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Plays of the Day from the third day of the first Test between Sri Lanka and New Zealand in Galle

Andrew Fernando in Galle19-Nov-2012The ominous dismissal
Martin Guptill had missed the limited-overs leg of the tour so he could be well rested for the Tests, but it may not be a match he will want to remember, having made only 24 across both innings. He was the first domino to fall on the third morning, and the vexing nature of his dismissal befitted the chaos that was to follow. Nuwan Kulasekara angled a fullish ball into the stumps, and despite the ball not taking any deviation off the pitch, Martin Guptill played completely down the wrong line to a delivery that crashed into middle and off.The unintentional stumping
Prasanna Jayawardene was once perhaps the best keeper to spin bowling in the world, and though his keeping form has dipped of late, his chest did the work his hands were supposed to do, when he stumped an advancing James Franklin. Rangana Herath had fired the ball in down the leg side, and Jayawardene was unsighted by Franklin’s moving frame until the ball came through between Franklin’s legs, making it difficult for him to collect cleanly. The ball ricocheted up into his chest, and fell onto the stumps in an instant – and Jayawardene was celebrating before Franklin had even returned to the crease.The field placement
Sri Lanka were so keen to have left-hander Daniel Flynn playing against Herath’s turn, they employed a 7-2 leg-side field, with the only slip and mid-off positioned on the off side. For two overs, Flynn played along, collecting runs only into the leg side. But he perished the first time he tried to play the ball into the off side, a gentle push though it was, missing the ball that turned sharply into him and hit the top of off stump.The wander
Tim Southee became the second victim of an unconventional stumping on day three, when was dismissed for 16. He had attempted to whip a full Suraj Randiv delivery through the leg side, but had only managed a toe-edge, but despite not knowing where the ball had dribbled to, decided to stroll out of the crease, as if he had been dispatched in a search party to locate it. The ball had rolled slowly behind him, and Prasanna Jayawardene picked it up off the pitch and whipped off the bails before the batsman was any the wiser.The equipment

Opener Dimuth Karunaratne arrived at the crease wearing fluorescent orange gloves, and given it was his debut, perhaps it was an attempt to get the New Zealand bowlers to go easy on him, the way a beginner driver would with fluorescent ‘L’ plates. After a nervy start, he began striking confident square boundaries, and before too long, he got rid of the learner’s gloves and donned some proper ones.

Despite its many controversies, the BPL served as a meaningful event for Bangladesh players because they were exposed to a higher standard of cricket

Mohammad Isam20-Feb-2013The Bangladesh Premier League organisers were relieved when the tournament ended. Four weeks ago such relief was far away, after the PCB refused to release its players for the league. Despite regaining its foothold, and several local talents emerging on the field, the BPL faced problems off it.Ahead of the opening game, the biggest worry was whether the franchises would be able to replace the Pakistani players who were withdrawn because of the fall-out between the Pakistan board and the BCB. The player payments became the chief talking point when the BPL began, and to further complicate matters, there were complaints about sub-standard hotels in Khulna for some franchises. Poor crowd turnout in Khulna and Dhaka was another concern, and that was due to high ticket prices and the ticket-selling venues.Player payments were always going to be under scrutiny after the long delays in the first season. This time, the issues spilled into public domain a few times during the competition. First, Owais Shah complained of delays in fees, and Abdur Razzak said he and his team-mates were playing without payment. Then came a moment when the BPL could have been thrown completely off kilter. Duronto Rajshahi’s overseas players threatened not to play a match after not being paid for two-thirds of the tournament.The first snag was set right a few days after Shah admitted it was his mistake that the money didn’t arrive in his account. It also showed the lack of coordination between the BPL governing council, which represented the BCB, the tournament’s event management firm, and the franchises.The second complaint, by Razzak, was not followed up by the BPL or the media, and nor was it addressed by the Rangpur franchise. However, when the Rajshahi foreigners almost didn’t play against Khulna Royal Bengals, the BCB convinced them with a request not to sully the competition. And all of this was just for the first 25% of the payment.The next deadline has already been extended to February 25, although it was first set for the day of the final. The trouble over payments in the next six months, the period that has been set to complete all player payments, will be the BPL’s biggest challenge.On the field, it was a better story this year. The Bangladeshi cricketers adapted to the demands of a Twenty20 competition and won mental battles. The manner in which some of the uncapped players dealt with fast bowling, albeit on slow wickets, showed how jumping up a level is becoming second nature for the average cricketer. A few scenes stood out: the dismissive hitting of Nazmul Hossain Milon, the six fifties by Shamsur Rahman, but most of all the boldness of Nasir Hossain was the biggest gain of the BPL.Nasir’s mannerisms looked arrogant to some, but it is this sort of confidence that Bangladeshi players are not known for. By switching stances to distract a fast bowler in the middle of a good spell, or rubbing his hands before taking a catch, the young allrounder showed how the heat of the battle or the weight of the big stage made him comfortable and not inhibited.The confidence of Shahriar Nafees and the return to form of Mohammad Ashraful were also signs that Bangladesh cricket needs a tournament where the players face and play with overseas cricketers on a regular basis.That it needed a Twenty20 tournament to bring better competition was perhaps not ideal. Other formats also need the attention reserved for the BPL, particularly one-day cricket, a format where the Bangladesh senior team has had improving results at home.The other point of debate is whether franchises, some of which have been deemed “unprofessional” even by the likes of Khaled Mashud, the former Bangladesh captain, deserve such attention. The question is whether the BCB can resurrect a tournament that has so many flaws in its make-up.The BCB has a lot more to do in this regard. Educating the franchises on how to manage a team should be high on the to-do list, but it will all depend on how fast the pay issues can be resolved. Otherwise, the same problems will surface the next time the BPL is held.

