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On a slow pitch, Ajinkya Rahane, Manoj Tiwary and MS Dhoni led Rising Pune Supergiant to 162, a score they defended by 20 runs via Washington Sundar’s 3 for 16, clearing their path to the IPL final

The Report by Nikhil Kalro16-May-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details2:59

‘Last two overs of Pune’s innings made the difference’

After being asked to bat on a favourable chasing ground, Rising Pune Supergiant lost the majority of the first innings. But it was an atypically slow surface at the Wankhede Stadium and Rising Pune utilised those conditions better than Mumbai Indians did to clear a path to their maiden IPL final.Rising Pune defended 162 comfortably in the end, by 20 runs, for their third win over Mumbai this season. Mumbai, despite having squandered the shootout for the final in front of a packed home crowd, will have a second chance in the second qualifier in Bengaluru on Friday.At the forefront of a sublime bowling performance was teenage offspinner Washington Sundar. His fuller-than-good length and straight lines meant the batsmen were not able to attack either side of the wicket with any conviction. His quick pace didn’t let them get under deliveries either. The 17-year old finished with 3 for 16 from four overs and the Man-of-the-Match award.The harder task on the night, though, was with the bat. Manoj Tiwary and Ajinkya Rahane struck patient fifties, setting a platform for MS Dhoni to use his wiles and hitting prowess at the end to help Rising Pune finish with a decent score and sufficient momentum.A strong start
In Mumbai’s last league game at this venue, Kings XI Punjab defended a total of 230 by just seven runs. Even with the possibility of dew and the short boundaries, Rising Pune may not have been aiming that high after losing the toss, but they knew they needed to get close.Planning, check. Execution, a big red cross. Rahul Tripathi fell over a flick and was bowled. Steven Smith’s leading edge was snaffled up at backward point. Rising Pune were 9 for 2 in two overs. The surface may have been slow, and Mumbai’s variations were effective, but after that start, a score of close to 170 was the best Rising Pune could hope for, which meant Mumbai were never out of the game.Different pitch, same Dhoni finish
Rising Pune had laboured to 121 for 3 after 18 overs. The five overs prior to that yielded just 32 without a wicket as Mumbai’s bowlers found the right length to Dhoni and Tiwary. Dhoni’s strike rate in his first 10 balls in the IPL, before this game, was 88.52. Against Mumbai, he could only muster 14 off his first 17 balls.But then Mitchell McClenaghan, not for the first time this season, missed his yorker. A high full-toss was hit for four and the resulting free-hit went for six over long-on. Dhoni anticipated McClenaghan’s good or short length in the second half of that over, and sat back to hit two sixes.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Jasprit Bumrah hadn’t pitched anything in Dhoni’s half all through the match. But in the final over, he gifted two good length balls that were smashed for sixes as Rising Pune plundered 41 off the last 12 balls. Their score of 162 was below par at this ground, but the momentum and confidence – of having defended a similar score before on this ground earlier this season – was firmly with Rising Pune.Falling behind from the start
Rising Pune had only one way forward – exploiting a two-paced Wankhede surface. Even if they didn’t get early wickets, they had to keep Mumbai in check because batting was going to get harder. Jaydev Unadkat brought out his offcutters in the first over and conceded just one run. Mumbai were already behind the game.Parthiv Patel hit 33 off 16 in the Powerplay, but Mumbai lost three wickets. Lendl Simmons was run-out, backing up too far at the non-striker’s end. Rohit Sharma was undone by umpiring error, given out lbw despite a thick inside edge. Ambati Rayudu found midwicket with a pull; the second wicket in Sundar’s over. Mumbai were 42 for 3 inside the fielding restrictions and behind the asking rate.Undone by conditions
Timing shots and picking slower deliveries was getting tougher. Why? After a bowler releases his delivery, batsmen pick the speed through the air and then adjust accordingly. But with the ball gripping the surface, it came onto them slower than expected. Mumbai, having played seven league matches on an even, true Wankhede pitch, weren’t used to that pace. Unadkat used his slower balls, Shardul Thakur his knuckle balls and Sundar an effective change in pace, to thoroughly flummox Mumbai’s batsmen.

