Whether it’s the high of a record-breaking domestic season or the low of going unsold at the IPL auction, the fast bowler only feels gratitude for everything cricket has given him

Hemant Brar18-Jan-2024Sandhya was an international-level gymnast. Her husband, Tej, had played first-class cricket for Jammu and Kashmir in the 1970s. Her older son, Uday, had made his Ranji Trophy debut. The younger son, Siddarth Kaul, wasn’t really making the most of his cricketing talent, however, and making excuses to avoid going for practice.”I did not like going to the ground,” Kaul tells ESPNcricinfo. “I loved playing in our street because when you play there, you don’t think you have to achieve this or that. You play for enjoyment, and I had started playing for that enjoyment only.”Sandhya felt Kaul was wasting his time. She knew the importance of the early years in a sportsperson’s life and decided it was time for a now-or-never talk with her son.Related

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“She said, ‘You are not even good at studies, so we cannot even say you focus there. If you are good at cricket, why not start playing at the right platform?”That was just the push Kaul needed. A couple of years later, in 2008, he was India’s highest wicket-taker at the Under-19 World Cup, and lifted the trophy with the likes of Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja.Over the years, Kaul’s wicket-taking ability and death-bowling skills made him a key member of the Punjab team in domestic cricket. He showcased, and further refined, his yorkers and slower ones during his time with Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL from 2017 to 2021.This domestic season, after 16 years in the sport, the boy who “never used to think of playing on a big platform” became the all-time leading wicket-taker in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, India’s premier domestic List A and T20 tournaments. He displaced Piyush Chawla from the top of the charts in both formats.In 75 matches in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, Kaul has 155 wickets at an average of 20.21. His seven five-fors are also a tournament record. In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, he has 120 wickets from 87 games and an economy rate of 7.02.

