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He has taken tough, unpopular calls, and used his bowlers brilliantly, but Bangladesh need their young leader to get out of a prolonged batting slump

Mohammad Isam15-Jun-20242:23

Najmul Hossain Shanto on his rise and Bangladesh’s strengths

As Bangladesh stand one win away from a Super Eight place in the T20 World Cup 2024, their captain Najmul Hossain Shanto is a subject of mixed feelings.He has led Bangladesh superbly. He has been proactive in his on-field leadership. His handling of bowling changes has been spot-on, which is hard to do in three consecutive games at a T20 World Cup, and he has not shied away from taking tough but unpopular decisions on and off the field.Shanto’s decision to give Shakib Al Hasan just the one over against South Africa was akin to heresy in Bangladesh cricket. It was a little like Rahul Dravid declaring the India innings with Sachin Tendulkar unbeaten on 194. It was called the “declaration of independence” at the time, a loud proclamation of a team-first attitude. Shanto giving Shakib just one over was a widely debated call, and a major one for a Bangladesh captain about to turn 26. His captaincy has been a key component of Bangladesh’s comeback from a nightmare start to their tour of North America.Related

• Can Najmul Hossain Shanto pilot a successful World Cup campaign?

Shanto’s batting form, however, is a cause for concern. His three innings at this World Cup so far have brought him scores of 7, 14 and 1, and he has not scored a half-century in his last 16 innings across international formats, averaging 13.43 in this period. His form has worsened since his arrival in North America in mid-May: he has passed 14 just once in five T20I innings over the course of Bangladesh’s 2-1 defeat to USA last month and this World Cup.Shanto’s North America tour began with his getting stumped off the USA part-timer Steven Taylor as he looked to hit his way out of trouble with Bangladesh stuck at 51 for 2 in the eighth over. He looked in better shape in the next innings, scoring 36 off 34 balls before a mix-up with Towhid Hridoy got him run out.In Bangladesh’s first match at the T20 World Cup, Shanto scratched around for 12 balls before hitting a drive straight to cover. It was a similar story against South Africa: he scratched around for 22 balls before he got rushed by Anrich Nortje, caught at short square-leg trying to pull a 146kph delivery. Shanto had been dismissed in similar manner against India in the warm-up game in New York.Against Netherlands, Shanto reverse-swept offspinner Aryan Dutt straight to slip. He was facing just his third ball.Three innings at the T20 World Cup so far have brought Najmul Hossain Shanto scores of 7, 14 and 1•Getty ImagesThe shot brought to mind a comment in a recent interview from Shanto’s club coach, the former Bangladesh captain Khaled Mahmud.”He [Shanto] is a confident guy, but consistency is becoming a hurdle for him,” Mahmud had said. “I spoke to him recently. I told him that it looks like you are in a lot of hurry in the middle. It is not written anywhere that you have to hit a six every ball in T20s.”Away from the batting crease, however, Shanto is a completely different character. He keeps his calm in public, and smiles a lot in the field. He enjoys his teammates’ success. It takes a strong character to survive the high-pressure and lonely world of Bangladesh captaincy, and Shanto has shown character off the field too, sticking to his guns even when taking unpopular decisions.He is, for instance, part of the decision-making group that has kept picking Tanzim Hasan Sakib over Shoriful Islam, who has been fit since June 8, and Tanzim has vindicated this with his new-ball displays.The highlight of Shanto’s captaincy, though, has been his handling of legspinner Rishad Hossain. After the South Africa match, coach Chandika Hathurusinghe praised Shanto for risking Rishad in the 19th over against a hungry David Miller. Rishad got the left-hander out first ball. Hathurusinghe said the credit for the wicket should go not just to the bowler but the captain too.He used Rishad smartly against the Netherlands too, keeping faith in him even after he went for 14 in his first over. Rishad rewarded Bangladesh with three wickets in two overs when Shanto gave him the 15th and 18th overs. A Bangladeshi legspinner getting important wickets is a sight for sore eyes, and so is a Bangladeshi captain trusting the legspinner to bowl the big overs.1:34

Shakib: Shanto has a great head on his shoulders

Shanto is also Bangladesh’s best all-round fielder. He makes innumerable stops in the covers and midwicket when he is in the circle, and he doesn’t shy away from fielding in the deep in the death overs. Shanto communicates well with the bowlers even when he is in the deep, sometimes relying on his throat, and at other times running all the way to the bowler before heading back to his fielding position.Shanto has also shown he can get out of his own comfort zone to help his team-mates. When Soumya Sarkar failed in the first game against Sri Lanka, Bangladesh replaced him with the middle-order batter Jaker Ali. Someone had to move up the order to open in Soumya’s place, and with Litton Das having scored runs at No. 3 against Sri Lanka, Shanto stepped up, allowing Litton to stay in his position.Fans, however, remain skeptical about Shanto’s batting form. He hasn’t yet adjusted to the new batting position, and his shot against Netherlands has drawn heavy flak. Yet, it seems like Shanto is equipped to handle the frustration at not scoring runs and the criticism he gets for it. At least that’s what his strong captaincy and brilliant fielding suggest. That’s all the public needs to see.Shanto isn’t the first Bangladesh captain to go through a lean run at a World Cup. Two of their better campaigns, in fact, were helmed by struggling captains: Habibul Bashar averaged 13.12 across eight innings at the 2007 ODI World Cup, when Bangladesh made the Super Eight stage, and Mashrafe Mortaza took one wicket for 361 runs in 2019, when they pulled off memorable wins over South Africa and West Indies.The BCB has previously taken rash decisions based on a captain’s performance at a World Cup, so it will be in Shanto’s best interests – as well as that of Bangladesh’s struggling top order – for him to get back among the runs as soon as possible.It’s important that he does this, because he’s ticked every other box. In him, Bangladesh may have found a captain ready to move the team into the future while shedding the baggage of the past, and do so with a smile on his face.

