On a slow St. George’s Park surface providing them little of the assistance they enjoyed at Centurion, Australia’s four-man attack exerted constant pressure on South Africa’s batsmen

Daniel Brettig in Port Elizabeth20-Feb-20140:00

Nathan Lyon: Pretty good day for Australia

Towards the end of a day played at a far more genteel pace than the dramatic and often downright dangerous events at Centurion Park a week ago, David Warner could be seen dancing to “YMCA” in unison with Port Elizabeth’s ebullient house band. He did so with a smile on his face, epitomising Australia’s determination not to be frustrated or jaded by a slow pitch that took just enough edge from the touring attack to allow South Africa the chance to gain a toehold on the series.For all the pyrotechnics of the Highveld, the efforts of the touring ensemble at St George’s Park were equally laudable for different reasons. Where Mitchell Johnson and the rest of the attack were ruthless in exploiting the pace and variable bounce on offer to them at Centurion, here they made the most of the very little assistance they had to work with, and through a combination of patience and alertness kept South Africa very much in check on a surface devised to allow the home batsmen some respite from their earlier horrors.There were a few factors in Australia’s favour. A cool, overcast day did not overly sap the energy of the four-man bowling attack, while the psychological damage inflicted upon South Africa’s batsmen during the first Test meant Graeme Smith’s side were coming from a long way back even if they were doing so on the mildest of strips. Nerves were also on display from the two batting inclusions Dean Elgar and Quinton de Kock, allowing the tourists to play the sorts of verbal and mental games at which they have been intermittently adept over the years.But for the majority of the day batting was the preferred activity to be undertaking, as bounce remained true, low and slow, offering time for shots that could barely be contemplated in the first Test. A broadcaster’s graphic quantified the difference between Centurion and Port Elizabeth, Johnson’s deliveries losing an extra 4km in pace after pitching than they had done a week ago. It was little wonder then that Elgar and Faf du Plessis looked more capable of dealing with Johnson and the rest than they had done in their previous meetings with the left-armer.Nathan Lyon, given a flexible role that was equal parts attack and defence, took 2 for 47 in 23 overs.•Associated PressCritical to Australia’s ability to make the most of a day that dealt them relatively few natural favours was the need to take advantage of the new ball. Whatever swing and seam there was had to be used to the maximum, beating bats or finding edges before the initial shine and hardness was lost. The last time Clarke’s men had bowled first in a Test, at the MCG on Boxing Day, they had begun indifferently with the ball and spent the rest of the day reeling England back in. The bowling coach Craig McDermott had rated that start among the few poor hours they had put in for the series, and was eager to see his men tested by another first morning.They were helped by a pre-match regimen far less chaotic than South Africa’s. While the hosts’ team sheet was changed at least three times as coaches and selectors prevaricated around the uncertain fitness of Vernon Philander, McDermott counselled his men on how to approach the task at hand. Johnson and Ryan Harris were encouraged to pursue swing, Peter Siddle braced for long spells into the breeze and Nathan Lyon prepared for a flexible role that would be equal parts attack and defence.Having only a handful of overs with which to make the new ball count, Harris was particularly admirable in his full length and relentless accuracy. Smith faced 18 balls from Harris and was made to play all but one of them as the bowler extracted subtle movement in both directions. One edge fell short of the slips when Harris moved the ball away, but it was to be one straightening down the line of the stumps that beat Smith’s pet flick to leg and crashed into his back pad. Kumar Dharmasena’s raised finger was just reward for an exemplary spell.At the other end Johnson’s radar had been slightly off, but the emergence of Hashim Amla gave him a revitalising target. There could only have been a handful of swinging deliveries left before the ball would begin to whir down completely straight, but Johnson needed only two. His first snaked between Amla’s bat and pad as the No. 3 essayed a drive, and the second pinned the front pad in front of middle and leg. Having glimpsed the low bounce on offer, Richard Illingworth hesitated only momentarily before giving it out.These two breakthroughs meant Australia could afford to be patient over the rest of the day, as they were only ever a wicket or two away from re-asserting themselves. There was nothing spectacular about the yeomanry of Siddle and Lyon across the afternoon, but they were effective in preventing Elgar, du Plessis or AB de Villiers from moving into damaging territory on a small ground with a fast outfield. Aiding in this was an Australian fielding ensemble that did not slacken, and is still to put down a chance for the series – Steven Smith’s snare of du Plessis at short leg from Lyon was not in the class of Alex Doolan’s at Centurion, but it was sharp.For a time, as Elgar neared the outskirts of a century and de Villiers punched the ball wide of mid-on with his singular genius, the Australians might have been stretched for patience and application. But this was the time that the band struck up YMCA, and Warner’s moves reflected a team that was still enjoying the experience, drab as it may have been this day. It was not so surprising after this to see Elgar impatiently swiping at Lyon and offering a catch to Harris, nor Clarke rewarded for the introduction of Steven Smith by seeing de Kock shovel impertinently to mid off.”There wasn’t much going on there even with the new ball so it’s going to be a hard toil to take 20 wickets out there. It was good to get a couple of breakthroughs, and a couple of loose shots on the part of the South Africans,” Lyon said. “But that comes down to us bowling with patience and good pressure. Test match cricket is all about patience, it’s a real mental game, and if we can outlast the opposition hopefully things go our way. There were a couple of shots they wouldn’t be happy with, and I know we wouldn’t be happy with as an Australian cricket team, but credit to the bowlers.”We had a band out there playing all day and that provides a bit of humour, but we’re all switched on when the bowler’s at the top of his mark. Davey was carrying on like a bit of a fool between balls there, but that’s Davey, he provides humour and makes us all laugh. We’re enjoying our cricket as Australian cricketers right now and we’re enjoying each other’s company, so good on him.”Other days may not offer up the gifts that South Africa contrived in the evening session, and a return to bowling fitness by Shane Watson will offer another important option for barren innings such as these, much as he did at a pivotal juncture during the Adelaide Ashes Test to open an end that Johnson could attack. But so long as the Australians can combine diligence with the light-hearted fun of Warner’s interlude, they will be able to prosper on pitches as contrasting as Centurion and Port Elizabeth have been.

