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Hasnain’s brilliant spell was not enough to help Quetta Gladiators defend 155

Danyal Rasool20-Feb-2023If ever cricket wanted to drive home the point that this sport is a team game, this fixture was it. Scarcely can a T20 fast bowler turn in the performance Mohammad Hasnain did today while ending up on the losing side, but an indifferent batting performance from Quetta Gladiators ensured that would be his fate. Peshawar Zalmi, meanwhile didn’t have a single player who could hold a candle to Hasnain’s heroics, but enough of their players did just about enough to subdue Hasnain’s side, with a clinical team performance edging out an individual, fire-breathing, one man rescue act.Defending 155 to win, the Gladiators needed early wickets, particularly after Mohammad Haris got Zalmi off to a blazing start in the first two overs. Hasnain would oblige, removing him and the precocious Saim Ayub off his first two deliveries. He followed up by getting rid of Tom Kohler-Cadmore in his second over, and it soon became apparent he was the one man stood between a Zalmi canter and a Quetta heist.Naseem Shah provided able support, conceding just 19 runs and taking a wicket, but the low total meant one cameo partnership between Rovman Powell and James Neesham was just about enough. The two put together 46 in five overs before a perfect yorker from Naseem cleaned up the Jamaican, and while Neesham departed soon after, it wasn’t before he had smashed Qais Ahmed for two fours and a six to leave his side 21 away.The 17th over was a masterclass of death bowling from Hasnain, toying with Wahab Riaz as he sent down a maiden, but with Naseem bowled out, the Gladiators simply didn’t have the quality to defend 19 in 18 balls. It took Zalmi just nine more balls to get home, with Wahab finishing the game off with a pair of boundaries against Mohammad Nawaz, who somehow tends to find himself thrown into this kind of situation.That the Gladiators would end up with a below-par score looked imminent when they managed a solitary run in the first two overs, with Zalmi’s stranglehold continuing through the powerplay. Martin Guptill couldn’t find the explosive form that took him to three figures against Karachi, while Jason Roy looked equally scratchy as he found himself playing down the wrong line to a beautiful Usman Qadir googly.Qadir, the pick of Zalmi’s bowlers, also trapped Nawaz in front, giving way to the most significant point of resistance from Gladiators’ batters. Sarfaraz Ahmed and Iftikhar Ahmed first consolidated, then teed off to ensure they’d post something defensible. 17 off Shanaka’s 14th over proved the catalyst for the late onslaught, and when Sarfaraz was cleaned up for a useful 39, Iftikhar was completely in his element.He’d smashed Wahab Riaz for six sixes in a recent exhibition game, and on Monday, sent down a seventh off the first ball he faced from Zalmi’s skipper. Odean Smith picked up three successive boundaries off Neesham before Iftikhar brought up an unbeaten 34-ball 50 to sign off. It meant 97 had come off the final 7 overs.It was still well below what was feasibly defensible, and as Hasnain found out to his cost, his teammates simply hadn’t done enough in a game where he possibly couldn’t have done more.

Punjab Kings fell well short of a target of 174 on a pitch which was hard to bat on

Deivarayan Muthu20-Apr-20233:05

Moody: ‘A real masterclass of fast bowling from Siraj’

Faf du Plessis revealed that he wouldn’t have played this game had the Impact Player rule not been in place. His bruised rib was causing too many problems. But the new rules gave him the chance to affect the game with just his batting and that’s what he did. Handing over the captaincy to Virat Kohli so he could play as a substitute, he hit 84 off 56 balls on a sluggish Mohali pitch to haul Royal Challengers Bangalore to 174 for 4, despite a late slowdown. Then he just rested in the dugout and watched Mohammed Siraj excel in both the powerplay and death to help them defend that total.Royal Challengers had managed only 37 for 4 in their last four overs after being on 137 for 0 in 16 overs. However, they dominated the powerplay – both with bat and then ball – to hold off Punjab Kings and give their campaign a leg-up after a narrow defeat against Chennai Super Kings at home.

