Sports
‘We took a chance, you never know. It’s cricket’ – Babar Azam on unexpected declaration
No one knew where the decision had come from, least of all Saud Shakeel. The left-hander had put together 55 runs, chewed up 108 balls, and put on an unbroken 81-ball partnership with Mir Hamza. He was batting out of his skin to keep out Ish Sodhi – a man who’d beat the defences of six of his team-mates. Ajaz Patel, too, was now hitting the sweet spot of the rough consistently enough to worry Pakistan, and it was all Shakeel could do to scrape a few more runs together, and shave a few more minutes off the game. Pakistan needed a draw, and he would provide them with it.
And then he looked up. Babar Azam was waving them in. Had he shaken hands with someone and had the game called off? No, that couldn’t be, the final hour hadn’t yet begun. He had actually declared! The two wickets Shakeel had been so jealously guarding had been vaporised into thin air, with the Pakistan management apparently feeling the game was out of New Zealand’s reach by this point.
Not that it meant an inevitable draw, though. According to Babar, the point of the declaration was the same as the point of any declaration: to win the game.
“Saud was a bit shocked when we declared,” Babar grinned afterwards. “He thought we were going for a draw.”
But for a brief period during that final innings at dusk, there weren’t many smiles on Pakistani faces. A first-over wicket had given way to an onslaught against spin from Tom Latham, and by the end of the sixth over, New Zealand had piled on 55. It was a rate that was sufficient to see them through to victory if the full 15 overs available when the chase began were to be bowled. With the light deteriorating rapidly, though, that was effectively impossible.
Babar turned to the fast bowlers and, 2.3 overs into spin being taken off, the umpires decided it was much too dark. With it, a slightly surreal piece of final-day Test cricket came to an end.
“We said we’d go after a result,” Babar said after the match. “We took a chance, you never know. It’s cricket. Anything can happen. Saud and [Mohammad] Wasim Junior’s partnership was vital for us because it brought us into the game. That put the idea in my head that we could declare. You all will have enjoyed it as well, and it surprised everyone. It was in our mind we’d take a chance because anything can happen.
“We sent a message in, just before we declared, to tell the batters to assess the conditions and play according to those. At times you have to take brave decisions and take chances. As a team and captain, I try and do that. You plan for a result, even if you can’t guarantee it.”
It’s not clear whether the decision to declare came from Babar himself. If it did, it would certainly be a break from historical precedent; Babar the captain has tended to err on the side of caution. Besides, the chances of a Pakistan win were so remote it’s impossible not to wonder if Babar had his tongue firmly in cheek when talking them up. New Zealand had, after all, kept Pakistan out in the field for nearly 195 overs in the first innings and still hadn’t been bowled out. The thought that it might take fewer than 10-15 overs in the second seemed fanciful at best.
The final hour or so might have provided a flicker of entertainment, but did not detract from Pakistan’s continuing home woes. This is the seventh successive Test Pakistan have failed to win at home; it is now nearly two years since their last win. They might have escaped a record-extending fifth successive home defeat, but the fact was – and Babar acknowledged it – this was a game New Zealand had dominated.
“It’s not that we need to play different cricket,” Babar said. “We need to take things session by session and day by day. We need to be positive and play with aggression. We’re working on it. Everyone has a different game and mindset. We need to credit New Zealand with the way they played and dominated.
“We lost three early wickets but we came back after that. Salman Ali Agha deserves credit for the way he batted with the tail [in the first innings] and put us in a good position. Imam [ul-Haq], Sarfaraz [Ahmed] and Saud Shakeel built partnerships in patches in the second innings, and Wasim chipped in as well. So the batting line-up did quite well.
“As a coach and captain we can ask for what kind of wicket you need. You know spinners dominate there and reverse swing from the fast bowlers gives you an edge. The fast bowlers bowled well. Mir Hamza bowled well and there were lots of close appeals on his bowling, which also created chances. You don’t always get what you want but the conditions are the same for both sides.”
(cricinfo)
After three one-sided, low-scoring encounters, the fourth T20I between India and Sri Lanka exploded into a run-fest in Thiruvananthapuram, with both sides posting their highest totals in women’s T20Is. India’s big score of 221 for 2 proved too much for Sri Lanka, who fell short by 30 runs, handing the hosts a 4-0 series lead with one match remaining. India missed two catching opportunities and a stumping chance, while Sri Lanka gave away three, but the batting dominance was decisive.
