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India’s Test captain, Virat Kohli, has given a strong indication that India will start using DRS in the future

Sidharth Monga29-Sep-20161:27

Will look to introduce DRS in future – Kohli

India’s Test captain, Virat Kohli, has given a strong indication that India will start using the Decision Review System (DRS) in the future. “We will certainly look to probably introduce it [DRS] in future,” Kohli said on the eve of the Kolkata Test against New Zealand.India have been the biggest opponents of DRS for a while now, but Kohli said that there have been discussions and meetings about it, and DRS is something they “definitely want to think about”. This is a big departure from the previous captain’s views and BCCI president Anurag Thakur’s ambivalent musings. MS Dhoni always opposed DRS because it was not 100%, and Thakur recently wondered, if the machine is going to make the same error as humans, “what are we getting out of it”?Kohli still had reservations about the system, but he seemed convinced about the merits of having a review system. It is noteworthy that under Kohli’s captaincy India have been at the receiving end of calls that could have been reversed easily under DRS in two Tests where the said decisions made a big difference. India ended up losing those two Tests – Adelaide in 2014-15 and Galle in 2015. In the Adelaide chase, where India came close to beating Australia, Shikhar Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane were sent back when DRS would have recalled them. In Galle, Sri Lanka mounted an incredible comeback in the second innings, but both their heroes, Dinesh Chandimal and Lahiru Thirimanne, would have been out in single figures had DRS been there.Virat Kohli: ‘[After opposing the use of DRS] for us to then say that the umpires made an error and it is going against us, it is not logical’•BCCI

“Those are the things I can’t say yes or no to sitting here,” Kohli said about DRS. “But these are the things we have discussed. These are things we have had meetings on. Because there were some areas that we felt can be debated. Especially the ball-tracking and HawkEye. But, all in all, obviously when you feel that – I personally feel these things can be discussed and debated on.”We wouldn’t take [wrong umpiring] decisions too hard because we, in the first place, decided we would not use DRS. For us to then say that the umpires made an error and it is going against us, it is not logical. There is no room for excuses. Once DRS is in place, once DRS is up and running for us as well, then you can sit and think what are the grey areas. As I said these things have been spoken about. We want to definitely think about it. but I can’t make a decision sitting here right now. It’s something we have had discussions on.”As it stands now, no other team in the world opposes DRS even if there isn’t enough technology available with the host broadcasters. Every Test not featuring India has DRS, except Zimbabwe’s recent Tests, when they couldn’t afford it. In ICC 50-over tournaments, India are forced to use DRS, but that uniformity does not extend to Test matches because they are seen as bilateral arrangements.

PSL 2023 will be played between February 9 and March 19

Umar Farooq14-Dec-2022Babar Azam will replace Wahab Riaz as Peshawar Zalmi’s captain for the upcoming season of the Pakistan Super League. After trading in Babar from Karachi Kings in exchange for Shoaib Malik and Haider Ali, the franchise continues a transformation that started in 2021 in the hope to form a new core.No team in the league’s history has had as loyal a core as Zalmi’s since its inception in 2016. Daren Sammy, Hasan Ali, Kamran Akmal and Wahab Riaz had worn no other colours until Hasan decided to leave last year. There have been some hiccups though, like the misunderstanding with Akmal and the mid-season benching of their captain Sammy to appoint him as the coach.Related

• Karachi Kings lack batting firepower; Peshawar Zalmi missing premium fast bowlers

• PSL looks to expand salary caps to stay ahead in battle between T20 leagues

• Karachi Kings trade Babar Azam to Peshawar Zalmi, get Haider Ali and Shoaib Malik in return

