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The trio will be formally inducted before the T20 World Cup final on Sunday in Dubai

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Nov-2021Janette Brittin, Mahela Jayawardene and Shaun Pollock have been inducted into ICC Cricket Hall of Fame and the formal induction will take place before the T20 World Cup 2021 final between New Zealand and Australia at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Sunday.Brittin, who died in 2017, played 27 Tests and 63 ODIs for England Women from 1979 to 1998 and scored 1935 and 2121 runs in the two formats respectively, and holds several records. She is the most capped Test player among women; she was the oldest woman to score a Test hundred (at 39 years and 38 days vs Australia in 1998) and the second-oldest to score an ODI hundred (at 38 years and 161 days vs Pakistan in 1997); she scored the most Test runs in a calendar year (531 in 1984) and she has the most 50-plus scores (16) in women’s Tests.She also top-scored in the 1993 World Cup final against New Zealand to take England to the title.Jayawardene, too, held many records for Sri Lanka – he captained them, played five ICC finals and won the T20 World Cup in 2014. He also scored over 10,000 runs in both Tests and ODIs, and is now considered an astute T20 coach.Pollock, apart from being among the finest allrounders from South Africa, also took over the captaincy at a challenging time from Hansie Cronje and went on to play 108 Tests and became the first South African to 400 Test wickets.”The ICC Cricket Hall of Fame is our way of honouring and celebrating the greats of our game. Only the very best players are recognized for their contribution to cricket in this way,” ICC acting CEO Geoff Allardice said. “I would like to congratulate Mahela and Shaun on their induction into this illustrious group and it is a wonderful way to commemorate Janette’s life and career.”Jayawardene thanked those who helped him during his career, saying: “I am very grateful for the recognition and would like to enjoy and share the moment with all those that have helped me on my journey, including my family, friends, coaches, team-mates and, most importantly, Sri Lanka cricket fans who passionately supported and inspired me during my career.”Pollock said: “I would like to thank the ICC for this recognition of my career. It’s an amazing honour to be included in the Hall of Fame alongside the very illustrious company that has already been inducted. It’s a real cherry on the top or maybe even a book end of what has been a thoroughly enjoyable cricketing experience and I’d like to thank my teammates who played such a massive part along the journey.”

Seamer says it wouldn’t be right to “kick up a stink” over decision as he prepares for pink-ball Test

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Dec-2021Despite his disappointment at being left out of the first Ashes Test, Stuart Broad says it wouldn’t be right to “kick up a stink” over the decision.England’s omission of vastly experienced seamers Broad and James Anderson raised eyebrows even before the match ended in a nine-wicket drubbing at the hands of Australia inside four days at the Gabba. And while he felt he could have influenced the course of the game, Broad wrote in his Mail On Sunday column that he felt it wasn’t appropriate to question the decision, as he had done publicly during the 2020 English summer.Broad famously reacted to his omission from the first Test against West Indies in Southampton during an emotional interview with Sky Sports in which he said he was “frustrated” and “angry” at having been left out.”Over the past 12 months, Jimmy Anderson and I tried to ensure we were as fit as could be in the current Covid climate, ready to go and available for all five Tests in Australia,” Broad wrote. “I think we ticked that box.”But England selection is not in the hands of players. It is in those of people who have to make choices based on conditions and the balance of the team and our job now with four matches to go is to be ready for the next of the series in Adelaide on Thursday.”Related

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• Root: 'We are not scared of a challenge'

