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Young captain says this will be one of the most important seasons of his career

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Aug-20201:25

Shikhar Dhawan: ‘Felt good entering a team bus after six months’

Shreyas Iyer believes the upcoming IPL season will be one of his “most important assignments” as captain. He has been at the helm of the Delhi Capitals since 2018, when he took over halfway into the competition, replacing Gautam Gambhir.”It’s certainly very different from last season, but challenges excite me,” Iyer told IPLT20.com. “As a captain, this is going to be certainly one of my most important assignments just because of how different the setting is. It is going to be very different, the key is to take it one day at a time. We’re being briefed about the do’s and don’ts at every step, it’s crucial that everyone who is part of our team bubble follows that.”Iyer’s elevation to the role has coincided with a sharp turnaround in fortunes, for both Iyer and the Capitals. Iyer, who missed the World Cup bus, has since gone on to cement his position in India’s limited-overs teams on the back of a strong IPL season in which he made 463 runs in 16 innings, third-highest for the team after Shikhar Dhawan and Rishabh Pant.As for the fortunes of the team, Capitals finished third at the end of the league stage, with nine wins in 14 matches. They beat Sunrisers Hyderabad in a tense Eliminator, before losing against eventual runners-up Chennai Super Kings in Qualifier-2.Now as he looks forward to leading Capitals again, Iyer has welcomed the addition of two other former IPL captains in R Ashwin and Ajinkya Rahane to the side. Both players were acquired through off-season trades, from Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals respectively.”Ashwin and Rahane add tremendous depth to our side and give Ricky and me options to be flexible with our playing XI depending on where we’re playing, who our opposition is and where we are placed in the tournament at a particular time,” Iyer explained. “Also these are two individuals who are highly knowledgeable about the game and have captained IPL teams, so for me as captain, this is an opportunity to use all experience and reach out to them whenever I want to share or discuss anything at all.”Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting have a chat•BCCI

Iyer promised “aggressive and passionate” cricket, traits he felt the Capitals have ingrained from Ricky Ponting, their head coach. Iyer felt being empowered by Ponting to take decisions freely has contributed to him being a better cricketer.”I feel blessed to have been given the opportunity to work with someone of his stature, so closely,” Iyer said. “He’s such a legend and makes everyone, from the senior-most to the newest guy feel at home and as a part of this unit. As a captain, he gives me freedom and that has helped me grow as a cricketer.”Capitals have made two forced changes ahead of the season, bringing in Anrich Nortje and Daniel Sams for Chris Woakes and Jason Roy respectively. The England internationals pulled out due to injury concerns, but the team appears well-balanced. Their core is largely Indian, with the presence of Iyer, Rahane, Dhawan, Pant, Prithvi Shaw, Ashwin and Ishant Sharma, all experienced players. Their overseas players include Kagiso Rabada, Shimron Hetmyer, Keemo Paul and the two signings, among others.Iyer believes the focus this time around is to ensure everyone contributes in unison, instead of having one standout performer through the season. “All pieces of the puzzle need to fall in the right place to be a champion team,” he said. “But the IPL is a long tournament and results keep going up and down invariably. The one thing that worked for us last season for how in each and every match, different players stepped up to the occasion and that was crucial to our success and will be key this year too. Having not just one consistent performer but many of them.”Delhi hasn’t made the IPL finals, but last year we were almost there. That performance gives all of us a massive sense of belief that this bunch can do it. Yes, it will be a different IPL, we will be without our fans but that makes us extra motivated to do this for them. They will be watching and rooting for us, we really want to do this for the Delhi fans.”

CA chief was blunt in stating that staff reductions at the central governing body were inevitable

