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KL Rahul is set to miss the fourth Test as well, while his participation in the final Test in Dharamsala is subject to fitness

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Feb-2024Jasprit Bumrah has been rested from the fourth Test against England beginning on February 23 in Ranchi. KL Rahul, who missed the second and third Tests, is set to miss the fourth Test as well, while his participation in the final Test in Dharamsala is subject to fitness.The decision to give Bumrah a break has been made keeping his workload in mind – he’s bowled 80.5 overs in the first three Tests – with an IPL season coming up followed closely by the 2024 T20 World Cup beginning on June 1. There was speculation that Bumrah was going to be rested for the third Test in Rajkot but, with the series level at 1-1, he eventually played the fixture.Mukesh Kumar, who was released from the squad for the third Test in Rajkot, has joined the squad in Ranchi. He played the Ranji Trophy match for Bengal against Bihar after being released, where he picked up a career-best match haul of 10 for 50 in a massive win for Bengal.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

India now lead the five-match series 2-1 after a record 434-run victory in Rajkot, and they will have to find a way to make up for Bumrah’s absence: he’s the leading wicket-taker in the series with 17 wickets at 13.64 apiece. He was the Player of the Match in India’s win in the second Test in Visakhapatnam, where he took 9 for 91 across both innings.Mukesh, meanwhile, had played the second Test against England when Mohammed Siraj was rested but bowled only 12 overs in Vishakapatnam for figures of 1 for 70. If India play two fast bowlers in Ranchi, the choice for the second quick will be between Mukesh and the uncapped Akash Deep, who was included in the squad for the last three Tests after topping the wicket charts for India A in the recent first-class games against England Lions.Rahul had made scores of 86 and 22 during the defeat in the first Test in Hyderabad – the highest aggregate for India in the match – before missing the second Test with a quadriceps injury. He was included in the squad for the third Test subject to fitness, but was eventually ruled out with a sore knee.The fourth Test between India and England begins this Friday, just four days after the end of the third Test, while there is an eight-day gap between the end of the fourth Test on February 27 and the start of the fifth and final Test on March 7.India squad for fourth Test: Rohit Sharma (capt), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wk), KS Bharat (wk), Devdutt Padikkal, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep

Although Hasaranga’s resignation comes on the heels of Sri Lanka’s poor T20 World Cup showing, it is still something of a surprise

Andrew Fidel Fernando11-Jul-2024Wanindu Hasaranga has resigned as Sri Lanka’s T20I captain after roughly six months in the role. He said in a statement put out by the board that his decision was in the best interest of Sri Lankan cricket.”Sri Lanka will always have my utmost best efforts as a player, and I will support and stand by my team always,” Hasaranga said in his resignation letter, later seen by ESPNcricinfo.*Related

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Although Hasaranga’s resignation came on the heels of a poor World Cup in which Sri Lanka failed to qualify for the Super Eight, it was still something of a surprise. There was little public pressure on him to be ousted, partly because he was still so new in the role. He also appeared to be relishing the job, even prioritising Sri Lanka commitments over IPL appearances this year as he recovered from a foot injury.In his resignation, he lamented Sri Lanka’s World Cup campaign at length.”Sri Lanka’s early exit at the T20 World Cup is extremely disappointing to me as the captain and for the entire team,” he wrote. “As a team and a nation our expectations were high, and I was confident that the best Sri Lanka team was selected to play the tournament.”I do not wish to place excuses to condone our below-par performance, but also wholeheartedly believe that the Bangladesh game was very close and we should have been able to pull through [Bangladesh won by two wickets, with six balls remaining]. If so, circumstances and the fortunes for our nation would have been very much different.”Sri Lanka won six of the 10 T20Is they played under Hasaranga, winning bilateral series against Zimbabwe and Afghanistan to start 2024. He had also been suspended for two matches for abusing an umpire during this stint.He remains captain of the Kandy Falcons Lanka Premier League team in the ongoing franchise tournament.While there are no obvious candidates to replace him as captain of Sri Lanka in T20Is, Charith Asalanka’s name will be discussed. He took the reins in the two matches Hasaranga had been suspended for, and also leads Jaffna Kings in the LPL this year.Sri Lanka’s next T20I assignment is the three-match series against India at the end of this month. Sri Lanka will enter that series with a new coach as well, with Sanath Jayasuriya taking over in an interim capacity after Chris Silverwood stepped down following the World Cup. Mahela Jayawardene, too, had quit as consultant coach last month.

