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ScorecardIt was a startling change of narrative in Ranchi – the first day produced over 300 runs and the second, which turned out to be the final day of the match, resulted in 26 wickets and Shahbaz Nadeem took 11 for 90 to lead Jharkhand to an innings-and-71-run victory over Himachal Pradesh.It was deadly symmetry for the HP. They were bowled out for 133 in the first innings and were bundled out for the same total when they were asked to follow on. More fun with numbers: Nadeem, who was the wrecker-in-chief, gave away 45 runs in both innings.Jharkhand were not immune from the wrath of the bowlers either. They crumbled from an overnight 306 for 4 to 337 all out with left-arm spinner Bipul Sharma claiming 6 for 59. But HP’s response with the bat was woeful. Ankit Kalsi made a half-century, but he was the only man to score more than 22. Nadeem bowled only 14.2 overs and yet came away with seven wickets.With a lead of 204 runs, Jharkhand enforced the follow-on and hurtled to victory in 32.1 overs. This time there were no fifties. Prashant Chopra and Nikhil Gangta made 32 and 38. There were six single-digit scores around them. This time Jharkhand rallied around Nadeem. He took four wickets, Kaushal Singh took three Sonu Singh, on first-class debut, took two.
ScorecardFrom conceding a first-innings lead to sitting on the cusp of an outright victory, Saurashtra had a see-saw day to savor thanks to a Jadeja. Dharmendrasinh is a No. 11. He couldn’t have prevented his team being bowled out for 157, but he did ensure Kerala suffered a massive collapse in their second innings. His 6 for 59 was the major reason the hosts fell from 51 for 2 to 105 all out. That left Saurashtra with a target of only 115.Saurashtra resumed on 55 for 6 and received a much needed boost from 19-year old Samarth Vyas making a fine show of himself on first-class debut. He came in at No. 8 and struck 54 off 90 balls with two fours and three sixes. Thanks to him the final three wickets were able to add 87 runs and Saurashtra ended up with 157 runs – an agonizing nine runs away from Kerala’s 166.Spin had been the way to go in the first innings and Jadeja was given the new ball. After all, he had taken five wickets the first time around. The move worked as VA Jagadeesh, who had struck a half-century on the first day, was bowled in the fifth over. But he needed help to make the match-turning impact and that came from 24-year old Vandit Jivrajani (4 for 31), the offspinner who was making his first-class debut. They sank their teeth into the Kerala middle order – Sachin Baby out for 6 and Sanju Samson bagged a duck as the score slipped from 51 for 2 to 57 for 7. Saurashtra gained a firm hold over the match and are now 99 runs away from a win with nine wickets in hand.
ScorecardHanuma Vihari, who began the second day in Hyderabad on 94, kicked on to make his third first-class double-century, propelling his team to 548 for 5. He occupied the crease for 555 minutes, striking 22 fours and two sixes to punish the Tripura attack.B Anirudh added only three runs to his overnight score of 75 before he was pinned lbw by seamer Manisankar Murasingh. Bavanaka Sandeep was more adhesive and kept Vihari good company in a 213-run partnership, the second 150-plus stand of the innings. Vihari was finally dismissed, by offspinner Swapan Das, for 219, but 26 runs each from Himalay Agarwal and Kolla Sumanth took Hyderabad to 548 before the declaration arrived.The hosts amplified their advantage further with former Under-19 pacer Chama Milind removing Tripura opener Virag Awate for 3. The day ended with Tripura facing a deficit of 535 runs.
ScorecardGoa piled on the runs against Jammu and Kashmir, declaring on 552 for 5, before pacers Rituraj Singh and Prasanth Parameshwaran dismissed the J&K openers inside four overs. Pranav Gupta and Ian Dev Singh survived till stumps but stare at a deficit of 509 runs.The day though belonged to Swapnil Asnodkar, who resumed from an overnight 74, stroked 28 fours and three sixes during his marathon innings of 232. The other overnight batsman – Sagun Kamat – scored a century of his own before he became Parvez Rasool’s second victim. Rasool claimed two more wickets but ended up conceding 169 runs.

