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Ruth Strauss Foundation to raise funds for cancer research and counselling services

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Mar-2019Andrew Strauss has launched a foundation in the name of his late wife, Ruth, who died last year after battling a rare form of lung cancer.The Ruth Strauss Foundation will raise funds to research rare forms of lung cancer and to provide emotional and psychological support to patients and their families.Ruth Strauss died last December, just over a year after being diagnosed with rare disease ALK-positive non-small-cell lung cancer.In an interview with The Sunday Times, former England captain Strauss, who stepped down as director of England cricket last year as his wife underwent treatment, said he and Ruth had undergone counselling during her illness, which helped them to deal with their situation and to support their sons, Sam (13) and Luca (10). The couple decided they wanted to help other families access similar counselling services.”We spoke about her experience and asked ourselves, what can we do, given what we know now, to make other people’s journeys easier? I talked about my ambition to create a foundation in her memory and we thought there were two things that we would focus upon,” Strauss told the .”Number one was that in dealing with death people need support, even if they don’t know it. This support is not freely available.”Most of the funding goes into the treatment, which is understandable. Psychological and emotional support is very haphazard in terms of its availability. Preparing for a death is a horrible thing and you need a lot of support when going through it. So one of the aims of the foundation is going to be to raise funds to provide that support for as many people as possible.”The second aim relates to the cancer that took Ruth’s life. There is an assumption there that if you get lung cancer you were a smoker. Ruth never smoked a cigarette in her life. ALK-positive non-small- cell lung cancer is said to be very rare but anecdotally there seems to be an increase in the number of young women who have never smoked contracting it.”Nobody knows what is causing it. The unfortunate thing is that it tends not to be diagnosed until stage four, when it is incurable. There needs to be a lot of work done on the research side to understand these cancers better and provide better treatment and to ensure that knowledge is being shared both in this country and worldwide. That will be another focus of the foundation, to provide the funds for this to happen.”To help raise funds, the foundation will hold a golf day in partnership with the Lord’s Taverners at Stoke Park Country Club on June 11.The Ruth Strauss foundation: www.ruthstraussfoundation.com

Tony Brian calls for government enquiry into process that found Scottish cricket to be institutionally racist

ESPNcricinfo staff26-May-2023The former chair of Cricket Scotland has issued a scathing criticism of last year’s investigation into racism in the sport, calling the report “fatally and irredeemably flawed” and urging the Scottish government to commission an independent enquiry into how it was put together.Tony Brian, who was Cricket Scotland chair between 2015 and 2022, has submitted a document entitled “complaints and whistleblowing disclosures” to SportScotland, the body that oversaw publication of the Changing the Boundaries report in July 2022. His findings have also been copied to Scotland’s first minister and Audit Scotland.Brian claims shortcomings in the report mean that the charge of institutional racism against Cricket Scotland, which led to the board resigning en masse, was not supportable. He has also asked that the governing body be removed from special measures.”We now know that SportScotland’s so-called ‘independent’ report was flawed from its inception and a gross waste of large amounts of public money,” Brian said. “The results of Freedom of Information requests and in-depth analysis of the report and its methodology now show clearly that it was a deeply flawed report with a pre-determined outcome conducted by ill-resourced and conflicted reviewers who failed to undertake proper forensic investigation or even to speak to many relevant individuals.”Related

• Scotland racism investigators deny 'exonerations' were within their remit

• Former Cricket Scotland Chair raises 'serious concerns' over damning McKinney Report

• Cricket Scotland revealed to be institutionally racist in damning independent report

