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During Ireland’s training session on Monday morning, Himachal Pradesh Under-23 bowler Mahesh Thakur was hit flush above his right eye by a ball played back at him

Sidharth Monga in Dharamsala07-Mar-2016The issue of player safety has been raised again, after a net bowler was struck on the head while Ireland were training in Dharamsala. Balls are being hit harder than ever with modern bats and the nets have become a hazardous place, especially for local bowlers who are not as skilled as international cricketers.During Ireland’s training session on Monday morning, Himachal Pradesh Under-23 bowler Mahesh Thakur was hit flush above his right eye by a ball played back at him. He fell over in his follow-through, unconscious. The Ireland physio immediately attended to him and the venue doctor arrived in five minutes. Thakur was taken by ambulance to hospital where he needed stitches for the wound. It could have been much worse.The modern portable nets increase the danger because if the ball ricochets off their metal frames, it gains speed and reduces reaction time.Ireland coach John Bracewell has been watching this with concern for some time now – not just from the point of view of safety but also the technique of spinners.”I think it’s been a bit of concern for a while with players getting hit at the nets,” Bracewell said. “When we practise indoors we can probably put nets in front of them. I think it’s a real concern with spinners because they are not completing the action and are getting into a more defensive position and therefore they get square on. That is a bit worrying technically, and young kids are afraid to bowl in the nets. Maybe we can put up pitching guards and not worry about defending.”Some coaches now wear a baseball-style helmet when giving batsmen throwdowns. A similar protective device for bowlers, while still allowing the arm movement as close to the ear as possible, will be welcome. “It could have been a frontline bowler,” Bracewell said. “It hit him square, and it is a big concern surely. May be pitch guards, face guards, but it shouldn’t disturb what you’re doing. Some makers might be working on it, who knows.”Ireland batsman Andrew Balbirnie saw the injury happen and was disturbed by it. However, he said that in a game that requires the ball to be hit hard, you can’t afford to not hit the ball hard in the nets.At ESPNcricinfo’s last year, both Martin Crowe and Rahul Dravid had raised the issue. “One of the people I really worry for is net bowlers,” Dravid had said. “I have worked in the IPL. We have young kids who bowl in the nets. All university kids, college kids. All 17, 18, 19-year-olds bowling in the nets, and you have the likes of Shane Watson and Chris Gayle batting in the nets and practising T20 batting. I am amazed no one has seriously got hurt.”On the eve of the World T20, the problem has once again arisen through the injury to Thakur.

The BCCI has planned a Test series at home in November against West Indies, ahead of the scheduled South Africa tour, thus ensuring Sachin Tendulkar plays his landmark 200th Test at home

Amol Karhadkar01-Sep-2013

Other tours approved by the BCCI

• Tour to New Zealand in January-February 2014, comprising two Tests and five ODIs

• Tour to England between July and September 2014, comprising five Tests, five ODIs and one T20

The BCCI has planned a Test series at home in November against West Indies, ahead of the scheduled South Africa tour, thus giving Sachin Tendulkar the opportunity to play his landmark 200th Test at home; he will perhaps bid farewell to the game at the end of the Test series.Tendulkar, who is two Tests short of becoming the first cricketer to feature in 200 Tests, was expected to put an end to his 24-year sojourn at the highest level at the end of the South Africa Test series. The Tests series against West Indies, which will comprise at least two Tests likely to be played in Kolkata and Mumbai in November, offers him a perfect stage to sign off in his hometown.Following the injury to his left hand while playing for Mumbai Indians against Sunrisers Hyderabad in a league match during IPL 2013, which effectively advanced his IPL retirement, doubts had arisen over the 40-year-old’s participation in the South Africa tour. However, after undergoing a surgery on his injured hand, Tendulkar has been included in the Mumbai Indians’ squad for the Champions League Twenty20.Besides achieving the 200-Test landmark, Tendulkar would also be keen to sign off on a high. The veteran batsman has not been able to score a century in his last 38 Test innings, since his memorable knock of 146 in Cape Town in January 2011. The closest he came to a three figures in Tests since then was against West Indies in November 2011, when he edged one to slips six runs short of what would have been his 100th international hundred at the Wankhede Stadium, his home ground.The BCCI claimed to have received an email from the West Indies Cricket Board confirming its interest in the series, and accordingly placed the proposal before the working committee. The plan for the West Indies series was announced after the BCCI’s working committee meeting on Sunday. Though the BCCI did not specify the number of matches that will be played, ESPNcricinfo understands that the WICB have been offered two options. “The tour could see either two Tests and three ODIs, or three Tests,” a BCCI official said.As important as the series is from the Tendulkar angle, the BCCI was also concerned about a possible dip in its revenues for the current financial year since, after the limited-overs series against Australia in October, India weren’t scheduled to play at home for the rest of the financial year. “That would have meant lesser gross revenue, and profits as a result, than the last year’s,” an insider said. “And it is something that none of the stakeholders in Indian cricket would want.”

