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It will be the first time since 2004 that South Africa are playing a Test without both AB de Villiers and Dale Steyn

The Preview by Brydon Coverdale11-Nov-2016Match factsNovember 12-16, 2016
Start time 1030 local (2330 GMT)3:07

‘Conditions are like an English seamer’

Big pictureThat South Africa won the first Test at the WACA was in some ways not surprising, for in their previous three Tests at the venue they were unbeaten, and they were accustomed to recent success in Australia, having not lost a series here since 2005-06. Even without their captain AB de Villiers, they were in familiar territory. Not so for the second Test at Bellerive Oval in Hobart, which will be South Africa’s first Test appearance at the venue. And after Dale Steyn suffered a serious shoulder injury in Perth, South Africa are also on new ground in quite another way. Steyn and de Villiers made their debuts together against England in Port Elizabeth in December 2004 and this will be the first time since then that South Africa have entered a Test with neither man in the XI.That might have been cause for concern were it not for the manner of their victory in Perth, where the performances of South Africa’s newer players proved critical. There was Kagiso Rabada, the Man of the Match who stepped up heroically in Steyn’s absence. There was Temba Bavuma, who made a fighting fifty, took his maiden Test wicket, and pulled off one of the finest run-outs in Test history. There was Quinton de Kock, who scored a pair of half-centuries, one a salvage mission and the other a savage mission. And there was Keshav Maharaj, the debutant spinner who took four wickets and smashed late runs that just rubbed in South Africa’s dominance. True, hundreds from JP Duminy and Dean Elgar were key, but it was the contributions of these more junior figures that bode so well.What about Australia? Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood bowled well on day one. David Warner looked in good touch in both innings. Usman Khawaja fought for 97. Peter Nevill showed his grit in the second innings. But by the end of the Test, the Australians were falling apart like the WACA pitch. They had lost a fourth consecutive Test. The balance of their side, with an underperforming Mitchell Marsh at No.6, was again cause for consternation. Nathan Lyon seemed to lack the confidence of his captain. Adam Voges’ Bradmanesque 2015-16 summer seemed as distant a memory as the summers of Bradman himself. And to add injury to insult, Shaun Marsh and Peter Siddle were then ruled out of the Hobart Test.Down in the series, already questions have been asked of Australia’s preparation. Their men had not played red-ball cricket since the Test tour of Sri Lanka in August, for the only Sheffield Shield games came in a day-night round using pink balls. For the first time in two decades the first Test of the summer was moved from the Gabba, a fortress at which Australia have not lost since 1988, to the WACA, where they have not once beaten South Africa. Last time Australia won a home series after losing the first Test was in 1968, when Bill Lawry’s men staged a comeback against West Indies. This time, Australia must overcome not only South Africa but also the Hobart weather, with rain expected over at least the first couple of days.Form guide(last five completed matches, most recent first)

Australia: LLLLW
South Africa: WWDWL
In the spotlightJoe Mennie will be hoping his Test debut is more impressive than his first ODI. Last month, Mennie took 0 for 82 against South Africa in Johannesburg, the worst figures ever by an Australia bowler on ODI debut, and three of his likely Test opponents – Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis and JP Duminy – batted against him in that game. But Mennie has fine recent red-ball form against the South Africans, having claimed two five-wicket hauls against South Africa A in first-class games in July and August. And plenty of his Test opponents were among his victims: Mennie dismissed Dean Elgar and Vernon Philander twice each, and Stephen Cook and Temba Bavuma once each. The leading Sheffield Shield wicket taker of last summer, Mennie’s long-form record is far superior to his short-form figures.One of the most impressive things about South Africa’s win in Perth was that they achieved it with virtually no contribution from Hashim Amla, who made 0 and 1. As the only member of this team to have played in the pre-Steyn and pre-de Villiers era, Amla’s experience will be invaluable to the squad for the remainder of this series. South Africa will hope his Perth failures were just a blip, and that Amla returns to the kind of touch that has brought him five Test hundreds against Australia, including two in Australia.Will it be Morne Morkel or Kyle Abbott for South Africa in Hobart?•Getty Images

