Former New Zealand batter reveals details of alleged incident in his new autobiography

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Aug-2022Former New Zealand batter Ross Taylor claims he was “slapped” by one of the owners of the Rajasthan Royals franchise during the 2011 season of the IPL.Taylor made the revelation in his new autobiography, , and says the incident took place following a defeat against Kings XI Punjab in Mohali.”The chase was 195, I was lbw for a duck and we didn’t get close,” Taylor wrote in his book, an excerpt of which was published on . “Afterwards, the team, support staff and management were in the bar on the top floor of the hotel. Liz Hurley was there with Warnie [Shane Warne]. One of the Royals owners said to me, ‘Ross, we didn’t pay you a million dollars to get a duck,’ and slapped me across the face three or four times. He was laughing and they weren’t hard slaps but I’m not sure that it was entirely play-acting. Under the circumstances I wasn’t going to make an issue of it, but I couldn’t imagine it happening in many professional sporting environments.”Royals have not issued a statement in response yet.Having spent three years at Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) from 2008 to 2010, Taylor played one season for Royals – in 2011 – after he was bought for USD 1 million at the auction. In his book, Taylor said he wished he had stayed at RCB.”While it was amazing to go for a million dollars, in the long run I would’ve been better off if RCB had got me for US$950,000,” Taylor wrote. “If they had, it would have been my fourth year with them. While the IPL is pretty unsentimental, there is loyalty towards long-serving players and I probably would have had a longer IPL career as a one-franchise player. On the other hand, if I’d stayed at RCB, I wouldn’t have played with greats such as Virender Sehwag, Shane Warne, Mahela Jayawardene and Yuvraj Singh.”When you fetch that sort of money, you’re desperately keen to prove that you’re worth it. And those who are paying you that sort of money have high expectations – that’s professional sport and human nature. I’d paid my dues at RCB: if I’d had a lean trot, the management would have had faith in me because of what I’d done in the past. When you go to a new team, you don’t get that backing. You never feel comfortable because you know that if you go two or three games without a score, you come under cold-eyed scrutiny.”Taylor played 12 games for Royals in 2011, scoring 181 runs at a strike rate of 119, after which he played three more seasons for Delhi Daredevils and Pune Warriors India.In his book, Taylor had also revealed that he had experienced racial insensitivity while playing cricket in and for New Zealand.Who are Royals’ owners?
The Royals franchise – which won the inaugural IPL – was bought in 2008 by Jaipur IPL Cricket Pvt Ltd, a consortium of business entities. The major investors in this consortium comprised: Tresco International Ltd (Suresh Chellaram family, 44.2% stake), Emerging Media (IPL) Ltd (owned by Manoj Badale, 32.4%), Blue Water Estate Ltd (Lachlan Murdoch, 11.7%). A year later, in 2009, the Royals became the first franchise to broaden its ownership by selling an 11.7% stake to Kuki Investments Ltd, led by Raj Kundra, husband of Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty. The deal, at the time, was reportedly for US$15.4 million approx.In 2015, Kundra was banned for life from cricketing activities by the Supreme Court-appointed RM Lodha Committee, after investigations into the the 2013 IPL corruption scandal revealed he was involved in illegal betting. The Lodha Committee also suspended Royals for two years.In 2021, Badale became the lead owner of the Royals franchise by upping his stake to 65% after an injection of funds from global investors. Also, last June, RedBird Capital Partners, a global private investment firm that has interests in the parent company of Liverpool FC and the Boston Red Sox, bought a 15% stake in Royals.

