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Russell Domingo, South Africa’s coach, has blamed heavy workloads and jaded players for his team’s failure to reach the final of the tri-nation series in the West Indies, but insisted the below-par performance would not push him to resign. Instead, Domingo called on Cricket South Africa to look into managing players’ workloads outside the international schedule to ensure they are hungry enough to perform for their country.”This loss comes on the back of our top players playing too much cricket,” Domingo said on his arrival in South Africa. “It’s a big concern for me. It’s one of the points I need to highlight with my superiors when I get time to sit down and chat to them.

‘De Villiers’ workload is a concern’

On the possibility of resting AB de Villiers for the Tests against New Zealand:
“He’s the captain, he’ll be the first name down on the sheet to play Tests against New Zealand. I spoke to him two days ago planning the workload. It is a concern. Some players around the world play all these tournaments but don’t play all the formats. Our players – Hashim, AB, Faf, Quinton, Morne, JP – they play all the formats and then play a lot of outside leagues as well so that is a big problem for us. But if AB is fit, he should be good to go for the Test series.”
On Dale Steyn being rested for the tri-series but being allowed to play in the NatWest t20 Blast:
“A lot of that thinking was that Dale did need some cricket. We sort of knew that spinners would play a big role in West Indies. Having him sit around, not doing too much was not going to benefit him too much. He would probably have gone to the West Indies and been in a similar position to Morne Morkel. He would probably have only played one game and done a lot of time in the nets. Five games of four overs wouldn’t have hurt him. It would only have benefitted him. I am glad he has gone and played some cricket.”
On the upcoming South Africa A matches in Zimbabwe and Australia:
“The South Africa A side allows you to broaden your base a bit and give some fringe players game time against quality opposition. There are some players in our Test side that will be playing for them like Dean Elgar, Stephen Cook, Vernon Philander, Dane Piedt.”

“Think about our seriously long tour to India, long tour against England, then straight into the World T20. Then players stayed behind, played the IPL and flew straight to Caribbean. Some players arrived two days before our first game in Guyana and now some are staying another four weeks in the Caribbean, some are playing county cricket, then home for two weeks, then a series against New Zealand, then go and play a mini IPL, then straight into a tour against Australia. Those are challenges that the coaching staff and the players are sitting with at the moment. When you are playing that amount of cricket for that period of time, it’s difficult to maintain the standards consistently.”Of South Africa’s 15-man squad for the tri-series, nine (including Dean Elgar, who came in as an injury replacement) are Test regulars, eleven were part of the World T20 squad, ten played at the IPL, six are staying on for the CPL, two are headed for county stints and the rest will play for the A side. That means none of the players who are part of the current national set-up have had any time off since October last year and Domingo believes the fatigue is starting to show.”The desire and the hunger levels when you are playing day in and day out will wane at some stage. There’s no doubt about that. You can’t give 100% to ten different teams for ten months. Something’s got to give,” he said.The something, according to team manager Mohammed Moosajee, could be the no-objection certificates (NOC) CSA issues to players, which allows them to spend what should be time off playing in foreign leagues. “CSA management will need to look at the process going forward, how they release NOCs, taking into account the long international season,” Moosajee said.But the declining Rand has made it difficult to deny NOCs because CSA cannot match the amounts players earn overseas and this has left Domingo and his management team with a problem. “The big challenge for me is making sure that international cricket is still the main priority for our players. There are lot of tournaments, a lot of money to be made, a lot of opportunities for players to get out there and market themselves so I need to be making sure we focus really hard on our No.1 priority and that is representing our country,” he said. “Sometimes, if you have done it for a long time, you can take it for granted maybe. There is a lot happening outside international cricket. Making sure guys are fresh and hungry to perform for their country is of utmost importance for me.”Despite admitting he has not been able to do that in the last six months, and that the “sharpness and effectiveness” of the side is “lacking”, Domingo remained confident he and his management team are the right people to try and turn things around.”I’ve got to sit down with my management team and the board members and the CEO and the guys who make those decisions and plan the way forward. I’ve got 10 months left on my contract and the last six months haven’t gone according to plan. I am not a guy who wants to give up or quit so I need to discuss what their thoughts are,” Domingo said. “I’ve got a few days at home now to just mull over things and see where things are going. I feel that the management team we’ve got in place have ticked a lot of boxes and provided the players with as much support as we can. We’re still very motivated to do well. We feel we can take the team forward. That decision doesn’t always lie with us but that’s the way it is.”Domingo will take heart from the knowledge that he has one of the most important people in the set-up in his corner. AB de Villiers threw his weight behind the coach after the team’s loss in their final round-robin match when he said the players should take responsibility for their own shortcomings. Domingo, however, does not feel the players have let him down.”I wouldn’t say the players have let me down. I’m not a coach who is going to sit here and blame the players for lack of performances. Coaches have to front up and take the brunt of it when performances are not there,” he said. “I don’t feel let down by players, I feel let down by performances. The results haven’t been as good as what we’ve wanted. I feel the players gave it as much as they possible could.”The coach put South Africa’s early exit from the tournament on two moments in particular but stressed this does not mean they don’t have what it takes to perform under pressure. “The one was where we needed 96 runs off 15 overs against Australia we were three down and we lost. The batters let us down. Then, in the last game, we had West Indies 21 for 4 after 5 overs and our next 12 overs were very average. We bowled really poorly and allowed West Indies to get some momentum and establish a partnership. Those two phases probably cost us getting into the final and possibly winning the tournament,” Domingo said. “But I definitely think the team has got big-match temperament. This team has managed to win some must-win games in ODI and T20 cricket over the last two or three years.”He cited examples like their Mumbai win to take the series against India and their three victories in succession against England at home earlier this year, but acknowledged that those count for nothing because South Africa’s cabinet is missing a major trophy.”Until we win a world event, people will always question us,” Domingo said. “There’s another opportunity next year. There’s a Champions Trophy. There’s a lot of work that needs to be done in our one-day side to get us to be contenders for that but, with the players within our ranks, if we can manage them properly and make sure when the time comes they are all fully fit, all swimming in the same direction, we’ll be one of the teams to beat there.”Domingo’s contract expires before that tournament but if South Africa are to replace him, it is likely they will do so fairly soon to allow the new coach time in charge. With that in mind, has he come home feeling the heat? A little.”There’s always pressure. We know that playing for your country is the ultimate. It’s representing the people back home and we want to represent them well. We know how passionate our supporters are and how much time and money and effort gets put into our cricket. Management and players are under pressure to perform at all times.”