With little more than two weeks left for the start of the Indian Premier League, the eight franchises will meet the IPL governing council on April 2 in Mumbai to discuss key issues like security and ticketing. The franchises will also seek clarity and help from the BCCI-backed IPL council on gaining exemption from paying entertainment tax to local governments on the matches they host.Charu Sharma, the CEO of the Bangalore franchise, said that IPL is a tournament run by the BCCI and if the board usually gets exemption from the tax while staging matches, the franchises also should get a similar treatment. “We don’t own the stadium or even the players for that matter,” Sharma told Cricinfo. “We have them in for a team activity, which is run by BCCI, and I think we should get exemption. We will raise the issue in the meeting.”The franchises are already in the process of fixing ticket prices for the matches – Rs 125 to well over 5000 in Bangalore, and between Rs 200 and 3000 for a game in Hyderabad – and one factor that would affect the rate is the entertainment tax. The working committee of the BCCI took a decision on March 25 that the franchises would be left to deal with the tax and the franchises, for their part, plan to seek exemption.”This is a BCCI-run event and we hope we would be exempt,” J Krishnan, the Hyderabad franchise CEO, said.Yogesh Shetty, the CEO of the Delhi team, however, said that they were ready for the probability of paying that tax. “We are a for-profit organisation and IPL is entertainment and I do see the government at state levels levying the tax. However, what we have to see is whether legally we come under the auspices of BCCI, which is a not-for-profit organisation, and if so can we be exempt from the tax. Anyway this is a state-level issue involving local governments and we will deal with it appropriately.”The franchises believe security and ticketing could be key issues, too. Most of the teams have no previous experience of organising a cricket match and plan to seek BCCI’s counsel in helping them get ready for the event.The Bangalore franchise will be hosting the opening ceremony of the tournament and plans to get clarity on the how the event should be hosted. “We have to make sure the ground doesn’t get affected,” said Sharma. “We will of course seek the help of the KSCA [Karnataka State Cricket Association] but we will be going into details of the launch in the meeting; what we can do and what we can’t.”Other issues like “look and feel of the stadium”, anti- doping procedures and anti-corruption protocol are also on the agenda, said a franchise representative.

Match facts

January 15, 2016
Start time 1320 local (0320 GMT)4:06

Agarkar: India must play wicket-taking bowlers

Big Picture

Australia carry a 1-0 series lead to the second match in Brisbane, although there were several stages during the first ODI in Perth when India looked to be in control of the game. Batting first, they put on 1 for 149 in the first 30 overs and with so many wickets in hand, should have been looking at a total up around 350. That they reached only 309 was perhaps a disappointment, but it didn’t seem that it would matter when Australia stumbled early in their chase and were 2 for 21. Again, India were well on top.But then came the partnership that changed the match, a 242-run stand between Steven Smith and George Bailey that was Australia’s fourth-highest of all time in one-day internationals, and their highest for the third wicket. That the chase came down to the last over perhaps suggested a tighter finish than it really was; for most of the last 10 overs, Australia needed less than a run a ball with plenty of wickets in hand.Rohit Sharma’s unbeaten 171 had gone in vain; he said India had suffered from being unsure how to pace their batting innings, and what would be a good total. Batting second once again might be an advantage at the Gabba, where although the pitch is good, expected afternoon and evening rain might bring adjusted targets into play. Duckworth-Lewis can favour the chasing team after mid-match rain, for they know precisely what tempo is required, unlike the side that has already batted.Whatever the case and whatever the chase, India can hardly afford another loss. If they find themselves 0-2 down in a five-match series, they will have no margin for error.

