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Netherlands now rely on UAE beating Namibia to stay in the tournament

Andrew Fidel Fernando20-Oct-2022Sri Lanka rode on Kusal Mendis’ outstanding 79 off 44 to reach 162 for 6 on a sluggish surface, before their spinners cut Netherlands down – Wanindu Hasaranga getting into fine wicket-taking form ahead of the main draw of the tournament.Although Netherlands were never really ahead of the game, opener Max O’Dowd kept them in the hunt for the duration, getting the requirement for the last over down to 23, following Maheesh Theekshana’s wayward 19th, which cost 16 runs.But seamer Lahiru Kumara held his nerve in the final burst, and Sri Lanka secured a 16-run win, and a place in the next round. Which group they end up in will depend on the results of the evening match between Namibia and UAE.Netherlands will watch that match with particular interest. They need UAE to beat Namibia to get into the next round. The net run rates do not matter – only the result.Mendis feasts on Netherlands’ leg-side offerings
On a pitch that did not allow batters to hit cleanly through the line, and on a ground where the square boundaries are significantly shorter than the straight ones, you probably shouldn’t bowl at leg stump. You especially shouldn’t stray down leg if the batter is Kusal Mendis – an excellent hitter to that side.Mendis got his first boundary via a miscued heave over midwicket in the third over, and he kept finding the ropes in that arc between cow corner and fine leg. He hit each of his five sixes over this region, pulling, slog sweeping, and in the 12th over, wristily flicking Timm van der Gugten into the stands beyond fine leg. He hit five fours too, only two of them on the off side. Sixty-four of his 79 came on the leg side.Through the course of this knock, which went right into the 20th over, Mendis forged several good partnerships, the most fruitful of which was the 60 off 45 alongside Charith Asalanka, whose contribution was 31 off 30. Mendis’ innings meant Sri Lanka made an above-par score on a difficult track.Max O’Dowd’s 71* off 53 went in vain•AFP/Getty Images

Hasaranga decks Netherlands’ middle order
Sri Lanka were already in control before Hasaranga came to the bowling crease, having kept Netherlands to 40 for 2 in the powerplay. But although he conceded seven runs off his first two balls, Hasaranga was quickly among the wickets. He had Colin Ackerman caught and bowled off the leading edge third ball, after the batter failed to adequately play Hasaranga’s googly. Van der Gugten and Fred Klaassen were also bowled by the googly, later in the innings, giving Hasaranga 3 for 28 from his four overs.O’Dowd makes a game of it
With Theekshana also getting wickets, and Sri Lanka fielding well, it did not seem like Netherlands had the measure of their target. O’Dowd did his best to defy the opposition, however, hitting 71 not out off 53 balls.He wasn’t particularly proactive in the first ten overs, hitting just 23 off 21 with two fours. As wickets fell around him in the middle overs, he remained happy to play a measured innings. In fact, at the end of the 17th over, O’Dowd was still 38 off 35 balls, with only three boundaries to his name. Netherlands needed 54 off 18, and had only two wickets left.And yet, O’Dowd, with the help of some Sri Lanka indiscipline, made half a game of it. He hit a six and two fours off successive deliveries from Binura Fernando to reap 15 in the 18th over and then bashed Theekshana for two sixes (one off a no-ball) next over to keep victory within their reach. Theekshana helped out by bowling three extras in a row at the start of this over.But 23 off Kumara, in the company of a hobbling Roelof van der Merwe (who came in at No. 11), proved too much. O’Dowd managed one four over backward point, but only six came off that over.