Shahid Afridi has stepped down as Pakistan’s T20 captain but has said that he intends to continue playing international cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Apr-20162:31

Match Day – Afridi didn’t have the temperament for captaincy

Shahid Afridi has decided not to retire from T20 internationals following Pakistan’s exit from the World T20, but he has stepped down from captaincy in the format.”Today I wish to inform my fans in Pakistan and all over the world that I am relinquishing the captaincy of the T20 Pakistan team of my own volition,” Afridi said in a statement. “I would also like to inform that InshaAllah I intend to continue playing the game for my country and league cricket etc, and request my fans to keep praying and supporting me as long as I play for Pakistan or for any other league team all over the worldAfter the 2015 World Cup, Afridi, 36, had announced his intention to retire from international cricket following the World T20 in India. Earlier this year, however, he stated he was facing “huge pressure” from family and friends to not do so.Afridi was heavily criticised as a leader following Pakistan’s poor performances in the recent Asia Cup and the World T20. Pakistan’s only victories in eight games across those two tournaments were against UAE, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.Subsequently, a report from the coach Waqar Younis said the players “felt confused with what the captain was telling them to do” The team manager Intikhab Alam said Afridi was an “absolutely clueless” captain.Afridi had succeeded Mohammad Hafeez as T20 captain in September 2014. He won 11 out of 24 matches in that time. His batting and bowling form has also been dipping recently. Over the past 12 months, he has averaged 14.61 with the bat and 34 with the ball. Overall, he has led Pakistan in 43 matches, won 19 and lost 23.

Ajay Jadeja, the former India batsman, played for Haryana in a match against Hyderabad in the Buchi Babu tournament in Chennai fuelling speculation of his return to domestic cricket

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Aug-2013Ajay Jadeja, the former India batsman, played for Haryana in a match against Hyderabad in the Buchi Babu tournament in Chennai fuelling speculation of his return to domestic cricket. Jadeja, in his first competitive outing after a six-year hiatus, scored 37, and put up a 75-run fourth-wicket stand with opener Sunny Singh, to guide Haryana to a 67-run victory.Anirudh Chaudhary, the Haryana Cricket Association (HCA) secretary, however, insisted that it was too early to comment on Jadeja’s immediate future. “I have spoken to some players there and they have said that having Ajay around has been a learning experience for them,” Chaudhary said. “Ajay has got a busy schedule, and already has a lot of other commitments. We at present are looking at him to mentor a few extremely talented players through different cricketing situations. As far as him playing for Haryana is concerned, it will depend on the selectors and also on Jadeja’s availability.”Jadeja, who made his first class debut for Haryana in 1988, was a prominent member of the Indian team in the 1990s. With 5359 runs, he is India’s eighth-highest run-getter in the ODIs and featured in three World Cups. He received a five-year ban in December 2000 for his alleged involvement in match-fixing.A plea by him seeking permission to play international cricket was dismissed by the Delhi High Court in November 2004, but he went on to play for Delhi a year later.

There are few more determined cricketers than Paul Collingwood and he
is now utilising the desire and experience that once helped England to
spearhead Durham’s unexpected rally to avoid relegation.

Myles Hodgson at Chester-le-Street08-Aug-2012
ScorecardPaul Collingwood made his highest score of the season•Getty Images

