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While there is interest in adding new teams, an agreement between the PCB and existing franchises means none can be added until after the 2025 season

Umar Farooq21-Apr-2023Despite developing interest in new franchises in the PSL, a signed agreement in 2021 between the PCB and franchises means no new teams can be added to the current six before the completion of the tenth season in 2025. Interest among potential new owners and within the current PCB for new franchises has been growing, understandably for the board given the revenues it generates from franchise fees. But there are several challenges that might become a cause for concern and a new stress point for the league going forward.Although the current PCB head Najam Sethi hasn’t formally taken up the proposition of new franchises, he has publicly opened up a discussion about the possibility of introducing at least one and a maximum of two teams. In a recent interview with local media Sethi said: “The revenue will increase and also teams will increase, and my advice to the other six franchises is that you will not suffer any loss, but you will make a profit from this, and if the revenue decreases, then we will help you in this matter.”But a clause added in to the agreement between the board and franchises after a protracted renegotiation of financial terms explicitly prevents franchises from being added. “The PCB agrees that it shall not introduce a new franchise team in the PSL under the same financial model contained herein, before the tenth edition of the Tournament has concluded, whereafter the PCB may include new franchise team(s) to participate in the PSL from time to time at its sole discretion,” reads the new clause 2.12 to the agreement, a copy of which ESPNcricinfo has seen.But if a new team does come in, continues the clause, prior to the tenth season, then the share the six current franchises receive from the central pool of income – 95% of media rights, sponsorship rights and gate money – will not be reduced. That share was one of the main outcomes from the negotiations that led to the new financial model being agreed upon, under the chairmanship of Ramiz Raja.The PCB has not taken the matter up with franchises formally or informally yet but ESPNcricinfo understands that the issue is likely to be on the agenda of the PSL governing council meeting next month. The sixth franchise Multan Sultans came into being after the third edition and was sold for an annual fee of USD $6.35million: after four seasons they are yet to break even financially.One of the major challenges an expanded league will face is the window the PSL has in the current, cramped calendar. At the moment the league runs for 34 days and is hemmed in at one end by the BPL, the BBL and, from this year, the ILT20 and SA20. At the other end is the IPL and growing in that space could hurt the prospects attracting top foreign talent. The PSL’s window itself has not always been fixed. While February-March has been the preferred spot since 2016 , it was pulled back to January-February in 2022 to accommodate the home series against Australia. And a packed international calendar means that in 2025, when Pakistan is due to host the Champions Trophy, there will be a clash of dates with the IPL. And the 2026 PSL will end up taking place fewer than seven months later, in December 2025-January 2026.The Pakistan economy is also struggling currently, so new sponsorship may not come so easily. And for the next couple of years the league will also have to work around the Islamic month of Ramadan. The league and the month itself are two major commercial opportunities in the year and thus far have not faced major overlaps (the Islamic calendar is lunar-based so each year Ramadan starts ten days or so earlier on the Gregorian calendar). We are now entering a period, however, where there will be overlap and franchises worry that may eat into their commercial opportunities. Another worry is the current depth of the player pool in Pakistan, especially in the top two categories, with six teams already struggling to pick players because of the depleted draft list – another two would stretch that further.The PSL on paper is a home-and-away tournament but the PCB hasn’t been able to play it out over six venues – in practice only four franchises play at home venues. More teams will mean more games and could potentially enhance the broadcast value but at the same time it will increase the production cost. The PCB is exploring venues and Peshawar, which would house Peshawar Zalmi, is likely to be added next year. This season they played an exhibition game in Quetta but it is unlikely they will go back.Until 2021, the franchises had been battling with PCB over the financial model and had gone the legal route, leading former PCB chairman Ehsan Mani to set up a one-man panel with a retired chief justice of the Supreme Court to arbitrate on the issue. Tassaduq Hussain Jillani reviewed the financial model and submitted that report, though the PCB did not share details of it with the franchises, citing it as confidential. But it paved the way for PCB to sign the addendum that gave the franchises revised distribution revenue from the central pool.