An auction veteran gives an insider’s view of how teams prepare for two days of madness

Amrit Mathur11-Feb-2014Between the first IPL auction in 2008 and the one to be held in Bangalore over the next two days there have been many trials, a few errors and much experience. There is much that has morphed around the IPL from its first year and in Bangalore on Wednesday we will have a “mega-auction”, where teams will be built from scratch.In 2008, the first auction blew into the IPL like a tornado. The auction was hit-and-run, trial-and-error, for many teams; it felt like it had come and gone before anyone had time to assimilate what was going on. Nobody understood the dynamics of a market-driven bid process and the accompanying uncertainties of multiple buyers chasing one product. Many thought, “Let’s prepare a wish list and we’ll learn and decide as we go along.”In one very fundamental way, though, the first IPL auction set the ground rules for subsequent auctions. Not for the modus operandi but for the essential building blocks of the IPL teams. The nomination of “icon” players ensured that Indian players would fetch prime value and those players would become the face or brand of the team with the squad built around them.It also brought to Indian cricket the word “marquee.” Teams understood instinctively that nothing and no one is more valuable in the IPL than the Indian “marquee” player. Everyone now builds their squad around these players and agrees to pay top dollar – now rupee – for them.The mandated presence of seven Indians in every starting XI, and the resulting gap between demand and supply, ensured that Indian players would go for serious money, and consequently teams with better Indian talent would be stronger. The icon player rule also meant that, in the Indian context, players took precedence over teams. This is completely in contrast to other sporting leagues where the team or brand is supreme. But the IPL was a new tournament and no one knew the brands it was putting out on display. The known entity, and in the Indian context the household names, in this mix, of course, were the Indian players.Six years later
If in 2008 the auction was driven by the reputations of players and their past records, the air has certainly cleared in that regard over the past six years.Auctions now are more focussed, teams have far greater clarity about what kind of team they want and the type of players needed to execute their plans. This learning has come from experience and better awareness of the nuances and complexities of 20-over cricket and, more importantly, better assessment of players in T20 situations.

Each player is assessed by a very rigorous system, not just strike- and economy-rates but a much deeper analysis of actual performance in crunch match situations

Each player is assessed by a very rigorous system, not just strike- and economy-rates but a much deeper analysis of actual performance in crunch match situations and data analysts are coming up with more and more precise figures about pressure indicators and similar issues when going into an auction. Auctions are more rational, the bidding more precise and focussed. But we are not at Moneyball yet, despite Rajasthan’s early success and its general branding as the ‘poor man’s team.These days the cricket operations people play a more prominent role. Some owners who were front and centre in 2008 chose not to attend last year’s auction. For sure, frantic calls on mobiles ensured they were always involved in key decisions but they left most decisions to their highly-paid experts. Shah Rukh Khan, for example, has not sat at the owner’s table since the first auction. Some owners are more hands-on while others choose to keep a low profile, restricting their role to holding up the bid paddle or signing the transaction/purchase document once the hammer comes down to close the bidding.The Auction war room
What has happened in these six years is that, the odd choice based on whim or instinct apart, the selection of players tends to be more sensible and made by cricket experts. There is now an exhaustive process where inputs from owners or experts are discussed and taken on board or not. Pre-auction brainstorming sessions resemble a war-room situation, where every eventuality is carefully considered, options weighed and each response carefully calibrated.Ahead of the auction, each team has several plans with spreadsheets detailing options A to B to C for every key position. Laptops are filled with every manner of information and analysis, including the names of ‘must haves’ and ‘preferred choices.’There must be clarity about the kind of team you want to build. Focus on Indian batting with foreign bowling – or the other way round, because Indian batting is very expensive? Among foreigners there is another shuffling through the options – do you punt on ‘value picks’ (smart, cheap T20 specialists) or go for the big boys? Or look for bowlers according to the character of ‘home’ pitches?From this nucleus arises the choice of your top Indian players. Once these are secured through an auction, the rest of the team is built around them. Top Indian players ensure fan support, give comfort to potential sponsors, provide captaincy options.At ground zero
Team owners are now generally happy to leave decisions on selection of players to cricket experts•AFPInside the auction room, the table of eight does not usually include, as has been imagined, someone working a calculator to do the numbers of how much cash a team has left to spend. There are updates on a wall for all the teams to understand the number of players being offered, the purse available to each team at each stage, the slots to be filled in with Indian or foreign players. As most teams have retained some players, their strategies can be anticipated. They have, in a way, already revealed their hand.All teams really need going into the auction is their most-wanted list, its options and the buzz they have picked up from everyone else. For example, at the last auction it was common knowledge that KKR would go hard for Gautam Gambhir.Auctions may look like an eyeball-to-eyeball contest but they are more rational, there is little room for emotion and decisions are based on cricket and commercial considerations. As the IPL combines cricket and commerce, players are gauged on these terms – their T20 skills and their commercial appeal with sponsors and fans.Teams know they are restricted by the available purse. The buying has to be prudent because, ultimately, resources have to be spread over 27 players – the maximum permitted squad size – and it will not surprise me if more than one team now restricts its squad size to between 23 and 25.Teams are now very smart about how far they are willing to go chasing a certain kind of player. Ideally no team will go into any auction based on an emotional or personal choice. There are always options for each position that teams need to fill. If a much sought-after player is “lost,” you wait for the next option. It is there that the order of the auction plays an important role. Splurging on a player can hit a team badly and leave little money for others.Then there are other calculations to be worked on through gut instinct: if your second choice player is on offer first, you can either bid aggressively or pass. The risk in letting the second choice go (only because he is offered first) is you might be outbid, later, for the first choice and therefore lose both options.In such situations, instinct matters. Not science or strategy. It is why not everything goes to plan. Auctions are dynamic, impossible to control and throw up surprising numbers. Like Mashrafe Mortaza being picked by KKR for US$600,000 in 2010, or Dan Christian by Hyderabad for $900,000 in 2011 and Mumbai spending $1m on Glenn Maxwell in 2013.The joker in the pack

Every auction has had its moment – like the complete silence in 2011 when Sourav Ganguly was passed over by all teams. Or the hush, that same day, when Gautam Gambhir became – at $2.4 million – the most expensive IPL auction buy ever

The unexpected drama at this auction could well spring from the right-to-match (RTM) or joker card. There is no telling how much teams would bid for a player knowing they could lose the player anyway. In such a situation, it comes down to instinct again – how far a bidding team is willing to stretch itself, how far do they think the player’s original franchise would be willing to stretch to keep their player. It is very possible some teams could be tempted to push up price of a select favourite of another team with the sole intention of hurting their purse. This, though, is a high-risk game: in case the original franchise refuses to buy the player after the bid process, then you could be stuck with someone you did not want or at best, someone who should not have cost that much.Regardless of all the cold calculations that have been made, there will always be drama at an IPL auction. Every auction has had its moment – like the complete silence in 2011 when Sourav Ganguly was passed over by all teams. Or the hush, that same day, when Gautam Gambhir became – at $2.4 million – the most expensive IPL auction buy ever. That year the low bids for Rahul Dravid, Ricky Ponting and VVS Laxman – three legends of the game – were put into sharp perspective when KKR spent $5.6m in the first hour bidding for Gambhir, Yusuf Pathan ($2.1 million) and Kallis ($1. 1 million). Not only did this stuff make for great television, but the room began to buzz on its own.There’s a very good chance it is going to happen again tomorrow.

