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BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur is the frontrunner to become president of the Indian board after Shashank Manohar stepped down on Tuesday

Nagraj Gollapudi10-May-2016

BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur is the frontrunner to become president of the Indian board after Shashank Manohar stepped down on Tuesday. Thakur has been tight-lipped about his next move, but senior BCCI office-bearers believe he is set to take over for the remainder of Manohar’s tenure, until September 2017.”There is no other strong candidate to run the BCCI,” a senior official from one of the East Zone associations said. According to the board’s constitution, Thakur, as BCCI secretary, has to convene a special general body meeting within two weeks to appoint the next president. If he plans to contest for the position, he has to quit as secretary.Whispers of Manohar’s resignation had begun when the ICC announced that candidates for the post of chairman had to be independent of its Full Member boards. The Manohar camp, without saying he would quit the BCCI, blamed the ongoing tussle with the Supreme Court, which has been deliberating how the board could implement the radical reforms proposed by the Lodha committee in January.The rival camp, comprising supporters of former BCCI president N Srinivasan, called Manohar’s decision to step down as premeditated and selfish. “This was the clear the day they decided amongst themselves to change things and planned to reduce India’s share [of the ICC revenues]. It was clear he was angling for this [ICC chairmanship],” a Srinivasan supporter said. “The BCCI became a pawn. The whole sequence of things is disappointing.”Over the past decade, the BCCI president had been chosen by a rotational system, where each of the five zones was given a turn to nominate their candidate. The candidatures of Manohar and his predecessor Jagmohan Dalmiya were put forward by the East Zone. But it is unclear if they have the right to nominate the next president, especially since the Lodha committee had proposed to scrap the zonal rotation system to elect the president.”There seems to be no rational basis for the Presidency to be rotated as per Zones, which has the effect of forsaking merit. A person who has the support of as few as two or three members in his Zone may end up as the President, if it is the turn of that Zone for election of President,” the Lodha committee said in its report. “Recent amendments to the rules have permitted individuals who are not even from the zone in question to be nominated to the post. For the same reason, the Vice-Presidents who are elected from each of the five zones seem to be merely ornamental without any specific functions.”In case the zonal system is discarded, one of the BCCI’s affiliated associations would have to propose a nominee and if another member seconds that, the nominee would become BCCI president. If there is more than one name put forward, an election would be required.”Nothing [has been discussed] so far,” a BCCI vice-president said. “It depends on how soon they would like to fill the gap – whether they will go through the election process or nomination [in the case of a unanimous candidate]. If there are elections, there are definitely a couple of people [who are possible candidates]. Our IPL chairman is also aspiring [to be president].”An East Zone official said IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla may be a better option as secretary. Most of the officials ESPNcricinfo contacted admitted it was still too early to predict who will become the next BCCI president.

As Middlesex trudged off after this evisceration, one thought might have terrified them: how much worse could it have been if Chris Gayle were still at Somerset?

Tim Wigmore at Uxbridge26-Jun-2015
ScorecardJim Allenby has brought his T20 success from Glamorgan colours to Somerset’s•Getty Images

As Middlesex trudged off after this evisceration, one thought might have terrified them: how much worse could it have been if Chris Gayle were still at Somerset?At Uxbridge, the pitch has often been criticised for producing soporific Championship cricket but here Jim Allenby and Johann Myburgh were in no mood to complain. Together the two added 118 in 13.2 overs as Somerset waltzed to their target of 172 with rather contemptuous ease.Middlesex’s failure to notch up a higher total deprived Allenby of the third T20 hundred of his career. Still he provided further affirmation of his consistency and class in this format of the game: after 548 runs at 45.66 apiece for Glamorgan last year, he has 237 runs at 47.40 for his new county. After beginning the T20 season at No. 5, to accommodate Gayle and Marcus Trescothick, the latter again omitted from this match, Allenby is relishing his return to opening.”It’s where everyone likes to bat – it’s the best place to bat without a doubt. If you get a chance to bat you make the most of it, because there’s a mile-long queue of people who want to do it, especially at Taunton and in this team,” he said.Insights

Somerset have not allowed the coming and going of Chris Gayle to unsettle their strategy. Rather than shifting and changing their approach with and then without him, the promotion of Jim Allenby to open, who, although not quite Gayle, is a player of a similar ilk, has minimised disruption to Somerset’s angle of attack. Middlesex meanwhile are too inconsistent with the ball. They have a bowling attack made up of individuals capable of match-winning spells, but this season they haven’t managed to perform together. In this match, for example, Rayner and Harris were frugal, but their work was undone by the others who were taken apart by Somerset.