Sri Lanka collapsed from 91 for 2 to 141 all out before Tim Seifert powered a one-sided chase

Andrew Fidel Fernando05-Apr-2023Adam Milne took five wickets as New Zealand’s seamers derailed Sri Lanka’s innings, before a scintillating Tim Seifert sent New Zealand racing to a modest target of 142, hitting 79 not out off 43 balls. After the Super Over thriller in Auckland, New Zealand levelled the series in a game that was exceedingly one-sided for the most part.Sri Lanka had competed in the early stages, getting to 89 for 2 off eleven overs after being put in to bat. But the dismissal of set batters Kusal Perera and Dhananjaya de Silva in close succession sent the innings into a downward spiral. They were all out for 141 after 19 overs, when at one point, they seemed set to push for a total in the range of 180.New Zealand set off rapidly, thanks initially to Chad Bowes. They ran down the total with 32 deliveries and nine wickets to spare.

The turning point: Perera and de Silva fall in quick succession

Sri Lanka appeared headed to another substantial total when Perera and de Silva were batting – their partnership yielding 62 off 46 balls. There was plenty of batting to come too, with the in-form Charith Asalanka in next, followed by the big-hitting Dasun Shanaka and Wanindu Hasaranga.But Perera fell for 35 off 32, smashing a Milne slower ball straight to deep midwicket, before de Silva also holed out in the next over, hitting Rachin Ravindra to long off, having made 37 off 26.

Sri Lanka’s middle order unravels

The remaining batters also fell trying to crash boundaries. Shanaka skied a slog trying to clatter Henry Shipley across the line; Hasaranga couldn’t quite hit a James Neesham legcutter over mid-off, and later, Asalanka top-edged a cutter from Milne, having made 24 off 19.All up, since the 12th over, Sri Lanka lost eight wickets for 50 runs, in the space of 47 balls, the tail also falling meekly.Adam Milne’s 5 for 26 skittled Sri Lanka for 141•AFP/Getty Images

Milne’s triple-wicket over

Asalanka was just the first of Milne’s victims in the 19th over. Two balls later, Milne bowled a terrific yorker that ricocheted off Pramod Madushan’s pads and into the stumps. The yorker to Dilshan Madushanka was even more impressive, taking out middle and off stump, to end Sri Lanka’s innings. Milne’s take was 5 for 26 from his four overs. Ben Lister took 2 for 26.

The Seifert show

Although 142 was never a target that seemed likely to test New Zealand, Seifert’s spectacular hitting made especially light work of it. He didn’t have much of the strike initially, as Bowes struck seven fours in his 16-ball 31. After Bowes’ departure in the fourth over, Seifert took control, first thwacking Madushan through point, before launching Kasun Rajitha for two sixes over long-on in the sixth over.Seifert continued to deal in sixes, often hitting with the wind to clear the University Oval’s small boundaries. He slog swept both Hasaranga and de Silva for sixes – the first over midwicket, the second over deep square leg. Later, he reverse-slapped de Silva twice for six, with the winning runs coming off one of those blows. Seifert hit six sixes in all, and three fours.Tom Latham, his partner through a 106-run partnership that came off 68 balls, played second fiddle making 20 off 30 en route to a comfortable win.

CSK allrounder will return to the UK ahead of the IPL play-offs

Matt Roller15-May-2023Just over a month before the start of the Ashes, bowling remains “a bit of a challenge” for England’s captain Ben Stokes, who continues to miss out on selection for Chennai Super Kings at the IPL.England play their first Test against Australia at Edgbaston on June 16 and Stokes has signalled his intention to “fulfil my role as fourth seamer” during that series after a long-running knee issue which has limited his bowling workloads in the recent past.Stokes, an INR 16.25 crore (£1.6 million approx.) signing at December’s auction, played the first two games of CSK’s season, making 7 and 8 and conceding 18 runs in his only over with the ball.ESPNcricinfo understands that he will return to the UK after their final group game against Delhi Capitals on Saturday afternoon, having previously indicated that he would “give myself enough time to get back and play” in England’s Test against Ireland at Lord’s on June 1, a fixture which is being viewed primarily as Ashes preparation.Stokes has not played since April 3, initially missing out due to a toe injury before suffering “another little setback” which Stephen Fleming, Super Kings’ head coach, refused to elaborate on.Related

