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T20 working group also discusses uniform 10% release fee for boards hosting franchise leagues

Nagraj Gollapudi14-Jun-2023An ICC working group has recommended that no more than four overseas players, including those retired from international cricket, should feature in playing XIs in T20 franchise leagues. It has also recommended that playing XIs include a minimum of four local players, and that boards be paid a 10% release fee for allowing their players to take part in overseas T20 leagues.The recommendations are aimed at fighting the player drain that several Full Member countries face due to the exponential growth of T20 leagues.Related

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These recommendations, which were first reported in (UK) on Tuesday, will be further examined at the ICC’s chief executives committee (CEC) meeting during the global body’s annual conference, which is scheduled to take place in July in Durban. First approval must come from the CEC before it is presented to the ICC Board to ratify.Once approved, the recommendations will apply uniformly across all T20 leagues. Currently, only the International League T20 (9), Major League Cricket (6) and CPL (5) allow more than four overseas players in the playing XI.The working group met during the World Test Championship final in London last week. During discussions, some members argued that domestic leagues should be geared towards the development of – and opportunities for – homegrown players. And in case the local player pool is shallow, as is the case with the UAE-based ILT20, where a minimum of two local players is mandatory, then some local players’ spots could be filled by players from Associate teams.A counter view was that franchises and broadcasters invest money in leagues like the ILT20 and MLC and that they are ultimately a commercial venture, which requires putting out an optimum product – with the best players involved. In the last year, owners of IPL franchises have invested in overseas leagues including all six teams in SA20, three in ILT20 and four in MLC which will launch its inaugural season on July 13. In addition, Avram Glazer, co-owner of Manchster United, and Microsoft’s Satya Nadella have bought teams in ILT20 and MLC respectively.Multiple IPL team owners, including Kolkata Knight Riders’ Shah Rukh Khan, own teams in other leagues as well•PTI

With the money on offer rivalling retainer fees paid by most boards outside of the Big Three (Australia, England and India), some working group members pointed out that, with several leagues running parallel and without a hard cap on overseas players, several boards could be in danger of an exodus, with players releasing themselves from central contracts or retiring early. Trent Boult and Jason Roy are two high-profile examples of that.Boult opted out of a New Zealand central contract last year in search of a better work-life balance through franchise cricket: he plays for Rajasthan Royals in the IPL and MI Emirates, which is run by Mumbai Indians’ owners, in ILT20; and in July will be seen in the inaugural edition of MLC, the first major T20 league in the USA. Roy recently terminated his incremental England contract to feature in MLC – on Tuesday, Los Angeles Knight Riders announced Roy as one of their direct signings.

‘Unfair competitive advantage’

There was also an opinion in the the working group that emerging leagues like ILT20, Global T20 Canada (relaunching this July) and MLC had an “unfair competitive advantage” by luring top players from Full Member boards and turning those tournaments into a “poor man’s World Cup.” These emerging leagues, unlike those run by Full Member boards, did not need to invest in infrastructure and talent pathways including age-group cricket, first-class cricket and A team cricket, instead simply hiring players for leagues and handing them back.In 2018, Cricket West Indies’ CEO Johnny Grave prepared a paper on the growing influence of T20 Leagues wherein he warned that cricket would be in “jeopardy” unless the ICC and the Full Members found ways to keep international cricket top-priority.In 2019, the ICC CEC discussed setting a cap of five overseas players per XI in T20 leagues, though members rejected the option. But some of those objectors have reignited the debate. At the ICC annual conference in Birmingham in 2022, the PCB, along with several other Full Members, raised strong concerns over the nine overseas player slots in ILT20 XIs.After last year’s AGM, ICC CEO Geoff Allardice told ESPNcricinfo that there had been no “hard cap” on overseas players in XIs when the global body had cleared the ILT20.Trent Boult opted out of an NZC central contract to be able to feature in more T20 leagues•Associated Press

Recently, Wasim Khan, the ICC’s general manager of cricket, said ways would need to be found for international cricket and T20 leagues to “co-exist”. Khan sits on the ICC’s working group, which also includes Arun Dhumal (IPL chairman and BCCI representative on ICC’s CEC), Johnny Grave (Cricket West Indies CEO), Nick Hockley (Cricket Australia CEO) and Mubashir Usmani (Emirates Cricket Board secretary). In the London round of meetings, England and Wales Cricket Board CEO Richard Gould and outgoing New Zealand Cricket CEO David White attended as invitees.

