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PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan has sought a revival of relationship with the BCB, even if it comes through low-profile tours by Bangladeshi representative teams

Mohammad Isam07-Oct-2014How the BCB-PCB relationship soured

April 19, 2012: After weeks of to and fro, the BCB’s decision to visit Pakistan for a very short tour is scuppered by a court order that postpones the proposed tour

December 31, 2012: BCB once again made plans to visit Pakistan, but once again decided not to go ahead with the tour

January 16, 2013: PCB withdraws Pakistani cricketers from BPL-2

September 5, 2013: The tussle continues, this time affecting Pakistani players who cannot make it to the Dhaka Premier League

PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan has sought a revival of relationship with the BCB, even if it comes through low-profile tours by Bangladeshi representative teams. Upon arrival in Dhaka on Friday, he took very little time to put forth his main objective: to seek Bangladesh’s assistance in reintroducing international cricket back home.His recent predecessors, particularly Zaka Ashraf, have had a complicated time with the BCB after two proposed tours by Bangladesh to Pakistan in 2012 were called off. It led to the PCB withdrawing Pakistani cricketers for the second Bangladesh Premier League in 2013, after which the players were also not allowed to play in the Dhaka Premier League where Pakistani players have been regulars since the 1980s.Shaharyar claimed that the security situation in Pakistan had improved, and hoped to convince the BCB on the issue on Tuesday .”This time I have come, very simply, to renew cordial and cooperative relations between Bangladesh and Pakistan on the cricket front,” Shaharyar said. “We have had a good relationship in the past. We will be inviting them to come to Pakistan. We understand that security situation is a hurdle in the way of your national team, or any other team, visiting Pakistan.”But let me say, that the security situation is much, much better. Tomorrow when I meet your board I will give them some statistics that things have much improved in Pakistan. I now live in Lahore. No one feels the weight of terror attack as they did six or seven years ago. It is much less than it was before. The army has gone in to clean up things in North Waziristan. I think things are looking up.”Shaharyar said he hoped Bangladesh’s senior side will tour but accepted that lower-profile sides might have to visit first. He wanted the BCB to send another security assessment team before taking any decision.”Even if the national team cannot come to Pakistan for security reasons, though I would ask them to send a team to examine how things are, I want to start cricket between two countries. [It can be] at the level of A teams, Under-19s; send your schoolboys or the women’s side. We want to start at every level with Bangladesh. What could be better? They will get a very warm welcome. This is what I have come for, to revive and revitalise our relationship. I look forward to discussions with the BCB.”Shaharyar said he is prepared to wait for the BCB to decide on a convenient time but is still ambitious enough to foresee a triangular tournament. “My expectation is that we will sit down and work out something in the future, which will start up the relationship at whatever level is convenient to Bangladesh. We are ready to respond at all levels – best would be for the national team to come to us.”Maybe we can even have a triangular. We look to Bangladesh to help us re-enter the cricketing field in the sense that, we are no longer playing at home in Pakistan. It is a big loss. We are playing Australia in Abu Dhabi, next against India in UAE. It is second best option. Maybe you play in some cities, not in others, that is also acceptable. So we want to start the ball rolling.”BCB vice-president Mahbubul Anam, who was at the airport to receive the PCB chief on Eid day, said that the BCB will hold all discussions on Tuesday.”We have an open agenda,” Mahbubul said. “There’s no agenda for the meeting [with the PCB]. We feel that all countries of the ICC are friendly and supportive to Bangladesh. We will work towards improvement and development of cricket. When the matter will come for discussion, we will know about it. We cannot say anything at this stage. If we can arrange a tournament which matches our schedule and benefit, then definitely.”

