Kings XI Punjab have named South Africa batsman David Miller captain for IPL 2016. Last year the team was captained by Australia’s George Bailey, but the franchise had not retained Bailey this season

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Feb-20162:11

Miller blitzes his way to KXIP captaincy

Kings XI Punjab have named South Africa batsman David Miller captain for IPL 2016. Last year the team was captained by Australia’s George Bailey, but the franchise had not retained Bailey this season.Sanjay Bangar, Kings XI’s coach, said Miller had the right temperament to lead. “I have watched David grow as a player. He has displayed outstanding batting abilities and a cool temperament in many high-pressure situations,” Bangar said. “I am confident in his potential to lead the boys this season.”While he has little captaincy experience on the South African domestic circuit, Miller, 26, is a key batting cog in Kings XI’s line-up. He has been with them since the 2011 season, signed in April 2011 as a replacement player for England allrounder Dimitri Mascarenhas.In 2015, he was the only batsman to score more than 300 runs for them, hitting 357 at 32.45, with a strike rate of 134.21. It was a poor year overall for the team, which finished last in the league stage of the tournament. Ahead of the IPL auction this year, Miller was one of four overseas players retained – the others being Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Johnson.Miller’s appointment comes a few days after Kings XI appointed retired India batsman Virender Sehwag team mentor.Squad: David Miller, Swapnil Singh, M Vijay, Wriddhiman Saha, Rishi Dhawan, Kyle Abbott, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Pardeep Sahu, Anureet Singh, Sandeep Sharma, Farhaan Behardien, Shardul Thakur, Mohit Sharma, Manan Vohra, Gurkeerat Singh, Axar Patel, Nikhil Naik, Mitchell Johnson, Shaun Marsh, KC Cariappa, Armaan Jaffer

Trevor Bayliss, the England coach, has called for the team to play smarter cricket following the poor end to their tour of South Africa as they turn attentions to the World T20 in India. However, he does not want the players to go into their shells after a difficult couple of weeks, saying that the winner in India will be the “boldest” team on show.England ended their stay in South Africa with a crushing nine-wicket defeat at the Wanderers to lose the T20 series 2-0. From a promising position of 157 for 3 – with Eoin Morgan and Jos Buttler finding their range – they were well placed for 200, but conspired to lose 7 for 14 and not even play out their overs.They were then belted around the Bullring by AB de Villiers who cartwheeled to 71 off 29 balls as South Africa raced to their target with more than five overs to spare.It led to Bayliss saying it was like “men against boys” and meant that England finished with five defeats on the bounce having been 2-0 up in the one-day series before being let down by poor fielding when they could have sealed it in the Johannesburg ODI. Although the Test series was secured on that heady day at the Wanderers when Stuart Broad blew South Africa away the tour ended on a downbeat note.There is little time to ponder with just a short break at home before departing for India where they will face group matches against West Indies, Sri Lanka, a qualifier and, potentially significantly given recent results, South Africa again in Mumbai on March 18. Faf du Plessis, the South Africa T20 captain, was not shy at suggesting his side could have struck some psychological blows.”I can guarantee you one thing, the team that wins the World Twenty20 will be the boldest team there,” Bayliss said.”If we go out and try to be too nice, or if we give that advantage away or are not as positive and aggressive as we have been when we have played well and won, then we will still not win – because there will be teams out there with the confidence, players and ability to go out and play that way.”The two series defeats in South Africa have zapped some of the feel-good factor that had developed around England’s white-ball teams since their post-World Cup rebuilding which has been forged on an almost breakable desire to be positive and for players to be encouraged to push their own boundaries.Both Bayliss and Morgan have cited the inexperience in the side as a factor as to why the wheels came off somewhat in South Africa and cautioned that more such days cannot be ruled out as players continue to find their feet at international level. But the straight-talking Bayliss knows that platitudes about how good a team could be does not help in the present.”We’ve had some good results, but it’s a reminder to people back home in England that this team is still a developing one,” he said. “We’ve had some good performances, and there’s a lot of potential there.”But potential never won anything … we’ve got some hard work to do. I think the expectation the players have put on themselves is why they are so disappointed when they play badly. It may be that extra pressure they put on themselves that they’ve got to get over.”In the final ODI at Newlands and the first T20 at the same ground, England were criticised for not adjusting quickly enough to conditions and reassessing what a defendable total could be.”We spoke the other night, it is a case of going with the flow of the game,” Bayliss said. “If we get off to a good start, you have to recognise that flow [and think] ‘can we continue to do this’?”If we do happen to lose a few wickets … well, has the flow of the game changed, and do we have to play a little bit differently? I think that will be playing smart cricket, and that is what the good teams will do.”Still, despite the setback, Bayliss believes that England can put on a good show in India which will conclude a long period overseas for the team this winter.”If we play well … we’ll be hard to beat. In the last two games, we haven’t played all that well – and in this game, we’ve been beaten easily. We’re going to have to play a lot better than that.””It’s small margins,” he added. “One catch, and we’d have only lost the last four – and we’d have won the one-day series. That’s as simple as it can get. You win that fourth match, who knows … it might have given the boys enough confidence to go on and win the fifth one. We’ve got to learn from that, and work out how we can get better.”

