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Stumps
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAzhar Ali and Sami Aslam put on an opening partnership of 215•AFP

Pakistan dominated the first day of their 400th Test, piling on 279 for 1, after Misbah-ul-Haq won the toss and opted to bat. Openers Azhar Ali and Sami Aslam made the most of the batting-friendly conditions in Dubai, sharing a double-century stand, before Asad Shafiq came in at No. 3 and lent his weight to a batting effort that deflated West Indies.In theory, both teams were in uncharted territory, playing their first day-night Test – and the second overall – at a time when the concept is still new, with the behaviour of the pink ball under scrutiny. In practice, the ball did not do much in the afternoon heat and, while there was a bit more for the West Indies bowlers under lights, they did not do enough to threaten the batsmen for sustained periods.The pink ball offered very little swing to the new-ball bowlers and very little reverse-swing as it got older. On both counts, West Indies did not help their own cause. At the start of the day, both Shannon Gabriel and Jason Holder were too short to give the new ball a chance to swing. Miguel Cummins bowled fuller, but not consistently enough. As the ball grew older, West Indies seemed uninterested in keeping one side shiny to extract reverse-swing.Azhar was fluent almost from the outset, marrying a tight defence with a number of sumptuous drives. One such drive, wide of mid-off off Roston Chase’s bowling, brought up his 11th Test century, off 184 balls. He didn’t stop there, walking off at stumps on an unbeaten 146. His opening partner, Aslam, was the more circumspect of the two, but both batsmen were very strong on the cut when the bowlers dropped short.Aslam often skipped out to the spinners to hit them down the ground, but was equally impressive when leaving balls outside off. He also used the sweep shot quite effectively, but it was that shot that led to his eventual downfall – he got a bottom-edge onto the stumps off Chase to depart for 90 and end a 215-run opening stand.That brought Shafiq to the crease at No. 3. Though Shafiq has mostly batted at the No. 6 position in international cricket, he is a regular No. 3 in domestic cricket. Moreover, the adjustment from No. 6 to No. 3 is minimal when the openers have consumed more than 67 overs and the pitch has no terrors. Shafiq took his time to settle into his innings and calmly accumulated 33 runs, before walking back undefeated at stumps.While the first ball held its shape for the full 80 overs, it was quite discoloured and tattered by the time the second new ball was due. Holder, who had looked increasingly unimpressed with the state of the older ball, took that new ball immediately. Like the first new ball, though, it did not offer much in the way of swing and the second-wicket partnership steadily swelled to 64 by the close of play.It was Gabriel who had generated the first of two half-chances for West Indies in the first session. In his second over, he seamed one away from Azhar to induce an outside edge, but the ball fell short of Kraigg Brathwaite at second slip. Cummins generated the other in his second spell when Azhar slashed a short, wide delivery towards Leon Johnson at gully; the ball burst through Johnson’s hands and raced away to third man for a boundary.If the bowling was not sufficiently penetrative, the decision-making was also puzzling at times. West Indies used six bowlers before tea, but there was no discernible logic in the manner in which they were used. Brathwaite bowled three overs of gentle offspin before either Devendra Bishoo or Chase was introduced. By the time Bishoo was called upon, in the 21st over of the chase, Azhar and Aslam had grown in confidence and were finding the boundary with increasing regularity, pouncing whenever the bowlers erred.The one spell that came close to being penetrative was Holder’s spell immediately after the tea break. With a bit more bounce and carry under lights, Holder bowled with more intensity, troubling Azhar with some well-directed bouncers. Azhar fended a few of those in the air, but got away with it due to the lack of close-in fielders.When Holder went up for a big lbw shout against Azhar and reviewed the not-out decision, West Indies lost their first review. Replays showed ball would have missed leg stump. Thereafter, Gabriel and Cummins also found more pace, the former bowling some good bouncers to Aslam. Bishoo also created his closest opportunity under lights, wrapping Aslam on the pads, but the not-out decision was upheld upon review when HawkEye indicated that the ball would have gone down leg with the angle.Such fleeting moments of encouragement were all West Indies had to cling to on a deflating opening day in which the pink ball did not misbehave and the bowlers were largely unthreatening.

