All posts by csb10.top

New Zealand all-rounder Chris Cairns’ latest knee injury is being assessed by his surgeon Paul Armour tonight.Armour operated on the leg last year when Cairns had knee surgery which kept him out of all cricket until the Australian tour.Cairns took no part on the third day of the first National Bank Test at Jade Stadium today as the England batsman feasted on rich pickings.But whether Cairns will play any further part in the Test series will be decided after he is assessed by the surgeon. A decision will be made on his situation tomorrow.He will bat in New Zealand’s second innings.Meanwhile, the reason the umpires called play off early was because the light at the ground was well below the specified standard according to light meters and both captains agreed that play should be called off for the day.Play will start tomorrow at 10am.

Zimbabwe are increasingly looking like a team that can perform consistently over a period of time. They are renowned for pulling off the occasional upset, but then consistency is something that they have been working on.The emphatic six-wicket victory at Kochi goes to prove that they are a side to reckon with. They hold all the aces up their sleeve going into the fourth one-dayer at 2-1, with a good a chance of closing the series out at Hyderabad itself.After the game, both sides addressed the media. First, it was the turn of a shy 22-year-old youngster from Harare by the name of Douglas Tafadzwa Hondo to address the media. Obviously delighted at his success (4/37) that won him the Man of the Match award, Hondo said, “I just wanted to play well. I tried my best to keep things simple and bowl a good line and length.”When asked about the three weeks he spent at the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai under the watchful eyes of the legendary Dennis Lillee, the young fast bowler said, “At the MRF Academy, I tried to fix my action. I have been working with the video (from the Academy) and trying to work on my action.”Hondo found the going very tough in Kochi with the heat and humidity. Obviously he didn’t mind the fact that he picked three top-order wickets and bowled his side to victory, but the young fast bowler was more disappointed about the pitch than the sticky weather. “The wicket was flat,” he said.Hondo has a cool head on his shoulders, and this quality will help him and Zimbabwe for many more years to come. When asked about his place in the team, the youngster said, “I have to keep on performing well to be a regular in the side.”Then it was Zimbabwe skipper Stuart Carlisle’s turn to talk to the press. Looking pleased by what his team did on the day, Carlisle said, “We took most of our catches today, the guys did very well to put pressure on them.” The skipper was quick to commend Hondo on his achievement and went on to add that there was a brief period in the middle of the Indian innings when things looked like slipping away. “Our spinners bowled well and luckily we took the catches.”Carlisle also revealed that the team had a meeting the previous evening. There were separate meetings for the batsmen and the bowlers, where they were reminded about the importance of keeping things simple.The Zimbabwe skipper thinks that it was a good toss to lose at the end of the day. He was ready to admit that he had made a mistake in his judgement of the pitch the previous evening. He was under the impression that the toss would play a crucial role, and luckily for him it turned out the other way around. He was quick to praise his two senior batsmen, Alistair Campbell and Grant Flower, as well.Andy Flower is one player on whom Zimbabwe has relied a lot over the years. Carlisle said, “I have been saying it is time that the rest of us started contributing better. Obviously it is a great bonus to have Andy in the team.”On Andy Flower’s hip injury and the possibilities of him playing in the remaining one-dayers, the Zimbabwe skipper said that it is up to the physio to decide about Flower’s fitness. “He maybe available for the Hyderabad one-dayer, but he certainly will play in the fifth match in Guwahati.”According to Carlilsle, it was the wicket of Sourav Ganguly that was the turning point. “He has been in good form. We knew that we were going to have some luck our way. In the last two matches we have had some close chances against him. I think it is always nice to get the opposition captain out.”Indian skipper Ganguly looked clearly dejected after the loss in Kochi. He said, “It wasn’t a bad pitch. We lost too many early wickets and never recovered. We batted badly.”When asked about the injury to a few crucial players, Ganguly said, “We can’t help it if they are injured. That is how it goes, you have to play with what you have. It is up to the players to decide if they can go through the pain.”Earlier Carlisle had said that the heat and humidity was a major factor. “It was very tough towards the end, and it looked that the Indians were very tired. Maybe the heat got to them as well.” Talking on the same subject, Ganguly said, “We are used to the heat. Last time in Kochi we chased a score of above 300 after being in the field for 50 overs.”Talking about the two remaining matches, Carlisle said, “We just can’t go out and relax. We would want to look at it as the fourth game, but to look at it as the next game. We don’t want to put ourselves under pressure. Most sides will wilt under pressure. You always get chances; whether you take your chances is what matters.”Ganguly, though, is a worried man and he said, “Both the next games are very crucial. We have to win both the games.” Coach John Wright was more candid on the subject; he said, “There is always pressure. If you have to win at this level, you have to do it under pressure.” Wright went on to say that it hardly mattered at what point of one’s career one was in, and that the prime objective for every cricketer, once picked to play for the country, is to perform well under any given situations.”You have got to take responsibility under pressure and perform. You must be able to handle pressure. Today’s performance is unacceptable,” he said.Wright was quick to add that pressure situations also throw up some positives. “It is a great opportunity (for the players) to play well under pressure and make a name for themselves. That is what we need. Kaif had a good opportunity, and he blew it.”Wright also believes that the youngsters in the Indian team have no excuses to make with regard to playing under pressure. “Look at the young Zimbabwe players,” he pointed out. They are perhaps the words of a disenchanted coach trying to deal with a bunch of cricketers who are not willing to pay heed to his advice.The most interesting comment of the day came from the Indian skipper. When asked about the Indian fielding, after the customary long thought, Ganguly replied, “Our fielding has improved from before.”

