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The Pakistan squad has returned home after completing one of the most acrimonious tours in history, with limited-overs captain Shahid Afridi calling the four-month trip to England the “most difficult” of his career

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Sep-2010The Pakistan squad returned home after completing one of the most acrimonious tours in history, with limited-overs captain Shahid Afridi calling the four-month trip to England the “most difficult” of his career.”It was tough because of the controversies and became very difficult to cope with. Every time we went out of the hotel people passed remarks against us,” Afridi said on arrival in Karachi. “The best part of the whole tour was that the players showed unity even in difficult times and gave a good fight in the one-day series against England.”Pakistan’s coach, Waqar Younis, said the tour had taken a toll on the team’s support staff as well because of the effort needed to keep the players upbeat amid the barrage of allegations. “If you take into account the tour to Sri Lanka [for the Asia Cup] before we went to England, it was four months on the trot and the tour of England was difficult both on and off the field,” Waqar, who flew into Lahore, said.”We had success against Australia which was pleasing, but because of the controversies it was tough against England. You needed that extra effort to gee up the players when you see a report in the newspaper every other day.”Pakistan’s next international assignment is a home series against South Africa in the UAE in October-November. Afridi, who ended a four-year hiatus from Tests this year when he led Pakistan in the very first Test of the summer against Australia only to retire again from the format immediately after losing it, did not rule out another comeback for the Test leg of that tour. “I will think about it and if the team needs it, I may consider playing the Test series against South Africa,” he said.The tour of England had begun positively for Pakistan, with victories in the two Twenty20 internationals against Australia. Despite losing that first Test at Lord’s and Afridi’s retirement, Salman Butt took over the captaincy and led Pakistan to a series-leveling victory at Headingley. It was Pakistan’s first Test win over Australia in nearly 15 years.The Test series against England began poorly, with defeats at Trent Bridge and Edgbaston before Pakistan kept the contest alive with a victory at The Oval. During their defeat at Lord’s, however, the series was plunged into scandal when a British tabloid ran a story alleging that Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif were involved in spot-fixing by bowling deliberate no-balls.The players under scrutiny were questioned by the police and provisionally suspended by the ICC before the Twenty20 series between Pakistan and England began. Pakistan lost both Twenty20 matches, and the one-day series that followed was at 2-1 when the ICC announced that it was investigating the Oval ODI, which Pakistan had won, after receiving information from another tabloid that bookies were aware of certain scoring patterns that would take place before the match.It was decided that the last two ODIs would be played but, before the fourth game at Lord’s, the PCB chairman Ijaz Butt alleged that England’s players had thrown the third match as part of a wider conspiracy to “defraud Pakistan and Pakistan cricket”, plunging the tour deeper into controversy.The ECB reacted by issuing a strong statement deploring the allegations and said it would seek an apology from Butt or take legal action. There was also an altercation between Pakistan fast bowler Wahab Riaz and England batsman Jonathan Trott during a net session ahead of the Lord’s game.Pakistan eventually leveled the series 2-2 before England won at the Rose Bowl to take the series.

He hasn’t played ODIs since the 2023 ODI World Cup but hopes to make a return for Pakistan next month

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jan-2025Fakhar Zaman is “100% certain” he will play for Pakistan again and is gearing up for the 2025 Champions Trophy, which begins on February 19 and will be hosted in Pakistan and Dubai.”A 100%, I will play for Pakistan (again),” Fakhar, 34, told the . “Actually, many people do not know about that, but after the T20 World Cup I got sick and because of the medical condition I was not fit, so I was not a part of the team.”But now I [have] recovered 100%, and you will see me in the next white-ball series which Pakistan play.”Related

• Saim Ayub to travel to London for ankle fracture treatment

• Champions Trophy 2025: Dubai to host all India matches, including the knockouts if India qualify

