Dropping catches cost us the series: Misbah

BCCI makes it clear to Cricket Australia; Brisbane Test not on under 'hard quarantine'

Putting an end to all the uncertainties around its stand on the issue of quarantine for Indian players in Queensland, the Board of Control for Cricket in India(BCCI) has written an email to Cricket Australia, stating that the team will not be travelling to Brisbane if the provisions of a ‘hard quarantine’ will be applied on them by the Queensland health officials, as per an ESPNcricnfo report. A second hard quarantine will be ‘immaterial,’ BCCI argues, as the Indian team has already been under hard isolation after arriving the country two months back, the report further stated. Earlier, Cricket Australia had sought clarifications from BCCIas the various reports started emerging from the touring Indian camp. Indian captain Ajinkya Rahane had said that although life under a strict bio bubble has been tough for the players, they were not looking too far ahead and were focusing on the SCG Test. This latest development of official communication to Cricket Australia from BCCI on the clear objection against travelling to Queensland put the Gabba as the venue of the fourth and final Test of the series under serious jeopardy. The CA had already put the SCG as a stand by to host the fourth Test, and it may well be the case come January 15 when the fourth Test is scheduled to begin.

England women’s team to make their first ever trip to Pakistan confirms ECB

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) along with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB0 have confirmed that the England women's team would be touring Pakistan in October 2021. The tour will begin simultaneously with the men’s team tour of Pakistan. This is going to be the first-ever tour of England women's team to Pakistan. Speaking on the historic announcement, ECB Managing Director of Women's Cricket, Clare Connor, said, “We are absolutely delighted to be making this historic announcement today. The England Women’s cricket team has never toured Pakistan before so this is another important step in our history and journey.” Emphasizing that the tour will not be a cricket tour that provides a valuable competitive opportunity to both teams, Clare said that it should also serve as another powerful and positive message for the fact that more women and girls can derive empowerment through the sport. While the men’s tour will have only two T20Is, Heather Knight’s team will play T20Is, on the same day as the men's game acting as the first match to doubleheaders. The women’s team will then also play three ODIs which will be part of the World Championship series. Reacting to the announcement, PCB Chief Executive, Wasim Khan, said, “World champions England accompanying their men’s side for their first-ever tour to Karachi is an extremely powerful and strong announcement for Pakistan, our women’s cricketers as well as for the global sport.” “Like the England men’s side, I am confident the women’s tour will open up opportunities for their future tours that will further contribute in promoting women’s cricket in Pakistan and helping our national side to narrow the gap with the leading nations,” he added. Series Schedule 14 October: 1st IT20, National Stadium, Karachi 15 October: 2nd IT20, National Stadium, Karachi 18 October: 1st ODI, National Stadium, Karachi 20 October: 2nd ODI, National Stadium, Karachi 22 October: 3rd ODI, National Stadium, Karachi

Match Report: Heat continue streak, beat Stars in rain marred, thrilling encounter

