England debutant Shoaib Bashir enjoyed a memorable start to his Test career as he vied for centre stage with India’s next big thing, Yashasvi Jaiswal, on day one in Visakhapatnam.
Bashir was fast-tracked into the England side on the back of just six first-class appearances and began repaying that faith when he grabbed the big wicket of home captain Rohit Sharma in his fourth over.
His exuberant, fist-clenching celebration was a wonderful moment for the 20-year-old off-spinner, who grabbed a second late on when Axar Patel chopped to point, and may even have made up for the visa complications that added 10,000 air miles to his trip and delayed his arrival on tour.
Bashir was trusted to bowl more overs than anyone else and finished with two for 100 in 28 overs as India ran up 336 for six on a good batting pitch. Teenage leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed added two of his own in the evening session, this second Test may hinge on the efforts of rising star Jaiswal.
He made a dashing 179 not out, carrying his bat from first ball to last in an exemplary knock. The 22-year-old, who made his name in the Indian Premier League and looks primed to inherit Virat Kohli’s mantle as the country’s next cricketing icon, never allowed England’s bowlers to breathe easily. Punishing any errors in line or length with bursts of controlled aggression. He hit 17 fours and five sixes, including a towering blow to reach his hundred.
On a pitch that is expected to break up and take sharper turn as the game progresses, England’s task looks a tricky one as they seek to build on the high of victory in Hyderabad.
Ben Foakes, meanwhile, reiterated his value behind the stumps with a pair of smart catches. The first, to see off Shubman Gill just before lunch, saw him dive in front of slip to make the ball his own, but the second was even better. He needed razor sharp reflexes and soft hands to cling on to Shreyas Iyer’s under-edge, with Tom Hartley the beneficiary.
James Anderson, replacing Mark Wood as the solitary seamer, gave up just six runs from his initial five-over spell but England were soon relying on spin at both ends. Joe Root shared the new ball, a gambit aimed at unsettling Jaiswal, but gave way to Bashir as Ben Stokes got his latest newcomer into the game early.
Despite having only 10 first-class wickets to his name, the Somerset prospect started confidently and settled into a steady groove. Sharma had been unusually quiet, grinding out 14 from 41 balls, but when he flicked Bashir round the corner to Pope it was a major first scalp for the youngster.
With Jaiswal putting away anything loose, India were still able to get the best of the first session and it felt a surprise when Anderson returned to take Gill’s outside edge 10 minutes before the break.
Jaiswal resumed on 51 and dialled up the intensity in the afternoon, lifting Root for six over extra-cover with an effortless back-foot drive. Hartley, coming back to earth after his match-winning seven-wicket haul last time out, overpitched a handful of times and was punished repeatedly by the opener.
It was Jaiswal who hit Hartley’s first ball in Test cricket for six and he took the Lancastrian on again here, driving emphatically and giving the fielders no chance to intercept.
He had one scare on 73, Root getting finger tips to a thick edge off Hartley, but moved fluently towards his hundred before reaching three figures with a handsome blow that went all the way over the ropes.
Foakes’ instincts nabbed England a wicket that could easily have gone begging, Iyer cutting a ball that shot through low and and nicking off the bottom edge. It was looking like a long final session at tea, with the score at 225 for three, and Jaiswal did his best to sap Ahmed’s enthusiasm when he clattered the teenage leg-spinner for six.
But Ahmed did not shirk the contest, attacking the stumps until he forced a mistake from debutant Rajat Patidar. Pressing forward in defence he ran it off the face of his bat and watched on as it spun back and unsettled a bail.
England looked like they would settle for four wickets but there was a bonus scalp for Bashir, who finished the day as he had started it, in celebration. It was something of a gift, picking out Ahmed with an uncontrolled cut, but it was Bashir’s height and bounce that made the stroke dangerous.
Srikar Bharat fell in similar style but this time the roles were reversed, Ahmed with the ball and Bashir adding a first to catch to his day’s achievements.
Russell defends CPL's contribution to regional cricket but open to suggestions on improvements
With their long-term agreement with Cricket West Indies (CWI) heavily scrutinised by government leaders and cricket stalwarts, chief executive, Pete Russell of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) defended the product’s positive contribution to cricket in the region.
Addressing the gathering on Friday’s final day of the CARICOM conference on West Indies cricket themed ‘Reinvigorating West Indies Cricket’, Russell said the CPL is one of CWI’s largest domestic commercial partners.
While noting that CPL contributed significantly to player economic welfare, with nearly US$28 million spent on salaries since the start of the tournament in 2013, Russell, also revealed that cumulative losses, across both the league and franchises for the past 11 years, stand at US$40 million.
