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A defeat overseas on a sluggish pitch was a familiar situation that brought familiar words from Michael Clarke, but the Australians have to do more than talk

Daniel Brettig in Cardiff11-Jul-20154:01

Five things we learned from Cardiff

Oh what Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon would have given for a mere 11 overs to save this Test. When speaking about erasing the memories of Cardiff 2009, Australia’s cricketers did not quite have this scenario in mind. Not only were they beaten, they were obliterated.An England side still finding their way with a new coach in tow will gain as much confidence from this result as Australia did in Brisbane 19 months ago. An Australian team who had been confident, if not outright haughty, are left to ruminate on a very evident mortality.It will be acknowledged that they could have bowled better and, on the first morning, caught better. Brad Haddin will forever be clutching Joe Root’s edge with two gloves in his sleep, having failed to do so when it mattered. Nevertheless, this was a batting calamity, a collective failure of such magnitude as to match Lord’s two years ago, another week when the top six showed all the survival instinct of lemmings.They would do well to run their eyes over these words from Michael Clarke before the match. He laid out, more or less, what would be required of the batsmen in English climes.”Once you get in as batsman over here, you have to go on and make a big score,” he said. “You’re never out of the game as a bowler, there’s always something there – whether it’s the slope at Lord’s or you get some overhead conditions, or you take the second new ball, there’s always an opportunity with the Dukes ball. So as a batter you need to know that. In Australia when you feel like you’re batting well and get to 40 and 50, things become a little bit easier. Sometimes here it’s not the case, you’ve got to work your backside off for your whole innings.”Clarke has uttered similar words at other times, from the 2013 India tour and the visit to England that followed it, to a match against South Africa in Port Elizabeth and a two-Test sojourn in the UAE against Pakistan. The words come easily, and Clarke clearly knows them instinctively. But whatever the reason, the actions that should flow from them do not.Australia’s batsmen did not work their backsides off in either innings at Cardiff. On the second day they made a passing effort, getting established and pushing through the early period before relaxing into a rhythm and getting themselves out. On the fourth day, faced with a record Ashes target, they did not even do that. Like the crayon lodged somewhere up Homer Simpson’s nose, there is something that repeatedly affects Australian cognitive function on pitches such as Cardiff’s, and against bowling that requires a measured response.Part of it is a belief that pitches such as these are not a true test of their skill, and that the way the game is best played on them is a version of cricket they would rather not engage with. This was certainly true of Australia’s bowling on the opening day, when the desire of Mitchell Starc and Mitchell Johnson to see the ball flying through to Haddin saw them offer Root far too much short stuff, a diet on which he completely changed the complexion of the morning. Peter Siddle had looked Australia’s best bowler for this surface in the two training days before the match, but at selection time he was thought inferior to others with more Antipodean methods.With a more balanced bowling attack England showed, in a quite exhilarating fashion at times, that slow surfaces must not always be associated with stodgy, risk averse play. In 2009 and 2013, the ways of Andy Flower had England playing the percentages with conditions in their favour.This time they allied their conditional knowhow to courageous, inventive and intelligent cricket, of the kind Trevor Bayliss used to be a part of with the NSW teams of the late 1980s and early 1990s. The mentality was aggressive, and the game kept moving, but the cricket was smart rather than foolhardy. One exemplar of this was Ben Stokes, who played a pair of positive and influential innings while also playing an understated but important role with the ball – his dismissal of Adam Voges via variation off the pitch was Australia’s point of no return.Stokes’ opposite number was rather more problematic for Australia. By the time of what was surely Shane Watson’s last lbw review Passion play, the match had well and truly gone. But his Australian method, plonking the front foot down the wicket and not allowing himself room to combat any movement or variation, speaks as bluntly of bowling machines and flint-hard pitches as anything else in Clarke’s team.Much like in the first innings, numerous batsmen played shots untempered by any sense of the match situation, nor the plans of the bowlers to outsmart them. Clarke’s vague waft at Stuart Broad will not be appearing on any of his highlight reels, and Haddin’s mow at Moeen Ali rivalled his infamous slash during the 2011 Cape Town Test.Clarke said batting for long innings was all about hunger. If so, then his team showed little interest in being fed at all. “The hardest part about batting is getting to 20 or 30,” he said. “Once you get there you’ve got to have that hunger inside you to want to go on and make a big score. Once you get to 50 turn it into 80, once you get to 80 turn it into 100 and look to make a big hundred.”But that’s the game as well. You get a good ball whether you’re on zero or you’re on 50 it can get you out. It’s the hardest part about batting. When you’re in form cash in, when you’re out of form find a way to scratch your backside off to get in form. I think the shot selection wasn’t as good as it needs to be. The fact that we all got starts especially in our first innings we need to have more discipline there. At least one, maybe two of those guys – me in particular – we need to go on and make a big score.”There’s nothing wrong with these words. Like those Clarke said before the match they make perfect sense. But they are just words, and for a long time now Australia’s words have not matched their actions on foreign surfaces. To win an Ashes series in England for the first time since 2001, and to do so from behind for the first time since 1997, Clarke’s men have to show a hunger that goes beyond the homilies.