West Indies allrounder Andre Russell has committed an “anti-doping whereabouts” violation, according to the Jamaica Anti-Doping Commission (JADCO), and could face a lengthy ban from cricket.Russell, who is part of the West Indies squad for the upcoming World T20, has reportedly missed three such tests in a 12-month period, which equates to a failed test under doping laws.”We received notification of Russell’s violation about two weeks ago and I’ve appointed a panel to hear his case,” JADCO independent disciplinary panel chairman Kent Pantry told .Athletes must make their whereabouts known to local anti-doping agencies to facilitate testing. Russell could face a possible two-year ban if found guilty of the violation.”There is a process regarding the findings by JADCO,” the West Indies Cricket Board said in a statement. “All that will be observed and you will be advised accordingly.”

ScorecardWahab Riaz sees the lighter side after a misfield•AFP

A pair of wickets late in the day that broke an ominous fifth wicket partnership for Sui Northern Gas Piplelines Limited (SNGPL) meant the first day of the Quaid-e-Azam trophy final ended with honours just about even. Iftikhar Ahmed made an unbeaten 71 that he carries into day two, and the extent to which he can add to his overnight total may well go a long way to determining the destination of this year’s trophy.On Water and Power Development Authority’s (WAPDA) part, the day was defined by a mesmeric opening spell by Mohammad Asif, who swung and seamed the ball at will, bringing back memories of his heydays in a Pakistan shirt towards the end of the last decade. He was particularly miserly, too, going at less than one per over in his first spell. He accounted for Asad Shafiq, but deserved more considering he ended the day with figures of 20-8-35-1.WAPDA were well on top in the first two sessions, reducing a powerful SNGPL side to 94 for 4, with international stars Mohammad Hafeez, Azhar Ali and Shafiq all sent back cheaply. But Iftikar and Mohammad Rizwan, both of whom have played only a handful of international games, stuck together to put on a crucial 89-run partnership and steer their side past choppy waters.Just as SNGPL seemed dominant, Wahab Riaz, who bowled with both accuracy and pace even towards the end of the day, broke through. With the old ball offering little help, he resorted to bouncers, an especially quick one rushing Rizwan into a pull shot he top edged. Khushdil Shah took a simple catch on the boundary and WAPDA were back in business. When the sixth wicket fell soon after, it looked like they might polish off the tail. But Yasir Shah hung around to provide capable support to Iftikhar, and when the day was called off six overs early for bad light, SNGPL had reached 215 for 6.

