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Harbhajan Singh seemed to be in some discomfort while bowling in the nets at the PCA Stadium in Mohali on Monday

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Sep-2010Harbhajan Singh, the India offspinner, has had an injury scare in the lead-up to the Test series against Australia. He seemed to be in some discomfort while bowling in the nets at the PCA Stadium in Mohali on Monday.”He underwent an MRI scan around the pelvic and hip area,” quoted local hospital sources as saying. “There is no serious injury but since he got a sprain, it would be advisable to take rest for the next few days.”During the net session, Harbhajan took a break and came back with Nitin Patel, the Indian team physio, by his side. Either side of the break, though, Harbhajan bowled sizeable spells. also reported that he bowled in the nets at the Sector 16 Stadium in Chandigarh in the evening, after the conclusion of the three-day tour game between the Australians and the Indian Board President’s XI.Harbhajan’s previous Test series was a fitness disaster. In Sri Lanka he started off with a flu, played the first two Tests at less than full fitness, and sat out the third with a calf strain. He managed only two wickets in those two Tests. He made his comeback to top-flight cricket in the Champions League T20 in South Africa.The first Test between India and Australia begins in Mohali on October 1.

“The most frustrating thing is that it’s always an issue depending on where you are in the world and the style of cricket that’s played”

Vithushan Ehantharajah04-Dec-2024Ben Stokes has asked the ICC to revisit its over-rate thresholds and criticised them for not engaging with players, after both New Zealand and England copped over-rate penalties from their first Test in Christchurch.Both teams were docked three World Test Championship (WTC) points with 15% match fee fines across the board last week at Hagley Oval. New Zealand now face a stiffer task to make the WTC final next year, dropping from fourth to fifth in the table. England are sixth in the WTC, in part because of over-rate fines that have seen them docked 22 points in the 2023-25 cycle, and had lost 19 of the 28 points gained during the 2023 Ashes on similar grounds.At the end of the first Test, Stokes was seen having a long conversation with match referee David Boon, who imposed the sanctions. Having initially voiced his displeasure at the punishment on his Instagram, Stokes used a media opportunity on Wednesday at Basin Reserve to elaborate on his grievances ahead of the second Test – some of them backdated to the Lord’s Test against Australia in 2023.Related

• The problem with Ben Stokes' problem with over-rates penalties

• Stokes baffled by England's slow over-rate sanctions

“The most frustrating thing, from both teams’ points of view, is that the game finished early, there was a result,” Stokes said. “But I think the frustration actually stems back to last year in the Ashes where it was the first time I really brought it up to the match referee and the umpires.”I guess the most frustrating thing is that it’s always an issue depending on where you are in the world and the style of cricket that’s played. There’s never an over-rate issue in Asia because of how much spin is played.”There’s so many tactical decisions that you need to make, whether that be chatting with the bowler or field changes. As a captain, I like to change things quite a lot and the field could be completely different six balls in an over. But that’s not taken into consideration. And getting told to just ‘hurry up’ isn’t going to fix it, because we’re out there playing a game.”The times and the rules are the same wherever you go in the world. From a player’s point of view – and I’m not the only one who shares this opinion – we would like to have a lot more communication with the ICC around this.”The point regarding the different speeds of play based on conditions and bowlers predominantly used is a sound one. But it should be noted that offspinner Shoaib Bashir bowled 20 of England’s 91 overs in the first innings of the first Test.Stokes was particularly irked that having relayed his thoughts on the need for a more flexible over-rate framework – particularly to mitigate for in-game tactics – to match referee Andy Pycroft at the end of the Lord’s Test, he has yet to hear back from the ICC. This despite being told a dialogue would be forthcoming.Stokes revealed that he has not signed an over-rate chargesheet – the document from the match referee confirming a team is going to incur a penalty – since Lord’s as a mild form of protest.That being said, he accepted the charges levelled in Christchurch by standing umpires Ahsan Raza and Rod Tucker, third umpire Adrian Holdstock and fourth official Kim Cotton, as did New Zealand skipper Tom Latham.”The two conversations I’ve had with the match referees have actually been very good and the match referees have handled it very, very well and been very understanding from a player’s point of view,” Stokes said. “But it’s been over a year now since I made some comments around the over rates and still to this day we’re yet to hear any response back from anyone at the ICC around that.”I’ve not signed an over-rate sheet since Lord’s in the Ashes just until we hear some communication back from the ICC that we’re still waiting for. Captains have to sign over-rate sheets and fines and stuff, but I have said ‘no’ until I have the conversations. But they still take the fines off you anyway.”Jacob Oram, the New Zealand assistant coach, was on the same page as Stokes but was more focussed on learning lessons.New Zealand’s hopes of making the WTC final have been badly hit because of the sanction•Joe Allison/Getty Images

