The keeper-batsman averages nearly 64 since the start of 2018, but his strike rate in the same period is only 75.97

Deivarayan Muthu17-Dec-20191:41

‘We came here to win the series’ – Hope

There’s an air of serenity around Shai Hope. In a West Indies side filled with six-hitters, the 26-year-old wicketkeeper-opener constructs his innings with singles and doubles, 1990s-style, and lets the batsman at the other end enjoy most of the spotlight. He has been in tremendous form in ODI cricket, averaging nearly 64 in 42 innings since the start of 2018, but this strike rate in this period has been only 75.97.For a large part of his hundred in Chennai in the ODI series opener against India on Sunday, his strike rate was hovering around 50. But, with Shimron Hetmyer rattling along at a strike rate in the 130s at the other end, Hope just had to do his thing: bat through the innings at his own pace.Hope had batted through the chase in the third ODI against Afghanistan in Lucknow last month too, his unbeaten 109 off 145 balls sealing West Indies’ 3-0 sweep.”I’m pacing my innings to my team’s requirement,” Hope said on the eve of the second ODI in Visakhapatnam. “Say when you have to chase only 280, we have to make sure everyone’s on the same page. My role is to stay at one end, knock around the bowlers, and not give them any wickets. And it’s about doing what the team requires. That’s my role in the team. If the chase requires me to step it up, I can do that. So I just hope to play what the team requires.”ALSO READ: Opposites Hope and Hetymyer find the perfect balance for WIIn isolation, 2019 has been a banner year for Hope in limited-overs cricket. He made his World Cup bow for West Indies and then played a crucial hand in their winning their first ODI series in more than five years, against Afghanistan, before playing his part in West Indies going 1-0 up in Chennai. In May, in the lead-up to the World Cup, Hope had cracked a career-best 170 against Ireland, in a 365-run partnership with John Campbell – the biggest first-wicket stand in ODI history.Shai Hope punches on the up•BCCI

Hope (1225) is currently the third-highest run-getter in ODIs this year, behind the India pair of Virat Kohli (1292) and Rohit Sharma (1268). Does he see himself climbing to the top by the end of this three-match series?”Obviously, you need the bowlers to do some damage as well,” Hope said. “As a batsman, you want to score as many runs as possible and contribute to team wins. That makes it even more satisfying. So, hopefully we can get some early strikes and get the two of them [Kohli and Rohit]. And hopefully, I can get some big runs and go on top of the list.”ALSO READ: Smart and on target, Cottrell is more than just the saluteHope sustained a finger injury during the Test series against India at home and missed a major chunk of CPL 2019. He, however, returned to action at the fag end of the tournament and won the CPL title with Barbados Tridents. Hope also proved his fitness in international cricket, keeping for 50 overs and then seeing off chases against both Afghanistan and India.”It’s a tough job and it takes a lot on the body,” Hope said of his dual role. “And I just need to remind myself that I’m playing for the entire Caribbean and everyone supporting us. So, just finding my motivation and doing whatever I can to get the team over the line. So, if I have to keep 100 overs and then go out and bat, I’m going to do that.”Hope is part of the IPL 2020 auction list, as are several of his team-mates. When asked whether strong performances in the second ODI – scheduled to take place a day before the auction – would boost their chances of getting picked, Hope dead-batted the question. Instead, Hope said West Indies’ immediate focus was on winning the series against India.”I’m sure that [doing well] would [help IPL selection], but that’s secondary,” he said. “We came here to play the series against India, to win a series against India. So, what comes secondary is secondary. I’m sure some of the guys will be looking forward to the auction, but we have the India series to play, and that’s the main thing right now.”

