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Levi powers Northants' record chase

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Richard Levi’s 28-ball half-century helped Northamptonshire to a second consecutive win in the NatWest T20 Blast and the highest successful chase at Wantage Road

ECB Reporters Network27-May-2016
ScorecardRichard Levi thrashed 58 off 37 balls•Getty Images

Richard Levi’s 28-ball half-century helped Northamptonshire to a second consecutive win in the NatWest T20 Blast and the highest successful chase at Wantage Road. Levi’s 58 gave Northants a quick start and Steven Crook smacked 33 in 24 balls finished the job.Requiring close to ten an over, Northants kept pace with the chase throughout with Jobb Cobb making 35 in 23 balls and Ben Duckett 29 in 15 balls. Only legspinner Matt Critchley found any control for Derbyshire, with 2 for 19 from his three overs.Levi was in belligerent mood once again after an opening-round 61 against Leicestershire. His second scoring stroke was a six – the trademark clip off the legs – and he added three more maximums, including a sweet straight lofted drive off Shiv Thakor before the Powerplay was complete. The first six overs were worth a healthy 77 for 1.Cobb found form in two second XI T20s earlier in the week and here began with a classic straight-drive before clearing his front leg to smear Alex Hughes over midwicket and pulling another wide of long-on.Duckett got his “duck-scoop” away to begin the 15th over that yielded 18 runs to bring the equation back to 46 required in 30 balls. But after an outrageous reverse sweep that flew straight into the burger van for six, he tried the same stroke and top-edged to Thakor at backward point.Crook helped reduce the target to 16 from 12 balls and then smashed Jimmy Neesham over extra-cover for four. Just five were needed from the final over but Rory Kleinveldt was caught at long-on trying to finish the game in style, before Andy Carter yorked Rob Keogh to still leave a single needed from two balls. But a no-ball from a high full toss sealed Northamptonshire’s victory.It was a mighty chase – the highest for Northamptonshire in T20s – after Derbyshire posted 195 for 7. Buoyed by an opening-round victory at champions Lancashire, the visitors were sent in and raced off to a great start thanks to Wes Durston. He took Crook’s first over for 19 – two heaved pulls flew towards the short boundary and a slammed uppercut for six over point to the long side of the ground.He helped the visitors to 65 off the Powerplay – Hamish Rutherford falling to a catch at extra cover for 10 – but they lost Durston on the cusp of a half-century before skipping down to Seekkuge Prasanna and being stumped for 47.It ended a stand of 74 for the second wicket in just 36 balls. Chesney Hughes played his part with 46 in 29 balls, having begun with three boundaries, all of them off the edge of the bat: two flashing past slip and a top-edge that Adam Rossington couldn’t take behind the stumps.But having been 110 for 3 after 11 overs, Northants hauled back the Derbyshire innings with four wickets in 11 balls. Cobb, the stand-in captain, was taken for four, six, four in successive balls by Wayne Madsen before gaining his revenge by trapping Madsen lbw trying to sweep. Hughes then missed a straight delivery and was bowled middle stump to give Cobb a second wicket in the over.Ollie Stone returned to have Neesham caught at first slip and when Graeme White claimed a return catch from Thakor, 140 for 3 had become 151 for 7. But Tom Poynton found two boundaries in the closing overs, coupled with some good running in his 37 in 21 balls, to put up a testing target. It proved not enough.

'De Villiers has helped my batting' – Mandeep

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RCB batsman Mandeep Singh credited his improved performance in recent matches to AB de Villiers’ help with technical aspects of batting