With Pant, Rahul and Iyer back in the auction pool, IPL 2025 will witness a leadership shake-up

Dustin Silgardo31-Oct-20241:19

Moody: Pant will break the IPL auction record

Teams focus on Indian players

Retention split: Indians: 36, Overseas: 10As might have been expected, the majority of players retained (78.26%) are Indians. Just two teams have retained more than one overseas player: Sunrisers Hyderabad, who have retained three, and Kolkata Knight Riders, who have retained two. Several teams have retained just one overseas player, while Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings have retained only Indian players.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Batters still dominate retentions

Retention split: Batters: 28, Allrounders: 7, Bowlers: 11
As has historically been the case, teams have focused on retaining batters over bowlers. Notably, Rajasthan Royals have just one bowler, Sandeep Sharma, among their six retentions. Similarly, SRH have just Pat Cummins as a frontline bowler. MI and Chennai Super Kings have slightly better balance since they each have a death bowler (Jasprit Bumrah and Matheesha Pathirana) and an allrounder (Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja). The two teams that have invested heavily in bowlers are Lucknow Super Giants, who have retained Mayank Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi and Mohsin Khan, and KKR, who have kept Harshit Rana and Varun Chakravarthy in addition to allrounders Sunil Narine and Andre Russell.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Eight teams go for uncapped players

In 2022, just four teams had used the option of retaining an uncapped Indian player for INR 4 crore. This time around, eight of the ten teams have done so. Only MI and SRH have not retained an uncapped player. KKR, PBKS, GT and LSG have each retained two uncapped players, the maximum allowed. DC and RCB have retained one each, while CSK and RR have made use of the new rule of players who have not played international cricket for five years being classified as uncapped. CSK have retained MS Dhoni for INR 4 crore while RR have retained Sandeep Sharma for the same amount. A total of 12 uncapped Indian players have been retained.

Just three specialist spinners retained

In recent years, teams have been reluctant to spend big on spinners who don’t also add value with the bat, and that trend continues. Among the 46 retentions, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi and Varun Chakravarthy are the only three retained purely for their spin bowling. Ravindra Jadeja, Rashid Khan, Axar Patel and Sunil Narine are four spin-bowling allrounders among the retentions. Among the experienced spinners going into the auction are Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Maheesh Theekshana and Rahul Chahar.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Five teams release their captains

LSG, DC, RCB, PBKS and defending champions KKR have all released their captains. While LSG might look at Nicholas Pooran as a leadership option and RCB may go back to Virat Kohli as captain, it is likely KKR, DC and PBKS will be looking for captains during the auction. This could increase the value of players with captaincy experience. Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Faf du Plessis, Aiden Markram, Steven Smith and Nitish Rana are among the auction-bound players with prior captaincy experience. Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes, who have captained England, may also be in demand.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Captains sacrifice pay

In addition to the five captains released, three others have agreed to stay at their franchise as second retentions. Hardik Pandya will be paid INR 16.35 crore (less than Jasprit Bumrah), Shubman Gill INR 16.50 crore (less than Rashid Khan), and Pat Cummins INR 18 crore (less than Heinrich Klaasen). The only two captains who are their team’s joint-top retentions are Ruturaj Gaikwad (INR 18 crore) and Sanju Samson (INR 18 crore).Other marquee players have also agreed to lower price slabs to help their teams balance their purses. MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma are notable among them, but Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Axar Patel and Suryakumar Yadav have also agreed to amounts less than what they might have earned in the auction.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

KKR and DC spend less than deductions

KKR and DC are the only teams who have chosen to pay their players less than the total amount they will have deducted from their purse. KKR have spent just INR 57 crore on their six retentions but will have INR 69 crore deducted from their purse since they have retained four capped players, which means a deduction of INR 61 crore, and two uncapped players, which means a deduction of INR 8 crore. Rinku Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Sunil Narine and Andre Russell have all agreed to amounts less than the retention slabs set by the IPL. Delhi Capitals are also paying their capped players less than what they will be deducted for them. Axar Patel will be paid INR 16.50 crore instead of INR 18 crore, Kuldeep Yadav INR 13.25 crore instead of INR 14 crore, and Tristan Stubbs INR 10 crore instead of INR 11 crore.All the other teams have balanced the amounts paid to their retained players so that none, except Punjab Kings, have gone over the minimum deduction. While SRH have paid Heinrich Klaasen INR 5 crore more than the maximum slab, they have saved that amount by paying Nitish Kumar Reddy INR 6 crore instead of INR 11 crore. Similarly, RCB and LSG have saved the extra INR 3 crores they are paying Nicholas Pooran and Virat Kohli by paying their other capped retentions less. Shubman Gill has agreed to be Gujarat Titans’ second retention, at INR 16.50 crore, and the extra INR 2.50 crore spent there has been balanced by paying Sai Sudharsan INR 8.50 crore instead of INR 11 crore. CSK and MI have split their purse too, with Rohit Sharma being paid less than Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav.

Thorpe’s untimely death has unleashed a wave of tributes from those who discovered a love for the game through his defiant batting

