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Stoinis was spoken to by match referee Dean Cosker but will not be formally charged with a breach of the ECB’s disciplinary code

Matt Roller15-Aug-2022Marcus Stoinis will not be formally sanctioned after appearing to question the legality of Mohammad Hasnain’s action during a match in the Hundred.Stoinis, playing for Southern Brave against Oval Invincibles, was rushed by a Hasnain short ball clocked at 88mph/142kph and caught at mid-off during Brave’s seven-wicket defeat on Sunday night.When he was walking back to the dugout, Stoinis mimicked a bowling action with a throwing motion. ESPNcricinfo understands that Stoinis was spoken to by match referee Dean Cosker but that he will not be formally charged with a breach of the ECB’s disciplinary code.Hasnain was suspended from bowling after being called by umpires during the BBL, but was cleared to return in June after remodelling his action. During that tournament, Moises Henriques had similarly questioned the legality of his action shouting, “nice throw, mate,” after playing and missing.Hasnain has taken three wickets in three appearances for Invincibles to date, with an economy rate of 1.93 runs per ball. His action has not been reported by the umpires in any of those three matches.Invincibles’ win on Sunday was their third in a row, and leaves them well-placed to qualify for the knockout stages.

Ross Taylor might be back for the hosts, but Mustafizur Rahman’s hamstring remains a question mark for the visitors

Mohammad Isam25-Mar-2021

Big Picture

At the crack of dawn on Bangladesh’s 50th Independence Day, there is hope that the cricket team in New Zealand will deliver a performance that matches the grand occasion. Many fans back home will be hoping that when they wake up on Friday, Bangladesh will be going toe-to-toe with New Zealand in Wellington.After New Zealand’s middle order led them to a series win in the second ODI in Christchurch, this game has got the status of a dead rubber. But in the age of the ODI Super League, every match counts and Bangladesh will be hoping to get the ten points out of New Zealand at any cost. The home side, however, will be boosted by the return of Ross Taylor, who passed a fitness test after missing the first two matches.Taylor will be a welcome addition to the middle order. In Christchurch, New Zealand were reduced to 53 for 3 before Tom Latham and Devon Conway revived their flagging chase. The third-wicket pair added 113 runs, before Latham took it upon himself to complete the chase with his fifth ODI hundred – his third unbeaten effort in successful chases.Latham later also acknowledged Jimmy Neesham and Daryl Mitchell for their help during the chase, as he added 76 for the fifth wicket with Neesham and the final 33 runs with newcomer Mitchell. Latham was lucky too, having been dropped on 58, minutes after Neesham was also dropped on three.Bangladesh would go on to rue these missed chances, which overshadowed a much-improved batting performance earlier in the game. Tamim Iqbal and Mohammad Mithun made half-centuries at different points in the innings to help the side reach 271. Iqbal was patient in his 78 off 108 balls, as he saw off New Zealand’s initial burst of pace with a struggling Soumya Sarkar and Mushfiqur Rahim. But after Iqbal was run out through Neesham’s nifty footwork, Mithun blazed six fours and two sixes in his unbeaten 73.The Bangladesh bowlers, however, couldn’t translate their first big score into victory. They were perhaps a bit too impatient towards the latter part of the New Zealand chase, particularly after Rahim dropped Neesham’s regulation edge. For a long time in the match however, offspinners Mahedi Hasan and Mehidy Hasan Miraz kept asking questions, which forced Latham and Conway to be more conservative.Bangladesh have to put up another big score on a tricky pitch against a superb bowling attack, but Iqbal and the rest of the batsmen have shown that they have the ability to do the job in New Zealand.

