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Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dimuth Karunaratne, Angelo Mathews and Niroshan Dickwella made half-centuries as the tourists ended the first day at 411 for 6

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Nov-2017
ScorecardAssociated Press

The Sri Lankans made a profitable start to their India tour, with four of their batsmen scoring fifties on the first day of their two-day tour game against the Indian Board President’s XI at the Jadavpur University Campus ground in Kolkata. At stumps they were 411 for 6, having scored their runs at 4.67 per over.Openers Sadeera Samarawickrama and Dimuth Karunaratne added 134 for the first wicket before the latter retired out for 50. The two other senior Sri Lankan batsmen, current and former captains Dinesh Chandimal (29) and Angelo Mathews (54), also retired out.Samarawickrama went on to top score with 74 off 77 balls, with 13 fours, while wicketkeeper Niroshan Dickwella was unbeaten on a 59-ball 73 (13×4) at stumps. Batting down the order, Dilruwan Perera (48) and Roshen Silva (36*) made useful contributions too.The IBP XI was made up entirely of players from teams not involved in the ongoing fifth round of the Ranji Trophy, and their bowling attack, as a result, wasn’t the strongest. It did, however, contain the offspinner Jalaj Saxena, the top wicket-taker of the current Ranji season; he, like all his bowling colleagues, went for more than four an over, ending the day with figures of 22-0-100-1.

Sam Hain only half-centurion on 16-wicket opening day on green Edgbaston seamer

ECB Reporters Network19-Jul-2022High-class bowling from Oliver Hannon-Dalby put Warwickshire in charge before Kent hit back on a wicket-strewn opening day in the LV=Insurance County Championship at Edgbaston.In a crucial game, with both teams struggling this season, Warwickshire prepared a green wicket to expedite a result. They then won the toss and their seamers exploited the conditions to bowl Kent out for 165. Only Jordan Cox passed 40 as Hannon-Dalby took 6 for 40 and Henry Brookes 3 for 56.Warwickshire struggled in turn and closed on 155 for 6, having leaned squarely on Sam Hain. Navdeep Saini, the Indian seamer, had an eventful first bowl for Kent, his spell of 10-2-59-3 including some seriously quick away-cutters and 13 no-balls.Hannon-Dalby was magnificent. As leader of a severely-depleted seam attack – Nathan McAndrew the latest withdrawal after he went down with illness – the pressure was firmly on the Yorkshireman to exploit the conditions. He rose to the challenge with an opening spell of 7-4-15-5.Related

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On potentially the hottest day ever in England, Warwickshire’s decision to bat drew an incredulous reaction from their fans on social media -but those fans hadn’t seen the pitch. Hannon-Dalby struck third ball when Ben Compton nicked to wicketkeeper Michael Burgess and, after Kent advanced to 28 for 1, added two more wickets in four balls: Daniel Bell-Drummond fell lbw and Joe Denly sliced a loose drive to second slip.Hannon-Dalby won two more lbws: Jack Leaning and Zak Crawley who eked out 17 in 53 minutes then fell, hit on the back leg, offering no shot. Cox and Sam Billings added 72 in 20 overs before Hannon-Dalby returned to have the former caught behind.After Billings edged Brookes, Matt Henry plumped for a spot of gung-ho. He socked three fours and three sixes in a merry 34 off 23 balls before slogging Brookes to deep midwicket where sub fielder Kobe Herft took a superb catch.Saini steered Brookes to second slip and Matt Quinn joined the list of Kent batsmen whose quixotic aggression contributed to their downfall when he chipped Danny Briggs to mid-off.Kent hit back hard with three wickets in the first ten overs as Dom Sibley, Alex Davies and Chris Benjamin edged into the cordon off Matt Milnes, Henry and Saini respectively.Hain moved fluently to a 64-ball half-century and added 90 in 28 overs with Will Rhodes before Kent struck three times in 17 balls. Rhodes lifted Milnes to point and Dan Mousley and Burgess edged Saini behind before Hain and Briggs gritted through the last 13 overs to leave their side ascendant – just.

