Stats highlights from India’s 178-run win in Kolkata

S Rajesh03-Oct-201611 Wins for India in their last 12 home Tests, with one being drawn. This is their best run in 12 consecutive home Tests; they also had 11 wins out of 12 between January 1988 and February 1994, and between November 1988 and November 1994, but they lost the one other Test, against New Zealand in Mumbai.26 Wickets for pace bowlers in this match, which is the second highest ever in a Test at Eden Gardens. In India, there have been only eight Tests in which fast bowlers have taken more wickets. India’s fast bowlers took 12, which is also the second highest in Kolkata, and the ninth best in any Test in India.15 Number of LBW dismissals in this Test, the most in a Test in India. The previous highest was 13, in the Test against South Africa in Ahmedabad in 1996. Only four Tests have ever had more LBW dismissals, with the highest being 20, in a West Indies-Pakistan Test in Providence in 2011.4 Indian wicketkeepers who have made two 50-plus scores in a Test – Wriddhiman Saha, MS Dhoni, Farokh Engineer and Dilawar Hussain. Dhoni has achieved the feat four times, while the others have done it once. Saha was unbeaten in both innings, making him only the second wicketkeeper from any country to make two unbeaten fifties in a Test – West Indies’ Gerry Alexander was the first. Saha also joins VVS Laxman, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Bapu Nadkarni in the list of Indian batsmen to make two unbeaten 50-plus scores in a Test.74 Tom Latham’s score, the fifth 50-plus score by an away opener in the fourth innings at Eden Gardens, and the highest of those scores. The previous highest was 67 by Matthew Hayden in 2001, while the last 50-plus score was by Shahid Afridi in 2005. This was only the 17th fourth-innings score of 50 or more by an overseas opener in the fourth innings in India.12 Fifty-plus scores in away Tests (including neutral venues) for Latham in 31 innings. He averages only 29.92 in home Tests, with two fifty-plus scores in 14 innings.10 Ross Taylor’s average in his last seven Test innings, since the tour of Zimbabwe. His scores have been 2*, 1, 0, 0, 17, 36, 4. Against Zimbabwe, he made 173*, 124* and 67*; his Test average in 2016 is 70.66.26.86 Martin Guptill’s average as opener. Among the 101 openers who have scored at least 1500 runs, only two have poorer averages – Javed Omar (22.05) and Daren Ganga (25.71).

Marlon Samuels is supposed to be the senior batsman guiding the youngsters around him. It’s hard to say, however, what kind of example his batting in the series has set

