The lack of T20Is after the World Cup played a key part in shaping the list while Jhye Richardson still has the selectors’ backing

Andrew McGlashan and Alex Malcolm28-Mar-20240:41

Is Steven Smith’s best cricket behind him?

All to play for among Test batting reservesWhen Matt Renshaw was recalled to the Test squad earlier this year it was made clear he was considered the next best batter in Australia. That no longer seems to be the case. By the time Renshaw toured New Zealand he was averaging 24.93 in the Sheffield Shield and has since not received a CA contract. It is highly likely that the XI that played in Christchurch will be the same which starts at Perth against India in November, but the spare batting position is now wide open which leaves much to play for early in next season’s Shield and a likely Australia A-India A red-ball series.Related

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“Think it’s open for anyone to jump up and grab the opportunity,” George Bailey, the chair of selectors, said. “We were really clear with Matt, and not only Matt, the guys who missed out as well, it was a really close decision to take him on that New Zealand tour. I guess a blank page is a good way of describing it. I know Marcus Harris is one who has come off contract but he’s firmly in that mix as well, Cam Bancroft, Nathan McSweeney has had a wonderful season as well.”It is not the first time Bailey has name-checked McSweeney, who averaged 40.10 for South Australia in a bowler-dominated season and also captained Australia A, while Aaron Hardie (a new inclusion on the contract list) was also given another mention along with Beau Webster and Josh Inglis’ credentials as a specialist batter.Matt Renshaw was Australia’s spare batter over the last few months, but a host of players could now be in the mix•Getty ImagesNext full-time opener will likely be an openerThe big selection call this season was to promote Steven Smith to open the batting so that Cameron Green could return at No. 4. Though it was an uncertain start for Smith, who averages 28.50 after four Tests in the position, a major shift would have to occur for him not to retain the role against India. But Bailey indicated that when a permanent opening vacancy next comes up it is highly likely to be a specialist who takes the role.”Not saying it won’t happen [promoting a middle-order player] but think there’s probably less chance of that happening,” Bailey said. “That’s something I hope I’ve made clear in chatting to the opening batters who missed out, it’s not that we don’t value the position, it was a unique situation and I would say it’s probably likely that the next opportunity goes to a top-order player.Australia men’s contracts 2024-25

Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Lance Morris, Todd Murphy, Jhye Richardson, Matt Short, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa
In: Xavier Bartlett, Nathan Ellis, Matt Short, Aaron Hardie
Out: Michael Neser, Marcus Harris, David Warner, Ashton Agar, Marcus Stoinis
Extensions not retained: Matthew Wade, Tim David, Tanveer Sangha, Jason Behrendorff, Spencer Johnson

Horses for coursesBut there are still times when Australia may get creative. Aside from the five-match series against India, the other Tests that fall in the next contract period are two games in Sri Lanka from late January 2025, which will be Australia’s final qualifying matches of the current WTC cycle.Travis Head could be an option to open in those Tests, while Glenn Maxwell, who was close to playing on the 2022 tour of Sri Lanka, remains firmly in consideration having been ruled out of last year’s India series due to a broken leg. Inglis’ dexterity against spin is highly regarded and could work in his favour purely for a batting role.”I think we’ve shown in the past that we have other options in terms of throwing guys up in subcontinent conditions if we think that suits,” Bailey said.Ashton Agar has had a difficult 18 months but could yet feature in the T20 World Cup•Getty ImagesAgar a good chance for T20 World CupThe omission of Ashton Agar and Marcus Stoinis from the list prior to the T20 World Cup was always set to grab attention but it is a case of looking at the fine print. The 2024-25 contracts do not come into effect until July 1 so the T20 World Cup falls in the current contracting period with both players a strong chance of featuring. Bailey indicated it was highly likely the squad would include a second frontline spinner.”Those guys have both obviously got contracts this year and are firmly a part of our planning around that T20 World Cup,” Bailey said. “The balance of the squad think will probably lend itself to having that second spinner there…Glenn Maxwell is a pretty handy white-ball spinner and we don’t necessarily consider him a part-time option, so he’s one that we consider a frontline option in that space. Zamps [Adam Zampa] will clearly be there and I think there will be opportunities potentially for one more.”What it means for the future of those two players beyond the World Cup is interesting. Agar is only 30, but he missed out on selection in the ODI World Cup last year due to injury having also missed out on the XI for the T20 World Cup win in the UAE in 2021. He has lost his way in red-ball cricket having slipped down the pecking order as the reserve Test spinner and was not selected as WA’s main Sheffield Shield spinner in the second half of the season due to Corey Rocchiccioli’s rise. There is still a possibility he could be in the mix for the Sri Lanka Test tour but at present, he will head back onto WA’s list as a domestic white-ball player only.Marcus Stoinis could be heading towards a freelance career•Getty ImagesStoinis, 34, is in a different phase. He has already spoken with the selectors about where his international career is headed. A freelance career likely beckons beyond the T20 World Cup but he has not closed the door on ODI cricket and still has desires to play in the 2025 Champions Trophy. However, the elevation of Hardie and Matt Short as well as the continued development of Green in 50-over cricket, will make it hard for him to reach Pakistan.Tim David is another who is in an interesting spot. He qualified for a contract upgrade in this 2023-24 period and is going to be a key member of the T20 World Cup side. Bailey noted there are only six T20Is in the next contract period, which is why David was omitted.”Tim’s really enjoyed his time with the T20 side and hopefully he feels like a really important member of that team,” Bailey said.Injury-prone Richardson remains a key investment along with BartlettThe selectors are willing to continue investing time in Jhye Richardson•Getty ImagesJhye Richardson has not played an international since June 2022 yet he remains on the contract list for a second straight year despite a horror domestic summer where he played in just two Marsh Cup games, one Sheffield Shield match and eight BBL matches due to another shoulder dislocation and a severe side strain.He has gone to the IPL with Delhi Capitals after a long and deliberate rehabilitation period with WA but has yet to play. Bailey confirmed that despite all his issues, Richardson remains in the frame for the upcoming T20 World Cup.”Some of those injuries have been incredibly unfortunate and there’s a few things we can continue to work with Jhye and with WA on how we try and map out Jhye’s next 12 months and hopefully see him on the park for longer,” Bailey said. “There’s a high skillset there and he doesn’t need a great deal of cricket to be able to get his skills back on track. We’re excited that he’s over in India. Hopefully he gets a couple of opportunities in the IPL and he’s another one who is in the mix for that T20 World Cup as well.”The addition of Xavier Bartlett is a rapid rise given he was not playing for Queensland at the start of the recent home summer due to a back injury and seemed a long way off international selection. But a stand-out BBL saw him vault into the ODI and T20I sides. He has seemingly jumped Spencer Johnson. They are different bowlers in some ways but both are great white-ball prospects.However, 2024-25 features a Champions Trophy and very little T20I cricket. Bartlett’s durability across the three formats, but particularly in 50-over cricket where he swings the new ball in a format that features two new white balls and a 10-over powerplay, has seen him contracted ahead of Johnson.”We certainly like the skillset across all three formats.” Bailey said. “Ongoing it will just be that challenge of prioritising what he’s available for and when and keeping his body trending in the right direction. Hopefully another huge 12 months ahead for him.”In terms of Test cricket, Bailey said that Michael Neser’s omission from the list did not mean his standing in that format had reduced and remained in the mix alongside contracted duo Scott Boland and Lance Morris.

