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Half-centuries from Hilton Cartwright, Nic Maddinson and Beau Webster took Australia A to a dominant position on the second day of their four-day game against India A

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Sep-2016
Scorecard1:44

WATCH – Cartwright 99* extends Australia A lead to 150

Half-centuries from Hilton Cartwright, Nic Maddinson and Beau Webster took Australia A to a dominant position on the second day of their four-day game against India A. Australia A needed just four balls to dismiss overnight batsman Hardik Pandya for 79 and wrap up India A’s innings for 169, with Kane Richardson adding one to his overnight tally to finish with 4 for 37.In reply, Australia A had marched on to 5 for 319 for a lead of 150, with Cartwright unbeaten on 99 when stumps were drawn at the Allan Border Field in Brisbane.Australia A got off to a wobbly start, losing both openers inside the first five overs to Shardul Thakur. Travis Dean was dismissed off the fourth ball of the innings, caught behind for a duck. Joe Burns, the captain, fell four overs later, caught at second slip by Pandya to leave Australia A 11 for 2.Maddinson and Kurtis Patterson then got together for the repair job and negotiated a demanding period, adding 92 for the third wicket in just under 21 overs. India A could have ended the stand earlier but for a reprieve to Maddinson when the batsman was on 34. Varun Aaron sent down three no-balls in an over, including one that took the outside edge and flew to Naman Ojha.Maddinson was well-supported by Patterson who collected a calm 25 off 61 balls before being caught behind off Hardik Pandya. Maddinson fell 15 overs later when he was caught by Pandey off Jayant Yadav’s offspin. His 81 came off 114 balls and included 12 fours and two sixes.Webster and Cartwright then took centrestage, combining for a fifth-wicket stand of 152 and kept the India A bowlers at bay for 43.2 overs. Webster’s 79 off 186 balls included nine fours. He fell towards the end of the day, caught behind off Thakur to give the right-arm medium pacer his third wicket. Wicketkeeper Sam Whiteman then kept Cartwright company for around 10 overs. Cartwright had struck 14 fours and a six in his 153-ball knock.India A used five bowlers. Thakur took three wickets, but was expensive, going at over four an over. Pandya and Yadav took a wicket each, while Dhawal Kulkarni and Aaron went wicketless.

Alex Blake smashed an unbeaten 59 off just 24 balls as Kent made sure of a place in the NatWest T20 Blast quarter-finals with a three-wicket win over Gloucestershire at Cheltenham

ECB/PA12-Jul-2015
ScorecardAlex Blake’s unbeaten 59 from just 24 balls took Kent home•Getty Images

Alex Blake smashed an unbeaten 59 off just 24 balls as Kent made sure of a place in the NatWest T20 Blast quarter-finals with a three-wicket win over Gloucestershire at Cheltenham.The powerful left-hander smote four sixes and five fours to see his side to a target of 167 with two balls to spare. Sam Northeast contributed 49 and Joe Denly 31, while Craig Miles claimed 3 for 27.Gloucestershire had posted 166 for seven after losing the toss, Michael Klinger strengthening his position as the competition’s leading run-maker with 75 from 50 balls. Mitch Claydon was the most successful Kent bowler with three wickets.Klinger’s runs took his aggregate in the South Group to 653 at an average of 108.83. But, while leaders Kent can now look forward to the knock-out stages, Gloucestershire face elimination.The hosts suffered a setback in the second over of their innings when Hamish Marshall, who had already moved to 11, was forced to retire hurt with a recurrence of a calf injury. Ian Cockbain joined Klinger and the pair took the score to 36 in the fifth over when Cockbain was caught behind off Claydon for 11.Klinger and fellow Australian Peter Handscomb then added 79 in 9.1 overs, Klinger moving to his half-century off 34 balls, with five fours and a six over square leg off Calum Haggett.Handscomb fell for 28, bowled by Fabian Cowdrey attempting to sweep, but Klinger deposited the left-arm spinner over wide long-on for his second six before departing in the same over, the 17th, to a catch at backward point. From then on Gloucestershire lost momentum as Geraint Jones, Jack Taylor, Benny Howell and Tom Smith were dismissed in the closing overs, Claydon and Matt Coles sharing the wickets.The Kent reply was given a brisk start by Joe Denly, who smashed the fourth ball of the innings from Craig Miles back over his head for a straight six and registered another maximum in the third over off Liam Norwell. But Gloucestershire struck two blows in the Powerplay as Bell Drummond was caught behind driving at Miles and Denly fell lbw to James Fuller, having hit 31 off 18 balls.Sam Billings had made only 5 when attempting to reverse sweep the first ball sent down by left-arm spinner Tom Smith, the competition’s leading wicket-taker, and being brilliantly caught above his head at full stretch by Howell at backward point.Darren Stevens and Cowdrey also fell cheaply. But Northeast was still there and when big-hitting Blake came in to launch sixes off Howell and Smith the game seemed to be tilting Kent’s way.The 17th over, bowled by Miles, saw the Kent captain depart one short of his half-century, caught on the midwicket boundary with 36 still needed. But Blake responded with another six and three fours of the next over from Norwell to virtually settle the outcome and ended the game by clearing the ropes for the fourth time.

