Afghanistan roped in Tait as bowling coach
Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) has appointed Shaun Tait as their bowling coach for the next five months. He will be working under the head coach Lance Klusener.
Currently residing in London, Tait will not be shifting his base to Kabul but will travel separately for each assignment. The first of these is an ODI series against Pakistan.
Tait played 35 ODIs and 21 T20Is for Australia before bidding adieu to international cricket in 2017. He was known for his unfettered pace. Since retirement, he has worked as bowling coach for Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League.
West Indies announce Test squad for Pakistan series
Cricket West Indies (CWI) has confirmed a 17-man preliminary squad for the upcoming two-match Test series against Pakistan. The first Test will be played at Sabina Park from 12 August.
Kraigg Brathwaite retained his captaincy, with Jermaine Blackwood as deputy. Chemar Holder returned after a year, while Shamarh Brooks’ century in the domestic match earned him a place in the side. Shannon Gabriel, still not fully fit, has been rested.
Full squad: Kraigg Brathwaite (c), Jermaine Blackwood (vc), Nkrumah Bonner, Shamarh Brooks, Rahkeem Cornwall, Roston Chase, Joshua Da Silva, Jahmar Hamilton, Chemar Holder, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Kieran Powell, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales, Jomel Warrican.
Bangladesh beat Australia by 60 runs in the fifth T20I
Australia were skittled out for 62 in 13.4 overs in the pursuit of 123 against Bangladesh in the final T20I of the five-match series at Mirpur. This is the lowest ever T20I total by the hosts. They lost the series by 4-1.
Batting first, Bangladesh posted 122/8 on the board. Most of their batters got starts, but none were able to convert into major scores. The 42-run partnership between Mahedi Hasan and Mohammad Naim was the highest in the match.
Shakib Al Hasan and Mohammad Saifuddin then ran riot, sharing seven wickets to knock the visitors out of the game. Shakib also became the second bowler, after Lasith Malinga, to reach the 100-wickets mark in Men’s T20Is, and the first to do the 1,000 run-100 wicket double.
Silverwood justifies omitting Leach at Trent Bridge
Chris Silverwood justified his decision to go with an extra batter instead of Jack Leach in the first Test match against India, at Trent Bridge. The absence of Ben Stokes for the entire series has hurt the balance of the XI. While brilliant in its own way, Sam Curran fails to provide the balance that Stokes does.
‘Jack Leach is a big part of our team and our plans moving forward. You have to pick a team to try to win a Test match and within that comes a balance and, at Trent Bridge, we wanted seamers and that’s the way we went,’ explained Silverwood at a press conference.
New Zealand confirm squad for ICC T20 World Cup
New Zealand Cricket (NZC) have announced a 16-member squad for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, slated to begin from October 17 in the UAE and Oman. They are placed in Group B, along with India, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Ross Taylor has failed to make a cut, while Adam Milne has been added as an injury cover. Kylie Jamieson, Lockie Ferguson, Tim Southee and Trent Boult will spearhead the pace attack. On the spin front, they have gone with Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi and Todd Astle.
Surprisingly, Finn Allen has also been overlooked. However, he has been named in the squads for T20I series against Bangladesh and Pakistan. With hectic months ahead, NZC has prioritise the workload for players. Not everyone participating in the T20 World Cup will not be touring Pakistan and Bangladesh.
New Zealand T20 World Cup squad: Kane Williamson (c), Todd Astle, Trent Boult, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Tim Seifert (wk), Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson, Martin Guptill, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, Jimmy Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Adam Milne (injury cover).