Daniel Brettig29-May-2020A major round of redundancies at Cricket Australia appears only days away as its chief executive Kevin Roberts maintained his insistence on cutbacks. Roberts said so while outlining details of a home summer schedule that will feature more international fixtures than originally planned amid vastly improving financial forecasts.He said on Friday that CA was looking at a revenue shortfall of about A$80 million (US$ 53mn approx.) for the home season, an estimation that back in April was believed to be as high as A$230 million (US$ 153 mn approx.) in discussions with state associations. Such a rapidly shifting set of forecasts has maintained a strong sense of scepticism among the states and the Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) about the true state of the game’s finances and the cost-cutting prescribed as a result.While Roberts made it clear that CA did not wish to follow Victoria or Queensland in taking the axe to community cricket programmes around the country in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, he was blunt in stating that staff reductions at the central governing body were inevitable. A total of 146 employees have so far been made redundant across every state association apart from New South Wales. CA stood down around 200 staff on 20% of their usual salaries until June 30, while executives and remaining staff remained on 80% of their usual pay.ALSO READ: Queensland cuts take cricket job losses to 135Those cuts followed CA’s initial advice to the states that their annual distributions would have to be reduced by as much as 40% over two years, a figure subsequently argued down to 25% with in-built flexibility should revenue shortfall not be as significant as previously forecast. Even so, NSW and Queensland are still to agree to new funding deals, while Western Australia’s agreement with CA will not take effect unless they do.”We are focused on delivering the best season possible noting that the likelihood of significant crowds is very slim,” Roberts said. “Ordinarily that’ll deliver well over A$50 million revenue to CA. The T20 World Cup is a big question and that’s a factor of A$20 million. And you mentioned biosecurity plans, it’s likely that our biosecurity measures that we need to put into place to deliver our season will cost in the order of A$10 million.”We’ve made a commitment to significantly reduce the cost base of Cricket Australia. Unfortunately, that means that no area of the organisation will be untouched. It’s premature to talk about the details of those plans. That will come in the not-too-distant future. We are really focused on the activities that will drive positive cash flow for Australian cricket given the importance of CA generating revenue to support states and territories.”Once we’ve generated that revenue from the commercial activities, our highest priority in terms of where that revenue is invested in community cricket. So we are looking to minimising the reductions in community cricket.”Both the states and the ACA have complained that CA has been tardy or incomplete in providing financial information, something Roberts tried to justify while still talking about the governing body’s state association owners and player partners as though they were outsiders to the game’s decision-making.”What’s been reported is there’s unanswered questions. I guess what hasn’t been reported thus far is there’s been many workshops, exchanges of information packs, documents, emails, discussions, video meetings that have occurred,” Roberts said. “Many, many, questions answered. It is true there’s a couple of unanswered questions and it’s also true there’s a couple of questions that can’t be answered out of respect for the organisations involved.”So as an example we’ve still got over A$10 million in overdue debtors right now, but it wouldn’t be appropriate out of respect for those organisations that owe CA money for us to be talking about that publicly in reference to those organisations. We’ve certainly answered just about every question that’s come our way, there’s a couple that remain to be answered and we’re in the process of doing so, and there’s some that are of a more confidential nature.”ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Australia’s international schedule for next summer is actually going to provide more content for broadcasters than initially scheduled, with a limited overs tour by New Zealand in late January and early February replacing the equivalent matches that were cancelled this March due to the coronavirus pandemic. These matches would appear to now clash with the likely climax of the Big Bash League, which has been a source of much discussion around the desire of the broadcasters Fox Sports and Seven to give it greater prominence and better players.”We’ve got some exciting innovation that we’ll be announcing in due course around the BBL for next season. That runs from the start of the tournament to the finals series,” Roberts said. “Certainly, we’re focused on elevating the BBL series.”Speaking with David White (NZC chief executive), as recently as this week, we’ve expressed our commitment to work on various plans with NZ for the season ahead. We need to be flexible in that regard too because we can’t know exactly how this will play out. We’re very confident if the schedule does play out as announced, we’ll see a great NZ series and a fantastic BBL finals series as well.”Less promising are the prospects for scheduled matches in the north of Australia in August and October, including a series against Zimbabwe that looks almost certain to be postponed. “We take seriously our responsibility to get the game to the people all around Australia and we’re really excited about the possibility of going north to Townsville and up to the [Northern] Territory as well,” Roberts said.”Obviously there’s a high degree of uncertainty around the prospect of that happening, and there’s an even higher degree of uncertainty around the prospect of having fans at the matches, but regardless no doubt the local communities up north will be excited to welcome the teams to battle each other on the field, regardless of whether there can be fans at the match. We really hope those series can occur as planned. If they can’t then there’s the opportunity to postpone them and still ensure that we can take cricket to the likes of Townsville and Darwin.”