The Plays of the day from the match between Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians in Kolkata

Sidharth Monga24-May-2013The shot
You would have seen bowlers bowling from 23 yards, but batsmen playing from 23 yards? That’s a new one. In the final over of the Rajasthan Royals innings, Dishant Yagnik stood on off to face Lasith Malinga. He had already been going deep in the crease to counter the Malinga yorker, but this time he was outside the line of off and played this one from behind the stumps. It worked, for Yagnik took it on the half-volley and flicked it over square leg for four.Turns out this was not new. It has been done twice in two balls, but not to such good an effect.The shot
How unsettling it must be for a bowler when one batsman has gone behind the stumps and the other – in the same over – walks up and turns it into a 20-yard delivery. Later in the same over, even when Malinga was midway in his run, Brad Hodge had walked almost half the way up the track. For a moment you thought Malinga might pull out of the delivery, but clearly he hadn’t learned from Sahara. Eventually Malinga tried to bowl a slower ball, but it slipped out of his hand so bad it missed the adjoining pitch too. Nor was it his first of that over.The desperation
The match was delayed by an hour because of the evening rain. The Mumbai Indians support staff was clearly the most desperate for the game to be of the longest possible duration. While others twiddled thumbs, Jonty Rhodes joined the ground staff and helped them dry the covers and take them off.The riposte
This was Rahul Dravid channelling his inner . When Rahul Dravid drove Mitchell Johnson straight past him in the third over, Johnson had a word or three to speak. Johnson forgot to back it up with a good ball next up, and Dravid flicked it away regally for four. And Dravid walked up to Johnson and asked him, “You want to say something?” He may as well have asked him, “You talking to me?”

Plays from the IPL game between Delhi Daredevils and Sunrisers Hyderabad in Delhi

Andrew Fidel Fernando12-Apr-2013The impeding equipmentKumar Sangakkara’s dismissal might have sent some jitters through the visitors’ dugout, and were it not for Cameron White’s helmet grille, they might have edged even closer to peril. Attempting a lap-sweep off Shahbaz Nadeem, White managed only a top edge, and just as the wicketkeeper moved towards the leg side to attempt a catch, the ball flew right into White’s grille and lodged there. White could not get the ball out himself, so the Delhi Daredevils fielders closed in to help him. When David Warner finally removed it, he also raised his hands in mock appeal.The non-obstructionDaredevils’ plight had grown more hopeless at the start of the 18th over of the chase, with Sunrisers Hyderabad needing only a run a ball, and their desperation manifested in a strange appeal for obstructing the field. Amit Mishra got a leading edge into off Irfan Pathan and was called through for a tight single, but when the fielder came in and threw at the stumps, Mishra was in the way and the ball deflected off his back. Jayawardene immediately appealed for obstruction of the field, but replays showed Mishra had simply run his original line, and the appeal was turned down. Jayawardene continued to voice his displeasure, though, perhaps also incensed by the extra run taken by Sunrisers off the deflection that came off the batsman – an act sometimes considered poor sportsmanship, but one which is within the laws of the game.The catchDaredevils were already in trouble after Mahela Jayawardene’s departure but White’s sharp reflexes at wide slip saw them slip further. Ishant Sharma bowled one outside off stump, and Virender Sehwag, seeing the width, tried to cover-drive on-the-up, but could only manage a thick outside edge. The ball flew quickly off the blade, but White moved into position in a flash, and completed a sharp take, falling to his right.The cartwheelThere are few greater pleasures in cricket than seeing a fast bowler uproot the wickets, and in the recent past, Dale Steyn has been the most compelling purveyor of somersaulting stumps. He had bowled some lovely outswingers early in the innings – one which took Jayawardene’s edge, but was put down by the diving wicketkeeper – but a fast, good length ball provided a deserved second wicket. Steyn had bowled the delivery cross seam, but it came in on an angle, pitched on an off stump line and straightened just a touch. Nadeem was ill-equipped to deal with the quality of that ball, and got nowhere near it as it hit the top of off stump to send it end-over-end in a straight line towards the keeper.The run-outWith a small total to defend, Daredevils had to field well to have any hope of snapping their losing streak, and Nadeem set off well in that regard, when he swooped in to effect a run-out in the second over. Akshath Reddy pushed Siddarth Kaul into the leg side and called for a single, but he had to circumvent the bowler mid-pitch, which cost him precious time. Coming in from midwicket, Nadeem ran around the ball, so that when he picked it up, he’d be facing the stumps at the non-striker’s end. He collected and let fly in one swift motion to have Reddy short of his ground by a frame.

