Category Uncategorized

With centuries from Priyank Panchal, Shreyas Iyer and Vijay Shankar, the two-day tour game in Hyderabad ended up being lot of work for the visitors

The Report by Mohammad Isam in Hyderabad06-Feb-2017Scorecard1:43

Isam: Not a great couple of days for Bangladesh

The Bangladesh bowlers may not be taking the confidence of bags of wickets into the Test against India on Thursday, but they should be better prepared for long grinds in the field after a full day’s working over by India’s A team. Priyank Panchal, Shreyas Iyer and Vijay Shankar scored centuries each to make sure the two-day practice game at the Gymkhana ground ended in a draw.Panchal and Iyer pounded out 152 runs in the first session. That indicates how much the Bangladeshi bowlers suffered, but there was also some collateral damage. Iyer, who was dropped on 86 by Mehedi Hasan, struck a net bowler standing on the edge of the boundary with a six. The boy was tended to by the doctor at the ground and was reportedly fine. Panchal struck 11 fours and a six in his 148-ball 103 while Iyer hammered a dozen fours and four sixes in his 92-ball 100. Both of them retired to give the others a bat.Medium-pacer Subashis Roy then had Rishabh Pant caught at long-on before converting a smart caught and bowled chance off Ishank Jaggi. Ishan Kishan also got out cheaply, stumped off left-arm spinner Taijul Islam before crowd favourite Hardik Pandya was given out leg-before to the same bowler.Shankar reached his hundred in the 90th over, making it three centuries on the day. He took only 83 balls before India A declared on 461 for 6. Taijul and Subashis took three wickets each.The declaration gave Bangladesh an hour to bat, in which time they lost two wickets scoring 73 runs in 15 overs. Tamim Iqbal struck three fours and a six in his unbeaten 43.

Glamorgan’s teenaged debutant, Lukas Carey, tore through Northants’ top order with three wickets in the first six overs of his first-class career

ECB Reporters Network03-Aug-2016
ScorecardLaurie Evans, on loan from Warwickshire, led a partial recovery for Northamptonshire (file pic)•Getty Images

Glamorgan’s teenaged debutant, Lukas Carey, tore through Northamptonshire’s top order with three wickets in the first six overs of his first-class career, before Laurie Evans and David Murphy revived their side with an unbroken fifth-wicket stand of 70 on a rain-truncated first day at Swansea.Carey, a 19-year-old seamer from nearby Pontardulais, claimed a notable maiden scalp with his eleventh delivery, when he had the in-form Ben Duckett caught at cover for 7, and after a break for rain, he was back in business in his fourth over when Shaun Terry attempted to work a straight ball through the leg side and was trapped lbw.Worse was to follow for the visitors when, with no addition to the score, Rob Newton played a loose stroke against Tim van der Gugten, and Northants were 38 for 4 when Carey picked up his third wicket – Rob Keogh, who was well caught at third slip. He finished his first day on the job with the impressive figures of 3 for 37 from 10 overs.Evans, the Warwickshire batsman who is playing the first game of his loan spell, led a partial recovery with Murphy in support but on a cloudy day, and on a pitch that had been covered for two days, Northants might have regretted their decision to bat first, as the Glamorgan seamers obtained plenty of movement to trouble the batsmen.After heavy overnight rain, and showers during the morning, there had been no play before lunch, with play eventually getting underway at 1.40pm. In addition to Carey’s debut, Glamorgan picked Rory Smith for his first championship appearance of the season, with Michael Hogan, Graham Wagg and Craig Meschede resting for this round.Carey who is one of seven Welsh-born players in the Glamorgan team, was understandably delighted with his performance. “I was very excited when I was told I was playing,” he said. “I was very nervous in the first over, but I soon got over that when I took the first wicket. The ball is swinging and nibbling, and hopefully we can take a few more tomorrow morning.”