The 36-year old allrounder is focused on being West Indies’ go-to man in the death overs of a T20I

Nagraj Gollapudi13-Jan-2020He might be the oldest member in West Indies’ T20 squad for the Ireland series, but Dwayne Bravo feels like a “kid” after getting the national call-up that will mark his return to international cricket after a nearly four-year long hiatus.According to Bravo, the three Ireland T20Is, which begin on January 15, were on his mind when he came out of retirement in December. So when he got a call from Roger Harper, the former West Indies allrounder and current chairman of selectors, last week, Bravo could not hide his excitement.”It’s a great feeling,” Bravo told the Trinidad-based radio station on Sunday. “I feel like a kid again when I first get a call Mr Harper that welcome back to the team and play international cricket and they were looking forward to have me back. It is something that was always on my mind since the change of leadership and stuff. So just happy I get the opportunity to represent the region again and I am looking forward to doing my best.”Bravo had a difficult 2019 after picking up a finger injury that kept him out of the Caribbean Premier League but he bounced back from that to lead the Maratha Arabians to win the Abu Dhabi T10 title last November.Asked if he might be a bit rusty, Bravo disagreed, pointing out fitness was his primary focus during his rehab. “Yeah, (playing) a lot of cricket is important, but for me because of the experience I’ve gained over the years, I am more concerned about my fitness. Obviously, I had this broken finger, (which) kept getting stronger. I started practising, played a couple of games for Queen’s Park (his local club in Trinidad), but over the years, despite not playing not much cricket, I am still able to go there and compete and contribute in a very good way.”For example in the last T10 league, I hadn’t played any cricket in about four months prior to that and still was able to go there and deliver and also win the title. It is just happy time for me. Since I announce my return in December, my mind and my motivation was on this series and now that I’m selected I am very happy.”Bravo added that he is a “smarter” bowler now, even if the pace has dipped. “I’m a better bowler, I’m a better all-round cricketer. Obviously I’m older, so I will not be as quick I used to be before, but I am also very smarter and have a bigger knowledge on the game.”“We lack a proper death-over specialist”
With the T20 World Cup scheduled in Australia in October, Bravo’s return is clearly an indication that Harper’s panel wants to not just blend experience and youth, but also plug holes. Harper had said that Bravo had been brought back with the “specific” intention of being West Indies’ death-overs specialist.Bravo is happy to take up the responsibility. “Death bowling is an art,” he said. “Not many people around the world have really nailed death bowling to the T. If you ask anyone in world cricket to name five death bowlers in the last decade, definitely my name will come along with Lasith Malinga, Jasprit Bumrah, Mitchell Starc.Dwayne Bravo celebrates in his trademark style•MSL

“It is not an easy time of the game, that’s why it is called death. A special skill is required to bowl in those situations. Most times, if you have the ball in the death overs, and you don’t win the game, everyone turn to you, and say, “okay, it is because of the last over”. But you don’t win or lose a game in the last over. So many times, I win a game in the last over and no one says anything. I have defended 6 runs in 6 balls. I have defended 11 runs in 6 balls. I don’t have to prove anything to anyone. My stats over the years are there for everyone to see. Like I said, if you were to name three or five death-over specialists my name will be there.”According to Bravo West Indies’ bowlers have struggled to close out games, especially during the World Cup and even in the recent series against India in December. Now that he is back, he wants to mentor the other bowlers and teach them the tricks that could deployed at death.”Recently that is where West Indies did falter,” he said. “If you look at the 50-overs World Cup, if you look at the series in India, both in T20s and in ODIs, we lack a really, really proper death-overs specialist.”Again this is my motivation also to try and work with current bowlers. There’s [Sheldon] Cottrell, there’s Keemo Paul, there’s Alzarri Joseph, there’s Oshane Thomas, there’s Kesrick Williams. Collectively all of us have to get better, myself included. But with the experience that I have, I can get them to understand the importance of certain deliveries and when to bowl certain deliveries and work on a better finishing game plan.”Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, Darren Sammy and Andre Russell shake a leg•Getty Images