Anurag Thakur and Ajay Shirke, the newly elected BCCI president and secretary, have said they see the implementation of the Lodha Committee report as an “opportunity” rather than a challenge. They said the BCCI was in favour of reforms – “a continuing process” – even though it did not agree entirely with all the recommendations, as elaborated by Thakur’s predecessor Shashank Manohar on Saturday.”Where there is a challenge, there is opportunity,” Thakur said in his first news briefing as board president on Sunday. “It depends on how you look at the scenario – you may see it as a challenge, I see it as an opportunity that this is the time to deliver.”On Saturday Manohar had reiterated that the main reason he stepped down as BCCI president was that he could not have implemented the Lodha Committee recommendations in full. According to Manohar, the BCCI was happy with 75% of the recommendations, but had strong reservations against a handful.Thakur echoed the same sentiments. “We are not waiting for the judgement to come and then implement something. Whatever is possible and practical and required we are implementing it from time to time. And I said it is a continuous process and reforms will carry on.”Shirke, who was previously a BCCI treasurer, had stridently opposed the recommendations once they were made public on January 4. Now he said reforms did not equate to a complete structural overhaul. “Improvement in anything is a perennial process, but often improvement does not require reinventing the wheel. Minor course corrections are necessary and they will be taken as and when necessary.”In the last two months the BCCI legal counsel KK Venugopal and the lawyers representing various state associations had argued strongly against some of the Lodha Committee’s recommendations in front of the two-judge bench of the Supreme Court comprising TS Thakur, the chief justice of India, and Justice Ibrahim Kalifullah. In response the court had played hardball and told the BCCI it could not function like an exclusive club any more, and that it was mandatory to implement the recommendations.Thakur said the BCCI was not “running away”, but maintained it was not “practical” to implement all the recommendations. “The world knows how successfully, transparently and in an effective manner we have run the board in the last so many years,” Thakur said. “If there was any shortcoming, we have overcome that, we have tried to mend our ways. There is always a way or an area to improve and we are not running away from anything.”Manohar had said the recommendation limiting advertisement breaks only to drinks, lunch, tea and innings breaks would destroy the BCCI and bring down its revenues from an estimated INR 2000-odd crore to INR 400 crore. Thakur did not talk numbers, but stuck to a similar line of argument.”If you look at the reports the fastest growing league in the world is IPL which is a great achievement of the BCCI,” Thakur said. “They have worked well, the franchises have contributed. If you look at the other side of it, where do you get the major revenues from? It is from the home series. And your revenue comes from where? It is from the advertisements.”And you then pay to the state associations, the team members. The state associations then create infrastructure from the money they receive from the BCCI. World over, the infrastructure is created by the government but in India the sports infrastructure for other games are created by the government [while] only for cricket the infrastructure is created by the BCCI. We don’t get even a single penny from the state governments or the central government.”

