A string of injuries to their fast bowlers means spin is India’s only chance at victory; a lack of quality spinning options means acutely crumbling tracks are the need of the hour

Sharda Ugra28-Feb-2013An American football coach once had the basic principle of sports writing explained to him by a reporter: “When you lose, we make fun of you. When you win, we make fun of the other guy.”Much fun, therefore, is being made of Australia’s bloopers in the Chennai Test and India are spared the pincushion treatment for now. They would hope the respite lasts for another few months at least.Victory in the Chennai Test has brought relief rather than fist-pumping ‘payback’ celebration. Three Tests and three months of introspection lay between India’s last Test victory in Ahmedabad against England and the Chennai Test. This was a victory they needed as much as they wanted. It was eked out through a fairly simple formula, one that India hopes will keep working through the rest of the series.Chennai was dusted and done, in that order, 90 minutes into day five. After MS Dhoni’s brutal double-century on Sunday, the Indian spinners brought their brand of business into play on day four. R Ashwin, Harbhajan Singh and Ravinder Jadeja ran through the Australian batting on a track that spat, bit and either leapt with venom or sizzled with zip.This is the way this series is going to go, in all likelihood. The focus is on pitches that will allow India to successfully play three spinners, including Jadeja. As long as their batsmen can hold out (Dhoni did far more than hold out in Chennai, he led a surge) and the inexperienced Australians keep sweating, India will control the series.It is, it appears, India’s best chance of securing a result that stays true to script and overturns their own overturning by England.Before Chennai, India’s last Test victory had come on a sluggish surface and led to complaints about the man-hours and sweat-buckets required by India’s spinners to get 20 wickets. The turner that was demanded, rather openly, backfired on them in Mumbai after England re-grouped, played Monty Panesar ahead of Tim Bresnan and roared back.The only similarity between Panesar and Australia’s Xavier Doherty is that they are quickish left-arm spinners. Doherty is more of a limited-overs specialist and, not surprisingly, Panesar has played over 100 first-class matches more than him. India will be on the lookout for any copycat approaches from Australia which, if unsuccessful, will no doubt be mocked too.So far so good. Chennai was originally the venue of the fourth and final Test of the series. The venues were switched around to open the series in the south when it was decided that Hyderabad would host the second Test instead of Kanpur (Cricket Australia had expressed dissatisfaction over the facilities in Kanpur). The ideal script for India would be Australia heading into a north Indian spring, in Mohali and Delhi, 0-2 down.

To say that a dry, slow, crumbling, unpredictable pitch equates to what other sides do – play to the home team’s ‘strength’ – is somewhat misleading. If India had more confidence in the spinners they consider their ‘strength’, the surfaces would not require “selective watering”

VVS Laxman’s succinct description on television of what the pitch in his home town for the second Test would be was “hard, firm and crumbling”. In the previous Test played in Hyderabad, New Zealand were beaten soon after tea on the fourth day, with Ashwin and Ojha taking 18 of the 20 wickets.Word from the Indian camp is that injury to one quick bowler after another meant that spin became the only 20-wicket option available to the hosts for this series. One tally even has the number of injured at ten but in real terms the list includes Zaheer Khan, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron, Vinay Kumar, Irfan Pathan and a fittish RP Singh (who comes with wishful longing for a 2007 version).The Chepauk track was called ‘decent’ by Dhoni and ‘typically Indian’ by Jadeja, while Clarke said it “looked a lot worse than it played”. There were 1243 runs and 32 wickets over four-and-a-bit days, evidence, it was said, of its perfectly respectable nature. What cannot be denied though is that – barring Pattinson’s manful effort in the first innings – the pitch largely favoured a type of bowler, rather than give both quicks and slow men their moments over five days.Ironically, the species of bowler Chennai favoured is the kind that is sadly going out of vogue in India to the point that the national selectors couldn’t find a surprise newcomer to throw into the mix. Laxman’s estimate of the number of quality spinners – and he knew how to play them – in the country numbered at “seven or eight”, rather than the “two or three per domestic team” that he remembered running into in the 1990s.To say that a dry, slow, crumbling, unpredictable pitch equates to what other sides do – play to the home team’s ‘strength’ – is somewhat misleading. If India had more confidence in the spinners they consider their ‘strength’, the surfaces would not require, as the Chennai curator delightfully explained in the on Wednesday morning, “selective watering”. This is more a reflection of India’s limited options and the weakness of a new, raw generation of Australian batsmen. And not wanting to be made fun of.

