Tag Futebol

Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur said his batsmen had given West Indies legspinner Devendra Bishoo “eight soft wickets” during their second-innings collapse on the fourth day of the day-night Test

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Oct-20163:16

Want to be a team that closes the opposition out – Arthur

Pakistan coach Mickey Arthur said his batsmen had given West Indies legspinner Devendra Bishoo “eight soft wickets” during their second-innings collapse on the fourth day of the day-night Test in Dubai. Having taken a 222-run lead in the first innings, Pakistan were dismissed for 123 in 31.5 overs, losing their last six wickets for 11 runs. Chasing 346, West Indies were 95 for 2 at stumps with senior batsmen Marlon Samuels and Darren Bravo at the crease.Arthur praised Bishoo but rued that the collapse had given West Indies a chance to win the game. He said Pakistan’s plan when they chose not to enforce the follow-on was to score about 180 runs in 45 overs and shut West Indies out of the match.”I am not going to take anything away from the way Bishoo bowled because he bowled really, really well,” Arthur said. “I thought we gave him eight soft wickets. We were cutting against the spin, some lazy shots. That is something we have spoken hard about because that’s not how we play the game. We worked so hard to get ourselves in front of the game and then in one session we lost 6 for 11 and that gave West Indies a sniff. We want to be better than that. We want to be a team that closes the opposition out when we get the opportunity and we didn’t.”The message was very simple: we wanted a score of 180 in 45-50 overs. We felt that would have given us 25-30 overs tonight and a full day tomorrow. So we were looking at 180 in probably 45 overs at the most and we played poorly.”Bishoo, whose returns of 8 for 49 were the best by a visiting bowler in Asia, said he had reflected on his performance in the first innings – 2 for 125 in 35 overs – and decided to bowl straighter, targeting the stumps, in the second innings.”Last evening I spent some time thinking about how I had bowled in the first innings and I was bowling most likely fourth-fifth stump and they were cutting the ball down to cover for a single all the time,” Bishoo said. “So I tried to bowl straighter on the stumps. I expected the ball to spin more on the fourth and the fifth days, and that’s exactly what happened. I used the rough a little and I tried to use the crease a bit more and tried to bowl more on the stumps.”Arthur said the batting implosion had forced Pakistan to play slightly defensively when West Indies came out to chase on the fourth evening. He said the team was working towards eradicating issues, like the sudden collapse, from their game.”We’ve batted really well, certainly through the Test matches in England I thought we were excellent, and we were brilliant in the first innings here. So that is something we are trying to eradicate. We want to get this completely out of our game. Consistency is something we need to keep working on, we are talking long and hard about it.”We were disappointed that we took our foot off their throat and gave them a glimpse into the game when we should have put them out of it. Because what that would have done for our spinners tomorrow is it would have allowed us to have close catchers for longer. So tonight we have a man at sweeper and we haven’t got a silly point to Bravo and that’s simply because the game is getting closer.”

Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusingha has said that his team’s mentality has improved considerably over the last 12 months, especially since the start of last year’s series against Zimbabwe