Karthik Krishnaswamy18-Aug-2016It came out of nowhere. On the fifth day of the St Lucia Test, West Indies were 11 for 2 in their second innings with two-and-a-half sessions still left to bat out to save the game. Marlon Samuels had faced 12 balls, and was batting on 0. In the previous over, he had negotiated two snarling Mohammed Shami bouncers as well as he could have, managing to sway away from one and feeling the sting of the other on his bicep, dropping his hands safely out of the way and taking the blow. So far, he had batted like a man trying to save a Test match.Then came a regulation outswinger from Bhuvneshwar Kumar – good length, in the channel outside off stump. Samuels leaned back, cleared his front leg, and swung through the line. It was an unwise shot if he middled it, suicidal if he edged it, and just plain silly if he played and missed. Samuels played and missed.He missed another airy swish three overs later, against Ishant Sharma, and then, having struck R Ashwin for successive fours, ran down the pitch and looked to hit him back over his head.There were at least five reasons to avoid this sort of shot. A: Ashwin had a man back at long-on. B: Ashwin was capable of getting the ball to dip and beat him in the air. C: In the first innings of the second Test, Ashwin had dismissed Samuels by beating him in exactly that manner. D: Samuels was still fairly new at the crease. E: West Indies were trying to save a Test match.Samuels ran down the pitch. The ball dipped and pitched half a foot shorter than he expected. Samuels aimed to hit straight over Ashwin, but the turn caused him to drag his shot into the leg side, off the inside half of his bat, and send it bouncing to the right of long-on. He was lucky he didn’t connect slightly better, and hit it straight down the fielder’s throat.It’s hard to say what Samuels was trying to achieve. He certainly wasn’t succeeding. But he wasn’t going to pause and reflect and come up with Plan B. In the next over, he made room and tried to slash Ishant Sharma through point. He exposed his stumps, and carved away. Swish, clatter, bye bye.Samuels was 35 years old. He was playing his 120th Test innings.Two days before the second Test at Sabina Park, he had said the following words, when asked if he felt a West Indies comeback from 1-0 down was realistic.”Well, first and foremost,” Samuels replied, “I’m not going to be here to tell you that it’s a young team. For me to say that is like finding excuses for the team. It’s a Test team, and Test cricket is big-man cricket, and the players should know that by now.”They are here, playing Test cricket. So we all have to step up to the plate, and put up a very good challenge against the Indians. The Indians are a very good team, a very good unit, so what we want to try and build right now is a team spirit, and build a stronger unit in order [to move forward]. Yes, we have new players coming in, but they still have to deliver. At the end of the day, you have to do that to keep your job here.”At the start of the series, Samuels could have considered himself lucky to still be holding on to his job. He had made 11, 0, 13, 6, 9, 3, 0, 19 and 4 in his nine previous Test innings. That’s 65 runs in nine innings. When West Indies discarded Shivnarine Chanderpaul, he had scored 179 runs in his last 10 innings. Chanderpaul had averaged 71.00 in his penultimate year of Test cricket, and over 50 in each of the four years preceding that. Chanderpaul was one of the greats of West Indian batting.Samuels, before the series against India, was a man averaging 33.53 in the 17th year of his Test career. He had kept his place because of his limited-overs form.Before that brief, shot-a-minute, and frankly inexplicable innings on day five in St Lucia, Samuels’ scores in the series were 1, 50, 37, 0, and 48. He had shown flashes of willingness to leave the ball outside off stump, and flashes of his stroke-making ability, but had never looked entirely secure. He had looked a shuffling, perennially crease-bound figure trying his best to make an iffy technique work.In that second innings in St Lucia, even that seemed to have gone out the window. Here was a man who, according to reports in the media and voices in the commentary box, was possibly playing his last Test series, and who had himself neither confirmed nor denied this when asked the question. Here he was, playing shots that could justify the denial of a farewell Test.Ahead of the fourth Test in Port of Spain, Jason Holder said the retirement talk was “just speculation”, and tried his best to defend Samuels’ approach in St Lucia.”Firstly, I don’t know anything of this being Marlon’s last Test series,” Holder said. “I’ve heard a lot of speculation, but it’s just speculation. He hasn’t come out and said anything in the dressing room, so as far as I know this is not his last Test series.”In terms of his shot, obviously it didn’t look the best, but if you watch the way Marlon plays, Marlon is quite unique in the way he sets up. It’s tough to gauge, you know? Marlon can be very free-spirited when he gets going, but everyone knows how destructive he can be.”You know, he has to work out, and has to be a bit more selective in terms of his stroke play, and if he feels as though he’s on top of the bowling and he feels it’s the moment to capitalise, I guess I have to support him, I guess, in the sense of him trying to take the game into his hands, you know?”I think he’s a team player. He’s always been, in terms of the way he’s approached his innings in the past for West Indies, I have no doubt of him putting everything in for the team. The problem is, for all of our batsmen, we just need to work on, I guess, our shot selection, and at times in the game trying to capitalise on the starts that we’re getting.”Holder was right that all of West Indies’ top order, and not just Samuels, had been failing to convert starts through the series. But Samuels is supposed to be the senior batsman guiding the youngsters around him, setting an example. It’s hard to say what example the rest of West Indies’ batsmen can have taken from his batting in the series.Despite the various collapses of this series, it is still possible to look through West Indies’ line-up with the expectation of better things to come. Kraigg Brathwaite and Darren Bravo are still young and have good knocks in tough conditions behind them and potentially solid futures ahead of them. Leon Johnson has only just begun his Test career. Jermaine Blackwood is impetuous but clearly gifted, and is only 24. Roston Chase has only played three Tests, has already scored a cool, match-saving hundred, can bowl tidy offbreaks, and is only 24. Shane Dowrich is neat, busy, organised, keeps wicket fairly well, and is only 24. Holder often seems a man occupying the wrong slot in the batting order, a batting allrounder thrust into a bowling allrounder’s role, but he too is only 24.Samuels is 35, with the best years of a mediocre career behind him. With one Test remaining in the series, it is hard not to wonder if West Indies could replace him with a youngster such as Shai Hope, or simply promote everyone batting number five or below by one slot and include Carlos Brathwaite as a second seam-bowling allrounder. Apart from an extra bowler, they would gain a batsman with three fifties in his first three Tests.It’s hard to see how it would benefit West Indies to retain Samuels for the final Test of a series they have already lost. But it seems likely he will play, and add another Test appearance to a long and frustrating career. It may or may not be his final Test as well. Watch it closely, and don’t let your expectations soar too high.