The opening salvo

After a sedate start – du Plessis was on 3 off 7 balls at one point – he manufactured swinging room against left-arm fingerspinner Harpreet Brar and launched him over his head for six. Two balls later, he created more room and bludgeoned him over midwicket for six more. Kohli had also started strongly, driving Brar and then pulling the seamers for fours, as Royal Challengers ran away to 59 for 0 in the powerplay. Du Plessis batted with similar high intent even beyond the powerplay and went onto bring up his half-century off 31 balls.

The slowdown

Kohli, though, slowed down after the powerplay especially against legspinner Rahul Chahar and the slower variations of Sam Curran. After being on 29 off 19 balls at the end of the powerplay, he managed only 30 off his next 28 balls.His innings ended – and Kings finally broke through – when he spliced a sweep off Brar, with wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma completing a stunning one-handed catch. Brar then had Glenn Maxwell holing out for a duck next ball and then Nathan Ellis, picked ahead of Kagiso Rabada, tricked du Plessis with a slower variation to shut down Royal Challengers at the death.They were 91 for 0 in ten overs and later 137 for 0 in 16 overs but ended up with what seemed like a sub-par total at that stage. In the end, it would prove to be 24 too many for Kings.

Siraj bosses the powerplay and death

Royal Challengers quickly regained lost ground when Siraj struck twice in the powerplay to trap both Atharva Taide (4) and the returning Liam Livingstone (2). With those two wickets, Siraj took his powerplay tally this season up to six. No other bowler has more wickets during this phase in IPL 2023.After finding late inswing in the early exchanges, Siraj returned in the death to wrap up Kings’ chase. Jitesh’s late blows had given Kings a sliver of hope, narrowing the equation to 30 off 18 balls, but Siraj knocked over Brar and Ellis in an 18th over that cost only four runs. Siraj was also at it in the field, effecting a direct hit from mid-off to catch Harpreet Bhatia short at the non-striker’s end.

Jitesh, Prabhsimran flicker for Kings

That Kings got this close to the target from being 43 for 4 in the powerplay was down to contributions from their Impact Player Prabhsimran Singh and finisher Jitesh. Even as five wickets fell around him, Prabhsimran went after the RCB attack. He was particularly severe on Wanindu Hasaranga, taking him for 18 off eight balls. But when he fell four short of a half-century, the chase slipped further away from Kings’ reach.Jitesh briefly kept Kings in the chase with his own counterattack, but Siraj and Harshal Patel eventually dismissed them for 150 and dragged RCB up to fifth on the standings.

