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“We’re waiting for the final dates, but the ideal scenario is to be available and around for all that cricket”

Andrew McGlashan21-Feb-2021New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has admitted that potentially missing the Test matches against England in early June due to complete the IPL is not his preferred option but that it’s another case of the ideal scenario rarely playing out in the current climate.Related

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It has yet to be confirmed whether there will be a direct clash between the knockout stage of the IPL and the two-match series that will be played at Lord’s and Edgbaston between June 2 and 14. The England series will be just before the World Test Championship final, beginning on June 18, which New Zealand are guaranteed to be at.However, it is expected that the IPL will stretch into early June and NZC CEO David White has said that a “pragmatic” approach will be taken. NZC has long allowed their contracted players free rein to appear in the IPL and to date it has never meant any of them missing a Test match, although on the 2015 tour of England players arrived just a few days before the opening game.But even if the dates aren’t a direct clash it may not be as simple as quickly flying in from India depending on any Covid-19 quarantine protocols that are required.”It’s certainly not the preferred thing,” Williamson said of the potential clash. “I know when plans were put in place that wasn’t the idea then, but as we’ve seen, you can make plans in this day in age and very rarely do they go to plan.”For us it’s being able to adapt as quickly as possible, we still have to wait and see when dates are finalised to truly know what is happening before any decision is made but the ideal scenario is to be available and around for all that cricket. We’ll just have to wait and see.”Other first-choice Test players Trent Boult (Mumbai Indians) and Kyle Jamieson (Royal Challengers Bangalore) also have IPL deals as does quick bowler Lockie Ferguson (Kolkata Knight Riders) who could push for a place.Williamson and Boult have recently spoken about expecting to be on the road for up to 10 months this year. Once the home season is completed they will head straight to the IPL before moving onto England (Williamson also has a deal in the Hundred) then New Zealand have tours of Bangladesh and Pakistan lined up ahead of the T20 World Cup in India.Whenever a player returns to New Zealand they will be required to go through two weeks managed isolation under the government’s Covid-19 protocols.The two-Test series against England has been a late addition to the calendar and the matches are not part of the World Test Championship.Depending on which franchises make the IPL knockouts there could be a number of players missing the Tests with the ECB having also said they will allow their players to play the whole tournament unless they have not been in the XI.

Opening batter Mayank Agarwal has been added to India’s squad

Nagraj Gollapudi02-Feb-2022India have been dealt a severe blow four days ahead of their ODI series against West Indies with seven members of their camp, including four players, testing positive for Covid-19. The players are Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Ruturaj Gaikwad and the reserve fast bowler Navdeep Saini.The other three are members of the support staff: fielding coach T Dilip, security liaison officer B Lokesh and sports massage therapist Rajeev Kumar.While announcing the development in a media release late on Wednesday, BCCI secretary Jay Shah said the selectors had added opening batter Mayank Agarwal to the ODI squad.Related

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The BCCI said that all positive results emerged after the India squad had undergone three RT-PCR tests upon landing in Ahmedabad on January 31. Dhawan and Saini returned positive tests after the first round of testing on January 31. Dilip and Lokesh also tested positive on the same day. Gaikwad, who had cleared the January 31 test, returned a positive test the next day, while Iyer and Rajeev returned positive tests on Wednesday during the third round of testing.The India squad started to arrive in Ahmedabad at the end of last week while West Indies landed early on February 2. Both teams are staying at the same hotel, but on separate floors. As per the BCCI’s guidelines both India and West Indies have to serve a minimum of three days’ quarantine in their hotel rooms before breaking out for training. India were scheduled to start training from Thursday while West Indies from second half on February 4.All members of the Indian contingent, the BCCI said, had been asked to take a PCR test before they travelled to Ahmedabad. All the seven members who tested positive will now isolate in Ahmedabad. As per the guidelines issued by Indian government, any person testing positive needs to isolate for minimum of seven days.The ODI series is set to be played behind closed doors, with India currently experiencing a third wave of the pandemic. India recorded over 160,000 fresh cases on Tuesday, with the state of Gujarat, where Ahmedabad is located, reporting over 8000 of them.Dhawan, Iyer and Gaikwad will now most likely miss the three-match ODI series, which will be played on February 6, 8 and 11. But the three batters will aim to be back for the T20I leg of the series. The T20Is will be played in Kolkata on February 16, 18 and 20.Vice-captain KL Rahul has not yet joined the India squad and is set to miss the first ODI in order to attend his sister’s wedding. This means India will have only five batters from the original squad to choose from for the first ODI: captain Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant and allrounder Deepak Hooda. Agarwal is likely to arrive in Ahmedabad on Thursday, which means he could slot into the XI for the first ODI, immediately after completing his three-day quarantine.