Group C round-up: Nineteen-year old Prithvi Raj Yarra sparkles for Andhra; Vishnu Solanki powers Baroda to strong start against Tripura

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Nov-2017Prithvi Shaw’s 105, his second successive hundred and fourth in five first-class games, helped Mumbai begin strongly against Odisha before three quick wickets in the final session reduced them to 264 for 6 in Bhubaneshwar. Put into bat, Mumbai lost Akhil Herwadkar in the sixth over after he was bowled by seamer Basant Mohanty. However, Shaw steadied things in the company of Ajinkya Rahane (49, 8×4), who is playing his first game of the season.During the course of their 136-run alliance, Shaw completed his hundred before he was trapped lbw by Mohanty; his 153-ball knock included 18 hits to the fence. Soon after, seamer Suryakant Pradhan dismissed Rahane, but Mumbai avoided further loss before tea, going into the break on 181 for 3. Just when a partnership appeared to blossom between vice-captain Suryakumar Yadav (23) and Siddhesh Lad (33), Biplab Samantray removed both batsmen in the space of six overs to leave Mumbai on 231 for 5. Mumbai suffered another jolt in the 81st over, when left-arm spinner Dhiraj Singh removed Abhishek Nayar. But captain Aditya Tare (28*) and Akash Parkar saw out the remaining overs.Nineteen-year old left-arm seamer Prithvi Raj Yarra’s three-wicket haul was central to Andhra restricting Madhya Pradesh to 219 for 5 on the opening day in Vizianagaram. Having opted to field, Andhra struck in the 16th over when Yarra, playing his second first-class game, had Aditya Shrivastava caught behind. Opener Rajat Patidar and Shubham Sharma (60, 8×4) then added 68 runs before Yarra removed Patidar. Left-arm spinner Bhargav Bhatt then sent back Shubham, who had added 39 for the third wicket with Naman Ojha. Shubham’s dismissal triggered a mini-collapse, as Madhya Pradesh slipped from 136 for 2 to 171 for 5. Harpreet Singh Bhatia, however, stemmed the bleeding with an unbeaten 47 and raised an unbroken sixth-wicket stand of 48 with Ankit Sharma (18).Vishnu Solanki’s maiden first-class ton (116, 11×4, 1×6) powered Baroda to 304 for 5 on the opening day against Tripura at the Reliance Stadium in Vadodara. After electing to bat, Baroda began with a 41-run opening stand between Kedar Devdhar and Aditya Waghmode, before slipping to 95 for 3. Batting at No.3, Solanki, who scored two half-centuries against Andhra in the previous game, soldiered on. He first added 50 runs with Swapnil Singh before raising a 154-run stand for the fifth wicket with Abhijit Karambelkar, who remained unbeaten on 75. Tripura, however, tilted the balance slightly by removing Solanki with less than two overs remaining for close of play.

New Zealand beat South Africa by an innings and 276 runs without Williamson, Taylor or Boult

Alagappan Muthu19-Feb-2022It’s been 14 years since New Zealand have had to play a Test match without Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor and Trent Boult. And yet they still managed to beat South Africa by an innings and 276 runs, a performance that the stand-in captain Tom Latham called “the perfect blueprint.””Yeah, it’s obviously great for the side,” he said. “It’s been documented it’s a long time ago since we haven’t seen any of those three names who are such a vital part of the side. I guess its testament to the depth that we’re creating to the depth in New Zealand cricket that guys who haven’t played a lot can step up and come up and perform straight away.”Along the way, the one stalwart that they did have, got to a memorable milestone. Tim Southee overtook Richard Hadlee as the highest New Zealand wicket-taker on home soil. It took a while to become official though, with New Zealand needing to overturn a not-out lbw decision. But that also meant the 33-year-old had all his team-mates around him, waiting with him, for the big moment.Related

