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The BCB ends the matter after accepting explanations provided by both parties

Mohammad Isam04-Feb-2022The Chattogram Challengers captaincy row came to end in Dhaka on Friday after the BCB accepted the explanations provided by the franchise officials and Mehidy Hasan Miraz, who was removed as captain last week.BPL governing council secretary Ismail Haider Mallick, BCB chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury, BCB’s head of anti-corruption Maj (retd) Abu Mohammad Humayun Morshed and BPL tournament in-charge Saiful Amin heard the respective accounts on the matter.Challengers’ owner Rifat Uzzaman and chief operating officer Yasir Alam were summoned by the four-member panel representing the cricket board.A couple of hours before Challengers’ match against Sylhet Sunrisers on January 29, the franchise officials had replaced Miraz with Naeem Islam as captain. They explained that outgoing coach Paul Nixon, who they claimed had to leave the BPL because of an emergency call from Leicestershire, had recommended the change at the top.The following day, an angry Miraz was talked out of leaving the team hotel. Standing outside the hotel, Miraz had singled out Alam for spreading lies.BPL secretary Mallick said that both parties admitted that they behaved “unreasonably” and left the league and the BCB embarrassed.”We decided to speak to Miraz and the Challengers officials to find out the reasons for their reaction in public, which gave birth to unwarranted speculations,” Mallick said. “Both player and the franchise officials admitted they had acted unreasonably without considering the consequences. It was a case of miscommunication, which should have been settled amicably within the team. They have expressed their regret for allowing the situation to escalate and accepted responsibility for causing embarrassment to the board and the tournament.”After meeting the player and officials, the board is satisfied that this was an internal management issue of Chattogram Challengers which has since been resolved.”We also understand that the decision to replace Miraz as captain, which apparently triggered the misunderstanding, was communicated to the player by the management well in advance of the team’s ensuing match. The board has reminded the player and franchise officials of their responsibility towards the event and has reiterated its zero-tolerance policy on discipline and integrity.”

Twelve overs were still left in the game when umpires called bad light and the players started shaking hands

Annesha Ghosh26-Jun-20214:02

Mithali Raj – ‘The current bowling attack, especially the spinners over the years have won matches for us irrespective of the wicket we played’

Mithali Raj, India’s Test and ODI captain, has expressed surprise at how their one-off Test against England ended last week. According to her, the visiting side wanted to continue batting when play was called off on the final day with 12 overs still left to be bowled. In response to this assertion from Raj, England captain Heather Knight explained that bad light was the reason for the premature close to proceedings in Bristol.Though no result other than a draw was possible at the time, two of India’s five Test debutants, Sneh Rana and Taniya Bhatia, were batting on unbeaten scores of 80 and 44 respectively, their rearguard ninth-wicket stand having swollen to 104.”We wanted to continue the play and that’s what we informed to the opposite captain, and they continued,” Raj revealed on ahead of the ODI series opener between the two sides. “But then I was told by Sneh Rana because even I was a little on the back foot when I saw the bails coming off and them walking out. So I asked her what happened and she said it was a bad light call taken by the umpire.”That’s what they were told. But then I saw the teams were congratulating [each other], so the umpires told that since both the teams are congratulating, it’s pretty much taken that the match is over. That’s what I was told by Sneh Rana. So that’s what happened.Knight, meanwhile, revealed that Raj was nowhere to be found when England were ready to accept a stalemate.”It became apparent to us that it was going to end in a draw, so we asked to shake hands with the Indian team,” Knight said. “We couldn’t actually find Mithali, so I think eventually a message got back on to us to that we were to carry on, which was fine. And then the umpires [Chris Watts and Sue Redfern] took us off for bad light and then the Indians came over and shook our hands. So that was what happened.”Knight also confirmed that the first ODI on Sunday will be played on a fresh pitch and that Sophia Dunkley, who made a first-innings unbeaten 74 on her Test debut last week, will make her maiden ODI appearance.”Yes, I have [had a chance to take a look at the pitch],” Knight said. “You’ll be pleased to hear it’s a fresh one. It looks pretty good, [with] an even covering of grass. Yeah, [it] looks like a reasonably good batting deck as it usually is with a fresh wicket in Bristol.”The teams head into the three-ODI series, which kicks off the limited-overs leg of the multi-format tour, on an even keel, with two points apiece. Wins in the white-ball games, which also features three T20Is, will be worth two points each.

