All posts by n8rngtd.top

“That is why I had tears in my eyes; without my father, I would be nothing. He has never left my side”

Shashank Kishore and Afzal Jiwani23-Jun-2022Behind the warm smile, the runs and the , there is a deeply emotional side to Sarfaraz Khan. It comes up almost always when he talks about his cricket. No conversation ever passes without the mention of his . On Thursday, after scoring his fourth hundred of the season, and eighth overall in first-class cricket, Sarfaraz was a man in demand.Sunil Joshi, the national selector, caught up and had a lengthy conversation with the Mumbai batter. Then, it was Harvinder Singh’s turn. A few minutes later, as he jogged up the stairs towards the dressing room for a team meeting, he promised to return shortly to chat with journalists waiting besides the boundary.Related

• Sarfaraz Khan only behind Don Bradman in highest first-class average

• Dubey and Shubham give MP solid start after Sarfaraz racks up another ton

• Run-hungry Sarfaraz continues to hammer down selection door

Sarfaraz was chirpy, candid, and spontaneous, just like his batting. Over the past three weeks, no two interactions with him have felt alike. It can with so many cricketers of the current generation, because they’re always focused on the ‘process’ and not the ‘results.’ Sarfaraz is driven by results. Driven by the desire to score big runs, every time he goes out to bat. This perhaps explains why six of his eight hundreds are all 150-plus scores.One moment, Sarfaraz had everyone in splits with his jokes and how a “yes, I’ll hang in, you bat your way” from Tushar Deshpande can only mean a wild slog off the next ball. Next, he was teary eyed and ever-so-grateful to his , for his sacrifices in making Sarfaraz and Musheer Khan, his younger brother who is also part of the Mumbai squad, cricketers of some standing.Musheer, incidentally, is yet to make his first-class debut, but recently led Mumbai to the final of the Under-19 Cooch Behar Trophy, a tournament where he made 670 runs and took 32 wickets to be named Player of the Tournament.Sarfaraz’s tears stemmed from a sense of gratitude and respect towards his .”You all know the roller-coaster ride I’ve had, if not for my father, I wouldn’t have been here,” he said, wiping tears off his face. “When we had nothing, I used to travel with my father in trains. When I started playing cricket, I dreamt of scoring a century for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy. That was fulfilled.”Then I had another dream of scoring a hundred in a Ranji final when my team needed it the most. That is why I got emotional after my century and had tears in my eyes, because my father has worked very hard. All the credit for my success goes to him. Without him, I would be nothing. He has never left my side.”Many times, I feel bad thinking about him, because he has always stood by me. He is very happy. In life, some dreams get fulfilled even if it takes time, but I’m happy I have my dad who has bailed me out of tough situations.”The century, Sarfaraz said, was dedicated to late Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala. As he got to the landmark, Sarfaraz slapped his thigh, pointed his index right finger to the sky – Moosewala’s signature move – and then belted out a roar towards his applauding teammates.”I have a mindset that to score a century, I need to play at least 200 balls. I can’t have that mindset that this can be achieved hitting consecutive sixes. I can score big only after playing many balls. I tried to play three-four overs from each bowler. Once I start getting used to the pitch and know their plans, I know the runs will flow because I have all the shots.”Sarfaraz hoped Mumbai would display “tremendous discipline” on Friday, the third day of the final, if they are to restrict Madhya Pradesh, who went to stumps comfortably placed at 123 for 1 in response to Mumbai’s 374.”This match is not over yet, there’s a long way to go,” he said. “I’ll be jumping the gun if I say anything right now. I’m confident we can take the lead, but even if we don’t, MP will be batting last in the fourth innings, and it won’t be easy for them.”After two successive seasons of 900-plus runs, Sarfaraz is now firmly on the radar of the national selectors. However, he is focused firmly on the present. “As far as Team India’s selection is concerned, I’m working hard. My focus is to only score runs. Every person has dreams. It will happen if it is written in my destiny.”

