All posts by csb10.top

Ishant Sharma, Shane Watson, Kevin Pietersen, Yuvraj Singh, Dale Steyn, Aaron Finch, Martin Guptill and Dwayne Smith have been listed as the eight marquee players in the IPL 2016 player auction which will be held on February 6 in Bangalore. A total of 351 players, including 230 Indian and 121 foreign cricketers, will go into the auction.The shortlist of 351 players was trimmed down from a pool of 714 cricketers. Of the 351 players, 130 are capped, 219 are uncapped and two are Associate players. A maximum of 116 players can be chosen at the auction.Ishant, Watson, Pietersen and Yuvraj are among 12 players with a base price of INR 2 crore (approx $296,000). Ashish Nehra, Dhawal Kulkarni, Sanju Samson, Dinesh Karthik and Stuart Binny are the other Indians with the same base price. Among overseas players, Michael Hussey, Kane Richardson and Mitchell Marsh have attracted the top reserve price.Delhi Daredevils have the maximum funds remaining, INR 37.15 crore (approx. $5.47 million), having released 13 of their players from last year’s squad including Yuvraj and Angelo Mathews. In 2015, Yuvraj was the most expensive buy for the second consecutive auction after the Daredevils raised the bid price to INR 16 crore ($2.3 million). Daredevils also paid INR 7.5 crore ($1.1 million) for Mathews.Following is the purse remaining with the each of the other seven franchises:Kings XI Punjab (INR 23 crore), Kolkata Knight Riders (INR 17.95 crore), Mumbai Indians (INR 14.405 crore), Royal Challengers Bangalore (INR 21.625 crore), Sunrisers Hyderabad (INR 30.15 crore), Rising Pune Super Giants (INR 27 crore), Rajkot (INR 27 crore)

Having come off defeats in spin-friendly conditions, both South Africa and England will feel more comfortable in surroundings where their quick bowlers should prosper. The head-to-head between the two pace attacks will be one of the fascinating contests of the next month but, unsurprisingly, Allan Donald, South Africa’s former bowling coach, is clear which pack he is backing.For Donald, it is the support that South Africa have available to Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel which gives them the upper hand. They are missing Vernon Philander due to injury, but England are also likely to have their depth tested early in the series with James Anderson unlikely to be fit for Durban and Donald believes South Africa have greater firepower below the new-ball pair.”In their own conditions and when they are firing as a unit, the South African attack is the best out there,” Donald told ESPNcricinfo. “It’s not just about what we know, that Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel and James Anderson and Stuart Broad are world-class bowlers, it also about the rest of the attack. Steven Finn, Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes have not played Test cricket in South Africa and so it will be up to them to show what they are capable of in these conditions.”Contrastingly, South Africa’s supporting seamers, Kyle Abbott and Kagiso Rabada have enjoyed significant success in their own conditions. Abbott racked up figures only his franchise coach Lance Klusener has bettered on Test debut when he took 7 for 29 in his first match against Pakistan while Rabada broke the first-class record last season for the best match figures when he took 14 for 105 for Lions against Dolphins.Although Rabada and Abbott have just eight Test caps between them, Donald believes South Africa’s depth will help them dominate. “They will definitely miss Vernon because in home conditions, when there is something in the wicket, he will find it and exploit it but Kyle Abbott has been consistent and applied pressure every time he has played and Rabada looks better every time we see him.”Even outside of the current squad, there are guys putting their hands up. Chris Morris has been good and we should not forget about Hardus Viljoen. He has pace and he a is a big, aggressive boy. There’s a lot of talent in the tank.”But Donald is under no illusions that the bowlers are not the only ones responsible for South Africa’s ability to compete in the series. After the way they were defeated in India, Donald knows that the onus will be on the batsmen to start the redemption. “Whatever England brings, South Africa must respond with the bat,” he said. “We’ve got to score big runs and make England work for every wicket.”That sounds similar to what South Africa did in 2012, when Donald was part of the coaching staff that oversaw the team’s rise to No.1. He revealed that then the idea was to target England’s premier pacemen. “We said we want Anderson and Broad to bowl a lot of overs,” Donald explained. “We want to wear the rest down so that they have to keep bringing their main bowlers back.”England would be wise to adopt a similar mindset in this series, trying to make sure that Hashim Amla has to keep returning to Steyn – who may still have to shake off rush post-injury – and Morkel. Steyn has not bowled competitively since the first week of November, when he sustained groin injury in the Mohali Test. That was the eighth injury Steyn has suffered since June 2013 and the second groin strain and there are fears he may be in decline but Donald does not think so.”I’ve heard some things about how it could be the start of the end and I don’t think that’s true. I think you will write him off at your peril. He will bounce back hard,” Donald said. “As much as South Africa missed him in India, I think it was a blessing in disguise because he is really fresh and hungry now I spoke to him a few days ago and he wants to make this series a big one.”Donald admitted Steyn’s inactivity over the last few weeks is not ideal but said quality would trump quantity of balls bowled. “It is a concern that he has not bowled in a while because you want overs under the belt and miles in the leg but a champion is always a champion.”And that is exactly why Donald thinks the South African team will be formidable foes for England over the next six weeks. “It’s not nice getting thumped 3-nil and they will be carrying scars,” Donald said “That makes it very important how they start because if they start badly it could be a long series but this team is too good not to stand up.”