Bamford Fieldhouse, York, Havant, and Wansted and Snaresbrook will contest the semi-finals of the Kingfisher Cup

George Dobell24-Aug-2012Just four clubs are left in the hunt for the biggest prize in recreational cricket as the Kingfisher Cup reaches the semi-final stage this weekend.The winning team in this year’s competition – one of Bamford Fieldhouse, York, Havant or Wansted and Snaresbrook – will be given a cheque for £5,000, with the runners-up earning £2,000. The final is scheduled to take place at Derbyshire County Cricket Club’s ground on September 16.The former Lancashire and England wicketkeeper Warren Hegg and fellow Lancashire and England team-mate Chris Schofield are the driving force behind Bamford Fieldhouse reaching the semi-final. The Rochdale, Saddleworth and District League side secured their last-four place by beating Birmingham League side Kidderminster Victoria, with Hegg contributing a well-paced 40 runs in his side’s total of 212-6. They will now travel to York, who defeated Cuckney in an enthralling seven-run victory.York, who have won the Yorkshire League nine times and the National Knockout competition in 1975, will offer stern competition in what promises to be a tough Roses encounter. The York team are coached by the former Yorkshire and England middle-order batsman Jim Love, who was responsible for transforming Scottish cricket and eventually took the country to the Commonwealth Games and the ICC World Cup.In the south section of the Kingfisher Cup, Havant from the Southern Electric Hampshire League secured a 65-run win over Birmingham League champions Barnt Green, skippered by the former Warwickshire, Scotland and England allrounder Dougie Brown.Havant host Wansted and Snaresbrook , the Essex Premier League team who managed to dispose of Somerset-based West of England Premier League team Bridgewater. Wansted, the club which helped develop Essex and England wicketkeeper James Foster, are competing in their first national knockout semi-final.The semi-finals of this year’s tournament will be attended by Professional Cricketers Association ambassadors, who will adjudicate over Man of the Match awards for both games. Former Surrey and England captain Mark Butcher will adjudicate the Havant match, whilst Devon Malcolm will travel to York for the Roses encounter.

Martin Guptill’s first century for Derbyshire set up a 31-run victory over Kent
in the Clydesdale Bank 40 match at Derby

