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Piyush Chawla’s experience will be handy for a young side looking to build on recent Ranji success, says Gujarat captain Parthiv Patel

Shashank Kishore17-Aug-2017″The need for new challenges” has led legspinner Piyush Chawla to move from Uttar Pradesh to Gujarat for the upcoming Indian domestic season. Chawla and RP Singh, the former UP pacer who signed with the reigning Ranji Trophy champions last season, will be the two professional players for the side in 2017-18.Chawla’s paperwork has been completed, allowing him to join the Gujarat squad ahead of their pre-season camp next month, after his stint with Chemplast in Chennai’s first-division league. Chawla was earlier in talks with Vidarbha, who eventually signed legspinner Karn Sharma.”Up north, you either get flat wickets or seaming tracks. We’ve struggled to find a middle path, so as a spinner, opportunities to make inroads are very less. I wanted to play in an environment where the surfaces are little more responsive and allow you to make an impact,” Chawla told ESPNcricinfo. “It was a hard decision to move from a state where you’ve played right from the start, but pure cricketing reasons merited a move.”Chawla brushed aside murmurs of competition for places with Kuldeep Yadav being the reason for his move. “Most teams field two spinners anyway, so that isn’t the reason,” he said. “We play together at the IPL for Kolkata Knight Riders. I’ve been around for 12 years now, so there’s no insecurity. I’ve read these things in the papers, but I can’t explain the reason to everyone. He’s come along very well, but for me, personally, at this stage of my career, I wanted a new perspective and I thought playing for a side that has come up tremendously would give me an opportunity to contribute in many ways.”Parthiv Patel, the Gujarat captain, felt Chawla’s experience would be invaluable. “With India playing lot of limited-overs cricket at home, there’s a possibility we may not have the services of Axar Patel throughout. We wanted to strengthen our spin department, and we’re happy to have someone of Piyush’s calibre,” he said. “We will be playing our home games in Surat and Valsad, where it turns. Having a wristspinner, we thought, would add a lot of value.”He’s also very handy lower down the order as a batsman. That skill of his is underrated. So overall, he brings a lot to the table. We had a chat last year. He indicated his willingness to come over, which we thought about ahead of the season. When we assessed our balance as a squad, considering we will defend our title, we felt we were lacking in the spin department. With Piyush coming over, we feel we have most boxes ticked.”Chawla, a Ranji Trophy winner with UP in 2005-06, the same season in which he debuted for India, led the side in 11 first-class games across three seasons. He featured in just two first-class matches in a disappointing campaign in 2016-17, when UP finished seventh in the nine-team pool, with one win, four losses and three draws.Chawla has picked up 386 wickets over 117 first-class games, 80 of which have been for UP. An IPL regular with Kolkata Knight Riders, Chawla last played for India in 2012.Other domestic transfersRobin Uthappa from Karnataka to Saurashtra
KB Arun Karthik from Assam to Kerala
Karn Sharma from Railways to Vidarbha
Ambati Rayudu from Vidarbha to Hyderabad
Pragyan Ojha from Bengal to Hyderabad
Chadrakant Pandit, the former Mumbai coach, will head Vidarbha

Former Madhya Pradesh cricketer Kapil Seth died on July 2 due to an illness. Seth was 36

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Jul-2016Former Madhya Pradesh cricketer Kapil Seth died on July 2, aged 36. Seth was suffering from Hepatitis B, according to MPCA.Seth, who bowled medium-pace, represented Madhya Pradesh in only one first-class and List A game in the 2000-01 season. He made his sole Ranji Trophy appearance against Vidarbha in November 2000 and scored an unbeaten 125 at No. 10. His century, along with Ankit Srivastava’s 204, helped Madhya Pradesh rally from 276 for 8 to 552 for 8 declared, and the side eventually beat Vidarbha by an innings and 176 runs.He did not bat in his only List A match – also against Vidarbha, in the Ranji Trophy One Day competition – but had figures of 1 for 27 in the match.

