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Rain washed out the opening day of the Test series between Sri Lanka and Pakistan, without a ball bowled or even a coin tossed in Galle

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jun-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsThe ground remained under covers right through the day•AFP

Rain washed out the opening day of the Test series between Sri Lanka and Pakistan, without a ball bowled or even a coin tossed in Galle. The pitch and outfield remained under covers right through the day, and the umpires officially called off play after an inspection at 1.45pm.By then, it was clear no play would be possible. Persistent showers had kept both teams in their hotel, and the heavy cloud cover had ensured the groundstaff kept the covers on even during dry intervals.Play will begin 15 minutes early on the four remaining days, with the middle session extended by another 15 minutes.

Ramnaresh Sarwan will take over Leicestershire’s four-day captaincy from Matthew Hoggard for next season

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Dec-2012The career of Matthew Hoggard, the former England bowler, would appear to be drawing to a close after Leicestershire announced Ramnaresh Sarwan would take over the four-day captaincy for next season.Hoggard, who joined Leicestershire in 2010, will enter the final year of his contract in 2013. He has now relinquished the captaincy in all three formats and, at the age of 35, his playing days could be numbered after a 16-year career. He described the change as the “right time to be handing over the reins”.Hoggard led Leicestershire to a third T20 title in 2011 but only took 24 first-class wickets at 28.79 in 2012 – the second-lowest haul since his first full season in 1998 – and stood down from the one-day captaincy in July, with Josh Cobb taking up the role.Cobb will now be vice-captain of the Championship side, which will be led by Sarwan, who committed himself to Leicestershire by extending his one-year deal to a three-year arrangement.Chief executive, Mike Siddall, said it was an opportunity to “put a succession plan in place for the future”, with head coach Phil Whitticase adding: “I’ve really enjoyed working with Matthew over the past three years, especially during our successful T20 campaign. It is important for everyone to get behind Ronnie as we look to take the club forward.”

Haroon Lorgat, the ICC CEO, has said the unwillingness of the 10 Full Members to adopt a qualification system for the 50-over World Cup failed to pave the way for a 10-team event in 2015

Nagraj Gollapudi24-Nov-2011.The ACSU does not have the powers to conduct its own sting operations, Haroon Lorgat has said•AFP

Haroon Lorgat, the ICC CEO, has said the 10 Full Members were unwilling to go through a qualification system for the 50-over World Cup, blocking plans for a 10-team event in 2015. “The main objection was that a 10-team event required Full Members to qualify,” Lorgat told ESPNcricinfo.He said Australia, New Zealand and England had initially supported a 10-team event with qualification but, following strong protests from the Associates, it was decided unanimously to do away with the idea for the next edition.The ICC, before its annual conference in Hong Kong in June, had agreed at a meeting in April, to stick to just 10 teams in the 2015 World Cup but at Hong Kong, the ICC and its board members agreed to a 14-team tournament, preceded by a qualifying league for the Associate teams.”Their belief was that there was a long-standing expectation that Full Members automatically play in the World Cup and therefore needed sufficient notice before we can change this practice. This is why the 10-team World Cup will start from 2019,” Lorgat said.However, Lorgat insisted a 10-team World Cup was the way forward. “I still believe that a 10-team World Cup on a qualification basis for all members would be a better event. This was part of the proposals to strategically restructure international cricket and was designed to protect and promote all three formats.”During his tenure as the CEO of the ICC, Lorgat faced many challenges. Among them was convincing the members of the ICC to institute the World Test Championship. Lorgat, who said earlier this month that the Test Championship will not be held before 2017, had strongly supported the idea of having a three-year qualification process during which all ten teams played each other, before the top four participated in a play-off. The Test Championship was meant to replace the Champions Trophy, the ICC’s other 50-over event. However, monetary concerns expressed by ICC’s broadcasting partner ESPN STAR Sports*, who have an agreement with the governing body until 2015, presented an obstacle. It did not help that the ten Full Members, once again, did not come out in support.”A balanced mindset would have been a lot better,” Lorgat said when asked if the members could have looked beyond short-term monetary gains. “Money is clearly an important factor but it should not be the only factor. We looked at different models of evaluating the revenue implications but the fact of the matter is that the value of an inaugural Test Championship comprising four teams and fewer matches is not viewed commercially the same as the Champions Trophy comprising eight teams.”Lorgat said the ICC had thought about renegotiating the broadcasting deal wherein they would pay ESPN STAR Sports the money it owed for the Champions Trophy as a measure to go all-out in staging the Test Championships, but found no support from the ICC board. “This was considered but not supported by the ICC Board and the Chief Executives Committee.”Evidently the ICC executive, of which Lorgat was the head, had limited powers and could not quell the might of the board members. “It is not ideal when you are not sufficiently empowered to undertake or implement what you know is correct and must be done. But I understood that when I entered the ICC and it is why the ICC Board rather than the executive would be held accountable for the future of the game.”The spot-fixing scandal during the Lord’s Test between England and Pakistan in 2010 was another major challenge. An ICC tribunal found Pakistan’s Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir guilty of spot fixing and banned them for various durations before they were sentenced to imprisonment after a separate trial at the Southwark Crown Court. The scandal raised questions about the ability of the ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit to fight corruption and prompted calls for the ICC to invest in sting operations to tackle fixing.Lorgat, however, said the ACSU’s jurisdiction did not allow it to conduct sting operations. “We cannot carry out sting operations or arrest people or seize property. That is not within our remit or powers. This was made clear by the Members when the ACSU was established.”Corruption is a serious challenge and we must not be complacent but remain vigilant to combat this menace.”*ESPN STAR Sports is a 50:50 joint venture between Walt Disney (ESPN, Inc.), the parent company of ESPNcricinfo, and News Corporation Limited (STAR)