The offspinner showed her versatility with the ball but it was not enough to take RCB past Capitals

S Sudarshanan11-Mar-20242:53

Perry wants RCB to win the ‘little moments’ moving forward

If a picture could capture agony and ecstasy in one frame, it was that final moment of the match between Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bangalore on Sunday night.Richa Ghosh was down at the non-striker’s end after a sprawling dive. She had willed every ounce of power from her body, but fell inches short. Shreyanka Patil was at the other end of the pitch, with the stumps disturbed and the ball lying close by. She did not want that moment to happen. Both had their heads buried on the ground, tears flowing uncontrollably.And not too far off from the two were the Capitals players – relieved and full of smiles. They were hugging each other, sharing high-fives and jumping with joy. They had managed to secure a playoffs spot for the second successive season, this time with a one-run win against RCB, who are still in contention.Capitals were faced with yet another thrilling contest – twice in two games now. They had come out at the wrong end the last time, but not this time, despite RCB being in command for the last half hour. So they knew what Ghosh and Patil were going through.Ghosh’s heroics helped RCB get close after they needed 40 from 18 balls. She exhibited her power and big-hitting chops to score a 29-ball 51 – skills that make her indispensable in India’s T20I set-up as a finisher. That RCB got so close was also down to Patil’s spell earlier in the evening.Related

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Patil showed why she is rated highly in T20 cricket by picking up 4 for 26. She had an economy rate of 6.50 when the opposition scored at just over nine – a creditable feat in itself.A niggle had kept her out of RCB’s first two games of the Delhi leg. She was “fighting it out to be match fit” in the past few days, according to her captain Smriti Mandhana, and returned to the XI on Sunday. The match was not played on the centre wicket, which meant one square boundary was shorter (46m) than the other (63m), and Capitals had raced along to 55 for 1 in seven overs when she was brought into the attack.Patil had switched to being an offspiner – having tried her hand at fast bowling, legspin and wicketkeeping – after seeing there weren’t too many of those in the Karnataka Under-14 trials, and one of her strengths right from those days was her pace. Earlier, most spinners in the women’s game focussed on slowing the pace down. But Arjun Dev, Patil’s coach and mentor, made her understand how she can use it effectively.3:14

Takeaways: Jemimah Rodrigues 2.0 powers Delhi Capitals

That Patil is one of the smartest spinners in the Indian circuit is an open secret. She provided an early glimpse of those smarts with her first wicket, when she varied her pace to catch the batter, Meg Lanning, no less, off guard. With the shorter boundary to the off side, she started from around the stumps, but erred by tossing one up outside off at 73kph. Lanning, who came into the game on the back of three successive fifties, duly lofted it over mid-off to pull the first punch. Patil responded by using pace to her advantage and slipped in the next one at 84.7kph on a length while getting it to spin in a touch. Lanning went back for the pull but missed it and was hit on the back leg, adjacent to middle.Most of Patil’s wickets on the evening were about dangling the carrot with a flighted ball before slipping in the quicker one to outsmart the batter. That Mandhana always bowled her with the longer boundary to the leg side made her job a little easier, allowing her to concentrate on one-upping the batter. Like she did when Jemimah Rodrigues backed away to go over the off side and was met instead by a yorker that she couldn’t get under.A ball later, Rodrigues tried to move towards off to sweep one past short fine leg. But Patil slipped in a very full ball, catching her by surprise. Rodrigues could only drag it back onto her stumps. That dismissal helped RCB end the 97-run stand between Rodrigues and Alice Capsey for the third wicket.Patil then struck twice in the last over. Capsey was on 48 and was in a belligerent mood at the start of the over. Her first instinct was to charge down the track to attack the spinners, and if not, just stand and loft them over the infield. With the field up on the off side, Capsey backed away to a length ball that landed outside off. But it kept coming in and she couldn’t make any contact and was bowled. Patil had fired it in quicker at 86.5kph.Three balls later, she enticed Jess Jonassen out of the crease with a flighted one to have her stumped. Thanks to Patil’s three wickets in two overs, RCB only gave away 38 runs in the last four overs and kept Capitals to 181 for 5.Patil earned special praise from her captain after the game: “Sometimes when you lose, you don’t credit it enough, but Shreyanka’s last two overs were brilliant, the way she bowled, especially the last over,” Mandhana said. “She was not dropped but she had a niggle. A player of her quality, there is no choice of dropping her. She showed a lot of character after the niggle she had.”Patil was inconsolable after the finish. The tears didn’t stop even when she shook hands with the players and walked towards the dugout. Patil and RCB still endure an agonising wait for playoffs qualification.

