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Eight unsigned players earn call-ups after impressing in Blast campaign

Matt Roller02-Jul-2021Jake Lintott, the Birmingham Bears left-arm wristspinner who signed his first professional contract earlier this year, has been signed by Southern Brave as a wildcard pick for the inaugural season of the Hundred.Lintott, 28, had played only four senior games a year ago, but has taken 19 wickets for the Bears with an economy rate of 6.60 since the start of the 2020 Vitality Blast season, and has earned a £24,000 deal as the final player in the Brave’s men’s squad.Dillon Pennington (Birmingham Phoenix), Sam Cook (Trent Rockets) and Leus du Plooy (Welsh Fire) have also earned wildcard deals on the back of impressive Blast seasons, as have Freddie Klaassen (Manchester Originals) and Ben Raine (Northern Superchargers).ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The two London clubs, Oval Invincibles and London Spirit, have opted for younger players: the Invincibles have signed Kent wicketkeeper-batter Jordan Cox, while the Spirit have signed Middlesex seamer Blake Cullen, who impressed Eoin Morgan in the early stages of the Blast.Raine, who has taken nine wickets and conceded 7.45 runs an over this season, was the first man picked up in the draft following a random draw.”There were a few nerves flying around leading up to this because I think every cricketer in the country wanted to be in the Hundred,” he said. “I thought I’d had a decent Vitality Blast with the ball so I was hopeful of getting a spot.”Looking through our team there will be a real Northern feel to it which will be nice. There’s a lot of Durham lads that I’ve played with and Yorkshire lads I’ve played against so there will be a bit of familiarity. It’s a good sign for the amount of talent in the region and I’m very proud to be picked up by the Northern team.Four other domestic players were also confirmed as replacements on Friday: Jordan Thompson replaced Olly Stone (injured) at Northern Superchargers; Sam Hain and Ollie Robinson replaced Wayne Madsen (injured) and Harry Gurney (retired) at Manchester Originals; and Will Smeed replaced Henry Brookes (injured) at Birmingham Phoenix.Related

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The news means disappointment for a number of county players, including Middlesex’s Stephen Eskinazi, the leading run-scorer in the Blast and second in the run charts last season. Chris Dent, Arron Lilley, Jack Leaning and Ed Pollock are among the batters to have been overlooked, while bowlers Graeme White, Dan Moriarty, Gavin Griffiths and Matt Milnes all missed out.There is still a possibility that a handful of unsigned domestic players will end up being involved in the competition. Teams will be able to sign partial replacements for players who are named in England’s Test squad to India and do not have red-ball central contracts – which will potentially include Mark Wood and Craig Overton – and there are injury doubts over a number of players with Hundred deals including Tom Abell, Pat Brown, Richard Gleeson and Liam Plunkett.Wildcard signings: Ben Raine (Northern Superchargers), Jordan Cox (Oval Invincibles), Sam Cook (Trent Rockets), Jake Lintott (Southern Brave), Freddie Klaassen (Manchester Originals), Blake Cullen (London Spirit), Leus du Plooy (Welsh Fire), Dillon Pennington (Birmingham Phoenix)

The New Zealand batsman rues the team losing the series 5-0 to India but hopes they can do better in the ODIs

Deivarayan Muthu02-Feb-20203:38

New Zealand lose from a commanding position once again

Ross Taylor had made his T20I debut in December 2006 in Wellington along with the likes of Peter McGlashan, Chaminda Vaas, and Muttiah Muralitharan. Nearly 14 years later, in Mount Maunganui, Taylor became only the second New Zealander, after Suzie Bates, to feature in 100 T20Is. After receiving a special cap from his good mate Martin Guptill, the 35-year old marked the occasion with a half-century, studded by three successive signature hockey-swiped boundaries in a 34-run over off allrounder Shivam Dube. Some of those blows had his family, who were at the Bay Oval, up on their feet.ALSO READ: New Zealand cricket is in the best hands with Williamson – KohliHowever, Taylor himself was at the heart of a dramatic collapse – 6 for 25 – as New Zealand lost another game from a seemingly winning position. He admitted that the defeat indeed soured the landmark and looked back at how T20 cricket has evolved from being a bit hit-and-giggle to a “pretty serious competition”.”It’s still sinking in,” Taylor said at the post-match press conference. “Disappointing with the series [loss] and the way things have gone, but nice to be the first one [NZ men’s cricketer] to get there [100 T20Is]. Hopefully, in time, Guppy and co. will surpass me and will set the benchmark. When I first played Twenty20 cricket, we used to play one game and think it would be a bit of warm-up for the one-dayers whereas it has turned into a pretty serious competition. But, no, it was evolved greatly and it’s a honour and privilege to be the first one for New Zealand.”Ross Taylor hits powerfully through the off side•Getty Images