“I’m happy, I’m excited and having fun playing cricket again, which was the most important thing for me”

Shashank Kishore05-Sep-20224:13

Kohli on answering his critics: I’ve never paid attention to these things

Virat Kohli is “excited” and “having fun” playing cricket, he said, but not long ago, he wasn’t getting any joy from the game. As he said recently, he was “faking his intensity a bit” and the fatigue and everything else added up and took a toll on him mentally. After top-scoring for India in the defeat to Pakistan on Sunday night at the Asia Cup, he also said that MS Dhoni aside, no one actually made the effort to reach out to him when he was going through a low phase.That phase came on the back of a somewhat tumultuous period in his career. He had given up the IPL and T20I captaincy, and lost his ODI captaincy – something he hadn’t expected – hours before a selection meeting. Then came his shock announcement of quitting Test captaincy earlier this year. All along, the runs weren’t coming quite as smoothly as he was used to.How did he deal with it? In Dubai, Kohli tried to provide answers, and stressed that he was in a good place.”Let me tell you one thing: when I left Test captaincy, I got a message from only one person, with whom I had played previously; that was MS Dhoni,” Kohli said. “Many people have my number. On TV, people give lots of suggestions, people have a lot to say. But none of the people who had my number sent me a message.”That respect [with Dhoni], that connection you have with someone, when it is genuine, it shows like this, because there is no insecurity with either of us. Neither does he [Dhoni] need anything from me, nor do I need anything from him. Neither of us suffers from insecurity. I can only say: if I want to say something to someone, I reach out to that person individually if I want to help.”I mean, if you give the suggestions in front of the world, it has no value for me. If it is for my improvement, you can talk with me one-on-one, (tell me) that I genuinely want you to do well. I live life with a lot of honesty, so I can see through such things. I am not saying that it doesn’t matter to me, but you see the real thing. I can only say that. When you play for such a long time, when you play with honesty, the only one who looks out for you is the almighty. Until I play, until I am worthy of playing, I will play this way.”Prior to the Asia Cup, in an interview with Star Sports, Kohli elaborated about his struggles. He touched upon how an obsession over his professional identity had led to him losing perspective as a human being. He subsequently took time off, during which he switched off completely from the game, not even doing something as spontaneous as lifting a cricket bat.2:56

Uthappa: Kohli looked ominous from the first boundary he hit

At the Asia Cup, Kohli has found a semblance of form, scoring 35, 59* and 60 at an overall strike rate of 126.22. But, more importantly, there has been an air of calm around him, both at training and at the games. He said that came from the realisation that taking a break wasn’t a bad thing sometimes.”I didn’t think I’d go a month without touching my bat, but the situation became such that I had to take a break,” he said. “More mentally than physically. Then you realise when you bat again after a month why you started playing the game. That [realisation] is lost at times, the way people look at you, cheer for you when you’re at the ground, at such times you can lose that realisation.”That drive and purity for the game, that joy dissipates. It was important to rediscover that again for me. When I’m happy in my space, then I know what I can do for the team. Me being in a bad space is neither good for the team nor for me. I think no one should run away from this, if someone is feeling negative or low, taking a break isn’t a bad thing.”And I hope people will derive strength from that and address whatever they are feeling. We’re all human, everyone can feel this way. But to recognise that and care about it is important. If you ignore it, you will get more frustrated. This is something I realised and I got a lot of help. I’m happy, I’m excited and having fun playing cricket again, which was the most important thing for me.”

