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Zimbabwe seamer Brian Vitori has been reported for a suspect action following the third T20 international against Bangladesh

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jan-2016Zimbabwe left-arm seamer Brian Vitori has been reported for a suspect action following the third T20 international against Bangladesh. Vitori will have to undergo a test on his action at an ICC-accredited centre within 14 days but can continue bowling in international cricket until the results are out.The ICC said that the match officials’ report had been handed over to the Zimbabwe team management after their 31-run victory in Khulna.Vitori, 25, has played four Tests, 19 ODIs and 11 T20s for Zimbabwe after making his international debut in August 2011.The ICC also confirmed that Netherlands seamer Ahsan Malik had been cleared to bowl in international cricket following remedial work on his action and a retest.”Since being reported in July during last year’s ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier, Ahsan had remodeled his bowling action prior to applying to have his action re-tested,” the ICC said. “The result shows that the level of elbow extension measured for all deliveries bowled was now within the 15-degree level of tolerance permitted under the ICC regulations.”

Murali Kartik has given his whole-hearted support to the West Indies at a time when they have been criticised for mankading a Zimbabwe batsmen to get through to the Under-19 World Cup quarter-finals

Gaurav Kalra03-Feb-20165:33

‘People hide behind the spirit of cricket bunker’

Former India spinner Murali Kartik has whole-heartedly backed the West Indies after their controversial win over Zimbabwe at the Under-19 World Cup on Tuesday. West Indies fast bowler Keemo Paul mankaded the last man Richard Ngarava with three runs needed off the final over to help his team through to the quarter-finals. The incident has led to fierce debate but Kartik, who has dismissed three batsmen in such a manner over his playing career, remains steadfast in his belief that a bowler is completely justified in effecting what is just another “mode of dismissal.”Among the arguments given by pundits who were critical of West Indies was that Paul had failed to warn Ngarava. But Kartik argued the rules do not demand that courtesy.”It is one of those things where people are once again going to bring up the spirit of cricket issue,” he told ESPNcricinfo. “It’s very simple; you are not allowed to steal anything in life so stealing anything whether an inch or a yard when it’s a crucial time, it’s not done. People are going to say he wasn’t warned, but the rule is very clear, you are not supposed to leave the popping crease before the bowler delivers the ball. There are different modes of dismissals and this is one of them and I don’t know why people create such a hue and cry about the spirit of cricket.”Most bowlers do warn a batsman before mankading him and Kartik used to do so at least thrice. However, he believes he had the time since he was playing a first-class cricket across four days. Here, West Indies were defending only a handful of runs with six balls left and needed the wicket to progress in a World Cup.”For me the situations were different, I was playing a four-day game,” Kartik said. “I had the time to warn, that was something that was happening for a very long time. I didn’t want to get that person out, I just wanted to warn him and if somebody doesn’t heed to the warnings after three times, then obviously there’s nothing left. Over here, there were just three runs required and the last man was in and they wanted to win the game, so it’s a different situation.”Zimbabwe’s players were visibly distraught after the match, with captain Brandon Mavuta repeatedly saying “No comment” in the post-match presentation ceremony. Their coach Stephen Mangongo was more vocal: “It is my honest and sincere opinion as a coach, who has been coaching this game for nearly two decades, that at youth cricket you want to teach them sportsmanship, you want to teach them to win with honour and valour. And I do not think that they’ve won with honour, by sneaking a run out in such a manner.”Kartik laughed off that view, saying the West Indies players should in fact be complimented for their game awareness in a high-pressure situation.”They are not kids, they are 19-year olds and many people have played for their countries at the age of 14 and 15.” he said. “When you get to that level, there’s no kid, everybody is treated at par, at the end of the day they are playing for their country. If the other team is trying to win by stealing, is that what you are trying to tell everyone that Zimbabwe were trying to win by gaining that extra yard.”I don’t know why people use the word “Mankad”, it should be on the name of the person who is trying to steal that extra advantage. The person who does it is always the one who is vilified but for me, I have always believed whether you steal a rupee or a million rupees, stealing is stealing. They were just trying to win the game. I am glad they know the rules, and somebody was aware enough to see that someone was trying to take unfair advantage in a tight situation.”TV commentator and former Zimbabwe bowler Mpumelelo Mbangwa, in his post-match analysis for the host broadcaster, said he would have wanted the on-field umpires to take charge of the situation and ask if the West Indies captain really wanted to go ahead with the appeal. Other critics have also argued that the intent of the batsman should have been taken into consideration before he was ruled out via a mankad. Was he willfully stepping outside his crease or was it simply the result of a natural urgency that comes with wanting to get the required runs in a tense situation? But Kartik did not entertain those views either and offered a few analogies to back his stance.”When a bowler misses the crease by a micrometer, isn’t it a no ball?” he said. “Or when a run out or a stumping is referred to the third umpire, the line belongs to the umpire, [and] whether you are a millimeter or a micrometer out, you are out.”Let me put another situation [across]. As a spinner, when I am bowling and someone is beaten in the air and he drags the foot by a micrometer, is the keeper going to ask him, ‘Can I stump you or not? Are you out? Are you trying to take a single?’ No, that’s not the case. So, I am really sorry, whether it’s a micrometer or an inch or a mile out, he’s out.”The spirit of cricket is a convenient bunker for people to hide behind. Everybody needs to look into themselves. How many times do people nick and not walk? How many times do people claim catches that aren’t catches and they know it? The situation was such, the kids were trying to win a game and anybody who flouts rules, obviously you have to pay a price.”

