The last time he played against India in a World Cup game, Jansen leaked runs. But things have changed since then

Sidharth Monga28-Jun-20242:45

Jansen a ‘real nightmare’ with bounce and movement

It was hyped as the final before the final. At a ground that many believe should have been hosting the final anyway. India had won seven out of seven, South Africa had won six out of seven. With Australia starting slowly, and with Pakistan not turning up at all, this was supposed to be the match of the league stages. Eden Gardens was all decked up and fully packed. This was the biggest occasion outside India vs Pakistan and the knockouts.Marco Jansen had been South Africa’s highest, and the tournament’s third-highest, wicket-taker. All his 16 wickets had come with the new ball: in the powerplay. He was supposed to set the tone once India decided to bat first. What followed was an extremely inaccurate first spell of 2-0-27-0 during which he bowled five wides, one of which went to the boundary too. The tone was set but not in the manner South Africa wanted it set.At his best, Jansen is a menacing quick who has pace, height (thus bounce) and movement both in the air and off the pitch. When he is good, he is irresistible, but it is believed that when he is bad he is awful. In April 2022, he went from 3 for 25 at Brabourne Stadium to 0 for 63 three days later at Wankhede Stadium a few hundred metres north of it. In the process, failing to defend 22 in the last over, raising question marks over his “mental strength”. Something that got reinforced during that “big match” against India in the ODI World Cup at Eden Gardens.Related

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Data does back the instinct, though. Not mental strength because that is for experts in psychology and psychiatry to speak about but about the wild fluctuations in Jansen’s returns. ESPNcricinfo’s Shiva Jayaraman worked out numbers that are instructive. A total of 132 bowlers have bowled 600 or more balls in T20s since the start of 2023. Among them Jansen is the only one to have gone at under seven an over in more than 30% of his bowling allotments and at over 10 an over in more than 30% of spells: 30.43% under seven an over and 32.6% at over 10 an over. “Big variance on either side,” Jayaraman says.There is more than mental strength to it, though. Mental strength is nothing but your technique, physical fitness and tactical sharpness put together. Just after Jansen led South Africa into their first men’s World Cup final in any format, I asked Jansen to revisit that Eden Gardens nightmare and what was going through his mind that day.”Ja I think a lot of things came into it,” Jansen said. “One of them probably being a long time away from home and then also physically being drained because 50-over cricket and playing it in India, I am sure everyone that played at World Cup was physically tested, especially at the back end of that tournament. India’s known for heat and for humidity at certain places. So I think it was a mixture of both.”I just think it was one of those days where it’s not your day. You have those days and at the end of that game I realised that, ‘okay, cool, today it probably wasn’t my day where nothing was going my way,’ if it makes sense.”3:20

Moody: We haven’t seen the best of South Africa yet

That is the kind of an insight active sportspeople rarely share. That possibly his conditioning wasn’t at its peak for this particular match.The T20 World Cup 2024 is not too dissimilar in terms of humidity and the off-field fatigue. Apart from the short turnaround between matches, South Africa have not been on a single flight that has left on time. They spent one whole night at an airport in Florida along with Sri Lanka and Ireland teams. Before the final they endured a seven-hour delay at the Trinidad airport.Then again, Jansen is an elite professional, and has learnt lessons from the past. “It’s almost similar here also with the humidity and the heat,” he said. “I just think personally for me, I’ve been really doing well in terms of my nutrition and what I eat and when I eat it and what I drink. I’ve made conscious effort to drink a lot of water, especially on off days and travel days. And then on game day I just try and switch my physical fatigue off, if it makes sense. I try and not think about it, which I think I’ve done pretty well.”Unbeaten so far, South Africa have ridden on the starts Jansen has given them. He has conceded at just over a run a ball even though the wickets column reads only six, three of them in the semi-final against Afghanistan. In the final, he will be up against what has proved to be the best batting order of this tournament, adjusting superbly to the varied conditions without compromising on their attacking intent. Jansen is going to be extremely important because teams have used left-arm pace to try to shut off the Indian batters, especially Rohit Sharma, who has found red-hot form and that little bit of luck you need in T20s just at the right time.These two teams are unbeaten in the tournament. This is the big final likely to be played in the most balanced of conditions of the tournament. Rohit will be looking to take Jansen down like he did Mitchell Starc, another tall left-arm quick. For two teams that have lived with the popular tag of not doing well in the “matches that matter”, the tone that Jansen sets will be crucial.The difference here, though, is Jansen is wiser than he was last year, is better conditioned, and South Africa are a more rounded team that has potential to recover from a bad day for one individual. Then again, India are utilising their resources better and not relying on any one batter to take it upon himself to get them a total. No wonder this is going to be the showpiece contest in the showpiece match of the year so far.

Nepali expats, who have been coming out in droves to support their home team, will play an important role in the future of cricket in the USA

Cameron Ponsonby14-Jun-2024It is 10:30am on a Tuesday in Dallas, Texas, and Nepal are about to play cricket against Netherlands in a World Cup. As sporting events go, it is as unlikely as they come.Furthermore, to take the situation from the unlikely to the borderline hallucinogenic, far from the Grand Prairie Stadium being empty for this group stage match between two Associate nations thousands of miles from home, it is packed with 5500 Nepalis, creating a raucous atmosphere.”I have to say the fans were amazing,” beamed Dutch bowler Logan van Beek at the innings break. “I’m not sure whether we are in Dallas or Nepal.”Those scenes were repeated a week later in Florida, where despite Nepal’s fixture against Sri Lanka being rained off, thousands of fans filled the stands and danced and sang as the rain continued to fall.As one fan’s sign read, “If ICC schedules matches for Nepal in the moon. Nepalese fans will be there.” You don’t doubt it, given that many of the fans arrived at the ground around the time a local weather warning was sent in Florida instructing people not to travel.Related