Form guide

(Last five completed matches)New Zealand WWLWW
Bangladesh LLWWWMohammad Mithun’s rapid half-century in the second ODI was a contrast to his usually conservative approach•Getty Images

In the spotlight

Martin Guptill has looked threatening in the first two ODIs but has only scored 58 runs so far. At the Basin Reserve, he will be expected to fulfill expectations from this series and reprise his century against Pakistan in the last ODI played at this venue three years ago.Mohammad Mithun broke free of a pattern of low-scores with a scintillating 73 off 57 balls in Christchurch. Mithun played some audacious shots too, which was a contrast from his usually conservative approach in the middle order. Perhaps he can make this new avatar his own.

Team news

Ross Taylor’s availability means Will Young is unlikely to play. New Zealand also have Tim Southee in their squad if they wish to rest Trent Boult.New Zealand (probable): 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Henry Nicholls, 3 Devon Conway, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Tom Latham (capt & wk), 6 James Neesham, 7 Daryl Mitchell, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Kyle Jamieson, 10 Matt Henry, 11 Trent Boult/Tim SoutheeBangladesh are unlikely to break the combination that pushed the hosts in the second ODI, although Mustafizur Rahman’s hamstring remains a question mark until the toss on Friday.Bangladesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal (capt), 2 Liton Das, 3 Soumya Sarkar, 4 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk) 5 Mohammad Mithun, 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Mehidy Hasan Miraz 8 Mahedi Hasan, 9 Mohammad Saifuddin, 10 Taskin Ahmed, 11 Mustafizur Rahman

Pitch and conditions

The Basin Reserve dished out a green-top in the Test between New Zealand and West Indies last December. It is unlikely to be so extreme on Friday, with sides batting first averaging 280-plus in the last ten years.

Stats and trivia

• The Basin Reserve has hosted only three ODIs in the last ten years, and this is its first in more than three years.
• Mehidy Hasan Miraz and Mahedi Hasan made their first-class debuts for Khulna Division in the same match in 2015. Mahedi is three years older than the 23-year old Miraz, who is, however, the senior cricketer with 83 international matches compared to Mahedi’s six.

Quotes

“We had a bit of luck to go our way in the last game, and I am sure Bangladesh will want to finish the ODI series on a high note.”

They had lost six T20Is in a row coming into this game, but a below-par Bangladesh never tested them

Danyal Rasool24-Jan-2020It was neither pretty nor particularly engaging, but now isn’t the time for Pakistan to worry about that. They followed a disciplined bowling performance with a gritty chase spearheaded by the returning Shoaib Malik, after a second-ball duck for Babar Azam threatened to turn a straightforward task somewhat hairy. It sealed a five-wicket win for Pakistan, snapping a six-match losing streak in the format, and ensuring they hold on to their No. 1 T20I ranking for now.Malik’s unbeaten 45-ball 58 was the only half-century of the game, coming at something of a canter after Bangladesh spread the field through the middle overs, happy to concede singles that weren’t really theirs to give away, given the modesty of the total they were defending. Debutant Ahsan Ali, and towards the close Iftikhar Ahmed, gave him useful company, but with the asking rate never really allowed to rise above eight, Pakistan weren’t in any imminent danger.The bowlers were due thanks from the batsman for ensuring they never needed to get out of second gear. Shaheen Afridi began tightly, and Imad Wasim gave little away in the Powerplay after Bangladesh decided to bat on what looked, at the time, a belter of a surface. Though Tamim Iqbal and Mohammad Naim stuck around for 11 overs, the bowlers kept them on a leash throughout, and their opening partnership only produced 71 runs at 6.45 per over. Shadab Khan ensured the squeeze was maintained through the middle overs, and Bangladesh never got in a position to explode at the finish.Mohammad Rizwan looks on as Tamim Iqbal clips one into the leg side•AFP

