A look at what Pakistan, Ireland and West Indies need to do to qualify for the World Cup quarter-finals from Group B

Shiva Jayaraman07-Mar-20153:20

Impact of Ireland’s win on Group B

While Pakistan’s win against South Africa has given them a chance to qualify for the quarter-finals without getting into the complications of net run-rate, Zimbabwe’s loss to Ireland has made them the second team from Group B to be knocked out of this World Cup after UAE.With a win against West Indies, India have ensured a place in the last eight. They are likely to end up topping the group should they win at least one of their remaining two games – against Ireland and Zimbabwe. South Africa’s loss to Pakistan hasn’t done any real damage to their chances of qualifying, as they still have a game against UAE left. Their superior NRR will ensure that they qualify as the second team from Group B in the event that Ireland lose at least one of their two remaining games. This leaves three teams – Pakistan, Ireland and West Indies – fighting for the remaining two spots in the last eight.Pakistan – Pakistan have one match left against Ireland. A win in this game will send them through to the quarter-finals. A loss though, will bring NRR into play. Should it come to that for Pakistan, they will be fighting for a berth in the quarter-finals based on NRR with West Indies, assuming the likely event of West Indies beating UAE in their final game.Ireland – Ireland have six points and two matches still to go – against India and Pakistan. They have to get a point from one of those games to sail through to the knockouts. Though Ireland managed to add two important points to their account with their win over Zimbabwe, the narrow margin means that they haven’t improved upon their negative NRR. As it stands, Ireland have the worst NRR (-0.820) out of the three teams in contention. Losses in both these games will, in all likelihood, send them out of the World Cup because of their inferior NRR, given the likelihood of West Indies beating UAE.West Indies – West Indies are the only team out of the three in contention to be completely dependent on other results to qualify. They will have to beat UAE to begin with and preferably by a huge margin. If Ireland beat India, that will leave only one spot to fight for. If Pakistan also lose to Ireland, then it will come down to NRR between West Indies and Pakistan. A Pakistan win in that game will knock West Indies out. If Ireland lose both their remaining games, West Indies will in all likelihood qualify ahead of Ireland on account of their superior NRR.If the game between India and Ireland is washed out or tied, then Ireland will advance to the quarter-finals. Pakistan will then need an outright win against Ireland or a NRR healthy enough to pip West Indies. If any of the last two games in Group B – Pakistan v Ireland or West Indies v UAE – is washed out or tied then it will be curtains for West Indies.

Results on the field have remained inconsistent, but Delhi Daredevils have the ingredients in place for a bigger push next season

