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The Pakistan seamers shredded the Sri Lanka batting in unthreatening conditions to wrest control after a manic second session in Abu Dhabi

The Report by Devashish Fuloria31-Dec-2013
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsBilawal Bhatti triggered Sri Lanka’s collapse with a wicket immediately after lunch•AFPThe Pakistan seamers shredded Sri Lanka’s batting in unthreatening conditions to wrest control after a manic second session in Abu Dhabi. Junaid Khan maintained his stranglehold over the Sri Lanka batsmen, picking up his fourth five-wicket haul against them, but central to the collapse was debutant Bilawal Bhatti’s post-lunch spell during which he picked up three wickets – two of them in one over. The twitter feed was abound with the question: “What did they eat for lunch?”The pitch in its green guise didn’t offer much to the bowlers, but it was a mix of tight bowling and loose batting from Sri Lanka that resulted in their innings slipping off the precipice. From a comfortable 66 for 1 at lunch, Sri Lanka lost seven wickets for 58 runs and only a rearguard action from their captain, Angelo Mathews, who scored a counterattacking 91, prevented a complete capitulation.Sri Lanka were eventually bowled out for 204 and Pakistan had a comfortable start to their innings till a run-out off the last ball took some sheen away. Khurram Manzoor was left stranded mid-pitch after dabbing a ball to cover, and Pakistan ended the day on 46 for 1.It all started in the first over of the second session when Kaushal Silva – who had been patient, but circumspect, all morning – played inside the line of a short-of-a-length delivery from Bhatti only to edge it to the keeper. Sixty-six for 1 became 67 for 2, but Sri Lanka wouldn’t have worried too much about it as they had the experienced pair of Mahela Jayawardene, who was playing his first Test in almost a year, and Kumar Sangakkara in the middle.That safety cushion was soon pulled away by Bhatti in his next over. He got his second delivery – probably the best of the day – to rear awkwardly on Jayawardene and the batsman edged it to the keeper. However, the TV umpire came to Jayawardene’s rescue as the replays showed the bowler had overstepped. The very next ball though – a yorker, Jayawardene edged it to Adnan Akmal again. Seventy-six for 2 became 76 for 3.Two balls later, Chandimal played a poor shot, chasing a wide delivery, and paid the price as the edge flew straight to Misbah-ul-Haq at first slip. Seventy-six for 4.At the other end, Sangakkara was watching the drama unfold but was unfazed and was defending solidly. However, three overs after Bhatti’s double-strike, his eyes lit up seeing Junaid bowl a wide, length ball. Nine out of 10 times, Sangakkara would have crashed it through covers, but today he slashed it straight to the cover-point fielder. Pakistan were ecstatic to see the back of their tormentor. Eighty-two for 5 now.Junaid then added three more wickets – Prasanna Jayawardene edged to Akmal, before Sachithra Senanayake and Rangana Herath were removed off successive deliveries – to complete his five-for in an eight-over spell. Hundred-and-twenty-four for 8.Running out of partners, Mathews tried to score whenever possible – he hit three boundaries in a Bhatti over immediately after Sangakkara’s departure – and brought up his half-century in 49 balls. He added a crucial 61 with Shaminda Eranga, who scored 14, for the ninth wicket and 19 for the tenth wicket during a period of play where Pakistan allowed him to farm the strike. He was finally stumped off a Saeed Ajmal doosra early in the third session, falling in the ninties for the third time in his career.The dramatic second session was in complete contrast with the first, during which Sri Lanka, despite the loss of Dimuth Karunaratne, had looked comfortable after being put in to bat. The two openers added 50 in the first hour of the day as Pakistan didn’t make the impact they would have hoped for. However, the winds started changing direction in the second hour as the bowlers adjusted their lines and length to stem the flow of runs.In the second over after the first drinks break, Junaid had a strong appeal for caught behind against Silva turned down by the umpire. Pakistan immediately called for a review – they had reasons to be confident as the ball made a sound as it passed the bat – but with no Hot Spot available for this series, the decision went in the favour of the batsman, extending Pakistan’s poor run with the DRS (Pakistan wasted another review in the 55th over).Four overs later, Junaid had Karunaratne pushing away from the body and Asad Shafiq took a smart reflex catch at gully to end the 57-run opening-wicket stand. The wicket slowed Sri Lanka’s pace down – 16 runs came in the 12 overs after the drinks break. The runs dried up, and Pakistan had a feast after lunch.