The proximity of the ODI World Cup has added the complexity of the Ashes series

Andrew McGlashan12-Jan-2022Australia’s players are willing to do whatever it takes to ensure the Women’s Ashes runs safely and ensure no one misses the ODI World Cup amid the Covid-19 cases that have exploded over the last month.The squad will be back under tight biosecure restrictions during the multi-format contest – the schedule for which was recently amended – but there remains the risk that if a player catches Covid towards the end of the series that they would miss the World Cup, starting March 4, due there being only one opportunity for the group to travel to New Zealand.Australia’s players, who are split across 15 in the main Ashes squad and 15 in an Australia A group, will start arriving in Adelaide from Thursday with the whole group assembled by January 17 leaving just three days to prepare for the first T20I.Restrictions on what they can do are expected to be tighter than the men’s Ashes which has operated at Cricket Australia’s level four protocols with players largely confined to their hotel outside of matches.Related

• Women's Ashes: Tightrope walk for teams with 'scattered' preparations leaving them undercooked

• Women's Ashes schedule adjusted to allow for World Cup quarantine

• Women's Ashes walks Covid tightrope ahead of World Cup

• Alana King beats Amanda-Jade Wellington to place in Australia's Ashes squad

“In order to get the Ashes up and running we do need to follow some protocols and try and keep everyone as safe as possible,” captain Meg Lanning said. “We are certainly willing to do that and do whatever we need to to get the games up.”Heading into this bubble the risk of catching Covid is significantly increased than what it perhaps was even six months ago. That is a slight difference heading into this series and that World Cup on the back end is something everyone wants to be a part of and certainly doesn’t want to miss.”There is, I guess, that little bit of nervousness but having chatted to the medical staff and all the support staff they are putting everything in place that’s possible to keep the bubble very secure and minimise the risk of getting Covid. Very confident that everything is in place that needs to be and hopefully everyone can stay safe.”Already one player has been caught up in Covid with Katie Mack, who is part of the Australia A squad thanks to an outstanding season for Adelaide Strikers, isolating for seven days after her partner tested positive. Mack is currently awaiting her PCR result and if she remains negative during isolation is hopeful of still joining the squad for the T20s against England A with the worst case being she will only be able to play the ODIs next month.”I’d feel pretty lucky if I could still get there and play all the games, that’s the best-case scenario,” Mack said. “Worst-case scenario is I test positive in a couple of days and have to do [another] seven days isolation from there. It’s not ideal, but Covid’s not ideal in anyone’s life at the moment, so it would be pretty hard for me to say I’ve got it tough.”Australia’s selectors are planning for the possibility that Covid will hit the Ashes in some form with players in the A squad on notice that a call-up may come at any time. Still, on a day-to-day basis the squads will be kept separate to minimise the risk if a case emerges.Covid has had a significant impact on the women’s game in recent weeks with a raft of postponements in the WNCL which has limited players’ preparation ahead of the Ashes although Lanning believed it was a prudent measure not to carry on with those matches.Lanning herself opted to take a break after the WBBL knowing that this intense period of cricket with the Ashes and World Cup lay ahead. With a return to bubble life, which players had hoped was behind them, she is pleased she took the chance to step away.”I felt after WBBL that a break would benefit me a lot and having come back to training it has done wonders,” she said. “It’s not ideal to miss games but think the timing of that was perfect for me, to mentally more than anything switch off.”

In his upcoming autobiography, the Pakistan great has detailed his struggles with the habit, which he says ended when his first wife died in 2009

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Oct-2022Wasim Akram has opened up on his struggle with a cocaine addiction after his playing career ended, in his upcoming autobiography .Akram, Pakistan’s leading wicket-taker in both Test and ODI cricket, retired in 2003 after an 18-year international career, but continued to travel the world on commentary and coaching assignments. The cocaine habit, he says, began after he retired, when he started to crave a “a substitute for the adrenaline rush of competition”, and ended after the death of his first wife Huma in 2009.Extracts from his book, published alongside an interview in , paint a frank picture of Akram’s slide into addiction.”I liked to indulge myself; I liked to party,” he writes. “The culture of fame in south Asia is all consuming, seductive and corrupting. You can go to ten parties a night, and some do. And it took its toll on me. My devices turned into vices.”Worst of all, I developed a dependence on cocaine. It started innocuously enough when I was offered a line at a party in England; my use grew steadily more serious, to the point that I felt I needed it to function.”It made me volatile. It made me deceptive. Huma, I know, was often lonely in this time . . . she would talk of her desire to move to Karachi, to be nearer her parents and siblings. I was reluctant. Why? Partly because I liked going to Karachi on my own, pretending it was work when it was actually about partying, often for days at a time.”Huma eventually found me out, discovering a packet of cocaine in my wallet . . . ‘You need help.’ I agreed. It was getting out of hand. I couldn’t control it. One line would become two, two would become four; four would become a gram, a gram would become two. I could not sleep. I could not eat. I grew inattentive to my diabetes, which caused me headaches and mood swings. Like a lot of addicts, part of me welcomed discovery: the secrecy had been exhausting.”Akram retired with 414 wickets in Test cricket and 502 in ODIs – both remain Pakistan records•AFP

