Tag Futebol

Namibia relegate Kenya, set up semi-final against UAE

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Spinners Bernard Scholtz and Petrus Burger took seven wickets between them to send Kenya crashing to 110, 90 minutes before lunch

The Report by Peter Della Penna in Windhoek13-Feb-2018
ScorecardPeter Della Penna

Kenya’s fiery start was put on ice by the spin duo of Bernard Scholtz and Petrus Burger as Namibia secured an eight-wicket win before lunch. It was Namibia’s third victory in as many days, and a fourth on Wednesday over UAE would put them in the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe.Kenya had been eliminated from contention for the Qualifier a day earlier, but they were now looking to avoid relegation to WCL Division Three. After Irfan Karim fell on the second ball of the match to Sarel Burger, Dhiren Gondaria torched the medium-pace trio of Burger, JJ Smit and Craig Williams. Gondaria smashed five sixes on his way to 60 off 46 balls as Kenya motored to 77 for 1 in 12 overs.But after an early crest, the trough came just as quickly for Kenya when Petrus and Scholtz entered the attack. Gondaria’s innings came to an end when he holed out to Jan Frylinck at long-on off the first ball of the 13th over. Two balls later, Collins Obuya attempted a paddle sweep only to pop a catch to wicketkeeper Zane Green. The downward spiral continued to twist through Kenya’s scorecard.Scholtz struck with his first balls in the 16th and 18th and over the next eight overs Kenya managed to add just 10 runs. The pressure created panic and resulted in the run out of Rakep Patel. The left-arm spinner struck two more times to bowl Kenya out 90 minutes before lunch.Stephan Baard got Namibia’s chase rolling to make sure the match would not suffer the same fate as the first replay, washed away after five overs in the second innings with no result after Kenya had been bowled out for 83. The opener spanked 37 off 39 balls before retiring hurt with a muscle strain in his left shoulder. He is expected to be available for Wednesday’s match against UAE.After Lohan Louwrens and Zane Green fell off successive balls, Williams came out and settled the nerves with an unbeaten 28 off 18 balls. All but two of those runs came in the last over of the match in which Williams slugged Nehemiah Odhiambo for two fours and two sixes, including the match-winning boundary off a free hit.On the final day of the group stage, Namibia and UAE will play a de facto semi-final at Affies Park while Canada and Nepal will do likewise next door at Wanderers. Both Canada and Nepal have three wins and one loss in four matches, and the winner of this match will clinch a spot in the Qualifier. Namibia also have three wins in four matches and will face UAE who have two wins and two losses. A win for Namibia will also clinch a promotion berth. A win for UAE, on the other hand, will create a three-way tie for second with Namibia and the loser of the Canada v Nepal match. However, UAE’s net run-rate – the tournament tiebreaker – is superior to the three other teams, none of whom can improve their net run-rate through a loss, meaning a UAE victory would clinch their spot in the top two.

Du Plessis calls for 'collective' effort to maintain pitch standards in SA

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Despite success in the second Test, South Africa’s captain was concerned with the uncharacteristic SuperSport Park surface it was played on

