They have a strong batting line-up but will that carry them through if pacers get injured or can’t step up?

Ashish Pant17-Mar-2024Where Delhi Capitals finished last seasonNinth on the ten-team points table. Delhi Capitals lost their first five games of IPL 2023 and could never recover. They only won five out of their 14 matches.Delhi Capitals squad for IPL 2024Rishabh Pant (capt & wk), Prithvi Shaw, David Warner*, Mitchell Marsh*, Ricky Bhui, Swastik Chikara, Abishek Porel (wk), Yash Dhull, Jake Fraser-McGurk*, Shai Hope*, Kumar Kushagra (wk), Tristan Stubbs*, Lalit Yadav, Axar Patel, Sumit Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Praveen Dubey, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, Anrich Nortje*, Vicky Ostwal, Rasikh Salam, Jhye Richardson*, Ishant Sharma*Overseas playersPlayer availability – No Ngidi or Brook for DCThe biggest name in terms of player availability not just for Capitals but for Indian cricket is Rishabh Pant. The wicketkeeper-batter will be returning to competitive action for the first time since suffering a horrific accident in December 2022 and will lead the side.But Capitals have other injury concerns. They head into IPL 2024 without the services of Lungi Ngidi who is still recovering from a lower-back injury he suffered during the SA20 earlier in the year. They have signed 21-year-old Australian Jake Fraser-McGurk as his replacement.Related

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Capitals had earlier lost Harry Brook, who pulled out of the IPL for personal reasons. They are yet to name a replacement for the Englishman.In an interview with ESPNcricinfo last month, Capitals co-owner Parth Jindal had also said that the Australia fast bowler Jhye Richardson is unlikely to be available for at least the initial part of the tournament. Richardson had suffered a left side strain at the BBL in early January and has since been on the sidelines.Capitals will also be sweating on the match fitness of South Africa fast bowler Anrich Nortje, who is coming off a long injury layoff. He has been out of action since September 2023 after suffering from a stress fracture of the back. Nortje only recently returned to competitive cricket in the opening game of CSA’s T20 domestic tournament, turning out for Warriors against Kwa-Zulu Inland, and will be under the watchful eye of South Africa white-ball coach Rob Walter through the IPL.What’s new with Delhi Capitals this year – Pant is backLisa Sthalekar reckons Pant could get a bigger welcome-back roar than even MS Dhoni or Virat Kohli, but how the wicketkeeper-batter goes on the field after a 14-month layoff remains to be seen. Pant has been cleared to keep wicket by the BCCI’s fitness and medical teams, and he will also be captaining the Capitals franchise taking over from David Warner who led the team last season.At the auction in December 2023, Capitals splurged on Jharkhand wicketkeeper-batter Kumar Kushagra, getting him for INR 7.2 crore. Apart from being a hard-hitting batter, Kushagra could slot in as a back-up keeper for Pant. Capitals also went big for Richardson (INR 4 crore) and Haryana fast bowler allrounder Sumit Kumar (INR 1 crore), who has had a good few months in domestic cricket. Capitals could also look to unleash Fraser-McGurk who has made heads turn in the Australian domestic scene.The good – A strong batting unit Capitals have a power-packed batting unit with David Warner, Prithvi Shaw, Mitchell Marsh and Pant slotted at the top of the order. They will also be keen on cashing in on Ricky Bhui and Tristan Stubbs’ form.David Warner and Prithvi Shaw are part of Capitals’ strong top order•BCCIBhui recently finished as the highest run-getter in the 2023-24 Ranji Trophy and had a fruitful Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2023 as well, where he scored at 184.25.Stubbs is coming into the IPL on the back of a triple-century, against KwaZulu-Natal Inland in CSA’s division one tournament. Before that, he finished the SA20 2024 as Sunrisers Eastern Cape’s highest run-getter in the SA20, helping them secure a second straight title.Kushagra and Sumit can also give the ball a fair whack.The not-so-good – Where are the fast bowlers?Ngidi has been ruled out of the tournament. Richardson is a doubtful starter. Nortje is coming in after a long injury layoff. Ishant Sharma has been short of match practice.Capitals’ fast bowling-roster seems to be thinning by the minute, which is why it was surprising that they brought in a batter in Fraser-McGurk to replace Ngidi. They could still bring a seamer in Brook’s place, but even so they are thin in the department. A lot of the fast-bowling load could fall on the shoulders of Khaleel Ahmed and Mukesh Kumar, who haven’t always excelled in the T20 circuit. Capitals will desperately hope for Nortje to hit his straps from the get-go.Schedule insightsWith the Arun Jaitley Stadium hosting 11 WPL games right ahead of the IPL, Capitals have chosen Visakhapatnam as the venue for their first two home games, to give the pitches and ground in Delhi time to recover, according to Jindal.Capitals open their campaign in an afternoon game against Punjab Kings on March 23 in Mullanpur, Kings’ new home base which is making its IPL debut. They will then travel to Jaipur to face Rajasthan Royals on March 28 before hosting Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders on March 31 and April 3 in Visakhapatnam. Capitals face Mumbai Indians at Wankhede Stadium on April 7. The schedule for the rest of IPL 2024 will be released once the schedule for the national elections is revealed.The big question

By taking it easy when it matters least, England have been geared up for when it matters most