Andrew Miller05-Aug-2024Graham Thorpe’s England career was the promise of better times, melded with the reality that they sometimes seemed unobtainable. His emotions lived and breathed through the combativeness of his strokeplay. When he was up, he was a force to rival any of the mighty protagonists in perhaps the last truly global era of Test batsmanship. When he was down, his returns were so subterranean they almost reeked of despair. Above and beyond his 100 Tests, 16 centuries and a batting average of 44.66 that was higher than, inter alia, Gower, Gooch, Cowdrey and Vaughan, his raw humanity was his defining trait, and a generation loved him for the honesty with which he projected it.Thorpe’s tragic death at the age of 55 has, quite rightly, unleashed a wave of heartfelt tributes from across the sport, spanning his former team-mates and rivals, as well as a host of the modern-day stars whose careers were moulded during his long second innings as a coach with Surrey and England. However, it’s the unseen echelons of appreciation that perhaps speak most eloquently of the adoration his career engendered. All morning long, WhatsApp groups have been bursting with reminiscence at the hope he instilled in so many lost England causes of the 1990s, and by extension the central role he played in causing so many people to fall in love with the game in the first place. But then, underpinning it all, is this shuddering jolt at the sheer fragility of existence. More than one acquaintance of mine has stated that they have never felt more affected by a non-family death. It doesn’t feel overblown to concur.What, then, was the reason for this peculiar and deep-rooted affection? The events of Thorpe’s debut at Trent Bridge in 1993 played a part, of course – after being bounced out by Merv Hughes for single figures in his maiden innings, he seemed to knuckle down and toughen up almost overnight. With inevitable defeat looming at the fall of England’s fifth second-innings wicket, he responded with a combative, indomitable 114 – making him England’s first debut centurion since Frank Hayes against West Indies a full 20 years earlier – that slowly but inexorably ground out a position from which to push for victory. Auspiciously for his narrative purposes, this was done, first, in partnership with the mighty Graham Gooch – Thorpe’s most-legitimate predecessor as England’s truly world-class batter – and then with Nasser Hussain, then another young prospect whose defiance and tenacity would come to prove so crucial to England’s steady rise in standards across the span of their careers.Related

• Joe Root dedicates record-equalling 33rd Test century to Graham Thorpe

• Graham Thorpe struck by train; family confirms he 'took his own life'

• The sadness of Thorpe passing is he'll never know how much he was loved

• Former England batter Graham Thorpe dies aged 55

• Archive – 'I evolved as a bloke through my career'

Perhaps fittingly, Australia’s refusal to yield (this time through Steve Waugh and Brendon Julian) would deny Thorpe and England the fairytale finish to this most uplifting of beginnings. Because, even if it only became truly apparent in hindsight, there would be something exquisitely noble about England’s struggles through the rest of the 1990s – an era blessed, lest we forget, with perhaps the most relentless churn of world-class attacking bowlers ever assembled. If it wasn’t McGrath and Warne lined up against England, it was Ambrose and Walsh. Or Wasim and Waqar. Or Donald and Pollock. Or Murali and Vaas. Tennis fans who have spent the last week coming to terms with the retirement of Andy Murray will recognise the magnificence required simply to compete in such a rarified era, let alone to deliver a clutch of the greatest victories ever compiled against the odds.For a time after his debut, Thorpe’s brilliance was visible only in snatched opportunities. The epithet “selfless” soon attached itself to his methods, most particularly on England’s subsequent tour of the Caribbean, where his twin scores of 86 and 84 were instrumental in setting up two further victory shots, in Trinidad and Barbados. And yet, the defining image of Thorpe’s personal campaign would come right in between those two efforts: his hauntingly bleak stare into the middle distance at Port-of-Spain, with his stumps shattered and the scoreboard reading 40 for 8 after Ambrose’s thrilling fourth-evening rampage. It was a look that questioned his very life choices, that telegraphed – albeit fleetingly – the futility of resistance. Magnificently he was unbowed by the time of his next second innings, a fortnight later in Bridgetown, with a pitch-perfect declaration push that ensured his team would leave a brutal tour with at least one all-timer of an upset to look back on.And yet, with England about to entrust their management to the hard-bitten “supremo”, Ray Illingworth, Thorpe’s integral importance to the team that Mike Atherton was trying to create would be under-valued for a while yet. Where his colleagues saw a man gunning only for what was best for the collective, Illingworth’s binary attitude to run-scoring saw instead a talented rookie who was too flighty to knuckle down and make the most of his promise. As an aside, if Mark Ramprakash and Graeme Hick are commonly cited as the two players of the 1990s who would have benefited most from the introduction of ECB central contracts, Thorpe would surely have been the foremost apostle of Bazball.Thorpe pulls during his 124 against South Africa in 2003•PA PhotosIt’s ironic, therefore, that having been dropped for the first four Tests of the 1994 summer, Thorpe marked his return to the team with a trio of 70s that turned the tide in another thrilling series against South Africa. In keeping with the methods that were already his calling card, each of his innings came at a strike rate significantly higher than a run every two balls, and while it may seem glib to make a big deal of such relatively dour scoring, Thorpe’s genius was not unlike that of Joe Root in the current England line-up. His tracer-like cover-driving and his all-enveloping pull shots would catch the eye when his blood was up, but the bread-and-butter of his matchcraft were the dinks and nudges – often deep in the crease, square-on to the bowler- that kept the strike rotating and the scoreboard ticking. In an age of grim survival, best exemplified by Atherton’s broad blade presented straight back down the line, Thorpe’s proactivity epitomised a willingness to keep striving for something more. His was a defiant optimism that chimed with the times, and kept his fans rapt throughout these years of adversity.Clearly, any professional sportsman needs to offer substance to back up the style, but the occasion of Thorpe’s second Test century was pitch-perfect in England’s straitened circumstances. On a typical Perth flyer, at the tail-end of a desperate tour, he arrived at the crease with Atherton and Mike Gatting dispatched in McGrath’s opening over, but surged onto the offensive in a 158-run stand with Ramprakash that felt like nothing less than the dawning of a brand-new era. In the shimmering white heat of the WACA, a vista that always seemed to be projected more viscerally into the cold of an English winter living room, out came Thorpe’s idiosyncratic wallop of his bat as he sprinted through for the landmark single, arms outstretched, before the removal of his helmet and a glimpse of his lesser-spotted white headband – a treat that always signified the attainment of a rare peak. Not even a predictable reversion to England’s mean in the second innings could taint the sense of a page turned. On the contrary, as McGrath ripped through the top-order to deliver an inglorious end to both Gooch and Gatting’s Test careers, amid a wrecked scoreline of 27 for 6, it became ever more apparent around whom England were obliged to rebuild their fortunes.And so it would come to pass. Notwithstanding the summer of 1999, when the accumulation of a decade of beatings would result in England’s slumping to the foot of the unofficial world rankings, it was possible to detect an incremental uptick in Test standards across the back end of the decade; from England’s hard-fought series win in New Zealand in 1996-97 (featuring two Thorpe hundreds) to their staggering Ashes victory at Edgbaston the following summer (featuring Thorpe’s 138 alongside Hussain’s career-best 207). When a back injury restricted his involvement in the home series win over South Africa in 1998 (England’s first in a five-Test series since 1986-87) it was partly as a consequence of him having become the first England player to feature in ten consecutive winter tours (Test and A-team) – in an age, remember, before central contracts offered any such assurances of continuity.

