This was only the 10th double-century opening stand ever made against Australia in Test cricket

Gaurav Sundararaman07-Oct-20185 Double-century opening stands for Pakistan in Tests. This is the first one since 2016 when Azhar Ali and Sami Aslam added 215 against West Indies at the same venue. Since November 2010 Pakistan have had 13 century opening stands – the third-most for any team behind Australia and England.10 Instances of Australia conceding double-century opening stands. Since 1990, they have conceded only three such stands. Most recently, M Vijay and Shikhar Dhawan added 289 against them in Mohali in 2013.0 Wickets taken by Australia in the first 60 overs of the innings – the first instance in which Australia have gone wicketless for so long while bowling first in a Test since 2000. However the latest they have taken the first wicket since 2000 is in 66.2 overs against England during the second innings of the first Ashes Test in Brisbane in 2010.4 Hundreds scored by Hafeez in the UAE. This is his first century against Australia and second consecutive hundred in the UAE. Hafeez scored 151 against England at Sharjah in 2015. Hafeez now has 3465 runs as an opener and 10 centuries. Only Saeed Anwar has more centuries as Pakistan opener than Hafeez. Hafeez averages 55.27 in the UAE10 Balls that beat Imam Ul Haq or Hafeez during their 205 run stand. This is an indication of how much the conditions favoured the batsmen.ESPNcricinfo Ltd135 International matches played by Aaron Finch before his Test debut – the second-most behind Rohit Sharma, who had played 144 games. This excludes Afghanistan and Ireland who played their inaugural Tests earlier this year.

AB de Villiers and Misbah ul Haq were picked up by Lahore Qalandars and Peshawar Zalmi respectively, but what about Steven Smith?

Danyal Rasool20-Nov-20182:35

‘Hopefully this year Kings will break the jinx’ – Akram

Lahore QalandarsSquad: Hasan Khan, Rahat Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Yasir Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Anton Devcich, Agha Salman, Sohail Akhtar, AB de Villiers , Mohammad Hafeez, Carlos Brathwaite, Corey Anderson, Sandeep Lamichhane, Haris Sohail, Mohammad Imran, Umair Masood, Brendan Taylor, Gauhar Ali, Aizaz Cheema, Haris RaufIt seems odd there was a debate at all about whether they should go for AB de Villiers or Steven Smith, given the South African’s destructive capabilities are second to none. The decision to appoint Mohammad Hafeez as captain is a sharp walkback from the Brendon McCullum era, which seems to have ended rather coolly.Strengths: Aggression at the top of the order has not been compromised. Fakhar Zaman and Anton Devcich were solid at the top in the second half of last year’s tournament, while with de Villiers and Hafeez to follow, there is a balance that didn’t exist last year.Weaknesses: There is an uncomfortably high reliance on spin bowling, with Sandeep Lamichhane, Yasir Shah, Hasan Khan and Mohammad Hafeez. The best fast bowler Lahore have is Shaheen Afridi, which is a heavy burden for a teenager to bear. Rahat Ali and Sohail Akhtar are the other options, but neither screams world-class.Islamabad UnitedSquad: Luke Ronchi, Shadab Khan, Faheem Ashraf, Asif Ali, Mohammad Sami, Rumman Raees, Hussain Talat, Waqas Maqsood, Sahibzada Farhan, Zafar Gohar, Ian Bell, Samit Patel, Phil Salt, Cameron Delport, Mohammad Musa, Nasir Nawaz, Wayne Parnell, Zahir Khan, Amad Butt, Rizwan HussainIf it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right? That seems to be the reigning champions’ philosophy, having retained the maximum allowed number of players from the previous season.Strengths: This is a squad familiar with each other, as well as experienced in how to win this tournament. Ten players from this roster have played – and won – this title before, several of them twice. The keys to their success last season, Shadab Khan, Luke Ronchi, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Sami and Asif Ali will all reprise their roles.Weaknesses: More so than any other format, T20 cricket is unforgiving to those resting on their laurels. And this Islamabad squad doesn’t seem to have improved in a significant way, while most other sides have. The point could be made they did not need to, of course, which is a retort they have every right to make given their impeccable record.Islamabad United players and staff pose with the trophy•Getty ImagesQuetta GladiatorsSquad: Sarfraz Ahmed, Sohail Tanvir, Sunil Narine, Umar Akmal, Shane Watson, Mohammad Nawaz, Rilee Rossouw, Anwar Ali, Saud Shakeel, Dwayne Bravo, Fawad Ahmed, Mohammad Asghar, Danish Aziz, Ahsan Ali, Ghulam Mudassar, Naseem Shah, Harry Gurney, Ahmed Shehzad, Azam Khan, Jalat KhanQuetta did most of their exciting business away from the glitz of this draft, when a bumper trade with Lahore Qalandars saw them secure the services of Umar Akmal and Sunil Narine. Fawad Ahmed’s addition is a good story, while with Mohammad Asghar and Jalat Khan, they have two players from the province they represent.Strengths: Dwyane Bravo is guaranteed T20 gold. The man with the most wickets in the format, he has delivered around the world, and is arguably the most intelligent T20 bowler from the generation of players who grew up before this format exploded. There’s a great blend of fast bowlers and spinners, and solid local talent.Weaknesses: The top order batting is a slight concern. Shane Watson will likely open the batting, but there are question marks over who accompanies him and what their pedigree is. They have both Ahmed Shehzad and Umar Akmal, but reliability is not a word you would associate with them.Fans pose next to cut-outs of Hasan Ali and Shahid Afridi ahead of the final•Associated PressPeshawar ZalmiSquad: Darren Sammy, Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali, Kamran Akmal, Liam Dawson, Umaid Asif, Khalid Usman, Sameen Gul, Kieron Pollard, Misbah-ul-Haq, Dawid Malan, Umar Amin, Wayne Madsen, Sohaib Maqsood, Jamal Anwar, Nabi Gul, Chris Jordan, Waqar Salamkheil, Ibtisam Sheikh, Samiullah AfridiThe team that perhaps epitomises the joy of the PSL most of all, the biggest news from Peshawar was Misbah-ul-Haq joining. Kieron Pollard also came in, while Darren Sammy, of course, remains captain.Strengths: The fast bowling unit is a dream. Wahab Riaz is a different bowler when in the yellow of this side, while Hasan Ali is a diamond of a player for this format. Even fast bowlers who did not look to have much about them were at their best when playing for Peshawar, most notably Umaid Asif and Sameen Gul.Weaknesses: Misbah? Really? The 44-year old was almost a liability in the line-up for Islamabad last year, and when he played shunted himself down the order. That means Kamran Akmal and Dawid Malan aside, there is a lack of genuine batting quality among Peshawar’s ranks.Karachi KingsSquad: Imad Wasim , Colin Munro, Mohammad Amir, Babar Azam, Colin Ingram, Usman Khan Shinwari, Mohammad Rizwan, Ravi Bopara, Sikandar Raza, Awais Zia, Usama Mir, Aaron Summers, Sohail Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Ali Imran, Abrar Ahmed, Aamer Yamin, Ben Dunk, Liam Livingstone, Jaahid AliDespite his reduced stock with Pakistan, Imad Wasim will captain his franchise again. This was another side that retained a number of core players, with Babar Azam, Mohammad Amir and Ravi Bopara prime among them.Strengths: The balance between foreign and local quality is rather impressive. Stellar additions such as Colin Munro and Sikander Raza are complemented by Babar and Amir, while Usman Shinwari and Iftikhar Ahmed have shown enough quality of late to make their mark.Weaknesses: Letting Joe Denly go could hurt them. The England opener was splendid all season earlier this year, his performance in the PSL arguably the catapult to his Man-of-the-Match return to the England T20 side after a decade out. With Imad more of an opening bowler and Raza a part-timer, there seems to be a bit too much pressure on Usama Mir to be the wicket-taking option Karachi will need him to be through the middle overs.Misbah Ul Haq is castled by Shahid Afridi•PCB/PSLThe Sixth TeamSquad: Shoaib Malik, Junaid Khan, Mohammad Irfan, Shan Masood, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Irfan, Umar Siddiq, Mohammad Junaid, Steven Smith, Shahid Afridi, Joe Denly, Qais Ahmad, Nicolas Pooran, Laurie Evans, Nauman Ali, Mohammad Ilyas, Daniel Christian, Tom Moores, Ali Shafiq, Shakeel AnsarFormerly Multan, this team’s main errand before the tournament begins is to find itself an owner. In the meanwhile, they found a few players, snapping up Smith and Denly.Strengths: Perhaps the most exciting additions at the draft. Steven Smith, should he perform anywhere near the level of his reputation, is a rock through the middle, while Denly is an established player in this league. Even Afridi remains handy with the ball, while the ageless Shoaib Malik and the flawless Mohammad Abbas are ones to watch out for.Weaknesses: There are too many players who have not necessarily made their reputations in this format. The batting looks somewhat devoid of big hitters, with Nicholas Pooran the only obvious candidate. Denly can be as destructive as any, but is more of a classical shot-maker, and Afridi’s batting cannot be relied upon.