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Stokes has been available for selection again in the last week but has been unable to find a place in the starting XI, with CSK opting to use Devon Conway, Moeen Ali, Matheesha Pathirana and Maheesh Theekshana as their four overseas players instead.And after CSK’s home defeat to Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday night, Fleming revealed that Stokes is being seen as “batting cover” and that the franchise are unlikely to “chop and change” ahead of their final group game.”Ben’s ability to bowl overs at the moment is still a bit of a challenge, but he’s there as that batting cover,” Fleming said. “But with Moeen bowling well in good conditions – we go to Delhi [next] which has been turning – we think the balance of the side has been right.”And look, we’re second on the table, so it’s not our style to chop and change just because we’ve had a loss where things didn’t go our way. We won’t do that. We might tinker with it but we’re very focused on getting the right team for Delhi.”England’s selectors are due to meet in the next few days to select a squad for the Ireland Test, with concerns lingering over the fitness of James Anderson.

Shane Snater six ends Essex’s quarter-final hoodoo against Birmingham Bears

ECB Reporters Network06-Jul-2023Essex became the first team through to 2023 Vitality Blast Finals Day after beating Birmingham Bears by two wickets in a thrilling quarter-final at Edgbaston.The Bears charged through the group stage with 11 wins out of 14 but bowed out at the quarter-final stage for the third successive year in the face of a commanding display from Simon Harmer’s side.Disciplined Essex bowling, backed up by excellent fielding, restricted the Bears to 167 for 6. Sam Hain struck a typically polished 52 (26 balls) but, tied down by Harmer (4-0-20-1) and Sam Cook (4-0-24-2), the home side needed some late flailing from Chris Benjamin and Dominic Drakes to at least approach par.Essex then reach 171 for 8 with two balls to spare. Dan Lawrence underpinned the chase with a high-class 62 (41 balls) and Paul Walter’s violent 15-ball 27 retained his side’s control at a vital time mid-innings. The Bears fought hard in the closing overs and Essex needed three from the last two balls before Shane Snater hit the first of them for six.Essex chose to field and started brilliantly as Daniel Sams delivered a wicket maiden. Rob Yates skied the third ball of the innings to third man and it was not until the eighth that the Bears opened their account with a top-edged two. 5 for 1 from 14 balls was not a start to excite the 10,812 crowd.Glenn Maxwell pulled the 15th ball for six but Alex Davies fell in the next over, adjudged, after an interminable review, to have gloved a pull at Aaron Beard.Maxwell added five fours to his six in a punchy 32 but then pulled Walter to deep mid-wicket where Sams took a calm catch and celebrated with a fist-pump to the raucous Hollies Stand. When, 17 balls later, the Aussie accepted another catch to oust Dan Mousley, this time he turned and shushed the Hollies… it had gone rather quiet.Harmer increased the pressure by conceding just three in his first over and bowling Jake Bethell in his second. Hain posted his 25th T20 half-century, from 33 balls, but then sliced Cook to short third.With Hain went the Bears’ hopes of a really imposing total and it was left to Benjamin and Drakes to eke 34 from the last 21 balls to heave the total over 150.The Bears needed to strike early but Adam Rossington clouted 21 from 11 balls to make immediate inroads into the modest target.Related

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Rossington was run out by smart work from Davies but Essex thundered to 77 for 1 from 41 balls before a wobble arrived with two wickets in three balls, Michael Pepper slicing to short third man and Feroze Khushi socking a Jake Lintott full toss to deep midwicket.Successive sixes by Walter off Maxwell reasserted the visitors’ control and Lawrence continued to work the ball round with consummate skill before his departure set up a tense finish.With seven needed from two overs, Lawrence lifted the next ball, from Drakes, to mid on. A superb over from the West Indian cost just a single and saw Harmer run out from the last ball, leaving six still to find from the last over, bowled by Olly Hannon-Dalby.That came down to three from the last two balls, the first of which Snater socked for a straight six to end Essex’s quarter-final hoodoo against the Bears who won both their previous meetings in the last eight.Having squeezed through the group stage by the skin of their teeth, and now survived a tight quarter-final, Essex will return to Edgbaston for Finals Day on July 15 believing this may well be their year.

