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ICC guidelines state that consideration should be given to suspending play if the air quality index reaches 300

Andrew McGlashan at the SCG02-Jan-2020Cricket Australia chief executive Kevin Roberts has said that the health of players, officials and the public will not be put in jeopardy when it comes to the potential of the Sydney Test being halted by smoke from the bushfires burning throughout New South Wales.Officials are braced for the potential of play being suspended – the forecast for Saturday looks the most problematic – with the ultimate decision resting with the umpires and match referee who will assess the visibility in the middle although Cricket Australia medical staff will be involved in discussions and regularly monitoring the air quality.ICC guidelines state that consideration should be given to suspending play when the air quality index (AQI) reaches 300 – the marker for a hazardous reading – a number that has been hit in Sydney during the summer, although different bodies use different levels with the Australian Institute of Sport having 150 for high-intensity exercise and the state government 200. On Thursday afternoon, the AQI at Randwick – the closest monitoring station to the SCG – was in the high 70s which is in the moderate level.In November a T20I between India and Bangladesh in Delhi was put into doubt due to poor air quality although the game eventually went ahead.Before Christmas, a BBL match in Canberra between the Sydney Thunder and the Adelaide Strikers was abandoned when thick smoke drifted back across the ground with the umpires calling play off due to visibility issues although the air quality would also have been a problem. Earlier in December, a Sheffield Shield match at the SCG was completed in extremely hazy conditions which led to a number of players questioning the decision to play on.”We won’t be putting the players’ health at risk, we won’t be putting the health of match officials, our own people or fans at risk so that’s something we will be monitoring consistently during the five days,” Roberts said. “It’s a day-by-day proposition as those people effected by bushfires know better than I.”It is complex, like many things in life and sport we work with experts and good judgement will be required. We are as confident as we can be, this is quite a unique situation, that we have the right expertise around us, good judgement will be exercised and the safety of everyone at this great ground will be put first.”Kevin Roberts speaks to the media•Getty Images

While the players can be removed from the middle if conditions become unsuitable, spectators would have to decide themselves how to deal with the situation.Australia captain Tim Paine was content to leave any decisions around the smoke in the hands of medical staff and said that the bushfire crisis sweeping Australia put a sporting occasion into perspective.”We’re lucky in the Australian set-up that we’ve got world-class doctors and people that are put in place to make those decisions. We’re just focusing on what we can control, which is going out and playing and we’ll be doing that until we’re told otherwise,” he said. “I’ve been given a rough guide, but basically when it goes smoky we’re coming off. I think our doc is having a pretty big say in reading the levels of air quality so it’s all set, we know the number, if it happens it happens and unfortunately that’s life.”At times for us it’s important to look outside the bubble that we live in as international cricketers. The events that are going on around the country at the moment are a real eye-opener for us. We speak about one of things being humble and showing some humility so as I’ve said before our thoughts certainly go out to the people that have been affected by it. It’s got worse again overnight and the firefighters have been the real heroes of this summer.”Players from both sides will wear black armbands in memory of those who have lost their lives and pay tribute to the emergency services and personnel fighting fires ahead of play on Friday including a minute’s applause. The ODI series between the two teams which takes place in March will raise money for the Australian Red Cross to support those affected by the fires and the Australian team are auctioning off their signed shirts from the Melbourne Test.

Amelia Kerr’s sister Jess finds a place in the 15-member squad named for the home ODIs against South Africa