ICC chief executive David Richardson has said the world body will ensure pitches in the World Twenty20 next year in India are not loaded in favour of any side, while emphasising that “good batting wickets” will be the standard fare in the tournament.”Normally for an ICC event, we have our own pitch consultant who will oversee pitch preparations at all the venues,” Richardson told ESPNcricinfo on the sidelines of an event in Mumbai to announce the fixtures for the World T20.”Obviously for an ICC event we want to make sure no one particular team is favored, and essentially when it comes to T20 cricket that we have good batting wickets that will be the same for both the team batting first or second. And that will be the goal.”Richardson’s remarks come in the wake of intense debate over the pitches prepared for the recently-concluded Test series between India and South Africa. The pitch in Nagpur for the third Test was rated ‘poor’ by the match referee, Jeff Crowe, who has submitted the report to the ICC.Richardson did not explicitly refer to Nagpur, which will host the first round of matches in the World T20, including India’s opening game against New Zealand, but said the priorities and parameters in ICC events were markedly different to those in bilateral fixtures. “Obviously when bilateral tours take place there are different objectives I suppose, but for an ICC event, we don’t favour one team against the other,” he said.”Obviously in this part of the world, the tracks will be a little bit slower than you might find in Australia and South Africa, but as long as it’s a good batting wicket, good even bounce and as long as it doesn’t deteriorate from one innings to the next, that’s what we’re looking for.”One of the ICC’s bigger priorities, according to Richardson, was the security arrangement. The ICC has been grappling with security concerns in different geographies recently. While Australia refused to tour Bangladesh in October due to security concerns, Zimbabwe toured Pakistan in May against the advice of their Sports and Recreation Commission, and completed the series despite a suicide attack in Lahore. The ICC had refused to send its officials to Pakistan following a report from its security team.”Security is becoming an issue all around the world now for us, whether it’s the U-19 World Cup in Bangladesh or the World T20 in India,” Richardson admitted. “Security is one of our priorities and we will be engaging with the security agencies, police authorities in all the venues to make sure that security is, as far as humanly possible, guaranteed not only for the players but the media attendees and the spectators at the stadiums.”

Match facts

Friday, April 11, 2008Start time 09:30 am local time (04:00 GMT)

Big picture

Kanpur’s Green Park is known to produce more draws than results – 12 in 19 Tests to be precise – but after India’s embarrassing submission on a green first-day Ahmedabad pitch, the groundstaff have reportedly prepared a turner to try and suit what has traditionally been India’s strength – spin. Trailing 0-1 going into the final Test, India are up against it and may rely on a three-pronged spin attack to level the series.The pitch looks extremely dry and has no grass cover. Anil Kumble and the curator felt it would break as early as the third day and assist spin from there on. Gary Kirsten, India’s coach, is reported to have been taken aback by the track on first inspection. If all predictions hold true, neither side will want to bat last. The toss will be extremely crucial.The bounce is expected to be on the lower side which, given Dale Steyn’s raw pace, could also work in South Africa’s favour. If they win then Graeme Smith will become his country’s most successful captain after equalling Hansie Cronje’s record of 27 victories in Ahmedabad. South Africa will also be the first side to win in India since Australia in 2004.