There are few more determined cricketers than Paul Collingwood and he
is now utilising the desire and experience that once helped England to
spearhead Durham’s unexpected rally to avoid relegation. Apparently
marooned at the foot of Division One when he took over as captain last
month, his best score of the summer has put them in sight of a second
successive victory.After representing England in 68 Test matches, 197 one-day
internationals and having led them to the World Twenty20 triumph in
Barbados two years ago, Collingwood was the obvious candidate to
approach when Phil Mustard stepped down at the mid-way point of the
summer. They had lost four of their first eight championship matches
and looked like a side preparing for next summer in Division Two.This is Collingwood’s third match as captain, during which time Durham
have narrowly lost against Sussex at Arundel, secured their first
championship win of the season over Middlesex and are closing in on an
emphatic win over Surrey, one of their relegation rivals. It has been
a staggering turnaround in fortunes, even for a player used to
confounding expectations during his international career.”The spirit has been excellent over the last few weeks, they guys are
ready for the challenge and we know it’s going to be a hard end to the
season,” Collingwood said. “We have to get ourselves off the bottom of
the table, but in many ways it’s an exciting time because it is a
good challenge and we believe we can do it.”Durham were indebted to Collingwood’s know how, in tandem with the
equally experienced Dale Benkenstein, which ensured they wore Surrey
down and instead of contemplating a narrow advantage, stretched it
into a commanding 181-run first innings lead. Both players scored
half-centuries during their 132-run stand, with Collingwood scoring 78
while Benkenstein’s 69 was his first time past 50 this summer, but
equally importantly it provided confidence within the dressing room
that it was possible to score runs on a pitch that claimed 14 wickets
on the opening day.That was underlined with Mustard and Callum Thorp adding an equally
valuable 72 for the eighth wicket, although not without controversy.
Mustard was given lbw when Zander de Bruyn angled the ball into his
pads but Jeff Evans, the umpire, changed his mind after consulting
with colleague Michael Gough after concluding he had got an inside
edge.Surrey’s irritation rose significantly and although Mustard only added
three more runs to his total before falling lbw to Jon Lewis, it was
an illustration of a difficult day in the field after their gamble to
bat first on the opening day backfired spectacularly. Jason Roy,
possibly still seething after his run out in the first innings,
illustrated that frustration by questioning the decision to give him
lbw shortly before the close.”I think Jason thought he’d hit the ball and we thought the two noises
were two pads, but we don’t have the DRS and all that sort of stuff in
county cricket so hopefully we won’t get too nit-picky about umpire’s
decisions,” Collingwood said. “They tend to equal themselves out
during the season.” That may be of little comfort to Surrey, who
should be expecting Roy to receive disciplinary action for his
reaction.Of greater concern to Chris Adams, Surrey’s director of cricket, may
be how Surrey struggled to develop a partnership similar to that
established by Collingwood and Benkenstein. They are lacking anyone
with that experience in their top order, but from the moment Zafar
Ansari, their young opener, flashed a wide delivery from Graham Onions
straight to Durham’s captain at slip, it was a struggle.Ben Stokes, Durham’s emerging allrounder, claimed two lbws in an
impressive nine-over spell including a wicket with his third ball and
any little hope of Surrey battling back into the match appeared to
have been lost when Steve Davies edged behind only eight balls before
the close.”It was a great effort by the bowlers,” Collingwood added. “There were
periods when we were batting when it felt really flat but we managed
to get the ball swinging and this Riverside pitch always seems to have
something in it.”

Dance anthems blared, Mojito glasses clinked and complimentary KFC was in garishly plentiful supply as Australian cricket grasped for a semblance of edginess at the BBL launch