Stats highlights from the third day in Chittagong where Ben Stokes and Shakib Al Hasan dominated the action

Bharath Seervi22-Oct-20161045 Previous highest aggregate by a wicketkeeper in a year, by Andy Flower in 2000. Jonny Bairstow went past that mark in the second innings of this Test to set the new record. England have six more Tests to play this year.7 Consecutive partnerships of 50 or more runs for the sixth-wicket for England which include both innings of this Test. The sequence began from the second Test against Pakistan at Old Trafford. In these seven innings their average sixth-wicket stand has been 92.57 including two century stands.0 Instances of a Bangladesh bowler taking more than five wickets in a Test against England prior to this match. Incidentally, in this match, two bowlers have taken more than five wickets – Mehedi Hasan and Shakib Al Hasan. Both have picked up seven wickets each so far. This is only the fourth instance of two Bangladesh bowlers taking five-wicket hauls in a Test.85 Ben Stokes’ score in the second innings – the best by an England No. 6 batsman against Bangladesh. The previous highest was Ian Bell’s 84, also in Chittagong, in 2009-10.10 Left-arm spinners who have picked up 150 or more wickets in Tests. Shakib became the tenth left-arm slow bowler to reach the milestone. His strike rate of 65.4 balls per wickets is second only to Rangana Herath among those ten bowlers.17 Wickets taken by Bangladesh spinners in this Test – the second-most for them in any Test. The most wickets picked up by their spinners in a Test is 18, on three occasions. England have two more wickets left in their innings as at stumps.5 Runs added by England’s second and third wicket partnerships in this match – the lowest for them in any Test. Those wickets added 0 and 3 in the first innings and 1 each in the second innings. Their previous lowest from those two wickets was 12 on three occasions, two of those in the 19th century.2005 Last time England lost their first three wickets for less than 30 runs in both innings of a Test – against South Africa in Centurion. They were three-down at 21 in the first innings and 28 in the second innings of this Test. This is their first such instance in a Test in the subcontinent.49 Balls faced by Alastair Cook in this Test – his third-least in a match in Asia. The two instances of him facing fewer balls than this in a subcontinent Test have both been in Sri Lanka.2 Instances of Bangladesh opening with two spinners in a Test innings. Their second innings of this Test was the second such instance. The first was against Zimbabwe in Khulna in 2014-15.55/8 Runs and wickets in the first session of this day – Bangladesh collapsed from 221 for 5 to 248 all out and England lost 3 for 28. However, in the next two session only five wickets fell for 200 runs.

The Australia opener’s bizarre year in Test cricket ended with a chancy but memorable hundred, which has changed the game’s momentum

Brydon Coverdale in Melbourne28-Dec-2016David Warner shouldn’t have made this hundred. Before today, he averaged 24.22 in Tests at the MCG. It was his worst Test venue in Australia.David Warner shouldn’t have made this hundred. Before today, he averaged 35.52 in Tests in 2016, with just a single hundred from 18 innings. It was his worst Test year.David Warner shouldn’t have made this hundred. Today, his innings had more edges than an icosahedron, and much of his strokeplay was about as fluent as his Urdu.David Warner shouldn’t have made this hundred. He was bowled on 81, but Wahab Riaz had overstepped, the second of a remarkable hat-trick of no-balls.For all sorts of reasons, Warner shouldn’t have made this hundred. And yet there he was, sprinting, leaping, waving his bat in the air. He had a century from 113 balls, and finished with 144 from 143. It was a hundred as ugly as any that he has made, but as memorable as any, too. His first ton in a Boxing Day Test was, he said, a childhood dream: “I was a bit emotional and there was a lot of weight off my shoulders.”There was a lot of weight his shoulders as he walked out to bat. Pakistan had piled up 443 runs to dominate a rain-soaked Test, and, at lunch, only two results seemed possible. But Warner’s runs, and the rapid pace at which he scored them, meant that by stumps the match had opened up considerably. Warner – and Usman Khawaja, his partner in a 198-run second-wicket stand – had given Australia hope, although the dire day-four forecast may dash it.On what will likely be his last day of Test batting in 2016, Warner scored his 17th century and became the sixth-fastest Australian to reach 5000 Test runs. It capped off a strange 12-month period for Warner, which began with an unbeaten century in a similarly saturated Sydney Test against West Indies in the first week of January. Indeed, the bookends of his 2016 look impressive: 122 not out in Sydney, 144 in Melbourne.