Family connections run deep for England’s next generation in their series with Sri Lanka

Andrew Miller29-Jun-2024The transient nature of age-group cricket means it is both part of the journey and the destination in itself. For some of the players on show in Chelmsford on Friday afternoon, their experience of playing for their country at Under-19 level will, in a few years’ time, be just another treasured memory – an interesting anecdote to slip into conversation from time to time, to remind those around them that they, too, were contenders once.For a select handful, however, by the time their careers have reached full bloom, this first ODI between England and Sri Lanka will be looked back on as just another stepping stone in what might come across as an inevitable rise to the top. Some kids, the pundits are bound to tell you in glorious hindsight, just looked the part from the very start.Never mind that such sweeping judgements are sure to gloss over all manner of pitfalls along the way. Loss of form and injury are common to even the most established of sports stars, but loss of mojo, motivation … mentors even. Who knows what obstacles will be sent to try this latest crop of talented teenagers, but you only have to click on a random scorecard from the long and illustrious history of Under-19 Internationals, to realise that the players who reach the game’s true heights are not just the exception, but exceptional.Related

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Which brings us to Rocky Flintoff, the 16-year-old son of a man who made his own England Under-19 debut in the Caribbean in January 1995, before going on to greater things, to put it mildly.The family connections within the current England U19 set-up are something to behold. Flintoff’s team-mates in his maiden international appearance included Haydon Mustard, son of former England keeper Phil, and Farhan Ahmed, brother of current England legspinner Rehan, as well as the captain Luc Benkenstein, whose father Dale captained Durham to their maiden County Championship triumph in 2008. “None of us see it as a burden,” Benkenstein insisted, when asked about the pressures of living up to such standards. “We’re all pretty grateful to have family members involved in the game and I think we have all used it to our advantage. It’s cool that we’re all in the same boat.”But no matter what sort of hot-housing and expectation management has gone into this latest crop of prodigies, there’s been something especially compelling about Rocky Flintoff’s brief explosion into the public consciousness.In part this can be explained by his father’s incredible profile – not simply because he was the hero of the 2005 Ashes, but because of what happened next: the injury-enforced retirement in 2010, followed by a brief T20 comeback, and the sense in the subsequent decade that he had left cricket behind to move onto shinier media opportunities.But if, in 2022, Flintoff’s acclaimed Field of Dreams documentary was the first inkling that his love of the sport had not been diminished by his absence from it, then that feeling was shown to be entirely mutual last summer, when – after being invited to get involved with England’s backroom staff – he was able to reveal the scars of his horrific Top Gear accident, safe in the knowledge that cricket fans would never dream of judging him by the same superficial standards that might have existed elsewhere in his public life.Flintoff made 22 off 25 balls•Getty ImagesAnd now, in the midst of this maelstrom, a mini-me has emerged. Footage of Rocky’s second XI exploits for Lancashire started doing the rounds in April, and not simply because of the novelty factor of seeing another Flintoff in action (or two in fact, with his elder brother Corey making his twos debut in the same match against Yorkshire).Moreover it was Rocky’s mannerisms that stopped the live-streamers in their tracks. That indefinable economy of power in his most formidable strokes, whether lofted down the ground or picked up off the hips; the extra split-second that he seems to have to assess the ball’s length and thump it right beneath his eyeline. Everything, including the down-swing of his pull shot, coupled with that coy saunter down the pitch even as the ball was still sailing over the ropes, could have been grafted from his father’s glory years of two decades earlier.None of which guarantees anything like the same levels of success as Rocky’s career develops – particularly, dare one say it, because of the scrutiny that is already built into his performances. But if his maiden England innings of 22 from 25 balls is anything to go by, he’s got the gumption to roll with the expectations. In an already losing cause, he held his own with three confident boundaries and a third straight drive that smashed the non-striker’s stumps, before taking one liberty too many and holing out to mid-off.In the end, though, the details matter not at this stage of the journey. For the record, England were unpicked by a typically canny, hard-edged Sri Lanka team whose skills were just that little bit more rounded – as is often the case for Asian teams at age-group level, unrestricted as they are by bowling limits and equipment prerogatives, and other ECB regulations that safeguard on the one hand but throttle spontaneity on the other.And they too have a host of heroes, of whom imitation will forever be the sincerest form of flattery. The enduring influence of Lasith Malinga, and latterly his original clone Matheesha Pathirana, is abundantly clear in the splay-stanced slingers of Dumindu Sewmina, armed with the new ball. Then, through the middle overs comes a conveyor-belt of wicket-to-wicket spinners, in particular Thisara Ekanayake and Vihas Thewmika, who hustle through their overs, backed up by raucous support in the field, to claim five wickets between them.At times while the match was slipping inexorably away, it was not unlike watching the fate of England’s senior team in Guyana the previous day – trial by spin clearly remains a national shortcoming, even if a gutsy stand of 90 in 16 overs between Benkenstein and his fellow Essex rookie, Noah Thain, at least guarded against a more comprehensive margin.Harry Moore bore more than a passing resemblance to Steven Harmison•Getty ImagesBut the rich promise on display could not be diminished by the scoreline. Among the most eye-catching was another of England’s four debutants, Harry Moore, who was born on April 26, 2007 – two days before that year’s World Cup final in Barbados, for those who really like to feel old.Despite having only just turned 17, Moore is a sky-scraping 6ft 5in already, and there were clear shades of Steve Harmison in his gangly-limbed approach and fierce lift from back of a length. Last summer he became Derbyshire’s youngest-ever debutant in the Metro Bank Cup; the prospect of him and Leicestershire’s own bean-pole Josh Hull leading the line into England’s future is a tantalising one.The class act of England’s top-order, meanwhile, was at the other end of the growth charts. Keshana Fonseka is barely 5ft tall in his little stockinged feet, but armed with a crunchy cover-drive, he launched England’s chase with a fluent 25 from 27 balls. The glee with which he was extracted, via a loose cut to gully, betrayed the extent to which Sri Lanka rated his game.Who knows how far any of this kids can take their games, but they are surrounded by inspiration wherever they turn in this formative stage of their development. Among those who have been assisting the team’s preparations for the Sri Lanka series are Graeme Swann, who played in England’s only Under-19 World Cup winning team in 1998, and Ian Bell, who was famously described by Dayle Hadlee as the best 16-year-old he had ever seen.It is arguable that Bell’s greatest achievement, over and above his 22 Test centuries, 13,331 international runs and four Ashes victories, is the fact that he lived up to those expectations of his precocious youth. He stands as proof that it has been done, and can be done again.