Batter returns from injury to rescue team with half-century after familiar top-order slump

ECB Reporters Network13-Jul-2021Middlesex 324 (Robson 154, Davis 5-66) and 176 for 7 (Eskinazi 53*) lead Leicestershire 228 (Ackermann 82, Inglis 49) by 272 runsStevie Eskinazi made an unexpected return from injury to score a vital half-century and strengthen Middlesex’s hopes of forcing a rare LV= Insurance County Championship victory against Leicestershire.Eskinazi, who had seemed unlikely to play any further part at Merchant Taylors’ School after he pulled up in pain while batting on day one, emerged with a runner to salvage Middlesex’s second innings after they crashed to 17 for 4.The 27-year-old blunted the Leicestershire attack and top-scored with a gritty 53 not out as he and James Harris shared a sixth-wicket partnership of 77, lifting Middlesex to 176 for 7 at stumps – a lead of 272.That leaves the Foxes, who were earlier dismissed for 228, with the prospect of chasing an awkward target on the final day.Resuming on 174 for 5, Leicestershire chipped away at the deficit until the introduction of Daryl Mitchell paid immediate dividends, with both Ben Mike and Callum Parkinson caught behind.Wicketkeeper Robbie White claimed his fourth catch of the innings when Ed Barnes, fuelled by the momentum of last week’s career-best 83 not out against Somerset, misjudged an ambitious pull shot against Harris.Foxes captain Colin Ackermann, having spent almost five and a half hours over his watchful 82, eventually fell to an Ethan Bamber delivery that swung away to hit off stump.The Middlesex seamer finished with 3 for 54 when the diving Joe Cracknell caught last man Will Davis low at first slip – but the home side’s lead of 96 was made to look flimsy as their top order crumbled second time around.Davis added another three wickets to his five from the first innings, while Ackermann completed a trio of slip catches, the best of them at shoulder height to remove Josh de Caires.However, Mitchell and White batted sensibly to repair the damage, adding 38 before the New Zealander was adjudged lbw to Mike despite the hint of an inside edge.White, dropped early on by Davis at third slip, went on to make 34 and looked on course for a potential match-winning knock until he chipped Parkinson to backward square leg just before tea.But Eskinazi, having taken almost half an hour to get off the mark, held firm and joined forces with Harris in a resolute stand that combined patience with good shot selection.Barnes eventually pinned Harris lbw for 26 with an inswinging yorker, but Eskinazi carved the last ball of the day for four to bring up his half-century.

After his playing days, which brought 132 Test wickets, Mallett became a prolific writer

AAP and ESPNcricinfo staff29-Oct-2021Australia spin-bowling great Ashley Mallett has died at age 76 after a long battle with cancer.Mallett played 38 Tests from his debut against England in 1968 and took 132 wickets at an average of 29.84, also finishing his Test career against England in 1980.Quietly-spoken Mallett is behind only Nathan Lyon (399 wickets) and Hugh Trumble (141) as Australia’s most successful Test offspinners.Mallett’s 8 for 59 against Pakistan in 1972 was the eighth-best bowling performance by an Australian in a Test innings.He earned the ironic nickname Rowdy due to his quietly-spoken nature. Mallett rocketed to fame during his second overseas tour for Australia as Bill Lawry’s team secured a 3-1 series victory over India. During that series, Mallett snared 28 wickets at an average of 19.10, including a match haul of 10 wickets in the fifth and final Test.”Ashley Mallett was a wonderful player, admired journalist and highly acclaimed author,” Richard Freudenstein, chair of Cricket Australia, said: “He played a significant part in Australian cricket not only as a player but as a prolific storyteller who has preserved the memories of some of the game’s greatest and moments in time for people to enjoy through the ages.”Ashley was a humble man whose deeds outweighed his reserved personality. He will be missed within the Australian cricketing landscape and we offer our sincerest condolences to his family, friends, colleagues across all industries and team-mates.”Mallett started his career in Western Australia, but with spinners Tony Lock and Tony Mann ahead of him in the pecking order, he made the switch to South Australia. The move proved to be a masterstroke, with Mallett flourishing in a first-class career that would eventually span 183 matches in which he claimed 693 wickets at 26.27.Mallett scored a legion of fans after his playing career finished through his writing. He was active in that sense up until recently, co-authoring Neil Harvey’s biography , which was released in June.

