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Tom Latham Cherishes Fantastic Achievement Against England But Focussed On Big India Challenge

Tom Latham cherishes 'fantastic achievement' against England, but focussed on big India challenge

New Zealand stand-in captain Tom Latham, who has registered his name as one of the very few Blackcaps skippers to have won a series in England, said that the achievement was a long time coming and hence it is worth all the celebration from the team.

He was mindful of the fact that the Blackcaps have had their last success in England way back in 1999 and that their previous two attempts had failed although they had rich reserves of talents.

"It's a fantastic achievement from the group. I think it's important that we celebrate with each other. It hasn't been done since '99. For us to come here as a group, it was about trying to play our brand of cricket and I thought we did that really well over the four days and got our rewards at the end,” Latham said in the post-match press conference.

"It was about trying to do what we do really well and I thought we did. [It's] well documented that '99 was the last time we'd won here and we have been here a couple of times in recent years and haven't quite got the rewards. It's certainly an achievement that's worth celebrating."

The series against England was always seen from the prism of the World Test Championship final scheduled within a week time from the second Test albeit the Blackcaps tried all they could to downplay the larger goal.

Latham said that the side will take a couple of days before switching their minds over to the game against a ‘completely different’ side in India that posses ‘fantastic’ bowlers and ‘quality’ batsmen in their squad.

Not only was he ware of New Zealand’ history in England but he was also mindful of India's experience at the venue of the WTC final as they have played two Tests in Southampton on their last two tours of England, and hence he said that the Blackcaps will have to play their best cricket to defeat Virat Kohli-led Indian team.

"They've got a fantastic set of bowlers, [and] a lot of quality batsmen that have scored runs in different conditions all around the world. They were over here a few years ago and played really well, so we know we'll have to play well to beat them.

"Our focus will shift to them in a couple of days. The preparation has been great but it's important that we do shift our focus and adapt to a completely different side."

New Zealand made as many as six changes keeping in mind the tight schedule on the tour and the big game and the big players such as the skipper Kane Williamson, BJ Watling, Tim Southee and Kyle Jamieson sat out of the second Test in amove that established Blackcap’s eyes on the bigger goal of the World Test Championship.

Latham confirmed both Williamson and Watling, who were not fully fit for the second Test are ‘reasonably well’ on track to walk into the playing XI for the WTC final but also commenced the six replacements such as Matt Henry, Ajaz Patel, Will Young for cashing in on the opportunities, which he conceded has been tough to get over a long period for time.

"It was amazing from a personnel change of six guys. That hasn't happened for a long time in this group and it has been a hard team to crack into. For all those guys to get that opportunity - Will Young, Matt Henry, Ajaz Patel - was fantastic. They performed their roles really well,” Latham said.

"[Watling and Williamson] are travelling reasonably well. It was important for them to get a little bit of rest in order to be fully fit heading into next week. Fingers crossed we'll have a fully-fit squad."

Latham hit the winning runs against England to seal the series win but he has not been at his best with the bat in three of the four completed innings and New Zealand would rely on him to provide the team a good start against India come June 18.

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New Zealand dethrone India from top of ICC Test Rankings

New Zealand displaced India from the top of the ICC Test Rankinsg on the back of a 1-0 series win over the hosts England in a two-match long series concluded today. New Zealand chased down the target with eight wickets in hand and won their first series in England since 1999 and with that went to the top of the pile of the ranking just before they are scheduled to meet India in the World Test Championship final. New Zealand have advanced to the top with 123 rating point which is a two points higher level than 121 points secured by Virat Kohli-led side. In the aftermath of the first loss in a home series since 2014 against Sri Lanka, England slipped to the fourth position with 107 points while their arch-rivals Australia maintained their third position on the table with 108 rating points. For New Zealand, bowlers were the heroes of the victory as they stopped the hosts frpm running away with the game after a good start by the openers on the first day and followed it up another stellar performance to dismantle any chance of their comeback in the second innings with swing and precision of line and length.

Joe Root urges 'hard conversations' after New Zealand outplayed England in 'all three departments'

