Having exited in the semi-final stage in three consecutive Women’s World T20 tournaments, West Indies will look to their batting and firebrand style of cricket to seal a place in their first final

The Preview by Shashank Kishore30-Mar-2016

Match facts

Thursday, March 31, 2016
Start time 1430 local (09:00 GMT)Earmarked to carry the legacy of Stafanie Taylor and Deandra Dottin forward, Hayley Matthews is yet to score big runs in the tournament•ICC/Getty Images

Big picture

West Indies have been the eternal bridesmaids at the Women’s World T20. Having failed to get past the semi-final stage in three previous attempts, they have a fourth chance at redemption when they take on Suzie Bates’ New Zealand, who are in rip-roaring form, having won all their group games with a touch of disdain.West Indies received a wake-up call in the one-wicket loss to England that left the team shattered. But the manner in which they put the loss behind them and knocked India Women out in a high-pressure game in Mohali showed the team’s character. When in form, they are one of the more watchable teams – their batsmen can make the ridiculously long boundaries look short, their athleticism has the typical Caribbean punch and they celebrate like no other team. These skills will be put to test against a side whose road to the final four has had little to do with luck or accident.New Zealand’s bowlers have adapted to the Indian conditions the best. A battery of spinners, led by Leigh Kasperek and Morna Nielsen, have weaved a web around batting units, giving a power-packed top order sub-par totals to gun down. West Indies, on the other hand, have had to make do with their plethora of medium-pacers, who have mastered the art of bowling cutters on pitches where the batsmen have had to force the pace.While both teams are high on entertainment value, there has been a conscious change in plans. Stafanie Taylor, the West Indies captain, and Deandra Dottin, who has the reputation of being one of the biggest hitters in the women’s game, have suddenly transformed themselves to play the role of anchors, allowing others to bat around them. New Zealand, meanwhile, have banked on the belligerence of their captain Suzie Bates to give them a flier at the start, while Sophie Devine mans the middle order. No total looks defendable on a Wankhede deck these days, however, and this could push both teams to go back to their firebrand approach. The semi-final could thus boil down to a contest between two top-heavy batting sides.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)


New Zealand: WWWWL
West Indies : WLWWL

In the spotlight

A three-run loss to Australia in the Women’s World Twenty20 final in 2010 was particularly gut-wrenching for Sophie Devine. Chasing a modest 107, Devine’s unbeaten 35-ball 38 after a top-order collapse gave New Zealand a shot at victory, only for the side to be pipped at the post. Six years on, Devine, who holds the record for the fastest fifty in women’s T20 cricket, has the opportunity to set things right and enhance New Zealand’s chances of the title win.Hayley Matthews has been earmarked as the one to carry forward the batting legacy from Taylor and Dottin. But T20I figures of 174 runs in 17 innings at an average of 10.87 are not a reflection of why she is rated highly by her captain. Barring a knock of 41 against Bangladesh Women, she is yet to set the tournament on fire. A substantial score in a crunch game could go someway in erasing doubts in her own abilities as West Indies look to seal a spot in the final for the first time in the tournament’s history.

Teams news

New Zealand have been unchanged for the last three games, but that has had more to do with the confidence within the group than conditions, considering they have played in Delhi, Mohali, Nagpur and Bangalore. Barring any injuries or an early morning sickness bug, they are likely to go in unchanged.New Zealand (probable): 1 Suzie Bates, 2 Rachel Priest, 3 Sophie Devine, 4 Sara McGlashan, 5 Amy Satterthwaite, 6 Katey Martin, 7 Katie Perkins, 8 Leigh Kasperek, 9 Erin Bermingham, 10 Lea Tahuhu, 11 Morna NielsenKyshona Knight was summoned for the game against India, but failed in her only opportunity in the tournament. With the reserve batsmen also having failed, however, she may have another opportunity. Britney Cooper and Shemaine Campbelle could tussle for one spot, while there could also be a case for promoting the experienced Merissa Aguilleira a lot higher up the batting order.West Indies (probable) 1 Stafanie Taylor, 2 Hayley Matthews, 3 Kyshona Knight, 4 Shaquana Quintyne, 5 Deandra Dottin, 6 Stacy-Ann King, 7 Shemaine Campbelle/Britney Cooper, 8 Merissa Aguilleira, 9 Shamilia Connell, 10 Afy Fletcher, 11 Anisa Mohammed

Pitch and conditions

Judging by the tracks on which the teams have played in the tournament so far, the pitch at the Wankhede Stadium could be a belter, considering there is the semi-final clash between India and West Indies later in the evening. The heat and humidity that can go neck-to-neck in these parts of the world at this time of year could test the fitness of the players. Dew is unlikely to be a factor, so the toss may not have a great influence on the outcome.

Stats and trivia

• New Zealand have an impressive head-to-head record against West Indies with nine wins in 13 matches between the two sides, including a tied match in which New Zealand aced the Super Over.
• Deandra Dottin has alone hit 71 out of the 149 recorded sixes for West Indies Women in T20Is, which further underlines her importance in the batting line-up.

