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“I think we can (take confidence from recent form). India were the No.1 ranked team and we beat them two-nil,” he said

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Mar-2020New Zealand coach Gary Stead has called Australia a “benchmark” that they try and aspire to and has welcomed more white-ball fixtures against them in the coming years.”I look at what’s coming ahead in the next few years, and I do see that we are playing Australia in white ball cricket reasonably regularly.. They are a great team, we respect them a lot for the way they play their cricket. That’s ultimately, sometimes, they set a benchmark for us to aspire to,” he said.New Zealand were thrashed three-nil in the Tests in Australia in December, but subsequently whitewashed India in ODIs and Tests at home, although they themselves were on the wrong side of a T20I whitewash that preceded those. On the back of those results, Stead believes New Zealand come to Australia a confident side.”I think we can (take confidence from recent form). India were the No.1 ranked team and we beat them two-nil in our home conditions and played really well in the ODis series prior to that as well. I think we have played some really good ODI cricket in the last three or four years and hopefully we can continue that on”Australia, on the other hand, are coming off a three-nil hammering in the ODIs in South Africa, before which they were beaten two-one in India, despite having taken a lead in the series opener. But Stead expects Australia to be a different beast at home, and certainly “never vulnerable”.”I think Australia are never vulnerable at home,” he said. ” It’s one of the toughest places to come and play in world cricket I guess as well. Their reputation, and the record that they have I guess, you see the record and that’s why they do have that reputation. And so, I mean, they have come off being beaten in South Africa, but all a lot of teams struggle away from home, and I guess no different for us, that’s going to be our biggest challenge.”It is an unusual time for ODI cricket as it takes the backseat for most teams in terms of importance with the World Cup still more than three years away, and with the Test Championship and the T20Is – given the T20 World Cup later this year – taking priority. The timing of the Australia-New Zealand series was questioned by former Australia captain Michael Clarke who called it “token games of cricket”, and head coach Justin Langer admitted that Australia have some weary players, but Head was quick to dismiss the “some games are not important” argument.”I think every game you play for your country is an important game, so I don’t sort of buy into the it’s not important sort of series,” Stead said.
“You can make your importance out of these series and what you do, and how you play, and who you select, and what you are looking for as well. So for us, every opportunity we get to play for New Zealand, it is a proud moment and certainly go out there and try and win every game we play.”Stead also felt that though the formats are different and the conditions may not be the same as the current ODIs come the T20 World Cup, any information that they can gather playing on Australian grounds could be beneficial.”It is a different format, but I guess the more information you can get, and the more intel you can get on all the grounds, the good thing is. I’m not sure if the pitch conditions will look the same in the T20 time. So you take all those factors in. you can look at the Big Bash, and scores and things that go on there and who is successful at different grounds before you come to making your final decisions. But I guess ultimately we select the 15 that we think can do the job here, and we’ll do that for the World Cup as well.”

The India A coach isn’t unduly worried by the opener’s poor form over the last few months. He also feels India will go into the 2019 World Cup as favourites

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Feb-2019India will start the 2019 World Cup as favourites, according to Rahul Dravid. The India A coach believes India are playing “very good cricket” at the moment, and hoped they could peak at the right moment.Speaking to journalists during India A’s ongoing home series against England Lions, Dravid said he expected the pitches in England to be flat and unlike those he experienced during the 1999 World Cup in the same country.”The wickets will be very different compared to 1999, they’ve become very flat,” Dravid said. “I expect it to be a very high-scoring World Cup. We went with India A last year, and 300 was regularly scored, so it’ll be a lot more high-scoring than 1999. We used the Duke’s ball then, now it’s Kookaburra… plus two new balls and field restrictions are there, so we can’t compare the World Cups.”But India are playing very good cricket and definitely go in as one of the favourites. Hopefully, the boys can peak over the next few months.”KL Rahul has struggled for form over recent months, but Dravid believed the opener’s ability would help him bounce back. In his last 12 innings, Rahul has gone past fifty just once and has scored only 55 runs in three 50-over games for India A against England Lions.”I have no doubt that Rahul has quality and ability,” Dravid said. “He’s playing the four-dayers [against the Lions], and he’s proven he can succeed in the international level in all three formats. He’s one player who has hundreds in T20Is, Tests and ODIs so I’m not worried about his form.”The one-dayers against Lions were also an opportunity for Dravid to test India A’s bench strength, and he was pleased with the contributions of the young players drafted in. He also highlighted positives that came from the seniors in the side who remain in contention for a ticket to England.”Ajinkya [Rahane] (140 in three games) came here and scored runs,” Dravid said. “[Hanuma] Vihari, Shreyas Iyer did quite well. The seamers Deepak [Chahar] and Shardul [Thakur] did well. Navdeep [Saini], Avesh Khan and Axar Patel have been excellent. Both the legspinners [Rahul Chahar and Mayank Markande] showed promise and potential, so there were a lot of performances that the selectors can look at and be happy about.”It was also a younger squad, so it was an opportunity to bring the younger players for the last few games – you saw the likes of Rituraj Gayakwad, Himmat Singh, Siddhesh Lad, Ricky Bhui. They’ve not been part of our set-up, but we want to slowly bring them in because they’ve done well in one-day and Ranji games.”Rahul Dravid receiving his ICC Hall of Fame cap•International Cricket Council