West Indies have finalised the dates for their white-ball tour of Pakistan, which will see them play three T20Is and as many ODIs between Dec 13 and 22. All the games will be played in Karachi, with the ODIs part of the World Super League cycle leading up to the 2023 World Cup.The announcement of the tour should assuage any concerns surrounding the uncertainty of the tour after Pakistan’s entire home season was plunged into jeopardy when New Zealand withdrew from a tour on the day of the first match in September, citing security concerns. It was swiftly followed by England calling off their planned four-day tour in October.

Full schedule

Big Picture

England’s performance against Australia on Saturday was bewilderingly absolute, and for so many more reasons than just their crushing 50-ball margin of victory.On the same night that they romped to the tournament’s highest powerplay total (66 for 0), they restricted Australia to a flatlining 21 for 3, just one run off their lowest ever total in the first six overs of a T20I (and with a fourth wicket falling one ball later). On the same night that Jos Buttler rained sixes into the Dubai stands in an innings of 71 not out from 32 balls, Australia had to wait until the 17th over to clear the ropes for the first time.And despite coming into the contest with tournament figures of 4 for 35 in seven overs, Moeen Ali was not required to send down a single over, as Eoin Morgan manoeuvred his match-ups and kept his offspinner out of the hitting arc of the one Australia batter to survive the top-order cull, Aaron Finch.It was another manifestation of the seamless – and seemingly bottomless – pool of white-ball talent that England have been able to call upon in recent years. How many other teams would be able to make light of the loss of such key campaigners as Jofra Archer, Ben Stokes and, for the opening rounds at least, Mark Wood, and yet cover off their roles with a shrug and a rummage through a bag of other likely lads?The success of Chris Woakes, Liam Livingstone, Moeen himself (hardly a first-choice in recent months) and Tymal Mills – for all that he took a bit of tap on Saturday – reinforces England’s standing as the No. 1 T20I team in the world. With three thumping wins from three, they are rapidly reclaiming the mantle of tournament favourites that they carried into their triumphant campaign at the 50-over World Cup in 2019.Can anyone stop them? Well, you’d assume they’ll have an off-day at some stage of the tournament – for starters, they’ve yet to have to deal with the challenge of defending a total in the UAE dew. But to judge by their recent home series against Sri Lanka, it would be quite the transformation in fortunes if Monday’s opponents were the ones to halt the juggernaut.Rewind four months to a rather bleak mid-summer campaign – laced with controversy following the year-long suspensions of three key players for their bio-bubble breaches in Durham – and all the chat was about the depths to which Sri Lanka’s cricket had sunk. The nadir came when they were bowled out for 91 in pursuit of 181 in the third T20I in Southampton, having already been crushed by eight and five wickets in their opening two contests.And yet, when you place the ease of those wins – by 17 and 11 balls respectively – alongside England’s flattening displays against West Indies (70 balls), Bangladesh (35) and Australia (50), you’re obliged to reappraise the resistance that Sri Lanka put up.Certainly it was hard to find too much fault with Sri Lanka’s bowling attack on that trip, except that they were rarely defending enough runs to make a fist of a contest. But with the magnificent Wanindu Hasaranga growing into his role of talisman-in-chief, there’s been all the more wriggle-room for the likes of Dushmantha Chameera and Lahiru Kumara to let rip with their natural pace. The lanky left-armer Binura Fernando also showed signs of promise on that England trip but the conditions in Sharjah may require Sri Lanka to lean on an extra spinner instead of offering him a recall.Sri Lanka’s batting too has blossomed since the summer. Charith Asalanka debuted in the ODIs on that England trip, making 0 and 3 in two over-awed displays, but since then he has racked up four fifties across formats, including a scintillating 80 not out from 49 to hunt down Bangladesh’s imposing 171 last week.Sri Lanka have had a good look at the Sharjah conditions in recent contests, and so are potentially better acquainted to its vagaries than England. Had it not been for David Miller’s composure at the death at the same venue on Saturday, Sri Lanka could have been sitting in second place in Group 1 with a puncher’s chance of a semi-final berth. Instead they are going to need favours from here if they are to make the last four. For all the strides they seem to have taken, including an uncompromising display in the Qualifiers, it’s hard to see England being the ones to offer any hand-outs.

