It took him just 17 balls to pick up four West Indies wickets, and no matter the kind of pitch, this feat was impressive

Danyal Rasool18-Jan-2025Theatre actors have often spoken about guarding against losing respect for the art. Arriving on stage night after night to produce the same high standard of performance has a jading effect, and one where the performer has much more to lose than they have to gain. A good performance is just another day at the office, a bad one the stuff of bad reviews and blooper reels that acquire a life of their own – and with the threat of reputational damage. Especially when it feels as if people have been waiting to stick the boot in, anyway.That is what it must feel like to be Sajid Khan, who, unlike his partner-in-crime Noman Ali, identifies as something of a performer.The first Test against West Indies, in Multan, was something of a no-win situation, his success explained away as a masterstroke in pitch curation than the magic in his fingers. Surely, he can’t have been that good on his own merits, the reasoning goes, or why else was he omitted from Pakistan’s squad for the Tests in South Africa immediately prior?Related

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Do well, and the theory gets even further validation; or don’t, and be written off as a one-series wonder. That was Sajid’s window of possibilities. So what might just be another low-profile Test to an observer was reputational to him. Pakistan’s selection panel had huge expectations of him; when Pakistan folded for 230 on the second day, Aleem Dar, now a member of the selection committee, reckoned it was near 400, factoring in the difficulty of the pitch. The expectation placed upon Sajid was clear.And Sajid knows the talk has to be walked to retain its potence. His in-your-face celebration rubbed a few players in the England camp the wrong way, and needs to be fed by regular wickets. Against West Indies, on Saturday, it took him just seven balls to get his first, what he later called “an offspinner’s dream wicket”, flighting the ball outside off stump, lulling Mikyle Louis into the drive, and sneaking through the gate and rattling the stumps.Eleven balls later, Sajid had four wickets to his name, West Indies’ top order being cut to ribbons. No matter the kind of pitch, this was impressive; it took West Indies’ collective spin attack nearly 62 overs to match what Sajid had managed in 17 deliveries. Indeed, if what Sajid was doing wasn’t exceptional, there would be no point in preparing these surfaces – because anyone could then match him toe-to-toe.West Indies, in contrast, have held off operating spin from both ends, preferring to give Jayden Seales a longer spell first. That may just have to do with Seales’ excellent showing in each innings – far superior, indeed, to anything a Pakistan seamer has managed in these conditions. But bowling wicket-taking spin with the new ball isn’t as easy as Sajid makes it look, either.

“As an offspinner, I have a bit of a complicated bowling style. I can’t introduce too many new things to it”Sajid Khan on his bowling

“I’ve worked with my head coach in Peshawar, Zohaib Khan, to prepare with the new ball,” Sajid said after the second day’s play. “I’ve bowled with him a lot with the new Dukes ball, and worked on it a lot. We used to work on bowling with the new ball for one to two hours on end. The plan was to keep the run-scoring tight. If I concede [runs] off a good ball, [Mohammad] Rizwan doesn’t mind. But the expectation is we’ll continue to hit good areas on this wicket.”Sajid has also continued to add arrows to his quiver. He comes in wider of the crease to exploit footmarks when required, or simply to change the angle to discomfit a batter. His action, which he admits is “difficult”, allows him to vary the pace and trajectory without letting batters pick it up, something he believes is essential to his game.”As an offspinner, I have a bit of a complicated bowling style. I can’t introduce too many new things to it,” Sajid said. “Every coach I work with has said my strength is my sleight of hand. Batters find it hard to read my flight or variation in pace because my front arm moves very quickly – even if I’m bowling in the nets to our own batters.”Sajid Khan removed West Indies’ top four•PCBNo matter the assistance from the pitch, though, there came a reminder that a drop in levels comes with consequences. With Pakistan hunting for the final wicket, the intensity dropped as Sajid went in search of his fifth, greedily flighting it and pitching it up to force the issue. But it wasn’t the right length, and was much too predictable; and though West Indies’ No. 10 and 11 batters were at the crease, Sajid was dismantled. Two sixes and four boundaries came off his final three overs, which leaked 37 runs to mar his figures slightly.Those overs, perhaps more than any of Sajid’s wickets, demonstrated the rarefied nature of his skill: it wasn’t just the pitch, but what he made the ball do on it, that was bringing him success. There will be times it doesn’t work, as is true for every skillset on any surface.For now, Sajid turns it on day-in and day-out, with no signs of losing respect for the art, or his hunger for more. And as he mentioned last year, while people have jumped at the chance to write him off in the past, his continued refusal to play to that narrative means the ink on those pens may have begun to dry.