Sri Lanka have rested Mahela Jayawardene and Rangana Herath from the three-ODI series against Bangladesh, which follows the two Twenty20 internationals later this month

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Feb-2014Sri Lanka have rested Mahela Jayawardene and Rangana Herath from the three-ODI series against Bangladesh, which follows the two Twenty20 internationals later this month. They also left out batsmen Dimuth Karunaratne and Lahiru Thirimanne from the one-day squad that played Pakistan in the UAE, and brought in spinning allrounder Angelo Perera, who made 244 off 204 balls in his most recent first-class game.Mahela had also missed the limited-overs games in the UAE in December last year because he was on paternal leave. Both Mahela and Herath will be available for the two Twenty internationals that precede the ODIs, though, subject to the state of Herath’s injured knee, which has put him in severe doubt for the second Test. These Twenty20s are Sri Lanka’s last official matches before the World Twenty20 March.Angelo Perera was also included in the T20 squad, while the players to miss out from the group that travelled to UAE were Ramith Rambukwella, Thirimanne and Kithuruwan Vithanage.Thisara Perera was named in both squads, after having his work ethic put under scrutiny by the national selectors. Perera was denied permission to play in the Big Bash League, and told instead to train with Sri Lanka’s A team, but he pleased the selectors well enough to return to the national fray. Doubts over Lasith Malinga’s fitness have also been quelled, after he returned from the BBL to Sri Lanka briefly, in order to address that issue.Middle-order batsman Ashan Priyanjan retained his place in the ODI squad, after having impressed with a 74 on debut in Abu Dhabi, in December. He has been with the team in Bangladesh, after replacing Prasanna Jayawardene in the Test squad. Both he and Angelo Perera also bowl effective finger spin in domestic cricket.ODI squad: Angelo Mathews (capt), Dinesh Chandimal (vc), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kusal Perera, Kumar Sangakkara, Ashan Priyanjan, Kithuruwan Vithanage, Angelo Perera, Lasith Malinga, Thisara Perera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Suranga Lakmal, Sachithra Senanayake, Ajantha Mendis, Seekuge Prasanna.T20 squad: Dinesh Chandimal (capt), Lasith Malinga (vc), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kusal Perera, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Angelo Mathews, Thisara Perera, Angelo Perera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Suranga Lakmal, Sachithra Senanayake, Ajantha Mendis, Rangana Herath, Seekuge Prasanna.

India Under-19s will hope their batsmen can give them a decisive advantage as they meet England Under-19s in the World Cup quarter-final on Saturday

Kanishkaa Balachandran in Dubai21-Feb-2014The mood in the Indian camp, on the eve of their quarter-final, was jovial at the picturesque ICC Academy in Dubai, just behind the game’s headquarters. The fielding drill looked anything but boring and the players were raring to go. India have proved so far that their showing in the practice games – they lost both the matches – wasn’t much to go by, having not dropped a single game in the group stage. Despite those wins, their coach B Arun said the team was yet to peak. He was referring to the top-order batting, which was identified as India’s strength before the tournament started but hasn’t been consistent.In their first two games, against Pakistan and Scotland, India were in trouble at 94 for 4 and 19 for 4 respectively and needed rescuing from their lower order. The problem didn’t resurface against easier opponents Papua New Guinea, but tougher tests await them in the knockouts. Arun was not too worried about the batting order facing up to England’s pace-centric attack.”Yes it hasn’t clicked as we would have expected. In a big tournament there are bound to be butterflies and the over-eagerness to perform also,” Arun said. “Now they have kind of settled down and will hopefully peak at the right time.”Sarfaraz Khan has been the revelation in the middle order, as has the understated allrounder Deepak Hooda. Against Scotland, the pair came together after India lost their top five batsmen for 22, making the 89-run target look distant. Together, Sarfaraz and Hooda ensured India did not suffer further losses. Arun denied the perception that the team got carried away against an easier opponent.”Definitely not complacency,” Arun said. “There were maybe one or two good balls, plus a bad decision (referring to Sanju Samson’s lbw). In such a situation you don’t expect to bat before lunch and suddenly three-four wickets fall. It’s a pretty good lesson for us.”The spinners from both sides were more than a handful, with Kuldeep Yadav taking a hat-trick, but Arun said the pitch for the game against Scotland was not the reason for a collapse.”The devils were not in the pitch. It was in the mind,” Arun said. “If you look at Akhil’s (Herwadkar) shot, it was a wide ball and he played the cut but got the edge.”England are an unfamiliar opponent for India, for the teams have not played each other between the World Cups. Their last clash was in a one-dayer during the Quadrangular series in Townsville in 2012, which India won by 63 runs.In this tournament, England have played out a high percentage of dot balls – 178 and 189 against Sri Lanka and New Zealand respectively – and Arun said there were no specific plans to target their weaknesses.”Every team that plays well normally plays about 55% scoring shots and 45% dots,” Arun said. “Sometimes statistics don’t tell you anything. We’ll just focus on what we need to do and our bowlers to bowl on areas they need to bowl. If we do that, it is about trying to dictate what the batsman should be doing rather than looking at the batsman’s strengths.”India made two changes for their match against Papua New Guinea, bringing in Shreyas Iyer and Monu Kumar and the coach said the XI for the quarter-final will be decided after looking at the pitch.England trained at the Fairgrounds Oval in the Dubai Men’s College campus in the afternoon. They, too, could have entered the quarters with a 100%-win record had they not lost a nail-biter against Sri Lanka. Tim Boon, the England coach, said India will be their biggest test yet in playing under pressure.”Every team now has access to each other’s video footage,” Boon said. “It’s a great learning curve for our boys to see how they play under pressure.”India have been formidable over the last two seasons in whatever competition they have gone for, however we are focusing our attention in what we do well.”Boon said the high percentage of dot balls in their last two matches wasn’t an issue. Against New Zealand, England recovered from a slow 91 for 4 after 30 overs to 229 for 8.”What I liked about our batting was that we had some wickets till the end,” Boon said. “Then, we were able to up the strike-rate at the end. Yes, there were a couple of little learnings in that, but that’s the beauty about World Cup cricket – to test yourself against the best young talents in the world.”

