Glamorgan into semis as Surrey and Yorkshire take quarter-final spots

ECB Reporters Network12-Aug-2021Glamorgan fell to a four-run defeat in their final Royal London One-Day Cup clash with Yorkshire Vikings, but still managed to top Group 1 and bag a home semi-final on Monday.They were able to stay on top of the table despite their loss thanks to a superior net run rate over the eight pool matches. That put them ahead of Surrey and Yorkshire, who took the two quarter-final spots, with Surrey gaining a home tie.The Vikings posted 230, with an eighth wicket partnership of 84 between Jonathan Tattersall and Matthew Waite crucial in their total, while Glamorgan got off to a solid start with a stand of 121 for their first wicket between Hamish Rutherford (58) and Nick Selman.Selman eventually went on to make 92 and the home side were left with 11 to win off the final over. Matthew Waite restricted them to six runs and two more wickets fell to leave the Welsh country stranded on 226 for 8.Having won the toss Glamorgan did what they did to the Notts Outlaws at the weekend and put the Vikings in to bat. The visitors got off to a solid start and Will Fraine hit four boundaries on his way to a quickfire 25 before falling to a catch at the wicket by Tom Cullen off the ever-reliable Michael Hogan in the seventh over.The 50 came up in the 11th over before another paceman, James Weighill removed Will Luxton, who spooned a thick edge to Steve Reingold in the covers three overs later. The introduction of the off-spinner at the river end put a brake on scoring and when he bowled opener Harry Duke for 20 the Vikings were 70-3.It was another spinner, Steve Reingold, who made the next breakthrough in his first over. His first ball was swept to the boundary by Vikings skipper Gary Balance, but four balls later he got his revenge when he forced the left-hander onto his back foot and bowled him to make it 88 for 4 in the 20th over.The 100 came up with a four through mid-wicket by Hill in the first ball of the 26th over, only the third boundary in a very neat 11 over spell from the home bowling attack. Then James Cooke clean bowled George Hill with a ball that stayed low and had Matthew Revis caught behind with the next ball.Dom Bess foiled the hat-trick, but the Vikings were rocking a little at 121 for 6. The England spinner was then lucky to survive a steepling catch at deep mid on which Selman couldn’t quite deal with as Salter ended his quota of 10 overs with 1 for 34.Bess wasn’t able to make much of his reprieve as in the very next over he was trapped lbw by the returning Weighill. Jonathan Tattersall and Mattew Waite steadied the ship and took the score to 178 for 7 at the 40 over mark, Waite clearing the boundary rope with one shot back over the head of Reingold as their highly productive partnership went through the half-century mark.The pair steered their side through the 200 barrier in the 44th over before Billy Root took a brilliant catch on the boundary to remove Waite for 44 off Cooke and end a partnership that yielded 84 runs for the eighth wicket.Cooke ended his 10 over spell with 3 for 40, while Tattersall’s 50 came up off 58 balls and contained two boundaries. He succumbed to a catch by home skipper Kiran Carlson off the bowling of Hogan in the 47th over for 53.The Vikings closed their innings on 230 when Josh Sullivan holed out to Hogan off the bowling of Weighill eight ball short of their full allocation of 50 overs. There were 25 extras.Glamorgan’s slow, but solid start was finally ended when Ben Coad bowled Rutherford with the score on 121. The patient approach continued and with 10 overs to go Glamorgan still needed 58 runs to win. Hill then struck twice in the same over to send back Reingold and Carlson and the Vikings’ noose began to tighten.Selman then became Hill’s third victim when he was caught by Gary Balance for an excellent 92 and the home side were 187 for 4 still needing 44 runs off 41 balls to win. As wickets tumbled, and the run rate rose, so Glamorgan paid the price for their slow start.Hill ended as the most successful bowler for the Vikings, taking 3 for 49 in his 10 overs.

