Sports
Embuldeniya back in the mix for South Africa Tests
by Rex Clementine
Left-arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya has earned a ticket back to the Sri Lankan Test squad for the much-anticipated series against South Africa, set to kick off later this month in Durban. Joining him in the comeback parade is pacer Kasun Rajitha, who returns after being left out of the two-match home series against New Zealand.
Leg-spinner Jeffrey Vandersay and off-spinner Ramesh Mendis, both part of the New Zealand series squad, find themselves on the sidelines this time.
Embuldeniya’s last dance in Sri Lankan whites was over two years ago, during the Galle Test against Australia. Meanwhile, Rajitha has been a familiar face in the Test setup, even making the squad for the England tour earlier this year, though he didn’t get a chance to play.
Both players have hit the ground running in South Africa, arriving early as part of the Test specialist contingent for a pre-series camp. They are sharpening their skills under the watchful eye of consultant coach Neil McKenzie. The rest of the squad, currently locked in the white-ball battle against New Zealand, are set to join them later this week.
With the stakes sky-high, this series promises to be a nail-biter. Both Sri Lanka and South Africa are in the hunt for a coveted spot in next year’s World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord’s. A series victory could significantly boost either side’s chances, with neither having tasted WTC final glory before.
South Africa, too, have pulled out the big guns, announcing their squad yesterday. Skipper Temba Bavuma is back in action after recovering from an elbow injury, while all-rounder Marco Jansen and fiery young quick Gerald Coetzee also return from their respective injury spells.
The two-match series will be played in Durban and Port Elizabeth, venues that have traditionally been kinder to the spinners and slower bowlers—something Sri Lanka will look to exploit. It’s worth noting that Sri Lanka remain the only Asian team to have pulled off a Test series win on South African soil. They achieved this historic feat in 2019 under Dimuth Karunaratne, with Durban and Port Elizabeth also hosting that landmark triumph.
The curtain-raiser in Durban promises to be a thriller, with both teams armed to the teeth and ready to battle for WTC supremacy.
Sri Lanka Squad: Dhananjaya de Silva (Captain), Pathum Nissanka, Dimuth Karunaratne, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Kusal Mendis, Kamindu Mendis, Oshada Fernando, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Prabath Jayasuriya, Nishan Peiris, Lasith Embuldeniya, Milan Rathnayake, Asitha Fernando, Vishwa Fernando, Lahiru Kumara and Kasun Rajitha.
South Africa Squad: Temba Bavuma (Captain), David Bedingham, Gerald Coetzee, Tony de Zorzi, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Dane Paterson, Kagiso Rabada, Tristan Stubbs, Ryan Rickelton and Kyle Verreynne.
The ICC has decided to send officials to Dhaka this weekend to meet the BCB’s top brass in a bid to resolve the impasse over Bangladesh travelling to India for the T20 World Cup that starts in three weeks.
The ICC’s team is expected to provide the BCB with security details including an independent assessment as part of the discussions. The development comes days after the BCB reiterated its stance of not sending Bangladesh to play in co-hosts India’s venues owing to “security concerns.” So far meetings and discussions have taken place via video conference; this will be the first time the two parties will meet in person.
During the January 13 virtual meeting, the BCB asked the ICC to move Bangladesh, who are placed in Group C, outside India. However, the ICC said it would not tweak the original schedule, with the tournament start date – February 7 – less than a month away. Bangladesh are scheduled to play on that opening day, against West Indies, in Kolkata.
With relations between India and Bangladesh tense in recent times, the BCB sent a letter to ICC on January 4 stating it would not be safe for Bangladesh to travel to India for the World Cup where its four group matches are scheduled. That was in response to the BCCI “authorising” Kolkata Knight Riders to release Bangladesh left arm fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman. No specific reason was given for that decision.
A Risk Assessment report for the World Cup, compiled by an independent security agency, and accessed by ESPNcricinfo, says the threat to teams playing in India is in the moderate-high band but there is “no information to indicate a direct threat against participating teams.”
The ICC shared that security assessment report with the BCB in their last call, which indicated no specific or heightened threat to the Bangladesh cricket team in India. The assessment was shared with the BCB’s security team and concluded there was no overall threat to the side, but pointed to low to moderate risks in some venues and low to nil in others – standard ICC categorisations around the world that do not ordinarily constitute sufficient reason to move games.