Mohammad Hafeez, the Pakistan allrounder, has been reported for suspect action after the first Test against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Nov-2014Mohammad Hafeez, the Pakistan allrounder, has been reported for suspect action after the first Test against New Zealand in Abu Dhabi. Hafeez will have to undergo the tests within the next 21 days as per the ICC regulations and can continue to bowl in international cricket until the results of the tests are announced.Hafeez was part of the Pakistan side that recently thumped Australia, bowling 63 overs in the two-Test series, and went on to bowl a further 22 overs in the first Test against New Zealand. The match officials handed over the report to the Pakistan team manager, Moin Khan.Hafeez has become the second Pakistan bowler in the recent months to have come under ICC’s scanner. The drive against suspect actions has hit the offspinners the most, with Saeed Ajmal, Sohag Gazi, Sachithra Senanayake, Prosper Utseya and Kane Williamson, all earning suspensions. Last week, Zimbabwe’s Malcolm Waller was pulled up after he took six wickets in the Khulna Test against Bangladesh.Hafeez had also run into trouble for his action during the Champions League T20, being reported by the umpires following Lahore Lions’ match against Dolphins. Being the first time he was reported in the tournament, he was allowed to keep bowling according to tournament rules, and that incident had no spillover into international cricket.

Stephen Mangongo, the Zimbabwe coach, has responded to former captain Alistair Campbell’s statements, saying that the presence of former cricketers in the set-up had not yielded positive results

Mohammad Isam01-Dec-2014Following his side’s 5-0 defeat in the ODI series in Bangladesh, Zimbabwe coach Stephen Mangongo has responded to comments made by former captain Alistair Campbell, who had said the lack of former international cricketers in the current Zimbabwe set-up was hurting the team’s progress. Mangongo said the side had lost a lot of games in the past despite the presence of former cricketers in the staff and stressed that financial problems were still a hindrance for Zimbabwe.In an interview to a Bangladeshi newspaper, Campbell had said that although the current coaches had the requisite qualifications, their lack of wider exposure meant the players didn’t get expert advice on a regular basis. He regretted the exits of Grant Flower and Heath Streak, who had worked as batting and bowling coaches with the side.”Well, Alistair Campbell is a former captain and he is entitled to his own opinion,” Mangongo said. “Zimbabwe is a democratic country so he had his opinion. However we must also remind that in the past we had former cricketers in the staff and we haven’t won that many games, so I hope he hasn’t forgotten that when he made that statement. We had Grant Flower as part of the coaching staff, we had Heath Streak as part of the staff, and we were losing to teams like Hong Kong and all those guys.”So I don’t understand where it is coming from and also this year, if you look to some world-class teams like Australia – [John] Buchanan he never played lot of cricket but he is one of the world’s best coaches who took Australia places. He is entitled to his own opinion and I am sure the Zimbabwe Cricket Union will always endeavour as much personnel to help the boys. But we also need to be realistic because we’ve got financial problems and Zimbabwe cricket works within the finances. That is a fact.”Mangongo admitted he was disappointed with the ODI series defeat and regretted the manner in which his side conceded dominant positions, particularly in the fourth ODI which they lost by 21 runs. He, however, held Bangladesh in high regard, particularly their performances at home.”I think it was disappointing to lose the series 5-0, because we had opportunities to win a couple of games,” he said. “At least we should have won the last game which we lost by 21 runs, that’s disappointing because we had a chance for a victory but we couldn’t. We also must give credit to Bangladesh.”They [Bangladesh] were resolute, they had the killer instinct, when they had us down they finished us. They executed their skills better and yes, the better team won the series and it is not all gloom and doom.”Mangongo said he was happy with the pace bowlers, who had given Zimbabwe early breakthroughs in some of the matches, and generally bowled tight overs with the two new balls. Mangongo also praised Solomon Mire, who struck two fifties in his maiden ODI series.”Our bowling department, I am very proud of them. They bowled very well, bowled very tight in all the five games,” he said. “There is hope with a few individuals, young Solomon Mire’s start of international career was truly outstanding. So we can build from there.”Zimbabwe also played their last scheduled ODI this year, which means they have more than two months to prepare for the World Cup. Mangongo said the players would rest for the first ten days after returning home and expressed hope that Zimbabwe Cricket could find the team some matches in early January.”I know for a fact that Zimbabwe Cricket is working very hard to try to get us some international game time in January before the World Cup,” he said. “So I hope that materialises because it is important that we continue to play and continue to learn and execute our skills under pressure.”