• Cricket Scotland chair Anjan Luthra steps down from role

Scottish cricket continues to deal with fallout from the Changing the Boundaries report, which identified 448 examples of alleged institutional racism and found Cricket Scotland had failed 29 of the 31 tests used to measure the scale of the problem.In March, Brian’s successor as chair, Anjan Luthra, resigned after just six months in the role, citing disagreements with the way SportScotland was looking to run the game. Cricket Scotland has yet to replace Luthra and is currently being run by an interim chief executive appointed last month.Brian’s dossier argues that as well as “up to £1m” in wasted public expenditure on the investigation, Cricket Scotland has missed out on “tens of millions of pounds of potential investment” through the ICC, with the report’s publication halting an application for Scotland to become a Full Member nation, thereby unlocking further funding.Central to Brian’s criticism of the report is the role of Plan4Sport, which was commissioned by SportScotland to carry out the review into Scottish cricket. Plan4Sport is described in the dossier as “a small three-person consultancy operating out of a residential address in Staffordshire”, which had previously worked for SportScotland – and therefore was not fully independent.Ten months on, the 448 instances of discrimination and 31 indicators of institutional racism have not been published. After a Freedom of Information request, SportScotland revealed that it “did not validate or oversee the methodology or findings”.Brian claims that key witnesses were not called for interview, and that evidence of “positive experiences of inclusion” was not given any weight. It is also suggested that Plan4Sport had previously worked with Cricket Scotland on its Equality, Diversity and Inclusion framework, and did not raise any concerns about discrimination.In response, SportScotland issued the following statement: “That people still refuse to accept the findings of Changing The Boundaries is a cause for concern. The denial of racism is a barrier to racial equity and is doing further damage to the sport that so many people in communities across the country love.”The findings of the Changing The Boundaries report were accepted in full by the previous Cricket Scotland Board who apologised multiple times for the racism and discrimination problems within the sport. The governing body is now fully committed to implementing all recommendations contained in the report and we will continue to support them through the rebuilding process.”We have full confidence in how the Changing The Boundaries review was carried out and will not be conducting any further reviews.”

The Super Giants captain will welcome the better batting conditions in Mohali after a botched chase in the last game

Shashank Kishore27-Apr-20234:30

Shastri: Arshdeep can play all formats for India

Big Picture: Rahul back to scene of heroics

KL Rahul needs no reminding that he holds the record for the fastest IPL half-century, which he hit in Mohali. It’s a good time to rekindle those memories as he leads Lucknow Super Giants against his former franchise, the Punjab Kings, yet again, after going down narrowly the first time the two sides met earlier this month.Super Giants have had a few days off to reflect on a botched chase against Gujarat Titans. That Rahul took the game deep and batted through on a challenging surface, before he saw it all crumble, will hurt. But if he needs solace, Mohali should provide better value for shots which he’d be looking to feed off and play with more freedom than he did on that Lucknow slowburn.Kings have no such issues. They’ve backed themselves to play the high-risk, high-returns game, and find themselves on the same points – eight – as Super Giants. Without designated captain Shikhar Dhawan, they’ve had an inexperienced top three that hasn’t carried the baggage of the past and have tried to play with freedom. Liam Livingstone’s return after missing the first few games has been timely.It’s the bowling where Super Giants have a slight edge, their variety and class likely to bring the long boundaries into play. At 40, Amit Mishra continues to roll the clock back, while his apprentice Ravi Bishnoi and Krunal Pandya have been able to keep a lid on the scoring in the middle overs.Kings, meanwhile, have been over reliant on Arshdeep Singh, who’s delivered in crunch moments, like in the game against Mumbai Indians three nights ago. Rahul Chahar has looked off colour, while Nathan Ellis and Curran have proved expensive. If Kings can have a fully-fit Kagiso Rabada back and firing, they’ll add another dimension to an attack still trying to find its feet.Punjab Kings got the better of Lucknow Super Giants in their first meeting in IPL 2023•BCCI

Form guide

(Last five matches, most recent first)Punjab Kings: WLWLL (8 points from seven matches)
Lucknow Super Giants: LWLWW (8 points from seven matches)

Team News: All eyes on Dhawan and Rabada

Dhawan and Rabada’s return will lend teeth to the Kings’ batting and bowling respectively. Super Giants pacer Mark Wood remains doubtful due to an illness, having last played on April 15.