Quotes

“Brendon is from Otago, and I’m from Otago, so he’s always been, over the years, willing to talk about cricket and his leadership style. We had drawn upon a little bit of inspiration from the way he got the guys to go out there and express themselves, and we’re trying to do that in this tournament. “
“I think Twitter and Facebook is actually blowing up. To know that both of us are in the semis, everybody is just behind us 100% and given us good feedback. It is going to be a mental thing tomorrow. Seventy-five percent of the game is actually played there and I think, on that day who is more calm and more composed (will win). If we try to do that, we definitely can pull this off.”

Amid the sort of bitterly cold weather in which even Captain Oates wouldn’t venture out, Yorkshire’s lower order demonstrated the type of grit that can make the difference between winners and losers in a Championship season

George Dobell at Edgbaston25-Apr-2016
ScorecardWarwickshire’s slip cordon feels the chill•Getty Images

Amid the sort of bitterly cold weather in which even Captain Oates wouldn’t venture out, Yorkshire’s lower order demonstrated the type of grit that can make the difference between winners and losers in a Championship season.Most cricketers can flourish in conditions when the sun is, figuratively or literally, on their backs. But it takes a certain sort of determination to succeed in discomfort, under pressure and despite interruptions and distractions.Yorkshire displayed such grit here. From a position of 209 for 6, their lower middle order has earned not just a chance of gaining full batting bonus points but, if the weather relents, the possibility of pushing for a win. And they did it on a day when the wind blew viciously cold, when play was split in what appeared to be dozens of short sessions and when anyone sensible would only have ventured out in thermals and supported by a team of huskies.While the contribution of Adil Rashid can be of little surprise – he has the class to have made it as a specialist batsman – the contribution of Steve Patterson was more unusual. Until today, he had scored only one first-class half-century – an innings of 53 against Sussex – in a first-class career that started in 2005 but now resumes in the morning requiring only six more runs to be the highest scorer of the innings.But it was the manner of Patterson’s runs that was most surprising. He is an admirable, reliable cricketer but both his career strike-rate – he had scored his runs at a rate of 35.93 runs per 100 balls before today – and his nickname, “Dead”, hint at a character that is usually solid and dependable more often than it is exhilarating and flamboyant.Here, though, he thrashed 11 fours as he feasted on Warwickshire’s frustration – there were a fair few long-hops bowled at him – and weariness. And while he looked less comfortable against the pace of Chris Woakes – described as “one of England’s quickest bowlers” by his coach, Dougie Brown – he still managed to time the ball sufficiently well that what appeared a decent yorker was speared to the point boundary before the man positioned barely 15 yards away could move.It might have been easy to presume this match – likely to be interrupted by more poor weather over the next couple of days – was heading nowhere. But who knows whether the Championship may, in five months time, be decided by a bonus point gained on a grim, April day in Birmingham? Patterson and Rashid, in particular, earned their side at least three more points that seemed likely at one stage.It would be easy to point out Warwickshire’s faults in the field. Really very easy. The innings contained overthrows, drops (Liam Plunkett was reprieved from the first delivery he faced – Tim Ambrose putting down the chance off Keith Barker – while Ryan Sidebottom was reprieved at slip by Varun Chopra off Chris Woakes on 2) and really quite a lot of wayward bowling. For much of Patterson’s innings, he was more at risk of frostbite or polar bear attack than a yorker.But this has been an awful stop-start game played in brief patches of uncomfortably cold and horribly windy conditions. It cannot have been easy to gain any rhythm on the pitch – it was miserable to watch from the stands – and it really wouldn’t be appropriate to put down a mug of hot coffee in the press box and criticise too harshly. It was not easy out there.”It was disgusting,” Brown, the Warwickshire director of cricket, agreed. “But you still have to have professional standards. We shelled a couple of catches, which is disappointing, but Yorkshire deserve a bit of credit for the way they batted. It’s quite a good wicket and the margin of error for bowlers is very small.”When play finally started – 49.3 more overs were lost on the day, making it 87.3 in total so far – Warwickshire appeared to have seized the initiative. Jack Leaning’s footless drive was punished with an outside edge, before Gary Ballance’s increasingly fluent innings was ended by a good one that left him from Barker. Had Plunkett been taken next ball, as he should have been, Yorkshire would have been 209 for 7.Instead Plunkett counter-attacked in a partnership of 43 with Rashid before Patterson helped add 91 for the eighth-wicket in 20 overs. With Rashid, getting well forward and driving neatly, forcing the bowlers to pitch shorter, the ball tended to sit up obligingly on what remains a decent pitch.Clarke and Woakes were the pick of the bowlers. Gaining in rhythm by the spell, Woakes had worked up a considerable pace by the end of the day and finally defeated Rashid with one that may have tailed in a little. With Mark Wood injured and Chris Jordan departing to the IPL, it seems Woakes may be competing with Jake Ball for the final spot in England’s Test squad. All three England selectors were at Edgbaston on the second day to see Woakes demonstrate his pace and his improved inswinger. They will know he is a better bowler than he showed during the Test in Centurion.Still, in a match containing 13 Test cricketers, it was arguably Patterson’s performance that caught the eye. On a day when nearly everyone else looked as if they would rather be somewhere else, he took advantage.