A strangely subdued inningsThe caution Bangladesh displayed was surprising, particularly during the second half of the innings when it became clear wickets would no longer be a problem. While Pakistan’s tightness made it difficult to score quickly, there was no evidence Bangladesh were ready to show any more ambition than the odd boundary off the loose ball, and it was only when Haris Rauf’s final over went for 13 that the innings run rate exceeded seven an over.For a team that preferred to deal in running between the wickets, there was a touch of tardiness there too. An ill-judged second run brought the first wicket when Tamim was found well short of his crease when Mohammad Rizwan whipped off the bails, and one of the few moments of genuine quality in an otherwise uninspiring game came when Shadab ran all the way to long-on off his own bowling, and followed up with a direct hit on the turn to catch Liton Das short of his ground.Pakistan lose two in powerplayJust because the target was low didn’t mean Pakistan were set for a canter. They played three T20Is against Sri Lanka on this ground three months ago, had to chase targets of 166, 183 and 148, and fell short each time. Twice, they ended up scoring less than the 142 they needed in this game. When Babar fell second ball, tickling one to the keeper to record his first duck in T20Is, Pakistan looked in for a grind.Ahsan Ali appeared to possess the temperament that will please Misbah-ul-Haq, pouncing on any loose deliveries to relieve the pressure on Mohammad Hafeez at the other end. For his own part, Hafeez began brightly before closing his bat face a fraction early off a Mustafizur Rahman slower ball, sending a leading edge to cover point. At that point, Pakistan were 35 for 2 in five overs.Pakistan gather around Shadab Khan after the dismissal of Tamim Iqbal•AFP

Bangladesh release the pressureFrom that point, Mahmudullah may wonder if he allowed the game to drift. The fields were spread out and the bowling notably defensive, almost as if it were a plan to allow the batsmen to take as many singles as they pleased as long as the boundaries didn’t come. From the middle of the sixth over to the fifth ball of the 11th, when Ahsan holed out to long-off, Pakistan scored off 31 consecutive balls. Forty runs came off those 31 balls, and the asking rate dipped below seven with plenty of batting to follow.Malik cashes inFor at least one of the two men recalled, this could be the beginning of yet another redemption story. Malik, who ended up walking away with the Player-of-the-Match award, milked the Bangladesh spinners, the visitors’ tactics playing right into his hands. With Ahsan gone, he quickly assumed charge, keeping on top of the asking rate without once needing to play a shot in anger. The only time he took a risk, he was dropped at long-off following a valiant effort on the boundary, and when the ball trickled away for four, he had brought up yet another half-century.Bangladesh would continue to plug away, dismissing Iftikhar Ahmed and Imad Wasim, but Pakistan continued to coast, and the match went into its final over without a hint of tension in the air. With two required off four balls and Malik off strike, Rizwan went for a heave, edging the ball straight to deep midwicket. It was the simplest of chances, and could have put a few beads of sweat on Pakistani foreheads had it been taken. Mohammad Mithun, however, made a mess if it, and Pakistan cantered back for the winning second run. It was only fitting that an insipid, indifferent performance from Bangladesh was sealed by a moment of ineptitude, as Pakistan took the lead in lead in a series that will hopefully contain more entertainment than was on display on Friday, in front of a half-full Gaddafi Stadium.

Roshen penalised after apparent failure to ground bat while turning for second run

Andrew Fidel Fernando in Pallekele15-Nov-2018Sri Lanka were docked five penalty runs in the third session of the second day at Pallekele, following a strange interpretation of the law governing deliberate short runs by the umpires.Here’s what happened:

• Roshen Silva was batting alongside Akila Dananjaya, when Roshen cut Jack Leach fine of Moeen Ali at short third man.
• Although there was an easy two for the taking, both batsmen assumed that the ball would reach the boundary, and ambled to the other end, while they watched Moeen chase the ball down.
• Moeen caught up with the slowing ball, however, and reeled it in centimetres short of the boundary, sliding along the ground and scooping the ball back into play.
• Upon realising that a four had been prevented, the batsmen – who had crossed and were now at opposite ends of the pitch – decided to cross back, only sauntering as they did, because Moeen’s momentum had taken him over the boundary line, and he was in no position to fire in a quick return throw.
• Dananjaya did, by the way, ground his bat at the striker’s end and return for the second in the regular fashion.