Such was his effort that Middlesex’s 171 for 7 was made to feel utterly inadequate. While there were manifestations of Allenby’s power – a pulled six off Kyle Abbott and a dismissive pull off Ravi Patel, clearing the burger vans with ease, among them – this was an innings marked by a clinical approach. On a pitch as true as Uxbridge, Allenby eschewed histrionics and cruised with the ease of a driver on the M40, which can almost be heard from the ground. He failed to score off only 11 of his 51 deliveries.”That was an unbelievable pitch with an unbelievable outfield, unbelievable sized boundaries with a big wind,” Allenby said. “It wasn’t much fun bowling on it – I’m glad I only had to bowl one over. That’s a tough place to bowl so we were quite comfortable chasing that.” He paid heed, too, to Abdur Rehman, who yielded just 19 from four overs of chicanery.There feels like a new vitality in Somerset. The successful chase of 401 in the Championship against Nottinghamshire nine days ago – though it feels rather longer – has brought catharsis. Three wins have followed since, the last two by nine wickets. How Middlesex must be envious: the side has not won a game in any format in June.A three-ball spell rather summed things up. A leading edge from Allenby shaped up as an easy return catch for James Harris, but he assumed the ball was Eoin Morgan’s at mid-off, so it dropped between them.Harris’ next delivery induced a leading edge from Myburgh to a vacant midwicket. His pride pricked by the previous ball, Harris ran with gusto, cupping the ball in a brilliant full-length dive – just only for a second. When Allenby earned a single with an overthrow next ball, Uxbridge’s heckles were becoming palpable. It seemed appropriate that the denouement came when the rankest of long hops, from Paul Stirling, was marmalised over midwicket by Trego.The thrashing felt rather unfair on John Simpson. Thriving in the responsibility of batting at No. 3, he held Middlesex together, thundering two ginormous sixes off Max Waller and harrying between the wickets. A delightful straight six off Alfonso Thomas carried him to a career-best in this format, though the most intoxicating shot of the innings was Stirling’s thunderous swipe over midwicket off Jamie Overton.When Stirling was dismissed, Morgan was greeted with generous applause as he walked out to the middle. It was testament to how much England’s ODI series against New Zealand had galvanised the public, yet Morgan scarcely resembled the player who had amassed 322 runs in that series. He scratched around for 7 off 16 balls until being sharply taken by Trego on the long-on boundary, who just prevented his fluorescent green trainers from tumbling over the rope.”Wouldn’t miss these shoes,” Trego joked to the crowd. Middlesex supporters didn’t have much else to laugh about. Two emphatic victories in consecutive nights a month ago proved deceptive: Middlesex have lost five consecutive T20s since. Bottom of the South Group last season, they risk the same fate in 2015. He may have enacted a transformation in England’s white ball fortunes, but doing the same at Middlesex seems an even more demanding task for Morgan.

Match facts

Thursday, March 19, 2015
Start time 1430 local (0330 GMT)4:49

Chappell: Mashrafe has challenged the team to improve

Big picture

At the start of the World Cup, defending champions India would have accepted gleefully the position they find themselves in – a quarter-final against Bangladesh, the lowest-ranked of the remaining eight teams, a side with medium-pacers and spinners that India’s batsmen have found relatively easy to bully, a team without big-match experience, and a team with vulnerabilities outside the subcontinent. Ironically, Bangladesh would probably have accepted their position too.Though India, on current form, are superior in every aspect, their brand of cricket and their frailties are not unfamiliar to Bangladesh. It isn’t South Africa, who are going to blow them away with extreme pace and bounce, or with muscular hitting. India’s batsmen are better at what Bangladesh aim for – timing, using the pace of the ball, and wristwork – and India execute better in the field with a similar bowling formation to Bangladesh. There is no doubt about who the favourites are – Bangladesh admitted as much – but it allows them to plan more intuitively.When the ICC fixed the knockout schedule, Bangladesh were not mentioned. The MCG was to host the England quarter-final, and if they didn’t make it the team that did in their place would play at Australia’s largest ground. Bangladesh grabbed that spot with verve, handing England their return tickets after a clinical finish in Adelaide. They even came close to finishing third in their group. With the batsmen scoring consistently and all the bowlers contributing, Bangladesh are deservedly in the last eight.What could help Bangladesh is India going off the boil, but that hasn’t happened yet in this tournament. In a complete turnaround from their first two months in Australia, India have found the aura defending champions ought to bring. Barring one or two players, everyone has contributed to the resurgence. The quarter-final appears to be their smallest bump on the road ahead, but one uncontrolled approach is all it takes.