Glamorgan’s Mark Wallace’s run of 230 consecutive county championship matches started back in 2001 and ended this week. These big-name players’ entire Test careers was within this streak

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Sep-2015Michael Clarke (2004 – 2015) Tests: 115, Runs: 8643•Getty Images Andrew Strauss (2004 – 2012) Tests: 100, Runs: 7037•Getty Images MS Dhoni (2005 – 2014) Tests: 90, Runs: 4876•Getty Images Michael Hussey (2005 – 2013) Tests:79, Runs: 6235•Getty Images

In his new role, at No.4, he wants to shape an innings, rather than finish it. Those intentions cannot be faulted, but the knock on effect is that Ajinkya Rahane is left in the cold

Alagappan Muthu in Kanpur10-Oct-2015People have looked up to MS Dhoni the finisher for a long time. Commentators marvel at how calm he can be, and fans feel secure of India’s chances so long as their captain is in the middle. Since 2004, which amounts to 226 out of 265 matches, they have seen Dhoni walk out at No. 5 or lower, absorb the pressure and deliver the best he could for the team. That’s 121 victories, wherein he has three centuries and an average of 63.54Those figures are admirable considering there are enough times a lower-middle order batsman has to either contend with his team at 50 for 3 and wanting stable ground, or 150 for 3 and wanting lift-off. Two drastically different roles, no letup in responsibility, and you don’t even play a part in picking the straw you end up with.Dhoni has managed quite well in the face of this uncertainty, but doing so has taken a toll. His form has dipped to such an extent that there is fear he might become a liability. His power game has waned. So has his range because he does not play those unorthodox swipes as much anymore. A yorker to Dhoni now has become a dot ball.The fear that he could launch the next one into orbit remains, but lately the frequency has dipped. Dhoni has only seven sixes in 2015 – his lowest in a year that he has played at least 10 ODIs. Perhaps that is a choice. He has spoken a lot about how India lacking a solid No. 7 has shaped the way he plays recently. It is noticeable that he delays his charge a lot more than usual. But when the time comes, switching gears has been difficult. Then the pressure on him gets a lot sharper. He feels the team will suffer without him at the crease, so he grits his teeth and bats on, striking at 80 rather than 180.Now Dhoni does not want so much on his plate. He does not want to come in the middle of a floundering innings and pick up the pieces. He wants to bat at No. 4 shape it. Those intentions cannot be faulted but a knock on effect is that Ajinkya Rahane, arguably one of the first players who would make an Indian Test XI, cannot find space because he is not a smasher of the ball.But with a batting order that has a reasonably optimal spread of power players – Rohit at the top, almost seamlessly Virat Kohli at one drop, then Suresh Raina and Dhoni himself down the order – can’t India persist with a player with Rahane’s ability at No. 4?”Even to some extent four is quite low for him,” Dhoni said. “I’ve always felt he is somebody who should bat up the order. Opening is the slot that fits him really well. Also, it’s slightly different for us. If you see first-class cricket for example, Rohit [Sharma] bats at No. 4 or No. 3 or No. 5, but over here he opens for us. Also if you see [India’s] history, there have been a lot of individuals who have done that. Our openers, more often than not, bat in the middle order in first-class cricket.”Its slightly difficult for him as of now. Especially if I am looking for somebody to bat at [Nos.] 5, 6 or 7. I don’t think he is the person to bat at that number. If given the chance, we will feature him in the top three, but if not it might be difficult to have him feature.”