Warner now has Test centuries at all six of Australia’s major Test venues, something that Steven Smith is yet to achieve. Past champions such as Adam Gilchrist and Dean Jones never made a ton in a Boxing Day Test

But bookends are less revealing than what lies between them. For Warner, this was a year of slender volumes, and not just the latest two entries in the series. Here, in full, are his Test scores for 2016: 122*, 5, 12, 22, 0, 1, 42, 41, 11, 68, 97, 35, 1, 45, 11, 47, 32, 12, 144. And that in a year that was also his best in one-day internationals. His form-line has been harder to read than .It is perhaps not surprising that Warner’s slump has coincided with Australia’s own downturn, for they rely heavily on him to set the tone at the top of the order. He managed just one half-century in Australia’s series loss in Sri Lanka, and just one in their failed home campaign against South Africa. And the nature of this innings makes it difficult to assess: there were, he said “a couple of plays and misses”, but that was like saying he had made a couple of runs.His innings began with two edges from his first two balls off Mohammad Amir, first an outside edge that rolled away to cover, and then an inside edge that fell in front of short leg. And although there were times when he could put away the bad balls, these edges rather set the tone for Warner’s innings. It seemed fitting that his hundred came up with an inside edge off Amir that flew safely past the stumps and away for four to fine leg.It meant that Warner now had Test centuries at all six of Australia’s major Test venues, something that his captain Steven Smith is yet to achieve, having failed so far to reach triple figures in Hobart. Past champions such as Adam Gilchrist and Dean Jones never made a century in a Boxing Day Test. But they did make Test hundreds in India, and that is Warner’s next challenge. When Australia arrive in India in February, they will need Warner firing to have any chance of being competitive.Will he embark on that tour in form? It is not an easy question to answer, but nor is whether he ends 2016 in form – a strange thing to say, perhaps, of a man who has just made 144 at better than a run a ball. At least, for all his good fortune, Warner found some fluency after reaching his hundred, and was particularly dismissive of Yasir Shah, whom he struck for five fours and a six.But enough looking back. The end of the year is a time to look forward and Warner will now do just that – to keeping Pakistan from fighting back in this series, and ahead to the Himalayan challenges that await in India. Against high-class spinners on turning surfaces, Warner make big hundreds. But then, he shouldn’t have made this one either.

Australia took the extra half hour, much after the scheduled close, in anticipation of a win. But at the end of an everlasting gobsmacker of a day, Pakistan dared to dream

