At No. 9 in the former Australia captain’s Ashes XI: a fast bowler who scored a Test double-hundred

Ricky Ponting14-Jul-20151:59

Jason Gillespie

“He was a great player to have around the team with a good character. He always kept the atmosphere very light-hearted. He trained and prepared better than anyone else which helped him lengthen his career”

Stats

OVERALL: Matches 71 Innings 137 Wickets 259 Average 26.13 5/10 8/0
ASHES: Matches 18 Innings 35 Wickets 65 Average 29.03 5/10 3/0

Best performance

7 for 37 in Leeds, 1997
13.4-1-37-7: Jason Gillespie’s best figures in Tests helped Australia rout England by an innings and 61 runs and take a 2-1 lead in the Ashes series in 1997. Mark Taylor put England in to bat on a green pitch, and the hosts closed the first day – in which only 36 overs were possible – on 106 for 3. The next day they crumbled against Gillespie. He removed Dean Headley and then caught the other overnight batsman Michael Atherton at long leg off Glenn McGrath. Gillespie then ran through the rest of England’s line-up; they lost their last six wickets for 18 runs.

Trivia

Jason Gillespie has the most impressive numbers as a No. 3 batsman.

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Nov-2015However, Trent Boult produced a moment of magic to dismiss Steven Smith with an unplayable delivery•Cricket AustraliaUsman Khawaja kept going, easing his way to 150•Cricket AustraliaAdam Voges provided able support from the other end with a brisk 83•AFPKhawaja was finally out while reverse-sweeping Kane Williamson on 174, and Smith declared at once with the hosts at 4 for 556•Cricket Australia/Getty ImagesThe New Zealand openers began with a 56-run stand but then Martin Guptill edged Josh Hazlewood to third slip•Getty ImagesJust when it looked like Tom Latham and Kane Williamson were set, New Zealand lost a clump of wickets, reduced from 1 for 102 to 5 for 118•Getty ImagesWilliamson stayed firm though, making an impressive fifty, and in the company of BJ Watling took the visitors to 5 for 157 by stumps•Cricket Australia/Getty Images

David Warner is refining his batsmanship into a package that is both explosive and controlled; a package that has lifted his numbers right up there among Australia’s best in home Tests

Daniel Brettig at the WACA13-Nov-2015How well does David Warner bat in Australia? Try more prolifically than anyone but Sir Donald Bradman and faster than anyone but Adam Gilchrist.When Warner leapt towards the heavens for the second time in the day at the Prindiville Stand End of the WACA Ground in recognition of his hundred, it was the achievement of a goal he had long talked about. But it was also the apogee (so far) of a batting method that sits extraordinarily well among those of all batsmen ever to have marked their guard in a Test in this country.Warner’s average of 64.05 places him second only to Bradman among batsmen to have played more than 20 Tests down under, while a strike rate upwards of 79 is second only to Gilchrist’s 81. Furthermore, no one has ever made as many on day on of an Antipodean Test as Warner’s 244 not out. That puts him well and truly in range of Brian Lara’s world record 400.All this on a ground where Matthew Hayden had previously pushed on to briefly hold the mark himself, with 380 against Zimbabwe in 2003. Warner’s batting had a similar air of inevitability about it, for New Zealand were quite simply powerless to stop him.

New Zealand’s bowling coach Dimitri Mascarenhas looked on as Warner dismembered his charges. “He’s in a rich vein of form at the moment,” he said. “Look, we’ve tried a few plans and they’re definitely not working at the moment. It is tough. He goes through spells where he’ll hit 20 ones in a row and then he’ll hit 20 off an over, so he’s pretty phenomenal at the moment.”In this series and sundry others, Warner’s presence at the top of the order has drastically altered the dynamics of the new-ball contest. Bowlers like Tim Southee and Trent Boult, who commonly walk back to their mark with predatory thoughts of procuring outside edges or splayed stumps, have been left wondering “how do I slow the scoring”, rather than “how do I get him out”.To that end, Warner’s destructive powers recall the most intimidatory extremes of Hayden and Justin Langer during the early 2000s. Bowlers and captains alike were often left to resort to defensive measures against Hayden and Langer when the shine was still on the ball – Brendon McCullum was forced into precisely that posture after the first six overs of the morning went for 33. Three slips quickly became one, then none for most of the day.If McCullum’s field settings had at least something to do with the WACA, which offered up a dry, flat surface that failed to offer the bounce and pace predicted by the curator Matthew Page, they were related rather more closely to Warner’s pressing. In Brisbane, McCullum had been criticised for not resorting to run-saving measures and simply allowing the Australians to flourish; here he tried to control things, and finished up conceding even more runs.They did so because day by day, innings by innings, Warner is refining his concentration and technique into a package that is at once explosive and controlled. Usman Khawaja, Warner’s partner for a pair of major stands over the past two Tests, summed up how he had grown.”I’ve spent an enormous amount of time batting with Davey since I was a kid,” he said, “and he hasn’t changed much except maybe a little bit more mature. He has learned about his game a lot. At times you think ‘oh he probably wouldn’t do that three years ago’. Credit to him, he has learned his game, he knows he has got the explosiveness up there with the best cricketers in the world, but he doesn’t always have to use it. I think he has learned that now.”I think Davey did brilliantly in that he didn’t actually lose his head, he just kept hanging in there, and when he got a bowler that he liked he took them down at the same time. He did show glimpses of Davey Warner when he hit bowlers back of their heads. It was a bit to do with the field too, the ball softened up and McCullum put defensive fields in and bowled with those fields, which makes it tough to score.”He picks and chooses when he needs to use it, and it’s credit to him, you can’t score 15 Test hundreds in 40-odd games without being a class cricketer, without having some good periods of bowling and getting through them. He has developed a lot from when he first started playing Test match cricket, and you can see it today.”