Arun Venugopal16-May-20153:54

We need to find a winning culture – Duminy

Tournament overviewAhead of IPL 2015, Delhi Daredevils had more than one challenge confronting them. Firstly, they had to up their game on the field. After two consecutive years of finishing last, Delhi Daredevils’ big buys had misfired in 2014. Secondly, with the team not being taken seriously enough as a championship contender, their profile needed a boost.The owners decided to do something about it and made a statement of intent four months ahead of IPL 2015 by offloading 13 players, including Kevin Pietersen, Ross Taylor, Dinesh Karthik and M Vijay.With their purse fattened they splurged money on Yuvraj Singh, the costliest buy in the auction at Rs 16 crore, as much to strengthen their squad as to attract advertisers, perhaps more of the latter than the former. There were other big investments in the form of Angelo Mathews (Rs 7.5 crore), Zaheer Khan (Rs 4 crore), Amit Mishra (Rs 3.5 crore), Shreyas Iyer (Rs 2.6 crore) and Gurinder Sandhu (Rs 1.7 crore).As Daredevils’ campaign winds down, they will perhaps have mixed feelings. If they were to strictly go by the bottomline – Daredevils will finish seventh – then things haven’t improved a great deal.But a closer look would reveal that they have made incremental gains to their performances and, with a bit of luck, could have been placed higher. What also hurt them was their inability to string together consistently good performances, their graph an alternating pattern of wins and losses. Captain JP Duminy conceded that his team fell short when it came to closing out games.High PointGoing into the season, Daredevils had an embarrassing record to set straight, that of losing nine IPL matches in a row, and two last-ball defeats, against Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals, made it 11 on the trot. The long-awaited win finally came against Kings XI Punjab, with Mayank Agarwal and Yuvraj Singh scoring fifties. They followed it up with a four-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad courtesy Duminy’s all-round performance. That was the only instance of Daredevils winning two consecutive games.Shreyas Iyer has justified his Rs. 2.6 crore price tag with over 400 runs in his debut season•BCCILow PointAt the end of eight games, Daredevils, after crushing Kings XI Punjab by nine wickets, had won four and lost as many. They were in with a decent shout of qualifying for the playoffs at that point, but then went off the boil, losing four games in a row. Daredevils also suffered a 10-wicket defeat at the hands of Royal Challengers Bangalore after being bowled out for 95.Top of the classWhen Shreyas Iyer was signed for Rs 2.6 crore, there was disbelief and curiosity in equal measure. Iyer, Mumbai’s highest run-getter in the Ranji Trophy, was an investment that appeared to appreciate as the season went on. One of the best young players of IPL 2015, Iyer, 20, is comfortably the leading run-getter for Daredevils with 419 runs* at an average of 34.91, including four fifties.Despite the impressive numbers, Iyer admitted his preparation wasn’t ideal ahead of the IPL. “I wasn’t prepared as I didn’t know where I’ll bat,” Iyer told ESPNcricinfo. “The preparation was not the best but I took the confidence of a good Ranji season.”Flop buyAt the other end of the spectrum is Yuvraj Singh, who didn’t do much justice to his price tag. He managed 237 runs at 19.75 and didn’t do much with the ball either.Tip for 2016 Daredevils have in the past been guilty of changing the core of their team too often. This time, as Duminy said, Daredevils are on the “right track”, and have the building blocks in place for next year. If they can ensure continuity and put together some consistent performances, the results might not remain elusive for too long.

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Apr-2015Piyush Chawla broke the 42-run opening stand by dismissing McCullum for 19•BCCIAndre Russell then removed Suresh Raina for 17 to leave Super Kings at 67 for 3 in the 10 over•BCCIKnight Riders bowlers maintained the pressure by removing MS Dhoni and Dwayne Bravo to leave Super Kings at 88 for 5 after 13 overs•BCCIFaf du Plessis was Super Kings’ top-scorer with a run-a-ball 29, as they ended up with 134 for 6•BCCIRobin Uthappa got Knight Riders’ chase off to a blistering start, slamming Ishwar Pandey and Mohit Sharma for 11 and 13 runs in the third and fourth overs•BCCIR Ashwin gave away just five runs in his two overs and picked the key wickets of Uthappa and Manish Pandey, leaving Knight Riders at 64 for 3 in eight overs•BCCIWith 14 runs required from the final over, Bravo conceded only 12 against Ryan ten Doeschate to seal a two-run victory•BCCI

The perils of being Kemar Roach, plus ridiculous paintings, and all kinds of peripheral Ashes action

Alex Bowden21-Aug-2015One of the joys of Twitter this week was being able to debate the artistic merits of Shane Warne’s painting with people the world over.

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If you’ve not seen the work in question, it reveals a lot about the man who commissioned it. There’s JFK; there’s Mick Jagger; there’s Angelina Jolie (topless); and there’s… Dimitri Mascarenhas.Warne himself is pictured deep in conversation with the Boss. “Springsteen’s got a cricket ball in his hand, so he’s just sort of asking me questions about cricket,” Warne explained while talking viewers through the mural as part of a Sky TV programme about his private life.Witnessing the work, you might well ask whether the owner is actually an 11-year-old trapped inside the body of a creepily plastic-looking 45-year-old. Is there any evidence that Warne is, in fact, a grown-up?

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You could argue that Warne deserves more respect, but respect is earned. Take Chris Rogers, for example. His colleagues gave heartfelt tributes ahead of his final Test.

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Rogers is one Aussie who’s had a reasonably productive summer in England. Even those not in the Test team haven’t been having the best of times.James Faulkner’s with Lancashire, but is being a bit needy.

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Glenn Maxwell’s on the other side of the Pennines with Yorkshire, but is struggling for runs even in friendlies.