New Zealand’s Northern Knights will boast an envious roster after signing Herschelle Gibbs, Brad Hodge and David Warner for this summer’s domestic Twenty20 tournament

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Oct-2010New Zealand’s Northern Knights will boast an envious roster after signing Herschelle Gibbs, Brad Hodge and David Warner for this summer’s domestic Twenty20 tournament. Only two overseas players are allowed per match so the trio of big-hitting batsmen will be rotated during the event.Gibbs, who has played 90 Tests and 248 ODIs for South Africa, should be available from December 12 once his home domestic commitments are finished, while Victoria’s Hodge is scheduled to appear in the first four games. Warner will be able to fly across for half the side’s fixtures, although his batting time will be reduced if he is picked in New South Wales’ Sheffield Shield side.David Cooper, the Northern Districts chief executive, said finalising the unique arrangements took some time. “We were also looking to make sure we had players who were the right fit for the team’s brand of cricket and its culture,” he said. “We’re thrilled that the upshot is that Northern Knights fans will have the chance to see all three of these big names.”Cooper also hopes to have Hamish Marshall as an overseas player from January. Marshall played 13 Tests and 66 ODIs for New Zealand, but has to sign as a foreigner due to him representing Gloucestershire in English county cricket.

Luke Ronchi blasted a half-century that delivered the second loss in four days for Victoria

Cricinfo staff05-Dec-2009Western Australia 5 for 279 (Voges 64, M Marsh 60, Ronchi 57*) beat Victoria 8 for 277 (White 60, McDonald 52) by 5 wickets

ScorecardLuke Ronchi arrived late to drive Western Australia home•Getty Images

Luke Ronchi blasted a half-century that delivered the second loss in four days for Victoria. After being defeated by Queensland on Wednesday, the Bushrangers went down in the final over in Bunbury when Ronchi lifted Darren Pattinson for six to long-on to take the hosts to a five-wicket triumph.The result was in doubt until Ronchi arrived to muscle his way to 57 from 35 deliveries, finishing the contest with three balls remaining. Adam Voges, with 64, and Mitchell Marsh (60) had set the platform before Ronchi arrived to make sure of the win that puts them back to third on the table.Cameron White’s 60 and Andrew McDonald’s 52 set up Victoria’s total after most of their main batsmen contributed. McDonald opened and gave his side a strong start, following Chris Rogers’ departure in the eighth over, with a run-a-ball half-century before Brad Hodge (42) and David Hussey (36) chipped in.The Bushrangers were guided through the second half by White, who had three sixes in his 80-ball occupation, and a late push came from Matthew Wade’s 19 from 10 deliveries. Ashley Noffke led the hosts with 3 for 43 on his return from an ankle problem while Brad Knowles was rewarded with two wickets.

