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This is now a four-match series after the abandonment at the Wanderers left everyone kicking their heels

The Preview by Andrew McGlashan21-Nov-2009

Match facts

Sunday, November 22, 2009
Start time 10.00 (08.00GMT)James Tredwell could leapfrog Adil Rashid for a place in the England side•Getty Images

Big picture

This is now a four-match series after the abandonment at the Wanderers left everyone kicking their heels. The significant development in the last couple of days has been the news of Jacques Kallis’ absence from the series due to a rib fracture, so his partnership with Graeme Smith will be a non-starter.England’s injury situation remains unchanged with Stuart Broad (shoulder) and Graeme Swann (side) already ruled out of the match, but the delayed start to the series will have helped Paul Collingwood and James Anderson recover from their niggles. With the forecast more promising for Sunday’s game, Collingwood should finally have the chance to become England’s most capped ODI player with his 171st appearance, overtaking Alec Stewart’s record.Really, though, it’s as you were in the build-up to the opening match although the rain has taken some of the sting out of the hype. Andrew Strauss won’t mind that, having refused to be drawn into any mind games with the South Africans but, when the action does finally start, the attention will still be on Kevin Pietersen and Jonathan Trott.With one match already gone from the schedule, there is less room for error and therefore even more important to hit the ground running. At least on Saturday the teams were able to train outdoors, and whichever side clicks into gear the quickest after a frustrating few days will be in prime position to take control of the series.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)
South Africa – WWLWL
England – LLWWW

Team news

With Kallis out of the series, Hashim Amla is set to be given another chance to open alongside Smith, a position he has filled with decent results. South Africa will also have to decide whether to go with a full hand of seamers or play one of their spinners. Without the services of Kallis’ fast bowling and the recent wet weather, the former could be the preferred route.South Africa (possible) 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 AB de Villiers, 4 JP Duminy, 5 Alviro Petersen, 6 Mark Boucher (wk), 7 Albie Morkel, 8 Ryan McLaren, 9 Charl Langeveldt, 10 Lonwabo Tsotsobe, 11 Dale SteynEngland may hand an international debut to James Tredwell, who has been called up as cover for Graeme Swann. Quite what Adil Rashid, the second spinner in the original squad, will make of that remains to be seen but Tredwell has the advantage of spinning the ball away from South Africa’s clutch of left handers. However, they too may decide on a full hand of quicks, especially with Collingwood’s troublesome back. The other question is how many batsman to play, and if one misses out it is likely to be Joe Denly.England (possible) 1 Andrew Strauss (capt), 2 Jonathan Trott, 3 Kevin Pietersen, 4 Paul Collingwood, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Matt Prior (wk), 7 Luke Wright, 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 James Tredwell, 10 Graham Onions, 11 James Anderson

Watch out for

Kevin Pietersen was called back into action a couple of days early when England were hit by injuries ahead of the second Twenty20, but looked in decent fettle for his 29. The 50-over warm-up against South Africa was more of a struggle as he scratched 4 from 17 balls, but he looks eager to make up for lost time. His three ODI tons in South Africa four years ago are still talked about and England would dearly like to see a return of that free-flowing, care-free Pietersen rather than the mentally strained and restrained figure that has been on show for much of 2009.JP Duminy‘s international numbers are already impressive and an ODI average of 37.57 indicates his talent. However, against England, he has struggled to make a mark with 88 runs in six matches with a best of 24. The South African management are giving him the chance to build an innings by promoting him to No 4, and with the absence of Kallis now is the time for Duminy to repay that faith.James Anderson…but not for his bowling. If he gets his turn to bat, Anderson will use the Mongoose bat which made much fanfare last season. It has a shorter blade and longer handle – meaning, in theory, better striking power – and Jimmy has got his hands on one. Without being too harsh, it might be a little wasted.

Stats and trivia

• Collingwood, as well as being one away from an England cap record, also needs three wickets to reach 100 in ODIs

Quotes

“I was actually organising a trip to India for the start of December, so they had to tell me pretty sharpish so that I didn’t put my passport in for a visa.”