During the early 1980s, it was far from uncommon for a spectator at Taunton to hear the announcement before play: “No. 11 on your scorecard, Joel Garner, has been replaced by No. 12, Dennis Breakwell.”Breakwell was a fine cricketer. But he was a canny left-arm spinner, not an enormous fast bowler. So while sighs of relief emanated from the visiting dressing room, sighs of frustration emanated from home team spectators. Standing in for a giant isn’t easy.It might feel similar for Chris Woakes or Jake Ball on Thursday morning. Both are highly skilled young bowlers. But neither is Ben Stokes. And a Durham crowd that wanted to see their local hero are bound to feel a little disappointed.But this is a huge opportunity for whoever is selected. On a pitch that tends to assist seamers and against a batting line-up that may be scarred by the events of Headingley a few days ago, this is an opportunity to establish themselves in the England squad and perhaps nail down the position of first reserve.Woakes is the more likely to play. It’s not just that he is the better batsman – he made his Test debut at No. 6 and has nine first-class centuries behind him – but he comes into the game having just claimed career-best figures of 9 for 36 in the County Championship, with head selector, James Whitaker, among those in attendance. “It was like facing 90-mile-an-hour legbreaks,” Durham captain Paul Collingwood said of Woakes’ performance. “It was international class.”

‘I like playing here’ – Broad

Stuart Broad has said it would be a “big shame” if the second Investec Test against Sri Lanka turns out to be the last in Durham.
England have won all five of the Tests they have played on the ground – including the Ashes-clinching encounter of 2013 – but with financial worries plaguing the club and modest ticket sales, there is every chance this will be the last Test on the ground for the foreseeable future.
“I think it would be a big shame if we didn’t come back here,” Broad said. “From a purely selfish point of view of playing within the team, you want to play at grounds you win at. You want to play at grounds where people feel at home and have success.
“Durham have been a brilliant County Championship side for a number of years and they’ve produced quite a few England players who have changed the results for the England team. The fans want to be able to see their home-grown Durham players playing for England here.
“It’s a ground where England have had success. From a selfish, non-money point of view, I like playing here.”

Woakes’ Test record to date is modest. In six Tests he has claimed eight wickets at an eye-watering average of 63.75. Judging from social media – which is not the most accurate barometer – there is little love for him from England’s own supporters. And it is true that some batsmen have suggested that, such is his orthodoxy, he can be lined-up relatively easily.But there is some mitigation for that record. For a start, he has tended to play each Test in isolation. While he played three Tests in the series against India in 2014 and two against South Africa at the turn of this year, he has nearly always been a stand-in. He has never quite been able to relax and settle into his role.He has played on some flat pitches, too. Rarely taking the new ball, he has struggled to adjust to the general nature of Test surfaces – which are often less helpful to seamers than county surfaces – and has, at times, looked a little plain. He has not been helped, either, by some dropped catches.He knows that he can’t hide behind excuses, valid though they may be. And he knows that his most recent appearance, in Centurion at the end of the South Africa series, was disappointing. But he will probably be the quickest bowler in this match if he plays – he was timed as the quickest in the Durban Test – and, having briefly lost some of his ability to swing the ball, can once against move it both ways.He is highly rated by his fellow professionals. James Anderson spoke highly of him often during the summer of 2014 – after the Southampton Test, where Woakes finished without a wicket, Anderson credited him with having “bowled fantastically well” – and while that record isn’t great just yet, it is worth remembering that, after 20 Tests, James Anderson’s bowling average was 39.20 and after eight Tests Broad’s was 49.36.The main difference between Woakes for Warwickshire and Woakes for England is that, at Test level, he sometimes holds his length back just a fraction. That is understandable as, knowing his place is on the line, he is reluctant to be driven. But if he is to take wickets, if he is to flourish, he will have to pitch the ball a little full, gain a little movement and risk the odd boundary.It was a point made by Stuart Broad as he assessed the qualities of the two bowlers vying for a place. Broad struggled for a long time to hit the right length but, over the last year or two, has developed into the bowler his talent promised he could be. He knows the value of both patience and experience.”There is a slightly different length you have to bowl in Test cricket compared to the county nibbling wickets,” Broad said. “It is just one of those things you have to adjust to. But it is so early to judge a bowler. It is still early in his career.”Jimmy and I were laughing after his 10-for the other day because it meant he had got his average down to the lowest since his Test debut. He was kicking off that, after his first 10 Tests he averaged 40 and after my first 15 I was up at 38.”I don’t know how many Tests I had to wait for my first five-for. It was in Jamaica in 2009 which was about 10 Tests or something [actually 11].”It is a bit of a weird place at the start of your career if you don’t set the place alight, so you just have to have that patience and belief that you’re good enough to deliver when it is your day.”Super sub? Chris Woakes could come in for Ben Stokes•PA Photos

