All posts by n8rngtd.top

Former India batsman Sanjay Manjrekar analyses the reasons behind India’s clinical win in the first Test and why West Indies could barely put up a fight

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jul-2016‘Ashwin looks ready for England, South Africa and Australia’Sanjay Manjrekar believes R Ashwin’s feat of 17 five-wicket hauls in 33 Tests has elevated him to ‘Muralitharan-esque’ form2:15

Manjrekar: Ashwin looks ready for Eng, SA and Australia

‘This India team meant for higher challenges’Though India put in a clinical performance in the first Test against West Indies, Manjrekar says the hosts did not really put up a challenge1:55

Manjrekar: This India team meant for higher challenges

What’s gone wrong with West Indies?West Indies have one of the weakest batting and bowling line-ups in the world and Manjrekar feels this must be fixed at their first-class level3:23

What’s gone wrong with West Indies?

Higher frame rates for cameras and a safeguard to prevent operator error were the key improvements in technology that led to the BCCI agreeing to trial the system

Nagraj Gollapudi21-Oct-2016Despite winning the 2011 World Cup and the 2013 Champions Trophy with DRS in place, India had resisted using the system in bilateral series. On Wednesday the ICC general manager Geoff Allardice and a representative from Hawk-Eye, the ball-tracking technology provider, met top BCCI officials along with India coach Anil Kumble in Delhi.Allardice focused on the independent assessment of the technologies used in the DRS, which was carried out by engineers from the field-intelligence unit at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology [MIT]. The Hawk-Eye presentation explained how ball-tracking technology has been enhanced over the last couple of years.The upshot of the meeting was that two days later India agreed to use the DRS on a trial basis during the Test series against England. Here’s an explainer of what their concerns were and how they were allayed.Why did the BCCI not want the DRS?
The main reason was a mistrust of the ball-tracking technology used to adjudge lbws. The BCCI said the predicted path after the ball hit the pad was not reliable.How does ball-tracking work?
Three elements go into an lbw decision: where the ball pitched, the point of impact on the pad, and the predicted path towards the stumps. The accuracy of the predicted path of the ball depends on the number of images captured – the frame-rate – between the ball pitching and hitting the pad.What is the most significant change in the technology?
Cameras with a higher frame rate, and the ability to locate the point of impact on the pad more accurately.The Tests against England will be India’s second bilateral series with all aspects of the DRS•Getty ImagesHow fast are the frame rates now?
During the 2011 World Cup, the frame rate of Hawk-Eye’s cameras was 50 to 75 frames per second. Hawk-Eye’s ultra-motion cameras recorded images at a faster rate in 2013, and their current ball-tracking cameras record images at 340 frames per second.How will a higher frame rate help? 
It provides a lot more data and hence the calculation of the predicted path of the ball is more accurate. “The increased frame rate has allowed the accuracy of the prediction to tighten up significantly,” an official privy to Wednesday’s presentation said. “It means between the ball pitching and the ball hitting the pad there is more information available to go into building a prediction. That was something reinforced by the recent testing of the accuracy of a prediction, when compared to the accuracy of a ball that has not been intercepted.”Why did the BCCI have an issue with the location of the point of impact?
When judging the point where the ball hits the pad, a key factor is to make sure the ball has not changed path. The BCCI had said there was potential for operator error while identifying the point of impact.How was that issue solved?
Hawk-Eye created Ultra Edge to remove that problem. Ultra Edge is a sound based, edge-detection system can identify the point of impact more accurately. When there is a sound of ball hitting pad or bat, it can identify the frame in which the ball hits the pad.What if the operator misses the ball? How will they locate point of impact?
Hawk-Eye has added another safeguard to its system: data from every delivery is recorded and can be retrieved in case it’s needed to build a predicted path of the delivery.

Our correspondent struggles with technology in New Zealand, then with the lack of it, and ponders the lax application of ecologically sound policies

Andrew Fidel Fernando01-Dec-2016November 14
I arrive in Auckland in the afternoon and clear immigration and customs, but before I can set foot outside, I go through the now-standard procedure of being robbed at the airport. I blame mobile-phone companies.There used to be specialised SIM card booths in many airports, with cheerful staff who would set up your phone with the exact plan you required, while self-sacrificially listening your complaints about the flight. Increasingly, these outlets are disappearing. Now you are made to personally navigate a system in which the customer is set up to fail.This time I buy myself a SIM and NZ$20 worth of credit with a view to getting a $19 plan, but as soon as I load the credit into the phone, all my emails and messages come through in a torrent. When I try to buy the plan – maybe 30 seconds later – I am told I have already spent too much. I am forced to spend another $20 on credit (the minimum amount), and have effectively forked out $40 for $19 of value.I guess you could argue that I should have turned off my mobile data before loading the credit. But look, I am not arguing that I am not a doofus. The point is that the mobile companies intentionally prey on doofuses such as myself and, I think we can all agree, this makes them terrible people.November 15

Next morning, back at the airport, I am reminded of how charmingly intimate and considerate a country New Zealand is. As I await my flight to Christchurch, a Ms Schultz is summoned to her boarding gate no fewer than four times. The last of these announcements ends with: “…the other passengers have boarded and are waiting for you”. You can almost imagine the whole plane staring expectantly at the door, then breaking out in huge cheers and high fives when she strides in triumphantly.A little later, the announcer suggests – in the politest tone – that a mother who has misplaced a young daughter please pick her up from the check-in counter. Off to the left, two airline staff are joyfully posing for selfies with tourists, even though these are the kind of people who, as a rule, are unsatisfied with the first two dozen versions of any photograph.Then, just as I am about to board, a Mr Barry is helpfully told over the speaker system that he is walking around with his fly undone.Okay, that last one didn’t happen, but I’m certain that, at some point, it must have.November 16
A violent earthquake hit North Canterbury in the days before I arrived. Although Christchurch has been spared this time, people in towns further north have been cut off by landslides, and damage to roads. On the radio, the presenter is sympathetically interviewing one of the victims, whose tiny town lies between two of the larger landslides. “Are your family okay?” she asks him. “How worried are you about aftershocks?” “Has there been damage to your house?” He gives five-word answers to each of these, but is more effusive when she asks how he is doing for supplies. “Aww, well, we haven’t been able ta get to the shops since bloody Thursday, aye? We’re runnin’ outta beer and wine, so I’d say that’s definitely a concern.”November 17
The Hagley Oval press area is not a box or room – it is a tent perched halfway up a grass bank. It’s a wonderful place from which to cover a match when it’s sunny, but a challenge when it’s cold. On this rained-out first day of the series, an icy southerly rattles the metal framework and whips up the plastic sheets around us.A lot is made of the courage and commitment of cricketers, who put their bodies on the line for their craft; who live with discipline, and pursue dreams with unwavering will. I, for one, think cricket writers are no less worthy of adulation. My fingers have become numb by afternoon but nevertheless I gather up my resolve and heroically pass on weather updates to my colleagues on ball-by-ball commentary. Steadfastly do I remain in this battered press tent all day, though the carrot cake we are served for tea is slightly drier than is ideal.Hagley Oval: where the grass is green and the fingers freezing•Andrew Fernando/ESPNcricinfo LtdNovember 19