• Australia to monitor Hazlewood fitness after 'minor' side strain

• England docked five WTC points for slow over rates in Gabba Test

• England's abysmal decade Down Under makes latest loss all too familiar

Broad has not played since tearing his calf ahead of the Lord’s Test against India in August. He said he had a sense that the final selection decision in Brisbane was between him and Jack Leach but he wasn’t told until the XI was named. Leach came in for some chastening treatment by the Australia batsmen with figures of 1 for 102 in 13 overs.”My feeling was that I would only play in a five-man seam attack,” Broad said. “I’ve been left out on numerous occasions and sometimes it comes as a real surprise. This was less of a surprise, maybe because I wasn’t in the team for the previous series against India due to a calf injury.”It was not my shirt for the most recent three Tests against India at the end of last summer. So, this was a very different feeling to the one I experienced in Southampton at the start of 2020 when I got left out. Then, I’d bowled brilliantly in the 2019 Ashes, brilliantly in South Africa and felt the shirt belonged to me. When it was taken away, I felt put out. Angry. Upset.”It would be wrong in this scenario to kick up a stink. On the flip side, I love Ashes cricket, love bowling at the Gabba and feel like I could’ve had a positive influence on a pitch like that. Of course, I was disappointed not to play but I also realise this series is a marathon and not a sprint. Never have five Test matches been as bunched up as this and it will be exhausting, so realistically I don’t think any seamer will play all five.”The ECB explained Anderson’s absence from the Brisbane Test as part of a plan to have him ready for the day-night Test starting in Adelaide on Thursday. Broad said as soon as they learned they weren’t playing at the Gabba, he and Anderson began practising with the pink ball in the nets along with Craig Overton.”Do I want to be on the field at Hobart in the fifth with the opportunity to do something special? Of course. And if I am not needed before then, we will have done bloody well,” Broad said.”For the players that took the field for us in Brisbane, I am sure there are many moments they would want back but you don’t get that in top-flight sport, you only get the chance to recognise how it felt, think about how to improve and then put that improvement into action at a new venue.”There is no time to feel sorry for ourselves, dwell on not batting, bowling, or catching very well. We know that’s the case. More importantly, what specifically can we channel positively into Adelaide? What we mustn’t do is carry negatives with us for the next month. We’ve done that on Ashes tours past and consistently lost.”The England squad will fly to Adelaide on Monday and train on Tuesday.

Allrounder Daniel Sams has been added to Australia’s T20 squad

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Feb-2022Travis Head will miss the start of the T20I series against Sri Lanka in order to play a Sheffield Shield match for South Australia ahead of the Pakistan tour.Daniel Sams, the New South Wales and Sydney Thunder allrounder, has been added to Australia’s squad for the five-match series which begins at the SCG on Friday.Head, who played his previous T20I in 2018, was one of the players recalled to face Sri Lanka but it has been decided there is value in him having a first-class game before the Pakistan contests next month following his player-of-the-series returns in the Ashes. He will rejoin the T20 squad in Melbourne.Sams was a travelling reserve for the T20 World Cup last year. He has previously played four T20Is and had a good BBL with Thunder where he was their leading wicket-taker with 19 at 24.57 and also hammered an astonishing 98 off 44 balls against Melbourne Renegades.Related

• 'I am not putting myself up for any job' – Gillespie

• What the Ashes told us about Australia's Test team

• Ben McDermott and Travis Head earn T20I call-ups for Sri Lanka series

• Pucovski finally set for first-class return

Confirmation of the remaining men’s domestic fixtures opened up the chance for some Test players to get a game for their states with South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland in action from Wednesday.Head will now join South Australia team-mate Alex Carey in being able to face Victoria who will have Marcus Harris and Scott Boland in their side. Harris is expected to earn a place on the Pakistan tour after being dropped for the final Ashes Test to accommodate Usman Khawaja.Steven Smith is part of the T20I squad to face Sri Lanka along with with Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood but Nathan Lyon is expected to play for New South Wales against Queensland.Queensland are most bolstered by international availability with Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Michael Neser and Mitchell Swepson all available.Western Australia will not be in Sheffield Shield action until next month due to border restrictions meaning Cameron Green and Mitchell Marsh – the latter who was rested from the Sri Lanka T20Is – won’t have any cricket before the Pakistan tour. It has already been confirmed that Jhye Richardson, who is part of the T20I squad, won’t take part in the Pakistan trip.