England skipper Joe Root has accepted his side was outplyed in all the departments of the game by an impressive New Zealand side in a two-match long series that ended as his first series loss at home. However, he nitpicked ‘poor’ batting by his teammates as the reason behind a week that turned out to be ‘disappointing and frustrating.’ "It's been a frustrating and disappointing performance this week. I don't think we've given a fair account of ourselves. We've been outplayed in all three departments, particularly the batting. We didn't get the runs in the first innings. We missed chances in the field and didn't help our bowlers in that respect. And with the bat we were poor,” Root said. Joe Root pointed out the afternoon session on the third day of the Test when England collapsed and were staring at an innings defeat as one of those session that ‘cost’ teams a Test match and the script was not any different for his side. "Sometimes in Test cricket you can have a poor session with the ball and you're still very much in the game. But a session that like can cost you a Test. That's where we find ourselves. It's cost us the series and we have some hard lessons to learn,” Root added. Root also admitted his personal failure with the bat keeping in his mind the fact that he is the most-experienced and highest-run getter among current England batsman. He conceded his failure to lead from the front which probably had serious consequences on the outlook of the England Test side in the series against New Zealand. "As the leading run-scorer within our squad currently I feel like I've put a lot of pressure on those guys by not performing myself. As a captain you pride yourself on getting big runs and leading from the front and I've not managed to follow through on that. So I've probably compounded that situation slightly,” Root owned up his responsibility. Addressing the issue of batting that has been failing England for a long time now, Root said that the team has to have ‘constructive’ but ‘hard conversations’ with each other over the issues that plagued the team in the redent past before setting their eyes on the future targets. He also extended his confidence on the batsmen saying that all of them have established their credentials as batsmen who can churn out big runs and hence the situation is still far away from the point where all members of the team should hit the panic button. "We have to look at where we can get better individually and collectively. We need to be honest about that. We have to have some hard conversations and move forward. We have to front up, look to get better and learn some hard lessons sometimes," he said. "We've all underperformed this week. "But we have to be constructive. I think every single one of those guys has proven they can score big Test runs. I think it would be the wrong time to start panicking and trying to rip up all the hard work we've done for such a long period of time. It's something that historically we've done going into big tournaments and big Test series and it's made things even worse. Root also dismissed ‘a lot of talk’ around the faulty of techniques of England batsman and asseretd that not all successful players going around in the world bat with similar style and technique. "There's been a lot of talk about technique and batting. My view is batting is very much an individual thing. There's no right or wrong way of doing it. Look at the best players in the world: they all have different methods of how they play. How they stand, their bat paths, where they score their runs. He said batting does not fit well in the binary of ‘right or wrong way’ and instead it is more about mental capacity of an individual. He took his personal refernence once again and urged his teammates to be ‘smarter’ in negating the various aspects of the opponent a bit better than he has been able to do in his career. "For me it's more of a metal thing. It's about clarity in their own game and managing passages of play. Managing different bowlers, different angles and conditions and doing that consistently well over an innings and a series. We can be a little bit smarter on occasions. It's somewhere that throughout my career I've got that horribly wrong on occasions,” Root said. England Test players will have to wait until the first week of August to redeem themselves after the series loss to New Zealand. However, the task is unlikely to be any simpler for them against Virat Kohli-led Indian side that posses quality pacers and spinners capable of challenging them throughout the series.

PSL 2021 Preview: Karachi require to fine tune as Islamabad focus on playing old rhythm

Islamabad United will be taking on the Karachi Kings in Abu Dhabi on Monday in what could turn out to be an exciting clash. Karachi who were sitting at the top of the points table before the tournament was suspended due to a rise in Covid-19 cases within the franchises had a disappointing start when the tournament was resumed. They lost the first match that they played after resumption to Multan Sultans. Well, the defeat didn’t really cause much of a problem to their place in the points table as they were still placed at helm position. But the Kings need to find their way back in the tournament and this game against United might be that turning point for them in the competition. The reason behind such a statement is that the Karachi Kings suffered a defeat against Islamabad United in the last encounter that the two sides played against each other. Despite a ton from opener Sharjeel Khan and half-century from Babar Azam, the Kings stood at the losing end eventually. The Imad Wasim-led side will be looking to take the revenge of this defeat. On the other hand, Islamabad thumped Quetta Gladiators by 10 wickets but had a struggling start to the proceedings against Lahore Qalandars. Eventually, they went on to win the game by a huge margin of 28 runs to go to the top of the table, the top-order failed to leave a mark unlike their game against the Gladiators. Asif Ali and Iftikhar Ahmed have been rock solid, and the bowlers are in phenomenal form as well. While Islamabad need to make some alterations regarding the top order, Karachi would be seeking to turn fortunes for themselves. Overall, a high-voltage drama is expected if both the teams play to their calibre and abilities. Match Details Match – Islamabad United vs Karachi Kings – 22nd match Venue – Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi Time – 09:30 PM IST, 04:00 PM GMT Pitch Report The track in Abu Dhabi so far has been helpful for the spinners. While the chasing has been a bit of a problem so far in the tournament, the dew factor can still play a major role and help the sides chasing a target. Maybe the trends haven’t favoured the teams batting second much but still the captain who wins the toss should bank upon going after a target. Team News Islamabad United: The Shadab Khan-led side suffered a huge blow on Sunday after fast bowler Hasan Ali opted out of the PSL 2021 citing personal reasons. "I want to say to all Islamabad United fans, unfortunately due to personal reasons I have to pull out of the remaining PSL matches," Hasan said. Though the skipper Shadab accepted Hasan’s decision but also said that it is a ”huge loss” for the team. "We understand Hassan's situation right now, family always comes first. We wish Hassan the very best of luck. He will obviously be a huge loss to our team and the tournament, but some things are more important than cricket. At Islamabad United we have always looked after each other like a family and we will continue to do so," Shadab said. While Unman Khawaja and Colin Munro played a huge role in Islamabad’s exciting win against Gladiators, the duo’s failure against Qalandars has become a cause of concern for the team’s think tank. These two opening batsmen would need to get back in form to produce some fruitful results for their side. Karachi Kings: Karachi Kings would be looking towards opener Sharjeel Khan to unleash something similar that he did when these two sides locked horns with each other on the last occasion. Apart from him, Babar Azam who is one of the finest batsmen of modern-day cricket needs to make a bit changes to his on ground planning when he is chasing a score. In the last clash against Multan, Babar eventually failed to take his team over the line which cost his side two crucial points. A bit of a rejig in his run-scoring rate while chasing a target might be helpful for his team. Karachi have a strong line up though especially the presence of Mohammad Amir in the ranks makes them well equipped as far as the fast bowling is concerned. Probable Playing XI: Islamabad United– Colin Munro, Usman Khawaja, Hussain Talat, Rohail Nazir (wk), Shadab Khan (c), Iftikhar Ahmed, Asif Ali, Muhammad Musa, Ali Khan, Akif Javed, Mohammad Wasim Jr Karachi Kings– Sharjeel Khan, Babar Azam, Martin Guptill, Najibullah-Zadran, Chadwick Walton (wk), Thisara Perera, Imad Wasim (c), Qasim Akram, Mohammad Amir, Arshad Iqbal, Waqas Maqsood Fantasy XI Colin Munro, Usman Khawaja, Shadab Khan (C), Asif Ali, Sharjeel Khan, Babar Azam, Martin Guptill, Thisara Perera, Imad Wasim (VC), Mohammad Amir, Akif Javed

