Pakistan looking to rope in Gary Kirsten as head coach; Peter Moores, Simon Katich also in reckoning

Cricket South Africa welcomes development in 'taking the knee' issue after Quinton de Kock's apology

Hours after opener Quinton de Kock issued an apology and clarified his stance over his stand over the 'taking the knee' saga, Cricket South Africa issued a statement welcoming the development following a meeting with South African players and also recognised de Kock’s statement. The CSA on Thursday, 28 October, said that the Proteas confirmed they will 'align and unify in taking the knee' in the fight against racism in the remaining phase of the ongoing T20 World Cup. The CSA reiterated its stance over the issue of racism and said that its commitment to fight against it is a 'moral', not a 'political' issue. However, it also conceded a breathing space to Quinton de Kock by accepting that the directive of mandating taking the knee starting the game against West Indies was 'unsettling' for players. “Cricket South Africa welcomes all of these developments. They confirm Cricket South Africa’s commitment to non-racism. Taking a united stance against racism is a moral issue, not a political issue. The CSA Board regrets that the timing of its directive earlier this week may have been unsettling for the players in the lead-up to the match against the West Indies,” CSA said. “The CSA is fully supportive of the Protea Men’s team and its captain Temba Bavuma and looks forward to continued successes by the Proteas at the World Cup.” Earlier today, de Kock had issued an apology to his fans, teammates and the CSA for making it look like an insincere attempt in the fight against racism. He made his stance public and said that he will take the knee going forward. However, neither the CSA nor de Kock himself has divulged details on the opener’s availability for the Proteas in the remaining games of the tournament.

T20 World Cup | Gary Stead laments ICC delaying Adam Milne's entry to squad

New Zealand head coach Gary Stead has expressed his disappointment over the International Cricket Council (ICC)’s refusal to quickly approve the addition of Adam Milne to the Blackcaps squad in place of injured Lockie Ferguson before the game against Pakistan. Stead said that the Blackcaps team management made “pretty hard” efforts to persuade the ICC Committee to approve Milne as a “like-for-like replacement” for Ferguson but they were said that those decisions are not approved in a day. Stead added that they will seek clarification from the global governing body. “We tried pretty hard to get across the line with the ICC our replacement player, but it wasn't to be. That was really disappointing for us because Adam Milne is someone waiting in the wings as a like-for-like replacement,” Stead said after the match. “What we were told is they don't give clearance on the same day, so we'll question that reason and continue to seek clarification on that,” Stead added. Stead lamented that the team management had to involve in negotiations with the ICC until an hour and a half before the scheduled start of the fame and hence it led to chaos and confusion in the team management. He said that they had to change the playing XI on as many as three occasions and were forced to play Ish Sodhi on the Sharjah surface that they assessed would have been more suitable for pacers such as Milen due to variable bounce on offer. "You always plan to have the changes like this, the most unsettling thing for us is we probably changed the team three times today on that decision. Originally we thought we'd got the clearance for Adam to play, but then it's been turned down. So we were questioning it with the ICC as much as an hour and a half out from the game and arriving there. “We weren't going to play Ish Sodhi – we felt that pitch was one that would suit the seamers a lot more and the up-and-down nature of the pitch and the work we'd done around scouting and what the data was telling us was that it pointed towards seam bowlers and pace bowlers being more effective. That's the way we would have gone,” he added. New Zealand were defeated by an in-form Pakistan side who are firing all cylinders in Group 2 and have defeated both the Blackcaps and the arch-rivals India in consecutive games.

T20 World Cup | Mickey Arthur rates Nissanka, Asalanka 'generation-next' of Sri Lanka's batting

Sri Lanka head coach Mickey Arthur has said that the duo of Pathum Nissanka and Charith Assalanka is the future of Sri Lankan cricket and they will be responsible for the rise of the country on the world stage. Arthur said that Pathum was impressive in his technique and mode of operations right from the Test debut against West Indies earlier this year and said that he possesses all facets of the game such as defensive and attacking skills to shine at the big stage. “From the first time I saw Pathum, I think I've been quoted as saying I think he's a wonderful talent. He's got his balance, his feet movement, when he attacks and defends are great. “He's got it all. He's a really good player. We saw that on Test debut. He's played every form now over the last sort of nine months for us. And he's going to play every form because I really think him and Charith are generation-next for Sri Lanka in terms of batting.” On Charith’s emergence and development, Arthur said that the right-hander has earned a name for himself for which he should be credited. He said that the young man has been on an improvement curve since his introduction to the Sri Lankan team and he will only get better with time. “To see Charith's development has been incredible,” Arthur said.“I remember Charith arriving in our bubble just before we went to England, and then we had the England trip. And to see Charith's journey from England to where he is now is a credit to himself, the way he's gone about his work, the professionalism he's shown. His preparation in every game has been fantastic. To see a young player like Charith get better and better has been very, very rewarding for us.” Sri Lanka are on an unbeaten streak in the ongoing edition of the T20 World Cup having come through from the qualifier stage to the Super 12 stage. They have defeated all their opponents in the first stage and later on defeated Bangladesh with a big margin to showcase their firepower. They are scheduled to take on Australia in what could be described as their first formidable challenge of the tournament tonight.

T20 World Cup | Obed McCoy injured and ruled out, West Indies add Jason Holder to squad

West Indies have added former Test captain Jason Holder to the squad for the T20 World Cup after the left-arm pacer Obed McCoy got ruled out of the remainder of the tournament due to injury. McCoy featured in the first game against England that turned out to be a nightmare for the defending champions and now faces time on the sidelines after injuring his sheen. Holder was there in the UAE as reserves in the Windies squad and his return to the side in place of McCoy has been approved by the ICC Event Technical Committee. The Chairman of the West Indies selection panel, Roger Harper rated Holder as an “experienced” and “knowledgeable” cricketer who will be eager to grab the opportunity. "Jason Holder has been in the UAE for a while now and will fit quite well into the team unit," Roger Harper, CWI's lead men's selector said. "He is an experienced and knowledgeable cricketer who we know will be eager and excited to grab the opportunity. Harper called McCoy’s a “key member” of Windies T20 side after having sealed his position in the side based on performance this year. "McCoy did really well in the T20Is earlier this year and adapted well in the opening match against England. He was a key member of the bowling unit and it's unfortunate he won't be able to take any further part in the tournament. We wish him a speedy recovery and hope to see him back on the field ready to go again in the near future." The defending champions are going through a rough phase after losing both their encounters so far in the tournament. They were blown away by a dominating England in the first game while the second game found them short of form and discipline against an in-form South Africa side.