Meanwhile, Kwena Maphaka set a new record for youngest South Africa Test debutant

Shubh Agarwal05-Jan-20252 – South Africa are the only side to enforce the follow-on twice in this World Test Championship (WTC) cycle – once against Bangladesh in Chattogram and now against Pakistan in Cape Town. Sri Lanka are the only other team to enforce the follow-on in this cycle when they bowled out New Zealand for 88 after declaring at 602 for 5 in Galle. For Pakistan, it was the first time following on since the Southampton Test in 2020.Related

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205 – The 205-run stand between Shan Masood and Babar Azam is the highest opening stand while following on. The duo surpassed Graeme Smith and Neil McKenzie’s opening stand of 204 runs against England at Lord’s in 2008 when South Africa batted for over two days to save the Test. This is also Pakistan’s highest opening stand in South Africa and only their second 100-plus stand for the first wicket. Coincidentally, three of their last four 100-plus stands overall have extended to more than 200 runs.1 – Masood became the first Pakistan captain to score a Test hundred in South Africa. Previously, Salim Malik, leading Pakistan in the only Test in Johannesburg in 1995, was out for 99. Inzamam-ul-Haq was left stranded on 92 while batting at number eight in Gqeberha in 2007.421 – South Africa’s first-innings lead of 421 is the sixth highest for them in a Test and their highest against Pakistan. After batting first in a Test, it is their third-highest overall. For Pakistan, it is the sixth occasion of conceding a lead in excess of 400 after the completion of the first innings – three times while batting first and three times when bowling first. It is also the fifth-biggest first-innings lead in South Africa in the 21st century.18 years 272 days – Kwena Maphaka became the youngest debutant for South Africa the moment he stepped on the field. On Day 3, picking up Babar’s wicket, he also became the youngest to take a wicket for South Africa in Test cricket.3 – With a fifty in the second innings of the Centurion Test and twin fifties here, this is the first time in Babar’s career that he has amassed three consecutive fifties without turning any one of them into a hundred. The number three doesn’t leave Babar here. He was out caught down the leg-side in the first innings, the third such occasion since 2022, the joint-most for a Pakistani batter alongside Saud Shakeel.

The 91 they managed before they were all out was their lowest T20I total in New Zealand

Namooh Shah16-Mar-202591 – Pakistan were all out for their lowest T20I total in New Zealand. It was also the fourth-lowest total recorded in a T20I innings in New Zealand.59 balls remained after New Zealand completed the chase, it is the third-biggest win for them in a home T20I in terms of balls remaining, the top two being against Bangladesh in 2010 and Sri Lanka in 2016.ESPNcricinfo Ltd11 for 4 – Pakistan’s score on Sunday, their lowest at the fall of the fourth wicket in a T20I, with the previous being 13 against West Indies in Mirpur in 2014. They had only managed one run before three wickets had fallen in Christchurch, also a new low point.2 – Only the second time that both Pakistan openers have gotten out for a duck in a T20I, the other such instance happened more than a decade ago against West Indies in 2014.ESPNcricinfo Ltd3 – Pakistan recorded the joint third-lowest powerplay total of 14 for 4 in T20Is amongst the top 10 teams, with the lowest being 13 by West Indies in 2013 and by Pakistan themselves in 2014. Pakistan also played out 28 dot balls in the powerplay on Sunday, the joint-most for them in a T20I.

Despite defeat to the Titans, MI still have their fate in their own hands

S Rajesh06-May-20251:25

Rapid Fire: Is this the end of the road for KKR?