“Dennis O’Brien and Digicel have been the principal investors, not only investing in the league from day one but they also spent money on sponsorship and media rights. The franchises have also pumped in significant money, money that helps pay players and coaches, as well as investing in local businesses around the region that help make the games happen. All the franchises have made losses.
“So, on the positive side, Cricket West Indies has been paid close to US$17 million in sanction fees, so over the past 12 years CPL would be one of CWI’s largest domestic, commercial partners. Caribbean players have taken home US$27.7 million in player salaries since the tournament’s inception, all paid for by the franchises,” Russell declared during the event held in Trinidad and Tobago.
“Each year, it takes US$25 million to run this tournament over five weeks. CPL and the franchises bear all these costs. There is no financial burden on CWI or the territorial boards, so the risk is 100 per cent ours.
“So that is our starting point each and every year. So as you can imagine, the commercial challenges are considerable just to break even,” he added.
Russell’s response came as government leaders and West Indies legend Sir Clive Lloyd, suggested that the 50-year contract between CPL and CWI be re-negotiated.
The issue of the league’s ownership was also called into question, as they view was largely expressed that there would potentially be more development and earnings for players, if CWI controlled the tournament.
But, Russell, a member of the CPL management team rebutted.
“What is interesting is that other leagues around the world are following the lead of CWI. They are also looking for third-party investors to help fund their leagues. The English Cricket Board are in the process of selling The Hundred, the Australian Cricket Board are courting outside investors for the Big Bash, Cricket South Africa sold all their rights to host broadcaster Supersport, and the new American Major League Cricket is 100 per cent privately owned,” Russell shared.
“In time, only the IPL will end up being 100 per cent owned by its domestic board and that is simply because they can afford to do so. So, trust me when I say, ownership isn’t everything, and smart stewardship and partnership can yield better results. But of course, we’re always happy to listen to any suggestions on how we can improve things,” he ended.
IPL: Royals extend lead at the top after Samson and Jurel see off LSG
Sanju Samson and Dhruv Jurel combined for an unbeaten partnership of 121 as Indian Premier League leaders Rajasthan Royals defeated Lucknow Super Giants on Saturday.
The Royals have now won eight of their nine matches in the 2024 campaign and are almost certain to be involved in the playoffs after chasing down their victory target of 197 with an over to spare in a seven-wicket triumph.
Another Royals win had looked unlikely when they fell to 78-3 in their run chase after Jos Buttler (34), Yashasvi Jaiswal (24) and Riyan Parag (14) all fell in quick succession shortly before the halfway mark.
But Rajasthan captain Samson fought back as he blasted 71 runs from 33 balls including seven fours and four maximums, while Jurel bounced back from a poor period of form to finish unbeaten on 52 from 34.
LSG reached 196-5 from their innings courtesy of a fine knock from their own skipper, KL Rahul. He reached 76 from 48 before eventually falling to Avesh Khan (1-42) in the 18th over.
Deepak Hooda made it to 50 as LSG rallied from 11-2, but ultimately their competitive total was within reach of the visiting Royals.
Data Debrief
This is the second time in as many home games Rahul has passed fifty, after he scored 82 against Chennai Super Kings last week.
Samson (385) and Rahul (378) are second and third respectively in the race to win this season’s orange cap, although RCB’s Virat Kohli continues to set the pace with 430 runs.
They also narrowly trail Kohli (40) when it comes to the most fours hit in this season’s competition, with Samson on 36 and Rahul just behind with 34.
Babar's captain's innings leads Pakistan to victory as series drawn with New Zealand
Babar Azam top scored as he led his Pakistan team to a nine-run victory over New Zealand in Lahore that saw the five-game T20I series end in a draw.
Babar hit 69 runs off 44 balls before being bowled by Ben Sears, smashing six fours and two sixes to take his team to 123/3 at the time of his dismissal.
Fakhar Zaman (43 from 33) and Usman Khan (31 off 24) also chipped in with important innings as Pakistan ended on 178/5.
With a target of 179 to secure a 3-1 series victory, New Zealand's run chase faltered almost immediately as opener Tom Blundell was removed within the first over with his team having managed just five runs on the board.
Blundell's fellow opener Tim Seifert steadied the ship with a vital 52-run innings off 33 deliveries before being bowled by Usama Mir, but Shaheen Shah Afridi led the way for Pakistan, finishing with figures of 4-30 to stem the New Zealand run chase
Josh Clarkson's 38 off 26 set up a nervy conclusion, but Pakistan held on to avoid defeat in the T20 series as the teams share the spoils at two wins apiece after the first game was abandoned.
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