India captain says their three allrounders gives them a lot of options

Andrew Fidel Fernando19-Feb-20251:12

Harshit or Arshdeep in India’s XI?

So what if it’s overcast in Dubai? And so what if there’s dew, or a little spice in the deck, or some movement in the air? Whatever this venue throws at India, they have the bowling options to deal with it.So said captain Rohit Sharma, ahead of India’s first match of the Champions Trophy against Bangladesh. This is a venue to which India are well-accustomed, having played nine T20Is here since October 2021. They haven’t played an ODI in Dubai since 2018, but the versatility in their likely XI will put them in a good position to adjust on the fly, according to Rohit.”If it’s going to be overcast, we have the bowling arsenal to combat that,” he said. “If there are overhead conditions helping the bowlers, we have the bowlers to exploit that. And if we bat in those overhead conditions, the batters know exactly what to do.”Among the strengths in this India squad, are the presence of “multi-skilled” cricketers, Rohit said. Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, and Ravindra Jadeja could potentially all play in the same XI. Without spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who was ruled out through injury, these are bowlers Rohit may lean on through the course of the tournament.Related

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“Those three guys – Jadeja, Axar, and Washy – give us a different dimension to the game, our combination, and our squad, and add a lot of depth. That is why we tried to get players who have two skills rather than one.”One of India’s pure bowling options, however, is wristspinner Varun Chakravarthy. He’s played only one ODI so far, but has an impressive List A record, having claimed 60 wickets from 24 matches at a spectacular average of 14.80. He is a player who deals in subterfuge, Rohit said.”He doesn’t bowl too many variations to us in the nets. He bowls just one type of delivery. Maybe, he doesn’t want to show his variations even to us. But that is a good thing. He has got certain weapons which he wants to just put it out there, when it actually matters. I am more than happy if he wants to do that.”But, he has got something different which is why he is here with us. He has been impressive in the last eight to nine months. That is why we wanted to bring him here and see what he has and what he can do for India on the big stage.”Another player who Rohit will look to, is Mohammad Shami, who only returned to international cricket late last month, after undergoing ankle surgery in early 2024. He only bowled 15.5 overs across the two ODIs he played against England, claiming a wicket in each outing. With Bumrah out, Shami’s form may be especially important to India’s chances.”All we wanted with Shami was to get back to wearing India colours more than anything else. Whether he gets wickets or not was completely immaterial to us [in the England series].”When you talk about a bowler like Shami, who has done the job over the years so many times for us – for them it’s just about getting back into rhythm. Hopefully he can find some rhythm early on in this tournament.”

Sri Lanka were restricted to a sub-par total and a trio of fifties from Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi and Azmatullah Omarzai then powered an ice-cool chase

Madushka Balasuriya30-Oct-20232:55

Maharoof: SL lost the game between the 11th and 40th overs

For the second game running Afghanistan showcased exemplary calm in the chase, whittling down a sub-par target of 242 with ice-cold composure. A trio of fifties from Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi and Azmatullah Omarzai led the way, as Afghanistan leapfrogged Sri Lanka into fifth place on the points table with six points now on the board.Sri Lanka meanwhile are virtually out of the running for a semi-final berth, needing to essentially win all of their next three games – against India, Bangladesh and New Zealand – to stand any chance.For Afghanistan this was a win set up by their bowlers, who had stifled Sri Lanka’s batters on a deck that was for all intents and purposes tailor-made for batting, before their batters ran down the target with minimal fuss.Related

• Farooqi hits his straps to help keep Sri Lanka under wraps

• Afghanistan turn to careful cricket for unprecedented success

• Can Sri Lanka and Pakistan still make the semi-finals?

