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Vincent Barnes, South Africa assistant and bowling coach, believes the lack of black African players in the national team could be the result of a deeper problem that flows from managerial level to the playing field

Firdose Moonda12-May-2011Vincent Barnes, South Africa’s assistant and bowling coach, believes the lack of black African players in the national team could be the result of a deeper problem that flows from managerial level to the playing field. Barnes, who has been coaching for 17 years and been the national set up since 2003, would like to see transformation taking place throughout the ranks in South African cricket.”It is a worry that we don’t have as many black African players coming through the system. But, we have to develop coaches and administrators of colour as well,” he told ESPNCricinfo. “It’s no coincidence that players of colour will perform where they are some people of colour involved as well.”Barnes is one of two coaches of colour involved in professional cricket, which includes the national team and the franchises; Warriors’ Russell Domingo is the other. While there are some assistant coaches of colour, such as Lawrence Mahatlane who is involved with the Lions, there is a dearth of black African, coloured and Indian coaches, which Barnes thinks may filter down to player development.South Africa have had one prominent black African player since readmission, Makhaya Ntini, who retired from international cricket in November last year. Currently, Lonwabo Tsotsobe is the only black African player in the national set-up although there have been short stints by Monde Zondeki, Thandi Tshabalala and Thami Tsolekile. International cricket is still not played in any major predominantly black areas, such as the Soweto township outside Johannesburg, where there is a fully functional stadium. Although cricket is played widely among black Africans, the rate of progress of them playing for franchises and, ultimately, international cricket is still slow.Despite that, representation in the national team by coloureds and Indians has grown and South Africa were able to field six players of colour in their group stage match against Bangladesh in the recent World Cup. Barnes said that the harmony in the group was proof that the racial debate in South African cricket has moved on, at least at the highest level. “We had so many players of different colours, from different cultures and everyone believed that everyone else deserved to be there,” he said, while acknowledging that change, lower down, must speed up.As one of the few people of colour involved in coaching, Barnes has made it part of his mission to help speed that up, as part of his commitment to developing cricket in the country. “I am determined to find and create opportunities for people of colour,” he said.It’s no easy task, especially for someone who was denied the opportunity to play international cricket because of his race, but it’s Barnes’ way of opening doors for others that were slammed shut on him. Barnes played for the Western Province Cricket Board during the apartheid era and also represented Western Province after unity. “I know what’s it like to play in intense, high pressure situations and it’s up to me to be able to prepare people for that challenge. But sometimes I am harder on players of colour, because I want them to achieve.”

Bangladesh Cricket Board Academy hung on for a nervous draw against South Africa Academy in Chittagong, as the last two Bangladesh wickets batted out the last five overs to keep the visitors at bay

Cricinfo staff25-Apr-2010
ScorecardBangladesh Cricket Board Academy hung on for a nervous draw against South Africa Academy in Chittagong, as the last two Bangladesh wickets batted out the last five overs to keep the visitors at bay. South Africa had a chance to steal a win with two balls left in the game, but the last-wicket pair of Emon Ahmed and Subhasis Roy batted them out.Resuming on 145 for 3, chasing 395, Bangladesh were boosted by a 104-run stand for the fourth wicket between Mahmudul Hasan and Shuvagoto Hom. But the lack of partnerships after they were dislodged hurt their chances of fighting on. Keshav Maharaj, the left-arm spinner, started the slide by picking up two quick wickets, including Hasan for 55, before Gino Vries sent back Hom for 74. The South Africans won a series of lbws in their favour as the game slipped further away from the hosts. They lost their eighth wicket with five overs to play but held their nerve in the end.

“Surya and Hardik’s partnership was very critical for us right at that point in time,” Rohit Sharma says

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Jun-20241:18

Manjrekar: SKY showed his value on a tricky pitch

Rohit Sharma lauded Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya’s “critical” partnership for helping India ride through some choppy waters in the middle overs and set up a 47-run win over Afghanistan to begin their Super Eight campaign at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown.Suryakumar and Hardik added 60 runs off 37 balls for the fifth wicket after coming together when Shivam Dube was dismissed, leaving India 90 for 4 in the 11th over. Three of those wickets were picked up by Rashid Khan.”Surya and Hardik’s partnership was very critical for us right at that point in time,” Rohit said on the host broadcast after the game. “We kept losing wickets there, so we needed somebody to bat little deep. Surya did that well along with Hardik.Related