Toss and Impact Player Strategy

With Rabada set to return, it’s possible Kings will bring in Nathan Ellis as an Impact Player with the ball for Prabhsimran Singh.Possible XII: 1 Shikhar Dhawan (capt), 2 Prabhsimran Singh, 3 Liam Livingstone, 4 Harpreet Singh, 5 Jitesh Sharma (wk), 6 Sam Curran, 7 Shahrukh Khan, 8 Harpreet Brar, 9 Kagiso Rabada, 10 Rahul Chahar, 11 Arshdeep Singh, 12 Nathan EllisSuper Giants don’t have a lot of reasons to tinker with their line-up. Ayush Badoni could be substituted for K Gowtham’s offspin.Possible XII: 1 KL Rahul (capt), 2 Kyle Mayers, 3 Deepak Hooda, 4 Krunal Pandya, 5 Nicholas Pooran (wk), 6 Ayush Badoni, 7 Marcus Stoinis, 8 Naveen ul Haq, 9 Ravi Bishnoi, 10 Amit Mishra, 11 Avesh Khan, 12 K Gowtham

Stats that matter: Kings openers in focus

• Legspinners bowling to a left-hander a bad idea? Well, Mishra has had tremendous success against Dhawan. He has dismissed him thrice in five innings, having conceded just 39 off the 32 balls he has bowled to him in T20 cricket.
• Curran has managed to keep a lid on Rahul’s scoring in T20s, having conceded less than a run-a-ball (97) over the 29 balls he’s bowled to him for one dismissal. With Curran likely to open the bowling, Rahul will need to find a way to break the shackles against him if Super Giants are to start well.
• Excluding the 90-run opening stand between Dhawan and Prabhsimran Singh, the Kings openers have tallied just 45 runs in six innings. Their average of 19.3 is the lowest of all the teams in the tournament. They’ve also tried out three opening pairs in seven matches.

Pitch and conditions: Look out for the dew

The previous game in Mohali was played on a slightly dry surface where Royal Challengers Bangalore found enough grip to turn the tables on Kings after threatening to post a 200-plus score. But that was an afternoon game. In the evening, the effect of dew will mean the side batting first will want a little extra cushion in their defence. Spinners could have a bigger role given the ground dimensions.

Pandya returns to action, Milind Kumar breaches 1000-run mark, Dhapola continues to sizzle and more

Shashank Kishore14-Dec-2018Shreyas Iyer shreds jetlag in style

Less than 24 hours after landing from New Zealand, Shreyas Iyer showed what Mumbai missed for the first half of a dismal campaign – they’re at the bottom of Group A, with only Chhattisgarh below them. Iyer struck his 12th first-class century – a bruising 139-ball 178 – courtesy 17 fours and 11 sixes against Baroda at Wankhede Stadium. His 283-run third-wicket stand with Siddesh Lad, the captain, came off just 271 balls. Mumbai blasted 439 for 8 by stumps. Lad helped himself to a slightly mellow, but no-less effective 130.How did comeback man Hardik Pandya do?

Among those made to toil was Hardik Pandya. Returning to top-flight cricket for the first time since injuring his lower back at the Asia Cup in September, Pandya, given the new ball, removed openers Aditya Tare and Vikrant Auti in his first spell. He returned later in the day to dismiss the dangerous Shivam Dube. In all, his figures read a respectable 15-0-74-3.What about the other India A boys?