Virat Kohli’s fourth century of the season and Chris Gayle’s 73 powered Royal Challengers Bangalore to the second place after their 82-run win via D/L method against Kings XI Punjab

The Report by Deivarayan Muthu18-May-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsVirat Kohli hit 12 fours and eight sixes during his fourth and fastest T20 century•BCCI

Virat Kohli has been vaulting the standard for T20 batting this season. He was twitchy, though, after heavy rain delayed the start of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s final league fixture at home against Kings XI Punjab by nearly two hours. The match was reduced to a and Kohli had to bat with nine stitches on his left hand because of a split webbing, but nothing could stop him from scoring his fourth and fastest T20 century. He also topped the IPL run charts during his 50-ball 113 that powered Royal Challengers to an 82-run victory via D/L method. Royal Challengers’ seventh win lifted them from fifth to second on the points table.Chris Gayle was in his groove too, bashing 73 off 32 balls in a 147-run opening stand that floored Kings XI, who conceded 211 for 3 after opting to bowl. Kohli was the first to reach his half-century, off 28 balls, when he flicked Axar Patel to long-on. Four legitimate balls later, Gayle swiped the left-arm spinner over midwicket for six and raced to his own half-century off 29 balls. The two then got together and unfurled the jig.Kings XI could have snapped that had Axar nailed a direct hit from backward point to run Kohli out on 10. The batsman prospered and middled everything: whether it was lofting a full ball inside-out over cover or jabbing a wide yorker in the gap between backward point and short third man. Kohli got to his hundred off 47 balls when he whiplashed Sandeep Sharma for four between deep midwicket and long-on.Kohli celebrated the landmark by pointing to his injured left hand repeatedly before pumping his fists. The only occasion he showed apparent discomfort was when he ran in from long-off and caught Axar for 13 in the eighth over of Kings XI’s stumbling chase.Kohli began Royal Challengers’ run-fest with slapped fours off Sandeep before Gayle went 6,6,4 against fast bowler Kyle Abbott in the fourth over. KC Cariappa’s assortment of legbreaks, offbreaks, sliders and even a seam-up that clocked 134kph, proved ineffective. Kohli and Gayle flayed him for 55 runs in three overs and left captain M Vijay searching for answers.Axar wasn’t spared either, Gayle taking him for three leg-side sixes in four balls before holing out to the same bowler at the end of the 11th over. Four balls later, Abbott had AB de Villiers dragging on for a duck. KL Rahul applied the finishing touches with a cameo, which was studded by a reverse-scooped four, after Kohli’s dismissal in the penultimate over.The pressure of a rapidly rising asking rate was too much for Kings XI. Left-arm seamer S Aravind removed Vijay and Hashim Amla early before legspinner Yuzvendra Chahal made light work of the middle order with career-best T20 figures of 4 for 25. Kings XI limped past 100 in the 12th over before rain returned at the end of the 14th to force an end to a lop-sided contest.Royal Challengers were one of three teams in the playoffs race to have a positive net rate (+0.93), and a win in their final match against Delhi Daredevils in Raipur on Sunday could confirm their place in the final four.

Fawad Ahmed is expected to be eligible for the full Ashes series after the Australian Senate passed a bill that would allow his citizenship to be fast-tracked

Brydon Coverdale20-Jun-2013Fawad Ahmed is expected to be eligible for the full Ashes series after the Australian Senate passed a bill that would allow his citizenship to be fast-tracked. The legislation has now passed through both houses of parliament and after it is rubber-stamped by the governor-general Ahmed will be eligible to obtain an Australian passport, which should make him available for the first Ashes Test.However, although it is likely that Ahmed will be called into the squad it is by no means certain. On Wednesday, he and the 19-year-old left-arm spinner Ashton Agar were named in the Australia A squad to tour Zimbabwe and South Africa in July and August, while the Ashes is being played, and both men will be in contention if another spinner is added to the Ashes touring party.”We’ve got a couple of spinners we’re mulling over at the moment,” the coach Mickey Arthur told the ABC. “We’ve got Nathan Lyon in the squad. If the weather stays like this we might consider another spinner. There’s been no clear-cut decision on that as yet.”Arthur discuss the possible inclusion of another spinner with fellow selectors John Inverarity and Rod Marsh this weekend in Bristol, where Australia A will play against Gloucestershire in the final match of their tour of the British Isles. While it is unclear at this stage whether Ahmed will travel to Africa or remain with the Ashes squad, a Cricket Australia spokesman said the progress of the bill through parliament was encouraging.”This is pleasing news for CA and a big step forward in a process that will help enable Fawad Ahmed become an Australian citizen,” the spokesman said. “Pending royal assent by the governor-general, the Bill will become law and Ahmed will be considered for Australian citizenship, subject to the normal tests and assessments that any citizenship applicant would go through.”