Decades before India dominated world cricket, Gavaskar gave them an identity in the game

Sambit Bal10-Jul-2024I was not 20 when I was forced to confront a future of sporting darkness. Sunil Gavaskar had just retired, out of nowhere, without a warning, without saying goodbye. Just like that, he would be gone. Never in a skull cap again.Cricket is the only sport I really knew, and cricket to me – apologies to Kapil Dev and the 1983 heroes – began with, and I feared then would end with, Gavaskar. No exaggeration, contemplating watching cricket without him was impossible. His leaving felt like a betrayal.Only a few months before, he had played one of greatest Test innings I had ever seen. On a turning, spitting, and viciously treacherous pitch in Bangalore, on which the second-highest score was 50 from Dilip Vengsarkar, and on which Pakistan had been bowled out for 116 on the first day, Gavaskar summoned his greatest virtues for a fourth-innings masterpiece after India were set a target of 221.A few years before that, Gavaskar had helped India nearly overhaul 438 with a double-hundred full of dazzling strokes. But on a snake pit of a surface here, his surviving each ball felt like a feat.Related

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Sunny, Gramps and me (2019)

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The gift of pride (2010)

Imran Khan, who had been persuaded by the wily Javed Miandad to choose two fingerspinners over Abdul Qadir, the leggie, on the premise that all that mattered on such a pitch was accuracy, didn’t even bother to bowl an over himself in the second innings. Iqbal Qasim, the left-arm spinner, opened with Wasim Akram, who was soon replaced by Tauseef Ahmed, the offspinner, and Qasim and Tauseef would go on to bowl 83 of the 94-odd overs bowled in the innings.Only three of Gavaskar’s team-mates reached double figures and only Mohammad Azharuddin managed to go past 20. But Gavaskar remained in his own bubble of excellence, combining technical virtuosity – immaculate judgement of length, precise footwork, playing late, close to the body and with the softest of hands – and fierce focus. Balls exploded off a length, some went past the bat, some hit the glove, and team-mates departed routinely. But it was like he was in a trance, dealing in moments, and keeping his team alive in a contest in which doom loomed a ball away.It was on 96 that he finally fell, to a ball that rose sharply from a length that it was impossible to get forward to, and spun enough to brush the rising hand, ballooning up for a catch off the glove. Gavaskar removed his gloves and walked off briskly the moment the umpire began to raise his finger. Who would have known then that he would never be seen in a Test match again?In fact, we did not know for a while. He would soon go on to accomplish a couple of things that had eluded him all his life: a century at Lord’s, turning out for the Rest of the World against an MCC XI; and an ODI hundred, with blazing hits over cow corner against New Zealand in the home World Cup. It wasn’t until later, when my heart had gone past the ache and desolation, that I was able to grasp the significance of his going on a high, when the world wondered why now, and not why not.Years later, when cricket journalism imposed on me a rational and more enquiring relationship with sport, it became natural to question Indian fans’ devotion to individuals rather than the team – a devotion that sometimes had a shackling impact on Indian cricket. But then, in those times what did we have? Gandhi and Nehru were long gone, adorning currency notes, postage stamps and walls as framed photos. Politics was shabby and chaotic, the economy was in the doldrums. Shortwave radio was our window to the world, and as television screens began to turn colour, cinema fuelled our fantasies and cricket our hopes and aspirations. Hell, we needed our heroes.On Gavaskar rested the aspirations of Indians who had little to aspire to elsewhere•PA Photos/Getty ImagesOn celluloid, there was the brooding, simmering rage of Amitabh Bachchan, whose towering presence and baritone voice filled the screen, and on the field, there was Sunil Gavaskar, a small man in flesh and blood, taking on the most fearsome bowlers of the world without a helmet. The victories of 1971 I only read about, and India didn’t win much away from home during my initial years as a cricket fan, but there was always Gavaskar, with a defence so immaculate that it was a thing of beauty, a cover drive of geometric precision that left no half-volley unpunished, and a minimalistic, no-fuss straight drive that told the bowler he had been had.For a nation unsure then of its place in the world, Gavaskar was the picture-perfect embodiment of valour and accomplishment, and a constant source of hope and pride. The year 1977 was when cricket captured my imagination. With a transistor radio stuck to my ear under a blanket, I spent winter mornings following India’s tour of Australia, which see-sawed thrillingly to end 3-2 in Australia’s favour. And there was Gavaskar, who my aunt had told me so much about, with three hundreds.India’s next tour, to Pakistan in 1978, would end the golden age of Indian spin bowling (and herald a rising star in Kapil Dev), but it had Gavaskar standing amidst the wreckage, scoring 447 runs with a couple of hundreds. However inappropriate it may seem now, that’s how we counted India’s gains in cricket in those days, in terms of hundreds.It was perhaps ordained that Bombay would become my home. But long before I moved there, I adopted Bombay as my Ranji Trophy team, and Shivaji Park would be my first pilgrimage when I arrived. My fandom gradually dimmed as professional training took hold, but it was a high to have Gavaskar as a guest for the launch of the first cricket magazine I edited, and because my daughter shares his birthday, I rarely forget to wish him on email. He unfailingly replies.And because we inhabit the same professional landscape now, there has been the odd disagreement over the years, but the first hero remains forever. Behind my work desk is a collage of sportspeople as I would like to remember them. At the centre of this arrangement is the photograph of Gavaskar at the top of this article: bareheaded, down the pitch, weight on the front foot. The bat has completed its arc and finished above the head, the gaze is fixed straight ahead, presumably following the path of the ball that has raced down the ground. It’s a picture of symmetry and batting perfection, and a reminder of an age when irrespective of clouds or storms, it was always sunny days as long he remained at the crease.Happy 75th. Let the memories never fade.

With every passing game, Sunrisers’ opening pair seems to be pushing the envelope further and further

Shashank Kishore21-Apr-20241:56

What has given the Sunrisers batters so much freedom?

You couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought that Delhi Capitals decided to move away from their home ground for the first part of IPL 2024 because they wanted to give pitches time to recover from the WPL games in March.Sunday night must have felt like returning home to see their fortress broken into, the safe ransacked and their CCTV network expertly dismantled. Such was the carnage Sunrisers Hyderabad caused. And Capitals could do nothing about it, except wonder if embracing the “tired pitches” would have been the better option.Perhaps Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma might have adopted a different approach then. Or, maybe, they would have been just as effective – given the form they are in, they seem capable of taking the pitch out of the equation.Related

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125 in 6 overs: Head and Sunrisers shatter T20 powerplay records