“Rarely in England’s history has there been an ovation to match that which greeted Thorpe’s comeback century against South Africa at The Oval in 2003, while his final winters as an England cricketer were similarly triumphant, with central roles in series wins in the Caribbean and South Africa”

Fittingly, therefore, Thorpe’s zenith would arrive at the very moment when his value to England was finally and officially recognised. The introduction of ECB central contracts in 2000 came after he had unilaterally opted out of the tour of South Africa the previous winter, amid the first stirrings of the marital problems that would gnaw away at his equilibrium in the final years of his career. But, given the chance to be fully valued by the team to whom he had given so much, he repaid the faith with the single greatest winter of his career, and one of the greatest in England’s touring history.Other wins carry more resonance: England in Australia in 2010-11, or India in 2012-13. But given where England had come from, and the distance they still had to travel, their twin victories in Pakistan and Sri Lanka in 2000-01 remain extraordinary monuments to the resilience of an underappreciated generation. Thorpe himself bookended the triumphs; first in Lahore where he epitomised his captain’s call to fight with every sinew of his being in producing a stalemate-sealing century that featured just a solitary boundary. Then, after picking off the winning runs in England’s miraculous victory in the dark in Karachi, he capped his endeavours in Kandy and Colombo in the new year, willing himself to endure through Sri Lanka’s sticky, sapping heat to overcome an innings loss in Galle and land a sensational 2-1 win.The enduring image of that campaign was of a deathly pale Thorpe, eyes so hollow they might as well have been caked in mascara, willing himself back out to the middle having already won the match once with his stamina-draining 113 not out in the first innings at the SSC. When Sri Lanka collapsed to 81 all out in reply his work should have been done. Instead, England themselves tumbled to 71 for 6, chasing 74. But for his follow-up 32 not out, the day would have been lost. He was so shattered afterwards, he was unable to take any part in the team’s raucous celebrations.Thorpe with Joe Root, one of the many England batters to benefit from his wisdom as coach•Getty ImagesThorpe had another faraway look in his eyes two summers later, against India at Lord’s in 2002, when the torment of his personal life was etched into every one of his all-too-public actions. He made 4 and 1 in that contest, which was five more runs than his spirit seemed willing to offer to the occasion, and when it was announced soon after the contest that he would be taking an indefinite break from cricket, it was merely the rubber-stamping of a fact that his misery had already made clear.Not that it mattered remotely in his personal circumstances, but Thorpe’s decision meant that he would miss the 2002-03 tour of Australia, thereby leaving an incredible dent in his Ashes record; just two Tests out of a possible 15 since the end of 1997, with injury having ruled him out of both the 1998-99 and 2001 campaigns.It was not the end of his story by any stretch of the imagination. Rarely in England’s history has there been an ovation to match that which greeted Thorpe’s comeback century, inevitably in a winning cause, against South Africa at The Oval in 2003, while his final winters as an England cricketer were similarly triumphant, with central roles in series wins in the Caribbean (still unreplicated to this day) and South Africa, for the first time in the post-Apartheid era.By the time of the 2005 Ashes, however, the emergence of Kevin Pietersen – coupled with England’s determination, not unlike that which led to Thorpe’s own breakthrough ten years previously, to proceed with a new generation unencumbered by the scars of the past – meant that he dipped quietly out of international cricket with the occasion of his 100th Test, against Bangladesh in Chester-le-StreetIt was an oddly fitting ending for a man who had been destined to carry his side through adversity, and earn along the way the undying love and gratitude of those true aficionados who recognised the exquisite glory of the struggle.

And how often have the highest individual scores in an innings come from Nos. 9, 10 and 11?

Steven Lynch21-Jan-2025The three highest scores in West Indies’ first innings in the first Test against Pakistan came from Nos. 9, 10 and 11. Was this unique? asked Nadeem Moghal from the United States

West Indies’ first innings in Multan over the weekend was unique in Test history: never before have the three highest scores in an innings come from the last three batters in the order. No. 9 Gudakesh Motie made 19, No. 10 Jomel Warrican 31 not out, and No. 11 Jayden Seales 22. The next highest was 11, by opener Kraigg Brathwaite and No. 8 Kevin Sinclair.There have been two previous occasions in Tests when the two highest scores in an innings came from Nos. 10 and 11. The first was in Sydney in 1885, when Australia’s top scorers against England were Tom Garrett (51 not out from No. 10) and No. 11 Edwin Evans (33). It happened again 137 years later in 2022, when Jack Leach (41 not out from No. 10) and No. 11 Saqib Mahmood (49) were England’s top scorers against West Indies in Grenada.I noticed that New Zealand’s Mark Richardson took only one wicket in his Test career – Mohammad Yousuf, who scored 203. Is this the highest score by a batter to be the only victim of a bowler in Tests? And what’s the record in ODIs and T20s? asked Ekambaram Raveendran from India