Watch highlights from the fourth day of the Lord’s Test.

21-Jul-2013Watch highlights of the second day of the 2nd Investec Ashes Test from Lord’s here on ESPNcricinfo.To see higlights from the previous days, please click on the relevant day:
Day 1, Day 2, Day 3

1st session

2nd session

3rd session

Ross Taylor’s search for a long awaited Test hundred is over, and the manner in which he applied himself to score a maiden double-ton will benefit New Zealand in the future

Andrew McGlashan in Dunedin04-Dec-2013When Brendon McCullum finally called a halt to New Zealand’s mammoth innings – the fourth-highest in their Test history – Ross Taylor strode off University Oval to another standing ovation. He had received a few over the last couple of days.New Zealand’s history is not littered with a vast array of double hundreds: Taylor’s unbeaten 217 was only the 17th score of above 200 which have been spread among just 13 cricketers. The previous one had been Brendon McCullum’s 225 against India in 2010.In a neat piece of symmetry, the closure of the innings left Taylor with an average of 45.36 – exactly the figure of his mentor, Martin Crowe, with whom he had shared a pre-Test conversation that Taylor acknowledged after the first day. There is just one New Zealand batsman with a higher Test average: John Reid sits 46.28 over a career of 19 matches.Taylor had ended his year-long wait for a hundred the previous evening but he had spoken of his desire to not waste the chance to build an even more substantial contribution. After the early-morning losses of McCullum and Corey Anderson, it was important Taylor took control of the innings if New Zealand were to obtain their target of a total in excess of 550.If Kieran Powell had been sharper at short leg, Taylor’s innings would have been ended on 131 when he inside-edged Shane Shillingford into his pad, but it was the only chance of his lengthy stay.Tino Best, who caused Taylor the few other uncomfortable moments he did have, was happy to acknowledge the performance. “The fella is a class act,” Best said. “He’s a very humble person. I’ve always admired him for a long time. I’m happy for him. The last year or so he’s been going through a tough period in New Zealand and to come and score a double hundred, I know the wicket is a little placid, but he showed a really good attitude and his concentration was immense. We were a little unlucky not get him early but he showed the temperament of an international batsman in his prime.”His previous highest score in Tests was a coursing, unbeaten 154 against England, at Old Trafford, in 2008 when he repeatedly took England’s attack into the stands over midwicket. He has the ability to move into a higher gear when the mood takes him, but this innings was made at a relatively consistent pace throughout, the four fifties coming from 66, 84, 81 and 64 deliveries. The slog-sweep, often seen off the spinners (and even medium-pacers) by Taylor did not make an appearance as he left the lofted shots mostly to his team-mates.Such had been the pace of scoring on the first day that there was no pressure to accelerate beyond what came naturally against a West Indies attack that, although more consistent than yesterday, remained limited and lost the services of their captain, Darren Sammy, with a leg injury during the first session.

Darren Sammy injury update

West Indies remain confident that their captain Darren Sammy will be able to play a significant role during the remainder of first Test despite leaving the field with a glute strain at the start of his 24th over. Sammy had felt the twinge in his 23rd over, and was in noticeable discomfort when an edge from Ross Taylor fell just short of him at gully. He later returned to the field but did not bowl for the rest of the innings and hobbled between his fielding positions. Under the new ICC regulations, he will not be allowed a runner. A West Indies spokesman, using a phrase unlikely to be heard from many Test nations, said: “He’s our warrior.”
Sammy’s absence puts extra onus on the remaining bowlers and Tino Best remained wholehearted in his efforts. He sent down the most overs he has bowled in a Test innings, 34.1 overs, and said West Indies had improved from their first-day showing. “Six-hundred, it’s not a reflection on how we bowled today. The first day was the problem, 300 and more runs on the first day of a Test is not good enough. It’s something we have got to look at as a team and a bowling unit. To be honest my mother always said to me, ‘Tino, as a professional you can’t worry about looking for excuses’. We are a little tired, I am a little jet-lagged, and today is the most I’ve ever bowled in a Test innings. You’ve just got to run in and bowl.”