All eyes on Chester-le-Street climax after Leicestershire forced to follow on

ECB Reporters Network13-May-2023Sussex gave themselves an opportunity to secure a second win of the season that may see them top the LV= Insurance County Championship Division Two table after forcing Leicestershire to follow-on.The home side were dismissed for 270 in reply to Sussex’s 430 on day three at Grace Road, Ari Karvelas and Fynn Hudson-Prentice taking four wickets each as Leicestershire fought back from 160 for seven thanks largely to Rehan Ahmed (59 not out) and Chris Wright (48) but still fell short. They are 16 without loss following on.A superb unbeaten innings of 182 by Tom Alsop, who shared a stand of 169 with James Coles (70) for the fifth wicket, was responsible for putting Sussex in such a strong position despite Wiaan Mulder’s five for 63 and Tom Scriven’s three for 75 on a better day for Leicestershire’s bowlers.Should Sussex fashion a victory on the final day, they will move at least into clear second place in the table, top should Durham fail to secure victory over Yorkshire at Chester-le-Street, where they had two wickets in hand overnight but still required 33 runs to win.Resuming in Leicester on 319 for four, Sussex’s morning was developing along the lines they had hoped for the first 10 overs as Alsop and Coles raced along at almost five an over, extending their partnership by 48 to 169.After 19-year-old Coles miscued Scriven to mid-off for a fine 70, the last six Sussex wickets fell in 17 overs for 63, which felt like an anticlimactic end to an innings they had hoped might top 500 runs, although 430 after being put in was hardly an under-achievement.There was no dislodging Alsop, who overtook his previous best of 150, which he equalled against Leicestershire at Hove last summer, in the over after Coles’s demise. But he needed more support and none was forthcoming.Generating more swing than they had been able to find on Friday, Wright quickly had Oli Carter caught at second slip, Scriven dismissed Hudson-Prentice leg before with a ball that kept a tad low and Wright picked up a second wicket when Karvelas had no answer to a full delivery that took out his off stump.Mulder wrapped up the tail to complete his second five-for in as many innings, having Henry Crocombe caught at slip, seeing off Bradley Currie for a 15-ball duck.Nonetheless, Sussex had doubled their batting points from two to four thanks to Alsop’s impressively measured and chanceless innings, and 430 looked a formidable total as Hudson-Prentice reduced Leicestershire from 70 for one to 79 for four by taking three wickets for one run in the space of 11 deliveries.The former Derbyshire all-rounder brushed the outside edge to have Rishi Patel caught behind for a bright 34 and dismissed Colin Ackermann for a two-ball duck as the former Leicestershire captain was beaten by one that struck him on the back pad.The current captain, Lewis Hill, suffered the same mode of dismissal, although perhaps unluckily given that his front leg looked well forward and across.All this after Hudson-Prentice had appeared to have injured himself bowling his first ball, limping back to his mark flexing his left leg, although somehow by the end of the over, all was well. When he did take a rest, it was with figures of three for 12 from seven overs.Deprived of both their leading wicket-takers, Ollie Robinson at England’s behest and Nathan McAndrew to free up an overseas slot for Smith, there is an inexperienced feel to this Sussex seam attack.Yet Cheteshwar Pujara, the Sussex captain, used his resources well, maintaining attacking fields and rotating sensibly. Karvelas and Currie, both making their first appearances of the season, removed Mulder and Australian wicketkeeper-batter Peter Handscomb in the first four overs after tea, leaving Leicestershire six down for 135.Mulder was pinned in front by Karvelas before Handscomb, who has been the bedrock of Leicestershire’s improved form this season, edged behind off Currie. When Crocombe produced the ball of the day to bowl Scriven, Leicestershire were 160 for seven.Wright looked to hit his side out of trouble and threatened to do so, racking up 48 from 41 balls in an entertaining flurry of six fours and a six into the nets over square leg as he and Ahmed put on 69 for the eighth wicket.But Karvelas, who had seen Ahmed dropped at gully on 34, removed Wright via an edge behind, putting the pressure back on Leicestershire with the follow-on target still 52 runs away.Another 40 added by Ahmed with Will Davis took Leicestershire tantalisingly close, but Davis was taken at first slip off Hudson-Prentice and Ahmed’s efforts to protect last man Josh Hull from Hudson-Prentice by taking a leg-bye off the fifth ball of a Karvelas over backfired as the last one hit Hull’s front pad squarely in front.

The foundation for the hosts’ 546-run win was laid by twin centuries from Najmul Hossain Shanto

Mohammad Isam17-Jun-2023Bangladesh 382 (Shanto 146, Mahmudul 76, Masood 5-79) and 425 for 4 dec (Shanto 124, Mominul 121*, Zahir 2-112) beat Afghanistan 146 (Zazai 36, Ebadot 4-47, Taijul 2-7) and 115 (Rahmat 30, Taskin 4-37, Shoriful 3-28) by 546 runsBangladesh beat Afghanistan by 546 runs in the one-off Test in Dhaka, thus achieving their highest victory margin in Tests, and the third highest in the format’s history. The visitors’ last man Zahir Khan took a blow to the elbow and retired hurt during an extended morning session on the fourth day, thus leaving the hosts with only nine second-innings wickets to take to complete the win.Some drama also took place just before that, as Bangladesh neared victory. Zahir was given out caught behind off the ball of the 33rd over, with Taskin Ahmed taking off to celebrate what he thought was his first five-for in Tests, only for the batter to overturn the decision on review, as replays showed the ball had missed the bat by an inch.The delivery immediately after, Taskin bowled Zahir, only for the ball to be deemed as an above-waist full toss, and thus a no-ball. Then three legal balls after that, Taskin crashed one into Zahir’s elbow, thus rendering him unable to bat. After a few minutes of discussion and medical attention, Zahir walked off. That confirmed a massive win for Bangladesh.Bangladesh’s fast bowlers combined to take 14 wickets in the match, the most for them in a Test. The hosts entered the fourth day requiring eight wickets to seal the win, which they duly did inside 22 overs although eventually they had to take one wicket lesser. It started in the third over of the day when Nasir Jamal could do little against a beautiful delivery from Ebadot Hossain: the ball pitched outside off and straightened just enough to tickle the batter’s outside edge.Next over, Rahmat Shah survived when he was given out caught in the slips off a snorter from Shoriful Islam, before the TV umpire determined that the ball had come off his armguard. But Shoriful didn’t have to wait too long for his first wicket of the morning: three overs later – the 19th of the innings – Afsar Zazai edged him to Mehidy Hasan Miraz at gully.Najmul Hossain Shanto cracked two centuries in Dhaka•AFP/Getty Images