Form guide

Australia: WWLLW (last five completed matches, most recent first)

India: LLWLW

In the spotlight

It is often said that Shaun Marsh has been lucky to be given so many chances at Test cricket. By the same token, he has been unlucky not to play more than 46 ODIs. It is testament to the strength and stability of Australia’s one-day top order – and in recent years their penchant for choosing allrounders – that Marsh has played only 10 ODIs in the past four years. His game suits 50-over cricket, picking gaps and ticking the scoreboard along in the middle overs, and his ODI average of 39.81 is superior to past openers like Mark Waugh and Adam Gilchrist, as well as the incumbents David Warner and Aaron Finch. Warner’s absence for paternity leave should give Marsh a chance to bump his numbers up even further.In all of one-day international history, 7999 individual innings have been played against Australia. Rohit Sharma has played 19 of those and has been so successful that four of the top 20 ODI scores of all time against Australia belong to him. With a 500-run minimum, no batsman has a higher ODI average against Australia than Rohit’s 68.46. The latest of these monster innings was his 171 not out in Perth, the highest ODI score ever made against Australia in Australia. It turned out that India’s total was not sufficient, but if Rohit goes big again there is every chance of India levelling the series.

Team news

David Warner will miss the match after the birth of his second daughter, with Shaun Marsh set to take his place at the top of the order. Allrounder Mitchell Marsh will also take a rest before rejoining the squad for the third game in Melbourne. If the selectors want a fifth pace option they will need to include either Kane Richardson or John Hastings in the younger Marsh’s place.Australia (possible) 1 Shaun Marsh, 2 Aaron Finch, 3 Steven Smith (capt), 4 George Bailey, 5 Glenn Maxwell, 6 Matthew Wade (wk), 7 James Faulkner, 8 Kane Richardson/John Hastings, 9 Scott Boland, 10 Josh Hazlewood, 11 Joel Paris.There seems no real need to alter India’s batting line-up after they scored 300-plus in Perth, and while the pace bowlers did their job, the spinners were a touch expensive. It is possible that an extra fast man could come in given the likelihood of similar conditions at the Gabba; Ishant Sharma has been passed fit and is available for selection, or the uncapped Rishi Dhawan could debut, providing more of an all-round option.India (possible) 1 Shikhar Dhawan, 2 Rohit Sharma, 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Ajinkya Rahane, 5 Manish Pandey, 6 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin/Rishi Dhawan/Ishant Sharma, 9 Umesh Yadav, 10 Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 11 Barinder Sran.

Pitch and conditions

The Gabba pitch often has plenty of runs in it, though it is the venue where Australia were humiliated three years ago when they were swung out for 74 by Sri Lanka. Perhaps of more relevance is the weather forecast, which is for a sunny morning but a high chance of showers and rain developing in the evening, perhaps even a thunderstorm. Better get those Duckworth-Lewis calculations out.

Stats and trivia

• Virat Kohli needs 78 runs to reach 7000 in ODIs; if he gets there within his next six innings, he will beat AB de Villiers’ record of 166 innings and will be the fastest of all time to the milestone
• Barinder Sran was the 14th Indian to take three wickets on ODI debut; no bowler has ever taken more than three on debut for India
• Scott Boland was the third Australian to concede 70-plus runs on his ODI debut. His captain Steven Smith took 2 for 78 on debut in 2010, and 1970s fast man David Colley was the other

Quotes

Subscription TV channel Setanta Sports have paid an undisclosed sum to secure the UK rights to the Indian Premier League. The tournament will mark their first foray into live cricket coverage.Setanta have recently expanded into Premier League football and launched their own dedicated sports news channel. They will broadcast all 59 IPL games from April 18 to June 1 with matches due to start at 9.30am, 1.30pm or 2.30pm UK time. They will also repeat the games in peak time.”The Indian Premier League is going to be massive. We’re absolutely thrilled to acquire these rights and add another major sport to Setanta’s programme line-up,” Trevor East, Setanta’s director of sport, told . “Twenty20 cricket has been a phenomenal success and this tournament, with all its world-class players, is sure to capture the imagination of sports fans young and old.”I firmly believe the IPL will become a highlight of the international sporting calendar for years to come. That’s why we’ve shown our commitment to it by signing a five-year deal.”Currently there aren’t any England players involved in the IPL due to the clash with tours and the start of the domestic season.