Team newsAt least two changes will be necessary for Australia, with Shaun Marsh and Siddle both out injured. Joe Burns will therefore resume his partnership with David Warner at the top of the order and fast bowler Mennie will make his Test debut. But there is also the chance of a third change, with Mitchell Marsh under pressure after the inclusion of Callum Ferguson in the squad. Captain Steven Smith said on the eve of the game there was a chance Australia would go in with “six genuine batsmen”, especially with the prospect of bad weather in Hobart, which would ease the workload on the bowlers. Adam Voges tweaked a hamstring in Perth but passed a fitness test on Friday and is expected to play.Australia (possible) 1 David Warner, 2 Joe Burns, 3 Usman Khawaja, 4 Steven Smith (capt), 5 Adam Voges, 6 Mitchell Marsh/Callum Ferguson, 7 Peter Nevill (wk), 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Joe Mennie, 10 Josh Hazlewood, 11 Nathan LyonSouth Africa will also be forced to make one change due to the shoulder injury suffered by Dale Steyn in Perth. Kyle Abbott appears to have the front-running to replace Steyn, although Morne Morkel would come under consideration if passed fit. There is also the possibility that South Africa might choose four fast men given the conditions. Spinner Keshav Maharaj trained indoors on Friday, separate from the rest of the group, and is by no means a guaranteed starter. Dwaine Pretorius will not arrive in Hobart until Saturday, so a four-man pace attack would mean both Abbott and Morkel in the XI.South Africa (possible) 1 Stephen Cook, 2 Dean Elgar, 3 Hashim Amla, 4 JP Duminy, 5 Faf du Plessis (capt), 6 Temba Bavuma, 7 Quinton de Kock (wk), 8 Vernon Philander, 9 Kyle Abbott, 10 Kagiso Rabada, 11 Keshav Maharaj/Morne Morkel.Pitch and conditionsThe Bellerive Oval pitch is typically very good for batting in Test matches, and there is no reason to expect anything different this year. However, rain is expected on at least the first two days, and overcast conditions should help the fast bowlers swing the ball.Stats and trivia Only once in the past five Hobart Tests has the team batting first been bowled out. The other four first-innings scores were 5 for 542, 8 for 519, 5 for 450 and 4 for 583 – all by Australia. Australia will miss Siddle in Hobart, where he is the all-time leading Test wicket taker among fast bowlers, with 22 wickets at 15.72. Perhaps a good start for Smith would be to win the toss. Of the past 20 Tests in which Australia batted second, they lost 11; of the past 20 Tests in which they batted first, they lost only two.Quotes”It was a disappointing loss, I’m going okay. Things haven’t gone to plan so far, but we’ve got an opportunity to turn it around this week. The guys are in good spirits, we’ve prepared well again like we have for every Test and guys are keen and eager to get out there and turn this series around.”

Glamorgan have qualified for the quarter-finals of the NatWest T20 Blast with a win over Somerset in Cardiff led by a career-best bowling spell and an innings of 54 from Colin Ingram

ECB Reporters Network22-Jul-2016
ScorecardColin Ingram has had a fine white-ball season•Getty Images