Form guide

(last five matches, most recent first)
India WWWWW
Bangladesh LWWLWMahmudullah has scored more runs in this World Cup than any Indian batsman•Getty Images

In the spotlight

Bangladesh’s fielders struggled with the size of the MCG playing area against Sri Lanka, their first game at the ground. They dropped catches and they grappled with field placements. It was not a surprise that during practice for the quarter-final, fielders were made to charge in from the edge of the boundary to take catches, fire throws and understand the unique dimensions of the venue. Bangladesh’s bowling coach Heath Streak also tested umpire Aleem Dar’s catching with three hits. All were taken, drawing applause from the players, who knew it was an important skill to judge catches in the outfield where only rarely is one able to see the ball against a disturbance-free background. One mistake on Thursday and it could mean the end of a dream for a generation of cricketers.India’s pace bowling in this tournament has been such a revelation that Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who was considered integral to their chances, cannot find a place in the XI. In the last two games, however, there were periods when they struggled against the Ireland and Zimbabwe batsmen. The switch to New Zealand conditions could have been one reason, but it could also have been a sign of increasing weariness. India will hope that a return to Australia will help Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav and Mohit Sharma maintain the intensity.

Teams news

Mashrafe Mortaza missed Bangladesh’s last group game against New Zealand, but will be back to lead the side. That would leave Arafat Sunny, Taijul Islam and Nasir Hossain fighting for the remaining spot. Nasir, who picked up two wickets against New Zealand, could be the favourite because he would strengthen the batting.Bangladesh (probable) 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Imrul Kayes, 3 Soumya Sarkar, 4 Mahmudullah, 5 Shakib Al Hasan, 6 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 7 Sabbir Rahman, 8 Arafat Sunny/Nasir Hossain, 9 Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), 10 Rubel Hossain, 11 Taskin AhmedIndia talked about a sense of calm ahead of the big match. They are highly unlikely to disturb that with any alteration in the team, barring injury.India (probable) 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Rohit Sharma, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Ajinkya Rahane, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Mohit Sharma, 10 Mohammed Shami, 11 Umesh Yadav

Pitch and conditions

The pitch for the quarter-final is the same one that was used in the Bangladesh-Sri Lanka Group A game. It’s expected to be flat and full of runs. However, teams would keep an eye on the weather as some showers are forecast for Thursday afternoon and evening.

Stats and trivia

• Bangladesh are playing their first knockout match in a top-flight ICC tournament. India, on the other hand, are playing their 10th under MS Dhoni’s captaincy. Dhoni, with eight wins from nine matches (Champions Trophy, World T20 and World Cup) is level with Ricky Ponting, whose eight wins have come from 11 games.
• Bangladesh batsman Mahmudullah has scored 344 runs from five games in this World Cup, more than anyone from India. Five of Bangladesh’s top 10 aggregates for batsmen in a World Cup have come in this tournament.
• None of the India batsmen in this squad has scored a century in an ICC tournament knockout game.
• This is Bangladesh’s 300th ODI. They played India in their 100th (2004) and 150th ODI (2007), winning both games.

Quotes

“I wanted to congratulate Bangladesh for qualifying for the quarter-final. It’s good to see India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh – all four subcontinent teams – in the quarter-final. Earlier people were saying that we don’t have allrounders for conditions, so it’s good to see the teams from subcontinent through.”
“2007 won’t help; 2011, when we lost, that doesn’t help either. In short-form cricket, what is important is how you do on the day.”