India A’s highest run-getter during the 3-0 one-day series win in New Zealand, Vijay Shankar’s journey to Mohali was more eventful. His route read something like this: Mount Maunganui-Auckland-Singapore-Mumbai-Delhi and then a six-hour road trip to Chandigarh. This meant he reached the venue close to midnight on Thursday and was amid the thick of things in the second session, reviving a floundering Tamil Nadu innings. Walking in at 73 for 4, he struck a 122-ball 71 to take them to 213 for 9 at stumps against Punjab. Vijay was the seventh batsman dismissed, after which TN lost two more.ALSO READ: Record-breaking Rohera relives magical debutIshan Kishan, meanwhile, struck a counter-attacking 42-ball 54 to put Jharkhand back on track after they were reduced to 59 for 4 in the first session by a fired up Uttar Pradesh attack. That they finished at a relatively strong 278 for 6 was courtesy Kishan’s Jharkhand mentor and senior batsman Ishank Jaggi, who was 76 not out at stumps. Jaggi battled for 176 deliveries, hitting eight fours. His unbroken seventh-wicket stand with Shahbaz Nadeem, who was also with India A for the four-day fixtures in New Zealand not too long ago, was worth 121. Nadeem was unbeaten on 70, possibly eyeing a maiden first-class century on Saturday.AFP

Panchal’s form continues, Milind breaches 1000 barrier

Leading Gujarat, champions of 2016-17 in Parthiv Patel’s absence, opener Priyank Panchal struck his eighth score of fifty or more this season – he’s converted three of those into hundreds – but Gujarat failed to capitalise. Smarting from a defeat to Saurashtra on a rank turner, Karnataka roared back to dismiss Gujarat for 216, and finished on 45 for the loss of Mayank Agarwal and D Nischal in reply.Panchal’s 741 runs, including Friday’s 74, is the most by a batsman from the Elite group so far. Overall, it’s second-best to Milind Kumar’s 1017. The Delhi-based Sikkim professional breached the 1000-run barrier during the course of his fourth century of the season – two of those have been double tons. He struck 139 to put Sikkim in a commanding position at 321 for 9 against Mizoram in the Plate Group where bowlers dominated proceedings elsewhere.There also seems to be no stopping Deepak Dhapola, the Uttarakhand fast bowler, who picked up his sixth five-wicket haul of the season to take his wicket tally to 42 in his sixth game, the most in the season so far. It helped bowl Nagaland out for 207, before Uttarakhand finished on 73 for 2. With five wins in five matches, they’re all but through to the knockouts.Meanwhile in Goalpara, as many as 22 wickets fell on a manic day where Puducherry took control despite being shot out for 136 in the first innings. Fabid Ahmed picked 6 for 29 to shoot Arunachal out for 82. At stumps, Puducherry lost two more in the second innings, but had extended their lead to 82.Brief scores:
Groups A & B
Group C
Plate Group

Captain calls for his side to “be positive and play with aggression” as Pakistan finish 2022 without a Test win at home

Danyal Rasool30-Dec-2022No one knew where the decision had come from, least of all Saud Shakeel. The left-hander had put together 55 runs, chewed up 108 balls, and put on an unbroken 81-ball partnership with Mir Hamza. He was batting out of his skin to keep out Ish Sodhi – a man who’d beat the defences of six of his team-mates. Ajaz Patel, too, was now hitting the sweet spot of the rough consistently enough to worry Pakistan, and it was all Shakeel could do to scrape a few more runs together, and shave a few more minutes off the game. Pakistan needed a draw, and he would provide them with it.And then he looked up. Babar Azam was waving them in. Had he shaken hands with someone and had the game called off? No, that couldn’t be, the final hour hadn’t yet begun. He had actually declared! The two wickets Shakeel had been so jealously guarding had been vaporised into thin air, with the Pakistan management apparently feeling the game was out of New Zealand’s reach by this point.Not that it meant an inevitable draw, though. According to Babar, the point of the declaration was the same as the point of any declaration: to win the game.”Saud was a bit shocked when we declared,” Babar grinned afterwards. “He thought we were going for a draw.”Related