The other option for the position vacated by Stokes is Ball. A bowler much in the image of Broad, Ball has kicked-on impressively over the last 12 months. Picked for the Lions tour on the back of his white-ball skills – he will surely come into the England limited-overs team in the coming weeks – he has added a yard of pace to render him a far greater force in first-class cricket.He is still not quick – low 80s mph probably – but his tall, broad-shouldered frame suggests there could be more to come. While he will not find Test surfaces as conducive as those in the county game, his skills – he bowls an excellent length and can move the ball both ways – are universal. It bodes well for England that they may be able to leave such an able bowler out of the team.”I’ve not seen a bowler improve in 18 months as quickly as he has at any level,” Broad said of his Nottinghamshire team-mate. “He suddenly moves it both ways, he can come round the wicket to the lefties when it’s not doing anything for him and he gets good top-order players out, which is a great sign for a bowler.”Jake’s had great success with the Lions this winter, which gives you confidence, because if you perform with the Lions, you know you can probably do it at the top level.”One thing is for sure: Ben Stokes is going to get injured again. It’s one of those things. We had it with Freddie Flintoff. We do need to have a contingency plan for when Stokesy gets injured because he’s an all-action cricketer, he throws himself about and he bowls 90 miles an hour.”With Stokes out of the picture, England also need a different No. 6. It seems that one option being considered by England is to promote Moeen Ali. That would leave Jonny Bairstow at No. 7 and see either Woakes or Broad at No. 8. Ball looks to have decent hand-eye coordination, but does not look comfortable against pace bowling and would likely find himself at No. 10 or 11.It was also interesting to see the Newcastle United goalkeeping team – coaches and players – in attendance at training to advise Bairstow on his balance issues. He has clearly taken strides of progress in recent months and everyone involved deserves some credit for thinking outside the box. No pun intended.

West Indies stand-in captain Roston Chase was left impressed by Ackeem Auguste’s maiden T20I fifty against Bangladesh in Chattogram. The visitors completed the 3-0 whitewash in a comprehensive five-wicket win, with more than three overs to spare. Auguste was one of three changes in the West Indies side, after they rested regular captain Shai Hope, and the out-of-form Sherane Rutherford for the dead rubber.Auguste treated the packed crowd in Chattogram with some impressive hitting particularly on the leg-side. He struck Rishad Hossain for three sixes in the 13th over, and having been dropped in between the sixes, it shifted the match’s momentum in favour of West Indies completely. Auguste and Chase added 91 runs for the fourth wicket, after Amir Jangoo, who warmed the West Indies’ bench for most of this Bangladesh tour, struck a few blows in his 23-ball 34.Chase, who also made a half-century, said that Auguste is an improved cricketer than what he had seen couple of years ago.Related

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“I thought he had a great innings,” Chase said. “I have played with him in St. Lucia in the last couple of years. He has improved steadily. The Ackeem I used to know, would play some exciting shots and then get out for 20 or 30. I find out that he is maturing very much. He is understanding how to build the innings now. The sky is the limit for him. I think he has a very rare ability to strike the ball. He has a clean swing. He has to continue doing hard work and keep believing.”Chase said that the difference between the two sides’ in the third T20I was the partnerships. Bangladesh had a 63-run stand between Tanzid Hasan and Saif Hassan, but Tanzid did most of the scoring in the home side’s innings.”I think Bangladesh never really had a big partnership, or one partnership where two batters stood up. It was only the left-hander, while all the guys were getting out around him,” Chase said. “The plan was to bat normally, get six to seven runs per over till the 15th over. But as me and Ackeem got in on the wicket, it became easier to play our strokes. The ball was coming on to the bat. I think it was the best wicket of the three games. We capitalized on the balls in our area.He also gave a shout out to the West Indies bowlers who performed strongly in the T20I series, in particular Romario Shepherd who finished with seven wickets in the three matches, including a hat-trick in the third game. Moving forward, though, he wanted the fielding to be better.”Actually I was so focused on the game that I didn’t realise he had taken the hat-trick,” Chase said. “I didn’t remember that he had taken a wicket in his previous over. I am happy for him. I think he executed well in all three games.”We dropped too many catches. The bowlers were spot-on with their plans. I want to congratulate them on their performance.”