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When Kaul began taking cricket seriously, he had three dreams: to represent India in Tests, ODIs and T20Is. But it was not easy to fulfil them. While the talent was always there, he says he made “a few mistakes” that resulted in “some setbacks”.”When you are young, your mindset is different,” he says. “You think you know everything. So I would argue over small, small things. Young blood, you know. So things happened.”It took a decade of hard work after his junior-cricket success to find his direction again. Earlier, it was his mother who had helped him focus. Now, age and experience guided him both on and off the field, and in 2018, he made his T20I and ODI debuts for India.Kaul was a regular member of Sunrisers Hyderabad’s attack from 2017 to 2021•BCCIKaul played only three games in each format before falling out of the reckoning. There was more work to be done and he was back on the domestic circuit, putting in the hard yards.But the boy who thought he knew everything was long gone. A feeling of gratitude – or , as Kaul puts it in Punjabi – is now his default emotion. Ask him about becoming the highest wicket-taker in both white-ball domestic tournaments, and he says:”Every cricketer dreams of reaching a platform where people recognise him and his hard work. So yes, it’s a big achievement, but if the Punjab Cricket Association had not selected me for those age-group tournaments back then, this would not have been possible.”In 2022, Aavishkar Salvi, the former India and Mumbai fast bowler, was appointed Punjab’s head coach. Kaul says Salvi has also helped him hone his skills and mindset.”He is someone who knows a lot about fast bowling, and his reading of the game is outstanding,” Kaul says. “He keeps giving me these little inputs, which have really helped me.”Salvi pointed out to Kaul that depending on his performances, his mindset was fluctuating and this was feeding back into his bowling. Kaul checked his journal, which he maintains regularly, and realised that when he was bowling well, his only thought – irrespective of the match situation – was how to make his team win.”Now, whether I am bowling well or not, I try to make sure my mindset is always positive,” Kaul says. “Be it in terms of my bowling, my routines, or my body language.”In the recent Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, he was the joint fourth-highest wicket-taker as Punjab won a domestic title after 30 years. He bettered this effort in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, where he topped the wicket-takers’ list with 19 from six games.Salvi is all praise for Kaul’s wicket-taking ability. “Every eighth ball he bowled in the [Syed Mushtaq Ali] tournament with the new ball, he picked up a wicket,” he says. “That’s a very difficult task. And it’s not just one season; he has done it season after season. He has been playing regularly for the last 13 years; to maintain that consistency is not easy.”In the lead-up to this season, Kaul also worked on his batting. “It’s not like I could not bat earlier,” he says. “I had scored 47 once. In [first-class] cricket, I have a fifty as well. But in the nets, I would neglect my batting. This time I thought let’s work on it a bit more.”When you are bowling to a lower-middle-order batter, you typically bowl a bouncer and then a full ball to get him out. To overcome my unease against the short ball, I started drills with the tennis ball, then underarm with the leather ball, and then with the sidearm. Avinash, our throwdown specialist, helped me a lot in the off-season. He would bowl to me for an hour, an hour and a half in the nets.”Kaul is 26 wickets away from the 300 mark in first-class cricket•Ishan Mahal/Punjab Cricket AssociationKaul did not get to bat in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy but showed his ability in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Until the start of the season, he had averaged 7.61 and struck at 58.27 in List A cricket. This season brought him 104 runs in five innings at an average of 34.66 and a strike rate of 97.19.Kaul cherished all this success even more, given that it came after what he describes as the “hardest phase” of his life. In March, a nerve injury in the right leg had left him bedridden. He was part of the Royal Challengers Bangalore squad for IPL 2023 but was unavailable for the first half of the season. By the time he got fit, the team management decided not to disturb the combination that had worked well for them until then.In November, he was released by RCB. And despite all the wickets and runs in domestic cricket, he didn’t get a bid at the 2024 auction. But he shrugs it off.”The show must go on,” he says. “If I get disheartened by this, I won’t be able to play any cricket. When I was taking my class 10 exams, I would pray I pass somehow. My name was on the auction shortlist, so I have passed this exam. If I was picked, then I would have been a topper.”The franchises did what they thought was best for them. Now I have to do what is best for me. There is always a next time. I will get another chance to top, and I am sure I will do that.”Kaul’s immediate focus, though, is red-ball cricket. The Ranji Trophy kicked off earlier this month, and neither Kaul nor Punjab made an auspicious start. Playing against Karnataka in Hubballi, Kaul picked up 1 for 94 in the only innings he bowled and made two ducks with the bat. Punjab lost by seven wickets.He fared much better in Punjab’s second game, picking up 4 for 81 in Railways’ only innings in Mullanpur to take his tally in first-class cricket to 274. He will have at least five more games this season to push towards 300. But Kaul is not worried about this; his main goal is “to take Punjab into the final”.Kaul made his first-class debut in 2007-08. He is now 33 and by far the most experienced bowler in the Punjab side. But, in his own words, he still plays every game as if it is his first. At the same time, he has not given up on his third dream: to play Test cricket for India.”I have seen people who start thinking after one point that an India call-up is not possible, and start taking things easy. But this game has given me a lot. People recognise me because of cricket. So I can never give up. Till I am playing, I will give my 110%.”It’s because of this attitude I played for India in 2018. I stayed true to my cricket and got the chance in both white-ball formats.”And I would love to play Test cricket for India. The other two dreams have been fulfilled, only this one is pending. If I keep performing well, who knows.”

The Peshawar-born, who will play for NZ in the Under-19 World Cup, took up legspin inspired by Shane Warne and Rashid Khan

Shashank Kishore16-Jan-2024Rahman Hekmat pinches himself at the prospect of choosing cricket as a career, something Hekmatullah, his father, couldn’t because he was busy trying to give the family a better life. This sole purpose brought the Hekmats from Afghanistan to New Zealand 17 years ago, when he was just one.However, like his father, Hekmat has grown up to be a “cricket tragic”. He took up legspin after being inspired by Shane Warne’s YouTube videos and Rashid Khan’s exploits in international cricket. At 18, Hekmat is primed for an Under-19 World Cup debut for New Zealand.Hekmat was born in Peshawar, the Pakistani city in the North-West Frontier Province adjoining the Afghan border. The family first arrived in Auckland in 2006 when Hekmatullah enrolled for university to pursue engineering. Five years later, they decided to settle in the country when Hekmatullah’s job as a structural engineer gave the family stability.Related