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Meanwhile, Australia coach Darren Lehmann has seen some of the great stadia of the world – Eden Gardens, the MCG – but his critical faculties have deserted him to such an extent that he’s now filled with admiration for… the Britannia Stadium in Stoke.

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At least Peter Siddle’s notched a few wins.

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Elsewhere, Kemar Roach has been keeping busy with the three Fs.

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But one F has been filling more time than the others.

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Maybe the five o’clock run is a fourth F.But he doesn’t run everywhere.

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Presumably it was a different car that nearly ran her down and not Kemar’s…Finally, if you’ve ever wondered about the popularity of Nando’s among cricketers, this provides evidence that many of them look for fine dining in the wrong places.

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Full marks for making the effort to swear in French, though.

Pace, spin, and a cameo with the bat. Gurinder Sandhu’s all-round performance was vital in securing victory against India A, and bodes well for Australian cricket

Deivarayan Muthu01-Aug-2015Gurinder Sandhu was only two Sheffield Shield games old when he claimed the Steve Waugh Medal in 2013 for his bustling fast bowling. Sandhu had earlier impressed in the Under-19 World Cup in 2012 in Australia, claiming 10 wickets from six matches at an average of 18.60. Three years later, Sandhu has added another bow to his string: offspin.Sandhu finished as the joint-highest wicket-taker in Australia A’s 1-0 series win against India A in Chennai, but it was his adaptability that stood out. He sussed out the conditions intelligently and outwitted the hosts, who normally thrive on spin.It wasn’t the first time he had thought on his feet. Sandhu had employed offspin in the first unofficial Test, too, but emphasised that pace was his top priority.”If conditions are helping a little bit [I will bowl spin],” he said. “If you have to try something different and if the captain needs to try something different, break a partnership before tea or before tea or before lunch yesterday, I am happy to put my hand up and say I will give you an over or two. But definitely will keep bowling pace and that’s my main focus.”Sandhu began the final day from around the wicket, perhaps hoping to exploit the rough outside the left-hander’s off stump. He needed only three overs to pick up three wickets, and Australia A only 20 minutes to clean up the tail. Sandhu was not afraid to give the ball air and put revs on it.”For me, it is not about thinking too much, just putting revs on the ball and picking wickets, try and break a partnership and keep it simple,” Sandhu said. “I am not even a part-time offspinner.”Sandhu may not have been aware of the challenges of being pulled out of his comfort zone prior to the tour, but he was up to it if not a step ahead on a typically slow Chennai pitch. For somebody who had bowled only a solitary over of spin in the Sheffield Shield, this was reward for adaptability. Australia A captain Usman Khawaja had so much faith in Sandhu, he was even given a slip and a couple of short-leg fielders. He subsequently delivered and vindicated Khawaja’s faith by bringing the short-leg fielders into play with good lift.”I have only tried offspin for an over in a Shefield Shield game. The skipper had some faith in me and the conditions are more suitable to spin,” Sandhu said.Using his height, Sandhu generated great bounce and a decent amount of spin to have Shreyas Gopal caught at forward short leg, while B Aparajith popped one to backward short leg. Sandhu also accounted for Varun Aaron in a stellar spell which read 3-2-2-3. From an overnight total of 267 for 6, India A slumped to 274 all out in the second innings.Sandhu credited Australia’s senior team spin coach John Davison and Australia A team consultant S Sriram for offering advice on spin, and said that spending time with leading Australian offspinner Nathan Lyon while playing for NSW had helped.”We have the academy in Brisbane, the National Cricket Academy. I have been working with John Davison, he has been the spinning coach for the Australian team a little bit,” Sandhu said. “He has been working with Nathan Lyon, Ashton Agar, James Muirhead and all these guys. He has been talking with me for about 15 months. He has given me a few little cues about when you do this its better and try avoiding doing it. Even talking to Steven O’Keefe and Nathan Lyon with the [NSW] Blues. Just pick their brains.”Sandhu also tested India A with offcutters, but when the ball was new, he combined well as a pacer with Andrew Fekete, having Abhinav Mukund and Cheteshwar Pujara ducking and weaving; Sandhu’s first ball of the game had zipped through outside off to Matthew Wade.He ditched pace for offspin for one over in the second session on the opening day, but realising there was not much turn, he reverted to bowling fast, nailing Pragyan Ojha’s stumps with an accurate yorker in a spell of 7.5-2-15-3, and rolling over India for 135.Pace. Spin. Cameo with the bat. Sandhu has caught the eye, again. Khawaja was left joking: “Maybe G [Sandhu] can open the batting too [for Australia]. He can do everything else.”