ESPNcricinfo staff21-May-2015AB de Villiers and Mandeep Singh were the protagonists in Royal Challengers Bangalore’s 71-run victory against Rajasthan Royals in Pune, adding 113 for the third wicket to keep their hopes of a maiden IPL title alive. Mandeep made his first half-century of the season, and said later that help from de Villiers on technical aspects of batting had drastically improved his batting.”I have learnt a lot from him already and whatever he has taught me, I have straightaway incorporated those things in my game,” Mandeep told . “Initially when I was playing my shots, the completion of the shot would end with my head leaning towards the off-stump. I asked him for suggestions to improve that aspect.”I initially used to think that the arms go wider while playing your shots and that’s the reason your head tends to fall. He cleared that cloud around me and asked me to have my head still around the middle stump after the completion of a shot. I think even modern-day cricketers consider him their idol. It is like a dream come true to be playing with him.”Mandeep walked in at 46 for 2 in the eighth over of the Eliminator against Royals, and as de Villiers struggled for his characteristic fluency early in his innings, Mandeep accelerated the run rate.”We just wanted to bat and try to build a partnership. We wanted to keep things simple and watch the ball closely and hit it,” Mandeep said. “I knew if de Villiers spent a little more time in the middle, he would get ruthless in the end. I had the confidence that he would see us through.”De Villiers was pleased he could contribute to Mandeep’s success, and said he feels he is achieving his goal of having a positive influence on the younger players in the team. “What would life be without having a good influence on other people? That is what it is all about,” de Villiers said. “I am trying to have a positive impact on some young players in the team and if Mandeep says I have, it makes me a very happy man.”De Villiers started slowly, scoring 16 runs off his first 20 balls, but kicked on to make 50 off his last 18. He praised Mandeep’s innings and said it had helped him get his momentum back.”A lot of credit should go to Mandeep. To be honest, I didn’t play very well,” de Villiers said. “It was not as fluent a knock as I wanted it to be but I guess it all comes with experience. I struggled in the first few overs but I fought through and I was lucky to be there in the end to express myself.”Royal Challengers were 60 for 2 at the end of the 10th over, but the innings gained momentum from there and 120 runs were scored in the last 10 overs. De Villiers said the initial target was 140 considering it wasn’t an easy pitch to bat on.”This wasn’t an easy wicket to bat on. I wouldn’t have been able to get those shots away in the slog overs had I just come in to bat. I was looking at 140 initially. But with that big 15th over against Ankit Sharma, the momentum changed and the target shifted to 150-160. We played even better towards the end and managed to get 180.”

Siddle, Hilfenhaus put on ice

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Peter Siddle and Ben Hilfenhaus will not bowl before the first morning of the third Test against South Africa, as Australia try to freshen up the exhausted fast bowlers

Daniel Brettig27-Nov-2012
Peter Siddle and Ben Hilfenhaus will not bowl another ball before the first morning of the third Test against South Africa, beginning on November 30 in Perth, as Australia try to freshen up the exhausted fast bowlers after their unstinting but ultimately fruitless efforts in Adelaide.Siddle’s performance was particularly noteworthy, pushing through crippling fatigue to take the hosts to within two wickets of a 1-0 series lead. Those exertions mean both he and Hilfenhaus are in considerable doubt to be recovered in time for Perth, leaving open the possibility of a dramatically recast bowling attack that may feature Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell Starc, John Hastings and Josh Hazlewood.Australia coach Mickey Arthur indicated that a wholesale swap of bowlers for Perth was a distinct possibility, granting the captain Michael Clarke a far fresher line-up of bowlers while South Africa continue to rely on the same quartet they brought for the tour. The visitors have been helped by the stout batting display that not only secured a draw but also gave Australia’s bowlers an enormous workload while their opposite numbers reclined in the Adelaide Oval dressing rooms.”It’s certainly something we need to look at,” Arthur said. “I think both Hilf and Sids have been outstanding, especially Sids – I thought there was a huge effort, a really warrior-like effort. We’ve got a couple of days off, I can’t see them bowling any balls at training, so we’ve just got to see how they pull up, see how they come up in Perth.”Hence we’ve given ourselves cover, in case they don’t pull up well we’re in a position where we could go with a completely different attack into Perth. That will depend on how Hilf and Sids travel, and we’ve had Mitchell Starc with us and we know he’s ready to go as well.”The training becomes more individualised now with such a quick turnaround. We’ve got a lot of new bowlers coming in, those bowlers will be very keen to impress I’m sure. So the quality of bowling around the nets is going to be first rate – and I’m sure our bowlers are going to get a really good hit out and be ready to go, come Friday morning.”Johnson’s return to the squad for the first time since he suffered a serious foot injury while batting during the dramatic Johannesburg match a year ago is a nod to his formidable record in Tests at the WACA ground – 30 wickets at 18.13 in four matches – but also an acknowledgement of his improved consistency this summer.”That does play a role, he’s had good success at the WACA ground but he’s just shown really good progression through the whole summer so far and it’s really good to have him back. He gives that little bit of fire and if selected sure he’ll be ready to go,” Arthur said. “I thought Mitchell was outstanding for us in the one day series in Pakistan, he bowled superbly, arguably one of our best bowlers there during that one day series.”He’s been making good progress through Shield cricket, I went and had a look at him at the WACA just last week and he looked in fairly good touch … so I think he obviously thoroughly deserves his place and we’re very lucky we have a lot of depth in this bowling department right now. These two guys [Siddle and Hilfenhaus] have given it their all and we can have a look at how everybody comes up and make a really well-considered decision for Friday.”Another decision Arthur described as well-considered was that to play James Pattinson at Adelaide Oval after he pushed through 53 overs in the first Test of the series at the Gabba. Having bowled only 9.1 overs in South Africa’s first innings in the second Test, Pattinson was forced off by a side/rib injury that ended his Test summer. 
”He’s a young fast bowler, he’s going to get injured,” Arthur said. “Medical reports were that he should be ok, ultimately myself and Michael [Clarke] and the selector on duty make the call and we wanted to go with Patto because we thought he had bowled really well in Brisbane. Unfortunately, young fast bowlers get injured so it was disappointing to lose him during the Test match.”One of Arthur’s chief tasks will be to ensure his team looks beyond the disappointment of Adelaide, emphasising the positives of dominating the world’s No. 1 team for extended periods of both Tests rather than mulling over the two wickets they were unable to take to secure victory.”We’ve had a quick chat about that – it took a massive amount out of the blokes and I’m just so proud of the effort each and every one of them gave. The guys are gutted we didn’t pull this Test match off,” Arthur said. “We spoke to them about it, hopefully we can put that behind us now and it all starts again for us first ball in Perth on Friday.”