The hotel I am staying at has one of those signs encouraging patrons to reuse towels in order to reduce the hotel’s impact on the environment. The idea that hotels care about the earth is, of course, complete crap – they merely want to cut down on bills. Many hotels would set fire to polar bear cubs if it turned them a profit. Still, I don’t mind reusing towels, so I put mine back on the rack every day, only to find upon my return that that all towels have been replaced, in contravention of their own policy. Not only that, even the barely used shampoo bottles and soaps have been thrown out, and new ones put in their place. One morning I break open a tissue box and use just one sheet, then find a brand new box on the table when I return. I begin to wonder if I was actually sleeping in the same bed every day, or if these people were throwing it out daily and putting a brand-new one in its place.November 20

Sri Lankan friends in Christchurch kindly have me over to dinner, and I feast enthusiastically on and a dark chicken curry. They are fairly recent immigrants to New Zealand and are still figuring out the lay of their new land.”Since coming here, we have learned to say ‘yes’ straight away when visiting people’s houses,” they tell me.”What do you mean?” I ask.”Well, in Sri Lanka, when you are a guest, it’s polite to refuse the first offer of a meal or a cup of tea. Only when they insist are you supposed to agree.””Sure, and here?””Here, if you say no, that’s it. They won’t offer you again. If you refuse it, you don’t get to bloody eat.”November 22

New Zealand is almost too good to be a real country. It has its issues, of course, but there are no major ethnic tensions (not in comparison to most countries, at least) and no obvious signs of public unrest. It has a stable and trusted government (again, by global standards), and its national icon is a fittingly inoffensive animal. Sometimes it’s so perfect, it’s infuriating. This is my third trip around the country in as many years, and the breathtaking scenery keeps rolling by without relent. I am flying over north Canterbury – not an area especially reputed for its beauty – yet here lie these annoyingly gorgeous mountain ridges, all ruggedly serrated, while below, smug cords of captivating blue water wrap around the hills like ribbons on a present. The Pacific Ocean glints obnoxiously in the distance.It just doesn’t seem fair.November 23

Over the past two decades it has become very cool to hate on Hamilton. Coffee-shop hipsters in Wellington will talk about how chlamydia is an airborne disease there, and how the Waikato river brings farming effluent through the middle of town (not true). Comedians will poke fun at Hamiltonians on TV, and Aucklanders heading south will say they take detours just to avoid going near the city.I come to Hamilton hoping to rise above all this snarky criticism, intent on seeing it with fresh eyes. Perhaps I would discover something truly wonderful and unique, I think. But when I arrive, I learn there is no Uber in the city, nor any other ride-hailing system. Cabs are not common, and locals tell me not to bother with public transport. Even backward Sri Lankan towns have this. Instead of tracking the cab on my phone like a reasonable person, I have to stand on a street corner waiting for it for ages, like some kind of Neanderthal.Sometimes, Hamilton, you do have to help yourself.(For any Hamilton residents reading this – my hometown is Dehiwala, and if you want to rip it apart in the comments, I guess that is only fair.)When waiting for a cab in Hamilton, you might as well make yourself comfortable•Getty ImagesNovember 27

Mohammad Amir comes to the post-play press conference – quite unexpectedly, as most journalists thought he was still off limits since his return from suspension. He understands our English but is more comfortable answering in Urdu, and he chuckles when asked about all the catches that have been dropped off his bowling.All the journalists behave themselves. No spiky questions about his suspension are asked. When he leaves, the Kiwi journalists don’t miss the chance to malign their Australian counterparts, who, it is thought, will give Amir a very different reception.”Wait till Pakistan get over there,” says one reporter. “They’ll get some different questions there.””Aww maayte,” says another in a mock Aussie accent, imitating a journalist’s question. “Do you really theenk you deserve to be hee after what you’ve done?”November 29

The first Test I ever covered was in Hamilton, in 2009. I stayed too long in the press box one evening and managed to get myself locked in the stadium. I had to climb over a fence to get out, and in the process, dropped and damaged my laptop.I realise now, that it had been a training run for this Test, when again, I stay too long and get myself locked in. This time, with a much more expensive laptop, I climb the same fence, but carefully avoid the old mistake – dropping gingerly down onto the pavement, to go wait on the corner for my taxi for what seems like an hour.

Peter Moores talks about life as Nottinghamshire head coach, Datagate, his son Tom, and Joe Root

Jon Culley12-Mar-2017Peter Moores does not seem like the kind of person to dwell on the past. So, as the spring sunshine streams through the windows of the players’ dining room at Trent Bridge and he talks excitedly about the challenge that is about to begin in earnest for him as Nottinghamshire’s new head coach, it possibly does not occur to him that it is two years almost to the day since a defeat to Bangladesh put the mother of all tin lids on England’s abject campaign at the 2015 World Cup.Two years, what’s more, since he sat down in front of a microphone at Adelaide Oval after that game to offer his thoughts on England’s 15-run defeat and appeared, in one short and infamously misquoted sentence, to write his own epitaph as England coach.Our meeting is not constrained by time limits and when the discussion moves away from Nottinghamshire’s chances of making an immediate return to Division One of the Championship to the impact on his own well-being of his second sacking from the national team, he willingly offers his thoughts. At least up to a point.That point arrives when I ask about whether it was ever explained to him, by incoming director of England cricket Andrew Strauss, why he was being dismissed, and he firmly but politely calls a halt. “It didn’t really happen like that,” he says. “And to be honest, I don’t really want to rake all that up again. I’ve moved on. We’re here now, there is a new season to tackle and I’m excited about it.”