On the topic of the Ranji Trophy, Dravid said it was inevitable that some India A tours would clash with the country’s premier first-class competition.”It’s not an easy one to avoid. But in this series, we didn’t pick anyone still playing the Ranji Trophy quarters, semis and finals… so we’ve given importance to that,” Dravid said. “But it’s not easy, we need to balance out the needs of some of the players, we need to develop them and give our players a level and standard higher than domestic cricket. If we don’t challenge our players at a slightly higher level than domestic and first-class cricket, then how can we develop them for international cricket?”We try to not make them clash, but sometimes the clash is inevitable. Like going to New Zealand [in December 2018], it was a very fruitful exercise to play in those conditions… and if the season clashes, then there’s no way we can balance it out. So yes, we do try to avoid clashes but inevitably it sometimes will happen.”Dravid was keen to play down the margin of India A’s one-day victory against a solid Lions outfit captained by Ben Duckett. Dravid felt India A had been heavily challenged by the visitors, and that the scoreline simply reflected of who did better in the crunch moments.”Even though the scoreline reads 4-1, there were many situations where we were challenged and pushed against the wall,” Dravid said. “But we showed some good fighting spirit.”They pushed us. There were a lot of close games, one wicket or a small phase of play their way and they would’ve won it. It was a lot tighter than 4-1, we just won the key moments, so credit to the boys.”Dravid’s next job is to oversee India-A’s four-dayers against the Lions, which begin next week. Rahul is part of that squad too, and is expected to take his place at the top of the order. The first game begins on February 7 in Wayanad.

Trevor Bayliss has called on CA and the ECB to “get together” to ensure a better standard of preparation for both teams on Ashes tours

George Dobell in Townsville18-Nov-2017Trevor Bayliss has called on CA and the ECB to “get together” to ensure a better standard of preparation for both teams on Ashes tours.Bayliss, the England coach, has stated several times that he would have preferred England to encounter stiffer opposition ahead of the first Test but has been at pains to point out that the situation is not so different for Australia when they visit the UK.As a result, Bayliss has already spoken to Andrew Strauss – the director of England cricket – to suggest that first-class matches against an A team (effectively the national second XI) are written into future Ashes schedules ahead of the first Test, adding that he will speak to Pat Howard (Strauss’s counterpart in Australia) about the matter in the coming days.”Both Australia and England should be getting together and having at least one match against the A team before each series,” Bayliss said. “I’ve already mentioned it to Strauss and I will mention it to Pat Howard when I see him too.There was a certain irony in the timing of Bayliss’ words. While the CA XI that England played in Townsville contained just one man with a first-class century to his name prior to the match – Nick Larkin – by the time it ended, two more young Australian batsmen had maiden first-class hundreds. And as England laboured throughout the final day in taking just one wicket, it became harder to sustain the argument that the opposition was as modest as had first appeared.In truth, though, that was partially the result of an unusually slow, flat wicket which is unlikely to be replicated during the Ashes series. And while the England camp are reluctant to make any public complaint about the preparation they have been provided by CA, there is a sense that both the surfaces and the opposition to this point have left them facing a major change of quality – and specifically pace – when they arrive at the Gabba.Underlining that suspicion – or, depending on your view, paranoia – is the training schedule ahead of the first Test on Thursday. England will train in the afternoon on Tuesday and Wednesday – often teams alternate between morning and afternoon sessions on consecutive days – giving them slightly less time to rest and slightly less exposure to conditions throughout the day.”That was a bone of contention,” Bayliss said. “The home team makes the programme and that’s just the way it is. We will take it on the chin and get on with it.”