The BCCI’s contracts list for 2014-15

Grade A

MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar
In: Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Out: Sachin Tendulkar

Grade B

Pragyan Ojha, M Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Umesh Yadav, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Ambati Rayudu, Mohammed Shami
In: Mohammed Shami, Ambati Rayudu, Ajinkya Rahane
Out: Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh

Grade C

Amit Mishra, Varun Aaron, Wriddhiman Saha, Stuart Binny, Pankaj Singh, Vinay Kumar, Mohit Sharma, Dhawal Kulkarni, Parvez Rasool, Akshar Patel, Manoj Tiwary, Robin Uthappa, Karn Sharma, Sanju Samson, Kuldeep Yadav, KL Rahul
In: Varun Aaron, Stuart Binny, Pankaj Singh, Dhawal Kulkarni, Parvez Rasool, Akshar Patel, Robin Uthappa, Manoj Tiwary, Karn Sharma, Sanju Samson, Kuldeep Yadav, KL Rahul
Out: Dinesh Karthik, Jaydev Unadkat

Seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been handed a Grade A contract by the BCCI for the 2014-15 season, a promotion from the Grade B contract he had last season. He joins MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina and R Ashwin in the top level, after being one of the successes for India on the tour to England this summer, where he claimed 19 wickets from seven Test innings at 26.63.Mohammed Shami, Ambati Rayudu and Ajinkya Rahane have been promoted from Grade C to Grade B, while Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Dinesh Karthik and Jaydev Unadkat have been dropped from the contracts list.There are several players who did not have contracts last year but have been included in Grade C this time, including Varun Aaron, Stuart Binny, Pankaj Singh, Dhawal Kulkarni, Parvez Rasool, Akshar Patel, Robin Uthappa, Manoj Tiwary, Karn Sharma, Sanju Samson, Kuldeep Yadav and KL Rahul.Pragyan Ojha, Ishant Sharma, M Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Umesh Yadav, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ravindra Jadeja and Rohit Sharma have been retained in Grade B, while Amit Mishra, Wriddhiman Saha, Vinay Kumar and Mohit Sharma remain in Grade C.The BCCI said in a release that players who have not received contracts but play for India in any of the three formats this season will be given Grade C contracts once they debut.The only players in India’s 30-man probables list for the 2015 World Cup who had not made it to the contracts list are batsmen Manish Pandey and Kedar Jadhav, and fast bowler Ashok Dinda.Wicketkeeper-batsman Naman Ojha, who was called up to the India Test team as injury cover for Saha and Dhoni during the series in England earlier this year as well as the ongoing series in Australia, has not been given a contract.The BCCI did not announce how much the players will be paid under each grade, since their fees are decided at the AGM. The AGM is usually held before September 30 every year, but has not been held for 2014-15 as the BCCI is embroiled in a legal tussle following the 2013 IPL corruption scandal. Last season, a Grade A contract came with an annual retainer of Rs 1 crore for Grade A players (US$ 158,000 approx), Rs 50 lakh for Grade B players (US$ 79,000 approx), and Rs 25 lakh for Grade C players (US$ 39,000 approx).

MatériaMais Notícias

pós uma sequência de derrotas, o Goiás voltou a pontuar na última rodada do Campeonato Brasileiro. A equipe esmeraldina conseguiu empatar com o Bahia fora de casa, e agora vai de ânimo renovado para o duelo contra o Internacional, no próximo domingo (25), às 16h00, no estádio Serra Dourada, em partida válida pela 16º rodada.

O goleiro Tadeu, que na partida diante do Bahia fez uma defesa espetacular em cabeçada de Fernandão, falou sobre o que o Goiás precisa levar de aprendizados para o restante do campeonato, da partida diante do tricolor.

– Fizemos um jogo de muita entrega, dedicação, vontade. O Bahia teve um jogador expulso no início da partida, o que fez com que a gente pudesse ter mais oportunidades. Saímos satisfeitos com a produção da equipe, com o nosso comportamento dentro de campo. Temos que levar o espirito que tivemos lá para o restante do campeonato – disse Tadeu.

Após a volta do brasileirão, o Goiás ainda não venceu. A equipe alviverde conseguiu somar apenas 3 pontos em 21 possíveis, agora está na parte de baixo da tabela, somando 18 pontos, e ocupando a 12º colocação. O adversário do próximo domingo vem de vitória fora de casa, o Inter venceu o Fortaleza no Castelão e entrou de vez na briga pelo G6.

