Category Uncategorized

Former India opener also finds support from Irfan Pathan, Manoj Tiwary and Dodda Ganesh

Nagraj Gollapudi11-Feb-2021Former India captain Anil Kumble has led the support from the Indian players’ fraternity to former team-mate Wasim Jaffer after senior officials at Cricket Association of Uttarakhand (CAU) reportedly alleged Jaffer was creating a religious and communal divide in the dressing room. Along with Kumble, others who backed Jaffer included former Indian and Baroda allrounder Irfan Pathan, India and Bengal batsman Manoj Tiwary and former India and Karnataka fast bowler Dodda Ganesh.”With you Wasim,” Kumble said in a tweet posted on Thursday. “Did the right thing. Unfortunately, it’s the players who’ll miss your mentorship.” Incidentally, both Kumble and Jaffer are part of the Kings XI Punjab coaching staff; the former is the director of cricket operations and the latter is the batting coach.The allegations, which were published by Hindi newspaper on Wednesday, quoted the CAU secretary Mahim Verma stating that Jaffer was trying to “break the team through religious activities”. Navneet Mishra, the Uttarakhand team manager, also alleged that Jaffer had also changed the team slogan from ” to ”.Meanwhile, the CAU has asked Mishra to submit a report on the matter. “After looking at the seriousness of the incident related to the Cricket Association of Uttarakhand and Wasim Jaffer, the association has asked men’s senior team’s manager Navneet Mishra to submit a report on the matter,” Verma said in CAU release. “The further course of action will be decided after Mishra submits his report.”We are already questioning the manager about the biosecure bubble breach and will take action against any person/support staff responsible for the same as players’ safety is paramount for us.”On Wednesday, Jaffer denied all the allegations, calling them “baseless” and “petty”. Pathan agreed, saying in a tweet today, that it was “unfortunate” Jaffer had to “explain this”.Anil Kumble, Irfan Pathan, Dodda Ganesh and Manoj Tiwary tweeted in Jaffer’s support•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Incidentally, the allegations emerged a day after Jaffer sent in his resignation as Uttarakhand head coach on February 8 citing “interference in selections”. In an e-mail to senior CAU office bearers and officials, Jaffer singled out Verma for interfering in the team selections and it was the CAU’s secretary’s “laidback and unprofessional approach” which had caused him to “move away”.Last June, the CAU had appointed Jaffer as the head coach for the 2020-21 season. With the pandemic delaying the start of the Indian domestic season, the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy was Jaffer’s first assignment as he arrived in Dehradun for the preparatory camp on December 22. Immediately, Jaffer said, he noticed Verma having a say in cricketing issues including selection for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.”Things had started to get sour between me and Mr. Mahim Verma when I was pressurised in the last team selections for Syed Mushtaq Ali, where Mr. Verma had been pushing the names of players for selection in the team, who were not at all deserving,” Jaffer wrote in the February 8 e-mail. “I had made it very clear then also that for the betterment of cricket in the state going forward, I am not going to entertain such interference in the team selection.”Related

• Jaffer steps down as Uttarakhand coach

• Wasim Jaffer denies reported 'communal' allegations after quitting as Uttarakhand coach