Firdose Moonda in Centurion17-Jan-2018Faf du Plessis has called on Cricket South Africa (CSA) to put in place a process to ensure a pitch like the SuperSport Park surface during their second Test against India is not produced again. Though South Africa won the match comfortably, and in so doing claimed a series victory over India, a traditionally spicy track proved slower than usual and even took turn – the one thing du Plessis had expressly said he did not want in this series.”I was very concerned when I got here, leading up to the Test match. It didn’t look like the Centurion wicket that I know. That is a concern, to be honest. I am very honest about good things and when we get it right but it’s also fair to comment on where we can get better. I believe this was an opportunity that we missed,” du Plessis said.”We can blame the groundsman but we also have to blame ourselves. We can have processes where we make sure CSA has someone that looks after the groundsman to get the right kind of pitches – not make it ridiculous. We never wanted something ridiculous, we just wanted a pitch with pace and bounce. I think there is concern that we are not getting it right and this is not the first time. I can think of three or four occasions over the last 12 months. We need to be better as a collective. That’s something I will be taking up and making sure we can improve.”The South African captain is the fifth member of the side, after Aiden Markram, Lungi Ngidi, Morne Morkel and Dean Elgar, to take issue with the SuperSport Park pitch but he also referred to other surfaces which have been similarly placid. The pitches against Bangladesh in September-October, in Potchefstroom and Bloemfontein, were also slow, so much so that even the visitors were surprised by their similarity to subcontinental wickets. Though it is not always easy to get more sporting pitches in early season, du Plessis wants South African curators to make more of an effort to do so and they need look no further than Newlands for an example.In the middle of the worst drought in the Western Cape in more than a century, Evan Flint managed to produce a surface with pace and bounce that facilitated seam movement. Flint, who is an experienced groundsman, had identified and been working on the surface for several months. Contrastingly, Byran Bloy at SuperSport Park, who visited Flint last week to see how things are done, was preparing his first Test pitch after being appointed in late 2016. He is expected to come under pressure over the lack of life in his strip.Pre-match Bloy had promised he was not doing anything different from the norm and was expecting a slow start to the match, but that the strip would pick up pace as the game went on. That never really happened, which thwarted some of South Africa’s plans. Still, their fast bowlers got most of the job done and their batsmen the rest, leaving du Plessis ultimately pleased with the outcome even though he admitted winning the toss was crucial.”It was a big toss to win. We knew it was going to be lower but we didn’t know it was going to take so long to that process and be so slow. It was important for us to, in that first innings, put a decent total on the board,” he said. “I do feel we were 60 or 70 runs short from the position we were in just before overnight [on the first day]. Those few silly wickets was a bit of panic and we felt we were a little bit short but the next two or three days, the team responded beautifully and the bowlers were exceptional on a wicket that didn’t offer a lot.”South Africa ultimately want pitches that give their quicks a lot more, so they can play to their strengths, especially against subcontinental sides. Finding that all around the country may not be possible but du Plessis hopes common ground can be reached. Currently, the groundsmen have an annual conference but, after du Plessis’ reaction, CSA may look into appointing an overall manager for the international pitches.

Victoria soar with Maxwell's 96

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Glenn Maxwell continued his fine Sheffield Shield form with 96 as Victoria went to stumps on 4 for 247 in reply to the Warriors’ 243

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Dec-2017

ScorecardGetty Images

Glenn Maxwell continued his fine Sheffield Shield form with 96 as Victoria took command on a showery second day against Western Australia at the MCG. In reply to the Warriors’ 243, the Bushrangers went to stumps on 4 for 247, with Cameron White on 53 and Daniel Christian on 17.But the key man was Maxwell, who in Victoria’s previous match had plundered 278 against New South Wales in Sydney. https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/8043/scorecard/1118874/New-South-Wales-vs-Victoria-11th-match-sheff-shield-pura/ Although he fell short of making hundreds in consecutive games, he finished the day with 590 runs so far this Shield season at 73.75, putting him more than 100 runs clear of the second-placed Callum Ferguson at the top of the season’s run charts.Maxwell was lbw to fast bowler Jhye Richardson, who had also bowled opener Travis Dean late on the first day. Marcus Harris was caught in the deep off Ashton Agar for 43 and captain Aaron Finch was bowled by Matthew Kelly for 21, before White arrived to combine with Maxwell for a 74-run fourth-wicket partnership.