India haven’t prepared any differently for Pakistan than they would for any other match, but are certainly respectful of people’s sentiments. So said Ryan ten Doeschate, India’s assistant coach, ahead of Sunday’s Asia Cup fixture in Dubai.”It’s a very sensitive issue and I’ve got no doubt the players share the compassion and feeling of the vast majority of the Indian public,” ten Doeschate explained. “The Asia Cup was in limbo for a long period of time and we were just waiting. We didn’t think we were going to be coming at one stage.”You know what the Indian government’s stance is and now the team and particularly the players, you have to put those sentiments and the emotions behind. That’s something we addressed in the team meeting today.”We’re aware of people’s feelings, at the same time we’ve got to go out, and the guys get a chance to play for their country, and they’ll be as professional and focused as they can be given the circumstances.”Related

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In explaining the process of trying to focus on the task, ten Doeschate revealed coach Gautam Gambhir’s message to the team. He also said there was no need for the team management to insulate the players from the external chatter.”The waiting period of knowing whether this [Asia Cup] was going to happen was the most frustrating part,” he said. “Once we knew we were going to be here, and playing, we have tried to get on with the business of it. This game, particularly, we haven’t prepared differently, like I said, but we are obviously aware of the sentiments and strong feelings.”Gauti’s message has been sort of very professional about not worrying about things that are not in our control and being emotionless when approaching the cricket side of things. The guys are professional enough, I am sure.”Individuals have different levels of feeling on the spectrum of where they feel the whole situation [geopolitical tensions] is, but the messaging has been to focus on the cricket, and try to focus on the one game tomorrow.”The cricket world has shifted its collective gaze towards Suryakumar Yadav’s India vs Salman Agha’s Pakistan•AFP/Getty Images

Asked if the team was looking at sport as a tool to protest, ten Doeschate was clear that they were here to do what they were asked: to play cricket.”The other side of the argument is you separate sport and politics, and people have got different opinions on that,” he said, “Hopefully the way we play can represent how players feel about the country. I understand the position and, like I explained, the sentiment. We are following the direction of what the BCCI and Indian government have decided is right for the country at the moment.”In being as honest as he could be around the slightly delicate circumstances around which India are playing Pakistan in the tournament – the Pahalgam attacks and the aftermath of what followed taken into context – ten Doeschate explained their “processes” were very similar to how it would be for other games, while being mindful of what their opponents will come up with, given they are a young team wanting to play in a new direction.”I’ll be honest, no,” he said when asked if there was a little “something extra” for this match. “I was expecting a lot more niggle at the Champions Trophy game. I didn’t really feel that either. Certainly, the preparation and focus this week haven’t been any different to our preparation for any other important game.”Pakistan have started to come to terms with how they want to play T20 cricket, so it’s going to be a slightly different challenge from maybe the last 24 months. But we want to focus on what we’re doing and how we want to play is the most important thing for us, given we have the potential of playing Pakistan a couple of times in this tournament, and obviously in the next six months as well, there’s going to be a World Cup.”Again, it goes back to what we said about controlling those emotions, and we want to prepare for every single game in the same manner.”

When a young Virat Kohli first came to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in 2008, in a dressing room filled with the Indian greats like Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble, it was South Africa’s Mark Boucher who had the biggest impact on him.Speaking on RCB’s podcast , Kohli said Boucher “stunned him” with the conversations he had with him. Unprompted, Boucher told Kohli what his weaknesses were and worked with him on them.”Out of all the players that I played with initially, Mark Boucher had the biggest impact on me as a young kid,” Kohli said. “He was the only guy I saw who came with the mindset that ‘Okay, I’m going to come in and help some of the young Indian players’.Related

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“He saw me play and saw a bit of potential. He figured out what my weaknesses could be, like if I wanted to go to the next level, this is what I need to do, without me asking him anything. He said, ‘Okay, I’ve seen you play this and we need to work on this, that, and a couple more things.’ So he took me to the nets, he said, ‘You need to work on the short ball. No one’s going to give you a chance in international cricket if you can’t pull the ball.'”He was hitting these tennis balls at me at a pace where I was like, if this is what it’s going to take, I don’t think I’ll be able to make it to the next level. But he really kept at it. I started becoming better. I remember a game we were playing in Chennai or Kolkata, and he told me, ‘When I come to commentate in India in four years from now, if I don’t see you playing for India, you would do a disservice to yourself.'”He really stunned me with the conversations that he had with me. And that really pushed me in the direction where I said I needed to start looking at how I could keep becoming better.”Later that year, Kohli made his ODI debut in Sri Lanka. He came into the side in place of Sachin Tendulkar, who was out with a niggle. But once Tendulkar returned, there was no place for Kohli.Kohli knew he was not the “most technically sound” batter but his willingness to improve and to fight it out in the middle helped him raise his game. His next big opportunity came when Yuvraj Singh got injured ahead of the 2009 Champions Trophy, and he was called up just before India’s opening game, against Pakistan in Centurion.”That was my first India-Pakistan game. I scored about 16. I tried to hit Shahid Afridi for a six straight down the ground and got caught at long-on [long-off], and we lost that game. It was an important moment in the game. And my heart was beating so fast through the whole innings. I could not process everything that happened within those four days.Virat Kohli was full of self-doubt after falling to Shahid Afridi at the 2009 Champions Trophy•Getty Images

“It was a big loss, and I just could not sleep. I was awake till five in the morning, staring at the ceiling. I was like, ‘This is it. I’ve been called after a year and I’ve just messed it all up. I don’t know how this is going to shape up.’ I had a lot of moments like that where I really, really doubted myself and I had to again kind of recalibrate and find a way to slowly build up again.”