David Warner’s destructive powers recall the most intimidatory extremes of Hayden and Langer during the early 2000s

At the very least, New Zealand did manage to tie down Warner’s partner Joe Burns, who started swiftly and then became bogged down by tighter lines. He was eventually bowled off an inside edge by Matt Henry when trying to manufacture a glide down to third man, though not before accompanying Warner to a third consecutive stand of more than 100.For now, Burns is doing his job even if he can see off the first over of the innings, a risk Warner has pointedly not taken since copping a couple instances of “got a good one early” against West Indies in the Caribbean before the Ashes. That extra ball or two to get adjusted to the light in the middle and observe the vagaries of the pitch seems to have a useful effect on Warner’s awareness of what is coming down, and if the bowler of the second over does not place the ball on a postage stamp he is quickly watching the ball skate away to the boundary rope.The extent to which Warner was able to mess with New Zealand’s plans was epitomised by not one but two requests for the ball to be changed. The first was swapped over at the 10-over mark, a juncture not atypical. But the second was dispensed with by McCullum’s men after a mere three balls of use in the evening. As he spoke with the umpires, McCullum must have been tempted to ask that the Kookaburra be replaced with a Dukes.That of course is the next riddle for Warner to solve. Overseas success has remained relatively elusive for him, mirroring the failings of the Australian teams led by Michael Clarke and now Steven Smith. The ease with which Warner has peeled off centuries in three consecutive innings against New Zealand stands in sharp contrast to the issues of concentration and technique he faced in England earlier this year.Time after time, Warner got himself set during the Ashes, and repeatedly found a way to get out just as England’s bowlers were starting to question their chances. Such circumstances then gave the hosts a sense of anticipation for Warner’s wicket even when he did look to be in command, and doubtless increased the batsman’s own mental anguish about not making the big scores he had hoped for.A part of Warner’s prolific returns against New Zealand is drawn from the wish to learn from the lessons of England this year, among other overseas misadventures, but with the advantage of playing in conditions and circumstances where he is already well versed. The combination of resolve and experience is making Warner just about impossible to bowl to right now, but it will be tested further on his next trip overseas.Even the short hop to New Zealand in February will provide a decent marker of whether Warner can take his Australian supremacy on the road. Australia will hope fervently that he can.

While teams batting first have won more often than not in the last ten Tests at the WACA, the matches are largely decided on their performances in the second innings

Shiva Jayaraman12-Nov-20154-1 Australia’s win-loss record at the WACA in the last five Tests here. They had lost to South Africa in 2012. In their last ten Tests at this venue, Australia have drawn only one game – against South Africa in 2005 – and won six. Two of their three defeats have been to South Africa and the other to India.1985 The last and only time Australia lost a Test to New Zealand in Perth. After that loss, the hosts have played New Zealand in four Tests here and have won one and drawn three. The first Test between the two at this venue, in 1980, ended in a victory for the hosts. Australia have a 2-1 record here against New Zealand in Tests.7-2 Win-loss record of teams batting first in the last ten Tests in Perth. India had lost to Australia after batting first in 2012 and the hosts themselves had lost to South Africa in 2008-09. Teams taking a lead of 250 or more at the end of the third innings have lost only twice in 20 matches: South Africa won chasing the second-highest target ever in Tests, in 2008 and India had lost to the hosts after setting a target of 339 in 1977. In the last ten Tests here at the WACA, teams have averaged 42.82 per wicket in the third innings, much higher than their average of 32.44, 24.65, and 32.70 in the first, second and third innings respectively. The percentage difference of 44.20 in averages between the third innings and the other three innings put together at the WACA is the highest such difference among venues to host at least five Tests since 2004.