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Jan-2020Allrounder Sophie Devine is set to lead New Zealand at the Women’s T20 World Cup, having been named captain on Thursday. Devine takes over indefinitely from Amy Satterthwaite, who recently gave birth to her first child.Devine’s first assignment as full-time New Zealand captain will be the three ODIs and five T20Is against the visiting South Africa team, leading into the Women’s T20 World Cup in Australia from February 21.Medium pacer Jess Kerr, sister of allrounder Amelia Kerr, was also picked for the ODI series against South Africa. This was twenty-two-year-old Jess Kerr’s maiden New Zealand call-up. She plays for Wellington in domestic cricket.Devine’s new assignment comes on the back of some red-hot form in her previous high-profile tournament, the Women’s Big Bash League, where she was named Player of the Tournament. There, playing for Adelaide Strikers, she led the batting charts with 769 at 76.90 in 16 games, scoring at 130.33 runs per hundred balls inclusive of a whopping 29 sixes. She was also fourth on the bowling charts, with 19 wickets at 20.68, conceding just over a run a ball. In all she has played 102 ODIs and 83 T20Is for New Zealand, having debuted in October 2006.Speaking about her new job, Devine said: “This is a team I’m deeply passionate about and to have the opportunity to help drive its future is a privilege.”It’s an exciting time for women’s cricket in this country with the recently signed MOU with NZC, a fresh direction with our new coach Bob Carter, and two ICC World Cups [the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia, and the one-day World Cup in New Zealand in 2021] on the horizon.”We’ve got a good mix of talent and experience in the group and I’m looking forward to leaning on my fellow senior players to try and build on the good work done by Amy and Suzie Bates.”Satterthwaite had announced in August 2019 that she would be taking a break from cricket to have her child with her wife and team-mate Lea Tahuhu. Under the new Women’s Master Agreement, Satterthwaite will continue to be contracted with New Zealand Cricket while she is on her break. She had said she would look to take up mentoring duties during this period, and looked forward to “working my way back with an eye on the 2021 ICC Women’s World Cup held in New Zealand”.Jess Kerr credited sister Amelia for pushing her to get to the level she is at, and said she was excited to play alongside her for New Zealand. “To be selected in my first White Ferns squad is a huge honour and it’s something I’ve been working towards for a while. To be picked in a squad alongside Melie [Amelia] is pretty special. She’s inspired me a lot to get back into playing cricket competitively and push for higher honours.”I’ve loved playing alongside her in the [Wellington] Blaze but to be representing our country together is even more special.”New Zealand’s ODI squad for the South Africa series: Sophie Devine (capt), Suzie Bates, Bernadine Bezuidenhout, Lauren Down, Maddy Green, Holly Huddleston, Hayley Jensen, Leigh Kasperek, Amelia Kerr, Jess Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Katey Martin, Katie Perkins, Anna Peterson, Rachel Priest

His effort helped Nepal bowl USA out for just 35, the joint-lowest total in ODIs

Peter Della Penna in Kathmandu12-Feb-2020Nepal’s teenage legspinner Sandeep Lamichhane played a central role in a history-making day at Tribhuvan University Stadium on Wednesday morning, turning in the second-best ever figures by an Associate bowler in ODIs. His career-best 6 for 16 in just six overs helped Nepal bowl USA out for just 35. It was the joint-lowest total in ODIs and the shortest completed innings in ODI cricket, wrapped up in just 12 overs.”It’s a fantastic feeling to be on that list [of best figures in ODI cricket],” Lamichhane said after the match that lasted less than two hours. “But if you talk about 6 for 16, it’s for the team and the team is important for us. Two wins out of four [matches], still 32 games to go [in the World Cup League 2] and beating the top team in the league so far, I think it’s a positive sign for us.”USA had entered the ODI tri-series in Nepal – that also includes Oman – as the table leaders in the seven-team WCL 2 tournament that continues until 2022. But the USA team leaves Kathmandu licking their wounds with four consecutive losses. Oman won their four matches to jump over USA to be at the top of the table.It also continues a historic trend of Nepal spinners having tremendous success against USA. On USA’s last visit to Nepal in 2010 for the WCL Division 5, teenage left-arm spinner Rahul Vishwakarma took 7 for 15 to lead a win for Nepal in the tournament final. Left-arm spinner Basant Regmi also took back-to-back five-wicket hauls against USA in twin victories at 2012 WCL Division 4 in Malaysia. However, none of those tournaments had ODI status as they were played long before both nations attained their current ODI status.Among Associate players, Lamichhane’s figures are behind only Rashid Khan’s 7 for 18 against West Indies, just weeks before Afghanistan were granted Test status. Lamichhane jokingly responded at the post-match press conference that Rashid is “a Test player now, so forget that! Number One!” as he pointed to himself, sparking laughter from the assembled media.Lamichhane’s performance was also noteworthy because he did it with the new ball after Nepal chose to field first. The spinner has had a regular habit of bowling in the powerplay in franchise T20 cricket and said his experiences in various competitions bowling with a hard new ball helped him in his record performance in what was the shorted completed ODI in history, lasting a total of 17.2 overs.”I’ve been bowling for the last two years with the new ball. So I’ve got that experience how to give that rip with the new ball. It’s all about the backing you get from the captain as well and the kind of response he is giving to my bowling as well. So the belief and trust from the captain, that was the thing that helped me to perform like that today.”