Briefly, Taylor unleashed against Shannon Gabriel, taking 18 off an over with four lacerated boundaries, but that did not signal a blitz towards two hundred as he nudged his way there against a deep-set field, with Shillingford and Narsingh Deonarine operating in tandem. Shortly before tea, he then skipped out to drive Deonarine through the covers, and the following delivery he tickled towards fine leg.He had kept his emotions in check when he reached the hundred, and the double did not see the extravagant celebration that some players unfurl for such landmarks. There is a sense that after the mental battles he went through a year ago, with the loss of the captaincy, he is trying to find a level to his emotions whether in good times or bad.Neil Wagner, who was at the other end when the double was reached, said: “It’s a massive milestone, something awesome and he batted really well. I jogged over to him and he was very calm and quiet and all he said was, ‘Thanks for batting with me’. I’m stoked for him.”While the quality, or lack of, in West Indies’ attack did not provide the sternest of tests, Taylor’s success is notable given that his preparation for this series was hampered by a knee injury and included a solitary first-class match for Central Districts which brought scores of 10 and 0.Although he provided more than a third of New Zealand’s runs it was a collective effort with the bat from the home side. While no one else dominated on the second day, BJ Watling, Ish Sodhi (whose lively innings suggested he should be above Tim Southee in the order) and a merry dash from Wagner all contributed to keep West Indies off the field until after tea.It was an innings of rare plunder for New Zealand. Only Wellington 1991 (671 for 4 dec against Sri Lanka), Mohali 2003 (630 for 6 dec) and Napier 2009 (619 for 9 dec against India), have been bigger. Taylor was around in 2009, where he also played a considerable part with 151, in concert with Jesse Ryder’s 201 and a hundred for McCullum.Having spent more than five sessions in the field, the loss of two early wickets for West Indies was predictable. The fulcrum of their order is Darren Bravo, Marlon Samuels and Shivnarine Chanderpaul. This is a surface they should relish batting on and the ball is already 24 overs old, but they will need to channel the spirit of Taylor.

Also, most runs in a 50th Test, most keeping dismissals without a stumping, and greatest difference between innings scores in a Test

Steven Lynch18-Feb-2014Mitchell Johnson took 12 wickets in the first Test at Centurion. Is that the best for Australia in South Africa? asked Jim Murray from Adelaide

Mitchell Johnson’s 12 for 127 in the demolition in Centurion last week were Australia’s second-best match figures in South Africa, after legspinner Clarrie Grimmett’s 13 for 173 in Durban in 1935-36. Another Australian, the Sydney-born JJ Ferris, took 13 for 91 in Cape Town in 1891-92 – but he was playing for England in that game! The best match figures by any visiting bowler in South Africa are Sydney Barnes’ 17 for 159 in Johannesburg in 1913-14, the second-best in all Tests behind Jim Laker’s 19 for 90 in the Old Trafford Ashes Test of 1956. South Africa’s best match figures at home are 13 for 192, by offspinner Hugh Tayfield against England in Johannesburg in 1956-57; their best against Australia are 10 for 116 by Charles “Buck” Llewellyn at the old Wanderers ground in Johannesburg in 1902-03.James Faulkner won the third one-dayer against England recently by putting on 57 with Clint McKay. Is this a record for the last wicket to win an ODI? asked Phillip Thompson from Sydney

Clint McKay only needed to score two runs in that amazing last-wicket partnership with James Faulkner that spirited Australia to yet another victory over England at the Gabba last month. There has been only one higher tenth-wicket partnership to win a one-day international, and it came during the first World Cup, in 1975, when West Indies somehow overcame Pakistan at Edgbaston. Chasing 267, they were 203 for 9 when last man Andy Roberts joined wicketkeeper (and No. 8) Deryck Murray. Playing sensibly, they inched their way towards the target, and in the last of the 60 overs Roberts nudged the single that gave them victory after an unbeaten last-wicket stand of 64. Their partnership, though, took around 15 overs, compared to less than six for Faulkner and McKay. I am indebted to the statistician Andrew Samson for pointing out that there have been four higher successful tenth-wicket stands in all List A matches, including one of over 100 – in February 2006, North West’s wicketkeeper and No. 9 Thando Bula (76 not out) and last man Friedel de Wet (56 not out) put on 102 without being parted to conjure victory over Free State in Potchefstroom in the South African Airways Provincial One-Day Challenge.How many people scored only two Test centuries, both of them coming in the same match? I believe Jack Moroney was one … asked AK Srivastava from India