As a result of that wicket, in came debutant Bahir Shah, who was brought in as concussion substitute for captain Hashmatullah Shahidi. But Shoriful ended the 21st over by having him caught at third slip, where Taijul Islam took a good, low catch. That meant Afghanistan were 78 for 5, which soon became 91 for 6 when Taskin had Rahmat Shah caught behind for 30 four overs later. Taskin’s third wicket came soon after, when he bowled Karim Janat for 18.That meant all of the seven wickets to fall had gone to Bangladesh’s fast bowlers, after which one finally went to a spinner. Brought into the attack to start the 32nd over, Mehidy struck third ball when he had Amir Hamza caught at short leg, where the ball landed after coming off his glove and helmet in an attempted pull shot. And next over, Taskin had Yamin Ahmadzai caught at mid-off to get his fourth.But Afghanistan’s troubles had begun on the third evening itself, when Shoriful had trapped Ibrahim Zadran lbw first ball, thus becoming the second Bangladesh bowler after Mashrafe Mortaza to start an innings with a wicket. Next over, Abdul Malik chased an away swinger from Taskin, only to be caught behind for 5.Come the sixth over, Taskin struck Shahidi on the head with a bouncer. Shahidi, who had ducked at the ball after seemingly taking his eyes off, fell flat on the pitch, before walking off retired hurt. Effectively, Afghanistan were three down, before Bahir would take Shahidi’s place.But much before those problems for Afghanistan, twin centuries from Najmul Hossain Shanto – and one from Mominul Haque in the second innings – had already laid the foundation for Bangladesh’s triumph. They declared their second innings on 425 after obtaining a 236-run first-innings lead, thus setting Afghanistan an improbable 662. That eventually turned out to be more than enough for a commanding win.

“They didn’t use the bouncer for the sake of using it. They have come a long way and I am very pleased”

Mohammad Isam19-Jun-2023Bangladesh’s fast bowlers showed maturity during the one-off Test against Afghanistan, something that impressed head coach Chandika Hathurusinghe. The pace trio finished with their best match haul as the home side beat Afghanistan by 546 runs. It was a significant win, particularly at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, regarded as Bangladesh’s spin stronghold.During his first stint, Hathurusinghe zeroed in on the spin strategy at home, which resulted in Test wins against England and Australia. It, however, made pace bowling almost redundant. Even after his exit, the home strategy was to focus on spin until slowly, the fast bowlers’ progressive white-ball performances and the Mount Maunganui Test win influenced the team management.Related