The BCCI has banned Pakistani umpire Asad Rauf for five years on charges of corruption and misconduct

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Feb-2016The BCCI has banned Pakistani umpire Asad Rauf for five years on charges of corruption and misconduct. The ban prevents Rauf from umpiring or playing or representing cricket in any form or being associated with activities of the BCCI and its affiliates.

Articles under which Rauf was charged

2.2.2 Soliciting, inducing, enticing, instructing, persuading, encouraging, facilitating or authorising any other party to enter into a Bet for the direct or indirect benefit of the Participant in relation to the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect of any Match or Event.
2.3.2 Disclosing Inside Information to any person (with or without Reward) before or during any Match or Event where the Participant might reasonably be expected to know that disclosure of such information in such circumstances could be used in relation to Betting.
2.3.3 Soliciting, inducing, enticing, persuading, encouraging or facilitating (a) any Participant to commit an offence under any of the foregoing provisions of this Article 2.3 and/or (b) any other person to do any act that would be an offence if that person were a Participant.
2.4.1 Providing or receiving any gift, payment or other benefit (whether of a monetary value or otherwise) in circumstances that the Participant might reasonably have expected could bring him/her or the sport of cricket into disrepute.

Rauf was named as a “wanted accused” in the Mumbai Police’s chargesheet for the betting scandal in IPL 2013 after he had left India during the IPL even as the Mumbai Police wanted to question him in person.The BCCI’s disciplinary committee, in a meeting on Friday, found Rauf guilty of corruption and misconduct under articles 2.2.2, 2.3.2, 2.3.3 and 2.4.1 of the board’s Anti-corruption Code. Rauf did not appear before the committee but sent his preliminary submission on January 15 and a written statement responding to the allegations on February 8. These statements, along with a report by the Commissioner of Enquiry, were considered before the decision to ban him was taken.Rauf repeatedly denied allegations of corruption made against him in the chargesheet and asked for proof. After leaving India in May 2013, where he was officiating in the IPL, Rauf held a press conference and stressed that he had not engaged in any corrupt activities. When news had emerged that Rauf was wanted for questioning by police, the ICC issued a release saying that the umpire had been stood down from his duties in the Champions Trophy in England. Rauf was later dropped from the Elite Panel of Umpires, but the ICC clarified that the situation was not a factor in his exclusion.Rauf made his first international appearance as an umpire in 2000, officiating in an ODI between Pakistan and Sri Lanka. He was included in the Elite Panel in 2006 and has officiated in 49 Tests, 98 ODIs and 23 T20 internationals.