Delhi Daredevils and Royal Challengers Bangalore will enter the last game of the group stages with a playoffs spot on the line. A win for either side will carry them through

The Preview by Nikhil Kalro21-May-2016

Match facts

Sunday, May 22, 2016
Start time 2000 local (1430 GMT)

Big Picture

Entering the last match of the group stage, Delhi Daredevils and Royal Challengers Bangalore hold their playoff fates in their hands. The key to qualification is simple. A win for either side will carry them through.With Daredevils’ net run rate (NRR) lower than the pack ahead of them, a loss would all but leave them out of the top four – in such a case, to qualify, they would need Knight Riders to have lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad by a significant margin, and their own loss needs to be by a narrow enough margin to not fall below Mumbai Indians on NRR.On the other end of the NRR spectrum are Royal Challengers, whose chances of qualifying are high even if they lose, provided neither Kolkata Knight Riders nor rain wins at Eden Gardens. Resounding wins against Gujarat Lions, Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab have resulted in their NRR soaring to +0.930.Not often does a batsman overshadow AB de Villiers, that too when he strikes at 172.54. But Virat Kohli has, and how. His record-breaking run has almost single-handedly helped Royal Challengers climb to the top half of the points table. Chris Gayle has struck form and Chris Jordan’s integration has bolstered their slog-overs bowling stocks.Karun Nair kept Daredevils’ hopes alive with a composed, unbeaten 83 against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Friday. Nonetheless, Daredevils face what is effectively another must-win situation two days later, and against one of the form sides of the tournament. Daredevils have banked on their youngsters, who have stood up in the pressure moments. After their tight win against Sunrisers, captain Zaheer Khan admitted at the post-match presentation that their reliance on the youngsters may not always pay off, but “the season is about having young energy around”.

Form guide

Delhi Daredevils WLLWL (last five matches, most recent first)
Royal Challengers Bangalore WWWLW

In the spotlight

Quinton de Kock struck a match-winning century in a chase of 192 in the previous encounter between the two sides. He hasn’t been as consistent thereafter and has five single-digit scores in nine innings, including the previous two. Daredevils desperately need de Kock to fire.Contrary to de Kock, Chris Gayle has found form in the latter stages of the tournament. The Royal Challengers management backed Gayle when he was misfiring, and have reaped rewards. His 32-ball 73 against Kings XI featured four fours and eight sixes. However, the Raipur ground’s dimensions are large, and clearing the boundary won’t be as easy.

Team news

Chris Morris missed Daredevils’ previous game due to a niggle. Carlos Brathwaite, his replacement, performed with the ball. If Morris is fit, Nathan Coulter-Nile could make way. Pawan Negi also played, but wasn’t needed with bat or ball. Daredevils have tinkered with their XI throughout, but may not opt for too many changes this time around.Delhi Daredevils (probable): 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Rishabh Pant, 3 Karun Nair, 4 Sanju Samson, 5 JP Duminy, 6 Carlos Brathwaite, 7 Pawan Negi, 8 Nathan Coulter-Nile/Chris Morris, 9 Amit Mishra, 10 Zaheer Khan (capt), 11 Jayant YadavRoyal Challengers may consider bringing in left-arm spinner Iqbal Abdulla for Varun Aaron or S AravindRoyal Challengers Bangalore (probable): 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Virat Kohli (capt), 3 AB de Villiers, 4 Shane Watson, 5 KL Rahul (wk), 6 Sachin Baby, 7 Stuart Binny, 8 Chris Jordan, 9 S Aravind/Varun Aaron, 10 Iqbal Abdulla, 11 Yuzvendra Chahal

Pitch and conditions

Daredevils chased 159 against Sunrisers off the last ball on Friday. Raipur’s long square boundaries will facilitate twos and threes. There was light rain on match eve, but the forecast suggests a dry night on Sunday.

Stats and trivia

• Royal Challengers were unbeaten against Daredevils for eight games before their seven-wicket loss earlier this season
• Seven different players have got Man-of-the-Match awards for Daredevils this season. No other team has more than five players