The Australian opener Jack Moroney was the first man whose only two centuries came in the same Test (against South Africa in Johannesburg in 1949-50). Since then this dubious distinction has been achieved just twice, both by Pakistan batsmen. Wajahatullah Wasti played only six Tests, but made two hundreds in his second one, against Sri Lanka in Lahore in March 1999. And on his Test debut, against Bangladesh in Karachi in August 2003, Yasir Hameed scored 170 and 105. Neither of them scored another Test century. This list contains one current player, who may yet remove himself from it: Peter Fulton’s two Test centuries for New Zealand to date both came against England in Auckland last March.I know that Ricky Ponting scored the most runs in his 100th Test. But who scored the most in his 50th appearance? asked Vikram Singhal from Delhi

Ricky Ponting scored 263 runs (120 and 143 not out) in his 100th Test, for Australia against South Africa in Sydney in January 2006. The only other man to score more than 200 runs in his 100th Test was Inzamam-ul-Haq, with 215 (184 and 31 not out) for Pakistan against India in Bangalore in March 2005. The most runs by a player in his 50th Test is 317, by Chris Gayle in one innings for West Indies against South Africa in St John’s in 2004-05. Tillakaratne Dilshan, with 162 and 143 for Sri Lanka against Bangladesh, in Chittagong in January 2009, also scored more than 300 runs in his 50th Test. Dilshan is the only man to score twin hundreds in his 50th match: 30 other players have marked their 50th Test with a century.BJ Watling has now made more than 50 dismissals in Test cricket – all catches. What is the record by a wicketkeeper without any stumpings? asked Zaheer Ahmed from the UAE

As of day four of the second Test against India, BJ Watling has made 53 catches as New Zealand’s designated wicketkeeper, without a stumping yet. That is the current record for a full career, although obviously he may yet escape from the list. Australia’s Wayne Phillips kept wicket in 18 Tests, taking 43 catches but no stumpings, and next comes Hashan Tillakaratne, whose 32 dismissals in 11 Tests behind the stumps for Sri Lanka were all catches. The record for most catches before making a stumping in Tests is held by Dave Richardson, the South African keeper who is now the ICC’s chief executive. He had taken 119 before finally pulling off a stumping, in his 33rd Test, to dismiss India’s Venkatesh Prasad off Paul Adams in Cape Town in January 1997. Richardson was rather relieved, as he thought if he’d never made any stumpings at all people might have thought he was a slip fielder and not a wicketkeeper.New Zealand made 503 and 105 against India in Auckland. Is this the greatest difference between two completed innings by a team in the same Test? asked Freddie Ribeiro from India

The biggest difference between a side’s two totals in the same Test is 577, by England – 849 and 272 for 9 declared – against West Indies in Kingston in 1929-30. Pakistan followed on after being all out for 106 against West Indies in Bridgetown in January 1958, and made 657 for 8 declared – mainly thanks to Hanif Mohammad’s epic 337 – a difference of 551. This considers only innings in which at least eight wickets fell – the biggest disparity overall without that qualification is 657, by Australia (729 for 6 declared and 72 for 3) against England at Lord’s in 1930. If you insist on both innings being all out, then the answer is 456 runs, by West Indies (590 and 134) against India in Mumbai in November 2011. New Zealand in that recent Test against India in Auckland provided the seventh-highest difference where both innings were all out.

A plethora of “experts” who have spent the last few weeks repeating the myth that Moeen is a “part-time” spin bowler may now afford him a little more respect