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Nepal’s love affair with cricket is well known. Packed stands in Kathmandu are the norm, and billboards in the cities are adorned with cricketers as opposed to footballers. But how that passion has translated to full stands in America, less so.The Nepali American community is the fastest growing Asian population in the United States. At the turn of the century, the diaspora numbered 7858 people, according to United States Census Bureau data. It is now over 200,000, with some estimates placing it closer to 300,000.The Nepalese civil war from 1996 to 2006 was the catalyst for many to leave the country, as was the major earthquake in 2015 that killed almost 10,000 people. The Nepali Centre for the Study of Labour and Mobility estimates that 1700 people leave Nepal every day in search of employment.Eight years ago, one of those people was Binod BK, now an area manager for Amazon, who was in the stands for Nepal’s rained-off match against Sri Lanka.”I moved here to do my Master’s,” he says. “It was after the earthquake, so I moved to America to study and I found a lot of opportunities.”A lot of people [from Nepal] move to different countries, but everybody wants to come to America, right? It’s the American dream.”While everyone’s story is unique, the two most common starting points are America’s Diversity Visa programme, also known as the green-card lottery, and student visas.Rain didn’t dampen the fans’ enthusiasm in Florida•Matt Roberts/ICC/Getty ImagesIntroduced in 1990, the programme makes 55,000 visas available each year to nations that have historically had low levels of immigration to the USA. Nepal has been one of the main beneficiaries of the programme. In the 2024 release, they received the third-highest allocation of visas in Asia, just under 4000. The number of applicants from 2024 is not yet available, but in 2020 it stood at over 600,000 from Nepal and 14 million globally.”I tried three or four times [for the diversity visa],” Binod says of his own experience, before he successfully applied for his student visa.According to the US International Institute of Education, Nepal’s student population is the 11th largest in the USA, standing at 15,000. A remarkable statistic considering that only 25 years ago there weren’t even 10,000 Nepalis in America, full stop.The growth of the Nepali population in the USA bodes well for the growth of cricket in the country.Much of the current expansion of grassroots cricket in America is due to second- or third-generation South Asian families wanting their children to play the sport – and in that respect, Nepal is 20 years behind.The Nepali population in America is incredibly young. The median age in America is 38, the median age of an immigrant is 47 (seemingly high because people move as adults and then have children in the US, which doesn’t factor into the figure), and the average Nepali American is 30. Many of these young Nepali immigrants, such as Binod, will go on to gain sponsorship for a career and look to settle down and have families.In high places: fans in Kirtipur get a bird’s eye view of the action in the Nepal-UAE World Cup League 2 match in 2023•Sanjit Pariyar/Getty Images”I have a three-year-old son,” says Sanjay Sharma, who moved from Nepal to Dallas in 2003. “And I definitely want him to get into his cricket. Although he’s born and brought up here, you want that inheritance of a Nepalese identity to come though, right? That’s what happened with the Indian community and that’s what happened with the Pakistani community as well.”The World Cup has galvanised the Nepali population in America, with people travelling from far and wide to support their country as much as to attend a cricket match.”It’s not only the cricket community,” Sharma explained of the crowds you see on TV. “But non-cricketing people as well. Some of them have never watched a game of cricket, but it’s about, ‘Hey, my country’s playing, my birthplace’, so they want to come and witness it and it’s just word of mouth [that makes it spread].”Before the match against Netherlands, hundreds of people attended a fan event hosted in Dallas by cricket broadcaster Andrew Leonard.”We’ve had one in each city,” says Leonard. “Dallas was crazy. It just stops you in your tracks that down there in Texas we had about a thousand people coming in… I spoke to people who’d come from, I think, over 35 of the 50 states.”Leonard is himself Irish but has become an adopted son of Nepal after covering cricket in the country on over 25 occasions. Such is his association with the country, he has been given the nickname – meaning bald older brother – by Nepal fans.You’ll find us everywhere: Nepal fans assert their commitment to their team•ICC/Getty Images”It’s both disparaging and complimentary at the same time,” Leonard laughs. “There was a bit of a controversy over whether or not the fans thought it was okay and whether I would like it, but I love it.”One of the things I adore about Nepal is that they’ve got an incredible sense of humour. And for me, I find them very, very similar to Irish people. They love music, they love a night out, they love a drink, they love their food, they love a bit of craic… I feel very lucky to have been taken in by their fan base.”The passion of that fan base has been evident through this World Cup and it is translating to an increase of Nepali players in local leagues as well as Nepali teams.”It’s unimaginable,” Sharma says of the Nepali cricket scene now in Dallas compared to ten years ago. “I knew a few guys here and there, but a full first team in three or four clubs? No way.”Sharma was himself a co-owner of Lumbini All Stars, a franchise side that won the Nepal T20 league in 2022-23, where the majority of their overseas players were American-based. He is also now the CEO of Dallas All Stars, a side that competes in the T10 US Open, which features several international players.”You cannot guarantee anything, but at the local level of cricket, the more the population is growing, the more interest is generated.”The question of whether cricket will ever succeed in America is a constant one, but you can be sure that if it does, the Nepali community will be a large part of that success.

With eight wickets in the T20I series, Glenn is the joint-leading wicket-taker with fellow spinner Sophie Ecclestone

Valkerie Baynes14-Jul-20240:54

Glenn: We’ve shifted to a resilient, aggressive style without forcing it

It seems whenever the England men’s football team play a big match, Sarah Glenn brings her A game.In England Women’s opening T20I against New Zealand, the footballers were about half an hour into their Euro 2024 clash with Switzerland – which England won on penalties to reach the semi-final – when Glenn walked off the field at Southampton with a crucial 3 for 16 to her name as the hosts went 1-0 up in the five-match series.On Saturday, some 24 hours before England face Spain in the Euro final, she sat in the post-match press conference at The Oval with 4 for 19 from yet another victory over New Zealand, who go into Wednesday’s fixture at Lord’s with one last chance to return home with a solitary win from eight matches.Glenn is the joint-leading wicket-taker in the T20I leg of New Zealand’s visit with fellow England spinner Sophie Ecclestone. Glenn has eight wickets at a better average of 6.87, and her economy rate of 4.34 is the best across both teams. Charlie Dean, the other prong to England’s enviable spin trio, was rested on Saturday as part of her side’s rotation policy throughout this series, but Glenn and Ecclestone – six of New Zealand’s eight wickets fell between them – had it covered.Ecclestone and Glenn are ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the ICC’s T20I bowling rankings and Dean is at No. 8. Ecclestone has held the top spot since February 2020 but England now find themselves in a position where they have enough players in form with bat and ball to experiment ahead of the T20 World Cup in Bangladesh in October.That is a testament to the depth they have been building, which appears to be peaking at the right time. It was only in May, after two home white-ball series against Pakistan that ended in victory for England but lacked the ruthlessness they have shown against New Zealand, that England head coach Jon Lewis suggested his squad faced a challenge keeping up with the standards of big stars Ecclestone and Nat Sciver-Brunt.Suzie Bates leaves the field after being bowled by Sophie Ecclestone on Saturday•Getty Images”Everyone’s performing at some point,” Glenn said. “I feel like we’re not kind of relying on big names anymore. Everyone has taken their turn to step up and I think that’s so exciting, especially the young ones and every single player. You could pick any XI at the moment, from not just this squad but also back into the regional teams. Everyone’s performing really, really well and pushing for their place. It’s really exciting.”New Zealand’s reliance on big names – Suzie Bates, Sophie Devine and Amelia Kerr – has left them looking toothless on this tour. That was emphasised by the fact that the closest they have got to beating England was when Devine reached a first half-century for any of those three in the T20Is with 58 in the third game in Canterbury. There, England won by six wickets with just four balls remaining after Alice Capsey’s 67 not out.In both of Glenn’s pivotal performances, she has claimed wickets in clusters. She took three in an over in Southampton and had two double-wicket overs on Saturday. She bowled Georgia Plimmer with a straight delivery that crashed into middle stump, then sent down a half-tracker that Amelia Kerr slapped straight to Capsey at midwicket, a dismissal Glenn admitted she would take but wasn’t keen to see on replay.Glenn also bowled Jess Kerr and had Maddy Green caught at mid-on, the latter saying: “They’re a world-class spin attack and Sarah has been able to come in and change the game. Unfortunately, we haven’t played it very well. She’s bowling well and we need to be at our best to compete with the likes of Sarah Glenn and their spin attack. We just weren’t at that today unfortunately and that sort of swung the momentum of our innings pretty crucially.”Against the backdrop of a football game that will grip the country on Sunday night, Glenn was asked how she prepares for big occasions.”I think it’s just that balance of switching on and switching off,” she said. “We set meetings to chat through fields or certain batters on their team, for example, so we put those in place just to have those chats and clear our heads before the game. And then in between that, switch off. We’re in the changeroom, got the tunes on, chatting a lot of rubbish, to be honest. It’s just that real balance of being really clear on what we want to do before and giving ourselves the best chance to win, but also enjoying it and playing with a smile on our face.”For the record, Ecclestone is the dressing room DJ, and Glenn believes “it absolutely is” when asked, “Is it coming home?” That makes sense, given that the team bus has had “It’s coming home” written in lights above the windscreen, where the destination would normally show. Even though this series hasn’t produced a big-game occasion – despite a healthy crowd at The Oval playing their part – soon enough England will be preparing for just that, and hoping the destination is the same.

