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Cheteshwar Pujara, former Chennai Super Kings player, is “quite surprised” at Stephen Fleming’s remark that they’ve been offered “no home advantage” at Chepauk. That said, Pujara felt Friday’s surface for the game between CSK and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) offered more help for spinners in the second innings, while the ball “skidded on a bit more” in the first half while CSK bowled.”It is [surprising] because at CSK you can’t complain, it’s one franchise where they’ve been preparing pitches according to their strengths,” Pujara said on ESPNcricinfo’s TimeOut after RCB handed CSK their biggest home defeat, by 50 runs, to make it two wins in two. “You should [use home advantage]; if he’s saying that [there is no home advantage] they don’t have a say, then I’m quite surprised.”If you speak about MI, CSK, KKR – I don’t think that’s the case [them not getting pitches they ask for]. Any other franchise, I can still understand. Those [three] franchises make sure they get what they want. Their strength has been when they play at home.”Related

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One of the big talking points in CSK’s chase was their tactic of batting Sam Curran ahead of Shivam Dube, and R Ashwin ahead of MS Dhoni, who came in at No. 9 with the chase seemingly dead, with CSK needing 98 off 28. Dhoni finished with 30 off 16, thanks mainly to the 16 runs (two sixes and a four) he hit off Krunal Pandya in the final over with CSK needing 67.”There is a lot of concern [in the batting line-up outside of Rachin Ravindra, Ruturaj Gaikwad] because their middle order will have to click at some point,” Pujara said. “They will have to start scoring runs quickly. They rely heavily on their middle order.”Yes, their top order is their strength, but when they don’t perform well that’s the time the middle order has to step up, it doesn’t look like they’re completely ready for it. It looks like they’ll need better surfaces to get back into form and when they start playing at home again, they’ll be able to perform well.”Pujara felt more than the loss, it was CSK’s manner of defeat that was hurtful. “There’s a lot to learn for CSK,” he said. “I’ve been part of the franchise. If you’re a CSK fan, you’d really be disappointed today. You tend to lose, but the way they lost this game will put a lot of dents in the dressing room.”

‘Conway for Curran and Dube batting higher’

Nick Knight, the former England opener, felt CSK have tried to fix something that wasn’t broken by separating a “tried-and-tested” opening pair in Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway. Gaikwad has batted at No. 3 in the first two matches, with Rahul Tripathi opening with Rachin Ravindra. In both games so far, Gaikwad has come out to bat in the second over.2:12

Fleming: We haven’t been able to read the Chepauk pitches

“In my top order, I’d have Devon Conway. I’m surprised he’s not playing,” Knight said. “I’d play both of them [Conway and Rachin]. I’m going to leave Sam Curran out. I just feel that Gaikwad and Conway at the top is tried and tested. I’m not saying it’s right by any means, but when you look at it – Conway has a terrific record.”Rachin can bat at No. 3, more than capable. And you work down from there. The only thing about that is Dhoni may have to bat at No. 7, which he’s sometimes reluctant to do, sometimes wants to bat lower than that. He’s made 30 of 16, effected a brilliant stumping, I’d encourage them to get him to No. 7.”The other aspect to CSK’s batting Knight felt needed an immediate rethink was Dube’s role. On Friday, Dube came in at No. 6, below Curran and made 19 off 15. Dube has shown a propensity to takedown spin – he strikes at 169.71 against this variety since IPL 2023. This facet was one of their X factors during CSK’s run to the title in 2023.”Why was Dube not batting higher? I was stunned when he came out ahead of Curran,” Knight said. “They were so far behind the game at that point, they needed something to get them impetus, energy in their run chase and Dube was just held back. I saw him smash the England attack a couple of month ago [in a T20I series], coming in as a replacement player.”If that guy can’t do that in this tournament, I must be seeing things slightly different. For me, Dube could be the man to take this opportunity and boss the middle overs, and boss the middle section of that innings and take his game forward and take the team forward. If you go Conway, Gaikwad, Ravindra, Hooda, Dube, Jadeja, Dhoni – that’s a decent line-up.”