Akram went into rehab, finding the experience distressing – “The doctor was a complete con man, who worked primarily on manipulating families rather than treating patients, on separating relatives from money rather than users from drugs” – and ended up relapsing.”Try as I might, part of me was still smouldering inside about the indignity of what I’d been put through. My pride was hurt, and the lure of my lifestyle remained. I briefly contemplated divorce. I settled for heading to the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy where, out from under Huma’s daily scrutiny, I started using again.”Akram says the cocaine use ended after Huma’s death in October 2009 from the rare fungal infection mucormycosis.”Huma’s last selfless, unconscious act was curing me of my drug problem. That way of life was over, and I have never looked back.”Akram has since remarried, and has three children – two sons from his first marriage and a daughter from his second. In his interview with , he said he had written his book for his children.”I’m a bit anxious about the book,” he said, “but I think once it is out, I’ll be kind of over it. I’m anxious because at my age, I’m 56 and I’ve been diabetic for 25 years, it is just stress, you know . . . it was tough to revisit all the things. I’ve done it for my two boys, who are 25 and 21, and my seven-year-old daughter, just to put my side of the story.”

David Bedingham counterattacked for South Africa with 87 off 96 balls, but they folded for 247 in pursuit of 529

Ashish Pant07-Feb-20242:36

Bedingham: ‘It was quite gutsy of me to take on the short ball’

Kyle Jamieson’s four-wicket haul backed up by Mitchell Santner’s three-for helped New Zealand record a mammoth 281-run win over South Africa in the first Test in Mount Maunganui – their second highest in terms of runs. The margin of defeat would have been much more if not for David Bedingham’s counterattacking 87 off 96 balls, where he took on the short ball with some aplomb.Jamieson struck twice each after the lunch and tea breaks, breaking important stands as South Africa, who were chasing 529 for a win, folded for 247 in 80 overs. There were good partnerships built, but South Africa lost wickets in clusters way too often to go down. Aside from Bedingham, Zubayr Hamza, Raynard van Tonder and Keegan Petersen all got starts but none of them could go on and get a big one.Earlier, New Zealand expectedly declared their second innings overnight on 179 for 4, setting South Africa an improbable target. Their bowlers Matt Henry and Tim Southee immediately found assistance under overcast skies to leave South Africa at 5 for 2 in the fourth over. While Southee troubled Edward Moore in the first over by curling the ball both ways, Henry seemingly had Neil Brand caught behind with his second delivery, as Tom Blundell took a stunning catch to his left. The South Africa captain, however, was saved on review.Brand’s stay at the crease was short-lived though, as Southee breached his defence with an incoming beauty. He got the ball to jag in from the around-the-wicket angle, and Brand, unsure whether to play at the ball or leave it, was late and saw his stumps in a mess. At that point, with the ball hooping around and the batters unsure, a collapse was on the cards. But Hamza and van Tonder hung around.Hamza, who had looked solid in the first innings, got the first four of the innings in the 11th over – a firm punch through covers off Jamieson – before cutting Southee square soon after. Van Tonder, on a pair on debut, got his first runs in Tests with a push past mid-on. He had his nervous moments though, as an edge fell short of second slip to along with a number of plays and misses, but he kept going. The pair soon brought up the first 50-run stand for South Africa in the Test, and moved to lunch unscathed.2:40