N Srinivasan will attend the ICC executive board meeting, to be held in Dubai on April 9 and 10, in his capacity as a BCCI “representative”

Amol Karhadkar08-Apr-2014Despite having been sidelined from BCCI affairs following a Supreme Court directive, N Srinivasan will attend the ICC executive board meeting, to be held in Dubai on April 9 and 10, in his capacity as a BCCI “representative.” While BCCI interim president Shivlal Yadav said he has “no comment on this” and secretary Sanjay Patel didn’t respond to queries, a senior BCCI official confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that Srinivasan “will attend the ICC Board meeting”.While splitting the BCCI presidency between Sunil Gavaskar (IPL affairs) and Yadav for other issues, the two-judge bench of the Supreme Court had declined to pass an order in relation to Srinivasan’s role in ICC affairs, saying it was an “internal” matter of the BCCI.In normal practice, the BCCI president is inducted onto the ICC board as a Director while the secretary attends the ICC Chief Executives Committee meetings. At every Annual General Meeting (AGM), it is the BCCI president who nominates the Board’s representative at ICC meetings. At the last BCCI held in Chennai on September 29, 2013, it is understood the issue of an ICC representative had been discussed and it was verbally decided that “Srinivasan will continue to be in the (ICC) executive board and Patel in the CEC.” The minutes of the AGM have, however, not yet been circulated among the BCCI members.Srinivasan’s position in the ICC, as one of its directors, can be questioned under various ICC regulations in the light of the Supreme Court observations and orders around the BCCI’s handling of the IPL 2013 corruption case. In theory, any member can raise questions pertaining to two clauses in the ICC’s constitution – firstly, Clause 2.1 of ICC’s code of ethics which states that “Directors shall not engage in any conduct that in any way denigrates the ICC or harms its public image.” Under clause 4.11 (F) of the ICC’s constitution, an ICC director can be removed as a member of the Executive Board by notice given to him and executed by not less than two thirds of the members of the Executive Board on any one of the following grounds:”(1) he is guilty of any dishonesty, gross misconduct or wilful neglect of duty (whether by act or omission); or (2) in the reasonable opinion of the Executive Board, he commits (whether by act or omission) any act which brings or would tend to bring the Council into disrepute; or (3) he conducts himself in a manner materially adverse to the interests of the Council.”The ICC has remained tightlipped over the issue ever since India’s Supreme Court directive had Srinivasan removed from his official position, repeatedly saying, it has “no comments at this stage.” Other than merely attending the meetings this week, Srinivasan’s involvement in the ICC extends towards taking over as its first chairman in June this year. Under the new ICC constitutional amendments to be made this June, “the initial chairman of the ICC… shall be the nominee on the ICC Board of the BCCI (or nominees of the BCCI if the original nominee is replaced by the BCCI as its nominee on the ICC Board during this period.”)The BCCI remains confident that not only have they acquired the apex court’s approval for Srinivasan to continue with his ICC responsibilities but also that there will be no protest from within the ICC Board itself towards the ICC chairmanship.An ECB spokesman said the issue of Srinivasan attending the meeting had, “nothing to do with us.” The terms of reference required for anyone to sit on the Board, he said, “is that they are a nomination from their home board. The ECB have no role to play in that decision. It is a matter for the BCCI who attends an ICC meeting.”Hours after the Supreme Court order, Patel had said that Srinivasan will remain BCCI’s representative at the ICC. Since then, the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA) has requested the ICC to sideline Srinivasan from the executive board and to not allow him to take over as the ICC chairman in July. “Serious allegations of betting and spot-fixing in IPL 2013 have been made against Mr Gurunath Meiyappan as the alleged team principal of Chennai Super Kings and these remain the subject of proceedings before the Indian Supreme Court,” he said. “Mr Srinivasan is the managing director of Indian Cements Limited [the owner of the Chennai Super Kings] and is also the father-in-law of Mr Meiyappan,” FICA chief executive Paul Marsh had said.”The Supreme Court order from last Friday noted that Mr Srinivasan had made a written offer through his legal counsel to step aside from his functions as BCCI President until investigations into the allegations against him were completed. The Supreme Court has issued an interim order prohibiting any employees of India Cements Limited (other than players or commentators) from performing any duties for the BCCI. FICA understands that the order applies to Mr Srinivasan, as managing director of the company.”

