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West Indies look to better ODI performances against Dhawan-led India

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This is not an ODI World Cup year. The series between West Indies and India is not part of the World Cup Super League. Both teams finished their previous 50-over assignments less than a week ago. So what can one expect during these three ODIs?After clinching both white-ball series in England, India have rested Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah, while KL Rahul is on the recovery path after a hernia surgery. That means some of their back-up players – under stand-in captain Shikhar Dhawan – will get a full series than just a one-off game here and there.

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West Indies, on the other hand, are on a six-match losing streak in the format, and have one of the worst win-loss ratios in ODI cricket this year. To put things back on track, their captain Nicholas Pooran and coach Phil Simmons have asked their players to make sure they bat out full 50 overs, something they have struggled with of late. Since January 2021, West Indies have batted first 12 times in ODI cricket; on nine occasions, they failed to last their full allocation of overs.In good news for the hosts, Jason Holder is back after having been rested for the Bangladesh series. His presence will lend the side the much-needed experience not just in the bowling department but also in the lower middle order.Related

  • 'Doing things together' key to the Shikhar Dhawan way

  • Which teams have had more than six captains in a calendar year?

  • Hosein, Motie and Seales among talents who could challenge India

  • WI ODIs a chance for India's bench to prove its strength

  • Simmons puts faith in struggling WI batters, adds voice for better pitches

Form guide

West Indies LLLLL (last five completed ODIs, most recent first)
India WLWWW

In the spotlight

Nicholas Pooran was one of the few bright spots for West Indies during their white-ball series against Bangladesh. If the hosts are to challenge India, Pooran will once again have to lead from the front. The good thing from West Indies’ perspective is that their captain has a favourable record against India: 354 runs in nine innings, at an average of 44.25 and a strike rate of 107.59.Shikhar Dhawan will be key for India in the absence of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli•AFP/Getty Images

Shikhar Dhawan might be the stand-in captain for the series but his recent form with the bat hasn’t been great. In his last five ODIs, Dhawan has made 112 runs at an average of 28 and a strike rate of 61.53. It has been 20 innings since he last made a hundred in the format. In the absence of experienced players, India will want Dhawan to find his form back.

Team news

Keemo Paul didn’t bowl in the final ODI against Bangladesh after sustaining a hamstring injury. While Simmons is happy with his recovery, West Indies will take a call on his inclusion on the eve of the match. With Holder and Kyle Mayers in the squad as other seam-bowling allrounders, they may not want to rush him though. Apart from Paul, Keacy Carty could be the other one to miss out from the 13-member squad.West Indies (probable): 1 Shai Hope (wk), 2 Brandon King, 3 Shamarh Brooks, 4 Kyle Mayers, 5 Nicholas Pooran (capt), 6 Rovman Powell, 7 Jason Holder, 8 Akeal Hosein, 9 Alzarri Joseph, 10 Gudakesh Motie, 11 Jayden SealesIndia have plenty of decisions to make. Who will open with Dhawan? What will the seam-bowling attack look like? Do they pick Shardul Thakur at No. 8? They can choose from Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan and Shubman Gill to open with Dhawan. Among seamers, Mohammed Siraj, Avesh Khan, Prasidh Krishna and Arshdeep Singh are their options. What is certain, though, is Ravindra Jadeja has a niggle that could keep him out of the series opener at least.India (probable): 1 Shikhar Dhawan (capt), 2 Ruturaj Gaikwad/Ishan Kishan (wk), 3 Shreyas Iyer, 4 Deepak Hooda, 5 Sanju Samson (wk), 6 Suryakumar Yadav, 7 Axar Patel, 8 Shardul Thakur, 9 Avesh Khan/Prasidh Krishna, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Mohammed Siraj

Pitch and conditions

After Pooran criticised the pitches used for the ODI series against Bangladesh in Guyana, one expects the Queen’s Park Oval to offer a better contest between bat and ball. To Simmons, the surfaces here look better prepared, but the venue last hosted an international match in 2019. So it needs to be seen how they play out. The weather is expected to be partly cloudy with the temperature hovering around 30°C.