“It’s slightly difficult for Rahane as of now. Especially if I am looking for somebody to bat at [Nos.] 5, 6 or 7. I don’t think he is the person to bat at that number”MS Dhoni

Dhoni’s game has changed, as it often does towards the end of one’s career. He is 35 years old. It is unlikely he will be part of the next 50-over World Cup and, considering his preference to have players well aware of their roles well before an ICC tournament, he must want someone else to take over as the new finisher while he is around to groom them.Peering two overs into the future and managing the present accordingly. Which of the opposition bowlers are the most threatening? Who has the overs left? And most importantly, who is the weak link? Right now, India believe Rahane needs to build a head of steam before getting into this mode.”Batting down, especially at [Nos.] 5, 6 and 7, he faces more difficulty,” Dhoni said. “We have seen that he is more flamboyant or more free when he bats up the order with a bit of field restrictions. Once he gets a good start he can capitalise in the middle overs.”So the likely choice for this role will be Raina. Oddly enough, Raina was among those talked about as a potential No. 4 too. But with over 200 ODIs’ experience, a good range of strokes and the knack for wedging the ball into gaps, he leads the candidate list for the next Indian finisher.It seems Dhoni is set on this course and if he believes it is the right one, as much as he has had to believe a scoreline of 50 for 3 can be rectified, it’ll take a pretty tough curveball to strike him out of it.

The late Cricket Australia board director was passionate about politics and history, and his contribution to Australian sport extended beyond cricket

Daniel Brettig16-Dec-2015A friend tells a story about a conversation with John Bannon, in which the topic turned to running. This friend had endured a few Sydney “City2Surf” fun runs and was relating his struggles to cover the 14km distance. After listening patiently to these lamentations, Bannon said simply, “Yes, I used to do a bit of running myself.”Try 28 Adelaide Marathons, 11 in which he completed the journey in less than three hours, most of these while he was also occupied by the all-consuming job as premier treasurer of South Australia. In building a new and meaningful life after politics, Bannon would often surprise and delight with self-deprecating references to his former career. As Mark Kenny has written: “Bannon was actually a giant in Australian politics… It’s just he never said so.”Cricket had always been a major passion of Bannon’s, and his legbreaks are remembered fondly by fellow members of the St Peter’s Old Collegians cricket club in the Adelaide Turf Competition. But it was in his later years – even after a cancer diagnosis in 2007 – that Bannon made his greatest mark on the game.All those years in politics, and the traumatic experiences of his final term as premier amid the collapse of the State Bank, were brought to the service of Australian cricket via the boards of Cricket Australia and the South Australian Cricket Association. Bannon knew a thing or two, and while he would never impose his opinions, he added greatly to the knowledge and expertise of other administrators around him.

Bannon also served as Master of St Mark’s residential college, where young students and older dinner guests alike discovered his gifts as an orator, comedian and mimic

One such lesson was about the importance of personal relationships in making and keeping deals for major events. Bannon was the man who brought the Formula One Grand Prix to Australia when he reacted most favourably to the entreaties of the F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone in the early 1980s. Labor premiers John Cain in Victoria and Nevill Wran in New South Wales had hesitated, and it was the young first-termer Bannon who built a rapport with Ecclestone that intertwined the race’s status with his premiership.Ecclestone met Bannon at the Star Pub in Chessington, Surrey, where they mapped out a deal. Back then, Adelaide was a major beneficiary, being opened up to the world without paying anything like the race fees F1 now demands of host cities. Ecclestone, at the time recently installed as F1 chief after having worked as the team principal for Brabham, was grateful to form the alliance in a part of the world new to the sport.”John Bannon saw the advantage of advertising Adelaide to the rest of the world and took advantage of it,” Ron Walker, the former Australian Grand Prix chairman told Fairfax Media earlier this year. “They had it for ten good years. But Bernie had always said to him, ‘You can have this race for as long as you stay in office. The moment you lose an election or you retire, the race goes somewhere else.'”So it was that a change in government brought a change in the race venue, from Adelaide to Melbourne. Ecclestone tried to have Bannon sign a new contract for the race to extend its South Australian tenure, but by then Bannon was occupied by the weightier and messier business of the State Bank.This throws up another Bannon learning that SACA and CA board directors benefited from – the importance of personal responsibility and accountability.Bannon (far right) with former Australian prime minister Bob Hawke (far left) and fellow state premiers in 1989•Getty ImagesBannon paid a heavy price, taking the blame for the failure of the bank upon himself at a time when many others in positions of more direct import to the bank’s fortunes chose to sidestep the brickbats. In a heated moment on ABC radio in Adelaide during the worst of the fallout, Bannon’s former university colleague Keith Conlon exclaimed, “Some bastard’s got to wear this.” Bannon replied, “I am the bastard… and I am wearing it!” His departure from politics was unhappy but also honourable.Later, in an interview with the Adelaide University magazine , a publication he had once edited himself, he thought aloud about what was next: “Just how I fit in. I don’t know at this stage. I’ve just got to let that work through.” During his period of reflection, Bannon took in the 1994 Australian Test tour of South Africa, the first visit of the national team to that part of the world since the end of apartheid. In addition to never missing the Adelaide Test, he was a frequent attendee at overseas matches.Bannon chose to pivot into academia, penning a biography of former South Australia premier Sir John Downer, called , and devoting much of his time to the service of history. He also served as Master of St Mark’s residential college in North Adelaide, where young students and older dinner guests alike discovered his gifts as an orator, comedian and even a mimic: Churchill and Hitler were two particularly memorable turns.Wooed by the patrician Ian McLachlan to join the SACA board in 2001, Bannon was soon adding his intellect to cricket board discussion. Perhaps because he found himself playing a central role in so much of it, he was enduringly committed to ensuring the lessons of history were not allowed to fade away. During the CA governance debate, Bannon’s position was staunchly federalist but not without room to manoeuvre. He related later that he had always been in favour of the board’s reduction from 14 directors to nine, and that SA’s “undue” representation was fair game to be cut back.

