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South Africa opener Dean Elgar has answered a late call to stand in for the injured Mitchell Marsh at Surrey

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Apr-2018Surrey have signed South Africa’s Dean Elgar as an overseas player for the first couple of months of the county season.Elgar, who had a brief spell at the club in 2015, is expected to be available for the club’s first County Championship game of the season; a match against Hampshire that starts on April 20.While Elgar will be unavailable for a Championship match against Worcestershire in May – he has a commitment elsewhere – he is expected to play in all Surrey’s other games before the end of May.Elgar replaces Mitchell Marsh, the club’s original choice of overseas player, who requires surgery on his ankle. A hugely experienced batsman, Elgar has represented South Africa in 49 Tests and is currently placed at No. 8 in the ICC’s Test rankings. As well as previous experience with Somerset, who he represented in 2013 (when he averaged 40 in the Championship) and 2017 (when he averaged 47), Elgar recently carried his bat in the Cape Town Test. That made him one of just two men – Desmond Haynes is the other – to have carried their bat three times in a Test.”Given the news that Mitch Marsh will need ankle surgery, to be able to bring someone of Dean’s calibre to the club, at such short notice, for the first period of the season is a real bonus,” Alec Stewart, Surrey’s director of cricket, said.”We know Dean well after his time with us in 2015 and his international quality and experience will be a real asset. We look forward to welcoming him to the Kia Oval.”

The ECB took the game by surprise when it announced that the new city-based tournament to be launched in 2020 will be based around a 100-ball concept rather than T20

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Apr-2018

Gareth Berg and Brad Taylor combined in a vital seventh-wicket stand to still Glamorgan’s hopes of a fightback

ECB Reporters Network04-Jun-2018
ScorecardAn unbeaten partnership of 85 between 21 year-old Brad Taylor and Gareth Berg enabled Hampshire to win by four wickets and also secure their place in the knockout stages of the competition.They required 228 to win after Glamorgan had underachieved in their innings. Although Hampshire faltered in mid-innings, the unbroken seventh wicket partnership guided them safely to their target with 6.4 overs to spare.Glamorgan, who were put in on a slow St Helen’s pitch, made a steady start, with Nick Selman and Aneurin Donald putting on 48 in eleven overs before Donald pulled a short ball to mid-wicket in Gareth Berg’s first over.Mason Crane was on in the eleventh over, and took wickets in his fourth and sixth overs. Selman nicked one to the wicketkeeper, then Kiran Carlson was caught at backward point.David Lloyd was also dismissed by Berg and after their promising start, the home team had lost four wickets for 45 runs.Colin Ingram and Graham Wagg then repaired the early damage, with some sensible shot selection, with Ingram reaching his third half-century in this year’s competition.After the sixth wicket pair had put on 56, Ingram was unlucky to be caught on the mid-wicket boundary off a long hop from Crane, who then took his fourth wicket when Andrew Salter – four balls later – tapped a full-toss back to the bowler.Crane ended with 4 for 60 from his 10 overs, but the England spinner was rather fortunate, with his victims guilty of some reckless shot selection.After Wagg was caught on the long-off boundary, the tail wagged as Lukas Carey and Timm van der Gugten put on 30 runs before Glamorgan were all out with eight balls remaining.Needing to score at the relatively modest rate of four and a half an over, Hampshire lost Rilee Rossouw in Timm van der Gugten’s second over, with Donald holding on to a steepler on the mid-wicket boundary.James Vince soon made his intentions clear, by advancing down the pitch to Carey, striking him for two straight boundaries, and when Ruaidhri Smith replaced Carey, he was punished for three fours in his first two overs.Van der Gugten then claimed his second wicket when Tom Alsop struck a short ball to mid-wicket, where Selman held on to a low one-handed catch. Vince continued to attack but after scoring 41 from 38 balls, with six fours, he was leg before attempting to turn Salter’s off-spin to the on-side.After Jimmy Adams chopped on, and Joe Weatherley was caught behind from Wagg’s first ball, Hampshire had stumbled, and when Lewis McManus was also caught by the wicketkeeper, the visitors were in some trouble at 144 for 6.Much depended on the seventh wicket pair and they duly responded by playing watchfully at the start, before accelerating towards the end of the run chase. Taylor top scored with an unbeaten 54 and with Berg also reaching a half-century, the two all-rounders also shared six wickets to produce matchwinning performances.