United Arab Emirates stirred the qualifying round of the Asia Cup T20 with an upset over Afghanistan in a high-scoring opening match in Fatullah

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Feb-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsFile photo – Rohan Mustafa’a 77 is the highest individual score by a UAE batsman in T20Is•ICC

United Arab Emirates stirred the qualifying round of the Asia Cup T20 with an upset over Afghanistan in a fairly high-scoring opening match in Fatullah on Friday.In what was largely a tale of two knocks, Rohan Mustafa, the UAE opener, came trumps; his 50-ball 77 laying the base for their strong total of 176 for 4. Afghanistan were rocked early, and didn’t quite recover even though Karim Sadiq kept them in the hunt with a fighting 48-ball 72. The target eventually proved to be 16 too many.On paper, there was little doubt as to which was the stronger side. But UAE, with only three players having an experience of 10 or more T20Is, did the early running after opting to bat, with Muhammad Kaleem complementing Mustafa well during the course of a quick 83-run opening stand before Rashid Khan struck.The 17-year old legspinner, who impressed during the limited-overs series against Zimbabwe last month, slowed things down further by dismissing Shaiman Anwar and Amjad Javed, the captain, off consecutive overs as UAE, who looked set to get close to 200 at one stage, slipped from 121 for 1 to 128 for 4.Usman Mushtaq and Mohammad Shahzad came up with the rescue act. The two lent the finishing touches to the innings by adding 48 off the last five overs; Shahzad being particularly harsh on comeback man Shapoor Zadran, who was smashed for two sixes in the 17th over.Afghanistan’s chase hit a roadblock upfront as Mohammad Shahzad and Usman Ghani were dismissed in the space of three deliveries inside the first two overs. Asghar Stanikzai’s wicket to his opposite number further threatened to pull the shutters on the chase.Sadiq and Mohammad Nabi, coming into the tournament on the back of a successful stint with Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League, revived the chase with a 47-run stand, before Farhan Ahmed, the left-arm spinner, came back for a new spell and prised out Nabi for 23.The loss of wickets forced Sadiq to hit out, which he did quite well to bring up a half-century off just 35 balls to bring the equation down to 33 off the last two overs. Sadiq, however, fell for 72 when he was bowled by seamer Mohammad Naveed. Mustafa then followed his rapid fifty with three wickets in the final over as Afghanistan were bowled out for 160 with one ball to spare.By winning as comprehensively as they did, UAE also made it loud and clear that they weren’t in it to merely make up the numbers.