Graeme Smith was the last of South Africa’s old guard. The roots of the new one need to grow deeper

Firdose Moonda06-Mar-2014In one summer, South African cricket has lost 30 years. The retirements of Graeme Smith and Jacques Kallis took away three decades of experience and ended an era. Not just any era. South Africa’s most successful era.Before the 2013-14 season began, South Africa’s Test side had lost only one series in eight years. That was to Australia at home. They had gone from Antigua to Auckland, and Birmingham to Brisbane, and did not lose for 14 series.That run isn’t as good as those of the great sides – Australia were unbeaten for 16 series between 2001 and 2005 and West Indies for 29 over 15 years – but it broke new ground for South Africa. It made them serious contenders to be considered among Test cricket’s legendary outfits. They might not have the longevity, but they do have the ingredients.Comparisons between Clive Lloyd’s West Indian attack and this South African one began when Vernon Philander’s rise completed a three-pronged pace battery. With Kallis as the fourth seamer, South Africa had the complete set, though they lacked a world-class spinner. But so did that West Indian team.Comparisons with Steve Waugh or Ricky Ponting’s Australia for ruthlessness, however, could not be made with certainty. South Africa were known more for the art of not losing rather than the art of winning. They play hard but their aggression has not yet been sharpened to be as crafty or nuanced as Australia’s. Still, when they wiped the floor with last summer’s opponents – New Zealand and Pakistan – there were signs the killer instinct was awakening.The defining characteristic of this South African side was resilience. It was their greatness. They learned conditions around the world, sometimes better than they did the ones at home, and developed a style of play suited to every location. They learned how to get themselves off the ropes and put the opposition on them. The ability to counterpunch is no less a skill than the ability to land the first blow.Now, South Africa will have to stage their most difficult counterattack yet. This is the challenge Smith talked about 19 months ago, when his team wrested the Test mace from England. He said they would have to learn to stand firm when the wind came to blow them off the mountaintop. The South Easter has arrived.The great sides of West Indies and Australia had more than one wave of success, and that is why they became iconic. South Africa need a second wave, because the first has washed ashore.Not only are Smith and Kallis gone, the leader of the triad Mark Boucher went before them. Though South Africa rose to No. 1 without Boucher, who was forced into retirement before that England series by injury, they had been infused by his influence. Boucher remained best friends with Kallis and Smith and close to the rest of the squad. He joined them at training sessions and on team-building camps.The other person instrumental for South Africa’s successful team environment is also no longer a part of the set-up – their former coach Gary Kirsten. Like he did with India, Kirsten took a group of talented individuals and turned them into a winning team. He did that by allowing players the freedom they needed to become a family.The majority of that family is still around, and they will have to fill the gaps left by the absentees. Dale Steyn has already put his hand up to do that. On the team’s early morning flight to Port Elizabeth for the start of the Twenty20 series against Australia, following the Newlands Test defeat, he tweeted a picture with the captain: “Bouch, Kallis and now Biff gone! Officially the old man in the team looking after the new kids!” The photograph was of Steyn sitting next to Quinton de Kock. The young wicketkeeper was fast asleep.South Africa’s coach Russell Domingo spoke about his desire to see AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis, Hashim Amla and Vernon Philander use what they learned from Smith, Kallis and Boucher and become icon players themselves. De Villiers and Amla have already done that with their batting. Now they need to it through their leadership.De Villiers already does to some extent as captain of the ODI team, and Amla does it quietly through example. That has its own benefits because as much as South Africa need to find a new core of seniors, they also need to find suitable personnel. They have already seen how difficult that can be, in the quest to fill the Kallis-sized hole.Because there have been very few like Kallis in cricket, South Africa have had to try out different lower-order allrounders to find a replacement. It is too early to tell which of Ryan McLaren, Wayne Parnell and Kyle Abbott is the long-term solution, especially given Philander’s ability to do a similar job in the tail.Now South Africa have the additional task of finding an opening batsman, possibly two. Alviro Petersen is only just clinging on to his spot. Dean Elgar was fighting him for it, but now that Smith is gone Elgar has an easier vacancy to fill. The opening duo of Petersen and Elgar will not inspire the same confidence as Smith and Petersen, or Smith and Elgar, or Smith and anyone did.It’s that syndrome South Africa will have to get over. The only way to move on from losing Smith – and Kallis and Boucher – is to make a clean break. No comparisons, no longing for their return and no excuses. It needs to be balanced against making sure they get the appreciation and praise they deserve for their all they have given South African cricket.When last spring sprung, nobody would have said with certainty that both Kallis and Smith were about to join Boucher and Kirsten as men who had decided the autumn of their careers was over. Domingo has already endured one winter of discontent in his first assignment as national coach with the ODI side, in Sri Lanka last August. He will not want another when he takes the Test team there this July under a new captain. Should South Africa come through that unscathed they can look forward to a good home summer. A summer of new beginnings.

Plays of the day for the match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab in Dubai