A round-up of the Ranji Trophy Group A matches played on December 31, 2014

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Dec-2014
ScorecardArnab Nandi’s fifty helped Railways secure first-innings points against Tamil Nadu•Sivaraman KittaMumbai took home three points from the drawn game against Bengal in Kolkata, after the final day was abandoned due to rain and a wet outfield. Bengal’s openers had added an unbroken partnership of 129 runs on the third day after being asked to follow-on.
ScorecardThe Railways lower order rallied and lifted their side to 236, securing a first-innings lead against Tamil Nadu on the fourth day of the match in Chennai. Railways resumed the day at 133 for 6 but fifties from Ashish Yadav and Arnab Nandi and a swift 35 from Anureet Singh helped them move past Tamil Nadu’s first-innings score of 213.Yadav and Nandi extended their partnership to 75 runs before Yadav was dismissed for 51. The last two wickets then put on 51 runs between them to lift Railways. Nandi and Anureet shared a 27-run, ninth-wicket stand before Anureet paired with Rohan Bhosale to add another 24 runs. Bhosale had been hit on the neck while fielding, on the third day, and had been taken to hospital. He walked in to bat at the fall of Nandi’s wicket, with Railways still two runs away from securing a first-innings lead and he battled to 5 off 11 balls, remaining not out.Tamil Nadu then batted out the remaining overs, reaching a score of 133 for 3, with Abhinav Mukund scoring his second fifty of the match.
Scorecard Fog and bad light allowed for only seven overs of play on the final morning of the match between Baroda and Madhya Pradesh, which ended in a draw.After being dismissed for 178 in their first innings, Madhya Pradesh were asked to follow-on and they were struggling at 97 for 6 when play resumed on the fourth day. The overnight pair of Harpreet Singh and Ankit Sharma took the score to 119 for 6 before the match ended.
ScorecardIan Dev Singh slammed a century and shared an unbroken 123-run, ninth-wicket stand with Samiullah Beigh as Jammu &Kashmir drew their game against Uttar Pradesh. J&K did not finish their first innings and as a result, both teams were awarded one point each from the game.The stand between Ian Dev and Beigh came at an important time for J&K, who were in danger of conceding a first-innings lead after the UP bowlers, led by RP Singh’s 4 for 39, had reduced the side to 76 for 8 by the 27th over. While Ian Dev finished unbeaten on 103 off 151 balls, Beigh scored 45 off 128 deliveriesWith the game affected by weather conditions in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh declared their innings at 299 for 5. Eklavya Dwivedi was unbeaten on 52, while Arish Alam scored 41.

Mahela Jayawardene prepared for his final ODI in Colombo, against England on Tuesday, by saying it was the rhythms from the stands that he would miss the most

Andrew Fidel Fernando15-Dec-20141:06

Mahela Jayawardene not looking for fairytale ending

As the flags fly and the plays for one final time for Mahela Jayawardene in Colombo, he admits he may become a little emotional. The city whose grounds he has filled since he was 16 has already given him one grand farewell at his final Test in August. They will almost certainly do so again for both Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara, for whom it is also the final ODI at home. This time, Jayawardene said he would like to give thanks to the fans as well, whom he labels “the strength of the Sri Lankan team”.”The best memories of playing at home for me will be the fans – the music, the rhythm and all that,” Jayawardene said. “I grew up playing with that for my school. We’ve always had it when we played the big matches. To finish it off with that same rhythm – you can’t ask for anything else. That’s the uniqueness about Sri Lankan cricket. That is the flair that we grew up playing with.”We’ve probably got the best fans. They do criticise use, but it’s done with a good heart. They don’t go overboard. They keep turning up whether we do well or not, and they’ve always been behind us. That’s been the strength of the Sri Lankan team. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed that, so to say thank you tomorrow is a great honour.”Jayawardene has been a staunch supporter of Angelo Mathews’ captaincy, and said he is confident the legacy he and Sangakkara leave behind will be improved on by the players coming through, particularly as Sri Lanka have had a rich year in 2014.”Kumar and I have given as much as we can to the team and our country. We hope to do the same in tomorrow’s match. After we leave, Sri Lankan cricket is not going to die. It will go forward. There are many young players to do that. I’m sure they will take that responsibility on.”The opening position has proved troublesome for Sri Lanka throughout the past six months, and though Jayawardene has opened the innings successfully in the past, he could not do so in his most recent attempt, at Pallekele. Sri Lanka have also drafted Test-match opener Dimuth Karunaratne into this squad, and Jayawardene said he may not face the new ball on Tuesday.”We’ve still got another opening bat in the squad, but they haven’t decided on the combination yet. It depends on that, and I might be asked to open the batting – like the last game. It all depends what they go with. Given the opportunity, I prefer to open, but it all depends on what the team requirement is, looking at the World Cup. I’m happy to bat anywhere.”While Sangakkara is now likely to play Tests for some of 2015, Jayawardene will have quit all formats when the 2015 World Cup ends. He said he had not nailed down post-retirement plans yet.”Having spent so many years in the game, it might be a healthy thing to stay away from it for a little while. I’ll still play a little bit of franchise cricket just to taper it off, and see how my body feels. I’m not looking to be too involved.”I’ll take a bit of time with my family, but the responsibility is there to give back to the game. How and when is something for the future to decide. The environment has to be good. I operate quite differently to others. As long as that environment is there, I’m quite happy to be part of that. I’m just going to take a day at a time and see what happens.”

