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Abbas Afridi leads the way with four wickets to blow away Islamabad United’s famed batting line-up

Danyal Rasool19-Feb-2023After two wins against struggling sides, this from Multan Sultans wasn’t so much a victory as it was a statement of intent. A tremendous bowling performance against a formidable Islamabad United team saw them blow away the two-time champions and skittle them out for 138 inside 18 overs. They never really let United keep up with the asking rate, and the chase of 191 snuffed out every time it looked like it was about to begin.Mohammad Ilyas, Usama Mir, Ihsanullah and Abbas Afridi all shone during different phases of the defence.Ilyas was both economical and destructive up top, keeping a lid on the top order with accurate lines and pace variations while removing both openers, Paul Stirling and Hassan Nawaz. When a third-wicket stand between the destructive duo of Colin Munro and Rassie van der Dussen – each of whom had played their parts in Islamabad’s vanquishing of Karachi Kings earlier this week – threatened to get United back on track, it was Mir’s turn to impress. An almost unreadable googly kissed Munro’s outside edge through to the keeper before Shadab Khan holed out into the deep in the same match-turning over.It was followed by an absorbing, high-quality battle between Azam Khan and Ihsanullah, the bowler toying with the batter in the way he varied his lengths. Azam struggled to get away the short ball or the yorker. In the 12th and 14th overs, as the run rate soared past 11, United’s premier middle order power hitter managed just one run across eight deliveries against the PSL’s leading wicket-taker.Usama Mir picked up two wickets•PCB

Afridi followed up with the killer blow with three wickets in the 17th over. Van der Dussen was still around on 49, but a change of pace drew his top edge before Faheem Ashraf and Mohammad Wasim were sent on their way off consecutive deliveries. Ihsanullah returned to apply the coup de grace, cleaning up Tom Curran and Abrar Ahmed off successive deliveries to put the game to bed and claim the reward his performance across the spell merited.Sultans had earlier begun steadily with the bat after losing Shan Masoon early, thanks to a half-century from Mohammad Rizwan and a 30-ball 36 from Rilee Rossouw. The pair have tended to complement each other well during the early stage of this PSL, particularly with Masood struggling for rhythm at present. Rizwan took on a more proactive role, though, finding timing easier to come than Rossouw. He brought up his fifty in 37 balls before Shadab trapped him in front.That brought David Miller and Kieron Pollard together, and perhaps the passage of play that took the game away from United. Across 40 balls, the two smashed 78 runs, with Miller blitzing his way to a 25-ball 52. Shadab and Wasim would come in for particular punishment, with Miller plundering 24 in an over off the Islamabad captain. At the death, Wasim was carted for 28 in his final two overs, with Pollard capping off the innings with three successive fours.Pollard would later say Multan were aiming for 200, but the 190 they posted proved more than enough for a white-hot bowling line-up.

This will allow teams to pick their best XIs and impact player based on whether they are batting or bowling

Nagraj Gollapudi22-Mar-2023Captains in IPL 2023 will walk out for the toss with two different team sheets, and hand in their final XIs the toss. That is one of the significant tweaks to the IPL’s playing conditions, which will soon be shared with the teams. The change, the IPL said in an internal note listing the various changes to playing conditions, would allow franchises to pick their best XIs based on whether they end up batting or bowling, the appropriate impact player included.”Currently the captains have to exchange the teams before the toss,” the note, seen by ESPNcricinfo, said. “This has been changed to exchange of teams immediately post the toss, to enable teams to choose the best XI depending on whether they are batting or bowling first. It will also assist the teams to plan for the impact player.”The IPL becomes the second T20 franchise league after the SA20 to allow teams to announce their XIs after the toss. In the SA20, which staged its inaugural season earlier this year, teams put 13 names on the team sheets initially before announcing their final XIs after the toss. Graeme Smith, the SA20 tournament director, had said then that the move was designed to “lessen the impact of the toss” and allow a level-playing field based on the conditions. The numbers at the end of the SA20 season were pretty even: out of the 33 matches, teams winning the toss won 15 times and lost 16 (two no results).Related