Reacting to allegations of sexual harassment in the West Indies women’s team during the T20 World Cup in 2020, Cricket West Indies (CWI) and the West Indies Players’ Association (WIPA) have decided to meet and review “all aspects of athlete safeguarding within West Indies cricket”.Saying in a statement on Saturday that the two bodies “take such matters seriously and remain fully committed to ensuring a safe, professional, and supportive environment for all players and staff”, CWI and WIPA added that they had “already taken significant steps to enhance player protection”. No details have been provided by CWI or the WIPA about the alleged incident.”In 2021, improved safeguarding measures were introduced for women’s tours, strengthening security and well-being,” the statement said. “In May 2023, CWI implemented additional policies, including single-room accommodations for the West Indies Senior Women’s team on all international assignments, ensuring parity with the men’s team. These are among other policy initiatives within the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the period 1 October 2023 to 30 September 2027.Related

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“Additionally, the CWI Women’s Cricket Transformation Committee was established to further advance women’s cricket.”Furthermore, we have implemented and strictly adhered to UNICEF’s Children Protection Policy, ensuring that minors never share rooms with adults under any circumstance. Additionally, we have mandated ongoing training for all officials to reinforce and uphold these standards.”The 2020 women’s T20 World Cup was played across Australia. West Indies, led by Stafanie Taylor, failed to get out of Group B after winning one and losing two, while their final game, against South Africa, was abandoned without a ball bowled. Australia won the tournament, beating India in the final in front of 86,174 people at the MCG.

South Africa have taken the 18-hour stopover in Dubai between matches in Pakistan in their stride and used the opportunity to “get out and walk and have some nice steak” between the end of the Champions Trophy group stage and their semi-final against New Zealand on Wednesday.They are one of two teams, the other being Australia, who left Pakistan after their last pool match, in case they were required to play in Tuesday’s semi-final against India in Dubai. Australia are confirmed for that match, so South Africa have returned to Pakistan and viewed the quick flights as just another part of the tournament.”We knew that there was a big possibility that we might have to fly up and down,” Heinrich Klaasen said in Lahore. “It’s not ideal for the bodies, but at least we had some time to get out and walk around and get loose and just had some nice steak, to be fair. We knew it’s going to happen and it’s part of the scheduling so two teams had to do it, and unfortunately, we were one of them.”Related

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South Africa left Karachi on Sunday morning after confirming their final-four spot with a seven-wicket victory over England. They flew back to Pakistan on Monday at 11am, later than New Zealand, who left at 4am after losing to India on Sunday evening. As a result, Klaasen expects South Africa to be slightly more rested, especially since they did not have to leave Pakistan, as the other teams in Group A did, during the league stage.”We haven’t really travelled a lot in this competition,” he said. “It was obviously just a crazy 18 hours. They [New Zealand] played a game and they had to travel six hours after the game. We had at least that off time and we could stretch our legs and recover as well before we had to come back. I think our bodies will be in a better position than their bodies but it’s part of professional cricket at this moment. You just have to suck it up and go back and see if you can recover well and just get the job done at the end of the day.”Part of the downtime for three of the South Africa players, including Marco Jansen, also included night golf in Dubai. Though the teams are allowed to go out of their hotels in Pakistan to play golf, South Africa have not made use of this provision and have remained in their hotels, as necessitated by the security situation in the country, which is not the case in Dubai, where they are allowed out. Several other squad members used the time in Dubai to visit a mall and Klaasen confirmed none of them, apart from some support staff, watched the match between India and New Zealand.As it turns out, South Africa won’t need any intel into conditions in Dubai unless both they and India reach the final, but Klaasen pointed out obvious differences. “The conditions are quite different,” he said. “The conditions in Pakistan are quite nice to bat on, so the bowlers have a harder job to do. In Dubai, the wickets are slow, but you still have to play good cricket.”Regardless of where you play, you still need to beat two good teams. If we beat New Zealand and India beat Australia, we still have to beat India there. Or if Australia beat them, we still have to beat a good Australian team to win this trophy. Regardless of where you play, you just have to play good cricket.”After reaching a third successive knockout fixture in an ICC event, South Africa may argue that they have done exactly that – played good cricket – over the last two years and are hoping to pick up a major trophy after winning a World Cup semi-final for the first time at last year’s T20 tournament. The majority of that squad is also at this Champions Trophy and ready to go one step further.”The nerves are a little bit less because we have a little bit more experience in the semi-final department now. We’re playing good cricket,” Klaasen said. “Since I’ve been around from 2018, we have played some incredible cricket. We just had some bad luck here and there and one or two games that didn’t go our way, but we’ve been playing good cricket. It’s the rewards that we’re seeing now. The boys are holding a little bit more composure in the bigger moments in the game. Hopefully, we can get into another final. We’ve got the experience now. The big boys need to step up on Wednesday.”South Africa haven’t lost a game so far in the Champions Trophy•Associated Press