Kanishkaa Balachandran28-Apr-2014The over
Chris Gayle sometimes stonewalls at the start of a T20 innings, but having missed Royal Challengers’ first four games due to injury, the urge to get on with it was too strong. Against the offspin of Glenn Maxwell, Gayle’s IPL 2014 campaign got off to a shaky start. The first ball was edged wide of slip and the third chipped over point, both for unconvincing boundaries. He was lucky to survive a strong lbw shout off the fourth, while attempting to sweep. All doubts about Gayle’s rustiness were put to rest, though, when he charged down the track and launched the last two deliveries over long-off and long-on, both flying off the sweet spot. The over cost 20, but the Gayle fireworks came to abrupt end in the following over.The catch
Catches on the boundary require the fielder to not only keep his eyes on the ball but also be aware of where his feet are. Mitchell Starc perfected both at fine leg. Wriddhiman Saha played a pick-up shot towards Starc, who had several yards to cover to his left. He caught the ball and the momentum could easily have forced him over the boundary but he managed to stay on the fringes. Starc went onto take another exceptional catch running forward, but his first catch boosted Royal Challengers’ sagging spirits.The header
If you can’t get bat on ball, then use your head. That’s what Virender Sehwag did, literally. A Varun Aaron bouncer was aimed straight at his head but as he ducked he allowed the ball to deflect off the back of the helmet and clear the wicketkeeper. Sehwag chuckled after the ball raced to the third-man boundary and his reaction suggested the deflection was not entirely accidental.The decision
Sandeep Sharma saved himself and his team-mates from a Gayle onslaught when he hit the stumps with his first ball to the batsman. He was rather fortunate, however, to get rid of Virat Kohli in the same over. Sandeep’s sharp inswing took the ball towards leg stump as Kohli looked to flick, but when the ball struck the pad, the bowler appealed. Billy Bowden was convinced that was hitting the stumps though replays indicated it was missing leg comfortably. Kohli was mortified at the decision and it took a while for him to comprehend the situation and walk back.The missed run-out
Royal Challengers hadn’t scored a boundary off the bat for close to seven overs and a chance to break the drought came via a free-hit in the final over. Ashok Dinda swung at a short ball from Mitchell Johnson but could only bottom-edge it to the wicketkeeper. Varun Aaron set off from the other end but Dinda wasn’t interested, forcing Aaron to scamper back. Johnson collected the wicketkeeper’s throw and tried to back-flick the ball onto the stumps. He ended up lobbing it several feet over the stumps and allowed Aaron an escape.

Plays of the day for the qualifying match between Bangladesh and Nepal in Chittagong

Mohammad Isam in Chittagong18-Mar-2014The split-second decision
Sagar Pun and Subash Khakurel had added just 19 runs as Nepal’s opening pair but they made a bigger impact with Anamul Haque’s run out. The batsman too contributed to his own dismissal. Pun first timed his dive at point well to intercept Anamul’s square-cut and was quick on his feet and mind to get up and throw the ball to wicketkeeper Khakurel. The split-second decision to throw at the right end is not an unusual occurrence but always worth a mention. Anamul walked off an angry man, perhaps at himself, but he did have a long conversation with Sabbir Rahman who had initially called a loud ‘no’ and never quite got going for the non-existent single.The smear through cover
Khadka got going in the last five overs, hammering boundaries mostly in front of the wicket. Two of his off-side boundaries matched any top-class international batsman, especially with the placement and power. The first one off Farhad Reza scudded to the extra cover boundary, and it was his statement of intent that got his opposite number Mushfiqur Rahim a bit worried. The second one came off Abdur Razzak in the next over, and perhaps this was the better blow as it came against an accomplished spinner.The missed stumping
Mushfiqur had a lot of time in hand when Vesawkar jumped out of the crease to Shakib Al Hasan in the 14th over. But the ball kept very low, beating Vesawkar and Mushfiqur, who had a tough time gathering the ball. It was still a missed opportunity for the keeper.The ungainly slog
Tamim Iqbal was missing out on all the fun as Anamul played some handsome shots from the other end. He struck a six, which just about cleared long-on but in his next big try two overs later, the shot looked more ungainly. He went after Basant Regmi in the eighth over, and almost fell over trying to hit the ball out of the ground but ended up giving short third-man a simple catch. It was similar to his dismissal in a Test match against Sri Lanka in January.

In a year where Sri Lanka have won almost every prize they laid their eyes on, their luck was bound to run its course at some point. It did on Monday

Andrew Fidel Fernando at the SSC28-Jul-2014Two slips and a gully. A leg slip and a leg gully. A short leg. Silly mid off. Dilruwan Perera lurks at short cover. Rangana Herath prowls the bowling crease. Crows patrol fine leg. Fresh air blows through deep point. Sri Lanka are in their third last-hour finish in four Tests. Drama follows them like a man with an axe goes after the pretty girl in a horror flick.This is the kind of stuff Sri Lanka’s Test supporters – a meagre and masochistic, but passionate lot – live for. When Imran Tahir came to the crease, there were five men up close on the off side to him.Angelo Mathews brought short-midwicket squarer. Mahela Jayawardene told leg slip to close in six inches. Herath ripped some hard, slid others on; went around the wicket first, then over it, firing many into the rough, and floating some up fuller.Throughout the day, Perera and Herath had beaten enough willow to supply a paper-making factory. When the edges were eventually hit, the ball would skim low into one of the few unmanned spaces around the batsmen.Sri Lanka have had their share of good fortune in the five months they won every trophy they played for, so a day like this was overdue. Two fifty-fifty umpiring calls went against them. One lbw shout off Hashim Amla that should have been given out, was turned down, with no reviews remaining.Then there was the rain. The third of the breaks – for a brief, but heavy shower – was the most frustrating. The umpires called the covers on, then off, then on and off again, all in the space of fifteen minutes. The Sri Lanka players raced out onto the field, with less than 90 minutes to play, but another squall washed through just as they were taking their fielding positions.So unwilling to trod off, they just milled about on the side of the square. Several groundstaff kept glancing at them, as if to say, “If you’re going to stand there getting drenched, at least help with the covers”. That was perhaps the only thing Sri Lanka had not tried in their pursuit of victory, having batted positively in both innings and attacked without relent in the field.When the rain eased to finally allow the last phase of play, JP Duminy walked to the crease as if he were in a funeral possession. Perhaps he was mourning his own batting, which lacked a pulse. He made 6 off 123 in the match.

Several groundstaff kept glancing at them, as if to say, “If you’re going to stand there getting drenched, at least help with the covers”. That was perhaps the only thing Sri Lanka had not tried in their pursuit of victory, having batted positively in both innings and attacked without relent in the field

Later on, Tahir provided the most high-quality entertainment, even in an innings that yielded just 4 off 21 balls. He would lunge out late at the full deliveries, pat the ball into the ground, and in an extravagant forward-defence follow-through, nearly lay the bat face down on the pitch. He was almost offering the bat in a thanksgiving sacrifice to the SSC pitch-god who had allowed him to survive one more delivery.The divine was clearly unsatisfied with that, because with three minutes left on the clock, Tahir became a self-appointed human sacrifice. He lay voluntarily immobile at the Tennis Courts end, apparently with sudden-onset full-body paralysis, for which the only cure was Vernon Philander coming down the pitch and telling him he may be taking the gag too far. Even Sri Lanka Tests can only handle so much drama.When Sri Lanka needed one wicket in the final hour at Headingley, Mathews had called for 10 changes, searching frantically for the magic ball Shaminda Eranga finally provided. Then, he had four wicket-takers to rotate.In the second innings at the SSC, he was reduced to having basically a two-man attack. Herath and Perera had been impeccable, but Suranga Lakmal seemed worn and flat, given the surface he was working with. Ajantha Mendis had bowled so poorly in the Test, he was practically only called on to bowl an over while Herath and Perera swapped ends. Even that one over sometimes seemed too much for him.This Sri Lanka team does not like to criticise their own, but after the match, Mathews made clear his disappointment in Mendis’ wicketless outing. “We expected a lot more from him, but he couldn’t’ deliver much,” he said. “We thought, having three spinners – he will be able to contribute. It wasn’t the usual SSC wicket. It was much drier and expected to assist spin bowling a lot. The spinner we thought could make a difference was Mendis. He had a quite a bad game.”In the end, Sri Lanka were foiled by Tahir, who had arguably been even less impressive with the ball than Mendis, while Vernon Philander, the other villain of the series, stood at the other end. Having played positive cricket from the start of the series to its end, Sri Lanka gave their fans something to cheer for, but ran out of luck in the dying hours.