Glamorgan have qualified for the quarter-finals of the NatWest T20 Blast with a win over Somerset in Cardiff A career-best bowling spell and an innings of 54 from Colin Ingram allowed Glamorgan to make the knockout stages with two games still to play.Ingram has played as a white ball specialist this season as a result of an ongoing knee injury and he has made the most of his chances in the side, leading the run-scoring charts for Glamorgan in T20 and 50-over cricket.With victory enough to secure that prized quarter-final spot Glamorgan would have been pleased to win the toss and chase, their preferred method in Cardiff where they are convinced that the ball comes on to the bat better under the lights.An ugly looking pitch but one with decent pace and carry greeted the players but while the runs flowed for Somerset so the wickets fell. Midway, they were 90 for 5, a tendency begun by Mahela Jayawardene, who looked in supreme touch on his way to 16 from 10 balls, but who he fell when he mistimed a cover drive off the bowling of Timm van der Gugten.The most spectacular of those wickets to fall was that of Peter Trego who missed a rocket from Shaun Tait that knocked his stumps out of the ground. It that same over Tait induced an edge from James Hildreth with an outswinger that should have been caught by Mark Wallace but the Glamorgan ‘keeper could not hang on to it.Hildreth made the most of his life, going on to top score for Somerset with 39 from 28 balls. If Glamorgan had taken that chance they could have been chasing around 120; instead they would need 153 to claim victory.The surprise package of the night was Ingram’s bowling as he picked his best T20 figures of 3 for 20 with his occasional leg breaks. He bowled with real guile, with the ball that had Lewis Gregory out stumped particularly impressive. By adding bowling to his stellar batting form he has further cemented his place as Glamorgan’s star man in this competition.While van der Gugten impressed with his bowling, he was out done by his Dutch colleague Paul van Meerkeren who bowled with real pace and was unlucky not to claim more wickets. He did dismiss Mark Wallace who top edged a catch to long leg but there were a number of other chances that fell just short of a fielder. His figures of 1 for 45 did not accurately reflect how well he bowled.Glamorgan lost David Lloyd in the eighth over to bring together Ingram and Aneurin Donald who registered the fastest ever first-class double hundred against Derbyshire this week.Between them they turned what could have been a difficult chase into a stroll as they put together a stand of 76 from 53 balls. Ingram fell before the job was finished but he had done enough for Glamorgan to win by seven wickets with 12 balls to spare.Somerset captain Jim Allenby expressed his frustration at Somerset failing to perform on what he judged to be a very good Cardiff pitch.”It is disappointing and frustrating,” he said. “In all the years I played at Glamorgan and that his the best pitch that I have seen. That was a fantastic cricket pitch, short boundaries, everything that you want as a batsman and we have been bowled at for 150 on it.”So it’s really frustrated as a team and also individually on missing out on getting a big score out there. These things happened but it has happened all too often this season.”

The BCCI will use only electronic methods to distribute funds to state associations in the wake of three top officials of the Goa Cricket Association being arrested for alleged fraud

Nagraj Gollapudi17-Jun-2016The BCCI will only use electronic methods to distribute funds to all state associations in the wake of the economic wing of the Goa Police arresting three top-ranking officials of the Goa Cricket Association (GCA), including its president Chetan Desai, for alleged fraud.Desai, along with secretary Vinod Phadke and treasurer Akbar Mulla, allegedly opened a fake bank account in the name of the GCA and encashed a cheque from the BCCI worth INR 3.13 crore in 2006-07. In an effort to prevent such instances, the Indian board has added additional security measures before funds are released to any state association.”All transfers will only be electronic. No cheques will be given,” BCCI secretary Ajay Shirke told ESPNcricinfo. “In future all payments from BCCI to state associations will be made to a designated account. That account will have to be confirmed by the current secretary and treasurer of the association. It would have to be counter verified by the bank where the account has been opened. And the statutory auditor of the state association will have to issue a certificate saying it is the actual operative account of the state association.”Desai and Phadke, in addition to their posts in the GCA, are also part of BCCI sub-committees. Desai is chairman of the board’s marketing committee while Phadke is on the information technology and data management panel. Shirke said the BCCI’s decision on Desai and the GCA’s future would be made public by Friday evening.The GCA issue has come at a time when the BCCI’s governance structure and accountability processes have come under fire. The Lodha Committee, appointed by the Supreme Court to look into changing the way the board functions, had offered its recommendations in January and the court has been insisting the BCCI implement them. It is likely the GCA issue will crop up when the hearing resumes on June 30.The alleged fraud by Desai and his aides had already been revealed to the court by Hemant Angle, a former Goa cricketer and GCA life member, in his intervention application in the Lodha Committee hearing.

