While backing his current partner, Warner also said he would have full faith in Will Pucovski

Daniel Brettig23-Nov-20201:08

Don’t need to break something that’s working – Warner

David Warner has depicted Joe Burns as his most effective opening partner since Chris Rogers, while conceding that the Australian selectors will ultimately have the final say over whether he is partnered by the Queensland batsman or the rising star of Victoria’s Will Pucovski.The selection chairman Trevor Hohns made an extraordinary admission when announcing the Test squad, stating that Warner would be given a say in the choice of the opening combination after he and Burns provided a strong platform for the Test team last summer, following plenty of top-order misadventures during the 2019 Ashes series.Hohns’ words in turn made Warner’s still more significant than usual, and while he couched his views with the usual caveats about the selectors, he left little doubt that he felt Burns was good value for his spot, particularly in terms of how the pair have complemented each other as players in a way he had not experienced since Rogers retired in 2015. Warner and Rogers opened together in 41 innings between 2013 and 2015, averaging 51.32 with nine century stands; Warner and Burns average 50.55 from 27 stands including six century partnerships.ALSO READ: Chappell – This Australia-India series might hinge on who makes the better selection decisions“I know you guys would like an answer. For me to be honest I’ve had over a dozen opening partners and it’s never been quite stable. I think they gave me the opportunity to ask me who I feel comfortable with, and when I was batting with Rogers we had a great partnership and…we bonded really well together out in the middle,” Warner said. “I think with me and Joe, we’ve done that over the past few years.”I’ve known Joe for a long time, we’ve played out in the middle together, we know each other’s game very well, but it’s upon the selectors to pick the right person to fit that position. If they go the way of Will, he’s batting fantastic, he’s been in and out of the Test squad and he removed himself with some sad times with his mental stuff. So for him he’s in the right frame of mind at the moment, it probably is an opportunity for him to come into the team.”But as we know it’s harder to get out of this team than get in, so whoever they go with, I’ll be well and truly happy with, as long as the person who comes in does their job. At the moment I didn’t think Joe did anything wrong last summer, we put on some great partnerships, averaged over 60 and that’s what you want from your opening partnership. It’s upon the selectors to pick their team and I’ve got to be happy with that and embrace it.”Joe Burns and David Warner run between the wickets•Getty Images

Reflecting on how he and Burns had gelled, Warner said that their ability to start with a long partnership together in the first Test of the summer against Pakistan in Brisbane, after Warner’s personal hell during the 2019 Ashes, had further reinforced what was already a strong relationship.”I haven’t spoken to Cracker [Hohns] yet, no, if they come to me and ask me, I’ll speak honestly,” Warner said. “But with me and Joe we’re good friends off the field as well, so having that support when you’re out there, I know last year we were both quite nervous when we were going into that first Test and then for him coming back into that team, not getting the opportunity in England, there’s a few nerves that float around.”But we obviously know how to get off strike with each other, but that’s just normally what you do anyway as a cricketer – if Will’s there he’s not going to do anything different. So it’s about building that bond and relationship and we’re the two that go out there together all the time when we face up, so you’ve got to have that bond and partnership.”Asked about criticism of Hohns’ suggestion he would be consulting Warner from the former Test captains Ricky Ponting and Mark Taylor, the opener said that his views were formed soundly on the basis of recent performance from the duo, even if Warner has been able to put far more individual runs on the board than Burns.”They’re two guys who have captained their country. I’m sure they would have had a say in their teams as well. But obviously they were captains,” Warner said. “As I see it, I don’t think it’s just like the selectors are going to come and ask me. It’s just more of a preference in the sense of the amount of time I’ve spent with Joe Burns in the middle.”Obviously we won a lot of games last year, so for me, you don’t really break something that is working, which is obviously the opposite to when things aren’t going your way and you’ve got to try and find solutions to problems. That’s the only thing I can sort of back that answer up with. As you say, when you get into the Australian team, you have to put numbers on the board and Will is an exceptional talent and a great player and he’s in the right mind-frame at the moment.”This next sort of A game is going to be the tell-all. It could well be the bat-off for that position. It’s going to be interesting to see but the selectors will pick the team.”Warner also reflected on how, at the age of 34, his game had evolved into a lower risk – though still free scoring – mode of batting. “I’ve just recently turned 34, so my days are numbered, when you’re in the 30s. There’s obviously a risk element but there’s a cricket smarts element to it as well,” he said. “For myself, it’s about getting off to a good start and taking calculated risks in that middle-overs period if we’re talking about 50-over games.”I think last year was probably the most disciplined I’ve batted in Test match cricket as well. I faced a lot of balls in the games and gave myself a lot of time. I really took pride in the last 12-24 months, to apply that discipline and you keep learning as you get older.”You don’t always have this game down pat. You’ve always have to keep thinking outside that square and bowlers have different ideas and ways of trying to get you out. You’ve got to be on top of your game to be able to adapt to that.”

