Asif Ali, who was already in the T20I squad, replaces the 25-year old in the ODI squad

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Mar-2021A leg injury has ruled Saud Shakeel out of Pakistan’s tour of South Africa, with middle-order batsman Asif Ali taking his place. Shakeel, who is yet to play an international for Pakistan, was included in the squad for the ODI series against South Africa, and the Tests against Zimbabwe.But the PCB announced a Grade-1 quadriceps tear, which meant he would have to be excluded and stay back at the National High Performance Centre to continue his rehabilitation. The PCB did leave open the possibility that he might travel separately to Zimbabwe should he recover in time for the Test series, and did not name a replacement for the 25-year old for that part of the tour.Ali was already slated to travel to South Africa with the Pakistan side, but only as part of the T20I leg. His inclusion in the ODIs against South Africa gives him another chance to impress in a format where he has never quite been able to nail down a place since making his debut in 2018. An indifferent PSL and recent struggles in T20I cricket meant there were doubts over his inclusion on the tour at all.The 34-member squad, including 13 officials and 21 players, will depart for Johannesburg on a chartered flight on Friday morning. In South Africa, Pakistan will play three ODIs, part of the ICC’s Super League, from April 2 to 7, and four T20Is from April 10 to 16. The side will then depart for Harare for three T20Is and two Tests, before returning home on 12 May.

While Hussey flies commercial via Doha, the group waiting in the Maldives will take a BCCI charter flight

Daniel Brettig16-May-2021Michael Hussey will be home from India on Monday, about the same time as the 38 Australian players, coaches and media land on their return from the Maldives.Following a series of Covid-19 positive tests, Hussey was unable to join the Maldives group after the postponement of the IPL but returned a negative test on Thursday night India time. He has now been cleared to return to Australian soil on a commercial flight via Doha.The larger Maldives contingent, including the likes of Pat Cummins, David Warner, Steven Smith and Michael Slater, will travel home to hotel quarantine in Sydney, on a BCCI charter flight that will also stopover in Perth once it reaches Australian airspace.The return of the cricketers, coaches and media have been secured over the incoming arrival caps put in place for overseas travellers to Australia, following negotiations between Cricket Australia, the Australian Cricketers Association, and state and federal governments.”The public will see our best Australian cricketers as almost superheroes. They’re brilliant athletes, great cricketers but they’re human beings [too],” Todd Greenberg, the ACA chief executive had said on May 5. “Some of them are fathers and husbands, and they’re under enormous amounts of stress. Some deal with it differently. This will probably be an experience they will never forget. We will help them when they come home. Some will cope with it really well, others will need support and counselling and that’s what we’ll do.”The last 12 months around the globe, we’ve seen all professional athletes travel differently and charter flights maybe two years ago would have seen a different type of commentary than what we would see today. The reality is we’re going to try to keep them as safe as possible and if that’s available, I don’t think we should shy away from that.”I’m not sure it will create reticence but it will ensure players do their due diligence before they sign [future] agreements,” he added, with the ACA having already advised its players to complete due diligence before signing up for T20 leagues during the pandemic.”The world is literally changing before our eyes, particularly with Covid and on that side of the world, obviously those cases are going up exponentially. We’re enjoying our freedoms here in Australia. It is a very different place over there. If anything it sends a message to players about making sure you do your homework before making any decisions.”A federal government pause on the return of Australians from India concluded on Saturday, with a series of repatriation flights for the first portion of some 9000 citizens beginning over the weekend.