Kolkata Knight RidersThe two-wicket defeat against Chennai Super Kings leaves Kolkata Knight Riders on the brink of elimination. With only two games to go, the maximum that KKR can get is 15 points; there are already two teams who have more than 15, while Punjab Kings are on 15 with three games to go.Assuming that those three teams go through, KKR will have to hope that Mumbai Indians lose their two remaining matches and stay on 14. Since one of their matches is against Delhi Capitals, who are currently on 13, that will take DC to 15. The fourth spot will thus come down to an NRR battle between KKR and DC.On the other hand, if Punjab Kings lose their three remaining matches, then MI will go past 15, while DC, PBKS and KKR could all be on 15 points, fighting for the fourth spot.Gujarat TitansGujarat Titans’ last-ball win at the Wankhede means they’re now just one win away from making the playoffs – 18 points will now assure a team of a top-four finish. However, if they lose their three remaining games they could get knocked out as four teams can still finish on 17 or more points. Titans have a favourable itinerary too, with their last two games scheduled at home, where they have a formidable 4-1 record so far.Mumbai IndiansDespite the loss to GT, Mumbai Indians (MI) are still in control of their own destiny, as wins in their last two matches will ensure a place in the playoffs. For them to go through on 16 points, though, they’ll need help from other results, while defeats in their two remaining games will eliminate them. MI also have an excellent net run rate of 1.156, which could yet be crucial if qualification comes down to that.Royal Challengers BangaloreThe washout between Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Delhi Capitals (DC), and GT’s win against MI, means that Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) are now only one win away from securing their place in the playoffs. That’s because only four teams can make it to 18 or more points. RCB can also make the top four with 16 points if other results go their way. However, two wins will not yet guarantee a top-two finish as three teams can still finish with 20 or more points.Punjab KingsWith KKR’s defeat to CSK, Punjab Kings will qualify for the playoffs if they beat DC, as DC play MI later and only one of those teams can then get to 17 or more. If PBKS lose to DC, they will need to win their last two and get to 19, as in that case DC and MI can both finish on 17 or more. PBKS can sneak through even if they lose all three matches and stay on 15, but for that to happen DC will have to lose their last two matches, so that they stay on 15, and LSG will have to win no more than two of their three games. It’ll then come down to run rates between them (and KKR, if they win both matches) for one spot.Delhi Capitals
Like DC, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) are also struggling for momentum, having lost three in a row, and four of their last five. The best they can do now is win their three remaining matches, finish on 16 points, and hope that a couple of in-form teams suffer a sudden reversal of fortunes. If they lose one more match, though, LSG will be eliminated. Their terrible NRR of -0.469 doesn’t help their cause either.

What must it be like to bowl fast in Tests for a non-Big Three nation? Just ask Asitha and Vishwa

Andrew Fidel Fernando25-Jun-2025If you are a seam bowler specialising in Tests, and hail from a non Big-Three nation, as Asitha Fernando and Vishwa Fernando do, you are charting one of the most difficult and least-rewarding courses in international cricket.Most difficult, because fast bowlers must put their own bodies on the altar of this sport in far more profound ways than batters, spinners, or even wicketkeepers. With every delivery there is the steaming in from dozens of metres away, the ridiculous force that goes through the front leg at the point of delivery, the shoulders, spines, obliques, groins, glutes, calves, feet, all being required to contribute some power to the occasion, and a follow-through that must be navigated safely. If any one of these sectors of your body is even slightly injured, it incapacitates a seam bowler more than similar injuries do for batters or spinners.Related