You’re right that Mark Richardson took only one wicket in Tests – Mohammad Yousuf of Pakistan in Christchurch in 2001, after he’d scored 203. It turns out that Richardson lies second on this particular list, behind South Africa’s Ashwell Prince of South Africa, whose only Test wicket came in Cape Town in 2006, when he dismissed New Zealand’s Stephen Fleming for 262. They were batters having a rare trundle in a big total, but a specialist bowler lies third: the sole wicket for Kent seamer Jack Martin in his only Test, at Trent Bridge in 1947, was South Africa’s captain Alan Melville for 189.The mark in men’s ODIs is held by the Irish left-arm seamer Phil Eaglestone, whose only wicket was Brendon McCullum (another New Zealander) for 166 in Aberdeen in 2008. In the same innings, another left-armer, Reinhardt Strydom, also claimed his only ODI wicket when he had James Marshall caught behind for 161. Strydom lies joint second with the Dutchman Eric Gouka, who removed South Africa’s Andrew Hudson for 161 in Rawalpindi during the 1996 World Cup.In T20s, Tobden Singye of Bhutan dismissed Nepal’s Gyanendra Malla for 107 in Kirtipur in 2019; and Raymon Reifer of West Indies nabbed Quinton de Kock of South Africa for 100 in Centurion in March 2023.In women’s Tests, Yolani Fourie of South Africa had India’s Thirush Kamini caught behind for 192 in Mysore in 2014; in ODIs Karin Mikkelsen of Denmark dismissed England’s Jan Brittin for 104 in Banstead during the 1993 World Cup, while in T20 internationals the only wicket for Belgium’s Nicola Thrupp came when she dismissed Andrea-Mae Zepeda of Austria for 101 in Seebarn in 2021.I noticed that Amir Jangoo of West Indies scored a century in his only ODI so far. Is there anyone with a longer career who scored hundreds in their first and last ODIs? asked Thomas Masters from Barbados

Two retired players scored centuries in their first and last one-day internationals. The first was England’s Dennis Amiss, who made 103 (the first ODI century) on his debut, against Australia at Old Trafford in 1972, and 108 in his last match, against Australia at The Oval in 1977.He was followed by Desmond Haynes, who hit 148 (still the highest debut score) in his first ODI, against Australia in Antigua in 1978, and 115 in his last, against England in Port-of-Spain in 1994.Among current players, Rahmanullah Gurbaz scored 127 on his debut for Afghanistan, against Ireland in Abu Dhabi in 2021, and made another century in his most recent ODI; he will presumably play again soon.Amir Jangoo hit 104 not out – at 80 balls his century was the fastest by anyone on ODI debut – against Bangladesh in St Kitts last December. There’s another man in a similar position at the moment: Scotland’s Michael English made 107 in his only ODI to date, against Namibia in Dundee in 2024. Both of them will also presumably appear again soon.Here’s the list of the men who scored a century on ODI debut and the one for hundreds in a player’s final ODI, which includes several current batters.In the Adelaide Test of the 2018-19 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, 35 wickets fell to catches alone•Getty ImagesHas there ever been a Test innings in which all ten wickets were out caught? And what’s the highest number of lbws in a single innings? asked Vasco from the UK

There have been no fewer than 93 instances so far of all ten wickets in a Test innings falling to catches, the most recent by Australian fielders in India’s first innings in Perth in November, one of five such cases in 2024. The most catches in an entire Test is 35, in another Australia-India match, in Adelaide in 2018 .The most lbws in a Test innings is seven, which has happened twice: by Zimbabwe’s batters against England in Chester-le-Street in June 2003, and by New Zealand’s against Australia in Christchurch in 2005.The most lbws in a Test is 20 in the match between West Indies and Pakistan in Providence (Guyana) in 2011. No other Test has had more than 17 lbws. If you want to look at the other ways of getting out, the records are on this page under “Similarity of dismissal”.Further to last week’s question about the most wickets in a series by a visiting bowler in a Test series in Australia, what’s the record for a visiting bowler anywhere? asked Jordan Harrison from England

The answer to this one is someone who got a mention last week too: the great English bowler Sydney Barnes not only took 34 wickets in Australia in 1911-12, he hoovered up 49 wickets (at just under 11 runs apiece) in South Africa in 1913-14 – in only four matches, as he fell out with the management and didn’t play in the final Test!That’s the record for any Test series, whether home or away. Next for away series comes the Australian legspinner Clarrie Grimmett, with 44 in South Africa in 1935-36. That was his last Test series: he was 44 years old at the time. Australia’s Terry Alderman took 41 wickets in England in 1989, after collecting 42 in 1981 (both those were six-Test series), and Shane Warne took 40 in five matches in England in 2005.Shiva Jayaraman of ESPNcricinfo’s stats team helped with some of the above answers.Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

Stats highlights from the match between Delhi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad in Visakhapatnam

Sampath Bandarupalli30-Mar-20256 Dismissals for Travis Head against Mitchell Starc across all formats. He’s faced Starc on nine occasions, scoring only 34 runs off 47 balls. After the IPL 2025 match between Delhi Capitals and Sunrisers Hyderabad in Visakhapatnam, Head’s record against Starc in the IPL is ten runs off 7 balls for two dismissals in two innings.5-35 Starc’s figures against SRH – his first five-wicket haul in his 144-match T20 career. He also completed 200 wickets in T20s on Sunday.3 T20s in which Starc has taken three wickets in the powerplay. Two of those have been against SRH – in Ahmedabad in 2024 and Vizag on Sunday.3 Player-of-the-Match awards for Starc in his last three games against SRH – ten wickets at an average of 8.30.12 Sixes Aniket Verma has hit in the 57 balls he’s faced so far in the IPL – the most any batter has hit in their IPL career at this point. Jake Fraser-McGurk hit 12 sixes in his first 60 balls faced in the IPL, while Deepak Hooda (11), Bhanuka Rajapaksa (10) and Romario Shepherd (10) struck ten or more sixes.350.00 Aniket’s strike rate while playing the lofted shot on Sunday, as per ESPNCricinfo’s ball-by-ball logs. He scored 63 runs off 18 lofted shots, hitting all five of his fours and six sixes before holing out on the boundary. The rest of the SRH batters played 15 lofted shots for 23 runs, with eight resulting in dismissals.