De Villiers, Morris set up crucial SA win

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

An unconvincing South Africa survived a spirited Afghanistan chase to defend a 200-plus score and get their World Twenty20 campaign back on track

The Report by Firdose Moonda20-Mar-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details 4:07

Chappell: South Africa have a few bowling concerns

An unconvincing South Africa survived a spirited Afghanistan chase to defend a 200-plus score and get their World Twenty20 campaign back on track. In the absence of Dale Steyn, who was left out for tactical reasons, Chris Morris and Imran Tahir squeezed through the middle period to ensure AB de Villiers’ quickfire 64 was not in vain.Afghanistan’s second loss means their chances of progressing to the knockouts are all but over, but they have showed their promise. They kept up with the required run-rate for the first half of their innings and were ahead of where South Africa were at the same stage in their knock, but lost too many wickets to keep going. Afghanistan also did not have a 17th over like South Africa did; de Villiers took 29 runs off Rashid Khan, which ended up being the major difference between the two sides.In the end, South Africa will be relieved that they were able to defend their total, but disappointed that the margin of victory was not bigger. They tightened up on their discipline in the field but still gave away more extras than their opposition – six wides compared to two from Afghanistan – and did not show the kind of killer instinct that they will need later in the tournament.They also suffered an injury concern. JP Duminy left the field four balls into Afghanistan’s chase with a hamstring strain and was unable to take any further part in the match. Duminy has only just found form again and his availability will be important for the rest of the World T20.As the same venue where they posted 229 batting first on Friday night, South Africa chose to set a target again. Quinton de Kock picked up from where he left off two days ago and dominated the opening passages of play. De Kock faced all but one delivery in the first two overs and found the boundary five times. Hashim Amla may have wanted to catch up but after one four, gifted a catch to Asghar Stanikzai at mid-off.South Africa held de Villiers back and sent in Faf du Plessis at No.3. The strategy worked. Du Plessis took on the spin from Mohammad Nabi while de Kock continued to attack in the Powerplay. South Africa finished it on 66 for 1 and 60 of those runs came in boundaries.When the fielding restrictions were lifted, Rashid put the brakes on with the first boundary-less over of the innings, but du Plessis did not want things to slow down too much. He picked up the pace before being run-out and de Villiers was soon at the crease.Afghanistan were not under threat immediately while de Villiers settled in and de Kock nicked off. After conceding just 19 runs in three overs after the halfway stage of the South African innings, Afghanistan might have been hopeful of pulling South Africa even further back. But Duminy and de Villiers were wise to the need to accelerate and began to push for runs.De Villiers should have been caught for 27 when he offered Samiullah Shenwari a return catch but he could not hold on his follow through and Rashid suffered most. He was torn apart in his final over, when de Villiers went over midwicket and down the ground five times. The result? Six, four, six, six and six. South Africa’s total went meandering to mighty and 200-plus was within sight. It was up to David Miller to take them there after de Villiers was dismissed. Twenty runs off the final over ensured South Africa had a second straight 200-plus score.South Africa would have felt fairly safe with 209 on the board, especially as Afghanistan two previous scores over 210 were only achieved batting first, but Mohammad Shahzad threatened to gun down that total all by himself. He began fearlessly against Kagiso Rabada and Kyle Abbott and plundered 32 runs off the first two overs. His partner Noor Ali Zadran did not face a ball until the third over and then, it was only to return the strike to Shahzad.Morris was brought on in the fourth over and showed improvement from previous performances. He started by holding his length back but then steamed in with a delivery just under 150kph – full and straightening – which splayed Shahzad’s stumps.Asghar Stanikzai and was caught behind in Morris’ next over but Gulbadin Naib kept Afghanistan in it and targeted David Wiese, South Africa’s replacement for Steyn. Afghanistan reached 10 overs on 103 for 2, 11 runs ahead of where South Africa were at the same stage. Then, Gulbadin was caught behind, Noor Ali was stumped, and Afghanistan were wobbling, still needing 100 runs off eight overs. Their chase was over then and South Africa had the chance to drill home an advantage.Instead, they allowed Afghanistan to drag it out. Abbott and Morris got the yorker right more often than they did in previous matches and Rabada managed one at the end, but South Africa will not feel it was a complete performance by any means.