Tottenham Hotspur fans are excited as former Barcelona boss Luis Enrique reportedly becomes open to replacing Antonio Conte.

The Lowdown: Spurs manager change looming?

It has become an open secret that Conte, whose deal runs out at the end of this Premier League campaign, is now looking more and more likely to depart.

Reports suggest that the Italian will not renew terms at Spurs, and while the north Londoners have the option to extend his contract by another 12 months, there is currently little appetite.

Managers across Europe are being linked with the soon-to-be vacant role, especially after Tottenham’s Last 16 defeat to AC Milan in the Champions League.

The Latest: Spurs fans love Enrique development…

One of those names is Enrique, who was most recently in charge of Spain, with journalist Gary Jacob (via The Spurs Express) now claiming that the Spaniard would be open to taking charge of Spurs.

Fans, it’s safe to say, are absolutely thrilled by this update given Enrique’s trophy-winning pedigree in La Liga.

They said:

“Sack conte now before my guy changes his mind” – @THFCDylan02

“interesting” – @Anonymousxylon

“Bring him in” – @OwenTHFC1882

“YESSSSS” – @HKW____

“We should be all over this.” – @justgreg_

“NO WAY” – @OutCastTHFC

The Verdict: Big name…

Having won two La Liga titles with Barca, a Champions League and even a World’s Best Club Coach award, it’s little surprise Lilywhites supporters are enticed by the prospect of Enrique joining.

The 52-year-old would come to London with real prestige, not to mention as a fairly risk-free option financially given his status as a free agent.

The Law Commission of India has recommended bringing the BCCI under the Right to Information (RTI) Act since it performs the functions of a public body. And should the government approve and follow through on this view, the board could be grappling with far-reaching consequences. Several members of the ruling dispensation in Delhi currently hold offices in BCCI and its state associations.The 124-page report prepared by a panel of lawmakers led by Justice BS Chauhan concluded that the BCCI is “virtually” a national sports federation (NSF), and that the Indian government should formally recognise it as such. NSFs automatically come under the purview of RTI, a path-breaking federal law established in 2005, which makes the working of high-profile organisations open to public scrutiny.The Law commission, which has submitted its recommendations for the approval to the Indian Law Ministry, also said that the BCCI should be classified as a “State” and fall under Article 12 of the Indian Constitution.The Law Commission found that the “magnanimity and enormity of the functions” helped the BCCI enjoy a “monopolistic status” as it was allowed by the State to be the final authority on all cricket matters including picking national teams, organising and regulating the sport in the country, and representing India at international platforms – all actions carried out by NSFs.According to the Commission such freedom has only made the BCCI immune to accountability and transparency. “Non-consideration of the role played by BCCI as monopolistic in regulation of the game of cricket has resulted in the Board flying under the radar of public scrutiny, encouraged an environment of opacity and non-accountability,” the report said. “In the past, this has probably given an impression in the minds of the general public that corruption and other forms of malpractices are adversely affecting one of the most popular sports played in India.”BCCI exercises ‘State-like’ powers affecting the fundamental rights of the stakeholders, guaranteed under Part III of the Constitution. It is hereby recommended that BCCI be viewed as an agency or instrumentality of State, under Article 12 of the Constitution, thereby making it amenable to the writ jurisdiction of the Supreme Court under Article 32.”These findings only reinforced the order of the Supreme Court in 2016 when it approved the Lodha Committee recommendations for radical reforms in the way the BCCI does business. Simultaneously, it had asked the Law Commission to see if the board could fall under the RTI act, as suggested by the Lodha committee. The Court had said if the answer was “affirmative” then the Law Commission should send its recommendations to the Indian Government to help bring in a new legislation that will make the BCCI open to public scrutiny.So far the BCCI has argued that it is merely a private body, formed as society under the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975. It argued that it does not get and depend on any funding or financial assistance of any type from the government and hence cannot be classified as an NSF. However, the Law Commission’s counter was the BCCI was being given “substantial” financial assistance in “other forms” like getting massive tax exemptions, customs duty waivers, and land and infrastructure across the country at “excessively subsidised” rates form the central and state governments.”Even if BCCI is continued to be regarded as a private body, but owing to its monopolistic character coupled with the public nature of its functions and the ‘substantial financing’ it has received from appropriate Governments over the years (in the form of tax exemptions, land grants et al) it can, within the existing legal framework, still be termed as a ‘public authority’ and be brought within the purview of the RTI Act.”The Law Commission also noted that the BCCI was already being treated as a NSF by various Indian governments for several years. “As per the statement made in the Lok Sabha, the Central Government has already been regarding BCCI as a National Sports Federation and hence, it is recommended that, for the removal of any doubt, the same be explicitly mentioned in the list of NSFs available on the ministry’s website. This express mention would automatically bring BCCI within the purview of RTI Act.”