Sussex show fight in reply but face a long haul to reach first-innings parity

ECB Reporters Network27-Sep-2022Chris Cooke and Shubman Gill both made impressive hundreds as Glamorgan put themselves into a strong position in their must-win game against Sussex.Gill scored 119 – his first LV= County Championship hundred – and Cooke 141 as they piled up 533 for eight declared on the second day at the 1st Central County Ground.Sussex responded positively and were 86 for one when bad light forced the players off with 13 overs still to be bowled at Hove after there had been two short rain delays earlier in the day.Glamorgan need to win to have any chance of overhauling Middlesex and claiming the second promotion place from Division Two and although Sussex bowled well in the morning session when they took three wickets, their bowlers suffered thereafter with Cooke leading the charge as he made his tenth first-class century.Earlier it had been Gill who went on the offensive. He quickly added the nine runs he’d needed overnight to lodge his seventh first-class hundred before greeting Jack Carson’s arrival by hitting the off-spinner for three boundaries in his first over.But Carson had his revenge in his next over when he tossed another one up and Gill picked out long-on, having faced 139 balls and hit 16 fours and two sixes.Left-armer Sean Hunt had already broken through when he yorked Billy Root and Carson picked up a second wicket when he gave the ball air again and Andrew Salter was also caught at long-on.When Sussex took the new ball Brad Currie soon had James Harris caught behind for 34, after Harris had added 77 with Cooke. Timm van der Gugten helped the South African put on 41 for the eighth wicket before van der Gugten was held at long leg off Tom Clark.Acceleration came either side of tea as Cooke and Ajaz Patel thrashed 96 in 13 overs with Patel hitting an undefeated 51 from 37 balls including three sixes, two of them hit over long-on in an over from Carson.Cooke hardly played a false shot before edging Hunt to wicketkeeper Oli Carter after making his second Championship century of the season. His 141 came off 165 balls with 14 fours and two sixes. Carter was one of two substitutes employed by Sussex after Charlie Tear and Fynn Hudson-Prentice went down with food poisoning overnight. The Glamorgan total was also swelled by 50 extras.Sussex began their reply needing 384 to avoid the follow-on and they made a positive start, Ali Orr and Tom Haines laying into some wayward new-ball bowling from Harris and Mick Hogan.They added 69 in 11.2 overs before Hogan’s nip-backer struck Orr on the back leg and he was lbw for 45. Haines and Tom Alsop saw their side through to the close but Glamorgan will still feel they can claim their first Championship win at Hove since 1975, even though the pitch shows little sign of deterioration.

Zafar Gohar stars on spinning deck as rain at Edgbaston provides vital safety net

David Hopps27-Sep-2022Relegation is what many critics wished upon Yorkshire as the Azeem Rafiq racism allegations were at their height a year ago. That sanction never came from the ECB, or at least it hasn’t yet, so it would at least quell the argument if they went down anyway.That relegation still cannot be discounted. The best news on the second day for Yorkshire was that it was raining in Birmingham. They are approaching the end of the season in forlorn mood. If Warwickshire don’t beat Hampshire at Edgbaston, they will remain in Division One. But if Warwickshire somehow manufacture a 18-point win in a rain-hit game, then a Gloucestershire win at Headingley would send them into Division Two.If this Championship summer has been disappointing on the field, it has been a colossal public relations failure off it. What should have been a summer of healing, with the promotion of a united new vision for a confident, multi-racial Yorkshire, has been instead been a taciturn summer that allows resentments to fester. Disrepute charges announced by the ECB against the county and seven individuals in June, and due to be considered this autumn, hang heavily.A new coaching staff has done well to hold body and soul together in a young dressing room. But they will not rest easily with Gloucestershire holding a second-innings lead of 211 with five second-innings remaining. The pitch might be flattening out a shade, but a target beyond 270 will be a stretch, especially considering the frailty of a top six which possesses only two seasoned batters, one of whom, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, is heading to Somerset at the end of the week and whose gung-ho batting approach in the first innings did not give the perception he is mentally attuned to a backs-to-the-wall relegation fight.Koher-Cadmore would contend that that is how he plays and that his 46 from 45 balls represented Yorkshire’s top score in a sub-standard batting display. Jack Taylor’s adventure also served Gloucestershire well as he made 67 from 78 in a sixth-wicket stand of 124 from 34 after Gloucestershire had lost half their side for 74. But Kohler-Cadmore, who came in at No 4, has pretensions as an opening batter. It is safe to assume he does not model his game on Geoffrey Boycott.He did have the decency to sound a little guilty afterwards. “How I got out today, it was annoying. I thought it was a bad ball, but I top-edged it and it went straight up,” he said. “I want to leave the club on a high and finish the season with a good positive result. It’s quite slow and hard to take wickets. We have should have put ourselves in a better position with the bat. It wasn’t a 180 or 190 pitch, or whatever we ended up with. It’s a decent surface.”On a chilly day, the sense among a meagre crowd was that the cricket was to be endured, not enjoyed. There is little conviviality around Headingley, no light-hearted sense of optimism. No wonder romantic souls prefer to finish the season at places like Worcester and Canterbury. For all the constant stream of world-class talent for England, until such ingrained attitudes change, cricket will never be entirely here, unless trophies are being won. Jason Gillespie managed both pleasure and trophies – an extraordinary feat.Positions on the Rafiq affair are entrenched. Stances on both sides are too often based on general prejudices. If anything, Yorkshire have allowed attitudes to harden. Most of the 16 summarily sacked after signing a confidential letter privately questioning Yorkshire’s handling of Rafiq’s allegations have won out-of-court settlements for unfair dismissal, with only Wayne Morton’s medical group still involved in a legal process.All this led the to carry a headline last week advising Yorkshire’s chair, Kamlesh Patel, to “Clear Your Desk”. That would rather assume he has filled his desk in the first place. Patel set the initial tone, and how, but since then he has been an occasional presence and he has hinted that he will stand down soon after Yorkshire finally get round to appointing a chief executive. Meanwhile, those in charge of day-to-day operations – supposedly bearers, however temporary, of the New Yorkshire flame – prefer to remain low key.Zafar Gohar, the Pakistan left-arm spinner, and arguably the best pound-for-pound overseas player in the Championship (not that the pound is worth very much anymore), claimed five of the seven morning wickets as Yorkshire subsided from 80 for three overnight to 183 all out. He now has 43 Championship wickets at 29.44, a shrewd signing whom Gloucestershire would do well to retain.Related