With three promotion places up for grabs this year, there is plenty to play for in Division Two

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Apr-2019DurhamCameron Bancroft gets behind the line•Getty ImagesLast season: 8th
Coach: James Franklin
Captain: Cameron Bancroft
Overseas players: Cameron Bancroft
Ins: Alex Lees, Ben Raine
Outs: Paul Collingwood, Barry McCarthy, Ryan DaviesIt’s been two seasons since Durham were horsewhipped into the second division as punishment for receiving a £3.8m bail-out from the ECB. The 2017 season was a write-off, as they began it with a 48-point deduction, but they then struggled in 2018 as well. The poise and pre-eminence that carried them to three Championship titles in six seasons between 2008 and 2013 remains a distant and poignant memory.Will 2019 be the season of rediscovery? Probably not, in all honesty, for all that they have undergone a significant rebranding this winter, in a bid to draw a line under their recent difficulties. Marcus North and James Franklin are ambitious appointments as director of cricket and head coach respectively, while Cameron Bancroft is an eyebrow-raising option as first-class and 50-over skipper, in the wake of his nine-month ban for ball-tampering.The wisdom (or otherwise) of that appointment will reveal itself as the summer wears on, but with an Ashes looming in August and September, Bancroft has plenty incentive to give his utter commitment to the cause. But whoever had taken on the role would have been filling impossibly large boots, following last season’s retirement of the ever-green Paul Collingwood – captain, leader and Riverside legend – at the age of 42.Bancroft aside, Durham’s top-order batting is full of players with points to prove. Alex Lees, the former Yorkshire prodigy whose career has stagnated at Headingley in recent seasons, has completed the move north that he began last season, as he seeks to restate his credentials aged 25. And it’s likely that those two will be joined in the top three by Jack Burnham, a former England Under-19 star, who is also back in action after serving a drugs ban. As the club itself knows, the only way is up from rock bottom.One to watch: Sunderland-born but latterly Leicestershire-honed, the exciting allrounder Ben Raine has returned to Chester-le-Street in perhaps the most significant boost to the club’s regeneration. He was Leicestershire’s top wicket-taker in the 2018 Championship season with 45 at 22.75 apiece, while his maiden T20 hundred was an eye-popping affair – 113 from 45 balls against Birmingham Bears, with eight fours and ten sixes. Andrew MillerBet365: 25/1DerbyshireTony Palladino is still going strong•Getty ImagesLast season: 7th
Coach: Dave Houghton
Captain: Billy Godleman
Overseas players: Logan van Beek
Ins: Tom Lace (loan), Mattie McKiernan
Outs: Hardus Viljoen, Ben Slater, Gary Wilson, Will Davies, Callum BrodrickThe Kim Barnett revolution never quite came to pass at Derbyshire, although there have been signs of traction after they finished bottom of the pile in 2016. There were again mixed results last season, despite winning their opening match against expected promotion challengers Middlesex – Derbyshire’s first home victory in the Championship for almost three years – and Barnett stepped down from his advisory role midway through. The promise of an attack that featured, at various times, four international bowlers never quite coalesced into on-field success and once again the batting was reliant on Wayne Madsen, the division’s second-leading run-scorer.Still, two wins at the end of the campaign lifted them up into the comfort of mid-table, and a new coaching team headed by Dave Houghton will be looking for further improvements in pursuit of a first promotion challenge since they went up as Division Two champions in 2012. That won’t be easy, having lost key performers in opener Ben Slater, Ireland international Gary Wilson, and South African Kolpak signing Hardus Viljoen, who opted out of the third year of his contract after winning an IPL deal. However, there is a good mix of young talent and experienced heads such as Madsen, Tony Palladino and Ravi Rampaul, while the return of Dominic Cork, brought in as T20 coach, should provide a lift around the County Ground.One to watch: In seeking an overseas signing who would be available for a full season, Derbyshire alighted on Logan van Beek – a 28-year-old allrounder who has yet to be capped by New Zealand, the country of his birth, but has played international cricket for Netherlands, including appearing at two World T20s. An impressive county campaign could help push his Black Caps case. Alan GardnerBet365: 20-1GlamorganGlamorgan have not had too much to celebrate this season•Getty ImagesLast season: 10th
Coach: Matt Maynard
Captain: Chris Cooke
Overseas players: Marnus Labuschagne, Shaun Marsh
Ins: Billy Root, Charlie Hemphrey, Callum Taylor, Kazi Szymanski, Jamie McIlroy
Outs: Aneurin DonaldAfter one of their most miserable seasons in recent memory, surely the only way is up? Only two wins were forthcoming in the Championship, bookending 10 defeats and two draws as Glamorgan claimed the wooden spoon by a distance; and there was no solace in the white-ball competitions, either. Hugh Morris acknowledged the need for things to change, commissioning an external review that led to him stepping down as director of cricket – a role he combined with being chief executive. Robert Croft also lost his job as head coach, with Matthew Maynard taking over in an interim capacity.Another local legend in the form of former captain and wicketkeeper Mark Wallace has now taken charge as director of cricket, just two years after retiring from the game. One of his first moves was to hand the captaincy to Chris Cooke – a batsman-keeper in the same mould – in part to manage the workload of 37-year-old Michael Hogan, Glamorgan’s leading wicket-taker in 2018. The signings of Billy Root and Charlie Hemphrey (an Englishman who made a name for himself in Queensland) could prove shrewd in bolstering the batting, and the maturing of the club’s strong Welsh core may help improve fortunes.One to watch: A tall, patient left-hander, Jack Murphy has progressed from seam-bowling allrounder (he opened the bowling on first-class debut) to potential top-order lynchpin. He only averaged 25.38 in the Championship in 2018 but no Glamorgan player faced as many as his tally of 1316 balls. Another local talent of whom there are high hopes. AGBet365: 25-1GloucestershireRyan Higgins in action•Getty ImagesLast season: 5th
Coach: Richard Dawson
Captain: Chris Dent
Overseas players:
Ins: Stuart Whittingham
Outs: Liam Norwell, Craig MilesAlthough they were some way off the promotion pace, Gloucestershire were the side to push Division Two’s big four – Warwickshire, Kent, Sussex and Middlesex – closest in 2018. Under Richard Dawson, the west countrymen have tended to prioritise progress in the limited-overs competitions – they won the Royal London Cup in 2015 – above the more draining route march of a successful Championship campaign. Such pragmatism is understandable for a county that has not been in the top flight for over a decade, though Dawson is hopeful of improvement. “We’ve probably fallen short as a collective in four-day cricket,” he admitted this week.Bristol has a reputation as one of the flattest decks in the country, but a bowler-friendly summer in the UK meant no Gloucestershire batsman averaged more than 36 last year. Captain Chris Dent remains the likeliest candidate to score 1000 runs, while plenty is expected of young talents George Hankins, James Bracey and Miles Hammond. The bowling will have inevitably taken a hit after the departures of Liam Norwell and Craig Miles to Warwickshire, but Australia international Dan Worrall will hope for a productive campaign, after injury curtailed his 2018 stint, and former Sussex seamer Stuart Whittingham should go well. Unfancied they may be but Dawson has assembled a tight squad that could spring a few surprises.One to watch: Teenager Ben Charlesworth was granted time off from studying for his A-Levels in order to make his first-class debut last summer. A seam-bowling allrounder, the 17-year-old struck an unbeaten 77 in only his third match – going to fifty with a six – and then claimed a three-wicket haul against promotion-chasing Middlesex. Still a schoolboy but plenty is expected. AGBet365: 33-1LancashireJames Anderson claims another wicket for Lancashire•Getty ImagesLast season: 7th
Coach:Glen Chapple
Captain: Dane Vilas
Overseas players: Joe Burns (April to mid-July), Glenn Maxwell (July-September)
Ins:Richard Gleeson, Mark Footitt (loan), George Lavelle, George Balderson, Tom Hartley, Jack Morley
Outs: Jordan Clark, Simon Kerrigan, Karl Brown, Arron Lilley, Mark WattLancashire are expected to begin their quest for a third promotion in seven seasons with the services of international stars James Anderson and Glenn Maxwell available to face Middlesex. Anderson could play as many as 10 Championship fixtures before the Ashes come around, but Lancashire have the bowlers to cope without him, with Tom Bailey’s 64 wickets the best of any bowler in Division One last season followed by Graham Onions’s 57, putting him equal fourth. The arrival of Mark Footitt on a month’s loan from Notts is also a boost.Batting-wise, however, they could miss Maxwell, who scored 71, 98 and 70 in consecutive innings during Australia’s recent ODI series against Pakistan. Lancashire’s leading run-scorer for 2018 was Dane Vilas with 792 runs at 37.71, followed by Alex Davies’ 732, while Keaton Jennings – a man looking for every opportunity to press his England case – scored 709 runs in the 10 matches he played. That is where Joe Burns comes in, keen to press his own claims for an Ashes berth after giving himself a glimmer of hope by scoring 180 against Sri Lanka in February.One to watch: Fast bowler Saqib Mahmood has been on the England radar for some time, having made his U-19s debut at just 17 and signed his first pro contract with Lancashire in 2015. Now 22, there is a sense he is ready to take the next step in his development, given the chance. Valkerie BaynesBet365: 7-4LeicestershireMohammad Abbas strikes again for Leicestershire•Getty ImagesLast season: 6th