Bad light brought the first ODI to an excruciating end with Hong Kong needing 18 to win off 12 balls with six wickets in hand when the match was called off

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Sep-2016
Match called off due to bad light
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsHong Kong’s Ehsan Khan became the 23rd man to strike with his first ball in ODIs•Hong Kong Cricket

Bad light brought the first ODI between Scotland and Hong Kong at the Grange in Edinburgh to an excruciating end with Hong Kong needing 18 to win off 12 balls with six wickets in hand when the match was called off. Hong Kong had played 18 overs. If this were a T20, Duckworth-Lewis would have kicked in at this point to decide a winner. But this was an ODI, and both sides needed to have played a minimum of 20 overs for that to happen.With rain delaying the start by five-and-a-half hours, the match had first been reduced to 21 overs a side. Another spell of rain 4.2 overs into the Scotland innings, after Hong Kong had sent the home side in, caused a further reduction to 20 overs a side. This was effectively a T20 game, but not quite.Chasing 154, Hong Kong began briskly, thanks to a 26-ball 43 from Nizakat Khan. They slipped to 64 for 2 in the ninth over after Con de Lange, the left-arm spinner, dismissed both openers in quick succession. Babar Hayat and Anshuman Rath then put on 62 in 8.2 overs for the third wicket, leaving 28 needed off the last 22 balls. Both fell in the 17th over, bowled by Mark Watt, with the aggressive Rath run out. Ehsan Khan, on 2, and Tanwir Afzal, on 7, were at the crease when the umpires decided the light was insufficient for play to go on.”It was the right decision to come off the field but the decision should have been made six overs prior as it was significantly dark then,” Hong Kong coach Simon Cook said. “And that was further away from a result when neither team could claim to be unhappy.”The umpires asked our batters if they could see the ball and our guys said it was tough and then Scotland were told they couldn’t bowl fast bowlers. So towards the end they could just bowl slow to have a shot at getting in to contention and once we hit a boundary and a few singles they brought the fast bowler on. The umpires handled the game brilliantly other than that but they held on for a decision too long with the light.”Scotland’s innings was given a firm foundation by Kyle Coetzer, who struck 53 off 30 balls, with six fours and two sixes, before he became the debutant Ehsan’s second victim. The offspinner had earlier struck with his first ball in ODIs when he dismissed the opener Craig Wallace at the start of the fourth over.Scotland, 96 for 1 after a 58-run second-wicket stand between Coetzer and Calum MacLeod, slumped to 102 for 5. De Lange’s unbeaten run-a-ball 26 stilled the tumble of wickets, but the collapse took all the momentum out of the Scotland innings. Having scored 99 in the first ten overs of their innings, they only managed to add 54 in the last ten.The two sides are scheduled to meet again for the second ODI in Edinburgh on Saturday.

Darren Sammy, the St Lucia Zouks captain, has been ruled for four weeks and will miss the remainder of the Caribbean Premier League after he fractured his left hand while batting in the match against Jamaica Tallawahs

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Jul-2015Darren Sammy, the St Lucia Zouks captain, has been ruled out for four weeks and will miss the remainder of the Caribbean Premier League after he fractured his left hand while batting in the match against Jamaica Tallawahs. Sammy took a blow from a delivery by Andre Russell, and had to retire hurt.Kevin Pietersen will replace him as Zouks captain and Keron Cottoy, who has played just three T20s, has been called up to the squad as a replacement.”It’s a real shame for Darren, he’s one of the biggest names in the CPL and a great leader for the Zouks,” Tom Moody, CPL director of cricket, said. “We wish him a speedy recovery, and knowing the kind of guy he is, I’m sure he’ll continue to be an inspirational part of the squad for the rest of the tournament even though he won’t actually be out in the middle.”Sammy, who led Zouks to three wins this season, scored 81 runs in six innings at a strike-rate of 124.61 and also picked up six wickets at an economy-rate of 8.5.