Mitchell Johnson at the WACA. For the better part of a decade, this was one of the most watchable parts of Australia’s home summer. Johnson was quick anywhere, but something about Perth brought his threat to a new level, even in the years when the WACA’s typical pace and bounce suffered a lull. Nowhere did he take more Test wickets than the 45 at 22.77 he claimed in Perth, and his best work there came against South Africa.Johnson was back at the WACA on Wednesday, 50 days out from the ground hosting South Africa for the first Test of the Australian summer. But this year, South Africa’s batsmen will not have to worry about the threat of Johnson running in on a zippy pitch with a breeze to help him swing the ball. And yet another left-arm danger could be just as effective, if not more, when the home summer begins: Mitchell Starc.Johnson’s retirement during last season stripped 313 wickets from Australia’s Test attack, but the transition to a post-Johnson era has been smooth. That is largely thanks to Starc, whose swing, pace and mastery of the yorker have made him one of the most challenging fast bowlers in world cricket at the moment. If Australia’s recent series in Sri Lanka was a disaster it was not because of Starc, who topped Australia’s wicket list with 24 at 15.16.It was the highest series tally ever by a visiting fast bowler in Sri Lanka, and it was followed, in the one-day series, by Starc breaking the world record for reaching 100 ODI wickets in the fewest matches. Australia will be greatly looking forward to seeing what Starc can achieve during the six home Tests this summer, after he missed the second half of last season due to an ankle injury that required surgery and a long recovery.”It was really exciting to see Mitch Starc perform well,” Johnson said in Perth on Wednesday. “I thought he was really close when we went over to England for that last Ashes series, and wasn’t quite there. But he’s shown that after his injury he’s really committed to working really hard and did all the work. I’ve kept in touch with him and he was really positive going into that series. To be the leading wicket-taker in Sri Lanka in those conditions was a real positive and a good step forward.”He can dominate again [at home] on wickets that are going to provide bounce, and with his height, it’s going to be very difficult. He bowls the fuller ball, gets the ball up there, and especially on a wicket like the WACA where it can get good bounce, it’s really vital to be up there. He’ll swing the ball when he pitches the ball up.”That yorker he’s got is very dangerous. He’s always working to improve his game. He’s still pretty fresh in Test cricket. He’s only going to get better. He’s going to keep breaking records, I think, as well. It’s really exciting to see him play really well.”The first Test against South Africa will be Australia’s first in Perth since Johnson farewelled Test cricket there last November. The three bowlers who rounded out Australia’s attack alongside Johnson in that match – Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon – have continued to steer Australia’s Test bowling with success since then.”It’s nice to be able to finish and have him performing in the line-up that Australia have,” Johnson said of Starc. “It’s a pretty inexperienced bowling line-up. They’ve got Nathan Lyon there, who’s got plenty of experience spin-bowling, and Josh Hazlewood is still trying to find his feet. There’s always going to be pressure on him to be like a [Glenn] McGrath.”But I think we’ve got a really good bowling line-up at the moment, and it’s really well-balanced. Those guys are really tall as well, so in these conditions they’re going to be really difficult to play. Coming up against South Africa at the start is really going to test Australia. But the bowling is really good at the moment. I’m really happy where it’s placed.”Johnson, like the current Australians, is less happy with where the team is placed on the Test rankings – No.3 after losing top spot in Sri Lanka – but it is also a time of change for South Africa, who are currently ranked fifth.”South Africa are going through a bit of a change at the moment but there are a few guys that have just come into really good form,” Johnson said. “Dale Steyn’s back in form, Morne [Morkel] is floating around there as well, and they’ve got a great batting line-up as always. Australia have always competed very hard against them.”

Match facts

May 12, 2017
Start time 10.45am local (0945 GMT)William Porterfield will hope his team continue the improvement they showed at Lord’s•Getty Images

Big picture

The last time Bangladesh and Ireland met in an ODI, the stadium vibrated to the tune of a 25,000-plus crowd trying hard to back their faltering home team. It was during the 2011 World Cup when the Bangladesh team truly captured the emotions of 140 million people. Despite making 205 batting first, they managed to beat Ireland by 27 runs and kick-start their home World Cup campaign that was shaken by India in the first game.More than six years on, and they are two teams at very different stages of their development. Bangladesh have been No. 7 in the ICC ODI rankings since 2015, after ODI series wins over Pakistan, India and South Africa that year. They progressed further in the 2016-17 season with Test and ODI wins over England and Sri Lanka.Bangladesh are now breathing down Sri Lanka’s neck in the ranking table and if they can beat Ireland twice and New Zealand at least once during this tri-series, they will enter this year’s Champions Trophy as the No. 6 team in the table. Even three years ago, such a stature was a pipedream.Under Mashrafe Mortaza – who will miss the opening match due to an over-rate suspension – Mushfiqur Rahim, Shakib Al Hasan, Tamim Iqbal and coach Chandika Hathurusingha, Bangladesh have put together a really strong line-up that is a blend of experience and skilful youth. The likes of Mustafizur Rahman, Mehedi Hasan and Mosaddek Hossain are tipped as the leaders of Bangladesh’s future.During the same period Ireland won 23 out of 60 ODIs, once each against England and West Indies. They have lost their standing as the leading Associate nation to Afghanistan in recent times, but are in line to gain Test status in June.Similar to Bangladesh, Ireland have a core group of players who have now topped 50 ODIs. Ed Joyce, William Porterfield, Paul Stirling and Kevin and Niall O’Brien have the experience required to help nurture a team through a rebuilding phase. The addition of Tim Murtagh has been helpful while the left-arm spinner George Dockrell remains an important cog in their wheel although question marks remain over the new talent coming through.Bangladesh will be under pressure to beat a lower-ranked side while Ireland will hope that home conditions give them a chance to build some confidence.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)Ireland LLLWW
Bangladesh LWLLL

In the spotlight

Ed Joyce hasn’t hit a 50 in his last five ODI innings, but Ireland will keep relying on the experienced top-order batsman, particularly against a tricky bowling line-up. He also would like to improve on his sub-par performance in ODIs in Malahide.Sabbir Rahman warmed up well against Ireland A, hitting an 86-ball 100. He is steadily establishing himself at No. 3 in Bangladesh’s ODI batting line-up, with stiff competition always around the corner. Sabbir will want to start off well against Ireland, to cement himself in the top-order.