6 Australia players in the current squad who have played in Tests at the WACA before. David Warner is the leading run-scorer among them with 394 runs at an average of 78.80 with two hundreds – one of which was in the last Ashes Test here – and one fifty. Australia’s captain Steven Smith too got a hundred in the last Ashes Test at this venue and has made 169 runs at 47.33.117.33 Adam Voges’ batting average in his last 15 innings at the WACA, his home ground in first-class cricket. Voges has made 1056 runs with five hundreds and three fifties in his last 15 innings at this venue, including a double-hundred against Queensland in the 2013-14 Sheffield Shield. His last five scores at this venue have been 101, 139*, 101, 22* and 83. Overall, Voges has made 3442 first-class runs at the WACA – the highest he has at any venue – at 43.02 including 12 hundreds and 11 fifties.42 Wickets taken by Mitchell Johnson at the WACA – the most he has at any venue in Tests. His last five-wicket haul at this venue was in the 2010 Ashes Test against England when he took 6 for 38 in England’s first innings. Johnson averages 20.19 at this venue and has two five-wicket hauls and one ten-wicket haul for the match. Mitchell Starc’s best figures in Tests have also come at the WACA, the last and the only time he played here against South Africa. Starc took 6 for 154 in South Africa’s second innings. Overall, Australia’s fast bowlers in their current squad have taken 66 wickets at an average of 22.36 at the WACA.310 Wicket taken by Johnson in Tests; he is level with Brett Lee who also took 310 Test wickets. With at least one more wicket at the WACA, Johnson will move ahead of Lee to become the fast bowler with the third-most wickets for Australia in Tests. Only Glenn McGrath (563 wickets) and Dennis Lillee (355) will be ahead of him. Johnson has taken 310 Test wickets at an average of 28.10 for Australia.0 Number of New Zealand players who have played in Tests at the WACA before. This will be the first Test for even their captain Brendon McCullum who has played seven Tests in Australia but not one at this venue. McCullum has made 338 runs in Tests in Australia at 26.00. New Zealand’s top five together have made 1037 runs in Australia at 27.28.96.42 Kane Williamson’s average in Tests this year. He has made three hundreds and two fifties in just eight innings this year. No other batsman has got at least 500 Test runs in 2015 at a better average. Among New Zealand batsman, Andrew Jones is the only one to get 500 or more Test runs in a year at a better average than Williamson’s this year. Jones got 513 runs at an average of 102.60 in 1991.7 Century stands by Australia’s openers in Tests this year, the most they have had in a year. Australia’s first wicket has made 1341 runs this year at an average of 78.88 – their best in any year in Tests when they have added at least 800 runs.

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Dec-2015Matt Henry picked up four of the first five wickets as the visitors were reduced to 27 for 5 by the tenth over•Getty ImagesMilinda Siriwardana then staged a fightback for Sri Lanka…•Associated Press… And found an able partner in Nuwan Kulasekara•Getty ImagesBoth batsmen completed fifties as they added 98 for the seventh wicket to take Sri Lanka past 150•Associated PressSri Lanka, however, were limited to 188 in 47 overs after both batsmen were dismissed in consecutive overs•Getty ImagesBrendon McCullum and Martin Guptill gave New Zealand a blazing start in their 189-run chase•Getty ImagesMcCullum completed a 23-ball fifty in the eighth over, as the pair added a 108-run stand in a little more than 10 overs•Getty ImagesGuptill was eventually dismissed for 79 and New Zealand sealed a seven-wicket win in 21 overs•Getty Images

The path back to the India side from injury has had a series of obstacles along the way, but Mohammed Shami is trying to navigate through them in time for the start of the World T20