New Zealand opener Martin Guptill will captain Guyana Amazon Warriors for the 2016 edition of the Caribbean Premier League, taking over the duties from Denesh Ramdin

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Apr-2016New Zealand opener Martin Guptill will captain Guyana Amazon Warriors for the 2016 edition of the Caribbean Premier League, taking over the duties from Denesh Ramdin.Guptill was a part of the Guyana franchise in 2013 and 2014, before moving to St Kitts & Nevis Patriots for the 2015 season. In the 2016 CPL player draft, he was once again picked up by Warriors for USD $130,000, becoming one of the six designated marquee players in the league. Overall, Guptill has scored 821 runs from 28 CPL matches at 35.69.”It is a huge thrill and great honour for me,” Guptill said. “I am really excited about working with a talented crop of emerging local and international talent and we will be working hard to try and be consistent and go one step further and clinch the title which has eluded the Warriors on two occasions.” Warriors made the final of the tournament in 2013 and 2014, but lost on both occasions, to Jamaica Tallawahs and Barbados Tridents.Guptill, who is ranked third in the ICC’s T20 batting list, will be joined by Sohail Tanvir, Dwayne Smith, Chris Lynn and Adam Zampa in Warriors’ squad. The team will play the opening game of the tournament, against Patriots, on June 30.

Liverpool have taken an embarrassing 4-1 defeat in their Premier League clash with Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium this afternoon and Jurgen Klopp will surely be extremely frustrated with the performance that his team put on in the second half of the game.

The Reds squandered their opportunity to put pressure on their competitors for the final Champions League spot inside the top four and could go ten points adrift of fourth if Tottenham Hotspur can beat Everton at Goodison Park on Monday evening.

Despite Mohamed Salah scoring the opener in the 17th minute, Liverpool failed to dominate possession (31%), had fewer shots on goal (4 v 17), fewer big chances created (0 v 4) and far fewer accurate passes completed (276 v 687).

Indeed, in the first half both teams looked comfortable and capable of taking something from the game, however, defending their early lead was too challenging to succeed with Julian Alvarez finding the back of the net to secure an equaliser just 10 minutes later.

Liverpool's well-known struggles were quickly laid bare in the second half with the side looking completely uninspired and despite many players having two weeks off during the international break looked exhausted, which Man City took full advantage of to net another three before the final whistle.

One player who had a rare nightmare in Manchester this afternoon was left-back Andrew Robertson, who despite usually being clinical in his position was severely punished for his lapses in judgement and concentration by his opponents.

How did Andy Robertson get on vs Manchester City?

The Scotland captain had an outstanding international break, recording two assists for his national team – one against Cyprus and then again against Spain – which makes Robertson's performance against Man City even more frustrating.

Over his 70-minute performance, the £100k-per-week gem – dubbed "poor" today by journalist James Nalton – completed just 15 accurate passes, lost possession 13 times and was dribbled past twice, as well as losing four duels and failed in 100% of his cross attempts, before being replaced by Kostas Tsimikas.

Not only that, the Liverpool left-back was the worst-rated player on the entire pitch – as per SofaScore – proving further that it will be a display the Scotsman will be desperate to forget.

Robertson's poor effort was just a drop in the ocean compared to the overall performance put on by the entire team this afternoon but will be a huge cause for concern for the Anfield faithful when considering how well he played over the Euro qualifiers.

With that being said, the manager, supporters and team will be hoping Robertson's drop-off against Man City was merely a one-off as a meeting with Chelsea is coming up on Tuesday and a clash with Arsenal follows on Sunday next week.

Tottenham Hotspur have discussed offering Ryan Mason the manager’s job on an interim basis until the end of the season, according to a recent report.

The Lowdown: Conte on thin ice

In the wake of Antonio Conte’s explosive rant after the 3-3 draw at Southampton at the weekend, during which he also appeared to take aim at the board, Tottenham are believed to have held crisis talks with their manager.

Conte is said to have explained his comments were only aimed at the players, rather than senior figures at the club, which Daniel Levy appears to have accepted, given that he still remains in his job as of today.

However, that has not stopped other managers being linked to replace the Italian, and there is an indication Spurs could look to make an appointment from within to carry them through until the end of the season.