Cricket had always been a major passion of Bannon’s, and his legbreaks are remembered fondly by fellow members of the St Peter’s Old Collegians cricket club in the Adelaide Turf Competition

But he baulked at the total separation of board members from states, out of the well-founded fear that it would cause the interests of the largest centres to be heard most frequently to the exclusion of others, and out of scepticism that the board would become a tool of CA management, not the other way around. He was gratified when a compromise was brokered to ensure the board had to include at least one director from each state: proudly, he was South Australia’s.The former chairman Wally Edwards said of Bannon: “He was a great contributor to the board. He had a sense of history and a great love of cricket. He kept us fellow board directors honest to the traditions of the game and the administration of the game.”I first met Bannon at the ITC Gardenia Hotel in Bangalore during Australia’s 2010 Test tour. His expression broadened into a grin when I mentioned my South Australian heritage, though it became a little wrier when I added that I had started my journalism career at the . We crossed paths regularly over the next few years; it was a happy coincidence that a first invitation to the LBW Trust chairman Darshak Mehta’s SCG Test dinner coincided with his delivery of its keynote address. His passion that night was palpable.Partly due to his words about the importance of history at that gathering, I contacted him directly with a problem I had heard about, to do with CA’s archives. Following the publication in 2007 of the board history , written by Gideon Haigh and David Frith, requests by others to peruse certain records had been declined on the basis they could not be located. Further investigations suggested that, after the book’s publication, many had been marked “D” for destroyed.Bannon was instrumental in bringing the Formula One Grand Prix to Australia. It kicked off in the 1980s in Adelaide, before moving to Melbourne•Getty ImagesTo Bannon, such a loss of history was anathema, and after we discussed it over coffee at the Art Gallery of South Australia in January last year, he promised to do all he could. The result was a board paper put together by Bannon and the former head of public affairs Peter Young that raised the issue and suggested means by which the collective memory of CA and the states might be organised and preserved.Later in the year he travelled to Scotland as a constitutional historian to observe and write about the independence referendum. At the same time he was also working on the SACA’s collection of artefacts and plans for a museum.”The aim is for the creation of a dedicated building or space for the SACA museum, perhaps combined with a cricket library or clubroom,” he said earlier this year. “It’s a big project and involves a lot of work, but it is very important it is done correctly. It must be located where members and the public can have easy access to it, and have enough space to do justice to our ever-growing collection. It is something I want to devote more time and energy to in my remaining term on the board.”We stayed in touch, and when I had the misfortune of being mugged in Dominica, he was prompt in writing an email to convey his hope that I was on the mend, adding: “There IS action on the archives matters we discussed – I haven’t stopped prodding…” As a result of the said prodding, a search of Melbourne located the CA archival material at several off-site locations dotted around the city, and they are now the subject of work by Young and Haigh that will ensure they are not allowed to fall into obscurity, disrepair and destruction.At that stage Bannon was still hopeful of making the trip to England for an Ashes Test or two. When I asked a few weeks later about his movements, I got a typically understated indication of the health issues that had been his near constant companions since 2007: he would be unable to make the trip. He did, however, offer a prescient observation ahead of Edgbaston. “Third Test will be the indicator of what are the strengths of the teams; forget about ‘doctored’ wickets, each side plays on the same strip and should be able to adapt.”That would turn out to be the story of the 2015 Ashes in a nutshell.Without fanfare, Bannon had offered his wisdom freely and well in advance of events, an experience shared by many whose lives he enriched.Australian cricket is immeasurably poorer for his loss, and it is up to those who knew him to ensure his many learnings about history, cricket and life are not forgotten.