In response to KP’s 300, Central Punjab ended day two on 212 for 8

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Jan-2021
Usman Salahuddin and Saad Nasim struck half-centuries for Central Punjab in their response to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s 300 in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy final, but Irfanullah Shah’s four-wicket haul helped KP end day two as the happier of the two teams. CP ended the day at 212 for 8, with 88 runs behind KP.Shah made the early inroads for KP, removing both the CP openers Muhammad Akhlaq (4) and Ali Asif (8) cheaply. Salahuddin then repaired the early damage, adding 64 and 48 with Mohammad Saad and Saad Nasim respectively. While Saad fell for 26, Salahuddin and Nasim went onto make half-centuries. However, Nasim’s dismissal for 55 off 109 balls triggered a late slide as CP lost four wickets for a mere 22 runs. Shah played a part in it, claiming the wickets of wicketkeeper-batsman Ali Shan and captain Hasan Ali, who was dismissed off what turned out to be the last ball on the second day. Incidentally, Ali had got KP’s Sajid Khan off the last ball on the opening day.Shah was backed up by Khalid Usman, who came away with 2 for 29 in his 13 overs. Khan and Arshad Iqbal, meanwhile, picked up one wicket each for KP.Earlier in the day, KP added 15 runs to their overnight 285 for 7 before they were bowled out. From 266 for 4, they fell to 300 all out, with Ali returning the innings’ best figures of 4 for 62.

Allrounder admits chances of playing are “quite slim” despite eagerness to fill Ben Stokes-shaped hole

Andrew Miller12-Jan-2021Had it not been for an ill-starred bout of car-pooling en route from Birmingham to Heathrow Airport, Chris Woakes might well have been sizing up a golden opportunity to extend his all-round credentials against Sri Lanka, and offer England the seam-bowling balance they will be so sorely lacking in the absence of Ben Stokes.Instead, having spent seven days in quarantine as a precautionary measure following Moeen Ali’s positive test for Covid-19, Woakes has effectively ruled himself out of contention for Thursday’s first Test at Galle. And while an adherence to social-distancing protocols during his minibus trip with Moeen ensured he avoided picking up the virus himself, he concedes that a surfeit of caution was understandable after finally being “let back out into the wild”.”I’ve had no symptoms for myself thankfully,” he said. “Once I started self-isolating you do start to worry, because you don’t know down the line at what point those symptoms are about to start. Every time I woke up in the morning I was double-checking myself to make sure I didn’t have any symptoms and thankfully I haven’t had any. Obviously I’ve had four negative tests in the last week. It’s become the norm now, but not having four tests a week would be ideal to be honest.”Woakes was released from his hotel room on Saturday, and had his first outing in the nets on Monday. However, given the oppressive, humid conditions that England are set to face in their two back-to-back contests in Galle, as well as the challenge of a four-Test campaign in India next month, he is prepared to accept that time is not on his side this week.”It was a tricky seven days,” Woakes said. “People are quarantining all around the world at the minute – I don’t know how the guys did it going to Australia and doing 14 days – but it’s good to be back amongst the group and obviously good to be back out on the training field, doing what I’m supposed to be doing, which is what I’m here for.”It is not as though Woakes needs to prove his credentials to the England management after a stellar 18 months – starting with his role in England’s World Cup victory, of course, but culminating in a series of telling displays with bat and ball across formats and conditions. He claimed a matchwinning five-wicket haul against West Indies at Old Trafford and a vital unbeaten 84 at the same venue against Pakistan, while he also showcased a new-found confidence overseas in his two appearances against New Zealand and South Africa last winter.And given the allrounder-laden methods that secured England a 3-0 series win on their last completed tour of Sri Lanka in 2018-19, Woakes would have been the obvious candidate to slot in at No. 7 in Stokes’ absence. Instead, he will have to settle for getting his training up to speed, and ensuring he is ready for the next opportunity, which could come quickly given the likely need to rotate England’s seamers in a tightly packed winter itinerary.Related