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“Tim thought it was going down leg. So I was a little bit surprised that he didn’t want to use it. But with the nature of having a couple of reviews left in that situation [South Africa were nine down] it was a bit of a no-brainer to use it.’I guess it’s a unique scenario but it’s also a situation we’re used to nowadays with the DRS. Obviously, [it’s] great for us all to be together and certainly regardless of how you get it, it’s certainly a great way [to break the record]. So yeah, it’s been a Test match that we’re very proud of and one we’ll celebrate tonight.”With Covid-19 still a threat, New Zealand has been dealing with stringent travel and quarantine restrictions, which resulted in a tour of Australia being postponed.”Obviously, disappointing for that series to be called off,” Latham said. “I guess the guys have been playing different forms of cricket whether it be T20 cricket, one-day cricket or some first-class cricket over recent weeks. Even though we haven’t played a Test match for a month or so, I think the way we just switched back straight into the rhythm of Test cricket and hit the ground running, it was certainly the way you want to start and hopefully we can continue the momentum in the next Test match.”It hasn’t been decided whether Boult, who is on paternity leave, will be back in time for that. Williamson is still recovering from a long-standing elbow injury. And Taylor has retired. So New Zealand may have to do without any of them again in the second Test against South Africa starting on February 25. But given they’ve just wrapped up their third-biggest win in the format, Latham feels it’s the kind of problem he doesn’t mind having as temporary caretaker.”For me, it’s just about trying to fill this position as well I can. Certainly when Kane’s available, he’ll slip right back in. For me, it’s just about trying to continue what this group has been doing for such a long period of time. Got some great leaders amongst the group. Got some experience as well even, though we’ve lost some over the last couple of Test matches. But I guess trying to continue the formula that New Zealand cricket has produced over recent years and I guess I probably had my spin on things in terms of doing things slightly differently but I think as a whole it’s about continuing the blueprint as best I can. We’ve had some really good success recently and just trying to continue that.”

Eoin Morgan, England’s one-day captain, has reiterated his enthusiasm for the ECB’s new city-based T20 tournament

Andrew Miller30-Mar-2017Eoin Morgan, England’s one-day captain, has reiterated his enthusiasm for the ECB’s new city-based T20 tournament, saying that the sport has to do whatever is necessary to persuade a new generation of fans to fall in love with the game.Morgan, who will link up with his Kings XI Punjab team-mates next week ahead of his seventh season of IPL cricket, knows at first hand the benefits of being involved in franchise-style tournaments, and has long been an outspoken advocate of change within English cricket for that reason.And right at this moment – amid an unprecedented focus on white-ball cricket that will culminate in the Champions Trophy on home soil in June, and with Joe Root, the new Test captain, yet to lead his team on the field – Morgan’s views carry extra weight as the ranking officer among England’s players.Last week, he was invited by Tom Harrison, the ECB chief executive, to address the chairmen and chief executives of the 18 counties during a meeting in London, ahead of next month’s vote at which the new tournament is expected to be given the final go-ahead.And, despite the deep-seated reservations that exist among many traditional fans and administrators, as far as Morgan is concerned, the new-look T20 set-up cannot come soon enough.”Change is always difficult but I don’t think this is change,” Morgan said during a Chance to Shine event in Uxbridge. “It probably should have happened a while ago. We’re always going to have the same cricket fans unless we do something differently.”It’s a huge responsibility in growing the game. People are falling out of love with the game because it’s not engaging enough with the public.”There’s an intention to have a lot of games on free-to-air, which is a huge part of it,” he added. “One of the biggest turning points in my generation has been the 2005 Ashes. To have a lot of people, especially in and around London, who aren’t necessarily into cricket talking about cricket is awesome, and to get that back it’s going to have be as big a change as taking cricket to free-to-air.”Morgan admitted that, as a one-day specialist in a previously Test-orientated set-up, he had at times felt somewhat unwatched as an England cricketer during some of the less high-profile bilateral engagements. “You cannot wait four years for an Ashes series or two years for a Champions Trophy to engage with the public,” he said. “It’s got to be continuous. So creating that opportunity is what Tom [Harrison] was talking about.”In the past two years, however, the success of England’s white-ball cricket has, in part, been attributed to a more liberal attitude towards overseas T20 leagues. This year’s IPL will feature an unprecedented eight England players, and with the exception of Tymal Mills – who only plays T20 cricket – all are expected to feature prominently in England’s Champions Trophy plans.England are currently favourites for that tournament, having been losing finalists on home soil four years ago. And Morgan believes that the intensity of the IPL will help no end in preparing those players in particular to deal with the pressure to perform on the biggest stage – not least Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes, two of the players who attracted the biggest bucks at the auction.Eoin Morgan’s success as England’s one-day captain has coincided with a change of attitude towards white-ball cricket•Getty Images