10% solidarity fee

The working group also looked at a potential stipulation that will force boards hosting T20 leagues to pay a 10% release fee to players’ home boards every season.The IPL has been paying release fees since its inception – the BCCI pays boards a minimum 10% release fee per player. Other leagues, too, have negotiated similar amounts in bilateral agreements with fellow boards, in order to obtain no-objection player certificates.In the 2018 paper, the CWI had recommended a 30% release fee to obtain NoCs but the working group believed 10% was a realistic figure. Such a release fee (the group calls it a solidarity fee) would need to be arranged by the host board conducting the T20 league. Associate boards, howeveer, could find this difficult considering the limited funding they get from the ICC.Passing the onus to the franchise, at least one working group member said, wouldn’t be easy, since no such clause might exist in current contracts. The other solution, the group suggested, would involve deducting it from the player’s fee.The discussion will now be picked up by the CEC at the July meeting. While the status quo is likely to continue for now, the working group is clear on one aspect: leagues that have already received ICC clearance, such as the ILT20 and MLC, could be given an allowance to fill in the remainder of overseas slots with retired or Associate players, but any leagues sanctioned in the future will need to satisfy the new regulation as and when they are greenlit.

England fast bowler’s injury problems deepen with news of latest setback

Matt Roller19-May-2022Jofra Archer has been ruled out of the 2022 English summer with a stress fracture of the lower back as the injury saga which threatens to jeopardise his career rolls on.Archer, who last played for England in March 2021, had hoped to make his comeback from a long-term elbow injury for Sussex in the T20 Blast next week and had planned to play some second-team warm-up matches before their opening fixture against Glamorgan next Thursday.But he never made it on to the pitch and the ECB confirmed on Thursday morning that had been ruled out for the rest of the season after being diagnosed with a back problem.Related

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“No timeframe has been set for his return,” a statement read. “A management plan will be determined following further specialist opinion over the coming days.”Archer, 27, has undergone three bouts of surgery in the last 14 months: one on his hand to remove a shard of glass, and two on his elbow.He made an aborted comeback after the first elbow surgery, playing one T20 Blast game and one Royal London Cup warm-up match for Sussex, before he was diagnosed with a stress fracture, prompting the second operation in December.He trained with England in Barbados as part of his rehabilitation during their T20I and Test tours to the Caribbean earlier this year and skipped the ongoing IPL – after he was signed for INR 8 crore (USD 1.06 million) by Mumbai Indians – with the intention of returning to competitive cricket in time for the start of the Blast.Archer admitted earlier this month that he had feared for his career at one stage during his lay-off and his latest setback will raise unavoidable concerns as to whether his body will be able to cope with the demands of first-class cricket again.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

The ECB was already concerned about the number of English fast bowlers suffering injuries, with Sam Curran, Chris Woakes, Ollie Robinson, Mark Wood, Olly Stone, Saqib Mahmood and Matthew Fisher among the seamers who were not considered for selection for the first Test squad of the summer.”It’s definitely a concern and trying to find out why this is happening is something that we need to look into,” Rob Key, England’s managing director of men’s cricket, said on Wednesday. “We need to make sure that hopefully, it never happens again. But as you know with all fast bowlers, these unfortunately are the things that do happen – stress fractures in particular.”Archer is the third quick to be afflicted by a back stress injury this season. Mahmood was ruled out for the summer earlier this week, while Fisher was initially rested for four weeks due to concern around a “hot spot” before Yorkshire said he would face a further spell of monitoring.

Availability of 10 squad members for Boxing Day Test against Sri Lanka is in doubt

Firdose Moonda17-Dec-2020South Africa face a potential selection headache, with 10 members of their 16-man squad to play Sri Lanka involved in domestic first-class matches in which positive cases of Covid-19 have been detected.Rassie van der Dussen, Beuran Hendricks, Wiaan Mulder (all Lions), Migael Pretorius (Knights), Aiden Markram, Dean Elgar, Lungi Ngidi (all Titans), Keshav Maharaj, Sarel Erwee and Keegan Petersen (all Dolphins) were part of fixtures between the Titans and the Dolphins, and between the Lions and the Knights, in which at least five positive tests have been returned. It is not yet known which, if any, of the 10 are infected or are deemed close contacts of those who are infected. If any of them fall into these two categories they will need to isolate for 10 days from December 16.The first Test against Sri Lanka starts on December 26 and only Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis, Temba Bavuma, Anrich Nortje, Kyle Verreynne and Glenton Stuurman are confirmed as available. De Kock, du Plessis, Bavuma and Nortje did not play in this round and Verreynne and Stuurman played in the Cobras-Warriors match, which was unaffected by the virus.The latest round of domestic first-class matches saw the first franchise cricket match called off because of Covid-19 in South Africa. The top of the table clash, between the Titans and the Dolphins, was abandoned after the first day when a Dolphins player tested positive. At least three more players from that franchise have also been infected.Related