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Feb-2016Alex Hales and Jason Roy got England going, putting on 38 in 3.4 overs•Getty ImagesKagiso Rabada separated them, having Roy caught at midwicket•Getty ImagesDavid Wiese struck with his first ball to remove Joe Root•Getty ImagesImran Tahir got rid of Alex Hales and Ben Stokes in consecutive overs•Getty ImagesEoin Morgan fell to Tahir for 10 off 12 balls…•Getty Images…and Faf du Plessis’ blinder got Moeen Ali first ball and gave Tahir his fourth•Getty ImagesEngland needed wickets in order to defend 134 and Chris Jordan removed AB de Villiers in the fifth over•Getty ImagesDu Plessis guided his team’s chase from No. 3•Getty ImagesStokes’ four-over spell kept the pressure on, as well as accounting for Hashim Amla•AFPMoeen and Adil Rashid made vital breakthrough and Jordan then took two wickets in the penultimate over to swing the match England’s way•Getty ImagesWiese’s dismissal meant that South Africa were again left to rely on Chris Morris•Getty ImagesWith 15 needed off the last over, Morris hit consecutive boundaries off Reece Topley…•AFP…who was then unable to gather the final ball and run out Kyle Abbott to ensure a tie•Getty ImagesMorris was the hero again but Topley was distraught as South Africa won by three wickets•Getty Images

ESPNcricinfo staff20-May-2016…and Bairstow was quickly into his stride, overtaking Hales in the first hour•Getty ImagesHales got to within 14 runs of a maiden Test hundred before losing patience and holing out off Rangana Herath•Getty ImagesDushmantha Chameera then picked up two wickets in an over, leaving England 233 for 8•Getty ImagesBairstow progressed to his second Test hundred, and first on home soil•AFPSteven Finn played a few shots as he and Bairstow added 56 for the ninth wicket•Getty ImagesBairstow took his score on to 140 as England made 298•Getty ImagesThey were quickly among the wickets as Sri Lanka started their reply, Stuart Broad making the breakthrough…•Getty Images…followed by James Anderson, who drew level with Kapil Dev on 434 Test wickets…•Getty Images…and Broad again, his second in three balls, to leave Sri Lanka 12 for 3•AFPBen Stokes had some pain in his knee but carried on bowling•Getty ImagesBairstow bagged five catches to follow his hundred•AFPBroad picked up two more as Sri Lanka crumbled•PA PhotosAnderson finished with his first five-wicket haul at Headingley and Alastair Cook enforced the follow-on•Getty Images

Far from a towering, inspiring, regal presence, Angelo Mathews just stood and watched as England steamrolled his side once again

Jarrod Kimber at Chester-le-Street28-May-2016At Headingley, Angelo Mathews won the toss and bowled. He walked out on the ground in front of his team, between the flag holders, and there was something regal about him. It stood out. It might have been the memory of the last time, it might have been his posture, or his focus, but he looked like a leader.This is a man who plays his best cricket in big game situations, or when his team needs it the most. A man so proud he went out on a field in a shirt on which he had corrected the spelling of his own name. A man who through the era of Kumar and Mahela, still found ways to steal the show.Mathews has just looked taller than his team-mates, he has stood out from the beginning.

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Mathews’ captaincy on this tour hasn’t been incredible. Nick Knight isn’t rushing to his side to get a lesson on modern cricket tactics like he did with Brendon McCullum. Shane Warne is not using Mathews as a blunt instrument to beat Alastair Cook’s captaincy with. And his captaincy in general isn’t what the cricket hipsters are talking about. While MS Dhoni, McCullum and Michael Clarke’s captaincies have become cricket fetish items, Mathews just does his thing.Fielders are put in places, often not grouped too close together. Bowlers are brought on at fairly appropriate, and yet very predictable times. Five minutes to lunch he says, “hey Rangana, fancy an over?” In the funky captaincy era, it is a Donny Osmond record.Mathews doesn’t try to make things happen, he waits for things to happen. On a good day it makes him look like a calm leader who knows when to pounce. On a bad day it makes him look like a man who refuses to leave his car until the storm passes, oblivious to the fact the road is now a lake.If his batting and captaincy were in the schoolyard together, the batting would mock the captaincy for being boring all lunchtime.When Alex Hales and Jonny Bairstow started out their innings at Headingley on day two, Mathews greeted them with two slips. He might as well have delivered them cheese and an appropriate brandy.He took that to a new level when Moeen Ali batted with Steve Finn at Chester-le-Street. Modern captains are well known to like the everyone-on-the-boundary fielding move when a batsman bats with the tail. But that tactic comes with certain rules. The main one being that at the end of the over, balls five and six, you bring the field in so the next over can start with the tailender on strike. If that stupid tactic is to work, you have to execute all of it, not just the first part.Mathews took the only part of the bad tactic that made sense, and threw it away. If that tactic is what makes cricket fans head butt a wall, he set fire to the wall.Sure his fielders had let him down, and he was already daydreaming about how his batsmen were about to let him down. But it was the lack of fight, the lack of vision, and at times, the lack of actual movement that was so shocking.