There’s been so much written and spoken about Head’s reinvention over the past year. Still, it is sometimes astonishing how he has been able to push the boundaries of the batting powerplay with every passing game this IPL. There’s no slogging, but just proper trust in his methods that he believes will help him unfailingly deliver most times. There’s also the small matter of receiving that backing from the captain and coach.His opening partner, Abhishek, is much younger, but being around the senior circuit for six years now has given him a firm grip on what he needs to do. Sunrisers had raced to 83 without loss in four overs. Head had already brought up a barnstorming half-century and it would have seemed prudent enough to play Kuldeep Yadav out. Abhishek, though, is cut from a different cloth.He welcomed him with three sixes, the last of them bringing up Sunrisers’ 100 inside five overs. This may seem like a bit of daredevilry on the surface, but there’s been a proper mindset change that can only come with maturity because the approach comes with the inherent risk of more failure than success.Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma put on a blazing show in the powerplay•Associated PressThis approach by Abhishek, of going hard in the powerplay may have been stamped and sealed at the IPL, but has taken flight away from the arc lights when he had identified this was the method he had to master to be different. Abhishek spoke about it candidly during the domestic season, touching upon how amid the Gills and the Gaikwads he needed to reinvent himself to be different.At the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20s, Abhishek put all of it into practice. He was the second-highest run-scorer. His 485 runs came at a strike rate of 192.46. Abhishek’s runs, more importantly, helped Punjab win their first T20 crown. It’s rare enough to have a few impactful performances when your propensity for risk is that high, but Abhishek had proved he wasn’t just a risk-taker for the heck of it. The consistency since then is merely a by-product of clarity and putting it into practice.Head has been playing outrageous shots every ball, or so it seems, making jaws drop with the approach that has redefined his game across formats. To not just match that but strike better takes something special. Abhishek could’ve been forgiven for rotating strike and watching the best show from the other end, but here he was showcasing himself to the world.Not only did he strike them clean, but he did so with a calm head, superb balance and impeccable timing, bringing a certain insouciance to his stroke play that made it amply clear that this was the handiwork of a proper batter, not a powerplay slogger. And it’s this partnership that has helped the Sunrisers thrive.”I just feel like Abhi’s probably been the standout for me,” Head said at a media round-table a night before Sunday’s fixture. “I know he has come through a really good Under-19 program and that he’s really close with a couple of guys who have excelled and gone on and played [Shubman Gill and Prithvi Shaw]. The way he learns and adapts, he’s confident and trains all those things that I guess you see a lot of now.”Abhishek himself can’t believe he has been able to learn off Head the way he has over the past few weeks. His three sixes in his first over off Kuldeep was just a proper demonstration of not just picking angles but also lengths and the bowler, both in the air and off the pitch.1:58

Rapid Fire review – ‘Head, Abhishek bat as if 260-270 is par score’

In the very first over, Head had given him a blueprint against Khaleel Ahmed, who may have perhaps seen how RCB’s bowlers saw their length balls disappear down the ground at the Chinnaswamy last week. So he went short, but Head was equally effective in transferring the weight back in a jiffy to access the square boundaries with the pull.”We’ve been talking a lot off the field,” Abhishek said of his partnership with Head. “It’s joyful to watch him bat. Our chats are helping. He’s someone I’m looking forward to batting with for the rest of the season. All the Punjab boys know I admire Travis for the way he bats in all three formats. Luckily we got him here [at Sunrisers].”I’m very clear about my mindset and goal. I had a very clear plan in my mind before the IPL. I was clear about my batting style and performance and how I was going to do it. I’m executing well, all the hard work in Syed Mushtaq Ali T20s is really helping me a lot.”Remember that Kuldeep takedown?It was not just a result of a pre-game chat Head and Abhishek had about the endless possibilities against spin in the powerplay, especially on a fresh surface at a venue with short square boundaries as the Kotla offers. It was also down to their planning before the game that involved facing left-arm wrist spinners in the nets.”Personally, I try and plan really well for the spinners as they’re the main bowlers for teams,” Abhishek said. “This match also, I was very careful [in his planning] for Kuldeep. He’s their main bowler. I watched his videos, I try to play similar bowlers a day prior, it could be any net bowler or local bowler, but [the idea is to] try to make sure they’re similar to the bowlers we’re going to face. That helps me a lot.”It’s hard to imagine now that this opening partnership was discovered by accident. Mayank Agarwal’s illness ahead of their fourth game against Chennai Super Kings allowed them the option of pairing Abhishek with Head, who incidentally sat out of the tournament opener. Now it is impossible to imagine them being separated in the near future.

No other swing bowler has been as lethal at the highest level for as long as Anderson has

Ian Chappell14-Jul-2024Jimmy Anderson retired as the greatest swing bowler the game has seen.There have been many other fine swing bowlers but none have plied their skill for such a long period at the highest level. Anderson had that rare ability to swing the ball both ways with very little change to his action. Where other good bowlers gave the batter a clue with their change of arm slot, Anderson was able to produce swing both ways minus the early warning signal.This is a remarkable skill and it made Anderson an extremely tough opponent.Twenty-one years at the top is a tribute to his fitness, skill and ability to learn. There was also his desire to keep playing when big life changes, like having a wife and kids, could easily have surpassed the priority of Test cricket.His subtle skills became more obvious as he continued to run in with the same smooth rhythm and produce a probing delivery on a testing line. He continued to do so no matter whether he was bowling to a right- or left-handed batter. That was another skill that set him apart from many swing bowlers – it made little difference what type of batter he was facing.Related

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At the 2009 Lord’s Test, along with Andrew Flintoff, Anderson produced a wonderfully consistent spell of bowling.
There wasn’t a bad ball from either bowler and Michael Clarke and Brad Haddin played brilliantly just to stay in the fight against such a prolonged examination.It’s difficult to explain how tough it is to maintain a high standard of swing bowling for an extended period.I had the good fortune to captain the prodigious swing bowling of Bob Massie at Lord’s in 1972. Massie claimed 16 wickets in a miraculous debut which involved sustained swing bowling where he made the ball swerve both ways with unerring accuracy.This wasn’t a one-off performance as Massie took four wickets in the first innings of the next match at Trent Bridge and claimed 23 for the series in four Tests. He won a place in the Australian side by bowling Bill Lawry twice – no mean feat – in a Western Australia vs Victoria Shield match at the MCG.

Where other good bowlers gave the batter a clue with their change of arm slot, Anderson was able to produce swing both ways minus the early warning signal

Massie then played against the World XI at the SCG in early 1972 and took seven first-innings wickets, including the prized scalps of Garfield Sobers, Sunil Gavaskar and Graeme Pollock. Massie was no one-match wonder as a swing bowler, but his Test career lasted just 234 days.Anderson’s sustained swing bowling performance spanned 21 years and 188 Tests. That is a remarkable achievement involving skill and resilience.On the 2010-11 Ashes tour, Anderson produced another of his sublime outswingers to dismiss Ricky Ponting at the Adelaide Oval. That was Anderson’s best tour of Australia with 24 wickets, but by claiming captain Ponting for a duck and sending the scoreboard into a two for nought frenzy, it put England well on the way to victory.Despite Australia winning the next Test, by claiming the captain’s scalp in Adelaide, Anderson commenced England’s charge to a rare Ashes victory away from home.The tributes for Anderson have been many, touching not just on his undoubted bowling skill but also his grumpiness, the changes of hairdo and his stubbornness with the bat. It’s not surprising that he was occasionally grumpy, which resulted in the odd terse comment. Most people’s patience would be severely tested if they regularly charged in to bowl only to beat the bat and receive no reward.Despite the occasional outburst Anderson retained his patience, which was partly responsible for his amazing success.As retirement loomed, the thing that stood out most in Anderson’s often reluctant comments was his desire to win. This was a crucial motivating factor in his success.England will miss Anderson as it’s difficult to replace his rare skill. Importantly, though, Anderson’s career is now a celebrated one where he’s recognised as the best swing bowler the game has produced.