“There are results in most Test matches now and runs are being scored at a frenetic pace and wickets are falling all over the place, there is a lot of entertainment,” Oram said on Wednesday. “If you bowl 90 overs or 85 overs, there is a lot of stuff going on and I think we need to find a balance and getting some understanding.”It’s a lesson we’re going to have to take on the chin and learn from. It just comes down to hustle, making sure guys are providing that energy and bowlers are doing their job and everyone is getting into position as quickly as they can.”Stokes did have sympathy with match-going fans who end up feeling shortchanged when a full 90 overs are not bowled in a day. In England, where tickets are particularly expensive, over-rates have been a talking point among a section of supporters.”You totally understand why there is frustration from the fans about not getting their full allocation of a day’s play,” he said. “But again, we’re trying. We’re out there to play a game that we try and win and there’s a lot that goes into that. We’re not purposely bowling over rates slower than the rules say.”

England blitzed at Chelmsford as new-look team suffer a first T20I defeat at Sri Lanka’s hands

Andrew Miller02-Sep-2023Sri Lanka 110 for 2 (Athapaththu 55) beat England 104 (Dean 34, Fernando 2-16, Dilhari 2-17) by eight wicketsChamari Athapaththu led from the front in a stunning allround display – first with the ball and then with a rampant 26-ball fifty – as Sri Lanka secured their maiden T20I victory over England in extraordinarily emphatic style: by eight wickets, and with a crushing 40 balls remaining, as Heather Knight’s new-look team were served a dramatic reality check, only two days after cruising to victory in the series opener at Hove.After winning her second toss of the series and choosing to bowl first, Athapaththu showed her team how it needed to be done by bowling the dangerous Danni Wyatt for 1 in her first over, and never let up in her leadership thereafter, as England were hustled out for 104 in 18 overs – a far cry from the 186 for 4 that they had posted in just 17 overs in Thursday’s opening fixture.Then, sensing a chance to crush England from the outset of the chase, Athapaththu climbed onto the offensive with the bat, cracking eight fours and two sixes with similarly positive support from Harshitha Samarawickrama, who sealed the contest with a massive swipe over midwicket to finish unbeaten on 30 from 35 balls.Chamari sets the powerplay toneSpeaking at the toss, Athapaththu insisted – with some justification as things turned out – there had been some “positives” to take from a one-sided series opener at Hove, but recognised that their bowling had to improve after England had romped along at close to two a ball on that occasion.And so the skipper herself added that burden to her already broadly laden shoulders, to set the tone for an astonishingly unrelentingly display. Despite one loose ball that Maia Bouchier carved for four, Athapaththu’s remit in the contest’s first over was to keep the stumps in play as much as possible, on a hybrid wicket that offered a touch of grip for her spinners, and in sunny afternoon conditions a world away from the dank misery of Hove.The gambit paid agenda-setting dividends with the sixth ball of Athapaththu’s over. A beautifully flighted offbreak lured Danni Wyatt on the drive, but a hint of dip and spin bowled her clean through the gate for 1. Suddenly a partnership that had realised 77 from 45 balls at Hove had been broken before it had begun, and that carefree youth that had so flourished in game one had a different scenario to counter.Inoshi in on the actionAlice Capsey had made a belligerent 51 from 27 on that occasion; here she was restricted to an anxious 3 from 9 as Inoshi Fernando followed her skipper’s lead in her first outing of the series. First, her tall offbreaks pinned Capsey to the crease for five consecutive dot-balls and a single, then she snapped the trap shut in the field one over later. Itching to break the shackles, Capsey lashed through the line at Sugandika Kumari and Fernando was almost blown off her feet at mid-off as she clung on well to a flat chance.Bouchier by this stage had connected well on another cuff through the covers, but Fernando’s impact was not done yet. The first ball of her second over was flapped in ungainly fashion straight to Kavisha Dilhari at extra cover, and Bouchier attempted to bend her bat around her helmet as she traipsed off for 12 from 10. Not only were England truly in the m(aia)ire at 21 for 3, but she’d missed a golden opportunity to rebuild a faltering innings, and seize the opportunity for seniority that she’s been handed in the absence of the likes of Tammy Beaumont and Nat Sciver-Brunt.Old guard falter tooInstead, England’s hopes were reinvested in a familiar pair of middle-order stalwarts. Heather Knight and Amy Jones saw out a powerplay that, at 32 for 3, realised less than half the 66 for 0 that Sri Lanka had been subjected to at Hove, but neither batter really exuded an air of permanence in an uncompromising match situation – least of all Jones, who so nearly holed out to backward point as an attempted reverse-sweep off Fernando fell inches short.On 10, Knight successfully over-turned an lbw decision after her attempted reverse-sweep was shown to have flicked her glove before crashing into the pad, but one over later, Jones’ scratchy stay was ended in the opposite fashion – Ranaweera trapped her on the back pad, and after Atapaththu’s last-ditch decision to review, the ball was shown to be thumping the top of leg stump.Jones was gone for a run-a-ball 12, and if 41 for 4 in the eighth over was a dicey scenario, England’s issues were only just beginning. Freya Kemp picked off two singles off two legal deliveries, only to be stumped off a wide in Dilhari’s next over, as she galloped out of her crease for Sanjeewani to gather well down the leg-side and beat her despairing dive, and all hopes of a competitive total ended when Knight spooned a back-foot punch back to Ranaweera. At 48 for 6, England were fully braced for ignominy.Maia Bouchier grimaces after falling in the second T20I at Chelmsford•ECB via Getty Images