ScorecardJake Lehmann (pictured playing in the BBL) was on 92 at stumps on the second day in Adelaide•Cricket Australia/Getty Images

Jake Lehmann was within sight of a second first-class century at stumps on the second day at Adelaide Oval, but South Australia still had plenty of work ahead of them after Queensland posted an imposing 6 for 474 in their first innings. At the close of play Lehmann was on 92 and Tim Ludeman was on 26, with the Redbacks at 5 for 252.Queensland legspinner Mitch Swepson had picked up 3 for 64 after veteran James Hopes struck in the first over of the South Australia innings, and Charlie Hemphrey was also credited with a wicket when Sam Raphael (65) stepped back onto the stumps off his bowling. But Lehmann was the key man for the Redbacks and had a strong chance of scoring his second ton in a five-game career.The Bulls had started the day on 5 for 357 and Jack Wildermuth, playing his sixth first-class match, registered his maiden century before Chris Hartley declared with him on exactly 100. Hartley had been the only Queensland batsman to lose his wicket on the second day, one of three victims in total for South Australia spinner Tom Andrews.

The ICC have given their strongest indication yet that Darrell Hair, the umpire who was reinstated yesterday, will return to Test umpiring for England’s home series against New Zealand in May.Hair has undergone a rehabilitation period since he was effectively removed from international cricket – with the exception of umpiring the occasional Intercontinental Cup match – in the aftermath of England’s forfeited Test against Pakistan at the Oval in 2006. Dave Richardson, the ICC’s general cricket manager, said yesterday that the board will “probably keep him away from Pakistan matches where we can” but added that Hair’s first real opportunity will come during England’s first home series of the summer.”Both teams rate Darrell Hair very highly,” Richardson said. “It’s likely that he will get an opportunity.”Hair’s reinstatement has sparked outrage in Pakistan, with Inzamam-ul-Haq, who captained Pakistan in the Oval Test, saying he was “shocked and disgusted” by the news. Shaharyar Khan, the Pakistan board chairman during the Oval Test, also expressed similar sentiments.

Spinners Jalaj Saxena, Sijomon Joseph and KC Akshay skittled Saurashtra for 95 as Kerala won by 309 runs in Thiruvananthapuram. Sanju Samson’s 175 had assisted Kerala’s comeback to seize control and stretch their lead to 411, handing Saurashtra 404 to chase on the last day.Joseph prompted Saurashtra’s slide as they resumed from their overnight score of 30 for 1, dismissing Robin Uthappa and Snell Patel early. The rest of the line-up, save Sheldon Jackson – failed to fire. Saxena and Akshay struck back-to-back, removing four batsmen for ducks, as Saurashtra lost five wickets in six overs. The win vaulted Kerala to second in the points table with one game to play.Siddharth Desai’s stunning debut season continued to get better. His five for along with and Piyush Chawla’s three-for spun Gujarat to a bonus-point win. Rajasthan were bowled out for 341 on the last day in Surat.Resuming on 183 for 4, Rajasthan lost their overnight batsman AR Gupta early on the day, but a 72-run sixth-wicket stand between Mahipal Lomror (60 off 98 balls) and Rajesh Bishnoi resurrected them, taking them to 265 for 5. With Rajasthan still needing 183 runs to erase the deficit, Bishnoi struck to end the stand, following which wickets fell successively. Chawla cleared the tail, and Rajasthan surrendered ten overs after tea, as Gujarat kept their top spot on the Group B table intact.Ajit Chahal’s five-for wrecked Jammu & Kashmir as Haryana won by 39 runs in Lahli. This was their first win of the season.Haryana added just six runs to their overnight score of 161 for 9, handing J&K 176 to chase. After losing their opener Ahmed Bandy in the fourth ball of their innings, Shubham Khajuria and Bandeep Singh added 47 runs for the second-wicket. Chahal triggered the collapse, removing Khajuria and Puneet Bisht in the 15th over and coming back in the 17th over to remove Bandeep Singh.The resistance for J&K came in the form of Owais Shah and captain Parvez Rasool in the middle-order. They added 54 runs to the sixth-wicket. Following their wickets in subsequent overs, Chahal and Ashish Hooda struck back-to-back to bowl J&K out for 157. Chahal finished with match figures of 8 for 117.