Apparently, Jaffer’s riposte did not deter Verma. According to Jaffer, he spoke to Verma on January 30, regarding the selection of the squad for the forthcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy tournament. Jaffer wanted to finalise the squad along with the Uttarakhand selection panel head Rizwan Shamshad, the former Uttar Pradesh fast bowler. Jaffer told Verma he “wanted our team to go and play at least 4-5 practice matches with other association so I can observe the performances of the players and temperament in conditions away from Dehradun”.On February 3, Verma told Jaffer in an e-mail that Shamshad’s panel had been asked to pick the squad by February 1. “I had e-mailed a team of 22 players to the secretary, selection committee and CEO on 7th Feb night as my recommendation and feedback but I did not receive even a reply or a call and the team was announced on 8th Feb which I being the Head Coach received on 8th Feb late evening. I had been continuously in touch with the CEO since my appointment was done and had been smoothly coordinating with Mr. [Aman] Singh in regards to all cricketing requirements but even on that front I was asked by Mr. Verma to directly coordinate with him as he is the secretary of the association and going forward this has also resulted in many delays and no plan of action was discussed ever.”According to Jaffer, Shamshad had “not even once” contacted him before finalising the Uttarakhand squad for the Vijay Hazare Trophy. “Being the Head Coach and being with the team continuously for the last 3-4 months I expect at least some feedbacks to be taken.”Jaffer, 42, retired from cricket having played for more than two decades during which he played 31 Tests for India, won eight Ranji Trophy titles with Bombay and two more with Vidarbha, for whom he played as a professional. Jaffer said he had turned down offers from overseas including the batting coach role at Bangladesh to focus on Uttarakhand. But the episode had left him “disheartened”.”I feel really sad for the players as I genuinely think that they have lot of potential and can learn so much from me but are denied with this opportunity because of so much interference & bias-ness of selectors and Secretary in the selection matters for non-deserving players. If the Honorary Secretary of CAU would want to inculcate such kind of work environment while not letting me take certain decisions pertaining to the team’s welfare and performance. Then I don’t think there’s any valid reason for me to continue as Head Coach of Men’s Senior team of CAU.”I had an offer of becoming batting coach of Bangladesh test team, Head Coach Sri Lanka premier league, Head Coach Dubai T10 and Head Coach offers from other reputed state associations but I refused them all because of my commitment to CAU that I had made. I had put in a lot of efforts into shaping up the Men’s team keeping in mind the future aspects of the state and its players but such a laid back & unprofessional approach from Mr. Verma has forced me to move away from CAU. It is really very disheartening to see that so much talent in the state is being wasted just because of such approach.”

He took four wickets in his first two overs, a blow from which the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots could never recover

The Report by Karthik Krishnaswamy27-Aug-2020A maiden T20 five-wicket haul from Mohammad Nabi led the St Lucia Zouks to their fourth win in six matches, against the bottom-placed St Kitts & Nevis Patriots who could never recover after their top order imploded on a square turner in Port-of-Spain.The Zouks won the toss and chose to bowl, and Nabi set the tone straightaway with two wickets in the first over of the match, and two more in the third. The Patriots slipped to 38 for 5 at one stage, and even if they recovered to get past the 100 mark, they fell well short of setting a target that could have put pressure on the Zouks line-up.A brief spell of Test cricketThere was some moisture in the Queen’s Park Oval surface early on, and Daren Sammy threw the ball to Nabi straightaway to see if there was any grip for his offbreaks. There was plenty, and Nabi bowled at a slower pace than usual, to try and induce errors by making the batsmen reach for the ball. That plan immediately brought two Test-match-style wickets: Chris Lynn caught and bowled, done in by dip and sharp turn while trying to drive against the turn, and the left-hander Nick Kelly caught at slip while trying to defend.Spin, spin, spinScott Kuggeleijn bowled the second over, but thereafter it was all spin until the end of the 17th.Nabi picked up two more wickets in his second over, with Denesh Ramdin and Evin Lewis both done in by the ball stopping, turning and bouncing while they tried to sweep. From 11 for 4, it was a hard slog for the Patriots to get any sort of total on the board, and even though the Zouks’ other spinners didn’t achieve Nabi’s level of wicket-taking penetration, they were all extremely hard to hit on a pitch where the ball turned big and, by and large, slowly.On such a surface, the sweep remained one of the few run-scoring options, even if it remained a risky shot. Ben Dunk played it often, with a reasonable degree of control, and scored 33 off 39 balls to give the innings some semblance of shape, with no one else in the top six getting into the double figures.Dunk’s only boundaries were a pair of sixes down the ground on rare occasions when Rahkeem Cornwall and Zahir Khan fed him loopy half-volleys. Those two sixes and another early on from Ramdin were, in fact, were the only boundaries in Patriots’ innings until the end of the 17th over – the last of Nabi’s quota, when he came back and dismissed Sohail Tanvir, off another top-edged sweep, to complete his five-for.Rahkeem Cornwall smashes one over long-off•Getty Images