Form guide – India

Last five matches: LWDDLPlayer to watch: Given the nature of the pitch and the slight doubt surrounding Kumble’s fitness, Harbhajan Singh could be the biggest threat to South Africa. After his captain he is the only bowler with some degree of success at this ground, with eight wickets at 28.62 here.

Form guide – South Africa

Last five matches: WWWDWPlayer to watch: Steyn has been hot all series and could again be a pain in India’s neck. If the pitch does stay low, it’s not improbable to envision Steyn causing trouble with the ball darting around the batsmen’s ankles at extreme pace. He has ran through the tail with ease but it’s the bigger, better batsmen that could be in for a spot of bother.

Team news

Injury concerns mean India might end up re-jigging their bowling line-up again. Kumble will play permitting a fitness test on the morning, and if he doesn’t make the cut Ramesh Powar could come in as the third spinner to go with Harbhajan Singh and Piyush Chawla. Ishant Sharma’s fitness is being monitored and he is the likely candidate to partner Sreesanth with the new ball. Irfan Pathan applied himself excellently with the bat in Ahmedabad but his bowling was pedestrian and could face the axe.Smith is most certain to maintain the winning combination from Ahmedabad. Even though the pitch is expected to assist spin, and they have Robin Pietersen as another left-arm option, South Africa are tipped to play just the one spinner in Paul Harris.India (probable): 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Wasim Jaffer, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 VVS Laxman, 5 Sourav Ganguly, 6 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), 7 Anil Kumble (capt), 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Piyush Chawla, 10 Sreesanth, 11 Ishant Sharma.South Africa (probable): 1 Neil McKenzie, 2 Graeme Smith (capt), 3 Hashim Amla, 4 Jacques Kallis, 5 Ashwell Prince, 6 AB de Villiers, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Morne Morkel, 9 Paul Harris, 10 Dale Steyn, 11 Makhaya Ntini.Umpires: Billy Doctrove and Asad Rauf.Weather: The weather in Kanpur is very hot, with clear skies and a chance of a few clouds as the game progresses. The temperatures are expected to hover around the 37 degrees centigrade mark, warmer than it was during the second Test.

Stats & trivia

Dear Ian,Thank you for your very frank, though concerned, email to me.I will be equally frank with you, and as concerned. I have known you for many years and you know that I will call it as I see it, which is something you also do exceptionally well in your present profession. In fact, this is what makes you one of the best commentators in the world.Essentially, cricket is the core function of the Board On that basis, the Cricket Committee is our most important committee. This very simple view has not been adhered to and the Board previously spent most of its time on ancillary matters instead of addressing its core issues.We now start our Board meetings by focusing first of all on cricket. Our Strategic Plan, now being drafted, is based on our goal, our determination really, to re-establish the West Indies at the pinnacle of world cricket. Whatever is in harmony with that goal will be kept. Anything in our strategic plan that does not contribute to the development of West Indies cricket will not be considered.Given that approach, the Cricket Committee has to be at the centre of our plans, policies and programmes for cricket, not just the playing and player aspects, but in terms of our development.We need the Committee to meet face-to-face frequently to deal with the many issues confronting us now and to develop the blueprint for the future. The core of the Committee must be available and accessible and ready to meet in the Caribbean at short notice. Teleconferences are fine but right now they do not serve our best interests.This is why we rethought what we wanted from the Committee and how it should operate. We kept Clive (Lloyd) although at this period he is in South Africa but he will have other options later. Deryck (Murray) as deputy chairman is in Trinidad and the other core members are in Barbados, Jamaica, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Nevis.As a special advisor you and the other special advisors will get copies of agendas and minutes and if you could be physically present you would be welcome at all meetings. Efforts will be made to have teleconferences but these will be a desperate last resort for emergency use only.We value your experience, expertise and, more recently, your exposure. You have a major contribution to make to our planning and our strategy. However, it is very difficult to do this from distance or to coincide with your schedule and working hours. I will ask Clive and Deryck to make a special effort to keep our advisors informed, to seek your views individually or collectively, and to ensure that your perspectives enlighten our decision-making. You have my commitment on that.If you felt slighted, overlooked or insulted, you were not. Perhaps I should have explained better, but we cannot change the past. We can only move on and make the best use of the resources we have available. You are one.If this episode has served any purpose it has demonstrated to me the depth of your commitment which is as broad as your expanding knowledge of the game and your impact on it. You will always be one of us and your views will always be welcome. Feel free at any time to talk to me or write.I hope this helps to explain what I intended and that we can now agree to move ahead together in the interests of West Indies cricket.All the best,Julian R. Hunte