24-Jul-2011
Scorecard
Martin Guptill’s first century for Derbyshire set up a 31-run victory over Kent
in the Clydesdale Bank 40 match at Derby.Guptill made 102 off 109 balls and shared a century stand for the fourth wicket
with Greg Smith (68) as the Falcons made 249 for 9 despite Azhar Mahmood
taking three for three from his last 11 balls.The Spitfires then slipped to 121 for 6 in reply, and although Darren Stevens
put them back in the contest with 65 off 52 balls, Derbyshire held their nerve
to dismiss Kent for 218 in the 35th over and keep their challenge in Group A
alive.Guptill had shared an opening stand of 59 in 10 overs with Chesney Hughes but
Derbyshire’s momentum was checked by the fall of three wickets in six overs. After Hughes (33) mistimed a pull, Wes Durston and Wayne Madsen made only one run between them as the Falcons slipped to 79 for 3.However, Smith played with controlled aggression from the moment he joined
Guptill as the pair put on 129 in 19 overs.Stevens was pulled for six as Smith moved to a half-century off only 43 balls
and with Guptill placing his shots with authority, the home side had the
platform to launch an assault in the closing overs.But Pakistan duo Mahmood and Wahab Riaz responded with some intelligent seam
bowling that saw the Falcons score only 23 runs for the loss of five wickets in
the last four overs.The pair were rewarded for bowling full and straight and hit the stumps four
times with Riaz capturing the big wicket of New Zealander Guptill, who missed a
big drive aiming to add to his 12 fours and one six in the penultimate over.Mahmood finished with figures of 4 for 57 while Riaz took 3 for 45. Mahmood then helped Sam Billings launch Kent`s chase with some flourishing strokes before he cut Steffan Jones to point in the third over to depart for 10 and Billings (19) missed a drive after cutting Tim Groenewald for six, leaving the visitors on 55 for 2.Martin van Jaarsveld pulled Jon Clare for six and was threatening to dominate
when he was lbw pushing forward at Groenewald for 29 in the 12th over.When Sam Northeast failed to beat Clare’s accurate return and was run out for
12, Kent were stumbling and they were dealt another big blow when Clare (three
for 61) returned to the attack in the 21st over.Geraint Jones was caught behind for six and then Alex Blake went the same way
three balls later to leave the Spitfires in trouble on 121 for 6.Stevens gave them hope with some defiant blows in a 44-ball fifty and was
threatening to turn the game when he was lbw to Jones in the 29th over.and
although James Tredwell hit 37 off 39 balls, Kent came up short.

Adam Lyth continued his impressive form as Yorkshire replied to an Essex total of 399 in their County Championship Division One clash at Chelmsford

21-Jul-2010
ScorecardAdam Lyth continued his impressive form as Yorkshire replied to an Essex total of 399 in their County Championship Division One clash at Chelmsford. The 22-year-old left-hander, the first player to reach 1,000 runs this season, provided further evidence of his potential with a well-constructed 75.It was the 11th time this summer he had passed 50 in the Championship, three of which he has converted into 100s. Lyth looked on course for a fourth when he was bowled around his legs by paceman Chris White after an innings which contained 11 boundaries.Yorkshire, the Championship leaders, reached the close on 227 for 5, which represented something of a disappointment after Lyth and Jacques Rudolph had launched the innings with a partnership of 81.That ended when Andy Carter, a fast bowler on loan from Nottinghamshire and making his Championship debut for Essex, made a delivery climb on the opener to have Rudolph caught behind for 32. But it was left-arm spinner Tim Phillips who was the pick of the Essex bowlers.Varying his pace and flight well he has so far collected 2 for 72 from 29 overs. He had Anthony McGrath caught at short leg by Jaik Mickleburgh and then bowled Jonathan Bairstow as he pushed forward. The other Yorkshire wicket to fall was that of Andrew Gale who was within three of his half-century when he was caught behind cutting at offspinner Tom Westley.Earlier, Essex added a further 46 from 21 overs after they had resumed at an overnight 353 for 6. Three of the remaining wickets to fall were picked up by legspinner Adil Rashid as he finished with 5 for 87.Among them was Grant Flower who faced a further 43 deliveries in the morning without adding to his overnight score of 5, which came from only two scoring strokes in an innings of 78 balls. Flower was eventually put out of his misery when he drove into the hands of McGrath at mid-off.Last man Carter succeeded in dispatching Rashid for the only six of the innings but in trying to repeat the stroke was caught at deep mid-off in the same over.