Form guide

England WWWWW (last five completed games, most recent first)
Sri Lanka LLWWW

In the spotlight

Since the last T20 World Cup in 2016, none of the teams in the Super 12s have fared worse against legspin than Sri Lanka, who have averaged 14 runs per dismissal at a pootling strike rate of 106. And so, the stage is set once again for Adil Rashid, who picked up 3 for 11 in his last overseas T20I against Sri Lanka, in Colombo in 2018-19 – a match better remembered for Joe Denly’s extraordinary comeback haul of 4 for 19. And with that success in mind, Liam Livingstone is likely to be right back in the thick of things too, after mixing up his leg- and offbreaks to magnificent effect against Australia on Saturday.Is anyone capable of breaking England’s powerplay stranglehold? In consecutive matches, they’ve bitten the heads off their opponents before they can formulate a response – West Indies were restricted to 31 for 4, Bangladesh 27 for 3, Australia 21 for 3 – and while a variety of different operators have played their part in that process, the seam-hitting consistency of Chris Woakes has been the constant. For Pathum Nissanka, that fact may stir some awkward memories. Woakes toyed with him in the ODIs in England last summer, dismissing him in the first match as he was restricted to 16 runs from 48 balls in three outings. But he returns to Sharjah with confidence after a buccaneering 72 from 58 balls against South Africa, and the onus will be on giving Sri Lanka something to work with.

Team news

There’s no real need for England to change a winning outfit, but their comfortable placement at the top of the group means that there’s a case for a bit of rotation to keep their options fresh. Wood is returning to fitness, and while his extreme methods may not be the ideal fit for Sharjah’s dimensions, he could yet come in for Mills, who had a relatively bruising outing against Australia. Livingstone’s parsimony as the third spinner reaffirms the sense of serenity to their current team balance.England (probable) 1 Jason Roy, 2 Jos Buttler (wk), 3 Dawid Malan, 4 Jonny Bairstow, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Liam Livingstone, 7 Moeen Ali, 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Chris Jordan, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Tymal Mills/Mark Wood.Sri Lanka have one win from three in the Super 12s so far, but they’ve put up a decent fight thanks to a settled batting line-up, powered by the explosive Asalanka and with Nissanka hitting his straps against South Africa too. Avishka Fernando is the one notable exception, with a total of seven runs in three Group 1 innings so far, and he may step aside for Dhananjaya de Silva. On the bowling front, Akila Dananjaya’s spin allsorts could come into the reckoning, after Kumara’s chastising final over on Saturday.Sri Lanka (probable) 1 Pathum Nissanka, 2 Kusal Perera (wk), 3 Charith Asalanka, 4 Dhananjaya de Silva, 5 Bhanuka Rajapaksa, 6 Dasun Shanaka (capt.), 7 Chamika Karunaratne, 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 Dushmantha Chameera, 10 Maheesh Theekshana, 11 Lahiru Kumara / Akila Dananjaya

Stats and trivia

• England have won eight of their 12 previous T20Is against Sri Lanka, including three of their four meetings at T20 World Cups, and six in a row since their victory in Delhi in 2016, en route to that year’s final.
• With 31 T20I wickets for 2021, Wanindu Hasaranga is second only to Tabraiz Shamsi on this year’s wicket-takers list. If he can pick up three wickets against England, in his 30th innings, he will be the third fastest to 50 in the format, after Ajantha Mendis (26) and Mark Adair (28)
• Eoin Morgan needs nine runs to reach 500 in T20 World Cups. Only Kevin Pietersen (580) has more for England at the tournament, though both are a long way short of Mahela Jayawardene (1016), the only man so far to pass 1000.