Fazalhaq Farooqi was the pick of the bunch ending with figures of 4 for 34, but the most intriguing quirk of this game was that despite being afforded a true surface with a lack of lateral movement and minimal turn, both sides rarely scored at more than five an over.Their reasons however differed. While Sri Lanka could be criticised for a criminal lack of intent, Afghanistan were simply following the breakdown devised for them by head coach Jonathan Trott. Several times over the course of the innings the broadcast camera would pan over his giant whiteboard with 10-over markers clearly laid out – “50 after 10”, “100 after 20”, etc. But despite it being offered up in as easy-to-digest a manner as possible, such was the efficiency with which Afghanistan went about their work, Sri Lanka were powerless to do anything about it.Sure Dilshan Madushanka tailed one in on Rahmanullah Gurbaz off just the fourth ball of the chase to dislodge middle stump, but Afghanistan had their playbook and they followed it to a tee. Even when the wickets did fall, Afghanistan were quick to snuff out any momentum Sri Lanka might have been looking to derive.Partnerships of 73, 58 and 111 – between Ibrahim Zadran and Shah, Shah and Shahidi, and then Shahidi and Omarzai – formed the spine of their chase. Throughout that effort, boundaries were never sought after but only accepted when offered, as they were content to wait for loose balls, rarely willing – or needing – to take a risk.Sri Lanka for their part began to look more and more broken as the innings wore on, running out of ideas and steam on a surface that offered them nothing and against a team that were equally unforgiving.Fazalhaq Farooqi finished with a four-wicket haul•Associated Press

But the tone for this game had been set from the very beginning, as having been asked to bat first – a decision Kusal Mendis said he would have taken even had he won the toss – Sri Lanka would proceed with an uncertainty conspicuously absent in their first five matches.Perhaps this was borne by this being Sri Lanka’s first real game of the tournament where a chance of a semi-final spot – however unlikely – was tangibly within grasp. Inhibitions had been shed in an improbable chase against South Africa, and that aggressive intent had cascaded through to their next game against Pakistan. Then against Australia, the confidence continued to flow before an unprecedented collapse stopped them dead.Maybe it was this that pushed Sri Lanka into a more conservative approach, but evidence of any shift didn’t prove forthcoming in games against Netherlands and England, where their intent, or lack thereof, wasn’t scrutinised to any great degree with a pair of middling chases calling more for caution than aggression.Against Afghanistan though, on a surface which had been described as a “batter’s paradise” during the pitch report, the inclusion of Dimuth Karunaratne betrayed the fear that had been driving Sri Lanka’s thinking.Rashid Khan leads Afghanistan’s lap of honour in what was his 100th ODI•ICC/Getty Images

Yes, Kusal Perera hadn’t made an impact aside from his 78 against Australia, but a surface such as this might have proved precisely the panacea for his batting troubles. Instead Sri Lanka were left frustrated as his replacement Karunaratne would play and miss a handful of shortish, wide deliveries on either side of the wicket – rare loose balls in otherwise tight opening spells from Fazalhaq Farooqi and Mujeeb Ur Rahman. Sri Lanka would end up striking just four boundaries in the first 10 overs.That powerplay would also see Sri Lanka end on 41 for 1, their lowest score after 10 overs in the entirety of the tournament. This pronounced lack of ambition would afflict them throughout an innings that only sporadically scratched the five an over mark, let alone the sixes and sevens that have been more prevalent across this tournament.The deference showed to the Afghanistan bowlers through the middle overs was incongruous to say the least when compared to how Sri Lanka had approached those first two games against South Africa and Pakistan.What this meant was that when the quality deliveries that Afghanistan’s bowlers are capable of inevitably arrived, Sri Lanka’s batters would fall having failed to effectively capitalise on the opportunities afforded elsewhere.Karunaratne would be the first to go, trapped lbw by one darting in from Farooqi, the on-field not out call overturned on review. A 62-run stand between Nissanka and Mendis would follow, before Omarzai would jag one in from a back of a length outside off and coax Nissanka to feather an edge through to Gurbaz behind the stumps – thus ending his streak of fifty-plus scores at four. Gurbaz was deputising for Ikram Alikhil, who was off the field receiving treatment after having dislocated a finger on his right hand while keeping.Dhananjaya de Silva was mostly clueless against Rashid Khan•ICC via Getty Images