On the win: ‘We had the belief that we could get them out in those 60 overs’
“Super proud of the whole team, the way we stuck to our plans in this Test match after being put in. Our performance with the bat was outstanding. The pitch didn’t offer much [to the bowlers] in the first three days to be honest. I think the first day was most challenging [for the batters], after that it was quite difficult for the bowlers to gain anything from the track but I think the way we played in the second innings, after being put under pressure this morning, Jasprit and Shami, was absolutely outstanding.”We thought 60 overs to go, we could have a crack at the result, and we had the belief that we could get them out in those 60 overs. I think the bowlers were just outstanding and what happened in our second innings, right at the end with the bowlers, a bit of tension on the field [and needle between the teams] really helped us and really motivated us to finish this game.”On lower order’s contribution with bat: ‘They have that desire in them to do the job’
Just to applaud what Jasprit and Shami did… It takes a lot of character and heart to play under those circumstances as bowlers who don’t get much to bat, and just putting their hand up for the team when we needed it most, it was something that we were really proud of and we want to let them know. They were charged up and both took the new ball and got us two breakthroughs as well, which were very crucial for us.”When we were our most successful in Test cricket for a year and a half, our lower order was contributing big time and that’s something that we went away from a little bit when we play away from home. So that was one of our focuses, the batting coach has really worked hard with the boys and they are putting in the hard work. Most importantly when they walk out to bat, they believe that they can stay there and give some runs for the team. I think that belief was missing [before]; we were practising but now they have that desire in them to do the job for the team and we know how priceless those runs are and that proved to be the case even today as well.”Comparing this victory to the 2014 Lord’s win: ‘What happened on the field really charged us up’
“I was part of the winning Test match last time when I was a player under MS [Dhoni]. That was pretty special as well, Ishant bowled an outstanding spell. In that game, we put them under pressure on day four itself.”But this one, to get a result in 60 overs, when we all thought let’s just have a crack at what we have in front of us… It’s quite special and especially when someone like Siraj is playing for the first time at Lord’s and bowling the way he did, [it] was outstanding. As I said, what happened on the field [the verbals] really charged us up and gave us that extra motivation to finish the game off.”On the timing of the declaration: ‘I thought anything under 55 doesn’t sound right’
“It was more a case of ‘what’s the number of overs we are comfortable with’. I thought anything under 55 doesn’t sound right, I don’t want to walk off the field later thinking ‘what if we had four or five more overs left with us’. We decided, okay, 60 is our mark, and we are going to have a crack at them in 60 overs but, as I said, the crucial breakthroughs with the ball were the right start for us and we carried on from there.”We have three more games to go, our aim is five Test matches. We are not going to sit on our laurels after this match and just take it easy. If at all, we going to get more intense and more precise in what we do in the next three games.”

Their win over Central Punjab keeps their hopes of qualification still alive

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Oct-2021

Khushdil Shah stroked Pakistan’s fastest hundred in T20 cricket•PCB

Southern Punjab kept their slender hopes of qualification to the knockouts alive with a second successive win, beating table-toppers Central Punjab by six wickets with an over to spare.Southern Punjab decided to field first after winning the toss, and made early inroads straightaway. Aamer Yamin struck up front to remove Kamran Akmal for a duck, while Naseem Shah dismissed the other opener Mohammad Akhlaq cheaply. Hussain Talat held the innings together with another half-century, his 46-ball 68 the spine of an innings that was falling apart at the other end. Fast bowler Zia-ul-Haq then burst through the lower order, taking four wickets to hobble Central Punjab, who ended up limping to 154.Waqas Maqsood and Faheem Ashraf struck early to give CP hope but saw it dashed by a 92-run fourth wicket partnership that effectively ended any hopes they harboured of getting one over their derby rivals. Tayyab Tahir and Khushdil Shah, each of whom struck half-centuries, shepherded the chase calmly, never really in danger of letting the run rate climb too high. Tahir fell with just three runs needed to win, but by then he had done enough to ensure a Southern Punjab win.

New Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca will have his work cut out this summer, making decisions on his preferred squad, and drilling his system into the new players ahead of their 2024/25 Premier League campaign, with the aim of returning to Champions League football.

The Blues have already seen the likes of Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Tosin Adarabioyo, Omari Kellyman, and Marc Guiu join the club, whilst also seeing the likes of Ian Maatsen, Omari Hutchinson, and legendary defender Thiago Silva leave the club.