Arun Venugopal in Kolkata10-Mar-2016The setting wasn’t as low-key as Mohammed Shami might have probably imagined. This was a warm-up game and yet there were at least 25,000 people at the Eden Gardens. There were several thousand more claps, whistles and screams until palms and throats gave in.This is also his home ground, a city where he made a memorable Test debut in Sachin Tendulkar’s farewell series. But there wasn’t anything about Shami on Thursday that betrayed nerves although some amount of nervous excitement would have only seemed reasonable.A spell of 4-0-30-2 against a batting line-up featuring Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo and Marlon Samuels is impressive in itself but its worth is multiplied when you place it against the backdrop of what he has gone through.Shami has over the last few weeks strived to go from 80-85% fit to being fully ready. It is learnt that he bowled to the India Women’s team at the NCA nets in Bangalore to assist in their preparations for the Women’s World T20, apart from playing matches with other men’s teams where specific situations – like bowling at the death, defending a particular total or opening the attack – would be recreated.But Shami would be the first person to insist on telling false dawns apart from real ones, especially after what has happened to him over the last two months. After all, the new year had begun well for Shami. He was nearly as thrilled about flaunting his suit as being on the flight to Australia with the rest of his mates. You couldn’t grudge his just deserts. This was a man who had, after a promising beginning, spent close to a year in pain, uncertainty and the sheer frustration of his knee coming in the way of playing at the highest level.But this new silver lining would soon be gobbled up by gloomy grey clouds as Shami’s return to India was advanced by an injury to the hamstring. It’s hard to surmise what he must have felt. Roughly as excruciating would be the analogy of a man being robbed soon after earning his wages.While on one hand Shami’s inner demons must have been multiplying, the team management too would have had a tough call to make. He wasn’t a part of the Asia Cup squad as well after being deemed to have not recovered sufficiently. But that Shami was picked for the World T20 was as much a leap of faith as an educated gamble; MS Dhoni & co. him. Period.Dhoni has never been shy about his admiration for Shami’s ability to provide thrust with the new ball and finish well at the death. Bouncers, made-to-order yorkers, Shami has always delivered what his captain wanted. His return to action has only added to the considerable gains that India have made recently.

“He just wanted to go out on the park and play. He has really worked hard all this while; coming back from a knee injury is not easy for anyone, not just a bowler.”Rohit Sharma on Mohammed Shami’s return at Eden Gardens

After India had set West Indies 186 to win in Thursday’s World T20 warm-up, he went about rolling out his bouncers and yorkers, not always achieving the desired results but nevertheless persistent in his attempts. For instance, the short-pitched stuff didn’t quite work on this flat, easy-paced surface as Gayle demonstrated with a pull, one of his two boundaries off Shami.After gong for nine runs in his first over, he began his second with a short ball outside off to Marlon Samuels and got away with a single. The next delivery was quick and had Johnson Charles stuck on his crease. Shami had closed in on his sweet spot. His third ball wasn’t exactly a yorker but was fast and full. Charles’ attempt to back away and carve him over cover only resulted in a caught behind. Shami, however, erred with his last two deliveries, going too full and too short on either occasion, and Samuels cashed in with two fours.By the time Shami returned in the 16th over West Indies had lost eight batsmen and were down for the count. He stuck to a length that was slightly shorter of a full length and attacked the stumps. One such delivery had Ashley Nurse charging out of the crease and scooping the ball to deep point.Shami finished with 2-0-11-1 in his second spell. There was no sign of restricted movement or controlled operation. His run-up was easy and the momentum generated by the smoothly-swinging non-bowling arm contributed to his rhythm. Rohit Sharma paid tribute to Shami’s performance, and said he managed to do what he intended to.”He just wanted to go out on the park and play. For a bowler to not play for so long it’s never easy,” Rohit said after the match. “So he just wanted to go out and feel the conditions and feel the atmosphere, and feel [the joy of] wearing the India jersey again. He has really worked hard all this while; coming back from a knee injury is not easy for anyone, not just a bowler. But he really worked hard and looking at [the fact that] he is playing his first game he did pretty well.”He bowled bouncers, yorkers, slower ones, that’s what we expect from him. The last game he played for India, till then he did pretty well for us. He was one of the main bowlers for us and expectations will be there from him, no doubt about it.”Dhoni has recently pointed to the happy dilemma he would face should Shami be fit, with Jasprit Bumrah sealing the other paceman’s slot. Shami would then have to compete with Ashish Nehra for the second seamer’s position and there is a possibility he might not find himself in the playing XI straightaway.But for now he is unlikely to entertain such worries and would rather focus on dialing up the momentum in India’s last warm-up match against South Africa in Mumbai on Saturday. Shami sure knows a thing or two about the value of taking baby steps.

A day after Shahid Afridi said that his side has to cut down on their small mistakes, Pakistan committed one too many in a must-win match against New Zealand