Brisbane Heat continued their newly found winning streak at home as they beat Melbourne Stars by 18 runs (D/L Method) at the Carrara Oval to claim their third victory in a row. With this win, the Heat have now reached the fifth p[osition, just one point shy of the fourth spot, currently occupied by the Adelaide Strikers with 17 points. For Stars, it was another day of 'couldn't have won but didn’t' as they came in a touching distance with the help of some insane hitting by Nick Larkin at the end of the innings. With this loss, they have now moved to 6th place in the points table. The brilliant last over Prior to the last over, Larkin had 23 of a Lewis Gregory over and in this too, teh team Stars required 23 and Larkin got onto the strike with 22 needed off five balls. But credit must go to Xavier Bartlett who did not alter his line and outfoxed the batter. If not outfoxed, at least bowled in the areas where the bowl could not travel past the fielder and gave away just five runs. Although Larkin and Seb Gotch Larkin’s partner would think that they missed out on at least three sixes as three bowls were perfectly in the slot for being hit out of the ground. But in a match, there are always could haves and should-haves. The Larkinsanity After the loss of Glenn Maxwell’s wicket and that of Marcus Stoinis, it was assumed that the match was done and dusted. But Larkin, 30, held onto what is commonly described as hope and kept on smoking boundaries to keep his team in the hunt even till the last over. The New South Wales born hit 35 off 16 with two sixes and four boundaries in his account. Had he had a little bit of support from those who went out ahead of him, a different result might have been on the cards. Fielding level- Heat The Brisbane team saved at least 20 runs in the field apart from taking two sensational catches and presenting to the BBL, probably the save of the tournament so far by Max Bryant, who saved a certain six off the bowling of Gregory. Apart from that, another certain six was saved when Sp[iceman Fletcher hit a ball straight as an arrow of Mujeeb but that intercepted just ahead of the boundary by Xavier Bartlett and him along with his fast bowling partner Mark Steketee teamed up to not only save the six but also in also getting Spiceman out. Englishman Gregory pulled off a brilliantly judged catch of Nicholas Pooran near the boundary ropes. Lynnsanity at display Earlier in the day, Stars after winning the toss, invited to Heat to bat first and the response that Heat gave was like a fresh shower of rain washing up all the disappointment that might have crept up into the Heat fans due to the rain which halted the start of play and converted the game into a 17 over a team at first. By the time the second wave of rainfall started, Heat were 68-2 in just the sixth over, The two wickets also fell in quick succession as both Bryant and Joe Denly were cleaned up by Zampa off successive deliveries. Lynn after coming back from the break hit Maxwell for three consecutive boundaries. Just after that, another passing shower stopped the proceedings. The match was reduced to 10 overs before it began again from the eighth over and Maxwell got the opposition captain out with the first ball after the resumption. But before getting out, the 30-year-old Lynn had smoked 48 off just 23 deliveries including three fours and four sixes. Those who came after him i.e. Joe Burns and Lewis Gregory too continued from where he had left, taking the total to 115 in 10 overs, which was then increased to 130 due to the Duckworth Lewis system. While Burns made 22 off 11, Gregory made nine of three. What's Next? Heat, on a roll, would aim to continue it when they face the Sixers on Monday, where the Sixers would be looking to exact revenge for the last game’s loss. On the other hand, Stars would take on Strikers on Monday in what could be an exciting battle of the mid-table.