T20 World Cup – ‘playing by ear’Bravo said that he and Harper had not spoken about the T20 World Cup, where West Indies will defend their crown. The side still has 18 matches to go before that tournament and Bravo doesn’t want to look too far ahead, though he did reiterate his “full commitment” to the West Indies.”We never discuss anything like that (on T20 World Cup selection). Yes, a World Cup year, but it is only in October,” he said. “There’s this series and there’s a Sri Lanka series right after. I guess if I do well in this series, chances are I might be selected for the next series. It is just a matter of playing it by ear, series by series. Obviously they will be trying players to see what is the best combination and the best squad they that they think and select come October. Starting off with Ireland series is just one step to something positive in the making.”“Looking forward to play with Gayle in maroon”It was in 2013 when the cream of the Caribbean players including Bravo, Chris Gayle, Andre Russell and Sunil Narine last played together in a West Indies team. Recently Gayle commented that he would keep his options open for the T20 World Cup as he continues keeping himself fit by playing the franchise-based tournaments around the world. Bravo said he still was confident he would link up with Gayle soon.”Well, he hasn’t gone anyway so I don’t think he has to make a comeback. He’s been there all the time as the Universe Boss as we call him. He is our leader. He is our real, real leader after Brian Lara. Yes, there was Chanderpaul and Sarwan, but Chris Gayle is the next real batting icon of the Caribbean that all the players look upto. He’s still playing.”I’m looking forward to playing with him once again in the maroon. That will be good to see the Universe Boss and the Champion on the field again along with Russell and Narine – all these players who we all wanted to play. That’s all we ever wanted to do. The Universe Boss will be there and about. Obviously he is on the other side of 40, so it is just a matter of managing him properly and picking different series to play him.”

NZ’s new pace star on the people who helped him shift to bowling, and what he learnt in Wellington

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2020New Zealand’s fledgling pace star Kyle Jamieson was “quite relaxed” leading up to his Test debut, and following his success in that game, he confident there’s “still a lot more to come” from him.Speaking the day after New Zealand thumped India in Wellington, Jamieson spoke of his transition from batsman to bowler, the people who helped him make the switch, and what he learnt from bowling alongside Trent Boult and Tim Southee.He also hinted at what an ideal future might hold – upping his pace, among other things. “Yeah, for sure [looking to get quicker than an average of 130kph],” he said. “I’m still a long way off where I want to be as a bowler and as a cricketer. The stuff that I started to work on with Auckland, with Heinrich [Malan, his coach at Auckland and New Zealand A], I think in the next year or so I’m going to make massive strides.”To begin, Jamieson was a batsman. But then, when he made the step up to Under-19 cricket, Dayle Hadlee – the former New Zealand pacer, brother of Richard Hadlee, and ex-New Zealand U-19 coach – spotted something in him that pushed him to take up bowling.ALSO READ: The lowdown on Kyle Jamieson“I was pretty much a batter all through high school and then made the New Zealand U-19s and Dayle Hadlee got a hold of me and told me to run in, which kind of shifted me towards becoming more of a bowler,” Jamieson said. “I always liked batting, it was probably what I grew up admiring the most – whilst I did bowl, I did not think of that as my career option growing up.”Now I’m a bowler who can bat, trying to get to the allrounder stage, that’s where I ideally want to be.”Jamieson, born in Auckland, had moved to Canterbury in his late teens to develop his cricket. When he eventually made the Canterbury side, he worked with current New Zealand coach Gary Stead, who, back then, was overseeing that team. Soon after, his transition from batsman to bowler under Hadlee began.Now Malan, who has worked with Jamieson at the New Zealand A level over the past few months, and whom the bowler followed from Canterbury back to Auckland in 2019-20, has taken over as his primary bowling guide.”I worked with Steady for a couple of years and just tried to learn that craft of bowling which I didn’t have growing up, so I’m still pretty young I guess on that journey,” Jamieson said. “For the most part, Dayle [was a big influence in making me a bowler], for my four, five, six years in Canterbury, I’m still in contact with him as well… Heinrich the last six-eight months, he’s been massive. His knowledge around bowling has certainly opened my eyes. I think those two from a bowling point of view have been massive.”Stead remembers Jamieson from his pre-bowling days, and is amazed at the changes he has made. “I think it’s an amazing story, really. Kyle [who is now 25] was a 17-18-year-old when he came down to Lincoln University, and he actually was a batsman, didn’t really bowl at all,” Stead recalled after the Wellington Test. “So for me to see that development in six or seven years is a pretty amazing story in itself.”I remember watching him, first time I ever saw Kyle bowl was in Burnside Park in an U-19 tournament, and I looked at Dayle Hadlee and I told him, ‘this boy’s got a little bit about him’, and it was pretty exciting to watch. [It is] a testament to the work Kyle’s put in, the way he’s developed. But also I think the coaches around him and the systems we’ve had in New Zealand cricket, which have helped him get to this point, is really pleasing.”Now Jamieson has another outstanding source for ideas and inspiration: his New Zealand team-mates, Boult and Southee. He learnt a lot watching them at Basin Reserve, Jamieson said. “The way Trent bowled when he came down-breeze, chopping and changing the angles, real intensity… the role that Tim played in using the crease and just the accuracy – I guess it’s quite relentless in a way how they go at guys. I just observed all that.”There remains doubt over whether Jamieson will play in Christchurch, given Neil Wagner is set to return to the set-up after paternity leave, but if he does get to play, it will be a homecoming of sorts for Jamieson. And he’s excited by the prospect: “I spent five or six years down there, pretty familiar with the ground [Hagley Oval]. It’s always going to be special, it played such a big part in the start of my journey, it will be nice to be back in that changeroom.”