“It’s only pressure for the first two weeks, while you’re there,” he said. “Then, that’s it. You get over it. No big deal. You’re still trying to get the same result out of what you’ve been doing as a kid.”The price tag is there because that’s your market value. Guys are paid a lot of money because they’re worth it. It becomes a shock for everyone at home because we haven’t been exposed enough to it. I think if the exposure to the IPL at home had been the same from the start until now, as opposed to being just over the last two years, people wouldn’t be as shocked about it.”The examples are round the world,” Morgan added. “And I think there will be more – as time goes on, we’ll see other countries produce franchise leagues. The CPL’s a good example – they took it to America. That was a huge hit, and they are going to take more games again next year.”But I don’t think it will damage county cricket at all. It’s not a gamble. It’s proved in other countries that it’s been done. I’m a massive cricket fan regardless of whether T20 goes through the roof. The majority of cricket fans are like that. To people who say it’s a gamble – which it is not – you can always go back to what you had before that.”Eoin Morgan and Charlotte Edwards were attending a Chance to Shine and Yorkshire Tea event to promote the Junior Journalist competition. To find out more and to enter go to www.chancetoshine.org/juniorjourno

PNG will be playing a match that will be televised back home for only the second time ever and their head coach Kila Pala and the cricket board are doing all they can to make sure the kids have fun

Shashank Kishore in Mount Maunganui15-Jan-2018Papua New Guinea last featured in junior cricket’s biggest tournament in 2014. They qualified for their eighth Under-19 World Cup in New Zealand this year after remaining undefeated in the East Asia Pacific Qualifier 2017 in Samoa. They needed to beat the hosts in the final match, and they did so, by eight wickets.Between 2014 and now, PNG have benefited from several administrative reforms. Corporate sponsorships have contributed to the development of the game. The number of turf wickets have gone up, and there is cricket being played in three centres now, as compared to just the one five years ago. It’s these positives that have brought about a new ray of hope for the side as they are set to compete with the big boys.PNG will take on India on Tuesday, and for only the second time in their history, they will be playing on live TV. It will mark a special moment for Hanuabada, a village close to Port Moresby, in particular because as many as 13 members of the current squad come from there. “They’re all very excited. This will be the first time an ICC event will be televised back home,” says Kila Pala, their former captain, who is now their head coach.Pala retired 18 months ago, wrapping up a career that began more than a decade ago in the 2004 Under-19 World Cup in Bangladesh. “Forget about telecast, nobody even knew we were a cricket team,” he laughs. “Today, these boys have an incentive to do well, get noticed and put themselves up for national selection for the World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe in March.The only other occasion the PNG people got to watch their team on live TV was when their board paid the local broadcaster – unheard of in these times of billion-dollar cricket deals – to air the ODI series against Scotland in September. The players are understandably excited, and nervous, but the coach and the CEO are going out of their way to calm the boys and help them enjoy the occasion.Cricket PNG chief executive Greg Campbell looks on anxiously as his team concedes a big total•Peter Della Penna

