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Kent landed the opening blows in the LV= County Championship’s basement battle by reducing fellow Second Division strugglers Leicestershire to 74 for 4

29-May-2013
ScorecardKent landed the opening blows in the LV= County Championship’s basement battle by reducing fellow Second Division strugglers Leicestershire to 74 for 4 on a rain-ruined opening day in Tunbridge Wells.Kent’s acting captain Geraint Jones, standing in for James Tredwell who is away on England one-day duty, admitted he too would have batted first at a cloudy Nevill Ground. But that will have done nothing to lift the spirits of his Leicestershire counterpart Josh Cobb, who saw four wickets go down in 21 overs after he won the toss and elected to take first use of the pitch.However, the former England wicketkeeper conceded later that it turned out to be a good toss to lose as Kent’s swing bowlers made decent use of the overcast and breezy conditions.Though Matt Coles, the Kent and England Lions bowler, proved expensive during a wayward seven-over burst from the Pavilion End, Kent’s three seamers of a lesser pace proved more than a handful for the Leicestershire top order.Charlie Shreck made the opening breakthrough for the hosts in the third over to make it 6 for 1. Shreck got one to swing away and lift to right-hander Greg Smith who feathered a low, sharp chance that was well taken by a tumbling Adam Riley at third slip.Former Kent wicketkeeper Niall O’Brien teamed up with Ned Eckersley to add 56 in 14 overs for the second wicket before left-handed O’Brien played inside a Darren Stevens leg-cutter that pegged back off stump. Without addition to the total, Eckersley in aiming to cut a short wide ball from Calum Haggett, edged a regulation catch through to Jones. Six runs on Stevens rapped Joe Burns on the back pad to win a confident leg before appeal.Rain arrived in the Royal Spa town barely two overs later to force the players from the field at 12.30pm for an early lunch. They also took an early tea at 3.10pm and, despite a concerted mopping-up operation, they never returned as umpires Peter Hartley and Steve Gale abandoned play for the day.

The BCCI president N Srinivasan has announced a “one-time benefit” scheme for Indian cricketers from the proceeds of the play-off games of this year’s IPL

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Apr-2012The BCCI president N Srinivasan has announced a “one-time benefit” scheme for Indian cricketers from the proceeds of the play-off games of this year’s IPL. Srinivasan made the announcement during the opening ceremony of the fifth edition of the IPL today in Chennai.”I would like to say that from the proceeds of the play-off games of the IPL, the BCCI will give a one-time benefit to those [players] who have graced Indian cricket – international as well as those who have played domestic cricket for a long time,” Srinivasan said. “Over 185 players will benefit from this. This is a small thank you to those who have done yeoman service to Indian cricket.”Srinivasan further said that the BCCI had used the money generated from the IPL for promoting the game in India. “The BCCI has made good use of the success of IPL. The BCCI has distributed funds to all associations so that infrastructure, training facilities and academies are developed so that young cricketers have ample opportunities to become good players and knock on the national selection doors.”Srinivasan’s announcement was preceded by the captains of the nine IPL teams signing the Spirit of Cricket pledge. The opening ceremony featured performances by several Indian movie artistes including Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan, Prabhu Deva, Kareena Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra. Also among the performers was American star Katy Perry.The IPL kicks off tomorrow with defending champions Chennai Super Kings taking on Mumbai Indians in Chennai.

MS Dhoni has suggested India’s bowling line-up may change from match to match over the World Cup, depending on conditions and the opposition