Former England offspinner will travel to UAE for first week of Lions training camp

Matt Roller04-Nov-2022Graeme Swann will spend the next week working with three of England’s best young spinners in the UAE after his success as Trent Rockets’ spin-bowling coach in the Hundred.Swann’s involvement with England has been limited since his sudden retirement from international cricket in 2013 and he has often expressed his frustration that he has not spent more time working with young spinners developing through the English system.Related

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But he was a popular member of support staff in the Hundred this year, working closely with Samit Patel, Matt Carter, Rashid Khan and Tabraiz Shamsi as the Rockets won the title, and ECB announced on Friday that Swann would spend a week working as a mentor during the Lions’ three-week training camp, which starts on Sunday.There are three frontline spin bowlers involved in the Lions training group in Rehan Ahmed, the Leicestershire legspinning allrounder, Sussex offspinner Jack Carson, and Nottinghamshire allrounder Liam Patterson-White, while Dan Lawrence is also an occasional offspinner with three Test wickets to his name.Ian Bell, Swann’s former England team-mate, is also part of the Lions coaching staff and will work with the training group’s batters, along with Surrey assistant coach Jim Troughton. Jon Lewis and Durham’s Neil Killeen will work with the seamers and Kent’s Min Patel will be the main spin-bowling coach.”In Ian Bell and Graeme Swann, we have two people with so much international experience,” Mo Bobat, the ECB’s performance director who will lead the tour, said. “It’s brilliant to have them as part of the group, and I know everyone will be looking forward to working with them.”It’s a really exciting staff team for a trip that I think will be of huge benefit to all of our players. There’s a wide range of experience to call upon, from across the game, and I’m looking forward to seeing everyone come together this weekend.”

“I said to the boys after [defeat in the first Test] I think we were good for about 65% of the game”