• PCB issues Fakhar Zaman show-cause notice after post in support of Babar Azam

Fakhar, once an integral part of the Pakistan white-ball setup, has not played international cricket since the 2024 T20 World Cup last June in the USA and West Indies, where Pakistan were eliminated in the group stage. He last played an ODI in the 2023 ODI World Cup but is hopeful of returning for the Champions Trophy at home.Incidentally, it was in the 2017 Champions Trophy that Fakhar shot to prominence with a title-winning 114 against India in the final at The Oval in London. “My plan has been around the Champions Trophy,” he said. “I did not play in the Australia tour or in the South Africa tour, so my whole plan was just to play in the Champions Trophy, to make myself available and to be fully fit for the tournament.”That was in the back of my mind, and I am thankful, and I am lucky to be fit right now. I started from the Champions Trophy 2017 and that went really well for me and now I am very excited for the next edition also. I talked to the selectors, the head coach, and everyone wanted me to play in the Champions Trophy.”Fakhar Zaman is currently in the UAE for his maiden ILT20 stint•Associated Press

Fakhar had high praise for 22-year-old opener Saim Ayub, who has become a regular across formats for Pakistan. Ayub has had a sensational start to his ODI career, with three centuries and a fifty in nine innings, which includes hundreds in Australia and South Africa. However, an ankle fracture sustained during the first morning of the second Test against South Africa in Cape Town has put his Champions Trophy campaign in jeopardy.”I hope and I believe that he will recover quickly, and I was thinking yesterday to call Saim just to talk to him about this injury,” Fakhar said. “Believe me, he is such a great player that if he continues to play for the next four to five years, he will be at the top and he will be amongst the top three players in the world.”While Fakhar wants to open the batting for Pakistan, he may not find a slot there, with Ayub, Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan already at the top of the order.”In Pakistan, we have three of the best players in the world in Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Saim Ayub, so sometimes I feel lucky to be in the team even if I am not able to make my place in the team as an opener,” Fakhar said. “If the team has faith in me and they want me to bat at number four or five, that totally makes sense, because for me the team is always first and I play wherever the team wants me to play, but I always prefer to open.”Fakhar is currently gearing up for his maiden ILT20 stint where he will feature for the 2023 runners-up Desert Vipers. “There are many Pakistani players who have played for the Desert Vipers including Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Azam Khan and Mohammad Amir and they talk really highly about this team, the environment, the management, the way they play the cricket and the way their mindset is,” Fakhar said. “So when I got the offer, without any discussion with anyone, I said ‘yes, I would love to play for this team.'”The ILT20 begins on January 11, with the Dubai Capitals taking on MI Emirates in Dubai.

The BCCI said that Axar had suffered a left quadriceps strain while playing against Bangladesh on Friday

Shashank Kishore16-Sep-2023Washington Sundar will link up with India’s Asia Cup squad in Colombo ahead of Sunday’s final against Sri Lanka with Axar Patel out injured.The BCCI said that Axar had suffered a left quadriceps strain while playing against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup on Friday. The physio was seen taping his leg while he was batting towards the closing stages of that game.Axar has some swelling on his forearm as well after being hit by a throw from a fielder. ESPNcricinfo understands there is no fracture. He also bruised his wrist during a full-stretch dive into the crease while batting. Axar continued to bat despite the bruising and needed some spraying on the affected area. He made a valiant 38-ball 42 in India’s chase of 266. Eventually, India fell six short.Related

• Bangladesh weather Gill century to snatch consolation win

• Bangladesh's unlikely heroes step up as race for World Cup spots heat up

• 'Playing it late and close to the body' – Gill puts his best feet forward

• Injured Theekshana out of Asia Cup final, will be fit for World Cup

Washington was to be part of a conditioning camp called by the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru for India’s Asian Games-bound squad. It’s likely he will rejoin the group following the conclusion of the Asia Cup, if Axar is cleared to play in the three ODIs to follow against Australia from September 22.India’s current squad lacks an offspinner, which is one of the areas the team management hopes can be compensated by the presence of two left-arm spinning allrounders in Axar and Ravindra Jadeja. Kuldeep Yadav, meanwhile, is the only specialist spinner in India’s squad of 15.ESPNcricinfo understands Washington’s name had been deliberated seriously to be part of India’s World Cup squad, but he eventually lost out with India preferring to go in with an extra back-up batter in Suryakumar Yadav despite both KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer being named in the squad. India can however make changes to that squad without an ICC clearance until September 28.Washington, who was out for three months due to a hamstring injury, was most-recently part of India’s second-rung squad that played three T20Is in Ireland last month. Prior to that, he featured for South Zone in their victorious Deodhar Trophy (50-overs) and Duleep Trophy (first-class) campaigns.