“We’re looking forward to having a day off tomorrow and then getting stuck into them,” the New Zealand captain said

Alex Malcolm01-Mar-2020They say to keep your friends close and your enemies even closer.There will be no secrets when New Zealand meet Australia in a cut-throat game at the Junction Oval on Monday. The winner progresses to the semi-final, the loser goes home.Both sides know each other intimately, with so many of New Zealand’s players featuring heavily in the WBBL, playing and training alongside the Australian players.It’s no secret that New Zealand are struggling in this tournament. The loss to India appeared tighter than it was, with Amelia Kerr’s freak innings almost papering over the cracks that India exposed in New Zealand’s batting.Those cracks became cavernous against Bangladesh, who bowled them out for just 91. It was their second-lowest total in Women’s World T20 history and their sixth-lowest in T20 internationals overall.The bowlers saved their blushes, with Hayley Jensen and Leigh Kasperek taking three wickets each as Bangladesh imploded in the chase.The captain Sophie Devine knows the area they must improve ahead of the clash with Australia.”Probably batting a bit better than we did today,” Devine said.”But look we’re really excited about that. Obviously, we wanted to get done with today and get the points in the bank and then it’s onto Australia who we’ve played a lot of cricket with and against and we’re really looking forward to it. Any time we come up against Australia, it doesn’t matter what sport it is, it’s going to be a big one. We’re looking forward to having a day off tomorrow and then getting stuck into them.”New Zealand’s reliance on their two stars in Devine and Suzie Bates is clear for the world to see. Both Bangladesh and India exploited it expertly, keeping the in-form Devine away from strike in the Powerplay and letting the run-rate build pressure.Bates’ form is also a worry with scores of 13, 6, and 15 in the tournament to-date. But Kasperek backed New Zealand’s big guns to fire against Australia.”I think they’ll be a little bit disappointed in how they have gone,” Kasperek said.”But when we’ve been training they’ve been hitting it really well and we’re really lucky we’ve got number one and number two in the world at the moment and the very fact that even today and against Sri Lanka, we got over the line when Suzie didn’t go well, but other people have been stepping up in the middle overs. You want your big players to step up in big games so hopefully, they can do that on Monday.Another area of concern for New Zealand is their lack of experience against left-handed batting and left-arm bowling. The White Ferns do not have a single left-hander or left-arm bowler in their entire squad. Chamari Atapattu (41 off 30), Udeshika Prabodhani (0 for 16 from 4 overs with 15 dot balls), Rajashwari Gayakwad (1 for 22 from 4 overs with 14 dots) and Radha Yadav (1 for 25 from 4 overs with 12 dots) have all caused New Zealand trouble in this tournament.Australia has two in-form left-handers in their top six in Beth Mooney and Rachael Haynes, while Jess Jonassen is a key component of the attack. Sophie Molineux, an allrounder who bats left-handed and bowls left-arm orthodox, will also be heavily considered for selection provided she can overcome a thigh injury.Kasperek believes it’s not a concern for the squad.”A couple of us like to dabble in a little bit of left-arm (at training),” Kasperek said.”But when we’ve had trainings we’ve tried to have net bowlers coming in and we’ve had our coaches come around the wicket and try to replicate the left-armers as much as possible.”I guess it’s just something in New Zealand that we just generally don’t have a lot of. Yes, it is different. But again, I think we’ve played enough cricket that we should be able to adapt to.”New Zealand haven’t beaten Australia in any format since February 2017, including six ODIs and four T20Is. But they haven’t met in a T20 international since the last World T20 in West Indies in 2018.Kasperek said the familiarity of their foes means Monday holds no fears.”I think we’ve been pretty close in a lot of games but I think it just that confidence thing,” Kasperek said.”Probably just a big player stepping up, especially with the bat. We’re really lucky in the fact we’ve had a lot of girls go over and play in the Big Bash and be successful so I think that will actually hold us in really good stead playing against Australia.”