Zalmi won the title in 2017 and have had a consistent run since, making the finals in 2018, 2019, and 2021 and the eliminator in 2020 and 2022. Wahab has been a stalwart for the team. He is the league’s leading wicket-taker and was retained by the franchise. But at 37 years old, his impact on the field isn’t what it used to be. Earlier this year, he was demoted from the platinum to diamond category of PSL players. Akmal, 40, has been released.Zalmi are in the market for 11 players in the PSL draft on December 15 in Karachi. They have already brought in hard-hitting batter Mohammad Haris along with Babar, and retained Sherfane Rutherford, Aamir Jamal (Brand Ambassador), Salman Irshad and Tom-Kohler Cadmore.For Babar, the PSL journey started with Islamabad United in the inaugural edition in 2016 but he was ignored after two games. Since the following year, he represented Karachi Kings and bossed the charts with an average 43.60 and a strike rate of 121.97 on his way to become the tournament’s highest scorer, racking up 2413 runs in 68 matches. However, his relationship with the franchise started to sour and the team slumped to the bottom under his captaincy, losing nine out of ten games. Kings will be led by Imad Wasim now.PSL 2023 will be played between February 9 and March 19. Four venues – Lahore, Karachi, Rawalpindi, and Multan – will host the matches, going up from two – Lahore and Karachi – in the previous two seasons, due to Covid-19.

Imran Haider, the legspinner, took four wickets in his second ODI to help United Arab Emirates record a six-wicket win over Hong Kong in their tri-series fixture in Dubai

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Jan-2017
Scorecard
Shaiman Anwar steered UAE home with his seventh ODI half-century•Peter Della Penna

Imran Haider, the legspinner, took four wickets in his second ODI to help United Arab Emirates record a six-wicket win over Hong Kong in their tri-series fixture in Dubai on Thursday. UAE got to their target of 175 in 38.1 overs to finish the series on top of the points table.Hong Kong were put in to bat and lost wickets in clumps, tottering at one stage at 85 for 5. Nizakat Khan, the No. 4 batsman, held the lower order together in making a 111-ball 93 including seven fours and three sixes. Nizakat’s 67-run stand for the eighth wicket with Ehsan Nawaz, who made 11, was the highest of the innings which folded in the penultimate over.Haider removed Babar Hayat, the Hong Kong captain, and Shahid Wasif for ducks. At one stage, he had three wickets in as many overs; he eventually finished with 4 for 25 off his 10 overs to take his wickets tally to seven in two matches.UAE started solidly courtesy a 76-run opening stand between Rohan Mustafa and Mohammed Qasim, before losing three quick wickets – two of which were picked up by Ehsan Khan, the offspinner. Shaiman Anwar then took charge to make a half-century to take UAE to within 27 runs of victory before giving Ehsan his third wicket. Muhammad Usman (20 not out) and Mohammad Naveed (9 not out) then saw the chase through.

He’s been compared to Shane Warne and has been talked up as the next big spin hope, but the 18-year old isn’t losing focus

Andrew McGlashan07-Nov-2018He’s been compared to Shane Warne and proclaimed a saviour of Australian cricket, all before his 19th birthday. But rather than being overawed by it all, legspinner Lloyd Pope is embracing his life-changing experiences as he turns heads with his leg-breaks and wrong ‘uns.Pope burst onto the global scene with his remarkable figures of 8 for 35 against England in the Under-19 World Cup quarter-final, pulling Australia back from the brink of elimination in a manner Warne would have been proud of. Then in just his second first-class match he claimed 7 for 87 against Queensland in the Sheffield Shield, becoming the youngest player to take a seven-wicket haul in the competition. On Wednesday, his first Big Bash contract was confirmed when he signed with Sydney Sixers.In the current climate of Australian cricket, where each day appears to bring another sacking, resignation or associated drama, Pope’s rapid rise has been enough for some to suggest that international cricket should come sooner rather than later. While he isn’t getting carried away, the spotlight certainly doesn’t sit uneasily for him.”It’s a different challenge, but I guess I like the media attention. Just trying to ride the wave at the moment. The attention is one thing I feel more off the field. When I’m out there I just sort of let cricket take over,” he said. “My dad’s told me that each time I take wickets ‘you’ve change your life today’ so it’s a really good feeling.”Pope’s father, Myles, has been a major influence on his early development, offering encouragement and advice while even as a young teenager coaches spotted that he may have some special – “a natural turner of the ball,” he was termed.”Think I was around 8-10 years old [when I started] and I’ve always just tried to jump in the nets and bowl as much as I can,” he said. “My dad’s been a big influence, just telling me to go out and bowl. A couple of coaches said I had natural talent, a natural turner of the ball one of them said and if I could continue with that I’d have a bright future.”Pope has had one session with Warne when he was younger – “amazing feeling to shake his hand, to know he knows who I am” – but stressed how he was keen to forge his own path, while absorbing all the advice he could. His sharply spun googly has been the delivery to really catch the eye and the aspect of his first dip into the BBL that he is excited about is the chance to have the license to go through a full range of variations.”I’ve had a bit of a red-ball focus recently with Shield cricket but it’s going really well, it will be nice to get the white ball back in my hands and try some more variations. There are different challenges, in red-ball cricket it’s a lot about consistency and in white-ball cricket it’s about a lot more variations and being able to out-think batters a lot more quickly.”And while talk of international honours will follow Pope around, especially if the wickets continue to come, he is keeping his feet on the ground. “I’ve only played three matches so I’m more worried about keeping my place in the Redbacks team, if I can do that I’ll be a very happy man.”