Josh Hazlewood is being earmarked for a return in the Champions Trophy

Andrew McGlashan09-Jan-2025Australia captain Pat Cummins is in doubt for the Champions Trophy after it was revealed that he had been managing an ankle problem during the Test series against India.It was confirmed on Thursday that Cummins would miss the two-Test tour of Sri Lanka (paternity leave) and will undergo scans on his ankle in the coming days to determine whether he will be able to lead the team in the Champions Trophy, which will be held across Pakistan and the UAE next month.”We’ll have to wait and see when that scan comes back and see how it’s tracking,” chair of selectors George Bailey said. “There’s a little bit of work to do. We’ll probably get a bit more information around where that’s at.”Related

• Mitchell Marsh out of Champions Trophy with back injury

• Finch: Selectors may have to 'cherry pick' Hazlewood's Tests

• ICC rankings: Boland, Bumrah, Bavuma and Babar make gains

• What did BGT win tell us about Australia's present and future?

Cummins sent down 167 overs during the five Tests against India, the most by an Australian bowler, taking 25 wickets at 21.36.Australia’s opening game of the Champions Trophy is against England on February 22, and they have a one-off ODI in Sri Lanka on February 13 after the Test series, which is part of their preparation.Cummins captained Australia to the 2023 ODI World Cup title in India but has only played two games in the format since amid workload management.Australia have used a variety of stand-in captains in that period. Steven Smith led the side last season against West Indies before Mitchell Marsh had the role in England, with Smith again deputising for the deciding game of that series. Earlier this summer against Pakistan, Josh Inglis led the team in the final ODI in Perth.Josh Hazlewood, meanwhile, is being earmarked for a return in the Champions Trophy after the selectors took a cautious approach to his recovery from the calf injury that ended his India series after Brisbane, which in itself was a comeback game after a side problem.Sean Abbott could make his Test debut in Sri Lanka•Getty Images

“Josh is working really hard and all the news of how he’s responding to his recovery from the calf injury is coming along really well,” Bailey said. “It’s just probably a little bit tight, given the amount of time that he would have missed and also with how we may structure up and the loads those quicks may be put under.”Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland and Sean Abbott are the three frontline quicks heading to Sri Lanka. Abbott could earn a Test debut on the tour, and it was his durability that earned him the nod.”In Sean’s favour, given outside of the conditions that we expect to face, he’s just robust,” Bailey said. “We know he can put a heavy body of work in should he be required.”

“We want to finish in the same way. We want to take it match by match, just like we did it three years ago”

Mohammad Isam08-Oct-2023Bangladesh have never won more than three matches in an ODI World Cup but a convincing win against Afghanistan in the opener means that they can dare to dream. And if they are looking for advice on how to go all the way, they have four players in the squad who have the experience of lifting an ICC World Cup trophy, albeit in the Under-19 format.Shoriful Islam, Towhid Hridoy, Tanzid Hasan and Tanzim Hasan were integral parts of Bangladesh’s first major global title, when they won the Under-19 World Cup in 2020.Related

• Chastened England need to make a noise, but Bangladesh can be loud too

• Mehidy is the impact allrounder Bangladesh didn't know they had

• Afghanistan's moments of brilliance underpinned by shoddy basics

• Mehidy, with a little help from Shakib and Shanto, takes Bangladesh past Afghanistan

From this World Cup-winning side, Shoriful was the first to graduate to the senior team when he made his Test debut in Sri Lanka in 2021. The likes of Shamim Hossain, Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Parvez Hossain, Hridoy, Mrittunjoy Chowdhury, Tanzid and Tanzim, all followed Shoriful’s footsteps soon after. Quickly graduating from Under-19s to the senior team isn’t new in world cricket. For Bangladesh, it is recognised as a natural transition as the BCB’s youth system has produced almost all top-level cricketers in the last 25 years.But the 2020 batch is slightly different because of their triumph. The immediate success of some of these young players has further vindicated their ability. Mahmudul started off superbly in New Zealand and South Africa last year. Hridoy became the first Bangladeshi batter to score more than 500 ODI runs in his debut year.Shoriful himself began brightly, and although he doesn’t have a huge haul of wickets, he has steadily improved into a position where he has been at times preferred over the vastly experienced Mustafizur Rahman. And he showed his penchant for the big stage picking 2 for 34 in 6.2 overs in his debut ODI World Cup game as Bangladesh started their 2023 campaign with a six-wicket win.While Shoriful did not want to compare the ODI World Cup to the Under-19 one, he said that the atmosphere in both campaigns was similar.Shoriful Islam was a key figure in Bangladesh’s Under-19 title win in 2020•AFP