From hooping swing to wobbly wonder balls, a selection of Anderson brilliance

Vithushan Ehantharajah09-Jul-2024Brendon McCullum b Anderson, Trent Bridge 2008 – The Residual Streaks of a Wild BoyI know what you’re thinking: “If Aaron Redmond was the Test head coach who had decided to call time on Jimmy’s career, would he be on this list instead of Brendon McCullum?” And you may be right. Redmond’s dismissal might have been better. But this is no “take that, Brendon” selection just to kick off this list. He just happened to sell his like The Rock selling a “Stone Cold Stunner”…Both angled in, moved away late – through the air first, then off the seam, because just doing one of those two things simply won’t do – and sent off stump into a neighbouring postcode. Redmond’s was fuller and straighter, and he was looking to play through mid-on. McCullum, though, was invested in blazing his through midwicket, front foot coming right across to ensure that by the time he is fully squared up, he is pretty much locking eyes with umpire Darrell Hair standing at square leg.Related

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The best thing, though, is this iteration of Anderson. The action isn’t as smooth, arms and legs flurrying like a kid sprinting in flip flops, to the point he almost throws himself into a different dimension upon delivery. At the same time, his head is not as low as it once was at the point of release, which used to have him sniffing the pitch, momentarily oblivious to what destruction he had caused at the other end.Following Troy Cooley’s well-intentioned remodelling of Anderson’s bowling action which caused exactly the kind of back injury it was hoped to prevent, this was Anderson back to the old him, hooping at pace. He may have been on his way to refinement, but there remained this tearaway visceral urge. Like an animal on the cusp of domestication who could still recall the taste of blood.VVS Laxman b Anderson, The Oval 2011 – Knuckle Ball GloryAnderson had been in the lab. Ahead of the 2010-11 Ashes series, he and David Saker sat down to work out a delivery that would keep him in the game in Australian climes when there was no swing to work with. What they happened upon was no discovery, per se. They had merely untangled the strands of magic of a delivery Mohammad Asif had used against England in the summer of 2010.You know it now as “the wobble ball”, with its seam more casual than formal ensuring a Russian Roulette trade-off for the batter. Though Anderson would use it on that successful Ashes trip, it was during the 2011 home season that he truly had it down.This dismissal encapsulated that. VVS Laxman’s legend is adorned with silk of his own making, and yet here he was, stumbling with all the grace of a reveller disembarking a cab at 3am.

“Such is the shock of the ball suddenly taking a different path that Laxman actually turns to see his off stump beginning its descent, before staring back in front of him. The gaze of a man who thought he had the answers, now searching for meaning”

The set-up was predominantly into Laxman, at the stumps, slanting onto the pads, along with a loose delivery out wide, guided beyond gully. The India veteran almost certainly knew Anderson was looking for one to at least hold its line outside off. But as the punchline delivery angles in from the hand, seam shaking, Laxman takes a step towards Anderson to block it back.Such is the shock of the ball suddenly taking a different path that Laxman actually turns to see his off stump beginning its descent, before staring back in front of him. His gaze is not fixed on the pitch, nor Anderson nodding with approval. Merely straight ahead, like a man who thought he had the answers, now searching for meaning in an increasingly meaningless world.Ricky Ponting c Swann b Anderson, Adelaide 2010 – Smart Punt”He’s not a bad one to get first ball, is he?” remarked Anderson in an interview back in 2015 when reflecting on this dismissal. It remains one of his favourites for the occasion, the execution but especially for the man, who ended up averaging 60 against him across all their battles.England had saved the first Test of that 2010-11 Ashes tour with a remarkable show of strength in their second innings at Brisbane. A total of 517 for 1 declared did not just cover for the sins of their first effort of 260 – which Australia bettered by 221 – but showed they were no pushovers. They had to build on that a week later in Adelaide.Anderson celebrates his dismissal of Ricky Ponting•Getty ImagesRicky Ponting won the toss and opted to bat first. And though Simon Katich was run out without facing off the fourth ball of the match with the score still on zero, out strode the Australia captain ready to stand on business in his 150th Test.The common wisdom throughout Ponting’s career was susceptibility early in his innings because of a knack for thrusting bat and pad out together in a bid to own the space around him. This was true, but given he was averaging 54.71 with 39 centuries at this juncture, possessing that information was akin to knowing the best way to deter a shark is to punch it in the nose. It still has to be a decent punch.Before the cheers welcoming Ponting to the middle of the Adelaide Oval had died down, Anderson began his approach, armed with nothing but a new Kookaburra under blue skies. Passing close enough to brush umpire Tony Hill’s left shoulder, he finds just enough shape off a full length to drag Ponting outside off, and just the right amount of seam to nab the outside edge.Ponting’s bat emerges late from behind his front pad, resulting in a perilously low deflection towards a wide slip cordon. Thankfully for Anderson – and England – Graeme Swann is staggered enough ahead of first slip to dive across from second to complete a smart catch for a first-ball duck for Australia’s leading man. In turn, the hosts are 0 for 2 (2 for 0 in their money) and the tourists are on their way to a 1-0 lead and a rare away Ashes series win.Mahela Jayawardene c Strauss b Anderson 4, Cardiff 2011 – Winning the Waiting GamePerhaps the unsexiest of Anderson’s strengths is patience. Be honest now – what about waiting really does it for you? Even anticipation is rooted in restlessness, staving it off, prolonging the wait for gratification.But Test cricket rewards such traits, and few fashioned it into a shiv to repeatedly jab English sides quite like Mahela Jayawardene. This is a man who once batted over nine and a half hours against them in Colombo and then over 10 hours in Galle in back-to-back innings. The 195 and 213 not out scored broadly academic. The real quiz was frustrating an increasingly exasperated England trying to fight back from their opening defeat at Kandy.