West Indies captain Jason Holder has admitted that the absence of Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo is a “huge loss” to West Indies’ chances at the World Cup

George Dobell08-Feb-2015West Indies captain Jason Holder has admitted that the absence of Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo is a “huge loss” to West Indies’ chances at the World Cup.Holder described the decision not to select the pair as “beyond my control” and, in an indication that he did not agree with their dropping, pointed out “I’m not a selector.”Holder became the youngest captain in West Indies’ history when appointed, aged just 23, in the aftermath of the players’ strike that saw the team abandon their tour of India. While the chairman of selectors, Clive Lloyd, has insisted that neither Pollard nor Brave were omitted for disciplinary reasons or out of any sense of vengeance, it is clear that Holder feels that, on ability, they should be in his team.”They are two players who have done well in world cricket,” Holder said. “But it’s out of our control. Not having them would be a huge loss to any side. But it’s beyond our control and we have to accept it and move on.”Holder’s authority as captain was further undermined when, during the media conference, the team’s press officer took the unusual step of calling a halt to proceedings and demanding journalists ask no more questions about Chris Gayle. If the intention was to avoid any uncomfortable questions, it succeeded only in making Holder appear like a young man who needed shielding.Up to that point, Holder had looked comfortable if a little nervous. Admitting he had taken some time to decide whether to accept the captaincy, he conceded that his side’s form had been “inconsistent” but expressed confidence in the raw ability of his squad.”Being captain is a huge thing for me. At 22-years-old I was the youngest captain of all time. Yes, I had to think about it. It was a delicate time. So I gave it some thought and spoke to a few players around the dressing room and made my decision”I’ve seen myself to be a leader in most teams I’ve put myself into. I’ve led teams before. I led West Indies Under-19 and I was vice-captain on the West Indies A team. It’s not something that I’m fresh to. We’ve been inconsistent and not played to the best of our abilities but we have some world beaters in our team. It’s all about putting it all together.”One of those “world beaters” is Gayle. But despite Holder’s relative youth and inexperience – he is 12 years younger and has played 237 fewer ODIs than Gayle – Holder insisted that captaining him would provide no significant challenges.”Chris is big player for any team he plays for,” Holder said. “He’s a world beater. He’s been a top batsman for us for a number of years. We just want him to be his normal self and get the best out of him.”I have built a relationship with some of the senior players. Being captain has not been that difficult thus far. We didn’t do too well in South Africa but we didn’t have our full-strength team out there. I have a good relationship with all the guys.”West Indies’s final preparations for the World Cup begin with a warm-up match against England, in Sydney on Monday.

Jim Troughton, the former Warwickshire captain who was forced to retire through injury last season, will return to Edgbaston this summer as fielding coach.