Pace travels the distanceFrom thereon, Sammy went to his faster bowlers to finish the innings. With some pace to work with finally, the Patriots got some big hits away, with Rayad Emrit and Alzarri Joseph hitting a four and three sixes between them – mostly off short balls clubbed over midwicket – off Kuggeleijn and Kesrick Williams. Thirty-seven runs came off the last three overs of the Patriots’ innings, enabling them to set a target of 111.The shape of their innings should have given the Patriots some clue as to which bowlers to entrust with the bulk of their overs. They started with the pace of Sohail Tanvir, however, and the Zouks immediately took full toll. They shaved 20 runs off their target in the first over, courtesy the effortless power of Cornwall, who hit the left-armer for two fours and two sixes – an effortless pick-up shot over square leg and a flat-bat thump over mid-off.Chase, Zadran steer Zouks to victoryCornwall muscled another big leg-side six, off the legspinner Imran Khan, in the third over but fell two balls later to one that shot through low. A brief rain interruption followed, and Imran had another wicket immediately upon resumption as Mark Deyal miscued an unnecessary slog – the required rate at that stage was under five an over.Imran picked up another wicket – Andre Fletcher caught at midwicket – in the seventh over of the Zouks’ innings, but by then they were already nearly halfway home. Roston Chase then played simple, risk-free cricket from one end and Najibullah Zadran took some calculated risks – including a pair of clinical reverse-sweeps off the offspinner Jon-Russ Jaggesar – from the other, as a fourth-wicket stand of 47 put the Zoyks within sight of victory.Zadran fell with just 12 runs required, but only the formalities were left; Zouks had 32 balls to spare when Chase swatted the winning boundary.

Squad named for one-off ODI against England, and tri-series against West Indies and Bangladesh

ESPNcricinfo staff01-May-2019Wicketkeeper Gary Wilson, who missed Ireland’s winter tours for the T20I Quadrangular series in Oman and the tour of India to play Afghanistan, has been declared fit for the start of the Ireland home season. He has been included in a 14-man ODI squad for the one-off ODI against England in Malahide on May 3 and the start of the ODI tri-series with West Indies and Bangladesh, which kicks off on May 5.Wilson, 33, had to stay at home in February and March to receive treatment for a condition that was affecting his vision, but has since sufficiently recovered.The uncapped Lorcan Tucker has been retained in the squad from the series against Afghanistan ahead of Durham-contracted Stuart Poynter, who made 15 runs in four innings against Afghanistan in a series that Ireland drew 2-2 in Dehradun. Tucker, a tall 22-year-old from Dublin, has started off the Irish domestic season in good form, making 81 last week for Leinster in a win over Northern Knights in La Manga. He also excelled on the Ireland Wolves tour of Sri Lanka, scoring a century in Hambantota.Left-arm spinner James Cameron-Dow and offspinning allrounder Simi Singh have also been dropped from the group that played Afghanistan in March, leaving George Dockrell and Andy McBrine as the only specialist slow-bowling options in the squad.Josh Little, who has played ten T20Is, has been called up as the Ireland selectors opted for more seam options in home conditions. The 19-year-old left-arm pacer has impressed with his variations at the death in particular, and joins an attack led by veterans Tim Murtagh, Boyd Rankin, Barry McCarthy and allrounder Stuart Thompson.”Of those emerging players, we have been delighted to watch the continued improvement of Josh Little and Lorcan Tucker – both of whom will now be in the running to make their debuts in one-day international cricket,” Cricket Ireland selection chairman Andrew White said. “Josh gives us that left-arm pace variation and he has continued to impress with some consistent performances – we believe he can transfer his T20 skills into the one-day arena.”As for Lorcan, fans of Irish cricket have seen some stellar performances by him over the first few months of the year, most notably in Sri Lanka and La Manga. While he has been on our radar and around the senior squad in recent times, we’ve started to see greater confidence and consistency in his approach, and he is definitely one of those putting his hand up at the moment.”Cricket Ireland has announced that the squad for the remainder of the tri-series will be announced at a later date to give members of the Ireland Wolves squad a chance to press for selection when they take on Bangladesh on May 5, the same date as Ireland’s first ODI of the tri-series against West Indies.Squad: William Porterfield (capt), Andrew Balbirnie, George Dockrell, Josh Little, Andrew McBrine, Barry McCarthy, James McCollum, Tim Murtagh, Kevin O’Brien, Boyd Rankin, Paul Stirling, Stuart Thompson, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Gary Wilson (wk)

While England are waiting to find out the seriousness of the injury to captain Eoin Morgan which ruled him out of the T20 in Melbourne, stand-in captain Jos Buttler hoped a change of scenery would help them revive their tri-series campaign when they cross

