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Sachin Tendulkar, Yusuf Pathan, and S Badrinath had earlier tested positive for the virus

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Mar-2021Irfan Pathan has become the fourth player to test positive for Covid-19 from among those who played in the recently concluded Road Safety World Series, a T20 tournament that pitted former players from India, England, West Indies, Bangladesh, South Africa and Sri Lanka against each other.Related

• After Tendulkar and Yusuf Pathan, Badrinath also tests Covid-19 positive

On Saturday, Sachin Tendulkar announced that he had tested positive for the virus, and his announcement was followed by similar ones from Irfan’s half-brother Yusuf Pathan, and S Badrinath.Irfan said he was showing no symptoms and had isolated himself at home, making the announcement of his positive test on Twitter, like Tendulkar, Yusuf, and Badrinath had.”I have tested positive for COVID-19 with no symptoms and have isolated myself and quarantined at home. I would request those who came in contact with me in recent past to please get themselves tested,” Irfan wrote. “Urging all to wear masks and maintain social distancing. Wishing you all good health.” The tournament took place in the Indian city of Raipur from March 7 to 21.Irfan was part of the Indian team alongside Tendulkar, Yusuf, and Badrinath, with India ending up triumphant the tournament.Irfan had announced his retirement from cricket in January 2020, bringing to an end a career that featured 29 Tests, 120 ODIs and 24 T20Is, and included a winner’s medal in the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007, alongside several memorable Test and ODI triumphs too. He last played for India in the T20 World Cup in 2012, but continued to be a regular presence in the domestic circuit after that, and was a prominent feature in the IPL till 2016. Over the last three years, Irfan rose to become a sought-after commentator and Hindi cricket analyst in India. He also runs a cricket academy in Vadodara, which he co-founded with Yusuf.According to Johns Hopkins University, which has tracked the spread of the pandemic since it first hit in 2019, India is third on the list of countries with the most Covid-19 infections and fourth on the list of most deaths.

Ernest Hilaire, the chief executive of the WICB whose tenure has been marked by standoffs with a number of senior players, most notably Chris Gayle, has decided not to seek a renewal of his contract when it expires in October

Tariq Engineer05-Jul-2012Ernest Hilaire, the chief executive of the WICB whose tenure has been marked by standoffs with a number of senior players, most notably Chris Gayle, has decided not to seek a renewal of his contract when it expires in October, ESPNcricinfo has learned.Hilaire has already informed the WICB board of directors of his intention not to continue in the role and they have appointed a recruitment agency to find a replacement. He has been appointed St Lucia’s new ambassador in London by the newly elected St Lucia Labour party government.He took over as chief executive in November 2009, when he was given a three-year contract, and presided over a somewhat tumultuous time in West Indies cricket as the team struggled to win matches. However, the side has shown improved competitiveness under the captaincy of Darren Sammy recently, especially in the limited-overs formats, and espouses a commitment to playing as a team.Hilaire had also been involved in high profile disputes with Dinanath Ramnarine, the former head of the West Indies Players’ Association, and a number of senior players, including Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan. Gayle’s troubles with the board began when he chose to play in the 2011 IPL and miss the home series against Pakistan. It was only in June 2012 that Gayle’s exile ended after he signed a CARICOM-brokered agreement with the WICB. Sarwan has not played for West Indies since June 2011, having lost his central contract in 2010 on fitness grounds.In May 2012, Hilaire, said the selectors should focus on picking a strong collective unit rather than one just comprising 11 star players. “For a decade or so the selectors were guided by a process which had them arriving at the eleven best players to take the field,” Hilaire had said. “With the eleven best players on the park our results went from bad to worse and yet worse still.

