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Australia’s uncertain top order was again exposed leaving them with a tough task to chase 279

Tristan Lavalette10-Mar-2024Matt Henry and Ben Sears tore through Australia’s struggling top-order late on a dramatic day three at Hagley Oval, but Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head halted New Zealand’s push to leave the second Test on a knife’s edge.Needing 279 runs to clinch the series 2-0, Australia were in disarray at 34 for 4 with Steven Smith, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne and Cameron Green falling cheaply. But Marsh and Head produced a steadying 43-run partnership as Australia reached stumps at 77 for 4 and they need a further 202 runs for victory.Related

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Having taken 15 wickets in three innings in the series, Henry loomed as New Zealand’s main hope and he had a big caught behind appeal off Khawaja on his first delivery turned down.But Henry soon had his first breakthrough when he trapped a shuffling Smith lbw for 9. Smith reviewed at the last second, but the decision was upheld and completed his modest series output of 51 runs at 12.75 as the spotlight intensifies on his shift up the order.Sears continued his eye-catching debut after entering the attack in the ninth over and on his second delivery he had Labuschagne edging to first slip only for Daryl Mitchell to drop a catch low to his right. But it did not cost them a run with Labuschagne two balls later unable to control a lifting delivery as he offered a return catch to Sears.New Zealand were on a roll when Khawaja edged Henry to Tim Southee, who held a stunning take low to his left in the slips. Australia’s collapse was complete when Green chopped on to a pumped-up Sears, who celebrated with gusto.Coming to the crease after consecutive ducks, Marsh smashed a first-ball boundary and was unperturbed by the situation as he bravely counterattacked. Australia’s hopes largely rest with Marsh and Head, who was forced to play defensively before the close.In what had been a bowler-dominated series, batting was looking easier against the older ball with most of the damage being done with the new ball.Australia have only chased 279 runs or more 13 times before with the most recent being in Edgbaston last year during the Ashes.Daryl Mitchell and Rachin Ravindra put on 123 runs for the fourth wicket•Associated Press

They had earlier restricted New Zealand’s lead after Pat Cummins bowled superbly. A 53-run seventh-wicket partnership between Glenn Phillips and Scott Kuggeleijn put New Zealand in position to gain a lead of more than 300 runs. But they fell apart and lost 4 for 23 to be bowled out for 372 shortly after tea.Cummins was the standout as he finished with 4 for 62, while Nathan Lyon found sharp turn after the interval to rip through the lower order with three wickets.Wicketkeeper Alex Carey equalled an Australian record with ten dismissals for the match.After being dismissed for just 162 on day one, New Zealand had fought back ever since to sniff just their second Test victory against Australia in the last three decades.New Zealand had appeared to be in a position of strength when Mitchell and Rachin Ravindra combined for a 123-run fourth-wicket partnership in the highest stand of the series for either team.But the match turned shortly after Australia took the second new ball, with Josh Hazlewood nicking off Mitchell for 58 before Ravindra fell for 82 to Cummins’ first ball of a new spell when he was caught behind off a brilliant short-of-a-length delivery.New Zealand slumped further after Tom Blundell suffered a horrendous dismissal when he hit a short-and-wide delivery from Green to cover with Labuschagne completing a fine catch diving to his left.For the second time Pat Cummins struck with the first ball of a spell•Getty Images

Green sheepishly covered his mouth after the dismissal, but he was soon left frustrated when Labuschagne spilt Kuggeleijn after diving low to his left at third slip. Kuggeleijn made them pay with a valuable 44 before being the last batter dismissed.Having captured just two wickets in the series before this innings, Cummins bent his back and again showed his knack for making things happen on flat surfaces.After bowling a terrific spell late on day two, where he claimed the key wicket of Kane Williamson for 51, Cummins took the only wicket of the morning session when he dismissed opener Tom Latham for 73.If they do end up falling short, New Zealand might rue four of their specialist batters not converting fifties into centuries. Resuming at 134 for 2, Latham eyed a first Test century against Australia having overtaken his highest previous score of 63.But his bid for an elusive century against Australia ended when Cummins, bowling from around the wicket, cut through him with a delivery that reared sharply off the surface. It appeared to take Latham on the back pad and there was only a half-hearted appeal from behind the wicket, but Cummins wisely decided to review after consulting with Carey.Ravindra and Mitchell took over with a supreme partnership, forcing Cummins to revert to Head and Labuschagne either side of lunch as Australia used eight bowlers. Just before the second new ball, Labuschagne unfurled his seamers and focused on bowling short with speeds reaching 130 kph. The tactic almost proved a masterstroke when Ravindra top-edged just short of long-leg.After that somewhat amusing over, Australia took the second new ball and it did the trick, but the twists and turns continued to set up a grandstand finish.