A round-up of the Dhaka Premier League games that were played on May 30, 2016

Mohammad Isam30-May-2016Mashrafe Mortaza’s six-wicket haul set up Kalabagan Krira Chakra‘s 10-run win (D/L method) in a rain-affected match against Legends of Rupganj in Fatullah.After Kalabagan asked Rupganj to bat, it was Dewan Sabbir who did the early damage, removing Rupganj’s openers for single-digit scores. Despite decent knocks from Mohammad Mithun, Ishank Jaggi and Asif Ahmed in the middle order, Rupganj slumped to 87 for 5. A 78-run sixth-wicket stand between Asif Ahmed and Sajjadul Haque added substance to Rupganj’s innings, before the former fell to Sabbir, giving him his third wicket of the match. Mashrafe, who had been introduced as the third-change bowler, then cleaned up the tail taking the last four wickets.Mashrafe had earlier dismissed Mithun and Rupganj captain Mossharraf Hossain. He finished with figures of 6 for 42 in his 10 overs. This was his second 6-wicket haul in List-A cricket, the other one being 10 years ago, against Kenya in an ODI.Kalabagan had reached 127 for 4 in 35.4 overs when rain intervened to curtail proceedings. That was enough for them to secure a 10-run victory under the Duckworth-Lewis method. The win opened up a four-point lead between Kalabagan and Cricket Coaching School, who are second from the bottom on the points table. That gives Kalabagan some breathing space, with the two bottom-placed teams to be relegated to next season’s Dhaka First Division Cricket League.Victoria Sporting Club leapt from seventh to third position on the table with their 28-run win over Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club in Mirpur.After opting to bat first, Victoria were bowled out for 247 in 49.4 overs. While six of their top seven got starts, only Mominul Haque got a half-century, scoring 50 off 51 balls, including six fours and a six. Batting at no. 3, he added 72 runs for the second wicket with Fazle Mahmud. Later, captain Nadif Chowdhury and Chaturanga de Silva added 80 runs for the sixth wicket. Nadif’s dismissal left Victoria 212 for 6. A nine-ball 24 from Mahbubul lifted the side to 247.Mahmudullah took 3 for 40, while Muktar Ali and left-arm spinner Abdur Rahman took two wickets each.In a similar fashion to Victoria’s batsmen, Dhanmondi’s top-order batsmen squandered starts, with each of the top four getting out between 20 and 50. Only Sohag Gazi, batting at no. 6, registered a half-century, with a knock of 59 off 64. Then it was Victoria pace bowler Kamrul Islam Rabbi’s turn to get among the wickets. He took four of the last six wickets, as Dhanmondi were bowled out for 219 in the 49th over.Gazi Group Cricketers beat Brothers Union by 43 runs in a low-scoring encounter on a turning track at the BKSP-3 ground.In response to Gazi Group’s 167, Brothers were bowled out for just 124 runs in 40.1 overs. Gazi Group’s offspinner Mahedi Hasan picked up 4 for 16, while Gurkeerat Singh, Alok Kapali and Salehin Shad picked up two wickets apiece. Brothers captain Tushar Imran played the only knock of substance, with 41 off 81 balls.Tushar had earlier taken a four-wicket haul with his part-time offspin as Gazi Group were bowled out for 167. Opening the batting, Anamul Haque top-scored for Gazi Group, with 46 off 52, including three fours and four sixes. But, after a 70-run opening stand, Gazi Group slipped to 102 for 8. A few lusty blows from Mohammad Sharif, at no. 11, added some crucial runs to their final score.The win takes Gazi Group to 10 points, while Brothers remain on 8.

Donald Carr, the former Derbyshire and England batsman who went on to become one of the most prominent administrators of the post-war era, has died at the age of 89

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jun-2016Donald Carr, the former Derbyshire and England batsman who went on to become one of the most prominent administrators of the post-war era, has died at the age of 89.In a first-class career that spanned from 1945 to 1968, Carr scored nearly 20,000 runs and claimed 328 wickets with his left-arm spin for Oxford University, Derbyshire and England, whom he captained at Madras in 1951-52 in his second and final appearance.He also played in the third “Victory Test” against Australia in 1945, alongside the likes of Len Hutton, Wally Hammond, Cyril Washbrook and Bill Edrich, and was a notable footballer too, winning his Blue at Oxford, and playing in front of 100,000 people at Wembley in two Amateur Cup final appearances for Pegasus in the 1950s.Carr captained Derbyshire between 1955 and 1962, and was named a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1960.However, it was his subsequent career in administration for which Carr will be remembered. He was assistant secretary of MCC from 1962 to 1974, during which time he was privy to one of the most contentious moments in cricket history, the omission and subsequent selection of Basil D’Oliveira for the tour of South Africa in 1968. He went on to become secretary of the Test and County Cricket Board (TCCB) and the Cricket Council until 1986.”Cricket has lost one of its greatest friends,” said Colin Graves, the ECB chairman. “Someone who gave a lifetime of service to our game; as a cricketer, a captain, a club secretary, an England tour manager, and, of course, as a senior administrator – serving MCC and the TCCB with distinction in a leadership role as the game moved into the modern, professional era; and always meeting the many difficult challenges he faced during this period with his customary good humour and charm.”This is deeply sad news for all Donald’s many cricketing friends and former colleagues and team-mates across the domestic and international game. He will be hugely missed by those who worked and played with him and we send our condolences and sympathies to all in the Carr family.”The President of MCC, Roger Knight, said: “Donald’s career in cricket, especially at Lord’s, is unlikely ever to be surpassed. As a cricketer, he captained both his university and his county, and after turning to administration became Assistant Secretary (Cricket) of MCC, and Secretary of the Cricket Council and of TCCB from their formation in 1974.”His period of office included the supervision of the first three World Cups in England, the advent of one-day cricket and the introduction of sponsorship in the professional game.”Donald’s commitment to cricket, his skills – both on the field and in the committee room – spanned more than 40 years, from his first-class debut in 1945, for England against Australia in the Victory “Test” at Lord’s, to his retirement in 1986.”He also served on MCC committees, on the Middlesex committee and as captain of Cross Arrows Cricket Club. He will be deeply and sorely missed across the cricket world.”The MCC flag, over the Main Ground, and the Cross Arrows flag, over the Nursery Ground, have been lowered to half-mast as a mark of respect to a man who devoted so much of his life to the game.”