Dean digs for double-figuresOnly Charlie Dean, last out for a feisty 34 from 26, found anything like the requisite blend of endurance and aggression, including three fours in a row off Ranaweera – two firm sweeps and a well-dispatched full toss.At the other end, however, the progression continued. Danielle Gibson opted for aggression without endurance, as she survived a slash through deep third that flew inches wide of the fielder, before scuffing a reverse-sweep straight into the lap of backward square.Sarah Glenn, sporting a new cap to mark her 50th T20I appearance, then snicked off fourth-ball to give Dilhari her second wicket. Though Issy Wong hung around long enough to endure England wouldn’t be setting their new record low total in a women’s T20I, when she lashed through a drive at Prabhodhani to be bowled for 13, the end was not long in coming.Cross, Wong bear powerplay bruntIf England thought their day had hit its nadir, Athapaththu had further indignities to deliver. She signalled her intention to keep the hammer down with a second-ball drive for four off Kate Cross, and even though Sanjeewani fell in Gibson’s subsequent over (after two no-balls had hinted at England’s anxieties), Sri Lanka’s captain was only just getting warmed up.Cross’s second over was utterly taken to the cleaners – 21 runs in total, compromising three blazed fours in a row and a simply vast flog over square leg, off the roof off the Felsted School Stand and into the garden of a bemused lady looking on from her balcony. After some similarly rough treatment at the back-end of the first T20I, Cross’s figures for the series now read 4.2-0-55-0 – a reminder perhaps why her impeccable lines have been overlooked in this format since 2019.Nothing, however, was quite as gruesome as the public pillorying that Wong would endure in her first international over of the summer. Her absence from the firing line has been a bit of an ongoing mystery in recent months, given the excitement that surrounded her all-round game last summer, but here was public evidence of a player at war with her own technique.Her first over of the match lasted for ten deliveries, the first four of which amounted to a tragicomedy in themselves – a huge front-foot no-ball that Harshitha Samarawickrama flicked off her pads for four, followed by a flick to deep square leg off that most of the crowd failed to realise was a free hit . Another leg-side no-ball followed, then another catch off the free hit – an astounding one as it happens, as Cross at mid-off snaffled the ball in her outstretched right hand.By the end of it all, Wong could only grin in self-effacement as Glenn jogged down to give her a consoling pat on the shoulder, and as Sri Lanka blazed towards their victory target with barely a shot out of place, it was something of a surprise to see her reintroduced with 13 runs still needed and little left to be gained. Three more drilled boundaries duly drew the scores level, leaving Harshitha to heave Cross into the pavilion for the winning six.Wong’s inclusion for this match had come at the expense of England’s new young thing, Mahika Gaur, and her struggles rather underlined the importance of Knight’s pre-series warning about the youth in this team. Expecting too much too soon is a dangerous thing.