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Hathurusinghe, who joined in February this year, said that the fast bowlers showed maturity in their attack plan against the Afghanistan batters. He said that their use of the bouncers was smart, and showed that they understood their opposition.”Previously our strength was spin,” Hathurusinghe said. “Now we have options to explore the other way, using the fast bowlers and win matches depending on the opposition. It was pleasing to see them not get carried away on the fast, bouncy wicket. The way the bowled was so good. It was a very professional approach. They didn’t use the bouncer for the sake of using it. They bowled mostly on the front foot. Those little things show the maturity of fast bowlers. They have come a long way. I am very pleased.”Hathurusinghe said that they will use fast or spin bowling at home depending on the strength of the opposition. “We will decide the best way that we can win the game. We are blessed with spinners and fast bowlers, which is a really good situation as a coach and for the team. Bangladesh cricket is a healthy place at the moment,” he said.Hathurusinghe said that the new opening pair of Zakir Hasan and Mahmudul Hasan Joy also impressed him. They were put together in the last minute after Tamim Iqbal pulled out due to a back injury. Zakir and Joy scored a fifty each, although each of them also got out early in at least one innings.”I was very impressed actually. I was seeing Zakir bat for the first time. You know that he got injured after that India game. So he had a really good start to his Test career. He is good against pace and spin. Very rarely are openers good against both.”Joy showed good temperament the way he batted. His record also says that if he gets a start, he goes big. I am also very pleased that Mominul coming into runs as well.”Zakir Hasan made 51 in the second innings of the Test•Associated Press

Hathurusinghe added that he is ready to give a longer rope to Zakir and Joy as he believes they are ready for the highest level.”Definitely those two guys (Joy and Zakir) will get a long run. They have done well. Zakir has played three matches, scoring a hundred and two fifties. Joy has a big hundred and fifty away, and here as well. They can play at this level.”Bangladesh have also scored at an unusually high tempo in their last two Tests. They went at 4.58 to score 369 runs against Ireland in April but in this Afghanistan Test, they batted at 4.44 and 5.31 in the respective innings. Their 425 for 5 declared in 80 overs in particular was eye-catching. Hathurusinghe said Bangladesh would bat the same way if such conditions and opportunities arrived again.”If the conditions helps us, we will definitely do that. That’s how we trained. That’s how we gave them freedom to score runs. Name of the game is scoring runs. If the condition is difficult we will be smart enough to bat the way the condition allows us to bat.”In the same way, we must give credit to Shanto. How he batted in that Test two innings. Especially the first two hours, him and Joy, the way they batted, calmed the nerves of everybody in the dressing room,” he said.Hathurusinghe also hailed the team’s preparation and execution, especially how well the Mirpur curator Gamini Silva had managed to change his method of preparing the pitch.”I put on social media that it is more than a Test win. What I meant was that the way we prepared for this game, we haven’t done before. Everything. We prepared a fast and green wicket. So I thought it was a big win for us, to play on that type of wicket and then come out with flying colors. It is a big mental barrier that we broke.”Before the game, I felt a lot of people had doubt about the way we will go. So the curator Gamini (Silva) gets credit for preparing that kind of wicket. I think it’s more than a Test win. New heroes emerged from the win.”

Young batters show their mettle in response to weighty first innings from Worcestershire