The former Zimbabwe keeper-batter is head coach at both Multan Sultans and Lucknow Super Giants

PTI and ESPNcricinfo staff04-Feb-2022Former Zimbabwe keeper-batter Andy Flower has left Multan Sultans midway through the Pakistan Super League season to be in India for the IPL mega auction on February 12 and 13.One of Zimbabwe’s most successful cricketers, Flower, who coached Multan to the PSL title last year, will be in Bengaluru for the auction as the head coach of the new IPL franchise Lucknow Super Giants.According to Multan Sultans’ media department, Flower will be available virtually and will return to Pakistan on February 13.The PSL franchise will be without Flower for at least 10 days. Sultans will face Peshawar Zalmi on February 5 and 10 and take on Lahore Qalandars on February 11. Flower will rejoin the side before the match against Karachi Kings on February 16.Multan have been the PSL’s form side so far. They are undefeated with four wins in four games, and are already on course to make the playoffs. When they won the PSL last season, they had lost four of their first five games before turning their form around in the second leg of the tournament, held in Abu Dhabi after the first half was cut short by a Covid-19 outbreak.Given the start Multan have had this time, Flower’s absence may not hurt the team too much. Flower will continue to liaise with Ottis Gibson, the bowling coach, via video, while the former Pakistan legspinner Mushtaq Ahmed, who is Flower’s deputy, will continue in his role.There has also been speculation about Flower being considered for the England head coach’s job, though it appears currently unlikely. Flower coached the England team from 2009 to 2014, helping them win the Ashes in Australia in 2010-11 and claim a Test series win in India in 2012-13, and also reach the No. 1 spot on the ICC Test rankings.

Player of the Series Usman Khawaja hit 91 and 104* in Lahore, as Australia won first Test series in Asia since 2011

Tristan Lavalette25-Mar-2022Veteran spinner Nathan Lyon resoundingly answered the critics with five wickets on the final day, as Australia’s unwavering attack ended Pakistan’s resistance late on day five to win the deciding third Test by 115 runs. Lyon claimed 5 for 83, while Player of the Match Pat Cummins finished a brilliant series with 3 for 23, and eight wickets in the Test.Needing 351 to win or batting through 121 overs – both feats never achieved in Lahore before – Pakistan were dismissed for 235 after losing five wickets in the final session. In the historic first series between the teams in Pakistan since 1998, Australia broke the deadlock after draws in Rawalpindi and Karachi. It is the same 1-0 scoreline that Mark Taylor’s team famously achieved 24 years ago.After giving Pakistan a sniff with a bold declaration, captain Cummins was vindicated as he led Australia to their first overseas Test series victory since 2016, as they also ended their 11-year drought in Asia.Pakistan’s hopes nosedived when captain Babar Azam fell for 55 after tea when Steven Smith took a sharp catch near his left boot off Lyon. After a torrid series in the slips, Smith atoned in a big moment to put Australia on course for victory.Australia were relieved after Babar, who had produced a masterful 196 to secure a draw in Karachi, had been dropped before tea by Travis Head at deep midwicket after rashly charging Lyon. He also may have enjoyed some luck moments earlier when Australia chose not to review after he prodded a Lyon delivery that ballooned to a diving Smith at slip. With just one review left, Cummins chose not to pull the trigger but replays showed Babar may have gloved the ball.Australia’s nerves were raised when Babar played fluently against the second new ball but his dismissal sucked the life out of the crowd, as Australia soon claimed their first Test win against Pakistan in Asia since 2002.Cummins was predictably brilliant with the ball and gave Australia a stranglehold with a superb burst before tea to dismiss Fawad Alam and Mohammad Rizwan. He made all the right moves, starting with his sporting declaration late on day four, which dangled a carrot to Pakistan, who had defied the odds during their remarkable chase of 506 in Karachi when they finished at 443 for 7 from 171.4 overs.Cummins, who remains unbeaten as skipper from seven Tests, knew the slow Lahore surface marked by low bounce offered more assistance for bowlers than flat pitches in Rawalpindi and Karachi. Having struggled recently in bowling Australia to victory on the final day, Lyon proved a point with a five-wicket haul as he expertly targeted the rough patches and occasionally made deliveries spit off the wicket.Fittingly, Pat Cummins claimed the final wicket after comprehensively bowling Naseem Shah•AFP/Getty Images