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In the second match, between the Lions and the Knights, a Lions player tested positive on day three and was withdrawn from the match but play continued. An insider confirmed that the reason that fixture was not abandoned was on the advice of a risk assessment and because the Knights players indicated their willingness to continue.Players from all four franchises are now being monitored and those who are deemed close contacts to the positive cases will be forced to isolate for 10 days. That means they will only come out of quarantine on December 26, on the first day of the Boxing Day Test, and will therefore not be available for selection. Those players could then be added to the bubble ahead of the New Year’s Test, provided they have clean bills of health. Those who enter the bubble will be tested on Saturday, next Monday and next Wednesday, with the first Test to start on Thursday.ESPNcricinfo understands that the biosecure bubble at the Irene Country Club – which is the venue that will host both South Africa and Sri Lanka for the two Tests – is on track and Cricket South Africa expect the series to go ahead, albeit with some absentees. Sri Lanka named a full-strength squad, barring the injured Angelo Mathews, on Thursday and will leave for South Africa on Friday. They may find their hosts severely depleted, depending on how many of their 16-man squad have to isolate following the latest Covid-19 outbreak.South Africa is officially in its second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic and has seen a massive increase in its infection rate in the last two weeks. On Wednesday, the country recorded more than 10,000 cases for the first time since August 1 and further restrictions have been put in place, including a curfew and limits on the number of people at gatherings. The Gauteng province, where the Sri Lanka series will be played, is one of four areas in the country where the spike in cases has been deemed concerning.Sri Lanka are due to be South Africa’s second international visitors this summer, after England who withdrew from their tour last week. England played three T20s but the three scheduled ODIs were postponed after three South African players and two hotel staff tested positive for Covid.Two England players also tested positive but on verification, their results were confirmed negative. England’s bubble was more lenient than Sri Lanka’s will be, after the English players requested recreational activities including golf. They played at five different courses on eight occasions while in South Africa.

Unbeaten eighth-wicket stand between Lakmal and Dickwella keeps Sri Lanka in sight of parity after 12-wicket day

The Report by Shashank Kishore15-Aug-2019Stumps Ajaz Patel hasn’t had the bowling opportunities he’d like when back home, but when he’s been called upon overseas since his debut late last year, he’s generally been a machine that delivers sharp-spinning deliveries mixed with dollops of drift and subtle changes in lengths.On surfaces like in Galle that offer bite, he can be more than a handful, as Sri Lanka found out on Thursday. His second Test five-for triggered a slide, Sri Lanka slipping from a comfortable 143 for 2 to 227 for 7 at stumps. They still trail New Zealand by 22, leaving the Test wide open after a pulsating 12-wicket day.The usually flamboyant Niroshan Dickwella battled against his own instincts at times to occupy the crease and finish the day with an out-of-character 39 off 74 balls. Suranga Lakmal, who swung the game away from New Zealand early in the morning with a magnificent spell of 4 for 15 in 5.2 overs, held fort for 79 minutes to make 28 not out. They combined to add 66 in 24.1 overs to frustrate New Zealand’s spinners, who at one stage looked like they would give their batsman a bigger cushion to work with.Kusal Mendis’ dismissal with the tea interval four minutes away started the slide. He is solid when he wants to be, but often has a tendency of playing a shot or two too many at inopportune moments. He didn’t score a single boundary after drinks in the second session and significantly slowed down after a bullet train-like start. This approach earned him a well-deserved half-century, but looking to blast Ajaz’s teaser through cover, he nicked to the slips and New Zealand, who at that point were probably starting to wonder if they would be staring at a deficit, were back in the game.Then the other Kusal – Perera – got in and three quiet deliveries later, attempted to cut a short ball from Trent Boult, except this one got big on him and cramped him for room as the ball lobbed to point. He was gone for 1. Suddenly, a game where neither side appeared to have conceded the advantage to the other swung in New Zealand’s favour; Sri Lanka committing the same mistakes New Zealand did – losing wickets in clumps – on the opening day against spin.Then came the wicket of half-centurion Angelo Mathews, who was done in by a fine cocktail of drift, dip and turn from Ajaz. Reaching out to drive one that wasn’t quite there, only to see Ross Taylor lap it up at slip.Suranga Lakmal was among the wickets on the second morning•Getty Images