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Let’s take Lahiru Kumara as one example. He was the highest wicket-taker against Bangladesh in the away Test series last year, claiming 11 dismissals at an average of 12.63. The man had not played a single international since his last Test in early February, but had played most of a season of domestic cricket since then, and had been in good shape to make an impact on this home series against Bangladesh. But a week out, he busted a hamstring while fielding at training, and was ruled out of the series. He doesn’t get picked in many international white-ball XIs, so this injury will be taking a pretty serious playing opportunity out of his hands. And with a further 11 months before the next Sri Lanka Test is to be played, he has to show substantial willpower to stay in the game till then.(Side note: Lankan seam-bowling hamstrings in the last two decades have had artists’ temperaments. They are capable of jaw-dropping wonders like Dhammika Prasad’s spell on the fourth evening at Headingley, or Lasith Malinga’s rip-snorters. But if hamstrings had ears or lovers, Lankan fast bowling hamstrings are the type that would cut off their own appendages, or fall apart completely after a break up. They are sublime as part of a creative flow state, but absolutely never to be relied upon.)Asitha Fernando toiled hard on a surface not suited to his style•Sri Lanka CricketLeast-rewarding because, three league stints in a year (they don’t even really have to be the fancy leagues) will probably net you more money, for way less work. Plus, you know, the promotional dinners, and the parties. Non Big-Three Test cricket tends not to have a lot of parties. Why train your body to bowl 15-20 overs a day, when you can focus on being at peak performance for four?Matheesha Pathirana, as another example, is very likely the fastest bowler Sri Lanka has ever produced. But at this stage, seems unlikely to ever to play a Test. Chennai Super Kings’ scouts got to him before the Sri Lankan cricket system really had, and CSK have genuinely played a role in developing that talent, and have essentially called dibs. Not to put too fine a point on it, but if at the end of his career, Pathirana is remembered most for his IPL exploits, he will probably have earned more money by several orders of magnitude than he would if his career ends with Sri Lanka performances being the highlight.So pretty soon, it starts to feel like bowling 15-20 overs a day in Test cricket is like getting a several-year loan to buy a reliable Toyota for your family, only for some Crypto kid to pull up next to you at the colour-light in their fully paid-for Bugatti.Cricket slavishly follows the money now, rather than any other kind of value, and yet the likes of Asitha and Vishwa are still out here doing Test cricket justice by bringing everything they have to it. Asitha has bowling figures like 0 for 110, and 0 for 77 on his record, and yet somehow his work has never felt like “toil”. The word implies a physical limpness that Asitha has simply not allowed to enter his cricketing consciousness.Vishwa Fernando struck twice on the first day•Sri Lanka CricketHe may be a limited bowler in terms of height, pace, and skill, but to watch him operate in Tests is to watch naked and more-or-less relentless ambition. He took 2 for 43 on day one, on an SSC track not especially suited to his bowling (it was a bit slow for a seamer who tends to skid it on). He had had Anamul Haque dropped before he eventually took that wicket in his second over. Late in the day, he got one to pitch on a length, seam away, and hit the top of Nayeem Hasan’s off stump. He was pumped. But then he usually is.Vishwa, meanwhile, has always had the more laidback temperament. His mode of operation has been swing and seam, and he wiled his way through day one, less physically domineering than Asitha, but no less relentless, no less intense in the challenges he poses to batters. He moved it a little into the left-handers early on, but the seam movement had disappeared by the time a ball in the channel drew Najmul Hossain Shanto’s outside edge. Vishwa, a less-than-six-feet medium-pace bowler, will point to the bouncer he bowled the previous ball as a perfect set-up delivery to the wicket-taking one. You could doubt that explanation, but there’s no doubting figures of 2 for 35 off 16 overs – that economy rate being 2.18. There is almost no scorecard in the world in which those are not good figures.Sri Lankan Test seam bowling doesn’t necessarily have so rich a tradition, only three of their quicks (Chaminda Vaas, Malinga, and Suranga Lakmal) have ever taken more than 100 Test wickets. But as Test cricket appears to be winding down in several of its markets, it feels like Asitha and Vishwa are now partakers of a separate, global club of Test bowlers, who have trained their bodies to bowl 15-20 overs a day, and find themselves less valued than bowlers who send down only four.In this group, there are players such as Chris Martin, who took 233 Test wickets for New Zealand and was taking university courses (presumably to broaden job opportunities) well into his 30s, while sharing a dressing room with the likes of Brendon McCullum and Ross Taylor – each IPL millionaires. Others like Kemar Roach, owner of one of the most vicious inswingers in world cricket, has watched other careers take off into the T20 league stratosphere, while his remained moored to a middling West Indies Test side. Mohammad Abbas, Neil Wagner, Ebadot Hossain, Vernon Philander, Blessing Muzarabani – all these bowlers belong to this genre.Chris Martin leads a pack of Test fast bowlers who are valued lesser than T20 ones•Associated PressFor many in the non Big-Three sphere, it has begun to feel as if the publicity gained from “Saving Test Cricket” has become more profitable than the saving of Test cricket. This is why Bazball is able to equate the health of this format to scoring at between 4 and 4.5 per over, for example, while England has not hosted Bangladesh in the last 14 years, or Zimbabwe in more than 20 until the current summer. Australia have, in previous administrative eras, been hesitant tourists to South Asia. India’s modern top players play roughly half their Tests against the other Big Three teams. Jasprit Bumrah has played 59% of his 46 Tests against Australia and England.Still, what is happening at the SSC is Test cricket too, at least under current definitions. And increasingly Test cricket feels like a concept divorced from merit. Two of the three World Test Championship winners are sides with ailing Test programmes. Cricket has no serious will to fix that.The likes of Asitha and Vishwa will never have the chance to develop their Test-bowling skills as much as bowlers from nations that have stronger cricketing economies do. These are the margins of Test cricket that are most at-risk. If Asitha and Vishwa don’t make it, then who is going to inspire the next generation of Lankan red-ball bowlers?But at least in 2025, these two are still here, still putting their bodies through the seam-bowling rigours, and still taking important wickets. Test cricket is lucky to still have them.