The Latest: Mason discussed

According to a report from Football Insider reporter Wayne Veysey, Conte’s reign was coming to an end even before his comments on Saturday, and he has since done himself no favours, with a well-placed source saying “it’s over”.

As we now enter an international break, one potential immediate option that has been discussed is Mason, who is currently in a coaching role.

The 31-year-old has long been regarded as a future Spurs manager, and could be appointed on an interim basis for the remainder of the campaign, given that he is respected in the dressing room and is close to key player Harry Kane.

The Verdict: Get it done?

The former Spurs player has previous experience acting as interim manager, taking charge for seven games during the 2020-21 season, during which time he averaged 1.71 points per match, and mainly utilised a 4-2-3-1 formation.

This level of experience is nothing in comparison to Conte’s, however it could be vital that he is well-respected by the group, with a number of players said to be getting frustrated by the negativity of the current manager, which could derail their hopes of finishing in the top four.

If Mason is truly viewed by the board as someone capable of taking on the manager’s job on a permanent basis, now would be the perfect opportunity for him to prove himself, and his appointment could inject fresh life into the squad as we head into a crucial stage of the season.

Tottenham Hotspur have made initial contact with Julian Nagelsmann's camp over the vacancy in north London following Antonio Conte's departure.

Will Nagelsmann replace Conte?

It has been a whirlwind of a past week in the managerial circle with both Conte and Nagelsmann finding themselves out of a job over the weekend.

Reports would suggest Conte's dismissal was a long time coming, with the north London club having drawn up a shortlist over recent weeks for his potential successor.

However, Nagelsmann may have taken some by surprise as Bayern Munich pounced on the opportunity to appoint Thomas Tuchel amid his links to Spurs.

And it seems as if Nagelsmann's availability has seriously interested Spurs with insider Graeme Bailey telling the Talking Transfers podcast contact has been made:

"The reports suggesting the day after [Nagelsmann's sacking] that there'd been contact isn't true, from what I'm told from people close to him. But there has been contact between third parties now, Tottenham are letting him know that there is an interest there."

Is Nagelsmann right for Spurs?

Tottenham's recent history of managers has shown a different approach with Daniel Levy bringing in 'proven winners' who may have been brought in for a quick trophy fix in north London.

Spurs' trophy drought is well documented within the game and the likes of Jose Mourinho and Conte were two short-term options which have failed to deliver on their reputation.

And with this method from the Spurs board now another failure on their record, it does feel as if the logical step is to return to a manager of Mauricio Pochettino's mould.

The Argentine has been linked with the job in north London but reports would suggest he has not been contacted by Spurs with some board members holding reservations about reappointing him.

And in Nagelsmann they could well have that with the 35-year-old having a lot of experience at big clubs despite his young age.

But the big issue seems to be that the German is keen to wait until the summer to assess his options with suggestions the Real Madrid job could potentially open up for him.

Although it is understandable why Nagelsmann may think this way, after Conte, Spurs surely want a manager who is only interested in the north London club.

And it seems as if Pochettino is keen to make his return to Spurs after over three years since his sacking in 2019.

Nagelsmann has displayed a lot of positives for Spurs with his attacking style of football, favourable age and experience with players at the highest level.

But it will be interesting to see whether the pressure grows on Levy to make an appointment before the end of the season depending on how the results unfold under Cristian Stellini.

Newcastle United are eyeing a summer transfer swoop for Watford youngster Adrian Blake, according to a recent report.

The Lowdown: Newcastle planning for the future

Newcastle’s recent additions to their backroom staff indicate they are putting a real focus on developing young players, recently agreeing a deal to bring in former Manchester City talent spotter Paul McLaren.

According to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, the Magpies are also set to poach Manchester United’s Head of Young Recruitment David Harrison, who will be brought in to work for the first team and oversee signings for the academy from clubs around the world.

Eddie Howe has already started to add youngsters to his squad, bringing in Garang Kuol from Central Coast Mariners earlier this season, while Juventus winger Samuel Iling-Junior is also being eyed for a potential summer switch.