“It was the Under-19 World Cup. This is the main World Cup. The difference is the world-class batters in this tournament. Under-19 has a few of them but here almost everyone is of the highest standard. They pounce on your smallest errors,” Shoriful said after Bangladesh’s opening game against Afghanistan.”Four of us are here, so we are really enjoying the World Cup. Everyone is friendly. We are mixing well among us. It is a similar start to the Under-19 World Cup, and , we want to finish in the same way. We want to take it match-by-match, just like we did it three years ago.”Shoriful’s two wickets in Bangladesh’s win came in his last spell as he made up for an ordinary opening burst. Bangladesh struggled to contain Afghanistan’s top three as they raced to 83 for 1 in the 16th over before Shakib Al Hasan provided the important breakthrough. Still, the Bangladesh pacers finished with four wickets between them.Shoriful said that the bowling unit had belief in themselves to bounce back. “We believed that someone from among the five bowlers can get us the breakthrough. Someone will step up with one or two wickets to turn the game around. We didn’t panic when someone had a bad over or spell. Someone or the other will step up.”We tried to bowl in the right areas at the start but unfortunately it didn’t happen. The captain pointed out that we were probably missing something so we should be more tight in the next spells.”Bangladesh’s World Cup has just started but a dominating win will provide them a boost especially ahead of the England game at the same venue on October 10. A few more wins in the early stages would spark the Bangladesh side, but apart from the technical and tactical sides, managing a winning environment is a lesson that this senior side can learn from the Under-19 world champions. They know who to ask.

England allrounder says honour is a tribute to parents’ sacrifices during early years

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Jun-2022Moeen Ali has been awarded an OBE for services to cricket in the Queen’s Birthday Honours, and has conceded that “the door is open” to a possible return to Test cricket under Brendon McCullum’s new England regime.Moeen, 34, retired from Tests last summer, after claiming 195 wickets in 64 matches, in addition to 2914 runs at 28.29, with five centuries. He remains an integral member of the white-ball set-up, having been a member of the victorious 2019 World Cup squad, and was England’s stand-in captain in their most recent series in the Caribbean.However, speaking to The Guardian and PA Media, Moeen acknowledged that his honour is a reflection of his role-model status among the British Asian community that remains under-represented in the national team, having himself risen from community cricket in Sparkhill Park in Birmingham to more than 200 appearances for his country across formats.”It is obviously an honour and the more you think about it, the more you realise how nice it is and how rewarding it is,” Moeen said. “More than anything, I know it makes my parents happy and that’s the most important thing – one of the main reasons for accepting. It’s amazing and my family are really proud and happy.”I think it’s more about the journey I’ve been on, my background, my upbringing and all that,” he added. “Maybe the way I played a little bit and the way I go about my cricket, maybe that’s what people have liked or whatever.”From the word go, as soon as I played for England, people labelled me as being a potential role model. It is a big responsibility because you don’t want to let people down. But then as time has gone on, you kind of accept it and deal with it a lot better. You kind of do inspire a lot of people, especially from the inner city.”Moeen’s career owes a huge amount to the drive of his father Munir, who also helped to mould his cousin Kabir Ali into an England cricketer, and the love and support of his mother, Maqsood. And he said he was happy to be a “medal on their chest”.”I know if it wasn’t for them, that there’s no way any of us would have made it in any sort of cricketing capacity or had the strength to carry on at times. They made a huge effort and sacrificed their own lives in certain ways for us to make it.”Although for the moment Moeen remains an ex-Test cricketer, he admitted he was intrigued by the appointment of McCullum as England’s new head coach, in particular his stated determination to free up the players to perform with the same sense of liberation that many of them have frequently shown in white-ball cricket – including, in Moeen’s case, the IPL.”Baz [McCullum] messaged me asking if I was ‘in’,” he said. “I have played with him in the Indian Premier League and really enjoyed the way he works. We spoke and he mentioned potentially, in the future, if there is a tour – or whenever, really – would I be available? I said ‘call me at the time’. We’ll see.”The door is open. But I don’t want to disrespect [current England spinner] Jack Leach. It’s a difficult job – especially in England – and I know that I back him, I’m right behind him. I don’t want to put any pressure there, he’s a fantastic bowler.”I saw the suggestion of me not enjoying Joe Root’s captaincy but I did, he was always good to me. He’s a friend of mine and a great guy. When I retired I was finding it hard to get going. I had a few niggles, I was tired, I wasn’t enjoying it as much as I should.”But playing for England is amazing, especially at home. And even though it’s sad Chris Silverwood went as head coach and Root stepped down as captain, it’s always exciting when there is a new chapter. Brendon is a straight, honest guy, we’ve had a chat and maybe in the future, potential tours or whatever, who knows?”