George Dobell at Headingley22-Jun-2014Two wickets to the good and with his confidence soaring, Moeen delivered the first “doosra” of his international career. Not just the first doosra of his career, but the first bowled by an England bowler in Tests. It was a significant moment in English cricket history.It was not hard to pick from the hand – it is slower and more floaty than his normal offbreak – but it drew a respectful “well bowled” from Mahela Jayawardene and it may well have given him the confidence to bowl it more often. Most of those who believe the delivery cannot be bowled without throwing did not even notice it happen.”I was feeling pretty confident so I thought ‘why not bowl one’?” Moeen said afterwards. “It’s the first one I’ve bowled. I just wanted to do a job for the team first. I’m not as confident to bowl it with the red ball as I am with the white ball. He played it quite well, but he did sort of say it was alright.”He is improving, too. He has a close relationship with Pakistan spinner Saeed Ajmal, who has returned to Worcestershire for a stint as an overseas player, and has spent many hours working with him in the nets. Ajmal has shared the secrets of his doosra with Moeen and, he says, nobody else. In recent weeks, Ajmal has watched Moeen bowl 30 or 40 doosras in succession in practice. While there is a long way to go before Moeen’s doosra is anything like Ajmal’s, it is worth remembering that Ajmal only learned the delivery in his mid-to-late 20s. Moeen, who celebrated his 27th birthday on Wednesday, has time on his side.The knives were out for Moeen Ali long before he bowled on Sunday afternoon. “He’s useless,” the pundit in the press box roared when Alastair Cook finally threw Moeen the ball. “He can’t bat and he certainly can’t bowl.”The pundit’s opinion is, up to a point, understandable. Having heard the England coach, Peter Moores, describe the spin position as “a weakness” after the Lord’s Test and having heard the captain, Cook, describe the spin position as “a cause for concern,” it would seem natural to conclude that neither of them had much faith in Moeen’s spin bowling.It was a view that could only have been reinforced when Cook, despite the dry pitch and an off-colour display from his seamers, seemed reluctant to trust his spinner until the 56th over. It was beginning to be hard to understand why they had selected him.And it was a view that could have only been reinforced by the plethora of “experts” who have spent the last few weeks repeating the myth that Moeen is a “part-time” spin bowler. Experts who have clearly not spent much time at New Road watching Moeen fulfil the main spinner’s role for Worcestershire for much of the last few years.Perhaps he will now be afforded a little more respect. While he is a long way from proving his long-term viability as a Test spinner, Moeen did at least show on the third day here that he is far from the bits and pieces player that he has been dismissed as by some.

Swann to coach England spinners

Graeme Swann, who retired from international cricket in December after claiming 255 wickets in 60 Tests, is to take on a part-time role working with England’s young spinners.
“Peter Such is the head of the spin department at the ECB,” Swann told the ECB. “He has asked me to talk to bowlers. So at Lord’s I’ll sit down with the spinners who might be asked along, like Simon Kerrigan, Adam Riley, Scotty Borthwick, just to try and impart some advice or knowledge about Test cricket, because it is different to county cricket. I was lucky to go on a couple of tours and not play so I learned a lot then.”
Swann also defended his decision to retire mid-way through the Ashes tour in the winter, insisting that his elbow injury had given him little option.
“If I could bowl at half of what I thought was acceptable in Test cricket I would have done,” Swann said. “You’re walking out on a million-pound-a-year job – nobody is going to do that on a whim. I don’t think people realise how bad my elbow is. I can’t rotate it so can’t get any spin on the ball. If I bowled now, I’d bowl garbage.”

His first wicket was that of Kumar Sangakkara. That is the Sangakkara who had just become one of only four men in history to score seven successive half-centuries in Test cricket and the Sangakkara with more than 11,000 Test runs to his name.But, having turned a couple sharply enough to demand the batsman’s respect, Moeen drifted one into the left-hander. This one did not turn, or turned very little, and though Sangakkara pushed forward, the dip and drift defeated him and he was struck on the pad and trapped lbw. It could have been Graeme Swann bowling. It was exactly the way Swann tortured so many left-handers.Moeen Ali claimed two important wickets•Getty ImagesBetter was to come. Two balls later, Lahiru Thirimanne pushed forward at another bowled from round the wicket and, having been drawn into playing the ball on middle and leg by the drift, was beaten past the outside edge by one that turned sharply and hit the top of off stump. It was, by any standards, a lovely piece of bowling. “It’s the best ball I’ve bowled on TV,” Moeen said.Moeen has now taken 93 first-class wickets since the start of 2012 at an average of 32.18. They are not extraordinary figures, certainly, but they compare well with most other spinners who have been utilised by England in Test cricket in recent years. James Tredwell, by contrast, has taken 49 (at an average of 45.12), Monty Panesar has claimed 153 (at 30.77 apiece), Gareth Batty has taken 74 (at 30.60), Scott Borthwick has taken 71 (at 36.11), Simon Kerrigan 140 (at 29.31) and Samit Patel has taken 63 at 47.09. Adil Rashid, who has not played Test cricket, has taken 60 (at 41.58). Whether Moeen is a Test class spinner remains to be seen, but on those figures, he has a good argument to be considered among the best available to England at present. Calling Moeen a part-timer spinner is simply factually inaccurate.If England are demanding instant success, he may not be the answer. If they are building for the future, he may well be worth some perseverance.Besides, England’s failings here have not been caused by the absence of a world-class spinner. Instead they have dropped catches – Chris Jordan was the latest to put down a straightforward chance, reprieving Dimuth Karunaratne in the slips on 12 – let a strong position slip when batting – they lost their last seven wickets for only 54 runs having surpassed the Sri Lankan total with eight wickets in hand – and then bowled with unusual lack of control or even sense. The manner that James Anderson and Stuart Broad – bowling far too short and often too wide as well – wasted the new ball at the start of the Sri Lankan second innings may yet cost England this match.Complacency surely cannot have been an issue. A team that has now won any of its last seven Tests and was defeated in the World T20 by Netherlands has no reason for anything of the sort.They should not be complacent about their over-rate, either. After being fined for a slow-rate in the Lord’s Test, England have again failed to bowl the minimum number of overs demanded in a day here.One day the ICC will look at the pitifully small crowds which have now become the norm in Test cricket and act to prevent such self-defeating practices. They will suspend a high-profile captain and focus the minds of the players on the demands of the spectators. But until they do, the punters will continue to be asked to pay ever more for less and continue to drift away from the game.