Mohammad Isam04-Nov-2015Bangladesh coach Chandika Hathurusingha has said that his team’s mentality has improved considerably over the last 12 months, especially since the start of last year’s series against Zimbabwe. The home side was having a horrible 2014 until they beat Zimbabwe 3-0 and 5-0 in Tests and ODIs respectively, and have been a completely different side in 2015.”The mindset is the main difference from last time,” Hathurusingha said. “We were not sure of our ceiling. Now they have started to believe and they have proved themselves. Mindset is a huge thing in this game. We can see that it is different, in our performance.”Hathurusingha welcomed the approach of Shakib Al Hasan who said a couple of days ago that now they have to dominate Zimbabwe having thrashed them the last time. Bangladesh are currently 8-6 ahead in terms of ODI series wins over Zimbabwe.”It is a good mindset to have as a player, that is his confidence,” Hathurusingha said. “We played dominating cricket against ever team in the last three series. We beat them by seven or eight wickets or 80-odd runs. I think it is the way we play. If we play to our gameplan, we can beat any team with a big margin.”Hathurusingha also said that competition for places in the side has added to the new attitude of the players constantly pushing themselves. There have not been many times in Bangladesh’s cricket history that the senior team had players knocking on the doors for almost every position. A case in point is the inclusion of Al-Amin Hossain, a pace bowler who went through the grind of international cricket in 2014, and Kamrul Islam Rabbi, who has been tipped to be in the Bangladesh team for a while now, in place of the injured Taskin Ahmed and Rubel Hossain, both having been playing regularly for Bangladesh.Not many half-cooked players now get called up to the Bangladesh team. Hathurusingha expressed that it would now be dangerous for any player to take his place for granted.”Having an internal competition is a good thing. Players know they have to perform,” he said. “Sportsmen are driven by challenges. The guys coming in are capable of doing a job. We are in a good situation in that regard.”There’s no meter to see complacency and there’s no complacency in our team. They are playing for the national team. No one is taking things for granted. There’s a lot of competition for the places. Whoever is taking things lightly, it will be a very dangerous situation.”Bangladesh’s recent dependency on pace is also likely to give Hathurusingha and the rest of the team management some food for thought. Traditionally spin has been the main difference between Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.But the emergence of Mustafizur Rahman and Taskin Ahmed, under Mashrafe Mortaza, means that the home side could choose either pace or spin to attack the visitors. Hathurusingha said that in most cases, Bangladesh would try to attack the opposition’s weakness.”We have been playing both ways according to the opposition’s limitation, I think we are equipped with both spin and pace,” he said. “We have enough spin to cause trouble for any opposition.”Don’t expect Mustafizur to come up every time we get someone, because he is unique. I am not putting any pressure on Rabbi. He is in the team on merit. He has been doing well in domestic cricket. He can do same thing if he is playing.”Hathurusingha brushed aside any concern regarding the form of Soumya Sarkar and Liton Das, who made 99 and 78 runs respectively in five innings for Bangladesh A in South Africa recently. Although Liton got two fifties for Bangladesh A in India in September, he still has only a single Test fifty so far. Soumya on the other hand was prolific against South Africa in July this year but has had his form taper off since then.”I don’t have any concern [about them]. Both of them are world-class players,” Hathurusingha said. “You have seen them performing at home really well. There’s no reason they can’t do it again. We are trying to give them as much opportunity and experience in different conditions. That’s why we sent them on A tours. They are young players with enough potential.”Form plays a part in a player’s mind, especially batters. When you come with a good score they have freedom. We always focus on the first 20 balls in any game. If you get into the game, they are equipped to play very well in international cricket. They know their roles better in the national team.”

Australia’s ruinous Test results in India have not dissuaded the architect of the plan, Don Argus, to rejuvenate the national team from his view that the world No. 1 ranking can be attained by 2015