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“I only had my first bowl yesterday, when the guys have been bowling for nearly a week before I have,” Woakes said. “Which obviously frustrates my side of things. It puts me back a little bit and the chances of me playing are probably quite slim. I was certainly a little bit sore this morning but today’s session was much better and I felt better for it. So I’m getting there but probably need a little bit more in the tank.”We haven’t played much cricket leading into this either, so it would be a potential injury risk, definitely more so in these conditions,” he added. “It is hot, it is sweaty and it does take a little bit of time to get used to that. I suppose the only bonus we do have is in conditions like this we don’t bowl as much as fast bowlers – generally short spells – and I have that on my side a little bit.”I was turning up on tour hoping to push for a place in the starting XI. Whether that happened was obviously out of my control but with no Stokesy here, it emphasises that allrounder role which myself or Sam Curran could fill to balance the team, and I was looking forward to trying to push my case.”I am still obviously looking to do that. Whether this week comes too soon, that’s probably likely, but going forward I can hopefully force my way in. It’s a little frustrating that I can’t do that for this Test, but I have got my head round the situation.”Asked about the hardships that he and his fellow locked-down cricketers were facing in the current climate, Woakes responded: “Yeah, of course. We’re here to play cricket. Don’t get me wrong, there are times you start thinking ‘is this is a bit over the top?’ but everyone is going through the same: we’re all learning day by day. And the most important thing is we’re getting the opportunity to play cricket.”I think it is worth it, I think we’ve got no other choice at the moment as well. We’re very fortunate at the fact use can still travel and play international sport. There are lot of people desperate to see sport so we’re part of that entertainment business and we’ve got a job to do.”England are getting used to a lifestyle of cricket behind closed doors, but the coming week may feel particularly unusual given how ubiquitous the scene at Galle has become on previous England tours – with the Unesco-heritage Dutch fort providing one of the sport’s most iconic backdrops, and the stands habitually packed with England fans and flags.”It’s a lovely ground isn’t it?” Woakes said. “I was here on the last tour when we won 3-0, and I remember the Barmy Army travelled in high numbers. It’s a great place to play as an England cricketer because you get great support, the ground’s packed, there’s people sat on top of the fort and it’s just very picturesque.”It’s going to look a lot different this week with no one around and no crowd, which is a shame. But we know everyone will be supporting us from back home, which is great.”

Experienced commissioner will lead appointment process for other members

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Mar-2021The ECB’s board have appointed Cindy Butts as chair of the newly-established Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket, which was unveiled in November as part of the board’s measures to drive out discrimination and increase diversity across the game.Butts, whose other roles include serving on parliamentary committees and membership of Kick It Out’s board of trustees, will work with the ECB board to “finalise the terms of reference” for the commission, and will lead the appointment process for other roles within it.The commission “will independently gather and assess the evidence of inequalities and discrimination of all forms within cricket and identify the actions the ECB will need to take to tackle these issues”, according to an ECB statement.The creation of the commission was announced in late 2020 following claims of institutional racism within the English game by several high-profile figures, including former England international Michael Carberry, the former Yorkshire spinner Azeem Rafiq, and the former Test umpire John Holder. Only this week, the ECB was accused of ignoring the Rooney Rule when appointing a new elite performance pathway coach.Ian Watmore, the ECB’s chairman, said: “The creation of the Independent Commission for Equity in Cricket is an important step in our ambition to make cricket a game for everyone. Cindy is extremely well-qualified to lead this work and will bring empathy, rigour and practical experience to the deliberations and recommendations of the commission.”Butts said: “I’m excited to be bringing together my lifelong love of cricket with my passion for equity and inclusion, to lead this work for the ECB. Over the coming months we will be looking to hear from a wide range of people who share a love of cricket, whether as spectators, players, coaches or administrators both present and past.”While it’s important we preserve the best of cricket’s traditions, it is also important we identify ways it can evolve and innovate to attract and welcome diverse communities who can make an impact in all areas and at all levels of the game.”I am committed to ensuring that cricket has a bright future in this country.”Brenda Trenowden, the senior independent director of the ECB, will lead the board’s engagement with the commission. “Promoting equity, diversity and inclusion across the game is critical to the success of our game-wide strategy, Inspiring Generations, and our purpose of connecting communities through cricket,” Trenowden said.”Whilst we have taken a number of positive steps forward over recent years, we recognise that there is still a lot of work to do in this area. The commission will play a valuable role in helping us to really listen and understand the reality of the inclusion challenges in the game, so that we can focus our efforts to ensure that more people can say that cricket is a game for me.”