As England begin search for new white-ball coach, they should examine what support captain needs

Vithushan Ehantharajah30-Jul-2024″That didn’t interest me because the team is flying,” Brendon McCullum told New Zealand’s SENZ radio back in May 2022 after being appointed as England Men’s Test coach. “I wasn’t interested in a cushy kind of gig.”The “gig” in question was the England white-ball job, one McCullum was touted for but neither applied for nor was offered. It was instead given to Matthew Mott. And as Mott leaves his post on Tuesday, two years into a four-year contract, he will be the first to tell you it has been anything but “cushy”.When Mott took the reins, England were indeed flying – to a point – in limited-overs cricket. They held the ODI World Cup and finished the 2021 T20 edition as disappointed semi-finalists. Mott would add the 2022 men’s T20 World Cup to a crowded mantlepiece after a hugely successful time leading Australia Women. But the sands were shifting as Test cricket became England’s outright priority after years of underperformance in whites.That manifested itself in different ways. Mott rarely had access to his full squad, meaning continuity and defining roles were left to the eve of major tournaments at a time when personnel shifts should have been constant given the age profiles and trajectories of established and establishing talent. A dire defence of the ODI title last winter showed that did not happen fast enough.Related

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On three occasions – his first engagement in the Netherlands, a ludicrous series against Australia a week after the 2022 T20 World Cup and an inconvenient three matches against Ireland at the end of the 2023 summer – he was essentially working with a second/third-string hybrid squad. Even when he did have a full deck, external awkwardness brought its own challenges.The contract stand-off at the end of last summer, as the ECB introducing new multi-year deals spilt over into the start of the 50-over World Cup, created an awkward mood in the England camp. While the conversations with players began during the summer, by the time the contracts were officially announced at the end of October, the defending champions had lost three of their first four group matches. David Willey, one of the few players to perform in the first four weeks of that tournament, was the only member of the squad without one of the 26 deals. Announcing his retirement while voicing his displeasure at the decision was indicative of a sour atmosphere.Managing director Rob Key is right to state the team “needs a new direction”. But Mott certainly did not have full control of the wheel or the pedals. The key event of his tenure, one which will also influence the question of who takes charge after Marcus Trescothick sees out the summer as interim, was set in motion on June 20, 2022.That Monday morning, Eoin Morgan woke up in the WestCord Fashion Hotel, Amsterdam, and decided to retire, 33 days after Mott had singled out his “astute leadership” as a key reason for becoming white-ball coach. Mott was intended as a facilitator as Morgan continued to drive the agenda. With Jos Buttler taking over, the job spec had changed dramatically.Individually, Mott and Buttler worked well. Mott maintained calm within the dressing room, most notably during the recent T20 World Cup when rain and a defeat to Australia put England on the brink of another failure. Buttler has long emboldened those around him, both as a conscientious person and one of the best limited-overs batters on the planet. But as a combination, blindspots emerged.1:57

Roller: Buttler captaincy a bigger issue than the coach

By and large, Buttler’s instincts are sound, but they could be stronger. At times, he was too rigid in the field, sticking too long to plans even as they started to unravel. His decision to field first against South Africa in the sweltering Mumbai heat at the 2023 World Cup was followed at the T20 World Cup by bowling Will Jacks to Australia’s left-handed top order, with a short leg-side hit made to seem even shorter by the wind blowing across the Kensington Oval.Unlike Morgan, Buttler wears disappointment visibly. A byproduct of always being locked into the game as wicketkeeper? Buttler continues to insist the all-compassing nature of his work behind the stumps does not affect his captaincy. But at times, he could have done with a stronger, disagreeing voice in his ear. Mott was never that.Ultimately, Mott makes way because it is easier to replace a coach than a captain, particularly with a leadership void in the white ball set-up. Key’s priority is finding a seasoned coach with strong franchise and international groundings, with no desire to restrict the search to identifying an English candidate. But working with Buttler means there are parameters to instill. Whoever comes in needs to be a counterpoint to a captain who, at 33, is entering his endgame.England will not opt for a contrarian – Key dislikes the idea of “good cop, bad cop” pairings believing it only promotes disagreements, which is hardly conducive to a healthy dressing room – but they do need a firm hand.Of the names linked so far, Kumar Sangakkara could offer that given his pre-existing relationship with Buttler as Rajasthan Royals head coach, and wealth of experience as Sri Lanka captain. Ricky Ponting, let go last week by Delhi Capitals, also fits that bill. Andy Flower has gone on to be regarded as one of the best short-form minds on the circuit without totally losing the strict demeanour that oversaw the kind of success with the England Test team that McCullum is desperate to replicate.England ran out of road at the T20 World Cup against India in Guyana•CREIMASMahela Jayawardene is arguably the most standout candidate, encompassing every facet of playing experience and franchise success. But he would take some turning to depart Mumbai Indians, where he is head of global cricket with further expansion of the Ambani family’s reach – notably into the Hundred – on the horizon.Though lacking coaching experience, Mike Hussey impressed while on deck with England for the 2022 World Cup win, unafraid to challenge batters while also offering reassurance by way of insight. If a lack of international playing experience is no barrier, Mike Hesson is another name to consider – one who does not seek the limelight but has no problem pulling up those in it.Undoutedly a few will have spotted the scrutiny Mott faced and wonder if it’s worth the hassle. It would take a lot for them to turn their back on whatever plum gigs they have, particularly as franchise owners seek greater loyalty from their employees.The ECB is willing to exercise a degree of flexibility, appreciating the very best coaches are ones in demand in world cricket’s ever-changing landscape. Mott was understood to be on around £200,000 a year – a figure not set in stone and likely to be greater for a higher profile applicant – and there will be chunks in the calendar available for other opportunities.The risk here is if a coach does not give as much of themselves to it, that ‘England white-ball coach’ just becomes another job on their docket. It could also lend itself to conflicts of interest, though that is not restricted to this particular avenue, or cricket as a whole. Morgan, who dismissed talk of replacing Mott last week but is still thought of as a great option, is close to Buttler. Andrew Flintoff, popular with this group of players and currently in his first head coach role with Northern Superchargers, is a long-time friend of Key, but is unlikely to be considered this time around.There is much to consider, though time for consideration. The new coach will ideally begin from the end of the summer onwards, with a white-ball series in the Caribbean followed by the 2025 Champions Trophy in February. It is an ideal opportunity to start again, albeit with the same captain and similar challenges in the immediacy given that West Indies series is sandwiched by Test tours of Pakistan and New Zealand.If the “gig” seemed “cushy” back in 2022, it certainly is not in 2024. Nor is the job of identifying and convincing Mott’s replacement.