“Coaches don’t have to judge a player, the game does that for you. If people get runs, they are good players; if people take wickets, they are good players”

Yet he has said enough for it to be clear that a sense of frustration and injustice is still eating away, just a little, in the background. Particularly when it comes to “Datagate” and the misquote that spawned a misconception of his character that he found hard to stomach.”We’ll have to look at it later” transmuted to “We’ll have to look at the data”, and so was born the mythical figure of Moores the stats nerd, obsessed with analysis, a decision-maker by numbers.”People meet me for the first time even now and say, ‘Oh, you’re nothing like I thought you were going to be,'” he says. “‘I thought you were going to be all clipboards and computers.'”Coaching is a funny thing because people can’t always see you doing it. It is like a hidden art. A lot of the work goes on behind the scenes. But the public perception of me as a coach is just wrong. It is different from what it actually is. The players will tell you that.”That’s why it meant a lot that Joe [Root] should come out and say what he did. It is not because it is an ego thing. It just means that, yes, you did make a difference. It is good for your family to hear that too.”As a coach you become a bit more resilient because you know you’re going to be criticised. But you feel for your kids or for your dad or your mum or whatever [who have to listen to the comments] because sometimes the only version that the public have got is the one that is written.””It is all about building relationships with people to help them try to understand the best version of themselves and how they are going to get there”•Getty ImagesYet he is not so resilient that he did not feel his own pain.”The BBC apologised and said it was an accident. But when it came out, that was the story, that we were trying to run the team by clipboard and whatever, which is frustrating because it goes completely against what you do as a coach and how it works.”You take it on the chin. I’m pretty good at moving on, although it took a few bottles of red wine this time for me to get my head around it.”Slowly but surely, though, you get there. I love the game and it doesn’t owe me anything, so you move on.”As it happens, it was only six weeks before the opportunity arose to become involved at Trent Bridge, less than a half-hour’s drive from home. Moores, originally from Cheshire, has lived in rural Leicestershire since he left Sussex to become director of the ECB National Academy in Loughborough in 2005.It would be an exaggeration to say that the invitation to join the Nottinghamshire coaching staff saved him from falling into some slough of despond but he admits it helped the healing process.

“People meet me for the first time even now and say, ‘Oh, you’re nothing like I thought you were going to be. I thought you were going to be all clipboards and computers'”

“I was just watching my son Tom, who was in the 2nd XI here,” he said. “Mick [Newell] put it to me that a fresh voice in the dressing room would be quite good for them at the time and said to come along and try it.”I hovered a little bit and I wasn’t really going to do it at first but he said, ‘Let’s give it a couple weeks and see how it goes.'”In fact, it was a good thing to do, a healthy thing. When this sort of thing happens, part of you wants to hide away but it got me back out there.”I’ve got loads of mates in the game and loads of people who I’ve spent a lot of time with in the game, and to talk cricket again with people who know you becomes pretty therapeutic.”What was at first a semi-formal consultancy role for the second half of the 2015 season turned into a contracted position for the 2016 campaign, at the end of which the head coach role became vacant when Newell, who had done the job since 2002, acknowledged that with relegations (three) outnumbering Championships (two) on his record, it was time for a change.In a wide-ranging shake-up, Newell became director of cricket – in which capacity he was operating anyway as well as being senior coach – with Notts stalwart Paul Franks promoted from 2nd XI duties to assistant head coach and Ant Botha, the South African-born former Adelaide Cricket Club coach and Derbyshire assistant coach, hired to look after the 2nd XI and Academy teams. James Pipe, meanwhile, has arrived from Derbyshire as first-team physio.Matt Prior is one of the players Moores guided from a young age•Getty ImagesMoores will focus solely on the first team, which will free him to devote his energies to the skills that he employed in helping both Sussex (2003) and Lancashire (2011) win the Championship, a unique achievement in that no other coach has won the title with two different counties, and one that doubtless escaped the knowledge of some of those critics lining up to trash his reputation two years ago.A big part of those successes was his talent, universally acknowledged within the game, for working one-to-one with individual players to bring out their best, in which the only analysis he draws on is instinctive, the product of years of accumulated knowledge about how to tap into a player’s character and help make the most of their ability to play.”I love that part of coaching,” he said. “For me, the role of the coach is to try to see in people what they could be rather than what they are.”It is all about building relationships with people to help them try to understand the best version of themselves and how they are going to get there. You can’t do it for them but you can sometimes help raise their awareness about what they are doing at the moment and whether it works or not for them.”When people learn to make the right connections [between doing something and achieving their goal], then you don’t have to tell them to do it because it makes sense to them.”Lots of things have given me lots of satisfaction as a coach but helping a player become the best player they can be is especially fulfilling.”

“I’ve got loads of mates in the game, and to talk cricket again with people who know you becomes pretty therapeutic”

The example he quotes is that of Matt Prior, the former England wicketkeeper and his protégé at Sussex.”I was coaching Matt when he was 12 and you could see even at that time that he could go on to play for Sussex or even England.”At 12 or 13 a player might dream about those things but once he begins to see the reality of that and then starts doing it and the dream starts to become real, then that’s really exciting.”Those with the potential to excite Moores in that way at Trent Bridge include Jake Libby and Billy Root – Joe’s brother – among the younger batsmen, and the pacy Ben Kitt, who took 100 2nd XI wickets last year, among the bowlers, inspired by the rapid progress of Jake Ball.And then there is Tom, his 20-year-old son, like him a wicketkeeper-batsman, who impressed on loan with Lancashire last season and had broken into the Nottinghamshire team by the end of the season. He has since signed his first full professional contract.”Tom is doing well,” he said. “He had an ankle operation three weeks ago and he is coming back from that. He and Ben are both trying to find the consistency to put a bit more pressure on the players in the team. Tom is an aggressive player with an exciting style as a batter and as a keeper.”Moores with his son, Tom•Getty ImagesMoores admits that coaching his own son presents a challenge. They are both learning about their relationship as coach and player as well as father and son.”The hard thing in some ways is not to be too hard on your own,” Moores said. “You want to be fair.”What was good for Tom was that he went to Lancashire on loan last year and under his own steam got into the T20 side and then the Championship side, which was good experience for him.”Both Tom and his older sister live at home still; 23-year-old Natalie works for a PR and marketing company on the southern outskirts of Nottingham.”She is loving it and putting up with the cricket,” he said. “Tom loves the game, loves talking about the game. We don’t have any special rules [about not taking cricket home]. If he wants to have a conversation about cricket, I will talk to him about cricket. If he doesn’t want to talk about it, that’s fine. I’m led by him.”He is a good player but I would say to him, like anybody else, that coaches don’t have to judge a player, the game does that for you. If people get runs they are good players, if people take wickets they are good players.”