Where the umpires took issue with the batsmen, however, was that Roshen did not ground his bat at the non-strikers’ end. He had been watching the ball and Moeen, and had seemingly neglected to ensure he completed the run.Here is where the five penalty runs comes in. Law 18.5.1 states that:“If either umpire considers that one or both batsmen deliberately ran short at that umpire’s end, the umpire concerned shall, when the ball is dead, call and signal Short run and inform the other umpire of what has occurred and apply [five penalty runs].”The primary reason for deliberately running a short run – I.e. crossing in the middle of the pitch, then crossing back without touching down, is to ensure the senior batsman in the partnership retains the strike, perhaps in a situation where the batsmen realise it is not possible to complete two runs in their entirety.Here, however, Roshen was so close to the non-strikers when Moeen stopped the ball, that he could have virtually reached over and grounded his bat. The fact that he didn’t appears more the result of an oversight on his part – perhaps he thought he had already completed the first run. In any case, there was no pressure to scamper back for the second. The batsmen jogged it and made it back to their original creases in plenty of time.It is also important to note that at no point during this pair’s 56-run partnership did either batsman turn down a single in order to manipulate the strike. They batted normally, in other words.The umpires though, have ruled the short run intentional. England had five runs added to their first-innings total as a result, taking their score to 290.”I don’t think Roshen did it deliberately,” said Dimuth Karunaratne at the close. “He thought the ball had gone for four so he came back to his partner to give a high five. Those things can happen. It’s part of the game, we don’t blame him. We are not so worried about the five runs.”

Mominul Haque has been recalled to the Bangladesh squad for the first Test against Australia in place of Mosaddek Hossain, who is suffering from an eye infection

Mohammad Isam20-Aug-2017Twenty-four hours after he was dropped for the first time in his Test career, Mominul Haque has been reinstated in the Bangladesh squad for the first Test against Australia, which starts from August 27. Mominul will replace Mosaddek Hossain, who is suffering from an eye infection, and the turnaround came after a meeting between the BCB president, Nazmul Hassan, and the selection committee.Mosaddek will need at least 15 days of rest for his condition to improve, according to an eye specialist. His infection was known to the selectors after he missed Bangladesh’s training camp in Chittagong earlier this month. During Saturday’s press conference, coach Chandika Hathurusingha had said that Nasir Hossain had been picked in the 14-man squad as Mosaddek’s back-up.However, following a stormy press conference after the team’s announcement on Saturday and subsequent criticism by the media, the BCB president called the selection committee, which also includes Hathurusingha, for an impromptu meeting. Hassan later said that such discussions with selectors and players often occur before a tour or home series, and this time took place after the squad was announced. Hassan said he would have insisted on Mominul’s inclusion in the squad if he had met with the selectors before Saturday’s announcement.”I don’t know if he would be in the XI but there was an opportunity to keep him in the squad,” Hassan said. “What would happen if they made it a 15-man squad instead of a 14-man squad? There’s no need to create controversy. Anybody would feel bad seeing Mominul out of the squad.”We have decided that Mominul is coming in as Saikat has an eye infection. So we don’t want to take a risk with him. See, it wouldn’t have come to that if we didn’t have a gap [in communication].”Squad for the first Test: Mushfiqur Rahim (capt & wk), Mominul Haque, Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Liton Das, Soumya Sarkar, Shakib Al Hasan, Sabbir Rahman, Mustafizur Rahman, Taijul Islam, Mehedi Hasan, Taskin Ahmed, Nasir Hossain, Shafiul Islam.