Charlotte Edwards and Clare Connor talk about captaining England, rooming together, and how they used a 15-year-old to plot the downfall of Australia

Interview by Izzy Westbury24-Aug-2014Since 1990, England Women have had just three permanent captains. For almost 15 years it has been the duo of Clare Connor and Charlotte Edwards who have overseen the most successful and transitional period of the women’s game. With the former now retired as a player to be the ECB’s head of women’s cricket and the latter still skipper of the national side, one of the game’s closest partnership-friendships has continued. Here the two leaders of the revolution talk about their role together in the past, present and future.You two met at England Under-19 trials back in 1992 – Clare was 16, Charlotte 12. What do you remember about it?Clare Connor: She was the youngest by such a long way. It was Under-19 trials and I thought I was going to be quite young at 16! It was all so unknown. I was completely new to women’s cricket. I went through boys’ school cricket – a similar route to Lottie but different because I was at private school. It’s so funny looking back, because the summer of ’93 was obviously when England won the [women’s] World Cup here, but I wasn’t aware of it all that much.Charlotte Edwards: Same for me. In my world it was like, “I’m going to play for the England men’s team,” because I was getting picked for the boys’ county team, I was captain of the boys’ team and I was picked for regional-level boys’ cricket. I think it was only at Under-13 level when I properly had my first moment where I thought, “I’m not quite good enough for this”.CC: All we’d ever done was play boys’ cricket. Now it’s very different and that’s the beauty of Chance to Shine – because now it’s such a different experience for girls playing the game; there are loads of girls doing it. For us it wasn’t like that.You have a close relationship now. Were you always friends from the off? CC: We were actually! I think we were just very like-minded. We loved our cricket. We were just cricket mad. That is something that I only really had in common with probably one or two players. We are just such cricket badgers really, aren’t we? So when we roomed together, both on and off the pitch it was just cricket, cricket, cricket. I suppose that’s probably because of our upbringing: because of our dads, playing in a men’s club, being in that cricket world.CE: Our dads didn’t know each other before, but when we started playing together they would talk. All the time.Can you remember the first time you batted together?

“As a new captain I always turned to Lot. I think because we thought quite similarly about people and about the game, and I suppose the friendship we had bolstered that”Clare Connor

CE: I remember us opening the batting together for England Under-19s. John Major was there. That was a massive day when [Cathryn] Fitzpatrick [Australia’s demon quick of the time] was coming steaming in at us. She really fancied bowling at us two! Or she just liked bowling at Clare… I used to just be like, “Conny, can you just shut up!” because I was at the other end to Clare and she kept winding Fitzpatrick up and I kept on getting all these bouncers! That wasn’t very nice!CC: We did click, definitely. I think it was because I became captain young [at 23], and Lot was this constant in the team, and we’d gone through everything to get there. I was made captain mid-tour in 2000, and that was a bit of a turbulent time. There were lots of senior players around – more senior players than us – and it was not an easy period. I always turned to Lottie, you know, and obviously then she became my vice-captain in ’02. So we did about four years together as captain/vice-captain. How old were you when you became captain?CE: 25.CC: Both quite young. And, it was just a tough time. We’d been to Australia, we’d got hammered out of sight. We had a bit of a blame culture; the batters and the bowlers, it was a bit cliquey. It was really tough – we’d lost for a long time. As a new captain I always turned to Lot. I think because we thought quite similarly about people and about the game, and I suppose the friendship we had bolstered that.CE: I remember once in the 2005 World Cup when I had to go and stick up for Con because Batesy [Richard Bates, then the England coach] was… there was a problem around a tactical thing that he believed in and I remember coming off the field and Conny was really upset in the changing room and I just realised, “I’ve got to step in here”. I went and spoke to the coach and just said, “Listen, we can’t have this. We can’t have you criticising the captain on what she’s doing. She’s trying to do the best”. I remember that being quite a tough time. Clare didn’t have it easy at all when she was captaining, because she took on a senior group of players.After this period that was evidently very tricky, around 2000 – 2005, there was a lot then made of the men winning the Ashes after 18 years, but for you it was 42 years. How did it go from this period of defeat, to this huge achievement?Connor: “When we roomed together, both on and off the pitch it was just cricket, cricket, cricket”•Getty ImagesCE: We beat New Zealand in ’04 for the first time in 12 years. And we’d never beaten New Zealand. We couldn’t even beat them in a game, let alone a series. And we still hadn’t beaten Australia at this point. So we knew that beating them was a huge step forward to beating Australia.CC: Yep, huge confidence booster. By 2005, the Ashes summer, I’d played for England for ten years, and never beaten Australia! They had such a hold over us. And I will never forget the emotions at Stratford. That was the first time we’d ever been on a cricket pitch and beaten them. We just didn’t know what to do with ourselves.CE: I didn’t know where to go, or what to do. It was just the best feeling ever!CC: But that kind of moment was so huge for the team. Going back to the likes of Lydia Greenway, Isa Guha, Jenny Gunn, they were all involved in that. Holly Colvin as a 15-year-old. Arran Brindle…Talking about Colvin’s selection… Charlotte, were you involved in that as well? It was all a bit on a whim wasn’t it?CC: Oh yes, that was hilarious! That was one of our funniest moments! So we were at Hove, Holly was about to go on a geography field trip aged 15. But because the Aussies had a good left-arm orthodox spinner, we brought Holly in to training. We’re in the nets at the top of the ground – and she got everyone out. She got Lot out, she got Tails [Claire Taylor] out, she got everyone out – comfortably. So everyone was sort of looking at each other, thinking, well, this is just a bit outrageous… And we sat on the outfield, you, me and Batesy…CE: Well, you were sat there, and then you went “Lot, Lot, come over here”. I was vice-captain and they said, “If we were to pick Holly Colvin in the XI tomorrow, what would you say?” And I said, “Go for it!” But it was the most ridiculous thing, because she didn’t have a room!CC: Arran Brindle had to move! Holly had to have her own room, because she was under age. There was no space at the hotel, so Brindle and her husband had to go and stay in my flat, in Hove, so that Holly could stay in the hotel! It was the most left-field way of doing selection. It was opportunistic and it worked – she was on a hat-trick in the first innings.So going back to that summer – that summer was so important, because everyone just suddenly believed. And then six months later, I stepped down and Lot took over. It felt perfect. It felt like it was written in – I’d done as much as I could do, Lot was totally champing – ready to take over. Perfect timing for me and for the team and for Lottie to take over the captaincy.Talking to a few players who played under both of you as captains – they were equally full of praise for you both, but they did note your different approaches to the role. Clare, you were perceived as a bit gentler, whereas Lottie you have been described as a bit more hands-on, stamping your authority. Do you think the approaches complemented each other?CC: I think that it was all in the timing. I think that I had to be that. I was 23, I was dealing with a very different dressing room than Lot was. Lot with her huge record as a batter and the fact that the team was in a really good place when she took over, I think that she could kind of just do that and take everyone onto the next level which was exactly what needed to happen. Do you think that’s what it was?