Lancashire sent defending champions Leicestershire sliding to their second successive defeat in the Friends Life t20 with an 11-run victory at Grace Road.

16-Jun-2012
ScorecardLancashire sent defending champions Leicestershire sliding to their second successive defeat in the Friends Life t20 with an 11-run victory at Grace Road.The visitors posted 154 for 6 after a rain delayed the start, with Stephen Moore hitting a half-century off 38 balls. But, despite a quickfire 36 from Abdul Razzaq, Leicestershire could only manage 143 for 8 in reply as Glen Chapple, Yasir Arafat and Steve Parry claimed two wickets each.The hosts made a poor start to the run chase, scoring only 10 runs in the first three overs and then losing the wicket of Ramnaresh Sarwan – caught behind off Chapple. Jacques du Toit also fell cheaply and, although Josh Cobb hit 32 off 26 balls before holing out to long-on, the Foxes were behind the required rate.Greg Smith trod on his stumps trying to leg glance and Rob Taylor top-edged to cover as the wickets continued to tumble. Razzaq and Boyce injected some life into the innings with Razzaq clubbing two sixes, before being caught at long-off. Boyce was out for 26 off 22 balls and Leicestershire needed 20 off the last over to win but could manage only eight.After rain delayed the start by half an hour, home captain Matthew Hoggard had no hesitation in fielding first when he won the toss. It paid quick dividends, Hoggard bowling the dangerous Tom Smith with a delivery that just clipped the off-bail. And when Steven Croft carved a catch to White at point off Taylor with the total 28 in the fifth over, Leicestershire looked in control.However, a stand of 78 in eight overs between Moore and Brown put Lancashire back on track – with Moore posting his fifth half-century in seven limited overs innings this season. He reached it off 38 balls, hitting four boundaries plus a massive six off Taylor.But Taylor, the young Leicestershire allrounder, had some revenge when he held on to a steepling catch to dismiss Moore for 58 off the bowling of White. It was a big wicket for the hosts and it took a lot of momentum out of Lancashire’s innings.Brown, having made 24 off 26 balls, spooned up an easy chance to square leg to give White a second wicket, and two brilliant catches in the deep by Jacques du Toit and Matt Boyce took care of Paul Horton and Gareth Cross, who were attempting big shots against Razzaq.A brisk unbeaten 20 from Yasir Arafat helped Lancashire past 150 and, in the end, it was enough to give them their first points of the campaign.

The BCCI issued a tender notice today soliciting sponsors for four Indian teams. The notice, from board secretary N Srinivasan, invites bids for the men’s, women’s, India A and India Under-19 squads