Sidharth Monga in Mohali22-Mar-2016A day before this match, in a familiar state of needing to win every match, Shahid Afridi said it is not miracles that work at such times; it is the little things. Afridi has spent two decades in international cricket, we should be listening to him. But based on their performance in Mohali, it seemed like neither he, nor his team, took heed of those words.Pakistan did not get the little things right and reposed all their faith in miracles: a whirlwind start from Sharjeel Khan where almost everything was in the slot, and Afridi promoting himself, hoping against hope that he can keep hitting for long enough. The little things were all wrong. An exhaustive list might be too long for this space, but you can take your pick from what sums it up best.Almost every Twenty20 team puts its best fielders on the fence, but either Pakistan have too many to hide or they are yet to get the memo. Umar Akmal would often be in the circle with Sharjeel or Mohammad Amir or Mohammad Irfan allowing easy twos that New Zealand don’t when they are fielding. Afridi himself kept misfielding at extra cover.In the 18th over, with Ross Taylor on 13, Irfan bowled him a good bouncer, it induced a massive top edge. Sharjeel was at square leg, and Amir at fine leg on the boundary. Neither of them picked it early, neither of them looked keen to go for it. New Zealand fielders might have risked a collision, but here the two were so slow to the ball – which fell at long leg – it allowed Taylor to take three runs. He ended with 36 not out, including 15 off the last over.Somehow there was a window left with New Zealand reaching only a par score. Mohammad Sami bowled a good 19th over, keeping New Zealand from getting to 200. There was still hope. For a miracle. It began with Mitchell Santner bowling a rare full toss. Sharjeel got going. New Zealand then got the attack all wrong. Everybody knew Sharjeel struggles outside off, but they kept bowling at his body, trying to cramp him up. Sharjeel loves it there; he can pull and heave. The platform was laid with 47 off 25, a team score of 65 in 5.3 overs.All that was needed after that for somebody to trust his game – keep pinching the ones and twos regularly, and get the boundaries when New Zealand try too hard for a wicket. They got exactly that kind of over soon after the Powerplay. Ahmed Shehzad cut Grant Elliott for four first ball, followed by a couple and four singles. They could have afforded a quiet over even if it was followed by some gentle accumulation. The quiet over came from Ish Sodhi, the eighth, which went for three. The response was panic: Khalid Latif came down the track looking for a miracle. He found long-on.Shehzad and Umar Akmal then began to play the big shots and big shots only. Shehzad, in particular, didn’t trust his own game to keep scoring at a little over a run a ball without taking risks. Not once did he attempt a chip, just the miraculous boundaries that would get Pakistan home without having to go through the grind once the pitch slows down, the ball gets old and the field spreads. From 20 off 14 balls, Shehzad finished on 30 off 32.Afridi moved ahead of Shoaib Malik and Sarfraz Ahmed once again. Sarfraz, in particular, was just the man to put spinners off their length with his sweeps, just the man to bring energy into the middle, just the man to look for those twos. But Afridi was hoping for a serious miracle with an innings played purely on pride. It didn’t last long enough and Sarfraz, as against India, came in to bat once the game was over.In the press conference Waqar Younis said the batsmen were not good enough, that they couldn’t hit any boundaries in the middle. He was partly right. They hit just three fours and a six since Sharjeel got out, and Umar Akmal, who couldn’t hit even one, was a big culprit. He is the one batsman in the side expected to keep hitting the odd boundary mixed with singles and twos. That was the only big thing gone wrong. Everywhere else Pakistan expected a miracle. Didn’t Afridi tell us miracles don’t happen if you get those little things right?

On Tuesday night, AB de Villiers took a score of 29 for 5, touched it up and made it match-winning, almost like a fairy godmother turning the ugly duckling into a beautiful swan

Alagappan Muthu in Bangalore25-May-20161:44

‘Virat is a thinker, I am not’ – de Villiers

It took a lot to ascertain a very important truth. Royal Challengers Bangalore were made to look like wimps. Gujarat Lions had to endure giddying amounts of false hope. Virat Kohli was forced to go through so many emotions that screen grabs of his face should be supplied to young actors.But finally, there is proof that cricket is in AB de Villiers’ DNA. If not that, then the events at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Tuesday night at least emphasise the fact that there is no one better than him at risk management during a batting innings.He took a score of 29 for 5, touched it up and made it match-winning, almost like a fairy godmother turning the ugly duckling into a beautiful swan. Real life, however, is not often as obliging. The pitch picked Tuesday to mutiny against the batsmen. It was slow and offered uneven bounce. De Villiers was aware of this. So was Kohli. And they had got together to devise a counter.

De Villiers on …

When it was time to attack
“It was in that Dwayne Smith over in the 15th,” he told . “Virat sent a message out saying there is a bit of bad weather around and it was probably the best time to try and get up with the run-rate again. So, I decided to have a go in that over to see where it takes us.”
Using his experience
“I have failed so many times in the past in pressure situations like that, but tonight my experience helped me. This is a million times better than any hundred I have scored. I don’t look at hundreds or two hundreds or all of that nonsense. I just want to cross the line for the boys.”