Quotes

“That innings from Jos was pretty phenomenal. It was a pleasure to just sit there and watch a genius at work.”

Sam Robson scored a career-best 253 and Robbie White his second successive century as Middlesex piled up the highest total in their history.White was unbeaten on 110 when Middlesex declared on 676 for 5 on day two of their LV = Insurance County Championship match at Hove.It was the sixth-biggest total Sussex have conceded in their history and highest for 21 years, but openers Tom Haines and Ali Orr enjoyed benign conditions too, taking their side to 103 without loss at stumps.Haines passed fifty for the seventh time this season and at stumps he was unbeaten on 73, which included 11 fours, with Orr 17 not out.Related

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Much of the day had been spent ticking off records as Middlesex, who had resumed on 400 for 2, batted Sussex out of the game.Sussex’s bowlers stuck manfully to their task, but the pitch has offered little assistance and the three wickets they did take came from misjudgements by the batters.Robson moved to his double-hundred in the sixth over of the day with a boundary off Henry Crocombe and then accelerated, with his next 50 runs coming off 55 balls and taking him past his previous best of 231 against Warwickshire in 2013. It was a mild surprise when he tried to hit off-spinner Jack Carson through mid-wicket and gave Tom Haines, running across from mid-off, a catch. Robson had faced 356 balls and hit one six and 30 fours.Carson picked up a second wicket before lunch when Max Holden was taken at bat-pad for one but White and Martin Andersson sentenced Sussex to more suffering in the baking heat during the afternoon, as they added 174 for the fifth wicket.They went past Middlesex’s previous highest score of 642 for 3 against Hampshire at Southampton in 1923 and just before tea White, who made his maiden century against Derbyshire at Lord’s last week, took a boundary off Haines to reach his 100.Andersson had played more fluently and looked on course for a century of his own but on 88 he tried to hit Delray Rawlins over the top and couldn’t clear long on. That was four balls before tea, but Middlesex opted to finish the over after the interval before Orr and Haines could run off to put their pads on after 161 overs in the field. White’s runs came from 193 deliveries with six fours.

Match facts

Monday, January 30, 2017
Start time 1100 local (2200 GMT)

Big Picture

After nearly six years without a standalone Chappell-Hadlee series, Australia and New Zealand are about to embark on their third in 12 months. Last February, New Zealand won at home. In December, Australia swept their own home series 3-0. And now, they are in New Zealand to defend the trophy two months later. It is all a bit of a whirlwind, for Australia in particular. On Thursday, they were in Adelaide wrapping up a one-day series win against Pakistan. On Monday they will play New Zealand in Auckland. And straight after this series, several of their squad members head off for a Test tour of India.Amid such a hectic schedule, it is perhaps not surprising that the selectors chose to rest the vice-captain David Warner, who they hope will be a key player in India and who has not missed an international in any format since the middle of last year. But an ankle injury suffered by captain Steven Smith in the Adelaide ODI last week threw a spanner into Australia’s plans, forcing the hasty appointment of a stand-in skipper for these three games in New Zealand. Wicketkeeper Matthew Wade was given the honour, and will lead a squad that is at least full strength in the bowling department if not in the batting order.New Zealand will see this series as a prime opportunity to regain the trophy, given the absence of Australia’s two best batsmen. Warner in particular has been in breathtaking ODI form of late, his six hundreds in the format this summer – including two against New Zealand – propelling him to the No.1 batting ranking. Kane Williamson’s men were disappointing in the series in Australia in December – the margins of 68 runs, 116 runs and 117 runs indicate just how disappointing – but on their home turf they will be a much greater threat.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)

New Zealand: WWWLL
Australia: WWWLW

In the spotlight

Luke Ronchi’s adductor injury meant a wicketkeeping question mark for New Zealand. The uncapped Tom Blundell is in the squad, but New Zealand have instead opted to hand the gloves in the first game to Tom Latham. To prepare for the role, Latham kept wicket during a Ford Trophy game on Saturday and completed two stumpings. Latham has previously kept wicket for New Zealand in three ODIs and four T20s, though he has not done so since 2013.Australia are coming off a record opening partnership in their previous ODI, the 284-run stand between Warner and Travis Head against Pakistan. But a different opening pair will take the field in Auckland. Head might get the job again, but it is also possible that Australia will turn to Aaron Finch and Shaun Marsh, whose 246-run partnership against Scotland in 2013 made them the previous record-holders. Finch is keen to make himself a first-choice ODI player again after a lean patch led to his axing, while Marsh will be happy to be back in the national setup in any format for the first time in nearly three months, after recovering from a finger injury.