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Feb-2018England were waiting to find out the seriousness of the injury to captain Eoin Morgan which ruled him out of the T20 in Melbourne, but stand-in skipper Jos Buttler hoped a change of scenery would help them revive their tri-series campaign when they cross the Tasman, and give them the chance of seeking revenge on Australia in the final.Morgan picked up a groin strain at training on Friday, and Buttler was told on the morning of the match that he would take charge, with James Vince coming into the side. It was a tough day for Buttler and the team. Although he top-scored in England’s laboured innings, Buttler couldn’t find his usual timing during his 46 off 49 balls, and then watched as Australia hurtled to the target with more than five overs to spare, and finished their home season in style.The result, which followed England’s defeat in Hobart, leaves them in a straight shootout with New Zealand for a spot in the final at Eden Park on February 21, after Australia secured their place with a third straight victory. England play New Zealand twice next week, starting in Wellington on Tuesday, but it remained uncertain whether Morgan will have recovered in time. While it is not quite a must win at the Westpac Stadium, a defeat would leave England’s progress out of their hands, with New Zealand also having a game in hand against Australia.”The beauty of a tri-series is we still have a chance to make the final,” Buttler said. “It will be a nice change of scene in New Zealand. We haven’t showcased our ability as we can, and there are guys who are determined to come back strong.”After a poor performance in Hobart, we were determined to show what we are capable of tonight, but we weren’t able to do that. We didn’t soak up the early pressure and lost wickets. The game plan was to back it up to the end and go well. I never got going and we were never able to get to a defendable score.”It was an unusually subdued innings from Buttler. He arrived when England had lost three wickets inside the first four overs, and nudged just above a run a ball early in his stay, but struggled to up the tempo against Ashton Agar, Marcus Stoinis and the slower-ball variations of AJ Tye. He managed one further boundary, an edge wide of Alex Carey, but could not provide the late onslaught.”Losing three early poles, I felt the best way was to then to take some balls and kick on at the end, but that never really happened,” he said. “I struggled, I was trying hard and it didn’t manage to work. I was hoping to be better than a run-a-ball with five overs to go and then really kick on, but it never happened. I’ll have to improve and look at where I went wrong.”

Tabraiz Shamsi’s best haul in the tournament limited Warriors to 143 before Aiden Markram and AB de Villiers helped themselves to half-centuries and eased Titans to a win

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Dec-2017Gallo Images/Getty Images

Tabraiz Shamsi produced his best performance of the tournament so far to bowl Titans’ into the Ram Slam final, which they will host at SuperSport Park. Titans beat Warriors comprehensively by eight wickets to re-affirm their dominance in the tournament, which began with six victories in their first eight matches (with two wash-outs) but started to wane when they emptied their bench in the final week of the league stage before coming full circle on Wednesday night.Titans held the upper hand despite going into the knockout without Dale Steyn or Morne Morkel and lost senior batsman Henry Davids to injury four minutes before toss.
Their attack dismissed Warriors for a below-par score of 143 before AB de Villiers and Aiden Markram helped themselves to a half-century apiece to wipe out the target inside 16 overs.Warriors were not able to give coach Malibongwe Maketa, who will now join the national team as Ottis Gibson’s assistant, a festive farewell, and could not repeat their heroics of last season, when they reached the final. They were on the back foot early, at 17 for 2 after two overs, but then rallied through Colin Ingram and Colin Ackermann, before Shamsi dismantled them, and de Villiers and Markram finished off the chase.Wayne Parnell, on loan from Cobras, returned to Warriors’ top two but was bowled by Albie Morkel for 4. Jon-Jon Smuts followed in the next over, caught by Morkel at cover point off Lungi Ngidi. Ingram and Ackermann shared a third-wicket stand of 63 but were separated in the 10th over when Markram had Ingram caught at point, again by Morkel.Enter Shamsi, who took two wickets each in his third and fourth overs. Though he was the one holding an imaginary phone to his ear, it was Warriors who should have called for help. Shamsi later explained his signature celebration as a “bit of fun because sometimes they phone the third umpire to check.”The only thing Shamsi needs to check is how far he is ahead of the chasing pack in the wicket-takers’ list. He has 16 scalps at 13.68, four more than his nearest challenger, Dane Paterson.Warriors did not last their full 20 overs and were dismissed with 11 balls remaining in their innings. They would have known the total was far from enough but had some early hope when Quinton de Kock’s lean run continued and Davids’ replacement, Heinrich Klaasen, managed 24. Titans were 44 for 2 after five overs but there was no stopping them after that. De Villiers and Markram put on an unbeaten 101-run stand and treated the sizeable crowd to some sensational shots to win with 4.4 overs to spare.The final, on December 16, will be played between Titans and the winner of the Dolphins versus Cape Cobras semi-final, to be held on Thursday.