ECB Reporters Network27-Jul-2023Youngsters Joe Phillips and Ollie Price combined to keep Gloucestershire afloat on day two of the LV=County Championship match against Worcestershire at the Cheltenham Festival.Both out-performed their more experienced team-mates, scoring valuable half-centuries on a day when the hosts recovered from 120 for 4 to close on 212 for 4 in reply to Worcestershire’s first innings 406.Playing only his second senior game, 19-year-old Phillips posted a career-best 80, while Price, 22, finished on 75 not out, staging a successful rearguard action during the final session with his elder brother Tom, who is unbeaten on 41.Joe Leach claimed three wickets in 16 balls to give Worcestershire the edge, but Gloucestershire trail by 194 and still have it within their power to at least claim parity when they resume in the morning.Brett D’Oliveira had earlier top-scored with 90 and Josh Baker made a career-best 75 as the hosts were made to toil, Worcestershire’s last three wickets realising a bountiful 224 runs.Just a week after making his debut on this same ground in the drawn game against Glamorgan, Phillips might easily have passed up this latest opportunity to make a good impression. Having battled his way to 24 not out, he had his off stump unceremoniously uprooted by Adam Finch, only for the Worcestershire bowler to be no-balled.Finch sank to his knees, head in hands, and obviously troubled by his transgression thereafter, managed a further two expensive overs before being withdrawn from the attack. Determined to make the most of his good fortune, Phillips positively flourished, plundering four boundaries at the expense of Finch to give his innings lift-off.Visibly growing in stature with every run scored, the Cornishman reached his maiden first-class fifty from 87 balls with his eighth four, a flowing cover drive at the expense of Baker’s slow left-arm. Ollie Price proved the perfect foil in a second-wicket stand that yielded exactly 100 from 171 balls. With the tea interval approaching and a hundred within his grasp, Phillips suffered an unfortunate loss of concentration, needlessly prodding at a ball outside off stump from Leach and offering a straightforward catch to first slip.His impressive innings spanned 127 balls, included 13 fours and more than compensated for the early loss of fellow opener Chris Dent, caught at the wicket off the bowling of Dillon Pennington in the eighth over.Phillips’ untimely dismissal gave cause for sober reflection when Leach completed an incisive burst of three wickets in 16 balls by dismissing Miles Hammond and James Bracey in quick succession after tea to reduce Gloucestershire to 120 for 4..Unperturbed by the carnage at the other end, Ollie Price continued to go about his work in unobtrusive fashion, grafting his way to a 128-ball 50 in partnership with brother Tom. These two applied themselves diligently in an unbroken stand of 92, defying all that Worcestershire could throw at them for 34 overs to haul their side back into the game.Resuming on 265 for 7, Worcestershire added a further 141 runs in the morning session, thanks in large part to the continued obduracy of skipper D’Oliveira. Having helped add 83 for the sixth wicket with Matthew Waite on the opening day, he orchestrated further profitable stands of 141 and 49 with Baker and Finch for the eighth and ninth wickets respectively.It was a bitter pill to swallow for Gloucestershire’s bowlers, whose ranks were depleted by the absence of Matt Taylor, sidelined by an infected cut on his foot. Having reduced their opponents to 182 for 7 and harboured ambitions of dismissing them cheaply, the home side were made to suffer as Worcestershire’s last three wickets realised a further 244 runs.Not content with recording his first half century of the summer, Baker set a new career-best score of 75, eclipsing the 61 made against Middlesex in a match at Lord’s in September 2021. He was eventually caught behind off the bowling of van Meekeren, by which time he had faced 135 balls, hit a six and 7 fours and, together with his captain, established a new record eighth wicket stand for Worcestershire in matches against Gloucestershire, surpassing the 124 made by Steve Rhodes and Stuart Lampitt at Bristol in 1997.Gloucestershire took the new ball, only to see it fly to the boundary with ever greater frequency as Finch picked up the cudgels, straight-driving Zaman Akhter for four to raise 350 and then square cutting him for six. Rhodes had contributed his highest score of the season, hewn from 164 balls and adorned with 10 fours, and was just 10 short of a hundred when he offered the home side much-needed relief, taking on van Meekeren and top-edging a pull shot to mid-on.Last man Pennington drove van Meekeren for four to raise 400 and a fourth batting bonus point before top-edging the Dutchman to mid-on, having harvested 26 from 20 balls. The last wicket yielded 34 runs and Finch equalled his highest score in Championship cricket, finishing unbeaten on 33.Slow left armer Zafar Gohar exerted control in 13 overs that yielded just 29 runs, while van Meekeren and Akhter finished with 4 for 93 and 3 for 88 respectively. In truth, Gloucestershire’s seamers were guilty of bowling too many short deliveries and it was a tired-looking side that trudged off at the lunch interval.