• SKY shows no limit with tailor-made response to tricky Afghanistan assignment

• Suryakumar and Bumrah give India winning start to Super Eight

“Over the last two years, we’ve come here [to the West Indies] and played some T20 cricket, so we understand the conditions a little bit, and we planned [the innings] around what the conditions offer and based our game plan accordingly. Getting 180 [181] was a great effort from our batters. We knew the class of the bowling we have to come and defend that, and they did that perfectly.”Suryakumar, who was named Player of the Match for his 28-ball 53, said that the decision to take the bowling on – Rashid in particular – was deliberate, keeping in mind the slowness of the surface.”When Hardik came into bat, I told him we need to bat with the same intent, let’s not leave it too much till the end,” he said. “It would’ve been difficult with the ball reversing. I just told him let’s keep pressing the pedal and see where we are at the end of 16 overs. Glad we got to 180.”Suryakumar hit Rashid for 16 runs off six deliveries, with two fours and a ferocious slog sweep for six.”When I play, I’m very clear in my mind what I want to do,” Suryakumar said. “When he [Rashid] bowls, it’s very difficult to pick him. I know what shots to play when I am inside. He’s the best bowler in the world, you can’t let him dominate. You have to be a step ahead.”Suryakumar’s contribution – it was his second successive half-century of the T20 World Cup – came at a strike rate of almost 190. He came in to bat at the end of the seventh over and soon saw Virat Kohli hole out to long-off to leave India 62 for 3 in the ninth.”I’ve practiced that [batting in the middle overs] and have played a lot there,” Suryakumar said. “I enjoy batting in that phase, between overs seven to 15, that’s where teams try and control the game.”I started chewing my gum even harder when he [Kohli] got out. But I knew I’ve played this phase before, and with the left-handers coming in, it became a little easier. But I just backed my game, backed my instincts, and most importantly my intent [which] should have been good at that time.”

His 2 for 52 set the tone for Western Australia reducing Victoria to 194 for 8 on the opening day of the finale

Tristan Lavalette23-Mar-2023After almost two months on the sidelines, having been overlooked during Australia’s Test tour of India, speedster Lance Morris sparked a sedate opening day of the Sheffield Shield final between Western Australia and Victoria with trademark fiery quick bowling.Introduced in the eighth over, a fired-up Morris started with a nasty bouncer aimed at the body of dogged opener Ashley Chandrasinghe who wisely swayed out of the way.Even though the renowned pace-friendly WACA surface, which has been a minefield for most of this season, was somewhat subdued, Morris made his presence felt with sharp bowling that appeared too hot to handle for 21-year-old Chandrasinghe.He then engaged in a riveting battle with former Test opener Marcus Harris, who relishes the big stage having hit three tons in four previous finals. Morris dismissed Harris in his second over caught at second slip only to have overstepped before snaring him lbw two balls later.Used in short bursts, bowling from the Lillee-Marsh end with the aid of the famed ‘Freo doctor’ seabreeze, Morris finished with 2 for 52 from 18 overs.He also claimed wicketkeeper-batter Sam Harper later in the day to cap a successful return in his first match since the BBL in late January.Morris’ last red-ball game was against Queensland at the Gabba in early December before his elevation into Australia’s Test squad against West Indies for the second Test in Adelaide.”Certainly felt like it’s been two months, that’s for sure. A little bit of rust. Nice to blow the cobwebs out,” Morris said after the day’s play with Victoria reaching stumps at 8 for 194 in their first innings.Morris was locked in an absorbing battle with a gutsy Chandrasinghe, who repeatedly stonewalled in a 266-ball innings to bat through the day and finish 46 not out.He bowled one thunderous delivery that went over Chandrasinghe’s head though was left frustrated when he had the left-handed batter caught behind just before tea but it was ruled a no ball.Morris finished with six front no balls due in some part to technical changes to his run-up.”I’ve been working on technical stuff with run-ups… thrown me off. [I need to] find a way around it, will look to do that tomorrow,” Morris said. “It could have been a better day, but overall we shot ourselves in the foot…probably on my part.”Even though he has yet to crack a Test debut, Morris has soaked in a wealth of knowledge being around Australia’s stock of star-studded quicks.”Leading into the summer, never thought I would be near that [Test] level,” he said. “To be able to get knowledge off them and just watch them go about their business…is a huge learning experience.”Morris has been bandied around as a possible Mumbai Indians replacement for injured WA teammate Jhye Richardson. While hosing down those reports, Morris did say that he was eyeing a County deal in the U.K. ahead of Australia’s Ashes tour.That’s all down the track as Morris ,right now, remains focused on helping WA secure a historic treble of domestic titles for the second straight season.”[The wicket’s a] touch slow. If we can bowl them out for around 200, I think we’ll be pretty happy,” he said.