Stats and trivia

  • India have won eight of their last nine matches at the Queen’s Park Oval. The other game was washed out.
  • Dhawan will be India’s seventh captain across formats this calendar year.
  • Among Full Member players, Akeal Hosein is the leading wicket-taker in ODI cricket this year. In 14 games so far, he has picked up 22 wickets at an economy of 4.90.

Quotes

“He [Holder] looks fresh, he had some time out of the game. He has been bowling well for the last two days and actually batting well too. So it’s good to have him back.”

Kohli: 'I was desperate to do something that wasn't in my game' before the break

by csb10.top Uncategorized

Rohit Sharma has hailed Virat Kohli’s “work ethic” and his attitude of “never letting things go no matter what” following his first T20I century in India’s Asia Cup fixture against Afghanistan. In turn, Kohli credited the “space” Rohit and Rahul Dravid have given him upon his return from a six-week break for the recent success.”Personally, since I’ve come back from a break where I didn’t touch the bat for the longest time in the 13-14 years I’ve played, a lot of things were put into perspective,” Kohli told Rohit in a chat on BCCI’s official portal. “I got a lot of clarity from you guys [pointing to Rohit] and the team management, to just allow me to bat. That was very important.Related

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  • Reactions to Kohli's ton – 'You can delay class, but you can't deny it'

“The space I got made me feel very relaxed. When I returned, I was excited to see how I could contribute to the team. Playing this way was important for me because the World Cup is big and if I play well, I can contribute big for the team.”I’d spoken to Rahul [Dravid] three-four days back, where batting first, especially the middle overs phase, how I can improve my strike rate. My only goal was to work on whatever I need to improve, I will try it at the Asia Cup. I honestly didn’t expect it [to score a T20I century]. I was shocked, [and] as you also mentioned after that, no one expected a century from me in this format after a long time. I was pleasantly surprised, grateful and honest.”Kohli finished the Asia Cup with 276 runs in five innings, striking at 147.59. After India’s game against Afghanistan, he was the leading run-getter in the tournament, 64 ahead of second-placed Mohammad Rizwan. He had made two fifties and a century, his 71st in international cricket and first in over three years.The standout aspect of that hundred was his end-overs acceleration after having opened the batting. On 59 off 40 going into the last five, he switched gears and scored his next 63 runs off just 21 balls. There were no nerves even as he approached a landmark that had eluded him for 1020 days. On 94, he played a disdainful pull to bring up his century. It was a drought he broke in style.”I got a lot of clarity from you guys [pointing to Rohit] and the team management, to just allow me to bat,” Kohli said•AFP/Getty Images

Equally noteworthy was Kohli’s propensity to step out of his crease, especially against spin, something he’s done quite a lot at the Asia Cup, seemingly to try and increase his scoring options. Between April 1, 2018, and the start of the Asia Cup, Kohli stepped out once every 7.9 balls on an average in all T20s. This Asia Cup, as per ESPNcricinfo’s data, he stepped out once every 4.9 deliveries.In trying to raise the bar, Kohli also brought out shots he doesn’t often play, like the conventional sweep. The one he hit off Mujeeb Ur Rahman was only his 24th sweep against spinners in all T20s in this time period, out of the 1200-plus deliveries he has faced from them. This includes all kinds of sweeps, including the slog, so the numbers for the conventional sweep would be even lower.Kohli explained how his focus has been on playing good cricket shots, without worrying too much about strike rates and six-hitting, something he said had bothered him prior to his break. He admitted to having been “desperate to do something that wasn’t in my game” at that point.”My aim was to always to play all three formats, and I banked on good cricketing shots,” he said. “I always came to every tournament or series thinking six-hitting is not a big strength of mine. I can [hit sixes] when situation demands, but I’m better at finding gaps and hitting boundaries, so as long as I can hit boundaries, it will still serve the purpose for the team.”I told the coaches as well that I’m going to try and hit gaps rather than thinking I’ve to hit sixes to improve strike rates in T20 cricket. That thing I removed from my system in this tournament, and that helped because I was able to come back to my template. But it’s about being in a good space and enjoying your batting.”We can play in many ways, but my role is to play as per the situation and if it demands I have to take the scoring rate higher, I should be able to do it. My aim was if I can be in this zone, I can be relaxed because I know if I’m set for 10-15 balls, I can accelerate. I’m very happy that especially from the team’s point of view, I’m back to being in my template I’ve played for a while, which I was going away from because I was desperate to do something that wasn’t my game.”Rohit, who was conducting the interview, agreed that the knock against Afghanistan was a fine lesson in pacing an innings. “Obviously in T20 cricket we talk about big hitting and all of that. But that [century] was the perfect example of how to craft an innings without focusing so much on the big hitting,” he said. “That was wonderful to see. I know it personally because I’ve seen you bat long enough.”