Southee: ‘Test cricket is as exciting as it has ever been’

But having fought hard, debutant van Tonder’s 83-ball vigil ended three overs after lunch when he edged a full-length Jamieson delivery straight into the hands of Tom Latham, who was stationed a tad wide at slips. Two overs later, it was Hamza’s turn to depart when his meek attempt at a pull could only go as far as Southee at mid-on.Bedingham and Petersen joined forces in the 33rd over with the score at 73 for 4, and added 105 for the fifth wicket, with the former doing the bulk of the scoring. Bedingham started nervously, swishing and missing at a couple of balls and then twice edging Jamieson past the lone slip Latham, who was positioned wide. But Petersen, at the other end, looked more solid.For 11 overs from the 35th to the 46th, South Africa could only manage 16 runs, with a single boundary. There were chances created, but none that really went to hand. Then came Matt Henry with a short-ball plan, and Bedingham decided to cut loose. Having decided to take his name out of the SA20 draft in a bid to play this series, Bedingham showed off his T20 ware in this Test – and in style. Henry went short at him four times in four balls, but was carted for a boundary each time by making room and stepping towards the leg side, in an over that went for 19.Rachin Ravindra was then tonked for a four straight down the ground – one that got Bedingham to his second fifty in Tests, before he took a liking to Southee. The fast bowler went short, and Bedingham’s back-away-and-swing-for-the-hills plan was executed to perfection. In the last ten balls that he faced off Southee before tea, Bedingham carted him for 28. In all, South Africa scored 111 off 28 overs in the second session, with 71 coming off the last ten.New Zealand went short at Bedingham for 22 balls, of which he whacked 48 runs, but the shot also brought about his downfall post tea. Not willing to change his approach, he went after Jamieson first over after the interval, but his miscued pull was caught at deep midwicket, with Bedingham falling 13 short of what would have been a maiden Test ton.In his very next over, Jamieson had Peterson caught off a short ball down to deep-backward square leg, with Ravindra taking a good, low catch, and the end was nigh. Clyde Fortuin’s innings was cut short in an unfortunate manner when he pulled a Glenn Phillips long hop straight into the knee of Latham at short leg, with the ball popping up for wicketkeeper Blundell to complete the catch.Duanne Olivier then edged Santner to first slip, before the left-arm spinner ended Dane Paterson’s enterprising innings on 15 to close out the game for the hosts and helped them take a 1-0 lead.Ravindra, for his 240 in the first innings, was named Player of the Match.