Cricinfo staff24-May-2010The BCCI issued a tender notice today soliciting sponsors for four Indian teams. The notice, from board secretary N Srinivasan, invites bids for the men’s, women’s, India A and India Under-19 squads. According to PTI, the bid document is available for a non-refundable fee of Rs. 5 lakh.The notice requires all bidders to satisfy the eligibility criteria laid down by the board, which has also reserved the right to “cancel or amend the entire bidding process at any stage and to reject any and/or all bids without providing any reasons, including calling for a re-tender.”The board’s existing sponsorship deal with the Sahara Group ends on June 30. Sahara originally won the right to sponsor the Indian cricket team for a period of four years beginning in December 2005 for Rs 400 crore. But the BCCI was unable to find a new sponsor last year, failing to attract even a single bid. So Sahara agreed to continue its sponsorship of the team for an additional six months on the same terms.Since then, however, Sahara successfully bid a whopping Rs 1700 crore for the new Pune IPL franchise, leading their chairman Subroto Roy to say Sahara will review its sponsorship of the Indian cricket team.”Only thing we will see is our continuation of sponsorship to the Indian cricket team. We will sit on that and we will discuss on that. But on all other sports nothing will be affected,” Roy said when asked about the impact of the acquisition of the IPL franchise. At the time, he said Sahara would consider limiting its exposure to the BCCI and women’s cricket. Sahara also sponsors the Indian hockey team.

The most pressing concern surrounds the make-up of Australia’s fast bowling unit given the strong possibility that Peter Siddle is ruled out

Alex Brown at Adelaide Oval08-Dec-2009For Ricky Ponting, there is much to ponder. Pushed to the wire by the world’s eighth-ranked Test side in Adelaide, the Australian captain will be acutely aware of the areas his squad needs to address before the third and final Test at the WACA, even if he was loath to admit as much at Tuesday’s post-match press conference.The most pressing concern surrounds the make-up of Australia’s fast bowling unit given the strong possibility that Peter Siddle is ruled out. Siddle’s hamstring injury limited him to just eight constricted overs in the second innings, and even a minor twinge can often require more than eight days recuperation time. With Ben Hilfenhaus already sidelined with knee tendonitis, the Australians are faced with the prospect of blooding a debutant in Clint McKay, the 12th man in Adelaide, or sending an SOS to the more seasoned Stuart Clark, who has been overlooked since Australia’s Ashes defeat at The Oval.”Hopefully Peter comes up,” Ponting said. “I had to protect him a little bit yesterday. As you could see with the way he was running in he was nowhere near 100 percent yesterday. It was a good effort from him to get any bowling done at all. We’ve just got to monitor him over the next couple of days. He’s going back to Melbourne and our team physio, Alex (Kountouris), will be spending the next couple of days with him to monitor how he’s going. He’ll let the selectors know how he is before they pick the squad for Perth. We’ll keep our fingers crossed and hope he comes up OK.”Siddle’s physical limitations hardly helped the Australians in their ongoing battle to claim 20 wickets. A lack of penetrative bowling options has cost them dearly in recent losing campaigns to India, South Africa and England, and their failure to take quick wickets in the second innings in Adelaide exposed them to the possibility of a demoralising defeat that might have taken years to live down.Mitchell Johnson claimed five mainly lower-order wickets, but conceded runs at almost five-per-over. Doug Bollinger bowled with elan and menace, if not discipline, while Shane Watson was used sparingly on account of his already heavy workload at the top of the order. Nathan Hauritz was relied upon heavily to provide the Australians with a breakthrough on a wearing Adelaide pitch, but could not crack the resolute defences of the West Indian batsmen, most notably Chris Gayle.Ponting stoutly defended Hauritz’s performance over the five days, and favoured him to retain his place in the starting XI for the Perth Test. Still, in games such as this, the Australian captain must yearn for a spinner capable of dominating on fourth and fifth-day surfaces, rather than banking on subtlety and attrition. Until Hauritz achieves that, the search for Australia’s next generation spinner will remain open.”I thought the way he stuck to his task and tried to deliver a role for the team was pretty admirable,” Ponting said of Hauritz. “It was only last week that he bowled on a wicket that didn’t suit and picked up five or six wickets. He bowled well here, he just didn’t get the rewards. A lot of that was probably due to how well Chris Gayle played him. He played him exceptionally well. Going to Perth, we know it’s a wicket that does offer some assistance to the quicks, but the breeze over there generally helps the finger spinners there more than the leg spinners. I expect Nathan to play in Perth.”A more elusive problem confronting Ponting is the failure of his batsmen to convert starts into centuries. No Australian batsman has reached triple-figures this summer, and of their past 13 half-centuries raised, only one has resulted in a ton. That conversion was made by Michael Hussey, whose innings of fighting innings of 121 at The Oval in August almost certainly spared him the selectors’ axe after a wretched year. Hussey, alas, has failed to reach peak form since his return to Australia, relying on guile and determination to cover for his ongoing uncertainty outside off stump.”I wouldn’t say it’s disappointing,” Ponting said of Australia’s batting performance. “If you don’t win it sometimes can be a little bit disappointing, but you’ve got to give the West Indies some credit for the way they’ve played this game. From lunch on the first day they’ve really played some good cricket.”