Dean Brownlie, a New Zealand batsman trying to make a name for himself, must have reached a maiden Test century like this one in his dreams

The Report by David Hopps04-Jan-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
New Zealand have not only shown determination, in Dean Brownlie’s case they have shown improvement•Getty Images

New Zealand have a maiden Test hundred from Dean Brownlie to provide some consolation at
the end of a Test which they will want to forget, but although they could slow the South African
juggernaut they were not about to escape its inevitable destination. Victory fell to South Africa by
an innings and 27 runs with tea approaching on the third day at Newlands and, if New Zealand’s humiliation was no longer quite as stark, they were comprehensively outplayed.Brownlie’s mix of ability and spirit was a suitable reminder that New Zealand need players
possessing not just one of those qualities in abundance, but both as they seek to remedy one of the most challenging periods in their recent history. They are unlikely to compete in the second Test in Port Elizabeth – it is Nos. 1 v 8 in the Test rankings and a weakened squad is not about to disguise that – but they will be desperate to regroup in time for a home Test series against England in March.Vernon Philander needed only 26 deliveries to take five New Zealand wickets first time around as South Africa inflicted the lowest score on a Test side for 39 years, an explosive start to the Test that deservedly won him the man-of-the-match award. In contrast, it took him 22 overs to take a wicket in the second innings, which said something about New Zealand’s response to adversity, and his exertions were not without their concerns as he left the field near the end for treatment on the hamstring strain that almost ruled him out of the Test.After pulverising their opponents on the opening day, the only question for South Africa was exactly when an overwhelming victory would be completed. In removing BJ Watling, the last recognised batsman, Philander immediately pronounced that the end was near. New Zealand’s last six wickets brought another 106 on the third day, but the last five wickets fell in ten overs and it was all rounded off by a comical run out of Chris Martin, whose inability at No, 11 has been well chronicled, but who could bat blindfolded with a banana and it would not begin to justify such a farcical conclusion.South Africa can take much pride in such a triumphant restatement of their power in their first home Test for a year. It was far better for New Zealand to reflect merely upon Brownlie. Here was a batsman trying to make a name for himself, reaching a maiden Test century in a manner that was the stuff of dreams. He skipped down the pitch without a care in the world to the left-arm spin of Robin Peterson and deposited him over long-on for six. The catch was held in the crowd by a small boy who watched himself on the big screen and will probably cherish the moment just as long.

Smart stats

• Since losing their first Test against New Zealand after readmission, South Africa have won 13 and lost just one of the next 21 Tests. Their last loss came in Auckland in 2004.

• Since the beginning of 1995, South Africa have a win-loss ratio of 12 against New Zealand. Excluding Tests featuring Zimbabwe and Bangladesh, only Australia’s record against New Zealand (14-1) is more lopsided during this period.

• South Africa continued their excellent record in Cape Town since their readmission. Since 1991, they have won 17 and lost just three of the 25 matches played at the venue. Their win-loss ratio of 5.66 is the second-best for a team at a particular venue in the same period (min 15 Tests).

• DeanBrownlie became the eighth New Zealand batsman to score a century against South Africa in Tests since 1990. He is also the third to do so in Tests in Cape Town.

• Since the beginning of 2012, New Zealand’s No. 4 batsmen have averaged 61.70 in Tests, with five hundreds in 21 innings. Their No. 4 batsmen have scored 22% of all runs scored by the batsmen. Their other top-order batsmen (Nos. 1-7) have averaged 24.90.