Fast bowlers hits his straps as Hampshire battle to stay in the contest against Division One leaders

ECB Reporters Network01-Jul-2019Jamie Overton claimed five wickets to help Somerset gain a narrow advantage on the second day of the Specsavers County Championship match with Hampshire at Taunton. Plagued by back problems in recent seasons, the tall pace bowler announced himself back to his best with 5 for 66 from 21 overs as the visitors closed on 329 for 8, led by a century from Sam Northeast.Overton’s figures included a spell of 3 for 10 from six hostile overs at the River End with the second new ball, sending back Keith Barker, James Fuller and Kyle Abbott to tilt the contest Somerset’s way.Earlier, Northeast had hit a chanceless century off 167 balls, with 13 fours and a six, sharing stands of 101 with Ajinkya Rahane and 82 with Rilee Rossouw, who contributed 44.Hampshire began the day on 15 for 1 in reply to 408 and soon lost Joe Weatherley, caught behind down the leg side off Overton for 14. But, with the pitch offering little in terms of seam movement or spin, it was soon clear that Somerset would need to work hard for their wickets.By lunch Northeast and Rahane had comfortably taken the total to 105 for 2. The afternoon session saw both reach half-centuries, Northeast off 91 balls, with seven fours, and Rahane off 103 deliveries, with eight boundaries.Jack Leach broke the partnership with his left-arm spin, Rahane edging a drive to Lewis Gregory at slip. But it did little to check Hampshire’s momentum as the aggressive Rossouw joined an increasingly confident Northeast. The Hampshire captain pulled Overton over fine leg for six before moving to three figures and Rossouw also cleared the rope, lofting Dom Bess back over his head.Somerset’s young offspinner, who enjoyed a meteoric rise to England’s Test team, was making his first Championship appearance of the season for the club, having been on loan at Yorkshire. Bess was understandably delighted when claiming the wicket of Northeast, who drove a catch to short midwicket soon after completing his hundred.It was 220 for 4 and in his next over, with five runs added, Bess struck again, pinning Rossouw lbw on the back foot. Barker and Fuller then batted with assurance to take the total to 288 for 5 when the second new ball was taken for the 81st over.From 306 for 5, Hampshire then plunged to 314 for 8 as wicketkeeper Steve Davies took three catches in quick succession off Overton, one of them down the leg side to dismiss Fuller. All Overton’s victims were caught by Davies, who now boasts the most dismissals by a keeper in Division One of the Championship this season with 34.With his team trailing by 94 runs, Tom Alsop, who injured a hamstring wicketkeeping on the first morning, limped out with Ollie Soames acting as his runner. In glorious sunshine, Alsop and Mason Crane batted out the day against Leach and Bess, who ended with 2 for 57 from 17 overs, to leave the match intriguingly poised after two days of absorbing cricket.Both days drew good crowds, with 3000 on the first and more than 2000 on the second. Somerset supporters will be the happier, with Hampshire due to bat last on a pitch expected to turn more as the match progresses.

Nissanka’s ton got Sri Lanka within sight of victory but the remaining batters couldn’t quite get them across the line

Andrew Fidel Fernando26-Sep-20252:05

Is captaincy affecting SKY’s form?