Daniel Brettig28-Jul-2011Dance anthems blared, Mojito glasses clinked and complimentary KFC was in plentiful supply as Australian cricket grasped for a semblance of edginess at the launch of the Twenty20 Big Bash League.Held at Carriageworks, a venue in Sydney’s inner west that is more synonymous with hip-hop festivals and art exhibitions, the event brought together a vast array of cricketers, sponsors, media and various other hangers-on.Some mixed better than others, as the old world tried to seek relevance and context in the new. Like the competition it launched, the night was an effort to broaden cricket, something achieved in a sartorial sense at least by the stipulation that no ties were to be worn by any of the male guests.Amid the mess, noise and a humdrum DJ set by a minor Australian celebrity, Erin McNaught, there was room for pondering about what it all meant. Cricket Australia are relentlessly hopeful about building the game’s audience and revenue streams, while the newly-anointed captains did their bit by attempting to manufacture on-stage rivalries between teams that are underpinned by market research rather than history.The absence of the Australian Test captain, Michael Clarke, told another story. Clarke has decided that he cannot take part in the BBL if he wants to devote his full attention to international cricket, a view shared by another absentee, Mitchell Johnson. One of Australia’s pace bowling hopes for the forthcoming Test match schedule is Trent Copeland, but he is on an underwhelming salary due to his lack of suitability for the highly limited tactical manoeuvres of T20.One of the wiser voices in the room was that of Marcus North, the former Australian batsman and West Australian captain, who can now add the leadership of the Perth Scorchers to his CV. He expresses no great love for T20 as a batsman, saying “I’m not one of those players who is going to be attracted to playing T20 cricket around the world, that’s probably not my style of the game”. But North is enthusiastic about the chance to attract new followers, and to potentially build club culture in a game whose loyalties have always been international and provincial in nature.”I think you’ll still get your cricket purists, but you get a completely different audience on top of that as well,” North told ESPNcricinfo. “We see families, people who’ve never really come to watch cricket or be interested in cricket, but love to be there and enjoy the occasion, enjoy the atmosphere.”You don’t have to go to a T20 game and have to watch every ball, you’re there with your friends, enjoying the occasion, enjoying the spectacle of being with friends and a great atmosphere with a full stadium. So it really broadens the viewers that watch this format of the game. I think it’s developed over the last few years, we’ve seen how successful it has been in India, and it’s been a bit of a success in Australia already. I think this takes it to a new level and will put T20 on the map in Australian cricket.”The map North speaks of is now dotted with domestic competitions and matches across three formats, seemingly diluting what was once a helpfully uncluttered pathway from grade cricket to Test matches via the Sheffield Shield battles between the states. Thinking over the question of what this will do to twist the ambitions of young players, North cannot be sure that ensuing generations will still find the prospect of a Test cap quite so alluring as that of a fat cheque.”It’s a good question,” North said. “It’s a learning curve, a bit of unknown what we’re dealing with at the moment, it has been quite public that it’s a little controversial the way the contract system has worked this year for domestic players. It has been talked about but it is a learning curve, this is a new competition, it’s influenced the way contracts are dealt with.”I feel if you do go speak to a lot of the cricketers around Australia, playing Test cricket and wearing the baggy green is still very, very high on their list. But it’s a hard one to answer, because I grew up in a different era to what the young guys are growing up in now. It is hard for me to comprehend striving to play for your state and not having that ultimate ambition to represent your country.”Whether that is going to influence players, the way this T20 revolution around the world is, the amount of money that’s being thrown, whether that’s going to influence the way the younger generation are going to look at representing Test cricket being their ultimate priority, is a question to ask the young guys. I certainly hope not, but hopefully there’s a balance, and the tradition and history of representing Australia with the baggy green continues to live strong.”A note of optimism can be found in the story of Dave Warner, whose emergence in 2011 as a batsman of Test match potential has illustrated that international cricket can still provide the most powerful attraction for a cricketer rolling around in T20 cash. It is a point of welcome irony that Warner has been the poster-boy for Mike McKenna, CA’s head of marketing and the BBL project owner, as an exemplar of the sort of player who can use T20 to become a star.Warner has now turned the concept around by allying the attention he gained through T20 with his own drive and ambition to play Test cricket. After belatedly breaking into the New South Wales Shield XI, Warner has been eye-catching for Australia A, helped by one of Greg Chappell’s more astute selection observations. This means McKenna may yet lose his most marketable name to the fuddy duddy old game played by men clad in white, as it competes with the BBL during the December-January holiday period.”He was the first player to go against the grain, but give credit to Dave that he’s had that perception to break, and perception is a hard thing to change, and he’s had to do that over the last couple of years,” North said. “He’s always been quite open and honest about wanting to play first-class cricket for NSW and to play for Australia and wear the baggy green.”It’s taken him a while but he’s starting to put the performances together. We saw how well he did perform in first-class cricket last year for NSW, and he’s been arguably the batter of the tour on the Australia A tour of Zimbabwe, so he’s making the right noises and putting his foot forward. That’s credit to Dave Warner, it isn’t easy to break perception and he’s put the work in that’s needed to adjust his game to make him able to play first-class cricket. So he’s an example of the new generation that’s been pretty focused on T20 but he’s been able to adapt his game.”Warner’s evolution, and the emergence of the spin bowler Nathan Lyon, has shown that T20 can add to the pool of Australian Test cricketers as much as it takes away. This much was cause for optimism, even as the 9pm closure of the Carriageworks bar reminded all present that CA are gambling on the BBL with a dwindling supply of chips.