Thinks his side’s semi-final finish at the Women’s Asia Cup will help grow the game back home; happy with the spirit shown after early defeats

Mohammad Isam13-Oct-2022You couldn’t fault the Thailand contingent for being excited despite their 74-run loss in the Asia Cup semi-final against India. There was hardly any buzz in the atmosphere at the Sylhet International Stadium, but Thailand’s excitement was infectious. After the match, the two teams posed for a group photo, while some of Thailand’s players sought out their Indian counterparts for selfies.There were many reasons to be happy. Thailand didn’t really make a fist of things on their big day, but restricting India to 148 for 6, and then batting out the 20 overs was a big step for them. For the 12th ranked T20I team in the world, the performance, according to coach Harshal Pathak, was a big deal.Related

• Harmanpreet: 'Happy that we are getting new match-winners in every game'

• Deepti, Shafali play starring roles as India storm into Asia Cup final

• Thailand reap rewards for investment in local talent

• 'We played cricket with happiness' – Chaiwai after defeating Pakistan

He said the team’s effort will have a dual effect on the game back home. The team won’t be given a parade, but there will be a lot of appreciation among the few who follow the game. The bigger influence, though, will be on those who dream of playing for Thailand in the future.”There will be more awareness among the public after the team does well. If you think about the focus group of new cricketers, obviously they will be inspired,” Pathak said. “They are looking up to someone like [Naruemol] Chaiwai, Natthakan [Chantham] and Chanida [Sutthiruang].”Pathak said that after a short break, he will speak to the team about this Asia Cup experience, and how they can grow from it. “We will really evaluate what we have done well, what we want to achieve and how we are going to go about it. We have faced a lot of high-quality bowlers in different situations. We have to understand how we can play dominating cricket.”After crushing defeats at the hands of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, Thailand shot back with a four-wicket win over Pakistan. This was followed by wins over UAE and Malaysia, putting them above Bangladesh on the points table. After Bangladesh, the defending champions,lost to Sri Lanka and had their last game rained out against UAE, despite being routed by India to end their round-robin stage Thailand could celebrate at their team hotel in Sylhet with a semi-final spot in the bag.”I expected a little more at the start of the tournament. I was targeting going to the final. But I am very happy with the way the team bounced back after the two [early] losses,” Pathak said. “They have shown character. Adjusted and adapted well.”We had better intent today compared to the first game against India. We got back into the game in the last ten overs with the ball. We took control after they got off to a good start. The bowlers did well, and [the captain] put some really good field settings. We had very good plans today.”He said that his coaching method is also evolving according to the needs of the team. When he joined four years ago, Pathak had said he had to get into a lot of details when explaining things to the players. But now things are different.”Cricket is not the main game in Thailand. In India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, cricket is a religion. You pick up the game by watching around you, and the knowledge base keeps growing as you go through the system. Coaches need to tell the players about plans or fine-tune the mindset.”For a developing [cricket] country like Thailand, a coach has to go quite deep to explain things. At the start of my stint with Thailand, I used to go into a lot of details. Now I have confidence that they can do a lot of things on their own. Now we have to take it to the next level.”

Sydney Sixers will be favourites in Saturday’s final after a huge bounce-back season

AAP23-Nov-2022Despite a career spanning three decades, Alyssa Healy still struggles with handling defeat.”I can confirm I don’t like losing,” she said. “I’m a bit of a sore loser.”Fresh off her announcement as Australia’s T20 captain to tour India in December, Healy said Sydney Sixers are refreshed and ready for a return to WBBL glory after last season’s bottom-of-the-table finish.”After a disappointing couple of years, we’re back where we feel like we should be and playing some really good cricket,” she said.Sixers will enter this week’s finals as firm favourites to win their third crown, earning hosting rights to Saturday’s decider after topping the table.”Sunday was amazing to see all the people on the hill [at North Sydney Oval],” Healy said. “So that’s really buoyed us and the fact that we can play at home I think is a huge advantage as well.”Long-regarded as the competition’s marquee club, Sixers missed the past three finals series and struggled under last season’s Covid-19 restrictions.”It was challenging at times,” Healy reflected. “Especially when players were struggling off the field as well. Covid probably took its toll and being away in hubs and bubbles and not being able to come home was definitely a big factor.”But their bounce back under new coach and England superstar Charlotte Edwards has been immense.Their 11 wins this summer is the most of any club in a home-and-away season and they were barely challenged outside of a last-ball loss to Adelaide and a Beth Mooney masterclass in Perth.”You look at things from last year and I don’t think anyone would have disputed that we would potentially be in contention for finals,” allrounder Erin Burns said.  “But things didn’t click. I don’t think there is any one thing you can put it down to.”Burns feels the big point of difference has been Edwards. She took over from long-time mentor Ben Sawyer earlier this year after the New Zealand head coach led the Sixers to their first two titles in 2016-17 and 2017-18.”Everyone is just playing with more freedom [this year],” Burns said. “Charlotte definitely tries to instil that in the team. She really backs our skills.”