Final Redbacks pair clings on for draw

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South Australia’s last pair, Cullen Bailey and Peter George, survived for 22 overs to avoid defeat at Adelaide Oval, where rain and that final stand thwarted Western Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Oct-2011
ScorecardCullen Bailey helped rescue South Australia from what looked like certain defeat•Getty Images

South Australia’s last pair, Cullen Bailey and Peter George, survived for 22 overs to avoid defeat at Adelaide Oval, where rain and that final stand thwarted Western Australia. The Warriors began the day with victory theirs for the taking: they led by 329 runs and the Redbacks were wobbling at 3 for 23.However, wet weather washed out 35 overs, which proved to be costly for the visitors. Nathan Coulter-Nile collected 4 for 46, while Michael Beer and Michael Hogan each picked up two wickets in an over to leave South Australia in major trouble at 9 for 106.At that point, the Redbacks had lost 5 for 28 in 12 overs, which left George and Bailey with a major task to see out the rest of the afternoon. In the final 22 overs they scored only 13 runs – the last 10 overs were maidens – and Bailey finished unbeaten on 19 from 109 balls with George on 5 from 60 deliveries as Marcus North rotated his bowlers to no avail.The Warriors took first-innings points from the match and sit second on the Sheffield Shield table, having won their opening game. The Redbacks are still searching for their first win.

Younis Khan could make Twenty20 comeback

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A day after coming back into the national side, Younis Khan has hinted at a possible return to the Twenty20 format he retired from over a year ago