Brydon Coverdale in Brisbane18-Dec-2016When this day began, stumps was meant to be 8pm.Then it rained, and an hour was added to make up the overs. Stumps was meant to be 9pm.Then Australia failed to get through their overs, so an extra half hour was added. Stumps was meant to be 9.30pm.Then Steven Smith thought ‘I reckon we can win this tonight’ – Australia needed three wickets for victory. So he asked the umpires for the extra half hour. Stumps was meant to be 10pm.But the wording of the ICC’s playing conditions is such that the extra time allowed to achieve a result is “30 minutes (a minimum of eight overs)”. Australia failed to bowl their extra eight overs within half an hour.And so, stumps was finally called at 10.09pm.Australia had not won. Not just that, they also allowed the match to reach a stage from where Pakistan could dream of victory. That was as unthinkable at the start of this day as the idea of Test cricket at 10pm would have been to WG Grace.Nothing in the preceding 150 minutes suggested an extra half hour was warranted. In the previous 27 overs, Australia had claimed just a solitary wicket, and Pakistan had added 111 runs. A chance had been let off when Smith put down a catch at slip, and the momentum was with Pakistan.Not even Australia’s coaches wanted the extra time taken: they would have preferred their fast bowlers to rest, rejuvenate, and return fresh on day five. It was, assistant coach David Saker said, “a bit frustrating”.When extra half hour was granted, a cynic in the press box suggested that the umpires wanted a day on the golf course on Monday. It was meant as a joke, but later Ian Gould was seen at square leg practising his golf swing.The umpires had granted the time, but Smith must have asked for it. The wording of the ICC’s playing condition 16.2 is that extra time may be granted “if requested by either captain” and if “in the umpires’ opinion, it would bring about a definite result”.A definite result.Smith thought Australia would win. Not win. win. The umpires thought Australia win.Pakistan disagreed. Pakistan had fought tooth and nail throughout this day. Pakistan had earned respect. No objective observer would have viewed the situation at 9.30pm and said that a result would be achieved with eight more overs.So Pakistan said “f*** you”. Metaphorically, of course.Wahab Riaz helped Pakistan score at more than a run a ball in the extra eight overs bowled•Cricket Australia/Getty ImagesWahab smashed Nathan Lyon through square leg for four, and next ball slogged a six over long-on. In Lyon’s next over he deposited him over midwicket for six more.Asad Shafiq, the well-set batsman on 77 when the extra time was granted, used it not block out the day’s play, but to move calmly to his ninth Test century at No.6, breaking the all-time record held by Garry Sobers.Only in the eighth over of the eight overs of extra time did Australia finally take a wicket, when Smith held a chance at slip off Jackson Bird to remove Wahab for 30.But Pakistan scored 51 runs in the extra eight overs. That, for the mathematically challenged, is more than a run a ball. Pakistan started that period needing 159 more runs to win, with three wickets in hand. They ended it needing 108 more to win, with two wickets in hand.Make no mistake, with Shafiq at the crease, this result is far from a certainty.To win, Pakistan need a total of 490, which would smash the previous record for the highest successful run chase in Test history. But already they have equalled their highest fourth-innings score in all of Test cricket. Pakistan have always been unpredictable, and therefore dangerous.They walked off at the eventual stumps time – 129 minutes later than the originally scheduled stumps time – with hope.The amazing, ballooning final session had finally ended. This everlasting gobsmacker of a day – eight hours and nine minutes from first ball to last – had given Pakistan a chance.Only 4890 fans turned up on the fourth day, a Sunday, a flaccid figure after the huge crowds of the first three days. Entry is free on day five. Perhaps Australia will take only two balls to wrap up a win. But remember this: at Edgbaston, in 2005, the last day opened with Australia needing 107 runs and England two wickets. Here, Pakistan need 108 runs and Australia two wickets.One thing is certain: day five will bring a result. But which result is anyone’s guess.

R Ashwin reached 250 Test wickets on the fourth day of Hyderabad Test, becoming the quickest to the landmark

Bharath Seervi12-Feb-201745 Number of Tests in which R Ashwin has completed 250 wickets – the quickest by any bowler. He bettered Dennis Lillee’s record of 48 Tests by three matches. Among India bowlers, the fastest was Anil Kumble – 55 Tests.232 The previous most wickets by a bowler in his first 45 Tests, by Dale Steyn. The previous most wickets by a spinner in 45 Tests were 218 by Muttiah Muralitharan. No bowler from India had taken even 200 wickets in his first 45 Tests before Ashwin. Harbhajan Singh with 199 wickets had the most at that point till now.

Bowler Balls Wkts Ave SR 5WI 10WMR Ashwin 12905 250 25.15 51.6 24 7DW Steyn 9221 232 23.31 39.7 15 4DK Lillee 11887 230 23.53 51.6 17 5Waqar Younis 9191 227 21.53 40.4 19 4AA Donald 10370 223 22.21 46.5 13 20 Number of bowlers who have taken more wickets than Ashwin since his debut. Ashwin is closely followed by Rangana Herath, who has picked up 247 wickets in 46 matches. Among India bowlers, no one has picked up even half of Ashwin’s wickets – Ravindra Jadeja has 112 scalps.55 The number of matches taken by the previous quickest bowler from India to get the milestone – Anil Kumble. Ashwin has bettered him by 10 matches. Number of matches by other India bowlers: Bishen Bedi (60 matches), Harbhajan Singh (61), Kapil Dev (65) and Zaheer Khan (73).1 Bowler to have reached the 250 wicket mark faster that Ashwin in terms of time. Graeme Swann got 250 wickets in 4 years and 345 days while Ashwin took 5 years and 95 days to reach this mark.