“Anderson serves one up that moves in late, carries on its path off the pitch while bouncing more than the previous deliveries. Jayawardene, initially planning to leave, is forced to play so late and so suddenly that his bottom hand comes off the bat. Even Strauss is taken by surprise at slip”

As such, this probably counts as some form of micro-revenge. Heavy Welsh cloud after some familiar late May rain that brought about a late start to day one of this first Test had skewed the conditions in favour of the English bowlers.But Sri Lanka’s decision to bat first was due to a Sophia Gardens pitch that was not going to offer much bounce. And with Jayawardene at the crease with a sound enough bed of 114 for 2 after 40 overs to settle into, he saw things through to stumps, eventually sleeping on 4 off 24 deliveries.Anderson opened the next day with Jayawardene on strike and, crucially, a plan. There were 10 outswingers in a row, some bigger than others, with a couple dying on the way through to Matt Prior. Then, out of nowhere, from more or less the same position at the crease but with a slightly more upright arm, Anderson serves one up that moves in late, and carries on its path off the pitch while bouncing more than any of the previous deliveries. Sri Lanka’s No. 4, initially planning to leave it well alone, is forced to play so late and so suddenly that his bottom hand comes off the bat. Even Andrew Strauss is taken by surprise at wide first slip, grabbing instinctively to his right and falling away behind second in the process.Michael Clarke b Anderson, Trent Bridge 2013 – A Tap on the Shoulder of Off StumpArguably the most dramatic dismissal on this list, with a backstory to match.In October 2012, , Anderson’s first autobiography, caught the attention of the Australian public with a story from the aftermath of England’s defeat in Adelaide on the 2006-07 tour. Among the post-match fraternising was an aloof Michael Clarke and a bristling Anderson, armed with a pad and fuelled by a couple of cold ones.Our man did not think much of Clarke’s posturing while all other guards were down, and wondered aloud about wrapping said pad “around his head”. Damien Martyn, Clarke’s team-mate at the time, encouraged him – twice – and Anderson duly obliged. “What the f*** ya doing?” came the response from Clarke once the sound from the almighty thud had cleared the air.Anderson to Michael Clarke: you miss, I hit•Getty ImagesClarke would deny the story two years later, but the ill-feeling between the two was now out in the open. And as much as it underpinned the battle these two would embark upon in, starting with this first Test of the 2013 series ahead of the “broken fucken arm” leg later that winter, Clarke’s own stellar form added an extra layer to this feud.The Australia captain was undoubtedly the standout batter in world cricket when he strode to the crease on that day one evening, averaging 85.21 since the start of 2012. England had been dismissed for 215 and the visitors were 19 for 2 in dwindling light. Six balls and no runs later, he was done.Tight to the stumps, Anderson hoops one in, just full of a good length. Clarke, implored to play, offers the straightest of blades, maker’s name on show, fully committed to the defensive shot. So committed, in fact, that the lack of impact has the right-hander falling forward. Upon pitching, the ball jags off the seam, somehow picking up more pace than it had upon arrival to the surface.You’d swear Clarke knows he’s done before he is, bowing his head like a samurai offering courtesy in his final moments. There is no death rattle, more a kiss of death as off stump is pecked with just enough pucker to dislodge the bail.The celebrations are wild. Anderson gallops through looking to meet Clarke’s eye as the batter turns sharply towards the pavilion, but satiates his carnal urge to gloat by pointing furiously at the wrecked stumps as he sprints past his nemesis.Ajinkya Rahane b Anderson, Chennai 2021 – Reverse Gears Anderson celebrates after beating Ajinkya Rahane comprehensively•BCCIIf you were waiting for a reverse-swing dismissal, here it is. Sorry, it had to be the last one on the list.Anderson’s relationship with reverse swing has Indian groundings. Zaheer Khan piqued his interest after tying England in knots in 2007. Five years later, having workshopped it successfully on a tour of Sri Lanka, he would finish 2012 out-reversing Zaheer as England secured their first Test series win in India since 1985.The journey in between was full of trial and error. Initially, Anderson could only conjure reverse swing with a different action, which made it difficult to hoodwink batters, which is sort of the point. But after hours of working away with pre-scuffed balls, he was able to achieve that devastating movement with what in real-time looked identical to his usual set-up.Translating that from the nets to the middle took time. But Anderson sussed out quickly that reverse in England was about finding the nicks, whereas on subcontinental pitches, you needed to attack the stumps. All of this brings us neatly to February 9, 2021 – day five of the first Test in Chennai.With the SG ball showing signs it might tail having primarily been in the hands of spinners Jack Leach and Dom Bess, Anderson was reintroduced into the attack in the 27th over of India’s second innings with a nominal target of 420 on the table. Two balls in, he had breached the defence of Shubman Gill, taking out the half-centurion’s off stump.The shocking nature of the dismissal meant Ajinkya Rahane knew what he was up against when he walked out. Forward he went as Anderson bent one into off stump, meeting the ball with his front pad in the “umpire’s call” zone to uphold Nitin Menon’s “not out” call on the field.Unperturbed, Anderson repeats the trick, this time slightly wider and fuller, finding even more movement to bypass the pad and uproot the same stump once more. Turns out he still had that taste for blood all along.

Bangladesh have a rare chance of starting a fresh day with ten wickets in hand, and they have Shadman and Zakir to thank for that

Mohammad Isam22-Aug-2024One thing batters do not look forward to is to face twelve overs of bowling after spending the whole day fielding. Zakir Hasan and Shadman Islam’s brave faces weren’t fooling anyone in Rawalpindi. Justin Langer wrote in his autobiography about wanting the twilight challenge, but few are cut from the same cloth.Zakir and Shadman are Bangladesh’s tenth different opening pair in the last three years. After Shan Masood declared the Pakistan innings on 448 for 6 at 4.34 pm local time, they were set to face at least an hour of hellfire from Pakistan’s pace attack. And they did… okay. They blunted Shaheen Afridi and Naseem Shah, and annoyed Khurram Shahzad a little bit. That’s not a bad evening’s work. They have a more work to do but for now this will do.Related