These moments of madness came on the back of a solid middle session for Sri Lanka where Mathews and Mendis stonewalled New Zealand’s spin threat. In a 20-minute passage on either side of drinks, Sri Lanka found scoring tough, managing just eight runs in ten overs. Mathews met the ball with a full forward stride, but there was a sense that he may have been going into his shell. Then came two long hops off Tim Southee, which he hit for boundaries to break the shackles. The first of the two was a short ball thumped through point and the second a neat little tuck off his hips to the fine-leg boundary. Now, all revved up, he turned ultra-aggressive when he lofted Mitchell Santner over long-off, and cleared the ropes despite not hitting it well. But, by then, the stranglehold New Zealand seemed to have built around the Sri Lankans after reducing them to 66 for 2 had eased.Towards the end of the session, Kane Williamson, perhaps realising the importance of this stand, brought back Boult for a crack after a first spell of five overs that went for just seven. This didn’t make much of a difference as he struggled to move the ball or cause much ruffle, forcing Williamson to alternate between Will Somerville and Ajaz, and the move worked as they scythed through the lower order to leave Sri Lanka gasping, until they were saved by the Dickwella-Lakmal stand.In the morning, New Zealand unravelled rather dramatically in the face of an excellent Lakmal spell after resuming on 203 for 5. Lakmal claimed the prize wicket of Taylor for 86 with his first ball of the morning, and then went on to deliver a spell that yielded 4 for 15, as New Zealand lost their last five wickets for 46 runs. Attempting a cut to a short-of-a-length Lakmal ball close to his body, Taylor gave a straightforward edge to the wicketkeeper. Santner didn’t last the first half hour either, shouldering arms to a Lakmal indipper that would have gone on to clip the stumps had it not struck pad.With both recognised batsmen out early in the day, it was up to New Zealand’s tail to provide some sort of resistance, but only Boult succeeded for any reasonable length of time, hitting a six and a four on his way to 18 off 22 balls. He eventually holed out trying to hit Lakmal for another six down the ground, before No. 11 Ajaz was out lbw first ball, attempting a leg-side flick. New Zealand’s innings wrapped up soon after drinks.Sri Lanka had 13 overs to bat out before lunch, and in that time lost opener Lahiru Thirimanne. After the interval, they lost Dimuth Karunaratne, who played back to a quicker delivery from Ajaz to be lbw. The stage was set for the middle order to step up, and though Mendis and Mathews did their job, the stumble came on cue, leaving the Test in the balance.

The team had to postpone its journey from Harare to Bulawayo for the ODI series after it emerged that they wouldn’t have a hotel to stay in

Liam Brickhill10-Jul-2018The Pakistan team touring Zimbabwe had to delay plans to travel from Harare to Bulawayo after it emerged that they wouldn’t have a hotel to stay in.The team is in Harare at the moment, having triumphed in a T20I tri-series in which they beat the hosts and Australia to the title. They are scheduled to play a five-match ODI series against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo, starting on Friday.After winning the final on Sunday, Pakistan were originally scheduled to fly out on Monday evening but had to reschedule because the hotel they were due to stay in demanded payment upfront for the booking and Zimbabwe Cricket was initially unable to provide it, which resulted in the cancellation of the booking.ZC has been in a financial crisis for some time now, having had to postpone domestic tournaments and struggled to pay players and employees. They have at least the promise of some help from the ICC now.The situation with Pakistan’s hotel bookings has since been rectified and the tourists will now fly to Bulawayo – a journey of under an hour by air – on Thursday morning, when their rooms become available. They will train on Thursday afternoon, ahead of the first ODI.The Zimbabwe squad arrived in Bulawayo on Monday night and trained on Tuesday morning. The teams will play all five ODIs at Queens Sports Club from July 13 to 22.