Vithushan Ehantharajah06-Mar-2024England’s last training session of this eight-week tour of India had a distinct end-of-term feel in Dharamsala.It began with a spontaneous intra-squad catching competition with very “teachers versus students” energy. Brendon McCullum, usually the one wielding the bat on his knees, was in at third slip, while Paul Collingwood, often the thrower, rolled back the years at backward point. Their respective roles had been taken on by Ollie Pope and Ben Stokes, with Marcus Trescothick (second) and Jeetan Patel (first) completing the cordon.The rules were simple: 20 chances each, one point for a catch, two for a great one. McCullum and Collingwood came tantalisingly close to pouching a few worldies, while Trescothick was as reliable as ever. Patel, flawless, could still do a job now. Naturally, the active cricketers, represented by Joe Root, Zak Crawley, Jonny Bairstow and Ben Duckett, won.Even the morning began with a field trip to meet the Dalai Lama, though the only attendees were Pope, Crawley, Gus Atkinson, Tom Hartley, Dan Lawrence and Bairstow, along with his family, who are in town for his 100th Test cap. England’s own gurus, Stokes and McCullum, decided against the trip further up McLeod Ganj.In another era, under more headmasterly England management, such an appointment would have been mandatory. And training would have probably started with some performative self-flagellation in the form of shuttle runs to show just how serious this group is about losing this series 3-2 as opposed to 3-1 or 4-1.That intent is there all the same. The freedom that has been afforded by McCullum and Stokes has not been abused, with all barring Shoaib Bashir and Ollie Robinson – both reporting ill this morning with stomach bugs – getting what they needed from the nets and bowling out in the middle ahead of this fifth and final Test.Brendon McCullum, Ben Stokes and Jeetan Patel at a training session•AFP/Getty ImagesIt was revealing that opposition captain Rohit Sharma ceded that, even after four Tests, he still is not quite sure what Bazball is. “I don’t know exactly what this term means,” he said in his press conference. “But, yeah, clearly they’ve played better cricket than the last series they were here.”That will be music to Stokes’ ears, not least because he and everyone else in that dressing-room are just about fed up with a term they deem reductive. Particularly as it seems to come up more in their defeats – the three here, and the two against Australia at the start of last summer’s Ashes – than, say, when they overturned a 190-run first-innings deficit in Hyderabad to go one-up. Even so, they wanted to do more than just “better” than their 2021 iteration. You don’t get “most improved” awards in Test cricket.Both Stokes and McCullum acknowledge the need to take this project to the next level. To evolve from a team that gets into pressure situations to one that wins them. After India clinched the series in Ranchi, Stokes dismissed the notion they need to be to be more ruthless. But his comments on Tuesday, that “once you’re in, you have to earn it and keep it”, spoke of a desire to adopt a narrower, harsher focus around both method and personnel going forward.Speaking less than 24 hours later, Stokes took a different approach, using his last pre-match press conference to staunchly champion the progression of his squad over the course of this tour. All while acknowledging that “in a results-based business, that can sometimes sound stupid and deluded”.”You say India haven’t had some of their best players, you look at the players we came out here with. We were written off completely before we had even played a game this series. Tom Hartley, Shoaib Bashir, people couldn’t believe we’d picked them.England’s squad members met with the Dalai Lama on the eve of the fifth Test•ECB”Look at what they’ve managed to achieve on this trip. We’ve seen Ollie Pope, the innings he played. Ben Duckett, think about the last tour he had in India (averaging 6 from just three innings in 2016), how he’s come out here and played and changed as a player and a person.”But I’ve been very proud of everyone who’s gone out there. Just looking at results, you don’t get a full understanding of how we have progressed on this tour. India’s record at home is phenomenal. We won’t be the only team to come here and lose a series, as their record shows.”But I think saying that because Virat [Kohli] is not here, some of the best players are not here, is it disappointing? No. I look at how much a lot of individuals have progressed on this tour, and for me as a captain it’s good.”Of course, it is hard not to set India’s many absences – Kohli and Mohammed Shami for all of it, KL Rahul for the final four Tests, Ravi Jadeja for the second – against England’s mistakes, particularly in the third and fourth Tests, and regard this as a chance missed. Hartley and Bashir, in particular, have gone above and beyond expectations, but ‘what ifs’ sting. Better decisions in a variety of situations could have meant the thousands of travelling fans descending on the HPCA Stadium over the coming days had a winner-takes-all showdown to bump this fixture up the bucket list.Related

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This dead rubber (World Test Championship points aside) offers an intriguing glimpse into where this group of players is at right now. Morale remains high, something that should not be taken for granted at the end of a long stint with more defeats than wins, and that was clear as training wound down. The majority of the squad stayed on to kick a football on the outfield as the Himalayas began wrapping up under blankets of clouds.As Stokes has said a few times, in the moments since the first Test, when it has come down to skill versus skill, India have won them all. One final collection of those battles awaits between a team motivated to rubber-stamp their superiority and another desperate to close that gap to save face.Ultimately, this unique situation for England is a neat control experiment of the ethos of this era. The smart-casualisation of the day-to-day grind ensures that downtime – on the golf course or otherwise – effectively counters the pressures of Test cricket. The 10-day trip to Abu Dhabi to break up a long tour with family time, and the odd optional training session, were geared towards getting players to commit wholeheartedly when it matters most.Now we will see how much of themselves they will give when it matters a little less.