Atherton terms on-field soft signal for outfield catches “nonsense” as TV umpire remains unconvinced about the catch but has to stick with “out” signal

Nagraj Gollapudi, Matt Roller and Varun Shetty18-Mar-20216:14

Does cricket need to rethink the soft-signal rule?

The decision to cut short an enterprising maiden international innings from India batsman Suryakumar Yadav has thrown open the debate about the validity of the on-field umpire’s soft signal for outfield catches, with India captain Virat Kohli suggesting after the match that there’s no realistic way for an on-field umpire to judge low catches from a distance.Off the second ball of the 14th over of the fourth India-England T20I in Ahmedabad, Yadav, on 57, pulled England left-arm seamer Sam Curran into the deep where Dawid Malan initially appeared to have taken a low catch at deep-square leg. England’s fielders celebrated as umpire KN Ananthapadmanabhan gave a soft signal of “out”.That decision sparked instant debate as third umpire Virender Sharma remained unconvinced about whether it was a clean catch, despite reviewing Malan’s pouch multiple times for nearly four minutes. Sharma repeatedly described the evidence as “inconclusive”, and subsequently, as per the rules, was forced to stick to Anathapadmanabhan’s soft-signal ruling.Kohli: Why not an ‘I don’t know’ call for the umpires?
Speaking to broadcaster Star Sports at the post-match presentation, Kohli said that the soft signal during Yadav’s innings cost India some runs during their innings, even if they were happy getting to a total of 180-plus. Kohli called that passage “strange” and said the rules around that part of the game need to be more clear than the “grey areas” that they currently are.According to the ICC’s playing conditions, the soft signal is a “visual communication by the bowler’s end umpire to the third umpire (accompanied by additional information via two-way radio where necessary) of his/her initial on-field decision prior to initiating an Umpire Review”. “Look, there was that instance that happened during the Test series where I was next to Jinks [Ajinkya Rahane] when he clearly caught the ball, but then I wasn’t sure and I asked Jinks, he wasn’t sure,” Kohli said. “And then we went up straightaway. If it’s a half-and-half effort and the fielder’s in doubt, I don’t think the umpire from square leg would see that clearly and, you know, make a conclusive call. So the soft signal becomes that much more important and it’s a tricky one. I don’t know why there cannot be a sort of “I don’t know” call for the umpire as well. Why does it have to be a conclusive one? Because then that [dictates] the whole decision completely. Similar to the argument we have about umpire’s call as well.””I think these are some things that can really, really change the whole course of the game, especially in a big game. We are on the other side [of the result], but there could be another team bearing the brunt of this. So you want these things ironed out as much as possible, keep this game simple, keep it linear, have one set of rules which are not grey areas which we don’t understand sometimes, and sometimes we do. So it’s not ideal, especially in a high-pressure game which has a lot of things riding on it, a lot at stake. It’s important to have a lot of clarity on the field.”Atherton: Soft signal for boundary catches is nonsense
Former England captain Michael Atherton, who is one of the commentators for Sky, the UK broadcaster for the T20I series, was critical of the soft signal for outfield catches, calling it “nonsense”.”The third umpire had a long look at that and the key thing here – and it is a thing I have a slight problem with – is the on-field umpire’s call is out and therefore the third umpire made exactly the right call: he said it is inconclusive, I’ve got to go with the on-field umpire’s call which was out,” Atherton said immediately after Yadav was ruled out. “But how you have a soft signal from the umpire standing in the middle for a boundary catch is beyond me. I don’t how the on-field umpire can see that when the fielder makes a catch on the boundary.” India wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik, doing commentary for Sky, echoed Atherton’s thoughts. “I’m absolutely with Athers on that,” Karthik said. “I don’t understand this: the [on-field] umpire is not sure whether it’s taken or not [cleanly] hence he goes to the third umpire. And then why give a decision [soft signal] at all? Allow the third umpire to take the call. Another grey area of cricket along with the DRS umpire’s call – these are things always up for debate.”Related