The pace bowler reported that he had a mild sore throat on Thursday

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Mar-2020Kane Richardson tested negative for COVID-19 after he was ruled out of the first ODI against New Zealand at the SCG having reported reporting a mild sore throat to Australia’s medical team yesterday.Richardson, who returned from South Africa earlier this week with the rest of the ODI squad, was isolated from the rest of the squad while the tests results were awaited which came through on Friday evening.Sean Abbott was briefly called into the squad as cover.”Our medical staff are treating this a typical throat infection but we are following Australian Government protocols that require us to keep Kane away from other members of the squad and perform the appropriate tests given he has returned from international travel in the last 14 days,” a Cricket Australia spokesperson said earlier in the day.”Once we receive the results of the tests and Kane recovers in the next few days we expect he will re-join the team. We will not be making further comment until something changes.”It was announced earlier on Friday that the one-day series would be played behind closed doors due to the coronavirus pandemic.

He will also be head coach of the Victoria Women’s team

ESPNcricinfo staff20-May-2020Lachlan Stevens has been named head coach of the Melbourne Renegades WBBL team and the Victoria Women’s team amid the restructuring at Cricket Victoria.The Renegades role is a comeback for Stevens who was previously their head coach in the first two seasons of the WBBL.Most recently he had been interim head coach of the Victoria men’s team following Andrew McDonald’s appointment as Justin Langer’s assistant with the national side.Stevens replaces Tim Coyle in the Renegades position after he was let go earlier this month while with Victoria he fills the role vacated by David Hemp.”It’s a great time to be returning to the women’s game given the growth female cricket has enjoyed in recent seasons,” Stevens said. “It’s always enjoyable to watch and work with players at all stages of their careers and I’m honoured to be able to work with another Victorian cricket side. I look forward to watching all of them going about their training and playing.””I was lucky enough to be a part of the Renegades in the first two seasons of the WBBL and I’m looking forward to catching up with several of those players again in the not too distant future. I can’t wait to watch the WBBL up close again with all the progress that’s been made in the game over the last three years.”Renegades, Victoria and Australia allrounder Sophie Molineux admitted it had been a shock to see Coyle leave his job.”There’s a lot going in, not just in sport, but it definitely hit home when we saw Coyley go,” she said. “The last couple of years at the Renegades he’s done a massive amount of work to get us into position to play in semi-finals and be really close to the grand finals.”We’ll always be thankful for what he’s done. The group has definitely got some really sad emotions about him not being able to come back.”The Victoria team includes Meg Lanning and Ellyse Perry when they aren’t on international duty.