Shafali Verma’s fastest double-hundred, her record stand with Smriti Mandhana, and more stats from India’s first innings

Sampath Bandarupalli28-Jun-2024603 for 6 India’s total against South Africa in Chennai. It is the highest team total in women’s Test cricket, bettering the 575 for 9 dec by Australia against South Africa earlier this year. India also became the first team to breach the 600-run mark in first-class cricket. The previous highest was 595 all out by Australia against England A in 1998.5.23 India’s run rate as they scored 603 for 6 in 115.1 overs. It is the first time any team has scored at five or more runs an over during a 250-plus total.143 Harmanpreet Kaur and Richa Ghosh’s partnership, the highest fifth-wicket stand in women’s Tests, surpassing the 138 between South Africa’s Johmari Logtenberg and Charlize van der Westhuizen against England in 2003.80 Fours hit by India batters. These are the most fours in a women’s Test innings, surpassing 78 by Australia against South Africa in Perth in 2024.525 for 4 – India’s total on the opening day of the Chennai Test against South Africa. These are the most runs scored by any team in a day’s play in Test history (men or women). The previous highest was 509 for 9 by the Sri Lankan men on the second day of the 2002 Colombo Test against Bangladesh.1 – It is the first instance of 500-plus runs scored in a day’s play in a women’s Test match. An aggregate of 475 runs came on the opening day of the Christchurch Test in 1935, where New Zealand were bowled out for 44 before England’s 431 for 4.194 – Balls Shafali Verma needed for her double-century. It is the fastest double-ton in women’s Tests, bettering Annabel Sutherland’s 248-ball effort against South Africa earlier this year.ESPNcricinfo Ltd1 – Shafali is the first woman to score 200-plus runs in a day’s play in a Test match. The previous most runs scored in a day was 189 by Betty Snowball for England on the first day of the Christchurch Test against New Zealand in 1935.292 – Partnership between Shafali and Smriti Mandhana for the first wicket against South Africa. It is the highest opening stand in women’s Tests, surpassing the 241-run partnership by Kiran Baluch and Sajjida Shah against West Indies in 2004.The 354 runs scored by the two batters are also the most by openers in an innings in women’s Tests. Baluch and Shah aggregated 340 runs in the Karachi Test.1 – Number of partnerships in women’s Tests higher than the 292 by Shafali and Mandhana. Denise Annetts and Lindsay Reeler shared a 309-run partnership for the third wicket against England in 1987.The 292-run stand is the highest for India in the format, bettering the 275-run partnership by Thirush Kamini and Punam Raut for the second wicket against South Africa in 2014.2 – Shafali and Mandhana became the second pair of openers to score hundreds in the same innings in women’s Tests. Charlotte Edwards and Laura Newton scored hundreds against New Zealand in 2004.ESPNcricinfo LtdIndia’s first innings is only the 11th instance of two or more batters scoring hundreds in the same women’s Test innings and only the second for India. Thirush Kamini and Punam Raut scored tons in the 2014 Mysuru Test against South Africa.2 – Shafali is now the second Indian to score a double-century in women’s Tests after Mithali Raj, who made 214 against England in Taunton in 2002. She is overall the tenth woman to score a double-hundred in Tests.20y, 152d – Shafali’s age on Friday, which made her the second youngest to score a double-century in women’s Tests, behind Mithali Raj, who was 19 years and 254 days old at the start of the Taunton Test in 2002.8 – Sixes hit by Shafali in her 205-run knock. No batter had hit more than two sixes in an innings in women’s Tests before. No woman has hit more than three sixes in their Test career previously. Shafali now has a career tally of 13 sixes, ten more than any other player.India hit a total of nine sixes on Friday. The most sixes ever hit in a women’s Test by both teams combined previously was six – by England and India in Bristol in 2021.5 India batters with a 50-plus score, the joint-most in an innings in women’s Tests. India’s first innings against South Africa in Paarl in 2002 and Australia’s first innings against England in Taunton in 2019 also had five batters scoring 50-plus runs.

He came back strongly after a few below-par outings at the start of IPL, with his game awareness and skills making him a match-winner

Deivarayan Muthu25-May-20242:20

Moody: ‘Chakravarthy has grown in confidence with the team’

“How are you feeling?”These were the first words of Varun Chakravarthy’s personal coach to the spinner after he had a bad night at the Eden Gardens, where Punjab Kings pulled off a world-record chase of 262 against Kolkata Knight Riders. It was his worst spell, in terms of economy rate, in T20 cricket.Jonny Bairstow alone hit Varun for 25 off nine balls, including three sixes, on an easy-paced, bash-through-the-line pitch surrounded by small boundaries. At least two of those sixes were mis-hits and most certainly one was parried over the boundary. Varun, however, wasn’t too fussed about it and embraced the chaotic nature of T20 cricket.Related

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“I bowled well, but I was just slightly unlucky,” AC Prathiban, the former Tamil Nadu and Puducherry spinner who works closely with Varun, recalls his charge telling him matter-of-factly after that game.Prathiban was particularly impressed with Varun’s maturity and game-awareness after a chastening outing. Having quickly put that Bairstow blitz behind him, Varun has picked up 12 wickets in five innings since at a strike rate of 9.5 and economy rate of under six. In a rain-hit game against Mumbai Indians at the same venue, where he had been expensive against PBKS earlier, Varun came away with 4-0-17-2, including the prized scalp of Rohit Sharma.”Varun hasn’t changed [his game] much,” Prathiban says. “In one game, the ball lands five yards beyond the boundary; in the other it lands five yards inside the boundary and is caught. Like the [Heinrich] Klaasen wicket in the first qualifier on a bigger ground in Ahmedabad. This IPL season has had many 200-plus totals, and it has been an eye-opener for many bowlers. Varun hasn’t panicked and it’s his game-awareness that makes him a match-winner.””Honestly, Varun’s best ball is the googly, which I think everyone knows,” Prathiban says. “But we wanted to develop the away-going ball for the googly to be more effective. It was entirely Varun’s idea to bring this ball out and we were just trying to make it easier for him rather than complicate it. When everyone waits for the googly, they might play him [like an offspinner], so we wanted to nullify that.”There are other bowlers who have a lot of skills. Varun may not have all of those skills, but he knows when to use his skills. He reads the situation when to bowl the googly or legbreak to that particular batsman.”After KKR’s match against Delhi Capitals, where Varun had claimed 3 for 33, he spoke about the significance of defensive skills in an IPL season where average scores and run rates have shot through the roof.”The defensive ball is the offensive ball,” Varun had told . “I’ve been bowling wide lines and that has also ended up giving me wickets. Nothing was happening when I bowl at the stumps. That’s how much the batters have pushed us.”T20 moves at a frenetic pace. Varun was left behind in 2022. But he has since kept up with it, with both his attacking and defensive skills.Since the start of IPL 2023, Varun has taken 40 wickets in 27 innings at an economy rate of 8.16. No other bowler – fast bowler or spinner – has more wickets than Varun during this period. Having also improved his fitness, Varun had returned to 50-over action after five years, becoming the joint-highest wicket-taker in the most recent Vijay Hazare tournament, with 19 strikes in eight games at an economy rate of 4.27. He was also at it in other T20 tournaments such as the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) and the DY Patil tournament in Mumbai.