Matthews will assume the role ahead of the team’s next series which is “expected to be played later this year”

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Jun-2022Hayley Matthews has taken over as captain of the West Indies women’s side from Stafanie Taylor, who was at the helm for seven years. According to a Cricket West Indies (CWI) release, Matthews will assume the role ahead of the team’s next series which is “expected to be played later this year”.Taylor was named captain in 2015 and made her mark straightaway, most notably leading her side to the 2016 T20 World Cup title, as well as the semi-final of the ODI World Cup in New Zealand earlier this year. She has scored 5298 runs in 145 ODIs and 3121 runs in 111 T20Is, in addition to taking 152 wickets and 98 in the formats respectively. Taylor captained West Indies to 25 wins in 62 ODIs and 33 wins in 55 T20Is.Matthews, 24, made her debut for West Indies in 2014, and played a leading role in her side’s 2016 T20 World Cup triumph. She was named the Player of the Match in the final against Australia where she made a 45-ball 66. She was appointed vice-captain ahead of the T20 World Cup in 2018. She has 1764 runs and 78 wickets in 69 ODIs, and 1055 runs and 58 wickets in 61 T20Is.The recommendation by the women’s selection panel to make Matthews the captain was ratified at the CWI board of directors meeting on June 24.”I am both humbled and honoured to be given the opportunity to captain the West Indies women’s team,” Matthews said. “It is definitely an exhilarating feeling and I welcome the experience to lead and learn with open arms. This team has been very close to my heart from the beginning of my professional career eight years ago and the influence of Stafanie’s leadership throughout those eight years has played a major role in the player I am today.”I would like to thank Stafanie for her astounding leadership of the team over the years. We’ve accomplished some of our biggest milestones with her at the forefront and I look forward to continuing playing alongside her.”Head coach Courtney Walsh said: “We figured the timing was right with the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup coming up early next year, if we were thinking of making any changes now would be the best time so that we give the new captain a couple of series under her belt before she enters into a World Cup. Hayley Matthews is young; she has longevity in the game, and she can lead the team for a longer time to get the experience and we are here to support her. For us it’s a win-win as we will have Stafanie to concentrate on her best cricket and passing on guidance to Hayley as she grows in the role of taking the team forward.””Hayley has made notable progress over the years, serving as vice-captain of the West Indies women’s team and is the current captain of her national team, Barbados.” Ann Browne-John, lead selector for women’s cricket, said. “She has matured as a player and is one of the leading players worldwide with a good grasp of the game. Given the experience that she would have gained in both roles, we are confident this is the ideal time for her to step into the role of captain.”

Agha Salman and Kamran Ghulam are the other two players dropped from the original list

