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Mohammad Amir, Pakistan’s left-arm quick, has signed as overseas player for Essex for the first half of the 2017 season

George Dobell08-Nov-2016Mohammad Amir has signed as overseas player for Essex for the second half of the 2017 season.Amir, the Pakistan left-arm swing bowler, is expected to be available from the end of the Champions Trophy in mid-June. Essex hope he will help them adjust to life in Division One of the County Championship – they were promoted at the end of 2016 – and Amir, who married recently, now has family in the London area.Essex had been in particular need of pace-bowling reinforcements, after the retirements of Graham Napier – their leading wicket-taker in 2016 – and David Masters. The attack is likely to be led by Jamie Porter, 23, who has only played two full seasons of Championship cricket.Chris Silverwood, Essex coach, said: “We are thrilled that Mohammad has decided to join us for half of the 2017 campaign. He showed a real desire to be a part of the Club and the fact we have him for two competitions is a real bonus. He is still only young but has proved himself at International level already, so it is a real coup to get this signing completed.”Amir returned to Test cricket in England earlier this year, having served a five-year suspension for spot-fixing. He took 12 wickets in the series against England, but often bowled better than his final tally suggested, as he confirmed that his lengthy ban had not unduly undermined his potential.”I am very excited about becoming part of the Essex family,” Amir said. “Chris Silverwood and Ronnie Irani have both been very supportive over the summer. I’m hoping I can carry on Essex’s success this season and achieve more for the club in 2017.”

Pakistan and Zimbabwe share a few of the same concerns heading into these one-day games. Brittle top-order batting has been a problem for both teams, as well as an inability to rotate the strike when boundaries aren’t forthcoming

The Preview by Liam Brickhill30-Sep-2015

Match facts

Thursday, October 1
Start time 9.30am local (0730GMT)Azhar Ali has arrived to take charge of Pakistan’s ODI team•Associated Press

The big picture

Pakistan have had a topsy-turvy year in ODI cricket. They made the quarterfinals of the World Cup, but never really looked like threatening for the title, losing to India, West Indies and Australia along the way. They were then whitewashed by Bangladesh, before surging to an emotional victory in the historic home series against Zimbabwe. After that they scrapped to their first bilateral series win in Sri Lanka since 2006, and after the high of their 2-0 win in the T20Is, they start favourites against Zimbabwe on Thursday.Conversely, there has generally been a sameness to the tenor of Zimbabwe’s one-day campaigns. They have looked good, and more often than not been competitive, but in 15 matches this year they have only won two. The second of those was their stunning victory over New Zealand in their highest successful chase at Harare Sports Club. But what happened next is typical of the side. Zimbabwe are probably one of the only teams that could register a record chase and a ten-wicket defeat in the same series. In fact, they are playing the only other team for whom such peaks and troughs are the norm: Pakistan.Indeed, the T20I series showed that there isn’t a great deal to separate these teams in these sorts of conditions. They have also seen a fair amount of each other this year, with Pakistan prevailing in yet another match that Zimbabwe have won at the Gabba during the World Cup before the Zimbabweans performed entertainingly, but without success, during their tour to Pakistan in May.Pakistan and Zimbabwe also share a few of the same concerns heading into these one-day games. Brittle top-order batting has been a problem for both teams, as well as an inability to rotate the strike when boundaries aren’t forthcoming. With the bowling attacks looking in fine fettle, the opening ODI could be decided by whichever side is able to coax more industriousness out of their batsmen.

Form guide

Zimbabwe LLWLL (Last five completed matches, most recent first)
Pakistan LWWLW

In the spotlight

Sean Williams was one of the few batsmen for whom rotation of the strike did not appear to be a problem in the T20 games, and given the 360 degree range of his strokes in limited-overs cricket he could be vital to Zimbabwe’s batting success on a slow wicket. Williams hasn’t scored quite as many runs as Zimbabwe have needed from him this year, and he’s also yet to make a one-day hundred.After an early blunder against Bangladesh, Azhar Ali appears to have settled well into his role as Pakistan’s one-day captain. He scored heavily against Zimbabwe at home, and continued to contribute as Pakistan took their away series against Sri Lanka 3-2. With Pakistan’s top-order wobbles in the T20s, Ali should bring some stability, and he will look to stamp his authority on this series as quickly as possible.