Commitment from two young players follows recent exodus of senior players

David Hopps22-Jun-2022Yorkshire’s new regime have received the first show of faith they needed with Harry Brook and Dominic Leech both committing themselves to a long-term future with the club.After a testing week, in which both David Willey and Tom Kohler-Cadmore have chosen to go elsewhere, the decision by two Yorkshire-born players to keep faith with the county during a difficult transition will lift spirits.The news of the new contracts will be welcomed as a blessed relief – adding to the delight around Headingley over some of the best ticket sales in the ground’s history for a Test bedevilled by rail strikes and positive Covid tests.The county is negotiating its way through the most challenging phase in its history after allegations of institutional racism and an unhealthy dressing-room culture.It is inevitable that the Headingley Test will be the focus for more disruption – and four former chairmen, including the ex ECB chairman Colin Graves, have teamed up to publicly demand an independent enquiry into the ECB’s handling of racism allegations against Yorkshire.Brook, who is currently in the Test squad and making a strong case to play for England in all three formats, will gain most attention by signing a five-year extension that will keep him at Headingley until at least October 2027.Leech, a 21-year-old fast bowler, is less well known, but his promise is considerable. He made his debut in 2020 and will remain with Yorkshire until at least October 2024.Yorkshire’s coaching team of Darren Gough, the interim director of cricket, and Ottis Gibson, the head coach, have clear views about their priorities as they seek to build a positive environment, and successful side, in the wake of the global fallout from Azeem Rafiq’s racism allegations. Both will be thrilled by the first sign that they build a successful future.”We are absolutely delighted that they have both committed their futures to the club,” Gough said. “Harry is an incredible talent and the performances he has put in so far this year have been nothing short of incredible, rightfully earning him an England call-up.”It’s clear that he has a very bright future and it’s great for the club to be able to secure his services for a long period of time.”Dom is a highly regarded seamer and we are really excited to see what he can achieve over the next few years.”Like most young fast bowlers, he’s had to cope with a few injuries in the early stage of his career but we are confident he has all of the attributes to be a brilliant cricketer for Yorkshire.”Dominic Leech is a promising young seamer who has committed to Yorkshire until 2024•Getty Images

Brook has enjoyed a stellar rise to prominence. So far this season he has scored a remarkable 926 runs in 11 County Championship innings, alongside 282 Vitality Blast runs at an average of 47. His form was recognised with a call-up to the England Test squad for the New Zealand series, having made his T20I debut during the tour of the Caribbean in January.He also skippered Yorkshire in their latest Blast fixture against Derbyshire at Chesterfield on Saturday.Yorkshire’s mass sacking of their coaching and ancillary staff in December will be debated for decades. Cricket does not deal in such wholesale changes in the same way as football does. But they will hope that a pattern may now be set.Most uplifting for Yorkshire was that the comments from both players appear to suggest a willingness to put recent political disruption behind them, perhaps even accepting it as the lot of a professional in team sport.Brook said: “I’m delighted to extend my contract with Yorkshire and hope I can contribute to a lot of wins in the coming years. Yorkshire is my home club and I’d love nothing more than to help bring some silverware to Headingley.”Leech said: “I’m really pleased to have signed a contract extension with Yorkshire and committed my future to the club. I’ve had a great taste of first-team cricket over the last few years and want to push for a permanent spot in all squads.”I’ve enjoyed working with our new coaching staff and look forward to continuing to develop my relationships with them. It’s great that the club have recognised my performances and rewarded me with this contract. Hopefully I can play my part in the side winning some trophies.”