Chahal’s form has dipped slightly, Agarwal doesn’t have the runs – which side’s senior members will stand up?

Sreshth Shah06-May-20223:10

How do Punjab Kings get the best out of Rahul Chahar?

Big picture

Two sides who are beginning to forget the art of winning face off in a fixture that has big implications. Three losses in their last five games has left Punjab Kings playing catch up in the race for the playoffs. Rajasthan Royals, too, seem to be slipping just as the teams below them are making their charge. Both teams need a win. Anything less and their lives could get a bit tricky.

Watch live in the USA

You can watch the match live on ESPN+ in English and in Hindi.

Mayank Agarwal is due for a big score, but he pushed himself down the order in their last game allowing Jonny Bairstow to open alongside Shikhar Dhawan. Is that the plan now? With overseas batters Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Liam Livingstone in good touch, what Kings need is for their lower-middle order of Indians – that might just also include Agarwal – to come good. If they hold up their end of the bargain, there’s enough skill between Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh and others to realistically trouble Royals through the 20 overs.As for Royals, their inability to go past 160 in their losses against Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders will be concerning. So too Yuzvendra Chahal’s recent lack of wickets. IPL 2022’s purple-cap holder has struck just twice in four games. What they need to overcome the Kings challenge is wickets in the powerplay from Trent Boult and Prasidh Krishna. That will then set the spinners up and re-establish what some have been saying all through the IPL: Royals have the most well-rounded bowling attack this season.

Likely XIs

Punjab Kings: 1 Jonny Bairstow, 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Mayank Agarwal (capt), 4 Bhanuka Rajapaksa, 5 Liam Livingstone, 6 Jitesh Sharma (wk), 7 Rishi Dhawan, 8 Rahul Chahar, 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Arshdeep Singh, 11 Sandeep SharmaRajasthan Royals: 1 Jos Buttler, 2 Devdutt Padikkal, 3 Sanju Samson (capt, wk), 4 Karun Nair / Yashasvi Jaiswal, 5 Riyan Parag, 6 Shimron Hetmyer, 7 R Ashwin, 8 Trent Boult, 9 Prasidh Krishna, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Kuldeep SenDevdutt Padikkal has had a slight dip in form over the last couple of matches•BCCI

Strategy punt

Do Royals move away from Devdutt Padikkal and go back to Yashasvi Jaiswal? Padikkal had 12 dots in his 15-ball innings against Mumbai and was out for a boundary-less five-ball knock against KKR. In the game before that, he suffered six dots in a seven-ball innings against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Those three scores have corresponded with the otherwise high-scoring Royals making only 144, 158 and 152 in their last three games. Jaiswal was dropped after a poor run – 20, 1 and 4 – early in the season. He must be itching to get back and prove his worth.

Stats that matter

• Sides batting first have won two of the last five games at the Wankhede. The last afternoon game here was won by the side batting first too.
• With a game in hand, Rabada is two wickets shy of purple-cap holder Chahal’s tally of 19.
• Buttler – the orange cap holder – is 385 runs away from beating Virat Kohli’s record-setting 973-run season in IPL 2016. He has also hit the most sixes (25) at the Wankhede since IPL 2019.

