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Morne Morkel, who is attempting to make a comeback from a back injury, has revealed he was told he would never be able to play cricket again.”No one was 100% sure of what was going on with my back and to be honest there was a time when I was in doubt about my future‚” Morkel told while training with his franchise Titans ahead of their Momentum One-Day Cup match against Dolphins on Friday.”I was told that I would never be able to play cricket again and it was a mental thing to go to the gym. One doctor actually told me that my days as a player were numbered which was not a nice thing to hear.”Having ignored that prognosis and sought other doctors’ advice, Morkel has now recovered fully and hopes to rule himself fit for the Test-match leg of South Africa’s tour of New Zealand. Having last played international cricket in June 2016 and any cricket since a tour game in Melbourne November, he will begin his comeback with the Momentum One-Day Cup.In addition, Morkel is not making himself available for the IPL, in a bid to be at full fitness for South Africa’s tour of England later this year.Meanwhile, Vernon Philander, who has been battling a minor ankle impingement, is also going to be in action during the one-day cup. Philander is available for Cobras and will be closely watched by the national selectors after bowling coach Charl Langeveldt suggested he could be the new-ball bowler South Africa’s one-day outfit is looking for.

Carlos Brathwaite will exit the Big Bash League after defending champions Sydney Thunder’s final league match against the Adelaide Strikers on Wednesday. Brathwaite will return to the Caribbean to represent Barbados in the Regional Super50 domestic one-day tournament.Brathwaite said he will leave Australia on Thursday morning for Barbados, where the hosts will play their first Super50 match against Guyana on January 24. “Unfortunately, I still have to go home on [Thursday] morning to play in the Super50 tournament,” Brathwaite told the Australia.Brathwaite was hired by the Thunder as a replacement for fellow West Indies allrounder Andre Russell, who suffered a combination of hamstring and knee injuries. In the two matches he has played so far in the BBL, Brathwaite has taken five wickets: 2 for 31 against Hobart Hurricanes and 3 for 21 in the Saturday Sydney derby against the Sixers. He batted only against the Hurricanes and scored 6. He had become an instant hit in the tournament with his ‘dab’ celebrations.Currently, the Thunder are placed sixth on the table and a win against the Strikers would keep them in contention for the knockouts.