Moores helped both Sussex (2003) and Lancashire (2011) win the Championship, a unique achievement in that no other coach has won the title with two different counties

If Moores is proud of Tom, you sense there is an almost paternal pride, too, in seeing Joe Root elevated to the England captaincy, given Moores’ role in restoring the young Yorkshireman’s confidence after the battering he and others took on the 2013-14 Ashes tour.”It’s the right time for him,” he said. “He is a natural, very open, has a good cricket brain and always gives everything. He has that right level of humility, I think, and I think the players will have the utmost respect for him.”If there is a pang of regret, of jealousy even, that he is not in the England dressing room to see Root realise his potential, he hides it well.”I’m excited about the challenge here,” he said. “I am always confident I can build something better. How long it takes, you never quite know. We didn’t play well enough last year and we need to step up.”It is not simple but to me the goal is absolutely clear, to get back into the First Division and do it this year and to win a one-day trophy. In my head it is pretty clear. Then you get stuck in and try to do it.”

The IPL has been no stranger to controversies and scandals that have hogged endless hours on primetime television

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Mar-20171. IPL betting : An “enthusiast” takes down CSK, 2013Gurunath Meiyappan’s arrest on charges of “cheating, forgery and fraud” has possibly been the most serious and damning setback the IPL has suffered in its history. Meiyappan, a top official with Chennai Super Kings and son-in-law of then BCCI president N Srinivasan, was arrested for betting against his side in a match against Rajasthan Royals. Srinivasan then put a different spin on it, calling Meiyappan just a “cricket enthusiast”, who was nothing more than an honorary member of the franchise.In the course of the investigation, Royals owner Raj Kundra also confessed to betting in matches involving his franchise, and it all ended with both franchises receiving a two-year ban from the tournament, starting from the 2016 season.2. Kochi’s end kickstarts Lalit Modi’s expulsion, 2010In April 2010, Lalit Modi revealed the shareholding pattern of Kochi Tuskers Kerala with a series of strongly worded tweets, alleging how Shashi Tharoor, who at that point was a minister in the Congress government, facilitated the franchise’s bid and accused him of conflict of interest. One accusation led to another, and soon, Tharoor was forced to resign from his post in the government. It would also send Modi into a downward spiral of his own, after he was found guilty of rigging bids, apart from a host of other charges pressed against him by a special disciplinary committee set up by the BCCI.3. Sahara’s many withdrawals: Auction-morning antics and Pune Warriors’ ouster, 2012-13 After just one season in the IPL, Sahara, the promoters of the Pune Warriors franchise, who were then also the sponsors of the Indian team, pulled out an hour ahead of the supplementary auction in 2012, over disagreements on player retention rules and the number of matches that were promised to them over the course of a season. Sahara’s disputes with the IPL were long-standing, including their claim that a bid in 2008 was “thwarted” by the board. After multiple attempts at a truce between both parties, the BCCI encashed the franchise’s bank guarantee and ousted them from the IPL after two seasons in the tournament.4. “Thanks. You are most sweet” : the Freddie purchase, 2012Nearly two years after his expulsion from the tournament that was his brainchild, Lalit Modi had made it a habit to break behind-the-scenes events during his tenure through regular tweet-storms and appearances on national television. One of these related to the sale of Andrew Flintoff to Chennai Super Kings in the 2009 auction, which he said he was “arm-twisted to allow” by N Srinivasan , the then BCCI secretary and managing director of the franchise’s owners India Cements. E-mails exchanged between the duo revealed how Modi successfully held off Rajasthan Royals from bidding for Flintoff, to which Srinivasan replied, “Thanks. You are most sweet. Srini.”Sreesanth arrives in Ahmedabad for a meeting regarding the Harbhajan Singh slapping incident•AFP5. Harbhajan Singh slaps Sreesanth, 2008In what was among the first ever “gates” in the IPL, Harbhajan Singh was banned from the IPL for 11 games, after footage showed he had slapped Sreesanth without any provocation whatsoever. The duo embraced at the end of their hearing, and Harbhajan did not appeal against the ban. However, it has occasionally resurfaced, when the Kerala fast bowler accused Harbhajan of being a “backstabbing person”, in a series of tweets in 2013.6. Shah Rukh Khan’s lock-out from the Wankhede, 2012 Claims, counter-claims and good old speculation – cricket and Bollywood fully enmeshed themselves when Shah Rukh Khan was banned from entering the Wankhede stadium for five years, after his scuffle with security guards. The Mumbai Cricket Association alleged that Khan was “drunk and abused officials” before entering the ground without accreditation after an IPL game between Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians. Four years later, he was given a clean chit, after a Mumbai police investigation declared that no “cognisable offence” had taken place.7. The “rockstar” is banned : Jadeja goes looking for trouble, 2010After two seasons in the IPL representing Rajasthan Royals, Ravindra Jadeja was accused of trying to secure a deal with another franchise between seasons. The confusion was over when his agreement with Royals had ended – Jadeja later appealed that it had ended on December 31, 2009 – and his plea was subsequently dismissed. He was then signed by Kochi Tuskers Kerala in 2011, after missing out a full season in between.8. Asif’s other ban : out for steroids, 2009Over a year before his spot fixing ban, Mohammad Asif was found to have tested positive for nandrolone during the tournament’s inaugural edition in 2008. He had already been released by his side, Delhi Daredevils, and remained suspended by the Pakistan Cricket Board as well. While the announcement came in February 2009, he was handed a one-year ban effective retrospectively from September 22, 2008, the date when the IPL had imposed the suspension order.Sri Lankan cricketers were banned from playing matches at the MA Chidambaram stadium in 2013•Getty Images9. Politics in cricket : No Sri Lankans in Chennai, 2013Political developments at both the central and state levels forced 13 Sri Lankan stars in the IPL to be banned from playing IPL games hosted in Chennai. This was a result of multiple events in the lead up to the 2013 season, related to alleged atrocities towards ethnic Tamils in Sri Lanka. While all franchises eventually agreed to lose a player or two for one game rather than the whole tournament, the ban was predictably not received well by Sri Lanka’s political elite, including former captain Arjuna Ranatunga, who urged his countrymen to boycott the IPL.10. Sreesanth, the towel and the life ban, 2013In the middle of IPL 2013, Delhi Police announced that they had arrested Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan – all Rajasthan Royals players – for allegedly fulfilling promises made to bookmakers for money ranging from US$36,000 to 109,000 for each over. Sreesanth, it was alleged, had made a signal to ask for a towel for his second over in a match against Kings XI Punjab, before conceding 13 runs in an over in which he had promised to give away 14. He has since been acquitted by a Delhi court, and has ventured into politics and acting, while remaining banned by the BCCI.