On 2024 T20 World Cup: ‘I was walking in with no confidence’

From looking to hit the ball instinctively to being the best anchor in the world, the journey for Kohli came full circle a couple of years ago, when he decided to shed inhibitions to keep pace with T20 cricket.”In the last couple of seasons, I have consciously made an effort to evolve my game,” he said. “And I’ve seen the results of it. Again, to the point where I had to let go of people wanting to see me, this is who I am, and just go and hit the ball.”You start from wanting to hit the ball and then you go through this whole journey of becoming someone. Expectations, this and that, to a point where you feel like this is actually pulling me back. And you have to push through and again get to the point where you say, just hit the ball. That’s the only constant that remains for a cricketer.Kohli hit three boundaries in the first over of the 2024 T20 World Cup final•ICC/Getty Images

“I looked to make a few changes, which I’m very happy about, because I had to kind of go out of my comfort zone and try different things. Again, the fear of failure cannot enter that space. So I knew that I was going to get out a few times [cheaply] and that’s okay. I’m not going to expect myself to get 70, 80, 90 every game. Even an impactful 35-40 that helps the team is good enough for me.”Kohli went into the 2024 T20 World Cup with this mindset. However, he had just 75 runs in nine innings before the final. In the final against South Africa, with India 34 for 3 in the fifth over, Kohli switched back to his natural game. He scored 76 off 59 balls as India posted, and just about defended, 176.”I was not able to get runs through the tournament and I am grateful that I was put in that pressure situation again. I was walking in with no confidence, and then when things are supposed to unfold for you, I get three balls, I get three boundaries and I’m like, what is this game? One day you feel like you can’t get a run and suddenly you walk into one of the biggest days of your career and things just start happening.”And then you are put in this situation where the team needs you, and this performance happens through you. And you’re like, how? And that’s when you kind of understand, okay, this is the amount of hard work, and then you arrive at the ground. And then whatever has to take place will take place. The preparation is in my hands. The results are not in my hands. I just have to stay true to my instinct. If I have to hit the ball, I have to hit the ball. That is my only responsibility. Where that ball goes, how the execution will happen – that all depends on [other factors] because there are other people playing as well. We tend to forget this.”

Five-wicket pacer Dillon Pennington helped Nottinghamshire complete a fourth win in seven matches, this one against Yorkshire at Headingley shortly before tea on day four, to strengthen their position at the Division One summit in the Rothesay County Championship.Struggling Yorkshire were set a 463-target during the third afternoon and closed on 176 for five, losing four of those wickets in the evening session, including one in the day’s final over to Pennington.Yorkshire started the fourth day well, with top-scorer Matthew Revis and George Hill sharing a 54-run partnership to raise hopes of avoiding a fourth defeat in seven matches. But they needed much more and were later bowled out for 299 inside 121 overs, slipping to a 163-run defeat.The part-time spin of Freddie McCann made the breakthrough by bowling Hill with the first ball of a solitary over shortly before the new ball. Pennington then removed Revis for 45 just after lunch and finished with a superb impressive season’s best five for 106 from 31 overs.Nottinghamshire claimed 19 points to Yorkshire’s three and reach the midway point in the four-day campaign well placed to claim a first Championship title since 2010.Not since 2011 have they won here at Headingley, a venue at which they have only ever won five Championship matches, including this.Pennington claimed three of his wickets today in easing batting conditions to keep Yorkshire second-bottom in the table.Revis and new England Lions all-rounder Hill, who contributed 26, batted pretty comfortably through the first 85 minutes of a gloomy and chilly day.Although the former took a painful blow on the right thumb from the seam of Brett Hutton, he played confidently through the off-side off front foot and back on the way to a season’s best score in his fourth appearance.But all Notts had to do was stay patient, and you felt success would come. And it did, even if it initially came via the most unexpected route.The off-spin of McCann was brought into the attack to bowl the 79th over, the penultimate before the new ball was due.He dragged his first ball down and Hill’s eyes lit up. He went to pull, but the delivery scooted through and uprooted middle stump, leaving the score at 230 for six.Then, seven balls into the afternoon, Pennington forced Revis – playing back – to feather behind to South African Kyle Verreynne with the score on 244.The same combination ousted Yorkshire’s stand-in captain Dom Bess for 21 and then Ben Coad for five.By that stage, at 277 for nine, the outcome of this game was all but certain.With light rain starting to fall, last pair Jack White and Jordan Thompson resisted for more than an hour – and almost 20 overs – to threaten that theory.But Mohammad Abbas got White caught behind by Verreynne, whose sixth catch in the innings and ninth in the match sealed the win.