The opening batter’s 82 helped Netherlands recover from 59 from 5

ESPNcricinfo staff20-May-2021Discipline from their bowlers after an anchoring knock by opener Max O’Dowd lifted Netherlands to victory in a rain-hit first ODI against Scotland in Rotterdam on Wednesday.The wet weather and outfield meant the game was reduced to 33 overs a side. Netherlands, batting first, were in deep trouble at 59 for 5 in the 16th over, with five of their top six out for 10 or fewer. But O’Dowd held firm at his end, steadying things with 82 off 102 balls. Logan van Beek provided some late thrust with 24 off 21. Pacer Gavin Main, who’d struck twice during Netherlands’ early slide, produced the best of the figures for Scotland: 7-2-16-2.In reply, Scotland seemed on track while Richie Berrington was around. They, too, had an early wobble – they fell to 31 for 3 in the 11th – but then Berrington took charge, scoring 41 off 43 with three sixes as Scotland rattled up 69 in the next 11 overs. George Munsey was accompanying him, but Netherlands struck a big double-blow when they got rid of both set batters within one run of each other. The score went from 100 for 3 to 101 for 5, and Scotland faltered from there, despite the best efforts of their lower order. They finished on 149 for 8, 15 runs short of their target.van Beek and Vivian Kingma, Netherlands opening duo, took four wickets between them, allowing only 46 runs in 14 overs. They also accounted for the key wickets of Munsey and Berrington between them.The two teams will play another ODI at the same venue on Thursday.

The allrounder, who moved to Australia when he was 10, is able to bowl both offspin and left-arm spin

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Jun-2021Tasmania have signed the only known male ambidextrous cricketer in the Australian system with 18-year-old allrounder Nivethan Radhakrishnan joining on a rookie contract.Radhakrishnan was born in India and moved to Sydney when he was 10. He is able to bowl both offspin with his dominant right arm and left-arm spin. He has been part of the New South Wales system and represented Australia at Under-16s level.In 2019, he said he had started bowling with his left arm when he was just seven. “There wasn’t anyone in world cricket doing it at that stage,” he told . “We were very dreamy about it.”Radhakrishnan is one of two signings for Tasmania ahead of the 2021-22 season with allrounder Bradley Hope switching from Western Australia.”Brad and Nivvi are both really exciting young cricketers, and we are thrilled that they are coming to join the Tigers program and progress their careers here in Tasmania,” Jeff Vaughan, the head of Tasmania’s male program, said.The Australian game has already seen an ambidextrous bowler at professional level with Jemma Barsby, who now plays for Perth Scorchers and South Australia, able to bowl with both arms.The feat has also been seen on the international stage with Sri Lanka’s Kamindu Mendis switching between right and left-arm spin.Tasmania squad Tom Andrews, Gabe Bell, Jackson Bird, Iain Carlisle, Jake Doran, Nathan Ellis, Jarrod Freeman (rookie), Brad Hope (rookie), Caleb Jewell, Ben McDermott, Riley Meredith, Lawrence Neil-Smith, Mitch Owen (rookie), Tim Paine (CA contract), Nivethan Radhakrishnan (rookie), Sam Rainbird, Peter Siddle, Jordan Silk, Mac Wright, Matthew Wade, Charlie Wakim, Tim Ward, Beau Webster

The West Indies quicks had reduced South Africa to 37 for 3 before Elgar and Verreynne added 87 for the fourth wicket

Firdose Moonda18-Jun-2021Dean Elgar, in his second Test as permanent captain, top-scored with 77 as South Africa negotiated a tough batting day against a much-improved West Indian side. Facing a must-win situation to share the spoils in the series, the hosts’ four-pronged pace attack made good use of the movement on offer in seamer-friendly conditions to make inroads into South Africa’s line-up early on and kept their visitors relatively quiet, with a run rate that stayed under three an over throughout the day.Shannon Gabriel, on his return from a hamstring injury that kept him out of the first Test, was the most successful bowler on the day. Gabriel was used in short bursts, never bowling more than four overs in a spell, and took 2 for 47. Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales and Kyle Mayers took one wicket apiece and Jason Holder, whose 14 overs cost just 25 runs, held an end even though he went wicketless.Between them, the quicks reduced South Africa to 37 for 3 inside 18 overs before Elgar and Kyle Verreynne shared a fourth-wicket stand of 87. Verreynne was dismissed in the last over before tea but Elgar took South Africa to within three overs of the second new ball being due and put on 79 for the fifth-wicket with Quinton de Kock, the centurion from the first Test. de Kock remained unbeaten on 59 off 103, at a strike rate of 57.28, the quickest of the match so far.