Afghanistan climbed to the top of the Intercontinental Cup table with a resounding win over Scotland, whom they displaced, on the fifth day in Ayr

Cricinfo staff14-Aug-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Hamid Hassan finished with 11 wickets in the match•International Cricket Council

Afghanistan climbed to the top of the Intercontinental Cup table with a resounding win over Scotland, whom they displaced, on the fifth day in Ayr. Medium-pacer Hamid Hassan bagged five wickets to help Afghanistan beat their opponents, who had been set a target of 546, by 229 runs.Afghanistan had bagged two wickets by the end of the third day but Scotland put in an improved performance in their second innings to make the bowlers fight for their wickets. Ewan Chalmers top scored with 67 and the middle and lower orders chipped in with important contributions, though in vain.Scotland lost three wickets in quick succession, leaving too much for their lower order to achieve. Richie Berrington and Qasim Sheikh were dismissed by Abdullah, who bowled a miserly spell of ten overs, conceding just six runs and grabbing two wickets. Chalmers fell with the score on 158 and though the rest built promising partnerships, Hassan chipped away at them to secure a mammoth win.Moneeb Iqbal contributed a patient 42, so did Matthew Parker and the last five wickets added 158 but the target they had been set proved way beyond them. Hassan completed a memorable game, finishing with 11 wickets. He had grabbed 6 for 40 in the first innings to give his team a decisive advantage in the contest.Reflecting on his performance, Hassan said, “It was a big achievement for me to get a 10-wicket haul but I just focused on getting a victory for my team. In the first innings, I bowled very well as the ball was swinging both ways, which is why their batting collapsed. In the second innings they batted with confidence and gave themselves a real chance of drawing the match. But we were very determined to win the match and go top of the table.”I was very worried about my ankle and I bowled 27 overs with the injury. But everybody was trying very hard to take wickets. I said to my colleagues that I was going to take a risk with my injury and do whatever it takes to take the wickets. The doctor told me not to bowl, but I wanted to, so he bandaged my ankle up to my knee which is why I was able to bowl. It was a very good game and I am very pleased with my performance.”Everybody worked very hard in batting and bowling and we all gave it 100 per cent. We will be trying our best to get in the final and bring the ICC Intercontinental Cup back to Afghanistan.”Hassan said four-day cricket required a lot of patience and one needed to focus on all the areas of one’s game. “You have to concentrate on bowling really good balls to get the batters out, while our batters have learnt to wait to hit the loose ball. For me, it is an enjoyable form of the game as you have to learn to be patient and we have learnt lots of things. It is good for us to play four-day cricket as it helps us improve in one-day cricket as well.”

“What we saw on the streets tonight is something I’m never going to forget in my life,” says Kohli after open-top bus parade in Mumbai

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Jul-2024Virat Kohli felt the T20 World Cup was going to “slip away” from India at one point of Saturday’s thrilling final against South Africa. Five days later, while celebrating their victory with thousands of fans in Mumbai, he asked that Jasprit Bumrah be applauded for his “phenomenal” show to bring them back into the final.”Like everyone in the stadium [here], we also felt at one point if it is going to slip away again, but what happened in those [last] five overs was truly, truly special,” Kohli said, at the team’s felicitation at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday night. “You know what I’d like everyone to do is applaud a guy who brought us back into games again and again and again in this tournament. What he did in those last five overs, bowling two out of the last five overs, it was phenomenal. A huge round of applause for Jasprit Bumrah, please.”Related

• Massive crowds in and around Wankhede to greet Indian team

South Africa needed 30 runs off 30 balls, having ransacked 38 off the previous two overs, when Bumrah came back for his third over. He went on to concede just four runs off the 16th over, and two off the 18th, also knocking over Marco Jansen, as India completed an incredible heist. That win, India’s first World Cup title in 13 years, was being celebrated in Mumbai, with thousands lining Marine Drive as India’s bus drove past on its way to the Wankhede. The stadium, too, was filled to capacity hours before the team’s arrival, with fans braving rain.Kohli said he will “never forget” the reception he and the Indian team received. “A big thank you to all the people who turned up in the stadium,” he said. “What we saw on the streets tonight is something I’m never going to forget in my life.”The last four days have been a roller-coaster of a ride. As soon as we won the World Cup, we wanted to get out of Barbados, get back to India and celebrate with everyone. We got stuck in the hurricane, so it was an anti-climactic feeling. But since we’ve been back, it’s been phenomenal.Fans as far as the eye can see: Marine Drive was chock-a-block ahead of the Indian team’s arrival•AFP/Getty Images