Daniel Brettig06-Mar-2013Australia’s ruinous Test results in India have not dissuaded the architect of the plan to rejuvenate the national team from his view that the world No. 1 ranking can be attained by 2015. Don Argus, the former BHP chairman, authored the review released in August 2011 that overhauled the structure around Michael Clarke’s team, resulting in the appointments of Mickey Arthur as coach, John Inverarity as national selector and Pat Howard as the team performance manager.Those changes wrought promising early returns, but the retirements of Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey left Clarke to lead a gapingly inexperienced side to India where the vagaries of playing on the subcontinent have contributed to a humiliating duo of defeats. Nonetheless, Argus told he was adamant that Australia were still capable of achieving for the sustained success striven for in his review, provided those in charge were not panicked into compromising on its dictums.’I wouldn’t compromise on that at all,” Argus said. “It’s like a five-year plan in a company – if you commit to something, you’ve got to get it, and all these players have committed to it. I don’t believe in blind faith. I believe in a lot of hard work, and it doesn’t come tomorrow. I think there’s a lot of effort going into getting this team to its goals. I’ve got great faith they will get to where they want to get to.”Stay the course, but also recognise the challenges that are there. We tend to fall back into thinking we’ve still got this side with seven champions in it. Maybe that will come again, but that just doesn’t come overnight.”Argus was largely supportive of the path taken by Howard, Arthur and Inverarity in following through on his directives, though he admitted it was “debatable” whether the area of spin bowling weakness was being adequately addressed. He stated that current impatience with the team’s results could not be allowed to change the path that had been committed to.”I think they have been quite bold in implementing a lot of the stuff and going down the recommendation path in the report,” Argus said. ”Everyone wants instant success … and the trouble when you go through a transition or succession phase is that impatience manifests itself into a bit of emotion. Up until this series, the guys have done pretty well in trying to unearth new talent and things like that.”Everyone is going to have to hold their steel here to get the ultimate outcome, because if you start thrashing around in water then you drown, and up until now I think they’ve held it pretty well. I think India is probably the toughest environment of all to blood new talent and that’s what is happening over there.”I’m not that despondent. I think it’s probably teaching the selectors a lot more about the strengths and weaknesses of the squad. I don’t think they could put together a better squad. They’ve tried a lot of people and you can add a few here and a few there, but they’ve gone about a process quite systematically that will get us there in the end, but it was never going to be a short-term fix.”Addressing questions about whether the selectors had adequately fulfilled his stated goal that performance had to be rewarded more consistently with national team representation, Argus said Inverarity’s panel had done so “by and large”, though Xavier Doherty’s Test recall after a barren home summer was a deviation.”Selectors will sometimes make subjective judgments for whatever reason … I’m sure they can justify their selections,” Argus said. “Up until probably that one [Doherty], they’ve stuck with what they’ve said they were going to do, and I think that has paid off for them.”They’ve won in the West Indies, they’ve comprehensively won two series at home [against India and Sri Lanka, but also lost to No.1 team South Africa], and they go to the toughest environment in the world with an inexperienced side in those conditions, and it’s tough.”Suspicious in the review of the impact that the then nascent Big Bash League may have on international performances and focus, Argus said compromises in the name of commercial gains would result in the team being compromised.”If you deviate from your priorities, if you compromise on your plan … you’ll always get caught out,” he said. “If Test cricket is the No. 1 game, and we say it is, that’s the way it is.”

The sentencing of Mervyn Westfield, the former Essex pace bowler who pleaded guilty to spot-fixing last month, has been adjourned for a week

Alan Gardner10-Feb-2012The sentencing of Mervyn Westfield, the former Essex pace bowler who pleaded guilty to spot-fixing last month, has been adjourned for a week until February 17 due to “administrative matters.”The hearing had been scheduled to start at 11am but was put back as representatives of the prosecution and the defence discussed details relating to the case. Eventually the session began at around 12.15, at which point Westfield’s counsel, Mark Milliken-Smith, asked for the adjournment. The prosecution offered no objection and Judge Anthony Morris agreed to the request.Westfield, 23, became the first English cricketer to be convicted of spot-fixing after submitting a guilty plea at the start of his trial at the Old Bailey, London’s central criminal court, on January 12. He admitted to accepting £6,000 in return for conceding a set number of runs off an over in a Pro40 match against Durham in September 2009.Westfield was paid despite failing to give up the agreed 12 runs – Durham managed just to score 10 from the over, the first of the bowler’s spell, in a game which Essex went on to win. The truth only came to light in 2010 when Westfield confessed to then team-mate Tony Palladino, now of Derbyshire, and showed him the money he had received.Palladino had been due to be the prosecution’s main witness in the case before Westfield decided to admit his crime, despite previous denials.