Kusal Mendis was next to fall while going for his favoured slog sweep for a fourth time in four games. He would have been disappointed to find the man stationed for just such a stroke, but what was more jarring for onlookers might have been the reticent version of Mendis that had knocked around 49 deliveries prior to that for a modest 39; despite the lack of demons in the wicket, much like the rest of his team-mates, Mendis was shackled by a demure approach in an innings that saw just the three boundaries.Mendis’ dismissal, which followed a 50-run stand with Sadeera Samarawickrama, would prove the catalyst for a mini collapse that would see Sri Lanka tumble from 134 for 2 to 185 for 7.Samarawickrama, who had looked his usual industrious self in his 40-ball 36, was caught in the crease by a quicker one from Mujeeb that tailed in. Dhananjaya de Silva, who had put on 28 with Charith Asalanka, was then worked over beautifully by a Rashid googly through the gate, one that had been setup over the course of a nagging over in what was Rashid’s 100th ODI. Asalanka would miscue a pull to mid-off shortly after off Farooqi, while a chaotic and unnecessary run-out – Angelo Mathews calling for a run that would have kept him off strike for the start of the next over – would send Dushmantha Chameera packing.Only a rearguard stand of 45 from 42 between Mathews and Maheesh Theekshana, where the latter showed off his batting chops with some expansive stroke-play through the offside, took Sri Lanka to a total of any respectability. But on a true surface, and against a commanding Afghanistan side, it was never going to be enough.

Pakistan are No. 2, followed by India, New Zealand and England

ESPNcricinfo staff11-May-2023Australia have retained their No. 1 spot in the ICC men’s ODI team rankings following the annual update that dropped results from the 2019-20 season and reflects all matches completed since May 2020.With 118 rating points, Australia are two points clear of second-placed Pakistan after the update, which weights matches completed before May 2022 at 50% and subsequent matches at 100%. Earlier this month, after a similar update for Test rankings, Australia had lost their No. 1 position in red-ball cricket to India.Pakistan had grabbed the top ODI spot last week, after taking a 4-0 lead during their five-match home series against New Zealand. But their stay proved to be a short one as they lost the final match and slipped back behind Australia. Had Pakistan won the series 5-0, they would have remained at the top of the table even after the annual update.

Full rankings tables

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India, who are No. 1 in both Tests and T20Is, are at No. 3 in ODIs, with just one rating point separating them and Pakistan.India are followed by New Zealand and England who lost four and ten points, respectively, after the update.Afghanistan were the biggest beneficiaries. They are now eighth, having overtaken Sri Lanka and West Indies. South Africa and Bangladesh are at No. 6 and 7, respectively. The top eight happen to be the teams that have qualified directly for this year’s ODI World Cup, to be held in India.The women’s annual team rankings updates will be carried out at the beginning of October.

Going forward, the PCB is likely to strike a more conciliatory tone with players whose national duties clash with franchise leagues