Shakib Al Hasan and Shadman Islam are out with injuries, while West Indies have no injury concerns

Mohammad Isam10-Feb-2021

Big picture

Oh, how the tables have turned! How beautifully the momentum has shifted West Indies’ way, and the pressure towards Bangladesh.West Indies hold the lead in the series, and therefore the edge, after their debutants Kyle Mayers and Nkrumah Bonner put together a comeback for the ages on the fifth day in Chattogram. Mayers’ unbeaten 210 was only the second time a batsman struck a match-winning fourth-innings double-century. That it came from a debutant, who had very little familiarity with the pitch he was batting on, made it all the more remarkable. Bonner’s 86 was a coming-of-age innings for a cricketer who has waited long. While Shannon Gabriel’s show of deadly pace on such a slow pitch on the third evening was inspirational.Related

• Kraigg Brathwaite hopes West Indies don't get 'carried away' in Dhaka after Chattogram success

• 'One of the most significant achievements in the history of WI cricket'

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• History-making Mayers looking for more and more glory

• Mayers' knock brings father Shirley Clarke to tears

A delighted Phil Simmons, the West Indies coach, continued to be cautious, stressing on finishing the job, something they have failed to do on several previous occasions. But, while the Chattogram win didn’t come easy – Test wins don’t – it is also true that such a result can do wonders to the overall confidence within a squad.Quite the opposite is the case in the Bangladesh camp. Bad as the result was, the news that Shakib Al Hasan wouldn’t be fit for the second Test made things worse. And opening batsman Shadman Islam joined Shakib on the sidelines when he failed to recover sufficiently from the hip injury he sustained while fielding in the first Test. Soumya Sarkar – who underwent the PCR test on February 7 and has been kept in isolation since – has been named Shakib’s replacement, while no replacement has been named for Shadman.Who slots in for Shakib is just one of many questions staring at the Bangladesh team management. Whether the spinners can find their rhythm in the Dhaka Test is going to have a bearing on their fortunes, because, while Mehidy Hasan picked up eight wickets in Chattogram, more would be expected from Taijul Islam and Nayeem Hasan. Bangladesh have a spin-centric bowling strategy, that has now failed more often than it has worked for them, and with the Dhaka pitch likely to be assisting spinners, the make-up of Bangladesh’s team will need careful thought.

Form guide

Bangladesh LWLLL
West Indies WLLLL

In the spotlight

After his match-winning knock in Chattogram, Kyle Mayers will have the eyes of the world on him. He has called himself “a student of the game”, and it will be interesting to see how the newcomer goes, now that he will have a fair bit of hype to live up to.
A maiden Test century to go with eight wickets in the Chattogram Test has given Mehidy Hasan back his Test spot. But he will have to put in another big performace, especially in Shakib’s absence.