Firdose Moonda12-Feb-2024With the knowledge that they could become the first South African team to lose a Test series to New Zealand, Neil Brand’s men are “desperate to put in a good performance,” in the Hamilton Test, and believe they are better than what their 281-run defeat in Mount Maunganui suggests.”I don’t think we are miles off. I said to the boys afterwards I think we were good for about 65% of the game,” Brand, South Africa’s stand-in captain said. “Obviously we have to learn pretty quickly at this level and it’s something we are desperate to do and to put it right.”Brand identified South Africa’s batting as the biggest concern after they were dismissed for 162 and 247 and only one of their batters, David Bedingham, crossed 50. For Brand, the top three is a particular focal point. “We have to do the right things for longer and myself, personally, I have to find a way to get through the new ball which has been tricky in these conditions,” he said. “The wickets look like they are getting better for batting the longer you can hang out there. So, it’s just about keeping our confidence high and making sure we keep believing in ourselves.”Between them, Brand, his opening partner Eddie Moore and one-drop Raynard van Tonder, scored 61 runs in six innings in the first Test. They were all making their debuts. Moore was bounced out in the first innings and drove a ball aerially in the second, Brand’s shot selection was uncertain against the moving ball and van Tonder was twice dismissed by Kyle Jamieson, who shaped the ball back in and tested his technique on the front foot. None of those things, especially among players who are new to playing at this level, have quick fixes but it wasn’t all bad. Moore spent 50 minutes in the middle in the first innings, van Tonder was at the crease for an hour and 23 minutes in the second innings and they did some work in protecting the middle-order, who all got starts.Zubayr Hamza, Keegan Petersen and Bedingham all got to double-figures in both innings and with Test experience, are expected to form the backbone of South Africa’s efforts. Bedingham, in particular, comes into the series with a lot of expectation around him after he made his debut against India. “We want him to push on and get a big score for us,” Brand said.On the other side of that coin, South Africa’s attack are searching for ways to be more incisive after conceding 511 runs in the first innings and 179 in 43 overs in the second. Both times, they had New Zealand in early trouble on 39 for 2 and 10 for 1, but could not capitalise. It didn’t help that they dropped chances off Kane Williamson and Rachin Ravindra, who went on to score 118 and 240 respectively, but that aside, Brand still hopes they can find more ways to take wickets with the older ball. “We were really good with the new ball in both innings. I understand this wicket might be a bit different but we just want a bit more options from over 20 through to the [second] new ball so we can dismantle that middle order. We’ve been building pressure but we haven’t found ways to strike with the old ball.”For variety in attack, South Africa could look to bring in allrounder Mihlali Mpongwana, who may add some pace, or one of their spinners – Dane Piedt or Shaun von Berg. While many will wonder why, with the SA20 completed at the weekend, South Africa can’t call on some of their first-choice players to bolster the stocks, the answer lies in travel time and jet lag. New Zealand is 11 hours ahead of South Africa and the shortest flight route is a little over 19 hours. To counter fatigue and jet lag, players are required to be in the country for at least a week before playing which makes it impossible for anyone else to be added to the touring group.Instead, South Africa have to make do with what they have and most of these players have one more opportunity to show what they can offer at international level. Despite how difficult it has been, Brand hopes some of them will take it.”The Test match was really tough. On day three I was pretty tired. Dane Piedt said Hashim Amla told him that every day feels like a (whole) Test match when you are playing Test cricket,” he said. “But I have enjoyed every moment of it. I have learnt a lot about myself as a person and I really love being in this environment so hopefully I can put in a few good performances.”

Tasmania poach Australia Under-19 World Cup winning offspinner Raf MacMillan from New South Wales

Alex Malcolm03-May-2024Paddy Dooley has been left off Tasmania’s contract list after the Tigers went on a spin-recruitment drive to land Test spinner Matthew Kuhnemann and Australia Under-19 World Cup winning offspinner Raf MacMillan.Dooley was recruited from Queensland for the 2023-24 season after joining Hobart Hurricanes in the BBL and played seven of Tasmania’s eight Marsh Cup games last summer. He picked up nine wickets, including scalps in six of the seven he played, at an economy rate of 5.82. But the recruitment of fellow left-arm orthodox Kuhnemann, who has played Test and ODI cricket for Australia, has meant that there was no room on Tasmania’s contract list for Dooley. He joins retired duo Matthew Wade and Sam Rainbird as the only omissions from the contract list.Related

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Tasmania have also signed MacMillan from New South Wales after his outstanding performances in the Under-19 World Cup. The 19-year-old took wickets in every game as Australia won the title. He took 3 for 16 and smashed 19 not out off 12 balls against England. He took 1 for 29 from 10 and made 19 not out in a 17-run 10th wicket stand to win a nail-biting semi-final against Pakistan. He then took 3 for 43 in the final against India.Tasmania have also signed young fast bowler Will Prestwidge from Queensland. The 22-year-old made 37 and took 1 for 49 on List A debut for Queensland late last season.Tasmania coach Jeff Vaughan was pleased with the new recruits as they look to go one step further in the Sheffield Shield next year after losing the final to Western Australia.”I am very happy with the quality of the players on our list, on and off the field,” Vaughan said. “We took a massive step forward as a program last year with some big changes to our squad, and we rewarded players who stepped up for us and showed us what it means to play cricket for Tasmania.”While we did see some success on the field, there are still many facets of the game that we can look to improve upon, and we are confident the quality of players we are bringing into our squad will help us go to the next level as we look to bring more success to Tasmania.”Tasmania contract list 2024-25: Gabe Bell, Iain Carlisle, Nick Davis (rookie), Jake Doran, Kieran Elliot, Jarrod Freeman, Bradley Hope, Caleb Jewell, Matt Kuhnemann, Raf MacMillan (rookie), Riley Meredith, Lawrence Neil-Smith, Aidan O’Connor (rookie), Mitch Owen, Will Prestwidge, Nivethan Radhakrishnan (rookie), Jordan Silk, Billy Stanlake, Charlie Wakim, Tim Ward, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster, Macalister Wright

