All posts by h716a5.icu

A primer on the ruling that allows Kyle Abbott to choose English county cricket ahead of playing for South Africa

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Jan-20173:03

What is a Kolpak deal?

What is the Kolpak rule?
Citizens of EU countries are allowed to work in any other EU country. But the Kolpak rule means that citizens of countries that are part of European Union Association Agreements, which are free trade treaties between the EU and other countries, also have the same right.Why is it called that?
The rule was made when Maros Kolpak, a Slovak handball player, appealed to the European Court of Justice that he should not be considered a non-EU player in the German handball league as he was a resident of Germany and a citizen of a country that had an Association Agreement with the EU. Kolpak had lost his contract with his German club as they already had two non-EU players. The court ruled in his favour.How does it impact cricket?
Players from countries with such deals with the EU can play cricket in any EU country without being considered an overseas player. This means they can sign contracts with English county sides without having to be fielded as overseas players.So how do South Africans qualify?
South Africa is part of a deal called the Cotonou Agreement with the EU. Zimbabwe and several Caribbean nations are also signatories, so their players are eligible for Kolpak deals too.Can any South African player sign a Kolpak deal?
No. In 2009, the British Home Office ruled that to sign a Kolpak deal, a player must either have a valid work permit for four years in the UK or have earned a specified number of caps in international cricket.Can a Kolpak player play for his own country while playing for an English county?
No. A player must give up his right to play for his country during the length of his deal with a county.Can a player play domestic cricket in both England and his home country when on a Kolpak deal?
Yes, but he can only play in the English off season. His English county has to be his priority.Can a Kolpak player come back to playing for his country of birth?
Yes, once his contract with the English county expires or is terminated. Jacques Rudolph signed a Kolpak deal with Yorkshire in 2007 after being dropped from the South African team in 2006. He was released from it in 2010 and played again for South Africa in 2011.Can a Kolpak player play for England?
Kolpak players over 18 do not qualify to play for England till they have played seven years for a county and have gained citizenship. This was increased from four years in 2012.So how do so many players born in other countries play for England?
Players such as Kevin Pietersen and Jonathan Trott played for England not through Kolpak deals, but because one of their parents or grandparents was English.How will Brexit affect Kolpak?
Once Britain leaves the European Union, Kolpak contracts will most likely not be possible. That is why there is a rush now from counties and Kolpak-eligible players to sign deals before Brexit takes effect.What’s in it for the players?
More money. South African domestic cricket pays significantly less than English county cricket. And with the South African rand weakening, the gap is widening.But why would a member of the South Africa international team give up Test cricket?
South African cricket has a quota system. In September last year, Cricket South Africa announced that a maximum of five white players can be picked in the eleven, on average. This means some white players, such as Kyle Abbott and Rilee Rossouw, may not get as many chances to play for South Africa and are hence choosing to move to England.What’s in it for the counties?
They get better players without having to field them as foreign players. Each county is only allowed to field one overseas player (or two in the NatWest Blast). So, basically, it is like Royal Challengers Bangalore being able to sign Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers and play them without counting them as foreign players.What are the negatives?
For countries such as South Africa, the drawback is that they lose players from their national side and their domestic competitions. For England, fewer English-born or England-qualified players get the chance to play county cricket.

Stats highlights from the third ODI and an entire series of frenetic run-scoring

S Rajesh22-Jan-20172090 Aggregate in the India-England series, the highest ever in an ODI series of three or fewer matches. The previous best was 1892, in the three-match Afro-Asia Cup in India in 2007.6 Three-hundred-plus totals in the series. There have only been three bilateral ODI series in which more than six such totals have been scored, and all of them consisted of at least five matches. The highest such totals in a series is nine, in the India-Australia series in India in 2013, while the series between the same two teams in Australia in 2016 produced eight such scores.144.09 Kedar Jadhav’s strike rate in the series, the third highest by an India batsman who faced 150-plus balls in a series. The only batsmen with higher strike rates are Virender Sehwag (150.25, India in New Zealand, 2008-09) and Rohit Sharma (147.56, Sri Lanka in India, 2014-15). In this series, Jadhav was the leading run-scorer with 232, at an average of 77.33.3 Instances of England going past 300 in this series. The only series when they went past the mark more often was in the 2015 home series against New Zealand, when they achieved the feat four times.15 Instances of England allrounders scoring a half-century and taking three wickets in an ODI; Ben Stokes achieved it today, scoring an unbeaten 57 and picking up 3 for 63. This is only the third such instance for England since the start of 2009, and Stokes has done it twice.India won ten Tests, drew two, and won seven ODIs under Virat Kohli before his first loss as captain•ESPNcricinfo Ltd34 Balls for Stokes’ half-century, the second fastest for England in ODIs against India. The record stands in his name too: in the first game of the series, he reached the mark off 33 balls.17 Innings for Virat Kohli to reach 1000 ODI runs as captain, the quickest ever to achieve this feat. He beat AB de Villiers’ previous record of 18, while Kane Williamson got there in 20 innings. In 17 innings as captain, Kohli averages 69 at a strike rate of 100.77, with five hundreds and four fifties.19 Consecutive home games for India under Kohli without a defeat, before this five-run loss in Kolkata. During this run, they won ten Tests, drew two, and won seven ODIs.2 Instances of an India-England ODI producing a smaller margin of victory than the five runs in this game. Both those matches were won by England: by one run, in Cuttack in 1984, and by two runs in Delhi in 2002.5-0 Win-loss record for the team batting first in the last five day-night ODIs at the Eden Gardens. The four previous results were all one-sided, though, with the team batting first winning by more than 80 runs.