He started his terrific performance by removing Imam-ul-Haq for 70 with his second ball after lunch when he had the opener inside-edging to silly point. It was a reward for Lyon’s accuracy and Cummins’ persistence with deploying four catchers around the bat.Lyon had also toiled manfully in the middle of day three to fuel Australia’s fightback just when Pakistan appeared set for a mammoth first-innings total.Amid batting friendly conditions throughout, Australia’s series victory was built on the back of indefatigable batting, even though Player of the Series Usman Khawaja was their only centurion. Pakistan-born Khawaja enjoyed a remarkable homecoming with 496 runs at 165.33 and two hundreds, while Australia had enough contributors without any other standouts.Pakistan will rue a horrendous batting collapse on day three when they had lost 7 for 20, as they eventually fell short of staving off defeat for the second straight match. They were left to ponder the decision to deploy a five-pronged bowling attack at the expense of allrounder Faheem Ashraf, which left their batting weakened.Even though they faced a daunting task, the hosts entered the final day with hope. But it soon eroded in the first session after the controversial dismissal of Azhar Ali for 17 following an overturned review. Replays detected a faint edge from an attempted sweep off Lyon that lobbed to Smith at first slip. Smith was absolutely convinced that he had heard a sound, but replays only detected the slightest deviation in the wave.In his 94th Test – and first in his hometown – Azhar’s match ended in major disappointment as he trudged off angrily in a blow for Pakistan who had earlier lost in-form Abdullah Shafique for 27.Pakistan were again dependent on Babar, and fans in the terraces still believed he could produce something miraculous on the 30th anniversary of Pakistan’s World Cup triumph at the MCG.But those dreams were thwarted by Australia’s sustained attack, which never buckled in the series despite flat conditions and formidable Pakistan batting. Fittingly, Cummins claimed the final wicket after comprehensively bowling Naseem Shah to trigger memorable celebrations for Australia who have waited a long time to savour victory in Pakistan.

“I couldn’t be more positive of what we’ve done over these past three-and-a-half weeks,” says interim coach

Cameron Ponsonby28-Mar-2022Interim head coach Paul Collingwood has said that despite England’s loss to West Indies he believes the team is making progress and that he “couldn’t be more positive of what we’ve done over these past three-and-a-half weeks”.Speaking the day after England fell to a 10-wicket defeat in Grenada, Collingwood confirmed that he had “put his hat in the ring” to take on the head coach role full time and reiterated that captain Joe Root had the full support of the team. “Sometimes it amazes me that he gets questioned because of how it feels in the dressing room,” Collingwood said.England’s defeat in the Caribbean meant it was a fifth successive series without a win for the team, who now have just one victory in their last 17 Tests. It also extended their winless run in the West Indies to 18 years and counting.Related