Changes to India’s squads for the Asian Games as well

Fast bowlers Akash Deep and Pooja Vastrakar have been called into India’s men’s and women’s T20 teams due to play in the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China. Deep replaced Shivam Mavi who is down with a back injury and Vastrakar replaced Anjali Sarvani who is nursing a knee injury. The women’s competition begins first on September 19 followed by the men’s on September 28. Ruturaj Gaikwad leads a second-string India men’s side given the first-choice players will be building up for the home World Cup which starts on October 5. The India women’s team appears close to full strength and is captained by Harmanpreet Kaur

Allrounder Heather Graham has been added to the squad as cover

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jul-2022Australia left-arm spinner Jess Jonassen will miss the start of the T20I tri-series in Ireland after testing positive for Covid-19.Jonassen is currently isolating at home in Brisbane and is due to depart next Monday ahead of Australia’s final two matches of the series which also features Pakistan.Tasmania allrounder Heather Graham has been called into the squad and will link up in Ireland in the coming days. The remainder of the team arrive in Belfast on Tuesday.Graham was a travelling reserve during the ODI World Cup this year and was briefly elevated into the main squad when Ash Gardner had Covid. She is currently uncapped in T20Is having played one ODI against Sri Lanka in 2019.Jonassen would usually be a first-choice selection in Australia’s T20I side and there is no like-for-like cover as a left-arm spinner. Her absence could mean a chance of both legspinners, Alana King and Amanda-Jade Wellington, teaming up as they did twice during the ODI World Cup.The tri-series in Ireland, which begins on July 16 when Australia face Pakistan, provides preparation for those two sides ahead of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham at the end of the month.For Australia this is their first time back in action since claiming the ODI World Cup in early April. They have a new interim head coach in Shelley Nitschke after Matthew Mott departed for the England men’s team, but the playing squad remains very settled with the original group unchanged from the ODI World Cup.

The home side were well placed in their chase after Peter Siddle managed Tasmania’s only wicket

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Mar-2021Rain ruined the final day of the Sheffield Shield match at the MCG, denying Victoria a good chance of victory after they had made strong progress towards what appeared to be a challenging target.Peter Handscomb’s impressive form, with his second half-century of the match, in an unbroken second-wicket stand of 95 with Marcus Harris had broken the back of the chase before the rain returned and wiped out the rest of the day.Handscomb scored his runs at a rate rarely seen in a match where ball had held sway. Jake Doran produced the standout innings on the third day with 98 to leave a target of 253.Peter Siddle had taken the only wicket, removing Nic Maddinson to a thin edge in the sixth over of the day, but the game was getting away from Tasmania when the weather closed in and play was abandoned at 5.30pm.

Ankit Rajpoot part of the Gowtham trade, heads to Rajasthan Royals, while Dhawal Kulkarni moves to Mumbai