“It’s a funny thing,” de Villiers said afterwards. “Virat and I actually spoke about it before our batting innings. He was really full of energy, giving a lot of information out. He came and sat at my place and was talking really energetically and I told him, ‘Virat, you know I just go naturally about it.’ He’s a thinker. I’m not a big thinker.”That can’t be true. Then again, de Villiers is no liar. So is it possible that he defies scoreboard pressure – 29 for 5 became 68 for 6 in the 10th over after a rough lbw decision to his partner Stuart Binny – and situational pressure – Binny was the last specialist batsman and Royal Challengers were 91 runs off target – because he has been built to?”I follow my instincts,” de Villiers said. “I try and watch the ball closely. I’ve played the game for many years now and I know my talent will take over if I just watch the ball and enjoy myself out there.”One of the best ways for a sportsman to enjoy himself is to win. And de Villiers is obsessed with winning. The only way that was going to happen in Bangalore was if he shepherded the chase all the way through. In other words, the risk of losing him at any point – even with one run needed – was too high.So de Villiers dialled down his strokeplay. Pushes down the ground with a straight bat. Glides that made use of the bowler’s pace. Short of letting a bad ball go unpunished, he focused entirely on safeguarding his wicket. He scored 50 of his 79 runs in boundaries. Only one of them was a reverse sweep.There were other matters he had to be mindful of – rain in the air and Dhawal Kulkarni overpowering every batsman in his path so effortlessly that it seemed like he had gone out celebrating on the eve of the match, bumped into Asterix and stolen his magic potion. Kohli had been slapped with his first duck in almost two years of competitive cricket. Chris Gayle escorted the ball onto his stumps. KL Rahul was knocked out by an unplayable delivery. De Villiers was key.”I didn’t think it was possible to win from there when I started batting and when we were five or six down,” de Villiers told . “I thought ‘Oh, we are in trouble,’ and it was a big mountain to climb from there on. I tried to break it down into small targets. I wanted to focus on each ball and enjoy it even though we were down and out.”And so de Villiers absorbed the early barrage for Royal Challengers like a boxer willfully taking blows until he could spot an opening for the right hook. That came in the 11th over, when he got the strike for a free-hit against uncapped left-arm spinner Shadab Jakati. Six.The only way a batsman can be dismissed off a free-hit is via a run-out. And this one was a length ball outside the off stump, giving de Villiers ample room for a big old golf swing. In summation, there was absolutely no risk in depositing that ball straight down the ground. Royal Challengers needed 80 off the remaining 56 balls and de Villiers had just switched on.And now the game changes. Clear risks are suddenly not risks at all. Like shovel-sweeping against Jakati’s turn over the square-leg boundary, even with a fielder there. All de Villiers had to do was get outside the line of the ball and let those powerful forearms, strengthened from his years of playing hockey, take over. Or reverse-sweeping Praveen Kumar’s pace from outside leg. This was 42 balls into his innings. And this was with 26 needed off 20 balls, with four wickets in hand. This was reward for all that sober batting earlier. This was a first sip of scotch.The last shot he played was a gentle push to long-on because that was what was needed. That is all de Villiers ever does on a cricket field.”I honestly don’t give a rat’s…” his tired body and mind almost slipped up at the post-match press conference, but then he smiled and said, “damn about any stat. I don’t care about hundreds, fifties, averages. Tonight was special for me. To cross the line for the team, to have an impact on winning the game – that’s why I play this game.”

Carlos Brathwaite’s stillness, the smooth flow of his bat, the ball struck sweetly beyond the ropes – again and again and again. Four balls that wiped out all that had gone before