In 2017, after the T20 World Cup in India, where Taylor had managed just 91 runs in five innings, he had been dropped from the side. The then-coach Mike Hesson explained that the players on the fringe were putting too much pressure on Taylor.Taylor has been largely out of favour in various T20 leagues around the world since the previous T20 World Cup, but is now back in the New Zealand middle order as they search for some stability. While Taylor did hit a brace of fifties against India, he was dismissed in the last over in regulation time before both the Super-Over finishes in Hamilton and Wellington.The trend continued in Mount Maunganui. After New Zealand had lost Guptill and Colin Munro cheaply in pursuit of 164, Taylor and Tim Seifert teed up 99 together off 56 balls. When New Zealand needed 66 off 60 balls, with eight wickets in hand, the game was within their grasp. However, Saini took down both the set batsmen while Jasprit Bumrah yorked Daryl Mitchell and Tim Southee to seal a 5-0 whitewash.”It’s one of those things where we’ve been there to Bangladesh a couple of times and you lose a couple of times… Different players deal with it in different ways and in saying that it’s probably a good thing that this series is over and we move onto a different format,” Taylor said.One of the positives for New Zealand in an otherwise horror series has been Seifert’s form in front of the stumps and also behind it. After struggling to finish the innings in the early half of the series, he moved up the order in the injury-enforced absence of Kane Williamson and struck back-to-back half-centuries.On Sunday, he unveiled a variety of strokes, including the slog-sweep and his favourite scoop over the shoulder. He had also briefly looked good against Bumrah when he took a blameless back-of-a-length ball from middle stump and swatted it away, bisecting wide long-on and deep midwicket in the 12th over of the chase. Taylor was pleased with Seifert’s progress and said that he will have to learn to adapt to batting outside the top three once Williamson returns from injury.Tim Seifert scored a quick half-century•Getty Images

“For him, he has taken his opportunity with Kane not going,” Taylor said of Seifert. “When Kane does come back, him batting at No.4 or wherever he ends up batting, he has got to learn that role and put pressure on the incumbents. I thought he batted well and it would’ve been nice if we had held in a little bit longer, but I’ve played 100 games and there have been what-ifs throughout my career. Not only with the bat, but with the gloves, and the way he patrols the outfield with the angles, he’s getting better and better each day.”Since the innings victory in the Mount Maunganui Test against England last November, New Zealand have been winless in nine matches across formats. Taylor, though, hoped that a switch in format to one-day cricket could switch up New Zealand’s fortunes. Taylor himself has been in stellar form in 50-overs, averaging 63.56 since the 2015 World Cup. Only India captain Virat Kohli has better figures among batsmen with more than 1000 runs in this period.New Zealand will also welcome back allrounders Jimmy Neesham and Colin de Grandhomme for the three-match ODI series, which begins in Hamilton on February 5. Neesham, in particular, has been in excellent domestic form, having won the 20-over Super Smash with Wellington Firebirds and bagged career-best List A figures of 5 for 29 in the Ford Trophy.”Even though it’s a different format, it [losing] still does hurt,” Taylor said. “Winning is a habit…and losing all those tight games. We’re going into a format that’s probably one of strengths and when we do come back to play Twenty20 cricket and Test cricket, those wounds would be addressed. Now, one-day cricket, hopefully Kane’s shoulder is alright, new personnel and some world-class to come back and we look forward to have them back in the squad.”