However far South Africa go, they have already eased pre-event concerns about poor form, which included being clean swept in an ODI home series for the first time, by Pakistan, and being on a six-match losing streak. White-ball coach Rob Walter put those results down to being without his first-choice players, who he believed will stand up when it counted, and he has been proven right. Klaasen asked South Africans to expect more of the same in future bilateral events, which will be used to blood players at the expense of results to ensure that the best can come together when it matters most.”The public needs to understand that after the ICC event, you’re trying to explore a little bit as a group, see what’s out there and give guys opportunities so when they need to come in as back-up players, at least they’ve got international experience,” he said. “You can’t expect a young guy to just come in and perform and win every game.”We were in a position over the last couple of years where we really tried to broaden our group a little bit. And with that will come some losses. And as long as your main team and the guys that are your first picks bring it everytime we need to come play, then I don’t see the issue.”

Well, how do you sum that up? A madcap two sessions of cricket on the third day saw 17 wickets fall. Pakistan lost seven for 48, with Jomel Warrican registering the third-best figures for a visiting bowler in Pakistan. And yet, with half an hour to go for tea, Pakistan’s spinners had wrapped up a 127-run victory, skittling West Indies out for 123 in 36.3 overs to go 1-0 up in the series. Sajid Khan and Abrar Ahmed were the chief architects, taking nine of West Indies’ ten wickets as the visitors’ challenge appeared to melt away along with the solidity of the playing strip.West Indies had about 15 overs to face before lunch, and Pakistan just about made victory safe in this time. The visitors began with positive intent, having realised that poking and prodding would get them nowhere. It saw them through the first four overs, but as Sajid said yesterday, the strategy was to attack with the ball and defend with the field. Brathwaite employed the slog sweep to good effect so Pakistan had a fielder at deep midwicket, and it was him that the opener picked out to give Pakistan their first breakthrough.With prodigious turn around, especially to the right-hander off the footmarks, the stumps were always in play, and it helped Sajid clean up Mikyle Louis and Kavem Hodge to reduce West Indies to 37 for 4. Noman Ali, who had surprisingly not opened the bowling from the other end, came into the attack and picked up a wicket on the stroke of lunch when Justin Greaves missed a sweep laden with risk in front of middle stump.Alick Athanaze was the only West Indies batter to score a fifty in the match•PCB

There was plenty of West Indian resistance in the first hour after lunch, most notably from Alick Athanaze, whose half-century – West Indies’ only such contribution all Test – just about kept them alive. Alongside Tevin Imlach first and then Kevin Sinclair, Athanaze worked to give the Pakistan spinners as little as possible. They ditched the belligerent shot-making, and for the first time all Test, Sajid and Noman briefly didn’t look like a huge threat.But the momentum shifted once more when Shan Masood turned to Abrar Ahmed. The slightly different challenge his legspin poses saw a beauty to dismiss Imlach, the ball drifting in and ripping away to take his outside edge. He would also break the next partnership, thanks to some variable bounce and a splendid diving catch at first slip from Salman Agha, before Agha took the regulation catch the following ball to send Gudakesh Motie on his way.By now, West Indies’ resistance had been completely broken. Athanaze missed a straight one from Sajid to leave Pakistan one away, and Abrar put a bow on proceedings as the shot West Indies played often to try to cope on this surface – the high-risk reverse sweep – carried onto the stumps.Jomel Warrican took his career-best 7 for 32•AFP/Getty Images

The omens for this kind of day were there. It began with Pakistan’s best player of spin, Saud Shakeel, falling off the first delivery when he clipped one into short midwicket’s hands. Warrican followed it up with the wicket of Rizwan the following over, and on a pitch where grip and turn became ever more variable, Pakistan’s batters were finding it hard work.Kamran Ghulam had hung around until then, but some extra turn from Warrican drew his outside edge to give Warrican his first five-wicket haul in Test cricket. West Indies began to burrow into the tail as Warrican grew in confidence. He varied his pace to trap Noman in front of the stumps as he tried a reverse sweep, before making it seven when Sajid miscued a slog and got an edge to backward point.The ninth wicket did not register directly in Warrican’s account, but it may as well have. Agha prodded one to him on the off side and hared off for a single, but Warrican picked up cleanly and hit the stumps direct, catching Khurram Shahzad well out of his crease. The innings wrapped up when Agha tried to go over the top against Motie, only to find long-off, and Pakistan were all out for 157.On a surface like this, and with the spinners Pakistan have, though, it was still, by some distance, more than enough.