NatWest will become the major ECB sponsor from next year, taking over the branding of the various teams which are currently under the Waitrose deal that will finish early in 2017

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jul-2016NatWest will become the major ECB sponsor from next year, taking over the branding of the various teams which are currently under the Waitrose deal that will finish early in 2017, alongside its current sponsorships which include the T20 Blast and the CricketForce volunteering scheme.The bank has been heavily involved in English cricket since 1980 and the new four-year deal will take them beyond 40 years of association with the sport which began with the domestic 60-over NatWest Trophy.The shirt part of the deal – which includes all England teams – begins at the start of the busiest international summer which includes the Champions Trophy, Women’s World Cup, full tours by South Africa and West Indies and a visit by Ireland at the start of the season.David Wheldon, the chief marketing officer at NatWest, said: “Ever since we first established the NatWest Trophy in conjunction with the ECB in 1980, cricket has been ingrained in the DNA of NatWest and I am delighted that we will be re-invigorating this partnership by becoming the ECB’s first ever Principal Partner.”NatWest are also currently the title sponsors of the T20 Blast and that will continue for 2017 which was the final year of a four-year agreement that began in 2014.There is extensive debate about the future shape of England’s domestic T20 with a recent report saying that a new, franchise-based tournament could begin as early as 2018.One suggestion is that it could be played in conjunction with an 18-team county T20 that would retain its position mainly on Friday nights which has proved successful for some counties in boosting attendances.

Ian Bell’s accession to the Warwickshire captaincy was not meant to turn out like this. Instead of an anticipated title challenge, he is now haunted by vague fears of relegation, unthinkable in April

David Hopps at Edgbaston16-Aug-2016
ScorecardIan Bell battled for more than two hours but could not prevent defeat•Getty Images

Ian Bell’s accession to the Warwickshire captaincy was not meant to turn out like this. Instead of an anticipated title challenge, he is now haunted by vague fears of relegation, unthinkable in April. Instead of an inspired return to the England side, he has made no immediate comeback to a deeply unimpressive England middle order and is so consumed by the job he has taken on late in his career that the runs are not coming easily.The Warwickshire captaincy was a childhood dream for Bell ever since he sprinted onto the outfield at Lord’s to celebrate the county’s 1993 NatWest Trophy win under the individualistic captaincy of Dermot Reeve. For a proven England player to return to the county ranks with ambitions so sharp, and good years still ahead, was something for Warwickshire to relish, but the job is proving an onerous one.Bell challenged Warwickshire to bat out the final day against Surrey – to chase 396 for victory, from 2 for 1 overnight, felt out of the question – but the day he called the biggest of the season fell Surrey’s way by 227 runs with 20 overs to spare. Surrey have passed Warwickshire in the table and have the look of an improving side with much to commend them. If either of the bottom two stir it is now Warwickshire and Durham who have most to fear.

Boys put their bodies on the line – Batty

Gareth Batty, the Surrey captain, praised his team commitment over the four days and especially their final-day efforts.
“It was a magnificent performance. I’ve just said to the boys in the dressing-room I couldn’t ask for any more from any individual which, from a captaincy point of view, is just a wonderful place to be.
“The boys have been absolutely magnificent for the last six weeks, today they were out there diving on a hard square and putting their bodies on the line. We are nearing that time of year where traditionally we are pretty good and we are showing it again. On the flatter pitches we are putting in some wonderful performances.”
Meanwhile Dougie Brown, Warwickshire’s director of cricket, was critical of his team’s batting.
“There were a number of soft dismissals today which we couldn’t afford as we were already behind the game due to our first-innings indiscipline. If you analyse the first five dismissals of our specialist batsmen today I think you would say there was ill-discipline attached to all of them. We need to find a way to apply all the things we do in practice in match-situations.”