Tadeu espera uma partida bem difícil contra o Internacional, mas espera que o Goiás possa voltar a vencer.

– Eu vi a partida contra o Fortaleza, foi um time bem diferente do que vinha jogando. Mas são atletas de alto nível. Esperamos um jogo muito difícil. É uma equipe que vem muito bem, brigando em todas as competições, então a gente tem que respeitar muito o Internacional. Mas estamos em casa, vamos jogar diante do nosso torcedor, e precisamos voltar a vencer. Vamos fazer de tudo para conseguir os três pontos – completou.

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Phillip Hughes is used to getting bad news from Australia’s selectors, having been dropped from the Test team three times, but captain Michael Clarke believes he will become a permanent fixture in Australia’s side over the next decade.In his latest setback, Hughes was this month left out of the one-day squad to tour Zimbabwe, despite less than a week earlier becoming the first Australian to score a List A double-century. Instead of preparing for ODI duties, Hughes has stayed with Australia A, for whom he scored the 202 not out in Darwin, and will captain the side in a four-day game against South Africa A in Townsville this week.Hughes had appeared the logical candidate to be included in the one-day squad, given that David Warner will miss the Zimbabwe tour to prepare for the birth of his first child. But while Hughes said he was “really disappointed” at being overlooked in the short term, Clarke believes his long-term future should include a lengthy tenure in the national side.”I think Hughesy is a really good example of someone who continues to score big runs,” Clarke told ABC Radio this week. “Look at his first-class record, he’s probably got more hundreds than any other player at his age. He’s making runs consistently for Australia A, so I think he’s doing everything he can to be in the front of the selectors’ minds.”His performances speak for themselves. He’s got a bright future. He’s a 100-Test player in my opinion. He’s just got to get an opportunity now and I’m sure he’ll grab it with both hands. But I think in 10 years from now, we’ll be talking about Phillip Hughes as one of those players to play 100 Test matches for Australia. He’s got the talent, he’s got the work ethic.”I guess what I love most about Hughesy is his passion and want to play for Australia. You ask him to do something, he’ll do it if it helps him get in this Australian team. He’s a good guy to have around the group. I’ve always liked him, I’ve got a lot of respect for him and I know he’ll play a lot of cricket for Australia.”But Hughes, 25, has perhaps played less cricket for his country than might have been expected after he scored twin centuries in his second Test in Durban at the age of 20. He has made 26 Test appearances but has added only one more century, and was surprisingly overlooked as a one-day player until early last year, when he emerged with two hundreds in his first ODI series.Over the past five years, Hughes has struggled to find a permanent place in Australia’s Test side. He was axed during the 2009 Ashes tour of England, again after becoming Chris Martin’s bunny in the 2011-12 home series against New Zealand, and once more during the 2013 Ashes tour when Warner returned to the side for the third Test.Although Hughes was back in the squad for this year’s tour of South Africa, he did not play a Test, and it remains to be seen whether he will be part of the group to play Pakistan in the UAE in October. Ahead of the South Africa A match starting in Townsville on Thursday, Hughes told reporters that new chairman of selectors Rod Marsh had been supportive but had challenged him to keep piling up the runs.”I was really disappointed to not get selected for that [Zimbabwe tour], but that’s how it is,” Hughes said. “All I can do is continue to play some consistent cricket. I’m happy with my game at the moment. I’ve had a good chat with Rod Marsh and he’s been really good.”That chat stays between me and Rod, but it’s about scoring a lot more runs and everything takes care of itself. I spoke to Rod a number of times in the last week and he’s been very supportive. They only took 14 to Zimbabwe, so it’s not many in the squad. There wasn’t really room for me, and that’s what he said. It’s about going on and scoring a lot more runs and continuing to be consistent.”Despite his outstanding one-day record – he has scored 3473 List A runs at 48.23 – Hughes will find it hard to break into Australia’s squad for the upcoming World Cup, with Warner to return to the group. For the time being, his focus is on adding to his 25 first-class centuries over the next few days in Townsville.