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Under cloudy skies and after morning rain, the toss was delayed and play eventually started 15 minutes late and was interrupted after three-and-a-half overs for another ten minutes by a passing shower. By then, South Africa had already lost their first batter. In the second over, Aiden Markram chased a short, wide delivery from Gabriel and was caught at backward point by Roston Chase. This was Markram’s sixth Test duck and he equalled the most number of scoreless dismissals by any opener since his debut in September 2017.Elgar shares that record with Markram and was at risk of going past him and departing for a second duck in the series. He was beaten twice by Roach and squared up by Gabriel before the rain break and went into it scoreless. But he returned to find his first runs with a boundary and battled through most of the rest of the day.At the other end, Roach found Keegan Petersen’s outside edge but the chance fell short of third slip. Petersen did not look comfortable against the moving ball and though he survived a stifled appeal for a catch down the leg side, he did not last long after the introduction of Seales. In his second Test, Seales struck with the first ball of his third over when he tempted Petersen into the drive off a ball that moved away from him. Petersen edged to Holder at second slip.Rassie van der Dussen was bowled after shouldering arms to a Roach inducker•AFP/Getty Images

Elgar started to look more convincing when he drove Seales through mid-off but he was beaten by Holder’s first ball, a beauty that pitched on middle and off and moved away then went back into his shell. He battled on, but Rassie van der Dussen couldn’t. Roach, who had switched ends from when he opened the bowling, got the ball to move into van der Dussen several times in his sixth over to set him up, and then did the same with the third ball of his seventh when van ver Dussen shouldered arms and was bowled.Verreynne stayed with Elgar until lunch and through most of the second session showing glimpses of the aggression he has become known for in domestic cricket. But he also had his nervy moments. He was beaten several times after that and survived an lbw review off Mayers, who surprised Verreynne with a ball that nipped back into him from outside off and hit him on the back pad. West Indies reviewed but ball-tracking showed it was going over the stumps.Elgar had been watchful throughout that period but played a few shots in anger. He brought up South Africa’s hundred with a flick off a Roach full toss and his own fifty when he top-edged a Gabriel short ball, which ended up being a no-ball, off the 146th delivery he faced.Two overs later, Verreynne attempted a pull off Gabriel, who had returned for a pre-tea burst, but did not get hold of the ball as it swung down the leg side. He was given out caught behind and reviewed but UltraEdge confirmed Verreynne’s bat had made contact.de Kock picked up where he left off in the first Test and approached his innings positively. He punched a full Chase delivery between extra cover and mid-off, hit Gabriel through the covers and spurred Elgar on to some more aggressive strokes too. The captain pulled Seales through midwicket and drove Holder down the ground to enjoy some reward after an innings of mostly hard graft.The pair seemed set to take South Africa to the close but in the 78th over, Mayers bowled Elgar with a delivery that came back into him and squeezed through the bat-pad gap. West Indies ended up not taking the second new ball instead opting to wait until the morning to make use of it, when conditions may again be ripe for swing. They’ll look to repeat their first morning’s performance but will also be aware of the number of extras they gave away on the first day – 42 – the third-highest scorer in the innings.

There will be no camp in Chennai before the CSK players leave India

PTI10-Aug-2021Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni landed in Chennai on Tuesday ahead of the departure of a group of players to the UAE, which will host the remainder of IPL 2021 starting next month.A bunch of Indian players will travel to the UAE most likely on August 13.”Indian players in the team, whoever is available, will travel to UAE on August 13 in all likelihood,” Super Kings CEO Kasi Viswanathan told PTI.Fans celebrated Dhoni’s arrival in Chennai on social media.