Teary-eyed Siraj makes remarkable transition from rookie to a lead bowler at SCG

When the players of Australia and India were standing at the SCG during the national anthems of both the countries, camera frames were frozen on the face of Mohammed Siraj whose tears were not stopping and were flowing on his cheeks. The moment was indeed special for Siraj who was living through the dreams he and his father had seen when his father used to ride an auto rickshaw in Hyderabad. Former cricketers and analysts swapped in to point out how much the game and representing his country meant for the right-arm pacer, although he is not lucky enough to make his father realise his dreams, and that he can only see him looking up in the sky after taking every wicket in the first few days of career. He was India's man to answer the press conference after the end of the first day’s play, and Siraj was asked to touch upon the feelings that made the moment so emotional for him. "Just remembered my father at that time. I was really emotional. He wanted me to see playing Test cricket. Wish he could see me playing for India,” was the reply of the young man who has shown exemplary mental strength by staying back in Australia to live up to his father's expectations while dealing with emotional capitulation. Siraj is having an interesting entry into Test cricket as he has been promoted as one of the lead bowlers just in the second game of career, after being held back with the ball by the captain on his debut. Siraj showed more skills and temperament for a bowler playing his first game at the MCG, and with the injury to Umesh Yadav, the team management had no option but to promote Siraj with the new ball alongside Jasprit Bumrah. Just like his Test debut where he seized the opportunity with both hands, Siraj put all his emotions he felt before the game behind him, to get into the basics on how to bowl with the new ball. He knew the incoming David Warner was itching to get away with few boundaries at the start of his innings, and kept his composure and kept on teasing the left hander outside his off stump. The persistence paid off as Warner edged one to Cheteshwar Pujara while attempting to drive Siraj on the up and the Indian team was delighted to see a young man making the most of chances and rising to the occasion. He was disciplined with the ball and kept on testing the debutant Will Pucovski outside his off stump, and sometimes bringing the ball back in hope of hitting his pad as the right-hander showed a vulnerability in taking a front foot stride across the line of the stumps. Moreover, he was smart enough to remember the struggles of Pucovski in the recent past where he has struggled to get his head out of the line, and hence target him with a sharp and accurate bouncer in a well-laid plan. “Last match (the practice match) we were bowling short to him and in this game also we tried that as he was playing them and not leaving. So, the plan was to surprise him with an odd bouncer without shifting focus on line and length,” Siraj said of the line of attack against Pucovski. Siraj’s accuracy and perseverance almost paid off when the debutant top-edged one in an attempt of pulling one rising bouncer off him, but it was not to be for India and Siraj as Rishabh Pant dropped yet another chance in the horrible hour of play for him and the tourists. Pant attempted to catch the ball in the second grab and although the umpires went upstairs to confirm the legality of the catch, Siraj was elated and hugged Pant twice in a sign of how much that wicket meant to him. Ultimately, it turned out Rishabh Pant had let the ball go between his pair of gloves, but at the end of fay, Siraj looked at the dropped catch as a ‘part of the game,’ and pointed out regaining focus back as the key to move on from such episodes. "It is part of the game and you do get upset as a bowler when it happens. But it is something we can't do much about...It becomes important to move on and focus on the next over,” Siraj said of the dropped chances by Rishabh Pant. Before the second Test at the MCG, there was a direct toss-up between Navdeep Saini and Siraj as the third seamer to replace Mohammed Shami. Ultimately;y, the team management went for Siraj because of him showing excellent rhythm in the two warm-up games, while his competitor Navdeep Saini looked all over the place in the tour games. The chance to debut did not come too late for Saini either as Umesh Yadav got ruled out of the series, and the right arm pacer from Karnal started his Test career on a horrible note, giving away two boundaries off his first two deliveries in his Test career. Saini looked under enormous pressure, but Siraj came running in for him to boost the confidence of someone Siraj believes bonds well with him and made him realise that he has to do nothing extra in the big state of a Test match. He made Saini realise that replicating just what he has been doing over the years in the domestic cricket and for India A where Siraj and he have been playing together for a long time, would bring him rewards, and it came quickly in the form of Pucovski wicket who was caught inside the crease and in front of the stumps to hand Sanii his maiden Test wicket. "Saini and I have played a lot of matches together for India A, so we bond really well. I was just telling him to do what we did in domestic cricket and India A,” Siraj said on the bond between him and Saini. Experts and analysts present at the ground observed that the pitch at the SCG was the best pitch to bat on compared to the last two pitches at the MCG and the Adelaide Oval. The bounce was true on the wicket, which was on the lower side, and it provided the home batsmen extra time to adjust against whatever little movement the India bowlers were able to extract in the air or off the pitch. However, the pacer emphasized the value of patience in Test cricket and said that the Indian bowlers are looking forward to building more pressure by bowling tighter lines and length to the Australian batsmen on the day two of the Test. "It is very a flat wicket. Our plan was to build pressure and not try too much as it is a very easy wicket for the batsman. Even the bouncers are not carrying as well it was in the earlier games," said Siraj, who made his debut in the previous game. But Test cricket it is all about patience and we must keep that in mind,” Siraj said on the pitch at SCG. Siraj echoed the sentiment of a flat pitch and pointed that their bouncers too did not carry high enough to trouble batsmen, and that slowness of the wicket allowed the batsmen to use their feet and hit over the top against spinners. “It is because of the easy nature of the surface that their batsmen stepped out but when they saw the ball turning sharply late in the day, they went back to the crease," Siraj observed. Let's see what happens tomorrow. The plan is to bowl in one tight channel and build pressure,” Siraj added. Australia are in a much better situation in the Test match after poor display of batting in all the four innings preceding the first innings at the SCG with the unbeaten pair of Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne looking in ominous touch for the tourists. Siraj will once again be relied upon by Ajinkya Rahane in the first spell of the second day to find a breakthrough, and if he will be able to take away even one of Smith and Labuschagne before they can harm India, the ascendency of Siraj in the team will be well and truly begin if it had already not started on his debut at the MCG in the Boxing day Test.