But rumours continue to circulate, as Chelsea look to complete their transfer business ready for pre-season, and it appears the attacking reinforcements could be next to come, with plenty of links to wingers and strikers.

Chelsea looking at Bundesliga forward

According to reports from Italian outlet Calciomercato, Chelsea are interested in Dortmund forward Karim Adeyemi, but could face competition from Juventus and Thiago Motta who are also interested in the young attacker.

Juventus are reportedly also interested in Manchester United's Jadon Sancho and Mason Greenwood, which could leave Chelsea with a free run at Adeyemi if Dortmund are willing to negotiate for the 22-year-old.

Further reports from Italy suggest Chelsea are in 'constant contact' with the player's entourage and they now view him as their 'main target'.

Adeyemi made 34 appearances for Dortmund in all competitions last season, scoring five goals, providing two assists, and totalling 1,710 minutes for the German outfit. He was predominantly deployed off the left but did also make eight appearances from the right and two appearances through the middle.

How Adeyemi compares to Mudryk

From a G/A perspective, Mudryk is quite similar to Adeyemi, making 41 appearances for Chelsea in all competitions, scoring seven goals, and providing two assists in 2,015 minutes.

Both players also possess frightening levels of speed, clocking speeds in the top 15 of fastest players in the world. Mudryk comes in at 10th, whilst Adeyemi ranks 13th in this list.

And the comparisons don't stop there, as Fbref has them down as the number one "similar player" to each other in their compare players feature.

Mudryk thrives when he has space to drive into, whether that's coming inside or down the touchline. The Ukrainian averages 5.25 progressive carries per 90, and 2.23 successful take-ons per 90, and these are two of his most impressive metrics.

Adeyemi's best stats also come in this area, averaging 4.33 progressive carries per 90, and 1.72 successful take-ons per 90. However, the German has a better understanding of using his speed, the timing of his runs to get in behind, and making that physical asset one of his biggest strengths.

This has been a weakness of Mudryk in recent seasons, struggling to harness that pace, gain control, and time his runs to help his team. His movement feels less natural, and he is much more comfortable coming to feet, than using that pace to stretch defences in behind.

Where Adeyemi would need to improve is his final ball and decision-making, in order to make him a more creative asset than just an "electric" winger, as he was coined by analyst Ben Mattinson.

The Dortmund star averages 1.28 key passes per 90, 0.78 passes into the final third, and only 2.17 crosses per 90. Compared to Mudryk, who makes 1.83 key passes per 90, 1.37 passes into the final third, and 4.45 crosses per 90.

Whilst it wouldn't make any sense for Chelsea to have both Mudryk and Adeyemi on the books, in the case that Mudryk was moved on, Adeyemi could be a similar asset, with the potential to mold him into far more.

Maresca eyeing deal for £35m titan who'd ignite Mudryk's Chelsea career

It’s about time that the Ukrainian demonstrated his talents at Stamford Bridge.

By
Ethan Lamb

Jul 6, 2024

da marjack bet： Having lost Amadou Onana to Aston Villa earlier this summer, Everton were reportedly positioning themselves to sign a replacement who has starred at the Olympics, before suffering a major blow in their pursuit.

Everton transfer news

da bet7： To their credit, even without a solution to their ownership troubles, Everton have spent well this summer. The Toffees have welcomed the likes of Iliman Ndiaye, Jesper Lindstrom and, most recently, Jake O'Brien in a move to hand Jarrad Branthwaite an ideal defensive partner for the long-term future. The former Lyon centre-back impressed in Ligue 1, earning a Premier League switch as a result.

The 23-year-old told Everton's official website after putting pen to paper: "I’m buzzing and so happy to have signed for Everton. I've been dreaming of this kind of move in the Premier League, with such a historic club. It's a very exciting move for me.

“Everton is a huge club with a lot of history behind it and there's a big future as well. When the transfer window opened there were other clubs in for me but there was only one club I wanted to go to – it was Everton. They’ve shown the faith in me so now it's my turn to show why on the pitch.”

Related Everton swap deal to get rid of Beto for "lethal" forward may take off soon

The Toffees could finally get their man…

Posts ByTom Cunningham Aug 7, 2024

The Toffees didn't seem to be done there, either. According to L'Equipe, Everton were positioning themselves to sign Amir Richardson from Stade Reims this summer, having shown interest in the central midfielder earlier in the window.