[Cricinfo]
Steven Hogan’s century, which included a 186-run stand with Nitesh Samuel, helped Australia brush aside Ireland for an eight wicket win in Windhoek.
After being put in to bat, Ireland openers James West and Freddie Ogillby were off to a slow start, before John James struck to remove West for 11. Sebastian Dijkstra was the next one to go, with Charles Lachmund pinning him in front in the 18th over. That brought Rob O’Brien to the crease, who then slowly rebuilt the innings in Ogilby’s company to put up a 43-run stand.
Offspinner Will Malajczuk, however, denied Ogilby his half-century, having him caught behind for 49 in the 29th over. O’Brien continued to build steadily and found the boundaries occasionally, before departing for a 98-ball 79 in the 49th over, helping push Ireland’s total to 235.
Australia got off to a strong start in the chase, with Malajczuk hitting a four and six in the first over. After he fell in the third over, Samuel and Hogan continued to build towards the target, scoring their half-centuries off 62 balls and 50 balls respectively. Their 100-run stand came up in the 21st over, and Hogan continued to find boundaries, bringing up his ton off 97 balls in the 32nd over.
Medium-pacer Luke Murray provided the breakthrough in the 36th over, having Hogan caught behind for 115. In his 111-ball stay, Hogan hit 11 fours and a six. By then, Australia needed only another 20 runs to win. Ollie Peake then joined Samuel, who finished unbeaten on 77, and together they completed the chase with 62 balls remaining to get Australia off to a rollicking start.
Brief scores:
Australia Under 19s 237 for 2 in 37.2 overs (Steven Hogan 115, Nitesh Samuel 77*; Luke Murray 1-46) beat Ireland Under 19s 235 for 7 in 50 overs (Freddie Ogilby 49, Rob O’Brien 79; Charles Lachmund 3-41) by eight wickets
[Cricinfo]
England Under 19s 210 in 46.5 overs (Ben Dawkins 33, Caleb Falconer 66; Ali Raza 2-36, Ahmed Hussain 3-38, Abdul Subhan 2-24, Momin Qmar 2-45) beat Pakistan Under 19s 173 in 46.3 overs (Farhan Yousaf 65; Alex Green 2-21, James Minto 2-23, Ralphie Albert 2-23) by 37 runs
Pakistan captain Farhan Yousaf lacked support even as he fought back from 85 for 6 in their chase of 211 against England. Yousaf scored 65 off 86 deliveries, but the next highest score from Pakistan was Momin Qamar’s 18*. Eventually, they were bowled out for 173 as England started with a 37 run win after themselves being rescued by Caleb Falconer.
England’s No. 5 arrived at 67 for 3 in the 16th over, which soon became 90 for 4 after 19 on a slow pitch where the ball kept low. But Falconer then added 80 for the fifth wicket with Ralphie Albert, and dominated that partnership. He scored 50 of those runs, and on the way, brought up a run-a-ball half-century in the 29th over.
Four overs later, Ahmed Hussain broke that partnership by bowling Albert for 25, and finished with 3 for 38 off his ten overs. Falconer fell for 66 off 73 deliveries soon after, and England’s tail folded quickly.
In the chase, Alex Green and James Minto reduced Pakistan to 28 for 3 in the ninth over. There were only brief recoveries thereafter: Hussain and Yousaf added 26, while Yousaf and Huzaifa Ahsan had a stand of 23. Batting with the tail, Yousaf kept Pakistan’s faint hopes alive. But once he was caught off Minto, Pakistan needed another 67 to win with two wickets remaining. That turned out to be too much for their tailenders.
Brief scores:
England Under 19s 210 in 46.5 overs (Ben Dawkins 33, Caleb Falconer 66; Ali Raza 2-36, Ahmed Hussain 3-38, Abdul Subhan 2-24, Momin Qmar 2-45) beat Pakistan Under 19s 173 in 46.3 overs (Farhan Yousaf 65; Alex Green 2-21, James Minto 2-23, Ralphie Albert 2-23) by 37 runs
[Cricinfo]
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