An attendance of 27,119, a domestic record for Twenty20 cricket in the UK, watched a thrilling Middlesex victory over Surrey

Vithushan Ehantharajah at Lord's21-Jul-2016
ScorecardEoin Morgan’s 42 helped Middlesex beat local rivals Surrey•Getty Images

A thrilling match, in front of a record crowd, broadcast on TV and with the very best on show taking star turns. The T20 Blast has not always been able to get all those ingredients into the same pot. But tonight, everything seemed to fall into place.The attendance of 27,119 is now a domestic record for Twenty20 cricket in the UK. Lord’s also happens to hold the record for an international, too, when the 2009 World T20 final reeled in over 28,000. There were a couple factors that threatened today’s record.Severe delays on the Jubilee Line had some punters thinking twice about joining the clammy rush-hour scrum to St John’s Wood. The walk from Baker Street station, normally a leisurely stroll past some of Sherlock Holmes’ old watering holes, was a steady stream of fans frog-marching cooler bags along the westerly brim of Regent’s Park. Middlesex’s own form, too, might have encouraged some diehards to stay away to avoid the gloating bellows of their rivals from south London, who had enjoyed a six-game winning streak at Lord’s before the tables turned last season.But just as bigger steps cut down the 20-minute walk, signal failures rectified from Bond Street, and the opening of the Warner Stand (roof still to be attached) increased the potential for a bumper crowd, so too did Middlesex’s rediscovered knack of winning short form games. There is a marked difference to the way they are now approaching Twenty20 cricket.Dawid Malan, following his appointment as white-ball captain, has ensured that elements of Middlesex’s T20 plans are now player-led. That his side triumphed tonight by chasing down a target of 197, with plenty left in the tank, while he, their leading run-scorer in the competition, was slapping Sri Lanka A about for 185 off 126 balls, says it all. With bat and ball, this was a free-form T20 performance that sees them jump to third in the south group, with 13 points from 11 played.It is worth starting with the chase of 197, done with five balls and as many wickets to spare. Paul Stirling could not have hit a more Paul Stirling 34: cover drives played with a savagery rarely associated with the shot while also finessing a back-of-a-length ball over backward square leg for a dainty six. Eoin Morgan, pushed up to three, then clobbered 42 off 24 balls, which included putting Azhar Mahmood on the roof of the Grandstand. Rarely one for holding the pose or a lingering gaze, even he looked on wistfully at his own majesty.In the last two months, Morgan has played to 50,000 in a World T20 final at Eden Gardens, stepped out at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in the IPL and then, in his opening T20 Blast fixture, batted on a school ground. A lot is made of Morgan’s appetite for English domestic cricket, but who can blame him when life outside it sees him on Broadway. He showed today what keeps him going – a challenge, an atmosphere, a prize to be won. Never mind attracting overseas stars, it’s imperative to have a competition that motivates your own.He departed in the 11th over, one which started with 85 needed from 60 balls. With 30 balls left, that had been chopped down to 37, thanks to a brisk partnership between George Bailey (50) and John Simpson (43 from 26) that was eventually broken for 67. By then, the ask was simply 10 from 14.Quite how Surrey failed to breach 200, having smashed 80 for none off the first six overs, was a mystery. Once Jason Roy departed at the beginning of the eighth over, for a thrill-a-ball half-century which took just 24 deliveries, the constant fear of boundaries subsided. The 10 overs that followed the Powerplay saw just 74 scored. Surrey’s middle order has long been a problem area masked by the dashers up top. For them to evolve as a T20 force, it needs addressing.It was the introduction of legspinner Nathan Sowter that shored Middlesex up, allowing them to retain respectability in the field. Coming on in the seventh over, he returned figures of two for 29 from his four overs: a back-of-the-hand delivery slowing up on Steven Davies, who skewed a drive to gully before Rory Burns, stuck in a rut, top-edged a sweep to John Simpson.The main squeeze came between the 11th and 16th overs as Sowter and Ryan Higgins bowled in tandem for a five-over period that saw 33 runs and just one boundary conceded. Higgins is an interesting case: primarily a batsman, he found himself bowling a few overs here and there during preseason and in the warm-up Twenty20 matches. It was in these fixtures that he surprised coaches and Middlesex’s analyst with his ability to seemingly bowl yorkers at will.Today was the first time that Middlesex really put his newly discovered talents to the test. Initially, his three overs went for just 17 runs – none of them from boundaries. But when Harry Podmore was removed from the attack after a second waist-high full toss, he returned to bowl the remaining five balls of the penultimate over. The first delivery hit straight over his head and into the members by Chris Morris. The very next was caught at midwicket for his first wicket in the T20 Blast. He was the only bowler that restricted Finch to less than a run a ball.The individual to benefit most from the squeeze was James Fuller, whose spell at the death, which returned 2 for 14 – he took 2 for 3 in the 20th over – helped offset a catastrophic opening burst that saw him concede 29 from his opening two overs.Surrey’s destiny is now out of their hands. Winning their remaining games will help, but without the goodwill of others, they face another season of T20 disappointment.