Allrounder’s deal off due to Covid-19 pandemic

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jun-2020Somerset have announced the cancellation of Corey Anderson’s contract by mutual consent.Anderson, the New Zealand allrounder, had signed for all 14 group-stage games in the T20 Blast, and potentially the knockout stages, but his deal has been called off due to the Covid-19 pandemic.”The last few months have not been an easy time for anyone and the challenges of dealing with the impact of the pandemic within cricket have been unprecedented,” said Andy Hurry, the club’s director of cricket. “I would like to thank Corey and his representatives for their transparency and understanding in reaching this mutual decision.”It’s obviously really disappointing news to everyone as there was a real buzz around Corey returning to Taunton. However, this decision provides Corey and the club with clarity in a time of uncertainty.”A club statement said: “This decision suits both parties at this time and it is hoped that Corey will return to play for the county at some point in the future.”

Tweaks to trigger movements help England star develop game after highs of 2019

Andrew Miller18-Jul-2020Ben Stokes says that he took pride in his display of patience on the opening two days of the second Test, as he came through a battle of wills with West Indies’ bowlers to make 176 from 356 balls, his highest Test score on home soil and the first time he has ever batted for more than 300 balls in an innings.Speaking to Sky Sports on the third day at Emirates Old Trafford, where rain caused a delayed resumption, Stokes spoke of his determination to not to get drawn into the sort of errors that caused his downfall in the first Test at the Ageas Bowl, where he was dismissed twice in the match by Jason Holder, for 43 and 46.Asked to appraise his innings, in which his first hundred came from 255 balls, Stokes acknowledged that it had been “different”, but that both he and Dom Sibley, whose own hundred came from an even more sedate 312 deliveries, had been obliged to play the situation due to West Indies’ disciplined gameplans.ALSO READ: Stats – Sibley’s slow show, and England’s second-longest partnership for 20 years“I made a real conscious effort to be as clinical as I possibly could,” said Stokes, “especially around that sort of fourth- and fifth-stump line that Jason and Kemar [Roach] are fantastic at doing.”It was about understanding what we had to do at different times throughout the game,” he said. “I had to be really disciplined in leaving the ball because I know by now that teams will hang the ball wide and test my patience. So I was playing the game with them as long as I could, and waiting to be able to capitalise on anything.”It’s a measure of Stokes’ determination to improve his record as a batsman that, even in the wake of a 2019 home summer that featured two of the greatest innings ever produced by an England cricketer, he was willing to reappraise his technique and work on a new, more open stance that he feels has given him more chance to get settled early in his innings.”I went into the winter and worked a lot with [assistant coach] Paul Collingwood,” he said. “After 2019, one thing that stood out for me was that, early on in my innings, I felt I was going quite hard at the ball, because I wanted to feel the ball on bat. I made a conscious effort to find a way that allows me to play the ball as late as possible for my first 20 to 30 balls.Ben Stokes celebrates his hundred with a gesture to his father•Getty Images

“I wasn’t worried about the change,” he added. “I’m always trying to find different way to improve and I found that getting that trigger from leg stump across to off stump allowed me to do that, and also to get back into the ball as well. If I’m hitting the ball straight down the ground – whether with a drive or a defensive shot – I know that everything’s in pretty good order for me.”The tweaks have borne fruit for Stokes already, but his rise as a batsman had already been in full flow. Since his permanent promotion to No. 5 in England’s Test line-up – midway through last summer’s Lord’s Test, where he made the first of his two Ashes hundreds – Stokes has amassed 1100 runs at 61.11. His career average in that period has jumped from 33.76 to 37.90.”I’ve had a bit of success with that new trigger so I’m happy with where everything is at the moment, but I’ll still be going away and I’m working on things to develop and get better,” he added. “I was disappointed with the way that I got out at the Ageas Bowl, especially in the second innings where I didn’t really have to play a ninth-stump ball.”When I walk down the pitch, I try and make the good-length balls into half-volleys, and when I go deeper in my crease, it’s about looking for the potential to cut or pull. It’s about putting bowlers off their lengths as much as I possibly can, and not allowing them to settle into a rhythm.”But how can I keep playing in the same mentality that I want, but do it better? If I’m going to walk down the pitch, and the ball is eighth-ninth-stump line, then I don’t have to play it. Just because you’re walking down the pitch, it doesn’t mean you have to try and blaze it for four.”