Cooper five-for sees Somerset end with win

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Tom Cooper and Jack Leach bowled Somerset to victory in their final Championship game of the season against Warwickshire at Taunton

ECB/PA25-Sep-2015
ScorecardTom Cooper’s five-for helped bowl Somerset to victory•Getty Images

Tom Cooper and Jack Leach bowled Somerset to victory in their final Championship game of the season against Warwickshire at Taunton. Chasing 225 for victory, the visitors were bowled out for 207, which included 55 for Ian Bell, with spinners Leach and Cooper taking nine wickets between them to see the hosts to only their fourth win of the season.Resuming on 20 without loss at the start of play, Warwickshire openers Varun Chopra and Ian Westwood took the total on to 43 when Westwood, pushing forward to Alfonso Thomas, was caught by wicketkeeper Luke Ronchi.New batsman Bell played a classic cover drive to see up the 50, but when part-time bowler Cooper came into the attack from the River End, the complexion of the game changed.The offspinner, who before this game had taken 1 for 150 from 47 overs this season, proceeded to take a wicket in each of his first three overs. Chopra was bowled for 33 looking to sweep, Laurie Evans caught by Ronchi playing back, with the total on 83, and Freddie Coleman stumped by Ronchi, four runs later.Cooper wasn’t done yet and in the 40th over he had Tim Ambrose well caught at square leg by Lewis Gregory, which made Warwickshire 89 for 5. By lunch Warwickshire had moved onto 104 for 5 off 46 overs, with Bell unbeaten on 43 and Clarke five not out, while Cooper has taken 4 for 13 .Leach struck with the first ball after lunch when he had Clarke caught at mid wicket by Peter Trego for 5. Bell hit a straight six off Cooper to go to his half-century, which came off 124 balls with 9 fours and a six, but two balls later the bowler got his rewards when the England batsman played on aiming back-foot shot.Keith Barker struck some lusty blows, including a straight six off Leach in the 57th over into the building site, to bring up the 150, but two overs later he went down the wicket and was stumped off the left-armer for 46.Jeetan Patel took Warwickshire closer to victory, but on 27 he was caught and bowled by Leach, making the visitors 197 for 9. The final wicket of the match fell to Leach when he had Oliver Hannon-Dalby caught by Cooper and Warwickshire were all out for 207, off 64.1 overs, giving Somerset victory by 17 runs.Cooper ended with a career best 5 for 76. Leach claimed 4 for 74 and match figures off 11 for 180. Somerset took 24 points and Warwickshire six.

Ghosh 150 hands Bangladesh series win

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Pinak Ghosh smashed 21 fours and and one six in his 141-ball 150 to set up a 58-run win for Bangladesh U-19s over South Africa U-19s and take an unassailable 4-2 lead in the seven-match series

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jul-2015
Scorecard and ball by ball detailsFile photo: Joyraz Sheik and Pinak Ghosh got together at 0 for 1 and added 137 runs together•WICB

Pinak Ghosh smashed 21 fours and and one six in his 141-ball 150 to set up a 58-run win for Bangladesh U-19s over South Africa U-19s in Durban. It also helped the visitors take an unassailable 4-2 lead in the seven-match ODI series.For the briefest moment South Africa felt like they had a chance. They had Bangladesh were 0 for 1, with Saif Hassan dismissed off the fifth ball of the innings. Thats when Ghosh and Joyraz Sheik came together and added 137 runs for the second wicket. Having won the advantage back, Ghosh decided to take charge. He racked up 74 runs with Mehedi Hasan Miraz off only 49 balls as Bangladesh soared to 250 with five overs still left. The lower middle order was able to contribute to the final push as well and Bangladesh finished on 304 for 7. Dayyaan Galiem was South Africa’s best bowler with 3 for 35 but his new-ball partner Ziyaad Abrahams leaked 82 runs for his two wicketsWith such a steep target, South Africa needed a good start and they got it. Openers Liam Smith and Matthew Breetzke added 72 runs in 19 overs before offspinner Sanjit Saha bowled Smith for 31. Breetzke moved on to a half-century but was run out for 62 in the 28th over to leave South Africa at 101 for 2.The chase seemed in good hands as Lesego Senokwane and Wiaan Mulder added 50 runs for the third wicket. But seamer Nazmul Hossain Shanto removed Mulder for 26 and then got rid of Senokwane and Galiem in successive overs to leave South Africa on 182 for 5. South Africa then lost their final five wicket for just 64 runs.