Team news

Using more pace bowlers is usually what home teams do against Bangladesh, and Ireland should try a similar plan. As a result, the likes of Stuart Thompson and Craig Young could be considered alongside Tim Murtagh, Barry McCarthy and Peter Chase – the latter two having impressed in the recent ODIs against England. Newcomer Simi Singh may have to wait for his chance for an ODI debut.Ireland (probable) 1 Ed Joyce, 2 Paul Stirling, 3 William Porterfield (capt) 4 Andy Balbirnie, 5 Niall O’Brien (wk), 6 Gary Wilson, 7 Kevin O’Brien, 8 George Dockrell, 9 Barry McCarthy, 10 Tim Murtagh, 11 Peter ChaseBangladesh are likely to pick their successful batting line-up that has Mahmudullah at No. 7 with Mosaddek Hossain earning a promotion into the top five. Mashrafe Mortaza is suspended for the match due to an over-rate penalty. Shakib Al Hasan will captain.Bangladesh (probable) 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Soumya Sarkar, 3 Sabbir Rahman, 4 Shakib Al Hasan (capt), 5 Mosaddek Hossain, 6 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 7 Mahmudullah, 8 Mehedi Hasan, 9 Shafiul Islam, 10 Taskin Ahmed, 11 Mustafizur Rahman

Pitch and conditions

Teams batting first in the last three ODIs at the Malahide ground made in excess of 300 runs, with Pakistan and Sri Lanka piling up 337 and 377 in the last two games. Runs may not be quite as easy to come by in relatively early-season conditions. There’s some chance of rain in the Malahide area which may influence the side winning the toss.

Stats and trivia

• Tamim Iqbal is Bangladesh’s highest run-getter against Associate nations, having made 737 runs in 18 ODIs. Mashrafe Mortaza is the highest wicket-taker against these opponents, with 43 wickets from 25 games.
• Six members each from the Bangladesh and Ireland squad played in the two teams’ last encounter in 2011.
• Kevin O’Brien needs three wickets to become the first Ireland bowler to claim 100 in ODIs.

International T20 should be the pinnacle of the format, not domestic leagues, according to Jos Buttler who does not endorse the view of England coach Trevor Bayliss that T20Is be restricted to a period around World T20 events. However, he added his voice to the growing calls that something needs to be done about the scheduling to ensure all three formats can co-exist at the top level.Two of his team-mates, Alex Hales and Adil Rashid, have recently halted their first-class careers to focus on the white ball and Buttler admitted the thought of similar had occasionally crossed his mind. For now he will keep his options open and sees a window to return to Championship cricket for Lancashire at the backend of the 2018 English season.In so many ways, Buttler is the template of the modern cricketer: forging his name in the white-ball formats, and spending months on the road even though he doesn’t feature in the Test team. He has been away since the end of October, starting in the Bangladesh Premier League, into the Big Bash and now England duty. He will have a couple of weeks at home before the IPL which runs until late May. The leagues are all his choice, so there may not be vast sympathy from some, but for in-demand players the schedule is unrelenting.Bayliss’ suggestion, put forward after the T20 tri-series where England failed to impress, was for the shortest format to be largely left to domestic structures but Buttler, who earlier this month told Sky Sports that he could see cricket being a one-format game in 20 years, remains a country over club man.”I wouldn’t be a fan of that. I don’t think that’s the right way to go,” he said. “I think T20 cricket is so strong, then surely the pinnacle – as it would be for guys wanting to play Test match cricket – should be playing for your international side.”I think for a professional cricketer, in any form of the game, your aspirations are always to represent your country.”Jos Buttler drills one down the ground•Getty Images