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Oct-2010A day after coming back into the national side, former Pakistan captain Younis Khan has hinted at a possible return to the Twenty20 format he retired from, over a year ago.After his meeting with PCB chairman Ijaz Butt on Wednesday, the board cleared Younis’ selection for Pakistan and he was immediately named in the squad for the limited-overs games against South Africa in the UAE. The chief selector Mohsin Khan couldn’t clarify whether Younis would play in the two Twenty20s, but said that his selection would be left to the tour selection committee. Speaking to reporters from the training camp at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, Younis said simply that he was available wherever needed.”I am not that sort of a player who says I should be in Test matches or I should be in one-dayers or in Twenty20s,” Younis said. “If my fitness is up there and Pakistan needs me, whether it’s T20, T10, 50-50 or Tests, I am always available for Pakistan.”Younis led Pakistan to a memorable World Twenty20 triumph in England in 2009, but retired from the format immediately after, saying it was time for younger men to take over. Since then he featured only in the ODI and Test set-up, though he has continued playing Twenty20s in domestic competitions in Pakistan and abroad. Though available, Younis’ selection is not guaranteed; he averages just over 25 from 22 Twenty20 matches with a relatively unspectacular strike-rate of 124.85. But at the time he retired, Younis seemed to be coming to terms with his role in the format, finishing among his side’s top-scorers with 172 runs in the World Twenty20.Younis has been kept out of the national set-up since January, when he played his last ODI in Perth and he hasn’t featured in a Test since July last year; the result of a punishment handed out to him for disciplinary reasons after the tour of Australia and a protracted personality and legal clash with Butt and the board. At the age of 32, however, Younis was keen to move on rather than dwell on what has happened. “I talked to the chairman yesterday and we forgot whatever happened in the past. I didn’t want to end my cricket like that. If I say sorry it’s not a big deal. I can’t fight with the chairman, I can’t fight with the board, as whatever I am is because of them. As far as discipline is concerned I have never been fined and everyone knows me well.”Since Younis hasn’t played at the top level for so long, there will inevitably be questions about his form and the logic of selecting him for limited-overs cricket, where over the course of a ten-year career he hasn’t hit the heights he has in the five-day format. He averages just over 32 in 202 ODIs, though that has risen to nearly 35 in the last three years when he has been one of his side’s most senior players. He scored only 67 runs, though, when recalled for the five-match ODI series against Australia.”I played a county season for Surrey, I played T20s and if a player has eight or nine years experience, he often just needs one click,” Younis said. “If luck favors me and I play one good innings everything will be back on track. When I was recalled for Australia, I went there after playing just one domestic match, at least now I have played county cricket, so I am prepared mentally.”Waqar Younis, the Pakistan coach, welcomed Younis’ return to the team. “It’s very good that Younis Khan is back. He’s been a great servant for the last 12-14 years, he has served Pakistan as a captain, as a player, as a senior member he has done wonders. He is a seasoned player, he is still fit, fitter than most of them actually, and always gives 100%.”

Hamilton breaks WBBL records with stunning 5 for 8 in Brisbane Heat victory

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The left-arm quick, whose school friends are celebrating on the Gold Coast, had never taken a WBBL wicket before this match

AAP17-Nov-2024Brisbane Heat 139 for 4 (Rodrigues 45) beat Melbourne Stars 138 (Garth 31*, Hamilton 5-8)Brisbane Heat teenager Lucy Hamilton became the youngest player in WBBL history to take a five-wicket haul, skipping schoolies’ week to bowl her side to a crucial six-wicket win over the Melbourne Stars.Hamilton claimed the equal-second best figures in the competition’s 10-year history on Sunday, with her 5 for 8 helping Heat bowl Stars out for 138.Related

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Heat’s batters made light work of the chase, with Jemimah Rodrigues and Charlie Knott leading the way and Heat reaching the target with 15 balls to spare.Rodrigues hit 45 from 31, smashing two big sixes down the ground and five fours before being deceived by an Annabel Sutherland slower ball.Heat’s third straight win moved them back up into third on the ladder, while Stars’ season is now almost over with two wins from seven matches.Hamilton was crucial, after the 18-year-old entered Sunday’s match without a wicket in her eight-game WBBL career. Weeks after finishing her QCE exams in Bundaberg and with her friends partying on the Gold Coast, she had the biggest day of her career.After Sutherland got out of the blocks fast with 21, the left-armer bowled both her and Yastika Bhatia in her first over. She also had Meg Lanning caught behind for 13 edging a wide half volley, before having danger woman Tess Flintoff caught driving on the up to mid-off.Hamilton then trapped Deepti Sharma lbw, becoming the first Heat bowler in history to take a five-wicket haul in the WBBL. Her figures sit second only to Megan Schutt’s 6 for 19 in the competition’s history, and level with Amanda-Jade Wellington’s two returns of 5 for 8.”All my mates are at schoolies at the moment, on the Goldy living it up,” said Hamilton, adding she couldn’t believe what had just happened. “Going out there today I was just trying to back myself. Getting my first wicket and getting 5-fa, all the girls were getting around me. It was really exciting. I’ve had to be patient, played a few games, and it finally came and was really thrilling.”Part of Australia’s Under-19 side, Hamilton will finally move to Brisbane in the coming months after routinely making the five-hour commute down from Bundaberg.”I was talking to my bowling coach the other day, and it’s now about working on standing the seam up and just backing myself to swing the ball back in,” Hamilton said. “Progressive training will help that, but it’s having the confidence to be able to do that.”Only late hitting from Kim Garth and Maisy Gibson gave Stars a faint hope, but Heat still chased the target down with ease.