Litton Das has been appointed Bangladesh captain for an entire T20I series for the first time – he filled in once for Mahmudullah on the tour of New Zealand in April 2021 – for the three-match series to round off the ongoing all-format tour of the West Indies.There is a return for batting allrounder Shamim Hossain, who last played in a T20I – or any international match – in December 2023 in New Zealand. Shamim, 24, has had a run in the format but hasn’t quite broken through yet. In 14 T20I innings, he has 254 runs at a strike rate of 115.98, and a highest of 51, his only half-century.

West Indies vs Bangladesh T20I series

December 16 – 1st T20I
December 18 – 2nd T20I
December 18 – 3rd T20I

The somewhat left-field pick is that of Ripon Mondol, the tall 21-year-old medium-fast bowler who played three T20Is in October 2023, all at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, where he picked up four wickets as Bangladesh finished third.There is still no Najmul Hossain Shanto, the regular all-format captain, who is recovering after picking up a hamstring injury during the series against Afghanistan in November. There is also no update on Shakib Al Hasan’s availability, or future, in international cricket.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Mehidy Hasan Miraz led Bangladesh in the two-Test series in the Caribbean, which was split 1-1, and is also their leader in the ongoing ODI series.From the last T20I squad that played in India in October, Towhid Hridoy (groin injury), Mustafizur Rahman (on a break after becoming a father) and Rakibul Hasan are missing, along with Mahmudullah, who has since retired from the format.Apart from Shamim and Mondal, fast bowler Hasan Mahmud, left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed, top-order batter Soumya Sarkar, who starred in Rangpur Riders’ Global Super League title win recently, and middle-order batter Afif Hossain have come in for this series.

Bangladesh squad for T20I series against West Indies

Litton Das (capt), Soumya Sarkar, Tanzid Hasan, Parvez Hossain Emon, Afif Hossain, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Jaker Ali, Shamim Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Rishad Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Tanzim Hasan, Hasan Mahmud, Ripon Mondol

Wiaan Mulder became the third maiden centurion for South Africa in the Chattogram Test, as the visitors completely dominated proceedings on the second day. They declared on 575 for 6, with Mulder, Tony de Zorzi and Tristan Stubbs hitting centuries, before their pacers knocked off Bangladesh’s top three inside the first six overs.The hosts sunk to 38 for 4 at stumps, as their recent batting frailties showed up even on the batting-friendly pitch of the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium. Even an award of five penalty runs, due to the umpires finding Senuran Muthusamy damaging the pitch, couldn’t inspire Bangladesh.Kagiso Rabada, recently ranked No. 1 among Test bowlers, had Shadman Islam strangle down the leg side for a duck in the first over. Rabada then removed Zakir Hasan, also caught behind, for 2, in his next over.Dane Paterson got into the act in the sixth over when Mahmudul Hasan Joy chased a wide ball, and edged to Aiden Markram at second slip. Keshav Maharaj bowled a beauty to nightwatcher Hasan Mahmud, who missed it completely to be bowled for 3. It completed an amazing day for South Africa, who dominated from start to finish.If the first day belonged to de Zorzi and Stubbs, the second day was all about Mulder’s century and his partnership with Muthusamy. The pair added 152 runs for the unbroken seventh wicket, breaking South Africa’s record for this wicket against Bangladesh from the previous Test in Dhaka, where Mulder and Kyle Verreynne had added 119.Mulder and Muthusamy had come together when Bangladesh suddenly grabbed a bit of momentum in the day’s first session. Taijul Islam snapped up David Bedingham, de Zorzi and Verreynne in consecutive overs to give the home team some respite. Bedingham missed a slog-sweep to be bowled, while de Zorzi and Verreynne also missed sweeps to be given out lbw.Taijul completed his five-for, before Nahid Rana removed Ryan Rickelton. Bangladesh were hopeful of wrapping South Africa up early at the time, but Mulder and Muthusamy took South Africa towards a massive total. Mulder was generally good down the ground, hitting all his eight fours and four sixes between wide long-off and mid-on. Muthusamy fed Mulder the strike regularly, but also struck the ball sweetly.Muthusamy struck two sixes through long-on, apart from fours through mid-off, fine leg and backward point. His ticked boundary through the slips took him to his maiden Test fifty.Taijul was the pick of the Bangladesh bowlers with his 14th five-wicket haul, but it was also the team’s most expensive five-for, as he went for 198 runs. Nahid took a wicket, but Hasan Mahmud and Mehidy Hasan Miraz disappointed with their wicketless efforts.