Pakistan opener scored 102 before Ireland were bundled out for 95 in their 166-run chase

S Sudarshanan15-Feb-2023Bespectacled players have taken quite the centre stage in the last few months. After memorable Test debuts in the men’s arena for Pakistan’s Abrar Ahmed and Australia’s Todd Murphy, Pakistan’s Muneeba Ali made a splash at the Women’s T20 World Cup in Cape Town.Muneeba became the first woman to score a T20I hundred for Pakistan and only the sixth to score one in a T20 World Cup as Pakistan crushed Ireland in their Group 2 clash. She added 101 for the third wicket with allrounder Nida Dar as Pakistan posted 165 for 5, their highest at the T20 World Cup. That proved 70 too many for Ireland, who were stymied by spin to be bowled out for 95.

Fluent Muneeba puts on a show

Muneeba was hailed as a prodigy ever since her T20I bow in 2016 but for a long time she only showed glimpses of her talent. Ireland, and many of those who watched her on Wednesday, saw the best of the Pakistan opener as she pummelled the bowlers around. Her intent – be it in finding boundaries or even in running between the wickets – was there for everyone to see.Muneeba got off the blocks quickly, hitting a four in each of the first five overs. Pakistan had raced to 41 for none at that point with the southpaw on 30 off 19. A brilliant direct hit from Ireland wicketkeeper Mary Waldron saw Javeria Khan run out in the last over of the powerplay. Soon Bismah Maroof was ruled out caught tamely at mid-on, even though replays were not fully conclusive that the ball had carried.Those dismissals had scant effect on Muneeba, who took particular liking to Leah Paul’s left-arm spin. In all, she scored 23 off the 15 balls she faced from Paul, using her feet to make room and go over the off side when four fielders were stationed deep on the on side. She brought up her fifty off 40 balls and took a further 26 balls only to bring up triple figures. She fell in the last ball of the penultimate over but not before making 102 off 68 balls.

Dar makes her presence felt

For a change, Dar had a different role to play with the bat. Often walking out as Pakistan’s rescuer, she found herself in the middle in the eighth over when Pakistan were 55 for 2. But an on-song Muneeba made her task easy and, for a change, she could take a back seat.Muneeba Ali and Nida Dar added 101 for the third wicket•ICC/Getty Images

Dar got off the mark with a sweep through backward square leg and hit one more through cow corner off her 12th ball. But largely, she rotated the strike, ran well between the wicket and fed the strike back to Muneeba. In the interim she danced down the track to legspinner Cara Murray to hit a six over wide long-on. In her 28-ball 33, she struck just the three boundaries but helped add Pakistan’s first hundred-run partnership in a T20 World Cup and only the fourth overall.

Ireland stifled with turn

Ireland’s hopes of an unlikely chase hinged on at least two of the top three. Gaby Lewis struck left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal for a crisp drive over mid-off but was undone by Dar’s smarts with the ball. After firing four deliveries through, Dar slowed one and dragged her length slightly back, and Lewis reached out for the drive and inside-edged it to the wicketkeeper.Orla Prendergast then struck some crisp boundaries, including one off Fatima Sana where she danced down the track to smoke it over wide long-on for a six. She scored 31 off just 21 balls hitting four fours and a six but became the first of left-arm spinner Nashra Sandhu’s four wickets.Sandhu then ran through the middle order, staving off and dismissing Eimear Richardson who had raced to 28 off 17, to finish with her career-best 4 for 18. In all, Pakistan’s spinners claimed nine of the ten wickets to open their tournament account in style.