Standing at 6 foot 5, Everton weren't the only club interested in Richardson, and a fresh report from Fabrizio Romano has now claimed that Serie A giants Fiorentina have won the race for the midfielder's signature in a frustrating blow for the Toffees.

"Complete" Richardson could have replaced Onana

By signing Richardson, Everton wouldn't have just been replacing Onana, but they'd also have received a player who would be more than capable of providing Sean Dyche's side with an attacking boost.

Not just someone who can screen the back four, Richardson is a box-crashing midfielder and a "complete player" as described by analyst Ben Mattinson.

Still just 22 years old, the Morroco international has had quite the summer of football too, helping his nation reach the bronze medal match at the Olympics and scoring in a 3-0 win against Iraq earlier in the tournament, but Everton's search for an Onana replacement goes on.

Amid a frustrating transfer window so far, Newcastle United chiefs are now reportedly racing to sign a defensive reinforcement for Eddie Howe who is represented by the same agency as Kieran Trippier.

Newcastle transfer news

The Magpies and PIF were quick out of the blocks this summer, welcoming Lloyd Kelly on a free deal, but that has since been nothing more than somewhat of a false start. Since Kelly, Newcastle have only managed to sign John Ruddy and Odysseas Vlachomidos, whilst selling prospects such as Elliot Anderson and Yankuba Minteh to Nottingham Forest and Brighton & Hove Albion respectively.

Sky Sports: Newcastle back in to sign £35m player approved by Paul Mitchell

The Magpies have been chasing the player for some time.

1 ByTom Coates Jul 23, 2024

For a side with some of the richest owners in the Premier League, it's been an incredibly disappointing window, which has perhaps been limited by the fear of breaking profit and sustainability rules. Nonetheless, given that the new campaign is now less than a month away from kicking off, things could yet ramp up at St James' Park on the transfer front.

The likes of Crysencio Summerville have recently been linked to the Tyneside club, but it could be a Premier League defender that the Magpies turn towards before anyone else. According to GiveMeSport, Newcastle chiefs are racing to sign Trevoh Chalobah in a deal worth a reported £30m this summer. Chelsea recently omitted their academy graduate from their pre-season tour in an attempt to force his exit in what could benefit Newcastle.

As revealed by Fabrizio Romano, however, Newcastle aren't alone in their interest and now face a fight to secure Chalobah's signature without European football to offer. They may hope to gain an edge by using their relationship with the defender's agent, given that Trippier is represented by the same agency.

"Monster" Chalobah could compete with Schar and Botman

Signing Chalobah seems like business that Newcastle should be chasing this summer. For £30m, his arrival could far from break the bank or leave them in trouble with PSR.

Meanwhile, Chelsea's current stance means that the Magpies should be able to strike a fairly simple deal for the right price. If they reach an agreement with the Blues, then Howe could be getting a centre-back who would instantly compete with Sven Botman and Fabian Schar.

Progressive Passes

2.92

2.29

3.92

Tackles Won

1.13

0.85

0.71

Ball Recoveries

4.34

4.58

5.13

Aerial Duels Won

1.79

2.22

2.04

What's more, Chalobah's experience playing on the biggest stages is an invaluable trait for a side gunning for an instant return to European football. Described as a "monster" by Football Talent Scout's Jacek Kulig, the Chelsea defender now has the chance to put his recent Stamford Bridge misery behind him and feature in Howe's backline in the coming season.

Manoj Tiwary has had to wait for his chances. But with contributions in two consecutive games, has he done enough to deserve an extended run?