England bowlers struggle after lunch on rain-affected first day

The Report by Valkerie Baynes05-Aug-2020Babar Azam and Shan Masood lifted Pakistan on a day punctuated by shifting fortunes on the field and above it as the first match in the three-Test series against England began.A moment of silence to remember those who have lost their lives in the Covid-19 pandemic before play began under heavy skies put the match in perspective and emphasised the efforts of both countries to stage this contest behind closed doors at Emirates Old Trafford.Having been in England for a month, preparing in the relative anonymity provided by England’s series against West Indies, Pakistan arrived to their first Test since February as questions swirled over their readiness to face an opposition which has three matches’ worth of competition fitness in them.By the time rain brought about an early tea and delayed the evening session by nearly three hours, it was batsmen Azam and Masood who looked to be in a groove against a bowling attack that seemed to have turned rusty at lunch.After his captain, Azhar Ali, won the toss and elected to bat first – opposite number Joe Root said he would have done the same – Pakistan opener Masood withstood a tricky period against Stuart Broad and James Anderson first up, accompanied by Abid Ali in a partnership that was approaching fifty when Jofra Archer entered the attack.Having rounded off his first over with a couple of steepling bouncers which were evaded well by Abid, Archer struck with the first ball of his second over when he bowled Abid with a beauty through the gate and into off stump, thus ending a patient start by Abid and the partnership on 46.After a brief rain interruption, Masood settled, guiding Archer through the bare gully region with smart, soft hands for four.But then Chris Woakes, who had relieved Anderson after five overs, struck with a full delivery that thwacked Azhar Ali on the pad in line and sent him on his way for a six-ball duck, despite his swift call for a review, which only confirmed the lbw decision.That brought Azam to the crease and he showed his class, somehow escaping a testing first delivery from Woakes that narrowly missed the outside edge and off stump and negotiating the ever-challenging Archer.But it was against Anderson after lunch that Azam settled into his stride, finding the boundary three times in as many overs to bring his spell to a swift end.Anderson even became the first bowler to be called for a front-foot no-ball – a rarity for him – by the third umpire in Tests under the new system being trialled during this series when he over-stepped bowling to Azam in the 31st over.Meanwhile, Masood was enjoying almost as good a time against Broad and, by the time Root turned to Archer and the offspin of Dom Bess, the batsmen were in a decent flow. They had put on 78 runs together and, as Azam brought up his half-century off just 70 balls with a punch into the covers off Bess and then passed it with two runs behind square off Archer, the rain hit.By that stage, Masood had moved to 45 not out, Pakistan had recovered from 43 for 2 to 121 for 2 and the players faced a long stay in the dressing rooms.Manchester was eventually bathed in bright sunshine but, by the end of mopping-up operations, play resumed under lights with the dim skies back overhead.Archer, who had bowled one ball before the lengthy stoppage, finished his over with plenty of short stuff, which meant Root was forced to turn back to spin, bringing himself on with Bess.Masood added just one run, having faced 152 balls – more than any other visiting opener in England since 2016 – for his 46 not out before bad light forced play to be abandoned for the day.In the course of his innings, Masood had two lives, both from Jos Buttler off the bowling of Bess. On 45, he survived an edge through to the keeper, and he hadn’t added to his score when, after the rain break, he charged at Bess, attempted to hit the ball to the leg side but missed, only to be saved when the ball bounced out of Buttler’s gloves. At the other end, Azam had moved to an unbeaten 69 off 100 balls in a third-wicket stand of 96.