India won the Super OverIn regular play, Pathum Nissanka’s 107 off 58 balls and Kusal Perera’s 58 off 32, cancelled out a rapid 61 from Abhishek Sharma, and a 49 not out off 34 from Tilak Varma. India hit 202 for 5. So did Sri Lanka.In the Super Over though, Sri Lanka were very clearly out of steam on all fronts. First, they didn’t send Nissanka out to bat, choosing Kusal Perera (who sliced one to deep backward point first ball), Dasun Shanaka (who struggled with Arshdeep Singh’s wide yorkers), and Kamindu Mendis (who has never been an explosive T20I batter) out instead.Between these three, they managed a total of two runs. Suryakumar Yadav would almost laughingly put the first ball of their Super Over – bowled by Wanindu Hasaranga – through cover, to claim three first ball. This meant India went through to the Asia Cup final undefeated, and were really only tested in this match, in which they rested Jasprit Bumrah and Shivam Dube.Perhaps their aura had lost a little of its shine, but India pushing through to a victory even when Sri Lanka’s top order was batting beautifully, will be something India will take heart from ahead of the final against Pakistan.India’s innings, meanwhile, had gone smoothly. Abhishek produced another spectacular start, striking up a 59-run partnership with Suryakumar who contributed only 12 off 13 to that stand. Later, Tilak and Sanju Samson would put on 66 together.Pathum Nissanka celebrates his maiden T20I century•AFP/Getty Images

Nissanka’s 127-run partnership off 70 balls, however, was the biggest of the tournament. It got Sri Lanka within sight of victory. But the remaining batters couldn’t quite get them across the line.What happened in the Super Over

• Sri Lanka are required to bat first in this Super Over, but Nissanka, their best batter of the tournament, is not picked to come out straight away. (We’re sure, at this stage, that he will come in if a wicket falls, though.)
• Perera and Shanaka are sent in instead, with Arshdeep tasked with bowling this over, in the absence of Bumrah.
• Perera slices the first ball, a wide yorker, to deep point, where substitute fielder Rinku Singh takes a good running catch.
• Kamindu Mendis, who does not have a track record of scoring quickly against high-quality opposition comes out next, even though Nissanka is just sitting there in the dugout. Predictably Kamindu struggles to get more than an edge to the next Arshdeep ball, and they scramble a single.
• Shanaka can’t really hit Arshdeep’s wide yorkers either, and attempts a bye off the fourth ball.
• Arshdeep appeals for the caught behind while wicketkeeper Sanju Samson runs Dasun Shanaka out at the striker’s end.
• But because Arshdeep has appealed for the catch, the umpire gives Shanaka out. (The umpire’s finger is raised only after the run out is completed, but according to the rules, the out decision effectively overturns the run out.) Shanaka awake to this loophole, immediately asks the umpire: “It’s a dead ball, right?”, just after he reviews the caught behind decision.
• It turns out Shanaka is correct as per the laws. Because he had been wrongly been given out caught behind, he is exonerated from the run out, even though the stumps were broken before the umpire’s finger was raised.
• Shanaka gets to live another ball and perhaps propel Sri Lanka to a competitive Super Over score.
• Shanaka top edges one to deep third very next ball, ending Sri Lanka’s Super Over.
• India score three first ball and win.

Abhishek Sharma rocks the powerplayAlthough opening partner Shubman Gill was dismissed off the ninth ball of the innings, the tournament’s best batter still scythed his way through the powerplay. His best powerplay over came against Dushmantha Chamera. Abhishek came down the track and crashed him over long off off thifd ball, before raising the fifth ball over short fine leg’s head, then slicing the next one over short third.Abhishek Sharma brought up his third successive fifty•Getty Images

It only took Abhishek 22 balls to get to fifty. By the end of the powerplay, India were 71 for 1. Abhishek eventually miscued a Charith Asalanka half-tracker to deep midwicket, in the ninth over. His 61 came off 31 balls.Nissanka’s sublime inningsNissanka had scored heavily in the group stage, but had been quiet in the first two Super Four games. In this match, he exploded. He hit Hardik Pandya through point for four first ball, lifted other seamers over deep midwicket, and hooked others over backward square leg. He hit his fifty off 25 balls, and just continued to attack through the middle overs, as Perera also scored rapidly.Nissanka became Sri Lanka’s fourth T20I centurion (among men) at the end of the 17th over, when he thumped Arshdeep into the sightscreen. He got there of 52 balls. His eventual 108 off 58 is Sri Lanka’s highest individual T20I score.