He is the second high-profile CSK player to skip the tournament after Suresh Raina

Nagraj Gollapudi04-Sep-20208:16

Newsroom: CSK need a replacement for Harbhajan

Harbhajan Singh has become the second Chennai Super Kings player to pull out of the 2020 IPL. The senior offspinner has informed the franchise that he would not be travelling to the UAE, where the IPL will be played from September 19, due to “personal reasons”.Singh, 40, and Suresh Raina are the two big Indian names to not feature in this IPL for the Super Kings, who will have their first training session on Friday after an extended quarantine.In a tweet, Singh specified why he was pulling out and said the franchise had been “extremely supportive”. Singh was even absent from the Super Kings’ six-day conditioning camp in mid-August in Chennai, which was organised for their Indian players, and did not travel with the team to Dubai on August 21, with word that he would join them later on September 1. On Friday, the Super Kings’ chief executive Kasi Viswanathan told ESPNcricinfo that Singh was yet to join the squad, after having said earlier in the week that the offspinner was “expected” in the first week of September.Viswanathan also said earlier this week that despite the 13 positive Covid-19 cases in their contingent, the Super Kings were ready to play the tournament opener on September 19 if the schedule, which is yet to be announced, required them to.The loss of two first-team players is bound to increase the burden on MS Dhoni, the Super Kings captain. More than Raina, Dhoni’s bigger challenge would be to find a capable replacement for Singh, one of the most experienced and successful bowlers in the IPL. With 150 scalps, Singh is joint-third on the list of highest wicket-takers in the IPL.After the Mumbai Indians decided to relieve him, the Super Kings picked Singh in the 2018 auction. He was part of the side when the Super Kings won the title in 2018 and also played a role in the team reaching the final in 2019.Singh’s biggest asset has been his economy: he has gone for less than 7.5 in a season eight times, the most for any bowler. For Dhoni, Singh was a weapon to use not just in the powerplay but the middle overs as well, where he could both defend and attack.The Super Kings have Ravindra Jadeja, Piyush Chawla, Karn Sharma, Imran Tahir, R Sai Kishore and Mitchell Santner as other spinners, but Singh’s absence means Kedar Jadhav’s part-time bowling is the only offspin option they are left with.