Glamorgan are in talks to sign Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan allrounder, for their Twenty20 campaign this summer.”We want a top-class player who will win us matches and also drag people through the gate and Afridi is someone who fits the bill,” Matthew Maynard, Glamorgan’s cricket manager, said. “It’s up to the Pakistan board to agree to release him for that period of his contract.”There were rumours last week that Glamorgan were trying to sign Brian Lara, but the club denied the suggestion vehemently. Whether they sign Afridi or another big name from overseas, Glamorgan desperately need to improve on a poor performance last year in which they finished bottom of their division, with just one win in eight matches.”Afridi is one of only half a dozen players in the world who would help the team progress in the competition but also benefit us commercially by filling our magnificent new stadium. That’s the purpose,” said Maynard. “I’m keen to sign a big name player for the Twenty 20 window and there are only a small pool of big names still available.”Virander Sehwag and Yurvaj Singh are also possibilities. Sachin Tendulkar was another option. But he’s not been a great Twenty 20 player. We need a player who contributes in all aspects.”The PCB, however, have yet to release Afridi or Danish Kaneria who is due to play for Essex. A executive board meeting will be held on March 8, when more strict guidelines on the use of Pakistan players in country cricket are expected to be unveiled.

Top-order batter Joshua Dorne will lead West Indies at the Men’s Under-19 World Cup in Zimbabwe and Namibia in January-February 2026. Allrounder Jonathan Van Lange will be Dorne’s deputy.West Indies’ 15-member squad also includes 19-year-old batter Jewel Andrew, who has already played three ODIs and five T20Is for the senior national team.West Indies enter the Under-19 World Cup after back-to-back seven-match Youth ODI series at home against Sri Lanka and England. Dorne was the highest run-getter in both series, with van Lange the next-best from West Indies. Several others who featured in both those series, including Zachary Carter, Matthew Miller, Jakeem Pollard, Shaquan Belle and Vitel Lawes, have also been named in the World Cup squad.In ten matches spread across the Sri Lanka and England series, Pollard bagged 18 wickets at an average of 16.27. Belle picked up 15 wickets in nine games, while Lawes, who managed just a solitary wicket in three matches against England, hit back with 14 wickets at 14.92 in six games against Sri Lanka.”In assembling this group, we have aligned their development with the style of play we expect at the senior level, ensured exposure to high-quality match opportunities, and placed a strong focus on leadership, tactical awareness and individual support within their territories,” Dwain Gill, CWI’s High Performance Manager, said.At the Under-19 World Cup, West Indies have been drawn in Group D, alongside South Africa, Afghanistan and Tanzania. They start their campaign against Tanzania in Windhoek on January 15.

West Indies squad for Men’s Under-19 World Cup 2026

Joshua Dorne (capt), Jewel Andrew, Shamar Apple, Shaquan Belle, Zachary Carter, Tanez Francis, R’jai Gittens, Vitel Lawes, Micah McKenzie, Matthew Miller, Israel Morton, Jakeem Pollard, Aiden Racha, Kunal Tilokani, Jonathan Van Lange (vice-capt)

Suriname provided a major upset on the final day of the ICC Americas Division 2 Championship, not only beating odds-on favourites Bahamas, but doing so so convincingly that they leapfrogged them to the title and promotion to Division One.On the eve of the match, we wrote that “Suriname will need an extraordinarily comprehensive win to have any chance of overtaking the Bahamas”, and that’s just what happened. Needing only 83 to avoid being pipped to the title on net run rate even had they lost, Bahamas were utterly woeful as they crashed to 57 all out and a thumping 146-run defeat.Suriname did well to post 205, but on a good batting track it looked a below-par total. Shazam Ramjohn made 48 off 48 balls, but nobody else really dominated the attack. Bahamas’ reply was bemusing in its incompetence, with no batsman managing to reach double figures. Troy Dudnauth (5 for 21) and Carlton Baker (3 for 27) bowled unchanged for 20 overs, and by the time they finished their quota of overs the same was done and dusted.In the other game, Panama, who also finished level on points with Suriname and Bahamas, eased past Turks & Caicos Islands by 95 runs. In reply to Panama’s 188 all out, Turks & Caicos only managed 93. Panama’s Munaf Kachalia took the Man-of-the-Match award with 4 for 19, while Irfan Tarajia chipped in with 3 for 33 and 31 off 42 balls.