Liam Brickhill in Bangalore05-Mar-2011The last three days have given MS Dhoni plenty to think about. Kevin O’Brien’s inspirational innings against England means a wary India will be taking no chances against the plucky Ireland side in Bangalore, while the reaction of irate Bangladesh fans after their team’s humiliating loss to West Indies will surely have stirred memories for India’s captain.West Indies’ team bus was struck by stones as they travelled back from their match against Bangladesh in Mirpur, while the also reported that a few fans on motorbikes threw stones at Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan’s Magura home, leaving a window-pane broken. Dhoni’s own home in Ranchi had been targeted in a similar manner, amid a wave of effigy-burning, by angry Indian fans after India’s loss to Bangladesh in the 2007 World Cup.”I think yesterday they missed the Bangladesh bus, because that’s what they were waiting for,” he joked, before taking on a far more serious tone. “It’s unfortunate, but in the subcontinent that’s how the fans react. They should remember it’s not the players living in that [Shakib’s] home right now, it’s the family members and they don’t have anything to do with cricket. You have to control your emotions.”[As fans] you have to back the players. You need backing when you’re not doing well because when you’re winning games and everybody’s with you, the emotions, the expectation level, the appreciation, everything is there. But the real fans of cricket will be with you when you’re not doing well, when you are a bit low, when the team is not doing well, those are the real fans of cricket. Others, they just follow the wins of the team; whenever they are winning they are big fans of cricket.”MS Dhoni says he was never going to take Ireland lightly as he has already experienced losing to an underdog•AFP

A successful Indian team has had no such worries in this tournament so far, giving their legions of supporters plenty to celebrate even though their match against England ended in a tie. But if there had been any chance, at the beginning of the World Cup, that their encounter with Ireland might have been seen as an opportunity to experiment and rest key players, such thoughts were vanquished by the events of Wednesday night.”I’ve never said there’s any weaker side in the World Cup, because if you have very fond memories of getting beaten by Bangladesh in 2007 then you won’t commit that mistake,” Dhoni said on the eve of the Ireland clash.”For every team it depends on that particular day. There are individuals in every side who can play big innings, score at an amazing strike rate of 150 or 200, and that can really change the course of the game. So the preparation level remains the same and the intensity should be the same as when we play any other side.”Dhoni admitted to being impressed by Kevin O’Brien’s “unbelievable” knock, and glad that he had been a spectator to it rather than being on the receiving end. “We really enjoyed O’Brien’s innings. It was not against us, so as a spectator you can enjoy each and every hit. We enjoyed every bit of his batting and the Ireland innings.”Right from the very start he went after the bowlers but it was really impressive to see him change gears at the end because that’s what was needed at that point. As far as strategies [against him] are concerned, every day is different so accordingly you have to plan for how a batsman is playing. But he got run out, so we’ll try to get him run out in this game also.”A full-strength XI is a virtual certainty against a buoyant Ireland side who will be backing themselves to secure another major scalp, and Dhoni suggested that India would stick to the batting-heaving line-up as that is where their main strength lies.”You should always back your strength, that’s the most important part. Tomorrow we don’t want to feel ‘Okay now we would have been better off with seven batsmen’, and maybe you score 30-odd runs less and you find yourself in a place where there’s not enough runs on the board. We’ll be more inclined to play with seven batters, of course Yusuf [Pathan] and Yuvraj [Singh] can also bowl and be the fifth bowler for the side.”With four slots remaining for the bowlers, the question for India will be which combination of spin and seam to play: three seamers and one specialist spinner, or two of each? If two spinners are included, will it be R Ashwin or Piyush Chawla who partners Harbhajan Singh?Dhoni did not let on what India’s plans were, but did defend his bowlers for leaking 338 runs in the game against England, saying the Bangalore wicket was flat. “We played against England with a two-two combination. Some people may say it didn’t really affect the opposition but what we are saying is the wicket is behaving in a better way under the lights. What we have seen is that it’s not a seamer-friendly wicket and as the game progresses by evening it comes on very nicely to the bat – there’s no extra pace for the fast bowlers.”Dhoni suggested India’s bowling combination might change from game to game depending on the opposition. “If there’s plenty of left-handers in the opposition side then you may be inclined to play one more offspinner. Both Yusuf and Harbhajan are offspinners and both of them have bowled well. If the opposition are not very good at picking the wrong one from the legspinner then you are inclined to play Piyush Chawla.”Piyush just gives you that variation of the bowler who can take it away and also has the wrong one. And you already have Harbhajan and Yusuf to bowl offspin. Ashwin has done exceptionally well for us whenever he has played and he has bowled in the first 10 overs also, but you just pick the one that may be most suitable for that particular game.”