Mumbai Indians crushed Delhi Daredevils by 146 runs, the largest margin of victory in the IPL

The Report by Varun Shetty06-May-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details4:27

Bangar: Daredevils lost the match in the first half

Mumbai Indians made a mockery of their opposition on Saturday. First they smacked Delhi Daredevils’ bowlers around to put up a total of 212. Then they bullied the batsmen into folding for a paltry 66. And in the end, a team that had recorded the second-highest chase in IPL history two nights ago was defeated by a margin so huge – 146 runs – it became a tournament record.So how did this all come about? Well, a few things went to plan. Like Lendl Simmons coming off the bench and hitting a half-century, Kieron Pollard responding to his promotion to No. 3 with an innings that was both calculated and cruel and the Mumbai bowlers knocking over each of their bunnies.Daredevils were five down in the chase before the Powerplay was done, and bowled out for their lowest IPL total. Mumbai, on the other hand, stormed into the playoffs.Caribbean carnage, Part 1Simmons has some phenomenal IPL numbers – before tonight he had 10 scores of fifty or more in 22 innings – and yet he had to wait until tonight to get his first game of the season. He began tentatively – as is expected of a batsman whose most recent T20 innings were 1, 1, 4* and 1. But the shackles seemed to break with a pull for six off Kagiso Rabada in the fourth over.Daredevils peppered Simmons with a mix of back-of-a-length and short deliveries, but it did not bother him. He got, both, on top of the bounce, and under it in equal measure – only one of his nine boundaries came off a fullish delivery.Simmons’ 66 off 43 balls took apart Daredevils’ famed fast-bowling attack, counterbalanced Parthiv Patel’s sedate 25 and gave Mumbai the perfect start on a small ground.Caribbean carnage, Part 2For a brief time, Amit Mishra was able to put a stop to Mumbai’s momentum. His first two overs went for only seven runs and had yielded a wicket too. Daredevils’ decision to play a fourth seamer in place of left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem came under question.Pollard, however, hit that hypothesis out of the park, along with four of Mishra’s deliveries. This included denting Zaheer Khan’s plan of bowling Mishra out at a stretch. His two sixes off Mishra’s third over forced Zaheer to give him a change of ends. The two overs needed to make that switch went for 25, and when Mishra returned, Pollard hit him for two more sixes. That was the start of Mumbai’s slog-overs push. Pollard saw it through with an unbeaten 63.Daredevils come a full circleA target of 213, mere days after achieving their highest successful chase, didn’t trouble the Daredevils – for as long as they were in the dugout. Once they came onto the field they realised that the Mumbai bowling attack was well-manned and well-marshalled.Mitchell McCleneghan had removed Sanju Samson three times in nine balls before today. After the first ball of the chase, the head-to-head was adjusted to four wickets in 10 balls.Bumrah had removed Pant twice in six balls. He was brought in for the fourth over and got the batsman out for a duck.Harbhajan had knocked Karun Nair over three times in 19 balls. So naturally he was brought on to bowl to his bunny and the battle ended with a catch to midwicket. These were all signs of a team being well-informed of their own strengths, the opposition’s weaknesses, and exploiting them all perfectly.Meanwhile, Daredevils had updated their lowest score twice in the space of six days, while also pulling off their best chase in the period.

England survived a major scare against Afghanistan to sustain their World T20 hopes, recovering from 85 for 7 to steal home by 15 runs

The Report by George Dobell23-Mar-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMoeen Ali’s wise innings shepherded England to a winning score•Getty Images