Chris Gayle’s remarkable century on his home debut for Somerset was all in vain as Kent won by three runs in an extraordinary NatWest T20 Blast match at the County Ground.

ECB/PA31-May-2015
ScorecardAs seen in the IPL: Chris Gayle followed his 92 against Essex with something even more spectacular at Taunton, but in a losing cause•BCCI

Chris Gayle’s remarkable century on his home debut for Somerset was all in vain as Kent won by three runs in an extraordinary NatWest T20 Blast match at the County Ground.He struck 10 fours and 15 sixes in an unbeaten 151 off 62 balls. However, despite an innings that should have been good enough to win any game, Gayle finished on the losing side.The last over started with 17 needed, but Gayle did not have the strike; it took two balls to get it back as Sohail Tanvir was dismissed then Jamie Overton scampered a single. That left 17 off four – not impossible by Gayle standards – and it came down to 10 off two when Mitchell Claydon, who amid the carnage produced an outstanding four overs, found a priceless dot ball which meant the final-ball six, Gayle’s 15th, did not change the outcome.For the first half of the game it looked likely to be another name would be taking the headlines as Sam Northeast made a career-best 114 off 58 balls.Matthew Maynard, the Somerset coach, said: “I thought Sam Northeast played a sensational innings, but then the World boss came in and it’s different gravy. However, good Sam’s innings was it just pales a little bit. But that’s what Chris can do.”We saw him in Essex the other day and today was an even more incredible performance. Words can’t explain exactly what we have seen today. He makes it looks so easy and strikes the ball so cleanly. His knock almost brought off an incredible win today, but it just wasn’t to be.”Batting first, Kent lost Joe Denly in the second over, run out by Max Waller with the score on 10 for 1. After that, Northeast and Daniel Bell-Drummond put on a wonderful exhibition of batting.Bell-Drummond, who was dropped on 37, by Overton off Max Waller, reached his 50 in the 10th over but was snapped up by Lewis Gregory, off Waller, off the very next ball.Northeast continued to make hay as Somerset bowled too short and wide. He struck 14 fours and two sixes before passing three figures in the 18th over. Having led the home attack a merry-dance for the best part of 17 overs, he was one of four batsmen out in the final over as Kent finished on 227 for 7.Enter Gayle, who made 92 on his first appearance against Essex, and a few other batsmen who largely stood at the other end. The West Indian opener saw Marcus Trescothick hole out to cover off Matt Coles the first ball of the fourth over before watching Peter Trego play on, two balls later. At 22 for 2, Somerset appeared to be staring down the barrel of an inevitable defeat.Gayle, however, had slightly different ideas and when the Jamaican struck three giant sixes in eight balls, the host county were on their way.James Hildreth, whose form in four-day cricket has been exemplary so far this summer, refused to remain in the shadow of Gayle and played his part in a partnership of 113 in nine overs. However, the locals had come to the County Ground to see Gayle and they left with plenty over which to enthuse.The left hander struck five fours and four sixes in reaching 50 off 29 balls and continued to make light of a Kent attack that simply had no answer. He put three balls into the River Tone and as many into the St James’ churchyard.Hildreth departed in the 13th over, for 29, with Somerset still needing 93 to win and Jim Allenby followed off the second ball of the 16th over with 63 still required. However, Gayle went through three figures off just 45 balls and kept Somerset in with a chance until the penultimate ball. It was the sixth highest individual score in the history of Twenty20 cricket.Northeast, while delighted with victory, was left in awe. “I don’t know where to start. It was an incredible game and Chris’ innings was one of the best things I have ever seen. But special credit has to go to our bowlers who stuck to their plan and kept believing.”We were trying to get the other batters on strike, but you miss your length against him and it goes out of the park. When the opposition needs 15 an over, you kind of think it’s game over. But when Chris is out there and it went up to 20 needed off each over, you still know that he can do it. He is an incredible player.”