The fast bowler Adam Milne has been named in New Zealand’s squad for the ICC World Twenty20, 18 months after he last played for his country

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Aug-2012The fast bowler Adam Milne has been named in New Zealand’s squad for the ICC World Twenty20, 18 months after he last played for his country. Daniel Vettori has also been included after being ruled out of the upcoming Test series in India due to a groin problem, and he will have the chance to test his injury early next month with the same squad to play two T20s in India on September 8 and 11.There was no room for Andrew Ellis, Tom Latham, Daniel Flynn or Dean Brownlie, all of whom were part of New Zealand’s squad for their most recent T20s, in the West Indies. As expected, James Franklin is part of the final 15, having missed the West Indies games because the team management wanted to allow him an extended run in the T20 format in county cricket instead of flying in to the Caribbean for just two games.Others left out from the original 30-man preliminary squad include the fast bowlers Neil Wagner, Andy McKay and Trent Boult, and the legspinner Tarun Nethula. The national selection manager, Kim Littlejohn, said he was pleased to see the return of Milne, 20, who debuted for New Zealand as an 18-year-old in December 2010.”Adam Milne has impressed during his time with the winter development squad and his extra pace offers something a little different,” Littlejohn said. “We are confident he will have an impact in international cricket and will seize this opportunity.”We are thrilled to have Daniel Vettori back in the fold. He brings a huge amount of experience and knowledge of conditions in the sub-continent. The squad also welcomes back James Franklin, who has been playing for Twenty20 cricket for Essex in the county competition.”After their two matches in India, New Zealand head to Sri Lanka for the World T20, where they must first face Pakistan and Bangladesh in the group stage, before learning whether they have qualified to move through into the next phase.New Zealand squad Martin Guptill, Rob Nicol, Brendon McCullum, Ross Taylor (capt), Kane Williamson, BJ Watling, James Franklin, Jacob Oram, Nathan McCullum, Daniel Vettori, Kyle Mills, Doug Bracewell, Tim Southee, Ronnie Hira, Adam Milne.

England captain Andrew Strauss is anticipating a tough test of his side in Sri Lanka but insists that England can take the heat

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Mar-2012England captain Andrew Strauss is anticipating a tough test of his side in Sri Lanka but insists that they can take the heat.England succumbed to a 3-0 Test series defeat against Pakistan in the UAE with a failure to adapt to the conditions and the Pakistan spinners seen as major factors in their downfall.Strauss is expecting conditions in Sri Lanka to prove even tougher. While his batsmen are likely to be tested by spin once again, they now face the added problem of the high heat and humidity of Sri Lanka. Strauss takes comfort from the fact that his side know what to expect, however, with seven of the squad (Ian Bell, James Tredwell, Steven Davies, Monty Panesar, Samit Patel, Matt Prior and Strauss) who were not involved in the limited-overs section of the tour to the UAE, travelling to Sri Lanka early in order to practise and acclimatise under the watchful eye of Graham Gooch. The remainder of the squad joined them on March 10.England now play two warm-up games, with the first – against the Sri Lanka Board XI – starting on Thursday and the two Test series starting on March 26.”The conditions here are very different to Dubai,” Strauss said. “There’s a lot more humidity and the heat is much more of a factor for us out here. Some of us have been here a week now getting used to it and getting used to the challenges. For the guys who have been in England for a while it’s the contrast more than anything that gets you.”Hopefully once the Tests start we’ll be very much on top of it. You need to have strategies in place because no matter what sport you’re playing, in whatever part of the world, if you overheat then you’re in trouble.”None of England’s top six averaged more than 26 in the whitewash against Pakistan but Strauss believes the lessons from that contest have already been absorbed and also cautioned the batsmen at only focussing on the spin threat.”Over the course of the last series we were forced to address a few issues,” he said. “To a man, I think the guys did that and we saw some of the benefits in the one-day series.”But it’s important we’re not transfixed by spin and concentrate all of our efforts on that. We need to be on the ball against the seamers in the first session of the match. In a lot of Test matches out here, the ball nibbles around a bit on the first day. We’ve got to make sure we leave no stone unturned so we’re not surprised by anything on the pitch.”It is also an important tour for Strauss personally. He failed to score a Test century throughout 2011 and has only scored one in his last 46 innings. He did, however, make a half-century in his final innings of the series against Pakistan and feels a return to form is imminent.”You always want to be in good form, you always want to lead from the front,” Strauss said. “I was quite encouraged by how I started to play towards the end of the Pakistan series and I need to build on that in next couple of Tests. The one-day guys haven’t had a lot of time off so I can come back in and add some real impetus and motivation to them having had a decent rest myself.”