• Pakistan look to end miserable home Test season on a high

• Williamson, New Zealand and a throwback to old Test cricket

• New Zealand tee off after Babar declares, but bad light forces stalemate

But for a brief period during that final innings at dusk, there weren’t many smiles on Pakistani faces. A first-over wicket had given way to an onslaught against spin from Tom Latham, and by the end of the sixth over, New Zealand had piled on 55. It was a rate that was sufficient to see them through to victory if the full 15 overs available when the chase began were to be bowled. With the light deteriorating rapidly, though, that was effectively impossible.Babar turned to the fast bowlers and, 2.3 overs into spin being taken off, the umpires decided it was much too dark. With it, a slightly surreal piece of final-day Test cricket came to an end.”We said we’d go after a result,” Babar said after the match. “We took a chance, you never know. It’s cricket. Anything can happen. Saud and [Mohammad] Wasim Junior’s partnership was vital for us because it brought us into the game. That put the idea in my head that we could declare. You all will have enjoyed it as well, and it surprised everyone. It was in our mind we’d take a chance because anything can happen.”We sent a message in, just before we declared, to tell the batters to assess the conditions and play according to those. At times you have to take brave decisions and take chances. As a team and captain, I try and do that. You plan for a result, even if you can’t guarantee it.”Saud Shakeel and Mohammad Wasim helped Pakistan to safety with a 71-run stand•Associated Press

It’s not clear whether the decision to declare came from Babar himself. If it did, it would certainly be a break from historical precedent; Babar the captain has tended to err on the side of caution. Besides, the chances of a Pakistan win were so remote it’s impossible not to wonder if Babar had his tongue firmly in cheek when talking them up. New Zealand had, after all, kept Pakistan out in the field for nearly 195 overs in the first innings and still hadn’t been bowled out. The thought that it might take fewer than 10-15 overs in the second seemed fanciful at best.The final hour or so might have provided a flicker of entertainment, but did not detract from Pakistan’s continuing home woes. This is the seventh successive Test Pakistan have failed to win at home; it is now nearly two years since their last win. They might have escaped a record-extending fifth successive home defeat, but the fact was – and Babar acknowledged it – this was a game New Zealand had dominated.”It’s not that we need to play different cricket,” Babar said. “We need to take things session by session and day by day. We need to be positive and play with aggression. We’re working on it. Everyone has a different game and mindset. We need to credit New Zealand with the way they played and dominated.”We lost three early wickets but we came back after that. Salman Ali Agha deserves credit for the way he batted with the tail [in the first innings] and put us in a good position. Imam [ul-Haq], Sarfaraz [Ahmed] and Saud Shakeel built partnerships in patches in the second innings, and Wasim chipped in as well. So the batting line-up did quite well.”As a coach and captain we can ask for what kind of wicket you need. You know spinners dominate there and reverse swing from the fast bowlers gives you an edge. The fast bowlers bowled well. Mir Hamza bowled well and there were lots of close appeals on his bowling, which also created chances. You don’t always get what you want but the conditions are the same for both sides.”

The opener currently has eight, after his Player-of-the-Series performance against South Africa