Australia have arrived as a force at the World Twenty20, just in time to wave goodbye to Pakistan, as they completed a 21-run win in Mohali

The Report by Daniel Brettig25-Mar-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsJames Faulkner took his maiden five-wicket haul to help Australia to a 21-run win•Getty Images

Australia have arrived as a force at the World Twenty20, just in time to wave goodbye to Pakistan, as they completed a 21-run win in Mohali. A storming display with the bat was followed by an improved showing with the ball, setting up what will be effectively an elimination match against India in the final match of the Super 10s on Sunday.The captain Steven Smith chose Mohali as the venue where he found his rhythm, in turn modulated then audacious in an innings that controlled the tempo of a strong total. He was helped in large part by Shane Watson, who batted with the air of a man freed of tension by his retirement announcement on match eve. Together, their stand left Pakistan with a total too steep despite friendly batting conditions.In the field, Adam Zampa again bowled with considerable intelligence and character for Australia, winning a duel with Shahid Afridi that Pakistan’s captain could not afford to lose if he wished to stay in contention for the semi-finals. James Faulkner’s over-the-wrist slower balls then cut a swathe through the latter part of the innings as the run rate climbed, leaving him in possession of Australia’s best T20 bowling figures.Pakistan’s chase began firmly, as Sharjeel Khan, Khalid Latif and Umar Akmal all played with considerable flair. Nathan Coulter-Nile was subjected to some particularly harsh treatment, and at 85 for 2 in the 11th over the match was overmuch open to Afridi’s men.However, Zampa showed his nerve by finding a way past Akmal, and two overs later followed up by coaxing Afridi down the wicket. The stumping was completed without fuss by Peter Nevill, who has provided a steadying presence behind the stumps in this tournament even though he is not in the batsman-wicketkeeper mode that has become dominant in the 21st century.From there the required rate climbed with increasing steepness, too much even for Shoaib Malik, who hit out firmly at the end. Australia’s lack of a second spin bowler to support Zampa has been a point of some contention, but Faulkner’s past as a left-arm wrist spinner has helped him assemble a strong array of change-ups that flummoxed the lower order. Josh Hazlewood and Glenn Maxwell also contributed tidy overs to the cause.Smith had named another reshuffled Australian side with the soon to retire Watson dropping down the order to make room for the return of Aaron Finch at the expense of Mitchell Marsh, while Hazlewood was included ahead of John Hastings. Pakistan recalled the fit-again Wahab Riaz in place of Mohammad Irfan, who was described as resting by his captain Afridi.On an excellent pitch offering some sort of help for batsmen and bowlers alike, Mohammad Amir fought a fascinating early duel with Usman Khawaja. Amir’s pace and movement unsettled Khawaja in ways seldom seen over the past few months, and while the opener scored swiftly, it was without his customary assurance. When Wahab replaced Mohammad Sami at the other end, Khawaja remained fretful, and was yorked giving himself room – Amir had undoubtedly played a part.Finch and David Warner did not linger, but Maxwell produced one of the strokes of the tournament with a pure off-driven six that left many wondering why he seems compelled to resort to the outlandish so often. Even so, there was still much work to do when Smith was joined by Watson, on a ground where in 2010 he made one of his two Test hundreds.Smith’s concentration had been fierce, with Warner and Maxwell’s blows allowing him to hustle into an innings without trying anything too lateral. Watson’s arrival had Smith taking his tempo up several notches, as they charted a course to a total near 200. Initially, Watson looked a little unused to the middle order, but after scrambling to 10 from 10 balls, he detonated.Watson’s sheer power was shown when he muscled Amir over long-on and underlined once more with a glorious six inside out over cover from Sami. Meanwhile Wahab’s efforts to stop Smith from levering the ball through the leg side reached a memorable extreme when Australia’s captain took guard well outside off stump. Wahab followed him wider, yet Smith was still able to flip a boundary over midwicket that will make all the tournament highlight reels.In all, Watson and Smith added 74 in 38 balls. Amir and Sami conceded 92 between them without taking a wicket, figures that appeared unlikely when Khawaja had been groping unsuccessfully at the left-armer’s new-ball swing. Australia grew in strength from there, much as they have in this tournament. The meeting with India looms large.