Tim Paine, meanwhile, said he enjoys watching Kohli play, and felt he ‘brings out the competitive spirit in a lot of people, which is great’

Sidharth Monga in Perth18-Dec-20182:50

Did not have any problem with my dismissal – Kohli

The mutually-agreed-upon line in this series seems to be drawn at swearing, and despite all the hype around the chatter between the two teams, the two captains are happy with each other’s behaviour. Since the third day, which featured Virat Kohli’s displeasure at the contentious low catch that dismissed him and his banter with Tim Paine later in the day, the clamour for the next exchange has reached a fever pitch, ending with the host broadcaster advertising a clip of Ishant Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja having an animated discussion as a sign of all not being well within the Indian camp.Jasprit Bumrah had said after the third day’s play that India were surprised that the soft signal, in the case of the low catch to dismiss Kohli, was out, but Kohli seemed to have gotten over it by the end of the match. “I don’t think I showed any displeasure at the dismissal at all,” Kohli said. “A call was made on the field, and that’s it. It was done. Australia played better cricket than us, and they deserved to win.”Kohli’s reading of the banter was plain: “As long as there is no swearing, the line doesn’t get crossed. That’s it.”In one of the exchanges, when the umpires tried to restrain him and Kohli, Paine was heard telling the umpires it was just conversation, and that there was nothing wrong with that. Paine reiterated that, and seemed to agree with Kohli that as long as nobody swore or got personal, it was fine. “That is the main part. I don’t think the amount of it matters, it’s the nature of it and the language,” Paine said. “What is said is important, not how much.”A lot was said, or possibly observed, because everybody is on the lookout. Kohli told Paine he was staring at 2-0 if he messed up when batting in the second innings. He also allegedly told Paine he was the best player in the world, and Paine just a stand-in captain, a claim denied to ESPNcricinfo by Indian team management. In retort, Kohli was reminded he was batting last, “big head”. M Vijay was asked how could he possibly like Kohli “as a bloke”. A lot of it went on, but neither side has reported any personal abuse on the field.”I don’t think we did touch to be honest,” Paine said of the near chest-bump. “It got pretty close. But it is what it is. It was a highly competitive Test match from both teams. There’s a lot on the line, and both teams desperately want to win, and sometimes that stuff happens.”When Paine was dismissed on the fourth afternoon, he turned back to look as he walked back, but he clarified there had been no send-off. “I actually had spoken about a crack to KL Rahul about two minutes before I got out, so he said did that came off it,” Paine said. “Nothing, not a send-off.”Things heated up between Virat Kohli and Tim Paine in the first session•Getty Images

Paine dismissed the idea that it might be annoying to play against Kohli, who loves, and sometimes goes looking for, a confrontation. “Not to me, I love it,” Paine said. “I enjoy watching him, I always have. I think he brings out the competitive spirit in a lot of people, which is great, and I’m sure it was great to watch.”One of the underlying threads of the chatter is the medium through which it has reached homes. The scrutiny from the cameras and the stump mics seems unparalleled. The invasiveness can sometimes affect how players behave, and also play. Kohli said there was no threat of that happening to him.”As long as there is no swearing out there on the field and there is no personal attacks, the line doesn’t get crossed,” Kohli said. “There is banter going on. Even at Adelaide there was banter here and there… it’s Test cricket at the end of the day, it has to be competitive. You can’t say that people aren’t going to try and get you out in any way possible at all.”With the stump mics and cameras and all these things, honestly when the bowler is bowling you aren’t thinking whether the stump mic is on or the camera is on or not. And when you are facing that ball, literally there is no one in the stadium apart from you and that ball. So, these things are totally irrelevant, and you are actually not aware of them when you are on the field. It’s never bothered me, it’s never been something that’s of importance to me to be honest. For me it’s irrelevant.”For all the talk of banter, this is perhaps the best-natured Australia-India series Kohli has been a part of. “Nothing compared to 2014 to be honest,” Kohli said. “But look, it stays on the field whatever happens. In competitive spirit it stays on the field, I am not going to go into details but to be honest it’s not of importance for me to speak on and it’s something that’s done. We are looking forward to Melbourne now.”Whatever happens, at the end of the series, there will be a beer or 35 shared between the sides at the end of the series. At least there will be an invite from the Australian side. “Tonight ? No,” Paine said, when asked if the custom was to invite the opposition for beers after every Test. “We definitely will after the series. That’s always been the thing that has happened, and will always be the case.”