Daniel Vettori was left to rue a batting failure that cost his team vital momentum, and eventually the match, while Ricky Ponting termed his side’s six-wicket win as their best performance in the series

Cricinfo staff09-Mar-2010Daniel Vettori, the New Zealand captain, blamed his side’s poor batting performance for the defeat in the third ODI at Hamilton, which gave Australia 2-1 lead in the five-match series.”We put a bit too much pressure on ourselves with losing wickets and I suppose, put too much pressure on Scott [Styris] and Gareth [Hopkins] to pick up the slack then be aggressive near the end,” Vettori said. “It was a total that was 40 or 50 runs short and we couldn’t put any pressure on Australia because of it.”New Zealand reached 146 for the loss of five wickets, in the 30th over, before Styris and Hopkins recovered partially through a 67-run stand, but the hosts could not last the full duration and were bowled out for 245 in the 47th over. Four of their top five batsmen got off to starts but did not take on the responsibility to bat long, a trait that concerned Vettori.”I suppose it’s just taking ownership of your innings and realising that 20s and 30s and even 50s and 60s aren’t good enough against Australia. You need guys to kick on. You need those big partnerships and you can’t consistently lose wickets,” Vettori said.New Zealand struggled on the field, with two first-choice seamers, Daryl Tuffey and James Franklin, missing in action. Shane Bond had to leave the field later in the day, after picking a sore thumb while trying to take a tough return catch from centurion Brad Haddin. Vettori admitted that his side was a bowler short, and struggled as a result.”It was one bowler too few but you still need guys to step up and bowl well. At times we did a really good job with the ball and at times we were poor,” Vettori said.The injuries forced a recall for Michael Mason, after nearly two years in the international wilderness. He was attacked early by Haddin, but was better in his second spell where he dismissed Ricky Ponting.”I was pleased with the way Michael Mason came back because it was a pretty tough start but he finished pretty well,” Vettori said.Ponting, the Australia captain, hailed his side’s clinical six-wicket win as their best performance yet in the series. “It was a very convincing win tonight. To take our Powerplay as late as we did and we really cantered across the line from about 30 overs onwards. We did it pretty easy.”We’ve been looking for this performance the entire series and we’ve played our best game to date. The momentum, if there is any to be taken out of this game, is obviously with us. If we start strongly on Thursday hopefully the momentum continues for us there,” Ponting said.Brad Haddin’s attacking ton played a major part in Australia’s easy win and Ponting acknowledged that there was a conscious effort among the top-order batsmen to score big.”It’s what we’ve been asking our top order to deliver. I said to the boys this morning I know that if someone in our top order gets 80 plus or 100 that we’re going to get well over 300 every time we bat with the nature of these grounds over here,” Ponting said.”Luckily we were chasing 240. Our bowlers did a great job there taking wickets consistently through the New Zealand batting innings. It was a more commanding performance and Brad’s obviously played a massive role in us winning tonight.”

Uncapped keeper-batter Uma Chetry is also part of all three squads

Sruthi Ravindranath30-May-2024Batter Jemimah Rodrigues and allrounder Pooja Vastrakar have been named in India’s Test and white-ball squads for the upcoming home series against South Africa, but their selection is subject to fitness.Rodrigues had missed the five-match T20I series in Bangladesh in April-May with a back injury and underwent rehab at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. Vastrakar, however, had played all five games in Bangladesh and the BCCI media statement did not specify the nature of her injury.Uncapped wicketkeeper-batter Uma Chetry was also included in all three squads. She replaced Yastika Bhatia who was out injured after playing just one T20I in Bangladesh. Chetry had also been part of the India’s Asian Games squad that beat Sri Lanka to win gold in Hangzhou in 2023.