The final margin of victory might not show it, but England survived a major scare against Afghanistan to sustain their World T20 hopes.At 85 for 7 in the 15th over of the match, England were teetering on the brink of a defeat that would have reverberated around the cricket world.But, through the calm head of Moeen Ali and the broad shoulders of David Willey, England cast off their shackles in the final overs to set a target that proved sufficient on a tricky surface on which batting was never completely straightforward.Perhaps Afghanistan can feel a little unfortunate. Replays suggested that Moeen was fortunate to survive a leg before appeal off the bowling of Shapoor Zadran in the 18th over when England were 102 for 7. Moeen was on 20 at the time and, with Willey, went on to plunder 35 from the final two overs of the innings.That Moeen-Willey partnership was crucial. The pair added 57 from the final 33 deliveries of the innings thrashing Amir Hamza for 25 from his final over. His first three overs had cost just 20.Until then, it had been hard to be certain which side contained the pros who are extended every advantage and which was the side that gained Associate status less than three years ago. With England’s panic-stricken batsmen struggling to adjust to a surface far removed from the Mumbai pitch where they made their highest T20I score a few days ago, they seemed to have no idea what constituted a par total. Indeed, it was a surprise they elected to bat first upon winning the toss.It wasn’t that the ball turned especially far for Afghanistan’s four spinners. It was that it skidded through and sometimes gripped just enough to plant seeds of doubt. Conditions were not dissimilar to the UAE and England supporters will need little reminder how their batsmen have fared in Test series there.While James Vince, in the side due to Alex Hales’ back injury, had given England a fluent enough start in reaching 42 for 1 in the sixth over, his loss precipitated a collapse that saw them lose five wickets for 15 runs including a spell of three in four balls.Mohammad Nabi was the unlikely destroyer. After clinging on to a return catch off the leading edge to dismiss Vince, he saw Eoin Morgan – who is in the middle of another fallow patch of form – inexplicably leave a straight one, first ball, which drifted into his off stump.While Ben Stokes survived a confident leg before appeal from the hat-trick ball, Joe Root was run-out from the next delivery after over-committing to an optimistic single. Nabi, while initially breaking the stumps with his elbow before taking the throw, had the composure to rip a stump from the ground to defeat Root’s despairing attempt to recover his ground.Suddenly England looked petrified. Ben Stokes, losing his balance and his feet as he tried to pull a long-hop out of the ground, was bowled off a bottom edge, Jos Buttler’s drive was brilliantly caught at extra cover and Chris Jordan was caught off the leading edge as he tried to turn one into the leg side. Had Moeen been adjudged leg before, England would have been in deep trouble.But he was reprieved and he made the most of it. Hamza was slog-swept over mid-wicket for six then driven back over his head for four, before Shapoor was lofted over extra-cover for four more. Meanwhile Willey, good enough to open in T20 in domestic cricket, heaved successive sixes over long on off Hamza.While probably under par, England’s final total of 142 was only 20 under the IPL average on this ground.If Afghanistan were to get close, they probably required a significant contribution from Mohammad Shahzad in reply. But, in the first over of the chase, his attempted heave into the leg side was beaten by Willey inswing and he was struck on the back leg in front of leg stump.Jordan, bowling at a sharp pace, had Asghar Stanikzai taken at slip off fencing, and Liam Plunkett proved to have too much pace and bounce for a line-up lacking experience against such qualities. Plunkett, preferred to Reece Topley in the England attack, started his World T20 campaign with a maiden and conceded just 12 from his entire spell.Nabi was lured into a drive to long-on, Rashid Khan was well caught at extra-cover and by the time Najibullah Zadran was run out by Jordan’s direct hit – replays suggested his bat was over the line but in the air – and Samiullah Shenwari carved a filthy ball to cover, it became clear it was not to be Afghanistan’s day.While Shafiqullah’s late impetus – he thrashed 35 from 20 balls including a magnificent straight six off Jordan to become the highest contributor from No. 9 in this format of international cricket – came too late to save Afghanistan, it may yet condemn England. They required not just victory here, but a victory that significantly improve their net run-rate. A 15-run win does not really provide it.They will know this was not a convincing performance. Quite apart from their nervous batting, they donated overthrows, misfields and a drop – Buttler failing to cling on to a chance offered by Nabi off Adil Rashid on four – in the field. England will know that more experienced sides will punish them.That experience is the key ingredient missing for Afghanistan. While they couldn’t quite finish the job, they gave one of the Big Three who have made it so hard for them to gain further opportunities a bloody nose. They’ve proved they deserve their chance.It is to be hoped that the ECB management who watched this game squirming with discomfort take up their cause in the board meetings that have a disproportional influence on their future advancement.

Chris Gayle is one of the biggest crowd-pullers in Twenty20 leagues but when he is labelled a mercenary, he feels “sad” his performances over the years for West Indies, including in Tests, are ignored