Jesse Ryder, who had taken an indefinite break from cricket to resolve personal issues, will play for his IPL franchise Pune Warriors in the fifth season of the league

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Mar-2012Jesse Ryder, the New Zealand batsman who had taken an indefinite break from cricket to resolve personal issues, will play for his IPL franchise Pune Warriors in the fifth season of the league, beginning on April 4. Ryder will be supported in India by his manager Aaron Klee and clinical psychologist Karen Nimmo.”Jesse has been making steady progress over the past few weeks. While the IPL has clear challenges, and is a big step, I believe he’s ready to take it,” Nimmo said. “Cricket is Jesse’s job and what he’s good at, so I was keen to see him return to the game as soon as practical, but only with the right structures in place.”Klee said Ryder was going to significant extents and expense to overcome his issues, and that their planning of his recovery was thorough. “Karen is travelling to India the day after Jesse and will continue her work with him there while I’ll be going over a little later to carry that work on,” Klee said. “The franchise has been wonderful and Jesse is desperate to perform on and off the field, and get his career back on track.”We are also very grateful for the support of New Zealand Cricket [NZC] and Cricket Wellington for their assistance and support. Also, Heath Mills [New Zealand Cricket Players Association chief] has been incredible in his support as always.”NZC chief executive David White was supportive of the move. “It’s really positive that Jesse has reached the point where here is ready to play competitive cricket again,” he said. “He has clear expectations from NZC in terms of what is required from him to make a return to international cricket and playing in the IPL is a good first step. We are proud of the progress he has made and we will continue to support him through what has been a tough time.”On March 8, Klee had issued a statement saying Ryder had pulled out of Wellington’s squad for their Plunket Shield match against Northern Districts and had not decided when he would make himself available again. The announcement came a week after Ryder was dropped from the New Zealand squad for the third ODI against South Africa for breaking team protocol, and then left out of the Test series as well.After the defeat in the second ODI against South Africa, Ryder, along with Doug Bracewell, went to a hotel and became involved in an argument with a patron. “Team protocols dictate that players who are rehabilitating from injury should not consume alcohol and unfortunately both players went to a Napier hotel following the conclusion of the match,” NZC had said in a release. “Also, while at the hotel both players verbally reacted to taunts from a member for the public.”The incident was the latest of Ryder’s several indiscretions. In August 2010, Ryder was fined for “intoxicated and rowdy” behaviour at a hotel during an indoor cricket tournament and he said he had feared for his career while NZC was investigating the incident. The most serious of Ryder’s indiscretions was in 2008, when he put his right hand through a glass window during a late-night session at a Christchurch bar. In January 2009, NZC said Ryder had given up alcohol after another incident, which resulted in him missing an ODI against West Indies.Edited by George Binoy

Tash Farrant stars in first ODI for seven years, but NZ lose tenth match in a row