• Yorkshire come to grief over Azeem Rafiq affair, but acceptance is a way off yet

• Sacked staff seek legal action after racism crisis prompts Yorkshire purge

• ECB charges Yorkshire and individuals over racism allegations

• Warwickshire sinking in the showers as relegation fears grow

Gohar struck with his first ball of the second day, interrupting Kohler-Cadmore’s shoot-the-breeze approach when he mis-pulled a short ball to midwicket on the way to figures of five for 40 from 14 overs. Thirty-two runs had come in less than four overs, but that was the height of Yorkshire’s success.Gohar then picked off the ingenue, Harry Duke, lbw as he pushed forward. Jonny Tattersall, whom Gloucestershire respect as a fine player of spin after his loan spell last season, edged an excellent delivery to slip off the back foot on 33. Jordan Thompson looks deadbeat after a long season – lacking finesse with bat and ball – and was also caught at slip. Ben Coad was a No.10 out slogging down the ground when a highly capable batter, Matthew Fisher, needed more intelligent support, a criminal abdication of responsibility.At least Steve Patterson, a captain who has not been retained, got a deserved guard of honour from Gloucestershire for a career well lived when he came out at No.11. He is a competitive soul who has drawn every ounce of talent from himself and he had a right to pass through his honour-guard cursing.Coad impressed more with the ball as Yorkshire again took control, removing Chris Dent and Miles Hammond with excellent deliveries. Briefly, Dom Bess’ offspin threatened to do for Yorkshire what Gohar had achieved for Gloucestershire – four wickets falling for 18 in six overs with Bess defeating Ben Charlesworth with turn and James Bracey with flight. But Taylor, in particular, hit Bess from the attack in the post-tea session as both he and Ollie Price reached what could turn out to be vital half-centuries.

Teenager Tess Flintoff smashed the fastest WBBL half-century off 16 balls before Sasha Moloney picked up 4 for 24 to help Stars beat Adelaide Strikers