David Lloyd double-century puts Glamorgan in command against Derbyshire

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A career-best double-century for Glamorgan captain David Lloyd put his side in the driving seat in this third vs fourth clash.Glamorgan finished the first day on 380 for 3, gaining four batting bonus points, with Lloyd on 203 not out, his second century coming off just 101 balls as Derbyshire’s bowlers toiled.Glamorgan first class debutant Tom Bevan offered good support with 48 in a century partnership which set the platform, while Billy Root made the most of a move up the order to No. 5 by contributing 77 not out in a partnership of 197.Derbyshire needed a win to overtake Glamorgan and stay in contention for promotion going into the final round of fixtures, but now find themselves with their backs against the wall with the Welsh County looking to push on to a huge first-innings total.Glamorgan were without India’s Shubman Gill with a heavy cold, while they also brought in off spinner Andrew Salter for all-rounder Kiran Carlson. Derbyshire gave a debut to South Wales-born paceman Adam Sylvester.Related

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With a winner between these sides having a chance to challenge second-placed Middlesex in the final round of matches, Lloyd’s day did not start so well when he lost the toss and was asked to bat on a pitch which had a greenish tinge.Three balls later and Derbyshire had lost opening bowler Ben Aitchison with a rolled ankle, which made the decision to bowl seem a little unfortunate. He did return to bowl one more over, and fielded at slip, but his future fitness in the game is doubtful.Anuj Dal took over the rest of that over and also made the first breakthrough, getting opener Ed Byrom caught behind.Bevan made his first class debut having made his breakthrough this season with a century against Hampshire in the Royal London Cup.He was slower than Lloyd at the other end, but also showed enough promise to mark him out as one for the future. While he has helped steer local side St Fagans to the South Wales Premier League title this season, he is likely to be otherwise engaged next year.He would have been disappointed to miss out on a half-century, attempting to get there in style hitting across the line at spinner Alex Thomson and skying the ball instead.Sam Northeast looked comfortable until he was clean bowled out of the blue with Luis Reece getting the ball to move off the seam.While wickets fell at the other end, Lloyd got better and better. Having moved to his half-century just before lunch, he moved to three figures comfortably before tea, no sign of nerves about his first hundred of the season as he smashed the ball aerially through mid on off Thomson to bring up the landmark.His previous highest score this season was 84, his average in the mid 20s with the allrounder having moved to regularly opening the batting.Soon after tea he surpassed his career-best score of 121 and carried on past 150, with Root offering steady support in another century partnership. Root moved to his half-century off 94 balls as the run rate increased with the second new ball.

England women to tour West Indies in December

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England’s women will play three ODIs and five T20Is against West Indies in Antigua and Barbados in December.The ODIs in Antigua will form part of the ICC Women’s Championship, in which England are yet to get off the mark following their 3-0 defeat by India in September.The Tour runs from December 4 to 22, which means it will be concurrent to the men’s Test tour of Pakistan, which gets underway in Rawalpindi on December 1, with the third Test in Karachi ending on December 21.England are likely to be able to call upon the services of Nat Sciver, who withdrew from the India series for a mental-health break in the summer, while their captain Heather Knight is also hopeful of being fit after undergoing hip surgery during the summer.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“We’re happy to be able to release the schedule for the tour of the West Indies,” Jonathan Finch, director of England Women’s cricket, said.”It’s always a great place to visit and with a new head coach soon to come on board it’s the beginning of a new cycle for this team.”The West Indies series sees our first overseas round of the ICC Women’s Championship and it’s key we get some points on the board. The tour also plays an important role in preparing for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup early next year.”