“Conny will push more for us than anyone, like the Chance to Shine contracts, and our professional contracts. It’s brilliant that she’s in a job like this, because she always wants the best for us”Charlotte Edwards

CE: Yeah. I was more than ready, I think, to become captain. It was the next step for me as a person. I’d played for a long time, I’d learnt a lot, I’d roomed with Clare, I felt as though I’d gone through her whole captaincy.CC: Yes, she’d lived it! I’d wake up and whisper over to her, “Lot, are you awake…”CE: “I am now!”CC: At five in the morning, I’d ask, “What do you think we should do?”CE: I lived and breathed it with her for four years. Because she loves her little chat about it all, as I do.How easy have you found it to separate the personal from the business side of things now that Clare is an administrator and Lottie is a player?CE: Really easy to separate, to be honest. I wouldn’t be as successful as I am today without Conny. The stuff that Conny’s done for cricket over the last I don’t know how long! We wouldn’t be in a position like this at all. I take a lot of the plaudits for the team’s success, but without what’s going on underneath us… and that’s not me blowing hot air up her arse… I really do believe that.Clare, you had an extremely successful playing career. Do you ever feel that your own career has been subsumed by both the current team’s success, and your success in your role post-cricket?CC: Oh, no, I’ve never thought of it like that at all. I’ve just felt unbelievably lucky to have done it all in quite a short time frame. I’ve played for England for ten years and then I’ve been in this job for five years, and I just feel unbelievably lucky. I don’t ever have those feelings.CE: That’s one thing that you’re very good at. Conny will push more for us than anyone. Some ex-players think, “Well I never got it so I’m not going to give it to them'” Conny pushes it, like the Chance to Shine contracts, and our professional contracts. It’s brilliant that she’s in a job like this, because she always wants the best for us.Honestly, when I heard about the professional contracts, I nearly crashed my car! Everyone keeps asking me, “Were you banging the drum for it?” And I keep on saying, “No, I wasn’t banging any drum!” I didn’t even know. If you could have seen my face when I got it. I nearly cried! Con always keeps pushing. You speak to her every few weeks and she says, “Ah yes, the next thing, the next thing…”Something that caused a bit of controversy was when Lottie was quoted as saying in January she’d be celebrating the Ashes win by “getting smashed”. Clare how did you feel about this from a management side? Did you have to rap her knuckles?CE: [] She sent me an email saying, “Don’t take your phone out and tell everyone else to leave theirs behind”. I remember sitting down in reception and the girls were so worried that I was in trouble! I didn’t actually think about what I’d said at the time, and then when I went back upstairs everyone was flapping. But that’s not me, and I think that if anyone knows me, that is so not me. But I guess it’s just something that I’ll always regret a little bit.Clare was supportive! She said, “Lot, don’t worry, you made one slip of the tongue in 17 years” and was asking Beth, our media manager, to look after things. That put me at ease because you could sense the girls were worried that I was going to get in trouble, and, well, you do stupid things and you live and learn by your mistakes.CC: I suppose the key thing to come out of it really was that crikey, something Lottie said is now fuelling a debate on BBC Radio 5 live! So it shows I suppose the influence that you now have. The game has got that standing; people are bothered.Any off-field escapades you’d care to describe?Edwards: “I was more than ready to become captain. I’d learnt a lot, I’d roomed with Clare, I felt as though I’d gone through her whole captaincy”•Getty ImagesCE: I don’t know if any are suitable! Oh I know – do you remember waking up Freddo!?CC: Yes! Oh dear.CE: We were on one of the early tours, European Championships in the Netherlands, in Utrecht. It must have been 2:30 in the morning. We were quite young and obviously still buzzing and we woke Sue Redfern [England colleague] up – this must have been 1996 – we had the curtains closed, changed the clocks, had all of our gear packed and managed to persuade her that it was time to go to the match. We got her breakfast and everything, and then we opened the curtains – and obviously it was dark…You’d probably get more tales out of Arran Brindle though. She never drank. I mean we never, ever drank on tour except on the very last night and then we’d all go a bit mental. And Brindle was always the one that used to come out and shepherd us around and make sure we got back safely. Goodness, I remember one time waking up and my room was an absolute state – like a bomb had hit it.CC: Your room always looked like a bomb had hit it.CE: Yeah! Oh, goodness I was so messy and you were so neat!

Likeable, hard-working and skilful, it was a matter of time before Phillip Hughes cemented his spot in the Australian Test team. Then, improbably and inconsolably, his time ran out

Daniel Brettig27-Nov-20146:47

Chappell: Hughes will be remembered for uncomplaining attitude

Michael Clarke and Ricky Ponting. David Warner and Shane Watson. Simon Katich and Justin Langer. Brad Haddin and Matthew Wade. Darren Lehmann and Brett Lee.These strong men of Australian cricket have often had very little in common. Their competitiveness, pride and differences of opinion have caused plenty of arguments and disagreements. Apart from the baggy-green cap, there was often only one thing that they all agreed on:Phillip Hughes.He was a very close friend of Clarke’s, yet a pupil of Ponting, with whom he shared a manager in James Henderson. He was a friend and opening partner for each of Warner, Watson and Katich – three more contrasting characters it would be almost impossible to find. He was equally happy in the company of Haddin and Wade, two men of different states and generations but shared desire to keep wicket for their country. And he was a student of batting mentors as broadly churched as Lehmann, Langer, and his personal coach, Neil D’Costa.For all their many divergent views, these men shared enormous belief in Hughes. A belief that he would soon bloom into one of Australia’s most prolific Test batsmen, fulfilling the promise he first demonstrated on a precocious tour to South Africa in 2009, having found a more sustainable style of batting. This belief is also why the grief about Hughes’ death at the age of 25 is so universal, and so shattering. Hughes always had time on his side, or so we thought.