Matthews’ knock wasn’t enough as West Indies were eventually bowled out for 238 in big chase

Shashank Kishore24-Dec-2024The game witnessed two majestic hundreds, from Harleen Deol and Hayley Matthews. Where Deol had support of three other half-centurions in the Indian innings, Matthews had none. And that in a monumental chase of 359 was simply not good enough.The end result was another one-sided fare that gave India the ODI series with one match remaining, but it was also one where West Indies showed a lot more fight than they did two nights ago. They nearly batted out the 50 overs to take away something from a contest they never looked like bossing at any point.West Indies’ response to India’s 358 for 5 – their joint-highest ODI total – was circumspect. They batted out three maidens in the first seven overs, two of those to Renuka Singh, who had wrecked their top order with in-swing to finish with a five-for in the first ODI. It underlined West Indies’ approach for large parts of their innings – survival over flamboyance that they’re known for.As the innings progressed, it became evident how big the gulf was between Matthews and the rest of their batters, who hardly seemed to trust their defense and bat long enough against an Indian attack that boasted of some variety that will give them a welcome headache as they go forward in a World Cup year. Only Deandra Dottin can claim to have received a pearler that she had no answers to as Renuka ripped past her inside edge to flatten the stumps with a superb in-ducker.Mathews aside, the only other semblance of a fight from the West Indies came from wicketkeeper Shemaine Campbelle, who made 38 in a fifth-wicket stand that was worth 112. Matthews was brutal in her onslaught against India’s spinners, especially legspinner Priya Mishra whom she read from the hand and off the pitch. Against pace, she was quick to pounce on anything short or wide. Yet, it wasn’t until she had crossed 70 that she began to show off her full range of strokes, eventually getting to her seventh ODI hundred off 99 balls. But Matthews’ century only served to merely reduce the margin of defeat.Hayley Matthews celebrates her third ODI ton from her last six innings•BCCI

The story of the day, though, was Deol. Having been on crutches, recovering from a knee injury until five months ago, she repaid the faith the team management had in her by hitting a maiden international hundred from No.3. Dropped on 20 by Dottin at square leg, Deol made them pay. She built slowly to a half-century, reaching there in 62 balls, but shifted gears seamlessly in the end overs to raise her century off 98 balls.In Jemimah Rodrigues,
she found an able ally as the pair put on a quick-fire 116-run stand off just 71 deliveries for the fourth wicket in a partnership where they attempted a shot every ball. Rodrigues was outstanding against spin, lofting inside-out over cover, paddling fired-in deliveries past short fine leg, or rocking back to pull. Along the way, she showed her versatility to accelerate as comfortably as she had built the innings. The reward was a half-century off 34 deliveries, before she was out attempting to hit out a waist-high full toss.Deol fed off that energy, in addition to the confidence from spending time at the crease. In all, India scored 184 in the last 20 overs, compared to the 160 they hit two nights ago. That they achieved this with Richa Ghosh contributing just an unbeaten 13 should give them much encouragement.Deol’s knock was preceded by a second straight century opening stand from Smriti Mandhana and rookie Pratika Rawal, who looked anything like the nervous version from her debut on Sunday. She came out looking to score quickly. There wasn’t much swing on offer, and Rawal impressed with her intent and strokeplay to set the base of India’s innings after they elected to bat.At the other end, Mandhana, who became the highest run-getter in women’s ODI this year, simply carried on from where she left off in the series opener. She displayed more than just traces of brute force in muscling spinners. Rawal was comfortably outscoring Mandhana until the eighth over, but it didn’t take long for the India vice-captain to catch up, before overtaking her to raise a 29th half-century and her second straight of the series off just 44 balls. One ball later, the opening pair raised their century stand.Rawal soon caught up to get to her maiden half-century but missed out on a great chance of converting it to a maiden international hundred, when she was out to a soft dismissal on 76. But in taking two wickets and sending down a few tight overs, and taking an excellent catch inside the ring, Rawal had a day neither she nor the team management will forget in a hurry, not even after having had a role in running out Mandhana, who instead of fuming gave her a pat of encouragement as she walked back.