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2015Jim Troughton, the former Warwickshire captain who was forced to retire through injury last season, will return to Edgbaston this summer as fielding coach.Troughton is somewhat of a legend in Warwickshire having won almost every available trophy in 424 appearances during a 16-year career. But it came to a premature end last summer with Troughton unable to recover from a back injury.He will now hope to be part of more success as fielding coach and also work to facilitate the next generation of captains at Warwickshire.”Jim is remembered as one of the best captains in the club’s recent history and he played a pivotal role in our success last season, despite his playing opportunities being restricted by injury,” Dougie Brown, director of cricket at Warwickshire CCC, said.”We’re thrilled to secure his return as fielding coach. He will travel to both first and second XI fixtures, but also support batting coach Tony Frost and work with elite performance manager Paul Greetham in identifying future leaders within the development of excellence programme.”Troughton added: “Returning to my home Club, where I spent my entire playing career, in a coaching capacity is a dream job. Warwickshire has played a huge part in my life and my experience of working with the team as a player and as captain will hopefully stand me in good stead for this new role.”We have one of the most talented groups of players in the country. I’m very excited about this new challenge and hopefully helping the Bears towards more success.”Warwickshire came with a charge in the season half of last season, reaching the final of the Royal London Cup and winning their maiden T20 title, together with a runners-up spot in the Championship.

The BCL match in Fatullah was abandoned when rain interrupted Islamic Bank East Zone’s reply to BCB North Zone’s 328

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Apr-2015The BCL match in Fatullah was abandoned when rain interrupted Islamic Bank East Zone’s reply to BCB North Zone’s 328. The two teams subsequently had to settle for a point each.A storm stopped play after 13 overs in the East Zone chase. They had reached 84 for 2 at that point with Litton Das unbeaten on 47 off 33 balls, including six fours and two sixes. He had Tasamul Haque at the other end on 23 off 24 balls. Tamim Iqbal and Mominul Haque made 10 and 0 respectively.Batting first, North Zone were all out for 328 runs in 50 overs. Mahmudul Hasan and Junaid Siddique added 168 runs for the first wicket. Mahmudul made 80 off 92 balls with nine fours and a six. Junaid, however, kept going, reaching his fourth List-A hundred, off 105 balls. He was dismissed for 136 off 124 with 12 fours and four sixes.Arafat Sunny took three wickets while Abul Hasan, Nabil Samad and Mominul took two wickets each.

With a lead of 296 runs against Bangladesh, who are ranked No. 9, there were questions over whether the Khulna draw was as bad as a loss, but Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq dismissed the notion

Umar Farooq in Khulna02-May-2015Pakistan’s bowlers conceded more records than the number of wickets they picked up in the Bangladesh second innings in Khulna – the hosts made the most runs they ever have in a Test, Tamim Iqbal’s 206 is their new highest individual score, and his 312-run partnership with Imrul Kayes broke a 55-year old record for the most runs added by an opening pair in the second innings.The Khulna pitch was expected to deteriorate after the fourth day but early morning rain on Thursday had helped hold it together and the bowlers were unable to make much headway.Pakistan had won every Test they played against Bangladesh in the last 14 years, but had to settle for a draw this time. They had a first-innings lead of 296 runs against the ninth-ranked Test team, which led to questions over whether the result was as good as a loss, but their captain Misbah-ul-Haq dismissed the notion.”Obviously with such a lead you want to win the game but sometimes the opposition also plays well and you have to appreciate them for such a strong comeback,” he said, “You can’t say that we made mistakes, but it was definitely disappointing that we weren’t able to produce the result [we wanted]. We had planned for a win but the [Bangladesh] openers outclassed us on the fourth day. All credit to them, they saved the Test in those last two sessions, counterattacking with 273 runs in 61 overs. That opening partnership was the game changer.”Misbah, however, conceded that his bowlers need to adapt to sluggish pitches better. “We had a lead of almost 300 in the first innings and regardless of any sort of pitch we should have put them under pressure. We have to ensure bowlers control their lines and need to plan better against good players.”It was a slow track and batsman enjoyed batting here. Credit should be given to those who scored big here. Both Tamim and Imrul enjoyed batting here and it was a tough wicket to bowl on. Our bowlers struggled bowling in such a slow track, but regardless of any pitch, you have to have bowl with discipline. We definitely need to improve our performance especially with the ball.”It had taken 454 balls for Pakistan to break Tamim and Kayes’ mammoth stand. The last time they had to wait so long for the first wicket was in 2006 when Chris Gayle and Darren Ganga batted for 372 deliveries in Multan.Yet Pakistan’s fast bowlers had kept good lines through the day, tried different lengths, and even reverse swung the ball but wickets remained hard to come by. The first time Junaid Khan bowled to Tamim on Saturday, he had the batsman falling over as a result of an inswinging yorker. Left-arm spinner Zulfiqar Babar broke the Tamim-Kayes stand, in the 76th over, but had given away 132 runs in 32 overs. His spin partner Yasir Shah sported an economy of 4.10 after 30 overs. So Misbah went to his part-time bowlers Asad Shafiq, who claimed a maiden Test wicket, and Azhar Ali.”On a track like that they [bowlers] really tried hard,” Misbah said. “They created chances but luck wasn’t on our side. It happens in Test cricket. The wicket kept playing better and better with every day that passed. We were expecting that it may deteriorate but it remained even throughout.”