Alastair Cook hailed a fantastic achievement after England closed out a 2-1 series win in India

David Hopps17-Dec-2012Alastair Cook left the presentation in Nagpur overladen with trophies after England completed their first series win in India for 28 years.Not just one series trophy but two, plus individual recognition as man of the series, completed a perfect start to Cook’s Test captaincy as he joined Douglas Jardine, David Gower and Tony Greig as the only England skippers to win a Test series in India.Add his unofficial stint as Test captain in Bangladesh when he stood in for Andrew Strauss and he has already twice led England to victories in sub-continent conditions which have so often proved alien.Cook even put the 2-1 series win alongside the accepted pinnacle for an England player – victory in the Ashes. “It is obviously a very special day, a special tour,” he said. “I think it is on a par with the Ashes. As an Englishman winning in Australia after so long meant a huge amount. But to be in that that dressing room there for that last half an hour knowing what we had achieved was a very special place and it will live long in my memory.”England’s celebrations were a world away from their misery in Ahmedabad less than a month ago when they were beaten by nine wickets in the opening Test, their frailties against spin again apparent.Since then, Cook has taken particular pride in England’s ability to silence their demons and to adapt to whatever conditions have been thrown at them. His own run tally of 562 in the series led the way set the example with the bat as England conquered India’s spinners and they also unveiled two superior slow bowlers themselves in Monty Panesar and Graeme Swann.”We have played on four very different wickets,” he said. “We didn’t handle the Ahmedabad wicket so well, but the other three wickets were all very different in sub-continent style. Everyone in this squad can be proud of what they achieved, especially the way we bounced back after the heavy defeat in Ahmedabad.”I was surprised at the level we managed to achieve so soon after Ahmedabad to be honest with you. I was talking about playing to our potential but I was surprised we managed to do it straightaway and put all those doubts to bed and prove to ourselves that we could bat in these conditions.”Cook credited a sharply-turning pitch in Mumbai, as advocated by India’s captain MS Dhoni, with jolting England into a response.”After the first game in Ahmedabad it would have been so easy to let head drops, but we showed a lot of character in Mumbai,” he said. “I think the fact it was a result wicket in Mumbai really helped us.”It freed us up knowing that one way or another there would be a result and that people weren’t expecting us to win. Once we got over that mental hurdle and were able to trust our ability on these wickets with the bat we certainly made a big leap forward.”
But that recovery began earlier than Mumbai. It was Cook’s defiant second-innings in the defeat in Ahmedabad that began to set the tone. “You want to prove that the captaincy is not a burden. To do it straight away is a big monkey of your back. It made me very proud that night when I went home after the game. If it gave other people confidence that is even more pleasing.”As the tour developed, Cook got the support he needed from senior players in the dressing room: Kevin Pietersen, the integrated version, looking content with life; Matt Prior, as big an influence on England as Adam Gilchrist once was on Australia; James Anderson, proving himself in India as a skilled practitioner on demoralising surfaces for fast bowling with old ball and new; and the ever-garrulous Swann, delighted to have a partner in crime in Panesar.”They are big characters in the dressing room,” Cook said. “The support they have given me, I couldn’t have asked for anything more. To captain those guys can be tough in certain circumstances, but you want that, you want a lot of ideas and strong opinions because that is when you normally get the best thinking done.”Nagpur was the oddest test of all, a pitch that was strikingly slow and uneven at the start and which gradually became more docile, a perfect surface for an England side prepared to bat with discipline to avoid defeat and so win the series.”We were slightly surprised by the pitch at the start, how low and slow it was,” Cook said. “We thought it would get worse but actually it got better. We knew when we were batting in the second innings it was going to be very hard for India to take those wickets and if we applied ourselves with not too many soft dismissals it would be very hard to bowl us out.”England’s authority on the final day was unshakeable as the Warwickshire pair of Jonathan Trott and Ian Bell took their fourth-wicket stand to 208 in 79 overs, both making hundreds, before the sides shook hands on a draw with England 352 for 4 and celebratory hugs broke out on the England balcony.”I can’t credit the batters enough for fronting up and taking on that challenge. Normally there are a few nerves on day like this but the calm way that Trotty and Belly batted was just fantastic. You can say it’s a flat wicket but when you know you have to bat for 150 overs a series win seems a long way away.”This article was updated at 2.30pm on December 17, 2012 with additional media conference material

MS Dhoni has said that losing wickets “at the wrong time” prevented India from successfully chasing the target of 243 after they bowled West Indies out for 134 in Mumbai