Jadeja’s role with the ball and on the field, and cameos from India’s top order, topped off yet another dominating win

Shashank Kishore19-Oct-20231:43

Pujara: Jadeja is more accurate than a bowling machine

The sameness to a Virat Kohli innings in a middling chase is no criticism of his batting. The beauty of it lies in the repetitive nature of it, a mark of his hunger to make every start count. On Thursday, it helped deliver ODI century No. 48, which takes him that much closer to the man who he hoisted on his shoulders on that famous April night in 2011, before delivering an epic line that made a country of more than a billion shed happy tears.Kohli’s knock, which turned into a race between his hundred and a victory towards the end, was preceded by a run-torrent from Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. The pair’s 88-run opening stand in a chase of 257, which seemed well short of a par score, was an exhibition of batting aesthetics dreams are made of. Rohit, with his lazy elegance, ferocious cuts and monstrous pulls did the early running, and Gill took over the mantle to slowly get into top gear.And after the two fell against the run of play, caught in the deep to shots they’d back themselves to execute 99 times out of a hundred, Kohli ushered everybody aboard his train of ODI batting that has delivered runs unfailingly. Fleeting cameos from Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul topped off a dominating win, India’s fourth, that now puts them level at the top with New Zealand, their next opponents on Sunday in Dharamsala.It was one that had been set up by Ravindra Jadeja, both with the ball and on the field with his catching. His figures of 2 for 38 may not seem blockbuster at first glance, but it played a massive role in pulling Bangladesh back from an innings that was at one point running at a breakneck speed.From 10 for 0 in five overs, the next four went for 37. Tanzid Hasan soon got into gear and raced towards a maiden ODI half-century off 42 balls. He hooked Jasprit Bumrah, toyed with Shardul Thakur and took him for 6,4,6 in a forgettable opening over and laid down a marker for the innings. But as spin came on, Kuldeep Yadav delivered an opening in the 15th to break a 93-run stand.Hardik Pandya gets treatment after injuring his ankle•ICC via Getty Images

In between that, India had a jolt with Hardik Pandya hobbling off three balls into his opening over, after twisting his left ankle in his follow-through. You wondered then if the absence of a sixth bowling option would hurt them. It didn’t as Shardul bounced back from his opening over to bowl eight more, even picking up a wicket before Mahmudullah hurt his figures in his final over.Pandya didn’t return for the rest of their innings and wasn’t needed with the bat either, but once the euphoria of the result dies down, realisation of how massive Pandya is to the balance of the team will dawn sooner.Even as Kuldeep slowed the innings down, Jadeja brought the crowd to life with his accurate wicket-to-wicket stuff that sent back Shanto. By now, runs had reduced to a trickle and the pressure to up the ante also got Litton chipping one straight to long-off to give Jadeja a second wicket. At 137 for 4, the innings was in build-rebuild-build mode.Mushfiqur Rahim played an array of neat paddles and sweeps to keep the scorecard ticking in the hope of taking the innings deep, but the resultant pressure from Towhid Hridoy’s struggles – he was on 14 off 32 – with 14 overs left, led to him trying to be a bit more enterprising, especially with Hridoy unable to capitalise after playing himself in.One such chance off a Bumrah cutter found an acrobatic Jadeja diving full-stretch to his right to pull off a sensational grab to send back Mushfiqur for 43. It was as exhilarating as Rahul’s stunning grab at full stretch down leg to dismiss Mehidy Hasan a while earlier. The superhit moments on the field continued when Bumrah dismantled Mahmudullah with a pin-point yorker, but not before the allrounder’s 46 had somewhat lent respectability to Bangladesh’s total.Ravindra Jadeja trapped Najmul Hossain Shanto in front•Getty Images