India vice-captain, who just won the Women’s Hundred with Southern Brave, did not put her name in inaugural WBBL overseas draft

Vishal Dikshit28-Aug-2023India vice-captain Smriti Mandhana has opted out of the WBBL for the second year in a row, as she could play in the upcoming domestic season. She had skipped the 2022-23 WBBL as well to manage her workload and focus on her India commitments during a busy international year.This time, Mandhana did not put her name in the list of 122 players for the inaugural WBBL overseas draft, and might instead play for Maharashtra in the Indian domestic season which will run from October 19 to January 26 next year, and overlap with the WBBL.Related

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The WBBL will also kick off on October 19 and go on until December 2, and will also clash partially with India’s busy international home season. India are set to host England and Australia from mid-December to mid-January for one Test each, and a combined nine ODIs and T20Is. Mandhana, apart from being deputy to captain Harmanpreet Kaur, is also an important all-format player for India.India’s women’s domestic season will begin with the Senior Women’s T20 Trophy, to be played from October 19 to November 9. It will be followed by the Senior Women’s Inter-Zonal Trophy, from November 24 to December 4, while after a month, the Senior Women’s One-Day Trophy will run from January 4 to 26. Among the senior women’s tournaments, the T20 Challenger Trophy and the Inter-Zonal One Day Trophy are missing from the calendar which was announced by the BCCI in April this year.Mandhana, who won the Women’s Hundred final with Southern Brave on Sunday, has played in three of the eight WBBL seasons so far, and represented Brisbane Heat, Hobart Hurricanes and Sydney Thunder.The women’s calendar saw the addition of the inaugural WPL earlier this year, in which Mandhana was the most expensive player for INR 3.4 crore at the auction, and also captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore, who won just two of their eight games and finished second from bottom.

A strong performance for Australia A against New Zealand A could vault him up the pecking order

Andrew McGlashan27-Aug-2023One of the most interesting aspects of the upcoming Australian cricket season is the identity of David Warner’s successor at the top of the order in the Test team.It remains to be seen whether that vacancy will need filling against Pakistan in mid-December or against West Indies a month later. Warner wants to retire at the SCG, his home ground, in the first week of January and while that is probably how it plays out, it’s not yet certain.Given the recent hierarchy, it would appear Cameron Bancroft, last season’s leading Sheffield Shield run-scorer by a distance, is currently no higher than third in line; Marcus Harris was the reserve batter through the Ashes and much of the last 18 months, while Matt Renshaw is also back in the mix. A four-match stint for Somerset early in the English season was a struggle for Bancroft; he averaged 19.57 and also had his off stump poleaxed by Stuart Broad, but the argument can be made that he is unfortunate not to be higher in the running.Related

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Bancroft now has the opportunity to rekindle last season’s form having been selected in the Australia A side to face New Zealand A in two four-day games in Brisbane and Mackay over the next fortnight. Harris has been rested after his time on the road and Renshaw will only feature in the one-dayers which follow – a sign, perhaps, that the selectors feel confident in knowing their credentials, but runs for Bancroft in this series and the first six Sheffield Shield matches before the Test summer begins could still be persuasive.Bancroft is aware of the opportunity but is determined for it not to become a distraction.”I feel like I’ve been around it my whole career. The amount of times I would have been talked about to be a potential selection is a lot,” he told ESPNcricinfo ahead of the opening game against New Zealand A. “Hopefully I can draw on those times and those experiences to just focus on what I can do for myself and the teams I’m playing for.”If you can do that everything else will take care of itself. It’s not easy to do, obviously, everyone has aspirations and wants things. But if you can do that, stay in the moment, that’s what’s important. Regardless of the opportunities that were coming up in the Australian team, it never once changed how I would have wanted to approach last season.”Last year was good and I probably gave myself an opportunity to get selected – it didn’t quite happen but that doesn’t change the drive for me to still be excellent in what I do. I feel if I stick to that then opportunities, I’m sure, will present themselves moving forward.”Bancroft’s ten-match Test career has two parts. The first was brought to an abrupt halt by the ball-tampering scandal in 2018 after he had shown glimpses of being up to the challenge. After marking his return from the ban by batting for 621 balls against New South Wales, he was recalled for the 2019 Ashes but only lasted two matches because his technique was picked apart.However, he was selected for the home series against Pakistan despite lean Shield returns. In the end he didn’t play, finished the season with an average of 15.92, and was dropped by Western Australia. He began the climb back from there and found career-best form in Western Australia’s Sheffield Shield title defence last summer, scoring 945 runs with four centuries.Cameron Bancroft did not have a good season with Somerset•Getty Images