Danyal Rasool14-Jun-2023There might be a potential clash brewing between international commitments and T20 franchise agreements for some Pakistan players following the Global T20 Canada’s draft announcement on Wednesday. The GT20’s third edition will be played from July 20 to August 6, and though the precise dates of Pakistan’s two-Test series against Sri Lanka are yet to be announced, there is expected to be a significant overlap as the FTP has the second half of July marked for the Test series.There is a sizeable chunk of Pakistan players in the GT20 draft; as many as 14 players have been named. While most of those drafted have either retired (Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Malik were picked as marquee and icon players) or aren’t part of Pakistan’s current red-ball plans, the drafted squads do include Pakistan vice-captain Mohammad Rizwan as well as first-choice opener Abdullah Shafique.Even for players who aren’t selected for that Test series, a No-Objection Certificate from the PCB will be necessary to participate in the GT20. Ten of the players drafted, including Zaman Khan, Azam Khan and Saim Ayub, have played white-ball cricket recently for Pakistan. While the PCB does not have an official cap on the number of leagues a player can play, a PCB official told ESPNcricinfo that the decision on NOCs would still be made keeping in mind a player’s fitness and need for rest.The PCB has made clear that any player picked for the Test series against Sri Lanka will not go to the GT20, though it is understood the board will be broadly permissive from now on. This would be something of a departure from the PCB policy over the years when it would preemptively deny NOCs for leagues before drafts or auctions. Going forward, there is likely to be less rigidity when dealing with players who have overseas franchise T20 commitments, with the board looking to strike a healthier balance between player welfare and national duty.Rizwan, an icon player with Vancouver Knights, was dropped in favour of Sarfaraz Ahmed for Pakistan’s most recent Tests against New Zealand, and with Sarfaraz having distinguished himself with the bat in that series, he is likely to retain his place. Whether that means Rizwan will drop out of the squad entirely remains to be seen, but the PCB believes common ground will be found.The GT20 returns after a four-year hiatus. The first two seasons took place in 2018 and 2019, but following payment disputes and the Covid pandemic that followed, a third edition wasn’t held in the next three years. Toronto Nationals boast four Pakistan players, the heaviest contingent. Mississauga Panthers and Brampton Wolves have three each, while Surrey Jaguars have two. Vancouver Knights and Montreal Tigers each have one, Rizwan and Abbas Afridi, respectively.

New Zealand have a stellar record against India in ICC events having lost just one game since 1992

Ashish Pant21-Oct-2023

Big picture: Here comes India’s bogey team

Ask any ardent Indian fan which is their second-favourite cricket team, and New Zealand will remain a common answer. Ask the same set of fans which team spooks them the most when it comes to ICC events: New Zealand will once again be the unanimous reply. Why you ask.Southampton 2021. Nagpur 2016 and Dubai 2021. Manchester 2019.It’s probably the memories of the last one here that has most Indian fans flinch. And as much as India would like to deny it, New Zealand have been their bogey team over the years. There are numbers to back this up. In all ICC events since 1992 (considering only the final from the WTC 2019-21 and 2021-23 cycles), India have beaten New Zealand just once in nine attempts.Which is why when these two teams meet in Dharamsala on Sunday, it won’t be group stage game: there will be a bit of history riding on it. Also the fact that at the end of the clash, one team will no longer remain unbeaten in the competition.Both New Zealand and India have been clinical in their approach and come into the game having won four out of four games. Who continues their winning streak? The answer might well depend on how the fast bowlers go.Related

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• Matt Henry among the best, and has got better – the numbers show it

As much as the Dharamsala stadium is about the stunning snow-capped mountains of the Dhauladhar range in the backdrop, it is also about the altitude. And with that altitude comes the help for the quicks. Of all the venues that have so far hosted more than one game at the World Cup, Dharamsala – alongside Lucknow – has offered the fast bowlers the most amount of swing in the first ten overs of each innings.Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj become a key component in the Indian attack. They will miss Hardik Pandya, but if Mohammed Shami comes in, he is one bowler, who is certain to extract early movement with that upright seam.While India’s attack seems more well-rounded, the New Zealand unit has been equally good. Their class of 2019 is very much intact with all of Matt Henry, Trent Boult and Lockie Ferguson having started the tournament well. On the spin front, Mitchell Santner leads the wicket-taking charts with 11 strikes at 15.09.The batters across both sides have been in impeccable form. Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Devon Conway are No. 2, 3 and 4 on the run charts, while the middle order also has been firing. Can they find a way to score big with the ball hooping around?Mohammed Siraj has been up and down at this World Cup•Pankaj Nangia/Getty

Form guide: Whose winning streak ends?