Endorsing the international T20 game further, Buttler added that the format deserves more than one-off matches tagged on to the start or end of a tour. The game is heading that way, with the recent tri-series attempting to bring more meaning to the games, while the number of three-match series are increasing.”Some tours where there have been three and three [T20s and ODIs] have been a really enjoyable split from the players’ point of view, it gives both formats relevance and competition. If you’re just going to play one T20 thrown on the end, it almost doesn’t seem like there’s much on it or much point to it.”Buttler said he still valued the five-match ODI series but did agree that something has to give if the game wants to stop players opting out of a format – although he suggested that the one to make way should not always have to be first-class or Test cricket. Earlier this week, Eoin Morgan said the only way Test cricket would survive would be if the money on offer matches that available in T20 leagues around the world.”There’s nothing wrong with people being Test match specialists either,” Buttler said. “There is no reason why a young player couldn’t say ‘I am going focus all my ambitions and efforts to be a Test match cricketer’.”I think it comes down a little bit to what you’re trying to get from the game and how you see yourself fitting into it. It may not be possible to do all three, but there’s no reason why people can’t specialise in red-ball cricket as well as white-ball.”For those that want to play all three formats, the game is already asking too much. “There aren’t many people around the world who are capable of doing it,” he said. “In England, we have three or four, but obviously, with all the cricket and scheduling, they don’t play every single game of every format, because it’s probably not quite possible. It’s not an easy thing to do, and that’s why the guys who do it are the best players.”On his own Test ambitions, which Buttler has repeatedly said remain intact albeit distant at the moment, he replied “maybe” when asked if not adding to his 18 caps would leave him unfulfilled but has reminded himself of the 18 matches he has played.”I don’t want to have too many regrets. I’m obviously very fortunate to have played Test cricket at all,” he said. “I was thinking about it the other day – that one thing you’d want to get out of a Test career would be winning an Ashes series in England.”Not that I performed very well. But I’m lucky enough to have that, and no one will ever take that away from me. You’re always desperate to do as well as you can, and fulfil your promise and potential as much as you can. But I won’t lose any sleep over it.”

Giles Clarke, president of the England and Wales Cricket Board and chairman of the ICC’s Pakistan Task Force, has cautioned that bringing international cricket back to Pakistan will be an arduous process requiring “a lot of time and hard work”.Clarke arrived in Lahore on Saturday – his first visit to the country as head of the Pakistan Task Force – on a fact-finding mission to inspect security arrangements that can be put in place for visiting teams. During his visit, Clarke met with senior officials of the Punjab government, including the chief minister and the Home Secretary.Addressing a press conference at the National Cricket Academy at the Gaddafi Stadium, Clarke praised Punjab’s government for “significant investment” in safety and security arrangements for potential touring aides. He was quick to point out, however, that these observations were not to serve as a replacement for expert advice.”I have to receive a proper report from my experts,” Clarke said. “But speaking as a non-expert, I was deeply impressed by the size of the investment, and the passion of everyone I’ve met from the chief minister downwards, the desire and determination to see international cricket return to Lahore was absolutely there. It is a goal of the ICC that every Full Member plays international bilateral cricket in their own country. But for us to do that, we need everyone to be safe and secure.”Clarke referred to a bomb blast in a crowded park in Lahore last March that killed over 70 people. The PCB was in talks with the MCC at the time for the latter to send a cricket team to Lahore, but the terror attack put an end to that.”We don’t want to get it wrong,” Clarke said. “We all know one terrible incident can push things backwards again. What happened here in one of Lahore’s parks did make it impossible for us to send a team here last year. So we’re hoping to move forward, but this isn’t an easy road.”There’s a considerable amount of perception that needs to be changed [around Pakistan being an unsafe country] and information that needs to be shared. But I am most impressed by the efforts of the authorities to make Lahore a safe city.”Clarke, who has been on the Pakistan Task Force since it was set up in the aftermath of the Lahore terror attacks on the Sri Lanka team in March 2009, praised Zimbabwe for coming to Pakistan in 2015 to play two T20s and three ODIs, and said it was a “very well organised” tour. “We want to build on that and move forward in a sensible and measured fashion.” Even that tour, however, was the target of an attempted attack.Clarke didn’t comment on a recent statement by the Federation of International Cricketers’ Associations (FICA) that “an acceptable level of participant safety and security cannot be expected or guaranteed” in Pakistan, saying he hadn’t discussed that statement with FICA, or read it in full. “I was far more interested in coming here for myself before I opened that conversation,” he said.That statement had come on the back of the PCB announcing that the final of the second edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) would take place in Lahore, whether or not international players travelled to Pakistan. Clarke expressed strong support for the PCB’s endeavours to hold the final of “their own domestic competition” in Pakistan. “I completely understand that desire, and will support their efforts to do that.”