Leask, Cross fifties go in vain as visitors race home with 25 balls to spare

Sam Dalling31-Jul-2022The last time Mark Chapman scored an ODI century was 2449 days ago. It came on his Hong Kong debut, having just completed both his exams and a 20-hour flight.A second came in the late-Sunday Edinburgh sunshine. Chapman’s century was his first in New Zealand colours, adding to the 83 he made in Friday’s T20I. It was an attractive, brutal knock, and as he reached the landmark off his 74th ball to point for a single, off came the helmet, and the bat swooshed through the air. Two balls later, a seven-wicket victory was sealed in the one-off ODI against Scotland.”I managed to score a few a couple of days ago, and I was happy to contribute again today,” he said after the match. “When Daryl (Mitchell) and I came together we had a lot of work to do. We talked about taking it deep, putting a partnership together and having wickets in hand come the end.”Daryl was encouraging me to go for it, and I just put my head down and tried to make contact. I’m stoked. Thankfully it came off today.”The problem, for the opposition at least, is that New Zealand are just so difficult to beat. Even when you think you’ve got them, they fight back. Chapman’s unbroken fourth-wicket partnership with Daryl Mitchell was worth 175 runs. The pair negotiated a potentially sticky situation with ease.Chapman took a particular shine to Hamza Tahir, who was peppered straight. Three sixes in an over towards the conclusion eased him through the 70s. He was dropped by Michael Leask in the middle of those, mind.Mitchell’s knock, on the other hand, contained a share of luck. Luck that largely evaded the Scots. But he is having a golden European tour, and there were touches of quality aplenty. It meant a tenth consecutive ODI victory for the Black Caps. And this, remember, is a line-up without Devon Conway, Kane Williamson and Tom Latham.The win did not come without wobbly moments, though. Scotland will take much from the game, if not victory. Dreich is a popular Scottish adjective meaning grey and dreary. It was apt for the early morning weather. And when Scotland slipped to 107 for 5 having elected to bat first in this one-off match, it looked apt for their day.But then out came Leask. By mid-afternoon, the sun shone, Leask had walloped a rapid 85 – his highest score in this format – and his quickfire dismissals of Martin Guptill and Dane Cleaver had New Zealand up against it. For a while at least, it seemed game on.Michael Leask scored a rapid 85 off just 55 balls•SNS Group/Getty Images

“It’s a week of missed opportunities,” Scotland head coach Shane Burger said. “We lost the big moments in the game, but ultimately, they go your way if you play more cricket. That one big partnership was the difference in the game.”I can’t fault the effort; the guys ran in and did the best we could. Our skill levels need to keep improving. It’s still building blocks but to see the resilience and the character shine out speaks 1,000 words.”Scotland had made a sprightly start with Kyle Coetzer racing to 20 from just 12 balls. But a miscued pull off Jacob Duffy brought about his downfall. Then came the New Zealand pressure. Michael Bracewell reeled off ten uninterrupted overs. Six overs between him and Blair Tickner cost just 11 runs, with Michael Jones falling to Bracewell, and Calum MacLeod to the latter. Bracewell then removed both Richie Berrington and Chris Greaves to leave Scotland reeling.Then came the counter punch. Finally, some home batting that mirrored the aggression of the in-house DJ’s excessive use of musical interludes. Matthew Cross reached 50 first with an emphatic pull off Lockie Ferguson that fizzed onto a neighbouring road.But Leask’s knock was the standout. Pure aggression. Bracewell was bludgeoned straight, before Ferguson – from around the wicket – dropped short and was swatted away. A later flat bat down the ground had Duffy sprinting. ‘You’ll nay catch that big lad’ came the cry from the hospitality tents. It was spot on. Leask then lifted Duffy over deep square and long on before falling 15 short of a century. Later, Mark Watt and Safyaan Sharif cameos took Scotland to 306.The hosts needed early luck but did not get it. Chris Sole was almost celebrating an immediate wicket, with Finn Allen edging just out of Cross’ reach. Shariff then thudded into Guptill’s pads, the ball struck the stumps, but the bails remained intact.Allen fell for exactly 50, Guptill 47 and then Cleaver soon after. But Chapman and Mitchell steadied before accelerating. Chapman boshed Tahir for a pair of maximums, Mitchell took ten off a Sharif over, and between them, they found 14 off Watt. Suddenly a run-a-ball was required. In the end, 25 balls were left spare.Quite what long-term value these games have for Scotland, when played in such isolation, is difficult to measure. This was their first ODI against a full-member nation since Sri Lanka visited in 2019. There is nothing currently in the fixture list. With the schedule packed, quite where additional games come from is difficult to see. In which case, it is ‘survive’ rather than ‘thrive.’