Nasir Hossain was planning to celebrate his century in a manner that would have “stunned everyone”

Mohammad Isam in Mirpur16-Nov-2012Even before reaching his maiden Test century, Nasir Hossain was thinking of how to celebrate the milestone. He got very close, within four runs, before his attempt to push the ball into the covers took the edge to the waiting Chris Gayle at slip. The world remains unaware of how he would have saluted the hundred, though Nasir said it would have “stunned everyone”.”I made plans for my [century] celebration too early, so it is my bad luck that I got out on 96,” Nasir said. “I was trying to give [Shahadat Hossain] Rajib bhai as less strike as possible. After [Mahmudullah] Riyad bhai got out, I decided to bat aggressively. I think it was the right thing to do at that stage.”Nasir, however, enjoyed every bit of the freedom of coming in to bat at 362 for 5, a rarity for a Bangladesh No. 7, whose usual role is to stop a batting slide. On a wicket which he described as “beautiful”, Nasir capitalised by hammering six boundaries and four sixes. He added 121 runs for the seventh wicket with Mahmudullah before taking full charge of the 61-run ninth wicket stand with Shahadat Hossain. He had reached fifty off 99 balls, with a pulled boundary off Ravi Rampaul, but scored the next 43 runs off 37 deliveries.Known for his temperament and ability to close out games in limited overs cricket, Nasir is aware of what he is going to face at this position in the longer-format. “I told the coach that I might have to encounter the second new ball in that position so I would say I was well prepared to bat at No. 7, because I had done the hard yards in the nets.”But there is not much of a challenge in batting at this position. In the national team I am willing to bat anywhere and as in domestic cricket where my performance is counted, I bat up the order.”In the national team, Nasir will likely have to continue in the lower-middle order for a little while longer after Naeem Islam confirmed his place at No. 4 with a hundred and Mahmdullah weighed in with a half-century of his own.Nasir is going to turn 21 at the end of this month and he plays the part of an exuberant youngster. Last year, he had asked Mahmudullah how to celebrate just as he was approaching his first ODI century. This time he was itching to get to the three-figure mark. “I can’t tell you what it is, but it would have been something that stunned everyone.”

Chris Gayle will only be considered for selection for West Indies if he retracts statements he has made about the West Indies board and its officers

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Oct-2011Chris Gayle will only be considered for selection for West Indies if he retracts statements he has made about the West Indies board and its officers, the WICB has said in a statement. The board will appoint a facilitator to assist Gayle in complying with their requirements. The decision comes after the last meeting between Gayle and WICB chief Ernest Hilaire, on August 25, had more positive results then previous interactions between the parties.Relations between Gayle and the board had broken down after he gave an interview in April to a radio station during which he was scathing about both the board and coach Ottis Gibson. After attempts at reconciliation failed, and Gayle was left out of the squad for the whole of the home series against India, he released a long and emotional public statement, in which he traced the evolution of the dispute back to 2009, when, he said, Hilaire had cast doubts on his ability to captain the team.The board has now said it recognises that Gayle can “contribute meaningfully” to the West Indies team, but will only select him if he withdraws his criticisms. The WICB said they had told Gayle of their decision and were waiting for his response.Clive Lloyd, the former West Indies captain and now WICB director, said it was important to get a senior player like Gayle back in the West Indies setup and that it would be wise for Gayle to comply with the board’s requirements.”First of all it is disappointing that the matter has gone on for as long as it has,” Lloyd said in the board statement. “What we need now is closure and, to be fair, anyone of whom those comments were made would have a right to take umbrage.’Withdrawing the comments would be the intelligent thing to do to get the issue resolved and have everyone move on. We need senior players to be in the setup to drive the progress forward and any team would love to entertain Gayle, but under the right circumstances.”Gayle has not played for West Indies since the 2011 World Cup. Since then, he has been an integral part of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s squad in their IPL and Champions League Twenty20 campaigns, finishing as the leading run-getter in the IPL.His saga with the board had escalated to a level where the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) heads of government had become involved. West Indies are currently touring Bangladesh, after which they will go to India to play three Tests and five ODIs.