Glenn McGrath believes Mitchell Johnson “has to play” the first Test of the Investec Ashes series and that he can “reopen the scars” he inflicted in England during the last series in Australia

George Dobell29-Jun-2015Glenn McGrath believes Mitchell Johnson “has to play” the first Test of the Investec Ashes series and that he can “reopen the scars” he inflicted on England during the last series in Australia.Remarkable it may be to those who witnessed Johnson destroy England in Australia barely 18-months ago – when he claimed 37 wickets in the five Tests at an average of 13.97 – his place in the team for the first Test in Cardiff was suggested to be not entirely secure in the early stages of the tour.Equally remarkably for those who saw the high standards reached by Ryan Harris in recent Ashes series, he is likely to struggle to make the first Test XI after missing the West Indies tour. Nothing better illustrates Australia’s fast bowling strength.But, as far as McGrath is concerned, Johnson is a “lethal” bowler and “can’t be left out”. Not only does he feel Johnson has developed into a more dangerous bowler than the one who has rarely fired on previous Ashes tours, but he thinks the psychological damage inflicted by Johnson in Australia gives him an advantage.”The way he finished that last series in Australia was incredible,” McGrath said. “He was player of the series without a doubt.”There will be a lot of scars from that and if Johnson can get off to a good start here it will just reopen those scars. He will just power through.”The first Test is a big game. If Johnson can have a good game and intimidate he is going to be lethal.”They can’t leave him out. Just because of the way he dominated in the last series and the way he bowled with good heat against Kent. If he starts the series well he won’t stop.”He hits the seam and if he hits the seam he is going to be very effective. When he came here last time his arm was lower and he wasn’t hitting it so much.”If he does well it will have a big effect on the rest of the team. It will really lift everyone. Test cricket is a psychological game and if you start well you go from strength to strength.”‘I think everyone expects me to make a 5-0 prediction and I’ve dug a hole for myself over the years. If I say anything else they’ll think I’m not confident.’•Hardy’s

While McGrath remains an admirer of Harris, he suspects Australia will go into the first Test with Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazelwood as the first choice seamers and said he would prefer Shane Watson to Mitchell Marsh in the allrounder position.”Harris is a quality player,” he said. “But you don’t want to leave out either Starc or Hazlewood and you have got to play Mitchell Johnson. So maybe they leave Rhino out.”Hazlewood will enjoy the English conditions. I loved playing here with the Dukes ball. I think I averaged two wickets a Test more than elsewhere. He is the type of bowler who hits the deck and can swing the ball and he does it from a high action. I think he will really enjoy it.”And I’ve always liked Watson. I think he has so much potential. He’ll get given the opportunity to start and I want to see him go out there and perform.”McGrath predicting a whitewash has become a familiar pre-Ashes ritual. And he has not disappointed this time, either, though he did offer a few caveats. “When we came over here and we were playing pretty well there was never a 5-0 series win,” he said. “But this could always be the first. I think everyone expects me to make a 5-0 prediction and I’ve dug a hole for myself over the years. If I say anything else they’ll think I’m not confident.”But what may be more surprising is his suggestion that there should be a crackdown on sledging; at junior level at least. While insisting that the media tended to overplay the amount of verbal abuse occurring in Ashes series, he did concede that the behaviour of international sportsmen is often mimicked in clubs and playgrounds.”To see kids sledging is totally wrong and should not be allowed,” he said. “Unfortunately kids do copy what they see on TV. Sportsmen have a role to play as role models.”But if I’m sitting there blaming someone on TV or sportsman for the way my children are playing then I’m not accepting responsibility and think that’s pretty poor. For me as a parent I’m the role model for that child and the way they play the sport – have to take responsibility.”It should never get personal or abusive. I didn’t have any chat until I was well into my first-class career.”But to be No. 1 you have to play hard. That isn’t necessarily sledging. It’s as much about body language than what you say. I don’t want to see a bunch of robots and a bowler clapping a batsman after he’s been hit for four and saying good shot. Just play it hard and tough. That is why the umpires are there and the match referee is there.”