Paul Farbrace, the Sri Lanka coach, has resigned with immediate effect in order to take up a role with the ECB, Sri Lanka Cricket has confirmed

Andrew Fidel Fernando22-Apr-20140:33

Farbrace knowledge invaluable – Bell

Paul Farbrace, the Sri Lanka coach, has resigned with immediate effect in order to take up a role with the ECB, Sri Lanka Cricket has confirmed. The development came a day after Farbrace returned to Colombo and met with SLC officials to discuss his position, following reports that he had been approached by the ECB to become assistant coach to Peter Moores, the new England coach.Farbrace had been expected to have further meetings with SLC on Tuesday, but had sent in his letter of resignation before the board had had a chance meet him. SLC secretary Nishantha Ranatunga said that although the board regretted his decision to leave the role, they had understood the reasons behind it.Significantly better pay and a desire to work in the country of his birth are believed to be the primary reasons for Farbrace’s early departure from Sri Lanka. After talks on Monday, Ranatunga said Farbrace had been offered an “attractive package” by ECB, the likes of which SLC could not hope to match. The salary SLC had offered had been deemed too modest by several high-profile coaches, before Farbrace, who was Yorkshire’s second XI coach at the time, was signed by the board.Paul Farbrace (left) quit the Sri Lanka job after he was approached by England•AFPFarbrace was a little over three months into his two-year contract with SLC. His tenure was marked by off-field upheaval, as much as on-field success. Sri Lanka lost only one out of 18 matches under his watch, winning the World T20 and Asia Cup in that time, but at his time of departure, the players remained locked in a contracts dispute with the board, seven weeks after their previous agreements expired. Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara also clashed with SLC officials over the announcement of their T20 retirements. Farbrace said, however, his experience in the role had not been soured by off-field events.He had also said he had not applied for the England position, but was approached by the ECB on Thursday, two days before the ECB confirmed Moores as head coach. It is understood Moores had a major say in who he wanted to work with and was strongly in favour of Farbrace.SLC have not yet worked out the legal repercussions of Farbrace terminating his contract,Ranatunga said. The coach has walked out inside a six-month probationary period, which may mean neither he, nor ECB, are liable to compensate SLC, even though another clause in the contract states Farbrace must give six months’ notice before leaving the role.Sri Lanka’s short-term plans have been landed in some disarray by Farbrace’s departure, as they prepare for a tour of Ireland and England that begins on May 7. Following that tour, Sri Lanka is set to host no.1 Test side South Africa at home in July, before Pakistan’s expected arrival for another full tour in August. Their plans for the 2015 World Cup will also have been somewhat hampered.An interim appointment is likley for the upcoming tour, with assistant coach Marvan Atapattu the frontrunner to assume the role. Including two other temporary appointments, Atapattu would become the seventh head coach Sri Lanka have had since 2011. Ranatunga said the board had not yet decided whether to open up a fresh application process for the job.