Christopher Martin-Jenkins, the former Times cricket correspondent and veteran commentator on the BBC’s Test Match Special, will begin his one-year tenure as President of Marylebone Cricket Club on Friday

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Sep-2010Christopher Martin-Jenkins, the former Times cricket correspondent and veteran commentator on the BBC’s Test Match Special, will begin his one-year tenure as President of Marylebone Cricket Club on Friday, October 1, as the successor to John Barclay.”I feel excited to find myself, for one privileged year, president of the great club that I joined as a playing member in 1967,” said Martin-Jenkins. “Playing the game – in both senses – is still MCC’s greatest priority and it will be fascinating, having written and talked about cricket since that same summer, to have some small input from the inside. I am grateful to my predecessor John Barclay, who has been a conscientious, ebullient and diplomatic leader, for offering me this honour.”Having previously played 67 times for MCC in matches against schools and clubs, Martin-Jenkins was elected to the MCC Committee in 2009; he also sits on the Arts & Library sub-committee. In 2007 he became the first career journalist and broadcaster to be invited to speak at the annual MCC Spirit of Cricket Cowdrey Lecture – previous lecturers had all been former international cricketers.”The game always has issues and I shall try to help to resolve current ones, including the need to market Test matches better in some countries and to find a proper balance of fixtures that will ensure all international matches are special occasions,” he said. “Those at Lord’s surely always will be: it is the ground on which every young cricketer of any nationality hopes to play one day. Doing so in a Test match is the stuff of dreams and becoming MCC president feels a bit like that too!”Joining the new President on the MCC Committee, for a three-year period, will be Simon Dyson (for his first term), Mike Gatting (for his third term), Tim O’Gorman (for his fourth term) and David Faber (for his fourth term). All were elected by MCC’s membership. Stepping down from the Committee are Russell Cake, Dr Chinmay Gupte, Julian Vallance, Alec Stewart and Jonathan Wileman.Completing a day of change at MCC, Garri Jones will become Chairman of the newly-created Youth committee, which is responsible for encouraging participation, high standards and excellence in youth cricket. Members of the Youth Cricket committee include Clare Connor, David Graveney, Phillip Hodson and Andy Whittall.

The venue last hosted a 50-over match in March 2024 while India and Bangladesh last played an ODI there in 2018

Alagappan Muthu19-Feb-20251:35

Who makes it to India’s pace attack against Bangladesh?

Big picture: Those boring middle overs

It can feel like the middle phase of an ODI don’t matter all that much. Mahela Jayawardene came in to bat at exactly this point in the final of an ODI World Cup and made a hundred. But that is not that match, or even he, is remembered for. Often enough, the overs between 11 and 40 are like the unwanted filling in a sandwich that would’ve otherwise been delicious, because there is always anticipation at the start of every innings and intrigue to see how it comes to a close.India – especially this 15-member squad – are in Dubai to challenge this notion. In their most recent ODI series, they showed that their batters could score quick runs without inviting undue risk and their bowlers showed that they could provoke a mistake, over and over and over again. It wasn’t just a dry run for how they hope to win this Champions Trophy. It was a dry run for how to win without their best player. Jasprit Bumrah, whose skills render him capable of shaping every phase of the game, seem to actually come at a price and his body is currently paying it.Related

• What can India expect from Dubai's Champions Trophy pitches?