Not up to scratch on what happened in cricket in April? No fear – here’s the lowdown

Andrew Fidel Fernando02-May-2017Retirement dramedies
If expecting to be drinking pals with opposition players you have abused for weeks on end is an Australian persuasion, and defecting to English counties is a South African thing, then in parts of South Asia, retirement is a leading cricketing art form.Like with any creative enterprise, every country has its own particular iteration. Sri Lanka, for example, is the home of the encore. When some players announce their retirements, they do so gazing hopefully at the nation’s sports minister, who makes a point of cajoling certain players into staying for one more series, as long as it makes political sense for him to do so.Often these second comings don’t work out. Sanath Jayasuriya spent his last few innings slashing balls to off-side fielders. Kumar Sangakkara kept getting out cheaply to high-quality spin. In both cases, fans clamoured for renditions of the players’ best work, but were reminded instead of the players’ great flaws – a little like screaming for “Billie Jean” at a Michael Jackson show, only for Jackson to climb onto the roof and dangle a baby from it.India is not beyond unusual retirements either, giving Sachin Tendulkar the grandest farewell of all in a made-for-purpose series from which Tendulkar’s speech remains more vividly in the memory than any of the cricket.But the undisputed grand masters, of course, are Pakistan. Imran Khan scripted one of the great cricketing comebacks when he came out of retirement to play in, and win, a World Cup. More recently, Shahid Afridi has un-retired so many times that for fans to truly believe he is gone for good, he will have to publicly saw his own arms off. Shoaib Malik went in a different, but still dramatic, direction, hitting 245 in his first Test innings in five years, before springing a shock retirement at the end of that series.So has the baton passed to Pakistan’s present old-timers. Misbah ul Haq’s approach to retirements has been the more classical of the two. He first took fans on a rare journey into his mind, despondently raising the possibility of retirement in a stream-of-consciousness press conference following last year’s loss at the MCG, then stating days later that he would play on for a bit. Only now has he confirmed the West Indies series will be his last.Younis Khan, however, has aimed for something fresh and daring, and the genre is so much richer for it. He first came to us in a press conference in Karachi. “People are calling me and asking me not to make any announcement to leave but now is the time,” he said. All settled, then?But wait. What’s this? Two weeks later another Younis quote emerges, in which he suggests he could extend his career, “if my team needs me”.Having ratcheted up the drama with two opposing announcements, Younis returned to us in a gloriously fulfilling final act. Looking dead serious in a video message from the West Indies, this third, authoritative Younis told us: “Younis Khan will retire even if he scores a hundred in every innings of every match”. The way he glowered, and spoke in third person, he seemed to not just be telling fans off for doubting “Younis Khan’s credibility”, but also scolding the other two Younis Khans for speculating on Younis Khan’s future.Misbah and Younis may be two of the more straight-talking men in their nation’s cricket pantheon, but no one can fully avoid the drama vortex that is a Pakistan retirement.[Insert drink-driving joke here]•Getty ImagesLeft behind by the IPL
Thanks to the IPL, many cricketers can finally rub shoulders with international stars and earn the kind of money worth dodging taxes for, but spare a thought for the folks who did not earn a contract.Denied the chance to party in a glam club in Mumbai or a plush Delhi hotel, New Zealand fast bowler Doug Bracewell had to resort to getting drunk in his home town of Hastings, like some kind of worthless pleb. Worse, Bracewell didn’t even have access to a team chauffeur, and – get this – had to personally open the door to his own car, put behind the wheel, and wound up getting picked up by the police and sent to court for drunk-driving.April’s horseman of the Kolpakalypse
With several South Africa players having signed county deals over the last few months, taking advantage of what was effectively a post-Brexit going-out-of-business sale for British visas, county cricket has gained a greater international profile this season than it would otherwise command. The foreign player making most waves last month was none other than the biggest signing of the season: Kyle Abbott. In three matches for Hampshire, Abbott returned 20 wickets at an average of 16.8. This included an especially impressive match-turning 7 for 41 against Yorkshire.The low-key goodbye

Bangladesh have recently had success forging their own path, and in a departure from South Asian tradition, Mashrafe Mortaza – who has led his side with elegance and charisma – made about as nonchalant a retirement announcement as possible. Striding to the pitch for the toss ahead of the first T20 at Khettarama, Mashrafe casually let slip to Dean Jones that this was his last series like he was relaying a hike in the price of bananas, or telling Jones that his fly was down.The parallel
For so long the cricket world laboured under the illusion that N Srinivasan was our very own Senator Palpatine, but in recent months it has emerged that it is in fact Shashank Manohar who has adopted that role. 
Like with Palpatine, Manohar’s rise to the ICC’s top job was as deft as it was swift. By overseeing the ICC’s new financial proposal he too seeks to weaken the very federation he was once charged with protecting, the BCCI.The dream chaser