Heads of the Indian, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi and Afghanistan boards will meet in Ahmedabad but a final decision will be taken only after consultation with the PCB

ESPNcricinfo staff25-May-2023Where will the Men’s Asia Cup be played? Will it even be played? Answers to these questions are likely to emerge at an informal meeting in Ahmedabad on May 28 where heads of the Indian (BCCI), the Bangladeshi (BCB), the Sri Lankan (SLC) and the Afghanistani (ACB) cricket boards will be present to watch the IPL final.Pakistan are the hosts of this year’s Asia Cup scheduled for September, but with India declining to travel there, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has been looking at alternatives. Recently the PCB had suggested a hybrid host model for the six-team tournament where four of the 13 matches will be held in Pakistan. The rest, including the final, would be held overseas. However, no final decision has been reached by ACC which is locked in discussions with PCB.It is understood that Pakistan are not expecting any major pushback about the hybrid model. The only issue left to iron out is where India and their opponents will be based. The choice is between Sri Lanka and the UAE.The six teams to contest the 2023 edition of the Asia Cup are India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Nepal and hosts Pakistan. ESPNcricnfo reached out to at least four boards to inquire if a consensus had been reached on adopting the hybrid model recommended by PCB, but all four said no final decision had yet been taken.BCCI secretary Jay Shah, who is also president of the ACC, said on Thursday that the presidents of BCB, SLC and ACB will be at the IPL final in Ahmedabad. “We will hold discussions with them for outlining the future course of action in relation to Asia Cup 2023,” Shah said.However, officials privy to the Sunday meeting have pointed out that a final decision on the Asia Cup will only be taken by the ACC in coordination with PCB. No date yet has been set for the next ACC meeting.

Australia will also host Pakistan for white-ball cricket in November while schedule has also been drawn up to boost the BBL

Alex Malcolm26-Mar-2024Perth Stadium has dethroned the Gabba as Australia’s preferred first Test venue with the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy to begin in Perth on November 22 this year before the series moves to Adelaide for the day-night Test, Brisbane, Melbourne for Boxing Day and Sydney for the New Year’s Test.Cricket Australia unveiled their international schedule for next summer with the Border-Gavaskar Trophy as the summer’s showpiece event. After Perth, the second Test will be a day-night pink-ball encounter played at Adelaide Oval from December 6-10. The third Test will be in Brisbane from December 14-18. The fourth Test will be at the MCG in the traditional Boxing Day slot on December 26 and the fifth Test will be at the SCG starting January 3.Australia has an unblemished record at Perth’s newest venue having won four out of four Tests there including the first one against India in December 2018, although India went on to claim the series. Perth did not host a Test between Australia and India in the 2020-21 series, which India also won when the final Test was held in Brisbane.Related

• Pakistan to host Tests against Bangladesh, England and WI in packed 2024-25 season

• Australia A vs India A to provide lead-in to Border-Gavaskar Test series

• Stoinis and Agar lose CA deals while Bartlett earns full contract

• Cricket Australia reaffirms desire to host India-Pakistan bilateral series

• Australia need Steven Smith at No. 4. But then where will Cameron Green bat and who will open?

Peter Roach, CA’s head of scheduling, said the decision to award Perth the first Test over Brisbane was due to a range of factors with the friendly broadcast timezone for both Australian east coast audiences and India viewers being the final tipping point.”The clear advice from our national team is that there is a preference to start series strongly at venues where they’re really comfortable and Perth and Brisbane they believe are somewhat comparable in terms of the advantage they get out of that,” Roach said. “They’re the hardest and bounciest pitches in Australia. They also believe that playing day-night Tests in Adelaide is a significant advantage and the stats there are pretty conclusive too.”So they will look at this schedule and some will say Gabba first would have been better than Perth. Others will say Perth then Gabba. I think that gap has really closed in recent times and the way our players think about that, and having Adelaide as the day-night Test, they’ll be really buoyed about that again. So we’re really comfortable that this gives us a great opportunity to compete with a really strong Indian team.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Outgoing WA Cricket CEO Christina Matthews is hopeful of a big crowd in Perth after disappointing attendances in recent years, although her preference was to host the pre-Christmas Test.”I would be looking at crowds of 30-35,000 on day one [for India],” Matthews told ESPNcricinfo as part of an interview to be published later this week. “Getting a space in the calendar is really important. Our preference is the last Test before Christmas. But if it’s the first Test, as we’ve had [the past two years], if we know that’s when it’s going to be then it makes it easier for everybody to plan. If we can know if it’s the first Test of every summer or the third Test every summer, that’s the important thing.”While Australia hope to maximise their advantage by starting with Perth and Adelaide, a nine-day gap has been scheduled between the first two Tests. It is understood the BCCI are keen to use that period for India’s players to get some specific pink-ball practice and options are being explored as to whether some form of match practice will be scheduled. A Prime Minister’s XI match in Canberra is on the cards but whether it is before or after the first Test remains to be seen.