The Australia captain acknowledges the importance of using Starc, Cummins and Hazlewood in short bursts, but assures that they are more than capable of keeping at it for longer periods

Brydon Coverdale at The Gabba22-Nov-20171:24

Net sessions with Cummins and Starc have been scary – Smith

If recent net sessions are anything to go by, Australia’s pace trio could be even tougher for England’s batsmen to face than Mitchell Johnson was in 2013-14, captain Steven Smith has said. At the Gabba this week, Australia will for the first time field a Test pace attack consisting of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins, an exciting state of affairs for Smith, given the promise that all three men have shown over the past few years.”It has been exciting watching them bowl in the nets,” Smith said on Wednesday. “I think back to 2013-14, when Mitchell was bowling in the nets – these guys are just as nasty, if not more nasty, to be perfectly honest. A couple of the net sessions I have had against Cummins and Starc have been quite scary, so that is really exciting for us.”Cummins will play his first Test on home soil, and one of the question-marks will be how his body holds up over the course of a five-Test series. After bursting on to the Test scene as a teenager in South Africa in 2011, he has spent much of his career sidelined by injuries, and has still played only 15 first-class matches.The lack of an allrounder in Australia’s line-up could also mean a significant workload for the three fast men, along with offspinner Nathan Lyon; among the batsmen, only Steven Smith and David Warner could feasibly be used to bowl a few overs, and even that in only very occasional capacities. That could limit Smith’s ability to use his quicks in short, impactful spells as Michael Clarke used Johnson in 2013-14.”In an ideal world, yeah, that would be how I would like to use them as much as I could,” he said. “I think back to 2013-14, we had the luxury of someone like Shane Watson there, who bowled 15 overs an innings, kept things really tight and gave those guys that little bit of extra rest so Johnson could come on and do what he did.”We have only got four frontline bowlers here at the moment. At times, I will try to use them in shorter spells, but they are also comfortable bowling a little bit longer. I know that some of them, when they get into rhythm, they like to keep on going and they actually bowl a bit quicker at the back end of their spells.”The lack of a fifth bowling option will only increase the importance of Lyon, whose provocative comments in the lead-up to the series suggest a man full of confidence. For perhaps the first time in his career, Lyon has not had to deal with speculation about Australia fielding an all-pace attack – hardly surprising, given that over the past year he has taken nearly twice as many Test wickets as any other Australian.”I think with England, a lot of left-handers, Nathan Lyon is going to be an important bowler for us,” Smith said. “He has been bowling particularly well, he is probably bowling as well as I have seen him bowl. I think he has grown in confidence a lot over the last year, even in the way he talks to me out in the field, he is willing to throw out suggestions, come over the wicket to a left-hander – things that he probably wasn’t comfortable doing just over a year ago.”I think he has grown in confidence a lot in his place around the team, in his ability, the way he is bowling. And the consistency he is bowling with is really good for us. I am excited; I think he bowls really well on wickets that bounce a bit, something like out there at the Gabba. I think he had a lot of success last time against England in the game out here.”Not surprisingly, Cricket Australia scheduled the first Test at the Gabba after last year’s experiment of starting the summer at the WACA, where South Africa secured a 177-run win. By comparison, Australia have not lost a Test at the Gabba since the heyday of West Indies, who beat Allan Border’s men at the venue in 1988.”We know these grounds like the back of our hands,” Smith said. “The Gabba has been a fortress for Australia cricket for a long period of time, and no doubt it is important that we start really well in this first Test match here.”