Ben McDermott smashed 110 not-out from just 60 balls in a 176 chase as the revived Hobart Hurricanes notched consecutive wins

Tristan Lavalette27-Dec-2021Ben McDermott continued to relish his elevation up the order with a blistering century as Hobart Hurricanes overcame struggling Adelaide Strikers at Blundstone Arena.The recently promoted opener, who had started the season slowly at No. 4, thwarted Strikers’ star spin tandem of Rashid Khan and Fawad Ahmed to lead Hurricanes’ overhaul of the 176 target with nine balls to spare.McDermott smashed 110 not-out from just 60 balls as the revived Hurricanes notched consecutive wins, while Strikers are falling off the pace.McDermott is relishing his new role
McDermott’s recent elevation to partner Matthew Wade has been a master stroke for Hurricanes. He took the aerial route in the powerplay to get Hurricanes off to a fast start even though they lost Wade for just six.Much of Strikers’ strength is their spin duo of Rashid and Fawad, who once again bowled in tandem after the powerplay. But McDermott targeted Fawad down the ground and smoked him for three consecutive boundaries as he combined with D’Arcy Short in a strong partnership of 81.Short has started to show a liking to No. 3 as he slowly rediscovers his best form underlined by smashing a pull shot out of the ground. Just when the pair were taking control, Short fell to a superb yorker from Perter Siddle although the batter felt aggrieved with the lbw decision.McDermott, however, remained unruffled and continued to toy with Fawad as he once again smashed the spinner to his sweet spot down the ground. The 16th over loomed as defining, with Rashid bowling his final over but McDermott continued his merry way with a six although the Afghan star claimed the wicket of Harry Brook.McDermott never gave Strikers a sniff and he effectively sealed the game when he clubbed three boundaries off Siddle in the 18th over. He then reached a deserved century with a six in the penultimate over as he became the first player with two centuries in BBL chases.Wounded Strikers have no answers
Strikers had to guts it out with quicks Siddle and Wes Agar both injuring their fingers while bowling. With Fawad nullified by McDermott, the burden fell on Rashid who also could not weave his magic against the rampaging batter.Strikers have a strong bowling attack although will be sweating on the fitness of Agar, who suffered a dislocated finger, and the indefatigable Siddle, who looked in anguish throughout after dropping a tough return chance off Short.With teams being cautious against Rashid, Strikers need other bowlers to step up, otherwise their season will be quickly a lost cause.Meredith is Hurricanes’ bowling talisman
Hurricanes did a serviceable job to restrict Strikers’ batters on a belter of a pitch. Their attack has looked far more potent with the inclusion of speedster Riley Meredith.After returning from a hamstring injury and bowling just one over in his season debut against Perth Scorchers, Meredith claimed three wickets in Hurricanes’ win over Melbourne Stars and backed that up with another trio of scalps against Strikers.The 25-year-old, who has played five T20Is for Australia this year, bowled with trademark fire but mixed things up nicely by taking the pace off the ball – a skill he has sharpened this season.Amid a strong attack, Meredith looms as its talisman as he proved with the key scalps of Jake Weatherald and Matthew Renshaw in a momentum-shifting 15th over.He was occasionally wayward and predictable but Meredith’s impact has already been pronounced.Renshaw and Weatherald provide silver linings
Strikers are in a rut but Weatherald’s return to form and the belligerence of Renshaw, who had looked one-paced in his previous two games, are desperately needed tonics.Renshaw mixed orthodox shots with inventiveness in the most commanding knock by a Strikers batter this season. His fluency seemed to spark Weatherald, who had only mustered 53 runs from his previous five innings. The pair combined in a century stand as Strikers laid their best platform of the season until their departures triggered fears of another collapse.But impressive youngster Thomas Kelly continued his breakout season with an 18-ball 28 as Strikers conjured their highest total of the season, though it ultimately proved insufficient.Strikers appear short of firepower underlined by hitting just one six on the small Blundstone Arena and they are running out of time to resurrect their season.