“Varun is focussed on making a comeback to the India team and we’ve been working towards that.”AC Prathiban, Varun Chakravarthy’s personal coach

“100%, this has been Varun’s best year in his career,” Prathiban says. “He hasn’t taken a break in white-ball cricket since the last IPL. Varun even played the Jamia Millia tournament, and he also played a quadrangular T20 tournament with the Tamil Nadu team in Andhra before the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.”If you look at the TNPL, you can speak about the boundaries being small, but you come across quality batters like Sai Sudharsan, Shahrukh (Khan), DK (Dinesh Karthik) and Vijay Shankar. Playing various tournaments and 50-over cricket was not to prove a point [that he’s fit] but I feel Varun gets better when he bowls to different kinds of batters on different kinds of pitches.”Despite his stellar run, Varun hasn’t had a chance to add to his six T20I caps – he last played for India in the 2021 T20 World Cup in the UAE. It just so happens that India already have two elite wristspinners in Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal. Then, there’s Ravi Bishnoi, who couldn’t make India’s T20 World Cup squad, despite having sealed a remarkable victory for India in a double Super-Over finish at the Chinnaswamy Stadium no less.”Varun is focussed on making a comeback to the India team and we’ve been working towards that,” Prathiban says. “Before the last IPL, he asked me if he can make that comeback. I told him he stands a chance if he gets 20 or more wickets. He has done it in back-to-back seasons now, but selection is not in our control. Playing for India again is the destination for Varun.”Varun could take a big step closer to his destination if he caps the season with his first IPL title, in hometown. His professional cricketing journey had begun right here at Chepauk when he “tortured”, in the words of Stephen Fleming, the CSK batters during his stint as a net bowler in 2018.Post the Covid-19 pandemic, Varun has played two games for KKR in Chennai, but on both occasions his family had turned up in yellow to support MS Dhoni and CSK. With the home team knocked out of the tournament, Varun will have his family swap the yellow for purple and cheer him on to win the (other) purple cap in the final at Chepauk this Sunday.”I’m feeling more responsibility again and [going] back to my home,” Varun told , KKR’s in-house channel, on the flight from Ahmedabad to Chennai. “And this time, hopefully, the people, who all I call, will be supporting for KKR rather than CSK.”

It’s because of the presidential elections, which means a travel day for Sri Lanka players and officials to go and vote

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Sep-2024Are the players just being lazy?
In an era in which even four-day Tests feel like a hard-sell, it does seem weird to have a match that stretches across six days. But no, the reason is that Sri Lanka is holding its presidential election on Saturday. These are the first major polls since the country overthrew its last president in 2022, and so kind of a big deal.And while the New Zealand players are free to relax at any of Galle’s beaches, most Sri Lanka players will be traveling to their electorate to vote. While this is simple enough for someone like Kamindu Mendis – a Galle local – it does represent a challenge for many others.The team is in fact organising a bus for those voting in Colombo, soon after play on Friday. They are expected to vote on Saturday morning and return. Some players must travel even further. Asitha Fernando is going to his electorate near his hometown Katuneriya, roughly 175 kilometres from Galle. Others, such as Lahiru Kumara, will go all the way to Kandy, about 225 km away.In addition to the players, many groundstaff, journalists, commentators, match officials, and board staff will also travel to vote.Couldn’t they have scheduled the Test around the election?
Not really. The Tests were being planned long before the election date was announced. And as New Zealand have a tight playing schedule – this series sandwiched between stints in India – the schedulers say the clash was pretty much unavoidable. Though, given the New Zealand vs Afghanistan match that was supposed to be played in Greater Noida did not see a single ball bowled, perhaps in retrospect they could have rocked up to Sri Lanka a few days earlier.Has this ever happened before?
Rest days were actually pretty common in Tests, right into the 1990s, so this is far from unprecedented (there’s a fact to throw at people who say cricketers had it tougher in decades gone by). In fact, it’s not even unprecedented for Test matches to take a break for an election – the same thing happened in 2008, to allow for Bangladesh’s parliamentary polls that year, also against Sri Lanka. That was the most recent rest day in the game.If the game goes till Monday, won’t it effectively be a day six pitch?
They will, of course, cover the Galle surface and keep it under wraps on Saturday, to prevent the sun and wind from drying it out.Perhaps the players will be fresher as a result?
Again, not really, in the medium term at least. What the boards have actually done is steal a “rest day” from in between the first and second Tests, and plonked it on September 21.There are only two free days between scheduled day five of the first Test, and day one of the second Test. This means there are 10 scheduled Test-match days in a 13-day period, which is normal for a two-Test series.They have been spared having to travel to another venue, however. The second Test will also be played in Galle.