At least Bell conceded his own wicket in most honourable fashion during a compelling duel with Gareth Batty, finally unpicked at short leg after making 32 in two-and-a-quarter stubborn hours, survival his only undertaking. He managed a couple of peaceful off-side drives, but the overriding image was of Bell under attack from an angry seagull as Batty squawked, flapped and smiled his way through his overs, finding substantial bounce and turn from a wearing final-day surface. This was surely the best 2 for 27 of the season, earned by 21 antagonistic overs. This has also been another excellent Edgbaston pitch.Surrey’s spin pair, Batty and Zafar Ansari, are both being monitored as potential England tourists in India and Bangladesh and they make a contrasting pair, not just because of offspin and slow left arm but in personality. Ansari has a stately stroll and flick back of floppy hair that smacks of old-time pedigree whereas Batty is waspish and combative, every grin – and he grins often when he is on top – the possible precursor to something more quarrelsome.Suggestions that a spinner fast heading towards his 39th birthday should add to his seven Tests, the last of them 11 years ago, naturally invite suspicion, but contenders are conspicuous by their absence and, if England opt for a specialist finger spinner then on this evidence Batty is better than anybody. That he would relish the challenge could be taken for granted.For the first 40 minutes of the morning, Bell’s call to arms was answered, but the loss of three wickets in six overs then told of a laborious day ahead. The nightwatchman Chris Wright backed up too far and Batty threw him out from mid-on with a celebratory speech of triumph. Varun Chopra, Bell’s predecessor, whose move to Essex has already been confirmed, edged Mark Footitt’s sixth ball of the innings to wicketkeeper Steven Davies. To lose Jonathan Trott, alongside whom Bell stood firm so often for England, was the biggest jolt of all, Stuart Meaker producing a good one to have him caught at the wicket.Three more wickets fell in the afternoon session, not just Bell, but Laurie Evans, who was forced back by Ansari and had his off-stump knocked out by one that turned. Rikki Clarke fell in the final over before tea, bowled as he offered no shot to Sam Curran. The tail succumbed easily enough after tea, the victory suitably confirmed by Batty when he had Oliver Hannon-Dalby lbw for nought, six Surrey bowlers taking wickets in a strong team display.Gareth Batty celebrates the wicket of Ian Bell•Getty Images

Bell was omitted by England after averaging barely 20 in his last 23 Test innings, nine of them single figures. The Warwickshire captaincy seemed a perfect challenge and he has thrown himself into it with gusto. He could have taken quite a narrow role, concentrating on making runs, changing fields and preserving energy to keep his England ambitions alive. Instead, his authority is strikingly wide for a captain. For a player who has not skippered since age-group cricket – apart from a stand-in appearance or two – it must be particularly burdensome.He is taking a central role in recruitment and was influential in the signing of Olly Stone from Northants, a bowler who – if he stays fit – can bring new verve to their attack. Warwickshire’s academy, too, must surely be something that troubles him because he came that way himself, but it has not produced a player of substance for Warwickshire since Chris Woakes a decade or so ago. To lose Woakes regularly now to England – a consummate professional who would naturally buy into his ideas – has been a deserved career progression for Woakes, but ill-timed for Bell as he seeks to implant his beliefs on a squad that is arguably too unwieldy and too set in its ways to respond in the way he wishes.

West Indies T20I captain Carlos Brathwaite has urged newcomers Rovman Powell and Nicholas Pooran to continue doing what they have in domestic cricket ahead of the three-match T20I series against Pakistan in the UAE

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Sep-2016West Indies T20I captain Carlos Brathwaite has urged newcomers Rovman Powell and Nicholas Pooran to play their natural game ahead of the three-match T20I series against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates.Both Powell and Pooran had promising performances in CPL 2016. Powell, the 23-year old batsman from Jamaica, scored 228 runs in 13 matches for Tallawahs. Pooran, the 20-year old wicketkeeper-batsman from Trinidad, played for the Barbados Tridents and belted 217 runs in 10 matches at 27.12 and a strike rate of 197.27. Pooran also effected eight dismissals behind the stumps.”Go there, express yourselves, continue to be exciting and eventually win games for the West Indies. It’s a big task to represent the West Indies, and away from home is probably a little easier because you don’t have family in the stands with that extra pressure,” Brathwaite advised. “You’re just surrounded by your team-mates and it’s a good team to be in at the moment, so it’s just about going there and continuing to do the things that they did to get themselves here and do it for longer periods – it’s a higher stage, more pressure, but I’m sure they can continue with it and do well.”Brathwaite also credited the selectors for ensuring that youngsters got the best exposure possible. “The selectors were very big in ensuring that some young players are blooded and rubbed shoulders with some of the best T20 players in the world so we can continue our legacy of being dominant in this format, and those were two of the guys who fit the bill at this point in time,” he said.West Indies were in Dubai earlier this year when they held a preparatory camp ahead of the 2016 World T20, which they went on to win, so while they might know a bit about what to expect from the surfaces, Brathwaite acknowledged that the weather at this time of the year was a lot harsher.”It wasn’t as hot early in the year, but, apparently, we’re smack dab in the middle of their summer, so it can get very, very hot,” he said. “It’s for the players to prepare well, manage themselves well off the field, rehydration-wise, get enough rest, and each and every one of us is a professional and we know what our body needs to be an optimal thing to perform, so it’s just about us doing things we do off the field, planning well, preparing well, and evidently performing well when the games come.”The first T20I will take place in Dubai on September 23. The T20Is will be followed by a three-match ODI series, before the tour concludes with three Tests. This is the first series for West Indies after the WICB sacked coach Phil Simmons earlier this week. The team will be under the supervision of former West Indies fast bowler Joel Garner for this tour, along with assistant coaches Henderson Springer and Roddy Estwick.