His mastery of angles from over the wicket and around keeps left-handed batters on their toes

Matt Roller24-Jul-2025

Jofra Archer has enjoyed bowling to left-handers in this series, and his career•Getty Images

It was a sight to make any fast bowler purr: a stump lodged in the outfield like a javelin after being uprooted and sent cartwheeling towards the wicketkeeper. It was made even better for Jofra Archer by the fact that it was the batter’s off stump, and better still that the batter in question was Rishabh Pant.Pant’s wicket on the second afternoon of the Manchester Test was Archer’s seventh of the series, and all seven had been left-handers. That was not a coincidence, but a wider trend of Archer’s career: he has bowled just over 30% of his deliveries in Test cricket to left-handers, but they account for more than 40% of his wickets.He did finally dismiss a right-hander for the first time this series when he had Jasprit Bumrah caught down the leg side on review, but the story of Archer’s return to England’s Test team has been his threat against lefties. He now averages 35.48 against right-handers in Tests compared to 21.66 against left-handers, and the trend extends across formats.Related

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The ball that accounted for Pant was the archetypal left-hander’s dismissal to a right-arm seamer in the modern era: angled in from around the wicket on a good length, before shaping away late to hit the off stump. It was once the angle of last resort but in 2025, more than 70% of balls from right-arm seamers to left-handers have been from around the wicket.But Archer’s threat to left-handers is exacerbated by the fact that he is just as comfortable bowling over the wicket to them, as he proved in his first over of the second morning. He created two chances in three balls to Ravindra Jadeja – the first dropped at gully, the second taken at second slip – which highlighted his great strength of keeping tight to the stumps.Compared to most right-arm seamers, Archer’s angle across left-handers from over the wicket is much less pronounced. The result is not only that he never offers enough width to be cut, but that he can keep multiple modes of dismissal in play with a single ball: his stock ball pitches in line with leg stump, unlocking the lbw, then shapes away off the seam to challenge the edge.

JOFRAAA!!

Archer flirts with the outside edge a few times, then gets the nick!

Harry Brook holds on and Ravindra Jadeja is gone for 20.

pic.twitter.com/F0XuLbAe6B

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 24, 2025

Australia have lost just a handful of matches since winning the 2022 title while Sri Lanka, Pakistan and New Zealand give chase

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Sep-2025

Australia

Australia, the defending champions, start overwhelming favourites again having lost only a handful of matches since dominating the last World Cup in 2022.There has been a little bit of transition within the team over the four years since with the retirements of Meg Lanning and Rachael Haynes, while Jess Jonassen has lost her place as a first-choice member of the squad.Australia’s major issue at the 2025 World Cup, if there really is one, has been balancing the side with their abundance of talent. They have four allrounders in their top seven, who can all bat in the top five, and their six specialist bowlers have a legitimate claim to play every match. The fitness of Sophie Molineux is a watching brief but her return from injury creates a good headache, as adding a left-arm orthodox spinner into the attack looks more balanced than playing two legspinners – Georgia Wareham and Alana King.Meanwhile, back-up opener Georgia Voll already has an ODI century against India, while one of their most powerful middle-order players, Grace Harris, has been ruled out of the World Cup.Skipper Alyssa Healy again will be a key figure, as she was in 2022, but has a heavy workload coming off a stress fracture in her foot. Her injury in the 2024 T20 World Cup proved extremely costly when Australia suffered a rare semi-final defeat.Ellyse Perry and Phoebe Litchfield, just two of the many allrounders in the Australia side•Getty Images

Squad

Alyssa Healy (capt, wk), Darcie Brown, Ashleigh Gardner, Kim Garth, Heather Graham, Alana King, Phoebe Litchfield, Tahlia McGrath, Sophie Molineux, Beth Mooney, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Georgia Voll, Georgia Wareham

Key player

In a line-up of match-winners, Ashleigh Gardner looms as one of Australia’s most important figures. As the only offspinner in Australia’s spin quartet, she provides crucial balance to the attack and can play a holding or attacking role bowling both in and outside the powerplay. She has dismissed the world’s No. 1 ODI batter Smriti Mandhana five times in ODI cricket and will be a crucial match-up when the two teams meet in Visakhapatnam on October 12. Gardner also won Australia three ODIs with the bat last summer after the top-order stumbled, including smashing a maiden international century against England.

Predicted finish

Champions. For the eighth time. Unless something dramatic happens, either in the lead-up to the tournament or during it, it’s difficult to see Australia not winning the trophy.

Sri Lanka

Chamari Athapaththu holds the key for co-hosts Sri Lanka•SLCFor much of this decade, one of Sri Lanka’s major problems has been sustaining a healthy cricket schedule. Once again, in 2025, Sri Lanka Cricket has put only a bare-bones schedule in place for the top women’s team. Since the start of this year, they’ve had just eight ODIs on the books, with one of those games having been rained out. Their record even in those matches has not been especially heartening – Sri Lanka have lost five of the seven matches that yielded a result.Still, on familiar surfaces, Sri Lanka feel they have a fighting chance. More than that, they believe they have something to fight for. This will likely by Chamari Athapaththu’s last World Cup in ODIs – the format she has most excelled in. Inoka Ranaweera, the 39-year-old spin-bowling mainstay in the Sri Lanka attack for more than a decade, is also unlikely to play another World Cup in this format.There is a rebuild on the horizon, but before that, the team is desperate to send off this generation with a strong performance. With the likes of Harshitha Samarawickrama, Vishmi Gunaratne, and Kavisha Dilhari having developed significantly as batters over the past three years, there is more support for Athapaththu than she has had in the last two World Cups.