It set up the kind of chase teams can be wary of, not sometimes knowing how hard to go up top. But India’s plans seemed clear. Rohit wasn’t going to tamper with the fundamentals of his reinvigorated game that centers on taking the attack to the opposition in the powerplay. But on 48, he went for a pull that was right out of the screws, except it found deep square.Kohli had two free hits off his first four balls that he converted into a boundary and a six to fire his innings into orbit straightaway. There on, he didn’t look back. He drove well, ran hard, manuovered spin expertly, and also treaded caution especially against the skiddy Hasan Mahmud.Like Rohit, Gill too fell against the run of play after tantalising with some languid shots to signal, signs of dengue seemingly a thing of the past. Shreyas Iyer would have perhaps been a tad disappointed at not seeing the game through especially after playing himself in, but the timing of his dismissal was hardly a reason to fret for India. Rahul calmed the nerves before he reined his game in to allow Kohli to get to the landmark.At one point, India and Kohli both needed 19. You wondered briefly if No. 48 had to wait. But it didn’t need to. With two needed, Nasum fired one down leg in anticipation of a wide that wasn’t given. One ball later, Kohli stepped out and hacked a low full toss into the deep midwicket stands to seal victory.

Michael Neser and Sean Abbott could provide back-up from county cricket

AAP19-Apr-2023Tearaway quick Lance Morris has been put on ice in a bid to rebuild his body for the home summer, after a back injury ruled him out of Ashes calculations.Australia opted to name only the four fast bowlers in their 17-man squad on Wednesday for the opening half of their tour of England, with Scott Boland picked alongside the usual pace trio.Morris had been part of Australia’s squad for the majority of the home summer, before the West Australian earned his spot in a touring party for this year’s series in India.Related

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But a flare up of a back injury has restricted him from bowling for up to six weeks, ending any hope of being in the initial touring squad and rendering him unlikely to be called up beyond that. He had also been due to play for Northamptonshire next month.”He’s having a bit of a de-load period, which I think is about four-to-six weeks, and then he will start to start to build after that,” chief selector George Bailey said. “Conservatively, we’ll probably look to rebuild Lance and hopefully have a really big crack at the summer.”He’ll get another scan in four-to-six weeks and we’ll get a better indication of of how that back’s going.”Bailey indicated on Wednesday that it was unlikely Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood would be able to play all six Tests, with the World Test Championship final and five-match Ashes series over in the space of two months.Hazlewood is returning from two lengthy injury lay-offs in the IPL, with the seamer in constant conversation with Australian medical staff on building up his workload outside of games.There are three short turnarounds throughout the England tour, with Bailey noting it was hard to determine if bowlers would be managed until it was clear how quick matches were completed.Australia have traditionally taken more than one back-up quick on long tours, but Michael Neser and Sean Abbott are among a plethora of Australians playing in the County Championship and able to be called up.”If we do need to call upon another quick we can we can be really specific around who we need and why,” Bailey said. “And then not necessarily have someone in the squad who ends up being superfluous.”Bailey also said Australia’s decision to include Mitchell Marsh as a back-up to Cameron Green shows officials realise an allrounder is now crucial to their team balance.