In Jos Buttler, who has accepted the one-day captaincy on a locum basis, England seem to have a sensitive and thoughtful leader for the challenges to come in Bangladesh

Alan Gardner29-Sep-2016England’s tour of Bangladesh, with its attendant security concerns resulting in the absence of the ODI side’s captain and first-choice opener, is one that requires handling sensitively. In Jos Buttler, who has accepted the captaincy on a locum basis, they seem to have as sensitive and thoughtful a leader as there is among the young group.Buttler has already insisted that, as far as he is concerned, Eoin Morgan remains the captain of the one-day side and will return to the job when England go to India in the New Year. “I fully expect it’s a short-term thing,” he reiterated before the team’s departure for Dhaka, having been in touch with Morgan over the phone to discuss the challenge ahead. Alastair Cook, the Test captain who will be joining the ODI squad as part of his preparations for the tour, has also texted his encouragement and will be on hand for advice.The next few weeks will ask a lot of Buttler. Some were surprised when he was named Morgan’s deputy ahead of the 2015 World Cup and he still does not have much in the way of captaincy experience beyond leading England in a T20 against Pakistan in Dubai last November. With his soft-spoken demeanour, he is not what some people expect of a classic on-field general but he is determined to do the job his way.”I’ll try and be genuine, I’ll try and be myself, I’m not going to be anyone I’m not as a captain,” he said. “I think I view the game in a very similar way to Eoin Morgan, I’ll try and be aggressive. The way we have been playing the last 18 months, I’ll ask the guys to play in exactly the same way – obviously conditions will dictate that to an extent as well. It’s a young squad but it’s an experienced squad in terms of cricket and game awareness, and that’s something we’re going to need in Bangladesh.”As well as the increased level of security for the players to deal with – “for the first few days it will be in your mind” – England will face an opponent eager to give them a cricketing headache. Although they lost to Afghanistan this week, Bangladesh have won their last five ODI series at home, stretching back to 2014; the last non-Asian team to come away from the country with a one-day trophy was Australia more than five years ago.Bangladesh have also beaten in England in three of their last four ODIs, which included handing Morgan’s side their passports during the group stage of the 2015 World Cup. That defeat served as a catalyst for England’s radical limited-overs reinvention and the rematch will provide another opportunity to show how far they have come.”It was a really tough day in Adelaide, very disappointing,” Buttler said. “But we got to rock bottom there and have come back, turned that corner. It’s going to be a great tour, they’ve been very successful at home in their recent past, so it’s a great challenge for us as a group to play in those conditions.”England’s arrival is likely to be a major event in Bangladesh, which last hosted a tour by another Full Member in July 2015. Australia pulled out of a planned trip last year on government advice and England’s tour was only confirmed as going ahead last month – with Morgan and Alex Hales opting to make themselves unavailable. Buttler has been to Bangladesh on three previous occasions, most recently for the 2014 World T20, and was confident that it would be a good experience for the players involved.”We are aware of that,” he said when asked about the significance of England’s visit. “It’s not massively at the forefront of your mind when you make a decision that is right for you, based on security … However, we want to broaden our horizons and it’s fantastic for Bangladesh that we are going to tour. When we get there, cricket will be that universal language and we’ll be welcomed, and it will be fantastic for Bangladesh.”It’s going to be a good tour. It’s nice that the security stuff can take a back seat and we can start talking about cricket. They’re very passionate fans and it will make for a good atmosphere to play cricket in and we’ll have to play well to win.”Talk should quickly turn to cricket, as England play a single warm-up match ahead of the first ODI next Friday. With Hales and Morgan missing out and Joe Root rested, England will field a much-changed batting line-up, likely to include the debutant Ben Duckett and two from Jonny Bairstow, James Vince and Sam Billings. They have played just 26 ODIs between them, although it is a mark of how quickly England have grown since the World Cup that Buttler could refer to Billings, who made his debut in the subsequent series against New Zealand, as someone who “has been around for a long time”.England were flying out the morning after the Professional Cricketers’ Association awards dinner – the schedule barely allows room for end-of-season revelry these days – and the inclusion of Duckett, the first man to win both Player and Young Player of the Year, gives Buttler a weapon that none of his predecessors have been able to draw on.”He’s obviously had a great year, last night he picked up both PCA awards and rightly so he’s being talked about. He’s a fantastic talent, someone I’m actually really looking forward to getting to know better and to see in training, because that’s really when you start to see how good guys are. It’s very exciting, some of the performances he’s put in – that double-hundred for the Lions was fantastic, so it’s a great opportunity for him. He is a very exciting prospect for English cricket which just shows in one-day cricket there’s some great depth and great competition.”