“Like to think I’ve tried to learn from the past,” Bancroft said. “[Last season] I just tried to be really consistent with my method and with how I was analysing things. As an opener you are always going to get a good ball, sometimes the ball is going to move, it’s going to be challenging. Feel like that worked well for me last season and hopefully it’s something I can keep building on.”Bancroft continues to work closely Justin Langer as well as Beau Casson, Western Australia’s batting coach, while for the Australia A series he will have his state head coach Adam Voges in charge of the side.”I idolised JL [Langer] as a player and he had a big influence on me when he coached WA,” Bancroft said. “I felt like I wanted that edge that he brings in his personality and wanted to be in the presence of that. We have regular contact. He’s a brilliant coach and I love what he contributes to my game.”[Beau’s] influence on my batting has been really awesome. He’s got a really special way with words and knowing what to say, when to say it, to get the best out of you. I find Cass is someone to lean on. I’m really lucky that those two coaches communicate with each other and it certainly makes my life easier when I’m looking to maintain and improve things in my game.”Bancroft turns 31 in November, an age when batters are often considered to be coming into their prime. “There’s always examples in cricket where you mature and it kind of works for you,” he said. “Like to think the older I get the wiser I become, and you can use that to play better. I want to play Test cricket again. Think there’s still plenty of time and opportunity.”Australia A four-day squad Wes Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Jordan Buckingham, Ben Dwarshuis, Caleb Jewell, Campbell Kellaway, Matthew Kuhnemann, Nathan McAndrew, Nathan McSweeney, Joel Paris, Jimmy Peirson, Mitch Perry, Josh Philippe, Mark Steketee, Mitchell Swepson, Tim WardNew Zealand A four-day squad Muhammad Abbas, Adi Ashok (second game only), Tom Bruce (capt), Leo Carter, Josh Clarkson, Henry Cooper, Jacob Duffy, Cam Fletcher, Dean Foxcroft (second game only), Mitch Hay, Scott, Kuggeleijn, Will O’Rourke, Ajaz Patel, Brett Randell, Sean Solia

Dhaka Metropolis beat Sylhet Division by 87 runs, while Chattogram get off to a winning start against Barisal