Angelo Mathews is unsure whether he will be Sri Lanka’s captain at the 2019 World Cup, after leading his side to a second loss against Zimbabwe in the ongoing five-match series. The defeat, Mathews conceded, put his captaincy under significant pressure. His comments came after Zimbabwe chased down a revised target of 219 – deduced via the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method – in the fourth ODI, after Sri Lanka had made 300.”There’s a lot of pressure on all of us, and as a captain there is a lot of pressure on me as well,” Mathews said after the loss in Hambantota. “In these games, where our batsmen have done well, our bowlers didn’t perform well – both in this match, and in the first one we lost. Our fielding also hasn’t been good at times. Against Zimbabwe, we need to play better than this. If we score 300 and still lose here, there is a big shortcoming.”Mathews’ record as ODI captain since the last World Cup isn’t exactly awful: the team has won 12 matches to the 15 they have lost under his watch. However, during that time, their only series wins under Mathews have been against West Indies at home, and Ireland, away. They have lost one away series apiece to England and New Zealand, and one home series to Australia and Pakistan each. Besides, there is now a risk of losing a home series to 11th-ranked Zimbabwe, who have tied the ongoing series 2-2.”I don’t know if I will be going to the 2019 World Cup as captain,” Mathews said. “Our batsmen are doing well, but sometimes there’s no consistency in our fielding – we don’t do well sometimes. But with the players that we have, we can win these matches. We lost these matches because our bowling wasn’t good. We have to solve this problem quickly.”If Sri Lanka perform poorly in the forthcoming ODIs against India (in August and September), there is also the chance of the team not being able to gain automatic entry for the 2019 World Cup. At present, Sri Lanka are on the eighth position, with 92 rating points. They must stay ahead of West Indies, who are currently on 78 rating points, in order to avoid going through a separate qualification procedure for the next World Cup.Considering this was the second instance in the series when Sri Lanka failed to defend 300 or more, Mathews was forthright in stating his discontent over the lack of sting in the performance of the bowlers.”After scoring 300, how many times can you lose a game?” You know, we had enough runs on the board. [It’s] unfortunate the rain had to intervene, but still, we had the bowling attack to defend it. The first ten overs we gave away a lot of runs, also the rain intervened and the last ten overs we didn’t bowl that well.”We actually didn’t know the rain might come in, but the wicket was extremely dry this morning. So we all thought it’s going to start slowing more and more once the day goes on. We saw in the last game also that the ball started turning after the first 20 overs, in the second half especially. So, I thought if we bat first and bat well, we have the spinners to defend it.”Mathews also made the point that Sri Lanka’s attack was a diminished one. Nuwan Pradeep, who has recently been the best bowler in the side, picked up a niggle in the third ODI, and is being rested in order to ensure he can be fit for the four Test matches over the next eight weeks. Suranga Lakmal was also made unavailable by illness.”In our bowling we are facing problems – Nuwan Pradeep and Suranga Lakmal are injured,” Mathews said. “We have to manage our bowlers’ workloads as well. We’ve got a lot of cricket coming up. We have to balance managing workloads and winning the matches in front of us.”