Declarations by both sides set up a potentially exciting finish, but bad light forced an early close with Gloucestershire, chasing 302 to win, still 90 runs short with five wickets

ECB/PA04-Sep-2015
ScorecardChris Dent gave Gloucestershire a handy start to their chase•Getty Images

Declarations by both sides set up a potentially exciting finish, but bad light forced an early close with Gloucestershire, chasing 302 to win, still 90 runs short with five wickets and just under nine overs of their match against Leicestershire at Grace Road remaining.Resuming on the final day with their first innings on 249 for 8, Gloucestershire captain Will Tavare called his batsmen in as soon as the follow-on had been saved, with the visitors still 146 runs adrift of Leicestershire’s first innings score.With the Leicestershire batsmen looking to score quickly, Tavare’s bowlers then took four wickets before lunch. Liam Norwell had Ned Eckersley caught off a top edge, a fine effort from David Payne running back from midwicket, and Angus Robson caught behind with a delivery that bounced and left him.Mark Cosgrove hit a swift 21 before trying to hit Benny Howell over midwicket and being given leg before, and Aadil Ali, looking to drive, gave Kieran Noema-Barnett a straightforward return catch.Wickets continued to tumble after lunch, with Niall O’Brien, Wayne White, Ben Raine and Clint McKay all falling cheaply, but Dan Redfern hit his highest score of an injury-hit season, allowing Cosgrove to declare in turn.Tavare and Chris Dent gave Gloucestershire the ideal start, compiling an opening partnership of 108 at over four an over, but left-arm seamer Rob Taylor picked up Dent caught and bowled off a leading edge.Tavare gloved an attempted hook at Ben Raine behind the wicket to Niall O’Brien behind the stumps, but Peter Handscomb and Neema-Barnett had added 40 for the sixth wicket to reignite the chase when the light became unplayable.

Charlotte Edwards said that she didn’t believe that England were out of the Women’s World Cup when she was first told on the field

Abhishek Purohit in Mumbai13-Feb-2013When it started on Wednesday afternoon, the final Super Six match of the Women’s World Cup looked set to decide which of England or New Zealand, the 2009 finalists, would face Australia in Sunday’s final. The third contenders, West Indies, had been bowled out for 164 in a morning start and surely Australia would chase that down. Which is why Charlotte Edwards, in the midst of providing her side a solid base, didn’t believe a New Zealand fielder who told her that Australia had in fact fallen short.It was only when her partner Sarah Taylor walked up to Edwards and broke the news that the England captain realise that her side’s tournament was all but over. For those watching the match, the excitement had drained as soon as online updates showed Australia had been bowled out for 156. But Edwards had to swallow her disappointment and get on with the game in the middle. She went on to score a vital half-century.”I looked at the big screen to see the result,” Edwards said. “I didn’t actually take in what the information was telling me. I assumed Australia had won the game because when I went out to bat they were going pretty well. [I was] pretty heartbroken really. For three overs after that I didn’t know what was going on. It was disappointing for both teams. It was kind of an anti-climax. I’m very proud of how both teams stuck to it out there.”New Zealand captain, Suzie Bates, also spoke of how the sides had played a competitive game but said intensity levels weren’t the same after the dispiriting news came in. Bates felt it would have been better to have not known the result of the other match.It was a particularly shattering end for the holders England, who went out of the tournament without having had a single really poor game. Their defeats to Sri Lanka and Australia were by one wicket – off the last ball – and two runs. Edwards, however, refused to offer any excuses and said England had paid for their “slow start” to the tournament, beginning with the shock loss to Sri Lanka.”We had come here to win this tournament and we haven’t. We haven’t even got to the final,” Edwards said. “That is disappointing for us as a group of players. We were very inconsistent in the first phase of the tournament and are probably now playing our best cricket, which is too late. We prepared well. We have no excuses. We didn’t play well. We didn’t hold our catches against Sri Lanka.”Edwards said there would be time for reflection on England’s performance in this tournament, and also over a “disappointing” previous 18 months, after they return home but ruled out any immediate decision over her own future. The 33-year-old Edwards, who is now in the 17th year of her international career, said she hadn’t even thought about retirement.”That is a long way off. I am not going to make any rash decisions,” she said. “I am going to enjoy my cricket. I am loving my time with this group. We have got a big summer. There is a World Twenty20 next year. I can’t say if I am going to be there in four years’ time [at the next World Cup] but the only thing that will keep me going is that it might be in England. But four years is a long time.”