South Africa tour of India

June 13: tour game vs Board President’s XI, Bengaluru
June 16: 1st ODI, Bengaluru
June 19: 2nd ODI, Bengaluru
June 23: 3rd ODI, Bengaluru
June 28 – July 1: One-off Test, Chennai
July 5: 1st T20I, Chennai
July 7: 2nd T20I, Chennai
July 9: 3rd T20I, Chennai

Top-order batter Priya Punia, who last played for India in July 2023, earned a call-up to the Test side. Medium-pacer Arundhati Reddy, who has played 26 T20Is so far, was called up to the Test and ODI squads as well. However, fast bowler Titas Sadhu, who was part of the T20Is against Bangladesh as well as India’s last ODI and Test assignments (against Australia last year), missed out.Punia had linked up with the India squad ahead of the one-off Test against Australia last year as cover for Shubha Satheesh.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Following a decent run in the WPL 2024, where she picked up eight wickets in nine games for Delhi Capitals, Reddy impressed with both ball and bat in the Senior Women Inter Zonal Multi-Day Trophy in April. She scored 174 runs, including two fifties, and took two wickets, in two games for South Zone.Legspinner S Asha, who had made her T20I debut in Bangladesh, earned her maiden ODI call-up while D Hemalatha, who had made her comeback in that series in Bangladesh, could return to ODI action after almost two years. Hemalatha also retained her place in the T20I squad.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Harleen Deol, who was part of the squad for the ODIs and one-off Test against Australia in December-January, was left out. She had picked up a knee injury early in WPL 2024 and underwent surgery in March. The other absentee from the ODI squad against Australia is left-arm spinner Mannat Kashyap.Related

• Powerplay: An all-South African affair

• India vs SA: Bengaluru and Chennai to host women's all-format series

South Africa’s all-format women’s tour of India will begin with a three-match ODI series, then move to the one-off Test, and end with the three T20Is. The ODIs, as well as a one-day warm-up game for the visiting side against a Board President’s XI side, will be played in Bengaluru, while the rest of the games will take place in Chennai.The one-off Test wasn’t part of the ICC’s FTP originally. It was added since BCCI and CSA have both been trying to promote women’s Tests of late. This will be India’s third Test in seven months, having played against England and Australia in December last year, both at home.

India’s squad for women’s ODIs vs South Africa

Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), Smriti Mandhana (vice-capt), Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues (subject to fitness), Richa Ghosh (wk), Uma Chetry (wk), Dayalan Hemalatha, Radha Yadav, Asha Sobhana, Shreyanka Patil, Saika Ishaque, Pooja Vastrakar (subject to fitness), Renuka Singh Thakur, Arundhati Reddy, Priya Punia

India’s squad for one-off women’s Test vs South Africa

Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), Smriti Mandhana (vice-capt), Shafali Verma, Shubha Satheesh, Jemimah Rodrigues (subject to fitness), Richa Ghosh (wk), Uma Chetry (wk), Deepti Sharma, Sneh Rana, Saika Ishaque, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Pooja Vastrakar (subject to fitness), Arundhati Reddy, Renuka Singh Thakur, Meghna Singh, Priya Punia

India’s squad for women’s T20Is vs South Africa

Harmanpreet Kaur (capt), Smriti Mandhana (vice-capt), Shafali Verma, Dayalan Hemalatha, Uma Chetry (wk), Richa Ghosh (wk), Jemimah Rodrigues (subject to fitness), Sajana Sajeevan, Deepti Sharma, Shreyanka Patil, Radha Yadav, Amanjot Kaur, Asha Sobhana, Pooja Vastrakar (subject to fitness), Renuka Singh Thakur, Arundhati Reddy
Standby: Saika Ishaque

Rohit Sharma, Josh Hazlewood also move up the charts following recent exploits

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jan-2023Virat Kohli has moved up two spots to go sixth in the ICC men’s ODI batters’ rankings after scoring his 45th century in the format in the first game against Sri Lanka. Kohli’s 113 saw him overtake Jonny Bairstow and Steven Smith in the rankings.India captain Rohit Sharma, who scored 83 off 67 in the same match, also moved up a spot to eighth rank.Babar Azam, who scored back-to-back half-centuries in the ongoing series against New Zealand, continues to top the batting charts in ODIs, with 891 ranking points.

