images

There is one missing link, though. This is the one tour where India needed Hardik Pandya to help the specialist bowlers out. The heat, the flat pitches, the Kookaburra, the soft outfields, all take a toll on the bowlers. This is only the second time since Kohli took over captaincy full time, and first time away from home, that India are starting a series with just four bowlers in their XI. It is not a change of minds, but a decision forced on them.”It obviously has an impact,” Kohli said of the absence of the allrounder. “I mean every side would like to have a fast-bowling allrounder, which we don’t have right now with Hardik injured. That obviously is a great luxury to have for any side. We don’t, so we have to go with the best possible combination. Again, the workload on guys who will play in the absence of an allrounder will be high, but that’s something that has already been discussed. They should look forward to that and not think of it as a burden, or something which is going to be tough. Because at the international level, things are tough.”So, we will just have to embrace that and make something out of the resources that we have at present and try to put in the performances that the team expects from the players. Losing Hardik is obviously a bit of an issue, (but) I don’t see it as a major one because in Australia you still have to bowl really well even if you are an allrounder. To contain the batsmen is always a challenge.”Another issue for India away has been that they have been slow starters. That is something Kohli has taken note of, and wants his side to play fearlessly. “We are not looking to start tentatively,” Kohli said. “We all want to express ourselves, go out there and be positive. Not meaning that we are going to play rash shots and we are going to be all over the place with the ball, but it’s just in our heads wanting to bring our A game in the first match itself, and then try and lay a good foundation for us and capitalise on that as the series goes on.”We don’t want to wait to figure out what the condition of the pitch is going to be, we have got to read it really early and alter our games accordingly, which I think we failed to do in the last tours. When we have done it, we have won games but we will have to do it for longer periods to be able to win series, which is our goal. We don’t want to be a side that plays exciting cricket for one Test match. We want to be a consistent side and for that, we need to adapt quicker than we have in the past.”

Alyssa Healy and Ashleigh Gardner continued their sparkling form, while Sophie Molineux bagged a career-best 4 for 16

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Oct-2018Getty Images

Batsmen Alyssa Healy and Ashleigh Gardner carried their sparkling form from the ODIs into the T20Is and left-arm spinner Sophie Molineux bagged career-best figures of 4 for 16 to continue Australia women’s dominance over Pakistan women. After putting on a challenging 195 for 3, Australia allowed only one Pakistan batsman to score over 25 and restricted them to 131 for 7 to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match T20I series.Opting to bat, Australia’s top order took on the bowlers from the first over, as Beth Mooney (38) and Healy hammered three fours and a six each to put on 57 in the Powerplay. Mooney was soon trapped lbw by left-arm spinner Nashra Sandhu, but Healy continued smashing boundaries to reach her fifth T20I half-century – following her 97 in the third ODI three days ago – off only 28 balls. Gardner took over once Healy fell for 59, and struck three consecutive fours against Aliya Riaz in the 16th over. Even though Nida Dar took the big wicket of Meg Lanning for 6 in the next over, Elyse Villani belted an unbeaten 18 off 13 and Gardner’s 63 off 37, with nine fours and a six, powered Australia close to the 200-run mark. Gardner had also struck an unbeaten 62 in the third ODI against Pakistan, although at No. 7.Sana Mir, who recently became the top-ranked bowler in ODIs, Sandhu and Dar conceded at least 10 runs per over each, and sent down eight wides together.Molineux struck on her fifth ball by removing left-handed opener Muneeba Ali for a duck, when she paddled the ball fine but Healy completed a quick take and a stumping down the leg side. Javeria Khan showed glimpses of form with a back-foot punch and a slog towards wide long-on for fours against Ellyse Perry in the third over, but Molineux returned in the fifth over and took a straightforward return catch to her left to remove Javeria for a 12-ball 16.Nahida Khan, the other opener, and debutant Umaima Sohail scored briskly in a stand of 55 for the third wicket to take Pakistan past 80 just after the halfway mark. Molineux broke that stand too, when Nahida tried slog-sweeping but missed, to be bowled for a 32-ball 43. From 82 for 3 in the 11th over, Pakistan never recovered, losing four more wickets for 41 runs and managing only 29 runs in the last five overs.Megan Schutt was economical once again, with figures of 4-0-14-1 and Molineux’s four-for showed good signs for Australia’s spin attack ahead of the Women’s World T20 next month.