Australia go 4-0 ahead on the Women’s Ashes points tally after two ODIs in the multi-format series

Alex Malcolm13-Jan-2025In front of a packed Shane Warne stand at the Junction Oval, Alana King produced an Ashes spell for the ages in the mould of her hero to inspire Australia to an extraordinary victory over England, defending 180 in a crazy finish that had to be seen to be believed and handed the hosts a four-point lead after two matches in the multi-format series.Defending a meagre 181, the lowest ever defended in an Ashes ODI, King took 4 for 25 with some magical legspin bowling. She was well supported by Kim Garth who took 3 for 37 while Ash Gardner bowled a frugal spell of 10 overs taking 1 for 23.King was awestruck by the ovation she got from the Shane Warne stand following her extraordinary spell.”I played a lot of cricket here growing up and even started off my professional career at Victoria, so this place will always be pretty special to me,” King said. “Having the Shane Warne stand now, yeah, it was pretty surreal to be quite honest, but more happy to get the win.”As good as Australia’s bowlers were, England’s batters were enormous contributors to their own downfall with a mix of woeful decision-making and execution ensuring Australia could afford to drop four catches, have Annabel Sutherland withdrawn from the attack for two no-balls above waist high in the 48th over, and still win by 21 runs.England’s meltdown was complete after Amy Jones forgot to run off the second free hit in the over, that had to be bowled by Tahlia McGrath, which left No. 11 Lauren Bell exposed at the start of the 49th. She was bowled first ball to leave Jones stranded on 47.England’s stunning collapse outshone Australia’s earlier in the day after the home side lost 8 for 49 to be bowled out for 180 with Alice Capsey taking a career-best 3 for 22 and Sophie Ecclestone claiming 4 for 35.Ellyse Perry made a match-winning 60 but she was one of Capsey’s three victims as Australia slumped from 131 for 2 to be bowled out in 44.3 overs. It was the first time Australia had been bowled out at the Junction Oval in nine completed ODIs there. The 12 wickets taken by spinners across the match is the joint-most in Australia in ODIs. The rarity of Australia’s stunning collapse was highlighted by the fact that their No. 11 Darcie Brown scored her first ODI run, having previously batted just once in 22 matches.While Australia’s collapse was epic and statistically far more impressive, it ended up being second-best to England who are now in a perilous situation in the series. The collapse came in two parts having reached 68 for 2 after Garth removed both openers.Heather Knight and Nat Sciver-Brunt looked in control with a calming 41-run stand. But just like Sydney, both butchered promising starts to leave England stuttering. Knight closed the face trying to work Gardner square and popped up a simple return catches off the leading edge.King then weaved her magic, bowling Danni Wyatt-Hodge with a ball that drifted into middle and leg and ripped into the top of off, leaving the batter with a Mike Gatting-esque look on her face.Sciver-Brunt then following Maia Bouchier and Knight’s lead, closing the bat face against the turn to pop an easy leading edge to cover.England steadied briefly, with Jones and Capsey sharing a 36-run stand. But it came off an asphyxiating 75 balls. Capsey was given out lbw but reprieved via an inside edge. Jones was then dropped at backward point, before finally the pressure told as Garth beat Capsey’s inside edge to finally get her out lbw.King’s last over was mayhem. Charlie Dean tried a lap scoop and succeeded only in popping an easy catch to Mooney who moved behind Alyssa Healy from slip. Ecclestone nicked a big spinning legbreak next ball to leave King on a hat-trick and England eight-down.It should have been nine three balls later. Lauren Filer was dropped at a catching mid-on by Garth to deny King five.Jones then farmed the strike and England still had a chance. Filer was dropped a second time with Healy unable to hold a spectacular one-handed effort off Garth.But as with any great collapse, it was not complete without a calamitous run out. Filer obliged after Jones tried to lap-scoop Megan Schutt. Brown made an exceptional diving save at short third. Filer ran all the way down while Jones never moved. Healy relayed a throw from Brown to Schutt before Filer could get close to safety.England were left nine down needing 34 from 42 balls. Bell then managed to survive 15 balls for one run but equation became 28 from 18 before Sutherland’s 48th seemed to give England hope. But in the chaos of Sutherland’s over, Jones forgot how many balls were left and King forgot she had dropped a free-hit in the deep. Jones’ amnesia was more costly.Earlier, Australia’s collapse could have easily cost them the match. They were cruising after being sent in at 131 for 2 with Perry looking imperious having passed 50 for the 38th time in her ODI career, barely offering a false shot in the process.Ecclestone, the No.1 bowler in the world, had made an indifferent start with the ball after oddly being held out of the attack until the 18th over, having not been brought on until the 15th over in the first ODI in Sydney.She struck second ball, trapping Phoebe Litchfield lbw for 29 as the left-hander yorked herself trying to reverse-sweep.Ecclestone then overattacked to Perry and Mooney for three overs before trapping the left-hander lbw. England needed a review to get the initial not out decision overturned.Capsey then scythed through the middle-order with her part-time offspin after replacing Charlie Dean at the pavilion end. She dropped a relatively straightforward caught and bowled chance offered by Sutherland. But it did not cost much as Sutherland failed to keep another drive down, picking out Knight at cover.Ellyse Perry brought up her half-century with back-to-back boundaries•Cricket Australia via Getty Images