Hyderabad Heroes 143 for 6 (Rayudu 44, Maher 33) beat Lahore Badshahs 137 (Umar 43, Mahmood 34, Razzaq 3-18) by six runs
Scorecard

The Lahore Badshahs’ unconquered reign was finally brought to a close, as the Heroes defended a target of 144 with a disciplined bowling effort to go 1-0 up in the best-of-three finals. Fortunately for the Badshahs, they can still recover from the blip, but the loss couldn’t have come at a worse time.The Heroes decided to bat and Abdul Razzaq gave them the early momentum with a brisk 21 off 12 balls. Steady partnerships were forged during the Heroes’ innings – Jimmy Maher and Ambati Rayudu put on 27 before the latter and Kemp added 53 for the third wicket.Although the Badshahs didn’t manage to take wickets at regular intervals, they curbed the flow of runs. Mohammad Sami, who leaked runs in Thursday’s semi-final against the Kolkata Tigers, bowled his four overs first up for 15 runs. Mushtaq Ahmed gave one less in the middle overs, and the lack of runs on offer reflected in the tally for the Heroes batsmen: Maher 33 off 34, Rayudu 44 off 42, and Kemp 11 off 20.After 16 overs, Rayudu was sauntering with 23 off 32, but he did some damage from there on as 46 runs came off the last four overs bowled by Azhar Mahmood and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan. Rayudu was cut short of 44 by a direct hit from Inzamam-ul-Haq, but two no-balls from Naved-ul-Hasan in the final over saw him concede 17, and the Heroes reached 143..Razzaq got the first breakthrough as the Badshahs began their chase, Imran Nazir’s charge to send the ball into orbit sent him on the path to the dugout. Justin Kemp removed Humayun Farhat, and when Man-of-the-Match Stuart Binny picked up the prized scalps of Hasan Raza and Inzamam-ul-Haq, a seemingly easy target gained gargantuan proportions. At 50 for 4, the Badshahs were left needing a further 94 off ten overs.Opener Taufeeq Umar kept ticking the strike over at one end, but it was the pyrotechnics from Azhar Mahmood (34 off 16) that breathed life into the Badshahs’ innings.Naved-ul-Hasan made a few amends for his expensive analysis – 47 off four overs – with a six and a four in the penultimate over bowled by Nicky Boje, leaving his team with 12 to get off the 20th. The drama was heightened as Razzaq struggled with his line, giving away three wides. With seven required off four, Umar swing and missed, and the attempted single led to the run-out of Naved-ul-Hasan. Razzaq finally got it straight, and Sami’s bat met thin air – the wicket, a dot ball too, made it 7 off 2. Shahid Nazir, the star with the ball in Thursday’s match, failed to connect his first ball and was bowled when a last-ball six was needed to tie.The Heroes scraped home by six runs, and though they have the advantage, the form and prowess of the Badshahs will be tough to overcome for the second match in succession. The teams have a day’s break before the next game in Hyderabad on Sunday, and the Heroes could delight the city they represent by clinching the Rs 25 million (approx US$625,000) prize on offer.