A failed sweep did not stop him from playing an imperfect sweep, which did not stop him from sweeping a bad ball for four

Andrew Fidel Fernando19-Sep-2024First ball of spin New Zealand face in the first innings, Tom Latham presses gently onto the front foot, transfers weight smoothly back, and punches the ball through cover point for a couple.The bowler is Dhananjaya de Silva, who is far from the biggest turner of the ball in the opposition. But on a pitch on which even Glenn Phillips was ripping it on day one, less confident batters might have preferred to wait and see what the ball was doing. Occasionally, on tracks such as this, the hard seam bites off the dry surface and turns hard.For Latham, this was a stress-free checked square drive for two. It clearly wasn’t tentative. But it wasn’t an eye-catching statement of intent either. It was assured, run-seeking batting.Related

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His judgement of length was brisk. His feet moved fluently enough to take him back into the crease. He timed it nicely, without hitting the leather off it. This is where good batting against spin lives. New Zealand’s top order batted like a team that knows all that.We’re about to get deep into batting-nerd territory here, but you really can’t do justice to the big picture unless you hone in on the molecular. We’ll stick with Latham for a bit, since he played day two’s most substantial innings. In the 15th over, he missed a sweep against Ramesh Mendis, generally Sri Lanka’s biggest turner of the ball. He missed it because he had played over the ball and rolled his wrists. Of all the ways to miss a sweep, this is the safest – even if you under-edge it, it would hit the pitch straightaway, or thud into the wicketkeeper’s boot. You’d have to be quite unlucky to drag it onto the stumps.You’ve missed that ball, but don’t sweat it. You can’t stress not sweating it enough. On turning tracks, balls will be missed. But the job is to make runs. No one cares if you miss the fewest balls.Daryl Mitchell is one of the most conscientious reverse-sweepers in the game•Associated PressLatham, at this stage in his career, is a proficient player of spin. So next ball, Ramesh bowls a similar line, and Latham sweeps again, this time over-correcting, and getting the bat under the ball a little. It goes off the top half of the bat, but because he’s only paddled it, it loops off into vacant space around short fine leg, and Latham gets two. Fifth ball, he gets a ball that pitches on around middle and leg, and this time Latham is all over it, sweeping it fine, along the ground, for four.The first failed sweep did not stop him from playing a second imperfect sweep, which in turn did not stop him from sweeping a bad ball for four. Latham’s playing of spin is partly built around his being able to play variations of conventional sweep nicely. But other New Zealand batters have their own ways of countering spin.Where in previous decades, teams from SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia) were often caught in horrendous, traumatic cycles of spin-playing ineptitude, and in response issued team diktats such as “be more aggressive”, “sweep more often”, “come down the pitch more” etc… the approach has more recently shifted. Now it’s about equipping batters with a wider repertoire of shots, encouraging them to either go back or come forward and not get caught in between, encouraging them to seek the run-scoring opportunities, but vitally, having them find their own way.Rachin Ravindra’s strategy was to go back into his crease to create length and club the balls he could in front of square. Daryl Mitchell, who came in late in the day, is one of the most conscientious reverse-sweepers in the game, frequently rolling his wrists on the shot, and almost always playing over the ball, and as a result, sending the ball into the ground inside three metres. Never bogged down, almost always playing with the spin, Mitchell’s 41 not out off 60 was the kind of innings that would make a modern batting coach’s heart sing.We have T20s to thank for fitting batters with a space-age arsenal of strokes, of course. But then the likes of Latham, who is not a white-ball star the way Mitchell is these days, have also found success. Looking for runs is key, he said.

“My plan in these conditions is to be proactive and to use the sweep shot as I’m sure you saw… That’s my mode in terms of how I operate in these conditions”Tom Latham

“In this part of the world, when you’re facing a lot of balls, when you can’t get off strike, it does become harder,” Latham said. He was caught in the deep sweeping in what would have been the last over before tea.He’s got to have regrets about that, right? “No, not really. My plan in these conditions is to be proactive and to use the sweep shot as I’m sure you saw. Other days it doesn’t go to the fielder on the boundary. Today it didn’t work out. But that’s my mode in terms of how I operate in these conditions.” It’s hard to argue with a guy whose score of 70 on Thursday actually brought his average in the country down a touch.That the likes of Latham, and Mitchell, and Ravindra are figuring out their own ways of getting runs in conditions they are not used to, speaks to a fun new evenness of skills in the game. (This article has skirted around Kane Williamson’s 55, because there is no real point talking about Williamson’s spin-playing, when he had arrived more or less fully formed as a batter, as if from a way better universe than ours.)Other SENA sides – England and Australia especially – have also raised their games significantly in an era in which big-turning pitches have been normalised in places like Sri Lanka and India.For New Zealand, getting to 255 for 4 at Galle was especially meaningful. This was their first Test in a five-match sequence in what is likely to be big-turning conditions – one more match in Galle, then games in Bengaluru, Pune and Mumbai to follow.On their first day of batting on this long South Asia tour, they’ve suggested they will do much better than has often been expected – that they are not going to crumble meekly against spin.

And which bowler has the highest percentage of wickets taken at one venue?