Derbyshire skipper leads the way to keep the North Group qualification race wide open

ECB Reporters Network13-Aug-2019Worcestershire missed the chance to close the gap on Vitality Blast North Group leaders Lancashire when they lost by 20 runs away at Derbyshire Falcons, who moved into the top four.Billy Godleman made 92 from 65 balls, his highest T20 score, and Luis Reece 51 as the Falcons posted an imposing 181 for 2.Former Derbyshire batsman Martin Guptill hit 45 from 40 balls but legspinner Matt Critchley celebrated his 23rd birthday by taking 4 for 36 as the Rapids subsided to 161 for 7.It looked promising for the visitors when Dillon Pennington opened with a maiden but that was the calm before the storm as Godleman reeled off a salvo of boundaries in the next two overs.Wayne Parnell’s first ball was launched over the long off boundary and Pennington was driven for three consecutive fours before Reece dispatched Parnell several rows back into the stand at the City End.The Falcons took 57 from the powerplay and the runs continued to flow as the openers rotated the strike with the Rapids rarely threatening to take a wicket.Godleman reached 50 from 29 balls and after his side had reached the halfway point on 87 without loss, the pair scored freely without taking any undue risks.Reece pulled Joe Leach for his sixth four to bring up his 50 from 38 balls and the Rapids had to wait until the 16th over for the breakthrough which came when Reece drilled Daryl Mitchell to cover.They had slowed the scoring rate, though Goldeman passed his previous highest T20 score of 77 by lifting Ed Barnard over wide mid-wicket for his ninth four.Wayne Madsen drove Parnell for six but after Godleman failed to clear the man on the deep cover boundary, Leus du Plooy hit the last two balls from Pat Brown for four.Although the Falcons looked on course for 200, the Rapids faced a tough chase which became harder when the dangerous Riki Wessels failed to respond to Guptill’s call and was run out in the second over.Callum Ferguson cut and drove Fynn Hudson-Prentice for consecutive fours but at 47 for 1 at the end of the powerplay, the Rapids had to live up to their name if they were going to get close.Ferguson powered Boyd Rankin high over midwicket for six and pulled the next ball for four before Guptill drove Reece for six over long-on to leave the Rapids needing 100 from the last 10.But the introduction of Critchley proved decisive as Ferguson drove him to long-on, Guptill was bowled trying to cut, and Parnell, after driving him for six, failed to clear long-off when he tried to repeat the shot.Ben Cox and Barnard both drove him for big sixes but the night belonged to Critchley and the Falcons, as Worcestershire came up well short.The result means that Derbyshire jump from eighth to fourth in the group, and with just three points separating second-placed Nottinghamshire and Northamptonshire in eighth, things could hardly be closer.

Leigh Kasperek takes five wickets to finish campaign on a high at Grace Road

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jul-2018New Zealand 224 for 6 (Devine 117*) beat England 219 (Jones 78, Beaumont 53, Kasperek 5-39) by four wickets