Stats highlights from the third day at The Oval

S Rajesh22-Aug-2015126.33 Alastair Cook’s batting average in follow-on innings: in three such innings he has scores of 118 (versus Sri Lanka), 176 (versus India), and 85.2 Batsmen who have scored three centuries in follow-ons – Martin Crowe and Michael Vaughan. Cook fell 15 short of becoming the third.0 Number of hundreds for Cook in 28 Test innings at home against Australia; his highest is 96, and he has six 50-plus scores, but an average of 29.60. In Australia he averages 49.53, with four hundreds in 27 innings.12.77 Adam Lyth’s series average, the second-lowest for an opener who has batted at least eight times in an Ashes series. The only opener who had a worse series, though, went on to have a great career: Graham Gooch averaged 12.12 in the 1981 Ashes, which was also a series England won. Michael Atherton did only slightly better in 1998-99, averaging 13.75 also in eight innings.16.33 England’s average opening partnership in the series. Only five times have they had poorer returns from their opening pair in an Ashes series, of which three were before 1900. The most recent such instance was in the 1989 series, when England’s average opening stand was 14.54, and their highest partnership 35. The highest for them in this series is 32.1 Number of times Michael Clarke has enforced the follow-on, in his 47 Tests as captain. There were five matches when Clarke had the opportunity the do so, but this Oval Test is the first time he has actually enforced it. Australia won each of the other four Tests when they didn’t, though. Among the recent Australian captains, Ricky Ponting enforced it four times out of 13 Tests when he had the opportunity to do so, Steve Waugh eight out of eight, and Mark Taylor three out of five.0.87 Peter Siddle’s economy rate, which is the fourth best by an Australian seamer in a Test in the last 40 years (with a 15-over cut-off). The best during this period is by Shane Watson, who had figures of 15-11-11-0 against England at Trent Bridge in 2013.332 Australia’s first-innings lead, their seventh highest in a Test against England since 1980. Their highest during this period is 453, at Headingley in 1993.

The moment that matters above all to every title-winning Yorkshire captain is the first touch of the trophy. Andrew Gale was denied the honour last year, but not this time