Saeed Ajmal has had his PCB contract suspended following his recent outburst about the testing procedures for suspect actions where he accused the ICC of double standards

Umar Farooq12-Nov-2015Saeed Ajmal has had his PCB contract suspended following his recent outburst about the testing procedures for suspect actions where he accused the ICC of double standards.Ajmal was given a category B deal earlier this year in the latest batch of central contacts having been demoted from the top level following his difficult return to international cricket after remodelling his action.”Why just target the off-spinners?”Ajmal asked in interviews with Zainab Abbas on Dunya News and with Geo Super. “Why not the left-arm spinners, legspinners or fast bowlers?”I can tell you that I have been through this bowling assessment process so many times and have watched and studied this issue so closely that I can vouch that if tests were carried out, there would be many other bowlers whose bowling actions would exceed the 15 degrees extension limit.”Shaharyar Khan, the PCB chairman, said: “I am disappointed what Saeed said recently and we have taken a minimum action against him by suspending [his contract] and held his monthly retainer. We have also asked him to write to us about why he talked like that. We have always supported him, helped him throughout in his tough time and even hired Saqlain Mushtaq to work on his action.”Ajmal has not played for Pakistan since April when he took one wicket in two ODIs against Bangladesh and was also wicketless in a T20. During the 2015 English season he struggled for Worcestershire in the County Championship, claiming 16 wickets at 55.62.

Hosts’ wounded and injury returnees throw predictions into further disarray

Andrew Fidel Fernando13-Jan-2021

Big picture

If form in South Asian conditions is difficult to discern ahead of this series, with so little Test cricket having been played here in the past year, Sri Lanka are throwing predictions into further disarray with their wounded and their injury returnees. A day out from the first Test, (there’s still time to get injured), Angelo Mathews and Dinesh Chandimal look likely to be in the top order. But although batsman Oshada Fernando, and fast bowlers Suranga Lakmal and Lahiru Kumara have technically recovered from their injuries, they may not quite be match-ready enough to make the XI.Sri Lanka also lost both Tests against South Africa by large margins, so in normal circumstances you would expect them to be turning up low on morale. And yet, they don’t seem to be beating themselves up about those losses much. At the end of that series, captain Dimuth Karunaratne was essentially of the view that when you have the appalling volume of injuries Sri Lanka suffered on that tour, losses such as those were bound to happen. It is what it is. Tomorrow is a new day. This – their first at home since August 2019 – is a new series.England, despite being tourists, have arguably had the better preparation leading up, though. They’ve been in the country for longer (Sri Lanka only arrived on January 8 from South Africa, England had come six days earlier). But in the age of quarantine and bio-bubbles, superior prep only means so much. For three of their days on the island, England’s players couldn’t leave their rooms. When training did begin, they couldn’t play a tour match or two as they normally might, so they tried an intra-squad two-dayer, only for one of those days to be rained out.But more than that, they are missing some of the players who propelled them to their 3-0 win on their 2018 tour. Ben Stokes is being rested. Adil Rashid wasn’t picked in the squad. Moeen Ali was probably going to play, but contracted Covid-19 and can’t. And despite being Player of the Series in that whitewash, Ben Foakes has been edged out of the wicketkeeper’s spot by Jos Buttler.So here are two deeply flawed and unpredictable (yes, we say that about England now too) sides, who are being served an extraordinary set of circumstances by this pandemic. England-Sri Lanka series have generally produced outstanding cricket this century (the past two series notwithstanding, perhaps). As there are no clear favourites here, there is no reason this one can’t be a thriller too.