His last Test wicket was so long ago he had forgotten about it. On Wednesday, he created a fresher, more cherished memory by dismissing Jaiswal

Vithushan Ehantharajah23-Jul-2025

Liam Dawson got his first Test wicket in eight years•Getty Images

All of 2929 days separated Liam Dawson’s seventh and eighth Test wickets.It was so long ago that Dawson trapped Hashim Amla lbw at Trent Bridge in July 2017, he had actually forgotten about it when prompted by Sky Sports at the end of day one of the fourth Test against India. On Wednesday, a fresher, more cherished memory was banked when he skimmed the edge of Yashasvi Jaiswal’s bat through to Harry Brook at first slip. The first of a new chapter.The eight years between dismissals have been wild. A global pandemic has come and, for the most part, gone. The UK itself is on its fifth prime minister. And the ECB has not just come up with a new format no one asked for but sold the eight teams they plucked out of the ether to play it at a total valuation, in principle, of £975 million.Related

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Life for Dawson has actually been pretty steady, which won’t surprise anyone who knows him well. Team-mates past and present often refer to him as “Mr Reliable”. So level-headed, he almost baulked at the idea he was worthy of a press conference.”I’ve done nothing special here,” Dawson said of his overnight figures of 1 for 45 from 15 overs. Maybe so. But the left-arm spinner’s dismissal of Jaiswal for 58 with his seventh delivery of the day came after England had bowled slightly too short in the morning. The seamers collectively only hit a good length with the new ball on a seaming pitch with 35% of their deliveries in the morning session, which ended without success and India sitting pretty at lunch on 78 for none.There is, however, something special about not just spanning eras, but seemingly riding them through to a return to the format the 35-year-old thought had been lost. “I’ve said to a few people that, the age I am, I probably thought Test cricket was gone.”Crucially, Dawson has made this journey on his own terms. This has not been about hitching rides in hope rather than expectation, but driving his own destiny in the periphery, like a time traveller not messing with the fabric of the ecosystems but blending into it. It’s worth noting that Dawson’s debut, against India in Chennai at the end of 2016, was the same Test Karun Nair struck his triple-century in. Nair’s comeback story has lasted just three games.Dawson has been a background extra to England’s white-ball glories – a non-playing member of the 2019 ODI World Cup squad, a travelling reserve for the 2022 T20 World Cup, among 15 limited-overs appearances between Test cap numbers three and four. The last three of those came earlier this summer, ending a three-year break from the international scene. A knowing nudge and a wink that a return could be on the horizon, even if it took an injury to Shoaib Bashir to realise it.Sympathy for Dawson should be sparing, partly as he wouldn’t want it but also because his nest has been well-feathered in spite of being ignored at international level. The wilderness is lush for players of his calibre.He has turned out for ten different T20 teams across seven different franchise competitions. Crucially, all while not just ticking over in first-class cricket but thriving.In 85 first-class matches for Hampshire during this hiatus, Dawson has 215 dismissals at 27.75, taking 12 out of his 15 five-wicket hauls, and all three of his ten-wicket match hauls. The 4566 runs alongside – at 38.69 – are made up of ten of his 19 career centuries. So fruitful has this period been that Dawson forgot that it was on this very ground, just last year, that he took match figures of 10 for 99 and struck a first-innings hundred to secure an innings victory over Lancashire.Day one’s small sample size of “nothing special” was littered with cues to Dawson’s skills. His accuracy and revolutions on the ball have always been consistent, as has the pace, with 83% of Wednesday’s deliveries in the 85kph to 90kph sweet spot for fingerspinners. His knack of manipulating drift – offshoots of revolutions and pace – was highlighted by the dismissal of Jaiswal. That drifted 2.058 degrees, 0.636 above his overall average so far in this match.