Umar Farooq24-Jan-2021Agha Salman, Abdullah Shafique and this year’s leading first-class run-scorer in Pakistan, Kamran Ghulam, have been dropped from the original 20-man for the first Test against South Africa. The PCB insist they are very much part of the larger squad but won’t be considered for selection for the opening Test starting January 26 in Karachi.The 20-man squad, named on January 15, was always meant to be whittled down to 16 two days before the Test but the PCB ended up naming 17 instead. ESPNcricinfo understands that the board wrestled with the choice between Haris Rauf and Tabish Khan but ended up retaining both, even though neither is expected to make their Test debuts in Karachi. The squad now has four spin options and five fast bowlers including Mohammad Nawaz and Faheem Ashraf as allrounders.With Shafique now out of contention, the team has only two potential openers – Abid Ali and Imran Butt – who is set to be handed a debut. The spot was left vacant after Shan Masood was dropped from the larger squad following a dismal run. Saud Shakeel – who holds the second best first-class average (48.81) in Pakistan over the last five years – has been retained. He was also the second leading first-class run-getter this season with 970 runs at 57.05. Agha, who accumulated 924 runs at 48.63 missed out.Head coach Misbah-ul-Haq said his side is “fully ready”. “Understanding how poor we were in the field on our previous New Zealand tour, we have given fielding much importance while preparing,” said Misbah. “We are having extraordinary training sessions, with dedicated sessions to bring improvements. We are overall ready and looking forward to taking on South Africa.”The PCB, for once, have relayed a sense of empowerment for the captain Babar Azam, giving him a much stronger say in choosing the starting line-up. Misbah downplayed concerns his role with the side had been reduced, but said the captain needed to independently develop his strategies and ideas.”Even when I began, like everyone else, I started from zero,” said Misbah. “You have to start somewhere and the important thing is that when we did some scenario practice, there were discussions with me, the coaches, the bowlers, about what plan we take forward and how we execute it. Babar is an intelligent cricketer and if anyone who scores runs like he does at this level, they should understand cricket mechanics and how to deal with the opposition . Babar should be given a free hand to plan, so he learns how to handle things on the field and hopefully he will learn and improve his captaincy along the way.”The series holds a major significance as this is South Africa first tour to Pakistan since 2007 and the result from it can directly reflect on Misbah’s future as head coach. The PCB had already intended to bring about changes in team management after the New Zealand tour but the cricket committee recommended a stay of execution, opting against making a knee-jerk reaction and resolving instead to meet again after the home series against South Africa. The committee believed a series in home conditions can have “no points for second place”.Misbah knows the pressure is on him but he cut a relaxed figure at the press conference. “Nothing really matters right now, I played cricket under pressure, my whole life” he said. “Here [in Pakistan] it’s not like you have the certainty and security so the most important thing I have learnt is that you have to do well with the job in hand in the moment. I am not thinking about what is going to happen ahead and the only focus right now is to perform and learn from our mistakes.”Pakistan: Abid Ali , Imran Butt, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam (capt), Fawad Alam, Saud Shakeel, Faheem Ashraf, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Nauman Ali, Sajid Khan, Yasir Shah, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Tabish Khan

Reports say the UAE fast bowler met with a “fixer” claiming to a be a T10 franchise representative

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Oct-2019Mohammad Naveed, the UAE fast bowler and captain facing ICC corruption charges, says he made a “mistake” in not reporting an approach made to him. There were three players caught in this investigation but Qadeer Ahmed has already made it clear that he wants to push for an appeal.According to a report in the , Naveed was approached by a person claiming to be a representative from a T10 franchise but once the 32-year old realised the person he was meeting was a “fixer” he ended the conversation.Naveed, however, faces more than just a failure to report charge. On Wednesday, the ICC charged him and senior batsman Shaiman Anwar with “contriving, or being party to an agreement or effort to fix or contrive or otherwise influence improperly, the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect of matches in the upcoming ICC World T20 Qualifiers 2019.” ESPNcricinfo understands that both players, allegedly, stood to gain up to US$272,000 (approx.) if they were successful in their attempts.”I am very sincere about my game, I am very sincere about my career,” Naveed told the . “I have been successful for the UAE around the world, in leagues, for franchises. That is because I am very sincere about my game.”Now this has happened, I feel guilty. Why did I not talk to the board, why did I not talk to the ICC? It is my mistake, and I feel guilty.””My family is let down, my friends are let down. Everybody is let down. This was my mistake.Naveed defended himself by pointing to his record for the UAE. “I’m only scared of my God, not anybody else,” he said. “I speak very truly. My passion is cricket, I love cricket, my life is cricket.”I am a successful cricketer – not only in Associate cricket, but in all the world. Look at my ranking, look at my economy rate. My focus is only on cricket, not on being a bad boy.”Qadeer is in trouble for failing to disclose details of an approach and also giving out inside information while knowing it might be used for betting. The 33-year old who has played only 11 ODIs and ten T20Is for UAE agreed that he made a mistake in not reporting the approach but denied all other wrongdoing.”Regarding code breaches, I admit I failed to report a wrong approach to the ICC. I should have taken that seriously, and reported it to the [Emirates Cricket Board],” he told the . “In terms of the other breaches, for inside information and non-cooperation on things, I want to deny that. I will appeal to the ICC regarding the other breaches.”Naveed and his team-mates have 14 days from October 16, 2019 to respond to the ICC’s charges.