Abhishek Purohit in Pallekele04-Aug-2012Manoj Tiwary and Rohit Sharma seem to demand a joint narrative. Rohit was at the crease when Tiwary walked in to bat on India debut in February 2008. Rohit broke his finger last year in England and Tiwary was flown in as replacement. The Rohit v Tiwary debate has played on and on this series in the media. At almost every press conference, the team management has made it clear who it prefers. Gautam Gambhir has raved about Rohit’s talent and has said that Tiwary should be prepared to grab any opportunity that comes his way. Tiwary did just that today with a busy fifty in only his seventh game in 14 months since his comeback in the West Indies. And yes, on his way to the middle, he passed Rohit, who was on his way back after a miserable run of 5, 0, 0, 4 and 4 in the series.Just put yourself in Tiwary’s shoes for a moment. After making 104* against West Indies in December 2011, he was on the bench for 14 consecutive games in three different countries. In that period, Rohit averaged 14.54 in 11 innings. Gambhir said that getting dropped would dent Rohit’s confidence. Nobody talked about Tiwary’s confidence. It was almost as if he didn’t exist. Tiwary-on-the-bench jokes had become common on Twitter. The man himself gave nothing away. He would carry his kitbag to the ground and dutifully go through practice with a blank expression. Probably the most emotion he showed was when he grinned after effortlessly dribbling the ball past his young peers such as Rohit and Virat Kohli during a game of football.As far as attractiveness of play, or what is known as “looking good”, goes, Tiwary pales before Rohit. Rohit makes even getting beaten look beautiful. Even when he edges a fast bowler in nets, you end up looking at the graceful arc of the bat his attempted drive makes. Tiwary does not have such luxury. Even when he is in control in the middle, he can look tentative.His instinct initially appears to be to go leg side. He walks across to nudge to square leg, he plays that flick extravagantly in the air from outside off through square leg, he chips over midwicket, he paddles fine from the stumps. That last stroke led to his dismissal in the fourth game. He appears to take too many risks too soon, but he is a busy kind of batsman.In the end, Tiwary made more runs on the off side today than on the leg. He stepped out to loft the offspinner Sachithra Senanayake over mid-off for a couple of fours. He drove the legspinner Jeevan Mendis between sweeper cover and long-off. His best stroke was when he charged out to thump the fast bowler Nuwan Pradeep – who had troubled him before with pace and bounce – between extra cover and mid-off. There were two close caught-behind appeals against him but he was on 46 by then, and had already proved his point.Duncan Fletcher, the India coach, said Tiwary had produced the results under pressure. “His temperament has shown that he is up for the big occasion,” Fletcher said. “He’s basically made people stand up and look at him. He is a serious contender for a regular place in the one-day side.”In both games he got this series, Tiwary didn’t let the innings get bogged down despite coming in at 60 for 3 and 87 for 3. Despite knowing that one failure could mean another prolonged spell on the bench. Despite knowing that his seems to be a thankless task; that even success could mean another prolonged spell on the bench. India’s next ODI series is against Pakistan in December. That is too far away. Don’t bet on Tiwary getting consecutive ODIs after this half-century. After all, he had to wait 14 games on the bench after a century.

The ACB CEO said Azizullah Fazli’s term was always intended to be temporary

Umar Farooq11-Nov-2021

Mirwais Ashraf is set to become acting chairman of the ACB•Getty Images

Afghanistan allrounder Mirwais Ashraf has been appointed as acting chairman of the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB). The order was issued earlier this week by Hasan Akhund, patron-in-chief of the ACB and the acting prime minister of the country, and awaits a ratification by the ACB board, which is expected to be just a formality.The change at the top is the second in four months after Azizullah Fazli was earlier named new ACB chairman replacing Farhan Yusufzai, who left the country after the Taliban took over. No proper reason has been given by the ACB about the latest change, but it has been learnt that Fazli’s appointment was always intended to be a temporary one.ESPNcricinfo understands that the country’s government intends to revamp the working structure of the board. “The government is trying to bring in more competent people with expertise in technical aspects of the game – commercial, business and marketing,” a former director of the ACB told ESPNcricinfo. “If Afghanistan can produce world-class players with this broken system back home, then imagine what they can do with a competent board.”Mirwais, a 33-year-old right-arm medium-fast bowler who played representative cricket as recently as in October 2020, was among the initial lot of players who helped cricket in Afghanistan rise to the top table. He made his international debut in 2009 and last played in 2016, featuring in 46 ODIs and 25 T20Is.Fazli had served a ten-month term as ACB chairman following the resignation of Atif Mashal – replaced by Yusufzai after Afghanistan’s bottom-place finish at the 2019 ODI World Cup in England. He was among the early group of players who established the game in the country. He had also served as the ACB’s vice-chairman and advisor in the past, and has been involved in running the country’s domestic and regional set-ups. “But when it comes to the ICC, he was a quiet person who kept his head down,” said the former director.Afghanistan, one of the teams that qualified directly for the Super 12 stage of the ongoing T20 World Cup, were eliminated at the group stage after losing to Pakistan, India, and New Zealand, while winning against Scotland and Namibia.