ScorecardA brilliant century from Sophie Devine secured New Zealand a consolation victory in the third and final ODI at Grace Road, as England were outgunned in a low-scoring contest, after a five-wicket haul from the spinner Leigh Kasperek had derailed their ambitions of a clean sweep.Devine made light of the early loss of her new opening partner, Jess Watkin, as well as a steady drip of mid-innings wickets, to steer her side to a four-wicket victory with 117 not out from 116 balls, sealing the deal with a massive six over square leg. Alongside her at the end of an intermittently anxious chase was the 17-year-old Amelia Kerr, whose mature 12 not out completed a memorable campaign that of course had earlier included a world-record 232 not out against Ireland.After winning the toss and batting first, England might have had ambitions of 300-plus while Tammy Beaumont and Amy Jones were in harness. The pair compiled their second century stand of the summer, inside the first 20 overs, as New Zealand’s seamers were once again neutered as they ploughed a wide line and relied on errors that did not materialise.Pace off the ball, however, would prove to be a different challenge for England, and having reached 104 for no loss, they proceeded to lose all ten of their wickets for a further 115, with no-one outside of the openers managing more than Danni Wyatt’s 18 from 22 balls.The wrecker of the innings was Kasperek, who had Beaumont caught behind, somewhat carelessly, on the reverse sweep for 53, before adding the scalp of Lauren Winfield for 5 soon afterwards. Winfield, back in the side as Sarah Taylor took a break, holed out to deep midwicket where Maddy Green took a fine low catch.Jones, looking good for her elusive maiden ODI hundred, once again gave her innings away when she charged at Watkin to be stumped for 78, while Hayley Jensen produced a superb spell of full-length inswingers, bowling Heather Knight with a slower ball.Nat Sciver was then unluckily run out at the non-striker’s end, as Kasperek brushed her fingers on a straight drive from Wyatt, and England’s usual turbo-charged finish petered out. Kasperek deservedly bagged the final two wickets to complete her maiden five-wicket haul.In reply, Katherine Brunt pinned Watkin lbw for a duck in her first over to lift England’s spirits, but Devine was not to be put off her game. She rattled along at more than a run a ball to break the back of the chase in partnership with the steadfast Green, who rather surprisingly galloped down the track straight after the drinks break to be bowled for 23 from 52 balls.Suzie Bates, lurking down the order for a change, came and went cheaply for once, as Laura Marsh bowled her for 1. But Devine eased past her fifty from 54 balls, then brought up her hundred from 101 with a drive back past the bowler.England’s spinners lacked their usual impact, but even with Ecclestone off the boil, her team weren’t quite finished. When Brunt returned to bowl Amy Satterthwaite for 25 and overtake Jenny Gunn as England’s leading wicket-taker in ODIs, there was a chance of a late twist. However, Katey Martin provided sturdy support until she ran herself out for 23, and thereafter Devine would not be denied.

Earlier, Pant, batting with a fractured right foot, scored a half-century and helped India cross 350

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jul-20250:52

Manjrekar: India batted in different bowling conditions from England

Tea England backed up their captain Ben Stokes taking a five-for with an unbroken opening partnership of 77. Those runs came at over five an over, taking a big bite out of India’s 358 all out on the second day in Manchester.It was a disappointing bowling performance from the visitors, particularly in helpful conditions and to follow a display of great bravery from Rishabh Pant who came out to bat on a fractured foot and scored a half-century.England weren’t particularly keen to score so quickly. Zak Crawley needed 13 balls to get off the mark and those runs came with a reminder of the danger the pitch still posed as a Jasprit Bumrah delivery rose up sharply to rap him on the bottom hand. Crawley displayed excellent judgment outside his off stump and ironically only started to look vulnerable once he had runs against his name, the confidence of seeing off the new ball coaxing him to play away from his body and could have been bowled off the inside edge.Ben Duckett didn’t need to be so careful, at any point in his innings. India fed him on his pads and he tucked in with glee. All his seven boundaries came on the leg side and he stands on the cusp of completing a half-century at almost a run a ball. Duckett welcomed Anshul Kamboj with three fours in his first over of Test cricket, the debutant chosen to open the bowling ahead of Mohammed Siraj.India must pick themselves back up again because they showed great heart in getting to an above-par total. Pant put his body on the line – literally because Stokes targeted that broken front foot of his – and had enough in him to hit a 90th six in Test cricket, putting him level with Virender Sehwag for the national record. He also went past Alec Stewart for most runs by a wicketkeeper in a Test series in England. The mere fact that he was able to walk – let alone bat – moved the fans at Old Trafford who gave him a rousing ovation.Stokes found similar approval from the crowd when his tireless and relentless display was rewarded with a first five-for in eight years. He was a threat when he bowled full because he was getting both ways movement – Shardul Thakur found that out when he was caught at gully for 41 – and he was a threat when he went short – which did Washington Sundar in. Stokes has 16 wickets in the series now, a career-best for him going past the 15 he took in the 2013-14 Ashes when he made his debut.