KKR have several bowling options, but Kuldeep’s form may be a cause for concern

Shashank Kishore29-Sep-20206:38

Spotlight on Kuldeep Yadav, should KKR change their winning combination?

Big picture

It was last in 2015, the year before their two-year ban, that Rajasthan Royals won their first three games in a season. Having started the 2020 season with two wins, including a record-breaking highest successful IPL chase on Sunday courtesy Rahul Tewatia and Sanju Samson, they go in to Wednesday’s clash with a chance to emulate this.Having played their opening two games in Sharjah, where they made scores of 216 and 226, they will now play on a bigger ground and on perhaps a more challenging surface in Dubai. This could mean a slight recaliberation of their plans. Their spinners will come into play a lot more and their batsmen may not find hitting through the line as effortless as they may have in Sharjah.Royals, however, have concerns in their bowling even though Sharjah may not be an ideal barometer to base their performance on. Jaydev Unadkat, their lead Indian bowler, has proved expensive in both his outings. The highest wicket-taker in the Ranji Trophy season is yet to strike. He also didn’t complete his quota of overs against Kings XI Punjab. His potential replacement Varun Aaron has also been expensive in the past. They have two rookies in Kartik Tyagi and Akash Singh waiting on the bench. Should they call up one of them on a bigger ground?Knight Riders, meanwhile, rebounded strongly after a pounding at the hands of Mumbai Indians in their opener. Against Sunrisers Hyderabad, Eoin Morgan, their finisher, sewed up a regulation chase. Shubman Gill, who they see as a future star, set it up for them upfront along with Nitish Rana, another talent they’ve invested heavily in. Questions over Sunil Narine’s form and his effectiveness against the short ball continue to persist, but the upside to his patchy form is that he doesn’t eat up too many balls in the powerplay.Kuldeep Yadav’s form, however, continues to be a real concern. The team’s strike bowler until 2018, Kuldeep averages a wicket every 55 balls since IPL 2018. Last season, nine games yielded a mere four wickets. In their second game, after going for 39 runs in four wicketless overs, he didn’t even bowl his full quota of overs.Varun Chakravarthy, their second spinner – more in the Narine mould – helped get through the middle overs economically on his debut for the franchise. Over the years, Knight Riders have had the reputation of backing their players – both Indian and overseas. Russell, who had to serve a year-long doping ban, and Narine, whose action had been under scrutiny on and off, being prime examples. Can Kuldeep repay that faith?

In the news

• Royals don’t yet have the services of Ben Stokes, who is with family in New Zealand. However, he has started training and could return from compassionate leave early October.
• Over the last couple of seasons, Knight Riders have had to furiously seek replacements in the first half of the tournament because of injuries. This year, they look settled on that count and have all players available for selection.

BCCI

Likely XIs

Rajasthan Royals: 1 Jos Buttler (wk), 2 Steven Smith (capt), 3 Sanju Samson, 4 Robin Uthappa, 5 Riyan Parag, 6 Rahul Tewatia, 7 Shreyas Gopal, 8 Tom Curran, 9 Jofra Archer, 10 Ankit Rajpoot/Varun Aaron, 11 Jaydev Unadkat Kolkata Knight Riders: 1 Shubman Gill, 2 Sunil Narine, 3 Dinesh Karthik (capt & wk), 4 Nitish Rana, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Andre Russell, 7 Kamlesh Nagarkoti, 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Shivam Mavi, 10 Kuldeep Yadav, 11 Varun Chakravarthy

Strategy punts

• Sunil Narine has an excellent record against the Royals’ top three – Jos Buttler, Steven Smith and Sanju Samson. Narine has dismissed Samson thrice while ensuring he has only managed to strike at 87 off the 45 deliveries he has bowled. Smith, who has been out twice to Narine, only strikes at 115. Perhaps, there’s a case for Narine to bowl out with the new ball, given Knight Riders’ bowling depth.
• Dinesh Karthik has opted to bat at No. 3 in the first two games. Since IPL 2019, he’s been dismissed thrice by googlies, the most for a batsman. He’s been out to the delivery in each of his two previous knocks this season too – lbw to Rahul Chahar and Rashid Khan respectively. Royals could perhaps look to attack him with Shreyas Gopal, who has an excellent googly, and Rahul Tewatia.