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Nov-2011MS Dhoni has said that losing wickets “at the wrong time” prevented India from successfully chasing down 243 in Mumbai.India had bowled West Indies out for 134 in a dramatic first session, in which eight wickets fell for 43 runs. That left them 243 to get in 64 overs, but playing shots on the fifth-day wicket was difficult, according to Dhoni. “Most of our dismissals were at the wrong time,” he said. “Some kind of partnerships were going on [and] we lost a wicket. That put pressure back on us.”Most of the batsmen who got out were the ones who were playing shots. I won’t say it was very easy. It was quite easy to stay at the wicket, but difficult to score runs. A few of us thought that if we can rotate strike and look for those singles, it will become a bit easy as the game progresses. But that [attempted singles] really went to the fielders and added more pressure.”The track offered assistance for both spinners and fast bowlers, Dhoni said. “I think there was bit of bounce for the bowlers, particularly the spinners. For the fast bowlers, the ball stopped. Once you looked to play a shot you had to be really careful, as you had to be to the pitch of the ball. If not, then you got out [caught] in the covers or midwicket.”With West Indies 81 for 2 overnight, the possibility of a win had seemed remote at the start of the day but R Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha ran through the West Indies line-up in under two hours. Dhoni said his team had kept in mind the importance of picking up wickets in the first hour. “If you don’t get wickets in the first hour, the more runs they add means we will get less time to chase. But the bowlers bowled really well. We were able to get a good number of wickets and got them all out before lunch. That gave us the opportunity to chase down the target.MS Dhoni on R Ashwin: “If he scores runs that is a bonus for our side. Don’t put pressure on him.”•AFP

“We never started thinking [of] it as a draw. We tried to create a bit of panic [while bowling] and I think most of the time we were able to put pressure on them. That was one of the main reasons we were successful in the first session.”Dhoni was satisfied with the performance of his bowling attack in the series. Though the spinners picked up the bulk of the wickets, Dhoni also praised Ishant Sharma, who he felt created consistent pressure that was not reflected in his series’ return of five wickets at 67.40. “You have seen plenty of times that when bowlers [are] bowling well, the batsman doesn’t edge to the slips and when edges come there is no slip fielder or [it falls] short of the fielder. He [Ishant] was consistently bowling well and he was coming up, with regards to the pace, and he was bowling in the right areas. I was happy overall [with] the way he bowled.”Apart from Ishant and Ojha, India’s bowlers – Varun Aaron, Umesh Yadav and Ashwin – were in their debut series. Despite their inexperience, they managed to do what was needed, Dhoni said. “There will come a time when senior players will retire and [there is] no point putting pressure on youngsters [saying] ‘will they able to get as many as wickets as [Anil] Kumble or Harbhajan [Singh] did?’ They bowled well. There was nothing for them [in the pitches] but they did not let the opposition [get away] freely. There was not much turn for them. They had to keep it tight at the same time. Overall, very happy [with the way] they bowled throughout the series.”Ashwin took 22 wickets in the series to finish the top wicket-taker, and also performed with the bat, scoring his maiden Test century in Mumbai. Dhoni said Ashwin’s primary responsibility in the side, though, was as a bowler. “Let him take wickets. That is the main priority. If he scores runs that is a bonus for our side. Don’t put [extra] pressure on him.”With two half-centuries in the match, Virat Kohli displayed his potential, but could not push on to get a hundred. Despite being well-set on 63, he cut a short and wide delivery to gully with India only 19 runs away from victory. Dhoni said that this was a learning phase in Kohli’s career and something that would help his game in the future. “You learn a lot from these games, so the next time he is in the same situation he may bat in a different way.”Even the most experienced players tend to make these types of mistakes. There is nothing to worry about; if you learn from each and every game, that really improves you as a cricketer. I am hoping he [Kohli] learns a lot [from this match].”