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Feb-2021England Women 181 for 2 (Beaumont 71, Knight 67*) beat New Zealand Women 178 (Jensen 53, Halliday 50) by eight wicketsTammy Beaumont and Heather Knight produced a pair of fluent half-centuries at Hagley Oval, as England Women marked their first ODI in 437 days with a comprehensive eight-wicket victory over New Zealand.Had it not been for the Covid outbreak, England’s defence of their 2017 World Cup title would have been well underway by now, but instead Knight’s team showed they have learned the lessons of a somewhat rusty loss in their final warm-up in Queenstown last week to reassert their credentials, and inflict on New Zealand a tenth consecutive ODI defeat – the worst losing streak in their history.In a one-sided contest, New Zealand chose to bat first but were rolled aside for 178 in 45.1 overs, with Hayley Jensen’s 53 from 58 balls at the top of the order being matched by an eye-catching 50 from 54 from the debutant Brooke Halliday at No. 7.Besides those contributions, however, there was very little substance to New Zealand’s innings, which was perhaps most notable for the return of Tash Farrant to England’s ODI line-up for her second 50-over appearance, almost seven-and-a-half years after her debut against West Indies in November 2013.Sharing the new ball with Katherine Brunt, Farrant impressed with figures of 2 for 31 in seven overs, with her early dismissal of Amy Satterthwaite for 3 undermining New Zealand’s hopes of a competitive total. Farrant then returned to extract Lea Tahuhu for 8 late in New Zealand’s innings.England’s wickets were shared around among their seven bowlers – a testament to how insubstantial New Zealand’s partnerships proved to be. Sophie Ecclestone was the only bowler to complete her full allocation, as she reached 100 international wickets with her haul of 2 for 31 in ten overs of left-arm spin.New Zealand’s reliance on the likes of Satterthwaite, Sophie Devine and Amelia Kerr meant that their cheap dismissals, inside the first 27 overs of the innings, left the rest of the order caught in two mindsets as they attempted to chisel a decent score.Katey Martin dug in for 14 from 35 balls before falling victim to Knight, as no player besides the two half-centurions mustered more than Devine’s 16.England’s reply was brisk and to the point. Danni Wyatt fell in the eighth over, but not before 42 runs were on the board, while Beaumont had struck 11 fours in her innings of 71 before succumbing to Tahuhu, who appeared to compound New Zealand’s concerns when she limped off with a hamstring injury late in the game.Knight and Natalie Sciver then swept England to victory with few further alarms. New Zealand’s one saving grace was a competitive debut for their 16-year-old left-arm spinner Fran Jonas, who was not flattered by her maiden figures of 0 for 31 in five overs.”We probably had a bit of a wake-up call against New Zealand XI last week,” Beaumont said. “We needed to tighten up in some areas and certainly the bowlers came out and showed that today. Every single one of them bowled exceptionally well to keep New Zealand to 180, so they really impressed today.”

Only one wicket fell while 349 runs were scored on the second day at Karen Rolton Oval

Andrew McGlashan11-Oct-2020It wasn’t a day to be a bowler at Karen Rolton Oval as 349 runs were scored with just one wicket falling. Ashton Agar and Josh Inglis both registered unbeaten centuries, in a Western Australia record sixth-wicket stand of 266, before Jake Weatherald led South Australia’s strong reply with his seventh first-class hundred.Western Australia resumed on 5 for 310 and after an early period of consolidation rattled along through Agar and Inglis who paced each other to their centuries which came in the space of three balls: for Inglis it was his maiden first-class hundred and for Agar his third.Inglis brought out some of the strokeplay that has lit up the BBL for the Perth Scorchers and the latter part of the innings was distinctly T20 in its manner. Agar, who took a nasty blow on the helmet from Nick Winter shortly after reaching his century, was content to let his team-mate do most of the damage, including taking 20 off an over from Lloyd Pope which brought the declaration.Agar’s innings was a big start to the season for him after being given the allrounder’s role in the absence of the injured Mitchell Marsh. With the debate currently ongoing about who might be Australia’s second Test spinner behind Nathan Lyon, Agar’s all-round package could be attractive as a way of balancing the side if he can build on this century, although like most bowlers on the day he found life tougher in the field.After declaring midway through the afternoon, Western Australia toiled for their first breakthrough as Weatherald and Henry Hunt added an opening stand of 125. However, they should have removed Weatherald on 46 when he edged debutant Lance Morris to second slip where Ashton Turner spilled a regulation chance.New signing Cameron Gannon eventually became the lone wicket-taker for the day when he had Hunt neatly caught a short mid-on, but there was no shifting Weatherald although Western Australia were confident they had him down the leg side off Agar on 66.He slowed up a touch through the 90s and the clock was ticking down to the close of play when he worked Morris off his pads to fine leg to reach three figures from 155 balls.