He was suspended following allegations of sexual harassment by a few women’s cricketers

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Jun-2020The Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) has lifted the suspension on Atul Bedade, the former India batsman and head coach of Baroda Women’s team, after conducting an internal inquiry into allegations of sexual harassment by a few female cricketers. The BCA, however, confirmed Bedade would not continue as the coach “considering the sensitivity of the matter”.The BCA formed a probe committee in March after issuing Bedade a suspension letter for “personal comments on physicality, comments that discourage the morale of team members, angry outbursts unbecoming of a women’s team coach, using language that is not accepted of a person in-charge, and behaviour oblivious of gender sensitivity”.The committee headed by a four-member panel – CEO Shishir Hattangadi, senior HR manager Priyanka Verma and secretaries Ajit Lele and Parag Patel – conducted a hearing with Bedade and “various stakeholders”, before making their decision public.”A preliminary inquiry was conducted by the CEO and senior manager-HR in the matter,” a BCA release stated. “During the apex committee [meeting] held on June 2, 2020, the issue was discussed and CEO and senior manager-HR were called to explain the details of investigations and their recommendations. Based on the details provided to the apex committee, it was resolved that his suspension stands withdrawn.”Bedade’s stint as Baroda Women’s coach lasted less than a year, with the one-day championship in February being his last assignment. He played 13 ODIs for India in the 1990s before getting into coaching full time.

England Women will be based at Derbyshire’s Incora County Ground and play all their fixtures there

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jul-2020Derbyshire’s Incora County Ground will be used as the bio-secure venue for England Women this summer. Although plans for England’s international schedule are yet to be finalised – they are expected to host South Africa after India pulled out of a proposed tri-series – all of the matches will be held at Derby.Heather Knight’s team will assemble at the ground for a training camp, with ODI and T20I fixtures likely to be arranged for September. Derby is currently being used as a base for the touring Pakistan men’s team.The announcement means that Derbyshire will not play any matches at their usual headquarters when the county season gets underway next month. The squad have been training at Repton School since returning from furlough earlier in July.”England’s international fixtures are massively important to the whole game at all levels and we are pleased to have been chosen to host these high-profile training camps and matches this summer,” Derbyshire’s chief executive, Ryan Duckett, said. “The Incora County Ground has developed into a prominent venue for international cricket, including hosting the ICC Women’s World Cup in 2017 and most recently a bio-secure training camp for the touring Pakistan squad.”This means that Derbyshire will play all matches away from home once the domestic season starts and this decision has been made with the full support of our coaching and playing staff.”The ECB has been working to salvage its programme of women’s cricket in the wake of Covid-19 impacting much of the summer. Centrally contracted England players returned to training last month, with the confirmation of South Africa’s tour expected in the coming weeks.