Jon Culley at Lord's09-Sep-2015For Andrew Gale, payback time came six minutes after three o’clock, when applause broke out among the Yorkshire supporters who had made the journey south. Out in the middle with Yorkshire two wickets down but already only 20 runs behind Middlesex’s first-innings score, the Yorkshire captain had just pulled James Harris for his sixth boundary but a glance up towards the visitors’ balcony confirmed that what he was hearing was nothing whatsoever to do with the shot he had just played.The hugs and high fives being exchanged by his team-mates and the Yorkshire coaching staff signalled the start of celebrations with the news from Trent Bridge that Nottinghamshire had been bowled out with only one batting bonus point, leaving Gale’s team out of reach of all challengers, County Champions for the second year running.For Gale, if the job were to be completed anywhere other than Headingley, it would be here, at the home of cricket. Actually, I suspect that’s probably not true. For the sheer personal satisfaction of being able to stand, arms aloft, trophy raised above his head, putting all the air in his lungs into a long, loud roar of triumph in front of the Victorian pavilion and the Long Room and the blazers and ties and all the other symbols of the cricket establishment that haughtily stole his moment of glory a year ago, for Gale, Lord’s would be first choice, second and third.He has tried not to say so publicly, but you suspect that when he admitted the other day that he had been thinking about this game for some weeks it was about more than simply working out the earliest moment at which Yorkshire could be champions.It was about a proud Yorkshireman, a Dewsbury lad, standing on the game’s most hallowed grass, telling anyone who cared to know that here was Andrew Gale, Yorkshire captain, title-winning Yorkshire captain not once but twice, back to claim his rightful prize, one hand on the silverware, the other metaphorically behind his back, showing two fingers.Make no mistake, what happened at Trent Bridge last year, with Gale suspended for dissent amid dubious allegations of racist abuse and told that for him to raise the trophy as captain would be “inappropriate”, left a deeply bitter taste.Martyn Moxon, Yorkshire’s director of professional cricket, recalled how deeply Gale was affected at being denied what should have been his sweetest moment. “To see his reaction, when he was told he couldn’t even be in the photographs, was terrible,” Moxon said. “We felt it was very unjust and we just felt desperately sorry for him.”So everybody at the club is delighted for Galey in particular. To win it again and have the chance to lift the trophy as well will be fantastic for him and he will enjoy the moment.”Gale himself, while keen now to put that memory to bed, admits that he wondered whether it might be his one and only opportunity to realise the dream.”I’ve represented this club since I was 10 years old and come up through the ranks only to be told last year I couldn’t lift the trophy,” he said. “The thought was in my mind that it might be my one chance and it had been taken away.”So for us to back it up this year and for me to be given another opportunity is overwhelming. And if you are not going to lift the trophy on your own ground, there is no better place to do it than here.”In truth, Gale has been a driven man since the day he signed his first professional contract as a Yorkshire cricketer, as an 18-year-old left-handed batsman and leg-break bowler who had wanted to become a footballer but played the summer game so impressively, with Gomersal and then Cleckheaton in the Yorkshire leagues, that it was soon clear where he was more likely to enjoy a sustained career.He made his mark first in the one-day sides but, by 2008, he was a regular member of the Championship team, showing enough leadership potential that when Anthony McGrath resigned as captain in 2009 Yorkshire turned to Gale who, at 26 years and 24 days old and by now an England Lions batsman, was appointed the county’s youngest professional captain.Gale took on the role both with pride and conviction. In his first season in charge Yorkshire were third in the Championship, only seven points behind Nottinghamshire. A dip followed, 2011 bringing relegation for the team and a broken arm for their captain, although his own form had been good.The following year, with the fruits of Yorkshire’s refocusing on home-grown talent beginning to bear fruit, with Gale now a player with the experience and gravitas to command respect and commitment from the dressing room, and with the international experience and enthusiasm of Jason Gillespie added to the mix as first-team coach, promotion was won at the first attempt.

The moment that matters above all, the one that sits at the very heart of all the memories of every successful Yorkshire captain, is the first touch of the trophy, the symbolic recognition of all-conquering achievement

By 2013 Gale’s fitness was becoming a background issue. Restricted by a hip injury in 2012, his form since then has ebbed and flowed, although 2013 did bring his career-highest innings of 272 against Nottinghamshire at Scarborough, where the sea air has brought restorative benefits for his batting more than once.The quality of his captaincy did not waver, however, and his willingness to sacrifice himself for the greater good of the team has only enhanced the respect in which he is held by both the team and the club. It might also be pointed out that the match in which he left himself out last season – at Lord’s against Middlesex, as it happens – was the only one in the Championship that Yorkshire lost.By last season the possibility of a future in Test cricket had gone, realistically, which meant that he knew that winning the title would almost certainly be the pinnacle of his career. Nowhere is the honour and prestige of winning a County Championship celebrated more than in Yorkshire, where successful captains ascend to a role-call of greats and can look ahead to a lifetime held in reverential esteem.Andrew Gale fell two runs short of a century on the day he skippered Yorkshire to a second title•Getty ImagesYet the moment that matters above all, the one that sits at the very heart of all the memories of every successful Yorkshire captain, is the first touch of the trophy, the symbolic recognition of all-conquering achievement, the confirmation that everything he had striven for had been attained, that the prize is his.It is why, after his regrettable altercation with Ashwell Prince and what appeared to be a determination within the England & Wales Cricket Board to throw the book at him, the denial of that moment at Trent Bridge last September, when victory over Nottinghamshire clinched Yorkshire’s first title for 13 years, was so deeply painful.It left Gale to contemplate the possibility that he could finish his career, the 12th Yorkshire captain to win the title alongside Lord Hawke, Brian Sellars, Brian Close and the rest, without having experienced the ultimate taste of victory.He admits now that never a day has passed this summer, whether it has been spent in the nets, on the field or in the gym, where he has worked as hard as any of his younger colleagues to keep ahead of the physical challenges he faces, in which that haunting thought has not crossed his mind.It has been his own extra motivation, he says, from the first gentle pre-season warm-up to the rallying cry he delivered to his team before they took the field here, to which his bowlers, the old warhorse Ryan Sidebottom in particular, responded with such emphatic, devastating effect: 5 for 18 as Middlesex fell for 106. He didn’t do badly himself either, striking 98 as Yorlshire finished 132 ahead with a wicket remaining.”Galey is Yorkshire through and through, he bleeds Yorkshire and that means a great deal to the lads,” Sidebottom said, the first bottle of champagne disappearing fast on the press conference table as he, Gale and coach Jason Gillespie sought to express their feelings.”What happened last year hurt us too and we wanted to win again not just for ourselves but for him.”Now, with Middlesex seen off and Nottinghamshire’s hypothetical chance gone too, Gale will have his due, he will feel the euphoria, he will exorcise his demons, and it will be all the more glorious for the coup de grace having been delivered on this field.