MS Dhoni has left his future as captain in the selectors’ hands, but he has also said he won’t run away from the responsibility

Sidharth Monga09-Dec-2012MS Dhoni has left his future as captain in the selectors’ hands, but he has also said he won’t run away from the responsibility.”As a leader this is a challenge thrown at me,” Dhoni said moments after India completed their first set of back-to-back home Test losses since 1999-2000. “It is always good to lead a side when you are performing well. That is not the time you need a leader. Leading a side is all about when the team is not doing well. To try to gel the team together. To back the youngsters, back the seniors. Try to move in the right direction.”The easiest thing to do for me right now is to quit the captaincy and stay part of the side. That’s running away from responsibility that’s upon us. Of course there are others who will decide. There is BCCI and other administrative people who look into that. For me, my responsibility is to get the team together and be prepared for the next Test match.”As usual, Dhoni contradicted himself in the same answer when asked to elaborate on Duncan Fletcher’s role. He said, rightly so, that the team shouldn’t look for excuses and scapegoats, but in the same breath he made these Test defeats sound like an aberration, failing to admit to the lows that the team has reached.”He [Fletcher] has got excellent technical knowledge about our batting,” Dhoni said. “He guides us in the right direction. Ultimately once you cross that rope you are on your own whatever happens. That’s the time you have to get up and retaliate. That’s where we are lacking as of now.”It’s wrong to question the coach. We have won quite a few series, the ODI performance have been really good. In between we have won Test series. Okay in Australia and England we struggled, but this is a series after that that we have not done well, the last two matches that you see. You shouldn’t really look for excuses, to put it on the coach. Ultimately it is up to the 11 players who turn up on the field. On a wicket like this, you need to score more runs, and the situation will be different.”For the record, India have been knocked out of two ODI tournaments this year, they have lost to Bangladesh, and were disappointing in World Twenty20 too. In Tests, they have won at home, and that too against West Indies and New Zealand. In the West Indies, they won one Test and refused to try to win another. The Test record under Fletcher is 10 defeats to six wins. Reduce it to strong opposition, and it becomes 9-1. This is not to put all the blame on Fletcher, but to clarify that India haven’t won much at all, unlike what the captain believes.Dhoni also said the side’s batting can’t run away from responsibility either. The first question he was asked at the press conference was, “How bad does it need to get before it gets better?” Dhoni didn’t answer directly, but responded with a description of batting failures.”The batting order will have to take responsibility,” he said. “We need to score more runs. This was a very good wicket to bat on. Of course the bowlers will bowl a few good deliveries that you need to keep out. But the top seven, most of us will have to score at the same time so that we can get a par total, which the bowlers can look to defend. If you don’t score too many runs in the first innings and if the opposition score runs in the first innings, you will find yourself under pressure.”Dhoni said this was not the worst phase of his career. The worst came in England and Australia, he said, for at least here they can hope to rectify the problems. “If you talk about the low, the England, Australia series were the lows because we weren’t able to compete,” he said. “Here we know what the faults are and we should be able to rectify those. Overall the bowlers are doing well, I think. Once you don’t get enough runs on the board you question bowlers too as to if they would have defended a bigger score as well, but I think the spinners have done really well. Bit more contribution from the fast bowlers would really help.”On the fast bowlers, the obvious question was about Zaheer Khan’s effectiveness and fitness. “It’s a very technical question,” Dhoni said. “The beauty of it is we all know the problem and it will be great help if find out a solution. Everybody is asking the same question.”As far as the fitness is concerned, he has been the way he is for the last few years. Definitely he is not unfit, he is doing everything. The England batsmen are doing well. From behind it looks as if he is bowling in the right area. Bowlers sometimes go through a phase when they don’t get wickets. This is a phase maybe. As far as the bowling is concerned he is still bowling quite the same. He is swinging it both ways. We will have to wait and watch. He looks fit. Fitness is not an issue.”We will wait and watch indeed. Dhoni was due to go to a selection meeting soon after leaving the ground.

Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Amir has been given permission by a London court to appeal his six-month sentence in the spot-fixing trial

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Nov-2011Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Amir has been given permission by a London court to appeal his six-month sentence in the spot-fixing trial. The 19-year-old left-arm fast bowler was not sent to jail, but to a young offenders’ detention centre.A judge at the Court of Appeal refused Amir bail but granted him permission to appeal his sentence. Judge Kathryn Thirlwall, at the Court of Appeal, said any appeal should be heard by November 29.On November 3, the Southwark Crown Court handed out jail terms to two other players and their agent, who were found guilty in the spot-fixing case. Salman Butt, the former Pakistan captain, was sentenced to two years and six months, while Mohammad Asif got a one-year jail sentence. Mazhar Majeed, the players’ agent, was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison.Butt has already filed an appeal against his sentence. Asif on the other hand is considering appealing his conviction.Amir and Asif were found guilty for agreeing to bowl no-balls at prearranged times during the Lord’s Test last August. Earlier this year, the ICC banned all three players for at least five years for their roles in the tainted Lord’s Test.Majeed was filmed accepting £150,000 from a reporter of the now defunct tabloid to arrange the spot-fixing.

“Can we start our summer now?” Michael Clarke asked the question after Australia had ended a seven-match losing streak with an eight-wicket win over a switched-off Sri Lanka at the Gabba

Peter English at the Gabba07-Nov-2010″Can we start our summer now?” Michael Clarke, the stand-in captain, asked the question after Australia had ended a seven-match losing streak with an eight-wicket win over a switched-off Sri Lanka at the Gabba.Australia’s international summer usually opens in Brisbane with the first Test, but this three-game one-day series was squeezed in, with organisers hoping it would spark the Ashes summer. Instead it resulted in the home side falling to three defeats in a week in front of tiny crowds, including only 9037 for the dead rubber.Clarke’s half-century to finish off the contest and strong performances from Clint McKay and Mitchell Starc improved the local moods. McKay grabbed career-best figures of 5 for 33 and Starc impressed in his second ODI with 4 for 27 as Sri Lanka were dismissed for 115.”It will kick-start our summer along nicely with the Ashes coming up, then the one-dayers before the World Cup,” McKay said. “It’s the first step in the right direction to make sure we play some good cricket all summer.”The win was Australia’s first in all forms of the game since July and McKay said it was “a bit of a relief”. “But with the belief we have in the group at the moment, we knew we weren’t too far away,” McKay said. “We had been playing good cricket at times but just hadn’t come away with the win.”Starc is only 20 but showed he was one to watch and easily out-bowled Mitchell Johnson, the side’s other left-arm fast man. “He hasn’t stopped smiling,” McKay said of Starc. “He bowled beautifully tonight and he’s a great one for the future.”There’s a lot of young quicks coming through and Mitch put his hand up tonight. He bowled with good pace and had it swinging around a bit and he’s going to be one to watch out for.”