Nagraj Gollapudi13-Nov-2019Kings XI Punjab have traded fast bowler Ankit Rajpoot for Rajasthan Royals allrounder K Gowtham, even as the IPL trading window, which closes on Thursday, is winding down.In another trade, Delhi Capitals released New Zealand fast bowler Trent Boult to defending champions Mumbai Indians. An IPL statement called the Boult deal a “trade”, but Mumbai did not release any player in exchange. ESPNcricinfo understands the New Zealand fast bowler was bought by Mumbai as part of an all-cash deal. It could not be confirmed whether Mumbai paid any extra money over the hammer price of INR 2.2 crore, which Capitals had shelled out for Boult in the 2018 auction.Mumbai also drafted in Dhawal Kulkarni, for whom it’s a homecoming having played for the Mumbai domestic side all his life, from the Royals.ESPNcricinfo also understands that Mumbai released West Indies batsman Evin Lewis, who was bought by the franchise in the 2018 auction for INR 3.8 crore. Lewis played just three matches last IPL after picking a hamstring injury during the tournament. He regained fitness, but had to be on the bench after the success of South African wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock, who was Mumbai captain Rohit Sharma’s opening partner.It is believed that at least three franchises, including Mumbai, were in the race to get Boult. Mumbai will be Boult’s fourth IPL team, having had stints earlier at Kolkata Knight Riders, Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Capitals. Boult might welcome the move, considering he played just five matches for the Capitals, who found it hard to fit him into the bowling combinations.Mumbai were on the lookout to find a replacement for Australian left-arm fast bowler Jason Behrendorff, who has been laid low by an injury which is likely to keep him out for several months. With Lasith Malinga not a certainty to play every match, Mumbai needed an experienced seamer who had pace, as well as the guile to bowl with the new ball and at the death.Mumbai’s owner Aakash Ambani said Boult satisfied these criteria, and Boult’s acquisition was an important one because he would add to the home advantage that Mumbai’s fast men have created over the years. “Mumbai Indians have always taken pride in having a good pace attack,” Ambani said in a media release. “Year-on-year our bowlers have won us many games, a classic example being last year’s final. We are delighted to have Trent Boult as part of the MI family. I am sure his experience across formats, especially in limited overs, will add value to our campaign.”Gowtham had been bought by the Royals at the 2018 auction for INR 6.2 crore while Rajpoot went for INR 3 crore to Kings XI. Boult was bought by the Capitals for INR 2.2 crore, and Kulkarni was bought for INR 75 lakh by the Royals. Gowtham, who is 31, has been a regular part of India A teams and was the third-highest wicket-taker on the A tour of the Caribbean in July-August. However, the Karnataka allrounder had a woeful IPL last season: in seven matches he scored just 18 runs and picked up a solitary wicket.

Root has batted at No. 3 throughout the English summer but says he made a “spur of the moment decision”

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Sep-2018Joe Root, England’s captain, has insisted his decision to bat at No. 4 in the second innings in Southampton was made “for the good of the team”.Root has batted at No. 3 throughout the English summer but, having averaged just 28.54 in that time, said he made a “spur of the moment decision” to move back to the No. 4 position in which he averages 52.45.That meant a promotion for Moeen Ali, who had batted at No. 7 in the first innings. And while he scored only 9, Root described Moeen as “very excited” about the opportunity to bat up the order and suggested the move had “worked very well”. Root made 48, his highest score in six innings.”Ultimately I did it for the good of the team and to try and get the best out of myself,” Root told Sky Sports ahead of the fourth day’s play at the Ageas Bowl. “I know if I score runs we’ve got a great chance of winning the game.”It was a bit of a spur of the moment decision. We’re in a position where Moeen is in great form. He bats at No. 3 for his county, so we thought it was a good opportunity for him to go out there and play in his own manner at No. 3 for England.”I felt batting at No. 4 in this situation and getting the best out of myself would give us a better chance of getting up towards 230-250. It’s worked pretty well.”It might not have been Moeen who got runs but part of being a team is that you all play your part and the fact I’ve come down to No. 4 in this innings worked in a way.”Mo was very excited about it and it wouldn’t have been the case if he hadn’t desperate to do it. He sees himself as a top-order batter. He goes back to Worcester and bats at No. 3. He got a double-hundred last week. He was pleased to have that opportunity. It didn’t work out this time around but there’s no reason he wouldn’t be able to be successful in that position in the future.”Whether Moeen will get another chance to bat at No. 3 remains to be seen with Root declining to confirm that his move back to No. 4 would be permanent.”Whether it’s a long term thing with Mo we’ll have to wait and see,” Root said. “I tried to get the best out of myself in this situation so I put myself at No. 4. I think every situation is different.”Every now and then you might have to change things around. It’s not something that is good to do a lot – especially with your batting – but every now and then, I don’t think it’s a bad thing.”While Root described the decision as “spur of the moment”, it seems it was made ahead of the third day’s play. Earlier in the summer, Root was described as having moved to No. 3 by his own choice by Ed Smith, the national selector.