• How Varun became India's Champions Trophy wildcard

• In the Gambhir era, it's all about middle-overs mastery for India

• Rana is at the bleeding edge of Bangladesh's seam-bowling tradition

Bangladesh are, potentially, better placed to cope with a trial by spin than England were. Most of their batters are coming out of a high-scoring BPL season, which may be a sign that the players’ concerns about pitches at home being too spin-friendly and not doing enough to prepare them for flatter conditions abroad have been taken on board. Potentially following on from that, it’s allowed the development of other kinds of bowlers, leading to a more rounded attack that is no longer reliant on people taking pace off the ball.The only hitch is that Bangladesh played their last ODI in December 2024, which was part of a series they lost 3-0 to West Indies, a team that didn’t make the cut-off for this Champions Trophy. And, the last time they faced India, they gave up 285 runs in 34.4 overs in a Test match and 297 runs in way less than that in a T20I.

Recent form

India: WWWLL(last five completed matches, most recent first)
Bangladesh: LLLLWShreyas Iyer played the short ball well against England•BCCI

In the spotlight: Shreyas Iyer and Nahid Rana

As he hooked Mark Wood in the air and watched the ball sail into the crowd, Shreyas Iyer took a moment to punch the air with both fists. He wasn’t celebrating a personal landmark or his team’s victory. In some ways, the moment was a little more precious than that. Early on in his career, Iyer was marked as a player who was uncomfortable against the short ball at high pace. That one was coming for his head at 145 kph and he hit it well enough to get six runs. He will see it as vindication. Others will see it as growth which works in his favour too.It was in Pakistan that Nahid Rana truly showcased just what he was capable of and while he won’t be kicking off his Champions Trophy on those shores, he will still take heart from the kind of chaos he was able to inspire off of two lifeless Rawalpindi pitches just three months ago. The trip to India that followed wasn’t great for him, but now he has another chance and the payoff this time is even bigger. Bangladesh have never had the kind of firepower he brings to the pitch and they will be eager to make full use of it.Nahid Rana’s extra pace could be key for Bangladesh•Randy Brooks

Team news: Plenty of pace for Bangladesh

There was some concern around Rishabh Pant after he was hit in the knee at training, but he doesn’t make India’s strongest ODI XI with KL Rahul the preferred wicketkeeper batter. Mohammed Shami has worked his way back up to fitness, although his pace seems a bit off from its usual peaks. Arshdeep Singh will likely take the second seamer’s spot ahead of Harshit Rana.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 KL Rahul (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Axar Patel, 9 Kuldeep Yadav, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Arshdeep SinghA few familiar faces are not part of this Bangladesh squad, notably Shakib Al Hasan and Litton Das. But other old pros like Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah remain crucial to the cause. Tanzid Hasan at the top of the order has good recent form to carry him, having finished the second-highest scorer at the BPL.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tanzid Hasan, 2 Soumya Sarkar, 3 Najmul Hossain Shanto (capt), 4 Towhid Hridoy, 5 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 8 Rishad Hossain, 9 Taskin Ahmed, 10 Nahid Rana, 11 Mustafizur Rahman

Pitch and conditions: Something in it for the bowlers

Dubai, which will host all of India’s matches in the Champions Trophy, is not a regular venue for ODI cricket between top-tier teams. Even otherwise, the last 50-over game here took place in March 2024, between Scotland and Canada. There have only been four totals of 300 or more in 58 matches held there. The weather is set fair and both teams are expecting a pitch on the slightly drier side of the spectrum.Najmul Hossain Shanto takes a break during practice•ICC via Getty Images

Stats and trivia: Mehidy and Kuldeep bring huge value

• Since his debut in June 2017, Kuldeep Yadav has been the most potent bowler in the middle overs of ODI cricket with139 wickets at an average of 27.8 and an economy rate of 4.88
• In 12 ODIs since the end of the last ODI World Cup, Bangladesh have maintained a scoring rate of 4.93 through the middle overs, the lowest among the teams competing in the Champions Trophy.
• Since March 2022, among 56 batters to score 1000 runs or more, Shubman Gill has the highest average – 63.4.
• Bangladesh are without Shakib at a major tournament for the first time since 2004. Mehidy Hasan Miraz will have to shoulder that burden and he’s done so before, most famously when he rescued his team from 69 for 6 to win the series against India in 2022
• Both India and Bangladesh last played an ODI in Dubai in 2018