There were some positives, but the form of their pacers and their batting against spin have left India with plenty to ponder

Shashank Kishore08-Aug-20245:05

Rohit breaks down his batting method in the powerplay

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Washington, Parag show bowling spark

The sample size is small, but there are signs India are veering towards multi-skilled cricketers. In all three ODIs, India’s top six had at least one bowling option. They also lengthened their batting to play at least eight batters.Among them, Washington Sundar perhaps made the biggest gain, picking up five wickets in 27 overs across three games at an economy rate of 3.88. With the bat, his defiance against Sri Lanka’s spinners to revive their flagging hopes in the second ODI was impressive. In the third ODI, he counter-attacked to make a 25-ball 30 after the middle order was sent on a tailspin. That Washington was able to build on the gains he made from the T20Is in Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe, where he was Player of the Series, will greatly encourage the team management.Related

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Riyan Parag is another middle-order batter who proved he can be more than a handful with the ball. With the ability to bowl both offbreaks and legbreaks, Parag delivered nine overs on ODI debut, returning with 3 for 54. His lone intent-laden knock against the turning ball yielded 15 runs. Parag also impressed with the ball in the T20I series, the slow pace and liberal flight of his deliveries harking back to the good old days.Shivam Dube, however, missed out on a chance to make an impact in Hardik Pandya’s absence. In the first ODI, he had the opportunity to see off the game. In the second and third, he was out cheaply to Jeffrey Vandersay’s ripping legbreaks.5:39

India’s batting (except Rohit’s) against spin a sign of concern

Arshdeep, Siraj go off the boil

If the team management was looking for fast-bowling options to back up the rested Jasprit Bumrah and the recuperating Mohammed Shami, they would’ve left Sri Lanka a bit disappointed.On surfaces where 240 was above par, with the ball gripping and turning, India’s seamers struggled for rhythm and consistency. In the decider, they went in with one specialist fast bowler in Mohammed Siraj, with Dube sharing the new ball. With no swing on offer, Siraj lacked his usual bite and was carted for 78 in nine overs in the third ODI. Arshdeep Singh’s nine wicketless overs in the second ODI cost 58 runs. Harshit Rana and Khaleel Ahmed didn’t get a look-in.

No clear winner in Rahul vs Pant

This was to be one of the key decisions facing the Indian team management in ODI cricket. KL Rahul started the series, but found himself out of the final ODI after scores of 31 and 0. Rishabh Pant, who replaced him to play his first ODI since a career-threatening car accident in December 2022, managed just 6 while also having an off day with the gloves.Virat Kohli was out to spin in all three ODIs•AFP/Getty Images

India’s spin struggle

Virat Kohli was out lbw to spin all three times. On each occasion, he reviewed but DRS would only confirm the obvious. Rahul too struggled, bowled for a two-ball duck, attempting to drive after being done in by the drift by Vandersay in the second ODI. Shreyas Iyer, like Kohli, was out playing down the wrong line. In the third ODI, Axar Patel shaped to cut, only to realise he had erred in judgment, as the ball spun back in to crash into the stumps.Barring the odd occasion, like in the second ODI when Shubman Gill was out driving to a magnificent catch in the slips, or on Wednesday when Rohit top-edged a slog, India’s batters were largely out defending. In Parag’s case, he offered no shot and was bowled by a delivery that skidded through and didn’t turn like he had anticipated. India lost 27 wickets to spin overall, the most a team has lost against this variety in a bilateral series. Rohit felt the team’s application and shot selection could’ve been better.Among those who missed out is Iyer. After beginning with a run-a-ball 23, he was out twice to sharp turn. With India slated to play 10 Tests and three T20Is over the next few months, Iyer is now looking at a six-month hiatus from international cricket, unless he breaks back into the squad in those formats. It’s likely domestic form for Mumbai could dictate his standing in the scheme of things, when India play ODIs next in January.

Offbreaks pitching on the straight, and whizzing past a batter’s ears, on occasion – that’s not just tricky, these are serious warning signs. It’s about to get mad

Andrew Fidel Fernando06-Feb-2025It comes out of the southwest, rustles the canopies of the big banyan trees in the fort, and flutters the flags beneath the clocktower.The weather has been scorching for days. There has been barely a cloud above. And now the hottest ocean on the planet is blowing its breath across the cricket ground at Galle, so it’s happening. This is how you know drama is about to go down. Signs are, this Test gets spicy.Daniel Vettori, veteran of 113 Tests, including two in Galle (it would have been more, but this ground lost a few years to the 2004 tsunami), had this to say at the end of the day: “First innings runs are going to play a huge role in whoever wins this game.” We could extrapolate and figure that what he means is that batting conditions are going to get substantially worse over the next couple of days. But he clarifies anyway, in the sanitised language of a post-day press conference: “I just think it’s going to be a tricky wicket the whole way along.”Related