The series will comprise three ODIs and a one-off T20I, all at Sabina Park

Matt Roller06-Dec-2021West Indies will play three ODIs and a T20I against Ireland in Jamaica from January 8 to 16, the CWI has announced, with the possibility that the standalone T20I will be used as a farewell match for Chris Gayle.Gayle confirmed after West Indies’ exit in the T20 World Cup that he had played his last game in a major tournament but revealed his hope that CWI would “give me one game in Jamaica to go in front of my home crowd… then I can say ‘hey guys, thank you so much.'”Related

• Four Ireland players, assistant coach test Covid-19 positive ahead of USA, Caribbean tours

• Kevin O'Brien omitted from Ireland's T20I squad for USA-West Indies tour

• Chris Gayle reveals he hasn't retired yet, hopes for farewell game in Jamaica

While Gayle will not be part of the ODI squad, with the series counting towards 2023 World Cup qualification through the Super League, the one-off fixture at Sabina Park could be used as his farewell game. ESPNcricinfo understands that a decision has yet to be made on Gayle’s inclusion but that the issue will be up for discussion at the next meeting of CWI’s board of directors later this month.”It’s whether collectively we all feel that it’s appropriate for him to have one last game at home to say farewell in a one-off game,” Johnny Grave, CWI’s chief executive, told the Mason and Guest radio show in Barbados last month. “That Ireland series would represent that opportunity.”It would certainly be appropriate, as far as I can see it, to treat our players and give them the opportunity to bow out – especially players like Chris who have had unbelievable careers and won trophies for the West Indies.”

West Indies vs Ireland fixtures

January 8 – 1st ODI
January 11 – 2nd ODI
January 14 – 3rd ODI
January 16 – Only T20I (D/N)

Ireland will travel to the Caribbean on December 31, immediately after their series against USA which starts on December 22 and comprises two T20Is and three ODIs. They have already named their squads for both tours, with Kevin O’Brien left out and David Ripley taking temporary charge as interim head coach.Ireland last toured the Caribbean in 2020, drawing the T20I series 1-1 and losing the ODI series 3-0. Sabina Park was also the venue for one of the finest moments in Irish cricketing history, their victory over Pakistan in the 2007 World Cup on St Patrick’s Day.”We are pleased to be returning to the Caribbean where we have so many great memories,” Richard Holdsworth, Cricket Ireland’s performance director, said. “The World Cup Super League is a crucial set of fixtures for Ireland as we attempt to qualify for the next Cricket World Cup, and – if the series in 2020 is anything to go by – we look forward to a highly competitive series in January.”

Central Zone were 68 for 6 chasing 218 before Hom and Jaker took the game away from South Zone

Mohammad Isam06-Jan-2022A day after Bangladesh’s incredible win over New Zealand in Mount Maunganui, the domestic first-class final, too, culminated in a longer-version spectacle in Dhaka. Central Zone lifted their third BCL title, beating favourites South Zone by four wickets in a tense final day.With his second hundred in the match, veteran Shuvagata Hom took Central Zone to the winning 218-run target after the side slipped to 68 for 6. Shuvagata, who was unbeaten on 114 in the fourth innings, added 153 runs for the unbroken seventh wicket with Jaker Ali, who struck the winning runs, making 41 in 124 balls.It was the perfect finish to a seesaw game. Batting first, South Zone got off to a superb start when openers Anamul Haque and Pinak Ghosh put on 137. Both struck fifties before Zakir Hasan and Farhad Reza added 119 for the sixth wicket.Mohammad Mithun struck his maiden first-class double ton in the BCL final•Walton

Left-hander Zakir made an unbeaten 107 off 161 balls, his eleventh first-class century. Farhad struck a quick-fire 67-ball 71 with three sixes and nine fours. Left-arm spinner Hasan Murad took 5 for 101.Central Zone’s reply got off to a terrible start when Farhad’s four-wicket burst sunk them to 16 for 4 in the eighth over. But there was an incredible turnaround too. Shuvagata and Mohammad Mithun added 283 runs for the fifth wicket. Mithun struck his maiden double-hundred. He struck 27 fours and three sixes in his 306-ball 206. Shuvagata made 116.Jaker also struck 53, adding 75 for the sixth wicket with Mithun. Farhad didn’t take any more wickets after his initial four strikes, while Kamrul Islam Rabbi also took four wickets.Central Zone took advantage of the 51-run lead, reducing South Zone to 119 for 7 on the fourth afternoon. Rishad Ahmed, from No. 9, though, then struck ten fours and four sixes but he missed out on a maiden first-class hundred when he fell on 99.But his knock kept South Zone in the game. He notched up partnerships of 44 for the eighth wicket, 61 for the ninth wicket and another 44 for the tenth wicket.Central Zone slipped to 26 for 3 in the final hour of the fourth day, and had an even worse fifth morning when they lost Soumya Sarkar, Taibur Rahman and Salman Hossain.But Shuvagata and Jaker changed the course of the final with their big partnership, without taking too many risks as they had enough time through the rest of the day.