Team news

Ross Taylor returns to the ODI side having missed New Zealand’s two series in December due to eye surgery. By giving Latham the wicketkeeping duties, the selectors have also opened up another middle-order spot that could either go to a specialist batsman or an allrounder.New Zealand (possible) 1 Martin Guptill, 2 Tom Latham (wk), 3 Kane Williamson (capt), 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Neil Broom, 6 Colin Munro, 7 James Neesham, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Tim Southee, 10 Matt Henry/Lockie Ferguson, 11 Trent Boult.The absence of Smith and Warner will mean a minimum of two changes to Australia’s XI from the side that beat Pakistan on Thursday. Whether or not Head opens again after his hundred in that match remains to be seen.Australia (possible) 1 Aaron Finch, 2 Shaun Marsh, 3 Peter Handscomb, 4 Travis Head, 5 Glenn Maxwell, 6 Matthew Wade (capt & wk), 7 James Faulkner, 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Pat Cummins, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh Hazlewood.

Pitch and conditions

Eden Park’s tiny boundaries often tempt batsmen, though as the low-scoring thriller between these sides during the 2015 World Cup showed, that does not necessarily equate to high totals. The forecast for Monday in Auckland is for a fine day and a top of 24C.

Stats and trivia

• Wade will be the third wicketkeeper to captain Australia in ODIs; Adam Gilchrist led the team in 17 matches and Ian Healy stood in as captain eight times
• New Zealand have won their past four ODIs at Eden Park, and two of those were against Australia
• It is nearly four years since Australia have played an ODI without Smith, Warner and George Bailey – the last time was against West Indies at the MCG in February 2013

Quotes

“We know we weren’t at our best. We probably didn’t have the resources that we’ve got available now.”
“Steven and David have put their stamp on the team; it’s just about me keeping driving those messages through to the players. We’ve performed really well in one-day cricket over a period of time, so it’s not about trying to change too much, it’s about keeping the ball rolling.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsDawid Malan top scored with a 33-ball 56•BCB

Barisal Bulls beat Rajshahi Kings by 17 runs to break a six-match losing streak. The result came as a dampener to Rajshahi, whose chances of qualifying for the play-offs suffered another setback.Dawid Malan and Fazle Mahmud set the game up for Barisal, before the bowlers, led by Rayad Emrit, put together a combined effort to choke the runs, increase pressure and eventually seal the game.The 100-run second wicket stand between Fazle Mahmud and Dawid Malan set up Barisal for a big score, but they ended up adding only 54 runs in the last 6.3 overs. Malan struck his second fifty in the tournament, making 56 off 33 balls with six fours and three sixes.But the manner of his run-out was farcical – he lazily tried to complete a leg-bye without noticing Nazmul Islam getting quickly to the ball and aiming at the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Mahmud, who struck four boundaries and two sixes in his run-a-ball 43, was dismissed in the same over after completing his best day in BPL. Eventually they finished with 161 for 4 when a total of 180 looked a possibility.Thisara Perera and Shahriar Nafees tried to give Barisal a final flourish. Perera struck four boundaries in his unbeaten 22-ball 29 while Nafees struck two sixes in the last over. Mohammad Sami was Rajshahi’s best bowler with figures of 1 for 16 in four overs.Rajshahi never felt settled in their chase. Nurul Hasan fell in the third over when he was lbw to Monir Hossain. Sabbir Rahman gave a simple catch to mid-on in the following over before Mominul Haque gave offspinner Enamul Haque a simple caught-and-bowled in the eighth over. When Raqibul Hasan skied Thisara Perera in the 11th over, as Rajshahi stuttered to 68 for 4.The absence of boundaries to go along with a flurry of wickets – they didn’t hit a four from the sixth till the thirteenth over – made it tougher. Samit Patel and James Franklin kept the chase afloat with 44-run stand for the fifth wicket, but Franklin’s dismissal for a run-a-ball 18 set the back.When Samit fell for a 51-ball 62, Rajshahi’s chances were as good as gone. Darren Sammy was on strike in the final over off which they needed 28. He smashed a six over cover, but eventually the task was too steep to pursue.