• Collingwood appointed stand-in England coach for WI Tests

• Root insists he wants to remain England captain

• Ex-England captains call for Root to step down after Wndies defeat

Defeat in Grenada was a disappointing end to a tour on which England had for the most part dominated, with West Indies holding on for draws on the fifth day in both Antigua and Barbados.”To not get a result out of those [games] was disappointing,” Collingwood said. “The series could have been totally different. I always felt we were one or two wickets away from breaking West Indies in those first two games. But we weren’t able to do it and coming into the last game, our performance level wasn’t to the standard of the first two games.”I couldn’t be more positive of what we’ve done over these past three-and-a-half weeks in the West Indies. The response from the players from what I felt as though we’d picked up from Australia moving into here, the way we went about giving them clarity, direction, and how open they were, and where they were as individuals, as a team, and how we were going to move forward, it was always my challenge to leave this team in a better place than when I first got it, and I personally feel as though it’s a lot stronger now than when I first picked the team up.”Everyone’s seen the results on the park, of course we didn’t get the win in Antigua or Barbados, but you could see the way the guys were playing there was a real determination to win those games, whether it be the declarations, or the way we were setting totals up, the guys are going out there and producing some very good cricket. If they continue playing like that they will turn the corner and win games of cricket very quickly.”Nevertheless, defeat has increased the pressure on Root to step down as England captain after five years in the job. By number of matches Root is England’s most-experienced Test captain of all time and holds the records for both most wins and most losses.”I can see it because we are not winning games of cricket,” Collingwood said of the growing calls for Root to be replaced. “When you have that kind of record, I can understand where the noise comes from. [But] you have to understand how it feels in the dressing room and how strong a leader he is. He has the full backing. The full backing from all the players and the management as well. It feels like he is still very much our No1 to take this team forward.”Sometimes it amazes me that he gets questioned, because of how it feels within the dressing room,” he added. “It’s the first time I’ve experienced him as a head coach, and worked with him. You can see the passion, the drive. There’s a real hunger to get it right. These aren’t just words coming out of his mouth. He’s desperate to get the team back to winning games of cricket.Ben Stokes puts his arm around Joe Root after England’s defeat•Getty Images

“I can’t say anything but positivity in terms of what he’s done leadership-wise in the dressing room, trying to move this team forward. He’s been unbelievable in this Test series to work with and see how he goes about his business, and being able to give the rest of the players responsibility.”Collingwood reiterated that England had no regrets with the squad that they chose for the tour having controversially left out both James Anderson and Stuart Broad for the trip. Including the tour away to India last year and New Zealand at home, it is the third Test series in 12 months where England have chosen to rest and rotate players and not gone in with a full-strength side, and Collingwood agreed it was time to take a more short-term approach to selections, with an emphasis on winning the next match rather than the one after.”On this trip we’ve selected guys who were in the squad,” he said. “We’ve selected for what the conditions have been cut out for us. We have had a lot of injuries as well, some of our top players, but we came across here to win the series with the squad that we have. We were pushed with a couple of injuries to Woody [Mark Wood] and things like that. But I always felt like we had a team good enough to win. But moving forward, the new coach comes in I’m sure he’ll want the best team possible.But, he stressed, England would “have to be very careful” with player workloads, citing the experience of Ben Stokes, who missed a significant chunk of last year after taking a break for mental health reasons. Stokes then suffered a side injury during the Ashes and was expected to be eased back into bowling in the Caribbean, only to end up delivering more overs than any other England seamer.”We’re playing Covid catch-up. Ben’s been a prime example – he’s put his body on the line this series because he wants to win games of cricket. Players continue to do that and they’ll break, they’ll break physically and emotionally. So we’ve got to be a little bit careful to say get the best team on the park every time because that fixture list moving forward is horrific.”