Less than six months after he played for England, 25-year-old Surrey allrounder Zafar Ansari announced he is retiring from cricket, possibly to pursue a career in law. Perhaps looking across the Surrey dressing room, Ansari caught sight of an older man, hair greying now, whose own dreams of becoming a lawyer lay broken and unfulfilled. Who, after all, would want to end up like Kumar Sangakkara?Heartbreak of the month

No one has ever been sadder about a bust hamstring than Dwayne Bravo, who last month had to pull out of the IPL because of the injury. Below is a brief rundown of that unforgettable press release.Dwayne Bravo: can bat, can bowl, can field, can make ’em weep•CPL/Sportsfile”It is with deep regret that I announce my decision to withdraw…” “My body is not ready to perform at its fullest potential…” “…[I] undoubtedly have the love support of the best sports fans in the world. It is for them that I perform at my best every time I go on to the pitch.” “I sincerely apologise to my Gujarat Lions team-mates, franchise owners, and all my wonderful fans…” “I, too, am deeply saddened and disappointed, particularly because I know how much my fans were looking forward to my return.” “This is one of the hardest decisions I have had to make in my career.”I thank everyone for the love and encouragement.The weird fetish
The smell of freshly mown grass has been repeatedly cited as one of the pleasures of the early English season.Come on, county cricket fans. This is why people don’t respect you.The misheard word

In world news, North Korea has raised global alarm by testing ballistic missiles, but Kieron Pollard has found it demeaning to North Koreans that so many people are questioning whether they have the “brains” to reach North America.The who-do-they-think-they-are-fooling announcement.
Sri Lanka Cricket has declared its players will undergo “high-intensity and altitude training” in Pallekele, ahead of the Champions Trophy. While the benefits of training at this venue – among the faster, more seam-friendly pitches in the continent – are clear, it is less certain whether a ground that is not much more than 500 metres above sea level qualifies as an “altitude” venue. There were even suggestions the mountain air would pre-acclimatise Sri Lanka’s players for the weather in England, forgetting that, this being a tropical island, temperatures still regularly breach 30 degrees around Kandy in May, and that pre-series training in Pallekele last year had not, in fact, led to a single win on the tour of England.SLC is also reportedly advising a group planning an expedition across the Sahara to prepare by standing under a lightbulb for a few hours.

Also, who has the most Test scores between 80 and 99?

Steven Lynch01-Aug-2017How many people have finished a Test with a hat-trick, as Moeen Ali did at The Oval? asked Richard Whitehead from England

Moeen Ali’s hat-trick to wrap up the match at The Oval yesterday was actually the fourth time a Test had been concluded in this way. The first instance was in 1895-96, when England’s George Lohmann ended the South African resistance in Port Elizabeth: they were all out for 30, with Lohmann taking 8 for 7. Not long afterwards, in 1901-02, the Australian offspinner Hugh Trumble ended an Ashes Test in Melbourne by taking the last three wickets in successive balls, then in Cape Town in 1957-58 Australia’s Lindsay Kline’s hat-trick clinched victory for Australia. (Moeen’s was the first Test hat-trick against South Africa since that one.)And Moeen’s Oval hat-trick set some other records, too. It was the first in Tests to feature three left-handed batsmen, the first in 100 Tests at The Oval, and the first in the same Test innings to include both an opener and the No. 11. Merv Hughes (for Australia in 1988-89) and Jermaine Lawson (for West Indies in 2002-03) also dismissed an opener and the last man, but both of those were spread over two innings, with the opener being the final element in the hat-tricks. For the full list of Test hat-tricks, click here.Shikhar Dhawan was out for 190 before tea on the first day at Galle. Has anyone had a higher score at tea on the first day of a Test? asked Amit Shukla via Facebook

In his remarkable innings in the recent Test against Sri Lanka in Galle, Shikhar Dhawan was out for 190 in the last over before tea on the first day. There has only been one higher score: at tea on the first day of the Ashes Test at Headingley in 1930, Don Bradman was sitting pretty on 220 – he finished the day with 309 not out, another record. I’m indebted to Charles Davis from Melbourne for unearthing the next-highest, Jack Hobbs’ 180 not out before tea on the first day for England against South Africa in Cape Town in 1910-11.I wondered during the Oval Test whether Alastair Cook now has more scores between 80 and 99 than anyone else? asked Rajiv Radhakrishnan from England

Alastair Cook’s 88 in the Test that has just finished at The Oval was the 15th time he had been out for a score between 80 and 99 in Tests. There are a trio of batsmen who had 16 such scores: Brian Lara (including one not-out), Mike Atherton (two not-outs) and Shivnarine Chanderpaul (a remarkable seven asterisks). But there are two others with even more innings in this range, and they’re the usual suspects, really: Rahul Dravid had 21 scores from 80 to 99 (one of them not out), while Sachin Tendulkar had 22, all of them ending in dismissals. Another Indian, Chetan Chauhan, had seven scores between 80 and 99 in Tests – and never did make it to 100.Seven-for on Test debut? What’s not to like?•Getty ImagesWas India’s victory at Galle their biggest over Sri Lanka? asked Ian Hugo from Nigeria

India won the first Test in Galle by 304 runs, their fourth-largest by runs against any team. They beat Australia by 320 runs in Mohali in 2008-09, New Zealand by 321 in Indore in October 2016, and South Africa by 337 in Delhi in 2015-16. India’s previous-biggest victory over Sri Lanka by runs was 278, at the P Sara Oval in Colombo in August 2015. India have also won 15 Tests by a margin of an innings and 100 or more runs, the highest being an innings and 239, against Bangladesh in Mirpur in May 2007.How many England players have taken a five-for on Test debut, as Toby Roland-Jones did at The Oval? asked Paul Greaves from England