Wahab Riaz has warned Australia to be prepared for the same hostile fast bowling he produced the last time he played against them on Australian soil. Wahab’s heated battle with Shane Watson at the Adelaide Oval during the World Cup was one of the most memorable white-ball spells in recent times, despite the fact it didn’t produce the wicket of Watson, who eventually saw his side to victory.That six-over spell elevated Wahab’s reputation in Australia and made him one of the more recognisable figures in a Pakistan squad that hasn’t played a Test here in almost seven years. Goaded by Watson when he was batting, Wahab struck back with several body blows in a display of searing pace and short-pitched bowling that, ultimately, couldn’t swing the match back in Pakistan’s favour.”That was one of my best matches I have ever played,” Wahab said at the Gabba on Tuesday in the lead-up to the first Test against Australia. “It was really exciting. I would love to repeat that performance from the World Cup, I want to bowl like that on this tour but I want to be amongst the wickets – I was lacking some wickets in that spell. So this is what I’m looking for.”Obviously, I have to do what I do really well. I can’t change myself because if I do that it’s not going to work for me. I am going to bowl aggressively, I will bowl short as well. It’s part of the plan. But it will all be according to the situations and what the situation demands, how I have to react like that.”While the Adelaide pitch hardly has the reputation of being a fast bowler’s dream, the Gabba is a different beast altogether. Wahab has only played one match here, also during the 2015 World Cup, against Zimbabwe, which brings other satisfying recollections; he took 4 for 45 and scored 54 not out in a man-of-the-match performance.No one could doubt the Australian players are relieved to be back in their series-starting fortress. A 28-year undefeated streak will do that – they have not lost a Gabba Test since 1988 – reinstating the sort of confidence that has been shaken and stirred by the series loss to South Africa.But, if the Australian fast bowlers are licking their lips at the prospect of a deck that offers pace and bounce, to Pakistan’s quicks the Gabba must seem a lush bowling oasis after years of plying their trade in an unforgiving desert.’It’s very exciting,” said Wahab. “We have played a lot of cricket in the UAE and the wickets over here are really good – they have bounce, they have pace. So it’s really good for the fast bowlers and I’m looking forward to bowling here.”The wickets are slow there [in the UAE] and we are used to playing on those tracks so that’s why it looks like our bowlers don’t have that much potential or we don’t have those kinds of spells every day consistently. It’s always different because it’s a spin track or a batting track in the UAE so that is the biggest difference.”There is no doubt Pakistan face a formidable task – no Asian team has won a series in Australia and Pakistan have won only four Tests here, two of them dead rubbers – and they arrive on the back of a 2-0 series loss in New Zealand, but Wahab says his side is not fazed by history, nor the Gabba’s intimidating record for visitors.”This is what we’re looking for as well – records are meant to be broken and this might be the chance for Pakistan to break that record,” Wahab said. “Obviously it’s not going to be easy, we have to do a lot of hard work. We have to take 20 wickets, and obviously we are looking for that – we know even no Asian country has won a series here in Australia. So looking for that and that should really give us a good boost and give us something to go for.”We have to take the challenge. We know Australia is good in their home conditions, it’s one of the best teams. To compete with them we have to counterattack them, we have to have that confidence. We’ve got the skills and everyone is prepared for these Test matches.”One positive for Pakistan is the presence in their group of Mickey Arthur and Steve Rixon, both of whom were on Australia’s coaching staff from 2011 to 2014 and worked closely with several members of the current Australia team including Steven Smith and David Warner. Wahab said the pair had been “a great help” in giving Pakistan’s players the inside running on Australia.”Everybody knows everything about David Warner and Steve Smith – you have to attack them,” said Wahab. “That’s it. You cannot look for them to give you their wicket. You have to buy their wickets.”It’s a great help having Mickey Arthur and Steve Rixon. Obviously they have been working really hard on us, and they have spent a lot of time with Australia as well. We get that information coming up from them, they are telling us their experiences. And obviously it’s time for us to deliver. So it’s more important how we deliver, we’ve got all the consequences so we have to deliver on the day.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo – Mohammad Shahzad struck 11 fours and three sixes in his unbeaten 80•International Cricket Council

Mohammad Shahzad marked his BPL debut with a blistering unbeaten 80, which helped Rangpur Riders thrash Chittagong Vikings by nine wickets at the Shere Bangla National Stadium on Wednesday evening. Shahzad’s 52-ball innings contained 11 fours and three sixes. Rangpur’s win, though, was set up by a clinical bowling display that saw them bowl out Chittagong for 124 in the last over.Soumya Sarkar kicked off Rangpur’s chase with an upper-cut six and a square cut for four off Tymal Mills. Shahzad found his rhythm with crisp drives and cuts off Dwayne Smith’s medium pace. The openers sped to 43 for 0 in the Powerplay, although Mills dropped a skier off Shahzad’s top-edged slog on 18. Soon, Shahzad struck his first six off Mohammad Nabi before slapping a Taskin Ahmed delivery over mid-off for his seventh boundary.Mills bowled a beamer at Soumya in the tenth over but dismisssed him with a short delivery off the next ball. Soumya contributed 23 to the 77-run opening stand.With a pulled heave off Taskin, Shahzad reached his fifty off 41 balls. His slog over midwicket off Taskin was arguably his most memorable shot of the innings, and he hit another four and six through the same region in the over. The winning run came off an inside edge of an attempted helicopter shot, as Rangpur finished the chase with five overs to spare.Earlier Chittagong slipped to 21 for after they were put into bat. A 48-run third-wicket stand between Shoaib Malik and Anamul Haque resurrected the innings. But when Anamul was run-out, for the second match in a row, via a ricochet off Liam Dawson’s hand, Rangpur didn’t let go of their stranglehold.Arafat Sunny removed Jahurul Islam and Malik, who top-scored with 30, while Rubel Hossain had Mohammad Nabi caught at cover. Zakir Hasan’s attempted scoop was caught at short fine leg before Richard Gleeson struck twice in the 19th over to hasten Chittagong’s fall.