Quotes

“He doesn’t bowl too many variations to us in the nets. He bowls just one type of delivery. Maybe, he doesn’t want to show his variations to us, even. But that is a good thing. He has got certain weapons which he wants to just put out there when it actually matters. I am more than happy if he wants to do that.”
“I think we always struggle with our seam attack, but last couple of years we have got some quality fast bowlers. We have some fast bowlers, but now we have got Nahid Rana, Taskin the way they are bowling. I think it helps a lot. As a captain, we love to see bowling fast and bowl for the team.”

Richa Ghosh starred with a 96 but India paid for poor catching and slowing down with the bat as they went on to lose by three runs

Himanshu Agrawal30-Dec-2023A total of 11 catches were dropped in Mumbai. First, India put down seven and as if to return the favour a bit, Australia spilled four. But Phoebe Litchfield took a stunner for the visitors when it mattered most, ending a crucial 88-run stand for India when they needed another 100 with 17 overs and eight wickets remaining. That went a long way in Australia scraping through by three runs in the second ODI, and with that, winning the series.The batter to be dismissed was Jemimah Rodrigues for 44, as Litchfield dived full stretch across to her right at short extra cover. Richa Ghosh, with whom Rodrigues had that stand, later made up for lost time to hit 96 from 117 balls after being 54 off 84 at one stage. But with the game still in the balance, and India requiring 41 more from 38 deliveries with six wickets in hand, even Ghosh’s catch was well intercepted by Litchfield while moving to her left in a packed off-side ring.That pretty much decided the outcome, as India paid for poor catching and slowing down with the bat. Although Ghosh sped up despite cramping, Georgia Wareham, who had dismissed Rodrigues, struck soon after to have Harmanpreet Kaur tickle behind to Alyssa Healy for 5. Ghosh tried to counterattack in a 47-run partnership for the fifth wicket with Deepti Sharma, but Australia kept striking at regular intervals, thus putting Deepti’s second ODI five-for in vain.Related

• Ball-by-ball: The seven catches that India dropped

• Harleen Deol named concussion replacement for Sneh Rana

India had a chance until as late as 47 overs into their chase, after which they were only 22 away. But Annabel Sutherland, who had already got Ghosh, held her nerve to concede just three singles and also remove Pooja Vastrakar, who was coming off a 47-ball 62 from 47 in the first ODI. India never got back on track after that, eventually leaving them wondering what would have been had all those catches gone to hand.For a few tense moments, that thought must have crossed Australia’s minds too, who had given Ghosh a life each on 0 and 36. The first one came from Litchfield herself, putting one down at first slip in the eighth over. Next, it was Sutherland who dropped one in the 27th. That allowed Ghosh to keep ticking steadily, as she avoided risks in a patient start to her innings where she hit just two boundaries from her first 52 deliveries.Even Rodrigues didn’t entirely seem busy at the other end, as the required run rate kept ticking over. But with the game well under India’s control, Litchfield struck like lightning and halted India’s calmly moving train. That, after she had hit 63 with the bat. Litchfield was the beneficiary on three of India’s seven drops, getting a life on 0, 9 and 15. Although she consumed 98 deliveries, it was a challenging pitch to bat on at the Wankhede Stadium, where the ball turned and gripped aplenty for Deepti.Richa Ghosh fell four short of her maiden ODI ton•BCCI