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Nov-2015Joe Root helped England recover with a rapid 32…•Getty Images…but Shahid Afridi’s star man celebration came out as he struck twice in an over inside the Powerplay•AFPJames Vince was struggling for timing but he was still at the crease•AFPHe was rapidly losing partners, however, as Mohammad Rizwan ran out Jos Buttler…•AFP…and Umar Akmal clung on to a high catch to remove Sam Billings and leave England 86 for 6•AFPVince found an ally in Chris Woakes and they put on 60 in quick time•AFPWoakes smashed three sixes in his 37, helping get England’s total up to 154•AFPDavid Willey bowled an eventful first over, featuring a wicket, four wides and then, from the last ball…•AFP…another run-out involving Mohammad Hafeez•AFPWilley then added another wicket when he removed Rafatullah Mohmand lbw•AFPShoaib Malik took Pakistan to the brink of victory with a superbly controlled innings•AFPBut Anwar Ali and Sohail Tanvir could only scramble a bye off the last ball•AFPEoin Morgan and Jos Buttler celebrate England’s Super Over success•AFP

A career that was dotted with rejections and a life-threatening accident is back on track courtesy Krishna Das’ own determination and mentorship from Sanath Kumar

Arun Venugopal22-Nov-2015Krishna Das, a medium-pacer from Assam, has 35 wickets from six games this season at an average of 10.97. He is the joint third -highest wicket-taker, the only seamer in the top-five, and the main reason why Assam have done well. He is 25. It is a miracle he is alive.On October 6, 2006, on Lakshmi Pooja day, Krishna and three other friends were returning home after taking in the festivities. Krishna remembers that around 9-9.30 pm a truck, reversing from a gas station, rammed into the Maruti Zen in which they were driving. They were all injured, but Krishna, who was on the left rear seat bore the brunt of the accident.When he regained consciousness two days later, he was swathed in bandages. Krishna had lost a tooth, suffered a bruised nose, a broken left arm and had ten stitches on the tongue. He spent 16 days, including his 16th birthday, in hospital. Three agonising months later, he was back on the cricket field doing what he loved: bowling long spells.How did he manage such a quick turnaround?”I actually felt bad then [after the accident], looking at my family and [Assam coach] Sanath [Kumar] sir,” Krishna tells ESPNcricinfo. “My family and friends were fully supportive, and that motivated me to get better [sooner than expected]. (Sanath is like God to me). He as well as the state association and Abu Nechim helped me out financially then.”Krishna says he didn’t for a moment entertain thoughts that his cricketing career was finished. “My coaches and team-mates were egging me on to get better and resume playing soon,” he says. “My childhood coach Javed Akhtar Khan and Sanath sir would call me every day.”What also helped Krishna was he wasn’t left to wallow in pity. Once he was able to move around, his friends would take him out to watch cricket – inter-district, inter-club, anything. That, according to Krishna, touched him. “I felt that, ‘Yes this has happened, but how long am I going to get bogged down?'” he says. “There were so many friends and people around me who wanted me to come back to normalcy again. It made me more determined to get back on to the field again.”Krishna had a metal plate inserted to straighten his left arm – which he has till day – and gradually began to bowl in the dream of adding to his four caps for Assam. There were, however, other roadblocks that presented themselves. His first coach and mentor Sanath, who had picked up Krishna from the under-15 nets and thrust him into first-class cricket, had moved to Karnataka. This period coincided with Krishna falling off the Assam radar.He found a place in India’s under-19 teams, BCCI’s specialist academies, but was somehow not deemed good enough to play for Assam. In 2010, he was advised to focus on under-19 cricket with the World Cup approaching, and was not picked in the state side. “A selector told me I was part of the under-19 World Cup probables,” Krishna says. “I felt bad that I wasn’t allowed