Stats that matter

• Pat Cummins is two short of 100 T20 wickets.
• The last time these two sides played in the UAE, Royals beat Knight Riders on boundary count after the Super Over also ended in a tie. It was the second tied game between the two sides in IPL history. The first one happened at Cape Town in 2009, when Yusuf Pathan won the Super Over for the Royals.
• Buttler averages 57.2 as an opener since IPL 2018, the third best after David Warner and KL Rahul among all batsmen with 200-plus runs. In the 16 innings he has opened, he has just dismissed five times inside the powerplay. His strike rate of 160 in this period is second best in the IPL in this qualifying period.
• Prior to this season, Samson had managed just four half-centuries in 27 IPL innings; his form tailing away after strong starts somewhat becoming a trend. He’s so far managed 159 runs, including two half-centuries in his first two outings. Can he sustain his good run of form?

Soumya’s record double-century in the Dhaka Premier League will give the batsman confidence ahead of the World Cup, says Tamim

Mohammad Isam in Dhaka24-Apr-2019Soumya Sarkar and Liton Das, both talked up as among the most talented top-order batsmen in Bangladesh, have been frustratingly inconsistent in their international careers so far. With the World Cup coming up, Tamim Iqbal, the senior opening batsman, is hoping the two youngsters grab their chances as best as they can, first in the tri-series in Ireland and then at the showpiece event.The only time Liton has really shown his ability was at last year’s Asia Cup final, in which he dominated India’s bowling to make 121 as Bangladesh went down off the last ball. Soumya made a sound start in 2015 but has had to mostly fight for his place in the ODI team since 2016. Earlier this year, he made a maiden Test hundred, against New Zealand in Hamilton, and yesterday, he became the first Bangladeshi to score a List A double-hundred.Tamim said that a score like the unbeaten 208, which came in a crucial Dhaka Premier League game for Abahani Limited on Tuesday, was bound to give Soumya confidence ahead of the bigger challenges. The batsman was having an ordinary time in the league, having scored just 197 runs in 11 innings, but hit 106 and then the record double-ton in Abahani’s last two matches.”It is a great achievement to become the first Bangladeshi to score a (List A) double-hundred,” Tamim said on Wednesday. “Although we will play in completely different conditions and against vastly different bowling attacks (when on tour), scoring runs is still a positive. It will give him confidence, regardless of where he has scored these runs. If he had made 10 and 5 in his last two innings, it would have left a percentage of doubt in his mind.”But now he knows he has scored the runs, and how he has done it. When you are in bad form, you forget how to score runs. Therefore, it is very positive for him that he has two big knocks before going to Ireland.”Since the 2015 World Cup, Tamim has had five different opening partners in ODIs: Soumya, Liton, Imrul Kayes, Anamul Haque and Mohammad Mithun. When Tamim was out with injuries occasionally in the last two years, Bangladesh used five different opening pairs. There is currently no word on who should open with Tamim in a best-case scenario, but it will be one of Soumya and Liton, the only other openers in the World Cup squad.Liton Das goes downtown•Getty Images

But while Soumya has shown that he has some form on his side, Liton followed up his poor New Zealand tour with only two fifties in eight DPL outings for Mohammedan Sporting Club. Tamim, however, felt that both batsmen could fulfil their potential in the coming months.”A regular opening partnership means that the two know each other’s game quite well,” he said. “For example, if I am hitting the fielder, he needs to take that extra chance. I can do the same if the other batsman is struggling.”But if somebody is not settled at the crease or in the team, it’s very unfair to go and tell him, ‘brother, now you take the risks’. But I am confident that Liton and Soumya have enough chances, and I am sure this is the right time to show the world how good they are.”
Tamim agreed that Bangladesh were still waiting to identify their ideal opening pair, which every successful cricket team must possess.”It happens in every profession where your colleague of 20 years, for example, will know how you operate, and what you like and dislike. There was always understanding between some of the best opening pairs in the world like Hayden-Gilchrist, Ganguly-Tendulkar or Sehwag-Tendulkar,” Tamim said. “If you look back at those games, they seem to be having fun in the middle and they each knew what the other wants.”We haven’t had that opportunity yet but those two who have been picked in the World Cup squad, I am sure they can represent Bangladesh for the next 10-15 years. I feel this is the best time for them to perform.”