Mohammad Isam16-Oct-2023Dhaka Division stunned defending champions Rangpur Division by beating them by 23 runs in the opening round of this season’s National Cricket League. In a low-scoring tier-1 game at the Shere Bangla National Stadium, Anamul Haque’s four-wicket haul on the third afternoon tilted the game Dhaka’s way, as they bowl Rangpur out for 128 runs in their chase of 152.Dhaka managed only 166 in the first innings after being sent in by Rangpur, even as Rony Talukdar hit an unbeaten 102, his 11th first-class century. Apart from Talukdar, only two other Dhaka batters reached double figures. For Rangpur, Nobin Islam picked up his maiden five-wicket haul.In reply, Rangpur scored 238 and took a 72-run lead. Wicketkeeper-batter Mim Mosaddeak top scored with 71, while captain Ariful Haque scored an unbeaten 58. Left-arm quick Salauddin Sakil took four wickets for Dhaka.In their second innings, Taibur Rahman’s 66 kept Dhaka in the game, but Asadullah Galib’s 5 for 68 for Rangpur restricted Dhaka’s lead to 151, which wasn’t too threatening with so much time remaining.However, Rangpur slipped to 44 for 7 in the chase, before Nihaduzzaman’s fighting 56 from No. 8 kept them afloat. He added 75 for the eighth wicket with Sanjit Saha, before Sakil removed Nihaduzzaman and Galib in the space of three deliveries. Rangpur were shortly bowled out for 128.Naeem Islam marked his Dhaka Metropolis debut by reaching his 10,000th first-class run in the course of an 88-run win against Sylhet Division. Naeem moved to Metropolis after having played more than 150 matches for his northern native sides Rangpur and Rajshahi.He top-scored with 65 in the first innings after Sylhet opted to bowl, but Metropolis were bowled out for 243. Abu Jayed, Khaled Ahmed, Sahanur Rahman and Nabil Samad took two wickets each for Sylhet, and then their captain Zakir Hasan’s 15th first-class century gave them an eight-run lead. Left-arm seamer Abu Hider took three wickets for Metropolis.Metropolis managed only 212 while batting again, with medium-pace bowler Rejaur Rahman Raja taking a hat-trick to wrap up the innings. Raja became the second bowler from Sylhet to take a first-class hat-trick, following Enamul Haque Jr in the 2018-19 season.But it was all upended by left-arm spinner Arif Ahmed, whose five-wicket haul cleaned up Sylhet for 116 during their chase of 205. Hider took three more wickets to finish as Player of the Match, having also contributed 34 with the bat in the first innings.Chattogram Division kicked off their NCL tier-2 campaign with an 87-run win over Barisal Division. Having been sent in by Barishal at their home venue, Chattogram banked on 96 from Pinak Ghosh and 94 from Mominul Haque to reach 238. Offspinner Sohag Gazi took 5 for 54 for Barishal.Moin Khan’s 71 from the lower order kept Barishal ticking, but they ended three short in their reply. Chattogram built on that meagre advantage with fifties from Yasir Ali, Shamim Hossain and Nayeem Hasan and reached 308, leaving Barishal 312 to chase. Seamer Kamrul Islam Rabbi took 5 for 64 for Barisal. But Hasan Murad’s four-wicket haul skittled out Barishal for 224 despite Gazi’s 97.In the other tier-2 match, Khulna Division crushed Rajshahi Division by 400 runs at the latter’s home ground. Khulna, who had opted to bat, got 288 in the first innings with fifties from Mohammad Mithun and Afif Hossain. But Rajshahi were then blown away for 81, their fourth-lowest first-class total of all time, as Al-Amin Hossain and Soumya Sarkar took four wickets each for Khulna, thus securing a massive 207-run lead.Khulna chose to bat again rather than enforcing the follow-on, and Mithun struck his 15th first-class century as Khulna declared on 334 for 5. Mithun made an unbeaten 125 off just 149 balls, which included 12 fours and four sixes. Sarkar and Anamul Haque struck fifties, too.Set a mammoth 542 to win, Rajshahi were then bowled out for 141 to end up with their lowes-ever match aggregate of 222. Al-Amin, Ziaur Rahman and Nahidul Islam took two wickets each for Khulna.

Assam’s dream run ended on Saturday, as did the campaign led by young Dhull for Delhi

Abhimanyu Bose04-Nov-2023Punjab and Baroda will face off in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy final after beating Delhi and Assam in their respective semi-finals in Mohali. Punjab made a big chase look simple before Baroda’s provided an all-round display.This will be the fifth final for both Baroda and Punjab, the most for any team in the tournament. In fact, the two teams had met in the 2011-12 final, when Baroda beat Punjab for the first of their two titles. Punjab have not won the competition in either of their four previous finals. The title clash will be in Mohali on Monday.