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The expectations of Bangladesh’s batters have been so low these days that going twelve overs unscathed felt like a big deal. On a tough day for Bangladesh, Shadman and Zakir looked in control to ensure the visitors left the ground with some respite. Shadman is returning to the Test side after 16 months while Zakir is playing his first overseas Test. The pair played out 58 dot balls in the twelve overs and even hit three fours.Batting coach David Hemp wore a smile at the end of the day. He looked like one of those dads who watching their kids’ recital and mouthing their lines along with them. Hemp had received good news earlier in the day from the Islamabad Club where Saif Hassan and Jaker Ali struck hundreds for Bangladesh A. He was however more pleased with what he saw in Rawalpindi.”It is always a challenge to bat for a limited time in the back end of the day,” Hemp said. “After being in the field for five hours. We are really pleased not to lose wickets, but more importantly their approach. They are still trying to capitalise on scoring options. I also felt that they made good judgements about leaving the ball.”Shadman’s recent form should provide some confidence. He made 88 against Pakistan A in Darwin recently. Zakir didn’t have a good outing against Pakistan A in Islamabad last week, but he was beginning to forge a solid partnership with Mahmudul Hasan Joy, whose groin injury kept him out of this Test.Zakir Hasan cuts the ball•Associated PressHemp added that the rest of the Bangladesh batters are also prepared to take on the Pakistan attack. Captain Najmul Hossain Shanto and Mominul Haque are up next, followed by the veterans Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib Al Hasan, and Litton Das and Mehidy Hasan Miraz lower down the order.”From what we are seeing in the preparation period, they have all been striking the ball well and getting into good positions,” Hemp said. “They are all confident that they can contribute to the team. We have depth in the batting order with Litton at seven and Mehidy at eight.”[Pakistan] have four good seamers and a reasonable spinner. They have bowling options. They are a good attack. It is going to be a challenge. The priority is to bat the day. We have to negotiate each session, and then see where we are.”Hemp also expected the lower order to contribute runs, citing how the Bangladesh tail stood up against New Zealand in their last Test win, in November 2023.”The mantra in the team is for everyone to be able to contribute,” he said. “Everyone is expected to bat as much as possible. For us internally, we look at contributions from the lower order. We are more interested in balls faced than runs from No 9, 10 and 11. During the New Zealand series at home last year, the last four batters averaged 33 to 34 balls per innings. That’s 120 balls, which kept New Zealand in the field for 20 extra overs. It had a massive impact on the game. For us it is a really important factor.”Shakib, Shanto and Litton have not been among the runs. Mominul and Mushfiqur are low on game time, while Mehidy is also returning from a considerable break. Bangladesh will need a massive effort from the batters to get even in this Test.

India broke their own record to put up the fastest 100 in men’s Test cricket in Kanpur against Bangladesh

Sampath Bandarupalli30-Sep-20241 – India’s hundred came in just 10.1 overs, making it the fastest team hundred in men’s Tests (where data is available).India broke their own record by 2.1 overs – they had taken only 12.2 overs against West Indies in last year’s Port of Spain Test.24.2 Overs needed for India to reach the 200-run mark. It is the fastest-recorded team 200 in men’s Tests, bettering Australia’s record, who got there in 28.1 overs in their second-innings against Pakistan in 2017 in Sydney.India also broke the record for fastest team 150 and 250. The previous fastest team 150 was also by India off 21.1 overs against West Indies in 2023, while the previous quickest 250 came in 34 overs by England in their 2nd innings vs Pakistan in 2022 in Rawalpindi.3.0 – Overs that India needed to get to fifty. It is also the fastest recorded team fifty in men’s Tests, bettering England’s record – 4.2 overs against West Indies in Nottingham and in Birmingham earlier this year.0 – Instances of India completing their fifty inside the first 20 balls of the innings in men’s internationals (all formats) before Monday. Their previous fastest fifty was in 3.4 overs, also against Bangladesh, in last year’s Asian Games (T20I).ESPNcricinfo Ltd8.22 India’s run rate during their 285 for 9 in Kanpur is the highest in men’s Test innings (minimum 200 balls). The previous highest was 7.36 by England against Pakistan when they made 264 for seven in 35.5 overs in the 2022 Rawalpindi Test.No team had a run rate of eight in a Test innings where they scored 100-plus runs, before India on Monday.14.34 – The scoring rate during the 55-run opening partnership between Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma, which came in only 23 balls.It is the fastest fifty partnership in men’s Tests in terms of run rate (where data is available – complete FOW data is available only since 1998).The previous highest run rate for a partnership of 50-plus runs was 11.86 by Ben Duckett and Ben Stokes, who added 87 off 44 balls against West Indies in Birmingham, earlier this year.5 Number of Indian batters to have scored 20-plus runs while striking at 100 and more in the first-innings in Kanpur, the joint-most in a men’s Test innings. England also had five batters scoring 20-plus runs at a strike rate of 100 and more in their first innings against Pakistan in Rawalpindi in 2022.96 – Sixes hit by India batters across the eight Test matches they have played in 2024. These are the most sixes hit by a team in a calendar year in Test cricket, bettering England’s tally of 89 in 2022.Rohit Sharma came out all guns blazing•BCCI4 – Recorded instances of a player hitting the first two balls they faced in a Test innings for sixes, including Rohit off Khaled Ahmed in Kanpur.Foffie Williams against Jim Laker in the 1948 Barbados Test was the first.Two other India batters have also done it – Sachin Tendulkar off Nathan Lyon in the 2013 Chepauk Test and Umesh Yadav off George Linde in the 2019 Ranchi Test.4.5 Overs in which Hasan Mahmud conceded 50 runs in India’s first innings. Only two bowlers had conceded 50 runs in fewer overs in a men’s Test innings since 2002 – 4.2 by Graeme Cremer against South Africa in 2005 and 4.4 by Murali Kartik against Australia in 2004.34.4 Overs batted by India before declaring, the fifth shortest declared first-innings in men’s Tests. The total of 285 for nine is also the lowest-ever declaration total for India in the first innings.

Having shown glimpses of their ability in the last two World Cups, Afghanistan have most pieces of the puzzle right in the lead up to the Champions Trophy

Mohammad Isam12-Nov-2024There’s meme potential in Jonathan Trott sitting with a smirk on his face as everyone around him celebrated wildly. Azmatullah Omarzai pumped his fist after hitting the winning runs with a straight six in the third ODI against Bangladesh. Mohammad Nabi was quick to get to Omarzai before the Afghanistan dugout emptied to join the batting pair in the middle. Trott celebrated, of course, with his notebook in hand. After all, Afghanistan had sealed their third consecutive ODI series win.They had beaten Ireland in March before reaching the T20 World Cup semi-final in June. They had defeated South Africa in ODIs for the first time, in September, before completing successive series wins against Bangladesh with this 2-1 triumph. Afghanistan did not quite dominate Bangladesh throughout the series, as the margin in the first ODI suggested, but did enough to create pressure and come up on the right side of it at the end.In the third ODI, Rahmanullah Gurbaz proved to be the difference, stepping up after two low scores. There were murmurs that he does not fancy batting immediately after keeping wickets for 50 overs – he averaged 47.64 in the first innings and 17.15 in the second before Monday. Despite struggling with some cramps on his hand, he kept Afghanistan in the chase, and when he fell for 101, they were only 61 away.Related