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As Hekmat reflects on his journey into cricket from a plush hotel room in Johannesburg, he remembers his father’s early struggles to give the family a better life.”My dad came to New Zealand with literally nothing,” Hekmat tells ESPNcricinfo. “He has built our life from scratch. All he knew was the value of hard work. To have been given this chance to represent New Zealand at an Under-19 World Cup is a massive privilege. It wouldn’t have been possible without my parents’ sacrifices.”Hekmat is truly in a position of privilege. That he can take a break from academics to concentrate solely on cricket comes from knowing that his family is secure. He can’t be more grateful for this, and hopes to make them proud.”When I made it to the team, I got a lot of messages of support from the Afghan community,” Hekmat says. “It’s a big thing for me [to be] representing them. It also motivated me to do much better and perform at the highest level possible since I’m possibly the first one of Afghan origin to play for the Black Caps.”Hekmat speaks fluent Pashto. He has remained rooted to his culture, and is an active member of the Afghan community in Auckland. It’s an identity he is proud of and wouldn’t trade for anything.Rahman Hekmat (right) on his father Hekmatullah: “My dad came to New Zealand with literally nothing”•Rahman Hekmat”A lot of people ask me how I’m so fluent in Pashto,” he says with a laugh. “They’re surprised when I tell them I came here when I was one. Kids these days forget their mother tongue, but I’m very proud of my roots. I follow our traditions and customs – they’re very dear to me. And of course, I love Afghan food.”For now, though, rich Afghan food is off the plate. “No Afghan kebabs or pulao,” he laughs. “It’s tough. When my dad’s friends invite us over, they tempt me with all kinds of delicacies. But as a cricketer, I realise you have to be committed. Ever since I decided this is what I want to do, I’ve improved my diet. A year ago, I wasn’t in the best shape. But now I’m feeling good and healthy.”Hekmat began playing recreationally when he was ten. He started off as a fast bowler, but gravitated towards legspin after watching Warne’s videos on loop. It was during a regular session of corridor cricket at home with his father when he decided to switch. “It’s a tough art,” Hekmat says. “It can be unforgiving. But once you get into the rhythm and put in the hard yards, it can be rewarding.”When he was 11, Hekmat was invited to play for a club where his friend’s father coached. It was there that he developed a deep interest for the sport. He loved the camaraderie and mateship, and the opportunity to mingle with people from different communities helped develop a sense of bonding that he learnt plenty from.”Ish Sodhi has motivated me to work hard and never give up on my dreams” – Rahman Hekmat•Rahman Hekmat”It’s important to be yourself, [and] I learnt that early,” he says. “New Zealand has always been welcoming of different cultures and religion. I didn’t try to feel belonged. It was very organic because I wasn’t trying to be who I wasn’t. They enjoy the way I talk, [and also] the subcontinent gestures – like saluting elders with both hands, etc.”I want to be a role model for young kids, [and] a respectful person in society who is kind and caring. I’d rather be known for having a good attitude on the field, and being good to the umpires and the opposition with my behaviour, than just be known as a good cricketer. These things matter to me. Attitude comes first.”As Hekmat progressed through the junior circuit, he had the chance to interact with Ish Sodhi, and Hekmatullah’s familiarity with Sodhi from his younger days helped. As it turned out, there was also a family connection; Sodhi and Hekmat’s cousin were from the same circle of friends.”I’ve talked to Ish a few times, and he’s been really supportive,” Rahman says. “He’s motivated me to work hard and never give up on my dreams. Rashid Khan has been another central figure. He put Afghan spinners on the world map, and I find that very inspiring. He gives me hope that I can push on and become a good legspinner too.”Hekmat comes across as confident and mature. He realises Under-19 stardom can be a pitfall but isn’t weighed down by the pressures of playing competitive sport. He wants to relish challenges and the new experiences cricket brings him. One of those will come next week when New Zealand play Afghanistan in their second group game.

“I’m a cricket tragic. I realise you’re young only once, so the break I’ve taken from studies should be worth it”Rahman Hekmat has a lot of maturity and clarity even at 18

“It will be emotional for sure,” Hekmat says. “It will be a day to remember. But I’ll just try and make the ball talk, [and] try and contribute towards my team. Playing your motherland is a great privilege that I’m looking forward to. My folks in Kabul will be watching for sure.”Hekmat’s ultimate dream is, of course, to represent New Zealand. But there’s also a desire to play in T20 leagues at some point, like Rashid has. He is happy to soak in all the learnings now, but hopes the maturity and clarity he has at 18 helps him become not just a better cricketer but also a better person.”I’m a cricket tragic. I realise you’re young only once, so the break I’ve taken from studies should be worth it,” Hekmat said. “I’m just using this opportunity to learn at every step and refine my game every day, and also enjoy the progress I’m making rather than being caught up over one or two bad days if they come along.”This is a long journey that will be filled with challenges. I’m just learning to embrace everything cricket teaches me.”

