Matt Henry to replace Finn Allen for Bangladesh T20Is

New Zealand have called-up Matt Henry for the Bangladesh T20I series as a replacement for Finn Allen who had tested positive for Covid-19 on arrival in Dhaka. 

Henry was initially included in the squad that will play three ODIs and a five-match T20I series against Pakistan but will now join the side in Bangladesh as well. He will leave New Zealand on August 30. 

Though New Zealand have named the replacement for Allen, he will still stay with the squad and will be monitored by the team doctor Pat McHugh.

"Matt's clearly not a like-for-like replacement for Finn, but he expands our selection options and, in the current circumstances, is the best equipped to join the side at such short notice," said head coach Gary Stead.

"And, in the current environment, we remain mindful of the need to carefully balance player workloads," he added. "We're not prepared to risk anyone's well-being by asking them to commit to extremely long periods away from home."

Henry has played 6 T20Is so far and has picked 7 wickets at an economy rate of 8.68. 

The T20I series between the two teams will be played between September 1 to September 10 in Dhaka. Bangladesh have been in some good form in the T20Is. They recently thumped Australia 4-1 at home. 

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CPL 2021 | BR vs SKNP: All-round show hands Patriots comprehensive win over Barbados

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Wicket changed massively from first day the first hour when India were batting: Malan

England thoroughly dominated India on the second day of the third Test in Leeds and reached 423/8, leading by 345 runs at stumps. Captain Joe Root who has been on song in this series notched up yet another century in the first innings while Rory Burns, Haseeb Hameed and Dawid Malan scored individual fifties during the course. Talking about the track, Malan said that the pitch didn’t really have much on offer for the bowlers and it changed “massively”. "The wicket changed massively from the first day the first hour when they were batting," Malan said in a virtual press conference after the end of second day's play. "I would not say they were flat with their bowling. They absolutely ran in and tried their socks off. They asked a lot of questions and probably didn't get that much help from the wicket," he added. The hosts were 350/4 when Jonny Bairstow departed for 29 but the right-hander’s dismissal was followed by a flurry of wickets in a quick succession reducing England to 383/7 with Root being sent back to the pavilion as well. Sam Curran and Craig Overton then stitched a partnership of 35 runs before Curran was undone by Mohammed Siraj for 15. Overton on the other side remained unbeaten at 24 as England finished the proceedings on Day 2. India were earlier bundled out for 78 in the first innings on Day 1 after the England pacers ripped through the Indian batting unit. The visitors presently lead the five-match series 1-0 after they clinched a win at Lord’s during the second Test.

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CPL 2021 | TKR vs GAW: Guyana hold nerves to start campaign on positive note

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ENG vs IND | 3rd Test, Day 2: Phenomenal Root, commanding Malan put Kohli's men on the brink

India needed a remarkable turnaround, on the line of what England had on the first day after Lord’s Test, on the second day to get back in the third Test against England in Leeds. England batsmen had learnt some lessons from their and their counterparts’ failures to bat with discipline and flair to deny them any opportunity for a backdoor entry. India were not disciplined enough with the ball to keep the run-scoring down and it meant that the England batting lineup was never under real pressure. They already had the big cushion of lead and inaccurate bowling from India in patches, and Ishant Sharma, in general, made their life easier. The tourists clogged the momentum back with some quick wickets towards the final hour of the day but the game might well have slipped out of their grasp by then. From an overnight score of 120/0, England batted strongly to go past the 300-run mark before a mini-collapse hurt their progress. 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However, the moment he came out to bat, the fluency of strokes coming out of his bat showed that he did not have any failure in the second innings at Lord’s and that he was batting with the same touch after scoring a century. The skipper looked in awesome touch and displayed a completely different style of batsmanship compared to the likes of Virat Kohli while trying to combat swing and seam. He has been batting without too much front foot stride and has also been reluctant to come forward unless Indian pacers have asked him to drive. The trend of scoring in the area between gully and point region continued as Root carried on playing deliveries right under his eyes which showcase his commanding form and awareness of where his off stump is. He reached his century with a remarkable strike rate and equalled the record held by Michael Vaughan and Denis Compton as the England batsmen with the most hundred in a calendar year. He has six to his name this year and the kind of form he has been in, one can’t rule out the figure reaching 10 or beyond that mark. Malan’s comeback party Dawid Malan has not had too many opportunities to bat in red-ball cricket before being called up to play Test cricket in more than three years time. He has been picked purely on promise based on a century against Australia in Perth. His record in England was terrible and the first Test against India at Edgbaston in 2018 led to his departure from the side. He was caught all over the place by an impressive Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami, and hence a return match against a struggling Indian side was a perfect fateful return for the left-hander. He always bats with a touch of flair and has been known for being severe against the short ball. He was offered plenty of those deliveries by pacers, especially Mohammed Siraj, and the new number three got in the groove pretty quickly. As he got his eyes in, flamboyant drives also followed and he passed his only second fifty in his 10th match on home soil. He was determined and at the same time very bullish against loose balls before a strangle down the leg side curtailed his near-perfect return to the Test arena. He missed a deserving century but his 139 run partnership with skipper Root obliterated whatever chance India had of a comeback in the game. Also, his confidence and fluency will leave the England team management relieved and confident about their prospect in the series and the Ashes series later at the end of the year. Ishant’s horrible rhythm, Kohli’s rigidity Ishant Sharma has not been at his best in this game and it was evident from his first spell where he could barely manage to bowl in the channel around off stump. The length was also terrible for someone who has his career built on the credentials of accuracy and consistency. He was handed the new ball in place of Siraj or Shami at Lord’s as well and the trend continued in this game. The move did not pay well for Kohli as the pacer was all over the place in his run-up and line of attack. It should have been clear to Kohli that the bowler of choice to start the second day was two among Bumrah, Shami or Siraj. However, the skipper went for Ishant and the result was nothing different one more time. He started with another obnoxious wide delivery that also turned out to be a non-ball and the downhill curve for him never stopped till the penultimate ball of the day. An off day or struggle for rhythm for a pacer is not a crime but Kohli should have shown flexibility in choosing the best two bowlers based on the current rhythm. Ishant has been India’s go-to man on pitches friendly for pacers due to his consistency and not allowing batsmen free balls to leave or score but all those virtues were absent in the game and Kohli should not have been rigid about his tactics right at the start of the day that started on an ominous note for the Indians. Looking forward to the third day England would believe they have enough in the bank to force outright innings win over India but they are unlikely to declare their first innings. They would be looking forward to adding as much as they can to the 345 run lead and the able bats of Overton and Ollie Robinson can frustrated Indians further before they will start the battle for their survival. India will near marathon innings from at least a couple of batsmen in case they want to compete in the game. Surpassing England’s lead will take a monumental effort considering their recent form and if they can produce their best performances with the bat, the match can get slightly more even than the currently heavily stacked in the favour of the hosts. The experienced trio of captain Kohli, vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara, in particular, will have to bring their best to the pitch on the third day if India can dare to escape this game without squandering their 1-0 lead.