Form guide

(completed matches, most recent first)Sri Lanka: : LLDWLEngland: DDWWW

Players to watch

Angelo Mathews played the innings of his life against England (his 160 at Headingley), as well as another hundred and a handful of fifties, so he will almost certainly be the Sri Lanka batsman who commands the most respect among England’s attack. And yet, in the years since that incredible Leeds innings, Mathews has not been a particularly consistent batsman. In three of the past five years, he’s averaged less than 30. Though once he seemed destined to be a 10,000-run batsman, that is no longer a certainty. Much of his inconsistency has stemmed from the injuries that have kept him out for months at a time over the past few years, and he is returning yet again from a hamstring strain. Having trimmed down early last year, Mathews seems motivated to make what may be the last few years of his career productive ones. If he has a good series with the bat (he will not bowl), Sri Lanka will go a distance to winning it.Jos Buttler only averages 33.93 with the bat, but it is his batting that is keeping Foakes (who by the way averages 41.50 but hasn’t played a Test in almost two years) out of the XI. The theory is that Buttler, such an accomplished limited-overs batsman, and a man who can send a team innings soaring when the mood strikes, will see long-term improvements in his batting output eventually. Late in England’s summer, he provided a hint of the player he could become, hitting 67, 75 and 152 in the space of three innings. While on that form he commands a place in the batting order, it is with the gloves that he perhaps will be tested most in Sri Lanka. The spinners will likely have to bowl the majority of overs in this series. It is unfair to expect him to be as magisterial as Foakes was in 2018, but can he be good?

Pitch and conditions

Generally, Galle pitches are decent for batting on on the first two days, before they switch suddenly – and almost violently – into dustbowls from day three onwards. This time, there are two reasons why the Galle track may stay good for batting longer than normal. First, as the venue is to host both Tests, they can’t afford to start the square off too dry. Secondly, with Sri Lanka having just come back from South Africa, where they played on that nation’s fastest pitches, the hosts are likely to want a more even track than a severe examination by spin.There’s also a bit of rain around, because even though it’s January (generally one of the driest months in the southwest), these things tend happen when a cricket tour starts. Despite the rain, though, Sri Lanka hasn’t seen a draw on its surfaces since 2014.

Team news

Will Sri Lanka play Kusal Mendis, who has collected three ducks in a row in South Africa? He is in a dead heat for the No. 3 spot with Lahiru Thirimanne. Sri Lanka hope Suranga Lakmal can make the XI, but if he doesn’t Vishwa Fernando is likely to play.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Dimuth Karunaratne (capt.), 2 Kusal Perera, 3 Kusal Mendis/Lahiru Thirimanne, 4 Dinesh Chandimal, 5 Angelo Mathews, 6 Niroshan Dickwella (wk), 7 Dasun Shanaka, 8 Wanindu Hasaranga, 9 Dilruwan Perera, 10 Lasith Embuldeniya, 10 Suranga Lakmal/Vishwa FernandoEngland have some decisions to make on the bowling front. It seems as if they will go in with two frontline quicks, with Mark Wood and one of either James Anderson or Stuart Broad alongside allrounder Sam Curran. Batsman Dan Lawrence looks set for a debut.England (probable) 1 Dom Sibley, 2 Zak Crawley, 3 Jonny Bairstow, 4 Joe Root (capt.), 5 Dan Lawrence, 6 Jos Buttler 7 Sam Curran, 8 Dom Bess, 9 Jack Leach 10 Mark Wood 11 James Anderson/Stuart Broad

Stats and trivia

• Each of the last 26 Tests in Sri Lanka have had a result. The home side has won 14 of those.
• Buttler’s Sri Lanka record is better than his overall record. He scored 250 runs in the country on that previous tour, at a strike rate of 72. He crossed fifty twice and was never dismissed for less than 16.
• Angelo Mathews needs 19 more to get to 6000 Test runs. He’d be the fifth Sri Lanka batsman to that milestone, after Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Sanath Jayasuriya and Aravinda de Silva.
• Even since the start of this century, England have won six matches in Sri Lanka and lost only four.

  Quotes

  “Suranga Lakmal is the bowler we’re really sweating on. We are planning for him to play, but he has to do another fitness test before that can be confirmed. If he can’t play, one of Vishwa Fernando, Asitha Fernando and Dushmantha Chameera are there,” “We know he has the ability and skills if it does start spinning quite quickly to take advantage of that. It’s a really good opportunity for him to show what he can do in these conditions,”

New Zealander set to play final game for Wellington before joining up with England in South Africa