The 43-year old offspinner bowled a tidy spell to give Uganda their first-ever win in the T20 World Cup

Mohammad Isam06-Jun-20241:45

‘At 43, Nsubuga proves age is just a number’

Three steps, a slight jump, a roll of the arms, front toe pointing towards the batter, and a release point slightly away from his ears. Frank Nsubuga , the 43-year-old offspinner, has admittedly bowled with the same action for 27 years. It also gave him a dream start to the T20 World Cup 2024.Nsubuga bowled the most economical spell (min. four overs) in T20 World Cup history, with figures of 4-2-4-2. His spell helped Uganda to their first win at the T20 World Cup, against Papua New Guinea in Guyana.”I think the action is still the same,” Nsubaga said. “That’s how I started. I haven’t changed my action. I have seen so many coaches, but they haven’t changed me. The wicket was a little bit slow. This one was a little low. It is all about keeping your length and focus straight, trying to bowl wicket-to-wicket. Just keep it simple.”Related

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Coming on to bowl in the ninth over, he gave away just two runs in his first over. He then bowled a wicket-maiden over, in which he removed Charles Amini with a delivery that slid right through the charging batter. In the first ball of his next over, he fired one full on middle and leg and pinned Hiri Hiri, who came down the track, in front. By the time his spell ended, PNG were 56 for 6 and Uganda were on top of things.Uganda captain Brian Masaba, bowling in tandem with Nsubaga, also finished strong with 1 for 17 in four overs. Masaba was all praise for Nsubaga, calling him a “special” player.”What can I say about Frank that hasn’t been said already? I mean, he’s a special guy,” Masaba said. “I watched Frank play growing up, so to see him do what he does on the biggest stage makes me very emotional. To be there to witness it, I don’t quite have the words. He deserves it.”We know how good he is, how good he’s been over the years and the amount of work he has taken to stay that consistent. It’s incredible. So, for him to come out, I’m not surprised that he did what he did, but doing it at this stage, that’s very, very special.”Frank Nsubuga, 43, bowled back-to-back wicket maidens•ICC via Getty Images’To the fans, thank you very much’Masaba – who was also at the non-striker’s end when the winning runs were scored – also said Uganda were an improved side in their second outing following their tournament-opening loss to Afghanistan.”When you think about [comparing] it from the other day, we got our plans right,” Masaba said. “Our execution was much better… the ability to adjust very quickly to the conditions. I am super proud of the bowling unit. They set up the game for us.”Being there at the end was very special for me as well, probably my most important zero not out, but yeah very special because big night for Uganda cricket and I was there to witness it.”Uganda also owed this win to a 35-run stand between Riazat Ali Shah and Juma Miyagi, who came together when they were 26 for 5. Masaba said that the pair keeping their nerves at that stage was crucial.”When you are three-down early, chasing a low score, we know how it can be. It was a real scrap out there. Every run they scored was very important and kudos to them for keeping their heads down and doing the job for their teams.Masaba also dedicated the win to the fans back home in Uganda.”We have a pretty special group of fans, who travel all around the world and support us. I don’t think they came expecting a win in the World Cup but this is the least we can do for them. I hope they feel as special as we do. There is a huge following back home. They stay up till 3:30 or 4:30 in the morning, it is not easy.”We salute them and appreciate them. I have a couple of guys from my old school who have threatened my life if I don’t give them regards live on TV. To the fans, thank you very much and keep bringing the support.”

We’ve narrowed it down to 10… which one gets your vote?

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New Zealand’s talent identification manager talks about developing the side’s next generation of quicks and spinners

Deivarayan Muthu21-Jul-2024Former New Zealand offspinner Paul Wiseman put the country’s next generation of batters through their paces and oversaw their development at a camp in Chennai in June, ahead of tours of the subcontinent for both the senior and A teams. Upon return to New Zealand, Wiseman spoke to us about his role as a talent-identification manager handling the transition and development of the country’s up and coming bowlers.What were your impressions of Dean Foxcroft, Mitch Hay and Tim Robinson during the Chennai camp?
I haven’t really met them in person yet since we got back from Chennai, but even within the first week, it was pretty obvious to see the gains they had made, especially from a batting perspective: understanding of the different surfaces – the black clay and the red clay – to get into the best positions to access the ball with some power and not get stuck, if you have players around the bat and that sort of thing. It won’t be until they get into those situations again that we will see the true value of it. I think just in general, the way they approach spin and the standard of their game against spin has been hugely elevated since and during that trip.Winter camps like the one you currently have at the NZ High Performance Centre in Lincoln, where you have a “marquee” protecting the wickets from the weather and simulating certain conditions ahead of tours – how have these camps benefited players?
The marquees have been a game-change for us. It gets pretty cold here in the middle of the winter; I think it was -2°C here last night. But we can still train all year around with the marquee and we can create our own little ecosystem where we can actually produce wickets that do turn.Related