India’s spinners applied the brakes in the middle overs, as Australia stumbled from 117 for 1 in the 24th over to 180 for 6 in the 40th. The slowdown happened once India bowled spin from both ends, although Deepti’s 5 for 38 stood in contrast to debutant Shreyanka Patil and Sneh Rana, who combined figures of 2 for 102 from their 20 overs.But while the spinners kept Australia quiet, Ellyse Perry kept the pace up. She had flicked and flashed her way to 28 from her first 23 balls. Perry eventually fell for 50 from 47, with Deepti ending her animated stay at the crease in the 24th over. That wicket started Australia’s slide, as Deepti then trapped Beth Mooney, who missed an attempted sweep off a quicker delivery.Patil too got into the wickets in the 34th over, when Litchfield got the toe end of the bat behind to Richa in an attempt to sweep. Rana also struck to get Ashleigh Gardner for 2, after which came Deepti’s best of the lot. She tossed one up enticingly at Tahlia McGrath in the 40th over. The ball dipped and landed just outside the off stump, turning in enough to smash into the stumps with McGrath unsure of whether to come forward or go back.At 180 for 6, Wareham and Sutherland briefly steadied Australia with a 36-run partnership, before Wareham chipped one off Deepti to Smriti Mandhana – who had dropped two catches earlier – at midwicket to start the 46th over.Four balls later, Deepti completed her five-for with a return catch of Sutherland. Australia were 219 for 8 with another 25 balls remaining, and Alana King made full use of that. She swung three sixes – and with that, the momentum – in an unbeaten 28 from 17 balls which helped Australia to 258.
Thus, King’s knock, Litchfield and Perry’s fifties, and a lot of help from India took Australia to victory, with India yet to beat them in a bilateral ODI series.

A medal is something that will inspire people back home, the captain said after a batting collapse cost them the gold

Shashank Kishore08-Aug-20221:06

Harmanpreet: ‘The silver medal will inspire people back home’

As she stood on the podium to receive her silver medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, Harmanpreet Kaur’s body language told you of the hurt of having missed another golden opportunity to beat Australia in a final.Minutes later, as she gathered her thoughts to speak to the media, Harmanpreet was a lot more accepting of the result and spoke of the effect it could have on a young generation of Indian women who want to play the sport.”I’m happy and satisfied with the way we played throughout,” Harmanpreet said after India fell short of the gold medal by nine runs. “I know we were close to winning gold, but all around our performance was great. This is the first time we got to play in this tournament and we’re happy to have won a silver medal.”A medal is something people back home will get inspired by, and they could start playing cricket. As a team, we want to inspire young girls. Doing well on this platform will motivate a lot of people back home.”Related

• Mooney, Gardner and Schutt lead Australia to gold in pulsating final

• Tahlia McGrath plays CWG final despite testing positive for Covid-19

Even as the gold medal slipped out of their reach, India won plenty of admirers with their actions even before a ball was bowled in the final. Australian allrounder Tahlia McGrath testing positive for Covid-19 cast a shadow over her participation, even as the CWG rules deemed her fit enough to play.The toss had to be delayed in the wake of this development, but Harmanpreet later explained the sequence of events that led to McGrath’s inclusion in Australia’s XI.”They informed us before the toss,” Harmanpreet said. “That was something not in our control. The CWG had to take a decision and we were okay with it since she [Tahlia McGrath] wasn’t very ill, so we decided to play. We had to show sportsman spirit. I’m happy we didn’t say no to Tahlia, it [missing the final] would have been very hard-hitting for her.”Once they took the field, India played aggressively, like they had all tournament. They attacked with the bat to score 150-plus in four of their five matches, and in the absence of veterans like Jhulan Goswami and Shikha Pandey, a young bowling attack showed India’s future is in skilled hands.Renuka Singh, in particular, was menacing with her late inswing. Offspinner Sneh Rana handled high-pressure situations with maturity, while Deepti Sharma and Meghna Singh were also impressive in patches.In the grand finale, India’s fielding was top notch. Radha Yadav pulled off a superb run-out at the bowler’s end – back-flicking the ball between her legs during her follow through – to dismiss the dangerous Meg Lanning, and then took a diving catch at point to dismiss McGrath. There was also a one-handed stunner from Deepti and a catch running back by Meghna, all of which contributed to India restricting Australia to 161 for 8.2:23