Gurbaz ton, Omarzai fifty and four-for win the series for Afghanistan

The absence of Taskin Ahmed, rested for the third ODI, could have played into Gurbaz’s hands. Taskin had dismissed Gurbaz in both previous games, and generally has the wood over the wicketkeeper-batter. His replacement, Nahid Rana, also bowled well to Gurbaz, conceding just seven runs off 26 balls. But Gurbaz hammered the other bowlers; he struck Shoriful Islam and Mustafizur Rahman for a combined five sixes.And then there was Nabi. His match-winning 84 in the first match followed by another contribution of 34 not out off 27 balls in the third game helped him become only the fifth player to win the Player-of-the-Series award in ODIs at the age of 39 or more. He added an unbroken 58 for the sixth wicket with Omarzai and slammed Rana down the ground twice to blunt Bangladesh’s last resort.It was a turnaround of sorts for Omarzai, too, after bagging a couple of ducks. He gave Gurbaz the confidence and took on Mehidy Hasan Miraz for a six early in the innings. That was Gurbaz’s cue to continue to dominate the Bangladesh attack without worrying about the other end. Omarzai, who also took four wickets in the game, later said that he was pleased with the way he bowled in the death for the first time in his Afghanistan career. He also kept his nerve in the chase, proving it with a straight six off Shoriful.While Trott doesn’t let on with too much emotion when the camera is on him during a match, he would be pleased with Afghanistan getting out of a difficult spot multiple times in the series. They were in trouble twice in the first game but ended up winning both moments emphatically. They recovered well in the second game, and then held their wits in the decider on Monday.

“Just remember how hard we worked for these things, and enjoy them. Remember how good it feels in here. That’s why we win. That’s why we spend extra time in the gym. That’s why you get to sleep on time. That’s why we eat healthy. When we put ourselves under pressure in practice, or fielding practice, when we are under pressure there, we can survive, we know what to do. We think clearly.”Jonathan Trott in the dressing room after the series win

Afghanistan’s recent dominance in Sharjah also means that this is the closest thing to them having a home ground in white-ball cricket. Their performances against Ireland and South Africa proved that they could master these conditions. Overcoming the Bangladesh challenge – for a second year in a row – only added to their surge.The icing on Afghanistan’s win is the emergence of young players like AM Ghazanfar, Sediqullah Atal and Omarzai, who have had telling contributions enough to form a second line alongside the usual suspects in Nabi, Gurbaz and Rashid Khan. The number of allrounders in their line-up would give them the depth that teams like Bangladesh would crave for going into the Champions Trophy.After the match ended in Sharjah, Trott entered the dressing room with the gigantic series-winning trophy in one hand. As the rest of the team and coaching staff sat around him, Trott explained why sacrifices have to be made to achieve something in sports.”[Achievements] come with a lot of emotions, blood, sweat, tears, disappointment,” Trott said. “These things are hard to come by. Just remember how hard we worked for these things, and enjoy them. Remember how good it feels in here. That’s why we win. That’s why we spend extra time in the gym. That’s why you get to sleep on time. That’s why we eat healthy. When we put ourselves under pressure in practice, or fielding practice, when we are under pressure there, we can survive, we know what to do. We think clearly.”Afghanistan are building towards a major push for a bigger trophy in the coming years. They showed glimpses in the last two World Cups, but the Champions Trophy, being Nabi’s swansong, could be the big emotional moment they try for. They have most pieces of the puzzle coming together. Trott would be required to bring his A game to the tournament too. He has been credited by many for bringing the tactical nous to the Afghan talent and experience. Poker-faced through the game but smiling with a trophy in hand at the end – not a bad picture to be in for Trott.

And which bowler has the most fourth-innings wickets?

Steven Lynch19-Nov-2024Which bowler has taken the most wickets in the fourth innings of Tests? Is it Jimmy Anderson? asked David Wilkinson from England

Jimmy Anderson is in the top ten here with 91 fourth-innings wickets, one more than his old sparring partner Stuart Broad. But leading the way, with 138 fourth-innings victims, is Shane Warne.There is some danger of a change at the top, however: in second place at the moment with 119 is another prolific Australian spinner, Nathan Lyon. Three others took more than 100 fourth-innings wickets: Rangana Herath (115), Muthiah Muralidaran (106) and Glenn McGrath (103). R Ashwin currently has 99, so should join them soon.If you restrict the qualification to fourth-innings wickets in Test victories, Warne still leads the way with 106, ahead of Herath (98), Lyon (94), Ashwin (86) and McGrath (84).Goa’s innings in the Ranji Trophy the other day included two triple-centuries. Has this happened before in a first-class match? asked Ashwini K Patel from India

In something of mismatch in last week’s Ranji Trophy Plate group, Goa ran up 727 for 2 declared in Porvorim, either side of bowling Arunachal Pradesh out for 84 and 92. Kashyap Bakle (300 not out) and Snehal Kauthankar (314 not out) both scored their maiden triple-centuries, and shared an unbeaten third-wicket partnership of 606, which has been beaten in all first-class cricket only by the 624 of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene for Sri Lanka against South Africa in Colombo in July 2006.There has been only one other innings that contained two triple-centuries – also in the Ranji Trophy, although oddly enough it was against Goa, who did it this time. Back in January 1989, in Panaji, Tamil Nadu’s 912 for 6 declared included 313 from WV Raman and 302 not out from Arjan Kripal Singh.Has a T20I innings ever contained two centuries, before last week? asked Taral Khasiya via Twitter/X

The match last week was in Johannesburg, where Sanju Samson hit 109 not out and Tilak Varma 120 not out as India piled up 283 for 1 against South Africa. They shared an unbroken stand of 210, and hit 19 sixes between them.There have been two other T20I innings that contained two individual centuries. One of them happened earlier this year, in Mong Kok (Hong Kong) in February, when Lachlan Yamamoto-Lake scored 134 not out and Kendal Kadowaki-Fleming 109 not out for Japan against China. But the first such instance in a men’s T20I took place in 2022, when Sabawoon Davizi and Dylan Steyn scored hundreds for Czech Republic against Bulgaria in Malta.*It’s a rare achievement in all men’s T20 cricket: there have been only six other instances in senior matches, three of them in the IPL.There have been five cases in women’s T20Is, including two in three days by Argentina against Chile in October 2023.Sanju Samson and Tilak Varma’s twin hundreds in Johannesburg was only the second instance of two battters scoring hundreds in the same T20I innings•AFP/Getty ImagesI noticed that Lee Germon top-scored in both innings of his debut Test, and was also the captain. Has anyone else done this? asked Prasenjit Chatterjee from India

The New Zealand wicketkeeper Lee Germon achieved this unusual feat on his Test debut, with 48 and 41 against India in Bengaluru in October 1995. He’s actually the only one to top-score in both innings of his debut while also being captain, which is a pretty rare achievement in itself.Eighteen other players have top-scored in both innings of their Test debut, but were not captain. The most recent instance was by Alick Athanaze, for West Indies against India in Roseau (Dominica) in July 2023, and before that Shreyas Iyer did it for India vs New Zealand in Kanpur in November 2021 .The famed 1948 Australian team scored 774 against Gloucestershire, and there were five hundred partnerships in the innings. Was this a record? asked Tony Mountford from England