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We’ve got the Merlin bowling machine as well, which can replicate what a lot of these guys do face. But it’s [not like how] you get an experience like being in Chennai when it’s hot and humid and you’ve got different people bowling at you, and maybe you don’t feel well all the time and those sorts of things. But for us to be able to train there [with the marquee] during the winter has been an absolute game-changer, and we have many camps, for both men and women throughout the winter. So it’s been awesome.You’ve been New Zealand’s talent identification manager for over a decade. What drives you in this role?
You’ve aged me a bit there (). It’s getting close [to a decade].Look, it’s the same things that excite me as they did when I started [in 2015]. It gives me immense satisfaction to see young, raw talent coming through and becoming refined international cricketers. More importantly, to see them develop as people, as husbands, fathers, and becoming that rounded person we’re all wanting to be. Cricket is not the most rounding game, and it takes a long time… you’re away so many days. A lot of these guys are getting to have their lives outside of cricket going, and to get that balance is so crucial.Mitchell Hay (right-most) trained at the Super Kings Academy in Chennai earlier this year•Super Kings AcademyHow do you strike a balance between player development and getting results at the age-group level?
Yeah, it’s a tricky balance. We don’t shy away from the fact that [we want] our players and coaches to be competitive. We want them to compete, but not at the detriment of the [player] development side of things. At the Under-19 World Cup, we try and get across to players as much as we can. It [the U-19 World Cup] is an incredible experience, if you’re lucky enough to get it. But it’s not a career-defining one.Yes, you’re going out to try and win every game, but as you would have seen during the last World Cup, all our players played. Who knows what the strongest side would have been, but that wasn’t our priority. Our priority was to give as many players the experience we can, because we feel down the line that will benefit them more than just trying to win a U-19 World Cup.If that [U-19 World Cup title] comes along, it’s an awesome experience because it’s extra games. But we’re in it for the long term and for even the guys that miss out, it’s not career-defining. Because of the size of our talent pool, we are able to keep some of those guys that don’t make it in our high-performance programmes as well. So that’s one of the advantages of having a smaller talent pool.How do you make the most of that smaller talent pool and nurture them?
It’s obvious that we don’t have the sheer numbers that an India or Pakistan or England have, in terms of talent, and we don’t have the resources around it. So we have to be quite smart with what we have got. We have to invest in what we think is the right talent but we also have to be able to give them time. We tend to be a little bit later developing, and that’s probably because we encourage our athletes to play as many sports as they can until they have to make a decision [about which one to focus on].A lot of our athletes could have been All Blacks and Black Caps, or hockey players or basketball players as well. So we’ve got a number of guys that play other sports to a high level, and the risk is we [might] lose them to that sport. But if we encourage them to do that, we’re going to get more rounded persons and athletes, and by the time they chose to come to our sport, they will be a better athlete for it rather than specialising early. And then we also have to have a lot of patience, and understand that our sport may not be the one that they eventually choose.It’s becoming more competitive with even the likes of rugby now because of tournaments like the IPL. The pay has swung back in favour of cricket and you can probably have a longer career and have your head and your body at the end of it as well (). So cricket is an attractive sport for young men and young women in New Zealand, especially from a financial perspective now.Will O’Rourke took 4 for 59 and 5 for 34 on his Test debut, against South Africa in February this year•Hannah Peters / GettyNew Zealand’s senior team, especially the bowling attack, is in transition. How do you manage this phase?
We have had an incredible decade or so of talent that has been at the top. New Zealand cricket, for a long time, has had freakish years. If you go back to the Under-19s in 2009-10, there were 16 Black Caps that came out of that one year plus two other internationals – Logan van Beek, who has played for Holland, and Theo van Woerkom, who has played for Ireland. Tom Walsh, a shot putter, came out the same year. Just two years before that came [Kane] Williamson, [Trent] Boult and [Tim] Southee.So there’s no hiding that we had a freakish amount of players that came through at the same time. And obviously they’re all of similar ages and will be transitioning into other parts of their life or other parts of the game. So we’ve got some of the New Zealand greats stepping out in the next few years and just recently as well, with Boulty.You’ve got to replace those guys, but you can’t just replace greats overnight. We need to focus on the areas of the goods and the very-goods and get them to the highest level they can be, and we have been blessed with a number of those guys as well – Lathams, Nicholls and Henrys. They are all now world-class players, and that comes from great work ethic and attitude and wanting to learn. Those sort of things we hold pretty dear in New Zealand cricket. We have to be patient with players coming through because it might not be possible to replace players like Trent Boult or Kane Williamson just like that.But the likes of Will O’Rourke have stepped straight in and had instant success, and Ben Sears and Ben Lister as well. The thing that has happened is, there has been a bit of logjam with these very-goods and the greats, which has meant that our players, when they do get the chance, they have tended to have quite a few seasons under their belt. Over the last six-seven years, pretty much every guy that has debuted has come in and had success, which has been fantastic. So we need to keep that going and we have got some nice talent coming through – Rachin [Ravindra], Searsy and Will got their first central contracts, and there are a few other quicks coming through below them.Give us a rundown of some of those up-and-coming fast bowlers. Sriram Krishnamurthy, who has been with the Wellington and Chennai Super Kings age-group coaching system, regards Sears very highly.
Ben Lister, in my mind, has a huge ceiling. Unfortunately he and the likes of Henry Shipley have been hampered by injury and illness over the last year or so. But they are still youngish men and are guys with big futures and hopefully opportunities to come.