India: WWWWL (last five completed ODIs, most recent first)
New Zealand: WWWWW

In the spotlight: Mohammed Siraj and Matt Henry

Mohammed Siraj hasn’t looked at his best so far in the World Cup. In four games, Siraj has managed only five wickets at 42.40. He’s also leaked runs at 6.32 an over. But if there is one venue that will give him a chance to improve on those numbers, it is Dharamsala. Siraj is one of the few bowlers going around who can get the ball to deck both ways. In Dharamsala, though, his wobble-seam deliveries might be the ones New Zealand will have to be most careful against. Siraj has had a dream 2023 in ODIs and will hope India’s next game is where he turns his World Cup around.The Boults and the Southees often hog the limelight when the New Zealand fast bowling battery is spoken of but in the last two years, it has been Matt Henry, who has really been their shining light. No other New Zealand bowler has more wickets than Henry’s 41 in 24 ODIs since the start of 2022. But, it’s the way he has led the attack in the World Cup, which has been impressive. He’s outshone Boult and Lockie Ferguson, kept Tim Southee out of the team and picked up wickets when it’s mattered all while maintaining an economy of 4.83. He is currently fourth on the wicket-takers list with nine in four games at 18.00. A good game and he could zoom right to the top.

Team news: Who comes in for Pandya?

Pandya has been ruled out of the Dharamsala game after hurting his right ankle against Bangladesh on Thursday. The million-dollar question is who replaces him. Rahul Dravid wasn’t forthcoming about the changes, but talked about a few options they considered. There is a chance that India bring in Suryakumar Yadav or Ishan Kishan in place of Hardik and have Shardul Thakur tussle with Shami for the No. 8 spot.India (probable): 1 Rohit Sharma (capt), 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Shreyas Iyer, 5 KL Rahul (wk), 6 Ravindra Jadeja, 7 Suryakumar Yadav/Ishan Kishan, 8 Shardul Thakur/Mohammed Shami, 9 Jasprit Bumrah, 10 Kuldeep Yadav, 11 Mohammed SirajMatt Henry has been excellent across all phases of the innings for New Zealand•AFP/Getty Images

With the New Zealand attack firing like they have, Southee might have to spend some more in the sheds. Kane Williamson is still out with a thumb injury, so it is unlikely New Zealand will make any changes to the team.New Zealand (probable): 1 Devon Conway, 2 Will Young, 3 Rachin Ravindra, 4 Tom Latham (capt & wk), 5 Daryl Mitchell, 6 Glenn Phillips, 7 Mark Chapman, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Matt Henry, 10 Lockie Ferguson, 11 Trent Boult

Pitch and conditions: Beware the quicks

The surface looked very green on the eve of the game but a lot of that grass is likely to be shaved off before the start. Even then expect pace and carry for the fast bowlers. It was bright and sunny on the eve of the match, but it is expected to be cloudy and cooler on Sunday with the temperature likely to hover around the 18-degree mark on the Celsius scale at the start of the game.

Stats and trivia: All eyes on Gill

• The captain winning the toss has elected to bowl in each of the seven ODIs played in Dharamsala.
• Shubman Gill needs 14 runs to reach the 2000 mark in ODIs. If he gets there tomorrow, in his 38th innings, he will be the quickest to 2000 runs in ODI cricket. beating Hashim Amla’s (40) record.
• Rohit has fallen to Boult four times in 13 ODI innings and averages just 22.25 against him.
• Tom Latham has five fifties and two centuries in 20 ODI innings against India

Quotes

“It’s nice to have Ishan [Kishan] playing well, being a left hander. But Surya’s [Suryakumar Yadav] also come into some form against Australia. He played a couple of fantastic innings. Absolutely fantastic player against spin – left-arm spin, right-arm spin, any kind of spin for that matter. And the role maybe for a middle-overs role. We’re pretty clear about the kinds of roles we want to play. If we’re looking for someone who looks to be a bit of an enforcer for us in the lower-middle order, and Surya’s certainly someone who can do it. If we’re looking for someone higher up the order, we might go with Ishan.”
“India’s top order has been fantastic this tournament and again, our bowling attack has done a really good job upfront as well. That’s going to be a great contest with bat and ball and obviously vice-versa with Indian seamers and our top order. Obviously, you look at the match-ups throughout a game against both sides and there is some pretty good match-ups there.”