Mahika Gaur hits her straps as England's next generation step up

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Alice Capsey hails “exciting young squad” after teenage trio help to seal victory in first T20I

Alan Gardner01-Sep-2023Never mind the persistent drizzle and autumnal chill, it was all about teenage kicks for England at the start of their T20I series with Sri Lanka in Hove. Alice Capsey, who turned 19 a few weeks ago, produced the star turn with her second international fifty, while Freya Kemp, 18, twinkled in her batting cameo – but perhaps the biggest cheer of the night was reserved for Mahika Gaur, the 17-year-old debutant who claimed her first England wicket with her final ball of the night.Capsey has been an England player for just over a year – it feels like she has been around much longer, having shot to prominence as a 16-year-old during the inaugural edition of the Hundred – but she took on the role of senior pro in an experimental batting order that saw Maia Bouchier open for the first time in her international career and Kemp, playing as a specialist batter as she continues her recovery from a back stress fracture, at No. 4.This series, which sees England missing the likes of Sophia Dunkley, Nat Sciver-Brunt and Sophie Ecclestone either for rest or through injury, had been billed by captain Heather Knight as a chance for the youngsters to push their case. And while it was the familiar face of Danni Wyatt who set the tone with the bat, before victory was closed out by Kate Cross – the experienced seamer playing her first T20I in almost four years – much of what took place in between justified the faith shown by Knight and head coach, Jon Lewis.”It’s a young squad but a really exciting squad,” Capsey said. “You look at Mahika coming in and making a difference and you’ve got players like Bess Heath and Issy Wong on the sidelines who are extraordinary cricketers who can change the game just like that so yeah, it’s nice to obviously be in the XI and but you’ve always got people coming up behind you and putting pressure on you which is which is great for the women’s game and English cricket.”Obviously we’re missing a few big names out of our squad, just getting rested. It’s nice for players who have performed in regional cricket to come and get their opportunity to be a part of the England environment to see what it’s about and I guess be exposed to international cricket so that when they do get their opportunity and, if in the future they become a permanent part of the side, then they know what it’s like to be a part of the squad and they’re already integrated, which is brilliant. They’ve fitted in so well with our squad so it’s been really nice to have them about.”For Gaur, who is actually an old salt by some measures, having made her international debut for UAE at the age of 12, this threatened to be a tricky introduction. With the toss delayed by an hour due to the weather, she was presented with her cap by Cross and then had to wait to get involved with the action after Sri Lanka chose to bowl in a shortened, 17-over game.Related

  • Knight: Sri Lanka series marks start of new World Cup cycle

  • Capsey, Gaur shine in the wet to help England clinch rain-affected win

England’s aggression meant the visitors were staring down the barrel of a record run-chase when Gaur took the new ball. With rain in the air again, her first delivery swung down the leg side for wides but she quickly hit her straps, twice appealing for lbw decisions and prompting a review for caught behind down the leg side. Then, one ball into her second over, the players went off – and a subsequent rejig of the requirements meant when she walked back out 45 minutes later, Sri Lanka were suddenly in the game needing 45 off 17 with all ten wickets standing.The assault duly came, as Chamari Athapaththu launched the third ball back after the resumption for six. But Gaur put her 6ft 3in frame to good use with a well-directed short ball and then found the edge of the Sri Lanka captain’s bat to cap her maiden England appearance (and 20th T20I overall) with a wicket.”I think her previous ball, her bouncer was superb,” Capsey said. “I think that really set up the wicket and yeah, obviously her first England wicket, you can’t go past that. It’s an incredible achievement and no one can take that away from her.”We’ve all got along with her really well. She’s fitted in perfectly, she’s just a really good human. She’s just someone who doesn’t take too much fuss. She gets on with it, she works really hard and I’m not surprised how well she went out there and bowled today. It was probably a different role to what she was expecting, having to go to her death overs pretty quickly but she took that role on really well and it shows her character.”We all just told her to really go out there and express herself, she doesn’t need to change, she’s been bowling so well in the regional cricket and in the Hundred cricket on the platform as well. I think the messaging was pretty much ‘go out there and do what you do, we’re all backing you’. Whenever you step on to that cricket pitch, you’ve got everyone behind you and just enjoy it.”