Port Qasim Authority (PQA) qualified for first-class cricket after drawing with Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) in the final of the PCB Patron’s Trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff03-May-2012Pakistan’s Port Qasim Authority (PQA) qualified for first-class cricket after drawing with Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) in the final of the PCB Patron’s Trophy (Grade II) tournament. Former Pakistan fast bowler Mohammad Sami’s all-round performance helped PQA secure promotion, while United Bank Limited was relegated to Grade II from Division 2.PQA declared their first innings at 343, with Shadab Kabir scoring 68, Daniyal Ahsan 57,Atif Ali Zaidi 45 and Sami 43. Rizwan Khan claimed four wickets for KESC. Sami then took four wickets and Azam Khan three to restrict KESC to 263 in their first innings.PQA continued their good form with the bat in the second innings, setting an imposing total of 484, with Sami top scoring with 79 and Kamran Younis 71. KESC went all out for the win but could only manage 311 for 6 in 74 overs.PQA coach Rashid Latif told the that he’s confident his side would succeed in the future. “It feels great to guide this excellent side to the top-tier and I’m hoping we will repeat our heroics there as well. We probably have one of the best squads in the department,” Latif saidIn Pakistan’s domestic cricket, teams are promoted and relegated each season on the basis of performance. One Departmental team from Division I is demoted to Division II for the next season. Similarly, the leading departmental team from Division II gets promoted to Division I. The departmental side finishing lowest in Division II will be relegated to Grade II for the upcoming season.

Four members of the England ODI squad in the United Arab Emirates were fortunate to escape injury when the taxi in which they were travelling was involved in an incident

George Dobell in Abu Dhabi11-Feb-2012Four members of the England ODI squad in the United Arab Emirates were fortunate to escape injury when the taxi in which they were travelling was involved in an incident.Stuart Broad, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen and Monty Panesar were travelling at around 100kph when the taxi’s bonnet suddenly flew up and into the car’s windscreen, obscuring the driver’s vision.The driver was able to stop the car safely, however and the players were able to take a full part in training on Saturday evening.There was some irony in the timing of the incident. The England team management recently declined an invite from officials at Yas Marina Circuit, the venue of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, for the team to be taken around the circuit at speed in Formula One style cars. ECB officials felt such an event was outside the terms of the squad’s insurance cover.The squad trained under the lights of the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, the venue of Monday’s opening ODI against Pakistan. Although Jos Buttler batted in the nets, his involvement in Monday’s game is looking increasingly unlikely. Buttler required stitches in the webbing of his left hand, after sustaining an injury in Sri Lanka while on England Lions duty. Those stitches remain in place and the injury was due to be inspected by a doctor on Sunday morning.Ravi Bopara, the 26-year-old Essex batsman, who was excluded for all three Tests, is the most likely beneficiary of Buttler’s mishap. Bopara has impressed in the nets and also offers the option of his medium-pace bowling. Alex Hales, the Nottinghamshire batsman who was part of the Lions team, has remained with the senior squad as he is part of the forthcoming Twenty20 unit, but he was not considered for ODI selection.Kevin Pietersen looked far from his best during the net session and was particularly troubled by the spin of Monty Panesar, Danny Briggs and the former Pakistan leg-spinner Mushtaq Ahmed, who is now England’s spin bowling coach. Panesar has remained with the squad in recognition of the frailties against slow bowling that were startlingly evident in a 3-0 Test whitewash against Pakistan.It was also interesting to note that Dr Mark Bawden, the England team psychologist, had rejoined the squad. Bawden flew home on the eve of the second Test but, perhaps understandably given England’s struggles since, the decision was made that he should be recalled.Tim Bresnan is also back with the squad. Bresnan was forced to fly home before the first Test when it became clear that his right elbow required more treatment following surgery at the start of December. He returned towards the end of the Test series and played his first game for three months on Friday when he was part of the England side that brushed aside the Lions.Bresnan admitted he was still searching for rhythm, but said he was back up to full pace with the ball and was only wearing padding on his elbow to ensure there was no unnecessary damage should he scrape it in fielding practice.”It’s been a long road back to fitness but I’m available for selection now,” Bresnan said. “It’s tough watching when you’re injured and it was hard to watch the lads trying so hard in the Test series, but things not going their way. It’s no fun sitting on the sidelines watching them lose.”The spirit is still good. They are as strong and together as a team as ever. You win as a team and lose as a team. We’re all in the same boat, but now we just have to paddle a little harder.”We have some fresh faces in this side, but with fresh faces you also have a bit of inexperience so the more they play international cricket, they more they will learn and start churning out performances. They are a talented bunch.”Pakistan, who defeated Afghanistan in an ODI on Friday night, cancelled their training session on Sunday and gave the players a day off. The victory was Pakistan’s seventh in succession in ODI cricket and their 13th in 14 ODIs. England, by contrast, have lost five in succession and 14 of their last 20 played outside the UK.