Squad

Chamari Athapaththu (capt.), Hasini Perera, Vishmi Gunarathne, Harshitha Samarawickrama, Kaveesha Dilhari, Nilakshika Silva, Anushka Sanjeewani (wk), Imesha Dulani, Dewmi Vihanga, Piumi Wathsala, Inoka Ranaweera, Sugandika Dasanayaka, Udeshika Prabodani, Malki Madara, Achini Kulasooriya

Key player

There may be new stars forming in this XI, but as has been the case for much of the last decade, plenty will depend on how good a tournament Athapaththu has. Where it used to be the case that even her best innings were not enough to get Sri Lanka over the line, Athapaththu’s good performances have translated more consistently into wins, more recently. She is also coming off a decent run at the Caribbean Premier League.

Predicted finish</h2If Sri Lanka manage to squeeze every ounce of advantage they get from playing most of their group games at home, could they potentially chart a dark-horse run into the semi finals?

Pakistan

This will be Fatima Sana’s first ODI World Cup as Pakistan captain•ICC/Getty ImagesPakistan have long struggled for consistency on the World Cup stage. In the last edition, their only win came against West Indies, a side that hasn’t qualified this time. Their performances in 2013 and 2017 were equally disappointing, finishing at the bottom of their group without a win in either tournament.In the 2022-25 Championship cycle, Pakistan managed only eight wins from 24 matches, ultimately needing to qualify through the home Qualifiers where they remained unbeaten. While their overall form has been patchy, there have been moments of promise – notably the near chase of 313 against South Africa a few weeks before the global event, where a late collapse overshadowed what could have been a record win in Lahore.This will be Fatima Sana’s first ODI World Cup as captain, having led the side at last year’s T20 event. Still only 23, Sana heads a side in transition – but with experience and emerging talent on her side. She, along with left-arm spinners Nashra Sandhu and Sadia Iqbal, will be key to Pakistan’s bowling attack.Batting responsibilities will revolve around in-form batter Sidra Amin, who has scored over 500 runs since the start of 2024. Muneeba Ali and Aliya Riaz are capable of providing key contributions, while Natalia Pervaiz’s maiden ODI fifty against South Africa was a refreshing middle-order boost.To challenge for a semi-final spot, Pakistan will need to turn isolated flashes into consistent, collective performances.

Squad

Fatima Sana (capt), Muneeba Ali (vice-capt), Aliya Riaz, Diana Baig, Eyman Fatima, Nashra Sandhu, Natalia Pervaiz, Omaima Sohail, Rameen Shamim, Sadaf Shamas, Sadia Iqbal, Shawaal Zulfiqar, Sidra Amin, Sidra Nawaz (wk), Syeda Aroob Shah

Key player

Sidra Amin, a mainstay of Pakistan’s batting lineup for over a decade, brings experience and form into the World Cup. A technically sound, conventional right-handed batter, she was Pakistan’s highest run-scorer in the World Cup Qualifiers in Lahore and arrives at the tournament on the back of consecutive ODI centuries against South Africa. Since 2024, she has notched up two centuries and three half-centuries. Her ability to anchor innings and deliver under pressure will be central to Pakistan’s plans.

Predicted finish

Bottom half of the table.

New Zealand

New Zealand are eyeing the World Cup double•Associated PressNew Zealand will be eyeing the double, having won the T20 World Cup last year. Led by 36-year-old Sophie Devine, who will be retiring from ODIs after the World Cup, they have a mix of youth and experience. Aside from Devine, playing her fifth ODI World Cup, they have experience in Suzie Bates, Lea Tahuhu, Amelia Kerr and Maddy Green, while several others including Georgia Plimmer, Polly Inglis, Eden Carson and Izzy Gaze will be playing their first ODI World Cup.New Zealand will be coming into the tournament with no ODI action in the last six months, having last played against Sri Lanka at home in March. That’s also the only ODI series they’ve won since the start of 2024, having lost to England (both home and away), India and Australia. However, the other teams won’t take them lightly; they were on a 10-match losing streak heading into the T20 World Cup last year and went on to win the tournament.Winter camps in New Zealand aside, a few of their World Cup-bound players – Plimmer, Jess Kerr, Brooke Halliday and Flora Devonshire – were part of a two-week camp at the CSK academy in Chennai in August. Bates played 10 games in the ECB Women’s One-Day competition in the summer where she hit 163 for Durham against Somerset, while a few others, including Amelia Kerr, played in the Hundred through August.New Zealand will begin their campaign against defending champions Australia in Indore after warm-up games against South Africa and India. They lost two warm-ups against England in Abu Dhabi, where Green raised a century in one while Bates and Plimmer scored fifties in the other.

Squad

Sophie Devine (capt), Suzie Bates, Eden Carson, Flora Devonshire, Izzy Gaze, Maddy Green, Brooke Halliday, Bree Illing, Polly Inglis, Bella James, Jess Kerr, Amelia Kerr, Rosemary Mair, Georgia Plimmer, Lea Tahuhu

Key player

New Zealand’s highest run-scorer (1670) and wicket-taker (51) in ODIs in the last five years, legspinning allrounder Amelia Kerr is only 24, but has the experience of 77 ODIs, and will be playing her third 50-over World Cup. Since her first World Cup in 2017, where she finished as New Zealand’s joint-highest wicket-taker, Kerr has gone on to become one of the most important players in the team. Her all-round effort at the T20 World Cup final against South Africa, where she scored 43 runs and picked up 3 for 24, took New Zealand to their first T20 title, and she finished as Player of the Tournament. She is expected to play a key role with the bat at No. 3 as well as with the ball in the middle overs.

Predicted finish

Semi-finals.