Shadman Islam’s second Test century set a strong platform as Bangladesh went into a 64-run lead over Zimbabwe, with three wickets in hand, on the second day of the Chattogram Test. A flurry of late wickets, however, helped Zimbabwe stay in the hunt. Bangladesh headed into stumps with Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Taijul Islam batting on 16 and 5 respectively.Debutant Zimbabwe legspinner Vincent Masekesa took three wickets, while Blessing Muzarabani, Wellington Masakadza and Brian Bennett took one each.Bangladesh openers Anamul Haque and Shadman put together an enterprising stand, after Zimbabwe were bowled out on their overnight score of 227, with No. 11 Muzarabani lasting just one ball in the morning session. Shadman got off the blocks with a flurry of boundaries, which included couple of serene straight drives. He also struck the ball well through the covers, while Anamul, playing his first Test in more than two years, seemed to focus on reading the pace of the pitch. He struck four boundaries in the day’s first session, as the pair reached the century stand shortly before lunch.Muzarabani ended Zimbabwe’s wait for a wicket soon after lunch when he trapped Anamul lbw with a full delivery that held its line to beat the right-hander. Anamul made 39 off 80 balls and added 118 with Shadman for the first wicket. Shadman and Mominul Haque continued Bangladesh’s solidity with a 76-run second-wicket stand. Mominul struck a straight six among his three boundaries in his 33 off 64 balls, before hitting one straight to Ben Curran at deep midwicket.Brian Bennett ended Shadman Islam’s stay•MUNIR UZ ZAMAN/AFP via Getty

Zimbabwe got another next ball when Brian Bennett trapped Shadman lbw for 120 off 181 balls. Shadman looked in control during the second session too, hitting a further seven boundaries including a six. Interestingly, it was only the second six in Shadman’s Test career.Mushfiqur Rahim and Najmul Hossain Shanto deposited Bennett for a six each on either side of the tea break. Mushfiqur struck Bennett for two more fours in his next over, before he struck Masakadza for two fours, through backward point and with a slog sweep. Shanto clattered a pull against Richard Ngarava but fell shortly afterwards. Shanto gave Nick Welch a simple catch at short midwicket, handing Masekesa his first Test wicket.He added a second when he had Jaker Ali caught and bowled for 5 in the 75th over. Soon Mushfiqur was run-out after a misjudgement. He hared out of the crease after hitting Masekesa for a single towards mid-on. Wessly Madhevere threw down the stumps, with Mushfiqur well short of the non-striker’s end. Nayeem Hasan became Masekesa’s third victim when he edged to Sean Williams at second slip, after making three off 23 balls.

Sussex 528 and 126 for 3 (Haines 34, Hughes 33, Yates 2-29) lead Warwickshire 454 (Yates 115, Barnard 82, Davies 66, Mousley 63) by 200 runsWarwickshire and Sussex appear destined to start their Rothesay County Championship Division One season with a draw after three sun and run-soaked days at Edgbaston.Sussex closed the third day on 126 for 3 in their second innings, 200 ahead overall, having taken a first innings lead of 74. It is a solid advantage but taking ten wickets quickly on the final day on a pitch offering some turn but which remains batter-friendly would require something special from the bowlers.The match was pretty much consigned to a draw on the third afternoon when Warwickshire, replying to 528, reached 379 to avoid the follow on. They went on to total 454 thanks to Rob Yates with 115 off 159 balls and half-centuries to Ed Barnard, Alex Davies and Dan Mousley. Jack Carson took 4 for 92, a highly commendable effort in the excellent batting conditions.Sussex have a significant lead but, in such conditions, a last-day declaration would have to be very carefully judged as a run-chase would heavily favour the batting side.After Warwickshire resumed on the third morning on 223 for 3, Sussex struck early. Ollie Robinson needs to fire early this season to advance his case for an England recall and he has started strongly in this match with several hostile spells in conditions favouring the bat. He removed the well-set Yates with the 21st ball of the day, a perfectly-pitched leg-cutter which was edged behind.Robinson then unfurled another fine ball which Mousley, still to score, edged to slip, but Tom Alsop grassed the catch. Less impressive was his next wicket-taking ball – a full toss which Ethan Bamber belted straight to midwicket.At 252 for 5, still 127 short of the follow on, Warwickshire needed steadying and Mousley and Barnard provided the necessary stability with a stand of 124 in 32 overs. Mousley exploited his early reprieve to bat attractively but departed furious at himself for missing a sweep at Carson and falling lbw. Barnard struck seven fours and two sixes in an increasingly fluent innings before he fell lbw to a fine ball from Danny Lamb.Kai Smith’s punchy 27 from 32 balls ended when he lifted Carson to long on and Michael Booth fell in similar fashion after Tazeem Ali edged Lamb to second slip.Sussex were left with a session to bat and they spent it enhancing their lead in less than scintillating fashion for the loss of three wickets to the spinners. Yates added two wickets to his earlier century as he had Daniel Hughes caught at slip and Tom Haines lbw, half-forward.Tom Clark offered no shot to a sharply turning ball from Tazeem and was adjudged lbw. The degree of turn in that last dismissal offers some hope of purposeful cricket tomorrow but it will take some monumentally good or careless cricket for this match to yield a winner and a loser.