Paul Collingwood believes he has chosen the perfect moment to end his Test career, as England close in on an unprecedented third innings victory of their tour of Australia

Andrew Miller at the SCG06-Jan-2011Paul Collingwood believes he has chosen the perfect moment to end his Test career, as England close in on an unprecedented third innings victory of their tour of Australia, a result that will go a long way towards erasing the bitter memories of the 5-0 whitewash of four years ago, and bring Collingwood’s own career full circle after the role he played on his home Test debut at The Oval in 2005, in the game that ended Australia’s two-decade-long dominance of the Ashes.Speaking on the day he made his impending retirement public, Collingwood described his feat of playing 68 Tests as an “over-achievement”, and modestly stated that England’s ambition of becoming the No. 1 team in the world will be that much more attainable without him blocking up an end in the manner that he has made his trademark in the course of the past five years.”In many ways it’s a sad moment, but I honestly think it’s the right time, and in many ways it’s the perfect moment,” said Collingwood. “This is what I’ve been playing the game of cricket for, to be in a position against Australia in Australia like this. I know I haven’t contributed with the bat in this series, but I’m a very, very happy man.”At the age of 34, Collingwood knew he was on borrowed time at Test level. His last meaningful innings was against Pakistan at Trent Bridge in July when he made 82 alongside Eoin Morgan, the man most likely to take his place in the middle order. Since then, his returns have been disappointing, with 83 runs in the whole Ashes campaign including a final, frenetic innings of 13 on the third day at Sydney.However, the desire to make amends for the whitewash four years ago, when his career-best 206 at Adelaide was not enough to stop the Australian juggernaut, made him determined to extend himself for one last series.”This series has been a special series for me,” he said. “I think 2005, playing at The Oval, was a special game, and a special moment, but although I haven’t scored the runs out here I can barely take the smile off my face. It’s been something that I’ve been waiting for, for a long time. The last time we were here four years ago, I actually managed to score runs and we got beat 5-0. This time I much prefer it this way around, let me tell you!”Collingwood’s fighting qualities have earned him plenty admirers in the course of his Test career, even though he has been written off at the highest level almost as often as he has battled back to produce a career- or match-saving innings. Right at this moment, however, Collingwood believes that the same qualities that helped hold the side together in the difficult years that followed the 2005 triumph are holding them back right now, as their stated goal of becoming the world’s No. 1 Test team draws ever closer.”That’s one of the reasons why I’m moving on, to be honest!” he said. “Honestly, this team can go as far as they want to. As you can see from this series, our batting has gone from strength to strength. They can take a lot of confidence from the way they’ve played out here, but they can still progress and they are very eager to improve all the time. The work ethic that they have is fantastic, and that’s one of the things I’ll miss, but I’m very much looking forward to watch them in the future. They can be a very special side.””Obviously my form hasn’t helped, but I’m very realistic,” he added. “At the same time there are some great young players coming though, but if I wanted to progress and stay in this England cricket team, I was going to have to work very hard on technical things, and whether I’ve got the time and the ability to stay up with this England cricket team, I’m not too sure.”I’m very, very satisfied with the contributions over my Test career,” he said. “It mustn’t be easy to watch for some people at times, but I’ve fought hard, given my all, and as I said, this is the perfect moment. I’ve played the last year just to get into this series, and to be involved in a great England cricket team like it is at the moment, with some special players and some special characters, it’s a very proud place to be. I can safely say I’ve made the right decision at the right time.””A lot of people might find it difficult to believe I’d stay in the team that long. It’s taken a lot of effort, in many ways I’ve over-achieved, averaging 40. In many ways I’ve scrapped it out. I’ve had my ups and downs but I wouldn’t change a thing about how my career has been. Some of the players I’ve played with in that England dressing room have been exceptional, and I can safely say that the environment we’ve got in that dressing room is a very special place. That’s why it’s hard to leave, but it’s definitely the right time.”Collingwood has long had a reputation for putting the team first, and his delight at toppling the Australians was unmistakable, and not remotely dented by his personal shortcomings with the bat. In his opinion, it is the culmination of a mission that began on his first tour of the country in 2002-03, when the challenge was to transform England’s expectations against opponents that at times seemed invincible.”This is what we were trying to build towards,” he said. “At the time there wasn’t the belief we could beat Australia, and it was a culture that we had to turn around. It didn’t work last time around, but I honestly believe we have skilful cricketers in England, and we’ve got a culture that believes we can beat anyone in the world.”I think that part of the game, the mental side, the belief, is a huge part, and creating a culture like that in the dressing room is more important than a lot of the technical work you do in the nets. These guys have worked long and hard for that, but they can get better as well, and go from strength to strength.”Matt Prior, who scored his first Ashes century on the fourth day at Sydney, said that Collingwood would be greatly missed within the England dressing room. “The part of a cricketer you don’t see is the part away from the cricket ground,” he said. “Everyone will know the stats and the important innings he’s played, the great catches he’s taken and the wickets he’s taken. But it’s what a bloke like Colly brings to the dressing room, he’s definitely been one of the catalysts of why this team is where it is right now, and why the team spirit is like it is.”Collingwood admitted his motivation for making his announcement mid-Test was to scotch the whispers that had already begun to circulate, and also because he secretly believed that England might have won with a day to spare. And while he said that he had not intended to make a fuss about his departure, he admitted to feeling goosebumps in the final half-hour of the day, when England were pushing for victory with the Barmy Army in full cry.”I’m a softie really, to be honest,” he said. “I always said I wanted to bow out in England in front of English fans, but that felt like home tonight, with the atmosphere that was out there. It was very special. Someone said to me yesterday, I might not be too bothered about a massive swansong, but a lot of fans might be. When you look around the ground, you deserve to have those lasting memories.”