Abhishek, Mandeep steer Punjab

Ayush Badoni’s 57-ball 80 went in vain as Abhishek Sharma and Mandeep Singh hammered rapid half-centuries in the chase to send Punjab into the final.Coming in to bat in the fourth over after Sidharth Kaul sent opener Priyansh Arya and Yash Dhull back, Badoni stayed unbeaten till the end, holding together Delhi’s innings in Mohali as others around him fell without offering much support after Anuj Rawat’s early burst.Rawat, who hit a fine half-century in the quarter-final, was largely responsible for Delhi’s early impetus. He hit five fours and a six as he raced to 34 off 22.But after left-arm spinner Harpreet Brar accounted for Rawat, it was up to Badoni to shepherd Delhi to a fighting total and he did that with aplomb. The 23-year-old hit seven fours and four sixes as Delhi racked up 94 runs in the last ten overs.Right-arm quick Mayank Yadav struck twice in the third over of the chase and Punjab lost Anmolpreet Singh as well at the end of the powerplay, but stayed abreast with the required rate as they piled on 55 runs in the first six.Abhishek and Mandeep then added 102 off 58 deliveries to put Punjab in the driving seat. Abhishek fell to Suyash Sharma for 77 off 45, but Mandeep saw Punjab through along with Nehal Wadhera, with eight balls to spare.Suyash took two wickets, to finish his campaign with 18 wickets from seven games. He is only behind Ravi Teja (19) in the wicket charts. Abhishek, meanwhile, moved up to second in the run charts.

Baroda end Assam and Parag’s dream run

It has been an excellent season for Assam and their captain Riyan Parag. Parag hit seven consecutive half-centuries, the first time in the competition’s history, and Assam reached the semi-finals for the first time ever.But that was the end of the road for them as Baroda stormed past them to reach their second final in the last four years.Assam started well after being put in to bat. Openers Denish Das and Rishav Das took them to 46 before the former was out for 32 in the last over of the powerplay to Atit Sheth. Assam’s quarter-final hero Sumit Ghadigaonkar failed to make an impact and Parag was also out cheaply to leave Assam in trouble.Rishav tried to rebuild but Assam slid further from 99 for 3 to 111 for 6 and were eventually bowled out for 143. Abhimanyusingh Rajput was the pick of the Baroda bowlers, taking four wickets, while Sheth struck twice.If Assam had any hopes of pulling off an unlikely win in a low-scoring thriller, Baroda’s openers foiled them with an 81-run stand off 47 balls. Even though Baroda then lost three wickets for 19 runs, including openers Ninad Rathva and Jyotsnil Singh, they were in too comfortable a position for Assam to mount a prospective comeback.

UAE fall short with the bat, leaving Afghanistan with a comfortable total to chase

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Jan-2024A four-wicket haul from Naveen Ul Haq and a three-for from Qais Ahmad consigned United Arab Emirates to a series defeat in Sharjah as Afghanistan won by four wickets to clinch the T20I trophy 2-1.Naveen’s three wickets in the first-innings powerplay had UAE reeling at 38 for 4 by the sixth over, after which Qais stepped up to claim the next three scalps, including UAE’s top scorer Muhammad Waseem (27). UAE’s score of 75 for 7 soon became 107 for 9 when Naveen returned to pick up his fourth to finish with 4 for 20, but an unbeaten 19-run tenth-wicket partnership between Muhammad Jawadullah and Junaid Siddique took the hosts to 126. Qais finished with 3 for 24 while Azmatullah Omarzai picked up two.Afghanistan’s chase was comfortable if not clinical. Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s 14-ball 20 provided the early impetus, and the pair of Hazratullah Zazai (36) and Ibrahim Zadran (23) scored slowly but kept the chase moving. The Zazai-Ibrahim stand of 37 for the second wicket took Afghanistan past the halfway stage of the target, but a middle-order collapse – where they slid from 85 for 2 to 103 for 6 – gave UAE an opening.However, with 24 needed in 18 balls, Najibullah Zadran turned up the tempo again, smacking two fours in the 18th over to bring the rate under six. With 13 needed off the last two overs, he finished the game with consecutive sixes to finish unbeaten on 28 at a strike-rate of 215.