Look out Division One, the Essex boys are coming. Ryan ten Doeschate afterwards played down the effect his captaincy has had on Essex winning promotion

Alan Gardner at Chelmsford13-Sep-2016
ScorecardJames Foster embraces Ryan ten Doeschate as the Division Two title is clinched•Getty Images

Look out Division One, the Essex boys are coming. Ryan ten Doeschate afterwards played down the effect his captaincy has had on Essex winning promotion but he led from the front to haul his side over the line in their penultimate match of the season, the Division Two title finally secured to raucous approval on a sweltering afternoon in Chelmsford. Ten Doeschate struck the single that took Essex to 250 and a second batting point – enough to move them clear of all challengers – and his fourth hundred of a most fulfilling first season in charge duly followed.The Championship has been a matter of delayed gratification for Essex fans, having seen their side finish third in each of the last three years, and they had to endure one or two trying moments against second-from-bottom Glamorgan before the job was completed. With only one promotion spot going this season, there was no margin for error but they will now return to Division One for the first time since 2010. A trip to Canterbury next week will serve only as a coronation.”We made it hard for ourselves today and it would have been a lot nicer to fly past the winning post but as much as we tried to avoid it, this game was really about getting those bonus points and making sure we didn’t have to go to Kent with any work to do,” ten Doeschate said. “Everyone’s delighted, it’s a bit weird winning it on day two…but I think it’s more a sense of relief up there and a great achievement to achieve what we set out to do at the start of the year.”Promotion was the stated goal and, in Chris Silverwood’s first campaign as head coach, Essex produced their most dominant Championship cricket in more than a decade. They have led practically from start to finish (Kent spent a week on top in July having played a game more), their six victories so far all by the imposing margins of either an innings or ten wickets.Three of those came as the season approached its climax as Essex, in ten Doeschate’s words, carefully “eliminated” their rivals one by one. After Kent were unexpectedly beaten by Northamptonshire last week, they came into this match knowing that bonus points could be enough; five were needed to extinguish Kent’s chances, six in the event that Sussex took maximum points from their game with Worcestershire. Essex were wobbling at 85 for 5 shortly after Sussex were dismissed for 229 in their first innings at Hove but ten Doeschate put on a century standard with Adam Wheater to settle the nerves.It was fitting that ten Doeschate was the man who made sure of things. Since July, his run of scores reads: 91, 52, 25, 83, 109, 60, 86, 109* and 109*; in the process he became the first Essex captain to pass 1000 runs for the season since Ronnie Irani in 2006. Irani, whose return as cricket committee chairman last year led to the winter shake-up in management, would doubtless approve of such talismanic displays.Ten Doeschate was also the man who scored the dramatic last-day hundred to fire Essex up the last time they were promoted, in 2009, but he has experienced enough near-misses over recent years to make this a moment to savour – even if he was keen to downplay his own role.”I think the really rewarding thing about this year was the fact there was only one promotion spot available and we really made a pact that we were going to go for it,” he said. “To achieve it – and it’s only Division Two and we’re only the tenth best team in the country at the moment – is so rewarding, and being captain as well, it is probably my proudest and biggest achievement at Essex.”Subconsciously we’ve tried to be more relaxed and place more faith in the players, and that’s shown in the belief guys have shown in themselves. A year ago, or two years ago there would have been stages, in the same position, where we would have folded and the belief in the camp this year has been a lot better. I personally think the captaincy thing is overrated, I believe it’s more the environment you can create. I don’t really have too much to say on it but things have clicked pretty much from the first game.”Essex have barely clicked so well in four-day cricket since they won Division Two way back in 2002. Only in the middle of the season, when they lost twice in three games, to Leicestershire and Gloucestershire, did they falter. “Since then, we’ve been really switched on, learned quickly from the mistakes we’ve made. Four-day cricket is never easy but we’ve pretty much been faultless over the last five or six weeks,” ten Doeschate said.It has, as the captain was keen to stress, been a collective effort. Essex have the leading wicket-taker in the division, in Graham Napier, as well as two batsman with more than 1000 Championship runs (Tom Westley and ten Doeschate) and a third, Nick Browne, just shy of the mark; the team have racked up more than 500 on five occasions (twice passing 600), something no other Division Two county has done more than twice. Oh, and Alastair Cook’s 643 runs at 91.85 have helped, too.The strategy that Essex set out at the end of last season has been followed with doctrinal zeal. Silverwood was appointed with the aim of getting Essex into Division One of the Championship and he has succeeded where Paul Grayson failed so often, at the first time of asking.Quarter-final defeats in the NatWest Blast and Royal London Cup were uncomfortably reminiscent of the Grayson era but, while limited-overs cricket is important to the club’s finances, Essex believe that being in the top-tier of the Championship is the best way to retain the talent they bring through. The XI for this match, which included the returning Wheater and Varun Chopra in anticipation of Division One challenges ahead, might be considered validation of such a strategy, with only ten Doeschate and Kent-born David Masters requiring honorary Essex boy status.The Championship side has come together as the perfect blend of youth and experience, at least as far as Division Two goes. How they will fare in Division One without Napier and Masters – whose retirement seems imminent – is one of the imponderables that Essex regulars will return to gnaw at periodically over the winter months.For now, Essex have their moment in the late-September sun. On an oppressively hot afternoon, a blissed-out crowd slowly swelled beyond four figures, applauding singles and cheering boundaries as ten Doeschate and his predecessor, James Foster, took them to the ECG equivalent of nirvana. “Come on you Essex boys!” was the cry, before ten Doeschate and Foster embraced. They are coming.