Australia crumbled to their second-lowest total against India in 32.3 overs on the third day

Sidharth Monga11-Feb-2023India completed the demolition job of Australia inside three days by bowling them out for 91 in 32.3 overs in the second innings. It was their second-lowest score against India.R Ashwin, outbowled by Ravindra Jadeja in the first innings and outbatted by both Axar Patel and Jadeja, led the Australian collapse in the second innings with 5 for 37, his 31st five-wicket haul. Fifteen of the 20 wickets that India took were lbw or bowled, which sums up their expertise at attacking the stumps without getting picked off for runs.It was all the more torturous for Australia because India’s last three wickets lasted the whole first session on a pitch that was turning more and quicker than day two. Australia started the day 144 behind, needing the last three wickets for nothing to give them any hope of staying alive in the Test. They got Jadeja early, but Axar added 52 and 20 with Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj to take India’s lead to 223.Axar summed up the challenge for Australia. Coming in at No. 9, he batted much like a proper batter and handled the quick turn on the pitch with little fuss. There was a time when he might even have entertained thoughts of a maiden Test hundred. However, trying to farm the strike with Siraj and looking for a big hit towards the end of an over, Axar lost his off stump on 84. Between them, India’s three spinners aggregated exactly 177, Australia’s first-innings score.Debutant Todd Murphy continued to impress as he ended up with figures of 7 for 124, his first five-for in first-class cricket, his longest shift in first-class cricket. That Murphy looked right at home was the last positive for Australia.New ball, turning pitch, second innings, two left-hand openers, more left-hand batters in the middle order. Even ChatGPT would have thrown the new ball to Ashwin. It took just five balls for the slide to begin. Usman Khawaja thought he had a nice little half-volley to drive at, but it dipped ever so slightly. That was enough for the ball to turn, take the edge and go to slip.Todd Murphy picked 7 for 124 on debut•Getty Images

In the ninth over, it became spin at both ends. Marnus Labuschagne tried to counter by staying deep in the crease and making him bowl full. He earned two drives with it, but on pitches with low bounce this strategy is wrought with risk. Soon one turned away, just enough to be pitching leg and hitting off for the plumbest of lbws.Ashwin sped the slide after that. David Warner, who had been dropped at slip earlier and had done well to not follow the turning balls with his hands, finally fell lbw to one that didn’t turn. To be fair to Warner, this was not the parallel-seam delivery from Ashwin, which usually has high probability of going straight on, but it pitched, disturbed the surface a touch and went on to miss his inside edge and have Warner lbw.Much like Labuschagne, Matt Renshaw was caught back to a fullish ball, beaten by the turn away, and was caught plumb in front. Another classic offbreak from round the wicket turned past the inside edge to have Peter Handscomb lbw too.Much like the first innings, Alex Carey came out sweeping and reverse-sweeping. He nailed two, got one single, and then Ashwin slowed it down, didn’t turn it, and Carey became Ashwin’s fifth wicket and his 100th lbw victim in Tests.Steven Smith looked a level above the other batters as he handled spin. Wickets kept falling around him, but he displayed a sense of calm. At 88 for 9, though, Jadeja went through him for the second time in the Test. This was really unplayable. It was full, on off, and Smith defended the off-stump line. Quite a similar delivery that turned less than expected in the first innings and bowled him. This one, though, actually went further in and bowled hi. Except that it turned out to be a no-ball.Shami, though, ended up with the lbw of Scott Boland with the ball reversing past his inside edge. Smith remained unbeaten on 25.