AAP02-Nov-2022Teenager Tess Flintoff has smashed the WBBL record for the fastest half-century in the competition’s history to power Melbourne Stars to a 22-run win over Adelaide Strikers.The allrounder blasted an unbeaten 51 from only 16 balls at North Sydney Oval on Wednesday. Flintoff broke the previous mark – 22 balls – by smashing a six off the final ball of the innings to push Stars to 5 for 186 after Strikers elected to field first.The 19-year-old’s blistering career-best knock consisted of six fours and three sixes. Flintoff had not been required to bat in Stars’ past three matches, but her most recent innings was an unbeaten 40 against the Perth Scorchers on October 20.Australia allrounder Ashleigh Gardner and South African Lizelle Lee shared the previous record for fastest WBBL half-century, with both reaching the mark in the same game back in 2017.England batters Alice Capsey and Lauren Winfield-Hill also played important roles in the Stars’ big total sharing an 81-run stand for the second wicket.Flintoff’s match-winning knock proved too much for Adelaide to overcome, with Strikers finishing their 20 overs on 8 for 164. Australia star Tahlia McGrath’s troubled run with the bat continued, with Strikers’ captain out for just 1 following two ducks in as many games.Adelaide had solid contributions from Katie Mack, Bridget Patterson and Laura Wolvaardt as Sasha Moloney was the pick of Stars bowlers claiming 4 for 24.It was just Stars’ second win of the tournament, with Adelaide remaining in third on the table with four victories.

Yo-Yo tests back as a selection parameter, Dexa scans introduced following BCCI review meeting attended by Dravid, Rohit, Laxman and others

Shashank Kishore01-Jan-2023The workloads of key India players, particularly those with a history of injuries, will be monitored during IPL 2023 by the BCCI’s National Cricket Academy and the IPL franchises “in tandem”. This is in accordance with the BCCI’s new policy for managing workloads of players in the lead-up to the 50-over World Cup this October and November and the World Test Championship final in June, if India qualify for it.The plan to have the NCA work with the IPL franchises during the 2023 edition of the tournament was among a number of recommendations made by the BCCI following a review meeting in Mumbai on Sunday, convened to discuss the roadmap of the senior men’s team for the World Cup.Among other matters discussed were the team’s performance in 2022, which included the Test series loss in South Africa, the fifth Test loss in England (from the incomplete series the previous year), the semi-final exit – with a ten-wicket loss to England – from the T20 World Cup in Australia, and the ODI series loss in Bangladesh most recently.Related

• IPL teams and international stars in informal contract discussions

• Selectors cautious about recovering Bumrah

• Gambhir not sure Kohli, Rohit, Rahul fit in 2024 T20 WC plans

• Rohit frustrated with India's mounting injury list

Head coach Rahul Dravid, regular all-format captain Rohit Sharma, BCCI president Roger Binny, secretary Jay Shah, NCA head VVS Laxman and selection committee chair Chetan Sharma were present at the meeting.ESPNcricinfo has learnt that workload and injury management were discussed at length, especially after several key players missed a significant amount of cricket because of injuries in 2022. It’s something Rohit alluded to after the ODI series loss in Bangladesh, when he expressed displeasure at players pulling up with injuries repeatedly despite being passed fit.”We need to try and get to the bottom of it,” Rohit had said. “I don’t know what exactly it is. Maybe they’re playing too much cricket. We need to try and monitor those guys, because it’s important to understand when they come for India, they need to be a 100%, in fact more than 100%.”The cases of Deepak Chahar, who was injured for much of 2022, Jasprit Bumrah, who is recovering from a stress fracture on his back, and Ravindra Jadeja, who is recovering from an ankle injury, are learnt to have been deliberated upon.2:11

How should India manage Bumrah’s workload going forward?

The NCA’s medical team is understood to have submitted a roadmap on workload and injury management. In accordance with the new plan, a fitness and workload roadmap will be customised for each of the central pool of players, and work has already begun for it.In addition to Yo-Yo tests, the NCA panel also recommended the addition of Dexa scans to add another “scientific layer” – in the words of a BCCI official – of testing before determining if players are fit to play. The Dexa scan is the international standard for measuring body composition and bone health – a ten-minute test that measures total body fat and includes the exact breakdown of bone mass, fat tissue and muscle in the body.One of the other recommendations was that emerging players would “have to play substantial” amount of domestic cricket before becoming eligible for selection to the national team, a BCCI press statement said. The selectors believe this would make the players be available for all formats, and not prioritise one over the others.Another reason for the recommendation is to ensure players are properly conditioned before entering the system. The selectors, in the past, haven’t been averse to picking new players straight after a good IPL season. But with new players – like T Natarajan and Varun Chakravarthy, for example – missing more cricket than they have played in the past couple of years, because of injuries followed by treatment, rehabilitation, etc, have been a cause for concern.