‘I just hope other formats outside of T20 aren’t left behind,’ says England Test and ODI opener

Valkerie Baynes05-Dec-2023Tammy Beaumont has made an impassioned plea to preserve the ODI format as a cornerstone of women’s cricket, amid the explosion of T20 franchises and a push by a handful of top-ranked nations to play more Tests.Speaking to ESPNcricinfo on the eve of England’s three-match T20I series and four-day Test against India in Mumbai – and just a fortnight after the men’s 50-over World Cup ended, igniting debate over whether the format was on the brink of extinction – Beaumont said it was crucial for the women’s game to nurture all three versions of the international game.”The more the game goes on, I think the more it’ll diversify and there’s more talent in every country, so now you can almost field very different teams depending on the format,” Beaumont told the podcast on Tuesday. “I just hope that other formats outside of T20 aren’t left behind because that’s a real issue that has happened in the men’s game.Related

• Wyatt puts her name up in lights ahead of the WPL auction

• Sciver-Brunt, Wyatt and Ecclestone star in clinical England win

• Lewis: 'Door is definitely not shut' for Beaumont's T20I return

• Tough talking: How Beaumont faced commentating on Sri Lanka's upset of England

• New Test dawn for India, but focus firmly on road to T20 World Cup

“One of the few good things about the women’s game, being quite a long way behind the men’s game still, is that we can learn from the mistakes of the men’s game. The WPL and all the franchise leagues, and the investment, and the amount of money that has come into the women’s game are absolutely amazing and some might say overdue, but also I think we need to protect where the game’s come from.”We see the men’s game talking about 50-over cricket: ‘is it even worth doing?’ Well, if only four nations are playing Test cricket in women’s cricket, then we have to protect 50-over cricket at all costs.”I think everyone would love to have loads of Test-playing nations and play big Test series but, at the moment, that’s not a reality. At the same time, if you’re just a Test match player and you play two Tests a year, you’re not playing much cricket. Hopefully we can keep and protect all formats of cricket and not just jump on the wave of T20 and leave everything else behind.”Beaumont hasn’t played a T20I in nearly two years, having lost her place following the 2022 Women’s Ashes in Australia as then-head coach Lisa Keightley plumped for a more youthful squad, ahead of England’s failed home Commonwealth Games campaign later that year.And while current head coach Jon Lewis has said the door is not shut on Beaumont’s T20I career, she remains out of that squad in India, despite setting this year’s Hundred alight with a 61-ball 118, the competition’s highest score across genders, en route to becoming the season’s second-highest run-scorer in the Women’s competition.In Danni Wyatt, Sophia Dunkley, Alice Capsey, Maia Bouchier and captain Heather Knight, England have a wealth of top-order batting options and, while Beaumont is a mainstay as ODI opener and automatic pick for the December 14-17 Test following her double-century against Australia in June, breaking back into the shortest format has proved extremely difficult.But her desire to promote the 50-over format feels less motivated by her personal circumstances than from her broader perspective as a broadcaster, having branched into that field while still playing. She regularly commentates on England Women’s internationals she is not involved in, as well as Hundred games, and has covered some England Men’s fixtures too.”If we’re going to say teams want to play Test matches, we want to push it in the women’s game, but realistically at the moment the money-maker is T20, and T20 franchise cricket in particular. You can’t go from T20 cricket to Test match cricket, it’s so different,” she added. “The only thing that is a bridge between the two is 50-over cricket.”England, Australia, India can afford to put on Test matches, that maybe people aren’t coming to yet, and invest in the marketing and put an event on for four or five days. Other cricket boards can’t afford that. A 50-over game they can do, they can invest in it and see the game grow and then, when they might be ready to take on Test cricket, players know how to potentially build an innings.”Not an innings over six hours, over two days or whatever, but a longer innings, whereas T20 is only going to go one way, where you’ve got to go at a strike-rate of 150-plus from the off. There’s definitely room for all three, and the Hundred in my opinion… but we’ve got to work with all three formats at the moment across the globe and protect all of them.”Beaumont admits, however, that Women’s internationals have posed the toughest challenge of her commentating career, not least during England’s 2-1 T20I home series defeat to Sri Lanka, after they had beaten Australia in both white-ball legs of the drawn Ashes. Then, the inevitable noise swirled around whether she should be back in the T20I side.”It’s probably the most difficult thing, but I think it’s about having quite clear principles in what I want to be as a commentator,” she said. “Sharing a dressing-room with the players, my key principle is if I wouldn’t go and say it to their face, I don’t say it on air because at the end of the day their parents are watching, their family’s watching at home, friends. Anything you do say, if it’s overly critical or overly harsh and you wouldn’t say it to their face, they’re going to find out.”I’ve said to the girls, if I do say something on air that you don’t agree with, just come and talk to me because I would never want that to jeopardise anything at all. But at the same time, I am outside the T20 squad. It only takes an absolute gun opening batter to come along and I’d probably be out of the ODI side squad as well at some point. So I’ve got to think about the future.”Not that she doesn’t harbour ambitions to return to the shortest format at international level, where she is stranded on 99 T20I caps.”That’s up to the selectors,” she said. “They’ve got a good idea of what their World Cup team might look like and you’ve just got to keep putting your hand up and churn out runs and put in match-winning performances.”At the same time, you can’t control everything. There’s so many good T20 players in England now, particularly opening the batting. Everyone’s putting their hand up to try and have a go in the powerplay. If I got an opportunity it would be amazing but at the same time, just keep going.”