After a two-month break following the IPL, he has bowled 9.4 overs across the first two ODIs against West Indies

Shashank Kishore31-Jul-2023Hardik Pandya has declared he’s ready to shoulder a significantly higher bowling workload as he builds towards the 2023 World Cup, but is still a “turtle, not the rabbit.”Hardik, currently in the Caribbean with India’s limited-overs squad, has had two full months off since the IPL finished. In this period, he “switched off” for a month and then underwent a three-week physical conditioning at the National Cricket Academy, where there was an equal emphasis on fitness as there was on skill.Ahead of the series, he had said he’d informed the team management of his keenness to play only if he could contribute with the ball too.Related

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At IPL 2023, Pandya bowled 25 overs across 16 games for runners-up Gujarat Titans. In the Caribbean, Pandya has so far bowled 9.4 overs across two ODIs. In the first, he opened the bowling but was required for just three overs in a game where only 45.5 overs were bowled. In the second, he went wicketless in 6.4 overs as West Indies levelled the series with a six-wicket win.After the second ODI, Hardik, who stood in for the rested Rohit Sharma, spoke about how he is slowly increasing his bowling workload keeping in mind the 50-overs World Cup. After the ongoing ODI series, Hardik’s next 50-overs engagement is likely to be the Asia Cup from August 30. In between, he’ll lead India in the T20I series against the West Indies.”My body is fine. I have to bowl more overs and get my workload up for the World Cup,” he said. “I’m a turtle right now, not the rabbit and hoping everything goes right as the World Cup comes on.”On Sunday, head coach Rahul Dravid touched upon the need to look at the bigger picture, without being influenced by short-term results. India have chosen to hand opportunities to fringe players to try and give them game time in the absence of regulars who are recuperating from injuries.Hardik, though, is excited about the decider. “To be honest, you want to be going 1-1 to the third game as it’ll be more challenging and exciting,” he said. “They will be tested; we will be tested now that the series stands 1-1. The next game will be exciting for the viewers as well as the players.”With the bat, Hardik hasn’t been able to hit top gear in the two outings so far. In the first, he walked in at No. 4 with India needing 61 but was caught short at the non-striker’s end for 5 when Yannic Cariah deflected an Ishan Kishan shot onto the stumps. In the second ODI, he was part of a full-blown top-order collapse after a 90-run opening stand.He made 7 off 14 balls and was out pulling a short ball from Jayden Seales to midwicket. A ball later, India lost Sanju Samson as they lost 5 for 23. They were eventually bowled out for 181 in 40.5 overs.”We didn’t bat the way we were supposed to,” Pandya said. “The wicket was better than it was in the first game. Everyone barring Shubman (Gill) hit fielders and got out. Disappointing, but there are many things to learn.”

Return of Ben Stokes means that two-spinner line-up could be maintained for Chennai Test

George Dobell26-Jan-2021England are confident of having Ollie Pope and Moeen Ali available for the first Test of the series against India.Both men missed the 2-0 series win in Sri Lanka due to injury and illness respectively. But, with the bulk of the squad flying to Chennai on Wednesday, the England management are confident they will be available for the Test starting at Chepauk on February 5.Pope and Moeen were both part of the tour party in Sri Lanka. However, Moeen was forced into extended quarantine after testing positive for Covid-19 upon arrival – he subsequently suffered mild symptoms and was obliged to sit out the entire series – while Pope was there to continue his rehabilitation having undergone a second bout of surgery on a shoulder injury. He was able to bat – and bat very well – in the warm-up game at the start of the tour, but has not been considered fit enough to field.”I’m hoping Ollie will be able to throw his hat in the ring for that first Test,” England head coach, Chris Silverwood, said from Galle on Tuesday. “The sooner we can get him back the better it is for us.”Moeen should be available for the first Test, too. He’s been through everything he needs to go through and is progressing nicely.”It is likely to be a much-changed England side that plays in that first Test. Rory Burns, who has been absent on paternity leave, has every chance of returning at the top of the order, while Ben Stokes will slot into the middle-order – probably in place of Dan Lawrence – and Jofra Archer may well replace Mark Wood in the fast bowling role. That would allow England to play an attack that included Stokes as one of three seamers and still retain two spinners. Moeen, who scored two Test centuries during England’s last tour to India, could replace Dom Bess as off-spinning all-rounder.Ollie Pope looks on in training•Gareth Copley/Getty Images