A round-up of the third week of the Bangladesh Premier League

Mohammad Isam28-Jan-2023

Sylhet Strikers see both extremes

Winning a game despite losing three wickets in the second over against Fortune Barishal, but then losing their first home game. This was Sylhet’s week to forget (or remember). Mohammad Wasim’s three-wicket over should have seen Sylhet slide down the points table but Najmul Hossain Shanto and Rejaur Rahman Raja ensured that they won by two runs. But three days later, they crashed to 18 for 7 in their first game at home, against Rangpur Riders. Mashrafe Mortaza and Tanzim Hasan Sakib rescued them but 92 for 9 was never going to threaten Rangpur. Barishal’s win over Chattogram Challengers on Friday evening took them above Sylhet to the top of the points table.

Bowlers rule the week, feat. Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim

The week started with Haris Rauf bowling the fastest recorded delivery of the tournament, a 154kph thunderbolt at the chest of Darwish Rasooli against Chattogram. The batter fended it off to give a simple catch and Rauf took a three-wicket haul in the game. The following day, Wasim took his three-wicket over, before Nahidul Islam and Taskin Ahmed had their bowl-off in a clash between Dhaka Dominators and Khulna Tigers. Both took frugal four-wicket hauls but Taskin ended up winning the game for Dhaka. Afghanistan allrounder Azmatullah Omarzai and left-arm spinner Nihaduzzaman also had their bowling moments to cap off a fine week for bowlers in the BPL.

Batter of the week: Najmul Hossain Shanto

Shanto is now among the top three run-scorers in this season’s BPL. He has given Sylhet the top-order strength, while also getting a hang of anchoring in T20s. Shanto has a wide range of shots but like Litton Das he needs to know when to use those shots. So far in this season, he has looked like a batter who understands his game slightly better than 12 months ago.

Bowler of the week: Taskin Ahmed

With his on-field performance, Taskin is creating a gap between himself and the rest of the pace pack in terms of impact. He isn’t playing for the best team in the competition but ensured that Dhaka at least won a memorable low-scoring thriller with his four-wicket haul. Bowling short, full or length, Taskin’s drive towards becoming a better bowler is always evident in his energy on the field.

The league clashes with the English summer but players on white-ball-only county deals might be given permission to play

Matt Roller21-Mar-2023Alex Hales remains hopeful of featuring in the inaugural season of Major League Cricket (MLC) despite concerns that English cricketers might not be given No-Objection Certificates (NOCs) to play in the new US league.ESPNcricinfo understands that Hales has been in talks with MLC franchises about his availability for the tournament, but several teams are worried that the ECB could block NOCs since the new league takes place during the English summer.While centrally contracted England players appear unlikely to be granted NOCs, players on white-ball-only deals with their respective counties – like Hales – are expected to be given permission to play in the US if they sign contracts.Related

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• Finch first overseas signing at MLC draft, named San Francisco Unicorns captain