The consensus among the TV commentators following the decision was that a mistake had been made

ESPNcricinfo staff22-May-20241:54

‘Karthik’s first-ball reprieve was a hasty decision’

The TV umpire Anil Chaudhary’s decision to overturn an lbw decision from out to not out in Dinesh Karthik’s favour came under heavy scrutiny during the Eliminator between Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Ahmedabad.The incident took place in the 15th over of RCB’s innings. After Rajat Patidar had just been dismissed, Avesh Khan swung the ball into Karthik, and the batter was given out lbw by the on-field umpire KN Ananthapadmanabhan.Karthik did not immediately review the decision and only made the DRS signal after a chat with his partner Mahipal Lomror. The replays showed the bottom of the bat close to the front pad at the same time as the ball passing the bat, and striking the pad as Karthik came forward.The question was whether the spike on Ultra Edge was the ball hitting the inside edge of the bat or the bat hitting the pad. TV umpire Anil Chaudhary thought it was bat on ball and asked the on-field umpire to change his decision to not out, though it seemed like there wasn’t conclusive evidence to do so.The consensus among the TV commentators following the decision was that a mistake had been made and cameras showed the RR director of cricket Kumar Sangakkara unhappy while talking to the fourth umpire outside the boundary.Speaking at the press conference after the game, Avesh, however, was fine with Karthik getting the benefit of the doubt.”When you are bowling, the emotions are running quite high. If you look at any bowler, they always ask for reviews, they feel the batter is out [if it’s close],” he said. “But when they showed the replay on the screen, there was some doubt – I suppose DK got the benefit of the doubt. The decision the umpire took must have been the right one, the umpiring is always fair.”If Karthik had been given out, RCB would have been 122 for 6, but he went on to score 11 off 12 balls in a partnership of 32 off 24 balls with Lomror. Karthik was eventually dismissed in the 19th over, and RCB finished on 172 for 8 fore going down by four wickets to be eliminated from the tournament.