New Zealand bowlers to watch

Will O’Rourke
The 22-year-old fast bowler made New Zealand’s ODI side less than two years after making his domestic debut. and took a nine-wicket match haul on Test debut.

Ben Sears
The 26-year-old fast bowler can consistently hit speeds upwards of 140kph and generate extra bounce.

Ben Lister
Lister has an assortment of variations in his repertoire, including cutters, bouncers and yorkers. The 28-year-old has played three ODIs and 12 T20Is for New Zealand and earned a deal with Nottinghamshire in the 2024 T20 Blast in the UK.

Adi Ashok
A modern wristspinner, who can bowl a skiddy googly, the 21-year-old has been earmarked to take over from Ish Sodhi. He has already played three white-ball internationals for New Zealand and took a seven-for against Northern Districts last year.

Ben [Sears] and Will are different people and have got up to this level in different ways. Ben is a little bit older; he was with the New Zealand U-19 team in Bangladesh in 2016. And it has taken a little bit of time for his progress. You get niggles and injuries when you bowl as fast as he can. It’s a natural thing for a fast bowler and now he has reached physical maturation, which hopefully means a lot of the major injuries are behind him. He’s also been doing a law degree – a very smart man – and he’s really starting to understand his game.Will is a very fast learner and listens well and has taken a short period of time to get to where he’s got to. He’s managed to remain pretty injury-free up to this point, touch wood.So, [it’s about] managing these two young quicks, and the likes of Shipley and Lister and Matt Henry are obviously more experienced and matured. We’ve got to get [Kyle] Jamieson fit and back on the park as well. Nathan Smith is also handy with the bat, as is Zak Foulkes. Then there’s Matt Fisher, who played in the 2018 U-19 World Cup. He’s got good pace and has played for New Zealand A too. There’s some really exciting talent there but we’ve got to manage them really well if we want to have consistent performances at the highest level.Like Shipley, O’Rourke and Jamieson, their Canterbury team-mate Zak Foukes gives the attack a point of difference with his height and ability to generate steep bounce. What do you make of these tall, hit-the-deck quicks from Canterbury?
It’s got to be one of the tallest bowling attacks in the world. Jamieson at 6’8” and then you also have Michael Rae, who is probably 6’6”, and then the others are about 6’5”. Henners [Matt Henry] is shorter, but he’s a genius. I don’t know if we can get all those guys on the park at the same time but it will be a real test for any batter, I think. They are an exciting group and it would be great to see all of them fit in at the same time.Rachin Ravindra has been one of the success stories of New Zealand and Wellington’s age-group systems. Is that something the next generation resonates with?
Rachin is one of those kids who is self-made. He and his dad… the story has been repeated many times. He used to get up at five in the morning and drag his dad down to the indoor nets, so he was always going to be a very good cricketer. It was just a matter of when his chance would come along. His success and story has had a bit of knock-on effect, especially in Wellington where the young batters are training and hitting a lot of balls. You can’t get away from hard work and being smart about things. It can get you a long way in life in anything that you do.If you look around the domestic sides and even the Black Caps, the work ethic in those players has driven New Zealand Cricket to where it has got to, considering the small population that we have.Dean Foxcroft had a chance to test his offspin against Tamil Nadu Premier League batters in a T20 game in Chennai•Super Kings AcademyBeyond Mitch Santner and Ish Sodhi, even New Zealand’s spin pool has depth now, with Ajaz Patel, Adi Ashok, Michael Rippon and Tim Pringle around. How pleased are you with the spin stocks?