Half-centuries from visiting batsmen Hamish Rutherford and Chesney Hughes coupled with an unbeaten 73 by Wayne Madsen ensured that Derbyshire edged into the ascendancy by the midpoint of their match against Kent

ECB Reporters Network27-Jun-2016
ScorecardChesney Hughes rediscovered his early season good form•Getty Images

Half-centuries from visiting batsmen Hamish Rutherford and Chesney Hughes coupled with an unbeaten 73 by Wayne Madsen ensured that Derbyshire edged into the ascendancy by the midpoint of their Specsavers County Championship clash with Kent. In response to Kent’s 379 all out, Derbyshire reached stumps on 291 for 3 and will go into the third day in Canterbury trailing by 88 runs.On a second-day pitch that appears to have lost some of its initial pace and carry, Derbyshire’s top order dug in for steady, if unspectacular, run-making against a Kent attack hit by three injuries and shorn of its spearhead, Matt Coles, who had been declared “unavailable for selection”.Having failed to take a wicket in the 17 overs through to lunch, the hosts at least winkled out two Derbyshire batsmen in the mid-session but still missed the cutting edge of their attack leader Coles. The 26-year-old had allegedly missed the game due to “personal reasons” but his absence only served to spark rumours aplenty among the Kent membership.In the absence of Coles, Kent turned to six bowlers but only the wily Mitch Claydon and James Tredwell enjoyed any success. Visiting skipper Billy Godleman nicked off to Claydon, as Tom Latham, diving almost behind the keeper Sam Billings, took a superb slip catch to make it 75 for 1. Then, after facing 120 balls for his 65, Hamish Rutherford holed out to Alex Blake at long-off to give Tredwell his first scalp of the match.Having cut the Kent lead to 211 by the tea interval, Derbyshire ploughed on during the evening session as left-hander Chesney Hughes posted a 91-ball 50 with seven fours. He combined with Madsen to add 112 in 28.5 overs for the third wicket until Hughes, on 83 from 139 balls, top edged an attempted slog-sweep to send a steepling return catch to Tredwell.In the next over Madsen reached his half-century milestone from 101 balls and with four fours as dour post-tea events out in the middle vied for attention with the first half of Italy’s Euro 2016 tie with Spain, which was being shown on the TVs around ground.At the start of the day Kent captain Sam Northeast was dismissed nine short of a maiden double-hundred as Kent posted 379 all out. Northeast improved upon his career best but, on 191, he was caught at long-on when attempting to clear the ropes against Hughes’ left-arm spin. He batted for over six hours, faced 266 balls and hit 22 fours.Kent also lost Tredwell and Claydon in the opening hour as the hosts missed out on a fifth batting bonus point by 21 runs.

R Ashwin has hit back at the criticism of the pitch in Mohali, which South Africa batsman Dean Elgar had described as “not a very good cricket wicket” after 12 wickets had fallen on the first day