Gautam Gambhir has had a poor 2010, but says he knew he would return to form if he was fit for three or four consecutive Tests

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Nov-2010After a second successive century partnership from Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, New Zealand would have been delighted to get rid of both before they inflicted excessive damage on the scoreboard. It’s small consolation, though, that the duo that has replaced them forms the second-most prolific pairing in the history of the game.When Rahul Dravid cut what turned out to be the last ball of the day for a single, it marked the 19th century partnership that he and Sachin Tendulkar have shared in 14 years of batting together. Another 201 runs and they will overhaul the old Caribbean firm of Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes, setting a benchmark that may only be threatened by the Sri Lankan duo of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene.Both men barely extended themselves in a final session that was a throwback to old-style Test cricket; periods of watchful defence interspersed with the odd breathtaking drive or cut for four. New Zealand’s bowlers weren’t unduly threatening, but they bowled to a plan and were once again backed up by exceptional fielding that must have saved at least 40 runs.Tim Southee and the debutant, Andy McKay, tested Tendulkar with quite a few short deliveries, while Daniel Vettori wheeled away in the strike-stock bowler role that Anil Kumble filled for India for so long. But for all the discipline and effort in the field, New Zealand are already 99 behind and left to contemplate the mountain-climb that their pathetic first-innings batting has left them with.With three days left to play, Gambhir was confident that India could do what they were unable to in Ahmedabad and Hyderabad. “It’s a slow wicket and the way it was turning on the first day, I think it will deteriorate,” he said. “If we have a 300-run lead on this wicket, then we have a good chance with two quality spinners in our side.”After a wretched run for much of 2010 – he didn’t cross 25 in nine innings – Gambhir’s return to form has been the biggest batting positive as India start to turn their eyes towards the tour of South Africa. “I didn’t play much cricket at one go,” he said after the day’s play. “After the Asia Cup, I played one Test [Galle] and got injured. Then I played another match [Mohali] and got injured. I didn’t have match practice or runs. Playing continuously would have helped. I always thought if I can play three or four Tests in a row, that would help and that’s what has happened.”It helps too that he bats opposite Sehwag, who takes the opposition’s bowling plan, shreds it and then scatters the confetti into the wind. “He is an impact player,” said Gambhir. “The way he sets the run-rate and plays the same way in all three formats of the game; I don’t think there are many players in the world like that. I don’t see anyone matching him. He attacks from the word go, which is something I haven’t seen in Test cricket.”Once again, Sehwag sailed along at a run-a-ball, allowing everyone else to play at their own pace. Having batted with him while he was struggling, Gambhir attributed some of the credit for the turnaround in his form to his partner. “When you are not among the runs it is always difficult to bat with anyone,” he said. “You need to score runs to be confident. In Hyderabad, the kind of confidence he gave me throughout my innings and in every over was tremendous and I’m thankful to him.”Any satisfaction at having batted fluently was tempered, though, by the awareness that both he and Sehwag failed to cash in on starts, just as they had in the previous game. “It’s very disappointing because as opening batsmen, we both feel that once you get settled, you have to get as many runs as possible,” he said. “The new ball is definitely a challenge, and an opportunity as well. I’m very disappointed that neither of us could go on and make a hundred. Hopefully, we will in South Africa.”Surviving the new ball had been Gambhir’s biggest problem in recent times. “I’ve had three ducks in the second innings this year,” he said. “As an international cricketer, it keeps getting into your mind. I kept telling myself that it is not about one over, it is about each and every ball. Six balls are a lot of balls when you’re not in good form.”The knee injury that went hand-in-hand with his batting slump could continue to bother Gambhir though, especially since he admits that the team doesn’t really have another fielder who can crouch down low close to the bat for hours on end. “At one point, it used to bother me a lot,” he said. “It was a pretty serious injury and standing at forward short leg for one-and-half days hardly gives your body time to recover. It is a bit of a concern but at the same time the combination of the team is such.”Given the position that India are in now though, he may just be able to give those knees a well-deserved rest on Monday.

The IPL opened its doors a little to players from Pakistan once again, though it was made more difficult for the four players with suspended contracts to take part in the league’s next edition