Scorecard

Carl Hopkinson and Murray Goodwin both fell short of hundreds, but Sussex nevertheless made Surrey’s bowlers toil in the Hove sunshine to reach 318 for 5 at stumps on the second day.It was not exhilarating cricket by any means, in a match now reduced to three days after yesterday’s washout, but Surrey’s bowlers disappointed. In addition, their fielding lacked spark and accuracy; Usman Afzaal let through two very stoppable singles at cover and, for all his rich talent with the bat, remains an amusingly inept fielder. It is not a flaw that either Butcher – captain Mark or coach Alan – will accept, either.Hopkinson and Chris Nash began confidently, however, with Nash continuing his promising early-season form in an aggressive 46. Nash was off the mark with a sweetly timed on-drive off Jimmy Ormond, who today celebrated a renewal of his contract with Surrey. Ormond was reasonably tight, conceding 19 from his opening six overs and twice troubling Nash whose confidence threatened to overspill. Hopkinson, meanwhile, was more circumspect than his partner, but showed the straightest of bats to a half volley from Chris Jordan that sped through mid-on for four.Nash, who like Hopkinson has yet to reach three figures in his career, was stuck on 46 for nearly half-an-hour and his patience wore thin when he pulled a full delivery from Pedro Collins onto his stumps, ending an encouraging opening stand of 87. After the interval, Hopkinson began to free his arms but was fortunate not to lose his leg stump when he inside-edged Ormond for four. It was a rare lapse in concentration, as was Michael Yardy’s unconvincing sweep to Saqlain Mushtaq which flew to Butcher at slip. The pitch remained flat, the weather fair, but Surrey were just about hanging onto Sussex’s coat tails.Until, that is, Goodwin and Hopkinson combined in an afternoon of run-making. Hopkinson appears to revel in having a fluent partner at the other end, someone to keep the runs flowing while he grinds the bowlers down, and the recipe worked beautifully for Sussex in a third-wicket stand of 129. Jordan, in particular, fed Goodwin’s hunger for the fierce cut. Of Sussex’s top six, Chris Adams might scythe it with greater authority, but few can match Goodwin’s grace. A back-cut down to third man off Collins almost had the elderly members rising as one.Afzaal’s fumbling awkwardness in the covers threatened to encapsulate Surrey’s day in the field, with Goodwin and Hopkinson taking the score up to 246, but he was surprisingly tossed the ball by Butcher and the shock-tactic worked. Hopkinson, his concentration wavering, smacked a full-toss straight back into the slippery hands of Afzaal who held on comfortably.Goodwin, though, continued to drive with supreme timing through extra cover, cutting confidently when the length was too short, and a hundred appeared to be his for the taking. However, no Sussex batsman was to reach three figures and on 98, Goodwin feathered Matt Nicholson, returning for a final burst from the Sea End, to the wicketkeeper. Sussex might be dismayed in losing two batsmen in the nineties, but they remain in control of a match destined to be drawn after the first day’s washout.

Both Durham and Hampshire made inroads into the interrupted Championship match at Riverside on Friday. By lunch the home side had scored 141 runs, with Hampshire taking three wickets.With the crowd anticipating the approaching seasons 1,000 from Australian Simon Katich, he cut at a ball from Dimitri Mascarenhas as was caught high up at first-slip by Shane Warne, just four runs short of the magical target.Katich had batted for nearly three hours, sharing a 125 run partnership with makeshift captain Jon Lewis.Paul Collingwood was well held low down at second slip to give Hampshire their first bonus point of the match.Lewis who had batted patiently for four hours, finally fell when he played on to Shane Warne, but by the lunch interval on the second day Daley and Speight had added a further 74 in 15 overs.Rain and thunderstorms predictably arrived during the lunch break. By three pm, the deluge of hailstones, very heavy rain and thunder and lightniing gave umpires Benson and Steele little option but to abandon play for the day.