Doug Bracewell has said that New Zealand expect a more competitive limited-overs leg of the series against Zimbabwe

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jan-2012In some ways, New Zealand’s last few months can be personified in the journey of one of their new fast bowlers, 21-year-old Doug Bracewell. In four months, Bracewell has won all but one of the matches he has played in, including three Tests, and is part of what is becoming a braver, bolder New Zealand side.”I couldn’t ask for more. I may as well hang the boots up,” Bracewell joked. “It’s been good, it’s been awesome. Hopefully we can continue the form and can continue the momentum into the ODIs and Twenty20s.”An outsider without a central contract a short while ago, Bracewell is now part of all three international squads and has been a significant part of the continuity in the country’s cricket. “I like to play all forms,” he said. “I enjoy the T20s and the one-dayers. I’ve been going alright in T20s for Central Districts and hopefully I can take that form onto the international stage.”
Bracewell took nine wickets and scored 181 runs in the T20 HRV Cup recently and if his domestic form in that format mirrors his performance in first-class compared to Test cricket, New Zealand should ready themselves for a another star.They play Zimbabwe in three ODIs and two T20s and Bracewell said they expect a more competitive limited-overs leg of the series. “They [Zimbabwe] are probably more of a shorter-form team so we won’t be taking them lightly and we’ll want to back up this performance.”Validating one performance with an equal or better showing the next time is something that has become a mantra for New Zealand. After their victory against Australia in Hobart, which was engineered by Bracewell, New Zealand have concentrated on making sure they build on that. “We talked about backing up that Hobart performance and not taking Zimbabwe lightly,” Bracewell said. “Finishing a Test match in three days is unreal and the boys are feeling pretty confident. We’ll take a few days to let it sink in and our next target is to win these one-dayers.”Having been part of the touring party to visit Zimbabwe in November last year, Bracewell has first-hand knowledge of Zimbabwe’s potential. He was not part of the XI that were put to the sword by Zimbabwe’s batsmen in their record chase in the third ODI in Bulawayo but watched from the change room and made this observation. “They’ve got a few guys in the top order that can strike it pretty clean and if they get away, they can be hard to stop,” Bracewell said, alluding to the likes of Brendan Taylor and Malcolm Waller. ‘We don’t give them anything; we have to keep going hard.”While being careful not to show the smaller Southern African side less respect than the bigger one, Bracewell acknowledged that some part of New Zealand’s vision is trained on the series against South Africa. “Zimbabwe coming out here is a good test for us before South Africa,” he said. “Hopefully our batters can get into some form before they come out and our bowlers can do the same.”The bowling group has come under particular scrutiny, after New Zealand opted for a four-seam attack in their last two Tests. A clutch of young pacemen consisting of Bracewell, Tim Southee and Trent Boult are being lead by the veteran Chris Martin and the growing relationship between the four is adding to New Zealand’s strength. “Chris just does his own thing. He doesn’t get too wound up and he just backs himself,” Bracewell said. “He has been pretty good with me and Boultie [Boult]. He is a great bowler and he has a few decent words to say and I respect the way he goes about his game.”

Shahid Afridi and Waqar Younis will appear before the ICC’s anti-corruption tribunal that will decide the case against the three suspended Pakistan players

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Jan-2011Shahid Afridi and Waqar Younis have been asked to appear before the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Tribunal hearing the case of the three Pakistan players who have been accused of spot-fixing.”Both of them will appear before the ICC Tribunal either in person or through teleconference depending on their convenience and subject to their professional commitments,” the PCB said in a statement.Afridi, Pakistan’s limited overs captain, will not be involved in the Test matches in New Zealand, which coincide with the January 6-11 hearings. Younis, the Pakistan coach, will be in New Zealand.Though there was no further comment from the PCB or ICC, ESPNcricinfo understands the players’ lawyers had been informed of the development. The pair will appear, effectively, as witnesses for the prosecution.It is likely the pair will be asked about statements they had made to the ICC’s Code of Conduct Commission during Pakistan’s series with South Africa in the UAE recently . Those comments appeared in Pakistani press last week; Younis is quoted as saying that Mohammad Amir’s infamous no-ball during the Lord’s Test had surprised him “greatly” because it was very different from his normal delivery stride. He said he’d taken up the issue with the bowler, only for the then captain, Salman Butt, to intervene before Amir could reply.Afridi was also questioned and subsequently quoted in the report on his thoughts about the three players.The hearing, which will be held in Doha from January 6 to 11, will determine the fate of Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif. All three have denied their involvement in any spot-fixing.