“I’ve bowled a lot of overs the last few years and obviously when you bowl, you improve. You’re still going to have tough days, but I do feel like I’m a better bowler now than I was a few years ago”Liam Dawson

That skidding delivery is also something he has perfected and used to hoodwink plenty of domestic batters. Some of those on the wrong side of Dawson tell you how much tougher he is to sweep now, with extra dip and shape harnessed over the last couple of years. Some attribute it to a shift of his left hand and wrist at the end of his gather, both more secure and more supple, like the top hand of a violinist.As a result, that skid-on delivery has become more potent, allowing him to challenge both edges of the bat as he was able to do with Jaiswal, who was conscious of the ball turning towards his pads and forgot about the outside edge. It was as much a smart piece of bowling as a clever bit of forethought from England. On Monday, Brook, who, as limited-overs captain with head coach Brendon McCullum, had overseen the first stage of Dawson’s recall, pointed out that the extent of the footholes created outside the left-hand batter’s off stump this series was an area Dawson could exploit. Exploit he did.It was also on this day that Dawson sat down with Ben Stokes to talk tactics. Since becoming Test captain, Stokes has made it his job to set fields for all his bowlers, particularly his spinners, who, for the most part, have been precocious upstarts who could do with the burden of that side of things. “Just bowl” has been his message.1:38

Harmison: Dawson might help with Stokes workload

That was more or less what he reiterated to Dawson, who says he was relaxed at the proposition of the odd man being moved here and there by his captain. The difference, of course, is that Dawson’s metronomy relies on order, control beyond his fingers. Throughout Dawson’s three spells, there seemed to be a decent amount of back and forth, albeit very little, if anything, during an actual over.”Probably a little bit more consistent,” Dawson said when asked about the difference between him now and the bowler who took seven wickets at 42.57 in his first three caps. “Understanding pitches a little bit better, what players are looking to do sometimes. I think the older you get, you learn how to manage game scenarios.”I’ve bowled a lot of overs the last few years and obviously when you bowl, you improve. You’re still going to have tough days, but I do feel like I’m a better bowler now than I was a few years ago.”It’s a level of comfort and self-assurance that Stokes is not used to with his spinners. But it is one he clearly welcomes at this juncture, hence Dawson’s selection in the first place.On a day when England’s two previous left-arm orthodox bowlers, Jack Leach and Tom Hartley, bagged a five-wicket haul for Somerset and scored a maiden century for Lancashire, respectively, while Leicestershire legspinner Rehan Ahmed registered both in the first two days of the ongoing round of the County Championship, Dawson’s “nothing special” suited Stokes and England just fine.

Steven Smith and Scott Boland are excellent replacements as captain and bowler, but missing Cummins for at least the first Test is very significant

Alex Malcolm27-Oct-20252:25

Mitchell Starc backs Australia’s fast-bowling depth

It has been inevitable for a month, but Australia have finally accepted that Pat Cummins won’t be available for the first Test against England despite hopes of a Lazarus-like recovery from his lumbar stress injury.The countdown clock now resets to the Brisbane Test which starts on December 4 after he returns to bowl later this week.Australia coach Andrew McDonald and chair of selectors George Bailey are bullish that their captain will play a major part in the series and there’s a belief he could be ready for the Gabba. Cummins’ comments at various media commitments over the past six weeks have been more sober and grounded in the reality that the trajectory of his recovery is completely unknown.Related