****

Phillip Joel Hughes was born on November 30, 1988, the son of Greg and Virginia. They owned a banana farm in the northern New South Wales town of Macksville, and it was here that Hughes first learned the scything, cutting method that he would spring upon all manner of bowling attacks, from junior and country cricket to Sydney grade and the Sheffield Shield for NSW.His batting and life coach around this time was D’Costa, who had also shepherded Clarke in his early days and, in Hughes, saw another great Australian batsman in the making. “This kid,” he was often heard to say, “will go all the way.”If there was some initial scepticism from state selectors about Hughes’ tendency to open up his stumps while arrowing boundaries through the off side, it was quickly swept away by runs. Hundreds piled up against unsuspecting attacks, and a national selection panel led by Andrew Hilditch was swayed into taking Hughes to South Africa as the man to replace Matthew Hayden. It was a bold call, ahead of the likes of Chris Rogers and Phil Jaques, but the aggregates backed it up.His first international innings was over in a few balls, his pet cut shot drawing an edge behind. But the South Africans took this as proof of fallibility outside off stump and fed the shot as Hughes galloped to twin hundreds in Durban. They underpinned a series win that Ponting called his favourite, and seemed to set Hughes up for the future.England and Andrew Flintoff had other ideas, tucking up the 20-year-old Hughes and swaying the Ashes tourists to drop him after two Tests. His place in the team was inconsistent from that moment, and his method gradually reshaped into something more rounded and grounded in the game’s fundamentals. A method that would take time to mature, but could last. It was still in transition when Hughes was caught Guptill, bowled Martin four innings out of four against New Zealand in 2011. He was dropped, but would come again.The search for runs and a longer run in the Test team saw Hughes move to South Australia in 2012, where he found Adelaide to have more in common with Macksville than Sydney. His regular visits back to the family farm kept him uncomplicated and humble in his demeanour and words. No matter where he played, Hughes was never anything other than a wholehearted, determined and slightly cheeky country kid.In late 2012, Hughes appeared finally to be taking a more permanent berth in the team. He batted at No. 3 against Sri Lanka, and also found his way into the ODI team, where he became the first Australian to make a hundred on debut. While Hughes found the going harder in India, struggling to find a way against the hosts’ spin bowlers and parched pitches, he improved gradually as the trip went on, earning plaudits from the chief executive James Sutherland for his perseverance on a tour better known for the Mohali suspensions.His final Test appearances took place against England, where not for the first time he was dropped when at another time he might have enjoyed a longer stint in the team. An unbeaten 81 in the first Test at Trent Bridge hinted at the player Hughes was on the way to becoming. Far tighter than in South Africa, and composed enough to inspire the teenaged debutant Ashton Agar’s comet-like 98 from No. 11. Hughes had been around long enough to be the senior pro in this most memorable stand.But Australia were rolling through options for the return Ashes series at home, and coach Lehmann’s preference for right-handers to combat Graeme Swann told against Hughes. He was now cast as the team’s reserve batsman, forever on the edge of the Test XI but never in it, and his humility in handling this commission spoke volumes.On tour, Hughes was excellent company, whether in coffee shops during the day or bars after dark. His acceptance of the reserve role was impressive in a game where so many players are in a hurry for their chance. Continued runs would eventually mount an argument too strong to ignore, so why worry about it?”Just being in this squad is where I need to be,” Hughes said in South Africa earlier this year. “Playing or not playing, I’m happy to be in the squad and helping out the guys wherever needed. It doesn’t bother me about what happens here, I’m not looking too far ahead. Consistency is a big thing for me, having been in and out of the team. When I get another crack, I really want to try to be as consistent as I possibly can be.”Hughes showed that sort of consistency in a top-end series for Australia A, twice coshing double-hundreds against South African opposition. He came exceptionally close to tilting Rogers out of the Test XI against Pakistan in the UAE, but was groomed for later assignments. Rogers might only be playing another year or so, Australia’s schedule wasn’t getting any less demanding, Hughes’ appetite for runs was undiminished. There was so much time.

****

At the SCG against New South Wales, Hughes played as though he could see a Test match in his very near future. This was not the 20-year-old bush basher who had so startled South Africa, but a more considered and mature young man. Many good judges had likened Hughes to Langer and Hayden, young men with less than perfect techniques who learned from harsh early Test lessons to return as wiser and ultimately dominant Test batsmen. Hughes was embodying this as he moved into the 60s.Then Sean Abbott delivered a bouncer, no more venomous than any Hughes had faced over the years. He had already avoided a few short balls, but this time elected to hook, a stroke that he added more consistently to his shot locker as one of the means by which to open up more scoring avenues. Like he had done at all phases of his career, Hughes arrived early, swivelling to meet ball with bat, but miscalculating the pace ever so slightly. A one in a billion blow caused him to reel, to stagger, and then collapse. He made 63, not out.Michael Clarke and Ricky Ponting. David Warner and Shane Watson. Simon Katich and Justin Langer. Brad Haddin and Matthew Wade. Darren Lehmann and Brett Lee. All went to Hughes’ bedside at St Vincent’s Hospital, and all prayed for the miracle that did not arrive. They had all been united in their admiration for Hughes, and were all now together in grief, alongside the rest of the cricket world. Improbably, impossibly and inconsolably, time had run out.