Kohli said he had never seen Rohit Sharma as emotional as he was in the moment after India’s victory in Bridgetown. Social media was ablaze with pictures of the two embracing each other on the way up the stairs of the dressing room at Kensington Oval. “I don’t know about breaking the internet, but for the first time in 15 years of playing together, I saw Rohit show so much emotion on the field,” Kohli said. “When I was walking up the steps, I was crying, he was crying and we hugged. For me, that is going to be a very special memory from that day.”Rohit said he was “relieved” to end India’s long wait for a global title. “Bringing the World Cup to this country means the world to us. This is for the people who support and watch the game, and, along with all of us, for the last 11 years, they’re the ones who’ve been wanting this trophy to come back. Finally it’s here, and I’m very happy and relieved.”

The Mumbai Indians captain felt they let Gujarat Titans score 20-25 runs extra and failed to stitch partnerships in the chase

ESPNcricinfo staff26-May-20232:03

Will Mumbai be happy with their season?

Mumbai Indians’ IPL campaign in 2023 came to an end with a 62-run defeat against Gujarat Titans in the second Qualifier in Ahmedabad. Their captain Rohit Sharma said that their batting and especially the performance of some of the younger players was the biggest positive for them from this season.Mumbai adopted an ultra-aggressive approach to compensate for the loss of several of their first-choice bowlers to injury, including Jasprit Bumrah and Jofra Archer. It saw them post totals of more than 200 six times this season, the most by any team in one edition of the IPL.”I mean playing this game, qualifying as third in the tournament, you know, it gives us a lot of confidence,” Rohit told the host broadcaster after the game.Related

• Mumbai discover uncut gems to make it farther than expected

• Boucher on Mumbai's injury situation: 'Stupid to open a can of worms now'

• Stats: Shubman Gill hammers highest IPL playoffs score

• Three sixes in Madhwal over told Gill 'maybe this is my day'

• Reactions to Shubman Gill's 129 – 'The kind of stuff big players do'

Mumbai had a slow start to the season, before coming out on top of a mid-table jam to make it to the playoffs. They then beat Lucknow Super Giants in the Eliminator to reach the second Qualifier.Players like Tilak Varma, who smashed 43 off 14 deliveries in their defeat on Friday, and Nehal Wadhera played a role in their run to the third-place finish.”Our batting actually was the biggest positive,” Rohit said. “Some of the younger players who have come through this tournament really well is a big positive for us, something that we can take into the next season and see what we can do with the squad.”On Friday, a glorious century from Shubman Gill powered Titans to 233. While Tilak, Suryakumar Yadav (61 off 38) and Cameron Green (30 off 20) played handy knocks, Mumbai were bowled out for 171.”Yeah, look, it was a great total. Shubman batted really well. The wicket was really good. We thought, you know they got 20-25 runs extra. But you know with the batting line-up we had, we were quite positive once we went inside after the first half,” Rohit said. “Couldn’t stitch long partnerships. Greeny and Surya batted well in the middle, but we just lost our way there a little bit.”Suryakumar Yadav made 61 off 38 against Gujarat Titans•AFP/Getty Images