• Chris Martin scored his 36th duck in Tests. Only Courtney Walsh, with 43 ducks has more.

That was the dream sequence; with the second new ball came the wake-up call. Brownlie and
Watling had whittled down South Africa’s commanding first-innings lead of 302 on an obdurate morning and Graeme Smith summoned the new ball with an air of impatience with the lunch interval only minutes away. His decision came up trumps as Morne Morkel banged the fourth
delivery in short of a length, Brownlie went for the cut as he had so often, but the extra bounce
deceived him and he holed out to Peterson, stationed for that very eventuality at deep-backward
point.It felt like a naïve dismissal, brought about by good captaincy, but Brownlie deserved only good
memories. The confident manner in which he achieved that maiden Test century brought a
celebratory dash to a mettlesome innings which had sent New Zealand’s mood soaring.Brownlie preferred to combat Peterson’s left-arm spin on the back foot and even on a pitch offering little turn it got him into a tangle on occasions, but Steyn and Morkel’s natural length was too short to take advantage of the uneven bounce available on a fullish length and Philander was also seen off with relative comfort. The pitch had lost the zip that exposed New Zealand on the first morning and Brownlie, comfortable on the back foot, rarely erred.His first Test hundred, in his eighth Test was a characterful one – a dashing start as he peppered the boundary square on the off side, dropped twice on 23, a more cautious outlook against the old ball as he resumed on 69, with lots of swaying and leaving on the back foot, and finally a leap through the 90s with two sixes in consecutive overs against Peterson – the first of them a long hop that he hauled over midwicket.Philander’s chance with the new ball came after lunch so he could have a session on the physio’s bench before bowling. He had only two overs before he was switched to the Kelvin Grove End for the first time and in the match and his threat grew as a result. In successive overs, he had James Franklin dropped at gully, a low chance for Alviro Petersen, Watling’s resistance for three-and-a-half hours in making 42 ended at first slip, and Doug Bracewell went for nought, squared up for another slip catch, this time at third.New Zealand were still 50 runs away from making South Africa bat a second time and it became apparent that they were hopelessly equipped for the task. Jeetan Patel, at No. 9, lacked the technique or courage to deal with Steyn (neither attribute comes easily, as many can testify) and he had been struck on the body and backed away to square leg several times before he chopped Steyn onto his stumps as he retreated some more.Steyn was not about to abandon a short-ball policy at this juncture. Franklin, like Watling, had
become New Zealand’s second batting verruca – painful, unsightly and taking some shifting – but he went across his stumps to try to turn him behind square and dragged the ball onto his stumps. Finally, farcically, came the run out of Martin, run out for nought without facing a ball, sent back after attempting an impossible second to Steyn at fine leg to stay off strike.

A round-up of the first day’s play from the Ranji Trophy Plate semi-finals

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Dec-2011Maharashtra recovered from a shaky start to end the opening day of the their Plate semi-final against Himachal Pradesh in a satisfactory position in Pune. Maharashtra chose to bat and lost their openers early, slipping to 45 for 2. They then had a partnership of 53 between Sangram Atitkar and Nikhil Paradkar before losing the third wicket on 98. Paradkar, however, went on to score 80 before he was run out, adding 130 with Ankit Bawne for the fourth wicket. Bawne ended the day on 56, steering his team to 232 for 4. Himachal Pradesh used eight bowlers, none of whom had much success apart from keeping the run-rate under control.Shalabh Shrivastava stopped a top-order wobble and helped steer Vidarbha to 225 for 5 in their Plate semi-final against Hyderabad in Nagpur. Hyderabad, however, will be pleased with their effort after losing the toss: they struck at regular intervals and limited the scoring. Vidarbha were 26 for 2, having lost Aniruddha Chore and Ravi Jangid in successive overs. Shrivastava, who went on to make 83, added 110 with Shiv Sundar Das, who had held firm at the top for 64. Himachal Pradesh then struck two late blows, reducing Vidarbha from 189 for 3 to 205 for 5 to leave the match evenly balanced.