Perry then got bogged down. She had raced to 51 from 52 balls, striking five fours and two sixes. She never went longer than 14 balls without finding the rope and struck a six and two fours in the space of five balls to bring up the milestone.But having motored to 51, she scored just nine runs from her next 22 balls with Ecclestone and Capsey putting the squeeze on having taken two wickets at the other end.In the 29th over, Capsey delivered four consecutive dots to Perry, never leaving the stumps and nearly trapping her lbw with the fourth ball. She sneaked through with the fifth as Perry jammed her bat against her pad but missed the ball. She was initially given not out but England were successful with another review. Capsey added to her haul when Gardner left a huge gap between bat and pad trying an ambitious drive on the up and lost her off stump.Knight seized the moment and brought Filer back on to the remove the out-of-form Tahlia McGrath with sheer pace. Filer had previously looked like Bambi on ice in her opening two spells, slipping and tumbling to the deck in her delivery stride nearly half a dozen times as she conceded 34 in five overs.Ecclestone returned to clean up the tail alongside Bell who also finished with 2 for 25 including the early wicket of Healy.

As many as eight spinners will make the trip, including Rehan Ahmed and Josh De Caires

Vithushan Ehantharajah17-Oct-2023The ECB has announced a spin-heavy England Lions training squad for a winter training camp in the UAE next month. Ten players have been drafted into the second-tier set-up for the first time.With the England men’s Test side travelling to India for a five-match series in January, eight spinners have been selected for this trip. These include Leicestershire’s Rehan Ahmed, who made his Test debut against Pakistan last winter, and Middlesex offspinner Josh De Caires, earning his first Lions call after taking 27 Division One wickets at 25.59.Other notable inclusions are Tom Lawes, whose 30 dismissals helped Surrey to the County Championship, and Somerset’s James Rew, who struck five centuries among 1086 runs, which earned him the PCA Young Player of the Year award. Fast bowlers Matthew Fisher, Matthew Potts, Josh Tongue and Brydon Carse, all of whom have international caps to their name, will also attend the camp, which runs from November 16 to December 7.The aim of the three weeks is as much to reward performances over the last season as it is to understand the depth of England’s pathway. Those selected are deemed “high potential players” and will focus primarily on developing red-ball skills, closely aligned to England’s future requirements ahead of the subcontinent tour at the start of 2024. Lancashire’s Tom Hartley and Sussex’s Jack Carson – left-arm orthodox and offbreak bowlers, respectively – are two such players who could be considered for the Test tour. Hartley made his England debut during the recent ODI series with Ireland, while Carson took 31 wickets this season.The focus on spinners in the short term is vital given the lack of options following Moeen Ali’s Test retirement at the end of the Ashes, and with Adil Rashid focussing solely on white-ball cricket. Lead spinner Jack Leach is continuing his recovery from a back stress fracture sustained at the start of the summer.Players and counties were consulted around selection, with several players not selected either because of pre-existing commitments or other opportunities overseas deemed more beneficial to their individual needs.England men’s performance director Mo Bobat said, “At the end of an enjoyable season and after close dialogue with players and counties, it’s exciting to confirm our group that will travel to Abu Dhabi for a training camp later this year.”The camp will provide an excellent opportunity for the players to develop their red ball game and allow us to learn more about them as people and players.”In selecting the group, we’ve carefully considered England’s short and long-term needs in Test cricket, particularly with sub-continent challenges in mind.”It’s quite a large group and it’s great that we can support player development in this way for what should be a fun camp.”The coaching and mentoring group accompanying the party will be announced in due course.England Lions training group: Rehan Ahmed (Leicestershire), George Balderson (Lancashire), Shoaib Bashir (Somerset), Josh Bohannon (Lancashire), Brydon Carse (Durham), Jack Carson (Sussex), James Coles (Sussex), Josh De Caires (Middlesex), Matthew Fisher (Yorkshire), Tom Hartley (Lancashire), Lyndon James (Nottinghamshire), Tom Lawes (Surrey), Dan Mousley (Warwickshire), Callum Parkinson (Durham), Matthew Potts (Durham), Rishi Patel (Leicestershire), Ollie Price (Gloucestershire), James Rew (Somerset), Ollie Robinson (Durham), Josh Tongue (Nottinghamshire), John Turner (Hampshire)