Devendra Bishoo rattled Pakistan with a career-best 8 for 49 to skittle them for 123 and leave West Indies with an outside chance of victory

The Report by Sirish Raghavan16-Oct-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsDevendra Bishoo collected career-best figures of 8 for 49•AFP

A 16-wicket day brought the Dubai day-night Test to life as Pakistan’s 400th Test swung one way and then the other. After Yasir Shah’s three wickets – which brought him a five-wicket haul and his 100th Test scalp – helped Pakistan secure a 222-run first-innings lead, Devendra Bishoo hit back with a career-best 8 for 49 to skittle Pakistan for 123 and leave West Indies with an outside chance of victory.West Indies lost Kraigg Brathwaite early in their chase of 346, before Leon Johnson and Darren Bravo shared a 60-run stand to lift the team. But Johnson’s late dismissal and Marlon Samuels’ early struggles against the legspin of Yasir served a reminder that West Indies still had an uphill task on the final day.Having declined to impose the follow-on, Pakistan chased quick runs and lost two early wickets before tea. Sami Aslam and Babar Azam added 57 off 70 balls after the interval to steady the innings and swiftly build the lead. But Bishoo then benefitted from some ambitious shots, and some good, spinning deliveries to rip through Pakistan, taking seven of the eight wickets that fell either side of the dinner break.With the score at 77 for 2 and the lead at 299, Azam played a loose cross-batted shot onto his stumps off Bishoo. Aslam played a late cut into the hands of Jermaine Blackwood at first slip and Misbah-ul-Haq was bowled after missing a slog sweep. The left-handed Mohammad Nawaz shouldered arms to his third ball, only to see a fizzing leg break cannon into his off stump. When Wahab Riaz miscued a slog sweep to Brathwaite at deep midwicket, Bishoo had his sixth of the innings. Jason Holder then had Yasir caught and bowled off the last ball before dinner.Bishoo wrapped up the innings within five balls of the resumption, getting Sarfraz Ahmed stumped, before hitting Mohammad Amir’s middle stump, his fourth bowled dismissal of the innings. That capped a collapse of eight wickets for 46 runs. Bishoo’s plunder and Pakistan’s slump still left West Indies with a daunting target, but they could hardly have dreamed of a better outcome at the start of the day.Day four had begun much as day three had done – with an early wicket for Yasir. A very full legbreak pitched just in line with the stumps and spun in before hitting the batsman’s pads. Dowrich had played across the line and missed.Bishoo and Holder then survived a stern short-ball examination from Amir and Wahab, putting on a 21-run stand that raised West Indies’ hopes of extending their resistance. That was not to be – Yasir got through Holder’s defences with a tossed-up googly and then bowled Miguel Cummins with a big-spinning leg break that evaded the batsman’s wild swipe. That was Yasir’s 100th Test wicket, in his 17th match, making him the joint-second fastest bowler to the mark. Nawaz finished the job in the next over. It had taken Pakistan just 14.5 overs to take the remaining four wickets, bowling West Indies out for 357.West Indies responded by making a couple of breakthroughs before tea. Shannon Gabriel trapped first-innings triple-centurion Azhar Ali in front for 2, a ball after Azhar had successfully reviewed a caught-behind decision. Then Asad Shafiq missed an attempted sweep off Bishoo and, while West Indies’ appeal for lbw was turned down, their review was successful.After tea, Gabriel and Cummins subjected Aslam and Azam to the type of short-ball barrage with which Pakistan had exposed the West Indies batsmen. While Aslam held his own, Azam struggled, showing a tendency to take his eyes off the ball. A Cummins bouncer hurried Azam into a top-edged hook that went high in the air between Gabriel at long leg and Brathwaite at deep-backward square. It was probably Brathwaite’s catch, but Gabriel went for it and could not hold on after a full-length dive.Cummins bounced Azam again in the next over and the batsman half-swayed and half-ducked while leaving his bat in the air. The ball brushed his glove on the way to the wicketkeeper, but Azam survived once again when replays revealed that the bowler had overstepped. Azam eventually got out to Bishoo, precipitating Pakistan’s collapse as the legspinner from Guyana went on the rampage. West Indies then moved to 95 for 2 by the close.While a wicket-filled day brought West Indies back into the match, they will require the balance to shift back in favour of the batsmen if they are to score the 251 more runs needed for victory on a fifth-day Dubai pitch.