A decade since Lasith Malinga nearly pulled off an epic heist against South Africa in the 2007 World Cup, his speed has waned but the respect shown by his foes has not

Andrew McGlashan at The Oval03-Jun-2017A decade ago, Lasith Malinga wrote himself a place in the history books by becoming the first – and still only – bowler to take four wickets in four balls in a one-day international. During the 2007 World Cup, against South Africa in Guyana, he almost conjured a remarkable Sri Lanka victory by removing Shaun Pollock, Andrew Hall, Jacques Kallis and Makhaya Ntini with a mixture of slower balls and yorkers.He had already made a name for himself with that set of skills before the tournament and would continue to dominate the white-ball landscape over the next eight years. However, the last two years have been a different story. A string of leg injuries have kept him sidelined or restricted to the four-over allotments of T20 cricket. In many ways, when thinking of Malinga in recent times it has felt like he is older than his 33 years. More than a decade of flinging his body to the crease, with his unique action, has taken its toll.Sri Lanka’s opening Champions Trophy match against South Africa was Malinga’s first ODI since facing West Indies at Pallekele in November 2015. The speed gun was often closer to 130 kph than the 140-145 kph at Malinga’s peak, which rattled batsmen’s stumps for so long. The run-up had a touch more waddle about it and his variations, in length and pace, were utilised far earlier in the innings in an effort to compensate.”He didn’t bowl quite like two years ago,” Upul Tharanga, Sri Lanka’s stand-in captain, said, “but he’s getting better and better. He bowled well up front and also at the death.”There was just enough to revive memories of Malinga’s heyday though. Most notably, he conceded two runs when he returned for the 40th over of the innings, and his set of six included a toe-crusher at Hashim Amla which could well have got through a batsman less set than Amla on 96. The breakdown of his spells were certainly respectable for someone whose 10 overs will have felt like a hefty workload: 4-0-14-0, 2-0-13-0, 1-0-2-0 and 3-0-28-0.”He’s still got the same skill,” Faf du Plessis said. “The pace is down and that makes it a little easier to face because when he bowls quick, then the real slower ball it becomes tricky. So the difference in pace made it easier but you still have to be very watchful and he’s very accurate. We played him really well not to give him any wickets.”He may have held his own with the ball, but Malinga’s fielding was a different matter. In an overall display by Sri Lanka which was eye-catchingly sharp, Malinga’s drop of du Plessis at long leg was an eyesore. Du Plessis was on 8 and South Africa had not yet moved through the gears when Malinga made a complete mess of the chance. Nuwan Pradeep had already dismissed Quinton de Kock in the 13th over and induced a top-edged pull by du Plessis in the 17th to create another opportunity headed for Malinga, who initially stepped on the rope before realising he had gone too far back and then failed to cling on to the ball while diving forward.From that moment on, the Amla-du Plessis stand flourished, the run-rate of the partnership passing seven-an-over. Sri Lanka deserve credit for how they pulled the innings back to keep South Africa a tick under 300 – the final 10 overs costing 78 runs is a solid feat against a side with wickets in hand – and Niroshan Dickwella’s brazen approach against new ball raised hopes of a notable reversal. In the end, however, the final margin pretty much went to script – one which had become familiar on the tour of South Africa earlier this year.It is understandable that Sri Lanka have returned to Malinga – you don’t throw away 291 ODI wickets – even though it had to be considered a gamble. But elsewhere there was a feeling that Sri Lanka took a backward step in their selection for this match. They were dealt a cruel hand when Angelo Mathews failed his morning fitness test, removing their best batsman and a useful bowling option, but responded with a negative mindset.As Bangladesh did against England, Sri Lanka packed the batting. They opted for Chamara Kapugedera, playing his first ODI for 18 months who was then lbw first ball, and the rolling legspin of Seekkuge Prasanna – picked off at seven-an-over – ahead of the left-arm wrist spin of Lakshan Sandakan, a bowler who befuddled Australia, albeit in Test cricket, and would have presented a wicket-taking option. It continued an early theme of the tournament: leaving out wrist spinners. England omitted Adil Rashid against Bangladesh, Australia let Adam Zampa warm the bench against New Zealand and Sri Lanka followed suit with Sandakan.It seems increasingly apparent that the only way to prevent sides approaching or comfortably crossing 300 will be to bowl them out. At the moment the prevailing view is that any target is chaseable these days, but a sense of attack in selection could open up another route to victory. It feels especially important for less favoured sides in the tournament – Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan – whose batting line-ups are not as hefty whoever they select.There is a group of younger players with gumption. Dickwella showed it here, Kusal Mendis is a rare talent and Sandakan should be in that bracket. They need backing, belief and to be selected. Sri Lanka have looked to the past for inspiration from Malinga, but they also need to embrace the future to keep their tournament alive.