Match facts

Tuesday, January 3, 2017
Start time 7pm local time (0600 GMT)Bangladesh will hope the low scores in the second and third ODIs were blips in Shakib Al Hasan’s batting•Getty Images

Big picture

The 0-3 defeat to New Zealand in the ODIs has taken some confidence away from the Bangladesh side but the visitors have a chance to salvage their tour in the three-match T20I series, which starts from Tuesday in Napier.Bangladesh will bank on a settled line-up in the format, similar to their ODI team, and Mashrafe Mortaza will hope the side can avoid repeating the mistakes they made in the 50-over format. Their inability to build on a good start has become a recurrent problem. Tuesday’s match offers a chance for Bangladesh to address their weaknesses in batting and start anew.Bangladesh have included Shuvagata Hom and Taijul Islam in the squad for the first T20. The visitors would also hope their continued belief in Soumya Sarkar pays off, given the batsman’s lack of runs for more than a year. Rubel Hossain, who did not play the ODIs, could also find a spot in the T20 line-up, having done well in the BPL recently.The home side, meanwhile, have a strong line-up to pin Bangladesh. The uncapped batsman Tom Bruce, who has a strike rate of 156 in T20s, is expected to bolster the middle order with Corey Anderson and Colin Munro. New Zealand allrounder Ben Wheeler, who played six ODIs between June and August 2015, has been picked in the squad, along with Neil Broom, who was brought in as a replacement for the injured Martin Guptill.

Form guide

(completed matches, most recent first)
New Zealand LWWWW
Bangladesh LLLLW

In the spotlight

Two low scores don’t quite put pressure on Shakib Al Hasan but he will look to quickly regain consistency. As the team’s most experienced T20 player, Shakib will have a major role to play in reviving their performance in the three-match series. Neil Broom‘s successful ODI comeback made him an automatic replacement for the injured Guptill. Broom scored his maiden hundred in the second ODI and nearly got another one in the third match. His fielding, too, could have an impact, given that he changed the course of the third ODI with his catching.

Team news

With Trent Boult rested for the first match, New Zealand could play both Lockie Ferguson and Matt Henry. Henry hasn’t played in the format since January last year.New Zealand (probable) 1 Kane Williamson (capt), 2 Neil Broom, 3 Colin Munro, 4 Corey Anderson, 5 Tom Bruce, 6 Luke Ronchi (wk), 7 Jimmy Neesham, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Ish Sodhi, 10 Lockie Ferguson, 11 Matt HenryHis prolific ODI comeback made Neil Broom an automatic choice to replace Martin Guptill in the T20I side•AFP

Like New Zealand, Bangladesh last played a T20 at the World T20 in March and are missing a few players from that squad. Mohammad Mithun and Al-Amin Hossain are not in the touring party while Mushfiqur Rahim is recovering from a hamstring injury. Taskin Ahmed and Imrul Kayes could take the place of Al-Amin and Mithun, while Mosaddek Hossain is likely to play ahead of Shuvagata Hom in the XI.Bangladesh (probable) 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Imrul Kayes, 3 Sabbir Rahman, 4 Shakib Al Hasan, 5 Mahmudullah, 6 Mosaddek Hossain, 7 Nurul Hasan (wk) 8 Mashrafe Mortaza (capt), 9 Taijul Islam, 10 Taskin Ahmed, 11 Mustafizur Rahman

Pitch and conditions

Rain is forecast for Tuesday, though the weather is expected to clear in the evening. This will be the first T20 played at McLean Park and the first international match after three years. Usually, pace bowlers have had an advantage with the extra bounce and, on occasion, the wind.

Stats and trivia

• Tuesday’s will be Mashrafe Mortaza’s 50th T20I match, making him the fifth Bangladesh player to reach the landmark.
• McLean Park in Napier will become the sixth venue in New Zealand to host a T20 international.

Quotes

“We can clear boundaries here since they are not really that big. It is more important to make sure that we extend our innings after making a start.”