Chandrakant Pandit named Mumbai coach

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Former India wicketkeeper Chandrakant Pandit has been chosen as the coach of the Mumbai Ranji Trophy team, as well as the head coach of the Mumbai Cricket Association’s indoor academy at the Bandra Kurla Complex

PTI30-Jun-2015Former India wicketkeeper Chandrakant Pandit has been named coach of the Mumbai Ranji Trophy team, as well as the head coach of the Mumbai Cricket Association’s indoor academy at the Bandra Kurla Complex.The decision to appoint Pandit as coach and former Mumbai captain Milind Rege as the chairman of the senior selection panel was taken by the MCA’s Cricket Improvement Committee, headed by the MCA vice president Dilip Vengsarkar.Rege will lead a four-member senior selection panel with former India left-arm bowler Karsan Ghavri, former Mumbai left-arm spinner Ravi Thaker, and former batsman Nishit Shetty as its other members.Ranjan Baindoor, Ramesh Vajge and Rajesh Sutar were picked to head the Under-16 and 14 age group selection committees, while Trupti Bhattracharya will head the women’s selection panel.”Chandu has been around for a long time and under him we won a lot (of titles),” Vengsarkar said. “(Pravin) Amre did extremely well last season but wasn’t keen to coach (this season). Pandit is a proven guy, excellent strategist and good in management. He was the best (choice) we had.”The names of Sulakshan Kulkarni, Sairaj Bahutule and Sameer Dighe were discussed before Pandit got the nod. The MCA will also appoint a batting coach and bowling coaches for fast bowlers and spinners.”We have plans to take part in the Buchi Babu and KSCA tournaments. The Under-23 is a very important age group. We have also decided to pick 20 players in the Under-12 age group and groom them so that they will be available for the Under-14 level,” Vengsarkar said.

CSK consolidate top spot with big win

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Chennai Super Kings continued with their formula of tough pitch: go at roughly a run a ball for the first 10 overs keeping wickets in hand, and then explode to take 10 an over off the last 10

The Report by Sidharth Monga30-Apr-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
A six down the ground, off the back foot•BCCI

Chennai Super Kings continued with their formula of going at roughly a run a ball for the first 10 overs, keeping wickets in hand, and then exploding to take 10 an over off the last 10. On a pitch on which the ball seamed and bounced variably, they reached 55 for 2 after 10 overs, but Suresh Raina, S Badrinath and MS Dhoni looted 109 in the rest of the innings to set up an easy 37-run, sixth consecutive win, which kept them at the top of the table and Pune Warriors at the bottom.With the ball seaming around, Super Kings lost their openers for 28 runs, that too thanks to generous umpiring. However, out came their crisis man Badrinath, and did his job without any fuss. He and Raina added 75 off 59, without taking risks, and picking the rate up progressively. Raina kept providing the odd boundary, and Badrinath found the gaps for ones and twos.It was in the 13th over that the real charge began. Badrinath drove consecutive deliveries from Rahul Sharma down the ground and through point for fours to take his strike past 100. Raina’s was already a healthier strike rate, but he accelerated by sending Kane Richardson over midwicket for a six in the next over.Badrinath fell in the 16th over, but he and Super Kings will know he fell at just the right time, after just the right innings of 34 off 31. Dhoni came out and took four and six off the first two balls he faced. The six was a demoralising – for the fielding side – punch off the back foot, over extra cover.Dhoni then took apart Ashok Dinda, a bowler he is often criticised for not giving enough chances. He took 25 off eight Dinda’s deliveries, two of them swept boundaries, and one a six off the last ball of the innings. Seamlessly Raina went from being the dominant partner in the earlier partnership to taking back seat and watching Dhoni subdue the bowlers. Along the way he brought up his second half-century of the season.The target was bigger than ever chased in Pune, which became more daunting because of the seam movement available. Mohit Sharma, the Haryana fast bowler who has been the find of the season for Super Kings, utilised it to end the chase for all intents and purposes with an unbroken four-over spell. With successive deliveries in his first over, he got rid of Aaron Finch and T Suman. He missed the hat-trick, but got Yuvraj Singh to edge behind, making it 43 for 4 in the fifth over. There was no way back from there.