An “amateur moment” with the bat and “blunders” at slip left the South Africa opener less than satisfied on a day when his 199 helped his side take control of the Potchefstroom Test

Firdose Moonda in Potchefstroom29-Sep-2017Is there one word to describe a day in which you achieve a career-best but fall short of another significant milestone, or when you’ve played your part in giving your team the advantage and then also done your bit in making it harder for them?For Dean Elgar there is: “anticlimactic.”That’s how the South Africa opener described the feelings of reaching 199 and then having an “amateur moment” when he half-left-half-pulled to midwicket, and the “blunders” of dropping two catches later on. “It was quite an up and down day for me personally. The mishaps are just part of the game and getting out for 199 is also part of the game,” he said, but he still managed to see the bright side. “I look at the positives in things. I will still have another opportunity to get a Test double-hundred, which is fine with me.”This match may not present the chance for that, but it may provide several for Elgar to rectify his catching off Keshav Maharaj. Twice Elgar put Mushfiqur Rahim down, both were simple chances off the outside edge and though it did not cost South Africa much in this match – Maharaj had Mushfiqur caught at short leg for 44 – it is part of a larger issue. Elgar put down similar chances on South Africa’s tour of England in the winter, also off Maharaj, which has led to questions over whether he is the best person to field at slip to the spinner.Elgar on the Markram run-out

There was another disappointment for Elgar and it came on day one. Elgar he was on 99 and Aiden Markram, his new opening partner who was on 97 on debut, tried to sneak through the single that would take Elgar to a century but was sent back and did not make his ground. Markram was dismissed and Elgar wants to set the record straight.
“I was bitterly disappointed in the way things ended. I would have loved to have seen Aiden get his first Test hundred in his first innings,” Elgar said. “It would have been brilliant with the way things started for us as opening partners. I think I was more disappointed than he was.”
“He was just doing something that a batting partner does when he is trying to get you over the line. Maybe if I got 200, I would have said to him that was for you, but I know that’s not going to change anything. It’s sad and makes yourself scratch your head and wonder why you play the game. The sun actually came up this morning, irrespective of all the abuse I got on Twitter. I was very frustrated and still am – speaking about it really makes angry. I’d like to put it to bed.”

Usually South Africa only insert one slip fielder when Maharaj is bowling and until quite recently that was Hashim Amla but “he doesn’t want to stand there anymore”, according to Elgar. So they’ve had to find someone else. Elgar is part of the cordon to the quicks and because Faf du Plessis, the regular second slip, wants to captain from the outfield when Maharaj is operating, Elgar is the natural choice. He expects he will make some mistakes but accepts that his recent performances have been below-par. “Blunders are going to happen. It doesn’t make you a crap cricketer or a rubbish fielder,” Elgar said. “But I know I’ve set myself standards and it’s not good enough.”On the second afternoon of this match, Elgar explained the drops as a result of an inconsistent pitch where it was hard to judge where to stand at slip. “Originally we thought because the wicket is quite slow, I have to come closer,” he said. “It’s almost like the ball is increasing in pace off the wicket when the spinner is bowling and then off the seamer it’s coming quite slowly. I’m pretty sure it has to do with the way Kesh bowls because he does put a lot of spin on the ball and the ball does sometimes generate pace off the wicket. I was standing too close. The second one, there was discussion between me and Quinny [de Kock] and we thought we maybe I should go closer. But the ball seems to generate pace off the wicket. It’s not every ball, it’s inconsistent. That’s something we need to negate tomorrow.”More so because the surface is offering very little and Bangladesh have already proven fairly stubborn; Elgar expects wicket-taking opportunities to be few. “It’s going to be hard work. The Bangladeshis aren’t a pushover team anymore, their cricketers are highly skilled now. They made scoring quite tough at times and now they are making taking wickets quite tough. There is not a lot of assistance, so, as a bowling unit, we will have to be on it and the first hour could be big for us. If we can squeeze them then I’d like to think we have enough in the tank to roll them early tomorrow and potentially have another crack with the bat.”Maharaj will be key to South Africa’s hopes. “Tomorrow is going to be a big one for him,” Elgar said. “The wicket offers him [something for] what he does and he spins the ball. The odd one will turn and the odd will skid like we saw with the bat-pad catch – very much like the subcontinent style.”Hearing the conditions described as subcontinental will come as a surprise to those who associate South Africans surfaces with pace and bounce, none more so than Bangladesh. Both Sabbir Rahman and Taskin Ahmed admitted to expecting more grass but that was not the only thing that caught Bangladesh unawares. Du Plessis’ tea-time declaration with South Africa four short of 500 and plenty of the time in the game did too.At first it was thought to be a strategic move by du Plessis: Tamim Iqbal had been off the field for quite a while before the interval and so would not be able to open, and because du Plessis had done that before in Adelaide against Australia. But Elgar denied that: “I know he went off when I was still batting but I don’t think we thought about him being off the field. The plan from lunch onwards was to declare at tea, we were going to try and take the game on a bit.”Instead its more about how much time South Africa will need and if it turns out they don’t have enough, Elgar will likely see the whole event as an anti-climax even though he has become Test cricket’s leading run-scorer this year in the process. “That does not mean anything to me,” he said. “My ultimate goal is to score runs for the Proteas. The accolades that come with it are totally external to why I play the game. If I am scoring runs, the team will be in a good position. I play the game to score runs for the badge and the team. My personal pride I put it aside, and focus on what our Test side needs. We’ve had a few rough tours as a batting unit. It was up to me and some senior guys to take the batting unit by the throat and get it over the line.”