Steven Smith will captain Australia with Michael Neser making his Test debut

Andrew McGlashan16-Dec-2021Australia captain Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the second Test in Adelaide after being deemed a close contact of a Covid-19 case at a restaurant on Wednesday night. Steven Smith will lead the team in the day-night contest.First reported in newspapers, Cummins was dining at an Adelaide restaurant with his brother and Adelaide Strikers’ bowler Harry Conway when a patron on an adjoining table was identified as a Covid positive case. Cummins immediately left the restaurant and alerted authorities. He has since returned a negative PCR test but is required to isolate for seven days.Cricket Australia said that Mitchell Starc and Nathan Lyon were at the same restaurant as Cummins but at a separate table outdoors. South Australia Health deemed them casual contacts and they are free to play.Players have not been in strict bubbles for the start of the series in Brisbane and Adelaide and Cummins did not break any protocols.Discussions between CA and health authorities went on throughout the night but there was no way that Cummins could be cleared for the match.”Gutted to miss this Test but really excited to see Neser finally get his chance in the baggy green,” Cummins tweeted. “He has done the hard yards and is a seriously skilful player. Super frustrating but COVID has thrown us all some curve balls over the last couple of years. Will be cheering along!”This is the most significant impact Covid-19 has had on a professional cricket match in Australia. Earlier this season Victoria allrounder Will Sutherland tested positive which resulted in a Sheffield Shield match against New South Wales being delayed by a day.
“Not only [are we] taking the advice of the authorities but also having in mind what it means for the continuity of the tour, what we do know is that Pat was a close contact and we want to make sure we can continue with the tour,” Nick Hockley, the CA chief executive, said. “The steps we’ve taken are consistent with anyone else in the community so a prudent approach to keep the tour going. People are quite philosophical that this is the world we are in. There were no other options.”Hockley said that he was comfortable with the protocols in place around this Test regarding what players are allowed to do but they are under constant assessment and will likely be tighter in Melbourne and Sydney where there are higher cases.”We’ve got protocols that flex according to the risk level so we are looking at it every single day. The protocols include players needing to dine in small groups,” he said. “They are designed to mitigate the risk that we’ve seen unfold here. We are all devastated that Pat is unable to play but it is the protocols working to have only one player taken out.””What we don’t want to do is we don’t want to completely lock down the players. We’re very conscious of taking a precautionary approach. We’re very conscious of their mental wellbeing.”Certainly our chief medical officer and our medical team will be working with the playing group, with the ECB and their medical staff to make sure over the course of the rest of the Test match and over the rest of the tour, that we’re mitigating the risk. I spoke to my counterpart this morning and everyone wants to see both sides with their full strength best side out on the park. I think dining outside is a great way to further mitigate the risk.”Michael Neser will make his Test debut as Cummins’ replacement while Travis Head has been named vice-captain. It means an extraordinary return to the captaincy for Smith who was named Cummins’ deputy following the resignation of Tim Paine last month.South Australia health rules stipulate that a fully vaccinated close contact of a Covid positive case must get tested immediately and isolate for seven days, as well as undergo tests on day 6 and 13 after the contact.CA expects Cummins will be available for the third Test in Melbourne which starts on Boxing Day.Casual contacts only need to isolate until they return an initial negative test. But they do require further tests at day 6 and 13 and must wear a surgical mask at all other times.There has been a rise in Covid cases in South Australia in recent weeks following the opening of the state border. There are varying testing requirements for people arriving into South Australia depending on where they are travelling from. Anyone required to get a test on arrival does not have to isolate while waiting for the result.Australia were already without Josh Hazlewood for the second Test due to a side strain with Jhye Richardson coming into the team.

Kieron Pollard, Darren Sammy, Shane Watson among overseas names retained

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Dec-2019For the fifth season of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), teams were permitted to retain up to eight players from their previous roster. The category restrictions for retentions was a maximum of three Platinum, three Diamond, three Gold, five Silver and two emerging players. All six teams will go into the player draft on December 6 in Lahore to complete the rest of their squads from a pool of over 500 players.The upcoming season starts on February 20 next year, and all 34 games will be played in Pakistan across four venues in the country. Some notable foreign players including Dale Steyn, Colin Munro, Alex Hales and Jason Roy, Chris Lynn and Ben Cutting have registered themselves to be drafted.