Moeen Ali has said that England’s batting approach in the second ODI against Bangladesh was similar to how the team played before their surge over the last 18 months in limited-overs cricket. He said that the team would rather lose while playing with their new-found, aggressive method than take a step back.On Sunday, in the second ODI, their innings run rate was 4.56 per over, their third-lowest in a completed innings over the last 18 months. They also struck only 17 fours and single six, while they have had at least seven matches during this time when they struck at least 10 sixes. But a disciplined bowling effort from Bangladesh and a sluggish pitch slowed them down in the 44.4 overs.”I think the most disappointing thing was that we batted a little bit like the old England for the first time in a couple of years,” Moeen said on the eve of the series-decider in Chittagong. “That’s more disappointing, the way we lost. We would rather lose the game playing the way we played in the last two years. So hopefully tomorrow [Wednesday] we can play the way we have been batting and not just throw our wickets away. It was a decent pitch to bat on.”Since their early exit in the 2015 World Cup, England have won four of the six bilateral ODI series. Fourteen of their 48 300-plus scores have come in the 32 matches during this period. Twice they have gone past 400 runs, a score they never touched earlier, and their overall run-rate in this period, 6.27 runs per over, is the highest among all teams.Eight of their batsmen have 100-plus strike-rates, making this one of the most aggressive England limited-overs line-ups in history. Another major indicator of their batting improvement is the increase in their historic run-rate, from 4.71 to 4.78, in these 18 months.Moeen said that they were not too concerned by the sudden downturn in their batting aggression, but admitted the team needed a quick turnaround.”We just took a small step back, it wasn’t as bad as probably the way Bangladesh batted in the first game. But these things can happen when you are chasing. We didn’t play the way we can play,” he said. “We played like we played almost back in the day.”England’s practice session was also affected by the heavy rain in Chittagong. The visitors could only finish their warm-ups in the morning session on Tuesday, and most of their net session was held at the indoor facilities.”We are used to this weather. Some of the guys had a hit, some guys have gone indoors,” Moeen said. “It is more of a mental preparation. Some guys batted well last game so preparation-wise, we are fine.”Moeen said that Bangladesh probably took their foot off the pedal towards the end of the first game, which allowed the visitors a dramatic win, but he felt England had not yet played their best game in the series.”We are a different side now than we were before. I know the last game we didn’t bat well,” he said. “Bangladesh are good at home anyway, any ground at home. It just eggs us on to score big runs and win.”It’s going to be a tough game for us we know that, they should have probably won the first game they let us off a little bit. We still have our best to come.”