Rain allowed only 30 overs on the fourth day, and Karachi Whites managed a draw, but they had already lost their chance of making the finals

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Dec-2010Khan Research Laboratories pocketed first-innings points as Karachi Whites finished on 262 for 5 in their second innings in the 30 overs possible today in Karachi. Though Asif Zakir fell early to Yasir Arafat, Rameez Aziz carried on to make a half-century before he fell caught behind to seamer Shakeel-ur-Rehman for 61. Ali Asad and Javed Mansoor ensured no further damage for Karachi. However, after KRL had taken a massive first-innings lead, Karachi’s chances of making the final were dashed. They finished three points behind second-placed State Bank of Pakistan, who now take on leaders KRL in the final at Rawalpindi from December 31.

The Indian government has distanced itself from the results of the IPL auction, where none of the 11 Pakistan players up for sale attracted any bid

Cricinfo staff21-Jan-2010The Indian government has distanced itself from the results of the IPL auction, where none of the 11 Pakistan players up for sale attracted any bid. Insisting that the IPL was an independent commercial enterprise, India’s sports minister MS Gill told reporters: “IPL is not only a cricket league but it is also a commercial enterprise and the government of India and the sports ministry has nothing to do with them.”Gill’s statement was a reaction to claims of “discriminatory treatment” made by his counterpart Aijaz Hussain Jakhrani, the Pakistan sports minister. “I have phoned the sports minister of India and recorded a protest over the unjust and discriminatory treatment meted out to the Pakistani cricketers,” Jakhrani told . “It is indeed a matter of disrespect of Pakistani heroes, who are the champions of Twenty20 World Cup.”Pakistani ministries of sports, interior and foreign affairs had given political and security clearance to Pakistani players in time to play.”SM Krishna, India’s foreign minister, echoed Gill’s comment. “Government has nothing to do with IPL, on selection of players and various exercises that are connected with it. So, Pakistan will have to draw a line between where Government of India is connected and where Government of India is an actor,” he said.”Seventeen Pakistani cricketers were issued requisite Indian visas at very short notice in December 2009 and January 2010 to participate in IPL 2010,” the foreign ministry said in a statement. “Two visas were issued in Islamabad, three in Wellington and 12 in Sydney, where the concerned Pakistani cricketers had applied while touring New Zealand and Australia, respectively. Based on a request from the Pakistan Cricket Board to High Commission of India in Islamabad, the MEA facilitated necessary clearances from other ministries. The participation or absence of Pakistani cricketers in a commercial event of the nature of IPL is, thus, a matter not within the purview of the government.Eleven Pakistan players – several of whom have expressed outrage at not being picked – were shortlisted for the IPL auction in Mumbai. Pakistan’s players had received NOCs from the PCB to participate in the tournament after the Pakistan government’s various ministries had cleared them to tour India. However, the uncertainty over the strained relations between India and Pakistan in the aftermath of the Mumbai terror attacks in November 2008 appears to have prompted franchises to wield restraint at the auction.

Lord’s-based team will stick with Spirit name but new branding expected for 2026 season

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Aug-2025The Lord’s-based Hundred franchise will continue to be known as London Spirit following the sale of a 49% stake to the Silicon Valley consortium known as the “Tech Titans”, with former England performance director Mo Bobat announced as the incoming director of cricket.MCC has been in discussions with its new equity partner for some time and is expected to unveil new team branding – possibly including the club’s famous egg-and-bacon colours – ahead of the 2026 season. But they have opted to keep the name as part of an identity that reflects “the capital’s energy, diversity, and cricketing heritage”.Bobat’s appointment is the first significant move by any of the Hundred teams after six of the eight equity sale deals were signed off by the ECB last month. Bobat, who will retain his role in the IPL as Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s director of cricket, is set to join up with Spirit from October.Related

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“It’s an honour to join London Spirit at such an exciting time,” Bobat said. “The opportunity to shape the cricketing future of this franchise, working with MCC and our new partners, the Tech Titans, is incredibly exciting. I’m looking forward to building something special – on and off the field.”London Spirit chairman, Julian Metherell, said: “Today marks a significant moment for London Spirit. Mo Bobat brings unmatched expertise and vision to the role of Director of Cricket, and we’re thrilled to welcome him. At the same time, retaining the London Spirit name reflects our belief in the identity that’s been built – one that resonates with the capital, our fans, and our values. We now look ahead to a new era, with fresh energy and clear purpose.”London Spirit men, currently coached by Justin Langer, lost their opening game of the 2025 season after being bowled out for 80 in front of their new owners – but bounced back to record victory against Welsh Fire at the weekend.