Maiden first-class ton in a Test, a century in a single session, and other statistical highlights from Hardik Pandya’s 96-ball 108 on the second day in Pallekele

Bharath Seervi13-Aug-20175 – Hardik Pandya became the fifth India player to score his maiden first-class century in a Test. Pandya went past his previous best of 90. Vijay Manjrekar, Kapil Dev, Ajay Ratra and Harbhajan Singh are the others to have done so.107- Runs scored by Pandya in the first session of the second day. He became the first India player to score over 100 runs before lunch on any day of a Test. The session, however, was extended by 30 minutes as India were nine down.26 – Runs scored by Pandya, with the help of two fours and three sixes, in one over off Malinda Pushpakumara – the most by an India player in an over in Tests. Only three batsmen have scored more: Brian Lara (28), George Bailey (28) and Shahid Afridi (27).3 – Number of India players to hit three or more sixes off consecutive balls in Tests. Kapil Dev hit four of them off Eddie Hemmings at Lord’s in 1990, and MS Dhoni struck three in a row off Dave Mohammed in Antigua in 2006. Afridi and AB de Villiers are the only other players to have hit four sixes in a row in Tests.ESPNcricinfo Ltd86 – Balls taken by Pandya to complete his century, the second-fastest by an India player in an away Test. The record for the fastest belongs to Virender Sehwag, who ran up a 78-ball century in Gros Islet in 2006. Pandya reached his fifty off 61 balls and then needed only 25 balls to reach the century. His second fifty included six sixes.7 – Sixes hit by Pandya, the joint second-highest for an India batsman in a Test innings. He fell one short of equalling Navjot Sidhu’s record that also came against Sri Lanka, in Lucknow in 1993-94. Sehwag and Harbhajan have also hit seven sixes in an innings.1- Number of quicker Test centuries in Sri Lanka than Pandya’s 86-ball effort. Mahela Jayawardene brought up an 81-ball ton against Bangladesh at the SSC in Colombo in 2000-01. Wasim Akram also scored 100 off 86 balls, in Galle in 2000.145.65 – Pandya’s strike-rate against spinners, whom he took for 67 off 46 balls. Against the fast bowlers, he scored only 41 off 50 at a strike-rate of 82. Six of his seven sixes came against the spinners. Pandya scored the maximum against Pushpakumara: 37 off 16, at a strike-rate of 231.25, with three sixes and three fours.2008 – The last time India had two 50-plus partnerships for the last three wickets (eighth to tenth), which came against Australia at the Adelaide Oval. In this match, Pandya shared 62 runs for the eighth wicket with Kuldeep Yadav and another 66 for the last wicket with Umesh Yadav.37.4 – Number of overs in which Sri Lanka were bundled out in their first innings – their third-shortest first innings at home. They were all out for 28.2 overs against Pakistan in Kandy in 1994 and in 34.2 overs against Australia in Pallekele last year. Except the partnership of 63 runs for the fifth wicket between Niroshan Dickwella and Dinesh Chandimal, none of the other pairs could add even 20 runs.366.67 – Average first-innings lead gained by India in this series. They led by 309 runs in the first Test, 439 in the second and 352 runs in this match.

As Steven Smith and Mitchell Marsh marched on the thought dawned that, while England require 16 more wickets to win this match, you wonder if they’ll take 16 more in the series

George Dobell in Perth16-Dec-20173:14

Vaughan: No swing, no seam, no spin, no express pace

And people wonder why they drink.It must have been days like this that persuaded Douglas Jardine to adopt the Bodyline approach. Days like this when the seeming inevitability of Don Bradman’s vast scores persuaded Jardine to try something different. Days like this that persuaded Joseph Conrad to write and Edvard Munch to paint.Unfortunately for Joe Root, he has no Harold Larwood or Bill Voce to enforce the tactics employed by Jardine. He has no spinner like Hedley Verity, either. And while it may be stretching a point to compare Steven Smith to Don Bradman, the basic principle is the same: Australia have developed a batsman who, in these conditions at least, renders their bowlers impotent. Really, for much of this series, it’s been like trying to kill an elephant with insults.We can pick fault with some of England’s tactics – the use of one slip at the start of the day, the lack of short balls, the one maiden in the first session – but it’s doubtful any of that would have made a difference. It is increasingly hard to avoid the conclusion that Australia are simply better than England. And in Smith, in particular, they have a player for which England have no answer. He’s just too good for them. They have been outplayed.The most depressing aspect of the day from an England perspective was the apparent inevitability of proceedings. The tactics that have at least slowed Smith on previous grounds could never work on this pitch and with this outfield. Instead it seemed England’s only hope was that, one day, Smith would grow old and retire.In such circumstances, any criticism of the England attack should be measured. There was no lack of effort from any of them. Craig Overton deserves a special ‘mention in dispatches’ for playing on despite a cracked rib but really, nobody can ask more for them than their best, and they gave that. And, as James Anderson and Stuart Broad got through 57 overs between them without taking a wicket – a record for them – the thought dawned that, while England require 16 more wickets to win this match, you wonder if they’ll take 16 more in the series. Really, Burke and Wills had a better trip through Australia than England’s bowlers. They just haven’t been good enough.Overloaded overseas

Overs bowled by England in eight most recent overseas Tests
162 – Rajkot
129.4- Vizag
138.2 – Mohali
182.3 -Mumbai
190.4 – Chennai
130.3 – Brisbane
148 – Adelaide
152* – Perth
Average of 155 overs before Perth.