Runs galore at Grace Road as Clarke, Hameed make fifties in reply to 440

ECB Reporters Network13-Jun-2022Nottinghamshire 373 for 5 (Duckett 145, Clarke 89, Hameed 59) trail Leicestershire 440 (Ackermann 116, Hill 104, Patterson-White 3-37) by 67 runs Ben Duckett made 145 and there were half-centuries for Joe Clarke and Haseeb Hameed as Nottinghamshire built a strong response after Leicestershire posted a season’s-best 440 all out on day two of their LV= Insurance County Championship match at the Uptonsteel County Ground.Clarke made 89 after he and Duckett had shared a partnership of 198 for the third wicket on a pitch that offered the home side’s bowlers little margin for error, but they made inroads in the final session to leave Nottinghamshire 373 for five at the close, still 67 runs behind..Duckett’s century was his second of the season and his best so far, although it ended with a somewhat bizarre dismissal.He accumulated 21 boundaries, indulging his penchant for pulls and cuts when offered even a modicum of width, but hitting straight balls to the fence too. Yet after delivering such a high-quality performance, he was bowled by left-arm spinner Callum Parkinson attempting a switch hit.Up to then he had brought only frustration to the Leicestershire bowlers, although earlier it had been Nottinghamshire’s turn to suffer as Leicestershire, having slept on what was already their highest score of the season, scored another 100 runs at five an over before surrendering their last two wickets, collecting five batting bonus points for the first time this season.Nine down when Chris Wright fell in the fifth over of the day with the fourth point only just secured, it was an admirable effort led by all-rounder Ben Mike, who hit 78 off 100 balls as he and last man Will Davis added 89, a record for Leicestershire’s 10th wicket against Nottinghamshire.Mike cracked sixes off James Pattinson and Brett Hutton in going past fifty for the third time this season as the fifth point was claimed with eight balls to spare. Davis finished unbeaten on 32 with Mike running up nine fours before falling to a well-judged catch at long on.Yet Nottinghamshire could not have set about their response in a more purposeful way, scoring at almost six an over for the first 90 minutes of the afternoon session, with barely an over allowed to go by without at least one boundary.Ben Slater feathered a catch behind off a good, straight ball from Wiaan Mulder but Hameed looked in superb touch. He raced to fifty off 48 balls and it was a real surprise when he was bowled by Mike offering no shot.Clarke was quickly into his stride and although the scoring slowed down a little in the run-up to tea, it was only a brief respite. Duckett, having gone to the break at 98, cut Mulder for his 17th boundary shortly afterwards to move into three figures from just 112 balls. You would not have bet against him doubling his score and he was visibly cursing himself after giving his wicket away.Lyndon James may feel he did likewise after waiting so patiently as next man, caught off a miscued pull after facing just three balls. Nottinghamshire played out the remaining hour in much more circumspect fashion.Steven Mullaney is unbeaten on 37 but Nottinghamshire suffered another setback when Clarke, eyeing up his first hundred of the campaign, edged Parkinson to slip.Leicestershire’s Louis Kimber will take no further part in this match, having been replaced by Nick Welch as a concussion substitute. Kimber was struck on the helmet while batting on Sunday and, though he was able to complete his innings, was ruled out after an examination on Monday morning.