George Dobell03-Dec-2019Jeetan Patel has been appointed as England’s spin-bowling consultant for the tours of South Africa and Sri Lanka. Patel, who performed a similar role during the T20I leg of England’s tour of New Zealand, will join the England squad on December 24 ahead of the first Test in Centurion on Boxing Day.As a result, Patel will end his long and illustrious career with Wellington later this month. His final match will be in the Super Smash encounter against Central Stags at the Basin Reserve on December 18. He made his debut for Wellington, the city of his birth, in 2000. He remains committed to playing one final season for Warwickshire, the club he has represented since 2009, in 2020. He will be 40 in May.Patel has enjoyed a remarkable playing career with experiences the England management believe will be transferable as a coach. Most pertinently, he all but reinvented himself as a cricketer at an age when others are considering retirement. In particular, he added a yard of pace to his offspin and developed into a far more consistent, though still aggressive, lower-order batsman.Hugely respected around the county game, Patel has claimed 473 first-class wickets for Warwickshire – he has 892 all together and looks set to fall just short of the 1000 mark – at an average of 26.11 when other spinners have struggled to maintain a place in the game. He became, most observers believe, a far better all-round cricket long after the bulk of his international career was complete, though he did make a brief reappearance in the New Zealand side in 2016 and 2017.Patel would appear to be in prime position to gain a permanent coaching role with England in the coming months. He got to know the England men’s team director, Ashley Giles, from their time together at Warwickshire – Giles was coach and then director of cricket, while Patel was overseas player and then captain – with the pair sharing many of the same qualities. Feisty and competitive on the pitch, Patel gained a reputation as a positive, nurturing captain at Warwickshire.The South Africa tour consists of four Tests, three ODIs and three T20Is. The Sri Lanka tour, starting in March, consists of two Tests.

The tournament will be called Zim Afro T10, with Zimbabwe hopeful of attracting the top players from around the world

Firdose Moonda07-Dec-2022Zimbabwe Cricket has announced their first privately-owned franchise league, a T10 tournament, which has been established with Mulk International – the founding company of the Abu Dhabi T10. The six-team tournament is slated to take place in March 2023 and will be called the . The Abu Dhabi T10 has been played since 2017 and has just completed its sixth season.”We are pleased to announce the introduction of Zimbabwe’s own franchise-based T10 league, a powerful format that we believe is exactly what our changing, fast-paced world needs right now,” Tavengwa Mukuhlani, ZC Chairman, said.ZC is hopeful that the tournament will attract top players from around the world, more than a decade after they last dipped their toes into attracting big names with the Stanbic T20. The competition boasted 20 foreign names, including Chris Gayle and Shaun Tait, across Zimbabwe’s five domestic teams and had a headline sponsor but was owned and run by ZC. It was played for three seasons before Stanbic pulled out and since then Zimbabwe’s domestic competitions have been played without much fanfare, and sometimes not at all.In a country wracked by economic woes, Zimbabwean Cricket has not been exempt and the game has lurched through a massive debt crisis, a temporary ban on its administration at the ICC and some of its biggest name players (Heath Streak and Brendan Taylor) banned for their involvement in corruption. But, the sport seems to be finding its feet after Zimbabwe’s men’s team made it to the Super 12s of the most recent T20 World Cup and their women’s team only narrowly missed out on qualifying for the T20 World Cup in South Africa in 2023.With more international fixtures on the horizon, Zimbabwe are also looking to dabble into the lucrative league structure and with neighbours South Africa launching an all-owned IPL T20 league, the SA20, they have entered the T10 market. The participating franchises, player auction dates, fixtures and other details will be announced at a later date, with the tournament scheduled to begin on March 29, 2023.

Sri Lanka coach says cricket may as well “wait for a vaccine” if home series cannot be fulfilled