ICC inducts Kumar Sangakkara, Andy Flower, Vinoo Mankad, others of different eras in Hall of Fame

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has inducted 10 former greats of the game into the Hall of Fame. These 10 former players represent the five eras of the game marked by the ICC. Earlier this month, the ICC had announced that it will facilitate two greats of the game from each of the five different eras of the game. Early Cricket Era The ICC has marked the first era as the Early Cricket Era and inducted players who contributed to the game prior to 1918. Under this category, the global governing body has felicitated Aubrey Faulkner of South Africa and Monty Noble of Australia. Faulkner had featured in 25 Tests and amassed 1,754 runs at an average of 40.79, along with 82 wickets at 26.58 apiece while Noble played 42 Tests and scored 1,997 runs at an average of 30.25 and also picked up 121 wickets at an average of 25.00 Inter-War Era Under this category, the ICC paid tribute to players who played important roles in the overall development of the game in the period between 1918-1945. The ICC felicitated West Indies’ Sir Learie Constantine and Australia’s Stan McCabe. Sir Learie Constantine had played 18 Tests and took 58 wickets at 30.10 runs per wicket and scored 635 runs at 19.24 runs per innings while McCabe played 39 Tests and scored 2,748 runs at an average of 48.21 while also scalping 36 wickets at 42.86 runs per wicket. Post War Era The ICC considered players for the Hall of Fame recognition who made helped the game development with their greatest contributions between 1946 to 1970. Under this category, the ICC has inducted Ted Dexter of England and Vinoo Mankad of India into the Hall of Fame. Dexter played 62 Tests and scored 4,502 runs at an average of 47.89 and also took 66 wickets at 34.93 while Mankad played 44 Tests and scored 2,109 runs at 31.47 along with 162 wickets at 32.32. ODI Era The ICC marked players from the period between 1971 and 1995 under this category. Desmond Haynes of West Indies and Bob Willis of England earned the prestigious reckoning as Hall of Fame inductees of the ODI era. Desmond Haynes played 116 Tests and smashed 7,487 runs at 42.29 and made the iconic opening batting pair with Gordon Greenidge while Willis was a masterful swing bowler for England and picked up 325 wickets at 25.20 from his 90-Test long career. Modern Cricket Era The ICC picked players who were the legends of the game and changed the outcome of many matches on the back of their memorable performances in the period between 1996 and 2015. Along with that, they were also considered as great ambassadors of the game between 1996-2015. Kumar Sangakkara of Sri Lanka and Andy Flower of Zimbabwe earned places in the ICC Hall of Fame among players of this period. Sangakkara played 134 Tests and piled on 12,400 runs at a phenomenal average of 57.40 runs with the bat along with 182 catches and 20 stumpings with the wicketkeeping gloves. On the other hand, Andy Flower played 63 Tests and scored 4,794 runs at an average of 51.54 along with 151 catches and nine stumpings from behind the wicket.