While admitting to nursing self-doubt and a bruised ego after being dropped, he is firm in his belief that he still has a lot to contribute as an India player

Sreshth Shah21-Aug-2023Cheteshwar Pujara believes he still has a lot to offer India’s Test side, even though he confesses that being dropped has sometimes left him frustrated, battling self-doubt and nursing a bruised ego. The veteran of 103 Test caps last represented India at the World Test Championship final in June, and was not picked for the side’s tour of the West Indies, their first campaign of the new WTC cycle.”There have been ups and downs in the last few years and it tests you as a player because having played say more than 90 Test matches, when I got dropped, I still had to prove myself, I still had to prove that I belonged there. Its a different type of challenge,” Pujara told podcast on the sidelines of his county stint with Sussex. “Sometimes you do get frustrated, even if you have to prove yourself after 90 Tests and five-six thousand, whatever number of runs I had scored, its not easy.Related

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“Sometimes it plays around with your ego. Having been successful at the international level for so many years, there are still doubts – are you good enough. And if you have to prove yourself again and again, [you wonder] whether it is worth it.”In the 2021-23 WTC cycle, Pujara was India’s second-highest run-scorer with 928 runs at an average of 32.00, just behind Virat Kohli’s 932 at 32.13. He scored 14 and 27 in the WTC final, and was left out in the aftermath of India’s defeat to Australia at The Oval, to the chagrin of some former cricketers including Sunil Gavaskar, who felt he was being made a ‘scapegoat.'”I keep telling myself that I know I belong there,” Pujara said. “I know that the kind of contributions I have made to Indian cricket, I still have a lot to contribute. I was given an interesting stat some time ago where I was told that whenever I have scored more than 70 or 80 runs for the Indian team, it is about 80% of the times India have gone on to win… or we haven’t lost that particular Test match. So I know if I score runs for the Indian team, most times we are on the winning side.”For the record, India have won 23 and lost just six of the 34 Test matches where Pujara has made at least one 70-plus score. For comparison, they have won 18 and lost 10 of the Tests in which Kohli has made 70-plus scores. This, of course, can be interpreted in a number of ways: run-scoring is often at its hardest in defeats, which tend to occur against strong bowling attacks and/or in challenging conditions.’When I score runs here, it gets noticed back home. That is not the reason why I play for Sussex. I play for Sussex because I enjoy playing cricket here’•Getty Images

Since being dropped for the second time in 18 months – he was also left out after the 2021-22 tour of South Africa – Pujara has been busy playing both red and white-ball cricket. Over recent weeks he has scored a second-innings 133 for West Zone against Central Zone in the Duleep Trophy, and unbeaten centuries against Northants (106*) and Somerset (117*) in the One-Day Cup for Sussex. Pujara said he enjoys the domestic grind, and not just because his runs keep him in contention for Tests.”I enjoy playing cricket for Sussex, so when I score runs here, it gets noticed back home,” Pujara said. “That is not the reason why I play for Sussex. I play for Sussex because I enjoy playing cricket here. But the amount of runs I score here or in domestic cricket back home, it always helps me getting back into the team.”Pujara, India’s eighth-highest run-scorer in Tests, also said he was better off now framing his focus around his game rather than selection. He also said he doesn’t want to be “just another selfish cricketer” who bats for their spot, insteading striving to remain a key match-winner for India in Tests.”In my cricketing career, I have been put under pressure so many times where I’ve lost my spot in the team. But you just try and play for the team. You don’t try and play for your spot,” Pujara said. “I would keep it very simple because if you play for your spot, you’re just another selfish cricketer who is just being there in the playing XI, playing for the spot but not contributing to the team.”If I am not good enough contributing to the team, I am happy sitting at home rather than scoring. As an example, If I get out on 20 or 30 it is not that as a batsman you get out [on purpose], but if you score another 20-30 more and end up scoring a fifty and India doesn’t go on and win the Test match, is that going to be helpful for the India team? No.”It might be helpful for me as an individual but I never have that thought process. I am someone who will think that I should be good enough to win games for the India team. Not just try to survive and be part of the playing XI. If you want to be in the team, you should want to make a difference. Not just be in the team.”