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That unknown aside, what does it all mean for Perth?Harry Brook said “hopefully that plays into our hands… [But] we can’t take anybody lightly.”Some former England players turned pundits have suggested the visitors should not fear Scott Boland and “the worst Australian team since 2010″ in Cummins’ absence.It is worth noting that of the six Tests Australia have played without Cummins since he became the Test captain in 2021, they are yet to lose having won five and drawn one. That included victory in Adelaide during the 2021-22 Ashes with an attack that was missing both Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.”The worst Australian team since 2010” has also won eight of their last 10 Tests and lost only one, this year’s World Test Championship final, including three wins at home against the same India side that drew with England 2-2 just recently.However, India did pummel Australia in the last Test they played in Perth. An attack without Cummins – a bowler with 309 Test wickets at 22.10 and currently ranked No. 4 in the world – could provide an early chance for England’s aggressive batters to make an impression.Leader of the team, leader of the attack: Pat Cummins leaves a big hole to fill•AFP/Getty ImagesIt has been the best batting surface in Australia across the last four years by some margin since the new Kookaburra and greener surfaces have come into vogue.Only five overseas batters have scored centuries in Australia in that time and three of them have come in Perth, including one each to Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli last year. Kohli’s century is notable for the fact that the same player returned scores of 7, 11, 3, 36, 5, 17 and 6 at Australia’s other venues and retired from Test cricket after the series.It is, however, Cummins’ least effective venue in Australia, albeit the numbers are far from poor. He has never taken more than three wickets in a Test in five appearances there. He averages 26.33 and strikes at 62.2 when he averages under 22 and strikes at under 46.4 at the other four Ashes venues with at least one five-wicket haul at each of them.

No matter how well opposition teams are going in Australia when the surface flattens out, and no surface in Australia can flatten more than Perth does on days two and three, the threat of Cummins is ever-present when he’s on the field

The steep bounce on offer in Perth can be a weird kryptonite of sorts for Cummins. His ability to extract bounce from placid surfaces is what has made him so great for so long. However, Perth is a place where he has had trouble finding the right length to threaten the top of the stumps without overpitching.That may be a different story for Boland’s lower release point. McDonald noted recently that criticism of Boland’s 2023 Ashes performance should be viewed in the context of how little bounce was available for him in England.Boland averages 12.63 in nine Tests in Australia, a truly insane number that highlights how sporting Australian pitches have been. But he has not played a Test or even a first-class match at Optus Stadium. He has only featured in a handful of BBL games at the ground. His first venture there with a red ball will be an unknown.Beyond the bowling, the loss of Cummins the captain in the short-term will likely have more of an off-field effect than it does on. Steven Smith has led Australia to five Test victories in his absence, among 23 captaincy wins in his career, and the bowling attack with a combined total of 329 appearances will unlikely need careful shepherding.Don’t underestimate the role that Pat Cummins plays in the lower order•Matt Roberts/CA/GettyCummins will still be in the dressing room for the first Test, which will be unique in some ways. But it will also add to a sense of business as usual for Australia in terms of internal dynamics. Nathan McSweeney, who captain’s South Australia and Australia A, noted Cummins’ calmness as he spoke to the group following the defeat to India in Perth last year when the intensity of the external criticism was at its fiercest.While Cummins’ primary role is with the ball, where Australia may also feel his absence is with his batting and fielding. Australia’s lower order is weakened without him. He won Australia an Ashes Test at Edgbaston with the bat in 2023 and played two vital hands in the win over India at the MCG last summer.Australia’s ground fielding is also weaker as a result given they are not the most agile and dynamic fielding group ever assembled, although Marnus Labuschagne’s likely recall offsets Cummins’ absence somewhat and the catching cordon remains incredibly strong if Beau Webster and Cameron Green are both selected.Whichever way you cut it up, there’s no doubt England’s batting group will sleep sounder ahead of the first Test in Perth. No one has knocked over Joe Root in Test cricket more times than Cummins’ total of 11. Cummins has also removed his opposing captain Ben Stokes six times in Test cricket.No matter how well opposition teams are going in Australia when the surface flattens out, and no surface in Australia can flatten more than Perth does on days two and three, the threat of Cummins is ever-present when he’s on the field. He has a unique talismanic ability to extract something out of nothing at a time when his team needs it most. Finding another man to stand tall in those moments will be Australia’s greatest challenge in his absence, however long that may be for.