Coach: Paul Nixon
Captain: Paul Horton
Overseas players: Mohammad Abbas
Ins: Chris Wright, Will Davis, Arron Lilley
Outs: Ben Raine, Zak Chappell, Ned Eckersley, Mark Pettini, Rob Sayer, Tom Wells, Richard Jones, Michael Carberry, Cameron DelportKaren Rothery, who joins Leicestershire on April 23 as the new chief executive, might be forgiven for wondering what she’s got herself in for. Recent reports state that the club is on the brink of seeking an ECB bail-out for an outstanding £1.3m debt. In an era of county haves and have nots, few clubs feel more in a more precarious situation. At least in Paul Nixon, Leicestershire have an eternal optimist at the helm as head coach, and he’ll need to be just that, given that the first-team squad stretches to a mere 19 players, offering little leeway for injury or form.It’s been another winter of mass exodus at Grace Road. Michael Carberry’s ill-starred stint came to a sticky end in October, five months after he had been stripped of the captaincy and stood down from a playing role, while Ben Raine’s move back to Durham – another club that has seen hard times – was a particularly painful loss. Mark Cosgrove, whose 440 runs at 18.33 in 2018 were the worst figures of his first-class career, was one of a raft of batsmen who never got going last season – between them, they managed just the one hundred – a startling innings of 196 not out from Colin Ackermann against Middlesex (who still recovered to win by one wicket).In spite of this, Leicestershire did manage to pull together five victories last season, thanks in no small part to the indefatigable Mohammad Abbas, whose 64 wickets at 17.56 included five five-wicket hauls and ten in the match against Durham in September.One to watch: He’s an old’un, but a good’un. Chris Wright was the mainstay of Warwickshire’s Championship triumph in 2012, and at the age of 33, he could provide an ideal injection of know-how to an attack that can’t rely on Abbas alone. AMBet365: 20/1MiddlesexNick Gubbins works the ball away•Getty ImagesLast season: 4th
Coach: Stuart Law
Captain: Dawid Malan
Overseas players:
Ins: Jack Davies
Outs: Ryan Patel, James Fuller, Nick Compton, James Franklin, Tom Lace, Ashton AgarIt says something about the ambition that resides at Lord’s that Middlesex were able to persuade the former Australia batsman Stuart Law to pack in his role as West Indies coach ahead of what would prove to be a seminal Test series win against England, and instead set out his stall for four years in North London.There’s plenty to work with at the club as well. Their bid for a swift return to Division One stalled last season, but they begin this campaign as second-favourites for the title, and having undergone a significant change of personnel in the off-season, including the departure of two of their senior players of recent seasons, captain James Franklin and former England batsman Nick Compton.It’s in the fast-bowling department where Middlesex will hope to make early-season inroads, however. Toby Roland-Jones is returning to fitness and will be eager to regain the form that made him an automatic Test selection at the back end of 2017, while Steven Finn – who has just turned 30 – has reportedly been steaming in in pre-season. With Tom Helm facing a pivotal season, and the likes of Tim Murtagh and James Harris providing old-school nous in spades, Middlesex should be a challenge for any line-up on England’s early-season decks.The batting, however, has little choice but to progress from a lethargic 2018 season. Dawid Malan, shunned by England in recent months, is one of many with a massive incentive to make his presence known before the Ashes, as is Nick Gubbins – a man accustomed to being mentioned in Test dispatches without getting much further into the selectors’ thoughts than that.One to watch: After missing the last Ashes tour with a stress fracture of the back, and suffering a relapse the following spring, Roland-Jones has endured a long and lonely season of rehabilitation. But in his absence, no one among England’s emergingseamers has truly matched the potential that he showed in his first four Tests against South Africa and West Indies in 2017. Prior to that, of course, he capped the 2016 season by taking a hat-trick against Yorkshire to secure Middlesex’s first Championship for 23years. His fitness and availability will be crucial to their promotion challenge. AMBet365: 11/4NorthamptonshireJason Holder in a relaxed mood at West Indies’ training•Getty ImagesLast season: 9th
Coach: David Ripley
Captain: Alex Wakely
Overseas players: Jason Holder (April-May), Temba Bavuma (May-July)
Ins: Blessing Muzarabani, Ben Cotton, Luke Wood (loan)
Outs: Ben Duckett, Richard Gleeson, Steven CrookFor the Wantage Road “Crazy Gang”, there was not too much to celebrate in 2018. The Championship side struggled to string together consistent performances, while they lost their T20 mojo, too, winning just two of 14 games in the Blast. Having been run on a shoestring for some time, marshalling their limited resources to good effect, Northamptonshire’s good fortune ran out as injuries bit into a small playing squad. Towards the end of the season, they gave up the fight to keep Ben Duckett, while Richard Gleeson was lured back to his native Lancashire and talismanic allrounder Steven Crook announced his retirement.Those gaps will be hard to fill, although they have acquired a couple of high-quality overseas players to help compensate: Jason Holder – totem of West Indies’ remarkable Test series victory over England – is expected to feature twice in the Championship, before Temba Bavuma joins for the middle chunk of the season. Zimbabwean quick Blessing Muzarabani, signed on a Kolpak deal, also looks an exciting prospect and should complement a strong seam attack led by Ben Sanderson and Ben Hutton. Finding runs from somewhere remains the major challenge as Northants seek to push for one of the three promotion spots on offer.One to watch: The Curran family have benefited England to the tune of two international bowlers, but the third brother is a top-order batsman looking to make his mark at county level. Ben Curran may never get quite as far as Tom and Sam, but having won a contract at Northants last year, he finished the season in good form and will be aiming to kick on. AGBet365: 33-1SussexOllie Robinson celebrates a wicket•Getty ImagesLast season: 3rd (Div. 2)
Coach: Jason Gillespie
Captain: Ben Brown
Overseas players: Mir Hamza (April-July), Will Sheffield
Outs: Stuart WhittinghamMuch interest at Hove centres on exciting Barbados-born allrounders Jofra Archer and Chris Jordan, both of whom could be missing for chunks of the season, with Archer at the IPL and in the frame for a World Cup berth, having secured the right to play for England, and Jordan having done no harm to his World Cup chances with a Player-of-the-Series performance in England’s T20s against West Indies. Archer was Sussex’s second-highest wicket-taker last season with 42 from the eight games he played at 17.85.Ollie Robinson’s haul of 74 wickets was second only to New Zealand international Matt Henry at Kent as Robinson thrived under the guidance of coach Jason Gillespie. Sussex are a largely settled side, with Gillespie returning and overseas signing Mir Hamza and youth pathway graduate Will Sheffield the only new arrivals, while Stuart Whittingham has departed for Gloucestershire. With three promotion places up for grabs, Sussex are bound to be in the mix.One to watch: Phil Salt’s 739 runs last season put him second for the club behind captain Ben Brown and included 148 off 138 balls against Derbyshire, his second century in an eye-catching first full season with Sussex. VBBet365: 7-2WorcestershireWayne Parnell claimed two in two balls•Getty ImagesLast season: 8th
Coach: Alex Gidman
Captain: Joe Leach
Overseas players: Hamish Rutherford (April), Callum Ferguson (May-Sept)
Ins: Wayne Parnell, Adam Finch, Riki Wessels
Outs: Steve Magoffin, Joe Clarke, Alex HepburnThe recruitment of Riki Wessels from Nottinghamshire looks even more promising after he blasted 97 off 51 in a pre-season game against Warwickshire. Also amongst the runs were Ross Whiteley, Alex Milton and Ed Barnard in possible signs of things to come, and that is without considering the impact overseas player Callum Ferguson is expected to have following his successful white-ball stint last season, which yielded three centuries, including 192 against Leicestershire on his Royal London Cup debut.Securing Wayne Parnell on a Kolpak deal freed up the overseas spot for Ferguson but also locked in a valuable allrounder for a side expecting to miss Moeen Ali for much of the season to England duty. Parnell can contribute strongly to a bowling attack led by Barnard and boosted by the return of previously injured fellow seamers Joe Leach, the team’s workhorse captain, and rising star Josh Tongue.One to watch: While still a teenager, Dillon Pennington emerged last season to play eight matches and become his team’s fourth-highest wicket-taker with 22 at 35.36. Having “blown away” Surrey’s Morne Morkel when their sides met, Pennington – now 20 – has height, strength and speed to make serious inroads as a regular in the bowling line-up. VBBet365: 8-1