Defending champions knocked out as India set up semi-final clash against Australia

Sreshth Shah29-Jan-2022Bangladesh’s hopes of defending their U-19 World Cup title ended in the quarter-final stage as India’s bowlers rolled them over for 111.Left-arm seamer Ravi Kumar took three wickets in his first spell. Left-arm spinner Vicky Ostwal then took two. Two Bangladesh batters were run out, and if it wasn’t for SM Meherob’s 30, India could’ve been chasing even lesser.Although India had a brief hiccup in the chase, they eventually got home with five wickets in hand.The returning Yash Dhull opted to field on a surface where the Afghanistan-Sri Lanka quarter-final had produced only 264 runs across both innings, and Ravi found swing and rattled Bangladesh with his 3 for 14 up top. He first broke through Mahfijul Islam’s defense before Iftakher Hossain cut a wide ball to backward point. Then, soon enough, Prantik Nawrose Nabil was walking back after edging an attempted drive that was going across him.From the other end, Rajvardhan Hangargekar troubled Bangladesh with his pace, his yorkers, and a mean short ball. Together, Ravi and Hangargekar strangled the run flow, aided by sharp fielding inside the circle.Left-arm spinner Ostwal then found grip off the surface and was rewarded when he had Ariful Islam nicking. Then he clean bowled Md Fahim as he attempted a reverse sweep. Aich Mollah, the No. 4, batted patiently for 47 balls to make 13 before he was run out. At this point, Bangladesh were tottering at 56 for 7.Meherob, the No. 8, offered a brief resistance by putting on a 50-run partnership with Ashiqur Zaman (16) to drag Bangladesh’s score into triple digits. But both fell in one over and Hangargekar then finished off the innings with a short ball.India lost Harnoor Singh for a duck, but Angkrish Raghuvanshi (44) and No. 3 Shaik Rasheed (26) consolidated by reining in their shots early on with Mondol and Zaman bowling full to induce them to drive.The longer they batted, the more Bangladesh erred, with boundaries a common fixture in the second half of their 70-run partnership. Raghuvanshi whipped boundaries off his hips, Rasheed played in the ‘V’, and both put away half-trackers offered by the spinners.Their stand effectively quashed whatever little hope Bangladesh had despite both falling in quick succession. Mondol returned to take three more wickets to finish with 4 for 31, but it was too little too late for the defending champions.Dhull, back into the XI after a Covid-enforced break (along with vice-captain Rasheed), remained unbeaten on 26 along with Kaushal Tambe (11*) as they he saw off what could’ve been a tricky final period of play. The match was sealed when Tambe hit a six over long-on.India now face Australia in the second semi-final on February 2. The first semi-final is on February 1 between England and Afghanistan.

The wicketkeeper-batter has been handed a “surreal” chance to make an New Zealand debut because of the absence of a number of IPL-bound players

Deivarayan Muthu24-Mar-2022It has been an eventful few weeks for Dane Cleaver. In February this year, he became a dad, and around mid-March, he made his captaincy debut for Central Districts, against Northern Districts, in the four-day Plunket Shield. Nearly two weeks later, he is preparing to make his international debut for New Zealand, against Netherlands, at his domestic home ground of McLean Park, in front of his friends and family.Blair Tickner, Doug Bracewell and Will Young, Cleaver’s team-mates at Central Districts, are also part of New Zealand’s squad, drafted in because of the absence of a number of seniors who are gearing up for IPL 2022. Their presence adds to the celebratory mood in the New Zealand camp.Related