BBL window, but availability issues to remain

Test players look likely to miss the BBL finals due to a tour of Sri Lanka•Getty Images and Cricket Australia

The decision to start with Perth and then the day-night Test also means there is a clear window for the BBL to begin after December 10, as those matches are played at night while the Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney Tests are played during the day. CA had to halt the BBL for five days early in the season last summer while the Perth Test between Australia and Pakistan was played in late December. Then the Adelaide Test against West Indies was a day game in mid-January before the day-night Test was held in Brisbane after the BBL had been completed.The BBL will likely start during the three-day break between the Adelaide and Brisbane Tests and will run through until Australia Day on January 26, with Australia’s Test players set to be available for a few weeks after the Sydney Test is completed on January 7.However, Australia have a two-Test tour of Sri Lanka scheduled for late January and early February which could mean some players are withdrawn from the BBL finals as there is a preference for a seven to 10-day build-up for that series to acclimatise to conditions. The dates for the Sri Lanka tour are yet to be announced. Australia’s ODI players will likely head straight to the Champions Trophy after the Sri Lanka tour, with the tournament likely to start on February 19.

Pakistan return for white-ball cricket

Australia will host Pakistan in three ODIs and three T20Is in early November before the Border-Gavaskar Trophy begins. The ODIs will be part of both teams’ preparation for the Champions Trophy and is likely to be Australia’s last official ODI series before that tournament begins in Pakistan.The ODI series will start at the MCG on Monday, November 4, the night before the Melbourne Cup public holiday in Victoria. The series will then move to Adelaide on November 8 and finish in Perth on November 10.The T20I series will run close to the Test series against India and will likely mean that none of Australia’s Test players will feature. There is set to be significant turnover in Australia’s T20I side by the time the November series starts following the T20 World Cup in June and Australia will likely use the series to develop younger T20I specialists for future World Cups.The final match of the series takes place in Hobart on November 18 with the first Test against India starting in Perth just four days later.There is no men’s international match in Canberra next summer although there will be a women’s T20I during the multiformat Ashes in the lead-up to a historic day-night four-day Test at the MCG between Australia and England starting on January 30, which will celebrate the 90-year anniversary of women’s Test cricket.Australia Men fixtures for 2024-25 seasonODI Series vs Pakistan
4 November: MCG, Melbourne (D/N)
8 November: Adelaide Oval, Adelaide (D/N)
10 November: Perth Stadium, Perth (D/N)T20I Series vs Pakistan
14 November: The Gabba, Brisbane (N)
16 November: SCG, Sydney (N)
18 November: Bellerive Oval, Hobart (N)Test Series vs India
22-26 November: Perth Stadium, Perth
6-10 December: Adelaide Oval, Adelaide (D/N)
14-18 December: The Gabba, Brisbane
26-30 December: MCG, Melbourne
3-7 January: SCG, Sydney

The weather in Lauderhill could severely impact the contest between Canada and India

Ashish Pant14-Jun-20241:40

Should India give Kuldeep Yadav a game?

Match details

Canada vs India
June 15, Lauderhill, Florida, 10.30am local time

Big picture: Rain threat in Florida

Canada are facing their toughest test of the T20 World Cup as India aim to go into the Super 8 stage with a clean sheet, but the fixture is at the mercy of the weather in Florida. Friday’s game between USA and Ireland was washed out at the venue, and there’s an 85% chance of rain on Saturday.If the game does go ahead, India could test out their bench strength. They have played the same XI in their first three group games, but with qualification secure and no points advantage carried forward to the Super Eight, they could give the likes of Kuldeep Yadav or Sanju Samson some game time.Related

• Similar but different India have tough choices to make with their batting order