The latest news and snippets from the Big Bash

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Dec-2019Meredith injury huge blow for HurricanesHobart Hurricanes fast bowler Riley Meredith is set to miss the rest of the Big Bash after picking up a side strain against the Perth Scorchers.Meredith is expected to be sidelined for between four to six weeks with the focus on him recovering for the return of the Sheffield Shield with Tasmania in mid-February.Meredith is the Hurricanes’ leading wicket-taker this season with 10 wickets in six matches at an economy of 6.68.”We’re expecting this injury will rule Riley out of the remainder of our BBL campaign,” team physiotherapist Stewart Williamson said. “Riley had scans yesterday, which unfortunately revealed a significant left side strain that will sideline him for at least a month.”We will work with Riley on a rehabilitation plan to ideally have him back available for the second half of the Sheffield Shield season.”The Hurricanes have also lost D’Arcy Short after his call-up to the ODI squad for the tour of India but can bring back captain Matthew Wade after the conclusion of the Test series. Ben McDermott, who has been captain in Wade’s absence, will continue as wicketkeeperLyon’s comeback delayedNathan Lyon’s return to the BBL with the Sydney Sixers will be delayed by a thumb injury he sustained during the final Test against New Zealand.Lyon split his right thumb dropping a return catch off Glenn Phillips in the first innings although it did not stop him taking a 10-wicket match haul.He is set to miss matches against the Adelaide Strikers, the Melbourne Stars and the Hobart Hurricanes with a potential return for the derby against the Sydney Thunder on January 18.”I pride myself on my fielding, especially the fielding off my own bowling,” Lyon said during the Test. “I know how hard it is to take Test wickets and when you’re dropping catches off your own bowling it doesn’t sit really well with you.”Stars bring back Rauf for injured BrownPakistan paceman Haris Rauf is set to return for the Melbourne Stars against the Sydney Thunder at the MCG on Wednesday.Rauf has been named in the Stars’ 13-man squad after England bowler Pat Brown was ruled out of the tournament with a stress fracture. Brown was due to replace Dale Steyn who has headed back to South Africa.Rauf has been a revelation starring in three games earlier in the tournament taking 10 wickets, including 5 for 27 against the Hobart Hurricanes, but was unable to remain in the Stars’ team under BBL rules as he could only play as an injury replacement for the two first-choice overseas players in Steyn and Sandeep Lamichhane.The BBL leaders also have also included Hilton Cartwright in the squad after recovering from injury.Renegades bring in Samit PatelMelbourne Renegades have called in Nottinghamshire and former England spinning allrounder Samit Patel for the clash with Perth Scorchers in Geelong on Tuesday.Patel, 35, has signed as an international replacement player for Notts team-mate Harry Gurney who has been sidelined with a hamstring injury.Patel has played alongside Gurney and Renegades veteran Dan Christian at Notts and will fill a role that has been missing for the Renegades with the absence of Mohammad Nabi. Patel’s only cricket since the end of the English season was in the Abu Dhabi T10.Victoria fast bowler Andrew Fekete also comes in as a replacement player for batsman Mackenzie Harvey who is departing for the Under 19 World Cup.Perth Scorchers have recalled Sam Whiteman to their squad but are still missing Australia batsman Ashton Turner due to illness.Rauf returnsHaving been discarded as Melbourne Stars’ second overseas player despite seven wickets in his first two appearances, Haris Rauf will return to BBL action in his side’s game against Sydney Thunder on Thursday.Rauf, the fast bowler from Pakistan, was top of the wicket-taking charts after two games of the season, but was omitted from the Stars’ games against Adelaide Strikers and Hobart Hurricanes after Dale Steyn – the man he had replaced in the side – returned to fitness.Steyn has taken three wickets in his two appearances so far, and will line up alongside Rauf at the Showground, with Nepalese legspinner Sandeep Lamichhane rested due to an injury.The Stars expect Lamichhane to return in time for the Melbourne derby on January 4, and will have yet another overseas combination after that game: Steyn is due to be replaced by England’s death-bowling specialist Pat Brown after that fixture.The umpire and the itchy noseThe umpire at the centre of a bizarre decision during the BBL match between the Melbourne Renegades and the Adelaide Strikers has explained why he went from giving the batsman out to scratching his nose.Greg Davidson started to raise the finger when Rashid Khan appealed for an lbw against Beau Webster, but as the Strikers players began to celebrate he changed his mind, in a manner that has gone viral. “It was one of those things, heat of the moment,” Davidson told Channel 7. “I started to think and then got a second noise through my head, so I decided to change the decision halfway through, and gave it not out.”The replays were inconclusive, and the Renegades coach Michael Klinger praised Davidson’s decision.”To be honest, I like it,” Klinger said. “I think he felt he made half a mistake and he thought that Beau hit it. I think it’s gutsy for him to change it halfway through, so I commend