Middlesex have been so rotten in the NatWest T20 Blast that Lord’s refused to host their latest match. Well, not exactly

Alex Winter at The Oval18-Jun-2014
ScorecardJoe Denly hit an unbeaten 98 in Middlesex’s chase•Getty Images

Middlesex have been so rotten in the NatWest T20 Blast that Lord’s refused to host their latest match. Well, not exactly, but while Middlesex hopped over the Thames to borrow The Oval for this fixture, a supermarket’s corporate event was being hosted at HQ.Brian Lara was the star at Lord’s and Middlesex fans may have preferred a peak over the Grace Gates than a trip to the southern wastelands of SE11. Not many did. The crowd numbered few more than a healthy Championship attendance. Understandable given the quality of cricket Middlesex have produced in the shortest format this season, but a change of home ground did the trick and they snapped a run of six consecutive defeats. Comfortably too, chasing 153 with more than two overs to spare.Middlesex seemed to need Professor Higgins from My Fair Lady to transform their T20 cricket. They found a Higgins, if not a professor: handing a debut to 19-year-old Ryan Higgins, who has been in excellent form for the second XI.It was evident in the timing and confidence of his strokemaking. He lined up Craig Overton in the final over of the Powerplay for two sixes into the OCS stand and just when Somerset had regained their footing through Max Waller and Craig Meschede, lifted Waller over extra-cover. A flick behind square leg for four in the 17th over put the chase beyond doubt.But Higgins was the aggressive foil to Joe Denly’s thrusting epee. He was a different player to the one who averaged 12.16 from six innings before this knock. He more-than-doubled his season’s tally with an unbeaten 98 in 60 balls. He began by lifting Peter Trego into the pavilion and from that found his eye to control the chase.Two sixes over midwicket in the 14th over brought the requirement down to almost a run-a-ball from the last six overs and when Alfonso Thomas – the master of death bowling – threatened some pressure with three dot balls, Denly carved two boundaries backward of square on the off side.Denly and Higgins needed a Little Bit O’Luck – two chances falling short of fielders at long-off and extra-cover – but their century stand at more than nine-an-over deserved it. The Middlesex supporters were owed it.Denly outgunned Craig Kieswetter, whose 74 in 59 balls led Somerset to 152 which is often defended in domestic T20 at The Oval. Kieswetter has, for the second season, showed how dangerous his sharp eye and quick hands can be. Here, he became the first batsman to pass 300 runs in the competition this season.His innings was top and tailed by bursts of boundaries. In the Powerplay, he flicked James Harris to the midwicket fence, then hammered him straight for four more having given himself room outside leg stump. He was forced to be circumspect during the middle overs against chiefly the clever left-arm spin of Ravi Patel. But in the closing overs he finally freed himself against Patel to strike him over long-off for six and took two fours from the penultimate over.Kieswetter’s knock mirrored Somerset’s progress; 41 were taken off the first five overs and 48 from the final five. The middle 10 saw the Middlesex slower bowlers, Patel, Neil Dexter and Ollie Rayner, gain control: they conceded only two fours and a six during that period.Patel is Middlesex’s leading wicket-taker in the T20 Blast. He tempted both Chris Jones – playing instead of Marcus Trescothick who picked up a groin injury in the last Championship match and was not risked here with Sunday’s fixture at Trent Bridge in mind – and an over later, Peter Trego, into sweeping at the short leg-side boundary and holing out to Dawid Malan off top edges.Middlesex could not hold the whole innings together. Together with Kieswetter’s late kick, James Hildreth provided 26 in 13 balls, including consecutive reverse-swept fours off Rayner in an 18th over which yielded 14. But Denly and Higgins ensured the late progress was not enough.

R Ashwin has defended his action in the Asia Cup as an experiment, saying he did not want to “lag behind” bowlers who derived more advantage from long sleeves that allowed them to use their elbows a little more.