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Aug-2013Chris Gayle is one of the biggest crowd-pullers in Twenty20 leagues across the world but when he is labelled a mercenary, he feels “sad” his numerous performances over the years for West Indies, including in Test matches, are ignored.”I have been giving my all for West Indies for 13 years now,” Gayle told . “So it’s sad when people just forget all that I’ve achieved for the Caribbean and use such derogatory terms. I have scored runs and won matches in Test cricket as well. There are other cricketers too who get bracketed in that category. It’s unfair but you can’t stop tongues from wagging.”Gayle, who has led Jamaica Tallawahs to the semi-finals of the inaugural edition of the Caribbean Premier League, believes T20 cricket will continue to thrive. “It’s the future and is growing bigger and bigger every day. Test cricket will survive, but you have to be realistic and accept things as they are,” he said. “You can come to the ground for two-and-a-half hours knowing that you will be enthralled for every minute you spend there. It’s become a serious business now. You have everyone from movie stars to celebrities coming in and trying to have their own piece of the pie.”Gayle has participated in several leagues across the world and touched upon the difficulties of acclimatising. “I have been with (IPL franchise) Royal Challengers Bangalore for a few years now so that connect is there,” he said. “But it’s difficult to just go somewhere and feel the pulse of that city. I just go with an open mind.”It’s not easy, landing up in a dressing room on short notice and having to get acclimatised immediately. I have been doing this year after year. And I have got used to the whole process. The secret is to not put pressure on yourself to fit into the ecosystem. The best way to make a mark is by winning matches for the team.”The expectations are massive. They don’t just want runs or sixes from Chris Gayle but he has to entertain with bat, ball and in the field. Luckily, I love having fun and ensuring that the fans and everyone is getting their money’s worth.”Gayle, who has has caught headlines during the CPL for his array of sunglasses, believes the tournament has a promising future. “The CPL has a good look. So I needed one too. The IPL is obviously bigger than all other leagues put together. You have so many stars playing together. The CPL does have a long way to go but we’ll get there.”Guyana Amazon Warriors and Trinidad and Tobago Red Steel meet in the first semi-final in Port-of-Spain on Thursday, while Jamaica face off against Barbados Tridents in the second one on Friday.

Seekkuge Prasanna spun a canny spell that reaped four for 19, as the Ruhuna Royals suffered their second failed chase in two nights, succumbing by 14 runs to Uva Next

The Report by Andrew Fernando21-Aug-2012
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Seekkuge Prasanna took an excellent catch to dismiss Lahiru Thirimanne•Shaun Roy/SPORTZPICS/SLPL

Seekkuge Prasanna spun a canny spell that reaped four for 19, as the Ruhuna Royals suffered their second failed chase in two nights, succumbing by 14 runs to Uva Next.Wahab Riaz injected late excitement, after the Royals’ appeared to have run aground at 119 for 8 from 18.1 overs, in pursuit of 156. But despite a first-ball 6 and three wides, 30 from the final over was never likely to be hauled in, particularly with Lasith Malinga for company at the other end. Andrew McDonald also contributed a miserly spell of 2 for 16, having already made 28 from 14 at the tail-end of Uva Next’s innings.The openers had already been dismissed before Prasanna’s introduction, but in two overs, he’d struck thrice and effectively derailed the chase. The Pallekele pitch offered more grip and bounce than on previous evenings, and it was the latter that defeated Aaron Finch as he top-edged a cut into the keeper’s gloves off Prasanna’s second ball. The googly accounted for Lahiru Thirimanne two balls later, as he shaped to pull the legbreak, but could only lob it back to the bowler when the ball spun the other way.Prasanna continued to mix his variations cleverly, and was only sent to the ropes twice. Both times, he dismissed the assailant next ball. The Royals attempted to hit out several times, but with Prasanna and McDonald giving them few bad balls at either end, boundaries were not forthcoming, and the run rate flagged while wickets fell.Uva Next had progressed slowly for much of their innings, but they did it with wickets in hand, and when the crescendo came, it proved adequately forceful to set a challenging total. Upul Tharanga was the innings’ anchor, as he collected a 40-ball 48 that showcased an array of easy offside drives once more. He went at close to a run a ball to begin with, but gathered speed towards the middle with three fours in four balls off Wahab Riaz.Shoaib Malik combined with Tharanga for a measured 58-run stand, but when both batsmen fell within three overs, McDonald’s cameo provided the late acceleration, lifting Uva Next to 155 for 4.

Zimbabwe stormed to another easy victory against Bangladesh, with another commanding all-round performance giving them a 2-0 series lead

The Report by Firdose Moonda14-Aug-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsBrian Vitori made it ten wickets in his first two ODIs•Associated Press