Mongia, Maninder, Ratra, Das apply for India selector post

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Nayan Mongia, Maninder Singh, Shiv Sunder Das and Ajay Ratra are among several candidates in the running to become part of BCCI’s new senior men’s selection committee.The deadline for applications closed on Monday (November 28), with the BCCI now likely to appoint a Cricket Advisory Committee to conduct interviews before announcing their decision. The first assignment for the new selection panel will be to pick the Indian team for the limited-overs series at home against Sri Lanka in 2023.Related

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In the meantime, the outgoing panel, led by Chetan Sharma, will remain in place. Its members are currently following the knockout stages of the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy, the domestic 50-overs competition, as well as the Cooch Behar Trophy.Das is currently contracted to Punjab as a batting coach. Prior to that, he was one of the coaches at the National Cricket Academy and had stints with the Indian women’s team. If Das is appointed – a number of his contemporaries believe so – he will be replacing his former Odisha team-mate Debasis Mohanty. Mohanty, the former India fast bowler, has completed his five-year term as a selector, having previously served in junior cricket.Hemang Badani* was believed to have been in the race, but he has since clarified that he hasn’t applied. Earlier, he neither confirmed nor denied his candidature when ESPNcricinfo had contacted him.7:03

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The current selection committee includes three members who can reapply for their jobs and while it could not be confirmed whether Chetan and Harvinder Singh will do so, it is learnt that Sunil Joshi will be stepping away. That leaves the position of the west zone selector, which has anyway been vacant since the tenure of Abey Kuruvilla ended late last year.Meanwhile, Deep Dasgupta and Laxmi Ratan Shukla, the other names doing rounds from the east, have confirmed they haven’t applied. Dasgupta is now a broadcaster while Shukla is currently head coach of the Bengal team, having taken over just six months ago from Arun Lal.Among the new applicants, Mongia has already been part of a selection committee – at both the junior and senior level – at Baroda. With 44 Tests and 140 ODIs, he is also among the senior-most candidates in the fray. Mumbai’s Sameer Dighe and Salil Ankola, along with UP’s Gyanendra Pandey and Punjab’s Reetinder Sodhi have also expressed interest in the job. Ajit Agarkar, who was among the few high-profile candidates from last time, hasn’t applied this time.When advertising for the new selection panel, the BCCI had put down a minimum qualification level of seven Tests or 30 first-class matches, or 10 ODIs and 20 first-class matches for applicants. They should have also retired “at least five years previously” and should not have been over 60 years of age. The committee when picked will comprise five members – one from each zone.* ESPNcricinfo had earlier misreported L Sivaramakrishnan’s candidature, and Hemang Badani has since clarified that he hasn’t applied for the job. The errors are regretted.

Bengal on verge of Ranji final after batting Madhya Pradesh out of the game

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It’s fair to assume Madhya Pradesh will not have a chance to defend their Ranji title in 2022-23. That’s because Bengal, the team they beat in the semi-final during their victorious run last year, have now batted them out of the contest at Holkar Stadium, in their own conditions.If pocketing a 268-run first-innings lead wasn’t big enough, Bengal ensured they batted right through the fourth day to run MP ragged. They ended on 279 for 9, ahead by a mammoth 547 runs at stumps.Anustup Majumdar, who made 120 in the first-innings, top-scored in the second dig too. His 219-ball 80 blunted MP’s threat even as wickets fell around him. The base was set during the course of an 85-run stand with Sudip Kumar Gharami, who made 41, before Bengal lost a clutch of wickets.Related

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Bengal, however, found some resistance from the lower order, with Pradipta Pramanik making his maiden first-class half-century. Pramanik, playing only his fourth game this season, was unbeaten on 60. He had Ishan Porel for company as the last-wicket pair batted out nearly 14 overs for 56 runs, of which Porel scored just a solitary run.Kumar Kartikeya, the left-arm spinner, did much of the bowling for MP. He toiled away for 46 overs that brought him three wickets. Spin accounted for 88 of the 119 overs Bengal faced, with offspinning allrounder Saransh Jain, one of the few bright spots with the bat for MP in this match, picking up 6 for 103.