Sidharth Monga in Mohali06-Nov-20151:44

‘The mistakes I’ve made got me here’ – Ashwin

R Ashwin has hit back at the criticism of the pitch in Mohali, which South Africa batsman Dean Elgar had described as “not a very good cricket wicket” after 12 wickets had fallen on the first day. Ten more fell on the second day, but batsmen did show batting was possible on the pitch, which has offered a lot of sideways turn but not alarming bounce. Sunil Gavaskar had said in his pitch report that he “had never seen before” such a day-one pitch in Mohali.”I think it’s very important to bowl good pace on this wicket,” Ashwin said after his five-wicket haul gave India the lead after they had squandered the toss advantage by getting bowled out for 201. “I have not seen any batsman defending and get out apart from the one that happened to [M] Vijay, where he thrust forward, defended and got out.” Cheteshwar Pujara, too, got out defending in the first innings, but the larger point was taken.None of Ashwin’s five wickets came because of alarming misbehaviour from the pitch. Stiaan van Zyl offered no shot to a topsinner, which Ashwin got to come back in to the left-hand batsman. Dean Elgar slog-swept and was beaten in the air by the dip. Ditto Hashim Amla, who looked to charge at him. Dane Vilas got out sweeping, and Imran Tahir is a tailender. “To bowl [on this pitch] it’s all about how it’s coming out of your hand,” Ashwin said. “For me it’s coming out really well. So I don’t think I require much turn from any pitch at this point of time.”Ashwin went on to compare the perceived reaction to green tops when India are touring outside Asia. “Honestly I think it’s the batting that makes the wicket look what it is,” Ashwin said. “I don’t know if any Indian journalist knows the name of the curator in Johannesburg or Port Elizabeth, but we seem to get a hang of Daljit Singh [the curator in Mohali] very quickly. None of us go to South Africa and say the wicket is green, this much grass is less green at the bottom. I don’t hear any such statements, but unfortunately here the first day some of my good friends came and said the wicket is a little drier and stuff. We have played way too long in Mohali to know how the wicket works.”Ashwin’s words were keeping in line with Virat Kohli’s emotions in the lead-up to the Test. “When someone comes to play here, there is a lot of focus on the pitch,” Kohli said. “It is unfair to say that it spins a lot or that it is slow. When we go abroad, I don’t think there is a single article about the pitch. We go there and take up the challenge. The other teams also have to take up the challenge.”It was not clear whose criticism Ashwin and Kohli were responding to, but it was true that day one did not feature great batting. The three Indian specialist batsmen that fell to spin on the first day did so because they did not reach the pitch of the ball, not because the ball kicked at them. However, there was sideways turn available on the first morning itself, and balls did keep low.It is not accurate, though, that Indian players do not complain about perceived green tracks away from home. After India lost 4-0 in Australia, Gautam Gambhir and Kohli were two of the players to complain about the “green tops” while Australia scored heavily in every match. It was duly reported too.

Jayananda Warnaweera, the Galle Cricket Stadium curator, has resigned from Sri Lanka Cricket’s interim committee with immediate effect, SLC has announced

Andrew Fidel Fernando02-Oct-2015Jayananda Warnaweera, the Galle Cricket Stadium curator, has resigned from Sri Lanka Cricket’s interim committee with immediate effect, SLC has announced. Warnaweera handed over a letter of resignation to interim committee chairman Sidath Wettimuny on Friday.”In the letter he said he said he was resigning for personal reasons,” Wettimuny said. Warnaweera remains the Galle stadium curator and the Southern Province Cricket Association secretary.Warnaweera had also been an executive committee member in the previous SLC board, headed by Jayantha Dharmadasa. For that reason, his appointment in March to the current interim committee prompted minor criticism, while then-sports minister Navin Dissanayake postured the new board as a clean break from controversial past administrations.With the interim committee likely to have been dissolved, and fresh board elections held by the end of January, the committee is unlikely to appoint a replacement for Warnaweera.

A preview of Delhi Daredevils in IPL 2013

Rachna Shetty01-Apr-2013

Big Picture

Delhi Daredevils are fast earning themselves a reputation of being the underachievers of the IPL. Almost every year they start among the favourites, and despite a line-up that includes the likes of Virender Sehwag and David Warner, the title, and a place in the final, has eluded them so far. They’ve finished as semi-finalists in 2008 and 2009, and were in the play-offs in 2012. They were also semi-finalists in the Champions League Twenty20 in 2012.This year may be their toughest in the IPL. Kevin Pietersen has been ruled out for the entire tournament due to injury, while Jesse Ryder is recovering after being assaulted in New Zealand. Captain Mahela Jayawardene is coming off injury, while Virender Sehwag is going through a lean patch. On a positive note, it’s a good opportunity for the Indian youngsters in the squad to make an impression. Unmukt Chand, Siddarth Kaul, Manprit Juneja and Kedar Jadhav have all shown glimpses of good form in the recent domestic matches.The bowling department relies heavily on pace, but some of their key bowlers head into the tournament with little match practice. Ashish Nehra played his last game in January this year, and played just three Ranji matches prior to that for Delhi this season. Umesh Yadav and Irfan Pathan are making their way back after injury lay-offs. While Daredevils can take heart from Yadav’s five-for on his return to competitive cricket, the pair’s fitness and workload will be a concern for them, even as the franchise seek a replacement for Varun Aaron.With some of their major players missing, Daredevils may get a chance to make the most of the allrounders in the squad. Jeevan Mendis and Johan Botha will join a squad that has Andre Russell, Roelef van der Merwe, Irfan, Sujit Nayak and Yogesh Nagar.