The KSL’s future may be in some doubt, but its importance in the immediate term could hardly be more relevant

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jul-2018England’s women completed a successful international summer last week, adding a comfortable series win against New Zealand to their earlier victories over South Africa in the ODIs and both teams in the inaugural T20 triangular series.And now attention turns to the domestic front, with the return of an expanded Kia Super League – a competition whose future may be in some doubt as the ECB debates the sport’s post-2020 landscape, but whose importance in the immediate future could hardly be more relevant.After all, England, World Cup winners in the 50-over format last year, have a World T20 to prepare for in November, and for several fringe members of the squad – not to mention the star names who will want to hit the Caribbean with form and confidence brimming over – the events of the coming weeks will be critical to their preparation.The KSL, now in its third season, kicks off on Sunday with a televised opening match between the champions Western Storm and Yorkshire Diamonds at Taunton. On the same day, there is an early meeting of the other two finalists from 2017 when Surrey Stars take on Southern Vipers at Guildford, while at Southport, Lancashire Thunder host Loughborough Lightning.”What an opportunity it is for those on the fringes,” England head coach, Mark Robinson, said. “Every squad is full of world-class players – people you can learn from, look up to in a way and soak up their knowledge. It’s not for me to make a prediction on who’s going to win but I’m really looking forward to the tournament.”In a bid to improve the competitiveness of the six teams, Robinson instigated a rejig ahead of this edition, most notably with Tammy Beaumont switching from Surrey to the Vipers, and Sarah Taylor heading from the Thunder to take her place.”The teams have changed a bit this year and all look as if they’ve got a good chance. We have moved some of our better players around to give them the best opportunity to express themselves. It can be hard for a young batter coming in at seven or eight in a T20 in a team where the top order is full of world-class players to make much of an impression. The same applies to our young bowlers, they need as many opportunities as possible to bowl in pressure situations and more games hopefully allows them that.”One batter in particular who has plenty to prove in the coming contests is the Yorkshire Diamonds captain, Lauren Winfield, a World Cup winner last year, but who has been pushed to the margins in the past few months, with Amy Jones being given the opportunity to partner Beaumont at the top of the order.After a brief innings at No. 7 in the first ODI against New Zealand, Winfield was given a chance to make a mark when she came in at No. 3 in the dead-rubber third game, but made just 5 from nine balls before holing out to deep midwicket. However, the KSL – with its expansion to ten group games instead of five – will give her ample opportunity to find form against quality opposition.”I’ve had a bit of a dry time with runs and opportunity for England,” Winfield said. “This summer I’ve felt I’ve been playing really well, but there’s just no gap to get into that line-up. T20 isn’t something I’ve played a lot of internationally, so 10 games is a fantastic opportunity to expose myself in this format looking ahead to the World Cup in the Caribbean.””I think expanding the competition is such a good idea,” Robinson said. “Western Storm won last year because they played the better cricket at Finals Day but it can be difficult to judge a team over five games, because you might lose a game or two to the weather.”It helps all our England-qualified players, even the experienced ones because if a team doesn’t get going in the first couple of games they still have enough opportunities for their quality to come through. They don’t have to go chasing form if you know what I mean.”Another player who hopes to benefit from the expanded exposure is Kate Cross, the Lancashire Thunder seamer who feared she might never play for England again when she took time away from the game in 2016, a move that affecting her chances of featuring in last year’s World Cup.However, Cross returned to England colours during the New Zealand series – a call-up that she said “felt like I made my debut all over again”.”I’m going into this Super League in a good place,” Cross said. “We’ve also got a World Cup around the corner, and I think I’m going to go back to Australia this winter to play domestic cricket.”There’s a lot for me to look forward to.”With input from ECB Reporters Network

Samit Patel has a career-best 257 to his name, moe runs than he has made all season, and a pleasure in an otherwise drab contest

Vithushan Ehantharajah at Bristol11-Jun-2017
ScorecardSamit Patel produced the highest innings of his life•Getty Images

