T20 World Cup: West Indies fined 20 per cent of match fees for slow over-rate

It's up to BCB to decide: Mahmudullah on captaincy future

Bangladesh had a dismal run in the T20 World Cup, losing all five of their Super 12 matches. They had even lost to Scotland in Round 1. The Bangla Tigers were coming into the tournament on the back of some fine performances in the format at home but couldn’t replicate that at the big tournament. Now, captain Mahmudullah has opened up about his future as the leader of the side and added that it's in the hands of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), whether he would continue as the skipper or not. "It is not in my hands and it is up to BCB to decide (regarding captaincy)," Mahmudullah said after Bangladesh's against Australia. "From my side, I tried my best probably there was (something) lacking in my captaincy and could not bring the best from my teammates,” he added. The right-handed batsman also cleared the air that he wasn’t thinking of hanging his boost from the T20Is. "No, no, I am not thinking of quitting," he further said. "Personally I am searching for the answer that what is missing and what we need to do and we all discussed regarding the matter to find out what we lack,” Mahmudullah added.

Morgan calls for 'head on' response, says winning trophies not above fighting racism in Cricket

I believe life is a circle: Ashwin says he wanted to prove a point to himself in this T20 World Cup

Ravichandran Ashwin, who played a crucial role in India restricting Afghanistan to only 144 in defence of India’s 210 and boosting the team‘s net run rate, feels that life is a circle and although he has not yet fully come around, getting a chance in the T20 World Cup 2021 was a big boost to his confidence in his approach of reinventing his bowling. "I had special dreams getting into the World Cup, wanting to do special things for the team and after a point in time, trying to prove a point, whether right or wrong, not to anybody else but to yourself,” he said in a pre-match press conference before India’s clash against Scotland in Dubai. "I believe life is a circle, for some people, it's a small one, for some it's large. It's definitely not in our hands. For me, understanding patterns in my life and career is something I've done very well over the last couple of years,” Ashwin said dwelling upon the philosophical aspect of his life. “Whenever I've had a very good stretch of form, I've had deep trenches, some very long periods of lull which I don't want to read too much into. That's a pattern I've embraced,” added the 35-year-old. Hustling and staying humble are the two things that are critical to a person’s success, be it in life or in sports and Ashwin agreed to it. He also cited the examples of two greats Shane Warne and Sachin Tendulkar on how to remain humble at high and work hard at lows. "Staying humble through good periods of success is a statement lot of people make, but I've firmly embraced it and lived it. Shane Warne once said you experience success 33% of the time in your career. Sachin [Tendulkar] has also echoed that at some stage, so who am I, I am no different. "The easiest way to cope with it, to go through a professional circle like that is to keep preparing keep working hard, expecting an opportunity to turn up at your doorstep one day and when it happens you have all the options to break open doors, latches and locks. That's what life is all about, so live for those days and keep preparing as that day will come,” he said. The Tamil Nadu born also dwelled upon the importance of not losing hope no matter what, saying that the fruits of hope and perseverance might not bore easily, but eventually it will. "It's easy to lose hope and motivation, come to those doors, hide behind them and keep complaining. That's something I will definitely not do because for me it's not about what the game has given me. It's about what I've given to the game and how much I enjoy playing the game. For me, if you put three stumps anywhere and ask me to play the game at this stage of my life, I'd do it most times,” he said.

Tim Paine making rapid strides towards full fitness before Ashes series at home

Australia Test captain Tim Paine is making rapid strikes to get back on the cricket field after his neck surgery in order to prepare for the first Test of the Ashes series due to start on December 08 in Brisbane. Paine said that he would test his fitness in as many as four games including a game of the Sheffield Shield and Marsh ODI Cup for Tasmania before taking the field in the Ashes series. Although he won’t be available for the next round of the Sheffield game for Tasmania starting November 10, the postponement of the only Test against Afghanistan has allowed him more time away from the international game and to prove his fitness. Now, he will have the opportunity to feature the Sheffield clash against Western Australia starting November 21 and the Marsh cup fixture against the same opponent on November 26 in Hobart. "Ideally, I'd like to play a club game, a 2nd XI game, a Shield game, and a one-dayer for Tassie in late November and then go up to Queensland," Paine said. "Potentially I'm getting two, three or four games of cricket in before that first Test which would be a really good result,” Paine told SEN Hobart radio station. He has also said that the training has been going flawless for him and he does not have any difficulty in moving around the field and diving as well. He said that apart from the normal stiffness that players pick up due to a long time away from the game, he has not been dealing with any major issue and will be back soon playing competitive cricket on the field. "I had a decent catch yesterday, pretty good," Paine said. "I had a bit of a dive around yesterday, so I'm a little bit stiff today."It's nothing to worry about, just a bit of stiffness having had a few months off. I've pulled up a bit sore. But yesterday was as I would train normally, so it's a really good sign that I got through that and I'm looking forward to playing a game of cricket in the coming weeks." A lot is riding on Tim Paine’s shoulder in the upcoming Ashes series at home after he became the only captain to lose the Test series to India at home and especially, the defeat the last summer raised many questions about his role and place in the side. He would be desperate to make a strong comeback in the Ashes series and sign off on a high as the series could also be a swansong for the cricket who made his debut way back in the year 2010.