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According to Atherton the soft signal should be valid only for rulings on catches in the 30-yard circle, where the on-field umpires have a better view of events. “I can absolutely understand why an on-field umpire gets a good view of the catch inside the inner circle, but when it is out on the boundary, 50 metres away, there’s no way that the standing umpire can see whether Dawid Malan has caught that. So the soft signal for boundary catches is nonsense. You [should] just send it upstairs and let the third umpire make his call. There’s no way that the standing umpire can see that: he has not got X-ray eyes from 50 yards away.”The frequency of the controversial rulings on outfield catches due to soft signals has resulted in the topic being debated at the most recent meeting of the MCC’s World Cricket Committee, on which sit some eminent former international captains including Ricky Ponting, Kumar Sangakkara, Rahul Dravid and Sourav Ganguly, and umpire Kumar Dharmasena who stood in the 2019 World Cup final.”The committee felt that the soft-signal system worked well for catches within the 30-yard fielding circle, but that catches near the boundary often left the umpires unsighted,” the MCC said at the time in a media release. “It was proposed that, for such catches, the on-field umpires could give an ‘unsighted’ instruction to the TV umpire, rather than the more explicit soft signal of ‘out’ or ‘not out’.”

The India batsman injured his left shoulder while fielding in the ODI series opener against England

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Mar-2021Shreyas Iyer was taken for scans after subluxating – partially dislocating – his left shoulder when fielding in the first ODI against England in Pune.Iyer picked up the injury in the eighth over of England’s chase, when he dived at extra cover to prevent a boundary, and was ruled out of the rest of the match along with Rohit Sharma, who had been hit on the elbow while batting. Sharma’s injury wasn’t deemed serious enough to require scans.Iyer’s injury will leave the Delhi Capitals sweating too, as the IPL will start soon after the ongoing ODI series, on April 9, and Iyer is their captain. It can take weeks – even a surgery in certain cases – to recover from such an injury. The difference between subluxation and a complete dislocation is that in case of a subluxation, the two bones that form a joint are still in contact with each other.There were two other injuries during the Pune ODI, with England batsman Sam Billings hurting his collar bone when diving at the boundary and captain Eoin Morgan splitting a webbing in his right hand when stopping a crisp cover-drive from Hardik Pandya. Both men went on to bat during the chase.

BCB also on lookout for shortened quarantine for Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman

Mohammad Isam08-May-2021BCB have to navigate through a delicate period in the coming two weeks to hold the Bangladesh-Sri Lanka ODI series later this month. Although the board officially announced the dates of the three matches, the country’s Covid-19 rules could influence a couple of crucial factors.From a cricketing point of view, it is not yet clear whether Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman will have to do a 14-day quarantine, which is the ongoing government directive for anyone arriving from India. They are currently in two separate hotels in Dhaka, having arrived on May 6. If they have do the two-week isolation, they will only have three days to prepare for the first ODI on May 23.So far, Shakib has cleared the first of multiple Covid-19 tests with a negative result while Rahman awaits his result. BCB’s chief executive Nizamuddin Chowdhury said that they are working on shortening their quarantine, but it is a longer process for sportspersons.”We are working step by step,” Chowdhury said. “Those coming from India have a different, more difficult protocol. We are hopeful of hearing a good result. One has to keep in mind that we are not getting any special privilege. International cricket has a different protocol during these times. Generally a person who arrives in a passenger aircraft has to do one test and follow the government protocol. They don’t have to do another test.”Those taking part in sporting events have to follow a particular protocol, take those tests at the prescribed time. They can only take part when they are negative in those tests. It is not the same protocol for general people.”The other quarantine that might put them in an even bigger difficulty is for the broadcast crew. The BCB doesn’t have a permanent media rights holder since their agreement with Gazi TV expired last year. They have invited fresh bids for a two-year deal on April 28, for which the bidding process will take place on May 17The Bangladesh-Sri Lanka ODI series is part of the deal, which means whoever wins the bid, will technically have five days to bring the crew. Usually the BCB and Bangladeshi companies hire crew from India and South Africa. Individuals arriving from these countries have to go through 14-day quarantine, according to local health protocol.”This is definitely a challenge. We are trying to work with the government protocol to bring the crew. We are also looking at other options. We might bring crew from other countries where cricket is being currently played,” said Chowdhury.He however ruled out any possibility of the series being rescheduled. “There is no possibility of the series being rescheduled. Of course there are challenges,” he said.The good news is that the Bangladesh players who arrived from Sri Lanka on May 4, can take part in the training camp at the Shere Bangla National Stadium after a negative Covid-19 test.”We have the green signal about the cricketers from Sri Lanka. We are hopeful that they can join training within a day or two after testing negative,” said Chowdhury.