Those bowlers might well be forgiven for looking at their batsmen, however, and asking: ‘You only managed 400? On THIS?’ England’s total of 403 looked about 403 too few by lunch on day three and, bearing in mind they reached 368 for 4 on day two, they should feel they let a chance slip.England’s issue – one of England’s issues – is that they have a glut of fast-medium seam and swing bowlers in a land where pace rules. Like being violinists in a war zone, they found their subtle skills irrelevant at a time when henchmen were required. Anderson is an artist but, if you want to knock down a wall, a violin isn’t much use. Sometimes you need a hammer.There are few simple answers for England. There are no fit fast bowlers lurking in the shadows of county cricket who would have made a difference here. Yes, the likes of Olly Stone, George Garton and Jamie Overton are promising. But two of them are still recovering from injury and Garton is still at the stage of his career where he may slip a beamer in between the yorkers. While Mark Wood and Liam Plunkett are more viable options, it might be remembered that Wood underwhelmed with his pace in two Tests against South Africa while Plunkett featured in just two Championship games for Yorkshire in 2017 and is not considered fit enough for a Test by the England management.If England really want to avoid days like these – and days like these are happening rather too often at present (even before this, they had bowled an average of 155 overs in the first innings of their most recent seven overseas Tests – see table) to be dismissed as an aberration – they have to look at the underlying reasons. They have to reflect on the marginalisation of the County championship campaign which has diminished the need to produce fast bowlers and spinners (why bother with such skills, if 70mph medium-pacers can hit the seam and bowl unplayable deliveries?), they have to look at the lack of technical coaching throughout the English game and look at why Bluffborough, for all the millions invested in it, produces nothing but jobs for former players.Really, if all the money pumped into Bluffborough had instead been spent on donkey sanctuaries in Suffolk, English cricket would be no worse off. And donkeys in Suffolk could wear tiaras and Gucci saddles.But you know this already. And the ECB know this already. But their priority – not entirely unreasonably – is T20 cricket which they see as the vehicle for growth in the game. While they insist that a mid-season window is an essential part of that agenda, while they prefer coaches who won’t rock the boat to those that could engender change, any success abroad is going to be rare.Amid such barren displays, it might be unfair to highlight the performance of one bowler. And it is true, Broad bowled no worse than anyone else and there are no obvious replacements that are better than him. As ever, really, he ran in hard, he put the ball in good areas and he demanded respect. It’s a long, long time since he bowled poorly in a Test.But we have to set the bar a little higher than that. And all the evidence suggests Broad’s ability to shape games would appear to be diminishing. His last five-wicket haul came in Johannesburg in January 2016 and his last four-wicket haul in November 2016. In 2017, his bowling average in Test cricket is 38.28 and his best bowling figures are 3 for 34. That is not a small sample size.There are some caveats. Broad has suffered more than most through dropped catches – 11 went down off him during the two Test series in the English summer of 2017 – but, bowling on the same surfaces with the same new ball, Anderson has taken his Test wickets in 2017 at a cost of 17.63.There’s been an element of denial about some of Broad’s comments in recent times. When he now says he was never really one for swinging the ball, he swung it enough when taking 8 for 15 against this side in 2015. And when he says he was never one for generating outright pace, he looked pretty sharp when he took 6 for 50 against them in Durham in 2013. The truth is, he has lost just a bit of pace and just a bit of his ability to move the ball away from the right-hander. As a consequence, he isn’t the bowler he once was.He’s no scapegoat for this performance, though. For it wasn’t the English team that was thrashed around the WACA, it was the English system.

ESPNcricinfo looks at the biggest talking points as India gear up to host a historic Test match with one eye on England