We’re probably the strongest we’ve been. Yes, we don’t have a great [such as] in Dan Vettori right now but we’ve got some very-goods. Mitch Santner is such a wonderful white-ball bowler and has now become a red-ball bowler as well. The likes of the Rachins, [Glenn] Phillips and the [Michael] Bracewells and Santners that all bat as well. Foxcroft can also bowl, and Cole McConchie is another guy who bats and bowls. Adi and Tim Pringle are both injured at the moment but they’re highly promising spinners and Rips [Michael Rippon] being a left-arm wristspinner. Rachin didn’t bowl much at CSK because of the quality spinners there, but he can do a job.Below that, there are some young spinners coming through. [Rahman Hekmat], the Auckland legspinner, unfortunately missed the U-19 World Cup earlier this year because of a stress fracture, and there’s a mystery spinner coming up through Canterbury as well. So I’m really excited by it and we have got to invest a lot of time into these guys and give them the experience. It’s a little bit like what we had in Chennai and in the marquees – to try and encourage our coaches [to nurture them]. Some of these pitches are becoming more conducive to spin, and the only way you get better is when you play. You can have talent but if you’re not bowling overs in the games, it makes it difficult to progress.The seam-friendly conditions across New Zealand mean some of these spinners are relegated to the sidelines. How do you deal with that challenge and give them more game time?
Yeah, it’s challenging and frustrating for the likes of Ajaz. He takes a ten-for in Mumbai and then he sits on the sidelines the next time he’s back home. It’s hugely frustrating for him and it’s hard to sit and watch, but you can understand it as well. The way Test match pitches are being developed now, they’re often extreme because of the importance of winning Test matches and points at home to compete for a World Test Championship.But the encouraging thing from last year is two of our Test pitches turned quite a lot. I think Nathan Lyon really enjoyed the Basin Reserve, which normally doesn’t turn a lot but had turn and bounce to offer in that game. Seddon Park also turned, and the Bay Oval also offered something to spinners.Unfortunately, we didn’t really use the pitches that well because it was a little bit against the run of play. Normally it doesn’t spin as much, so unfortunately we went a spinner light and it will be interesting to see if they [curators] produce the same ones this season.But certainly in first-class cricket. Last season, a used wicket was used at Seddon Park and it turned. It was really cool and we saw some games being won by spinners on the last day. The more we can do that means it challenges the batters, close-in fielders and the captains, who have to think in a different way. You know it’s good for the game, so we have to try and find ways of keeping bounce and pace in the middle two-thirds of the pitch and maybe the ends can a bit more conductive to spin. If we can do that, we can develop that sort of cricketer, who can perform in all conditions.

On the face of it, Maharaj seemed to get away with bowling three full tosses in the final over, but there was more to it than meets the naked eye

Sidharth Monga11-Jun-20241:01

Manjrekar: Maharaj’s final over was poor, but Bangladesh’s batting was poorer

Modern broadcasts are a great way to watch cricket. Especially T20 cricket because things happen extremely quickly in this format and there are too many distractions in the stands to follow them. Yet, despite all the technological advancements, TV cameras can sometimes miss things.On TV, you saw Keshav Maharaj defend 10 runs in the last over of yet another thriller, between Bangladesh and South Africa, in the low-scoring Westbury, New York despite bowling three full tosses. On TV, Maharaj got away with it. He probably did, but we need to see more before we make that comment.Let’s give it a slight build-up, shall we? Bangladesh were 83 for 4 in 15 overs chasing 114. The moment Aiden Markram went to Anrich Nortje for the 16th over, Maharaj knew he would be bowling the 20th over. South Africa didn’t want the game to be over even before it went to the last over. So they bowled their fast bowlers first in the hope that they give Maharaj as many runs to defend with as possible.Related