It indicated that recommendations such as the one-state-one-vote policy would be part of the discussions at the next hearing on August 18

Nagraj Gollapudi24-Jul-2017A year after approving the Lodha Committee recommendations and directing the BCCI to implement the same, the Supreme Court has warmed up to the idea of reconsidering a few of the proposals. Although the court did not spell out the specific ones it would re-open for debate, it did indicate that recommendations such as the one-state-one-vote policy, and the reduction in the size of the selection panel – which has already taken place – would be part of the discussions at the next hearing on August 18.In the interim, the court directed the BCCI and state associations to approve as many recommendations “as far as practicable”. “All concerned (BCCI and state associations) shall implement the recommendations of the Justice Lodha Committee Report as far as practicable, barring the issues which have been raised pertaining to membership, number of members of the selection committee, concept of associate membership, etc,” the court said in its order today.”The purpose is to implement the report as far as practicable and, thereafter, it shall be debated as to how the scheme of things can be considered so that the cricket, the ‘gentleman’s game’, remains nearly perfect.”The court’s order represents a softening of sorts on the verdict delivered on July 18 last year, when a two-judge bench led by former Chief Justice of India TS Thakur delivered a withering judgement, ordering the BCCI to implement the proposals within six months.Thakur has since retired, however, and the hearing has taken place in front of a three-judge bench comprising Justices Deepak Misra, AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud.The BCCI has scheduled a special general meeting (SGM) on July 26 to discuss and approve the adoption of the new constitution as per the Lodha Committee recommendations. The BCCI was originally scheduled to ratify the constitution at the July 11 SGM, but that was postponed after five state associations raised objections.On Monday, the court was responding to petitions filed by a number of state associations, as well as the by the BCCI itself, and also looking at the status report filed by the Committee of Administrators (CoA).The CoA, charged with overseeing the implementation of the proposals, had complained in their status report that disqualified office bearers with “vested interests” were stalling the process. Specifically, the CoA named the veteran pair of N Srinvasan and Niranjan Shah as “impediments”.Srinivasan and Shah filed individual affidavits, explaining their stance against proposals. Both men fail the eligibility criteria prescribed by the Lodha Committee on various counts, having been office bearers at their respective state association for more than nine years and having also exceeded the age cap of 70.Yet despite their ineligibility, Srinivasan and Shah have been attending BCCI meetings as representatives of their state associations. Other senior administrators, including Rajeev Shukla (IPL chairman and representative of Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association) and Jyotiraditya Scindia (representative of Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association), have also violated court orders.The court today did not issue a final decision on the issue, but in response to the CoA report, did say that no ineligible office bearer, both at the BCCI and the state association, can attend the July 26 SGM. In theory, that means Srinivasan, Shah, Shukla and Scindia cannot attend Wednesday’s meeting.

MS Dhoni unleashed his attacking avatar to thump Axar Patel for back-to-back sixes as Rising Pune Supergiants pipped Kings XI Punjab by four wickets in Visakhapatnam

The Report by Deivarayan Muthu21-May-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details3:40