Matt Renshaw, Peter Handscomb and Nic Maddinson have been thrust into the firing line as debut batsmen for an embattled Australia amid a drastically changed squad for the third Test against South Africa.The interim selection chairman Trevor Hohns also included Chadd Sayers as an Adelaide Oval specialist for the day/night match alongside Jackson Bird, with Matthew Wade to retake the gloves in a Test for the first time since the 2013 tour of India.Six changes from one Test squad to another is a figure not seen in Australian cricket history since 1984, when the same number was made between back-to-back Test series against the fearsome West Indies team that ultimately broke Kim Hughes’ captaincy.Joe Burns, Adam Voges (concussion), Callum Ferguson, Peter Nevill and Joe Mennie are the casualties of the innings defeat in Hobart that handed the series to South Africa and also triggered the resignation of the selection chairman Rod Marsh. Hohns spared a thought in particular for Ferguson, dropped after his debut Test.”We were given the charter to revamp the Test match side,” Hohns said. “Sure it may sound harsh but Callum like all of our players except for our bowlers went back to Sheffield Shield cricket, had their opportunity to press their claims for inclusion in this side. Some have, some haven’t and I would suggest that Callum is not discarded by any means. Doesn’t mean the end of the road and we would love Callum to continue to score a lot of runs and belt the door down and demand selection again.”There may have been another change too if not for a calf injury to the left-arm spinner Steve O’Keefe, who had up until Saturday been favoured to oust the incumbent the spin bowler Nathan Lyon, who has struggled notably for wickets or impact so far this summer.”Stephen was in serious contention there’s no doubt,” Hohns said. “Nathan as we all know, has over 200 Test wickets, he’s our best off-spinner that we’ve had ever, so it might not be that he’s not taking wickets at the moment, but there’s no indication that he’s bowling poorly. I’m sure if he continues to bowl well as we say in cricket, the wheel always turns.”Hohns spoke strongly of Renshaw as an occupier of the crease, and of Handscomb and Maddinson as aggressive players in the classic Australian mould. Maddinson’s inclusion was somewhat surprising ahead of his fellow New South Welshman Kurtis Patterson, but he has been highly regarded for some time – even playing for Australia A in England in 2013 on the day Darren Lehmann was appointed coach in place of Mickey Arthur. Maddinson is also close to the captain Steven Smith, who will fancy his chances of extracting the left-hander’s best.”We see him as a player of enormous potential,” Hohns said of Maddinson. “He is definitely a game breaker and if we can get the best out of him at that level as I think we can, he could be a very, very important player for us down the track.”Form on the first two [Renshaw and Maddinson] were very important, there was always an area at the top of the order that was in contention. And Peter Handscomb getting 200, he’s been there and thereabouts for a good couple of years now. He’s always been spoken about in our selection meetings, hasn’t quite made the cut recently but now his form can’t be ignored.”Sometimes you do of course go with your gut, as they say. It’s all very well looking at statistics all the time but sometimes, particularly right now, we were asked to go with some players. And we decided to do that of course, because we obviously need to, go with some players that we thought could play for Australia and hold us in good stead for years to come.”Bird and Sayers were included primarily as support bowlers for Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood. Both had been chosen for the tour of New Zealand earlier this year. “Chadd’s a very good performer, and a very good performer in Adelaide and that’s why he’s been chosen for this Test match,” Hohns said. “He bowls very well here as we all know, it was only two Sheffield Shield games ago he took 11 or 12 wickets here. Hopefully, if he plays, he can continue to perform well.”Wade’s inclusion marks a significant change in philosophy for Australia, rewarding his batting ability and fighting demeanour ahead of the neater gloveman in Nevill. Lyon in particular will have to get used to the change. “[Nevill] very unlucky, there’s no doubt about that, but we consider Matthew Wade’s wicketkeeping has improved to the extent that we’ve gone in that direction,” Hohns said. “There’s no secret Matthew Wade’s batting is very, very good, in fact he’s scored hundreds in Test cricket.”He’s obviously seen as a tough competitor and that is what we’re looking for in our players now, and we want them to get out there now and have a fair crack at this and go forward with that. We don’t expect an immediate turnaround, but we’ve got a bit of faith in these guys now.”Squad David Warner, Matt Renshaw, Usman Khawaja, Steven Smith, Peter Handscomb, Nic Maddinson, Matthew Wade (wk), Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon, Jackson Bird, Chadd Sayers.