The 18-year-old broke new ground against South Africa, hitting Bangladesh’s fastest fifty in ODIs

Vishal Dikshit15-Oct-2025When Bangladesh middle-order batter Shorna Akter shovelled Nadine de Klerk over long-on in their last game, the dressing room stood up for raucous applause. They were riding high on watching her spell-binding sixes. Shorna herself would have been chuffed – her third six propelled Bangladesh towards a competitive total, it was her hardest hit of the night, and it took her closer to her maiden half-century.It would have hardly hit her – if she knew at all – that nobody else had even struck three sixes in an innings for Bangladesh in their 14-year ODI history of 81 games. And that wasn’t the only record the 18-year-old broke that night. In the next over, when she ran a second for the overthrow from wicketkeeper Sinalo Jafta, Shorna also registered the fastest half-century for Bangladesh in ODI. She reached the milestone off 34 balls, breaking her captain Nigar Sultana’s record of 39 balls from the World Cup Qualifiers earlier this year.Shorna’s power-hitting against an experienced South Africa attack hit everyone watching like a draught of cold air in a warm room. Bangladesh had ambled along to 150 for 3 in 40 overs, at under four an over, after a cautious start from the openers. Even touching 200 at the time seemed like a slightly distant dream because of the lack of power-hitters in their line-up.Related

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That’s when Shorna entered, ahead of the more experienced Sobhana Mostary. On her second ball she confidently swept Nonkululeko Mlaba, one of the best bowlers of the tournament, for a four. On her eighth delivery, she danced down to attack Chloe Tryon, another left-arm spinner, to send the ball sailing over the fielder stationed at long-on for her first six. South Africa would have hardly recovered from that when she dispatched Tumi Sekhukhune over long-on too. Bangladesh were suddenly racing towards 200 with more than four overs to go. For a batter who had a high score of 29 not out before this, and an ODI strike rate of just 61 in 17 innings, this daredevilry was stunning.After all the dabs, nudges, gentle flicks and some boundary strokes that relied mostly on timing from Bangladesh for 40 overs, Shorna came out all guns blazing, with a high backlift and a flourishing swing of the bat, exhibiting much more striking power than her team-mates.”She came in with really good intent,” Tryon said of Shorna after that game. “We knew we had to play with her pace, try and get under the bat as much as we could and she has a beautiful swing. I’ve watched her over the years and just see the talent that she has. So, we just knew that we didn’t want to let her get away from us and I felt like she did. Yeah, I feel like we just could have got a better plan towards that. But yeah, she played a good innings and I’ll give that to her.”Shorna’s third six was hit the hardest and it went the longest – 77 meters – as the cameras zoomed in on the young face under the helmet with steely-eyed determination before she bowed for the .She first emerged on screens around the world in the inaugural Under-19 World Cup in 2023, when she was just 16. After growing up in Jamalpur, a small town about 170 kilometers north of Dhaka, she first featured in representative cricket in 2021 before playing in the domestic zonal tournament and then the Women’s Dhaka Premier League, the most high-profile domestic tournament for women in the country.Shorna does not change her approach when the chips are down•ICC/Getty ImagesSoon, she was picked for the Under-19 World Cup and finished as the top run-scorer for her team in South Africa with 153 runs and a strike rate of 157.73. She also hit six sixes, the joint second-most, only behind Shafali Verma’s seven. The selectors fast-tracked her for a senior T20I debut next month, in February 2023, and an ODI debut in July.Shorna then played 35 T20Is and 18 ODIs until this World Cup, all this while training for her big hits and waiting for a day like the South Africa game. Having spotted her penchant for hitting big shots in training, the message from her captain and management was to stick to her natural game and not change her approach, even if the chips were down when she went out to bat.”She’s a very capable player,” Sultana said of Shorna after the South Africa match. “I’ve spoken about her before – she’s a powerful hitter and can rotate the strike really well. She used her skills brilliantly today. The way she batted was quite incredible, and she really helped our side reach a good total.”In a team not known for many aerial hits that clear the ropes, and in a tournament that has seen more collapses than big totals, Shorna is the breath of fresh air nobody saw coming.