Osman Samiuddin10-Dec-2009The IPL opened its doors a little to players from Pakistan once again, though ironically it was made more difficult for the four players with existing – albeit suspended – contracts to take part in the next edition of the lucrative league. Non-contracted Pakistani players, however, can enter this season’s auction, a step forward from last seasonKamran Akmal, Sohail Tanvir, Umar Gul and Misbah-ul-Haq, the gang of four who already had existing contracts with franchises, had their visas cleared earlier today by the Indian ministry of external affairs, briefly raising hopes that they may be allowed in after all. But because they missed the December 7 deadline to do so, their contracts remain suspended, according to Lalit Modi, chairman IPL. It wasn’t, however, a total reinforcement of the league’s earlier decision which ruled them out totally; they can, in the right circumstances, still appear.”The current players will be kept in suspension as they have not fulfilled their obligations,” Modi told Cricinfo. “The current suspended players cannot go to the auction. But they will be available to the franchisee for replacement if they have a spot. So their price does not change and others cannot bid for them as it will be a disadvantage for the existing owners.”Essentially this means that Tanvir, for example, can play for Rajasthan Royals only if they decide to free up a spot in their squad by getting rid of another foreign player. This will not be straightforward as the franchises involved – Rajasthan Royals (Tanvir and Akmal), Kolkata Knight Riders (Gul) and Bangalore Royal Challengers (Misbah) – have already replaced their Pakistani players after the contracts were first suspended.This will come as a disappointment not only to the players but to chairman Ijaz Butt and the PCB. Butt has fought hard to get his players back into the IPL after they were prevented by their own government from playing in the second season, a fallout of a deterioration in political ties between India and Pakistan after the Mumbai attacks of 2008. He met Modi in October to begin finding a way back for the players. After confirming that visas had been granted earlier today, Butt intended to speak to Modi to try and get the four back in, despite missing the deadline, which had already been extended twice.Some gains seem to have been made, however, as other non-contracted Pakistani players can enter this season’s auction. “Others who are not with any franchisee can be in the auction. They need to apply by December 31. Once we get their request we will then put them on the list and fix a price,” Modi said, before adding that “all contracts expire after this season and we will then go through new process again.”In an ideal world, Pakistani players such as Shahid Afridi, Saeed Ajmal and Mohammad Aamer would be attractive purchases in any auction, given that they won the World Twenty20 earlier this year and are generally considered the leading nation in the format. But franchises may find the red tape and paperwork to get through in getting players over too much.On a day of swift developments, Modi also addressed a press conference after news of the visa clearances came through, but full clarity is yet to be reached; who, for example, will initiate contact between franchises and Pakistan players for the auction; and what paperwork will be required for new Pakistani players to appear in the next IPL.

Tim Seifert and Ackeem Auguste led the chase of 110, as Kings topped the table and ended TKR’s winning streak

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Sep-2025The St Lucia Kings spinners Tabraiz Shamsi, Roston Chase and Khary Pierre shared seven wickets to bundle Trinbago Knight Riders for 109 and set up a commanding seven-wicket win in Tarouba. Victory took Kings into the playoffs of CPL 2025.Tim Seifert, Ackeem Auguste, Chase and Tim David made sure the chase was wrapped up at the start of the 12th over to give their net run rate a big boost with their fourth win in a row that placed them on top of the points table. Their streak also ended TKR’s hot run of five wins in a row as they lost the top spot after the game.Pierre struck on the second ball of the match after Kings opted to bowl. He had Colin Munro caught for a duck off a delivery which kept a little low. In the third over, Darren Bravo chipped Pierre to short fine leg for 11, before captain Nicholas Pooran staged a brief recovery.But once Chase had Hales bowled for 9 to end the powerplay, Kings began to slide. Forty for 2 soon became 59 for 5 by the end of ten overs. Shamsi cleaned up Akeal Hosein with a wrong ‘un first ball while Chase, who ended with 2 for 19, had Pooran caught behind albeit with help from DRS. After Pooran’s knock of 30 off 27, no TKR batter managed to cross 20.Keiron Pollard and Andre Russell were TKR’s biggest hopes if they were to reach a respectable total. But Shamsi had both batters bowled with his deceptive turn to finish with 3 for 12 without conceding a single boundary in his four overs. Nathan Edward and Terrance Hinds took TKR past 100, but Delano Potgieter and Alzarri Joseph wrapped the tail up to leave Kings only 110 to win.Seifert came out firing first ball. He swept Hosein for six, before cutting and punching him for fours in the first over that went for 14. TKR removed Seifert’s partner Johnson Charles for 1 to end the second over; but by then, Seifert had crashed 25 off ten deliveries. Two quiet overs followed before Auguste and Seifert ensured TKR’s momentum was short lived.The two batters doubled the score in the last two overs of the powerplay, which ended with Kings at 66 for 1. Usman Tariq, though, ended the fun for Kings in the seventh over when he had Seifert caught at deep midwicket for 36 from 19 balls. Next over, Sunil Narine trapped Auguste for an attacking 28, but Chase, who hit Tariq for three fours in the ninth over, and David took Kings home with 53 balls to spare.