Given the mutual dependence between Bangladesh and Shakib Al Hasan, perhaps it was only fitting that the allrounder chose to underline his return to the side with a match-winning performance in Khulna

Devashish Fuloria in 07-Nov-2014First ball after tea, as Shakib Al Hasan went down on his haunches to appeal for an lbw against Hamilton Masakadza, the crowd rose. It was further proof of the magnetism he holds over the crowd: no matter what people are up to, the moment he is in the middle, all heads turn towards him. It’s a connection only Shakib can perhaps claim to have with the Bangladeshi fans. So, in the second session, when Shakib took a break after bowling 12 consecutive overs, it was the time in the stands to sort out lunch.Khulna had turned out in large numbers in the expectation of a win. It wasn’t quite house-full attendance but being a Friday, many families were also present, along with the usual groups of boys. They were busy chatting with each other knowing that only the wickets mattered. Mothers were helping their kids lap up the boxed biryanis, some men were jostling through the crowd to avoid toppling the two or three glasses of soft drinks they were holding. Most had their faces painted or had come with headbands, but through the second session, the stands resembled the waiting room of a railway station.Jubair Hossain had struck twice before tea to remove Regis Chakabva and Craig Ervine but it merely served as a public announcement signalling the train’s approach. There was reserved jubilation, no major movement. It wasn’t quite a wicket for Shakib, it wasn’t quite the win.Hence the instant buzz when Shakib came on to bowl after tea. By that time, the water bottles had been emptied, throats had been cleared, hunger taken care of, batteries recharged. And when Shakib appealed, it was as if he was doing a pre-flight check: banging of bottles, check; roars, check; everyone on their feet, check; ready for take-off. That appeal against Masakadza was turned down, but the volume in the stands went up a few notches. Bangladesh, five wickets away from a win, were making the final push and the team was not alone.It has been a tough year for Bangladesh. Shakib might say it has been tougher on him with fewer ups and more downs. It is not hard to see the mutual dependency, with Shakib one of the most important assets in the team. Bangladesh lost ODIs, they lost Twenty20s, they lost Test matches, they lost Shakib to a suspension. There did not seem to be way out of the mire, until somehow they managed to cross the line in Mirpur.Khulna has been good to the home side and to Shakib, who could do little wrong here. A century after three years, five wickets in the first innings, two already in the second – surely he was going to get the remaining three. Masakadza was the biggest challenge but the wickets would come at the other end, it was known. If there was a way around Masakadza, Shakib had to find it. Soon enough, he found one to surprise Masakadza and pumped his fists knowing he had won it for Bangladesh. It was time to board the party train.The pitch joined in, too, it seemed, playing an amusing trick by getting a ball to sneak below Malcolm Waller’s bat in the next over from Taijul Islam. Then the Zimbabweans started making a quiet exit, Chigumbura walking after nicking one off Shakib. Taijul did not pick up a wicket in his next over and Shakib then regaled his fans by getting Natsai M’Shangwe out. It was Shakib’s tenth wicket and he was driving the train.As the crowd bounced around, the view to the pitch and the giant screen was blocked. Some officials at the boundary were visible. One of them raised his arms in celebration only to pull them down immediately. Maybe it was a missed run-out, maybe it was a dropped chance.Then, soon enough, the roar again. All that could be heard was the din when the last wicket went down. All that could be felt were the goosebumps. Shakib, man on a comeback, a century and ten wickets in the match, had turned it around for Bangladesh. Two matches, two wins, their first home series win since 2005. It could all be felt as they screamed “Bangladesh, Bangladesh” in the stands. The pitch was still hidden from view by boisterous crowds and a stuffed toy, a tiger wearing a Bangladesh flag as a cape, was being thrown up repeatedly. Remember the cat from Mirpur? It had transformed to a Super-Tiger in Khulna.

Stats highlight from the Group B match between India and Pakistan at the Adelaide Oval.

Shiva Jayaraman15-Feb-20150 Number of India batsmen who had scored a century against Pakistan in the World Cup before this game. Virat Kohli became the first batsman to do so. The highest score by an Indian batsman before this match was Sachin Tendulkar’s 98 in Centurion in 2003.22 Centuries Kohli has now hit in ODIs – he is the quickest to the figure, having taken just 143 innings. Sachin Tendulkar was the quickest before Kohli, taking 206 innings. Including Kohli, only five batsmen have hit 22 or more centuries in ODIs.5-55 Sohail Khan’s bowling figures in the match; he took only the seventh five-wicket haul by a Pakistan bowler in the World Cup. He is the first Pakistan bowler and only the ninth overall to take a five-for in his first World Cup match. While Sohail averaged 11 in the match, the rest of the Pakistan bowlers gave away 243 runs for the one wicket they took.6-0 India’s record in the World Cup against Pakistan. Incidentally, only Pakistan have more World Cup wins against a team without a loss. They have beaten Sri Lanka seven times and are yet to lose a game to them in the World Cup.76 India’s margin of win in this match – the largestmargin of the five games against Pakistan in the World Cup in which they have batted first.39 ODI fifties by Misbah-ul-Haq – he is now 14 clear of Andrew Jones, who is a distant second in the list of batsmen to get most ODI fifties without scoring a hundred. Misbah’s score in this match was the fourth highest by a Pakistan captain in the World Cup. Imran Khan’s unbeaten 102 against Sri Lanka in the 1983 World Cup is the highest. At 40 years and 263 days, Misbah is now the second-oldest batsman to hit a fifty-plus score in the World Cup.1 Number of century partnerships India had against Pakistan in the World Cup before this match. There were two in this game. Dhawan and Kohli added 129 runs for the second wicket, beating the 102-run stand between Sachin Tendulkar and Mohammad Kaif in Centurion. It was followed by a 110-run partnership between Kohli and Raina for the third wicket.21.6 Shikhar Dhawan’s average from ten innings in international cricket in Australia before this match. His 73 in this match was only his second fifty of the tour. He had scores of 38, 8, 1, 2 and 0 in his previous five international innings.27/5 The score India managed in the last five overs of their innings. It was a seesaw battle with the previous five overs producing 56 runs without a wicket after Pakistan bowlers had kept them quiet during the batting Powerplay conceding only 25 runs.

3 Number of times India have had two century partnerships in a World Cup match including this match. The last such occasion was against South Africa in 2011. The other instance came against Bermuda in 2007.2 Number of times Pakistan have conceded 300-plus in the World Cup before this match. The last occasion was against New Zealand in 2011. The highest they have conceded is 310, against Australia in 2003.3 Number of fifty-plus scores by India’s top-four batsmen in this match. This was only the fourth instance of three or more of India’s first four getting fifty-plus scores in the World Cup. The last instance was against South Africa in 2011.8 Matches India went win-less in international games since the start of their tour to Australia. This was their first win since their victory over Sri Lanka in Ranchi in November last year.1979 The last time an Indian spinner bowled three or more maidens in a World Cup match before Ashwin in this match; S Venkataraghavan bowled three maidens against West Indies in 1979. There have been only five such instances including Bishan Bedi’s eight maidens against East Africa in 1975. No bowler has bowled more maidens than Bedi in an ODI.