After losing all the Tests in a series they would have been hopeful of doing well in, Kane Williamson managed to retain some humour, but he knew his side was done in by a mix of difficult conditions for them, the quality of their opposition in those conditions, and their own lack of application at times. In packed schedules nowadays, you hardly get time to acclimatise, which means you don’t have too many second chances. The most disappointing aspect for New Zealand will be that when they got a surface in Indore that resembled classic Indian pitches, they couldn’t bat for long enough. It didn’t help that they never won a toss, and India always were in the ascendency.When asked about R Ashwin’s hold on him – the leading wicket-taker of the series took out Williamson all four times he batted – Williamson joked: “He didn’t get me out 27 times. He got a few other blokes out too.”On a serious note, Williamson did make a mention of the conditions. “He’s a good bowler,'” Williamson said of Ashwin. “We’re always learning playing internationals. I guess it’s a new thing, personally as well. Come over here with so much rough, which is nice to bowl into. I suppose I was a victim of it a few times. I guess, when you are put in that situation where you are dismissed in a similar situation, you are able to learn and try to improve from that. The conditions guys are exposed to, and the quality of bowling, in a backhanded way, we can be thankful for those experiences that help move your game forward.”Even before the season began, India had a good chance of going unbeaten through a long season of 13 home Tests. New Zealand, on paper, seemed the team likeliest to challenge India, which will now make India look invincible this season. Williamson, though, felt – and it did bring out some laughs – that the toss can be crucial in these conditions. The previous home season had a shift in the pitches India play on, and they have won all seven tosses since then.”Winning the toss would be helpful, I think,” Williamson said, when asked what advice he could give to the teams that are following him in India’s home season. “Which is a challenge in itself: South Africa lost every toss as well. Certainly have to be at your best. Whether you win the toss, lose the toss, India were far superior in this series. It depends on the surfaces. Every surface has been different in this series, they were different in the South Africa series. Whether it is a good one… it is important to spend time at the crease, creating pressure. Batting first would be nice. It would help, certainly, in being more competitive. This India side is a very good team, and they certainly know these conditions better than anyone.”Williamson said that while the conditions were more difficult when they batted in Indore, this was a pitch where they could have played more assured cricket. Speaking on finding the right balance between defence and attack, Williamson said: “It is a challenge, certainly on wickets very conducive to spin that make attacking tough as well. Sometimes, being positive when it is doing a little bit more is the way forward. It is up to the individual how they want to skin it, but in this Test, which was probably a little bit more like Test matches of old where it’s that war of attrition and you have to play long game like India showed, as opposed to Test matches prior, where 300 was a very good score, where you go out there and play positively and you get them before they get you, here was a little bit different.”They exploited conditions better than us. They played very patiently with the bat, and batting was not easy when it came our time. Not just because conditions had deteriorated, but the very good bowling attack they have. Important that we come away from here, although frustrated, having learnt a huge amount as a young group being exposed in these conditions.”Williamson didn’t shy away from giving India the credit and said he was disappointed his team couldn’t adapt quickly enough, but added that in conditions so challenging he felt the need to send players early for more experience.”The more you can play in these conditions, the better you’ll be,” Williamson said. “That has to be a given. The more experiences you get in any conditions, it is a good thing. People talk a lot about county cricket and then, when you go to England, you certainly are far more aware of what to expect. I suppose this is no different. If guys can have more experience in these conditions, it will certainly be helpful.”When asked if he felt his side had spent enough time here before the series, Williamson brought up the practical issue of the packed schedules. “I suppose there is always those discussions,” Williamson said. “Another tough point as well is that you are playing so much international cricket, it is tricky to get that extra preparation you would like. So, you are having to learn on the job a bit, which is the nature of the beast, but at the same time, it is an important thing. Whether it’s ‘A’ teams where guys are able to get extra time to come over, particularly in these conditions where you are playing more and more cricket. India’s home summer this year is 13 Test matches. So you are playing more and more in these conditions.”New Zealand now have the five-ODI series to look forward to, which will be played on flatter surfaces. Williamson hoped the team doesn’t carry the scars of losing the Tests into that series. “Disappointing to lose the Test series,” he said. “At the same time, the guys are looking forward to the change of format. It will be tough again. We know India are a very good side at that as well. It’s exciting. We know that wickets will more than likely be quite different again.”We have got to adapt. Go out and play with that freedom, knowing that when we do play with that freedom, we play our best cricket. There will be a little bit of scarring coming out of a three-nil Test defeat. Obviously winning is a lot better than losing. Unfortunately we have lost a few on the trot, but nice to have new personnel come in who are fresh and looking forward to the one-day series.”