The tournament will retain its usual 4pm and 8pm starts, with double-headers restricted only to weekends

Nagraj Gollapudi14-Feb-2018

Defending champions Mumbai Indians will face Chennai Super Kings in the IPL opener on April 7 in Mumbai. Super Kings will also play the last match of the league phase, which ends on May 20, against Kings XI Punjab. The IPL has also decided not to alter the tournament’s regular match timings with afternoon matches scheduled for a 4pm IST start and the evening matches commencing at 8pm.In a welcome change, all the double headers – 13 in total – will be played over Saturday and Sunday. In the final schedule released by the IPL on Wednesday, 44 matches during the league phase will be played in the evening, while the remaining 12 games will be start in the afternoon.In addition to the home bases of the eight franchises, Indore will be the ninth venue, playing host to the home games of Kings XI. Apart from the tournament opener and the final, Mumbai will also host the first qualifier.Incidentally the venue for the other two play-offs – the eliminator and the second qualifier – remains unnannounced. The main reason behind that was because the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) sent a letter to IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla, demanding the two play-off matches be played in Pune, home of last year’s runner-up Rising Pune Supergiant.In the letter, MCA president Abhay Apte told Shukla that he was merely asking the IPL to stick to the norm and allot the Eliminator and second qualifier to the home base of last season’s runner-up. A final decision on the issue is likely to be taken by the IPL Governing Council at its next meeting.Meanwhile, the IPL acquiesced to the franchises’ demand of sticking to the original match timings and not alter it. In January, the Governing Council had approved the proposal – worked out with the host broadcaster Star – that afternoon matches would begin at 5.30 pm, and evening games would commence at 7pm. The immediate repercussion of that move, the franchises argued, was the second innings of the first match and the first innings of the second would overlap on double-header days.According to an IPL official, one solution was to start the day match at 3.30pm to “avoid” the overlap. That, however, was not a feasible solution considering the IPL is played during peak summer and the franchises did not want the players to suffer in India’s unforgiving heat.

Boult’s relentless accuracy and Lockie Ferguson’s raw pace hit the high notes after Nicholls’ enterprising 83 in a dominating win