Tasmania successfully defended their 261 as they gained a 28-run first-innings lead and extended their advantage over Western Australia

Cricinfo staff20-Feb-2010Tasmania 261 (Bailey 58, Cowan 57, Doolan 53, Magoffin 6-44) and 1 for 31 lead Western Australia 233 (Davis 67) by 59 runs

ScorecardSteve Magoffin started the day with a six-wicket haul, but his batting team-mates let him down•Getty Images

Tasmania successfully defended their 261 as they gained a 28-run first-innings lead and extended their advantage over Western Australia to 59 after two days. Steve Magoffin started the day on a high for the Warriors with a six-wicket haul, but there was no help from the batsmen as they were dismissed for 233.The opener Liam Davis tried hard to keep the innings together with 67, but the Tasmania bowlers kept chipping away and were rewarded with two points and a jump over their opponents into fourth spot. Western Australia’s chase was going well at 2 for 110, but Michael Swart and Mitchell Marsh went in four overs and they were 7 for 157 after Davis, Luke Ronchi and Nathan Coulter-Nile departed in quick succession.Luke Pomersbach was left to hold on and his 32 was supported by Magoffin’s 20, but they both left with too much work to do, even with Michael Hogan’s late blast of 24 off ten balls, including three sixes. The wickets were shared around, with Adam Griffith, Brendan Drew, Tim Macdonald and Xavier Doherty earning two apiece.Tasmania had to face 18 overs before stumps and lost Rhett Lockyear for 18 on the way to 1 for 31. In the morning the Tigers added seven runs as Magoffin finished with an impressive 6 for 44. Macdonald and Tim Paine (31) were both caught behind in a quick finish to the innings.