MLC is due to be played from July 13 to 30 and mainly clashes with the County Championship. The Vitality Blast’s Finals Day – which involves only four counties – takes place on July 15, and players involved would miss the start of the competition.For players without central contracts, NOCs are granted by counties in the first instance, with ECB providing formal sign-off. These have previously been granted to white-ball specialists looking to play overseas leagues during the English season, for both the IPL and the CPL.The Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) believes MLC should be treated in the same manner as other leagues that take place during the English summer, “via the principle established in county and ECB central contracts,” a spokesperson said. “Ultimately, it is up to the employers’ discretion in-season, unless the player is on a specific white-ball version of the standard contract.”Hales’ contract with his county, Nottinghamshire, runs until the end of their season in this year’s T20 Blast. His only other existing contract within the English game is with Trent Rockets in the Hundred, which starts on August 1 – two days after the MLC final – and if signed, he would return to the UK the day before the Rockets’ opening fixture.Other English white-ball specialists without central contracts who could make themselves available for MLC include Richard Gleeson, Tymal Mills and Will Smeed. At this stage, it appears unlikely that players on all-format deals would request to miss County Championship fixtures in order to play in the US.Some players are waiting to see whether their counties reach the knockout stages of the Blast, and will only make themselves available for MLC – potentially as replacement signings – if they are not involved in Finals Day.If the length of MLC seasons expands in future years, as anticipated, some players could make themselves unavailable for some or all of the Blast season in order to sign more lucrative contracts in the US than counties can offer.Overseas players are signed directly by MLC franchises, rather than through a draft system, and top salaries are believed to be in the region of $150,000 (USD). Quinton de Kock, Aaron Finch, Wanindu Hasaranga, Mitchell Marsh, Anrich Nortje and Marcus Stoinis have all been announced as direct signings.And MLC has already had a direct impact on the Hundred. ESPNcricinfo understands that Nortje has pulled out of Thursday’s draft since his contract in the US is worth more, pro rata, than the most lucrative £125,000 (GBP) deals on offer in the Hundred.

Devine’s powerful fifty and Knight’s fighting cameo were not enough for Royal Challengers Bangalore

Zenia D'Cunha08-Mar-20236:13

What’s happening to Mandhana’s RCB?

The expectations from Royal Challengers Bangalore, even before the Women’s Premier League began, were high. They had the most expensive player of the league in captain Smriti Mandhana, and a formidable squad.But within the first week of the WPL, they find themselves at the bottom of the points table as the only team without a win. The expectations are becoming pressure.Related

• Wolvaardt replaces injured Mooney at Giants; Rana named captain

On Wednesday, in a clash between two teams yet to register a win, it was Gujarat Giants who broke their duck at the Brabourne Stadium, beating Royal Challengers by 11 runs, a margin that doesn’t really tell the full story.Powered by Sophia Dunkley’s record 18-ball fifty at the top and held together by Harleen Deol’s 67 off 45, Giants put together 201 for 7 as Royal Challengers’ bowling continued to struggle for the third game on the trot.In their first match of the season, Delhi Capitals carted them for 223 for 2 and in their second, Mumbai Indians chased down 156 with more than five overs to spare, both at the batters paradise that Brabourne has proved to be.The third game was no different. Consider this: Megan Schutt, Australia’s frontline pacer, started with a maiden and an opening spell of 2-1-13-1. Yet she bowled only three overs at an economy of 8.66. It’s indicative of how nothing seems to be going Royal Challengers’ way.The star of the show was undoubtedly Dunkley, who scored the tournament’s fastest fifty so far. The England batter was not the team’s first-choice opener and came in to replace the injured captain Beth Mooney in the previous game. On Wednesday, she ensured she would be hard to drop even after Mooney’s replacement, Laura Wolvaardt, flies in.Sophia Dunkley got off to a blistering start and brought up her half-century in the fifth over•BCCI

Runs kept flowing from Dunkley’s bat on a ground with one boundary behind square as short as 47 metres. She reached her fifty in the fifth over, with 22 of her runs coming off just one over from left-arm spinner Preeti Bose.It could have been much worse for Royal Challengers but for offspin allrounder Shreyanka Patil, the local talent who is turning out to be one of the bright spots of their campaign. She dismissed the dangerous Dunkley after being hit for a massive six and a four; the batter walked back with her bat behind her head knowing she had missed a chance to make a big one.At the other end, Deol put in yet another good shift for Giants after her 46 off 32 against UP Warriorz in a match her side lost in a last-over thriller. On Wednesday, she brought up her fifty off 35 balls and kept exploiting the gaps for boundaries and even clobbering Ellyse Perry for three fours in a row at one point, which is sure to give her a confidence boost.It was Patil again, who got the set batter, returning figures of 2 for 32 from her four overs and earning high praise from Sophie Devine, who said she is sure to be playing for India soon.Mandhana kept rotating her bowlers to not a lot of success, and like against Delhi, it was part-timer Heather Knight who was among the wickets. But nothing could prevent Giants from breaching the 200-run mark.Royal Challengers started their chase fairly well but their innings soon took a familiar turn: a team of proven performers not clicking together.Sophie Devine’s fighting half-century didn’t prove to be enough for Royal Challengers•BCCI