Statistical highlights of Pakistan’s memorable win against Australia at the MCG

Shiva Jayaraman15-Jan-2017Pakistan’s win at the MCG was their first in ODIs against Australia, in Australia, in over 12 years. Between this win and the previous one – at the WACA in 2004-05 – Pakistan had lost nine consecutive ODIs against the hosts. This was their longest-ever losing run against any host country in ODIs. Pakistan’s next-worst losing sequences against host teams are their eight straight losses in West Indies, from 1977 to 1993, and in England from 1978 to 1987.

Australia have inflicted such streaks on other teams as well. Pakistan’s nine-match losing streak wasn’t the longest for a visiting team against the hosts in Australia. England lost 13 consecutive games against Australia from 1999 to 2007, matching a similarly-long losing streak for Sri Lanka from 1985 to 1995.

Bangladesh have the unwanted record of having lost the most consecutive ODIs to any host country: they lost 14 straight matches to Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka before winning their first one in Pallekele in 2013. There are 11 other sequences that have lasted for ten or more ODIs and Australia have been the hosts in four of these.

Pakistan’s win at the MCG also ended their run of 16 consecutive losses across formats to Australia in Australia. Between their ODI win at the WACA in 2005 and their latest one, they had lost six Tests and one T20I in addition to the nine ODIs. The record for the worst losing-streak though belongs to Bangladesh, who lost 21 matches to host country Sri Lanka. They had lost 13 ODIs and eight Tests from 1986 to 2010 before they drew a Test match for the first time ever in Sri Lanka, in Galle in 2012-13.

Incidentally, Bangladesh are on the verge of ending another of their losing sequences: should they not lose the ongoing Test match in Wellington, they will end their run of 19 losses across formats in New Zealand – currently the second-longest run of losses across formats against any host team.

ESPNcricinfo previews Durham’s prospects for the 2017 season

David Hopps27-Mar-2017Last season:

In: Cameron Steel (Middlesex)
Out: Scott Borthwick, Mark Stoneman (both Surrey), Asher Hart (Hampshire), Gordon Muchall (retired), Phil Mustard, Calum MacLeod, Jamie Harrison, Gurman Randhawa (all released)
Overseas: Stephen Cook (SA, April-July), Tom Latham (NZ, July-September) .2016 in a nutshell
Last summer turned sour immediately after its completion when the full extent of Durham’s financial predicament was laid bare. In return for a financial bail-out from the ECB, Durham’s head was placed on a stake outside Lord’s to warn other miscreants that the governing body would not be a lender of last resort: they were relegated, docked 48 points for 2017, and carried forward penalty points, too, in the limited-overs competitions. A rewarding season in which they had recovered to claim a top-four finish in the Championship and reached the final of the NatWest Blast – losing to Northants despite Keaton Jennings’ finest T20 display – was entirely overshadowed.2017 prospects
Rebellion and resentment is still in the air as Durham remain furious about their treatment from the ECB. With a swingeing 48-point penalty to offset, and the Championship season cut to 14 matches, the pessimistic view is that Durham’s challenge is as good as over before it begins. One disturbing fact: if Essex, last year’s Division Two champions, had been docked 48 points they would have finished fifth. Neither have Durham been helped by a host of departures, with two prolific top-order batsmen, Mark Stoneman and Scott Borthwick, heading for Surrey and a clutch of players jettisoned as a cost-cutting measure. Jennings might also win an England Test spot. The seam bowling remains strong, not just Graham Onions and Chris Rushworth, but Brydon Carse and Paul Coughlin, too, but if injuries bite expect Durham to be scouring the loan market.In charge
Paul Collingwood, one of the grittiest cricketers of his generation, skippers Durham’s Championship and T20 sides side in his 21st and final first-class season. Jennings, identified by England as a leader of potential, takes charge over 50 overs. Sir Ian Botham, a new chairman, played in Durham’s inaugural season as a first-class county 25 years ago, when he did not entirely live up to his billing as “The Messiah”. He has promised to trim back his outdoor pursuits a little, vowing last month: “We have a club and a club that will prosper; we will get ourselves back in the black.” Botham, a one-time scourge of administrators, has sounded more philosophical than most about Durham’s punishment, which just goes to show that age is a funny thing.Key player
With Stoneman and Borthwick having fled the nest, it is down to Jack Burnham to put his teenage years firmly behind him and score heavily at No. 4, fulfilling the promise that Collingwood identified when he invited him to fill the role a year ago.Bright young thing
Asher Hart might have been nominated as Durham’s bright young thing but this young allrounder has decamped to Hampshire with what many in the northeast view as indecent haste: Hampshire have not only pilfered Durham’s first division place. Instead, much attention will be lavished upon Coughlin, whose 231 against Middlesex as Durham won the 2nd XI Championship brought rave reviews from his coach Neil Killeen. Coughlin has been on the England Pace Programme this winter and played in the North-South series and, at 24, deserves to put prolonged back trouble behind him.ESPNcricinfo verdict
If a sense of grievance was the only ingredient for sporting success then Durham would leave opponents floundering in their wake because fury still runs high in the northeast over their treatment by the ECB. Even allowing for that driver, to keep the performance levels high in a small squad until September will need all of Collingwood’s leadership nous.Bet365 odds: Specsavers Championship, Div 2: 33-1; NatWest Blast 16-1; Royal London Cup 16-1