Toby Roland-Jones, who took 5 for 57 in South Africa’s first innings at The Oval, was the 47th bowler to take a five-for on Test debut for England. Four of them – Fred Martin (1890), Tom Richardson (1893), Charles “Father” Marriott (1933), and Ken Farnes (1934) – took two in the match, so this was the 51st instance. The best figures on debut for England remain Dominic Cork’s 7 for 43 against West Indies at Lord’s in 1995. Four other bowlers took seven in an innings in their first match for England: John Lever (7 for 46 v India in Delhi in 1976-77), Alec Bedser (7 for 49 v India at Lord’s in 1946), James Langridge (7 for 56 v West Indies at Old Trafford in 1933), and Jim Laker (7 for 103 v West Indies in Bridgetown in 1947-48).Roland-Jones is the first England player with a double-barrelled surname since 1935, when Mandy Mitchell-Innes played against South Africa, and the first to take five wickets in an innings for them since George Simpson-Hayward, who claimed 6 for 43 in the first Test of 1910-11, in Johannesburg, and 5 for 69 in the third, also at the Old Wanderers. Bowling underarm lobs, Simpson-Hayward took 23 wickets in that five-match series, his only taste of Test cricket.Leave your questions in the comments

The BCB president was a strong voice for Bangladesh in the ICC, but closer home, issues of conflict of interest clouded his first tenure

Mohammad Isam17-Oct-2017The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) election on October 31 for the directors’ positions is a foregone conclusion. With no opposition, the board president Nazmul Hassan’s panel is set to retain the majority of the posts.Directors voted into the board have to elect a president and, unless there is late drama, Hassan is expected to continue in his role as BCB president, and it is unlikely his position will be challenged for the next four years.Regardless of an extension, Hassan’s first term as BCB president should be assessed on the day it ends. One parameter to gauge the success of the BCB president is the performance of the Bangladesh team. In Hassan’s case, the other significant aspects of his tenure include his handling of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) and his leadership at home and abroad.Hassan’s tenure coincided with Bangladesh’s longest period of success as an international team and his major contribution was to back some critical decisions. He agreed to appoint Chandika Hathurusingha as coach despite more luminous names in the shortlist in 2014. When Shakib Al Hasan took on Hathurusingha soon after his appointment, Hassan decided to suspend Shakib for six months, a risky but bold move. In the short term, Bangladesh lost badly in West Indies but it became clear that the board was serious about team discipline.Hassan then approved splitting the Bangladesh captaincy for the first time. This was a practical solution at the time but proved to be a masterstroke as Mashrafe Mortaza led an ODI revival.Within a year of this success, however, Hassan enlarged the selection committee by including Hathurusingha and two other directors. Faruque Ahmed resigned as the chief selector, citing a lack of independence, but Hassan pressed ahead and ratified the changes.When making these changes, Hassan said it was a relief for him to no longer discuss selection issues with the selectors. In the following 12 months, however, he suggested many names to the selectors through press briefings and on many occasions, those players were subsequently chosen.Mominul Haque’s axing, and then reinstatement, for the first Test against Australia caused a major outcry, and there were hints that chief selector Minhajul Abedin had little to do with such decisions.Hassan’s proximity to the senior team also raised eyebrows on several occasions, particularly as he proceeded to make public contents of team meetings. From talking about players’ inability to raise issues with the coach, to revealing their World Cup plan and discussing the mentality of the Test captain, Hassan gave the media a rare look into the not-so-perfect world of an international cricket team. However, this also made some players appear weak.At the start of Hassan’s presidency, the BCB had to deal with the prickly issues of payment and match-fixing allegations in the 2013 edition of the BPL. He responded by forming a tribunal to deal with the allegations. There were flaws in the investigations but the ban handed to Mohammad Ashraful set an important precedent. Hassan also made sure the tournament would not continue until the investigating tribunal had made its decisions and much of the pending player payments were cleared. The tournament was not played in 2014 and returned in 2015.Nazmul Hassan managed to keep the BCB strong despite the flux within the ICC•AFPAnother affliction of the BPL also affected Hassan: conflict of interest. His employers, Beximco, bought the Dhaka Dynamites franchise. The man Hassan appointed as BPL secretary, Ismail Haider Mallick, also works at Beximco, while franchise coach Khaled Mahmud is a BCB director. As the most powerful trio in the BCB, Hassan, Mahmud and Mallick were part of a growing number of conflicts of interest across all levels of Bangladesh cricket, especially evident since BPL 2015.There were further problems for Hassan on the domestic front. There have been murmurs for the last four years that two factions in the BCB have been trying to allegedly manipulate the different levels of the Dhaka league system. Abahani is recognized traditionally as the most powerful club in Bangladesh sport – it’s the club from which Hassan held his BCB councillorship and where Mallick is the cricket secretary, and Mahmud the coach. In 2016, Abahani were on the right side of the umpire’s poor decisions in the Dhaka Premier League match against Prime Doleshwar Sporting Club, which prompted allegations of bias towards a powerful, well-connected club.While Hassan acknowledged the umpiring problem, he took the allegations against Abahani to heart and held angry press conferences. On one occasion, he didn’t allow three journalists to enter a press briefing at his Beximco office as they had questioned him about Abahani at a previous press conference. The umpiring issues, however, continued.The situation came to a head earlier this year when a bowler, Sujon Mahmud of Lalmatia Club, frustrated by alleged biased umpiring, gave away 92 runs off just four deliveries in a Dhaka league match. The day before, Tasnim Hasan of the Fear Fighters Sporting Club voluntarily conceded 69 runs in 1.1 overs. Both players were banned for ten years, and their clubs were also punished, but the umpire in question got away with a slap on the wrist.Hassan did have a better time at the ICC, where he secured important committee posts and could successfully position the BCB first with the Big Three and later with Shashank Manohar, when the latter brought in reforms. Siding with the Big Three gave the side more matches against India. Agreeing with Manohar’s moves made sure the ICC chairman also heard out Hassan’s views on not demoting teams from Full Membership status.In some ways though, the BCB’s leadership was a continuation of the previous man in power: AHM Mustafa Kamal. Hassan’s leadership method was similar to Kamal’s hands-on style as board president, though Hassan also listened to what the players had to say, most evident in the slight increase in player salary in 2017.There are two key differences between Kamal and Hassan, however: while the former did not trust his captains and gave them assurances on a series-by-series basis, Hassan’s confidence in Mashrafe went a long way in stabilising the senior team.Secondly, unlike Kamal, who was regularly challenged by a faction of board directors, Hassan’s regime has been known to have a “with us or against us” policy. Some directors were close to him and those who chose to toe his line were welcomed. Disagreement wasn’t welcome, however; a case in point being Ahmed Sajjadul Alam, who questioned Hassan’s stance on the Big Three position paper in 2014 and has become a pariah within the board.A more democratic approach may not have resulted in so many questions around Hassan’s first tenure. The next four years will see many changes in world cricket, so he will have to continue being proactive and methodical, to shape Bangladesh cricket in such a way that everyone feels included, and the world keeps seeing the progress of the cricket team.