Smriti Mandhana and Shafali Verma set the tone with blistering half-centuries to power India’s innings, while Chamari Athapaththu kept Sri Lanka in the chase with a fighting 52. Despite a few late cameo efforts, the visitors couldn’t overcome India’s dominant batting display.
Shafali and Mandhana delivered a masterclass in aggressive opening batting, putting together 162 runs off just 92 balls – the highest opening partnership for India in women’s T20Is. Shafali continued her purple patch with a third successive T20I half-century, while Mandhana, who had managed only 40 runs in the first three matches, roared back to form. The innings also saw Mandhana climb to the top of the charts for most runs (1,703) in women’s internationals in a calendar year, underlining her dominance.
India’s openers were relentless from the outset, racing to 61 without loss in the powerplay with 12 boundaries. Shafali’s innings was built on control and placement – her first six came only after her fifty, a loft over long-off in the 11th over – and she finished with 12 fours and a six.
Mandhana, meanwhile, struck 11 fours and three sixes, though her innings briefly dipped in tempo. After racing to 24 off 14 balls, she moved to 28 off 24 during a short lull before accelerating sharply to reach her half-century off 35 deliveries. From there, she cut loose, using the feet to loft the spinners and driving straight with authority.
The contest decisively tilted in overs 11 to 13, when India tore into the attack. The 11th over went for 15 runs, followed by a 20-run 12th and an 18-run 13th, each featuring two fours and a six. Any hopes Sri Lanka had of restricting the damage vanished as India surged from 85 for no loss to 120 in just two overs.
India brought up 150 in only 14.2 overs, making light of the Sri Lanka captain’s assessment at the toss that 140 would be a competitive total.
Sri Lanka had to wait 92 balls for their first breakthrough and struck again in the following over, the 17th, but any momentum was swiftly snuffed out by Richa Ghosh. With Harleen Deol replacing Jemimah Rodrigues, who was recovering from a mild fever, India promoted Ghosh to No. 3 for the death overs – a move that paid rich dividends. Having faced just one delivery in the series before this match, Ghosh made an impact, blasting 40 off 16 balls and adding an unbroken 53-run stand with Harmanpreet Kaur.
Ghosh announced herself by heaving her second ball over Nimasha Meepage’s head for four. After a relatively quiet 17th over, she found her range against the same bowler, striking two more boundaries. The onslaught peaked against Kavisha Dilhari, one of Sri Lanka’s more experienced bowlers, as Ghosh went into overdrive. She smoked three sixes and a four to plunder 23 runs from the 19th over, punishing anything in her hitting arc and underlining India’s ruthless finish.
Sri Lanka began their chase aggressively, with Hasini Perera taking charge. She tore into Renuka Singh’s first over, hitting three boundaries, while Arundhati Reddy, making a comeback in place of the rested Kranti Gaud, conceded 17 off the second over. By the end of four, Sri Lanka had raced to 52 for 0, with the opening stand between Perera and Athapaththu putting on 59 runs off 34 balls.
Athapaththu struck the chase’s first six, charging down the track and clearing long-off off Deepti Sharma in the third over. Both left-handers punished anything too full or short, though Perera fell in the sixth over, holing out to Harmanpreet at mid-off off Reddy’s offcutter.
Athapaththu kept the momentum going, adding 57 runs off 46 balls with Imesha Dulani for the second wicket. Athapaththu moved from 20 off 15 balls to fifty in the next 19 deliveries, hitting three sixes and as many fours. However, her innings ended when she mistimed a charge over the off side, gifting a catch to Mandhana at long-off off Vaishnavi Sharma. At that stage, Sri Lanka needed 106 runs from 42 balls. Despite a few late cameos, the chase fell short.
On a night dominated by big scores, Vaishnavi emerged as the standout bowler, picking up two crucial wickets for just 24 runs. Introduced into the attack after the powerplay, she began by floating the ball outside off stump to entice the batters before gradually attacking the stumps and testing the left-handers with clever variations.
After dismissing Athapaththu in the 13th over, she also removed Harshitha Samarawickrama for a 13-ball 20 in the 17th, when the batter looked threatening. Her disciplined lines and sharp changes of pace helped India keep Sri Lanka’s scoring in check.