Driven by signature enthusiasm, Bangladesh’s fans made their presence felt at The Oval; England’s supporters and players could not have missed the differentness of the occasion

Andrew Miller at The Oval02-Jun-2017Cricket in England involves, for the most part, a familiar set of venues and a familiar set of routines. If you’re a regular attendee, there are certain commutes that you do entirely on auto-pilot – you know where to stand on the train platform, how to time that dash across the junction, who to greet as you mosey through the gate.But then, every once in a while, a global tournament descends on the country like a scene from Independence Day, and discombobulation is the natural human reaction. Suddenly, you understand what it must be like to be the family cat confronted by a Christmas tree in the living room. Nothing structural has changed in your surroundings, but everything is completely different.The logos and livery of the ICC’s global partners overlay the venues like a Snapchat filter (and at The Oval, that overlaying includes reams of sticky tape to banish all references to the ground’s habitual sponsor). Instead of an anonymous trudge from tube to turnstile, there are herds of cheery Cricketeers to guide you on your way, and even bicycle rickshaws for those who fancy a ride.And then, most tremendously of all, there are the crowds – or, at least, that’s how we must hope it will be after an opening-day deluge of fervent Bangladeshi support. Their fans were lured to The Oval in their thousands by the ICC’s brilliantly affordable ticket policy, which is aimed most specifically at the neutral contests that might not otherwise be sold out, but has the spin-off effect of eroding England’s home advantage when enthusiasm is the decisive factor in making a purchase.And that enthusiasm was writ large across an occasion that crackled with atmosphere, not least when Bangladesh were batting and going strong. Pockets of green splodges were visible in every corner of the ground, giving the illusion of 50-50 support on the occasions that Tamim Iqbal or Mushfiqur Rahim went for broke, although the actual breakdown was probably nearer 15-20%.Either way, it was self-evident that this contest was not just another day on the international beat. Instead, it was the start of a tournament with significant ramifications for two sides that have been among the most confident and successful in the two years since the World Cup. And if we, the spectators, felt that step-up in intensity, then what about the players?What about Jason Roy, England’s out-of-form opener, who could not have been given greater license to play his own game if Eoin Morgan had told him to rock up to The Oval in Surrey colours and treat the centre of the pitch like an extension of the Ken Barrington indoor school.Morgan spoke eloquently after the match about the need to protect his gung-ho batsmen from any seeds of self-doubt, but Roy’s innings was a pastiche of anxiety from first ball to eighth – ramped up, you might suspect, by the extraneous reminders that this was no ordinary day. A volley of fireworks greeted his arrival at the crease, before play was held up by a pair of Beefeaters making a late return to their pitch-side drumkits (it just about made sense if you saw them). Shortly after that, the roar that greeted Mustafizur Rahman’s salmon leap at short fine leg would not have been out of place in Chittagong.Sparks flew at The Oval, before and during the game•Getty ImagesBut it wasn’t just Roy who encountered that jolt of reality that accompanies the start of big events. Until Kagiso Rabada vaulted into the top spot amid his demolition job at Lord’s last week, Adil Rashid had been the answer to an implausible quiz question – which England player had claimed more ODI wickets than any other bowler since the 2015 World Cup?Since that debacle of a tournament, Rashid’s 60 wickets had come as a result of playing in 41 of England’s 44 matches – a tribute to continuity of selection, faith from management and team-mates alike, and a wickedly illegible googly that forced even the best batsmen to second-guess his variations when attempting to take him on.His omission was not a selectorial bottle-job to rank alongside, say, the axing of Nick Knight in favour of Nasser Hussain for the opening match of England’s ill-fated 1999 World Cup campaign, but it came across as a flickering of weakness in an otherwise steely campaign build-up, not least when Morgan attempted to justify it by saying how much Bangladesh prefer facing spin to pace. England were entitled to be cautious when facing a side that had beaten them four times in their previous seven ODIs, including at both the 2011 and 2015 World Cups, but on this occasion, they veered dangerously close to deference.And while Tamim and Mushfiqur were adding 166 for the third wicket, Rashid’s ability to buy a wicket was, in particular, sorely missed, especially while his replacement Jake Ball was being battered for 82 runs in his ten overs – the third time in his last seven ODIs that he has conceded 80 or more. Among England bowlers, only James Anderson has gone for that many that often, but Anderson, in mitigation, did take 13 years and 194 matches to secure such an unwanted record.With Chris Woakes facing an injury lay-off, and with Ben Stokes’ knee a permanent concern, the state of England’s seam bowling is the single greatest threat to an otherwise hugely plausible title challenge. If there was a sense in the latter stages of England’s run-chase that their batsmen were holding something back in reserve, then the message from their bowling ranks is they will probably need to burn their savings in the coming days. New Zealand on Tuesday, and Australia four days later, are two batting line-ups who are unlikely to permit any let-up in intensity.