The Report by Andrew Fidel Fernando22-Dec-20174:01

Highlights – Boult blinder seals series for NZ

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsGetty ImagesA snowballing 130-run sixth-wicket stand propelled New Zealand to 325 for 6, before a smoldering Trent Boult blasted West Indies out for 121 with help from tearaway Lockie Ferguson.West Indies have lost every game on tour, but rarely have they appeared so outmatched. The top order showed no fight against Boult’s sniping accuracy and Ferguson’s out-and-out-pace. They were virtually out of the game inside the first six overs, in which three wickets fell, and were all out by the 29th over. With this match goes the series – West Indies are 0-2 down with one match to play.For the hosts, the 204-run victory featured several highlights. Not only were Boult’s figures of 7 for 34 better than his previous best, they were also the second-best ODI figures for New Zealand by a whisker – Tim Southee having taken 7 for one run fewer in the 2015 World Cup. Henry Nicholls also produced a furious finish to the innings, after he and Todd Astle had lifted New Zealand from 186 for 5. His unbeaten 83 off 62 balls was also a personal best.Elsewhere, George Worker produced an efficient fifty at the top of the innings, Ross Taylor’s half-century held New Zealand together in the middle overs, and Ferguson made clear his potential, claiming 3 for 17 in four overs of hostile fast bowling.Quicks of both teams were aided by the surface. Though Hagley Oval is usually the domain of swing and seam movement, it was the lift in this pitch that defined the match. West Indies had actually begun the match with some promise, dismissing four New Zealand top order batsmen with deliveries that leapt more than anticipated.Although the West Indies’ quicks’ shorter lengths had proved a danger to batsman while the ball was new, there was also opportunity later on – 68 per cent of New Zealand’s runs came square of the wicket. All innings long, only two boundaries were hit in the “V”.Boult began to maraud the moment he got ball in hand. He could have had Evin Lewis with his second delivery, had Worker held a very difficult chance some distance to his left. No matter. The last ball of that over zipped between Kyle Hope’s bat and pad, and thundered into the stumps. Next over, Boult had Lewis miscuing a pull shot to the fine leg fielder – the drop having cost no more than nine runs.Every time Boult bowled, a wicket did not seem far off. Still in his first spell, he had Shimron Hetmyer caught at slip for 2, then later, Shai Hope sending a ball high into the air off his top edge, to depart for a belligerent 23. By the end of Boult’s initial six-over burst, the target already seemed 100 too many for the West Indies.Perhaps they would have made a more creditable reply had Ferguson not added to their discomfort, however. Now quite clearly the fastest bowler in New Zealand – having pipped Adam Milne for that title – Ferguson went either at the stumps or at the body, and on a pitch that suited his bowling, had success doing both. Jason Mohammed was his first victim, fending at a delivery headed for his throat – the ball taking the shoulder of the bat and floating back to the bowler. Two balls later Rovman Powell played a shot that seemed to be light years two late – the offstump uprooted before the bat was even in position. Ferguson also dismissed Jason Holder with a short ball, before Boult came back to flatten the tail.So good were New Zealand’s quicks that perhaps West Indies were always going flounder, but in the first third of this match, the visiting quicks made regular breakthroughs, which suggested a contest could be on the cards. Then Nicholls and Astle turned what began as a recovery into a hailstorm of death-over boundaries. By the time Astle was dismissed for 49 in the final over, the previous 28 balls had produced 64 runs.As was the case for Ferguson, this was a pitch that suited Nicholls’ batting beautifully, however. Adept at the cross-batted strokes, he cut and pulled his way into a rhythm early in his innings, and let fly with the innovations later on. Of particular note was the overhead scoop off Ronsford Beaton in the 45th over – the shot that heralded the mayhem. Three overs later, Nicholls was walloping two sixes and two fours in a Shannon Gabriel over that yielded 22. In the first 37 deliveries he faced, Nicholls had hit 27 – overturning an lbw decision against him in that time. Off his last 25 balls, Nicholls plundered 56, even finding a place for the full deliveries beyond the square boundary.Astle’s innings was not quite so explosive – he had largely sought to turn the strike over to Nicholls, scoring exclusively with singles and twos off his first 35 balls. He did eventually hit out, slog-sweeping Rovman Powell for six twice in the 49th over. A little fortune made that final flourish possible: Astle had been dropped off Powell by wicketkeeper Shai Hope, in the 46th over.West Indies were not completely without performers. Sheldon Cottrell – the left-arm quick who replaced the injured Kesrick Williams in this match – was the first bowler to use the short ball effectively in this match. His figures worsened as a result of New Zealand’s fast finish, but he claimed a creditable 3 for 62 nonetheless. Holder returned 2 for 52 for himself.But although visiting teams sometimes feel as they have the measure of New Zealand conditions, the home side almost unfailingly have in their ranks players who turn the match emphatically in their favour. This is New Zealand’s ninth series victory in their 10 last bilateral series at home.