Sheldon Jackson (181) and Ravindra Jadeja (150 not out) shellacked centuries as Saurashtra racked up 428 for 4 on the opening day of their second-round match against Jammu & Kashmir in Rajkot. The two, who joined hands with the side precariously placed at 59 for 3 after electing to bat, added 281 for the fifth wicket.Jackson’s 14th first-class century consisted of 22 fours and seven sixes. His knock came off just 156 deliveries before Waseem Raza struck in the final session. Jadeja, in comparison, was more watchful, playing out 223 deliveries. By stumps, he had put on an unbroken 88 for the sixth wicket with Snell Patel, who was not out on 31. Robin Uthappa, promoted to open, made 37, while Cheteshwar Pujara, who continued to lead in Jaydev Shah’s absence, fell for 13.Legspinner Piyush Chawla picked up five wickets in his first appearance as a professional as Gujarat, the defending champions, wrested the initiative in their season opener in Nadiad. Kerala, who elected to bat, were bowled out for 208, with just one fifty-plus score that belonged to Sanju Samson. Chawla triggered the lower-order slide as Kerala lost their last six wickets for 38 runs. Jalaj Saxena was unbeaten on 30. Sachin Baby, the Kerala captain, was the second-highest scorer with 49. In reply, Gujarat lost Priyank Panchal, the previous season’s highest run-getter, and Bhargav Merai to finish on 60 for 2.Opener Amitkumar Gautam’s unbeaten century helped Rajasthan rally after a top-order wobble against Jharkhand in Jaipur. Gautam’s unbroken 131-run stand with Tarjinder Singh (66 not out) helped Rajasthan end the day at 250 for 4. Ashok Menaria contributed 50 before falling to Jaskaran Singh. Adding to concerns in the Rajasthan camp was the injury to wicketkeeper Dishant Yagnik, who was forced to retire hurt. They can avail a substitute wicketkeeper if Yagnik isn’t fit to keep later in the match, under the new ICC guidelines which the BCCI has also implemented. Ashish Kumar, the fast bowler, picked up two wickets for Jharkhand.

Wicketkeeper BJ Watling is a doubt for New Zealand’s opening Test against West Indies due to a hip injury with the uncapped Tom Blundell in line for a debut if Watling is not available.The problem has forced Watling to sit out the last two rounds of Plunket Shield matches for Northern Districts. He will play as a batsman only against Auckland this week before what will effectively be a fitness test against Otago at the end of the month where he will have to keep wicket to be available for the first Test in Wellington on December 1.

New Zealand squads

Test squad

Kane Williamson (capt), Trent Boult, Colin de Grandhomme, Matt Henry, Tom Latham, Henry Nicholls, Jeet Raval, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Neil Wagner, BJ Watling

New Zealand A
Martin Guptill (capt), Todd Astle, Tom Blundell, Neil Broom, Tom Bruce, Lockie Ferguson, Scott Kuggeleijn, Adam Milne, Colin Munro, Jeet Raval, George Worker

If Watling can’t take his place at the Basin Reserve – it would be the first Test he has missed since Headingley against England in 2013 – it would likely mean a first cap for 27-year-old Blundell ahead of handing the gloves to one-day keeper Tom Latham. Blundell has previously played one T20I and has been included in the New Zealand A side to face West Indies in their warm-up match from November 25.The cloud over Watling was the only uncertainty in a settled 12-man New Zealand squad, resuming Test cricket for the first time since March, although one further player will be added to the party following the A side’s fixture. Colin de Grandhomme has retained his place as the seam-bowling allrounder while Matt Henry is the extra pace bowler behind the established trio of Tim Southee, Trent Boult and Neil Wagner.West Indies could face a lively welcome to their tour with the New Zealand A side including three rapid pacemen in Adam Milne, Lockie Ferguson and Scott Kuggeleijn. Ferguson recently took a career-best match haul of 12 for 78 against Otago.Martin Guptill will captain the A side which also includes incumbent Test opener Jeet Raval alongside Colin Munro after his successful limited-overs tour of India and legspinner Todd Astle who was forced home from that trip with a groin strain.”While the Blackcaps squad doesn’t have too many surprises, this NZ A team certainly shows that we have depth and quality players who are pushing for higher honours,” selector Gavin Larsen said.”Watching the three quickest bowlers in NZ operating together will certainly be exciting, and all three have plenty to play for. We are looking to develop Martin’s leadership capabilities and the NZ A match is another good opportunity.”