The 1948 Australian “Invincibles”, captained by Don Bradman, went through that long tour without being defeated. In the match against Gloucestershire in Bristol, even though Bradman himself didn’t play, the Aussies’ 774 for 7 declared included successive partnerships of 102, 66, 136, 162, 63, 140 and 105. Opener Arthur Morris made 290, and Sam Loxton 159 not out from No. 6.At the time, that was the fourth instance of five hundred partnerships in a first-class innings (the Australians had also done it in England in 1938, against Oxford University), and there have been two more cases since: by Sialkot (666 for 7) against Hyderabad in Sialkot in November 2007, and Sri Lanka A (749 for 5 declared) vs South Africa A in Potchefstroom in 2008.But there’s a runaway leader in this category. There has never been a first-class innings with six hundred partnerships, but there has been one with seven: when Holkar ran up 912 for 8 declared against Mysore in the Ranji Trophy semi-final in Indore in March 1946, they had successive stands of 184, 4, 111, 172, 110, 125, 106 and 100.And there’s an update to last week’s question about Mominul Haque being out twice in the same session of a Test, from Charles Davis in Australia

“On the subject of two dismissals in a short interval, if we widen the search to include any score, the fastest appears to be by Percy Sherwell for South Africa against Australia in Sydney in March 1911. Sherwell was the last man out in the first innings, and when the follow-on was enforced he kept the pads on and opened, only to be first out for 14 in the fourth over. There were 11 minutes’ playing time and 27 minutes’ elapsed time between the two dismissals.”Use our feedback form, or the Ask Steven Facebook page to ask your stats and trivia questions

With a Test debut looming in New Zealand, wicketkeeper suffered the cruellest break, but he’s ready to bounce back

Andrew Miller26-Mar-2025How long can a hungry young player stay hungry – or young for that matter – when the fates seem so cruelly conspired against him? Five years have passed since Jordan Cox, then 19, announced his talents with a startling double-century for Kent in the Bob Willis Trophy, and four years since his Player-of-the-Match performance in their T20 Blast triumph at Edgbaston in 2021.Three years have passed since Cox’s first England call-up, as an unused squad member on the T20I tour of Pakistan in 2022, and two years since a “disgusting” broken finger stopped him in full flow for Oval Invincibles in the Hundred, and left him facing surgery while his inevitable England debut was deferred yet again.It’s been a year since he relaunched his county career at Essex, and six months since he finally broke into an England first XI, for five admittedly underwhelming white-ball appearances against Australia and West Indies last September and October. Nothing, however, compares to the agonies he endured on the Test tour of New Zealand the following month, just when it seemed that there was nothing left that could slow down an ambitious young man in a palpable hurry to succeed.There Cox was in the nets in Queenstown, with the first of three guaranteed Test caps tattooed into his schedule: Christchurch, November 27. Cox was England’s designated wicketkeeper while Jamie Smith was away on paternity leave, and flavour of the month with Brendon McCullum, who felt his crashingly confident attitude would fit right in with his ethos.But then, at the precise moment that McCullum was bigging up his impending debutant in a chat with the travelling media, Cox wore a lifter in the nets on his right thumb, and that was the end of his tour. “I knew then and there, I was buggered … sorry for my French,” Cox says. “Absolutely gone … and it was absolutely devastating.”It’s probably been the hardest winter I’ve ever had. To get picked to make your debut is something that you dream of as a kid. From the age of seven, when I started playing cricket, to getting my opportunity at 23, I was thinking, I’m the luckiest guy alive.”I had known about it two months before. Baz was like, ‘just to let you know, you’re going be playing, you’re going to keep, you can play all three Tests. Smudge is going to have his kid. I want you to go out there and have a bit of fun’.”The injury occurred just three days before the Test, which was just enough notice for Cox to get in an emergency phonecall to his family, who were already at Heathrow preparing to fly out and witness his proudest moment.”My dad was in the queue at Heathrow about to leave [when I called him], and I was like, you can just turn around. There’s no point in you coming.”My girlfriend ended up coming out, more for support, as I was going to have an operation straight away. But the surgeon said it could be quite risky, and the thumb may not move exactly how you want it to. With my body being young and healthy, we decided – as a family and as Essex – to leave it and let it naturally heal, and it has, which is so, so lucky. But it’s been a crazy, crazy winter.”Cox smashed a brisk 70 for Gulf Giants in the ILT20 but felt ‘horrific’ after his injury•ILT20The injury itself is only part of the setback to Cox’s ambition, however. Every bit as relevant is the development of the team in his absence. While Ollie Pope took one for the team and shifted down the order to take over as wicketkeeper, Jacob Bethell breezed into the breach at No.3 to seize Cox’s mantle as England’s coming man. With Smith due to slot back in this summer, and Pope still the designated vice-captain, there are no obvious vacancies looming as England set their sights on a seismic six months against India and Australia.”This game is an absolute, you know … nasty word,” Cox says. “It’s so difficult. There’s so many quality players out there, and they’re trying to work out who is fitting where. They’re not going to promise you something and then go back on it, so for me personally, I want to score as many runs as I can for Essex. And if that gets me an opportunity, that gets me an opportunity. If it doesn’t, that’s okay with me, because I know that I’m doing as much I can to win a Championship for Essex.”Cox did at least find a positive in his predicament, as he turned his recuperation into an extended holiday with his family in Australia – much of it, he says, on Bondi Beach – but he doesn’t deny that he’s fallen off the radar a touch with regards to the England squads and, in particular, their newly installed head coach across formats.”He’s been the world’s busiest man, hasn’t he?” Cox says of McCullum, whose grim first foray as white-ball head coach resulted in ten defeats in 11 matches in India and Pakistan, including the Champions Trophy, and culminated in the resignation of his captain, Jos Buttler. In such circumstances, Cox accepts that checking in on his recuperation is not exactly a priority.”I understand … he sent me a message the day I left the group, just saying: ‘really sorry what happened, mate, it’s absolutely devastating … it’s so sad’. But unfortunately, that’s life and that’s sport. He’s not going to be a parent and text me every other day.”[The whole squad] sent me a lovely message, hoping I recover well, which was really nice to take in. Obviously it would have been nicer for them to have all gone ‘well done on this series. You did really well’. But hopefully that’s around the corner.”Instead, there’s scant little for Cox to look back on with any great fondness – least of all his comeback stint with Gulf Giants at the ILT20 in January, where he made a total of 186 runs in ten innings, with a solitary half-century.”I can probably say it now, because I’ve been paid, but I was a month too early,” he says. “I got told I was supposed to have three months off. So I had two. I felt like I needed to play because I hadn’t been paid all winter, apart from a bit with England.Cox has been part of Oval Invincibles’ back-to-back Hundred titles•Getty Images”I got one score [of 70] and I felt horrific, as if I hadn’t played cricket in years. It’s a weird feeling, going from playing every day and feeling amazing, to then having three months off, and sitting on Bondi. You go to hit a ball and you’re like, oh my God, I feel bad.”He possibly felt something similar in his most recent England opportunity: the three-match ODI series in the Caribbean in October, in which he batted at 3 but made an underwhelming total of 22 runs in 56 balls. He did receive an utter snorter in the third of those matches, a vicious lifter from Alzarri Joseph, but two poor strokes in the first two ODIs would have undermined his claim to a Champions Trophy berth, even before his injury.Cox, however, has already rationalised that experience. Like so many of his English peers, he has barely played a List A game since making his professional debut against Pakistan’s tourists in 2019, and his cause wasn’t helped by his long stint on the England sidelines, running drinks during the Sri Lanka Test series.Related