Rohit felt that because they lost three wickets, Mumbai didn’t make the most of the powerplay, even as they raced to 72 after the first six overs.”We thought about giving it a good crack. We wanted to be positive. And you know, you’ve got to make full use of the powerplay as well, which didn’t go well for us. We lost a couple of wickets there and then, yeah, couldn’t get that momentum which you actually want when you’re chasing a target like that.”But I thought Surya and Greeny batted well in the middle, got something for us there. But yeah, you know what? We wanted one batter just like what Gujarat did, Shubman batted till the end. We wanted someone to go and bat and take the game till deep and you never know, anything can happen.”Mumbai had to improvise plans after Ishan Kishan suffered a concussion while fielding. He collided with Chris Jordan by accident and went off the field and was replaced by Vishnu Vinod, who became the IPL’s first concussion substitute. Wadhera opened with Rohit in Kishan’s absence.”Yeah, I mean, it’s something that we didn’t expect. He had a bit of a concussion there. I dont know how that happened, but yeah, it was a last-minute change,” Rohit said. “But you know as a team you’ve got to adapt. That is something that we’ve been talking about since the start of the tournament.”You’ve got to adapt to different conditions, different situations of the game. But yeah, I’m not going to look at that. We just didn’t play well to win the game.”Vinod came out to bat in the 12th over, ahead of Tim David, and made 5 off 7 deliveries. Rohit said that decision was so that David could get a later point of entry, which seems more suited to his game.”Tim through the season, we’ve given him a role, given him a certain situation of the game where he where he is going to bat. But yeah, I mean, look, we wanted Vishnu to come and play his game,” Rohit said. “He is a good player. We have seen that. I have seen that personally. I mean, like I said, it didn’t come off today. So I’m not going to look at any judgment that we made today went wrong. Its just that, you know, Gujarat came on top today.”

Test squad members Dickwella and de Silva added to T20I squad for remaining games

Andrew Fidel Fernando25-Feb-2022Spinner Maheesh Theekshana and Kusal Mendis have been ruled out of the ongoing T20I series against India with hamstring issues, Sri Lanka Cricket confirmed on Friday.Seam bowler Shiran Fernando, who is in the squad and is yet to make his international debut, has been ruled out of the T20Is too, with a glute injury.To bolster the squad, Niroshan Dickwella and Dhananjaya de Silva – members of the Test squad – have been added to the T20 set up for the remaining matches.Related

• Dharamsala weather in focus as India hunt for 11th straight T20I win against injury-hit Sri Lanka

• Kishan, Shreyas fifties muscle India to huge win

• The Ishan Kishan metric to measure the chasm between young India and Sri Lanka players

There is one piece of better news for Sri Lanka, however. Seamer Binura Fernando, who had tested positive for Covid-19 in Australia, has been medically cleared to begin regular training, and should be available for selection for the two T20Is to be played in Dharamsala.It had appeared unlikely Mendis would’ve been risked in the T20Is with a Test series beginning on March 4 in Mohali. Mendis has not played Tests since January last year, when he was dismissed for four consecutive ducks, but has been in better form since returning to competitive cricket from a six-month ban for breaking Covid protocols. In fact, he was the player of the match in the most recent international he played – the fifth T20I in Australia.Theekshana’s absence is a substantial blow to the T20I side, however, with Wanindu Hasaranga also ruled out having tested positive for Covid. Theekshana had been one of Sri Lanka’s go-to powerplay bowlers over the past six months.Sri Lanka lost the opening encounter while the second and third T20Is are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday with both games to be played in Dharamsala.

While not mathematically out of the race yet, Dhoni’s team faces a tough road to make the playoffs

Debayan Sen22-Oct-20208:40

Should Chennai make wholesale changes? Do Mumbai need Pattinson back?

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Captain MS Dhoni and head coach Stephen Fleming may have sounded unusually downbeat after Chennai Super Kings put in a below-par performance in their previous match against Rajasthan Royals, but mathematically the Super Kings are still in the race to maintain their record of qualifying for the playoffs every season. This despite losing the services of allrounder Dwayne Bravo to injury, and with Dhoni’s selection choices coming under fire from various quarters. The fact that even three wins from their four remaining games could just sneak them into the top four – provided other results go their way – should give them the necessary spark with the death of the round robin games approaching.ALSO READ: Fantasy-team suggestions for Super Kings vs MumbaiTheir immediate opponents Mumbai Indians have suffered a couple of hiccups along the way, but look on course to making the playoffs yet again. They have had an extra day’s rest compared to the Super Kings, and considering the drama of their epic encounter with the Kings XI Punjab, they would be thankful for it. Captain Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan appeared to suffer injuries during Sunday’s match, and their non-availability might not be such a bad thing. With just 13 players used from their roster yet, Mumbai wouldn’t mind valuable match practice for those having warmed the bench thus far, especially looking at the business end of the tournament.