Steven Lynch18-Feb-2025Nathan Lyon dismissed Angelo Mathews for his second Test wicket, and also for his 552nd. Was this the biggest difference in terms of getting the same player out? asked Peter Walker from Australia

The Australian offspinner Nathan Lyon bowled Angelo Mathews for his second Test wicket in Galle in September 2011, having dismissed Kumar Sangakkara with his first delivery. You’re right that Mathews recently became Lyon’s 552nd wicket – also in Galle – and my first thought that this difference of 550 would be the most.But I’d overlooked an even more famous spinner… Sri Lanka’s own Muthiah Muralidaran actually occupies the top five places on this list. Anil Kumble of India was his 18th Test victim, and also his 755th (a difference of 737). Daniel Vettori was his 97th and 783rd wicket (686), Sachin Tendulkar his 124th and 793rd (669), Sourav Ganguly his 132nd and 754th (622), and Rahul Dravid his 130th and 749th (619). England’s Stuart Broad also has an entry higher than Lyon’s: Tim Southee of New Zealand was Broad’s sixth Test wicket, and also his 573rd – a difference of 567.Blessing Muzarabani took his best bowling figures and made his highest score in the same Test match against Ireland recently. Which of the players who have done this double played the most Tests? asked Akash Bhattacharjee from India

Zimbabwe’s Blessing Muzarabani took 7 for 58 in the first innings of the recent Test against Ireland in Bulawayo, then increased his highest score to 47 when his side batted.It was Muzarabani’s tenth Test: 31 players who won more caps achieved their highest score and best bowling figures in the same match. Top of the list is England’s Michael Vaughan: his highest score of 197 and best bowling of 2 for 71 both came in the 21st of his eventual 82 Test matches, against India at Trent Bridge in 2002.Next come a pair of Pakistanis, who often played together: Majid Khan made 167 and took 4 for 45 against West Indies in Georgetown in March 1977, in the 35th of his 63 Tests, while Wasim Raja recorded 125 and 4 for 50 against India in Jalandhar in 1983, in the 47th of his 57 matches. The best performances of Yuvraj Singh’s 40 Tests for India both came in his 20th match – 169 and 2 for 9 against Pakistan in Bengaluru in December 2007.Prabath Jayasuriya has 80 of his 116 Test wickets at Galle. Is this the highest percentage for anyone with more than 100? asked Alistair Lynch (no relation!) from Bermuda

After the recent series against Australia, Sri Lanka’s slow left-armer Prabath Jayasuriya had 116 wickets in his 20 Tests. And 80 of them have come in Galle, which amounts to almost 69% of his victims. You’re right that this is easily a record for anyone with 100 or more: next comes the 19th-century Australian “Terror”, Charlie Turner, who took 45 of his 101 Test wickets (44%) at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Zimbabwe’s Heath Streak took 83 of his 216 (38.4%) at the Harare Sports Club, while the Bangladesh slow left-armer Taijul Islam currently has 217 Test wickets, 82 of them (37.7%) at the Shere Bangla Stadium in Mirpur.Prabath Jayasuriya has taken 69% of his total wickets at home, the most of any bowler with a minimum of 100 wickets•Getty ImagesHarshit Rana took three wickets in an innings in his first Test, his first ODI and his first T20 international. Has anyone else managed this? asked Tom Collier from England

India’s Harshit Rana picked up 3 for 48 on his Test debut against Australia in Perth in November 2024, added 3 for 33 against England in his first T20I in Pune last month, and completed the set with 3 for 53 in his first ODI, against England in Nagpur on February 6.Four other players have completed this notable treble of at least three wickets in an innings on debut in all three formats: Jon Lewis of England (4 for 24 in T20Is, 3 for 32 in ODIs, and 4 for 68 in his only Test, against Sri Lanka at The Oval in 2006), Sri Lanka’s Ajantha Mendis (3 for 39 in his first ODI, 4 for 72 and 4 for 60 on Test debut against India in Colombo in 2008, and 4 for 15 in his first T20I), Devendra Bishoo of West Indies (3 for 34 in first ODI, 4 for 17 in first T20I, and 4 for 68 on Test debut), and Australia’s Pat Cummins (3 for 25 in first T20I, 3 for 28 in first ODI, and 6 for 79 on his Test debut, all in South Africa in 2011 when he was 18). The feat has only been possible since T20Is started in 2004-05.Was 2024 the year in which the most home Tests were lost? asked Unnikrishnan from India

With only three drawn games, there was a record number of completed Tests in 2024 – 50. That included 21 wins away from home, which as you suspect was also a record: there were 19 in 2004, 18 in 2021, and 16 in 2000, 2001 and 2008. These numbers exclude matches on neutral territory, like Ireland’s win over Afghanistan in Dubai early last year. In 1967, when 12 Tests were played, there were no away wins at all. For the year-by-year details, click here.There were 28 home wins in 2024, matching the amount from 2002, and beaten only by the 29 home Test victories in 2013. For that list, which also excludes matches on neutral territory, click here.Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

Stats highlights from the Champions Trophy final between India and New Zealand in Dubai