An irreverent look in and around World T20 in Bangladesh. If you are looking for news, you have got lost in the right place.

Vithushan Ehantharajah16-Mar-2014The beginning of the beginningThere is a lot of dispute about when this, the fifth World T20, actually begins. Maybe it started today when Bangladesh hosted potential Test-status challengers Afghanistan at the Shere Bangla National Stadium. Or perhaps it is next Friday, when India play Pakistan at the same stadium, in what will be the 13th match of the competition but the first without the “qualifying” tag?In fact, the 2014 World T20 was actually opened on Thursday by the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina with the help of Akon, AR Rahman and 18,000 Bangladeshis at the BCB’s Celebration Concert at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka.Bangladesh opted for a concert instead of a traditional opening ceremony and anybody who has seen English cricket’s two attempts at the latter – let’s just say the Queen and James Bond did not dive out of an aeroplane in cricket’s version – could hardly suggest this was unwise.There was genius and tedium on show, and nearly all of the 18,000 paid through the nose but were compensated with vigorous pat downs from over-enthusiastic security guards. No doubt Akon soothed them. He has had quite a controversial life, involving periods on prison and allegations of simulated sex with minors in his state show. He was also refused a visa by Sri Lanka in 2010 because his music video for included statues of the Buddha in the background.Old habits die hardTalking of Sri Lanka, the last World T20 took place there to widespread excitement. But move the tournament to Bangladesh and some of the Sri Lankan media has found refuge instead in traditional cricketing pursuits.
In the in Colombo, consideration of Sri Lanka’s chances had to give way to a 1,000-word report on the final day of the Battle of the Blues – the 135th contest between the rival colleges Royal and St Thomas’ – the second oldest cricket contest in the world.Freakishly, there was a rare chance of a positive result at the start of the final day only for Royal to block the game out with expected fervour. “Stonewall batting helps Royal to force a draw,” blazed the headline approvingly. As the Old Boys paraded around the boundary edge and old school tie allegiances were again on show, it was a world away from the comical slogging of Afghanistan’s top order.Misbah has murdered Wasim bhai’s sleep, no moreRumours have it that Misbah-bashing has reached such critical levels that a group of effigies have got together and are releasing an adaptation of an Oasis classic, entitled “Don’t Ul-Haq In Anger”.Seen as the destroyer of hopes, conceder of match-winning opportunities and the pocket gremlin that ties your headphones in knots, Misbah’s heinous crimes of picking up other people’s slack has gone too far after he savagely butchered the slumber of one of his country’s most celebrated.”I couldn’t sleep for two days,” complained a baggy-eyed Wasim Akram, at a loss to explain what he perceived were defensive tactics from Pakistan’s ODI captain in their defeat to Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup final.Luckily for Akram, Misbah is no longer a part of Pakistan’s Twenty20 plans and it will be down to Mohammed Hafeez to send Wasim to sleep with the lullabies of a thousand gullies.Fruit for thoughtEmbarking on their first major international tournament, Hong Kong have decided to take a strength and
conditioning coach on tour for the very first time.That man is Tom Summers, who spent six years at Headingley telling Andrew Gale to get deeper in his squats and opening Ajmal Shahzad’s eyes to a world beyond chest-presses.But despite the stint in the north of England, his most stubborn resistance may come from the heavily Indo-Pakistani origin squad as he looks to wean them off gluten rich breakfasts such as parathas, naans and rotis – instead encouraging them to eat more fruit.”I don’t want to come in and start putting rules and ordering people around on what they should eat,” says Summers. “That won’t work”. Too right.As sports writer Alvin Sallay put it – trying to take the paratha away from the Pakistani is like trying to ask Israel to give up the Golan Heights.Master of Ceremony ActuallyTo most of you, the name FS Nayeem is probably unfamiliar. By the end of this competition you will simply know him as “Oh, that guy”.FS Nayeem is a rom-com actor forging his career in the world of Bangladeshi cinema – Dhallywood? – who will be leading proceedings for the opening of the Nepal-Hong Kong match at Chittagong. He is relishing the chance to connect with his audience and has a new film due out this Eid. You can’t find the trailer online but he also has it on his phone and will happily show you if you ask (and probably if you do not).He has already notched his maiden WT20 hissy fit after taking great offence to a card that had his role down as “MC”, striking it through and writing “Master of Ceremonies” instead. Of all the celebrity pet peeves, abbreviations might be up there as one of the strangest. FWIW, we at ESPNcricinfo hope he deals with his issues ASAP.