The PNG team management organised a party for the teenagers on the wharf, just around their hotel in Mount Maunganui. For a good two hours, they sang and danced to traditional music and by the end even the quieter members of the team were opening up in a manner never seen before. The overall mood in the camp now is starkly different to how things were after a loss to Zimbabwe in the opening game.”I don’t want them to worry about the results. That’s what we’ve sort of passed on as management,” says Greg Campbell, the former Australia fast bowler and current chief executive of Cricket PNG. He took over in 2011. “Let’s face it, the next two games are huge – against the two strongest cricket countries in the world. We see this week as a learning curve for us. We’re going to see some of the best players in the future for India playing tomorrow, and then we have Australia. These guys have to sit there and watch how they prepare and watch how they go about their game and we’ll take some stuff out of that.””The results are insignificant to us in a way. Yes, we also want to win. We go in there to show how we play our cricket. Don’t take away their culture; they are exciting cricketers but they’re probably the new baby compared to a 15 or 16-year-olds playing, but they’re looking forward to the challenge. They know it’s going to be hard but they spoke about it.”KP (coach) and the boys have been working for close to eight months which is quite a long time in PNG cricket. They’ve toured Samoa and Australia a couple of times having camps. What I’ve brought from Australia is, ‘you just keep working hard and results will come your way.'”At present, around 200,000 kids have been enrolled in the country’s soft-ball cricket programme, funded by one of Cricket PNG’s sponsors – Bank of South Pacific, who have a ten-year deal. Though not enough of them retained an interest in the game as they grew up – the rate of attrition was high till 2014 – things have changed now.The enthusiasm of the young cricketers in the programme excite Pala and Campbell. When Campbell took over as chief executive of the PNG board, there was just one synthetic wicket. Player contracts were unheard of, but they came into place in 2014, when the team was given ODI status. Two years ago, they introduced a development contract for the Under-19s that takes care of their studies and also provides them with a monthly stipend for meals and kits.”In four-five years, we will see the real benefits of the programme” Campbell says. “We’ve started our hard-ball competition and we’re about to build 50 synthetic wickets around PNG. It goes around the villages which creates more competition. All that will produce more cricketers – simple as that. In the years to come, we’re looking forward but we got to maintain the level our cricket consistently.”Pala is working towards retaining all the eligible players for the next edition of the Under-19 World Cup too, which means they will potentially have two more years in the age-group system as they develop their game. “A lot of these boys want to continue on to the next World Cup. The little left-armer Semo Kamea bowls fast. He just turned 16, so he’ll continue for a couple of years. I know India have got a couple of quicks who bowled in the high 140s so his job is to look at them and learn and feed off.”It’s all a learning curve, the whole cricket in PNG is a learning curve but we have come a long way in quite a small time but we know we’ve got a long way to go. Their culture and love for cricket is passionate and it keeps me going. Hopefully we see one of these boys play for the national side in one or two years.”

The India allrounder said the prospect of being under the guidance of Jhulan Goswami was a big factor in the swap from UP

Annesha Ghosh09-Nov-2017India allrounder Deepti Sharma has been signed up by Bengal for the upcoming senior women’s domestic season. The prospect of being under the guidance of a senior player from the national side – in this case Jhulan Goswami, who captains Bengal – outweighed other parameters, Deepti said.”I’m happy I’ll be spending this domestic season Jhulu ,” she told ESPNcricinfo. “My job is to work hard and grow as a player, so whichever side offers me the opportunity to do so, I’m willing to work with them. In this case, Jhulu presence was a big factor – bigger than anything else.”Deepti was also in talks with Baroda and Railways since being granted a no-objection certificate by the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association.Bengal will be part of the Plate division for the one-dayers this season. They are grouped among 10 teams in the Elite division for the T20 competition. Deepti is scheduled to leave for Kolkata along with Jhulan on November 19 for a state camp ahead of the season opener on December 6.