And besides Angelo Perera, who is the only other player to score two double-centuries in a first-class match?

Steven Lynch12-Feb-2019I recently stood in some T20 matches in a tournament in Oman. Please could you confirm that I was the first woman to umpire a men’s international match? asked Shivani Mishra from Qatar

It’s always nice to get a query from the person concerned, Shivani Mishra. And it’s even nicer to be able to confirm that you are, as far as I know, the first woman to umpire an official men’s international. The matches in question came during the recent Asian Cricket Council Western Region T20 tournament in Oman. It was won by Saudi Arabia, who beat Qatar in the final in Al-Amarat. It was the first men’s tournament to benefit from the ICC’s decision last year to extend T20 status to representative teams of all member countries, which came into force on January 1.There have been female umpires in senior men’s cricket before, but none at full international level. To name a few, Pat Carrick stood in 15 first-class matches in New Zealand in the 1980s, while more recently another New Zealander Kathy Cross, Australia’s Claire Polosak, and Jacqueline Williams from Jamaica have also umpired men’s matches. One interesting case is the current Ireland international wicketkeeper Mary Waldron, who is also a qualified umpire: she stood in a men’s match between Ireland Wolves (their A team) and Bangladesh A in Dublin last August.Angelo Perera just scored two double-centuries in a first-class match. Apparently this has happened only once before. Who did it? asked Hemachandra Silva from Sri Lanka

That remarkable feat by Angelo Perera – who’s known as “Little Angelo” to distinguish him from “Big Angelo” Mathews – came while he was captaining Nondescripts against the Sinhalese Sports Club at the P Sara Oval in Colombo last week. Perera, who played six white-ball internationals for Sri Lanka between 2013 and 2016 but didn’t reach double figures in any of them, followed 201 in the first innings against SSC with 231 in the second as Nondescripts batted out time for a draw.The only other man to achieve the feat did so a long time ago. In England in July 1938, Kent’s Arthur Fagg made 244 and 202 not out in a County Championship against Essex in Colchester. Fagg, who later became a Test umpire, nearly pulled off another remarkable double in that match: he scored a century before lunch on the first day, and 98 in 90 minutes before lunch on the third.No one repeated Fagg’s feat until Perera managed it, although we should perhaps mention Graham Gooch (for England against India at Lord’s in 1990) and Kumar Sangakkara (for Sri Lanka v Bangladesh in Chittagong in 2013-14), who both made a triple-century and a (single) hundred in the same Test match.When was the last time a Test team was made up of 11 right-hand batsmen? And have there ever been 11 left-handers in a team? asked Michael O’Rourke from England