Rodrigues: ‘This team has a lot of potential and will do wonders’

“If you want to beat this Australian team, you have to field well,” Harmanpreet said. “If you give them easy runs, they can easily take the game away. We discussed it in the team meeting and Radha set the example for us.”The effort we put up today is something we wanted to do. I know the last 2-3 overs [in the chase] were not in our favour but throughout the game, the way we played was outstanding to watch. We’ve been working on our fielding for a long time. I’m happy with the way we fielded today.”During the chase, India lost two early wickets but Harmanpreet and Jemimah Rodrigues added 96 to revive India’s gold-medal hopes, before they lost their last eight wickets for 34 runs.”After losing two crucial wickets, the way Jemi and I batted was much needed at that time,” Harmanpreet said. “You need to hold your nerves. We were nearly there. Maybe if Pooja [Vastrakar] or I were around, we could’ve won the game. But that is part of the game; sometimes, some things you can’t control. It is great learning for us.”I am someone who is always looking for one more batter in the side. Unfortunately, we’re working on that. Once we get that, this thing [collapsing] will go away. Every time in big finals, we make the same mistakes again and again [with the bat], that is something we have to improve. We don’t do these mistakes in the league phase or in bilateral. That is blocking our mind somewhere.”When asked to sum up where they are as a team, Harmanpreet echoed Lanning’s thoughts that India weren’t far away from becoming a dominant force.”Yes definitely, I know we could’ve easily won gold, but something is better than nothing, at least we got silver,” Harmanpreet said. “We deserved it for so much hard work. If not gold, we’re satisfied with what we got today.”[As a team] we are on the right track, we just need to keep working hard. As Lanning said, we’re not far from dominating across formats.”

Mitchell Marsh and Josh Inglis hit brisk half-centuries before the tail added crucial runs

Andrew McGlashan08-Apr-2021Defending champions Western Australia surged into the Marsh Cup final, where they will face New South Wales, on the back of a 159-run victory against Tasmania which secured them two bonus points to jump ahead of Queensland into second place.Having been put into bat the home side knew they needed to big total to give them enough of a target to defend to secure at least the single bonus-point win they needed, but a positive display – including brisk half-centuries for Mitchell Marsh and Josh Inglis – looked like falling short at 8 for 245 until the last two wickets added a crucial 62 runs.Both teams were still able to reach the final at the start of the day and after the first innings the scenario came down to Western Australia having to restrict Tasmania to 245 or less while the visitors needed to knock off 308 in 40 overs to secure their own bonus point.Jason Behrendorff, playing his first match for Western Australia since October 2018, produced a starring role with a career-best 35 before taking three top-order wickets in his first spell.He blew the Tasmania top order away, removing the dangerous Ben McDermott first ball before having Matthew Wade drag on and Caleb Jewell caught behind to leave them 3 for 39 in the seventh over.With the target quickly becoming out of reach, the only question became if Western Australia could achieve their aim. Jordan Silk was superbly caught by Liam Guthrie running back from short fine-leg and Tasmania aided in their demise with two gifted run outs.Western Australia had lost early wickets when both Josh Philippe and D’Arcy Short were caught in the slips off Jackson Bird but had little choice other than to continue to push on aggressively.Marsh sped to a 29-ball half-century while Sam Whiteman played a little more of an anchor role. The innings stumbled as Tom Andrews removed both batsmen and then Cameron Green was caught behind off Tom Rogers.Inglis, with 60 off 48 balls, and Ashton Turner stablised things with a sixth-wicket stand of 45 in seven overs but when that was followed by the loss of 3 for 14, Western Australia were eight down with 10 overs remaining.Behrendorff, Guthrie and Lance Morris proceeded to club precious runs – mixed with a little bit of fortune – and in the end it proved more than enough.