Rain a factor in 'lively' Pallekele

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

The preview of the third Test between Sri Lanka and Pakistan in Pallekele

The Preview by Siddhartha Talya07-Jul-2012

Match facts

July 8-July 12, Pallekele

Start time 1000 (0430 GMT)The conditions in Pallekele are expected to suit Junaid Khan and his fast-bowling kinsmen•AFP

Big Picture

Sri Lanka in June and July is greener, even more beautiful and the lush hills form a stunning backdrop to the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, the host of two rain-affected Tests. The third one starting on Sunday, after some menacing rain the day before, will be lucky to get away unscathed. Amid the inevitable concerns about the weather this time of the year, there remains the promise of a more “sporting” pitch at this venue, the unforgiving SSC having yet again shown its contempt for bowlers.Led by Junaid Khan, Pakistan were able to trouble the Sri Lanka batsmen on that SSC highway and though he got support from the left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman, the pace and discipline of Umar Gul, who was out with an ankle injury, was missed. While Pakistan’s batting improved markedly at the SSC, albeit on one of the world’s best batting surfaces, their bowlers will be under added pressure to force a result that would deprive Sri Lanka of their first Test series win in nine attempts.Sri Lanka, though better-placed in the series, should, presumably, be rankled by constant reminders of the influence Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas and even Lasith Malinga had on their Test fortunes. That point is made each time they lose or draw a Test, and walking away unblemished with a series win will mark a turn of the page, a sign of having moved on, at least to some of their detractors if not themselves.In Suraj Randiv and Rangana Herath, Sri Lanka have a potent spin combination for home Tests. They bat deep enough, though without Chanaka Welegedera their pace department needs a boost. Nuwan Pradeep has pace, but has proved ineffective, leaving Nuwan Kulasekara with a big burden. It is here that Pakistan have traditionally been superior, and that being the case in this series as well gives them a good chance.

Form guide

Sri Lanka: DWLWL (most recent first)
Pakistan: DLWWW

Watch out for…

Thilan Samaraweera: Samaraweera’s solidity has served Sri Lanka tremendously over the years but he’s experiencing a blip after a prolific first-class season. His last seven Test innings have yielded just one half-century. Two of his three dismissals in this series have come after remaining padded up for long spells in the dressing room; he’ll want a long enough spell in the middle to end a rare run of underachievement.Under greater pressure is opener Tharanga Paranavitana with scores of 24, 25, 0 and 32 in his last four Test innings. He’s got starts but that’s not encouraging enough when still competing for an opening slot.Taufeeq Umar: It was Taufeeq who got the Pakistan innings rolling at the SSC, his attacking approach a contrast to a subdued Mohammad Hafeez, who only opened up much later. Taufeeq confidently drove on the up and dominated through the off side, before throwing it away with a century there for the taking. He responded with a fluent, unbeaten 42 in the second innings, and looks good to keep a successful opening partnership going.

Pitch and conditions

Mahela Jayawardene reckons the track in Pallekele will “definitely” be “livelier” than the SSC, but will the weather play spoilsport? There are showers forecast; this, after what seemed a pleasant and calm lead-up to the Test was interrupted by a heavy bout of rain on Saturday. While Sri Lanka had a chance to train in the morning, Pakistan did not. At the press conference, Angelo Mathews said he noticed a greenish tinge on the track and expected bounce and movement.The inaugural Test at this venue in 2010 included just 103.3 overs with two full days being washed out. Ryan Harris was among the wickets here in 2011, but frequent interruptions due to rain meant the teams had to settle for a draw, with Australia feeling hard done by in the end.