Andrew Fidel Fernando12-Oct-2020Mickey Arthur, Sri Lanka’s coach and a member of the ICC’s cricket committee, is insistent that more international cricket must be played over the next few months if the game is to rebound from a difficult year.Although Sri Lanka has largely kept a lid on Covid-19 transmissions through the course of the year, the men’s national team has been out of action since February, with series against England, India, South Africa and Bangladesh all postponed.There are two possible international tours coming up – a Test tour to South Africa in December and January, plus a home Test series against England later in January. That England series is the two-Test tour that was postponed from March this year, and which the boards have tentatively agreed to reschedule for January.ALSO READ: England’s winter tours – what is the current state of play?“We need to get cricket back up and running otherwise we may as well shut the whole thing down and wait for a vaccine,” Arthur told the PA news agency. “I’m really positive. I’m hoping we can fulfil our fixtures in South Africa come December and then have England over here to start a really busy 2021.”We are an industry that needs to be playing, and being broadcast, to keep the lifeblood of the game going,” he said.”The government [in Sri Lanka] has done a remarkable job. We have been able to go out, go to a restaurant or sip a gin and tonic on the Galle Face, but we’ve had no international cricket.”The latest postponement – the home Test series against Bangladesh – was especially frustrating for Arthur and the Sri Lanka team, largely because the players had been training for months and were described as “cherry-ripe” for action, by Arthur.That tour did not go ahead because Bangladesh would not agree to the extremely strict quarantine protocols players and officials were asked to undergo by the Sri Lankan government. Where foreign players traveling to the UK during the English summer had been allowed to train during their quarantine, visitors to Sri Lanka are required to remain in their rooms for two weeks, prompting concerns about deterioration of fitness levels. That was also cited by Tom Harrison, the ECB’s chief executive, as a sticking point before January’s tour is ratified.”We have to do it or boards are going to be put under more and more pressure,” said Arthur. “Already we can look at the sight of people losing jobs at the ECB and Cricket Australia and it’s really sad.”I understand the bigger picture and I’m not here to push cricket from the rooftop – people are losing their lives and losing their jobs out there – but from a cricket sense we need to play.”Although Sri Lanka’s government has generally drawn praise for its handling of the pandemic, it was felt within the team and coaching staff that health authorities could have allowed a more lenient quarantine for Bangladesh in order to make that tour viable, particularly as high-profile cricket had already begun in England, Australia and the UAE. Health authorities had argued, however, that it is their insistence on these protocols that had protected the Sri Lankan public from the kinds of outbreaks seen overseas.It seems unlikely that England will tour if there is no relaxing of the quarantine protocols, but SLC is hopeful that the governement will relent in time to confirm that series. The England tour is worth much more to SLC than the Bangladesh one had been. The other complicating factor with Bangladesh – that players in contact with the likely touring squad had tested positive for Covid-19 in the weeks before the team was set to travel – may not be in play for England either.

Acting Director of Cricket Corrie van Zyl says the bowler “still wants to play for South Africa” and negotiations for a new contract will start after the India tour

Liam Brickhill14-Aug-2019Chris Morris will not be part of South Africa’s T20I side in India in September, but he remains in Cricket South Africa’s plans for the future. “He still wants to play cricket for South Africa,” CSA’s acting Director of Cricket Corrie van Zyl said of Morris’ status after the 32-year-old allrounder did not make himself available for selection for the India tour, which includes three T20Is and three Tests.Morris’ national contract expired after the World Cup in England, and he has spent the last month playing for Hampshire in the Vitality Blast, alongside former Proteas Rilee Rossouw and Kyle Abbott. Morris has taken eight wickets and scored 84 runs so far in his time with Hampshire, but they are currently nestled at No. 6 in the South Group points table, with five defeats from nine games. ESPNcricinfo understands that Hampshire are not pursuing a Kolpak deal for Morris.”It is well known that Chris’ national contract was not renewed beyond the World Cup,” van Zyl explained to Sport24. “Then, following his super performance at the World Cup, negotiations began on awarding him a new national contract but by then he had already made other commitments.”Those commitments could well include the Caribbean Premier League, which starts on September 4. Morris has previously been contracted to the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in the competition. The Euro T20 Slam also takes at the same time as the T20 leg of South Africa’s trip to India, starting on 30 August and ending on 22 September, the same day as the third T20I between South Africa and India.”It absolutely does not mean that the door is closed, and we will start negotiations on a new contract again after the tour,” Van Zyl added.Morris should be in the frame for what will be a busy home summer, with England and Australia both visiting before South Africa return to India in March next year.