Team news

They weren’t officially part of Zimbabwe’s squad on Wednesday, but Matabeleland Tuskers opener Brian Chari, legspinning allrounder Tino Mutumbodzi and medium-pacer Tawanda Mupariwa all trained with Zimbabwe the day before the first ODI. The idea of opening the batting with wicketkeeper Richmond Mutumbami had been discussed within the team prior to this series, but that seems unlikely now and the player himself is apparently unwilling to make the move. Chari could play, but it’s unclear how many changes Zimbabwe will want to make to their XI.Zimbabwe (possible): 1 Chamu Chibhabha, 2 Brian Chari, 3 Craig Ervine, 4 Hamilton Masakadza, 5 Sean Williams, 6 Sikandar Raza, 7 Elton Chigumbura (capt), 8 Richmond Mutumbami (wk), 9 Tino Mutumbodzi, 10 Graeme Cremer, 11 Tinashe Panyangara.Pakistan have welcomed a number of new players to their squad, including one-day captain Azhar Ali. He and the other new members of the squad spent Tuesday and Wednesday training and acclimatising to conditions. Ali will slot straight into the opening position, while the Twenty20 matches will have given Pakistan a good idea of what sorts of combinations they will need to succeed. Pakistan have also made it clear that they would like to have a look at offspinner Bilal Asif before their series against England, and he could strengthen their spin attack in helpful conditions.Pakistan (possible): 1 Azhar Ali (capt), 2 Ahmed Shehzad, 3 Mohammad Hafeez, 4 Shoaib Malik, 5 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 6 Aamer Yamin, 7 Bilal Asif, 8 Imad Wasim, 9 Yasir Shah, 10 Wahab Riaz, 11 Mohammad Irfan.

Pitch and conditions

There was stark contrast between the bone-dry, off-white pitch and the lush green outfield as the groundsmen made their final preparations on Wednesday afternoon. Expect another dry surface that could play a little slow and low, and will aid spinners and quicks with a skill-set to suit the conditions. The early start could mean swing in the morning, but that won’t last much more than an hour. The weather is expected to be hazy, but warm.

Stats and trivia

• Pakistan’s openers have registered more 50-plus stands than anyone else in 2015. Their first wicket averages 56.95, the highest for any team in 2015. Pakistan’s openers have added 1139 runs in 20 innings, including four hundreds and six fifty stands.
• Of the 51 ODIs between these sides, Pakistan have won 45 and Zimbabwe three. There have also been two games with no result and one tie.
• Of Zimbabwe’s current squad, Hamilton Masakadza has scored the most runs against Pakistan, with 476 in 14 innings at an average of 34, including four fifties.

Quotes

“It’s not a quick fix. The answers come from two or three different sources. But initially it has to come from within. That’s the major area.”
“They’ve been training today, and they’ll train again tomorrow as we try to get them used to the conditions.”

Matthew Wade’s chances of playing in the third Test in Mohali appear slim after he struggled through wicketkeeping, fielding and running drills on the eve of the match

Brydon Coverdale13-Mar-2013Matthew Wade’s chances of playing in the third Test in Mohali appear slim after he struggled through wicketkeeping, fielding and running drills on the eve of the match. If Wade is ruled out due to his ankle injury it will leave the Australians with only 12 men available. Brad Haddin would keep wicket and the only real decision for the selectors would be which of the three spinners – Xavier Doherty, Nathan Lyon and Glenn Maxwell – to leave on the sidelines.The indications at training were that Maxwell would be the one to miss out. At the end of Australia’s practice session, Maxwell looked downcast during a lengthy on-field chat with the coach Mickey Arthur, and he was not present at a sit-down meeting of the spinners shortly afterwards when the spin coach Steve Rixon chatted to Lyon, Doherty and Smith on the boundary edge.The small pool from which to select is a stark contrast to the first Test in Chennai, when Australia had a group of 17 players available. But the team management’s decision to make Shane Watson, James Pattinson, Mitchell Johnson and Usman Khawaja sit out for disciplinary reasons has left them with few options for the Mohali Test, starting on Thursday, which the Australians must win to have any chance of retaining the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.Wade sprained his right ankle while playing basketball on Saturday and scans concerned the Australian medical staff enough that Haddin was flown to India as cover. On Wednesday, Wade trained for the first time since suffering the injury. His movement was clearly hampered during wicketkeeping drills with the fielding coach, Steve Rixon, and he also struggled to move freely during outfielding work and while running between the wickets.That work was followed by a lengthy discussion between captain Michael Clarke, Rixon, selector on duty Rod Marsh, team doctor Peter Brukner and physio Alex Kountouris. Wade left the fielding session to bat in the nets but looked despondent as he made his way into the team rooms after completing his training. Earlier in the day, Clarke had raised the possibility of Wade playing as a batsman only if he was unable to keep wicket.But the more likely scenario now appears to be that Haddin will take the gloves and bat at No. 6 in his first Test since January last year. If Wade is ruled out it will mean Phillip Hughes will certainly retain his place in the side and Steven Smith will be included for his first Test since Australia’s miserable 2010-11 Ashes series. The decision to sideline Watson, Pattinson, Johnson and Khawaja could cost Australia in this match but Clarke said it provided an opportunity.”There’s no doubt that somebody’s loss is somebody else’s gain and a big part of international cricket is getting a chance,” Clarke said. “A lot of people talk about young players – he should be picked, he shouldn’t be picked, is he good enough? The only way you find out if he’s good enough is if he gets an opportunity. A few guys who are going to get a chance in this game have been waiting for this opportunity and now it is about grabbing it with both hands.”The Mohali pitch remained under a hessian cover on Wednesday but the Australians had inspected it on Tuesday and Clarke said it did not appear to be the pace-friendly kind of surface he had seen at the venue in the past.”I saw the wicket yesterday,” Clarke said. “I haven’t seen it today yet but I imagine it wouldn’t have changed much. There’s not much grass to cut off and it was quite dry yesterday so it’s probably even drier today. I think the conditions are going to be very similar to what we’ve seen in the first two Test matches.”There’s no real surprises there. I’ve played some cricket here in Mohali and generally they leave a bit of grass on the wicket and it’s nice for fast bowlers but I’m not surprised that all the grass has been cut off. That’s part of international cricket. The positive of that is at least we’ve experienced it in the first two matches.”Possible team 1 David Warner, 2 Ed Cowan, 3 Phillip Hughes, 4 Michael Clarke (capt), 5 Steven Smith, 6 Brad Haddin (wk), 7 Moises Henriques, 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Peter Siddle, 10 Xavier Doherty, 11 Nathan Lyon.