Key player in county’s run of trophies set to call time on 15-season career

ESPNcricinfo staff04-May-2022Adam Wheater, Essex’s wicketkeeper, is set to retire from professional cricket at the end of the 2022 season.Wheater, 32, made his first-class debut for Essex in 2008, and spent four seasons with Hampshire from 2013 to 2016, before returning to Chelmsford to play a pivotal role in the club’s run of red-ball success in recent seasons.After rejoining the club on a loan spell in 2016, Wheater played key roles in Essex’s two Championship wins in 2017 and 2019 – the former being their first title in 25 years, and the latter forming part of an unprecedented Championship and T20 Blast double.His form carried through into the Covid-interrupted 2020 season, as he averaged 58.20 to help Essex win the inaugural Bob Willis Trophy final at Lord’s. Across all formats, he has made 380 appearances in his career, scoring 10,876 runs while taking 386 catches and 64 stumpings.”It’s been a tough call to make, but the timing feels right and I’m pleased to be going out on my own terms,” Wheater said. “I’ve had a great time at both Essex and Hampshire. Not many players get the opportunity to play for their boyhood club, so to be able to do that has been a dream, and to be able to win the things we’ve won, I couldn’t have asked for more.”I’m looking forward to whatever comes next, but until then I’m fully committed to helping Anthony McGrath and this side secure more silverware.”I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank the Members, fans, players, staff and everyone associated with the club for their support over the years. It’s been a great journey and I hope you’ve enjoyed it as much as I have.”Essex appear to have a ready-made replacement for Wheater in Adam Rossington, the wicketkeeper-batter who signed on loan from Northamptonshire at the start of the season.Rossington is in the final year of his contract at Northants and it is understood that Essex are planning to offer him a permanent contract once they are able to do so on June 1.Essex’s chief executive and interim chair, John Stephenson, said: “I would like to thank Adam for his contribution to Essex County Cricket Club over his two spells with the club.”He’s been an excellent performer for this side and has been a big factor in the success we’ve enjoyed over the last six years.”

Powerplay display from seamers puts contest out of visitors’ reach

ECB Reporters Network07-Jun-2022 Essex 135 for 3 (Pepper 50) beat Kent 130 for 9 by seven wicketsMichael Pepper showcased his outrageous hitting for a second successive Tuesday night as Essex Eagles thrashed Kent Spitfires by seven wickets in the Vitality Blast.Pepper made a personal best 75 not out against Hampshire Hawks last week and followed that up by punching 50 as the Eagles knocked off 131 with 27 balls unneeded.A sensational team bowling powerplay had earlier set the platform to stunt Kent, as Daniel Sams, Sam Cook, Ben Allison and Matt Critchley all eventually snared two wickets each.Essex are in the quarter-final hunt with three wins from six games and boast an unbeaten start at the Cloud County Ground, Chelmsford. Kent are rock-bottom with a solitary victory.Eagles decided to bowl first and vindicated their decision with a dominant display of powerplay bowling to leave Spitfires 24 for four, a minor recovery from 17 for four. Daniel Sams, Sam Cook and Ben Allison all bowled two overs, with stunning figures of one for seven, one for three and two for nine respectively.Australian Sams produced a snorter to have Daniel Bell-Drummond caught at first slip in the first over, before T20 debutant Tawanda Muyeye holed Allison out to deep midwicket and Jordan Cox tickled to a juggling short fine leg two balls later. Cook completed the ruthless start when Grant Stewart miss-hit to point.Alex Blake attempted to readdress the momentum by striking back-to-back sixes, as Aron Nijjar went for 21 in his sole over. But despite partnerships of 29 with Sam Billings – who was brilliantly caught and bowled by Simon Harmer – and 27 with Jack Leaning, setting a total was laborious.Leg spinner Critchley bowled Leaning and had George Linde slicing to Sams at point. It was one of four catches for Sams which equalled Essex’s T20 record – set by Dan Lawrence in this fixture last year.Freddie Klaassen outdid all three Essex powerplay bowlers to bowl a maiden and then a wicket maiden – having bowled Adam Rossington. But Pepper picked up from his heroics here last week.A four over extra cover got his eye in before he carted Matt Milnes back over his head with a well-middled six.Buttleman ended his run of three single-figure scores by opening up the off side with a trio of boundaries. But departed when Blake unleashed his inner Harlem Globetrotter to reach the ball, pop the ball up, roll over and complete a jaw-dropping diving catch.Pepper added three more maximums off the spinners before he moved to a third format fifty from 28 balls. He fell when he top-edged a sweep to short fine leg, but Critchley and Paul Walter – who struck three massive sixes – ticked off the remaining 46 runs with little problem.