Only one side has ever won a Test after scoring fewer than the 46 they did in the first innings of the match, but India were entertaining thoughts of doing it. They are onto something special in Bengaluru, and that through a sensational attacking approach with the bat. Don’t get it wrong, New Zealand were still ahead on cold numbers, but India have been pulling off unbelievable wins of late and a fourth-innings chase of even a 100 or so will not be easy.A day after being bowled out for 46 and falling behind by 136 runs, which then ballooned up to a total deficit of 356, India batted at well over five an over until the last few overs to finish 125 behind with seven of their wickets still in hand. New Zealand got themselves late fillip through Glenn Phillips, who snuck in an outside edge from Virat Kohli to the last ball of the day.When you get bowled out for 46 in the first innings, you need pretty much everything to go your way, but India kept marching on even when things didn’t go their way. Their testing bowling early in the day was interrupted by the quickest hundred-run stand against India in India, but their batters came out positive, putting New Zealand under immense pressure on what was now a flat pitch. The bowlers erred regularly, spread-out fields allowed easy runs, and a catch went down.Even the falling wickets failed to slow India down. When Yashasvi Jaiswal got out stumped, Rohit Sharma scored 16 off the next eight balls he played. Rohit’s freakish dismissal, played on off a dead defensive, brought out Sarfaraz Khan, who raced away to 23 off 16. Like Joe Root among the hectic England batters, Virat Kohli remained serene, but also skipped down the track to hit a six off Ajaz Patel almost as a nod to acknowledge the positive approach. However, this approach will be tested as a new batter will join Sarfaraz, unbeaten on 70, on the fourth morning.1:39

Manjrekar: Very rarely did Rachin defend against the spinners

A lot will also depend on whether Rishabh Pant’s movements will be hampered after he missed one-and-a-half day’s play because of a blow on the knee he had injured in his road accident. The good news for India is that he was padded up along with KL Rahul, and also that he removed the pads even without having to bat on day three.That was not the case in the morning. Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj got India off to a relentless start, taking a wicket each in their five-over spells. The way Glenn Phillips and Matt Henry kept swinging at the ball didn’t inspire much confidence nor did it bring many runs. The first four wickets fell for 53, and India were now looking at a long tail.Rachin Ravindra, back to the city where his father was born, had other ideas. He and Tim Southee added 137 runs in a little over 20 overs, the second-quickest stand of 100 or more against India. Ravindra trusted Southee to an extent that he faced only the first three balls of the first 19 in the stand, which seemed to coax responsibility out of the seam bowler known for his six-hitting.Having started the day on 22 and having taken a boundary off the first ball he faced, a loosener from Siraj, Ravindra batted with urgency but also with respect. He scored 101 of his runs against spin because Bumrah and Siraj hardly gave him a loose ball.The first signs of any manufacturing of shots came 11 overs before the new ball became available when Ravindra charged Kuldeep Yadav and lofted him back over his head to get to his fifty. He then went over midwicket to take the lead past 200. In the same over, Southee got a half-volley, which he lofted for his first boundary.1:06

Stokes, McCullum, Gilchrist… Southee??

Just like that, the flood gates had opened. From waiting for the new ball, India went to delaying the new ball because it only became available close to lunch and they needed a breather to regroup. In the 12 overs leading up to the break, New Zealand scored 102 runs, Ravindra went from 48 off 86 to 104 off 125, and Southee hit three sixes to go past Virender Sehwag’s tally of 91. R Ashwin was taken down ruthlessly as he provided overpitched balls, his 16 overs going for 94 and one wicket off a reverse-sweep.Post lunch, the new ball kept going past the bat, but New Zealand managed to go past 400. India doubled down on their aggressive approach when they came out to bat, which did make sense on a flatter pitch. Jaiswal still needed some luck when the ball was new, but he also charged down the wicket to drill Matt Henry through mid-off for four.With the ball not seaming, Henry went too full looking for swing, giving Rohit early momentum in the innings. The run-rate kept growing progressively, but the attacking approach also comes with risk, which it appeared India were happy to live with. There were gasps when Jaiswal ran at Ajaz, and was stumped off a ball that didn’t turn, but this team was not going to give any mixed messages. This is the approach that had brought India a quick 72 runs and had spread the field, and they were happy to live with a dismissal doing this.Rohit’s immediate assault on Henry even as Kohli took 15 balls to get off the pair summed up India’s mindset. A drive for a four, a pull for a six, then a pull for a four brought up his fifty in just 59 balls.0:45