It is not yet clear if Shaw and Suryakumar will be available for the second T20I

Andrew Fidel Fernando26-Jul-2021

Big picture

Sri Lanka have lost 13 of their last 14 completed matches. Although this is not India’s main team – and there may be further changes following Krunal Pandya* testing positive for Covid-19 – they are more experienced in the format than Sri Lanka, and won comfortably on Sunday. So how do the hosts turn this series around? With a T20 World Cup coming up late in the year, how do they turn their whole game around?On Sunday’s evidence, it is Sri Lanka’s middle order that needs the most work. With Dasun Shanaka out of form, and Wanindu Hasaranga having so far failed to provide the kinds of innings he produced in England, they have been short of firepower through the middle and late stages. In the first match, only Minod Bhanuka (10 off 7) and Charith Asalanka (44 off 26) struck at more than 120.India, you suspect, will feel as if they didn’t bat particularly well in that first match, and yet, their bowlers were good enough to defend their 164 for 5. Bhuvneshwar Kumar ended up with the most wickets, but as has been the case through the tour, Yuzvendra Chahal has troubled Sri Lanka most – some flat out failing to read him, others yet to work out how to score against him, as he gains substantial turn from the Khettarama surface and varies his pace effectively. On the batting front, each of the top four – Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Sanju Samson, and Suryakumar Yadav – has been in decent touch this tour.

Form guide

(completed matches, most recent first)Sri Lanka LLLLLIndia WWWLW

In the spotlight

Like any new captain, Dasun Shanaka wants respect in the dressing room. So far on India’s visit, though, he has not quite found his best form with the bat, failing to produce those explosive, finishing innings. It is India’s wristspin that has usually worked against him – Chahal getting him twice in the ODIs, and Varun Chakravarthy having him stumped on Sunday. If he can overcome this apparent weakness, a boundary-laden innings would do Shanaka, and by extension the team, a world of good.Hardik Pandya made headlines in Sri Lanka, first for giving Chamika Karunaratne (who describes Hardik as a role model) his bat before the first match, and then singing along to the Sri Lankan national anthem. This has been enough to win hearts on the island, but you suspect he is not particularly satisfied with that. His batting form seems to have deserted him, and his bowling has been only marginally better. He also dropped a straightforward catch on Sunday. He is generally a cricketer of such soaring confidence it seems almost unthinkable he could be feeling down about his game. But he’s got only two innings left to rediscover some of that hitting ability.

Pitch and conditions

The surface is likely to be good for batting again, though it will take turn, as all Khettarama tracks do. Colombo has had heavy rain on Monday, and there is a chance of bad weather interrupting the match, but there should be enough play to constitute a match.

Team news

Krunal and eight others identified as his close contacts are now isolating to prevent further spread of the virus. So India’s XI for this game is going to involve a lot of guesswork. Additionally, it is not totally clear whether Shaw and Suryakumar are available, given they have been called up to the Test squad in England. But after the first T20I, Dhawan did say he expected them to be available, so we’ll go with his word.India (possible): 1 Prithvi Shaw, 2 Shikhar Dhawan (capt), 3 Sanju Samson, 4 Suryakumar Yadav, 5 Ishan Kishan (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya, 7 K Gowtham, 8 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 9 Deepak Chahar, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Varun ChakravarthyYou would have thought Ashen Bandara batted himself out of the XI with his nine off 19 in the first match, but with Bhanuka Rajapaksa still likely to be out with a finger injury, and Asalanka also doubtful now with a hamstring complaint, Sri Lanka are running out of batters in the squad. Sadeera Samarawickrama may come in.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Avishka Fernando, 2 Minod Bhanuka (wk), 3 Sadeera Samarawickrama, 4 Dhananjaya de Silva, 5 Ashen Bandara, 6 Dasun Shanaka (capt.), 7 Wanindu Hasaranga, 8 Chamika Karunaratne, 9 Isuru Udana, 10 Dushmantha Chameera, 11 Akila Dananjaya

Stats and trivia

• Despite having played 43 innings in the format, Shanaka’s T20I strike rate is 108.
• India have now won 11 of their last 12 completed T20Is against Sri Lanka.
• Sri Lanka’s three top T20I runscorers since 2016 – Kusal Perera, Thisara Perera, and Danushka Gunathilaka – are all unavailable for this series. Kusal is out through injury, Gunathilaka is suspended, and Thisara retired earlier in the year.