Quetta Gladiators

Retained (8 players): Mohammad Nawaz, Sarfaraz Ahmed (both Platinum), Shane Watson (Diamond, Player Mentor), Ahmed Shehzad (Diamond), Umar Akmal (Gold, Brand Ambassador), Mohammad Hasnain (Gold), Ahsan Ali, Naseem Shah (both Silver)Released: Anwar Ali, Danish Aziz, Dwayne Bravo, Dwayne Smith, Fawad Ahmed, Ghulam Mudassar, Harry Gurney, Jalat Khan, Max Waller, Mohammad Asghar, Mohammad Azam Khan, Mohammad Irfan Jr, Rilee Rossouw, Saud Shakil, Sohail TanvirTrade: NoneRelegation: None

Multan Sultans

Retained (7 players): Mohammad Irfan (Platinum), Shahid Afridi (Diamond, Player Mentor), James Vince (Gold, Brand Ambassador), Junaid Khan (Gold), Ali Shafiq, Shan Masood (both Silver), Mohammad Ilyas (Emerging)Released: Andre Russell (not available in 2020), Chris Green, Dan Christian, Hammad Azam, Joe Denly, Johnson Charles, Laurie Evans, M. Irfan Khan, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Junaid, Nicholas Pooran, Numan Ali, Qais Ahmed, Shakeel Ansar, Shoaib Malik, Steve Smith (not available in 2020), Tom Moores, Umar SiddiqTrade: NoneRelegation: Junaid Khan from Diamond to Gold, Shan Masood from Gold to SilverESPNcricinfo Ltd

Islamabad United

Retained (8 players): Shadab Khan (Platinum), Faheem Ashraf (Diamond, Brand Ambassador), Asif Ali (Diamond), Luke Ronchi (Gold, Player Mentor), Hussain Talat (Gold), Amad Butt, Musa Khan, Rizwan Hussain (all Silver)Released: Alex Hales, Cameron Delport, Chadwick Walton, Ian Bell, Mohammad Sami, Nasir Nawaz, Philip Salt, Rumman Raees, Sahibzada Farhan, Samit Patel, Waqas Maqsood, Wayne Parnell, Zafar Gohar, Zahir KhanTrade: NoneRelegation: None

Peshawar Zalmi

Retained (7 players): Hasan Ali, Kieron Pollard, Wahab Riaz (all Platinum), Kamran Akmal (Diamond, Brand Ambassador), Darren Sammy (Gold, Player Mentor), Imam-ul-Haq (Gold), Umar Amin (Silver)Released: Andre Fletcher, Chris Jordan, Dawid Malan, Ibtesam Sheikh, Jamal Anwar, Khalid Usman, Lendl Simmons, Liam Dawson, Misbah-ul-Haq (not available in 2020), Nabi Gul, Sameen Gul, Samiullah, Sohaib Maqsood, Tymal Mills, Umaid Asif, Waqar Salamkheil, Wayne MadsenTrade: NoneRelegation: Imam ul Haq from Diamond to Gold, Umar Amin went from Gold to Silver

Karachi Kings

Retained (7 players): Babar Azam, Mohammad Amir (both Platinum), Imad Wasim (Diamond, Brand Ambassador), Iftikhar Ahmed (Diamond), Aamir Yamin (Gold), Usama Mir (Silver), Umer Khan (Emerging)Released: Aaron Summers, Abrar Ahmed, Ali Imran, Awais Zia, Ben Dunk, Colin Ingram, Colin Munro, Jaahid Ali, Liam Livingstone, Mohammad Rizwan, Ravi Bopara, Sikander Raza, Sohail Khan, Usman ShinwariTrade: Usman Shinwari released only to be transferred to Lahore Qalandars.Relegation: NoneALSO READ: De Villiers to sit out PSL to manage workload

Lahore Qalandars

Retained (8 players): Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez (both Platinum), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Diamond, Brand Ambassador), David Wiese, Usman Shinwari (both Diamond), Haris Rauf, Sohail Akhtar (both Gold), Salman Butt (Silver)Released: AB de Villiers (not available in 2020), Agha Salman, Aizaz Cheema, Anton Devcich, Asela Gunaratne, Brendan Taylor, Carlos Brathwaite, Corey Anderson (not available in 2020), Gohar Ali, Hardus Viljoen, Haris Sohail, Hassan Khan, Mohammad Imran, Rahat Ali, Riki Wessels, Ryan ten Doeschate (not available in 2020), Saad Ali, Sandeep Lamichhane, Umair Masood, Yasir ShahTrade: Usman Shinwari transferred from Karachi KingsRelegation: Salman Butt from Gold to Silver