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“You have to work out a balance of playing matches and training. I’d been facing bowlers and facing sidearm, so I’d been getting ready. But was I match-match ready? Probably not. But also, I wouldn’t know if I would be, because the only 50-over games I’ve played is against Pakistan, my debut, and against Sri Lanka for England A, because I’ve been lucky enough to play in the Hundred.”It’s not something I’m going to get into because, I love the Hundred. I think it’s the best format that we’ve produced in the country. Test cricket’s obviously incredible, and it’s always the pinnacle. But for people that don’t have five days spare watching, you’re telling me the Hundred’s not the best thing? Cricket in England will have to change, and I feel like it will. But I also feel like I don’t know how long 50-over is going to last.”Nothing’s going to change in a hurry, however, so Cox simply has to be ready to hit the ground running next week, when Essex face Surrey in a tasty Championship opener. He will not, however, be ready to keep wicket in red-ball cricket just yet – a setback which further dents his value to England should they be looking at options for their four-day Test against Zimbabwe in May.He knows, however, that he just has to keep his frustrations under wraps, and trust in the processes that have got him noticed previously.”I got close enough once before, so I don’t need to do anything different,” he says. “They make you feel a part of it, that’s just Baz’s way, though I don’t think I ever felt at ease as such… I was absolutely bricking it before the warm-up game [in New Zealand], just knowing that I’d have Joe Root standing to my right, Brooky and Duckett waffling and giggling at each other, talking about golf, and Stokes at mid-off looking at me. But it was absolutely incredible.”Everyone’s human, they go through the same emotions, the same ups and downs, all that sort of stuff. People are going to have dips, but for the good players, they’re only a couple of innings. I hope I hit the ground running, and I can’t see why I wouldn’t. I’ve prepared as best I could for the season to start. If it started tomorrow, I’d be ready.”

After finishing last in 2024, Mumbai Indians retained their Indian core, bought a couple of experienced New Zealand players, and have invested in a lot of untested youth

Vishal Dikshit17-Mar-20255:07

Can Hardik-led Mumbai Indians bounce back this season?

Where they finished last yearMumbai Indians (MI) finished in tenth place, at the bottom of the league, after winning only four out of 14 games. Their campaign was marred by hostile receptions for the new captain Hardik Pandya at the Wankhede and around the country amid reports that their dressing room was not a happy place.What’s new in 2025A year later, those issues appear to have been sorted out. Jasprit Bumrah was MI’s top retention; Rohit Sharma led India to two ICC titles in the last 12 months; Hardik won back popular support by being part of the T20 World Cup and Champions Trophy triumphs; and Suryakumar Yadav was elevated to India’s T20I captaincy.Related

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MI have reinforced their pace attack this season, bringing back Trent Boult and buying Deepak Chahar, but now must contend with the injury-forced absence of Bumrah for their first few matches. They also picked up the experienced and reliable Mitchell Santner, who comes into the IPL in good form after leading New Zealand to the Champions Trophy final.The rest of the MI overseas contingent doesn’t have much – or any – IPL experience. South Africa’s Ryan Rickelton, who is likely to open with Rohit, and Corbin Bosch, and New Zealand’s Bevon Jacobs are playing their first season. Reece Topley played five IPL games across the last two years; Will Jacks made his IPL debut last season; and Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who was out with injury for much of 2024 but proved his fitness by finishing as Paarl Royals’ highest wicket-taker in the recent SA20, will be playing the league for the first time since 2021.With their batting order packed with power, MI’s biggest challenge will be to balance their bowling attack during Bumrah’s absence at the start of the season. Boult and Chahar have the powerplay covered between them, but the death overs could pose a problem.Likely best XII1 Rohit Sharma, 2 Ryan Rickelton* (wk), 3 Tilak Varma, 4 Suryakumar Yadav, 5 Hardik Pandya (capt), 6 Robin Minz, 7 Naman Dhir, 8 Deepak Chahar, 9 Corbin Bosch/Mujeeb Ur Rahman*, 10 Mitchell Santner*, 11 Karn Sharma, 12 Trent Boult*Full MI squad.How do you replace the irreplaceable is a question MI are going to have to answer•ICC/Getty ImagesBig questionWatch out forBevon Jacobs, 22, had played fewer than ten T20s on New Zealand’s domestic circuit when MI bid for him at the mega auction in November 2024. In the 2023-24 Super Smash, Jacobs had a strike rate of 188.73 for Canterbury. He returned to Auckland this season and scored 263 runs in eight innings at a strike rate of 140.64, including a 90 off 56 against Northern Districts. Earlier this month, he struck his maiden century in senior cricket – 157 against Central Districts in first-class cricket just before he left for India for the IPL.The MI franchise also picked Jacobs for MI Emirates in the ILT20, but he faced only 27 balls there for 26 runs in three innings. Whether he can replicate his big hitting in Indian conditions at the IPL is always the question for rookies who make a splash at home.Deepak Chahar played only eight games for CSK last season because of injury. He was far from his best, conceding 8.59 runs an over and picking up just five wickets. He is likely to get more help at Wankhede than at the M Chidambaram Stadium in terms of pace, bounce and the swing he is known for. With Bumrah likely to miss the first few games as he recovers from his back injury, MI will want Chahar to stay fit through the season and provide wickets in the powerplay.Key stats MI have made the playoffs just once in the last four seasons, in 2023, and finished at the bottom twice, in 2022 and 2024. Suryakumar is heading into the IPL in wretched T20 form. His scores against England earlier this year were 2, 0, 14, 12, 0. He had a middling run before that as well, recording a strike rate of only 132 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Boult was the Player of the Final for MI Cape Town in their victorious SA20 campaign. He finished the league with 11 wickets and an economy rate of 6.94. Mujeeb, who played for Paarl Royals but is with MI in the IPL, took 14 wickets while conceding 6.77 runs an over in the SA20.Who’s out or in doubt?Bumrah has been managing back trouble since India’s tour of Australia ended in January. He missed the Champions Trophy, and after going to the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru for rehab, it has emerged that he is set to miss MI’s first few games before joining the squad in April. How the BCCI and MI manage his workload before the five-Test tour of England in June-July will be key. Apart from him, MI replaced the injured Lizaad Williams with Bosch and AM Ghazanfar with Mujeeb.