Chris Rushworth’s five wickets have set up an intriguing final day in which both Durham and Sussex are hanging on to 100% records

Srihari Daivanayagam at Chester-le-Street28-Apr-2015
ScorecardChris Rushworth’s five wickets set up a tight finish at Chester-le-Street•Getty ImagesThe rain which had been threatening to disrupt play throughout the first two days eventually came on day three, but not before Durham, led by Chris Rushworth’s five-wicket haul, bowled out Sussex for 265 to set up an intriguing day four at Chester-le-Street.After record partnerships from tail enders on the first two days, there was a hint of normalcy in the proceedings on a day in which bowlers took wickets and batsmen scored runs.Sussex dominated the first session of play and looked on course for a big total. But a couple of quick wickets before lunch, followed by a post-lunch batting collapse meant that they managed to set a target of just 262.A positive start by Durham’s openers has left them with just 147 to get on the final day to record their second successive win of the season.Rushworth, who picked up his 10th five-wicket haul for Durham said it has been a “remarkable game”. On how the pitch is behaving, he said: “The odd one is doing a bit, keeping low, bouncing a little bit sidewards so there’s plenty there for the bowlers. But I think in general it is a pretty good pitch.”Earlier in the day, it looked as though it wasn’t going to be Durham’s day as the Sussex batsmen either kept playing and missing it by a whisker or edging it past or just short of the slip cordon. Durham have learned not to despair. “We always feel in the game here,” Rusworth said. “We know as a bowling unit that if you hang around there and be patient, rewards will either come at the other end or later on in the day.”Despite riding his luck early on with a couple of lbw shouts and edges that didn’t quite carry, Matt Machan sparkled for Sussex on a pitch that wasn’t exactly easy to bat, securing his third half-century of the season.After frustrating Durham’s bowlers for large parts of the opening session, both Machan and Harry Finch fell to Usman Arshad and Ben Brown nicked one to Scott Borthwick to put the game nicely in the balance going into lunch.At 255-6 with Luke Wright still at the crease, the visitors would have been looking for another late-order flourish to make good Machan’s efforts. It was not forthcoming. The last four wickets fell for just 10 runs as Rushworth and John Hastings did what they couldn’t in the first innings, wrap up the tail quickly.Rushworth started the collapse by trapping Ajmal Shahzad lbw with the score at 255 for 6. Considering the amount of good shouts that were turned down by both umpires, that was a surprise as it looked as though the ball was heading down leg. In his next over, Rushworth sent the dangerous Luke Wright’s middle stump out for a walk with an delivery that moved off the pitch.Hastings who had hitherto bowled well without any reward picked wrapped up the tail with two wickets in two balls just nine overs after lunch.Chasing a modest 262, both of Durham’s openers started positively on a pitch that is still difficult for new batsmen. Unusually, it was Keaton Jennings who was the aggressor at the start. It was not until the 11th over, when he hit debutant Robinson for three fours that Mark Stoneman really got going. The last of the boundaries also brought up the pair’s second fifty partnership of the innings.Just when it looked as though Durham were cruising to the target, Shahzad removed both openers before tea. First Stoneman was trapped lbw two balls after hitting a massive six onto the top tier of the County Durham Stand. His opening partner followed four overs later, as Division One’s leading wicket taker got the ball to move back in and got the edge off Jennings’ bat into the keeper’s glove.Borthwick and Michael Richardson held fort after tea before the players left due to bad light, with play eventually being abandoned due to rain. With plenty of overs left to play, the weather and not the players will decide whether Division One still has a side that has won all of their games this season.