Test rankings: Khawaja moves up, Hazlewood back in top 10

Usman Khawaja jumped four spots to break back into the top 10. His unbeaten 195 in the drawn Sydney Test against South Africa saw him jump to eighth place in the rankings.Khawaja is currently one of four Australians in the top 10 in the Test batting charts, along with Marnus Labuschagne at the top, Smith at No. 2 and Travis Head ranked fourth.Josh Hazlewood returned to the Australia XI in the third Test, after a side strain kept him out of action, and grabbed five wickets to move up six spots to No. 10 among the bowlers.All of Australia’s premier pace trio of Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc are now in the top 10 in the Test rankings.

Rashid Khan returns as No. 1 T20I bowler

Afghanistan legspinner Rashid Khan replaced Wanindu Hasaranga on top of the T20I bowlers’ rankings after the Sri Lanka star failed to fire in the three-match series in India. Hasaranga took three wickets while conceding 99 runs in the series at an economy rate of 9.00 an over. Rashid, meanwhile, hasn’t played a T20I in over two months since the World Cup in Australia in November.

Afghanistan spinner joins Rizwan, Head as overseas signings in his fourth stint with club

Matt Roller17-Dec-2021Rashid Khan will return to Sussex for a fourth spell with the county in the 2022 T20 Blast.Rashid first signed for Sussex in 2018 and returned in 2019 and 2021. His stint last summer comprised only three games due to the rearranged Pakistan Super League, but included a match-winning performance in the quarter-finals against Yorkshire when he took 1 for 25 from four overs then hit 27 not out off nine balls to seal a five-wicket win.He becomes Sussex’s second major signing in as many days after Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan was unveiled as an overseas player on Thursday. Sussex will register Rashid, Rizwan and Championship captain Travis Head as their three overseas players for the Blast, with a maximum of two playing at any one time.The club said in a press release that the move would “maximise availability in the event of international call-ups or Covid-19 related disruption” with the majority of counties struggling to tie players down due to the ever-changing nature of the Future Tours Programme.Related

• Qais closed: Kent secure legspinner's signing for Blast title defence

• County ins and outs 2021-22

• Pakistan vs West Indies ODIs postponed to June 2022

• Ben Brown joins Sussex exodus after requesting early contract release

• Mohammad Rizwan signs Sussex contract for County Championship, T20 Blast

Rizwan, for example, was due to play for Sussex from April until mid-July, but barely 90 minutes after his signing was announced, Pakistan confirmed that their ODI series against West Indies had been moved to June, compromising his availability.Rashid is likely to miss the first handful of games of the Blast season due to his likely involvement in the IPL. Afghanistan are also due to play three T20Is against Australia, ending in early June, though fixtures are yet to be confirmed. The Blast is expected to start on May 25, with Finals Day on July 16.He will be one of three legspinners in the Sussex squad along with Will Beer – who has moved to a T20-only contract – and the teenager Archie Lenham. James Kirtley, their T20 head coach, said that Rashid’s influence as a role model was a major positive for the squad.”Rash is an outstanding person and his positive effect on our environment was so obvious last summer,” Kirtley said. “The immediate care and mentoring he showed Archie showed the real class of the person.”He’s the best in the business and we are truly lucky to have him. It is great to know we have developed a long-standing relationship with the best T20 spinner in the world – not to forget his dynamic batting which we witnessed against Yorkshire in last year’s quarter-final.”It will be amazing to have his services for the majority of the T20 Blast along with our two other overseas players. This puts us in an enviable position of being able to react to the ever-changing landscape of international cricket.”Rashid, who is currently in Australia playing for Adelaide Strikers under Sussex’s former coach Jason Gillespie, said that despite the loss of two key players in Chris Jordan and Phil Salt, he was “more determined that ever to try and help bring the T20 Blast title back to Hove”.”The squad will look a little different this season with some key players having moved on,” he said, “but the youngsters coming through impressed me greatly in recent seasons and combined with some new faces I think it is a really exciting time to be a Sharks fan.”