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The IPL has adopted a similar thought process now, with another key factor being neutralising the effect of dew somewhat – dew has traditionally had a big impact at some venues in India, with teams bowling second adversely impacted.The numbers from 2019 – the previous time the IPL was played in India in a home-and-away format – illustrate that teams winning the toss went on to win more often than not: across 60 games, teams won 34 and lost 23 after winning the toss (not including Super Overs and no results).While the toss will still matter, with the new rule it should not be a case of “win toss, win match” in certain conditions, with teams allowed to tweak their teams accordingly. For example, if a team that wanted to bat and then defend a total on a slow track in turning conditions is forced to bowl first, it can play an extra spinner in the starting XI, and then replace a specialist bowler with a batter in the second innings to help with the run chase.

Other tweaks to the IPL playing conditions

• Over-rate penalty of only four fielders outside the 30-yard circle for every over not completed in the allocated time.
• Unfair movement of the wicketkeeper will result in a dead ball and five penalty runs.
• Unfair movement by a fielder will result in a dead ball and five penalty runs.

Both teams scored big and won their opening fixtures, and another high-scoring contest is likely in Guwahati

Sreshth Shah04-Apr-20235:05

Moody: Rabada needs to take powerplay wickets against Rajasthan

Big picture: High-scoring contest likely

This contest has produced some huge totals in recent seasons. At Sharjah in 2020, Rahul Tewatia played an iconic innings to help Rajasthan Royals chase down 224. At the Wankhede in 2021, Punjab Kings scored 221 but won by only four runs. Ground dimensions and pitch conditions were key factors in those high-scoring matches, and their clash in Guwahati could go the same way.In October 2022, India and South Africa scored a total of 458 runs for the loss of only six wickets in a T20I in Guwahati. While both Royals and Kings scored big and won their opening fixtures this season, Sanju Samson’s men are at full strength, while Shikhar Dhawan’s Punjab have to play without Liam Livingstone once again.Despite Livingstone’s absence, the Kings batters went hard from the start during their fixture against Kolkata Knight Riders. Dhawan played anchor while the others were explosive around him. The challenge will be to repeat that against a much-stronger bowling attack.The Royals will want a repeat of their season opener against Sunrisers Hyderabad: attacking top-order batting, an incisive new-ball performance, and their spinners providing the squeeze.Wednesday’s game will also be the first time the IPL moves to north-east India. In 2020, the Royals, who have a long-standing partnership with Assam Cricket Association, were supposed to play in Guwahati, but Covid-19 ruined those plans.Jos Buttler has begun IPL 2023 in top gear•BCCI

Team news: No Livingstone, but Rabada’s in

Livingstone is still awaiting fitness clearance from the ECB and has not yet arrived in India, but Kagiso Rabada has joined the Punjab squad after completing South Africa’s ODI series against Netherlands on April 2. If Rabada is ready to go, he will replace Nathan Ellis in the XI. The only doubt for Royals is West Indies fast bowler Obed McCoy, who is still nursing an injury.

Toss and Impact Player strategy

Rajasthan Royals

Possible bat-first XI: 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 Jos Buttler, 3 Sanju Samson (capt, wk), 4 Devdutt Padikkal, 5 Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Riyan Parag, 7 Jason Holder, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Trent Boult, 10 KM Asif, 11 Yuzvendra Chahal.Royals subbed out Jaiswal for Impact Player Navdeep Saini during their defence against Sunrisers. Royals could repeat that or bring in a different pacer – Sandeep Sharma or Kuldeep Sen.Possible bowl-first XI: 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 Jos Buttler, 3 Sanju Samson (capt, wk), 4 Shimron Hetmyer, 5 Riyan Parag, 6 Jason Holder, 7 R Ashwin, 8 Trent Boult, 9 KM Asif, 10 Yuzvendra Chahal, 11 Sandeep Sharma/M Ashwin.Padikkal could come in as an Impact Player at No. 4 during the chase if Royals bowl first. If Murugan Ashwin gets a game, then he’ll stay on as a lower-order hitter with a fast bowler being subbed out.Sam Curran scored quick runs and picked up the big wicket of Andre Russell in Punjab’s opening game•BCCI