Gritty innings keeps hosts alive in low-scoring dogfight at Hove

ECB Reporters Network18-May-2024Second division championship favourites Yorkshire are within sight of their first win of the season after having marginally the better of the second day of their match against Sussex at Hove.After 17 wickets had fallen on the first day, matters were a little less frenetic in a tightly fought contest but Yorkshire took a grip on the match after tea. They had gained a first-innings lead of 45 in the morning and Sussex struggled to 194 for seven in their second innings, a lead of 149. Their innings was held together by a dogged five-hour unbeaten 77 by Tom Alsop, who was bowled by a no-ball at 39 and dropped at 58.Play started 45 minutes late in damp and murky conditions. Yorkshire resumed on 176 for seven, a lead of 26 runs, and Sussex took just 33 minutes to take the three remaining wickets for the addition of 19 runs.They broke through after 20 minutes play when Jordan Thompson, surprised by the bounce achieved by Ollie Robinson, deflected the ball onto his stumps with his elbow.For the next over Sean Hunt replaced Tom Haines at the sea end and from his fifth delivery he took a straightforward caught and bowled chance to dismiss Ben Coad. And in the over after that Dom Leech shouldered arms and had his off stump plucked out by a delivery angled into him by Robinson. Yorkshire were all out for 195 with Hunt finishing with career-best figures of four for 64. Robinson (3 for 25) has bowled well this season without much luck and this was the first time in four matches that he had taken more than two wickets in an innings.Yorkshire’s slender lead looked significant when they dismissed both Sussex openers inside the first three overs. Haines was out second ball, fluffing his attempted pull against Thompson to cover in the second over. And in the following over Tom Clark, short of runs and confidence this season, drove tamely at Coad and was caught by Matthew Revis at cover.Alsop and Cheteshwar Pujara brought Sussex back into the match with a third wicket stand worth 74 watchful runs in 24 overs. But then Pujara, playing his last innings at Hove this season, failed to get fully forward to one from Leech and was lbw for a 56-ball 33.Alsop and James Coles took Sussex to tea at 123 for three, a lead of 78, with Alsop unbeaten on 52. After the interval the Sussex batsmen battled hard against a disciplined Yorkshire attack. The visitors took the fourth Sussex wicket when Coles, who had added just two runs since the break, miscued his attempted pull off George Hill and was caught at square-leg for 28.John Simpson, struggling for runs in recent innings after his early season double hundred, was missed in the slips before he had scored but failed to make the most of his let-off. When Coad replaced Root at the Cromwell Road end he immediately had the Sussex captain caught at first slip for an uncomfortable six; 140 for five.Fynn Hudson-Prentice looked in the mood to take the attack to the Yorkshire bowlers but he was sixth out at 155, lbw shouldering arms to Thompson, and then Danny Lamb fell lbw for a duck to Coad.Before play got under way Yorkshire announced that they had signed the Sri Lanka left-arm fast bowler Vishwa Fernando for the next three championship matches.

Former Young Lions head coach takes over after sudden departure of Grant Bradburn

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Jan-2025Glamorgan have appointed Richard Dawson as their interim head coach, following the sudden departure of Grant Bradburn last month over allegations of discriminatory behaviour.Dawson had most recently been part of the England Men’s white-ball coaching team, having previously overseen England Under-19s. He spent six years coaching Gloucestershire, securing promotion from Division One in 2019 and a T20 Finals Day appearance in 2020, before moving on to work with the ECB’s performance pathway in 2021.”I’m delighted to be joining Glamorgan as head coach for the coming season,” Dawson said. “I’ve got a good idea of how the club works having spent time with Welsh Fire over the years. I’m looking forward to getting involved with the players and coaches at the club and building on the success achieved in the 50 over competition last season.”Dawson, who was capped seven times in Tests, spent most of his playing career with Yorkshire, before short stints at Northamptonshire and Gloucestershire.He is currently working with the England Lions on their tour of Australia, and will then be involved at the Women’s Premier League before taking up his role with Glamorgan from March. He will also continue as Welsh Fire assistant coach during the Hundred, with a replacement for the One-Day Cup, which Glamorgan won last year, to be announced in due course.Mark Wallace, Glamorgan’s director of cricket, said: “It’s great news for the club that we have been able to appoint a coach of Richard Dawson’s standing and quality as interim head coach until the end of the season. We were keen to move quickly and get someone in place for the 2025 season and we see Richard as the perfect fit to develop the squad and continue to move us forward this season.”