Nepal nearly claimed a fourth final-over win, but excellent death bowling by UAE gave them a seven-run win and a Group A spot in the World Cup Qualifiers

The Report by Peter Della Penna in Windhoek15-Feb-20182:13

Delighted to get across the finish line – Dougie Brown

The Cardiac Kids from Nepal nearly claimed a fourth final-over win, driven by captain Paras Khadka’s second List A ton, but Ashfaq Ahmed’s first-innings 114 proved decisive as UAE held on for a seven-run win to claim the WCL Division Two title at the Wanderers Sports Club.For Ashfaq, it was his maiden List A ton, following in the footsteps of Rameez Shahzad who achieved the same feat last month against Scotland, as UAE continue to lessen their dependency on Shaiman Anwar for match-winning totals.Ashfaq and Rohan Mustafa dominated the opening passage of play, after UAE chose to bat first, putting on a 109-run stand in 24 overs that set up a commanding total. Ashfaq eventually fell to Sandeep Lamichhane in the 43rd over, before Rameez made an unbeaten 41 off 46 balls, and Shaiman offered a quick burst with 40 off 24, including an exquisite extra cover drive for six.Nepal got off to their best start of the tournament in reply, as Gyanendra Malla and Dilip Nath put on 38 for the first wicket, before Nath was bowled by Rohan Mustafa, attempting an ungainly slog. Two balls later, Malla fell to a carbon copy of his dismissal from a day earlier, caught lacing a pull to short midwicket off the medium pacer Amir Hayat, who ended with four wickets.1:58

We showed a lot of character – Khadka

Khadka and Dipendra Airee added 73 for the third wicket, though it was aided by some sloppy keeping from Ghulam Shabber, who dropped Airee twice and also fluffed a regulation stumping chance off Khadka on 22, when the Nepal captain charged at legspinner Imran Haider and was beaten by a googly.Haider eventually claimed Airee for 35, and for a while, it appeared as though the missed chance of Khadka would result in another final-over finish. Even though he continued to lose partners, Khadka chanced his hand with some streaky shots, as the ball continued to evade fielders. However, Khadka made plenty of sweet contact as well, cracking eight sixes in his innings.With 34 needed off three overs, and Khadka on 89, UAE’s bowlers rose to the occasion with spectacular death bowling. Whether it was Mohammad Naveed’s medium pace in the 48th, or Mustafa’s offspin in the 49th, UAE’s bowlers restricted Khadka with pinpoint accuracy on a yorker length, as Nepal entered the final over needing 28. Two singles off the first two balls clinched victory mathematically for UAE, before Khadka struck a six off the fourth ball to bring up his ton off 100 balls. He clattered two more, over extra cover and long-off, to eclipse Ashfaq by four runs as the tournament’s leading scorer with 241 runs.Ashfaq was named Man of the Match for his century. The Player-of-the-Tournament award was claimed by Lamichhane, whose 17 scalps tied him with Oman’s Bilal Khan for most wickets, although Lamichhane’s tailend contributions with the bat, holding up one end in a pair of match-winning last-wicket stands, were arguably just as valuable. Mustafa was his nearest competitor for the award, finishing third with 13 wickets while also scoring 183 runs – eighth in the aggregate.The win for UAE means they join Group A at the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, where they’ll be alongside West Indies, Ireland, Netherlands and Papua New Guinea. As the WCL Division Two runner-up, Nepal go into Group B with Afghanistan, Zimbabwe, Scotland and Hong Kong.

Moises Henriques and Peter Nevill shared a 291-run stand, the highest partnership for New South Wales against Queensland, to lead the hosts’ dominance on day two

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Feb-2017
ScorecardFile photo – Moises Henriques struck a career-best 265 to put New South Wales in command•Getty Images

Moises Henriques and Peter Nevill combined for the highest partnership for New South Wales against Queensland as bat dominated ball for the second consecutive day of the Sheffield Shield match at the SCG.In enervating heat, the home captain Henriques collared 265, his highest score, while adding 291 with Nevill who finished unbeaten on 143.Their union surpassed the 272 put on by Don Bradman and Alan Kippax at the SCG in 1930, when Bradman was on his way to the then world record first-class score of 452.Queensland were left with a little less than a session to bat after the declaration, and were guided to stumps without loss by Peter Forrest and Joe Burns, albeit after evading some concerted shouts for lbw by New South Wales.More troubling was a blow on the helmet to Daniel Hughes while fielding at short leg. Momentarily stunned, he was assisted from the field by the NSW doctor John Orchard and was assessed for a possible concussion.