Sidharth Monga at Eden Gardens03-Apr-20160:57

‘Ben Stokes is an absolute legend’ – Brathwaite

Twenty20 matches are more often won or lost in the 19th over. Fielding captains bowl their best bowler in the 19th so that during the chaos of the 20th they have more to defend.Chris Jordan has had a great tournament with his yorkers. He has a wet ball in his hand. England have 27 to defend. Jordan bowls an ordinary first ball, which goes for four, but comes back superbly, conceding just singles off the next four balls. For West Indies’ sake, they need a boundary off the last ball because they don’t want to find themselves needing three sixes off the last over. Marlon Samuels, 85 off 65, is on strike. He has been brutal on everything that has been not a yorker of late. Jordan – 3.5-0-36-0 – has to secure this match for his team right now. He runs in, Samuels backs away as he always does to open up the off side, and Jordan slips in a wide yorker.This is a dot. The next best thing to a wicket. Now England have a last over at Carlos Brathwaite, in his eighth Twenty20 international. It’s simple: they have to deny West Indies three boundaries. Even if they get three boundaries at least one of them has to be a six. Michael Hussey chased 18 in the last over against Saeed Ajmal in the 2010 World T20 semi-final. In the 2014 World T20, James Faulkner made it difficult for West Indies with two dots at the start of the 20th over, but Darren Sammy took the required 12 off the next two balls with sensational, brutal sixes.This is different, though. This is the World T20 final. The final. West Indies are playing this for much more than just the final. They need three boundaries, at least one of them has to be a six, and they have a rookie on strike, against an allrounder who will be one of the best of this era. He has won England Tests and ODIs, but this is the World T20 final. The final. Also, like Faulkner, West Indies just don’t like Ben Stokes.Written word will never be able to do justice to Sammy’s narration of that final over, so it is over to him.Bowling his first over of the night from the High Court End, Stokes has three men on the leg-side boundary. Long leg, deep midwicket, long-on. The idea is to cramp him. Bowl yorkers. Stokes runs in, Samuels is not backing up, there can be no mankading, there are to be no pinched singles. Stokes fails to execute the plan. He bowls length, and on the pads. Brathwaite doesn’t hit the ball hard. He just flicks it. In the air. All night England have been running their boots off after balls hit in the air or along the ground. You look at Moeen Ali at midwicket. He doesn’t move. He knows it. Long leg doesn’t move. He knows it. The ball has bisected them. It has gone for six. Just six. Not a big six. Doesn’t even go into the stands, but does the job. Samuels goes and hugs Brathwaite. Later he says he told Brathwaite Stokes is a “nervous laddie”, that he will err.Over to Sammy again.Stokes now knows the plan is right, but not the execution. He needs to execute it better. Just bowl the yorker. Don’t let Brathwaite get under it. But Brathwaite has also shown earlier that he is capable of playing the cute ramp over short fine so he can’t get too full on the yorker.Those who know MS Dhoni say one of his tricks in final-over heists is to send the first or second ball for a six. Not just a six. A huge six. It doesn’t matter where the ball goes because the bowler doesn’t look behind to see where it has gone. It has to sound big off the bat. That sound has to completely demotivate the bowler. A flick doesn’t make that sound. For that you need a straight six. Brathwaite hasn’t done that yet.Now Stokes runs in. Brathwaite stands still. The front leg cleared slightly. He holds the bat high. He doesn’t move. Nothing to tell what he was going to do. Bowlers look for that sign, and perhaps bowl a bouncer or a slower ball. There is nothing here. So Stokes tries the yorker. This is not quite a yorker, but if a batsman is moving forward there is no way he can get under it. This is that full.Brathwaite is expecting this, he is deep inside his crease, and when the ball dips on him, it is like everything has slowed down. You don’t know if Stokes hears the demoralising sound, because this is not a powerful hit. This is just a caress. The long powerful arms of Brathwaite hold the bat right at the top of its handle, giving him leverage to lift these balls high. The long-on is in place. There has never been a fielder more redundant. This lands in the crowd. Samuels comes and hugs Brathwaite again. Ian Bishop says on television commentary: “You think he will be a player in the future, Carlos Brathwaite. You think he has talent. It ain’t over yet, but this is a glimpse into the future.”Kidding us, Bish. He is the present. And this is over bar the shouting.Over to Sammy.Stokes will continue to win matches for England, but you can see it on his face. He even looks at the ball sail away. Brathwaite’s job is done. Bowlers usually just turn up to take their punishment after two such hits from these modern bats. Stokes has some life in him yet. He runs in with the same plan, looking for that yorker again. The length is similar again. He has erred but not by a lot. But Brathwaite stays beautifully still. The high back lift, waving the bat about chest high.And everything slows down again as the ball dips on him. The high grip on the bat, the bat coming down in a smooth motion but with the momentum from such a high back lift. He has timed this perfectly even though it looks like just a slice. The only difference is, unlike the last ball which he took from outside leg, this is on middle and off. This time he clears long-off. None of the sixes has drawn a wild reaction from the press box. It is the largest “ho ho ho” ever in unison. There is marvel at the cleanness of the strikes, the lack of nerves, the brutal but smooth execution.Stokes is down on his haunches. He has tears in his eyes. Samuels, who has been sledged by him earlier, is giving it to Stokes now. He is also running circles around Brathwaite. A match that is lost is almost won back.Over to Sammy.It is not over yet. Even before we evoke Bangladesh, there is a small matter of separating Samuels and Stokes, and retrieving the ball. The ball has to be changed. For a while, as they wait for the ball, the fielders don’t come in to defend the single. For a while it seems that England, just like India against Bangladesh, are going to play on the hero factor. They don’t think West Indies will look to nurdle a quiet single. That can perhaps explain the lack of urgency in the fielders moving in. But as the ball is replaced, the field moves up.There is no reason now to not end it with a six. Why? Because you can. Without stretching yourself. Stokes runs in again, he errs a little again. Bowls the line outside leg. In slow motion again Brathwaite lifts this over long-on. “Carlos Brathwaite,” goes Bish. “Remember the name.” Only now does Brathwaite let out a roar.Stokes is inconsolable. Kumar Dharmasena leaves his cap on his shoulder. The celebrations are wild. Twenty20 is brutal on the vanquished, but these are four of the most non-violent sixes you might ever see in a cluster. The absolute stillness, the smooth flow of the bat, the timing, it is enough to make you forget a messed-up chase. The party has begun. West Indies have risen again. Like a raging fire.