Thanks to Samit Patel, Nottinghamshire find themselves in a commanding position going into the final day against Gloucestershire. This match, for the most part, has hummed along like an old fridge: serving its purpose but giving little joy to no one. That was until Patel interjected to produce an innings of immense quality. The 31-year-old finished unbeaten on 257, a new first class record, on a pitch that has offered nothing to either discipline.To understand how dominating this knock was, consider this: it eclipses the 226 runs he has accumulated over all of his previous eight Championship innings this season. And of course, a bit of red ink does his average no harm.Patel’s unbeaten 257, which featured 23 fours and a towering six to midwicket off Jack Taylor, was brought up with a tapped single and fist pump that bumped a 256 against Durham MCCU in April 2013 down the list. The merits of classifying university matches as first class is another debate for another time, but that Patel was desperate to beat that score – “it was the most nervous I was the whole time I was batting” – underlines his desire for worthwhile contributions.The four through cover point that took Patel to his hundred summed up his innings: not even a Test batsman of the class of Notts’ number three Cheteshwar Pujara (the next highest scorer of the innings with 67), had been able to time as well or as often on this pitch. This was his first Championship hundred of the season, and his 25th in his first class career. It was also his second against Gloucestershire – that first, a score of 176 (his previous career best in the County Championship) coming way back in April 2007, at this very ground. It was in the back of his mind – “you always remember your best” – and he breezed passed it with two runs struck over the top of wide mid off.Both 2007 and 2017 Patel still have much in common. Time takes the shine away from much, but it does not seemed to have dulled any of the strokes he played with such relish as a 22-year-old. There remains an exuberance to his shot-making, most notable in the way that he used his feet to the spinners to hit them for boundaries inside-out over extra cover – the only region left open to him. Challenge posed, challenge accepted. The swagger after each boundary has, if anything, become more pronounced.Perhaps a 31-year-old Patel has learned the value of patience, though even that is simply an observation made in hindsight: he spent more than eight hours at the crease absorbing 452 deliveries, showing great restraint to not make the mistakes of those who fell before and during his stay at the crease. Most batsmen have been undone snatching at opportunities to score. Patel simply waited. And in waiting, he made up for lost time.”It reminds you of the bad days you have with the bat. The times you can’t score any runs and you’re searching. I suppose you’ve got to try and make use of it.”I’ve been training hard with Mooresy (head coach Peter Moores) and Pike (assistant coach Paul Franks) and my mindset has been pretty good for a few weeks now. I’ve just not been converting as much as I should have done.”On 185, he had a life: skipping down the pitch to the left-arm spin of Graeme van Buuren, he struck high towards long on, where the fielder in question looked to have taken a good catch. Patel thought he was out, but the catch was spilled – in fact, it have even gone for six. Instead, four was signalled. That was about as ungainly as his innings got. On 192, he struck the medium pace of Kieran Noema-Barnett for consecutive fours through cover point to take him to 200 from 379 balls. “I’ve been searching for a big one for a few weeks now.” Here it was.His supporting actors changed throughout the day. Michael Lumb looked as good as you could for 23 before he was trapped by a searing yorker from Chris Liddle. Riki Wessels came out to instigate the charge, scoring his first boundary with a trademark sweep to square leg off Neoma-Barnett. A third batting point came up an over later before Patel struck his 12th boundary to take Nottinghamshire past Gloucestershire’s first effort of 303.While Wessels was unable to last much beyond lunch, trapped LBW by Jack Taylor, Chris Read’s enterprising 40, which featured the game’s first six, clubbed crisply over long on, ensured Notts put on 126 in the middle session to go into tea with a comfortable lead of 136. Luke Wood tagged in for the evening, striking a composed 38 as part of a 95-run partnership with Patel that further demoralised Gloucester, taking the lead to 232 before Read called the innings off.More misery was to come for the hosts as Cameron Bancroft was struck in front second ball by Luke Fletcher, just as he was in the first innings. Unfortunately for him, this time the umpire raised his finger. The 24-year-old from Western Australia is now averaging 16.44 from nine innings: a return far below what is expected of an overseas player, let alone someone of Bancroft’s talent. The stodginess of this Bristol pitch is enough to make any Perth-dweller homesick. Chris Dent and Will Tavare reconvene tomorrow, 202 behind with bold ambitions to try and take Gloucestershire to safety.There was further reason to cheer for Nottinghamshire as Moores confirmed to BBC Radio Nottingham that James Pattinson will rejoin the squad for their Royal London Cup knock-out match on Tuesday against Somerset. He will then be available for the following two Championship matches before his deal expires at the end of June.