It was a distraction earlier, but “now we can accept and admit that we are in the final,” Virat Kohli says

Nagraj Gollapudi06-Mar-2021A comprehensive 3-1 Test series victory over England has confirmed India’s spot in the final of the inaugural World Test Championship, where they will meet New Zealand. The WTC final is scheduled between June 18 and 22 at a yet-to-be-named venue in England – the ICC is expected to make the final call soon.At the start of this Test series, both India and England were in with a shot of making the final. They both needed to win the series, of course, and win it well enough to cross Australia’s points percentage of 69.17. From India’s point of view, a win by at least a 2-1 margin was good enough.However, a big 227-run defeat in the series opener in Chennai, played out on a flat pitch, increased the pressure on Virat Kohli’s team. It also meant that both Australia and England remained in the fray.With a win worth 30 points and a draw 10 points, India could not afford to lose another match in the remaining three Tests, and that’s exactly what they ensured – wins by 317 runs in the second Tests in Chennai followed by victories by ten wickets and an innings and 25 runs in Ahmedabad gave them a 3-1 margin of victory. And that meant overtaking Australia to the final with 72.2 percentage points, which also helped them top the points table, clear of New Zealand at 70.Kohli: ‘Can’t wait to be part of WTC final’The inaugural cycle of the WTC was devised by the ICC in order to make Test cricket more appealing by providing context to every series played. As per the original schedule, the top nine teams – so no Zimbabwe, Ireland or Afghanistan – would each contest a total of six bilateral series, three at home and three away, with a maximum of 720 points overall at stake. However, the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted that plan, and caused many series to be postponed or cancelled, forcing the ICC to devise a new system where teams would be ranked “in order of percentage of points” earned.Related

• Ganguly reveals India v New Zealand WTC final to be held in Southampton

• India are the best Test team irrespective of WTC standings

• Washington Sundar: A batsman blossoming in a bubble of serene self-assurance

• Kohli: 'Rohit's 161 defining moment in India coming back in the series'

• Ravi Shastri: India were like 'zombies' in first Test, 'kick in the backside' drove series triumph

Kohli called the change “confusing” before the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, and this week, on the eve of the final Test in Ahmedabad, he was lukewarm, saying India did not need the extra motivation – of qualifying for the final – to do well, and that it was a “distraction”. It’s important to remember, though, that India ended up needing to do more to get to the final than most other teams, since they were one of only two teams who weren’t affected by cancellations (England are the other team).Having qualified for the final, though, Kohli was in a more positive mood, saying that he could not wait for the showpiece match. “Now we can accept and admit that we are in the final,” Kohli told the host broadcaster. “It was more of a distraction till now for us because we are a side that is very committed to play Test cricket and all these extra things can be a distraction for us.”There was never a question of commitment or whether we are going for a win or not. It did become a distraction for us in New Zealand, but from then on it was just focus on one game at a time and now we are in the final, which we can’t wait to be a part of.”India ended up needing to do more than most other teams to get to the final, since they were one of only two teams that weren’t affected by cancellations•BCCI