In conditions fairly good for batting, Devine slammed 66 off 45 but didn’t get much support from other batters.The biggest blow perhaps was Mandhana failing to build on a promising start yet again, falling into the trap against an offspinner yet again: her third in three matches this WPL. Ashleigh Gardner has dismissed Mandhana more often than anyone else in international cricket and she got her once again.Devine built a partnership with Perry and then Richa Ghosh, keeping the team alive. But frequent dot balls meant the required rate kept soaring. In the 17th over, a ball after smashing Annabel Sutherland for a six, Devine hit one straight to long-on, ending Royal Challengers’ last remnants of hope.Knight’s 11-ball 30 and Patil’s 11 off 4 at the death only reduced the margin of the defeat.”Our batting unit ebbed and flowed and there was a time where we faced too many dot balls, 10 or 12 and dot balls are really crucial,” Devine said after the match. “I think every team is realising that to bowl on these wickets… they are batters paradise to be fair. There is no seam, there is no swing, quick outfield. It’s a real test as a bowling unit and I don’t think any team has been able to crack it yet. This is an area we improved on but we can get a lot more disciplined in terms of execution.”Three matches in, Royal Challengers are entering a must-win zone now. In a five-team tournament, they need to be in the top three to make the knockouts. They have five matches left to do that, with a star-studded team that can easily ‘win the cup this year’ if they click together.

He won’t be available for most of the Asia Cup, but will join the team for the World Cup in October-November

Umar Farooq21-Apr-2023Pakistan’s new team director Mickey Arthur will only be available to the team in a limited capacity over the next ten months but he will be involved in designing and overseeing strategies remotely while he also fulfils his responsibilities as head coach of Derbyshire. His appointment was formally announced by the PCB in Rawalpindi on Thursday.Arthur is only one year into his four-year contract with Derbyshire and his reluctance to leave that role meant that it took months for him and the PCB to arrive at an arrangement to work part-time with the Pakistan team. Arthur will be available to Pakistan for only one game in this year’s Asia Cup – against India – and will miss the tour to Sri Lanka and the series against Afghanistan in UAE. He will be available for the ODI World Cup in October-November, the away tour to Australia and home series against West Indies.The PCB had also hired former South African internationals Morne Morkel and Andrew Puttick as bowling and batting coach, while Pakistan’s former fielding coach Grant Bradburn is now the head coach. Assistant coach Abdul Rehman is the only Pakistani in the coaching group, which has been designed to facilitate Arthur working remotely as team director.Related

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“I am pleased that Mickey has formally re-joined the Pakistan men’s cricket team with an enhanced role in which he will be responsible for formulating and implementing strategies for the upcoming assignments across all formats,” the PCB’s head Najam Sethi said. “Furthermore, he will also be responsible for strengthening the national team culture and identifying and grooming future stars, so that we can strengthen our bench strength and strategically secure our future.”Having lived and worked in Pakistan during his previous tenure, Mickey knows the current players, the structure, and the system at the back of his hand. I am sure he will incorporate learnings from the previous tenure so that he can have an even more successful second term.”Arthur’s re-hiring wasn’t straightforward. He wanted to stay on with Derbyshire while the board wanted him full time, and discussions stalled twice before both parties reached a consensus. At one stage, the PCB said it had moved on from Arthur, but negotiations were ongoing.Arthur was Pakistan’s head coach from 2016 to 2019, a tenure that included a Champions Trophy title in 2017 and during which Pakistan became the top ranked T20I team. They were not as successful in Test cricket under Arthur, and a league-stage exit from the 2019 World Cup led to him being replaced as head coach by former Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq.Arthur’s reappointment was criticised by Misbah, who called it a “slap on Pakistan cricket.”