Manjrekar: Sarfaraz a 2024 version of Miandad

And then a wicket conjured itself. Rohit defended Ajaz with a dead bat, the ball hit the inner half of the bat and top spun onto the wicket after bouncing behind the crease. Rohit was not aware of where the ball was, which might suggest lack of awareness, but it is doubtful if he had enough time to kick it away.A delightful partnership of 136 followed. Sarfaraz was cheeky, playing the ball impossibly late or audaciously early. Spin was tackled with sweeps, pace was almost exclusively shown direction behind the wicket. At one point he was ducking William O’Rourke, but the ball nipped back at him, and he ramped it over the keeper just because he could. Kohli was more orthodox in skipping down and lofting Ajaz over long-off.Runs flowed, bowlers erred, a Henry spell of reverse swing was negotiated, Ajaz dropped Kohli at slip off Phillips, an odd choice for a slip fielder. Phillips is a wicketkeeper who has forced himself to become a utility offspinner to survive in international cricket. It seems he puts a lot more body into the ball than fingers, but he keeps using the angles and keeps trying. With the last ball of the day, he managed to get less turn than expected, and took the faintest of edges to lift New Zealand.

The “mystery” surrounding India’s No. 3 has been unboxed. The answer to the puzzle that Amol Muzumdar, the head coach, had been tight-lipped about is now set to be Harmanpreet Kaur.”Absolutely. Not just the warm-up games, but we had already decided back in India, in the camps that happened before we set off for the World Cup” Muzumdar said ahead of India’s tournament opener on Friday against New Zealand. “We had a lovely camp in Bangalore. We had decided there itself. These pre-World Cup matches absolutely stamped that for us.”You can guess it. If you go through the scorecards, you will find it.”It’s a position that has seen a number of occupants recently. And it’s one that was borne out of necessity, primarily because of Yastika Bhatia, who seemed the frontrunner until April, got injured during the Bangladesh tour.Related

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Yastika has since returned from a knee injury and is part of the squad in the UAE. But it appears now that she has to wait for her opportunities. Harmanpreet batted at No.3 in both of India’s warm-ups, with scores of 10 and 1. But that, it seems, was immaterial in the large scheme of things.It would appear the reasoning behind the decision is to give Harmanpreet the best chance of being able to maximise on her power game once set. At the position she otherwise bats, at four or five, Harmanpreet has largely found herself playing catch up; the telling evidence being her strike rate of 94.09 across 84 T20 innings since 2022.Since Muzumdar took over, there have been four others who’ve been tried there. Among them, Dayalan Hemalatha’s was the experiment that lasted the longest. But in seven games, she managed just 139 runs, 41 of which came in one innings. Sajeevan Sajana and Uma Chetry were the others tried out briefly.Muzumdar could’ve turned to Jemimah Rodrigues if required, but her maneuverability against spin makes her key at No. 4 or 5. The line of thinking is that Rodrigues, a touch player. can find it easier to pick gaps with spread out fields.The sample size is small, but Rodrigues strikes at 143.81 in 10 innings at No. 5, a marked improvement to the 110.19 at No. 3, albeit across across 59 innings. Even so, Rodrigues herself is working towards “striking from ball one” as the next step in her evolution as a T20 batter.

WPL given us a strong base to find players

Muzumdar talked up India’s squad strength while also underlining how key back-up players were handed certain roles. Like Sajana, who enhanced her reputation as an X-factor player, being sent on the ‘A’ tour to Australia to “tick off certain boxes” as part of her development.”I think it’s been a collective effort not just from the Indian team or the Indian contingent but also from the NCA,” Muzumdar. “We’ve been completely in sync with the coaches over there who went on the India A tour to Australia. [We’ve] had constant chats, feedback were given post the tour as well.”I think we’re trying to formalise a lot of stuff. Apart from the Indian contingent as I said, the India A [setup] is also very important for us so that we get a lot of players, and the bench strength is stronger. We’ve seen the results.”Some of the players that have come into the Indian squad here at the World Cup are the product of what WPL is. Of course, not undermining the first-class [domestic] cricketers back home. But WPL has given us a strong base to find players.”Shreyanka Patil finished WPL 2024 as the Purple Cap winner•BCCI