ESPNcricinfo stats team09-Mar-2025

India’s spinners bowled all the middle overs (11 to 40)•AFP/Getty Images

105 – Partnership between Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill in the final, the first century opening stand in this Champions Trophy.1 in 32,768 – The probability of losing 15 tosses in succession, which has happened to India in men’s ODIs now. India have, however, won ten of these 15 ODIs and lost only four times.The 15 consecutive tosses lost by India is the longest streak for any team in men’s ODIs. Netherlands’ 11 tosses lost between 2011 and 2013 was the previous longest.12 – Consecutive tosses lost by Rohit Sharma as captain in ODIs since he last won one against New Zealand in the 2023 World Cup semi-final. He has equalled the longest streak of lost tosses for a captain in men’s ODIs – Brian Lara also lost 12 between 1998 and 1999.5 – Reprieves for Rachin Ravindra through dropped catches in this Champions Trophy, including two against India in the final, the most for any batter in this tournament.Mohammed Shami dropped Ravindra off his own bowling on 28, while Shreyas Iyer dropped him on 29 off Varun Chakravarthy. Ravindra scored only 37 so the drops didn’t cost India a lot.4 – Catches dropped by India on Sunday, the most for them in a men’s ODI knockout game since the four chances they put down against Sri Lanka in the final of the 2005 Indian Oil Cup.Shreyas Iyer couldn’t latch on to this chance from Rachin Ravindra•ICC/Getty Images30 – Overs that India’s spinners bowled during the middle overs (11-40) on Sunday. The previous instance of India going all spin in this phase in men’s ODIs was against Sri Lanka in the 2002 Champions Trophy final, played on the reserve day.91 – Balls that Daryl Mitchell took to bring up his fifty on Sunday – his slowest fifty in ODIs and the slowest by any New Zealand batter in men’s ODIs since Martin Guptill’s 95-ball fifty in 2014 against West Indies.103 for 4 – New Zealand’s total during the middle overs (11-40) in the final after scoring 69 for 1 in their first ten. Only once have New Zealand scored fewer runs in that phase in a men’s ODI since 2013 – 102 for 3 against Pakistan in 2018 in Abu Dhabi.81 – Balls without a boundary for New Zealand between the 14th (Mitchell hit a four off Axar Patel) and the 27th overs (Glenn Phillips hit a six off Kuldeep Yadav).43 – Runs India scored between the 16th and 30th overs of the chase, during which they lost their top three. These are the fewest they have scored in this phase in a men’s ODI since the 42 against Pakistan in 2013 at Eden Gardens.212 – Shreyas Iyer’s batting average against New Zealand spinners in ODIs. His dismissal against Mitchell Santner in the final was his first against them after facing 233 balls. Iyer got out to fast bowlers in his previous eight ODI innings against New Zealand.

On the way to the series win in SL, Nathan Lyon also became the third Australian to 550 Test wickets

Namooh Shah09-Feb-20254 – Australia have clean swept their opponents for the fourth time in a Test series in Asia where they have played at least two matches. The previous instance of that had come back in 2006, when they had beaten Bangladesh 2-0.5 – Number of Test wins by Australia in Galle is the most by a visiting team in Sri Lanka at any venue, going past Pakistan, who have four wins in Galle. Victory in the second Test against Sri Lanka, which concluded on Sunday, also gave Australia their first Test series win in the country since 2011.33 – Number of wins Australia have across the two cycles of the World Test Championship. That takes them past England, who have 32 wins.Related

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3 – Australia’s win by nine wickets in the second Test against Sri Lanka was only the third instance of a visiting team winning a Test in Sri Lanka with nine or more wickets remaining. The last time it happened was in 2022, when too Australia had won in Galle.43.58 – Difference between the batting and bowling averages in the Test series against Sri Lanka for Australia. It is the highest for Australia in an away series of at least two matches. The next highest of 30.21 had come way back in 1949-50 in South Africa.5 – Steven Smith now has the joint-most Test wins by an Australian captain in Asia, equaling the record of Ricky Ponting.ESPNcricinfo Ltd24 – Number of Test hundreds by Smith in winning causes. He goes past Don Bradman and Matthew Hayden – 23 hundreds each – to become the player with the fourth-most Test centuries in victories. Only Ponting (30), Joe Root (25) and Steve Waugh (25) are ahead of him.200 – Catches taken by Smith is the most by an Australian fielder in Tests. With that, he equals Jacques Kallis, and is only behind Rahul Dravid (210), Root (207) and Mahela Jayawardene (205).553 – Number of Test wickets taken by Nathan Lyon after the completion of the second Test in Galle, where he took seven wickets. Lyon became the third Australian bowler to reach the landmark of 550 Test wickets, after Shane Warne (708) and Glenn McGrath (563). He also completed 150 wickets in Asia, which is the most by a non-Asian bowler there, having already started the series against Sri Lanka well clear of Shane Warne.

They were there in 2008; they will be there in 2025 – here are players who have been part of the IPL since the beginning

Varun Shetty21-Mar-2025MS Dhoni and CSK: a match made in heaven•BCCI

MS Dhoni

Matches – 264 | Runs – 5243 | SR – 137.53
Teams – CSK (2008-2015, 2018-present), RPSG (2016-2017)
Titles – 5 (2010, 2011, 2018, 2021, 2023)Dhoni is nearly as synonymous with Chennai Super Kings as he is with Indian cricket. He was their marquee signing in 2008, their first – and for the longest time, only – captain, and arguably the only CSK player who was a certainty to return during their two-year ban. He led CSK to five titles, ten finals, and an unparalleled record of playoff appearances, turning them into the most consistent team in IPL history. Dhoni in a CSK shirt is still the IPL’s most enduring image.A constant presence for RCB since 2008•Associated Press

Virat Kohli

Matches – 252 | Runs – 8004 | SR – 131.97
Teams – RCB (2008-present)
Titles – 0 | Finals: 3 (2009, 2011, 2016)Kohli has never known an IPL without an RCB jersey, which means he has also never known an IPL title. He arrived in 2008 as India’s U-19 World Cup-winning captain and has remained at the franchise through its highest highs and lowest lows. He is the league’s highest run-scorer – the only batter to cross 8000 IPL runs. His 973-run 2016 season remains an outlier, a peak so absurd, that he nearly took RCB to their first title on his own.No other player has more IPL trophies than Rohit Sharma•BCCI