Key players

Morne Morkel has regained his fitness after a hamstring injury, and will once again spearhead the Daredevils pace attack. He was the leading wicket-taker in the IPL last season, taking 25 wickets at an average of 18.20. He played an influential role in a side that finished at the top of the league stage. Daredevils will again look to him to lead the bowling as they seek an elusive title.David Warner‘s importance to Daredevils has increased considerably with the absence of Pietersen and Taylor. With Sehwag’s form patchy, and Jayawardene out of match practice, Warner will be the player Daredevils will look to for high-octane starts. He was all at sea during the recent Test series but has a well-earned reputation as one of the premier Twenty20 batsmen in the world.

Big players in

Daredevils have strengthened their spin department with Johan Botha and Jeevan Mendis, both of whom were picked at the IPL auction. Botha has captained South Africa and Rajasthan Royals, and will be expected to bring his experience to a fairly young spin attack – left-arm spinners Shahbaz Nadeem and Pawan Negi have only 25 matches between them.Ashish Nehra returns to the Daredevils squad after two years, after Pune Warriors traded him for New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor. The team would be worried about Nehra’s match-fitness. The fast bowler played his last match in January 2013 and has faced injury issues over the last year. He suffered a hamstring injury in November last year and played just four domestic matches for Delhi this season. Nehra will be hoping to replicate his 2009 form for Daredevils, when he picked up 19 wickets from 13 matches at an average of 18.21 to emerge as the third-highest wicket-taker in the tournament.

Big players out

Daredevils will miss Kevin Pietersen‘s big-hitting ability in the batting order. He scored 305 runs at an average of 61 in eight matches, including an unbeaten 103 against Deccan Chargers. With Sehwag and Warner in scratchy form, and Jayawardene short of match practice, Pietersen’s absence becomes even more of a blow.By his own standards, Ross Taylor had an indifferent IPL 2012, scoring 197 runs at an average of 19.70. The trade-off to Pune will mean that this will be Taylor’s fourth franchise in six IPL editions.

Under the radar

After hitting the headlines as captain of India’s World Cup-winning U-19 team, Unmukt Chand has landed himself a high-profile contract with Pepsi, which has him featuring in ads with the heavyweights of Indian cricket, including MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli. The buzz has only increased after his consecutive hundreds in the domestic T20 competition and the century in the final to lead Delhi to the Vijay Hazare title. The next two months will reveal whether he can translate that form to the high-pressure environment of the IPL, and use that as a ladder to the national team.Availability
None of Daredevils’ players have international commitments during the IPL.

Northamptonshire’s pace bowler David Willey, son of the former England all-rounder and umpire Peter Willey, took five wickets as his county claimed their first Division Two win of the season as they defeated Hampshire by 117 runs.

ESPNcricinfo staff05-May-2012
ScorecardNorthamptonshire’s pace bowler David Willey, son of the former England all-rounder and umpire Peter Willey, took five wickets as his county claimed their first Division Two win of the season as they defeated Hampshire by 117 runs.Northants added 56 to their overnight total in the morning before they declared on 232 for 9 to give Hampshire a winning target of 297 from 71 overs.It was a mark they fell considerably short of as they were bowled out for 179 despite Michael Carberry’s bright 61 off 88 balls, with Willey standing out with 5 for 39.Liam Dawson played Willey’s delivery on to his stumps in just the second over before Willey struck again when Sean Terry slashed him to David Sales at second slip. After a brief rain delay, Daggett accounted for the Australia international and stand-in captain Simon Katich, who had reached 31 when he caught at the wicket.James Vince then lasted just two balls before he returned to the pavilion when he edged Daggett to Hall at first slip. Former Zimbabwe international Sean Ervine fell cheaply by clipping Daggett to Middlebrook at gully to give the bowler his third wicket in 12 balls.Hampshire’s hopes effectively ended when Carberry was trapped lbw by Willey with the last ball before tea.Bates was the next to depart as he chopped Brooks on to his stumps before Willey bowled Hamza Riazuddin for a single. Willey then completed the third five-wicket haul of his career when Wood edged him to O’Brien and the result was wrapped up when Balcombe launched Brooks to Daggett at mid-wicket.