Goonesena was the buccaneering all-round Sri Lankan talent, who plied his trade with distinction well before his country made ripples in the cricketing world

Rob Collins06-Jun-2016One of the most entrancing stories of world cricket during my lifetime has been the rise and rise of Sri Lankan cricket. Their successes appeal to the romantic in us all. That such a small, seemingly idyllic, teardrop-shaped island in the Indian Ocean has, since its elevation to Test status in 1981, produced a conveyor belt of batsmen with superb technique allied to visible spirit, nous and courage, is remarkable in itself. In the last generation, however, this has been complemented by some of the most entertaining, idiosyncratic and compelling bowling the world has ever seen, featuring the likes of Lasith Malinga, Rangana Herath and, of course, the great Muralitharan.In their pre-Test incarnation of Ceylon, Sri Lanka produced a cricketer who has been somewhat overshadowed by these cricketing giants of recent years. Gamini Goonesena represented Nottinghamshire in county cricket for 11 seasons, on and off, with much success. I was too young to have watched him, and only recall his contributions as a summariser on Test Match Special on early Sri Lankan tours of England. Nevertheless, a cursory examination of the record books reveals an impressive all-round cricketer, who may just have been one of the best cricketers that the island has ever produced and whose contribution bears a second examination.Goonesena was a highly skilled legbreak bowler with excellent control of line and length, honed by endless hours of practice. Richie Benaud recalls that he was “a big spinner of the leg break and had a decent top-spinner and googly”. As a batsman, he may not have been prolific, but he was a meticulous and organised predominantly back-foot player. Nearly 700 first-class wickets and nearly 6000 first-class runs are, however, a testament to his all-round abilities. In fact, he was probably the best player ever produced by Ceylon. His captaincy was said to be outstanding too. His team-mate Ian Pieris claims that his charismatic captaincy was “head and shoulders above his contemporaries in England at a time when there were captains in the counties such as Peter May, Colin Cowdrey and Cyril Washbrook”.A legspinner of some repute, Goonesena registered to play for Notts in 1952, along with a fellow leggie, the Australian Bruce Dooland. However, he needed to wait until the following year while serving the required qualification period. As it happened, Notts had to share his services in his early years in England, because, like his countryman Kumar Sangakkara, his talents were not confined to the cricket field alone. Although he had originally headed to England in his early twenties with the aim of becoming a pilot at RAF Cranwell, he abandoned this idea and instead took up a place at the University of Cambridge to study law.Whilst obtaining his law degree, he became the first Asian to captain Cambridge (Ted Dexter was his vice-captain), and in 1957, with his side struggling at 80-4, he hit 211, which remains the highest individual innings by a Cambridge batsman in the varsity match, and is still the only double hundred made by a Sri Lankan at Lord’s. His partnership of 289 with Geoffrey Cook also remains the highest seventh-wicket partnership at Lord’s in first-class cricket. After his four-wicket haul in Oxford’s second innings, Wisden reported “…Goonesena, by reason of his splendid batting and his bowling in the second innings, was the matchwinner…The Cambridge captain and his men received the ovation they deserved as they left the field”.Goonesena had taken up legspin only because, as he wrote in his 1959 book, , “I was the smallest boy in my form at school and it wasn’t much use trying to bowl fast – the bigger boys could do it so much better and more successfully”. Yet, his career produced 674 wickets at 24.37. Although at first he struggled to adapt to English conditions, Goonesena achieved “the double” in 1955 (1380 runs and 134 wickets) and 1957 (1156 runs and 110 wickets). He also became the only man from either Oxford or Cambridge to have scored 2000 runs and taken 200 wickets, a feat which will, of course, now never be equalled.A peripatetic childhood had taken Goonesena from Ceylon to Kenya, before he returned to Ceylon where he starred for Royals in their classic rivalry with St.Thomas – the second-longest uninterrupted cricket rivalry in the world. He then headed to England in his early twenties, appearing as a professional for Notts and an amateur for Cambridge.His wanderings continued and later took him to Australia where he played for New South Wales, mostly as a locum for Richie Benaud, helping them win the Sheffield Shield in 1960-61. He also played grade cricket for Waverley in Sydney (as did his son), whilst, off the field, he worked for the Ceylonese Embassy and the Ceylon Tea Board.After his playing days, Goonesena used his acquired knowledge and experience to represent Sri Lanka on the ICC and to manage the Sri Lankan Test team on their 1982 tour of India.All-round cricketer, law student, businessman, diplomat, cricket administrator, team manager – Goonesena was both a trailblazer and a Renaissance man for Sri Lankan cricket.Want to be featured on Inbox? Send your articles to us here, with “Inbox” in the subject line.