Day: November 1, 2021

Dubai, November 01, 2021 (PPI-OT):Jos Buttler praised the character of his England teammates as they come through a tough test against Sri Lanka in Sharjah.

Opening the batting, Buttler won his side the match with his maiden T20I century coming off only 67 balls and was one of several fielders to excel as England beat Sri Lanka by 26 runs.

England were put into bat for the first time in Sharjah and Buttler believes his side did well to deal with the dewy conditions.

“It’s hard to guess if the dew is going to come in or not,” he said.

“Obviously tonight it did and I think it certainly changed conditions. I think it was a great win for us as a team.

“The three matches before we’ve won the toss and done what we wanted to do, so today to be probably on the worst end of the conditions showed character for what we did as a side.

“One of our bowlers getting injured, guys having to step up and bowl some overs at the tough times, the character in the group and what that will do for us as a side is fantastic.”

With England all but confirming their place in the semi-finals with their fourth win out of four, the shine of the victory may have been taken off somewhat by the loss of Tymal Mills to a quad injury midway through his second over.

However, captain Eoin Morgan got his batting back on track – making 40 off 36 in a partnership of 106 with Buttler, something he believes will give them belief.

Buttler said: “Setting a target, the game’s not laid out for you, especially finding it tricky, early on, soaking up some duck balls and you can put yourself under a bit of pressure.

“But believing that at some point I’d come good and I enjoyed batting with Morgs I think, he is a great person to have at the other end and we worked it through together.

“I’m delighted we put that partnership together and got us off to a spot which turned down with the way that things conditions when we needed every run.”

While Sri Lanka were not able to get the victory, Wanindu Hasaranga was once again the Lions’ star player – delivering with both bat and ball.

The No.2 T20I bowler in the ICC MRF Tyres World Rankings followed on from a hat-trick in his last match by taking his side’s best figures of three for 21, before making a valiant 34 off 21 balls in the chase.

Hasaranga said: “These England players are brilliant and I bowled two overs in the powerplay and only conceded five runs so I am very happy.

“Bowling my final over in the 19th, there was a little bit of pressure with Buttler and Morgan playing really well at that time.

“I tried my best and got the wicket of Morgan.”

For more information, contact:
Headquarters,
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Street 69, Dubai Sports City,
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Phone: +97-143828800
Fax: +97-143828600
E-mail: enquiry@icc-cricket.com
Website: www.icc-cricket.com

Dubai, November 01, 2021 (PPI-OT):Shoaib Malik has hailed the spirit in the Pakistan dressing room as a key factor behind his side’s impressive start to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

Victories over India, New Zealand – against whom Malik compiled a crucial unbeaten 26 in the chase – and Afghanistan have put Pakistan top of Group 2 going into Tuesday’s clash with Namibia in Abu Dhabi.

A fourth straight win would leave Saqlain Mushtaq’s men with one foot in the semi-finals and keep the feelgood factor going in a squad whose confidence is growing with every passing game.

“Morale is high,” Malik said. “Obviously when you win games, the confidence level is quite high in the dressing room.

“Everyone is looking forward to playing the rest of the games we have left in the tournament.

“When you start the tournament, the goal is to give your best shot as a team. But since I’ve joined the team, I’ve seen Pakistan teams practise sessions and the way they have been dealing with pressure from the world until now, it’s been exceptionally good.

“And I guess to see consistency in Pakistan dressing room, that’s the biggest thing for me so far, everyone’s helping each other.

“It’s a team game. When you’re playing a team game, then you need your teammates’ help, you need a lot of support from your management. And I see all of that coming.”

Namibia go into the contest looking to bounce back after a 62-run defeat against Afghanistan on Sunday.

Pierre de Bruyn’s side began the Super 12s stage with a memorable victory over Scotland and are now bidding to claim a notable scalp to keep their own semi-final dreams alive.

And whatever happens in Abu Dhabi, de Bruyn has been proud to witness how his players have brought together a nation with their exploits in the tournament so far.

“What this team, what these players have done in the last couple of weeks to inspire the nation back home and to inspire all the young players and kids in Namibia to play cricket has been enormous,” he said.