James Harris re-elected as PCA chair for second term

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James Harris, the Glamorgan allrounder, has been re-elected for a second term as chair of the Professional Cricketers’ Association.Harris, 32, took over from the previous incumbent Daryl Mitchell in 2021, and will remain in the post until February 2025 – the maximum four-year stint permitted by the PCA’s constitution.”Being re-elected is a huge honour,” Harris said. “I’ve really enjoyed the first two years. Having an extra two years will be brilliant and I’m really looking forward to pushing through some meaningful change in my second term.”Harris’ first term coincided with the sport’s recovery from the Covid pandemic, and in addition to representing the organisation in Parliament, at the DCMS Select Committee hearings, he has also overseen the PCA’s increased commitment to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.iAs a Director of the Professional Cricketers’ Trust, he also helped raise funds for the PCA’s charitable arm by cycling over 1,000km to and from Cardiff, via Headingley and Lord’s.”The PCA has a huge role to play in the evolution of the game worldwide, we need to make sure that we’re moving forward with the game, keeping pace with the game, because there’s so many opportunities to play around the world in different tournaments which wasn’t available 10 years ago,” Harris said.”I think with the opportunity for players to travel and improve their game around the world, there really is no better time to be a professional cricketer than right now and I can only see that trending in one direction as we move forward.”PCA Chief Executive, Rob Lynch, said: “I’m really pleased that James has been elected by his peers to take on a second term as Chair of the Association.”A lot has happened in the world of cricket in the last two years and James has been as been at the forefront of the change in England and Wales.”I’m looking forward to continuing our strong working relationship and strategic planning for the next two years is already under way in this crucial point in the history of our game. With key priorities assessed to ensure we continue to champion the interests of professional cricketers in this country, we will be updating our members in the coming weeks through the AGM, Rookie Camp and pre-season meetings with all 26 domestic squads.”

Pope squeezed out as South Australia hope to break 29-year drought

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Legspinner Lloyd Pope will not get the chance to play in the Sheffield Shield final as South Australia look set to opt for an extra seamer in the hope of breaking a 29-year title-winning drought against Queensland.Captain Nathan McSweeney confirmed on Tuesday that Pope will be squeezed out of the XI against Queensland. Pope has taken 21 wickets at 25.95 in five Shield appearances this season, including match-winning bags of 6 for 74 against Victoria and 4 for 76 against Tasmania, but both of those came at Adelaide Oval.He took 3 for 84 from 26 overs last week against Queensland at Karen Rolton Oval, where the final will be played. But both sides are expecting more moisture and grass in the surface and South Australia are likely to welcome back seamer Brendan Doggett and seam-bowling allrounder Liam Scott into the line-up after both were rested last week, meaning Pope is one of the men to miss out.Related

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“Lloyd’s been great for us this year and his efforts are a great reason why we’re here and playing in a Shield final,” McSweeney said. “I think Karen Rolton Oval is typically a tough ground to bowl spin on. The wicket has a little bit more moisture in it. So hence we’re going with an extra [seam] bowler. It’s a tough decision, but I think when you’re in finals you’ve got to make tough decisions. And unfortunately he’s the one that’s missing out.”Wicketkeeper Harry Nielsen is the other member of South Australia’s 14-man squad that will definitely not feature, having being left out for the last match due to Alex Carey’s return from international duty.

How a drawn final is decided

In the event the Sheffield Shield final ends in a draw, the title will be decided on first-innings bonus points which are accrued across the first 100 overs.