to play in the Ranji Trophy, which helped me gain recognition in the first place. Ultimately I wasn’t a part of the under-19 World Cup squad as well.”Krishna was dealt a bigger blow two years later when he was included neither in the Assam side nor in its under-25 team. “I felt horrible because I wasn’t picked in any side that represented Assam,” he says. At that point, Krishna’s only vocal backer, in Sanath’s absence, was Abu Nechim. Abu is his team-mate, “room-partner” and best friend. Ask Krishna about his role-models, and Waqar Younis or Allan Donald are trumped by Abu and Mark Ingty, a former Assam seamer.”When I started playing cricket, Abu was very promising at the junior level and I have always wanted to emulate him,” Krishna says. “We even made our Ranji Trophy debuts together, and share a great friendship.”Sanath’s comeback has brought him back into the team, where he belongs. He has had a hand in each of Assam’s three outright wins this season, and believes this is the best bowling attack Assam have had. Senior batsman KB Arun Karthik, who is Assam’s highest run-scorer this season, says Krishna’s biggest strength is his ability to bowl tirelessly. “He might not be too pacy, but can bowl 10 to 12 overs in one spell and get the ball to move both into the batsman and away from him,” Arun says.Through the ups and downs, Krishna has also learnt the importance of letting go. It is perhaps what has helped him reconcile with the accident. Krishna was told by his friends that after the accident his upper body lay suspended outside while waist down he was stuck inside the mangled car. The driver had fled the scene and a subsequent legal battle didn’t yield much monetary compensation.”It was a terrible accident, but it had to happen. I don’t want to lament about (this and that happened),” Krishna says. What rankles him, however, is he still can’t remember what exactly happened in the moments leading up to the accident. He says he tries to recollect the sequence every time he drives past the place. “I have to use that route every time I visit Javed sir at his academy, and I go there often,” he says. “The last thing I remember was I had asked my friend to change the song playing in the car’s stereo.”Ask him if he would have been a better bowler if not for the accident. “(maybe),” he replies and pauses. “.”

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jan-2016His opening partner Rohit Sharma, however, was unperturbed as he showed intent right from the start, scoring freely all around the wicket•Getty ImagesVirat Kohli, who joined him in the 7th over, built on the solid start as the the two brought up India’s 100 in the 22nd over•Getty ImagesKohli brought up his half-century with a superbly timed pull over fine leg. It came off 61 deliveries•Getty ImagesRohit then brought up his third ODI century in Australia off 122 balls courtesy seven fours and three sixes•AFPThe pair put on 207 for the third wicket; the mammoth stand studded with authoritative stroke play and fearless ball striking•AFPKohli fell in 45th over, caught at the long-on boundary, nine runs short of his century•Associated PressRohit continued his onslaught, powering India to 3 for 309 with an unbeaten 171 off 163 – breaking Viv Richard’s record of the highest score against Australia in Australia•AFPDebutant Barinder Sran got rid of Aaron Finch and David Warner in successive overs to give India a strong start in the chase•Getty ImagesBut Australia’s captain Steven Smith showed nothing had chanced since last summer and dominated the Indian bowling again•Getty ImagesGeorge Bailey, who could have been caught behind first ball, also had a grand time on a flat WACA pitch•Getty ImagesBoth batsmen reached centuries at rapid pace during their 242-run partnership for the third wicket•Getty ImagesR Ashwin dismissed Bailey (112) and then had Glenn Maxwell (6) caught at long-on, but Australia, by then, were in total control•Getty ImagesSmith held firm for 149 runs off 135 balls. All had seemed perfect for him to hit the winning runs, but he fell with Australia needing two runs off five balls. James Faulkner had no trouble taking care of that•Cricket Australia/Getty Images