Andrew Fidel Fernando23-Jul-2018Until South Africa finally located their batting backbone in the last innings of the series, Sri Lanka opener Dimuth Karunaratne had outscored their entire team in the series. Karunaratne’s aggregate of 356 runs at an average of 118.66 and a strike rate in the mid-sixties is staggering enough in a bowling-dominated series. But, that he was so prolific – passing 50 in each of his innings – after having missed the last series in the West Indies due to a hand injury, is especially impressive.Having now hit hundreds against Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and South Africa since the start of 2017, Karunaratne has his sights set on a career goal that only the very good Test batsmen achieve. He is increasingly thought of as a reliable run-scorer in this Sri Lanka team, and has claimed a top-ten place in the ICC’s Test batting rankings for the first time.”My personal goal that I would be happy with is to get to 20 to 25 Test hundreds, and hopefully one day I will get there,” he said. “I want to be a match-winning performer and give my best. When I do that rankings will automatically come.”Karunaratne currently has eight tons. He has become a specialist on difficult pitches – especially those that take substantial turn, as his 158 not out in Galle in the first Test suggested. Karunaratne totaled 218 runs in a match where no other batsmen hit a fifty.Karunaratne has spoken of the positive approach he has against spin, but he also revealed that he had been working on specific strokes with coaches in the past few months. “I had a few chats with my school coach recently, and Hashan Tillakaratne has been a great help, along with batting coach Thilan Samaraweera,” he said. “With Hashan, I worked on stuff like the sweep and reverse sweep. Those are must-have shots when fielders are close in. When you play the sweep or reverse sweep, the field spreads.”Although breaking his hand in domestic cricket in May forced him to miss the series in West Indies in June, Karunaratne did play some cricket – the selectors sending him to Bangladesh with the Sri Lanka A team for two unofficial Tests. It was in Bangladesh, Karunaratne said, that this current run of form began.”Actually, when the West Indies Tests started, I was fit. But I didn’t have any match practice behind me. So the selectors told me to be fit for South Africa series and wanted me to play Bangaldesh games. That was a good call, because even when I started playing in that series, I wasn’t too confident in my body. I was fearful that the hand might break again. But once I spent a couple of hours at the crease, I started to feel like it was ok, and I sort of slipped into my natural game.”The pity for Karunaratne is that although he is in excellent touch, there are no matches for him to play in the coming months. Sri Lanka’s next Test is not until November, and there are no domestic matches scheduled in the interim. He is now resigned to doing as much work in the nets as possible in the nets, before England arrive for a three-Test series.”That’s the biggest challenge for someone who is a Test specialist – you have to go months without a game. This time, since the Bangladesh A matches were there, I could get back to form. Breaks are good, but I need to be at the top of my game. To get back to being that settled at the crease and to keep that intensity is not easy. But I have done that thorughout my career. If there are any domestic matches – any kinds of matches – before the next Test, I will definitely play them.”

With 85 needed off 30 balls, the duo launched an unsparing assault on the Stars bowlers to help Knight Riders raze the target down with a ball to spare