Steven Croft anchors Lancashire reply in tense encounter

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First-innings parity approaches after hoodoo-breaking 90

ECB Reporters Network13-Jun-2022Lancashire 280 for 9 (Croft 90, Norwell 4-78) trail Warwickshire 292 (Hain 130, D Lamb 3-43, Balderson 3-68) by 12 runsSteven Croft ended his recent Warwickshire hoodoo to lead Lancashire’s defiance on the second day of an absorbing LV=Insurance County Championship match at Edgbaston.Croft’s previous three red-ball innings against the Bears had brought just three runs, but his gritty 90 (183 balls, ten fours, one six) led his side to 280 for nine in reply to 292.On an intensely competitive, hard-fought day, Lancashire’s first innings was a mirror image of Warwickshire’s the day before. Where Sam Hain’s century had underpinned the home side’s batting with only sporadic support, Croft formed a similar backbone for the Red Rose with similarly bit-part contributions from his colleagues.Liam Norwell, playing his first game back after injury, led the Bears’ bowling with four for 78.With Lancashire 12 runs behind with one first-innings wicket left, the match could hardly be more finely poised at the halfway point.Having bowled Warwickshire out in the penultimate over of the first day, Lancashire launched their innings at the start of the second and lost Keaton Jennings, caught behind off Olly Hannon-Dalby, to the 17th ball.Norwell took the next two wickets. Josh Bohannon edged a drive and was well held by Will Rhodes high at third slip and then Luke Wells (36, 87 balls) mishooked to mid off.Croft took root though and added 69 in 15 overs with Dane Vilas (37, 51 balls). The latter looked in good nick but stalked off the field in an state of angst having been adjudged caught by Hain at leg slip off spinner Danny Briggs. Lancashire’s captain evidently felt that he did not hit the ball – video evidence suggested he may have had a point.Rob Jones (28, 67 balls) helped construct another half-century stand with Croft but then mispulled Henry Brookes to mid-on. Jones thereby joined the lengthy list in this game of batters to get in then get out, as did George Balderson (19, 35) when he chipped Rhodes to extra cover.That left Lancashire on 226 for six with a new ball due. Danny Lamb twice pulled it into the Hollies Stand off Norwell but the paceman got his revenge via an edge to first slip.Norwell then flattened Tom Bailey’s off stump before, just as Hain had been uprooted right at the end of the first day, Croft fell, edging the deserving Brookes to first slip, just as the Bears groundstaff were getting ready to put the cat out.

Marcus Stoinis tries to avoid thoughts of cricket's 'daunting' hub life

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Melbourne Stars will finally get a chance to play at home as they try to ignite their BBL campaign

Alex Malcolm15-Jan-2021Living in the present and not looking too far ahead is the key to navigating the never-ending hubs professional cricketers are facing during the Covid pandemic, according to Melbourne Stars pair Marcus Stoinis and Adam Zampa.The relationship between Stoinis and Zampa was a quirky feature of , an eight-part documentary series aired last year on the Australian cricket team’s journey through the 2019 World Cup and Ashes. The pair would meet in Zampa’s room every morning in England, which was dubbed the Love Café, for a hand-made coffee.As amusing as it was, it is little things like this that have kept the trio sane in this new post-Covid cricket climate.All three have spent half the year on the road playing in various hubs around the world with different restrictions imposed in different places. Haris Rauf said his 14-day quarantine in New Zealand with Pakistan was “very hard” while the Australian pair endured the same thing on the return from the IPL in the UAE, having previously been in a bio-secure bubble in England dating back to August.Stoinis and Zampa were able to pinch a week at home with their respective families prior to Christmas but tighter restrictions on the BBL teams since then and a looming T20I tour of New Zealand, featuring another 14-day quarantine looms on the horizon for two of Australia’s first-choice T20 players.Related