A round-up of IPL news on May 8, 2014

ESPNcricinfo staff08-May-2014Virender Sehwag has said Kolkata Knight Riders batsman Suryakumar Yadav has the talent to play for India in the future.”More than the batsmen, it’s the bowlers,” Sehwag told , when asked which players have impressed him during this IPL season. “Sandeep Sharma and Mohit Sharma are the two guys who have impressed me the most. As far as batsmen are concerned, I really like the look of Suryakumar Yadav. He seems like a very good talent and if he continues to focus, he has the ability to score a lot of runs in the future and also maybe play for India one day.”I like the fact that Sandeep can swing the ball in as well as take it away. Also, he has tremendous control over his bowling. For us, he has been very vital because he gives us early breakthroughs, in the first or second over, which is very important in this format.”‘Opening is my bread and butter’ – UthappaSince moving up to the top of the order, Robin Uthappa has been in roaring form, his three innings as opener bringing him scores of 47, 65 and 47 at a strike rate of 128.23. Uthappa says he told the Kolkata Knight Riders team management he was at his most comfortable while opening the batting, and they gave him the opportunity to do so.”I am loving it!” he told , when asked about the move up the order. “It is where I feel at home; that is my bread and butter. So, I just love opening the batting. I think that’s where I do the best and that is something I was telling the support staff and Gautam, and I had a conversation with them about it. I am glad that they gave me an opportunity and that I have been able to utilise that opportunity in a way that has been meaningful for the team.”‘Bowlers should work on outwitting batsmen’ – SrinathJavagal Srinath says bowlers are becoming too dependent on batsmen’s mistakes to get their wickets, and aren’t able to outwit them on their own.”What concerns me is the fact that the wicket-taking ability of a bowler is now directly linked to batsmen making mistakes in their desire to look for big scores,” he writes, in his column for the . “I think it is about time the bowlers started to think harder on what they can do not only to restrict the scoring, but also pick up wickets.”So where do the bowlers go from here? That is the challenge ahead of the specialist coaches and the sports psychologist who travel with most teams. It’s time for them to focus on giving bowlers confidence and in coming up with something that will help their discipline. Unlike batsmen, bowlers are a lot more apprehensive about what the day holds. Agreed that at the end of the day, it’s the wickets that matter, but there is a huge difference between a batsman getting himself out and a bowler outwitting a batsman.”

Suresh Raina, the India captain, was swift to defend the squad he has been charged with for the three ODIs against Bangladesh

Alagappan Muthu in Dhaka14-Jun-2014Suresh Raina, the India captain, was swift to defend the squad he has been charged with for the three ODIs against Bangladesh. Ajinkya Rahane, Ambati Rayudu and Amit Mishra are the only ones in the squad to have played in India’s last 50-over game against a Full Member, but Raina stressed the selectors had to consider India’s calendar ahead.”I don’t think they took the series lightly. The England tour is coming up and so few of the players are rested,” Raina said. “If you look at the side, all the players have done well in the IPL and first-class cricket. The World Cup is coming up and you need to try a lot of players. I think it is a good opportunity for youngsters to do really well in this series and see how it goes in upcoming matches.”I think the Bangladesh captain said we are coming with the A team. We are playing between two countries. It’s really important for us to play fearless cricket. A lot of our players have done really well and I think the series is a good platform, to cement their places in the team.”And there are vacancies to be targeted. India look settled at the top of an innings, but the middle order is far from decided. The space between Virat Kohli at No.3 and MS Dhoni at No. 6 courts several contenders. Cheteshwar Pujara will try to convince the selectors of his fluency in limited-overs cricket. Raina will look to regain some trust after a lean spell. Ajinkya Rahane will want to mend his iffy strike-rate of 68.78 in 10 innings batting between Nos. 3 and 7. Ambati Rayudu will hunt for the innings that makes people stand up and take notice and Manoj Tiwary will need to prove his fitness as much as his talent.During a practice session, Duncan Fletcher, the coach, conveyed he would like five minutes with all the new guys. Two of them were in the middle of batting practice. Kedar Jadhav, another contender in the middle-order scrum, was having good success smothering a spinner, a healthy skill to manoeuvre runs without taking too much risk. Beside him, Tiwary was punching through the covers and lofting down the ground. Clarity at the crease was what he wanted – going right back or right forward.”When I was out of the squad, it was because of my knee injury and not poor form,” Tiwary had said. “Just before that I had scored a hundred for India A against Australia. So once I was match-fit, I knew my time would come.” His belief has paid off, but the management will now demand performance. After two years in the wilderness due to a spate of injuries, he will want that for himself.In the adjoining net, Pujara was trying to gain a leg up in the race, polishing his bowling skills. He ran up sedately and landed a loopy legspinner on middle and off. As the batsman defended, Pujara willed his wrists to impart greater rip. He got back to his mark and the process continued – the odd and exaggerated roll of the wrist and flighted deliveries on middle – until the end of training.Pujara has been eager to assist India’s plans for 2015 and had advertised an interest in bowling to help gain a permanent spot in the XI. His control was promising but not threatening and the effort he put in epitomised what his captain desired.”Some players are coming back to the Indian team, some are getting their chance to play. It’s important to stick to together,” Raina said. “It is a short tour for us, seven days, three one-dayers and no gaps in between. You have to plan very well and work really hard.”The lure of a defining World Cup performance had been party to curtailing Jacques Kallis’ Test career. VVS Laxman’s regret over not being able to participate in one is also common knowledge. All 15 players were mindful of avoiding that situation, even as the afternoon sun blazed away.