The Report by Peter Della Penna17-Aug-2018Getty Images

After a dim start to the season, marked by three winless matches on the road, St Lucia Stars’ season had begun to look brighter on Thursday night, after a trio of half-centurions boosted them to a franchise record total. But in the end, history repeated itself, as Trinbago Knight Riders maintained their impressive record over the Stars, who crashed to a stunning five-wicket defeat at the Darren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in Gros Islet.David Warner, Rahkeem Cornwall and Kieron Pollard all crossed 50, each in contrasting styles, to take the home side to 212 for 2. And yet, it was far from enough, as Darren Bravo and Brendon McCullum launched a stunning late onslaught with a 137-run fourth-wicket stand. Requiring 85 runs off the last five overs, Knight Riders crossed the line with a ball to spare. The result also meant the Stars’ winless streak has been stretched to 15 games.Family feastThe end of Warner’s horrid run with the bat coincided with the arrival of his wife and younger daughter at St Lucia. With his two favourite girls watching from the stands, Warner looked at ease while compiling an unbeaten 72 off 55 balls. Most of his damage was done in the first 10 overs, beginning with an uppercut off Ali Khan in the third over for the first of his three sixes. Once Andre Fletcher got out in the sixth over, caught at backward point to a mistimed cut off Shannon Gabriel, Warner was content to ride in the slipstream of his subsequent partners.CornwallopAfter sitting out the previous match, Cornwall made an imperious return to the Stars lineup at No. 3. In the very first match of the season, Fawad Ahmed had struck on his first ball after entering in the seventh over. On this occasion, however, he was swatted with disdain over midwicket for six by Cornwall. The big man began the eighth over in the same fashion against Gabriel, swatting him back over his head for a maximum, before dragging him flat through the wind for six over square leg a few balls later.Cornwall clattered his fifth six over long-on to start the 12th over against Dwayne Bravo, at which stage he overtook Warner on the scorecard, and simultaneously brought up the fifty of their partnership, as well as the Stars 100. Cornwall eventually brought up his half-century off 25 balls, before running out of steam in the 15th over, edging behind as he tried to swing a wide delivery from Javon Searles to the leg side. That ended the partnership at 79 but the innings was hardly about to lose any steam.Pollard goes wildAt 130 for 2 in 15 overs, Tom Moody called out on the TV commentary that Stars should target 12 an over for the rest of the way to get to 190. For a team that has struggled to score runs and was bowled out for just 95 when these two sides met in the opening match of the season, the suggestion may have seemed optimistic. But by the end of the innings, hindsight showed Moody’s prediction was actually quite conservative.The Stars third-wicket pair of Warner and Kieron Pollard added 84 unbeaten runs off the final 32 balls of the innings. More than three-quarters of those came off the bat of Pollard, who sped away to the joint-fastest half-century in CPL history, getting there in just 18 balls. He stroked seven sixes in his 65 not out off 23 balls, the brunt of his damage absorbed by Dwayne Bravo, whose wretched form with the ball continued. The Knight Riders captain was once again his team’s most expensive bowler on the night, conceding 50 from four wicketless overs.Bravo leaked 20 to Pollard in the 18th, including two sixes over the leg side. Ali Khan came into the match as the CPL’s leading wicket-taker but with the exception of a searing yorker to Pollard that just missed his off stump in the 17th, the American lacked his usual bite and was clubbed for three more sixes by Pollard in the 19th over that went for 23 runs. Pollard then bludgeoned Bravo for two more maximums in the final over that brought 17 runs and catapulted the Stars to well over 200. And yet, it wasn’t close to being enough.Riders on the stormKnight Riders’ woes during a two-match losing skid were mainly down to a leaky bowling attack, but on this occasion their batsmen managed to bail them out. Cornwall backed up his impressive batting display by striking twice in the Powerplay with his offspin that claimed Sunil Narine and Chris Lynn, to dent the visitors chase early. But Knight Riders clawed back behind a 51-run stand between McCullum and Colin Munro to reach 74 for 3 after 10 overs, just 14 runs behind where Stars were at the same stage.It was at this point that Darren Bravo almost singlehandedly snuffed out the Stars, and how. Entering at the fall of Munro in the 10th over at 71 for 3, the younger Bravo dwarfed Pollard’s finishing kick. At 128 for 3 after 15, having just brought up a fifty partnership with McCullum. Darren channeled his inner Garry Sobers in the 16th by hoisting four consecutive sixes off Pollard to start the over. A two off the fifth ball was followed by another six off the final delivery to complete the most expensive over in CPL history.From there, Darren could not be stopped, romping his way to 94 unbeaten runs off 36 balls, including six fours and ten sixes. Even a brief stutter during an excellent 19th over from Mitchell McClenaghan, who snared two wickets and gave away just two runs, wasn’t enough to shake Darren, who ensured the Stars’ woeful record remained in tact. Denesh Ramdin hammered the final nail with a six – 34th of the match – off the penultimate ball that not only sealed the win but also equalled the record for most sixes in a Twenty20 match.

India batter breaks Mahela Jayawardene’s record of 1016 runs

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Nov-2022Virat Kohli has become the all-time leading run-scorer in men’s T20 World Cups, overtaking Mahela Jayawardene’s record of 1016 runs, which was set in 2014.Kohli broke the record during India’s fourth group 2 game against Bangladesh in Adelaide, and he passed the milestone with an average of more than 80 and a strike rate of more than 130 in T20 World Cups. The run that took him past Jayawardene came off the 13th ball he faced on Wednesday, in the seventh over of India’s innings, when he flicked Taskin Ahmed to midwicket for a single.