Having lost his Test place on Australia’s tour of the UAE, the middle-order batsman made 123 not out from 215 balls and give Victoria a 101-run lead

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Nov-2018Peter Handscomb drives through the off side•Getty Images

Peter Handscomb has made a statement to Australia’s selectors with a patient unbeaten century to put Victoria in control of the Sheffield Shield clash with South Australia at the MCG.Handscomb, who lost his Test place on Australia’s tour of the UAE, capitalised on a superb 132-run opening stand from Travis Dean and Marcus Harris to grind out 123 not out from 215 balls and give Victoria a 101-run lead with two days remaining. He struck 15 boundaries in his 14th first-class century, which he brought up with lovely cover drive off Cameron Valente.Victoria at one stage looked set to pile up a huge score but Nick Winter put them back under pressure with three wickets in the space of eight overs. He found the edge of Harris’ bat before trapping Dean in front and got Cameron White caught behind for a duck as well.Handscomb and Matthew Short steadied Victoria for over 18 overs but they again slumped to 5 for 193, losing both Short and wicketkeeper Seb Gotch in quick succession before Handscomb found solid allies in James Pattinson and Peter Siddle. Pattinson made 32 after being promoted to No. 7 while Siddle contributed 13 not out from 72 deliveries in an unbeaten 55-run stand with Handscomb to take the home side through to stumps.However, Victoria’s charge to a third straight win to start the season may be hindered by some wet weather that is due in Melbourne on day three.

Defending a sub-par total of 202, the home side bowled out Worcestershire for only 164, to pull off an unlikely victory by 38 runs

ECB Reporters Network01-Jun-2018
ScorecardNottinghamshire held their nerve to defeat Worcestershire at Trent Bridge and keep alive their hopes of retaining the Royal London One-Day Cup.Defending a sub-par total of 202, the home side bowled out Worcestershire for only 164, to pull off an unlikely victory by 38 runs.Luke Fletcher led the way with the ball, returning career best figures of 4 for 20 as the visitors were bowled out in 47.2 overs.Daryl Mitchell made 62 in the chase but far too many of his team-mates gifted their wickets away, as the defending champions kept a tight grip on the run-rate.The loss was particularly hard on Moeen Ali, who also had his best day with the ball, with figures of 4 for 33 as Notts were bowled out for only 202 in 45.1 overs.Riki Wessels, with 50, top-scored for the holders, who faced elimination had they been defeated. Alex Hales, playing his first match of the season for his home county, after returning from IPL duty, made just 21.Defending such a modest target the home side needed to make early inroads and were indebted to early bursts from Fletcher and Jake Ball which reduced Worcestershire to 21 for 3.Ball cleaned up Moeen with a candidate for ‘delivery of the day’ whilst Fletcher removed Joe Clarke and Callum Ferguson, who only made 6 after his 192 against Leicestershire on Tuesday.Mitchell remained defiant, whilst partners came and went at the other end. Matt Carter followed up his four-wicket haul on debut this week, with the scalp of Ben Cox and fellow spinner Chris Nash picked up his first Notts wicket by having Ross Whiteley caught at mid-off.Whilst Mitchell was at the crease Worcestershire appeared to be favourites but their hopes evaporated when he tamely chipped Steven Mullaney to midwicket.Ed Barnard made 36 towards the back end of the innings but was last out, when bowled by Samit Patel.
Earlier, Notts struggled to build any momentum under cloudy skies. Openers Wessels and Hales added 44 from the opening Powerplay overs but were then separated by Barnard, as the England international chopped on.Moeen’s first two victims fell in identical fashion after sharing in a third wicket partnership of 63. Wessels reached his 50 from 51 deliveries but fell a ball later, bottom-edging onto his stumps and Ross Taylor did the same, after making 47.Pace off the ball continued to work for Worcestershire, with Brett D’Oliveira removing Patel and Mullaney in the same over during an excellent spell of 2 for 46.Notts, normally a free-scoring side, failed to hit a single six during their innings and a youthful tail was unable to bail out the top order, with the final five wickets falling for only 38.Mitchell also picked up two late wickets as the home side’s innings ended 29 balls early.Worcestershire, who lost at the semi-final stage a year ago, now have eight points from six matches, whilst Notts have moved on to seven, from the same number of matches.