In the news

• The 2020 season remains the only time when Dhoni is yet to register a score of 50 or more while his average of 27.30 is his lowest for the Super Kings in any season. Dhoni’s strike rate of 125 is also the second lowest for the franchise – he had struck 372 runs at 122 in 2015 – and with the middle order a weak link for the Super Kings, Dhoni hitting form is not just crucial but also imperative for their playoffs hopes to stay alive.
• If Mumbai choose to rest Rohit, Kieron Pollard can step into the role of captain, as he has in the past for them. This can also allow Chris Lynn and Dhawal Kulkarni – both unused so far – to play at the expense of a foreign seamer. Pollard’s form with the bat has been key for Mumbai’s continued form this season. After falling to Lungi Ngidi for 18 in the first match of the season, he has rattled up 190 more runs at a strike rate of 211 in six innings without being dismissed. Owing to Pollard, Mumbai average 10.60 in the last 10 overs while batting, and have smashed 20 or more runs in an over at the death for as many as seven times.

Previous meeting

It was the very first game of the season in Abu Dhabi. Dhoni used his resources expertly to ensure no Mumbai batsman scored more than 42, as all his bowlers chipped in with wickets and restricted the defending champions to 162. Despite early jitters, Ambati Rayudu and Faf du Plessis spearheaded the Super Kings’ reply to bring them their first win against Mumbai following a 4-0 wipeout last season.

Likely XIs

Chennai Super Kings: 1 Faf du Plessis, 2 Shane Watson, 3 N Jagadeesan/Ruturaj Gaikwad, 4 Ambati Rayudu, 5 MS Dhoni (capt and wk), 6 Sam Curran, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Deepak Chahar, 9 Shardul Thakur, 10 Karn Sharma/KM Asif, 11 Josh Hazlewood/Imran TahirMumbai Indians: 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Rohit Sharma (capt)/Chris Lynn, 3 Suryakumar Yadav, 4 Ishan Kishan/Saurabh Tiwary, 5 Hardik Pandya, 6 Kieron Pollard, 7 Krunal Pandya, 8 Nathan Coulter-Nile/Dhawal Kulkarni, 9 Rahul Chahar, 10 Trent Boult, 11 Jasprit Bumrah

Strategy punts

• The Super Kings promoted Sam Curran to open the batting against the Sunrisers Hyderabad, and while they won that match, his strike rate of 108 at the top pales in comparison to the 219 he was going at previously this season. Curran also strikes at 190 against spin, as opposed to 127 against pace.
• Similarly, Ravindra Jadeja currently averages 48.50 and strikes at 164, both being his best returns with the bat in an IPL. Curran and Jadeja can both be employed as floaters – especially keeping the smaller boundaries of Sharjah in mind – to motor along in the middle overs.
• Typically, Mumbai use one over of Jasprit Bumrah in the powerplay and another around the 11th or 12th over mark, before holding back two overs for the death. However, his recent form has been terrific – his average and economy have dipped to 11.50 and 5.80 in the last four matches, as opposed to 25.1 and 8.80 in the first five. Besides, his match-ups with Shane Watson (who averages 23.5 and strikes at 87), Dhoni (average 15.7 and strike rate 92) and Curran (dismissed both times they’ve met while averaging seven) could encourage a break from the norm and more overs in the first half of the innings.

Stats that matter

• Matches in Sharjah have followed no set pattern that the teams can go by. If the first four games produced an average first innings total of 219 with four successive teams batting first and crossing 200, that number has dipped to 182 and zero respectively, in the four matches that have followed. Similarly, the economy rate for spinners went from 10.5 in the first four matches to 7.5 in the four played since.
• This will be the 200th T20 match for the Super Kings, who have 118 wins from 199 games till now. They will join Mumbai, the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Kolkata Knight Riders as teams with 200 T20 matches, with only Mumbai (126) having won more matches.
• Dhoni needs one six to reach 200 sixes as captain in the IPL.
• Bumrah needs three wickets to reach 100 wickets in the IPL and 200 in all T20s.
• Krunal Pandya needs 27 runs to reach 1000 IPL runs.