Brief scores:
India Women 221 for 2 in 20 overs (Smriti Mandhana 80, Shafali Verma 79, Richa Ghosh 40*, Harmanpreet Kaur16*; Malsha Shehani 1-32, Nimasha Meepage 1-40) beat Sri Lanka Women 191 for 6 in 20 overs (Chamari Athapaththu 52, Hasini Perera 33, Imesha Dulani 29, Harshitha Samarawickrama 20, Kavisha Dilhari 13, Nilakshika de Silva 23*; Arundhati Reddy 2-42, Vaishnavi Sharma 2-24, Shree Charani 1-46) by 30 runs
(Cricinfo)
A private function will be held on Monday, December 29 at Melbourne’s Spicy Wicket Restaurant to celebrate Asanka Gurusinha’s iconic Boxing Day century at the MCG, the first and still the only hundred by a Sri Lankan at the grand old ground that staged the game’s inaugural Test and has long been cricket’s festive showpiece in Australia.
Sri Lanka featured in the 1995 Boxing Day Test against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, a match remembered as much for controversy as for courage. Umpire Darrel Hair repeatedly no-balled Muttiah Muralitharan for throwing in front of a stunned crowd of 55,000, turning the contest into a cauldron.
It was a one-sided affair dominated by Mark Taylor’s Australians. Forced to follow on, Sri Lanka were staring down the barrel before Gurusinha dug in to produce a back-to-the-wall 143. It was the left-hander’s career-best Test score and more importantly helped Sri Lanka avoid the ignominy of an innings defeat.
“Any Test hundred is a moment to remember, but to do it against Australia, facing McDermott, McGrath, Warne and Reifel at the MCG is very special,” Gurusinha told Telecom Asia Sport. “It didn’t sink in 30 years ago, but I know now why it’s special. I always enjoyed batting on pitches with bounce and seam and Australia was a place I loved playing.”
“Coming up against the best team in the world at the time and that formidable bowling attack is something that will stay with me forever,” he added.
Gurusinha also paid tribute to those behind the celebration. “I want to thank my good friends David and Cathy Cruse for organising this event. All my family will be there and it’s great to have Aravinda de Silva as chief guest. I played against him at school level for eight years and then alongside him for 12 years for Sri Lanka. He’s a dear friend.”
Gurusinha made his Test debut in 1985, straight out of school as a 19-year-old wicketkeeper-batter. His sound technique soon demanded promotion and he settled into the No. 3 slot, becoming the side’s human sandbag, valuing his wicket, batting time and wearing down attacks during marathon vigils that tested bowlers’ patience as much as their stamina.
A key member of Sri Lanka’s World Cup-winning squad in 1996, Gurusinha willingly shelved his natural strokeplay to play the anchor’s role, allowing the likes of Sanath Jayasuriya and Aravinda de Silva to cut loose. He struck a vital half-century in the final against Australia, earning praise from captain Arjuna Ranatunga, who famously labelled him the unsung hero of Sri Lanka’s World Cup triumph.
Gurusinha retired prematurely at the age of 30 soon after that World Cup success, migrated to Australia and has since made Melbourne his adopted home, fitting, perhaps, that the city where he played his finest innings will now raise a glass to a knock that has aged like fine wine.
Royal scored a first innings win over Gurukula after they restricted the team from Kelniya to 215 runs in reply to their 302 in the Under 19 Division I Tier ‘A’ match at Reid Avenue on Sunday.
For the home team open bat Hirun Liyanarachchi scored back to back half centuries. He remained unbeaten on 56 in the second innings.
For the visitors Ohas Sadew picked up six wickets.
Scores
Royal 302 for 9 decl. in 80 overs (Hirun Liyanarachchi 50, Dushen Udawela 25, Ramiru Perera 60, Yasindu Dissanayake 41, Thevindu Wewalwala 36, Manuth Disanayake 42, Udantha Gangewatta
22n.o.; Ohas Sadew 6/101) and 130 for 2 in 39 overs (Hirun Liyanarachchi 56n.o., Rehan Peiris 59)
Gurukula
215 all out in 75.2 overs (Sahas Induwara 35, Denura Dimansith 79, Janith Mihiranga 44; Himaru Deshan 2/65, Ramiru Perera 2/58) (RF)
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