Zimbabwe stormed to another easy victory against Bangladesh, with another commanding all-round performance giving them a 2-0 series lead. After Brian Vitori carved up the Bangladesh line-up, with his second ODI five-for in as many games, Vusi Sibanda built the foundation for the chase, before Tatenda Taibu’s half-century sealed the win.The hosts rectified their problem of losing too many wickets in the middle order and held firm where they could have wobbled. Bangladesh also made gains, although much smaller. They bowled with a little more consistency, although failing to find enough bite, and only managed to score four more runs than they did in the first ODI. Their batsmen failed to apply themselves and succumbed to poor shot selection against a particularly precise attack.Bangladesh started positively with Imrul Kayes pouncing on width from Chris Mpofu at the first opportunity. But the encouraging start proved to be a false dawn as Vitori’s golden arm struck again. He bowled his usual tight line and was rewarded with his fifth ball, when Tamim Iqbal tried to smack him through point without moving his feet, gifting Ray Price a catch at first slip.Mushfiqur Rahim was promoted to No. 3 in an attempt to repair the early damage, but the experiment failed. One ball short of completing five measured overs at the crease, he mistimed a pull to be caught at square leg. Instead of consolidating, Kayes followed Mushfiqur, trying to force a length delivery through extra cover, and offering Hamilton Masakadza a simple catch.Shahriar Nafees was dropped in the slips off the next ball, giving Bangladesh a bit of a lifeline. But Nafees and Mohammad Ashraful withdrew into their shells as the run-rate stagnated though they managed to see off Mpofu’s bounce and Vitori’s movement, before Prosper Utseya provided respite. Elton Chigumbura’s introduction offered them the ideal opportunity to forge forward, but instead, they regressed.Nafees gave his wicket away, to the fielder extra cover, and in Chigumbura’s next over, Ashraful, who had displayed real patience, gave up. He hung his bat out to a wide delivery and got an edge through to Taibu. The wicketkeeper snapped up his second catch when Mahmudullah misread the line from Utseya and played for turn that wasn’t there.At 58 for 6, Bangladesh were in a familiar mess, having slumped to 43 for 5 in the previous game. Shakib Al Hasan found an unlikely but welcome partner in debutant Nasir, who had a good tour of South Africa with the A side in April. Nasir showed the maturity that those before him should have employed. His handling of the short ball, and execution of the pull shot against Mpofu were of particular distinction.Shakib’s ability to come to Bangladesh’s rescue is well documented and the captain’s efforts were, once again, praise-worthy. His fault is that he hasn’t been able to convert his starts into bigger scores and he stumbled again when Vitori returned for his second spell. Nasir was the senior partner in his time at the crease with the captain and continued in that vein when he was joined by Abdur Razzak.Their partnership flourished at a run-rate of over six, with both application and assurance against the spinners. They found themselves needing to accelerate when Vitori returned for a third spell. Nasir took him on, but lofted straight to the fielder at long-on.Vitori’s dream introduction to the international arena continued with another stunning effort when he bowled Razzak with a full delivery. Bangladesh’s innings ended limply when Rubel Hossain was run out, 15 balls short of their allotted 50 overs.Bangladesh’s effort in the field was a little more promising. Shafiul Islam struck early, removing Taylor in his second over, inducing him to push outside off stump. The ball took the edge and was dying on Nafees at second slip, who completed a good catch.The early breakthrough gave Bangladesh something to work with, but as was the case in the first ODI, they were unable to maintain pressure, although their use of the new ball was markedly better. Abdur Razzak, however, had less success with his left-arm spin, with Sibanda using his feet well against him.Shakib and Mahmudullah operated in tandem with better results, managing to squeeze and force the batsmen to work them around the field. Sibanda and Masakadza were up for the task and found the gaps without needing to play a shot in anger.Shakib could have had Masakadza stumped when he was on 30 but Mushfiqur could not collect the ball. Mahmudullah ensured that the team only paid eight runs for their error. He lured Masakadza forward by tossing it up, and made him play for turn that wasn’t there. Mushfiqur didn’t repeat his mistake and took the bails off.Sibanda struggled at times against the short ball, but his mistimed pulls did not cost him and his driving remained impressive. His half-century came up with a lofted shot over Shafiul’s head. Taibu took eight balls to get off the mark but when he did, with a single, it opened the floodgates and his next scoring shot was a six over extra-cover.Rubel was only given two overs and even Ashraful was allowed to turn his arm. He dismissed Sibanda, who was stumped after going too far down the track. Taibu took his time when he needed to, but showed off the footwork that he is renowned for, taking on the spinners and playing a dominant role in his partnership with Craig Ervine.Taibu was dropped at deep midwicket on 46, a wicket that would have made no difference to the result, but it was fitting that he was there at the end. His exquisite pull off Ashraful took Zimbabwe home with 35 balls remaining.