Zak Crawley and Dom Sibley could yet retain spots in the top three with Jonny Bairstow having been rested for the first couple of Tests. Although neither looked especially comfortable against Sri Lanka’s spinners, England will also be mindful that India have an outstanding array of fast bowlers. Sibley and Crawley might, therefore, he required to see off the new ball in relatively traditional fashion.Despite England proving surprisingly reliant upon their seamers in the victory over Sri Lanka, Silverwood has hinted they will resist the temptation to field a seam-dominant attack. Instead, he suggested England would probably continue to field two spinners.”We’ll have to look at the wicket when we get there, but history may suggest you’ll be looking at two spinners,” he said. “We have to have a look at how the rest of the bowling attack will look beyond that. I’m open to ideas all the time. We’ll look at the stats, what has been successful at that ground before and then take the lead from it.”England’s preparation for the India series is far from perfect. The players arriving from Sri Lanka will be obliged to spend six days in their hotel rooms serving a quarantine process, which only allows three full days of training ahead of the game.Related

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Many of them will, at least, have played some cricket in Sri Lanka. The players arriving from the UK – which includes Stokes, Archer and Burns – have not had that advantage. But they have been in India for a couple of days already and will be able to train from Saturday. That allows them five days of practice ahead of the first Test. Both groups of players will be obliged to return three negative Covid-19 tests during their quarantine period. “If they’re fit and ready, if they look good, they’ll be available for selection,” Silverwood said.In a perfect world, Silverwood would have the likes of Bairstow (who misses the first two Tests), Jos Buttler (who will miss the last three) and Mark Wood (who also misses the first two) available to him for the full four-match campaign. But he has no complaints about the policy of rest and rotation and asks that England supporters also try to empathise.”We’ve got to look after our people,” Silverwood said. “We’re spending a lot of time looked in hotel rooms inside bio-secure bubbles and it’s not easy. It’s good that we’re being proactive and looking after people. I’m perfectly happy with the system we’re using.”So I’d just ask them [supporters] to understand why we do what we do, we’re resting in the best interests of that player and equally to get the best out of them long term.”

Kane Williamson made 51 but was the second wicket for Sam Curran as England took charge

The Report by Alan Gardner22-Nov-2019England’s bowlers struck telling blows during the afternoon and evening on day two in Mount Maunganui, as they strove to get the better of a New Zealand side that has been close to unbeatable on their own patch. Kane Williamson made a polished half-century but when he became the fourth wicket to fall, late in the evening session and with his side still more than 200 runs behind, England were in the ascendancy.Sam Curran was the bowler to strike, his second wicket of the day, and the closing stages saw New Zealand battling to avoid further losses as Jofra Archer tested the middle of the pitch in fading light. England’s total of 353, their highest in the first innings of an away Test since Melbourne 2017-18, was underpinned by Ben Stokes’ 91 but came accompanied by a sense of missed opportunities; however, their application in the field ensured it was New Zealand nervously casting around for a candidate to deliver a significant statement with the bat.While New Zealand’s bowlers deserved immense credit for dragging the tourists back after the slog of day one, they were aided by England reverting to type during a morning collapse of 4 for 18 in 21 balls. Tim Southee provided the spark, extracting Stokes when he seemed hell bent on a third century in his last five Tests – though even here, with the batsman advancing malevolently to try and flay through the off side, came the hint of an unforced error.

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England subsequently lost their last six wickets for the addition of 76 runs, Southee and Neil Wagner claiming five of them. New Zealand might have wrapped up the innings before lunch, only for Jos Buttler to counterpunch effectively during a ninth-wicket rearguard with Jack Leach.Still, with Stokes joining Joe Denly and Rory Burns in failing to convert half-centuries and England falling short of the 400-run mark that had been touted as par on a docile Bay Oval pitch, the stage was apparently set for New Zealand’s more-accomplished accumulators to show the visiting side how it’s done. That was not quite how things panned out, as two teams that have been impossible to separate in the white-ball formats this year found themselves in another gripping tussle.The key wicket, indisputably, was that of New Zealand’s captain, Williamson. Although England managed to remove both openers, and Ross Taylor eventually lost patience against a sustained bouncer attack from Archer and Stokes, the sight of Williamson ticking along to an 84-ball half-century would have reassured home supporters that all was well.However, the very next ball, delivered by Curran, sent a ripple around the ground and forced wholesale re-evaluations of what might be expected from the rest of this Test. Williamson was left reeling by unexpected bounce from a length – clear indication of some unforeseen variability in the surface – as the ball ballooned off his glove and Stokes plunged forward to gratefully take the catch at second slip.It was Curran, too, who made the opening incision after New Zealand had begun their reply midway through the afternoon session, winning an lbw decision against Tom Latham in his first over; replays suggested an inside edge but the batsman chose not to review.Latham’s opening partner, Jeet Raval, rarely looked convincing during his time at the crease, eventually falling to his fourth risky heavy at Leach after a 54-run stand with Williamson. Taylor then top-edged Stokes to deep midwicket before the demise of Williamson left New Zealand looking expectantly to Henry Nicholls, a man who has averaged more than 60 since the start of 2018. Nicholls was shaken by a hefty thump to the helmet from Archer in the penultimate over of the day, but was cleared to continue after an examination from the physio.Tim Southee bowled an incisive spell•AFP