The Latest: Blake targeted

As per a report from The Athletic, Newcastle are targeting a summer move for Blake, who has recently been promoted to Watford’s first-team squad, despite the fact he is just 17-years-old.

The teenager’s scholarship with the Championship club is set to expire at the end of June, and the Magpies, along with fellow Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur, are monitoring his situation, as are additional clubs from mainland Europe.

A Premier League scout who spoke to The Athletic claims that the prospect has impressed when playing for the under 21’s this season, and he is highly regarded by a number of clubs due to his competence in one v one situations, as well as his ability to use both feet.

Given that Watford do not have the best record in giving youth players a first team pathway, the report details that a move elsewhere is highly likely.

The Verdict: Get it done?

The London-born winger has made just one substitute appearance for the Watford first team, indicating he is some way off being a viable option for Newcastle, however his record at youth level indicates he is an exciting young player.

In the FA Youth Cup this season, the Englishman has scored two goals and bagged two assists in four appearances, and his teammate Ezio Touray has recently named him as the most talented young player at Vicarage Road.

Considering the level of interest in Blake, the Magpies face a real battle for his signature, but he is an excellent young player, showing signs that he is capable of one day being an important first team player.

Steve Kirby, once reputed as one of the most passionate competitors in cricket, not averse to a famous sledge or two, has been appointed as head coach of MCC, proof perhaps that even the wildest players mature into establishment jobs and the MCC, these days at least, has a broader attitude to life.Kirby, a ginger-haired never-say-die pace bowler for Yorkshire, Gloucestershire and Somerset, will oversee all aspects of the MCC’s coaching structures, including the MCC Young Cricketers, who compete in the 2nd XI Championship, the MCC Academy based at Lord’s and the Club’s burgeoning community coaching programmes.He will assume the role in late April, replacing Mark Alleyne, whose seven-year term has ended. His “infectious love of cricket”, as cited by the MCC, is bound to challenge the next generation of players in ways they have yet to imagine.Kirby’s most famous outburst – and he must be weary of hearing it – was allegedly when he informed Michael Atherton that he had “seen better players in my fridge” – an assessment that as far as is known he has never fully explained. Perhaps alongside the milk and the probiotic yogurt he had a perishable figure of Wally Hammond?The player himself later gave his own version of what passed, suggesting that the sledge had actually been “I’ve seen better batters in my fish and chip shop,” which sounded a little more logical.The irresistible vision cannot be resisted of future players in MCC caps lambasting their opponents in colourful language that has rarely entered the annals of the most famous private cricket club in England. It is doubtless unfair, because Kirby has many qualities, but it is irresistible all the same.There were few more committed cricketers than Kirby and his sheer love of the game is sure to be communicated to the next generation of MCC cricketers.With less ambition, he would never have made the grade. He began his career at Leicestershire as a 17-year-old but after suffering a back injury was released from the before playing a first-class match.His first-class debut for Yorkshire in 2001 was a revelation – not just because he was born in Lancashire, on the other side of the Pennines. He took 7-50 on his first-class debut and amassed 47 wickets at just over 20 runs apiece in a championship-winning season. Raw of bone and unpretentious of nature, he was instantly one of the fastest bowlers in England, obsessively committed to attack, stomping through the season with the gait of an American gold prospector.Yorkshire released Kirby three years later at his own request. His future was in doubt, Kirby would go on to take 572 first-class wickets for three counties in a fourteen-year playing career. His sheer desire won him four England A tours. That England debut never came and, on balance, he could not fairly complain..Kirby has been a Member of MCC since 2010 and played in the annual Champion County match on four occasions, taking 5 for 29 against Nottinghamshire in Abu Dhabi in 2011. He has represented MCC on overseas tours to Papua New Guinea and Fiji and also to Argentina. His coaching experience has been earned with county academies at Oxford MCC University and by heading community coaching programmes throughout the South-West.John Stephenson, MCC’s head of cricket, said: “Steve’s passion for the role and for MCC shone through and this was a key reason why we decided to appoint him. He has energy, drive and commitment in spades and his ambition to drive forward all the club’s coaching structures was clear throughout the robust interview process.”With a successful playing career and impressive coaching credentials, we feel we have, in Steve, someone who is going to really inspire young cricketers of all ages either to take up the game or to take their game to the next level.”His infectious love of cricket will also rub off on our MCC Academy and Community coaches and we very much look forward to him joining the staff as we start another busy cricket season.”Kirby said: “Words can’t describe how excited I am to be taking on such a prestigious role of MCC head coach and I can’t wait to get started. Mark Alleyne did a tremendous job over the previous seven years and they are very big boots to fill.”This role is about helping to unearth the hidden talent of young players from all age groups and backgrounds, helping them to excel in their dreams of playing professional cricket but most importantly helping them to become truly well-rounded confident people who can cope with any hurdle that life throws at them.”I want to teach them to treasure and respect the values MCC stands for within the game, nurturing them to be role models and ambassadors that MCC can be proud of, but most importantly that they are extremely proud to say they are a real part of.”