Shashank Kishore in Bengaluru11-Jun-2018As India prepare for the one-off Test against Afghanistan, their first long-form assignment since the tour of South Africa in January, they have a number of questions to ponder over. With Virat Kohli unavailable, there is a middle-order spot up for grabs, Wriddhiman Saha’s injury opens the wicketkeeping doors for Dinesh Karthik after eight years, and the resting of Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar could mean a return for Umesh Yadav. ESPNcricinfo examines a number of talking points in the build-up to the Bengaluru Test starting June 14:The opening riddleFor long, M Vijay has been the first-choice Test opener, with Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul playing musical chairs. During India’s last Test assignment in South Africa, Rahul managed all of 30 runs in four innings, after replacing Dhawan following the loss in the first Test in Cape Town. But he has enjoyed a phenomenal white-ball season since. He was third on the IPL run-getters’ list with 659 runs in 14 innings for Kings XI Punjab. Even if Tests are a completely different format, it could still be hard to leave him out on current form.The first day of India’s training at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium gave little away, with all three openers spending considerable time at the nets. They were also among the first to have extended sessions with batting coach Sanjay Bangar.In the recent past, the selection headache over the three openers has often been resolved by one of them being injured or unavailable for other reasons. Now, with all three fit and available, what does the team management do? If Rahul is a shoo-in, it could mean leaving out one of Dhawan or Vijay.Vijay’s lack of match time and the Kohli puzzleVijay has had little match time since the Tests in South Africa ended in January. He featured in just one IPL game for Chennai Super Kings. If he starts, he will be heading into the Test on the back of just training sessions. But he’s been the first-choice opener, capable of gutsing it out against the new ball, grinding the bowlers down and occupying the crease: characteristics India will need in England.Even though the team for that series hasn’t been announced yet, chief selector MSK Prasad has already said Vijay will prepare for the Tests by playing for India A, a clear sign that he’s still the frontrunner. Where does this leave Dhawan, who has played enough competitive cricket in the lead-up to the Test? Will India play both?If they do, the other option, possibly the most likely one too, would be to slot Rahul in at No. 4, in place of Kohli, given Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane are certainties at Nos. 3 and 5. This could then mean his Karnataka team-mate and comeback man Karun Nair, preferred over Rohit Sharma, may have to bide his time before a Test comeback 17 months after he converted his maiden Test ton into a match-winning triple century.The surfaceThe previous Test in Bengaluru was played on a dry turner that produced a series-levelling thriller for India, after Australia had bundled them out in three days in Pune. Spin accounted for 27 of the 40 wickets. Nathan Lyon picked up an eight-for, while R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja finished with six-fors in the first and second innings respectively. However, that Test was played at the onset of the summer, towards the end of the 2016-17 season.Bengaluru has witnessed intermittent rain for the past fortnight, the sunshine not as strong as elsewhere in the country, which means the surface has not really had the chance to bake. This has hampered pitch preparation to an extent. Three days from the Test, there was a green tinge on it, even if the extent of greenness on match day is unlikely to be anywhere near what they could encounter a month from now in England. While this isn’t to suggest a green-top will be prepared, it may not be a bad option on two counts:One: it will not only give India’s batsmen a challenge in preparing for five Tests in England, while also setting of Test cricket’s latest entrants the difficult task of adapting quickly having played and trained on spin-friendly surfaces in Dehradun until a week ago, against Bangladesh.Two: this could offset Afghanistan’s spin threat, given they have four frontline spinners in their squad. This includes two wristspinners in Rashid Khan and Zahir Khan and the mystery element of Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who is fast gaining a reputation for his ability to accurately deliver sliders and carom balls with the new ball.The fast-bowlers debateUmesh kept breathing fire on the Chinnaswamy deck at the IPL. His pace, consistency and rhythm for Royal Challengers Bangalore may have helped his chances of returning to the Test XI after he spent the entire tour of South Africa on the bench. Ishant Sharma has just returned from a rigorous county stint in England, where he was devastating in seaming conditions against Warwickshire. There’s Shardul Thakur, who has been on the fringes of the Test team for a while, and Navdeep Saini, replacing the unfit Mohammed Shami.Now, if the team management plays Hardik Pandya as the allrounder, and prefers Ashwin and Jadeja to bowl in tandem, it could mean four fast bowlers fighting for two slots. Do they go in with Umesh based on his IPL show and someone who has toiled hard overseas to build himself into rhythm and gain match-time after being unsold at the IPL auction? Or do they pick one of the two rookies?What of Kuldeep Yadav?The flavour on the opening day of India’s training session was wristspin. Kuldeep Yadav aside, two other wristspinners, Yuzvendra Chahal and Shivil Kaushik, were called up to bowl for the three-hour session and they kept going non-stop. Incidentally, Kuldeep debuted in March 2017 under Ajinkya Rahane’s captaincy. On the eve of that game, the team management had contemplated playing four bowlers and replacing the injured Kohli with a sixth batsman, only for Rahane and the then head coach Anil Kumble to insist on a fifth bowler. India have reaped the benefits of operating with wristspinners in limited-overs cricket. Will they be tempted to play Kuldeep and test the depth of their spin resources before heading to England? The next two days could provide answers.

Australia have lost four of their last five Test series in Asia. Will Lyon’s improved subcontinent record boost them this time around?

Bharath Seervi04-Oct-2018Australia’s subcontinent woes
Australia’s performances in Asia in the recent past have been woeful. Now, in the absence of Steven Smith and David Warner, they are set to begin a two-match Test series against Pakistan in the UAE. In their last five tours to the subcontinent, Australia have lost 12 matches and have managed to win only two Tests out of 15. They have lost four of those series losses and have drawn one. The main reason behind this has been their batsmen’s inability to tackle spin in the subcontinent conditions.ESPNcricinfo LtdAustralia batsmen have lost 81.07% of their wickets to spinners in the last five tours to Asia since 2013. Among all the non-Asian teams in this period, only South Africa batsmen have lost more wickets to the spinners of subcontinent teams – 82.87%.Overall, subcontinent spinners have averaged 22.71 against Australia in Asia since 2013, the second-best against all non-Asian teams after South Africa. In 15 Tests in the subcontinent since 2013, Australia have lost 227 wickets to spinners, with a wicket falling every 52 deliveries.

Percentage of wickets lost to spin by non-Asian teams in Asia since 2013

Team Wkts to bowlers Pace Spin % wkts to spinSouth Africa 181 31 150 82.87Australia 280 53 227 81.07Zimbabwe 80 16 64 80.00England 182 41 141 77.47New Zealand 131 33 98 74.80West Indies 128 48 80 62.50Among the batsmen in the Australia squad, Shaun Marsh has been the most comfortable against spinners in the subcontinent. Against spin, he has averaged 45.12 in 13 innings and has been dismissed eight times. Their captain Tim Paine has an average of 51 against spin in four innings but these numbers are from Australia’s tour of India in 2010.Usman Khawaja has been the most vulnerable against spin in Asia, with an average of just 13.16 in nine innings. In his last two subcontinent tours – in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh – he lost his wicket to spin five times in six innings.Australia will miss Smith the most on this tour. He had scored 1200 runs in 13 Tests in Asia at an average of 48. In four of the last five tours to the subcontinent, he has averaged over 40. In the last tour to UAE, he scored 174 runs in four innings with two fifties. He also averages more than 40 against spinners in subcontinent conditions.