Defending champions Heat lost 6 for 12 in a chase of 144

Andrew McGlashan26-Nov-2020Sydney Thunder came back from the brink to book their first WBBL final since the opening season as defending champions Brisbane Heat suffered a dramatic collapse. Hannah Darlington, who claimed last year’s young player award, struck in consecutive balls in the 18th over after Laura Kimmince was removed having been close to taking the Heat across the line again.The winning moment came when former Heat star Sammy-Jo Johnson grabbed a low caught and bowled to spark wild celebrations. The Heat’s overall collapse was 6 for 12 as a campaign which had started slowly before coming to life with seven consecutive wins came crashing down.Captain Rachael Haynes had hauled the Thunder up to a competitive total amid a stuttering innings in which Amelia Kerr and Nadine de Klerk stood out with the ball: their combined figures were 7-0-30-3. They took wickets regularly enough to stay in the contest, but Kimmince’s latest onslaught appeared to have decided the game before the astonishing turnaround.Even powerplayTammy Beaumont played one of her better innings of what has been a tournament where she has largely struggled, getting off the mark with a deft scoop and adding five more crisp boundaries inside the powerplay. She fell attempting another scoop, moving so early into the shot that Nicola Hancock had barely started her delivery stride, sending a simple catch looping to short fine leg. That wicket evened up the powerplay ahead of the Heat’s spinners getting to work.Kerr’s deceptionLike the Heat as a whole, Kerr took time to get into her stride but played a central role in the team’s success. It is so rare to see her taken to by an opposition and today was no different. Her first two overs went for eight and when she returned for her third, in the 14th over, there was a brief but enjoyable contest with Phoebe Litchfield. The left hander started with perfect straight drive, but off the last ball of the over was defeated by the googly and comfortably stumped. It was the second time Kerr had claimed her this way following the group-stage dismissal at Blacktown. Either side of that dismissals were moments that stunted the Thunder just as they were building. Heather Knight drove a firm catch to cover, having not quite found top gear, and then a superbly-judged catch on the deep midwicket rope by Georgia Prestwidge removed Johnson who had threatened to open her shoulders against former team-mates.The first wobbleThe Thunder’s eventual total looked short but gave them something to bowl at. In her opening over, Sam Bates, who has been one of the best bowlers of the tournament, removed Grace Harris and then Johnson struck with her first delivery when Georgia Redmayne, after a brisk 25, picked out mid-off to keep the Heat in the contest. It has been a hallmark of the Heat’s campaign that there have been contributions throughout the order and the trend continued as de Klerk and captain Jess Jonassen added 46. However, just when things were under control they fell in consecutive overs: Jonassen skied a top edge to Darlington and de Klerk was run out by Beaumont’s pinpoint throw. The scene was set.The collapseLaura Kimmince has hit the form of her life in the last couple of weeks. Before today she had rattled up 123 runs off 49 deliveries in her last four innings, taking her strike-rate to the highest in WBBL history, and struck the ball with huge power again. She had a massive stroke of fortune first delivery when the ball rolled back into leg stump but did not dislodge the bail then the next ball was launched for six. An over from Lauren Smith cost 20, swinging the game almost fully towards the Thunder who needed 26 off 30 balls. However, Georgia Voll was run out after a mix up over a second and Kerr went the same way two balls later as panic set in. Another six from Kimmince brought it back under a run-a-ball, but then she was bowled by Bates attempting a reverse sweep that wasn’t really required. It became too much for the lower order as Darlington delivered her yorkers on demand and finally Delissa Kimmince hammered the ball back at her former team-mate. The Melbourne Stars await on Saturday.

Conway and Dube made merry as well as a record-equalling 33 sixes were hit at the Chinnaswamy

Deivarayan Muthu17-Apr-20232:10

Are RCB over-reliant on their top-three?

In February earlier this year Faf du Plessis was back in yellow, leading Jo’burg Super Kings to the inaugural SA20 semi-finals along with coach Stephen Fleming. Two months on in the IPL, du Plessis, in red and gold, launched an audacious assault with Glenn Maxwell as Royal Challengers Bangalore threatened to mow down 227 against Fleming and MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Kohli fined 10% of his match fee

Virat Kohli was fined for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct during RCB’s fixture against CSK on Monday. “Kohli admitted to the Level 1 offence under Article 2.2 of the Code of Conduct,” said an IPL release. The statement did not go into details about the incident. “For Level 1 breaches of the Code of Conduct, the Match Referee’s decision is final and binding,” the release further added.