Batting teams earn 0.01 of a bonus point for every run scored over 200 in the initial 100 overs; bowling sides get 0.1 of a bonus point for every wicket in the first 100 overs. For example, the batting side scores 350 all out in 90 overs they earn 1.5 points and the bowling side 1 point.

Should bonus points be tied and the match drawn, SA will win the Shield given they finished top of the ladder and earned hosting rights for the final.

McSweeney would not confirm the final XI but it appears likely that one of Henry Thornton or Jordan Buckingham will be squeezed out to make room for Doggett.Thornton’s incredible late season form makes the selection decision extremely difficult. He was the Michael Bevan medallist as player of the match in the Dean Jones Trophy Final, taking 4 for 27, and has since bagged 4 for 42, 3 for 44, and 3 for 90 in the last two Shield games having been a late replacement for Nathan McAndrew when he was rested against Victoria.Buckingham, meanwhile, has taken 21 wickets at 25.76 this season and bowled well for Australia A this summer. Doggett has likewise starred for Australia A in between taking 22 scalps at 29.86 fin Shield cricket.Henry Thornton has produced strong late-season form•Getty Images

South Australia did not push for an outright win against Queensland last week to conserve energy ahead of the final. They had the Bulls 86 for 5 after piling up 614 for 7 declared but ended up needing 113.5 overs to bowl them out for 370 as the surface flattened out, with Jimmy Peirson and Jack Wildermuth posting lower-order centuries.”I think the wicket looks like there’ll be a little bit more life in it, slightly more in it for the bowlers,” McSweeney said. “But I think typically here it’s hard to take 20 wickets. There’s no doubt about that. We’ve got an extra day to try and take them now, so I think it’ll be a really good cricket wicket.”The weight of history sits heavily on the South Australian team despite it being made up of a lot of players from interstate. They have not won a Shield since 1996 and have not played in a final since 2017 or hosted one since 2016. Carey and Jake Lehmann will be the only two surviving members of the 2015-17 group to play in this week’s decider, while Conor McInerney is set to be the only other home grown South Australian in the XI.But despite the squad being made up of so many recruited players, McSweeney believes their journey together and their struggles over recent seasons in building a tight-knit team culture means a Shield triumph would mean as much to them as it would to the rusted on SACA members who have been starved of success for so long.”A lot of the boys have come from interstate,” McSweeney said. “We’ve been giving opportunity for a team that hasn’t had heaps of success, but we’ve been able to build it over the last few years as a group, and that’ll just cap it off I think.”We’ve had a fair bit of change, but I think the core group of players have been here for a long time now, and we’re slowly starting to see the success from all the hard work, and that’s paying off now. It’ll mean so much and hopefully we can get it done.”South Australia squad: Nathan McSweeney (capt), Jordan Buckingham, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Henry Hunt, Jake Lehmann, Ben Manenti, Nathan McAndrew, Conor McInerney, Harry Nielsen, Lloyd Pope, Jason Sangha, Liam Scott, Henry Thornton

'Strange, entertaining and crazy' – Kieron Pollard and Lockie Ferguson look back

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“It feels strange,” Kieron Pollard said at the toss as West Indies played New Zealand in the first T20I and he stood in the middle of Eden Park surrounded by a crowd. Covid-19 had changed cricket, but the first signs of the game starting to heal and move on were evident in Auckland as the people in the ground reveled in some sensational – and at times unbelievable – cricket.

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There was Lockie Ferguson, insisting that he won’t bowl a click slower than 150. He picked up his first five-wicket haul in T20Is and while that is memorable on its own, the spell that he bowled – the way he had the world champions ducking and weaving and wearing the ball because they were too slow to react – was the more riveting spectacle. Ferguson finished with figures of 4-0-21-5, with West Indies not in control of 18 of the 24 balls he delivered on Friday evening.Pollard vs Ferguson was only a two-ball event – “Didn’t face him. Smart boy.”, the West Indies captain said with a chuckle at the post-match press conference – but the rest of the New Zealand bowlers took a pasting. From 59 for 5 in the sixth over, Pollard took his team to 180 for 7 in a rain-reduced 16-overs-a-side game.”For me, when the bowlers have their tails up, you have to try something as a batter,” he said. “Sometimes you just have to make one mistake. The rain and the nature of the pitch sort of helped us, with the ball coming through. The opening bowlers were a bit short. But he (Ferguson) changed his length and bowled a bit fuller, and that’s why he was successful. Again, daunting task, but these are the situations you train for as individuals, when you’re team is in trouble you try to get them out.”