Punjab Kings

Possible bat-first XI: 1 Prabhsimran Singh, 2 Shikhar Dhawan (capt), 3 Bhanuka Rajapaksa, 4 Jitesh Sharma (wk), 5 Sikandar Raza, 6 Sam Curran, 7 M Shahrukh Khan, 8 Harpreet Brar, 9 Rahul Chahar, 10 Arshdeep Singh, 11 Kagiso RabadaHard-hitting bowling allrounder Rishi Dhawan could be the Impact Player as a lower-order batter. He could replace Rajapaksa and contribute with the ball during the second innings.Possible bowl-first XI: 1 Prabhsimran Singh (wk), 2 Shikhar Dhawan (capt), 3 Jitesh Sharma (wk), 4 Sikandar Raza, 5 Sam Curran, 6 M Shahrukh Khan, 7 Harpreet Brar, 8 Rishi Dhawan, 9 Rahul Chahar, 10 Arshdeep Singh, 11 Kagiso Rabada.If Kings are bowling first, they could name only three overseas players in their XI and bring in Rajapaksa as the Impact Player for Arshdeep during the chase.Kings will be without Raj Bawa for the rest of the season, as he’s out with a left shoulder injury. Pace-bowling Punjab allrounder Gurnoor Brar has been signed as a replacement for INR 20 lakh (USD 24,000 approx.). Twenty-two-year-old Brar is yet to play an official T20.*

Stats that matter

• Buttler has had the upper hand in his battles against Rabada. In 11 innings in T20 cricket, Rabada has dismissed Buttler only once, while conceding 96 runs off 56 balls.
• Arshdeep keeps Buttler quiet (21 runs conceded off 20 balls) but is expensive against Samson (49 runs off 26 balls).
• Royals could consider bowling Ashwin early to Dhawan. In 13 innings, Dhawan has a strike rate of only 88 against Ashwin – 85 runs off 97 balls – and has been dismissed four times.
• Since IPL 2022, Royals have a 100% success rate of defending totals of 190+. Trent Boult’s ability of taking wickets in the first over has certainly helped their defence. Boult has 17 first-over wickets since IPL 2020; the second-best – Jofra Archer – has only five.

Pitch and conditions

Both fast bowlers and spinners could struggle in Guwahati, which is usually a batting-friendly surface with medium-sized boundaries. Humid conditions are expected with a small chance of rain in the evening.*

Naveed and Abdulrahimzai have earned their maiden Afghanistan call-ups in the Hashmatullah-led squad

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Jun-2023Allrounder Rashid Khan has been rested for the one-off Test against Bangladesh in Mirpur starting on June 14, with Afghanistan prioritising his “long-term fitness”. Izharulhaq Naveed and Mohammad Ibrahim have earned their maiden Afghanistan call-ups, while Nijat Masood and Karim Janat have also been named in the 15-member squad that will be led by white-ball captain Hashmatullah Shahidi.Rashid was part of Afghanistan’s third ODI against Sri Lanka after missing the first two due to a lower-back injury.”Although he made a comeback in the series decider today, the team management & medical team have decided to prioritize his long-term fitness,” the Afghanistan Cricket Board said on Twitter. “Despite being fit, our selectors believe it is crucial not to rush his return. They have taken a cautious approach to ensure he receives adequate rest and rehabilitation allowing him to regain full fitness before the upcoming BCBtigers series, the ACC Asia Cup & the ICC CWC 2023.”Allrounder Azmatullah Omarzai, who missed the third ODI against Sri Lanka, misses out on Test selection due to a groin injury. According to ACB, he will undergo rehab and will remain under full medical observation until his return.