The approval comes hours after the PCB wrote to the ICC expressing its displeasure at the delay in the issuance of the visas

Osman Samiuddin and Nagraj Gollapudi25-Sep-2023The ICC has confirmed that the Indian government has approved visas for the Pakistan squad travelling to the World Cup, less than 48 hours before the team is due to fly out to Hyderabad via Dubai. The approval came on Monday, hours after the PCB had written to the ICC expressing its displeasure at the delay in the issuance of the visas. At the time they had sent the email, approval for the visas had not been given.But the delay had already caused the Pakistan team to cancel plans for a pre-World Cup team bonding trip to the UAE.”Ministry of Home Affairs gives security clearance for issue of visas,” an Indian government spokesperson told ESPNcricinfo. “The process is underway.” The PCB is expected to receive the passports with visas for its squad on Monday evening.Matters had reached a head earlier on the day, however, as working hours finished in Islamabad and there was still no news of whether the visas would be issued. Though the Pakistan board had been in regular contact with the ICC all through, it decided to write formally to the governing body to complain, and say that such inequitable treatment to Pakistan – which was the only team participating at the World Cup to wait this long to receive visas – will not be tolerated.In the email, the PCB asked the ICC what steps the global body intended to take to resolve the issue, and also asked whether, in line with the obligations of a host board, written confirmations had been provided by the BCCI – or on behalf of the Indian government – that visas will be provided to all participating nations. In July at its annual conference in Durban, the ICC had been told by BCCI that visas for the Pakistan contingent would be facilitated in time. Whether that was put in writing could not be confirmed.The PCB has also raised the question of whether the inability to provide visas in time for the squad to travel constitutes a breach of the hosting agreement of the World Cup.Pakistan will now fly out to Dubai in the early hours of Wednesday (September 27), transit there, and then travel to Hyderabad on Wednesday evening. They are scheduled to play their first warm-up game on Friday, against New Zealand, in Hyderabad.News of the delay in visas was first reported by ESPNcricinfo last Friday. Pakistan had planned to undertake a two-day team-bonding trip to the UAE ahead of their arrival in India, but that had to be scrapped because, with their passports with the Indian high commission in Islamabad, they were unable to travel.Before the matter was resolved, PCB spokesperson Umar Farooq said in a statement: “There has been an extraordinary delay in getting clearance and securing Indian visas for the Pakistan team for ICC World Cup. We have written to ICC raising our concerns about inequitable treatment towards Pakistan and reminding them of these obligations towards the World Cup.”According to the PCB, the process for getting the visas began at the end of August, when the board received an invitation letter from the ICC, which formed a part of their submission to the Indian High Commission. Because the Pakistan team was traveling to and from Sri Lanka for the Asia Cup – of which it was officially the host – the PCB had sought to submit visa applications without physical passports in the first instance. They were told that was not possible and because passports were needed, the PCB applied finally on September 19, soon after the return of the squad from the Asia Cup.PCB chairman Zaka Ashraf with BCCI president Roger Binny and vice president Rajeev Shukla in Lahore during the Asia Cup•PCB

Players of Pakistani origin from other countries have also been affected. Two from Netherlands, Shariz Ahmed and Saqib Zulfiqar, both of Pakistan origin, couldn’t travel to Bengaluru in late August for a short preparatory camp organised by the Dutch board as they did not get visas in time.For the World Cup the KNCB had applied for visas for the Dutch squad on August 8. Every participating team sends the BCCI a list of names traveling for the World Cup, after which the BCCI sends an invitation letter while simultaneously getting permission from various arms of the Indian government – Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs.On August 2, the Home Ministry sent a note to BCCI stating, “security clearance of Ministry of Home Affairs is required for the event (World Cup) only if there are foreign participant from the PRC countries ie Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Sudan, foreigners of Pakistani Origin and Stateless persons” (PRC is ‘prior referral category’). Anyone from a PRC country needs a security clearance before a visa is granted.In the case of Shariz and Zulfiqar, their visas eventually arrived days before they were scheduled to travel as part of the Dutch squad to India on September 19. The visas were only cleared only after external intervention.Earlier this year, Usman Khawaja, the Australia opener who was born in Pakistan, had to fly out to India a day later than his team-mates after a delay in obtaining a visa. In 2011, he was denied a visa initially before being granted one to play in the Champions League T20 in India for New South Wales. In between he has travelled to India on several occasions.GMT 1425 The story was updated after the ICC confirmed that the Indian government had approved the visas.