The pressure an India-Pakistan match in a World Cup brings is storied and, on Saturday, Azeem Ghumman and Ashok Menaria will experience it for the first time

Cricinfo staff22-Jan-2010Azeem Ghumman and Ashok Menaria were not yet in their teens when Sachin Tendulkar blitzed Pakistan at Centurion in the 2003 World Cup. They were merely 17 when Misbah-ul-Haq came agonisingly close to snatching the inaugural World Twenty20 from India in 2007. The pressure an India-Pakistan match in a World Cup brings is storied and, on Saturday, these two teenage leaders will experience it for the first time – when their teams clash in the quarter-final of the Under-19 World Cup in Lincoln.Indian and Pakistani sides have traditionally been the form teams at U-19 World Cups. They enter the tournaments as favourites and rarely fall out of contention before the semi-finals. One will tomorrow. Few expected them to come up against each other so early in the competition. Pakistan won all their league games and topped their group. India won the first two but dropped their last against England. If they hadn’t, they would be playing West Indies.”We are seething after the loss [to England], and we’ll take it out against Pakistan,” Meenaria told the . “The world comes to a standstill when an India-Pakistan match is on.”Pakistan perhaps hold the edge. They scored big against West Indies, bowled Papua New Guinea out cheaply, and held their nerve to win a thriller against Bangladesh. They have the tournament’s highest run-scorer, Babar Azam – 260 runs at an average of 130, and the joint highest wicket-taker, Usman Qadir – eight at 15 apiece.The victories India scored were against Afghanistan and Hong Kong and they ensured India’s qualification even before the loss to England. Unlike the 2008 campaign, when Tanmay Srivastava and Virat Kohli led the batting charts, this time India’s highest runscorer – Rahul Kannaur with 117 in three innings – is 15th on the list. Saurabh Netravalkar, their left-arm fast bowler, could prove to be key. He was exceptional against England, rattling the top order and finishing with figures of 3 for 25.There is an external factor – and a significant one – in India’s favour. They are familiar with conditions at the Bert Sutcliffe Oval, having played two group matches there. Pakistan only got to Christchurch a few days ago – their group matches were on North Island. The pitch at the Bert Sutcliffe Oval aids seam bowling, and is good for batting when the sun shines. Scoring runs, however, requires a disciplined approach as India found out the hard way against England. They must learn quickly from their errors; Pakistan, however, have no second chances.Another external factor, an uncontrollable one, favours Pakistan. It rained all day in Christchurch on the eve of the match and although Saturday’s forecast is brighter one can never be certain. Should the match end in a washout, Pakistan will go through to the semi-final because of their better group position. There is no reserve day.Pakistan’s manager, Shafqat Rana, says this side is the best U-19 Pakistan side he has seen but he’s aware of the gravity of the contest. “These children have never played India, forget in a World Cup game, but have grown up watching the high-intensity clashes between the two countries,” he told the . “They are aware of the expectations back home. Be it an U-13 India-Pakistan game or a veterans’ contest, it will always remain special.”And then there’s the raging controversy in the subcontinent over the Pakistan players being ignored by the IPL, and maybe it would provide the contest added edge. Rana didn’t think so. “They are kids, they have very little idea about IPL auction and other issues,” he said. The absence of intense media coverage could also help them focus better.Ghumman, Menaria and their team-mates will say they’re approaching the contest like they would any other. They can try, but all will not succeed. Even the wealth of Tendulkar’s experience in pressure situations couldn’t prevent him from living the Centurion match a year in advance. And even he slept poorly for 12 nights before d-day.