Sean Williams is attending to personal matters, and was granted “compassionate leave” by the board

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Jun-2022Blessing Muzarabani has returned to the Zimbabwe squad and will lead the pace attack against Afghanistan in the three-match ODI series starting June 4 in Harare. Left-arm spinner Ainsley Ndlovu also returned to the squad of 15 that will be led by Craig Ervine, after last playing an ODI nearly three years ago. The selectors also picked uncapped fast bowler Tanaka Chivanga, who made his T20I debut against Namibia last month.Muzarabani missed the T20Is against Namibia at home because he was a net bowler with IPL side Lucknow Super Giants, who played their maiden IPL season and finished third on the points table.Compared to the ODI squad that toured Sri Lanka earlier this year, Sean Williams misses out because of personal matters for which Zimbabwe Cricket has granted him compassionate leave. Richard Ngarava and Wellington Masakadza will miss the series too, as they are yet to fully recover from lower back and right shoulder injuries, respectively.Related

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But Tinotenda Mutombodzi didn’t make the cut this time. The squad saw the return of Donald Tiripano as well to bolster the pace attack. Tiripano featured in the recent T20Is against Namibia but went wicketless in the three games he played. Ndlovu, meanwhile, was among the wickets regularly while representing Northerners and Matabeleland Tuskers in T20s and first-class games.Chivanga went wicketless while opening the bowling against Namibia in the opening T20I and leaked 23 runs in two overs, but was more successful in the A series against South Africa at home in April-May. He was the top wicket-taker for Zimbabwe A in the T20Is, picking seven wickets in five games at an economy rate of 8.58. In the ODIs, he picked three wickets in as many games.Zimbabwe’s three ODIs against Afghanistan are part of the World Cup Super League and will be played on June 4, 6 and 9 at the Harare Sports Club; all three are day games.Squad: Craig Ervine (captain), Ryan Burl, Regis Chakabva, Tendai Chatara, Tanaka Chivanga, Luke Jongwe, Takudzwanashe Kaitano, Clive Madande, Wessly Madhevere, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Ainsley Ndlovu, Sikandar Raza, Milton Shumba, Donald Tiripano

India’s ten-wicket win in the first ODI against England took them past Pakistan

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jul-20224:32

Is Jasprit Bumrah the best all-format bowler in the world?

India’s first 10-wicket win against England in men’s ODIs has taken them to third place in the ICC rankings, ahead of Pakistan.With 108 rating points, India need to win or draw the three-ODI series against England to stay ahead of Pakistan, who have 106. New Zealand lead the ODI rankings with 127 points, while England are second with 122.Pakistan had pushed India down to fourth place last month by beating West Indies 3-0 at home. However, their stay at No. 3 was short lived after India routed England for 110 in the first ODI, after which Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan sealed the win with their fourth century partnership in six ODIs at The Oval.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

With two ODIs left in the series, and three more in the West Indies later this month, India have an opportunity to extend their lead over Pakistan in the rankings and close-in on England. However, India could drop below Pakistan and down to fourth if they lose the final two matches of the series against England.As India look to claim the series at Lord’s on Thursday, questions marks loom over Virat Kohli’s fitness. He had missed the series opener due to a groin strain that he sustained during the third T20I in Nottingham last Sunday.”I don’t know the status of his injury because I did not play the last game [3rd T20I],” Jasprit Bumrah said after the first ODI. “Hopefully, he recovers, but I really don’t know the status of his injury.”The groin strain is the latest setback for Kohli on a difficult tour of England. He scored 11 and 20 in the Edgbaston Test that India lost to draw the series 2-2, and then was dismissed for 1 and 11 in the second and third T20 internationals.Kohli has already been rested from the ODI series in the Caribbean from July 22, along with four other senior players Rohit, Rishabh Pant, Bumrah and Hardik Pandya. It remains to be seen whether Kohli will play the five-match T20I series in the West Indies that begins on July 29. The squad for that series is due to be selected in the coming days.