While his team launched into a celebratory huddle, Alastair Cook knew what he had heard. The edge from Nuwan Pradeep into his pad, which Paul Reiffel missed, was big enough for Cook to pick it from slip

Andrew McGlashan at Lord's16-Jun-2014While his team launched into a celebratory huddle, Alastair Cook knew what he had heard. The edge from Nuwan Pradeep into his pad, which Paul Reiffel missed, was big enough for Cook to pick it from slip. A few moments later the DRS confirmed that what, for seconds, was a Test victory had been snatched away from them.Then, to add to the agony for the England captain, he watched the last ball of the Test fall agonisingly short of second slip. Stuart Broad fell to his knees and the slips stood motionless until the handshakes started.”I didn’t really move too far from my bar stool at first slip,” Cook said. “I did think he nicked it but they everyone started saying it was two pads, so I kind of got excited. But it was a big noise.”He had a wry smile when it was put to him that the decision was vindication of the DRS, a system that England have always been a supporter of and that, last year, England were grateful for when it confirmed Brad Haddin out at Trent Bridge to secure a 14-run win. “Yeah,” he said, with the hint of a laugh. “I’ve always been a big fan of it, it’s to stop the howler and unfortunately that was a big inside edge. It’s gutting to take at that time.”But there was the lbw before the new ball from Chris Jordan which was overturned because it was the right decision. As players you want the right decision, even if it’s not great at this precise moment in time when it’s taken a Test win away but it was the right decision.”The fact England reached the final over needing two wickets for victory, which became one when Broad had Rangana Herath gloving down the leg side – although replays showed Herath’s glove was off the bat – was testament to some tireless work either side of tea, sparked by James Anderson’s removal of Mahela Jayawardene during a wonderful spell of reverse swing, and then a powerful burst with the new ball which reduced Sri Lanka from 159 for 2 with the game seemingly dead.”At tea it looked quite a long way away but when you get so close and then get a decision which wins you a Test overturned it’s quite hard to take,” Cook said. “But it was a great Test, that’s what it’s about, to go all the way down to the wire and for both sides to leave nothing out there.”Cook showed invention in the field during the match, although largely in the final session after England waited desperately for the ball to reverse, but acknowledged that an 8-1 field which appeared after tea – including a circle of close catchers on the off side – had been the work of Anderson. “I wish I could take credit, but I can’t.” he said.With England coming so close to victory there will inevitably be further debate of Cook’s declaration which came before play on the final morning rather than late on the fourth day to give his quicks an early dart with new ball.Cook said the batting collapse on Sunday afternoon – which left them 121 for 6, a lead of 243 – had cost them valuable time, meaning they could not accelerate until the closing overs. In the end, England made 59 runs in seven overs – which included Ballance reaching his maiden hundred with a six – although there remained an argument that the foot could have been put on the throttle when the lead passed 300.”If you’d declared at 330-340 on that wicket it would have been a very fair chase,” Cook said. “At 100 for 1 at lunch, 320 would have looked a very short total. The four wickets just after lunch cost us without shadow of a doubt and give Sri Lanka credit there. We tried to play positively to give us a chance of declaring that night but they made it difficult for us.”There were also 17 overs lost in the match due to slow over-rates, six of those on the day England were in the field throughout on Saturday, and speaking to Sky Sports Cook admitted that had not been ideal.But he was delighted with the way his team played throughout the Test, their first outing in the format since the conclusion of the 5-0 Ashes whitewash in Australia. Only five players from Sydney remained, but most of the new or recalled players produced significant roles in the match.”We’ve made quite a lot of the running in this Test. To lose the toss, be put in and make 580 you have a great chance,” he said. “We were ahead throughout the game so can take a lot from that.”We scored at a really good rate. If we’d gone at three runs an over we wouldn’t have been in that position with a chance to win. Joe Root was outstanding with a double and Gary Ballance showed his class at international level, not many people have seen it and it will be great for his confidence from a tricky position at No. 3. All the new guys came in and made an impact.”It will be the same players travelling up to Headingley after an unchanged squad was confirmed, the playing XI plus Chris Woakes, but it is unlikely that Woakes will push himself into the side. There was a suggestion that Broad may have been suffering a niggle towards the end of the match, when he was replaced by Liam Plunkett for one over, but Cook said it had just been a hunch. It was a hunch that did not quite work.