One of the players to have enhanced her reputation courtesy the WPL is Shreyanka Patil. The allrounder was the highest wicket-taker during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s run to the title earlier this year, including a stellar 4 for 12 in the final.Shreyanka is just 12 T20Is old but has already been identified as a key death bowler capable of creating angles, like her fast-bowling team-mates, from around the stumps. With her variations in pace, she has also shown the propensity to bowl in every phase of the game.Another player who has accelerated her journey through the WPL route is Radha Yadav, who found herself in the cold for over a year after the previous edition in South Africa. As has S Asha, the legspinner, another RCB find, who made her debut this April in Bangladesh.The WPL has also contributed to elevated fitness levels, through close monitoring and off-season camps where physios have continued to monitor players and have been in sync with the NCA through the Athlete Monitoring System (AMS) designed to give markers over a player’s workload and map performances.The byproduct of all this, apart from primary skills, is elevated fielding levels, something Muzumdar underlined as top priority when he took over last December.”We’ve worked upon it,” Muzumdar said. “Thoroughly gone deeper into it and tried to absolutely work individually, first in regard to the volume as far as fielding is concerned. And then in fitness we’ve paid attention to each individual to take their fitness levels to the next level.”So, I think we’ve put in that effort. The effort has been there. I think you’ll definitely see the results.”

With a lead of 239 and five wickets in hand on a surface that got better to bat on as the day went on, South Africa put fingertips on the Sir Vivian Richards Trophy.Eight wickets fell on another action-packed day in Guyana where the advantage ebbed and flowed. South Africa took two early on but West Indies’ last pair got them close to drawing level in the first innings. Jason Holder and Shamar Joseph shared a 10th-wicket stand of 40 – the second-highest in the West Indian innings – to turn the match into all but a one-innings game and in that game, South Africa will feel they have the advantage.An opening stand of 79, half-centuries from Aiden Markram and Kyle Verreynne and an unbeaten 84-run sixth-wicket partnership between Verreynne and Wiaan Mulder – the highest of the series so far – all put South Africa in a strong position. But, with plenty of time left in the game, West Indies will not be too disheartened, especially as they have seen how quickly wickets fall early on.South Africa lost four in the first session of day one and West Indies three on day two, which could provide West Indies with an opportunity early on the third day. The pitch is expected to be at its best on the third afternoon and West Indies will want to be batting by then, especially with a big chase in their sights. Before they get there, West Indies will rely on their attack, particularly hometown hero Joseph, and Jayden Seales, who took 2 for 7 in his third spell, to get rid of South Africa’s middle and lower order. So far, they have held up well after a mini-collapse which saw South Africa lose 4 for 19 in nine overs after a solid start of 120 for 1.South Africa’s openers were tested upfront with seam movement from Seales and tight lines from Holder. Markram edged Holder short of first slip at the end of his first over but settled when he drove Seales for four through cover point five balls later. Tony de Zorzi was hit on the back pad by Seales and flirted with a run-out chance when he pushed a single off Holder but pulled Seales off his toes to announce himself. South Africa went to lunch unscathed on 30 without loss.Runs came quickly after the break and South Africa had more than doubled their morning score to 66 in 4.4 overs after the interval when they offered their first real chance. De Zorzi edged Holder to the left of wicketkeeper Joshua Da Silva, who dived low to try and take the catch but could not hold on. De Zorzi was on 36 off 41 at the time and added only three runs off the next 31 balls he faced before he nicked off to give Seales a well-earned reward. De Zorzi punched his bat in frustration as he walked off when the opening stand was broken.Markram and Tristan Stubbs eked out six runs off the next four overs while they bided time but Stubbs’ patience seemed to be tested when he edged Gudakesh Motie past slip for three. Stubbs’ first boundary came off the 21st ball he faced when he reverse swept Motie through third but he did not look entirely comfortable at any point in the session. He survived an lbw appeal off Holder and held his end through to tea. Markram was lucky to get there when, on 42, he drove Motie to Alick Athanaze at silly mid-off but was put down. South Africa were 111 for 1 at the tea break, 127 runs ahead.Three overs into the final session, Markram reached 50 off 104 balls but seven balls after that was struck on the back foot to a Motie delivery that straightened and was given out lbw. Temba Bavuma could have been out on his third ball when he edged an away seamer from Joseph but it did not carry to slip. Motie had better luck when Bavuma went forward to a length ball, was hit on the pad. The umpire didn’t think it was out, but West Indies successfully reviewed to have the decision overturned.Jayden Seales and Gudakesh Motie brought about wickets in a cluster•AFP/Getty Images