Pooran launches ten sixes as Amazon Warriors cruise home in 151 chase

The Report by Matt Roller30-Aug-2020Nicholas Pooran hit his maiden T20 hundred from just 45 balls to lead Guyana Amazon Warriors from 25 for 3 to a seven-wicket win with 21 balls to spare in a chase of 151 against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots, taking his side into play-off contention after a wretched start to the tournament.Pooran dominated an unbroken 128-run stand for the fourth wicket with Ross Taylor, who was happy to play second fiddle with 25 not out off 27 balls. Pooran hit 10 towering sixes on a tricky Queen’s Park Oval pitch on which St Lucia Zouks had defended 92 earlier in the day, and his hitting was breathtakingly clean as he targeted the Patriots spinners, effortlessly lofting them over wide long-off and heaving through midwicket.After Joshua Da Silva’s 59 had dragged the Patriots up to 150 for 5 and Jon-Russ Jaggesar took two wickets in the final over of the Powerplay, the Amazon Warriors looked in all sorts of trouble, not least with their batting line-up misfiring throughout the season. But Pooran made any suggestions of their demise look startlingly premature.Selection surprisesEvin Lewis looked in all sorts of pain batting at No. 7 after a groin injury on Saturday night, but was named in the Patriots side at the toss, while Sheldon Cottrell missed out due to a niggle. But it was a real shock to see Chris Lynn left out, even after 73 runs in six innings, and fellow overseas player Nick Kelly was also left to carry the drinks.Guyana sprung a surprise too, leaving out Lynn’s future Mumbai Indians team-mate Sherfane Rutherford and dropping Chandrapaul Hemraj after a poor run this season. Their batting line-up looked particular short with Kevin Sinclair – a lower-middle order option for WI Emerging Players in the Regional Super50 last season – as a makeshift opener and Keemo Paul carded at No. 6.Sinclair starsSinclair, the 20-year-old Guyanese allrounder, was handed the new ball as Chris Green opted to bowl six overs of offspin in the Powerplay, and he upstaged his captain with a fine spell. He struck in his second over, as Lewis chopped an offbreak onto his own stumps, and celebrated in style that would make a professional gymnast proud. He continued to keep the Patriots quiet with a combination of arm balls and regulation offbreaks, varying his lines and pace, and conceded only nine runs from his allocation of four overs.Nicholas Pooran frees his arms•Randy Brooks – CPL T20 / Getty

Da Silva acceleratesDa Silva was a team-mate of Sinclair’s in WI Emerging Players’ improbable run to the Super50 title last year, and despite him impressed with runs in the warm-up games on West Indies’ tour of England, the general consensus was that he was not suited to T20 cricket.He had done little to dispel that idea in the first 12 overs of the innings today, nudging his way to 16 off 26 balls having been dropped earlier in the tournament amid concerns about his strike rate. But after swatting Ashmead Nedd through mid-off, he turned on the style once Guyana threw the ball to a seamer, Keemo Paul, for the first time in the 14th over.Despite struggling in the heat, Da Silva heaved Paul’s slower balls for six, before hitting Imran Tahir for four and then bringing up his maiden T20 fifty, upper-cutting a Naveen-ul-Haq slower ball for three before smacking him for two boundaries to finish the 17th over. He had laid the foundation for late acceleration, with Denesh Ramdin – whom he had dislodged from the Trinidad and Tobago side in first-class cricket last season – whacking two sixes at the death to take the Patriots to 150.King loses his crownBrandon King was the leading run-scorer in the CPL last season but has had a miserable time of it this year. After hitting Alzarri Joseph for two early boundaries – as the Patriots opened the bowling with the only two bowlers to take an IPL six-for – King swatted awkwardly at a short ball, giving Ramdin an easy catch behind the stumps.That left his returns for the tournament at 60 runs at 8.57 from seven innings, and when Jaggesar took two wickets in the final over of the Powerplay, Guyana were in disarray at 25 for 3. But that brought Pooran and Taylor together, who quickly turned the game on its head.Pooran wins it As the required run rate soared to 9.5 runs per over, Pooran decided to take the attack to the Patriots, slapping Jaggesar for two sixes over long-off as Taylor short-arm jabbed Emrit over midwicket. Pooran then attacked Imran Khan, hitting him for two sixes and a four in the 11th over, before adding another towering blow off Jaggesar.Joseph’s return did little to stem the flow, as the partnership ticked up towards the first century stand of the tournament with two boundaries off him and a towering six over midwicket off Ish Sodhi, eventually reaching it with an enormous lofted drive through mid-off from Sohail Tanvir.A maiden ton looked out of reach with Pooran on 82 at the start of the 17th over with only 16 runs required, but he hit each of Sodhi’s three balls over the ropes, roaring in celebration as he sealed the win and made the first hundred of the CPL season in the process.On this form, there is little stopping Pooran, who was brutal down the ground and in front of square on the leg side and calmly ticked over with well-placed singles when his calculations suggested that a boundary wasn’t possible. Tonight will be a huge positive for West Indies, with evidence that he can fire even on difficult, turning wickets ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup in India.

All the buzz from the IPL game between the Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad on ESPNcricinfo’s blog

Debayan Sen02-Oct-2020