‘Special having a good day with nan watching over us’ – Ferguson

Lockie Ferguson’s best performance in a T20I came on the back of a personal tragedy.
“My nan, who I was pretty close with, passed away about a month ago which was a shame. I couldn’t be back for her funeral which was a shame. So pretty special having a good day out with her watching over us.”

Ferguson knew – even though he was ripping them apart – that West Indies would be able to recover if their captain stayed at the crease long enough.”When you face these guys – especially Kieron, who has been very successful – over the last few months, winning every competition there is, you’re under the pump [as] Eden Park gets even smaller,” Ferguson said.ALSO READ – Ferguson, Neesham, Conway star in topsy-turvy win“I thought we bowled a couple of yorkers that only missed by a little bit and they went a long way into the boundary. Once again, we have to look at our plans and execute them better going forward. That’s pretty cliché in T20 cricket. You have good days and you have bad [days]. If we continue to improve, we’ll be better for it. But you’ve got to tip your hat when a guy plays an innings like that, especially after we got quick wickets but he settled himself and had a quick burst in the end.”Pollard made 75 off only 37 balls, and if that sounds like he walked in and went berserk, think again. He took care to get himself in. He respected New Zealand’s momentum when they took five wickets for one run. He fought against it, bit by bit, until the umpire mistakenly ruled him out lbw in the ninth over. The review was emphatic. The next ball went for six. The sleeping giant had awakened.When asked about the official’s decision and his animated response to it, Pollard said, “You take it in whatever perception you want. I’m not gonna say anything. Just wanted it to be consistent. Asking for consistency. Being a visiting team, there are some things you expect but we’ll continue to fight.”Lockie Ferguson celebrates the wicket of Shimron Hetmyer•Getty Images

A grand spell of fast bowling. A back-to-the-wall batting masterclass from a T20 legend. A hint of controversy. This riveting game turned in the end due to some rusty cricket from West Indies, who had only come out of quarantine yesterday.Keemo Paul then bowled four no-balls in the 14th over of the chase – one overstep and three high full-tosses. New Zealand had slowly been whittling down a frightful asking rate. From 115 required off 60, to 82 off 42 and then to 39 off 24, but at the end of that ten-ball over, they needed only 15 off 12.”In terms of our disciplines, in the bowling aspect, I thought we were a bit erratic,” Pollard summed up. “And in international cricket, if you bowl so many no-balls and if you’re so inconsistent, you are definitely going to end up on the losing side. But it was an entertaining game of cricket for the fans and the general public, something they haven’t got to see in a very long time.”West Indies’ waywardness was the result of their search for yorkers and they were forced into a place with so little margin of error by Jimmy Neesham. He came in after a run-out sent Ross Taylor back for a duck in the seventh over, but instead of that breakthrough proving a turning point for West Indies, it ended up one for New Zealand, as the left-hander carved up 48 match-winning runs in only 24 balls.”Jimmy was a bit of a big brother to me in high school and we played a lot of age groups together,” Ferguson said. “But to be fair, the Black Caps are a pretty tight bunch of mates and when anyone does well and wins the game for us, then of course we get around them.””I think that’s a big part of our culture. We try to drive that. Obviously pumped that Sants (Mitchell Santner) and Neesh could get some runs and bat well at the end there. Certainly, we’ll celebrate tonight. It was one of the craziest games I’ve ever been part of. I was in the changing room for our whole batting innings not sure what to do!”