• Johnson: That was my best international innings

• Hardik hits his rhythm to get rid of the blues

India’s final group game is also Virat Kohli’s last chance to find form before the more competitive Super Eight stage. Of all the batters itching to get out of New York, he is right up there. His move to the top of the order has yielded scores of 4, 1 and 0, and Kohli is not even among the top 150 run-scorers of the tournament. He does not have exceptional numbers in Florida, though: 63 runs in three innings at an average of 21.00.Virat Kohli has not yet fired as an opener in the T20 World Cup•Associated Press

With USA confirming their Super Eight berth from Group A along with India, Canada have been knocked out, having earned only two points from their first three games. They have been competitive at their first T20 World Cup though, having scored 194 in their opening game against USA and then securing a comfortable win against Ireland. They even gave Pakistan a scare, and will hope to sign off at their best against their most high-profile opponents.

Form guide: India on a roll

India WWWWW
Canada LWLLL

In the spotlight: Aaron Johnson and Hardik Pandya

Despite making his T20I debut only in November 2022, Aaron Johnson is already Canada’s second highest run-scorer. He had a tremendous start to his international career, scoring four fifties and one century in his first seven T20I innings, and has sustained his form. No other Canada batter has more runs than Johnson’s 400 in 12 innings since the start of 2023. He is coming into this game on the back of a confident 52 against Pakistan.Hardik Pandya has seven wickets in three games at the T20 World Cup•Associated Press

Hardik Pandya has not had much to do with the bat, but has been an asset with the ball. He is India’s joint highest wicket-taker so far in the competition, with seven wickets in three games, and has stifled batters in the middle overs. Hardik has hit those hard lengths and finished the New York leg with an economy of 5.41.

Team news: Will India give Kuldeep a go?

Canada’s move to bring in Ravinderpal Singh for Dilpreet Bajwa did not work, with Ravinderpal out for a second-ball duck. They might go back to Bajwa against India.Canada (probable XI): 1 Aaron Johnson, 2 Navneet Dhaliwal, 3 Pargat Singh, 4 Nicholas Kirton, 5 Shreyas Movva (wk), 6 Ravinderpal Singh/Dilpreet Bajwa, 7 Dilon Heyliger, 8 Saad Bin Zafar (capt), 9 Kaleem Sana, 10 Junaid Siddiqui, 11 Jeremy GordonIndia could rest one of their fast bowlers and bring in Kuldeep, whose wristspin might be required in the Super Eight stage in the West Indies.India (probable XI): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Virat Kohli, 3 Rishabh Pant (wk), 4 Suryakumar Yadav, 5 Shivam Dube, 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Axar Patel, 9, 10, 11 Jasprit Bumrah/Mohammed Siraj/Kuldeep Yadav/Arshdeep SinghFriday morning was extremely wet at the venue•ICC/Getty Images

Pitch and conditions: Rain alert

Thursday was dry but Friday was a washout in Lauderhill. The forecast for Saturday morning is not promising, with scattered thunderstorms predicted throughout the day.

Stats and trivia

• Apart from West Indies, who play some international matches here, India have played the most T20Is (eight) in Lauderhill: five wins, two defeats and one washout.
• Rohit Sharma is the top-scorer in T20Is at this venue: 196 runs, with two half-centuries in in five innings.
• Arshdeep Singh has the second most T20I wickets in Lauderhill: seven in four innings, with an economy of 7.88.
• Arshdeep has bowled six overs in the powerplay at this T20 World Cup and conceded just one boundary.
• Out of the 56 overs India have bowled in the tournament, only nine have been delivered by spinners
• Canada have never faced India in a T20I.

Quotes

“I saw them last month in April. Those guys were working really hard. I am happy for them. It is a motivation for us, going into the next tournament that USA have down, so can we. In that way, we can look at it.”
“Regarding this stadium, we played earlier so we are slightly aware of the conditions, what we get. Yes, the weather is challenging here, you don’t know about when the rain comes and all, but we have been prepared for all these things. So, we are focusing on what we can control and at this point of the time, we can’t control the weather conditions. So, we are trying to prepare ourselves in the best possible way but we want a game to happen.”
India fielding coach T Dilip isn’t bothered about the conditions