• Michael Rippon becomes first left-arm wristspinner picked by New Zealand

• Guptill: NZ won't take 'well-acclimatised' Netherlands lightly

• Brownlie added to New Zealand's coaching staff

“Yeah [starting to sink in], absolutely. Just being around the group and I suppose dreaming of this moment and hopefully getting the opportunity on Friday night [in the one-off T20I],” Cleaver, a wicketkeeper-batter, said. “Yeah, there’s a pretty excited bunch of family members that are organising their way over for Friday night. So, it will be very special to amongst not only friends and family but just home crowd in general.”Cleaver heard the news of his call-up from selector Gavin Larsen. “Gavin Larsen gave me the call and just, I suppose, ran me through the possibility and the squad selection,” Cleaver said. “It was a pretty surreal moment really – I suppose something you always aspire to and all that time and effort, love for the game, trainings, travel, everything sort of culminates in that. Yeah, [it] took a while to sink in and now that I’m here, it’s really exciting.”Sure, this is a second-string New Zealand side, but the 30-year-old Cleaver’s call-up is reward for his toil in domestic and A-team cricket. He was part of New Zealand’s squad in the 2010 Under-19 World Cup alongside Michael Bracewell. More than a decade later, the pair could make their international debuts together, against Netherlands. Fun fact: in the 2008 Under-19 World Cup, it was Cleaver’s first cousin Kane Williamson, who captained New Zealand.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Cleaver has now played nearly 200 games across formats for Central Districts and is seen as a senior figure in the set-up. He brings with him strong Super Smash form: he hit 369 runs in nine innings at an average of 46.12 and a strike rate of 166.21 in the latest edition. Only Bracewell scored more runs than Cleaver. Cleaver was particularly brutal in the middle overs; his middle-overs strike rate of 171.52 was the best among batters who had faced at least 100 balls in the season.”Yeah, absolutely [confident ahead of a possible international debut],” Cleaver said. “I think playing Netherlands [in the warm-ups] last week – you see the quality in their side and also the fact that you can stack up against an international side and taking that form from domestic into this… I suppose it’s just another game of cricket and just got to prepare the best you can and hopefully have some fun.”The weather in Napier, though, could spoil the fun, as it did during the third warm-up fixture against Netherlands.”You’ve got to take in a bit of a what-will-be-will-be attitude,” Cleaver said. “You can’t control the weather – so you got to prepare the best you can and I’m pretty positive that it will turn around in the next couple of days and we get some good cricket on Friday night.”New Zealand have a rich stable of wicketkeeper-batters – Tim Seifert, Devon Conway, Tom Blundell, Glenn Phillips, Finn Allen – but this is Cleaver’s chance to shake things up, and step out of his illustrious first cousin’s shadow, ahead of twin World Cups.

Blast’s all-time leading scorer quits captaincy after seven seasons in charge

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Mar-2022Luke Wright, the leading run-scorer in T20 Blast history, has stepped down as Sussex’s T20 captain after seven seasons in the role.Sussex have been one of the leading T20 sides in the country under Wright’s leadership but have not managed to convert a strong win/loss record into a trophy, and lost to eventual champions Kent in last season’s semi-finals.They have lost several key players – most recently Chris Jordan and Phil Salt – in recent seasons, and Wright spoke out against the talent drain on the eve of Finals Day last year, saying: “It’s absolutely not impossible to keep your best players.””It’s something from the club’s point of view that we need to look at because we can’t be losing our best players all the time,” he added. “Our recruitment process has got to be really strong and it’s something that probably hasn’t been as good as it should be at this moment in time.”Sussex said in a statement that they were “naturally disappointed” that Wright had asked to step down as captain but that they “respect his decision after 104 T20 games in charge.”Related

• Sussex sign Pujara for English summer

• Rashid Khan returns to Sussex for 2022 Blast

• Rizwan signs Sussex contract for Championship, Blast

• Brown joins Sussex exodus after requesting early contract release

• Wright: 'We can't be losing our best players all the time'