After Super Kings had posted 226 for 6 on the back of Devon Conway’s 45-ball 83 and Shivam Dube’s 27-ball 52, they struck early through their Impact Player Akash Singh to dismiss Virat Kohli for 6 in the first over. Mahipal Lomror then fell to Tushar Deshpande in the next over, but du Plessis and Maxwell then tore into Super Kings’ inexperienced seamers to power them to 75 for 2 in the powerplay.Royal Challengers doubled that score by the 14th over, with du Plessis – bruised rib and all – riding his luck to push them even further ahead. Du Plessis had been dropped on 0, by Dhoni behind the stumps, and then on 52 by Maheesh Theekshana off his own bowling. Super Kings dropped two more catches in a lax fielding effort, but late wickets and nifty variations from the Sri Lankan pair of Theekshana and Matheesha Pathirana saved the day for them.Theekshana had got rid of Maxwell for 76 off 36 balls with a fizzing 104kph carrom ball in a boundary-less over. Pathirana, who had been taken for 26 off ten balls from Maxwell, had Shahbaz Ahmed holing out in an 18th over that cost just runs to go with that wicket.Royal Challengers’ Impact Player Suyash Prabhudessai then heaved Deshpande for six in the 19th over, but Pathirana successfully defended 18 off the final over with his slingy, on-pace yorkers and slower cutters. He had Prabhudessai caught at deep midwicket last ball with his bowling coach Dwayne Bravo applauding him from the dugout.

Conway, Rahane turn up the tempo

Mohammed Siraj excelled in the powerplay once again, giving up just six runs in his two overs while claiming the wicket of Ruturaj Gaikwad for 3. Conway and Ajinkya Rahane, too, had started slowly, but they turned up the tempo in the fifth over, bowled by rookie seamer Vyshak Vijaykumar. Conway manufactured a scooped four while Rahane hit the roof of the Chinnaswamy Stadium with a 91-metre six.Rahane then cracked Wayne Parnell for 4,6,4 in the last over of the powerplay, taking Super Kings up to 53 for 1 in six overs. He tried to keep up the attacking intent against Wanindu Hasaranga, but the wristspinner bested him with a wrong’un.3:07

Jaffer: Feeling secure at CSK has probably helped Rahane

Dube dazzles

Hasaranga bowled only two overs and didn’t return after dismissing Rahane because Super Kings had promoted their left-handed spin-hitter Dube to No.4 once again. Royal Challengers matched Dube up with Maxwell, but he got going by launching his own six into the roof of the ground.Conway brought up back-to-back half-centuries and looked good for a maiden IPL hundred, but Harshal Patel eventually cleaned him up for 83 with a dipping yorker. With Royal Challengers not having an out-and-out fast bowler in their ranks, Dube continued to find or clear the boundary. He charged to a 25-ball fifty before Parnell had him holing out in the 17th over.

The drama at the death

Despite the loss of Ambati Rayudu in the next over, Super Kings seemed on track for a total of 230. Siraj, however, nailed his wide yorkers in the 19th over that cost ten runs.Harshal started the final over, which was closed out by stand-in captain Maxwell; du Plessis was off the field during that time because of a side strain.After Harshal bowled two beamers, he had to be taken out of the attack. Maxwell brought himself into the attack, ahead of Hasaranga, and conceded nine runs, including a wide, for the wicket of Ravindra Jadeja off the last four balls.Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell controlled the chase after the early wickets•Associated Press

The du Plessis-Maxwell show

Royal Challengers were two down in two overs, but they still flew out of the blocks, thanks to du Plessis and Maxwell. They played to their strengths, with du Plessis taking down pace and Maxwell spin. Du Plessis was responsible for 45 of the 75 runs Royal Challengers had scored in the powerplay.Maxwell then took centrestage, lining up both Jadeja and Theekshana. Maxwell didn’t spare Pathirana either after the powerplay, shanking him for a 94-metre six over square leg.The pair took their team to 141 off 2 in 12 overs. Eighty-six from eight overs is a manageable ask at the Chinnaswamy, but Theekshana had Maxwell skying behind to set the scene for Super Kings’ comeback.