Indian online gaming firm replaces Chinese company Vivo

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Aug-2020Dream11, the online fantasy sports company, has won the title rights for IPL 2020 after bidding INR 222 crore ($29.7 million approx.), IPL Governing Council chairman Brijesh Patel has confirmed to ESPNcricinfo. Dream11 beat bids from Byju’s and Unacademy to win the rights, which run from August 18 to December 31, 2020.Till late evening, the BCCI had not announced the winning bid through the media release. Just like in 2017, bids were submitted sealed before the winner was determined. However, there was one significant change between the process used this time compared to 2017 when Vivo won the rights. Back then, the bids were opened on the same day as they were submitted and the winner determined after the technical evaluation of the bids.This time the bids were submitted sealed on August 14 and opened four days later. It is also not yet known whether the IPL Governing Council will need to ratify the final bid before BCCI makes the news public. In 2017 the process was pre-approved by the Governing Council once the wining bid was evaluated.Dream11 – who are they?
Dream11, based in Mumbai, has been associated with cricket since 2008, when it sponsored Otago Volts in the inaugural Champions League T20, played in India. It is also the official fantasy cricket platform partner with the ICC and will have that status with the IPL too. It has had a strong presence in cricket tournaments around the world of late. It made a debut as title sponsor late last year by associating with New Zealand Cricket for the 2019-20 Super Smash, that country’s domestic T20 competition. Then in May, it sponsored the T10 Vincy Premier League in the Caribbean, which was among the first organised cricket tournaments since the Covid-19 pandemic.The latest deal further strengthens Dream 11’s association with the BCCI. In 2018, it became the BCCI’s official partner for the IPL, and then the official partner for all international and domestic matches in India last October. The company, which has a global presence with a tie-up with the NBA, also has prominent crickets as its brand ambassadors, including MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma and Ben Stokes. Its primary investors include Tencent, the Shanghai-based social media company.Why did IPL need a new sponsor?
Soon after the clashes between armed forces in June, the BCCI had said it would “review” the sponsorship deals concerning the IPL. “Taking note of the border skirmish that resulted in the martyrdom of our brave jawans, the IPL Governing Council has convened a meeting next week to review IPL’s various sponsorship deals,” BCCI said in a tweet posted on June 19.The title sponsorship forms a key part in the IPL’s revenue sharing agreement with the franchises; 50% of the title sponsorship money goes to the eight franchises. It is understood each franchise earns over INR 20 crore ($2.7 million approx.) per year from the title sponsorship.
The BCCI’s bidding conditions specified that only companies with an annual turnover of INR 300 crore ($40 million approx.) or more would be eligible to bid for the IPL title sponsorship.The winning bid, the BCCI had said, would not necessarily need to be the highest bidder and would depend on various other factors. “For the avoidance of doubt, it is clarified that BCCI shall not be obliged to award the rights to the third party which indicates willingness to pay the highest fees in the course of discussions/negotiations,” the BCCI said in a media release on August 10.”BCCI’s decision in this regard will also depend on a number of other relevant factors. It includes, but is not limited to, the manner in which the third party intends to exploit the rights and the potential impact of the same on brand IPL as also the fan/viewer experience, which will be examined and evaluated by BCCI in the course of discussions/negotiations with interested third parties who submit an EOI.”