“It has been a huge honour to captain Sussex, the club I love so much,” Wright said. “However, I feel it is the right time to step down. I will continue to give my all to help Sussex as I have over so many years.”Rob Andrew, their chief executive, said: “We respect Luke’s decision to step down as captain and we will work with him to move forward and focus on the future with his successor at the helm.”Luke has been a fantastic captain, leading the team to the knockout stages of the T20 Blast in five of his seven seasons as captain, including two Finals Day appearances in 2018 and 2021. The experience and knowledge he will be able to share with his successor will be invaluable.”Wright has been preparing for his career after cricket of late, completing a Masters of Sport Directorship at Manchester Metropolitan University this winter, but is under contract at Sussex until the end of the 2023 season.He was released by his Hundred team, Trent Rockets, after spending the inaugural season of the competition on the bench but is expected to be signed in April’s draft.Sussex have recruited a handful of new signings for this season’s Blast, with Rashid Khan due to be available throughout the group stages with Mohammad Rizwan and Josh Philippe splitting the second overseas spot. Steven Finn and Fynn Hudson-Prentice were also recruited at the end of last season.

England battle hard on second day but flaws in attack come home to roost

Andrew Miller25-Mar-2022West Indies 232 for 8 (da Silva 54*, Roach 25*) lead England 204 (Mahmood 49, Leach 41*, Seales 3-40) by 28 runsSome 13,000km lie between Lahore and St George’s, and a similar distance would appear to lie between the teams that have been taking part in their respective Test-series deciders. If Pat Cummins’ Australians have just demonstrated, in their hard-fought series victory over Pakistan, that a side blessed with great bowlers can transcend any conditions, then England and West Indies would appear to be hostages to a less palatable truth.On the face of it, the decisive third Test in Grenada could scarcely be more intricately poised. By the close of the second day’s play, West Indies’ lower order had chiselled out a precious lead of 28, and every extra run looks set to be vital on a two-paced surface that promises awkward times ahead in even the most nominal of fourth-innings chases.And yet, the evidence of the first two innings has been revealing. Two flawed teams, battling their own insecurities with bat and ball alike, with each facet of their play winning out at alternate moments, with the implacable obstinacy of a pushmepullyou.On the first day, England collapsed in seaming conditions to 114 for 9, before their tenth-wicket pair cashed in on the softer old ball to ease to a serene 90-run stand. And on the second, West Indies staged a near-replica of their own – a collapse of seven for 78, either side of lunch, as Chris Woakes dragged his length back and with it, fleetingly, his reputation in overseas conditions, then a late-evening revival with Joshua Da Silva’s diligent 54 not out to the fore, as West Indies’ eighth and ninth wickets racked up 104 series-tilting runs.And by the close, England were huffing and puffing as if they were back in Antigua or Barbados – including with the second new ball, which came and went in six anodyne overs with as little malice as the first. And in the contest’s final analysis, the combined analysis of 72 for 0 that West Indies have been able to pick off while those balls have been at their hardest may yet prove to be pivotal. For whatever else England may have achieved in the name of their red-ball reset, finding an answer to their toothlessness up top is not one of them.That said, the most successful of England’s bowlers in the innings to date is that man Woakes, although his current analysis of 20-6-48-3 – already among his best in 20 overseas Tests – tells only a fraction of his story. Prior to this series, West Indies’ openers, Kraigg Brathwaite and John Campbell hadn’t made a half-century stand on home soil since England’s last visit to the Caribbean in 2019 – and they’ve never yet made a century stand in 35 attempts, the most by a top-order pair in Test history.They have, however, now racked up three fifty stands in as many Tests this series, including this latest effort – a disarmingly serene alliance of 50 that, in following directly on from Jack Leach’s and Saqib Mahmood’s casual progress on the first evening, appeared to confirm that the spice of the first morning had long since been and gone.Chris Woakes had Jason Holder caught for a duck•Getty Images