He was an artiste who crafted the most technically demanding shots to perfection but lived for the pure adrenaline of battle

Andrew Fidel Fernando12-Aug-2014Every Mahela Jayawardene innings had its own persona. Every Jayawardene stroke was self-expression. This was true when he played a rasping square cut against the turn to fetch his first Test boundary in 1997. It was true when he hit a searing reverse-sweep off Saeed Ajmal at Galle, on Sunday.His batting has filled grounds since he was 15. He has won Tests off his own blade, and saved a few as well. He has taken more international catches than any other cricketer, many while captaining Sri Lanka with a creativity that has not been seen elsewhere in international cricket this century. From Nalanda College to Lord’s, from softball cricket on Colombo streets to the dustbowls that he alone could tame, he has never ceased to be himself. Across every format, in every capacity, Jayawardene has never ceased to be among cricket’s most elemental pleasures.Most will remember his artistry. Other batsmen are often products of hard work and clear thinking, of processes that have been hammered in, with shots that have been honed, along with the muscles that power them. Jayawardene does all the work, but at the crease he is a free spirit. That liquid cover drive that sent balls in almost any direction on the off side was more dependent on his mood than the physics of the delivery that came to him. The sweep that could go anywhere from deep midwicket to the finest fine leg, in any combination of power and elevation, was decided in an instant, on a whim.Among Sri Lankan batsmen, his technique has been uniquely resistant to change. The trigger movement is almost the same. The grip is a little lower since he started out, but the hands still feel for the ball when the feet are not quite there. That is not to say he has not innovated with the times. But although new strokes have been learnt in his later years, the essence of his cricket remains as lovingly refined as it has always been. Twenty-first century aggression filtered through age-old method, yielding savagery that seems fashioned from silk. The uppercut off Morne Morkel during his most recent Test hundred was played late, beneath the eyes, over the fielders for four.That Jayawardene was so often a victim of his own ambition only made his success sweeter. He would open the face of his bat to deflect the ball to third man on seaming decks. He played the hook and the pull when leg-side traps had been set. Bowlers always had a chance, so every late cut past a full cordon felt like an escape. Every trip down the pitch to loft spinners against the turn was a shot of adrenaline.Was there a more compelling force than him when in full flow? When he was at the crease, sometimes even dot balls were electric. Singles were scored off paddle sweeps dragged from way outside off. Twos were chipped just over the circle, inches from the fielder’s reach. A drive down the ground when the ball was pitched up, moving miles; a flick through midwicket when reverse swing was on offer. You wondered why he played this way – why someone so tactically astute would not recognise the benefits of staying safe. But Jayawardene lived on a precipice because he was at the cricket for the same reason as the spectator. Helplessly instinctive, craving attack, he went to the crease for the taste of the battle, for the smell of adventure.Among Sri Lankan batsmen, he has played the biggest share of great innings, giving each one a different texture and a different hue. The 374 was the monster that grew out of a counter-attack. The fourth-innings 123 at the P Sara Oval little more than a week later was a masterclass in control. The 105 against Australia, on a Galle surface that looked like a cluster bomb had attacked it, was pure survival. Even within the same innings, he would transition like an orchestra through a symphony. Staccato singles and twos gave way to long slow notes, then in a surge of inspiration, the exhilarating crescendo came. Bowlers rarely knew what was next. Fans had no idea. Jayawardene often didn’t either.He could never let a game drift in his first stint as captain. Almost every field gave the batsman a trap to think about. Often they would fall, hitting to somewhere else, but Jayawardene would celebrate like it had all been planned, racing to greet the bowler like they had just pulled off a prank together. Under his guidance, the men around the bat for Muttiah Muralitharan were not just vultures hovering above a prospective meal, they were co-instigators of the action; a living, breathing, sharpened phalanx, almost as central to Sri Lanka’s threat as the man whirring the ball in.Jayawardene averages 50.02 before his final Test. If he is dismissed twice, he needs 94 runs to keep that figure above 50. His less flattering returns outside Asia are known. That edginess against the seaming ball in the channel has been well laid out.But those who watched Jayawardene play will not forget how he made them feel – the way his innings grabbed you by the collar and took you on a ride. They will not forget the late cuts or the drives, the sinking despair or the dizzying elation. Or the way Jayawardene lived and died, on the edge, for the thrill.