Both Nurul and Mushfiq to keep wickets as Bangladesh introduce split-keeping for New Zealand T20Is

Bangladesh coach Russell Domingo has said that the management will introduce a “split-wicketkeeping” policy during the side’s five-match T20I series against New Zealand at home.

"Sohan (Nurul) will keep wickets in the first two games," Domingo said ahead of the series. "The plan is to split wicket-keeping duties in this particular series, make it two games each and make a decision in the fifth game,” he added.

Talking about Mushfiqur Rahim’s batting position, Domingo suggested that the right-hander would bat at number 4 as he can anchor the innings for the side.

“I see Mushfiq probably starting at No 4. He is successful there. He can hold the innings together for us. He can also rotate strike in the middle overs. He can finish well for us. It is good to have him back in the squad," said the coach.

The South African further added that winning the series keeps a lot of importance as it would provide momentum and confidence going to the World T20.

"Winning the series is important. We are playing at home, so we want to continue gaining confidence before the WC," said the 47-year-old.

The two sides will begin the T20I fixtures on September 1, 2021, and all the matches will be played at the Sher-e-Bangla Stadium in Mirpur, Dhaka. Bangladesh have tasted success in the recent past after thumping Australia 4-1 in a five-match T20I series at home in August this year.

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The Sun pays damages to England all-rounder Ben Stokes & his family

The Sun newspaper in England has paid damages to the national cricket team's all-rounder Ben Stokes and his family for putting details on the front page of a tragedy that involved the family. Ben’s mother Deborah Stokes has said that the family took legal action over an article that was published in September 2019 and was headlined “tragedy that haunts Stokes’ family”. “The decision to publish this article was a decision to expose, and to profit from exposing, intensely private and painful matters within our family. The suffering caused to our family by the publication of this article is something we cannot forgive,” Deborah was quoted as saying by The Guardian. “Ben and I can take no pleasure in concluding this settlement with The Sun. We can only hope that our actions in holding the paper to account will leave a lasting mark, and one that will contribute to prevent other families from having to suffer the same pain as was inflicted on our family by this article,” she added. The Sun has now issued an unreserved apology. “We should not have published the article.” Stokes, who played a massive role in England's World Cup-winning campaign back in 2019 has been out of action after the left-handed batsman had taken an indefinite break from cricket on July 30 this year.

Controlled aggression at Headingley helped us win the game: Chris Silverwood

England were back on track in the five-match Test series against India after they etched a thumping win by an innings and 76 runs in the third Test at Leeds. Head coach Chris Silverwood has said that it was “controlled aggression" during the clash which helped the hosts scalp a win at Headingley. "Joe and I reflected on the Lord's Test and thought about what we could learn and how we could get better. And I think there was controlled aggression around what they did (at Headingley)," Silverwood said during a virtual media interaction. "The way they hit the lengths hard, the way they put the India tail under pressure and forced them to make decisions all the time. I think you can be aggressive in a very controlled way and I think they got that right,” he added. India were bundled out for 78 in the first innings and then England posted a mammoth 432 in reply riding on Joe Root’s century and meaningful contributions by openers Haseeb Hameed, Rory Burns and Dawid Malan who batted at number three. The visiting team was then bowled out for 278 in the second innings to suffer a defeat. The series is presently levelled at 1-1 with the two sides now slated to play each other in the fourth Test at Kennington Oval from Thursday, September 02.

With dreams of playing Test cricket, Hong Kong’s Anshuman Rath begins his journey with Odisha

Anshuman Rath who has played international cricket for Hong Kong has quit the country’s national team and is now looking to make his name in the Indian domestic circuit after migrating to Orissa, the place of birth of his parents who are now Hong Kong citizens. Rath would be playing for Orissa in the upcoming Indian domestic season. "The Orissa Cricket Association (OCA) has been warm and players are very friendly. I am looking forward to representing Orissa this year," Rath was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz. Enlisting his dream Rath, who represented his nation of birth in 18 ODIs and 20 T20Is having debuted at an age of 17 in 2014 said, “I am grateful to Hong Kong Cricket for the opportunities but I wanted to push myself. Associate cricket has its limitation, the facilities, exposure and resources are limited.” I've soon realised that I cannot achieve my goal of playing Test cricket by being in Hong Kong. That is why I have moved to India. Playing in the country of my parents is also a matter of pride for me," the one time Middlesex 2nd XI player added. While he has an average of 51 in ODIs, in the five First-Class matches that he has played representing Hong Kong in the Intercontinental Cup, his average increases to 65 with a best of 98 unbeaten to his name. The 24-year-old Rath has also led Hong Kong previously. The Orissa team will be coached this year by domestic legend Wasim Jaffer and hence with Rath coming in, some improvements might be around the corner for the state.

Situation at the moment is very tough, but will become a better coach from it: Justin Langer

Australia had a terrible run in the five-match series against Bangladesh away from home after suffering a 1-4 defeat. Subsequently, coach Justin Langer had come under scrutiny. The former left-handed batsman has now opened about the conversations he had with the players while talking to a West Australian newspaper. "We all got a lot off our chests," Langer said. "I think we are all in a better place now," Langer said about the chat he had with players which were facilitated by Cricket Australia after a lot was being said in the Australian media. Langer further admitted that the present situation is pretty tough but he will become a “better coach” from it. "The situation at the moment is very tough, but I am confident that I will become a better coach from it," he said. The former Australia Test opener also said that though the team had a tough run in recent times, it had retained the Ashes only a little while ago and were the top-ranked team in Tests and T20Is. "We have had a rough trot in recent times but we retained the Ashes only a little while ago and were ranked No.1 in Test and T20 cricket not that long ago. Get back to winning and you won't hear about anything else," he added. The Australian squad will leave for UAE in early October for the World T20. Though, a lot of Aussie players will already be in UAE for the second leg of the IPL which is scheduled to resume on September 19 with Mumbai Indians taking on Chennai Super Kings. The World T20 is slated to begin on October 17, a couple of days after the conclusion of the IPL 2021. UAE and Oman will co-host the tournament with Oman taking on PNG in the opener.