Mumbai Indians coach Ricky Ponting said that his side’s inability to maintain momentum in the middle overs of a 165-run chase against Delhi Daredevils was one of the main factors for their 10-run loss in Delhi

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Apr-2016Mumbai Indians coach Ricky Ponting said that his side’s inability to maintain momentum in the middle overs of a 165-run chase against Delhi Daredevils was one of the main factors for their 10-run loss in Delhi.Mumbai were 52 for 1 at the end of the Powerplay, and a comfortable 98 for 2 in 12 overs with Rohit Sharma and Krunal Pandya at the crease. However, Daredevils’ bowlers, particularly legspinner Amit Mishra, dragged them back and a five-over period between the 13th and 17th overs saw Mumbai score only 25 runs. Ponting felt that Rohit, who eventually scored 65 before his run-out in the last over, struggled to get going in that period.

Try to bowl yorkers as fast as I can – Morris

Delhi Daredevils’ quick bowler Chris Morris, who defended 20 runs off the final over against Mumbai Indians on Saturday, praised his captain Zaheer Khan’s strategies in the end overs of the match. A string of quiet overs from Daredevils’ spinners had stifled Mumbai’s chase of 165 leaving them with an equation of 42 off the last three overs, which were bowled by Morris and Zaheer.
“If it was left to me I would have bowled my third over at [Kieron] Pollard as soon as he came in [the 15th over with Mumbai at 110 for 4], but Zak (Zaheer Khan) being the genius that he is, decided that he would save me for the end with himself,” Morris told . “A genius move by the man; it came off today, it could have backfired horribly. But he has played so many games of cricket and taken so many wickets in his career for a reason. He is very experienced and I think he was brilliant today.”
On his role as an end-overs bowler, Morris said he stuck to a simple plan: “I try and stay calm, believe in what I do and bowl my yorkers as fast as I can. So there might be simple things, but for me I am here to bowl yorkers and bowl fast. That’s basically the plan and, luckily, today it counted for me.”

“It felt like we had control of that game for most of the 40 overs. Even with the ball, it didn’t feel like it got away from us at any stage until I guess, the last couple of overs,” Ponting told . “We were well ahead in our batting and in the Powerplay, we were 50-odd, so we were well ahead at that stage, and we had wickets in hand.”Rohit just couldn’t get going in the middle stages of the innings. From the sidelines it felt like he was a bit deprived of the strike as well and momentum just stopped a little bit. Mishra bowled a great spell and then Morris at the end with his yorkers was very good. I think we went for 17 from our last bowling over as well (Mumbai conceded 16), and these games are decided by small margins. Tonight, we were just a little bit off at crucial times and that probably cost us the game.”The middle-overs slump left Mumbai needing 32 off the last two overs and 21 off the final one. Rohit struck a six off the second ball of the 20th over, bowled by Chris Morris, but a ball later, a mid-pitch collision with Hardik Pandya resulted in his dismissal and he had to be helped off the field by the team physio. That dismissal sealed Mumbai’s fourth loss in six matches, leaving them in the bottom half of the table.One positive for Mumbai from the game was another strong performance from Krunal. The allrounder was promoted to No. 4 and cracked a 17-ball 36, which included four fours and two sixes. Playing in his debut IPL season, Krunal has been effective with the bat and his left-arm spin, taking three wickets and scoring 105 runs at a strike rate of 187.5 in three innings. On Saturday, Ponting lauded the allrounder for his fearless approach that forced Daredevils to tweak their tactics.”He was going well at that stage. I had sent him in to try and attack the legspin and he did that well. It forced Zaheer to bring himself back and an over of [Mohammed] Shami as well. Tactically, it worked well and he’s a fearless young player. The couple of times he’s had an opportunity early in the innings, he’s done really well for us. That [Pandya’s run-out] was costly, but you can never put your finger on one instance in a T20 that cost you the game.”