“I can’t explain how big it is, what this team have achieved in terms of inspiration and getting a lot of young people to play cricket.

“It is a very good Namibian story but I also believe it’s been a very good, inspiring cricket story.

“We’re showing as a very small nation with two and a half million people that it can be done. It can be done by really hard work, by really good planning and getting a group of players together and sharing the same vision, sharing the same culture.

“I think that is what this story is about. It doesn’t matter whether you always have the resources around you. You can make it happen.

“The last 24 hours [since the Afghanistan match] was a matter of just trying to relax because we know how big this game is and what we’re going to face.

“It’s important we take the learnings from last night and improve on those points. Tomorrow is going to be a great experience for the players but we need to be 20 percent better.”

For more information, contact:
Headquarters,
International Cricket Council (ICC)
Street 69, Dubai Sports City,
Sh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road, Dubai, UAE
Phone: +97-143828800
Fax: +97-143828600
E-mail: enquiry@icc-cricket.com
Website: www.icc-cricket.com

Dubai, November 01, 2021 (PPI-OT):South Africa bowler Dwaine Pretorius insisted he is happy to do an ugly but effective job with the ball as long as it benefits the team.

Proteas captain Temba Bavuma has regularly entrusted his all-rounder to bowl the crucial death overs where he uses a mixture of slower-ball variations to restrict opposition batters.

Speedsters Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje, plus MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings No.1 bowler Tabraiz Shamsi, have all caught the eye ahead of Tuesday’s clash against Bangladesh in Abu Dhabi, but Pretorius is happy to plug away even if his skills are arguably not the prettiest.

He said: “If I can do a job for the team, again, and put us in a better situation, I’m willing to do that ugly job if you want to call it that – something that doesn’t always necessarily look the prettiest but it’s very effective.

“And I’ve built my whole career on that. So, I’m trying to do the best job that I can do for the team.

“Look, obviously I think the dangers at the death are being predictable. So, I’m trying to vary my pace and my lengths quite a bit even though my line is the same, keeping the guys guessing.

“I’m trying to make sure I’m bowling to the batters’ plan Cs and Ds instead of their plan A. It’s not an ego battle out there; it’s trying to be effective as much as possible.”

Pretorius has identical figures of three for 17 in South Africa’s last two Super 12s Group 1 games, wins against West Indies and Sri Lanka, and shed some light on his variations.

The 32-year-old added: “I’ve worked a lot on different variations of slow balls. So, it’s definitely something that I really have focused on.

“Obviously in a T20 World Cup, I think if you only go to one option you might be in trouble.

“So, I’m really trying to mix it up, make sure that even though at the moment guys might be thinking that I’m just going to go wide every time when they face me, even though the line might be predictable, you’re still not sure which ball is going to come out.

“Having five options in terms of what I’m looking to do there is something that I’ve really worked hard on and at the moment it’s going well.”

Bangladesh coach Russell Domingo will face his old side knowing the Tigers have virtually no chance of making the semi-finals after three straight losses to West Indies, England and Sri Lanka.

Domingo admitted it was tough to motivate his players after the final-ball defeat to the West Indies but insists his side will be raring to go once the action gets underway at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium.

He said: “Obviously the boys are gutted. It’s been a tough couple of days. They know the expectation back home is high.

“They know the media interest is high. They probably feel they’ve let a few people down in terms of not crossing the line.

“And obviously morale has been low after those particular losses knowing that our chances in the World Cup are probably over.

“So, it’s not an easy task, particularly in a competition like this, to get guys’ morale up, but they’re playing for their country tomorrow. And as soon as they cross that white line, they’ll be giving 100 per cent again.

“Still two games to go. And guys are really determined to put in a good performance in the next two games.”

For more information, contact:
Headquarters,
International Cricket Council (ICC)
Street 69, Dubai Sports City,
Sh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road, Dubai, UAE
Phone: +97-143828800
Fax: +97-143828600
E-mail: enquiry@icc-cricket.com
Website: www.icc-cricket.com

Dubai, November 01, 2021 (PPI-OT):The International Cricket Council (ICC) today announced that following remedial work and re-assessment, the bowling action of Netherlands bowler Robine Rijke has been found to be legal, and she can resume bowling in international cricket.