Opening stand of 202 with Nick Gubbins sees Leicestershire brushed aside

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay15-Aug-2025Hampshire 253 for 3 (Orr 131, Gubbins 81) beat Leicestershire 252 (Budinger 65, Masood 57, Cox 55, Abbott 3-36) by seven wicketsAli Orr’s first List A century for three years made sure Hampshire got their Metro Bank One-Day revenge on Leicestershire Foxes with a seven-wicket mauling.The Foxes beat Hampshire in the 2023 final, having also beaten them in the Group Stage that year, before knocking them out in the quarter-final last season.Kyle Abbott’s three wickets kept the hosts down to 252, despite fifties for Sol Budinger, Shan Masood, and Ben Cox, before Orr and Nick Gubbins – who now has 325 runs in the competition with 81 here – made light work of the chase. The opening duo put on 202 and raced to the winning line with more than six overs to spare.The only moment of worry came for Orr when he chopped onto his stumps, but didn’t dislodge the bails. Otherwise, it was a steady accumulation through risk-free batting, progressing through 59- and 67-ball fifties – the former for Gubbins going with his 144 not out, 40 and 60 in his other three One-Day Cup innings.Since arriving from Sussex at the start of last year, Orr has been beset by injuries – most notably a broken arm. He was finally able to add to the Rothesay County Championship hundred he scored against Durham in May 2024. His second for his new county coming in 126 balls and celebrated with gusto.Gubbins fell to a great diving catch by Budinger, Orr was lbw for 131 with five to win and Brandon McMullen was bowled for a duck, but the damage had been done.Earlier, Abbott was mesmerically accurate throughout and found the early breakthrough when former team-mate Ian Holland’s push was stunningly caught by Ben Mayes in the first over.The Abbott and Mayes combination also brought the downfall of Lewis Hill – attempting to charge a bouncer. But Budinger aggressively countered, and with Masood built the foundations the Foxes planned for having won the toss.On the back of a century against ex-employers Nottinghamshire Outlaws, Budinger oozed class in his 41-ball fifty but he started a trend of reaching a half-century but not kicking on. He tickled Felix Organ behind to end a 75-run stand, before Peter Handscomb loosely drove to extra cover.Masood watchfully passed his 52nd List A fifty but wastefully ran himself out for 57, with Cox keeping him company for his own 55.But after the pair had put on 63, the visitors struggled to build partnerships and rather tiptoed to 252. Having dismissed Handscomb, Andrew Neal also had Liam Trevaskis slogging to deep midwicket to take an impressive 2 for 43.Brad Wheal chipped in with two wickets on his return from injury, Abbott ended with 3 for 36 and Mayes – for the second time in the competition – four catches with the gloves, as Hampshire ended strongly.They carried that momentum into their batting as Orr and Gubbins clinically ticked the runs off.

Cricket Ireland announce their home fixtures for the men’s and women’s teams, but not all the games are at home

Matt Roller22-Apr-2024Ireland will stage a ‘home’ white-ball series against South Africa in Abu Dhabi later this year, a decision their board’s chief executive Warren Deutrom described as a “creative” way to help overcome “current infrastructure constraints”. They will also host a home men’s Test match for the second time in their history in July, when they play Zimbabwe in Stormont.Ireland gained Full Member status in 2017 and staged their first men’s Test at Malahide, near Dublin, in 2018. But they do not have a permanent home stadium and the high costs of temporary infrastructure have meant that their six subsequent men’s Tests have been overseas, including their maiden victory against Afghanistan in Abu Dhabi earlier this year.This summer they will stage a one-off Test against Zimbabwe at the Civil Service ground in Stormont, Belfast from July 25-29. But financial and logistical obstacles mean that the six white-ball games in that tour – three ODIs and three T20Is – are “not proceeding as things stand,” a Cricket Ireland spokesperson told ESPNcricinfo.South Africa were initially due to tour Ireland for three ODIs and three T20Is in July, but will instead play two ODIs and three T20Is in Abu Dhabi from late September. It is the second successive away series against Ireland that South Africa will play on neutral ground, after Cricket Ireland moved two T20Is to Bristol in England in 2022.”This fixture schedule attempts to strike a balance of competitive, high-quality cricket across multiple formats whilst addressing the challenges we face with respect to our current infrastructure constraints,” Deutrom said. “While we work on longer-term solutions for some of these challenges – most notably continuing to advocate to Government for the proposed permanent stadium – we know we’ll have to explore ways to creatively increase our capacity to host an ever-increasing schedule in the short term.”Continually reviewing how best to optimise our hosting arrangements for cricket in Ireland and playing a few of our home matches in neutral venues overseas is something we must continue to explore, as we have done with the South Africa series this year.”Deutrom previously confirmed that Australia’s scheduled tour for three ODIs and one T20I had been postponed indefinitely. Of Ireland’s 20 home men’s internationals in the Future Tours Programme for this summer, only four will actually take place in Ireland – the Zimbabwe Test, and three T20Is against Pakistan next month – while 11 have been either cancelled or postponed.Ireland will also host England’s women for the first time since 1995, marking England’s first tour of the country in the professional era. Laura Delany’s side are currently in the UAE ahead of the global qualifier for the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in October, and will face Sri Lanka in August before they play England in September.”Irish cricket fans are in for a treat in 2024 with more than 40 days of senior international cricket to enjoy between April and October – potentially more if our women can qualify for this year’s T20 World Cup,” Deutrom said. “2024 offers a great array of fixtures for fans of both men’s and women’s cricket. And with the historic nature of the Belfast Test, the possibility of seeing Irish sides in two T20 World Cups, and some of the world’s best sides touring, it should be an unmissable season of Irish cricket.”