Kerala cruised home after KC Akshay’s nine-for while Saurashtra leapt to the top of the table after handing Jharkhand a thrashing

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Nov-2017

Gujarat completed their third straight win from as many games after they thumped Haryana by 238 runs in Valsad. They needed less than 10 overs on the final morning after Haryana added only 28 runs to their overnight score of 94 for 7. Seventeen-year-old left-arm spinner Siddharth Desai picked up his second five-wicket haul in only his second first-class game and finished with a match-haul of eight wickets. Veteran legspinner Piyush Chawla, meanwhile, claimed his 23rd five-for to go with his four wickets in the first innings.Overnight batsman Harshal Patel was the first to be dismissed in the morning by Desai, following which Sanjay Pahal (41), the top-scorer for Haryana, was bowled by Chawla. Chawla then wrapped up things in his next over by having the last man Ashish Hooda caught behind. While Gujarat are on top of Group B with 19 points, Haryana are at the bottom after having lost all their three games.Kerala needed only 8.5 overs on the final morning to brush aside Jammu & Kashmir by 158 runs and collect their third win from four games in Thiruvananthapuram. With 18 points, they are now second-placed behind Gujarat having played one extra game. Debutant right-arm spinner KC Akshay picked up all the three wickets to fall on the morning to claim his maiden five-wicket haul. Akshay, 21, ended up with a match haul of9 for 58.Resuming on 56 for 7, J&K lost their first wicket in the third over of the day after Asif Khan was cleaned up by Akshay. The remaining batsmen put up little resistance, as they were bowled out for 79. Only three batsmen got into the double digits. J&K are just one rung above bottom-placed Haryana in the standings. Sanju Samson was named man-of-the-match for his century in the first innings.Saurashtra beat Jharkhand by six wickets to register their third win on the trot. Chasing 59, Saurashtra lost the opportunity to score seven points as they lost a few early wickets, but eventually completed it without much trouble. That meant they now have 20 points and have leapfrogged Kerala and Gujarat to the top of the table.Resuming on 139 for 1 after being made to follow-on, Jharkhand lost Nazim Siddiqui, in the ninth over for 75. Sumit Kumar, who made 108, and Saurabh Tiwary put on 77 runs before the latter was bowled by left-arm spinner Dharmendrasinh Jadeja. Six overs later, Dharmendrasinh removed Sumit to leave Jharkhand on 259 for 4. Ishank Jaggi (35) and Ishan Kishan (34) added 56 runs before the floodgates opened, with Jharkhand slipping from 315 for 5 to 341 all out. Dharmendrasinh finished with four wickets.

The BCCI has challenged a Kerala High Court judgement from last month, which had ordered the board to lift its life ban on fast bowler Sreesanth. The BCCI had banned Sreesanth in 2013 for his alleged involvement in the Indian Premier League corruption scandal. Sreesanth was one of three Rajasthan Royals players – Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan being the others – to be handed a life ban by the BCCI for an alleged role in the scandal.In February this year, Sreesanth filed a writ petition in the Kerala High Court challenging the ban, after the BCCI refused to issue a no-objection certificate for him to play league cricket in Scotland. A writ is an application filed in the court asking it to enforce some right against an authority or against an order against which there is no statutory remedy.In his petition, Sreesanth argued that in 2015 a trial court in Delhi had dropped charges filed by the Delhi Police against him, Chavan and Chandila. The three were among 42 individuals chargesheeted by the Delhi Police under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).In the absence of a specific criminal law to deal with spot-fixing in India, the cricketers were chargesheeted for offences under the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the MCOCA. The court, however, said there was not enough evidence for charges to be framed under MCOCA, a special law passed by the Maharashtra state government to tackle organised crime syndicates and terrorism. The MCOCA contains much stricter provisions relating to bail and admissibility of confessions compared to the Indian Penal Code.In August, Justice A Muhamed Mustaque of the Kerala High Court, accepted Sreesanth’s appeal and told the BCCI it had no “incriminating evidence” against the player and hence the ban should be “quashed”.On its part, the BCCI maintained the ban was handed after a one-man inquiry commission found Sreesanth guilty of various offences under the board’s anti-corruption code.The BCCI has now decided to challenge the order of Justice Mustaque. In an application filed in the Kerala High Court on Monday, the BCCI has pointed whether “interference” by a writ court was warranted”. The BCCI has also asked whether the writ court could “sit in appeal” and “alter the quantum of penalty imposed” against the findings of the board’s disciplinary committee.The BCCI said that its decision was in “accordance” with the principles of natural justice and it has now asked the court to decide whether Justice Mustaque’s order was “contrary to law and to principles of justice, equity and good conscience and ought to be set aside?”