Steven Finn was satisfied to have been given a tough work-out in humid conditions, as England’s bowlers completed their first full day’s match practice ahead of the first Test in Chittagong next week.Finn, who bowled six overs in England’s truncated 45-over-a-side warm-up on Saturday, added another ten today, and though he has yet to take a wicket on tour, he said he was happy with his rhythm even though he recognises that life for the seam bowlers is likely to be tough in the coming weeks.”I think we’ll have to readjust our expectations of what the new ball is going to do over here,” he said. “The new ball, with the way there’s no conventional swing, the hardness of the ball seems to make it come onto the ball a little bit better.”I think the first three hours are the warmest and then it seems to tail off in the afternoon a little bit. Those first two hours were very, very hot. [We will have to see] whether we change our gameplan a little bit and be slightly more defensive and wait for them to come to us.”We could have been quicker to realise the fact we couldn’t attack so much with the new ball, but I think the way we addressed it, and after that the way we stuck to our plans, was really good. We dried them up and you can cause rash shots through drying their batsmen up.”As might have been expected, it was England’s spinners who eventually claimed the bulk of the wickets, with Zafar Ansari picking up four and Gareth Batty two in the BCB XI’s total of 294. One of those two men is likely to link up with Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid to complete a three-man spin attack, which means Finn could be forced to wait for his opportunity for a Test recall.”I sort of viewed these two games as an opportunity for me to show what I can do,” he said. “I do enjoy bowling in the subcontinent, I enjoy the reverse swing aspect of it, I enjoy the fact that you have to put in to get something out of the wicket.”I think I’ve got a relatively good record in the subcontinent, so I just wanted to come and put my hand up.”Realistically, I’m probably outside of those top three seamers at the moment because of the way [Chris] Woakes, [Stuart] Broad and [Ben] Stokes have bowled in the summer but I think that my job, and anyone on the fringe of the squad, is just to keep pushing and keep trying to put your hand up to get in the team.”I felt in good rhythm today, I felt in good rhythm in the nets, it’s just about keeping your name out there. I felt rushed a little bit in my first spell but adjusted that to the second spell and felt good today, where it’s just about having a really simple gameplan.”As for the form of the spinners, Finn was impressed by what he had seen. “I thought they went really well,” he said. “I like Gareth Batty’s improvement in every format of cricket. He’s a real experienced head to talk to the other spinners whilst he’s been here and he’s been great.”I thought Zafar has bowled with a really good pace over the last two days, was aggressive and the way he spun the ball for a finger [spinner] was really good, and Mo bowled like Mo does today and I thought he bowled a good solid nine-over spell.”I think everyone’s in good order going into the first Test match and if we get a good day’s batting under our belts tomorrow, we’ll be really well equipped to go and win this Test.”

Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza said that the side’s improved performance since the 2015 World Cup should not be forgotten even as they find themselves scrambling to avoid an embarrassing series loss to Afghanistan ahead of the third ODI in Mirpur on Saturday.”We definitely have the confidence and belief to win the series,” Mashrafe said. “I don’t think that one defeat will end all the work that we have done and all our achievements so far. We were all obviously disappointed but that doesn’t mean that we have forgotten all the good work that we have done. It was a bad day. If we think about that when we get on the field it will be difficult for us, so we are trying to get on the field with a free mentality.”He said that Afghanistan would deserve the ODI series win if they go on to beat Bangladesh in the third game, and added that they never took their opponents lightly at any point.”[If they win the series] I will feel that they are deserving winners. In the past, we won many matches and people called them upsets, but we didn’t accept them as upsets. It is not right. They should definitely get the credit.”We never took them as an easy opponent, which was clear after the first game. In the second match our batting collapsed. At one point we recovered, but still we kept losing wickets. We couldn’t play our best game.”Bangladesh’s batsmen have been guilty of throwing their wickets away after spending some time in the middle. While they reached 265 in the first game, Tamim Iqbal and Mahmudullah got out at the wrong time and Shakib Al Hasan was unable to press on from his 48. In the second game, it was their entire top five – Tamim, Soumya Sarkar, Mahmudullah, Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib – who failed to convert starts to big scores.Perhaps treating a bowling attack from a lower-ranked team with disregard was a contributing factor, especially given how Tamim and Soumya got out in the second ODI. Mashrafe said that his batsmen could learn from the way someone like Kumar Sangakkara played Bangladesh in the past, and apply those lessons when facing Afghanistan.Sangakkara is the highest run-getter against Bangladesh in Tests and ODIs, including a triple-hundred and two double-hundreds in Tests and another nine 100-plus scores across both formats.”We have all discussed this in the dressing room. If someone can score a 150, then it becomes a big deal for his career. Kumar Sangakkara has scored so many 150s and 200s against us. I am sure that our batsmen aren’t taking them lightly. Maybe there was a bit of a break in concentration.”We are all mature individuals. If you see the top five batsmen in our line-up, at least one of them scored big in each game in the last 18 months. But when they don’t, we will always get a low score.”