Ireland’s new ‘home’ fixtures:

Men’s:July 25-29 – Test match vs Zimbabwe (Stormont)
September 27, 29 – T20Is vs South Africa (Abu Dhabi)
October 2, 4, 7 – ODIs vs South Africa (Abu Dhabi)Women’s:August 11, 13 – T20Is vs Sri Lanka (Pembroke)
August 16, 18, 20 – ICC Women’s Championship ODIs vs Sri Lanka (Stormont)
September 7, 9, 11 – ICC Women’s Championship ODIs vs England (Stormont)
September 14, 16, 17 – T20Is vs England (Clontarf)

Their season begins on January 11 with a game against Johannesburg Super Kings

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Nov-2022Quinton de Kock has been named the captain of Durban Super Giants for the inaugural edition of the SA20 competition.De Kock, 29, is one of South Africa’s key players. His left-handedness and aggression at the top of the order make him a sought after commodity in the T20 cricket. Alongside his runs – 8497 at an average of 33 and a strike rate of 138 – de Kock also has experience captaining the national side. He has led them in four Tests, eight ODIs and 11 T20Is. De Kock is also on the books of the Lucknow Super Giants, the IPL team that shares the same owners as this Durban team.Related

• Inaugural SA20 league to begin on January 10

• Gautam Gambhir named 'global mentor' for all Super Giants teams

• Jofra Archer is MI Cape Town's wildcard signing for SA20

In December 2021, de Kock retired from Test cricket, citing the difficulty to play all three formats.De Kock had a highly successful IPL in 2022 – 508 runs at a strike rate of nearly 150 – and followed it up with a good CPL as well – 221 runs at a strike rate of nearly 130. But his returns slipped in the Hundred in England and his most recent assignment – the men’s T20 World Cup – didn’t go according to plan either. South Africa were eliminated at the group stage of the tournament after defeat to the Netherlands.While the Test players are preparing for a tour of Australia in December, de Kock will be free to plot his SA20 campaign. At Durban, he will have Keshav Maharaj, Jason Holder and head coach Lance Klusener to help him take the team forward. Their season begins on January 11 with a game against the franchise that represents de Kock’s birth place, the Johannesburg Super Kings.

de Kock’s opening partner remains far from finalised; captain says a “seaming allrounder will come back into the mix”