The Australia legspinner will play his 100th game in the format at Trent Bridge

Andrew McGlashan17-Sep-2024Adam Zampa admits the ODI game faces an uncertain future, but he believes the format remains a priority for young players coming through despite the congested calendar and increasing amounts of franchise cricket.Zampa will play his 100th ODI in the opening match against England at Trent Bridge on Thursday having established himself as Australia’s most important white-ball bowler. He reiterated how, for him, international cricket will always mean more than franchise T20 and, although not putting a definitive timeline on his career, has his sights set on winning “many more” World Cups.Related

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A survey earlier this year by the World Cricketers Association (formally FICA) showed that the gap was closing in terms of which men’s World Cup title was viewed as the most important, with now just 50% saying the ODI version and 35% picking the T20 edition.”There’s been a lot of questions about the ODI format and what that looks [like] going forward,” he said. “In terms of playing for Australia and that drive, I think every young guy coming through still thinks that’s the be-all and end-all.””There’s obviously those other opportunities in terms of franchise cricket and that’s good,” Zampa said. “There’s been a lot said about how it’s a saturated market but all these different competitions give other guys opportunities, whether it’s guys who have just played a little bit of BBL or a bit of Blast, there’s opportunities to go and improve yourself at different franchise levels, even if they are going on at the same time which seems to be the case at the moment.Adam Zampa was Australia’s leading wicket-taker at the 2023 ODI World Cup•Getty Images

“But feels like playing for your country is still the priority. I agree with you, don’t know what it’s going to look like in the next few years, particularly with this format, but I feel like ODI cricket’s still a really good format, I still enjoy playing it and think a lot of young guys coming through still see it as a good opportunity to play for your country.”Zampa, who is without doubt Australia’s second-greatest white-ball spinner after Shane Warne, was their leading wicket-taker in both their 2021 T20 World Cup title success (13 wickets) and the 2023 ODI World Cup (23 wickets). Australia have come up short at the last two T20 World Cups in 2022 and 2024 but Zampa will again be key in the 2026 edition in India and Sri Lanka.”The feeling of playing for your country and still winning for your country beats playing franchise cricket and winning franchise cricket,” he said. “I experienced the Hundred, it was great, I loved playing it, and winning at the end is a bonus but it hits different when you play for your country, when you win World Cups. Still got that drive to win many more.”Zampa will have his wife, Harriet, and baby boy present at the 100th ODI along with his parents. “It means a lot to me,” he said. “I never thought I’d play this much for Australia.”

Sri Lanka seamer was leading wicket-taker on recent tour of England

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Dec-2024Glamorgan have signed Sri Lanka fast bowler Asitha Fernando for the first two months of the season. He is expected to be available for seven County Championship fixtures up until the end of May.Asitha, 27, has taken 72 wickets 26.66 in Tests and impressed on Sri Lanka’s tour of England earlier this year, when he finished as the leading wicket-taker on either side as well as winning a spot on the Lord’s honours board for his first-innings five-for.He has played county cricket previously for Nottinghamshire, and will become the first Sri Lankan to represent Glamorgan.”I would like to thank Glamorgan Cricket so much for this opportunity,” Fernando said. “I am extremely thrilled to be a part of Glamorgan and to return to the county cricket scene this year.Related

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“My last stint helped me to improve my game a lot. I am looking forward to playing with Mason [Crane], Colin [Ingram] and all of the Glamorgan team, and am hoping to do my very best during the upcoming season.”Glamorgan’s director of cricket, Mark Wallace, said: “We’re delighted to be able to welcome a bowler of Asitha’s quality to Sophia Gardens for the start of the 2025 season.”Asitha has good experience of conditions in the UK having played county cricket previously and also while performing very well in Sri Lanka’s series with England here last summer. We look forward to Asitha taking the field for Glamorgan as the first Sri Lankan player to represent the club.”