Legendary quick and hard-hitting batter played seven Tests before South Africa’s sporting isolation

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Feb-2024
Mike Procter, South Africa’s legendary allrounder and their first coach of the post-Apartheid era, has died at the age of 77, following complications during heart surgery.Widely renowned as one of his country’s greatest players, Procter’s international career was cut short due to South Africa’s sporting isolation in the 1970s and 1980s, and he was limited to just seven Tests, all of which came against Australia in 1966-67 and 1969-70.In those, however, he claimed 41 wickets at 15.02, bowling high-class seam and swing famously “off the wrong foot” – an inimitable chest-on action that involved him releasing the ball early in his delivery stride, at high pace and often from unconventional angles, wide on the crease or from round the wicket.He helped South Africa to victory in six of his seven Tests, the other being a draw, with his best figures of 6 for 73 coming in the second innings of his final appearance at Port Elizabeth, to seal a crushing 323-run victory.Procter was a formidable ball-striker too – he averaged 34.83 in the second of his two Test series, a memorable 4-0 whitewash of Bill Lawry’s Australia in 1969-70, alongside fellow members of South Africa’s lost generation, including Barry Richards, Graeme and Peter Pollock and captain Ali Bacher.Thereafter, however, his greatest performances were limited to domestic cricket, for Natal initially and then Rhodesia in the Currie Cup, and perhaps most famously for Gloucestershire, where he was a stalwart for 14 seasons between 1968 and 1981.In that time he made 259 first-class appearances for Gloucestershire, scoring 14,441 runs at 36.19 with 32 centuries and a best of 209 against Essex in 1978, and claiming 833 wickets at 19.56, including his career-best haul of 8 for 30 against Worcestershire at New Road in 1979.One of his most memorable feats, however, was his haul of four wickets in five balls in the Benson & Hedges Cup semi-final at Southampton in 1977, when he ripped through the cream of Hampshire’s batting, including their legendary opening pairing of Gordon Greenidge and his fellow South African Richards.That performance set Gloucestershire on their way to Lord’s, where they surged to victory over Kent, although he had already helped the club to secure their first silverware of the 20th century in the Gillette Cup final of 1973, when his mighty allround return of 94 and 2 for 27 had seen off Sussex.He was named as one of Wisden’s five Cricketers of the Year in 1970, after a 103-wicket season for Gloucestershire in 1969, and at Taunton in August 1979, he secured another niche entry in the record books by slamming Somerset’s Dennis Breakwell for six consecutive sixes, albeit not in the same over.Back in South Africa, he emulated Don Bradman and CB Fry in scoring six centuries in consecutive innings, starting with 174 from 203 balls against North Eastern Transvaal on New Year’s Day 1971, and encompassing a career-best 254 against West Province.After South Africa’s readmission to international cricket, Procter was named as the team’s head coach, overseeing their famous return to Test cricket against West Indies in Bridgetown, as well as their 1992 World Cup campaign, in which he guided the side to the semi-finals before falling foul of the tournament’s infamous rain rules in defeat to England in Sydney.He later served as an ICC match referee between 2002 and 2008, and was also South Africa’s convenor of selectors. He died in hospital near his home in Durban, and is survived by his wife Maryne and two daughters.

Party officials said he was struck in the shin but that he was in stable condition

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Nov-2022Former captain and prime minister of Pakistan Imran Khan suffered injuries to his leg after being shot at in a protest march he was leading in Wazirabad in Punjab. Nine other people are believed to have been injured and one person died in the attack.Imran was taken to hospital soon after and party officials later said he was struck in the right shin and had suffered bone damage from the pellets but that he was in stable condition.Pakistani TV channels aired footage that amounted to a confession from the alleged gunman who said Imran was the target. Imran, 70, was leading a protest rally on to the capital Islamabad, demanding general elections after he was ousted from power in April this year.Imran – one of the game’s great allrounders who led Pakistan to their 1992 World Cup win – was standing atop a large container truck with other party officials when shots were fired, forcing them to duck for cover. TV footage in the immediate aftermath showed Imran conscious, with a bandage on his right leg, just above the foot, as he was moved to another vehicle and eventually taken to hospital.