Jaker smashed 72 not out off 41 and Rishad bagged three wickets as the hosts were bowled out for their lowest total against Bangladesh

Mohammad Isam20-Dec-2024Bangladesh completed their demolition of West Indies with an 80-run win in the third T20I at the Arnos Vale Ground. It resulted in their first 3-0 win in a T20I series in nearly two years as they capped off a tough West Indies tour with a trophy. After posting 189 for 7, they bowled West Indies out for 109, their lowest total against Bangladesh, with the margin of victory being Bangladesh’s second-biggest in terms of runs.Jaker Ali continued to be their tour’s MVP, signing off with a dramatic, match-winning performance. His unbeaten 72 powered the visitors to 189 for 7, their highest score in the West Indies, before Rishad Hossain helped bowl the opposition out cheaply.Jaker had walked off the ground when he was on 18 after a mix-up with Shamim Hossain. But the TV umpire Zahid Bassarath instead adjudged Shamim as the one dismissed, as he had placed his bat inside the crease after Jaker. It sparked a dramatic turnaround, as Jaker struck six sixes and three fours in his 41-ball knock.

Parvez sparks rapid start

Bangladesh had their best start of the series with the bat. Parvez Hossain Emon, who replaced the injured Soumya Sarkar, went after debutant Jayden Seales and Romario Shepherd in the first three overs. Parvez then launched Alzarri Joseph over wide long-on for his first six, before Litton Das fell for 14, his first double-digit score in six innings across formats.Parvez continued to go after the fast bowlers, blasting Joseph for his second six over long-on. Next ball, though, Justin Greaves caught Parvez at the square-leg boundary after juggling a couple of times. Parvez made 39 off 21 balls, giving Bangladesh their best powerplay (54 runs) of the series.File photo: Parvez Hossain Emon smashed 39 off 21 balls•ICC via Getty

Jaker’s dramatic re-entry

Bangladesh were 102 for 4 at the start of the14th over when Jaker struck Gudakesh Motie towards deep midwicket. Spotting Obed McCoy getting injured trying to take the catch, Jaker signalled to Shamim not to take the third run as the ball had spilled away from McCoy.In the next over, Jaker and Shamim had a communication breakdown, with both batters ending up at the striker’s end, while Roston Chase broke the stumps at the bowler’s. Jaker, who ran through the striker’s end, was irate with Shamim. He walked off fuming while the third umpire spotted that he had actually reached the crease before Shamim.The fourth umpire Gregory Brathwaite hauled Jaker, who had taken off his gears inside the dressing room, out to the middle to continue his innings. The distance between Jaker and Shamim, not looking at each other, as they crossed each other near the boundary was immense.

Jaker takes full advantage

As if one dramatic run-out was not enough, Mahedi Hasan was also run-out in the same over. Jaker, however, regrouped quickly in the following over, hitting Joseph straight down the ground for his second six. McCoy then conceded 20 runs in the 18th over when Jaker and Tanzim Hasan Sakib struck a six each; Jaker blasted him with a slog sweep, and Tanzim swung him over long-on.Joseph then went for 25 in the last over, with Jaker hitting him for three sixes in the last four balls of the innings. It turned out to be Bangladesh’s best-ever 20th over in a T20I.File photo: Rishad Hossain got three wickets, apart from affecting a run-out•Cricket West Indies

West Indies in tailspin

For the third game in a row, West Indies lost half their side before reaching 50. After Taskin Ahmed removed Brandon King early, like in the previous two matches, Greaves was caught at long-on off Mahedi. Johnson Charles and Nicholas Pooran struck a cluster of boundaries before Pooran fell to Mahedi for the third time in the series, bowled off an inside edge for 15. West Indies finished the powerplay on 45 for 3.

Rishad sends ’em packing

As if Pooran’s fall was not enough, Charles then seemed slow in reaching the crease while completing the single; Rishad’s throw caught him short. This was two balls after Hasan Mahmud had dismissed Roston Chase for a duck.Rishad further got into the act, with three wickets. The legspinner had Rovman Powell caught behind in the tenth over with a dipping delivery, leaving West Indies on 60 for 6. In his last over, the 15th of the innings, Rishad had Motie caught straight down the ground while Joseph gave a simple catch to Hasan at extra cover. Tanzim and Taskin removed the last two wickets to spark the celebration in the Bangladesh camp.

ESPNcricinfo’s updates from the 42nd game of IPL 2020

Debayan Sen24-Oct-2020