Toby Roland-Jones struck 82 from No. 9 and then claimed two wickets in his first over as Sri Lanka A slipped to 29 for 4 in reply to England Lions’ first-innings 316

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Feb-2017
ScorecardFile photo – Toby Roland-Jones claimed two wickets after cracking 82•Getty Images

Toby Roland-Jones struck 82 from No. 9 and then claimed two wickets in his first over as Sri Lanka A slipped to 29 for 4 in reply to England Lions’ first-innings 316 on the first day in Pallekele. The Lions had recovered from 61 for 3 and 210 for 8 to post a substantial score before ripping into the hosts’ top order.Having chosen to bat, the Lions lost Haseeb Hameed and Nick Gubbins in the opening four overs, Asitha Fernando striking twice. Keaton Jennings, captaining the tourists, then fell to Sri Lanka Test offspinner Dilruwan Perera for 23 before lunch, bowled attempting to reverse-sweep.Tom Westley, who made 95 in a warm-up game earlier in the week, helped fashion a recovery in partnership with Liam Livingstone, as the fourth-wicket pair put on 126 in 27 overs. Westley struck 14 fours and a six but fell short of a century when hooking Kasun Rajitha to a deep leg slip; Livingstone also departed three overs later, the first of four wickets for Malinda Pushpakumara.Pushpakumara struck either side of tea, removing Sam Curran, Tom Curran and Ben Foakes cheaply, as the Lions lost 5 for 21 to squander some of their advantage. Sri Lanka A were unable to wrap up the innings quickly, though, as Ollie Rayner – selected ahead of Jack Leach – helped add 38 for the ninth wicket and then No. 11 Tom Helm held up an end in a stand of 68 as Roland-Jones thumped eight fours and three sixes before being last out.”At 210 for eight, having been 189 for three, you worry about throwing a good position away,” England selector Angus Fraser said. “Getting bowled out for under 250 would have been disappointing from that position. So to inch your way up 10 runs at a time and end up with 316, you’re in the game. It was a good recovery. But there were a couple of good innings at the front end by Westley and Livingstone as well.”Westley batted beautifully. Losing two early wickets he was under a bit of pressure, going out there far earlier than he would have thought. But he and Livingstone manoeuvred the ball around really well, put the bad balls away, took the easy singles that were on offer, and looked in total control. It was good to see. Certainly for Liam, he’s not played a lot of first-class cricket yet, so to see him strike the ball as well as he did was good – and the same with Tom, he was unbelievably strong off his legs.”Sri Lanka A fielded several players with Test match experience, including the openers, Udara Jayasundera and Dimuth Karunaratne. Both had been dismissed inside eight deliveries, however, and Roland-Jones quickly picked up his second wicket – both dismissals lbw – to leave Sri Lanka A 12 for 3.Sandun Weerakkody, who made his international debut on the recent tour of South Africa, briefly steadied the innings but, with the close looming, saw Roshen Silva edge Helm behind – another first-over wicket – to leave the Lions well on top.

The club has approved plans for an ODI honours board for both male and female cricketers

ESPNcricinfo staff27-Jul-2017The Marylebone Cricket Club has approved the decision to introduce honours boards for both men’s and women’s cricketers at Lord’s following England medium-pacer Anya Shrubsole’s match-winning six-for at the Women’s World Cup final. At the moment, the honours boards at the venue are earmarked only for five-wicket hauls and centuries in Tests.MCC’s chief executive, Derek Brewer, told the that the club is planning to add the new board to recognise the exemplary feats of cricketers in the 50-over format. “We are looking into an honours board in one-day cricket for everybody,” he said. “There are some practical issues we have to address first, such as where it will be situated and how long back in time we go, but it is certainly on our minds and an ODI honours board for both men and women would be the way forward.”Lord’s, which gave admittance to women as members only after 1999, hosted a sell-out crowd on Sunday as India’s dramatic collapse handed England their fourth World Cup title. Following the success of the widely watched final, Gerald Corbett, the club’s chairman, told that “Lord’s is changing”.”We are much more open than we were. As the game changes we have to be at the heart of all those changes, whether it is T20, one day or women’s cricket because we are the home of cricket.”