Ashwin: ‘To get to the WTC final not a joke’India’s main match-winner, R Ashwin, who won an India-high eighth Player-of-the-Series award for a haul of 32 wickets and one century, echoed the thoughts of team-mate Ishant Sharma, who had said that for a one-format player like him, winning the WTC final would be akin to winning the World Cup final.Responding to Graeme Swann’s query on Saturday about whether beating Australia in Australia was a bigger achievement than winning against England at home, Ashwin said, “Beating Australia in Australia has to be the pinnacle. But with the context of what’s happened here, because of the World Test Championship final, we had to win. We had to do what we had to do.”So getting there is probably a result of what we’ve been as a team over the last eight-ten years. And an opportunity to get to the World Test Championship final is not a joke. For a lot of players inside the dressing room, who aren’t playing white-ball cricket, let’s take Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Ishant Sharma, myself for the time being, for all of us the World Test Championship final is as good as the World Cup. So it means a lot to us.”Shastri: ‘You’ve got 520 points, you deserve playing that final’India won five out of their six series, only losing 2-0 in New Zealand. For Ravi Shastri, reaching the WTC final was a culmination of many years of hard work and preparation.”To be on top of the table in the World Test Championship is two-and-a-half-years of work,” Shastri told the host broadcaster. “And for those two-and-a-half years to be successful, it’s been six years prior to that. And, to be honest, the boys just took one series at a time. They weren’t really bothered about the World Test Championship.”Let me be honest here, because the goalpost gets shifted every time. We were heading the table and some rule came on percentage system, when you’re not even playing. But never mind all that. You’ve got 520 points, you deserve to be on top of the table and playing that final.”

Seamer replaces Lockie Ferguson in New Zealand squad for final two T20Is

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Nov-2019Trent Boult will try to be aggressive and take wickets in his first T20I appearance in more than 18 months, as he comes back into the New Zealand side for the fourth game of the series against England in Napier.Boult has not played a T20I since the final of the tri-series against Australia and England in January 2018, having been rested and rotated to manage his workload, but replaces Lockie Ferguson for the final two games of the ongoing series.”There’s a series on the line here at the moment,” Boult said, “and obviously I’m eager to come in and put my best step forward. It’s a format that I haven’t been involved in much at the international level over a period, but I’m looking forward to coming in and trying to do my thing.”

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While Boult hasn’t pulled on the grey strip for some time, he has been an IPL regular for Delhi Capitals over the last two years. He took 18 wickets in the 2018 season, finishing as the leading wicket-taker of the side [Delhi Daredevils at the time], and played five games this year, though struggled to nail down a spot.”It’s the same mindset that I always take into most formats: trying to be aggressive, trying to take wickets, and trying to do my role for the side,” Boult said of his T20 gameplan, “and that is being aggressive with the ball – I’ll try and do that over the next couple of nights.”She’s always a beautiful wicket here [at Napier]. I hope I don’t get to bat on it, but I’m presuming it’s going to be a pretty good surface. It’s not the first time I’ve played here obviously, and we’re familiar with the grounds around the country.”It’s 2-1 in the series, and hopefully we can put a good performance forward and seal off a nice victory in the series.”Boult has been tuning up for the upcoming Test series by playing for Northern Districts in the Plunket Shield, and took eight wickets across the two games he has played for them in the last two weeks.The second of those games was a defeat in Mount Maunganui, which will host its first Test from November 21 as the England series gets underway, and Boult said he was looking forward to playing international cricket at the ground.”It was nice to get some red-ball stuff done at the Mount looking towards the Tests in a couple of weeks’ time,” he said. “It’s just beautiful this time of year. [I’m] looking forward to that Test match there, the inaugural one, and it looks like it’s going to be a good wicket. There’s a lot of hum and a lot of vibe going on in the Bay of Plenty for some Test cricket there.”Another man who could join Boult in the squad for that Test is Ferguson, who is set to play for Auckland in the round of Plunket Shield games starting on Friday. Ferguson is yet to make his Test debut, but could force his way into the reckoning with a strong performance in what will be his first first-class game since March.