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Stoinis said the key to navigating the endless hubs was staying in the present.”For me personally, I do get in trouble when I do think too far ahead,” he said. “To think forward, which I’m saying we don’t really like to do but you go Big Bash, then you go there’s a New Zealand tour, there’s a South African Test tour, before you know it, you’re back to IPL. And then who knows from there, there’s the Hundred, the Caribbean Premier League, there are all these things so this could easily turn into another hub until next August, which is eight months away from now.”It can get a bit daunting when you think of it like that. At the moment, I’m just enjoying the little things, enjoying being back at Melbourne, looking forward to playing in front of 15,000 here [at the MCG], looking forward to winning games with the Stars. It sounds cliché but I think that’s all you can do.”We realise how lucky we are. It’s definitely not a poor me situation. It’s life and you’re lucky you’ve got good friends with you that make it enjoyable.”The Stars’ indifferent form is only adding the angst. The finalists from each of the last two seasons have lost five of their past six matches and sit second-last on the table after playing their first nine games on the road.”Cricket is a testing game as it is and then you add the hub, then you add losing games of cricket, you walk up the next morning and you dwell a little bit,” Zampa said.Zampa can hardly be blamed for the Stars’ malaise. He has been masterful with the ball this season taking 12 wickets at a stunning economy rate of 7.11. That is even more impressive given the difficulty of the overs he has been bowling. Against the Strikers he was claimed 2 for 20 from four, bowling the first over, the 10th when defending just seven runs for the Bash Boost which he did successfully, the 15th over in the Power Surge and the 17th.”I do really enjoy it, ” Zampa said. “Obviously it’s really nice that Maxy [Glenn Maxwell] backs me in to bowl those overs. So when I’m at the crease I feel really confident to get the job done but tactically, not too much changes. I try and keep things really simple. But I love competition, I love being competitive and I love bowling those overs.”While Zampa has thrived with the new rules, Stoinis is still trying to work how best to utilise them. He hasn’t reached the heights of last season with the bat but has been a solid contributor. He has been caught betwixt and between as to how to attack the shorter Powerplay at the start while trying to bat deep into the innings and use the Power Surge.”I’ve been struggling with how I want to go about that in my own head,” Stoinis said. “Even sometimes I’ve forgotten that we’ve got the two overs left in the back 10. An example of that is probably the last game where I was in at the 10th or 11th over and that could have been an option for me to do. But I’m just in my own zone and going at it. There’s still a few tactics that personally I can iron out that will help myself and the team. And the sooner I can do that, the better for the team.”

Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc turn New South Wales towards victory

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Western Australia were three wickets down in their second innings and staring at a heavy defeat at the SCG

The Report by Andrew McGlashan at the SCG13-Nov-2019Pat Cummins produced a display that showed he was in prime shape for the Test season. in the process putting New South Wales on track to make it four Sheffield Shield wins in a row with Western Australia facing a final-day battle to save the game at the SCG with just seven wickets in hand.Cummins, in his first first-class outing since the Ashes, produced an eye-catching spell of reverse swing during the morning session to take out the WA middle order – which was followed by another super spell from Mitchell Starc before stumps – while Nathan Lyon and Steve O’Keefe combined for five wickets as New South Wales showed tremendous skill on a slow surface.”The wicket is just so dry and hard, super abrasive, after about 30 overs the ball looked like it was 100 overs old, so it’s reversing pretty early,” Cummins said. “It’s the first time I’ve bowled with a reversing ball for probably 12 months so was just trying to attack the pegs, get it swinging a bit each way, and fortunately today there were a few nicks and they carried which doesn’t always happen when the ball is reversing.”WA slumped from 1 for 116 to 191 all out in their first innings but Peter Nevill opted to extend the lead rather than bowl again. Moises Henriques was promoted to open and biffed an unbroken opening stand of 98 with Daniel Hughes, who helped himself to a half-century.Armed with the new ball, Cummins then struck early when Josh Philippe was bowled round his legs for the second time in the match – this time by the right-armer from over the wicket, compared to Starc in the first. With three overs left in the day, Starc then pinned Shaun Marsh lbw with a delivery that tailed back, meaning Marsh had been dismissed twice in the day, and then speared one through nightwatchman Matt Kelly as Western Australia stumbled to the close.After the dramatic collapse of Australia A the previous day in Perth, Marsh had the chance to make things more awkward for the selectors with a big score when play resumed against the possible Test attack, but he chipped limply to mid-on for 43. From there, the innings unraveled. D’Arcy Short had played against his natural instincts to register a 154-ball fifty before falling two overs after Marsh when he missed a very full delivery from O’Keefe.Cummins then set to work as he found just enough movement to challenge both edges of the bat. Ashton Turner nicked behind, Cameron Green shouldered arms to one which came back to take off stump, and Josh Inglis edged to slip in the final over before lunch.There was some resistance after the break as Marcus Stoinis and Ashton Agar stayed together for 20 overs, but scoring was mighty difficult. Stoinis appeared to get a rough decision when he was given caught at slip when replays suggested he played over the top of the delivery from Lyon, the offspinner then bowling Kelly for a duck three balls later.