Nannes: Dhoni’s batting in last over was bizarre

This wasn’t the deadest of dead rubbers. Two knocked-out teams – Rising Pune Supergiants and Kings XI Punjab – were desperate not to finish at the bottom of the pile. It ultimately boiled down to 12 off the last two balls, with MS Dhoni, the fading star, facing off against Axar Patel, the rising star. Dhoni unleashed his attacking avatar to bring back memories of his heyday; his back-to-back sixes over midwicket delivered Supergiants a sensational four-wicket win in Visakhapatnam.The final over began with Supergiants needing 23. M Vijay’s key men in the end overs – Mohit Sharma and Sandeep Sharma – had bowled out. Axar was in the hot seat. Dhoni may have struggled for timing and power throughout the season, but this wasn’t beyond him.He flatly refused a single after mis-hitting the first ball – a short fizzer – to deep midwicket. The next ball – a wide bouncer down leg side – was well stopped by Wriddhiman Saha. The second legitimate ball was fired too full and Dhoni’s responded with a mighty club over long-on. The next one was darted short and wide outside off as Dhoni slapped it to sweeper cover, where Hashim Amla dived full-length to his left to save a certain boundary. Dhoni, in anticipation of a four, was unmoved and Supergiants missed out on two runs. It was clear he backed himself to finish it off.Axar then sent down a short ball outside off, which Dhoni flat-batted over cover for a one-bounce four to reduce the equation down to 12 off two. The Supergiants captain sealed it with twin sixes and finished with 64 not out off 32 balls. He later said it could have been the “kind of game the team wanted to win to get into the knockouts.”Dhoni had joined Thisara Perera in the 14th over after Supergiants were reduced to 86 for 5 in a chase of 173. Perera was the first to tee off with three boundaries off fast bowler Kyle Abbott in the 16th over. Then, when Sandeep missed his yorker by an inch of two, Dhoni smeared two off-side fours in the 18th over to bring the equation down to 29 off 12 balls.A ball later, Thisara swung wildly only to nick Mohit behind. Dhoni carved the third ball away for four, but Mohit hit back to give away only one run off the next three balls – a cutter and two pinpoint yorkers. As it turned out, Mohit’s variety wasn’t enough as Kings XI were left to rue what could have been, considering how well they started with the ball.The seamers stuck to disciplined lines and lengths and subdued Ajinkya Rahane and Usman Khawaja. Gurkeerat Singh Maan reaped the rewards with his handy offspin when he dismissed Saurabh Tiwary and Khawaja in the 12th over.Gurkeerat’s role wasn’t just to bottle up the runs with the ball. Earlier, he had brought up his maiden IPL half-century, which included three fours and three sixes. His 58-run stand for the third wicket with Vijay helped lay the platform for Kings XI’s eventual total of 172 for 7.While Vijay took his time early on, Amla did the early running with three whipped fours, including two in the first over off Irfan Pathan. Vijay shifted gears when he slammed seamer Deepak Chahar for successive boundaries in the fifth over. Amla brought up Kings XI’s first fifty-plus opening stand in the last seven matches with a lofted cover drive for six.The subsequent introduction of spin, however, applied the brakes on the innings. While R Ashwin claimed 4 for 34, his best IPL figures, Adam Zampa enhanced his growing reputation with 1 for 32. He got the ball to turn, bounce, and dip, even as Vijay completed his fourth half-century in eight games as Kings XI captain.A slog to a straighter one from Ashwin bowled Vijay by the 16th over. Kings XI then plundered 48 off the last four overs, but they were left with the wooden spoon for the second successive season.

Andre Fletcher, the West Indies and Windward Islands wicketkeeper-batsman, who was fined EC$ 2000 (approx. US$ 740) by a Dominica court for possession of ammunition, has labelled the incident as a “genuine misunderstanding” on his part

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jun-2015Andre Fletcher, the West Indies and Windward Islands wicketkeeper-batsman, who was fined EC$ 2000 (approx. US$ 740) by a Dominica court for possession of ammunition, has labelled the incident as a “genuine misunderstanding” on his part.Fletcher, 27, was in Dominica practising with the Windward Islands team and was about to leave the country when he was arrested last month. However, Fletcher said in a statement that while he accepted full responsibility for the incident, he had “no idea” that the package in his possession was actually .22 ammunition instead of .22 pellets for the registered hunting air rifle he owns.”When I obtained the package it was sealed. Having been told that the package contained air rifle pellets, without closely inspecting it further I assumed that the contents were indeed what I was told,” Fletcher said. “Until it was brought to my attention at the airport, I had no inkling that the package contained live ammunition.””I carried the package openly in my hand to and through the airport and subsequently loosely placed it in my carry-on bag as I sought to clear security at the Douglas Charles Airport in Dominica.”During the normal inspection of my luggage, the customs officer in Dominica informed me that the items appeared to be .22 calibre live rounds and not .22 pellets. Upon further investigation of the package, it was indeed found that the contents were live .22 calibre rounds and not .22 pellets for air rifles.”Fletcher has played 15 ODIs and 22 T20Is for West Indies, and last represented the team in January. He said that he would not let “the unfortunate incident” compromise his career.”The unfortunate incident which led to my detention in Dominica on May 28 will not deter me from continuing to represent the region or my country once given the opportunity to do so,” he said. “I will never intentionally do anything to cause hurt or embarrassment to my nation, my fans or especially my family.”