Travis Head blitzed the first ton by an Adelaide Strikers batsman to lead his side to a five-wicket win despite needing 51 off the last 18 balls

The Report by Will Macpherson in Adelaide31-Dec-2015
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsTravis Head hammered gave Adelaide Strikers every one of the 56 runs they made in the last three overs•Getty Images

Pantomime season’s arrived in Adelaide. It’s the final day of the year, so let the good times roll. Or the mad times, in this case. A bumper crowd of 46,389 watched on, rabid, riotous and ever so partisan and Strikers batsman Travis Head gave them everything they could want with a blitz so grand that his team romped to a win despite needing 51 off the last three overs. He got every one of those runs himself, and the five more he needed to finish 101 not out off 53 balls.New Year’s eve arrived with a lot of fanfare, including a premature fireworks display, but everything faded into the background and a mighty game of cricket took centre stage. It contained moments of high farce; funky overthrows, dodgy drops, attempted mankads, mystery injuries and plenty of bickering and after all that – as far as the crowd was concerned at least – the good guys prevailed in a thrilling finish with a young hometown hero standing tall.A night of such oddities, surely, was made for Brad Haddin. An injury-enforced reshuffle meant he swapped opener for finisher, coming in at No. 4 and seeing an efficient Sydney Sixers’ innings home, after Michael Lumb and Ed Cowan – making his first appearance of the campaign – got them off to a flyer. But 66 for 0 became 66 for 2 in no time flat.Lumb was his usual mix of legside hoicks, lusty hooks and bunted inside-out drives, and it took a moment of inspiration to remove him. Alex Ross provided it by sprinting 30 yards round the offside fence to dive and intercept an uppish, well-struck drive. A ball later – Adil Rashid’s first – Nic Maddinson was gone too, trapped plumb in front playing a rather odd reverse sweep.Haddin joined Cowan, who ditched his usual orthodoxy with a couple of violent swipes to leg. It was that stroke that brought about his downfall, however, as he was caught at cow corner, and soon enough Rashid – now the competition’s joint highest wicket-taker – had snared Jordan Silk and Ryan Carters too. In a bit to push the scoring rate up, Sixers had lost half their side in the 14th over. They still had 105 on the board though.Former Strikers captain Johan Botha – who was roundly booed and spent the night donning the near permanent scowl of a man wronged – and Haddin saw the innings through, sharing a 71-run stand. Haddin twice slog-swept Rashid for six, and went after Kane Richardson too, while Botha ran hard before finding the boundary four times in the last two overs, including a magnificent slash over point in a fractious final over. The bowler Ben Laughlin and Haddin clashed when the batsman appeared to edge behind but stayed put, and the umpire doubled the home side’s fury by adjudging it a wide.Craig Simmons and Tim Ludeman got the Strikers’ chase off to a brisk start. Simmons belted Jackson Bird’s opening over for three fours, once through point, then either side of square leg. Next over, he sent Ben Dwarshuis high into the stands with a pull. Ludeman was quickly in on the act, taking a pair of boundaries from each of Doug Bollinger and Botha’s opening overs.Simmons fell at the start of the fifth over, skying an attempted slog off Bird. An over later, Mahela Jayawardene was caught behind, and Ludeman soon followed off a top-edge. Brad Hodge wriggled to 17 off 18, including one mighty six, but when the New Year’s fireworks prematurely began, he and Alex Ross fell in quick succession to the impressive Dwarshuis, and the game looked up.Enter Travis Head. He had taken 19 balls to find the fence, but once he biffed both Bird and Botha for sixes, he was a man on the move. Sean Abbott was set to bowl the 18th over, with Strikers still requiring 51 runs and Head 45 off 38. Head sent Abbott for four to long-on, six to deep midwicket, four behind point, then for two enormous legside sixes. Doug Bollinger bowler an impressive 19th over, but Head still managed a monstrous six over extra cover, to go with five other scampered runs. And Abbott, amazingly, was left to bowl the last set with Strikers needing 13 to win.No Adelaide Strikers batsman had ever made a BBL century and Head was 17 short of a maiden T20 ton. The first was a half-volley on leg stump. Six. Slower-ball bouncer. Six. Short again. Slapped. Six. Century. Pandemonium.If 2016 is half as fun as all this, we are in for a treat.