Jos Buttler reveals he instigated his shift into Rajasthan Royals' middle order

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Jos Buttler has revealed that he instigated his move into the Rajasthan Royals middle order during the IPL after starting the tournament in his preferred role as an opener.After missing the first game of the season while in quarantine, Buttler reached double figures in six of his first seven innings at the top of the order, but only once managed to score more than 22, in an innings of 70 off 44 balls in a heavy defeat against eventual champions Mumbai Indians.But with Ben Stokes backed as an opener after his late arrival from New Zealand, and Robin Uthappa struggling for form in the middle order, Buttler told the Rajasthan management that he thought he should shift down into the position he filled for the bulk of his T20 career and has mastered in England’s 50-over team.”It actually probably came from myself saying I didn’t think our team had the right balance,” Buttler told Sky’s IPL Cricket Show. “I thought we were lacking a bit of experience in the middle, and I thought we were a bit top-heavy. [We were] losing games and it felt like there were a couple of games we didn’t quite close out when we were in good positions, and I felt like if we had had a bit more experience in that position, maybe we would have got over the line.”Rahul Tewatia had a great season for us with the bat, being a bit of a finisher, but I felt like a more experienced guy alongside him would have balanced our team a bit better. It was an offering, really, from myself to say: I haven’t had the runs I’d have liked at the top and I’m quite happy to move. I thought for our team, it looked a better balance having a more experienced player in the middle as well.”Buttler made 160 runs in five innings in the middle order, including a match-winning 70 not out in a successful chase against the Chennai Super Kings, but was ultimately unable to drag them into the playoff stage.Buttler’s batting position in England’s T20I team has been a talking point ever since he began to open on a regular basis in 2018, and that will only intensify as next year’s T20 World Cup comes closer into view.ALSO READ: Buttler plays opener and finisher to keep debate bubblingFollowing his promotion for Rajasthan against the Delhi Daredevils in May 2018, Buttler opened in 40 of his next 41 T20 innings, the exception being a single knock at No. 4 for Lancashire in the 2018 T20 Blast. During that period, only Aaron Finch could match him in scoring 1000 runs as an opener at an average of 40 and a strike rate above 150.Since the 2016 World T20 final, Buttler averages 40.83 and strikes at 151.96 as an opener in all T20 cricket, compared to 26.18 and 132.69 from No. 3-6. While almost every player has a better record at the top of the order, since the role allows them to bat for six overs with fielding restrictions in place, the contrast in Buttler’s is particularly stark.In an England shirt, he averages 51.00 at the top of the order with a strike rate of 157.73, but with a logjam of opening options and fewer middle-order specialists in contention, there remains a school of thought that he would be better used as a floater or a finisher.Jos Buttler range-hitting at the Ageas Bowl•Getty Images

On Wednesday, Buttler reiterated his view that opening is the best place to bat in T20, and he seems likely to continue in the role for England during their three-match T20I series in South Africa next month. He also said that there are still areas he felt he could improve in the role, most notably guarding against post-powerplay lulls when facing spin.”For myself, and actually for probably 90% of anyone who plays T20, [I] would say batting at the top of the order is the place to bat,” Buttler said. “It’s where you have the most balls, it’s where I feel I affect the game the most, and I feel like I’ve had more success at the top of the order and impacted more games in a positive way. I think it’s the best place to bat in T20 cricket, isn’t it?”I feel like I can really affect the game at the end of the innings as well, [so sometimes I] come through that opening bit and then go into a gear where I think ‘I’m going to wait now until the back end where I know I can do more damage’, or ‘I’m desperate to get to the back end’. But when you’re opening that isn’t particularly your job.”I find coming out of the powerplay sometimes as an opener, naturally the field spreads and a spinner may come on, the pace of the games changes and that can slow you down from quite a boundary-dominant phase of the game in the powerplay. The real learning for me is how to keep that intensity and be really role-specific. The ideal as an opener is to bat 20 overs, but there should be guys in your side who are tuned in to do the back end and your game allows you to really affect the front of the match.”If England did choose to use Buttler in the middle order, there would be no shortage of options to replace him at the top: nine of their 15-man squad for the series have opened the batting in the IPL at some stage in their career, while one of the other six, Dawid Malan, did so for England as recently as last winter.