The last Test team entirely made up of right-hand batsmen was fielded by India against West Indies in Port-of-Spain in 2016: Shikhar Dhawan, a left-hander, played in the first three Tests but missed this one. India had also done this in two Tests in Sri Lanka the previous year; Pakistan played eight Tests around this time with 11 right-handers in the side. It was more common in years gone by: in all, there have been 323 Test teams in which all 11 players were right-hand batsmen.There hasn’t yet been a Test side in which all 11 players batted left-handed. The record is eight, which has happened three times: by West Indies against Pakistan in Georgetown in 1999-2000, and a few months later against England at The Oval; and by England against Australia in Sydney in 2013-14.Arthur Fagg scored 244 and 202 in a county match against Essex, the second double-century coming in only 170 minutes•Getty ImagesI noticed that Tabraiz Shamsi has played 12 T20Is so far without scoring a run. Is this a record? asked Dinesh Manraj from the West Indies

The South African left-arm wristspinner Tabraiz Shamsi has indeed played a dozen T20Is so far without scoring a run (mainly because he’s only been needed to face five balls so far. Four other players didn’t score a run in their first 12 matches: Jasprit Bumrah of India, Krishmar Santokie of West Indies, Ish Sodhi of New Zealand and Umar Gul of Pakistan.Santokie only ever played 12 matches, so never did get off the mark. Sodhi opened his account in his 13th match, and now has a princely 50 runs from 33 games, while Gul also scored his first runs in his 13th game, and ended up with no fewer than 165 (from 60 appearances). The record is held by Bumrah, who finally got off the mark in his 27th match, in which he amassed 7 against Australia, in Guwahati in October 2017.Shamsi has also failed to trouble the scorers in his 13 one-day internationals. He’s one of seven to get that far without troubling the scorers (Bumrah is another). The record is held by the Australian fast bowler Doug Bollinger, who didn’t score his first run until his 20th ODI.Waqas Maqsood of Pakistan recently made his T20I debut on his birthday. Has anyone else ever done this? asked Qamaruddin Sadiq from Pakistan

The Pakistan left-arm seamer Waqas Maqsood played his first T20I – against New Zealand in Dubai – on November 4 last year, which was his 31st birthday. He’s actually the first player to make his T20 debut on his birthday (it was his overall international debut too).There have been 12 men who made their Test debut on their birthday, including another current Pakistan player, Shan Masood, in 2013-14. And 14 men have marked their birthday by making their one-day international debut, the most recent being Binod Bhandari of Nepal (against UAE in Dubai last month, and New Zealand’s George Worker (against South Africa in Potchefstroom in August 2015). Both Bhandari and Worker had previously appeared in T20Is.Use our feedback form or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

Eoin Morgan says allrounder is ‘at the top of his game’ as home fans sing team’s praises

George Dobell30-May-2019″Cricket’s coming home,” they sang as the players left the field. And while such celebration was no doubt premature, the enthusiasm was understandable.For this was a deeply impressive start from England. This South Africa team is dangerous – they are No. 3 in the world rankings, after all – and winning the toss in these conditions was a significant advantage. Victory may well settle some nerves in their dressing room.But perhaps as important as the win was the manner in which it was achieved. We have known for some time that, on good batting tracks, England’s batsmen could dominate. We knew they had a Plan A. And we have known for some time that Ben Stokes was a cricketer of supreme natural talent who could, on his day, win games with bat, ball and in the field. The catch he took here – described by Faf du Plessis as “as good as it gets” and Eoin Morgan as “unbelievable” – was a reminder of that.But questions remained about how England could adapt on surfaces requiring more subtlety. Surfaces where bowlers could gain purchase with cutters or spin and where 280 might be considered par. Surfaces where they required a Plan B. The last ODI they played against South Africa in this country saw England subside to 20 for 6 in bowler-friendly conditions. You don’t win many games from that position.And perhaps a few questions remained about Stokes’ form. His naturally aggressive game isn’t ideally suited to such circumstances and he hasn’t been quite the same irrepressible figure since he returned to the side in February 2018. He endured, by his standards, a modest IPL season – he averaged 20.50 with the bat and failed to make a 50 – too.So for Stokes to oversee an England effort when Plan B was applied so effectively was all the more pleasing from an England perspective. There was a moment, after the drinks break that was taken when England had faced 34 overs, when it seemed Stokes had the license to unleash his full aggression. Four of his next nine deliveries were hit to the boundary and it seemed the foot would be kept on the accelerator.But then Morgan fell. And with Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali following not long afterwards, Stokes reasoned that his role was to ensure England adopted Plan B. So instead of looking for boundaries – he hit only one more in the next 11 overs – he instead concentrated on placing the ball into gaps, running hard and saving something for a burst in the final three or four overs. It was a calm, mature performance from a man – and a team – more characterised for their aggression and passion.”The pitch was slow,” Morgan said. “It never allowed you to get away and strike the ball like we would do for Plan A.”But one of the areas of our game that has improved last two years is the way we’ve assessed conditions and played more smart cricket. We build partnerships and put a total on the board we believe is enough. At the halfway stage we didn’t believe that we had enough but we believe we had around par.”That is significant progress. A couple of years ago, in their desire to reach 350, England may well have struggled to make 250. Here, on a surface where Moeen reckoned 270-290 was par, England still managed to surpass 300 (the 39th time they have done so since the 2015 tournament; they had managed it just 34 times in total in the 40-plus years they had been playing in this format previously) with Stokes registering his highest score in any format of international cricket since August 2017.To add a wonder catch and two wickets to the performance underlined his immense value to the side. He later described it as “a perfect day.””The best thing about being an all-rounder is being able to influence the game for the whole 100 overs,” he said. “It’s always nice when you can contribute to the team winning.”But the most pleasing thing is we have got the first game out of the way. There were a few nerves knocking about – there definitely were for me; I have not felt like that in a long time – so it’s great to walk away with a win.”Morgan said: “He’s at the top of his game. When he plays like that is extremely entertaining. It’s great for the game. His all-round game was on and that’s great for us at the start of the tournament.”Moeen agreed with Stokes’ assessment of the team’s mindset: “Everyone was nervous. Losing the toss, starting at 10.30am and being both the home and No. 1 ranked side, it felt like the pressure was on. We adapted really well. That’s a great win that really settles the nerves.”This was not a one-man performance, by any means. Three other men scored half-centuries, while Jofra Archer’s new-ball burst made vital inroads into the South African batting.”No-one wants to face him,” Moeen said afterwards. “He’s the fastest bowler I’ve ever faced. He unsettles people.”England’s fielding was also rated by Stokes as their “best for a couple of years,” while all the bowlers could feel satisfied with their day’s work.But Stokes is a talismanic player for England. If he is edging back towards his best – and, bearing in mind he made a match-winning 71 against Pakistan two ODIs ago, all the evidence suggests he is – England have an all-rounder that can shape games in every discipline and who gives them enviable depth with bat and ball.By the end of this game, his smile was as broad as at any time in many, many months. It all bodes well for England.