Harmer claims yet another five-for as Essex chase down 196 in fourth innings for third win

ECB Reporters Network18-Aug-2020Essex are on course to reach the final of the Bob Willis Trophy after a thrilling three-wicket win over Sussex at Hove left them with the only 100% record in the competition. Simon Harmer set up victory by claiming his 20th five-wicket haul for the county champions as Sussex were bowled out for 141 in their second innings, leaving Essex with a target of 196 in 52 overs.George Garton revived home hopes with four wickets, including Alastair Cook for the second time in the match, and when Mitch Claydon took two wickets in an over they were seven down needing 24 to win. But Paul Walter and Aaron Beard held their nerve, Beard hitting the winning boundary with 6.1 overs to spare.With matches against Hampshire at Arundel, starting on Saturday, and Middlesex at Chelmsford to come Essex will fancy their chances of reaching the final at Lord’s next month after making it three wins out of three.Cook and Nick Browne had launched the chase with a confident stand of 42 in nine overs but Garton, who took five wickets in the first innings, dragged Sussex back into contention by removing both in five balls. With his fifth delivery the left-armer had Cook well caught low down at slip driving at an outswinger before Browne unwisely tried to turn a yorker-length ball to leg and was lbw for 19.Dan Lawrence and skipper Tom Westley settled things down either side of tea with a stand of 69 in 16 overs but Westley lost his off stump to give Stuart Meaker, Sussex’s winter signing from Surrey.Lawrence looked like bringing Essex home when he brought up only the second half-century of the match but departed for 60 off 76 balls after gloving a lifter to give Garton his ninth wicket of the match. Claydon returned to have Adam Wheater caught behind and Harmer taken at second slip but there were no more twists.Earlier, Sussex struggled to make headway against the Harmer’s accuracy and a seam attack admirably led by Jamie Porter, whose three wickets gave him eight in the match. Porter broke through in the sixth over of the day when Salt, driving loosely, got a thin edge to wicketkeeper Wheater. Sussex scored just 15 runs in the first 11 overs of the day and there was little respite when Harmer came into the attack.Tom Clark was leg before only half forward and Ben Brown beaten in the flight coming down the pitch. Harmer struck again with the last ball before lunch when Garton padded up.The South African offspinner completed his five-for by removing Meaker and the dangerous Delray Rawlins, the only Sussex batsmen who looked comfortable against him. Rawlins made 40 off 42 balls and deposited Harmer for successive sixes over mid-wicket before missing a sweep shot. The left-hander had put together a valuable stand of 40 for the sixth wicket which ended when Aaron Thomason clipped Matt Quinn’s slower ball to square leg. Porter wrapped up the innings to finish with three for 28 when he plucked out Henry Crocombe’s off stump.

Trego top scores, Somerset to contest title decider after comprehensive win in the North

David Hopps12-May-2019There will be no Lord’s final for Alex Hales, not that even the most ardent county cricket follower would claim that was adequate compensation for missing out on a place in England’s World Cup campaign. Instead, Hales was part of a Nottinghamshire side shouldered aside by Somerset in an emphatic manner that will bring delight in the south-west.Somerset have reached Lord’s the hard way. Since finishing third in South Group courtesy of a must-win floodlit tie against Surrey at Taunton on Tuesday night, they have seen off Worcestershire in the play-offs by 147 runs and now Nottinghamshire, this time by a margin of 115.Hales’ dismissal for 54, as he fell to his favoured square cut, was the fourth Nottinghamshire wicket to fall, on 135, in a sequence of four wickets for 25 in 45 balls which changed the complexion of the match. Craig Overton ran jubilantly into the off side, pursued by the rest of the Somerset team, the importance of the wicket apparent. Sometimes you don’t have to just take a wicket, you have to kill a suspicion that fate is not on your side.Somerset now contest the final of the last 50-over competition that will actually mean something and it is good that a county which still treasures the county game will be represented. In 2020, it will be denuded by running in direct competition with The Hundred. The most powerful counties will contest it while most of their squad are on loan elsewhere. Results will be devalued and statistics misleading. One giant-sized work experience scheme to give professionals who remain unsold in the auction for The Hundred something to do.In Restaurant Six, Trent Bridge’s acclaimed new fine-dining restaurant and bar, the view of the cricket below became ever-more discouraging. One of the imaginative offerings of Dan Warren, Britain’s bartender of the year in 2018, is the Grass Cutter cocktail which evokes the smell of freshly-mown grass. Long before the end, it was the sort of day to put some extra gin in it.Trent Bridge hosts so many big scores that no first-innings score ever feels safe. But Somerset’s 336 was a challenging total, disguised by several bad dismissals. The pitch was central (even if one of ropes was brought in more than necessary) and the ball did not purr onto the bat quite as conveniently as normal. Steven Mullaney termed the total “chaseable,” but conceded that Nottinghamshire had been outplayed in every department.For Somerset to reach 182 for 1 by the 29th over was a considerable achievement. If Tom Banton’s edge against Jake Ball, on 1, had not fallen just short of Matthew Carter at second slip, the outcome might have been different. But Banton, Azhar Ali and Peter Trego all made fifties, the admirable Lewis Gregory held the later stages together with 37, and the Overton twins made merry with 46 off 30 late on, their stand once again having the appealing atmosphere of a bit of a singalong at the end of something more serious.Peter Trego pulls on his way to top-scoring for Somerset•Getty Images