Adrian Barath and Darren Bravo, two West Indies Under-19 players, have been drafted into Trinidad and Tobago’s squad for their Carib Beer Series sixth-round match against the Combined Campuses and Colleges in Barbados this weekend.The young pair replace another Bravo, senior international Dwayne, who is ruled out with a back injury, and the out-of-form Jason Mohammed. Both Barath and Bravo were part of the West Indies U-19 side that placed ninth in the recently-concluded junior World Cup.Kelvin Williams, the former T&T allrounder, has been appointed coach in place of David Williams. David, the former T&T and West Indies wicketkeeper, has been requested by the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) to join the West Indies team’s coaching staff. Williams was recently named as an assistant coach to John Dyson, the former Australian player who took over as West Indies coach last year.T&T beat Windward Islands by three wickets to stat alive in the tournament and are third in the standings with 31 points, behind Jamaica on 46 and Barbados 42.Leewards Islands have made three changes to their squad to face Guyana in St Thomas. Adam Sanford, the former West Indies fast bowler, opener Javier Liburd and teenage wicketkeeper Jamal Hamilton make way for uncapped fast bowler Brent Defreitas, experienced left-hander Shane Jeffers, back from injury, and West Indies U-19 wicketkeeper Devon Thomas.Sanford has been struggling to take wickets consistently and Liburd has been favoured for a batsman who would have been a certainty had he been fit.In other news, young lespinner Davendra Bishoo has been ruled out of Guyana’s game this weekend because of visa trouble. After taking seven wickets on debut for Guyana against CCC last weekend, Bishoo was expected to play a crucial role against the Leeward Islands; however, he was denied a United States visa which is required to enter St Thomas in the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) and his place in the team has been taken by 20-year-old Gajanand Singh.Bishoo, 22, was the only member of the touring squad denied a visa by the USEmbassy in Guyana. Chetram Singh, president of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB), said that Bishoo was denied a visa because of discrepancies on visa application form. “I believe the letter from the St Thomas government went a long way in enabling the players to get their visa. Bishoo’s Visa was not granted due to discrepancies on his application form,” Singh said, adding that he intends to pursue this concern at the WICB level.

You hit, I york
Karan Goel had already smashed Munaf Patel forsixes over midwicket and long-off when the forgotten man of Indian fast bowling produced a magnificent yorker at 139.5 kph. It uprooted the off stump before Goel’s bat was halfway down, and a pumped-up Munaf celebrated with a few expletives that won’t win him a Spirit of Cricket award.Daddy Cool?
Shane Warne is more than just captain and coach, he’s the elder statesman of this Rajasthan Royals team. Bringing himself on with Kumar Sangakkara going berserk, Warne landed his third delivery well wide of off stump. Sangakkara swung with the turn, but didn’t connect cleanly, and the return catch was nonchalance itself. Genius doesn’t burn out, or fade away.All fall down
Another Warne topspinner, and an ill-judged sweep from Yuvraj Singh. The ball takes the edge and goes high into the night sky. Darren Lehmann has enough time to eat a pie, sip on a pint and light a fag, but when the ball comes down, he drops it. Warne, his old mate, looks away.O brother, where art thou?
Five balls into his spell, and after being slammed for two sixes by Yuvraj, Yusuf Pathan comes face to face with his younger brother. It may have been the 16th over of the innings, but Irfan just quietly played out two balls. No sibling rivalry headlines then.Half a bat is better than none
When James Hopes, his Queenslandteam-mate dropped one a little short, Shane Watson decided on thekitchen-sink approach. The ball sailed over long-on for six, but half ofthe broken bat nearly cleared the inner circle as well. Lalit Modi, theIPL commissioner, was seen holding on to the pieces later.Young gun smokes away
Ravindra Jadeja was one of the stars ofIndia’s Under-19 World Cup win, and after Warne had raved about histalent, he demonstrated it with some dazzling strokes as Rajasthancruised home. Watson was content to let the young man be the mainaggressor and he did that to telling effect, thumping Piyush Chawla overlong-on for six before two deft deflections off Brett Lee had the crowddancing in the stands. The cameras searched in vain for Ms Zinta’s missingsmile.