Nottinghamshire have re-signed left-arm seam bowler Mark Footitt following his release from Surrey for family reasons midway through the season.Footitt, 31, has agreed a deal for the rest of the 2017 summer and the two seasons to follow. He has had a successful season for Surrey, taking 34 wickets at 26.85 in eight Championship matches, but one of his main reasons for heading to London was to achieve England honours and these have not been forthcoming.The closest he came was In 2015 when he netted with the full England squad ahead of the Ashes series without quite managing to claim an international debut. His England ambitions were almost realised when he was chosen for the 2015/16 tour of South Africa but again without England taking the plunge.Footitt admitted that he had never entirely settled in London – his family has never left the East Midlands. “When I signed for Surrey, I looked forward to a long and successful career at the Kia Oval. However, I’ve not been able to settle in London, away from my partner and my daughter.”We have really struggled being apart and my relocation to London has meant I have been away from family support. We have tried to solve these problems for a long time without success, and have therefore had to ask for my release from Surrey.”I am extremely grateful to Surrey, and Alec Stewart in particular, for their understanding of this situation which is not one I ever envisaged happening – and am hugely appreciative of their decision to allow me to leave and be back with my family.”Alec Stewart, Surrey’s director of cricket, said: “A great deal of time, thought and consideration has gone into this decision but when Mark made it clear he could no longer continue with the situation, we agreed that this would be the best course of action.”The decision, nevertheless, puts the success of their return season in Division One of the Championship at risk.Footitt is now returning to the city of his birth. He came through the ranks at Trent Bridge, making his first-class debut in 2005. He previously played in the Nottinghamshire Premier League as a teenager and had a successful spell at Derbyshire prior to his move to the Kia Oval.He is a potent acquisition for a county that has looked bound to gain promotion from the first game this season and re-establish itself in the first division of the Specsavers Championship. Notts also beat Surrey in the Royal London Cup final earlier this month, a match in which Footitt did not figure.Nevetherless, Nottinghamshsire do have pace bowling shortages that go far beyond the horrific injury to Luke Fletcher, who must miss the rest of the season on doctors’ orders after suffering a horrific head injury from a straight drive while bowling in a NatWest Blast tie against Warwickshire at Edgbaston last Friday. Rather than playing cricket, Fletcher is just feeling lucky to be alive.Australian quick James Pattinson has ended his stint with the county, Stuart Broad is now tied up with England’s Test series against South Africa and Jake Ball, another fast bowler on the fringe of England’s Test set-up has been injured – although he did have a bowl with England at Trent Bridge on Wednesday as they prepared for the second Investec Test.”We’ve lost a lot of the players who have got us to the top of the table,” said Notts’ director of cricket, Mick Newell, “although hopefully Jake will be back soon.”Mark wants to come back and play his cricket in the East Midlands, so we’re very pleased to have the opportunity to sign him and welcome him back to Trent Bridge. He’s obviously blossomed as a cricketer since he was last here, both at Derbyshire and Surrey, and we believe he can help us go where we want to go for the rest of this season and in the following two seasons at least.”Footitt will be available for all Notts’ cricket from next week, including the NatWest T20 Blast home matches with the Derbyshire Falcons and Northamptonshire Steelbacks this weekend.