Kenya offspinner James Ngoche underwent unofficial testing of his bowling action as part of his remedial work at the PCB’s biomechanics centre in Lahore. He is among four Kenyan cricketers on a 21-day training programme at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Lahore.Ngoche had been suspended from bowling in international cricket in July last year, after the ICC found his action to be illegal. In order to return to bowling, he must have his action cleared after an independent assessment at any ICC-accredited biomechanics laboratory.Because the NCA facility is not as yet accredited by the ICC, the results of Ngoche’s tests, which are due to come out in two days, are not binding. All the same, Ngoche, 28, appeared to be happy with the progress he had made at the NCA.”I am not sure about the final results but I am confident that I can go back home with improvement and things are working well so far,” Ngoche told ESPNcricinfo. “It is tough in Kenya to get such a facility and you really can’t afford to hire coaches to work with players. Me and my club are also not able to afford the facilities to get the remedial work done and this is the main reason I have been idle for more than a year now.”I didn’t do much until I got here in Pakistan as a part of a training programme. It is always good to be in a proper cricketing facility and I am really enjoying working with coaches here at the NCA. They are helping me correct my bowling action and, with the biomechanics facility around, I feel things are going in the right direction.”Ngoche made his Kenya debut in 2010. He has 20 wickets from 17 ODIs at an average of 28.45, as well as four wickets in seven T20Is at an average of 35.00 and an economy rate of 5.83. Along with Gurdeep Bhagat, Rushabhvardhan Patel and Pushpak Kerai, he is residing in the NCA for the duration of the training programme.Ngoche is the first overseas cricketer to be tested at the NCA’s biomechanics facility, which is based in Lahore University of Management Sciences. Since its inauguration in April, it has largely evaluated domestic cricketers, including under-19 players. Out of seven cricketers whose actions were tested, two were found to have illegal actions and were referred back to the NCA for remedial work.

Former Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene has revealed that one of the biggest challenges he faced during his tenure as captain was to convince Muttiah Muralitharan to overcome his “defensive mindset” as a bowler. Jayawardene made the comments on the second episode of , to be aired on SONY ESPN on Friday night. According to Jayawardene, Murali, who is the highest wicket-taker in Test history with 800 scalps, tended to be “a bit stubborn” about his methods and needed cajoling from captains to employ more aggressive tactics.”Murali was a defensive bowler, but the thing is, they couldn’t take him down because he had everything covered,” Jayawardene said. “But I was a different captain. I wanted to attack with Murali more, and Murali only attacked when he felt he was in control of the situation, then he’ll go all out on attack. But for me it was different, I wanted to use him in a different way. I wanted to create opportunities for him rather than us sitting and waiting for an opening to happen. I think Arjuna (Ranatunga) probably had the same battles with Murali, but with Arjuna, because Murali was young and he was just coming through, he probably didn’t have a choice with Arjuna. But with Sanath (Jayasuriya) afterwards as well, it was quite tough for Sanath to tell Murali, ‘let’s have a bit of attacking mindset’. But that’s something that I’ve always encouraged Murali to do, but we’ve always found a way to come to a middle ground.”Among the other challenges Jayawardene reflected on during the course of the interview were the difficulties he faced in handling senior pros such as Marvan Atapattu and Sanath Jayasuriya during his time as captain. Dropping Atapattu from the XI during the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies, where Sri Lanka made the final, was particularly trying, Jayawardene said; he revealed how that ruptured their relationship, leading to a long period where they didn’t even converse despite being team-mates.”Knowing Marvan, I think he is a very honest player, he played really hard but he didn’t take it in the right spirit,” Jayawardene said. “So, throughout the World Cup, his contribution wasn’t very good as a member of the team, but we had a great campaign. No one gave us any opportunity, everyone thought we’ll probably go out of the group stages, but we topped the group. Then, we went as a second best team in the Super Six stages before going all the way to the finals. And when we got back, obviously, Marvan played a few more Test matches before retiring. He probably didn’t speak to me for a good four to five years after that, and our first conversation probably was when he was appointed as a batting coach to the national team.”Watch at 9.30pm IST on Fridays, and the repeat at 12pm on Sundays, on SONY ESPN

Match facts

Tuesday, June 21
Start time 1300 local (1700GMT)