Team news

Whenever Shakib isn’t around, Bangladesh struggle with team balance. They have Sarkar, Mohammad Mithun, Yasir Ali and Saif Hassan among frontline batsmen and Taskin Ahmed, Abu Jayed, Ebadot Hossain and Hasan Mahmud among bowlers in the squad. Among them, Sarkar is the closest they have to an allrounder.
Bangladesh (possible): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Soumya Sarkar, 3 Najmul Hossain Shanto, 4 Mominul Haque (capt), 5 Mushfiqur Rahim, 6 Liton Das (wk), 7 Mehidy Hasan, 8 Nayeem Hasan, 9 Taijul Islam, 10 Mustafizur Rahman, 11 Abu Jayed
It is unlikely that West Indies will make changes to the XI from the side that won in Chattogram. They have fast bowler Alzarri Joseph and left-arm spinners Veerasammy Permaul and Kavem Hodge and allrounder Raymon Reifer waiting in the wings, but they might have to continue to wait, barring an injury.
West Indies (likely): 1 Kraigg Brathwaite (capt), 2 John Campbell, 3 Shayne Moseley, 4 Nkrumah Bonner, 5 Kyle Mayers, 6 Jermaine Blackwood, 7 Joshua Da Silva (wk), 8 Rahkeem Cornwall, 9 Jomel Warrican, 10 Kemar Roach, 11 Shannon Gabriel
West Indies are unlikely to make any changes unless they are forced to•AFP via Getty Images

Pitch and conditions

The pitch should help spinners more than the one in Chattogram did. Sides batting first in the last five years have averaged around 332, with five out of six teams winning the match after batting first.

Stats and trivia

• The 216-run partnership between Mayers and Bonner in Chattogram was the highest between two Test debutants in 57 years.
• Mehidy is two wickets short of 100 in Tests, while Liton Das is 34 runs short of reaching 1000 Test runs.

Quotes

“We start from zero again. We have to go back to the process, we have to practice and prepare well. It is going to be a different wicket, ground and everything. It is important for us to assess again. Going over the processes and ensure we do well.”

“It would have been great to have Shakib in the side in Mirpur but in his absence, myself, Taijul and Nayeem have to take more responsibility. We will try to bowl more in the right areas, so that they can’t play us easily.”

Umesh Yadav will replace the fast bowler in India’s squad

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Sep-2019Jasprit Bumrah, India’s No. 1 fast bowler, has been ruled out of the Test series against South Africa, which begins in Visakhapatnam on October 2. Bumrah has suffered a “minor stress fracture in his lower back,” according to a BCCI press release. The injury came to light “during a routine radiological screening.”Umesh Yadav will replace Bumrah in India’s Test squad. The emergence of Bumrah, Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami as India’s first-choice fast-bowling combination has reduced Umesh’s opportunities of late, limiting him to only five Tests since the start of 2018. In his second-to-last Test, however, he picked up a career-best match haul of 10 for 133 against West Indies in Hyderabad.

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Bumrah’s injury is a significant blow to India. Since his Test debut in January 2018, he has quickly established himself as one of the world’s most dangerous fast bowlers, picking up 62 wickets in 12 Test matches at an average of 19.24. He already has five-wicket hauls in each of the four tours he has been on – South Africa, England, Australia and the West Indies – and the series against South Africa was to be his first at home.This is the second time Bumrah has had to miss Tests due to injury. A thumb injury, picked up during a T20I against Ireland in Malahide, forced him to miss the first half of India’s tour of England last year, including the first two Tests. The stress fracture, though, will worry India a little more since it was not sustained on the field of play.India have been mindful of Bumrah’s workload, resting him from the limited-overs legs of their tours of Australia, New Zealand and the West Indies earlier this year.Some, though, believe it will help Bumrah’s fitness to play as much cricket as possible.”Bumrah should play as many games as possible, I always endorse that,” the former India quick Zaheer Khan told when asked what the best way to preserve Bumrah would be. “More matches you play, more experience you get. That bowling rhythm and fitness is very important. You have to strike that right balance.”The way Bumrah has evolved in such a short span of time has been remarkable. He is a thinking bowler. You can achieve such success, when you keep improving, keep thinking, keep upgrading.”