Kumar Sangakkara has called on his spinners to raise their game in the final Test in Mumbai

Sa'adi Thawfeeq27-Nov-2009It hasn’t been a great tour for Muttiah Muralitharan so far•AFP

Sri Lanka came into the series intending to secure their maiden Test victory on Indian soil but were left with a lot of soul searching to do after they were thrashed by an innings-and-144-runs in the second Test in Kanpur.Though India ran up 642, Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara defended the selection of three spinners. “If we had won the toss and batted first on the wicket and got a decent amount of runs on the board our spinners would have been quite a threat on this track,” he said. “It would have been very hard to score runs off them as well. The chances that we did create were not taken by us, allowing the Indian batsmen to get away on a really flat track. 400 runs on the first day was a little too much.”The main concern for Sri Lanka was the inability of the world’s leading wicket-taker Muttiah Muralitharan to provide the breakthroughs for his team as he had done till the recent past. Murali went for over hundred runs for the second time in two Tests; so far in the series his returns are five wickets for 396 runs, average 79.20. “It does become a concern when your star strike bowler is not really picking up the wickets you know he can, but he is still the best bowler that’s played the game,” Sangakkara said. “You still have to have faith in him and trust him and back him 100% to do the job because he is going to do it at one point, hopefully in the next Test.”The Kanpur defeat was the largest in terms of runs to India but Sangakkara remained optimistic that he had the bowlers to win in Mumbai. “We have the potential to pick 20 wickets with the bowlers that we have,” he said. “Potential is one thing really doing the job is another. We would like a bit more penetration with the spin.”With our fast bowlers we always created opportunities, the disappointing thing is we haven’t really taken those chances twice in the first over in two Test matches, especially this one on a track that was one of the flattest we’ve played on.”We’ve still got a lot to achieve in Mumbai. We can still equal the series and finish one-all. That’s a great motivation for us. Disappointed with today’s defeat, but that’s the way cricket goes. If you don’t play well enough you lose and you’ve got to accept that responsibility but still move on. You have no one else to blame. You got to look at the 16 players in the dressing room and say that we were just not good enough. We were outplayed by India who were a better team in this Test match.”It was a good toss to win for Dhoni the first day the wicket was going to be the flattest and it got slower and slower as the game progressed. If we probably had kept India down to about 450 in the first innings it would have been a chance for us to come back, but 600 runs on we were always chasing. Bad batting in our first innings put us into trouble.”

Allrounder keen to focus on personal form and pushing case for T20 selection

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Nov-2023Warwickshire have announced that Will Rhodes has stepped down as club captain after five seasons in the role.Rhodes, 28, helped the club to claim a County Championship and Bob Willis Trophy double in 2021. Warwickshire were briefly in contention once again last season but only won one in six between May and September before finishing fourth.The allrounder, who remarkably has never missed a first-class game since joining the club from Yorkshire ahead of the 2018 season, made 618 runs at 30.90 in 2023 and told the club that he wanted to focus on his form, as well as regaining a place in the T20 side.”Coming to the club as 22-year-old I never thought I’d get such an opportunity to captain a great club like Warwickshire,” Rhodes said.”It’s been an unbelievable honour. I was hugely grateful for the opportunity when Jim Troughton and Paul Farbrace asked me to do it. And with the support of Robbo [Mark Robinson, Warwickshire’s head coach] and most recently Gavin Larsen I’d like to think I’ve made a positive contribution and helped take the club forward.”I’m looking forward to next season, helping whoever will be the new captain, and hopefully giving them a bit of advice from the experience I’ve gained over the years. And most importantly, collectively pulling together to win as many games as possible for the club.”Warwickshire have yet to make a decision on Rhodes’ successor but Robinson offered his personal thanks after the pair worked together as captain and coach for the past three seasons.”He’ll always be remembered as one of few players who’ve captained a side at Edgbaston to the County Championship,” Robinson said. “I’ve planned and plotted tactics with Rhodesy for several year now and I would personally like to thank him for all the support he’s given me as well as the wider club.”Rhodesy obviously isn’t retiring and will hopefully transition seamlessly into the ranks and continue helping us in our quest for success. But for now we thank him for all he has achieved with us as a leader.”