It was down to what mindset the two batting line-ups came out with on a treacherous Mirpur pitch and the difference in the two approaches was evident

Mohammad Isam in Mirpur08-Feb-2018It is still quite early to gauge how much difference Kusal Mendis’ 68 will make in the Dhaka Test but on the first day, his adventurous approach already made a telling impact in Sri Lanka’s innings. It was that kind of a pitch where a really good ball was going to get you so Mendis probably thought it was best to collect some runs before that one delivery came. His tactics to work the wrists over the ball and drive through and across the line, although with some risk, on a treacherous pitch were much better than Bangladesh’s overly watchful approach in the last 22 overs of the day, which left them on 56 for 4 after Sri Lanka’s total of 222.There wasn’t the mystery element in the pitch to assist the spinners which both sides spoke about before the match. So it was down to what mindset the two batting line-ups came out with. By being positive like Tamim Iqbal against England and Australia in Mirpur in 2016 and 2017, Mendis got the most out of his potential on a tough pitch.Thilan Samaraweera, Sri Lanka’s batting coach, said that such was Mendis’ confidence, it looked like he was playing on a different surface altogether.”The biggest thing [in our innings] is Kusal Mendis’s 68,” Samaraweera said. “The runs came very quickly. It was a massive part of our batting because on this pitch it is not easy to score fast, but he batted on a different track in the morning. We have to give credit to the tailenders and Roshen Silva too for batting well. But had there not been soft dismissals, we would have been happy to score 250-260.”Like in Chittagong, Mendis didn’t let Dimuth Karunaratne’s early loss get the better of him. By the 10th over, Mendis had raced to 36 off 35 balls with seven fours before Mustafizur Rahman slowed him down with a short burst of dot balls. Mendis reached fifty with a slog-swept six over midwicket, which was his eighth boundary through the arc between backward square-leg and midwicket.Mendis hardly let go of any short balls and often whipped his wrists over the ball to negate the spin. It took a brilliant delivery from Abdur Razzak to remove him, when the ball hung on the middle-stump line and went past his outside edge to take down the off stump.Cut to the Bangladesh first innings, and it was evident that being too watchful on this pitch had plenty of pitfalls. The home batsmen didn’t need to copy Mendis but there was reward for a positive approach, which even Liton Das portrayed in his short stay. A bit of carelessness also didn’t help them.Tamim Iqbal’s dismissal said as much about Bangladesh’s mindset. He was half forward and although he connects a lot of deliveries with that type of footwork against pace, he drove too early at Suranga Lakmal, resulting in a return catch. Then with his side already looking in trouble in the final 90 minutes, Mominul Haque was careless enough to be run-out, especially after showing so much restraint in the two innings in Chittagong.Mushfiqur Rahim kept leaving Lakmal’s deliveries too close to the off stump. A firmer mindset may have helped him but he left one too many, and paid the price by seeing his off stump knocked over by shouldering arms. Imrul Kayes would be kicking himself too for not lasting until the end of the day, getting out to a full delivery from Dilruwan Perera, who had been troubling him throughout his 55-ball stay.Liton Das, however, offered some hope for the hosts by showing the common sense to drive the drivable balls, cut the short balls and deal with the good deliveries sensibly. A bit of confidence from his 94 in the Chittagong Test, and seeing the other batsmen fall to poor shots may have helped Liton understand what not to do as Bangladesh now bank on him to get anywhere near Sri Lanka’s score.

India’s first day of training at the Ageas Bowl seemed to suggest this could happen

Nagraj Gollapudi in Southampton27-Aug-20182:42

ESPN Shorts: Kohli the tinkerer

For the first time in his captaincy Virat Kohli is likely to retain the same XI for consecutive matches. The Nottingham Test last week was his 38th as captain; he is yet to go into a Test without making at least one change. Form, fitness and his own gut instincts about players were some of the factors that contributed to Kohli’s tinkering, but after the victory at Trent Bridge, which came about due to a collective effort from the team, India may opt to stick with the winning unit.The first hints of such a possibility were evident during India’s first training session in Southampton, three days before the Test. The batting order was the same as that at Trent Bridge with Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul entering the nets first, followed by Cheteshwar Pujara and Kohli. Ajinkya Rahane was then paired with Rishabh Pant, and Hardik Pandya padded up next. R Ashwin, the other allrounder, who struggled with a hip injury through most of the Nottingham Test, also batted, though he did not bowl.India were meant to start their training from Tuesday, but the team think tank added another day of preparation. All 18 players, including new additions Hanuma Vihari and Prithvi Shaw, reported for the training, which lasted for close to three hours on an overcast, cool and breezy day.The overhead conditions and a hard and lively pitch put a spring in the step of the fast-bowling group as they forced edges repeatedly. But it didn’t cause most of the batsmen to frown, since they were playing with soft hands. Head coach Ravi Shastri singled out the young trio of Pant, Vihari and Shaw, offering them guidance on their stance, the distance between their feet, and their trigger movements.Shastri, no doubt, would have been impressed by the back-foot play of Shaw, the youngest member of the squad at 18. Shaw, who led India to victory in the Under-19 World Cup earlier this year, showed a good understanding of length as he handled Jasprit Bumrah, India’s best bowler at Trent Bridge, confidently. However, the probability of either Shaw or Vihari, who replaced M Vijay and Kuldeep Yadav in the squad, making a Test debut this week remains remote.Kohli and Shastri would like the other batsmen to take forward the good work they did in the third Test and make it big at the Ageas Bowl which has been among the higher-scoring venues in English first-class cricket this season. The average runs-per-wicket figure at the Ageas Bowl this season is 34.10, the highest among all Test venues in England. The seamers have done the bulk of the bowling, taking 122 wickets at an average of 30.97 in half-a-dozen matches, while the spinners have taken 23 wickets at 33.86.