Things had looked much brighter for New Zealand after a productive start to the day. Stokes and Ollie Pope extended their overnight partnership to 74 before Southee intervened with three wickets in 11 balls. Although initially held back, once Southee had pried an opening he harnessed the conditions expertly to rip through England’s middle order.Stokes picked up regular boundaries as he moved into the 90s, only for Taylor to brilliantly atone for dropping him on day one. With New Zealand having shifted their cordon wide, Taylor had to react instinctively to a chance flying through regulation first slip but clung on one-handed high to his right.Operating in the high 120s kph but showing just why New Zealand’s attack is so adept when there is a hint of swing on offer, Southee struck twice more in his next over. Pope, who successfully reviewed an lbw decision in the third over of the morning, played some eye-catching shots to move past his previous Test best of 28, made on debut against India in 2018, but was lured into flashing at a delivery that left him enough to clip the edge through to BJ Watling.Curran was then bamboozled by a full inswinger, opting to review despite ball-tracking showing that the delivery would have crashed into middle and leg stumps. Archer negotiated the hat-trick ball uncertainly, and then fell in the following over as Trent Boult found his outside edge. From the relative comfort of 277 for 4, England had stumbled into trouble.With Leach nearly running out Buttler off the first ball he faced, England were in serious danger of folding. But Buttler hinted at his destructive capabilities when casually lofting Southee back down the ground, then launching Boult high over long-off for six in the last over before lunch. His stand with Leach had yielded 52 valuable runs when Buttler picked out Mitchell Santner at deep point – perhaps partly deceived by the fact Santner had left the field to sign autographs and only hurdled the boundary boards to return to the field of play as Wagner ran in to deliver the ball.

The incident could end up attracting the attention of match officials, already alert to such moments in a series that is not short of them

Firdose Moonda in Port Elizabeth09-Mar-20184:02

Holding: Rabada needs to control himself a little bit

Kagiso Rabada’s shoulder brush with and send-off of Steven Smith could end up attracting the attention of match officials, already alert to such moments in a series that is – even at just over one-Test old – not short of them. Nathan Lyon, David Warner and Quinton de Kock have all been sanctioned after the first Test, though potential consequences for Rabada could be graver. The match referee, Jeff Crowe, is expected to make a ruling on the incident on Saturday morning.Rabada found reverse swing shortly before tea and angled a length ball in at middle stump towards a shuffling Smith, who was struck on the back pad, in front of middle stump. Smith was given out on-field by Kumar Dharmasena and, in celebration, Rabada continued in his follow-through, shouting “Yes, yes,” in Smith’s direction. With Smith directly in his line of movement, Rabada’s shoulder made contact with that of the Australian captain.Smith reviewed but began walking as soon as replays showed where he had been hit. Rabada went on to take four more wickets, claiming five in the space of 18 balls, either side of the tea interval, to scythe through Australia’s middle order, and made considerable use of the reverse-swinging ball. He also had a small word with Mitchell Starc, the last of the five wickets to fall.Rabada came into this fixture already on notice – he currently has five demerit points to his name and another three will see him sit out two Tests; a tally of eight demerit points within a 24-month period attracts such a penalty as per ICC rules.Rabada’s rap sheet dates back to February last year when he picked up three demerit points and a 50% match fee fine after a shoulder shove to Sri Lanka’s Niroshan Dickwella in an ODI. He then earned a another demerit point in July, when he swore at Ben Stokes after dismissing him at Lord’s during the first Test between South Africa and England. Rabada missed the second Test at Trent Bridge as a result; four demerit points lead to a ban of one Test or two limited-overs games, whichever comes first, while eight demerit points result in double the penalty. Each demerit point stays on a player’s record for a period of 24 months, staying active even after the four-point threshold is broken.This year, Rabada added a fifth point to his name when he gave Shikhar Dhawan a send-off during an ODI at St George’s Park last month. Replays showed Rabada waving goodbye to Dhawan and then telling him to “f*** off”.While the punishment for both his verbal transgressions amounted to only one demerit point, physical contact, which is deemed inappropriate and deliberate, falls under a Level 2 offence. If found guilty of such a charge, a minimum of three demerit points are applied. That would take Rabada to eight, which would mean he misses the rest of the Australia series.This series has already been marred by three instances of players committing code of conduct offences. Lyon was fined 15% of his match fee and received one demerit point for dropping a ball close to AB de Villiers when he was run out in Durban, Warner was fined 75% of his match fee and earned three demerit points for his role in the stairwell saga that has dominated headlines between Tests, and de Kock was fined 25% of his match fee and earned one demerit point for his part in the same.