Thanks to outstanding hundreds for Adam Lyth and Jonny Bairstow, the new season began for Yorkshire in most satisfying fashion

David Hopps at Headingley17-Apr-2016
ScorecardJonny Bairstow began the new season where he left off in 2015 (file photo)•Getty Images

Anticipation of Yorkshire’s quest for a third successive Championship title has sustained many in the Broad Acres during a long, wet winter. That winter might not be quite over in the north even now – it is one thing to have the title celebrations on ice, but having the outfield on ice before start of play was going a little too far – but the season is underway, albeit with a bit of a scrunch underfoot, and thanks to outstanding hundreds for Adam Lyth and Jonny Bairstow it began for Yorkshire in most satisfying fashion.Twenty-one overs were cut from the day because of bad light, but Yorkshire’s close at 270 for 5 put them within range of a dominant position and, judging by the way that Bairstow went about his unbeaten 107, Hampshire will be desperate to see the back of him first thing on Monday. They had a good morning but were eventually worn down by two excellent batting displays, Lyth’s finally coming to a close after tea when Sean Ervine swung one back to win an lbw decision.Lyth and Bairstow have both won England honours during Yorkshire’s back-to-back Championships, but while Bairstow’s involvement this summer is assured – his critics browbeaten by sheer weight of runs – Lyth is still convalescing after an uncomfortable debut summer for England in which a maiden Test hundred against New Zealand in front of his home crowd was followed by a thin Ashes series as he struggled to find a tempo in Test cricket and at the end of the summer became the latest opening batsman to walk out through England’s revolving door.That revolving door is even casting covetous eyes on the England captain. Alastair Cook’s authority and selection is cast in stone and for a good while yet he will walk through the alternative entrance marked VIPs only, but he is so disgruntled with the new ECB-approved helmet that he makes wearing it sound as if he is peering through prison bars: do not be surprised if he takes the field at Lord’s for a first Test against Sri Lanka wearing a scowl and black-hooped convict fancy dress.As for Alex Hales, by no means secure as his Test partner, he has opted for a holiday, believing (perhaps wisely) that a rest cure can propel him into the first Test. Nick Compton, a No. 3 who could potentially move up to opener, began at Lord’s with a first-baller.A sense of a fresh opportunity would not have been lost on Lyth from the moment that Hampshire asserted their right, as the away side, to skip the toss and bowl first on a chill but sunny morning. In April, this far north, that is no surprise. Andrew Gale, proud Yorkshireman that he is, was at least able to take consolation from the fact that he could leave his money in his pocket.Gale would be less enamoured by his 12-ball duck, a leg-side strangle against Ryan McLaren, and with Alex Lees edging James Tomlinson to third slip and Gary Ballance feathering an inside edge to the keeper when he failed to leave a ball from Chris Wood, Yorkshire’s first 20 overs had brought them 41 for 3. To make matters worse, Lancashire had a bonus bowling point and as one Red Rose loyalist pointed out were above them in the table.Lyth should have fallen, too, on 14, Fidel Edwards moving naturally enough in his follow-through towards a checked drive, but failing to hold it. That apart, Lyth left judiciously – something not evident in the Ashes series – and drove crisply through the off side.Bairstow’s arrival spread enterprise into Yorkshire’s morning from the outset, Lyth caught the mood and a fourth-wicket stand of 205 in 44 overs swung the match in their favour. For Bairstow it was the old routine, following five first-class hundreds last season and his accolade as a Cricketer of the Year; for Lyth, it was his first since 2014, a summer which also won him ‘s approval.McLaren’s six overs in the morning went for six runs; four immediately after lunch disappeared for 41. Bairstow’s hundred was brought up with one of his few false shots, a top-edged hook over the wicketkeeper which left the bowler, Edwards, wicketless and expensive, with hands on knees in mid-pitch.”It was quite tricky early on,” Lyth said. “I was finding it tough out there. But when Jonny comes in, the scoreboard keeps on rolling and that helps me as well.”James Whitaker, the national selector, cannot fail to have been impressed with both batsmen. Lyth, who was initially unaware that Whitaker was in residence, had been more concerned with impressing his father Alistair. Whether he met his dad’s standards as well is not known.”It can’t do me any harm to get a hundred in front of him,” said Lyth, by now referring to Whitaker rather than his father. “I had the winter to get the Ashes off my shoulders. It’s normal business now. All I can do is keep churning the hundreds out. I left the ball a bit better than I did in the Ashes, but then that was against Australia.”And so this potentially historic season cast its first-day favours on Yorkshire, although not entirely. One impressive aspect of this Yorkshire squad is its ability to be driven by history, not weighed down by it. The chance to emulate the 1966-68 side is one that excites them and the respect is mutual – the county’s president, John Hampshire, a member of the team in the 60s, has suggested that his old side might still have the edge, but only because he chose to imagine that the game would be played on uncovered wickets. In Yorkshire, that is quite a concession.