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“Tricky”, for most of us, is a key that doesn’t quite fit into the keyhole at first attempt but if you yank the door towards you, and lift it up off the ground a little bit, you can shove the thing open. Offbreaks pitching on the straight, and whizzing past a batter’s ears, on occasion – that’s not just tricky, these are serious warning signs. It’s about to get mad, and Sri Lanka have 229 for 9 on the board.Sri Lanka’s own batting coach Thilina Kandamby thinks his batters should have aimed for a total of around 350, and put his team in a position to dominate the Test. These are very batting coach requests, always wanting a pile of first-innings runs from which the team can dictate. But Sri Lanka’s batters were still the same people they were last week. Having been modest in six innings on the trot, it’s not as if, realistically, an earth-shattering batting display is on the cards here.There are, instead, some scrappy fifties, and some useful 30-odds. Dinesh Chandimal flays bowlers through the offside when they have strayed out there. Though generally an outstanding sweeper, this is a shot he almost never plays on this surface. In fact, for a bottom-hand dominant player, only 18 of his 74 runs have even come on the legside.Dimuth Karunaratne was defeated by Nathan Lyon’s variations•Getty ImagesWhen the top scorer on day one of a Test puts some of his most productive shots against spin away, on a ground on which he has played several match-winning innings, we are straying into the realms of seriously menacing Test-match conditions. Kusal Mendis, who is even more reliant on the sweep, did score runs with the shot, but even he hit almost exclusively with the spin. Australia have two left-arm finger spinners in Matthew Kuhnemannan and Cooper Connolly. Almost every run Mendis scored into the legside was off a ball that they played the spin.While the first Test at this same ground Australia made 654 for 7 etc we are now about to see a very different Test match unfold. Where in the morning session, the hardness of a rolled pitch did not allow for huge amounts of spin, by the evening, it had begun to take the kind of turn that scrambles the minds of batters.Is a sweep now too big of a risk, given the bounce spinners can get from a surface such as this, with a little overspin? Is this why Sri Lanka have played three finger spinners in this Test, to exploit the natural variation a track like this offers? Wristspinners are weapons on most surfaces, but Sri Lanka have left out Jeffrey Vandersay here. Does control and persistence take over when surfaces are this dry? And if cross-bat shots like the sweep and the reverse are too risky, then how else do you score runs on tracks such as this?As batters navigate what is obviously the kind of surface that Australia would label “extreme”, there will be doubts, as to whether what worked for the men who scored runs in the first Test, will work again here. The track they are playing on now is only about ten metres from the one Australia’s top order had prospered on only several days ago, and yet it feels like it could be from another galaxy.And when the wind blows, and the footmarks from the quicks are heavy and dark, and every delivery raises an explosion of dust, there may be drama around the corner. Signs are, this Test gets spicy.

He has come in to bat in tough situations and played some eye-catching shots. Now he needs to build on it.

Alagappan Muthu10-Dec-20241:01

Manjrekar: Reddy is an exceptional batting talent

Fifteen yards out from the boundary line in Canberra, Dhruv Jurel had rocked onto his back foot, opening up his hips to get power into the shot. He found it and the ball was hurtling away in front of square… exactly where Nitish Kumar Reddy was taking his throwdowns.Someone cried out in warning. They needn’t have. Reddy shifted seamlessly from checking what he could do better with India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate to whack this ball away too. He has got himself a nice little highlight reel in this Border-Gavaskar Trophy.It began in Perth when he was alert to the possibility of some quick runs. Nathan Lyon had come on and after sussing up that there was no real turn on offer, in addition to knowing that facing the fast bowlers had been really hard work, Reddy reeled off three fours in eight balls. One went down the ground, the next over cover, hit inside out, and the last was a reverse sweep. Shots seem to be his thing.Related

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According to ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data, Travis Head, that phenom who has left Ricky Ponting in awe of how hard he hits the ball, is on top of the list for most runs made in this series through aggressive shots, or attempts made to find the boundary: 156 in 54 balls. Picking the ball early and committing to shots fully are hallmarks of Head’s batting and it helps that he has such great hands too. Reddy shares that strength. He is No. 2 on the list: 114 in 36 balls.In the second Test, when Mitchell Starc presented him with just the slightest bit of width – the length was still fine – there was an opportunity to free the arms and the young India allrounder took it with glee. The host broadcast had calculated that ball had come to him at 116kph (after pitching) and was sent away at 116kph too. Reddy hit Scott Boland for a reverse swept six as well and since that shot is a little more unorthodox it tends to stick out. But the square boundaries are shorter at the Adelaide Oval. To hit Starc – who is deadly almost every time he pitches the ball up – over cover – so no slogging – and have enough on it to go sailing into the crowd is a pretty special effort. His bat speed on that lofted drive was recorded to be 60kph. Whirlwind hands.”[Reddy] has done everything a young player could do in a very short space of time and we think he has a very high ceiling,” ten Doeschate said on Friday.At the time he was picked to play in Australia, he had played only 21 first-class matches, and his better discipline, batting, had fetched him one century and two fifties. Obviously, as an allrounder he plays down the order so he doesn’t always have the chance to score big runs but those numbers are still not the break-the-door-down type that the selectors often ask for. Reddy struggled in the early part of the tour, playing for India A. In four innings, he made 0, 17, 16 and 38 and picked up only one wicket.Nitish Kumar Reddy made 42 runs in each innings in Adelaide•Getty ImagesPlayers with raw talent like Reddy need this kind of exposure. Back when he was making his way up the Andhra age-group system, he was scoring double and triple-centuries for fun. So when he levelled up and had a poor season, he thought it was nothing. Then he had another blip and that’s when he realised where he stood.India have taken a big punt on him. He wasn’t dominating the Ranji Trophy. He only began playing professional cricket four years ago. His rise is a little bit out of nowhere, helped by his exploits in the IPL, and a little bit out of necessity. India need a seam-bowling allrounder. There is another big Test tour of England coming up next year. Someone like Shardul Thakur has done well in this role in the past but at 33 he might not be a good fit for the future. Reddy could. He has top-scored for India in three out of four innings in Australia. But given those scores were 41, 42 and 42, there is clear understanding that he is very much a work in progress.Take his singular strength once again, the one with which he has caught the eye and come up through the ranks – his attacking shots. When Head has played them this series, he averages 156, which means he has got out to them only once, which means he is choosing his moments to be aggressive quite carefully. Reddy’s average when playing attacking shots is 38. They have got him out in three of his four innings.”From the prep week in Perth, where he looked like he still needed to figure things out,” ten Doeschate said, “the way it worked in Perth and the game plans he implemented in Perth to get crucial runs there, I think to get us to 150 in that first game was amazing.”Still a little bit of work to do, he’s very raw. But for a young kid, a 21-year-old to come out like that and play three innings and the quality he has, it is super exciting.”In places like Australia, where the new ball poses immense threat, there is every chance a visiting team finds itself at 100 for 5 over and over. Runs thereon from people down the order can be the difference between winning and losing, and runs are possible from there because the ball goes soft and does considerably less. In that regard, Reddy, at No. 7, is a crucial piece of India’s puzzle and considering he is the team’s second highest run-scorer, he is coping pretty well. He had grown up watching the stars in this team. Now he is holding his own with them.