Rijke was suspended from bowling after being reported during the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier 2018, which was held in the Netherlands.

An Expert Panel studied video footage of Rijke’s remodelled bowling action, and concluded that the amount of elbow extension was within the 15-degree level of tolerance permitted under the ICC Illegal Bowling Regulations.

Match Officials may still report Rijke’s bowling action if they believe she is displaying a suspect action and not reproducing the legal action from the reassessment. To assist the Match Officials, they will be provided with the report and video footage of the bowler’s legal bowling action.

For more information, contact:
Headquarters,
International Cricket Council (ICC)
Street 69, Dubai Sports City,
Sh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road, Dubai, UAE
Phone: +97-143828800
Fax: +97-143828600
E-mail: enquiry@icc-cricket.com
Website: www.icc-cricket.com

Dubai, November 01, 2021 (PPI-OT):England had to do what they hadn’t done so far in this tournament, bat first. They would also become only the second team to win whilst defending a total in the evening match.

They had to do so in dewy conditions in Sharjah and from 35 for three in the powerplay ­ but England still managed to beat Sri Lanka, thanks to Jos Buttler.

Wicketkeeper-batter Buttler had already dominated Australia and now it was the Lions’ turn for a mauling.

Unlike the Australia game where the 31-year-old crashed 71 off 32 balls as England chased down 126 with eight overs and eight wickets to spare, Buttler was made to sweat for his maiden T20I hundred.

With Jonny Bairstow falling for a golden duck to leave England in an unfamiliar position of having lost three wickets in the powerplay, Buttler and Eoin Morgan went about resetting.

Buttler made only 24 off his first 30 balls but, as the innings passed the halfway mark, he began to find his groove. His 50 came off 45 balls, the slowest of his 16 T20I half-centuries and from there he didn’t look back.

He and Morgan dispatched Lahiru Kumara for 22 runs off the next over, Buttler crashing two sixes including one that sailed 88 metres.

In the blink of an eye, Buttler was at 81, the highest individual score of the tournament so far, and two runs later he had his highest score in T20 internationals.

And he did it in his own way, taking just 11 runs from 22 spin deliveries while crunching 75 runs off 37 balls from the seamers.

It all came down to the final over, with Morgan gone for 40 in the 19th and England at a respectable total, it was all about whether Buttler could score the 13 he needed for a maiden T20I ton.

Moeen Ali was a willing runner at the non-striker’s end but still, with one ball left, Buttler needed a maximum.

Having hit five sixes already in the innings, none would come as easy but be so well deserved as the last one.

Dushmantha Chameera sent down a leg-side full toss and Buttler gleefully smashed it into the stands to become the first England men’s cricketer to register a century in all three formats of the game – only Heather Knight had previously achieved the feat for England.

He ended his side’s innings 101 not out from 67 balls, his final 70 runs coming from just 37 deliveries.

And he wasn’t done, just three balls into Sri Lanka’s innings Buttler ran out Pathum Nissanka as Sri Lanka too struggled in the powerplay.

They were able to rebuild through Wanindu Hasaranga and Dasun Shanaka and, with the match on a knife-edge, Buttler was there again to swing the game firmly in England’s favour.

Sprinting to his right and throwing his keeping glove to the ground, Buttler threw the ball to the stumps for a direct hit, to remove Shanaka who wasn’t even in shot as the bails flew off.

From there Sri Lanka lost their final three wickets for seven runs as England won by 26 runs and moved to the brink of the semi-finals, but without Jos Buttler, things might not have looked so rosy.

For more information, contact:
Headquarters,
International Cricket Council (ICC)
Street 69, Dubai Sports City,
Sh Mohammed Bin Zayed Road, Dubai, UAE
Phone: +97-143828800
Fax: +97-143828600
E-mail: enquiry@icc-cricket.com
Website: www.icc-cricket.com