They’re in the unusual position of not being favourites at the start of a World Cup, and they’re relishing the feeling

Osman Samiuddin at The Oval28-May-2019Admit it. If you’re not South African – and maybe even if you are – South Africa have kind of slipped under your radar.Sure, you’re excited about Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi. You’re hoping dearly that Dale Steyn will be fit again, one last time.Your respect for Hash is so vast that you feel like he, more than any other professional sportsperson, deserves a global trophy. Quinton, you remember whenever you see him, is a genuine white-ball monster who isn’t celebrated as much as he should be. Imran gives so much to everything he does and now he’s going and he should get some back. And Faf is probably your favourite captain if Kane Williamson doesn’t exist.Right about now, putting all these feelings together, you’re probably wondering why you don’t see them as dead-on for the last four. India walk into it. England break the door down to it. Australia, you’ve cottoned on, have a better team than you were led to believe this time last year. And it’s tournament play, so those five World Cup wins must mean something. So those three for sure.Then, you think, New Zealand are too good to not get there. And West Indies are turning 50-over batting into a Twenty20 innings times two plus 10 and they’ve won two World T20s and have the game’s most explosive player. And aren’t Pakistan on exactly the kind of 123-game losing streak that means they win this whole thing?Which leaves South Africa where? The default is: It’s South Africa! This is a World Cup! They’ll find a way to win it, but they’ll get close. They always do. Except this time, it’s not the default. It’s not really what you’re thinking.Quinton de Kock plays down to fine-leg•Associated PressIt’s an unusual position for them to be in, for you to not be thinking about them as one of the favourites. South Africa are, famously, an in-between-World-Cups side: great records between tournaments, which end up obliterated by one game.Between the 1996 and 1999 World Cups, for example, they had the best win-loss ratio of any side, by far, which meant zilch when Lance Klusener took off for that run. Between that World Cup and 2003 their win-loss ratio was second only to an all-time great Australia side and they still couldn’t read a DLS par scoresheet. Second-best again between that World Cup and the next one, and undone by themselves in St Lucia. Second-best side on win-loss until 2011 and you probably don’t even remember how they fluffed it then (Jesse Ryder, Jacob Oram and Nathan McCullum, if you’re curious).They arrive this time with only the third-best win-loss ratio since Grant Elliott ruined their happiness and, as the childhood rhyme has it, third is the one with the hairy chest and nothing else. Mine a little deeper, and you’ll see that their record against the six top-ranked sides in that time is 25 wins and 19 losses. A winning record is a winning record but South Africa used to boss these numbers.The bowling should be able to look after itself against most teams, but you wonder sometimes about the batting, reliant heavily at the moment on de Kock, Faf and David Miller. But the thing is, they don’t seem to mind at all that they’re not rated. They’re not going to have Steyn for probably the first two games and if Ottis Gibson is panicking, he’s hiding it damn well.Hashim Amla’s form since the start of 2018 is patchy and Gibson’s very chill about it: “Hashim is Hashim. He’s played well. He’s had a little dip in form.”Faf du Plessis plays on the off side•Getty ImagesGibson was even talking candidly about the possibility of losing the tournament opener on Thursday. It’s just one game out of nine, or 11; you want to start well, but it doesn’t matter what happens in this game; if not Thursday, then we have another game Sunday and so on.He is right. The format is such that a first-day loss is hardly terminal. But hello? What’s really happening here? This is South Africa, who bring 200% intensity and 300% focus to rock, paper, scissors; who come like highly-strung balls of tension, bouncing off the walls waiting to implode or explode.The trick Gibson could be playing is on his opponents and former employers. England are the ones under the spotlight. Hosts. Favourites. Number one side. They make the play on Thursday. They’re the ones with most to lose.”I heard somewhere that both of my two very good friends [James] Anderson and [Stuart] Broad have said that England have to do something really bad to not win this World Cup,” Gibson said. “As far as they are concerned, England have won it already.”So we just have to turn up and play. If we play our best, if it’s not good enough on Thursday, then we have another game on Sunday, then Thursday, and we go on in the tournament. Our aim is to be in the tournament at the back end. That’s why playing England in the first game – obviously it’s still a big game – but if we don’t win that game, it doesn’t matter because we got other games and we can still have a really strong impact on this tournament.”It’s a smart play. Don’t aim low, but don’t – publicly at least – aim too high. Let expectations be other people’s problems. Sit back, let the tournament wash over you, rather than you diving into it, all manic. Stay under that radar.

A reckoner on the ICC’s suspension of Zimbabwe due to government interference

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jul-2019July 30News – Zimbabwe players ready to play for free to keep game aliveNews – Report for work or face consequences, Zimbabwe Cricket interim committee tells employeesJuly 27News – Hamilton Masakadza hints at dressing-room rift in letter to sports ministerJuly 24News – ‘There has been no government interference’ – Zimbabwe minister of sport
News – ‘Unconditionally’ reinstate elected board or risk loss of membership, ICC tells ZCJuly 23Explainer – Zimbabwe’s ICC suspension and its implicationsJuly 22News – Solomon Mire retires from Zimbabwe cricket
News – ICC bars four Zimbabwe women cricketers from Global Development SquadJuly 20News – Zimbabwe not to travel to Bangladesh for T20I tri-series
News – Sounds like ICC have had enough with Zimbabwe cricket – Grant FlowerJuly 19News – ‘Do we just burn our kits and apply for jobs?’ – Sikandar RazaJuly 18News – Zimbabwe suspended by ICC over ‘government interference’June 30News – Zimbabwe turmoil continues as women’s tour of Ireland cancelledJune 27News – Struggle for control over Zimbabwe Cricket continuesJune 21News – Entire Zimbabwe Cricket board, acting MD Givemore Makoni suspendedJune 17News – Tavengwa Mukuhlani’s re-election puts Zimbabwe Cricket in conflict with government body

Captain heralds blend of youth and experience after sealing Championship crown

Andrew Miller at Chelmsford28-Sep-20190:39

I woke up between Cook and Westley – Ten Doeschate

Even the weather was doing the double on Friday evening at Chelmsford, as the great and good of Essex County Cricket Club braved the autumnal downpours at the County Ground, to don their glad-rags and celebrate the end of a truly remarkable season.”We love the rain now!” joked Ryan ten Doeschate, Essex’s captain, whose team had been so indebted to four days of dampness in Taunton this week, and the appearance of a double rainbow over the Hayes Close End seemed to confirm that the feeling was mutual.For in fraught scenes on the final afternoon of the season, Essex were required to stand firm against Somerset’s spinners to seal the draw that kept their nearest challengers at arm’s length in the race for the County Championship.And it meant that, as they boarded the team bus for a long and boozy journey back from the West Country, they were finally able to celebrate the first of their week’s twin triumphs as well, having clinched their maiden T20 Blast title in an epic final against Worcestershire on Saturday evening.”Yeah, we gave it a little nudge on Saturday night, because that was a very rare occasion for the club, and after all the hard work that goes in, it is important to celebrate that success,” ten Doeschate told ESPNcricinfo. “But after that week in Taunton, it’s just starting to sink in now. The boys deserve to enjoy the occasion.””Sometimes, getting to the latter stages of the white-ball stuff is all you can do, then you just throw your name in the hat and have a crack at it,” he added. “But the resolve was there this year to change the mindset, to say we are going to focus on white-ball but still drive the red-ball as well. It was a bit of a fairytale, the way the white-ball stuff came together, but the combination of hard work and good luck has resulted in two trophies.”ALSO READ: Essex ride their luck to make off with T20 spoilsThere were a fair few sore heads lining up for Essex’s end-of-season awards night, the captain not least among them, as he pressed on for as long as his 39 years could carry him with a couple of fellow veterans for company in the small hours.”I woke up in my whites,” he admitted. “We sat on the outfield for a couple more hours [after returning from Taunton], had a few more beers, then tucked into the changing room towards the end.”It was nice to wake up in the coach’s office with Alastair Cook on my left shoulder and Tom Westley on my right, the three older guys who couldn’t slug it out all the way to the end. It was quite amazing, there was no need to go to a nightclub or a bar, just to be around with the guys who you’ve fought with all year is a very special time.”