But just as had been the case with their guileless first innings in Antigua, Woakes and Craig Overton were culpable in floating the ball up too full and wide for a cracked surface that demanded the ball be driven into the deck to extract the uneven bounce, and both men were all too easily thwarted as England’s first-innings 204 was made to look grossly inadequate.But then Ben Stokes, inevitably, showed the way with a back-of-a-length shin-botherer to dislodge Brathwaite for his lowest score of the series, and one over later, Campbell got in a tangle to a fearsome visor-smasher from Overton. He carried on after a mandatory concussion test, but the success of that length was an indication of the threat that awaited if England were willing to test the facilities.Sure enough, Mahmood was the next to drag his own length back to pin Shamarh Brooks in front of leg stump, and then, six balls later and in the penultimate over of the session, Overton’s aggression into Campbell’s body paid dividends, as he scuffed an attempted pull down the leg side, and was sent on his way after a review.It was a sign of lengths to come, and straight after lunch, it was Woakes’ turn to drag it back, in more ways than one. Just when it seemed that his unquestioned good-eggery was finally going to run out of caveats in overseas conditions, he came hurtling in for his second spell with spirit and threat renewed.His first breakthrough came via a startling change-up in pace, as he fired in a cross-seam bouncer to the obdurate Nkrumah Bonner, who flapped with his gloves as the ball skidded through lower than anticipated, and Ben Foakes scooped the deflection to confirm West Indies’ panic at 82 for 4.Three balls later, and it was all hands to the pump for a floundering batting line-up. Woakes fired in another short ball to the imposing Jason Holder, whose response was his third unworthy shot in as many innings – a spiralling top-edged pull to Jonny Bairstow at square leg, and in the space of a single over, Woakes had doubled his series wickets tally, and halved his average, from 88.50 and climbing to the mid-40s.Suddenly his tail was up and his luck had turned. Two overs later, Jermaine Blackwood – who had already survived a rare drop on 14 by Foakes off Mahmood – hacked a flashy cut past the diving Overton at gully for four, only to fall to his very next ball, as Woakes fired in the fuller length, and extracted an umpire’s call lbw with the batter pinned in front of leg stump.But Kyle Mayers, in the earliest sign that England’s threat was transient, took it upon himself to inject some impetus into a stalled innings. First he bludgeoned Woakes out of the attack with a pre-meditated pull for six over midwicket, then he twice climbed into Overton with unconventional hacks in front of square for boundaries before deflecting Jack Leach to third man after his belated introduction for the 43rd over.Related

• West Indies keep it real on not-quite-perfect day

• Leach, Mahmood find tenth-wicket fight to halt West Indies rampage

• Tenth-wicket tenacity makes a mockery of England's familiar failings

• West Indies name unchanged squad for third Test against England

• Root praises England progress as Kraigg Brathwaite takes pride in resilience

Once again, it was Stokes – discomforted, not for the first time, by his long-standing knee injury – who rejoined the attack to end Mayers’ threatening stay on 28. There was perhaps a hint of reverse swing at play as he bent a full ball into middle stump, and Mahmood at mid-on swallowed a comfortable chip.But from 128 for 7, Da Silva and Alzarri Joseph guided their side to tea before setting themselves to chip off the remaining deficit of 70. At first Joseph was the more proactive of the partners, including another mashed six off Woakes, whose short ball was suddenly lacking its previous zip – and as England’s desperation for a breakthrough became more apparent, so too did their use of their remaining reviews, all of them burned in hope rather than expectation.In the end, it was pilot error that downed Joseph to end a key stand of 49, as he charged once more at Overton – a forgiveable tactic with the new ball looming – and under-edged to the tumbling Foakes for 28. But Roach, West Indies’ senior pro, was in no mood to give his innings away so tamely. He held his own to the close as Da Silva brought up a gutsy fifty from 143 balls in the fading light. It was the first of the match, and it’s not done yet.