Australia batsmen against spin in Asia

Batsman Inns Runs Balls Dis AveTD Paine 4 102 262 2 51.00SE Marsh 13 361 978 8 45.12MT Renshaw 10 213 504 6 35.50MR Marsh 14 277 569 12 23.08UT Khawaja 9 79 204 5 13.16A lack of experience
The total experience of Australia’s current squad in Asia is just 63 Tests. Among the 15 players, five are yet to make their Test debut here and, apart from Nathan Lyon, none of them have played more than 10 Test matches. Captain Paine last played in Asia in 2010.Australia selectors have largely picked the squad looking at the performance of the players in the A team’s tour to India last month. Nine of the 15 players in their squad to the UAE were part of that Mitchell Marsh-led Australia A side for the four-day games.While the current Australian squad is short of Test-match experience in Asia, they would be encouraged by the performances of their players on that A tour to India: Khawaja, Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head averaged more than 50, while Jon Holland took nine wickets at an average of 18.88.ESPNcricinfo LtdSpin wars in the UAE
In 13 Tests played between Pakistan and non-Asian teams since 2013, the Pakistan spinners have picked 145 wickets at an average of 30.14 with six five-wicket hauls, while the spinners of the non-Asian teams have managed 89 wickets in those games at an average of 51.12 with four five-wicket hauls.ESPNcricinfo LtdYasir Shah has been Pakistan’s standout bowler in the UAE. He has picked up 63 wickets in 10 matches against the touring non-Asian teams at an average of 25.34. The other spinner in the Pakistan squad, Shadab Khan, is yet to bowl in Tests in the UAE. Australia spinners averaged 88.80 in their previous two-match series here in 2013-14. They picked 10 wickets in the two Tests.Lyon’s improved record in Asia
Offspinner Nathan Lyon is the most experienced player in the current Australian squad. His recent numbers show an improved record compared to his overall performance in subcontinent conditions. In the last tours to India and Bangladesh, Lyon picked 41 wickets in six matches at an average of 19.39 with five five-wicket hauls. In the four tours prior to that, he had managed just 42 wickets in 11 Tests at an average of 42.57 with two five-fors.

Nathan Lyon in Tests in Asia

Period Mats Wkts Ave 5WI2011-2016 11 42 42.57 22017 onwards 6 41 19.39 5In two Tests in the UAE in 2014-15, Lyon picked up just three wickets at an average of 140.66. However, in the warm-up game against Pakistan A, he picked up eight wickets in the first innings. It will be interesting to see how an improved Lyon performs in the UAE this time around.

Talking points from the first week of the tournament, including a mystery spinner from Tamil Nadu

Saurabh Somani25-Sep-2018The Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018-19 has completed a whirlwind first week, with four groups in four separate locations throwing up plenty of action. Here is a snapshot of how the tournament has gone so far:Best batsmenPrithvi Shaw didn’t get a chance to make his Test debut in England, and he has returned as if out to prove the point that he cannot be ignored for too long. In three innings so far, he has made 98 off 66, 60 off 53 and 129 off 81. The last came against Railways in a match Mumbai plundered 400 for 5.Shreyas Iyer has 310 runs to Shaw’s 287, but his strike-rate of 116.10 – normally outstanding in 50-overs cricket – looks positively pedestrian against Shaw’s 143.50. Together, the two have driven Mumbai to the top of the Group A table, and well above teams in Group B too (which is important for knockout qualification).Among the other worthy performers are Ankit Bawne, who hit back-to-back, match-winning, unbeaten centuries for Maharashtra and Ishan Kishan, who smashed a whirlwind 139 for Jharkhand against Assam and followed it with 85 against Tamil Nadu. Himachal Pradesh’s Prashant Chopra has been quietly effective as well, hitting more than fifty in each of the three times he has batted.Best bowlersIt’s hard to look beyond a bowler who sets a List A world record, and Shahbaz Nadeem’s incredible 8 for 10 for Jharkhand has him at the top of the bowling charts, along with Tamil Nadu’s Varun Chakravathi. The Group C matches have been played on bowler-friendly pitches, but even then, Nadeem has been exceptional. His economy rate is only 3.83 despite bowling 30 overs.The best figures in List-A bowling•ESPNcricinfo LtdThe Saxena brothers – Jatin and Jalaj – have been impressive too. Chhattisgarh’s Jatin has taken wickets at opportune moments, while Kerala’s Jalaj has the best economy rate – 2.83 – among the Elite Groups for those who have bowled at least 25 overs. He reserved his best performance against his brother’s side, taking 4 for 31 and scoring 58 not out while opening the innings. However, for dinner table conversations, neither brother got the other out.Best matchThe game after they were undone by Nadeem, Rajasthan faced Tamil Nadu at the same ground. It seemed like they wouldn’t fare much better, being bowled out for 133. And they reached that many because Tajinder Singh made 55 from No.7. Tajinder, who hadn’t opened his account when the score was 52 for 6, doubled the score from 66 for 7. It turned out to be almost enough, as Tamil Nadu couldn’t string partnerships together. B Anirudh was the top-scorer with 40, but when he was dismissed, Tamil Nadu were 113 for 9. But M Mohammed made an unbeaten 22 from No.10, to sneak his side home by one wicket.Stats as on September 25:

Highest run-getter: Shreyas Iyer (310 runs)

Highest wicket-taker: Shahbaz Nadeem and Varun Chakravarthi (12 each)