Last-wicket pair hang tight after Selman’s 73 establishes defiant rearguard

ECB Reporters Network09-Sep-2020Glamorgan battled bravely to a draw in their final Bob Willis Trophy match of the campaign, as Warwickshire’s Ian Bell brought down the curtain on his 20-year first-class career at Sophia Gardens.Their valiance in the closing overs notwithstanding, the result ends a disappointing four-day campaign for Glamorgan, whose batsmen have failed to get going throughout the competition, despite a rotation policy which has seen a number of fringe players being handed opportunities in the top order.Bell’s final contributions yielded 140 runs for the county he’s served so well, and he was given an ovation by both teams, umpires and coaching staff as he left the field for the final time.Resuming their pursuit of 331 on 9 for 0 on the final morning, Glamorgan were 69 for 2 at lunch and much credit goes to Nick Selman in the afternoon for his defiant innings of 73 as he battled hard to save the match.The final’s day play would also prove to be a big test of character for Glamorgan’s Joe Cooke, in only his second first-class county red-ball match, as it quickly became evident that Glamorgan would employ a rear-guard action.Alongside Selman, the 23 year-old left-hander took control to successfully see off Oliver Hannon-Dalby and Liam Norwell in the opening exchanges, with the best shot of the morning coming from an off-drive to the boundary.However, having batted defensively and patiently in the first hour, Glamorgan lost two wickets from successive Ryan Sidebottom deliveries, when Cooke edged tentatively to the keeper before Owen Morgan was bowled by an in-swinging full-toss.The Welsh county’s defensive approach, having effectively given up the pursuit of 331, backfired after lunch as captain Chris Cooke, attempting a back-foot drive through the off-side, feathered to the keeper off Hannon-Dalby.It looked like being a decisive six overs in the match, as the momentum swung in the visitors’ favour, despite Selman battling hard to a half-century in 146 deliveries.As Billy Root played the waiting game early in his innings, getting off the mark from his eleventh delivery and glancing his first boundary off his legs two deliveries later, the fourteenth he faced beat him all ends up, flying off the edge into the hands of Sam Hain at second slip.Selman, unbeaten on 62, and Callum Taylor, 14 not out, saw the Welsh county through to tea, and they needed a further 187 in the final session, with the visitors requiring a further six wickets.They moved at a pedestrian pace in the final session, offering little in the way of chances before Taylor fended an uppish delivery from Sidebottom to short-leg after 29 overs at the crease and a partnership of 67.The visitors had their biggest breakthrough when Hannon-Dalby struck Selman leg-before for 73, the batsman’s valiant effort ended after 215 deliveries when he was struck suspiciously high on the leg, and Glamorgan’s lower order still had 18.5 overs to bat out.There was little doubt about Cullen’s dismissal, though, as he was dismissed in similar fashion by spinner Alex Thomson for his first wicket of the match. Douthwaite followed soon after, edging a rising delivery from Sidebottom to the keeper.The visitors edged closer to a victory when Lukas Carey edged Hannon-Dalby to slip, but Michael Hogan and Timm van der Gugten survived the final three overs.Warwickshire finish the campaign in third place in the group, while Glamorgan are rooted firmly to the bottom. The visitors’ attention now turns to the Vitality Blast where they host Glamorgan at Edgbaston on Friday night.

He had a muscle tear in one of his abdominal muscles on the left side

Nagraj Gollapudi12-Oct-2020Delhi Capitals fast bowler Ishant Sharma has been ruled out of IPL 2020 with an abdominal muscle tear. Sharma had suffered a back spasm while training in the UAE before the start of the IPL last month and played just one match for the Capitals, against Sunrisers Hyderabad on September 29. The Capitals are understood to have sought a replacement for him.A release from the Capitals said Sharma had initially complained of an “acute episode of left rib cage pain” while bowling at a team training session on October 7. Later, Sharma was found to have a muscle tear in one of his abdominal muscles on the left side.”Delhi Capitals fast bowler Ishant Sharma experienced an acute episode of left rib cage pain while bowling at a team training session on 7 October 2020 in Dubai. Subsequent investigations revealed that he sustained a left internal oblique muscle tear. This injury will unfortunately rule him out of the remainder of the Dream11 Indian Premier League 2020,” the Capitals release said.Sharma bowled three overs against the Sunrisers for a wicketless 26 runs. His injury adds to the Capitals’ worries as they already lost legspinner Amit Mishra with a finger injury earlier, and wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant is also out for a week with a hamstring issue.ALSO READ: Alex Carey for ‘injured’ Rishabh Pant not a straight swapThe Capitals currently have Kagiso Rabada, Harshal Patel, Mohit Sharma, Avesh Khan and Tushar Deshpande as their pace-bowling options. Their next game is against the Rajasthan Royals on October 14 and they play another two games after that within the next eight days.Injury concern for Indian selectors Sharma’s injury also has wider implications considering India are scheduled to travel to Australia for a complete tour including a four-Test series to be played in December-January. The Indian selectors are likely to pick the squads soon as they wait for the official itinerary to be released by Cricket Australia.Sharma is three matches short of becoming only the second Indian fast bowler to play 100 Test matches after Kapil Dev. Sharma is the second India fast bowler after Bhuvneshwar Kumar to be ruled out of this IPL with an injury.Sharma took a five-for in the last Test he played – against New Zealand in the first Test in Wellington – but missed the second with an ankle injury.