But several logistical hurdles will need to be overcome for it to host matches

Peter Della Penna25-May-2022Oakland Coliseum, home of Major League Baseball’s (MLB) Oakland Athletics and formerly the NFL’s Oakland Raiders, has emerged as a potential venue for the 2024 Men’s T20 World Cup, to be co-hosted by the USA and the West Indies. The ICC CEO Geoff Allardice and development head Will Glenwright met with USA Cricket officials in California recently where the idea – rumoured since last year – gained traction.Though the Oakland Coliseum, which opened in 1966, lacks many of the luxury amenities found in most outdoor American stadiums built since the turn of the millennium, it has two major features which appeal to cricket administrators. The location, in the East Bay of northern California just north of the Silicon Valley, is home to a burgeoning local grassroots cricket scene as well as a deep-pocketed expatriate cricket fan base that administrators are hoping to tap into.Another attraction is that the stadium could hold up to 53,000 fans, more than twice as many as any currently available purpose-built cricket venues in the USA. Those include venues in consideration for hosting T20 World Cup games, such as Church Street Park in Morrisville, North Carolina, which is slated for an expansion to hold approximately 4,000 fans; as well as USA’s two ODI venues located in Lauderhill, Florida, and the Houston suburb of Pearland, Texas, both of which have 10,000 capacity (but which could expand to approximately 15,000-20,000 with temporary seating). Other venues which do not have ODI status but could be in consideration are Prairie View Cricket Complex – in suburban Houston – and AirHogs Stadium just outside of Dallas, which is yet to break ground on renovations since a lease was acquired in 2020.However, for the Oakland Coliseum to host matches several logistical hurdles will need to be overcome. Its location in the Pacific time zone means it would be unlikely to host an India-Pakistan match because an 8pm primetime start on TV in India would mean a 7.30 am start in California. But the venue could be an ideal choice for the late game in a double- or triple-header on a given day, which could possibly feature another heavyweight clash such as England-Australia to suit UK primetime.Another obstacle is the June slot currently scheduled for the event, which falls right in the middle of baseball season. It would mean that the Coliseum’s availability would be dependent on the Athletics and MLB agreeing to schedule a 10-14 day road trip for the Athletics around that time to allow cricket officials time to ready it for the T20 World Cup, including the installation of a drop-in pitch. That timeline would allow no more than two or three matches at the venue.This would not be the first time in recent years that a baseball stadium is utilised to host a high-profile cricket event. The Cricket All-Stars T20 exhibition tour headlined by Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne in 2015 was played using drop-in pitches at New York’s Citi Field (home of the New York Mets), Houston’s Minute Maid Park (Houston Astros) and Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Those venues were chosen to lure fans to venues which had seating capacity that far exceeded those at cricket-specific venues such as Lauderhill. All three venues are purpose-built for baseball with limited foul area territory and seats located close to the field, which consequently meant some extremely short boundaries square of the pitch.However, Oakland Coliseum’s original design as a shared baseball and football facility means that for baseball purposes, it has by far the largest foul territory in MLB with the closest seats scaled back a considerable distance from the field. For cricket purposes, it means that square boundaries would be right on the borderline of satisfying the ICC’s minimum boundary dimensions of 55 meters. If a more thorough inspection determines that the boundaries wind up just short of the ICC minimum, officials may appeal for an ICC exemption in the same manner as Auckland’s Eden Park for what would be a one-of-a-kind opportunity to host an unprecedented number of fans for a match in America.To demonstrate the viability of Oakland Coliseum, local administrators are exploring the idea of potentially hosting exhibition matches before the end of 2023. If such an exhibition were to go ahead, it would most likely be held in the October-November window following the conclusion of the baseball season, though no firm plans have been made at this stage.

Five-match series moves to Colombo locked at 1-1 with Smith under a fitness cloud