Mathews is one of the best cricketers Sri Lanka has ever produced but, with England nine down, he reduced himself to the guy who relayed the ball from keeper to bowler

Mathews was at cover for most of it. It isn’t a short cover, it’s in the ring, but he has decided to stop moving at all. For whole overs he takes less than 20 paces. He doesn’t walk in with the bowler, he adopts the catching stance, despite the fact he might be the world’s deepest catching cover. When a ball is dropped at the feet of the batsman, he jogs over, but he manages to make the jog slower than a walk, like he’s on an invisible treadmill.Another ball dribbles out to him with all the ferocity of a basket of kittens, and yet he still manages to fumble – it’s a fielding yawn. Only when the ball is smashed at him do his natural athleticism and cricket senses switch back on and suddenly he is saving a boundary. Had that not occurred, he could have been replaced by a waxwork dummy and the game would have gone the exact same direction.Like a pot plant in a crack den, the Test was still technically alive when England were nearing the end of their innings, but Sri Lanka refused to acknowledge that fact. Mathews had all but stopped moving. The field placements were from 20 minutes earlier. The bowling plans were non-existent. The innings could have gone on for decades to come. People would have visited the ground to see the never-ending sporting spectacle and marvel at its stillness.Luckily England, who were frolicking along towards 500, decided that round-number totals are actually meaningless psychological missteps and, instead of pushing their way to the last few runs, they just put the Sri Lankans out of their misery. When the batting team is too bored to grind you into the dirt or reach their round-number declaration targets, something has gone horribly wrong.When Sri Lanka batted, it kept going wrong. If time was standing still when they bowled, when they batted their batsmen were fast-forwarded into dismissals at breakneck pace. It is usually those times, when Mathews is at his best.

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Mathews doesn’t look sure. He doesn’t look right. His drive is a waft that connected. His forward defence is barely forward and unsuccessful as a defence. Then he pushes again. This time there is an edge, and it was time for him to simply walk off. First he looks at the pitch, as if the answers are there. Then he looks back down the track.There is an unwritten, and not very trustworthy, rule that when a batsmen is given out caught behind, and they didn’t hit it, they review straight away. Those who don’t are hoping technology is in bad form.Mathews didn’t review straight away, he didn’t even review just after that. He reviewed after walking down the wicket and having a chat with the non-striker. He reviewed so late that the third umpire could have given him out purely on hunch and no one would have blamed him.Instead he used the technology, and Mathews used a review. In both situations he made a mistake, but that happens. What is worth was that in both situations he was unsure. He wasn’t leading. He hasn’t led at all. Not with bat, not with his two overs on day one, not in the field.The only time he looks like the Angelo Mathews who won at Headingley last tour was when he sprung into life to take a hanging one-hander at slip. That was muscle memory; when his brain has been needed, he has been asleep.

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A team without its two best-performing bowlers is going to struggle. A team without its two best batsmen is going to struggle. They need their best player, their captain, to do something. Anything. Not stand around waiting for pity declarations, not pathetic wafts, and not half-hearted DRS mistakes.This is a player who can pull victory from defeat, who has held Sri Lanka up for draws. Given them their most honourable defeats. And instead of inspiring, he’s insipid.This is a leaking team, they need leadership, if not through strategy, then from actions, if not actions, then from intent, if not from intent, then from Mathews picking up every single player and putting them on his back and fighting England on his own. He has achieved with athleticism, skill and intelligence some amazing things on the cricket field. This is one of the best cricketers Sri Lanka has ever produced but, for a while here, he reduced himself to the guy who relayed the ball from the keeper to the bowler while England were nine wickets down.He was standing out because he was the only man within 50 metres of the batsmen. There he stood, not regal and tall, but tired and broken.