Big picture

The wash-out between Australia and South Africa in Barbados on Sunday has left all three teams still in with a chance of reaching the tri-series final. Two round-robin games remain – West Indies against Australia on Tuesday and West Indies against South Africa on Friday. Should Jason Holder’s men defeat Australia on Tuesday, the final will be settled – West Indies would play South Africa, and Australia would go home.But if Steven Smith’s team prevails, Australia will be guaranteed of a place in the final and West Indies and South Africa would play off for the other spot on Friday. And despite South Africa’s two bonus points, it would be a straight shoot-out, because the tri-series rules state that number of wins takes precedence if teams are equal on points. A West Indian win on Friday would put them level with South Africa on points, but with one more win.The upshot is that this game is must-win for Australia, but not for West Indies. Like all three sides in this tournament, Australia have been up and down throughout. The likely presence of Mitchell Starc is a potential key – his workload has been managed throughout the series and Australia have only lost the matches in which he did not play. His ability to swing the white ball could well turn a chase – West Indies’ preferred option is always to bat second.

Form guide

Australia LWLWL (last five completed matches, most recent first)
West Indies LWLWL

In the spotlight

It has been a tough tour so far for Glenn Maxwell, who made 0 and 3 in the first two games before being dropped. Maxwell was recalled against South Africa in Bridgetown on Sunday. He is expected to retain his place and Australia need something from him, not only with the bat, but also in the field. Their fielding was sloppy in St Kitts, and Maxwell might be just the man to lift that with his sharp work.Nearly 16 years ago, Marlon Samuels first played Test cricket against Australia. He was still a teenager, and was viewed as a young man of great potential. Say what you will about Samuels’ career, one thing is undoubtedly true: he has rarely shown his best against Australia, averaging 21.06 against them across formats. But if the old cliché is true, that you’re only as good as your last innings, the Australians had better watch out, for Samuels plundered 92 against them to help West Indies to a win in St Kitts. It was Samuels’ highest score against Australia in any format.

Team news

In Sunday’s wash-out, Maxwell, Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland came in for Travis Head, Adam Zampa and Nathan Coulter-Nile. Maxwell and Starc are likely to retain their places but Boland, with little cricket behind him, is expected to make way for this must-win clash. Australia’s selectors must decide whether to go for pace and bring Coulter-Nile back, or perhaps more likely, recall the impressive young legspinner Zampa, who was left out against South Africa only because of the wet conditions.Australia (possible) 1 Aaron Finch, 2 Usman Khawaja, 3 Steven Smith (capt), 4 George Bailey, 5 Glenn Maxwell, 6 Mitchell Marsh, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 James Faulkner, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh HazlewoodThe West Indies selectors have dropped Jerome Taylor from the squad, forcing at least one change to their XI. Fast bowler Shannon Gabriel and offspinner Ashley Nurse both must be hoping for an ODI debut in this match. Including Nurse would leave Jason Holder and Carlos Brathwaite as the only pace options, so Gabriel would appear the more likely debutant.West Indies (possible) 1 Andre Fletcher, 2 Johnson Charles, 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 6 Kieron Pollard, 7 Jason Holder (capt), 8 Carlos Brathwaite, 9 Sunil Narine, 10 Sulieman Benn, 11 Shannon Gabriel / Ashley Nurse

Pitch and conditions

The Kensington Oval surface is generally good for batting, but was a little tacky on Sunday, when there was rain around. The forecast for Tuesday does suggest that there is the possibility of rain again, although it looks more promising than Sunday’s weather.

Stats and trivia

• Denesh Ramdin needs 14 runs to reach 2000 in ODIs, and he would be the first West Indies wicketkeeper to reach that milestone
• Marlon Samuels needs 67 runs to reach 5000 in ODIs, and he would be the 10th West Indies batsman to reach that milestone
• Mitchell Starc needs five wickets to reach 100 in ODIs, and if he does so in his next three games he will be the quickest man in history to the milestone

Quotes

“It’s good to see guys under pressure, and this is a little bit more pressure than a normal one-day international, on Tuesday”