Andrew Tye, a member of Australia’s squad, felt the force of South Africa’s batsmen ahead of the T20I

Alex Malcolm14-Nov-2018South Africa’s batsmen tuned up for Saturday’s T20I against Australia with a blistering display of hitting to beat the Cricket Australia XI in the warm-up game at Allan Border Field in Brisbane.Aiden Markram (45 runs off 26 balls), Heinrich Klaasen (41 from 23), Reeza Hendricks (39 from 38) and Farhaan Behardien (27 not out from 14) struck 14 fours and nine sixes between them to post a imposing total of 5 for 201 against an attack that featured Australia T20 squad members Jason Behrendorff and Andrew Tye.Behrendorff took 1 for 25 in three overs including the wicket of Quinton de Kock, who was caught at mid-off, but Tye was hammered for 55 runs from his four overs and did not pick up a wicket.CA XI’s chase got off to a bad start losing two wickets in the Powerplay including Ben McDermott. He was unfortunately run out again, this time backing up too far after a powerful straight drive from Max Bryant was deflected onto the stumps by Lungi Ngidi, following the T20 series against Pakistan were he was run out in all three innings.Bryant clubbed 36 from 22 balls before holing out to long on from the bowling of Imran Tahir. Alex Ross made 40 off 35 but he too fell to spin with Tabraiz Shamsi getting his first wicket of the tour. Chris Morris finished with 2 for 35 after not playing at all during the one-day series.

The full text of Angelo Mathews’ letter to SLC CEO Ashley de Silva, following his removal as captain

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Sep-2018Dear CEO,I write to you pursuant to the meeting held on Friday the 21st of September 2018 at SLC premises, which was attended by all the selectors along with the National Cricket Coach Mr. Chandika Hathurusinghe. At this meeting the selection committee and the coach informed me to step down as Sri Lanka’s captain of the ODI and T20 team. Though I was initially surprised, it was immediately felt that I have been made the scapegoat in this entire saga of Sri Lanka’s dismal performances against Bangladesh and Afghanistan in the Asia Cup. I’m willing to take part of the blame but at the same time, feel betrayed and let down if the blame is solely put on me. As you know all decisions are taken through a mutual understanding with the Selectors and the Head Coach. And though I do not agree with the reasoning that the losses should be accrued single handed to the Captaincy, I however eagerly and wholeheartedly respect the request of the selection committee and the head coach in asking me to step down and do so with immediate effect.You would recall that I relinquished my captaincy in all formats in July 2017, pursuant to captaining Sri Lanka continuously for a period of 5 years in all formats. During this tenure under my captaincy series wins were recorded against England, we whitewashed Australia 3-0 and winning the Asia Cup in 2014 were some memorable occasions. However in the team’s best interest having felt that the time had come for new leadership I voluntarily resigned as Captain from all formats of the game in July 2017.Thereafter, pursuant to Sri Lanka suffering heavy defeats in all formats and having several appointed Captains, namely Upul Tharanga, Thisara Perera, Chamara Kapugedara, Lasith Malinga and Dinesh Chandimal during the tenure between July 2017 and December 2017 in the ODI and T20 formats, Mr Chandika Hathurusinghe immediately having been appointed as Head coach met with me in person, requested me to reconsider taking up the Captaincy until the World Cup in 2019. Though myself, my family and close friends discouraged me in taking up the mantle, being confident in Hathurusinghe and his plans to elevate the performances of the Sri Lankan team and in the best interest of my country I agreed to do so until the World Cup.I wish to put it on record that though Sri Lanka suffered these heavy defeats in the Asia Cup, which is shocking to say the least, especially in the backdrop where we had a reasonable series against South Africa, I had no intention to quitting and running way from the issues at hand especially owing to the World Cup being only a dozen games away. Furthermore as an obligation of a player I will keep working hard in all aspects of the game and will be available to represent Sri Lanka at any given time with my fullest. I also believe that if the selectors and coach are of the view that I am unfit to play ODI and T20 cricket and thus not entitled for my place in the team, I would also consider retiring from the ODI and T20 formats as I never want to be a burden to the team. I have played the game true to my conscience and have given my best at all times and have felt that I am fit enough to play the formats and also have performed adequately over a period of time to hold my place in the team. You will know that I was also the overall highest run scorer in the South Africa series from both teams.In the given circumstances I thus resign as the Captain of the Sri Lankan ODI and T20 team with immediate effect in considering the request of the selection committee and the coach to resign. I thank the selectors and the National Coach for speaking to me in person and conveying your thoughts in respect of the Asia Cup and giving me the opportunity to step down in this manner.I wish all the successes to our National Cricket team and all of you.Best wishes,Angelo Mathews