Zimbabwe coach Makhaya Ntini has said that his side would like to see teams send their strongest XI to the country, instead of using Zimbabwe as a trial series for younger players

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Jun-2016Makhaya Ntini, the Zimbabwe interim coach, has demanded international teams send their best players to tour the country. According to AFP, speaking on the eve of the first ODI against an Indian outfit so inexperienced that their captain MS Dhoni has more matches under his belt than the rest of the 15 combined, Ntini said: “If you send us a team that is not your strongest team, we’re going to put them under the carpet.”Ntini hit out at other Full Members for their reluctance to send full-strength squads to play Zimbabwe, who are ranked below Afghanistan in ODIs and were the only Full Member team not to qualify for the Super 10s stage of the recently concluded World T20.”We’re sick and tired of waiting around for South Africa to send their A team,” he said. “We want to compete with the big boys. We’re creating a new venture here. We want to make sure that this country gets to play more games, and if you send us a team that is not your strongest team, we’re going to put them under the carpet so that they go home and tell people that they need to send their strongest team.”India’s interim coach Sanjay Bangar in turn said that his side’s “focus is inwards”.”We believe in [letting] our performance speak,” Bangar said. “We have a talented bunch of young players. They’ve done really well in the domestic championships and the India A circuit. We do not want to give too much attention to what the opposition is saying.”It’s [Zimbabwe tours] a great platform for the younger guys. It has provided a launch pad for a number of cricketers – Virat Kohli came here and led India for the first time [in 2013], Suresh Raina came in and then Ajinkya Rahane. We believe it’s a very, very important tour for the younger lot. It provides us an opportunity to look at the future stars emerging from the Indian scene.”

Kaushal Silva was the only Sri Lanka wicket to fall as a mere 12.2 overs were possible on a rain-wrecked final day at Lord’s

The Report by David Hopps13-Jun-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsThe last day of the series at Lord’s had promised so much. England needed to bowl out Sri Lanka to take a 3-0 clean sweep in the series, but Sri Lanka, driven ahead by a sense of grievance, were not about to relinquish the Test easily. At 32 for 0, requiring 362, they were down but far from out.Then the rain spoiled it. The clouds were so black over Lord’s that one might have imagined St John’s Wood had become the centre of a second industrial revolution which would certainly have disturbed a few people in the posh boutiques in the High Street.Only 12.2 overs were possible all day until the Test was laid to rest with 5.15pm approaching. By then it felt like a blessed relief. Jonny Bairstow was named as England’s man of the series and Kaushal Silva took the equivalent award for Sri Lanka.All that now remains is for the fall-out from a Test, in which Sri Lanka felt they did not have the rub of the green with umpiring decisions, to move on to the ICC annual meeting in Edinburgh later this month. Speeches will be made (again) about the accuracy of DRS, the validity of a 50% margin for Umpire’s Call and a perceived bias in favour of the Big Three. Lord’s has put fresh vigour into an old debate.Silva was the only Sri Lanka wicket to fall on the final day as a mere 3.4 overs were possible up to tea. He departed lbw to an excellent late inswinger from James Anderson, up the slope, and after an unsuccessful review could at least console himself that he had finally broken his extraordinary run of being caught at the wicket in each of his previous nine innings in two Test tours of England.Had Bairstow pulled off something utterly miraculous by diving across first slip to intercept an edge that fell short off Stuart Broad, that record would have remained intact for his next tour.England still theoretically held hopes of victory when the Test resumed after tea at 4.10pm with 47 overs remaining, with Sri Lanka’s prospects of chasing 362 to win effectively reduced to zero because of the rain. There was talk of Cardiff 2011 when England spirited a win from nowhere in the Glamorgan gloom.Kusal Mendis smashed a return catch at Broad’s bootlaces which he could not pick up in his follow-through, while one attempted bouncer that hit a crack and scuttled off down the leg side emphasised that, with a full day to bowl, England could have been in business. The pitch, in fairness to the groundsman, Mick Hunt, had not become the final-day featherbed that has occasionally blighted Lord’s.Nobody believed the game was going anywhere. Alastair Cook even allowed Broad to indulge in a nonsensical wasted review when even the groundstaff, who were prowling the outfield as the rain clouds approached again, could have seen that the ball had deflected off his back as he ducked.England were forced to turn to spin, all eight balls of it, the last of them from Joe Root, who was slog-swept for six into the Tavern Stand by Mendis. Perhaps he knew something we didn’t. The umpires removed the bails and everybody could go home. Sri Lanka, with a one-day series still to play, will hope for some sunshine.