Alex Malcolm18-Jun-2022

Big picture

Sri Lanka produced a stirring victory in game two to level the series thanks to an excellent bowling and fielding display. Australia collapsed under the pressure of a chase to lose 5 for 19 and be bowled out for just 189. It was Sri Lanka’s spinners, in the absence of Wanindu Hasaranga, who sparked the collapse with Dhananjaya de Silva and Dunith Wellalage taking two wickets each before Chamika Karunaratne and Dushmantha Chameera tore through the lower order. Karunaratne took the key wicket of Glenn Maxwell and produced a fine run out to remove Alex Carey to finish player of the match. Adding salt into Australia’s wounds, Steven Smith hurt his left quad while batting and is under a cloud heading into the 3rd ODI as the visitors’ injury toll continues to mount.Sri Lanka will take a lot of confidence from their performance having won without Hasaranga. The successful use of Dhananjaya, particularly in the powerplay to Australia’s openers, is a blueprint they will surely repeat again in this series. They do need more returns with the bat though as their entire top eight reached double figures but no one kicked on to make more than 36.Australia are also frustrated that their top order were unable to kick on in Pallekele. David Warner and Smith both played well but made errors at important times. Australia vice-captain Alex Carey noted ahead of game three that the top order was keen to take the game deeper and produce bigger partnerships. They are also keen to sharpen up in the field after two untidy performances in the first two ODIs. But Australia bowled well in game two with debutant Matthew Kuhnemann producing a fine display after he was called in to replace Ashton Agar.

Recent form

(last five matches, most recent first)Sri Lanka WLWLW
Australia LWLLWKuhnemann celebrates his first international wicket•AFP

In the spotlight

Charith Asalanka is arguably one of the most talented batters in Sri Lanka’s top order but he’s yet to have a truly breakout performance at ODI level. He’s made five scores of 50+ in 13 innings but never passed 77. He’s looked in good touch throughout the T20Is and ODIs so far this month but has yet to kick on. Sri Lanka really need him to take the game deeper in the absence of Hasaranga so that he can utilise his power in the last 10 overs and set the home side up for a big score.Matthew Kuhnemann was extremely impressive on international debut in Pallekele. He flew in from the Australia A game at Hambantota on a helicopter at short notice and bowled and fielded superbly, picking two wickets and taking two very good catches. Even more impressive was the fact that he bowled inside the powerplay on debut to great effect, something Ashton Agar does not often do. Kuhnemann has a chance in the rest of this series to continue to rise up Australia’s pecking order of spinners and make a case to be in the Test squad if Agar’s side injury does not heal in time.

Team news

Sri Lanka could well go unchanged into game three if Hasaranga is still unavailable due to a groin strain. Their well-balanced attack troubled Australia and gave Dasun Shanaka options but the batting does still look a little vulnerable. They could bring in Bhanuka Rajapaksa, leave out Vandersay, and use Dhananjaya’s full quota of overs. But it seems unlikely.Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Danushka Gunathilaka, 2 Pathum Nissanka, 3 Kusal Mendis (wk), 4 Dhananjaya de Silva, 5 Charith Asalanka, 6 Dasun Shanaka (capt), 7 Chamika Karunaratne, 8 Dunith Wellalage, 9 Dushmantha Chameera, 10 Jeffrey Vandersay, 11 Maheesh TheekshanaThere are question marks over Smith but he hasn’t yet been ruled out. Mitchell Marsh (calf) or Mitchell Starc (finger) are both unlikely to be fit although both are close to returning. Cameron Green is available to bowl which could see him return to the side. He could come in and give Aaron Finch seven bowling options, with Head possibly sliding up the order to No.3 if Smith is ruled out. The only way Mitchell Marsh plays is if he doesn’t bowl. Australia also have Josh Inglis available if need be to replace Smith.Australia (possible): 1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch (capt), 3 Steven Smith/Travis Head, 4 Marnus Labuschagne, 5 Alex Carey (wk), 6 Cameron Green, 7 Glenn Maxwell, 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Mitchell Swepson, 10 Matthew Kuhnemann, 11 Josh Hazlewood

Pitch and conditions

Rain could play a part again with both games in Pallekele interrupted. There is a stray thunderstorm forecast for the afternoon. A fresh pitch at R Premadasa Stadium might not take as much turn as the surface in Pallekele but the spinners should still play a part.

Stats and trivia

• Australia have played 17 ODIs at R Premadasa and only once made more than 250. Their highest score at the venue is 263 for 7 against Zimbabwe in 1996.
• Sri Lanka have not won a bilateral ODI series against Australia in Sri Lanka since 1992. Australia have won the last three in 2004, 2011 and 2016.

Quotes

“We lost wickets at crucial times and just couldn’t get a partnership of any real substance. So we will reflect on that. We’re at a new venue so we’ll take all the information in as best we can today and when we get into it tomorrow.”