Stats highlights from the final Harare T20I, where India defeated Zimbabwe by three runs to clinch the series 2-1

Bharath Seervi22-Jun-20160 Number of lower first-innings totals defended by India in T20Is, than the 138 in this match. The previous lowest was 146 against Bangladesh in the 2016 World T20. India had tied their 2007 World T20 match against Pakistan after scoring 141.43 Number of runs scored by India in the last three overs – 16 runs in the 18th over, 11 in the 19th and 16 in the 20th – as they moved from 95 to 138. In the seven overs prior to that, they had managed just 42. Zimbabwe needed 35 runs in the last three overs to win, but could manage only 31.3 The margin of Zimbabwe’s defeat is their narrowest in T20Is. For India, this was their third-narrowest win by runs.3 Number of consecutive bilateral T20I series won by India this year. Before the 2-1 triumph against Zimbabwe, they they swept Australia 3-0 in Australia, before prevailing 2-1 against Sri Lanka at home. Prior to the hat-trick of triumphs, India hadn’t won any of their previous three T20I series.1 Number of higher scores by an Indian, batting at No. 5 or lower in T20Is than Kedar Jadhav’s 58. Yuvraj Singh had made an unbeaten 77 against Australia when batting at No.5, in Rajkot in 2013-14. He had also made 58 against England in Durban in 2007 World T20. Jadhav’s knock was his maiden half-century, coming in his fourth innings.1 Wednesday’s T20I was the first in which both innings began with a maiden over. Tendai Chatara sent down a maiden when India batted, before Barinder Sran did the same during the chase, although he conceded a leg-bye. This was also the first time a maiden had been bowled in the first over of an Indian innings.3 for 20 Donald Tiripano’s figures in this match are his best in T20Is. Tiripano achieved his maiden three-wicket haul in his eighth match, and his returns are the second-best by a Zimbabwe bowler against India in T20Is.6 Number of wickets taken by Sran in this series is the joint-highest by an Indian who has played two or fewer matches in a bilateral T20I series. He took four wickets in the second game and two more on Wednesday to be adjudged the Player of the Series.19 Number of T20Is played by India this year is the most by a team in a calendar year. Pakistan had played 18 matches in 2010.324 Number of international matches in which MS Dhoni has served as captain, equaling Ricky Ponting’s tally. Dhoni has captained in 60 Tests, 194 ODIs and 70 T20Is.1 Number of Zimbabwe players who have played 50 or more T20Is. Hamilton Masakadza became the first to do so in this match.

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Aug-2016It was down to the other opener, Dhananjaya de Silva, to hold the innings together. By the time he brought up his maiden ODI fifty, the rest of the batsmen had tallied only 19 runs•Associated PressSri Lanka needed someone to lend the innings some substance, especially after Scott Boland dismissed Dinesh Chandimal, who had struck six fifties in eight one-day innings•Associated PressAngelo Mathews, who had come in with the score at 31 for 3, helped turn the tide•Associated PressBut he was struck on the helmet, and later had to retire hurt as a result of a calf injury. He had strung 84 runs with de Silva for the fourth wicket•AFPThen John Hastings bounced de Silva out and Sri Lanka were 121 for 4•Associated PressPart-time spinner Travis Head had Kusal Perera caught tamely at short cover to leave Sri Lanka in deeper trouble at 134 for 6•Associated PressA packed crowd in Dambulla were hoping for a fightback from the home side•Associated PressSachith Pathirana answered the call, to an extent, with a knock of 24 off 39 in the final 10 overs that helped Sri Lanka past 200•AFPMathews hobbled back out at the fall of the eighth wicket and, on one leg, struck a couple of fours to take his side to 212 all out•Associated PressHastings was the stand-out bowler for Australia; he picked up his first five-wicket haul in ODI cricket and finished with 6 for 45•AFPAaron Finch got Australia’s chase off to a blistering start, hitting eight fours and a six in the first 14 balls he faced•AFPHe went on to make his fifty off just 18 balls, equalling the fastest by an Australian•Associated PressHowever, Pathirana took three wickets in the space of five balls to leave Australia at 97 for 3 in the eighth over•Associated PressGeorge Bailey employed sweeps and reverse sweeps to accrue his runs, as he and Head took control of Australia’s chase•Associated PressBailey finished on an unbeaten 90 as Australia cantered to the series win with 19 overs to spare•Associated Press

Picking four fast bowlers meant that Pakistan needed to make the most of the new ball and the morning conditions, but their catching let them down