him for that. I actually think it’s the right call whether it happened for us or against.”New BBL star left outMelbourne Stars have dropped the BBL’s equal leading wicket-taker Haris Rauf with South Africa star Dale Steyn ready to return to against the Adelaide Strikers on the Gold Coast on Friday night.Rauf has been a revelation in the Stars first two games taking 2 for 20 and 5 for 27 in the Stars’ first two wins. But Rauf was only called up as an overseas replacement player when Steyn was rested from the first two matches as he recovered from a side strain.BBL rules only allow for each team to field two overseas players at any time and with Nepal legspinner Sandeep Lamichhane contracted for the entire tournament, Rauf has to make way for Steyn. Barring any further injury to Steyn or Lamichhane, Rauf is unlikely to play again for the Stars this season, with England’s Pat Brown already in Australia preparing to replace Steyn when he heads back to South Africa in mid-January.New recruit Nathan Coulter-Nile has also been included in the Stars squad after missing the opening two matches with an ankle issue.Maxwell focuses on T20 World CupGlenn Maxwell is taking his omission from Australia’s ODI squad in his stride and believes he has learnt how to deal with such situations.In late October, Maxwell took a break from the game to manage his mental health and produced a dazzling display in his first match back with 83 off 39 balls for the Melbourne Stars against the Brisbane Heat.That came a few days after he was one of a group of senior players not included for the one-day tour of India next month, with both national selector Trevor Hohns and coach Justin Langer saying it was a decision taken based on Maxwell’s one-day form over the last 12 months”I probably haven’t dwelled on it as much as I probably did in the past,” he said. “I suppose not shelving it and just not thinking about it, being able to have the conversations with people about it and deal with it appropriately. That’s probably something I haven’t done very well in the past and to be able to get through the other side and perform well, really makes a big difference.”Maxwell, who secured USD$1.5 million IPL deal with Kings XI, will remain a key cog in Australia’s T20I side as they build towards next year’s World Cup on home soil – an event which is at the forefront of his mind.”There’s that big carrot I suppose at the start of next season and I’ll be doing everything I can to work towards that.”Wright returns to the StarsFormer Melbourne Stars and England batsman Luke Wright has been hired as the Stars’ new batting coach. The Stars have been without a batting mentor in the build-up to the BBL after Michael Klinger left the role to take up the head coaching job with the Melbourne Renegades. Wright will join the squad in January. He played 57 matches with the Stars and is currently their all-time leading run-scorer with 1479 and he is the only Stars player to score two BBL centuries.”I’ve missed being a part of the Stars group last season so when the opportunity came up to be involved as batting coach, I jumped at it,” Wright said. “I’m really looking forward to working with Huss [David Hussey] and helping a really exciting and talented bunch of players prepare for the matches. I can’t wait to get started.”Finch calls for BBL DRSCricket Australia chief executive Kevin Roberts said that he had taken heed of calls by Australia’s T20 captain Aaron Finch for the use of DRS in future editions of the BBL, but ruled out its inclusion this season.In the opening over of the season, Usman Khawaja survived an lbw appeal against Josh Lalor which replays showed should have been given out.Finch believes DRS should be available as it now is in T20Is, the IPL and the finals of this year’s CPL. “I think we should have one review, similar to internationals and ODI cricket,” he said. “There’s so much riding on games and you know how much of an impact one ball can have or one decision can have.”Sometimes you’re on the right side, sometimes you’re not, but I think we’ve come far enough and there’s enough time in the game to have a 90-second strategy break, so to me it would make sense.”Roberts said: “We’ll review the BBL in the ordinary course at the end of the season. I was really happy to see the opening match last night and to watch that from home, the first tactical timeout as well. I think Aaron makes a really good point, and also a really good question about DRS. We’re not going to be looking at that right now but like all things cricket, as each season passes we review and we consider how we can improve and I think Aaron makes a fair point and one that we would consider going forward.”Renegades draft in Doolan; Christian ready for spinAlex Doolan has returned to the Melbourne Renegades having been drafted in as a local replacement player ahead of the opening match of the tournament for the defending champions.He comes into the squad for 19-year-old pace bowler Zak Evans who is recovering from a back injury. However, there is no place for recent Test opener Marcus Harris. The Renegades begin their title defence against the Sydney Thunder in Geelong.Meanwhile, Dan Christian was watching the Thunder’s opening match closely and was preparing himself to face plenty of spin after seeing the impact of Jono Cook, Chris Green and Arjun Nair against the Brisbane Heat. The trio took 6 for 70 from 12 overs to derail the Heat at the Gabba.