Sam Northeast’s relationship with Kent is under strain and that has alerted a host of First Division counties

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Dec-2017Sam Northeast’s future at Kent is in doubt after he was unofficially advised that he would not be reconsidered for the captaincy unless he restated his long-term commitment to the club by extending a contract which expires at the end of next season.Northeast’s strained relationship with Kent, first revealed in , is bound to interest a host of leading counties, aware that his record in all forms of the game identifies him as one of the leading batsman in the country.Long frustrated by a lack of international recognition, Northeast’s fortunes seemed on the up when he was selected by the England Lions tour of the West Indies next year, but the current impasse could lead him to lobby to leave Kent a year early and play First Division Championship cricket to quicken his England ambitions.By the time Northeast joins the Lions for the limited-overs leg of the tour in March, his future should be known.Kent are in turmoil even without Northeast’s possible departure. They are advertising for a newly-constituted director of cricket position, the long-serving chairman of cricket, Graham Johnson, is planning to retire and chief executive Jamie Clifford will join the MCC in February as assistant secretary.Oddly, final interviews for the director of cricket, who will oversee all aspects of Kent’s cricketing affairs, are likely to be concluded after the captaincy issue is resolved.In the absence of a director of cricket, Northeast has borne a heavy responsibility since taking over the captaincy from Rob Key in September 2015 and has been involved in many aspects of the county’s affairs, including selection, recruitment and player development.With some of those responsibilities likely to be curtailed, he may now abandon attempts to reinvigorate Kent, where he has played since childhood. Two promotion challenges under his leadership have run aground because of a lack of pace bowling stocks – Matt Coles’ departure to the champions, Essex, has only worsened that position – and an explosive Twenty20 batting line-up has also failed to reach Finals Day in the Blast.Kent are one of the most traditional of England’s professional clubs and the captaincy appointment must be ratified by the general committee, most likely at a meeting on January 22.If Northeast does become set on leaving, and Kent abandon the fight to keep him, the list of suitors will be a long one. Hampshire were enthusiastic about signing him three years ago and Nottinghamshire would prefer to strengthen their middle-order batting as they return to Division One, especially as they have already missed out on Keaton Jennings.Most intriguing of all is the attitude of Sussex, who will be ambitious to leave Division Two of the Championship next season under the ambitious guidance of new head coach Jason Gillespie. Gillespie was impressed by Northeast during a spell as Kent’s bowling coach last season, so much so that he named him in his preferred England Ashes XI, and the move across the county border would not be disruptive. They should not be overlooked.

The India left-arm wristspinner says he bowls to the explosive Australia opener confident of being able to dismiss him