Captain warns knee issue may yet limit allround role before end of series

Matt Roller15-Jun-2023Ben Stokes has declared himself fit to bowl in the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston after training with a heavily-strapped knee on each of England’s three training days.Stokes was due to bat at the start of England’s nets session on Thursday but pushed his slot back in order to bowl around four overs on a training strip on the outfield, with bowling coach David Saker watching on.”The last three days have been really good for my confidence,” Stokes said at his pre-match press conference. “I’ve bowled every day so far and been able to run in with more intensity day by day. I’ve got myself in a real good place to be able to bowl.”Stokes has not bowled a ball in a competitive match since April 3, when he bowled the solitary over of his IPL season with Chennai Super Kings, and has not bowled in a first-class match since England’s defeat in Wellington four months ago.He said after that Test that he has a diagnosis as to the nature of his chronic left-knee injury but has repeatedly declined to reveal it publicly. He had a cortisone injection before travelling to India for the IPL and his exact fitness status was kept under wraps by CSK for most of the tournament.Stokes became the first man in Test history to captain a winning team without bowling a ball, facing a ball or keeping wicket when England beat Ireland at Lord’s earlier this month, but has gradually built up his bowling workloads since.While England were on a team-bonding trip to Loch Lomond in Scotland last week, Stokes posted a short Instagram video of him bowling at St Andrews University, and has continued to ramp up over the last three days in Birmingham.Stokes suggested that being fit to bowl throughout the series might be a struggle: “David Saker has come in and mentioned something to me last week in Scotland, saying, ‘If you’re still bowling by the fourth or fifth Test, we’ve done something right.'”I definitely feel in a better place than I did in Wellington and even before that. Obviously every time I am out on the field, that [bowling an important spell] is what I want to do, but my body was stopping me from doing that.”What I have done is put myself in a place where I feel a lot more capable of being able to do that. I am not going to speak too soon because who knows where I could be in two weeks’ time? But hopefully I don’t have to worry about that – I will worry about it when it does happen.”Related

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Stokes was asked if he would consider holding himself back in order to ensure he could still contribute with the ball towards the end of the series. “I give 100 percent of myself all the time,” he replied.He also underlined his belief that it will be “a very tough ask” for any of England’s seamers to play all five Tests, with the series squeezed into a window of six-and-a-half weeks. “All our bowlers have been told to prepare as if they are playing every game,” Stokes said. “It will be very likely that we will have to make some changes as the series goes on.”England named their team two days before the toss, with Stuart Broad pipping Mark Wood to the third seamer’s spot due to his “incredible” record against Australia – as well as his past success against David Warner, whom he dismissed seven times in the 2019 series.”When you say Broad, Robinson, Anderson, that is a pretty good three guys to be able to say are in your starting XI,” Stokes said. “It’s very hard to look past someone like [Broad], in the opening game of the series, especially against Australia. I’m very happy with the team we’ve ended up picking.”There is also a recall for Moeen Ali, a late-notice call-up after Jack Leach was ruled out of the summer with a lower-back stress fracture. “I had to think hard about who we would replace him with,” Stokes said. “A player like Mo, who I have seen put in some unbelievable, match-winning performances – albeit a long time ago – was something I couldn’t look past.”That was a stomach and a heart feeling, rather than my brain. Generally, I have stuck with my heart and my gut throughout my captaincy so far. Moeen Ali is going to come in here and I’m looking at what he can offer on his best days – and not worrying about anything else.”

“Playing Pakistan, in Sri Lanka, will help our squad further prepare for the Asia Cup,” the ACB chairman said

Danyal Rasool31-Jul-2023Just before the Asia Cup, Afghanistan will host Pakistan for a series of three ODIs across five days in Sri Lanka. The first two games will be played in Hambantota on August 22 and 24, with the third taking place in Colombo on August 26.Both sides will travel to Pakistan after the series, with the Asia Cup opener in Multan between Pakistan and Nepal taking place on August 30.”Our previous ODI assignment was a 2-1 series victory in our away tour to Bangladesh, which has boosted the team’s morale for the Pakistan series,” Afghanistan Cricket Board chairman Mirwais Ashraf said. “We are satisfied with our preparations for the Asia Cup as we have featured in multiple ODI commitments in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh recently, and playing Pakistan, in Sri Lanka, will help our squad read the conditions and further prepare for the event.”Afghanistan were the official hosts when the two sides played a three-match T20I series in Sharjah in March, which Afghanistan won 2-1. Pakistan have never lost an ODI to Afghanistan, winning all four they have played to date.Pakistan completed a two-Test series in Sri Lanka last week. A number of players, including captain Babar Azam, have remained in Sri Lanka to take part in the Lankan Premier League, which began on July 30 and ends on August 20.