Pakistan hardly put on a clinic against Bangladesh, but the universe, it seems, can’t prevent the contest this competition has been destined for

Danyal Rasool26-Sep-20252:24

Aaron: Pakistan found right ‘mixture of calm and emotion’

Shaheen Shah Afridi is apparently a low-value wicket. So low-value, in fact, that Pakistan didn’t even use him with the bat against India last Sunday, which is objectively a high-value match. So low-value that even Bangladesh – impeccable in the field until then – appeared to momentarily forget it was still a wicket worth taking, and put down two fairly straightforward chances Afridi offered up. He had said on Tuesday after Pakistan’s victory over Sri Lanka he was willing to “give his life” for Pakistan, but no one seemed to take him seriously.But there hadn’t been much value from the batters Pakistan do set store by either. Within the first ten balls of the innings, Sahibzada Farhan had sliced Taskin to the backward-point fielder, and Saim Ayub had got his fourth Asia Cup duck after a heady two-game streak of getting off the mark.At this point, Hasan Ali had sprinted up to the middle – not, mercifully, to bat, though with Pakistan sticking and twisting with their order all tournament, you never could be too certain. He gave Fakhar Zaman a drink, and a message, as if Pakistan’s Plan B specifically covered being 5 for 2 inside ten deliveries.Related

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It’s unclear what Hasan said, though it didn’t seem to have helped Fakhar’s game much. He would spent his brief, tortured stay at the crease trying to charge Bangladesh’s quicks, his wild hacks connecting only with the desert air. By the time Rishad Hossain came to bowl after the powerplay, the 35-year-old was like the old family faithful that had fought to the very end, and had earned the right to give up. A weary slog off his 20th ball found long-off; his 100th T20I innings would also be his slowest in games where he had faced at least that many balls. The end of the powerplay had seen 24 dot balls, by that stage the highest for any side all tournament.When the innings’ halfway stage arrived, a bedraggled Pakistan had limped to 46 for 4, half of what they managed against India in their last game at this venue, and for the loss of three further wickets. Four days on from the perfect start to the one game Pakistan want to win most, the worst of Pakistan reared its head in the game they had viewed as a stepping stone to one last crack at beating India.

****

It is said in football that the most dangerous situation is a two-goal lead, even though every side wants to get themselves in that position. That is perhaps because momentum, or the perception of it, feels like it plays an outsized role in a sporting contest, like a tug of war contest where the exact position of each line doesn’t matter so much as the direction of travel.With Pakistan 51 for 5 after 11 overs, Bangladesh are ascendant; that wouldn’t have changed even if Nurul Hasan’s little goose-step to the left had been timed well enough to allow the ball to stick in his hand. But it doesn’t. Three balls later, another primitive smear from Afridi flies up into the Ring of Fire lights. Mahedi Hasan puts it down again. Within a couple of overs, Afridi has connected with two balls that are sent sailing out of Dubai. That two-goal lead doesn’t seem quite as secure anymore.1:49

Wahab: Additional pressure on India in the final

“We’ve won a lot of games in the last few months where we were far from owning the whole 40 overs,” coach Mike Hesson said after the game. “We had to fight back. But what I can say about this team is they are incredibly proud to represent Pakistan. Every single one had belief we could fight our way out of it. That’s what you want in a team representing your country. We’re incredibly proud of the way we fought. We don’t want to be 4 for 33 all the time, I assure you that. But the fact we can win games from that position shows the character in the group.”That belief may also have to do with Pakistan’s addiction to these situations. Hesson would say after the game that Bangladesh had prevented Pakistan from playing the perfect match, but Pakistan’s ultimate yearning has always been for chaotic glory, not structured success. High on their own supply of fateful triumphs past, Pakistan strut their way around the remainder of the innings in a manner that belies the position they are in, or the circuitous route they took to get here. This is merely the latest turn for Pakistan in a tournament that has taken on a sense of inevitable destiny for them.That is a force much too powerful for Bangladesh to resist, who will wistfully look back at the last three quarters of the game, and how they allowed themselves to be background characters in Pakistan’s madcap adventure. Hesson’s tactic of eschewing specialist fast bowling to squeeze every last bit of batting into Pakistan’s side always felt like a tactic in search of a situation, but as Pakistan closed out their innings, you imagined this was the kind of game he kept envisioning: nos. 6-9 score a combined 89 in 60 balls, the final nine overs producing 84, the second-highest in the Super Fours so far.Bangladesh supporters outnumber Pakistan’s by at least three to one, so the noise in the stands is a verdict of Bangladesh’s position in the game. As the scorching heat of Dubai relents, more seats are gobbled up. But the voices seem to go even quieter.3:15

Why do Bangladesh struggle in pressure situations?

The four sixes Bangladesh hit in the powerplay belie the leaden timidity they display for much of it. When the fielding restrictions are lifted, they have already outdone Pakistan’s tournament-high dot-ball count; they have played 25. The required rate is soon climbing, and the moment has overtaken them. While Pakistan can grow into these situations, Bangladesh have historically shrunk from them. It is the perfect cocktail to turn them into fodder for Pakistan’s juggernaut.There is no sense, even in that passage of dominance, that Pakistan are putting on any kind of clinic. Even with victory virtually guaranteed, there are moments of comic Pakistan frenzy. Haris Rauf over-exerts himself in the 18th over, falling to his knees in the delivery stride. He will not get up for six minutes as he receives extended treatment. But when he does, he’ll send the bails flying twice in the next three balls.With Bangladesh down to their last pair, Pakistan let them get uncomfortably close, dropping a catch before conceding 21 in ten balls. It leaves the chase a mathematical possibility right down to the last two deliveries. But the universe, it seems, simply cannot hold back the contest this competition was probably created to deliver as frequently as possible.An India vs Pakistan final may have been divinely ordained, but it needed Pakistan at its flawed, human best to take the tournament to that point. There may have been plenty lost in Pakistan cricket over the years, but as the small pocket of supporters who stayed back to dance to “Dil Dil Pakistan” on a muggy Dubai night reminded you, it is still anything but low-value.