Deccan Chargers have signed five Indian uncapped cricketers for the 2012 IPL, one of whom isTanmay Mishra, who is currently playing for Kenya

Dustin Silgardo18-Feb-2012Deccan Chargers have signed five Indian uncapped cricketers for the 2012 IPL, one of whom is Tanmay Mishra, who plays for Kenya. Mishra, who was born in Mumbai, has never played a first-class or List A game for any Indian side; but a spokesperson for Chargers explained that since he holds an Indian passport*, Mishra is eligible to be bought as an Indian uncapped player.This also means Mishra will not have to be counted among the four foreign players each franchise is allowed to play in an IPL game.Chargers have also signed Uttar Pradesh batsman Tanmay Srivastava, who was part of the now dissolved Kochi Tuskers Kerala last year, Orissa batsman Biplab Samantray, Madhya Pradesh medium-pacer TP Sudhindra and 21-year-old Hyderabad opening batsman Akshath Reddy.Mishra, a 25-year-old middle-order batsman, was one of the few bright spots for Kenya during the 2011 World Cup; he scored two half-centuries, including an innings of 72 against Australia in Bangalore. On the day Chargers announced they had signed him, Mishra scored 70 not out in Kenya’s win against Ireland in a World Cricket League Championship in Mombasa.Reddy and Sudhindra have both earned IPL contracts on the back of impressive Ranji seasons. Sudhindra was the leading wicket-taker in the Elite division with 40 wickets at an average of 18.70. Reddy, in his second season, scored 524 runs at an average of 65.50, with three centuries.Samantray scored his maiden first-class century in the 2011-12 Ranji season, an innings of 171 against Uttar Pradesh, while Srivastava, at just 22 years old, has already played 45 first-class matches and 26 List A matches, and has six centuries in each format. He played seven matches for Kings XI Punjab spread across the 2008 and 2009 editions of the IPL, but did not have much chance to contribute with the bat.* February 18, 2012 18:16 GMT: This article said Tanmay Mishra held dual citizenship of India and Kenya. This has been corrected.

Where other teams might falter as all around them crumbled, Pakistan perform in spite of the shambles