Rohit Sharma

Matches – 257 | Runs – 6628 | SR – 131.14
Teams – Deccan Chargers (2008-2010), MI (2011-present)
Titles – 6 (2009, 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019, 2020)Rohit started as a freewheeling stroke player at Deccan Chargers, where he won his first IPL title in 2009 before Mumbai Indians signed him and built a dynasty around his leadership. He led MI to their first title in his debut captaincy year and built one of the most successful IPL franchises over the next decade, adding four more trophies to their cabinet. Rohit remains MI’s highest run-scorer and one of only four players with over 6000 IPL runs. His six IPL trophies are the most for any IPL player.Manish Pandey was part of KKR’s title-winning team in 2014•Associated Press

Manish Pandey

Matches – 171 | Runs – 3850 | SR – 121.10
Teams – MI (2008), RCB (2009-2010), PWI (2011-2013), KKR (2014-2017, 2024-present), SRH (2018-2022), DC (2023)
Titles – 1 (2014)The most defining image of Manish Pandey’s IPL career is his 94 in the 2014 final for KKR, where he steered a tense chase to deliver the franchise’s second IPL title. His career has been a journey through multiple franchises, each time with the expectation that he could be the batter a middle order could be built around. There have been moments – like his breakout century for RCB in 2009 – but his career has largely been one of searching for permanence, even if he hasn’t missed a single season.Ajinkya Rahane will lead KKR in IPL 2025•KKR

Ajinkya Rahane

Matches – 185 | Runs – 4642 | SR – 123.42
Teams – MI (2008-2010), RR (2011-2015, 2018-2019), RPSG (2016-2017), DC (2020), KKR (2022), CSK (2023-2024), KKR (Present)
Titles – 1 (2023)His early years at Rajasthan Royals were built around placement over power before T20 batting evolved faster than he could keep up. He has had to reinvent his game constantly, and has found success of late; his move to CSK in 2023 saw him at his most aggressive, playing an uninhibited role in their title-winning campaign. Now, as captain of KKR, Rahane finds himself in a position that will challenge him again: leading the defending champions, who have long favoured power over poise.The return of the prodigal son: R Ashwin trains at Chepauk•PTI

R Ashwin

Matches – 212 | Wickets: 180 | Eco: 7.12
Teams – CSK (2008-2015, Present), RPSG (2016), KXIP (2018-2019), Delhi Capitals (2020-2021), RR (2022-2024)
Titles – 2 (2010, 2011)Few players in IPL history have mixed skill, strategy, and audacity quite like Ashwin. He built his name as Dhoni’s powerplay enforcer at CSK, and has since found new ways to stay ahead of the game. He has captained Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab), reinvented himself as a pinch-hitter at RR, and has never shied away from pushing the limits of convention. The 2019 mankading of Jos Buttler sparked a debate that never quite ended, and, as another hat-tip to his furious obsession with the laws, he was also the first batter to retire himself out tactically. He’s now back at CSK, where it all started.Ravindra Jadeja is CSK’s second-highest wicket-taker•BCCI

Ravindra Jadeja

Matches – 240 | Runs – 2959 | SR: 129.78 | Wickets: 160 | Eco: 7.62

Teams – RR (2008-2009), Kochi Tuskers Kerala (2011), CSK (2012-2015, 2018-present), GL (2016-2017)
Titles – 4 (2008, 2018, 2021, 2023)After being RR’s breakout performer in their title-winning inaugural season, and a mainstay in the next one, Jadeja missed the 2010 edition for trying to negotiate terms with another franchise. In 2011 he played for Kochi Tuskers Kerala, but truly came back into the limelight when CSK picked him up in 2012. He is CSK’s second-highest wicket-taker behind Dwayne Bravo, has smashed the most runs in an IPL over (37 against RCB in 2021), and was the hero of the 2023 final, hitting a four off the last ball to seal the win. His brief stint as CSK captain in 2022 was a sour memory, but as a match-winner, Jadeja’s IPL legacy is secure.Ishant Sharma was part of Delhi Capitals last season•BCCI

Ishant Sharma

Matches – 110 | Wickets: 92 | Eco: 8.24
Teams – KKR (2008-2010), Deccan Chargers (2011-2012), SRH (2013-2015), RPSG (2016), KXIP (2017), DC (2019-2024), GT (Present)
Titles – 0 | Finals: 0Ishant has always been an odd fit in the IPL – his long-format credentials never quite translating into sustained success in T20 cricket. He was, in 2008, the most expensive bowler in the auction when KKR picked him. But he has moved across seven franchises, often as an experienced hand rather than a frontline bowler. He has played 34 IPL matches, all for DC, since 2019 and will turn up for GT this season.Swapnil Singh picked six wickets in seven matches in IPL 2024•Associated Press

Swapnil Singh

Matches – 14 | Wickets: 7 | Eco: 8.92
Teams – MI (2008), KXIP (2016-2017), LSG (2023), RCB (2024-Present)
Titles – 0 | Finals: 0Swapnil Singh’s IPL career is the outlier of this group – his first franchise was MI in 2008, but he had to wait until 2016 to actually debut for KXIP. Last year, Swapnil Singh was 33, when he fell into the midst of a dream run with RCB. Brought in as a backup left-arm spinner, he forced his way into the XI and became an integral part of their six-game winning streak that propelled them into the playoffs. It earned him an RTM – and a pay raise – with them at the mega auction ahead of this season.