That wicket sparked a mini-collapse. In the next over, Stubbs edged Seales to Da Silva and two overs after that David Bedingham was bowled to give Seales a second wicket in three overs and give the hosts a chance of keeping South Africa’s lead under 200. Mulder and Verreynne took them over that mark. They were in danger of being separated 12 minutes before the end of play when Mulder was given out lbw in Seales’ fourth spell but he reviewed and ball-tracking showed it was missing leg. The pair accelerated towards the end of the day with 26 runs off the last four overs, which included Verreynne’s fifty off 71 balls – his third in Test cricket. All of his half-centuries, and his only Test hundred so far, have come away from home.Earlier, the last-wicket stand between Holder and Joseph meant West Indies finished just 16 runs adrift of South Africa’s first-innings score of 160. After resuming on 97 for 7, Jomel Warrican chipped an overpitched delivery from Kagiso Rabada to Keshav Maharaj at mid-on to depart for a 16-ball duck.Left-arm seamer Nandre Burger shared the day’s opening duties with Rabada and started off bowling full but in his second over, began a short-ball assault to set up Seales. The first three deliveries of Burger’s third over of the day were increasingly short in length but his fourth was full on the stumps and Seales was struck on the pad and given out lbw.South Africa could have ended West Indies’ innings on the next ball when Joseph edged Burger to Markram at second slip but he could not hold on to a head height catch. The drop proved costly as Joseph went on to score 25 – but was dropped again on 15 by Mulder a third slip – and provided strong support to Holder, who approached the first hour of play with aggression. Holder hit the last ball of Mulder’s first over on the day over long-on for six, to bring up the first half-century of the match and his 14th in Tests. Joseph took on Burger, and hit his short ball behind square leg and past point and then, just for laughs, sent the full one out of the ground. In his first over of the morning, Maharaj beat Joseph’s sweep and had him out lbw and South Africa were batting again 90 minutes into the day.

Ben Stokes has called for more player input over the international schedule, ahead of an overloaded 12-month period for England’s red- and white-ball sides.Speaking ahead of the third and final Test against West Indies, England’s Test captain reiterated his long-held criticisms of a congested fixture list, further complicated by the rise of franchise cricket. Having previously worried about its effect on the quality of cricket, Stokes is wary of the negative impact it could have on the development of England teams as a whole.While Stokes’ focus is on building towards the Ashes in the winter of 2025-26, the limited-overs set-up is looking towards a new dawn, with a decision to be made imminently on the futures of head coach Matthew Mott and captain Jos Buttler. Such are the commitments ahead for both squads, it is highly unlikely that each will progress at a similar rate.Related

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After the conclusion of this series in Edgbaston, the Test team will reconvene for a three-match series against Sri Lanka which begins at Emirates Old Trafford on August 21. The day after the third Test is due to finish in September, England begin a T20I series against Australia.That is followed by an ODI series against the same opponents that finishes just eight days before the start of a three-Test series in Pakistan. Three days after that tour concludes, England begin an ODI series in Antigua, which ends in St Lucia eight days prior to the first Test against New Zealand in Christchurch.The start of 2025 offers some respite with no overseas Tests in the first half of the year, but England will play five white-ball matches in India as preparation for the Champions Trophy in February. The home season then plays host to four visiting teams, with an ODI series in Ireland running parallel to the India Test series.England are blessed with a playing pool that can be adequately split for the obligations that await. But the pull on their multi-format players such as Harry Brook, Mark Wood and even Jofra Archer, who is mooted to return to the Test side in 2025, will become a problem, particularly as they continue to seek opportunities on the T20 franchise circuit.Stokes believes his role as Test captain allows him to have a firm hand on the tiller when it comes to what is best for his team. But he acknowledged problems on the horizon and urged boards such as the ICC, who produce the Future Tours Programme (FTP), and the ECB, who rubber-stamp it, to collaborate more with players at an uncertain time for the game’s ecosystem.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

“I hope not,” answered Stokes when asked if his ambitions with the Test team will be hampered by the schedule. “It is something that does need to be addressed.”Who knows what international cricket is going to look like, with all the franchise stuff that is going on as well? It does need to get looked at. The landscape is constantly changing. I don’t think anyone can put their hand on their heart and say they know what cricket is going to look like in even two years’ time.”I think some consultation might be quite nice, obviously to Jos (Buttler) and myself. The FTP could maybe see the people playing in it consulted, and I think we could have some good input in that.”Asked whether he had been consulted on the recent FTP running from 2023-27, Stokes was tight-lipped: “Yes and no. Make of that what you will.”He was similarly guarded when asked about his own white-ball career, unwilling to entertain the question on the eve of a Test match. Having reversed his ODI retirement to play in the 2023 World Cup, he subsequently opted out of the T20 World Cup last month to focus on his Test duties. He also refused to acknowledge reports in last week that he has signed a bumper £800,000 deal with MI Cape Town in the SA20, which clashes with the India white-ball series at the start of next year.