Firdose Moonda02-Jul-2021South Africa have yet to make a firm decision on who will partner Quinton de Kock or who their sixth bowling option will be for the T20 World Cup later this year. With approximately seven fixtures left (one vs West Indies, three vs Ireland, and three vs Sri Lanka) before the tournament, they have limited time and matches to settle on a strategy.That the team is still in the experimental stage of things is down in part to the disruption to the cricketing calendar and the continued postponement of a T20I series against India which was initially meant to happen last August and now won’t take place at all. While that series would have kicked off South Africa’s preparations for the World Cup, selection calls around the team for the ongoing tour of the West Indies have also raised some questions.Why, for example, have they included four opening batters in their squad? Or two seam-bowling allrounders, neither of whom have played in the West Indies series so far? And how can they ensure they have enough big-hitters in the middle-order as well as enough bowlers to cover for someone who may have an off day? At the moment, they don’t seem to know.”In terms of combinations, we are looking at who can partner Quinny at the top. Reeza (Hendricks) is the guy at the moment and we believe he has done it well. David (Miller) is our seasoned finisher. He has done it for many years but unfortunately at the moment he is battling with form, as are a number of batters,” Temba Bavuma, South Africa’s limited-overs captain, said after their defeat in the fourth T20I.”I’m sure a seaming allrounder will come back into the mix. Where we find ourselves at the moment is that we are looking for someone who can effectively play that sixth bowling role. If you look at a guy like Aiden (Markram), he gives you more than just the bowling option. He is someone we see as versatile in terms of his batting position. He can bat at the top as well as batting in the middle and he has been given that opportunity now, albeit in tough conditions. From a bowling front, that (the sixth-bowler) we haven’t nailed down.”Related

• Finals pressure for South Africa in T20Is decider

What’s clear so far is that South Africa want to play at least three of their five openers: Hendricks, Bavuma and Markram. That means Janneman Malan, who has played 20 fewer T20Is than Markram and whose average is similar, is unlikely to be able to force his way back in at the moment. It also means that Bavuma, who started off his T20 career as an opener, is being used at No.3, where he has not come off yet. With Markram in the middle order, there is no space for either Heinrich Klaasen, Kyle Verreynne or anyone else South Africa may want to be there, except maybe Faf du Plessis. But that would create the same problem of only five bowling options that South Africa had in the first two matches against West Indies, so it will be interesting to see if du Plessis, the former captain, fits back in.Although South Africa can’t say for sure if Markram is a long-term sixth-bowling option, they are intent on finding out and used him to open the bowling in the last match with less than ideal results. Markram conceded 20 runs, which Bavuma identified as putting South Africa under pressure immediately and though it’s an isolated incident, it remains a cause of concern.Reeza Hendricks made 2, 17, 42, 17 partnering Quinton de Kock in the combination in the T20Is against West Indies•AFP/Getty Images

Seemingly, a more secure choice would be to include a proven allrounder in Markram’s spot but South Africa have left both Wiaan Mulder and Andile Phehlukwayo on the bench. Whether they will opt for Dwaine Pretorius, who missed this tour after contracting Covid-19, remains to be seen.Then, there’s the consideration that they already have an allrounder in the team in George Linde, who has earned his place with the ball but has the ability to do it with the bat. It’s possible that South Africa don’t want to appear to have a softer middle order with two allrounders at Nos. 6 and 7, especially as they have no choice but to start the lower order at No. 8.Their three-pronged pace pack of Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi were exceptional in the Tests but have not reproduced that form with the white ball. Bavuma put that down to conditions. “Our bowlers, in terms of aggression and pace, we have always thrived on bowling on quick, bouncy wickets. That’s a skill set that becomes null and void in these type (West Indian) of conditions,” he said. “Maybe we have been found wanting in that department.”While Nortje has bowled some back-of-the-hand slower balls, South Africa overall have not adjusted to the surfaces as well as West Indies and Ngidi, in particular, has been expensive. Apart from Phehlukwayo and Mulder, South Africa have Beuran Hendricks, Lizaad Willams and Sisanda Magala (though he is currently battling an ankle injury) in reserve and have not used any of them yet. Bavuma indicated Williams may come into contention for the series-deciding fifth and final T20I, after an impressive debut earlier in the year. He was their leading bowler against Pakistan in the series in April.The only position not under some scrutiny is Tabrazi Shamsi’s. The world’s leading T20I bowler has operated as both strike bowler and container, and his form means it’s unlikely Imran Tahir, who has not retired from the shortest format, will don a South African shirt again. That, unless Tahir is afforded the opportunity and South Africa opt to field a four-spin attack in the UAE. They have the personnel in Tahir, Shamsi, Linde and Bjorn Fortuin. Imagine that.