Tymal Mills deserves England return says James Vince

Southern Brave won the inaugural edition of The Hundred Men’s competition by defeating Birmingham Phoenix and Tymal Mills, their fast bowler played a crucial role in not only this win but in the team’s entire campaign in the tournament. Owing to his exceptional performances, Brave captain James Vince feels that the pacer must get an England call up.

“He deserves it. In my mind, it would make sense, especially with Jofra Archer not being available. He’s someone that can bowl 90 mph and bowl the slower ones as well. Not just with his batting and in the field as well, he is an asset,” Vince said in the post-match interview.

Mills took three wickets in the Eliminator, going just for eight runs against Trent Rockets and went for 1/13 against Birmingham when they were needed to score at 8.5 runs per five balls. He was able to do all this with his ability to change the pace of the ball at his will and the Vince considered it as something that would be really helpful for the English team in the Gulf during the T20 World Cup.

“To have the change of pace that he has, to bowl 90 mph and the slower ball with that accuracy, it makes him incredibly tough to face. He has been so reliable, he knows what he wants and that makes it easy for anyone to captain,” said the Brave skipper who would now be leading Hampshire in the T20 Blat Quarter Finals on August 25.

Mills picked up eight wickets in the tournament and bowled at an economy of 1.11 RPB 9Runs Per Ball), which is the lowest for The Hundred 2021. The 29-year-old had made his England debut in 2016 and could only play five matches. Thus, this return could see him having another craft at international cricket.

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SLC not aware of Hasaranga, Chameera signing IPL 2021 contracts

The Sri Lanka Cricket secretary Mohan de Silva has said that the Royal Challengers Bangalore’s latest recruits Wanindu Hasaranga and Dushmantha Chameera haven’t taken any permission from the SLC to be a part of the IPL. Moreover, the governing body isn’t aware of the signings of the two players. "I don't know, I have to check. We are under lockdown till the end of the month," de Silva told Cricbuzz. "We have not taken any decision yet as they will have to apply for the NOCs. We are not aware of these players being selected, neither have they sought permission from us,” he added. The RCB had announced on Saturday that the franchise has roped in Hasaranga, Chameera and Tim David for the remaining fixtures of the IPL 2021 which will now be held in the UAE from September 19. Hasaranga, the number two T20I bowler in ICC rankings had replaced Australia’s Adam Zampa while Chameera had come in for pacer Daniel Sams in the squad. The IPL would resume on the above-mentioned dates where Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings will lock horns with each other and the Final would be played on October 15, two days before the beginning of the World T20 which will be co-hosted by the UAE and Oman. The IPL was earlier suspended on May 4 after there was a Covid-19 outburst within the franchises.

We are coming back bigger & better next year: Kevin Pietersen on 'The Hundred'

Former England batsman Kevin Pietersen has backed The Hundred tournament to come back “bigger and better” in the next edition. “We are coming back bigger and better next year,” Pietersen said in a post-match show after the Final of both men’s and women’s final on Saturday. The Southern Brave side lifted the inaugural trophy in the men’s tournament after beating Birmingham Phoenix in the final clash by 32 runs at Lord’s. Chasing 169 in 100 balls, Birmingham were restricted to 138/5. Liam Livingstone top-scored for the side with 46 off 19 while captain Moeen Ali chipped in with 36 off 30. Earlier, Southern Brave rode on a half-century from Stirling and an unbeaten 19-ball 44 from Ross Whiteley to post 168/5 in the allotted 100 balls. The Southern Brave captain James Vince lauded Stirling’s efforts with the bat after the match. Paul Stirling and Whiteley were exceptional. Bowlers put in a clinic in the second half there. Stirling getting himself off to a good start and then playing a match-winning innings was superb,” he said. In the women’s competition, it was Oval Invincibles who defeated Southern Brave by 48 runs to clinch the title. The Oval side managed to score 121/6 and then the bowlers rattled the Southern Brave batting line up to bundle them out for 73. Invincibles captain Dane van Niekerk expressed her delight at the win. “I have no words at the moment. If you told me that would happen at the end of the day, I would have taken it. Credit to Southern Brave, they have been incredible. We had to rock up today to beat a very good side,” she said.

Tamim Iqbal likely to be fit for T20 World Cup

Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal is likely to be fit for the T20 World Cup slated to be played in UAE and Oman from October 17. The hard-hitting left-handed batsman is currently undergoing a rehabilitation process to recover fully from a knee injury. Tamim opted out of action for a long time following the ODI series against Zimbabwe in July. Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB)'s chief physician Debashish Chowdhury is confident of Tamim’s participation in the T20 World Cup. "Tamim is recovering quite well. This injury required rest and rehabilitation. We planned it accordingly and he is responding to it very well," said Chowdhury. "From the next week, he will start the skill session that will begin with some knocking at home and later (he will be) starting the net session. So far, he has completed almost five weeks and he completed the gym sessions without any complaint. When he starts running and participates in the skill session, we can have a clearer picture of his recovery. But the way he is improving, we are confident that he will be available for the T20 World Cup," he added. The experienced opening batsman sustained an injury to his right knee during Bangladesh’s two-match Test series against Sri Lanka in April-May. He did take part in the subsequent ODI series against the islanders and also played in the Dhaka Premier Division T20 League. He had to eventually pull out of the tournament midway after aggravating the injury. Tamim had to also miss the one-off Test against Zimbabwe. The southpaw also missed the T20I series against Zimbabwe and subsequently skipped the five-match T20I series against Australia. He has not been selected for the upcoming five-match T20I series against New Zealand slated to kick off from September 1. BCB chief selector Minhajul Abedin also sounded optimistic and confident of Tamim’s availability for the T20 World Cup. "I don't see any doubt. Tamim is one of the best batsmen in the country and there is no question about it. He will play when he is fit and he will be with the team. We are keeping a close eye on his development," Abedin was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.

World T20 2021: Bangladesh likely to reach Oman early

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has said that the squad for the World T20 is likely to reach Oman six to seven days earlier than they should have according to the ICC rules, just to get used to the conditions. It also said that the side has had some preparation going into the tournament as it has toured Zimbabwe, have hosted Australia recently and the Blackcaps are also scheduled to visit the Asian nation for a five-match T20I series. "We have been having a great preparation leading up to the World Cup. We toured Zimbabwe, hosted Australia and New Zealand next. We will go there early to make adequate preparations," BCB Cricket Operations Committee chairman Akram Khan told the media in a briefing. "It is certain that we will go to Oman six to seven days earlier. But the whole plan is yet to be finalised. We will do the way the coach [Russell Domingo] wants us to do,” he added. The board is also planning to send reserve players along with the main squad. "If the selection panel or team management wants to take one or two additional players, there's no problem in doing so. We have been doing this always, will do in future as well." Bangladesh, part of the Qualifying round, will play their first match against Scotland at Al Amerat Stadium in Oman on October 17, which will also be the opening day of the tournament.