Chamari Athapaththu’s fighting 63 off 48 balls and Anushka Sanjeewani’s unbeaten 24 off 22 helped Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by three wickets in a last-over thriller in the second semi-final of Women’s Asia Cup 2024. The win saw Sri Lanka march into the final for the second successive edition.Two years ago in Sylhet, they held their nerve with the ball to overcome Pakistan by one run in the semi-final. Once again, Sri Lanka will meet India in the title clash.On Friday, momentum swung multiple times during the course of the match. After restricting Pakistan to 140 for 4, Sri Lanka had to dig deep in the chase as Sadia Iqbal spun a web around their batters with a four-wicket haul. But Athapaththu stayed firm and found able partners, first in Kavisha Dilhari and then in Sanjeewani. With the latter, Athapaththu shared a match-changing stand of 42 off 29 balls for the fifth wicket. However, Iqbal dismissed Athapaththu in the 17th over to turn the tide Pakistan’s way yet again.At that point, Sri Lanka needed 21 off 20 balls with five wickets in hand. They lost two more wickets but with three required from three balls, Sanjeewani and Achini Kulasuriya took the team home.Muneeba Ali was the top-scorer for Pakistan•Asian Cricket Council

Muneeba, Feroza put up solid opening stand

Muneeba Ali and Gull Feroza continued from where they left off against UAE. The Pakistan openers set the tone early by adding 45 runs in the powerplay.Feroza, coming off two consecutive fifties, was off to a flying start, punishing seamer Achini Kulasuriya for three fours in the third over. After a quiet over from Sugandika Kumari, Muneeba swept Athapaththu for two fours and started the next over, by Udeshika Prabodhani, with an elegant straight drive.

Prabodhani, Dilhari’s double-strikes; Sana’s cameo

Sri Lanka pulled things back in the middle overs, conceding only 56 runs between overs 7-16 and picking up four wickets. Playing her 100th T20I, Prabodhani removed Feroza when the opener miscued one to deep midwicket in the tenth over of the innings. Five balls later, she cleaned up Muneeba as the batter shuffled across too much to sweep and exposed her stumps.Nida Dar broke the shackles with a six and a four off Kulasuriya in the 14th over but Sidra Amin, who was struggling at the other end, holed out to short third when she mistimed a reverse sweep off Dilhari in the next over. Four balls later, Dilahri trapped Dar lbw.At 101 for 4 after 16 overs, Pakistan found quick runs from Fatima Sana. She smashed Dilhari for two fours in the 17th over and Inoshi Priyadharshani for another boundary on the first ball of the 19th. Her unbeaten 23 off 17, and an unbroken stand of 41 off 31 balls with Aliya Riaz, lifted Pakistan. Sri Lanka’s fielding was disappointing as they dropped catches, missed run-out chances and had several misfields.Sadia Iqbal’s 4 for 16 kept Pakistan in the game•Asian Cricket Council

The frantic chase: Athapaththu’s fifty, Iqbal’s four-for

Sri Lanka lost Vishmi Gunaratne and Harshitha Samarawickrama early and ended their powerplay on 35 for 2. But Athapaththu and Dilhari steadied the innings by adding 59 off 46 balls for the third wicket. Athapaththu, after a sedate start, picked up the pace and found the boundary at a steady rate.With 63 needed from 52 balls, Pakistan stormed back into the game, thanks to Iqbal’s double-wicket over that left Sri Lanka at 78 for 4. But Sanjeewani and Athapaththu blunted Pakistan with a flurry of boundaries in the next few overs. En route, Athapaththu also notched up her 11th T20I half-century. That Pakistan were also sloppy in the field – Muneeba missed stumping Dilhari and later failed to appeal when she stumped Athapaththu – didn’t help them either.Just when it looked like Sri Lanka would have it easy, Pakistan fought back again through Iqbal. She dismissed Athapaththu in her final over to finish with figures of 4 for 16. In the following over, Hasini Perera was run out after a mix-up. Nashra Sandhu then conceded 13 of the penultimate over, where Kumari hit two fours to bring the equation down to three needed from six balls.Dar brought herself on for the final over and dismissed Kumari off the second ball but it wasn’t to be for Pakistan.