“We knew the wicket was going to be horrendous, but we didn’t know quite how bad”Ryan ten Doeschate

That fighting extended right into the final afternoon of the season, as Somerset clawed desperately against their destiny in the Championship decider, claiming six wickets in 32 balls on the final afternoon, before forfeiting their second innings to leave Essex a dicey hour for survival.”It was a weird one,” Ten Doeschate admitted. “The weather kept pushing us back time-wise, and I felt by the latter stage of day three, we’d done enough.”We knew the wicket was going to be horrendous but we didn’t know quite how bad, and the fact they were bowling spin throughout meant they raced through the overs, and you literally felt that every ball was a challenge, you could get out every single ball.”Fortunately for Essex, they had in their ranks a man whose mighty performances at venues at far-flung as Abu Dhabi and Ahmedabad might have been a dry-run for the rearguard he was now being asked to perform. Alastair Cook’s twin innings of 53 and 30 not out might not look like much in the grander scheme of the summer, but such knowhow at key moments of the campaign ultimately made the difference for the champions.”The nerves were pretty high but when you’ve got a seasoned pro like Alastair Cook, who’s won the Ashes and series in India, he’s really played against the best,” said ten Doeschate. “Even so, when he’s worried about the wicket, you know what you are up against. But Browny [Nick Browne] and Cooky, and Tommy [Westley] through the middle session yesterday, nullified that threat. I know it was close towards the end but I never felt they would bowl us out in even half a session.”The strength of purpose that delivered Essex’s second Championship pennant in three seasons wasn’t entirely replicated in their extraordinary (and improbable) run to the T20 Blast title, although it ultimately came down to a similar strength of character, with Simon Harmer’s heroics with bat and ball on Finals Day replicating his incredible dominance in Championship cricket, and Ravi Bopara rolling back the years with a string of performances that only a man of his experience could have compiled.”Harmy’s led the attack,” said ten Doeschate, “which you don’t often say about a spinner, even on non-turning wickets. He’s the first you turn to when it gets shaky, and he delivers every time.”He loves being in the fight, he walks the walk and talks the talk, and that’s the special thing about him. He always wants the ball, he’s always leading by example, and he’s just a fantastic spinner. Firstly there’s the skill he has, his control and ability to change the pace, and then he reads the situation so well. It’s been special being out there with him for the last three years.”As for Bopara, his frustration at being asked to perform an unfamiliar finisher’s role in the T20 campaign was an open secret, but without him at No. 6 there would have been no white-ball miracle, as Essex battled back from winning just two of their first ten matches (including wash-outs) to cap their campaign with five straight wins, and seven out of eight including a tie against Hampshire.There was a valedictory air to Bopara’s heroics in the final, as he resuscitated the chase with 36 not out from 22 balls before being invited by Harmer, the white-ball captain, to share the honours when lifting the trophy. But despite continued uncertainty about his status at a club for whom he made his first-class debut as a 17-year-old in 2002, ten Doeschate had his fingers crossed that the end was not nigh.”I certainly hope not,” he said. “Ravi has been here longer than anyone – he certainly signed before Cooky and myself – and he’s phenomenal around the changing room. In the last six or seven games in the T20 he’s shown just how good he is.”We’ve asked him to do different roles which he hasn’t always bought into, but as soon as he did it, he showed he’s one of the best finishers in the world and a decent bowler too. Fingers crossed, we can keep him here, because the numbers are one thing, but at the sharp end, the true mark of a player is the times they step up.Ryan ten Doeschate is drenched is bubbly by his team-mates•Getty Images”For him to deliver in six must-win games in a row, particularly the 70 off 39 at The Oval, the quarter-final at Lancashire and in both finals, he was able to show calmness in those situations because he’s done it so many times before. Harmy’s the figurehead for the red ball but I’d say the same for Ravi in the white-ball stuff.”But time waits for no man, even at a club where the trophies are starting to roll in, and ten Doeschate himself recognised that the county’s second Championship in three seasons might well have to mark a watershed as the team uses the experience gleaned from such a run of success to build for the future.ALSO READ: How Essex and Somerset share values that English cricket squanders at its peril“There’s a lot of wise heads who’ve played a lot of cricket in our dressing room,” said ten Doeschate. “But then you mix that up with guys like Dan Lawrence, Sam Cook, Aaron Beard, who go for it with carefree, youthful exuberance. Sometimes we have to slow the younger guys down a bit, but sometimes they give us the lift to fight against ridiculous odds, which hasn’t always been the case at Essex.”It’s very lucky that this success has been so heavily loaded towards the back end of my career,” he added. “I’ve loved playing for the club, I love the lads so much, and it’s been a real honour to lead the team for the last four years. But I think need to take stock for the next week or two, take guidance from guys like Graham Gooch, Keith Fletcher and Ronnie Irani.”I want to keep playing but I am deeply aware there’s a time to move on, and with young players coming through, the No. 6 position is a good place to blood people. So we will take stock this week. There’s no rush to make a decision.”

More than one local youngster made a mark, while the regular T20 stars did their reputations no harm