Lizaad Williams, Kyle Verreynne, Keegan Petersen, Sarel Erwee and Marco Jansen also part of Dean Elgar’s line-up

ESPNcricinfo staff18-May-2021Uncapped offspinning-allrounder Prenelan Subrayen and fast bowler Lizaad Williams, who recently made his T20I debut, have received maiden call-ups to the South Africa Test squad for the two-match series against West Indies in St Lucia in June. Kyle Verreynne, Keegan Petersen, Sarel Erwee and Marco Jansen are the other uncapped picks in the line-up of 19, to be led by Dean Elgar for the first time.

South Africa’s schedule

In West Indies
June 10: 1st Test
June 18: 2nd Test
June 26: 1st T20I
June 27: 2nd T20I
June 29: 3rd T20I
July 1: 4th T20I
July 3: 5th T20I

In Ireland
July 11: 1st ODI
July 13: 2nd ODI
July 16: 3rd ODI
July 20: 1st T20I
July 22: 2nd T20I
July 25: 3rd T20I

The white-ball squads, now led by Temba Bavuma, for the fixtures against West Indies and Ireland has also been announced, and included few surprises, with Sisanda Magala and Williams, who were blooded in the recent series against Pakistan, retained. A total of 19 players will travel for the series of five T20Is in the Caribbean, and Keshav Maharaj will join the squad for the games in Ireland afterwards.Subrayen, 27, finished third in the wicket-takers’ list at the 2020-21 CSA Franchise 4-Day Cup with 19 strikes in four matches at an average of 18.89, and best returns of 6 for 24. That helped him get into a spin-bowling pack that also includes Maharaj, Tabraiz Shamsi and George Linde as frontline spinners.Related

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“The Caribbean [South Africa are travelling there for a bilateral tour in 11 years] is well-known for its low and slow wickets and we have ensured that we have chosen the personnel needed for every eventuality on this very important excursion,” explained CSA convenor of selectors Victor Mpitsang in a press statement. “While there aren’t any (World Test Championship) points to play for, it is still of vital importance for South Africa to produce winning results through a steadily growing and high-performing cricket pipeline.While the tour of West Indies runs from June 10 to July 3 – two Test matches to start with, followed by five T20Is – the series of three ODIs and three T20Is in Ireland begin on July 11 and end on July 25.”The historic tour to Ireland is crucial for points towards our qualification for the 2023 Cricket World Cup and preparation for the T20 World Cup later this year,” Mpitsang added. “This is the start of our road to these trophies and every tour will see us field our absolute best sides.”The team has been in a rebuilding phase for a while now but we are satisfied that the return on investment is going to show itself sooner rather than later. We have to trust the process that has been put in place and support our team while they find themselves and their way. These are truly exciting times in South African cricket, with an exciting new leadership group that is determined to return the team back to its winning ways.”Squads
Test: Dean Elgar (capt), Temba Bavuma (vice-capt), Quinton de Kock (wk), Sarel Erwee, Beuran Hendricks, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Anrich Nortje, Keegan Peterson, Kagiso Rabada, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lizaad Williams, Prenelan Subrayen, Marco Jansen.
T20Is and ODIs: Temba Bavuma (capt), Quinton de Kock (wk), Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, George Linde, Sisanda Magala, Keshav Maharaj (only for Ireland), Janneman Malan, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen, Kyle Verreynne, Lizaad Williams.

Fabian Allen bursts into top ten among T20I bowlers as West Indies take 3-0 lead against Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Jul-2021Pakistan captain Babar Azam has consolidated his position as the No. 1-ranked batter and Ireland captain Andy Balbirnie has made a gain of 14 spots to move to No. 36 after the latest week of ODI fixtures in England and Ireland. Fabian Allen, meanwhile, entered the top ten among T20I bowlers after an impressive run against Australia at home, where West Indies are 3-0 ahead in the five-match series.Azam’s career-best 158 in the final ODI against England at Edgbaston on Tuesday, which earned him eight rating points, kept him 16 clear of Virat Kohli, who is at second place.