Banton, after his century against Worcestershire, had to deal for the first time with national acclaim – most obviously in the form of Michael Vaughan’s Twitter feed. Vaughan told his 1.08m followers that Banton’s style reminded him of Kevin Pietersen. As Vaughan remarked, no pressure there then.It is an apt comparison. Banton might have been influenced by Jos Buttler, who studied at the same school, but there are definite reminders in his long-limbed sweeps and reverse sweeps. Tall and elegant, he can rarely have played more methodically until he burst ahead with 24 off Matthew Carter’s second over, striking the offspinner over the ropes three times.He fell for 59, flicking at a ball from Harry Gurney to be caught at the wicket, the only success for Gurney who had only just returned from a stint with Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL, stood in for Darren Pattinson, who has a sore side, and Stuart Broad, not released by England, and went for 86 in 10 overs.Alongside him, Azhar progressed furtively. His 71 from 70 balls was shorn of excess, a shrewd assessment of the nature of the pitch, until he swung and missed at Jake Ball. There was a similar run-a-ball contribution from Trego, who played with great responsibility for 73 until he was run out, sold down by the river by Gregory’s push into the leg side and change of heart over a single. George Bartlett’s second-ball duck, making room against Mullaney, suffered for the vaulting ambition of youth. Ball’s well-disguised slower balls helped him to 4 for 62 and Luke Fletcher, although wicketless, was also on the money.Nottinghamshire perished with Hales, although the unsung Ben Slater played well for 58 until he worked Jamie Overton to short midwicket. When Ben Duckett reverse-swept to deep square, the bowler, Roelof van der Merwe, jumped to attention with the ball in the air as if the Duke of Edinburgh had suddenly walked onto the square and requested an audience.There were still 11.4 overs remaining when the end came, Fletcher’s demise at long-on after a hard-hitting but futile 43 allowing Somerset to celebrate their second complete performance in 48 hours. For Tom Abell, already a much-loved Somerset captain at 25, a Lord’s final now lies ahead.

Rakep Patel, Thomas Odoyo and Jackie Janmohammed have stepped down after the team finished winless in WCL Division Two and was demoted to Division Three

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Feb-2018Kenya’s captain Rakep Patel has resigned after the team returned home winless from the WCL Division Two tournament in Namibia. The coach Thomas Odoyo has also stepped down, and so has the board president Jackie Janmohammed.By finishing last out of the six teams that participated, Kenya were demoted to Division Three. Their performance included a 218-run defeat, to UAE, which was the tournament’s worst in terms of margin of runs.Odoyo, who was part of the Kenyan team when they played World Cup cricket, found this turn of fortunes quite tough to take. “The one week we spent in Namibia was a week of mental anguish. It was stressful and I would not wish anyone to go through what I went through,” he was quoted as saying by the . “We broke record of poor performance. For Kenya to improve we must set up a high performance centre.”Janmohammed, the first woman to head a cricket board, made her call based on the team’s dismal performance as well. “One of the consideration that I took to account was the performance of the national team and somebody had to take responsibility for it,” she told .Janmohammed said Cricket Kenya would be conducting fresh elections to replace her in a month. “Whenever there a vacancy of an elected member, there must be an election in 30 days. The office will continue until the elections are conducted.”