Abhishek Purohit29-Mar-2014Offspinners’ actions, especially while bowling the doosra, have been under constant scrutiny, and it has become a common practice over the last few years for bowlers to bowl with long sleeves that cover their elbows. R Ashwin, who prefers the flicked carrom ball to the doosra, had regularly bowled in half sleeves until he opted for the more popular approach during the Asia Cup in Bangladesh earlier this month.Ahead of India’s last league match in World T20, against Australia, Ashwin defended his action as an experiment, saying he did not want to “lag behind” bowlers who derived more advantage from long sleeves that allowed them to use their elbows a little more.”I want to do something different. I want to keep trying something – unless you try you don’t go and venture and find out what can work or not,” Ashwin said. “I’d never bowled in full-sleeves before [the Asia Cup]. So I wanted to see how it would feel. And I just wanted to see if you can get more revs on the ball, if you can do a little bit with your elbow, as much as [is allowed], that is. That’s what it was all about. You can get a lot of advantage with these things. So why should I lag behind if someone else is getting a competitive edge?”In the Asia Cup, Ashwin had experimented with a vastly different action, similar to Sunil Narine’s, and had also bowled with longer sleeves. He was seen practising the different release during training in Wellington during India’s recent tour to New Zealand. While he has not tried either the different action or long sleeves during the World T20 so far, Ashwin said it was something he has not ruled out attempting again.

Brett Lee conceded 14 runs off the last over of the match but helped the Sydney Sixers win by two runs to mark the end of the Melbourne Renegades’ final’s aspirations

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Jan-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsMoises Henriques took a wicket and scored his first fifty of the tournament•Getty ImagesBrett Lee bowled a tight last over to help Sydney Sixers to a two-run win that ended Melbourne Renegades’ semi-finals aspirations. The Renegades needed 17 off six deliveries but could only manage eight in the first five as Lee bowled full and fast. Although his last delivery was hit for a six, the match had been decided already. The win pushed the Sixers to third place with 10 points.Put into bat, Sixers lost Nic Maddinson in the second over, to left-arm spinner Aaron O’Brien’s first ball, as he missed a heave to off side and was stumped. Moises Henriques joined Michael Lumb and upped the run rate by smashing O’Brien for a six and three fours in his next over. Lumb, who was dropped in the fifth over, top-edged a full toss to be caught at cover in the next over. Muttiah Muralitharan and Matthew Gale slowed things a bit, giving 17 runs in the next three overs, before Steven Smith clobbered Gale for a six over deep midwicket to push the pedal again.Smith handed a return catch to O’Brien to fall for 25 but Henriques went on to score his fifty off 36 balls in the 14th over. He was dismissed for 55, stumped down the leg side off Muralitharan. Marcus North lost two partners – Jordan Silk and Daniel Smith – in the last seven balls of the innings but scored an unbeaten 30 off 21 to take the Sixers to 151.The Renegades started slow in their chase, scoring 13 in the first three overs, before picking up pace in Nathan Lyon’s first over. They were 35 after five overs when a direct hit from Henriques, at cover point, lit the bails at the non-striker’s end to break the opening stand. Michael Hill kept the required run rate in control with boundaries in the next two overs but was caught at long-on for 35. Dwayne Bravo eased the nerves for them with two sixes but a mix-up led to Alex Doolan’s run-out.They needed 60 from 42 and tight bowling from Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon made it 32 from 18. Lee had two overs left and full-length deliveries from him in the 18th over meant the Renagades couldn’t score a boundary. The equation came down to 25 from the last two overs. In the 19th, Sixers struck twice and gave away just eight runs to swing the game in their favour.

MatériaMais Notícias

Promessa alvinegra, o atacante Guilherme retornou da Granja Comary após mais de uma semana de treinamentos com a Seleção Brasileira sub-17 para jogadores nascidos em 2003 – na prática, a equipe sub-16 da Canarinho. A Seleção embarcou nesta quinta-feira à França, para a disputa de um torneio.

Guilherme não havia sido chamado inicialmente, mas depois foi escolhido para ficar em avaliação pelo técnico Dudu Patetucci. O jovem, artilheiro do Botafogo no Carioca sub-15 do ano passado, não ficou para a equipe que vai para a Europa, mas agradeceu o período em Teresópolis.

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– Foi uma emoção muito grande quando fui chamado para defender a Seleção. Independente de ser um período de treino fui com muito orgulho e pronto para dar o meu melhor. Fico feliz pelo reconhecimento, acho que fui bem durante esse período e espero voltar em novas oportunidades. Fico na torcida aqui para o grupo que viajou e que possam fazer um bom torneio na França – disse.

O Brasil embarcou para a França para o torneio de Montaigu, importante competição da base. México, Espanha e França são os adversários canarinhos na primeira fase do torneio. Portugal, Argentina, Inglaterra e Costa do Marfim fazem a outra chave.