Andrew Fidel Fernando26-Nov-2016Everything about Sami Aslam was slow. He was slow to pick up the ball off Jeet Raval’s edge, and slow to move to his right. His hands closed like the gates of a warehouse in an action movie – the ball screeching through like the hero on a motorbike. After it had made its triumphant escape, Aslam rose in increments; unsticking each of his limbs from the ground. Slow is not what Pakistan wanted from this innings. It is not what they needed from this Test.When a side picks four fast bowlers, they want the game to go quickly. Not for this particular attack is “staying patient on a fifth stump line” or “tying batsmen down” with diligent lengths. Bowling dry works when a high-quality spinner plays, because on his best days, Yasir Shah can wall batsmen in for hours and hours, until the pitch is sufficiently dry that with a flick of his hair and a snap of fingertips, he can send entire batting orders cascading.But this is not the strategy Pakistan opted for. In their dream sequence for this match, Pakistan won the toss, bowled first, had Mohammad Amir get more nicks than a first-time shaver, had their two honest Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Khans shoot balls between bat and pad, then – preferably after a New Zealand batsman provoked Wahab Riaz – had Wahab send them sarcastic flying kisses, his deliveries at their grilles, and pieces of protective equipment into the stumps. The whole thing would be done in 40 overs. A demoralised New Zealand would have no more than 200 on the board.

Watling hopes weather will help

New Zealand wicketkeeper BJ Watling said the weather forecast for Sunday may assist the hosts in their hunt for five more Pakistan wickets.
“Think it might be bit overcast tomorrow and keep the juice in the wicket,” he said. “I can see it browning off a bit, but there’s random green patches that keep you honest and keep the bowlers in the game. There are two very good batsmen out there. We need to break this partnership and really put their tail under some pressure.”
Watling had arrived with the score on 119 for 5, but forged good partnerships with the tail, to remain not out on 49, when New Zealand were bowled out for 271. Tim Southee hit 29, while Mitchell Santner and Matt Henry also reached double figures.
“We could have been bowled out for 200 or 210,” Watling said. “But the tail chipped in and played positively. The quick runs helped us have a good crack at them tonight as well.”

On Friday, Amir had bowled a first over deserving of the Pakistan fantasy. He was in the New Zealand openers’ heads straight away. He pitched deliveries on lines they had to play at. He shimmied the ball away. He drew four edges with six balls, and nearly grazed off stump with one. Yet Amir came away with only one wicket in the opening over when he should have had at least two. Aslam had been the culprit then as well, trying to trap the ball with wrists instead of palms, and fending it away onto a quivering boot. Raval went on to make New Zealand’s highest score of 55, dropped on 0 and then 40. Amir was quivering himself. Maybe he wondered after a season of dropped catches off his bowling, if the universe would ever forgive him; if it would let him have the hauls his skill deserved.The drops stung because unlike in the UAE, where games pick up speed like a boulder coming down a hill, matches on green-tops come roaring out of the gates. The more quickly attacks can get through the top three, the more chance a middle order can be exposed, and the tail shot out. If the ball still had its gloss when Henry Nicholls (in his ninth Test) or Colin de Grandhomme (in his second) had come to the crease, chances of them lasting more than fifty balls apiece would have been slim. With every over bowled, the seam became a little less pronounced, and the surface grew a little less damp. Where a clinical catching side might have built enough pressure to spark a collapse, Pakistan saw New Zealand’s tail get quick runs. It was only later that they paid for failing to knock over one of the early dominoes.”Yes, they shouldn’t have got 270 on that pitch,” Sohail Khan, the most successful of Pakistan’s seamers, said. “Even though the ball was a bit damp on the first day, which prevented us from using it as well as we could have, we still won the toss. The score they got was a bit on the high side on that pitch.”When Pakistan took guard, New Zealand’s quicks showed the pressure early wickets can impart. Raval held a low chance from Aslam’s bat, and when Azhar Ali was also caught behind, an out-of-sorts Younis Khan was drawn out of the dressing room. By the end of the day 8 for 2 had turned into 76 for 5 – a huge first-innings deficit likely, unless the two overnight batsmen can defy New Zealand on the third morning.”If we get one good partnership, we can take the score very close – Babar Azam and Sarfraz Ahmed are still there,” Sohail said. “When we bowl again, this game is more like an attacking one now, and we could still finish it in a session.”For the second time in as many Tests, Pakistan are faced with a difficult route back into the match. Had they done Amir’s spell justice, they might even have had the game by its collar by now.