They will earn INR 15 lakh per Test, six lakh for each ODI and three lakh for a T20I

Shashank Kishore27-Oct-2022India’s centrally-contracted women cricketers are set to earn the same match fees as their male counterparts for appearances in international matches, according to BCCI secretary Jay Shah, in accordance with the board’s new pay equity policy.Under this policy, the women – like the men – will earn INR 15 lakh for a Test, 6 lakh for an ODI and 3 lakh for a T20I. These amounts are significantly higher than the flat INR 1 lakh that India women players currently earn for an ODI or T20I appearance, and 2.5 lakh for a Test match.While describing the move as “the first step towards tackling discrimination”, Shah thanked the BCCI’s Apex Council for its support in implementing the move, which he said was a “commitment to our women cricketers.”As things stand, there are no changes to the BCCI’s annual retainers for women players. Currently, those in the highest retainer bracket take home INR 50 lakh, while Grade B and Grade C are valued at INR 30 lakh and INR 10 lakh respectively. In comparison, the male cricketers are divided into four categories with Grade A+ players taking home INR 7 crore, and those in Grades A, B and C collecting INR 5 crore, 3 crore and 1 crore respectively. ESPNcricinfo understands the BCCI has been engaging with the country’s top women cricketers to work out changes to the annual retainers. Harmanpreet Kaur, the captain, is believed to have attended a meeting held at the board’s Mumbai headquarters.Contracts and match fees aside, the inaugural women’s IPL, which the BCCI formally announced at the Annual General Meeting earlier this month, is also understood to have been on the agenda with the board putting together a process for TV rights and franchise ownership. There are also discussions ongoing over whether the league will follow a draft process or an auction for the players.India women have had significant success in recent months. They followed their silver-medal finish at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in August with a record 3-0 ODI series sweep of England in England in September. Earlier this month, India beat Sri Lanka to clinch a record seventh Asia Cup crown in Bangladesh. They are set to host Australia next for five T20Is in November and December.

Lingering hopes of a positive outcome to Derbyshire’s match against Glamorgan at Derby were not so much put on ice as frozen out by a spectacular storm midway through the final afternoon

ECB Reporters Network27-Apr-2016
ScorecardJacques Rudolph said he had never played in colder conditions than at Derby•Getty Images

Lingering hopes of a positive outcome to Derbyshire’s match against Glamorgan at Derby were not so much put on ice as frozen out by a spectacular storm midway through the final afternoon.A violent hailstorm broke over the ground shortly after 2.25pm and turned the outfield white, leaving conditions too wet for the match to resume.By that stage, there was little chance of anything other than a draw with Glamorgan 87 for 2 in their second innings, a lead of 119, with Jacques Rudolph and Chris Cooke making sure there was no late panic in the visiting dressing room.Even before the start of the fourth day, both teams were struggling to get into a position from which they could have exerted enough pressure to force victory with Derbyshire 46 behind with one wicket intact.Tom Poynton and Andy Carter extended their partnership to 56 in nine overs and Derbyshire were only five away from a fourth batting point when Carter got a steepling leading edge off Michael Hogan.Carter’s career-best 39 had helped reduce the deficit to 32 so Derbyshire still entertained slim hopes if they could strike early.The lead had increased by 26 when James Kettleborough made his second misjudgment of the match with the same result, off stump knocked back offering no shot, and Will Bragg followed his first-day century with another lbw dismissal to Wes Durston’s off-spin.At lunch, Glamorgan were 79 ahead and Rudolph and Cooke quietly eased the game towards the draw that was confirmed when hailstones the size of marbles descended on the ground.In all, 138 overs were lost to weather of varying shades of winter and spoiled what Derbyshire’s elite performance director Graeme Welch believes could have been a very good game.”It’s not very often you see snow nearly at the start of May and Jacques Rudolph said it was the coldest he’s ever played in.”I think they probably got 50 or 60 runs too many in the first innings but we did well to get what we did with Andy Carter smacking it around and I think if the weather hadn’t intervened, it would have been a very good game on a very good cricket pitch.”For Hogan, who finished with four wickets, it was a case of what might have been. “It’s a shame because the weather ruined a good game of cricket.”If we had a full four days of play, it would have been a really nice game. Given our performance last week, we had some things to take care of and prove that was just a mishap and they probably thought they might be able to knock us over.”So we took it as a way to exorcise some demons.”