Dale Steyn has said his inspiration to give his best is his bowling coach Allan Donald, while Hashim Amla said the declaration was based on the ground’s chasing history

Firdose Moonda in Galle20-Jul-20143:54

Was always confident about winning – Amla

Steyn: Every day he (Donald) comes and tells you how good you are and what a legend you are. That must take a lot out of him because he is a legend himself•Associated PressFor inspiration for his paintings, Salvador Dali relied on his wife Gala. For motivation to write the upbeat tune , The Beatles’ George Harrison drew on the year he had quit the band temporarily and been arrested. For a reason to bowl faster and fiercer, Dale Steyn looks at the boundary rope because that’s where Allan Donald is usually stationed.South Africa’s bowling coach is not an unusual choice for a hero. Everyone from children playing street cricket to members of the opposition, like Mark Gillespie of New Zealand, cite Donald as someone they look up to. But to Steyn, he is more than just a role-model. He is also a personal tutor, a cheerleader and a friend.”Allan is an amazing bowler. I watched a couple of his Youtube videos before I bowled here and he was just incredible. And then every day he comes and tells you how good you are and what a legend you are. That must take a lot out of him because he is a legend himself,” Steyn said. “That’s why every time I take wickets, I try to signal to him; to try and say this is not just for the team and the fans. This is to say thank you. He keeps me going.”Since Donald took over as South Africa’s bowling coach in June 2011, Steyn’s success has soared. In the three years between then and now, Steyn has taken more than a third of his total career wickets at a lower average than his overall numbers. Not only is he more threatening than he was before, he is also more miserly. His 133 scalps have come at 21.84 with an economy rate of 2.91. Before Donald’s tenure, Steyn had 232 wickets at 23.2 and conceded 3.48 runs to the over.Those performances have included match-winning bursts against teams including Pakistan and Australia at home and now, Sri Lanka in Galle. Steyn picked up the best figures by a seamer at this venue – nine for 99 in the match – a feat made even better by the expectation conditions would conspire to work against him in this series. “Every time I go on tour I want to better my last performance. Every time I come to the subcontinent I want to do well,” Steyn said. “If I run in and take a five-for on a green track, no-one cares but if you run in and take a five-for here, that really counts.”Steyn’s performance was headlined as much by pace as it was by purpose. He knew bowling quickly would work no matter the type of surface but he also knew bowling with an attacking approach would allow no wriggle room against an opposition who thought there was a realistic chance to pull off a historic chase. “It’s not the fastest wicket in the world but if you can get pace through the air and bowl with a bit of aggression you always stand a chance,” he explained. “It’s the kind of wicket where you have to bowl the ball in the right areas more often.”That adaption and attention to discipline is something Donald has enforced rigorously since he became part of the set-up. He wants South Africa’s pack to operate under the principles of jungle law: hunt or be hunted. That approach seems to have been picked up by more than just the seamers.Hashim Amla, in his first Test as captain, made a declaration that was considered too bold for a man taking baby steps in Test leadership but was rooted in realism. Amla and the management knew that no team had scored more than 300 runs in the final innings at Galle, they knew that no team had chased more than 96 to win successfully here and that no team has batted out more than 114 overs in the fourth innings.So they made the decision to call time on their innings at a time when Sri Lanka would need 370 to win. They had 122 overs to do it, which made it a comfortable equation but you can see why South Africa did not think they would be bowling that many. Their safety net was secure as it could have been but still, there was a stage when it seemed to be hanging by a slender thread.”I just wanted to have as many overs as possible to win the game. If we had lost the game, so be it but that would give us the best chance to win the game,” Amla said. “At 110 for 1 the thought in my mind that maybe we could lose but batting last, chasing 370 is a tough ask for any team.”Other captains may have become nervous or defensive. But Amla did not because he enjoyed the shifting sands in the tussle. “I was confident and I was extremely excited because the uncertainty is quite exciting. The thought was there that we could lose this game but if we lost the game I wouldn’t have had any regrets,” he said.”It helped that the bowlers were hungry. They asked for the ball regularly. Once we picked up one and I could see how the game is unfolding, I tried to use the spinners to hold the game more because the seamers were doing the job today.”Steyn struck the first blow, Morkel joined in and then when JP Duminy snared Kumar Sangakkara with a long-hop, Amla knew he had his victory even though it came from an unexpected source. “Some plans you don’t tell the captain, you just give the bowlers the freedom to do what they want,” he joked. “Those kind of things, I mean how often do you see a good ball not get a wicket and then a not so good ball get a wicket? It’s just part of the game.”In celebration, South Africa may salute their muses. The team’s is likely that they are a massive step closer to regaining the No.1 ranking. Steyn’s is Donald and Amla’s? “A nice cup of tea to enjoy the win.” As long as it’s Ceylon tea, even Sri Lankans will approve of that.