There were notable landmarks for Hashim Amla, James Anderson and Stuart Broad on the first day of the second Investec Test at Trent Bridge

Bharath Seervi14-Jul-20178 Number of times Amla has got out to Stuart Broad – the most has he got out to any bowler, and one more than Australia’s Mitchell Johnson. However, Amla has been very successful against Broad’s bowling partner, James Anderson, getting out only twice while scoring 372 runs. Amla averages 39.12 per dismissal against Broad, compared to 186 against Anderson.6 Number of batsmen Broad has dismissed on eight or more occasions in his Test career – Michael Clarke is his most regular victim with 11 dismissals, followed by AB de Villiers (10), Ross Taylor (9) and Amla, Shane Watson and Chris Rogers(8). Since his debut, no other bowler has got more than three batsmen out on eight or more occasions. Anderson and Morne Morkel have had such success against three batsmen. Since 2001, Shane Warne is the only other bowler, apart from Broad, with eight or more dismissals of six different batsmen.300 Wickets for James Anderson in home Tests. He becomes the first fast bowler and fourth overall to take 300 or more Test wickets at home. Muttiah Muralitharan (493 wickets in 73 matches) leads the list, while the next highest by a fast bowler is Glenn McGrath’s 289 scalps in 66 home Tests. Anderson averages 25.69 in home Tests and outside England he has 171 wickets in 53 Tests at an average of 33.46.Anderson became the first fast bowler to take 300 Test wickets at home•ESPNcricinfo Ltd8070 Runs for Hashim Amla in Tests. He became the fourth South Africa player to score 8000 Test runs, after Jacques Kallis, Graeme Smith and AB de Villiers. However, the 178 innings taken by Amla to get there is the most among his other three team-mates. He was, however, the joint-fastest to 6000 Test runs for South Africa.113 Runs added by Amla and Quinton de Kock for the third wicket. It is the first century partnership for South Africa in this series. Since August 2016, de Kock has been part of seven of the 14 century stands for his team.0 Number of times de Kock had batted at No. 4 position in his Test career. He walked in at that position in this innings, ahead of captain Faf du Plessis, and struck 68 off 81 balls. This was only the fifth time he batted at No. 5 or above in his career of 33 innings and has made three fifties from those positions. Since readmission, de Villiers is the only other South Africa wicketkeeper to bat at that position.74* Unbeaten partnership between Vernon Philander and Chris Morris, the second-highest seventh-wicket stand for South Africa in England since their readmission. This is the fourth 50-plus partnership against England in last six Test innings. India’s seventh wicket had added more than 50 runs in each of the last three Tests in England’s last series.2 Fifties for Philander in this series. In the first Test, he scored 52 coming in at No. 9 in the first innings and was unbeaten on 54 on day 1 of this Test. Incidentally, he is the third-highest run-getter in this series after Joe Root and de Kock. In this innings, he joined Morris to carry South Africa past 300 after they had lost four wickets in a span of 56 runs.