Allan Donald has stated his desire to be Australia’s reverse swing sage after he was announced as the national team’s bowling coach for the tour of Sri Lanka

Daniel Brettig28-Apr-2016Allan Donald has stated his desire to be Australia’s reverse swing sage after he was formally announced as the national team’s bowling coach for the tour of Sri Lanka in July, with the possibility of a longer term appointment to follow.Cricket Australia confirmed the appointment on Thursday, with Donald revealing he had first been approached by Australia’s coach Darren Lehmann during the brief tour of South Africa that preceded the World Twenty20 in India. Donald’s record of success as a bowler on the subcontinent was a key factor in the choice, as Australia face tours of Sri Lanka and India either side of the next home summer.”From a Test match point of view you need to be using that new ball and using it really well, and being very disciplined,” Donald said of bowling on the subcontinent. “You take the conditions, not only the pitch but the heat the players have got to deal with, the humidity and that sort of thing but reverse swing is massive in the subcontinent. I’ve played enough against Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis to know what it takes to be able to execute that, it’s a massive key.”I certainly want to take reverse swing to another level – I think Australia have done it pretty well but I think there’s a lot more to it and a lot more skill to take a lot further. That for me is going to be a massive skill over there. To take 20 wickets over there you’ll need patience, discipline and skill, but reverse swing will be a massive key to making that happen.”Lehmann said he expected Donald to challenge conventional Australian thinking as the team tries to find ways to succeed away from familiar conditions. “He brings a wealth of experience with him and our guys will benefit greatly from having him around,” Lehmann said.”His Test record speaks for itself and he was without a doubt one of the most formidable bowlers of his generation. He has also had considerable success in subcontinent conditions and will bring a fresh perspective, and challenge some of our thinking.”Donald worked with South Africa’s bowlers from 2011 to 2015 but his contract was not renewed following last year’s World Cup. He said it was vital that he took time to build relationships with the current crop of fast men including Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood, in what he hopes will grow into a longer term posting.”There’s no question if that opportunity does come a long then I’d love to work with Boof and his team without a shadow of a doubt,” Donald said. “For the moment it’s an opportunity just to come in and spend some time with the Australian culture … being part of that now is very special for me and very humbling. But if it does happen to be a long-term thing I’d absolutely love to do that. We’ll take it small steps at a time and see how that goes.”You can’t sit sit down and say ‘what am I trying to do’, I’ll be trying to sit down and get to know these guys for a period of time and then do what I can to help. I played cricket a lot against Australia and one thing that I have a lot of respect for is the way the Australians play their cricket.”It’s always giving it a crack and always willing to take a risk to give it a crack. Something I’ve always prided myself on as a bowler myself, so that sort of positive energy will help to get that across to some of the young guys in this Australian attack.”CA also named Stuart Law as interim batting coach for the tour, with Greg Blewett to be unavailable on parental leave. Sridharan Sriram, who worked with Australia prior to the World T20, will take the reins as fielding coach.