Team news

Pakistan have gone the diplomatic way by saying they’ll keep all options open. Aizaz Cheema and Saeed Ajmal were the weak links in the bowling attack at the SSC. Gul, if fit, should return to bolster the attack but there’s also Mohammad Sami in the squad, waiting for a chance. He bowled with pace and venom in the limited-overs games, and it remains to be seen what Pakistan do with him.Pakistan (possible): 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Taufeeq Umar, 3 Azhar Ali, 4 Younis Khan, 5 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), 6 Asad Shafiq, 7 Adnan Akmal (wk), 8 Umar Gul, 9 Junaid Khan, 10 Saeed Ajmal, 11 Abdur Rehman.Sri Lanka could consider leaving out the off-colour Pradeep and replacing him with Dilhara Fernando or the all-round option of Thisara Perera.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 2 Tharanga Paranavitana, 3 Kumar Sangakkara, 4 Mahela Jayawardene (capt), 5 Thilan Samaraweera, 6 Angelo Mathews, 7 Prasanna Jayawardene (wk), 8 Nuwan Kulasekara, 9 Suraj Randiv, 10 Rangana Herath, 11 Dilhara Fernando.

Stats and trivia

  • Rangana Herath is three away from 150 wickets in Tests. He’s played the most Tests for a Sri Lankan specialist spinner after Muralitharan – 39, after Murali’s 132. Kumar Dharmasena is the third specialist spinner on the list.
  • Taufeeq Umar is 90 away from reaching 3000 runs in Tests.
  • The Pakistan XI that played the SSC Test was more a gang of senior citizens in comparison to the Pakistan team that took on New Zealand more than 10 years ago in 2002. The average age of the current team is 33, back then it was 25.72.

Quotes

“As far as I am concerned nobody is out of form, actually. The guys have been getting starts but we are professionals. It’s not a major concern. We need to show confidence in individuals.”

“The batsmen took the responsibility and the bowlers did their part and the momentum will be there for us.”

PCB issues showcause to Miandad

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Former Pakistan captain Javed Miandad has been issued a showcause notice by the Pakistan board over comments made in an interview to a newspaper

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Sep-2011Javed Miandad, the former Pakistan captain, has been issued a showcause notice by the PCB for criticising the board’s policies in a newspaper interview.Miandad, who is currently the director-general of the PCB, apart from being a member of the governing board, had said he was “disappointed” with the functioning of the board as well as the lack of authority vested in him.”While closely watching the functioning of the PCB, I am disappointed and feel that 90% decisions [taken by the board] are wrong, and are spoiling the sport in the country,” Miandad told on Wednesday. “I am not part of the PCB planning only because I require power and freedom to work, since I have given 35 years to Pakistan cricket and earned a good name.”People around the world regard my services as a cricketer but the PCB doesn’t want to give me authority to improve [Pakistan] cricket.”I have already brought this matter to the notice of PCB patron, President Asif Ali Zardari. Soon I will meet him again to apprise him of the poor condition of cricket in Pakistan. I will request him to either take necessary steps [to improve cricketing matters] or allow me to leave the DG post.”This is not the first time Miandad has been critical of the Pakistan board. In February last year he wrote a letter to president Zardari, criticising the appointment of Ijaz Butt as the board chairman. In January 2009 Miandad had resigned as director-general of the PCB over differences concerning the exact scope of his work.A month later, Butt and Miandad had traded allegations over Miandad’s resignation at a senate hearing on the decline of Pakistan cricket. The chairman had alleged that Miandad had demanded more money, interfered with matters concerning selection, and was an incapable administrator. Miandad had said at the time that the scope of his role in the contract letter was significantly reduced from what he had initially discussed with the chairman. Though Miandad was reinstated as the director general in March that year, his relationship with Butt has been frosty since.Miandad, who has been the coach of the national team on three occasions in the past, was not included in the recently formed committee to appoint a new coach for the national team, after Waqar Younis’ decision to quit as national head coach after the ongoing Zimbabwe tour. In April, Miandad turned down the role of Pakistan’s batting coach due to personal reasons.Miandad has been asked to submit his reply within seven days.