Alagappan Muthu in Kolkata20-Sep-20172:10

I play with the confidence that I can dismiss Warner – Kuldeep

As an opening batsman, there is a target on David Warner’s back, not least because he has the capability to win games on his own. It has grown steadily larger – he is the vice-captain of the Australian team in India, and is one of the two most experienced players in the line-up. The value of his wicket is huge, and India’s left-arm wristspinner Kuldeep Yadav is coming to collect it.Warner was Kuldeep’s first Test wicket. He became the first of two Kuldeep wickets in the Chennai ODI, and they’ve had a couple of other run-ins in the IPL that didn’t quite end well for Australia’s power-hitting opener. Based on that record – four wickets in five matches – Kuldeep is raring for the Kolkata game to begin so they can resume the rivalry.”If you are consistently getting the better of a player, you do think that you want to get him out as soon as you can,” Kuldeep said at the pre-match press conference on Wednesday. “You’re not under pressure while bowling to that player. It’s the same for Warner; I think that he puts pressure on himself while facing me, thinking that I might get his wicket. I enjoy bowling at him, since I do so without taking any stress and along with the confidence that I can dismiss him. I come up with a proper plan as to how I should go about doing that. That’s what I’ve been doing and, hopefully, I get to dismiss him as many times as I can in the remaining four matches.”Being a left-hand batsman, Warner might not have faced a left-arm spinner turning the ball away from him too often. Plus, he is excellent against spin in one-day cricket – only 19 times has he fallen to a slow bowler, averaging 51 and scoring at a rate of 86. His presence, alongside Steven Smith, who will be playing his 100th ODI on Wednesday, has ensured India remain wary.”If you dismiss the No. 1 and No. 3 of any team, they’re bound to come under pressure,” Kuldeep said. “Our plan is to always get Warner out as soon as possible, since he’s one player who can change the game, irrespective of the situation.”Steven Smith is also like that. If he hangs in there for 30 to 40 overs, the opposition comes under pressure, since he can strike any time and stretch the score into a big one. During the Tests [earlier this year], he played with us after reading us very well, and also had a good idea as to how and when he should rotate the strike. It’s a bit tough going up against him, since he prefers balls pitched in line with the leg stump. He can both play big shots and get singles. I feel it’s going to be tough while bowling at him.”Kuldeep felt that playing against such batsmen would be good for him as a young bowler still finding his feet in international cricket, especially considering they have been asked to lead the spin attack with R Ashwin in England and Ravindra Jadeja yet to play for India since the Test series in Sri Lanka.”We’re now faced with quite a bit of responsibility. Two young spinners are in the team, and everyone’s expectations are high. There may even be times when we end up wicketless. It’s an experience for us. The better we perform now, the easier it will be for us in the future. If we make a partnership, it will be good for both us and Indian cricket. There’s quite lot left for us to learn. We’ll mature series by series.”A part of that process, it appears, is figuring out how to bowl dry too. “Wristspinners are always an attacking option for the captain. Sometimes I feel that you have to play a defensive game, give a single away so that you can attack the other batsman. That’s why I’m working on that other side of this as well, be it in the nets, or off the field by watching videos.”Kuldeep also credited his seniors at the Ranji and IPL level for his growth. “When I joined Kolkata Knight Riders, there were many quality spinners around, such as Sunil Narine, Piyush Chawla , and Shakib [Al Hasan]. Brad Hogg joined us in the next year. It was a good experience for me, especially with someone like PC [Chawla] , who was also with me during the Ranji Trophy.”It’s good to have senior players tell you what to do next, along with giving you a read of the batsman you’re up against. I’ve discussed quite a few things with PC , and I’ve learnt a lot of things from him over these three-four years. I’ve also matured since my Under-19 days, considering that after that level, you’re up against senior batsmen. In that period, you need someone to guide you and tell you how to handle situations. And PC did that for me.”India’s preparation was hurt by persistent rain, and they could only train indoors on the eve of the match. Virat Kohli, Ravi Shastri and B Arun had a brief look at the pitch in the company of Sujan Mukherjee, the chief curator at Eden Gardens, before the entire outfield was placed under covers as a precaution. They were peeled off at half past three local time as the groundstaff took the time to roll the surface in, while CAB president Sourav Ganguly watched.

Former Australian batsman Leah Poulton will take over the role of High Performance Coach for Cricket Australia’s Female Program from Cathryn Fitzpatrick

ESPNcricinfo staff24-May-2017Former Australian batsman Leah Poulton has been appointed the High Performance Coach for Cricket Australia’s Female Program to oversee the development of the country’s up-and-coming female cricketers. She will take over from former Australia fast bowler and coach Cathryn Fitzpatrick in July.Poulton, 33, will also oversee the Australia A women’s squad, the Under-15 and Under-18 programmes, and the inaugural female National Performance Squad. She said the growth of the women’s game has led to the demand of additional coaching resources at a youth level.”Cathryn Fitzpatrick was in this role before me on a part-time basis and I think it was inevitable that it would turn full-time, because it is such an important space and there are so many great things happening in the female pathway,” Poulton said. “Australia’s had such a great history and that doesn’t happen by accident, we have to put a lot of work into our pathway to help cultivate those emerging players. It’s not a case of creating them, the talent is there and it’s about creating the right environments where they can thrive.”Following her retirement at the end of the 2014-15 season, Poulton made her foray into coaching as Cricket NSW Female Pathway Manager before she stepped into the role of assistant coach with the NSW Breakers and the Sydney Thunder in the Women’s BBL. Recently, she returned from a study trip to the USA with fellow state and WBBL coaches Julia Price, Lisa Keightley and Shelley Nitschke and said she was looking forward to passing on some of her learnings.”We went over there and explored a lot of high performance environments, looking at the way they did things. It’s always great to learn from different areas, there’s lots of synergies between sport and business,” she said. “It was excellent to hear their take on things and to see if they’re doing things a little bit differently and what we can learn from them.”Poulton captained the Australia Under-19 side before featuring in two Tests, 48 ODIs and 40 T20Is, and played more than 100 domestic matches for New South Wales.