Andrew Fernando03-Feb-2011Few sports teams are as enigmatic as the Pakistan cricket team. Over the last twelve month the captaincy has changed hands so many times it is enough to make fans dizzy, and the side has been at the centre of a spot-fixing scandal that has cost them their two premier fast bowlers. Yet, somehow, they continue to impress on the field. Where other teams might falter as all around them crumbled, Pakistan perform in spite of the shambles. They are are still to name a captain just two-and-a-half weeks shy of the World Cup, another sign of their dysfunction, but the manner in which they’ve rolled New Zealand in the one-day series sends out a message that none of the more fancied teams can afford to ignore them.Three victories on the trot have allowed many players find their roles within the team. Unable to trouble batsmen with extravagant pace or movement, Abdul Razzak has taken up the task of tying down one end with the new ball while the likes of Shoaib Akhtar and Umar Gul attack from the other. In Napier, his seven-over opening spell included three maidens and cost 16 runs. In Hamilton, he was only required to bowl four overs, but a tight spell from him meant New Zealand’s explosive top order couldn’t get ahead of the required run rate early. Shahid Afridi’s canny legspin has not only kept things quiet during the middle overs, but has broken vital partnerships that have threatened to take the game away. Mohammed Hafeez meanwhile, has chipped in with a few miserly spells of his own in Saeed Ajmal’s absence. In Umar Gul, Pakistan have one of the finest merchants of reverse swing, and as Wahab Riaz proved today with a terrific late-swinging toe crusher to uproot James Franklin’s stumps, he’s no picnic with the old ball either.”Anything over 90 miles is hard to play, especially on a pitch like this when the ball wasn’t exactly coming on the bat in the second innings,” Waqar Younis said after the win in Hamilton. With Gul Wahab and Akhtar in the World Cup squad, Pakistan have three bowlers who are constantly pushing the 145 kph mark, with ample high quality spin options in their ranks as well. “Maybe we were about twenty runs short today, but the bowlers covered it beautifully. Mohammad Hafeez and Afridi bowled well and they picked up wickets at the right time.”The batting too has begun to fall into place for Pakistan. In the last three games, each of the openers has made a hundred. Misbah-ul-Haq, in the form of his life, has provided stability and sense to the innings alongside Younis Khan. And as New Zealand found out twice in Christchurch, first in the Twenty20, and more recently in the one dayer – Pakistan’s middle order allrounders are capable of slamming an attack helpless within the space of a few deliveries. Whether by design or not, some semblance of a gameplan seems to be developing for Pakistan – the openers set off rapidly before Younis and Misbah use their experience in the middle overs to provide a platform for the likes of Afridi and his cohorts do their best to bring down the stands by repeatedly launching six ounces of leather at them.Despite the uncertainty over the captaincy issue and the ignominious distractions that have preceded it, Pakistan seems surprisingly settled and focused. Waqar Younis thinks that it may actually be because of the public embroilment that the team has endured over the past few months that it is performing so well as a unit.”I think [the controversy surrounding the team] has had a positive effect,” Waqar said. “Not only in this series but in the last series against South Africa we played positive cricket in both the Test matches and one -dayers. In a way you could say it geed us up an pulled us together because reading all that rubbish in the newspapers every morning gives you a bit of togetherness. With the amount of controversy we’ve had in the last year, it’s good see guys making a comeback and scoring runs. It’s good to see the unit really getting together and putting up a good show. “It’s difficult to gauge just how much momentum Pakistan will take into the World Cup, primarily because they are not a side that sustains winning impetus over a long period of time. They are instead a team that turns things around in a single innings or a sparkling spell. But the format of this World Cup could play to their strengths. Several major upsets aside, Pakistan are almost guaranteed a place in the quarter finals, and from that point it’s three victories to the title. They may not be a side that dominates an entire six-week tournament, but few would put it past a rampant Pakistan to win three games in a row in the final stages.Waqar remained hopeful ahead of the tournament. “It’s every team’s dream [to win the World Cup] and we are on the right track at the moment. If we can deliver similar goods over the six weeks, you never know. We’re positive.”

Victoria will head into the Sheffield Shield final as the favourite after finishing the regular rounds with a nine-point advantage

Cricinfo staff12-Mar-2010
ScorecardDamien Wright had eight wickets for the game in an important warm-up for the decider•Getty Images

Victoria will head into the Sheffield Shield final as the favourite after finishing the regular rounds with a nine-point advantage. The Bushrangers warmed up for Wednesday’s decider with an innings-and-46-run victory over Tasmania, who were brushed aside for 114.The Tigers, who are currently fifth, suffered a horrible start to be 6 for 18 after Darren Pattinson and Damien Wright grabbed three wickets each. Alex Doolan’s 7 was the highest score of the top five and three wickets went on 16, including the retiring Dan Marsh. Tim Paine gained some ground and was last out for 28, while Brendan Drew (40) and Xavier Doherty (19) helped out.Wright had 3 for 11 off seven overs, giving him eight wickets for the game, and Pattinson returned 3 for 15 off 12 in impressive displays. Bryce McGain, the legspinner, chipped in at the end with 3 for 57 as he hopes to hold his spot ahead of Jon Holland for the final.Matthew Wade’s 50 pushed Victoria to 382 in the morning and they now have an extra day to prepare for the decider against Queensland at the MCG. It will be a repeat of last year’s final, when a draw gave the Bushrangers the trophy.