Full rankings tables

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• Click here for the full player rankings

Following England’s series sweep, there were two major movers low down in the tables. James Vince, who hit 102 – his first century for England across formats – rushed up 85 spots to No. 113 among batters, while Saqib Mahmood, who picked up nine wickets in the three games, gained 89 places to be 63rd among bowlers.Ireland’s historic maiden ODI win over South Africa in their second fixture, after the first game was washed out, also led to some of their players making progress. Balbirnie’s 65 and 102 in the two games gave him a career-high 584 points as he gained 14 places to be ranked No. 36, while William Porterfield (up five spots to 74th) and Harry Tector (up 37 to 90th) among the batters, and Craig Young (up four to 78th) and Josh Little (up 22 to 86th) among bowlers moved up.T20Is: West Indians make big gains
It wasn’t just Allen, who rose 16 positions, but there were a number of West Indians who made big strides up the tables as their team won the third T20I against Australia.Related

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Of the bowlers, Obed McCoy, who has five wickets from two matches – including 4 for 26 in the first T20I – has jumped 15 spots to No. 38. while Sheldon Cottrell and Dwayne Bravo, with two wickets apiece so far, have risen by two places to 22nd and seven places to 37th, respectively.Meanwhile, Chris Gayle, Andre Russell, Shimron Hetmyer and Lendl Simmons – all among the top five run-getters in the series at the moment – had their own gains too. While Gayle and Russell were tied at No. 103 after rising 22 and 38 ranks, respectively, Hetmyer has raced up to No. 62 by climbing 37 places and Simmons moved to No. 64 after gaining six spots.Tests: Mahmudullah finishes at No. 44
Bangladesh beat Zimbabwe by 220 runs in their one-off Test in Harare, and Mahmudullah, who announced midway into the match that it would be his last in the format, gained 19 spots to get to 44th place after his 150* in the first innings. Liton Das, who scored 95 in that innings, rose 15 places to get to No. 55.The bowling star for Bangladesh was Mehidy Hasan Miraz, who finished with a match haul of 9 for 148. He gained six places to get to No. 24.And though Zimbabwe lost the game, captain Brendan Taylor’s 81 and 92 pushed him seven spots up to No. 28, while Blessing Muzarabani’s 4 for 94 in the first innings took him up to No. 45 among bowlers, a gain of six spots.

Shanaka on chat with Dhawan: “We get advice from our former players too, but this was a chance to hear from a current player with a lot of experience”

Andrew Fidel Fernando30-Jul-2021Among the themes of India’s tour of Sri Lanka was the chumminess of the two sides even in difficult bio-bubble situations. Hardik Pandya went viral in Sri Lanka when he was seen singing their national anthem. He had also given fellow seam-bowling allrounder Chamika Karunaratne – who describes Pandya as a role model – one of his bats. At another point in the series, India coach Rahul Dravid was seen having a brief conversation with Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka.And finally, ahead of the third T20I, Shikhar Dhawan was addressing a whole bunch of Sri Lanka players as they huddled in the outfield. After his team had sewn up the series against a depleted India side, Shanaka revealed a little of what he had hoped to get out of the interaction with Dhawan.”Shikhar is a player who has played [for] 10 years, and has a lot of experience,” Shanaka said. “What he has to say about making game plans, and situation handling is something that’s important for all of us to hear – for me as a captain, and the rest of the team.Related

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“He’s someone who’s mastered even his breathing pattern. I thought if we could speak with a player like him, our players would get some sort of knowledge about how to raise our game. We get advice from our former players too, but this was a chance to hear from a current player with a lot of experience. I’m grateful to him for that chance.”But Shanaka mentioned that the conversation with Dravid earlier on in the series was more general.”I talked with Dravid about how the India players approach their innings,” he said. “They are really positive from the moment they get into the ground, and I asked him a lot of the questions we also asked Shikhar.”Sri Lanka were ultimately able to win the T20I series 2-1, thanks in no small part to legspinner Wanindu Hasaranga, who claimed seven wickets and maintained an economy rate of 5.58 across his 12 overs in the series. During the course of the past week, he also became the second-ranked T20I bowler in the world.”He’s a player who has matured really quickly,” Shanaka said of Hasaranga. “I don’t think No. 2 is enough for him, he’s someone who should be at No. 1. I think he’ll get there quickly.”