Rinku hits form with 92 against Kerala while Bishnoi plays a key role in Gujarat’s thrilling come-from-behind win over Tamil Nadu

Shashank Kishore09-Jan-2024

Rinku, Kuldeep impress for UP

Rinku Singh fell eight short of an eighth first-class century, but helped Uttar Pradesh post a formidable 302 after they elected to bat. Kuldeep Yadav then sliced through the cream of Kerala’s top order with the big scalps of Sachin Baby and Vishnu Vinod. He finished with figures of 19-1-68-3 to play a part in UP taking a 59-run lead. Alongside Kuldeep, fast bowler Ankit Rajpoot also hit top gear, picking a five-wicket haul. Having taken the lead, UP opted to bat on with Priyam Garg and Aryan Juyal hitting centuries in a tame draw. Sanju Samson, who is one of two wicketkeepers for the Afghanistan T20Is alongside Jitesh Sharma, made 35 in his only innings in the match.

Bishnoi makes a mark in Gujarat’s thrilling win

Ravi Bishnoi’s four-wicket haul in the first innings helped Gujarat overcome a 14-run deficit to clinch a thrilling win over Tamil Nadu in Valsad. Gujarat’s 236 seemed quite massive when TN were tottering on 119 for 8 in the first innings. M Mohammed and Sandeep Warrier then put on 116 for the ninth wicket to help TN secure a lead. Gujarat’s turnaround was led by Ripal Patel, who led the counter-attack with 71-ball 81 and Umang Kumar (89). Set 299 for victory, Tamil Nadu were skittled for 187 with fast bowler Arzan Nagwaswalla picking up four wickets. Washington Sundar, who is one of two allrounders in the India squad, finished with scores of 1 and 6 with the bat, while returning a combined figures of 1 for 68 with the ball.Devdutt Padikkal struck 193 off 216 balls against Punjab•PTI

Padikkal, Pandey star as Karnataka wallop Punjab

Devdutt Padikkal and Manish Pandey struck big hundreds to help Karnataka open up a massive lead after fast bowler V Koushik sliced through Punjab on the opening day with 7 for 41. Electing to bat, Punjab were skittled for 152 before Karnataka racked up 514 for 8 declared. Needing 362 to avoid an innings defeat, Punjab batted for 114.4 overs and made Karnataka toil by posting 413, with Abhishek Sharma (91) and Prabhsimran Singh (100) setting the tone with a 192-run opening stand. Needing 52 to victory, Karnataka lost three early but eventually squeezed home in the final session to pocket six points. Fast bowler Arshdeep Singh got plenty of miles under him with figures of 28-1-92-3 in the first innings.

Pujara remains in the conversation with 17th double-ton

Cheteshwar Pujara’s unbeaten 243 helped carve up a massive first-innings lead for Saurashtra, but Jharkhand managed to salvage a point in a drawn fixture in Rajkot. Middle order batter Kumar Suraj struck an unbeaten 113, while opener Kumar Deobrat made 91 as Jharkhand batted 109 overs for 306 for 3 when the captains shook hands. Pujara aside, allrounder Chirag Jani impressed with a five-for in the first innings while Harvik Desai, the wicketkeeper batter, and Prerak Mankad hit 85 and 104 not out respectively.Related

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Chaos reigns as Delhi slump to defeat

The cream of their batting talent is elsewhere: Nitish Rana moved to UP. Dhruv Shorey to Vidarbha. Association politics led to a jumbo 26-member squad that was pruned to 15 only hours before they took the field. With hardly any build-up, Delhi stood exposed as they were handed a nine-wicket defeat by Puducherry, new entrants no more. Gaurav Yadav, the fast bowler, playing his first first-class game for his new team since moving over from Madhya Pradesh took a ten-wicket haul. Within minutes of the loss, Yash Dhull, India’s Under-19 World Cup winning captain from 2022, was removed as Delhi captain. Ishant Sharma and Navdeep Saini managed just three wickets between them in the first innings as Puducherry’s lead of 96 proved decisive.

Dube celebrates India call-up with all-round show

Shivam Dube is back in India’s T20I setup following a stellar IPL. Although he was part of the Asian Games winning squad, his selection for the Afghanistan T20Is is significant considering it is India’s last assignment prior to the T20 World Cup in June. He struck a 61-ball 41 in a low-scoring first innings where Mumbai managed just 251, but it was enough to secure an innings and 51 run win as Bihar were bowled out for 100 in each innings. Dube finished with combined figures of 6 for 23 in the match.