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Maharaj, who had never bowled the 20th over of a T20 match where ball-by-ball record is available, watched on with some nerves. TV didn’t show you that. He said he was more nervous during those overs than when he actually got the ball in his hand. He was going through his “processes and plans” especially as it became probable during the 19th over that he would have a good chance of winning it for South Africa in the last over.Maharaj began the last over by bowling into the pitch and trying to cramp Mahmudullah up. He wanted to take the off side, the shorter boundary, away from Mahmudullah. He bowled a wide trying to do so but then managed to get Mahmudullah off the strike. Then came an ordinary throw from Markram at long-on to miss running out Mahmudullah.Eight years on from being part of a final-over meltdown against India, Mahmudullah, a longer and greyer beard on him, risked running himself out for a second that would put Jaker Ali back on strike. Mahmudullah perhaps didn’t take it all upon himself because he knew the pitch and the outfield couldn’t be trusted to hit two boundaries in the final over.The broadcast showed you the drama around the lbw appeal for Rishad Hossain the ball after Jaker fell. The DRS process showed clearly that Rishad was not out, which meant the leg-bye taken stood. TV asked the Bangladeshi commentator Athar Ali Khan if he was thinking of the four possible leg-byes on an earlier DRS call that Bangladesh got successfully reversed.Enough time for drama, not enough for nuance. A tantalising thought, but one that somehow only becomes relevant in close finishes. One that also omits to mention that the “solution” being offered for what is not really established as a “problem” means either doing away with the appeal or the umpires altogether. To let the ball stay alive as if the batter is not out means the bowlers and the keeper and the fielders are expected to field the ball and not appeal.At any rate, the drama we watch or imagine is immaterial to what is happening in the middle. Were Bangladesh thinking of those four leg-byes? Who knows? Their best batter on the day, Towhid Hridoy, said they felt some hurt with the call made, a natural reaction from a competitor, but acknowledged the umpires are human and they can make a mistake. He didn’t say he had a problem with the rule as it stood. He also felt a couple of calls on wides could have gone their way.South Africa players celebrate after the win against Bangladesh•Getty ImagesIn that moment, though, Mahmudullah was back on strike, and he had two balls to hit a six in. At least he could now do it in one boundary. He was going to now look to do it on his own. Which is what brings us to the second of the three full tosses. Maharaj was looking to bowl a yorker, but the wind behind him, which had just picked up, carried it a little further, turning into a low full toss, and the same wind held the Mahmudullah shot up after it had looked like a six when it left the bat.It wasn’t really gusty, but this breeze had just picked up. What made Maharaj miss his execution also helped him. It wasn’t really apparent to the naked eye from inside a box until Maharaj mentioned it.And finally, TV didn’t show the great catch that Markram took at long-on. It showed you the completion of the catch, but the catch was made by the start of it. Guilty of the ordinary throw earlier in that over, Markram had four seconds from the moment the ball hit the bat to the completion of the catch. TV showed you only the last of those four.It is funny how such short events can be etched in your mind and play in slow motion. Markram began his dash to his left in a rush, then looked up to see where the ball was, realised he was close to the line of it, slowed down, but felt it was clearing him. The long-off fielder, the tall Marco Jansen, had run towards him. The relay catch was an option in this moment, but in a split second Markram realised the ball had held up in the wind and went for a solo catch. The setup and the timing of the leap was perfect.So Maharaj perhaps still did get away with it, but not in the way we originally thought he did. A little like how we thought Jasprit Bumrah got away with two full tosses in the 19th over against Pakistan but that’s also partly because of the opposite of dip that he gets on his balls. They land fuller than batters first calculate them. In the last two years, he has gone at about a run a full toss, and we are talking full toss with respect to the stumps and not those taken on the full by an advancing batter. Perhaps Bumrah, too, should have been hit for at least one six, but his full tosses are tougher to hit than your average bowler.And so Mahmudullah walked back in disbelief looking at that one metre between win and defeat, between being assured of a Super Eights place and another fight for qualification. In a brief moment, a lifetime’s work of repetitions, be with the ball, with the bat or indeed with the catch. A messy little event that a broadcast can’t always do justice with.

Dhawan and Rohit Sharma formed one of the great opening partnerships in ODI cricket, with 18 century partnerships

S Rajesh24-Aug-20241:37

Dhawan’s top 10

187 – Dhawan’s score in his first innings in Test cricket – against Australia in Mohali – the highest by an India debutant in men’s Tests, and the eighth-best overall. His century came off just 85 balls, the fastest on debut.44.11 – His ODI average; in 164 innings, he scored 6793 runs at a strike rate of 91.35. Among the 19 India batters who have scored 3000 or more ODI runs, only four – Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma and Sachin Tendulkar – have higher averages.