JP Duminy wasn’t too worried by the performance of the South African bowling attack though they only picked up two wickets during their loss to India A on Tuesday

Firdose Moonda29-Sep-20151:49

‘A good test run for us’ – Duminy

Quinton de Kock’s form remained in focus as the South Africans had their first competitive cricket on their tour of India. De Kock was run out for 2 in a match the tourists lost by eight wickets, to put the spotlight on both him and the seamers ahead of Friday’s T20 series opener.The warm-up was de Kock’s first appearance for the senior side since he was dropped during the Bangladesh series in July and sent with the A side to prepare for the series. De Kock reeled off three centuries in succession but there was no repeat of that at the Palam ground.
JP Duminy, who top-scored with an unbeaten 68, explained time in the middle was an important part of preparation, which can only underline how the absence of it may affect de Kock.”It’s going to be a similar wicket in Dharamsala, maybe with a slightly smaller field so it was good prep – a lot of guys got some batting time which is key in these conditions,” Duminy said.The senior batsmen fared better with AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis each facing 27 balls for scores of 37 and 42 respectively. Du Plessis retired hurt as a precaution, which CSA called a “means to manage his knee post-injury,” to ensure he does not do “too much too soon.” Prior to this series du Plessis had been out of action for more than a month.Before the South Africans look to their bowing, there may also be some lingering concerns over David Miller, who has not scored an international half-century in 15 innings. Miller made just 10 and is beginning to look like the weak link in the middle order, which may open the door for Khaya Zondo to debut.Then there is the bowling. Kyle Abbott and Kagiso Rabada, the two frontline seamers in the absence of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel, conceded heavily upfront. Although Marchant de Lange and Chris Morris pulled it back, they were far from economical and struggled to make inroads as the South Africans failed to defend 190 and picked up only two wickets in the process.Duminy said their performance was not a cause for panic, but a vital learning experience, especially for Rabada, who has not played in India before. “I have full confidence in the ability of our bowlers.. I believe they have what it takes to stop the Indian batting line-up,” he said. “Today was one day where it was about figuring out and assessing what will work for us in these conditions. Kyle, Marchant and Chris have bowled here before but it was a new experience for Kagiso. He would have been able to understand what works for him.”South Africa will hope Rabada will do so quickly, as he has thus far, especially as they begin to rely on the reserve bowlers more heavily. On arrival in India, coach Russell Domingo explained that Steyn and Morkel could not be expected to be part of “every practice and every match” across a 72-day tour of India so the second tier would have to step up. Domingo was confident the seamers would be up to the task, even if conditions did not suit them but will want to see them make more incisions than they did in the warm-up match.South Africa have two more practice sessions before their first match, which will be used to “work on our skills,” and to wait for the arrival of more experience in the form of Hashim Amla and Albie Morkel. Amla did not travel with the main group on Saturday and will join the squad on Wednesday, and will be available for Friday’s match while Morkel, who was late inclusion after replacing David Wiese, who picked up a hand injury, is still waiting for documentation to clear before he can travel.