Mohammad Isam18-Jan-2020Mohammad Naim: 359 runs, SR 115.43, two 50s
There was a lot of focus on Naim after his breakthrough international series in India, where he made 81 in the third T20I. Naim didn’t disappoint, at times matching his more illustrious opening partner Shane Watson stroke for stroke. He finished with just two fifties – a 78 and a 55 – but whenever he got going, it was at a high strike rate, not always a given with Bangladeshi openers.Liton Das: 455 runs, SR 134.21, three 50s
He is now a different batsman, who relies on playing fewer strokes but trying to create maximum impact. Liton had a poor outing in the final, though his team won, but being one half of the best partnership in the tournament – with Afif Hossain – and scoring quick runs all the way through should make him happy.Rilee Rossouw: 495 runs, SR 155.17, four 50s
For the second season in a row, Rossouw finished as the tournament’s top run-getter, topping Mushfiqur Rahim by just four runs. He couldn’t quite create an impact in the final, his dismissal by Mohammad Nawaz pivotal in the outcome, but the South African scored a lot of runs very quickly for Khulna Tigers. In his team’s best phase, he made four fifties, and also took some fantastic catches in the playoffs.Mushfiqur Rahim finished second on the run-scorers’ list•Raton Gomes/BCBMushfiqur Rahim (wk): 491 runs, SR 147.00, four 50s
There was a lot of talk about Mushfiqur finally getting a crack at a BPL trophy, but it wasn’t to be. He, however, got the next best thing: a lot of runs. He also had a high strike rate, particularly in chases. The trophy eluded him, but four fifties and a runner-up finish aren’t bad takeaways. Mushfiqur, who has had a tough time in previous BPLs, did his bit this time.Dawid Malan: 444 runs at 145.09 SR, one 100, three 50s
His 54-ball century against Rajshahi didn’t come in a win, but Malan was one of the bright spots for Cumilla Warriors overall. They had an ordinary campaign, finishing second from bottom. Malan did his best, but would have wanted to have a bit more impact in a relatively young team where he was one of the senior overseas pros.Andre Russell (capt): 225 runs, SR 180.00, one 50; 14 wickets, ER 8.75
The man of the tournament. Russell played the entire tournament for Rajshahi, and contributed when it mattered. It is his first trophy as a captain in a T20 competition, which should be an encouraging sign for other teams that have him in their ranks. Russell proved to be the perfect leader for Rajshahi, who needed a bit of guidance as well as firepower in their line-up. Russell also contributed with the ball, taking 14 wickets, but it would be his telling innings in the second qualifier that Rajshahi would remember most fondly.Mahedi Hasan: 253 runs, SR 136.02, three 50s; 12 wickets, ER 6.76
It was an interesting campaign for the young offspinner. After a few games, the Dhaka Platoon management promoted him up to the top of the order, and he promptly delivered two half-centuries. His bowling was steady, with occasional glimpses of wicket-taking ability. He topped Mehidy Hasan among the young allrounders, and could win a place in the Bangladesh team for the T20I series against Pakistan.Mehedi Hasan Rana was the most impressive of the local fast bowlers•Chattogram ChallengersMohammad Amir: 20 wickets, ER 7.05
The Pakistani left-arm quick had a good time in the BPL. He not only took the wickets, but bowled with a lot of heart. His 6 for 17 in the first qualifier against Rajshahi was his best performance, as he ripped through the top order and then came back to remove the threat from Shoaib Malik. He would have loved to repeat the feat in the final, against the same opponents, but it wasn’t to be.Mujeeb Ur Rahman: 15 wickets, ER 5.06He was the only bowler to return an economy rate of under 6 – 5.06 – while picking up 15 wickets. Mujeeb was at his best in the powerplay overs, but at times worked well in the second half of the innings too. Cumilla, who didn’t have a great bowling line-up, ended up rationing Mujeeb’s overs, which meant he didn’t always get to bowl when he wanted to. His best performance was when he gave away just seven runs in the Super Over against Sylhet Thunder after having picked up four wickets in the game.Mehedi Hasan Rana: 18 wickets, ER 7.50
He was the most impressive among the young fast bowlers from the domestic pack, but Rana’s figures and confidence must have been dented by Russell’s big-hitting in the second qualifier. He did keep Chattogram Challengers in a good place on the points table with two four-wicket hauls in the first half of the tournament, and then showed consistency with his lengths and lines, as well as fitness and eagerness to improve. Another newcomer who could earn a call-up to the Bangladesh T20I side against Pakistan later this month.Mustafizur Rahman: 20 wickets, ER 7.01
He didn’t have a lot of great games, but 20 wickets at an average of 15.60 would certainly encourage Mustafizur. He had been struggling in all formats in the last few months, and his tendency to go for runs has been cause for major concern. Selector Habibul Bashar even criticised him during the tournament, but he came back well in the back-end of the league phase.

At the end of a year mostly spent out of the Sri Lanka team, he’s made a potentially series-defining contribution

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Karachi20-Dec-2019There is almost a novel here. A talented wicketkeeper from the southwest gets spotted by a big Colombo school in his teens. Goes on to lead that school to their best season ever. He quickly gets picked up by the national squad, and at first glimpse of this guy, the public is enchanted. He’s organised, but there’s also that manic fun of a schoolboy. He swings so hard at the ball his limbs could go flying off. By 23, he is Sri Lanka’s T20I captain – their youngest ever.So far, the Dinesh Chandimal story is a two-bit paperback.Brace yourself, because here come the twists, the complications, the conflicts, the intrigue, and the nuance. Halfway through his first World T20 campaign, Chandimal is relieved of his captaincy is and ditched from the XI altogether, because he’s not making runs. Officially he steps down voluntarily, but in actual fact, the team management and senior players put an apologetic arm around his shoulder and give him no real choice: “Let the big boys take it from here, Chandi.” Sri Lanka would then go on to win that tournament.In subsequent years, as a weakness against the bouncer reveals itself, and he gets haphazardly thrust into batting positions he is unsuited for, he is at one point pulled out of a Test squad mid-series and packed off overseas to play in a Sri Lanka A tour. Later he is told by a selector to go back to domestic cricket.But the currents of Sri Lankan cricket are as fickle as they are volatile. They can pull you gasping into roiling waters, but just as abruptly they can wash you right ashore. So in mid-2017, long after he has traded his spirited schoolboy aggression for a dour, Test-match stubbornness, he gets handed the Test captaincy. At first it goes okay – a Test series win against Pakistan in the UAE, which no other team had accomplished in seven years. But then eventually, and perhaps through no major fault of Chandimal himself, the dangerous currents are at him again. There are series losses at home against England, and away against New Zealand and Australia. By mid-February this year, he has not only been dumped as captain, he has been axed from the Test squad entirely.Of all the crazinesses of Sri Lanka’s year, one of the strangest images is of Chandimal watching Sri Lanka’s series in South Africa on television. He’s their only batsman with more than 10 Test centuries. He averages over 40, when no one on that South Africa tour does. And yet, there he is at home, for the second time in his career, forced to watch a team he was just captain of surging to an all-time great triumph without him.Dinesh Chandimal struck a crucial fifty•Getty ImagesHis year has been even stranger than the team’s. For nine months, he didn’t appear once for Sri Lanka, in any format. In August he was picked in the Test squad to play New Zealand, but was running drinks, not earning a place in the XI. On his return to Tests, in Rawalpindi, he got that unplayable ball of the match from Mohammad Abbas – one further kick in the gonads. Such has been his luck, it was almost a surprise the selectors didn’t take the opportunity to drop him for his two-ball duck.The 78 on Friday invoked so many pages of the Chandimal story. There was first the inflexibly defensive Chandimal circa 2016-2018, as he played out 14 run-less balls first up. Off his first 20 deliveries, he only had one run. Just when you began to be convinced this was going to be one of Chandimal innings – like his 62 off 195 against Pakistan in Dubai, or his 27 off 83 against West Indies in Port of Spain, a sudden, rasping slash past gully off Shaheen Afridi, and then a flayed cover drive off Mohammad Abbas next over. Could this be a re-awakening of that Chandimal, the one who once came into a hopeless match situation against India, in Galle, and smoked 162 off 169 – an innings of pure anarchy to turn the Test. It is difficult to believe not just that these two Chandimals can inhabit the same body, but that these two types of innings could be produced by the same species.There were tussles with the short ball. The Chandimal of 2014 just yearning to unleash that wild and often fatal hook shot that saw him bounced the moment he came to the crease for at least a year of his career. There were pokes outside off stump, the kind he’d tried to iron out of his game with batting coach Marvan Atapattu all those years back. Like much of his career, Chandimal was doing just enough to survive without ever truly blossoming.He’d scratch around, looking like any moment he would offer a nick to any one of the quicks. Then out of nowhere, one of those manic, hard-swung drives, like the disdainful, top-of-the-bounce shot through cover off Abbas that got him to fifty. A few overs later, against Naseem Shah, he reeled off three boundaries in five balls, through square leg, then point, then another one through cover. As with his career, the only thing that didn’t bring him much trouble was spin.For a Test side that has spent so much of 2019 looking completely out of their depth, and yet somehow repeatedly hauling themselves towards respectability, Chandimal’s day-two innings was a near-perfect fit. Without him, Sri Lanka might have conceded a first-innings deficit. Thanks to him they have a decent chance. What the knock will personally mean for Chandimal – whether it will shore up his place, whether a second-innings failure will put him on the rocks again with the selectors, whether the selectors themselves get dumped and the new set promote Chandimal to a position of leadership yet – those chapters, in a wildly spiraling story, all that is yet to be written.