Perhaps West Indies will use the T20 to spend their remaining limited-overs vigour as Bangladesh have struggled so far and are quite uncomfortable playing the shortest format

The Preview by Mohammad Isam27-Aug-2014Match factsWednesday, August 27, 2014
Start time 2000 local (0000 GMT)The focus will also be on Denesh Ramdin, who slammed 169 in the third ODI•WICB MediaBig pictureBefore Test matches and just a couple of days after an ODI series, a T20 is seemingly a good medium for West Indies and Bangladesh to release pent-up energies which would not necessarily go into the longer version. Perhaps the hosts will use the one-off game to spend their remaining limited-overs vigour as the visitors have struggled so far and are quite uncomfortable playing T20s.West Indies’ comprehensive ODI series win, having most of their batsmen in form and picking players who had been regularly playing the format in the last month is enough reason to look forward to a more powerful outing on a ground where six-hitting looks ridiculously easy.T20 captain Darren Sammy has pointed out that this game is important for players who play only in this format. Many of the CPL’s star performers, the likes of Andre Russell, Krishmar Santokie and Dwayne Smith would be expected to be on top of their games, while West Indies also included Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo, who had missed the New Zealand T20s in July.The focus will also be on Denesh Ramdin, who slammed 169 in the third ODI. He struck 11 sixes during the innings, at times clearing the straight boundary with some ease. It would mean that the moment he comes out to bat at Warner Park, the Bangladesh bowlers will be on high alert.There could be a change in the attack with Rubel Hossain an option for Mushfiqur Rahim, apart from Mashrafe Mortaza and the impressive Al-Amin Hossain. Taskin Ahmed has not played since the first ODI while the spinners were under constant attack in the last game, having done reasonably well in the second ODI.Whether the captain and coach would go with Abdur Razzak is surely going to be a talking point as the selectors have said recently that they want to move on from him in T20s. Taijul Islam is in their plans, but it is debatable how wise it would be to expose the new left-arm spinner at this venue.The team’s main headache is still the batsmen although Tamim Iqbal’s half-century would give them some relief. Anamul Haque has missed out twice after the century, and this is a chance to see whether Shamsur Rahman and Mithun Ali are in contention.Mushfiqur has come under considerable criticism from the BCB for his decisions on the field as well as in selection. He could even be replaced by a new captain in the shorter format, so this could be a good opportunity to respond with a strong showing. He would, however, need his out-of-form team-mates, Nasir Hossain and Mahmudullah particularly, to stand up on a very crucial occasion.Form guideWest Indies WLLWW (last five completed matches, most recent first)
Bangladesh LLLLLIn the spotlightHe will possibly come to bat lower than Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard and Darren Sammy, but Andre Russell was the most watchable allrounder in the CPL, and he would be expected to bring that form to this game.Tamim Iqbal finally scored a fifty in the third ODI, his first in international cricket since October last year. He batted freely on both sides of the wicket, and will be expected to continue his new-found confidence.Team newsSulieman Benn is likely to replace the injured Samuel Badree while the CPL’s second-highest wicket-taker, Santokie, could pip Sheldon Cottrell, who played against New Zealand.West Indies (probable) 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Dwayne Smith, 3 Andre Fletcher, 4 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 5 Dwayne Bravo, 6 Kieron Pollard, 7 Darren Sammy (capt), 8 Andre Russell, 9 Sunil Narine, 10 Krishmar Santokie, 11 Sulieman BennBangladesh may not expose rookie bowlers Taijul and Taskin on the smallish Warner Park. That would mean Razzak being picked despite the selectors’ reservations, while there are likely to be places for Shamsur and Mithun.Bangladesh (probable) 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Anamul Haque, 3 Shamsur Rahman, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim (capt & wk), 5 Mithun Ali, 6 Nasir Hossain, 7 Mahmudullah, 8 Mashrafe Mortaza, 9 Sohag Gazi/Abdur Razzak, 10 Al-Amin Hossain, 11 Rubel HossainPitch and conditionsThere will be a lot of runs at this ground, given the nature of the wicket and boundary size. A late evening start wouldn’t make much of a difference as it is a hard surface, encouraging extravagant strokeplay.Stats and trivia Warner Park has only hosted one T20 international, in 2009 between West Indies and Bangladesh West Indies lead 3-2 in the head-to-headQuotes”Our side is powerful, and once we fire on all cylinders, we are always going to be a destructive force.”

“There is a lot of work to be done before the T20 as we need to come up with some good plans for these short boundaries and big hitters.”