Highest team total: Mumbai 400 for 5 against Railways

Lowest team total: Arunachal Pradesh 61 all out against Meghalaya

Biggest victory margin (runs): Meghalaya beat Arunachal Pradesh by 256 runs

Biggest victory margin (wickets): Manipur beat Sikkim by 10 wickets

Points to noteEleven games have been abandoned across groups – three in Group A, three in Group B, two in Group C and two in Plate. Several others have been affected by rain and decided by the VJD method.The pitches in Chennai, where Group C games are taking place, have been a topic of discussion. They have aided spin heavily and resulted in low-scoring matches. Some venues like Bangalore for Group A, Delhi for Group B, Chennai for Group C, and Vadodara, Nadiad and Anand for Group D were chosen keeping in mind the facility to host multiple matches at once, but the rains haven’t helped.Players to watchTamil Nadu’s Varun Chakravathi has emerged from the TNPL, and been the joint-highest wicket-taker so far. A mystery spinner who can bowl legbreaks, googlies, offbreaks and carrom balls, Varun has bowled to Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders in the nets. Michael Hussey, who was at the TNPL as a commentator, picked him out as one of the most exciting talents this season.Akshay Chandran, Kerala’s left-arm spinner, made his List A debut in this tournament. He’s already taken nine wickets in three matches, and kept his economy rate to 2.91. The 24-year-old has a first-class century too, against Services in Ranji Trophy 2016-17. His batting average in ten first-class games so far is 33.55, and the bowling average is 18.45.How the newbies have doneThe Plate Group made headlines with Puducherry being forced to rejig their team due to objections from the other teams in the group. Their cricket association had been granted special permission by the BCCI to acquire players till late because of factors beyond their control. But the other associations objected, holding that the spirit of the leeway given had been abused. Media reports suggested there was a match in which Puducherry fielded an XI that contained no local players.Elsewhere, Meghalaya annihilated Arunachal Pradesh by 256 runs, first putting up 317 for 4 and then bowling the opposition out for 61. It was an unhappy crash-landing for Arunachal, who just days earlier had revelled in Samarth Seth becoming the first player from the new sides – who had not played in another state – to score a century, when he hit 107 in a four-wicket win against Mizoram.

The perennial underperformers must find a way to transfer on-paper potential to on-field performances

Sruthi Ravindranath20-Mar-20198:40

Will Delhi’s young India players lead them to the IPL playoffs?

Where they finished in 2018
With just five wins in 14 games, the Delhi boys – Daredevils then, Capitals now – finished bottom of the points table. They, however, ended their otherwise dismal campaign on a high by beating eventual champions Chennai Super Kings and knocking the then defending champions Mumbai Indians out in their last two group-stage games.Strengths
The rebranded Delhi Capitals made a number of gains at the auction this year. Apart from investing in India’s domestic talent by roping in the likes of Ankush Bains and Jalaj Saxena, they made the big move during the trade window by snapping up Shikhar Dhawan from Sunrisers Hyderabad in exchange for three players. With Dhawan’s inclusion, the top order, which also includes Prithvi Shaw and Colin Munro, looks solid.ESPNcricinfo LtdBeing among the top run-scorers of the tournament, Dhawan, who is back in the side after 11 years, brings in the experience, which they lacked last year after Gautam Gambhir stepped down. Along with Rishabh Pant, their highest run-scorer last year, they have another reliable player in Shreyas Iyer, who had taken over the captaincy from Gambhir and had impressed with 411 runs in 14 games. The onus will be on them to bring the batting unit together.They are spoilt for choices with their bowling as well, with Kagiso Rabada, Trent Boult, Sandeep Lamichhane, Keemo Paul and Sherfane Rutherford rounding off the international names. Although he had to wait for his chance last season, young Nepal legspinner Lamichhane made an instant impression on his debut and went on to pick five wickets in three games.Delhi Capitals schedule•ESPNcricinfo LtdAdding to the strong back-room presence of Ricky Ponting and Mohammad Kaif is Sourav Ganguly, who has taken up the role of an advisor.Weaknesses
Their middle order looks a bit thin. Barring Colin Ingram and Pant, they don’t have any big names who can be trusted to perform a rescue – or a finishing – act. They might regret letting go of Vijay Shankar – one of the three players traded for Dhawan – who has, in his brief stint with India in the last couple of months, proven to be a force to be reckoned with. They do have Axar Patel – their costliest Indian buy this season – but he is yet to establish himself as a dependable finisher. Although Ingram can be unstoppable on his day, he comes into the tournament on the back of middling performances in the BBL and PSL.2:26

This is the season – Ponting and Ganguly on Delhi’s chances

The overseas question
Munro must slot in right at top of the order, while Ingram might be the man to provide the middle-order solidity. Having impressed with a number of match-winning spells in the BBL, PSL and BPL, Lamichhane is primed to be one of the Capitals’ main bowlers this year. Rabada or Boult will handle the new-ball responsibilities.Availability
Their fast bowling is likely to take a hit when Rabada or Boult head to their respective World Cup preparatory camps during the latter part of the tournament. In that case, they are left with an overseas option in Keemo Paul – who is under an injury cloud after sustaining a quadriceps tear during the third Test against England last month.Sandeep Lamichhane exults after picking up a wicket•BCCIThe best XI1 Colin Munro, 2 Prithvi Shaw 3 Shikhar Dhawan, 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 Colin Ingram, 6 Rishabh Pant (wk), 7 Axar Patel, 8 Sandeep Lamichhane, 9 Kagiso Rabada/ Trent Boult, 10 Avesh Khan, 11 Ishant Sharma Will they make the playoffs?
The perennial underperformers definitely have a chance this time around if they are able to translate their on-paper potential to on-field performances.Poll